March 12 (Reuters) - Rights advocates note a rise inanti-Muslim,anti-Palestinianandantisemitic hate in the United States since the start of U.S. ally Israel's war in Gaza following an October 7, 2023, attack by Palestinian Hamas militants.
The United States and Israel also launched a war against Iran on February 28.
A drone strike killed a French soldier in Iraq's autonomous Kurdistan region, France's armed forces ministry said on Friday, after President Emmanuel Macron confirmed the country's first military death in the Middle East war.
Arnaud Frion, 42, was killed in a drone strike and six other soldiers were wounded, the ministry said in a statement.
His commanding officer Colonel Francois-Xavier de la Chesnais said he was struck by an Iranian-designed Shahed attack drone.
US President Donald Trump said Thursday the war against Iran was moving "very rapidly," even as Tehran's new leader vowed defiance in his first public message.
"The situation with Iran is moving along very rapidly. It's doing very well, our military is unsurpassed," Trump said at the White House.
"They really are a nation of terror and hate, and they're paying a big price right now," added the US leader, who was attending a Women's History Month event with First Lady Melania Trump.
March 12 (Reuters) - Iran's U.N. Ambassador said on Thursday Tehran was not going to close the Strait of Hormuz, but added that it was Iran's right to preserve the security of the key shipping route.
Amir Saeid Iravani made his comments to reporters at the United Nations when asked about remarks by new Iranian supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, who said on Thursday that the "lever of blocking the Strait of Hormuz must continue to be used."
JERUSALEM, March 12 (Reuters) - Israel's military on Thursday dropped charges against five soldiers accused of torturing a Palestinian detained during the Gaza war, in a case that exposed divisions within Israel over whether soldiers can abuse enemy prisoners with impunity.
The military announced the decision at a time when much of the country's attention is focused on the war with Iran.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the decision. "The State of Israel must hunt down its enemies, not its own heroic fighters," he said in a statement.
March 12 (Reuters) - Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah on Tuesday, where the two leaders discussed regional developments, the prime minister's office said.
The meeting comes as the Middle East grapples with escalating conflict, including tensions involving Israel, the United States and Iran.
DUBAI, March 12 (Reuters) - Ships must coordinate with Iran's navy to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the country's foreign ministry spokesperson said in comments carried by Mehr news agency on Thursday.
Iran will fight on and keep the Strait of Hormuz shut as leverage against the United States and Israel, new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday in defiant first comments attributed to him since he succeeded his slain father.
By Maayan Lubell and Rami Ayyub
JERUSALEM, March 12 (Reuters) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday issued a veiled threat to kill Iran's new supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei even as he acknowledged that Israel's joint air war with the U.S. may not lead to a collapse of Tehran's clerical government.
Holding his first press conference since the start of the war, the Israeli leader said that Iran was "no longer the same" after nearly two weeks of bombardment and that Tehran had suffered blows to its elite Revolutionary Guards Corps and Basij paramilitary force.
By Parisa Hafezi and Maya Gebeily
DUBAI/BEIRUT, March 12 (Reuters) - Iran will fight on and keep the Strait of Hormuz shut as leverage against the United States and Israel, new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday in defiant first comments attributed to him since he succeeded his slain father.
Hours later, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu used his first press conference since the start of the war to make his own strong statement, issuing a veiled threat to kill Khamenei and defending the military assault on Iran.
By Laila Bassam, Ahmed Rasheed, Pesha Magid and Tom Perry
BEIRUT/BAGHDAD/JERUSALEM, March 12 (Reuters) - Shi'ite Muslim armed groups in Lebanon and Iraq are stepping up their role in the war with the U.S. and Israel, showing the Iran-backed "Axis of Resistance" can still wage attacks despite damage inflicted on the alliance during the Gaza conflict.
Groups that have long been armed and financed by Iran and loyal to its Shi'ite Islamist rulers are now helping Tehran intensify the war around the region, strikes in recent days show.
