NEW DELHI, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Indian airlines said Tuesday that they were resuming limited commercial services to the Middle East in a bid to collect thousands of passengers stranded by war. Millions of South Asian citizens live and work across the Middle East. IndiGo said it would operate four return flights to Jeddah in Saudi Arabia as part of efforts to "progressively normalise" operations between the countries. But services to and from Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates remain suspended, the airlines said in a statement. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has spoken to multiple Middle East leaders, including the leaders of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Jordan, in which he thanked them for "taking care of the Indian community", in posts on social media.

SYDNEY, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Myong Yu Jong bagged a first-half hat-trick as three-time champions North Korea marked their first Women's Asian Cup game since 2010 with a slick 3-0 win over Uzbekistan on Tuesday. The second half was again played almost exclusively in the Uzbek half, but they at least limited the damage with some solid defence keeping the scoreline in check. One of Asia's most successful women's sides, North Korea are looking to replicate their titles from 2001, 2003 and 2008. Ranked nine in the world, they are in Australia on the back of remarkable success with the U20 and U17 women's national teams. They defended their U17 World Cup title in Morocco last year, having also triumphed at the U20 World Cup in Colombia in 2024.

JERUSALEM, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The Israeli military issued new evacuation orders for dozens of locations in Lebanon on Tuesday, including warning residents in two southern Beirut neighbourhoods to stay away from several buildings ahead of an imminent operation. Most of the locations were across the south of Lebanon, which Israel regularly targets with the aim of hitting Hezbollah infrastructure. He told the residents of southern Beirut neighbourhoods Ghobeiry and Haret Hreik in another evacuation warning to avoid two buildings. In a later warning, he told "those in the southern suburbs of Beirut, especially in the Hadath neighbourhood" to avoid a third building. Israel bombarded Beirut's southern suburbs and dozens of villages in south Lebanon on Monday in response.

DOHA, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Qatar's military intercepted two ballistic missiles early Tuesday morning, the country's defence ministry said in a statement, after AFP reporters heard loud explosions across Doha. Qatar was able to "intercept and neutralise two ballistic missiles that targeted several areas within the country," the ministry said in a statement adding the "threat was dealt with immediately upon detection".

WASHINGTON, United States, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - US President Donald Trump said Monday that he would attend this year's White House Correspondents' dinner for the first time as president. It is a major turnaround for a leader who regularly brands the news media "fake news" and whose administration has moved to curb press access. The dinner is to take place on April 26. Trump's administration has taken a number of measures against the media, selectively restricting access for news outlets that have fallen foul of his officials. In a break with precedent, the White House now chooses which reporters are in the press "pool" that has rotating access to the president.

ZAPOPAN, Mexico, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The notorious Mexican drug lord Nemesio Oseguera was laid to rest in a simple grave Monday in a ceremony that featured trucks overflowing with flowers, traditional music and dozens of masked soldiers in armored vehicles. On Saturday, federal prosecutors handed Oseguera's body over to his family, which took it from Mexico City to Guadalajara for burial in the suburb of Zapopan. -Flowers and a band-Starting Sunday the funeral home holding his body was surrounded by dozens of soldiers, national guardsmen, and police who interrogated anyone who came close. The security forces dissuaded curious onlookers but did not halt an endless stream of floral bouquets sent to pay tribute to Oseguera. Upon learning of their leader's death, cartel gunmen retaliated across Mexico, blocking highways, burning down businesses, and opening fire on security forces.

LA PAZ, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Bolivian law enforcement raided more than 20 residences on Monday to track down banknotes stolen after a military cargo plane carrying them crashed near the capital La Paz, killing 24 people, officials said. The C-130 Hercules transport plane crashed after landing at El Alto International Airport on Friday, destroying multiple cars and damaging trucks. The aircraft was carrying 17 million banknotes totaling 50 million Bolivianos ($7.2 million) to be delivered to the country's central bank, according to the Ministry of Economy. The Central Bank of Bolivia for its part has said the banknotes will be cancelled and deemed unacceptable by banks and financial institutions. Jose Gabriel Espinoza, Bolivia's Economy Minister, told the Unitel broadcaster that he estimates "close to 30 percent" of the banknotes from the incident were stolen.

US State Department urges Americans to 'depart now' from much of Middle EastWASHINGTON, United States, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The United States on Monday urged Americans to leave all of the Middle East from Egypt eastward due to safety concerns after the United States and Israel attacked Iran. The State Department "urges Americans to DEPART NOW from the countries below using available commercial transportation, due to serious safety risks," Mora Namdar, the assistant secretary of state for consular affairs, wrote on X, listing 14 countries. The United States for now is asking Americans to leave commercially, although flights have been severely disrupted in much of the region, and has not organized its own evacuations. But Iran has been firing drones and missiles at these countries in retaliation to their hosting of US troops. The United States also urged Americans to leave Israel and the Palestinian territories as well as Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, all of which have been affected by the war.

TEHRAN, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Iran's state broadcaster reported two explosions near its Tehran headquarters on Tuesday, but said it was continuing to broadcast amid the ongoing Israeli-US strike campaign. "Smoke from two explosions around IRIB's premises / No disruption to IRIB's operations," the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting wrote on Telegram. The Israeli army claimed overnight Monday to Tuesday that it had "struck and dismantled" the headquarters of the IRIB in the Evin district of northern Tehran, which it described as a "communications centre of the Iranian terrorist regime." It had previously urged residents of the district "to evacuate immediately." US President Donald Trump warned Monday that his attack on Iran could extend longer than a month, as the war spread with Israel bombarding Lebanon and Tehran targeting oil facilities in Gulf countries.

BEIRUT, Lebanon, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - An Israeli strike hit the south Beirut office of Al-Manar TV, which is affiliated with Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, the broadcaster said on Tuesday. Israel "targets the Al-Manar Channel building in the Haret Hreik area," Al-Manar wrote on Telegram, referring to a part of south Beirut.

TOKYO, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Oil prices stabilised in early Asian trade on Tuesday but stocks moved lower, as investors eyed the situation in the Middle East. West Texas Intermediate oil was unchanged at $71.23 per barrel following a 6.3 percent rise on Monday after US and Israeli military strikes on Iran began over the weekend. Brent crude, having gained 7.3 percent on Monday -- after jumping as much as 13 percent early in the session -- was not yet being traded. Japan's Nikkei was down 0.84 percent, having fallen 1.4 percent on Monday. South Korea's Kospi, closed the day earlier due to a public holiday, was down 1.6 percent.

The conflict started by US and Israeli strikes on Iran over the weekend, which sparked retaliatory Iranian attacks across the region, showed no sign of abating as it entered its fourth day. "A short while ago, the IDF identified missiles launched from Iran toward the territory of the State of Israel. Attacks by two drones hit the US embassy in the Saudi Arabian capital and sparked a fire, a Saudi defence ministry spokesman said. - US warns citizens in Middle East to 'depart now' -The US State Department urged Americans to leave much of the Middle East, including Egypt and Gulf states, due to the US-Israeli war on Iran. "We will also attack oil pipelines and will not allow a single drop of oil to leave the region.

Attack by two drones on US embassy in Saudi capital sparks 'limited' fireRIYADH, Saudi Arabia, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - An attack by two drones early Tuesday on the US embassy in Riyadh sparked a small fire, a Saudi defence ministry spokesman said in a statement, while Iran pressed on with retaliatory strikes across the Gulf. "The US Embassy in Riyadh was attacked by two drones, according to initial assessments. Two witnesses told AFP they saw fire engines around the embassy. A source close to the Saudi army told AFP, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive issue, that Saudi air defence intercepted four drones targeting Riyadh's diplomatic quarter in the attack. In Qatar, military intercepted two ballistic missiles early Tuesday morning, the country's defence ministry said in a statement.

PARIS, France, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - The 2026 Formula One season gets underway in Melbourne on March 8 with McLaren's Lando Norris looking to retain his world championship title while Max Verstappen aims to rip it back off him. Cadillac will not be making their own power units until 2029 so will be relying on Ferrari until then. "That's probably the most that you could ever ask for from a new team, unless there's some complete miracle." Audi had a good pre-season workout and may surprise a few people although team principal Jonathan Wheatley is making no promises. If I'm entirely ready, I don't know," he told F1 TV.

KABUL, March 3, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - AFP journalists in Kabul heard multiple explosions and gunfire on Tuesday, as Afghan and Pakistani troops keep up their border battles. The blasts in the Afghan capital were heard alongside anti-aircraft weapons and gunfire from across the city, and came as the Afghan defence ministry said "the fighting is still ongoing" against Pakistani forces. An AFP journalist in Jalalabad city, between Kabul and the frontier, reported hearing explosions and various weapons being fired. At least 39 civilians have been killed since Thursday, the Afghan government said, a toll which Pakistan has not commented on. The border fighting has hit multiple Afghan provinces.