By Andrew Mills

DOHA (Reuters) - An elderly British couple detained by the Taliban in Afghanistan in February were released and flying to Doha on Friday after Qatari mediation, an official with knowledge of the matter told Reuters.

Barbie and Peter Reynolds' family had been concerned for their health and their ability to survive Taliban custody.

An elderly British couple detained in Afghanistan for almost eight months arrived in Qatar after their release by Taliban authorities on Friday amid concerns for their health, an AFP journalist reported.

Taliban officials have declined to say why they arrested Peter Reynolds, 80, and his wife Barbie, 76, in February as they were returning to their home.

"We've been treated very well. We're looking forward to seeing our children," said Barbie, in a red headscarf, standing next to her bearded husband, near a plane on the tarmac at Kabul airport.

The Israeli military warned on Friday it would operate with "unprecedented force" in Gaza City, telling residents to flee as it presses its ground offensive on the territory's largest urban centre.

Israel has pummelled Gaza City with air strikes and tank fire in its bid to seize it, nearly two years into the war that has devastated the Palestinian territory and left Gaza City gripped by a UN-declared famine.

The assault comes ahead of a planned move by several Western governments, including Britain and France, to recognise a Palestinian state at a UN summit next week.

By Saeed Shah and Maha El Dahan

ISLAMABAD/DUBAI - With many Arab nations feeling a rising threat from Israel, the Saudi-Pakistan defense pact announced this week brings Pakistan - and its nuclear umbrella - into the region's security equation.

The "Strategic Mutual Defense Agreement" signed between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia on Wednesday effectively marries Riyadh's money with Pakistan's giant nuclear-armed military, analysts said.

MADRID (Reuters) - Spanish Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo said on Friday his government supported the efforts made by the European Commission to monetize underlying frozen Russian assets held in the EU to help finance the Ukrainian government.

"From Spain, we've been advocating for increasing as much as possible the financing for Ukraine..." Cuerpo said in an interview with Bloomberg TV. "We are advocating to actually look at creative ways to also use those immobilized assets."

By Maha El Dahan and Muayad Hameed

DUBAI/BAGHDAD (Reuters) - Iraq's attempt to ease its chronic power shortage with gas from Turkmenistan routed through neighbouring Iran has failed under U.S. pressure, leaving Baghdad scrambling for alternatives to keep the lights on.

Oil-rich Iraq has struggled to provide its citizens with power since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein, forcing many to rely on expensive private generators, causing economic hardship and sparking social unrest.

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - MI6 chief Richard Moore said on Friday that he sees "no evidence" that Russian President Vladimir Putin has any interest in a negotiated peace short of Ukrainiancapitulation.

In a speech in Istanbul to announce plans to use the dark web to recruit informants and receive secret information from agents in Russia and worldwide, Moore also said Putin has "bitten off more than he can chew" and underestimated Ukrainiansinthe war.

(Reporting by Jonathan Spicer, Writing by Huseyin Hayatsever, Editing by Philippa Fletcher)

LONDON (Reuters) -The United States seeks to regain control of Bagram air base in Afghanistan, President Donald Trump said on Thursday during a press conference with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, but an Afghan official dismissed the need for any U.S. presence.

The historic Soviet-built airstrip was the main base for American forces in the mountainous South Asian nation following the attacks of September 11, 2001, until their 2021 withdrawal led to a takeover by the Islamist Taliban movement.

By Kirsty Needham

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia's Prime Minister Anthony Albanese departs for the U.S. this week, raising expectations of a first meeting with President Donald Trump, where the AUKUS defence partnership and China are likely to dominate talks between the security allies.

According to his office, Albanese departs on Saturday for the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where the prime minister said he will attend a reception hosted by Trump on Tuesday.

More than 140 world leaders will descend on New York next week for the annual United Nations General Assembly summit, which will be dominated this year by the future of the Palestinians and Gaza.

One world leader who will miss the gathering is Mahmud Abbas, the Palestinian president who Washington denied a visa to attend, along with his officials.