World Echo

US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth cancelled a meeting that had been scheduled for ​Wednesday to discuss the possible sale of F-35 fighter jets to Turkey ‌with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, an Israeli source told Reuters. Any such sale would likely anger Israeli officials. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the ​matter, said Hegseth had also been scheduled to meet Israeli Defence Minister ​Israel Katz on a trip to Israel and that Iran would ⁠feature in their discussions. US President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the memorandum of ​understanding signed to end the conflict that the US and Israel launched against Iran ​was "over" and that he didn't want to engage with Tehran. Also Read: Erdogan hopes for positive outcome on Turkey's F-35 bid after Trump meeting The US embassy in Israel had no immediate comment on Hegseth's planned meetings. Turkey, a NATO member, has long criticised Israeli op...

Russian forces are trying to counter Ukrainian "mid-strike" drone attacks by camouflaging cargoes and installing powerful jamming systems to disrupt Elon Musk's Starlink satellite internet system, Ukrainian drone commanders and pilots told ​Reuters. Kyiv's development of "mid-strike" drones that can hit targets dozens of kilometres behind front lines accurately and cheaply, and are often flown via Starlink, has transformed the war ‌in Ukraine. In a concerted mid-strike campaign this year, Ukraine has attacked supply lines, fuel storage facilities, air-defence installations and command centres, disrupting Russian forces' logistics and causing fuel shortages in Russian-occupied Crimea. But Russia is now developing many ways to try to counter the mid-range strikes, four drone commanders and pilots told a Reuters crew that visited Ukraine's 422nd Unmanned Systems Regiment at work in the southern Zaporizhzhia region. Jamming devices Russia...

Bombs exploded near the hotel where Emmanuel Macron was staying in Syria on Tuesday, a security source said, but the French president did not hear ​the explosions, the Elysee said, and he met Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa ​soon afterwards. The blasts underscore the major security challenges in Syria, ⁠where Macron is the first head of state of a European Union country to ​visit since rebels led by Sharaa toppled Bashar al-Assad in 2024. A Reuters ​witness heard explosions in the vicinity and saw smoke rising. Roads were sealed off, and security measures were implemented, the security source said. The Elysee said the blasts were not audible ​from the presidential motorcade, and a Reuters journalist with the press group ​accompanying Macron did not hear the blast or see any commotion during the French president's morning ‌events. ⁠State television later reported that Macron and Sharaa had met at the Syrian Presidential Palace. Read: Turkish foreign minister says Anka...

India will supply BrahMos supersonic ​cruise missiles and Astra air-to-air missiles to Indonesia, an Indian government official said on Tuesday, as ‌Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi started a two-day visit to Jakarta. Indian sources earlier told Reuters that the deal, worth around $630 million, would likely be signed during Modi's visit. Indonesia would be the third country to sign an agreement to buy the missiles, which are ​manufactured by BrahMos Aerospace Private Limited. The deal would mark a major expansion of India's defence exports and ​deepen strategic ties with Southeast Asia's largest economy at a time of growing competition ⁠with China for influence in the Indo-Pacific. BrahMos missiles, jointly developed by India and Russia, are among the world's ​fastest cruise missiles and can be launched from land, sea, and air platforms. The Astra beyond-visual-range air-to-air missiles can be ​integrated on Russian-made Sukhoi fighter jets in the Indon...

Twenty-five people were killed and about 100 injured as security officials struggled to contain two days of ‌clashes between rival groups of inmates at a prison in Sri Lanka, authorities said on Monday, marking the deadliest such violence in years. The clashes began on Sunday between more permanent, convicted prisoners and those under temporary detention at the prison in the coastal town of Negombo, about ​35 kilometres north of the commercial capital city of Colombo, authorities said. The prison holds about 2,400 inmates, according ​to data from the Department of Prisons. Two prisoners died on Sunday and 38 inmates were ⁠injured. But a second, more deadly round of clashes erupted on Monday morning, leaving 23 others, including six prison officials, ​dead. Police riot control squads armed with batons and police special forces were rushed to the prison to control the riot. A ​police bus carried the injured inmates, some of them sprawled on its floor, to hospital. Areas...

The Palestinian movement Hamas announced on Monday that it had dissolved its governing body in the Gaza Strip after nearly 20 years in power, paving the way for a technocratic committee to administer the territory. The move marked a significant political shift by Hamas, which has administered Gaza since it gained control from rival Palestinian movement Fatah in 2007. Since a ceasefire took effect in Gaza last October between Hamas and Israel, the group has repeatedly asserted it is prepared to step aside from day-to-day governance, but the issue of its disarmament remains unresolved due to repeated Israeli ceasefire violations. "The movement has decided to dissolve the Gaza government committee and to appoint a nationally accepted figure to oversee the committee's work until the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza formally assumes its responsibilities," a Hamas official told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity as he was not authorised to talk publ...