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Iraq wants Iran-backed factions to lay down weapons, foreign minister says

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Iraq is trying to convince powerful armed factions in the country that have fought U.S. forces and fired rockets and drones at Israel to lay down their weapons or join official security forces, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said.

The push comes with a backdrop of seismic shifts in the Middle East that have seen Iran’s armed allies in Gaza and Lebanon heavily degraded and Syria’s government overthrown by rebels, Reuters reported.

Iraq is trying to convince powerful armed factions in the country that have fought U.S. forces and fired rockets and drones at Israel to lay down their weapons or join official security forces, Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein said.

The push comes with a backdrop of seismic shifts in the Middle East that have seen Iran’s armed allies in Gaza and Lebanon heavily degraded and Syria’s government overthrown by rebels.

The incoming U.S. Trump administration promises to pile more pressure on Tehran, which has long backed a number of political parties and an array of armed factions in Iraq.

Some Baghdad officials are concerned the status quo there may be upended next, but Hussein played this down in an interview with Reuters during an official visit to London.

“We don’t think that Iraq is the next,” Hussein said.

The government was in talks to rein in the groups while continuing to walk the tightrope between its ties to both Washington and Tehran, he said.

Iraq’s balancing act has been tested by Iran-backed Iraqi armed groups’ attacks on Israel and on U.S. troops in the country they say are in solidarity with Palestinians during the Israel-Hamas war.

A promised Gaza ceasefire has the government breathing a sight of relief, though uncertainty prevails over how the country may fare after Donald Trump becomes U.S. president.

During the last Trump presidency, relations grew tense as he ordered the assassination of Iranian General Qassem Soleimani in Baghdad in 2020, leading to an Iranian ballistic missile attack on an Iraqi base housing U.S. forces.

“We hope that we can continue this good relationship with Washington,” Hussein said. “It is too early now to talk about which policy President Trump is going to follow for Iraq or Iran.”

With Iraq trying to chart a diplomatic third-way, Hussein said Baghdad was ready to help diffuse tensions between Washington and Tehran if asked and noted previous mediation between Saudi Arabia and Iran that paved the way for their normalization of relations in 2023.

SYRIA

Armed revolution in neighbouring Syria has been viewed with concern.

The Islamist rebels now in power in Damascus were among the Sunni Muslim militants that entered Shia-majority Iraq from Syria after the 2003 U.S.-led invasion, fuelling years of sectarian war.

Islamic State crossed the same way a decade later and undertook bloody massacres before being beaten back by a U.S.-led international military coalition and Iraqi security forces and Iran-aligned factions.

Iraq will only be reassured about Syria when it sees an inclusive political process, Hussein said, adding Baghdad would supply the country with grain and oil once it could be assured it would go to all Syrians.

Baghdad was in talks with Syria’s foreign minister over a visit to Iraq, he said.

“We are worried about the ISIS, so we are in contact with the Syrian side to talk about these things, but at the end to have a stable Syria means to have the representative of all components in the political process.”

Baghdad and Washington last year agreed to end the U.S-led coalition’s work by September 2026 and transition to bilateral military ties, but Hussein said that the developments in Syria would have to be watched.

“In the first place, we are thinking about security of Iraq and stability in Iraq. If there will be a threat to our country, of course it will be a different story,” he said.

“But until this moment we don’t see a threat.”

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Floods, landslides kill 56 in India and 14 in Nepal

In India, the Central Water Commission said 30 river-monitoring stations across seven states indicated a “severe situation”.

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Heavy rain and storms have triggered floods and landslides that killed 56 people in India, while in Nepal, 14 have died and another 11 are missing, with authorities there warning on Sunday ​that more flash floods are possible, Reuters reported.

India’s northern state of Uttar Pradesh recorded 66.5 mm of ​rain between September 25 and the morning of September 27, compared with a ⁠normal 7.6 mm for the period, Hrishikesh Bhaskar Yashod, the state’s relief commissioner, said on Sunday.

Authorities are ​carrying out rescue operations in waterlogged areas and distributing relief, while officials have been told to assess ​crop damage and provide compensation.

In addition to the 56 deaths, 46 people have been injured and more than 1,000 houses have been damaged.

Nepali authorities warned of possible flash floods in 49 of the country’s 77 districts, with more than half ​facing high flood or flash-flood risks as water levels in major rivers and tributaries continued to rise.

Shanti ​Mahat, a spokesperson for the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority, said Rasuwa and Nuwakot, areas hit by ‌last month’s deadly ⁠floods that killed more than 1,450 people and left thousands still missing, should remain “alert” but were not currently considered high-risk areas.

Power supply has been completely disrupted in the Manang, Mustang, Myagdi and Baglung districts, with authorities working to restore electricity, energy ministry officials said.

Flooding of the Rahuganga River damaged the structure and ​transmission-line towers of a ​40-megawatt hydropower project, Water ⁠Resources and Energy Minister Biraj Bhakta Shrestha said.

In India, the Central Water Commission said 30 river-monitoring stations across seven states indicated a “severe situation”.

Several major rivers, including ​the Ganga, Gandak, Kosi, Bagmati and Narmada, were above danger levels, read the report.

Floods and ​landslides also disrupted ⁠telecommunications in parts of Nepal after damage to optical fibres and power supplies, Communications Minister Bikram Timilsinha said.

In a separate incident in Nepal, 10 local workers were also missing after an avalanche buried the base camp ⁠of the ​7,126-metre (23,379-ft) Himlung Himal in the northern Manang district, hiking officials ​said.

The workers had been setting up tents for foreign climbers, who were not present when the avalanche struck.

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Aimal Wali Khan calls Dera Ismail Khan attack a ‘state failure’

Khan called on the federal and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments to take greater responsibility for protecting citizens and addressing the deteriorating security situation in the province.

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Awami National Party (ANP) President and Senator Aimal Wali Khan has condemned the suicide attack on the Aman Mela checkpoint in the Darazinda area of Pakistan’s Dera Ismail Khan district, describing it as a failure by the state to ensure the security of citizens.

According to Dawn, Khan called on the federal and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa governments to take greater responsibility for protecting citizens and addressing the deteriorating security situation in the province.

In a statement, Khan said Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is experiencing one of the darkest periods in its history. He alleged that the Pashtun population is facing systematic violence and said prolonged insecurity has left the province deeply affected by terrorism.

Khan also condemned an attack on an ambulance reportedly carrying the body of a person killed in the blast, describing it as an “inhumane act.”

The ANP leader questioned the government’s response to the worsening security situation, saying that blaming groups referred to by authorities as “Fitna al-Khawarij” and “Fitna al-Hindustan” does not absolve the state of its responsibility to protect citizens.

He urged the federal and provincial governments to stop blaming each other and instead focus on restoring peace and strengthening security across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

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Blast in Pakistan’s Dera Ismail Khan kills 11, injures 30

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Eleven people were killed and ​30 injured in a blast ‌in Dera Ismail Khan in northwestern Pakistan on Saturday, emergency service Rescue ​1122 said.

The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan claimed responsibility for ​Saturday’s attack.

The blast occurred near ​Aman Mela in the Darazinda area of ‌the ⁠district, Rescue 1122 said in a statement.

Rescue teams from the Darazinda station reached the scene ​and began ​relief operations, ⁠providing medical assistance to the wounded and taking ​them to hospital, the ​service ⁠said.

Security incidents have continued in the district this month, including attacks ⁠involving ​the Pakistani Taliban.

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