News

Israel’s Ben Gurion Airport has been reopened after it was shut down five days ago at the start of the joint Israeli and US military strikes on Iran.

A first repatriation flight from Athens landed at the airport this morning bringing home Israelis who were stranded abroad.

Israeli airlines are expected to help fly back an estimated 100,000 Israelis who have been unable to return since Israel closed its airspace on Saturday.

Israeli authorities approved a partial reopening of airspace in stages, subject to security developments.

Meanwhile, Iran launched missiles at Israel overnight as aerial attacks in the Middle East continued for a sixth day.

The US and Israel had intensified their bombing of Iran yesterday. Israel’s military also targeted Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold after it issued a warning to residents.

Air raid sirens went off in Tel Aviv and Jerusalem to warn of incoming rocket fire after an earlier lull.

Explosions could be heard as the missiles were intercepted by air defences.

There were no immediate reports of any casualties. Israel is easing some restrictions on the public due to a decline in the number of rockets being fired from Iran.

An Israeli military spokesman suggested efforts to target Iranian missile stocks and launch sites had paid off.

In Iran, blasts have again been reported in the capital Tehran while there have been more deadly Israeli air strikes in Lebanon.

Lebanese officials said more than 80,000 people have been displaced due to the new round of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah.

Source:Adaderana.lk

The Department of Meteorology says scattered showers or thundershowers may occur in parts of the Uva Province and Sabaragamuwa Province after 2.00 p.m. today.

Rainfall is also expected in several districts, including Hambantota District, Nuwara Eliya District and Ampara District during the afternoon hours.

Apart from these areas, much of Sri Lanka is likely to experience mostly dry conditions throughout the day.

Meanwhile, early morning mist is forecast in parts of the Western Province, Central Province, Southern Province, North Western Province and North Central Province, in addition to the Sabaragamuwa Province and Uva Province.

Misty conditions may also occur in the Mannar District and Vavuniya District during the early hours of the day.

Qatar Airways has just announced it will operate relief flights from the Middle East to several European cities on Thursday.

Flights from Muscat, Oman will depart for London Heathrow, Berlin, Copenhagen, Madrid, Rome and Amsterdam.

Another flight will leave from Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for Frankfurt.

The airline’s main operations out of Doha remain temporarily suspended ‘‘due to the closure of Qatari airspace’’, it said in a statement on X.

It adds: ‘‘Passengers are kindly requested not to proceed to the airport unless they have received an official notification from Qatar Airways for these flights.’’

Source: adaderana.lk

The Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) has submitted its investigation report concerning nine coal consignments imported for the Lakvijaya Coal Power Plant.

The findings were presented to the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Infrastructure and Strategic Development following instructions from its Chairman, S.M. Marikkar.

The inquiry was initiated after the committee directed the PUCSL to examine allegations that the imported coal did not meet required quality specifications. According to the committee chair, the use of coal that fell below stipulated standards has imposed a financial loss of more than Rs. 1.8 billion on the public.

In addition to the monetary impact, concerns have also been raised about the potential effect of substandard coal on the operational performance and efficiency of the power plant.

India has rejected a report that claimed that the US was using its ports to strike Iran. 

The Ministry of External Affairs’s reaction came after former US Army Colonel Douglas Macgregor, during an interview with a US-based channel, One America News Network, suggested that the US was using Indian naval bases in its war against Iran.

“All of our bases have been destroyed. Our harbour installations are destroyed. We are actually having to fall back on India and Indian ports, which is less than ideal; that is what the navy says,” he can be heard saying in the interview.

The MEA’s FactCheck account said the claims being made on OAN are “fake and false”.

“We caution you against such baseless and fabricated comments,” it posted on X on Wednesday.

India has expressed “deep concern” at the conflict in the Middle East, urging all sides to “exercise restraint, avoid escalation, and prioritise the safety of civilians”.

US-Israel-Iran Tensions

The Middle East was plunged into chaos after the US and Israel carried out joint strikes on Iran on Saturday, killing 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In response, Iran launched missiles at Israel and at American military bases in Gulf countries.

A torpedo from an American submarine sank an Iranian warship on Tuesday night in the Indian Ocean, leaving 87 people dead. The IRIS Dena had been on a friendly visit to India when it was hit. It was the first time since World War II that an American submarine had attacked a surface vessel.

The war has entered its sixth day on Thursday, with no signs of easing tensions.

According to reports, more than 1,000 people have so far been killed in Iran and about a dozen in Israel. At least six US troops have also been killed in the war.

US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have claimed that they launched strikes on Iran as it posed an imminent threat.

“If we didn’t do it first, they would have done it to Israel and give us a shot, if that was possible,” Trump has said.

Source:adaderana.lk

A large explosion has been reported in eastern Tehran, according to Iranian state media and an AFP news agency reporter in the city.

It comes as the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) announces its air force has begun “broad scale strikes” on regime targets in the city.

The Israel Defense Forces have begun “broad scale strikes targeting Iranian terror regime targets in Tehran,” it said in a statement Wednesday morning.

This marks the tenth such wave of attacks since the latest conflict began on Saturday, according to the IDF. Earlier Wednesday, it said its overnight strikes had targeted what it described as command centers used by Iran’s feared internal security forces and the Basij militia.

“They hit quite hard last night, it was a bad night,” one resident in northern Tehran told CNN. “I don’t know where exactly they hit, but it felt like we could hear explosions from around us.”

They added that they wanted to get out of the city and flee into the mountains. “But we also don’t know where military assets are so its hard to tell where it is going to be safe,” the resident said.

Iranian state media reported explosions in several parts of the country Wednesday morning, with one photo geolocated by CNN showing a large plume of dark smoke near the city of Isfahan.

(Source:Adaderana.lk)

Cabinet Spokesman and Minister Nalinda Jayatissa informed Parliament today that 32 crew members rescued from the Iranian ship IRIS Dena have been admitted to the Galle National Hospital for medical treatment.

According to the Minister, one of the rescued individuals is currently being treated in the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit due to serious injuries.

Meanwhile, he also confirmed that personnel of the Sri Lanka Navy have recovered a total of 87 bodies from the incident and brought them ashore as part of the ongoing rescue and recovery operation.

The British government announced on Tuesday (Mar 3) that it would stop issuing education visas to nationals from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan and work visas for Afghans as part of its broader clampdown on asylum seekers.

The Home Office said there had been a surge in asylum applications by students from those countries and almost 135,000 asylum seekers in total had entered the United Kingdom using legal routes since 2021.

“Britain will always provide refuge to people fleeing war and persecution, but our visa system must not be abused,” said Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood in a statement. 

“That is why I am taking the unprecedented decision to refuse visas for those nationals seeking to exploit our generosity.”

The Home Office said the number of asylum applications by students from Afghanistan, Cameroon, Myanmar and Sudan had “rocketed” by more than 470 per cent between 2021 and 2025.

Migration has become a major issue in British politics, with the hard-right Reform UK surging in opinion polls with its anti-migration stance.

Successive governments have struggled to contain small boats crossing the Channel from France, which bring large numbers of undocumented migrants. 

But the authorities also face pressure to reduce the number of asylum seekers entering on other routes.

The Home Office said the government has “reduced student asylum claims by 20 per cent over the course of 2025, further action is needed as those arriving on study visas still make up 13 per cent of all claims in the system”.

Source:adaderana.lk

The UK’s Ministry of Defence has ruled out Iran as the source of the drone that struck RAF Akrotiri in Cyprus on Sunday night, though it said the unmanned aircraft bore the hallmarks of Tehran’s signature Shahed design — the low-cost drones Russia has used extensively against Ukraine, as SkyNews reports.

Royal Navy Wildcat helicopters are set to deploy to Cyprus within days to bolster air defences at the base, the ministry said.

The strike comes amid an ongoing Iranian missile campaign targeting locations across the Middle East and Mediterranean, launched in retaliation for the US-Israeli attack.

The British base at Akrotiri remains on high alert as the United Kingdom accelerates the reinforcement of its forces in the region following the recent drone strike.

The arrival on Tuesday night of a large military transport aircraft, a Boeing C-17A Globemaster III, marked what officials describe as a new phase in strengthening the deterrent capabilities of British forces in the eastern Mediterranean.

(Source:Adaderana.lk)

Another two vessels appear to have come under attack in the Mideast Gulf, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said today.

The UKMTO said it had received a report of an incident 137 miles (220km) east of Muscat, Oman, at 19:50 GMT. The vessel master reported a loud explosion in close proximity to the vessel followed by smoke in the water. The vessel and crew are safe and authorities are investigating the incident, the UKMTO said.

The second incident took place seven miles (11km) east of Fujairah, UAE. A vessel was struck by an unknown projectile that caused damage to the steel plating, the vessel master reported to the UKMTO at 22:40 GMT. There was no fire or water intake and all the crew are safe.

The identities of the vessels are unclear.

Ship traffic through the strait of Hormuz — the world’s most critical oil and LNG shipping lane — has almost ground to a halt since US and Israeli forces struck Iran on 28 February.

Only three tankers were recorded sailing through the waterway on 1 March, down by 94pc from 50 tankers on 28 February, the Joint Maritime Information Center (JMIC) said in its most recent update late on 3 March.

Iran on 2 March claimed to have “closed” the strait of Hormuz and announced it intends to burn any ship that tries to pass through. Iran has a drone carrier ship stationed near the strait that it could use to attack transiting ships, according to shipbroker BRS. It also has short-, medium- and long-range missiles to disrupt shipping in the strait.

At least five commercial ships had been attacked in the Mideast Gulf since the conflict began, before today’s incidents. The attacks have taken place in the Gulf of Oman, Musandam approaches and in UAE coastal waters, according to the JMIC.

The Ice front-month May Brent contract was at $82.30/bl at 10.15am Singapore time (02:15 GMT), higher by 90¢/bl from its settlement on 3 March when it ended $3.66/bl higher.

The Nymex front-month April crude contract was at $75.22/bl, higher by 66¢/bl from its settlement on 3 March, when it ended $3.33/bl higher.

(Source:adaderana.lk)

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney said on Thursday (Mar 5) that he couldn’t rule out his country’s military participation in the escalating war in the Middle East.

Carney’s visit to Australia this week has been overshadowed by the expanding war in the Middle East, sparked by a massive US-Israeli strike on Iran that killed its supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Speaking alongside local counterpart Anthony Albanese in Canberra, Carney was asked whether there was a situation in which Canada would get involved.

‘‘One can never categorically rule out participation,’‘ he said, while stressing the question was a ‘‘hypothetical’‘ one.

‘‘We will stand by our allies,’‘ said Carney, adding that ‘‘we will always defend Canadians’‘.

Carney had said the US-Israeli strikes on Iran were ‘‘inconsistent with international law’‘.

However, he supports the efforts to stop Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon - a position that Canada takes ‘‘with regret’‘ as it represented ‘‘another example of the failure of the international order’‘.

The Canadian leader reiterated on Thursday his call for a ‘‘de-escalation’‘ of the conflict.

Carney’s trip is part of a multi-country tour of the Asia-Pacific aimed at reducing reliance on the United States - a hedge against what he has described as a fading US-led global order.

The Australia leg of the tour is aimed at bringing in investment and deepening ties with a like-minded ‘‘middle power’‘ partner.

‘‘MIDDLE POWER’‘ RALLYING CRY

On Thursday morning, he issued a rallying cry in Australia’s parliament to ‘‘middle powers’‘, urging them to work together in an increasingly hegemonic world order.

Nations like Australia and Canada faced a stark choice - work together to help write the ‘‘new rules’‘ of the global order or have great powers do it for them, he said.

‘‘In this brave new world, middle powers cannot simply build higher walls and retreat behind them. We must work together,’‘ he said.

‘‘Great powers can compel, but compulsion comes with costs, both reputational and financial,’‘ the former central banker added.

‘‘Middle powers like Australia and Canada hold this rare convening power because others know we mean what we say and we will match our values with our actions.’‘

The Canadian leader also said the two countries would work together as ‘‘strategic collaborators’‘ to pool their vast combined rare earth mineral resources.

And he detailed renewed cooperation in areas from defence to artificial intelligence.

‘‘We know we must work with others who share our values to build solid capabilities,’‘ he told parliament.

Otherwise, he warned, they risked being ‘‘caught between the hyperscalers and the hegemons’‘.

The Canadian leader has frequently clashed with US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly threatened to annex Canada and slapped swingeing tariffs on the country.

In a speech to political and financial elites at the World Economic Forum in January, Carney warned the US‑led global system of governance was enduring ‘‘a rupture’‘.

Source:adaderana.lk

Israel’s defense minister on Wednesday threatened whoever Iran picks to be the country’s next supreme leader, saying he will be “a target for elimination.”

Israel Katz made the statement on X.

“Every leader appointed by the Iranian terror regime to continue and lead the plan to destroy Israel, to threaten the United States and the free world and the countries of the region, and to suppress the Iranian people — will be a target for elimination,” he wrote.

Israel targeted a building Tuesday associated with Iran’s Assembly of Experts, which will select the new supreme leader. Israel killed the 86-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a strike Saturday that started the war.

Israel killed the 86-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in a strike Saturday that started the war.

Source:adaderana.lk