https://www.scmp.com/rss/322264/feed The latest news, politics and current affairs from the Middle East. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Israel and Lebanon agreed to extend a ceasefire and hold new talks on a political settlement, the US announced on Friday, even as Israel carried out new strikes that it insists are not subject to the truce. Israel has been pounding Lebanon and invaded its south in response to fire from Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Shia movement that is not part of the ceasefire diplomacy. Envoys from Israel and Lebanon’s government, which has struggled to restrain Hezbollah, met for two days in Washington and... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353777/lebanon-and-israel-extend-ceasefire-45-days?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353777/lebanon-and-israel-extend-ceasefire-45-days?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 May 2026 19:08:23 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Blink and you might miss the few stone walls that are all that is left of the village that Yusuf Abu Hamam’s family was forced to flee when he was an infant in 1948. The village, al-Joura, was demolished by the Israeli military at the time. It has since vanished under neighbourhoods of the southern Israeli city of Ashqelon and the grounds of a national park. The neighbourhood where Abu Hamam’s family ended up, and where he spent most of his life, now lies also largely in ruins. Buildings in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353771/palestinians-gaza-mark-anniversary-1948-mass-expulsion?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353771/palestinians-gaza-mark-anniversary-1948-mass-expulsion?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 May 2026 15:39:00 +0000 David Dodwell David Dodwell Most readers of foreign news pages this weekend will be assuming that US President Donald Trump’s summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing has been dominating everyone’s attention. But across Asia, Trump, with his massive business entourage, was not the only act in town this week. At least two other major sets of meetings should not be overlooked. First, in New Delhi, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was hosting foreign ministers from the 10 Brics economies and a growing community... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3353606/xi-trump-summit-aside-2-meetings-asia-matter-global-trade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3353606/xi-trump-summit-aside-2-meetings-asia-matter-global-trade?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 May 2026 08:30:05 +0000 Reuters Reuters The United States cast Israel-Lebanon talks held in Washington ⁠on Thursday as “productive and positive” and a State Department official said more discussions aimed at ending their conflict will continue on Friday. A senior Lebanese official said earlier that Lebanon will demand that US ally Israel cease fire in the face-to-face talks, as Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah continued to trade blows despite a US-backed truce declared last month. An Israeli government spokesperson said the talks were... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353618/first-day-lebanon-israel-ceasefire-talks-positive-us-official-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353618/first-day-lebanon-israel-ceasefire-talks-positive-us-official-says?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 May 2026 22:51:52 +0000 Lijia Zhang Lijia Zhang In recent years, the Brics grouping has attracted attention as it adds members and positions itself as the voice of the Global South. At a Brics forum held in Beijing last month, officials discussed expanding trade within the grouping. Such initiatives reflect both an impulse to reduce exposure to external shocks linked to the US dollar and a long-term ambition to reshape global finance. These gatherings are as much about signalling intent as delivering substance. Brics wants to be seen as a... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3353220/what-brics-lacks-unity-it-makes-flexibility?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3353220/what-brics-lacks-unity-it-makes-flexibility?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 May 2026 21:30:05 +0000 Teresa Elena Frontado,Lucy Quaggin Teresa Elena Frontado,Lucy Quaggin US President Donald Trump said Chinese President Xi Jinping offered to help broker an end to the Iran conflict and ensure freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, underscoring how Middle East tensions have become intertwined with a broader effort by Washington and Beijing to steady relations. In an interview with Fox News host Sean Hannity set to air on Thursday evening in the US, Trump said Xi had personally expressed willingness to assist amid mounting concerns over disruptions in... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3353610/trump-says-xi-offered-help-iran-china-seeks-keep-hormuz-open?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/article/3353610/trump-says-xi-offered-help-iran-china-seeks-keep-hormuz-open?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 14 May 2026 17:28:41 +0000 Reuters Reuters The United Arab Emirates’ foreign ministry denied on Wednesday a statement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office that he visited the country and held a secret meeting with its president. The Israeli Prime Minister’s ‌Office said earlier he travelled to the UAE during the war with Iran and met Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed. A statement by the Emirati foreign ministry said that Emirati relations with Israel “are public” and “not based on non-transparent or unofficial... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353479/israels-netanyahu-made-secret-visit-uae-during-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353479/israels-netanyahu-made-secret-visit-uae-during-iran-war?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 May 2026 18:30:55 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Israel hammered south Lebanon with strikes on Tuesday ahead of talks between the two countries in Washington, as Beirut reported 380 people killed in Israeli attacks since an April 17 ceasefire took effect. Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem vowed to turn the battlefield into “hell” for Israeli forces, and insisted his Iran-backed group’s weapons would not be up for discussion at the talks on Thursday and Friday, after the US had called for its disarmament. Israel has intensified its attacks on south... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353356/israel-strikes-lebanon-380-reported-killed-april-17-ceasefire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353356/israel-strikes-lebanon-380-reported-killed-april-17-ceasefire?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 May 2026 03:38:22 +0000 Bloomberg Bloomberg Vietnam’s state oil company urged the US to let a supertanker pass through an American naval blockade outside the Persian Gulf, saying the shipment is critical to the Asian country’s economy. The very large crude carrier Agios Fanourios I, managed by Athens-based Eastern Mediterranean Maritime, performed a mid-ocean U-turn on Monday at around the point where the US blockade begins. It had only just cleared the Strait of Hormuz, holding 1.99 million barrels of Iraq’s Basrah Medium crude, when it... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3353350/vietnam-asks-us-allow-extremely-important-oil-tanker-slip-past-hormuz-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/southeast-asia/article/3353350/vietnam-asks-us-allow-extremely-important-oil-tanker-slip-past-hormuz-blockade?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 13 May 2026 03:04:35 +0000 Dewey Sim Dewey Sim China’s foreign minister Wang Yi on Tuesday urged Pakistan to ramp up mediation efforts in the Iran crisis, as the war threatens to overshadow US President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing. In a call with his Pakistani counterpart Ishaq Dar, Wang lauded Pakistan’s efforts in facilitating negotiations between Washington and Tehran and helping to extend the ceasefire. But he also called for Pakistan to “step up its mediation efforts to contribute to … the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and the... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/article/3353333/china-presses-pakistan-deepen-iran-mediation-ahead-trump-xi-talks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/article/3353333/china-presses-pakistan-deepen-iran-mediation-ahead-trump-xi-talks?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 May 2026 19:40:55 +0000 Neil Denslow,Raymond Ma Neil Denslow,Raymond Ma US President Donald Trump said a month-long ceasefire with Iran was on “massive life support” as he rejected Tehran’s response to a peace proposal. The Iranian reply was a “piece of garbage”, Trump told reporters in the White House on Monday. “I didn’t even finish reading it.” The comments helped to push the price of Brent crude oil above US$106 a barrel on Tuesday. Trump is expected to discuss the war with Chinese President Xi Jinping in a Beijing summit on Thursday, as Iran’s 10-week shutdown... https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/china/diplomacy/article/3353252/trump-rejects-garbage-iran-peace-plan-heading-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/china/diplomacy/article/3353252/trump-rejects-garbage-iran-peace-plan-heading-china?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 May 2026 09:00:12 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Israeli lawmakers approved a bill on Monday setting up a special tribunal that would try and have the authority to sentence to death Palestinians convicted of taking part in the 2023 Hamas-led attack that triggered the war in Gaza. The measure passed 93-0 in the 120-seat Knesset, or parliament, reflecting widespread support for punishing those found responsible for what was the deadliest attack in Israel’s history. The remaining 27 lawmakers were absent or abstained from voting. Rights groups... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353236/israel-pushes-ahead-eichmann-style-tribunal-october-7-attackers?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353236/israel-pushes-ahead-eichmann-style-tribunal-october-7-attackers?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 May 2026 06:19:43 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong South Korea is treading carefully in attributing blame for the strike on one of its cargo ships earlier this month, even as preliminary signs point to Iranian drones being the culprit. Seoul has surveillance footage of the incident in the early hours of May 4 – when two airborne objects struck the HMM Namu while it lay at anchor off the United Arab Emirates – but so far has said little. Observers believe the government is biding its time and waiting to deliver a verdict until after a highly... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3353221/south-korea-cautious-blaming-iran-ship-strike-ahead-us-china-summit?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3353221/south-korea-cautious-blaming-iran-ship-strike-ahead-us-china-summit?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 May 2026 04:20:43 +0000 Alice Li Alice Li With a fragile US-Iran ceasefire barely holding, the Strait of Hormuz still blockaded, and all eyes on the upcoming Trump-Xi meeting, investors are embracing a new market narrative: “Nacho”. The acronym – short for “Not a chance Hormuz opens” – reflects a growing bet on prolonged gridlock and high oil prices. This marks a sharp pivot from last year’s dominant trade tactic, “Taco” – “Trump always chickens out”, which was born in the chaos of Trump’s tariff blitz and relied on the assumption that... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3353215/taco-nacho-new-buzzword-wall-street-amid-trumps-trip-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3353215/taco-nacho-new-buzzword-wall-street-amid-trumps-trip-china?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 May 2026 03:09:49 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The Treasury Department wants US banks and other financial institutions to monitor for suspected Iranian money-laundering networks that use their funds to smuggle sanctioned oil through shell companies and cryptocurrency networks. The move, which effectively deputises the global financial system to help disrupt Iran’s sanctions-evasion infrastructure, comes as the US and Iran reached another impasse over how to end their war while their ceasefire has grown increasingly shaky. US President Donald... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3353200/us-treasury-department-tells-banks-flag-suspected-iranian-money-laundering-networks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/united-states-canada/article/3353200/us-treasury-department-tells-banks-flag-suspected-iranian-money-laundering-networks?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 May 2026 21:56:25 +0000 Brian Y. S. Wong Brian Y. S. Wong With the war in the Middle East entering its third month, questions have surfaced over its geopolitical ramifications in the region and beyond. An entity that has drawn particular scrutiny is Brics. The 10-member grouping is defined less by a clear set of common values and more by contingently overlapping interests. It does not and cannot speak with one voice on the conflict. Two Brics members, Iran and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), are at loggerheads: Tehran has launched missile and drone... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3352951/brics-doesnt-need-unified-voice-iran-war-have-future?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3352951/brics-doesnt-need-unified-voice-iran-war-have-future?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 May 2026 21:30:06 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Two Israeli soldiers will spend weeks in military prison for desecration of a Christian object after one stuck a cigarette in the mouth of a statue of the Virgin Mary in southern Lebanon and the other photographed it. The photo of the soldier, a cigarette dangling from his own mouth, went viral and sparked widespread outrage. It was the latest act by Israeli forces to be denounced as anti-Christian in southern Lebanon, where Israel launched a ground invasion earlier this year to target the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353193/israeli-soldiers-jailed-desecration-virgin-mary-statue-lebanon?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353193/israeli-soldiers-jailed-desecration-virgin-mary-statue-lebanon?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 May 2026 18:50:29 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Israel’s next election campaign is well under way, with political defections, fractious coalition-building and naked appeals to ethnic exclusion marking its opening salvoes as a crowded field of challengers queues up to try Benjamin Netanyahu for the security catastrophe of October 7, 2023 and the wars that followed. The vote, constitutionally set for this October, is shaping up as a referendum on the prime minister’s central claim to power: that only he can keep Israel safe. But after two and a... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352924/israels-election-may-end-netanyahu-era-not-forever-wars?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352924/israels-election-may-end-netanyahu-era-not-forever-wars?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 May 2026 00:00:14 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Nobel Peace laureate and activist Narges Mohammadi has been transferred to a Tehran hospital more than a week after collapsing in prison, her foundation said on Sunday. Her transfer comes after days of pleading by her family and others who described her condition as critical. Her foundation said she has been granted a prison sentence suspension on bail. It was not clear for how long her sentence is suspended, the foundation said. Mohammadi had been imprisoned since December in Zanjan prison. She... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353072/jailed-iran-nobel-laureate-narges-mohammadi-transferred-hospital-after-medical-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353072/jailed-iran-nobel-laureate-narges-mohammadi-transferred-hospital-after-medical-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2026 23:54:18 +0000 Asad Ullah Asad Ullah On April 28, the United Arab Emirates informed the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) it was leaving. Three days’ notice. No call to Riyadh beforehand, apparently. The grievance about production quotas was years old: Abu Dhabi had threatened to quit in 2021. What’s changed has nothing to do with the barrel count. It is about who underwrites Abu Dhabi’s security when it acts on a decision Riyadh opposes. After Iran struck UAE infrastructure, Abu Dhabi sent only a foreign... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352666/why-uaes-opec-exit-spells-beginning-end-gulf-unity?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352666/why-uaes-opec-exit-spells-beginning-end-gulf-unity?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2026 21:30:05 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Iran sent its response to the latest US proposal to end the Iran war via Pakistani mediators on Sunday, but US President Donald Trump quickly rejected it in a social media post as “TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!” – the latest setback to efforts to resolve the stand-off in the Persian Gulf that has throttled shipping and sent energy prices soaring. Iranian state television reported that Tehran rejected the US proposal as amounting to surrender, insisting instead on “war reparations by the US, full Iranian... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353071/trump-calls-irans-response-us-peace-proposal-unacceptable?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353071/trump-calls-irans-response-us-peace-proposal-unacceptable?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2026 21:16:25 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium must be “taken out” before the US-Israeli war against Iran can be considered over, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told an American broadcaster Sunday. “It’s not over, because there’s still nuclear material – enriched uranium – that has to be taken out of Iran. There’s still enrichment sites that have to be dismantled,” Netanyahu said in an interview on CBS News’ 60 Minutes. “You go in and you take it out,” the Israeli leader said when asked how the... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353068/iran-war-not-over-uranium-must-be-removed-israels-netanyahu-says?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353068/iran-war-not-over-uranium-must-be-removed-israels-netanyahu-says?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2026 16:46:42 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press Israel deported two activists on Sunday after being detained near Greece for slightly over a week for leading an aid flotilla attempting to break the Israeli naval blockade of the Gaza Strip. The two, Spanish-Swedish citizen of Palestinian origin Saif Abukeshek and Brazilian citizen Thiago Ávila, were among dozens of activists intercepted by the Israeli navy off the coast of Crete. Both are members of the Global Sumud Flotilla’s steering committee, whose mission is to break Israel’s naval... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353043/spanish-brazilian-flotilla-activists-released-after-detention-israel?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353043/spanish-brazilian-flotilla-activists-released-after-detention-israel?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2026 10:06:06 +0000 Reuters Reuters Iran has sent its response to a US proposal to begin peace talks to end the war, Iranian state media reported on Sunday, as two carriers were allowed to pass through the blockaded Strait of Hormuz. The response, sent to mediator Pakistan, focused on ending the war on all fronts, especially Lebanon, and on the safety of shipping through the strait, Iranian state television said, without indicating how or when the vital waterway might reopen. It followed a US proposal to end fighting before... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353029/trump-awaits-irans-response-amid-relative-calm-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353029/trump-awaits-irans-response-amid-relative-calm-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 10 May 2026 06:58:24 +0000 Reuters Reuters ⁠The US and Iran appeared no closer on Saturday to finding an end to their war after the two sides traded fire in the Gulf amid a tenuous ceasefire, while a US intelligence analysis concluded Tehran could withstand a naval blockade for months. Recent days have seen the biggest flare-ups in fighting in and around the Strait of Hormuz since a ceasefire began a month ago, and the United Arab Emirates came under renewed ‌attack on Friday. Washington has been awaiting Tehran’s response to a US... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353007/us-iran-war-no-closer-ending-gulf-clashes-flare?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3353007/us-iran-war-no-closer-ending-gulf-clashes-flare?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 May 2026 12:56:28 +0000 Kyodo Kyodo South Korea is drawing growing interest from Middle Eastern oil producers seeking to store crude oil at the country’s petroleum reserve bases, the world’s sixth largest, amid a prolonged blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a South Korean official and an expert on the matter have said. The strait’s closure in the wake of the US-Israel war on Iran has taken a toll not only on South Korea and other nations dependent on oil imports but also oil-producing countries whose storage tanks are filling up... https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3352975/south-korea-draws-gulf-oil-storage-interest-hormuz-stays-closed?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/asia/east-asia/article/3352975/south-korea-draws-gulf-oil-storage-interest-hormuz-stays-closed?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 09 May 2026 05:14:53 +0000 Andrew Sheng Andrew Sheng The old order is dead. We just don’t know what will replace it. As Henry Kissinger reminded us in his 2014 book World Order, “no truly global order has ever existed”. After US President Donald Trump’s erratic actions, the gloves are off. American comedians and Iranian Lego cartoons tell us all we need to know about the demise of the old order. If the unipolar order is not viable, and America is abandoning the multilateral order and the rules of the game it created after World War II, what are... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352758/thanks-trump-gloves-are-there-may-be-no-new-global-order?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352758/thanks-trump-gloves-are-there-may-be-no-new-global-order?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 May 2026 21:30:05 +0000 Teresa Elena Frontado Teresa Elena Frontado The United States will host two days of intensive talks between Israel and Lebanon next week in a renewed push for a broader peace and security arrangement, according to a US State Department statement released on Friday. The talks, scheduled for May 14 and 15, will build on a previous round held on April 23 that Washington said was led personally by US President Donald Trump. In the statement, the US said Israeli and Lebanese delegations would engage in “detailed discussions” aimed at advancing... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3352960/us-host-new-israel-lebanon-talks-trump-team-presses-hezbollah-disarmament?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3352960/us-host-new-israel-lebanon-talks-trump-team-presses-hezbollah-disarmament?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 May 2026 18:30:57 +0000 Carol Yang Carol Yang China’s shipping giants are bracing for a harsh new reality of persistent global volatility, as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz shifts from being a problem of transit delays to a hard volume shock. With the crucial energy corridor still paralysed as the US-Israel war on Iran drags on with no clear end in sight, China’s state-backed shipping majors are doubling down on long-term contracts and creating new multimodal routes in an attempt to hedge against future shocks. Cosco Shipping Holdings,... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3352902/chinas-shipping-firms-brace-new-era-chaos-iran-war-drags?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3352902/chinas-shipping-firms-brace-new-era-chaos-iran-war-drags?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 08 May 2026 13:30:06 +0000 Reuters Reuters The United States and Iran exchanged fire on Thursday in the most serious test yet of their month-long ceasefire, but Iran said the situation returned to normal while the US said it did not want to escalate. The renewed hostilities broke out as Washington was awaiting Iran’s response to a US proposal that would stop the fighting but leave the most contentious issues, such as Iran’s nuclear programme, unresolved for now. Iran’s military ‌said the US targeted two ships entering the Strait of... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352823/us-military-says-it-carried-out-retaliatory-strikes-over-unprovoked-hostilities-iran?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352823/us-military-says-it-carried-out-retaliatory-strikes-over-unprovoked-hostilities-iran?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 May 2026 22:44:37 +0000 Brian Rhoads,Raymond Ma Brian Rhoads,Raymond Ma US President Donald Trump said conflict in the Middle East would be “over quickly”, as Iran considered a peace proposal that could lead to the reopening of the vital Strait of Hormuz. “We’ve had very good talks over the last 24 hours, and it’s very possible that we’ll make a deal,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Wednesday, according to Reuters. The president has repeatedly played up the possibility of an agreement with Iran since the war began on February 28, without reaching an... https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/world/middle-east/article/3352743/us-iran-peace-optimism-fuels-asian-stock-market-gains?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/world/middle-east/article/3352743/us-iran-peace-optimism-fuels-asian-stock-market-gains?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 07 May 2026 09:00:25 +0000 Teresa Elena Frontado Teresa Elena Frontado US forces struck an Iranian oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman on Wednesday, even as Washington and Tehran appeared to move closer to a tentative agreement to end their two-month war, with US President Donald Trump warning that renewed bombing could begin if Iran rejects the proposed deal. A US fighter jet disabled the tanker by targeting its rudder as the vessel attempted to breach an American naval blockade of Iranian ports, US Central Command said in a social media post. The strike highlighted... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3352671/us-strikes-iranian-tanker-amid-reports-washington-and-tehran-near-deal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/diplomacy/article/3352671/us-strikes-iranian-tanker-amid-reports-washington-and-tehran-near-deal?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 May 2026 19:57:00 +0000 Reuters Reuters Israel struck Beirut ⁠on Wednesday for the first time since agreeing to a ceasefire with Hezbollah last month, with Israel saying it targeted a commander of the militant group’s elite Radwan force in the city’s southern suburbs. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz announced the action in a joint statement. Israeli media reported that the commander was killed in the strike, but there was no immediate confirmation from the Israeli military or Hezbollah. The... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352670/israel-strikes-beirut-first-time-lebanon-ceasefire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352670/israel-strikes-beirut-first-time-lebanon-ceasefire?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 May 2026 18:55:00 +0000 Genevieve Donnellon-May Genevieve Donnellon-May Asia’s next food crisis is under way. After the US-Israeli strikes on Iran, shipping through the Strait of Hormuz collapsed, sending shock waves across energy, fertiliser and food systems. Fuel, freight and fertiliser costs are rising sharply, amplified by skyrocketing insurance premiums – feeding directly into the price of every tonne of fertiliser that still reaches the market. The scale of disruption reflects the strait’s outsize role in global trade. It carries around one-third of globally... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3352187/asia-must-unite-avert-iran-war-food-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/asia-opinion/article/3352187/asia-must-unite-avert-iran-war-food-crisis?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 06 May 2026 08:30:05 +0000 Mohamad Zreik Mohamad Zreik For decades, the Strait of Hormuz has been a narrow passage with a big footprint. Whenever it comes under tension, the world is reminded that energy security is less a policy construct than an everyday reality for Asia’s economies, factories and prices. For China, Japan, South Korea, India and Southeast Asia, it has always been more than just a Middle Eastern problem. It is an Asian economic issue. This is why we should not interpret the latest Gulf tensions solely in terms of naval forces,... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3352077/how-china-gulf-ties-can-turn-energy-vulnerability-sustainability?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/china-opinion/article/3352077/how-china-gulf-ties-can-turn-energy-vulnerability-sustainability?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 21:30:05 +0000 Alex Lo Alex Lo Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and successive US presidents have spent the better part of the past three decades warning that a nuclear-armed Iran would threaten the whole world. Now, thanks to the illegal US-Israeli war, Iran may have to go nuclear by claiming self-defence. After all, what is good for the goose is good for the gander. Israel would justify its clandestine nuclear weapon programme, which dates back to the 1950s, by claiming Arab states wanted to exterminate it. Well,... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352328/thanks-trump-and-netanyahu-everyone-now-wants-go-nuclear?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352328/thanks-trump-and-netanyahu-everyone-now-wants-go-nuclear?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 12:30:06 +0000 Park Chan-kyong Park Chan-kyong When a South Korean cargo ship exploded and caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz late on Monday, Donald Trump wasted no time declaring what he thought it meant. “Perhaps it’s time for South Korea to come and join the mission!” the US president wrote on his social media platform Truth Social, invoking the incident as fresh justification for Seoul to send naval forces to the embattled waterway. Seoul’s answer, for now, has been a polite but firm no – or at least, not yet. The explosion occurred... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352462/south-korea-rebuffs-trumps-project-freedom-call-after-hormuz-ship-fire?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352462/south-korea-rebuffs-trumps-project-freedom-call-after-hormuz-ship-fire?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 05 May 2026 06:30:46 +0000 Mia Nurmamat Mia Nurmamat As the Middle East conflict spreads uncertainty among farmers around the world, Chinese farmers are carrying out their spring ploughing as usual and appear largely untroubled. “The supply of chemical fertilisers for spring ploughing is ample,” an official with the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs said at a news conference last month, adding that domestic fertiliser prices were “far lower than international prices” and spring sowing was proceeding as normal. While policymakers around the... https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3352366/how-middle-east-crisis-expanding-chinas-agrochemical-influence?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/economy/china-economy/article/3352366/how-middle-east-crisis-expanding-chinas-agrochemical-influence?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 May 2026 22:00:10 +0000 Dewey Sim Dewey Sim US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday pressed China to ramp up diplomatic pressure on Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz even as he stressed that the US has “absolute control” over the strategic waterway. “Let’s see [China] step up with some diplomacy and get the Iranians to open the strait,” Bessent said in a Fox News interview. “Iran is the largest state sponsor of terrorism and China has been buying 90 per cent of their energy, so they are funding the largest state sponsor of... https://www.scmp.com/news/us/article/3352414/us-bessent-urges-china-help-open-strait-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/us/article/3352414/us-bessent-urges-china-help-open-strait-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 May 2026 17:42:44 +0000 SCMP SCMP We have selected seven of the most interesting and important news stories covering global relations from the past few weeks. If you would like to see more of our reporting, please consider subscribing. 1. Quad summit plan turns uneasy as India pushes ahead without top leaders: sources A stretch of awkward diplomacy was unfolding in the Indo-Pacific in April: New Delhi was planning to host a foreign ministers’ meeting that could have been framed as a leaders-level discussion, even if the top... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351918/awkward-india-diplomacy-us-nato-crisis-strait-hormuz-woes-7-global-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3351918/awkward-india-diplomacy-us-nato-crisis-strait-hormuz-woes-7-global-relations-reads?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 May 2026 14:30:08 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press One Palestinian man was killed and four others seriously wounded during an Israeli military raid in the Israeli-occupied West Bank city of Nablus on Sunday, the Palestinian Red Crescent said. The Palestinian Health Ministry said the man’s wife was in labour at a local hospital when she was informed of his death. The Red Crescent said five people were hit by gunfire during an Israeli military operation. Nayef Firas Ziad Samaro, 26, was killed, according to the Health Ministry, and his body was... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352297/israeli-raid-west-bank-leaves-1-palestinian-dead-and-4-wounded?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352297/israeli-raid-west-bank-leaves-1-palestinian-dead-and-4-wounded?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 May 2026 23:12:55 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press The United States will launch an effort on Monday to “guide” stranded ships from the Iran-gripped Strait of Hormuz, President Donald Trump said, as two ships around the strait reported attacks. Trump gave few details about what could be a sweeping attempt to help hundreds of vessels and some 20,000 seafarers. Iran quickly denounced the move as a ceasefire violation. Trump said in a social media post on Sunday that “neutral and innocent” countries have been affected by the Iran war, and “we have... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352291/cargo-ship-near-strait-hormuz-reports-being-attacked-iran-makes-new-peace-proposal?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352291/cargo-ship-near-strait-hormuz-reports-being-attacked-iran-makes-new-peace-proposal?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 May 2026 17:04:40 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Two foreign activists from a Gaza-bound flotilla who were brought to Israel for interrogation appeared before an Israeli court on Sunday, according to the rights group defending them. The flotilla of more than 50 vessels had set sail from France, Spain and Italy with the aim of breaking an Israeli blockade of Gaza and bringing supplies to the devastated Palestinian territory. They were intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters off Greece early on Thursday, with Israel saying it had... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352266/gaza-flotilla-activists-detained-israel-face-extreme-brutality?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352266/gaza-flotilla-activists-detained-israel-face-extreme-brutality?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 May 2026 08:34:08 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain Middle Eastern governments are dusting off decades-old proposals for overland oil and gas pipelines, and urgently drawing up plans for new rail-sea transport corridors in a belated response to the wartime disruption of major maritime trade through the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea. With the threats to these key shipping lanes and economic infrastructure set to linger after the multifront conflict between the US-Israel alliance and the Iran-led Axis of Resistance draws to a close, other... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3352166/middle-east-states-eye-transport-resilience-new-logistics-corridor-bypass-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/economics/article/3352166/middle-east-states-eye-transport-resilience-new-logistics-corridor-bypass-hormuz?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 May 2026 02:30:08 +0000 Associated Press Associated Press US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he was reviewing a new Iranian proposal to end the war. “I’ll let you know about it later,” he said before boarding Air Force One, adding that “they’re going to give me the exact wording now”. Two semi-official Iranian news outlets, Tasnim and Fars, believed to be close to Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, said Iran has sent a 14-point proposal via Pakistan in response to a nine-point US proposal. Pakistan has hosted previous negotiations... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352245/trump-says-hes-reviewing-new-iran-proposal-end-war?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352245/trump-says-hes-reviewing-new-iran-proposal-end-war?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 May 2026 23:02:13 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse A senior Iranian military officer said on Saturday that renewed fighting with the US was “likely”, hours after President Donald Trump said he was not satisfied with an Iranian negotiating proposal. Iran delivered the new draft to mediator Pakistan on Thursday evening, state media reported, without detailing its contents. The war, launched by the United States and Israel in late February, has been on hold since April 8, with one failed round of peace talks having taken place in Pakistan since... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352237/iran-will-not-accept-imposed-peace-trump-not-satisfied-negotiations?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352237/iran-will-not-accept-imposed-peace-trump-not-satisfied-negotiations?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 May 2026 13:00:18 +0000 Tom Hussain Tom Hussain The United Arab Emirates is expected to continue making high-risk geopolitical moves with potentially high rewards, following its exit from the Opec oil cartel, as the small but extremely wealthy Gulf state strives to become a global power. Framed by Emirati officials as an orientation towards strengthening economic autonomy, the UAE’s decision to leave the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) on Tuesday coincided with the downgrading of its diplomatic participation in the Gulf... https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352207/uaes-opec-exit-signals-aim-accelerate-foreign-policy-diversification?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/week-asia/politics/article/3352207/uaes-opec-exit-signals-aim-accelerate-foreign-policy-diversification?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 May 2026 09:00:12 +0000 Anthony Rowley Anthony Rowley Not a sudden, major crash but a series of mini-crises. That, according to some, is the prospect facing the global economy and financial system in the wake of conflict in the Middle East. But what if these mini-crises cascade into a collective collapse? And what if the Trump administration emerges as the only winner in the conflict by virtue of the fact that it has, in engineering the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, locked Europe and Asia into a desperate dependence on US oil and gas, especially... https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352013/mini-crises-sparked-iran-war-may-add-big-collapse?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/opinion/world-opinion/article/3352013/mini-crises-sparked-iran-war-may-add-big-collapse?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 May 2026 08:30:08 +0000 Agence France-Presse Agence France-Presse Hezbollah’s cheap fibre-optic drones are creating new challenges for Israeli troops in southern Lebanon, forcing the military to adapt its tactics against an increasingly lethal threat. The Israeli military – considered one of the most advanced in the world – has confirmed two soldiers and one civilian contractor killed in explosive drone attacks in under a week, with several others wounded despite a ceasefire in place since mid-April. The devices are small, cheap and readily available, like... https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352209/hezbollahs-cheap-drones-pose-challenge-israel-childrens-toys?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/world/middle-east/article/3352209/hezbollahs-cheap-drones-pose-challenge-israel-childrens-toys?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 02 May 2026 06:48:13 +0000 Mark Magnier Mark Magnier China’s top UN diplomat slammed the US on Friday over its coercive behaviour, sanctioning of Chinese vessels and firms and for starting the Iran war along with Israel as Beijing assumed the rotating one-month presidency of the UN Security Council. The verbal blast came as Washington heaped more pressure on China on Friday by sanctioning a China-based petroleum terminal operator, the latest in a string of recent US moves to cut off Chinese funding to Iran under what the White House has dubbed... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3352197/chinas-un-envoy-blasts-us-bullying-sanctions-widen-trump-xi-talks?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/diplomacy/article/3352197/chinas-un-envoy-blasts-us-bullying-sanctions-widen-trump-xi-talks?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 May 2026 21:25:14 +0000