Senior Ukrainian military commander tenders resignation over lethal strike on training facility
(Reporting by Max Hunder; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
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The Sun
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- The Sun
Israel strikes Syria to protect Druze amid ceasefire violations
SWEIDA: Israel carried out strikes against Syrian government forces in southwestern Syria for a second day on Tuesday, vowing to keep the area demilitarized and to protect the Druze minority as deadly clashes continued in the region at the Israeli frontier. A Reuters reporter said they heard drones and at least four strikes over the predominantly Druze city of Sweida, and saw a damaged tank being towed away. Bursts of gunfire were heard and three bodies were seen on the ground. Dozens of people have been killed in fighting in the region since Sunday. The surge in violence underlines the challenges facing interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who has struggled to assert control over the area near the Israeli border since toppling Bashar al-Assad in December. While Sharaa has been buoyed by rapidly improving ties with U.S. President Donald Trump's administration, the violence has highlighted lingering sectarian tensions and distrust among minority groups towards his Islamist-led government - distrust that was deepened by mass killings of Alawites in March. Syria's foreign ministry said it held Israel fully responsible for the attack and its consequences, vowing to protect all citizens, including the Druze. It said the attacks killed a number of Syrian troops and civilians, without providing a count. Syria's presidency said the country would take legal action against 'anyone proven to have committed violations or abuses, regardless of their rank or position'. U.S. Syria envoy Tom Barrack said the United States was in contact with all sides 'to navigate towards calm and integration'. Axios reported, citing a U.S. official, that the Trump administration has asked Israel to stop its strikes on Syrian military forces. Israel said it would cease the attacks on Tuesday evening, the official said. Israel, which has struck Syria several times in the name of protecting the Druze, carried out its latest strikes after influential Druze Sheikh Hikmat al-Hajri issued a statement accusing government troops of breaching a ceasefire and urging fighters to confront what he described as a barbaric attack. After al-Hajri appeared in a recorded statement, Syrian Defence Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra declared that a complete ceasefire was in place, and said government forces would only open fire if fired upon. Abu Qasra also said that military police had been ordered to deploy in Sweida to 'control military behaviour and hold violators accountable', state news agency SANA reported. The Reuters reporter saw men in fatigues burning and looting homes and shops, and setting fire to a store that sold alcohol. The Druze are a minority group whose faith is an offshoot of Islam and have followers in Israel, Syria and Lebanon. 'DEEP BROTHERHOOD' Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said they had ordered Israel's military to strike 'regime forces' and weaponry brought to Sweida to be used against the Druze. In a statement, they said the deployment of government forces was in violation of a demilitarisation policy that had called on Damascus to refrain from bringing forces and weapons that pose a threat to Israel into southern Syria. 'Israel is committed to preventing harm to the Druze in Syria due to the deep brotherhood alliance with our Druze citizens in Israel,' they said. 'We are acting to prevent the Syrian regime from harming them and to ensure the demilitarization of the area adjacent to our border with Syria. Reuters reported in May that Israel and the Syrian authorities had held direct talks focused on security, after an apparent thaw in tensions. The latest violence in southwestern Syria began on Sunday with clashes between armed Druze groups and Bedouin fighters in Sweida province, which displaced thousands of people. The Druze spiritual leadership said in a written statement on Tuesday morning that it would allow Syrian forces to enter Sweida city to stop the bloodshed, calling on armed groups to surrender their weapons and cooperate with incoming troops. But hours later, al-Hajri, a vocal opponent of the new Syrian leadership, said the statement had been 'imposed' on them by Damascus and that Syrian troops had breached the arrangement by continuing to fire on residents. 'We are being subject to a total war of extermination,' he said, calling on all Druze 'to confront this barbaric campaign with all means available'. Convoys of Syrian army tanks, trucks and motorcycles entered parts of Sweida city by mid-morning and were continuing to fire on neighbourhoods there, the Reuters reporter in Sweida said. On Monday, Israel's military said it had carried out several strikes on tanks approaching Sweida 'to prevent their arrival to the area' because they could pose a threat to Israel. - Reuters
The Sun
an hour ago
- The Sun
US and allies set August deadline for Iran nuclear deal
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the foreign ministers of France, Germany and the UK agreed in a phone call on Monday to set the end of August as the de facto deadline for reaching a nuclear deal with Iran, Axios reported, citing three sources. If no deal is reached by that deadline, the three European powers plan to trigger the 'snapback' mechanism that automatically reimposes all UN Security Council sanctions that were lifted under the 2015 Iran deal, according to the Axios report. - Reuters
The Sun
3 hours ago
- The Sun
Former Nigeria president Buhari laid to rest in Katsina with national honours
KATSINA (Nigeria): Nigeria's former President Muhammad Buhari was buried on Tuesday in the backyard of his home in northern Katsina state, as residents climbed trees to bid farewell to the 82-year-old. Buhari ruled Africa's most populous nation between 2015 and 2023 and died in a London hospital on Sunday after an undisclosed illness. He was one of two former Nigerian military strongmen who returned to power via the ballot box. In his hometown of Daura, supporters chanted 'Sai Baba', an endearing name used by followers, while they attempted to catch a last glimpse of Buhari's casket as it was lowered into the ground. The coffin, draped in Nigeria's white and green national colours, had arrived at the airport in Katsina earlier and was received by President Bola Tinubu, government officials and men and women in traditional Muslim attire. The former president was given a military parade and a 21-gun salute at the airport before his body was transported to Daura, about 80 kilometres away. Tinubu has declared seven days of national mourning and a public holiday on Tuesday to honour Buhari. After first rising to power in the early 1980s as a military leader following a coup, Buhari made a comeback as a democratically elected president when he defeated incumbent Goodluck Jonathan in 2015. Buhari's eight-year rule was marked by economic recession, foreign currency shortages, a slump in oil production and insecurity that spread across the country. Even so, Buhari continued to enjoy a cult-like following in his home state and across the largely Muslim northern Nigeria. Many supporters admired his austere lifestyle and anti-corruption crusade, although critics say few public officials were jailed for graft. - Reuters
