World Echo

Australia's most decorated soldier, charged with war crimes related to Afghanistan deployments more ​than a decade ago, on Sunday publicly denied the allegations ‌against him and said he was proud of his service. Ben Roberts-Smith, 47, freed this week on bail, is charged with five counts of war crimes over ​the alleged murder of five unarmed Afghan civilians between 2009 ​and 2012. Each charge carries a maximum jail term ⁠of life. The former Special Air Service (SAS) corporal has consistently denied ​the accusations of wrongdoing, many first reported by Nine Entertainment newspapers ​in a series of articles starting in 2018. Speaking to the media on Queensland's Gold Coast, Roberts-Smith said he always acted within the rules of engagement ​in Afghanistan. Read: Australia refinery fire worsens fuel supply crunch amid US-Israel war on Iran "I categorically deny all of these allegations, and while ​I would have preferred these charges not be brought, I will be taking ‌this ⁠o...

Pope Leo ​sets off on Saturday for Angola, where he is expected to address the exploitation ‌of natural resources in the oil-rich country on the third leg of his four-nation Africa tour, during which he has taken on a new forceful speaking style. Leo, who has been attacked repeatedly by President Donald Trump this week after the pope criticised ​the Iran war, will arrive from Cameroon, where on Thursday he said the world was "being ravaged ​by a handful of tyrants". The first US pope was due to arrive in ⁠Luanda, Angola's capital, around 3pm (1400 GMT). Before leaving Cameroon, Leo celebrated a farewell Mass in ​the capital, Yaounde, urging participants not to lose hope despite the challenges faced by the Central African ​country, which include a simmering conflict in its two anglophone regions that has killed thousands. "In moments when we seem to be sinking, overcome by adverse forces, when everything appears bleak ... Jesus is with us always, stronger than any pow...

Turkey's long-term contract for importing natural gas from Iran is due to expire in the coming months, and the two countries could hold talks on a possible extension, though no negotiations are underway yet, Turkey's energy minister said on Saturday. The agreement, due to expire in July, provides for the delivery of 9.6 billion cubic metres of gas a year, but actual flows have often fallen short. Turkey imported 7.6 bcm from Iran last year, accounting for 13% of total gas imports. Regulator data show the pipeline last hit the contracted volume in 2022. "According to our forecast, we might need this gas pipeline or the gas flow from Iran for the security of supply of Turkey. There is no ongoing negotiation right now. I think they are busy with so many other things. But we might sit and discuss a potential extension," Alparslan Bayraktar told reporters on the sidelines of a diplomacy forum in the southern Turkish province of Antalya. Read: Strait of Hormuz closed again ...

Ukrainian forces overnight struck two oil refineries in Russia's Samara region and Vysotsk port, which houses a Lukoil terminal, as well as an oil depot in Russia-occupied Crimea, Kyiv's drone forces commander said. The Syzran and Novokuibyshevsk refineries came under the strikes, Robert Brovdi said on the Telegram app. Russia unleashed its deadliest attack so far this year on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv and other cities Wednesday night, killing at least 17 ‌people, including a 12-year-old child, and wounding scores, in drone and missile strikes, officials said on Thursday. Read: Germany's Merz hosts Ukraine's Zelenskiy for talks in Berlin In Russia, a major Ukrainian drone attack on the Black Sea port of Tuapse killed two people, including a 14-year-old girl, injured seven, and sparked a large fire, Russian officials and media reported. The port is home to a major oil refinery as well as an export hub for oil, coal and fertiliser. Overnight in Kyiv, fires in ​several di...

The Trump administration on Friday renewed a waiver allowing countries to buy sanctioned Russian oil at sea for about a month, even as lawmakers accused the government of going easy on Moscow as its war on Ukraine grinds on. The Treasury Department's waiver lets countries purchase Russian oil and petroleum products loaded on vessels as of Friday through May 16. It replaces a 30-day waiver that expired on April 11 and excludes transactions involving Iran, Cuba and North Korea. The move is part of the administration's effort to control global energy prices that have shot higher during the US-Israeli war with Iran. It came after countries in Asia, suffering from the global energy shock, pressed Washington to allow alternative supplies to reach markets. Reversal by treasury "As negotiations (with Iran) accelerate, Treasury wants to ensure oil is available to those who need it," a Treasury Department spokesperson said. Just two days earlier, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessen...

Nearly 900 Rohingya refugees were reported missing or dead in the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal in 2025, making it the deadliest year on record for the route, the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday. More than one in seven of the estimated 6,500 Rohingya refugees who attempted the sea crossing last year were reported missing or dead, the highest mortality rate worldwide for refugee and migrant sea journeys, UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch told reporters in Geneva. The dangerous sea crossings have continued into 2026, with more than 2,800 Rohingya embarking on such journeys up until April 13 this year, Baloch said. "This sad and tragic trend continues, this sense of desperation among the Rohingya population," he said. Read: UN looks to boost food security for Rohingya in Bangladesh Deadly maritime journeys have become a recurring feature of a long-running humanitarian crisis resulting from conflict in Myanmar, as members of the Rohingya Muslim minority continue to ris...