Israeli airstrikes flattened homes in Gaza on Saturday and Palestinian rocket barrages into southern Israel persisted for a second day, raising fears of another major escalation in the Mideast conflict. Gaza’s health ministry said 24 people had been killed so far in the coastal strip, including six children. The fighting …

An ambitious new Russian maritime strategy introduced this week aims to challenge the global reach of the U.S. Navy, but it remains to be seen whether the plan is more than Moscow’s standard bravado, analysts say. The 55-page document, signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday during the country’s …

Senior US official accuses Beijing of playing both sides in the Middle East’s race for drone technology. Unmanned drones fired by Iran-backed militias at targets across the Middle East in recent years, sometimes with lethal effect, are being supplied from China, a senior US official revealed. Barbara Leaf, the State …