Israel's Minister of Foreign Affairs, Gideon Sa'ar continues to hold a "marathon of calls" with his counterparts around the world after the launch of 'Operation Rising Lion' by Israel Defence Forces (IDF) against Iran to remove the "Iranian threat of annihilation", the country's Foreign Ministry said on Friday.

One of the first conversations Sa'ar held early Friday morning was with German Foreign Minister Wadephul. Sa'ar informed his German counterpart of the unanimous Cabinet decision and the subsequent IDF action.

"We made this decision at the last possible minute, after all other avenues had been exhausted. The whole world saw and understood that the Iranians were not ready to stop and we had to stop them. The latest IAEA report illustrated the serious Iranian violations. We know that challenging days lie ahead, but we have no other choice," Sa'ar told the German Foreign Minister.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Friday called Israel's attack on Iran a ‘unilateral action’, asserting that the US had no involvement.

The statement came after Israel launched major airstrikes against Iran in the early hours of Friday, significantly escalating tensions in the region and raising the spectre of a broader conflict between the long-standing rivals.

“Tonight, Israel took unilateral action against Iran. We are not involved in strikes against Iran and our top priority is protecting American forces in the region. Israel advised us that they believe this action was necessary for its self-defense. President Trump and the Administration have taken all necessary steps to protect our forces and remain in close contact with our regional partners. Let me be clear: Iran should not target U.S. interests or personnel,” said Rubio.

Ukraine and Russia on Thursday carried out the second phase of a prisoner exchange involving seriously ill and severely wounded captives, according to Ukrainian authorities.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said on Telegram that servicemen from the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the National Guard and the State Border Guard Service were among those released.

Meanwhile, the Russian Defence Ministry said another group of Russian servicemen have returned from Ukrainian captivity and are currently receiving necessary medical and psychological assistance in Belarus, news agency reported.

Texas National Guard troops are "on standby" in areas across the state where protests are expected against the Trump administration's ongoing immigration raids, a spokesperson for Texas Republican Governor Greg Abbott has said.

"Texas will not tolerate the lawlessness we have seen in Los Angeles," Abbott's spokesperson, Andrew Mahaleris, said in a statement on Wednesday (local time). "Anyone engaging in acts of violence or damaging property will be swiftly held accountable to the full extent of the law."

The advocacy group Immigrant Families and Students in the Fight, known as FIEL, is organising a "Chant Down the Walls" protest in Houston on Friday. Additionally, "No Kings" protests are scheduled for Saturday in more than two dozen Texas cities, including Houston, Austin, Lubbock, and Longview, according to a report by the Texas Tribune.

Tokyo on Thursday raised serious concerns over the incident of a near-miss collision between a Chinese aircraft and a Japanese Maritime Self-Defence Force (MSDF) patrol plane over international waters in the Pacific and urged Beijing to avoid any such recurrence.

Addressing a press conference, Japanese Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said that Japan's stance was conveyed to China through diplomatic and defence channels over the incident.

"The government has raised serious concerns with the Chinese side, including to the Chinese ambassador in Tokyo, through the vice minister of foreign affairs, and has strongly urged them to prevent such incidents from recurring," Hayashi said

"We decline to comment on what China intended (by the manoeuvres), but these peculiar approaches by the Chinese military aircraft could have caused a collision," Hayashi said.

The United States has reportedly gone on high alert amid growing concerns of a potential Israeli strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, local media reported.

The Trump administration is fearing that Israel may act unilaterally without Washington's consent if negotiations between the US and Iran collapse, according to the Washington Post.

President Donald Trump, addressing the situation on Wednesday, stated that US personnel are being moved out of certain Middle Eastern regions, particularly Iran, due to the escalating risk of conflict.

"They (US personnel) are being moved out because it could be a dangerous place, and we will see what happens... We have given notice to move out," Trump told reporters.

South Korean companies spent a record amount of 83.6 trillion won ($61.1 billion) on research and development (R&D) projects last year as part of efforts to enhance their competitiveness amid an intensifying global technology war, government data showed on Thursday.

The latest reading marks a 15.3 percent increase from the 72.5 trillion-won R&D investments made in 2023, according to the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy.

The tally is a combination of investments made by the top 1,000 companies here in terms of R&D spending, reports news agency. Among the 1,000 companies, 709 increased their spending last year, while 291 reduced their investment.

Tech behemoth Samsung Electronics Co. spent the highest amount of 30.2 trillion won in R&D in 2024, followed by its chipmaking rival SK hynix Inc. at 4.5 trillion won, leading car manufacturer Hyundai Motor Co. at 4.3 trillion won and home appliances maker LG Electronics Inc. at 3.4 trillion won.

US President Donald Trump has officially launched a new immigration pathway for wealthy foreigners, dubbed the "gold card", offering a route to permanent residency in exchange for a $5 million payment to the government.

The long-discussed program was unveiled on Wednesday through a new government-backed website, trumpcard.gov, where interested individuals can now register their details to join the waiting list.

"For five million $dollars, the Trump card is coming," the US President declared in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social.

"Thousands have been calling and asking how they can sign up to ride a beautiful road in gaining access to the Greatest Country and Market anywhere in the World," he added.

An Australian man is facing life in prison after being charged by federal authorities over his alleged involvement in a US drug trafficking operation.

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) and Australian Border Force (ABF) said on Thursday that the 38-year-old man from Sydney has been charged with five offences relating to his alleged involvement in the US operation that imported 48 kg of illicit drugs into Australia.

The man was arrested on Tuesday following an investigation that began in December 2023 after ABF officers intercepted 24 separate consignments from the US containing illicit drugs over a three-month span, reports news agency.

A total of 1,212 bodies of Ukrainian servicemen killed in the conflict with Russia have returned home, Ukraine's Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War said Wednesday.

The repatriation of the deceased was made possible with the help of the Ukrainian Armed Forces, the Ministry of Internal Affairs and other agencies, said the statement.

The agency also expressed gratitude to the International Committee of the Red Cross for its support in facilitating the return of the bodies, news agency reported.

The return is part of a deal made during the talks between Russia and Ukraine in Turkey's Istanbul on June 2. Under the agreement, the first stage of the prisoner swap was carried out on Monday.