Briefly

UNITED KINGDOM

Pressure mounts on Starmer to resign

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer faced mounting pressure to resign after several junior government ministers quit on Thursday, accusing him of political drift, while some party members positioned themselves for potential challenges to his leadership. The governing Labour Party suffered heavy losses in local elections last week, sparking growing divisions within the party, just under two years after Starmer won a large majority on a vow to bring stability and end a decade of political chaos.

MIDDLE EAST

Hamas seeks direct meeting with Fatah

Hamas on Thursday called for a direct meeting with the Palestinian National Liberation Movement, or Fatah, on a joint "national strategy" after the conclusion of Fatah's eighth general conference, urging both sides to formulate a joint "national strategy" to "confront Israeli plans" and advance Palestinian reconciliation. Hossam Badran, head of Hamas' Office of National Relations and a member of its political bureau, said the time had come to move beyond past divisions and focus on collective responsibility. The three-day Fatah conference, held simultaneously in Ramallah, Gaza, Cairo and Beirut, reelected Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas as the movement's leader.

CUBA

CIA director confers with Havana officials

John Ratcliffe, director of the US Central Intelligence Agency, or CIA, met with Cuban officials in Havana on Thursday over "intelligence cooperation, economic stability, and security issues", NBC News reported, citing a CIA official. Ratcliffe visited Cuba "to personally deliver President (Donald) Trump's message that the United States is prepared to seriously engage on economic and security issues, but only if Cuba makes fundamental changes", said the CIA official. Earlier on Thursday, the Cuban government issued a statement confirming that the meetings took place at Washington's request.

Agencies - Xinhua