Iran, Beijing: ‘Sanctions are illegal’. US offers a 10 million bounty on the head of the Pasdaran and its top commanders

Israeli raids on Hamas weapons caches located inside mosques and near certain healthcare facilities. This is according to a statement issued by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) on Telegram. Yesterday, the IDF emphasised that the Israeli army and the Shin Bet “struck and dismantled five Hamas weapons depots and a Hamas launch site as part of several attacks carried out in various areas of the Gaza Strip. In these facilities, Hamas was storing rockets, weapons, explosive devices, grenades, ammunition and other military equipment, with the aim of carrying out terrorist attacks against IDF troops in the Gaza Strip’. These storage facilities, Tsahal claims, ‘had been set up inside mosques and alongside humanitarian infrastructure in the Gaza Strip. According to the IDF, this is yet another example of Hamas’s systematic exploitation of the civilian population and infrastructure, including mosques and humanitarian facilities, in violation of international law.”

The US State Department is preparing to return US diplomats to embassies in the Middle East that had been evacuated before and during the conflict with Iran, which began with the operations launched on 28 February by the US and Israel against the Islamic Republic – to which Tehran has not failed to ‘respond’. This is reported by the New York Times, based on an internal State Department document and information obtained from three US officials, emphasising that the decision suggests the Trump Administration does not anticipate a return to large-scale hostilities. According to the document seen by the newspaper, the return of diplomatic service officials and the scaling back of emergency measures adopted at US missions in the Middle East could begin as early as this week; among the embassies where higher staffing levels are expected to be restored are those in Israel, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan, Oman, Iraq and Kuwait.

“Iran, now on the brink of collapse, is failing to pay large sections of its armed forces and is killing protesters – even when they are not protesting – on an unprecedented scale. This is a humanitarian crisis of enormous proportions that must be stopped, now.” Donald Trump made this statement on his social media platform, Truth.

“The US sanctions against Iran are unilateral, and we support mediation efforts aimed at resolving the crisis.” This was stated by the spokesperson for the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Majid Al-Ansari, as quoted by Al Jazeera. “The situation in the Strait of Hormuz should return to how it was before the crisis, and we emphasise the need for freedom of navigation.” The spokesperson went on to add that “if Israel wishes to become an integral part of the region, it must fulfil its obligations”. Meanwhile, Doha rejects “Iran’s attempt to involve countries in the region whenever it is attacked by a third party”.

The Israeli Air Force has stated that yesterday, five Hamas weapons depots located inside mosques and near humanitarian aid centres, as well as a rocket launch site, were bombed in the Gaza Strip. According to the Israeli Defence Forces, the weapons depots were being used to store rockets, weapons, explosives and other military equipment used by Hamas to launch attacks against troops.

“These depots have been set up inside mosques and next to humanitarian facilities in the Gaza Strip,” the army says.

One year on from the bombing of Nasser Hospital, which claimed the lives of 22 people, including five journalists, in the south of the Gaza Strip, an Israeli soldier has told several international media outlets how the Israeli army uses so-called “retroactive incrimination” to link the victims of an attack to Hamas.

Immediately after the attack, the Israeli authorities said that the target was a camera, suspected of belonging to Hamas, situated on the roof of the hospital. Among the journalists killed were the Reuters cameraman, Hussam al-Masri, and the video journalist Mariam Dagga, who worked for the Associated Press and other news organisations. Despite repeated requests from the Associated Press, the army has not provided any details regarding the investigation into the circumstances of the attack, nor has it given a timeframe for its completion.

“China has repeatedly made clear its firm opposition to illegal unilateral sanctions, which have no basis in international law and have not been authorised by the United Nations Security Council.” This was stated by Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian during a press briefing, in response to the warning issued yesterday by US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, in which he urged countries to sever all financial ties with Iran or face exclusion from the US dollar system. “Economic warfare and maximum pressure tactics do not help resolve problems and will only further fuel conflicts, trigger knock-on effects, disrupt the global economic and financial order, and harm the rights and interests of other countries,” added Lin, “The top priority is to ease tensions and return to the path of dialogue and negotiation as soon as possible. China will take the necessary measures to resolutely safeguard its legitimate rights and interests.” This was reported by the Global Times.

An Airbus A310 aircraft operated by Taban Airlines, en route from Istanbul to Tehran, declared an emergency whilst flying over Turkey. This is according to Flightradar24. The aircraft transmitted the emergency code 7700 whilst descending near Ankara, indicating a possible deviation from its planned route. The nature of the emergency has not been clarified.

12.2 per cent of children in Gaza are found to be suffering from chronic malnutrition. This is the finding of a new population-based nutritional survey, carried out in accessible areas of the Strip, which reveals a complex nutritional picture: relatively low levels of acute malnutrition amongst children, worrying rates of chronic malnutrition (stunted growth), maternal malnutrition, very poor dietary quality, inadequate feeding practices for infants and young children, and a significant impact of childhood illnesses. “Acute malnutrition amongst children under five was found to be low,” explains UNICEF. Chronic malnutrition, or stunting (an indicator of impaired linear growth that reflects nutritional and health conditions accumulated over time), affected 12.2 per cent of children under five. Overweight affected 4.0 per cent. The co-occurrence of stunting, wasting and overweight within the same population indicates poor dietary quality rather than simply a matter of food quantity: 73.0 per cent of children aged between 6 and 23 months had consumed unhealthy foods the previous day, and only 22.4 per cent had a minimally acceptable diet. Around 37.1 per cent of children under the age of five had suffered from diarrhoea in the two weeks prior to the survey. Maternal malnutrition was also documented amongst girls and women aged between 15 and 49 years.” The survey was conducted between 31 May and 15 June this year, following a substantial increase in humanitarian aid after the ceasefire in October 2025. In the months leading up to the ceasefire, including August 2025, when the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC) confirmed a state of famine in Gaza, severe access restrictions and supply disruptions meant that general supplementary feeding – one of the main means of preventing acute malnutrition – had been largely suspended across Gaza. Some programmes aimed at identifying and treating malnutrition continued to operate, but the supplies and access needed to prevent children from becoming malnourished in the first place were not reaching them. Following the ceasefire, the resumption of aid and commercial traffic meant that, whilst hospital admissions for the treatment of acute malnutrition had peaked at nearly 17,000 children in August 2025, by March 2026 they had fallen to fewer than 3,000. “The nutritional situation of children,” says Edouard Beigbeder, UNICEF’s Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, “improves when aid and commercial supplies reach them and deteriorates just as quickly when they do not. The improvements we are seeing are fragile and depend on sustained humanitarian access, adequate funding and functioning commercial markets. Without these, progress could be undone within a matter of months, and it will once again be children who pay the highest price. “Acute malnutrition can improve within a matter of weeks. The wider damage, however, cannot,” concludes Beigbeder. “Children need safe drinking water, healthcare and a varied, nutritious diet – not just enough calories to survive.”

The United States has offered a $10 million reward for the military leaders of the Pasdaran: “These individuals are in charge of units that have targeted US personnel with attacks and US critical infrastructure with cyber operations. Help us counter these threats. Submit a tip-off today,” reads the State Department’s announcement on X, addressed to “anyone who can provide information”, featuring photos of the head of the Pasdaran, Ahmed Vahidi, commander Ali Abdollahi, the head of aerospace and drone forces, Said Aghajani, the head of cyber warfare, Hamidreza Lashgarian, and the head of intelligence, Majid Khademi.

The Secretary-General of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO), Arsenio Dominguez, has called for the “immediate and unconditional” release of the more than 90 seafarers being held hostage following the recent acts of piracy in the Gulf of Aden.

“Navigational difficulties are on the rise due to the recent increase in incidents of piracy in the Gulf of Aden. With the latest hijacking, a sixth ship is now in the hands of pirates and armed robbers in waters that are becoming far too dangerous for seafarers,” said Dominguez, adding in a statement that “over 90 innocent seafarers are currently being held captive, their lives under constant uncertainty and threat, often with limited access to adequate food, drinking water, medical care and other essential services”.

‘Economic D-Day’ – the sanctions war that the United States intends to unleash to ‘isolate Iran through unprecedented measures’ – has rapidly become – as was evident yesterday in statements by the US administration – a threat to countries that do business with the Tehran regime, buy Iranian oil and ultimately prop up the ayatollahs’ economy. First and foremost is China, which has been the main buyer of Iranian oil for years. But also India and Turkey. And then there are Russia, the United Arab Emirates and Pakistan.

Scott Bessent, during a press conference in Washington, announced ‘the immediate launch of Operation Economic Outcast’, a new series of secondary sanctions, forming part of a broad ‘economic offensive to marginalise Iran and sever Tehran’s financial ties across the globe’: “Our aim,” the Treasury Secretary reiterated, “is to sever every economic lifeline supporting this tyrannical regime, until Tehran is left completely isolated.”

The Pakistani Minister of the Interior, Mohsin Navqi, reported “significant progress” in the talks he held in Tehran alongside the Chief of the Army, Field Marshal Asim Munir.

“Field Marshal Asim Munir and I had a very positive and productive meeting with the Iranian President – he wrote on X – our discussion focused on the conflict between Iran and the United States, tensions in the Middle East and future prospects, as well as the steps required by both sides to reinstate the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, which would lead to a comprehensive resolution of the conflict.”

The UK Maritime Operations Agency (UKMTO) has reported that a vessel was “hit by an unidentified projectile” approximately 9 nautical miles north-east of Ash Shishah, in Oman. The impact damaged the vessel’s engine room, whilst the crew were unharmed.