WORLD @ GLANCE

Iran accuses the US of bombing civilian infrastructure

Iran on Friday accused the United States of bombing civilian infrastructure in its latest wave of airstrikes since peace talks collapsed last week.

The Iranian state media are reporting that bridges, a train station and an airport were among the sites hit.

Officials said the strikes have killed dozens of people and wounded hundreds of others, with new casualties reported on Friday.

The airstrikes are part of US President Donald Trump’s threat to start hitting infrastructure in order to pressurise Tehran to ease its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran responded by launching new missile attacks against US-allied nations in the Middle East, including Qatar, a key mediator in the war.

It also damaged a power and water desalination plant in Kuwait, which is crucial infrastructure in the desert nation.

Since the interim ceasefire agreed to last month collapsed, the region has endured days of back-and-forth attacks by the US and Iran as they battle for control of the strait.

Tehran effectively closed the waterway to shipping traffic after Washington and Israel launched the war on February 28.

That sent the price of oil soaring and gave Iran major leverage in negotiations.

The renewed conflict has again cut off global energy supplies from the Middle East. — Wires

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Senegal’s Faye, former President Macky Sall hold high-stakes meeting

Senegal’s ex-President Macky Sall, who is campaigning to become the next United  Nations Secretary-General, held a meeting in Dakar on Friday with his successor, a visit criticised by the former leader’s detractors.

The trip marked the first time that Sall, who led the nation between 2012 and 2024, has returned to the West African country since leaving office in April 2024.

Sall came to update President Bassirou Diomaye Faye “on his candidacy for the position of Secretary-General of the UN”, the Senegalese presidency said after the meeting.

“Soliciting the support of his country, (Sall) committed to regularly updating the Head of State at each step of the procedure,” the presidency said on X.

More than 1 000 supporters turned out in the heat to welcome Sall mid-afternoon at a military airport in Dakar, where he greeted the crowd from atop a vehicle.

Sall stands accused by the current government of violent political repression that led to dozens of deaths during his last years in office, and of covering up unfavourable economic data.

The meeting has sparked controversy within Faye’s camp, which has been divided since he dismissed Prime Minister Ousmane Sonko, once a staunch ally.

Sall left Senegal shortly before 8pm (2000 GMT).

Burundi, which holds the rotating African Union presidency, nominated Sall earlier this year for the UN Secretary-General position. One of Faye’s political advisers, Alioune Ibnou Abitalib Sow, announced his resignation on Friday in protest at Sall’s visit.

“He is responsible for a large part of the troubles the country is facing today,” Sow posted on X.

“Senegalese people have died, and families are still waiting for the truth,” he added.

Sall, who has lived in Morocco since leaving Senegal, had announced on Tuesday that he would travel to Dakar to meet with Faye.

A collective denouncing the crackdown under Sall described his visit as an “incident” and demanded answers regarding the deaths that took place during his tenure. – Wires