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Migrants who were deported from the United States and are now being held at a hotel in Equatorial Guinea say that at least one person suspected of carrying the Ebola virus was brought into the same facility — a claim backed up by lawyers representing the detainees, who spoke out Thursday.

The hotel, located on a tropical island off the coast of the central African nation and owned by the country’s powerful President Teodoro Obiang Nguema Mbasogo, is currently housing 17 migrants from nations including Angola, Mauritania, and Ethiopia. Their detention stems from an arrangement made under the Trump administration as part of a broader effort to crack down on illegal immigration.

According to a statement from a coalition of international lawyers, as well as interviews with two of the detainees — who asked not to be identified out of fear of retaliation — a man believed to be infected with Ebola was brought to the hotel last week by medical workers dressed in hazmat suits. He was placed on a floor below where the migrants are being held.

Two deportees told The Associated Press that a doctor informed them in English that the individual was a suspected Ebola case and warned them to take precautions — but provided no additional details or protective supplies.

One detainee also reported that a woman was brought to the same quarantine floor on Sunday and was similarly identified by medical staff as a suspected Ebola patient.

The lawyers’ coalition said in a statement that they received “disturbing reports from multiple detained individuals that a person with a suspected case of Ebola was recently brought under quarantine into the same hotel complex where they are being held.”

The AP reviewed videos showing medical personnel dressed in full protective gear transporting patients to the hotel, which was previously used as an isolation facility during the Covid-19 pandemic.

“Things are getting worse every day,” one detainee said. “It’s very confusing, no one is coming to talk to us. No one is informing us of anything. The hygiene is unimaginable.”

Lawyers and detainees say that beyond those already present in the facility, no masks, disinfectants, or other basic protective items were distributed, and no steps were communicated to reduce the risk of exposure.

The central African nation of Congo is currently dealing with a rare Ebola strain that has killed more than 600 people since an outbreak was first announced in May. Cases have spread to neighboring Uganda, though no confirmed or even suspected cases have been reported in Equatorial Guinea, which does not share a border with Congo and sits roughly 1,885 miles — or about 1,425 kilometers — away.

The Trump administration has used a series of often-secret agreements to deport thousands of people it considers to be in the country illegally to nearly two dozen nations that are not their home countries, according to advocates. Immigration lawyers argue these third-country deportations serve as a legal workaround to send asylum seekers back to their countries of origin without directly doing so. Equatorial Guinea is among at least eight African nations that have entered into such agreements with the U.S.

A $7.5 million deal with Equatorial Guinea led President Obiang to convert a family-owned hotel in Malabo, on Bioko island, into a detention center. Currently, 4 women and 13 men are being held there, according to the lawyers’ coalition. All of them, the lawyers say, had received orders from U.S. judges that should have shielded them from removal to their home countries.

Earlier this month, rights attorneys filed a case against Equatorial Guinea before Africa’s leading human rights body, accusing the country of forcing U.S. deportees back to their home nations in violation of their legal rights.

The lawyers’ coalition also reported Thursday that they had received “multiple reports that individuals with serious medical conditions are being denied adequate medical care while detained in government custody.”

Equatorial Guinea ranks among the wealthiest nations in Africa due to its oil reserves, but U.S. officials say it is also plagued by widespread corruption and human rights abuses. Rights organizations and the U.S. State Department have accused the government of detaining, torturing, and even killing those who speak out against it. Despite this, U.S. businesses are the country’s largest foreign investors, and the U.S. government funds military training there.

A fire broke out Thursday at a shoe factory in China’s eastern Fujian province, leaving 28 people dead, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

Chinese President Xi Jinping issued a call for “an all-out search and rescue effort,” pushing for a rapid investigation and saying authorities should “strictly hold those responsible accountable.”

The fire ignited at a facility belonging to the Huiteng shoe company in the city of Jinjiang, according to a statement from the city’s fire department. The cause of the blaze remains unknown at this time.

At the time the fire broke out, 237 factory employees and two visitors were inside the building. Emergency crews were able to evacuate or rescue 213 of those individuals. Of the 28 fatalities, two victims were pronounced dead after being transported to a hospital, state broadcaster CCTV reported.

Xinhua reported that the factory’s owner and other individuals in leadership positions have been taken into custody, and the company’s financial accounts have been frozen.

Video footage from CCTV showed the exterior of the multi-story building heavily scorched and blanketed in white smoke. Earlier video captured flames burning across several floors as thick, black smoke engulfed the structure.

Jinjiang, where the fire occurred, holds a notable distinction — it is widely regarded as China’s shoe manufacturing capital.

MADRID — President Donald Trump softened his tone toward Spain on Thursday, just hours after threatening to stop all trade with the NATO member nation. Spanish officials say the shift came after Trump was briefed on how dramatically Spain has increased its contributions to the alliance in recent years.

At a NATO summit held in Ankara on Wednesday, Trump labeled Spain a “terrible partner” and called for an immediate halt to all trade with the country, citing disagreements over defense spending and the conflict with Iran.

As Trump traveled back to the United States following the summit, he spoke with reporters aboard Air Force One and appeared to soften his position. “I did have issues, and I still do. But Spain, they came back all the way today. Spain was very generous today,” he said.

When asked what Spain had done to earn that praise, Trump responded: “They honoured a request for lots of payments, and if they didn’t, we wouldn’t have even talked to them.”

A spokesperson for Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez interpreted Trump’s remarks as a reference to Spain meeting NATO’s previous defense spending benchmark of 2% of gross domestic product.

During the Ankara summit, Sanchez pointed out that Spain is on track to hit that 2% target this year — a significant milestone given that the country more than doubled its nominal defense spending from 0.98% of GDP in 2017 to nearly €33 billion (approximately $37.7 billion). Sanchez characterized the tension between the two nations as minor and said he had a “very cordial” exchange with Trump at the summit.

Despite the warmer words, Trump has continued to push back on Spain’s refusal to commit to a new NATO goal requiring member nations to spend 5% of GDP on defense by the year 2035. Spain’s left-leaning government has argued it prefers to address genuine security threats rather than boost spending simply to hit a number, warning that doing so would require cuts to social programs.

It remained unclear Thursday whether Trump’s softer language would have any practical effect on his earlier order to halt trade with Spain.

A U.S. official in Washington told Reuters that relevant federal agencies would be presenting Trump with a list — described as a “menu” — of Spanish goods that could potentially be subject to an embargo.

Legal experts in trade law say Trump could use the International Emergency Economic Powers Act to impose a full or partial ban on Spanish imports. It’s worth noting that during his first term, Trump’s administration placed a 30% anti-dumping tariff on Spanish black olives back in 2018.

On the diplomatic front, Spanish Defense Minister Margarita Robles was scheduled to sit down Thursday with U.S. Ambassador Benjamin Leon for what was described as a “working meeting,” according to the Spanish government’s official calendar. No further details were provided.

Sources within the Spanish delegation to Ankara, cited by the newspaper El Mundo, suggested Madrid viewed the dispute as more of a performative conflict than a genuine crisis, noting that Spanish officials had not observed any real economic fallout or drop in U.S. investment in Spain despite Trump’s ongoing criticism.

Back in Spain, the dispute drew political reactions across party lines. Some members of the main opposition People’s Party (PP) placed blame on Prime Minister Sanchez for the friction, though they also expressed solidarity with their country. One senior PP official pointed to the deep economic ties between Spanish and American companies, arguing that “economic reality takes precedence over the grandiloquent statements (Trump) seeks to make in order to attack Spain.”

In the PP-governed region of Aragon — where major American technology companies including Amazon and Microsoft have poured billions of dollars into data center construction — local officials said operations were continuing normally.

Santiago Abascal, leader of the far-right Vox party and a known Trump ally, took a harsher view, calling the tensions with Washington “absolutely dramatic” and accusing Sanchez of “destroying Spain’s credibility on the world stage.”

Mexico City — Mexico’s government is taking legal action in the United States over the deaths of Mexican citizens who have died either while held in U.S. immigration custody or during anti-immigration enforcement operations, Foreign Minister Roberto Velasco announced Thursday.

Velasco told reporters that 14 Mexican nationals have died while in the custody of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, while three additional deaths occurred during arrest operations carried out by the agency.

“We are going to move beyond the diplomatic sphere and go directly to U.S. prosecutors to file complaints regarding these incidents, requesting that they are investigated as criminal matters,” Velasco said.

The announcement comes after a U.S. ICE agent fatally shot Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican national who had been living in the United States without legal status for approximately 30 years. The shooting took place on Tuesday.

His death triggered protests in Houston and pushed the total number of people shot and killed during immigration enforcement actions to at least six since January 2025, when President Donald Trump returned to the White House and began a large-scale deportation campaign.

Neither the U.S. Department of Homeland Security nor the Department of Justice responded to requests for comment before publication.

BUDAPEST, Hungary — A Hungarian court handed down a 14-year prison sentence Thursday to an Irish national convicted of murdering an American tourist in the country’s capital last year.

The victim was 31-year-old Mackenzie Michalski, a Portland, Oregon resident who had been traveling in Hungary for vacation. She was reported missing on November 5, 2024, after friends lost contact with her following a night out at a nightclub in central Budapest.

Authorities launched a missing persons investigation and combed through security camera footage from multiple nightclubs in the area. The footage showed Michalski — who went by the nickname “Kenzie” — spending time at several clubs that evening with a man who was later identified as the suspect.

Police detained the man, identified only by the initials L.T.M., on November 7, 2024. He was 37 years old at the time of the crime and ultimately confessed to killing Michalski.

According to investigators, the two met on the dance floor of a nightclub and later left together for the man’s rented apartment. Police said he beat and strangled Michalski during an “intimate encounter” at the residence.

The Budapest Metropolitan Court found him guilty of murder on Thursday and sentenced him to 14 years with no possibility of parole. Approximately one and a half years he has already served in detention will be credited toward his sentence. Upon his release, the court ordered that he be deported from Hungary.

In addition to prison time, the man was ordered to pay 2.5 million forints — roughly $7,995 — in court costs. His defense attorney has already filed an appeal of the conviction.

Following his arrest in 2024, the man claimed Michalski’s death was accidental. However, investigators said his actions told a different story. Police say he cleaned the apartment to remove evidence, concealed her body inside a wardrobe, then purchased a suitcase and placed her remains inside.

He then rented a vehicle and drove approximately 150 kilometers — about 90 miles — southwest of Budapest to Lake Balaton, where he disposed of Michalski’s body in a wooded area near the town of Szigliget.

Video footage released by police showed the man leading investigators to the location where he had left the body. Authorities also revealed that before his arrest, the man conducted internet searches on how to dispose of a body, what police do in missing persons cases, whether pigs consume human remains, and the presence of wild boars in the Lake Balaton region. He also searched online to find out how capable Budapest police were at solving crimes.

QUETTA, Pakistan — Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif made a personal visit Thursday to Balochistan province in the country’s southwest, meeting with families of the 42 people — the majority of them security personnel — who lost their lives in a series of militant attacks that began earlier this week.

Since the attacks started Monday, Pakistani authorities have launched counteroperations that have resulted in the deaths of at least 54 insurgents, according to the military and local officials.

The surge in violence led Sharif to travel to Quetta, the provincial capital, where members of the banned Baloch Liberation Army carried out multiple separate strikes beginning Monday. The growing boldness of these attacks has sparked concern that separatist factions once viewed as relatively minor are now extending their influence across a wider area.

The single deadliest incident occurred at a police post in Balochistan’s Ziarat district on Monday, where nine officers were killed. Eighteen additional officers who were taken hostage during that attack were later executed by their captors.

Outraged by the killings, relatives of roughly two dozen of the slain officers gathered in Quetta for a sit-in protest alongside the bodies of the victims, calling on the government to hold the perpetrators accountable.

“The war against terrorism will continue until the last terrorist in Pakistan is eliminated,” Sharif declared in televised comments while presiding over a security meeting that included army chief Field Marshal Asim Munir and Balochistan Chief Minister Sarfraz Bugti.

While stopping short of directly naming India, Sharif stated there was “no doubt” that Pakistan’s eastern neighbor was playing a significant role in stoking the insurgency — allegedly supplying militants with weapons, funding, and other forms of support. He also accused militants of using Afghan soil as a launchpad for attacks in both the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and in Balochistan, pledging that the state would defeat what he called their “nefarious designs.”

Neither Kabul nor New Delhi issued an immediate response, though both governments have denied similar accusations in the past.

Balochistan, which is Pakistan’s largest province by area but its least populated, has been a long-running flashpoint for a separatist insurgency. It has also seen repeated attacks from the Pakistani Taliban — known as Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP — a militant organization that is distinct from but aligned with the Afghan Taliban.

The TTP has grown increasingly powerful since the Afghan Taliban reclaimed control of Afghanistan in 2021.

Germany has reached an agreement with the United States to purchase American-made Tomahawk cruise missiles, with plans to deploy them on German soil, Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced Thursday.

Merz said the deal for the long-range missiles — designed to strike targets deep within enemy territory — was finalized earlier this week during the NATO summit held in Ankara, Turkey’s capital.

“This will close an important strategic gap in our defense, and at the same time, we will work to develop our own European systems and station them in Europe,” Merz told members of parliament after returning from the two-day gathering.

The agreement with the Trump administration represents a broader effort to share American military technology with key European allies, whose approach to national security has shifted dramatically since Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022.

Also on Wednesday, President Donald Trump announced that the U.S. would grant Ukraine a license to manufacture Patriot air defense systems — a significant development for Kyiv, which has long sought access to that technology to defend against Russian missile attacks.

The Tomahawk cruise missile has been part of the U.S. military arsenal since the 1980s. Though not the fastest missile available, it travels at a low altitude of roughly 100 feet — or about 30 meters — above the ground, making it difficult for enemy defense systems to detect.

The weapon can reach targets up to approximately 1,600 kilometers, or 1,000 miles, away, and its precision guidance technology makes it a preferred choice for striking well-defended or distant targets deep inside hostile territory.

European Union lawmakers voted Thursday to restore a set of temporary regulations that would permit Google, Meta Platforms, and other major online services to identify and remove child sexual abuse content from their platforms.

At the same time, lawmakers voted to shield end-to-end encrypted messaging services — including WhatsApp, Telegram, and Signal — from the scanning requirements, reflecting ongoing concerns that broad surveillance measures could put user privacy at risk.

The debate has drawn a sharp divide between those pushing for stronger online child safety protections and privacy advocates who warn that mass scanning tools could be misused for wider surveillance purposes.

Last month, EU member nations and lawmakers were unable to reach a deal on permanent regulations, with both sides clashing over how broadly detection efforts should apply.

The temporary rules, which were in effect from 2021 until this past April, had given online platforms a pass from strict EU privacy requirements while officials worked toward a long-term legislative solution to address child pornography online.

Lawmaker Marketa Gregorova of the Pirate Party expressed reservations about bringing the interim rules back. “Protecting encryption was one of our priorities, and I am therefore glad that we managed to secure an absolute majority for an amendment that at least preserves encryption,” she said. “At the same time, however, voluntary mass scanning unfortunately passed.”

EU member countries now have three months to weigh in on whether they support the changes approved by the European Parliament.

The European Commission first put forward a draft proposal on child sexual abuse material back in 2022, but the path to turning it into law has been slow, with criticism coming from both sides of the debate.

Major technology companies have pushed back against any mandate that would require messaging services, app stores, and internet providers to flag and remove both known and newly discovered images and videos depicting child abuse, as well as instances of grooming.

Hacking groups with ties to both China and India separately targeted several Pakistani law enforcement agencies, according to new findings released Thursday by cybersecurity firm SentinelOne.

The discovered campaigns shed light on foreign efforts to gather intelligence related to Pakistan’s security landscape, including militant violence, tensions along the Afghan border, and the country’s economic ties with China.

Aleksandar Milenkoski, a principal threat researcher at SentinelOne, explained the significance in a blog post published Thursday. “When multiple cyberespionage actors operate against law enforcement institutions of a single state, the convergence itself is a signal of target value,” he wrote. “What draws them is a particular kind of institution: one that holds the government’s internal security picture, what it knows about the threats inside its borders, and how it acts against them.”

SentinelOne’s research uncovered evidence of hacking activity and network intrusions carried out between February 2024 and April 2026. The most prominent target was the Balochistan police, which serves Pakistan’s southwestern province of the same name. Researchers found that the attacks on that agency involved network equipment, web servers, and several online applications, including the force’s Complaint Management System.

The Balochistan police did not respond when asked for comment.

Additional agencies targeted in the campaigns included the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police, the Islamabad police, and the Punjab Safe Cities Authority, an independent government agency that manages systems used by police across major cities in Punjab province.

According to the report, the agencies targeted are involved in monitoring both internal and external threats and in coordinating responses between law enforcement and government officials.

Researchers suggested that China’s interest in these agencies may stem from concerns about the safety of Chinese nationals working in Pakistan, who have been killed in attacks in recent years. Interest from India-linked groups is believed to be connected to ongoing tensions between the two nations and Pakistan’s overall security posture.

Liu Chang, spokesperson for the Chinese Embassy in Washington, responded with an emailed statement saying China “firmly opposes and combats all forms of cyberattacks in accordance with the law, and does not allow any country or individual to engage in such illegal activities within China’s territory or by using China’s infrastructure.” The Indian Embassy in Washington did not respond to questions about the findings.

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa police issued a statement saying cybersecurity “is a matter of the highest priority” for the agency, and that “there is no evidence that any core KP police system, network, or critical application has been successfully compromised.” The agency also acknowledged that “during the heightened Pakistan-India tensions last year, KP Police experienced an increase in attempted cyber activities,” and noted that “in one isolated incident, the login credentials of an end user were compromised.”

The Islamabad Police, the Punjab Safe Cities Authority, and Pakistan’s Ministry of Interior did not respond to requests for comment.

MOYGASHEL, Northern Ireland — Police in Northern Ireland arrested a 56-year-old man Thursday after a replica of a mosque was placed atop a large bonfire in a pro-British community, drawing sharp condemnation from the British government and politicians on all sides.

Every year, bonfires are set alight throughout the region in predominantly Protestant “loyalist” neighborhoods on the night before July 12 — a date that marks the anniversary of William of Orange’s defeat of Roman Catholic King James at the Battle of the Boyne back in 1690.

The mosque replica was built atop a towering stack of wooden pallets, with banners hanging below it reading “secure our borders” and “end the threat of radical Islam.” A figure could be seen in one of the windows appearing to hold a knife-like object. The structure went up just one month after a wave of anti-migrant violence hit Belfast, the Northern Irish capital.

Britain’s minister for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn, took to social media platform X to denounce the display, calling it a “sickening and cowardly act of intimidation.” He wrote: “This is not about tradition and in no way does it represent the vast majority of people in Northern Ireland. We must stand united and completely reject such hatred.”

Colm Gildernew, a representative of the Irish nationalist Sinn Fein party, called on police to remove what he characterized as an obvious hate crime. The leading pro-British political parties also spoke out against the action.

Authorities said the arrested man faces suspicion of displaying threatening, abusive, or insulting material intended to incite hatred.

In recent years, anti-migrant imagery has begun appearing on some bonfires, in some cases replacing the anti-Catholic slogans, images, and effigies of Catholic Irish politicians that had historically been displayed. Last year, at the same location in Moygashel — roughly 40 miles west of Belfast — a model of refugees aboard a boat was burned, also following a period of violence targeting migrants.

Last month, rioters attacked the homes and businesses of ethnic minorities after a video went viral showing a stabbing in which one man lost an eye. A man who police say is from Sudan or Chad has since been charged with attempted murder in connection with that attack.

THE HAGUE, Netherlands — Syria has had its voting rights restored by the world’s leading chemical weapons oversight organization, a move that recognizes Damascus’s willingness to work with inspectors and commit to eliminating hidden stockpiles of deadly weapons.

The executive council of the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, known as the OPCW, made the decision Thursday. It marks a significant shift in relations following the removal of former President Bashar Assad from power in 2024. Syria’s voting privileges had been stripped five years ago — the first time any member nation had faced such a penalty — as a consequence of the repeated use of toxic gas under Assad’s government.

That new spirit of cooperation has already yielded concrete results. In May, the OPCW revealed that dozens of chemical bombs and rockets left behind from the Assad era had been uncovered after previously undisclosed weapons sites were opened to international inspectors.

The executive council also gave the green light to plans for destroying a portion of those newly declared weapons at a facility in Al Qutayfah, located about 37 kilometers — roughly 23 miles — north of Syria’s capital. The materials slated for destruction include substances used in the production of a nerve agent.

OPCW Director-General Fernando Arias said in a statement that the decisions “reflect the tangible progress achieved through continued cooperation and constructive engagement between the Technical Secretariat and the Syrian Arab Republic,” with backing from other member nations.

The OPCW action comes just one day after U.S. officials announced that Washington intends to remove Syria from its list of countries designated as state sponsors of terrorism.

Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, a former insurgent who commanded the offensive that toppled Assad, has made rebuilding Syria and repairing its long-damaged relationships with Western nations a central goal. He has also made a public pledge to eliminate any chemical weapons remaining from the Assad period.

Syria became a member of the OPCW in 2013 under significant pressure from Western governments in response to alleged poison gas attacks. At that time, Assad’s government acknowledged chemical weapons at 26 locations within the country. However, the watchdog organization has indicated it has reason to believe Syria may have had as many as 100 additional sites that were never disclosed.

MBABANE, Eswatini — The southern African kingdom of Eswatini has welcomed a fourth batch of individuals deported from the United States, with 11 people touching down this week under a bilateral agreement to house third-country nationals, the government announced Thursday.

Acting government spokesperson Thabile Mdluli confirmed the new arrivals, describing the group as coming predominantly from African nations. Mdluli said the deportees would remain in the kingdom on a temporary basis, with their rights protected throughout their stay.

“The government reaffirms that, during their temporary stay in the Kingdom, the fundamental rights of the third-country nationals will be respected and protected in accordance with the laws of the Kingdom of Eswatini and the Kingdom’s international obligations,” Mdluli stated.

The arrivals are connected to a broader U.S. immigration enforcement effort under President Donald Trump’s administration, which has deported thousands of people to nearly two dozen countries that are not their home nations — often under agreements that advocates describe as secretive.

Mdluli also noted that security measures are in place to protect both Eswatini and its citizens while the deportees are present in the country.

Officials familiar with the arrangement say the latest group is expected to be held at Matsapha Maximum Security Prison.

Eswatini, a nation of roughly 1.2 million people that shares a border with South Africa, began accepting U.S. deportees in 2025 under an arrangement designed to house individuals who cannot be sent directly back to their countries of origin. This week’s arrivals mark the fourth group received under that deal.

The Trump administration has similarly sent deportees to other African nations, including the Central African Republic, Equatorial Guinea, Sierra Leone, and Congo, as it searches for destinations for migrants who cannot be directly repatriated.

The Eswatini government has not made public the specific terms of its agreement with Washington, nor has it released details about the deportees’ nationalities, legal standing, or how long they are expected to remain in the country.

Human rights organizations have criticized the program, pointing to a lack of transparency and limited parliamentary oversight. Civic groups within Eswatini have even taken the matter to court, challenging whether it is legal to hold foreign nationals in prison without formal charges. The government has indicated the men could be held for up to a year while efforts to repatriate them continue.

Human rights lawyer Mzwandile Masuku warned that the ongoing transfers point to weak institutional accountability and said the practice risks becoming accepted as normal on an international scale.

To date, only two of the deportees previously sent to Eswatini have left the country — one returned to Cambodia and the other to Jamaica.

Eswatini’s government has maintained that the agreement aligns with the country’s humanitarian principles while also upholding its national sovereignty and laws.

The United States carried out new airstrikes against Iran in the early hours of Thursday, just hours after President Donald Trump declared the ceasefire effectively finished, pointing to recent Iranian attacks on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz as the breaking point.

Iran hit back quickly, launching strikes against U.S.-allied Kuwait and Qatar, while also accusing American forces of targeting an area near the country’s only nuclear power plant.

The two sides have traded blows repeatedly, including on Wednesday, but Thursday’s exchange appeared to be larger in scale than previous incidents. Adding to the uncertainty, Trump has been sending mixed signals — authorizing consecutive military strikes while simultaneously insisting the U.S. is not heading back into a full-blown war.

On the diplomatic front, during a Wednesday meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on the sidelines of the NATO summit in Turkey, Trump announced the U.S. would grant Ukraine a long-sought license to manufacture Patriot air defense systems domestically. Trump also praised Zelenskyy as doing “an amazing job,” a notable shift from his previous sharp criticism of the Ukrainian leader.

However, an adviser to Ukraine’s defense minister, Serhii Beskrestnov, cautioned that actually building the mobile, surface-to-air missile systems would take many months. Writing on the Telegram messaging platform, Beskrestnov noted that a manufacturing license would typically include technical documentation, specialist training, supplier contacts, and foreign consultants. He said the biggest challenge would be time, not Ukraine’s technical or organizational capabilities.

In a separate development, the southern African kingdom of Eswatini confirmed Thursday it had received its fourth group of people deported from the United States under a bilateral agreement to host third-country nationals. Eleven individuals arrived this week, the government said.

Acting government spokesperson Thabile Mdluli said the group, made up mostly of people from African nations, would stay in Eswatini temporarily while their rights were safeguarded. “The government reaffirms that, during their temporary stay in the Kingdom, the fundamental rights of the third-country nationals will be respected and protected in accordance with the laws of the Kingdom of Eswatini and the Kingdom’s international obligations,” Mdluli stated.

The Trump administration has deported thousands of people to nearly two dozen countries that are not their home nations, under a series of agreements — many of them secret — that are part of a sweeping U.S. immigration crackdown, according to advocates.

On Wall Street, futures for the S&P 500 edged up 0.1% before Thursday’s opening bell, while Dow Jones Industrial Average futures slipped 0.1%. Nasdaq futures climbed 0.5%.

Oil prices continued to rise, with Brent crude — the international benchmark — gaining 64 cents to reach $78.66 per barrel on Thursday. It briefly crossed the $80 mark on Wednesday. Prior to the start of the Iran conflict, Brent crude was trading near $72 a barrel, though earlier hopes for a peace agreement had briefly pushed prices back to pre-war levels. U.S. benchmark crude rose 54 cents to $74.06 per barrel.

Trump has publicly stated he believes the ceasefire is finished and that he is no longer certain he wants a negotiated deal, suggesting the U.S. should instead “finish the job.” Yet he continues to insist the ongoing strikes do not represent a return to war or a long-term military commitment.

Analysts say Trump’s conflicting statements could be a deliberate pressure tactic aimed at forcing Tehran to halt its attacks on oil and gas tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and to yield to U.S. demands over its nuclear program — a strategy Trump has employed before. Whether it is a negotiating move or a genuine signal of escalation, international mediators are racing to salvage the interim agreement, with the risk that continued fighting could deepen the crisis further.

Oil tanker movement through the Strait of Hormuz has nearly ground to a halt, according to shipping data and industry insiders, as the risk to vessels surged following renewed U.S. airstrikes on Iran and retaliatory strikes by Tehran targeting U.S. military infrastructure in nearby Gulf nations.

By early Thursday morning, only two tankers had made the crossing. One was the crude supertanker Berg 1, which had taken on cargo at Iran’s Kharg Island and is under U.S. sanctions, according to analysis from Kpler. The other was the Marshall Islands-flagged chemical tanker Well Sail, whose previous loading point was near Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates, based on ship tracking data from LSEG.

Adding to the uncertainty, sources within the shipping industry noted that a growing number of vessels are disabling their public AIS tracking transponders, making it increasingly difficult to get a full picture of which ships are actually moving through the waterway.

Jorge Leon, head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy, put it bluntly in a written report: “Tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has essentially stopped, which tells you more about risk perception right now than any statement from Washington or Tehran.”

The current flare-up is the latest development in a conflict that began on February 28 with U.S. and Israeli strikes against Iran. The most recent round of tensions was sparked earlier this week when three tankers were attacked in the strait — incidents the U.S. attributed to Iran. Iranian forces then struck U.S. military sites in neighboring Gulf countries on Thursday in response to American strikes on Iran’s southern coastal and eastern regions, putting further strain on a truce that was only three weeks old.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Navy issued a warning Thursday, saying that U.S. actions — including strikes on Iran and interference with shipping routes — were disrupting the strait’s gradual reopening. The Guards warned that any additional U.S. intervention would be met with a “crushing response.”

Before the war began, the Strait of Hormuz was responsible for moving roughly one-fifth of the world’s oil supply. Over the past two weeks, daily traffic had climbed to its highest point since the conflict started, averaging around 40 ships per day — still far below the pre-war norm of 125 to 140 daily transits.

One of the three vessels attacked earlier this week, the Marshall Islands-flagged Qatari LNG tanker Al Rekayyat, remains stranded off the coast of Oman awaiting salvage after a projectile hit late Tuesday ignited a fire in its engine room. While there were initial fears of a potential explosion, industry sources said that risk appears low for now and the ship’s liquefied natural gas cargo seems to be secure. The Marshall Islands ship registry confirmed to Reuters that no injuries or environmental damage had been reported in connection with the incident.

Some marine war insurance underwriters have advised shipping firms to hold off on sending vessels through the strait, while others are revisiting their coverage terms in light of the renewed attacks, according to insurance industry sources.

Ship broker Clarksons noted in a report that “the Hormuz reopening story looks more fragile after the latest escalation.”

One marine war underwriter, speaking anonymously due to the sensitivity of the matter, warned: “As recent incidents have shown, the (marine war) market is now facing the prospect of potentially severe losses involving vessels of substantial value.”

The loved ones of Faisal Jatoi, the co-pilot of a Pakistani cargo plane that went down in the Arabian Sea, are desperately waiting for answers as search teams continue combing the waters off Pakistan’s southern coast.

Jatoi was at the controls of a K2 Airways Boeing 737 freighter on Tuesday night, flying from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates to Karachi, when the aircraft crashed into the sea. Pakistani rescue teams located the wreckage during a deep-sea search operation on Wednesday.

Jatoi’s father-in-law, Ghulam Nabi Bahrani, described the moment the family realized something had gone terribly wrong. Unable to get through to Jatoi by phone, a family member turned to Google — and the word “crash” appeared. “That moment felt like doomsday for us,” Bahrani told Reuters at his home in Karachi. Jatoi leaves behind a wife and a two-year-old son.

Bahrani also revealed that the aircraft — a 27-year-old Boeing 737-400 converted freighter — had spent 10 days grounded in Sharjah for repairs after completing a cargo delivery. The crew had been waiting on a spare part to arrive from the United States before they could make the return trip.

According to the Pakistan Airports Authority, the plane reported a navigational issue at 9:18 p.m. Pakistan time while en route to Karachi. Flight tracking data from Flightradar24 showed erratic changes in altitude before the plane entered a steep dive.

The wreckage was discovered approximately 53 nautical miles, or about 98 kilometers, south of Ormara port. Navy and maritime security teams are now working to locate the plane’s flight recorders.

K2 Airways confirmed that five people were aboard the aircraft: two pilots, two engineers, and one support staff member. Their status has not yet been officially declared.

A Pakistani aviation expert, speaking anonymously because he was not authorized to comment publicly, warned that recovering the wreckage could rank among the most difficult operations in Pakistan’s recent history. Water depths in the area of the Arabian Sea where the plane went down range from roughly 2,500 to more than 3,500 meters. The expert noted that strong currents, poor underwater visibility, an uneven seabed, and shifting sea conditions would all add to the challenge of bringing up the submerged wreckage and the flight data recorders.

AMSTERDAM — Member nations voted Thursday to restore Syria’s standing at the global body that oversees the prohibition of chemical weapons, citing what they called “a significant change in circumstances” following the collapse of the Assad government.

Syria had its privileges suspended at the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons back in 2021, after investigators determined that Syrian military forces had used toxic gases on multiple occasions throughout the country’s civil war.

While largely a symbolic gesture, the original suspension served as a political warning to Syria that violations of the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention — which bans all battlefield use of chemical agents — would carry consequences.

“Following the fall of the Assad regime, the new Syrian authorities committed to fulfilling Syria’s obligations under the Convention and have since taken concrete steps,” the OPCW stated in its announcement.

Syria’s new leadership has pledged to cooperate with the international community to eliminate leftover weapons of mass destruction that could pose a risk of further spread.

A Syrian official revealed to Reuters in May that the country’s transitional government had discovered remnants of former President Bashar al-Assad’s secret chemical weapons program, including raw materials and munitions resembling those deployed in deadly gas attacks during the civil war.

Multiple investigations conducted by both the United Nations and the OPCW’s special Investigation and Identification Team determined that Syrian government forces had deployed the nerve agent sarin as well as chlorine barrel bombs — attacks that investigators concluded killed or wounded thousands of people.

Throughout that period, Syria and its military ally Russia consistently denied any use of chemical weapons.

The OPCW’s executive council said Thursday that it plans to keep a close watch on Syria’s compliance and will take whatever steps are needed to ensure the destruction of any remaining chemical weapons left behind by the former regime.

AALBORG, Denmark — Summer heat may be gripping much of Europe, but one Danish city is already decked out in holiday cheer.

The city of Aalborg, Denmark’s fourth-largest, has welcomed dozens of Santas, Mrs. Clauses, and elves from countries around the globe for the annual World Santa Claus Congress — a beloved midsummer tradition that has been running for decades.

The congress originally launched at an amusement park near Copenhagen back in 1957, later relocating to Aalborg on Denmark’s Jutland peninsula two years ago. This year, the iconic red suits proved to be quite warm under the bright Danish summer sun.

Next year, the event will celebrate its 70th anniversary. While it was originally designed to delight children, it has since grown into a beloved gathering for professional Santas who spend the holiday season working in stores and shopping centers.

The multi-day event gives those professional Santas — not the real one, of course — an opportunity to trade stories, compare beards, refine their skills, and take part in fun-filled competitions, all well before the holiday rush begins.

The busy schedule includes activities such as gingerbread eating, gift wrapping, balloon shaping, and several lively parades through the city streets.

Organizer Peter Gislund, who himself plays Santa Claus in Aalborg during the Christmas season, described the mixed reactions from locals. “The grandmas say: ‘Oh, it’s too early to come here,’” he noted. “The kids say: ‘Hooray! Santa’s here already.’”

Over the years, the four-day gathering has drawn participants from as far as Australia, Hong Kong, Canada, and the United States. Most of the roughly three dozen Santas and Mrs. Clauses attending this week came from Scandinavia, but some made the trip from much farther away — including Paradise Yamamoto, who flew in from Tokyo.

After marching through Aalborg waving a Japanese flag and dancing to “Feliz Navidad” — one of several Christmas classics featured throughout the event — Yamamoto summed up the experience simply: “This is very fun, so many children … Ho, ho, ho!”

Robert Hercz, a 64-year-old Santa from Oslo, Norway, said that despite coming from different corners of the world, all the Santas present share something special — what he calls “a gene” for generosity and spreading happiness.

“You have it or you don’t,” said Hercz, who was attending the congress for the first time. “We have the true Santa spirit. And it’s all about giving, sharing, and putting a little bit of joy in people’s hearts.”

But it’s not all laughter and belly rubs. The gathering also gives Santas a rare chance to connect with one another and pick up a few tricks of the trade.

“When Santas are together, they always mingle and talk a little bit,” Gislund said. “Maybe I put a little bit of sparkle in the beard and so on. That’s the good part of meeting some Santas from all over the world.”

For 33-year-old Danish Santa Simon Brøns, the congress is living proof that the holiday spirit doesn’t need to be confined to December.

“Christmas is not a season. It’s a feeling you have in your stomach,” he said with a grin. “So if you want, you can have Christmas the whole year.”

BERLIN — Germany has agreed to purchase American Tomahawk cruise missiles and station them within its own borders, Chancellor Friedrich Merz announced Thursday, signaling a significant move away from relying on planned U.S. deployments toward developing Germany’s own long-range military strike power.

Merz informed members of parliament that he finalized the agreement with the U.S. government while attending a NATO summit in Ankara, noting that discussions held Tuesday and Wednesday had gone better than he had anticipated.

“We are closing a critical strategic gap in our defence, while simultaneously working to develop our own European systems and station them in Europe,” Merz said.

German government sources indicate that Washington formally committed in a letter of intent signed Tuesday to grant approval in August for Germany to acquire Tomahawk missiles along with ground-based Typhon launchers. The exact number of missiles and launchers Germany intends to buy has not been made public, as that information is classified.

The purchase appears to align with President Donald Trump’s broader effort to encourage European allies to fund their own security needs — including by purchasing American-made weapons.

The future of any Tomahawk supply to Germany had been uncertain since Trump announced in May a reduction of U.S. military presence in the country. That announcement was widely interpreted as scrapping a plan from the prior administration to station a U.S. battalion armed with long-range Tomahawk missiles on German soil — a measure originally intended as a temporary but powerful deterrent against Russia while European nations worked on developing comparable weapons of their own.

Germany does produce its own cruise missile, the Taurus, but its range of roughly 500 kilometers — about 311 miles — is three to five times shorter than that of the Tomahawk.

LONDON — American technology company Palantir has taken its fight to court after London’s mayor’s office blocked a major policing contract, with the firm arguing Thursday that the rejection improperly factored in its perceived “values and ethics.”

The company had secured a two-year deal worth £50 million — roughly $67 million — with the Metropolitan Police. Under the agreement, Palantir’s artificial intelligence tools would have been used to automate certain police tasks and assist with evidence analysis in criminal cases.

In May, the mayor’s office refused to sign off on the contract, telling the Met that the police force had failed to hold an open competitive bidding process before selecting Palantir.

A spokesperson for London Mayor Sadiq Khan was also quoted in reports expressing concern that Palantir did not align with “London’s values” — a characterization the company has sharply criticized, calling it “putting politics above public safety.”

Palantir’s attorney, David Pannick, argued in court that the Metropolitan Police “desperately needed technology in order to save money” and that the force believed the contract “would enable them to protect frontline services.”

The Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime pushed back in court filings, maintaining the contract was rejected because the Met failed to get prior approval for its procurement approach and only consulted a single supplier throughout the process.

Judge Adam Constable ruled that a full trial of Palantir’s legal challenge will be held in January, turning down the company’s request to move the hearing to an earlier date later this year.

Palantir’s ties to U.S. military and immigration contracts, along with the political views of billionaire co-founder Peter Thiel, have drawn increasing attention as European governments grow more cautious about relying on American technology platforms.

The company is also facing scrutiny in Britain over a separate £330 million contract with the National Health Service, which is currently under review. A parliamentary committee recently described Palantir as having a “clear mismatch with UK values” and recommended invoking a break clause in that contract. Palantir’s British CEO Louis Mosley called that recommendation “irresponsible.”

BEIRUT — A deal between Lebanon and Israel was presented as a path toward lasting peace, but inside Lebanon, it is reopening old wounds and stoking fears of political gridlock — or worse, a return to civil war.

Brokered by the United States, the agreement envisions Israeli forces withdrawing from Lebanon and eventually a formal peace between two nations that have technically remained at war for nearly 80 years since Israel’s founding. However, the deal makes a full Israeli pullout contingent on Hezbollah being disarmed — a condition that has enraged the Iran-backed militant group.

Lebanon’s Western-supported government and Hezbollah have traded sharp words, and the group’s backers have taken to the streets, blocking major roads in protest. One Hezbollah lawmaker warned that attempting to force the group to give up its weapons would push the country into civil war.

The standoff has stirred painful memories of Lebanon’s brutal 1975–1990 civil war and more recent street clashes in 2008 between Hezbollah fighters and pro-government forces. It has also cast serious doubt on whether the U.S.-brokered framework can move forward at all.

Any renewed conflict between the United States and Iran would further cloud the deal’s future and increase the chances of fighting breaking out again between Israel and Hezbollah.

The agreement is expected to be front and center when Lebanese President Joseph Aoun visits the White House on July 21.

Lebanon’s political landscape has been split for more than two decades — one side backed by Western nations, the other supported by Iran and led by Hezbollah. Both camps view the outcome of this new agreement as a matter of survival.

The latest round of fighting between Israel and Hezbollah began in March, triggered by a joint U.S.-Israel military operation launched against Iran just days before. Hezbollah joined the conflict without the Lebanese government’s approval and has tried to tie the end of its fight against Israel to the outcome of broader U.S.-Iran negotiations. The Lebanese government, seeking to limit Iran’s sway, worked to keep the two issues separate and pursue a direct ceasefire with Israel.

Hezbollah’s camp celebrated when the Iran-U.S. ceasefire deal explicitly called for an end to fighting in Lebanon as well. The resulting truce significantly reduced the violence, but Israeli troops still occupy large portions of southern Lebanon, and hundreds of thousands of people remain displaced from communities that have been nearly entirely destroyed.

The ceasefire’s connection to the U.S.-Iran deal was widely interpreted as a win for Hezbollah and a boost to Iran’s grip on Lebanon.

But the mood shifted when Lebanon and Israel unveiled their June 26 “framework agreement” in Washington. That deal tied an Israeli military withdrawal directly to Hezbollah being disarmed across all of Lebanon.

Lebanese government officials praised the agreement as a step toward freeing occupied southern territories and letting displaced residents return home. Hezbollah and its allies, however, accused the government of signing off on an indefinite Israeli occupation, pointing to the lack of any withdrawal timeline.

Hezbollah supporters blocked roads in Beirut and burned banners carrying the phrase “Lebanon First” — widely viewed as a jab at the Iran-backed group. Hezbollah’s leader, Naim Kassem, called the deal a “humiliation” and declared the group would not abide by it.

Hezbollah legislator Hassan Fadlallah went even further, warning that the government “will not be able to enforce the agreement signed in Washington unless they go, with American support, to civil war.”

That kind of language brought back memories of May 2008, when the government’s decision to dismantle Hezbollah’s communications network led the group to deploy gunmen in Beirut and elsewhere, sparking violent clashes with pro-government fighters. The government ultimately backed down. Now, Hezbollah is demanding that the government revoke its March 2 declaration that labeled the group’s military and security operations illegal.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has defended the agreement, saying it will restore the government’s authority across the entire country. He has pushed back firmly against Hezbollah’s warnings.

“I am not looking for a confrontation with Hezbollah but neither myself nor anyone in the government will accept to be blackmailed by Hezbollah,” Salam said in a recent interview with local LBC TV.

For now, the war of words has not turned physical — largely because the deal itself is stuck. Lebanon and Israel have agreed to set up two “pilot zones” where Israeli forces would hand control over to the Lebanese army after clearing out any Hezbollah presence. Prime Minister Salam has suggested implementation could begin soon, but little has actually happened on the ground.

“There is no schedule for the withdrawal or anything else,” said a Lebanese military official who spoke anonymously because he was not authorized to make public statements. The official said the army has received no information about when or how the Israeli pullback would unfold.

The initial pilot zones named by Lebanese and Israeli officials include the towns of Froun, Ghandouriyeh, and Zawtar — areas where Israeli troops were largely not present to begin with, raising questions about what a withdrawal would even look like there. The Lebanese military official said the army had pushed for larger pilot zones that included areas actually under Israeli control.

An Israeli military official, speaking anonymously under briefing rules, said the army is still awaiting direction from political leadership on the timing of any withdrawal.

Lebanon’s history is marked by political violence, but its sectarian power-sharing system — divided among Shiite and Sunni Muslims, Christians, and Druze — has also been prone to paralysis. Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri, a Hezbollah ally, has warned the deal “will not pass, and it will not be implemented in its current form.”

Wissam Lahham, a constitutional law professor at St. Joseph University in Beirut, noted that under Lebanon’s constitution, a treaty does not become legally binding until it is ratified by a two-thirds majority of the Cabinet — a vote that has not been scheduled. He also said it remains unclear whether parliamentary approval would be required, adding another potential hurdle.

In a speech Wednesday, Hezbollah leader Kassem sent a blunt message to the government: “Ultimately, not a single clause of the framework agreement will be approved, and there will be nothing you can do about it.”

Michael Young, senior editor at the Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center in Beirut, said the Lebanese government was right “in principle” to try to keep Lebanon’s situation separate from the Iran negotiations on sovereignty grounds — but that the approach was not realistic.

“You cannot reach any kind of solution with regard to Hezbollah unless Iran is on board,” he said. “The Iranians will not give up on Hezbollah, and at the same time the Lebanese are not willing to enter into an armed conflict with Hezbollah.”

Warsaw, Poland — A Russian man and woman have been found guilty of spying for Moscow and handed prison sentences by a Polish court, prosecutors announced Thursday. One of the two was also convicted in connection with a scheme involving an explosive package.

The case comes amid heightened security concerns across Europe following a string of package explosions at courier facilities in Britain, Germany, and near Warsaw, Poland’s capital, in July 2024. European authorities have attributed those incidents to Russia, though Moscow has consistently rejected those claims.

The male defendant, identified in court only as Igor R. in accordance with Polish privacy regulations, was convicted in the southern Polish city of Sosnowiec for his role in a plan to send a parcel bomb through a courier company.

Both Igor R. and his wife, Irina, were also convicted of passing information to Russian intelligence services. That information concerned Russian opposition figures living in Poland, along with the people and organizations that were helping them.

Igor R. received a seven-year prison sentence, while Irina was sentenced to three years behind bars.

BRUSSELS — The European Union introduced a sweeping new sanctions plan on Thursday designed to crack down on migrant smuggling networks, human trafficking, and organized criminal activity. If approved, the measures would allow authorities to freeze the assets and restrict the travel of those found responsible.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen outlined the goal behind the effort, saying, “We all have a common goal. To drive them out of business. And to save the lives of thousands of people who dream of a better life.”

She added, “We in Europe must be the ones to decide who comes to us and in what circumstances.”

Before the sanctions framework can take effect, it must receive unanimous support from the European Council — a requirement that could prove challenging given ongoing disagreements among member nations over immigration policy.

The proposal arrives at a time of heated debate across the EU over how to handle migration. Just last month, the European Parliament passed a broad overhaul of migration rules aimed at speeding up deportations and allowing for the creation of offshore detention facilities. That legislation has sparked pushback from countries including France and Spain, where critics contend the measures are too severe and could weaken protections for asylum seekers.

Foreign ministers from the Southeast Asian regional bloc ASEAN are set to hold an informal meeting with their Myanmar counterpart in Bangkok on July 12, according to statements from Thailand and Vietnam issued on Thursday.

The gathering takes place as Myanmar’s newly formed army-backed government — which came to power following an election earlier this year — pushes for the removal of a ban that has kept its leaders out of ASEAN summits. That ban was put in place after Myanmar’s military seized power in a 2021 coup, which sparked a civil war that continues to this day.

Vietnam’s foreign ministry spokesperson Pham Thu Hang addressed the meeting during a press briefing, saying: “The meetings in Bangkok is an opportunity for ASEAN foreign ministers to directly exchange views, strengthen cooperation, and promote reconciliation dialogue in Myanmar.”

Thailand’s foreign ministry also confirmed the meeting, listing it in the schedule for a routine press conference.

The ongoing conflict in Myanmar has taken a devastating toll on the already impoverished country. A wide range of armed groups are fighting against the military, and the violence has killed more than 100,000 people while forcing millions from their homes.

At an ASEAN summit held in May, the bloc’s foreign ministers agreed to conduct a virtual meeting with Myanmar’s top diplomat, though no specific date was set at that time. The agreement came after Thailand pushed for deeper engagement with the new administration based in Naypyitaw.

The 11-member ASEAN had previously distanced itself from Myanmar’s military rulers after they failed to follow through on the bloc’s peace framework, known as the “five-point consensus.” However, a number of member states have since shifted their positions and moved toward greater engagement.

Myanmar’s former junta leader turned president, Min Aung Hlaing — who orchestrated the 2021 coup — recently made a state visit to Laos, marking his first trip to an ASEAN member country since transitioning into his new civilian role.

Russian officials are hoping to have a commercial logistics hub operational by mid-July at one of two berths within the naval base Russia leases at the Syrian port of Tartous, according to Syrian officials who spoke with Reuters. The remaining berth would continue to serve Russian military purposes.

The facility is expected to handle a broad array of Russian products, including wheat, grains, animal feed, vegetable oils, timber, steel, coal, rice, sugar, and mineral oils. Organizers are targeting initial cargo volumes of roughly 250,000 tons each month.

The effort reflects Russia’s push to hold onto and grow its footprint in Syria through economic means, after the 2024 overthrow of former President Bashar al-Assad left Moscow without its closest partner in the Middle East.

The stakes go well beyond commerce. Washington is actively working to ensure Syria steers contracts toward American companies and pulls back on Russia’s military presence in the country.

Russia has supported Syria for decades and sent its military forces in 2015 to back Assad during a 14-year civil war. Assad’s removal cast doubt on the future of Russia’s lease agreement for its naval base at Tartous along the Mediterranean coast, as well as its military base at Hmeimim, located southeast of the city of Latakia.

Since Assad was removed from power, Syria’s new government has been building closer relationships with Western and Gulf nations, while still working with Moscow on energy, food imports, and military matters.

Negotiations between Moscow and Damascus over the future of the Tartous and Hmeimim bases are currently ongoing.

Earlier in 2025, Syria’s new leadership cancelled a 49-year contract that had given Russian firm Stroytransgaz rights to develop commercial facilities at Tartous. The United Arab Emirates’ DP World then secured an $800 million, 30-year agreement to redevelop and operate the port.

Despite that, on June 6, the Russian-Syrian Business Council — a body operating under Russia’s Ministry of Industry and Trade — announced intentions to set up an “assembly and distribution centre for Russian goods” at Tartous.

The project is being developed by Syrian logistics firm Rus Line in partnership with Russian companies working through the Russian-Syrian Business Council. Organizers say they have reached an agreement with Syria’s Sovereign Fund for joint management of the logistics center, creating a direct connection to the state’s primary investment body.

Ossama Ajaj, general manager of Rus Line and an adviser to the Russian-Syrian Business Council, confirmed the range of goods the hub would handle. Jinan Mubadda, Rus Line’s chief executive, said the hub would operate from Pier No. 4 at Tartous port, in what Ajaj described as a “restricted zone” within the naval base.

Syria’s ports and customs authority did not respond when contacted for comment.

Russia’s government also declined to comment. However, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said in June that Moscow and Damascus were discussing a potential “reformatting” of Russia’s military facilities in Syria and that cooperation between the two nations was actively moving forward.

Ajaj told Reuters that operations were expected to kick off in mid-July with a 30,000-ton grain shipment, and that Russia would maintain a “reduced military presence.”

Ajaj and two Syrian foreign ministry officials said the project was laid out during a January 28 meeting in Moscow between Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Russian President Vladimir Putin. Those officials described the meeting as a turning point in efforts to revive economic ties between the two countries.

The project aims to establish a regular shipping route between Russia’s Black Sea port of Novorossiysk and Tartous, from which goods would be distributed throughout Syria and into neighboring countries. Ajaj identified Iraq and Jordan as the primary target markets, with Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, and Bahrain also in focus.

A concept document from May, prepared by the Russian-Syrian Business Council, said the project would use Syrian private security companies to protect cargo when needed, explicitly ruling out the use of Russian security firms.

The planned hub would add to Russia’s already considerable economic role in Syria. Syrian customs documents show that roughly 85% of Syria’s imported wheat — approximately 2.9 million tons for the 2025-26 season — comes from Russia and Russian-occupied Crimea. Reuters has also reported that Syria’s dependence on Russian crude oil has grown since Assad’s fall, with the country receiving about 16.8 million barrels of Russian oil in 2025 and an estimated 60,000 barrels per day in the early months of 2026.

An intelligence source briefed on a confidential report from Russia’s military intelligence agency, the GRU, submitted to the Russian presidential administration in December 2025, said the report recommended boosting support for economic actors who could strengthen Russia’s leverage in Syria. The report identified Louay Youssef, head of the Russian-Syrian Business Council, as someone Moscow could count on to advance that strategy.

Youssef has held multiple senior roles in Russian-Syrian organizations and served as an adviser on Syrian affairs to a deputy defence minister, according to two of his associates. Youssef, who has announced he is now an adviser to the defence and security committee of Russia’s Federation Council — the country’s upper house of parliament — did not respond to requests for comment.

Nanar Hawach, a senior Syria adviser at International Crisis Group, said the project could help Russia preserve influence regardless of what ultimately happens with its military presence.

“Russia’s hold on Syria rests on what it supplies and maintains, and on its (United Nations) Security Council vote, which gives it influence that outlasts any drawdown of troops,” Hawach said. “A logistics role reinforces that by keeping Russia physically present at the port, strengthening its hand while the future of the base is being decided.”

The United States is keeping a close watch on the situation. Congressman Joe Wilson recently secured an amendment to the Pentagon budget directing it to evaluate options for reducing Russia’s influence in Syria and pushing for the withdrawal of Russian forces from Tartous and Hmeimim.

“We closely monitor Russian-backed commercial and logistics projects in Syria and are concerned that such initiatives may not contribute to stability in the country,” a U.S. State Department official said in response to questions from Reuters.

The official added that the U.S. is urging Syria to work with “trusted corporate partners — especially U.S. firms” as the country rebuilds after years of civil war, and is pressing Damascus to honor U.S. sanctions against Russia.

BANGKOK (AP) — China’s military fired a ballistic missile into the South Pacific Ocean on Monday in a rare demonstration of its nuclear-capable weapons systems, triggering international backlash and raising alarms across the region.

The test came two years after a similar launch in international Pacific waters and was carried out by the People’s Liberation Army. While small island nations in the area took notice — with their leaders increasingly pushing back against larger countries using the Pacific as an arena for power plays — analysts say the real audience for this display was Washington.

“The most important message is the PLA is becoming a powerful military with a very strong strategic nuclear capability,” said Tong Zhao, a senior fellow with the Nuclear Policy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, a think tank.

The missile was fired from a nuclear-powered submarine, showcasing the sea-based component of China’s nuclear triad — a military term for having nuclear weapons deployable from land, sea, and air. Dominic Meagher, a research fellow at the Crawford School of Public Policy in Australia, noted that the test also proved China has what military experts call a second-strike capability, meaning the country could still retaliate even if it were attacked first, since its submarines can launch from anywhere in the ocean.

Beijing characterized the launch as part of routine annual exercises, hinting that similar tests could follow in the future.

“I would see this as a systematic move, not an isolated event,” said K. Tristan Tang, Nonresident Fellow at the National Bureau of Asian Research, in written comments.

The missile test is occurring alongside China’s rapid expansion of its nuclear-powered submarine fleet. Over the past five years, China has been constructing these vessels at a faster pace than the United States, according to a report from the International Institute for Strategic Studies, a think tank.

The choice of international waters — specifically waters shielded by treaty from nuclear testing — drew condemnation from countries throughout the region. The South Pacific is a contested space, valued for its strategic location and its abundant fisheries and mineral resources.

For Pacific island nations, nuclear activity in the region carries deep historical wounds. The United States, the United Kingdom, and France all conducted nuclear weapons detonations in the Pacific in decades past, leaving behind environmental damage and serious health consequences including cancers and birth defects that some island communities say are still being documented generations later.

“Those tests resulted in outrage and resulted in treaties to prevent future tests, and that includes the nuclear test ban treaty and the Treaty of Rarotonga,” Meagher said. “These kinds of missile tests haven’t been conducted since.”

Monday’s missile came down within the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone, a region established under the 1986 Rarotonga accord, which bans nuclear weapons throughout the area. China ratified related protocols in 1987, committing not to test nuclear weapons within the zone or threaten to use them against nations with territory there.

Solomon Islands Prime Minister Matthew Wale, speaking to reporters in the Solomon capital Honiara on Tuesday, put it bluntly: “China is a good friend of Solomon Islands, but this is not something a friend does. This is not … good in our region.”

While the United States does carry out nuclear missile tests in the Pacific, it steers clear of the treaty-protected zone, according to Meagher.

Australia and New Zealand both said they received inadequate advance warning before the launch, and Japan criticized the lack of transparency. Both Australia and New Zealand are major powers in the South Pacific and have grown increasingly uneasy about China’s efforts to expand its influence across the region.

China’s bilateral agreements with leaders of smaller Pacific nations have prompted Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese to pursue his own diplomatic outreach, including defense and security agreements signed with Vanuatu, Fiji, and Papua New Guinea over the past year.

Speaking to reporters in Honiara on Tuesday, where he was holding talks with local officials, Albanese called the launch “a provocative act by China which does destabilize the region.” Australia and the Solomon Islands are currently working toward a comprehensive treaty of their own. “The fact that this test took place yesterday with very little notice is of real concern,” he added.

China pushed back against the criticism, insisting it gave proper advance notice to affected countries. “China informed the relevant countries in advance, which demonstrates the openness and transparency of the Chinese military,” its Defense Ministry stated on Tuesday.

Experts point to the Hague Code of Conduct as the closest thing to an international standard for ballistic missile use, requiring at least 24 hours of advance notice — though that code is not legally binding. Tang also noted that China is not a member of the Hague Code of Conduct.

Questions remain about the exact details of the launch. The People’s Liberation Army rarely releases information publicly, but Taiwan’s National Security Council secretary-general said Wednesday that the weapon was a JL-2 missile, an older submarine-launched ballistic missile, fired from waters near Guangdong, a province in southern China. Chinese state media, however, featured military experts suggesting it was more likely the newer JL-3, which can travel farther. “The JL-3’s range can strike a target on the east side of the Pacific from the west side,” said Shao Yonglin, a military expert interviewed by state broadcaster CCTV.

As China’s military continues to grow, analysts say it should expect greater international oversight. If “China wants to become a major military power, it should be put under the same standards” as countries like the United States, the United Kingdom, and France, said Zhao, the nuclear policy expert.

MANILA — The Philippines’ defense secretary fired back Thursday against claims made by Chinese scholars who argued that the country’s northernmost island-chain province rightfully belongs to Beijing, calling the assertions both “baseless” and “ludicrous.”

The controversy stems from a June 30 symposium where scholars from institutions including Nanjing University contended that Batanes — a Philippine island province — is a natural extension of Taiwan and should therefore be considered Chinese territory. A Chinese state-run news outlet, GDToday, reported on the symposium on July 2. Beijing has not formally taken that position.

Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro told reporters he sees the scholars’ comments as a warning sign. “I view this, once again, as probably a signal of a preconceived intention,” he said.

“It is not far-fetched to think that this is already part of their plan. And it also validates what we have been saying that they have a plan to control the entire Pacific Ocean,” Teodoro continued.

He did not mince words about the validity of the claim. “What is this for, right? And we know this is baseless. This is nonsense. It is ludicrous,” he said. “So this is concerning, and it is something that must be challenged.” He did not elaborate further on what steps might be taken.

The Chinese embassy in Manila had not responded to a request for comment on Teodoro’s statements at the time of reporting.

Batanes is home to roughly 20,000 people and sits approximately 160 kilometers — about 100 miles — south of Taiwan along the Luzon Strait, a strategically significant waterway connecting the South China Sea and the Pacific Ocean. The province has grown in importance for regional security planning and has been the site of joint military exercises between Philippine and U.S. forces.

The scholars’ remarks arrive at a particularly sensitive time. The Philippines and Japan announced in May that they would begin formal negotiations to establish maritime boundaries for their exclusive economic zones and continental shelves under international law — a development that drew criticism from China.

Teodoro himself has previously been sanctioned by Beijing, along with his close relatives, over what China described as “erroneous remarks” about the country.

The broader backdrop involves China’s sweeping claims over nearly the entire South China Sea, a critical trade route through which more than $3 trillion in goods pass each year. An international arbitration ruling in 2016 found those claims to be invalid, though Beijing has refused to recognize the decision.

Pakistani Navy search and rescue teams faced challenging ocean conditions Thursday as efforts to find the five-member crew of a downed cargo plane entered their second day, officials confirmed. Debris from the aircraft was pulled from the water Wednesday, but no crew members have been found.

The plane, which belonged to private airline K2 Airways, reported a navigation system failure before all radio and radar communication was lost late Tuesday evening, according to the Pakistan Airports Authority.

Since losing contact, ships and aircraft have been scouring an area of the Arabian Sea roughly 300 kilometers — about 180 miles — southwest of Karachi. The plane had been approaching Pakistan’s largest city on a flight originating from Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates when it disappeared from radar.

Investigators have not yet determined what caused the crash.

Two officials with knowledge of the search operation told The Associated Press that both the plane’s main fuselage and all five crew members have yet to be found. The officials requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the matter.

Both officials noted that choppy waters were again making the search extremely difficult.

The Pakistan Airports Authority reported Wednesday that Navy vessels and the Pakistan Maritime Security Agency discovered and retrieved debris approximately 12 hours after the plane went missing. That wreckage was found about 100 kilometers — roughly 60 miles — off the coast of Ormara, a town along the Makran coastline in Pakistan’s Balochistan province.

The authority also shared photos on the social media platform X showing rescue workers pulling pieces of the plane from the water. Officials noted the debris was spread across a large area, with strong winds, heavy seas, and shifting currents scattering the wreckage and making it harder to pinpoint where the crew might be.

Retired Rear Adm. Faisal Shah warned that locating the plane’s main wreckage could take months or even years. He explained that the aircraft is believed to have gone down in water approximately 3,000 meters — nearly 9,800 feet — deep, which would require specialized underwater equipment to search.

Shah also cautioned that recovering floating debris does not pinpoint the actual crash location, since wind, waves, and ocean currents can move wreckage far from where the plane initially went down.

He drew a comparison to the prolonged search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, which disappeared in 2014 and has never been definitively found despite years of international search efforts.

K2 Airways identified the five missing crew members as Capt. Muhammad Rizwan Idris, First Officer Faisal Jatoi, flight engineers Muhammad Hamid and Muhammad Arif Siddiqui, and aircraft loader Muhammad Taufiq Khan. Their families have continued to hold out hope as rescue teams press on with the search in the Arabian Sea.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has ordered authorities to deploy every available resource in the search operation and extended his condolences to the families of the missing crew members.

Radar data reviewed by the Pakistan Airports Authority showed the aircraft made a sudden change in direction and dropped rapidly in altitude before contact was lost at approximately 9:21 p.m. Tuesday, at a point about 287 kilometers — or 178 miles — west of Karachi.

Pakistan has a history of deadly aviation accidents spanning several decades. In May 2020, a Pakistan International Airlines flight carrying 99 people went down in a heavily populated area near the Karachi airport while attempting to land. Only two of the 99 people on board survived. A subsequent government investigation determined that errors made by both the flight crew and air traffic controllers were responsible for the disaster.

SINGAPORE — Leaders in Asian policy, investment and business are increasingly stepping forward as active navigators of a more divided world, focused on building long-term strength rather than simply choosing sides between the United States and China.

That theme came through clearly at the Reuters NEXT Asia conference in Singapore, where representatives from governments, sovereign wealth funds and private equity firms made the case that geopolitical friction is no longer a passing disruption — it is now a permanent part of the global environment that requires lasting strategies, not quick fixes.

For Thailand, that translates into a more hands-on approach to foreign policy and investment — working pragmatically with a range of partners based on national interest rather than locking in with any single world power.

“We seek to be the trusted connector in this fragmented world,” said Thai Vice Finance Minister Santitarn Sathirathai.

He explained that Thailand’s goals go beyond simply attracting investment dollars. The country evaluates projects not based on where they come from, but on whether they bring technology transfers, quality jobs and stronger supply chains at home.

“There’ll be certain areas where it makes more sense to partner with certain groups,” he said.

A similar mindset has taken hold among long-term investors. Hong Kong Investment Corporation Chief Executive Clara Chan said that in her view, geopolitical uncertainty actually creates openings for patient, long-term capital rather than simply acting as a roadblock.

“When you see uncertainties, challenges around the world … for long-term investors, patient capital like us, those could present pretty good opportunity,” she said.

Chan noted that the HKIC, founded four years ago, has now invested in more than 200 companies and continues to grow by using Hong Kong’s dual role as a gateway to mainland China and a global financial hub. She added that what investors truly care about most is policy clarity, long-term vision and a fair playing field — not geopolitical headlines.

The chief investment officer of Singapore state investor Temasek warned that investors need to accept they are working in “a world of uncertainty” driven by geopolitics, artificial intelligence, climate change and inflation. He cautioned that those who react to every new shock will “get whipsawed.”

Rohit Sipahimalani said the better approach is to build resilient portfolios around companies with large domestic markets, self-sufficient supply chains and strong technology capabilities that can hold up under geopolitical pressure.

“You can’t hedge all the uncertainty … you can’t afford to respond to every event that’s taking place,” he said.

Private equity investors largely agreed, arguing that U.S.-China tensions and broader global friction have become part of the new normal — and have actually made Asia more attractive, not less.

“Asia is going to have two-thirds of the middle class by 2030 and 60% of … the global growth is coming from Asia. So people are diversifying into the region,” said Stephanie Hui, Goldman Sachs’ head of Asia private equity.

Primavera Capital founder Fred Hu pointed out that Asia accounts for half of global GDP, roughly 40% of global trade and foreign direct investment, and remains the world’s essential manufacturing base — making the region “literally a sanctuary” in uncertain times.

“There’s been a war in the Americas, there’s been war in Europe, there’s been war in Middle East. Asia… we are very stable,” he said.

Bain Capital’s Satoshi Ueyama highlighted Asia’s diversity as one of its greatest assets, pointing to corporate reform efforts in Japan, demographic and infrastructure-driven expansion in India, ongoing innovation in China and Southeast Asia’s growing role in supply-chain restructuring.

“It continues to provide great opportunities,” he said.

Venezuela is pushing to complete what could be the most complicated debt restructuring in modern history, and it wants to do it fast — raising serious concerns among financial experts about what that speed could mean for the country’s future.

The South American nation is working to restructure both its government debt and that of its state-owned oil company, with total claims nearing $200 billion. Bondholders say Venezuelan officials in Caracas are hoping to complete the early stages of the overhaul — launched in May — as soon as November, with the goal of unlocking billions in desperately needed investment across industries including oil and energy.

But the push for speed is alarming debt specialists, particularly given that Venezuela is simultaneously dealing with the aftermath of devastating earthquakes that killed more than 3,000 people and damaged hospitals, schools, and other critical infrastructure last month.

“This will surely be the most complex sovereign debt restructuring of my lifetime,” said Mitu Gulati, a sovereign debt expert and professor at the University of Virginia. “I’ve never seen anything done like this.”

A central concern is whether Venezuela can produce a credible Debt Sustainability Analysis — a document that measures a country’s debt load against its economic outlook to help determine how much lenders can expect to recover. The challenge is enormous: Venezuela’s debt includes arbitration awards, oil-backed loans from China, traditional bonds, and overdue interest payments. The country has not released complete debt or economic statistics in years.

Veteran sovereign debt attorney Lee Buchheit, who has guided numerous countries through debt restructurings since the 1980s, said the proposed timeline is far too compressed to produce a trustworthy analysis. He noted that both the government and bondholders may have their own reasons to rush — officials may want to demonstrate a return to global financial markets, while bondholders may want to avoid a more thorough review by the International Monetary Fund that could result in smaller payouts.

“What may be presented as a DSA will in fact just be a manufactured set of numbers that appears to support some form of bond restructuring,” Buchheit warned. He was hired in 2019 by then-opposition leader Juan Guaido to advise on debt restructuring efforts.

For comparison, Greece’s restructuring of its roughly $200 billion debt following its 2012 default took approximately one year to complete. Venezuelan government officials did not respond to requests for comment.

Caracas announced in May that it had hired financial advisory firm Centerview Partners and initially aimed to finish the Debt Sustainability Analysis by the end of June. Investors now anticipate it will be delivered sometime this month. The IMF confirmed it is not involved in the process, which has deepened doubts about the reliability of the figures being used. Centerview Partners declined to comment.

Adding to the unease, the Financial Times reported last month that Venezuela’s debt burden could actually reach $240 billion — $40 billion higher than earlier estimates — without clarifying what accounts for the additional amount. That revelation alarmed some creditors and prompted calls for IMF participation.

“If you don’t have a process that can be verified by independent observers, the IMF, then you run the risk of cronyism and corruption,” said Christopher Sabatini, director of the Latin America Programme at Chatham House.

A Caracas-based financial consultancy called Sintesis Financiera argued that the Venezuelan government should pause the restructuring process entirely, warning that relying on economic data and assumptions made before the earthquakes would be a “costly mistake” that risks underestimating just how much debt relief the country actually needs.

The earthquake damage — estimated at $7 billion — is a “massive blow” to an economy already struggling to recover, according to Joan Domene, chief economist for Latin America at Oxford Economics.

“It will make the case for the government to plead for an even bigger haircut,” Domene said, referring to the losses that creditors absorb when debt is restructured.

Some observers believe the advisers involved understand the gravity of the situation. “It’s right to have a healthy degree of skepticism,” said Elina Theodorakopoulou of Manulife Investment Management, which holds Venezuelan bonds. “But surely you would believe that the people that are putting that together realize the significance of doing that credibly.”

Venezuela’s economy has shrunk by an estimated 75% since 2013, weighed down by sanctions, corruption, and chronic underinvestment. The earthquake’s infrastructure damage has added losses equivalent to as much as 6% of the country’s gross domestic product. Venezuela’s backers have been counting on a fast debt resolution since the U.S. seized then-President Nicolas Maduro in January.

Few analysts expect significant foreign investment to flow in until creditors can no longer pursue Venezuelan assets through legal channels.

“Venezuela has been in limbo for years,” said Rodrigo Olivares-Caminal, a professor at Queen Mary University who is advising some private investors on the situation. “We want to unlock funding… (but) publish a DSA that will not be contested.”

Getting the restructuring wrong, experts caution, could leave Venezuela crushed under unsustainable debt obligations — leaving little room to fund infrastructure repairs or healthcare.

“If you give away all of your goodies now… my worry is that we’re just pushing the real restructuring problem down the road,” said Gulati.

DUBAI — Iran laid its slain Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to rest Thursday at one of the country’s most sacred sites, as massive crowds gathered in the northeastern city of Mashhad to witness the culmination of a week-long series of funeral ceremonies stretching across two nations.

The burial took place at the Shrine of Imam Reza, where the golden dome and towering minarets caught the morning light as mourners waved Iranian flags, carried photographs of the late Khamenei, and held signs bearing revolutionary slogans.

Notably absent from the proceedings was Mojtaba Khamenei, who was named Supreme Leader by a clerical assembly in the week following his father’s death. He has not been seen publicly since the strike that killed his father on February 28 — the same attack that left him with severe injuries, including a disfigured face and badly wounded limbs. While written statements have been issued in his name, no images, video, or audio recordings of him have been released. Senior sources in Tehran say he is recovering but has not yet been well enough for public appearances, and that state security services are also working to limit his exposure out of concern for further U.S. attacks.

As crowds waited for the funeral procession in Mashhad, chants demanding vengeance against U.S. President Donald Trump rang through the streets. “I swear by the blood of the Supreme Leader, Trump, we will kill you!” demonstrators shouted, with women in the crowd holding up placards reading “Kill Trump.”

Khamenei’s remains, along with those of four family members who died alongside him, had already been transported through Tehran, the Shi’ite Muslim clerical center of Qom, and the Iraqi shrine cities of Najaf and Karbala over the course of the past week. At every stop, enormous crowds filled the streets to the sound of Shi’ite mourning chants and revolutionary calls.

The concept of martyrdom carries deep significance in Shi’ite theology, and Khamenei’s death at the hands of foreign adversaries has tapped into a powerful religious and political tradition at the core of the Islamic Republic’s identity.

The funeral marks a pivotal turning point for Iran, closing the chapter on nearly four decades under Khamenei’s leadership. His death comes months after a wave of nationwide protests fueled by public anger over an economy strangled by sanctions. Security forces crushed that unrest by killing thousands of demonstrators — a level of repression consistent with previous episodes of violence under the Islamic Republic.

Analysts suggest Iran emerged from the recent war in a strategically stronger position, with its hold over the critical Strait of Hormuz remaining intact. However, the country also sustained significant damage that has compounded existing economic difficulties.

Khamenei first took power as supreme leader in 1989, a decade after the Islamic revolution, and spent the following 37 years consolidating political, military, and economic authority within his office. That consolidation increasingly sidelined Iran’s elected president and parliament and was carried out in close partnership with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which grew steadily more powerful throughout his tenure.

Mojtaba Khamenei’s appointment as his successor came with the backing of the Guards, who are now widely regarded as the dominant force shaping Iran’s political and strategic direction.