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

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...

"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

Emergency meeting of the Security Council after US-Israeli attacks on Iran

Secretary-General António Guterres told the council that everything must be done to prevent an escalation. “The alternative,” he warned, “is a potential wider conflict with grave consequences for civilians and regional stability.” Guterres said the U.S. and Israeli airstrikes violated inte...

People gather all over the world after Khamenei's death in Iran

People gather in multiple places around the world to celebrate or demonstrate against the war....

Belgium, France seize Russian 'shadow fleet' tanker in the North Sea

Belgian and French armed forces have seized an oil tanker in the North Sea alleged to belong to Russia's so-called shadow fleet accused of transporting Russian crude in defiance of Western-imposed sanctions. The ship, named Ethera, is being taken to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge....

Iran strikes: Republicans back Trump’s strategy as Democrats warn of illegal war

US Republicans rally behind Donald Trump over actions on Iran, while Democrats condemn the administration for what they call an illegal escalation, intensifying the partisan divide over America’s approach to the Middle East conflict....

Republicans back Trump, Democrats attack 'illegal' Iran war

Republicans largely welcomed strikes launched Saturday by US forces and ally Israel against Iran but prominent Democrats condemned what they called an illegal aggression....

'Prime moment for Hezbollah and the Houthis': US-Israeli strikes on Iran risk igniting regional war

As the US and Israel launched air strikes on Iran early on Saturday, FRANCE 24 spoke to Middle East expert Hussein Ibish about the risk of Iranian allies – notably Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen – launching their own retaliatory attacks against US forces, igniting a wider regio...

Netanyahu says Iranians must “take their fate into their own hands”

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a recorded message released Saturday morning that the attacks will let Iranians “take their fate into their own hands” and that Israel plans the current operation to be “much more powerful” than the bruising 12-day war Israel launched agains...

🔴 Live: Macron warns that US-Israeli strikes on Iran could spark regional 'catastrophe'