A mourner reacts as she attends the funeral of Palestinians killed overnight in Israeli attacks on a tent and on people seeking aid, according to Gaza’s health ministry, at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, southern Gaza Strip, July 4, 2025. REUTERS
ISTANBUL – At least 57,823 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s genocidal war on the Gaza Strip since October 2023, the Health Ministry said on Friday.
A ministry statement said that 61 bodies were brought to hospitals in the last 24 hours, while 231 people were injured, taking the number of injuries to 137,887 in the Israeli onslaught.
“Many victims are still trapped under the rubble and on the roads as rescuers are unable to reach them,” it added.
The ministry also noted that six Palestinians were killed and over 20 injured while trying to get humanitarian aid in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of Palestinians killed while seeking aid to 788, with over 5,199 others wounded since May 27.
The Israeli army resumed its attacks on the Gaza Strip on March 18 and has since killed 7,261 people and injured 25,846 others, shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January.
LIMA, July 11 – At least five people were killed in a road accident Thursday afternoon in Peru’s southeastern region of Puno after their vehicle plunged into a ravine, local media reported Friday.
The crash occurred on the road connecting the districts of Sina and Cojata, private news network Radio Programas del Peru reported.
The passengers were traveling in a private pickup truck that fell approximately 100 meters into a river.
State news agency Andina reported that while the cause is under investigation, witnesses said the truck was struck by a speeding minivan whose driver fled the scene.
Emergency responders, police and local residents worked to recover the bodies, which have not yet been officially identified. Local reports suggested that the victims may have been members of the same family.
PARIS, July 11 – The Paris prosecutor’s office announced on Friday that the social media platform X is under investigation by French police.
At this stage, X is primarily accused of two offenses — “impairing the operation of an automated data processing system by an organized group,” and “fraudulently extracting data from an automated data processing system by an organized group,” Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said in a press release.
The investigation has been assigned to the Directorate-General of the National Gendarmerie (DGGN), Beccuau added.
In January, the cybercrime unit of the Paris prosecutor’s office received two formal complaints, submitted respectively by a member of the French parliament and a senior official at a French public institution, Beccuau said, adding that both complaints alleged that X’s algorithm had been exploited for the purpose of foreign interference.
The Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed in February that it was examining these complaints, before announcing on Friday that it had opened the investigation “based on verifications, input from French researchers, and information provided by various public institutions.”
Laurent Buanec, CEO of X France, stated on the platform in January that X “has strict, clear, and public rules aimed at protecting the platform from hate speech,” adding that it “fights disinformation” and that its algorithm “is designed to avoid recommending hateful content.”
JERUSALEM, July 11 – The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement on Friday that the man it killed earlier in the day in an airstrike in Lebanon was involved in advancing attacks against Israeli civilians.
Official and security sources in Lebanon reported earlier that Mohammad Hassan Shuaib was killed and five others were injured in an Israeli drone strike targeting a car in the town of Al-Numairiyah in southern Lebanon.
According to the IDF statement, the Israeli Air Force strike was based on precise intelligence from the IDF and Israel’s Shin Bet domestic security agency.
It claimed that Shuaib was “a Lebanese terror operative who was involved in advancing terror attacks in the northern arena (Lebanon and Syria) against Israeli civilians.”
As part of his activities, Shuaib operated to smuggle weapons into Israel “to carry out terror attacks in Israel and establish terrorist infrastructure in Lebanon,” the statement said.
Shuaib was also a significant figure in the weapons smuggling route from Iran to various locations in the northern arena and the West Bank, it said, adding that in this capacity, “he maintained ties with weapons dealers in Syria and Lebanon.”
ISLAMABAD, July 11 – At least five people were killed and four others injured when a pickup plunged into a deep gorge in Pakistan’s northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Friday, local rescue officials said.
The accident occurred in Para Chamkani Gondal area of Kurram district, Bilal Ahmad Faizi, spokesperson for Rescue 1122 KP, told Xinhua.
The vehicle was en route from Spin Ghar Manro to Sadda Bazaar in Lower Kurram when it lost control while navigating a sharp bend and veered off the road, falling into a ravine, Faizi said.
Five people died on the spot, and four others sustained serious injuries, he added.
“The injured were shifted to the Tehsil Headquarters Hospital in Sadda for medical treatment,” the spokesperson said.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, center, attends a protest following the US attacks on nuclear sites in Iran, in Tehran, Iran, Sunday, June 22, 2025. AL MAYADEEN – AP
A top aide in the Iranian presidency has confirmed that the Israeli occupation attempted to assassinate Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian during a high-level military meeting amid the recent Israeli war on Iran.
In an exclusive statement to Al Mayadeen on Thursday, presidential advisor Sayyed Mehdi Tabatabaei said the Israeli regime targeted a gathering of political and military leaders, including President Pezeshkian, in what he described as a large-scale explosion. The incident occurred during the most intense phase of the Israeli aggression in June.
Sayyed Tabatabaei also revealed that in the final days of the confrontation, regional countries conveyed messages from both the United States and the Israeli regime requesting a ceasefire.
Iran rejects deception diplomacy
On the diplomatic front, Sayyed Tabatabaei warned that Iran would not return to negotiations if the table is used again as a tool of deception. He made it clear that Tehran will not engage in talks over its missile capabilities or its nuclear enrichment program, which he described as “undeniable rights”.
Sayyed Tabatabaei also expressed deep mistrust toward the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director Rafael Grossi, accusing the agency of double standards in its treatment of Iran’s peaceful nuclear program.
“The same country that used a nuclear bomb on another nation is now trying to block peaceful nuclear development in others,” he said, referring to the United States. He added that Iran would demand compensation for the damage done to its peaceful nuclear facilities.
Enrichment is part of Iran’s national identity
Separately, Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf told state television that uranium enrichment is “a part of Iran’s national culture” and cannot be dismantled by assassinations or military threats.
He also stressed that Iran’s missile capability is a non-negotiable red line, signaling unwavering resolve to preserve the country’s strategic deterrence.
Earlier this week, President Pezeshkian told American journalist Tucker Carlson that he was the target of an assassination attempt during the Israeli regime’s June attacks on Iranian territory.
Pezeshkian urges end to double standards
Pezeshkian stated that Tehran would continue cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) only if the organization addresses its perceived bias, while also asserting Iran’s preparedness to retaliate strongly against any potential aggression.
During a Wednesday evening phone call with European Council President Antonio Costa, President Pezeshkian emphasized Iran’s history of principled collaboration with the IAEA while stressing that ongoing cooperation depends on eliminating discriminatory practices in handling Iran’s nuclear file. Pezeshkian warned that further hostile actions would trigger an even stronger retaliation from Iran.
Emphasizing Iran’s commitment to peace, regional stability, and diplomatic engagement during this new political phase, President Pezeshkian criticized the reckless Israeli behavior as a source of global insecurity, pointing out that Tehran had sought dialogue yet was met with hostility from “Israel” and the US.
Addressing Costa’s worries about Iran’s reduced IAEA cooperation, Pezeshkian reiterated Tehran’s commitment to dialogue, diplomacy, and international law, framing recent parliamentary measures as a response to the agency’s perceived bias and unprofessionalism.
QUETTA, Pakistan, July 10 – Armed men killed nine bus passengers after kidnapping them in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, officials said on Friday.
The passengers had been kidnapped from multiple buses on Thursday evening, said the provincial government spokesman Shahid Rind.
Their bodies with bullet wounds were found in mountains overnight, another government official Naveed Alam said.
No one has claimed responsibility.
Separatist Baloch militants have in the past been involved in such incidents, killing passengers after identifying them as coming from the eastern Punjab province.
The Baloch Liberation Army is the strongest of a number of insurgent groups long operating in the area bordering Afghanistan and Iran, a mineral-rich region.
The ethnic Baloch militants blame authorities in Pakistan for stealing their regional resources to fund spending in Punjab province.
A chair stands amid the ruins of a house near the Guadalupe River, in Hunt, Texas, U.S., July 9, 2025. REUTERS
KERRVILLE, Texas, July 10 – Six days after flash floods swept through parts of Texas Hill Country, and killed at least 120, authorities say there are still more than 160 people unaccounted for, as thousands of searchers combed through piles of mud-covered debris for survivors on Thursday.
But that figure may not reflect the true number of missing people, according to disaster response experts.
The number of people reported missing in the aftermath of a natural disaster often turns out to be far greater than the eventual death toll.
Worried members of the public, unable to reach a relative or friend, report the name to local authorities and to crowd-sourced online databases, and it gets added to a list that can grow distressingly long.
GENEVA – The UN human rights chief on Thursday urged “the prompt reversal” of US sanctions against Francesca Albanese, the UN special rapporteur on the occupied Palestinian territory.
“UN Special Rapporteurs, along with other parts of the human rights ecosystem, address – by their nature – sensitive and often divisive issues that are of international concern,” Volker Turk said in a statement, adding even in the face of fierce disagreement, member states should engage “substantively and constructively, rather than resort to punitive measures.”
“Attacks and threats against Special Procedures mandate holders, as well as key institutions like the International Criminal Court, must stop,” Turk urged.
He noted that the solution is “not less, but more,” debate and dialogue on the very real human rights concerns they address.
The US imposed sanctions Wednesday on Albanese, citing her “efforts to prompt” International Criminal Court (ICC) action against US and Israeli officials.
“Today I am imposing sanctions on UN Human Rights Council Special Rapporteur Francesca Albanese for her illegitimate and shameful efforts to prompt (ICC) action against U.S. and Israeli officials, companies, and executives,” US Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote on X.
Accusing Albanese of waging a “campaign of political and economic warfare” against both countries, he said the actions “will no longer be tolerated.”
The sanctions followed a report by Albanese last week that identified corporations allegedly facilitating Israeli occupation of Palestinian lands, including Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Palantir, which she said provide military hardware, surveillance technology, and infrastructure that support the illegal occupation.
The US has long been criticized for supporting Israel’s ongoing occupation and genocide of Palestinians, which since October 2023 has killed over 57,000 people, most of them women and children.
ISTANBUL – Russia’s partnership with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) contributes to ensuring stability in the Asia-Pacific region, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Thursday.
Addressing the Russia-ASEAN foreign ministers’ meeting in Kuala Lumpur, Lavrov said Russia can confidently describe ASEAN as a “truly reliable friend” and “like-minded” partner, and that both parties are united in their commitment to “developing broad, equal international cooperation based on the UN Charter in all its totality and interrelation of its principles.”
He said Moscow “invariably” supports the central role of ASEAN’s 10 member states in regional affairs, noting that their ties have acquired a “fundamentally new quality” over the past years.
“Cooperation in the field of politics and security, countering new challenges and threats is strengthening. Cooperation in the fields of economics, energy, agriculture, and humanitarian ties has gained positive momentum,” he added.
The diplomat said Moscow proceeds from the fact that this meeting will contribute to further uncovering the potential in Russia-ASEAN dialogue, and that the adoption of the Russia-ASEAN program document for 2026-2030 is intended to facilitate the solution to problems by proposing to set forth current goals and priority areas of cooperation.
Lavrov arrived in the Malaysian capital earlier Thursday as part of a visit to attend ASEAN’s annual ministerial events, including foreign ministers’ meetings in the format of the East Asia Summit and the ASEAN Regional Forum on security.
He also held talks with his Chinese, Laotian, Malaysian, and Sri Lankan counterparts on the sidelines.
