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Trump says Israel 'very happy' with Gaza disarmament agreement

By Steve Holland

CAMP DAVID, MARYLAND July 31 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump said Friday that Israel was "very happy" with an agreement reached by his so-called Board of Peace for the complete disarmament of Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups in Gaza.

"We do have an understanding with Israel. Israel is very happy about it. Israel helped us, and they've been very good," Trump said. "Will it go through its ups and downs? It's a very complex situation over there."

U.S. President Donald Trump gestures as he participates in a cabinet meeting at Camp David in Thurmont, Maryland, U.S., July 31, 2026. REUTERS/Daniel Heuer

Israeli military cracks down on West Bank village as settlers march in

By Pesha Magid

TAL, West Bank, July 31 (Reuters) - Israeli forces shot and wounded at least one Palestinian, arrested at least three, and closed entrances to the village of Tal in the occupied West Bank on Friday as more than 100 Israeli settlers marched towards the village, residents said.

Israeli settlers approach the Palestinian village of Tal in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, July 31, 2026. REUTERS/Ammar Awad

Factbox-Where Trump, Israel and Hamas stand on Gaza roadmap

July 31 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump has announced what he described as a breakthrough agreement to end the Gaza war, but major gaps remain over how any deal would be implemented.

The central dispute is over sequencing. Hamas says Israel must first meet commitments under the ceasefire agreement reached last year in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, while Israel says Hamas must first undergo what it calls genuine disarmament.

Previous diplomatic efforts have repeatedly collapsed over the issue, with each side insisting the other must take the first substantive step.

FILE PHOTO: U.S. President Donald Trump points his finger towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a press conference after meeting at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, U.S., December 29, 2025. REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst/File Photo

Britain asks Cyprus to extradite man suspected of spying for Iran

By Muvija M and Michele Kambas

LONDON/NICOSIA, July 31 (Reuters) - Britain has asked Cyprus to extradite a dual British-Azerbaijani national suspected of spying on a British air base on the Mediterranean island and passing his findings to Iran's Revolutionary Guards, London police said on Friday.

Rashad Sultanov, 44, from Islington in north London, is being held in custody by Cypriot authorities as extradition proceedings progress, the Metropolitan Police said in a statement.

FILE PHOTO: A  truck exits RAF Akrotiri, a British sovereign base in Cyprus, March 24, 2026. REUTERS/Yiannis Kourtoglou/File Photo

Palestinian shot during settler march through West Bank towns

One Palestinian was shot and wounded during an Israeli settler march through several West Bank Palestinian towns Friday that sparked clashes with locals, first responders, the army and an AFP journalist said.

"Our crews in Nablus are treating a young man who was shot with live ammunition in the abdomen during an Israeli army and settler raid on the al-Junaid area," the Palestinian Red Crescent said.

Italy minister rejects opposition criticism of Saudi troop deployment

ROME, July 31 (Reuters) - Italy's defense minister on Friday rejected opposition criticism over the deployment of troops and military assets to the Gulf region, saying the mission's framework had been fully disclosed to parliament.

According to the defense ministry's website, around 400 Italian air force personnel have been deployed to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Bahrain since March, after Tehran had targeted those nations in the wake of U.S and Israeli strikes on Iran.

FILE PHOTO: Italy's Defence Minister Guido Crosetto addresses the Parliament, saying the country will send a second navy ship to escort the Global Sumud Flotilla heading to Gaza trying to deliver supplies, in Rome, Italy, September 25, 2025. REUTERS/Remo Casilli/File Photo

UK singer Boy George pulls out of musical after pro-Israel song backlash

British singer Boy George pulled out of a West End production of the musical "Jesus Christ Superstar" after facing a backlash for releasing a pro-Israel song, "We Will Dance Again".

The 65-year-old musician "will no longer be appearing in Jesus Christ Superstar at the London Palladium", his manager Paul Kemsley said on social media.

The singer, whose real name is George Alan O'Dowd, rose to fame in the 1980s as the flamboyant singer of the pop band Culture Club.

British musician Boy George and Italian singer Senhit Zadik Zadik represented San Marino in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026 in May

Trump says deal reached to disarm Hamas, Israeli support for plan remains uncertain

By Nidal al-Mughrabi, Steve Holland, Bo Erickson and Kanishka Singh

CAIRO/WASHINGTON, July 30 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said talks in Cairo between mediators and Hamas leaders on Thursday have led to a phased disarmament agreement in Gaza, but a Hamas official described the deal as a draft and U.S. officials said Israel was skeptical the militant Palestinian group would surrender its weapons.

A Palestinian man inspects the site of Wednesday's Israeli strike on a house whose residents were pre-warned by the Israeli military to evacuate, in Gaza City, July 30, 2026. REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas