Článek
Turkey says 4th Iranian missile intercepted by NATO defenses after entering its airspace
Turkey's defense ministry said Monday that NATO air defenses deployed in the Eastern Mediterranean had, for the fourth time during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, intercepted an Iranian missile that entered the country's airspace.
„All necessary measures are being taken decisively and without hesitation against any threat directed at our country's territory and airspace, and all developments in the region are being closely monitored with priority given to our national security,“ the ministry said in a statement posted on social media.
Turkey has condemned the Iranian missile fire, none of which has slipped through NATO's aerial defenses yet to actually strike the country, but it has not invoked Article 5 of the NATO founding treaty. The collective defense clause, if invoked by a member state, obligates all other members of the transatlantic alliance to treat an attack on one as an attack on all.
It has been invoked only one time in the seven-decade-old alliance's history, by the United States in response to the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks by al Qaeda.
Starmer says he's not letting U.K. get „dragged into the Middle East conflict“ as it's not in Brits' national interest
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has come under particularly sharp criticism from President Trump for declining to join the joint U.S.-Israeli war against Iran, said Monday in a social media post that he would „always make decisions that are in the national interest“ of the U.K.
„It's why we aren't getting dragged into the Middle East conflict, and why we are fighting to protect your living standards,“ Starmer said in his social media post, which appeared to be a defense of his policies ahead of local elections on May 7.
Starmer said two weeks ago that the U.K. would „not be drawn into the wider war“ but stressed that „we have to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to ensure stability in the market.“
„That is not a simple task,“ he said, adding that Britain was working with its allies, „to bring together a viable, collective plan that can restore freedom of navigation in the region as quickly as possible and ease the economic impacts.“
European nations have voiced willingness to help keep the Strait of Hormuz open to international shipping traffic once hostilities cease in the region, but none have offered to send military assets to join in the U.S.-Israeli offensive actions against Iran. Spain has gone further than its neighbors, refusing the use of its bases and even barring U.S. warplanes from transiting its airspace for operations connected to the war.
As Trump touts diplomacy, Iran notes the U.S. has attacked twice in 9 months in the middle of negotiations
„Everyone must recognize that Iran did not start this war. Iran was attacked while in the middle of a diplomatic process — for the second time within nine months,“ Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baqaie said Friday in televised remarks as President Trump touted negotiations and said he expected a deal to be reached soon — but warned again that in lieu of a deal, he would order strikes on Iran's civilian energy infrastructure.
Baqaei said he was stressing the point that the U.S. had twice launched strikes on Iran while engaging in diplomacy - once in June 2025 when it joined Israeli attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities, and again on Feb. 28 when it launched the ongoing war in conjunction with Israel, „so that the world does not forget that Iran entered the process as a rational and responsible actor, and it was the United States that destroyed the negotiation table on both occasions.“
„Our positions are very clear. Whenever we reach a conclusion, we will communicate it appropriately, because we have confidence and trust in ourselves, we know what we want, and we know which matters are absolutely non-negotiable for us,“ Baqaei said.
United Nations mission in Lebanon says peacekeeper killed amid Israeli assault on Hezbollah
The United Nations peacekeeping mission in Lebanon, UNIFIL, said Monday that one of its peacekeeping forces was killed by a projectile in the country's south amid Israel's escalating offensive against Iranian-backed Hezbollah.
„A peacekeeper was tragically killed last night when a projectile exploded in a UNIFIL position near Adchit Al Qusayr. Another was critically injured. No one should ever lose their life serving the cause of peace,“ UNIFIL said in a statement, adding that it did not „know the origin of the projectile“ but that an investigation was underway „to determine all of the circumstances.“
The U.N. agency added a call „on all actors to uphold their obligations under international law and to ensure the safety and security of U.N. personnel and property at all times, including by refraining from actions that may put peacekeepers in danger. Deliberate attacks on peacekeepers are grave violations of international humanitarian law and of Security Council Resolution 1701, and may amount to war crimes.“
