July 4: Iran says it will ‘definitely’ charge Hormuz fees, friendly nations may get ‘special treatment’
US-Iran negotiations reportedly set to resume July 11, will include nuclear talks * Satellite images show new Iranian activity around tunnel complex near Natanz, in apparent MOU violation
The Times of Israel liveblogged Saturday’s events as they unfolded.
Iran envoy says friendly nations to get ‘special’ Hormuz fee treatment
Iran’s ambassador to China insists that new fees will be charged to ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz — an idea rejected by Washington — while assuring that “friendly” nations would receive special treatment.
The initial deal struck between Iran and the United States to end their war stipulated that commercial ships would transit the strait free of charge for 60 days, but it remains unclear what will be in place after that period.
Iranian Ambassador Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli tells the World Peace Forum in Beijing that his country is working in “collaboration and cooperation” with Oman on “new arrangements” for the vital waterway.
“As a country where the Hormuz is part of its territorial waters, we will definitely charge service fees,” Azli says in translated remarks, while insisting such fees would not be a “toll.”
“These new arrangements will be concerning guaranteeing the security of passage through the Straits of Hormuz, supervision of the passage of the vessels… and also guaranteeing and dealing with the environmental consequences of the massive number of ships,” he says.
“We will definitely consider special treatment for the countries that were friendly to us and specially stood by us during the hard times,” he adds.
The United States has said any final deal will bar Iran from charging any sort of fee for passage in the waterway, casting the difference between service fees and tolls as mere semantics.
The strait normally carries one-fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas, but it was all but closed by Iran during its war with the US and Israel, sending energy prices soaring.
Iran lifted its blockade of the Hormuz after it struck an initial deal with the US to end the war, and negotiations on a permanent settlement of the conflict are ongoing.
Satellite images show Iran reconstructing Pickaxe Mountain tunnel complex, in apparent MOU violation
Recent satellite imagery shows no signs that Iran has begun repairing key damage at its main nuclear facilities following US and Israeli strikes, though construction appears to be taking place at the Pickaxe Mountain tunnel complex adjacent to the Natanz Nuclear Facility, the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security says.
According to the think tank, the underground enrichment halls at Natanz remain inaccessible, with damaged entrances, destroyed power systems and displaced HVAC chillers still unrepaired. It also reports no recent observable activity at the Fordo uranium enrichment plant or Isfahan nuclear complex, where tunnel entrances remain blocked with earth.
The institute says, however, that fresh satellite imagery from late June shows vehicle activity and ongoing construction at the nearby Pickaxe Mountain facility, where workers appear to be reinforcing tunnel entrances.
The group argues that such work violates the US-Iran memorandum of understanding, which requires Tehran to maintain the status quo of its nuclear program during negotiations, including by refraining from construction at nuclear-related sites such as Pickaxe Mountain.
Recent satellite imagery from late June 2026, of the Natanz Nuclear Complex and the nearby Pickaxe Mountain facility, Fordow, and Esfahan, were provided to the Institute by @vantortech.
At Natanz, little activity can be seen. The access points to the below ground enrichment… pic.twitter.com/on6isIGhNA
— Inst for Science (@TheGoodISIS) July 2, 2026
Report: Shin Bet to receive funds to tackle Arab crime through weapons smuggling crackdown
The government is set to divert funds from the five-year development program for Arab society established under the Bennett-Lapid government to the Shin Bet to help tackle the causes behind the rampant crime in the Arab community, according to a Ynet report, following similar reports by Channel 12 and 13.
This would mark the first time the Shin Bet is tasked with tackling the issue, but it will focus on finding illegal weapons in the Arab community and combatting smuggling, since the agency is prohibited by law from actively dealing with crime in that sector.
There is some NIS 1.3 billion ($433.5 million) left from the five-year development plan, which Cabinet Secretary Yossi Fuchs has reportedly said will be redirected to the Shin Bet.
Former hostage Alon Ohel performs aboard USS Nimitz for US Independence Day
Freed Hamas hostage Alon Ohel performs aboard the USS Nimitz as part of US Independence Day celebrations, the Kan public broadcaster reports.
Ohel, a young Israeli-German pianist, can be seen playing the piano alongside American singer-songwriter John Ondrasik, known by his stage name Five for Fighting, in footage circulating online. The pair perform Ondrasik’s post-9/11 hit “Superman.”
Ondrasik revamped the song in April 2025 in Ohel’s honor, while he was still in Hamas captivity.
I’m so proud of Alon . So much courage. So much strength and talent. Hero ????
Big thanks to @johnondrasik ????
Footage: PR https://t.co/Y6SVH2sVIr pic.twitter.com/8UVic8cdEG— Iris (@streetwize) July 4, 2026
Ultra-Orthodox protesters target Jerusalem cafe for opening on Shabbat
Ultra-Orthodox protesters harass customers at a newly opened Jerusalem cafe for operating on Shabbat, footage circulating online shows.
Dozens of Haredi demonstrators gathered outside Cafe Basimta on four separate occasions throughout the day, according to Haaretz. The cafe’s owner, Yoel Ben David, tells the news outlet that some protesters overturned tables.
Secular customers and local residents reportedly arrived to drive the demonstrators away.
“I’m from Jerusalem, and I’m tired of not having enough places open on Shabbat. That’s why we decided to open,” Ben David tells Haaretz. “I feel like it will happen again next week, and we will prepare for that.”
יושב עכשיו (שבת בבוקר) בקפה הירושלמי החדש "בסמטה".
פתאום דפיקות על החלונות. בחוץ המון חרדי שבא לאיים עלינו.
רגע שאהבתי: כשהחילונים גם התחילו לצעוק בחזרה "שבעס". וזה נכון: להם יש שבת דתית, לנו יש שבת חופשית.
כשנסגור להם את הברז, הם יבינו.
בינתיים, תבואו לחזק את "בסמטה". pic.twitter.com/3Ilf8jqpFb
— Ariel David אריאל דוד (@afdirohak) July 4, 2026
Lapid: Israel should have bombed Iran’s oil, energy infrastructure during war
Leader of the Opposition MK Yair Lapid says that Israel should have bombed Iran’s oil and energy infrastructure during the recent war with the Islamic Republic, and that the government had made a mistake in refraining from such attacks.
“I would have bombed all the main energy installations, all the oil fields,” the Yesh Atid leader says during an interview on Channel 12’s “Meet the Press.”
“If you want to topple the Iranian government, you need to take out the Iranian economy, and afterwards the next [Iranian] government would need to build it again from scratch over years,” Lapid continues, adding that he expressed this opinion to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during security briefings Lapid received during the war.
Lapid said that Netanyahu merely “mumbled” in response.
Turning to politics and his union with Naftali Bennett to create the Together party, Lapid says that Bennett is more fitting for him to be prime minister at present because, he ventured, Israel needs a right-wing leader at the moment.
“Naftali Bennett is the right person at the right time,” says Lapid, but insists that this was not a dig at Together’s main rival in the opposition camp, Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party.
“I’m not saying he’s better or more fitting than Gadi Eisenkot, I’m saying he’s better and more fitting than me at this moment.”
He continues, “We need right now a leader from the right. I need someone who was prime minister, who was defense minister, who was education minister, who was economy minister, who established a government, who dismantled a government, who lost, not just who won, and he is a person of the right… I put myself, my party, and my trust behind him.”
Cousin of slain hostage to Netanyahu: ‘Would you have also said Yoni came back from Entebbe?’
Gil Dickmann, cousin of slain Hamas hostage Carmel Gat, slams Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for touting the return of 255 hostages from Gaza, dozens of whom were killed during or after their abduction.
“When you say you brought them all back, you’re abandoning them to their death again,” Dickmann tells 300-odd protesters assembled for the weekly anti-government rally at Tel Aviv’s Habima Square.
Dickmann invokes the IDF’s audacious raid, 50 years ago today, to rescue Jews and Israelis who were snatched by Palestinian hijackers to Entebbe, Uganda. Commando Yoni Netanyahu, the premier’s elder brother, was killed in the Entebbe raid.
“Fifty years ago today, your brother Yoni Netanyahu… went out to rescue the Entebbe hostages and he was killed there,” Dickmann says, addressing the premier. “Would you have also said Yoni came back from Entebbe?”
“Yoni gave his life to save hostages. Benjamin gave up the lives of hostages to save himself,” Dickmann says to applause.
The protest, organized by the Movement for Quality Government (MGQ) anti-corruption watchdog, ends with “Hatikvah,” Israel’s national anthem, sung by Dickmann.
Speaking at the protest, MQG board member Michael Partem, a US-born attorney who moved to Israel in 1990, invokes another July 4 anniversary.
He reads a Hebrew translation of the 1776 US Declaration of Independence — “We hold these truths to be self-evident” and so on — and declares: “We’re implementing the same rights… that were set by the revolutionaries of ’76.”
“We’re acting against a government that’s going in the precise opposite direction,” he continues, assailing the government’s judicial overhaul. “Instead of proceeding to complete our own constitutional predicament, it seeks, under cover of the overhaul, to scrap checks and balances.”
Reports: Settlers pepper-sprayed, ran over several Palestinians near Khan al-Ahmar
Palestinian media report that settlers arrived at a Bedouin community near Khan al-Ahmar, east of Jericho, on Friday evening.
According to footage from the scene, settlers riding an ATV deliberately ran over several residents before spraying pepper spray at others. Several people were reportedly lightly injured.
دهسَ مستوطنٌ إسرائيلي شابين فلسطينيين بسيارته، فيما قام مستوطنٌ آخر برشّ رذاذ الفلفل على مجموعة من الشبان خلال هجوم للمستوطنين على تجمع التبانة البدوي بالقرب من الخان الأحمر شرق القدس. وأسفر الاعتداء عن إصابة الشابين بكدمات وجروح متفاوتة. pic.twitter.com/CdeUjllTak
— حازم ???? (@ABO_Watan9) July 4, 2026
Separate footage published later shows police arriving at the scene. According to the reports, officers arrested several residents and detained the ATV driver.
A security official says the ATV driver and a suspect accused of spraying pepper spray remain in custody.
مستـ. وطن يرش غاز الفلفل على عدد من الأهالي خلال اعتـ. داء على تجمع التبنة البدوي قرب الخان الأحمر شرق القدس، أثناء تصدي السكان لمحاولة سرقة أغنام تعود لهم. pic.twitter.com/rCc8UHGARE
— فلسطين بوست (@PalpostN) July 3, 2026
Netanyahu hails US as ‘greatest force for liberty’ in Independence Day message
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu marks US Independence Day by praising the United States as “the greatest force for liberty the modern world has known” and hailing the US-Israel alliance as one “built not only on shared interests, it’s built on shared values.”
In an English-language video message addressing US President Donald Trump and American citizens, Netanyahu says that “freedom is never cheap. It must be continually purchased. It must be continually defended,” adding that “when America and Israel stand together, freedom stands stronger.”
Referring to the recent joint US-Israel campaign against Iran, Netanyahu says, “The tyrants we face chant, ‘Death to America, death to Israel.’ They think freedom is weak. They think democracies are weak. They’re wrong about our two democracies.”
Netanyahu also reflects on the 50th anniversary of Operation Entebbe, noting that it coincides with the 250th anniversary of US independence.
“Exactly 50 years ago, as America celebrated its bicentennial, Israel carried out one of the greatest hostage rescue missions in history,” he says, recalling that his brother, Yonatan Netanyahu, was the only Israeli soldier killed during the operation.
“This is what the brave soldiers of Israel and America have done again and again in these 50 years,” Netanyahu says. “Together, with God’s help, freedom will triumph over tyranny.”
Happy 4th of July America!
Happy 250th Independence Day! ???????? pic.twitter.com/VPHw2sSMcU— Prime Minister of Israel (@IsraeliPM) July 4, 2026
IDF kills armed Hezbollah operative after manhunt in southern Lebanon
An armed Hezbollah operative identified near Israeli forces in southern Lebanon earlier today was killed following a manhunt, the military says.
The IDF says reservists of the 551st Brigade spotted the gunman in the Majdal Zoun area, inside Israel’s buffer zone.
The troops opened fire on the operative and, following a chase, killed the operative “to remove the threat,” the military says.
לאחר מרדף: צה"ל חיסל מחבל חמוש שזוהה במרחב הביטחוני סמוך לכוחות הפועלים בדרום לבנון
כוחות חטיבה 551 בפיקוד אוגדה 91, זיהו מוקדם יותר היום מחבל חמוש בנשק במרחב הביטחוני במרחב מג'דל זון שבדרום לבנון.
מיד לאחר הזיהוי, הכוחות פתחו באש לעבר המחבל ובמרדף אחריו, ולאחר סריקות נרחבות… pic.twitter.com/sPJNFUs5wy
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) July 4, 2026
Trump says Netanyahu ‘knows who the boss is,’ will meet him as soon as next week
US President Donald Trump says he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “get along very good” and that the Israeli premier “knows who the boss is,” in a brief phone interview with Axios’s Barak Ravid.
Trump adds that Netanyahu had asked him for a meeting at the White House, and that it could take place as early as next week after the NATO summit in Turkey.
An Israeli official tells Ravid that the meeting “might take place the week after,” due to scheduling difficulties.
“During their conversation, the Prime Minister said that the United States is a guarantor of global freedom, and that Israel greatly values the close relationship between the two nations. Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Trump agreed to meet soon in the United States,” Netanyahu’s office reportedly confirms.
The upcoming meeting will be the first between the two leaders since February, when Netanyahu presented Trump with plans for their joint military operation against Iran.
Trump also tells Ravid that he is following the ongoing funeral ceremonies for late Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was killed in US-Israel strikes on February 28.
Claiming that the Iranians are “begging to make a deal,” Trump says the two sides put negotiations on pause to allow for the days-long funeral to take place, during which the American president claims neither party will attack the other.
“They are all there. One shot [and we can take them all out], but we are not going to do that because then we would have nobody to negotiate with,” Trump reportedly says.
Adding that he was surprised to see Iranians crying at the funeral, Trump muses, “Maybe it’s fake tears.”
Edelstein says he left Likud because he couldn’t defend party’s agenda, seeks ‘broad Zionist government’
Knesset Member Yuli Edelstein says he can no longer campaign for a party that continues to back ultra-Orthodox draft exemptions, arguing that doing so would betray his principles, after a short clip of an interview with Channel 12’s “Meet the Press” was released yesterday, in which he announced his departure from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party.
“If you succeed in the primaries, you then have to stand on the stage and say, ‘Vote Likud, we will…,’ and I don’t know how to finish that sentence,” Edelstein says in the full interview, published today. “What will we do? Continue to allow freeloading?” he questions, in apparent reference to the government’s failure to fulfill its obligation to draft members of the ultra-Orthodox public into the army.
Edelstein apologizes to Likud voters, saying, “There is no other way. We need to make a change in this country… the State of Israel has always come before my party.”
Looking ahead, the longtime lawmaker says he intends to establish a new political framework rather than join an existing party, though he declines to yet name it.
“There is a fairly large public that is hungry for this message. The public has shifted right – you see it in all the polls,” he says, arguing that many right-wing voters are seeking a “responsible right” that would advance ultra-Orthodox conscription, judicial reform and better address the security needs of Israel’s north and south.
Edelstein says he is seeking a “broad Zionist government” that is “not dependent on non-Zionist factions,” including Arab and ultra-Orthodox parties, adding that he would even be willing to take the “tenth spot” on a joint electoral list if it prevented the center-right vote from splintering.
Iran-backed Hezbollah and Hamas attend Khamenei funeral ceremonies
Representatives from Iran-backed terror groups Hezbollah and Hamas attend the funeral ceremonies of the late Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei and meet with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, state media reports.
Earlier today, Araghchi published photos of himself meeting with Hamas and Hezbollah representatives on his official Telegram channel.
Tehran has for years provided support to the Palestinian group Hamas, Lebanon’s Hezbollah and Yemen’s Houthis — all designated terrorist groups by the United States and other Western nations, making itself the target of international sanctions.
The Hezbollah delegation includes officials and families of killed and wounded members, the group tells Lebanese media. It is headed by senior official and former minister Mohammed Fneish.
Hamas, meanwhile, says in a statement that its delegation was led by the head of its political bureau, Mohammed Ismail Darwish and includes other bureau members such as Bassem Naim.
Most foreign officials and dignitaries paid their respects yesterday to Khamenei, who ruled Iran from 1989 and was killed aged 86 along with several members of his family and top officials in a US-Israeli strike on February 28, triggering the war in the Middle East.
Erdogan accuses ‘war-addicted’ Israel of tying its political survival to regional conflicts
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan slams Israel’s government, accusing Jerusalem of tying “its political survival to the continuation of conflicts in the region,” and “not leaving Lebanon and Syria alone in particular.”
“Israeli occupation forces continue their unlawful and inhumane attacks against the oppressed in Gaza,” Erdogan adds, speaking at a joint press conference with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif.
“The war-addicted current Israeli government must not be given the opportunity to once again drown our geography in the smell of gunpowder and blood,” Erdogan says.
Erdogan and other senior Turkish officials have ramped up threats against Jerusalem recently, with Turkey’s interior minister calling last month for the country to “liberate” Jerusalem. Some Western and Israeli outlets reported that Erdogan called for God to destroy Israel during a prayer service marking the end of Ramadan in March 2025, saying: “May Allah, for the sake of his name… destroy and devastate Zionist Israel.”
In response to Erdogan’s increasingly hostile rhetoric toward Israel, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the Turkish leader should “calm down” during a Channel 14 interview earlier this week.
Settlers set fire to Bedouin home in West Bank, no reported injuries
Settlers set fire to a Bedouin home overnight in the community of Arab al-Kaabneh, east of Ramallah, the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reports.
There are no reports of casualties.
Israeli settlers set fire to a home in the Arab Al-Kaabneh Bedouin community, east of the town of Taybeh in the occupied West Bank province of Ramallah. pic.twitter.com/HyLmbqdwEV
— WAFA News Agency – English (@WAFANewsEnglish) July 4, 2026
Iran’s Araghchi meets with Hamas, Hezbollah officials
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi publishes photos of himself meeting with Hamas and Hezbollah representatives.
The images, posted on Araghchi’s official Telegram channel, show Araghchi sitting with Muhammad Ismail Darwish, chairman of Hamas’s Shura Council, a religious advisory body composed of about 50 clerics, as well as other officials from Hamas and Hezbollah, Iranian terror proxies.
Head coach of Egyptian soccer team waves Palestinian flag after World Cup win
Head coach of the Egyptian national soccer team Hossam Hassan celebrates the team’s World Cup win against Australia by waving the Palestinian flag, footage shows.
Speaking to reporters after the match, Hassan says he dedicates the win “to the Egyptian people and the Palestinian people.”
Egyptian head coach Hossam Hassan brought a Palestine flag onto the pitch after Egypt’s historic victory over Australia pic.twitter.com/eaO37UUp8V
— Leyla Hamed (@leylahamed) July 3, 2026
US-Iran negotiations reportedly set to resume July 11, will include nuclear talks
Negotiations between the US and Iran are set to resume on July 11, following Iran’s late supreme leader Ali Khamenei’s days-long funeral, the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya news outlet reports.
According to the report, the negotiations are expected to address several key issues, including sanctions on Tehran, Iran’s frozen funds and nuclear talks.
The two countries last held indirect technical talks in Doha on Wednesday, which US President Donald Trump described as “very good.” According to Iran, the sides agreed on a partial release of billions of dollars of frozen Iranian funds, though US officials reportedly denied that such an understanding was reached.
The negotiations come after the US and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding two weeks ago, which gave them 60 days to negotiate a final deal covering Iran’s nuclear program.
Lebanese president urges US to ‘keep standing’ by his country
Lebanese President Joseph Aoun urges the United States to stand by his country after a recent US-backed framework deal with Israel aiming to permanently end hostilities after the latest Israel-Hezbollah war.
The deal reached in Washington calls for the disarmament of Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah, a gradual Israeli withdrawal from southern Lebanon and the deployment of the Lebanese army there, starting with two “pilot” areas.
Hezbollah has rejected the deal, which does not set a timetable for an Israeli withdrawal.
In a congratulatory message to US President Donald Trump marking the United States’ 250th anniversary of independence, Aoun urges Washington to “keep always standing beside Lebanon’s right and just causes, its institutions, army and people.”
Aoun expresses hope that Lebanon could “turn the page on wars… and open a new page of hope, peace and stability.”
In a message also marking the independence anniversary, the US embassy in Lebanon says on X that “it is with great pride that we stand with the people of Lebanon as they forge a brighter future — one of peace, prosperity, and promise long overdue.”
3 Palestinians wounded by IDF troops amid settler attack on West Bank village
Three Palestinians were injured by IDF troops amid a settler attack on the West Bank village of Umm Safa, the Palestinian Authority’s Wafa news agency reports.
Marwan Sabbah, head of the Umm Safa Village Council, northwest of Ramallah, tells Wafa that the settlers entered the village and stole four sheep before Israeli troops arrived on the scene.
The soldiers opened fire with rubber bullets, injuring the Palestinians, the report says. It is unclear what immediately preceded the troops opening fire.
A military spokesperson told The Times of Israel that troops were dispatched to the area following reports of confrontation between Israeli and Palestinians.
Troops used riot dispersal means and the suspects dispersed, the IDF says. There are no reports of arrests.
Confrontations erupted as Palestinian residents confronted Israeli occupation forces and settlers in the village of Umm Safa, northwest of Ramallah. pic.twitter.com/c5Ch2NcdkP
— Eye on Palestine (@EyeonPalestine) July 4, 2026
Egypt expects to receive €1.5 billion from EU assistance package in coming days, minister says
Egypt expects to receive €1.5 billion ($1.72 billion) from the European Union in the coming days, the first of two remaining tranches of a €5 billion macro-financial assistance package, Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty says.
Speaking at a press conference in Egypt’s new administrative capital alongside European Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Suica, Abdelatty says the outstanding €3 billion will be disbursed in two equal tranches of €1.5 billion each.
He says Cairo hopes the last payment will be transferred by the start of the autumn.
The EU has so far disbursed €2 billion of the package, having transferred an initial €1 billion tranche in January 2025 and a second €1 billion earlier this year.
The macro-financial assistance forms part of a broader €7.4 billion funding deal the EU announced in 2024, which also includes €5 billion in concessional loans.
New IRGC Navy chief warns of imminent ‘divine retribution’ for Israel, US
The chief of Iran’s Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy warns that “divine retribution” against the US and Israel is “not far away.”
“We are confident that divine retribution against the terrorist US and the illegitimate Zionist regime is not far away, and that the banner of truth will remain raised at the summit of dignity and power,” says Rear Admiral Ali Ozmaei in a statement to mark the funeral of slain leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to Iranian state media.
“Those who committed this crime believed they could halt the path of truth, but instead they exposed themselves to history’s condemnation and to the wrath and severe retribution of this nation,” he adds, referring to Khamenei’s killing.
Ozmaei appears to be the replacement for Alireza Tangsiri, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike in March.
On 250th anniversary, King Charles says US-UK to continue to defend ‘shared values’
King Charles III says the US and UK will continue to defend “shared values,” in a message to US President Donald Trump and the American people on the country’s 250th independence anniversary.
The monarch writes in a message posted on X that as the two countries “look ahead to the next 250 years, I have no doubt we will continue to defend our shared values,” including liberty and the rule of law.
The 77-year-old, along with Queen Camilla, made a four-day state visit to the US at the end of April. Aimed at healing strained ties between Washington and London, the trip was hailed as a success by British and US media.
The king writes that he believes the “connection between our peoples… will only grow stronger with time.”
Iran offering food, lodging and transport to boost crowd numbers for Khamenei funeral
Iranian authorities plan to mobilize millions of people for big processions for the funeral of slain leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei over the coming days, offering transport, food and lodging to buoy the numbers and encourage more of Iran’s population of over 90 million to attend commemorations.
Iran is staging mass funeral processions for Khamenei, who was killed in February by the opening airstrikes of the war launched by the US and Israel, in a show of public devotion to the Islamic Republic’s theocratic state and revolutionary zeal.
In July 4 message, Pope Leo tells US to welcome and protect immigrants
Pope Leo marks the 250th anniversary of US independence with an appeal to Americans to welcome and protect immigrants, in a letter sent to his home country as he visited Italy’s migrant frontline island of Lampedusa.
Leo, who drew the ire of Donald Trump last year after calling the US president’s hardline anti-immigration policies inhumane, also urges the world to become “more human” and to help those fleeing war and poverty.
During a day trip to Lampedusa, a gateway for migrants risking dangerous Mediterranean crossings into Europe from Africa, the pope urges European leaders to do more to assist arrivals, which have topped 7,000 this year.
Separately, in an appeal sent to the US for its landmark anniversary, Leo says the Catholic value of defending life includes “welcoming, protecting and assisting immigrants.”
“To receive (immigrants) with compassion and generosity is not only an act of charity, but also a recognition of the dignity that belongs to every human person,” he tells the United States.
Unclear if Mojtaba Khamenei will attend father’s funeral amid growing questions over leadership – report
It is not clear if Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei will make an appearance at any point during the dayslong funeral of his father and predecessor, Ali Khamenei, The New York Times reports.
Iranian sources claim to the newspaper that Mojtaba Khamenei told officials that he wants to attend, but that so far the request has been nixed due to concerns that Israel could try to assassinate him, or track him to wherever he has been hiding out.
The officials say that the Iranian leader wants to attend his father’s burial on July 9.
The newspaper notes that he did not attend the Wednesday memorial for his wife, who was killed alongside their teenage son and other relatives in US-Israeli strikes on the first day of the war.
The report says that his absence is leading to increased questions as to whether Khamenei, who was seriously injured in the strikes, has been running Iran.
Senior Iranian official warns UK, France over Hormuz: ‘Crisis-makers will be held accountable’
A senior Iranian official warns the United Kingdom and France that the Strait of Hormuz “is not a theater for the military display of extra-regional powers.”
The warning comes after a joint statement yesterday in which French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer affirmed their “willingness to maintain close cooperation with their partners to uphold global security, freedom of navigation and international law.”
In a post on X, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi says that Tehran is the “responsible power and guarantor of the Strait’s security” and “warns against any military movement in this waterway.”
“The security of Hormuz lies with the coastal states; the crisis-makers will be held accountable for the consequences of their adventurism; this is a serious warning,” Gharibabadi writes.
Yesterday, Macron and Starmer said that “restoring safe transit for ships of all nations through the Strait is a matter of global concern,” and that they were “ready to deploy the wider Multinational Military Mission to support freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.”
Israel Meteorological Service warns Mediterranean waves could reach 1.5 meters
Israel’s Meteorological Service upgrades the warning against swimming in the Mediterranean Sea today.
The IMS changes the status from yellow to orange, meaning the height of the waves could reach 1.5 meters (5 feet).
Protesters clash with police as Germany’s far-right AfD party elects leaders
Thousands of protesters aim to disrupt the national convention of Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany party, with some clashing with police in riot gear outside the meeting.
Alternative for Germany, or AfD, is meeting in the eastern city of Erfurt to elect its leaders, which German parties do every two years. The party seeks to show unity while extending the terms of leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla, who have run the party together for four years.
The demonstrations outside the convention reflect how AfD has divided Germany even as it is the nation’s biggest opposition party nationally.
The weekend convention has drawn additional controversy by coinciding with the 100-year anniversary of a Nazi Party meeting held nearby that consolidated Adolf Hitler’s power over the fascist movement. Historians and political opponents say the timing carries powerful symbolism, an accusation the AfD rejects.
Weidel said recently that “2026 is a year of destiny for AfD.” Mainstream parties say they won’t work with it, a stance often known as a “firewall.”
But AfD is capitalizing on the unpopularity of a government that is trying to reform the sluggish economy. The party has become adept at harnessing discontent with issues well beyond its signature theme of curbing migration, which powered its rise in the mid-2010s.
AfD hopes to win 40% or more of the vote in a Sept. 6 state election in the eastern region of Saxony-Anhalt. That could put the party on course for an absolute majority or in a position where it might try to attract defectors from other parties, paving the way for its first state governor.
2nd man dies as a result of Thursday shooting in Haifa; report says victims weren’t intended targets
A second man has succumbed to wounds sustained in a shooting in Haifa on Thursday, the Ynet news site reports.
He is named as 18-year-old Wiam Faisal.
The incident happened in the early hours of Thursday morning.
Jonathan Houri, also 18, was declared dead on the scene at the shooting.
The Ynet news site reports that neither Faisal nor Houri were the intended targets.
Wimbledon backs Turkish tennis player who displayed pro-Palestinian symbol
Organizers of Wimbledon say that a Turkish player’s use of a pro-Palestinian symbol as a tennis racket shock absorber does not meet the standards of making a political statement.
Zeynep Sonmez had been prevented from wearing a Palestinian flag pin, and instead opted to use a shock absorber on her racket that depicted a watermelon.
Watermelons are often used as a replacement symbol for the Palestinian flag because the colors — red, white, green and black — are the same.
Sonmez has suggested hypocrisy on the part of tournament organizers, noting that Ukrainian flags are permitted.
“We don’t allow political messaging from players on court, certainly [messages] that cause any type of disruption, so that has been consistent across the rules for a long time,” says Jamie Baker, tournament director.
“In terms of the watermelon, we don’t think that’s meeting the threshold for causing any type of disruption,” he says.
Images suggest Sonmez has used the watermelon dampener at previous tournaments. Wimbledon has particularly stringent rules in terms of dress code.
Crowd at Khamenei’s funeral chant for revenge: ‘We will kill he who killed our Imam’
Mourners at the funeral for Iran’s late supreme leader Ali Khamenei are heard chanting: “Our slogan is one word: Revenge, revenge,” and “We will kill, we will kill he who killed our Imam.”
Earlier, the huge crowd of government supporters chanted “Death to America! Death to Israel!”
The new supreme leader, Khamenei’s son Mojtaba Khamenei, has not been seen in any new image since being wounded in the strike that killed his father.
Hind Rajab Foundation files complaint in Italy against Israeli man for alleged Gaza war crimes
The Hind Rajab Foundation files a complaint with authorities in Italy against an IDF soldier, accusing him of war crimes allegedly committed in the Gaza Strip.
The foundation, a pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel legal group based in Belgium and named for a 6-year-old Gazan girl killed in January 2024, has filed dozens of criminal complaints against Israeli soldiers and officials who are visiting or stationed abroad over the past two years.
The organization says the Israeli man is believed to be in Italy, and cites social media posts that he uploaded to social media as evidence of alleged war crimes, crimes against humanity and acts of genocide.
The foundation says the posts feature “videos of demolitions and photographs of him handling detonation cables. These materials demonstrate not only his direct involvement in the demolition operations, but also his public endorsement of them.”
Israel vehemently denies it has committed war crimes or genocide in Gaza, and says it seeks to minimize civilian fatalities, stressing that Hamas uses Gaza’s civilians as human shields.
Trump: Iran ‘dying to settle,’ the US ‘gave them a week off for a funeral’
US President Donald Trump lauds US military action against Venezuela and Iran, claiming that the latter is “dying to settle” and that the United States “gave them a week off for a funeral,” referring to the state funeral for Iran’s late supreme leader Ali Khamenei who was killed in US-Israeli strikes in February.
Trump delivers the remarks at Mount Rushmore in Keystone, South Dakota.
Khamenei’s funeral begins in Tehran with chants of ‘Death to America, Death to Israel!’
Funeral ceremonies for Iran’s late supreme leader Ali Khamenei officially begin, Iranian state television reports, an event drawing thousands and intended to serve as a show of strength to the Islamic Republic’s foes.
According to the Ynet news site, the crowd chants “Death to America! Death to Israel!”
Iran chose July 4, the 250th anniversary of the creation of the US, to begin the funeral.
Thousands of mourners carrying red banners — a symbol of vengeance — have gathered in the courtyard of Tehran’s vast Grand Mosalla religious complex.
The coffin will lie in state until Monday, when a procession will pass through Tehran.
On Tuesday, it will move to the clerical hub of Qom, before moving on Wednesday to cities holy to Shia Muslims in neighboring Iraq, then proceeding for burial on Thursday in Khamenei’s home city of Mashhad in northeastern Iran.
Khamenei’s casket on display in glass case as huge crowd gathers at start of Tehran funeral
Iranian authorities unveil the casket containing late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s body in a glass case at the Grand Mosalla in Tehran, Iran’s capital.
The caskets of his dead family members are beneath his, which has his black turban atop it.
Mourners in the huge crowd weep at the sight, with some chanting: “Our word is one! Revenge! Revenge!”
Some carry banners and flags. Crowds of men rhythmically beat their chests in mourning, a common practice at Shiite funerals.
Organizers spray water on the crowds and offered cold drinks to help those with the summertime heat.
Iran’s government expects to see millions flood the streets of the capital in scenes reminiscent of the burial of the late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini in 1989.
Iranian authorities say they anticipate between 15 and 20 million participants in Tehran alone over the next three days. Six days of funeral ceremonies are planned to commemorate Khamenei, who ruled the Islamic Republic from 1989 until his killing aged 86 on the first day of the US-Israeli war with Iran on February 28.
A large turnout for the dayslong funeral could provide a boost for Iran’s government, particularly as it tries to leverage its hold on the Strait of Hormuz in negotiations with the United States over a permanent end to the war.
The body of the martyred Leader of the Revolution and his martyred family were placed in the prayer hall of Tehran for the people to bid farewell. pic.twitter.com/1o6iqB9Dcb
— Tehran Times (@TehranTimes79) July 4, 2026
Love Story: Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce marry at Madison Square Garden, Adam Sandler officiates
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce marry at Madison Square Garden, where actor Adam Sandler is the surprising officiant at a star-packed ceremony.
The secrecy that surrounded the buildup to the nuptials lifts when a marquee outside the Midtown Manhattan arena proclaims “JUST&T MARRIED” once the deed was done.
The couple did not have bridesmaids or groomsmen, instead opting for Swift’s brother Austin Swift to serve as her man of honor and Kelce’s brother and podcast co-host Jason Kelce serving as his best man, Swift’s publicist Tree Paine said in an email.
The bride and groom’s outfits came from Christian Dior Haute Couture and its designer Jonathan Anderson with shoes custom-made by Christian Louboutin. She wore Cartier jewelry.
Sandler, star of “The Wedding Singer” and many other hit comedies, can’t have been high on anyone’s betting list for who would marry the couple, though he’s become an increasingly warm and paternal cultural figure with age. The email announcing the marriage described him as “a friend” of the couple. Kelce was one of the many athletes who appeared in “Happy Gilmore 2,” Sandler’s 2025 sequel to one of his earlier hits.
Extreme heat bears down as America’s 250th celebrations ramp up
Festivities commemorating the 250th anniversary of American independence ramped up across the United States on Friday as demonstrations of national pride — and hints of political polarization — were balanced with efforts to stay safe as much of the country baked under extreme heat.
President Donald Trump was on his way to South Dakota to deliver a speech and watch fireworks at Mount Rushmore, where storms swept through before his arrival. And in a novel twist, there will be a ball drop in New York City’s Times Square at midnight to usher in the July Fourth holiday with much the same revelry that is typically reserved for New Year’s Eve.
The sound of fighter jets on military flyovers shook the nation’s capital. In New York City, Mayor Zohran Mamdani delivered his own address on the country’s 250th anniversary that cast America as a nation of contradictions “working each day towards the perfection in which it was conceived.”
The activity culminates in the main event Saturday, when fireworks will erupt in communities across the US, along with backyard cookouts and block parties. Trump will deliver another speech at the National Mall in Washington before what is being billed as a historically massive fireworks show.
But for all the celebrations, there are also serious safety considerations as potentially record heat grips much of the Midwest and East Coast. Officials have warned those celebrating the holiday to stay hydrated and take air-conditioned breaks as needed.
Mass protests expected as German far-right AfD meets
German police are bracing to guard an annual congress of the far-right AfD party this weekend against tens of thousands of demonstrators who are determined to shut it down.
The standoff in the city of Erfurt, Thuringia state, comes as the opposition Alternative for Germany party is soaring in national opinion polls ahead of all other parties.
Inside the conference hall from Saturday, AfD co-leaders Alice Weidel and Tino Chrupalla will seek to be reelected at the helm of the anti-immigration party.
Outside on the streets, up to 50,000 demonstrators from all over Germany are expected to stage rallies and sit-in blockades meant to prevent AfD delegates from even reaching the venue.
Up to 2,500 of the protesters are expected to come prepared for violence, according to internal police documents obtained by news weekly Der Spiegel.
The AfD’s rapid rise has unnerved many Germans, who feel they have a special duty to fight far-right politics given Germany’s dark Nazi past.
Some have seen a deliberate provocation in the AfD holding its Erfurt conference on the 100th anniversary of a Nazi conference in nearby Weimar, a charge the AfD denies.
“This is an extremely dangerous party,” Noa Sander, spokesperson for the anti-AfD “Resistance” protest alliance, tells AFP ahead of the conference in Erfurt, a city of about 220,000 people.
Mourners enter Khamenei’s funeral venue ahead of processions; huge crowds expected
Thousands of mourners enter Tehran’s Grand Mosalla for the funeral ceremonies of Iran’s late supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, AFP journalists say, ahead of the official start.
The main courtyard of the vast complex is filled with people as authorities impose extensive traffic restrictions across the capital. Another AFP journalist sees mourners walking several kilometers to reach the venue.
Huge crowds are expected to pay their final respects to Khamenei at the start of marathon funeral ceremonies intended to serve as a show of strength to the Islamic Republic’s foes.
Iranian authorities say they anticipate between 15 and 20 million participants in Tehran alone over the next three days for tributes to the man who ran the country for three-and-a-half decades.
Six days of funeral ceremonies are planned to commemorate Khamenei, who ruled Iran as its number one from 1989 until his killing aged 86 on the first day of the US-Israeli war with Iran on February 28.
Poll shows widespread dissatisfaction with PM and ministers
A new Channel 12 poll shows widespread public dissatisfaction with the prime minister and government ministers, as the country heads for elections.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gets a poor rating from 58% of respondents, with 38% rating him positively. Defense Minister Israel Katz is rated poorly by 61%, positively by 30%.
National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir gets a 63% to 32% ratio, while Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich is highly unpopular with 69% to 25%.
Other ministers fare little better, with Justice Minister Yariv Levin at 60% to 27%, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar at 54% to 29%, and Education Minister Yoav Kisch at 69% to 19%.
After Smotrich caused a stir this week by taking credit for the return of Gaza hostages, 58% of respondents say it is US President Donald Trump who is primarily responsible for their return, with only 28% crediting the government.
The survey also checked support for the coalition’s effort to approve a Basic Law to define Torah study as a foundational value of the State of Israel, which is mainly intended to shield Haredi draft evaders from sanctions and prosecution.
A total of 66% oppose advancing the law, while only 21% support it.