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New German crime figures and an expanding investigation into an alleged sexual exploitation of teenage girls near the Nuremberg, Germany, central railway station are intensifying a broader European battle over migration, integration and whether officials have been too reluctant to confront patterns of organized sexual abuse.

Germany recorded 751 cases categorized as group rapes in 2025, according to the federal government’s response to a parliamentary inquiry submitted by the opposition Alternative für Deutschland party. All parties represented in the Bundestag German federal parliament may submit formal questions requiring government responses, a key tool through which opposition lawmakers scrutinize federal policy.

Police identified 1,087 suspects in the cases, including 509 German citizens and 578 non-German nationals. Syrians were the largest foreign-national group, with 110 suspects, followed by Afghans with 64, Iraqis with 46 and Turks with 44.

ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT SOCCER COACH WHO USED ALCOHOL AND DRUGS TO SEXUALLY ABUSE KIDS LEARNS FATE

The government cautioned that "group rape" is not a separate criminal offense or standardized police category. Officials generated the figures by filtering recorded rape cases in which suspects were listed as not acting alone. The numbers represent suspects identified during police investigations, not people convicted in court.

The figures emerged as investigators in Nuremberg, Germany, pursued allegations that vulnerable girls were deliberately drawn into a network involving affection, gifts, narcotics and sexual exploitation.

Bavarian police said in May that men operating around the city’s main railway station allegedly approached girls from unstable or vulnerable backgrounds, initially offering them attention, clothing or cosmetics. Investigators said some were later given hard drugs, including crystal meth, and that their resulting dependency was allegedly exploited to obtain sexual acts or other "services."

STEPDAD ACCUSED OF SEX ASSAULT AS COPS WIDEN PROBE INTO GIRL’S LETHAL BENADRYL INGREDIENT DOSE

The investigation, known as EKO Kajal, has continued to expand. Police said Tuesday that ten suspects were being held in pretrial detention in cases involving alleged sexual offenses against girls and young women and the distribution of drugs or medication to minors.

In the latest arrests, police alleged that a 21-year-old Syrian man raped two girls, ages 15 and 18, in a Nuremberg, Germany, apartment after they were given narcotics by a 40-year-old Syrian man. Both men were detained, but the accusations remain allegations and have not been adjudicated. 

Emma Schubart, a research fellow at the London-based Henry Jackson Society, told Fox News Digital that the Nuremberg, Germany, allegations bear similarities to grooming-gang cases uncovered in Britain, where girls were plied with drugs and alcohol before being repeatedly abused by groups of men.

"It’s a severe failure in both countries," Schubart said, arguing that the problem begins with insufficient screening and continues with inadequate integration after migrants arrive.

"The first step that both authorities in the U.K. and in Germany really are not doing is screening migrants effectively," she said. "But then, once the migrants are already here, the integration policy is completely lacking."

Schubart said the isolation of some immigrant communities can contribute to "ghettoization" and create environments in which criminal networks operate with limited scrutiny or cooperation with authorities.

She also challenged the argument that disparities in some sexual-offense statistics can be explained primarily by poverty.

POLYGAMOUS SECT LEADER CONVICTED ON STATE CHARGES AFTER GIRLS FOUND IN UNVENTILATED TRAILER

"Socioeconomic factors matter, but they absolutely do not fully explain the disparities," Schubart said. "Native Germans from similar socioeconomic backgrounds absolutely do not show equivalent rates in group sexual offending."

Schubart said she viewed the apparent intersection between drugs and sexual exploitation as an especially important parallel with Britain.

"In the U.K. and in Germany, it’s a very similar pattern where it’s basically drug trafficking that also involves sex trafficking," she said. "These drug-trafficking networks and cells operate across the country, not just in those cities where we see the crimes playing out."

Britain has spent years reckoning with grooming scandals in places including Rotherham, Rochdale, Telford and Oxford, England, where official reviews found that police, social workers and local authorities repeatedly missed or ignored evidence that vulnerable children were being systematically abused.

Baroness Louise Casey’s national audit, published by the British government in June 2025, concluded that inconsistent definitions, incomplete records and failures to collect ethnicity data made it impossible to establish the full national scale of group-based child sexual exploitation. It nevertheless found evidence of the disproportionate representation of Pakistani-heritage suspects in some local datasets and cases, while warning against extrapolating those findings to the entire country.

The British government later backed an independent inquiry intended to examine failures or obstruction by police, councils and other public bodies in relevant local areas.

Schubart argued that officials in both countries have sometimes avoided discussing offenders’ backgrounds out of concern that doing so could damage relations with minority communities.

"In the U.K., it’s usually the phrase ‘community relations,’" she said. "There’s a huge effort to not threaten community relations."

Germany’s ifo Institute reported in February 2025 that its analysis of district-level police data from 2018 through 2023 found no correlation between a rising foreign population and local crime rates, including in areas receiving more refugees.  

"We find no correlation between an increasing share of foreigners in a district and the local crime rate," ifo researcher Jean-Victor Alipour said when the findings were released. "The same applies in particular to refugees." Researchers said differences in suspect rates can be influenced by age, sex, urban concentration and other demographic factors.

Germany’s Syrian population also plays a significant role in sectors facing severe labor shortages. 

The German Medical Association reported that 7,959 Syrian citizens were working as physicians in Germany at the end of 2025, making Syrians the country’s largest group of foreign doctors.

The competing evidence presents European governments with a difficult test: investigating organized exploitation and demographic patterns without political hesitation, while avoiding the suggestion that hundreds of suspects define millions of immigrants.

The Toronto Police Service is investigating after gunfire broke out Saturday night at a large Latin street festival in Midtown Toronto, leaving at least two people dead and four others wounded.

Police said they received reports of a shooting at St. Clair Avenue West and Arlington Avenue at 8:12 p.m. local time and discovered an active shooter situation.

First responders found six people suffering from gunshot wounds, officials said. Two of the victims were pronounced dead at the scene.

USPS WORKER ARRESTED AFTER ALLEGED MASS SHOOTING THREAT AGAINST TEXAS PRIDE EVENT, FBI SAYS

It is unclear what led to the shooting, and authorities said suspect(s) are still "outstanding."

Following the shooting, the Toronto Transit Commission suspended train stops at the nearby St. Clair West station on Line 1 Yonge-University due to what officials described as a "security incident."

Regular transit service has since resumed.

FOUR DEAD AND 29 SHOT IN CHICAGO WEEKEND VIOLENCE AS LEADERS TOUT CRIME PROGRESS

Authorities urged the public to avoid the area and follow all directives from police at the scene.

The TD Salsa on St. Clair Festival, Toronto’s biggest Latin culture celebration, was celebrating its 22nd annual event in Toronto's Hillcrest Village.

The Toronto Police Service told Fox News Digital no further information is available.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

An international manhunt is in its fifth day after the murder of an American woman in Ireland, but Irish police have yet to name a suspect or provide any description of the man they are seeking — a decision drawing sharp criticism from many, including a former FBI agent and an Irish politician.

Jamey Carney, 43, a New York native who moved to Ireland in 2021, was found dead after suffering head injuries and suffocating in her home in the picturesque town of Killarney, County Kerry, late Monday, according to The Irish Times. The idyllic southwestern town is hugely popular among American tourists.

Before Carney's body was discovered Tuesday, the man Irish police describe as a "person of interest" had already traveled about 200 miles from Killarney to Dublin Airport and boarded a flight to Turkey, according to Irish police, suggesting authorities knew his identity but chose not to disclose it publicly.

Some Irish publications have reported that the person of interest is an asylum seeker originally from Jordan who came to Ireland in 2024 amid an influx of illegal immigrants descending on the island country.

AMERICAN MOTHER MURDERED IN IRISH TOURIST TOWN AS INTERNATIONAL MANHUNT TARGETS ALLEGED ASYLUM SEEKER

"How is the public supposed to help with locating the alleged suspect when Irish authorities won't even release his name?" former FBI Special Agent Nicole Parker wondered in an interview with Fox News Digital. "Time is of the essence. Every hour or day increases the chance the suspect disappears, destroys evidence or hurts others. Public help is critical. Withholding a photo, name or description for days while the suspect is on the run is counterproductive."

Parker said that if the roles were reversed and a non-U.S. citizen had been murdered in the United States, authorities would typically release identifying information immediately.

"Law enforcement — local, state and federal, including the FBI and U.S. Marshals — would aggressively release identifying information to the public," she said. "The public's help is often what leads to locating fugitives."

Irish broadcaster RTÉ reported police said they were not in a position to comment on the person's age, name or nationality for legal reasons, though authorities did not specify any such legal basis.

A 2015 immigration law protecting the identities of asylum seekers may explain why Irish police have not identified the person of interest, Gript.ie reported. According to the outlet, the law generally prohibits publishing the identities of asylum seekers to protect them from those they claim to be fleeing.

Fox News Digital asked Irish police to identify the person of interest and explain the legal basis for withholding his identity, but they declined to provide any new information, saying only that there were "no additional updates at this time."

Independent Dublin City Councilor Gavin Pepper, a critic of mass immigration into Ireland, slammed the decision not to publicly identify the person of interest. He said the failure to do so is a serious public safety concern.

"That man had a substantial head start," Pepper told Fox News Digital. "At the end of the day, it shouldn't matter what color your skin is. If you commit a heinous crime, your face should be all over every newspaper, every TV station. A manhunt is a manhunt."

Irish police are treating Carney's death as a murder.

WATCH: Harry Cole: American mom's murder highlights Ireland's immigration issues

HERE'S WHY IRELAND IS AT BOILING POINT OVER MASS IMMIGRATION

Pepper said that had authorities publicly released the person's identity sooner, law enforcement in the country where he landed could potentially have been waiting for him.

Not everyone agreed with emphasizing the man's reported immigration status.

Ruth Coppinger, a member of the Irish parliament with the Trotskyist political party People Before Profit, criticized media reports identifying the man as an asylum seeker, accusing some outlets of "stoking the flames of racism," according to Gript.ie. She argued in the Irish parliament that "the common denominator in violence against women is a man, not a nationality."

Several news outlets – including the New York Post, The Irish Mirror, Irish Independent and Irish Examiner -- identified the 28-year-old person of interest by name. Irish police and the Department of Justice declined to confirm his identity to Fox News Digital.

Carney's body was discovered by her 13-year-old daughter in an upstairs bedroom of their home just before 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, The Irish Times reported.

Irish police issued alerts to airports, ports, train stations and bus stations within just over an hour of Carney's body being discovered, the Irish Independent reported. However, the person of interest had already left Ireland.

The search is becoming increasingly difficult as the hours and days pass.

Irish police are now working with Interpol, Europol and Turkish authorities to try to locate the man after he flew to Istanbul. Detectives fear he may already have left Turkey with local assistance and traveled onward to Syria or his native Jordan, according to reports.

An Irish police source also told Fox News Digital they believe locating the man will be difficult because he had already fled the country. Investigators believe he first arrived in the United Kingdom before traveling to Ireland, according to reports.

The killing comes as Ireland grapples with a rise in violence against women. Gript.ie reported that eight women have died in violent circumstances in the country this year, matching the total for all of 2025. According to the outlet's analysis, only one of the identified or sought suspects in those cases was an Irish national.

Ireland does not record the ethnicity of those who commit crimes.

Carney was originally from Westchester County, just north of New York City. She moved to Ireland in 2021, according to the Irish Independent.

Her social media profiles described her as a "New Yorker in Ireland" and featured photos and videos of her with her daughter and a man she identified as her partner. In one recent post, she referred to them as a "mixed couple."

Carney's social media accounts also showed she supported the Free Palestine movement. Her Facebook bio described her as a "New Yorker in Ireland," included the phrase "Free Palestine," and read "Fk Ice," an apparent reference to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Several posts also showed the couple attending pro-Palestinian rallies together.

THOUSANDS MARCH IN DUBLIN AGAINST IRELAND'S MASS MIGRATION POLICIES AS MCGREGOR PURSUES PRESIDENTIAL BID

Posts on the social media accounts of the man named in media reports referred to Carney as "my love" and "my heart."

His accounts also contain posts from the United Kingdom and Turkey in recent years.

Carney's LinkedIn profile indicated she worked for a healthcare outsourcing company in Ireland after previously working as an insurance agent and real estate salesperson in the New York metropolitan area.

Carney's sister, Devon Bennett, described her as "an insanely caring human being" who "dedicated so much of herself, her energy and her time to fighting for the rights of others," according to the Irish Independent. Bennett said Carney was especially proud of her "brilliant daughter, Michaela."

"We grew up in New York, but she spent much of her best years with Michaela in Bergen County, New Jersey," Bennett told the outlet.

"Their true home, where they both felt they truly belonged, was the beautiful town of Killarney."

A devastating double-aviation crisis in the Bahamas, including a deadly North Andros plane crash and a separate aircraft fire on Friday, prompted the government to suspend flight operations for a local airline and launch a federal safety probe.

Shortly after 1 p.m. local time Friday, a Cessna 402 aircraft with Bahamian registration departed Lynden Pindling International Airport in Nassau bound for San Andros Airport.

The Aircraft Accident Investigation Authority (AAIA) said the plane "encountered difficulties" and crashed into bushes prior to landing.

MISSOURI SKYDIVING PLANE CRASH THAT KILLED ALL 12 ABOARD IS A 'DEVASTATING LOSS,' COMPANY SAYS

First responders, including the Royal Bahamas Police Force, Airport Authority and emergency medical personnel, rushed to the dense brush where the aircraft went down.

The Bahamas Musicians and Entertainers Union confirmed in a statement Saturday that 10 people died in the crash, including prominent members of the "The Pond Band" and a local DJ, whose artistry the union said "touched so many lives and helped to enrich the cultural fabric of The Bahamas."

Bahamian Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis said a sole survivor was pulled from the wreckage.

"Ann and I are praying for the families who are now facing unbearable grief," Davis wrote in a statement on X. "We are also praying for the survivor, whose recovery and care will remain in our thoughts."

EIGHT BELIEVED DEAD AFTER B-52 CRASHES SHORTLY AFTER TAKEOFF FROM EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE

The identities of those killed in the crash have not yet been released.

While the AAIA's preliminary reports initially indicated seven people were on board, officials are still establishing the facts of the flight manifest.

Just hours before the fatal crash in North Andros, a Flamingo Air flight en route to Mayaguana was forced to turn back to Nassau after the pilot reported a concern, according to the Ministry of Energy, Utilities and Aviation (MoET).

After the aircraft landed and passengers safely deplaned, the plane caught fire on the runway.

FORMER NFL QB ROBERT GRIFFIN III DESCRIBES HARROWING ENGINE FIRE ON UNITED FLIGHT

Following the two back-to-back safety incidents, the Civil Aviation Authority Bahamas (CAAB) temporarily suspended Flamingo Air's Air Operator Certificate, according to MoET officials.

"The suspension is a precautionary safety measure and should not be treated as an adverse compliance action against Flamingo Air," the agency wrote in a statement.

Investigators from the AAIA and inspectors from the CAAB remain at the scene in North Andros as they work to determine what caused the Cessna 402 tragedy.

Flamingo Air did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's request for comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Ukraine’s intensifying campaign against Putin's oil industry is having a growing impact inside Russia, forcing one of the world’s largest energy producers to restrict diesel exports, pursue fuel imports and confront shortages stretching from occupied Crimea to cities deep in the country.

Inside Russia, the consequences are becoming increasingly visible. Former Russian opposition politician and commentator Maxim Katz said the shortages represent one of the first direct ways many Russians have experienced the consequences of the war — and could become particularly sensitive ahead of State Duma elections scheduled for September.

"This is the first time that Russians actually sees that the war has an effect on their day-to-day life — not only in the cost of fuel, but in its availability," Katz told Fox News Digital in a Zoom interview from Israel, where he lives in exile. "You cannot buy it. And that’s a big deal for Russia."

DRONE OFFENSIVE HITS RUSSIAN OIL TANKERS AND REFINERIES AT 'INDUSTRIAL SCALE' AS MOSCOW BANS DIESEL EXPORTS

Katz said elections in Russia are neither free nor competitive, but they still serve an important function for Putin by projecting public support to regional leaders, business figures and other members of the elite.

"If everybody sees in September that he has 20% support or 10% support, then questions begin about why he should appoint governors or control the system," Katz said. "That is something he does not want to deal with."

The fuel crisis, Katz argued, threatens Putin’s effort to portray himself as fully in control and to keep the cost of the war away from ordinary Russians.

"Putin tried to convince everybody that Moscow would continue to live its regular life and nobody would see the war," Katz said. "It was his war, not the war of ordinary Russians. But when the war comes home, this is a completely different story, and it changes the equation."

Katz also pointed to the striking reversal of Russia — historically one of the world’s largest exporters of oil and refined products — seeking fuel supplies from abroad. Reuters reported that Moscow had approached Kazakhstan about importing approximately 50,000 metric tons of gasoline after refinery outages reduced Russian gasoline output by roughly 25% from a year earlier.

The campaign reached a new milestone this week when Ukrainian drones struck the Omsk refinery, Russia’s largest, roughly 1,700 miles from Ukrainian-held territory. The facility temporarily halted processing after the attack, according to Reuters. Days later, another strike shut Russia’s Saratov refinery for the third time this year.

The expanding crisis raises a central question for Ukraine and its allies: Can attacks on the infrastructure that powers Russia’s military and economy alter President Vladimir Putin’s calculations — or will the Kremlin continue shielding its war effort while shifting the burden onto ordinary Russians?

"They have to buy fuel from Kazakhstan now," Katz said. "Russia is one of the biggest exporters of oil and oil products and always has been. This is crazy."

Still, Katz cautioned that the Kremlin would likely continue prioritizing military supplies even as civilian shortages worsened.

"He will find the fuel for the tanks. That is not the issue," Katz said. "The issue is his grip on Russia."

WATCH: FIGHTS BREAK OUT AT RUSSIAN GAS STATIONS AS PUTIN ADMITS FUEL SHORTAGES

Retired U.S. Air Force Gen. Philip M. Breedlove, former commander of U.S. European Command and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Europe, said the effects are already becoming significant.

"Without question, Ukraine’s campaign against Russia’s oil and energy infrastructure is having a real and growing impact on the Russian homeland," Breedlove told Fox News Digital. "The reported reductions in fuel production are significant — close to a third by some estimates."

"These strikes are beginning to seriously impact not just the economy but the Kremlin’s ability to sustain its war effort and military operations," he added. "When Ukraine is able to hit large, high-value energy targets deep inside Russian territory, that changes the equation."

"Russia cannot effectively defend every refinery and energy facility across their enormous territory, and that is the core problem for Moscow," Breedlove said. "Every asset they deploy to defend their infrastructure are assets not deployed to the frontlines."

Moscow has already taken emergency measures. Russia banned diesel exports through the end of July as drone attacks forced unplanned refinery shutdowns and reduced domestic supplies. Seaborne exports of diesel and gasoline fell 39% in June compared with May and 46% from the previous year, according to Reuters.

RUSSIAN GENERALS' ASSASSINATIONS EXPOSE GROWING RIFT INSIDE PUTIN'S SECURITY APPARATUS

Ukraine’s ambassador to Israel, Yevgen Korniychuk, said American intelligence has played an important role in helping Kyiv penetrate Russia’s extensive air-defense network.

"You always have to give credit to the United States," Korniychuk told Fox News Digital. "U.S. intelligence is helping Ukrainian missiles and drones avoid Russian anti-missile defense."

The Wall Street Journal, citing U.S. officials, said in a 2025 report that "The U.S. will provide Ukraine with intelligence for long-range missile strikes on Russia’s energy infrastructure." Reuters, citing the Financial Times, also reported that "U.S. intelligence has helped Kyiv strike important Russian energy assets, including oil refineries, far beyond the front line, the newspaper said, citing unnamed Ukrainian and U.S. officials familiar with the campaign."

Fox News Digital reached out to the State Department and the White House to confirm the reports and the Ukrainian ambassador’s claims.

Korniychuk said the strikes are creating serious pressure inside the Russian system, even if they have not yet persuaded Putin to change course.

"The majority of the Russian leadership understands that this is a crucial problem, but Putin personally does not," he said. "The distance between him and the rest of the Russian leadership is growing tremendously. Even people he has trusted for many years understand that this is going nowhere, but that will not necessarily bring Putin to the same conclusion."

Retired Lt. Gen. Richard Newton, former U.S. Air Force assistant vice chief of staff, argued that the broader strategic picture is shifting in Ukraine’s favor.

"Throughout the conflict, the vast majority of the Russian homeland has been a sanctuary," Newton said. "However, over the last several months, Ukrainian drone attacks have reached deep inside Russia — up to 1,500 miles recently."

Newton said the pressure was arriving as Western support strengthened.

"That is a credit to President Zelenskyy, his military leadership and Ukraine’s defense industrial base," he said. "And it comes at the right time, with Europe now providing military capabilities and financial resources — and now, with renewed public support from President Trump."

Yet the strategy has limits. Russia continues to generate billions in energy revenue beyond the reach of Ukrainian drones.

Urgewald, a Germany-based nonprofit environmental and human-rights organization analysis of Kpler cargo data found that the European Union received 114 of the 118 cargoes shipped from Russia’s Yamal LNG project between January and May 2026 — about 97% of the project’s exports. The shipments totaled 8.37 million metric tons and had an estimated value of roughly $5.7 billion.

"Current trends show EU payments for Russian Yamal LNG are on course to reach almost $7 billion in the first half of 2026 alone," Alexander Kirk, a sanctions campaigner at Urgewald, told Fox News Digital. "These dollars support Russia’s war economy and help sustain Moscow’s aggression against Ukraine, including the drone and missile warfare terrorizing Ukrainian cities."

The figures capture the dual reality confronting Kyiv: Ukraine can damage refineries, disrupt domestic fuel supplies and force Moscow to divert resources, while Russia continues earning substantial revenue from global energy markets.

Amb. Korniychuk said Zelenskyy had given the military 40 days to substantially change the situation.

Katz cautioned that there was no way to predict whether Putin’s system was approaching collapse, but said authoritarian regimes can appear stable until they unravel with extraordinary speed.

He compared that uncertainty to the final months of the Soviet Union.

"Nobody before the August Putsch could even think that in three months from now there would be no Soviet Union," Katz said. "Systems like this — this is one of their common things — collapse quick."

For now, Ukraine’s strikes have not halted Russian military operations or forced Putin to negotiate. But they have reached deep into Russia, strained its fuel system and undermined the Kremlin’s effort to keep the war distant from its population.

The question being asked by analysts is no longer whether Ukraine can hit Russia’s economic engine, but how much sustained pressure that engine — and Putin’s political system — can withstand.

Israel’s leaders are publicly signaling that their country is prepared to strike Iran for a third time, while a U.S. official tells Fox News Digital that Washington remains closely coordinated with Jerusalem. 

"The IDF is on high alert and prepared to resume the campaign, regain air superiority, and carry out an independent Israeli strike against Iran to eliminate threats — even for a third time," Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Minister Israel Katz said Thursday at a graduation ceremony for the Israeli Air Force’s newest pilots.

"If we have to return, we will return with even greater force," Katz added.

ISRAEL DEFENSE CHIEF WARNS STRIKES ON IRAN COULD RESUME SOON, SIGNALS CAMPAIGN NOT OVER

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also warned Thursday that Israel’s campaign against Iran was not finished and said Tehran would not be permitted to obtain a nuclear weapon, regardless of any agreement reached with Washington.

"The war has not yet ended," Netanyahu said at the air force ceremony. "Alongside the old challenges, new challenges are emerging. Axes are falling, and axes are rising. We are paying attention to this. We are prepared for every scenario."

Two Israeli sources told CNN Friday that the Trump administration does not currently want Israel to participate in the latest U.S. strikes against Iran. 

"Netanyahu would really want to join the U.S. strikes, but the U.S. doesn’t want Israel involved at the moment," one of the sources told CNN.

A U.S. official denied the report, telling Fox News Digital, "This is fake news. The United States has a strong relationship with Israel, which contributed to the resounding success of Operation Midnight Hammer and Operation Epic Fury. We remain in close coordination with our Israeli partners."

Israel first launched a major campaign against Iran in June 2025, with the United States later joining the fighting by striking the Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear facilities. On Feb. 28, the two allies launched a new, coordinated military campaign against Iran.

While Israeli leaders are openly presenting the military as ready for another campaign, some Israeli officials and analysts say there is little appetite for renewed fighting unless it produces a clear strategic result.

The public warnings may overstate Israel’s desire to reenter the fighting, said Israeli analyst and journalist for Israeli newspaper Yedioth Aharonoth, Nadav Eyal. 

"On the record, Israel is signaling that it is prepared and even eager to strike Iran. But off the record, sources are saying that it is anything but that," Eyal told Fox News Digital. "The reason is clear: Any Israeli strike in Iran will lead to Iranian ballistic missile attacks against Israel."

US CLAWS BACK KEY CONCESSION TO IRAN AFTER FRESH ATTACKS ON COMMERCIAL SHIPS IN STRAIT OF HORMUZ

Eyal said the domestic political consequences could make Netanyahu reluctant to begin another round of fighting, particularly as Israel approaches another election.

"If these strikes are meant to provide meaningful, strategic change, it is something the prime minister can sell to the public," Eyal said. "But if the intention is only to use Israel as leverage, why should Israelis again experience a couple of weeks or more of sitting in safe rooms and losing their summer vacations, children’s day camps and summer camps? That could play out badly for the prime minister politically."

"The truth is that Israel was not really enthusiastic about another strike," he added. "That doesn’t mean it is not going to happen. If President Trump demands that Netanyahu join, it is very hard to see the Israelis saying no. But right now, I don’t see any passion for it."

The diplomatic outreach continued even as Trump declared that the ceasefire with Iran was over.

"The Islamic Republic of Iran has asked us to continue ‘talks.’ We have agreed to do so, but the United States has stated to them, in no uncertain terms, that the Cease Fire is OVER!" Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social.

A source with knowledge of the situation told Fox News that Qatari negotiators have traveled to Iran, in coordination with the United States, to meet with Iranian officials in an effort to de-escalate the situation and create the conditions for negotiations to resume.

On Thursday, Netanyahu and Trump spoke by phone, according to the Israeli prime minister’s office, which said the two agreed to continue coordinating across several regional fronts. Trump briefed Netanyahu on American operations in the Gulf, the statement said.

NETANYAHU REJECTS REPORTS OF A RIFT WITH PRESIDENT TRUMP, SAYS THE TWO REMAIN ALIGNED ON IRAN

The military warnings came as the Wall Street Journal reported Friday that Israel had provided the United States with intelligence about what is described as a fresh Iranian plot to assassinate Trump.

The developments follow renewed attacks on commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, where U.S. naval officials said the maritime threat remained "severe." U.S. Naval Forces Central Command reminded commercial vessels Friday that an expanded southern route through the strait remained open and that no controlling authority could require ships to pay a fee for passage.

A U.S. official told Fox News on background that Iran’s attacks against commercial vessels were "acts of terrorism" and constituted failed performance under the memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran.

"The United States is still committed to finding a resolution, and technical talks continue," the official said. "Iran can never possess a nuclear weapon."

Brig. Gen. Yossi Kuperwasser, a former senior Israeli military intelligence officer who now heads the Jerusalem Institute for Strategy and Security, said Israel had never regarded the memorandum as an adequate guarantee.

"From Israel’s perspective, the MOU was never a good deal," Kuperwasser told Fox News Digital, speaking of the memorandum of understanding between the U.S. and Iran. 

"Israel should be on high alert, ready to face an Iranian attack and prepared to strike back if necessary," he added.

For now, Israel’s leaders appear to be leaving Iran — and Washington — with little doubt that they are prepared to act. Whether the United States allows Israel to join the renewed campaign, however, could determine whether the latest confrontation remains limited or develops into another full-scale regional war.

Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment. 

A 26-year-old man has been arrested on suspicion of the murder of Ann Widdecombe, a former British member of Parliament and reality TV contestant, police said.

Widdecombe, 78, was found dead Thursday in her home on the edge of Dartmoor National Park in southwest England. Authorities said she died of serious injuries, Reuters reported.

The name of the suspect has not been released.

LABOUR MP PUTS CABINET 'ON NOTICE,' THREATENS TO TRIGGER LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE AGAINST STARMER BY MONDAY

"This is really shocking news, and my thoughts, I think all of our thoughts, will be with the family and friends of Ann Widdecombe at this awful time," Prime Minister Keir Starmer said. "Ann was a distinguished politician over many, many years with many achievements, and it’s a huge, huge loss."

Investigators don't believe the killing was politically motivated, Devon and Cornwall Police Assistant Chief Constable Matt Longman said.

"Our murder enquiry is in its early stages but moving at a significant pace," ​Devon and Cornwall Police said in a statement.

Starmer said the security of lawmakers was "of the utmost importance," and urged people to rise above political differences.

BRITISH PRIME MINISTER KEIR STARMER FACES POTENTIAL LEADERSHIP CHALLENGE FROM NEWLY-ELECTED ANDY BURNHAM

Widdecombe served in Parliament, but found fame after leaving office as a contestant on the Strictly Come Dancing and Celebrity Big Brother reality television shows. She later joined the Brexit Party and became a spokeswoman for the anti-mass migration Reform UK party.

In a post on X, former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson called Widdecombe "a heroic Brexiteer and a great speaker who could move Tory audiences to such ecstasy that she was a very hard act to follow."

Cloud9 Management, which represented Widdecombe for more than a decade, said her life was driven by her "strong Christian values and commitment to public service."

"She loved the cut and thrust of political debate and, 16 years after leaving Parliament, was still actively campaigning for Reform UK and offering forthright views on the hot topics of the day across numerous radio and television programmes (sic). Ann was a valued patron of many causes, particularly her animal charities," the company said in a social media post.

In the past decade, two serving British members of parliament have ​been murdered.

In the midst of the Brexit campaign of 2016, Labour lawmaker Jo Cox was shot and stabbed by a Nazi-obsessed loner. Conservative lawmaker David Amess was fatally stabbed in 2021 by a man inspired by the ‌Islamic State terror group.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

A flight instructor jumped to his death out of a small aircraft over Argentina, forcing the student pilot he was teaching to land the plane herself.

Leandro Andrés Bertazzo, 42, was on board a two-seat Cessna 150G on Saturday when he made the decision to jump out over the province of Córdoba, according to CNN, which cited its Argentinian affiliate TN.

"He made this tragic decision on board an aircraft with another person by his side," Eduardo Álvarez, director of the Flying Parrot Córdoba flying school where Bertazzo worked, told TN. "It’s impossible to think about it or understand it, but the human mind is so complex."

PILOT DECLARES MAYDAY BEFORE SEAPLANE COMES DOWN IN NEW YORK CITY’S EAST RIVER

Rosario, the 22-year-old student, later told authorities that Bertazzo told her, "You know what you have to do, carry on," before taking off his gear, opening the door and leaping out, according to Álvarez.

Opening the door of a plane midair is incredibly difficult. Álvarez said it would be akin to trying to open the door of a car traveling 124 miles per hour.

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Álvarez said that Rosario managed to land the plane safely, despite being in "complete shock." There was no damage to the plane, according to TN.

Álvarez noted that Bertazzo had gone on a flight with another student earlier in the day.

Álvarez also told TN that Bertazzo had visited a psychiatric institute, something that was only known by his family prior to his death.

Prosecutors in Córdoba will lead the investigation into Bertazzo's death. The plane he jumped from is now in police custody.

The State Department condemned Iran’s intensified repression of Christians, including a Catholic woman on hunger strike in a prison known as one of the most brutal in the theocratic state.

The Trump administration statement on widespread human rights violations carried out by the Iranian regime coincides with new military strikes against it in response to Tehran’s attacks on commercial tankers in the Strait of Hormuz.

The Christian woman on hunger strike is 42-year-old Ghazal Marzban, who sits in Iran’s infamous Evin prison in Tehran, according to Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA). Iran sentenced Marzban, a Catholic, to nearly 10 years in prison for practicing her Christian faith, Iranian experts told Fox News Digital. Marzban’s physical health, as of late May, had deteriorated. Her current condition is not known.

IRAN REGIME ACCUSED OF KILLING 19 CHRISTIANS IN ANTI-REGIME PROTESTS AS PERSECUTION CONTINUES: WATCHDOG

It is unclear if the administration plans to ramp up pressure on Iran’s leaders for their widepsread persecution of religious minorities and opponents of the regime.

A State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital, "We are aware of these reports. It is reprehensible that the Iranian regime continues to persecute religious minorities, including Iranian Christians."

Article 18, an organization that promotes religious freedom in Iran, noted that following Marzban’s conversion, the Islamic law graduate was banned from taking her bar entry examination. Her husband, who also converted to Christianity, has been denied medicine for his Parkinson’s disease, according to Article 18.

Fox News Digital sent a press query to Iran’s U.N. Mission about Marzban and the plight of practicing Christians in Iran.

The State Department spokesperson said, "In Iran, human rights and fundamental freedoms, including the freedoms of expression, peaceful assembly, association, and religion or belief, are completely ignored. The regime targets members of religious and ethnic minority groups and uses tactics like arbitrary arrest and torture to intimidate opponents and silence dissent."

After the regime reportedly murdered as many as 45,000 Iranian demonstrators within a 48-hour period in January, including as many as 22 Iranian Christians, the security forces of the regime arrested vast numbers of protestors.

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President Trump has cited the number of 45,000 Iranians killed by the regime. The State Department told Fox News Digital that Iran’s leaders should free those protesters still in detention.

"We reaffirm our unwavering solidarity with the people of Iran and call for the immediate and unconditional release of all political and wrongfully detained prisoners, including those facing persecution for peacefully exercising their fundamental freedoms," said the State Department spokesperson.

Lisa Daftari, an expert on Iran who is the editor-in-chief of The Foreign Desk, told Fox News Digital that the joint U.S.-Israel elimination of the former Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei, in February, "Hasn’t eased pressure. On the contrary, we are seeing more escalation and the implementation of even more hardline influences."

Daftari said the "Arrests of Christians jumped from 139 in 2024 to 254 in 2025, alongside longer and more frequent sentences. At least 11 people received over a decade. After the recent war, authorities claimed they had ‘neutralized’ 53 elements, which is how they refer to evangelical Christians. That is because the Islamic Republic views conversion as a security threat."

Hengaw, an organization that monitors human rights violations in Iran, reported on its website on July 3 that the regime plans to seize the St. Peter Church in Tehran. Daftari said, "This is a large Christian compound with schools and family homes, and roughly 20 Armenian and Assyrian families are being expelled under a Revolutionary Court order that’s been sitting unused since 1998."

When asked about a policy response from the U.S., Daftari said, "If there’s going to be a response, it has to be targeted. That means sanctions on the specific judges, intelligence officials and IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps] actors involved in cases like St. Peter Church and Marzban. And the transfer of church property to entities like EIKO [a business empire controlled by the late Khamenei] should be treated as state seizure, not an internal legal matter, and raised accordingly in international forums."

Ramin, whose real name cannot be disclosed due to "security reasons," an expert for Open Doors, a global Christian organization that aids persecuted Christians, told Fox News Digital, "The threatened confiscation of St Peter’s Evangelical Church in Tehran is deeply concerning and should not be viewed merely as a property dispute. It reflects a wider and long-standing pattern of pressure on Iran’s Christian communities, including recognized historic churches, Protestant communities, converts and reported cases involving Catholic converts."

Ramin added, "St Peter’s is one of Iran’s historic Protestant churches, and the reported eviction of families from the compound sends a clear message of intimidation to the wider Christian community. Together with the arrest, detention and sentencing of Christian converts, including those from Catholic backgrounds, this shows that the Iranian authorities continue to treat the peaceful Christian faith as a security concern rather than as a basic right to freedom of religion or belief."

RUBIO REVOKES IRANIAN OFFICIALS' US TRAVEL PRIVILEGES OVER DEADLY PROTEST CRACKDOWN KILLING THOUSANDS

Mansour Borji, the executive director of Article 18, told Fox News Digital that "The targeting of Christians whom the founders of the Islamic Republic viewed as an ideological threat began from the earliest days of the revolution. This included both Catholic and Protestant communities. Within days of the 1979 revolution, the Rev. Arastoo Sayyah, an Anglican priest, was murdered in his office. Foreign missionaries were expelled within the first year and Christian schools, hospitals and churches soon came under increasing pressure."

He added that, "Since 2008, Article18 has documented numerous confidential cases involving the arbitrary arrest of Catholic converts, harassment of church leaders, visa denials for clergy, the revocation of citizenship from a long-serving bishop and the confiscation and demolition of church property."

Borji continued, "The recent move against St. Peter’s Church is therefore not an isolated incident or a new development. It is part of a long-standing pattern of systematic pressure on independent Christian communities. The Islamic Republic is a totalitarian regime that has consistently sought to suppress any institution or community that operates outside its ideological control."

In the wake of the intensified persecution of Iranian Christians, he warned that "If the Islamic Republic regains the capacity to project its ideology with renewed confidence, the consequences are likely to extend across the region and beyond."

He urged that perpetrators "face targeted sanctions, visa restrictions and asset freezes under existing human rights mechanisms."

Borji said that "Governments, especially in the EU, U.K. and other trade partners, should also make religious freedom a consistent part of their engagement with Iran, rather than treating it as a secondary issue. Appeasing a regime that persecutes its own people has rarely produced moderation."

An Iranian official warned that the Islamic Republic will deliver a "hard slap" while another blatantly threatened the U.S. that "if you strike, you'll get hit," according to automatic translations from the two men's Persian-language posts on X.

Ebrahim Rezaei, whose profile on the social media platform indicates that he is a representative in Iran's Parliament and the spokesperson for the National Security and Foreign Policy Commission, wrote in a post on X, "The martyred Khamenei taught us not to fear America and showed that 'falsehood will perish.' Await the hard slap from the Iranians."

The speaker of Iran's Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, warned, "America still hasn’t learned that bullying and breaking promises are no longer cost-free. Let me put it plainly: if you strike, you’ll get hit. Don’t flail around pointlessly, or you’ll sink even deeper: the Strait of Hormuz will only open with 'Iranian arrangements,' not American threats."

Both of the men issued their posts on Wednesday after U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced more strikes against Iran.

"At the direction of the Commander in Chief, U.S. Central Command forces have started conducting additional strikes against Iran to further degrade their ability to threaten freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The United States is holding Iran accountable for recent unjustified aggression against commercial shipping and civilian crews freely navigating a vital international waterway," CENTCOM had noted in a post on X.

TRUMP SAYS IRAN CEASEFIRE DEAL IS 'OVER' AFTER NEW ROUND OF STRIKES

The U.S. military later provided more information about the attacks.

"U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces completed an additional round of strikes against Iran, July 8, to further degrade Iran's ability to attack commercial shipping and innocent civilian mariners in the Strait of Hormuz," CENTCOM noted on Wednesday night.

"U.S. forces struck approximately 90 Iranian military targets including air defense systems, coastal surveillance assets, missile and drone storage sites, naval capabilities, and military logistics infrastructure along Iran’s coastline. The latest strikes follow successful execution of offensive strikes in Iran the night before," the announcement noted. "CENTCOM forces hit approximately 80 Iranian military targets July 7, including more than 60 Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps small boats, to impose heavy costs for Iran violating the ceasefire by attacking three commercial vessels navigating the Strait of Hormuz."

TRUMP DEMANDS END TO TRADE WITH KEY US ALLY, CALLS IT A 'WASTED CAUSE'

President Donald Trump indicated on Wednesday that, as far as he was concerned, the U.S.-Iran Memorandum of Understanding ceasefire was "over."

Kuwait and Bahrain have both reported coming under attack.

The Kuwait Army noted in a Thursday post on X, which was written in Arabic, "The Official Spokesman for the Ministry of Defense, Major General Saud Abdulaziz Al-Otaibi, stated that the armed forces detected, at dawn today, (3) ballistic missiles, (1) cruise missile, and (10) hostile drones within Kuwaiti airspace, which were successfully intercepted and dealt with."

TRUMP SAYS 'IRAN LIES AND CHEATS' AS IRGC EMERGES AS DOMINANT FORCE IN NEGOTIATIONS WITH US

The Bahrain Defense Force noted in a post that was in Arabic, "The General Command clarifies that, with firm resolve and high combat readiness, the Bahrain Defense Force's air defense systems confronted, intercepted, and destroyed several treacherous Iranian aerial attacks this morning, Thursday, July 9, 2026 CE."

Ukraine launched one of its broadest recent drone offensives against Russia’s maritime and energy networks this week, claiming strikes on 21 vessels in three days as attacks on major refineries deep inside Russia intensified pressure on Moscow’s fuel supplies.

The wave of attacks offered a striking display of Ukraine’s growing long-range capabilities.

On Wednesday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met President Donald Trump at the NATO summit in Ankara, where Trump said the United States would allow Ukraine to manufacture Patriot air-defense interceptors and the two leaders discussed a potential drone agreement.

TRUMP SAYS US WILL LET UKRAINE MAKE PATRIOT MISSILES IN MAJOR POLICY SHIFT

Zelenskyy made air defense his top priority during the bilateral meeting and said the two governments had also begun working on a separate drone agreement.

"Air defense is the priority," Zelenskyy said. He described the emerging drone deal as "a very good beginning" and said he hoped to discuss additional details with Trump.

The timing allowed Zelenskyy to arrive at the summit with evidence that Ukraine’s domestic drone industry can threaten Russian assets far beyond the conventional battlefield.

UKRAINE’S BATTLEFIELD IS TRANSFORMING THE FUTURE OF NATO

Trump praised Zelenskyy as "very effective" and credited Ukrainian forces with successfully operating American weapons against Russia’s much larger military.

"He’s had the best equipment because he had our equipment," Trump said. "But somebody has to use that equipment. And you have a lot of brave people that are using that equipment."

Ukraine is increasingly forcing Russia to defend refineries, airfields, shipping routes and other infrastructure far beyond the front. Kyiv has not achieved a comparable breakthrough in the grinding ground campaign, and Russia continues to bombard Ukrainian cities. But repeated long-range strikes have begun disrupting fuel production and maritime logistics while imposing costs on parts of Russia that were once largely insulated from the fighting.

WATCH: FIGHTS BREAK OUT AT RUSSIAN GAS STATIONS AS PUTIN ADMITS FUEL SHORTAGES

On Tuesday, Ukraine’s Unmanned Systems Forces said nine Russian-linked vessels were struck in the Sea of Azov on Wednesday, bringing the number targeted over 72 hours to 21.

Commander Robert "Magyar" Brovdi said the targets included 19 oil tankers, a cargo ship and a ferry operating near Russian-occupied Crimea, according to East2West news agency. He described the campaign against the fleet as reaching an "industrial scale."

Ukrainian and Russian officials confirmed that the overnight offensive targeted tankers, refineries, pipeline facilities and a military airfield across several Russian regions.

Ukraine says many of the vessels were part of Russia’s so-called shadow fleet and were being used to transport fuel to Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula Moscow seized and illegally annexed in 2014.

The maritime strikes were accompanied by attacks on the Saratov refinery and energy facilities in the Russian regions of Tatarstan and Bashkortostan. Russian authorities said one person was killed in Saratov.

Ukraine also said it struck the Borisoglebsk military airfield in Russia’s Voronezh region. The base has been used by Russian combat aircraft involved in attacks against Ukraine, according to Kyiv.

The latest wave followed a Ukrainian strike Monday on the Omsk refinery in Siberia, approximately 1,700 miles from Ukrainian-controlled territory. The facility is Russia’s largest oil refinery and processed about 460,000 barrels of crude per day last year, according to Reuters.

UKRAINE LAUNCHES WHAT APPEARS TO BE ONE OF ITS LARGEST DRONE ATTACKS AGAINST RUSSIA: REPORT

Two industry sources subsequently told Reuters that the Omsk facility had halted oil processing following the attack.

The disruption comes as parts of Russia face gasoline and diesel shortages attributed in part to repeated Ukrainian attacks on refineries and fuel depots.

Long lines have formed at filling stations in several cities, while some regions have introduced purchasing restrictions. Russia announced Wednesday that it was temporarily banning diesel exports through July 31 to protect domestic supplies.

The shortages have become one of the most visible ways the war is reaching ordinary Russians.

Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of the Kremlin-funded RT network, acknowledged the hardships during an appearance on Russian state television and urged Russians not to respond by challenging the country’s leadership.

"There is no petrol," Simonyan said in a translated clip distributed by regional media.

Recalling food rationing after the collapse of the Soviet Union, she said: "We endured it. And we will endure it now."

Simonyan argued that Russia’s enemies wanted the population to react as it had during the 1917 revolution and "run off to overthrow" the czar.

"Yes, it is hard, yes, very hard," she said, urging Russians to remain calm.

The pressure on Russia’s energy infrastructure formed the backdrop to Zelenskyy’s Wednesday meeting with Trump at the Beştepe Presidential Compound.

Russia continued its bombardment of Ukraine during the summit, striking Kyiv and other cities with missiles and drones. Kyiv Mayor Vitali Klitschko said storage facilities were burning in the capital’s Desnyanskyi district and reported another fire in the Sviatoshynskyi district.

As Iran, Russia’s war with Ukraine and NATO’s defense spending dominate the organization's summit in Ankara — one issue that has escaped the media glare is the increasingly antisemitic rhetoric coming from Turkish leaders.

As relations between Turkey and Israel continue to hit new lows, a war of words between the two nations has erupted.

In a July 2 interview with CNN Türk, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said that Israel has "become a burden that humanity can no longer bear," The Jerusalem Post reported. Fidan also said that Israel is representative of "humanity’s common problems," and asked other countries to apply pressure to the Jewish State, according to Israel National News.

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In a press statement, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar called Fidan’s words "a clear call for genocide. The Jewish people know very well what happens when such words are allowed to go unchallenged. The first step on the road to genocide is dehumanization.

"This is a sentence that sounds very familiar to sentences from about 100 years ago," Sa’ar added. "To speak about a people as a ‘problem for humanity.’ What do you do with a ‘burden that you can no longer bear?’" he asked.

Sinan Ciddi, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and director of FDD’s Turkey program, told Fox News Digital that Fidan’s statement was "some of the vilest rhetoric to come out of any statesman since the Holocaust."

SIGN UP FOR ANTISEMITISM EXPOSED NEWSLETTER

Ciddi said that escalated anti-Israel rhetoric in Turkey "goes all the way back to 2008" when President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan "began the process of ripping apart the bilateral relationship between Israel and Turkey. But after Oct. 7, it just went into overdrive," he said. "I have never heard any Arab leader utter the words that Foreign Minister Fidan has said."

Yet Erdogan has condemned antisemitism; the Turkish Minute reported that he told Turkish religious minority representatives at an Ankara dinner in March that "just as Islamophobia is a crime against humanity, antisemitism is also a crime, an evil that cannot be considered reasonable or legitimate."

Yet despite his recent condemnation, he and other ministers have continued with their rhetoric against the Jewish state.

In June, Turkish Interior Minister Mustafa Ҁiftҁi said that the world would "witness the liberation of Jerusalem," according to the Times of Israel.

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In May 2021, the Times of Israel reported that Erdoğan called Israelis "murderers," claiming they were 'only satisfied by sucking their [victims’] blood." At the time, the State Department spokesperson issued a strong condemnation of Erdoğan’s "anti-Semitic comments regarding the Jewish people," calling them "reprehensible."

In May 2025, Erdoğan invoked similar language, accusing Israel of being "a terror state that feeds on the blood, lives and tears of the innocent," Israel National News reported.

Anti-Israel sentiment in Turkey has infiltrated far beyond leadership. A Pew Research poll from June found that Turkey had the highest level of anti-Israel sentiment of any polled country, with 91 percent of the population holding "very unfavorable" views on Israel, 6% holding an "unfavorable" view, and just 1% expressing any favor of Israel.

In response to questions about whether the State Department plans to respond to antisemitic statements from Turkish leadership, a spokesperson told Fox News Digital that "Türkiye is a longstanding and valued NATO Ally and we continue to engage on all aspects of our important and multi-faceted relationship."

Ciddi said there are "numerous channels" for the State Department and Trump administration to reprimand Turkey for its unchecked hatred. "The president could obviously pull aside a Turkish counterpart and demand an apology," he explained, while the State Department could address the comments or place Turkey on a watchlist.

As the two-day NATO summit winds down in Ankara, Ciddi said that Turkey "is going to try and overshadow anything else" and "promote itself as the sort of premiere NATO ally, so we need to watch out for Turkey’s whitewashing of its human rights record." Ciddi warned that "We cannot safeguard our allies’ democratic norms, rights and practices if we don’t hold member states like Turkey accountable for the threats that it presents."

The Turkish Embassy in Washington, D.C. did not respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.

As President Donald Trump voiced growing frustration Wednesday with Iranian negotiators, accusing them of lying and cheating, the latest escalation has exposed an even more fundamental problem for Washington: whether the officials at the negotiating table have the power to deliver an agreement — or whether anyone in Tehran does.

"I don’t know if we’re going to have a deal. We may just do it without a deal," Trump said at the NATO summit in Ankara. "These people, they lie and they cheat."

But Trump’s frustration with Iran’s negotiators is only part of the problem. Since the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, it has become increasingly unclear who in Tehran has the authority to make — and enforce — an agreement.

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Mojtaba Khamenei succeeded his father as supreme leader after the elder Khamenei was killed in the opening U.S.-Israeli attacks on Feb. 28. But Mojtaba has not appeared publicly since the attack, and U.S. assessments cited by Reuters have described authority as dispersed among senior Revolutionary Guard commanders and powerful civilian officials.

Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, a former IRGC commander who led Iran’s negotiating delegation, has emerged as one of the country’s most powerful surviving political figures.

Banafsheh Zand, an Iranian-American journalist and editor of the Iran So Far Away Substack, said power inside the Islamic Republic has fractured since the death of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, leaving the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as the country’s dominant force.

"The person who is negotiating with the U.S. is not necessarily someone who is endorsed by the others," Zand told Fox News Digital.

She described Ghalibaf as one power center competing with figures including IRGC commander-in-chief Ahmad Vahidi, Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani and former Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Vahidi controls the IRGC’s overall military structure, while Qaani oversees its external operations and relationships with Iran-aligned armed groups across the region. Zarif, by contrast, remains closely identified with the more accommodationist political camp that previously championed negotiations and sanctions relief.

"The hardliners, in terms of their political presence, have also been pushed aside," Zand said. "So really, it’s the IRGC. And within the IRGC, whoever signs the deal is not necessarily signing on behalf of everybody else. They’re signing on behalf of themselves."

Her assessment reflects a central problem facing Washington: Iran’s negotiators, political institutions and military commanders may not share the same interpretation of what was agreed — or the same willingness to implement it.

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Yet Trump’s declaration does not necessarily mean diplomacy has been permanently abandoned.

Behnam Ben Taleblu, senior director of the Iran program at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital that the clearest evidence would be the restoration of the U.S. blockade, the introduction of additional military forces or a new round of major economic sanctions.

Otherwise, he said, Trump may continue operating in the "gray zone" between negotiations and open war while keeping his options available.

The more difficult question is why Tehran would jeopardize sanctions relief and risk overwhelming American firepower when its military has already been severely degraded.

Ben Taleblu said Iran’s leaders appear to believe escalation is essential to the survival of the Islamic Republic.

"This is a regime that is weaker, but lethal, and less capable, but more confident," he said. Iran’s leadership believes its adversaries have vulnerable economic and military interests throughout the Gulf, he added, while the regime itself is more willing to accept destruction.

"Their survival and their military success and their political success runs through more, not less, escalation," he said.

Lisa Daftari, foreign policy analyst and the editor-in-chief of The Foreign Desk, agrees the escalation is deliberate, aimed at turning regional instability into leverage.

"By targeting commercial shipping and Arab states, the regime is signaling that it can hold global energy flows and America’s regional partners hostage to extract leverage, distract from its domestic crisis, and test U.S. red lines," Daftari told Fox News Digital.

She said Tehran is betting that Washington and its Arab partners will be unwilling to sustain another war and will ultimately back down first.

"The regime’s core weapon is time," Daftari said. "By escalating in the Persian Gulf and attacking ships and Arab states, they are creating rolling crises that raise the cost of confronting them while they consolidate power at home."

Daftari argued that the strategy reflects the Islamic Republic’s longstanding character rather than a temporary response to pressure.

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"This regime was never designed to be reformed or softened," she said. "What they are showing us now is exactly who they intend to remain: a hardline, revolutionary regime determined to stay in power."

But determining how that strategy is translated into action is more complicated. Authority in Tehran appears divided, raising questions about who is directing the escalation and whether the officials negotiating with Washington can commit the broader security establishment.

That division is already visible in the dispute over the Strait of Hormuz.

A Middle Eastern source familiar with the issue told Fox News Digital that Tehran and Washington are operating from fundamentally different readings of Clause five of the memorandum. The publicly released text says Iran will use its "best efforts" to arrange safe commercial passage through the strait without charge for 60 days, while removing military and technical obstacles and conducting demining operations. It does not expressly state that foreign vessels must obtain Iran’s approval or use routes designated by Tehran.

According to the source, Iran interprets that language as giving it responsibility — and therefore authority — to coordinate shipping and determine the routes vessels use during the interim period. Washington’s interpretation is that Iran agreed to lift its maritime blockade and fully reopen the international waterway.

When the two sides have different interpretations of a single page, how do they intend to write a treaty, the source said.

Iran views control over passage through the Strait of Hormuz as one of its last major sources of leverage over the United States, Gulf governments and the global economy, the source said, "That is the heart of the matter."

Taken together, the experts’ assessments suggest Tehran is unlikely to face a simple choice between surrendering to Trump’s pressure and returning to negotiations. Ben Taleblu said the regime believes its survival depends on "more, not less, escalation," while Daftari said it is deliberately "playing out the clock" by creating repeated regional crises. That raises the prospect that, even if Iranian officials return to the table, the IRGC could continue targeting commercial shipping, U.S. interests and American allies to preserve its leverage and strengthen its position inside Iran.

The United Nations defended its appeal for countries to keep funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) after the United States argued that donors should stop supporting an agency it claims has been infiltrated by Hamas and instead direct its money toward the Security Council-backed Board of Peace. 

Speaking at UNRWA’s annual pledging conference in early July, U.S. Ambassador Jeff Bartos accused member states of repeating a failed approach and said the agency had become a "subsidiary of Hamas."

"Doing the same thing over and over, expecting a different result is the definition of insanity," Bartos said. "And yet, here we are again, another annual pledging conference for UNRWA. Same speeches … same condemnation of Israel, same failures to condemn Hamas."

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Bartos urged governments to stop funding UNRWA schools in Gaza, which he accused of indoctrinating children in hatred of Jews and glorifying terrorism. He also cited allegations that UNRWA employees participated in the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023, attack against Israel.

"You can choose to fund incitement, terrorism and stagnation, or you can choose to fund the Board of Peace, giving Gazans a path to peace, prosperity and real, durable change," Bartos said.

The Board of Peace is a U.S.-led body created under President Donald Trump’s Gaza plan to oversee transitional governance, reconstruction and long-term development alongside a Palestinian technocratic administration. The administration argues it offers a better alternative to UNRWA by shifting aid away from what it says is a Hamas-infiltrated system and toward accountable governance and economic recovery.

Asked by Fox News Digital why U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres was asking countries to put additional money into UNRWA rather than support the Board of Peace, U.N. spokesman Stéphane Dujarric defended the agency’s record and mandate.

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Dujarric said Wednesday that UNRWA officials, including former Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini and acting chief Christian Saunders, had taken "strong action" when presented with facts concerning possible infiltration by people aligned with terrorist organizations.

"UNRWA doesn’t operate through a sort of immaculate conception," Dujarric said in a press briefing. "It is there because there is a mandate given to it by the General Assembly, and we continue to fulfill that mandate. It has a very important role to play on the humanitarian front."

Dujarric added that the Security Council resolution supporting the Board of Peace also calls on the United Nations to deliver humanitarian assistance and lead humanitarian activities in Gaza.

"UNRWA is part of that system," he said.

The U.S. position contrasted sharply with those of several European governments.

At the same pledging event, the United Kingdom announced £23 million in support for UNRWA. 

British Ambassador James Kariuki called the agency "indispensable" to providing essential services to Palestinian refugees across Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.

France also reiterated what its representative described as "full support" for the agency, saying UNRWA continues to provide indispensable assistance despite growing obstacles. France said it had provided €123 million to UNRWA since 2023 and would announce its 2026 contribution soon.

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The French representative said allegations against UNRWA had been taken seriously and argued that the agency was implementing recommendations from the Colonna review intended to strengthen neutrality and transparency. France also supported an eventual, gradual transfer of UNRWA’s responsibilities to reform and strengthen Palestinian institutions as part of a broader political settlement.

The funding dispute comes as UN Watch is demanding that Guterres waive any immunity enjoyed by Lazzarini, whose term has ended, so national authorities can investigate allegations that he ignored repeated warnings about Hamas infiltration.

In a June 30 letter, the Geneva-based watchdog claimed that it had provided Lazzarini and his administration with evidence involving teachers, school principals, union leaders and other employees who allegedly supported or were affiliated with Hamas and other terrorist groups. It argued that the claims create grounds for an independent criminal investigation.

Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, told Fox News Digital that his organization told Lazzarini "that there are supporters of terrorism — in some cases, actual members of Hamas — working as teachers, working as school principals," Neuer said, "Not one bad apple, not a few rotten apples, but the problem of support for terrorism … was systematic."

Neuer said waiving Lazzarini’s immunity would not amount to a finding of guilt but would allow prosecutors to test the evidence.

"The investigation may prove there’s no evidence, and it’s over," Neuer said. "But at least you should waive immunity to allow an investigation. The U.N. said that if anyone was found involved, ‘we will cooperate.’ Now is the test."

Asked whether Guterres would consider waiving Lazzarini’s immunity, Dujarric did not answer directly.

"As far as I know, UN Watch is not a judicial authority," he said. "We have always, as a matter of principle, cooperated with investigations by national authorities."

UN Watch’s letter argues that immunity exists to protect the interests of the United Nations rather than provide a personal benefit to an official, and that it should be waived where it would obstruct justice without harming the organization.

Fox News Digital contacted UNRWA for comment but did not receive a response.

Cuba’s foreign minister accused the United States of committing an "act of war" by restricting fuel shipments to the island Tuesday, prompting U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz to deliver a forceful response blaming Cuba’s communist government for years of blackouts, repression and economic collapse.

The confrontation unfolded at the U.N. General Assembly one day after Cuba’s national electrical grid collapsed, leaving nearly 10 million people without power. It was the third nationwide grid failure this year and the eighth since October 2025, Reuters reported.

Cuban officials had restored electricity to parts of central Cuba and roughly one-third of Havana by Tuesday morning, although large areas remained offline or faced unstable service, according to Reuters.

CUBA PLUNGES INTO THIRD MAJOR BLACKOUT THIS YEAR AS POWER CRISIS WORSENS

Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez told delegates that the Trump administration was carrying out a "multidimensional, non-conventional war" against Cuba that had grown "more cruel and ruthless in the last seven months."

Rodríguez described U.S. efforts to restrict fuel deliveries as the imposition of "an energy collapse, equivalent to a naval blockade, which is an act of war," according to a UNTV transcript.

Waltz rejected the claim that the United States had established a naval blockade around Cuba.

"There is no ring of Navy warships, U.S. Navy warships sitting around this island blocking trade or humanitarian aid going into Cuba," Waltz said. "It’s fake. It’s false. It’s a lie. Period."

Waltz argued that the real embargo was the one Cuba’s government imposed on its own citizens.

HAVANA REGIME IN SUSPENSE AFTER CASTRO INDICTMENT WITH TRUMP PRESSURE ON, SAYS CUBAN-BORN GOP REP.

"There’s a lot of talk today of an embargo. And indeed there is one," he said. "It’s the embargo the Cuban regime mercilessly imposes on its own people decade after decade after decade."

He called on Havana to "change your ways" and "turn the lights back on for your people," while accusing Cuba’s leaders of ensuring that government compounds and propaganda operations had power even as families worried about spoiled food, hospitals losing electricity and phones running out of charge.

Waltz noted that Tuesday’s meeting came days before the fifth anniversary of the July 11, 2021, demonstrations, when thousands of Cubans took to the streets amid shortages of food, medicine and electricity and demanded greater freedom.

As Waltz spoke, a member of the Cuban delegation pounded on the table, prompting the ambassador to respond.

"This is not Havana. This is the United States of America. This is the United Nations," Waltz said. "And we will speak, we will be heard, and we will not be silenced like your own people. So, pound away."

Waltz displayed photographs and read the names of several jailed Cuban artists, musicians and activists, including Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara, Maykel Castillo Pérez and Duannis Dabel León Taboada.

MILLIONS LOSE POWER ACROSS CUBA AS TRUMP SANCTIONS CONTINUE TO FUEL ONGOING ENERGY CRISIS

"They’re not armed. They’re not violent," Waltz said. "They carry flowers, and write poems and write music. And for that, the regime beats them, detains them and tries to break them."

Waltz also said GAESA, Cuba’s military-run conglomerate, controls approximately half of the country’s economy and holds $18 billion in assets.

Reuters has reported that estimates of GAESA’s economic reach range from approximately 40% to 70%, while Cuban officials dispute the U.S. government’s $18 billion figure.

Waltz said that despite Cuba’s blockade claims, humanitarian assistance had recently arrived from countries including China, Russia, Mexico, Canada and Spain, as well as from the European Union and the United Nations.

He also said the United States had provided more than $100 million in aid this year and approximately $500 million annually in commodities.

"The answer is simple: because blaming the United States is the only economic plan Havana has left," Waltz said of Cuba’s decision to bring the issue before the General Assembly.

CUBA SAYS CIA CHIEF RATCLIFFE MET WITH OFFICIALS IN HAVANA AMID US TENSIONS

Before the wider debate, U.S. Representative for U.N. Management and Reform Jeffrey Bartos objected to reopening the agenda item and called for a vote on whether the proceedings should go forward.

Bartos said the three-hour meeting would cost approximately $84,000, money he argued could instead provide food, emergency medical supplies and solar lanterns to Cuban families.

"Right now, Cuba is in darkness — again," Bartos said. "I urge the Cuban regime: turn the lights back on for your people."

Members of the Cuban delegation also interrupted Bartos several times by pounding on the table. Bartos at one point paused and responded, "Keep banging away. It’s very effective," before continuing his remarks.

Bartos accused Havana of seeking "another propaganda clip" rather than solutions and pointed to what he said were more than 800 political prisoners held by the government.

Independent organizations have produced varying estimates. Human Rights Watch said in April that more than 700 people remained imprisoned for political reasons, while Prisoners Defenders reported more than 1,200 political prisoners in Cuba in the spring of 2026. Cuba denies holding anyone for political reasons.

"That is the real Cuban embargo," Bartos said. "It is the embargo the regime imposes on its own people: on speech, on faith, on enterprise, on dissent, on political rights and hope — and now, quite literally, on light."

Rodríguez accused the U.S. delegation of offering "worn-out lies" and attempting to prevent the General Assembly from debating the effects of American policy.

Cuba’s electricity crisis has been driven by severe fuel shortages and an aging, poorly maintained power system that has struggled to meet demand. The Cuban government primarily blames U.S. restrictions, while Washington attributes the island’s broader economic crisis to communist economic policies, corruption and repression.

Reuters contributed to this report.

A French appeals court upheld the embezzlement conviction for conservative former presidential candidate Marine Le Pen on Tuesday, but shortened a ban on her running for elected office, clearing her path to run for president in 2027, albeit mandating she wear an ankle monitor for a year.

France's Paris Criminal Court originally found Le Pen guilty of embezzlement in 2025, accusing her and other members of her conservative National Rally party of using millions of dollars in EU funds to pay aides for domestic French political work. Le Pen denies any wrongdoing.

Le Pen was originally sentenced to five years in prison, with two years suspended and three years on house arrest. In the French system, the two suspended years would serve as a warning, while Le Pen would be expected to serve the three years on house arrest. Her sentence also carried a five-year ban from running for political office, barring her from running in France's 2027 presidential election.

However, an appeals court ruled Tuesday that Le Pen's sentence would be reduced to three years, with two suspended and the remaining year to be served as house arrest, according to a court statement obtained by Fox News Digital.

MUSK SLAMS LE PEN RULING, SAYS IT WILL 'BACKFIRE' LIKE TRUMP'S AS SOME ON GLOBAL RIGHT FACE LEGAL TROUBLES

The ruling also shortened her ban from running for office to 45 months, 30 of which are considered to be suspended. Given that the court considered her suspension active starting from initial sentencing in March 2025, the ruling means Le Pen is eligible to run for office effective immediately.

However, if she were to decide on a presidential run, she would have to do so while serving the house arrest sentence, a prospect she has already cast doubt on.

"If I'm allowed to be a candidate but am effectively prevented from campaigning freely, then you understand that wouldn't be possible," she told French media Wednesday.

Le Pen, along with 11 other associates, were found guilty of a litany of crimes related to the misuse of public funds. Le Pen herself was found guilty on charges of misappropriating public funds and complicity in the misappropriation of public funds.

"The court found that an organization had been set up to allow the European Parliament to cover the remuneration of parliamentary assistants for National Front (which became Rassemblement National) MEPs, whereas their activities had no connection with the mandate of their MEP and they were actually working for the national political party," a press release from the Paris Court of Appeals read.

The release claimed the defendants misappropriated €2.8 million, which the court ordered them to pay back in restitution.

Le Pen, for her part, admitted that some staff paid as EU staffers were relegated to domestic French work, but she claimed it was simply a mistake and not, as alleged, part of a scheme to divert E.U. funds to her National Rally party.

6 POPULIST LEADERS FACING LAWFARE AROUND WORLD

Le Pen, according to The Associated Press, immediately went from the courthouse to National Rally headquarters to strategize the party's future plans. She is expected to address the country in a news conference or interview Tuesday night.

Her legal team at the courthouse said, "We ⁠are considering the decision as a whole. We will issue a further statement. We are partially satisfied," according to Reuters.

Fox News Digital contacted representatives for National Rally and the Paris appeals court for further comment.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Hamas announced Monday that it was dissolving the emergency committee overseeing Gaza's civilian government, a move that could clear the way for a new U.S.-backed administration to take over civilian affairs.

The proposed body, known as the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), is a U.S.-backed committee intended to oversee civilian affairs in Gaza after the war. 

Hamas, which the U.S. designates as a foreign terrorist organization, has ruled Gaza since seizing control of the territory in 2007. The group led the Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that triggered the war, and Israel has insisted Hamas can have no governing or military role in post-war Gaza.

The announcement could therefore become a key test of President Donald Trump’s Gaza framework and broader regional diplomacy. A genuine transfer of power could help advance the establishment of a post-war administration. But Israel and Hamas’ critics say the group is offering to relinquish the burdens of civilian government while retaining its weapons, security apparatus and real influence on the ground.

HILLARY CLINTON BREAKS WITH DEMOCRATIC CRITICS BY BACKING TRUMP’S GAZA PLAN AS THE 'ONLY GAME IN TOWN'

The Trump-led Board of Peace responded cautiously, saying its assessment would be "guided by actions, not promises." The technocratic committee, which is currently based outside Gaza, has said it is prepared to begin operating once conditions allow.

But the announcement did not include a commitment by Hamas to disarm, the central demand from Israel and a core element of Trump’s post-war framework.

Alaa Abo Naddi, a Gazan teacher and political activist, said that the committee Hamas is dissolving was never the source of its real authority.

"I believe this is simply an attempt by Hamas to buy time," Abo Naddi said. "The real question has always been whether Hamas is willing to give up its weapons and dismantle the armed groups and militias under its control." AJS: I'd move this up to maybe fourth graph. 

He said Gaza’s civilian officials have long operated without independent authority and remain subordinate to Hamas’ security apparatus.

"In reality, even a low-ranking Hamas security officer can overrule them or have them arrested," he said. "As long as Hamas retains its arms, this looks like an attempt to preserve its control and gain more time."

NETANYAHU REJECTS REPORTS OF A RIFT WITH PRESIDENT TRUMP, SAYS THE TWO REMAIN ALIGNED ON IRAN

Hadeel Oueis, editor-in-chief of the pan-Arab media outlet Jusoor News, similarly described the announcement as a "performative step" likely encouraged by one of Hamas’ regional backers.

Oueis said the move appeared intended to send Trump a message that Hamas had fulfilled its obligations and that Israel was now responsible for blocking the next phase of his plan.

"This is just a show and doesn’t change anything on the ground in reality," Oueis told Fox News Digital. 

She noted that technical employees are expected to remain in place during the transition, arguing that Hamas would therefore remain the de facto authority unless its security and military structures were removed.

Michael Milshtein, head of the Palestinian Studies Forum at Tel Aviv University’s Moshe Dayan Center, also characterized the dissolution as largely symbolic but said its timing could signal a broader diplomatic effort.

Milshtein said Egypt, Qatar and Turkey have been working with Hamas to develop a compromise that could move the stalled post-war arrangement forward, particularly on the issue of disarmament.

Rather than demanding the immediate and complete surrender of Hamas’ weapons, he said the mediators may be pushing for a gradual and partial process that Hamas could accept.

"I assess that the step Hamas took today is part of a move coordinated with Turkey, Qatar and Egypt, intended to begin advancing the broader arrangement," Milshtein told Fox News Digital.

He said Hamas had effectively thrown the ball into Israel’s court and could now argue that it had agreed to relinquish formal government control.

HAMAS INFLUENCE LOOMS OVER GAZA ELECTIONS AS EXPERTS WARN VOTE COULD BACKFIRE

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar rejected that distinction Tuesday, accusing Hamas of trying to reproduce the model used by Hezbollah in Lebanon, where an armed organization maintains military dominance while civilian institutions handle government services.

"They don’t care if others collect the garbage, provide municipal services and administer civilian affairs, if Hamas will remain the dominant military force," Sa’ar said during a meeting with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul.

Sa’ar said Israel would continue to insist on the "disarmament of Hamas and all other terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip, and its full demilitarization."

Wadephul backed that position, saying Hamas must relinquish both its weapons and its de facto control of Gaza.

The United Nations also offered a cautiously positive response.

 U.N. spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said the organization had taken note of Hamas’ announcement concerning the dissolution of the Government Emergency Committee and the proposed transfer of administrative responsibilities to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza.

"We welcome any step that contributes to the implementation of the ceasefire agreement and advances the objectives reflected in relevant Security Council resolutions, including the full implementation of the ceasefire, the protection of civilians, and the unhindered provision of humanitarian aid," Dujarric said.

He added that the U.N. continued to support "efforts toward unified Palestinian governance under the Palestinian Authority."

Milshtein said the real test would be whether the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza is allowed to enter Gaza, operate independently and exercise genuine authority, while Hamas gives up not only its civilian role but also its security and military control.

A pair of explosions rocked the Syrian capital of Damascus near the downtown Four Seasons hotel, where French President Emmanuel Macron was staying during a state visit, Syrian state media reported Tuesday.

Eighteen people, including four police officers, were injured by improvised explosive devices (IEDs) on Tuesday, Syria's interior ministry reported through state outlet SANA.

According to the ministry, both bombs exploded after security forces had discovered them, "while preparations for the disposal operation were underway."

BRIEF ALCOHOL BAN IN DAMASCUS SPARKS CONCERNS ABOUT PRESIDENT AL-SHARAA'S VISION FOR SYRIA

The bombs were placed inside a car and a garbage can near the hotel where Macron was staying during his visit, the first Syrian state visit by the leader of a Western country since Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa took over for the now-deposed former President Bashar al-Assad in 2025.

A spokesman for Élysée Palace said Macron was not in his hotel during the explosions and didn't even hear them. He continued his visit with al-Sharaa, according to both Élysée Palace and SANA.

While not commenting on the explosions directly, Macron posted a statement on X shortly after the incident.

ISRAEL FORTIFIES BORDER WITH JORDAN AS IRAN SEEKS NEW TERROR PATH

"Nothing can smother the aspiration of Syrian women and men to live in a fully sovereign, safe, pluralistic, and united Syria. This morning I met Syria in all its diversity. I saw dignity, courage, and determination. My visit continues," he wrote.

Syria's Ministry of the Interior confirmed the explosions but stressed that they were outside the security perimeter designated for Macron.

"We confirm that the explosion site is outside the security perimeter designated for the French president’s residence. It posed no direct threat to the residence or the official visit program, which is proceeding as planned," the ministry announced through SANA.

'PARCEL BOMB' EXPLODES IN MONACO RESIDENTIAL AREA, LEAVING 2 CRITICALLY INJURED: REPORTS

Macron is the first Western leader to meet with al-Sharaa in Damascus since he became the country's president in 2025. Some have criticized Western leaders, including President Donald Trump, who hosted al-Sharaa in the White House in November, for normalizing relations with al-Sharaa given his past as a fighter for the al Qaeda terrorist group.

Tuesday's explosions in Damascus were also the second and third major blasts in Damascus in less than a week.

On Monday, France's government condemned what it called a "terrorist attack" after an explosive device killed at least nine people in a Damascus cafe on July 2.

Syrian authorities are still investigating the attack and have not publicly ascribed it to any group or individual, according to The Washington Post.

Fox News Digital contacted the Syrian Foreign Ministry and Élysée Palace for confirmation and further details.

Reform UK leader and British Member of Parliament (MP) Nigel Farage announced he was resigning from Parliament on Tuesday. 

Farage claimed he was resigning to force a by-election in his Clacton district and claimed he would run in it.

"Today I will resign as a Member of Parliament for Clacton-on-Sea, thereby forcing a by-election, which will happen, I hope in short order," he said in a press conference broadcast from the Reform UK YouTube channel.

"This will be a people vs. the establishment by-election. It's a chance to stick two fingers up to the entire establishment, to frankly tell them where to go, and that is why I will be putting my name forward to stand in this by-election," he said.

FARAGE SAYS MASS MIGRATION HAS CHANGED THE UK ‘LITERALLY BEYOND RECOGNITION,’ BELIEVES PARTY CAN WIN ELECTION

Farage's resignation followed a series of scandals surrounding gifts he received from wealthy donors while out of office.

Farage denied any wrongdoing, stating: "Let me be absolutely clear. I have done nothing wrong. I have not broken the law in any way at all. I have not misused public money."

An investigation into Farage's conduct by Parliament's Commissioner for Standards is ongoing. 

In May 2024, weeks before the July election that would return him to Parliament, Farage received a $5 million gift from cryptocurrency billionaire Christopher Harborne. 

Farage and his allies have denied that the gift was improper at all, with Farage calling it "unconditional" and claiming it did not violate Standards rules as it came only during his time as a private citizen between his 2021 exit from Parliament and his 2024 return to the body. 

He also claimed that the security funding was necessary due to an elevated intensity in the nature and frequency of threats to his life.

REFORM UK PROPOSES DEPORTING 600,000 ASYLUM SEEKERS IN SWEEPING NEW IMMIGRATION CRACKDOWN

"I am going to need security for the rest of my life and I cannot even tell you how grateful I am to Christopher Harborne, because now I will never ever need to worry about whether I've got the resource."

Citing years of abuse, Farage said "over the last years it's gotten worse," citing an attack on his home and "literally, daily online calls for me to be murdered." 

Farage said he's repeatedly asked the Home Secretary for help but was ignored, leading him to incur substantial bills on security. 

He also revealed that, days after Charlie Kirk was murdered, Farage's own security funding was reduced by 70%. 

By abdicating his seat, Farage opens up a by-election, a Parliamentary snap-election resulting in a direct referendum for the seat. 

By-elections for vacated MP seats typically happen within three to four weeks of Parliament issuing a writ of certification, likely placing the snap-election for some time in early August.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

An island-wide blackout plunged Cuba into darkness Monday as the country’s deepening energy crisis continues to strain its fragile power system. 

The outage affected roughly 10 million people before limited electricity service was restored in some areas. 

"A total disconnection of the National Electric Power System is occurring," Cuba’s state-run Electric Union said Monday morning. "The causes are being investigated."

Cuba has faced increasingly frequent power outages in recent years as the country struggles with chronic fuel shortages and deteriorating electrical grids. The crisis worsened when President Donald Trump imposed additional sanctions in January and threatened tariffs on countries that provide oil to the island. 

MILLIONS LOSE POWER ACROSS CUBA AS TRUMP SANCTIONS CONTINUE TO FUEL ONGOING ENERGY CRISIS

During Monday’s blackout, public transportation was largely halted, and officials said tens of thousands of surgeries were canceled nationwide, according to The Associated Press (AP).

Authorities later said one generating unit had resumed operations roughly two hours after the collapse. 

"Microsystems are already operational throughout the country, to ensure protection for vital services," the Electric Union said. 

RUSSIAN ‘DARK FLEET’ TANKER BELIEVED TO BE DELIVERING OIL TO CUBA, DETECTED OFF US COAST AMID TRUMP BAN

The energy minister said officials were working to restore power while accusing the U.S. of contributing to Cuba’s energy struggles. 

"Vital services continue to be protected, amidst this complex situation exacerbated by the energy blockade we face," Vicente de la O Levy said.

Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel also blamed U.S. policies, describing the energy blockade as a "genocidal" measure imposed by Washington. 

"While the U.S. tries to induce a social explosion through asphyxiation by blocking fuel access to #Cuba, the UNE mobilizes to reverse the SEN outage," Díaz-Canel said, referring to Cuba’s National Electric Power System. 

"What the electrical workers are doing in the midst of a genocidal energy blockade is heroic."

Cuba’s energy crisis intensified earlier this year after a U.S. military operation captured Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and halted Venezuelan oil exports, cutting off a key source of fuel for the island. 

While Cuba produces only about 40% of the fuel it needs, a Russian tanker delivered roughly 730,000 barrels of oil to the country in March, supplies that were depleted by the end of April, according to The AP.

To conserve fuel, the Cuban government has imposed scheduled power outages that have lasted more than 24 consecutive hours in some areas, the outlet said. 

A blackout in early March affected Cuba’s western provinces, while a separate outage in mid-March plunged the entire island into darkness.