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German foreign minister says ‘we will not allow ourselves to be divided’ after Trump-Spain spat – Europe live

… and on that note, it’s a wrap for today! For all the latest updates from Iran and the region, follow our Middle East blog here: And here is our summary of the day in Europe: France (13:53), Italy (10:56, 11:51, 16:04) and Spain (11:11) are sending reinforcements to the Middle East to protect their citizens and partner countries in the region, primarily Cyprus. Nato secretary general Mark Rutte has confirmed that the Turkish interception of a ballistic missile launched from Iran was a “serious” security incident, as he condemned the attack (12:00). Spanish authorities also emphatically dismissed White House suggestions that the administration has executed a U-turn and is now prepared to let the US use its bases to strike Iran (9:49, 10:00), with a number of senior EU officials backing Madrid against US threats on trade (10:53, 12:19). Ukraine was in talks with the US and a number of Gulf countries about using its practical experience of dealing with the Iranian Shahed drones, the country’s president Volodymyr Zelenskyy revealed (10:28). If you have any tips, comments or suggestions, email me at jakub.krupa@theguardian.com. I am also on Bluesky at @jakubkrupa.bsky.social and on X at @jakubkrupa.

Three men deported by US file legal case against Eswatini over detention

Three men deported by the US to Eswatini – rather than their home countries – have filed a case against Eswatini’s government with the African Union’s human rights body, claiming their detention was an unlawful violation of their rights. Two of the claimants, from Cuba and Yemen, have been in prison in Eswatini, formerly Swaziland, for eight months. The third, Orville Etoria, was repatriated to his home country, Jamaica, in September. They were among a group of five men deported by the US in July, with another 10 sent in October. Other than Etoria, all remained in prison in Eswatini, their lawyers said. The US has labelled the men dangerous criminals but their lawyers said they have already served their sentences for any crimes committed in the US. The men’s complaint was filed with the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR), an African Union body that monitors member states’ compliance with regional human rights agreements. The commission can demand that states uphold rights and refer cases to the African court on human and peoples’ rights, but neither body has enforcement powers. Beatrice Njeri, a lawyer with the Global Strategic Litigation Council, one of the organisations that brought the case on the deportees’ behalf, said: “The people in detention have committed no crime [in Eswatini] and continue to undergo various human rights violations … They are being held indefinitely.” Njeri said the men had still not been allowed to see their lawyers in person. She said one detainee had gone on a 30-day hunger strike late last year, resulting in signs of organ failure. “They’re totally frustrated with the situation,” she said. “They just want to go back – some of them home, some of them to the US”. Thabile Mdluli, a spokesperson for Eswatini’s government, said she had not seen the legal complaint. The US has deported dozens of immigrants to third countries, as Donald Trump’s administration attempts to carry out mass deportations. US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) has detained more than 68,000 people in the US. Other African countries that have accepted third-country deportees from the US include Ghana, Rwanda, South Sudan and Uganda. The US agreed to pay Eswatini $5.1m to take up to 160 third-country nationals, according to Reuters. In February, Eswatini’s high court threw out a case from local NGOs that had argued the government’s imprisonment of the deportees was unconstitutional. The court ruled that the applicants had no right to bring the legal challenge, as they did not have a direct interest in the matter.

Middle East crisis live: Israeli military tells hundreds of thousands to flee Beirut

Oil prices have continued to rise as the crisis in the Middle East fails to show any signs of deescalation. Iran has said it is halting all traffic through the strait of Hormuz, one of the busiest shipping corridors for oil and gas but the US president has tried to calm both constituents and businesses. Donald Trump said that the US will provide the risk insurance necessary for boats (many insurance providers have either doubled their premiums or canceled the policies) and also pledged that the US navy will escort ships through the strait if necessary. There’s another line too, from White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt who in a post in on X, sought to reassure Americans on gas prices: “The Trump Administration will continue to unleash American energy dominance, and tap into our newfound oil in Venezuela.”

Nepal: voting closes in election pitting old guard against powerful youth movement

Nearly six months after a wave of unprecedented gen Z-led protests forced Nepal’s then prime minister to quit, people have voted in a general election that is shaping up to be a high-stakes showdown between the entrenched old guard and a powerful youth movement. “The voting process has been concluded peacefully and enthusiastically,” said the chief election commissioner, Ram Prasad Bhandari. It appeared the turnout was only about 60%, according to initial estimates, the lowest in more than two decades. Some winners are expected to be published as early as Friday, but full results may take several days. Due to Nepal’s electoral system, analysts say the vote is unlikely to deliver a outright majority for any single party and coalition negotiations are expected to take place as the results come in. Key figures contesting the election include the Marxist former prime minister seeking a return to office, a rapper-turned-mayor targeting the youth vote, and the newly elected leader of the powerful Nepali Congress party. It was the first election since the September 2025 uprising, in which at least 77 people were killed, and parliament and scores of government buildings were torched. The youth-led protests began as a demonstration against a brief social media ban, but were fed by wider grievances at corruption and a woeful economy. Anger at the government’s handling of the protests, which resulted in police opening deadly fire on demonstrators, forced four-time prime minister KP Sharma Oli and his Marxist government to step down. Over the past six months, the country has been run by a non-political interim government, led by the former chief justice Sushila Karki. On Thursday, Karki urged people to vote “without any fear”, as thousands of soldiers and police were deployed at polling centres. The election frontrunner was widely considered to be Balendra Shah, known as Balen, a former rapper who pivoted to politics three years ago to become the popular mayor of Kathmandu. The 35-year-old, running for the centrist Rastriya Swatantra party (RSP), had cast himself as the face of the gen Z movement and calls for corruption-free politics. He had highlighted health and education for poor Nepalis as a key focus of his campaign, as well as job creation for the young. His biggest challenger was Oli, the 74-year-old ousted as prime minister last year, who was seeking a return to power for a fifth time. Balen had opted to run in Oli’s constituency of Jhapa-5, on the border with India, in order to directly challenge the veteran politician. As a result, the constituency became the centre of the election and its 163,000 voters will determine whether Oli secures his seat or whether Balen enters parliament. “So many people, including gen Z, sacrificed their lives,” said Shiv Shrestha, 57, who will vote in the Jhapa district. “There has to be change. Corruption must stop, and more employment opportunities should be created here in Nepal. What happened last year should not happen again.” Also in the race to be prime minister is Gagan Thapa, 49, the new head of the country’s oldest party, Nepali Congress, who has also pitched himself as a fresh face for Nepali politics. In the aftermath of the protests, the election has had a wave of younger candidates promising to tackle Nepal’s woeful economy, challenging veteran politicians who have dominated for decades and argue that their experience guarantees stability and security. Whoever takes power will inherit daunting challenges. They must deliver on the high expectations for change demanded by last year’s youth protests, tackle entrenched corruption and carefully manage ties with Nepal’s powerful neighbours, India and China. Nepal’s mountainous terrain presents logistical challenges in transporting the ballot boxes after the voting ends. Helicopters have flown voter materials to snowbound mountain regions across the country, which is home to eight of the world’s 10 highest peaks, including Mount Everest. “We are so hopeful,” said Sashi Gurung, 33, who voted in Kathmandu. “This election is not a normal election. This is going to be one of the changing points for Nepalis, for Nepal.”

Delayed UK rescue flight takes off from Oman with British nationals

The first charter flight taking British nationals back to the UK from the Middle East took off on Wednesday as the prime minister described the ongoing evacuation operation was one of the biggest of its kind. Keir Starmer announced that the delayed charter flight from Oman, which was originally scheduled to leave at 7pm on Wednesday, had taken off minutes before he addressed a Downing Street press conference. The airlift of British nationals takes place against the backdrop of continued US and Israeli strikes on Iran, with missiles and drones also raining down on other states in the region. More than 2,000 people had arrived in the UK on Wednesday onboard eight flights from the United Arab Emirates. A further eight flights on that route are expected from the UAE the same day. Starmer said: “I want to be very clear, this is a huge undertaking. It’s one of the biggest operations of its kind, many times bigger than the evacuation from Afghanistan. It’s not going to happen overnight, but we will not stop until our people are safe.” However, the UK government has continued to come under pressure from MPs, as wellas from British nationals in the Middle East, who criticised the pace and scale of the of the evacuation effort. A British passed on board the board the charter flight from Oman’s capital of Muscat included a passenger named Mark, who described the situation on Wednesday night as a “complete shambles” involving “loads of issues with check-in” and “no communication from the craft or the crew” while being stuck on a transfer bus. In parliament, the Conservative leader pressed the government on how long it would take to get British nationals to safety while the prominent Labour backbencher and Foreign Affairs committee chair, Emily Thornberry, passed on the concerns of constituents caught up at Muscat airport who said they had difficulty identifying British consular staff. British Airways has meanwhile said it would run a fourth daily flight from Muscat to London Heathrow – a route it does not usually serve – departing at 10.30pm on Saturday. More than 140,000 Britons have registered their presence in the Middle East with the Foreign Office, a minister in the department, Hamish Falconer, told parliament. Bringing UK nationals home was “an enormous exercise and ministers must be honest about all their actions.” he was told by the Shadow Foreign Secretary, Priti Patel. Falconer, a former diplomat with frontline experience of previous evacuations in other crises, described the situation as “a consular challenge on a scale not seen since Covid,” adding that there were “no instant solutions”. British nationals Oman will be contacted as soon as the additional government-organised flights from Muscat become available, he said, while adding that commercial flights becoming available were the most likely and the most rapid routes back to the UK. Some 138,000 British nationals in the Gulf – including more than 100,000 who are in United Arab Emirates – have registered their presence to the Foreign Office. Those who qualify to leave on government flights are being asked to pay for seats while the most vulnerable people are being prioritised.

Azerbaijan accuses Iran of ‘terrorist’ drone attack on airport that injured four people

Azerbaijan has accused Iran of a “terrorist” drone attack that struck an airport and injured four civilians, raising concerns the conflict could spread beyond the Middle East. Azerbaijan’s defence ministry said Iran fired four drones at the country, one of which hit the terminal building at the only airport in Nakhchivan, an Azerbaijani exclave bordering Iran. A second drone fell close to a school in a nearby village, the ministry said. The strike would be the first Iranian attack on a Caucasus state since the start of the US-Israel war on the country. In a meeting with his security council, Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev, announced he had instructed the military to “prepare and implement response measures.” “We will not tolerate this unprovoked act of terror and aggression against Azerbaijan,” he said. “The Iranian side must provide an official explanation to Azerbaijan, issue an apology and ensure that those responsible are held criminally accountable,” the Azerbaijani leader said, adding that his country “neither participated nor will participate in any operations against Iran this time around”. Iran has denied any connection to the drone attack on Nakhchivan airport. “The Islamic Republic of Iran has not targeted the Republic of Azerbaijan,” Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, said in comments carried by Iran’s Tasnim news agency. “We do not target our neighbouring countries.” Footage on social media appeared to show a drone directly striking the airport before a fire broke out. Azerbaijan, an oil-rich authoritarian nation that has adopted a neutral stance in the Middle East conflict, has recently developed closer ties with Israel and the Trump administration while gradually moving away from Moscow, the traditional power broker in the Caucasus. The country hosts no US military bases, a sign Iran may be expanding its strikes beyond nations directly linked to accommodating American forces. Zaur Shiriyev, a non-resident scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, said it was still unclear whether Iran had specifically intended to strike Nakhchivan airport. But he added that, if confirmed, the attack would be a serious incident and difficult to dismiss as an accident. “Airports are critical infrastructure, so this is bound to raise serious questions,” he said. The timing of the apparent strike was notable. A day earlier, Aliyev had visited the Iranian embassy in Baku to offer condolences over the killing of the supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, in US-Israeli strikes last week. “No other head of state has visited any Iranian embassy,” Aliyev said during his meeting with officials. “Not appreciating this, downplaying it, and acting like vile and ungrateful people does not bring honour to anyone.” Baku’s growing military cooperation with Israel has caused growing friction with Tehran, though the two neighbours have largely maintained pragmatic relations. Both countries are majority Shia Muslim, and Iran is home to millions of ethnic Azeris – estimates range from about 15 to more than 20 million people – many living in the north-western provinces bordering Azerbaijan. The drone incident will raise tensions in the Caucasus regions. Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia have all proclaimed neutrality in the war, keen to avoid being drawn into the widening instability. Armenia and Azerbaijan, which share borders with Iran, fear the prospect of a migration crisis if the conflict escalates or the Iranian state collapses, potentially sending large numbers of refugees north across their frontiers. Further attacks on Azerbaijan could have far-reaching consequences for global air travel, which has already been heavily disrupted by airspace closures across the Middle East. Azerbaijan’s airspace has become a key corridor for flights between Asia and Europe seeking to avoid Russian airspace, and any disruption could create fresh headaches for airlines. Possible Iranian targets in Azerbaijan could include the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, which carries crude that accounts for about 30-40% of Israel’s oil imports. Azerbaijan’s threats to retaliate against Iran could also Turkey in a difficult position. Ankara maintains longstanding diplomatic and trade relations with Tehran, but it is also bound by close strategic and military ties with Baku. Under mutual defence agreements between the two countries, Turkey has pledged to provide assistance – including military support – if Azerbaijan is subjected to armed aggression.

Portugal fined £8.7m by EU court for failing to protect biodiversity

Portugal has been fined €10m (£8.7m) by the EU’s court of justice for failing to comply with environmental laws that require it to protect biodiversity. It has also been ordered to pay €41,250 a day until it complies with a previous court order in 2019. The court said it was imposing the maximum fine possible to “encourage” Portugal to bring the infringement to an end. The daily fine corresponds to a penalty of €750 for each of the 55 sites that the court said had “still not been protected” despite having ordered Lisbon seven years ago to comply with EU laws. The fine will be reduced by €750 a day per site that is brought into compliance. The court said in a statement: “The court considers that these are particularly serious infringements of EU environmental law, in which Portugal has persisted. “Given that Portugal’s territory hosts rich biodiversity, including 99 habitat types and 335 species covered by the habitats directive, what is at stake for the European Union’s common heritage there is especially important. “In view of this, as well as the considerable duration of the infringement and Portugal’s capacity to pay, the court sets the amount of the lump sum at €10m.” The European Commission has battled for years to force Portugal to conserve and protect habitats and species in areas that should have been designated for conservation under the EU habitats directive. Under EU law, sites of “community importance for the Atlantic biogeographic region” include Peneda-Gerês, Portugal’s only national park; the natural park Litoral Norte and the Minho and Lima rivers. Also included are Valongo, home to rare fern species and an important site for the golden-striped salamander, the Serra D’Arga mountain range and Corno do Bico, a protected landscape, records show. Lisbon was ordered by the court to comply with the EU habitats directive in a case brought by the European Commission in 2019 after allegations it had failed to designate sites of community importance as special areas of conservation (SAC). Under the directive, countries had to designate SAC sites that needed protection within six years, with accompanying measures to protect rare habitats and species. In 2019 the court found that Portugal had failed to fulfil its obligations to designate 61 areas under the Atlantic and Mediterranean biogeographical biodiversity classification. The Portuguese government has been approached for comment.

‘This is a needless war’: Americans share their thoughts on the US-Israel attacks on Iran

As hundreds of civilians and some US service members have been killed in the aftermath of the 28 February strike against Iran by the United States and Israel, the Guardian asked readers in the US what their thoughts are on the latest military action in Iran. Their responses were largely disapproving, with some acknowledging that the Iranian regime needed to be toppled, even with a high cost. “I don’t have any love lost for the ayatollahs,” said Iraj Roshan, a 66-year-old retired cardiologist and US citizen who was born in Tehran, in an interview with the Guardian. “But these wars are won by narrative.” Roshan fled to Turkey after the Iranian revolution, making his way to Austria and later the US, where he has lived since 1983. Over the last decade, Donald Trump has denounced US military intervention in other countries. In December 2016, the then president-elect said: “We will stop racing to topple foreign regimes that we know nothing about, that we shouldn’t be involved with.” On the campaign trail – in 2016, 2020 and 2024 – Trump and his allies spoke against foreign intervention, painting Democrats as enablers of war. In a series of social media posts days before the 2024 election day, Trump adviser Stephen Miller repeatedly warned that a win for Kamala Harris, the then vice-president, would lead to young men being “drafted to fight” in a “3rd World War”. Roshan argues that the US government does not have a strategy in the Middle East. “I don’t see any way this war is going to end in a way that the US can declare victory without putting boots on the ground or without arming the Iranians themselves,” he said. “I hate to see that so many American kids are going to be eventually dragged into a war that we cannot win – at least by any definition that we could write down today.” Meg, a 41-year-old small business owner based in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, spoke about the impacts of the strike on her community, which is home to the largest Arab community in New York City – approximately 10% of the neighborhood’s population. “For a lot of my Muslim friends, this is their favorite time of year,” Meg told the Guardian, referring to the holiday of Ramadan, which began on 17 February and continues through 19 March. “So to have this renewed tragedy strike in the middle of that, as somebody on the outskirts who cares about people in my community and in my circle of friends, it breaks my heart.” Meg also spoke of the persistent terrors that many of her neighbors have faced, first from the threat of ICE raids and then the strikes on Iran. “That’s been an ongoing drum beat of terror in my neighborhood,” she said. “How much can people take? How much suffering has to be inflicted on them for mindless reasons?” Barb, a 74-year-old retired mental health counsellor based in North Carolina, wrote in to the Guardian: “We can be sure that Trump has launched this war for selfish purposes. “Whether to flaunt his power, to control the headlines (away from Epstein), or to entertain himself, this needless war is not for the benefit of the Iranian people,” she continued. While many lawmakers, US citizens and others around the world have pushed back on Trump for unnecessary US involvement in a foreign regime change, others struck a less critical tone. “The [Iranian] regime is a very controlling and horrible thing,” Sriram Shanmugam, an 18-year-old in Texas who identifies as a Republican, shared with the Guardian. “My father escaped during the Iranian revolution, and I have many relatives in the Middle East too.” However, Shanmugam acknowledged that the US is “not doing much to minimize civilian casualties, and that we have no real plan after we finish this operation”. “What will replace the government of Iran, and will we have boots on the ground? Is there any guarantee that this won’t be our generation’s Afghanistan or Iraq?” he asked. A 47-year-old social worker in Washington, who asked to remain anonymous, wrote about the impact that another war will have on US veterans. “I spent 15 years working as a social worker therapist specifically with combat veterans who served in Iraq and Afghanistan,” she said. “Those wars turned millionaires into billionaires and created a lifetime of emotional pain and physical pain for those who served.” She also pointed to the myriad of domestic issues that people in the US are facing, including an affordability crisis and fewer jobs. “People in our country are suffering on the streets, homeless, without health insurance, without hope,” she wrote. “And this is where the government focuses its money and energy?”