Pakistan's ascension on the international stage is however causing heartburn in India, which has usually had the higher diplomatic profile of the two rivals.

Oil benchmarks rise after speech, stocks slide

'Defensive systems are operating to intercept the threat,' says Military

The third reported salvo came shortly after US President Donald Trump delivered an address to the American public about the Middle East war.

Trump gives a 19-minute speech amid high oil prices and low approval ratings.

"Attacking Iran's vital infrastructure -- including energy and industrial facilities -- directly targets the Iranian people," Pezeshkian said in an open letter, published to his website Wednesday.

Says Iran war's core objectives near completion

Trump gave Iran war updates from White House in primetime speech

"I call up France, Macron -- whose wife treats him extremely badly. Still recovering from the right to the jaw," Trump said.

NASA teams and spectators alike were ecstatic as the spacecraft ascended into a radiant sky atop a cascade of flames.

Waves of 30 centimetres were recorded within 30 minutes of the quake in North Maluku province north of the island of Ternate, Indonesia's BMKG geological agency said in a statement.

Nasa is set to launch four astronauts as soon as 4:24am today on a 10-day flight around the moon, marking the most ambitious US space mission in decades and a major step toward returning humans to the lunar surface before China’s first crewed landing.

A Russian An-26 military transport plane crashed into a cliff in Crimea, killing 29 people on board, due to a possible technical malfunction, Russia’s defence ministry said early yesterday, according to news agencies.

The ongoing regional conflict could push up to 4 million people in the Middle East into poverty, the United Nations has warned, while Human Rights Watch said migrant workers in the region face growing risks to their safety and livelihoods.

The United States would be “out of Iran pretty quickly” but could return for targeted strikes if needed, President Donald Trump said yesterday, as the International Energy Agency warned that global oil supply disruptions could double in April.

Pakistan and Afghanistan are holding talks in China to end months of conflict, two officials from Islamabad told AFP yesterday.

The Trump administration keeps suggesting that the Iran war could wrap up soon. The reason? Because it’s accomplishing its goals. “We are going to achieve our objectives in a matter of weeks, not months,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told ABC News on Monday.

It is absolutely true that France which has not been consulted and is not part of this military offensive launched by the United States and Israel, is not taking part in it.

France was among the first European NATO members to react

The US president also expressed his hope for a deal with Iran’s new leaders