News Archive

Local volunteers who have helped to feed Sudan's most destitute during 17 months of war say attacks against them by the opposing sides are making it difficult to provide life-saving aid amid the world's biggest hunger crisis.

France and Qatar delivered urgent humanitarian aid to Lebanon on Tuesday, France's foreign minister said, as Paris pushes for broader humanitarian efforts and a ceasefire in the country.

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman "reassured everyone about the health of the king" during a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, state media reported, after the royal court said on Sunday the monarch would undergo medical tests for a lung inflammation.

Turkey's lawmakers held a closed-door session on Tuesday to discuss the spread of war in the Middle East, a week after President Tayyip Erdogan made an unsubstantiated claim that Israel eventually aimed to encroach on Turkish territory.

In what could be the latest in a series of major blows to Hezbollah, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said it appeared the replacement for slain Hezbollah leader Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah had been "eliminated".

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi will visit Saudi Arabia and other countries in the region starting on Tuesday to discuss regional issues and work on stopping Israel's "crimes" in Gaza and Lebanon, Iran's state media reported.

Turkey's exports to Palestinian territories leapt sixfold in the first nine months of the year to $571.2 million, data showed on Tuesday, five months after the country halted trade with Israel in protest over its war in Gaza.

Lebanon, once known as the “Switzerland of the Middle East,” has been grappling with profound political, economic, and social challenges in recent decades. 

Hezbollah deputy leader Naim Qassem said in comments broadcast on Tuesday that his movement supports efforts to reach a ceasefire for Lebanon, but for the first time omitted any mention of a Gaza truce deal as a pre-condition to halting the group's fire on Israel.

Israel's military said on Tuesday it had begun ground operations in southwest Lebanon, expanding its incursions to a new zone a year after exchanges of fire began with armed group Hezbollah and amid pleas by the U.N. for a diplomatic solution.

Air France has announced an extension of its suspension of flights between Paris and Tel Aviv until October 15, and between Paris and Beirut until October 26, due to ongoing security concerns in the region. A spokesperson for the airline confirmed the decision on Monday, citing the uncertain situation in the Middle East.

Hamas leader-in-exile Khaled Meshaal said the Palestinian group would rise "like a phoenix" from the ashes despite heavy losses during a year of war with Israel, and that it continues to recruit fighters and manufacture weapons.