Region

U.S. President Donald Trump is reportedly working to pressure Iran through “active threats” while simultaneously building political justification and international legitimacy for a potential military strike, according to a report by the British newspaper The Times.

The Baloch Liberation Movement (BLA) announced that it executed 214 Pakistani soldiers after the government ignored a 48-hour ultimatum. In a statement released late Friday, March 14, the group claimed Pakistan sacrificed its forces, treating them as “fuel for the war” rather than saving their lives.  

A bomb explosion rocked the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa today, Saturday, March 15, injuring Mufti Munir Shakir, a prominent and polarizing Pakistani cleric, along with four others. The blast went off as Shakir was heading to a mosque, triggered by a makeshift bomb planted near his route, according to local sources.  

In a joint press conference today, Friday, March 14, Pakistan Army spokesperson Lt. Gen. Ahmad Sharif Chaudhry and Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti claimed that recent attacks in Balochistan—including the assault on the Jaffar Express—were carried out with weapons supplied by India and Afghanistan.  

A day after Baloch separatists attacked the Jaffar Express train in Pakistan, the fate and identity of 200 passengers remain unknown, raising questions about who they were and where they are.  

Pakistani media report that U.S. authorities unexpectedly barred a Pakistani diplomat from entering Los Angeles and promptly deported him. The diplomat, Ahsan Wagan, serves as Pakistan’s ambassador to Turkmenistan.  

While Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has flatly rejected any talks with the United States, President Masoud Pezeshkian’s administration has signaled openness to dialogue, suggesting that negotiations on “nuclear transparency” could be on the table.  

U.S. President Donald Trump claimed he sent a letter to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s Supreme Leader, urging negotiations, but Iran’s UN mission quickly denied receiving it. Speaking to Fox News, Trump said, “I said I hope you’re going to negotiate, because it’s going to be a lot better for Iran,” adding that Iran “cannot have nuclear weapons” and that “the other alternative” remains an option if needed.  

Following U.S. President Donald Trump’s announcement of the arrest of the mastermind behind the Kabul airport suicide attack, Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif confirmed his country’s role in the operation, stating that the main suspect was apprehended with Pakistan’s assistance.  

A joint poll conducted by Harvard University and the Harris Poll Institute shows that the majority of respondents support preemptive attacks on Iran’s nuclear facilities as well as military actions by Israel against Hamas.