News

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said the Iran conflict cannot be resolved militarily and must be resolved politically.

Taliban says hundreds killed in Pakistani air strike on Kabul hospital MEE staff on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 10:37 Islamabad rejects claim that 400 people were killed in attack on drug rehabilitation facility A Taliban security officer patrols the site of a Pakistani attack on Kabul on 17 March (AFP/Wakil Kohsar) Off A Taliban official has accused Pakistan of killing at least 400 people at a drug rehabilitation facility in Afghanistan's capital, Kabul. Hamdullah Fitrat, the deputy spokesman for the Taliban government of Afghanistan, said the 2,000-bed Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital was attacked late on Monday evening. Images taken by the AFP news agency showed Afghan members of the Red Crescent removing bodies from the rubble.  Surviving patients were also pictured gathered in a holding area near the ruins of the targeted building. "As a result of the attack, large sections of the hospital have been destroyed, and there are serious concerns about a high number of casualties," Fitrat wrote on X. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); "Unfortunately, the death toll has so far reached 400, while around 250 others have been reported injured." Pakistani denial Islamabad has rejected the claim, with an official calling it “false and aimed at misleading public opinion”. Pakistan insists that only a military facility was targeted. Pakistan's information minister, Attaullah Tarar, said: "All targeting has been done with precision only at those infrastructures which are being used by Afghan Taliban regime to support its multiple terror proxies including Fitna Al Khawarij and Fitna Al Hindustan."  Tarar was referring to two armed groups that have attacked Pakistani military and civilian targets in the Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa regions.  Pakistan’s growing ties to Bangladesh raise alarm bells in India Read More » Islamabad accuses India and Afghanistan of funding, training and harbouring such groups. Tensions have been high between Pakistan and the Taliban since the latter’s takeover of Afghanistan in 2021 following the US retreat from the region and consequent collapse of the government it supported. The former allies have been in open conflict since February.  Pakistan says it has killed hundreds of Taliban fighters in air strikes and skirmishes along the 2,640km border it shares with Afghanistan. The Taliban also claims to have killed hundreds of Pakistani soldiers. While there is no accurate tally of civilians killed, both sides regularly accuse the other of targeting non-combatants. The Taliban is largely made up of members of the Pashtun ethnic group, who also have a large population in Afghanistan. Around 40 million of Pakistan's estimated population of over 200 million are ethnic Pashtuns. Afghanistan News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0

The Iran war throws Trump's China trip into doubt, but Beijing doesn't seem to mind waiting  NBC News

Qatar says it intercepted second wave of missiles Qatar’s Ministry of Defence says its armed forces intercepted a second wave of missiles aimed at the country. In a brief statement, the ministry said Qatari air defences successfully engaged the incoming projectiles. تعلن وزارة الدفاع القطرية عن تصدي القوات المسلحة لموجة صاروخية ثانية استهدفت دولة قطر. pic.twitter.com/i5bN58mn0l March 17, 2026

March 17 (Reuters) - Tensions between Pakistan and Afghanistan flared this week after the Afghan Taliban government accused its neighbour of attacking a drug rehabilitation centre and killing more than 400 people - a charge denied by Islamabad. Amid fears of a sharp escalation in the conflict, here is a look at how the militaries of the allies-turned-foes compare, according to data from the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies. OVERVIEW

submitted by /u/No_Cryptographer7800 to r/geopolitics [link] [comments]

Sub-4% mortgages have met a rapid demise as the Middle East crisis causes global economic uncertainty

submitted by /u/Naurgul to r/geopolitics [link] [comments]

U.S. seeks NATO help with Strait of Hormuz. And, SCOTUS blocks vaccine changes  NPR

The U.K. government says Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is due in London

submitted by /u/app1310 to r/worldnews [link] [comments]

Donald Trump has vowed not to sign any other legislation until the passage of Save America act, which would create more barriers for voting Sign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inbox Illinois voters on Tuesday will decide between a crowded field of Democratic candidates vying to be the state’s next senator as the midwestern state also nominates candidates for five open congressional seats. Longtime Illinois senator Dick Durbin’s retirement leaves a competitive race that includes two US representatives and the lieutenant governor vying to replace him, with massive infusions of money coming to the candidates from outside groups, including donors affiliated with the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (Aipac), that are spending millions to sway voters. Continue reading...

The fraught path for Iran war funding  Punchbowl News

submitted by /u/EchoOfOppenheimer to r/MiddleEastNews [link] [comments]

As a quarter of Kenya’s population faces severe food shortages, up to 40% of food produced is lost or wasted each year.

Damascus authorities ban alcohol sales in non-Christian areas Alex MacDonald on Tue, 03/17/2026 - 09:12 Officials say restrictions come after complaints from locals and crackdown on 'practices contrary to public morals' An employee of Arados brewery works on the production line at the company's plant in the northwestern Syrian town of Safita on November 15, 2017 (AFP) Off Authorities in the Syrian capital Damascus have announced a city-wide ban on alcohol with the exception of a number of Christian neighbourhoods. In an announcement issued on Monday, the city of Damascus announced that "the sale of alcoholic beverages is prohibited in restaurants and nightclubs throughout the city". It cited "numerous" complaints and requests from locals and said the new ban was aimed at "eliminating practices contrary to public morals". It added that the sale of alcohol would be permitted in the Christian neighbourhoods of Bab Touma, Qassaa, and Bab Sharqi, and then only in establishments specifically designated for the purpose by a commercial building permit and only "sealed" for takeaway. Any businesses still selling alcohol must also be located at least 75 metres from mosques, churches, schools, and cemeteries, and at least 20 metres from police stations and administrative buildings. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); They have three months to comply with the new regulations. Since overthrowing Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, the government led by President Ahmed al-Sharaa – whose now liquidated group Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham was a former al-Qaeda affiliate – has largely refrained from imposing social restrictions on the population. However, a number of recent announcements, including a January ban on female public sector employees wearing make-up and mandatory full-body swimsuits on public beaches last year, have raised concerns that this could be changing. Although the majority of Syria is composed of conservative Sunni Muslims who largely refrain from drinking alcohol for religious reasons, many secular Sunnis and other religious and ethnic minorities see an alcohol ban as a threat to civil liberties. Some also criticised the exemptions made for Christian neighbourhoods as entrenching a sectarian approach to the city's communities. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); "The decision effectively segregates between Muslims and Christians. It implies that Christians should stay in their areas and Muslims in theirs," wrote Syrian analyst Jihad Yazigi on X.  "Even during the late Ottoman period, this type of segregation was starting to disappear." Post-Assad tensions The transitional government has struggled to contain unrest and violence at home, attacks by Israel, and managing relations with erstwhile allies and enemies. Australian families released by SDF forced to 'head back' to camp in Syria Read More » In October, the government held parliamentary elections in which Sharaa hand-picked a third of the seats, while the remaining two-thirds were chosen by local committees made up of government appointees. The process bypassed the Druze-majority Sweida province and the country's Kurdish-held northeast with their 32 seats remaining empty.  According to a temporary constitution announced in March, the parliament will exercise legislative functions until a permanent constitution is adopted and new elections can be held at the end of a five-year transitional process. The new interim authorities say popular elections are unworkable in the wake of Syria's 13-year war, which saw hundreds of thousands killed and millions displaced both internally and externally. But the selection process dismayed many Syrian pro-democracy campaigners who had hoped for change after the ousting of Assad. Inside Syria News Post Date Override 0 Update Date Mon, 05/04/2020 - 21:19 Update Date Override 0

Energy UK said latest projections from suppliers suggested customers could face an increase of as much as £250 on their annual bill.

The U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran has plunged global aviation into chaos

The Bank of England is due to make its next base rate announcement on Thursday