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Russian President Vladimir Putin told his US counterpart Donald Trump Saturday that Moscow was ready to hold a fresh round of peace talks with Kyiv after June 22, once the sides complete exchanging prisoners and soldiers’ bodies.Ukraine’s leader Volodymyr Zelensky meanwhile did not mention whether Ukraine would agree to the next round of talks, only saying that “the exchanges will be completed and the parties will discuss the next step.”Putin and Trump held a call for the fifth time since the Republican took office and sought to reset relations with Moscow, in a stark pivot from the approach of his predecessor Joe Biden’s administration.Trump’s approach has stunned Washington’s allies, raising doubts about the future of US aid to Kyiv and leaving Europe scrambling to work out how it can fill any gap in supplies if Trump decides to pull US military, financial and intelligence support.”Both leaders expressed satisfaction with their personal relations” during the call, in which they also discussed the escalating conflict between Iran and Israel, the Kremlin said.It added that the presidents “communicate in a businesslike manner and seek solutions to pressing issues on the bilateral and international agenda, no matter how complex these issues may be”.- ‘Happy birthday’ call -Trump posted on Truth Social to say Putin had called “to very nicely wish me a Happy Birthday” on the day he turned 79, but that “more importantly” the two discussed the Iran-Israel crisis.”He feels, as do I, this war in Israel-Iran should end, to which I explained, his war should also end,” Trump said, referring to the Russia-Ukraine conflict.Zelensky urged the United States to “shift tone” in its dialogue with Russia, saying it was “too warm” and would not help to end the fighting.”Any signals of reduced aid, or of treating Ukraine and Russia as equals, are deeply unfair. Russia is the aggressor. They started this war. They do not want to end it,” the Ukrainian President said on X.The recent escalation sparked fears Washington might relocate resources at its expense, to beef up the defence of its close ally Israel which unleashed a large-scale attack on Iran Friday.”We would like to see aid to Ukraine not decrease because of this,” he said. “Last time, this was a factor that slowed down aid to Ukraine.”- More soldiers exchanged -Earlier on Saturday, Ukraine and Russia swapped prisoners in the fourth such exchange this week, part of a large-scale plan to bring back 1,000 wounded prisoners from each side and return bodies of killed soldiers.The prisoner agreement was the only visible result of two recent rounds of talks in Istanbul.Photos published by Zelensky on Telegram showed men of various ages, mostly with shaved heads, wearing camouflage and draped in Ukrainian flags.Some were injured, others disembarked from buses and hugged those welcoming them, or were seen calling someone by phone, sometimes covering their faces or smiling.Moscow’s defence ministry released its own video showing men in uniforms holding Russian flags, clapping and chanting “Glory to Russia” and “hooray”, some raising their fists in the air. As part of the Istanbul agreements, Kyiv also said it had received another 1,200 unidentified bodies from Russia. It said Moscow had said they were those of “Ukrainian citizens, including military personnel.” Ukraine did not say whether it returned any bodies to Russia.Russia has rejected calls to halt its three-year offensive. It has demanded Ukraine cede territory and renounce Western military support if it wants peace.Since Russia sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022, the assault has forced millions of people to flee their homes as towns and cities across eastern Ukraine have been flattened by heavy bombardments.Meanwhile, Russia intensified its advances along the front line, especially on the northeastern Ukrainian region of Sumy, where it seeks to establish a “buffer zone”.By doing it, Moscow seeks to protect its bordering region of Kursk, previously partly occupied by Ukraine. Zelensky said Russia’s advance on Sumy was stopped and that Kyiv’s forces had managed to retake one village.He also denied Moscow’s earlier claims that its troops entered the Dnipropetrovsk region. He said 53,000 Russian soldiers were involved in the Sumy operation.

The partnership between US Steel and Nippon Steel has reached a new phase, with an agreement on US national security guarantees, in addition to the so-called “golden share” advantage obtained by President Donald Trump’s administration.On Friday evening, Trump signed an executive order approving the partnership, bringing an end to the long-running saga over foreign ownership …

US Steel, Nippon partnership proceeds with security deal, ‘golden share’ Read More »

Internet is back up in the war-battered Gaza Strip, the head of the Palestinian Telecommunications Regulatory Authority told AFP on Saturday, after a three-day blackout blamed on Israel’s military.”The network is up now in all of the Gaza Strip,” said the regulatory body’s CEO Laith Daraghmeh.The Palestinian Authority’s telecommunications ministry reported on Thursday that internet and fixed-line communications were down after Israeli forces targeted a fibre optic cable, a claim Israel has not commented on.The ministry said that its maintenance and repair teams had at first been unable to safely access the sites where the damage occurred.The Palestine Red Crescent Society said on Thursday that the internet outage hindered its operations by impeding communication with first responders in the field, also blaming Israel for the blackout.Now in its 21st month, the war in Gaza has caused massive damage to infrastructure including water mains, power lines and roads across the Palestinian territory.

Israel targeted Iran’s air defence capabilities on Saturday, pressing on with a massive wave of strikes it began a day earlier that targeted Iranian nuclear and military facilities, prompting counterattacks by Iran.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed to hit “every target of the ayatollah regime”, adding: “What they have felt so far is nothing.”Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, meanwhile, warned the continued “aggression will be met with a more severe and powerful response”.The first wave of Israeli strikes killed 78 people and wounded 320, according to Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations.The Israeli military said three people were killed and 76 wounded since Iran began its retaliatory attacks.International calls for restraint have multiplied as fears grow that the Middle East could be on the threshold of a broader conflict.Here is what we know:- Targeting air defences -On Saturday, Israel’s military said it was attacking dozens of missile launchers in Iran after announcing it had targeted air defences with a wave of strikes in the Tehran area.Iranian media also reported a “massive explosion” on Saturday after an Israeli drone strike on a refinery in the southern city of Kangan.The air campaign, which has targeted surface-to-surface and surface-to-air missile infrastructure in Iran, has given Israel “aerial freedom of action from west Iran all the way to Tehran”, Israeli military spokesman Effie Defrin told journalists.Defence Minister Israel Katz warned that “Tehran will burn” if Iran kept targeting Israeli civilians.- Iran’s response -Israel said dozens of missiles — some of which were intercepted — had been fired in the latest salvos from Iran.AFP images of the city of Ramat Gan near Tel Aviv showed blown-out buildings, destroyed vehicles and streets strewn with debris.Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had attacked dozens of targets in Israel.- Nuclear talks -The fiercest ever exchange of fire between the arch foes came amid ongoing talks between Tehran and Washington seeking to reach a deal on Iran’s nuclear programme.Before the Israeli strikes, the two sides had been set to hold a sixth round of negotiations in Oman on Sunday.But Iran said it would be “meaningless” to attend the talks while it was under attack by Israel, and Oman confirmed Sunday’s talks had been called off.Tehran has consistently denied seeking to develop a nuclear weapon, but had been enriching uranium to 60 percent — far above the 3.67-percent limit set by a 2015 agreement with major powers that the United States and Iran have since largely abandoned.However, that is still short of the 90-percent enrichment threshold needed for a nuclear warhead.- More Iranian generals killed -The Israeli military said on Saturday its air strikes had killed more than 20 Iranian army and Revolutionary Guard commanders.Iranian state media reported on Saturday that General Gholamreza Mehrabi, deputy head of intelligence of the armed forces general staff, and General Mehdi Rabbani, deputy head of operations, had been killed.On Friday, other members of the top brass reported killed included the head of the Revolutionary Guards, Hossein Salami, and armed forces chief of staff Mohammad Bagheri, with replacements swiftly named by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.The Revolutionary Guards said its aerospace commander Amirali Hajizadeh was also killed. He was in charge of Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal.Iranian media said on Saturday that three more nuclear scientists were killed, bringing the total to nine — a toll that Israel also reported.- Nuclear sites hit -Israel’s attacks started in the early hours of Friday, a day of rest and prayer in Iran, and continued through the day at various sites.One key target was a vast underground uranium enrichment facility at Natanz, which Israel hit several times, according to Iranian state television.Israel said another strike later Friday on an Iranian plant in Isfahan damaged infrastructure for reconverting enriched uranium.Netanyahu said Israel’s strikes had dealt a “real blow” to Iran’s nuclear programme.But Iran said the damage was limited, both in Isfahan and at another uranium enrichment facility at Fordo.burs/kir/jhb/smw

Israel on Saturday threatened to strike “every target of the ayatollah regime” in Iran, whose president warned of a severe response if the Israeli attacks continue, fuelling fears of an escalating conflict.The threats came as the two longtime foes exchanged fire a day after Israel unleashed an unprecedented aerial bombing campaign, which scuppered plans for a new round of Iran-US nuclear talks Sunday.The Israeli strikes since Friday hit military and nuclear sites in Iran, and according to officials killed dozens, including top army and Revolutionary Guards commanders as well as civilians.Iran responded with barrages of drones and missiles fired at Israel overnight.Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said that “the continuation of the Zionist aggression will be met with a more severe and powerful response from the Iranian armed forces.”According to a statement from his office, Pezeshkian condemned Washington’s “dishonesty” for supporting Israel while the United States was engaged in nuclear talks with Iran — which mediator Oman said would no longer take place on Sunday, when a sixth round had been scheduled.Iran’s top nuclear negotiator, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, said the Israeli attacks undermined negotiations and showed Israel’s “inherent hostility to diplomacy”.Iran’s UN ambassador said 78 people had been killed and 320 wounded in Friday’s first wave of Israeli strikes.Israel said three people were killed and 76 wounded by Iran’s retaliation.Israel reacted furiously to the waves of drone and missile strikes launched by Iran, which lit up the skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.The Israeli military said it had cleared an aerial path to the Iranian capital, after dozens of strikes targeting missile launchers and air defences in Iran.”We will hit every site, every target of the ayatollah regime,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed in a video statement.He said the Israeli campaign had dealt a “real blow” to Iran’s nuclear programme and had the “clear support” of US President Donald Trump.”Very soon, you will see Israeli aircraft… in the skies over Tehran,” Netanyahu said, threatening greater action “in the coming days”.Netanyahu’s defence minister, Israel Katz, warned that “Tehran will burn” if Iran keeps targeting Israeli civilians.- ‘Smoke, dust’ -After decades of enmity and conflict by proxy, it is the first time Israel and Iran have traded fire with such intensity, triggering fears of a prolonged conflict that could engulf the Middle East.Highlighting the unease, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan warned against a “devastating war” with regional consequences in a call with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Ankara said.Israel is pushing the region into a “dangerous cycle of violence”, warned Iran’s top diplomat Araghchi.Launched early Friday, Israel’s operation struck Iran’s Natanz uranium enrichment plant and assassinated Iran’s highest-ranking military officer, Mohammad Bagheri, as well as the head of the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Hossein Salami.The Israeli military said its strikes had killed more than 20 Iranian commanders.Iranian media reported five Guards killed Saturday in Israeli strikes, while authorities in one northwestern province said 30 military personnel had been killed there since Friday.Iran’s Red Crescent said an ambulance was hit Saturday in Urmia city, killing two.Iran called on its citizens to unite in the country’s defence, while Netanyahu urged them to rise up.Iran’s Mehr news agency said Tehran had warned Britain, France and the United States it could retaliate if they came to Israel’s defence.Overnight, air raid sirens and explosions rang out across Israel, with many residents holed up in bomb shelters.Israel said some 150 missiles — some intercepted — had been fired from Iran. AFP images of the city of Ramat Gan near Tel Aviv showed blown-out buildings, destroyed vehicles and streets strewn with debris.Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they had attacked dozens of targets in Israel. One Iranian missile wounded seven Israeli soldiers, the military said.Firefighters had worked for hours to free people trapped in a Tel Aviv high-rise building on Friday.Chen Gabizon, a resident, said he ran to an underground shelter after receiving an alert.”We just heard a very big explosion, everything was shaking, smoke, dust, everything was all over the place,” he said.In Tehran, fire and heavy smoke billowed over Mehrabad airport on Saturday, an AFP journalist said.Blasts were heard across the capital as Iran activated its air defences against the incoming fire.Iranian media reported a “massive explosion” on Saturday following an Israeli drone strike on an oil refinery in the southern city of Kangan.Dozens of Iranians took to the streets to cheer their country’s response, with some waving national flags and chanting anti-Israel slogans.- ‘Time to stop’ -The attacks prompted several countries to temporarily ground air traffic, though on Saturday Jordan, Lebanon and Syria reopened their airspace.Iran’s airspace was closed until further notice, state media reported, as was Israel’s, according to authorities.As fears mounted of wider conflict, UN chief Antonio Guterres called on both sides to cease fire.”Time to stop. Peace and diplomacy must prevail,” he said on X.Russian President Vladimir Putin and Trump discussed the conflict in a phone call, the Kremlin said Saturday.Pope Leo XIV appealed for Israel and Iran to show “responsibility and reason”.The conflict has thrown into doubt US efforts to strike a deal with Iran on its nuclear programme.After Friday’s first strikes, Trump said his administration hoped “to get back to the negotiating table”.”While there will be no meeting Sunday, we remain committed to talks,” a US official told AFP on condition of anonymity.Western governments have repeatedly accused Iran of seeking a nuclear weapon, which it denies.

Tal Friedlander was grateful to be alive on Saturday after emerging from a bomb shelter in central Israel to find his apartment entirely destroyed by an Iranian missile strike.The shell of a residential building stood at the scene of the hit in Ramat Gan near Tel Aviv, with much of the block reduced to concrete rubble and mangled metal.The debris-strewn street was lined with the wreckage of several destroyed cars, an AFP journalist reported, a rare sight in Israel where advanced air defences usually intercept incoming attacks.Iran hit Israel with waves of drone and missile strikes overnight, with a barrage lighting up the skies over Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, killing three people and wounding dozens.The attack came in retaliation to Israel’s massive strikes on the Islamic republic which hit nuclear and military facilities, killed top commanders, nuclear scientists and dozens of civilians, and sought to destroy the country’s defence capabilities.Friedlander said he saw interceptions in the sky before the sirens blared out.”We quickly went into the shelter, and after a few minutes we heard a huge boom — we knew it was something severe,” he told AFP.”There was smoke inside the shelter, and the shelter started to break apart a bit. We were afraid to go out,” he added.After 10 minutes in the shelter, Friedlander said he left to find his entire apartment completely destroyed.”It’s only damage to property,” he said. “I have to thank God that we are alive.”- ‘We are not nervous’ -Air raid sirens and explosions rang out across Israel through the night, with many residents holed up in bomb shelters until home defence commanders stood down alerts.AFPTV footage from central Tel Aviv showed fire and smoke rising from a condo tower, a large hole ripped open by an explosion at its base.”They (Iran) want to destroy us,” Friedlander said. “But we are strong…”That’s the way it is, we have to keep going, defeat them, until the victory.”In a residential area of Rishon LeZion, also near Tel Aviv, first responders stood atop the rubble of collapsed buildings, inspecting the damage.Kobi Cohen said the door of his shelter was blown away by the impact of an explosion which hit nearby.”All the windows, all the doors, all the glass of the windows burst but we survived thank God. That’s the most important thing,” he said.Cohen said someone was killed following an explosion in a nearby street, but “most people here have experienced wars in their life, so we are not nervous”.- ‘Trust in God’ -On the beachfront in Tel Aviv on Saturday, the usually packed bars and restaurants were closed but a few dozen people swam, sunbathed, took selfies and walked dogs, seemingly unfazed by the overnight volley.”We got up, got out of the bomb shelter and went to the beach, had breakfast,” said Tal, a resident of neighbouring Jaffa who declined to give his last name.He said previous attacks, including a missile barrage from Iran in April 2024, meant Israelis had become largely used to such events. “I think we’ve pretty much destroyed their plans of retaliation,” he added, referring to Israel’s unprecedented attack on Iran which has hit more than 200 military and nuclear sites according to the Israeli army. Dalia Neeman, 77, an artist who lives in Tel Aviv also said she believed Israel’s campaign in Iran would “be for the better, for all the world”.”Something’s supposed to change,” she told AFP.Neeman said she felt safe in Tel Aviv despite Iran’s deadly retaliation. “We believe in God, trust in God to help us every time,” she said.

Israel’s strikes on Iran have taken aim at its nuclear facilities, amid fears that the Islamic republic is seeking to develop nuclear weapons — an accusation Tehran denies.Experts told AFP that while the attacks might have caused some damage to Iran’s nuclear programme, they are unlikely to have delivered a fatal blow.- What is the extent of the damage? -Israel’s operation included strikes on Iran’s underground uranium enrichment sites at Natanz and Fordow, and a uranium conversion facility at Isfahan, according to the UN’s International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), citing information from Iranian officials.IAEA said on Friday that a key, above-ground component of Iran’s Natanz nuclear site had been destroyed, also citing Iranian officials.There was “extensive” damage to the site’s power supply, according to a report from the Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS), a US-based organisation specialising in nuclear proliferation, which analysed satellite images.A loss of electricity to underground facilities can significantly damage the site’s centrifuges, the machines used to enrich uranium, the ISIS institute said.If backup power is lost, “at the least, the enrichment plant is rendered inoperable for the time being”, it said.Iran has said the damage to Fordow, south of Tehran, was minor.But experts said it is impossible at this stage to determine the impact the strikes might have had on uranium stockpiles believed to be stored around the Isfahan site.Ali Vaez, International Crisis Group’s Iran project director, told AFP that if Iran managed to transfer significant quantities to “secret facilities,” then “the game is lost for Israel”.- Can the programme be destroyed? -While “Israel can damage Iran’s nuclear programme… it is unlikely to be able to destroy it”, Vaez said, arguing that Israel does not have the massively powerful bombs needed “to destroy the fortified, bunkered facilities in Natanz and Fordow”.Destroying those would require US military assistance, added Kelsey Davenport, an expert with the Arms Control Association.She also stressed that Israel’s unprecedented attack cannot erase the expertise Iran had built up on nuclear weapons, despite killing nine Iranian nuclear scientists.- What are the risks to the Iranian population? -The IAEA has not detected any increase in radiation levels at the affected sites.”There is very little risk that attacks on Iran’s uranium enrichment facilities would result in a harmful radiation release,” said Davenport.But an attack on Bushehr, Iran’s only nuclear power plant, could “have a serious impact on health and the environment”, she added. After Israel launched its strikes, IAEA chief Rafael Grossi said that nuclear facilities “must never be attacked” and that targeting Iranian sites could have “grave consequences for the people of Iran, the region, and beyond”.- Is Iran close to developing a nuclear bomb? -After the United States unilaterally withdrew in 2018 from a landmark deal that sought to curb Tehran’s nuclear activities, Iran has gradually retreated from some of its obligations, particularly on uranium enrichment.As of mid-May, the country had an estimated 408.6 kilogrammes enriched to up to 60 percent — just a short step from the 90 percent needed for a nuclear warhead.Iran theoretically has enough near-weapons-grade material, if further refined, for about 10 nuclear bombs, according to the definition by the Vienna-based IAEA.Iran is the only non nuclear-armed state producing uranium to this level of enrichment, according to the UN nuclear watchdog.While the IAEA has been critical of Iran’s lack of cooperation with the UN body, it says that there is “no credible indications of an ongoing, undeclared structured nuclear programme”.Tehran has consistently denied ambitions to develop nuclear warheads.But Davenport warned the strikes could strengthen factions in Iran advocating for an atomic arsenal.”Israel’s strikes set Iran back technically, but politically the strikes are pushing Iran closer to nuclear weapons,” she said.

Ukraine said on Saturday it hoped the military escalation between Israel and Iran would not lead to a drop in aid to Kyiv, at a time when European support is stalling without US engagement. Israel unleashed large-scale attacks on Iran on Friday, targeting nuclear and military facilities, high-ranking generals and atomic scientists.Iran in return launched barrages of drones and missile at Israel.The escalation sparked international calls for restraint as fears of broader conflict grow.In Kyiv it also sparked anxiety about future supplies of military aid, fearing Washington might relocate more resources to beef up the defence of its close ally Israel.  “We would like to see aid to Ukraine not decrease because of this,” President Volodymyr Zelensky said. “Last time, this was a factor that slowed down aid to Ukraine.”The Ukrainian leader warned that Europe’s support was already stalling without Washington’s engagement.”Europe has not yet decided for itself what it will do with Ukraine if America is not there,” he said.The return to the White House of US President Donald Trump has upended the West’s provision of aid to Kyiv. It has left Europe scrambling to work out how it can fill any gap in supplies if Trump decides to pull US military, financial and intelligence support.Zelensky urged the United States to “shift tone” in its dialogue with Russia, saying it was “too warm” and would not help to end the war.  Trump has sought rapprochement with Moscow and held three phone calls with Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin so far this year.He has stunned NATO allies with the stark change in policy from that of the previous US administration, which aborted almost all contacts with Moscow after Russia invaded Ukraine. The Israeli attacks on Iran also drove oil prices up, which Zelensky said would benefit Russia. “The attacks led to a sharp rise in oil prices. This is bad for us,” he added, reiterating a call for the West to introduce price caps on Russian oil exports.The Ukrainian leader said he hoped to raise the issue of price caps at a possible meeting with Trump in the near future.He added, however, that the Israeli strikes might prove favourable for Kyiv if they lead to a drop in Iranian supplies of military equipment to Russia, which has relied heavily on Iranian-made attack drones.  – More soldiers return home -Ukraine and Russia exchanged prisoners on Saturday, the fourth such swap this week, under agreements clinched in Istanbul earlier this month.Kyiv also said it had stopped Russian advances in the northeastern Sumy region.  The deals to hand over killed soldiers and exchange captured ones are the only agreements to have come out of two rounds of peace talks in Istanbul.Russia has rejected calls to halt its three-year invasion. It has demanded Ukraine cede even more territory and renounce Western military support if it wants peace.Since Russia invaded in February 2022, the war has forced millions of people to flee their homes as towns and cities across eastern Ukraine have been flattened by heavy bombardments.As part of the Istanbul agreements, Kyiv also said it had received another 1,200 unidentified bodies from Russia. It said Moscow had said they were those of “Ukrainian citizens, including military personnel”Ukraine did not say whether it returned any bodies to Russia. Meanwhile, Russia intensified its offensive along the front line, especially in the northeastern Sumy region, where it seeks to establish a “buffer zone”.This zone is designed, ostensibly, to protect the Russian border region of Kursk, previously partly occupied by Ukraine. Zelensky said Russia’s advance on Sumy was stopped and that Kyiv’s forces had managed to retake one village. He said 53,000 men Russian soldiers were involved in the Sumy operation.