BIG Wrap

(New York Times) Iran’s supreme leader vowed on Friday that the government would “not back down” in the face of protests that have rocked the country in recent weeks, as the country’s leadership threatened to escalate its crackdown on demonstrators. “There are people whose job is only about destruction,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said in a televised speech in Tehran, the capital, as he accused the protesters of being vandals who were trying to “please” United States President...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) SDF fighters are refusing to leave the Ashrafieh and Sheikh Maqsoud areas in Aleppo and intend to “resist” the Syrian army encircling them. The Operations Command of the Syrian Arab Army says its forces have started a military operation in the Sheikh Maqsoud neighbourhood of Aleppo after the expiration of the deadlines granted to the SDF fighters. At least 22 people, including civilians, have been killed since violence flared up on Tuesday. Nearly...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) US special forces commandeered a Russian-flagged oil tanker with links to Venezuela in the North Atlantic after a weeks-long pursuit, drawing a sharp rebuke from Moscow. The US military’s European Command said the Marinera oil tanker, originally known as the Bella-1, was seized on Wednesday “for violations of US sanctions”. “The blockade of sanctioned and illicit Venezuelan oil remains in FULL EFFECT – anywhere in the world,” US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The United States has raised the prospect of using military force to take control of Greenland as leaders in Europe and Canada rallied behind the Arctic territory, saying it belongs to its people. In a statement on Tuesday, the White House said US President Donald Trump sees acquiring Greenland – which is part of Denmark – as a national security priority necessary to “deter our adversaries in the Arctic region”. “The president...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Israel’s military has launched attacks on what it described as Hezbollah and Hamas “targets” in Lebanon after issuing ⁠evacuation orders for four villages in the country’s east and south. An ‍Israeli army spokesperson said earlier that it was planning air strikes on Hezbollah and ‍Hamas “military infrastructure” ⁠in the villages of Hammara and Ain el-Tineh in eastern Lebanon’s Bekaa Valley, and Kfar Hatta and Annan in the south. An AFP news agency...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Interim President Delcy Rodriguez has said she is willing to cooperate with the United States on the future of Venezuela, in a significant shift in tone from the immediate aftermath of a military operation leading to the abduction of leader Nicolas Maduro by US special forces. “We consider it a priority to move towards a balanced and respectful relationship between the US and Venezuela,” Rodriguez wrote on Telegram on Sunday. “We extend an invitation to the US government...

(CNN) It was just like watching television. Huddled in a draped-off room at Mar-a-Lago around screens set up for his viewing pleasure — including, according to photos released by the White House, a live feed of social media messages on X — President Donald Trump watched and listened as highly trained American Delta Force soldiers rushed into Nicolás Maduro’s home in Caracas, where the Venezuelan leader was sleeping alongside his wife. Maduro was quickly dragged into custody as...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Gunmen have raided a village in northern Nigeria’s Niger state, killing at least 30 villagers and abducting others, in what marks the latest deadly attack in the conflict-hit region. “Over 30 victims lost their lives during the attack; some persons were also kidnapped,” Wasiu Abiodun, Niger police spokesman, said in a statement on Sunday. Abiodun added that the gunmen stormed Kasuwan ⁠Daji market in Demo village at around 4:30 p.m. on...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) US President Donald Trump says the United States will “run” Venezuela until a political transition can take place, just hours after US forces bombed the South American country and “captured” its president, Nicolas Maduro. Speaking during a news conference on Saturday, Trump said the US would “run the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition.” “We don’t want to be involved with having somebody else get in,...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Yemen’s southern separatist movement says it aims to hold a referendum on independence from the north in two years as Saudi-backed forces are fighting to regain territory the separatists seized last month. Fighting broke out on Friday in Hadramout province, which borders Saudi Arabia, between forces loyal to Hadramout’s Saudi-backed governor and the separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC). The STC accused Saudi Arabia of bombing its forces near the border. Seven people...