Middle East

Pope Suffers Respiratory Attack, Condition Critical
Pope Suffers Respiratory Attack, Condition Critical

Pope Francis's condition "continues to be critical", the Vatican said Saturday, saying the 88-year-old was alert but had suffered a respiratory attack that required "high-flow oxygen", and also blood transfusions. "At the moment the prognosis is reserved," it said, as the head of the Catholic Church prepared to spend his ninth night in Rome's ...

Trump Wants Return on US Aid Money to Ukraine
Trump Wants Return on US Aid Money to Ukraine

US President Donald Trump said on Saturday he was trying to get money back for the billions of dollars sent to support Ukraine's war against Russia. His comments came as Washington and Kyiv negotiate a mineral resources deal Trump wants as compensation for the wartime aid his predecessor Joe Biden gave Ukraine. It was the latest twist in a ...

One Dead, Several Police Wounded in 'Islamist' Knife Attack in France
One Dead, Several Police Wounded in 'Islamist' Knife Attack in France

One person died and two police officers were seriously injured Saturday in a knife attack in eastern France that President Emmanuel Macron said was an "Islamist terror act". Prosecutors said three more officers were lightly wounded in the attack in the city of Mulhouse, carried out by a 37-year-old suspect who is on a terror prevention watchlist, ...

Trump Says Wants Musk to Be 'More Aggressive' in Federal Cuts
Trump Says Wants Musk to Be 'More Aggressive' in Federal Cuts

US President Donald Trump said Saturday he would like his billionaire advisor Elon Musk to get "more aggressive" in implementing his reform agenda, cutting back the federal government. "Elon is doing a great job, but I would like to see him get more aggressive," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. "Remember, we have ...

Zelensky 'Not Ready' to Sign Minerals Deal with US
Zelensky 'Not Ready' to Sign Minerals Deal with US

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is "not ready" to sign a deal that would give the United States preferential access to his country's rare earth minerals, a Ukrainian source told AFP. US President Donald Trump wants Ukraine to give US companies access as compensation for the tens of billions of dollars of aid delivered under his predecessor ...

Hamas Frees 6 Israeli Hostages in Latest Transfer Under Truce
Hamas Frees 6 Israeli Hostages in Latest Transfer Under Truce

Palestinian militants on Saturday freed six Israeli hostages, the last living captives to be released under the first phase of a fragile truce that is also expected to see Palestinian prisoners released. Freedom for the captives caps an emotional two days in Israel, where the family of another hostage, Shiri Bibas, earlier on Saturday confirmed ...

Syrian Suspect in Berlin Stabbing Wanted 'to Kill Jews'
Syrian Suspect in Berlin Stabbing Wanted 'to Kill Jews'

A Syrian man arrested after a stabbing attack at Berlin's Holocaust memorial that wounded a Spanish man had been harboring a "plan to kill Jews", police and prosecutors said Saturday. The 19-year-old arrested Friday with blood stains on his hands was carrying a copy of the Koran and a prayer rug, and initial investigations suggested ...

Gaza: Riyadh Arab Summit Concluded, No Final Statement Expected
Gaza: Riyadh Arab Summit Concluded, No Final Statement Expected

Arab leaders met in Riyadh on Friday to craft a plan for Gaza's post-war reconstruction to counter Donald Trump's proposal for the United States to take over the territory without its Palestinian inhabitants. Trump's plan has united Arab states in opposition to it, but disagreements remain over who should govern Gaza and how its reconstruction ...

Man Seriously Injured in Possible Stabbing at Berlin's Holocaust Memorial, Suspect Arrested
Man Seriously Injured in Possible Stabbing at Berlin's Holocaust Memorial, Suspect Arrested

German police said Friday that a man was badly wounded in a possible stabbing at central Berlin's Holocaust memorial near the US embassy. "A man was seriously injured by an unknown person," they said on X, and "rescue workers are caring for several people on site who had to witness the events." Police spokeswoman Valeska Jakobowski told AFP that ...

Israel to Release 602 Prisoners in Exchange for 6 Israeli Hostages Under Gaza Truce Deal
Israel to Release 602 Prisoners in Exchange for 6 Israeli Hostages Under Gaza Truce Deal

Israel will free 602 inmates from jails on Saturday as part of a hostage-prisoner swap with Hamas under an ongoing Gaza ceasefire deal, according to the Palestinian Prisoners' Club advocacy group. Among those released, 445 are people from Gaza who were arrested after Hamas' October 7 attack that sparked the war, 60 are serving long ...