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Hegseth Discusses Iran with Netanyahu in Unannounced Visit to Israel, Officials Say

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a meeting with Britain's Defense Minister Wes Streeting at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on October 15, 2026. (AFP)
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a meeting with Britain's Defense Minister Wes Streeting at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on October 15, 2026. (AFP)
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Hegseth Discusses Iran with Netanyahu in Unannounced Visit to Israel, Officials Say

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a meeting with Britain's Defense Minister Wes Streeting at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on October 15, 2026. (AFP)
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a meeting with Britain's Defense Minister Wes Streeting at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, on October 15, 2026. (AFP)

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth discussed Iran with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during an unannounced visit to Israel on Monday, three Israeli officials said, as tensions flare between the US and Iran. 

The officials did not provide further details about the meeting, first reported by Axios. The Pentagon declined to comment. The Israeli prime minister's office ‌did not ‌immediately respond to a request for ‌comment. 

Hegseth ⁠said in a ⁠social media post that he had visited US service members in the Central Command area of responsibility, which covers the Middle East, northeast Africa and parts of Asia. 

Israel's Army Radio reported his meeting with Netanyahu took place ⁠at an air force base in ‌Israel's southern desert. 

Hegseth's ‌visit comes amid rising tensions in the Middle East ‌war as tensions flare between the US ‌and Iran over the Strait of Hormuz and as Yemen's Iran-allied Houthis continue their attacks on Saudi Arabia. 

It also came a day after US ‌President Donald Trump endorsed Netanyahu in next week's parliamentary election in Israel, ⁠the country's first ⁠ballot since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on southern Israel. 

US and Israeli forces launched joint strikes against Iran in late February, setting off the wider Middle East war. Netanyahu told Israeli media this month that he's not seeking to attack Iran before the October 27 Israeli election. Trump has said he will not attack Iran before US midterm elections in November. 

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World

IRGC: 2 Tankers Hit Mines, Set Ablaze South of Hormuz

FILED - 27 December 2011, ---, --: FILE PHOTO - A satellite picture provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), shows the Arabian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman. Photo: -/The Visible Earth/NASA/dpa
FILED - 27 December 2011, ---, --: FILE PHOTO - A satellite picture provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), shows the Arabian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman. Photo: -/The Visible Earth/NASA/dpa
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IRGC: 2 Tankers Hit Mines, Set Ablaze South of Hormuz

FILED - 27 December 2011, ---, --: FILE PHOTO - A satellite picture provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), shows the Arabian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman. Photo: -/The Visible Earth/NASA/dpa
FILED - 27 December 2011, ---, --: FILE PHOTO - A satellite picture provided by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), shows the Arabian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the Gulf of Oman. Photo: -/The Visible Earth/NASA/dpa

Two tankers were set ablaze and brought to a halt south of the Strait of ⁠Hormuz after hitting Iranian ⁠mines, the Revolutionary Guards' Navy said ⁠in a statement shared by state media on Tuesday, without saying when the tankers were hit.

The statement also ⁠said a ⁠US drone was downed by Iran on Monday night.

Diplomatic efforts between Iran and the United States have stalled over issues including the future of the Strait of Hormuz.

On Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Washington was responsible for insecurity in the strait, usually a key transport route for oil and gas but which Iran has sought to blockade during the war launched by the US and Israel in February.

Pakistan has played a key mediating role in the so far unsuccessful attempts to end the war. In June, it helped broker a short-lived memorandum of understanding, which Tehran insists should still form the basis of any peace deal.

World

Police Charge Driver with Intentionally Causing Serious Injury to Australian Federal Lawmaker

A TV crew works in front of a portrait of Australian politician Helen Haines (C) outside her office in the northern regional city of Wangaratta, about 250 kilometres north-east of Melbourne on October 20, 2026. (Photo by William WEST / AFP)
A TV crew works in front of a portrait of Australian politician Helen Haines (C) outside her office in the northern regional city of Wangaratta, about 250 kilometres north-east of Melbourne on October 20, 2026. (Photo by William WEST / AFP)
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Police Charge Driver with Intentionally Causing Serious Injury to Australian Federal Lawmaker

A TV crew works in front of a portrait of Australian politician Helen Haines (C) outside her office in the northern regional city of Wangaratta, about 250 kilometres north-east of Melbourne on October 20, 2026. (Photo by William WEST / AFP)
A TV crew works in front of a portrait of Australian politician Helen Haines (C) outside her office in the northern regional city of Wangaratta, about 250 kilometres north-east of Melbourne on October 20, 2026. (Photo by William WEST / AFP)

Police on Tuesday charged a driver with intentionally causing serious injury to an Australian federal lawmaker who is a critical condition after being struck by a car.

A police statement said Brendan Nugent, 43, was charged with intentionally causing serious injury, dangerous driving causing serious injury and causing harm to a federal official.

Helen Haines, a 65-year-old independent politician, was in hospital in a critical but stable condition after being struck by a car outside her office in the city of Wangaratta in Victorian state on Monday, police said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese praised a barber who helped restrain the driver.

Haines was struck by a Toyota Land Cruiser SUV.

The incident shocked Australians as political violence is rare there and politicians have always been accessible to the public. Most lawmakers are not accompanied by security officers and go about their work and personal lives on their own.

The suspect’s father, Rod Nugent, released a statement Tuesday describing Haines as a “deeply respected, valued and much loved member of our local community.”

“Helen has been our friend for more than 20 years and what happened to her yesterday is devastating and unfathomable,” the father said.

Haines’s family released a statement expressing thanks for the “swift assistance of bystanders” as well as health workers and police.

Haines, who was first elected to Parliament in 2019 and had been reelected twice since, was initially taken to a hospital in Wangaratta, a city of 30,000 people. She was airlifted later on Monday to a hospital in the state capital, Melbourne, 236 kilometers away.

World

Zelensky Says Spoke to Rubio Over Starlink, Starshield Issues

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives for a media conference at the EU summit in Brussels, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives for a media conference at the EU summit in Brussels, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP)
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Zelensky Says Spoke to Rubio Over Starlink, Starshield Issues

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives for a media conference at the EU summit in Brussels, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy arrives for a media conference at the EU summit in Brussels, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP)

President Volodymyr Zelensky on Tuesday said he had spoken to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and raised issues with the US military satellite system Ukraine uses and missile delays.

The Ukrainian leader, expected in Oslo for talks with US envoys, said he told Rubio that "Starlink/Starshield needs to be restored" and that ballistic missile interceptors "are needed to protect lives".

Ukraine has called for advanced US Patriot interceptors to defend itself against Russian attacks and reported a reduction in speeds on Starshield, which it uses for battlefield communications and strikes on Russian-occupied territory.

Starshield, developed by tech titan Elon Musk's SpaceX, is controlled and managed by the US government. Ukraine also uses the civilian Starlink system but not for military purposes.

Musk has said that changes to Starshield could only have been ordered by the White House, prompting denials but adding to already tense ties since Trump partially lifted sanctions on Moscow for a diesel supply deal.

Trump has also criticized Ukrainian strikes on Russian oil refineries and echoed the Kremlin's calls for Zelensky to be replaced as leader.

Zelensky called his talks with Rubio "substantive" and "constructive", adding: "I am grateful for his readiness to help and his clear position."