Iran and beyond
(Reuters/Al Arabiya) Spain will send its Christopher Columbus frigate to Cyprus, joining France’s Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier and other Greek navy ships, the defense ministry said in a statement on Thursday. – Spain to send frigate to Cyprus, Defense Ministry says
(AFP/Al Arabiya) France has allowed US aircraft on some of its bases in the Middle East during the conflict opposing the United States and Israel with Iran, the French military said Thursday. – France allowing US aircraft on some Middle East bases: Military
(AFP/Al Arabiya) Falling debris from an intercepted drone injured six people in the Emirati capital Abu Dhabi on Thursday, the UAE’s media office said. – Six injured in Abu Dhabi by debris from intercepted drone: Media office
(AFP/Al Arabiya) Israeli strikes killed eight people in Lebanon on Thursday as Israel renewed its evacuation call for vast areas of the country’s south, long a stronghold of Hezbollah. The Iran-backed militant group, which dragged Lebanon into the regional war on Monday when it launched an attack on Israel, said it had launched missiles at positions in the Galilee area. – At least eight killed in Israeli strikes on south Lebanon: State media
(Aitor Hernández-Morales – Politico) Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles pushed back strongly against NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte’s claim that there is “widespread support” for U.S. President Donald Trump’s war on Iran. Spain does not “share his opinion,” Robles bluntly stated in a radio interview Thursday morning. Her comments countered Rutte’s remarks on Wednesday that NATO allies “are basically, on a massive scale, supportive of what the president is doing.” In an interview with Newsmax, Rutte also said that NATO members “are also enabling what the U.S. is doing now in the region, taking out this nuclear capability of Iran and, of course, the missile capability.” – Spain rejects Rutte’s claim of ‘widespread’ backing for Iran war by NATO allies – POLITICO
(AFP/Al Arabiya) Israel said it carried out strikes on Beirut targeting Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah on Thursday, while Lebanese state media reported an Israeli drone strike killed a Hamas official. Lebanon was drawn into the Middle East war on Monday, when Hezbollah attacked Israel in response to the killing of Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei during US-Israeli strikes over the weekend. – Israel strikes Beirut, Hamas official reportedly killed
(Al Arabiya) Iran said Thursday it had targeted headquarters of Kurdish forces in Iraqi Kurdistan, according to Iranian state media, following strikes on Kurdish regions in both Iran and Iraq. – Iran says targeted Kurdish groups’ headquarters in Iraqi Kurdistan: Agency
(AFP/Al Arabiya) Qatar said Thursday it was evacuating residents living near the US embassy in the capital Doha, after Iranian strikes hit the Gulf country in retaliation for US-Israeli attacks. – Qatar says evacuating residents near US embassy
(Reuters/Al Arabiya) A US government charter flight was bringing Americans to the United States from the Middle East, and additional flights were being arranged for locations across the region, the US State Department said on Wednesday. – US charter flight repatriating Americans from Middle East, State Department says
(Reuters/Al Arabiya) Iran’s Armed Forces respect the sovereignty of Turkey and deny firing any missile towards its territory, it said in a statement carried by state media on Thursday. – Iran’s armed forces deny firing missile towards Turkey
(AFP/Al Arabiya) Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said Thursday that “military assets” had been deployed to the Middle East as a contingency plan. Countries have rushed to evacuate their citizens from the Middle East this week after US-Israeli strikes on Iran that killed its supreme leader Ali Khamenei and sparked a regional war. Albanese told the Australian parliament the government had sent six crisis response teams to the region. – Australia PM says ‘military assets’ deployed to Middle East
China
(John Liu – CNN) China set its lowest economic growth target in decades on Thursday, announcing it would aim for 4.5-5% expansion in 2026 as the world’s second-largest economy grapples with weak domestic demand and an uncertain global outlook. The moderate projection follows three consecutive years of aiming for “around 5%” growth from 2023 to 2025, which the country achieved despite a slow recovery from stringent Covid-19 controls and US President Donald Trump’s tariff offensive last year. Still, China’s broader growth trajectory has flattened, weighed down by a prolonged property crisis, declined investment, tepid consumption and deflation. – Facing ‘grave and complex landscape,’ China sets lowest economic growth target in decades | CNN Business
Cyprus
(Gabriel Gavin – Politico) Cyprus is scrambling to keep its six-month turn leading the EU’s lawmaking work on track after it had to hastily reschedule major meetings when Iranian drones targeted the country. The island nation — the third-smallest in the EU and the closest member of the bloc to the Middle East — has become a target of Tehran’s retribution following U.S. and Israeli strikes that killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. But Cypriot politicians and officials insist their country is only marginally affected and that it will not interfere with their presidency of the Council of the EU. “The Cyprus Presidency continues its work as planned,” a Cypriot official told POLITICO. “We will continue to monitor developments closely and remain in close coordination with the EU institutions and the Member States, while adapting where ne . ecessary.” – Iran war challenges Cyprus’ time in the EU hot seat – POLITICO
Europe – US
(Tim Ross and Eli Stokols – Politico) Donald Trump’s German grandparents may have known the word for what some European officials now feel, as they watch him complain that America’s traditional allies have let him down: Schadenfreude. Having spent a year criticizing, insulting and threatening European leaders, Trump now sees the value of having friends in strategically important places — if they have military assets he can use, anyway. The U.S-Israel war against Iran would have been a lot easier in its opening days if British Prime Minister Keir Starmer hadn’t denied American bombers permission to take off from U.K. airbases, Trump complained this week. – Trump’s lightbulb moment: America needs Europe after all – POLITICO
(Karl Mathiesen, Stefanie Bolzen and Kimberly Leonard – Politico) Europe’s right-wing populists may be personae non gratae among the political establishment back home, but in the U.S. they are being greeted with open arms and access to the top. On Wednesday evening, a crew of self-described European patriots attended a reception in Washington, D.C. to kick off a three-day conference where they might compare flag lapel pins or grab a selfie with Speaker Mike Johnson — one of the most powerful members of the Republican Party. The event opens the Alliance of Sovereign Nations, a conference organized by GOP Florida Congressmember Anna Paulina Luna and supported by Turning Point USA, the conservative political organization founded by slain activist Charlie Kirk. – MAGA embrace: Europe’s nationalists head to Washington – POLITICO
Sea levels
(Laura Paddison – CNN) Sea levels along the world’s coastlines are much higher than previously assumed, more than 3 feet in some regions, according to new research, raising alarms that the world is underestimating the extent of the threat and how quickly coastlines could disappear. Sea level rise is one of the most visible and alarming impacts of the human-driven climate crisis, threatening hundreds of millions of people who live along global coastlines. Scientists estimate we’re already locked into around 6 inches of global sea level rise by 2050. But their calculations may not be starting from an accurate place, according to the study, published Wednesday in Nature. – Scientists find sea levels are already much higher than we thought. That could spell trouble for the future | CNN
UK
(Sam Blewett – Politico) Britain’s center-left government is taking direct inspiration from Denmark’s hardline treatment of migrants — and leaving some of its own MPs feeling queasy. Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood will face down assembled critics from refugee charities and beyond in a speech in London Thursday morning, making what she calls the “progressive,” Labour case for overhauling Britain’s asylum system. Mahmood is fresh from a fact-finding mission to Copenhagen — and wants to import many of the policies that helped Danish premier Mette Frederiksen see off a threat from the right. – Britain looks to Frederiksen’s migration plan to neutralize Farage – POLITICO
US
(Annette Choi – CNN) Republican senators rejected a war powers resolution on Wednesday that would have required the Trump administration to seek congressional approval before continuing military action against Iran. One Republican, Kentucky’s Sen. Rand Paul, joined Democrats in voting for the resolution. Democratic Sen. John Fetterman of Pennsylvania joined Republicans to vote against it. To the alarm of some Capitol Hill lawmakers, President Donald Trump ordered strikes on Tehran over the weekend and called for the overthrow of the current regime. Senate Majority Leader John Thune had argued that Trump did have the authority to order strikes on Iran — despite the fact that the military operation was not put to a vote in Congress. – How each senator voted on the Iran War Powers resolution | CNN Politics
(Aaron Blake – CNN) From the start of his war with Iran, President Donald Trump took care to acknowledge the ugly headlines that could result. It would be a much more significant operation than his previous military strikes, he said in a video posted shortly after the military action began, and that meant likely US deaths. The specter of troop deaths — there have already been six — is indeed a somber variable that appears likely to test Americans’ limited tolerance for a war that they don’t seem particularly keen on. But it’s especially a problem for Trump. He has many talents as a politician, but speaking about dead and wounded service members is decidedly not among them. In fact, it’s a real blind spot. – Analysis: Trump’s and Hegseth’s comments about US troop deaths in Iran war | CNN Politics
(Danya Gainor – CNN) The Republican-led House Oversight Committee voted to subpoena US Attorney General Pam Bondi for testimony about her role in the release of the Jeffrey Epstein files as part of the committee’s probe into the late convicted sex offender. GOP Rep. Nancy Mace moved to subpoena the attorney general and it passed 24-19, with bipartisan support. Mace was joined by Democrats and fellow Republicans Tim Burchett, Michael Cloud, Lauren Boebert and Scott Perry. – House Oversight panel votes to subpoena AG Pam Bondi in Epstein probe | CNN Politics
