BIG Wrap

(BBC News) Ukraine has dismissed Iranian threats of retaliation, following Kyiv's targeting of an Iranian cargo vessel in the Caspian Sea on Saturday. The incident marked the first direct link between the wars in Iran and Ukraine. "Iran's threats are unjustified and groundless," Ukraine's Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha posted on X this afternoon. "The regime in Tehran is a direct accomplice to Russian aggression against Ukraine, fuelling Moscow's criminal war with weapons that have killed Ukrainians since...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Chad has joined a growing list of countries as it announced plans to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC). The military government declared on Monday that Chad had begun the process to leave the court, which prosecutes war crimes and other violations of humanitarian law and is based in The Hague in the Netherlands. The northern African nation is the fifth state in recent months to quit the international tribunal, as...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The Lebanese army has accused Israel of obstructing its efforts to take over control of security in southern Lebanon. The Lebanese military said in a statement on Sunday that the Israeli army was continuing to conduct shelling and clearance operations, preventing Lebanese troops from fully taking over villages as agreed. The Lebanese army on Tuesday deployed troops to the first of three “pilot zone” villages. The move for local forces to take over security...

(BBC News) The Iranian-backed Houthis have claimed a missile attack on Saudi Arabia, after Riyadh launched strikes on targets linked to the group on Friday. Early on Saturday, the Houthis' Ansarollah media said on Telegram that a "Yemeni missile strike" had caused fires in the Saudi city of Jizan. Saudi authorities had issued emergency alerts for the province. The group had vowed retaliation after Saudi Arabia launched air strikes on Houthi targets in the Yemeni port...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Ukraine replaced its top military and political defence personnel in the past week even as its armed forces arguably achieved their best performance in three years. Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov’s ouster on July 15 was followed six days later by the replacement of Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrskii. Both men were followed out the door by some of their most capable lieutenants. Ukraine seemed to have found a winning formula, making 2026 Russia’s worst...

(BBC News) At least 15 people have been killed in Russian attacks on Ukraine, including 10 dead in ballistic missile strikes on an exhibition near Kyiv showcasing drone technology. Writing on social media, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said some 100 people had been injured in the daytime attack on the exhibition, attended by prominent members of the defence sector. Elsewhere, five people were killed in the eastern city of Sloviansk by Russian glide bombs. And on Friday evening,...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The European Union has fined Google 890 million euros (US$1 billion), saying the technology giant broke digital antitrust rules by steering users of Google Play and its search engine towards its own services and apps at the expense of rivals. Thursday’s penalty is the latest in Brussels’ crackdown on Big Tech, which has seen the bloc lead the world in reining in the largest firms from Silicon Valley to Beijing. Google had...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The United States and Saudi Arabia have reached a civilian nuclear co-operation deal, the administration of US President Donald Trump announced, as Washington and Riyadh push to deepen ties. The US Department of Energy hailed the agreement as “historic” on Wednesday, saying that US companies will provide nuclear technology to the kingdom. The deal consists of an accord under Section 123 of the Atomic Energy Act of 1954, known as a 123...

(BBC News) A Russian warship, shadowed by a Royal Navy vessel, carried out a live-fire artillery exercise just 74 km south of Plymouth on Monday. The Royal Navy monitored the exercise and is tracking "the vessel's activity closely", a Ministry of Defence spokesperson said. The BBC has been told that, prior to opening fire, Russian frigate Neustrashimy (English: Dauntless) had informed the Royal Navy Offshore Patrol Vessel, HMS Tyne, of its intention to conduct gunnery activity. Newly...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The Lebanese army is set to take charge of security in three “pilot zone” villages in southern Lebanon, according to the United States. The villages of Froun, Srifa and Zawtar al-Gharbiya were named by the US State Department on Monday as the first areas that will trial the implementation of the US-mediated framework agreement. Under the plan, the Israeli military is set to perform a phased retreat from the locations it occupies in...