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This liveblog is no longer being updated.
Trump left Turkey on secret flight amid Iran assassination threat
US President Donald Trump departed on a secret military flight from Turkey last month when the White House said he was flying aboard Air Force One, an extraordinary move prompted by an Iranian assassination threat, the Washington Post reported Monday.
Trump had taken the newly renovated Qatari-donated jet to Ankara for the NATO summit but he unexpectedly used an older Air Force One when departing the country, a move that prompted questions about the newer plane's security.
The trip to NATO was the first international travel for the new plane, whose speedy upgrades triggered questions over its cost and security, and took place as hostilities escalated with Iran, which borders Turkey.
Colombia recognises Israel's claim over Golan Heights
Colombia's newly appointed hard-right government on Monday recognised Israel's claim over the Golan Heights, which it captured from Syria in 1967.
The United States was until now the only country to recognise Israel's annexation of the territory in 1981.
Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella took power on Friday, following a bombastic campaign during which he promised tight relations with the US and Israel as a way to combat armed groups in his own country.
His foreign ministry announced recognition of Israel's claim on the same day that a powerful earthquake struck western Colombia, killing at least 111 people and injuring dozens more.
"The Government of Colombia recognises Israeli sovereignty over this territory, as well as that State's right to protect itself against external threats," read a statement published on X.
Trump says relationship with Netanyahu is 'very good' despite Gaza plan rejection
President Donald Trump insisted on Monday that his relationship with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is "very good" despite the Israeli leader's rejection of a US-led Gaza plan.
"The relationship is very good," Trump said in response to a shouted question from a journalist at the end of an Oval Office event.
After more than a week of gradually escalating criticism, Netanyahu explicitly stated on Sunday that he opposed the Gaza plan, which called for Israel to begin pulling back forces in tandem with disarmament by Hamas.
Syrian Kurdish returns suspended after attacks on displaced people
The return of displaced Syrian Kurds to their northeastern hometown of Ras al-Ain was suspended on Monday after a first group of returnees was attacked, prompting protests in other Kurdish-majority parts of Syria.
Hundreds of people had gone back to the town on Monday, months after a January agreement with the Syrian government on merging Kurdish forces and civil institutions into the state that included provisions for the return of displaced Kurds.
Jawan Isso, from a committee representing displaced people from Ras al-Ain, told AFP that a "first batch" of around 2,500 people were headed home but were later attacked by "armed groups".
Mahmud Khalil Ali, deputy head of security forces in Syria's Hasakeh province, said several of those involved in the attacks were arrested, but return trips were "temporarily suspended as a precautionary measure to ensure the safety of residents".
"These trips will resume as soon as the situation stabilises and full protection is provided for the returnees."
Oil prices finish up 5% as US-Iran Hormuz Strait dispute drags on
Explosions heard at Libya's Zawiya refinery, sources tell Reuters
Explosions occurred at a fuel tank at Libya's Zawiya refinery on Monday, with the nature of the blasts unclear, two sources told Reuters.
The incident came two days after a drone crashed into an untreated naphtha tank at the Zawiya refinery early on Saturday causing a leak that staff managed to control.
Gaza Board of Peace official says peace plan still operative
The peace plan for Gaza is still operative and discussions with Israel are continuing, a Board of Peace official told Reuters on Monday after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected an Israeli withdrawal until the Palestinian militant group Hamas is "genuinely disarmed."
Trump says will demand conflict compensation from Iran
US President Donald Trump said Monday he would seek conflict compensation from Iran as part of any future peace negotiations, citing attacks and atrocities stretching back decades allegedly backed or perpetrated by Iran.
Iran is "asking for compensation for the damage done to them during the last five month Military Conflict... I am likewise demanding compensation from Iran, for all of the people that they have killed and gravely wounded with their roadside bombs and many conflicts", Trump posted.
Dutch, British gas prices spike more than 10%
Dutch and British front-month gas prices rose more than 10% on Monday after Iran said the US must lift sanctions on Tehran, pay reparations and meet a number of other conditions before the Strait of Hormuz is reopened.
Dutch gas for August was up 10.5% at €61.39 per megawatt hour by 1550 GMT, ICE data showed.
The equivalent British contract was 11.1% higher at 151.02 pence per therm.
Iran's supreme leader makes six new military appointments
Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has made six new appointments to the Revolutionary Guards and armed forces, including Major General Pilot Ali Abdollahi as chief of staff of the armed forces and Brigadier General Ahmad Vahidi as commander-in-chief of the IRGC, according to a written message carried on Mojtaba's social media accounts.
Zelensky discusses drone deal, food security in talks with Saudi crown prince
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he had discussed the drone deal and food security with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Monday.
"There are domains in which Ukraine and Saudi Arabia can strengthen each other's ability to protect lives and people," he said on X after the call.
Iran's supreme leader calls for 'unity and cohesion' amid US sanctions
Iran’s president says the country's supreme leader is calling for “unity and cohesion” as the Islamic Republic faces economic hardships and sanctions stemming from its war with the United States.
President Masoud Pezeshkian described a nearly seven-hour meeting with Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei in an interview Monday with Iranian state television that aired amid apparent tensions among the Islamic Republic’s leaders.
Pezeshkian told the state-run IRIB that he and Khamenei discussed “people’s livelihoods, the state of the market, employment, people’s housing,” as well as “problems that are now being created as a result of the (U.S.) sanctions.”
He didn’t say when or where they met. Most important, he said, was Khamenei’s emphasis on unity.
“All of the enemy’s plans are aimed at creating division,” Pezeshkian said. “What we have to do is prevent divisions from emerging.”
Maersk, Hapag-Lloyd increase number of ships sailing through Suez Canal
Danish shipping group Maersk said on Monday that another one of the services in its Gemini network with Germany's Hapag-Lloyd will resume sailing through the Suez Canal instead of going around Africa's Cape of Good Hope.
The Asia-Europe trade corridor through the Suez Canal was abandoned by most shippers earlier this decade after attacks in the Red Sea by Yemen's Houthis, forcing ships to take the much longer trip around Africa's Cape of Good Hope.
But Maersk and Hapag-Lloyd in early July announced that they would resume a service connecting Asia, the Mediterranean and Europe through the Suez Canal, and Maersk later also said a Middle East-to-U.S. East Coast service would do the same.
Iran appoints hardliner Mohsen Rezaei to key security role
Iran has appointed Mohsen Rezaei as secretary of its Supreme National Security Council, promoting a prominent hardliner and close ally of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei to the role more than five months into the conflict with the United States.
Rezaei replaces Mohammad Baqer Zolqadr as second-in-command of the body that coordinates Iran's security and foreign policy and is chaired by President Masoud Pezeshkian. Zolqadr was appointed as political adviser to Khamenei.
German foreign ministry says Gaza plan could lead towards disarmament of Hamas
The German government regards U.S. President Donald Trump's latest Gaza plan as an opportunity to make progress towards the disarmament of Hamas, a German foreign ministry spokesperson said.
Asked in a regular news conference about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's rejection of the plan, the spokesperson also said some disagreement was to be expected.
"With such a complex undertaking, it was perfectly clear there would be many, many unanswered questions," he said.
Iranians 'professional chess players', says ministry in response to Trump analogy
Tehran said Iranians had shown "they are professional chess players" in response to remarks by US President Donald Trump comparing his dealings with Iran to the board game.
Trump on Sunday signalled he was prepared to let economic pressure mount against Iran, apparently backing away from more military strikes after Tehran issued a list of demands for opening the Strait of Hormuz.
"Lights out or lights on, Iranians showed they are professional chess players," Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei said during a weekly press conference.
Trump had earlier been quoted by news outlet Axios as saying he was "low-keying it" with Iran.
"We are only semi-negotiating with them. We are just watching Iran with its huge inflation and the fact they have no money," he said.
"It will work out. It always works out. It's like a chess game," Trump added.
Netanyahu eyes election base as friction with Trump grows over Gaza deal
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday rejected a US-led Gaza plan endorsed by Hamas, putting distance between himself and President Donald Trump as he tries to shore up his base ahead of close elections.
“Netanyahu is willing to break ties with Trump over the 15-point Gaza peace deal to gain support from the far-right members of his coalition,” FRANCE 24 international affairs editor Philip Turle says.
Iran says no reason to fear Pakistan-Turkey-Saudi security pact
Iran sees no reason to be concerned that a new security pact between Pakistan, Turkey and Saudi Arabia is directed against Tehran, Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday.
Baghaei said the pact showed a shift in regional countries' approach to security, with greater reliance on their own capabilities rather than outside powers.
"Any plan that is based on the geopolitical and historical realities of the region, is comprehensive and inclusive, and correctly identifies the enemy and the threat, has a chance of helping to strengthen security and prevent instability and abuses by the Zionist enemy and its allies," he added, referring to Israel.
Iran says Saudi-Pakistan-Turkey deal shows 'change in perception' towards US
Iran's foreign ministry said Monday that a defence pact signed last week between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan was "a sign of a change in the perception" of countries in the region towards the United States.
"The countries of the region have realised that security is not a commodity that can be bought from false brokers," said ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei at a weekly press conference, referring to the United States, an ally of the three signatories to the pact.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)
