18/06/2026

THURSDAY | JUNE 18, 2026

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G7 leaders demand ceasefire in Lebanon

Mines take toll in 58 countries

GENEVA: At least 58 states and territories are contaminated by anti-personnel mines, the UN rights chief said on Tuesday, with heavy civilian casualties in Myanmar, Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine. “It is deeply troubling that almost 30 years since the Anti-Personnel Mine Ban Treaty was adopted, these explosive weapons continue to kill and injure people – often decades after they were placed,” Volker Turk said in a statement. “It is essential that all states recommit to putting an end to the production, use and transfer of these weapons and redouble their efforts to cooperate in clearing mines already placed.” Turk produced a report on the situation, drawing on information from governments, NGOs, humanitarian organisations and civil society. At least 945 people were killed and 4,325 injured by landmines and explosive remnants of war in 2024 alone, it said, citing the Landmine and Cluster Munition Monitor. “Among victims where the status as military or civilian was known, civilians made up 90% of all recorded casualties in 2024,” the report said. The states with the highest number of casualties in 2024 were Myanmar with 2,029, Syria with 1,015, then Afghanistan with 624, followed by Ukraine, Nigeria, Mali, Yemen and Burkina Faso, with more than 200 casualties each. – AFP LONDON: Russia said one of its warships fired warning shots on Tuesday near a yacht making a “dangerous approach” in the English Channel. The incident involved the Russian frigate Admiral Grigorovich and a UK-registered yacht south of the Isle of Wight, just outside British waters. “Following attempts to contact a British vessel in the channel, the Grigorovich fired warning shots. These were not aimed at the vessel and were an attempt to prevent a possible collision,” the UK Defence Ministry said. The Russian Defence Ministry said “signal flares were fired and audible signals were sounded” to get the attention of the yacht on Tuesday. “Despite these measures, the vessel continued its dangerous approach,” Moscow said. Following this, “the frigate’s commander decided to fire warning shots in the vessel’s direction using the ship’s small arms.” – AFP TEL AVIV: There is no Israeli military presence in Somaliland and no talks about Israel opening a base, Somaliland’s Defence Minister Mohamed Yusuf Ali said yesterday. Speaking on the sidelines of a business conference in Tel Aviv, he said Israel was training Somaliland’s military and police, but dismissed reports that Israel was in negotiations to establish a military base in the territory as “rumours”. Michael Lotem, Israel’s ambassador to Somaliland, declined to comment. Strategically situated on the Horn of Africa, Somaliland has enjoyed effective autonomy and relative peace and stability since 1991, when it broke away from Somalia. Israel recognised Somaliland as an independent state last December. – Reuters WARSHIP FIRES ‘WARNING SHOTS’ IN CHANNEL NO TALKS FOR ISRAELI BASE IN SOMALILAND

EVIAN-LES-BAINS: Leaders of the G7 countries demanded a ceasefire in Lebanon yesterday and said they will diversify energy supply routes to reduce dependence on the Strait of Hormuz, as they welcomed an interim deal to end the conflict. The leaders met for a summit in the French town of Evian-les-Bains on Lake Geneva, while details of the US-Iran ceasefire agreement trickled out of Washington and Tehran ahead of its formal unveiling tomorrow. The agreement is expected to launch negotiations towards a final settlement to end the war, which has killed more than 7,000 people, mostly in Iran and Lebanon. “We underline the need for the negotiation ... to address the threats posed by Iran in the region and beyond and ensure that they never obtain a nuclear weapon,” the leaders said in a statement. The summit gave US President Donald o Interim accord extends April ceasefire by 60 days for permanent truce talks

the removal or destruction of its stockpile. One of the biggest questions still hanging over the truce is the fate of Lebanon, which Israel invaded in March. Israeli forces still occupy a swathe of southern Lebanon, where more than a million people have been driven from their homes. Iran says the ceasefire must also end hostilities in Lebanon and that a permanent deal must lead to an Israeli withdrawal. Israel, which was excluded from the US-Iran peace negotiations, says it will not withdraw and reserves the right to use military force. That has opened up a rift between Israel and the United States, with Trump publicly berating Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. On Tuesday Trump said he was “not happy” with the way Israel had handled itself. “Without us, without the United States, there would be no Israel. Without me, there would be no Israel, because no other president was willing to do what I did,” Trump said. In their statement, the G7 leaders called for an “immediate robust ceasefire” in Lebanon and the disarmament of Hezbollah. A Hezbollah spokesperson told Reuters the group believed Iran would not agree to a permanent truce if the Israeli occupation did not end. – Reuters

Trump a chance to present his deal with Iran to major allies Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy and Japan. They mostly share Washington’s concerns about Iran’s nuclear programme and other issues, but never endorsed his decision to go to war and worry that Tehran gained leverage by withstanding the superpower onslaught and asserting control over the strait. The leaders said they were ready to contribute to the implementation of the accord, with a coalition set to help secure shipping once the Strait of Hormuz reopens. The memorandum of understanding signed this week, though yet to be made public, extends a ceasefire announced in April by another 60 days to allow the warring countries to negotiate a permanent truce. The US president appears to have achieved little of what he said he wanted at the outset of the war. Iran’s theocratic government remains in place, its stockpile of enriched uranium has not been surrendered, its ballistic missile capabilities have not been destroyed and it has not ended its support for anti-Israel militias. Trump said the agreement states that Iran will not have a nuclear weapon – a restatement of Iran’s official position since the 1970s – and US officials say further discussions will lead to

BR I E F S

Police work at the crime scene in Biala Podlaska, eastern Poland on Tuesday. – AFPPIC

Russian artist critical of Putin shot dead in Poland WARSAW: A Russian artist known for satirising President Vladimir Putin has been shot dead in eastern Poland, officials said on Tuesday. “We are still looking for the man who committed this crime,” he said, specifying that a special investigative team had been set up. against the two detained Belarusians, Kozak said, adding that “they remain at the disposal of the prosecutor’s office and the police”.

The case risks rekindling tensions between Poland and its neighbour Russia, which were exacerbated by drone crashes on Polish territory last autumn, which Warsaw blames on Moscow. Skrepetsky was known for his sometimes provocative caricatures, which targeted prominent Russian political figures, ranging from Putin and Soviet leader Joseph Stalin to opposition figure Alexei Navalny and Chechen ruler Ramzan Kadyrov. Skrepetsky moved to Poland in 2021, saying he feared political persecution in Russia. In exile, he maintained a contrarian stance, attending Russian opposition events while openly criticising the opposition itself. – AFP

According to Polish officials, Skrepetsky, whose real name is Robert Kuzovkov, was shot three times on Monday morning by an unidentified gunman armed with a handgun. When the artist fell to the ground, he was approached by the assailant, who fired two more shots at close range. “The case is obviously serious,” Polish government spokesman Adam Szlapka told the press on Tuesday, adding that Poland had offered the artist protection, which he declined. After the killing, the Polish press reported on Tuesday that Skrepetsky’s family had been moved to a safe location. As it stands, “no charges have been brought”

“An investigation is being conducted ... into the murder of a 44-year-old citizen of the Russian Federation ... known in the media as Semyon Skrepetsky,” a spokesman for the prosecutor’s office in Lublin, Marcin Kozak, told journalists. Two Belarusian nationals have been arrested in connection with the killing, he said. They were detained in the vicinity of the Belarusian consulate in Biala Podlaska in eastern Poland, where the killing took place. But according to Lublin police spokesman, Deputy Inspector Andrzej Fijolek, the hunt for the suspected perpetrator of the crime is ongoing.