Trump claims total control of Hormuz as Iran denies truce talks Congo Ebola cases pass 4,400 as UN warns of doubling every 20 days Colombia quake toll rises to 265 as regional aid arrives Ukrainian drones halt grain exports at Russia's biggest Black Sea port Heat and record-low rivers start showing up in Europe's accounts US inflation eases to 3.4% as the Fed stays split IEA and OPEC cut oil forecasts as Hormuz stays shut Bank of America pledges $250bn for AI and energy infrastructure Israel resumes Gaza strikes and rules out any withdrawal Chinese-Indonesian frigates end drill east of Taiwan as Beijing rejects missile rebuke Beijing evacuates thousands as Typhoon Dolphin's remnants drench northern China Putin threatens European ships as NATO blames Russia for drones Settlers hold Qusra siege as Israeli troops pull back Black Sea shipping costs hit record as Ukraine cuts grain export forecast Lake Kariba ferry death toll rises to at least 44 Zhu Rongji, architect of China's market overhaul, dies China's EV share tops 60 percent at home as carmakers shift output abroad Suspected RSF drones strike Khartoum, Atbara and Al Obeid EU and 32 states condemn Iran's executions of protesters Poland says medical data of 19 million people stolen in cyberattack Turkey visits both Libyan camps as drones cut Zawiya power Pentagon counts 153 civilian deaths in Yemen strikes as Houthis hit Red Sea shipping Russian GDP beats forecasts as fuel rationing returns Colombia joins US coalition against drug cartels Canada weighs accepting US auto tariffs as Mexico seeks relief US-China investment board stalls before Trump-Xi meeting WHO warns against Trump's childhood vaccination overhaul Russia's Supreme Court bars only antiwar party from Duma election Iraq and US finalise anti-ISIS coalition withdrawal Record El Niño hits three continents as USDA cuts US corn yield forecast Oil from grounded shadow-fleet tanker reaches Oman's beaches Chinese censorship reported in US AI answers as DeepSeek targets Claude Code Morocco tightens Ceuta and Melilla borders after new online calls for crossings Erdogan invites more countries to join Mecca defence pact US and Japan plan world's deepest undersea mine New York opens sweeping investigation into Polymarket and Kalshi Syria protests to UN over Colombia's recognition of Israeli Golan claim Germany approves sweeping new powers for its intelligence services US Treasury drops enforcement of shell-company ownership rules ICE to buy electric-shock gloves worth up to $20m Norway's oil fund posts record half-year profit Greenland forces Trump-linked oil firm to delay Arctic drilling Lebanese firefighters accuse Israel of setting forests alight Turkish business groups expect investment boost from PKK law Britain plans safeguards against AI-assisted bioweapons Apple in talks to pay publishers for Siri training data Anthropic in talks to buy Decart for $6bn Brazil orders Discord to suspend live streams after teenager's suicide Former Guerrero governor charged over 43 missing Ayotzinapa students US judge dismisses fraud charges against Adani Nigeria offers deep offshore tax breaks to draw $50bn in oil investment Pentagon inspector warns of severely degraded US bases in the Pacific Ukrainian drones beat US forces in joint exercise European grid operators anticipated drop in solar output during eclipse Media groups sue Trump over paid access to presidential posts Zelensky's Belgrade shell deal overshadowed by Kosovo remarks Zambia votes with copper revenues and civil liberties on the ballot Drone-equipped attackers target Ecuadorean fishing boats in the Pacific Google says Gemini has passed one billion monthly users Australia bails out Rio Tinto aluminium smelter with $1.8bn Tata Sons chairman to step down as group shares fall Thailand suspends new gun permits after school shooting Trump claims total control of Hormuz as Iran denies truce talks Congo Ebola cases pass 4,400 as UN warns of doubling every 20 days Colombia quake toll rises to 265 as regional aid arrives Ukrainian drones halt grain exports at Russia's biggest Black Sea port Heat and record-low rivers start showing up in Europe's accounts US inflation eases to 3.4% as the Fed stays split IEA and OPEC cut oil forecasts as Hormuz stays shut Bank of America pledges $250bn for AI and energy infrastructure Israel resumes Gaza strikes and rules out any withdrawal Chinese-Indonesian frigates end drill east of Taiwan as Beijing rejects missile rebuke Beijing evacuates thousands as Typhoon Dolphin's remnants drench northern China Putin threatens European ships as NATO blames Russia for drones Settlers hold Qusra siege as Israeli troops pull back Black Sea shipping costs hit record as Ukraine cuts grain export forecast Lake Kariba ferry death toll rises to at least 44 Zhu Rongji, architect of China's market overhaul, dies China's EV share tops 60 percent at home as carmakers shift output abroad Suspected RSF drones strike Khartoum, Atbara and Al Obeid EU and 32 states condemn Iran's executions of protesters Poland says medical data of 19 million people stolen in cyberattack Turkey visits both Libyan camps as drones cut Zawiya power Pentagon counts 153 civilian deaths in Yemen strikes as Houthis hit Red Sea shipping Russian GDP beats forecasts as fuel rationing returns Colombia joins US coalition against drug cartels Canada weighs accepting US auto tariffs as Mexico seeks relief US-China investment board stalls before Trump-Xi meeting WHO warns against Trump's childhood vaccination overhaul Russia's Supreme Court bars only antiwar party from Duma election Iraq and US finalise anti-ISIS coalition withdrawal Record El Niño hits three continents as USDA cuts US corn yield forecast Oil from grounded shadow-fleet tanker reaches Oman's beaches Chinese censorship reported in US AI answers as DeepSeek targets Claude Code Morocco tightens Ceuta and Melilla borders after new online calls for crossings Erdogan invites more countries to join Mecca defence pact US and Japan plan world's deepest undersea mine New York opens sweeping investigation into Polymarket and Kalshi Syria protests to UN over Colombia's recognition of Israeli Golan claim Germany approves sweeping new powers for its intelligence services US Treasury drops enforcement of shell-company ownership rules ICE to buy electric-shock gloves worth up to $20m Norway's oil fund posts record half-year profit Greenland forces Trump-linked oil firm to delay Arctic drilling Lebanese firefighters accuse Israel of setting forests alight Turkish business groups expect investment boost from PKK law Britain plans safeguards against AI-assisted bioweapons Apple in talks to pay publishers for Siri training data Anthropic in talks to buy Decart for $6bn Brazil orders Discord to suspend live streams after teenager's suicide Former Guerrero governor charged over 43 missing Ayotzinapa students US judge dismisses fraud charges against Adani Nigeria offers deep offshore tax breaks to draw $50bn in oil investment Pentagon inspector warns of severely degraded US bases in the Pacific Ukrainian drones beat US forces in joint exercise European grid operators anticipated drop in solar output during eclipse Media groups sue Trump over paid access to presidential posts Zelensky's Belgrade shell deal overshadowed by Kosovo remarks Zambia votes with copper revenues and civil liberties on the ballot Drone-equipped attackers target Ecuadorean fishing boats in the Pacific Google says Gemini has passed one billion monthly users Australia bails out Rio Tinto aluminium smelter with $1.8bn Tata Sons chairman to step down as group shares fall Thailand suspends new gun permits after school shooting

Symbolic image: Erdogan invites more countries to join Mecca defence pact

Symbolic image

Erdogan invites more countries to join Mecca defence pact

2 sources

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Wednesday he hoped more countries would join the mutual defence agreement signed last week by Turkey, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, which he described as a stabilising factor for the region. The same day, Iran called on six major Muslim states, Turkey among them, to take a leading role in strengthening unity in the Islamic world.