US holds secret talks with Hamas on Gaza hostages, source says

The UN Security Council has voiced “grave concern” over a charter signed by Sudan’s paramilitary forces, warning it could deepen the country’s war and worsen the humanitarian crisis.
The paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, at war with Sudan’s army since April 2023, signed the charter last month with its allies to establish a “government of peace and unity” in RSF-held areas.
“The members of the Security Council expressed grave concern over the signing of a charter to establish a parallel governing authority in Sudan,” council members said in a statement late on Wednesday.
They warned such a move would “risk exacerbating the ongoing conflict in Sudan, fragmenting the country, and worsening an already dire humanitarian situation.”
They also urged warring factions to immediately cease hostilities and engage in “political dialogue and diplomatic efforts toward a durable ceasefire.”
For nearly two years, the army and RSF have been locked in fighting that has killed tens of thousands of people, uprooted more than 12 million and created what the International Rescue Committee calls the “biggest humanitarian crisis ever recorded.”
The war has torn the country in two, with the army controlling the north and east, while the RSF holds nearly all of the western region of Darfur and swathes of the south.
In recent weeks, army forces have made gains in the capital Khartoum and in central Sudan, retaking key areas that were swiftly seized by paramilitaries when the war began.

BAGHDAD/DUBAI: A US diplomat will attend a planned meeting in Baghdad on Thursday on the resumption of Kurdish oil exports via Turkiye’s Ceyhan pipeline, five sources with knowledge of the matter told Reuters, as Washington continues to push for a restart.
The Iraqi oil ministry is hosting the talks on accelerating a resumption in oil exports from Iraq’s semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan region. They have been delayed till Thursday due to disagreements over terms between oil firms and the oil ministry.
One of the sources, an Iraqi oil ministry official with direct knowledge of the meeting, said the planned attendance of the diplomat, based at the US embassy in Baghdad, had come in response to a request from Washington.
The White House National Security Office did not respond to a request for comment on the matter.
“The presence of the US diplomat aims to help push the negotiations forward and reach solutions to the issues hindering the resumption of oil exports in a way that satisfies all parties,” the oil ministry official said.
Reuters revealed last month that Iraq has come under increasing US
pressure
to allow Kurdish oil exports via Turkiye, thereby boosting supply to the global market at a time when Washington wants to reduce Iranian oil exports as part of its efforts to curb Tehran’s nuclear program.
Iran views its neighbor and ally Iraq as vital for keeping its economy afloat amid international sanctions.
But Baghdad, a partner of both the United States and Iran, is wary of getting caught in the crosshairs of President Donald Trump’s policy of squeezing Tehran, sources have told Reuters.
“There is strong insistence from the US side on ensuring the success of the negotiations (on resuming Kurdish oil exports) by any means,” said a government official close to the talks. “We hope that the US role will help reach a reasonable and acceptable agreement for the Iraqi government.”