Mena Today

Fifty-four people have been injured while 18 are missing after an explosion at Qatar's core liquefied natural gas processing site of Ras Laffan on Sunday, authorities said.

Four liquefied natural gas tankers controlled by Qatar were heading into the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, despite a fall in ship traffic after Iran announced that it had again closed the waterway over the weekend, shipping data showed.

Colombia has swung to the right, electing nationalist lawyer and political newcomer Abelardo De La Espriella as president, accelerating a rightward shift rippling across Latin America.

US Vice President JD Vance expressed hope Sunday for "a new chapter" in relations with Iran as talks opened in Switzerland to finalise a memorandum of understanding already showing cracks just four days after its signing, strained by continued fighting in Lebanon and a fresh warning from Donald Trump that Tehran must prevent Hezbollah from "causing trouble."

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan ordered officials on Sunday to resume talks on reopening an Orthodox Christian seminary near Istanbul, an issue raised by U.S. President Donald Trump, who is expected to visit Ankara next month for a NATO summit.

Israeli soldiers are free to act without restriction to eliminate threats in Lebanon, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said on Sunday, adding troops remained in position in what Israel refers to as a security zone.

U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday threatened to restart war with Iran even as Vice President JD Vance met Iranian officials for the first talks under an interim peace deal, overshadowed by Tehran's announcement it had again closed the Strait of Hormuz.

President Donald Trump on Sunday posted that the U.S. will resume attacks on Iran unless the Iranians can keep their Hezbollah allies in Lebanon from causing violence. 

Peace talks led by U.S. Vice President JD Vance and Iranian chief negotiator Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf were set to begin on Sunday morning at a Swiss mountaintop resort as both nations seek a durable end to their war while disagreeing over Iran's claim that it had closed the vital Strait of Hormuz.  

Islamic State claimed responsibility on Saturday for an attack near the city of Manbij in Syria's northeastern Aleppo province that the Syrian Defence Ministry said killed two soldiers.

A high-level Iranian team departed for Switzerland on Saturday for talks with the United States, Iranian state media reported, while U.S. Vice President JD Vance indicated he would set off soon for meetings that Pakistan said will begin on Sunday.

There are mistakes, and then there are betrayals dressed up as diplomacy. Donald Trump's memorandum of understanding with Iran - one that folds Lebanon into a ceasefire framework between Israel and Hezbollah - belongs firmly in the second category.