Day News Recap: Middle East tensions flare as Ukraine, Europe and markets react

Iran widened pressure on shipping by striking two commercial tankers outside the Strait of Hormuz within 24 hours, while a separate tanker was hit by multiple projectiles off the north coast of Qatar, deepening fears over Gulf trade routes.  🔗  🔗

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Those attacks fed a broader surge in Middle East risk, with oil and stocks swinging on renewed fears of supply disruption, and the G7 agreeing to release 100 million barrels of oil and diesel from emergency stockpiles over four months to cushion shortages.  🔗  🔗

In Yemen and Saudi Arabia, the conflict escalated further as Riyadh said Houthi attacks on two airports killed three civilians and injured 36, while its coalition said it intercepted three ballistic missiles fired toward Riyadh and Khamis Mushait. Yemen's government also said its Dawn of Yemen offensive had neutralised 1,860 Houthi fighters.  🔗  🔗  🔗

Israel marked the third anniversary of the 7 October Hamas attack with memorial events and protests, even as new strikes were reported on Gaza and the Hamas-run health ministry said more than 1,400 people had been killed there since the ceasefire began on 10 October last year. Israel also said the British consulate in East Jerusalem was ceasing operations, a move Britain rejected, saying its Jerusalem mission would stay open at reduced scale.  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗

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Elsewhere in the region, UNIFIL said small arms fire hit one of its positions near Kfar Shouba in southern Lebanon, and Israel's election debate was stirred again by a senior ultra-Orthodox rabbi's anti-Zionist remarks over military service exemptions.  🔗  🔗

In Ukraine, rescue officials in Kramatorsk said a Russian glide bomb strike on two civilian buses killed more than 30 people and wounded 18, while Kyiv said it had received ceasefire proposals on energy and shipping from India, Turkiye, Egypt and the United States. Separately, a suspected Ukrainian drone attack forced a full suspension at a major Yandex data centre in Russia.  🔗  🔗  🔗

Europe saw a string of security and political developments, with Germany ordering the pre-trial detention of former foreign intelligence chief August Hanning on suspicion of treason and espionage, and a Royal Navy serviceman charged in the UK under the National Security Act in a counterterrorism case. Britain and Germany are also due to hold Berlin talks on cyber threats and sabotage, while a thinktank urged the UK to shift military spending toward domestic defence.  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗

Across the wider world, Ethiopia's drone strikes hit Eritrean forces near Adigrat as fighting spread, France saw renewed school protests and arrests, and Indonesia faced a new wildfire haze lawsuit accusing the government of negligence. Kenya tightened Ebola screening after its first death linked to cross border travel, while the US sanctioned Fijian businessman Zhao Fugang over alleged corruption tied to China.  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗

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Politics also moved in several capitals, with Rahul Gandhi detained for a third time in two days during a voter roll protest in New Delhi, South Korea recalling its ambassador to Ukraine after a row over North Korean POW disclosures, and Malaysia saying it would back Myanmar's return to ASEAN. In the Americas, Trump distanced himself from advisers linked to Republika Srpska, a New York court heard Saudi Arabia arguments in the 9/11 families lawsuit, and a Manhattan court added a torture conspiracy charge against Nicolas Maduro and Cilia Flores.  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗

Other notable stories included Italy's final approval of an electoral reform with bonus seats for the winning coalition, protests in Rio against Flavio Bolsonaro, NSW Police rolling out a new armed response unit after the Bondi Beach attack, and a partial building collapse in Istanbul's Maltepe district that killed two people.  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗

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