Strikes on Iran and Israel, a hoisted yacht and Jaws rides again - photos of the weekend
A satellite image over Fordow nuclear facility, after the US struck the underground site in the north of the country on Sunday Photograph: 2025 Planet Labs PBC/Reuters
Donald Trump addresses the nation flanked by JD Vance, Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth after the announcement that the US had bombed nuclear sites in Iran Photograph: Carlos Barría/AFP/Getty Images
Banners thanking Donald Trump for his intervention in Iran are displayed on buildings in the city Photograph: Ahmad Gharabli/AFP/Getty Images
People gather behind a cordoned-off area to view the damage after an Iranian strike in the northern port city on Sunday Photograph: Fadel Senna/AFP/Getty Images
Emergency services attend a severely damaged residential site after a missile strike from Iran on Sunday Photograph: Itay Cohen/Reuters
Relatives mourn their loss at a funeral ceremony near Nasser hospital after Israeli strikes Photograph: Anadolu/Getty Images
A demonstrator wraps themselves with the US flag during a protest against Ice raids outside Dodger Stadium on Saturday Photograph: Damian Dovarganes/AP
Vladimir Putin speaks with an officer who is wearing a gold star, or hero of Russia medal, during a wreath-laying ceremony on Sunday at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in the Alexandrovsky Garden, to commemorate the 84th anniversary of Nazi Germany's invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941 Photograph: Alexander Zemlianichenko/AFP/Getty Images
The hull of the superyacht Bayesian, which sank on 19 August, 2024, killing seven people including the tech tycoon Mike Lynch and his teenage daughter, is hoisted out of the sea on Sunday near Palermo, Sicily, before it is taken to a nearby shipyard where investigators will examine it Photograph: Salvatore Cavalli/AP
Teacher demonstrators demanding a review of their viva results are dispersed by police using a water cannon on Sunday Photograph: Munir Uz Zaman/AFP/Getty Images
A man in a dune buggy with a great white shark on its roof drives around the area where Jaws was filmed, to mark 50 years since the movie's premiere Photograph: Joseph Prezioso/AFP/Getty Images
A child wears rainbow-coloured wings during the city's LGBTQ+ Pride parade on Saturday Photograph: Pablo Sanhueza/Reuters
Rita Ora performs at a summer concert at Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier on Saturday Photograph:for Westfield Hamburg-Überseequartier
Tourists cool off at a water park in Henan province on Saturday Photograph: VCG/Getty Images
Dua Lipa strikes a pose during her Radical Optimism tour at Wembley on Saturday Photograph:for Dua Lipa
People in a variety of colourful costumes participate in the 43rd annual Mermaid Parade on Coney Island on Saturday
Photograph: Craig
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The Independent
8 minutes ago
- The Independent
Irish citizens evacuated from Israel after US strikes Iran nuclear facilities
Fifteen Irish citizens and dependants have been evacuated from Israel after the US launched an attack on Iran. Ireland's deputy premier Simon Harris said the group, evacuated with the help of the Austrian government, will arrive in Ireland in the coming days. It comes after US planes and submarines attacked Fordo, Isfahan and Natanz on Saturday night, which are linked to Iran's nuclear programme. Tehran has threatened to retaliate, while American leader Donald Trump has warned of further US action if necessary. Irish premier Micheal Martin and Mr Harris both called for an 'urgent' de-escalation and a negotiated solution on Iran's nuclear facilities. They said they are in close contact with their European counterparts ahead of a meeting of EU foreign leaders on Monday and of EU leaders on Thursday and Friday. Mr Harris, also Ireland's foreign affairs minister, said the US strikes on Iran was an 'extraordinarily dangerous escalation' of the 'tinderbox' conflict in the Middle East. He said he spoke on Sunday with Iran's deputy foreign minister Majid Takht-Ravanchi, who was 'full of anger'. 'He did say to me that it was the view of Iran that the aggressors would have to learn lessons and pay a price,' he told reporters at Government Buildings. 'Of course I articulated in the strongest possible terms that Ireland and the European Union doesn't want to see that, we want to see people step back from the brink and engage in dialogue.' Mr Martin said that diplomacy and dialogue is 'ultimately the only way to resolve these issues'. 'Iran should commit not to develop nuclear weapons and disavow its nuclear and uranium enrichment programme,' the Taoiseach said. 'Nuclear safety is an issue here, modern warfare is very destructive. It is civilians who ultimately suffer, and that is why we need an end to these wars and bring an end to conflict.' Mr Martin said the escalation on Sunday should not draw attention away from the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. 'We shouldn't lose sight of the catastrophe that is still unfolding in Gaza while the war between Iran and Israel continues,' he said. 'What is happening in Gaza is appalling and a breach of international humanitarian law, and again, innocent civilians and children are being starved there, and we need that to come to an end.' The Government is in contact with a smaller number of Irish citizens in Iran who had requested an evacuation. Around 29 Irish citizens in Iran had registered with the Irish embassy and around 200 in Israel. Mr Harris has urged Irish citizens in both Israel and Iran to remain vigilant, monitor developments and register with their nearest Irish embassy. Staff from Ireland's embassy in Tehran left the country on Friday, and updates are being provided on more than 300 Irish peacekeepers stationed in Lebanon. Mr Harris said there were no plans to withdraw Irish troops and that 'decisions are being made constantly' to ensure their safety. When asked whether he supported US President Donald Trump's strikes on Iran, Mr Harris told RTE Radio: 'I think it's resulted in an extraordinarily dangerous escalation of a conflict that already best be described as a tinderbox. 'We're now entering a moment of particular danger, because I think the chances now of a spiral of escalation are more likely than ever before, and there is a real prospect now of the international community losing all control of this very, very volatile conflict.' He said it was an 'extraordinarily dangerous time' and that it was a warning as to how easily things could change. 'Thank god we woke this morning to the International Atomic Energy Agency saying they haven't detected any increase in radiation,' he said. He said that it was 'sadly true' that international legal norms are not being adhered to, citing the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Israel's 'genocidal activity' in Palestine, and the Iran-Israel conflict. He said there was a diplomatic process in train and his understanding from readouts was 'there was a commitment from the Iranian side to further talks'. Ahead of a meeting of EU leaders this week, Mr Harris said Ireland and Europe are 'fully united in the clear view' that Iran should not be allowed to possess nuclear weapons. 'The way to address this was always through a negotiated solution. Any alternative to that is simply too dangerous for civilians, for the Middle East region and for global security. 'Together with my EU counterparts, we will in the coming hours and days discuss and review the latest developments and consider the next steps Europe can usefully play to support de-escalation.' Minister for Culture Patrick O'Donovan said people woke up on Sunday 'terrified, really, to be quite honest, about the prospect of what's unfolding'. He told RTE's The Week In Politics it is 'terrifying' for citizens in Iran and Israel. 'It does take great people to make leaps of faith in particular places in time to come forward, whether it was in relation to (Anwar el-Sadat) in Egypt, and later on in relation to Bill Clinton and what he did, we do now require people to actually get people around the table,' he said. 'Because, ultimately, as the Taoiseach said, this is terrifying – not only for the innocent communities that are living in both countries, but as well as that for the neighbouring countries in the Middle East, who we obviously all hope are not drawn into a much bigger conflict.'
The Independent
8 minutes ago
- The Independent
Washington tells Trump after Iran strikes: No more ‘forever war'
The trauma of America's post-9/11 conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan was evident in Washington on Sunday as Americans reckoned with the implications of Donald Trump's decision to launch strikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities. Across the political spectrum, varying factions unified under the banner of opposition to the kind of nation-building ground assault that defined America's two wars launched by the Bush administration. It is the only area of agreement between a faction of progressives and pro-Trump paleoconservatives who opposed the U.S. becoming involved in what up until now had been an Israeli military campaign and their opponents, a waning neoconservative faction in Washington which has called for further escalation in the form of strikes against other facilities and targeted assassinations of Iranian political and military leadership. Sunday morning, the Trump administration publicly leaned towards the former group. Three top administration officials, Trump's vice president, Defense Secretary and Secretary of State, spoke to journalists and urged Iranian leaders to choose against responding to the U.S. strike. Pledging that the U.S. was not seeking to topple Iran's government, the trio left open an off-ramp as Vance claimed: 'We're not at war with Iran. We're at war with Iran's nuclear program.' But both Democrats and Republican opponents of military force against Iran were smarting after Saturday night's attacks, and many cast doubt on the U.S.'s ability to avoid what Senator Jim Risch, one of the administration's defenders, said would be another 'forever war'. A number of Democrats urged more of their party to sign on to a resolution aimed at reining in the president's war powers. The resolution's lone Republican supporter, Rep. Thomas Massie, called on his party to do the same while condemning the influence of AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobby in Washington, in a pair of interviews. 'MAGA should drop this pathetic LOSER,' wrote Trump on Truth Social, in a lengthy post against Massie. But for Democrats, the bombing of Iran represented an issue where common ground could be found. 'This is a defining moment for the Democratic party. We need to stand against war with Iran,' warned one of the resolution's co-sponsors, Rep. Ro Khanna. Rep. Adam Smith, one of the party's more centrist members who voted for the Iraq War in 2002, released a lengthy statement on Saturday for Trump's refusal to seek congressional authorization for the strikes. He also warned against the kind of Iraq-style intervention he once supported: 'The path that the President has chosen risks unleashing a wider war in the region that is both incredibly unpredictable and treacherous.' The effort to rein in Trump's military powers gained Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer's support on Saturday as well. A strong supporter of Israel, Schumer nonetheless accused the administration of making 'erratic threats' and having 'no strategy'. 'The danger of wider, longer, and more devastating war has now increased,' added the Senate Democratic leader. On the right, conservative supporters of the president who opposed Israel's sudden military strikes — which occurred during the first U.S-Iran talks in years — were furious and worried about the future of the White House's domestic agenda. Former congressman Matt Gaetz, speaking with . Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene on his OANN show, accused Israel of seeking 'regime change' in Iran. He also tore into the Netanyahu government, accusing the prime minister of trying to avoid his own electoral defeat by getting the U.S. involved in his war and attacked Israel over the alleged existence of its own nuclear weapons program. Steve Bannon, writing on Gettr, derided Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio for claiming Sunday that the U.S. still sought peace with Iran. 'Guys, please run this by [Benjamin] Netanyahu,' he quipped. Curt Mills, executive director of the American Conservative, warned that it was now going to be extremely difficult for Trump to back the U.S. out of what it had started. 'Goal posts. Instantly moved,' Mills wrote as he reacted to calls for further strikes reportedly made on Israeli media. 'They're going to keep asking Trump to do much more, forever, until he or another American president Says No.' 'The goal posts will be moved until morale collapses,' he added: 'Every drop of juice is squeezed from Trump's political capital.' Even those who defended the administration's involvement in the Israeli military campaign were hesitant to endorse the kind of foreign military footprint that America sustained during the so-called War on Terror. Risch, who chairs the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, praised the president's 'decisive action' in his own statement after previously writing in May that the administration should insist on 'full dismantlement of the Iranian nuclear program', including civilian enrichment, during now-scuttled negotiations. 'This is Israel's war not our war,' the senator said. 'This is not the start of a forever war. There will not be American boots on the ground in Iran.'
Telegraph
11 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Spain exempt from Nato's 5pc spending target
Spain will be exempt from spending 5 per cent of its GDP on defence after striking a deal with Nato, the country's prime minister said. Speaking ahead of this week's Nato summit in The Hague, Pedro Sanchez said he had achieved a 'success' for his country by securing an exception from the new spending target, which had been billed as a strict requirement for all 32 Nato members. It puts Madrid at odds with Donald Trump, the US president, who has called for a significant increase in defence spending and cast doubt on his willingness to defend Nato allies 'if they don't pay'. Mr Sanchez said Spain could fulfil its existing commitments to Nato with a defence budget of 2.1 per cent of GDP. 'We fully respect the legitimate desire of other countries to increase their defence investment, but we are not going to do so,' the Spanish prime minister said in a televised address on Sunday. Mark Rutte, the Nato secretary general, warned members earlier this month that they must commit to spending 5 per cent on defence spending or 'better learn to speak Russian'. It came after he had warned that Vladimir Putin could attack Nato by 2030. According to Nato estimates, Spain spent only 1.24 per cent of GDP on defence last year. In April, Mr Sanchez pledged to increase defence spending to 2 per cent by the end of this year. Target in doubt But Spain's Left-wing government is divided on the need to increase military spending and a think-tank linked to the administration has cast doubt on whether the 2 per cent target for this year is feasible. Mr Sanchez wrote to Mr Rutte last week to say that 5 per cent of GDP was 'unreasonable and counter-productive', arguing that such a commitment would impact the country's social spending and undermine EU plans for technological growth. On Sunday, it emerged that the agreement Nato leaders will sign at The Hague on Wednesday has been altered to accommodate Spain's objections. The text on the spending pledge has been changed from 'we commit' to 'allies commit', allowing Mr Sanchez to claim the commitment would not apply to Spain. Under the plan, countries are meant to reach 5 per cent of GDP by boosting their core defence spending goal from 2 per cent to 3.5 per cent, and adding a further 1.5 per cent on related items such as cyber security and adapting roads and bridges for military vehicles. Mr Sanchez said that Spain needs only to spend 2.1 per cent of GDP to meet its Nato capability targets – the personnel, equipment and infrastructure requirements set by the alliance The announcement comes at a time of political difficulty for Mr Sanchez, who is under enormous pressure over a corruption scandal within his Socialist party.
