US Iran Israel war – Artifex.News

Pakistan parked Iranian planes on its airbases to escape U.S. airstrikes: report

admin — Tue, 12 May 2026 05:31:00 +0000

In this photo released by the Pakistan Prime Minister Office, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, left, greets Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi before their meeting in Islamabad, Pakistan. File image: Pakistan Prime Minister Office via AP

Pakistan, which is playing mediator to end the U.S.-Iran war, allowed Iranian military aircraft to park on its airfields to shield them from American airstrikes, CBS News reported here quoting US officials.

The report also claimed that Iran had also parked its civilian aircraft in neighbouring Afghanistan to protect it from U.S. airstrikes.

Also read | Pakistan’s return: Mediator or West Asia asset?

Reacting to the report, Republican Senator Lindsey Graham called for a complete re-evaluation of Pakistan’s role as a mediator to end the U.S.-Iran war that broke out on February 28 and has been put on pause since April 8.

“If this reporting is accurate, it would require a complete reevaluation of the role Pakistan is playing as mediator between Iran, the United States and other parties,” Mr. Graham, the Senator from South Carolina, said in a post on X.

“Given some of the prior statements by Pakistani defense officials towards Israel, I would not be shocked if this were true,” Mr. Graham said.

The CBS report, quoting unnamed U.S. officials, said that Iran has sent “multiple aircraft”, including a reconnaissance and intelligence plane, to Pakistan’s Nur Khan airbase soon after U.S. President Donald Trump announced the ceasefire in April.

A senior Pakistan official rejected the claims involving Nur Khan Air Base, and told CBS News, that “Nur Khan base is right in the heart of [the] city, a large fleet of aircraft parked there can’t be hidden from [the] public eye”.

An Afghan civil aviation officer told CBS News that an Iranian civilian aircraft belonging to Mahan Air landed in Kabul shortly before the war started and remained parked after the closure of the Iranian airspace.

The same aircraft was moved to an airport in Herat near the Iranian border after Pakistan launched attacks on Afghanistan, the Afghan officials said, adding that the Mahan Air plane was the only Iranian aircraft in the country.

Pakistan’s reliance on China for military assistance has risen dramatically over the past decade. A Stockholm International Peace Research Institute study showed China supplied about 80%of Pakistan’s major arms between 2020 and 2024, and Islamabad also has close economic ties with Beijing, the CBS News report said.

Islamabad has attempted to navigate both sides of the crisis — presenting itself to Washington as a stabilizing intermediary while avoiding steps that could alienate Tehran or China, Iran’s most powerful international backer, the CBS News report said.

Published – May 12, 2026 07:34 am IST

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U.S. is considering exiting ‘paper tiger NATO’, says Trump

admin — Wed, 01 Apr 2026 12:45:00 +0000

After telling countries, “which refused to get involved in the decapitation of Iran”, to “start learning how to fight for yourself, (as) the U.S.A. won’t be there to help you anymore”, U.S. President Donald Trump said that he is considering exiting NATO.

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Calling the security alliance a “paper tiger”, Mr. Trump told British daily The Telegraph, “Oh yes, I would say [it’s] beyond reconsideration (pulling out of NATO). I was never swayed by NATO. I always knew they were a paper tiger, and Putin knows that too, by the way.”

The U.S. President is scheduled to address the nation on Wednesday night (early Thursday morning in India).

Mr. Trump’s criticism of the NATO comes after the alliance partners – mainly the U.K, France, and Spain – refused to join the Iran war and help in reopening the Strait of Hormuz that has been shut ever since the war began a month ago. With 20% of the global oil flow choked by Iran, gas and petroleum prices have spiked in Europe and in the U.S., with crude oil prices hitting $120 per barrel last month. Gasoline in the U.S. has climbed above $4 per gallon.

Mr. Trump said it was “hard to believe” that NATO did not answer his call to join the war. “Beyond not being there, it was actually hard to believe. And I didn’t do a big sale. I just said, ‘Hey’, you know, I didn’t insist too much. I just think it should be automatic. We’ve been there automatically, including Ukraine. Ukraine wasn’t our problem. It was a test, and we were there for them, and we would always have been there for them. They weren’t there for us,” he told the daily.

He slammed British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and questioned the British navy’s abilities. “You don’t even have a navy. You’re too old and had aircraft carriers that didn’t work,” he said. “I’m not going to tell him [Mr. Starmer] what to do. He can do whatever he wants. It doesn’t matter. All Starmer wants is costly windmills that are driving your energy prices through the roof,” he said.

‘Not our war’

Responding to the U.S. President’s comments, Mr. Starmer reaffirmed his faith in the NATO calling it “the single most effective military alliance the world has ever seen”. “It has kept us safe for many decades, and we are fully committed to NATO,” he said.

Saying that “whatever the noise”, Mr. Starmer reiterated his stand on the war. “Whatever the pressure on me and others… I am going to act in the British national interest in all decisions that I make. That’s why I have been absolutely clear that this is not our war, or we are not going to get dragged into it.”

On Tuesday, Mr. Trump had posted on Truth Social that the “The U.S.A. will REMEMBER!!!”, referring to the constant refusal by NATO members to join the conflict. He hit out at U.K. and France.

In one post, he wrote: “All of those countries that can’t get jet fuel because of the Strait of Hormuz, like the United Kingdom, which refused to get involved in the decapitation of Iran, I have a suggestion for you: Number 1, buy from the U.S., we have plenty, and Number 2, build up some delayed courage, go to the Strait, and just TAKE IT. You’ll have to start learning how to fight for yourself, the U.S.A. won’t be there to help you anymore, just like you weren’t there for us. Iran has been, essentially, decimated. The hard part is done. Go get your own oil!”

Slamming France, Mr. Trump posted, “The Country of France wouldn’t let planes headed to Israel, loaded up with military supplies, fly over French territory. France has been VERY UNHELPFUL with respect to the “Butcher of Iran,” who has been successfully eliminated! The U.S.A. will REMEMBER!!!”

The U.S. President always has had an on-and-off relationship with NATO. He has accused member countries of piggybacking on the U.S. for their security interests and spending less on defence. In the 2024 election campaign, he had notoriously encouraged Russia to attack NATO members that do not spend enough on defence. Earlier this year, he had threatened to invade Greenland, a territory of Denmark, which is a NATO member.

Published – April 01, 2026 05:03 pm IST

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Sri Lanka refused U.S. request to land warplanes: Dissanayake

admin — Fri, 20 Mar 2026 08:23:00 +0000

Sri Lanka’s President Anura Kumara Dissanayake. File
| Photo Credit: Reuters

Sri Lanka refused permission for the U.S. to land two of its warplanes in the island’s southeast Mattala International Airport in early March, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake told Parliament on Friday (March 20, 2026).

Also Read | U.S. pressing Sri Lanka not to repatriate Iranian crew and survivors from sunken ship, memo says

Mr. Dissanayake said that two U.S. warplanes from Djibouti asked for permission to come to Sri Lanka on March 4 and 8. Both requests were rejected, he said.

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“We want to maintain our neutrality despite many pressures. We won’t give in. The Middle East war poses challenges but we will do everything possible to remain neutral,” he said.

“They wanted to bring in two warplanes armed with eight anti-ship missiles from base in Djibouti to the Mattala International Airport and we said no,” the Sri Lankan President said.

Mr. Dissanayake’s statement comes a day after his meeting with U.S. Special Envoy for South and Central Asia Sergio Gor.

The two leaders discussed U.S. efforts to safeguard vital sea lanes and secure ports, reinforce mutually beneficial trade and commercial ties, and advance a free, open, and prosperous Indo-Pacific, a statement said.

On March 4, the U.S. torpedoed the Iranian frigate Iris Dena off Galle, the island’s southern coastal town, killing 84 sailors while 32 were rescued.

The ship was returning home from Visakhapatnam in India after a naval fleet review exercise. Two days later, a second Iranian vessel, Iris Bushehr, sought entry to Colombo port with 219 sailors.

Sri Lanka asked the vessel to be diverted to the eastern port of Trincomalee from its anchor outside the port here. A total of 204 of the sailors are now accommodated at the Naval facility near Colombo.

Published – March 20, 2026 01:00 pm IST

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