Top Pentagon officials say the U.S. military has deployed a dozen additional warplanes to bolster protection of American and coalition troops making a final withdrawal from Afghanistan as Taliban insurgents step up pressure on Afghan government forces.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — The United States and Iran are in active talks over the release of prisoners, a person familiar with the discussions said Sunday as Washington denied a report by Iranian state-run television that deals had been struck.

WASHINGTON – Afghan government forces face an uncertain future and, in a worst-case scenario, some “bad possible outcomes” against Taliban insurgents as the withdrawal of American and coalition troops accelerates in the coming weeks, the top U.S. military officer said Sunday.

KABUL, Afghanistan – The final phase of ending America’s “forever war” in Afghanistan after 20 years formally began Saturday, with the withdrawal of the last U.S. and NATO troops by the end of summer.

KABUL, Afghanistan — Afghanistan's chief peace negotiator said Saturday the often fractured Afghan political leadership must unify in its peace talks with the Taliban or risk the withdrawal of U.S. and NATO troops bringing more bitter fighting.

LONDON — The leader of Northern Ireland announced her resignation on Wednesday after members of her British unionist party mounted a push to oust her over her handling of the fallout from Brexit and other issues.

Russia's top diplomat said Wednesday that relations with the United States are now even worse than during Cold War times because of a lack of mutual respect.

WASHINGTON – Ten years after they found and killed Osama bin Laden, U.S. Navy SEALs are undergoing a major transition to improve leadership and expand their commando capabilities to better battle threats from global powers like China and Russia.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – An American warship fired warning shots when vessels of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard came too close to a patrol in the Persian Gulf, the U.S. Navy said Tuesday night.

WASHINGTON — The State Department on Tuesday ordered a significant number of its remaining staff at the U.S. Embassy in Kabul to leave Afghanistan as the military steps up the pullout of American troops from the country.

N'DJAMENA, Chad — Thousands protested and two people were killed in Chad Tuesday in demonstrations against the rule of a transitional military council headed by the son of the late President Idriss Deby Itno, who died last week.

YANGON, Myanmar — Protesters in Myanmar’s largest city braved potential violence by security forces on Monday to demonstrate against February’s military coup, showing their resolve to continue their resistance two days after Southeast Asian leaders met to address the country’s crisis.

RAMBOUILLET, France — French authorities detained a fourth person Saturday as anti-terrorism investigators questioned three others, seeking to establish a motive and uncover any possible ties to extremism after a police official was fatally stabbed at a police station outside Paris.

JERUSALEM — Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip fired some three dozen rockets into Israel overnight Saturday, while the Israeli military struck back at targets operated by the ruling Hamas group. The exchange came as tensions in Jerusalem spilled over into the worst round of cross-border violence in months.

JAKARTA, Indonesia — Southeast Asian leaders demanded an immediate end to killings and the release of political detainees in Myanmar in an emergency summit with its top general and coup leader Saturday in the Indonesian capital, Indonesia's president said.

British authorities apologized Thursday after an investigation found that at least 161,000 mostly African and Indian military service personnel who died during World War I weren’t properly honored due to “pervasive racism.” It said that number could possibly range up to 350,000.

JERUSALEM – The Israeli military said Thursday a Syrian missile that reached deep into Israeli territory and set off air raid sirens near the country’s top-secret nuclear reactor was the result of a misfire and not a deliberate attack.

"Everyone knew Franz Schneider," said Mike Herzog, a former pupil and colleague of Schneider's.

BRUSSELS — The European Union's foreign policy chief said Monday that in the face of the big military buildup of Russian troops near Ukraine's borders, it will only take “a spark” to set off a confrontation.