Iran is preparing to hold a three‑day funeral for Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed in airstrikes at the start of the war. An estimated 15 million people are expected to attend in Tehran beginning Saturday, and Iran warned the United States and Israel against any attack during the ceremonies.

Khamenei has led Iran since 1989 and has shaped its regional posture. The funeral follows a conflict that began with airstrikes on July 2, 2026. Negotiations between the United States and Iran are slated to resume after the ceremonies conclude.

Syria’s foreign minister met with Lebanese officials in Beirut on July 2, 2026, to assure Lebanon that Syria would not intervene in its internal affairs, according to Syrian officials. The New York Times reported that U.S. officials said Israel may have planned to target senior Iranian negotiators, including Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, during spring talks with Washington. Israeli officials called for a state commission of inquiry into the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack, as the country marked the 1,000‑day anniversary of the event with commemorations and protests. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun stated that negotiations with Israel were not a betrayal and that he would not surrender any part of Lebanon’s territory, according to the presidency.

The funeral is expected to conclude on Monday, after which the United States and Iran plan to restart diplomatic talks. The outcome of the ceremonies and the broader regional situation remain uncertain.

Iran’s joint military command said Thursday that all oil tankers moving through the Strait of Hormuz must use its approved routes or face a forceful response. The warning was issued in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, as tensions rose over a waterway vital to international energy supplies.

The Strait of Hormuz, the narrow passage linking the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea, has become a focal point in negotiations seeking a lasting end to the conflict that began after the death of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in February. Iranian and U.S. diplomats met with mediators in Qatar on Wednesday, and U.S. Central Command said leaders in Bahrain reiterated a commitment to the free flow of commerce through the strait.

Iran requires vessels to follow designated routes and has indicated it may impose fees for passage, ending decades of fee‑free transit. The United States and several Gulf Arab states have said they will not agree to Iran’s demand to charge fees.

The Iranian statement said any deviation from the approved routes or disregard for navigation protocols would trigger an immediate and forceful reaction by the armed forces, and that interference by U.S. forces would be met with a rapid and decisive reaction. U.S. Central Command noted that meeting participants emphasized shared commitment to uninterrupted shipping.

Ship traffic rebounded to 258 transits last week, up from 138 the prior week, after Iranian strikes on two commercial vessels on June 25 and 27, according to marine data firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence. Richard Meade, editor‑in‑chief of Lloyd’s List, said routes are being selected hour by hour based on shifting political approvals and real‑time security assessments, and that the situation remains unstable. Iranian state television reported that a vessel became stranded after ignoring instructions from the Revolutionary Guard, though the vessel’s shape and reported location indicate it is linked to Iran and has been stranded for months.

Pakistani Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi said the talks showed positive progress and that the next round of discussions is expected soon after Khamenei’s funeral, which is scheduled to begin on Saturday. The long‑term stability of shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz remains unclear.

Emergency workers rescued a man alive on Thursday after eight days trapped beneath the rubble of a building that collapsed during twin earthquakes in Venezuela on June 24, officials said.

The 24‑hour quakes killed 2,595 people and left tens of thousands missing, prompting a multinational rescue operation.

Rescue teams from Venezuela, Chile, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Mexico, Portugal and the United States worked for more than 100 hours to free Hernán Gil, a security guard trapped under roughly 140 tonnes of debris at a parking lot adjacent to the Galerias Playa Grande mall in Catia La Mar.

Rescuers established visual contact with Gil overnight and inserted a small camera to communicate, delivering water, a face mask and goggles to protect him from dust.

Medical personnel attached an intravenous drip and reported that he showed no crushed nails, indicating minimal injury.

The operation involved repeated attempts to build and maintain access shafts, some of which collapsed and endangered the rescuers.

A Chilean firefighter described the effort as the most complex and technically demanding he had ever undertaken.

Gil emerged in good condition and exchanged messages with rescuers about his family during the rescue.

The paramedic who first located Gil, a Costa Rican Red Cross member on his first international mission, said the experience had changed him.

The search for the tens of thousands still unaccounted for continues.

The funeral of Iran’s late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is scheduled for July 3‑9, with ceremonies and processions taking place in several Iranian and Iraqi cities before his burial in Mashhad. Khamenei, 86, died on February 28 in a joint U.S.–Israeli airstrike on his compound, and the originally planned burial in March was postponed as the conflict continued. He assumed the supreme leadership role in 1989 after the death of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini and directed Iran’s military and security apparatus. His son Mojtaba Khamenei, who has remained out of public view since the war began, is expected to preside over the rites. On July 3, the first day of the seven‑day programme, mourners are expected to gather in Tehran, where global leaders, senior officials and scholars will pay their respects at the Grand Mosalla, one of Iran’s largest prayer complexes. July 4 and 5 will see public lying‑in‑state ceremonies at the Grand Mosalla, where the coffin and those of several family members will be displayed for farewells. The venue, designed to accommodate large congregations, has historically hosted major religious and state events. On July 6 and 7, the coffin will be moved through additional parts of Tehran and then to Qom, located about 120 km south of the capital, a centre of Shia scholarship and home to the country’s largest seminaries where Khamenei studied. Iranian and Iraqi officials announced that an official reception will be held at Najaf International Airport on July 8, after which public processions will take place in Najaf and Karbala, both of which contain major Shia shrines that attract millions of pilgrims annually. The procession will return to Iran on July 9 for the final burial ceremony at the shrine of Imam Reza in Mashhad, Iran’s holiest city and the site where Khamenei was born and educated. The schedule reflects Khamenei’s dual role as both political leader and highest religious authority, and the burial near Imam Reza is considered an important honor within Shia tradition. The timeline remains subject to change as the conflict continues.

Prosecutors in Monaco announced Thursday that they have identified a suspect in a parcel bombing that wounded a sanctioned Ukrainian-born businessman and two others.

The explosion occurred Monday evening after a package was left in the entrance hall of a building near the French border, detonating shortly after three residents entered.

Monaco’s public prosecutor, Stéphane Thibault, said an arrest warrant has been issued and an Interpol Red Notice will be issued later that day.

Police said video footage captured the suspect on a CCTV camera wearing a black fisherman’s hat and presenting as male.

A source told AFP that the individual is believed to be a woman who attempted to disguise herself as a man.

Yermlaev, 58, a Cypriot national originally from Ukraine, has been subject to Ukrainian sanctions since December 2023 over business activities in Crimea.

Ukrainian authorities allege that he paid taxes to Moscow after Russia annexed Crimea in 2014.

The prosecutor praised Monaco police and international judicial cooperation for their role in quickly identifying the suspect.

The attack has attracted attention in Monaco, a microstate with a concentration of wealthy residents.

The investigation remains ongoing, and authorities have not disclosed a motive for the attack.

Floods in Côte d’Ivoire have killed 59 people since May, the communication minister Amadou Coulibaly told a cabinet meeting in Abidjan. Rescue teams continue searching for victims as the rainy season, which runs from May to July, persists. The deaths are part of a broader pattern of heavy rainfall across west Africa. In Ghana, at least 13 people have died and more than 400 were rescued, the Ghana fire service reported. President John Mahama posted on X that the rainfall totaled approximately 140 mm in a single day, exceeding the previous single‑day record of about 56 mm. Authorities say the growing frequency and intensity of extreme weather events are linked to climate change, the World Meteorological Organisation stated. Poor waste management and rapid urban expansion have also been cited as factors that strain drainage systems, Coulibaly added. In Accra and nearby Tema, flooding submerged streets and buildings, cutting off access and causing electrical fires after water entered installations. The president explained that Accra’s location between the Akwapim hills and the Atlantic Ocean made it vulnerable as population growth and construction restricted natural waterways and blocked drains. Flooding also affected parts of Benin, Togo and Nigeria. In Lagos, flooding halted operations at a transmission substation, disrupting electricity supply to several neighborhoods, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency reported. The agency forecast above‑normal rainfall for Abuja and nine states, including northern regions that experienced their worst flood in 60 years the previous year. While no casualties have been confirmed in Benin, Togo or Nigeria, the ongoing rains have raised concerns about further flooding across the region.

WHO declared the hantavirus outbreak linked to a cruise ship over after the last exposed contact completed quarantine and tested negative, with no new cases reported since May 25. The outbreak infected 13 people and resulted in three deaths, caused by the Andes hantavirus strain that normally circulates in Argentina and Chile. The cruise ship MV Hondius departed Argentina on April 1, visited remote islands in the South Atlantic, and docked in Rotterdam on May 18 before being cleared to sail again on May 30. More than 650 contacts were identified and monitored by health authorities in 33 countries. WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the end of the outbreak on July 2, saying that no further cases have been reported since May 25. He added that WHO will continue studying the virus through a multinational research effort involving 21 countries to develop diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines. Hantavirus spreads primarily through contact with infected rodents, and the Andes strain can also transmit between humans during prolonged close contact. Symptoms typically appear one to eight weeks after exposure and include fever, headache, muscle aches, nausea, and abdominal pain, with severe cases progressing to respiratory distress. No vaccines or targeted antiviral treatments are available, and care remains supportive. The incident highlights the risk of zoonotic disease transmission during international travel and underscores ongoing WHO efforts to monitor and respond to future outbreaks.