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Netanyahu survives opposition bid to dissolve parliament

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's hard-right government survived an opposition bid to dissolve parliament on Thursday, as lawmakers rejected a bill that could have paved the way for snap elections.

Out of the Knesset's 120 members, 61 voted against the proposal, with 53 in favour.

The opposition had introduced the bill hoping to force elections with the help of ultra-Orthodox parties in the governing coalition angry at Netanyahu over the contentious issue of exemptions from military service for their community.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's (R) coalition survived an opposition-backed effort to dissolve parliament, as lawmakers rejected a bill that could have paved the way for snap elections

Iran hangs man over 2022 protest deaths, activists say conviction wrongful

Iran on Wednesday hanged a man convicted of killing seven people, including a 10-year-old boy, during nationwide protests in 2022 but human rights groups said he was the victim of a wrongful conviction.

Abbas Kurkuri, also known as Mojahed Kurkur, was hanged at dawn in Sheiban prison in the western city of Ahvaz, the Norway-based Iran Human Rights and Hengaw groups said.

Kian Pirfalak, nine, is one of at least 56 children to have been killed by the Iranian security forces in the crackdown

Trump says US personnel moved as Iran tensions mount

President Donald Trump said US personnel were being moved from the potentially "dangerous" Middle East on Wednesday as nuclear talks with Iran faltered and fears grew of a regional conflict.

Trump also reiterated that he would not allow Iran to have a nuclear weapon, amid mounting speculation that Israel could strike Tehran's facilities.

Iran threatened Wednesday to target US military bases in the region if conflict breaks out.

US President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump arrive to attend the opening night of "Les Miserables" at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC, on June 11, 2025.

Child survivor of Gaza family strike heads to Italy

An 11-year-old Palestinian boy who survived an Israeli air strike in Gaza last month, which killed his father and nine siblings, was due to arrive in Italy Wednesday for treatment.

Adam and his mother, paediatrician Alaa al-Najjar, were due to fly to Milan in northern Italy on Wednesday evening alongside his aunt and four cousins, Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said.

"Adam will arrive in Milan and will be admitted to the Niguarda (hospital), because he has multiple fractures and he will be treated there," Tajani told Rtl radio.

Smoke billows over destroyed buildings during an Israeli bombardment in Gaza on Friday

Monsoon-loving Indian expats chase rain in UAE desert

After Muhammed Sajjad moved from India to the United Arab Emirates a decade ago, he missed his native Kerala's monsoon season, so he embarked on an unlikely quest: finding rain in the desert.

Using satellite imagery, weather data and other high-tech tools, the amateur meteorologist tracks potential rainfall spots across the desert country and, along with other Indians nostalgic for the monsoon season, chases the clouds in search of rain.

Indian-born UAE estate agent Muhammed Sajjad, leads a convoy of fIndian expats nostalgic for the monsoon season, on a "rain chase" into the Emirati desert from coastal Sharjah.

War in Gaza 'hurts my whole body', says Man City boss Guardiola

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said the war in Gaza "hurts my whole body" as he delivered an emotional speech while being honoured by the University of Manchester.

Guardiola, 54, was speaking as he received an honorary doctorate from the University of Manchester on Monday.

"It's so painful what we see in Gaza, it hurts my whole body," Guardiola said in excerpts of his speech shared on social media.

"Let me be clear, it's not about ideology. It's not about whether I'm right, or you're wrong. It's just about the love of life, about the care of your neighbour."

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has been awarded an honorary degree by the University of Manchester

Two Palestinians killed as Israeli forces storm West Bank city

At least two Palestinians were killed Tuesday as Israel launched a large-scale military operation in the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, the Palestinian health ministry and the Israeli army said.

The military said troops opened fire and "eliminated" two Palestinians who had attempted to steal a soldier's weapon as the "counterterrorism operation" was underway in the old city of Nablus.

The Palestinian health ministry said authorities had been informed by Israel of the deaths of Nidal Amira, 40, and Khaled Amira, 35. It did not specify whether the two were related.

Israeli forces regularly carry out raids in the occupied West Bank that authorities say target Palestinian militants

US slams sanctions by UK, allies on far-right Israeli ministers

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio condemned the sanctions imposed Tuesday by Britain and other nations against two Israeli cabinet members accused of repeatedly inciting violence against Palestinians.

"These sanctions do not advance US-led efforts to achieve a ceasefire, bring all hostages home, and end the war" in Gaza, Rubio said in a statement.

Britain's foreign ministry earlier announced that Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir will be banned from entering the UK and will have any assets in the country frozen.

The five countries accused Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich of inciting 'extremist violence'

Israel deports Greta Thunberg after intercepting Gaza-bound aid boat

Campaigner Greta Thunberg arrived home in Sweden late Tuesday, after Israel detained her and other activists aboard a Gaza-bound aid boat and deported some.

Of the 12 activists on board the Madleen, which was carrying food and supplies for Gaza, four including Thunberg agreed to be deported immediately, while all of them have been banned from Israel for 100 years, the rights group that legally represents some of them said in a statement.

Israeli forces intercepted the Gaza-bound Madleen aid boat, operated by the Freedom Flotilla Coalition, in international waters on Monday

Trump must tell Netanyahu 'enough is enough': ex-Israeli PM

US President Donald Trump should tell Israel's leader Benjamin Netanyahu "enough is enough", a former Israeli prime minister told AFP, denouncing the continuation of the war in Gaza as a "crime" and insisting a two-state solution is the only way to end the conflict.

Ehud Olmert, prime minister between 2006-2009, said in an interview in Paris that the United States has more influence on the Israeli government "than all the other powers put together" and that Trump can "make a difference".

Former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert has teamed up with former Palestinian foreign minister Nasser Al-Qidwa