BIG Wrap

(Al Jazeera Media Network) A leading official with Yemen’s Houthi rebels, officially known as Ansar Allah, has threatened a “siege” on Saudi Arabia in retaliation for an attack on Sanaa International Airport. The Houthis blamed Saudi Arabia for the Monday attack, but Yemen’s internationally recognised government has claimed responsibility, saying that it was a measure to prevent an Iranian plane from landing in Yemen’s Houthi-controlled capital. Speaking to Al Jazeera, Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a member of the...

(BBC News) A 67-million-year-old Tyrannosaurus rex has been sold for £37.4 million (US$50.1 million) at a Sotheby's auction in New York – the most ever paid for a dinosaur. The fossil of this infamous predator stands more than 12 feet (4 metres) tall, and with over 60% of its bones recovered is one of "the most complete" specimens ever found, according to Sotheby's. The winning bidder at the sale on Tuesday has not been disclosed. Gus, as...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Several days of military attacks by the United States across Iran have marked the most intense rounds of bombardment since the two sides reached a vague memorandum of understanding last month. US fighter jets and warships have hit hundreds of military targets and a number of civilian ones in nearly a week of strikes, with Iranian authorities reporting attacks in at least 10 provinces, mainly in southern Iran near the strategically...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) In his first message since the funeral of his father, Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has pledged to “avenge innocent blood”, adding that “revenge is the will of our nation”. US President Donald Trump says 1,000 missiles are “locked and loaded and aimed at the Islamic Republic of Iran” with thousands more to follow if it tries to assassinate him.   https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2026/7/11/iran-war-live-us-demands-iran-publicly-state-strait-of-hormuz-open-for-all

(BBC News) The US wants Iran to publicly state that the Strait of Hormuz is open and to pledge to stop firing on commercial ships as part of negotiations due to be held on Saturday. US media cited unnamed officials as saying Tehran had privately acknowledged to President Donald Trump's advisers that the shooting at ships was a mistake, though the Iranians reportedly pinned the blame on a rogue internal group. Trump has said both sides...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The US bombed a strategically important railway bridge in northern Iran, linking it to China and Russia, according to Iran’s Fars news agency. The Ogtay Khan rail bridge in Golestan province was reportedly attacked by a US cruise missile on Thursday morning. The bridge connects a strategic chokepoint on Iran’s railway corridor with China and Turkmenistan.   https://www.aljazeera.com/news/liveblog/2026/7/9/iran-war-live-one-killed-as-us-bombs-bushehr-chabahar-bandar-abbas-jask?update=4753808

(Al Jazeera Media Network) The US military’s Central Command (CENTCOM) says its forces “have started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz”. Iranian media is reporting air defence has been activated after explosions were reported in two locations in southern Iran. US President Donald Trump threatens another night of strikes on Iran, says US may “de-nuclearise” Iran “without a deal”. Earlier, he said...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) At least 26 people have been killed and more than 100 wounded during the worst prison riot in Sri Lanka in years. Fighting between rival groups of inmates at the prison in Negombo, about 35 km (22 miles) north of the capital, Colombo, started on Sunday and escalated on Monday, according to local media reports and police. Two prisoners were killed on Sunday, when clashes between long-term convicts and those under temporary...

(Al Jazeera Media Network) Russia’s Defence Ministry is accusing Ukraine of refusing to halt ⁠the shelling ⁠of the eastern city of Kostiantynivka to allow Moscow to hand over the bodies of ⁠fallen Ukrainian soldiers. The ministry said on Sunday that it had proposed ⁠a six-hour ceasefire in and around Kostiantynivka on ⁠Monday to facilitate ⁠the handover and had given Kyiv until 0900 GMT on Sunday ‌to respond. The Russian claim is the latest salvo in the...

(Washington Times) A China-based American tycoon is funding a Beijing-backed influence campaign in the U.S. to block construction of large computer data centers, according to a new think tank report. Neville Roy Singham, who lives in Shanghai, is funneling millions of dollars to the U.S. communist group Party for Socialism and Liberation to support the influence effort, according to a report by the Bitcoin Policy Institute made public Tuesday. China is fomenting public unrest in the U.S. against the building of...