US-Israel rift emerges after strikes on Iranian fuel depotsCiting a US official, an Israeli official and a source familiar with the matter, Axios said the scale of the operation sparked "the first significant disagreement between the allies since the war began eight days ago". The dispute stems from US concerns that targeting infrastructure serving Iranian civilians could backfire strategically, potentially rallying Iranian society around the government while also pushing global oil prices higher.
https://www.newarab.com/news/us-israel-rift-emerges-after-strikes-iranian-fuel-depotsIsrael strikes Hezbollah financial institutions as Lebanon calls for talksLebanon’s state-run National News Agency (NNA) reported strikes on Monday on the Al-Qard al-Hasan building in the Bir al-Abed area, in the southern neighbourhood of Haret Hreik, and on another branch along the road to Beirut’s international airport.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/3/9/israel-strikes-hezbollah-financial-institutions-as-lebanon-calls-for-talkshttps://archive.ph/E6xnn Iran war fuel crisis forces Pakistan to close schools, take austerity measures Government officials who earn more than 300,000 Pakistani rupees ($1,074) a month will have two paydays deducted, and the use of government vehicles will be reduced by 60 percent for the next two months. Fuel allowances for those vehicles will be cut in half. The federal cabinet will not be paid a salary for the next two months, and members of parliament will see a 25 percent reduction in their wages.
https://www.middleeasteye.net/news/iran-war-fuel-crisis-forces-pakistan-closes-schools-austerity-measuresAustralia to send aircraft and air-to-air missiles to Gulf to ‘protect and defend’ civilians, PM says As the Iran war grows, the prime minister announced the assistance on Tuesday morning after talks with the UAE’s president, Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, last week and US president Donald Trump overnight. Iran has attacked a dozen countries since the start of US and Israeli bombings and the death of the country’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/10/australia-to-send-aircraft-and-air-to-air-missiles-to-gulf-to-protect-and-defend-civilians-pm-saysTradesmen to hand condoms to MPs in call for paternity leave for self-employedThe contraceptives will be branded with: “This lasts longer than our paternity leave” to draw attention to their cause. Currently, self-employed dads are not entitled to any paternity leave or pay. For those employed, statutory paternity pay is either £187.18 a week or 90 per cent of their average weekly earnings, whichever is lower, for a total of two weeks’ leave.
https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/tradesmen-hand-condoms-mps-call-paternity-leave-self-employed‘Bitter result’ for Friedrich Merz as Greens win in German car heartlandThe German chancellor’s conservative CDU had enjoyed a double-digit lead in the south-western car production region of Baden-Württemberg just weeks ago but the Greens and their charismatic candidate Cem Özdemir eked out a half-point-margin win in Sunday’s poll with 30.2%.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/09/bitter-result-friedrich-merz-greens-baden-wurttemberg-cem-ozdemirThe controversial death toll in Ukraine, the deadliest European war in eight decadesAlthough both governments try to conceal their losses in the armed conflict that has ravaged Ukraine and barely report on them, these figures are approaching two million (1.2 million for Moscow and between 500,000 and 600,000 for Kyiv), according to a report released a month ago by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) in Washington. Civilian deaths in Ukraine exceed 15,100, according to the U.N. tally.
https://english.elpais.com/international/2026-03-08/the-controversial-death-toll-in-ukraine-the-deadliest-european-war-in-eight-decades.htmlhttps://archive.ph/oF2AUTwo right-wing politicians lead in Peru's presidential race, but most are undecided, poll saysKeiko Fujimori and Rafael Lopez Aliaga are the only candidates out of a record roster of 36 presidential hopefuls polling in the double digits. Fujimori polled at 10.7% versus her rival's 10%, according to a Datum Internacional poll released Sunday night on local TV, though roughly two-fifths of those polled either declined to choose a candidate or do not plan on voting in the first place.
https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/two-right-wing-politicians-lead-perus-presidential-race-most-are-undecided-poll-2026-03-09/Sheinbaum tells Trump: stop illegal arms trade from the US to MexicoSheinbaum noted that 75% of guns used by cartels come from the United States. Mexico has repeatedly called on the US government to halt arms trafficking and in 2021 sued several American gunmakers, accusing them of “negligent marketing, distribution and sales”, though the suit was tossed out by the US supreme court last year.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/mar/09/mexican-cartels-guns-come-from-us-sheinbaum-trumpColombians vote for new Congress and presidential candidatesWith 68.9% of the votes counted, the main backer of both Petro and Cepeda, the leftist Historic Pact party, received 22.8% of the Senate votes. This is a major win compared to the 17% of the votes the party received in 2022. The far-right Democratic Center party, which led the opposition to Petro in the past four years, also advanced significantly.
https://colombiareports.com/moderates-lose-big-in-colombias-congressional-elections/