Live! US Senate rejects war powers resolution to halt Trump’s Iran conflict

Kurdish dissident groups say they are preparing to join fight against Iran with US support

Kurdish Iranian dissident groups based in northern Iraq are preparing for a potential cross-border military operation in Iran, and the US has asked Iraqi Kurds to support them, Kurdish officials told The Associated Press.

The Kurdish groups are widely seen as the most well-organised segment of the fragmented Iranian opposition and are believed to have thousands of trained fighters. Their entry into the war could pose a significant challenge to the embattled authorities in Tehran and could also risk pulling Iraq further into the conflict.

Khalil Nadiri, an official with the Kurdistan Freedom Party, or PAK, based in northern Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region, said Wednesday that some of their forces had moved to areas near the Iranian border in Sulaymaniyah province and were on standby.

He said Kurdish opposition group leaders had been contacted by US officials regarding a potential operation, without giving more details.

Asked about reports that the Trump administration was considering arming Iranian Kurdish groups, Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters on Wednesday: “None of our objectives are premised on the support or the arming of any particular force. So, what other entities may be doing, we're aware of, but our objectives aren't centred on that.” Before the US and Israel attacked Iran on Saturday, triggering a new war in the Middle East, the PAK had claimed attacks on the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard in retaliation for Tehran's violent crackdown on protests. But an official with the group said it had not sent forces from Iraq into Iran.

If the Iranian and Iraqi Kurdish groups were to join the war, it would be the first entry of a significant ground force into the battle. The Kurdish groups have battle experience from the fight against the Islamic State group.

Congress fields Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Vem Narender Reddy for Rajya Sabha polls

The Congress on Thursday released its list of candidates for the Rajya Sabha biennial elections, fielding Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Vem Narender Reddy from Telangana.

Two charred bodies recovered after fire breaks out in Delhi's Paharganj building

Two charred bodies were recovered from the fourth floor of a building after a fire broke out in central Delhi's Paharganj area, a DFS official said on Thursday.

A call regarding the blaze was received at 4.38 pm on Wednesday. The fire had broken out in a toy godown located on the fourth floor of the building. "Twenty-five fire tenders were rushed to the spot after receiving the call," the Delhi Fire Service (DFS) officer said.

The building comprises a ground floor and four upper floors. A temporary structure had been erected on the fourth floor, where the toy godown was operating, the officer said.

Firefighters battled the blaze for several hours before bringing it under control. "The fire was finally extinguished at around 3.20 am (on Thursday), after which two charred bodies were recovered from the godown," the officer said.

The identity of the deceased and the cause of the fire are yet to be ascertained, he said, adding that further investigation is underway. More details are awaited. 

China hikes defence budget to USD 275 billion

China on Thursday hiked its defence budget to USD 275 billion, about USD 25 billion more than last year as it ramped the modernisation of armed forces to catch up with the US military.

Roughly 1.9 trillion yuan (about USD 275 billion) will be allocated to national defence, Chinese Premier Li Qiang announced in his work report presented to the National People’s Congress (NPC) on Thursday.

The report said China's defence spending remains comparatively modest across key relative indicators, including its share of GDP, per capita defence expenditure, and defence expenditure per military personnel, it said.

Last year China announced a 7.2-per cent increase for its national defence budget to USD 249 billion for 2025 which is a USD 17 billion rise compared to 2024.

China’s defence spending, only second to that of the US, has been growing over the years putting enormous pressure on India and other neighbouring countries to scale up their defence budgets in the face of economic challenges.

In 2024, China increased its defence budget by 7.2 per cent to about USD 232 billion (1.67 trillion yuan) -- over three times that of India -- as it continues with the massive modernisation of all its armed forces.

China's defence budget figures are viewed with scepticism in the light of massive military modernisation, including building aircraft carriers, rapid construction of advanced naval ships and modern stealth aircraft being carried out at a feverish pitch by the Chinese military.

Iran launches missiles at Israel as war in Middle East enters sixth day

Iran launched missiles at Israel early Thursday as aerial attacks in the Middle East commenced for a sixth day after an American submarine sank an Iranian warship and Iran threatened the destruction of military and economic infrastructure across the region.

Israel announced the incoming attack shortly after its military said it had begun new strikes in Lebanon targeting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group in Beirut's southern suburbs.

The fighting continued after the US and Israel intensified their bombardment on Wednesday of Iran's security forces and other symbols of power.

The tempo of the strikes on Iran was so intense that state television announced the mourning ceremony for Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at the start of the conflict, would be postponed. Millions attended the funeral of his predecessor, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, in 1989.

The US and Israel launched the war Saturday, targeting Iran's leadership, missile arsenal and nuclear program while suggesting that toppling the government is a goal. But the exact aims and timelines have repeatedly shifted, signalling an open-ended conflict.

Iran fired on Bahrain, Kuwait and Israel as the conflict spiralled. Turkey said NATO defences intercepted a ballistic missile launched from Iran before it entered Turkey's airspace.

The war has killed more than 1,000 people in Iran, more than 70 in Lebanon and around a dozen in Israel, according to officials in those countries. It has disrupted the supply of the world's oil and gas, snarled international shipping and stranded hundreds of thousands of travellers in the Middle East.

Iran threatens ‘complete destruction’ as Hormuz missile attack disrupts shipping

Iran's paramilitary Revolutionary Guard issued its most intense threat yet, saying the strikes against it would result in "the complete destruction of the region's military and economic infrastructure.” A Maltese-flagged container ship was attacked on Wednesday while passing through the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf through which about a fifth of the world's oil is shipped. The ship was hit by two missiles, sparking a fire, according to Malta's transport minister, Chris Bonett. Its 24 crew members were rescued.

Tanker traffic through the strait has fallen by around 90 per cent compared to prewar levels, shipping tracker MarineTraffic.com said Wednesday.

Oil prices have soared as Iranian attacks have disrupted traffic through the strait, and global stock markets have been hammered over worries that the spike in oil prices may grind down the world economy.

Trump administration scrambles for congressional support

After launching a surprise attack against Iran on Saturday, Trump has scrambled to win support for a conflict that Americans of all political persuasions were already wary of entering. Trump administration officials have been a frequent presence on Capitol Hill this week as they try to reassure lawmakers that they have the situation under control.

Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said Wednesday that the war could extend eight weeks, a longer time frame than has previously been floated by the Trump administration. He also acknowledged that Iran is still able to carry out missile attacks even as the US tries to control the country's airspace.

US service members “remain in harm's way, and we must be clear-eyed that the risk is still high,” Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said at the same press conference.

Six US military members were killed over the weekend in a drone strike in Kuwait.

Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa acknowledged the human costs of the war in her floor speech. One of the soldiers killed Sunday was from Iowa and a National Guard unit from her state was also attacked in Syria in December, resulting in the deaths of two other soldiers.

“But now is our opportunity to bring an end to the decades of chaos,” said Ernst, who herself served as an officer in the Iowa National Guard for two decades. “The sooner the better,” she added.

Trump has also not ruled out deploying US ground troops. He has said he is hoping to end the bombing campaign within a few weeks, but his goals for the war have shifted from regime change to stopping Iran from developing nuclear capabilities to crippling its navy and missile programs.

“We should be careful about opening a door into chaos in the Middle East when we cannot see the other side of it,” Democratic Sen Chris Coons of Delaware said in a solemn floor speech after the vote concluded.

He said he was praying for “grace to find a path forward together where more do not needlessly join those who have already fallen in this new war in the Middle East.”

Senate Republicans vote down legislation to halt Iran war in Congress' first vote on the conflict

Senate Republicans voted down an effort Wednesday to halt President Donald Trump's war against Iran, demonstrating early support for a conflict that has rapidly spread across the Middle East with no clear US exit strategy.

The legislation, known as a war powers resolution, failed on a 47-53 vote tally. The vote fell mostly along party lines, though Republican Sen Rand Paul of Kentucky voted in favour and Democratic Sen John Fetterman of Pennsylvania voted against.

The war powers resolution gave lawmakers an opportunity to demand congressional approval before any further attacks are carried out. The vote forced them to take a stand on a war shaping the fate of US military members, countless other lives and the future of the region.

Underscoring the gravity of the moment, Democratic senators filled the Senate chamber and sat at their desks as the voting got underway. Typically, senators step into the chamber to cast their vote, then leave.

“Today every senator — every single one — will pick a side," Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said before the vote. “Do you stand with the American people who are exhausted with forever wars in the Middle East or stand with Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth as they bumble us headfirst into another war?” Sen John Barrasso, second in Senate Republican leadership, said during the debate that GOP senators were sending a message that Democrats are wrong for forcing a vote on the war powers resolution.

“Democrats would rather obstruct Donald Trump than obliterate Iran's national nuclear programme,” he added.