19-07-2025
While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, July 20, 2025
Mourners react next to a body at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, on July 19.
At least 36 killed by Israeli fire while seeking aid in Gaza
At least 36 people were killed by Israeli fire while they were on their way to an aid distribution site in Gaza at dawn on July 19, according to the Gaza Health Ministry and Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.
The Israeli military said it had fired warning shots at suspects who approached its troops after they did not heed calls to stop, about a kilometre away from an aid distribution site that was not active at the time.
Gaza resident Mohammed al-Khalidi said he was in the group approaching the site and heard no warnings before the firing began.
"We thought they came out to organise us so we can get aid, suddenly (I) saw the jeeps coming from one side, and the tanks from the other and started shooting at us," he said.
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Druze regain control of Sweida city after Syria announces ceasefire
Druze fighters pushed out rival armed factions from Syria's southern city of Sweida on July 19, a monitor said, after the government ordered a ceasefire following a US-brokered deal to avert further Israeli military intervention.
Fighting nonetheless persisted in other parts of Sweida province, even as the Druze regained control of their city following days of fierce battle with armed Bedouin supported by tribal gunmen from other parts of Syria.
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The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights monitor said that 'tribal fighters withdrew from Sweida city on Saturday evening' after Druze fighters launched a large-scale attack.
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South Korea pulls plane crash report after victims' families protest
PHOTO: CHANG W. LEE/NYTIMES
South Korean officials on July 19 abruptly cancelled the release of an intermediate report into the deadly crash of a Jeju Air passenger jet, after relatives of the victims disrupted a news conference, saying that the report was inadequate.
The confrontational scene unfolded after officials had earlier briefed the families privately on the latest stage of the investigation. The officials were planning to publicly release some findings from an analysis of the engines on the Boeing 737-800 that crashed Dec 29, killing 179 of the 181 people on board.
A lawyer for the relatives, who saw the officials' presentation in the private meeting, said the investigators had found no fault with the engines and instead appeared to blame birds – which struck the engines minutes before it made an emergency landing – and the plane's pilots prematurely.
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Ukraine proposes fresh peace talks with Russia next week
PHOTO: AFP
Kyiv has proposed to Moscow a new round of peace talks next week, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky said on July 19, hours after Russian strikes across Ukraine claimed more lives.
Two rounds of talks in Istanbul between Moscow and Kyiv have failed to result in any progress towards a ceasefire, instead yielding large-scale prisoner exchanges and deals to return the bodies of killed soldiers.
'Security Council Secretary Umerov also reported that he had proposed the next meeting with the Russian side for next week,' Mr Zelensky said in his evening address. 'The momentum of the negotiations must be stepped up,' he added.
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Olympic champion Zheng pauses WTA Tour after elbow surgery
Olympic champion Zheng Qinwen said on July 19 she would take a short break from the WTA Tour after undergoing elbow surgery.
The 22-year-old Chinese player was eliminated from this year's Wimbledon tournament in the first round by Czech Katerina Siniakova earlier in July.
"Now begins the recovery journey," she wrote on Instagram. "Over the next few weeks and months, I'll be focusing entirely on rehab — doing everything I can to come back stronger and healthier."
