Ismail Haniyeh, leader of the Palestinian Islamist terror group Hamas, will visit Turkey on Friday to hold talks with Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, Turkish national television news channel NTV said on Wednesday."I will host the leader of the Palestinian cause at the weekend. We will discuss a number of issues," Erdogan earlier told lawmakers from his AK Party in parliament, once again calling Hamas a "liberation movement."

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday that Iran's attack on Israel was the latest signal of the intent of a "new league of authoritarians," mentioning Russia and North Korea as well.Speaking at a defense and security conference in Brussels, she added that this league is working to tear up international rules-based order and to stretch democracies to a breaking point.

Iran's navy is escorting Iranian commercial ships to the Red Sea, Naval Commander Shahram Irani said on Wednesday according to Iran-associated semi-official Tasnim news agency.

Iranian authorities rescued 21 Sri Lankan crewmen from a Cook Islands-flagged tanker sinking in the Gulf of Oman, about 30 miles off the coast of Jask, the state news agency IRNA reported on Wednesday.The unnamed tanker suffered damage about 30 miles (50 km) off the coast of Jask in Iran due to a storm, the report said.Five of the crewmen received medical care from Jask emergency services and were in good physical condition, the report added. It did not say when the rescue took place.