Can Europe reduce its dependence on the US and at what cost?
Trump’s tariffs, Greenland and defence spending are testing US-Europe alliance. United States President Donald Trump has imposed tariffs on European goods, made a bid to take over Greenland and demanded Europe foot the bill for its own defence. European leaders now fear the era of US-led security protections may be over. They’re accelerating efforts to reduce their military and economic dependence on the US. At the Munich Security Conference, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio insisted his nation is not walking away from its allies. But few in the room were convinced. Instead, leader after leader took to the podium with the same message: Europe must stand on its own. Published On 19 Feb 202619 Feb 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Adblock test (Why?)
Trump suggests Iran has 10 days to reach agreement with US
US president says at inaugural Board of Peace summit that Washington and Tehran should make a ‘meaningful deal’. Listen to this article Listen to this article | 2 mins info Donald Trump has renewed his threats against Iran, suggesting that Tehran has about 10 days to reach a deal with Washington or face further military strikes. Speaking at the inaugural Board of Peace meeting in Washington, DC, on Thursday, the United States president reiterated his argument that the joint Israeli-US strikes against Iran in June of last year paved the way to the “ceasefire” in Gaza. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Trump argued that without the US attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities, the “threat” of Iran would have prevented countries in the region from agreeing to “peace in the Middle East”. “So now we may have to take it a step further, or we may not,” Trump said. “Maybe we’re going to make a deal. You’re going to be finding out over the next probably 10 days.” Trump’s comments come days after the US and Iran held a second round of indirect talks. On Wednesday, Iran’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi said the two sides made “good progress in the negotiations” in Geneva and “were able to reach broad agreement on a set of guiding principles” for an agreement. But the US has continued to amass military assets in the Gulf region, including two aircraft carriers and dozens of fighter jets. Iran, which denies seeking a nuclear weapon, has said it would agree to curbing its uranium enrichment and placing it under rigorous international inspection. But the Trump administration has said that it would oppose any Iranian enrichment. Washington has also sought to place limits on Tehran’s missile arsenal, but Iranian officials have ruled out any concessions over the issue, which they say is a non-negotiable defence principle. Advertisement On Thursday, Trump said his diplomatic aides Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner have had “very good meetings” with Iran’s representatives. “We have to make a meaningful deal. Otherwise, bad things happen,” he said. Last week, Trump said the US and Iran should come to an agreement “over the next month”, warning Tehran with “very traumatic” consequences. But Iranian officials have expressed defiance against the US president’s threats. “The Americans constantly say that they’ve sent a warship toward Iran. Of course, a warship is a dangerous piece of military hardware,” Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei wrote on X on Thursday. “However, more dangerous than that warship is the weapon that can send that warship to the bottom of the sea.” Tensions between the Washington and Tehran have been escalating since late 2025, when Trump – while hosting Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu in December – vowed to strike Iran again if attempts to rebuild its nuclear or missile programmes. Days later, antigovernment protests broke out in Iran. Trump encouraged the demonstrators to take over state institutions, promising them that “help is on the way”. Trump appeared to step back from the brink of attacking Iran last month, saying that the country agreed to halt the execution of dissidents under US pressure. The two countries later renewed negotiations with the first round of talks since the June war taking place in Oman on February 6. But threats and hostile rhetoric between Washington and Tehran have persisted despite the ongoing diplomacy. In 2018, during his first term Trump nixed the multilateral nuclear deal that saw Iran scale back its nuclear programme in exchange for lifting international sanctions against its economy. Adblock test (Why?)
Russia-Ukraine talks: All the mediation efforts, and where they stand
One week ahead of the fourth anniversary of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, United States-led peace talks in Geneva ended for the day earlier than scheduled on Wednesday. The talks, which are being mediated by Steve Witkoff, US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, and Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law, are just the latest of a number of attempts to end the deadliest fighting in Europe since World War II – and none have reached a breakthrough. During his presidential campaign in 2024, Trump claimed repeatedly that he would broker a ceasefire in Ukraine within “24 hours”. However, he has been unable to fulfil this promise. Here is a timeline of the mediation efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war, which has killed more than a million people, as it heads towards its fifth year. Ukrainian rescuers work at the site of a Russian strike on a private residential building in Kramatorsk, Donetsk region, eastern Ukraine, on February 12, 2026, amid the ongoing Russian invasion [Tommaso Fumagalli/EPA] February 28, 2022 – direct talks The first ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine took place just four days after Moscow’s full-scale invasion in February 2022. The meeting lasted about five hours, and featured high-level officials, but with diametrically opposing goals. Nothing came of their talks. Then, the two sides held three rounds of direct talks in Belarus, ending on March 7, but, again, nothing was agreed. March-April 2022 – regional talks in Antalya On March 10, the foreign ministers of Ukraine and Russia, Dmytro Kuleba and Sergey Lavrov, met for the first time since the war started, on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkiye. Advertisement A second meeting between senior leaders in Istanbul towards the end of the month failed to secure a ceasefire. Then, the withdrawal of Russian forces in early April from parts of Ukraine revealed evidence of massacres committed against the Ukrainian civilian population in Bucha and Irpin near Kyiv, in northern Ukraine. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said this would make negotiations much more difficult, but that it was necessary to persist with the dialogue. Russian President Vladimir Putin later declared the negotiations were at a “dead end” as a result of Ukraine’s allegations of war crimes. A serviceman of Ukraine’s coast guard mans a gun on a patrol boat as a cargo ship passes by in the Black Sea, amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, February 7, 2024 [Thomas Peter/Reuters] July 2022 – Black Sea Grain Initiative, Istanbul In July 2022, the Black Sea Grain Initiative was signed by Ukraine and Russia with Turkiye and the United Nations in Istanbul. It was the most significant diplomatic breakthrough for the first year of the war. The agreement aimed to prevent a global food crisis by designating a safe maritime humanitarian corridor through the Black Sea for cargoes of millions of tons of grain stuck in Ukrainian ports. November 2022 – Ukraine’s peace plan Ukraine’s Zelenskyy presented a 10-point peace proposal at the Group of 20 (G20) summit in Indonesia, within which he called for Russia’s withdrawal from all Ukrainian territory as well as measures to ensure radiation and nuclear safety, food security, and protection for Ukraine’s grain exports. He also demanded energy security and the release of all Ukrainian prisoners and deportees, including war prisoners and children deported to Russia. Russia rejected Zelenskyy’s peace proposal, reiterating that it would not give up any territory it had taken by force, which stood at about one-fifth of Ukraine by then. February 2023 – China’s peace plan China proposed a 12-point peace plan calling for a ceasefire and the end of “unilateral sanctions” that had been imposed by Western nations on Russia. Beijing urged both sides to resume talks on the basis that “the sovereignty, independence and territorial integrity of all countries must be effectively upheld”. The proposal was criticised by Western allies of Kyiv for not acknowledging “Russia’s violation of Ukrainian sovereignty”. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy addresses the audience during a session at the Munich Security Conference in Munich, Germany, Saturday, February 14, 2026 [File: Michael Probst/AP] June 2023 – Africa’s peace plan In June 2023, a high-level delegation of African leaders, led by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa and including the presidents of Senegal and Zambia, visited both Kyiv and St Petersburg to present a 10-point plan focusing on de-escalation and grain exports. Advertisement Analysts said it was driven largely by the war’s impact on African food security and fertiliser prices. But Ukrainian President Zelenskyy rejected the call for “de-escalation”, arguing that a ceasefire without a Russian withdrawal would simply “freeze” the war. The following month, President Putin pulled Russia out of the Black Sea Grain Initiative. August 2023 – Jeddah summit Saudi Arabia hosted representatives from 40 countries to discuss Zelenskyy’s “Peace Formula”, but no final agreement or joint statement was reached. In a major surprise, Beijing sent its special envoy, Li Hui, to the talks. But Russia was not invited, and the Kremlin said the efforts would fail. People walk among debris of a local market close to damaged residential buildings at the site of a Russian attack in Odesa, Ukraine on February 12, 2026 [File: Oleksandr Gimanov/AFP] June 2024 – Switzerland peace summit The June 2024 Summit on Peace in Ukraine, held at Switzerland’s Burgenstock resort, brought together more than 90 nations to discuss a framework for ending the conflict in Ukraine. The summit focused on nuclear safety, food security and prisoner exchanges, though Russia was not invited, and several nations, including India and Saudi Arabia, did not sign the final joint communique. February 2025 – Trump-Putin call A month after beginning his second term as US president, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that he held a long phone call with his Russian counterpart, Putin, in a bid to restart direct negotiations aimed at ending the war. On February 18, delegations from Washington and the Kremlin, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov, met in Saudi Arabia. They laid the
Real Madrid’s Vinicius to have alleged racist abuse investigated by UEFA
Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior alleges racist abuse against Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni in the UEFA Champions League. Listen to this article Listen to this article | 2 mins info Published On 18 Feb 202618 Feb 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share UEFA will “investigate allegations of discriminatory behaviour” after Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior accused Benfica’s Gianluca Prestianni of racially abusing him during a Champions League match in Lisbon. Tuesday’s first leg of the knockout phase playoff tie was stopped for more than 10 minutes after Vinicius complained to French referee Francois Letexier about the alleged abuse following a confrontation between him and Prestianni. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list That came just moments after Brazil international Vinicius scored the only goal in a 1-0 win before picking up a yellow card after celebrating in front of the home crowd at the Estadio da Luz. UEFA, the sport’s governing body in Europe, confirmed its investigation on Wednesday. After arguing with Prestianni, Vinicius ran over to the referee and told him that he had been called “mono”, the Spanish word for monkey, by the Argentinian midfielder. The 20-year-old Prestianni, who covered his mouth with his shirt as he appeared to say something to Vinicius, denies racially abusing the Real Madrid star. Real’s England full-back Trent Alexander-Arnold said the incident had left a sour taste in the mouth. “It’s disgusting. What’s happened tonight is a disgrace for football. It’s ruined the night for the team,” he said. Real forward Kylian Mbappe called on Prestianni to be banned. “We cannot accept there’s a player playing in Europe’s best competition and behaving like this,” the France captain told reporters. “This guy doesn’t deserve to play in the Champions League again.” Advertisement Benfica coach Jose Mourinho hit out at Vinicius for inciting Benfica’s players and fans with his celebration. “When you score a goal like that, you celebrate in a respectful way,” said the Portuguese. British football anti-discrimination body Kick It Out criticised Mourinho’s reaction and accused him of “gaslighting”. “When anyone reports discrimination in football, or anywhere, the first priority is that they are listened to and feel supported,” it said in a statement. “Focusing on Vinicius Jr’s goal celebration or the history of the club, instead of acknowledging the report, is a form of gaslighting. “This approach not only harms the individual affected but also sends the wrong message to others around the world who may have experienced similar situations.” Adblock test (Why?)
No breakthrough, no breakdown in Russia-Ukraine talks in Geneva
NewsFeed “The talks have not broken down, but they have not really yielded any results.” Al Jazeera’s Osama Bin Javaid explains what happened—and what didn’t—at the third round of peace talks between Ukraine and Russia. Published On 18 Feb 202618 Feb 2026 Click here to share on social media share2 Share Adblock test (Why?)
Over 80 film workers slam Berlin festival’s silence on Israel’s Gaza war
Listen to this article Listen to this article | 4 mins info Dozens of actors and directors, including Javier Bardem and Tilda Swinton, have condemned the Berlin International Film Festival for its “anti-Palestinian racism” and urged organisers to clearly state their opposition to “Israel’s genocide” in Gaza. In an open letter published in Variety on Tuesday, the 81 film workers also denounced comments by this year’s president of the awards jury, Wim Winders who – when asked about Gaza – said, “We should stay out of politics”. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list They noted that the festival’s stance stands in direct contrast to its policy on Russia’s war on Ukraine and on the situation in Iran. All of the signatories are alumni of the festival, which is also known as the Berlinale, and include actors Cherien Dabis and Brian Cox, as well as directors Adam McKay, Mike Leigh, Lukas Dhont, Nan Goldin, and Avi Mograbi. In their letter, the film workers expressed dismay at the Berlinale’s “involvement in censoring artists who oppose Israel’s ongoing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza” and the German government’s key role in enabling the atrocities. They said the festival has been policing filmmakers, and listed several examples from last year’s Berlinale. “Last year, filmmakers who spoke out for Palestinian life and liberty from the Berlinale stage reported being aggressively reprimanded by senior festival programmers. One filmmaker was reported to have been investigated by police, and Berlinale leadership falsely implied that the filmmaker’s moving speech – rooted in international law and solidarity – was ‘discriminatory’,’ they wrote. Advertisement “We stand with our colleagues in rejecting this institutional repression and anti-Palestinian racism,” they added. The film workers said they “fervently disagree” with Wenders’s statement that filmmaking is the “opposite of politics”, saying, “You cannot separate one from the other.” Their letter comes days after Indian author Arundhati Roy said she was withdrawing from this year’s festival after what she called “unconscionable statements” by jury members, including Wenders. This year’s festival runs from February 12 to 22. The film workers noted that the Berlinale’s actions come at a time when the world is learning “horrifying new details about the 2,842 Palestinians ‘evaporated’ by Israeli forces” in Gaza through thermobaric weapons made by the United States. An Al Jazeera investigation, published last week, documented how these weapons – which are capable of generating temperatures exceeding 3,500 degrees Celsius (6,332 degrees Fahrenheit) – leave behind no remains other than blood or small fragments of flesh. Germany, too, has been one of the biggest exporters of weapons to Israel despite the evidence of Israel’s atrocities. It has also introduced repressive measures to discourage people from speaking out in solidarity with Palestinians, including in the arts. In their letter, the Berlinale alumni noted that the international film world is increasingly taking a stance against Israel’s genocidal actions. Last year, major international film festivals – including the world’s largest documentary festival in Amsterdam – endorsed a cultural boycott of Israel, while more than 5,000 film workers have pledged to refuse work with Israeli film companies and institutions. Yet, the film works said, the Berlinale “has so far not even met the demands of its community to issue a statement that affirms the Palestinian right to life, dignity, and freedom”. This is the least it can and should do, they said. “Just as the festival has made clear statements in the past about atrocities carried out against people in Iran and Ukraine, we call on the Berlinale to fulfil its moral duty and clearly state its opposition to Israel’s genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes against Palestinians, and completely end its involvement in shielding Israel from criticism and calls for accountability,” they added. Adblock test (Why?)
Iran’s Araghchi hails ‘good progress’ in nuclear talks with US
Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi has said that “good progress” has been made in indirect nuclear talks with the United States, as Washington warned that military action remains an option if diplomacy fails. The talks, mediated by Oman in the Swiss city of Geneva on Tuesday, were aimed at averting the possibility of US military intervention to curb Iran’s nuclear programme, weeks after a deadly Iranian crackdown on antigovernment protests. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list “Ultimately, we were able to reach broad agreement on a set of guiding principles, based on which we will move forward and begin working on the text of a potential agreement,” Araghchi told state television after Tuesday’s talks. “Good progress” has been made, compared with the previous round in Oman earlier this month, he said, adding, “We now have a clear path ahead, which I think is positive.” Araghchi said that once both sides had come up with draft texts for an agreement, “the drafts would be exchanged and a date for a third round [of talks] would be set”. In Washington, DC, Vance also appeared to indicate that the US preferred diplomacy, but painted a more mixed picture. “In some ways, it went well; they agreed to meet afterwards,” Vance said in a Fox News interview. “But in other ways, it was very clear that the president has set some red lines that the Iranians are not yet willing to actually acknowledge and work through,” Vance told The Story with Martha MacCallum programme. “We’re going to keep on working it. But of course, the president reserves the ability to say when he thinks that diplomacy has reached its natural end,” Vance said. Stumbling blocks Iran has for years sought relief from sweeping sanctions imposed by the US, including a Washington-imposed ban on other countries buying its oil. Advertisement Tehran has said it wants the talks to focus on its uranium enrichment programme, insisting that any deal must deliver tangible economic benefit to Iran while maintaining its sovereignty and national security. Washington has demanded that Iran forgo uranium enrichment on its soil, and has sought to expand the scope of talks to non-nuclear issues, such as Tehran’s missile stockpile. Iran has said it will not accept zero uranium enrichment and that its missile capabilities are off the table. The talks come amid high tensions in the Gulf, with the US deploying two aircraft carriers to the region. The first – the USS Abraham Lincoln, with nearly 80 aircraft – was positioned about 700km (435 miles) from the Iranian coast as of Sunday, satellite images showed. Its location puts at least a dozen US F‑35s and F‑18 fighter jets within striking distance. A second carrier was dispatched over the weekend. Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei warned on Tuesday that the country had the ability to sink a US warship. “A warship is certainly a dangerous weapon, but even more dangerous is the weapon capable of sinking it,” he said. Iran has also sought to display its military might, with its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) beginning a series of war games on Monday in the Strait of Hormuz to prepare for “potential security and military threats”. Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the waterway, a vital oil export route from Gulf Arab states, in retaliation for any attack. The move would choke a fifth of global oil flows and send crude prices sharply higher. Tehran has also threatened to strike US military bases in the region in the event of an attack, prompting concerns of a wider war. A previous attempt at diplomacy collapsed last year when Israel launched surprise strikes on Iran in June, beginning a 12-day war that Washington briefly joined to bomb three nuclear sites at Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan. Ali Vaez, the Crisis Group’s Iran project director, told Al Jazeera he believed there is a lot of space for agreement on the nuclear front, “simply because Iran’s nuclear programme has been degraded on the ground, and so, some of the cost of the compromise has already sunk in”. “It should be easier for the Iranians to accept zero enrichment for a period of time, because they have not spun a single centrifuge since the 12-day war back in June,” he said. “But when it gets to non-nuclear questions, like regional activities or their missile programme, I think, at best, the Iranians will be willing to do superficial concessions, not the kind of grand bargain capitulation that the US expect,” he said. Advertisement Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, meanwhile, reiterated in an interview published on Tuesday that Tehran was “absolutely not seeking nuclear weapons”. “If anyone wants to verify this, we are open to such verification to take place,” he said. “However, we do not accept that we should be prevented from using nuclear science and knowledge to address our illnesses and to advance our industry and agriculture,” he added. Adblock test (Why?)
Over 80 UN member states condemn Israel’s de-facto annexation of West Bank
UN warns that Israel’s plan will lead to widespread dispossession of Palestinian land in the occupied West Bank. Listen to this article Listen to this article | 4 mins info More than 80 United Nations member states have condemned Israel’s plan to expand control over the occupied West Bank and claim large tracts of Palestinian territory as Israeli “state property”. “We strongly condemn unilateral Israeli decisions and measures aimed at expanding Israel’s unlawful presence in the West Bank,” Palestinian Ambassador to the UN Riyad Mansour said on Tuesday, speaking on behalf of the coalition of 85 member states and several international organisations. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list “Such decisions are contrary to Israel’s obligations under international law and must be immediately reversed. We underline in this regard our strong opposition to any form of annexation,” Mansour said. “We reiterate our rejection of all measures aimed at altering the demographic composition, character and status of the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem,” he said. “Such measures violate international law, undermine the ongoing efforts for peace and stability in the region, run counter to the Comprehensive Plan and jeopardise the prospect of reaching a peace agreement ending the conflict”, he added. The Comprehensive Plan is a November agreement between Israel and Hamas to end Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, which includes a halt to Israel’s illegal settlement activity in the occupied West Bank. Signatories to the joint statement on Tuesday include Australia, Canada, China, France, Pakistan, Russia, South Korea, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye , the United Arab Emirates, the European Union, the League of Arab States and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation. The joint statement follows Israel’s decision to implement land registration in Section C of the West Bank for the first time since 1967, when Israel began its occupation of Palestinian territory. Advertisement Section C makes up about 60 percent of the West Bank’s territory, according to the illegal settlement monitoring organisation Peace Now. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, earlier this week, warned that Israel’s land registration plan could lead to the “dispossession of Palestinians of their property and risks expanding Israeli control over land in the area”. Guterres warned that the process could be both “destabilising” and unlawful, citing a landmark 2024 ruling by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that stated Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza is unlawful and must end. Israel’s “abuse of its status as the occupying power” renders its “presence in the occupied Palestinian territory unlawful”, the ICJ said in its ruling. “Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, and the regime associated with them, have been established and are being maintained in violation of international law,” the court added. According to the ICJ, approximately 465,000 Israeli settlers live in the occupied West Bank, spread across some 300 settlements and outposts, which are illegal under international law. Separately on Tuesday, a 13-year-old Palestinian child was killed, and two other children were seriously injured, in the occupied West Bank’s central Jordan Valley area by ammunition discarded by the Israeli military, the Palestinian Wafa news agency reported. The injured children, aged 12 and 14, are receiving treatment in hospital, Wafa said. Adblock test (Why?)
Trump says he will be involved ‘indirectly’ in Iran nuclear talks
The US president’s comments come ahead of a second round of high-stakes talks in Geneva on Tuesday. Listen to this article Listen to this article | 5 mins info United States President Donald Trump has said that he will be involved “indirectly” in the second round of the high-stakes nuclear talks between Iran and Washington in Geneva. Trump’s comments on Monday came as Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs Abbas Araghchi travelled to the Swiss city for meetings ahead of the indirect talks with the US. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Tensions in the Gulf region remain high ahead of the crucial negotiations, with the US deploying a second aircraft carrier to the region and Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei warning that any attack on Iran would prompt a regional war. Trump told reporters on board Air Force One that the discussions on Tuesday were significant. “I’ll be involved in those talks, indirectly. And they’ll be very important,” he said. “Iran is a very tough negotiator.” Asked about the prospects for a deal, Trump said Iran had learned the consequences of its tough approach last June, when the US joined in Israel’s 12-day war on Iran and bombed three of its nuclear sites. The attacks came amid indirect talks between Iran and the US on Tehran’s nuclear programme and resulted in their derailment. However, Trump suggested Tehran was motivated to negotiate this time. “I don’t think they want the consequences of not making a deal,” he said. Despite the US president’s comments about Iran seeking an agreement, the talks face major potential stumbling blocks. Washington has demanded that Tehran forgo uranium enrichment on its soil and has sought to expand the scope of talks to non-nuclear issues, such as Iran’s missile stockpile. Advertisement But Tehran, which insists that its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes, has said it is only willing to discuss curbs on its programme in exchange for sanctions relief. It has said it will not accept zero uranium enrichment and that its missile capabilities are off the table. ‘Fair and equitable deal’ Araghchi, who arrived in Geneva earlier on Monday, said he was in the city “with real ideas to achieve a fair and equitable deal”. He added, in a post on X, “What is not on the table: submission before threats.” The Iranian diplomat also met with the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Rafael Grossi, in Geneva for a round of technical discussions. Tehran had suspended cooperation with the United Nations watchdog body after the US and Israel’s attacks on its nuclear sites. The IAEA has been calling on Iran for months to say what happened to its stockpile of 440kg (970 pounds) of highly-enriched uranium following the Israeli-US strikes and to let inspections fully resume, including in three key sites that were bombed: Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan. Tehran has allowed IAEA some access to the sites that were not damaged, but has not allowed inspectors to visit other sites, citing a potential risk of radiation. Al Jazeera’s Resul Serdar, reporting from Tehran, said there was “optimism” in the Iranian capital ahead of the talks. “Officials here say the Iranian delegation in Geneva includes fully authorised economic, legal, political and technical teams. This signals that the Iranian side is ready for some serious concessions, particularly regarding its nuclear programme,” he said. But Serdar noted that the talks come in the face of a massive US military build-up in the region, which continues to grow. The Iranians, too, he said, were not “stepping back”, with the powerful Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launching military drills in the Strait of Hormuz in the Gulf on Monday. Iran has repeatedly threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz, a vital international waterway and oil export route from Gulf Arab states, in retaliation against any attack. The move would choke a fifth of global oil flows and send crude prices sharply higher. Iran has also threatened to strike US military bases in the region in the event of an attack, promoting concerns of a wider war. “This military escalation is going on in parallel with the diplomatic engagement. The regional countries are also stepping up diplomacy, because they have their concerns and they have their own fears,” Serdar said. Advertisement Adblock test (Why?)
Australian PM Albanese says no help for ISIL relatives held in Syria camp
Listen to this article Listen to this article | 4 mins info Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced that his government will not repatriate Australian women and children from Syria who have been identified as relatives of suspected ISIL (ISIS) fighters. “We have a very firm view that we won’t be providing assistance or repatriation,” Albanese told ABC News on Tuesday. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list Albanese said that while it is “unfortunate” that children have been affected, Australia is “not providing any support”. “As my mother would say, you make your bed, you lie in it,” he said. “We have no sympathy, frankly, for people who travelled overseas in order to participate in what was an attempt to establish a caliphate to undermine and destroy our way of life,” he added. A spokesperson for Australian Minister for Home Affairs Tony Burke also warned that those who return to Australia from Syria will face the law if they have committed crimes. “People in this cohort need to know that if they have committed a crime and if they return to Australia, they will be met with the full force of the law,” the spokesperson said, according to the Reuters news agency. A total of 34 women and children holding Australian citizenship were released on Monday from the Kurdish-controlled Roj detention camp in northern Syria. The Australians, who are said to be relatives of ISIL fighters, were later returned to the camp due to what was described as “technical reasons”, the Reuters and AFP news agencies reported. Roj detention camp director Hakmiyeh Ibrahim told Al Jazeera that the women and children from 11 families were handed over to relatives “who have come from Australia to collect them”. Advertisement The women and children were seen boarding minibuses to reach the Syrian capital, Damascus, from where they were to depart for Australia. But halfway through the trip, Kurdish escorts were ordered to turn back, as the group did not have permission “to enter government-held territory”, according to Al Jazeera’s Heidi Pett, who is reporting from Aleppo. Rashid Omar, an official at the Roj camp, later confirmed to AFP that the Australian nationals were forced to return to the detention facility. He said that representatives of the families were still working to resolve the issue with Syrian authorities. ‘Concern in the Australian population’ The humanitarian organisation Save the Children Australia filed a lawsuit in 2023 on behalf of 11 women and 20 children, seeking their repatriation, citing Australia’s “moral and legal responsibility” to its citizens. The Federal Court ruled against Save the Children, saying the Australian government did not control their detention in Syria. A 17-year-old Australian boy died while under detention in Syria in 2022. Rodger Shanahan, a Middle East security analyst, told Al Jazeera that the Australian government is facing more resistance to the return of its citizens from Syria following the deadly Bondi Beach attack in December, in which 15 people were killed, at a Jewish festival in Sydney. “I think that there’s a concern in the Australian population that people might appear to have done away with their radical views, but they still retain them deep down,” Shanahan said. While Kurdish-led forces still control the Roj camp, they withdrew from the larger al-Hol camp in January, when Syria’s central government’s security forces took control of the area. At one point, the al-Hol camp housed some 24,000 people, mostly Syrians, but also Iraqis, and more than 6,000 women and children with foreign nationalities. Governments around the world have been resisting the repatriation of their citizens from the camps in Syria. The Roj camp also housed United Kingdom-born Shamima Begum, who was 15 when she and two other girls travelled from London in 2015 to marry ISIL fighters in Syria. In 2019, the UK government revoked Begum’s citizenship soon after she was discovered in a detention camp in Syria. Since then, Begum has challenged the decision, which was turned down by an appeals court in February 2024. Born in the UK to Bangladeshi parents, Begum does not hold Bangladeshi citizenship. She is reported to still be in the Roj camp. Adblock test (Why?)