Middle East

Civil defense teams, in coordination with officials from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), use heavy machinery to search the rubble of a destroyed building to recover bodies

Board of Peace members pledge over $5 billion - Trump

US President Donald Trump said Board of Peace member states will announce at an upcoming meeting on Thursday a pledge of more than $5 billion for reconstruction and humanitarian efforts in Gaza.

Middle East • 2 mins

ARABIAN SEA - FEBRUARY 6: (----EDITORIAL USE ONLY - MANDATORY CREDIT - 'U.S. CENTRAL COMMAND / HANDOUT' - NO MARKETING NO ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS - DISTRIBUTED AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS----) An aerial view of the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group while

US planning for weeks-long Iran operations

The US military is preparing for the possibility of sustained, weeks-long operations against Iran if President Donald Trump orders an attack, two US officials told Reuters, in what could become a far more serious conflict than ⁠previously seen between the countries.

World • 14 Feb

GAZA CITY, GAZA - FEBRUARY 10: Bodies of Palestinians are brought to Al-Shifa Hospital following an Israeli attack on Jabalia despite the ceasefire agreement in Gaza City, Gaza on February 10, 2026. (Photo by Khames Alrefi/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Israeli strikes kill five in Gaza, health officials say

Israeli airstrikes and gunfire have killed five Palestinians in Gaza, health officials said, the latest violence to undermine a four-month-old, US-brokered truce in the enclave.

Gaza • 10 Feb

UN force to withdraw most troops from Lebanon by mid 2027

The United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon plans to withdraw most of its troops by mid 2027, its spokesperson said, after the peacekeepers' mandate expires this year.

World • 10 Feb

Donald Trump shakes hands with Benjamin Netanyahu

Trump tells Netanyahu he will continue talks with Iran

President Donald Trump has held talks with Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss renewed US nuclear talks with Iran, and said he told the Israeli prime minister that negotiations with Tehran would continue to see if ⁠a deal can be reached.

US • 11 Feb

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi speaking in front of an Iranian flag.

US military pressure 'does not scare us', says Iranian FM

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has ruled out Tehran ever giving up uranium enrichment in its negotiations with Washington, insisting it will not be intimidated by the threat of war with the United States.

Middle East • 08 Feb

Hamas's foreign affairs chief and former Political Bureau head Khaled Mashal speaks on stage

Senior Hamas leader rejects disarmament or 'foreign rule'

A senior Hamas leader has said that the Palestinian Islamist movement would not surrender its weapons nor accept foreign intervention in Gaza, pushing back against US and Israeli demands.

Middle East • 08 Feb

A view from on board the Global Sumud Flotilla

Dublin man preparing for new flotilla to Gaza this year

A Dublin man who took part in last year's Global Sumud Flotilla to Gaza said he plans to take part in another flotilla this year and that preparations are already under way for it.

Dublin • 08 Feb

A man walks past a mural depicting the US Statue of Liberty with the torch-bearing arm broken, painted on the outer walls of the former US embassy, in Tehran

Iran warns of retaliation if attacked, eyes more US talks

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said he hopes talks with the United States would resume soon but also warned that Tehran would target US bases in the region if the US attacked Iranian territory.

World • 07 Feb

Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Hamad Al Busaidi meets US President Donald Trump's Special Representative for the Middle East Steve Witkoff and US negotiator Jared Kushner

US imposes fresh oil sanctions on Iran despite talks

The United States today announced new sanctions to curb Iran's oil exports, including targeting 14 vessels, moments after the adversaries wrapped up a day of indirect talks in Oman.

Middle East • 06 Feb

Security forces are seen at the site of a suicide attack at Islamabad mosque

At least 31 dead, 130 injured in Islamabad mosque blast

A suicide bombing at a Shia Mosque in Pakistan's capital Islamabad has killed at least 31 people, local authorities said, with a police source saying more than 130 were wounded.

Middle East • 06 Feb

KHAN YUNIS, GAZA - FEBRUARY 04: A view of the destruction after an Israeli military helicopter targeted tents sheltering displaced Palestinians in the al-Mawasi area of Khan Younis, Gaza on February 04, 2026. The attack reportedly resulted in fatalities,

Israeli attacks kill 24 in Gaza, including three children

Israeli attacks have killed 24 Palestinians including three children in Gaza, health officials said, the latest violence to undermine a truce in the ⁠enclave.

Middle East • 04 Feb

White House Special Envoy Steve Witkoff sitting during a cabinet meeting in the White House.

Netanyahu tells Witkoff PA will not govern Gaza

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told US envoy Steve Witkoff in Jerusalem today that the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority (PA) would not be part of post-war Gaza's governance "in any way".

Middle East • 03 Feb

SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - DECEMBER 20: Sailors and marines man the rail as the U.S. Navy Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72) is guided by tugboats in San Diego Bay as it returns to its homeport of Naval Air Station North Island after

Iran-US nuclear talks expected despite clashes at sea

A US fighter jet shot down an Iranian drone that approached an American aircraft carrier in the Middle East today, Washington said, as renewed tensions on the high seas overshadowed plans for nuclear talks.

World • 03 Feb

Ambulances wait in line at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing

Israel reopens Gaza's Rafah crossing with tight limits

Israel has reopened the border between Gaza and Egypt on for a limited number of people on foot, allowing a small number of Palestinians to leave the enclave and some of those who escaped ⁠the war to return for the first time.

Middle East • 02 Feb

AL-HASAKAH, SYRIA - FEBRUARY 02: Syrian Interior Ministry forces continue to wait to enter the city of Al-Hasakah, Syria, where the SDF, maintains control, as part of a ceasefire agreement pending final coordination between Damascus and the group, on Febr

Syrian forces enter Hasakeh city under deal with Kurds

Syrian government security personnel have entered Hasakeh city, a stronghold of Kurdish forces, under an integration deal agreed with the Kurds last week, an AFP team reported.

World • 02 Feb

A Palestinian man walks on his crutches to the Doctors Without Borders or Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) clinic, in the al-Rimal neighborhood of Gaza City

Israel to terminate MSF work in Gaza over staff list

Israel has said it will terminate the humanitarian operations of the international charity Médecins Sans Frontières in Gaza after the organisation failed to provide a list of its Palestinian staff.

World • 01 Feb

Rescuers and onlookers inspect the debris of Sheikh Radwan police station in Gaza City on January 31, 2026

Gaza civil defence says Israeli strikes kill 32

Israeli air strikes killed 32 people including children in Gaza, according to the Palestinian territory's civil defence agency, as the military said it had attacked in response to a Hamas ceasefire violation.

Middle East • 31 Jan

GAZA CITY, GAZA - JANUARY 13: Palestinians struggle as heavy rain and storm damage their tents in al-Maqusi area north of Gaza City on January 13, 2026. Storms and heavy rainfall affecting the Gaza Strip have severely impacted the lives of Palestinians li

Rebuilding Gaza: costs and considerations

Mountains of rubble and twisted metal. Thousands of unexploded Israeli munitions. A collapsed network of water, sewage and electrical infrastructure. The scale of the challenge involved in rebuilding Gaza is staggering, writes Kate Varley.

World • 01 Feb

US President Donald Trump delivers remarks before signing an executive order in the Oval Office of the White House on January 30, 2026

Iran wants deal, says Trump as US ships head to region

US President Donald Trump has said he believed Iran wanted to make a deal to avoid military action, adding that he had set Tehran an undisclosed deadline to respond as US ships steam towards the region.

Middle East • 30 Jan

People walk past an anti-American wall poster that reads 'If you sow the wind, you will reap the whirlwind.' following a possible US intervention against Iran on January 28, 2026 in Tehran, Iran

EU labels Iran's Revolutionary Guards a terrorist group

EU foreign ministers have agreed to include the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on the bloc's list of terrorist organisations, marking a symbolic shift in Europe's approach to Iran's leadership.

Middle East • 29 Jan

Civil defence and forensic teams exhume the bodies of dozens of Palestinians killed during Israeli attacks

Israel returns Palestinian bodies, marking last exchange

Israel turned over the bodies of 15 Palestinians, just days after recovering the remains of the last Israeli hostage, a Gaza Health Ministry official said.