Politics
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong met her Indian and Japanese counterparts in Washington and said the invitation for Quad foreign ministers to attend President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration showed an “iron-clad commitment” to close cooperation in the Indo Pacific region. Republican Senator Marco Rubio appears on track for confirmation as
Politics
The first three hostages were released from Gaza and the first Palestinian prisoners were freed from Israeli custody as the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took hold following 15 months of war, with mixed emotions and more difficult steps ahead over the next six weeks. Palestinians across Gaza began
Politics
A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip will take effect at 0630 GMT on Sunday morning, Qatar, which helped mediate the deal, said on Saturday. “As coordinated by the parties to the agreement and the mediators, the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip will begin at 8:30
Politics
France’s President Emmanuel Macron arrived in Beirut on Friday for a visit that will see him meet his counterpart and offer support as Lebanon’s leaders seek to open a new chapter in their country’s turbulent history. After more than two years of a political vacuum at the
Politics
The United States on Wednesday imposed hundreds of sanctions targeting Russia, seeking to increase pressure on Moscow in the Biden administration’s final days and protect some sanctions previously imposed. The US State and Treasury departments imposed sanctions on over 250 targets, including some based in China, taking aim at
Politics
US President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that Israel and Hamas have reached a ceasefire-and-hostage deal that will end fighting in Gaza, and added it was reached by working alongside the incoming Donald Trump administration. “I can announce a ceasefire and a hostage deal has been reached between Israel and
Politics
French leader Emmanuel Macron is slated to visit Lebanon on Friday, both countries said, in the second such trip by a head of state since Lebanon elected a president last week. The office of new Lebanese President Joseph Aoun said he met with the French ambassador to Beirut on Tuesday
Politics
North Korea fired several short-range ballistic missiles into the sea Tuesday, according to Seoul’s military, in what experts said could be a message to US President-elect Donald Trump’s incoming administration. The launch comes as Japanese Foreign Minister Takeshi Iwaya visits South Korea for a series of meetings with
Politics
Iran is set to hold nuclear talks with France, Britain and Germany on Monday, just a week before US President-elect Donald Trump takes office. They are the second round of talks over Iran’s nuclear program in less than two months, following a discreet meeting held in Geneva, Switzerland, in
Politics
Croatia’s populist President Zoran Milanovic was re-elected in a landslide, defeating his conservative rival in Sunday’s run-off, official results showed. Milanovic took more than 74 percent of the vote and Dragan Primorac, backed by the center-right HDZ party that governs Croatia, almost 26 percent, with nearly all the
Politics
New Lebanese President Joseph Aoun will begin parliamentary consultations Monday over designating a prime minister to form a government that will have to face major challenges in the crisis-hit country. The consultations, a constitutional requirement under Lebanon’s sectarian power-sharing system, come just days after Aoun’s election amid foreign
Politics
Somalia and Ethiopia announced Saturday they would restore full diplomatic relations following a visit by Somalia’s president to Addis Ababa to heal a year-long rift that threatened further instability in the Horn of Africa. President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud and Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed “agreed to restore and enhance
Politics
The fall of Russian ally Bashar Assad in Syria has disrupted the Kremlin’s strategy not only for the Mediterranean but also for Africa, pushing it to focus on Libya as a potential foothold, experts say. Russia runs a military port and an air base on the Syrian coast, designed
Politics
The Sudanese military and allied armed groups launched an offensive Saturday on key Al-Jazira state capital Wad Madani, entering the city after more than a year of paramilitary control, the army said. The armed forces “congratulated” the Sudanese people in a statement on “our forces entering the city of Wad
Politics
Lebanon’s caretaker Prime Minister Mikati on Saturday told a news conference with Syria’s de facto leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa in Damascus that Lebanon and Syria would work together to secure the land borders and address the delineation of land and sea borders. Mikati arrived in Damascus Saturday in the
Politics
Syria’s new leader Ahmed Al-Sharaa told visiting Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani on Friday that he was ready to stem “illegal immigration” to Europe, the European diplomat said. “Al-Sharaa says he is ready to block illegal immigration, (and) fight against drug traffickers,” Tajani said in the Lebanese capital, the