The International Monetary Fund warned on Thursday that continuing disruptions due to the Iran war meant its global economic outlook was moving towards an "adverse" scenario, with growth pared down and greater risks to inflation.

Last month, the multilateral lender's World Economic Outlook predicted global growth would drop to 3.1 percent in 2026 in its "reference" scenario, but warned of a bleaker outlook if the war were to drag on.

WASHINGTON, May 14 (Reuters) - Iran's ability to threaten its neighbors and U.S. interests has been dramatically reduced by U.S. bombings, and Tehran's defense industry has been set back by 90%, a senior U.S. admiral said on Thursday.

Admiral Brad Cooper, head of U.S. Central Command, sought to underscore the tactical successes of the military campaign against Iran that he oversaw and said the war had dramatically reduced the danger posed by that country to the broader Middle East.

By Mehmet Emin Caliskan and Dilara Senkaya

MARMARIS, Turkey, May 14 (Reuters) - Ships from the Global Sumud Flotilla set sail for a third time on Thursday from southern Turkey, after earlier attempts to deliver aid to Gaza were intercepted by Israel in international waters.

The flotilla had previously departed from Spain on April 12, but Israeli forces intercepted vessels in the group, taking more than 100 pro-Palestinian activists to Crete and detaining two others in Israel.

Israeli nationalists swept through the narrow streets of Jerusalem's Old City on Thursday, chanting "Death to Arabs" and "May your villages burn" during the annual Jerusalem Day march, while many Palestinian residents remained barricaded indoors.

Every year, tens of thousands of Israelis -- many of them teenagers and young adults -- parade through Jerusalem to celebrate what Israeli authorities call the "reunification" of Jerusalem following Israel's capture and annexation of east Jerusalem in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war.

By Mohammad Yunus Yawar

KABUL, May 14 (Reuters) - Afghanistan's Taliban government has detained at least three journalists on unspecified charges, the United Nations mission there said on Thursday in a statement that called for the protection of reporters.

The three were the head of the Kabul-based Paigard News Agency, and two staff from Afghanistan's first 24-hour news channel, TOLOnews, media and rights groups said.

LONDON, May 14 (Reuters) - King Charles was greeted by cheering crowds on Thursday when he visited an area of London which has suffered a spate of antisemitic attacks in recent weeks, in a show of support for Britain's fearful Jewish communities.

The monarch met two victims of a recent stabbing attack when he made the unannounced visit to Golders Green, which is home to a sizeable Jewish population and has borne the brunt of the recent antisemitic incidents across the British capital.

By Steven Scheer

JERUSALEM, May 14 (Reuters) - Israel plans to sue The New York Times and one of its journalists for defamation over an article that said Israeli soldiers, prison guards and settlers had used widespread sexual violence against Palestinian prisoners.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Thursday he had instructed his legal advisers "to consider the harshest legal action" against the newspaper and Nicholas Kristof, a veteran journalist who reported the story from the occupied West Bank.

ADEN/AMMAN, May 14 (Reuters) - The internationally recognised Yemeni government and the Iran-aligned Houthi group will exchange more than 1,600 prisoners, the office of the U.N. special envoy for Yemen said on Thursday, marking the largest release of detainees since the outbreak of the war in Yemen.

The conflict erupted after the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa in 2014, prompting a Saudi-led military intervention in support of the government the following year.

By Andrea Shalal

WASHINGTON, May 14 (Reuters) - Iraqi officials have approached the International Monetary Fund about securing financial assistance as a result of the conflict in the Middle East, a source close to the IMF said on Thursday.

Initial conversations took place last month during the spring meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington, and discussions are ongoing about how much funding Iraq would need and how any loan would be structured, the source said.

DUBAI, May 14 (Reuters) - Iran's foreign minister accused the United Arab Emirates of direct involvement in military operations against his country during a BRICS meeting in New Delhi on Thursday, Iranian state media reported.

The spat comes a day after the UAE denied a statement by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that he visited the Gulf country during the Iran war, to which Araqchi already reacted by saying that "those colluding with Israel to sow division will be held to account."