Author: staff
Published on 02/03/2026 – 13:24 GMT+1•Updated 13:26 Ali Khamenei is dead, killed in a joint US-Israeli airstrike on Tehran Saturday during Operation Epic Fury. His rule was built on a unique doctrine that gave him absolute religious and political control. It allowed him to bypass the parliament, the judiciary, and even the president, giving him the final say on absolutely everything. Then there is the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or IRGC. These 150,000 elite troops answered only to him. They act as the regime’s enforcer and a vast business conglomerate, an “empire within an empire” if you will, running everything…
Published on 02/03/2026 – 13:24 GMT+1•Updated 13:34 An oil tanker flying the flag of the Republic of the Marshall Islands was attacked by a drone boat 52 nautical miles (96.3km) off the coast of Muscat, according to Oman’s Maritime Security Centre (MSC). The vessel, named MKD VYOM, was carrying approximately 59,463 metric tonnes of cargo and the attack triggered an explosion in the main engine room resulting in a fire. One Indian crew member was killed. There were 21 people of multiple nationalities on board, including 16 Indian, four Bangladeshi and one Ukrainian national. Oman’s MSC evacuated the crew using…
The U.S. and Israel have been conducting strikes against targets in Iran since Saturday morning, with the aim of toppling Tehran’s clerical regime. Iran has fired back, with retaliatory assaults featuring missiles and drones targeting several Gulf countries and American bases in the Middle East. “All six aircrew ejected safely, have been safely recovered, and are in stable condition. Kuwait has acknowledged this incident, and we are grateful for the efforts of the Kuwaiti defense forces and their support in this ongoing operation,” Central Command said. “The cause of the incident is under investigation. Additional information will be released as…
At least 31 people were killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon, according to the country’s Health Ministry. The attacks hit Beirut’s southern suburbs and other areas after Hezbollah said it fired rockets and drones toward Israel in retaliation for the reported killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Explosions were heard across the capital overnight, with buildings damaged and residents fleeing affected neighborhoods. The Israeli military said it targeted Hezbollah sites, while projectiles from Lebanon were reported to have landed in open areas in northern Israel.
A meeting of the EU’s European affairs ministers that was scheduled to take place in Cyprus on Monday and Tuesday was postponed after a drone struck a British air base on the island overnight, a Cyprus presidency spokesperson said. “In the early morning hours we had a single, isolated incident of a UAV (drone) that targeted the British base in Akrotiri, Cyprus,” the spokesperson said early Monday. “Given this unanticipated development which has unfortunately impacted today’s flights to Cyprus, the Cyprus Presidency has decided to postpone” the informal gathering of the General Affairs Council, the spokesperson said. “The exact origin…
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković insisted on Monday that the European Union’s position on the events unfolding in the Middle East was “very clear and unified” despite the negative reaction that greeted a statement released by Brussels on Sunday. “We shall continue consultations,” Plenković told Euronews’ flagship morning programme Europe Today. **”**I think that all the statements which were issued so far, but for maybe one or two (member states) were very, very clear and unified.” Following a virtual meeting of EU foreign ministers on Sunday afternoon, the bloc’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, said…
The United Arab Emirates has said it will pay for the hotels and meals of more than 20,000 passengers who are stuck in the country due to airspace closures. The General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA) of the UAE announced yesterday that the state is “bearing all hosting and accommodation costs for affected and stranded passengers”. “In light of the current circumstances and given that some guests have reached their check out date but are unable to travel for reasons beyond their control, you are kindly requested to extend their stay until they are able to depart,” a circular issued to…
Today, satellite operators have very few options when their space hardware runs out of fuel, the solar panels are damaged, or fault codes prevent it from functioning. Some software problems can be corrected from the ground, and engineers can find workarounds for certain hardware hiccups, but generally, when a satellite needs maintenance, there’s no handy space repair service to call. As a result, many old satellites either end up being parked in so-called graveyard orbits, or, in the worst cases, they drift and spin out of control, posing a risk to other space hardware and increasing the amount of space…
Israel warned residents of dozens of villages in southern and eastern Lebanon to evacuate. “Hezbollah’s actions force the IDF to act against it … For your safety, evacuate your homes immediately,” Israeli army spokesperson Ella Waweya said on X. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam called the rocket fire “irresponsible,” warning it “endangers Lebanon’s security and safety,” and said authorities would act against those responsible. The flare-up is stoking fears that the confrontation with Iran will engulf the Middle East. U.S. President Donald Trump said military operations against Iran could continue for weeks, as oil prices jumped and air travel across…
By James Thomas & video by Léa Becquet Published on 02/03/2026 – 10:30 GMT+1 The 24th of February marked four years of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and although peace talks are underway, an end to the fighting still seems far off. The US has been leading the most recent trilateral effort to end the war, and while the negotiations have brought some humanitarian and technical resolutions, Russia and Ukraine remain deadlocked on fundamental territorial issues. Moscow insists that Ukraine give up the entire Donbas region, for example, including areas still under Kyiv’s control and those that it claims to have annexed in…