TEHRAN, Iran — Iran will "under no circumstances" enter a war either directly or indirectly with the United States, a prominent reformist Iranian lawmaker said Wednesday, as both Washington and Tehran try to ease heightened tensions in the region. The reported comments by Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh come after the White House...
Qatar to Send Money for West Bank, Gaza After Israel Truce
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Qatar on Tuesday said it is sending $480 million to Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip after a cease-fire deal ended the deadliest fighting between Israel and Palestinian militants since a 2014 war. Qatar's Foreign Ministry said $300 million would support health...
Calm Takes Hold as Hamas Reports Cease-Fire With Israel
JERUSALEM — The Israeli military lifted protective restrictions on residents in the south on Monday, while Gaza's ruling Hamas militant group reported a cease-fire deal had been reached to end the deadliest fighting between the two sides since a 2014 war. The escalation had killed 25 on the Gaza side,...
House Votes to End Support for Yemen War, Rebuffing Trump
WASHINGTON — The House on Thursday voted to end American involvement in the Yemen war, rebuffing the Trump administration's support for the military campaign led by Saudi Arabia. The bill now heads to President Donald Trump, who is expected to veto it. The White House says the measure raises "serious...
Trump in Iraq on First Visit to Troops in Troubled Region
AL-ASAD AIRBASE, Iraq — President Donald Trump made an unannounced visit to Iraq on Wednesday, leaving behind a partially shuttered U.S. government to greet American troops helping hold off extremists in a country where thousands of Americans died during the recent war. It comes a week after Trump stunned his...
Officials: Pentagon Planning Troop Pullout From Afghanistan
WASHINGTON — The Pentagon is developing plans to withdraw up to half of the 14,000 American troops serving in Afghanistan, U.S. officials said Thursday, marking a sharp change in the Trump administration's policy aimed at forcing the Taliban to the peace table after more than 17 years of war. One...
Houthi Rebels Block Food Deliveries to Starving Yemeni: UN Official
RIMBO, Sweden — The head of the U.N. food agency has accused Shiite Houthi rebels of blocking access to food deliveries to civilians devastated by the war in Yemen. World Food Program chief David Beasley, who has previously criticized the Saudi-led coalition for a blockade of Yemeni ports, told The...
Expectations Low as Yemen's Warring Parties Meet for Talks
CAIRO — Yemen's warring parties will meet in Sweden this week for another attempt at talks aimed at halting their catastrophic 3-year-old war, but there are few incentives for major compromises, and the focus is likely to be on firming up a shaky de-escalation. U.N. officials say they don't expect...
Rise in US Deaths in Afghanistan Clouds Outlook for Peace
WASHINGTON — A rash of American combat deaths in Afghanistan is putting a spotlight on a stalemated 17-year war that is testing President Donald Trump's commitment to pursuing peace with the Taliban. Trump has acknowledged that his original instinct was to withdraw from Afghanistan, but last week he suggested he...
Opposition to War in Yemen Grows. How Will Trump Respond?
WASHINGTON — The Senate rejected an effort Thursday to block $300 million in weapon sales to Bahrain, but there's growing unease in Congress about the U.S. role supporting the Saudi Arabia-led coalition's military campaign in Yemen. Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., forced the vote to send a message to President Donald...