After the Houthi armed group in Yemen launched attacks on government military camps and gatherings last week using one-way attack drones, it killed and injured dozens of government soldiers. But the internationally recognised Yemeni government was quick to retaliate by employing remotely operated drones to attack Houthi fighters on the front lines. That development is significant in Yemen's decadelong conflict because it highlights the growing use of drones on the battlefield. Government military units have repeatedly broadcast video footage showing drones tracking their targets, dropping bombs, killing fighters, destroying armoured vehicles and damaging hideouts. "The government side is now acquiring a potentially important tactical capability of its own," said Marius Bales, a doctoral researcher at the Bonn International Centre for Conflict Studies.

Iraqi Kurdish PM Barzani's office targeted in drone attack The office of the prime minister of Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has been targeted in a drone attack, the region's security agency said, adding that there were no reports of casualties. The statement said the home of the head of the semi-autonomous Iraqi region's security and intelligence agency had also been targeted by drones early on Monday. "Two Hadid-110 drones targeted the private office of the Prime Minister of the Kurdistan Regional Government and the residence of the Security Directorate", the Kurdistan Counter-Terrorism Service said in a statement cited by Iraq's state news agency. The statement confirmed that no casualties were reported. In a post on X, KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani condemned the attack as "illegitimate and unacceptable".

Between cartel threats and U.S. airstrikes, Ecuador fishers have nowhere to hide Fishers unload their fresh catch near a market in Manta, Ecuador, on June 4. JARAMIJO/SAN MATEO, ECUADOR - At first light on Ecuador's Pacific coast, small fishing boats fan out from the villages of San Mateo and Jaramijo, their bows pointed toward deeper waters and the promise of a good catch. Other boats come in from the rolling surf to battered coves, where crews unload baskets of tuna and swordfish and traders rush to inspect the day's haul. The scene belies the dangers some fishers face pushing out into these waters. Onshore, drug cartels have turned the small ports of Ecuador's Manabi province into a cocaine-trafficking hub, extorting local fishers who are prized for their navigation skills. The cartels present an impossible choice: earn more than a year's legal income smuggling drugs, or face extortion, threats and violence.

Rakuten Group is working with defense AI startup Helsing to bring the German company's military drones to Japan. The Tokyo-based online shopping mall operator served as the point of contact between Helsing and the Japanese government, according to a Rakuten spokesperson. The country's Ground Self-Defense Force will conduct field tests of Helsing drones through the end of September, he said, without providing further details. The tie-up, which would be one of Helsing's first partnerships in the Asia-Pacific region, was first reported by the Nikkei. Japan, which for decades restricted arms exports, has been stepping up defense spending, and the country's companies have followed suit. E-commerce pioneer Rakuten has shifted some of its focus to the sector: It's partnered with a Ukrainian government agency to develop defense technologies, while subsidiary Rakuten Mobile has taken part in joint U.S.-Japan military trials of mobile technologies.

Is the war entering a new phase? At least six people killed in Ukrainian missile attack on Russia's Belgorod At least six people have been killed and four others, including a 14-year-old, have been wounded in a Ukrainian missile strike on western Russia's Belgorod region. The Ukrainian attack on Monday hit the village of Koloskovo in the Valuysky district, acting Belgorod Governor Alexander Shuvaev said on the state-backed MAX platform. Shuvaev said a structure was "burned" and a vehicle damaged in the attack. At the same time, Russian forces launched missile and drone attacks across Ukraine, killing at least four people and wounding 19. At least two people were killed and four injured in a Russian attack on the southeastern region of Zaporizhia.

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Is the war entering a new phase? Ukraine launched hundreds of drones across Russia, killing at least six people and striking a Wildberries logistics hub near Moscow. Russia claimed to have intercepted 822 drones. Who is DEI critic and Jason Arday accuser, Nathan Cofnas? Doctor describes amputating girl's leg in Gaza without anaesthesia

To play this video you need to enable JavaScript in your browser. At least seven people have been killed in Russia after what officials called the largest-scale attack launched by Ukraine this year. Some 822 drones were used - 600 aiming for Moscow, according to its regional governor who said the Russian capital had suffered one of the most massive drone attacks in recent memory. A warehouse belonging to Russian online retailer Wildberries was hit. Russian attacks on Ukraine also killed at least seven people and injured more than 39.

British-made drones are being used to strike targets in Russia for the first time. The drones, built by two separate British companies, have been used in mainland Russia in widespread and successful targeting of military and industrial targets, including refineries and warehouses of online retailer Wildberries. The strikes, first reported by the Sunday Times, external, are said to have caused more than £35bn in economic damage. A well-placed military source confirmed to the BBC the UK drones had been used. British manufactured Storm Shadow missiles had earlier been used in the conflict, although this new phase is having a far more decisive impact.

Is the war entering a new phase? Russian strikes on Ukraine have killed at least one person and wounded seven more while a Spanish jet has shot down a drone that entered Romanian airspace. A woman was killed and six others wounded in a missile and drone attack on Kryvyi Rig, the hometown of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, the region's governor said early on Sunday. Separately, Romania's Defence Ministry reported on Sunday that a Spanish F-18 fighter jet pilot on a NATO air policing mission to Romania had shot down a drone illegally breaching its national airspace. It is the fourth drone shot down in Romania this year .