Amid the West’s ongoing concerns about Tehran’s nuclear program and suspected intentions to build an atomic bomb, Iran on Friday announced it successfully launched its heaviest-ever payload into space using a domestically manufactured rocket, DW reports. A payload is the cargo or mission equipment that is carried into space on a rocket.
Israeli Air Force jets struck dozens of targets across Syria on Sunday, neutralizing weaponry at risk of falling into hostile hands amid the rapid collapse of the Assad regime. Israel also secured the Syrian side of Mount Hermon to expand the demilitarized buffer zone and strengthen key defensive positions along the border.
Syria’s 50-year Assad dynasty abruptly ended this weekend when a lightning 10-day rebel offensive overran government-held territory and seized Damascus with little resistance. Bashar al-Assad, who ruled for nearly 25 years, fled by plane to an unknown destination as rebels took the capital.
Israel rushed to send reinforcements to the Golan Heights as they border Syria, where Islamic rebels rapidly gain territory, threatening long-time Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad’s grip on power.
Israel’s military said Friday it had “eliminated” a mastermind of aerial attacks against Israel on October 7, 2023, when 1,200 people were killed by Hamas and other air strikes targeting Israeli forces.
As Syria’s army struggles to fend off the surprise insurgency launched last week by jihadi group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, Iran-backed militias entered the country on Sunday to lend support to the Syrian forces, Reuters reports. The insurgents first attacked Syria’s second-largest city of Aleppo and then moved into Idlib and Hama province.
The United States announced on December 2 a new $725 million military aid package for Ukraine as it continues to defend itself against the Russian invasion launched in February 2022, Radio Free Europe (RFE) reports.
Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon blamed each other for the deadliest clashes since their ceasefire came into effect last week, adding to global fears that the region will remain embroiled in armed conflicts.
Iran held a key national military ceremony Sunday amid mounting concerns it could have an atomic bomb soon.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has, for the first time, publicly suggested bringing Ukrainian territory he controls under the NATO military alliance umbrella while all Russian-occupied areas could remain under Moscow’s control until a diplomatic settlement is reached.
Syrian opposition groups have breached Syria’s second-largest city, Aleppo, after blowing up two car bombs and fighting with government forces on Friday in clashes that have killed some 200 people, a Syria war monitor and witnesses say.
Iran has canceled plans to attack Israel following Donald J. Trump’s victory in the recent U.S. presidential elections, Israeli and Iranian officials say.
The Biden administration is moving forward with a $680 million arms package to Israel, including thousands of Joint Direct Attack Munition (JDAM) kits and hundreds of small-diameter bombs, a U.S. official confirmed Wednesday, as reported by the Financial Times.
A confidential clause in the U.S.-Israel side agreement to the Lebanon ceasefire, known as the “Iranian clause” and reportedly focusing on Iran, was a key element of Israel’s acceptance of the ceasefire agreement with Lebanon.
Moscow warned Tuesday it would retaliate after Ukraine twice fired U.S.-made ATACMS missiles deep into Russia, contributing to the largest loss of Russian and North Korean supplied ammunition during the war.
Several people were wounded Sunday as Hezbollah launched over 250 rockets and drones at northern and central Israel, according to the military and medics. In response to the relentless attacks, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) targeted Hezbollah’s command centers in southern Beirut.
Iran warned Friday it is launching “new and advanced” centrifuges to rapidly enrich uranium because the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog censured the Islamic Republic for failing to cooperate fully with the agency’s monitoring and inspection.
Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed Thursday his military fired “a new intermediate-range missile” into Ukraine in response to Kyiv firing American and British long-range missiles.
In an unprecedented move, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants on Thursday for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant over the war in Gaza that places the leaders at risk of being detained across over 120 member states of the ICC.
With Ukraine firing Western missiles deep into Russia and Moscow not ruling out using nuclear weapons in response, millions of Europeans are urged to prepare for an escalation of the armed conflict.