Iran will have ‘no choice’ but to acquire nuclear weapons if attacked, Khamenei adviser to UNSC
The message was sent to the UN Security Council in a letter by Iran's UN ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani which...Geostrategy
Netanyahu offers Hamas leaders Gaza exit but demands group disarm amid strikes on the Palestinian territory
A senior Hamas official stated on Saturday that the group had approved a new ceasefire proposal put forward by mediators...Geostrategy
Syria facility attempts to rehabilitate IS-scarred foreign children
More than 50 boys aged 11-17, some with parents hailing from Britain, France, Germany or the United States, live at the...The boys at the Orkesh rehabilitation center were transferred from Al-Hol and Roj, authorities said, as well as from the Ghwayran prison
Kurdish authorities have repeatedly called on countries to repatriate their citizens, but foreign governments have allowed only a trickle to return home
UN envoy calls on Libyan factions to agree terms for polls by mid-June
TRIPOLI, LIBYA - UN envoy Abdoulaye Bathily called on rival administrations in conflict-torn Libya Saturday to agree terms for elections "by...The UN envoy defended his proposal in a news conference in Tripoli, stressing it was "not a foreign-imposed solution".
Libya remains split between a nominally interim government in Tripoli in the west, and another in the east.
Iran to buy Russian Sukhoi jets to replace old fleet
TEHRAN, IRAN - Iran has finalized a deal to buy Sukhoi Su-35 fighter jets from Russia, state media reported, as...Iranian air force has an old fleet of fighter jets and have had issues to find its spare parts
Most of the planes of Iranian air force dates back to Soviet era including MiG and Sukhoi
UAE minister meets UN Secretary-General on global climate action
NEW YORK, US - Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and COP28 President-Designate Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber met...The minister outlined the UAE’s key COP28 priorities across mitigation, adaptation, loss and damage, climate finance and process innovation.
The UAE and UN discussed the urgent need to close the financing gap and to keep alive the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5ºC.
Over 1,000 migrants brought safely to Italian ports
ROME, ITALY - Over 1,000 migrants were brought to safety at two Italian ports on Saturday after the overcrowded boats...The shipwreck occurred of the Calabria shore on 26 Feb and Italian prime minister was criticized for being unable to save the boat
The incident pushed prime minister into announcing a decree which has provisions of stiffer prison terms for human traffickers
Two policemen killed in Iran, says state media
TEHRAN, IRAN - Gunmen ambushed and killed two Iranian policemen on patrol in the restive southeastern province of Sistan-Baluchistan, state media...The officers had been "on a mission to provide security" during Friday prayers in the town of Golshan when they came under attack.
Sistan-Baluchistan province, on Iran's border with Afghanistan and Pakistan, has been the scene of weekly protests that flared in September 2022.
Li Qiang confirmed as China’s premier by parliament
Li Qiang, one of Chinese President Xi Jinping's trusted allies, was confirmed as premier, as Xi cements his influence on...Li Qiang received nearly every vote from the over 2,900 delegates at the National People's Congress.
Journalists were asked to leave the chamber as deputies, mostly dressed in dark suits, marked their ballots.
Tunisia’s Saied plans to restore ties with Syria
Tunisia expelled Syria's ambassador in 2012 over the bloody repression of opponents of President Bashar al-Assad at the outset of..."Nothing can justify the absence of a Tunisian ambassador in Damascus and an ambassador from Syria in Tunis," Saied said
Saied had mentioned his intention to "reinforce the diplomatic representation" of Tunisia in Syria back in February
Does Saudi-Iran deal undercut goals of Pentagon’s chief’s Middle East visit?
Surprise Saudi-Iran detente, midwifed by China, has gone against the drift of Austin’s visit to the Middle East which was...Austin visited Jordan, Iraq, Egypt and Israel to shore up US standing and support in view of the growing China-Russia interest and outreach to the Gulf states
But the surprise Saudi-Iran detente has gone against the drift of his visit largely premised on an abiding antagonism between the two countries
Tunisian coast guard rescues 1,008 Africans headed for Europe
Tunis, Tunisia--More than 1,000 Africans trying to reach Europe have been rescued in a single night off Tunisia, the coast guard...According to Tunisia's coast guard, more than 1,000 migrants have been rescued off the coast, some 80 miles from Italy
Most of them were from sub-Saharan Africa but it included more than 50 Tunisians too, said the coast guard
