1 week ago Yemen’s Houthi PM, other ministers killed in ‘treacherous’ Israeli strike

Yemen’s Houthi rebels on Saturday said their prime minister had been killed in an Israeli air strike, the most senior official known to have died in a series of attacks during the Gaza war. Ahmed Ghaleb Nasser Al-Rahawi, who was appointed last year, was killed along with other officials in the Israeli attack on Thursday, the Iran-backed Houthis said. Israel has been striking Houthi targets for months in response to missile attacks by the rebels, who claim solidarity with the Palestinians and...

Politics

1 week ago Iran arrests 8 over suspected links to Israel’s attack, Mossad spy agency

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said on Saturday they had arrested eight people suspected of trying to transmit the coordinates of sensitive sites and details about senior military figures to Israel’s Mossad, Iranian state media reported. They are accused of having provided the information to the Mossad spy agency during Israel’s air war on Iran in June, when it attacked Iranian nuclear facilities and killed top military commanders as well as civilians in the worst blow to the Islamic Republic since...

Events

1 week ago Weather forecaster urges Hongkongers to seek shelter amid violent gusts

This story has been made freely available as a public service to our readers. Please consider supporting SCMP’s journalism by subscribing. Hong Kong readers now get 50% off their first year of subscription until September 21, 2025. Hong Kong’s weather forecaster has called on members of the public to seek safe shelters as violent gusts hit the city. Gusts of about 80km/h (50mph) were recorded in Lau Fau Shan in Yuen Long at around 2.10pm on Saturday. “Violent gusts may continue to affect Hong...

Politics

1 week ago European nations trigger Iran sanctions ‘snapback’, as nuclear tensions rise

Britain, France and Germany on Thursday launched a 30-day process to reimpose UN sanctions on Iran over its disputed nuclear programme, a step likely to stoke tensions two months after Israel and the United States bombed Iran. A senior Iranian official quickly accused the three European powers of harming diplomacy and vowed that Tehran would not bow to pressure over the move by the E3 to launch the so-called “snapback mechanism”. The three powers feared they would otherwise lose the prerogative...

Events

1 week ago ‘Snapback’ sanctions on Iran loom as IAEA chief’s concerns remain

The head of the UN’s nuclear watchdog warned on Wednesday that the agency was not yet satisfied with Iran’s cooperation with international inspectors, just as European leaders appeared poised to reimpose sanctions on Tehran after a series of last-minute meetings failed to reach a diplomatic resolution on its nuclear programme. Despite Iran allowing inspectors back in for the first time since the 12-day Iran-Israel war in June, regaining access to crucial nuclear facilities was still “a work in...

Politics

2 w. ago ‘Complete nonsense’: Australia hits back at Israel for claiming Iran ban credit

Australia on Wednesday dismissed suggestions by Israel that its interventions prompted Canberra to expel Iran’s ambassador as it blamed Tehran for directing at least two antisemitic arson attacks in the country’s biggest cities, Sydney and Melbourne. “Complete nonsense,” Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke told ABC Radio when asked about Israel claiming credit for Australia’s decision to order Tehran’s ambassador Ahmad Sadeghi to leave the country. “There was not a minute between us receiving this...

Politics

2 w. ago Hezbollah leader rejects disarmament, demands Israel comply with ceasefire first

Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem said on Monday that the Lebanese government must first ensure Israel complies with a November 27 ceasefire agreement before talks on a national defence strategy can take place, reaffirming the Iran-backed group’s refusal to disarm. “Israel may occupy but we will confront it to prevent it from settling and achieving its goals, and this confrontation will continue,” said Qassem. “If this government continues in its current form, it cannot be trusted to safeguard...

Politics

2 w. ago Israeli strikes on Yemeni capital Sanaa kill 4, wound dozens

Israeli strikes hit the Yemeni capital Sanaa on Sunday in retaliation for Houthi missiles fired towards Israel, with Houthi health officials saying the attack killed four people and wounded 67. The strikes are the latest in more than a year of direct attacks and counterstrikes between Israel and Houthi militants in Yemen, part of a spillover from the war in Gaza. The Israeli military said the targets included a military compound housing the presidential palace, two power plants and a fuel...

Events

2 w. ago Israeli strikes on Yemeni capital Sanaa kill 6, wound dozens

Israeli strikes hit the Yemeni capital Sanaa on Sunday in retaliation for Houthi missiles fired towards Israel, with Houthi health officials saying the attack killed sex people and wounded 86. The strikes are the latest in more than a year of direct attacks and counterstrikes between Israel and Houthi militants in Yemen, part of a spillover from the war in Gaza. The Israeli military said the targets included a military compound housing the presidential palace, two power plants and a fuel storage...

Events

3 w. ago ‘A rogue state’: how Netanyahu risks making ‘Greater Israel’ the new Iran

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s open endorsement of a maximalist “Greater Israel” vision has unsettled the Arab world, with analysts warning it could mark a turning point in the region’s balance of power. Long seen by Washington and the West as a counterweight to Iran, observers say Israel now risks eclipsing its arch-rival as the Middle East’s most destabilising force. The idea of a Greater Israel has circulated for decades on the Israeli far-right. Its imagined boundaries are...

Politics

3 w. ago Hongkongers urged to avoid travel to Iran, Israel despite risk downgrade

Hong Kong has advised residents to avoid non-essential travel to Israel and Iran despite lowering the risk levels for visiting the two countries from black to red. A government spokesman said in a statement on Monday that a red outbound travel alert still “signifies a significant threat”. “The [Hong Kong] government advises Hong Kong residents who intend to visit Israel and Iran to adjust their travel plans and avoid non-essential travel,” the spokesman said. “In view of the situation in Israel,...

Politics