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A vaccine panel appointed by US Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will revisit long-settled science and spotlight rare risks linked to childhood immunizations in a meeting beginning Wednesday, raising fears that fringe theories could seep into national policy.The Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), an independent body that reviews scientific evidence to recommend which groups should receive vaccines and when, rarely makes headlines.But these are no ordinary times. Kennedy, who spent two decades spreading vaccine misinformation before becoming President Donald Trump’s top health official, has brought that skepticism into the federal government.Earlier this month he abruptly dismissed all 17 ACIP members before their terms had expired, accusing them of financial ties to the pharmaceutical industry — despite a vetting process meant to minimize conflicts of interest.He then appointed eight new members, including scientist Robert Malone, widely known for spreading false claims during the Covid-19 pandemic and promoting the deworming drug ivermectin.The posted agenda includes standard topics like influenza and Covid-19 vaccines — but the addition, on the second day of discussions, of measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) vaccines for young children, along with thimerosal-containing flu shots, has alarmed experts.Ahead of the meeting, US senator and physician Bill Cassidy — a Republican whose reluctant support was key to Kennedy’s confirmation — called for a delay, citing the panelists’ inexperience and bias.- Debunked autism connection -Thimerosal is a mercury-based preservative long used in medicines, with no evidence of harm at low doses.”Study after study showed that the ethylmercury in those vaccines never contributed in any important way to the burden of mercury that one is exposed to, living on this planet,” vaccine expert Paul Offit of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia told AFP.Still, vaccine makers agreed to remove it from pediatric vaccines in 1999 in response to public concern. It remains in some flu shots.The presenter arguing against thimerosal is Lyn Redwood, a nurse and former leader of Children’s Health Defense — an anti-vaccine nonprofit once chaired by RFK Jr.According to her biography page, Redwood blames her son’s autism on vaccines — a link that has never been proven.The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which is overseeing the meeting, will argue thimerosal is safe and has no effect on neurodevelopment, based on a thorough review of the evidence.  – Rampant measles outbreak -For childhood vaccines, US parents can choose a combined measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) shot or two separate injections — one for MMR, the other for varicella.The combination spares an extra jab but carries a slightly higher risk of febrile seizures, a rare and typically harmless side effect.Separating the shots is already recommended for infants’ first dose at age 12-47 months, leaving experts puzzled as to why the issue is being revisited. Notably, there’s no planned discussion on the benefits of measles vaccines, which have prevented millions of hospitalizations.”The discussion of MMRV vaccines, critical tools in preventing measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella, must be rooted in science, not ideology,” said Syra Madad, an infectious disease epidemiologist at NYC Health + Hospitals.The United States, which declared measles eliminated in 2000, is currently experiencing its worst measles outbreak of the disease in decades, with more than 1,200 cases and three confirmed deaths.”ACIP is going to become an outlet for anti-vaccine propaganda and increasingly irrelevant to the practice of medicine,” warned Amesh Adalja, an infectious disease expert at Johns Hopkins University.Still, the panel’s recommendations could have broad consequences, shaping school vaccine mandates and insurance coverage.

Both parties have rested in the trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs, and now lawyers will address jurors directly with marathon closing arguments.Music mogul Combs, 55, faces federal charges of racketeering, sex trafficking, and transportation with intent of prostitution. He denies all charges and faces life in prison if convicted.As the final stages of the at-times tumultuous proceedings approach, here are takeaways from the Manhattan trial.- Key testimony from victims -Throughout the prosecution’s nearly seven-week case, three women took the stand to describe harrowing details of graphic sexual assault, including rape.The first was Casandra Ventura, the singer who dated Combs for 11 years. She made her dramatic turn as a star witness last month while eight months pregnant with her third child.She recounted degrading, drug-fueled, frequently filmed sex parties with escorts she said Combs coerced her into, and also told jurors he raped her near the end of their relationship.Jurors have repeatedly watched disturbing surveillance footage of Combs brutally beating and dragging Ventura, a video already seared into the public consciousness after CNN published it last year.A former assistant of Combs testified under the name Mia, and described trying to protect Ventura from Combs’s fits of rage. Mia told jurors she personally endured abuse, including rape, from Combs.A third woman, Jane, also testified of orchestrated sex parties with paid escorts. She said she felt “obligated” to acquiesce to Combs’s desires, for “fear of losing the roof over my head” that he was bankrolling.- Bad Boy Entertainment or criminal enterprise? -Prosecutors say Combs headed a criminal organization that enforced his power with myriad crimes including forced labor, kidnapping, bribery, witness tampering and arson.The Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, known by its acronym RICO, encompasses 35 specific offenses, including the aforementioned crimes. Prosecutors must prove a criminal pattern involving at least two of them.Government attorneys, who must also show the existence of an enterprise, say Combs’s sprawling music, fashion and business empire doubled as a criminal ring that included some high-ranking associates and other employees.Through testimony and evidence, prosecutors have suggested that Combs’s chief of staff and his head of security were both key to the alleged enterprise — but neither were called to the stand, nor have they been charged publicly.Many witnesses, including former assistants, were given immunity orders so they could speak truthfully without fear of incriminating themselves.- The digital footprint -Records of private messages have played a major role in the prosecution’s case, a reflection of the paper trail that accompanies society’s dependence on digital communication.The government’s evidence included thousands of pages of phone and text records, and hours of testimony involved meticulous readings of some of the most explicit and wrenching exchanges.Combs’s relationship with Ventura lasted from around 2007-2018, and records included many texts as well as e-mails. The testimony of Jane, a girlfriend of Combs from 2021-2024, was grounded in voluminous text conversations as well as audio voice messages and diaristic entries into her Notes app.Many of those records appear to indicate distress on the part of the alleged victims. But a lot of the messages also show affection and desire — texts the defense underscored again and again.Jurors have seen video evidence of the sex parties prosecutors say were criminal, while the defense has exhibited exchanges they said imply consent.Also in evidence are reams of financial records — including CashApp payments to escorts — as well as flight and hotel records.- Coercion versus consent -Core to the prosecution’s case is a question of coercion versus consent: were the alleged victims in the case coerced, forced or fraudently made to engage in drug-addled sex marathons under threat of harm — or were they knowing and willing participants?In its opening statements, the defense said Combs’s accusers are “capable, strong adult women.””Being a willing participant in your own sex life is not sex trafficking,” said lawyer Teny Geragos.Ventura and Jane both said they experienced emotional manipulation and threats that were reputational, financial and physical.And a forensic psychologist explained to jurors how the tactics of abusers can keep victims from leaving relationships.- Celebrities, influencers and the online gossip machine -Jurors are instructed every day not to consume media about the case — a mighty task, as news of the trial has permeated media ecosystems and social platforms.Dozens of news organizations are covering the trial, along with enthusiastic content creators cashing in on the internet’s desire for hot takes and celebrity gossip.Combs is incarcerated and does not enter or exit the courthouse publicly. But some of the high-profile attendees and witnesses do, including members of the music mogul’s family and figures like Kid Cudi, the rapper who testified that Combs’s entourage torched his car.And the brief cameo of Ye, who stopped by to lend his “support” to Combs, was a particular field day for the chronically online.

At his grocery store in an Iranian neighborhood of Los Angeles, Mohammad Ghafari is worried sick about his brothers and sisters since the United States bombed the Islamic republic’s nuclear sites.But as he stands among his dates, dried plums and pistachios, he also cherishes the hope of change in his native country. Iran “is not capable of providing food to the Persian people,” said Ghafari, who left to study abroad before the 1979 revolution and never returned. “If the people (there) were happy about a change of regime, I would be too.””Everyone would be happy,” agreed Fereshteh, one of his customers and a fellow resident of so-called “Tehrangeles” — a mash-up of Tehran and Los Angeles.For Fereshteh, who gave only her first name to protect her identity, “Donald Trump is a hero.” The American president ordered strikes against three Iranian nuclear sites last weekend, providing unprecedented support to Israel in its offensive against Iran.He even raised the possibility of “regime change,” before backing away and saying it would sow chaos.Any talk of ousting Iran’s clerical leadership resonates strongly in the Los Angeles area, where nearly 200,000 Iranian-Americans live, making the Californian metropolis the diaspora’s global hub. Many of its members live in the west end of the city, near the UCLA campus. Filled with Middle Eastern grocery stores, carpet merchants and bookstores selling books in Farsi, the neighborhood is also known as “Little Persia.” The immigrants who have made it their home include minorities often seen as discriminated against in Iran, such as Jews, Christians and Assyrians.- ‘Rise up’ -“It’s time for the Iranian people to rise up, because right now, the regime is very weak,” said Fereshteh, herself Jewish, who fled Iran in the 1980s during the war between her country and Iraq. Trump was elected on a promise to focus on America and stay out of foreign wars.But among the grocery store’s customers, some would like him to push his intervention in Iran to the limit. “We should send troops there,” says Mehrnoosh, a 45-year-old woman who arrived in the United States in 2010. “The people there have their hands tied,” she said, adding that “the regime killed so many Iranians three years ago during the protests following the death of Mahsa Amini,” a student arrested for allegedly flouting dress rules for women. But on the patio of the “Taste of Tehran” restaurant, one man hopes the United States will pull back to avoid its fate in Iraq and Afghanistan.”Change by force never pays off….Change must come from within, by the people, for the people, and we’re not there yet,” said the 68-year-old engineer, who wished to remain anonymous.The conflict has so far claimed more than 600 lives in Iran and 28 in Israel, according to authorities in both countries. A fragile ceasefire in the war between Iran and Israel war appeared to be holding on Tuesday — a relief for the engineer, who had recently spoken to his aunt on the phone. For several days, she fled Tehran for the northwest of the country to escape Israeli bombardments.”Is it worth it? Absolutely not,” he said, recalling he lost his grandparents to bombs during the Iran-Iraq War. “My hope is for all this to end soon.”

A man sentenced to death for murder in the state of Florida was executed late Tuesday, one of two executions in the United States this week.Thomas Gudinas, 51, was scheduled to die by lethal injection at 6:00 pm (2200 GMT) at the Florida State Prison in Raiford.Thirteen minutes later, the Florida Department of Corrections confirmed in a statement that the execution had been carried out.Gudinas was sentenced to death in 1995 for the murder of Michelle McGrath, who was last seen leaving a bar in the city of Orlando in the early hours.McGrath’s battered body was found the next day and Gudinas was arrested shortly afterwards.Florida has carried out more executions — seven — than any other US state so far this year.Meanwhile, a Mississippi man on Death Row for 49 years is to be executed by lethal injection at 6:00 pm Central Time (2300 GMT) Wednesday, at the Mississippi State Penitentiary in Parchman.Richard Jordan, 79, was convicted and sentenced to death in 1976 for the murder of Edwina Marter, the wife of a bank executive in the town of Gulfport.Jordan, a shipyard worker, kidnapped Marter from her home and demanded a $25,000 ransom.He was apprehended when he went to pick up the money.Jordan confessed to murdering Marter and led the authorities to her body, which had been hidden in a forest. She had been shot.The execution in Mississippi will be the first in the southern state since December 2022.There have been 24 executions in the United States this year: 19 by lethal injection, two by firing squad and three by nitrogen hypoxia, which involves pumping nitrogen gas into a facemask, causing the prisoner to suffocate.The use of nitrogen gas as an execution method has been denounced by United Nations experts as cruel and inhumane.The death penalty has been abolished in 23 of the 50 US states, while three others — California, Oregon and Pennsylvania — have moratoriums in place.President Donald Trump is a proponent of capital punishment, and on his first day in office called for an expansion of its use “for the vilest crimes.”

A US federal judge has sided with Anthropic regarding training its artificial intelligence models on copyrighted books without authors’ permission, a decision with the potential to set a major legal precedent in AI deployment.District Court Judge William Alsup ruled on Monday that the company’s training of its Claude AI models with books bought or pirated was allowed under the “fair use” doctrine in the US Copyright Act.”Use of the books at issue to train Claude and its precursors was exceedingly transformative and was a fair use,” Alsup wrote in his decision.”The technology at issue was among the most transformative many of us will see in our lifetimes,” Alsup added in his 32-page decision, comparing AI training to how humans learn by reading books.Tremendous amounts of data are needed to train large language models powering generative AI. Musicians, book authors, visual artists and news publications have sued various AI companies that used their data without permission or payment.AI companies generally defend their practices by claiming fair use, arguing that training AI on large datasets fundamentally transforms the original content and is necessary for innovation.”We are pleased that the court recognized that using ‘works to train LLMs was transformative,'” an Anthropic spokesperson said in response to an AFP query.The judge’s decision is “consistent with copyright’s purpose in enabling creativity and fostering scientific progress,” the spokesperson added.- Blanket protection rejected -The ruling stems from a class-action lawsuit filed by authors Andrea Bartz, Charles Graeber, and Kirk Wallace Johnson, who accused Anthropic of illegally copying their books to train Claude, the company’s AI chatbot that rivals ChatGPT.However, Alsup rejected Anthropic’s bid for blanket protection, ruling that the company’s practice of downloading millions of pirated books to build a permanent digital library was not justified by fair use protections.Along with downloading books from websites offering pirated works, Anthropic bought copyrighted books, scanned the pages and stored them in digital formats, according to court documents.Anthropic’s aim was to amass a library of “all the books in the world” for training AI models on content as deemed fit, the judge said in his ruling.While training AI models on the pirated content posed no legal violation, downloading pirated copies to build a general-purpose library constituted copyright infringement, the judge ruled, regardless of eventual training use.The case will now proceed to trial on damages related to the pirated library copies, with potential penalties including financial damages.Anthropic said it disagreed with going to trial on this part of the decision and was evaluating its legal options.”Judge Alsup’s decision is a mixed bag,” said Keith Kupferschmid, chief executive of US nonprofit Copyright Alliance.”In some instances AI companies should be happy with the decision and in other instances copyright owners should be happy.”Valued at $61.5 billion and heavily backed by Amazon, Anthropic was founded in 2021 by former OpenAI executives. The company, known for its Claude chatbot and AI models, positions itself as focused on AI safety and responsible development.

A man suspected of helping another man bomb a fertility clinic in California has died in custody, officials said Tuesday.Daniel Park, 32, was accused of shipping bomb-making material to Guy Edward Bartkus, 25, who died in the May 17 explosion of a car outside the clinic in Palm Springs, a desert town east of Los Angeles.Four other people were wounded in the blast, which caused major damage to the building.No cause of death for Park was provided.Authorities say he and Bartkus met online and shared “pro-mortalist, anti-natalist” beliefs.Bartkus believed “that individuals should not be born without their consent and that non-existence is best,” the US Justice Department said in a statement earlier this month. Park shared this ideology.After the attack, Park fled to Europe but was arrested in Poland at the request of the United States and deported back home to face terrorism-related charges.Since his arrest this month Park was being held in federal custody and on Tuesday he was “found unresponsive” in a cell at a detention facility in Los Angeles, the Federal Bureau of Prisons said in a statement.Officers tried to revive him but Park was later pronounced dead at a hospital.He was accused of shipping approximately 180 pounds (80 kilos) of ammonium nitrate,  which is used to make homemade bombs, to Bartkus.Authorities have said Park, who lived in Seattle, and Bartkus were together in the latter’s hometown of Twentynine Palms in January and February and ran bomb experiments.

New York Democrats were choosing Tuesday between an upstart 33-year-old Muslim socialist and a political veteran vying to come back from a sex harassment scandal as their candidate to lead the left-leaning city.The party’s primary contest has featured almost a dozen candidates seeking to become mayor of the biggest US city, where registered Democrats outnumber Republicans three to one.As voters cast ballots in a smothering heatwave, polls showed surprise challenger Zohran Mamdani and former state governor Andrew Cuomo, 67, at the top of the heap.Polls were set to close at 9:00 pm (0100 GMT Wednesday), but results may take time to finalize. The contest is ranked-choice, with voters asked to select five candidates in order of preference, and potentially neither Cuomo nor Mamdani getting the required majority. If no candidate wins 50 percent of the vote, election officials begin eliminating lowest-ranking candidates and recounting, a process that can take days. With the Democrats reeling nationally from Donald Trump’s presidential election last year, the high-profile city race has done little to calm party nerves.Cuomo stepped down as New York governor four years ago after multiple women accused him of sexual harassment. He has also been accused of mismanaging the state’s response to the Covid pandemic.Staunchly pro-Israel Cuomo has led for most of the race, with massive name recognition as the son of another New York governor, as well as support from powerful centrist figures including former president Bill Clinton.Mamdani, meanwhile, is backed by the Democratic Socialists of America — the kind of niche, leftist affiliation that might work in the Big Apple but many analysts say the Democratic Party needs to discard to come back from the broader political wilderness.The fact that Mamdani speaks out for Palestinians and has accused Israel of “genocide” also makes him a prime target for Trump. His supporters include two other favorite Trump foils — fiery leftist Senator Bernie Sanders and progressive congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.”I see it as a referendum of the Democratic Party, whether we lean more towards the centrist candidate, who’s maybe from a different generation of politicians and people in society, or a younger, left-leaning, more ambitious, idealistic party,” voter Nicholas Zantal, 31, said.It was a contest unfolding under blazing heat, with thermometers topping 100 degrees Fahrenheit (nearly 38 Celsius).- Big ideas, low experience -Currently a New York state assemblyman representing the borough of Queens, Mamdani stands out for his energetic campaigning style and eye-catching policy proposals that include freezing rent for many New Yorkers, providing free bus service, and universal childcare.And in a wildly expensive city, where a three-bedroom apartment can easily cost $6,000 a month, he has surged from behind.”Tomorrow is ours if we want it,” Mamdani, who was born in Uganda and is of Indian descent, said late Monday in a social media post. “We are on the cusp of toppling a political dynasty, and delivering a New York everyone can afford.”Voter Eamon Harkin, 48, said prices were his “number one issue.””What’s at stake is primarily the affordability of New York,” he said.But Sheryl Stein, who works in tourism marketing, was skeptical.”I like youth,” she said. But Mamdani having “no experience and no proven track record to run the largest city in this country and one of the largest in the world, is pretty scary.”Cuomo is trying to capitalize on those concerns, telling supporters Monday that “this is not a job for a novice.””We need someone who knows what they’re doing on day one, because your lives depend on it.”Whoever gets the Democratic Party nomination will face several contenders in November — including the current, scandal-plagued mayor, Eric Adams, who is a Democrat but will run again as an independent.

Both legal teams in the trial of Sean “Diddy” Combs rested their case on Tuesday, ushering in the final phases of the high-profile proceedings gripping a Manhattan federal courthouse.US prosecutors finished questioning their 34th and final witness in the seventh week of testimony, after which the defense delivered a brief case in which they opted against calling anyone further to the stand.That included Combs himself: it is common for defendants not to testify in their own trial, as taking the mic could open them up to potentially incriminating themselves.In a short, standard exchange with Judge Arun Subramanian, Combs confirmed that he would not take the stand on his own behalf.”Is it your decision not to testify in this case?” the judge asked, to which Combs responded: “That is my decision, your honor.””It is solely my decision,” he continued, before adding that he came to that conclusion “with my lawyers.””It’s my decision to make. I’m making this freely.”The defense rested after presenting a number of exhibits, a process that lasted less than half-an-hour.It’s not abnormal for defense teams to opt against presenting witnesses; the obligation to prove guilt lies on prosecutors, and unless jurors decide they have, the defendant is presumed innocent.Marathon closing arguments are expected to begin on Thursday, after which jurors will be tasked with deciding the fate of the 55-year-old Combs, who faces life in prison if convicted on charges of sex trafficking, racketeering and transportation for purposes of prostitution.Also on Tuesday the defense presented to the judge their acquittal motion — an argument that the prosecution has not met its burden of proof for each of the five charges.Such efforts are common in these types of cases, but acquittals are almost never granted.- ‘Freak-offs’ -Since early May, prosecutors have aimed to draw connections across a web of witnesses, phone records and travel bookings in a bid to show that Combs was the kingpin of an enterprise that carried out crimes including bribery, arson and kidnapping to enforce his power and satisfy his every desire.The prosecution said the artist and entrepreneur trafficked women and men for drug-fueled sexual marathons, sometimes days-long encounters dubbed “freak-offs” or “hotel nights.”Some of the events were filmed, and jurors have watched a number of sexually explicit clips.Government attorneys closed their questioning by offering reams of text messages and other records for jurors to review, documentation of dozens of freak-offs that they say also shows arrangements for prostitution and trafficking.As testimony of the last summary witness — someone brought in to explain data and records to jurors — wrapped up, prosecutor Maurene Comey delivered a staccato burst of questions to emphasize elements of charges related to transportation with the intent of prostitution.Combs denies all charges.Lawyers for Combs have insisted that what prosecutors have called sex trafficking was consensual.Three women have testified in graphic detail of harrowing sexual, physical and emotional abuse.The singer Casandra Ventura, Combs’s girlfriend for more than a decade, filed suit against Combs in 2023, a civil case that was settled out of court in less than 24 hours — but which opened the floodgates for a deluge of accusations against the one-time music industry powerhouse.She was among the key witnesses to testify at the trial, and jurors were repeatedly shown now-infamous surveillance footage of Combs violently kicking and dragging Ventura in a hotel.A hotel security guard testified that he received $100,000 in a brown paper bag from Combs in exchange for the disturbing tape, which CNN published last year.Jurors are not sequestered but are instructed every day not to consume any media about the case — a mighty task, as news of the trial has permeated both traditional and social media.

Tens of millions of Americans sweltered outside or sought air-conditioned refuge as an “extremely dangerous” heat wave blanketed the eastern United States on Tuesday with record high temperatures.As a fierce sun reflected off the skyscrapers of New York, the normally frenetic Times Square was virtually deserted by mid-day as the mercury reached 99 degrees Fahrenheit (37 Celsius), the hottest since 2012 in the Big Apple.By mid-afternoon Newark, New Jersey hit 103F (39.4C), according to the National Weather Service, and Philadelphia also reached 100F (38C). New Yorkers walked under umbrellas as they navigated the streets of Manhattan, while others sunbathed in swimsuits in parks.”It’s been kind of a cold spring. Then all of a sudden, boom, here it is,” Eleanor Burke, 82, told AFP of the heat, recalling how she took a dog for a walk the night before and “he almost looked like he was dead.”Soaring temperatures are straining the city’s power grid as people crank up their air conditioning. In the Bronx, a New York borough, a blackout left more than 34,000 homes without power, prompting energy supplier Con Edison to urge residents to moderate their electricity consumption.The NWS warned of East Coast temperatures of 97F-103F (36C-39.4C) on Tuesday, and a heat index — what the temperature feels like with humidity factored in — spiking as high as 110F (43.3C) for the New York metropolitan area.”Extremely dangerous heat persists across the Midwest and East Coast… affecting nearly half of the US population at 161 million people,” the NWS warned in an advisory, which also urged people to limit their physical activity due to poor air quality.”I don’t mind heat… but this of course is way too much,” said Maureen Brandon, 50, who said she walks in the shade and gets things done in the morning or evening outside of peak heat hours.In the US capital, temperatures also flirted with triple digits. The Washington Monument, the famed obelisk honoring America’s first president, was closed Tuesday and Wednesday due to “extreme heat in the DC area,” the National Park Service said.Passenger train company Amtrak announced speed restrictions on its East Coast tracks, which could cause delays.Meteorologists have described the intensifying weather pattern as a heat dome, a high-pressure system that traps air underneath and leads to steadily rising thermal readings.Extreme heat is the deadliest weather-related hazard in the United States, leading to more fatalities than natural disasters like hurricanes or tornadoes.Scientists say extreme heat waves are a clear sign of global warming, and they are expected to become more frequent, longer, and more intense.Fueled by human-caused climate change, 2024 was the warmest year on record globally — and 2025 is projected to rank among the top three.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared a “historic victory” on Tuesday after agreeing a ceasefire with Iran and insisted that his country’s arch-foe would never achieve a nuclear weapon.The premier’s comments, delivered in an address to the nation, came after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said his country was willing to return to negotiations over its nuclear programme.Pezeshkian insisted, however, that Iran would continue to “assert its legitimate rights” to the peaceful use of atomic energy.”Iran will not have a nuclear weapon,” Netanyahu said after the ceasefire ended 12 days of deadly air and missile strikes between the arch foes.”We have thwarted Iran’s nuclear project. And if anyone in Iran tries to rebuild it, we will act with the same determination, with the same intensity, to foil any attempt.”Israel’s strikes eventually drew in the United States, which on Sunday hit Iran’s underground nuclear facilities with powerful “bunker-buster” bombs that Israel lacked.After Iran retaliated with a missile attack Monday night targeting a US base in Qatar, President Donald Trump called for de-escalation, announcing the contours of a truce deal hours later.In a phone call Tuesday, Pezeshkian told his Emirati counterpart “to explain to them, in your dealings with the United States, that the Islamic Republic of Iran is only seeking to assert its legitimate rights”. “It has never sought to acquire nuclear weapons and does not seek them,” he was quoted as saying by the official IRNA news agency, adding that Iran was “ready to resolve the issues… at the negotiating table”.Israel has said its war, which began on June 13, was aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon, an ambition Tehran has consistently denied.Israel’s military said that its strikes had set back Iran’s nuclear programme “by years” and that the campaign against the country was now “entering a new phase”.After Trump angrily berated both sides for early violations of the truce on Tuesday, Tehran announced it would respect the terms of the deal if Israel did the same, while Israel said it had refrained from further strikes.- Claims of victory -Before Netanyahu spoke, Israel’s government said its military had removed the “dual existential threat” of Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programmes.”We’ve set Iran’s nuclear project back by years, and the same applies to its missile programme,” Israel’s chief of staff Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir said in a later statement.Iran’s top security body, meanwhile, said the Islamic republic’s forces had “compelled” Israel to “unilaterally” stand down.Its Revolutionary Guards also hailed a last-minute missile salvo fired at Israel as “a historic and unforgettable lesson to the Zionist enemy”.- Strikes on US base -Israeli strikes hit nuclear and military targets — killing scientists and senior military figures — as well as residential areas, prompting waves of Iranian missile fire on Israel.While Iran and Israel have been locked in a shadow war for decades, it has been by far the most destructive confrontation between the arch-foes.The war culminated in US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites using massive bunker-busting bombs, followed by an Iranian reprisal targeting the largest US military facility in the Middle East.Trump shrugged off that response as “weak”, thanking Tehran for giving advance notice and announcing the outline of the ceasefire just hours later. – ‘Everyone is tired’ -Some Israelis on Tuesday welcomed the prospect of a truce.”Everyone is tired. We just want to have some peace of mind,” said Tel Aviv resident Tammy Shel, voicing hope for a lasting ceasefire. “For us, for the Iranian people, for the Palestinians, for everyone in the region.”In Iran, people remained uncertain whether the peace would hold. Amir, 28, fled from Tehran to the Caspian Sea coast and told AFP by phone, “I really don’t know… about the ceasefire but honestly, I don’t think things will return to normal.”Israeli strikes on Iran have killed at least 610 civilians and wounded more than 4,700, according to the health ministry.Iran’s attacks on Israel have killed 28 people, according to official figures and rescuers.The international community reacted with cautious optimism to the truce.Saudi Arabia and the European Union welcomed Trump’s announcement, while Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Russia hoped “that this will be a sustainable ceasefire”.But French President Emmanuel Macron warned there was an “increased” risk that Iran would attempt to enrich uranium secretly following the strikes on its nuclear sites.During their talks, Iran and the United States had been at odds over uranium enrichment, which Tehran considers a “non-negotiable” right and which Washington has called a “red line”. After the truce was announced, Israel’s military chief Zamir said Israel’s focus would now shift back to Gaza.The Israeli opposition, the Palestinian Authority and the main group representing the families of Israeli hostages all called for a Gaza truce to complement the Iran ceasefire. burs-dcp/kir