Hear from Israeli hostages' families after meeting with Witkoff
Steve Witkoff, the United States' Special Envoy to the Middle East, held a nearly three-hour meeting with the families of those still being held in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, telling them that the US' 'first priority' is getting the hostages back to Israel, the forum said. Fifty hostages remain in Gaza, at least 20 of whom are believed to be alive. CNN has reached out to Witkoff's team to confirm that he made these comments.
01:16 - Source: CNN
Young Catholics flock to Rome for Youth Jubilee
Pope Leo XIV received a rock star's welcome and led a prayer vigil with young people participating in the Jubilee of the Youth in Rome. CNN's Christopher Lamb reports.
01:23 - Source: CNN
Witkoff visits controversial Gaza aid site
US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff spent over five hours in Gaza, and visited the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation aid site. He said the purpose of the visit was to give Trump 'a clear understanding of the humanitarian situation and help craft a plan to deliver food and medical aid to the people of Gaza.' CNN's Jeremy Diamond reports.
01:53 - Source: CNN
United Nations' Relief Chief: If anyone can shift Israeli Government, 'It's of course, the Americans'
UN Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher tells CNN's Christiane Amanpour that if anyone can shift the Israeli government, it's the US, and addresses reports of how food aid is being intercepted.
02:09 - Source: CNN
Amusement park ride splits in half in Saudi Arabia
At least 23 people were injured, three of them critically, when a fairground ride buckled in Saudi Arabia, sending passengers crashing to the ground, according to state media.
00:33 - Source: CNN
Soldiers in Ukraine battle Russian drones
CNN's Nick Paton Walsh reports from the frontlines of Ukraine, where soldiers rush to bring in the wounded as drones constantly look for a target.
01:38 - Source: CNN
US diminished a key weapons stockpile fighting Iran
The US used about a quarter of its supply of high-end missile interceptors during the Israel-Iran war, exposing a gap in supplies, and raising concerns about US global security posture. CNN's Tamara Qiblawi reports.
01:35 - Source: CNN
Carney says Canada will recognize Palestinian state
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has joined France and Britain in announcing plans to recognize a Palestinian state in September at the United Nations, as international pressure builds on Israel over the ongoing war and starvation crisis in Gaza. President Donald Trump reacted to the announcement by threatening to derail trade talks with Canada.
00:30 - Source: CNN
Two leading Israeli human rights groups accuse Israel of genocide
Two leading Israeli human rights groups have accused Israel of 'committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza,' becoming the first such organizations to make the claim. B'Tselem's Executive Director Yuli Novak and Physicians for Human Rights Israel's Executive Director Guy Shalev tell CNN's Christiane Amanpour what was behind their groups' decisions to use the word genocide.
04:59 - Source: CNN
Watch F-18 fighter jet perform evasive maneuvers to avoid crashing into audience at airshow
A video verified by Reuters shows the moment when a Spanish F-18 fighter jet was forced to perform "evasive maneuvers" to avoid crashing into attendees during the Gijón Air Festival. The military praised the pilot's actions which ensured the safety of the attendees.
00:35 - Source: CNN
Mothers risk their lives to get food in Gaza
Palestinian women face an awful choice between risking their own lives, which could deprive their families of their only remaining provider, or watching their children starve. CNN's Paula Hancocks reports.
01:33 - Source: CNN
Medics perform surgery during earthquake
Video shows medics in Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia, continuing a surgery on a patient despite a powerful magnitude 8.8 earthquake that struck off Russia's far eastern coast on July 30.
00:47 - Source: CNN
Tsunami warnings triggered after major earthquake
The strongest earthquake on the planet since 2011 has triggered tsunami warnings for parts of Russia, Japan, and Alaska, as well as all of Hawaii. CNN's Will Ripley reports on the 8.8-magnitude quake.
00:41 - Source: CNN
Israeli settler kills activist who worked on Oscar-winning film
Odeh Hathalin, a prominent Palestinian activist who had worked on an Oscar-winning documentary, was killed on Monday during an attack by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank, according to local journalists and officials. CNN's Jeremy Diamond explains video circulated on social media that shows the gunman firing a hand gun in the vicinity of where Hathalin was said to be killed.
01:36 - Source: CNN
Fans in England celebrate Women's Euro 2025 final win
Fans celebrate in London as England has been crowned champion of Europe for the second successive time after defeating Spain 3-1 on penalties in the Women's Euro 2025 final.
00:30 - Source: CNN
Breaking down Israel's aid drops into Gaza
In the midst of a hunger crisis in Gaza, Israel and other countries have begun dropping aid by plane into the area. CNN's Nic Robertson breaks down how much effect this measure can offer, while the UN calls for substantial relief to come from aid trucks moving in quickly through open corridors.
01:15 - Source: CNN
People fight for scraps of food in Gaza
CNN's Nic Robertson reports on the scarce food conditions in Gaza, with children and mothers fighting off starvation as soup kitchens face shortages.
01:46 - Source: CNN
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Associated Press
25 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Iran orders a day of business and office closures to relieve electric grid in heat wave
TEHRAN (AP) — Authorities in Iran ordered government offices and banks across much of the country to close Wednesday as surging summer temperatures and a worsening water crisis strain the power grid. The state television announcement Tuesday is the second this summer. Iran hopes to ease electricity and water demand. As temperatures across the capital, Tehran, have exceeded 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit), authorities urged residents to avoid outdoor activities during peak heat hours and conserve water and energy. Iran produces some 62,000 megawatts of electric energy per hour at its peak but needs about 80,000 megawatts to meet its needs. Tehran and other cities already face two-hour electricity cuts every other day and experts warn cuts may increase to four hours. Protesters have gathered in front of Iran's national electric provider, Tavanir, demanding better grid management. Years of U.S. sanctions on Iran's oil and banking sectors, as well as difficulty in obtaining parts to operate and repair the electric grid, have made the country unable to properly maintain and upgrade its inefficient energy infrastructure. Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant, the country's only nuclear power source, went online in 2011 with Russian help but produces only 1,000 megawatts per hour and goes offline for maintenance each year for two months. Southern Iran is bearing the brunt of the heat. Abadan registered temperatures exceeding 50 Celsius (122 Fahrenheit) on Sunday, ranking the city among the hottest places on Earth during this summer's heat wave. In recent years Tehran has contended with recurring heat extremes and weakened infrastructure. Wednesday's planned office closures echoes a similar one-day public holiday in July 2024 and a two-day action in 2023.
New York Times
28 minutes ago
- New York Times
On Gaza, Germany's Government Faces Pressure from All Sides
Germany has a unique relationship with Israel for obvious reasons. After the Holocaust, a reborn Germany has given Israel unbending support, almost alone among European nations. It is a stalwart Israeli ally, comparable even to the United States. But the tragedy of Gaza, multiplied by reports of malnutrition and even starvation, has put Chancellor Friedrich Merz, a conservative, in an uncomfortable position. Pressures are mounting on his government to take tough action against Israel and to use Germany's influence to push for an end to the war and to Palestinian suffering. German public opinion has tilted steeply against Israel over the last year. Mr. Merz's prime coalition partners, the center-left Social Democrats, are calling for halting or limiting weapons deliveries to Israel. Two of his most important European colleagues, President Emmanuel Macron of France and Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain, are moving to recognize Palestine as a state, even before an Israeli-Palestinian peace settlement defines that state. Like President Trump, Mr. Merz has ruled out such a step, arguing that a Palestinian state must emerge from negotiations between the two parties. But Germany wants the process to start. Mr. Merz also has pressure from his own party. Its political sibling, the Bavarian-based Christian Social Union, has been loud in demanding that Germany continue forthright support of Israel and its government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in its battle against Hamas. So Mr. Merz is weighing more modest measures, and has tried to work behind the scenes with both Mr. Netanyahu and Mr. Trump. While publicly supportive of Israel, Mr. Merz has had several tough, even angry telephone conversations with Mr. Netanyahu, a senior German official said, urging him to come to an agreement for a cease-fire in Gaza and to allow much more food and medical aid into the enclave by road. Mr. Merz also joined Mr. Macron and Mr. Starmer in a call to Mr. Trump last Monday, urging him to put more pressure on Mr. Netanyahu to allow much more aid into Gaza, the official said, speaking anonymously, given the sensitivity of the subject. Mr. Merz is considering backing the European Commission's call for a partial suspension of the E.U.-Israel association agreement, which among other things allows for cooperation in technology and culture. It would be an important shift for Germany, even if a largely symbolic gesture, and something Mr. Merz's Social Democratic coalition partners have demanded. The Commission has proposed the partial suspension of Israel's access to Horizon Europe, the European Union program that funds research. But its proposal is very narrow and would not affect most projects. Europe itself is divided on the issue, so German support for a suspension may not be sufficient to enact even this move. Germany has provided aid for airdrops into Gaza from Jordan, and Mr. Merz last week sent his foreign minister, Johann Wadephul, to Israel and the West Bank to talk to Mr. Netanyahu and leading politicians. 'I came here with the goal of preventing a rift from opening between the European Union and Israel,' Mr. Wadephul said on Thursday in Jerusalem. 'This danger exists and both sides must work together to prevent it.' After his report back to Berlin, the government issued a carefully balanced statement noting that there was 'initial, slight progress in providing humanitarian aid' to Gaza, but it was 'far from sufficient to alleviate the emergency situation.' Israel is obligated to provide such aid 'with the support of the United Nations,' the statement said, while also noting, 'The German government is concerned about reports that large quantities of aid are being withheld by Hamas and criminal organizations.' Mr. Merz and Mr. Wadephul both expressed their horror over the weekend at the Hamas videos of emaciated Israeli hostages, demanding that they all be released as part of any cease-fire. Several of the hostages have German passports. Last week, some 200 German cultural figures published an open letter entitled: 'Don't let Gaza die, Mr. Merz.' The letter, echoing the Social Democrats, called for a halt to all German arms exports to Israel, support for the suspension of the E.U.-Israel association agreement and an immediate cease-fire and unhindered access for aid. Since the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Germany has made great strides toward a tougher foreign and defense policy, becoming 'more relaxed' about increasing its military power and exercising European leadership, said Claudia Major, a security analyst with the German Marshall Fund in Berlin. 'But Israel is not a topic where the usual standards of debate apply,' she said. 'On issues of defending Israel and antisemitism, we tend to overreact.' After the Holocaust and the birth of a post-Nazi, democratic Germany, the promise was 'never again,' Ms. Major noted. After the Hamas invasion of Israel, she said, the slogan in Germany was, 'Never again is now.' For Germans at the time, Ms. Major said, 'everything was clear, and we know where our place is.' The long war and the destruction and privation in Gaza have created obvious fissures in society and in politics. But given German history, on Israel, 'we walk on egg shells,' Ms. Major said, adding, 'Whatever you do in Germany on this topic, you will be criticized.' The discussion is not over, with more meetings of the government scheduled on the issue. Derya Türk-Nachbaur, a Social Democrat legislator, said Germany should coordinate further on the European level, especially with France and Britain, to increase pressure on Israel and allow the partial suspension of the association agreement. Given the shift against Israel in German public opinion, 'Merz faces pressure on multiple fronts for more decisive action,' domestically, inside his own coalition and in Europe, said Thorsten Benner, director of the Global Public Policy Institute in Berlin. A poll in May, by the Bertelsmann Foundation, found that while 60 percent of Israelis have a positive or very positive opinion of Germany, only 36 percent of people in Germany view Israel positively, and 38 percent view it negatively. This represented a notable change from the last survey in 2021, when 46 percent of Germans had a positive opinion of Israel. The poll also showed that a declining number of Germans — only a third — said that Germany has responsibility toward Israel, and only a quarter that they felt a 'special responsibility.' There are other steps Mr. Merz might take, said Mr. Benner. He could impose sanctions on hard-right ministers in the Israeli government, as the Dutch have done or temporarily halt any weapons shipments to Israel, arguing that Israel has enough to defend itself for the moment. He could also bring more injured Gazan children to German hospitals. Mr. Merz has argued that Israelis listen to its bedrock supporters, like the United States and Germany, while discounting the criticism of countries like Sweden, Ireland and Spain, which had earlier recognized a Palestinian state. 'He says that they do listen to us,' Mr. Benner said. 'But he needs to have something to show for it, to show that it bears fruit.'
New York Times
28 minutes ago
- New York Times
U.N. Security Council to Discuss Gaza War and Hostages
The United Nations Security Council was set to meet on Tuesday to discuss the war in Gaza and the hostages held by Hamas as the humanitarian crisis in the territory shows little sign of abating and cease-fire talks have stalled. Gideon Saar, the Israeli foreign minister, told reporters on Monday that Israel had called for a special session focused on the hostages after Hamas released videos over the weekend showing two emaciated Israeli captives. Israel says it believes that there are still about 20 living hostages in Gaza, as well as the bodies of 30 others. The Security Council will convene as the widespread humanitarian crisis in Gaza continues after nearly two years of war between Israel and Hamas. Scores of Palestinians have died from malnutrition-related causes, according to the Gaza ministry of health. Nearly 40 percent of the population are not eating for multiple consecutive days, according to the U.N. World Food Program. Many aid agencies and countries, including a number of Israel's traditional allies, have blamed Israeli policy for the situation, including its blockade from March to May on aid entering the territory. Some countries, including Britain, Canada and France, have announced plans to recognize a Palestinian state. More than 60,000 people in Gaza have been killed in the war, including thousands of children, according to Gaza health officials, who do not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Most of the enclave's two million people have been displaced, often forced to crowd into swelling tent camps amid the rubble. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
