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‘Biggest oil deal’ reached, says Trump

Three killed in rare West Bank airstrike JENIN: An Israeli strike killed a Hamas operative and two of his companions in the West Bank on Friday, the military said, in a rare use of deadly air power in the occupied territory. Hamas confirmed the man that Israel named as Qais Bitawi was one of its members and condemned the attack that killed him. Islamic Jihad also claimed him as a member. The airstrike targeted a car in Jenin in the northern West Bank, the Israeli military and medics said. The West Bank has seen a surge in Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians as well as military raids. The northern West Bank, where Jenin sits, was the site of a major Israeli assault last year. The military said Qais was involved in directing, funding and executing attacks on Israeli civilians and security forces. It said he had ties with Hamas members. The Palestine Red Crescent ambulance service said Israeli ground troops raided the site of the drone strike, briefly detained medics and prevented them from transporting those wounded or killed to hospital. Israel’s military did not immediately provide comment on the ambulance service’s statements. Israel’s operations in the northern West Bank last year forced thousands of Palestinians from their homes, with Israeli forces clearing out refugee camps and maintaining their longest presence in some West Bank cities for decades. – Reuters Iceland votes on EU membership REYKJAVIK: Icelanders began voting yesterday in a referendum on whether to resume membership negotiations with the European Union. The country of just under 400,000 people applied to join the EU in the wake of a 2009 financial crisis. The membership talks were suspended in 2013 when a eurosceptic government came to power. The referendum result is expected to go down to the wire, with the latest Gallup poll crediting the ‘No’ camp with 51.6% of voter support and the ‘Yes’ side with 48.4%, a gap within the statistical margin of error. “It’s pretty tight, but I’m always optimistic,” said Foreign Minister Thorgerdur Katrin Gunnarsdottir. With no exit polls and given the tight race, the first reliable results are only expected early today. The estimated 273,000 voters are being asked to answer ‘Yes’ or ‘No’ to the question: “Should Iceland resume accession negotiations with the European Union?” If the “Yes” side wins, an accession agreement would be negotiated with Brussels and then put to a new referendum on actual membership. – AFP

Venezuela and the United States!” Trump wrote. Rubio said the deal demonstrated how “President Trump’s bold foreign policy is driving America First wins, securing stable reserves and low-cost oil in our hemisphere and lowering petrol prices here at home”. “For the Venezuelan people, this deal will bring nearly US$100 billion in private investment, support thousands of high-paying jobs and drive reconstruction of Venezuela’s economy,” Rubio wrote on X. Jorge Pinon, a senior researcher at the Energy Institute, University of Texas at Austin, said the agreement was unconventional and many questions remained about how the oil assets would be transferred, “not to a private enterprise but to another country”. “We don’t know how the transfer would take place. Is it a sale? Is it a title transfer? Is it only transferred once the reserves are actually produced?” – AFP

Venezuela eyes US$100 billion investments

Interim leader Rodriguez confirmed what she called a “historic agreement” that would “have a significant impact on the rebirth of our nation”. Writing on social media, she hailed potential investment of “more than US$100 billion and more than US$209 billion in tax revenue for the state”. Trump said Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth had reached the deal with Rodriguez “through a partnership with private business”. “This transaction will greatly strengthen the already growing relationship between

and Venezuelan officials said. Venezuela has the world’s largest proven oil reserves. Its government has operated under intense pressure and close scrutiny from the Trump administration since the US kidnapped President Nicolas Maduro in January. Washington allowed his vice-president, Delcy Rodriguez, to stay on and serve as interim leader so long as she toes the US line. Trump has made no secret of his desire to secure Venezuelan oil for the US, and in his post announcing the deal on his Truth Social platform, he said it will more than double US oil reserves.

WASHINGTON: President Donald Trump said his administration has reached a huge oil deal with Venezuela that gives the United States majority control of 65 billion barrels of proven petroleum reserves. The deal, which Trump proclaimed as “the biggest oil deal in world history”, will bring nearly US$100 billion (RM402.8 billion) in private investment to Venezuela, US

Norway mourns King Harald as son ascends throne OSLO: Flags across Norway flew at half-mast yesterday as the country opened a new chapter in its history under King Haakon VIII, a day after the death of his 89-year-old father Harald. Scores of

Norwegians flocked to the Royal Palace in Oslo, where heaps of flowers lay on the ground

after more than 20,000 people paid their respects on Friday to the late king, who served 35 years on the throne. Tributes also poured in from European monarchies and world leaders. “Everyone is sad, and the king was a man whom everyone respected. A fine man, so I think everyone feels a bit down today,” said Anne Lobbe, 35, outside the palace early yesterday. Haakon was due to hold audiences later in the day with the leaders of the Church of Norway, parliament and supreme court. A national period of mourning has been declared in the Scandinavian kingdom. No date has been set for the late king's funeral. King Haakon VIII DUBAI: Iranian leaders are acknowledging the economic toll of war, with the supreme leader urging the government to address the hardship and the president saying foreign trade has shrunk by a third due to the American sanctions and blockade. Yet Tehran signalled no retreat yesterday, vowing to withstand US pressure, pursue diplomacy and maintain what it said was

A choir sings outside the Royal Palace in Oslo. – REUTERSPIC

“An era has ended. A new one begins. The king is dead. Long live the king,” Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said in a speech shortly after meeting the new monarch on Friday. City halls across Norway put out condolence books yesterday

Haakon is due to address the Norwegian public in the coming days, and will swear an oath of allegiance in its main chamber on Tuesday. The 53-year-old takes over a monarchy hailed for its modernity and modesty.

for the public to write personal messages. One of the first to write a message in Oslo’s City Hall, Unni Zetterquist Thorsen, 68, said she had thanked the late king for his “patience and strength through difficult times in Norway”. – AFP

Address economic hardship, supreme leader tells Iran govt

market for goods and services,” according to a written statement attributed to Mojtaba. President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iranian exports and imports had slumped nearly 35%. In yesterday’s statement, Iran said diplomacy and defence were “inseparable wings” for protecting national interests, security and territorial integrity. It said it would pursue both tracks in a balanced manner. – Reuters

at an impasse and President Donald Trump’s administration has stepped up efforts to punish Iran financially. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei called on the government to tackle the economic hardship. “There is the need to seriously address the chain of economic and livelihood challenges, such as inflation, unemployment, management of prices and the

control over the Strait of Hormuz. The government said in a statement that addressing economic pressures was a central focus, including curbing inflation, managing markets, creating jobs, directing investment towards domestic production and reducing dependence on the dollar. Six months after the US and Israel assassinated Iran’s former supreme leader, negotiations are