Iran is staging a massive, weeklong funeral procession across the country to mourn longtime Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at the outset of the war with the United States and Israel.
Beirut [Lebanon], July 7 (ANI): Lebanese President Joseph Aoun is preparing to travel to the White House before the end of July to meet US President Donald Trump in a visit aimed at advancing the framework agreement with Israel signed on June 26, according to a report by Al Jazeera. The visit follows a 17-minute phone call on July 5 between the two leaders that Aoun described as 'good'.
Erdogan: Turkey working to bring US and Iran to common ground The Turkish president said his country is taking steps to reinforce global peace, Al Jazeera reported. “All our friends are working together to achieve this end,” he said. Asked about the situation in Gaza, he said, “We will work towards restoring peace in the region.
Will Donald Trump become America's last Zionist president? Submitted by David Hearst on Tue, 07/07/2026 - 12:53 Trump was the president who gave Israel all it needed, and more. But with a wave of Aipac-backed candidates defeated in Democratic primaries, support for Israel is now toxic US President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu embrace as they walk into Trump's Mar-a-Lago club, Florida, on 29 December 2025 (Reuters) On Hell hath no fury like an Israel scorned.
Turkey and UK to sign new defence partnership deal Submitted by Ragip Soylu on Tue, 07/07/2026 - 15:25 The sensitive agreement is being compared to the 2021 defence pact between France and Greece, although sources declined to say whether it includes a mutual defence clause The UK had previously been in talks with Ankara to supply with Eurofighter jets, like the one seen here in Qatar in October, 2022 (AFP) Off Turkey and the UK are expected to sign a security and defence partnership deal on Wednesday, the latest development in the growing partnership between the two countries. The deal will commit both countries to closer cooperation on defence, multiple sources familiar with the matter told Middle East Eye. According to the sources, the document mandates both countries to support each on every matter on defence, including cooperation on their respective defence industries, counterterrorism, hybrid threats, and cybersecurity.
Tehran [Iran], July 7 (ANI): Iran's national football team took a dig at the United States following Belgium's thumping 4-1 victory over the hosts in the FIFA World Cup 2026 Round of 16, sharing an Instagram Story after the match on Tuesday (IST).
Nigel Farage resigns as MP to force by-election he will stand in Submitted by Oscar Rickett on Tue, 07/07/2026 - 14:11 Reform UK leader says he's done nothing wrong, after longstanding relationship with aristocrat and convicted felon George Cottrell revealed Nigel Farage announces his resignation as an MP on Tuesday 7 July 2026 (Screengrab) Off Blaming the British establishment and media for revelations about his connections to crypto billionaires and convicted aristocrats, Nigel Farage resigned as an MP on Tuesday before announcing his intention to compete in the resulting by-election. Over the weekend, the Sunday Times revealed that George Cottrell, a 32-year-old aristocrat and convicted felon who previously faced 20 years in US prison for 21 counts related to money laundering, fraud, blackmail and extortion, paid for security and social media staff for Farage in the year before he became an MP. The paper described “Posh George” as Farage’s “closest adviser for more than a decade”, reporting that the crypto gambler travels with the Reform UK leader in Westminster and around the country.
Trump says US will lift sanctions on Turkey, consider selling F-35s Sitting next to Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan after landing in Ankara for a NATO summit, Trump said, "That's a decision we're going to make... it's a great plane, the best plane by far and it's certainly something we will consider. " The US had imposed sanctions on Turkey in 2020 over Ankara's purchase of Russian defense missiles.
Iran media says Tehran urges IMO to reject joint proposal on Hormuz Vessels are seen anchored in Bandar Abbas along the Strait of Hormuz in a picture obtained on 18 June 2026 (AFP/Isna) Iran called the joint proposal, submitted by the UAE and allied countries to the 187th session of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) Council, as politically motivated and urged the body not to adopt it, according to Iran's Mehr News Agency. The joint proposal shifted responsibility to what it described as the victim of aggression and ignored the causes of regional instability, Iran said. Iran's formal response to the IMO said that the joint proposal sought to use the IMO Council as a platform for political pressure under the guise of maritime safety.
World Cup 2026: Internet revels in Belgium's crushing of USA Submitted by Imene Guiza on Tue, 07/07/2026 - 12:00 From jokes about calls from the White House to viral Trump memes, the elimination of the US became one of the internet's favourite moments of the World Cup Belgium's Romelu Lukaku celebrates scoring his team's fourth goal during the Fifa World Cup 2026 Round of 16 match between USA and Belgium at Seattle Stadium on 6 July 2026 in Seattle, Washington (Jamie Squire/Getty Images/AFP) Off Belgium beat the United States 4-1 on Monday, knocking out the World Cup host at the last 16 stage, and unleashing a torrent of jokes across social media. Just 24 hours earlier, Fifa had been engulfed in criticism for delaying USA striker Folarin Balogun's automatic one-match suspension for receiving a red card following intervention from President Donald Trump. The global football body has insisted that the decision to delay Balogun’s suspension was made independently , and was not due to phone calls from Washington.
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Secretary General of the Parliamentary Union of the Member States of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (PUIC) Muhammad Qureshi Nias extended his condolences over the martyrdom of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, expressing solidarity with Iran.
A German court heard that an alleged IRGC-linked operative sought a Palestinian or Somali woman in financial need to burn a Jewish kosher shop for about €4,000, as police detailed a wider plot against Jewish figures in Germany.
The revered writer and political exile’s publisher says her ‘legacy in literary history can’t be compared to anyone else’s’ Shahrnush Parsipur, the celebrated Iranian writer whose subversive works of feminist fiction saw her repeatedly imprisoned, has died aged 80. The second woman to ever publish a book in Iran, Parsipur excoriated the country’s patriarchal culture in novels including Women Without Men and Touba and the Meaning of Night. She was imprisoned four times, under the Shah and then the Islamic Republic.
After days of public mourning ceremonies in the Iranian capital, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s coffin arrived in Tehran’s Azadi Square. This is what I saw covering the miles-long procession on Monday.
Peace Now report: 2025 witnessed largest West Bank settlement expansion Titled Annus Mirabilis: Actions by the Israeli Government to Annex the West Bank, 2023–2025 , the report by Peace Now and Kerem Navot concludes that the Israeli government has advanced de facto annexation of the West Bank at an unprecedented pace, WAFA reported. The report suggests that the measures advanced by the Israeli government form a single, systematic policy geared towards deepening Israeli control over the West Bank. Instead of focusing on isolated developments such as settlement construction, outpost authorisation, or state land declarations, the report, for the first time, consolidates all government actions and demonstrates that they constitute a single policy, WAFA reported.
Trump joins NATO summit amid Ukraine, spending tensions The US president is due to hold talks with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, at his sprawling presidential palace before joining an official leaders' dinner ahead of the main session of the summit on Wednesday. Trump made his first foreign flight aboard his new Qatari-gifted Air Force One plane. He was greeted on the tarmac by Erdogan and a presidential guard, some dressed in blue, others in red.
'This is our sport, not theirs': Klopp attacks Fifa chief over Balogun red card reversal Submitted by MEE staff on Tue, 07/07/2026 - 11:49 Former Liverpool manager criticises Infantino as Belgium beat US after Trump intervened to overturn key striker's suspension Romelu Lukaku scores for Belgium against the USA on 6 July 2026 in Seattle, Washington (AFP via Getty Images/David Ramos) Off Former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has led a chorus of condemnations against Fifa President Gianni Infantino, after US striker Folarin Balogun’s red card suspension was controversially delayed following intervention from Donald Trump. Trump confirmed on Monday that he had called Infantino directly to ask him to “review” a red card handed to US star player Balogun, during a match against Bosnia last week. On Sunday, Fifa stunned the sports world by reversing that red card and giving Balogun a one-year probationary period instead, using its rarely invoked Article 27 from the Fifa disciplinary code.
Tehran [Iran], July 7 (ANI): Iran's state broadcaster IRIB, citing unnamed sources, on Tuesday reported that the Qatarti oil tanker 'Al-Raqayat' was targeted after allegedly attempting to transit through the Omani route in the Strait of Hormuz with US Navy support while ignoring repeated Iranian warnings.
Israeli strikes kill two Palestinians in Gaza, wound seven including two children An Israeli airstrike had killed a man and wounded two children in the Mawasi area of Khan Younis in southern Gaza. Later on Tuesday, another Israeli airstrike hit near a tent encampment housing displaced families, killing one person and wounding five others, medics said. Israel has repeatedly carried out strikes in Gaza since a US-mediated ceasefire with Hamas was reached last October.
UN report: Gaza recorded 9,300 chickenpox cases in just two weeks The Humanitarian Situation Report released last week by the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the cases were reported across more than 130 health facilities. Over half of these cases were in Khan Younis. The surge has occurred in an environment already marked by severe overcrowding, deteriorating hygiene conditions, and widespread environmental health hazards.
