Gunman planned to target top Trump officials: attorney general

Mali's Tuareg rebels told AFP Wednesday the country's ruling junta will fall and that they intend to conquer the north, just days after unprecedented large-scale attacks targeting the nation's military government.

Over the weekend jihadists and the Tuareg separatists launched the largest assault on the country in nearly 15 years, attacking the military junta and its Russian paramilitary backers.

Acknowledging the situation was "of extreme gravity", junta chief Assimi Goita, who had not been seen for three days, said in a speech on TV late Tuesday that the situation was "under control".

But a spokesman for the Tuareg separatist coalition Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) told AFP during a visit to Paris on Wednesday that "the regime will fall, sooner or later". 

The clashes have pitted the army not just against the FLA but also its allies within the Al-Qaeda-linked jihadist Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM).

Their coordinated dawn offensive on Saturday against strategic junta positions, including areas around the capital, Bamako, killed at least 23 people, with the toll expected to rise.

The two days of fierce fighting also killed Defence Minister Sadio Camara -- seen as the mastermind behind the junta's pivot to Russia. His funeral is planned for Thursday.

The separatists and jihadists were able to capture the key northern town of Kidal and also targeted Gao in the mostly desert north along with Mopti and Sevare in the centre.

Gao is the army's second-largest military stronghold after Kati, a garrison town near Bamako which is home to several senior junta officials and was targeted in the weekend attacks.

FLA spokesman Mohamed Elmaouloud Ramadane told AFP on Wednesday that the rebels intend to take control of Gao, Timbuktu and Menaka following their success in Kidal.

In the Gao region, the Malian army has already abandoned some of its positions, local sources told AFP.

- Russian withdrawal -

Since 2012, the west African nation has faced a profound security crisis fuelled in particular by violence from groups affiliated with Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, as well as local criminal gangs and pro-independence groups.

The latest assaults raise questions about the junta's ability to tackle the security crisis, despite its insistence that its strategy, foreign partnerships and increased military efforts have stemmed the jihadist threat.

Mali's junta government, like its military counterparts in neighbouring Niger and Burkina Faso, have severed ties with former colonial ruler France and several Western countries, moving closer politically and militarily to Russia.

Russia's mercenary Wagner Group, which had been fighting with Malian forces against jihadists since 2021, ended their involvement in June 2025. It has since become the Africa Corps, an organisation under the direct control of the Russian defence ministry.

Although JNIM and FLA have different goals, according to experts, they are united against a common enemy -- the military junta that has ruled since 2020 and the Russian paramilitary backers.

FLA spokesman Ramadane additionally told AFP Wednesday that his group's "objective is for Russia to withdraw permanently from Azawad and beyond, from all of Mali".

The FLA is made up of mainly Tuareg groups who want independence for Azawad, a territory in northern Mali.

"We have no particular problem with Russia, nor with any other country. Our problem is with the regime that governs Bamako", Ramadane said.

- Fairweather friends -

A historically nomadic people, Tuaregs, who are spread across Mali, Niger, Algeria, Libya and Burkina Faso, have waged an armed struggle for decades against marginalisation, with action centred in particular around the key city of Kidal.

The most recent attacks are reminiscent of a crisis that rocked Mali in 2012, when Tuareg rebels joined forces with jihadists to capture strategic hubs in the vast, remote north.

That offensive was repelled by forces from France, which has since left the Sahel country. 

The alliance between the jihadists and Tuareg rebels eventually unravelled when they turned on each other and the jihadists drove the Tuareg separatists out.

The latest attacks are the result of a new alliance forged a year ago.

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(The Center Square) – The U.S. Supreme Court is hearing arguments in two cases to determine whether orders ending temporary protected status for Haiti and Syria are constitutional. 

Justices on the court are hearing Trump v. Miot and Mullin v. Doe. The two cases challenge an order from President Donald Trump that sought to terminate the special immigration status for Haitian and Syrian immigrants living in the United States. 

Temporary protected status is granted to immigrants who are fleeing war or natural disasters in their home countries. Haitian and Syrian nationals challenged the Trump administration's order. 

Kristi Noem, former Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, terminated the protected immigration status indiscriminately, a lower court judge said. 

The U.S. Supreme Court has previously allowed the Trump administration to end temporary protected status for immigrants from Venezuela.  

Carrie Severino, president of the Judicial Crisis Network, said she expects justices on the court to reach the same conclusion as they did for Venezuelan immigrants. Justices on the court are expected to decide if lower court judges have the authority to stop the Trump administration from stripping temporary status from the Haitian and Syrian immigrants. 

"Congress made clear in the Immigration and Nationality Act that for Temporary Protected Status, '[t]here is no judicial review of any determination' regarding 'the designation, or termination or extension of a designation, of a foreign state,'" Severino said. 

Haiti was first granted temporary protected status in 2010, after an earthquake severely damaged the country’s infrastructure. In 2024, the Biden administration extended temporary protected status for Haiti, based on general concerns about security and humanitarian concerns in the country.

Lawyers for the Haitian immigrants argued that the country is not safe for migrants to return. They also argued that the policy could cause damage to public safety in the United States.

“Stripping TPS holders of their status may discourage them from reporting crimes or seeking medical care due to fear of detention or deportation,” the lawyers wrote.

Syria was first designated temporary protected status in 2012, after the outbreak of the Syrian Civil War. In 2024, the Biden administration extended the cutoff date for Syrian migrants and gave amnesty to anyone who arrived in the U.S. since 2012. About 6,100 Syrian migrants live in the United States under temporary protected status.

Lawyers for the Trump administration cited ongoing diplomatic negotiations between the U.S. and Syria following the end of the civil war in 2024.

“Thwarting the Secretary’s determination of TPS thus undercuts the Secretary’s judgment as to how best to protect the public and how best to further the government’s foreign-policy goals,” lawyers for the Trump administration wrote.

Justices are hearing arguments at the court and are expected to issue a decision in both cases by July, the end of the court's term.

(The Center Square) - Democrat and Republican candidates running for attorney general in Georgia sparred over various priorities for running the state’s largest law firm in a debate hosted by the Atlanta Press Club.

Republican Candidates

State Sens. Bill Cowsert and Brian Strickland both said they would uphold the priorities of President Donald Trump when leading the state’s legal branch. Strickland said he would target cities in Georgia attempting to avoid the Trump administration’s immigration policies.

“When there is a detainer hold on someone that has been arrested, who has been in our country illegally, they should be deported at that time,” Strickland said.

In May 2025, the Department of Justice published a list of sanctuary cities and jurisdictions where elected officials did not cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. Atlanta and Athens, Georgia, were on the list but later removed.

The Federation for American Immigration Reform said Atlanta has operated as a sanctuary city since 2017. In 2018, then-Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance-Bottoms stated that local police should not honor ICE detainers.

Georgia state law has prohibited sanctuary city policies since 2009.

The candidates also debated the investigation of Fani Willis, a Georgia prosecutor who indicted Trump for election interference in 2020. Willis faced intense scrutiny after allegations that she misused funds and engaged in a romantic relationship with special prosecutor Nathan Wade.

“There was no question she was unethical, Cowsert said. “She was using that office for personal gain, for profit and for political persecution rather than proper purposes of criminal prosecution.”

Cowsert also called on the attorney general’s office to prosecute election fraud. He introduced a resolution during the 2026 General Assembly session that would create a statewide grand jury to prosecute election fraud. The bill did not pass.

Cowsert criticized the Fulton County District Attorney's Office for its handling of election fraud cases.

“Our citizens need to know that their vote counts and that it’s a fair election and there’s no interference or fraud,” Cowsert said.

The candidates also feuded over past law experience and campaign endorsements. Strickland attended Florida Coastal School of Law, which closed in 2021, due to accreditation and funding issues.

Cowsert said the school’s closure “bothered” him and asserted that Strickland did not have the experience necessary to lead the attorney general’s office.

“I have tried over 500 trials throughout the state of Georgia,” Cowsert said. “There’s nobody that can match the experience, the understanding of the litigation process and the law.”

Strickland criticized Cowsert over a lack of campaign endorsements from Georgia sheriffs or district attorneys. He also appeared to criticize Cowsert as the longest-serving Republican state senator in Georgia.

“Every single sheriff that has endorsed in this race, every single elected prosecutor, has endorsed me,” Strickland said. “They know how important this race is. Politicians talk big, but they don’t have the backs of our law enforcement officials when they get in office.”

Democrat Candidates

Rep. Tanya Miller and former Rep. Robert Trammell debated over policies while seeking the Democratic nomination for Georgia’s attorney general post. The two democrats slammed the Trump administration and said they would seek to prosecute the president over various issues, including election interference.

“We’re going to fight the corporations that are keeping prices high by cheating and ripping off Georgia families and we’re going to hold Trump’s enablers accountable in court,” Miller said.

Trammell slammed Georgia’s Living Infants Fairness and Equality Act, often referred to as the “heartbeat law,” which bans abortions once fetal heart activity is detected.

“When I’m attorney general, our office will not prosecute women and we will not prosecute doctors under that law,” Trammell said.

Trammell also called on the office of the attorney general to be more involved in the process of giving guidance on the types of laws coming out of the state’s general assembly.

Miller accused corporate real estate investors in Atlanta of price fixing to keep prices artificially high. She said she would target these investors if elected as attorney general.

“We have absolutely seen no action on behalf of Republicans to protect renters in that specific regard,” Miller said. “Under my administration as attorney general, we will absolutely protect people, especially in their time of need.”

Miller and Trammell also slammed Attorney General Chris Carr for his efforts to indict 61 people on racketeering charges after a 2023 protest at the Atlanta Public Safety Training Center.

In December, a judge dismissed part of the case and said Carr did not have the authority to indict people with those specific charges. The judge said only local district attorneys could bring such charges.

However, Carr brought new indictments against three people on charges of money laundering and setting construction equipment on fire.

Miller said she would review every indictment Carr brought against individuals and evaluate it with a determination of “proof beyond a reasonable doubt.”

“When you indict people with a crime, you put their lives on the line,” Miller said. “You need to know what you're doing. You need to understand the rules, and you need to make sure that the evidence suits every individual and every charge that you have levied.”

Trammell also said he would evaluate the charges brought against those individuals and would most likely dismiss them. He said he has no plans to extensively evaluate Carr’s actions as attorney general.

“We're not going to bring the broom to try to clean that up for the present attorney general,” Trammell said. “We're going to evaluate them and in most cases, a lot of those cases are going to be dismissed.”

Early voting for the May 19 primary runs through May 15.  

German inflation jumped to its highest level in over two years in April as the Middle East war triggered a surge in energy costs, official data showed Wednesday.

Consumer prices in Europe's biggest economy rose 2.9 percent compared with the same month a year earlier, according to preliminary data from the federal statistics agency Destatis. 

It was the highest inflation recorded in Germany since January 2024.

The figure was up from 2.7 percent in March and in line with a forecast from analysts surveyed by financial data firm FactSet.

Energy prices jumped over 10 percent in April from a year earlier, their biggest increase for over three years, although services inflation eased slightly, Destatis said.

The inflation rate was also 2.9 percent under the harmonised metric favoured by the European Central Bank.

The ECB is due to hold a meeting Thursday and, although it is not expected to lift interest rates this time, investors will be looking for hints that hikes could be in the cards for future meetings.

Dirk Schumacher, chief economist at German public lender KfW, said the decline in services inflation had stopped costs from surging too strongly in April.

Prices would however continue to rise in coming months as the energy shock accelerates, he said, while predicting that "the inflation rate will remain well below the peaks seen in 2022".

The energy shock triggered by Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 helped push eurozone inflation to a record high of 10.6 percent in October of that year.

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Swiss banking giant UBS on Wednesday reported that net profit rose a better-than-expected 80 percent to $3 billion in the first quarter, lifted by its investment banking arm.

Revenue climbed 13 percent from the same period last year to $14.2 billion despite "a volatile and unpredictable geopolitical and market environment", the bank said in a statement.

Analysts surveyed by the Swiss AWP news agency had forecast on average a profit of $2.4 billion and revenue of $13.4 billion.

"In an increasingly complex environment, we have delivered excellent 1st quarter results," chief executive Sergio Ermotti said during a call with analysts.

The bank said in the statement that investment banking revenue rose 27 percent from the previous year.

Shares in the company jumped 4.7 percent in afternoon trading while the main Swiss stock index shed 0.5 percent.

In 2023, UBS agreed to acquire its former competitor Credit Suisse under pressure from the Swiss authorities to prevent its collapse.

Given UBS's massive size following the merger, Swiss authorities have sought to strengthen banking regulations to ensure its resilience in the event of macroeconomic or financial market shocks.

UBS says the government's proposals are too onerous.

"On the topic of Swiss capital requirements, we will continue to engage constructively and contribute to fact-based deliberations," Ermotti said.

Major American investment banks such as Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs have also posted better-than-expected results in the first quarter, driven by their equity brokerage and mergers and acquisitions activities.

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King Charles III made gentle fun of the shared history between Britain and the United States on Tuesday as he continued his high-stakes visit to patch up transatlantic ties.

The 77-year-old British monarch addressed Congress and spoke at a state dinner hosted by US President Donald Trump at the White House -- his humor a contrast to the brash American leader and reminiscent of the dry wit of his mother, the late queen Elizabeth II.

Here are his top quips:

- Bringing down the house -

"I cannot help noticing the readjustments to the East Wing, Mr. President, following your visit to Windsor Castle last year," Charles said at the state dinner.  

"I am sorry to say that we British, of course, made our own small attempt at real-estate redevelopment of the White House in 1814," he added, to much laughter from the room.

British troops set fire to the White House and other public buildings in August 1814 as part of the Burning of Washington.

- Playing the Wilde card -

Speaking to Congress, Charles broke the ice with a quote from Irish author, poet and playwright Oscar Wilde to make a point about the "special relationship" between the United States and Britain.

"Our destinies as nations have been interlinked. As Oscar Wilde said, 'We have really everything in common with America nowadays except, of course, language!'"

- Life of the party -

Just before his dinner toast, Charles quoted a Shakespearean plea for peace -- but ended with a winking reference.

"Thank you, Mr. President and Mrs. Trump, for your splendid dinner this evening, which may I say is a very considerable improvement on the Boston Tea Party," he said, referring to the 1773 act of defiance where protesters dumped tea into Boston Harbor.

- Two Georges -

Speaking to Congress, Charles referred to the potent symbolism of the American capital city.

"This is a city which symbolizes a period in our shared history, or what Charles Dickens might have called A Tale of Two Georges: the first president, George Washington, and my five times great-grandfather, King George III," he said.

"King George, as you know, never set foot in America. And please rest assured, ladies and gentlemen, I am not here as part of some cunning rearguard action."

- We call it football -

Millions of fans are set to visit the United States, Canada and Mexico in June for the first-ever World Cup shared by three nations.

Charles, as Head of the Commonwealth, noted at the state dinner that, "In just a few weeks, the United States and Canada will be among those to welcome the world as hosts of the FIFA World Cup. So in one sense, Mr. President, as heads of state, we are joint hosts."

"We call this game, by the way, football," he added.

- Speaking French -

At the dinner, Charles referenced previous comments by Trump aimed at European allies he accuses of freeloading on defense since World War II.

"You recently commented, Mr. President, that if it were not for the United States, European countries would be speaking German," the British monarch said. 

"Dare I say that, if it wasn't for us, you'd be speaking French."

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France has released a detailed "roadmap" to wean the country from planet-heating oil, gas and coal by 2050, an important signal at a moment when nations are reassessing their reliance on fossil fuels.

The plan, presented at a global climate conference, does not unveil any new pledges but brings existing climate and energy policies and targets under one umbrella with an explicit goal.

Analysts say no other country has published such a clear and comprehensive plan. 

Here are details of the 14-page roadmap that Europe's second biggest economy presented Tuesday at the first-ever talks on how to transition away from fossil fuels in Santa Marta, Colombia:

- Fossil fuel consumption -

Fossil fuels accounted for less than 60 percent of France's final energy consumption in 2023, compared to 65 percent in 2011.

Final consumption refers to energy consumed by end-users such as households, industry and agriculture, excluding energy used in power generation and distribution.

The French roadmap sets a goal of reducing the share of fossil fuels in final energy consumption to 40 percent by 2030 and 30 percent in 2035.

The aim is to reach carbon neutrality by 2050.

- Phaseout dates -

The country plans to close its last two coal-fired power plants by 2027.

It seeks to transition away from oil by 2045 through a "large-scale electrification" of transport.

France set a 2050 target date to ditch fossil gas by developing alternative heating methods, including heat pumps, or improving energy efficiency in buildings.

- Transport -

France wants two out of three new cars to be electric by 2030.

The plan also calls for deploying charging stations and rolling out electric buses and large trucks.

French manufacturers are expected to produce 400,000 electric vehicles by 2027 and one million by 2030. 

The aim is to ensure that "reduced dependence on oil does not translate into new dependence on imported vehicles", the document says.

- Buildings -

France is banning the installation of gas boilers in new buildings by the end of this year.

It aims to install one million heat pumps a year by 2030.

The government wants to reduce oil-fired boilers in residential buildings by 60 percent and in non-residential buildings by 85 percent by 2030.

The goal is to phase out fossil oil for heating by 2035.

- Electricity -

Two-thirds of France's electricity came from nuclear plants in 2025 while solar, wind and hydropower accounted for around a quarter last year, according to data from electricity system operator RTE.

France plans to build next-generation EPR2 nuclear reactors and extend the lifespan of its existing fleet of reactors.

It also wants to add 1.3 gigawatts of onshore wind power each year and increase installed solar capacity threefold by 2035.

- Reactions -

NGOs welcomed France's announcement but also pushed the country to go further.

"After two years of backsliding in its public policies on the ecological transition, and with emissions falling at a rate three times slower than its own targets since 2024, France has the merit of setting dates to phase out fossil fuels," Anne Bringault, programmes director at the Climate Action Network, told AFP.

Lorelei Limousin, climate and fossil energy campaigner at Greenpeace France, said: "This is a first step, but it remains largely insufficient given the climate emergency."

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Bangladesh has recorded 227 child deaths since March in one of its worst outbreaks of measles in decades, with the number of suspected cases reaching nearly 35,000, government data showed Wednesday.

One of the hardest hit areas is Kurukpata in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, home to Indigenous communities, which border war-torn Myanmar.

Children in these rural areas are often left out of vaccination coverage, and some families avoid vaccination programmes due to fear.

"The most affected area of Chittagong Hill tracts is Kurukpata, one of the remotest parts of Bangladesh," district health chief Sheikh Fazle Rabbi told AFP, saying more than 80 children had been treated for measles.

Local Kurukpata council head Kratpung Mro said the cases were unusually high.

"Communication from Kurukpata is difficult," he said. "People, mostly farmers, are among the poorest and cannot afford even boat or motorcycle fares to reach the hospital."

Kratpung Mro said the government should "launch awareness programmes and bring Indigenous communities under vaccination coverage".

Ngangoi Mro, 30, a farmer, brought his two-year-old son, Rengle Mro, who was suffering from high fever, cough and diarrhoea, to the clinic.

"We walked four kilometres (2.5 miles) and then took a vehicle to the hospital from our village, as my boy became very weak," he told AFP.

Measles is one of the world's most contagious diseases, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), and is spread through coughs and sneezes.

It can affect people of any age but is most common among children, and can cause complications that include brain swelling and severe respiratory problems.

Since March 15, the number of suspected cases nationwide has reached 34,980, mostly among children aged between six months and five years.

Bangladesh health officials, aid by the UN children's agency, WHO and the security forces are working to vaccinate children.

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Finnish lift maker Kone on Wednesday announced the acquisition of its German rival TKE in a huge share-and-cash deal valuing TKE at 29.4 billion euros ($34.4 billion) to create a global giant.

The group formed by the merger will be nearly twice the size of the current Kone group, with more than 100,000 employees in over 100 countries and annual revenue of around 20.5 billion euros, the two companies said in a statement.

TKE, or TK Elevator, split from Germany's Thyssenkrupp to become a standalone company in 2020 and is owned by a consortium including the private equity groups Advent and Cinven.

The elevator market is driven by  urbanisation and a growing service sector, as demand grows in countries with aging populations too weak to use stairs, according to experts. 

The deal announced Wednesday is one of Europe's biggest-ever takeovers involving private equity groups, according to Bloomberg, and the largest corporate acquisition ever carried out in Finland, Finnish media said.

The new group will be based in Finland and led by Kone's current French chief executive Philippe Delorme.

The chairman of Kone's board of directors, Antti Herlin, ranked by Forbes as Finland's richest man, will remain chairman of the new group.

Founded in the early 20th century, Kone has been controlled for about a hundred years by the Herlin family.

"This industry-revitalising transaction brings together two exceptional global businesses with highly complementary geographic footprints and innovation platforms," the joint statement said.

"Kone's presence in Asia is complemented by TKE's footprint in the Americas and TKE opens new geographies for Kone, resulting in a well-balanced global presence."

The German group generates 45 percent of its revenue in the United States.

The consortium that owns TKE will receive five billion euros and 270 million shares in the new Kone, valued at 15.2 billion euros, and will hold 33.8 percent of the new entity, according to the statement.

- 'Accelerate shift'-

The two groups said they expect annual synergies of 700 million euros from the acquisition, which is expected to be concluded by the second quarter of 2027 at the earliest.

The merger will "accelerate our strategic shift to service and modernisation, reinforcing our resilience," Delorme said in the statement.

Services and modernisation will account for about 65 percent of the new group's annual sales.

Investors welcomed the deal, with Kone shares gaining 2.4 percent to 57.66 euros on the Helsinki stock exchange in mid-morning trading.

"The industrial logic of this transaction is very solid. Naturally, this deal still involves risks related to regulatory authorities and integration," analyst Aapeli Pursimo of the Finnish stock market advisory firm Inderes said in a note.

On the European market in particular, overlaps could require the new group to divest activities, he said, while competitors such as Schindler could voice criticism. 

Pursimo meanwhile welcomed "the fact that Kone's current management, led by Philippe Delorme and (chief financial officer) Ilkka Hara, would continue at the helm of the combined company, which will bring continuity to the implementation of the integration."

Philippe Delorme, born in 1971, became chief executive officer of the Finnish group in January 2024 after more than 25 years at French industrial group Schneider Electric.

In 2025, Kone registered sales of 11.2 billion euros, compared to 9.2 billion for the German group.

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The latest developments in the Middle East war:

- Long blockade -

US President Donald Trump has told national security officials to prepare for a long blockade of Iran's ports in order to compel Tehran to give up its nuclear program, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Trump, according to the report, does not believe that Iran is negotiating in good faith and hopes it can be forced to suspend uranium enrichment for 20 years and accept tight restrictions thereafter.

- 'No more Mr. Nice Guy' -

"Iran can't get their act together. They don't know how to sign a nonnuclear deal. They better get smart soon!" Trump posted on his Truth Social platform, alongside an illustration of himself holding an assault rifle, with the caption "NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!" 

- Iran's 21 executions -

Iran has executed at least 21 people and arrested more than 4,000 since the beginning of the Middle East war, the United Nations said, criticising the Islamic republic's "harsh and brutal" treatment of its people. 

Since the US-Israeli strikes sparked the war in late February, "at least nine people have been executed in connection with the January 2026 protests, ten for alleged membership in opposition groups, and two on espionage charges," the UN's rights office said.

- Record TotalEnergies profits -

French fossil fuel giant TotalEnergies said net profit rose 51 percent in the first quarter to $5.8 billion, boosted by higher oil prices linked to the war in the Middle East.

Growth in its oil and gas production in Brazil and Libya allowed the group to offset losses in the Gulf region, which is normally equivalent to 15 percent of its total oil and gas business, the company said in a statement, while also highlighting its "ability to capitalize on rising prices".

- Saudi refinery restarts -

TotalEnergies also said that it had restarted its Satorp refinery in Saudi Arabia in mid-April, after the facility, jointly owned with the kingdom's Aramco, had been shut down following damage sustained in airstrikes during the Middle East war.

"Following the events of April 8, which affected three units at the Satorp site and led to its shutdown as a safety precaution, the undamaged units were able to be restarted, and the refinery has been operating at a capacity of 230,000 b/d (barrels per day) since April 14," the company said.

- US lawmakers to grill Pentagon chief on Iran war -

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth will face tough questions from lawmakers about the Iran war on Wednesday during his first testimony to Congress since the start of the conflict.

Hegseth's appearance before the House Armed Services Committee will be for a hearing on Trump's $1.5 trillion defence budget request.

Lawmakers from both parties have previously expressed dissatisfaction with the information provided in classified briefings on the war, setting up a potentially fiery public hearing in which top US military officer General Dan Caine is also set to testify.

- Trump says US 'militarily defeated' Iran -

Trump told Britain's King Charles III and other guests at a state dinner Tuesday that Iran has been "militarily defeated", in his first public comments on the sensitive topic during the ongoing royal visit.

"We have militarily defeated that particular opponent," Trump said at the White House dinner, adding: "Charles agrees with me even more than I do -- we're never going to let that opponent have a nuclear weapon."

- Israeli strikes on Lebanon kill eight: health ministry -

The Lebanese health ministry said Israeli strikes Tuesday killed eight people, including civil defence rescuers, and wounded two soldiers in the country's south, despite an ongoing ceasefire.

Israel has been fighting Hezbollah since early March, sending troops into south Lebanon to battle the Iran-backed militant group, with the violence ongoing despite a shaky April 17 ceasefire.

- Oil jumps -

Oil prices jumped on reports that Trump was unlikely to accept an Iranian proposal to restore traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and Qatar warned of a possible "frozen conflict".

Brent is above the level it hit before the two sides announced a ceasefire at the start of April, while West Texas Intermediate broke $100 Tuesday for the first time in two weeks.

Both contracts continued to rise Wednesday, with Brent holding above $113 and WTI above $101.

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