Breakfast News Recap: Lebanon toll climbs as US envoys head to Kyiv and regional tensions widen

Lebanon says nearly 9,000 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since October 2023, with the latest official toll putting the death count at 8,920 and the number of injured at 30,595, underscoring the scale of the conflict on the border.  🔗 Israel also said it was carrying out fresh strikes in southern Lebanon after Hezbollah launched two drones at its soldiers in the security zone, while claiming operational control of the strategic Ali al-Taher ridge amid the continuing border confrontation.  🔗  🔗

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In the wider Middle East, Yemen's internationally recognised government said its forces had recaptured Hais district, south of Hodeidah, as clashes with Houthi rebels intensified across several fronts.  🔗 Separately, Benjamin Netanyahu publicly boasted about Israel's strike on Qatar, reviving attention on the September 2025 attack in Doha and the dispute over Gaza aid that followed.  🔗

On Ukraine, US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are due in Kyiv after three hours of talks with Vladimir Putin in Moscow on a possible settlement to the war, signalling a fresh round of shuttle diplomacy.  🔗

In Europe, voters in Saxony-Anhalt are casting ballots in a closely watched state election that could give the Alternative for Germany its first chance at state power, a result that would be closely watched well beyond eastern Germany.  🔗 Ursula von der Leyen is also travelling to Greenland for a two-day visit aimed at reinforcing European Union support for the Danish autonomous territory and wider Arctic ties.  🔗 France, meanwhile, has rejected Niger's accusation that Paris helped incite a failed mutiny in Niamey involving attacks on a military airbase and the presidential palace.  🔗

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In the Asia-Pacific region, authorities in Indonesia have suspended 209 flights at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport after ash from Mount Anak Krakatoa was detected near Jakarta, disrupting one of the region's busiest hubs.  🔗 In Australia, Brisbane is forecast to hit 34C as eastern states face unusually hot early spring weather, with fire bans issued in parts of Queensland.  🔗

In the UK, a Labour chair of the House of Commons defence committee said comments from Argentina over the Falkland Islands underline the need for Britain to commit to a higher defence spending target, keeping the long running sovereignty dispute in the political spotlight.  🔗

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