News

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz cancelled a scheduled call with US President Donald Trump hours after Trump welcomed the Alternative for Germany party's victory in a local election. A spokesman for Merz did not disclose the reason for the cancellation but denied it was due to a scheduling conflict. No new date has been set for the call.

Images captured by the European Sentinel-2 satellite on 8 September 2026 showed traces of an oil slick extending from tankers anchored southeast of Kharg Island. The slick appeared days after the US Central Command announced targeting two oil tankers in the area, while the preliminary analysis does not conclusively establish the source of the spill.

The IAEA Board of Governors ended the 2011 decision concerning Syria’s non-compliance with its nuclear obligations after Syrian authorities cooperated with inspectors and granted access to key sites. Damascus will remain subject to its safeguards agreement and routine inspections as a non-nuclear-weapon state.

The International Atomic Energy Agency’s Board of Governors voted to refer Iran’s nuclear file to the Security Council over what it described as Tehran’s failure to meet its obligations. Iran rejected the decision as politicised, while the referral could pave the way for further measures without automatically imposing new sanctions.

Iranian Revolutionary Guard spokesman Hossein Mohabi said ending the war with the United States requires an end to threats and the implementation of a set of conditions concerning Lebanon, Yemen, frozen Iranian assets, and nuclear and missile capabilities. At the same time, the Guard announced a new restricted zone extending from the area near Chabahar to parts of the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea.

The US Central Command said its forces destroyed five oil tankers linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in the Gulf of Oman and near Kharg Island, following two missile attacks targeting a US warship over two days. It added that the tankers’ crews had left before the vessels were targeted, and that no Americans were injured.

Saudi Arabia’s Energy Ministry said Houthi attacks on energy facilities in the kingdom’s south caused fires, injured several people and temporarily suspended some operations. The Houthis said they targeted Aramco sites and an air base with ballistic missiles and drones, while oil futures rose following the announcement.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Moscow prefers to achieve its goals through negotiations, but will seek to reach them on the battlefield if the West obstructs a settlement in Ukraine. He accused the West of trying to weaken Russia and spoke of information that the European Union was secretly preparing observers to monitor State Duma elections.

The Israeli military tested its ability in two simultaneous exercises in September to confront surprise, multi-front attacks involving armed infiltrations, hostage-taking and strikes on strategic sites. The drills were conducted under a new military doctrine as the army faces a shortage of about 15,000 soldiers, the depletion of reserve forces and disputes over funding force-building plans.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country’s forces would not withdraw from the Gaza Strip, claiming they control 60% of its territory and intend to expand their deployment. His remarks followed an escalation in the Strip, as Hamas urged mediators to pressure the Israeli government to respect the ceasefire agreement.

The number of tankers serving Russia’s Arctic LNG 2 facility has risen to at least 20 vessels as Moscow seeks to increase liquefied natural gas exports to Asian markets, particularly China. Despite higher production estimates for the facility in 2026, an energy expert says sanctions continue to limit output and impose additional costs and discounts.

Kyiv officially notified the International Civil Aviation Organization that Russian airspace is unsafe and called for it to be avoided as Ukrainian drone attacks inside Russia increase. The warning coincided with Swedish and German moves against Moscow over a booby-trapped drone incident Berlin attributed to Russia.

U.S. Central Command said it had bombed Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targets near the Strait of Hormuz after what it described as attempts to target commercial vessels and U.S. troops. The escalation came as two oil tankers were hit by projectiles of unknown origin, while the European Union called for the strait to reopen without restrictions or conditions.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan said the joint defense agreement between Türkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan will strengthen peace and stability, based on regional ownership and collective deterrence. The three countries had affirmed their commitment to continued defense cooperation and support for de-escalation and peaceful solutions to crises.

Sara Netanyahu faced criticism from Israeli opposition figures and parties after implying that Yair Golan had known in advance about the 7 October 2023 attack. Golan’s party described her remarks as misleading, while Gadi Eisenkot accused her of promoting a treason theory to stoke hatred ahead of the legislative elections scheduled for 27 October.

U.S. President Donald Trump said it was too early to discuss Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth potentially running for president in 2028, stressing that the priority was the midterm elections. His comments came after a media report said Hegseth had discussed entering the race, which the secretary denied and called false.

EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said diplomatic efforts concerning the Strait of Hormuz had yet to produce results, calling for the restoration of safe freedom of navigation without restrictions or transit fees, as the passage remains closed and exchanges of fire between Iran and the United States resume.

North Korea's Foreign Ministry said the Freedom Edge drills, scheduled between the United States, South Korea and Japan from 7 to 11 September, pose a threat to North Korea and countries in the region. Seoul, meanwhile, says the naval exercises, to be held near Jeju Island, are defensive in nature.

US President Donald Trump described Iran as a “failed state” and “dead,” claiming it had lost its military and economic capabilities and that inflation there had reached about 300%. In a post on Truth Social, he said Tehran no longer had a navy, air force or currency. The article did not include an Iranian response to his remarks.

US Central Command on Monday denied an Iranian announcement that an oil tanker struck two mines while attempting to cross the southern part of the Strait of Hormuz, causing a fire and bringing the tanker to a stop, according to the Iranian account. The US command described the announcement as an attempt by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to intimidate regional commercial shipping through media disinformation.

Nepal's emergency management authority announced a rise in the flood death toll along the Nepal-China border, while Chinese media added casualty figures from inside Chinese territory. The provisional toll in the two countries reached 919 dead and 4793 missing, as contact remained cut off with foreign nationals and workers at energy and dam projects.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow would respond firmly, and possibly asymmetrically, to any hostile or unfriendly acts while maintaining its commitment to constructive dialogue. He said the Arctic’s strategic importance to Russia’s national interests and national security would grow, noting that Moscow would continue developing the region and its infrastructure.

Nepali authorities urged residents and rescue teams in threatened areas to move to safety after receiving notice that a dam had collapsed and a lake had overflowed in Tibet. The warning came after a flash flood killed 469 people, while about 1,000 remain missing in Nepal and Tibet.