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Indian shipping officials confirmed Monday that a blaze broke out aboard an oil tanker carrying 24 Indian crew members, but reported that all personnel are safe.

Television news outlets in India indicated the burning vessel was positioned in waters near Oman’s coastline.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei pointed blame at the United States on Monday following nighttime military confrontations between Iranian and Israeli forces, describing the situation as worsening an already “chaotic diplomatic process” between Tehran and Washington. Baghaei indicated that Iran and the US are currently communicating through messages in an atmosphere marked by “extreme suspicion.”

According to Baghaei, Israeli military operations in Lebanon are designed to undermine diplomatic efforts, regardless of whether the US has prior knowledge or approval of such actions. He emphasized that Washington holds direct accountability for ceasefire violations as a participant in the April 8 agreement, including strikes linked to Israel, warning that the international community should worry about escalating regional warfare.

“The United States bears direct responsibility for any action the Zionist regime (Israel) takes in relation to violating regional peace and security against Iran,” Baghaei stated.

The spokesperson noted that Pakistan’s interior minister traveled to Tehran on Sunday as part of ongoing efforts to maintain indirect communication channels with Washington.

In a separate matter, Baghaei announced that Iran would counter any resolution targeting the country during this week’s U.N. nuclear watchdog Board of Governors meeting.

He criticized International Atomic Energy Agency chief Rafael Grossi for ignoring conflict realities and maintaining biased political positions that undermine the organization’s credibility.

LONDON – Britain’s Prime Minister is pressuring major technology companies to implement protective measures on children’s devices that would stop minors from sharing explicit images, threatening legislative action if they refuse to comply.

The proposed initiative would require companies such as Apple and Google to develop or enable technological features on mobile devices and tablets that can identify and prevent nude images from being transmitted by underage users, according to government officials. Adult users would maintain access to such content through age confirmation systems.

Speaking at London Tech Week on Monday, Prime Minister Keir Starmer addressed technology companies directly: “Today I’m calling on tech companies operating in this country to introduce device controls that prevent children from sending and receiving sexually explicit images. This is not an impossible challenge.”

Government officials announced that technology firms have a three-month window to implement these protective measures voluntarily before facing mandatory legislation.

“This will include fines for companies. Nothing is off the table, and as a last resort the government is exploring whether this could extend criminal liability for tech bosses who fail to comply,” according to the official government announcement.

In December, Australia made history as the first nation worldwide to prohibit social media access for youth under 16, preventing them from using platforms such as TikTok, Alphabet’s YouTube, and Meta’s Instagram and Facebook.

Here’s an overview of actions countries and companies are taking to control social media access as worries grow about its effects on young people’s wellbeing and security.

AUSTRALIA

Groundbreaking legislation requires major social media companies to prevent access for minors under 16 starting December 10, 2025, representing some of the strictest rules targeting big tech companies globally.

Platforms that don’t comply risk fines up to A$49.5 million ($34.9 million).

BRITAIN

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer plans to announce restrictions on “harmful” online platforms for youth under 16 while allowing access to certain safer social media options, according to a Times report from June 8.

Starmer reportedly chose to move forward with these limitations after meeting with grieving parents and reviewing evidence from Australia.

CHINA

The nation’s cyberspace regulator has established a “minor mode” system requiring device-level limitations and app-specific guidelines to limit screen time based on age.

DENMARK

In November, Denmark announced plans to prohibit social media for youth under 15, though parents could grant access to specific platforms for children as young as 13.

FRANCE

The National Assembly approved legislation in January to prohibit children under 15 from using social media due to increasing concerns about cyberbullying and mental health dangers. The proposal must pass the Senate before a final lower house vote.

GERMANY

Youth between 13 and 16 may only access social media with parental permission. Child advocacy groups argue these protections are inadequate.

GREECE

The country is “very close” to declaring a social media prohibition for children under 15, a senior government source informed Reuters on February 3.

INDIA

The nation’s chief economic adviser advocated for age limits on social media platforms in January, calling them “predatory” in their user engagement tactics, just two days after tourist destination Goa announced it was considering restrictions similar to Australia’s.

ITALY

Youth under 14 must have parental approval to create social media accounts, while those above that age need no consent.

MALAYSIA

The country started preventing those under 16 from creating social media platform accounts, according to its communications regulator on June 1.

NORWAY

In 2024, the Norwegian government suggested increasing the consent age for social media terms from 13 to 15, though parents could still approve access for younger children.

Officials have also started developing legislation for an absolute minimum age of 15 for social media access.

POLAND

The ruling party is developing new legislation to ban social media for children under 15 and make platforms responsible for age verification, announced on February 27.

SLOVENIA

The country is creating legislation that would prevent children under 15 from using social media, Deputy Prime Minister Matej Arcon stated on February 6.

SPAIN

The nation will advance new regulations to make social networks and AI safer despite heavy tech industry lobbying, Digital Transformation Minister Oscar Lopez told Reuters in May.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced in February that Spain would prohibit social media access for minors under 16, requiring platforms to implement age verification systems.

SWEDEN

A government-appointed commission recommended on June 2 that the country should establish a minimum age of 15 for social media use.

A prohibition could be structured so platforms handle age verification, investigator Lisa Englund Krafft explained at a news conference with Social Affairs and Public Health Minister Jakob Forssmed.

UNITED STATES

Legislation designed to force social media companies to better protect children and teens passed a significant political milestone after Republican Senator Ted Cruz announced his support on May 12.

Cruz stated at a Washington event that he would support the Kids Online Safety Act, which would require social media companies to “exercise reasonable care” when designing features that could harm minors, according to the bill.

This legislation is distinct from the existing Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, which stops companies from gathering personal information from children under 13 without parental permission. Multiple states have enacted laws requiring parental consent for minors’ social media access, but these have faced legal challenges on free speech grounds.

EU LEGISLATION

On May 12, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced the European Union would pursue stronger protections for children from harmful social media features.

Von der Leyen said the Commission would address “addictive and harmful design practices” in its Digital Fairness Act, planned legislation set for proposal later this year, while an expert panel develops guidance on implementation.

In November, the European Parliament approved a resolution demanding an EU-wide prohibition on platform access for children under 16 without parental consent, and complete bans for those under 13.

TECH INDUSTRY

Social media platforms like TikTok, Facebook and Snapchat require users to be at least 13 to register.

Child protection advocates argue these measures are insufficient, and government data from several European nations reveals vast numbers of children under 13 maintain social media accounts.

Military fighter jets from NATO successfully intercepted and destroyed an unmanned aircraft that violated Latvian airspace on Monday after crossing from Russian territory, according to the Baltic country’s military forces.

Officials have not yet determined where the drone originated from.

In recent months, Ukraine has increased its long-distance drone operations targeting Russia, including missions in the Baltic Sea region, where multiple Ukrainian military drones have accidentally entered the airspace of Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.

“Allied fighter jets successfully shoot down a drone flying into Latvian airspace!,” Latvia’s army said in a post on social media X.

Earlier Monday, officials issued warnings to residents in Latvia’s eastern areas, advising them to take cover inside their homes because of the potential danger. Military officials said the alert was lifted after the drone was destroyed.

The increasing frequency of military drones accidentally crossing into airspace belonging to Russia’s neighboring countries has raised worries that Ukraine’s conflict is expanding beyond its borders into NATO’s northern territories.

In the previous month, a NATO military aircraft destroyed what was believed to be a Ukrainian drone flying over Estonia.

YEREVAN, Armenia — Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan declared victory in his nation’s general election during the early morning hours Monday, with initial vote counts showing his Civil Contract party secured first place by capturing 49.81% of ballots cast.

The prime minister and his Civil Contract party are seeking a robust public endorsement for Armenia’s shifting foreign policy direction, which includes moving away from ties with Moscow while pursuing membership in the European Union.

Pashinyan’s primary challenger was Samvel Karapetyan, a wealthy businessman who built his fortune in Russia and currently faces house arrest on charges of promoting government overthrow. Karapetyan’s Strong Armenia bloc finished second with 23.29% of votes, though he maintains the accusations against him are politically driven.

The nation’s Central Election Commission reported that four political parties exceeded the required 4% vote threshold to gain parliamentary seats following Sunday’s voting, with some holding strong pro-Russian positions.

The Strong Armenia party led by Karapetyan advocates for strengthening commercial relationships with Russia and has criticized Pashinyan for potentially provoking conflict with the Kremlin.

Two additional parties earned legislative representation: Armenia secured 9.94% of votes while Blossoming Armenia reached exactly 4%. Election officials recorded voter participation at 59.97%.

Speaking with reporters at his campaign headquarters before official results were announced, Pashinyan stated his party achieved an unprecedented electoral success and would establish a government independently.

Senior European Union leaders offered congratulations to Pashinyan after the closely fought contest, which European observers viewed as a measure of Russian sway over the former Soviet nation.

“The spirit of the Velvet Revolution you led in 2018 is alive and well,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote Monday on social media, referencing the widespread demonstrations initiated by Pashinyan’s advocacy that removed Armenia’s previous Prime Minister Serzh Sargsyan from power.

“We deeply value our partnership with a democratic Armenia that is drawing ever closer to Europe. Armenia can count on us,” von der Leyen stated.

European Council President António Costa similarly congratulated Pashinyan through a post on X, discussing expanded EU involvement in Armenia and the wider South Caucasus area, which connects Europe’s energy-seeking markets with Central Asian natural gas resources.

“Together, the EU and Armenia are building stronger links between people and creating new opportunities in energy, trade, and digitalization. Our strong partnership is an investment in a more peaceful and prosperous future for the region as a whole,” he wrote.

CHISINAU, June 8 – An unmanned aircraft entered Moldovan airspace during the early hours of Monday, with explosive debris later discovered in farmland close to the Ukrainian border near the eastern community of Lopatna, according to Moldova’s defense ministry.

The country’s monitoring systems tracked the aircraft entering Moldovan territory at 12:20 a.m. local time (2120 GMT) Monday, coming from the Mihailovca-Lopatna area, ministry officials reported.

“It was confirmed that fragments from an unmanned aerial vehicle were found on an agricultural field near the Lopatna locality,” the ministry stated in their announcement.

Evidence at the location showed “the previous occurrence of an explosion,” officials added.

The defense ministry referenced a Russian nighttime assault on nearby Ukraine and indicated the aircraft debris would undergo analysis to determine its source and the circumstances surrounding the incident.

“What happened underscores the risks and consequences that the Russian Federation’s war of aggression against Ukraine poses to regional security and neighbouring states,” Moldova’s foreign ministry declared in their statement.

The country has experienced multiple instances of Russian unmanned aircraft entering its airspace or wreckage falling in border regions.

On Sunday, President Maia Sandu stated that the Ukrainian conflict demonstrated her nation’s urgent need for advanced interceptor drone technology, noting that new laws would be necessary to enable their production.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer plans to unveil restrictions on dangerous online platforms for children under 16 while preserving access to safer social media alternatives, according to a Monday report from the Times newspaper.

The prime minister, scheduled to deliver remarks later Monday, reportedly made his decision following conversations with grieving parents and after reviewing evidence from Australia, which implemented restrictions for those under 16 in December.

When questioned about the report, a Downing Street source stated: “The prime minister is not afraid about taking on the tech companies and their bosses to protect young people.”

However, a source familiar with the situation indicated that formal restrictions would not likely be announced this week. Instead, the government may provide immediate details about initiatives to stop children from creating sexualized content online that could be exploited for sextortion.

Concerns about social media’s effects on mental wellness and digital safety led Britain to conduct a public consultation on children’s social media access earlier this year, examining potential curfews, usage limits and restrictions on addictive platform features.

Several European nations are exploring stricter social media regulations for minors, including France, Denmark and Poland, while Greece announced in April that it would prohibit access for those under 15 beginning in January 2027.

According to a Sunday statement from his office, Starmer is expected to address how the government can ensure technology creates positive outcomes during his Monday speech.

Current British online safety legislation already mandates that social media platforms implement protections for children against illegal and harmful digital content.

Specialists remain split on whether complete restrictions would prove effective, while a group of young Londoners recently expressed opposition to such limitations in interviews with Reuters.

HAVANA — Cuba’s legendary vintage American automobiles, known locally as “almendrones,” are facing their biggest challenge in decades as a severe fuel shortage forces many of these iconic vehicles off the roads.

The classic gas-hungry cars, which have served as essential shared transportation and symbolized Cuban resourcefulness for generations, are now parked unused across the island due to fuel scarcity that began in January. Cuban authorities attribute the crisis to U.S. energy restrictions.

In Las Minas, a community of roughly 2,000 residents near Havana, Diriel Valdez works on rebuilding a 1951 Chevrolet Deluxe outside his humble concrete home on an unpaved street. While the wine-colored vehicle’s body remains solid and its original motor still functions, obtaining gasoline has become nearly impossible.

Valdez joins countless other Cubans relying on a government fuel reservation system through a mobile app that has ironically come to represent the very shortages it aims to address.

“I signed up in February … I’m still somewhere around number 2,800,” said the 27-year-old who runs an auto body shop from his home.

His lengthy wait would eventually yield just 20 liters (5.3 gallons) of gasoline — barely enough fuel, Valdez notes, for a trip to the coast.

The term almendrón derives from the Spanish word meaning almond, referencing the curved silhouette of the massive American sedans brought to Cuba prior to the 1959 revolution.

Throughout many years, trade restrictions, supply shortages and minimal imports transformed Cuban auto mechanics into experts at creative solutions. Motors were replaced, frames reconstructed and spare components obtained from any available source.

During a recent evening in Havana, while yet another power outage plunged most of the capital into darkness, taxi operator Leonardo Daniel González navigated a borrowed bright purple 1948 Chevrolet Fleetmaster through the unlit streets.

“These cars are passed down from generation to generation,” said González, 30. “I had one that belonged to my great-grandfather. It went from him to my grandfather, then to my father, and then to me.”

Cuba faces one of its worst energy emergencies in recent memory. Citizens, already struggling through years of economic hardship and supply shortages, now endure daily power outages lasting as long as 20 hours in certain areas of the nation.

The island generates approximately 40% of its fuel needs domestically and relies extensively on foreign supplies to operate power facilities and maintain transportation systems.

Beginning in January, the Trump administration intensified restrictions on Cuba as part of its continued pressure strategy against the island’s communist leadership. Trump has also warned of potential tariffs against nations that sell or ship petroleum to Cuba, creating additional obstacles for the country’s fuel procurement efforts. Only one Russian oil tanker has reached the island since that time.

Next to his Chevrolet in Las Minas, Valdez, the auto body shop owner, explained how the fuel crisis impacts his business. He acquired auto repair skills from his stepfather and has been fixing classic automobiles since age 13.

“People don’t want to do major repairs anymore,” he said. “A lot of them have their cars parked. They don’t have much hope that they’ll be circulating the way they used to.”

With gasoline becoming increasingly scarce through official channels, numerous motorists are accessing Cuba’s underground market, where fuel can typically be located faster, albeit at dramatically inflated costs reaching $8 per liter ($30 per gallon).

Omar Everleny Pérez, a former economist at the University of Havana’s Center of Cuban Economic Studies, explained that the nation’s transit infrastructure continues to rely substantially on almendrones since contemporary vehicles remain financially impossible for most Cubans.

“They’ve been vital to the transportation of ordinary Cubans,” he said. “Not only in Havana but throughout the country.”

While newer automobiles have become purchasable in Cuba recently, their costs remain far beyond what most government employees can afford, Pérez noted. This reality has helped maintain the elderly American vehicles in service, even as alternative transportation options begin appearing on Cuban roads.

Electric motorcycles from China have grown more prevalent. Compact electric cars are also emerging, supported by an expanding system of solar-powered charging facilities that the government promotes as part of its renewable energy initiative.

In Havana, González remains optimistic about the almendrones’ future. Despite fuel scarcity and dramatically reduced tourism, he continues earning income from the vintage Chevrolet.

“There are … several WhatsApp groups for us to find rides and so on,” said González. “But tourism in Cuba is in very bad shape.”

The political party of Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan has captured nearly half of all votes cast in the nation’s parliamentary elections, according to official results released Monday.

Civil Contract, the governing party, received 49.81% of votes, the country’s central election commission announced.

Meanwhile, the opposition Strong Armenia party garnered 23.29% of the vote, commission officials reported.

While major technology leaders from companies like Nvidia, Intel and SK Group gathered in Taiwan last week to highlight the island’s essential role in global AI supply chains, tensions with Chinese military forces were escalating in nearby waters.

During the final day of the prominent Computex technology conference in Taipei on Friday, Taiwan’s coast guard confronted Chinese vessels in the disputed South China Sea.

“Peace in the Taiwan Strait is vital to the stability of the global economy, and the lifeline of the technology industry,” Taiwan’s coast guard announced in a message directed at a Chinese ship operating near the Taiwan-controlled Pratas Islands.

The island nation hosts TSMC, the globe’s biggest contract semiconductor manufacturer that supplies chips to Nvidia and Apple, plus Foxconn, which serves as Nvidia’s primary server producer, alongside numerous other firms throughout the AI technology sector.

Beijing considers the democratically-run island part of its territory and has intensified military activities to reinforce its territorial claims over recent years, especially during the past month.

Throughout the June 2-5 Computex conference, Taiwan’s defense ministry documented 79 Chinese military aircraft operating in the vicinity of the island, highlighting concerns about potential disruption to global AI supply networks if Beijing follows through on its threats to seize Taiwan through military action.

Chinese forces conducted another “joint combat readiness patrol” around Taiwan on Wednesday.

China’s defense ministry declined to respond to requests for comment regarding its military activities during the conference period.

Massive financial investments are flowing into Taiwan to manufacture the technology components driving the artificial intelligence boom, but significant security concerns remain, according to David Feith, senior fellow at U.S. think tank the Hudson Institute and a former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State.

“There’s an enormous security threat, and it emanates from Beijing,” he stated to Reuters on Saturday during a forum in Taipei organized by DEST, Taiwan’s National Science and Technology Council-backed think tank.

“I do think that markets globally and governments, I fear, are underestimating the risk of a crisis.”

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang revealed last month his company intends to invest approximately $150 billion each year in Taiwan, a significant increase from the roughly $10 billion to $15 billion spent five years earlier. AMD CEO Lisa Su, who visited Taiwan shortly before the conference though she didn’t attend Computex, has announced more than $10 billion in investments for Taiwan’s AI sector.

When questioned about security concerns during his Tuesday press conference, Huang deflected the topic, stating supply chains should be as “diversified and as redundant” as possible to ensure resilience, while noting Taiwan technology companies are investing in the United States.

“However, it doesn’t change the fact that Taiwan is incredible at manufacturing, especially technology manufacturing,” he continued. “This is the epicentre of the ecosystem.”

Taiwan President Lai Ching-te addressed the security situation more directly during Computex opening remarks.

“The government will firmly safeguard peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait and is committed to maintaining the status quo,” he declared.

“This is an unwavering national policy, as well as Taiwan’s most responsible commitment to the global technology supply chain.”

The Computex conference included a military component, featuring participation from several drone manufacturers.

The president has prioritized drone technology as a central element of his military modernization strategy.

Palmer Luckey, founder of U.S. drone manufacturer Anduril Industries, which is collaborating with Taiwan on missile development, attended the conference on Thursday. He informed the official Central News Agency that approximately 30 Taiwanese companies now participate in his company’s supply networks.

“There are things in this world that only exist because Taiwan is the leader in technology, and that’s not something that I want to disappear,” he commented.

Swiss citizens will head to voting booths on June 14 to decide whether their nation should impose a 10 million person population limit in a referendum that business leaders are comparing to Brexit in terms of potential economic damage.

The population restriction proposal, backed by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP), stems from concerns that Switzerland’s growing population is overwhelming infrastructure, transportation systems, and public services while contributing to higher housing costs and increased crime rates.

Corporate leaders and employers are expressing alarm that approving the measure would restrict Switzerland’s ability to recruit qualified workers and could harm the country’s relationship with the European Union, which represents its largest export destination.

Martin von Moos, who serves as CEO of luxury hotels Belvoir in Ruschlikon and Sedartis in Thalwil near Zurich, expressed deep worry about the proposal’s implications. “As a Swiss citizen, it concerns me very much for the future of our country and its prosperity,” von Moos stated.

He emphasized his business’s dependence on international workers, saying “If we lost all of our foreign staff, the hotel simply wouldn’t function,” while noting that nearly half of his 115 employees come from other countries.

Recent polling data indicates a close contest, with 47% of respondents supporting the cap and 52% opposing it.

Switzerland’s population has expanded to 9.1 million by the end of 2025, representing significant growth from the 7.3 million residents when the country established free movement agreements with the European Union in 2002. Foreign nationals currently represent nearly 28% of the total population.

SVP lawmaker Yvan Pahud defended the proposal to Reuters, stating “Switzerland is a small country with a limited territory, and it has experienced the highest population growth in recent years.”

The referendum reflects a broader European trend of right-wing political movements capitalizing on public concerns about immigration, housing availability, and public services, similar to Britain’s 2016 decision to leave the EU and the growing support for parties like France’s National Rally and Germany’s AfD.

Business opponents warn that the population restriction could seriously harm one of Europe’s strongest economies.

Molecular Partners, a Zurich-based biotech firm where more than half of approximately 120 employees are non-Swiss, already faces challenges recruiting necessary talent.

Daniel Steiner, senior vice president of targeted radio therapeutics at the company, warned that limiting hiring to Swiss workers “would basically be a showstopper.” He added, “We may be forced to move things out of Switzerland.”

Rudolf Minsch, chief economist of business association economiesuisse, characterized the cap as a “populist attempt” to address complicated issues through an oversimplified approach. “It sells the illusion of a free lunch, and will not solve our housing or traffic problems,” Minsch explained.

Switzerland confronts demographic challenges common throughout Europe, with an aging population creating workforce concerns. Government statistics project that by 2055, the working-age population between 20 and 64 will decrease from 60% to 56%, while those over 65 will increase from the current 21% to 27%.

Critics of the population cap point to the economic contributions of immigrants, highlighting major companies like Nestle, Swatch and ABB that were established wholly or partially by foreign entrepreneurs. A 2023 Avenir Suisse study found that 39% of all company founders in Switzerland were foreigners.

Switzerland’s political system relies heavily on direct democracy, with citizens voting on national and regional matters four times annually.

The current proposal would require government action to prevent reaching 10 million people once the population hits 9.5 million, projected for 2031. The 10 million threshold is expected in 2042.

Upon reaching the 10 million limit, the government would be obligated to cancel international agreements that promote population growth, including the EU free movement accord that provides Switzerland access to European single market benefits.

Claude Maurer, chief economist at BAK Economics research institute, calculated that abandoning bilateral agreements with Brussels would reduce Swiss economic growth by 7.1% between 2028 and 2045, equivalent to losing 685 billion Swiss francs ($867 billion). He predicted slower growth and higher inflation driven by wage increases could lead to elevated interest rates.

Thomas Matter, another SVP lawmaker and banker, rejected these economic warnings as fear tactics. He argued that only one in ten immigrants possess sought-after skills and that per-capita GDP growth has declined since immigration increased.

“We are not against immigration, but it has to be moderate and controlled so we bring in the right people,” Matter explained. “Before we had qualitative immigration, now we have quantitative immigration. Switzerland is still the same size as it was in 1848, and more and more people are living in the same space.”

Major Swiss corporations including Roche, Nestle, ABB, UBS and Novartis have publicly opposed the population cap.

Roche stated its rejection of the initiative, warning that approval would “threaten agreements with the EU and exacerbate a shortage of skilled workers.” The company emphasized that “Companies depend on access to qualified workers — especially from the EU.”

Hotelier von Moos, who also leads the Swiss hotels association, predicted that some hotels would close, prices would increase, and non-European visitors would face greater difficulty traveling to Switzerland.

“We call this initiative a wolf in sheep’s clothing. It’s a simple message but it hides serious consequences,” he concluded.

Economic forecasters anticipate that China’s overseas sales momentum picked up pace in May, bolstered by international buyers accelerating their purchasing schedules to avoid potential energy cost increases linked to Middle Eastern conflicts, combined with ongoing worldwide appetite for computer chips and artificial intelligence components.

Analysts surveyed predict the world’s second-largest economy saw its overseas shipments climb 15% compared to the same period last year when measured in U.S. dollars, based on responses from 32 economic experts polled. This represents an uptick from April’s recorded increase of 14.1%.

While the ongoing Middle Eastern crisis hasn’t yet impacted China’s export performance – a key economic growth mechanism favored by government officials – analysts believe disruption is inevitable. They expect that as international purchasers complete their inventory building and the advantages of accelerated ordering diminish while production costs climb, buyers will reduce stockpiles and delay purchases until conflicts resolve.

Expert opinions varied significantly regarding China’s international shipping performance last month. China Industrial Securities, Huachuang Securities and Zheshang Securities projected the most conservative estimates around 10% expansion, while the Economist Intelligence Unit and JP Morgan anticipated export growth would moderate to approximately 12%. ING provided the most optimistic projection of a 19.5% surge.

Additional manufacturing sector information for May revealed a steep monthly decline in new overseas orders following their peak at a two-year high in April, when facility supervisors characterized operations as “booming” during a rush by international manufacturers to secure supplies before possible cost increases, indicating the advance ordering trend may be weakening.

Robust international sales helped drive the $20 trillion economy beyond projections during the initial quarter, though progress has subsequently slowed, strengthening analysts’ worries that insufficient internal demand leaves China vulnerable should external circumstances deteriorate, potentially necessitating additional government intervention.

Incoming goods are projected to have increased by 25%, maintaining roughly the same trajectory as April’s 25.3% rate. South Korea’s overseas sales, an important indicator of China’s purchasing activity, jumped 80.9% in June, driven by semiconductors and technology components utilized in China’s production networks.

However, Chinese leadership faces mounting international criticism to strengthen domestic spending. Detractors contend the government relies excessively on bringing in components and shipping out completed products rather than encouraging internal consumption, an approach that threatens to push other developing nations out of more valuable manufacturing sectors.

The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development reinforced this worry recently, stating in a publication that almost 60% of Chinese companies’ “market share gains can be explained by subsidies received.”

A recent U.S. Federal Reserve study determined that China’s trade surplus – calculated relative to worldwide economic output – has exceeded 1%, surpassing the highs achieved by Japan and Germany during the late 20th century, with minimal indication of reduction. This suggests ongoing Chinese industrial excess capacity will continue reshaping global manufacturing for the foreseeable future.

A highly anticipated meeting last month between U.S. President Donald Trump and President Xi Jinping helped reduce friction but yielded no substantial progress, either regarding tariff disagreements or collaboration on resolving the Iran conflict.

China’s trade surplus is expected to reach $92.1 billion in May, rising from $84.8 billion the previous month and $51.3 billion in March.

Iran’s diplomatic representative in Moscow announced Monday that the Strait of Hormuz will resume operations under revised terms established by Iranian and Omani officials, which will include charging transit fees.

Oil shipments through the waterway have been dramatically reduced due to the ongoing U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. Prior to hostilities, approximately one-fifth of global oil supplies traveled through this critical passage. While some tankers have recently managed to exit the Gulf, petroleum and liquefied natural gas transportation remains heavily restricted.

“Of course, this strait will be open, but with new conditions to be determined by the Iranian and Omani authorities,” Ambassador Kazem Jalali stated during an interview with Russian publication Izvestia released Monday.

“We understand that Iran and Oman provide certain services related to this strait. And fees will be charged for those services,” he explained, though he did not provide additional details.

Iranian officials have maintained that any lasting peace agreement should permit them to collect charges from vessels transiting the strait, with varying costs based on ship type, cargo contents, and current circumstances.

This stance faces strong resistance from U.S. President Donald Trump. During late May, American officials cautioned Oman against participating in any Iranian initiative to establish such tolls, and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent reported that Oman’s ambassador assured him no plans existed to implement these charges.

Monday also saw Israel announce strikes against military installations in western and central Iran, despite reports that Trump had advised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to avoid additional attacks.

Japan, which relied on Middle Eastern sources for roughly 95% of its oil imports before the conflict began, confirmed it did not pay any fee when a Japanese-connected crude oil tanker navigated through the waterway during May.

In the war-torn Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, Marharyta Nekhoroshyva experienced overwhelming terror when she first laid eyes on her newborn child. Her son arrived at only 26 weeks gestation, weighing a mere 940 grams (2 pounds), with diapers small enough to fit in an adult’s palm.

“The doctors told me that if he survived the first three days, everything would be OK,” she said, tears filling her eyes. “I don’t believe in God, but I was praying.”

Today, at 9 months old, Mark displays energy and liveliness but struggles with persistent respiratory issues that demand regular hospital visits.

Nekhoroshyva faces the challenge of managing her son’s medical needs while living under continuous threat of bombardment in Zaporizhzhia, where medical facilities cover their windows with boards due to glass regularly breaking from Russian attack blast waves. She handles this burden without her husband, who is serving in the military.

Ukrainian regions are experiencing an upward trend in early births — occurring before 37 weeks of gestation — especially in areas close to combat zones, where certain locations have witnessed rates climbing to nearly twice their pre-conflict levels since Russia’s 2022 invasion began.

Medical professionals explain that early delivery causes are multifaceted, but the severe mental and physical strain that warfare places on expecting mothers plays a role. The delicate process of sustaining these vulnerable infants becomes even more challenging amid ongoing conflict.

At Zaporizhzhia’s primary pediatric medical facility, Nekhoroshyva joins other mothers in bringing their babies to underground shelters nightly. Within these confined, poorly lit corridors, they comfort and lull their infants to sleep.

Although Ukraine sees fewer overall births due to population displacement, emigration, and wartime circumstances, early deliveries represent a growing portion of births, based on United Nations data and recent research findings.

The southern Kherson region experienced its preterm birth rate climbing from 5.4% in 2019 to 9.8% in 2025, according to U.N. statistics. The Zaporizhzhia region, also located in the south, saw increases from 5.7% in 2019 to 7.6% in 2025. Poltava, a northeastern Ukrainian region, witnessed rates climbing from 7.7% to 9.8% during the same timeframe.

Combat lines run through both Kherson and Zaporizhzhia regions, where civilian areas face regular bombardment. While Poltava sits farther from front lines, it experiences frequent aerial bombardments.

The connection between expectant mother stress and early delivery involves complexity, but expanding research indicates that extended psychological pressure raises the likelihood of early birth, according to medical experts. This may connect to heightened infection risk, a recognized catalyst for early labor, explained Dr. Andrew Weeks, a professor of international maternal healthcare at the University of Liverpool.

“Premature birth is very affected by infection,” he said. “And if you can’t get to a place where you can get appropriate diagnosis and treatment early, then actually the chance of you going into premature labor is higher.”

Ukraine faces increases not only in early births but also emergency cesarean deliveries and additional complications, stated Isaac Hurskin, spokesperson for the U.N. Population Fund.

“We’re seeing this real link between acute stress and birthing and pregnancy-related complications,” he said.

These complications may worsen a population crisis. Ukraine’s birth rate has dropped to among the world’s lowest levels, falling to approximately one child per woman during the past three years — significantly below the 2.1 replacement rate, Hurskin noted.

Within an incubator at Zaporizhzhia city’s maternity hospital intensive care unit rests an infant born at 30 weeks weighing only 700 grams (1 pound, 9 ounces) — considerably under the 2,500 gram (5 pounds, 8 ounces) threshold that the World Health Organization defines as low birth weight.

Her small form survives within the climate-controlled incubator. Intravenous tubes provide nutrition and medicine, while breathing equipment assists her lungs. A blanket covers the incubator to shield her delicate, developing vision from the ward’s bright fluorescent lighting.

Medical care concentrates on helping early babies gain weight and develop independent breathing, but potential complications are widespread, explained Dr. Andrii Lobanov, head of neonatal intensive care at Zaporizhzhia’s children’s hospital. Oxygen management requires precision due to risks of abnormal eye blood vessel development, potentially causing blindness in serious cases.

Beyond intensive care discharge, children born early frequently need ongoing medical attention — potentially lifelong — for breathing, neurological, developmental, or immune system issues.

This creates financial strain on resource-limited nations like Ukraine.

“It is very expensive and of course a country in a war situation has to decide what it’s going to spend on, so hospital services invariably get hit. Both literally and metaphorically,” Weeks said.

Warning sirens have integrated into routine operations within neonatal intensive care facilities. When alarms sound, medical staff remain with infants rather than evacuating them to shelters, understanding that relocating these fragile newborns presents greater risks. The alerts occur too regularly to halt operations each time.

Dr. Nataliia Bohuslavska, head of the neonatal unit at the maternity hospital in Zaporizhzhia, started one recent day with air raid warnings about approaching missile strikes. By afternoon, a Russian glide bomb had hit a business district, killing at least 12 people.

Medical services continued throughout: Physicians conducted two cesarean procedures and delivered an infant while treating a 42-year-old woman who lost her pregnancy after experiencing an airstrike.

The following day, a black banner flew near the hospital entrance honoring the deceased.

Bohuslavska recognizes each mother in her ward personally — understanding their complex medical situations, anxieties, and tiny infants struggling for life. She has served at this hospital for 26 years and was delivered there herself.

Warfare intensifies challenges faced by every expecting woman under her care, she explained.

“She wonders what kind of world her child will be born into, under what conditions the birth will happen, and whether it will be a moment of joy or one gripped by fear with shells exploding nearby,” she said.

Numerous mothers face this experience without support while their spouses serve in combat.

“When a patient calls to say her husband has been killed in the war, the only thing I can tell her is: ‘Come to us. We will take care of you,’” Bohuslavska said.

“We have to support her constantly, so that even in the midst of this terrible loss, she can find the strength to give new life a chance and save her baby.”

For Mariia Skladan, the moment for departure had arrived.

Her daughter, Elina, arrived in January at only 26 weeks, weighing 740 grams (1 pound, 10 ounces). Five months afterward, having grown to a robust 3 1/2 kilograms (nearly 8 pounds), physicians determined she was ready for release.

Skladan has a uncommon liver condition that doctors cautioned would make conception nearly impossible. Her pregnancy was viewed as miraculous, Bohuslavska stated.

“If there’s a war, what does it mean? Not to live?” Skladan asked. “You want to keep going.”

When she and Elina exited the maternity facility, her relatives waited with flowers. Skladan wept with happiness.

However, the comfort proved brief.

The following day, Elina returned to intensive care after developing a virus during the night.

HONG KONG (AP) — Officials in Hong Kong unveiled new legislation Monday that would grant the city’s chief executive authority to classify specific criminal activities as national security violations, marking another step in the territory’s ongoing crackdown on dissent amid concerns about diminishing freedoms.

Following widespread pro-democracy demonstrations that shook the financial center in 2019, Beijing implemented a national security statute that led to the detention of numerous prominent activists. Local authorities added a second security measure in 2024, focusing on additional crimes including espionage and revealing state secrets.

Opponents argue these two security measures have undermined the Western-style freedoms Beijing pledged to preserve when the former British territory returned to Chinese control in 1997. However, officials maintain these laws are essential for maintaining stability in the city.

In documentation presented to lawmakers Monday, the Security Bureau and Department of Justice outlined subsidiary legislation to clearly establish the classification process for “other offenses endangering national security under the law” in Hong Kong.

Officials explained that when the chief executive provides certification determining that actions in a criminal case involve national security, the case would be categorized accordingly.

When defendants face charges for national security violations along with alternative charges for identical actions, those alternative charges would also be treated as national security threats, according to the proposal.

“Amid the present complicated geopolitical landscape, national security risks still exist. Stating clearly the above mechanism by way of subsidiary legislation can improve the legal system and enforcement mechanisms for Hong Kong to safeguard national security,” officials stated in their documentation.

Authorities described the legislation as intended to clarify procedural details and provide more certainty in implementing specific provisions.

“The subsidiary legislation does not involve the creation of any new criminal offense, penalty or enforcement power,” they noted.

Officials said the territory should finish the legislative process “as soon as possible” and will complete the proposed legislation after receiving input from lawmakers. The measure would become effective immediately upon publication in the official government gazette.

MANILA, June 8 – Authorities in the Philippines confirmed Monday that a powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake claimed the lives of at least three people and left four others wounded when it struck a southern island in the archipelago nation.

Officials have not yet provided specific information regarding the circumstances of the deaths.

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung condemned ballot paper shortages during last week’s local elections as severely damaging his country’s standing as an exemplary democracy, expressing support for protesters who have questioned the election’s integrity.

During a Monday news conference, the president called the June 3 situation that left voters standing in line for hours awaiting ballot deliveries “just ridiculous.”

“It was probably something that’s hard for even people in a lesser developed democracy to imagine that people couldn’t vote because they didn’t have ballot papers,” the president stated. “Shocking.”

Outside a Seoul ballot counting facility, thousands of demonstrators, predominantly young adults in their twenties and thirties, have gathered to demand fresh elections.

Taking responsibility for the crisis, the leader of the National Election Commission, the independent agency responsible for overseeing the nation’s elections, has stepped down from the position.

According to the commission, ballot papers were prepared for 73% of eligible voters based on historical participation rates, but some districts experienced delays receiving supplementary ballots when supplies ran low.

The president has called for a comprehensive investigation into the ballot shortage, while the ruling Democratic Party announced plans for a nationwide inquiry.

The president argued that the constitutional independence granted to the election commission created overconfidence that revealed serious flaws in election administration.

While dismissing critics’ suggestions of electoral fraud, the president indicated some individuals might face criminal charges related to the incident.

The liberal Democratic Party performed strongly in the elections for provincial governors, mayors and local assembly positions, though opposition conservatives maintained control of Seoul’s mayoral office.

Military tensions escalated dramatically in the Middle East Monday as Israel conducted airstrikes against Iran following missile attacks from Tehran, creating the most significant hostilities since a ceasefire agreement in April and threatening to derail ongoing peace negotiations.

State television in Iran confirmed that explosions were audible in Isfahan, Tabriz and Tehran, though officials provided no immediate additional details. The Iranian missile barrage marked the first such attack on Israel since the fragile truce began in early April, heightening fears of renewed intense combat.

The Iranian response came after Israel conducted an unannounced strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs Sunday, going against Washington’s recent appeals to avoid escalation. Israeli officials stated that the Iranian-backed Hezbollah had earlier targeted northern Israel.

Missile warning sirens were activated Monday morning in Saudi Arabia near an air base housing U.S. military personnel.

The Israeli military action appeared to contradict President Donald Trump, who had advised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against further retaliation.

In a telephone conversation with The Financial Times prior to Israel’s Iran strike, U.S. President Donald Trump claimed he was directing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s military strategy.

‘He won’t have any choice,’ Trump told the newspaper in a telephone interview. ‘I call the shots. I call all the shots. He (Netanyahu) doesn’t call the shots.’

Additional developments include:

Israeli forces reported detecting a missile from Yemen aimed at their territory Monday. Warning sirens activated throughout Israel following the Yemeni missile threat.

The Iranian-backed Houthi rebels operate from Yemen. While the Houthis have targeted Israel during the Israel-Hamas conflict and afterward, they have not been fully engaged in the Iran conflict.

Saudi Arabia activated missile warning sirens Monday morning near an air base hosting U.S. military forces. Saudi government media confirmed the alert in the Al Kharj governorate, location of Prince Sultan Air Base.

Officials provided no further information. The warning followed Israel’s strikes on Iranian targets.

In his interview with The Financial Times before Israel’s Iran operation, U.S. President Donald Trump claimed he was controlling Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s military decisions.

‘He won’t have any choice,’ Trump told the newspaper in a telephone interview. ‘I call the shots. I call all the shots. He (Netanyahu) doesn’t call the shots.’

The White House has not responded to Sunday inquiries regarding the strikes or whether they were coordinated with U.S. officials.

Iran shut down airspace surrounding Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport, the nation’s primary aviation facility, following the Israeli attack.

Israeli officials confirmed strikes on central and Western Iran after receiving missile fire, while Tehran reported explosions heard across multiple cities.

Officials in the Philippines are working to confirm reports that at least five people died following a powerful 7.8 magnitude earthquake that struck the southern part of the country on Monday.

Agripino Dacera, who serves as the disaster management chief in General Santos, told reporters that crews are still working to verify the reported deaths while teams continue evaluating the full scope of destruction caused by the powerful tremor.

Israeli forces carried out early Monday morning strikes targeting military installations across western and central regions of Iran, according to military officials. The operations occurred just hours following Iran’s missile barrage directed at Israeli positions, which Tehran launched as payback for a previous strike on southern districts of Beirut.

LIMA, June 7 – Initial polling data from Peru’s presidential election reveals an extremely narrow margin between the leading candidates, with Roberto Sanchez capturing 50.3% of the vote compared to Keiko Fujimori’s 49.7%, according to early results from polling firm Ipsos.

Representatives from Ipsos characterized the razor-thin margin as a statistical dead heat between the two candidates.

The polling organization’s preliminary tally draws from a representative sample of voting locations throughout Peru. Though these numbers are not the official election results, Ipsos’ early counting methodology has proven to be a reliable predictor of final outcomes in past electoral contests.

A devastating 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck the southern Philippines during the early morning hours Monday, damaging structures in a major coastal city and prompting tsunami alerts across multiple regional coastlines.

Authorities immediately issued evacuation orders for residents to seek higher ground. No casualties have been confirmed at this time, though officials remain uncertain whether anyone was trapped or hurt when a small structure collapsed in General Santos city. This coastal community, home to over 700,000 residents, serves as a major commercial center on Mindanao island and is recognized for its tuna processing operations.

According to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology, the earthquake’s center was located 13 kilometers (8 miles) southwest of General Santos at a depth of 10 kilometers (6.2 miles). The tremor occurred at 7:37 a.m.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center announced that tsunami waves reaching up to 3 meters (10 feet) could potentially impact certain Philippine coastlines. Indonesia and Malaysia faced the possibility of waves up to 1 meter (3 feet) along some of their shores.

“We advise people to evacuate to higher grounds or go further inland,” warned Teresito Bacolcol, the head of the Philippine institute, addressing those in coastal communities.

Minor sea level changes were anticipated in Taiwan, Japan, Guam, Papua New Guinea and various island nations and territories throughout the western Pacific. However, the PTWC confirmed no danger existed for Hawaii.

Manila’s DZRH radio station confirmed that the small commercial structure housing its regional office experienced partial collapse, with staff members quickly evacuating to the ground level without sustaining injuries. Officials remained unsure whether others might be trapped within the debris of the four-story office structure, as the earthquake occurred prior to standard business hours.

The tremors were also experienced by residents in north-central Indonesia, where tsunami waves measuring up to 18 centimeters (7 inches) were documented along certain shores of North Sulawesi and North Maluku provinces.

The U.S. Geological Survey reported subsequent aftershocks reaching magnitudes up to 6.5. Their measurements placed the initial earthquake at 55 kilometers (34 miles) in depth. Different agencies commonly report varying measurements immediately following seismic events.

As one of the globe’s most disaster-susceptible nations, the Philippines frequently experiences earthquakes and volcanic activity because of its position along the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” a chain of seismic fault lines surrounding the ocean. The island nation also endures approximately 20 typhoons and tropical storms annually.

Israeli forces conducted early morning airstrikes targeting military installations in Iran’s central and western regions on Monday, responding to missile attacks launched from Tehran that have heightened fears of broader regional conflict across the Middle East.

Reports from Iranian state media confirmed explosions were audible in multiple cities including Isfahan, Karaj, Tabriz and Tehran, though specific details were not immediately provided. A local witness in Tehran reported hearing at least one significant explosion from the western direction of the capital. Following the Israeli assault, Iran shut down airspace surrounding Tehran’s Imam Khomeini International Airport, the nation’s primary aviation hub.

Iranian authorities have not disclosed information regarding which facilities were targeted or the extent of any damage sustained. Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard stated that Israel employed air-launched ballistic missiles during Monday morning’s operation, but provided no additional specifics.

As the strikes commenced at dawn in Iran, the Israeli military released a brief statement declaring: “A short while ago, the Israeli Air Force struck military targets belonging to the Iranian terror regime in western and central Iran.” No further elaboration was provided.

The White House has not responded to inquiries regarding the strikes or whether they were conducted with U.S. coordination.

Recent days have seen stalled negotiations between Iran and the United States concerning the fragile ceasefire in the ongoing conflict, complicated by fighting between Israel and the Lebanese Shiite militia Hezbollah. Israel currently maintains control over southern Lebanon, advancing into territories not occupied for twenty-five years, raising concerns about potential expansion of their military operations.

Israel conducted airstrikes in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Sunday. Iran responded with its own strike against Israel, prompting Monday morning’s Israeli attack on Iran.

U.S. President Donald Trump previously stated to a Fox News Channel reporter his desire for Iran to cease missile launches and resume diplomatic negotiations. He also indicated that Israel’s Sunday strikes in Lebanon were conducted without U.S. coordination, expressing his displeasure with the action.

A senior U.S. official revealed that Trump contacted Netanyahu, urging him to refrain from immediate retaliation following the Iranian missile attack. The official, speaking anonymously regarding the private conversation, indicated Trump believed he had persuaded Netanyahu to delay action.

Trump “got Bibi to hold off for the time being,” the official stated. The official declined to provide additional call details, and Netanyahu’s office has not issued immediate comment.

Taiwan’s Defense Minister Wellington Koo denounced Chinese Coast Guard activities in waters east of the island as aggressive actions on Monday, promising military coordination with Taiwan’s maritime forces in response.

Beijing, which considers the democratically-ruled island part of its territory, became upset last month when Japan and the Philippines announced they would start official discussions about establishing their maritime borders in what China sees as waters near Taiwan. This delimitation process involves legally defining a nation’s territorial boundaries at sea.

Chinese state media reported late Saturday that vessels had been deployed for what they called a “special maritime traffic law-enforcement operation” in eastern Taiwan waters, responding to the Japanese-Philippine border talks announcement.

Taiwan’s maritime authorities dispatched their own vessels to confront the Chinese ships and announced Sunday that they had successfully “expelled” them from restricted areas.

“First this is a provocative act, and second it is cognitive warfare,” Koo told parliament members.

“They are attempting to first claim the eastern waters as their domain, like casting a large spider’s web over the area,” he continued. “This is a serious affront to our national sovereignty.”

China’s Taiwan Affairs Office had not provided a response to requests for comment. Beijing does not acknowledge any Taiwanese sovereignty claims.

Koo explained that military forces would maintain collaboration with the Coast Guard through ongoing intelligence coordination.

“We will also carry out a very thorough and detailed division of responsibilities with them and at all times act in accordance with resource agreements to safeguard our national sovereignty and maritime security,” he stated.

Taiwan’s naval forces typically track and issue warnings to Chinese military vessels, while the Coast Guard handles monitoring of Chinese maritime patrol ships and would support naval operations during wartime.

Chinese military aircraft and naval vessels already conduct operations near Taiwan almost every day.

Taiwan is also tracking an ongoing deployment of China’s aircraft carrier Liaoning in the Western Pacific region. Koo reported the vessel was currently positioned in waters east of the Philippines.

China has not ruled out using military force to bring Taiwan under its authority. Taiwan’s leadership dismisses Beijing’s territorial claims.

President Trump declared Sunday that recent military exchanges between Israel and Iran will not derail his administration’s ongoing diplomatic efforts with Tehran, emphasizing that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “doesn’t call the shots.”

The president has pressured Israel to cease its military operations in Lebanon to create space for negotiations aimed at ending the broader conflict with Iran, even using harsh language with Netanyahu during a phone conversation last week. Despite this pressure, Israel conducted strikes in the Beirut area Sunday for the first time since the U.S. revealed a truce proposal for Lebanon last week.

Tehran responded by launching a barrage of missiles targeting Israeli locations, threatening to derail U.S.-Iran diplomatic discussions. However, Trump maintained that reaching an agreement to conclude the broader conflict remains achievable.

“It’s not going to have any impact on the deal,” Trump stated to the Financial Times. “I call the shots. I call all the shots. He doesn’t call the shots.”

Netanyahu had not issued any public statement about the Iranian missile attack five hours after it occurred.

The renewed fighting caused oil prices to surge more than 2% during early Monday trading, pushing benchmark Brent futures back over $95 per barrel.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guards reported they had aimed at Ramat David air base, located near Nazareth. Israeli military officials confirmed they detected missiles launched from Iran and that their defensive systems successfully intercepted them.

Trump, who was at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey for the weekend, held a phone conversation with Netanyahu on Sunday lasting just under 30 minutes, according to an Israeli official who provided no additional information. Neither the White House nor the Israeli prime minister’s office immediately responded to requests for comment.

During their call, Trump urged Netanyahu to avoid additional strikes because “we are close to doing something good in terms of a deal,” a U.S. official told Axios. The official indicated Trump had “bought a little bit of time,” according to Axios.

Just after midnight Monday, the Israeli military released a short statement quoting Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, who said his forces had not received orders to strike Iran yet, but would act “with determination” when commanded to do so.

Throughout the U.S.-Iran negotiations designed to stop the war, Israel has maintained its military operations in Lebanon during its conflict with Hezbollah, which Israeli leaders argue should remain separate from any Iranian ceasefire agreement.

Tehran has consistently stated that any peace agreement with the U.S. must include a ceasefire in Lebanon, which Israel entered in March while pursuing Iran-supported Hezbollah militants who launched rockets and drones across the border in support of Tehran.

Iran’s chief peace negotiator, parliamentary speaker Mohammed Baqer Qalibaf, declared that U.S. bases and Israeli assets represent legitimate targets due to hostile actions, including the “violation of agreements over Lebanon.”

Prior to Sunday’s events, Iran had not struck Israel since a ceasefire in the wider conflict began in April, though Hezbollah has continued such attacks.

Trump has consistently claimed that Washington and Tehran are approaching an agreement to end the war.

“We’re very close to a deal, or I’m going to blow the hell out of them,” Trump said during a pre-recorded NBC News “Meet the Press” interview that broadcast Sunday to commemorate 100 days of the conflict.

Israel has never stopped its Lebanon military campaign, which has resulted in thousands of deaths and displaced hundreds of thousands from their homes. Hezbollah, which did not participate in the truce negotiations, has maintained its attacks and declares it will not surrender its weapons unless Israel stops its operations and withdraws from Lebanon.

Netanyahu explained that Sunday’s Israeli strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs, a district called Dahiyeh that has historically served as a Hezbollah stronghold, were commanded in response to Hezbollah firing toward Israel.

The broader war has remained at a standstill since the U.S. and Israel suspended their attacks on Iran in early April, with Tehran blocking most maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, the primary passage for one-fifth of global oil shipments. Washington has established its own blockade of Iranian ports.

While Washington and Tehran claim they are approaching a preliminary agreement that would reopen the strait, they have continued exchanging strikes, with recent escalations including attacks on neighboring Arab nations hosting U.S. bases.

Trump has indicated any war-ending agreement must stop Iran from creating a nuclear weapon, and he faces pressure to secure terms stricter than those reached in 2015 under then-President Barack Obama in an agreement Trump later abandoned.

Tehran’s requirements include removing U.S. and international sanctions, acknowledging its control over the strait, and releasing billions of dollars in frozen assets.

A source knowledgeable about U.S. plans informed Reuters on Saturday that Washington might make Iranian assets accessible to Gulf neighbors for repairing damage caused by Iran.

Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi stated Sunday that any such redirection of Iranian assets would be unlawful, and Tehran would respond with countermeasures.

Netanyahu faced criticism last week from political opponents regarding a new Lebanese ceasefire ahead of this year’s national election.

Officials in the Japanese city of Utsunomiya made the unprecedented decision to close all 94 elementary and middle schools under municipal control following the community’s first-ever bear encounter, according to a city representative.

The community of 500,000 people, located roughly 100 kilometers north of Tokyo, reported that residents first spotted the bear Saturday evening in a neighborhood close to a local park. The animal has not been captured and was most recently observed early Monday morning approximately half a kilometer away from one of the middle schools.

Japan has experienced a growing number of bear encounters in metropolitan areas, leading officials to establish a special task force this year focused on preventing injuries and fatalities.

Just last week, an incident in the northeastern community of Fukushima resulted in injuries to at least four individuals when a bear attacked. Surveillance video from a local steel manufacturing facility captured footage of a black bear pursuing and knocking down an employee near the building’s entrance.

While Asiatic black bears face vulnerable status worldwide, population estimates suggest their numbers in Japan have increased threefold since 2012, partly due to reduced hunting activity.

Researchers attribute the increase in bear-human encounters to climate-related reductions in natural food sources such as acorns and beechnuts, combined with rural population decline and increasing amounts of unused agricultural land that encourage bears to search for food closer to populated areas.

SEOUL, South Korea — Chinese President Xi Jinping is scheduled to arrive in North Korea’s capital on Monday for his first visit to the country in seven years, marking a significant diplomatic move aimed at strengthening China’s special relationship with North Korea while offering economic and political advantages.

The Chinese leader will spend two days in the country meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. This will mark their first face-to-face discussion since their September meeting in Beijing, which took place after both attended a military parade alongside Russian President Vladimir Putin and other international leaders.

Officials have not released details about what topics will be discussed. International analysts expect the meetings will significantly impact relations between the two nations and have broader implications, as both countries work to rebuild their historic partnership while facing separate disputes with the United States.

“A Chinese leader doesn’t just visit North Korea because a visit is due. Xi’s trip will have real implications for China-DPRK relations,” said Leif-Eric Easley, a professor at Ewha University in Seoul, using the abbreviation for North Korea’s full name.

The visit follows Xi’s recent consecutive meetings with U.S. President Donald Trump and Putin in Beijing last month. Xi is scheduled to meet with Trump again during a planned U.S. visit in September.

Xi aims to showcase China’s “sway over the Korean Peninsula” and “a leadership role in entire Northeast Asia in the ages of strategic competitions with the U.S.,” said Kwak Gil Sup, the head of One Korea Center, a website specializing in North Korea affairs.

China has historically served as North Korea’s primary economic supporter and key diplomatic ally. The country is thought to have avoided completely implementing U.N. sanctions against North Korea and provided secret assistance to help its struggling ally survive economically. This year represents the 65th anniversary of when both nations signed a mutual defense agreement.

However, their relationship has faced scrutiny recently, as North Korea has focused on building closer ties with Russia by providing soldiers and weapons for Russia’s conflict in Ukraine. North Korea has received economic and military support from Russia in exchange.

Reestablishing exclusive control over North Korea would provide Xi with an advantage when dealing with Trump, who has consistently stated his interest in resuming diplomatic talks with Kim, according to experts.

“Implementing U.N. Security Council resolutions and enforcing sanctions do not appear to be priorities for China,” Easley said.

In a piece published in North Korea’s primary Rodong Sinmun newspaper Monday, Xi stated that China and North Korea should enhance strategic partnership and collaborate to resist “hegemonism and coercive politics” while working toward an organized multipolar world.

Xi will likely present Kim with economic assistance packages including rice and fertilizer shipments, renewed Chinese group travel to North Korea, and collaborative economic initiatives, according to analysts.

“North Korea can’t solely rely on Russia. It needs to align with China,” Kwak said.

In a Monday editorial, the Rodong Sinmun newspaper described Xi as “the most honored state guest,” noting that the capital’s streets “are filled with an atmosphere of friendship.”

Xi may also avoid pressuring Kim about North Korea’s nuclear disarmament and instead speak generally about peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula. This approach would be crucial for Kim, who desperately wants international acceptance as a nuclear weapons state to justify calls for removing U.N. sanctions against North Korea.

“Chinese officials have taken the position of not speaking publicly about denuclearization on the Korean Peninsula while still maintaining it as a long-term goal. Kim appears to want Xi to accept North Korea as a nuclear neighbor,” Easley said.

Last week, Kim revealed a new facility for producing nuclear materials and promised to strengthen the country’s nuclear capabilities “at an exponential rate.” He also watched sea trials of a new naval destroyer and demanded faster progress in developing a nuclear-equipped navy.

On Sunday, Kim’s sister and senior official, Kim Yo Jong, supported her brother’s position, describing U.S. efforts for North Korea’s denuclearization as an “escapist and anachronistic dream.”

Kim Jong Un has rejected American and South Korean proposals for negotiations and concentrated on expanding and modernizing his nuclear weapons program since his important diplomacy with Trump failed in 2019. The North Korean leader stated in September that he still maintained “good personal memories” of Trump but demanded the U.S. abandon its requirement for North Korea to give up nuclear weapons as a condition for restarting diplomacy.

Experts believe Kim would eventually seek arms reduction negotiations with the U.S. to secure benefits in exchange for partially giving up his nuclear arsenal.

A drone attack by Ukrainian forces targeted a passenger train in Crimea early Monday morning, resulting in the death of an assistant train operator and injuries to the main operator, according to Sergei Aksyonov, the Russian-appointed governor of the peninsula.

The train was traveling between Moscow and Simferopol, Crimea’s primary city, when the attack occurred. Aksyonov reported via Telegram that passengers aboard the train escaped without injury.

Moscow took control of the Crimean peninsula in 2014, years ahead of its comprehensive military offensive against Ukraine that began in 2022. The takeover followed widespread demonstrations in Kyiv that led to the departure of a pro-Russian leader from Ukraine. The region remains a favored vacation spot for Russian citizens.

Early Monday morning, drone attack warning sirens also activated in Novorossiysk, a Black Sea coastal city that serves as a crucial shipping point for petroleum and grain exports. The port city sits in Russia’s Krasnodar region, roughly two hours by car from the bridge Moscow constructed to link the mainland to Crimea, according to local officials posting on Telegram.

Recent Ukrainian drone operations targeting energy facilities have compelled Russian authorities controlling Crimea to implement stricter fuel rationing measures.

Reuters was unable to independently confirm all aspects of these reports.

A powerful earthquake measuring 8.2 on the Richter scale hit the Mindanao region of the Philippines on Monday, according to the German Research Centre for Geosciences (GFZ).

Officials reported the earthquake occurred at a shallow depth of 10 kilometers, or approximately 6.2 miles below the surface.

The German research center initially measured the tremor at magnitude 7.3 before revising it upward to 8.2. Following the seismic event, the U.S. Tsunami Warning System issued a tsunami alert for the affected region.

JERUSALEM (AP) — The Middle East finds itself on the brink of renewed warfare as Iran launched a missile attack against Israel late Sunday, marking the first bombardment of its kind in two months following a ceasefire agreement.

An April truce between Iran and other parties has failed to extend into Lebanon, where Israeli forces continue combat operations against Hezbollah militants backed by Iran. Israeli officials maintain they are protecting northern border communities from ongoing drone and rocket attacks launched by Hezbollah.

Iranian leadership views Israel’s ground offensive, involving thousands of soldiers, along with aerial bombardments in Lebanon as violations of ceasefire terms. Tehran maintains that any agreement with the United States must include an end to Lebanese hostilities. Israeli officials reject this position.

The following timeline outlines major developments:

Initial conflict erupted when the United States and Israel launched attacks against Iran, beginning the current war.

Hezbollah joined the fighting by launching rocket attacks against Israel, prompting Israeli counterstrikes.

Officials announced a temporary ceasefire in the Iran conflict, with ongoing negotiations planned. Israel was excluded from these discussions.

Israeli forces conducted intensive bombing of Lebanon’s capital city, Beirut, resulting in more than 300 deaths during a 10-minute assault.

Direct diplomatic discussions between Lebanon and Israel took place in Washington, representing their first such talks in decades.

A temporary ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon was declared, though Hezbollah was not involved in the agreement. Combat operations quickly resumed on both sides.

Israeli ground forces launched their deepest penetration into Lebanon in more than 25 years.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued warnings of strikes against Beirut unless Hezbollah ceased its attacks. U.S. President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Hezbollah had agreed to reduce fighting.

Israeli drone operations in Lebanon resulted in 11 fatalities.

Both Israel and Lebanon announced agreement to restore the temporary ceasefire and establish security areas excluding Hezbollah presence.

Hezbollah’s leadership refused the ceasefire terms and called for complete Israeli withdrawal from Lebanon.

Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard declared “there will be no calm in the region” unless Israel withdraws its forces.

Israeli air operations targeting southern Lebanon killed three Lebanese military personnel.

Hezbollah resumed attacks on Israel, prompting Israeli strikes on Beirut’s southern areas, followed by Iranian missile attacks on Israel.

Iran unleashed four waves of missiles targeting northern Israel on Sunday evening, following through on threats of retaliation after Israeli military operations against Hezbollah positions in Beirut’s southern neighborhoods.

Israeli military officials confirmed on social media that missiles had been fired from Iranian territory and that defensive systems were actively working to neutralize the incoming threats. Military sources reported successfully intercepting two of the projectiles. Emergency authorities sent warning alerts to cell phones throughout affected regions and directed civilians to seek shelter in protected areas when alarms sounded.

This marks Iran’s first direct assault on Israel since a ceasefire took effect on April 8th.

Throughout the day, Iranian leadership had issued warnings that Israel would face repercussions for its attacks on Hezbollah facilities in the southern districts of Lebanon’s capital city.

Ebrahim Rezaei, spokesperson for the Iranian parliament’s foreign policy and national security committee, characterized the planned retaliation as forceful. He posted on social media: “We will give a decisive and painful response to the Zionist regime’s attack on the suburbs … Watch the sky of the occupied territories tonight.”

Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, speaker of Iran’s parliament and the country’s top negotiator, declared that American military installations and resources throughout the region had become “legitimate targets” after the Israeli strikes.

Regarding current diplomatic efforts, Ghalibaf posted on social media: “They are neither committed to a ceasefire nor believe in dialogue, and through the naval blockade and violation of agreements regarding Lebanon they showed that they only understand the language of power.”

Channel 12 News reported that Israeli security officials had elevated alert status following intelligence analysis suggesting Iran had previously communicated it would respond directly if Israel targeted Hezbollah’s base of operations in southern Beirut. The report indicated Tehran had signaled several days earlier that strikes in the Dahiyeh area would prompt a missile counterattack.

Israeli forces confirmed they conducted operations Sunday against Hezbollah infrastructure in Beirut’s southern districts after the organization launched attacks toward northern Israeli territory.

Meanwhile, Haim Bibas, chairman of the Federation of Local Authorities in Israel, declared that all municipal governments would transition to restricted operations starting at 10 p.m. following updated emergency directives. School activities were suspended, outdoor events were restricted to 200 participants, and indoor gatherings were capped at 500 people in locations with access to standard protective shelters.

Law enforcement officials in Greece have taken a 37-year-old Palestinian man into custody over allegations he was planning a terrorist attack targeting an Israeli-operated cruise ship scheduled to arrive in Crete this week, Cyprus Inform reports.

The suspect was apprehended Saturday evening following a collaborative investigation between Greek and Cypriot intelligence agencies. Originally from Gaza, the man had been granted political asylum in Greece and was employed at a hotel in Agios Nikolaos, Crete.

Officials say he was allegedly plotting an attack against a cruise vessel operated by Mano Maritime set to arrive at the port on Tuesday. Greek intelligence officials determined the suspected plot had not advanced beyond the planning stages.

During questioning, investigators report the man confirmed his affiliation with Hamas and acknowledged maintaining communications with people recently taken into custody in Cyprus on terrorism-related charges.

Law enforcement officials also revealed his connection to two Palestinians detained in Cyprus on suspicion of terrorism offenses. Police believe all three suspects were part of the same operational cell.

According to investigators, the men had received Hamas training together in explosive handling and deployment techniques.

The detention came after intelligence was shared from Cyprus, where officials recently made arrests linked to Hamas operations and bombing incidents in Jerusalem. The Hellenic Police stated the operation required coordination between Cypriot intelligence services, Greece’s National Intelligence Service, and the Anti-Terrorist Service.

During the investigation, security teams conducted searches at several sites across Crete and Athens. Officials confiscated electronic equipment, including a laptop computer and cell phones, as well as bank cards and laboratory materials. Authorities said chemicals and measuring devices found during the searches were suspected to be for creating explosive devices.

Greek state broadcaster ERT reported the suspect had previously leased an apartment in downtown Athens.

No additional arrests have been announced by Greek authorities. The investigation remains active as security officials analyze evidence gathered during the operation and examine the suspect’s reported connections to those detained in Cyprus.

A debate concerning Israel’s ultra-Orthodox community has evolved beyond religious and political considerations into a pressing economic question: Can the nation sustain its changing demographics?

During a major economic policy conference this week, experts examined whether Israel can maintain its current trajectory as defense expenditures climb toward 8% of gross domestic product and approximately a quarter of the national budget, while the ultra-Orthodox population is expected to comprise an increasing portion of military-age Jewish citizens.

Military service forms part of Israel’s social framework, defense expenditures consume an expanding portion of national resources, and the armed forces represent a shared experience for most Jewish citizens. As these pressures intensify, ultra-Orthodox integration appears not merely as a disagreement over exemptions or religious matters, but as a budgetary, military, and economic challenge.

The implications are clear-cut. As the ultra-Orthodox become a larger portion of Israel’s population, the combination of military exemptions, restricted core education, reduced male workforce participation, and sectoral political influence could burden the military, tax revenue, and the skilled economy upon which Israel increasingly relies.

This concern permeated the Eli Hurvitz Conference on Economy and Society, hosted by the Israel Democracy Institute in Jerusalem. The gathering addressed defense expenditures, artificial intelligence, technology sectors, living costs, reconstruction, healthcare, and government budgets. Nevertheless, the ultra-Orthodox matter repeatedly emerged, sometimes explicitly and sometimes through broader discussions of human resources, labor participation, education, and public priorities.

The ultra-Orthodox community refers to Israel’s rapidly expanding religious population whose traditional male institutions emphasize comprehensive Torah study. Many ultra-Orthodox boys do not receive equivalent core instruction in mathematics, English, and science compared to other Israelis; many ultra-Orthodox men do not perform military service, and many join the workforce late or remain outside it for prolonged periods. Ultra-Orthodox women participate in employment at higher rates, frequently supporting large families, but household earnings remain comparatively modest.

Gilad Cohen Kovacs, a researcher at the Israel Democracy Institute who delivered a presentation on “The Economy as a Driver of Change in Haredi Autonomy,” contended that the matter also involves how a separate institutional framework influences growth, employment, and the welfare system.

Cohen Kovacs stated that subsidies supporting the current ultra-Orthodox model total approximately 35 to 37 billion shekels annually, or roughly 5.5% of the government budget. Without modifications, he cautioned, that amount could increase to more than 60 billion shekels yearly in future decades. These numbers were presented as part of his conference examination of ultra-Orthodox autonomy and government support.

He emphasized that the matter should not be viewed as a simple transfer of “money to Haredim.” In his assessment, part of the funding encourages behaviors that maintain ultra-Orthodox men outside the workforce, while another portion strengthens what he characterized as a parallel system of authority, educational networks, community institutions, and political influence.

A welfare system, Cohen Kovacs explained, is designed to assist those unable to work, protect individuals who have suffered harm, and facilitate mobility. In the ultra-Orthodox situation, he maintained, part of the subsidy supports the reverse pattern: reduced utilization of earning potential, partial employment, large families, and a yeshiva-focused lifestyle.

“These are not the conditions for which the welfare state was built,” he said.

This distinction redirects attention from individual poverty toward policy incentives that, according to Cohen Kovacs, maintain dependence and separation. His broader finding was that the current arrangement creates a substantial intersectoral transfer from non-ultra-Orthodox Jewish households to ultra-Orthodox households through tax differences, public services, subsidies, and exemptions from shared responsibilities.

Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett also referenced studies on that net balance. According to Bennett, what he termed a “Zionist household”—a non-ultra-Orthodox Jewish household integrated into military service and the labor market—contributes approximately 6,000 shekels more monthly than it consumes or receives, while an ultra-Orthodox household receives about 4,000 shekels more monthly than it contributes. He characterized this as a difference of approximately 10,000 shekels monthly between the two household categories.

The comparison brought the fiscal discussion from national budgets to family income. It was not presented as a claim that one particular family directly funds another, but as an aggregate measurement of taxes, government services, subsidies, benefits, and participation in public duties.

Dr. Gilad Malach, a researcher at the Israel Democracy Institute who presented a separate study on the defense burden, told The Media Line that his research addressed one specific aspect of the larger subsidy discussion: security. He said Israel typically treats defense spending as a national budget item, without examining how that burden is distributed across different sectors of society.

Malach said it would be “too simplistic” to explain the gap just by noting that the ultra-Orthodox public is poorer and therefore pays less tax. “You might say, ‘OK, this is a poor society, so they pay less than their share in the population,’” he said. “But we see that the gaps between them and others—it’s much more than that.”

According to Malach, the visible security budget stands at about 120 billion shekels annually, but the actual cost approaches 150 billion once hidden burdens are included: conscripts paid below their labor value, delayed workforce entry, and the cost to employers when reservists leave their positions for extended service.

If the ultra-Orthodox represent about 14% of Israel’s population, he said, they should account for roughly 21 billion shekels of that burden. In practice, he estimated, they contribute about 6 billion.

“So, the gap is 15 billion,” he said.

The figure carries political weight because it places the draft discussion within a broader fiscal equation: who pays for security, who serves, and who bears the indirect costs of a society built around lengthy military service.

Malach was careful not to claim that the gap can be closed quickly. He said the policy tools he presented could reduce it, but not eliminate it. At most, he estimated, the immediate effect could be several billion shekels, not the full 15 billion.

“Just to make the situation less unequal, more equal than today, but not a real equality between the population,” he said.

The demographic warning was more severe. Some projections, Malach said, place the ultra-Orthodox population at around 30% of Israel’s total population within roughly four decades. The more significant number, he added, is not the overall population share, but the share among draft-age Jews.

Among Jewish 18-year-olds, he said, the ultra-Orthodox share could exceed half. In his view, that projection, if realized, would mean that “We won’t have manpower for an army if the situation would be that they are not serving in the army. And we can’t have a prosperous economy if so many people won’t have the ability to work in a modern labor market.”

Reem Aminoach, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies who previously served as financial adviser to the Israel Defense Forces chief of staff, told The Media Line that the problem is often made to appear more complex than it is.

“All you need is to cancel the deferral,” he asserted, referring to the legal mechanism that has allowed many ultra-Orthodox men to avoid conscription as long as they remain in yeshiva study.

In his view, canceling the deferral would force a clearer choice: service, employment, or some other publicly accountable framework, rather than a system in which avoiding the army also discourages work. Aminoach said the army’s need is practical and immediate.

“The army lacks fighters, not clerks,” he said.

Shaul Meridor, a former senior Finance Ministry official, brought the discussion from national aggregates to the level of a single Israeli family. He described a middle- or lower-middle-class family in places such as Migdal HaEmek or Dimona, with five children, one of them serving in Lebanon, and unable to make ends meet. According to figures he cited from a recent study, such a family subsidizes a comparable low-income ultra-Orthodox family by nearly 1,000 shekels monthly.

“Many times we talk about high-tech and the rich and all kinds of other people who subsidize,” Meridor said. “I am talking about socioeconomic cluster four. Whoever knows what that means understands that this is not high-tech, and these are not people sitting in Tel Aviv or Ramat Hasharon. These are people who do not finish the month.”

He said the moral question after October 7 was no longer abstract.

“Why should a family that does not finish the month have to allocate, from money it does not have, 1,000 shekels net a month to subsidize a Haredi family that chose a different life?”

Meridor also argued that Israel’s current policies harm ultra-Orthodox children themselves by steering them toward poverty.

“As leadership, we must not condemn Haredi children to poverty,” he said. “And that is what we are doing today.”

His proposed principle was direct: those who serve should receive, those who do not serve should not. Combat service, he said, should receive the most; other service should receive less; evasion should receive nothing. But he cautioned that dismantling ultra-Orthodox autonomy would not happen through a single major law. It would require changes in thousands of government decisions, benefits, tax rules, and allocations that currently favor institutions over individuals.

Political speakers approached the same issue from different directions. Bennett focused on education and subsidies, using his speech to attack daycare payments for families in which the father does not work and does not serve. He also proposed a broad education reform built around a shared state curriculum, while preserving limited community autonomy.

Avigdor Liberman, chairman of Yisrael Beitenu and a former defense and finance minister, framed the issue through coalition politics. In a conversation with Yohanan Plesner, president of the Israel Democracy Institute, Liberman argued that Israel cannot sustain higher defense spending while preserving sectoral budgets and avoiding structural reform. He said any serious change would require a government not dependent on the ultra-Orthodox parties Shas and United Torah Judaism.

Former Defense Minister Benny Gantz offered a more cautious critique. He said parts of the ultra-Orthodox leadership were making a grave mistake by perpetuating a situation in which the community is more important than the state. At the same time, he emphasized that there are ultra-Orthodox individuals who work, study, serve, and contribute to the economy, and that they deserve respect.

Meirav Cohen, a Yesh Atid lawmaker and former minister for social equality, used Jerusalem as a warning. Speaking as a Jerusalemite, she said the capital already shows what happens when integration in the army, employment, and education does not move fast enough. Jerusalem, she said, has fallen in less than three decades from socioeconomic cluster five to cluster two. Every second household receives a municipal property tax discount, she said, meaning the other half must carry some of the highest municipal tax burdens in Israel.

“There is no economic model for this,” Cohen said. “You don’t need prophecies or warnings. Look at what happened to us in Jerusalem.”

The ultra-Orthodox discussion occurred during a conference dominated by the rising cost of security and the shrinking space for civilian spending. Former Bank of Israel Governor Karnit Flug said in the opening budget session that Israel’s economy had shown resilience, but that the Israel-Hamas war had imposed a heavy price. Defense spending, she said, now stands near 8% of GDP, compared with a little more than 4% before October 7, 2023. Its share of the total budget has risen to about one-quarter, compared with 16% before the war.

That larger fiscal picture helps explain why ultra-Orthodox integration is no longer treated only as a dispute over religious exemptions. Israel is trying to fund a larger defense establishment, increased rehabilitation needs, more support for reservists, reconstruction in the north and south, health-system gaps, transportation infrastructure, and a technology sector facing global competition. Speakers also warned that insufficient investment in Arab society carries its own cost in lost output, making the broader point that Israel cannot afford to underinvest in any large population group while defense and rehabilitation needs are rising.

Artificial intelligence and technology added another layer. The Israel Innovation Authority’s 2026 report, presented at the conference, showed that technology remains Israel’s main growth engine. In 2025, the sector contributed roughly half of the economy’s growth, reached 18.3% of GDP, accounted for 58% of exports, and employed more than 400,000 people. But the same report also warned of stagnation in employment share, a decline in research and development jobs in Israel, expansion of activity abroad, and growing pressure from the shekel’s appreciation.

That is why ultra-Orthodox integration now intersects with the artificial intelligence discussion. Israel wants to compete in a global economy built on advanced skills, data science, engineering, defense technology, and artificial intelligence. But a growing share of its future workforce is educated in systems that often do not provide the tools required for that economy. The point was not that every Israeli must work in technology, but that the next economy will demand basic quantitative and digital skills across far more jobs.

Eli Hurvitz, CEO of the Eddie and Jules Trump Family Foundation, told the conference that the children currently choosing what to study in high school will be the workforce of 2040. In an artificial intelligence-driven world, he said, mathematics, data, teamwork, and independent learning will become basic conditions for opportunity.

The challenge of ultra-Orthodox integration does not fit neatly into familiar categories of minority rights or welfare policy. In Israel, it is tied to compulsory service, repeated wars, high defense costs, a knowledge-based economy, and a parliamentary system in which sectoral parties can hold the balance of power. The ultra-Orthodox community is a growing part of Israel’s electorate, budget, labor market, and future security burden. That is why the discussion has become one of the country’s central tests of governance.

The conference produced no single, comprehensive solution. Some speakers emphasized immediate enforcement of the existing draft framework. Others focused on incentives, core education, tax benefits, or direct ties between the state and ultra-Orthodox individuals rather than through communal institutions. Some warned against coercion that could backfire, while others argued that decades of gradualism have failed. But there was a striking convergence around one point: the status quo is no longer to be treated as a manageable inconvenience.

The discussion, as reflected in the conference sessions and interviews cited here, was dominated by economists, former senior officials, and political figures warning about the long-term costs of the current model. Representatives of the major ultra-Orthodox parties were not quoted in those sessions or interviews.

Malach put the warning in the starkest terms. Israel has survived enormous shocks, he said, and remains a wealthy country with a strong economy. But if current patterns continue as the ultra-Orthodox population grows, the problem will not remain a matter of resentment or budgetary imbalance. It will become a question of manpower, productivity, and national resilience.

“Right now, it’s very hard, but we are handling,” he said. “The point is that if you call today’s situation very bad, things would be worse than that.”

What emerged in Jerusalem was more than an argument over the draft. It was a broader economic reckoning over who serves, who pays, who studies the skills needed for the next economy, and whether the state can continue financing separate rules for a growing part of its population. Israel’s next election may decide the coalition arithmetic. The harder question, raised throughout the conference, is whether any government will be willing to change the arithmetic of the country itself.

Syria’s new leadership is grappling with one of its most complex postwar security challenges: determining the fate of thousands of international combatants who participated in the country’s conflict and remain armed following the collapse of Bashar Assad’s regime.

The issue gained renewed attention after Uzbek fighters in Syria issued a statement condemning the new government’s policies toward foreign combatants and warning of potential repercussions. The declaration highlighted the mounting pressure Damascus faces as it works to establish control over military and security forces while managing various armed groups that established themselves during more than ten years of warfare.

The resolution of this situation will be crucial for Syria’s ability to regain full sovereignty, eliminate independent military networks, and maintain long-term stability.

International Combatants in Syria

Beginning in 2012, thousands of international fighters arrived in Syria from numerous nations, especially from Central Asian republics, the Caucasus region, China, Afghanistan, North African countries, and Europe. The Syrian war drew foreign recruits driven by religious and ideological motivations, with many joining armed factions and extremist organizations.

Several international groups became major players on the battlefield over time. Notable among them were the Turkistan Islamic Party, consisting primarily of ethnic Uyghur combatants from China, and the Imam Bukhari Battalion, which includes Uzbek fighters. Chechen and other Caucasian groups also held significant positions, along with international fighters formerly connected to the Islamic State organization or other extremist groups.

While exact numbers are not available, the International Crisis Group estimated in May that approximately 5,000 foreign fighters who participated in Assad’s overthrow remain armed in Syria. Other analysts have similarly estimated around 5,000, excluding family members who relocated to the country during the conflict years.

“The foreign fighters no longer represent the large military force they once were during the early years of the war,” said Orabi Abdel Hay Orabi, an expert on jihadist groups, in comments to The Media Line. “However, they still possess combat experience and organizational networks that make dealing with them a highly sensitive security issue.”

The varied nationalities and organizational connections among international fighters makes developing a unified policy approach challenging.

Most arrived in Syria during the conflict’s initial years through international recruitment networks, exploiting the nation’s security breakdown and expanding warfare. Eventually, some international groups established autonomous command structures and gained substantial military power, especially in northern Syria.

That power has diminished in recent years due to military and political changes, ceasefire agreements, the departure of some fighters to other war zones, and the dramatic decrease in foreign recruitment that marked the war’s earlier stages.

Firas Allawi, a Syrian researcher specializing in Islamist armed movements, told The Media Line that the influence of foreign fighters today cannot be measured solely by numbers.

“Many have established deep social ties within local communities over the years,” he said. “A significant number have settled with their families and become part of the social fabric in some areas, which makes any purely security-based approach to the issue increasingly difficult.”

Challenge for Damascus

Since Syria’s new government took power, the foreign fighter situation has emerged as one of the nation’s most complex postwar obstacles, with consequences for domestic security, international relations, and future military structure.

Syrian authorities have consistently stressed the government’s commitment to restoring state control, monopolizing force, and dismantling armed formations operating beyond official institutions. They consider this essential for lasting stability and rebuilding Syria’s military and security apparatus on national principles.

Meanwhile, supporters of some foreign fighters contend that many of these individuals battled throughout Syria for years and now face uncertainty regarding their legal standing, personal safety, and their families’ futures.

Damascus also faces continuous international monitoring regarding these groups’ future. Many Western and regional governments view the management of foreign fighters as a crucial measure of the government’s capacity to ensure stability and combat extremism.

Incorporation Rather Than Deportation

Currently, the favored strategy appears to be containment and gradual incorporation instead of mass expulsion or direct confrontation.

Multiple reports indicate the government seeks to integrate some foreign fighters into official military structures under Syrian leadership as part of a comprehensive plan to dismantle independent armed networks and bring them under state control.

Political analyst and security affairs expert Kinana al-Kurdi told The Media Line that integration represents the least costly option in the short term.

“Deporting thousands of fighters or engaging in large-scale confrontations with them would be extremely difficult,” she said. “Many of these individuals cannot return to their countries of origin because they face legal prosecution or security-related repercussions.”

The expulsion option encounters major obstacles. Some nations refuse to accept their citizens back, while others require immediate prosecution upon return. Many fighters also fear detention or harsh punishment in their home countries.

However, the potential for security confrontations persists if some groups resist the new arrangements or try to maintain their military and organizational autonomy.

Threats to Stability

Inadequate handling of this issue could directly impact Syria’s internal stability. Foreign fighters have extensive military expertise, and some maintain international ideological and organizational ties.

Counterterrorism experts warn that applying too much pressure on these groups, or trying to eliminate them through force, could drive some individuals back to extremist organizations or promote the creation of new underground cells beyond state control.

This situation would create concerns not only within Syria but also among neighboring nations and international partners.

Regional governments in Central Asia and elsewhere are carefully watching developments, worried that fighters might move to other conflict areas or reactivate extremist networks in their home countries.

Four Potential Outcomes

Experts outline four main possibilities for foreign fighters’ future in Syria.

The first and most positive outcome involves successful integration of foreign fighters into state institutions, enabling Damascus to enhance stability and consolidate power.

The second possibility envisions ongoing tensions and limited demonstrations without escalating to direct conflict, leaving the matter unresolved for an extended time.

A third option is that some foreign fighters depart Syria for other nations or emerging conflict areas, either independently or through specific agreements.

The fourth and most hazardous scenario would involve tensions developing into security clashes between state forces and factions rejecting integration. This development could spark a new period of instability and undermine efforts to establish peace and state authority.

Ultimately, any government strategy’s success will depend not only on security actions but also on the state’s capacity to create legal, social, and humanitarian solutions for thousands of fighters and their families, preventing this issue from becoming a persistent postwar crisis.

As Syria manages these competing possibilities, the foreign fighter situation will likely continue testing Damascus’ ability to balance security needs with state-building goals while handling international pressure and the complex aftermath of years of conflict.

Federal officials have given initial clearance for a nearly $2 billion military equipment sale to Kuwait, centered on advanced technology to combat drone attacks threatening the Gulf nation.

The State Department announced the preliminary approval for the $1.98 billion Foreign Military Sale, which would provide Kuwait with sophisticated systems to identify, monitor and neutralize unmanned aircraft threats. Officials described the deal as part of efforts to bolster the defensive capabilities of a key Middle Eastern partner.

State Department officials revealed that the proposed transaction encompasses both physical and electronic combat systems, plus monitoring, command operations and support infrastructure. Anduril Industries, a defense technology firm based in California, is anticipated to serve as the primary contractor for the deal.

The Defense Security Cooperation Agency outlined that the equipment bundle features Roadrunner-Munition and Anvil-Kinetic interception technologies designed to target threatening drones. The package also incorporates Lattice C2 software platforms and Menace tactical command centers to facilitate operational coordination.

Further components in the proposal feature extended-range Sentry observation towers, including portable and enhanced-distance models, sea-based Sentry installations, and deployment containers created to boost monitoring and identification functions. The arrangement also encompasses Pulsar electromagnetic combat systems engineered to neutralize unmanned aircraft through digital interference.

In addition to equipment, the potential transaction covers staff education, software creation, supply chain assistance, and technical guidance from both federal agencies and private contractors.

State Department representatives indicated the arrangement would equip Kuwait with both physical and electronic combat tools to counter threats from unmanned aircraft systems.

This authorization follows a pattern of significant weapons agreements the United States has pursued with Middle Eastern allies. These transactions aim to assist regional partners in deterring threats from Iran and securing vital energy facilities and ocean shipping lanes, according to the official statement.

Unmanned aircraft have emerged as a growing security concern for military bases and sea commerce throughout the region. The announcement highlighted that Iran regularly utilizes relatively inexpensive drones, forcing the deployment of costly American missile defense systems to intercept them.

The potential transaction continues to undergo the Foreign Military Sales review process. Upon completion, the package would supply Kuwait with a comprehensive anti-drone defense network covering surveillance, operational command, electronic combat, and interception technologies worth roughly $1.98 billion.