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Trump warns Iran of possible strike, urges Hamas to disarm after meeting Netanyahu

Israel has indicated that if Hamas is not disarmed peacefully, it will resume military action to make it do so.

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U.S. President Donald Trump said on Monday the United States could support another major strike on Iran were it to resume rebuilding its ballistic missile or nuclear weapons programs and warned Hamas of severe consequences if it does not disarm, Reuters reported.

Speaking beside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following a meeting at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, Trump suggested Tehran may be working to restore its weapons programs after a massive U.S. strike in June.

“I’ve been reading that they’re building up weapons and other things, and if they are, they’re not using the sites we obliterated, but possibly different sites,” Trump told reporters during a press conference.

“We know exactly where they’re going, what they’re doing, and I hope they’re not doing it because we don’t want to waste fuel on a B-2,” he added, referring to the bomber used in the earlier strike. “It’s a 37-hour trip both ways. I don’t want to waste a lot of fuel.”

Trump, who has broached a potential nuclear deal with Tehran in recent months, said his talks with Netanyahu focused on advancing the fragile Gaza peace deal he brokered and addressing Israeli concerns over Iran and over Hezbollah in Lebanon.

Iran, which fought a 12-day war with Israel in June, said last week that it had conducted missile exercises for the second time this month.

Netanyahu said last week that Israel was not seeking a confrontation with Iran, but was aware of the reports, and said he would raise Tehran’s activities with Trump, read the report.

Trump said he wanted to move to the second phase of the ceasefire deal between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas reached in October after two years of fighting in Gaza, a progression that entails international peacekeeping forces deployed in the Palestinian enclave.

Israel and Hamas accuse each other of major breaches of the deal and look no closer to accepting the much more difficult steps envisaged for the next phase. Hamas, which has refused to disarm, has been reasserting its control as Israeli troops remain entrenched in about half the territory.

Israel has indicated that if Hamas is not disarmed peacefully, it will resume military action to make it do so.

During his Monday comments, Trump heaped the blame on the militant group for not disarming more promptly, arguing that Israel had lived up to its side of the deal and warning that Hamas was inviting grave consequences, Reuters reported.

“There will be hell to pay,” Trump warned when asked what he will do if Hamas does not lay down its arms. He has made similar statements at previous intervals during the fighting.

Netanyahu said this month that Trump had invited him for the talks, as Washington pushes to establish transitional governance for the Palestinian enclave amid Israeli reluctance to move forward.

The deployment of the international security force was mandated by a November 17 U.N. Security Council resolution.

While Washington has brokered three ceasefires involving its longtime ally – between Israel and Hamas, Israel and Iran, and Israel and Lebanon – Netanyahu is wary of Israel’s foes rebuilding their forces after they were considerably weakened in multiple wars.

Overall, Trump’s comments suggested he remains firmly in Netanyahu’s camp, even as some aides have privately questioned the Israeli leader’s commitment to the Gaza ceasefire. His comments also suggested he is willing to risk additional hostilities related to Gaza and Iran, even as Trump has taken credit for resolving Israel’s wars in both places.

Trump struck a warm tone as he greeted Netanyahu before their meeting, going so far as to say that Israeli President Isaac Herzog had told him he planned to pardon Netanyahu of corruption-related charges – a conversation Herzog’s office immediately denied took place.

Netanyahu reciprocated, telling reporters after the meeting that he was gifting Trump the country’s Israel Prize, which he said has historically been reserved for Israelis.

Trump’s plan to end the Gaza war ultimately calls for Israel to withdraw from the Palestinian territory and Hamas to give up its weapons and forgo a governing role.

The first phase of the ceasefire included a partial Israeli withdrawal, an increase in aid and the exchange of hostages for Palestinian detainees and prisoners.

An Israeli official in Netanyahu’s circle said that the prime minister would demand that the first phase of the ceasefire be completed by Hamas returning the remains of the last Israeli hostage left in Gaza, before moving ahead to the next stages. The family of the deceased hostage, Ran Gvili, joined the prime minister’s visiting entourage.

Israel has yet to open the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, also a condition of Trump’s plan, saying it will only do so once Gvili’s remains are returned.

Trump said that he and Netanyahu did not agree fully on the issue of the Israeli-occupied West Bank but the Republican leader did not lay out what the disagreement was.

Before the meeting, Trump told reporters he would talk to Netanyahu about the possibility of stationing Turkish peacekeepers in Gaza. That is a fraught subject – while Trump has frequently praised Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan, Israel and Turkey have a much more circumspect relationship, read the report.

While the fighting in Gaza has abated, it has not stopped entirely. Although the ceasefire officially began in October, Israeli strikes have killed more than 400 Palestinians — most of them civilians, according to Gaza health officials — and Palestinian militants have killed three Israeli soldiers.

Netanyahu said on Monday that Israel was keen to ensure a peaceful border with Syria, and Trump said he was sure Israel would get along with President Ahmed al-Sharaa, who took power after longtime strongman Bashar al-Assad was deposed last year.

But Israel has been suspicious of the new leader, who was once a member of al-Qaeda, going so far as to bomb government buildings in Damascus this July.

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Three killed, two injured in shooting at Idaho shopping center

Authorities said at least two other people were wounded and transported for medical treatment. Their conditions were not immediately released.

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Three people, including the suspected gunman, were killed and at least two others were injured after a shooting at a busy shopping area in Twin Falls, Idaho, on Saturday, local authorities said.

The incident occurred at around 2:30 p.m. local time near an In-N-Out Burger restaurant in a high-traffic commercial district, according to Josh Palmer, the city’s public information coordinator.

Twin Falls Police Chief Matthew Hicks said the suspected shooter was among the dead and confirmed that the threat to the community had been eliminated.

“At this point, the shooter is no longer a threat,” Hicks told reporters, adding that investigators are working to identify the suspect and determine a motive for the attack.

Authorities said at least two other people were wounded and transported for medical treatment. Their conditions were not immediately released.

Following the shooting, the Twin Falls Police Department temporarily closed roads surrounding the scene, including a nearby bridge, as officers secured the area and launched an investigation.

Twin Falls, with a population of about 47,400, is located in Idaho’s Magic Valley region.

Police have not yet released additional details about the victims or the circumstances surrounding the shooting, and the investigation remains ongoing.

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Saar: Trade shifts from Pakistan to Central Asia and Iran discussed

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US to make visa bond program permanent for people from dozens of countries

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The U.S. State Department will make permanent a visa bond program ‌that could require applicants from 50 countries, mostly from Africa, to post bonds of up to $20,000 when seeking U.S. visas, according to a federal noticeposted online on Friday.

The Federal Register notice applies ​to B1 and B2 visas, which are issued for business and tourism ​travel.

“Consular officers may require covered nonimmigrant visa applicants to post ⁠a bond of up to $20,000 as a condition of visa issuance, as determined ​by the consular officers,” the notice said.

“The 2025 visa bond pilot, which provided a ​framework for the Department of State, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Department of the Treasury to assess the feasibility of administering a visa bond program, has provided sufficient ​data to suggest that a visa bond program is an effective tool for ​enforcing compliance among bonded visa holders.”

In the pilot program, consular officers could require bonds of $5,000, $10,000 or up ‌to $15,000. ⁠The final rule eliminates the $5,000 option and raises the maximum bond to $20,000.

The final rule goes into effect on August 3 when it is scheduled for publication in the Federal Register. In the list of 50 countries for whose citizens this program applies, ​30 are from ​Africa.

U.S. officials say the ⁠policy is intended to reduce visa overstays. Immigration advocates argue it will deter legitimate travel to the United States.

Rights advocates say ​President Donald Trump’s aggressive immigration crackdown violates free speech and due ​process, while creating ⁠an unsafe environment for ethnic minorities and encouraging racial profiling. Trump has defended the measures as necessary to bolster national security.

While Trump says he wants to curb illegal immigration, his ⁠administration ​has made legal immigration more difficult, for example, ​by imposing new and expensive fees for applicants of certain visas and by enforcing social media vetting for applicants ​and immigrants already in the country.

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