International news from Tuesday, March 31st, 2026

At least seven people were killed and 24 wounded in two Israeli strikes in the Beirut area, the Lebanese health ministry said on Wednesday, in attacks that hit vehicles in Beirut's southern outskirts and in an area just south of the capital.

A Russian An-26 military transport plane crashed into a cliff in Crimea, killing 29 people on board, Russian news agencies reported the country's defence ministry as saying early on Wednesday.

Iran has asked the United States for a ceasefire, President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post on Wednesday, adding Washington would consider this once the Strait of Hormuz was open.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Tuesday the next few days in the war against Iran would be decisive and warned Tehran the conflict would intensify if it did not make a deal, while Iran said it will target US companies in the region from Wednesday.

China and Pakistan on Tuesday called for an immediate ceasefire in the Gulf and the wider Middle East, urging the swift launch of peace talks and the restoration of normal navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, as their foreign ministers met in Beijing.

Bangladesh is considering introducing partial online classes in schools as part of austerity measures to ease pressure from the global energy crisis and domestic constraints.

A large fire broke out at a petrochemicals plant in Russia's Tatarstan region on Tuesday, killing at least three people, including a firefighter, and injuring dozens.

Three Chinese ships have recently sailed through the Strait of Hormuz after coordination with relevant parties, a foreign ministry spokesperson told a regular daily press briefing on Tuesday, while calling for peace and stability in the Gulf Region.

Three United Nations peacekeepers from Indonesia have been killed in two separate incidents in southern Lebanon after a weekend that killed Lebanese journalists and medics in Israeli strikes.

Saudi Arabia announced on Tuesday that debris from an intercepted drone fell on three houses and a number of vehicles in a residential neighbourhood in Al-Kharj governorate, leaving two individuals injured.

Japan and Indonesia have agreed to step up coordination on energy security, Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi said on Tuesday, as the US-Israeli war on Iran squeezes oil and gas supplies vital to Asia.

A Mexican immigrant has died in US immigration custody in Los Angeles on March 25, US Immigration and Customs Enforcement announced on Monday, marking at least 14 deaths in ICE custody in 2026 and prompting criticism from the Mexican government.

Russian attacks on central and northern Ukrainian regions on Monday have killed two people and injured more than 20, regional officials said.