War breaking news. Rocket from Lebanon on Majdal Shams: at least 11 dead. Israel: "Hezbollah has crossed red line, it is total war".

It was a rocket and not a drone from Lebanon that hit Majdal Shams in northern Israel, killing nine people including children. The army said so.

Eleven civilians were injured, five of them in serious condition, when a drone launched by Hezbollah from southern Lebanon hit a football pitch in the Druze town of Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights in northern Israel. This was reported by doctors from the Magen David Adom ambulance service, explaining that children were among the injured, as reported by the Times of Israel. Hezbollah claimed the action in a note explaining that it had fired dozens of rockets at a military base in the Golan Heights.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken "reiterated" to Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi "serious concern about China's support for Russia's defence industrial base and made clear that if China does not act to address this threat to European security, the United States will continue to take appropriate steps to do so. This was reported in a note by State Department spokesman Matthew Miller.

After the attack from Lebanon on northern Israel that left nine dead, including children, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant is holding a security meeting with the military leadership including Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi and those in charge of the northern front.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is holding security consultations in the US following the Hezbollah missile attack on a football field in Majdal Shams. The Times of Israel reports.

Taiwan 'is part of China, it has never been and will never be a country'. This is what Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in his meeting today with US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Vientiane, Laos, 'at the latter's request'. Taiwan independence and cross-strait peace 'are as irreconcilable as fire and water. We will definitely take countermeasures and continue to reduce the space for Taiwan independence, working towards the goal of complete reunification,' Wang said, according to a note released late in the evening by Beijing diplomacy.

It is necessary, Wang continued in his account of the meeting with Blinken released late in the evening, to 'remove interference and promote cooperation' between China and the US. US policy in Beijing 'is consistent with and adheres to the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence, and win-win cooperation. The US should seriously implement the commitments made by President Joe Biden and return to a rational and pragmatic China policy. The two sides should work together for a stable, healthy and sustainable relationship'. Wang emphasised that the US has a wrong perception of China, seeing it "always with its own hegemonic mentality. China is not the US, nor does it want to become like the US. China has the best record in terms of peace and security among all major countries. And the third plenary session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party adopted an important resolution on further deepening reforms to advance Chinese modernisation and focus on the pursuit of happiness for the Chinese people and the rejuvenation of the nation. China will remain on the path of peaceful development and promote 'the building of a community with a shared future for mankind: understanding the CCP as well as China's present and future through this resolution,' Wang concluded.

The US has received the latest Israeli proposal for a Gaza ceasefire and hostage release agreement ahead of a summit to be held tomorrow in Rome between CIA Director Bill Burns, Mossad chief Dedi Barnea, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdel Rahman al-Thani, and Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamal. The Walla website writes this, citing a senior Israeli official and two other well-informed sources. In Rome, Walla writes, Israel's updated proposal with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's new demands will be discussed. In particular, the Israeli premier has demanded that a control mechanism be established to prevent the transfer of weapons from the south of the Gaza Strip to the north of the Palestinian enclave. Senior officials in the negotiating group and security bodies quoted by Walla believe that Hamas will not accept this condition and that this will lead to a crisis in the talks. Among other things, Hamas has made it known that it does not want to back down on the demands contained in the latest draft agreement presented to the mediators, in particular that there must be a complete withdrawal of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) from the Gaza Strip for the release of all hostages. The daily Al-Mayadeen, close to Hezbollah, writes this, citing its own source, on condition of anonymity

Israeli negotiators have transmitted to the US the 'updated' proposal for a ceasefire agreement in Gaza and the release of hostages. This was reported by the Walla website according to which the proposal contains the conditions raised by PM Benyamin Netanyahu. Among these, the control mechanism to prevent the passage of militiamen from the south to the north of Gaza. A summit is expected to take place in Rome tomorrow between the Israeli delegation, led by Mossad chief David Barnea, CIA director William Burns, Qatari premier Mohammed Al-Thani, and Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamal.

Israeli forces reportedly attacked the Balata camp in the West Bank city of Nablus with drones and according to Palestinian media the raid resulted in casualties. This was reported by The Times of Israel. The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) say the attack took place during an operation at the location and more details will be provided soon.

According to the Ministry of Health of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA), the attack left one person dead and nine injured. The victim, writes The Times of Israel, was identified by the Palestinian media as Louay Masha, 17, an alleged member of a Balata armed group.

A first group of F-16 fighters is ready to be transferred to Ukraine, due to arrive in August, then others will arrive; the pilots and technicians trained abroad 'have accumulated the required number of training hours', which includes familiarity with night combat, and a first group of technicians has already returned to Ukraine from Denmark to receive the first American fighters, which will be stationed no less than 40 kilometres from the front. In the early stages, the F-16s will be used against enemy missiles and drones, before using them against enemy aircraft and airfields, and finally, once at least air parity has been gained, against Russian lines and rear lines. This is some of the information gathered and put together from the opinions of some insiders by Rbc-Ukraine, which takes stock of the progress of the delivery of the coveted US fighter-bombers from various NATO countries. Ukraine has declared that it needs at least 128 F-16s to effectively counter the Russian air force. So far the allies have declared their readiness to supply 80 of them: 19 from Denmark, 24 from the Netherlands, 30 from Belgium and 6 from Norway. The number of deliveries, according to Bloomberg rumours, would be 6 by the summer and 20 by the end of the year. The first 20 pilots will be able to operate an initial team of 12 aircraft. Kiev Air Force commander Serhy Holubtsov hinted that not all F-16s delivered to Kiev will be stationed in Ukraine: some will remain in training centres abroad. "Romania has a training centre and Poland may be preparing a depot to protect the planes that will be transferred to us. From there they will only have to fly across the border to any base in Ukraine and no one will be able to say that they operate from NATO bases,' is the opinion of Valery Romanenko, a Ukrainian military expert. Finally, their deployment will be gradual: 'It is reasonable, logical and correct. In fact, if we send them immediately against Russian Sukhoi Su-35 fighters, I don't know how it will turn out. It is not yet known what kind of missiles, radar and instrumentation the F-16s will have and what kind of combat they will be prepared for,' said another expert, Kostiantyn Kryvolap. By degrees, if the Ukrainian air force will be able to weaken Russian air defences, only then will it be possible to switch to air operations at the front. "Nobody can predict with certainty whether the F-16s are stronger than the Russian Su-35s, because the two fighters have never faced each other in combat. They will not be the weapon of victory, but they can at least redress the balance, thus also contributing to victory, predicts Rbc.

The Russian Armed Forces 'liberated' the village of Lozuvatske in the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR), defeating six brigades of the Ukrainian army. This was reported by the Russian Defence Ministry quoted by Tass.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken expressed concern about China's 'provocative actions' against Taiwan during his meeting with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on Saturday in Laos. This was disclosed by a senior official of the US Department of Commerce.

The US diplomatic chief expressed US "concerns about China's recent provocative actions, including a simulated blockade at the inauguration" of Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te, the senior US official said.

The Hamas Ministry of Health in Gaza, quoted by the media, reported that "30 people were killed and more than 100 wounded" in the IDF raid in Deir al-Balah, in the centre of the Strip. According to the same source, it was 'an attack on a field hospital' located next to 'the affected school'. The IDF explained that it struck the school complex in which "there was a command and control centre" of Hamas. Meanwhile, the Gaza Civil Defence reports that at least 170 people have died in Khan Yunis since the beginning of the Israeli assault. (

Warning sirens for a possible missile attack from southern Lebanon have begun sounding in some communities in northern Israel. This was reported in The Times of Israel, recalling that since 8 October, Hezbollah-led forces have been attacking Israeli communities and military posts along the border on an almost daily basis; the group said it was doing so to support Gaza during the ongoing war.

The Israeli army said it had earlier struck based on intelligence information "terrorists operating in a Hamas command and control centre in the Khadija school complex" in central Strscia. "Hamas terrorists," the military spokesman explained, "were using the compound as a hideout to direct and plan numerous attacks against soldiers and Israel. "At the same time," the source continued, "the terrorists had developed and stored large quantities of weapons in the compound. After recalling that steps are taken prior to the attack to "mitigate the risk of harming civilians," the spokesman explained that "this is another example of Hamas' systematic violation of international law and exploitation of civilians as human shields." (ANSA).

The US defence minister was 'surprised', writes the New York Times, saying that he had no information on similar plans by Kiev, 'but whatever Belousov revealed to Washington was taken quite seriously, because the Americans contacted the Ukrainians and basically told them that if they were planning such an operation, they had better not execute it'.

"The enemy launched a missile attack against the positions of Ukrainian units and against populated areas using a missile, as well as 80 air strikes in the last 24 hours." This was claimed by the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine in its daily report.

Israeli PM Benyamin Netanyahu, meeting Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago, said Israel will send a negotiating team to the ceasefire talks in Rome "probably early this week". International media, including the Guardian, write this. Earlier, reporter Barak Ravid had reported on the Walla portal - citing Israeli and US sources - that Mossad chief David Barnea will meet CIA director William Burns, Qatari premier Mohammed bin Abdel Rahman al-Thani and Egyptian intelligence chief Abbas Kamal in the capital on Sunday to discuss the hostage deal.

Seven out of 10 Tgvs will run on average on Saturday on the North, Brittany and South-West axes, with average delays of 1 to 2 hours. Sncf announced this on Saturday morning, following yesterday's sabotage of train lines in France. The company still expects traffic disruptions "on the Northern axis" but improvements on the Atlantic axis. "On the Lgv East, traffic resumed normally this morning at 6.30am," explained the company, which specified that its agents "worked all night in difficult conditions in the rain to allow an improvement in Tgv traffic" on the axes affected by acts of sabotage that occurred during the night between Thursday and Friday and caused serious disruption to traffic.

The Israeli army has asked residents of the southern areas of Khan Yunis to evacuate "temporarily" to the Mawasi humanitarian zone on the coast. The military spokesman made this known, justifying the request "by the significant terrorist activity" in the area and "the firing of rockets towards Israel from the southern area of Khan Yunis".

The current position of Western countries towards Ukraine is to ignore the Russian position and expect the capitulation of the Russian Federation, but this will not happen. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told reporters. "Everyone is turning a deaf ear and keeps asking us to adopt a constructive approach, which, according to them, means capitulation, this will not happen, all the objectives of the special military operation will be achieved, there is no doubt," the minister added.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi informed him of a conversation with Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmitry Kuleba, who was recently visiting China, and that, according to Russia, the Chinese position on the conflict in Ukraine has not changed and for Moscow there will be no negotiations based on the 'peace formula' of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. "Wang Yi told us how his conversations with Kuleba went, and we felt that the Chinese position remains unchanged. The Chinese position, I repeat, is to focus on the root causes," of the conflict in Ukraine, Lavrov said, as reported by Tass.

"As far as the format is concerned, again the Chinese position is very clearly formulated in their documents: there can only be talk of preparing a conference of some kind, some kind of multilateral event if the parameters and conditions for convening the event are acceptable to all parties and only if all available initiatives are put on the agenda. This is a direct refusal to work only on the basis of Zelensky's 'peace formula', which is a utopian and illusory formula that will never be realised. Everyone has already realised this, even if by inertia the West is still trying to lie about it as an ultimatum,' Lavrov added.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is known for naive statements and 'naive ideas'. This was stated by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, commenting on the German chancellor's words on the possibility of renouncing the deployment of US missiles in Germany if Russia's special military operation in Ukraine is stopped. "Mr Scholz is known for such, I would say, simplistic statements. He is famous for naive ideas," the Russian minister noted, as reported by Tass. Lavrov, on the subject of US medium- and short-range missiles planned to be deployed in Germany, then sublimated that "no one has asked Mr Scholz whether or not the Germans want such a deployment". "Again, with simplicity, when this news came out, he said: 'I welcome the US decision to deploy the missiles in question in Germany. It is a good decision'. That is, he did not hide the fact that the decision is American," the Russian foreign minister said.

US Central Command (Centcom) forces destroyed six Houthi drones off the coast of Yemen. This was announced by the US military on X.

Russian air defence systems destroyed 14 unmanned aerial vehicles overnight. This was reported by the Russian Ministry of Defence, pointing out that 'last night, when the Kiev regime attempted to carry out a terrorist attack using unmanned aerial vehicles against targets on the territory of the Russian Federation, the air defence systems in service intercepted and destroyed 7 UAVs over Kursk, 3 over Belgorod, 2 over Rostov , 1 over Bryansk and 1 over the Lipetsk region'.

Two women and a man were injured in a series of attacks launched by Russian forces against ten settlements in the south-eastern region of Zaporizhzhia. This was reported by the governor of the Ukrainian region, Ivan Fedorov, on Telegram, Ukrinform writes. The shelling resulted in the destruction of some residential buildings and infrastructure. The Russian army launched eight air raids on Kamianske, Lobkove, Robotyne, Mala Tokmachka and Malynivka. According to Fedorov, the Russians used 224 drones of various modifications to attack Lezhyne, Huliaipole, Levadne, Robotyne, Mala Tokmachka, Malynivka and Novoandriivka while multiple rocket launchers were used to bomb Mala Tokmachka and Robotyne. Moreover, according to the governor, the Russians launched 167 artillery shells at Huliaipole, Novoandriivka, Robotyne, Mala Tokmachka, Malynivka, Levadne and Shcherbaky.

The Indian news channel Wion reports that Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be on an official visit to Ukraine in August, most likely on the 23rd. A source in the Indian Parliament told Tass that during his visit Modi may offer to mediate with New Delhi to end the conflict in Ukraine. Meanwhile, Kiev reported that Ukrainian forces destroyed nearly 8,000 Russian drones in the week of 18 to 24 July.

Russian Defence Minister Andriy Belousov called Pentagon chief Lloyd Austin on 12 July to warn him of a 'covert operation' that Ukraine was preparing against Russia, writes the New York Times (NYT), which cites three US officials. Belousov believed the operation had American clearance and asked Austin if the Pentagon knew about it, warning him that it could lead to an escalation of tensions between Moscow and Washington. The sources reported that "whatever Belousov revealed ... was taken quite seriously because the Americans contacted the Ukrainians and said, in essence, 'if you are thinking of doing something like that, don't do it'".