Stock indexes closed higher on Wall Street. The S&P 500 added 0.2% Friday. Tech stocks led the way, with Dell Technologies in a stunning 32.8% gain. The Dow added 0.7%, and the Nasdaq composite rose 0.2%. European and Asian markets mostly rose. Brent crude fell 1.7%.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) – Naval mines bobbing in the waters of the Persian Gulf, threatening oil tankers. Iranian speed boats raking ships with machine-gun fire in the Strait of Hormuz. And the United States right in the middle of the fight.

SINGAPORE (AP) – China’s rapid military modernization and assertiveness in the Indo-Pacific and growing concerns over American priorities are top issues on the table at Asia’s premier defense summit drawing leaders, top diplomats and security officials from around the world.

BAGHDAD (AP) – Iran has granted its commanders greater autonomy over militias in Iraq, allowing some groups to carry out operations without Tehran’s approval, a shift driven by the pressures of the war, three militia members and two other officials told The Associated Press.

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) – Dozens of Palestinians in Gaza City gathered on Thursday for funeral prayers for 10 people killed in Israeli strikes the night before, including five children and an elderly person, as well as a Hamas militant.

BAGHDAD (AP) – Aboard an oil tanker plying the tense waters between the Gulf of Oman and the Strait of Hormuz, Iraqi Captain Rahman Al-Jubouri continues to work in one of the world’s most volatile maritime corridors, where the U.S.-Israel war with Iran has disrupted global trade and left some crews stranded and exposed to attacks.

Excerpts from recent editorials in the United States and abroad:

BAGHDAD (AP) – Iraq’s parliament voted Saturday to elect Nizar Amidi, a political official with one of the country’s two main Kurdish parties, as president, five months after a parliamentary election that didn’t produce a bloc with a decisive majority.