Iran draw strength from adversity after holding Belgium to draw

Iran's players said ‌adversity has forged a stronger sense of unity in the squad after they held heavily favoured Belgium to a 0-0 draw in their Group G World Cup match on Sunday, giving them a ‌chance to reach the knockout stage for the first time. The result was another display of resilience from a team whose tournament has unfolded under extraordinary circumstances. Due to measures imposed by the American government, the Team Melli squad have been ⁠forced to stay outside the US between matche

2026-06-22 08:22:55:00

Trump threatens new attacks as US-Iran peace talks open in Switzerland

US President Donald Trump threatened to restart war with Iran on Sunday even as Vice President JD Vance met Iranian officials for the first ‌talks under an interim peace deal that was overshadowed by Tehran's announcement it had again closed the Strait of Hormuz. The talks in the Qatari-owned Swiss mountaintop resort of Buergenstock were the first to be held under the terms of a memorandum of understanding reached between the two enemies last week to end their war, extending a tenuous ceasefire

2026-06-22 08:14:08:00

Trump says Iran deal is 'all signed', details remain unclear

US President Donald Trump said on Monday ‌a preliminary agreement to end the war in the Gulf has already been signed by the United States and Iran, though details have yet to be made public. "The deal's all signed," Trump said after he arrived in France for a summit of the G7 group of big economies, adding that ‌Vice President JD Vance would attend a formal signing ceremony in Geneva on Friday. The agreement would reopen the blockaded Strait of Hormuz and extend a ceasefire for 60 days, allowing

2026-06-16 08:17:34:00

Trump says deal to end war will be signed on Sunday, Iran questions timing

US President Donald Trump and mediator Pakistan said on Saturday an initial deal to end the war in ‌the Middle East would be signed on Sunday, although Iran denied the signing would take place so soon. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the two sides had agreed on a framework for a peace deal and that Islamabad was preparing for an electronic signing on Sunday, to be followed by technical-level talks next week. Trump said in a social media post that the deal with Iran was scheduled to

2026-06-14 10:00:57:00

Thousands gather for Seoul queer festival, counter-rally

Thousands of ​people gathered in central Seoul on Saturday for an annual LGBTQ ‌pride parade, while a conservative Christian group held a nearby counter-rally, organisers and police said. The Seoul Queer ‌Culture Festival has long drawn both supporters of LGBTQ rights and vocal opposition from conservative religious groups in ⁠South Korea, where same-sex marriage is not legally recognised and efforts to pass a comprehensive anti-discrimination law have repeatedly ⁠stalled. The festival's organis

2026-06-13 16:29:23:00

NASA taps US astronauts, Italian for Artemis III mission

NASA named three US astronauts and an Italian astronaut on Tuesday to serve as the crew ‌for its next Artemis mission, a spacecraft docking demonstration in Earth's orbit next year that will test moon landers from Elon Musk's SpaceX and Jeff Bezos' Blue Origin for the first time in space. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman at a ceremony in Houston named US astronauts Andre Douglas, Frank Rubio and Randy Bresnik and Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency as the crew for Arte

2026-06-10 11:06:45:00

OpenAI files for IPO after Anthropic

ChatGPT maker OpenAI confidentially filed for a US initial public offering ‌recently, the company said Monday, joining rival Anthropic in a push toward the stock market as investors seek exposure to the artificial intelligence boom. OpenAI did not disclose the size or terms of the offering, and said a timeline has not yet been determined. "It may be a while because there are things we want to do that are likely easier as a private company," it said in ‌a statement. Reuters had reported that the

2026-06-09 10:49:58:00

OPEC+ approves fourth oil output quota hike since Hormuz closure

LONDON (Reuters) -- OPEC+ agreed Sunday a fourth increase in its oil output targets in as many months, even though the US war with Iran is still preventing several of the group's members ‌from pumping more. The war has cut oil flows via the Strait of Hormuz, creating the world's biggest-ever supply crisis as key OPEC+ members including Saudi Arabia have been unable to supply customers in full since the end of February. The crisis for OPEC+ deepened when the United Arab Emirates left the Organiza

2026-06-08 11:01:24:00

Trump says Iran, Oman will not control Strait of Hormuz, deal remains elusive

President Donald Trump ‌on Wednesday dismissed a report that Iran and Oman would manage shipping through the Strait of Hormuz as part of a deal to end the war, in a sign that any agreement remained elusive. Trump's comments came after Iranian state TV reported that it had obtained an unofficial draft of an agreement that would restore commercial shipping through the strategic waterway to prewar levels within ‌a month, with Iran and Oman jointly managing traffic. That framework also would have th

2026-05-28 08:07:26:00

Singapore foreign minister in North Korea on rare trip to two Koreas

Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan ‌met his North Korean counterpart Choe Son-hui on Tuesday in Pyongyang ‌and discussed strengthening bilateral ties, KCNA state news agency said on Wednesday. Balakrishnan and Choe ⁠also exchanged views on regional and global affairs, KCNA said without elaborating. Balakrishnan is expected ⁠to visit South Korea following his stop in the North, ​a rare trip to both Koreas ‌by a Singaporean envoy. Balakrishnan was a member ‌of ‌cabinet in Singapore w

2026-05-27 08:37:06:00