~theguardian-world | Bookmarks (39)

First attack on US forces since early February comes day after Iraq’s prime minister returns from US visitAn Iraqi militant group has said it will resume attacks on US forces in the country, as it appeared to claim responsibility for a strike on an American military base in north-eastern Syria which saw at least five rockets launched from Iraq’s town of Zummar.Sunday’s strike against...

Biden administration to rethink counter-terrorism strategy after breakdown of pact allowing US forces on soil to fight jihadistsThe US will withdraw more than 1,000 military personnel from Niger in a move that will force the Biden administration to rethink its counter-terrorism strategy and amounts to a strategic victory for Russia.The decision comes a month after the west African country’s ruling military junta revoked a...

Joe Biden is believed to have urged restraint, and Tehran deems the matter ‘concluded’ but ultimately Israel’s response lies in the hands of three prickly rivals in its war cabinet Iran attack on Israel – live updatesFull report: Iran launches hundreds of drones and cruise missiles at Israel in unprecedented attackIran attack – what we know so farThe prospect of a major regional war...

US defence official says action is part of ‘ironclad commitment to Israel’s security’, with UK’s Royal Air Force also involved in regional operations Iran launches attack against Israel – liveFull report: Israel under fire as Iran launches drones and cruise missilesA hastily assembled coalition including the US and UK has helped Israel shoot down Iranian drones over Jordan, Iraq and Syria in an effort...

Islamic Republic’s first ever direct attack on Jewish state involved more than 300 drones and missiles, and raises the risk of a broader regional conflagrationIran launches attack against Israel – live updatesIran missile and drone attack on Israel – what we know so farIran launched more than 300 drones and missiles at Israel on Saturday night, in the Islamic Republic’s first ever direct attack...

Three rescued in the Pacific after making message in the sand with palm fronds, just as another group had done four years priorThree fishermen stranded on a remote Pacific atoll for more than a week were rescued after spelling out the word “Help” in the sand using giant palm fronds.A crew from the US Coast Guard cutter Oliver Henry plucked the men, in their...

Spokesman for coup government stops short of calling for American personnel to leave but says their presence violates sovereignty Niger’s ruling military junta says it has revoked with immediate effect a military accord that allows US military personnel and civilian staff on its soil.As of 2023 there were about 1,100 US troops in Niger, where the US military operates out of two bases including...

Officials say marines deployed for night-time evacuation amid intense fighting in Port-au-Prince, while German and EU representatives also leaveThe US military has carried out an operation in Haiti to airlift non-essential embassy personnel from the country and added US forces to bolster embassy security, after dozens of heavily armed gang fighters tried to seize the political quarter of its capital, Port-au-Prince.The German foreign ministry...

In State of the Union address, US president tells Israeli leadership protecting civilians in Gaza ‘has to be a priority’Full report: Biden announces US will build pier for aid on Gaza shore‘Who is going to distribute it?’: the key flaw in US’s planIsraeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories have expanded by a record amount and risk eliminating any practical possibly of a Palestinian...

Duggan’s family and spy agency both confirm one negative finding but Asio says despite this IGIS found Asio acted ‘both ethically and within the law at all times in matters regarding Daniel Duggan’Follow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastThe intelligence watchdog found an Asio activity transcended “the bounds of propriety...

Exclusive: Duggan’s legal team continues to fight US request for extradition on charges of arms trafficking and money launderingPodcast: listen to the interview with Asio boss Mike BurgessFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesThe spy agency Asio says it has been cleared by the intelligence watchdog of allegations of impropriety raised by the Australian citizen Daniel Duggan as he fights extradition to...

Air national guard member was arrested in April over charges of leaking highly classified military documents on social mediaJack Teixeira, the Massachusetts air national guard member accused of leaking highly classified military documents on a social media platform, is expected to plead guilty in his federal case, according to court papers filed on Thursday.Prosecutors asked the judge to schedule a change of plea hearing...

Wartime funding bill likely to pass in Senate after procedural hurdle cleared but prospects uncertain in Republican-led HouseAfter many setbacks and much suspense, the Senate appeared on track this week to approve a long-awaited package of wartime funding for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, as Republican opponents staged a filibuster to register their disapproval over a measure they could not block.The Senate voted 66-33, exceeding...

Biden’s top military adviser is receiving treatment for an ‘emergent bladder issue’, with deputy Kathleen Hicks taking over his dutiesJoe Biden’s top military adviser, Lloyd Austin, has been hospitalized because of an “emergent bladder issue”, and has transferred his duties to deputy secretary of defense Kathleen Hicks.The defense secretary’s admission to Walter Reed national military medical center was announced early Sunday evening, with the...

Iran-backed group says airstrikes ‘will not deter us’ after targets hit following continued Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red SeaRead all our Middle East coverageIran has denounced the latest US and UK strikes on targets in Yemen saying they “contradict” their declared intention of avoiding a wider Middle East conflict, AFP reports.These attacks are “in clear contradiction with the repeated claims of Washington...

Joint operation to further disable militias follows attacks on US and international interests amid war in GazaThe United States and Britain struck at least 30 Houthi targets in Yemen on Saturday in another wave of assaults meant to further disable Iran-backed groups that have attacked US and international interests in response to the Israel-Hamas war.Ships and fighter jets on Saturday launched strikes against the...

Decision rebuffs request by conservative group to alter admissions process for US military academy West Point, the US’s academy for army officers, can still consider race in its admission process for now after the federal supreme court refused to immediately force a change to the school’s policies.The supreme court’s decision Friday rebuffed a request by a conservative group to alter West Point’s admissions process,...

US military says retaliatory airstrikes targeted Iran’s Quds Force and affiliated militiaAt least 13 Iranian-backed fighters have been killed in strikes in eastern Syria, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has said.The airstrikes destroyed 17 positions sheltering Iranian militias in Al-Mayadeen and Al-Bokamal near the border between Syria and Iraq, in addition to airstrikes targeting positions near Deir ez-Zor city, it said. Continue reading...

President says ‘If you harm an American, we will respond’ as US forces strike in what is expected to be first of multiple attacksUS airstrikes in Iraq and Syria – live updatesJoe Biden has warned “if you harm an American, we will respond” as US forces attacked more than 80 targets in Iraq and Syria in a wide-ranging air assault on sites belonging to...

Strikes expected to take place in Syria and possibly Iraq, after three US soldiers were killed at a base in JordanMiddle East crisis – live updatesThe US has ordered a series of reprisal strikes to be launched over more than one day against an Iranian-backed militia, the US defense secretary, Lloyd Austin, has said.Austin said all drones in the region attacking the US were...

American war planners used joint Talisman Sabre exercises to position equipment in northern VictoriaFollow our Australia news live blog for latest updatesGet our morning and afternoon news emails, free app or daily news podcastWhen US and Australian troops practised amphibious landings, ground combat and air operations last year, they drew headlines about the allies deepening defence cooperation to counter China’s growing military ambitions.But for...

Head of Islamic Revolutionary Guards defiant as US prepares ‘very consequential response’ to drone attack on Jordan baseThe head of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards has said the country is not afraid of war with the US, as the Pentagon weighs how directly to respond to the killing of three US military personnel in a drone attack in Jordan.The IRGC commander-in-chief, Maj Gen Hossein Salami,...

Lloyd Austin says president ‘will not tolerate attacks on US forces’, but Qatar warns that reprisal attacks could undermine Israel hostage talksSee all our Middle East coverageUS defense secretary Lloyd Austin has vowed to take “all necessary actions” to defend US troops after Iran-backed militants killed three US troops and wounded dozens more in a drone attack on a US base in Jordan.“The president...

The group that claimed responsibility for deadly attack on US military base in north-east JordanMiddle East crisis – live updatesThree US service personnel were killed and dozens wounded after a drone hit a military outpost in Jordan, known as Tower 22, which lies on the border with Iraq and Syria. The US president, Joe Biden, has blamed Iran-backed militants for the attack and said:...