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Iran condemns US strikes on coastal facilities, calls them ceasefire violation

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Residents walk past colorful wall paintings as daily life continues under the shadow of destruction following the U.S. and Israeli attacks on Tehran, Iran, on April 5, 2026. [Fatemeh Bahrami – Anadolu Agency]

Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Saturday condemned US strikes on radar and coastal surveillance facilities in the southern Sirik region and on Qeshm Island, describing them as a clear violation of the April 8 ceasefire agreement and an act of aggression against the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, Anadolu reports.

In a statement, the ministry said the facilities targeted in the early hours of Saturday were responsible for protecting Iran’s borders and ensuring the security of international shipping routes.

It said the attacks formed part of Washington’s continued hostile and provocative actions against Iran and reflected what it described as a disregard for the principles of international law and the UN Charter.

The ministry said Iran’s armed forces responded to the strikes within the framework of the country’s right to self-defense and thwarted the objectives of the attack.

The statement said repeated US violations of the ceasefire demonstrated Washington’s lack of commitment to reducing tensions and restoring stability, warning that the US would bear responsibility for the consequences of its actions and any further escalation.

READ: Pope Leo says US-Israeli war against Iran not ‘just war’

Reaffirming Iran’s right to self-defense under Article 51 of the UN Charter, the ministry said Tehran would use all available means to defend its sovereignty, security, and national interests.

The ministry also called on regional countries to adhere to the principle of good neighborliness and refrain from allowing their territories or facilities to be used to plan or carry out hostile actions against Iran.

It further urged the UN secretary-general, the UN Security Council, and other international bodies to respond to what it described as continued ceasefire violations and unlawful US actions, and to prevent further threats to regional and international peace and security.

Earlier Saturday, US Central Command (CENTCOM) said it struck coastal surveillance radar sites in Sirik and on Qeshm Island following attacks targeting the Strait of Hormuz and Gulf countries.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) later announced that US military bases in the region had been targeted with missiles in response to the strikes.

READ: Iran strikes US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain after drone attacks on Iranian territory: Report

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Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/

Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don't need people to join wars after they've already won. He's challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up

Continue ReadingIran condemns US strikes on coastal facilities, calls them ceasefire violation

Pope Leo says US-Israeli war against Iran not ‘just war’

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Pope Leo XIV said the war being waged by the United States and Israel against Iran is not a “just war,” arguing that the centuries-old theory no longer reflects the realities of modern warfare, Anadolu reports.

Speaking to journalists aboard his flight from Rome to Madrid during the fourth foreign trip of his pontificate, the pope was asked whether the conflict in Iran could be considered a just war after US Vice President JD Vance invoked the concept while defending Washington’s military actions against Tehran.

“There is no just war there,” Pope Leo said.

“The problem is that the just war theory comes from centuries ago, from a time when people could not imagine the weapons and destructive capacities that exist today,” he added.

The pontiff’s remarks come amid previously reported tensions with US President Donald Trump over the conflict in Iran.

READ: Iran strikes US bases in Kuwait, Bahrain after drone attacks on Iranian territory: Report

As fighting continued, Pope Leo repeatedly called for an end to the war and criticized rhetoric that he said could fuel further escalation.

Earlier this year, he described Trump’s threat that “there will be no civilization left in Iran” as “unacceptable.”

Trump later responded by describing the pope as “weak and terrible on foreign policy.”

The pope rejected the criticism, saying he was not afraid and would continue speaking out against war.

The exchange also prompted reactions in Italy, where political leaders criticized Trump’s remarks and voiced support for the pope’s calls for peace.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni described the comments directed at Pope Leo as “unacceptable.”

READ: Pope warns oil drives conflicts, criticises war on Iran

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/

Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don't need people to join wars after they've already won. He's challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Donald Trump calls for help from NATO allies in securing the Strait of Hormuz despite saying on 7 March 2026 that they don’t need people to join wars after they’ve already won. He’s challenged with the claim that he lies as much as the IDF.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Continue ReadingPope Leo says US-Israeli war against Iran not ‘just war’

Rights Group Sounds Alarm After Israel Sends Gaza’s Dr. Abu Safiya to Solitary Confinement

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Article by Brad Reed republished form Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Wide view of a large crowd holding a banner reading Free Hussam Abu Safiya during a pro Palestine demonstration in Paris Ile de France France on April 18, 2026. (Photo by Djoudi Hamani/Hans Lucas/AFP via Getty Images)

“The international community cannot remain silent while a respected physician is reportedly subjected to harsh conditions, denied adequate medical care, and isolated from the outside world.”

A prominent human rights group on Friday sounded alarms upon learning that Dr. Hussam Abu Safiya, director of the Kamal Adwan Hospital in Gaza, has been sent to solitary confinement.

As reported by Haaretz, Physicians for Human Rights Israel (PHRI) said it learned on Thursday that Abu Safiya was moved to solitary confinement this week without any explanation.

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According to a report from The Palestine Chronicle, an attorney representing Abu Safiya claimed that his client was placed into solitary confinement in retaliation for appealing his continued detention.

Abu Safiya was first taken into custody by Israeli forces in December 2024 and has been held since then without being charged with any criminal offenses.

In a Friday statement, the Council of American-Islamic Relations said news of Abu Safiya’s solitary confinement was “deeply disturbing” and raised “even more urgent concerns about his welfare and basic human rights.”

“Congress must demand his immediate release and insist that Israel end the arbitrary detention, abuse, and mistreatment of Palestinian medical professionals and civilians,” CAIR added. “The international community cannot remain silent while a respected physician is reportedly subjected to harsh conditions, denied adequate medical care, and isolated from the outside world without any legal justification. Dr. Abu Safiya must be released immediately.”

PHRI has for months been raising concerns about Abu Safiya’s detention, long before he was transferred to solitary confinement.

While demanding the physician’s release in April, for instance, PHRI said Abu Safiya was being held “in harsh conditions, without access to medication or medical care, as his health continues to deteriorate.”

A 2025 report from Amnesty International, which has also called for Abu Safiya’s release, said that the Gaza-based physician “was detained in the course of caring for his patients and carrying out his medical duties.”

Amnesty also noted that, prior to his detention, Abu Safiya and other colleagues at the Kamal Adwan Hospital had “provided human rights and humanitarian organizations with reliable information about the health situation” in Gaza, which has been left devastated by years of Israeli attacks that have killed at least 72,000 Palestinians.

Article by Brad Reed republished form Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza's hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ...
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone …
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up

Continue ReadingRights Group Sounds Alarm After Israel Sends Gaza’s Dr. Abu Safiya to Solitary Confinement

‘Burning Entire Families to Death as They Slept’ in Gaza, Israel Kill Count Nears 1,000 Since Ceasefire

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Article by Stephen Prager republished form Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Palestinians carry the bodies of relatives who lost their lives in overnight Israeli airstrikes during a funeral procession in Gaza City on June 4, 2026. (Photo by Saeed M. M. T. Jaras/Anadolu via Getty Images)

As Israel ratchets up its attacks and conquers more territory in Gaza despite a ceasefire, May was the deadliest month for Palestinians there in 2026.

Five members of the same Palestinian family were killed in a burning building after Israel bombed four residential apartment buildings in Gaza City on Thursday morning. Eight months after the October “ceasefire” began, the death toll from continued Israeli attacks is rapidly approaching 1,000.

A single nine-year-old girl, identified as Hala Hassan Rabah Labad by local reports, survived the strike on an apartment on Intelligence Street in northwestern Gaza and was taken to the hospital. Five members of her family—her father, mother, and three siblings—were all killed.

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Nine people were killed in total and dozens more wounded in other strikes on residential buildings throughout the night, according to medical sources who told the Anadolu Agency that bodies arrived at Al-Shifa Hospital—some dismembered and others severely burned.

Other attacks were reported on Al-Salam Tower in Tel al-Hawa, the Mahna family home near Al-Qouqa Roundabout in Al-Shati refugee camp, and a residential apartment in the Abu al-Amin and Abu Iskandar area of Sheikh Radwan.

Local journalists reported that many of the targeted buildings were sheltering displaced families.

One resident recorded video of a burning building near her home and posted it to social media.

“Israel bombed the house next to me at 2 am,” she said. “People are burning alive and screaming.”

Rescue workers are still reportedly picking through the rubble and have been deployed across multiple locations, according to journalists on the ground, who described the series of attacks as a “major massacre.”

“We were woken up by the strike at 2:30 am. We found pieces of flesh, and people were sleeping. They say the war is over, but the war is not over,” Khalil Batran, a neighbor of the deceased family, told ⁠Reuters. “There is no safety in Gaza… Every day, they fire at us from there and strike us with missiles. It’s futile.”

The Israeli military has not commented on the strikes as of Thursday morning.

According to the Gaza Health Ministry, Thursday’s strikes bring the number of Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks up to 947 since a so-called ceasefire between Israel and Hamas was reached in October. Nearly 3,000 other Palestinians have been wounded.

The Gaza Government Media Office has accused Israel of violating the ceasefire more than 3,000 times through the targeting of civilians, the destruction of entire residential blocks, repeated gunfire, and incursions into residential areas, as well as restrictions on humanitarian aid entering the strip.

Since Israel’s genocidal military campaign in Gaza began in October 2023, nearly 73,000 people have been killed, according to official figures from the Gaza Health Ministry, though independent analyses suggest the true death toll could be much higher.

As Israel fortifies and expands its military control of the strip, with leaders including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pledging to push forward and conquer more territory, May was the deadliest month for Gaza thus far in 2026, with 119 Palestinians killed.

In recent weeks, Israeli strikes on tent encampments have killed multiple other children, including a 6-year-old girl and an 8-year-old boy.

Thursday’s attacks come a day after Israel continued to bomb several sites in Lebanon despite the announcement of a US-brokered ceasefire, which has not yet gone into effect. During a previous truce, Israel launched numerous attacks, demolished villages, and ordered the forced evacuation of civilians in Lebanon, in clear violation of the agreement. Israeli attacks during that ceasefire period killed more than 600 people, according to the World Health Organization.

In Gaza, Israel has justified continued attacks and deeper encroachment into Gaza by saying that Hamas has failed to “fully disarm.” But while that is part of a framework laid out by US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace, Drop Site News journalist Jeremy Scahill points out that it was not part of the deal agreed to in October.

“Netanyahu has a PhD in violating ceasefires,” said Scahill on SkyNews Wednesday. “The term ‘ceasefire’ has been used as a surrender cudgel against the Palestinians in Gaza.”

“The Palestinians signed a deal with Israel. Israel has violated it every day, killed 1,000 Palestinians, has moved deeper into Gaza. They say, ‘Hamas agreed to disarm.’ Hamas never signed a disarmament agreement,” he continued. “Now the so-called ‘Board of Peace’ is demanding that the Palestinians surrender their liberation cause as a condition for Netanyahu to abide by the terms that he signed.”

“They signed a ceasefire with Hamas,” he said. “Not with the children in tents that they continue to burn alive.”

Article by Stephen Prager republished form Common Dreams under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0).

Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza's hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Keir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ...
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone …
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Continue Reading‘Burning Entire Families to Death as They Slept’ in Gaza, Israel Kill Count Nears 1,000 Since Ceasefire

IAEA chief says US-Iran talks close to nuclear framework agreement

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Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Mariano Grossi gives a speech in Vienna, Austria on June 5, 2026. [Salih Okuroğlu – Anadolu Agency]

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Grossi said Friday that negotiations between the United States and Iran appear close to producing a framework agreement on Tehran’s nuclear program, Anadolu reports.

Speaking at a news conference following a meeting of the IAEA Board of Governors, Grossi said the agency remains in contact with both sides, although it is not directly involved in the talks.

“Our sense is that they seem to be pretty close to agreeing on what I would describe more with regards to the nuclear … to sort of a framework, organizational structure to give themselves time to look into the different problems,” he said.

Grossi added that the IAEA has made several efforts to restore verification activities in Iran and stressed that Tehran’s obligations under its agreements with the agency remain in force.

“The issue here is multiple, because Iran has a number of obligations in terms of informing us and giving us access for our inspection work,” he said. “It is clear that under war circumstances, this is not possible, but there has been quite a long ceasefire.”

He noted that the agency had continued some activities at facilities selected by Iran, saying there is an “element of discretion” in terms of what Tehran allows the agency to see.

Grossi said Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium remains central to any future agreement.

READ: Trump says he does not need deal with Iran to get enriched uranium

Possible options include exporting the material, diluting it or keeping it in Iran under IAEA monitoring, he said, adding that any decision would ultimately be political.

Grossi, however, said the first step should be the agency going to Iran to check the amount.

‘Nuclear facilities should never be attacked’

Ahead of the meeting, Grossi also warned that nuclear facilities must not be targeted during conflicts.

“Regardless of where they are located around the world, nuclear facilities should never be attacked,” he said.

His remarks came after a visit to the Arab Gulf region, where he met regional leaders and toured the Barakah Nuclear Power Plant in the United Arab Emirates, which was struck by a drone on May 17.

“Attacks on nuclear facilities devoted to peaceful purposes are unacceptable. I solemnly reiterate my calls for the parties in this conflict and in all conflicts to respect the seven indispensable pillars for ensuring nuclear safety and security during a conflict,” Grossi said.

Calling for maximum restraint, he warned that military activities involving nuclear power plants and other nuclear facilities carry “unacceptable risks.”

Grossi stressed that the IAEA applies the same standards to all countries and situations.

“There are no double or triple standards here for the IAEA. An attack on any facility, wherever it is located, is unacceptable, a no-go, taboo,” he said.

He also warned of the potential environmental and public safety consequences of any major release of radioactivity resulting from an attack on an operating nuclear power plant.

“The only sustainable path to peace, stability and cooperation is one grounded in dialogue and diplomacy. This is what we are here for,” Grossi added. ​​​​​​​

OPINION: From nuclear threshold to nuclear deterrence: Is Iran crossing the line?

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Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/

Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up

Continue ReadingIAEA chief says US-Iran talks close to nuclear framework agreement