World
Reuters and AP journalists killed in Gaza strike were not ‘a target,’ an Israeli military spokesperson says
Israeli forces struck Nasser hospital in the south of the Gaza Strip on Monday, killing at least 20 people including journalists who worked for Reuters, the Associated Press, Al Jazeera and other outlets.
Two journalists for Reuters and the Associated Press who were killed in an Israeli attack on a Gaza hospital were not “a target of the strike,” a military spokesperson told Reuters on Tuesday, adding the army chief had ordered a further inquiry into how the decision to strike the hospital was made, Reuters reported.
Israeli forces struck Nasser hospital in the south of the Gaza Strip on Monday, killing at least 20 people including journalists who worked for Reuters, the Associated Press, Al Jazeera and other outlets.
“We can confirm that the Reuters and AP journalists were not a target of the strike,” military spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani told Reuters on Tuesday. Three other journalists were also killed in the strike.
Using its own camera equipment, Reuters has frequently broadcast a feed from Nasser hospital during the Gaza war. For the past several weeks the news agency had been delivering daily feeds from the hospital position that was hit.
At the moment of the initial Israeli strike on Monday, the Reuters live video feed, which cameraman Hussam al-Masri had been operating, suddenly shut down. Masri was killed in the attack.
None of the five journalists were among the six alleged Palestinian militant targets that the Israeli military named in a written statement, released on Tuesday. The statement included photos of six individuals who were killed, including alleged members of Hamas and Islamic Jihad, read the report.
“At the same time, the Chief of the General Staff regrets any harm caused to civilians,” the statement said, adding that the Israeli military directs its activities solely toward military targets.
The written Israeli military statement identified what it called “several gaps” that Israel’s Chief of the General Staff had instructed be further examined:
“Firstly, a further examination of the authorization process prior to the strike, including the ammunition approved for the strike and the timing of the authorization.
“Secondly, an examination of the decision-making process in the field.”
In a statement issued later on Tuesday, Hamas challenged the Israeli account of the hospital casualties, denying that any of the Palestinians killed were militants, Reuters reported.
The Hamas government media office said in a statement that one of the six Palestinians who Israel alleged were militants was killed in al-Mawasi some distance from the hospital, and another was killed elsewhere at a different time.
The Hamas statement did not clarify whether the two men were civilians or fighters.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said on Monday that Israel deeply regretted what he called a “tragic mishap.”
In a letter to Israeli officials on Monday, Reuters and AP wrote: “These journalists were present in their professional capacity, doing critical work bearing witness. Their work is especially vital in light of Israel’s nearly two-year ban on foreign journalists entering Gaza.”
“We hope this probe will be quick, thorough and provide clear answers. These deaths demand urgent and transparent accountability,” said the letter.
Besides Masri, who worked on contract for Reuters for the past year, the journalists killed also included Mariam Abu Dagga, who freelanced for the Associated Press and other outlets, Mohammed Salama, who worked for Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera, Moaz Abu Taha, a freelance journalist who worked with several news organizations including occasionally contributing to Reuters, and Ahmed Abu Aziz, a journalist for Middle East Eye.
Photographer Hatem Khaled, also a Reuters contractor, was wounded.
The written military statement said troops had identified a camera “positioned by Hamas” in the area of the hospital to observe the activity of Israeli troops in order to direct terrorist activities against them.
It said the troops acted to remove the threat by striking and dismantling the camera.
Reuters and other news providers often deliver live video feeds to media outlets worldwide during major news events to show the scene from the ground in real time.
World
Trump says Iran “should wave the white flag of surrender”
When asked what Iran would need to do to violate the ceasefire, Trump said: “Well, you’ll find out, because I’ll let you know … They know what not to do.”
President Donald Trump on Tuesday dismissed Iran’s military capability and said Tehran “should wave the white flag of surrender” but is too proud to do so, Reuters reported.
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office that Iran’s military has been reduced to firing “peashooters” and that Tehran privately wants to make a deal despite its public sabre-rattling.
“They play games, but let me just tell you, they want to make a deal. And who wouldn’t, when your military is totally gone?” he said.
Trump heaped praise on the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports in the region. “It’s like a piece of steel. Nobody’s going to challenge the blockade. And I think it’s working out very well,” he said, read the report.
When asked what Iran would need to do to violate the ceasefire, Trump said: “Well, you’ll find out, because I’ll let you know … They know what not to do.”
Trump said Iran “should save the white flag of surrender.”
“If this were a fight, they’d stop it,” said Trump.
World
Secret Service says it exchanged gunfire with armed suspect near White House
The suspect was not on the White House property, Quinn said.
The U.S. Secret Service said on Monday its officers confronted an armed and “suspicious individual” near the White House who later fired at them before fleeing on foot and being shot by law enforcement, Reuters reported.
The incident led to a brief lockdown at the White House.
Agents patrolling the outer perimeter of the White House complex identified a person who Secret Service Deputy Director Matthew Quinn said was a “suspicious individual that appeared to have a firearm.”
He briefly fled on foot after being approached by Secret Service officers and fired in their direction, Quinn said at a press conference.
Secret Service then fired at the suspect who was hit and subsequently hospitalized, Quinn added.
Vice President JD Vance’s motorcade transited through the area “not long before” the incident, Quinn said. There was no indication that the suspect intended to approach Vance’s motorcade, the Secret Service deputy director said.
A juvenile bystander was hit by the suspect but did not receive any life-threatening injuries and was being treated at a hospital, Quinn added.
Agents observed “visual print of a firearm” in considering the individual’s behavior as suspicious when he was spotted, Quinn told reporters.
The suspect was not on the White House property, Quinn said.
Law enforcement have been on alert in recent days in the U.S. capital following a shooting at the White House Correspondents’ Association Dinner late last month over which a man has been arrested, read the report.
Quinn was asked if Monday’s incident was linked to “other recent attempts” on President Donald Trump’s life. Trump was in the White House when this incident unfolded.
“Whether or not it was directed to the president or not, I don’t know but we will find out,” Quinn said.
The Secret Service deputy director confirmed that a weapon was recovered from the suspect but did not elaborate.
The Secret Service said earlier its personnel were on the scene of the officer-involved shooting at 15th Street and Independence Avenue in Washington, D.C.
The DC Police Department was handling the probe.
World
Trump says US could restart Iran strikes ‘if they misbehave’
Iran has been blocking nearly all shipping from the Gulf apart from its own for more than two months. Last month, the U.S. imposed its own blockade of ships from Iranian ports.
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Saturday he had been told about the concept of a deal with Iran, but was waiting for the exact wording, while warning there was still the possibility of restarting strikes on the country if Tehran misbehaves, Reuters reported.
A senior Iranian official said on Saturday that an Iranian proposal so far rejected by Trump would open shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and end the U.S. blockade of Iran while leaving talks on Iran’s nuclear program for later.
When asked about Iran’s proposal before boarding a flight to Miami at West Palm Beach, Florida, Trump replied: “They told me about the concept of the deal. They’re going to give me the exact wording now.”
He added on his social media channel that he could not imagine the proposals would be acceptable and that Iran had not paid a big enough price for what it had done.
Asked if he might restart strikes on Iran, Trump replied: “I don’t want to say that. I mean, I can’t tell that to a reporter. If they misbehave, if they do something bad, right now we’ll see. But it’s a possibility that could happen.”
Trump has said repeatedly that Iran can never have a nuclear weapon and said on Friday he was not satisfied with the latest Iranian proposal, while Iran’s foreign minister said Tehran was ready for diplomacy if the U.S. changes its approach, read the report.
Reuters and other news organizations reported over the past week that Tehran was proposing to reopen the strait before nuclear issues were resolved. The official confirmed that this new timeline had now been spelled out in a formal proposal conveyed to the United States through mediators.
Trump also said on Friday that “on a human basis,” he did not prefer the military course of action and told congressional leaders he did not need their permission to extend the war beyond a deadline set by law for that day because the ceasefire had “terminated” hostilities.
While saying repeatedly he is in no hurry, Trump is under domestic pressure to break Iran’s hold on the strait, which has choked off 20% of the world’s oil and gas supplies and pushed up U.S. gasoline prices. Trump’s Republican Party faces the risk of a voter backlash over higher prices when the country votes in midterm congressional elections in November.
Iranian media said Tehran’s 14-point proposal included the withdrawal of U.S. forces from areas surrounding Iran, lifting the blockade, releasing Iran’s frozen assets, payment of compensation, lifting sanctions and ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon, as well as a new control mechanism for the strait.
The United States and Israel suspended their bombing campaign against Iran four weeks ago, but appear no closer to a deal to end a war that has caused the biggest disruption ever to global energy supplies, roiled global markets and raised worries about the possibility of a wider global economic downturn.
Iran has been blocking nearly all shipping from the Gulf apart from its own for more than two months. Last month, the U.S. imposed its own blockade of ships from Iranian ports.
Washington has repeatedly said it will not end the war, which has led to the deaths of thousands of people, without a deal that prevents Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, the primary aim Trump cited when he launched strikes in February in the midst of nuclear talks. Iran says its nuclear program is peaceful.
Speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss confidential diplomacy, the senior Iranian official said Tehran believed its latest proposal to shelve nuclear talks for a later stage was a significant shift aimed at facilitating an agreement, Reuters reported.
Under the proposal, the war would end with a guarantee that Israel and the United States would not attack again. Iran would open the strait, and the United States would lift its blockade.
Future talks would then be held on curbs to Iran’s nuclear program in return for the lifting of sanctions, with Iran demanding Washington recognize its right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes, even if it agrees to suspend its nuclear program.
“Under this framework, negotiations over the more complicated nuclear issue have been moved to the final stage to create a more conducive atmosphere,” the official said.
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