 | Wars in the World |
Daily News on Wars in the World and on New States
| FOLLOW US ON: FACEBOOK X FLIPBOARD TELEGRAM |
Armed separatist rebels in Indonesia’s easternmost Papua region claimed responsibility for an attack on a civilian aircraft, alleging they killed an American pilot and set the plane on fire after it landed in a conflict-hit area.
The claim was made by the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB), a separatist group involved in a long-running insurgency against the Indonesian government.
The US said it launched new strikes on southern Iran on Monday, targeting Iranian missile sites and boats attempting to place mines.
The strikes were in “self-defence” and designed “to protect our troops from threats posed by Iranian forces”, US Central Command (Centcom) said in a statement.
The United States and Iran began face-to-face negotiations Saturday in Pakistan, days after a fragile, two-week ceasefire was announced, as the war that has killed thousands of people and shaken global markets entered its seventh week.
The White House confirmed the direct nature of the talks, a rare instance of high-level U.S. government engagement with the Iranian government.
The U.S. has agreed to a two-week ceasefire with Iran proposed by Pakistan, President Trump said Tuesday night.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi confirmed Tehran’s acceptance and said Iran would allow “safe passage” of the Strait of Hormuz during those two weeks “via coordination with Iran’s armed forces.”
Iran has fired missiles at the joint U.K.-U.S. Diego Garcia military base in the Indian Ocean, claiming the strike shows it is capable of longer-distance attacks than previously known.
“Iran’s reckless attacks, lashing out across the region and holding hostage the Strait of Hormuz, are a threat to British interests and British allies,” a spokesperson for the U.K.’s Ministry of Defense said Saturday, confirming the unsuccessful strike.