The Israeli leader had yet to comment on US President Donald Trump's claim that Israel had backed a plan for a 60-day truce in its offensive against Hamas in the war-ravaged territory.

It said it sought "to reach an agreement that guarantees ending the aggression, achieving the withdrawal (of Israel from Gaza) and urgently aiding our people in the Gaza Strip".

The intensified operations came after days of mounting calls for a ceasefire, with US President Donald Trump -- whom Netanyahu is scheduled to meet next week -- among those urging Israel to strike a new deal to halt the war and bring home the hostages still held in Gaza.

New York, United States - The Trump administration on Monday accused Harvard of violating the civil rights of its Jewish and Israeli students and threatened to cut off all federal funding if the university does not take urgent action. Harvard has been at the forefront of Donald Trump's campaign against...

The swift resolution of Israel's 12-day war with Iran has revived hopes for a halt to the fighting in Gaza, where more than 20 months of combat have created dire humanitarian conditions for the population of more than two million.

Belcamp, United States --  In the sweltering US summer, metal containers decorated with snowmen and sleighs are taking shape -- but tempers are also rising as their manufacturer grapples with President Donald Trump's steep steel tariffs. At Independent Can's factory in Belcamp, Maryland northeast of Baltimore, CEO Rick Huether recounts...

US President Donald Trump voiced optimism on Friday about a new ceasefire in Gaza saying an agreement involving Israel and Hamas could come as early as next week.

In a 6-3 ruling stemming from Trump's bid to end birthright citizenship, the court said nationwide injunctions issued by district court judges "likely exceed the equitable authority that Congress has granted to federal courts." The top court did not immediately rule on the constitutionality of Trump's executive order seeking to...

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi shut down what he said was "speculation" that Tehran would come to the table and said it "should not be taken seriously.

The Hague, Netherlands - NATO leaders are set to sign off Wednesday at their Hague summit on a defence spending pledge to satisfy US President Donald Trump's demand for a headline figure of five percent of GDP. Here are the details of what NATO is signing up to: Five percent?...

The Fed has a duty to prevent a one-time spike in prices from becoming an "ongoing inflation problem," said Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell before the House Committee on Financial Services.

Mahmoud Khalil, one of the most prominent leaders of pro-Palestinian protests on US campuses, recounted his experience surviving 104 days in Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention after being targeted for deportation by the Trump administration.

From meeting his spending demand to limiting the participation of Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky, everything is being done to try to avoid the chances of a damaging confrontation with the volatile leader.

The adversaries had been swapping missile fire since Israel carried out surprise "preemptive" strikes against Iran on June 13, targeting nuclear and military sites, and prompting Trump to warn of a possible "massive" regional conflict.

The US military says the GBU-57 -- also named Massive Ordnance Penetrator -- is designed to penetrate up to 200 feet (60 meters) underground before exploding. This differs from missiles or bombs that typically detonate their payload near or on impact.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi will meet with his French, German, British and EU counterparts in Geneva on Friday to discuss Iran's nuclear programme.

The White House said Trump would receive an intelligence briefing on Thursday, a US holiday and top US diplomat Marco Rubio meanwhile will meet his UK counterpart for talks expected to focus on the conflict.

Washington, United States - The US central bank is expected to hold interest rates steady Wednesday after its key policy meeting, as officials gauge the impact of tariffs on inflation -- and despite President Donald Trump's calls for rate cuts. The Federal Reserve has kept the benchmark lending rate unchanged...

Despite international alarm, neither side has backed off from the long-range blitz that began Friday, when Israel launched an unprecedented bombing campaign targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities.

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that the European Union had yet to offer a "fair deal" on trade, as Washington negotiates tariff agreements with friends and foes alike.

Trump said that he wanted a "complete give-up" by Iran in return for peace, without elaborating on the outcome he seeks. China accused Trump of "pouring oil" on the conflict.

Oil prices rallied Tuesday after Donald Trump urged Tehran residents to evacuate, stoking fresh fears of all-out war as Israel and Iran continued to pound each other with missiles.

The United States and Iran had engaged in several rounds of indirect talks on Tehran's nuclear programme in recent weeks, but Iran said after the start of Israel's campaign that it would not negotiate while under attack.

Mediators Qatar and Oman were told by Iran that Tehran "will not negotiate while under attack", an official briefed on the talks said Sunday, amid a massive exchange of strikes between Israel and the Islamic republic.

Trump has praised Israel's strikes, noting it used US weapons, even though Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu defied his public calls to hold off as the United States sought a negotiated solution with Iran on the state's contested nuclear work.

New York, United States -- US President Donald Trump pocketed more than $57 million from token sales by the crypto venture he and his sons helped launch last year, according to federal financial disclosure forms released by the White House. The more than 230-page document issued by the Office of...

Pro-Palestinian student protest leader Mahmoud Khalil remained in US detention Friday despite an expected release, his lawyer said, following reported accusations of inaccuracies in his permanent residency application.

Washington, United States -- Chip giant Micron Technology on Thursday said it was expanding its domestic investment plan to $200 billion as its seeks to boost US semiconductor manufacturing, with the backing of the Trump administration. The move, aimed at strengthening America's domestic chip supply chain, represents an additional $30...

Iran has said it will present a counter-proposal to the latest draft from Washington, which it had criticised for failing to offer sanctions relief in return for curbs on its nuclear programme.

The bank lowered its projection for global GDP growth to 2.3 percent in its latest economic prospects report, down from 2.7 percent expected in January, the latest in a series of downgrades by international organizations.

In a key sticking point, Iran has insisted on the right to enrich uranium at low levels for civilian use -- as allowed under a 2015 deal negotiated by former president Barack Obama which Trump tore up in his first White House term.

New York, United States -- US airlines and aerospace manufacturers insist they have no use for tariff protections, warning that the proposed Trump administration levies could eat into the healthy trade surplus the sector has enjoyed for more than 70 years. At the request of President Donald Trump, Commerce Secretary...

The Ukrainian air force said Russia had fired 206 drones and nine missiles and added that "the air attack was repelled by aviation, anti-aircraft missile troops, electronic warfare and unmanned systems units, and mobile fire groups of the Ukrainian Defense Forces".

Saudi Arabia records the lowest Hajj attendance in three decades—outside the pandemic years—triggered by tighter visa restrictions; Special Envoy Zhai Jun meets Egypt’s Foreign Minister to discuss the Gaza crisis and broader Middle East peace efforts.

Washington, United States - US President Donald Trump on Wednesday announced a ban on visas for foreign students who are set to begin attending Harvard University, ramping up his administration's crackdown on higher education. "I have determined that it is necessary to restrict the entry of foreign nationals who seek...

Trump, who wants a swift end to the three-year war, is "open" to a three-way summit "if it comes to that, but he wants both of these leaders and both sides to come to the table together", White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said in Washington.

Russian and Ukrainian officials will meet Monday in Istanbul to exchange their plans for how to end the three-year war, Europe's largest conflict since World War II, after Kyiv says it struck dozens of strategic bombers parked at airbases deep in Russia.

President Donald Trump's administration is seeking unprecedented control over leading US universities, including revoking foreign student visas and deporting some of those involved in protests against the war in Gaza. A cable signed Tuesday by Secretary of State Marco Rubio and seen by AFP orders embassies and consulates not to allow...

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday began a two-day visit to Oman, which is mediating ongoing nuclear talks between Tehran and Washington.

The trade-dependent economies are looking to insulate themselves after US President Donald Trump blew up global trade norms by announcing a slew of tariffs targeting countries around the world this year.

The issue has come into focus in recent weeks, with Iran staunchly defending its right to enrich uranium as part of what it says is a civilian nuclear programme, while the United States wants it to stop.

US President Donald Trump called his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin "crazy" on Sunday after Moscow launched a deadly barrage of drones against Ukraine, even as the warring countries completed a large-scale prisoner exchange.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies - collectively known as OPEC+ - have justified their change in strategy by citing "current healthy market fundamentals, as reflected in the low oil inventories".

Washington, United States - President Donald Trump rekindled the US trade war on Friday, threatening to impose a 50 percent tariff on the European Union -- and drawing a strong response from European politicians. If they come into effect, the new duties on Brussels would dramatically raise Washington's current baseline...

Washington, United States -- US President Donald Trump on Friday threatened Apple with a 25 percent tariff if the iPhones the company sells in the United States are not manufactured locally. In a post on Truth Social Trump said he had "long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I...

Beijing, China -- The United States has taken aim at China's Huawei over the cutting-edge chips powering artificial intelligence (AI), part of a shifting technology dispute between the two largest economies. AFP looks at how the US-China chip war is evolving under US President Donald Trump: Focus back on China...

The talks, which began in April, are the highest-level contact between the foes since the United States quit the 2015 nuclear accord during President Donald Trump's first term.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has accepted the Boeing 747 that the Gulf emirate of Qatar offered to President Donald Trump for use as Air Force One, the Pentagon said Wednesday.

Former US president Joe Biden has been diagnosed with an "aggressive" form of prostate cancer that has spread to his bones, and is reviewing treatment options, his office said Sunday.

Trump also said he would speak to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and NATO officials, expressing hope that a "ceasefire will take place, and this very violent war... will end".