Michelangelo's works hidden in 'secret room,' researcher say

ROME (AFP) -- Renaissance artist Michelangelo ordered many of his artworks to be hidden by his pupils in a secret room to protect them for posterity, an Italian researcher claimed Wednesday. According to renowned art historian Giorgio Vasari, the Italian genius burned a large number of his own drawings and sketches before his death in Rome in 1564. But researcher Valentina Salerno says she has unearthed unpublished archival documents that reveal a plot to squirrel away his works. "One of these t

March 5, 2026

Airline, travel industries scramble with fallout

The airline and tourism industries scrambled to deal with the fallout from the escalating US and Israeli air war against Iran, while governments rushed ‌to bring stranded travelers home from the Middle East following the cancellation of more than 20,000 flights in recent days. Major Gulf hubs including Dubai, the world's busiest international airport, remained closed or severely restricted for a fourth day, leaving tens of thousands of passengers stranded. According to Flightradar24, some 21,300

March 4, 2026

Trump says US Navy could escort tankers, Iran aimed to strike first

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday the US Navy was ready to escort oil tankers through a crucial Gulf shipping route, as he justified his war on Iran by saying he believed Tehran was about to strike first. Trump has given often conflicting explanations for the joint US-Israeli attack on Iran, while the president who once campaigned to end to America's Middle Eastern wars has set out no firm endgame. The attacks and Iran's fiery response have engulfed the Middle East -- while also causing glo

March 4, 2026

Macron orders France's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to Mediterranean

PARIS (AP) — French President Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday ordered France’s nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to move from the Baltic Sea to the Mediterranean to help protect allied assets during the war in the Middle East. Macron said the Charles de Gaulle carrier will be escorted by frigates and its air wing. In a prerecorded speech on French TV, Macron added that Rafale fighter jets, air-defense systems and airborne radar systems have been deployed over the past few hours in the Middle East. “An

March 4, 2026

US turns up heat on Venezuela with threat to indict new leader Delcy Rodriguez

The Trump administration is quietly building a legal case against Venezuelan interim president Delcy Rodriguez including readying a draft criminal indictment, one of several tools it is using to strengthen its leverage with Caracas, according to four people familiar with the matter. Federal prosecutors have put together possible corruption and ‌money laundering charges, and have communicated to Rodriguez that she is at risk of prosecution unless she continues to comply with Trump’s demands follo

March 4, 2026

Syria sends thousands of troops to Lebanon

Syria's Defense Minsitry said it reinforced its border with Lebanon, and eight Syrian and Lebanese sources said this included rocket units and thousands of troops as conflict spread in the ‌region including between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. The sources included five Syrian military officers, a Syrian security official and two Lebanese security officials who spoke on condition of anonymity. The Syrian Defense Ministry said in a statement Wednesday that the army has reinforced its ⁠deployme

March 4, 2026

Global oil, gas prices soar as Iran crisis disrupts production

LONDON (Reuters) -- Global oil and gas prices jumped Tuesday as the US-Israeli war on Iran ‌halted energy exports from the Middle East, with Tehran attacking ships and energy facilities, closing navigation in the Gulf and forcing production stoppages from Qatar to Iraq. The benchmark Brent Crude oil contract settled up $3.66, or up 4.7 percent, at $81.40 a barrel, its highest settlement since January 2025. European gas prices soared as much as 40 percent before paring gains, adding to a 40 perce

March 4, 2026

[Graphic News] Global oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz

The steady flow of Gulf oil to Europe, the US and Asia through the narrow Strait of Hormuz has created the world’s largest oil transit chokepoint. After decades, the US and Israel launched a major attack on Iran, and Tehran’s ability to disrupt the strait has rattled markets and choked trade. Oil prices have already spiked and are expected to remain high as conflict threatens supplies. More than 20 million barrels of crude, condensate and fuels passed through the strait daily last year. OPEC mem

March 4, 2026

Clinton says had no knowledge of Epstein crimes

WASHINGTON (AFP) -- Former US president Bill Clinton said in sworn testimony released Monday by a US congressional committee that he had no knowledge of the sex crimes of the late financier Jeffrey Epstein. Clinton also said President Donald Trump, a one-time close friend of Epstein, "never said anything to me to make me think he was involved in anything improper with regard to Epstein either." Bill Clinton and his wife, former secretary of state Hillary Clinton, were deposed by the Republican-l

March 3, 2026

Iranian-Americans fear for relatives in homeland

Many in the Iranian-American diaspora spent the weekend glued to their televisions, watching news of US and Israeli bombs falling on Iran, some clinging to hopes of a brighter future for their motherland but terrified their relatives might suffer from the collateral damage of war. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who for decades ruled the country while violently crushing dissent, was killed early in the attack. In the US, many celebrated, some taking to the streets to cheer the toppling of the man they c

March 3, 2026

Lebanon’s leaders turn on Hezbollah as airstrikes hit Beirut and thousands seek shelter

BEIRUT (AP) — The Israeli military on Tuesday struck a building housing Hezbollah-aligned Al-Manar channel studios in Beirut’s southern suburbs following an evacuation warning, the channel said. In a statement, the Israeli military said it targeted “Hezbollah command centers and weapons storage facilities in Beirut.” Following the strike, plumes of smoke were seen billowing over the skyline. No immediate details on casualties were available. Al-Manar’s headquarters and transmission facilities in

March 3, 2026

Ukraine's military makes gains in Zaporizhzhia

Ukrainian troops have retaken nine ​settlements in the Zaporizhzhia region since the end of January and are pressing ahead with a counterattack along the southeastern front line, the ‌Ukrainian general staff said on Monday. Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskyi said that over the last month, for the first time since summer 2024, Ukrainian troops have regained control over more territory than Russian forces had been ‌able to capture. Reports of Ukrainian advances in the Zaporizhzhia region started

March 3, 2026

France to boost nuclear arsenal

President Emmanuel Macron said Monday that France will expand its atomic arsenal and could deploy nuclear-armed aircraft to allied countries for the first time, as he unveiled an unprecedented plan to bolster security on the continent. Speaking from the Ile Longue nuclear submarine base as the clock ticks on his presidency, Macron announced that eight European countries including Germany, Poland, Sweden and Britain had agreed to participate in what he called a "forward" nuclear deterrence scheme

March 3, 2026

Melania Trump presides at UN Security Council meeting on children in conflict as US attacks Iran

UNITED NATIONS (AP) -- US first lady Melania Trump presided over a UN Security Council meeting on Monday focusing on children in conflict, one of her signature issues, and acknowledged she was doing so in "challenging times" as the United States has joined Israel in attacking Iran. "The US stands with all of the children throughout the world," she said, speaking generally and not specifically about the new war in the Middle East. "I hope soon peace will be yours." Hanging over Monday's meeting w

March 3, 2026

Global brands shut Middle East stores as conflict causes chaos

PARIS (Reuters) -- In Dubai and other major Middle Eastern shopping hubs, many stores are closed or operating with ‌a skeleton staff as the escalating conflict in the region causes chaos for businesses and travel. The US-Israeli air war against Iran expanded Monday with no end in sight, with Tehran firing missiles and drones at Gulf states as it retaliates for a weekend of bombing that killed Iran's supreme leader and reportedly killed ‌scores of Iranian civilians, including a strike on a girls'

March 3, 2026