Pandas and ping-pong: Macron meets Xi in rare visit outside Beijing

Europe 'very likely' to get dragged into conflict after UK base in Cyprus hit

"What's become clear to Europe today is that they are going to be a target". FRANCE 24's Dave Keating reports from Brussels about the European response to the widening war in the Middle East....

Trump mulls ground troops in Iran, says operations likely to last 4 to 5 weeks

President Donald Trump on Monday refused to rule out sending ground troops into Iran, as he warned that the spreading Middle East war unleashed by US-Israeli strikes could last more than a month. FRANCE 24's Monte Francis reports....

Trump warns of new 'big wave' of strikes on Iran, does not rule out troops on ground

US ​President ​Donald Trump warned of a possible new "big wave" of strikes against Iran, adding he had not ruled out deploying US boots on the ground. Trump also told a briefing at the White House ​Monday ‌that the US was capable of fighting Iran far longer than projected. ...

'This is not endless,' US defense chief Hegseth says amid fears of wider war in Middle East

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth addressed growing concerns on Monday that the US-Israeli strikes in Iran could embroil the United States in a protracted regional conflict by declaring, “This is not Iraq. This is not endless," even as he warned that more American casualties are likely in the weeks...

Iran war "different situation" to US Venezuela operation as could take up to five weeks

U.S. President Donald Trump says Iran operations are likely to last 4 to 5 weeks but that he’s prepared “to go far longer than that.” Trump spoke Monday at a White House ceremony. He also said the operation was ahead of schedule. FRANCE 24's Fraser Jackson tells us more from Washington....

War in the Middle East: Thousands of flights cancelled… across the globe

✈️❌ Thousands of flights have been canceled around the world on the third day of war in the Middle East. ➡️ Australia, Indonesia, and Vietnam hundreds of thousands of travelers are still stranded. #MiddleEast #Iran #UnitedStates #Israel #Plane #Aviation...

From refugee to restaurateur: Syrian chef’s London success story

With pots clanging and oil sizzling in the background, chef Imad Alarnab maps out his journey. In 2015, he fled war-torn Syria, crossing Europe in the back of lorries, on trains, on foot and even by bicycle to reach the UK. Ten years later, he welcomed Britain's King Charles to one of two restaura...

Air travel undergoes worst disruption since Covid with Middle East war

Global air travel chaos intensified on March 2nd as the U.S. and Israel continued to bombard Iran. Airports in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Doha, which are important hubs for travel between Europe, Africa and the West to Asia, remained closed after they were all directly hit by Iranian strikes....

Replay: British prime minister makes statement on Middle East conflict

Rewatch as British PM Keir Starmer makes statement on the ongoing war in the Middle East....

UK base in Cyprus hit by drone as fallout from Iran war spreads beyond Middle East

An Iranian drone hit the runway of the UK's Akrotiri air force base overnight on Monday but caused "minimal" damage, officials said. Britain declined to take part in the US-Israeli strikes on Iran but later approved a US request to use its bases for "defensive actions", Britain's minister for the...

What the war in Iran means for global energy security

Qatar's state-run energy firm says it has halted Liquefied Natural Gas production following Iranian attacks on facilities at two of its main gas processing bases. This is only the latest consequence of the Middle East conflict on global markets. FRANCE 24's Environment Editor Valerie Dekimpe looks...

"No clarity" regarding US plan for the future in Iran

US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth claimed that the new war in the Middle East would "not be endless" like other wars led by previous administrations. The briefing comes as the conflict has intensified into a wider war in the region FRANCE 24's Douglas Herbert looks into why the future of the US oper...

Lebanon bans Hezbollah military activities as Middle East war spreads

The Lebanese government has imposed an "immediate ban" on Hezbollah's military activities and called on the group to hand over its weapons to the state. The decision comes after Iran-backed Hezbollah launched rockets at Israel, provoking retaliatory Israeli strikes, which killed at least 31 people...

Iran conflict is 'a just war', Israeli opposition leader Lapid says

As the US and Israel wage war on Iran, Israeli opposition leader and former prime minister Yair Lapid told FRANCE 24 he backs the current offensive, despite being "Netanyahu's biggest rival". Calling it "a just war," he argued that Tehran has "miscalculated" by attacking the Gulf states and that th...

Middle East war to have economic and military fallouts for Europe

The U.S.-Israeli war on Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes across the Middle East are quickly dragging Europe in, forcing the continent into defensive action to protect military bases and evacuate citizens caught up in the conflict. FRANCE 24's Armen Georgian looks at the concrete fallouts the...

European heavyweights react following Iranian strikes on regional bases

France, the UK and Germany have put out a joint statement saying they will defend their interests and those of their allies in the Middle East if needed. It comes as Iran launches retaliatory strikes on Gulf countries. While Britain says it's not at war, London is allowing the United States to use...

France to allow temporary deployment of nuclear-armed aircraft to allied countries

French President Emmanuel Macron announced on March 2nd that France will increase its number of nuclear warheads from the current level of below 300, but did not give a figure for the increase. He also announced that the nuclear umbrella could be extended to the European continent. FRANCE 24's Arme...

Replay: US secretary of war addresses strikes in Iran and FRANCE 24's analysis

Rewatch as US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth addresses journalists regarding US and Israeli strikes in Iran, and analysis from FRANCE 24's Fraser Jackson straight from Washington....

"Not clear why the Trump administration could avoid an endless war" in Iran

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on March 2nd spoke to widening concerns that the U.S.-Israeli strikes in Iran could spiral into a protracted regional conflict by declaring, “This is not Iraq. This is not endless.” But as US intervention in the Middle East has a history of getting bogged down, th...

As Iran targets oil infrastructure, Middle East war threatens global economy

The war in the Middle East looks set to pose a significant risk to the global economy, with drone attacks near oil refineries in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait on Monday indicating that Iran is targeting major energy infrastructure....

‘To be free, we have to be feared,’ Macron says in keynote nuclear speech

France will increase its nuclear warheads for the first time in decades, French President Emmanuel Macron announced on Monday, saying that “to be free, we have to be feared”. Macron delivered the update on the country’s nuclear strategy in a keynote speech from the military base hosting the n...

Foreigners trapped in Gulf countries as Middle East war continues

The United Arab Emirates has sold itself to foreigners for years as a sunny, safe, tax-free oasis, but since the start of the Middle East conflict, its image has shattered. Since March 2nd, social media has been flooded with videos from foreign residents and tourists in the Gulf, documenting the mo...

Iran continues to target Gulf States in response to US-Israel strikes

Iran continues to target Gulf states after the US and Israel launched strikes on the Islamic Republic taking out the top leadership, including the Supreme Leader. Iran's retaliation risks the situation in the Middle East expanding into a full-blown regional war....

Iran attacking regional US assets in "a war of wills and attrition"

Israel's military said on March 2nd there was no reason to launch a ground invasion of Lebanon "imminently" after an overnight attack from Lebanese armed group Hezbollah prompted Israel to retaliate with air strikes. Meanwhile, Iran has refuted US claims that it wanted to negotiate. FRANCE 24's Nog...

Oil prices surge as tanker traffic in Strait of Hormuz grinds to a halt

As war escalates in the Middle East and Iran's security forces order ships not to cross the Strait of Hormuz, oil prices have surged this Monday, putting pressure on global markets. In this edition, we speak to Jorge León of Rystad Energy to better understand the forces that are bringing benchma...

Iranian cities and military assets hit by new strikes

Iran's security chief has vowed to not negotiate with the US as Tehran came under heavy attack overnight on March 1st. Israel launched new air strikes targeting the capital before expanding its military campaign to Lebanon, while US President Donald Trump warned he would avenge the death of three U...

'Trump seeks Nobel War Prize': Papers react to new conflict in the Middle East

PRESS REVIEW – Monday, March 2: We look at reactions from across the Middle East to the killing of Iran's supreme leader and ahead to what might be next for the region. Meanwhile in the Western press, US President Donald Trump is slammed as seeking a "Nobel War Prize"....

Israeli strikes kill dozens in Lebanon as Hezbollah launches attack after Khamenei's death

Israeli strikes killed at least 31 people in Lebanon on Monday, with the Israeli military vowing that militant group Hezbollah would pay a "heavy price" for launching attacks on Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. As conflict between Israel, the U...

The week in pictures: War in the Middle East, Trump’s State of the Union address and New York snow

From the US-Israeli strikes on Iran to clashes along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border, to Donald Trump’s State of the Union address and the fourth anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, FRANCE 24 looks back at the week's most striking images....

US military says 3 service members killed, 5 seriously wounded in war with Iran