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Lebanon’s Hezbollah says it launched rocket targeting Mossad base near Tel Aviv

Warning sirens sounded in Israel’s economic capital Tel Aviv as a single surface-to-surface missile was intercepted by air defence systems after it was detected crossing from Lebanon,

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Lebanon’s Hezbollah said on Wednesday it fired a rocket targeting Mossad spy agency headquarters near Tel Aviv, which it blamed for the assassination of its leaders and for blowing up communications devices used by its members, in a new escalation that moved the arch-foes closer to full-fledged war.

Warning sirens sounded in Israel’s economic capital Tel Aviv as a single surface-to-surface missile was intercepted by air defence systems after it was detected crossing from Lebanon, the Israeli military said.

There were no reports of damage or casualties and the military said there was no change to civil defence instructions for central Israel, Reuters reported.

Warning sirens also sounded in other areas of central Israel, including the city of Netanya.

The Israeli military said a drone crossing into Israeli territory from Syria was intercepted by fighter jets south of the Sea of Galilee.

The Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement in Lebanon fired hundreds of missiles and rockets at Israel in recent days as months of conflict across the border with southern Lebanon has intensified sharply.

The Israeli military has been conducting its heaviest air strikes of the war this week, targeting Hezbollah leaders and hitting hundreds of targets deep inside Lebanon.

On Tuesday, a strike in Beirut killed senior Hezbollah commander Ibrahim Qubaisi, who headed the group’s missile and rocket force.

He is one of several key figures who have been assassinated since fighting broke out between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah nearly a year ago in parallel with the Gaza war.

Lebanon ‘at the brink’

Israel’s offensive since Monday morning has killed 569 people, including 50 children, and wounded 1,835 in Lebanon, Health Minister Firass Abiad told Al Jazeera Mubasher TV.

A new offensive against Hezbollah has stoked fears that conflict between Israel and the militant Palestinian group Hamas in Gaza is widening and could destabilize the Middle East.

The U.N. Security Council said it would meet on Wednesday to discuss the conflict.

“Lebanon is at the brink. The people of Lebanon – the people of Israel – and the people of the world – cannot afford Lebanon to become another Gaza,” U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres said.

Half a million people are estimated to have been displaced in Lebanon, said Lebanon’s Foreign Minister Abdallah Bou Habib. He said Lebanon’s prime minister hoped to meet with U.S. officials over the next two days.

In Beirut, thousands of displaced people who fled from southern Lebanon were sheltering in schools and other buildings.

Israel’s military said its airforce conducted “extensive strikes” on Tuesday on Hezbollah targets across southern Lebanon, including weapons storage facilities and dozens of launchers that were aimed at Israeli territory, Reuters reported.

Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said the attacks had weakened Hezbollah and would continue. Hezbollah “has suffered a sequence of blows to its command and control, its fighters, and the means to fight. These are all severe blows,” he told Israeli troops.

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China to buy at least $17 billion in US agricultural products annually, White House says

The $17 billion figure does not ​include the soybean purchase commitments China made in October ⁠2025, the White House said.

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China has committed to purchasing at least $17 billion of U.S. agricultural ​products in 2026, 2027 and 2028, the White House ‌said in a fact sheet released on Sunday.

The commitment was made during meetings between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping last ​week, the White House said.

The $17 billion figure does not ​include the soybean purchase commitments China made in October ⁠2025, the White House said.

There has been a marked reduction ​in U.S. agricultural exports to China after last year’s rounds of ​tit-for-tat tariffs sharply curtailed trade, which fell 65.7% year-on-year to $8.4 billion in 2025, according to U.S. Department of Agriculture data.

China has dramatically scaled back its ​reliance on U.S. farm goods since Trump’s first term, sourcing ​roughly 20% of its soybeans from the U.S. in 2024, the year before ‌he ⁠returned to office, down from 41% in 2016.

China will work with U.S. regulators to lift suspensions of U.S. beef facilities and resume imports of poultry from U.S. states determined to be ​free of avian ​influenza, the ⁠White House said.

Confirming earlier statements from the Chinese government, the White House also said on Sunday the ​world’s two largest economies would establish a U.S.-China ​Board of ⁠Trade and the U.S.-China Board of Investment.

The boards will resolve concerns over market access for agricultural products and expand trade “under a ⁠reciprocal ​tariff-reduction framework,” Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi ​said in a statement last week.

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Trump returns from China with stability but little progress

While the meeting produced a calmer tone and modest commercial agreements, key disputes over trade, technology and regional influence remain largely unsettled.

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US President Donald Trump’s visit to Beijing this week ended with limited economic agreements and no major breakthroughs, highlighting the continued strategic and economic rivalry between the United States and China.

The two-day summit between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping reflected a shift away from last year’s intense trade war toward a more stable — but unresolved — relationship between the world’s two largest economies.

While the meeting produced a calmer tone and modest commercial agreements, key disputes over trade, technology and regional influence remain largely unsettled.

Analysts said China appeared to benefit from the return to more predictable relations after the sharp tensions triggered by Trump’s “Liberation Day” tariffs in early 2025. Beijing and Washington later reached a temporary trade truce, but both countries continue to compete strategically and economically.

Reuters reported that Scott Kennedy, a China expert at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, said the summit marked a return to stability after months of severe tariff escalation.

Trump travelled to Beijing with several leading American business figures, including Elon Musk of Tesla and Jensen Huang of Nvidia, although few major commercial outcomes were announced publicly.

The summit also failed to secure any public Chinese commitment to assist Washington in ending the war involving Iran, an issue that has affected global markets and weighed on Trump’s domestic approval ratings.

A White House official said Trump used his relationship with Xi to secure benefits for the American economy, pointing to reported agreements involving Boeing aircraft sales and expanded agricultural exports.

Chinese officials described the talks as “constructive and strategic,” saying both sides discussed how major powers should manage relations amid long-term competition.

Despite the improved atmosphere, longstanding U.S. concerns — including China’s industrial overcapacity and trade practices — were not publicly addressed during the visit.

The summit’s commercial results also fell short of Trump’s 2017 China visit, when agreements worth around $250 billion were announced.

Although Trump claimed Boeing secured a deal for China to purchase 200 aircraft, the figure was reportedly lower than earlier expectations of up to 500 jets.

No breakthrough was reached on allowing China to purchase advanced artificial intelligence chips from Nvidia, an issue closely watched by lawmakers in Washington concerned about China’s technological development.

Officials said some additional commercial agreements could be delayed until a possible reciprocal visit by Xi to Washington later this year.

Experts said the summit demonstrated that both countries are increasingly accepting long-term competition rather than seeking a return to closer cooperation.

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Large blast near Beit Shemesh part of pre-planned test: Israeli defense firm

The company said the blast was a “pre-planned experiment” that was carried out according to schedule.

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A large explosion near the central Israeli city of Beit Shemesh late Saturday was part of a pre-planned and controlled test, according to a statement by state-owned Tomer defense company that was cited by The Times of Israel.

Videos on social media showed flames and a large plume of smoke rising from the area following the blast, which was heard in nearby communities.

The Times of Israel said the explosion occurred at a testing ground belonging to Tomer, a company that develops rocket and missile engines.

The company said the blast was a “pre-planned experiment” that was carried out according to schedule.

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