04/07/2026

SATURDAY | JULY 4, 2026

/thesuntelegram FOLLOW / Malaysian Paper

ON TELEGRAM m RAM

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Death toll in latest Russian assault on Kyiv rises to 30 o EU top diplomat proposes new sanctions on Moscow while Zelensky presses US for licences to manufacture Patriot missiles after three more bodies were pulled from the rubble. The head of the city’s military administration Tymur Tkachenko said 91 people were wounded.

Israel strikes Lebanon despite framework deal BEIRUT: Israeli forces carried out fresh airstrikes and home demolitions in southern Lebanon on Thursday, despite a framework agreement signed last week between Beirut and Tel Aviv for a phased Israeli withdrawal, Anadolu Ajansi reported, citing Lebanon’s state news agency NNA. According to NNA, an Israeli drone struck near the Ghandour Hospital in the town of Nabatieh al-Fawqa in the Nabatieh District. In Bint Jbeil district, Israeli warplanes launched an airstrike on the town of Braashit, although there was no immediate word on casualties or material damage. Israeli forces also carried out what NNA described as violent demolition operations targeting several homes in the town of Hadatha, while another large explosion was reported near the towns of Kounine and Tayri in the same district. Israeli reconnaissance drones were also seen flying at low altitude over the city of Tyre and nearby areas. The Israeli army did not immediately comment on the strikes or demolition operations. It usually claims to target Hezbollah fighters and infrastructure, but Lebanese authorities say many of the casualties have been civilians. The attacks came despite a US-sponsored framework agreement signed on June 26 between Lebanon and Israel, which provides for a phased Israeli withdrawal from all Lebanese territory, beginning with two unspecified pilot zones. The agreement, however, does not set a timetable for the withdrawal and links it to the Lebanese army assuming full and effective security responsibility in evacuated areas, alongside the disarmament of all non-state armed groups, particularly Hezbollah. Lebanese officials have described the agreement as a first step towards restoring state sovereignty across all territory and facilitating the return of displaced residents. Hezbollah has rejected the deal as “non-existent” and “humiliating”, saying any attempt to link Israeli withdrawal to the group’s disarmament crosses “red lines”. In other news, about 100,000 Lebanese children risk missing the new school year unless war-damaged schools are repaired by September, Unicef said in a statement on Thursday, reported Xinhua. The warning came after a nationwide survey by Unicef and Lebanon’s Education and Higher Education Ministry found widespread damage across the country’s education sector from the recent West Asia conflict. The assessment identified 340 affected educational institutions, including schools and vocational centres, with 17 destroyed and many others requiring major repairs before reopening safely. Unicef said prolonged absence from school could heighten such risks as child labour and early marriage. The agency said it is working with local authorities to rehabilitate damaged schools and sustain learning, while calling for extra funding. – Bernama-Anadolu

interceptor system, but defence experts say it would take time to set up production domestically. A US official told AFP President Donald Trump wants a peace deal to end the “senseless killing” in Ukraine. Russia fired 496 drones and 74 missiles, including hard-to-intercept ballistic projectiles, Ukraine’s air force said. It said it shot down 48 of the missiles and 476 drones. The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas said she would propose new sanctions on Moscow over the attack, which came hours after Zelensky cut short a visit to Dublin on Wednesday, citing intelligence reports of an impending Russian strike. Zelensky said Russian President Vladimir Putin “has been preparing this massive strike against Ukraine for some time now”. Ukraine has stepped up

The Ukrainian branch of the Red Cross said its key warehouse had been destroyed and about US$2 million (RM8.13 million) worth of humanitarian aid was lost. Debris also damaged a building “hosting a number of diplomats”, EU spokesperson Anitta Hipper told AFP, adding that the EU diplomats were safe. In Kryvyi Rig, two people were wounded when a missile struck a densely populated area, the head of the central city’s military administration said yesterday. Kyiv urged its allies to send more air defence support. “We also very much count on a decision by the United States regarding licences for Patriots,” said Zelensky on Thursday. Later, after talks with Finland’s President Alexander Stubb, he said: “Defending against ballistic missiles is impossible without a sufficient number of missiles for Patriot systems.” Ukraine wants to manufacture munitions for the US-made missile

KYIV: Ukraine said yesterday the death toll from a massive barrage on its capital had risen to at least 30 people, as both Kyiv and Moscow vowed fresh assaults. Ukraine forces would “definitely” retaliate for the Wednesday to Thursday overnight pummelling, said President Volodymyr Zelensky as he inspected an apartment block that was partially destroyed. The European Union (EU) top diplomat proposed new sanctions on Moscow, as Zelensky pressed the United States for licences to manufacture Patriot air-defence missiles. United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned Russia’s barrage and repeated a ceasefire call. “Attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure wherever they occur are a clear violation of international humanitarian law and must stop immediately,” said his TEHRAN: The body of Iran’s former supreme leader who was killed in US-Israeli strikes that triggered the Middle East war arrived at Tehran’s Grand Mosalla yesterday ahead of his funeral, state media reported. Millions of people and a coterie of foreign dignitaries are expected to attend today’s official ceremony for Ali Khamenei. Preparations for his public funeral are taking place as Iran and the United States observe a fragile ceasefire after signing a preliminary deal to halt the conflict. Pakistan, a key mediator in the US-Iran talks, said its Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif would attend the ceremony. China, Afghanistan and Iran’s neighbours in the Caucasus region said they would also be sending representatives. Tehran’s chief negotiator Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf called on Thursday for “all the Iranian people to write a glorious page in the history of Islamic Iran through your presence”. “The nation’s call for vengeance must ring in the ears of the whole world,“ said Mohammad Bagher, who is also Iran’s Parliament speaker. Ali will lie in state for three days at the Grand Mosalla, which has been draped in banners featuring his images and quotes. The bodies of his slain relatives will also be presented. The ceremonies are expected to draw between 15 and 20 million mourners, according to officials, which would make it the biggest

spokesperson Stephane Dujarric. But the Kremlin vowed to further ramp up “pressure” on Kyiv, sticking to its “no compromise” rhetoric. Russia has routinely launched waves of missiles and drones during its invasion, Europe’s deadliest conflict since World War II. AFP journalists in central and eastern Kyiv heard more than a dozen explosions and saw residents rushing to shelter in metro stations. In the morning, locals stood on the rubble of destroyed apartment blocks ripped apart by the barrage. Blasts started echoing out late on Wednesday, lasting into the early hours of Thursday as Russian missiles and drones rained down on residential areas in the city centre. Mayor Vitali Klitschko described it as the “enemy’s most massive attack on the capital”. Ukraine’s state emergency service said the strikes had killed 30 people, increasing an earlier toll

long-range drone attacks inside Russia recently, targeting energy infrastructure and military targets. Russian officials have reported repeated strikes in border regions, while Moscow has said its air defences have intercepted hundreds of drones from Ukraine in recent days. – AFP Body of ex-supreme leader arrives at Tehran mosque

The caskets of Ali and his family members laid out at the Grand Mosalla yesterday. – AFPPIC

northeastern Iranian city of Mashhad, his birthplace. It remains unknown if Ali’s son and successor Mojtaba, who has not been seen in public since becoming supreme leader, will be present at the main ceremony in Tehran. Representatives from around 30 countries are expected to attend the funeral, with people pouring in from neighbouring Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. – AFP

from today to Monday, while traffic restrictions will make much of the city centre inaccessible to private vehicles. The airspace over Tehran was partially closed starting yesterday and will be fully closed on Monday. Following the ceremonies in Tehran, Ali’s body will be taken to the Iraqi holy cities of Najaf and Karbala before his burial on Thursday at the shrine of Imam Reza in the

state funeral in the country’s history. Mohammad Bagher called it “one of the most significant moments” in Iran’s history. Tehran and the holy cities of Qom and Mashhad, which will host later stages of the funeral and burial ceremonies, will observe public holidays while the events are under way. Authorities have ordered public and private offices in Tehran to close