Start your day informed with the AnewZ Morning Brief. Here are the top stories for 20 June, covering the latest developments you need to know.
U.S. and Iranian negotiators are set to begin peace talks in Switzerland on Sunday, following a Pakistan-brokered 60-day ceasefire aimed at ending nearly four months of conflict. The talks come amid fresh tensions over the Strait of Hormuz, after Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said the key waterway had been closed. The U.S. military disputed the claim, saying commercial vessels continued to pass through the strait, including 55 merchant ships carrying more than 17 million barrels of oil on Saturday. The negotiations are expected to focus on Iran’s nuclear programme, the Lebanon ceasefire and implementation of the interim deal.
Israeli strikes and gunfire killed at least nine people in Gaza on Saturday, including a child and Al Jazeera journalist Ahmed Wishah, health officials said. Four people were killed in an airstrike on an apartment building in Gaza City, while others were reported killed in Beit Lahiya, Khan Younis and Bureij refugee camp. Israel said it had targeted militants, including one it claimed worked as an Al Jazeera photojournalist, but did not provide evidence. Al Jazeera condemned Wishah’s killing and said he was the 12th of its journalists killed by Israel in Gaza since October 2023. The violence comes despite an October ceasefire, with talks on the next phase of Donald Trump’s Gaza plan still deadlocked.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that Russia is preparing a massive attack on Ukraine, urging residents to closely follow air raid alerts. His warning came as Russian strikes across several regions killed at least six people, including five in Zaporizhzhia, where glide bomb attacks damaged residential buildings and infrastructure. Casualties were also reported in Sumy, Kherson and Poltava, where three children were injured. Zelenskyy said Ukraine would continue its medium- and long-range strikes on Russia’s oil sector, including recent drone attacks on refineries in Tyumen and Moscow.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo says confirmed Ebola cases have risen to 956, including 247 deaths, up from 933 cases and 245 deaths a day earlier. Health Minister Samuel Roger Kamba said 80 patients have recovered, while the WHO reported that 75 healthcare workers have been infected and 17 have died. Officials warn that shortages of protective equipment and limited medical staff are putting further pressure on efforts to contain the outbreak.
A severe heatwave is sweeping across much of Europe, prompting France to restrict alcohol consumption at public events, Germany to issue widespread heat warnings and Spain to close a football fan zone in Madrid. Temperatures in parts of France are forecast to reach up to 41C, while Germany and Italy are also facing extreme heat. Scientists warn that climate change is making European heatwaves more frequent and intense, increasing risks to public health, daily life and economic activity.
Yemen's air force carried out 20 strikes on Houthi targets earlier on Friday, Brigadier General Majid Abdullah Al-Nuzaili, Spokesman for t...
The European Space Agency (ESA), Airbus and European partners have put a six-wheeled Mars rover prototype through its paces in Spain’s Tabern...
Azerbaijan won 22 medals, including seven gold, at the Mingachevir Regatta 2026 as more than 100 young rowers from 12 countries competed in the int...
Yemen's air force carried out 20 strikes on Houthi targets earlier on Friday, Brigadier General Majid Abdullah Al-Nuzaili, Spokesman for the Yemeni Armed Forces, said. Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Houthis denied targeting a power plant supplying energy to a mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia.
Passengers from a flydubai flight that was diverted to Saudi Arabia after an alleged attempt to crash the aircraft have arrived safely in Israel.
Russia has warned NATO that it would be prepared to use nuclear weapons if the Western alliance attempted to isolate Kaliningrad, a Russian exclave on the Baltic Sea, according to a diplomatic document seen by Reuters.
British counter-terrorism police have arrested a 27-year-old dual UK-Iranian national as part of an investigation into a suspected plot involving RAF Fairford, an airbase used by U.S. forces for operations against Iran.
Azerbaijan and Armenia will sign a final peace agreement once Armenia amends its constitution to remove territorial claims against Azerbaijan, Hikmat Hajiyev, Assistant to Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, has said.
A retired Australian builder has arrived in Baku in his 1929 Pontiac Roadster during an epic journey from Bangkok to Istanbul, using the nearly century-old car to raise money for Parkinson’s research.
Around 400 schools across France remained closed on Friday as protests over teacher shortages and deteriorating buildings escalated into violence, leaving dozens injured and leading to 2,000 arrests.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Moscow wanted to end the war in Ukraine through negotiations as soon as possible, while insisting that any settlement must meet conditions acceptable to Russia and include security guarantees.
The family of Renee Good, a U.S. citizen fatally shot by an immigration agent in Minneapolis in January, has sued the Trump administration, accusing federal officials of excessive force and unconstitutional conduct.
Ukraine is working to resolve a diplomatic dispute with South Korea after Kyiv publicly disclosed the transfer of two North Korean prisoners of war to Seoul, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said on Thursday, 1 October.
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