SEOUL -- South Korea has decided to partially withdraw its diplomatic staff from Ukraine amid airstrike threats across Ukraine and diplomatic dispute between the two countries, the South Korean foreign ministry said Tuesday.
Park Doo-soon, spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, told a press briefing that the government decided on a partial withdrawal of embassy personnel, considering that it was made difficult to ensure safety as airstrike threats persisted across Ukraine, while there had been no proactive measures from the Ukrainian side even after the recall of the South Korean ambassador. (S. Korea-Ukraine-Diplomatic Withdrawal)
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TEHRAN -- Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) said two "violating" oil tankers caught fire on Tuesday after hitting naval mines laid by its naval forces in the Strait of Hormuz, as its Foreign Ministry spokesperson said the country will not let any strike against it go unanswered.
In a statement published on its official news outlet Sepah News, the IRGC said the oil tankers sought to cross the strait through the "illegal" route south of the waterway when they collided with the mines, warning that attempting to cross the mined path in the strait is "illegal" and will result only in the burning of the "violators' assets." (Iran-Hormuz Strait-Vessel)
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WASHINGTON -- The U.S. administration has not approved the transfer of Patriot interceptor missiles to Ukraine amid tensions between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky, The Washington Post reported on Monday.
At least some of the missiles are being transferred from countries friendly to Ukraine, but the handovers require approval from U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, the report said, citing a U.S. official and three other people familiar with the matter. (U.S.-Ukraine-Patriot Missiles)
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BAMAKO -- Forty-eight civilians were killed in an attack in northeastern Mali on Sunday, said a community statement.
Armed members belonging to the Islamic State group arrived on motorcycles and targeted civilians in Tagadayat, in the Menaka region, the Idaksahak community's executive bureau said in a statement posted on Facebook on Monday. Several others were injured. (Mali-Attack-Community Group) ■
