Category: Global

Gaza’s civil defence agency said 33 more people were killed by Israeli fire in the Palestinian territory on Wednesday, including 11 who were seeking aid, bringing the 24-hour death toll to at least 140.

The Israel-led genocide of Palestinians in Gaza worsened after Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel, ravaging the Strip with Israel deliberately creating severe shortages of food, fuel and clean water.

Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal told AFP that 11 people were killed and more than 100 wounded “after the occupation forces opened fire and launched several shells… at thousands of citizens” who had gathered to queue for food in central Gaza.

The military told AFP that its forces operating in central Gaza identified “a group of suspicious individuals” approaching “in a manner that posed a potential threat to the forces.”

It said its troops then fired “warning shots”, but that it was “unaware of injuries”.

In early March, Israel imposed a total blockade on Gaza, amid a deadlock in truce negotiations, only partially easing restrictions in late May.

– Soldier killed –

Since then, chaotic scenes and a string of deadly shootings have occurred near areas where Palestinians have gathered in hopes of receiving aid.

The civil defence agency said another 19 people were killed in three Israeli strikes on Wednesday, which it said targeted houses and a tent for displaced people.

The Israeli military told AFP regarding one of those attacks that its troops were “operating to dismantle Hamas military capabilities”.

Later Wednesday, the Israeli army said a soldier — staff sergeant Stav Halfon — had been killed during an operation in the southern Gaza Strip.

In another incident, three more people were killed in an Israeli air strike on a neighbourhood northeast of Gaza City on Wednesday, Bassal said.

Israeli restrictions on media in the Gaza Strip and difficulties in accessing some areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency.

The agency reported that at least 53 people were killed on Tuesday, as they gathered near an aid centre in the southern city of Khan Yunis hoping to receive flour.

After Israel eased its blockade, the US- and Israel-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) began distributing aid in late May, but its operations have been marred by chaotic scenes and dozens of deaths.

– ‘Acute food insecurity’ –

UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the foundation over concerns it was designed to cater to Israeli military objectives.

However, the UN humanitarian office OCHA pointed out Tuesday that incidents “are also increasingly occurring along routes used by the UN to deliver humanitarian supplies”, not just GHF.

It added that its humanitarian partners, including the World Food Programme (WFP), have reported that fuel in Gaza was reaching “critically low levels”.

“Without immediate resupply, essential services — including the provision of clean water — will grind to a halt very soon,” the statement added.

OCHA said on Monday that its partners “continue to warn of the risk of famine in Gaza, amid catastrophic levels of acute food insecurity”.

The Gaza health ministry said on Wednesday that 5,334 people have been killed since Israel resumed major operations in the territory on March 18, ending a two-month truce.

The overall death toll in Gaza since October 7, 2023, has reached 55,637 people, according to the health ministry.

A day after Israel launched an airstrike on Iranian soil, a cargo plane from China took off. Over three days, three separate cargo flights headed westward.

Each aircraft followed a comparable flight route. They flew through northern China, entered Kazakhstan, and then travelled southward through Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan. All three planes lost radar contact just as they approached Iran, resulting in no further tracking data.

There has been no official confirmation from either China or Iran regarding the purpose of the flights. The specifics of the cargo, the intended destination, and the timing remain undisclosed. Officials from both nations have remained silent on the matter.

The flights commenced shortly after Israel’s air assault on Iranian territory on May 13. While there is no public connection between the airstrike and the cargo flights, the timing has attracted attention. The coordination and adherence to the same route over three days imply a planned operation, yet details remain elusive.

Analysts tracking the movements noted the precise moment the planes ceased to be visible on radar. This occurred at the same point for each flight, right before entering Iranian airspace. It is not uncommon for aircraft to disable tracking signals, particularly when entering sensitive areas. Nevertheless, the recurring pattern has prompted inquiries.

The movement of cargo planes over several days is unusual without prior notice. All three aircraft traversing the same route before vanishing from radar render the situation significant, especially given the timing.

China and Iran have maintained a long-standing political and economic relationship, including recent agreements aimed at expanding cooperation across multiple sectors. The unexplained nature of these flights has added another layer to ongoing speculation about the scope of their current engagements.

Without any public announcements and with limited information available, the flights remain a mystery. This also prompts the ongoing speculation regarding China’s involvement in the Middle East and its cooperation with Iran amid escalating tensions.

Iran said early Wednesday it fired hypersonic missiles at Israel in the latest round of overnight strikes between the archfoes, hours after Donald Trump demanded the Islamic republic’s “unconditional surrender”.

The US president insists Washington has played no part in ally Israel’s bombing campaign, but also warned Iran his patience is wearing thin as the conflict enters a sixth day.

Israeli warplanes targeted the Iranian capital before dawn Wednesday after the military issued a warning for civilians to leave one district for their safety.

The Israeli military later said it struck weapons manufacturing sites and a facility used to make centrifuges in Tehran.

Iran told residents of Tel Aviv to prepare for an attack, with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claiming its hypersonic Fattah-1 missiles were “repeatedly shaking the shelters” in the commercial hub.

“The 11th wave of the proud Operation Honest Promise 3 using Fattah-1 missiles” was carried out, the Guards said in a statement broadcast on state television.

Hypersonic missiles travel at more than five times the speed of sound and can manoeuvre mid-flight, making them harder to track and intercept.

Iran also sent a “swarm of drones” towards Israel, where the army said it intercepted two over the Dead Sea area.

World powers have scrambled for an offramp, hoping to prevent the conflict from spiralling into a region-engulfing war.

In separate phone calls with his Iranian counterpart and US envoy Steve Witkoff on Tuesday night, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty urged a diplomatic solution.

Trump fuelled speculation about American intervention when he made a hasty exit from the G7 summit in Canada, where the leaders of the club of wealthy democracies jointly called for a ceasefire.

Back in Washington on Tuesday, Trump demanded the Islamic republic’s “unconditional surrender”.

He also boasted that the United States could easily assassinate Iran’s supreme leader.

“We know exactly where the so-called ‘Supreme Leader’ is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there — We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

He met with his National Security Council to discuss the conflict, ending after an hour and 20 minutes with no immediate public statement.

While he has repeatedly vowed to avoid wading into the “forever wars” of the Middle East, Trump ordered the USS Nimitz aircraft carrier to the region along with a number of US military aircraft.

US officials stressed he has not yet made a decision about any intervention.

– Evacuations –

Despite international alarm, neither side has backed off from the long-range blitz that began Friday, when Israel launched an unprecedented bombing campaign targeting Iranian nuclear and military facilities.

Israel claims its attacks have killed senior Iranian commander Ali Shadmani as well as his predecessor, Gholam Ali Rashid.

Residential areas in both countries have suffered deadly strikes since the fighting broke out, and foreign governments have scrambled to evacuate their citizens.

More than 700 foreigners living in Iran have crossed into neighbouring Azerbaijan and Armenia since Israel launched its campaign, according to government figures.

Among those evacuated were citizens of Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan, along with others from Germany, Spain, Italy, Serbia, Romania, Portugal, the United States, the United Arab Emirates, China and Vietnam, a government source told AFP.

The United States said it was closing its embassy in Jerusalem until Friday amid the growing conflict, but there was no announcement about helping Americans leave the “crisis area”.

Fearing violence, many residents of Tehran have fled.

On Tuesday, long queues stretched outside bakeries and petrol stations as people rushed to stock up on fuel and basic supplies.

A cyberattack on Tuesday crippled Sepah Bank, one of Iran’s main state-owned banks, the Fars news agency reported.

With air raid sirens regularly screaming over Tel Aviv, some people relocated to an underground parking lot below a shopping mall.

“We’ve decided to permanently set camp here until it’s all clear, I guess,” Mali Papirany, 30, told AFP.

– Nuclear facilities –

After decades of enmity and a prolonged shadow war, Israel said its surprise air campaign was aimed at preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons — an ambition Tehran denies.

Iranian media reported several explosions Tuesday in the central city of Isfahan, home to nuclear facilities.

The UN’s nuclear watchdog said there appeared to have been “direct impacts on the underground enrichment halls” at Iran’s Natanz facility.

Israel has maintained ambiguity regarding its own atomic activities, but the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) says it has 90 nuclear warheads.

The conflict derailed a running series of nuclear talks between Tehran and Washington, with Iran saying after the start of Israel’s campaign that it would not negotiate with the United States while under attack.

French President Emmanuel Macron said Trump had a critical role to play in restarting diplomacy with Iran, where attempts at regime change would bring “chaos”.

China accused Trump of “pouring oil” on the conflict, while Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan accused Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu of being “the biggest threat to the security of the region”.

Since Friday, at least 24 people have been killed in Israel and hundreds wounded, according to Netanyahu’s office.

Iran said on Sunday that Israeli strikes had killed at least 224 people, including military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians. It has not issued an updated toll since then.

President Donald Trump vetoed an Israeli plan in recent days to kill Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Reuters reported officials as saying.

“Have the Iranians killed an American yet? No. Until they do, we’re not even talking about going after the political leadership,” said the official on condition of anonymity. They went on to reveal that top US officials have been in constant communication with Israeli officials since after Israel launched a massive attack on Iran to halt its nuclear programme.

Reuters quoted the official as saying that the Israelis reported that they had an opportunity to kill the top Iranian leader, but Trump waved them off of the plan.

The officials would not say whether Trump delivered the message himself, but the US president has been in frequent communication with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

It merits a mention that Trump has been holding out hope for a resumption of US-Iranian negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear programme. Talks that had been scheduled for Sunday in Oman were cancelled as a result of the strikes.

While the US has revealed knowing about Israel’s attack plans, it has clarified that it does not have to do anything with the same. Iranian officials, on the other hand, have hinted at possible evidence of US involvement.

Pro-Palestinian activists seeking to march to Gaza with the stated aim of breaking Israel’s blockade on the territory were stopped Friday in both Libya and Egypt, organisers said.

“Forty participants of the Global March to Gaza have had their passports taken at a checkpoint on the way out of Cairo,” organisers said in a statement.

“They are being held in the heat and not allowed to move,” the statement said, adding that another “15 are being held at hotels”. The activists are from France, Spain, Canada, Turkey and the United Kingdom, it said.

“We are a peaceful movement and we are complying with Egyptian law.”

The group urged embassies to help secure their release so they could complete their voyage.

It later sent video footage to AFP showing Egyptian security forces intervening to break up impromptu sit-ins.

Women were “molested and carried like cattle onto the bus”, according to a message from Florence Heskia, one of the protesters stuck on the road.

When Iran launched drones and missiles at Israel on April 13, 2024, an unusual activity was tracked thousands of miles away in Washington, D.C.


Pizza orders across the Pentagon skyrocketed at 6:59 PM ET, an increase detected by open-source intelligence monitors.

The X account Pentagon Pizza Report, known for monitoring delivery traffic around key U.S. security buildings, posted a real-time alert stating that nearly all pizza outlets near the Pentagon were unusually busy.

An hour later, Iranian state media reported explosions in Tehran, confirming what the pizza orders had correctly predicted: crisis mode was activated.

A nearby gay bar, which is usually packed on Thursday nights, was unusually vacant, according to the same witness.

For followers of this niche intelligence stream, the pattern was clear: officials weren’t out, they were inside government buildings, likely pulled into emergency meetings.

This phenomenon, which is often referred to as the “Pizza Meter,” has an odd but historically accurate reputation for predicting geopolitical emergencies. 

The origins of this method stretch back to the Cold War, when Soviet intelligence officers reportedly tracked pizza deliveries to U.S. government offices as a proxy for military activity.

Based on the idea that pizza becomes the fuel of choice for high-level decision-makers who work overnight, the word “Pizzint,” which is short for “Pizza Intelligence,” was created to describe this strategy.

Far from being internet satire, the Pizza Meter has a record. A viral Instagram video recently broke down how spikes in Pentagon-area pizza deliveries have preceded more than 20 global crises over the last 35 years.

The video traced a timeline starting from the 1983 U.S. invasion of Grenada, the 1989 Panama Operation, and the CIA’s infamous 21-pizza order prior to Iraq’s 1990 invasion of Kuwait. 

Similar patterns were noted prior to Operation Desert Storm in 1991, the U.S. airstrikes in Syria in 2017, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The same video highlighted the April 2024 Iranian attack on Israel, followed by the May 2025 Israeli airstrikes on Iran, both events flagged by noticeable spikes in pizza activity around the Pentagon.

Modern-day OSINT analysts rely on Google Maps and delivery applications to monitor real-time foot traffic and restaurant activities.

The digital footprint that display “busier than usual” signs at nearby Domino’s and Papa John’s have been used to identify when national security officials may be operating in an emergency.

The April 2024 spike was backed by crowdsourced posts from Reddit and X, showing high traffic across multiple delivery platforms in the Pentagon area just before the attack became public. 

The Pizza Meter serves as an example of how ordinary data can provide extraordinary insights into world events.

It offers real-time crisis detection skills that complement conventional intelligence techniques, though not being infallible. 

For citizens monitoring international tensions, tracking these patterns offers a unique window into government response levels during developing crises. 

As geopolitics becomes increasingly digitised, unconventional indicators like the Pizza Meter may evolve into standardised early-warning systems – but only if rigorously validated against traditional methods and protected from manipulation.

The Indian National Congress (INC) has trained guns at, and shamed, the Modi-led government for abstaining from voting on a United Nations (UN) resolution seeking ceasefire in Gaza as New Delhi was among the 19 countries that withheld vote on the critical issue.

As per the details, 149 countries supported the resolution calling for an immediate and permanent ceasefire earlier this week, whereas 12 countries voted against it. Among the 19 countries that abstained from voting was India, which drew strong reactions from opposition’s Congress and the general public alike.

In a post on X, the INC called India’s abstention “extremely shameful” and accused the government of abandoning its moral responsibility. The party said that India, once known for its principled support for Palestine, had now bowed to Tel Aviv’s pressure, reducing the country’s historic legacy to “rubble”.

“India has always stood for peace, justice, and human dignity. But today, as over 60,000 lives have been lost in Palestine, most of them women and children, India has chosen silence. Thousands are starving, international aid has stopped, and a humanitarian tragedy is unfolding. Yet, India stayed neutral when it should have stood for justice,” the statement read.

It is extremely shameful that India abstained from voting on the Gaza ceasefire at the UN General Assembly on June 12, 2025. India has always stood for peace, justice and human dignity.

• More than 60,000 lives have been lost in Palestine—most of them women and children.…

— Congress (@INCIndia) June 14, 2025

The party said that Modi’s government had failed to uphold the values that once made India a global moral voice.

Congress reminded the government that real leadership comes from speaking up with courage, not “staying silent during injustice”. “Global leadership is not built on silence. If we want India’s voice to matter, we must show courage and conscience.”

Earlier, Congress leader KC Venugopal also criticised the Modi government for isolating India on global forums. “India stands alone in South Asia, BRICS and SCO on this issue. A humanitarian catastrophe is happening in Gaza and we chose to look away,” he said.

On June 12, the UNGA adopted a permanent ceasefire resolution to stop the violence in Gaza. But India, shockingly, did not vote in favour despite its past record of supporting Palestine as a matter of principle.

As of now, over 60,000 people have been killed in the Gaza genocide, most of them women and children.