Yemen’s Houthis said on Friday (September 18, 2026) that Saudi Arabia had launched 26 strikes against areas under their control in the past 24 hours, as the pro-Iran group and Yemen’s Riyadh-backed government clash in the country’s revived civil war.

The group said that the number of Saudi strikes on its positions had reached 300 over the last week, saying they targeted areas across Houthi-held Yemen.

The war, which began in 2014 with the Houthi capture of the capital Sanaa, had been largely frozen since 2022 but erupted back into life in July.

Saudi Arabia has, since 2015, led a coalition backing the internationally recognised government. Its intervention escalated the war, which has triggered one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises in the impoverished country.

This month, the Houthis, who already held most of Yemen’s populated areas, launched a lightning offensive to take over the country’s entire Red Sea coast, giving them control over the vital Bab al-Mandab strait.

The group, whose heartland is among the Zaidi Shia Muslims of northern Yemen, has declared a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia, which had used to bypass the Strait of Hormuz, itself closed by the West Asia war, for its oil exports.

Figures from maritime tracking firm Kpler showed that Saudi exports via the Bab al-Mandab Strait had dropped since July, although five loaded ships had passed through in the last week.

The Houthis insist that navigation of the strait is open and free except for Saudi vessels.

On Friday (September 18), the UN said that the renewed fighting had displaced more than 112,000 people while nearly 3,000 others had fled across the sea to Djibouti, heaping further misery on an already struggling population.

In 2025, the UN warned that 17 million people in Yemen were struggling to eat and a further million faced extreme hunger.

President Donald Trump said Sunday (September 14, 2026) that he will look into requests from families of September 11 victims to release records that could shed light on Saudi Arabia’s alleged role in the attacks 25 years ago.

Several families have long alleged that a group of extremist religious leaders in Saudi Arabia gained influence in the Saudi government and aided the hijackers. Fifteen of the 19 hijackers were Saudis, but the Saudi government has long denied any involvement in the attacks.

The families have asked Mr. Trump to declassify and release the relevant records. When asked about it on Sunday (September 1) during his trip to Ireland, the President said he would consider it.

“I’m going to look at it when I get back,” Mr. Trump said just before boarding Air Force One to return to Washington after a weekend in Ireland. “I know they asked me Friday.” The relatives of 9/11 victims have been engaged in a lengthy legal battle against the Saudis. One of them, Terry Strada, called on Mr. Trump during the remembrance in New York City on Friday to “tell the Saudis to stop lying.” Strada, who lost her husband Tom Strada on 9/11, said U.S. Presidents had chosen “to protect the Saudis instead of standing with the 9/11 families.” Strada, who was one of the 9/11 family members who read aloud the names of victims at this year’s remembrance, added that the current administration should “stand with the families, stand with the survivors.” “It has been one betrayal after another,” she said. “President Trump can still change that.”

President Donald Trump said Sunday (September 14, 2026) that he will look into requests from families of September 11 victims to release records that could shed light on Saudi Arabia’s alleged role in the attacks 25 years ago.

Several families have long alleged that a group of extremist religious leaders in Saudi Arabia gained influence in the Saudi government and aided the hijackers. Fifteen of the 19 hijackers were Saudis, but the Saudi government has long denied any involvement in the attacks.

The families have asked Mr. Trump to declassify and release the relevant records. When asked about it on Sunday (September 1) during his trip to Ireland, the President said he would consider it.

“I’m going to look at it when I get back,” Mr. Trump said just before boarding Air Force One to return to Washington after a weekend in Ireland. “I know they asked me Friday.” The relatives of 9/11 victims have been engaged in a lengthy legal battle against the Saudis. One of them, Terry Strada, called on Mr. Trump during the remembrance in New York City on Friday to “tell the Saudis to stop lying.” Strada, who lost her husband Tom Strada on 9/11, said U.S. Presidents had chosen “to protect the Saudis instead of standing with the 9/11 families.” Strada, who was one of the 9/11 family members who read aloud the names of victims at this year’s remembrance, added that the current administration should “stand with the families, stand with the survivors.” “It has been one betrayal after another,” she said. “President Trump can still change that.”

Minister for Fisheries and Fishermen Welfare A. Srinath and the Minister for Food and Civil Supplies P. Venkataramanan on Saturday handed over a solatium of ₹10 lakh each to the kin of Mayiladuthurai fishermen — P. Maveeran of Thoduvai fishing village in Sirkazhi taluk and G. Shankar, of Keezhamoovarkarai fishing village — who were allegedly shot dead by pirates while they were fishing in Saudi Arabia recently.

The solatium was given from the Chief Minister’s General Relief Fund at a brief function held at the District Collectorate. Mayiladuthurai Collector H.S. Srikanth and Sirkazhi MLA R. Senthilselvan were also present.

Turkiye, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan will group senior Ministers, hold joint exercises and deepen defence industry cooperation under a military pact signed between the regional powers last week, Turkiye’s Defence Ministry said on Thursday.

The three Sunni Muslim U.S. allies, alarmed by a regional conflagration that has brought Iranian missile fire onto Gulf oil exporters, signed the “Mecca Joint Defence Agreement” on August 7.

They said the accord stipulates that an armed attack against any member would be regarded as an attack on all, similar to NATO’s Article 5 collective defence clause.

The Ministry added that joint military exercises involving land, naval, and air forces, as well as air defence and unmanned systems were planned, in addition to deeper defence industry cooperation.

Saudi Aramco’s industrial ‌firefighting teams extinguished a fire ‌that ‌broke ⁠out early ⁠on Sunday (August 9, 2026) at a facility belonging ​to the ‌company’s refinery in Jizan, the Saudi Energy ‌Ministry said ​on X.

“No injuries were ⁠reported,” the Ministry said, ‌adding that the “relevant authorities were completing the necessary procedures to deal ‌with the incident”.

The Ministry did not immediately specify the cause of the fire.

Jizan ​is on the Red ⁠Sea near the ⁠border with Yemen. There has been no official Saudi confirmation so far that the latest Jazan fire was caused by a Houthi attack.

The reports come against the backdrop of renewed tensions between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, which announced a naval blockade of Riyadh in the Red Sea, particularly along the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait, last month, citing Saudi blockade of Yemen – a claim that Riyadh had rejected.

(With inputs from Reuters and ANI)

The script was written long ago — small island nation, eliminated at the group stage, goes home with a good story. Cape Verde has not read it.

Three games in at the 2026 World Cup, it is unbeaten, through to the knockouts, and nobody is quite sure what to expect from the African nation.

Cape Verde became a FIFA member in 1986. After failing to qualify for the 2002 extravaganza with a loss to Algeria in the Qualifiers, the country made steady progress.

Cape Verde attained its first AFCON qualification in 2013 and came close to sealing a World Cup berth in 2022, only to fall short at the final hurdle due to a last-game draw against Nigeria.

Four years later, it went one better — topping its CAF group ahead of Cameroon to book its tickets for the North American showpiece.

Cape Verde’s first test was against a Spanish side that had dismantled defences on the way to the EURO 2024 title. The Sharks held the Spaniards to a goalless draw through an exemplary display from their 40-year-old goalkeeper Vozinha. They then came from behind to hold Uruguay 2-2.

Saudi Arabia, too, could not find a way past the Cape Verde defence.

It now has a date with Lionel Messi’s Argentina in the round of 32. A year ago, that sentence would have read as fiction. However, Bubista’s men have spent the last three weeks making the football world question everything it thought it knew. Why stop now?

This is a city that became the capital of The New South, where civil rights history meets corporate America, where the headquarters of Coca-Cola rises above streets lined with reminders of a more complicated past.

In June, the Georgia heat settles over Atlanta like a heavy blanket, making the air outside thick and unforgiving. But inside the vast enclosed bowl of the Mercedes-Benz Stadium and beneath its retractable roof and powerful air-conditioning, Spain will attempt to cool a World Cup campaign that has begun unexpectedly hot.

Few anticipated that the European champion would arrive for its second group game under pressure. Yet after a frustrating goalless draw against debutant Cape Verde, Spain suddenly finds itself in desperate need of a positive result against Saudi Arabia on Sunday.

The numbers from that opening game pointed to a familiar malaise in Spanish football, one many believed it had long left behind. It monopolised possession and produced 27 attempts on goal, yet the scoreboard remained untouched.

Veteran goalkeeper Vozinha delivered the performance of his life while Spain was also guilty of making life too comfortable for the Cape Verdeans. For long stretches, it looked like a team searching for the perfect goal when merely finding one would have sufficed.

Cape Verde sat deep, defended bravely and watched Spain pass around it without ever threatening to break the deadlock. That is the challenge facing head coach Luis de la Fuente ahead of the Saudi Arabia match.

Lamine Yamal’s 19-minute appearance from the bench offered a glimpse of a possible solution. The teenager brought unpredictability and directness, qualities that had been missing for much of that afternoon. He could now be rewarded with a place in the starting XI alongside Nico Williams, with Ferran Torres and Gavi among those likely to miss the cut.

Saudi Arabia heads into the clash after an impressive 1-1 draw against Uruguay. The Saudis absorbed pressure, stayed organised and punished mistakes, taking the lead through Abdulelah Al-Amri before eventually being pegged back by Maxi Araujo’s equaliser.

Four years on from his unforgettable winner against Argentina in Qatar, veteran captain Salem Al-Dawsari remains the team’s most influential player, drifting in from the left with the technique and intelligence to change games. Musab Al-Juwayr, the gifted 23-year-old midfielder, provides the creative spark in central areas, while full-back Saud Abdulhamid supplies energy and ambition down the flank.

With all four teams in Group H level on one point, the standings remain perfectly balanced.

Spain still possesses the talent to suffocate opponents. But World Cups have little interest in reputation. Atlanta was built by people who understood the value of reinvention. Spain may need some of that on Sunday. The possession will almost certainly be there, but this time, the goals must follow.

Foreign Ministers of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, and Egypt have discussed ways to enhance cooperation in “key areas of mutual interest” in a third consultative meeting held in Antalya.

The meeting between Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Saudi Arabia Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Turkiye Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, and Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty was held on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum on Friday (April 18, 2026), according to a statement issued by the Foreign Office (FO) on Saturday (April 18, 2026).