The United States on Thursday (local time) evaded a question on whether Pakistan held prior consultations with Washington, DC before conducting retaliatory air strikes on Iran.
According to officials, the Indian Navy has opened an investigation into whether the drone used to attack the vessel was launched from long range or from a nearby vessel.
A merchant vessel, with around 20 Indian crew, was hit by a suspected drone about 217 nautical miles off the Porbandar coast in the Arabian Sea on Saturday but there was no report of any casualties in the incident, Indian military sources and a maritime security agency said.
The oil industry experienced three upheavals between 1973 and 1991, which seem to be etched in the memory of the industry's decision makers. Naturally, at the sign of a new crisis, the decision makers like to dip into those tumultuous decades to find ways to deal with the new shock, in addition, of course, to expert reports and forecasts. So, the industry bigwigs turned the pages of history to get a peek into the future of oil price movements after Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Israel attacked Gaza in 2023, Iran-linked Houthi rebels pounded tankers crossing the Red Sea in support of Palestine the same year, and Iran rained missiles on Israel in 2024.
The Indian Navy rescued an Iranian-flagged fishing vessel with 19 Pakistani crew members and a Sri Lankan trawler in two swift operations after armed pirates hijacked the boats in the Arabian Sea amid deteriorating security situation arising out of Iran-backed Houthi rebels targeting various cargo ships in the region.
Prices may go up because of higher energy costs, caused by the rise in shipping charges, with commercial vessels taking a longer route to avoid the troubled Red Sea region, the finance ministry said on Monday. Iran-backed Houthi rebels of Yemen are repeatedly attacking ships in the Red Sea. While the global economy is grappling with challenges such as sticky inflation, sluggish growth, and mounting fiscal pressure, India's external sector could face "potential risks" due to the ongoing geopolitical tensions, according to the finance ministry's report on the review of the Indian economy.
'Preliminary investigations suggest that the cause of the fires are small flying objects, possibly belonging to drones, that fell in the two areas. Teams from the competent authorities have been dispatched and the fire is currently being put out,' news reports said.
India's voting pattern in the United Nations with regard to the Israel-Palestine conflict is lately marked by a calibrated distancing from Israel, observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
The identities of the two Indian nationals killed in Monday's suspected Houthi drone attacks near the Abu Dhabi airport that sparked multiple explosions in the United Arab Emirates capital have been established, the Indian embassy said on Tuesday.
Indian Navy's elite marine commandos on Friday rescued 21 crew members including 15 Indians from a bulk carrier in the North Arabian Sea and sanitised it in a swift operation while responding to an attempted hijacking of the Liberian-flagged vessel by around five-six armed personnel.
Pakistan on Thursday said that the country's air force struck terrorist hideouts in Iran's Siestan-Balochistan province, a day after Islamabad recalled its ambassador from Tehran in the wake of Iranian missile and drone strikes in Balochistan.
The Israel Defence Forces on Tuesday claimed that it killed the commander of Hamas's Central Jabaliya Battalion, Ibrahim Biari, in a strike on the Jabalya refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, CNN reported.
India also went on an overdrive in expanding its military engagement with like-minded countries in its neighbourhood and beyond in the face of China's relentless attempts to become a regional hegemon and establish its primacy in South Asia.
'You know why? Because they know they can't vet them, and they don't want Hamas in their neighbourhood'
With the human rights issues in Saudi Arabia, seven-times world champion Lewis Hamilton expressed unease over travelling to the country for the upcoming Jeddah Grand Prix.
If military power is all it would take to finish the menace of an awful terrorist organisation like Hamas, how come five Israeli wars in Gaza since 2003 have failed to do so? asks Shekhar Gupta.
With developments like the Russia-China alliance and the rise of China in the Middle East, India's role has diminished though the India-Israel-US-UAE grouping may assume some importance in the future, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
Drivers met for more than four hours at the Jeddah Corniche circuit
At least 29 people have been killed and many others wounded in a suicide bomb attack that ripped through a Shia mosque in Yemen's capital Sanaa.
International oil prices jumped to the highest level since 2014, topping $87 a barrel but domestic petrol and diesel prices remained unchanged for the 74th day in a row - a freeze that may be linked to ensuing assembly elections in states like Uttar Pradesh and Punjab. Brent - the key global oil benchmark - soared to $87.7 per barrel mostly due to rising geopolitical tensions and supply-side disturbances due to Yemen's Houthi group's attack on oil facilities in the United Arab Emirates. Also, global inventories are waning. The attack, some analysts believe, may lead to more hostile behaviour between the two power centres in the Middle East - Iran and Saudi Arabia.
Disputing reports that 20 Indian nationals were killed in air strikes by Saudi-led coalition forces at Yemen's Hodeidah port, the MEA said 13 Indians crew members "are alive and 7 are reported missing".
The assault on Saudi Aramco's processing plant in Abqaiq and at the Khurais oil field caused huge fire but no casualty was reported, Gulf News reported.
Speaking in the Security Council briefing on 'Threat to International Peace & Security Caused by Terrorist Acts' on Wednesday, Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador T S Tirumurti reiterated India's firm belief that terrorism in one part of the world is threat to peace and security of entire world.
A Keralite, 49, has been taken captive allegedly by a 6 member armed group at Sanaa in strife torn Yemen, according to information reaching the family in Malappuram.
Two Indians were among three persons killed when a missile fired from strife-torn Yemen struck Saudi Arabia's southwestern border city of Najran
'In my hospital, there must be at least 150, 200 Indian nurses. There are other hospitals nearby, and my calculation is that there may be at least 600, 700 Indian nurses working there.' 'All of us are worried. I want the Indian government to help us get out of here,' says an Indian nurse working at a maternity hospital in the Saudi Arabian city of Najran which was shelled early this week by Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi militants.
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is in Turkey on a day-long official visit to hold discussions with the country's top leadership on the Yemen crisis.
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Monday said Pakistan stands with Saudi Arabia and will react strongly if there is a threat to its integrity, but kept mum on Riyadh's request for military assistance to fight Houthi rebels in war-ravaged Yemen.
One Indian was killed and two were injured in mortar attacks from Yemen around Samtah General Hospital in Jizan Region of Saudi Arabia.
Any Indian government at this juncture would have voted and spoken exactly this way. It isn't just about the vast Indian dependence on Russian-origin military equipment. It is also about trust, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
Pakistan's parliament on Friday voted unanimously against military involvement in the Yemen war, tacitly rejecting a call by oil-rich Saudi Arabia to become part of its coalition that is fighting against Houthi rebels.
The 16-month civil war has killed more than 6,500 people and displaced more than 2.5 million people.
Recounting their ordeals, evacuees from Yemen have narrated their tales of horror during their stay in that war-torn country.
Nearly two weeks after drone and missile attacks on its vital oil facilities, Saudi Arabia has said it is enhancing cooperation with India to combat terrorism, including choking funds to terror networks and exchange of information and intelligence.
'Today, I am taking new actions to restrict Iran's nuclear, ballistic missile, and conventional weapons pursuits. My Administration will never allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon, nor will we allow Iran to endanger the rest of the world with a fresh supply of ballistic missiles and conventional arms,' Trump said in a statement.
All the action from around the world last week, in case you missed it.
Trump says his visit to the Middle East is "paying off" to end the "horror of terrorism"
'Qatar has been funding and supporting terrorist organisations.' 'It has used its media to spread lies and create unrest in neighbouring countries.'
India on Wednesday asked all its nationals not to travel to Yemen in view of the ongoing conflict and fragile security situation there.
'The Chinese are only about 160-170 km behind.' 'It will not take much time for them to bring their troops back, considering that they have better infrastructure -- and the weather is now favourable.' 'They can move in much faster as the terrain favours them.'
