World News

British commercial insurance market Lloyd’s of London warned Wednesday that a massive cyber attack on a financial services payments system could lead to global losses of $3.5 trillion, with much of it not covered by insurance, Reuters reports.

China’s military is building up forces for an attack on Taiwan that could take place in the coming years as part of a campaign by President Xi Jinping for “national rejuvenation,” according to the latest Pentagon’s annual report on the Chinese military.

Pakistan has test-fired a potentially nuclear Ababeel missile with a range of up to 2200 kilometers (1,367 miles) on the same day the United States conducted a nuclear test, several defense sources confirmed Monday.

Kyiv fears that China’s move to place restrictions on exports of drones could hit supplies at a time when Ukraine steps up its counter-offensive against invading Russian troops despite deadly strikes.

The US State Department on Sunday ordered the departure of all non-emergency embassy personnel and their families from its Baghdad and Erbil embassies in Iraq, “due to increased security threats against US personnel and interests.”

Fears were mounting Sunday that the Israel-Hamas war will grow into a broader armed conflict in the Middle East, centered around the Jewish nation, with the U.S. and its allies on one side and China and its partner Russia on the other.

A U.S. Navy destroyer intercepted several missiles fired near the coast of Yemen on Thursday, though it is unclear what the missiles were targeting, Pentagon officials said.

A military base in southern Syria where U.S. troops have maintained a presence to train forces as part of a broad campaign against the Islamic State group was attacked by drones on Thursday, two U.S. officials told The Associated Press.

The German chancellor told legislators that Germany’s place was “at the side of Israel” after Hamas attacks killed some 1,400 people in the Jewish nation and a Jewish synagogue was attacked in Berlin.

The United States is leveling new sanctions against entities and individuals involved in Iran’s missile, unmanned aerial vehicle and conventional arms industries.

The European Central Bank took a further step towards launching a digital version of the euro on Wednesday.

Hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians faced an uncertain future Wednesday in wartorn Gaza after Jordan’s king Jordan told them they weren’t welcome in Jordan or Egypt.

The Hamas war against Israel is slated to be given a potent shot in the arm if the U.S. and its European allies allow U.N. sanctions to be lifted on Iran’s capability to purchase and supply missiles to enemies of the U.S. and Israel, according to experts on Tehran.

Protesters have stormed the Israeli Embassy in Jordan’s capital, Amman, as violence broke out throughout the Middle East, and witnesses said they attempted to torch the building.

While emphasizing that Gazan refugees will be denied entry to both Jordan and Egypt, Jordanian King Abdullah II said Tuesday that the Israel-Hamas war has brought the Middle East to the brink of “an abyss,” the Times of Israel reports. Jordan’s King made his remarks after a meeting with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin.

In a majority vote Monday, the UN Security Council rejected a Russian-led resolution that called for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war but which did not specifically condemn the Hamas terror group for its brutal October 7 surprise attack on Israeli civilians, the Times of Israel (TOI) reports. The attack, which triggered the current war, left 1,300 Israeli civilian men, women, and children dead and around 200 kidnapped and taken to Gaza.

Belgian authorities say police shot the Islamist gunman who killed at least two Swedish nationals in Brussels late Monday. The public prosecutor’s office no longer excludes “a possible link with the conflict in Gaza,” referencing Israel’s declared war against Hamas militants.

Hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians faced an uncertain future Wednesday in wartorn Gaza after Jordan’s king Jordan told them they weren’t welcome in Jordan or Egypt.

The Biden administration is assuring congressional Democrats that Iran will not be able to access a $6 billion account in Qatar.

A gunman shouting “Allahu Akbar” (“Allah is Greatest”) shot at bystanders and killed at least two people in Brussels late Monday, sources said.