Latest news. Harris has enough votes to secure nomination. Axios: 'Biden to Netanyahu, stop escalating tensions'

Air Force planes attacked in the south of the Gaza Strip today and destroyed rocket launchers'. This was stated by the spokesman for the IDF, the Israeli armed forces, specifying that 'there were no casualties'. Ynet reports.

The government of Ecuador recognised opposition leader Edmundo González Urrutia as president-elect of Venezuela. This was reported by the Ecuadorean president, Daniel Noboa, in a note.

"One of the best decisions I ever made was to choose Kamala Harris as my vice president. Now that she will be our party's candidate, I couldn't be prouder. Let's win." This was stated on Social X by US President Joe Biden, commenting on the news that Harris had garnered enough delegate votes to officially become the Democratic Party nominee to challenge Donald Trump in the November elections.

Il presidente degli Stati Uniti Joe Biden. (Photo by ROBERTO SCHMIDT / AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has authorised Israeli negotiators to travel to Cairo, Egypt, tomorrow evening in an attempt to promote a ceasefire agreement with Hamas with the release of hostages. This was stated in a note from his office, as reported by Israeli media.

The president of Venezuela's National Electoral Council released a second election bulletin today confirming Nicolas Maduro's victory in the presidential election. The government-controlled institution states that the Chavista leader won 51.95% of the vote with almost 97% of the ballots counted.

"I am a Russian patriot, I will work for a free Russia. My aim is to return to Russia. I will never resign myself to an emigrant role'. This was said by Russian dissident Ilya Yashin when he said that an FSB security service officer told him that if he returned to the country 'your days will end like Navalny's'.

Kamala Harris says she is 'honoured' to become the Democratic nominee for the White House. The vice president won enough votes among the delegates to secure the nomination. Voting procedures are underway and will close on Monday.

Kamala Harris has already won enough votes to secure the Democratic nomination. This was said by the chairman of the Democratic National Committee, according to US media reports. The delegates started the virtual voting procedures yesterday.

"There are many people in Russia who are against the war against Ukraine. Let's not confuse Putin's regime and Russia, the Kremlin's propaganda wants to pretend that all people in our country support Putin's dictatorship and his aggressive war in Ukraine: this is a lie and don't let yourself be convinced that this Kremlin lie has at least some relation to reality'. This was said by Russian dissident Ilya Yashin, meeting the press in Berlin together with Andrei Pivovarov and Vladimir Kara-Murza, who were released yesterday in the US-Russian maxi prisoner exchange.

"We're not going to give up, we're not going to give up": so said Joe Biden to a question about the fact that another American, Prof. Marc Fogel, is still in a Russian prison and was not included in yesterday's maxi prisoner exchange. Asked what he intends to do, the president replied, "Would you like me to tell you in advance so he doesn't get out?"

Two drones hit an electricity substation in the town of Tikhoretsk, in the Russian territory of Krasnodar. Telegram reports this, citing emergency services sources, Ukrinform writes. "Two drones hit an electricity substation in Tikhoretsk, Krasnodar territory, overnight," the sources said. Following the attack, a fire broke out at the site, causing some damage, but no casualties. Witnesses at the site said they heard two explosions, but local authorities would not comment.

Western intelligence sources have spoken in recent hours of the possibility of Iran and Hezbollah choosing 'the saddest day in the Jewish calendar' to respond to Israel's series of murders: 'Tisha B'Av', or the anniversary of the 'Destruction of the Temple', which falls on 12 or 13 August. Sky News Arabia reports

During yesterday's phone call, US President Joe Biden reportedly firmly urged Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu to "stop escalating tensions in the region and move immediately towards a hostage deal and ceasefire in Gaza". Axios reports. Last night, the US president himself had stated that he was 'very concerned' about the rising tensions in the Middle East, claiming that the assassination in Iran of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh 'has not helped' the situation.

Uruguay recognises Edmundo González Urrutia as the legitimate winner of the elections in Venezuela. This was announced by the government in Montevideo. The announcement follows a similar one by Argentina.

A 'victory' for Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Donald Trump speaks thus after the historic prisoner exchange involving at least 24 people and seven countries. "As usual, it was a victory for Putin, or any other country that deals with us. But we brought somebody back, so I'll never question that," Trump told Fox Business after Wall Street Journal journalist Evan Gershkovich returned to the US. "With us it wouldn't have happened, we would have brought him back. We wouldn't have had to pay anything. We wouldn't have had to let go of some of the biggest killers in the world,' he pressed, 'and the deal is very complex. 'They make it complex so that you cannot understand how bad it is for us,' he insisted, speaking of a 'very bad precedent'. The former US president, who is aiming to return to the White House, had already intervened in recent hours on Truth, asking "are we also paying cash?" The deal also includes Vladimir Kara-Murza, a critical voice in the Kremlin, and former Marine Paul Whelan.

Vadim Krasikov, released from Germany yesterday, is an agent of the Russian security service FSB. This was made known by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. "Krasikov is an FSB employee," the presidential spokesman told reporters, adding that the man served in the secret elite unit 'Alpha'. Peskov added that Krasikov 'worked with some of the president's security people'. Krasikov was serving a life sentence in Germany for the murder of a Chechen rebel commander in a Berlin park in 2019, an assassination that German judges said was ordered by the Russian state. An earlier investigation by the investigative journalism agency Bellingcat had found that Krasikov had links to the FSB. Today, however, Moscow confirmed publicly for the first time that he was an agent of the Russian security service. Peskov added that the Russian couple released from Slovenia were also spies. Artem Dultsev and Anna Dultseva, had passed themselves off as an Argentinian couple who ran an IT company and an art gallery in Ljubljana.

The deputy prime minister and foreign minister condemned the use of force by Nicolás Maduro's regime against protesters. In a note issued by the Farnesina, Tajani expressed firm condemnation of the detention measures taken against Venezuelan citizens, including Italian-Venezuelans, and strong concern over the ongoing restrictions on press freedom in Venezuela: "We claim the right to information for local, Italian and international journalists currently in the country.

Residents of the Makassed neighbourhood in Nabatiye evacuated their homes today as a precaution after several families received text messages on their mobile phones in Arabic and Hebrew asking them to leave the area due to imminent shelling. The Lebanese daily L'Orient le Jour online reports this, citing Civil Defence sources. "For your safety and that of your family, please evacuate your home within an hour," reads the message in which the sender also warns that points of a building used by Hezbollah will be targeted. Therefore, that building has been completely evacuated, along with the adjacent ones. Located about sixty kilometres south of Beirut, Nabatiye is an important city of about 35 thousand inhabitants. (

The government of Argentina recognises opponent Edmundo González Urrutia as the elected president of Venezuela. This was reported on X by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Diana Mondino.

"We demand that Israel be held accountable for the murder of Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh, for which a day of mourning has been declared in Palestine, just as we demand that it be held accountable for the indiscriminate killing and wounding of more than 130,000 Palestinian children, women and men over the past 300 days of hell and horror in Gaza. We also demand that Israel be held accountable for its criminal policies and practices throughout our territory, and for the criminal violation of the territorial integrity and sovereignty of several countries in the area". Thus to LaPresse, the Palestinian Ambassador to Italy, Abeer Odeh.

The US is preparing to send additional fighter planes to the Middle East in response to Iran's threats of a possible attack on Israel in the coming days. This was reported by the New York Times citing sources, according to which it is not yet clear how many planes will be sent.

France has asked its compatriots travelling in Iran to leave the country "as soon as possible" due to the "aggravated" risk of military escalation between Israel and Tehran after the elimination of the Hamas leader in Iran. The French Foreign Ministry, which does not specify the number of French people potentially affected by this new recommendation, reminds that the entire Iranian territory is marked in red on the travel advice map. "French citizens are therefore strictly advised not to travel to Iran, whatever the reason," it adds.

The Saudi broadcaster Al-Hadath reports that Hezbollah is moving military equipment and command centres to a more central area of Beirut from the southern Shia district of Dahieh, former stronghold of Iran-linked Shia militiamen

Kamala Harris's campaign raised $310 million in July, more than double Donald Trump's $137 million. The maxi-raise shows a clear turnaround for the Democrats, who in recent months under Joe Biden had seen their economic advantage over the Republicans collapse. In the first week running for the White House alone, the Harris campaign had announced that it had raised 200 million.

Kamala Harris (a sinistra) insieme alla sorella Maya in una foto del 2019. REUTERS/Brian Snyder/File Photo

New sparks between Israel and Turkey. Israel's foreign minister, Israel Katz, summoned the number two of the Turkish embassy in Israel for a protest after the diplomatic representation in Tel Aviv displayed the flag at half-mast following the killing of Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran on Wednesday. "Israel will not accept demonstrations of participation in mourning for a murderer like Haniyeh," Katz said in a statement released by his office and relayed by the Times of Israel. "If embassy representatives want to participate in mourning, let them go to Turkey and do so with their master Erdogan, who embraces the Hamas terrorist organisation and supports its bloody actions.

One person died and another was injured this morning in Kherson, southern Ukraine, following a Russian drone attack: this was announced on Telegram by the head of the military administration of the region of the same name, Oleksandr Prokudin, as Ukrinform reports. "Russian troops attacked Kherson with a drone. People on the streets were hit,' the message reads. A 54-year-old man died in the attack and a 75-year-old woman was wounded in the back by shrapnel. The head of the city's military administration, Roman Mrochko, commented that the Russians continue to 'hunt down the civilian population of the community'.

Some prisoners freed by Russia and Belarus in yesterday's exchange feared for their lives. This was stated by Olaf Scholz, after meeting a group of prisoners on their arrival in Germany. A meeting described by the German Chancellor as 'moving'. Many of the prisoners 'did not expect their release to happen now. Many feared for their health and even their lives'. In his speech after welcoming the prisoners at Cologne airport, Scholz insisted that the exchange was 'the right decision, and if you had doubts, you will dispel them after talking to those who are now free'. Among the prisoners freed yesterday were US journalist Evan Gershkovich and a Russian killer imprisoned for a heinous murder in Berlin. Twelve prisoners returned to Germany, five of them with German or dual nationality. Among them is Rico Krieger, a German who had been sentenced to death in Belarus on charges of espionage before his suspended sentence was granted this week. For its part, the German government defended the decision to release the Russian hitman Vadim Krasikov, author of the assassination of a former Chechen rebel commander and a key figure for the Russians in the agreement. "We are a society founded on individual freedom and democracy," Scholz said. "And the fact that those who have to fear for their lives because they have defended democracy and freedom can also count on the protection of others is part of our image as a democratic society."

Putin's spokesman Dmitri Peskov said that the exchange of prisoners between Moscow and Western countries and the issue of negotiations to end the war between Russia and Ukraine are 'completely different' issues. This was reported by the Interfax news agency.

US President Joe Biden had no connection with yesterday's prisoner exchange between Russia and Western countries, but is now using it to try to 'pump up' his authority, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko was quoted as saying by the state media Belarus Today. Tass reports. During a meeting with residents of the Gomel region of Belarus, Lukashenko stressed that the exchange was organised exclusively by intelligence agencies, adding that diplomats were not involved either. Belarus, for its part, provided all possible assistance, he concluded.

Flags outside the Turkish embassy in Tel Aviv are at half-mast as a sign of mourning for Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the Hamas political bureau who was killed two days ago in Tehran in an attack that Iran and the Palestinian group attribute to Israel. This was reported in The Times of Israel. Ankara has declared a day of national mourning for today. Unlike its western allies, Turkey does not consider Hamas a terrorist organisation. Its militiamen are considered 'liberation fighters' by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Two people were killed by the Israeli army in the shelling of a house near the Abu Hamid roundabout in the centre of Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip. This was reported by al Jazeera, which, through a video, shows the recovery of the bodies of the victims and the transport of the wounded, including children, to the Nasser medical complex in the city.

The early release in Germany of Russian killer Vadim Krasikov as part of the prisoner exchange agreement is 'devastating news' for the victim's relatives. Through their lawyer Inga Schulz in Berlin, the relatives told Dpa: 'On the one hand we are glad that someone's life has been saved. But at the same time, we are very disappointed that there seems to be no law in the world, even in countries where the law is the highest authority'. Krasikov was released yesterday as part of a maxi prisoner exchange between Russia, Belarus and several Western countries. He was serving a life sentence for killing Zelimkhan Khangoshvili, a Chechen with Georgian citizenship, in broad daylight in a park in central Berlin in 2019 on the orders of Russian state authorities. The victim had sought protection in Germany. He had led a militia during the second Chechen war against Russia. Moscow authorities had labelled him a terrorist, holding him responsible for numerous casualties among Russian security forces.

At least four people were reportedly killed in an Israeli attack in which a house in Gaza City was hit. This was reported by Al Jazeera, citing local media. Earlier, the Palestinian Red Crescent had spoken of 'several martyrs' being pulled from the rubble of the Abu Hashem family's flat.

Eliminated in an air strike was the deputy head of an Islamic Jihad weapons production unit and head of the unit's finances in the north of the Strip, Mohammed al Jabari. This was announced by the Israeli army, explaining that Jabari was "entrusted with the production of the organisation's weapons in northern Gaza, the distribution of salaries and money to the group's terrorists, and took an active part in the attempt to restore the organisation's rocket production capabilities and infrastructure". Prior to the attack, the IDF said, the army took several precautions so that civilians would not be affected, including the use of precision weapons and intelligence information.

The United States recognises the victory in last Sunday's elections in Venezuela of opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez over outgoing President Nicolas Maduro. "Given the overwhelming evidence, it is clear to the United States and, most importantly, to the Venezuelan people that Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia won the most votes in the 28 July presidential election," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said in a note. Congratulating the former ambassador's 'campaign success', Blinken argued that 'the National Electoral Council's swift proclamation of Maduro's victory is not supported by evidence: the NEC has not yet published disaggregated data or vote count sheets, despite repeated calls from Venezuelans and the international community to do so'.

Russian air defence shot down a Ukrainian drone in the Belgorod region this morning, the Russian Defence Ministry announced on Telegram. "The Kiev regime's attempt to carry out an attack" took place at around 7:00 Moscow time (6:00 a.m. in Italy), the message further reads.

Turkey blocked access to the social network Instagram (Meta) this morning, the Turkish Information and Communication Technology Authority (Btk) announced. The authority did not explain the reasons for the decision, which came after a senior official in the country accused the US platform of censorship. Many users living in Turkey have reported on X that they are unable to update their Instagram feed. This is not the first time Ankara has blocked access to social media. Earlier last year it had done so with X following the proliferation of protests over delays in earthquake relief.

"Due to geopolitical developments in the Middle East and in order to preserve the safety of its passengers and crews, ITA Airways has decided to suspend flights to and from Tel Aviv." This is what is stated on the airline's website. The suspension for the time being is valid 'up to and including 6 August'. "The situation is constantly evolving. Please check the status of your flight in the Flight Info section of the website before going to the airport," the note further reads.

US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris welcomed journalist Evan Gershkovich and two other Americans back to US soil after being freed by Russia in a historic prisoner exchange. Gershkovich, former Marine Paul Whelan and journalist Alsu Kurmasheva were greeted by applause from their families and waiting friends as they disembarked from a plane at Andrews Base near Washington and each hugged Biden and Harris.

Russian forces' Su-35 air superiority fighter jets carried out a patrol mission 'over the neutral waters of the Black Sea to prevent the violation of Russia's sovereign airspace by foreign aircraft', the Moscow Defence Ministry announced this morning, quoted by the Tass news agency. The patrol by Russian jets comes just days after the Nato allies delivered their first US-made F-16 fighter jets to Ukraine. Yesterday, the Kremlin assured that 'these planes will be shot down, destroyed'.

Today in Doha the burial of the Hamas leader, whose funeral was held yesterday in Teheran. Hezbollah launched dozens of missiles against northern Israel from Lebanon yesterday. The killing of Haniyeh 'does not help' the situation in the Middle East, Biden commented, saying he was 'very concerned'.

Washington is convinced that Iran will attack Israel in the coming days in retaliation for the assassination of Haniyeh and is preparing to counter it, according to US officials quoted by American media.