Today In Issues:
FDD Research & Analysis
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Israel, Lebanon sign initial agreement after US-mediated talks Iran cyberattacks on Israel surged in 2026, Israeli cyber chief says Report: IDF told Hamas is rebuilding, readying for war U.S. and Iran agree to halt days of fighting over strait Deal with Trump hands Iran economic lifeline as leaders eye postwar gains Iran must develop nuclear bomb to protect ‘peace and calm,’ IRGC media says — despite pledge to Trump WSJ Editorial: Iran Is winning the battle of Hormuz Russians feel the war’s hardships as Ukraine pummels Crimea Putin says Russia will press on with front-line campaign regardless of Ukraine proposals Hezbollah rejects US-brokered Israel-Lebanon security deal as 'surrender' Trump presses Syria to take on Hezbollah, raising alarm in Lebanon and Israel Washington Examiner Editorial: Erdogan’s Turkey is no place for the F-35In The News
Israel
Israel and Lebanon signed a framework agreement in Washington on Friday following several days of talks to secure an end to fighting between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah militants, though both sides framed the deal as an initial step. – Reuters
Israel’s former military chief Gadi Eisenkot, who lost a son in Gaza and boasts of his “Dahiyeh doctrine” of smashing foes with disproportionate force, is surging in polls and could oust Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister in a coming election. – Reuters
The number of Iranian cyberattacks against Israel has shot up since the launch of the U.S.-Israeli offensive against Iran this year, a senior Israeli security official was quoted as saying on Monday. – Reuters
Israel’s Cabinet unanimously approved a proposal on Sunday to designate violence against Armenians by the Ottoman Empire during World War I as a genocide. The step, which still needs approval in Parliament, reflects deteriorating ties between Israel and Turkey. – Associated Press
When American and Israeli warplanes struck Iran on Feb. 28, Israeli officials let themselves believe the alliance was entering a golden age. Four months later, they are bracing for a future where Israel stands more alone than ever. – Politico
Mia Schem was shot in the arm at point-blank range by a Hamas gunman, losing five litres of blood as she was dragged by terrorists into Gaza. There, she was held like an ‘animal in a cage’, and told she would never return to her home in Israel, but would instead be married off to a man in the Palestinian enclave. – Daily Mail
The new Slovenian Prime Minister, Janez Jansa, plans to repair ties between Ljubljana and Jerusalem and relocate the Slovenian embassy from Tel Aviv to the capital of Israel. – Jerusalem Post
The IDF is charging into space in order to be ready for challenges expected in future wars, IDF Technology and Digital Chief Brig.-Gen. Yael Grosman told The Jerusalem Post in a recent exclusive interview. – Jerusalem Post
The IDF killed a Hamas terrorist who participated in the October 7, 2023, massacre, the military confirmed on Sunday. The terrorist was identified as Abd al-Rahman Maher Abd al-Karim Ziyada, a Nukhba Force commander in Hamas’s Izzadin al-Qassam Brigades. – Jerusalem Post
Mass civilian protests planned across the Gaza Strip against Hamas leadership on Friday were subdued by threats and intimidation from the terror group, according to Hebrew media reports. – Jerusalem Post
The Israel-Lebanon framework agreement, signed last week, explicitly preserves the Israel Defense Force’s full freedom to act against threats in the southern Lebanon security zone, an official familiar with its contents told The Times of Israel on Sunday. – Times of Israel
Senior officials in the IDF Intelligence Directorate and Southern Command warned IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir last week that Hamas’ military wing is rebuilding its capabilities and preparing for another round of fighting, Kan News reported on Sunday. – Arutz Sheva
Editorial: While the optimism is refreshing after a period of diplomatic setbacks, Israelis would be justified in approaching the framework with caution, given the failures of previous ceasefire agreements. The agreement, as published by the US State Department, repeatedly invokes the word “peace.” The shared hope for a stable and prosperous northern border is evident throughout the document. But, as is so often the case in the Middle East, the true test will be determined on the ground, in southern Lebanon – by whether Hezbollah is genuinely disarmed, whether the Lebanese state is willing and able to enforce its sovereignty, and whether the commitments made on paper survive an encounter with reality. – Jerusalem Post
Eran Ortal writes: The IDF can and should set an example of how drone warfare can regain battlefield initiative and restore deep and rapid maneuverability, thus reclaiming Israel’s characteristic dominance in short wars. Doing so will help not only with Israel’s own war strategy but also make it a more attractive and valuable ally. Ben-Gurion’s principles, in other words, are still valid. Our means of warfare need to change, so as to extricate Israel from the trap of wars of attrition that weaken it politically, socially, economically, and militarily. Such a shift could also reduce dependence on imports and security assistance and reestablish the mutually beneficial nature of our alliance with the U.S. – a partnership based on cutting edge technology and strategic success. – Newsweek
Dan Perry writes: Yet Muslims account for only about 7% of the combined population of the EU and Britain, and no serious demographic forecast suggests a future Muslim majority. So the schadenfreude is based on a mirage. Recognizing Europe’s importance does not diminish the importance of the United States, which remains Israel’s indispensable ally. But Israel simply cannot afford to treat Europe as a secondary concern or a lost cause. Losing Europe would be devastating, and Israelis need to understand this and recalibrate. – Jerusalem Post
Yaakov Katz writes: Since October 7, of course, Israeli-Turkish relations have reached new lows, and while they might seem lost, there may also be room for de-escalation. Economic interests have a way of reopening doors, and Azerbaijan – because of its ties to both countries and stake in Israel’s strategic gas field – could be uniquely positioned to help lower the temperature and eventually rebuild some channel of communication. These are only two examples, but they point to the larger lesson. Israel cannot remain trapped in the language of betrayal. It cannot spend the next six months nursing grievances over what Trump did or did not do. What Israel needs now is a plan to preserve its freedom of action and to use the new regional situation not only to fight better wars, but to create a stronger strategic position for the years ahead. – Jerusalem Post
Iran
The U.S. and Iran have agreed to end days of back-and-forth fighting around the Strait of Hormuz and resume peace talks, said officials from the U.S. and other countries involved in the negotiations. – Wall Street Journal
The preliminary peace agreement between the United States and Iran, a broad framework still taking shape in early rounds of talks, hands Iran’s leadership a major economic lifeline as Tehran looks to consolidate strategic gains after months of war with Israel and the United States. – Washington Post
The four-day cycle of attacks that Iran set off with the United States over the Strait of Hormuz has risked derailing the newly reached cease-fire in a war both sides are eager to end. Yet for Iran, analysts say, it was a necessary gambit. – New York Times
UAE Foreign Minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed on Friday stressed the need to protect maritime corridors and ensure freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz in a call with his Iranian counterpart Abbas Araqchi. – Reuters
The United Nations is working with countries to resume the evacuation of hundreds of ships and thousands of stranded seafarers from the Strait of Hormuz after the effort was halted earlier this week, a top U.N. agency official said on Friday. – Reuters
The Trump administration’s effort to unwind decades of sanctions as part of a deal to end the war with Iran has created a head-spinning situation for governments, banks and other companies as they contemplate a shifting patchwork of new permissions and old restrictions. – Bloomberg
Iran’s top diplomat warned Sunday that any attempt to bypass the Strait of Hormuz routes agreed with the United States would “increase tensions” in the Middle East, as the countries traded attacks and accusations of violating a fragile ceasefire in the region. – Agence France-Presse
Iran has “no choice” but to develop a nuclear bomb, a media outlet linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said — the latest threat to the peace deal. The article, titled “No choice but to build the atomic bomb,” claims that Iran must negotiate with its enemies from a position of strength, and was published by Iranian state news outlet Fars on Sunday. – New York Post
Two of the targets struck by US Central Command (CENTCOM) in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday night were newly built by the Iranians, a source familiar with the details told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday, while others were targets that had not been attacked before. – Jerusalem Post
Iranian Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi called for a ‘Global Week of Action for a Free Iran’ coinciding with the Iranian regime’s planned burial of former supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, beginning on July 4. – Jerusalem Post
The issue of Iran’s human rights abuses was not sufficiently tackled during the diplomatic negotiations between Washington and Tehran, the Council of Europe determined as it adopted a new resolution based on the report by German parliamentarian Max Lucks last week. – Jerusalem Post
While peace negotiations between senior officials of the Islamic Republic and the United States continue in Switzerland, more than 75 million internet users in Iran are still contending with heavily restricted online access. – Jerusalem Post
Editorial: The U.S. needs the leverage for nuclear negotiations, and it was never wise to give Iran a blank check. All the more so now that the regime isn’t respecting the deal, which mandates a cease-fire as well as Iran’s “best efforts for the safe passage of commercial vessels.” That means don’t shoot at them, for starters. More U.S. “love taps” against Iranian targets won’t impress the hard men in Tehran. They behave as if they have escalation dominance because they think Mr. Trump won’t return to war before the midterm elections. They don’t believe Mr. Trump’s social-media bluster because they see his reluctance to enforce the cease-fire terms. In the bigger strategic picture, the regime is leaving the President a choice: surrender Hormuz to Iranian terror or fight for it, like he always should have once he started the war, and reopen the Strait by force. – Wall Street Journal
Hamid Shirvani writes: The success of the memorandum is far from guaranteed. The next 60 days may reveal obstacles that neither Washington nor Tehran can overcome. Yet history occasionally advances because leaders choose to test possibilities that others dismiss as impossible. […] Their central proposition appears straightforward: Economic integration may accomplish what isolation could not. That proposition may ultimately prove right or wrong, but it is a proposition worthy of serious consideration. Its greatest achievement will be demonstrating that prosperity can sometimes accomplish what confrontation cannot. After nearly half a century of mistrust, that possibility alone is worth serious consideration. – Washington Examiner
Russia and Ukraine
For more than four years, Vladimir Putin has tried to shield Russians from the hardships of war. But in Crimea, residents and tourists drawn to its sandy beaches are now enduring the conflict’s costs firsthand. – Wall Street Journal
The Kremlin is scrambling to respond to an intensifying campaign of Ukrainian drone attacks reaching ever deeper into Russia, hitting key arms production facilities, destroying an ever-greater share of oil-refining capacity, and causing fuel shortages across the country. – Washington Post
Since Russia launched its full-scale invasion, partly from the territory of Belarus, Ukraine has handled relations with its northern neighbor cautiously. It did not sever diplomatic relations and kept open lines of communication with President Aleksandr G. Lukashenko, Belarus’s longtime autocrat. – New York Times
Russia’s ruling party on Sunday announced it would run an injured Ukraine war veteran and a television war correspondent, alongside the country’s foreign minister and the mayor of Moscow, as lead candidates in a parliamentary election due in September. – Reuters
Ukraine hit two Russian oil refineries in the regions of Krasnodar and Yaroslavl overnight, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Sunday, as Kyiv ramps up pressure on Russia’s fuel supply with its drone fleet. – Reuters
President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday that Russia will press ahead with its battlefield aim of fully capturing four Ukrainian regions, rejecting what he said was a new proposal by Ukraine to rein in hostilities in the more than four-year-old war. – Reuters
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko held talks on Friday, the Kremlin said, and discussions were expected to focus on the war in Ukraine. – Reuters
The Kremlin said on Friday it would look into a viral video appeal to President Vladimir Putin by a military veteran accusing Russian commanders in Ukraine of torturing and murdering soldiers for not fulfilling “suicidal orders”. – Reuters
Ukraine has brought home 160 servicemen from Russian captivity, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Friday. All of them had been held since 2022, he added in a statement on the Telegram messaging app. – Reuters
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov called on Friday for “clarification” of the U.S. role in trying to end the war in Ukraine. In written answers to media questions, Lavrov escalated an argument with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio about whether presidents Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump had reached an understanding on the outlines of a peace deal when they met in Alaska last year. – Reuters
The European Commission proposed on Friday to extend temporary protection for Ukrainians who have sought refuge in the European Union until March 2028, but curb access to protection for men of military age, underlining the need for flexibility as Russia’s war in Ukraine continues. – Reuters
New Russian recruits have a life expectancy of just 20 to 35 minutes in combat in Ukraine — showing how quickly Vladimir Putin’s troops are falling victim to drone warfare, according to chilling reports from Moscow. – New York Post
Dominic Pino writes: That faith appears to be on a firmer foundation in recent days, as Ukraine has struck Moscow hard and besieged Crimea with drone attacks cutting off Russian supply lines. Still, fighting could continue for years. Ukrainians are aware of that, yet they stay in places like Kharkiv and oppose accepting Russian occupation of any more of their territory as part of any peace deal. Seeing Bucha helped me understand why. Because what happened there is certainly happening in other areas taken over by Russia — areas that once were normal, and that determined Ukrainians want to make normal again. – Washington Post
Ani Chkhikvadze writes: Russian threats are thus aimed at limiting American action before Ukraine gains more leverage. But Trump should instead make this war more costly for Moscow by giving Ukraine the means to impose heavier costs on its enemy. The route to peace and Trump’s Nobel Peace Prize now runs through Russian discomfort. More weapons for Ukraine offer the strongest chance of forcing Moscow to reassess. Trump should act with resolve, because strength is the only language the Kremlin understands. – Washington Examiner
Hezbollah
The Israeli military has destroyed underground infrastructure used by Lebanese militant group Hezbollah in a village in southern Lebanon, according to a joint statement by the Israeli prime minister and defense minister on Sunday. – Reuters
Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem rejected a U.S.-brokered security agreement between Lebanon and Israel on Saturday a day after it was signed, describing it as a surrender to Israel. In the latest example of ongoing hostilities despite repeated ceasefires and agreements, Israel launched a drone strike in Lebanon’s south on Saturday. – Reuters
Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah warned on Sunday of “internal conflict” in Lebanon over the country’s agreement with Israel, which the Iran-backed militant group rejects, predicting that the deal would not be implemented. – Agence France-Presse
Lebanon
After Israel and Lebanon signed a preliminary agreement in Washington on Friday aimed at establishing a lasting peace between them, the reaction in Lebanon was immediate and sharply divided. – New York Times
In Dahiya, a maze of neighborhoods south of Beirut where the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah holds sway, traffic jams are back. Bakeries again pull trays of Lebanese flatbread from ovens. Cafes, draped in the flags of the nations competing in the World Cup, are filled with men and women watching the matches and lingering late into the night. – New York Times
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun welcomed on Friday France and Italy’s efforts to set up a multinational coalition to succeed the UN peacekeeping force in his country, whose mandate expires at the end of the year. – Agence France-Presse
David Hale writes: American, Lebanese, and Israeli leaders are showing their intent to avoid that trap. They are on the right path for Lebanese-Israeli stability, potentially opening a new chapter for these two peoples who have suffered from foreign use of Lebanon as a playground for their own conflicts and ambitions. Now is the time for swift implementation on the many encouraging elements of the June 26 document. As President Aoun rightly said, Lebanon is not a bargaining chip. It has been many decades since a Lebanese president not only would or could say that. Now, it is a statement of truth. All those who want to put the decades-long cycles of violence suffered by Lebanon and Israel need to build on this remarkable breakthrough. The choice for Lebanese is clear: continue with Iran’s policy of using Lebanon to fight its war with Israel, or join in a Lebanese strategy for peace. – This is Beirut
Gulf States
A helicopter operated by Saudi Arabia’s state oil company, Aramco, crashed in an area along the kingdom’s Persian Gulf coast on Sunday, killing all 14 people on board, the Saudi authorities said. – New York Times
For decades, people in the wealthy Gulf Arab nations watched the wars of the region unfold on their televisions. War happened to their neighbors — in Yemen, in Syria, in Gaza — but not to them. – New York Times
Qatar’s interior ministry said on Sunday a Qatari national was killed after sustaining injuries from shrapnel due to “military operations in the area” after a vessel carrying him and another person went missing. – Reuters
The United Arab Emirates said on Friday that a technical malfunction in its early warning system had led to incorrect messages being sent to residents about a possible missile threat. – Reuters
Oman has told European officials there’s no way of going back to the pre-war status quo with the Strait of Hormuz and transiting ships may have to be charged some fees, according to people familiar with the matter. – Bloomberg
The renewed Iranian attack marks a “dangerous escalation” that is part of a continued, targeted attack against Bahrain’s sovereignty, the Bahraini Foreign Ministry said in a statement on Sunday morning. – Jerusalem Post
Middle East & North Africa
Iraqi security forces arrested politicians and senior officials early on Sunday as part of a broader anti-corruption campaign ordered by Prime Minister Ali al‑Zaidi, a government spokesperson said. – Reuters
An explosive drone targeted a camp belonging to an Iranian Kurdish opposition group north of Iraq’s Erbil, security sources told Reuters on Saturday. No casualties were reported as the camp had recently been evacuated, the security sources added. – Reuters
As the White House has soured on Israel’s war with Hezbollah in Lebanon, U.S. President Donald Trump has shocked many in the region by pushing an alternative: Let Syria fight the Iran-backed militant group instead. – Associated Press
The number of people jailed pending trial on terrorism-related charges in Turkiye rose to 178 ahead of a NATO summit in the capital Ankara, state media reported on Saturday, citing the prosecutor’s office. – Agence France-Presse
Prominent Tunisian rights activist Sihem Bensedrine told AFP on Friday that she had been sentenced to 25 years in prison on charges including falsifying part of a transitional justice commission’s final report. – Agence France-Presse
Israeli troops stationed in southern Syria came under fire late Sunday night, the Israel Defense Forces said, marking the second confrontation in as many days on the relatively quiet front. – Times of Israel
Editorial: Trump should care less about Erdogan’s diplomatic friendship than he does about the lives of American aircrews and the viability of American war plans. Selling turkey F-35s would also signal personal weakness in the president, reflecting deferential submission to a foreign leader after years of disagreement. […] They will find bipartisan support in doing so. Because that is what an unqualified sale of the F-35 to Turkey would entail: jeopardy to American security. It would mean putting the patronage of an unpredictable, broadly anti-American ally before the security of America and its better allies. It would be intolerable. – Washington Examiner
Korean Peninsula
The faint smell of gas hangs over a laboratory at South Korea’s biggest refinery, where chemical analysts are working overtime trying to find ways to wean the sprawling facility off crude oil from the Persian Gulf. – New York Times
Never, ever fumble the silicon wafers. On a recent morning at Chungbuk Semiconductor High School, Kang Soo Jin, a 43-year-old teacher, was drilling this cardinal rule of semiconductor manufacturing into three students at her lab. – New York Times
South Korea and Japan on Sunday reaffirmed their commitment to the denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula and agreed to revive joint search-and-rescue drills in a step forward for security ties between the neighbouring countries. – Reuters
South Korea on Monday laid out a sweeping industrial strategy centred on semiconductors and artificial intelligence, as President Lee Jae Myung unveiled over $576 billion in investment to lock in global dominance and drive more balanced growth. – Reuters
South Korea’s former First Lady Kim Keon Hee was sentenced on Friday to seven years in jail for receiving bribes, after a court found her guilty of accepting luxury items such as jewellery and a Dior handbag in exchange for political favours. – Reuters
China
But U.S. adversaries are increasingly turning to China’s financial system and the yuan to conduct business. By bypassing the U.S.-led banking system, they weaken Washington’s enforcement powers. – Wall Street Journal
When Jiang Duntao shot up the ranks to become the top Communist Party official in Zibo, China, in 2019, he moved fast, pivoting the local economy from heavy industries toward higher-end manufacturing and services—while raising debt and tapping private investment to fund the projects. – Wall Street Journal
China is preparing new legal tools for striking back against economic pressure from abroad, raising risks for foreign businesses operating in the world’s second-largest economy. – Wall Street Journal
The Beijing authorities said on Saturday that a small aircraft had flown into the capital’s tallest building a day earlier, killing the pilot and injuring 13 others at the scene, in the first official confirmation of an event that has raised questions about the city’s security. – New York Times
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko met Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing for talks, the Belarusian presidential Telegram channel Pul Pervogo said on Monday. China-Belarus relations are at their “historic peak,” Pul Pervogo quoted Xi as telling Lukashenko. – Reuters
China on Friday stripped six military lawmakers, former financial regulator head Li Yunze and recently probed Politburo member Ma Xingrui of their posts in the National People’s Congress, the country’s top legislative body, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported. – Reuters
China is willing to establish a security partnership with Cambodia, President Xi Jinping said on Friday as he met with Hun Sen, president of Cambodia’s Senate, in Beijing. – Reuters
Bangladeshi Prime Minister Tarique Rahman urged Chinese leader Xi Jinping to help narrow the trade gap between the world’s No.2 economy and the South Asian state and help with the delivery of key infrastructure projects, during talks in Beijing on Friday. – Reuters
China and Russia conducted a joint strategic air patrol on June 27 over airspace spanning the Sea of Japan, the East China Sea and the western Pacific, according to China’s Ministry of National Defense. – Bloomberg
Chinese spies stealing Japanese industrial secrets in boardrooms. Chip smugglers ferrying Nvidia’s prized artificial intelligence semiconductors via Japan. Drug gangs quietly slipping fentanyl across Japan’s borders to a US opioid crisis. – Bloomberg
South Asia
Faced with one of its worst outbreaks of dengue in years, Sri Lanka is using military drones to scan rooftops and find mosquito breeding grounds to eliminate. – New York Times
Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi will visit India from July 1 to 3 for an annual bilateral summit between the countries, India’s foreign ministry said on Friday. – Reuters
Ousted former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has vowed to return to Bangladesh this year, brushing aside a death sentence handed down in absentia and denouncing the ruling as “illegal, unconstitutional and politically motivated.” – Reuters
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. is seeking to arrange a visit to India by President Donald Trump early next year as the countries work on a bilateral trade deal, Indian media outlet IANS reported on Saturday. – Reuters
A bomb and gun attack on a Sindh Rangers facility in Karachi killed three paramilitary troops and injured four on Saturday, Pakistan’s military said, as the country battles a surge in violence. – Reuters
Pakistan’s media regulator has suspended the broadcast licence of television channel Geo News for 15 days over content aired during a programme marking Muharram, one of the most sensitive periods in the Islamic calendar. – Reuters
Pakistan’s security forces carried out ground and air operations along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border on Sunday, killing at least 29 militants, while the Afghan Taliban said dozens had been killed in air strikes in its border areas. – Reuters
Asia
The skyline of Astana, the capital of Kazakhstan, is a physical reflection of the Central Asian nation’s approach to foreign affairs. A sign reading “Moscow” sits atop a Kazakh-Russian business center. Beside it is a pagoda-crowned luxury hotel owned by the Chinese state oil company. – New York Times
Australia and Vanuatu on Monday signed a development and security pact that had been delayed for months over Vanuatu’s concerns that it could stifle investment from other countries. – Reuters
New Caledonia’s non-independence coalition won the most seats of any single grouping, 24 out of 54 available, preliminary results released by officials showed, in long-delayed provincial elections which were held amid tight security on Sunday. – Reuters
Indonesia’s human rights commission on Sunday called on the government to end basic military training for prospective managers of President Prabowo Subianto’s flagship village cooperative programme after five participants died just 10 days into the 45-day training. – Reuters
Vietnam is increasingly using broadly written laws to arrest activists, dissidents and others that authorities consider a threat to the Communist Party’s rule, according to a new analysis released Monday by a human rights group. – Associated Press
Japan has protested activity by Chinese coast guard vessels asserting Beijing’s claims to maritime borders close to a southern Japanese island, Tokyo’s top government spokesman said, days after Tokyo scrambled fighter jets in response to flights by Chinese and Russian bombers around Japan’s south. – Bloomberg
Europe
Germany’s famously open economy was its greatest economic asset, delivering almost 20 years of uninterrupted growth and turning it into one of the biggest winners of globalization. Now that openness has become its biggest liability. – Wall Street Journal
In October 2023, Giorgia Meloni was facing a domestic crisis. A hot mic had captured her longtime partner—the father of her child and a news anchor—making sexist jokes off air. – Wall Street Journal
Eleven people were killed when a skydiving plane crashed soon after takeoff from an airport in northeastern France on Sunday, the local authorities said. – New York Times
Europeans seem to have gotten over their antipathy toward Elon Musk. A year ago, Tesla sales in Europe were in free fall after Mr. Musk, the automaker’s chief executive, appeared to turn off car buyers with his vocal support for right-wing politicians in Britain and Europe and his role as President Trump’s cost-cutting czar. – New York Times
A German court sentenced a 51-year-old doctor to life in prison on Friday for a car attack at a Christmas market in December 2024. The attack in Magdeburg, in eastern Germany, killed six people, including a 9-year-old child, and wounded more than 300. – New York Times
Andy Burnham, the Labour lawmaker expected to replace Keir Starmer as British prime minister, will outline his vision for Britain on Monday, his office said, promising to change how the nation is governed with power moving from London to the regions. – Reuters
Thousands of protesters descended on the Serbian city of Kraljevo on Sunday, keeping up pressure on President Aleksandar Vucic a day after he said he would step down within weeks to pave the way for early presidential and parliamentary elections. – Reuters
Matteo Salvini once earned the nickname “the captain” after steering his far-right League party to the forefront of Italian politics. Now, with support sliding, his grip is weakening — a shift that could erode Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s chances of re-election in a vote due next year. – Reuters
Three centre-right parties in Romania’s outgoing ruling coalition proposed European lawmaker Siegfried Muresan as candidate for prime minister on Friday, but it was unclear if they would gather the required votes to get him approved. – Reuters
A Swedish court on Friday convicted a 20-year-old man of participation in a terrorist organisation for his involvement in neo-Nazi group Maniac Murder Cult (MKY), sentencing him to 1-1/2 years in prison. – Reuters
Italy will join the U.S.-led Pax Silica initiative on artificial intelligence supply chains despite a spat between Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and U.S. President Donald Trump, a foreign ministry official said. – Reuters
Britain has scrapped plans to replace its aging warships with a new destroyer and will instead procure at least six so-called common combat vessels as it seeks to prepare the military for modern warfare. – Bloomberg
The UK government will commit more than £500 million ($660 million) to transform its elite Commando Force, as it shifts defense spending to focus more on the front line and NATO security. – Bloomberg
The US has indicated it would withdraw its support for the office of High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina if the candidate it backs for the role isn’t appointed by month’s end, according to people familiar with the matter. – Bloomberg
Estonia called for more “strategic patience” and increased pressure on Russia from European allies as President Vladimir Putin faces long-range attacks from Ukraine. – Bloomberg
Ian Leslie writes: British voters are divided in many ways, but there is consensus on Mr. Starmer. Responses to a YouGov poll in May that asked Britons to describe what they thought of him in their own words contained multiple versions of more or less the same thing: “I don’t think he believes in anything.” One may ask how a man with so little proclivity for governing ends up being prime minister. In Mr. Starmer’s case, it was this very absence of ballast that enabled him to get there. If Mr. Burnham is the next prime minister, he would do well to absorb the lesson of his predecessor’s failures: plan beats no plan. – New York Times
Matthew Brooker writes: This is one historical reason for Britain’s extreme fiscal centralization; former Conservative Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher capped local property taxes in the 1980s to prevent profligate spending by Labour-controlled councils. Given the multiple ways this could go wrong, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Burnham’s flagship endeavor blow up in his face or, alternatively, be diluted into insignificance as he wades through the treacle of Westminster politics. A true believer may take the gamble anyway. After all, every revolution devours its own children in the end. – Bloomberg
Africa
For weeks, Ide Juma has slept on a thin mattress on the sidewalk outside the Department of Home Affairs refugee office in South Africa’s third-largest city, hoping against all experience that the authorities will protect him when the vigilantes come hunting for immigrants. – Wall Street Journal
It was no surprise that the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo quickly jumped across the border into Uganda. Citizens of both countries routinely cross over to do business and visit relatives. – Wall Street Journal
In an instant, the funeral erupted into chaos. Furious mourners threw punches and stones, breaking car windows and chasing after the Red Cross workers they accused of bringing Ebola to their town. – New York Times
Uganda’s military chief, who is also the president’s son, said on Sunday he had ordered the closure of two leading media outlets, declaring that he did “not believe in a free press”. Muhoozi Kainerugaba said the Daily Monitor – Uganda’s largest independent daily newspaper – and NTV Uganda, one of the country’s largest private broadcasters, would “not re-open without my permission”. – Reuters
France said on Saturday it was considering taking reciprocal measures after Burkina Faso broke off diplomatic relations. Burkina Faso said on Friday it had severed links with its former colonial ruler after years of worsening ties over security, sovereignty and alleged foreign interference. – Reuters
Tanzania’s interior minister, Patrobas Katambi, said on Friday the government was banning all political rallies, less than two weeks before youth-led protests planned for July 7. – Reuters
The Democratic Republic of Congo has filed a case against Rwanda at the International Court of Justice over its role in the long-running conflict in the east, the government said on Friday. – Reuters
Kenya this week deported Somalia’s second deputy prime minister back to his country for suspected fraudulent acquisition of a Kenyan passport, a police report showed on Friday. – Reuters
Gunmen attacked a farming community in a part of northwestern Nigeria that has been no stranger to violence killing at least 15 people, an official said Saturday. – Associated Press
In a displacement camp near El-Obeid in Sudan’s southern Kordofan region, Agsam Hamad trudges through searing heat to fetch murky water from a distant well, as paramilitary forces unleash their fiercest assault yet on the strategic city. – Agence France-Presse
The escalating conflict in Sudan’s North Kordofan state risks triggering a humanitarian catastrophe on the scale of last year’s siege of El-Fasher. – Agence France-Presse
The Americas
The government-built high-rise where Alberto Sánchez’s girlfriend lived toppled into a mass of concrete and steel when twin earthquakes hit this Caribbean coastal city last week. He spent four days digging through rubble for her and her family—and found no one. – Wall Street Journal
Two devastating earthquakes have plunged Venezuela’s acting president, Delcy Rodríguez, into her first crisis, posing a crucial test of the Trump administration’s bet that she can transform the country into a more-functional, compliant ally. – Wall Street Journal
With the window for finding survivors rapidly closing more than three days after twin earthquakes devastated Venezuela, rescuers on Sunday managed a miracle: saving the life of an 11-year-old boy who was pulled from the rubble without injury. – New York Times
The Venezuelan opposition party led by the exiled former legislator and Nobel laureate María Corina Machado mobilized volunteers throughout the nation last week to collect donations for homeless earthquake survivors, but it encountered an unexpected obstacle: the National Police. – New York Times
Argentina’s President Javier Milei announced on Sunday the appointment of Interior Minister Diego Santilli as the new chief of cabinet, according to a post on his X account. Santilli replaces Manuel Adorni, who resigned from the position following corruption allegations, and will take on his new role on Tuesday. – Reuters
Colombia’s president-elect Abelardo De La Espriella on Friday said former congressman Rodrigo Lara will serve as interior minister in his administration, tasked with managing the government’s relationship with a deeply divided congress. – Reuters
As Bolivians try to resume a sense of normalcy after 53 days of blockades that roiled the economy, President Rodrigo Paz is right back where he was just two months ago: attempting to reform the nationalistic laws that dictate the country’s key industries. – Bloomberg
Marian Da Silva Parra writes: Chevron signed a deal at the presidential palace, raising its stake in a Venezuelan oil venture to 49 percent. And roughly 100 million barrels of Venezuelan oil have already been processed under the U.S. government’s watch with minimal oversight. That is the government Washington has chosen as its new and great friend, its partner in barrels and bonds. The same government that emptied hospitals and stole oil profits that should have retrofitted old buildings. I hope that this collapse might force the regime and the foreign powers lining up to do business with it finally to assume what they have spent a generation rejecting: responsibility for basic human rights and dignity they were supposed to protect, but buried instead. Nature opposed Venezuelans on Wednesday, as it has before. But it was never nature they needed to fight. – Washington Post
North America
As the Trump administration ramps up its investigations into Mexico’s government, elected officials in the country’s governing party have been quietly offering themselves to U.S. authorities as informants against fellow party members, according to eight people involved in the conversations. – New York Times
Geely Holding Group’s Lotus brand electric vehicles will arrive in Canada next month under an agreement between Prime Minister Mark Carney and Chinese President Xi Jinping, China’s ambassador to Canada Wang Di told Reuters on Friday. – Reuters
A group of prominent non-Jewish Canadian business, political and education leaders is condemning antisemitism and calling for better enforcement of the country’s anti-hate laws. – National Post
While acknowledging his Liberal government overshot post-pandemic admissions to Canada, Justin Trudeau defended immigration as essential and said successful integration depends not on common ancestry, but “shared values.” – National Post
Adam Katz writes: The measure of a democratic society is not whether it avoids difficult histories, but whether our leaders have the courage to tell them honestly. When a government teaches that story through one of its national institutions, it is no longer merely tolerating a political narrative. It is endorsing it. Canadians should expect far more from institutions entrusted with preserving historical truth. They should be especially skeptical whenever history is presented by governments as simple, morally absolute, or beyond debate. History is rarely served by such selectivity. Propaganda, however, often is. – National Post
United States
President Trump on Friday threatened to greatly increase tariffs on European nations if they follow through on plans to impose new taxes on U.S. tech companies. – Wall Street Journal
U.S. officials say they are frustrated with María Corina Machado, the exiled Venezuelan opposition leader, for requesting help facilitating her return to Venezuela in the aftermath of two devastating earthquakes, according to two White House officials. – New York Times
President Donald Trump’s interim agreement to end the war with Iran has dragged down his approval rating and garnered criticism across the political spectrum — even from his own supporters. – Reuters
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he believes Tuesday’s state primaries, where the slate of progressive candidates won, show that American voters are looking for a “new kind of politics.” – Bloomberg
John Bolton, a former national security adviser to President Donald Trump who became one of his fiercest critics, appeared in court on Friday to plead guilty to unlawfully retaining national defense information. – Bloomberg
Richard Gere writes: The legislation is a call for the U.S. and international community to empower the Tibetan community as it defends its identity and our collective freedom. Tibet has long been treated as a distant concern. It isn’t. It is the place where the tools of modern authoritarian control were first developed and refined—tools now pointed outward. When Beijing moves to criminalize foreign criticism of its ethnic policies, it is testing whether the international community will accept the premise that no one, anywhere, may challenge the party’s preferred version of history. That is a test the U.S. can’t afford to fail. – Wall Street Journal
Cybersecurity
Chinese artificial-intelligence systems have matched the performance of Anthropic’s powerful model Mythos in some cybersecurity scenarios, a development poised to reset the global tech race and pressure the White House in its overhaul of U.S. AI policy. – Wall Street Journal
The Australian government said on Saturday that it would take steps to strengthen its law banning anyone under 16 from major social media platforms, in an acknowledgment of the limited efficacy of the world’s first attempt to prohibit children’s use of the services. – New York Times
Social media companies TikTok and YouTube have deactivated a total of around 4.7 million accounts belonging to children under the age of 16 in Indonesia, the country’s communications minister said, as its social media curbs began to take effect. – Reuters
Fable 5, Anthropic’s most powerful AI model, is set to return to worldwide availability following more than two weeks of it being banned by the US government, Axios reported on Saturday. – Jerusalem Post
Ukraine’s security agency said it had uncovered, together with the FBI, a long-running Russian campaign to compromise the messaging accounts of government officials, military personnel, politicians and activists in Ukraine, Europe and the United States. – The Record
Robert Wright writes: The single-minded focus on “winning” the AI race is crowding out discussion of critical issues of AI governance. And when those discussions do manage to get some airtime, this arms race mentality biases the conversation in favor of recklessness. America’s preoccupation with “winning” the AI race with China could well lead to unprecedented catastrophes, even catastrophes on a global scale. Not all games are zero-sum, and if this fact doesn’t start playing a bigger role in American policy discourse, the AI revolution could turn out very badly. – Washington Post
Defense
During the Global War on Terror, the Army established large, static and complicated command posts, which became fixtures of rotational units flowing through the service’s training centers. Soldiers cheekily called their components “TOC Mahals.” In the new age of war wrought by the Russia-Ukraine conflict, these CPs and their tactical operations centers would not survive. – DefenseScoop
AM General, manufacturer of the A2 variant of the Joint Light Tactical Vehicle (JLTV), responded today to lawmakers’ threats to pull funding from the Marine Corps’ procurement budget for the vehicle due to delivery delays, citing “complex” transition issues as the reason for such setbacks. – Breaking Defense
The Army’s proliferating drone use is exacerbating the modern problem of keeping everything charged. One combat team is testing ways to use its light Infantry Squad Vehicles as mobile charging stations. – Defense One
Colton Jones writes: An MRIC battery operating on Guam during Valiant Shield is not a public relations event; it is an operational readiness evaluation of a system that may one day protect those very bases from the threats China’s People’s Liberation Army Rocket Force has built to attack them. The Marine Corps plans to field MRIC to all three of its Low Altitude Air Defense Battalions between 2026 and 2028, with the initial platoon using both Israeli-delivered Tamir missiles and U.S.-produced SkyHunters from the Arkansas facility. The appearance of the system on Guam during Valiant Shield suggests the initial platoon has reached the readiness level required for meaningful deployment in a complex joint exercise environment, a step beyond the live-fire evaluations conducted at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico that built the operational baseline. – Defense Blog