Tensions between the U.S. and Iran are escalating, with Washington ordering a significant military build-up in the region and multiple countries evacuating diplomatic staff amid fears of further instability.
Speaking during a closed-door deposition in New York on Thursday (February), former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she did not “recall” ever meeting the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and had “no knowledge of his crimes”.
Pakistan’s declaration of an “open war” with Afghanistan must be understood in the context of months of escalating violence, regional analysts have said, describing the latest developments as a significant shift in the nature of the conflict.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Friday urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to resolve their differences through dialogue, offering Tehran’s assistance to facilitate understanding between its eastern neighbours.
Melania Trump, the First Lady of the United States, will chair a session of the United Nations Security Council on Monday in an historic first, becoming the first sitting first lady to preside over a council meeting during Washington’s monthly presidency of the body.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) approved an $8.1 billion, four-year Extended Fund Facility programme for Ukraine on Thursday, aimed at preserving macroeconomic and financial stability as the war with Russia continues into its fifth year.
Start your day informed with AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top news stories for the 27th of February, covering the latest developments you need to know.
China’s military said on Friday it had conducted a routine patrol in the South China Sea from 23 to 26 February, accusing the Philippines of “disrupting” regional peace and stability by organising joint patrols with countries outside the region.
Paramount Skydance emerged as the winner in a months-long battle to acquire Warner Bros Discovery after streaming giant Netflix on Thursday refused to raise its bid for the storied Hollywood studio.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova on Thursday (26 February) accused Ukraine of threatening Europe’s energy security by halting oil flows through the Druzhba oil pipeline to Hungary and Slovakia.
U.S.-mediated talks on the Russia–Ukraine war concluded in Geneva on Thursday, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy describing the outcome as showing “more readiness” for further trilateral diplomacy covering security, economic and political elements of a potential settlement.
A third round of indirect nuclear negotiations between Iran and the U.S. concluded in Geneva on Thursday, with Omani mediators reporting “significant progress” but no final agreement.
Iran’s top diplomat said that the next round of nuclear talks is expected in less than a week after what he described as “progress in the most serious exchanges” between Tehran and Washington. The statement follows the third round of nuclear talks on Thursday (26 February) in Geneva.
Mexico’s President Claudia Sheinbaum on Thursday thanked FIFA and its President, Gianni Infantino, for reaffirming that the country’s 2026 World Cup host venues will remain unchanged, following violence that erupted after the killing of a major cartel leader.
A student from Azerbaijan detained by U.S. immigration agents inside a Columbia University residential building on Thursday morning, was released later the same day after New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani raised her case directly with President Donald Trump.
Argentina and Uruguay on Thursday became the first founding members of the Mercosur bloc to ratify a long-awaited free trade agreement with the European Union, paving the way for one of the world’s largest free trade zones.
Nuclear negotiations between the United States and Iran in Geneva have been described as “positive”, according to a report by Axios citing a U.S. official.
The United States is expected to deploy six additional aerial refuelling aircraft to Israel as Washington continues to strengthen its military presence in the Middle East while nuclear negotiations with Iran remain under way.
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s special envoy, Kirill Dmitriev, arrived in Geneva and may hold talks with U.S. officials, according to the RIA news agency.
Ankara has rejected media reports claiming it plans to deploy military forces into Iranian territory in the event of a U.S. attack on the Islamic republic.
Georgia’s path towards European Union membership is facing its most serious crisis to date, with senior European lawmakers warning that the country is now a “candidate in name only” and accusing the ruling government of reversing democratic progress and drifting away from Europe.
More than 11 million Afghans have been displaced or have returned to the country between 2021 and 2025, as drought, floods and mass returns from neighbouring states deepen an already fragile humanitarian crisis, according to a new report from the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Kazakhstan has launched a major project to build Central Asia’s largest data centre campus in Ekibastuz, aiming to position the country as a regional hub for digital infrastructure with a planned total energy capacity of up to 1 GW.
Chinese courts sentenced more than 41,000 people in 2025 in cases involving telecom and online fraud after suspects were repatriated from northern Myanmar, according to the Supreme People’s Court. Authorities also executed 16 individuals linked to major cross-border fraud networks.
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