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THE Congolese government says it targeted an aircraft which rebels claim was delivering food aid before it was blown up in the district of Minembwe, close to the country’s borders with Rwanda and Burundi. It is the latest violent incident in the region since a ceasefire deal was signed in Washington last Friday. The army claims it tracked the plane using radar, found it had entered Congolese airspace without legal permission and bore no identification number – giving the force no choice but to take “appropriate measures”. But rebels allied to the M23 group, which has seized large parts of…

BRAZILIAN club Fluminense shocked Inter Milan with a 2-0 win to reach the quarter-finals of the Club World Cup, where they could face Manchester City. Striker German Cano’s stooping header in the third minute put the Brazilian giants ahead early and substitute Hercules scored a curling edge-of-the-box shot against the run of play in a difficult last 25 minutes. Inter’s star forward Lautaro Martinez had a series of chances to equalise before the second goal, including one against the post late on, while Federico Dimarco also came close to scoring from two free-kicks and had a close-range shot from a…

ISRAELI forces have bombarded multiple areas across the besieged Gaza Strip, killing at least 95 Palestinians, including aid seekers and families sheltering in schools, and wounding many more in attacks that have also targeted a crowded hospital. In the relentless attacks on Monday, 62 of the victims were in Gaza City and the north of the territory. The Israeli navy struck a seaside cafe in Gaza City, where the military has stepped up its heavy strikes, killing more than 30 people and wounding dozens more. Among the dead are women, children, and journalists who had gathered at the cafe, a…

DIPLOMATIC talks between Washington and Tehran cannot resume unless the US rules out further strikes on Iran, its deputy foreign minister told the BBC late Sunday. Majid Takht-Ravanchi told the British broadcaster that the US had signalled it wants to return to the negotiating table, a week after it struck three Iranian nuclear facilities. “We have not agreed to any date, we have not agreed to the modality,” said Takht-Ravanchi. “Right now we are seeking an answer to this question. Are we going to see a repetition of an act of aggression while we are engaging in dialogue?” The US…

A TUNISIAN court has sentenced Sonia Dhamani, a prominent lawyer and renowned critic of President Kais Saied, to two years in jail, lawyers have said, in a case that rights groups say marks a deepening crackdown on dissent in the North African country. Dhamani’s lawyers withdrew from the trial after the judge refused to adjourn the session on Monday, claiming Dhamani was being tried twice for the same act. The court sentenced Dhamani for statements criticising practices against refugees and migrants from sub-Saharan Africa. Lawyer Bassem Trifi said the verdict was “a grave injustice”. “What’s happening is a farce. Sonia…

A STREET vendor shot in the head by police during protests two weeks ago has died a day after being declared brain-dead in hospital, his family says. “Boniface is no more. We have just viewed his body,” family spokeswoman Emily Wanjira told the BBC. Boniface Kariuki was shot as police cracked down on a protest in the capital Nairobi against the death in detention of blogger and teacher Albert Ojwang, 31. Kariuki, a mask vendor, was shot at close range on 17 June, and later admitted to the main public referral hospital in Nairobi for treatment. He spent nearly two…

JOAO Neves scored twice as Paris St-Germain demolished Inter Miami to reach the quarter-finals of the Fifa Club World Cup. The European champions were always expected to brush off the team who sit sixth in Major League Soccer’s Eastern Conference – and so it proved. Neves stooped down to head Vitinha’s free-kick in from close range for their sixth-minute opener in Atlanta. The Portugal midfielder got the second goal too in the 39th minute when he slotted in to cap off a fine passing move involving Bradley Barcola and Fabian Ruiz, who also had a goal disallowed himself for offside.…

ISRAELI attacks across the Gaza Strip have killed dozens of Palestinians, including people seeking food at aid distribution hubs, as the already catastrophic humanitarian situation in the besieged enclave deteriorates by the day. Medical sources told Al Jazeera on Sunday that at least 68 people were killed since dawn in Israeli strikes targeting multiple locations across Gaza, including 47 in Gaza City and the north of the territory. Among them were at least five Palestinian aid seekers killed near food distribution centres run by the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) north of Rafah, according to local emergency workers quoted by…

IRAN may be able to restart uranium enrichment in a matter of months despite a wave of attacks by the United States and Israel that targeted its nuclear infrastructure, according to the head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog, Rafael Grossi. The remarks came on Saturday, days after US President Donald Trump insisted this month’s attacks had set Iran’s nuclear ambitions back “by decades”. Speaking to CBS News on Saturday, the director-general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said while key facilities had been hit, some are “still standing”. “They can have, you know, in a matter of months,…

MONTHLY temperature records have been broken across Morocco, sometimes topping seasonal norms by as much as 20 degrees Celsius, the national meteorological office said Sunday, as the North African kingdom was gripped by a heatwave. “Our country has experienced, between Friday 27 and Saturday 28 of June, a ‘chegui’ type heatwave characterised by its intensity and geographical reach,” the meteorological office (DGM) said in a report shared with AFP. The heatwave, which has also struck across the Strait of Gibraltar in southern Europe, has affected numerous regions in Morocco. According to the DGM, the most significant temperature anomalies have been…

AT least seven people were killed and many others wounded during recent anti-government protests in the Togolese capital Lome, according to an initial count civic groups gave journalists Sunday. Campaigning groups and rights organisations denounced “abuses committed by members of the Togolese security forces and militias”, and said seven bodies had been recovered from rivers in the capital. They also reported “dozens of wounded” and “more than 60 arrests during the three days of demonstrations held from Thursday to Saturday. Togolese authorities have yet to provide an official toll from the late-June protests, but a gendarme unit has mentioned two…

PRIOR to his death, elder statesman and renowned business mogul, Aminu Alhassan Dantata, had revealed that he no longer enjoyed life and hoped to depart this world in good faith. His death at age 94 was announced on Saturday, but about two and a half years ago he said life had become boring to him and was only awaiting his glorious exit. At 91 then, Dantata disclosed this when he received the then Vice Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Kashim Shettima. He said from a youthful age, he had the privilege of meeting many people and had…

THE first strikes in Dambe are thrown before the boxers even leave their house. Fighters don charms and amulets, dye their fist or even score their arm with a razor, inserting traditional medicine before it scars over — all guaranteed to protect them in the ring or deliver a knock-out punch. Combined with prayers from “mallams”, or spiritual guides, they are unstoppable — not just in Nigeria, but increasingly around the world. The Dambe World Series kicked off in Abuja, the capital, on Saturday in the latest evolution of a sport that traces its roots back centuries among west Africa’s…

ENGLAND Under-21s dramatically defended their European title with a thrilling extra-time win over Germany. Substitute Jonathan Rowe’s stooping header, two minutes after coming on, clinched the Euro 2025 crown in Bratislava as Lee Carsley’s side retained the trophy they won two years ago, a victory which ended a 39-year drought. Harvey Elliott swept in his fifth goal of the tournament after just five minutes before Omari Hutchinson drilled in to double their lead midway through the half. Hutchinson, Elliot and James McAtee were denied by Noah Atubolu and Jay Stansfield missed a tap in at the far post as England…

ISRAELI air attacks on al-Tuffah neighbourhood in Gaza City have killed at least 20 people, including nine children, according to medical sources. Sources at Gaza hospitals tell Al Jazeera that at least 60 Palestinians have been killed today in attacks throughout the Strip. The killings come a day after US President Donald Trump said a ceasefire in Gaza could be reached “within the next week”. Gaza’s Government Media Office says revelations in the Israeli media that soldiers were ordered to “deliberately shoot” starving Palestinians seeking aid supplies are further evidence of “war crimes” in Gaza. Also, Israeli attacks on southern…

UKRAINE said it carried out an overnight drone strike on the Kirovske airfield in Crimea and claimed that multiple Russian helicopters and an air defence system were destroyed in the strike. According to a Ukraine Security Service (SBU) statement, the drones targeted areas where Russian aviation units, air defence assets, ammunition depots and unmanned aerial vehicles were located. The agency claimed that Mi-8, Mi-26, and Mi-28 helicopters, as well as a Pantsir-S1 missile and gun system were destroyed. “Secondary detonations continued throughout the night at the airfield,” the SBU said, calling the strike part of broader efforts to disrupt Russian…

SOUTH African President Cyril Ramaphosa says he will “not yield to threats and ultimatums” in a stinging rebuke to the second biggest party in his coalition government. Ramaphosa drew the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) ire after he removed Deputy Trade Minister Andrew Whitfield over an unsanctioned trip abroad earlier this year. Whitfield, a member of the DA, was part of a delegation that travelled to the US back in February after Washington’s relations with South Africa soured. The DA has since given Ramaphosa until Saturday afternoon to remove other errant ministers and deputies in his executive from other parties as well…

THE signing of a peace agreement between the governments of the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda in Washington has elicited mixed reactions, with the former Congolese president, Joseph Kabila, describing it as “nothing more than a trade agreement”. The deal signed on Friday demanded the “disengagement, disarmament and conditional integration” of armed groups fighting in eastern DR Congo – but offered few other details. While some, including Kabila, have been critical, others have hailed the agreement as a turning point in a devastating conflict that has dragged on for decades. Rwanda has denied allegations it backs an armed group,…

MANCHESTER United have had an improved bid worth up to £62.5m for Bryan Mbeumo rejected by Brentford. United have bid £55m plus £7.5m in add-ons for the 25-year-old. They had a bid of £45m plus up to £10m in add-ons for the Cameroon forward turned down earlier this month. United are looking to add goals to their side having already signed forward Matheus Cunha from Wolves for £62.5m. Sources have suggested Brentford would want at least the same fee as Wolves have received for Cunha up front before they agree to the sale of a player who still has a…

ISRAELI soldiers have deliberately shot at unarmed Palestinians seeking aid in Gaza after being “ordered” to do so by their commanders, the Israeli newspaper Haaretz reports. Israel ordered an investigation into possible war crimes over the allegations by some soldiers that it revealed on Friday, Haaretz said. At least 549 Palestinians have been killed and 4,066 injured while waiting for food aid distributed at sites run by the Israeli-and United States-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), the Gaza Government Media Office said on Thursday. The GHF has been a source of widespread criticism since its establishment in May. According to the…