Ángel Esteban Aguilar Morales – better known as Lobo Menor, or Little Wolf – was wanted in connection with the murder of presidential candidate Fernando Villavicencio in 2023, Ecuador’s interior minister John Reimberg said.

He added that Aguilar had obtained papers using a fake Colombian identity.

Mexico’s security minister Omar García Harfuch said the member of cartel Los Lobos had been the subject of an Interpol red notice and was “linked to drug trafficking, extortion, and homicide”.

Colombian President Gustavo Petro called him “one of the world’s most notorious assassins”.

“This result represents a significant blow against transnational organised crime and confirms the effectiveness of trilateral co-operation between Colombia, Ecuador and Mexico in the fight against multi-crime networks,” he said.

Villavicencio, a member of the country’s national assembly and a former journalist who had campaigned against corruption, was shot dead as he was leaving a rally in the capital, Quito, in August 2023.

Five people linked to Los Lobos, including the leader of one of its cells, Carlos Edwin Angulo, were jailed for his murder a year later.

Prosecutors alleged that Angulo – widely known as The Invisible – ordered the hit from the Quito prison in which he is detained, a claim he has denied.

Aguilar is one of several Los Lobos lieutenants under the group’s ultimate leader, Wilmer “Pipo” Chavarría Barré, who faked his own death to escape prison before being captured in Spain in 2025.

Aguilar was sentenced to 20 years in prison in 2013 for the murder of the brother of Ecuador’s former interior minister José Serrano.

Prosecutors allege Aguilar was among the men who ordered the hit on Villavicencio but was able to flee after being granted parole, according to Mexican newspaper El Universal.

At the time of his arrest, he had been identifying himself as Juan Carlos Montero Mestre, and was followed by Ecuadorean and Colombian police from the Colombian cities of Medellín and Itaguí over a period of two months, Ecuadorean news site Primicias reports.

Ecuador, one of the main conduits through which South American drugs are trafficked, has sought to align itself closer to the US under President Daniel Noboa, who has frequently used the military to crack down on crime.

The Trump administration – which has often cited combatting drug trafficking as its justification for military action in and around Latin America – declared Los Lobos a Foreign Terrorist Organisation last year, accusing it of “terrorising and inflicting brutal violence on the Ecuadorean people”.

It is said to have deep connections to the powerful Jalisco New Generation Cartel in Mexico.

Ecuador’s location – sandwiched between Colombia and Peru, the world’s largest producers of cocaine – has turned it into a key transit country for the illicit drug.

Around 70% of the cocaine produced in Colombia and Peru is estimated to be shipped through Ecuador.

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According to the Minister, the endorsement was secured during high-level engagements in Washington, where he met with the leadership of the influential caucus to rally support for the initiative championed by John Dramani Mahama.

“I am in Washington to hold strategic engagements with the leadership of the influential and inspirational Congressional Black Caucus on President Mahama’s impending historic UN Resolution,” he stated.

Mr. Ablakwa described the backing as a significant milestone for Ghana’s global advocacy, noting that the Congressional Black Caucus had offered “100 per cent support” for the draft resolution.

“Absolutely delighted to disclose that the Congressional Black Caucus has declared 100% support for Ghana’s UN Draft Resolution,” he said, adding that “this endorsement from the Conscience of Congress is most cherished and deeply appreciated.”

He emphasised that the development provides renewed momentum for Ghana’s push for reparatory justice and international recognition of the historical injustice.

“We clearly have an added momentum to our global campaign for reparatory justice,” he noted, underscoring the importance of global solidarity in advancing the cause.

The Minister further disclosed that discussions also focused on building a more structured and long-term partnership involving Ghana, the African Union, and the CBC.

He expressed appreciation to the Chair of the caucus, Yvette D. Clarke, and other members, including Gabe Amo, stating, “We are united to make history on March 25, 2026.”

NPA hosts maiden Grand Iftar to promote unity and religious harmony…

District Court Judge Royce Lamberth has given authorities one week to restore the international broadcaster’s service.

The VOA was set up during World War Two to counter Nazi propaganda.

Just weeks after returning to office as president, Donald Trump issued an executive order to close the broadcaster, which his officials accused of left-wing bias. Trump also ordered outlets such as Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia to be “eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law”.

The president appointed Kari Lake to head the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) – the parent company that oversees and funds the VOA, as well as Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia.

Lake proceeded to sack more than 85% of the agency’s employees – more than 1,000 staff at VOA alone – leaving just a handful of employees in their jobs.

Most have been on paid administrative leave since last year, including Persian Service reporters who were called back to work after Israel attacked Iran last June.

Last week, Judge Lamberth ruled that Lake lacked the authority to order the suspension of the USAGM workforce because she had not been confirmed by the US Senate.

In Tuesday’s ruling, the federal judge described the decision to sack the journalists as “arbitrary and capricious,” adding that the government had not taken into account legislation that determines what languages and regions the VOA must serve.

“Defendants have provided nothing approaching a principled basis for their decision,” Lamberth wrote.

Three VOA journalists had sued the Trump administration. One of them, Patsy Widakuswara, said she was deeply grateful for the judge’s decision.

“We hope the American people will continue to support our mission to produce journalism, not propaganda,” she told the Associated Press news agency.

It is not clear whether Lake’s nominated successor, Sarah Rogers, whose appointment requires Senate confirmation, will appeal.

Before being wound down, the VOA broadcast TV, radio and digital content in almost 50 languages.

Trump’s criticisms of the VOA form part of his broader attacks against the US media, which studies suggest American news consumers view as highly polarised.

Larijani was last seen in public at a Quds Day march in Tehran on Friday. Iran has not confirmed whether he has been killed or injured.

Drones and rockets were launched at the US embassy in Iraq’s capital, Baghdad, overnight, in the second such attack of the war.

The UAE’s defence ministry says it is intercepting drones and missiles from Iran, with Qatar saying it has also been targeted by missiles.

One Iranian tells BBC Persian the war is “really destroying my nerves”, while Tehran’s Ministry of Intelligence says it has confiscated “hundreds of Starlink devices”, which are used by some Iranians to access the internet.

In the US, a top counterterrorism official resigns over the ongoing conflict, saying “Iran posed no imminent threat to our nation.”

The U.N. peacekeeping mission known as UNIFIL ‌is stationed in southern Lebanon to monitor hostilities along the demarcation line with Israel – an area that is at the heart of clashes between Israeli troops and Iran-backed Hezbollah fighters.

The mission, which will be halted at the end of 2026, has been sporadically caught in the crosshairs of both Israel and Hezbollah over the last couple of years, but ​with Israel considering a broader ground operation, the risks could be greater in the coming weeks.

Lebanon was pulled into the war in the Middle ​East when Hezbollah fired rockets at Israel that ignited a new Israeli offensive against the group.

THREE SHELLS FIRED FROM ISRAELI ⁠TANK

According to the source, the preliminary conclusions led by UNIFIL’s Force Commander Reserve, with support from explosive ordnance disposal specialists, indicated that three strikes at ​the al-Qawzah base were direct hits from the main gun of an Israeli battle tank.

They were fired using 120-mm M339 HE-MP-T shells, the source said.

“Israeli involvement ​in the attack against UNIFIL is undeniable, given that these munitions are manufactured by Israel Military Industries (IMI),” the source said.

The findings of UNIFIL’s probe have not been previously reported. UNIFIL had said on March 6 that Ghanaian peacekeepers were wounded amid heavy firing and called the incident “unacceptable,” but did not say at the time who was responsible.

“That investigation ​is not yet complete. Once it is finalised, it will be shared with the parties, per usual practice,” said UNIFIL spokesperson Kandice Ardiel.

“Nonetheless, we reiterate ​the obligation of all actors to ensure the safety and security of peacekeepers and avoid harm to civilians. Any deliberate attack on peacekeepers is a grave violation of international ‌humanitarian law ⁠and a violation of resolution 1701.”

Israel’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comment. IMI could not immediately be reached for comment. Elbit Systems, a major Israeli defence contractor that owns IMI, also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Lebanese prime minister’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Highlighting the concerns surrounding U.N. peacekeepers, UNIFIL said on Sunday that another group of peacekeepers were likely fired upon earlier that day ​on three separate occasions in southern ​Lebanon, “likely by non-state armed groups.” It said no ⁠peacekeepers were injured.

UNIFIL ABILITY TO CARRY OUT MISSION TESTED

The M339 HE‑MP‑T round can be used in anti-personnel, anti-helicopter, anti-materiel, anti-armour and anti-structure roles.

The shots were fired within a five-minute window, indicating repeated fire rather than a single stray ​round, the source said, adding that the base’s location and coordinates were well known to all parties operating in ​the area, raising ⁠serious concerns over the safety of U.N. personnel.

Three Ghanaian soldiers were wounded, according to the Ghanaian army.

“This escalation, far from being isolated, is part of a worrying dynamic, severely testing UNIFIL’s ability to carry out its peacekeeping mission,” the source said.

The Israeli military occupies five posts within Lebanon, and despite a ceasefire last year, it has ⁠frequently carried ​out airstrikes in the country’s south that it says are targeting the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah.

U.N. ​Security Council Resolution 1701, among other provisions, states that no armed forces should be operating in southern Lebanon except the U.N. peacekeepers and the Lebanese military.

Israel has repeatedly accused Hezbollah of trying ​to rearm and the Lebanese armed forces of failing to disarm the group.

In a letter posted on Tuesday to his X account, National Counterterrorism Center Director Joe Kent said that Iran posed “no imminent threat” to the US and claimed that the Trump administration “started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby”.

Kent, 45, is a US special forces and CIA veteran whose wife, navy cryptologic technician Shannon Kent, was killed in a suicide bombing in Syria in 2019.

The White House has dismissed the letter as having “many false claims” about Iran.

Speaking in the Oval Office on Tuesday, Trump said that he thought Kent was a “nice guy” but “weak on security”.

Trump said that Kent’s resignation letter made him realise “it was a good thing that he’s out” and that he disagreed with Kent’s assessment of the Iranian threat.

With his departure, Kent becomes the most high-profile figure from within the Trump administration to publicly criticise the US-Israeli operation in Iran.

In the letter, Kent said that had previously supported Trump’s foreign policy platform and until last year believed that he had “had understood that the wars in the Middle East that robbed America of the precious lives of our patriots and depleted the wealth and prosperity of our nation.”

Additionally, Kent alleged that “high-ranking Israeli officials” and influential US journalists had sowed “misinformation” that caused Trump to undermine his “America First” platform.

“This echo chamber was used to deceive you into believing that Iran posed an imminent threat to the United States,” the letter continued. “This was a lie.”

Kent, a long-time supporter of Trump’s who unsuccessfully ran for Congress twice, was nominated by the president early in his administration and narrowly confirmed to his post, with many Democrats criticising his links to extremist groups including members of the Proud Boys.

In the confirmation hearing, Kent also refused to back away from claims that federal agents had fomented the January 6 riots at the US Capitol or that Trump had won the 2020 election.

At the National Counterterrorism Center, he reported to Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard and oversaw the analysis and detection of potential terrorist threats from around the globe.

Previously, Kent had deployed 11 times overseas with the US military, including with the US Army’s special forces in Iraq.

He later became a paramilitary officer at the CIA, before leaving government service after his wife’s death.

Kent cited his military service and her death in his letter, saying that he “cannot support sending the next generation off to fight and die in a war that serves no benefit to the American people nor justifies the cost of American lives”.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that Kent’s suggestion that “Trump made the decision based on the influence of others, even foreign countries, is both insulting and laughable”.

“As President Trump has clearly and explicitly stated, he had strong and compelling evidence that Iran was going to attack the United States first,” she added.

In a brief interview with the New York Times, conservative media commentator Tucker Carlson praised Kent, with whom he has close personal ties.

“Joe is the bravest man I know, and he can’t be dismissed as a nut,” Carlson said. “He’s leaving a job that gave him access to the highest-level relevant intelligence. The neocons will try to destroy him for that.”

“He understands that and did it anyway,” he added.

There have been a number of resignations among senior officials in the Trump administration, including Security and Exchange Commission enforcement director Margaret Ryan and Kennedy Center President Ric Grenell.

The president’s second term, however, has seen far less turnover than his previous tenure at the White House between 2017 and 2021.

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The centre in Kabul was hit on Monday evening, killing some people and injuring others, the government’s spokesman said on X.

Pakistan denied striking any health facility, saying it “precisely targeted military installations and terrorist support infrastructure” in Kabul and the eastern province of Nangahar.

The BBC visited the centre, parts of which were still on fire, and saw more than 30 bodies being carried out on stretchers.

Some 2,000 people were being treated there, according to officials at the facility, who believe there could be hundreds of casualties.

The Afghan health ministry’s spokesman, Sharafat Zaman Amarkhail, told the BBC there were no military facilities near the rehabilitation centre.

Residents reported hearing loud explosions across Kabul at around 20:50 local time (16:20 GMT), followed by the sound of aircraft and air defence systems.

Family members of those being treated at the Centre were gathered outside, desperately trying to find information about their loved ones.

A Taliban government spokesperson claimed the death toll reached at least 400, but the BBC has not independently verified the numbers.

Pakistan’s information ministry said the strikes were “precise and carefully undertaken to ensure no collateral damage is inflicted”.

It dismissed Afghanistan’s claim as a “misreporting of facts… [that] seeks to stir sentiments, covering illegitimate support to cross-border terrorism”.

Formerly a US military base, the area where the strike occurred was a notorious hangout for drug users. When the Taliban returned to power in August 2021, they turned the space into a drug rehabilitation centre, housing users rounded up from across the capital.

Rescuers continued to search for survivors into Tuesday. In the morning, the extent of the damage – flattened debris littered with blankets and shoes beside charred, blown-out windows – was visible.

The ongoing conflict between the neighbouring countries re-erupted in February, with Pakistan accusing Afghanistan of harbouring militant groups, something the Taliban government denies.

At least 75 people have been killed and 193 injured in Afghanistan as a result of continuing cross-border fighting between the countries since 26 February, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).

It follows months of clashes, despite the two sides agreeing to a fragile ceasefire in October.

China, which has tried to cool tensions, said its foreign minister Wang Yi has spoken to his Afghan and Pakistani counterparts over the phone in the past week.

Calling for a ceasefire “at the earliest opportunity”, Beijing on Monday urged the two countries to “remain calm and exercise restraint [and to] engage face to face ASAP”.

Flights were temporarily suspended on Monday after a fire broke out near the airport after a “drone-related incident”.

A fire also raged after a drone attack on the strategically important port and industrial zone at Fujairah, one of the largest oil storage facilities in the region.

And a rocket attack on a car killed a Palestinian national on the outskirts of the UAE capital, Abu Dhabi, the city’s Media Office reported.

The attack occurred in the Al Bahia area, it said.

UAE air defence systems intercepted six ballistic missiles and 21 drones on Monday, the Defence Ministry said. Iran has launched over 1,900 missiles and drones at the UAE since the war between the US and Israel, and Iran, began.

Fujairah sits on the UAE’s eastern coast, on the Gulf of Oman rather than the Persian Gulf, so vessels do not need to navigate the Strait of Hormuz to reach it.

The location means the port plays a “crucial” role in “helping keep global supplies moving” when the Strait of Hormuz is blocked by Iran, Dubai-based Justin Harper, editor of CEO Middle East, who regularly speaks to Dubai’s oil industry executives, told the BBC.

“If tensions with Iran disrupt the chokepoint, the UAE can still export oil through Fujairah via pipelines from the oilfields in Abu Dhabi,” he said.

The port city is “ideally placed to bypass the Strait of Hormuz”, said Dubai-based oil analyst Matt Stanley, who works for commodities data provider Kpler.

“The UAE’s state oil company Adnoc have their oil tankers there, it is crude grade oil which is what the Asian buyers want.”

Iran hitting a storage tanker and oil facilities at Fujairah “shows the vulnerability of Gulf infrastructure”, Stanley told the BBC.

“Iran wants to disrupt the flow of energy”.

The port city is close to India and the “first stop out of the Middle East on the way to Singapore and China”, Stanley said.

“Fujairah is on the old Silk Road, the maritime route, and it picked up a lot of business bunkering – that is, providing fuel, food, water – for container ships that have been at sea for 25 or 30 days.”

Fujairah is like a “huge vending machine” for ships, Stanley added.

Despite the attacks on Dubai, Harper says the business community there is “resilient”. Restaurants have been offering deals to get people back into restaurants, and “the malls still seem to be busy”. People “underestimate Dubai and its ability to survive a downturn”, he added.

Last week, the UAE’s Minister of State Lana Nusseibeh vowed in a BBC interview that her country would “bounce back” from the conflict, insisting that its economy was “resilient”.

Monday’s drone strike was the third incident since the start of the war near Dubai’s airport, which is the world’s busiest for international passengers.

Some flights were delayed, while others were cancelled altogether, in another hit to the UAE’s image of safety and stability.

The country’s energy sector came under attack as a drone hit an oil storage tanker on Saturday, and another drone hit the oil facilities on Monday, causing a fire.

Oil loading activities at the port were halted for a time while damage assessments were carried out.

In an interview with Reuters over the weekend, Zane Dangor, director-general of the Department of International Relations, also rejected some other Trump administration demands, such as dropping South Africa’s genocide case against Israel, scrapping Black empowerment laws or accepting ​a refugee programme for whites.

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Dangor was speaking against the backdrop of the U.S. and Israeli war on Iran, a conflict placing ​increased strains on governments navigating relationships with Tehran, and a sharp deterioration in Pretoria’s ties with ⁠the U.S. during President Donald Trump’s second term.

In August, Trump imposed a 30% tariff on imports from South Africa, a move ​that could cause tens of thousands of job losses at a time when a third of South Africans are out of work.

“We ​have no reason to cut ties with Iran,” Dangor said, but he added: “we are not absolutely uncritical of Iran,” noting that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s government had admonished the republic for its crackdown on protesters in January, and for attacking neighbours in the latest war with the United States.

“(But) ​we cannot be pulled into the sort of sphere of influence politics that great powers want to pull us into, and ​that in this instance includes the U.S.,” he said.

In his first media interview, new U.S. Ambassador Leo Bozell was quoted by News24 as saying “an ‌association with ⁠Iran is an impediment to good relations with the United States.”

“You (the United States) have a particular relationship with Iran … that many in the developing world do not have,” Dangor said.

RELATIONSHIP WITH US HITS ROCK BOTTOM

South Africa’s relationship with the U.S. has been at a low since Trump accused its Black majority government of persecuting its white minority, repeating false claims about land seizures from white farmers circulating ​on far-right chat rooms.

Dangor said Pretoria ​was keen to improve ⁠ties with Washington, but “let’s engage about areas we agree on”.

Regarding the International Court of Justice case against Israel for its Gaza war, Dangor said: “it’s not even on the table … In my last engagement ​with the State Department people, we indicated that if you disagree with us on this, ​it’s a court ⁠process.”

Trump administration officials have suggested laws aiming to redress apartheid’s legacy, like minimum requirements for Black business ownership and Black employees, must be modified to ease South Africa’s 30% tariff.

“We’re not going to let the domestic issues that they’ve put on the table become part of ⁠that equation,” ​Dangor said.

The U.S. also aims to process 4,500 refugee applications per month from white ​South Africans, Trump claims, who are persecuted.

“It’s a preferential immigration programme,” Dangor said. “But they should do it through the normal channels. They cannot use the moniker of ‘refugee’,” ​he said, adding that this was why a Kenya-based organisation that processes refugees was denied entry.

Videos circulating ​online showed emergency responders at a Maiduguri hospital attending to injured people, ​some with torn and bloodied clothes. Reuters could not immediately verify ⁠the videos.

Borno state Governor Babagana Zulum, in a statement, said the explosions had ​claimed victims and injured others, without elaborating or saying who was responsible.

“The act ​is utterly condemnable, barbaric, and inhumane,” said Zulum.

The first blast went off at a post office in the city centre and was immediately followed by another at the popular Monday market ​nearby, two security sources and three Maiduguri residents told Reuters.

The sources and residents ​said two more blasts hit the University of Maiduguri Teaching Hospital, and another struck the eastern ‌neighbourhood ⁠of Kaleri, all in the early evening on Monday.

RESIDENTS SEE BODIES AFTER BLAST

The residents said they had seen dead bodies following the blast at the market. The number of casualties, or what caused the blasts, was not immediately clear.

Borno State Police spokesperson, Nahum Daso Kenneth, said security operatives and emergency responders were deployed following reports of the blasts.

“Residents are advised to remain calm and avoid the area ​while assessments continue,” he said.

The Nigerian military, in a statement ​earlier, said ⁠security forces had repelled attacks on the outskirts of Maiduguri by suspected Islamist insurgents in the early hours of Monday.

Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province have ⁠carried ​out several attacks against army bases across Borno ​this month, killing several troops and seizing weapons.

The Bani Odeh family were travelling in their car in the town of Tammum, in the northern West Bank, when Israeli forces opened fire.

Two of their other children were injured but survived.

Israeli authorities said a joint operation by the army and Israel’s paramilitary border police had been taking place in the town at time. They claim the car accelerated towards Israeli forces, who felt endangered and responded by shooting.

“As a result, four Palestinians in the vehicle were killed,” a statement from the Israeli military and police said, adding that the circumstances of the incident were being investigated.

The Palestinian health ministry said that four of the family members – parents Ali and Waad, and two of their children, five-year-old Mohammed and seven-year-old Othman – were killed.

They all arrived at the hospital with gunshot wounds to the face and head, the ministry said.

Two older children, aged eight and 11, who had also been travelling in the car and witnessed the deaths of their family, survived with minor injuries from shrapnel.

The Palestinian Red Crescent said in a statement that Israeli forces had initially prevented their crews from reaching the injured inside the car and ordered them to leave the area.

The UN says much of the occupied West Bank has remained under heightened movement restrictions since the outbreak of the war between the US, Israel and Iran on 28 February.

Violent attacks have also continued, according to Palestinian authorities and the UN.

More broadly, violence there has risen sharply since the 7 October 2023 Hamas attacks, which triggered the war in Gaza.

Between 7 October 2023 and 8 March 2026, the UN’s humanitarian affairs office, OCHA, said 1,064 Palestinians were killed in the occupied West Bank, including at least 231 children.

Derrick Van Yeboah, also known as “Van”, admitted before a United States District Court in New York that he participated in a scheme that targeted vulnerable individuals, many of them elderly, through fraudulent online relationships.

The United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, Jay Clayton, announced the guilty plea in a statement on Thursday, March 5, 2026.

“Derrick Van Yeboah pled guilty today to a massive criminal scheme targeting elderly men and women in online romance scams,” Mr Clayton said.

He added that many victims had turned to online platforms in search of companionship but were instead defrauded.

“Many New Yorkers search for companionship online, and no one deserves to have their vulnerability met with fraud and theft. Van Yeboah cruelly exploited those vulnerabilities for over $10 million in illicit profit.”

According to prosecutors, Van Yeboah was part of a criminal organisation primarily based in Ghana that carried out romance scams and business email compromise operations against individuals and businesses across the United States.

Investigators said members of the group created fake online identities and used them to build relationships with victims, convincing them that they were involved in genuine romantic partnerships.

Once the victims had developed trust in the supposed partners, the fraudsters persuaded them to transfer money or to help move funds obtained from other victims.

Authorities said the scheme extended beyond individuals to include businesses that were tricked through compromised email accounts into transferring large sums of money to accounts controlled by the criminal network.

In total, prosecutors said the conspiracy stole and laundered more than $100 million from dozens of victims, with the proceeds later moved to West Africa.

Van Yeboah personally carried out many of the romance scams by posing as fictitious romantic partners in communications with victims. He is being held responsible for more than $10 million that he obtained through the fraudulent scheme.

The 40-year-old pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, an offence that carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison under United States law.

He has also agreed to pay restitution and forfeiture amounting to $10,149,429.17.

However, prosecutors said the maximum sentence is set by law for reference and that the final punishment will be determined by the presiding judge.

Van Yeboah is scheduled to be sentenced by US District Judge Arun Subramanian on June 3, 2026.

The US Attorney’s Office said the investigation was carried out by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, while authorities also acknowledged assistance from Ghana and the United States Department of Justice’s Office of International Affairs.

The case is being prosecuted by the Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit of the US Attorney’s Office, with Assistant US Attorneys Kevin Mead and Mitzi Steiner leading the prosecution.

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Rescue efforts continue after the loss of the KC-135, it said, having earlier said neither hostile nor friendly fire were involved in the downing of the aircraft.

The tanker had been involved in ongoing US operations against Iran and was one of two aircraft involved in the incident. The second landed safely.

The Boeing-manufactured aircraft are capable of refuelling planes midair and typically play a major role in US military operations. They were used extensively in the first Gulf War to extend the range of fighter jets and bombers.

Centcom said the incident occurred around 14:00 ET (19:00 GMT) on Thursday and that the circumstances of the crash were now under investigation.

The US military command unit added that the identities of the personnel who had been killed were being withheld for 24 hours so their next of kin could be notified.

The KC-135 usually has a crew of at least a pilot, a co-pilot and a boom operator responsible for controlling the refuelling arm of the aircraft.

Centcom earlier described the crash as happening over friendly airspace – but this is a region of Iraq where pro-Iranian militias operate. Iran’s military claimed on state TV that an allied group had targeted the plane with a missile.

Thursday’s crash brings the official US military death toll in the US-Israel war with Iran, which began a fortnight ago, to 11.

The US military has now lost at least four aircraft during the current war.

Earlier this month, three F-15s were shot down in “an apparent friendly fire incident” over Kuwait, officials said. All six crew members were able to safely eject.

Boeing manufactured the KC-135 Stratotanker for the US military in the 1950s and early 1960s.

It has been a backbone to the US military’s air refuelling fleet and allow combat aircraft to carry out longer missions without needing to land.

In a public notice issued on March 13, 2026, the Ministry reported a rise in cases where Ghanaians were deceived with offers of employment, business opportunities, or assistance in obtaining European visas.

According to the statement, many victims of such schemes end up stranded, detained by immigration authorities, or subjected to exploitative conditions in foreign countries.

The Ministry noted that QNET, a multilevel marketing company previously scrutinized by regulators in several African countries, is among networks targeting vulnerable youth with deceptive recruitment tactics.

It urged the public to verify all travel, recruitment, and business offers through official channels before making financial commitments or traveling abroad.

Parents, guardians, and community leaders were also encouraged to educate young people about the risks associated with such schemes.

The Ministry added that it is collaborating with relevant security agencies to protect Ghanaians and clamp down on criminal networks exploiting unsuspecting individuals.

The degree was conferred on Friday, March 13, 2026, by the university’s leadership, including President Yoon Dog-sup and Kim Hyun-chul, Dean of the Graduate School.

In his acceptance speech, President Mahama dedicated the honour to the people of Ghana, describing it as a symbol of the strong relationship between Ghana and South Korea.

“This honour you have bestowed upon me today is one that I accept on behalf of all the people of Ghana as a symbol of the deep respect, mutual relations, and admiration that exist between our two countries,” he said.

President Mahama also emphasised the importance of international cooperation and youth empowerment, urging continued collaboration between nations.

“May the friendship between Ghana and Korea continue to grow deeper and stronger. May we all commit ourselves to choosing peace over conflict, cooperation over confrontation, and hope over despair,” he stated.

He further encouraged young people, particularly students of Yonsei University, to pursue truth and excellence in their endeavours.

The honorary doctorate recognises President Mahama’s longstanding role in public service and international engagement, while strengthening academic and diplomatic ties between Ghana and South Korea.

Zhang Kequn was intercepted during a security check at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA) in the capital, Nairobi, after authorities discovered a large consignment of live ants in his luggage bound for China.

He has yet to respond to the accusation, but investigators said in court that he was linked to an anti-trafficking network that was broken up in Kenya last year.

The ants are protected by international biodiversity treaties, and their trade is highly regulated.

Last year, the Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) warned of a growing demand for garden ants – scientifically known as Messor cephalotes – in Europe and Asia, where collectors keep them as pets.

A state prosecutor told the court on Wednesday, March 12, that Zhang had packed some ants in test tubes, while others were concealed in tissue paper rolls hidden in his luggage.

“Within his personal luggage, there was found 1,948 garden ants packed in specialised test tubes,” prosecutor Allen Mulama told the court.

“A further 300 live ants were recovered concealed in three rolls of tissue paper within the luggage,” he added.

The prosecutor asked the court to allow the suspect’s electronic devices – phone and laptop – to be forensically examined.

Duncan Juma, a senior KWS official, told the BBC that more arrests were expected as investigators widen their probe into other Kenyan towns where ant harvesting was suspected to be ongoing.

Last May, a Kenyan court sentenced four men to one year in prison or a fine of $7,700 (£5,800) for trying to smuggle thousands of live queen ants out of the country, in a first-of-its-kind case.

The four suspects – two Belgians, a Vietnamese and a Kenyan – had pleaded guilty to the charges after their arrest in what the KWS described as “a coordinated, intelligence-led operation”.

The Belgians told the court that they were collecting the highly sought-after ants as a hobby and didn’t think it was illegal.

Investigators now say Zhang was the mastermind behind this trafficking ring, but apparently escaped Kenya last year using a different passport.

On Wednesday, the court allowed prosecutors to detain him for five days to enable detectives to conduct further investigations.

The KWS, which is more used to protecting larger creatures, such as lions and elephants, described last year’s ruling as a “landmark case”.

The ants seized last year were giant African harvester ants, which KWS said were ecologically important, noting that their removal from the ecosystem could disrupt soil health and biodiversity.

It is believed that the intended destinations were the exotic pet markets in Europe and Asia.

The West African nation, a prominent advocate of reparations on the continent, plans to table the proposal at the U.N. General Assembly, possibly as early as this month, its Foreign Ministry said in a statement to Reuters.

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The plan marks a new step in Africa’s efforts to seek accountability for ​historical injustices by former colonial powers, and the country hopes it will “enjoy the support ​of many member states”.

“The proposed resolution seeks to recognise the transatlantic slave trade as the gravest crime in the history of humankind, taking into account its scale, duration, legalisation and enduring consequences,” ​it said.

While calls for reparations have gained momentum in recent years, there is also a growing backlash.

Several ​European leaders have opposed even discussing the subject, with critics arguing that today’s states and institutions ‌should not ⁠be held responsible for historical wrongs.

Asked if it expected opposition, the ministry said: “A backlash against truth is one that we hope would not occur. Ghana is not seeking to reopen old wounds but to heal those wounds with truth.”

PUSH FOR ​REPARATIONS

African and Caribbean nations have been seeking to establish a special U.N. reparations tribunal, with lawyers noting that previous tribunals had been created by resolution or by the Security Council.

The African Union (AU) last year set out to create a “unified vision” among its 55 member states on what reparations may entail, ranging from financial compensation and formal apologies to policy reforms. AU leaders endorsed the proposed resolution at a summit last ⁠month.

Member ​states of the Caribbean Community, which has outlined its ​own reparations plan, are also expected to support it.

“We remain optimistic that others would equally be able ​to do so,” the ministry said.

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US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said it was a temporary measure to “promote stability in global energy markets” during the war. The authorisation will remain in effect until 11 April.

“This narrowly tailored, short-term measure applies only to oil already in transit and will not provide significant financial benefit to the Russian government,” Bessent said.

Attacks on ships and energy infrastructure in the Gulf and the effective closure of the vital Strait of Hormuz waterway have rocked global energy markets.

Oil prices climbed back above $100 a barrel on Thursday, and stock markets fell after three more cargo vessels were hit in the Gulf and Iran’s new supreme leader vowed to keep blocking the strait.

Around a fifth of the world’s oil usually passes through the narrow waterway.

Oil prices were broadly steady in Friday morning trading in Asia, with Brent crude 0.2% lower at $100.29 (£75.09) a barrel, while US-traded oil was down by 0.3% at $95.41.

The jump in energy prices this week has prompted authorities to take action.

On Wednesday, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said it would release a record 400 million barrels of oil.

Governments in Asia, which are major buyers of oil from the Gulf, have announced a slew of measures in recent days.

The Philippines, for example, gets around 95% of its crude oil from the Middle East. The country’s president told public workers to switch to a four-day working week to save fuel.

Meanwhile, Japan, South Korea and Thailand have announced price caps on petrol prices.

“The temporary increase in oil prices is a short-term and temporary disruption that will result in a massive benefit to our nation and economy in the long-term,” Bessent said.

Earlier, he said the US government would start escorting vessels through the Strait of Hormuz “as soon as it is militarily possible”.

The possible need for a military escort “was always in our planning”, he told Sky News.

Pressed on whether that could start in the coming days, Bessent said: “As soon as it is possible to ensure safe passage, we will do it”.

Called “Promoting Ethnic Unity and Progress”, the ethnic minority law aims to forge national unity and advance the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation with the Chinese ​Communist Party (CCP) at its core, a draft copy of the law showed.

It was passed at the closing session of the ​annual meeting of the National People’s Congress, China’s legislature, by 2,756 votes, with three opposing votes and three ⁠abstentions, according to a Reuters witness.

The law will come into force on July 1 this year, state media reported.

Officially, China has ​56 officially recognised ethnic groups, dominated by the Han Chinese, who account for more than 91% of the country’s 1.4 billion people.

China’s ethnic minority ​populations – including Tibetans, Mongols, Hui, Manchus, and Uyghurs – are concentrated in regions that together cover roughly half of the country’s land area, much of it rich in natural resources.

The law aims to promote integration across ethnic groups through education, housing, migration, community life, culture, tourism, and development policy, the law said.

It mandates ​that Mandarin is the basic language of instruction in schools and for government and official business.

In public settings, where Mandarin and minority ​languages are used together, Mandarin must be given “prominence in placement, order, and similar respects,” the draft said.

“The state respects and protects the learning and use ‌of minority ⁠languages and scripts,” it added.

Religious groups, religious schools, and religious venues must adhere “to the direction of the Sinicization of religion in China,” according to the draft.

The law also seeks to ban any interference with marriage choices based on ethnicity, custom, or religion, to enable more intermarriage between ethnic groups.

‘INTEGRATE WITH THE MAJORITY’

Allen Carlson, an associate professor of government at Cornell University and an expert on Chinese foreign policy, said ​the law underlined a move towards ​assimilation.

“The law makes it clearer ⁠than ever that in President Xi Jinping’s PRC non-Han peoples must do more to integrate themselves with the Han majority, and above all else be loyal to Beijing,” he said, referring to China by ​the initials for its official name.

Ethnic affairs are incorporated into China’s social governance system, with clauses that ​include anti-separatism, border ⁠security, risk prevention, and social stability.

Organisations and individuals outside China that carry out acts against the country “that undermine ethnic unity and progress or create ethnic separatism shall be pursued for legal liability in accordance with the law,” the draft said.

An editorial in state newspaper China Daily said that ⁠the law ​had followed a rigorous legislative process, been through multiple readings and consultations with ​lawmakers and representatives from ethnic minority communities.

“The law stresses the protection of cultural traditions and lifestyles of all ethnic groups… it is misleading to claim that ethnic minorities in ​China must choose between economic development and cultural preservation,” it said.

Speaking after the ceremony on Thursday, March 12, the President described the vessel as a major step toward strengthening energy supply and improving access to clean energy in Ghana and the wider West African region.

According to him, the project highlights the importance of international partnerships in advancing infrastructure development and ensuring a reliable energy supply for emerging economies across the African continent.

“The commissioning of this vessel underscores the enduring value of international cooperation. It reflects the strength of partnerships between Africa and our friends around the world—partnerships built on mutual respect, shared prosperity, and a shared commitment to sustainable development,” President Mahama said.

He further urged governments, investors, and industry stakeholders to intensify efforts to expand clean energy access while promoting inclusive economic growth across Africa.

President Mahama expressed hope that the LPG vessel MT Asharami Ghana would serve as a symbol of progress and inspire further investment, innovation, and collaboration within Africa’s energy value chain.

“People are being shot in broad daylight. American citizens are being shot and killed,” said ‌the 53-year-old, who moved to California in 2003. “I don’t want to live in a place like this.”

President Donald Trump’s officials have said Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers were justified in firing the shots that killed two U.S. citizens in January, although video evidence has contradicted their accounts.

Veitch plans to return to South Africa this year, one of thousands of white South Africans coming back, despite Trump’s statements that the white minority is being persecuted by the country’s Black majority government.

Pretoria says there is no evidence of discrimination or persecution ​against whites. Many have left since the end of white minority rule in 1994, some citing crime and difficulty getting jobs, but many are also returning.

Veitch is among 12,000 people who have checked their ​citizenship status in an online portal launched by the government in November after the overturning of a 1995 law that stripped citizenship from some South Africans who left.

They ⁠represent a fraction of South Africans abroad. The latest official statistics on returnees, from 2022, show that almost 15,000 white South Africans returned that year.

EXPATS SAY SOUTH AFRICA MEANS LOWER COSTS, LESS TURMOIL

Home Affairs Minister Leon Schreiber ​said 1,000 people had reclaimed their citizenship, a number he expected to grow significantly as the programme takes off.

“There is definitely a sense of optimism for South Africans abroad,” said Schreiber, part of the white-led Democratic Alliance party that ​has ruled in coalition with the African National Congress since 2024. He is a returnee himself, having spent time in the U.S. and Germany before coming home in 2016.

Two recruitment agencies that help expats relocate said the number of inquiries had jumped, and Reuters spoke to 10 South Africans who had either returned or were planning to, seven of them from across Europe and three from the United States.

Their reasons, echoed in a 25,000-strong “Return to South Africa” Facebook group some belong to, included being closer to ​family, lower living costs and political turmoil abroad.

The Trump administration is ramping up its new refugee programme for white South Africans, focusing on Afrikaners, the descendants of Dutch settlers. About 3,500 South Africans have entered the United States as ​refugees since the programme started in May 2025.

Applicants interviewed by Reuters complained of being victims of racially motivated crime and employment equity laws that favour non-white candidates in order to redress decades of white minority rule.

Other Afrikaners, like Naomi Saphire, take a ‌different view.

She had ⁠been settled in the United States for two decades when she came back for a holiday and realized how much she missed home.

Last year, she left North Carolina for a seaside town in South Africa’s Western Cape, where she said her three children spend more time outdoors, health insurance is affordable and she prefers the schools.

“My heart is just full of gratefulness to be here,” the 46-year-old said from her home in Plettenberg Bay. “The U.S. has been really good to me (but) I just felt like I was depriving my kids of this life.”

Saphire said she knows many people who are returning home.

RETURNEES USE REMOTE WORKING TO KEEP THEIR JOBS

Crime and joblessness are major issues in ​South Africa, but the unemployment rate is 35% for Black ​people compared with 8% for whites, according to ⁠the latest figures from the national statistics agency Stats SA.

Police statistics released last year showed that even farm murders, which Trump has focused on, killed more Black people than whites. Reuters has found that photos and videos Trump has presented on the matter were taken out of context or misrepresented.

Still, Stats SA estimated a net outward flow of half ​a million whites since 2001, including 95,000 from 2021 to 2026. There is no regular data on returnees, but a Stats SA analysis showed that 28,000 ​South Africans returned in 2022, 52.9% – ⁠or some 14,800 – of whom were white.

Anton van Heerden, CEO of employment agency DNA Employer of Record, said inquiries from white South Africans seeking to return had jumped 70% in the past six months. Angel Jones, CEO of Johannesburg-based recruitment firm HomecomingEx, reported a roughly 30% rise in inquiries since 2024.

A boom in remote working since the COVID-19 pandemic has also helped; three of the returnees interviewed by Reuters kept their jobs abroad.

Many South African professionals have extensive private security at ⁠home which minimizes ​crime risks, Van Heerden said.

“If you can afford to live in a safe environment, you can have a much better life than ​I think in most places in the northern hemisphere,” he said.

Several returnees also said they felt life in South Africa had improved since they left. Power cuts, which used to be daily, for example, have largely stopped.

Thirty-eight-year-old engineer Eugene Jansen, who returned from the Netherlands in December ​with his wife and two children, said the returnees he knows feel things are getting better.

“The opinion is that the country is improving,” he said.

Bellarmine Mugabe, who appeared in court on Wednesday for a bail hearing, is accused of attempted murder, among other charges, after a 23-year-old man was shot and injured at a property in an upmarket suburb of Johannesburg.

He has not commented on the charges but in an unexpected move, he abandoned his request for bail and agreed to plea negotiations with South African prosecutors. He is charged alongside his bodyguard.

Their lawyer Sinenhlanhla Mnguni said it was “premature to say… whether we will plead guilty to anything at this stage”. The matter returns to court next Tuesday.

His father led Zimbabwe for 37 years before being forced out of power at the age of 93 in 2017. He died two years later.

The long-serving president and his second wife Grace had three children together:

• Bona Mugabe – now 37
• Robert Mugabe Jr – now 33
• Bellarmine Mugabe – now 28.

Grace also had a son from an earlier marriage:

• Russell Goreraza – now in his early 40s.

Managing editor of Zimbabwean privately owned NewsHawks website, Dumisani Muleya, told the BBC that the Mugabe family had “lived a life of privilege” and that the children “grew up in that environment where they were protected from the broader realities of the Zimbabwean political and socio-economic situation”.

The family had amassed a vast personal fortune, including $10m (£7.5m) in cash, four houses, 10 cars, a farm and an orchard among other assets.

These details emerged three months after Robert Mugabe’s death in a legal letter submitted to the high court in Zimbabwe by his daughter Bona. At the time, a lawyer for the family, Terrence Hussein, told the BBC that none of the properties were under the former leader’s name.

In 2013, Grace denied that her husband was accumulating wealth while in office, saying her husband did not earn as much as people thought as he was a civil servant.

“The allowance I get is just a pittance. I’m a business-minded person [and] I support my husband [by] running our private businesses,” she said.

Here is a run-down of what has happened to the family members:

Bellarmine Mugabe

Like his siblings, he grew up in the public eye and was subjected to scrutiny from a young age.

But as a teenager it was Bellarmine’s approach to studying that appeared to have been a concern for his parents.

In a wide-ranging interview in 2013 on South African television, they described his playfulness and lack of focus on academics.

Grace said she wanted him to “change his ways” and “concentrate on his studies”.

“He should be more serious than he is at the moment,” his father added.

Bellarmine sheepishly admitted to spending more time on video games than his schoolwork.

Bellarmine and his older brother Robert Jr have made headlines over the years for their flashy lifestyles in the face of rising poverty in Zimbabwe.

In 2017, a few weeks before the coup in which his father was ousted, he posted a picture of a $60,000 watch he was wearing on Instagram.

A few months earlier, the brothers were reportedly kicked out of a luxury apartment block in the affluent Johannesburg suburb of Sandton after complaints about the noise they were making.

There have been also several brushes with the law more recently.

In 2024 he was arrested for allegedly assaulting a police officer in the Zimbabwean border town of Beitbridge.

He was given bail but a warrant for his arrest was then issued after he failed to appear in court, Zimbabwe’s state-run Herald newspaper reported at the time.

A year later in June, he was again arrested for assaulting a security guard at a mining site in Mazowe, an hour’s drive north of the capital, Harare.

He was bailed and the case has not yet concluded.

The current case in South Africa against Bellarmine has faced several delays since his arrest in mid-February and his bail application hearing has already been postponed twice.

Robert Mugabe Jr

Also no stranger to run-ins with the police, Robert Jr was arrested in 2023 over allegations he damaged property at a party in Harare.

He faced three counts of malicious damage to property and two charges of assault on a police officer, his lawyer said at the time. He was accused of smashing car windscreens and spitting on a police officer.

He maintained his innocence and was later freed after agreeing to an out-of-court settlement with the complainant, who was a friend of his.

In 2025, after pleading guilty, Robert Jr was convicted and fined in Zimbabwe for possession of cannabis.

He had been arrested as he drove the wrong way down a one-way street, according to court documents. Police searched a black sling bag he was wearing at the time and allegedly found two small sachets of cannabis.

Officers said they had recovered 2g (0.07 oz) of cannabis, with a street value of $30, but his lawyer said the amount was 0.02g.

Grace Mugabe

The former first lady, now 60, gained a reputation, and criticism, over the years for her alleged appetite for shopping and extravagance, earning her the moniker “Gucci Grace”.

She denied the disparaging accusations and in the 2013 interview said detractors believed she was a “soft target”.

“I’m not really what they say I am and I’m actually surprised by some of the things they say. I work so hard and I don’t have time to pamper myself. I make my own clothes and tie my own scarf,” she said.

In the latter part of her husband’s presidency, she began positioning herself as a potential successor.

She headed the women’s league of Zimbabwe’s ruling Zanu-PF party and was instrumental in the sidelining of several rival candidates.

Her plans fell apart when Mugabe was deposed after he sacked then Vice-President Emmerson Mnangagwa in November 2017.

Her business empire subsequently fell apart – and her multimillion-dollar dairy firm, Gushungo Dairy Estates, closed in 2022 reportedly mired in huge debts.

Some argued that it only stayed afloat because of official patronage, which fell away after Mugabe’s ousting.

However, she continues to live in the vast Blue Roof mansion in Harare, which was bought by Zanu-PF for Robert Mugabe while he was still in power.

The party transferred ownership of the property to the family after he died.

Grace is unable to travel to South Africa, where she faces a warrant of arrest relating to a case that happened not long before the Mugabes left power

She was accused in 2017 of assaulting a young woman, Gabriella Engels, with an electric extension cord in a hotel room in Johannesburg.

Grace said at the time that she had acted in self-defence after she was attacked in the room where Bellarmine and Robert Jr lived. According to Engels, she and her friend were visiting the brothers.

An investigation was launched but Grace was given diplomatic immunity, allowing her to leave South Africa without answering questions. That immunity was annulled in July 2018, eight months after the coup, and the arrest warrant issued.

This incident echoed one in 2009, when the then first lady was accused of assaulting a British newspaper photographer in Hong Kong, where her daughter Bona was studying.

Richard Jones said that Grace had punched him while wearing a diamond-studded ring. She was not charged as she was given diplomatic immunity by the Chinese government.

Grace later said she was pushed too far and said she was “protecting my daughter”.

“I had to [punch him] but I really don’t know what happened, I had all this energy,” she said in the 2013 interview.

Bona Mugabe

While the rest of the family’s exploits have made headlines over the years, Bona largely stayed out of the spotlight – until a bitter divorce thrust her into the public eye.

Mugabe’s eldest child and only daughter filed for divorce from former pilot Simbarashe Chikore in 2023, sparking a highly publicised legal battle between the two.

Chikore wanted a share of what he said was $80m worth of residential properties, including a mansion in Dubai and 21 farms – something that flies in the face of her father’s policy of “one household, one farm”.

He also detailed a list of other assets she allegedly owned, saying this was just a “drop in the ocean”.

Bona did not respond to her estranged husband’s allegations but a former spokesperson for her father denied the couple owned 21 farms.

They eventually opted to settle their divorce privately following public scrutiny and outrage over the revelations.

Bona and Chikore had married at a lavish wedding in 2014 that was attended by several African heads of state – and was broadcast live on state television – and have three children.

Russell Goreraza

In 2015, Grace’s oldest son Russell Goreraza was convicted of manslaughter and fined $800 (£595).

This came after he knocked down and killed an unidentified man in his car in Harare earlier that year. Goreraza was speeding at the time of the accident.

Sentencing for culpable homicide varies depending on the magistrate and their interpretation of the circumstances, but two-year prison terms have been handed down in similar cases.

The magistrate presiding over this case said he had decided against jail because of Goreraza’s remorse and the fact that he was a first-time offender.

Where are the Mugabes now?

The family has largely retreated from public life since 2017.

The ousted president was bitter about the way he was treated by his Zanu-PF party and campaigned for the opposition in the 2018 elections.

But since his death, his wife, daughter Bona and Robert Jr have appeared to reconcile with the party, attending President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s most recent inauguration in 2023.

The Mugabes, except for Bellarmine, are believed to be living in Zimbabwe.

The BBC contacted a family spokesperson for comment, but they declined to confirm the family’s whereabouts.

In a statement issued on March 11, the ministry said it had been informed by authorities in the UAE that the two Ghanaians sustained injuries following the incident earlier in the day.

The government strongly condemned any act that endangers civilian lives and critical infrastructure, noting that such incidents pose serious risks to public safety.

According to the ministry, Ghana’s Ambassador to the UAE led a delegation from the embassy in Abu Dhabi and the consulate in Dubai to visit the injured nationals at the hospital.

The ministry indicated that the victims’ injuries are not critical and they are expected to make a full recovery.

It added that Ghanaian authorities are closely monitoring the situation while continuing to work with local authorities in the UAE.

The government also reiterated its commitment to protecting the welfare of Ghanaian citizens abroad and urged Ghanaians in the Gulf region to remain vigilant and comply with directives from local authorities and Ghanaian diplomatic missions.

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The summit, held at Cheong Wa Dae in Seoul, culminated in the signing of three Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) covering maritime security, climate change cooperation, and digital technology—a move aimed at deepening collaboration between the West African nation and its Asian partner.

President Mahama highlighted the shared history, democratic values, and commitment to human rights that have strengthened relations between Ghana and Korea over decades. He noted that these principles have guided cooperation in multilateral forums, including the United Nations, where both countries often align on global issues.

On the sidelines of the talks, President Lee commended Ghana’s role in promoting maritime security in the Gulf of Guinea, particularly efforts to protect the safety of South Korean nationals and vessels operating in piracy-prone waters.

The agreements signed include:

• Climate Change Cooperation MoU: Establishing a framework for joint action on climate initiatives.
• Maritime Security MoU: Between the Ghana Navy and Korea Coast Guard to enhance intelligence sharing, combat international maritime crimes, and improve search-and-rescue operations.
• Technology and Digital Cooperation MoU: Expanding collaboration in artificial intelligence, digital access, and youth skills development.

President Mahama also highlighted potential growth areas in agriculture and agribusiness, pointing to initiatives supported by the Korea International Cooperation Agency to boost rice production and strengthen food security in Ghana.

Additionally, the Ghanaian leader emphasized opportunities for expanding economic ties under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), headquartered in Accra, positioning Ghana as a strategic hub for production and exports across Africa.

“Ghana’s natural and human resources, combined with Korea’s technological innovation, can drive a mutually beneficial partnership for sustainable growth and shared prosperity,” President Mahama said.

Below are some photos

In a notice to shippers, the Authority said the conflict, which escalated on February 28, 2026, has significantly affected vessel movement through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most important maritime trade routes.

According to the Authority, the Strait plays a critical role in global trade flows.

“The conflict has resulted in significant disruptions to maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical maritime trade corridors,” the notice stated.

Analysis by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) indicates that the Strait carries about one-quarter of global seaborne oil trade, significant volumes of liquefied natural gas and roughly one-third of global seaborne fertilizer trade.

The Authority warned that disruptions in the area could have widespread effects on supply chains.

“Any disruption to traffic through the Strait therefore has far-reaching consequences for global supply chains, energy markets and agricultural inputs,” the notice explained.

Several international shipping lines have already begun adjusting their operations due to security concerns in the region.

“Following the escalation of hostilities, several major international shipping lines have suspended or rerouted vessel movements through the region,” the Authority said.

Many vessels are now diverting through the Cape of Good Hope in South Africa, which significantly increases sailing distances and operational costs.

As a result, shipping companies have introduced war-risk and emergency surcharges on cargo moving through the affected region.

“It is a global industry practice for shipping lines to introduce War Risk Surcharges and Emergency Surcharges when vessels operate in or near conflict-affected regions,” the Authority noted.

According to the notice, the charges are meant to offset rising insurance premiums and other operational costs linked to navigating high-risk maritime areas.

“These charges are intended to offset the significant increase in operational risks and costs associated with navigating high-risk maritime areas,” it added.

Industry estimates show that war risk surcharges could range between 1,500 and 2,000 US dollars per twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU), with additional charges expected for larger and refrigerated containers.

The GSA warned that the situation could result in higher freight rates, longer transit times and possible supply chain disruptions for certain commodities entering Ghana. However, the Authority clarified that it does not impose such charges.

“It must be clearly stated that the Ghana Shippers’ Authority has not and does not impose surcharges on shipments on behalf of shipping lines,” the notice emphasized.

The Authority also said it is investigating reports circulating on social media about the early imposition of war risk surcharges before the conflict escalated.

“Where there are breaches and unfair treatments, we would forcefully address them,” it assured.

The Authority says it will continue to monitor developments in global shipping and provide updates to stakeholders in Ghana’s shipping and logistics sector.

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The encounter occurred on the sidelines of the event, which was part of activities organised to mark the occasion following the appointment of Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey as Secretary-General of the Commonwealth of Nations.

The Ga Mantse’s presence placed Ghana’s traditional leadership in the international spotlight, bringing attention to the role of customary authorities in cultural diplomacy and global engagement.

His interaction with King Charles III highlighted the growing importance of traditional rulers in promoting cultural heritage on the international stage.

The celebrations were attended by several high-profile dignitaries, including Ghana’s Minister for Foreign Affairs, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa; Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and Ireland, Sabah Zita Benson; and Ogiame Atuwatse III, who was present with his queen, Olori Ivie Atuwatse.

Also attending were Jamaica’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Alexander Williams, along with other distinguished diplomats and leaders from across the Commonwealth.

The Ga Mantse’s participation offered an opportunity to showcase Ghana’s rich cultural heritage while fostering stronger diplomatic and cultural ties with other Commonwealth nations.

Randrianirina seized control of the Indian Ocean island nation in the wake of youth-led protests that forced out his predecessor, Andry Rajoelina.

• “The ​President will shortly proceed with the ‌appointment ⁠of a new Prime Minister, following the procedures set out by ​the constitution,” ​Harry ⁠Laurent Rahajason, director of communication of ​the Presidency, said ​in ⁠the statement.
• The statement did not provide an explanation ⁠for ​the dismissal.

A respite from a potential war-driven surge in inflation would likely reduce the likelihood of central banks raising interest rates, a positive for non-yielding gold.

Spot gold rose 0.8% to $5,179.52 per ​ounce, as of 0233 GMT. U.S. gold futures for April delivery rose ⁠1.7% to $5,188.70.

The dollar fell 0.4%, making greenback-priced bullion cheaper for holders of other currencies.

Gold ​prices rose “due to the news flow from U.S. President Trump himself, stating that there is ​a potential for de-escalation… So what we could see is that potential inflation expectation starts to tone down given this dramatic fall in oil price,” said Kelvin Wong, a senior market analyst at OANDA.

Oil ​prices fell over 10% after Trump said the war in the Middle East could end ​soon, easing concerns about prolonged disruptions to global oil supplies.

Trump also warned that U.S. attacks could rise ‌sharply ⁠if Iran sought to block tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, which handles one-fifth of the world’s oil supply.

The war has effectively shut the Strait, stranding tankers for over a week and forcing producers to halt output as storage fills up, sending energy prices soaring.

Gold prices fell on Monday as higher energy costs fanned inflation concerns and further dimmed the prospects for a near-term cut in interest rates by the U.S. Federal Reserve.

Investors expect the Fed to keep rates steady at the end of its two-day meeting on March 18, per CME Group’s FedWatch tool. [FEDWATCH]

Gold is seen as an inflation hedge, but low rates reduce the opportunity cost of holding it as a zero-yield asset.

Markets are now awaiting the U.S. consumer price index for February, ⁠due on ​Wednesday, and the Personal Consumption Expenditures (PCE) index – the Fed’s ​preferred inflation gauge – on Friday.

Spot silver rose 3% to $89.60 per ounce. Spot platinum was up 1.2% at $2,208.16, and palladium ​gained 0.2% to $1,693.84.

At a news conference at his ⁠Doral golf club, Trump ​said oil prices have not spiked ​as much as he had feared.

Trump said the United States is waiving certain ​oil-related sanctions to cut ​prices.

“We have sanctions on some countries. We’re ‌going ⁠to take those sanctions off till the Strait (of Hormuz) is up,” Trump said.

He was not specific, but the United States last week issued a temporary 30-day waiver to allow the sale of Russian oil currently stranded at sea to India to alleviate pressure on the global oil market.

The incident occurred as the region faces its most significant surge in violence since the 2024 ceasefire, with escalating cross-border exchanges between the Israel Defence Forces and armed groups. This flare-up marks a critical test for international diplomacy as the risk of a total regional collapse grows.

Incident at Al Qawzah
The injured peacekeepers are part of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). This mission serves as a buffer between Lebanese and Israeli forces. The soldiers were inside their designated outpost when the exchange of fire occurred. UNIFIL officials confirmed that while two of the soldiers are being treated at a mission facility, the most severely injured peacekeeper was evacuated to Beirut for specialist care. The medical evacuation underscores the increasing danger faced by neutral observers caught in the crossfire of modern urban warfare.

In an official statement, the UN chief addressed the severity of the event. “The Secretary-General condemns the incident on Friday, 6 March, which resulted in three Ghanaian peacekeepers of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) being injured inside their position in Al Qawzah, southwestern Lebanon, amidst heavy firing. He wishes a swift and full recovery to the injured peacekeepers,” the statement read. His words reflect a growing international anxiety over the erosion of traditional protections for global peacekeeping forces.

Protection of UN personnel
The Secretary-General emphasised the legal protections afforded to international monitors. He noted that the safety of UN staff is a non-negotiable aspect of international law, warning that targeted attacks on “Blue Helmets” may constitute war crimes. “The Secretary-General underscores that the safety and security of UN personnel and property must be respected at all times, and that those responsible must be held accountable. The inviolability of UN installations must be respected by all,” Guterres stated. This demand for accountability serves as a firm reminder that international law remains the primary shield for those serving in high-conflict zones.

Escalation in the U.S., Israel, and Iran war
The wounding of the peacekeepers comes as the United States and Israel intensify a direct military campaign against Iran, which began in late February 2026. Following Israeli strikes on Iranian oil infrastructure in Tehran on March 7, Tehran has vowed retaliation against U.S. and Israeli assets across the Middle East. This trilateral conflict has turned Southern Lebanon into a primary secondary front, with Hezbollah and the IDF exchanging fire at levels not seen in decades. The convergence of these global and local hostilities has created a volatile environment where non-combatants and peacekeepers are increasingly vulnerable to the spillover of great-power confrontations.

Regional instability and Resolution 1701
This incident takes place during a period of significant tension along the border. UNIFIL’s presence is governed by Security Council Resolution 1701. This mandate was established to maintain the cessation of hostilities following the 2006 Lebanon War. The 2026 escalation has seen a marked increase in displacement, with the UN reporting over 80,000 civilians forced from their homes in southern Lebanon. The mass movement of people highlights the fragile nature of the peace that Resolution 1701 has struggled to maintain for twenty years.

Ghana remains a consistent contributor to these peacekeeping efforts and currently ranks as one of the mission’s largest troop contributors. Its troops are deployed to help stabilise the volatile border region. The United Nations has now called for an immediate pause in the violence to prevent further escalation. “The United Nations urges the parties to de-escalate immediately and fully adhere to their obligations under Security Council resolution 1701 (2006),” the UN chief added. Ultimately, the safety of these Ghanaian peacekeepers depends on a collective return to the diplomatic frameworks designed to prevent the region from descending into an unmanageable war.

The Director General for Public Relations of the Ghana Armed Forces, Captain Veronica Adzo Arhin, speaking on the situation of the injured officers, said the current assessment points to treatment within Lebanon remaining the most viable option.

“I believe they’ll be managed in Lebanon unless we get out of hand, and then they’ll be repatriated home. But as we think they are all responding, so there’s a likely hope that they will be treated in there,” she said.

Her remarks come after the Ghanaian Battalion Headquarters at the Al Qouzah outpost came under two missile strikes between 17:45 and 17:52 local time on Friday, March 6, during an exchange of fire between the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah.

Two soldiers sustained critical injuries, and a third suffered psychological trauma.

The Officers’ Mess was hit and completely burnt down, while replacement quarters have since been arranged, and logistical support has been provided to those affected.

The most critically injured soldier has since undergone surgery.

Deputy Defence Minister Ernest Brogya Genfi confirmed the surgery was carried out on the morning of Saturday, March 7, 2026, and that the soldier came through successfully.

The injured soldiers were initially treated at the Level One Medical Bunker at the base before being evacuated to the UNIFIL Headquarters Referral Hospital for further care.

Foreign Affairs Minister Sam Okudzeto Ablakwa wrote to UN Secretary-General António Guterres on March 7, demanding a full investigation into the strike, describing it as a violation of international humanitarian law governing the protection of peacekeeping personnel.

In its formal complaint to the UN, the Ghanaian government called for a “full, immediate, impartial and transparent investigation” into the circumstances surrounding the attack.

The Israeli Ambassador to Ghana described the incident as catastrophic and expressed empathy toward the affected Ghanaian contingent, while Lebanon’s government condemned the attack as a grave breach of international law and called for accountability.

Ghana is one of the largest troop-contributing countries to United Nations peacekeeping missions worldwide, with soldiers serving across Africa and the Middle East.

Its UNIFIL contingent operates in a buffer zone along the Israel-Lebanon border under a mandate to monitor ceasefire arrangements and prevent the escalation of hostilities.

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The annual celebration of the Commonwealth, to be marked on Monday with a service at Westminster Abbey, will see the biggest gathering of senior royals since the arrest of his brother, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor.

There will also be contributions at the service from performers including former Spice Girl Geri Halliwell-Horner and Strictly Come Dancing’s Oti Mabuse.

Against a backdrop of war in the Middle East and Ukraine, the King will commend the unifying force of the Commonwealth, a voluntary association of 56 countries.

“It is often in such testing moments that the enduring spirit of the Commonwealth is most clearly revealed,” the King’s message will say.

The King, who has campaigned for many years to protect the environment, will also reflect, in his written message, on pressures from “climate change and rapid transformation”.

He will say the Commonwealth is a “force for good – grounded in community, committed to the kind of restorative sustainability that has a return on investment, enriched by culture, steadfast in its care for our planet, and united in friendship and in the service of its people”.

The reference to the significance of climate change is in contrast to the approach of the administration of President Donald Trump in the US, who last month reversed a ruling that underpinned federal attempts to curb greenhouse gases.

There have been reports that the King could carry out a state visit to the US next month, but nothing has so far been confirmed.

The annual Commonwealth service at Westminster Abbey is usually attended by senior royals, political and religious leaders, and representatives of Commonwealth nations.

The multi-faith service, held since 1972, is a mixture of music, prayers, dance and readings, reflecting the diversity of the Commonwealth. But unlike in recent years, the service is not being broadcast live by the BBC because of “funding challenges”.

Also taking part will be dancers from the Royal Ballet School, and singers Indigo Marshall and Tarju Le’Sano, and there will be a new piece of music by composer Rekesh Chauhan.

The Commonwealth’s Secretary General, Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey, will speak at the service.

Among the future issues facing Commonwealth leaders will be whether Mountbatten-Windsor should keep his place in the line of succession, after his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office last month, and in the wake of revelations from the Epstein files.

Canada’s Prime Minister, Mark Carney, added his voice to calls for his removal from the line of succession, following similar calls from Australia and New Zealand.

Andrew remains eighth in line to the throne, and removing him would require legislation in the UK and the approval of the 14 Commonwealth realms that have King Charles as head of state.

Mountbatten-Windsor has denied any wrongdoing from his association with Jeffrey Epstein.

Iran on Sunday named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father, Ali Khamenei, as Supreme Leader, signalling that a week into the conflict, hardliners remain in charge of the country.

The US and Israel launched fresh waves of airstrikes across Iran over the weekend, hitting multiple targets, including oil depots.

Major disruption to energy supplies from the region threatens to push up prices for consumers and businesses worldwide.

On Monday morning in Asia, Brent crude was almost 24% higher at $114.74, while Nymex light sweet was up by more than 26% at $114.78.

Stock markets in the Asia-Pacific region fell sharply in morning trade, with Japan’s Nikkei 225 index down by more than 7%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong losing over 3%, and the ASX 200 in Australia more than 4% lower.

South Korea’s Kospi index, which has been hit especially hard since the conflict began, slipped by more than 8%, triggering a 20-minute halt to trading.

The so-called circuit breaker is a mechanism designed to curb panic selling. It also came into effect on Wednesday, when the Kospi slumped by 12%.

About a fifth of the world’s oil supply is usually shipped through the Strait of Hormuz. But traffic through the narrow passage has all but halted since the war started a week ago.

Many in the markets predicted that oil would hit the $ 100-a-barrel mark this week.

In the event, it took about a minute to jump 10%, and then another 15 minutes to rise a further 10% in early Asian trading.

Last week, the markets had been relatively relaxed about the seemingly nightmarish scenario of millions of barrels of crude and liquefied natural gas trapped in the Gulf, unable or unwilling to transit the Strait of Hormuz.

But the escalations over the weekend, alongside scenes of destruction of energy infrastructure both in Iran and across the Gulf, saw the markets take a rapid fright.

The question now is, where does this go? Some analysts argue that if the shutdown in the Strait lasts until the end of March, we could see record oil prices above $150 a barrel.

Adnan Mazarei from the Peterson Institute for International Economics said the jump in oil prices was expected, given how production has been halted in some Gulf countries and the signs of a prolonged conflict in the region.

“People are realising that this won’t end quickly,” he said, adding that the promises of insurance and objectives laid out by the US are “becoming more unrealistic.”

The rise in oil prices could also increase the cost of important derivative products such as jet fuel and vital precursors for fertilisers.

The physical supplies from the Gulf are mainly consumed in Asia.

Already, however, there are signs that Asian consumers are bidding up prices for US gas, with some tankers originally heading for Europe turning around in the mid-Atlantic.

US President Donald Trump responded to the jump in prices by saying that short-term rises were a “small price to pay” for removing Iran’s nuclear threat.

His energy secretary told US broadcasters on Sunday that Israel, not the US, was targeting Iran’s energy infrastructure, amid some concern about rising domestic pump prices caused by the war.

Mojtaba, a mid-ranking cleric with influence inside Iran’s security forces and vast business networks under his father, had been seen as a frontrunner in the lead up to the vote by the assembly, a body of 88 clerics charged with choosing the new leader after Ali Khamenei.

“By a decisive vote, the Assembly of ​Experts, appointed Ayatollah Seyyed Mojtaba Hosseini Khamenei as the third Leader of the sacred system of the Islamic Republic of Iran,” the ​assembly said in a statement issued just after midnight Tehran time.

The position gives Mojtaba the final say in all ⁠matters of state in the Islamic Republic.

Mojtaba’s appointment will likely draw the ire of U.S. President Donald Trump, who said on Sunday that Washington should ​have a say in the selection. “If he doesn’t get approval from us, he’s not going to last long,” he told ABC News. Israel, ahead of the ​announcement, threatened to target whoever was chosen.

Mojtaba’s father, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, was killed in one of the first strikes launched against Iran more than a week ago.

The U.S. military on Sunday reported a seventh American has died from wounds sustained during Iran’s initial counter-attack a week ago, a day after Trump presided over the return to the ​United States of the remains of the six others who died.

The U.S.-Israeli attacks have killed at least 1,332 Iranian civilians and wounded thousands, according to ​Iran’s U.N. ambassador.

As Trump pressed for an “unconditional surrender,” Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, Iran’s parliament speaker, said Tehran was not seeking a ceasefire to the war and would punish aggressors.

Israel continued ‌to target ⁠senior Iranian figures, including Abolqasem Babaian, the recently appointed head of the military office of the supreme leader, saying he was killed in a Saturday strike.

BLACK SMOKE HANGS OVER TEHRAN

As fighting escalated on day nine of the U.S.-Israeli campaign against Iran, thick black smoke hung over Tehran on Sunday, residents said, after strikes on oil storage facilities, opens new tab had lit up the night sky with plumes of orange flame.

Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the large-scale attack marked ​a “dangerous new phase” of the conflict ​and amounted to a war crime.

“By ⁠targeting fuel depots, the aggressors are releasing hazardous materials and toxic substances into the air,” he wrote on X.

Israeli military spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told reporters the depots were used to fuel Iran’s war effort, including ​producing or storing propellant for ballistic missiles. “They are a legal military target,” he said.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ​said his government would ⁠press on with the assault and strike Iran’s rulers “without mercy”.

“We have an organised plan with many surprises to destabilise the regime and enable change,” he said in a video statement.

U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner will visit Israel on Tuesday, according to Axios, citing a senior U.S. official.

Trump told ⁠reporters on ​Air Force One that he was not seeking negotiations to end the conflict, which has ​driven up global energy prices, disrupted business and snarled air travel.

“At some point, I don’t think there will be anybody left maybe to say, ‘We surrender’,” he said.

According to a statement issued by the Minister for Government Communications, Felix Kwakye Ofosu, the President will depart Accra on Sunday for the trip.

During the visit, President Mahama is expected to hold bilateral talks with the President of South Korea, Lee Jae Myung, aimed at deepening diplomatic and economic cooperation.

He will also meet the Speaker of the Korean National Assembly, Woo Won-shik.

As part of his engagements, the Ghanaian leader will attend a ship-naming ceremony at the Hyundai Heavy Industries shipyard in Ulsan and deliver an address at a ceremony at Yonsei University.

President Mahama will further engage with members of the Ghanaian community in South Korea and hold a dinner meeting with business leaders to explore investment and trade opportunities between the two countries.

Derrick Van Yeboah, also known as “Van”, entered a guilty plea before Judge Arun Subramanian at the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York on Thursday, according to a statement issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York.

The 40-year-old admitted to participating in a large-scale cybercrime operation that targeted individuals and businesses across the United States, using fake online identities to deceive victims into sending money.

Announcing the plea, U.S. Attorney Jay Clayton said the scheme exploited the emotional vulnerability of victims seeking companionship online.

According to prosecutors, the fraud network was largely operated from Ghana and relied on fabricated romantic relationships to lure victims into transferring money. Members of the group allegedly posed as potential romantic partners, gradually building trust with victims before requesting financial assistance under false pretences.

Investigators say many of those targeted were elderly men and women who believed they were communicating with genuine romantic partners online.

Once victims were persuaded to send money, the funds were channelled through a network of accounts before being laundered to West Africa. Authorities say the organisation also carried out business email compromise schemes, tricking companies into wiring funds to accounts controlled by the syndicate.

In total, the criminal enterprise is believed to have stolen and laundered more than $100 million from dozens of victims across the United States.

Prosecutors say Van Yeboah personally conducted several of the romance scams by communicating directly with victims while posing as fictitious romantic partners. He is being held responsible for stealing more than $10 million through those fraudulent interactions.

Under the plea agreement, Van Yeboah admitted to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, an offence that carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison under U.S. law.

He has also agreed to pay restitution and forfeiture amounting to $10,149,429.17, representing the proceeds of the crimes attributed to him.

Judge Subramanian is expected to sentence him on June 3, 2026.

The investigation was carried out by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with support from authorities in Ghana and the United States Department of Justice Office of International Affairs.

Prosecutors from the Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit of the U.S. Attorney’s Office are handling the case.

Asif Merchant, 47, hired a hitman in New York to kill prominent American officials and targeted US President Donald Trump in 2024.

After a week-long trial in Brooklyn amid the US-Israel war with Iran, a federal jury convicted him of murder for hire and attempted terrorism transcending national boundaries.

A lawyer for Merchant, who could face life in prison, said there are still “complex and significant legal issues yet to be decided”.

According the US Department of Justice, Merchant was a trained operative of the Iranian government’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and was in the US to look for potential IRGC recruits.

Merchant arrived in the US from Pakistan in April 2024 after having spent time in Iran. In June of that year, he contacted a person who he believed could help with the assassination plot and that contact later reported him to the police.

He met with undercover US law enforcement officers who were posing as hitmen in New York, according to the US Attorney’s Office in the Eastern District of New York, and law enforcement foiled the plot before any attack could be carried out.

He was arrested that July before leaving the country.

At trial, Merchant admitted that the IRGC sent him to the US to arrange for political assassinations and that his IRGC handler directed him to kill Trump, former US president Joe Biden and Trump cabinet official Nikki Haley, according to the BBC’s US partner, CBS News.

The plot was meant to avenge the 2020 death of top Iranian general Qasem Soleimani, he said.

But Merchant argued that he “had no other option” than to go along with the plot because his handler indicated that he knew who Merchant’s Iranian relatives were and where they lived.

He said he had anticipated being arrested before anyone was killed and intended to cooperate with the US government, CBS reported. He had hoped that would help him obtain a green card.

The jury deliberated for less than two hours before returning its verdict on Friday, US media said.

“Iran’s terrorist regime sent Asif Merchant here to sow mayhem and murder,” US Attorney Joseph Nocella Jr said.

“Thanks to the vigilance of our law enforcement partners, his scheme ended in failure. Today, with Merchant’s conviction, that failure is complete.”

In a statement to the BBC, Merchant’s lawyer Christopher Neff said he was “disappointed in the result” but grateful for the jury’s careful attention and hard work.

“Nevertheless, as Judge Komitee noted, there are complex and significant legal issues yet to be decided. We remain confident that we will ultimately achieve a favorable result for Mr Merchant,” he said.

Mountbatten-Windsor was arrested on suspicion of misconduct in public office last month after being accused of sharing confidential material with the late paedophile financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Andrew has previously denied any wrongdoing in relation to Epstein; he has not responded to the BBC’s requests for comment on the specific allegations in relation to the release of millions of Epstein files in January.

Speaking to reporters in Tokyo, Carney said he thought the former Duke of York’s “deplorable” actions should result in his removal from the line of succession.

Any plan to remove him from the line of succession would require an act of Parliament, which would have to be approved by MPs and peers and would come into effect when given royal assent by King Charles III, his brother.

It would also need to be supported by the 14 Commonwealth countries where the King is the head of state.

The last time someone was removed from the line of succession by an act of Parliament was in 1936, when the former Edward VIII and his descendants were removed due to his abdication.

Buckingham Palace has not publicly commented on the government’s consideration of legislation to remove Andrew from the line of succession.

Gunfire rings out in the nighttime footage when Ruben Ray Martinez, 23, pulls his car forwards as law enforcement try to stop him on 15 March 2025 in the beach community of South Padre Island.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) did not publicly disclose an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer killed Martinez until the detail emerged in media last month.

DHS have said Martinez “accelerated forward” and “intentionally ran over” an agent, causing another agent to fire “defensive shots”.

Martinez is believed to be the first of three US citizens who have been fatally shot by federal immigration agents during President Donald Trump’s second term.

But unlike in the other two cases, Martinez was not protesting – he was driving by the scene of a road accident where ICE officers were helping to direct traffic.

Attorneys for Martinez’s family said the new evidence “calls ICE’s official account of a fatal shooting into question”.

Texas officials had previously declined to release footage to media of the incident with Martinez.

But on Friday, dozens of body camera videos, evidence and reports from the investigation were made public by the Texas Department of Public Safety.

The footage shows different angles from local police officers’ body cameras of the incident.

In one clip, Martinez is seen rolling down the window of the blue Ford Fusion he was driving to talk with an agent.

His car then advances slowly towards an intersection.

An officer can be heard shouting: “Where is he going?”

Martinez appears to slow down before slightly turning his car and pulling forwards as law enforcement shout at him. Gunshots ring out.

The body camera video is taken from a few yards behind the car, and so it is unclear whether any officers were hit by the vehicle.

The grainy footage appears to show someone positioned towards the front of the vehicle as it begins to swing left just before Martinez is shot.

Alcohol and marijuana were detected in Martinez’s system, according to posthumous toxicology tests cited by the BBC’s US partner CBS.

A Texas Parks and Wildlife Department officer who was at the scene says in an internal report that a blue car came to a stop “at the feet of an unknown Homeland Security Investigations Agent”.

The Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) unit is a part of ICE, overseen by DHS.

The report alleges that another agent was trying to open the door of the blue car when the driver began to pull forward to the left, hitting an agent.

“At this time HSI Agent 1, who was in front of the car initially, appeared to be on the hood of the vehicle,” says the report.

It also states that another agent began to shout at the driver to stop the car, before drawing his weapon and firing “what sounded like 3 shots” into the driver’s side window.

In a statement, Charles Stam and Alex Stamm, attorneys for Martinez’s mother, Rachel Reyes, said: “These new videos confirm that Ruben’s car was barely moving when he was shot.

“That he was braking, not accelerating. That nobody was on the hood of his car. That nobody was in front of his car when he was shot.

“That he was shot at point-blank range through his side window by an ICE agent who was in no danger.”

The BBC has contacted DHS for comment.

Last month, a Texas grand jury declined to indict the federal agent who shot Martinez.

A passenger who was inside the car with Martinez has also disputed the federal government’s account.

Joshua Orta, a friend of Martinez, wrote in a draft declaration obtained by US media that Martinez did not hit an officer with his vehicle.

He said he and Martinez had just had “a few drinks” and attended a party before the fatal shooting.

Orta said upon arriving at the scene, an officer told them to “turn around and leave”. A Texas Ranger saw an open container of alcohol in the vehicle, Orta said.

He claimed a federal agent later fired into the driver’s side window without warning. Orta died last month in an unrelated car accident.

Last month, Martinez’s mother – who voted for Trump in 2024 – said she had not received any videos, evidence or reports related to her son’s killing.

“I don’t blame President Trump for the death of my son, ’cause he wasn’t the one who pulled the trigger,” Reyes told CBS in February.

“But I do think that something needs to be changed in that department as far as the pattern of violence or abuse and impunity.”

In January, immigration officers fatally shot two other US citizens, Renee Good and Alex Pretti, during confrontations a couple of weeks apart in Minnesota, sparking nationwide demonstrations.

The two were protesting against the Trump administration’s immigration raids in the city of Minneapolis.

“The number of people killed actually is very massive, but we don’t know the exact number, because I rely on the information from the chairman of the local government and the locals there,” said Nigerian lawmaker Mohammed Ali Ndume of the attack in the remote village of Ngoshe.

Ngoshe is a mainly Muslim community, and the attack reportedly took place in the evening, while many people were breaking their Ramadan fast.

The BBC has contacted the Nigerian military for comment.

Local media reports that suspected Islamist militants abducted more than 100 women and children during the attack, also targeting a nearby military base and camp for displaced people, killing several soldiers and civilians, including the village’s chief cleric and some community elders.

Senator Ndume told BBC Hausa the suspected militants had seized control of the village for two days before being forced out by the military, which used air strikes as well as ground troops to dislodge them.

Not since the heyday of Islamist group Boko Haram over a decade ago, when it controlled many parts of Borno, including Ngoshe, has the area seen such a “devastating attack”, he said.

He also suggested that the attackers may have escaped with weapons stolen from the military base, which could “reinforce them to attack the next location or target”, saying this was a pattern in previous similar attacks.

Umaru Yakubu Kirawa, a local journalist in Borno, told the BBC that residents had confirmed that many people had been killed and hundreds abducted.

He said residents told him they were “calling for [security] reinforcement. They are fasting – some of them were able to break their fast, and unfortunately some could not” before the armed men attacked.

Kirawa said the village is very remote and that residents had previously been displaced due to insecurity in Borno state, but “this is the first attack there after their resettlement by the government”.

For many years, Borno state has been the epicentre of Nigeria’s Islamist insurgency, with repeated attacks by Boko Haram and fighters from Islamic State West Africa Province (Iswap).

Boko Haram gained global notoriety in 2014 after abducting more than 200 schoolgirls from Chibok in the state.

Although lawmaker Ndume is from the same party as President Bola Tinubu, he has frequently criticised the government’s handling of the security situation in the area.

He told the BBC that since the authorities had declared a “state of emergency on security, they should walk the talk.

“The major challenge that the Nigerian armed forces are facing is still a lack of equipment, a lack of ammunition, and a lack of motivation on the part of the government.”

The government has for some time been promising tougher action on insecurity.

From 2024 to 2025 it almost doubled its defence budget, analysts say. Yet this has not stopped the many waves of attacks on civilians.

The police spokesperson in Borno state, Nahum Daso Kenneth, told the BBC on Friday that the attack had happened on Wednesday night, but said he could not yet confirm the number of people affected.

“I can confirm that there was an unfortunate incident and, due to the efforts of security personnel, we were able to repel the insurgents,” he said, adding that a search and rescue operation was underway.

A spokesperson for Borno state Governor Babagana Umara Zulum said he had met survivors on Friday, offering food and other supplies, while promising them “we will do everything possible” to rescue the kidnapped and restore order.

Swarms of spy and killer drones have set the skies of Ukraine abuzz, and uncrewed boats have crippled the Russian navy in the Black Sea.

Now, Ukraine has embarked on a massive programme to deploy armed robots on the ground.

Uncrewed ground vehicles (UGVs), or ground robot systems as they are known in Ukrainian military parlance, have already proven their worth.

There have been reports of UGVs successfully repelling Russian attacks and even taking enemy soldiers prisoner.

Ukrainian and Russian killer robots are even said to have clashed without humans being present at the site of the battle.

“Robot wars are already happening,” says Oleksandr Afanasiev from the Ukrainian army’s K2 brigade. He commands its UGV battalion – the world’s first, he says.

One way in which the brigade has been using these robots is by mounting Kalashnikov machine guns on top.

“They open fire on a battlefield where an infantryman would be afraid to turn up. But a UGV is happy to risk its existence,” Maj Afanasiev says.

His battalion has also been using explosive-laden, battery-powered kamikaze UGVs to blow up enemy positions and hideouts.

Unlike aerial drones that buzz overhead, they make no sound to warn the enemy of an impending strike.

The deputy commander of the 33rd Detached Mechanised Brigade’s tank battalion, who goes by the callsign Afghan, claims that one Ukrainian UGV armed with a machine gun ambushed a Russian personnel carrier, while a robot defended a Ukrainian position for weeks.

Afghan admits there are limits to the killer robots’ autonomy on the battlefield, and says many of them are self-imposed, because of ethics and international humanitarian law.

“Modern UGVs are part-autonomous. They can move on their own, they can observe and detect the enemy. But still, the decision to open fire is made by a human, their operator,” Afghan says.

“Robots can misidentify the wrong person or attack a civilian. That’s why the final decision must be made by an operator.”

Which means that in most cases on the battlefield armed UGVs are remote-controlled by operators over the internet from a safe distance.

Ukraine’s lethal UGVs can be armed with grenade launchers as well as machine guns, and can also be deployed to plant landmines or barbed wire.

But the vast majority of its uncrewed vehicles are still used for their original purpose of delivering supplies and evacuating the wounded.

The role of armed UGVs will soon grow exponentially, according to Valerii Zaluzhnyi, Ukraine’s former commander-in-chief and now ambassador to the UK.

Speaking at the London think-tank Chatham House about the future of warfare, he described how strike UGVs would be used not just on their own, but as part of large, AI-powered swarms of drones.

“In the near future we’ll see dozens and even hundreds of smarter and cheaper drones attack from various directions and heights, from the air, ground and sea at the same time,” he said.

Necessity is a key factor driving innovation in this field. Drones in the air have made it infinitely more dangerous for humans to be present on the battleground, expanding Ukraine’s so-called “kill zone” to 20-25km (12-15 miles) from the line of contact.

Infantry is not replaceable but “it needs to be supported by UGVs”, says Maj Afanasiev: “Ukraine can afford to lose robots, but it simply cannot afford to lose battle-ready soldiers.”

The Ukrainian army has been facing severe manpower shortages, and recruiting new soldiers behind fallen ones is proving increasingly more difficult.

Russia has also been developing combat UGVs, such as the Kuryer. According to Russian media reports, it can be equipped with a flame-thrower, a heavy machine gun normally found on tanks, and it can run autonomously for five hours.

The Russian army has also been using Lyagushka (“Frog”) kamikaze vehicles to blow up Ukrainian positions.

Clashes between Russian and Ukrainian killer robots on the battlefields of Ukraine are a matter of time given their increasing numbers and capabilities, says Yuriy Poritsky, CEO of Ukrainian UGV manufacturer Devdroid which produced hundreds of “strike droids” for the military last year.

“Sooner or later, we’ll end up in a situation where our strike UGV will come up against their strike UGV on the battlefield. Robot wars may sound like science fiction, but there’s nothing sci-fi about the battlefield. It’s our reality,” he says.

His company is now working on a system that would enable its ground drones to return should communications with the operator be lost.

Further ahead in the future, it wants its machines to be programmed to travel autonomously to a location, carry out its task – such as watching out for advancing enemy soldiers and engaging them if necessary – and then return to base after a certain time.

Another Ukrainian manufacturer of UGVs, Tencore, produced more than 2,000 UGVs for the Ukrainian army in 2025.

Its director, Maksym Vasylchenko, expects demand to jump to around 40,000 units in 2026, at least 10-15% of them armed with weapons.

“Strike drones [UGVs] will become indispensable, there’s no question about it,” he says.

Further ahead, Vasylchenko believes robots will engage in combat in human form: “It won’t be science fiction anymore.”

In a message to mark Ghana’s 69th Independence Day on Friday, March 6, 2026, the British monarch congratulated the country and reaffirmed the shared values that continue to shape relations between Ghana and the United Kingdom.

“On the occasion of your Independence Day, my wife and I send our warmest congratulations to you and to the people of the Republic of Ghana,” the King said in the message addressed to President Mahama.

He noted that the relationship between the two countries remains rooted in mutual respect and their shared commitment within the Commonwealth, a network of nations linked by common history and cooperation.

“It is with sincere appreciation that I reflect upon the enduring partnership between our nations, rooted in the shared values and mutual respect that define our Commonwealth,” the King stated.

King Charles also acknowledged the deep historical and cultural connections between Ghana and the United Kingdom, referencing the visit of his brother, Prince Edward, the Duke of Edinburgh, to Accra in November last year.

According to the monarch, the visit highlighted the long-standing ties between the two countries and the warm hospitality shown by Ghanaians.

“As my brother, H.R.H. The Duke of Edinburgh said on his visit to Accra in November, we share an extraordinary history and heritage,” he said, thanking Ghana for the reception given during the trip.

The King further praised the Ghanaian diaspora in the United Kingdom, describing the community as an important link strengthening relations between the two countries.

He noted that Ghanaians in the UK continue to make significant contributions across several sectors, including business, education, arts, and culture.

King Charles also used the occasion to emphasise the importance of unity within the Commonwealth at a time of global uncertainty.

“The Commonwealth’s rich diversity and the energy of its younger generations continue to inspire hope and progress. In these times of global uncertainty, our collective strength and unity are more vital than ever,” he said.

Looking ahead, the monarch expressed optimism about continued cooperation between Ghana and the United Kingdom, particularly as leaders prepare for the upcoming Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting later this year.

He added that the two countries have been working together on several initiatives, including efforts aimed at improving climate resilience in both urban and rural communities.

The King concluded his message by wishing Ghana peace and prosperity in the year ahead.

“My wife and I join in extending our very best wishes to you and to all Ghanaians for a peaceful and prosperous year ahead,” he said.

The war powers measure was rejected in a 53-47 vote largely along party lines. It would have halted US military action in Iran without congressional approval.

Democrats argue that Trump has sidelined Congress and offered shifting reasons for the war. Most Republicans blocked the resolution, but some said they could change course if the war expands in the coming weeks.

The US and Israel began striking Iran on Saturday. The Islamic republic has responded by launching attacks on Israel and US-allied states in the Gulf.

With no clear off-ramp in sight, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the war could last eight weeks – almost double the duration mentioned by Trump at the weekend.

Two senators crossed the aisle in Wednesday’s vote. Democratic Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania opposed the measure, while Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky voted for it.

Otherwise, everyone else voted along party lines.

Senator Susan Collins, a moderate Republican from Maine, voted against the measure, saying afterwards that passing the legislation would have sent the wrong message to Iran and US troops.

“At this juncture, providing unequivocal support to our service members is critically important, as is ongoing consultation by the administration with Congress,” she said.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said before voting in favour of the measure: “Do you stand with the American people who are exhausted with forever wars in the Middle East or stand with Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth as they bumble us headfirst into another war?”

The legislation will go to a vote on Thursday in the House of Representatives, where it faces an uphill slog.

While the president has broad authority to launch military action without a formal declaration of war, Congress must be notified within 48 hours of hostilities beginning.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has maintained the Trump administration complied with that requirement.

Top congressional leaders were notified before the initial strikes began, and Trump informed Congress in a letter on Monday, even as he maintained that was not necessary.

Trump has previously ordered military operations without congressional approval, such as the US strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities last year, and the seizing of Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro in January.

“To begin with, no presidential administration has ever accepted the War Powers Act as constitutional – not Republican presidents, not Democratic presidents,” Rubio, a former senator, said.

Congress passed the War Powers Resolution in 1973 to constrain the ability of then-President Richard Nixon to wage war in Vietnam.

It requires lawmakers to be notified by the president within 48 hours of military action and for Congress to pass an Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) within 60 days of hostilities breaking out.

Since 2001, US administrations have relied on the AUMF passed after the 11 September 2001 attacks as justification for the use of military force in the Middle East.

Multiple attempts to repeal that authorisation have been unsuccessful.

Russia accused Ukraine of targeting the Arctic Metagaz with “uncrewed sea drones” launched from the Libyan coast.

Ukraine’s SBU state security service has not commented on the allegation and the Libyan port authority said the cause of the fire was unclear.

The Libyans said the tanker was carrying about 62,000 tonnes of LNG before the blasts and that it sank about 130 nautical miles (240km) north of the Libyan port of Sirte.

Russia’s transport ministry said 30 Russians were aboard the Arctic Metagaz. Maltese Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri said they were all found “safe and sound in a lifeboat” during a rescue operation by Malta’s armed forces.

Unverified night-time footage has emerged purportedly showing the ship ablaze after the attack, which occurred on Tuesday.

Serhii Sternenko, a popular blogger and adviser to Ukraine’s defence minister, posted pictures on Wednesday morning of what he said was the tanker in the Mediterranean, which had a “serious hole in the engine room compartment and is beyond repair”.

He did not elaborate where the pictures came from and they have not been independently verified.

“This is a terrorist attack,” Russia’s Vladimir Putin told state TV. “This isn’t the first time we’ve encountered something like this.”

Russia’s transport ministry called it “an act of international terrorism and maritime piracy”, singling out the European Union for complicity.

Moscow said the Arctic Metagaz – which had been en route from Russia’s northern port of Murmansk – was carrying cargo cleared in accordance with international rules.

The tanker was apparently heading for Port Said in Egypt and is considered part of Russia’s so-called shadow fleet. It has been widely sanctioned by Western countries.

The ministry provided no evidence to back up its claim that the tanker was attacked by Ukrainian sea drones, though there were earlier unconfirmed reports of attacks from the Libyan coast.

The SBU told BBC Ukraine it was not commenting on “the situation with the tanker in the Mediterranean”, although a Ukrainian government-linked social media account, United24, teased that the drones were “Definitely. Maybe” not part of the Ukrainian fleet.

Marine tracking data indicated that the day before the fire, the tanker had last reported that it was sailing off the south-east coast of Malta.

It had sailed some considerable distance by the time the fire was reported and it is assumed the crew deactivated its automatic identification system.

Russia has deployed a surging number of vessels to transport oil and gas in an attempt to avoid international sanctions, which are aimed at slashing revenues that have been critical for funding Moscow’s war in Ukraine.

Its shadow fleet is largely made up of aged tankers, many with obscure ownership or insurance.

Following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which began in 2022, Kyiv has carried out a number of attacks on such vessels using naval drones.

However, nearly all of such strikes have been in the Black Sea, which Russia and Ukraine both border.

Nkanu Adichie-Esege, one of the twins, died on 7 January after complications arose during preparatory medical procedures at Euracare Hospital in Lagos.

The Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN) investigation panel established a prima facie case of medical negligence against Euracare and Atlantis Hospital over the child’s management.

The three doctors have all been suspended from practising medicine pending the determination of their cases by a disciplinary tribunal.

Dr Munir Bature, publicity secretary for the Nigerian Medical Association, confirmed the suspensions to the BBC.

“What will ultimately happen to those affected will be determined after another panel sits on their case,” he said.

He added that they could permanently lose their licences. The doctors have not commented.

Butare encouraged Nigerians to report any perceived wrongdoing by medical personnel so the council could intervene.

The family of Adichie had accused the hospital of negligence, alleging that medics denied oxygen to her son and administered excessive sedation, which they say led to cardiac arrest.

In a statement, the hospital expressed its “deepest sympathies” over the child’s death but denied any wrongdoing.

An inquest into Nkanu’s death is due to begin on 14 April at the Yaba Magistrate’s Court in Lagos.

The coroner will hear from medical experts and hospital representatives to establish the circumstances and cause of death.

The case has sparked a wider debate about patient safety in Nigeria’s healthcare system.

Following a public outcry, Nigeria’s health ministry admitted there were “systemic challenges” and announced the creation of a national task force on “clinical governance and patient safety” to improve the quality of care.

Adichie is an award-winning writer known for novels including Half of a Yellow Sun and Americanah.

Her 2013 essay We Should All Be Feminists was sampled by Beyoncé on her track Flawless, while the author was named among Time Magazine’s 100 most influential people in 2015.

She explores themes around gender and immigration in her works, establishing her as a leading voice in postcolonial feminist literature.

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• Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie loses son

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The war powers measure was rejected in a 53-47 vote largely along party lines. It would have halted US military action in Iran without congressional approval.

Democrats argue that Trump has sidelined Congress and offered shifting reasons for the war. Most Republicans blocked the resolution, but some said they could change course if the war expands in the coming weeks.

The US and Israel began striking Iran on Saturday. The Islamic Republic has responded by launching attacks on Israel and US-allied states in the Gulf.

With no clear off-ramp in sight, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the war could last eight weeks – almost double the duration mentioned by Trump at the weekend.

Two senators crossed the aisle in Wednesday’s vote. Democratic Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania opposed the measure, while Republican Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky voted for it.

Otherwise, everyone else voted along party lines.

Senator Susan Collins, a moderate Republican from Maine, voted against the measure, saying afterwards that passing the legislation would have sent the wrong message to Iran and US troops.

“At this juncture, providing unequivocal support to our service members is critically important, as is ongoing consultation by the administration with Congress,” she said.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said before voting in favour of the measure: “Do you stand with the American people who are exhausted with forever wars in the Middle East or stand with Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth as they bumble us headfirst into another war?”

The legislation will go to a vote in the House of Representatives on Thursday, where it faces an uphill battle.

While the president has broad authority to launch military action without a formal declaration of war, Congress must be notified within 48 hours of hostilities beginning.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio has maintained the Trump administration complied with that requirement.

Top congressional leaders were notified before the initial strikes began, and Trump informed Congress in a letter on Monday, even as he maintained that was not necessary.

Trump has previously ordered military operations without congressional approval, such as the US strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities last year, and the seizing of Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro in January.

“To begin with, no presidential administration has ever accepted the War Powers Act as constitutional – not Republican presidents, not Democratic presidents,” Rubio, a former senator, said.

Congress passed the War Powers Resolution in 1973 to constrain the ability of then-President Richard Nixon to wage war in Vietnam.

It requires lawmakers to be notified by the president within 48 hours of military action and for Congress to pass an Authorization for Use of Military Force (AUMF) within 60 days of hostilities breaking out.

Since 2001, US administrations have relied on the AUMF passed after the 11 September 2001 attacks as justification for the use of military force in the Middle East.

Multiple attempts to repeal that authorisation have been unsuccessful.

Six soldiers died when an “unmanned aircraft system” evaded air defences to hit a command centre in Port Shuaiba, Kuwait, on Sunday.

US Central Command initially said three soldiers died in the attack, but officials confirmed on Monday the death toll had doubled, after one person succumbed to injuries and two more bodies were found in the rubble.

These six are the only fatalities confirmed by the US military since it launched a new war against Iran with Israel.

Four of the deceased, all US Army Reserve soldiers, were identified on Tuesday by the US military: Capt Cody Khork, 35, Sgt Noah Tietjens, 42, Sgt Nicole Amor, 39, and Sgt Declan Coady, 20.

Khork, a Florida resident, had previously deployed to Saudi Arabia, Guantanamo Bay and Poland.

Amor, of Minnesota, previously deployed to Kuwait and Iraq. Tietjens, a Nebraska resident, had twice before deployed to Kuwait. All three were decorated service members.

Coady was posthumously promoted from specialist, the US military said. The Iowa resident enlisted in the Army Reserve just three years ago.

In a briefing on Monday, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said a “powerful weapon” had struck a “tactical operations centre that was fortified”.

Three US military officials with direct knowledge of Iran’s attack told the BBC’s US partner CBS that the service members were working in a makeshift office space.

They questioned whether the building had been adequately fortified, telling CBS News a trailer was being used as an office, with 12ft (3.7m) steel-reinforced concrete barriers to shield it.

The US has a long-standing defence relationship with Kuwait, and more than 13,000 American soldiers are stationed in the Gulf nation.

Iran has responded to attacks against it by launching missiles at Gulf countries allied with the US. Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman and Qatar have all also seen strikes.

Separately in Kuwait, the US confirmed three fighter jets were downed after what it described as an incident of “friendly fire” on Monday.

Footage showed the jets spiralling to the ground. The pilots involved all managed to eject and survived the incident.

Iran state media claimed the Iranian military had shot down the jets, without providing evidence.

Iranian officials said more than 160 people were killed when a girls’ school was hit in the city of Minab on Saturday, as the US and Israel launched widespread strikes targeting Iran’s military sites and leadership.

BBC News has not been able to independently verify the Iranian authorities’ death toll.

The school was located near an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) base.

The US military said it was looking into reports of the incident, while Israel’s military said it was “not aware” of any operations in the area.

Hundreds of mourners packed the streets to pay their respects at the funeral, which was broadcast on Iranian state TV.

Coffins draped in the flag of the Islamic Republic were carried through the crowds, as a voiceover recounted the grief of mothers and fathers who had lost their daughters.

Iranian officials said the school was hit by three missiles on Saturday morning. It was located about 600m (1970ft) from an IRGC base.

The six-day working week in Iran runs from Saturday to Thursday, with Friday being the only official day of rest, meaning the school was likely occupied when it was hit.

Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian called the incident a “barbaric act” and “another black page in the record of countless crimes committed by the aggressors”.

The country’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi posted a photo on social media of graves being dug for 160 people, with the comment: “This is how ‘rescue’ promised by Mr Trump looks in reality.”

The BBC has verified clips of the aftermath of the explosion, which show smoke rising from a building as crowds gathered nearby, with some people screaming in panic.

International news organisations are often denied visas to Iran, severely limiting their ability to gather information there.

On Monday, the BBC asked the US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, if the school building was struck by an American missile.

“The US would not deliberately target a school,” Rubio said in response. “We would have no interest, and frankly, no incentive to target civilian infrastructure.”

“I don’t have the details as to what led to it, but what is clear is that the United States would not target a school,” he added.

In a statement reported in US media, Centcom spokesman Tim Hawkins said: “We take these reports seriously.”

“The protection of civilians is of utmost importance, and we will continue to take all precautions available to minimise the risk of unintended harm,” he said.

Trump added that the government will provide “at a very reasonable price, political risk insurance and guarantees for ALL Maritime Trade, especially Energy, travelling through the Gulf”.

He said his plan “will ensure the FREE FLOW of ENERGY to the WORLD”, but experts warn these assurances might not be enough to ease shipping firms’ concerns in the region.

Trump made the announcement on social media as global oil and gas prices continued to surge, sparking global concerns about the impact on household prices.

Oil has jumped 10% since the US and Israel launched their campaign over the weekend, reaching the highest level since last June.

A fifth of the world’s oil and gas flows through the Strait of Hormuz, a narrow waterway wedged between Iran and the United Arab Emirates.

But traffic has come to a halt after several vessels were attacked in recent days.Some insurance companies have since hiked the price of policies for ships in the region.

Roughly 200 crude oil and product tankers are now stranded in the Gulf region, according to data from Lloyds List Intelligence.

Trump on Tuesday said he had ordered the United States Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to provide the risk insurance to all shipping lines and pledged military escort “if necessary… as soon as possible”.

Oil prices dropped back after the announcement, which came as Trump was due to meet with Energy Secretary Chris Wright and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to discuss plans to address the energy issues.

Despite Trump’s announcement, Richard Meade, editor-in-chief of shipping journal Lloyds List, said it remained unclear if the US president would be able to address the safety concerns driving the supply crunch.

He noted that Houthi attacks on the ships in the Red Sea in recent years prompted many shipping firms to avoid the passage with longer, more expensive routes, despite intervention by the US military.

“There was never really a point at which insurance alone would have prevented ships from going through the Strait of Hormuz,” he said, adding “Just because you’ve got a naval escort doesn’t mean to say you’re safe.”

Analysts have warned that a prolonged disruption could send crude oil prices above $100 a barrel, which would have a major impact on petrol prices, even in the US, where significant domestic production has tended to mute the impact of global price movements.

Speaking to reporters at the White House on Tuesday, Trump defended the war, saying “something had to be done” about the Iranian regime.

He conceded it might lead to high oil prices “for a little while” but brushed off long-term impact.

“As soon as this ends, those prices are going to drop, I believe lower than even before,” he said.

Trump’s comments come amid US and Israeli strikes on Iran, which has responded by launching attacks on US-allied states in the Gulf in an escalating conflict.

The US is co-hosting the World Cup, which runs from 11 June to 19 July, along with Canada and Mexico.

“I really don’t care,” Trump told Politico, external about Iran playing in the tournament.

“I think Iran is a very badly defeated country. They’re running on fumes.”

BBC Sport has approached FIFA for comment.

Iran have qualified for a fourth-consecutive World Cup and are scheduled to open their World Cup campaign against New Zealand and Belgium in Los Angeles before their final group game against Egypt in Seattle.

The country did not pull out of the competition last summer when the US bombed three nuclear facilities in the country.

But with the more serious current upheaval, the head of Iran’s football federation, Mehdi Taj, has reportedly cast doubt on their participation., external

Taj told Iranian television that it was “far from our expectations that we can look at the World Cup with hope”.

He added that the country’s sports officials would decide if any action was necessary.

FIFA’s general secretary, Mattias Grafstrom, said on Saturday: “Our focus is to have a safe World Cup with everybody participating.”