Hamdullah Fitrat, Afghanistan’s deputy government spokesman, has claimed the Pakistani military killed at least 400 people in an airstrike on a drug addiction hospital.
The attack on the hospital in Kabul also reportedly injured 250 others, the spokesman said.
Pakistan has insisted its strikes against Afghanistan did not hit any civilian areas, per the Associated Press.
Rachel Dobkin17 March 2026 00:30
“It is not Nato’s war,” said a spokesperson for German chancellor Friedrich Merz. “Nato is an alliance to defend the alliance area. The United States did not consult us before this war, and so we believe this is not a matter for Nato or the German government.”
Sir Keir Starmer also went on the record to warn that Britain “will not be drawn into the wider war”.
Alex Croft and David Maddox report:
Maira Butt17 March 2026 00:05
US intelligence assessments say that Iran’s regime is likely to remain in place, with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps security forces exerting greater control, according to the Washington Post.
As the US-Israeli war enters its third week, White House officials and analysts cited by the newspaper suggest the regime has been weakened but has become more hard-line after the killing of supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The assessments predict that the Iranian regime will remain intact, possibly emboldened, but that a “regime change” will not occur.
President Donald Trump has been receiving “sobering briefings” on the situation, the reports said.
(AFP/Getty)
Maira Butt16 March 2026 23:35
US secretary of state Marco Rubio and South Korea’s foreign minister Cho Hyun held a call on Monday regarding the oil supply crisis caused by the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz.
The politicians agreed that the shipping route is key to the global economy. Around a fifth of the world’s oil supply passes through the waterway.
President Donald Trump repeated his call on Monday to countries including South Korea, Japan and China to deploy navy ships to the Middle East to form a coalition to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Millions of barrels of oil are reportedly being held up due to the ongoing conflict.
(PA Graphics) (PA Graphics)
Maira Butt16 March 2026 23:20
Maira Butt16 March 2026 22:50
The number of US troops wounded in the war against Iran has risen to about 200, the military said on Monday, as the conflict entered its third week.
US Central Command said the vast majority of those wounded had suffered minor injuries and that 180 troops had already returned to duty. Ten of the injuries are serious, it said.
Troops had been injured in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Jordan, Bahrain, Iraq, and Israel, Central Command added.
At least 13 American service members have been killed since the outbreak of war on 28 February.
Maira Butt16 March 2026 22:35
A man walks past the destruction at the site of overnight Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut on March 16, 2026. The Israeli military said on March 16 it had begun what it described as “limited ground operations” against Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. (AFP via Getty Images)
Hossan, a volunteer, organizes activities and games for displaced children, following an escalation between Hezbollah and Israel, amid the US-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Beirut, Lebanon, March 16, 2026. (REUTERS)
Men inspect a site of overnight Israeli airstrikes in the southern suburbs of Beirut on March 16, 2026. (AFP via Getty Images)
Maira Butt16 March 2026 22:20