A French prosecutor Friday sought a one-year jail term for an Iranian woman accused of promoting "terrorism" online in a case linked to a possible prisoner swap with two French citizens.

Judgment in the case is expected on February 26.

Mahdieh Esfandiari, a 39-year-old Iranian, was arrested in France in February on charges of promoting and inciting "terrorism" on social media.

The arrest was over comments she is said to have made including some on Palestinian militant group Hamas attacking Israel on October 7, 2023, according to French authorities.

BERLIN, Jan 16 (Reuters) - The Munich Security Conference, one of the world's top security forums, said on Friday it was withdrawing an invitation to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi after the Tehran government's crackdown on protests across Iran this week.

"Several weeks ago, invitations were extended to individual government representatives from Iran. In light of current events, the Munich Security Conference will not be maintaining these invitations," it said in an emailed statement.

By Francois Murphy

VIENNA, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Regional fears of a U.S. attack on Iran have eased after President Donald Trump said Tehran had assured him that protesters would not be executed, but he is keeping "all of his options on the table", the White House said.

The last major strikes on Iran were carried out by Israel and the United States in June, mainly targeting key nuclear facilities.

WHICH NUCLEAR SITES WERE HIT?

BERLIN, Jan 16 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will raise topics including the political transition in Syria and the return of migrants to their homeland in talks with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Berlin next Tuesday, a government spokesperson said on Friday.

"We have an interest in deepening relations and, if you like, making a fresh start with the new Syrian government," the spokesperson said. "We have many important issues to address ... One example is the return of Syrians to their home country."

South Africa's defence minister has ordered an inquiry into reports of Iran's participation in navy exercises, apparently against the instructions of the president, the ministry said Friday.

The probe comes after the United States sharply criticised the past week's drills, which brought vessels from China, Iran, Russia and the United Arab Emirates to waters off Cape Town.

DUBAI, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Saudi Arabia's 90-year-old King Salman was undergoing medical tests in a hospital in Riyadh, the state news agency said on Friday.

King of the world's biggest oil exporter and a major U.S. ally in the Middle East, he had received medical care for lung inflammation in 2024.

He last chaired a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, according to state news agency SPA.

(Reporting by Ahmed Elimam;Editing by Alison Williams and Andrew Cawthorne)

By Suleiman Al-Khalidi, Mahmoud Hasano , Jonathan Spicer and Timour Azhari

Jan 15 (Reuters) - Syrian troops are poised to attack towns in the north and east held by Kurdish fighters, sources familiar with the matter said, to pressure autonomy-minded Kurds into making concessions in deadlocked talks with the Damascus government.

MOSCOW, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed the situation in Iran in separate calls on Friday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, and said that Moscow was willing to mediate in the region, the Kremlin said.

Tehran has cracked down hard on nationwide protests that broke out late last month, prompting U.S. President Donald Trump to warn he might intervene. Last year, Israel and the United States both bombed Iranian nuclear sites, and Iran fought a 12-day war with Israel.

By Joey Roulette and Cassell Bryan-Low

WASHINGTON, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Iran’s crackdown on dissidents is shaping up as one of the toughest security tests yet for Elon Musk’s Starlink, which has served as a lifeline against state-imposed internet blackouts since its deployment during the war in Ukraine.

By Parisa Hafezi and Nayera Abdallah

Dubai, Jan 16 (Reuters) - Iran's deadly crackdown appears to have broadly quelled protests for now, according to a rights group and residents, as state media reported more arrests on Friday in the shadow of U.S. threats to intervene if killing continues.

After President Donald Trump's repeated threats of military action against Iran in support of protesters, fears of a U.S. attack have retreated since Wednesday, when Trump said he'd been told killings in the crackdown were easing.