BEIRUT, March 27 (Reuters) - More than 400 fighters fromHezbollah have been killed since the Lebanese armed group launched the opening salvoes of a new war with Israel on March 2, two sources familiar with Hezbollah's count told Reuters.

The figure was the first overall toll provided of Hezbollah fighters killed in Israel's expanding air and ground campaign in Lebanon. The group has issued sporadic notices for a few individual fighters but has not provided an official overall toll.

March 27 (Reuters) - The United Nations said on Friday it was setting up a task force to design a mechanism to keep trade flowing through the Strait of Hormuz, warning that disruptions caused by the Iran war risked greater food shortages and humanitarian crises worldwide.

"Immediate action is essential to mitigate these consequences," U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

U.N. Under-Secretary-General Jorge Moreira da Silva, executive director of the United Nations Office for Project Services, will lead the project, Dujarric said.

By Rachel More and James Mackenzie

BERLIN, March 27 (Reuters) - Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Friday expressed scepticism that the United States and Israel had a clear strategy to end the war in Iran but he said Germany would in principle be ready to help stabilise the region after the end of hostilities.

Since the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, Iran has launched strikes against Israel, U.S. bases and Gulf states, as well as effectively blocking Middle East fuel exports via the Strait of Hormuz.

PARIS, March 27 (Reuters) - Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday the United States could achieve its objectives in Iran without the use of any ground troops and expected its operation to conclude in a matter of weeks, despite recent deployments of additional forces to the region.

Rubio spoke to reporters before returning to the U.S. after he discussedwith G7 foreign ministers in France the conflict launched by the U.S. and Israel late last month.

While Bahrain comes under Iranian fire, some in the country have expressed sympathy with Tehran and even rejoiced over hits on US bases, prompting a crackdown mainly targeting the Shia Muslim community, activists told AFP.

The crackdown risks reopening old wounds in Sunni-ruled Bahrain which is home, like neighbouring Iran, to a large Shia community that has long complained of marginalisation.

An Iranian-linked hacker group claimed on Friday to have hacked the email account of US FBI Director Kash Patel and published personal photos and other material online.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation confirmed that "malicious actors" had targeted Patel's personal email information and said it has "taken all necessary steps to mitigate potential risks associated with this activity."

"The information in question is historical in nature and involves no government information," the FBI said in a statement.

WASHINGTON, March 27 (Reuters) - Iran's response to a U.S. peace proposal aimed at ending the war in the Middle East is expected later on Friday, according to a source briefed on the matter.

U.S. President Donald Trump and top White House officials have been told via interlocutors that Iran's counter-proposal would likely arrive Friday, the source said.

The war, which began when the U.S. and Israel attacked Iran on February 28, has spread across the Middle East.

By Daria Sito-Sucic

SARAJEVO, March 27 (Reuters) - Slovenia’s Prime Minister Robert Golob launched talks on a broad coalition with leaders of political parties on Friday after an inconclusive election, pledging urgent measures to help the Alpine country's economy cope with soaring energy costs.

With nearly all of the votes in the March 22 election counted, Golob’s Freedom Movement (GS) has garnered 29 parliamentary seats, one more than the right-leaning Slovenian Democratic Party (SDS) led by populist ex-premier Janez Jansa.

G7 foreign ministers Friday urged a stop to attacks against civilians in the Middle East war and urged Iran to immediately restore freedom of navigation in the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

A joint statement, released in the name of all G7 members, including the United States, called for "an immediate cessation of attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure".

A senior Iraqi Kurdistan official told AFP the United States was not arming Iranian Kurdish opposition groups exiled in the autonomous region, reiterating his government opposed the groups' involvement in the Middle East war.

Since the war began on February 28 with Israeli-US strikes on Iran, Iraq has been drawn into a conflict it had sought to avoid at all costs.

US President Donald Trump initially appeared to support an offensive by Kurdish armed groups against Iran, before backtracking.