International

US and UK Foreign Affairs officials arrive in Kiev to meet with Zelenski

The US Secretary of State, Antony Blinken, and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the United Kingdom, David Lammy, arrived this Wednesday at the Kiev train station to meet with President Volodymyr Zelensky, and other Ukrainian leaders such as the new Foreign Minister, Andrí Sibiga.

The visit comes in the middle of a debate about the possibility of allowing Ukraine to use long-range missiles from its main allies to attack military targets within the Russian Federation as Kiev insistently requests.

This is the first joint trip made by the heads of US and United Kingdom diplomacy to Ukraine since the beginning of the war. It is also the first visit of the British Foreign Minister to Ukraine since he took office in July.

Before Blinken and Lammy traveled to Kiev, a group of 17 American soldiers, diplomats and other personalities asked both presidents to lift the restrictions that continue to impose on Ukraine to hit military targets located inside Russia with long-range weapons sent by Washington and London.

The visit of Blinken and Lammy coincides with the celebration in Kiev of the fourth summit of the International Platform for Crimea, an initiative of the Ukrainian presidency to join efforts for the return of this peninsula occupied by Russia under Ukrainian control.

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In addition to Blinken and Lammy, the President of Lithuania, Gitanas Nauseda, and the Prime Minister of Latvia, Evika Silina, have already arrived in the Ukrainian capital this Wednesday.

International

Iran Reports 201 Dead, 747 Injured After U.S. and Israeli Strikes

The Iranian Red Crescent Society reported Sunday night (local time) that at least 201 people were killed and 747 injured following attacks carried out by Israel and the United States against the Islamic Republic.

A spokesperson for the humanitarian organization said more than 220 rescue teams have been deployed across affected areas and that relief operations are continuing without interruption. The official highlighted the difficulty of treating the large number of wounded and the urgent need for additional resources in impacted provinces.

Out of Iran’s 31 provinces, 24 have reported damage, according to a statement carried by the Isna news agency. This marks the first overall casualty toll released by Iranian state-affiliated media since the launch of the offensive.

Among the dead are 85 schoolgirls from a school in the southern city of Minab, according to the country’s judiciary. “The number of martyrs at the Minab girls’ school has risen to 85,” the local prosecutor’s office said, as quoted by the judiciary’s website, Mizan Online.

Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian described the attack as a “savagery” that “constitutes a new black page in the record of countless crimes committed by the aggressors.”

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Meanwhile, the international community continues to monitor the situation closely amid concerns about possible further reprisals and the broader impact on Middle East stability, energy markets, and global security.

AFP noted that it was unable to independently verify the casualty figures or the circumstances surrounding the events.

International

Pope Leo XIV Urges End to ‘Spiral of Violence’ in Middle East

Pope Leo XIV on Sunday called for an end to the “spiral of violence” in the Middle East, following military strikes by the United States and Israel against Iran and subsequent retaliatory bombardments in the region.

“Faced with the possibility of a tragedy of enormous proportions, I urge the parties involved to assume their moral responsibility and stop the spiral of violence before it becomes an irreparable abyss,” the pontiff told the crowd gathered in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.

Speaking during the Angelus prayer, the U.S.-born pope said stability and peace cannot be achieved through threats or weapons. “Stability and peace are not built with reciprocal threats or with arms that sow destruction, suffering and death, but only through reasonable, sincere and responsible dialogue,” he declared.

The leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics also called for diplomacy to “regain its role” amid escalating tensions.

In addition, the pope urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to urgently resume dialogue after several days of clashes between the two countries.

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International

Security Council to Hold Emergency Meeting on Middle East Crisis

UN Secretary-General António Guterres on Saturday condemned the “military escalation in the Middle East” following attacks by the United States and Israel against Iran and Tehran’s retaliatory strikes, just hours before an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council.

“I call for the immediate cessation of hostilities and de-escalation,” Guterres said in a statement.

The Security Council is scheduled to meet on Saturday at 21:00 GMT (4:00 p.m. in New York) to address “the situation in the Middle East,” the United Nations announced.

The meeting, during which Guterres will deliver remarks, was convened at the request of France, Bahrain, Colombia, Russia and China, according to a diplomatic source.