The United States Special Forces have rescued the second F-15 crew member alive, who went missing after Iran downed the jet amid the West Asia conflict, President Donald Trump has confirmed.
US President Donald Trump announced the elimination of Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, a key ISIS leader, in a joint operation with Nigerian forces.
Frankly, was it really necessary in the middle of a fratricidal war for External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar to travel to Abu Dhabi for a one-on-one with the sheikh on April 12?Or, for National Security Advisor Ajit Doval to follow up on April 26? Or, for PM Narendra Modi to follow through today? There are no easy answers, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Head of the Iranian Parliament's National Security Committee Ebrahim Azizi on Saturday said that Iran has prepared a "professional mechanism" to regulate maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz through a designated route, which will be unveiled soon.
Manchester City defeated Chelsea 1-0 in the FA Cup final, with Antoine Semenyo's 72nd-minute goal securing the victory and completing an English cup double.
Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said that the country believes that dialogue and negotiation are the only viable solutions to resolving disputes and that the continued escalation of the conflict serves no one's interests.
President Trump has been briefed on potential military actions against Iran, including strikes on infrastructure and control of the Strait of Hormuz, even as negotiations continue. He maintains economic pressure is the primary strategy, while legal questions arise over war powers.
A US Air Force officer was rescued from deep inside Iran after his jet was shot down, following a two-day mission involving US Special Operations forces. The officer evaded Iranian forces for over 24 hours, hiding in a mountain crevice and hiking to high altitudes before being rescued.
Sri Lanka on Saturday rejected a top United States military commander's statement that American special forces were deployed in the island nation. There was no American or any other foreign forces stationed in the country, Sri Lankan military spokesman Brig Nihal Hapuarachchi said.
US Vice President J D Vance is expected to travel to Islamabad for peace talks with Iran to end the seven-week war, amid a fragile ceasefire and ongoing tensions.
Pakistan has increased security measures in Islamabad and surrounding areas as the US and Iran prepare for another round of peace talks. The move follows an announcement by former US President Donald Trump that American negotiators would be in Pakistan for discussions aimed at resolving the conflict between the two nations.
Ousted Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro -- now in United States custody in New York -- had been navigating complex geopolitical challenges as his government faced mounting pressure from the Trump administration for weeks and months before his abduction by American special forces.
CNN and Al Jazeera report that the Americans and Iranians are discussing a way out of conflict and hostilities face to face, in the same room -- the first time that such a high level interaction has taken place since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.
The crash late Friday represents the biggest death toll in a single incident for international forces in Afghanistan since the start of the war in 2001
Although extensive air attacks have been carried out to destroy most of Iran's defence capabilities, the latter's resilience and sustenance during the war clearly indicate that the US landing force would encounter severe resistance in the operation, explains Commodore Venugopal Vengalil (retd).
We, Indians, forgot that for Pakistan, Kashmir dispute and blood feud with India is the raison detre for its existence. It is also the excuse with which the Pak army keeps its grip over the state. Peace in Kashmir and between India and Pakistan is against the interests of the Pak army, points out Colonel Anil A Athale (Retd).
US Vice President JD Vance is set to arrive in Islamabad on Monday evening to lead a high-level American delegation in a second round of ceasefire negotiations with Iran, CNN reported, citing White House on Sunday.
The 'rescue' operation occurred within kilometres of Iran's underground tunnel complex at Isfahan, assessed by the IAEA and US intelligence as holding a substantial portion of the country's 60 per cent enriched uranium stockpile. Retired senior US military officers have highlighted that the mission's footprint -- hundreds of special operators, multiple heavy-lift aircraft deep inside Iran -- appears outsized for recovering a single airman. Prem Panicker continues his must read blog on the Iran War.
...is a way out, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War. What the indefinite extension produces is a prolonged condition of not-war-not-peace, in which oil markets cannot stabilise, Asian refineries cannot plan, European governments cannot stop subsidising consumption they cannot afford, and the next flashpoint -- a seized tanker, a miscalculated drone strike, a Truth Social post that claims too much -- is one news cycle away.
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High-level peace talks between the US and Iran, facilitated by Pakistan, aim to de-escalate the conflict in West Asia and potentially reshape regional stability.
...reopen for up to six months. Until then, the Strait stays nearly closed. The world pays. And no one, including the man who started this, can say when it ends, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
Trump has said he would be present at the signing ceremony in Islamabad. Don't be surprised if the Pakistani hosts make it a grand event in the geopolitics of the region. Trump would love that, notes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Trump has made it clear: the US will not lift its blockade of Iranian ports until a deal is signed.
Direct talks between the US and Iran, mediated by Pakistan, have failed to produce an agreement after 21 hours of negotiations, with disagreements over Iran's nuclear ambitions and sanctions proving insurmountable.
'What we have yet to see on either the US or the Iranian side is willingness to compromise on their ultimate demands and the flexibility to reach an agreement to end the war.
US President Donald Trump threatened to bomb Iran if a deal is not reached before the ceasefire ends, while Pakistan urged both sides to extend the truce and pursue diplomacy.
The Battle of Laungewala fought in the Thar desert saw 120 soldiers heroically defend the Longewala post against a formidable Pakistani tank attack till first light brought IAF fighter jets. The air attack turned the desert into a graveyard of Pakistani tanks.
The cost of the war is being counted not in the corridors of power in Washington or Tehran, but in Firozabad's darkened furnace rooms, Howrah's idle casting sheds, and a barbershop in Kochi where the wait is suddenly, inexplicably, an hour long, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
Both sides have now revealed a preference for escalation over strategic defeat, and each new provocation narrows the space for the next pause. The Touska seizure, Iran's refusal to negotiate under blockade, Israel's strikes on Iranian oil infrastructure -- all of these add up to an increasingly untenable situation. This makes the wild card -- Trump and his motormouth -- more consequential than ever, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War.
Chaffing under public ridicule in the US as well as internationally for having 'lost' the war, Trump is under immense pressure to do something, cautions Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Several soccer games in Mexico were postponed due to violence following a military operation and the reported death of cartel leader Nemesio Oseguera, alias "El Mencho."
Trump may strike. He may announce productive talks and extend again. He may do both at the same time. Iran will not open the Strait on someone else's terms, so no matter what happens, that problem will remain unsolved. And the IRGC will still be collecting its $2 million toll from every ship bold enough to ask permission to pass.
By all available indications, the White House drafted a face-saving note and handed it, ready-made, to Islamabad. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif was supposed to then post it in the guise of a plea urging Trump to extend the deadline by two weeks 'to allow diplomacy to run its course'. Trump would then graciously accept Pakistan's 'request' and declare a ceasefire. Sharif dutifully posted the message on X. Except that he, or whoever was handling the account, forgot to delete the tell-tale first line visible in the edit history: 'Draft - Pakistan's PM Message on X'. Prem Panicker's must read blog on the Iran War.
Taking Kharg would give the US control over virtually all of Iran's oil exports and thus provide significant leverage, notes Prem Panicker in his must read daily blog on the Gulf War. It would also put American troops within range of Iran's remaining missiles, drones, and artillery on a piece of real estate that is just eight square miles in size, and just 15 miles from the Iranian mainland.
The clock on the ceasefire is running out. But everyone's already whispering about round two, possibly as soon as this weekend.
'Technology doesn't decide its destiny-humans do. We choose whether it becomes a weapon or a tool for progress.' 'Every breakthrough looks like a miracle at first, a disappointment later -- and finally, just another useful tool.'
Guadalajara violence postpones matches, FIFA monitoring World Cup host city
The intriguing bit is that Trump is likely to attend the talks in Islamabad this weekend -- if he does, it will be the clearest signal yet that the US is ready to exit the war with some sort of win to show, since he cannot afford to go for the talks and return empty-handed, notes Prem Panicker in his must read blog on the Iran War
Fight on toward goals that keep receding, or exit with most objectives unmet. Trump is agitated, his poll numbers falling below the Plimsoll line, his base fractured between those who back the war and those who remember that he campaigned on ending them.
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