14/07/2026

TUESDAY | JULY 14, 2026

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Iran widens attacks

GOLDMAN LAWYER FACES INQUIRY PANEL NEW YORK: Goldman Sachs senior counsel Kathryn Ruemmler is set to face congressional scrutiny tomorrow over her ties to Jeffrey Epstein, pushing the Wall Street bank back into the spotlight over its decision to keep her on despite her links to the sex offender. Ruemmler stepped down as chief legal officer and general counsel at the end of June after documents published by the Justice Department showed she accepted gifts from Epstein. She agreed to continue in an advisory role as senior counsel until the company appointed a new chief legal officer, Goldman CEO David Solomon said in a memo. Goldman’s decision has been criticised by lawmakers. – Reuters MOROCCO ARRESTS DISSIDENT JOURNALIST RABAT: Police arrested dissident commentator Ali Lmrabet for questioning at Tangier airport on Sunday. Reporters Without Borders said he is under investigation for “alleged dissemination of false information harming constitutional institutions”. Lmrabet, who also holds French nationality and lives in Spain, has used social media as a political commentator and has been an outspoken critic of Morocco’s political system. An informed source said Lmrabet is facing a preliminary investigation over complaints filed by individuals and institutions in Morocco alleging slander and defamation. – Reuters EU soft on social media move BRUSSELS: Children should have “phased and gradual access” to social media, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen said yesterday. The European Union has been mulling a social media ban since a push by EU states for limiting access. To help the EU take decisions based on evidence, von der Leyen tasked a panel of doctors, academics, youth representatives and parents to advise the bloc. They delivered their recommendations yesterday. “What we have is a consensus that there needs to be a start date for the age children can join social media,” she said. “This is not about whether children can access social media. It is about whether and when social media can access our children.” A legal proposal will come in the second half of the year. “We need to consider a phased and gradual access for different ages.” The experts recommended: No screens for babies and toddlers; supervised use of “age-appropriate social media”and devices for children aged between three and 12; for those 13 to 18, “evolving autonomous use” of social media and other platforms that have “key safety features”. Platforms “must prove that their services do no harm. In Europe, whoever develops a product is responsible for its safety”, she said. “An entire ecosystem around children has to change. But we do not have time. Children and adolescents are facing serious risks right now,” one of the panel’s co-chairs Jorg Fegert said. – AFP

o US hits radar, boats, air defences

permanent fee and permit system for vessels using the waterway. After announcing the waterway’s closure on Saturday following what it described as an unauthorised transit, Tehran said on Sunday that passage remained suspended and that permits would be issued once “stability and calm” were restored. The US said its forces were positioned to safeguard freedom of navigation despite what it called “aggression, harassment, threats, and arbitrary declarations” from Iran. “Iran does not control the strait. Traffic is flowing,” the US military said. US officials said around 20 vessels had been escorted through the strait in the previous 24 hours, though ship-tracking sites showed little traffic moving. – Reuters

Sunday: “The era of one-sided deals is over. We told you: keep your word or pay the price. Reality is knocking.” The Revolutionary Guards said in a statement yesterday that the only way to restore regular shipping traffic through the strait was to end US military interventions in the waterway, and warned that “continued interference could lead to greater incidents in the oil and gas sector”. Iran is seeking to establish a joint mechanism with Oman to manage traffic through the strait, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said yesterday, adding that US pressure on Oman had hindered those discussions. The dispute over the Strait of Hormuz has become a central front in the conflict. Iran has sought to establish a

radar sites, missile and drone capabilities and small boats on Sunday, using aircraft, naval vessels and drones. The exchanges were an escalation in the pace and geographic scope of attacks over the past week, casting doubt on an interim US-Iranian agreement signed last month to reopen the strait and end the war after a further 60 days of negotiations. In a brief phone interview with Reuters on Sunday, President Donald Trump referred to the weekend’s strikes on Iran. “We’re beating them up,” he said. Trump has said he considers the ceasefire over, while leaving the door open to further talks. Iran’s top negotiator, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, struck a similarly defiant tone, posting on X on

BR I E F S

DUBAI: US and Iranian forces exchanged heavy missile and drone attacks over the weekend and yesterday, with Tehran striking US facilities across the Gulf and saying it had again closed the Strait of Hormuz. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said yesterday they had targeted US military facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait, destroyed radar systems in Oman, and hit fuel tanks and ammunition depots at Prince Hassan Air Base in Jordan in response to US strikes. The US military said it had struck Iranian air defence systems, coastal

Top UN official accuses Hamas of obstructing aid TEL AVIV: A senior UN official yesterday accused Hamas of interfering with humanitarian who were delivering humanitarian supplies”, it said. This frame grab taken from AFPTV on Monday shows a ship sailing at Khor Fakkan near the Strait of Hormuz. – AFPTV/AFPPIC

Alakbarov said “these incidents are not isolated” and “reflect an increasingly dangerous pattern of intimidation, violence and obstruction, including smuggling attempts, targeting and abusing humanitarian operations”. He warned that such actions were hampering the delivery of life-saving assistance at a time when civilians faced severe hardships. A ceasefire was reached in Gaza between Israel and Hamas in October following two years of war. The second phase of the ceasefire, which was to involve Hamas’s disarmament and a gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, has been stalled for months. Israeli forces have expanded their presence in recent months, taking control of more than 60% of the territory. Hamas still exerts control over the remaining area, but last week announced it was dissolving its 15 member body that had governed the strip for nearly two decades. – AFP

deliveries in Gaza and intimidating aid workers, warning that the group’s actions were making relief operations increasingly dangerous. Hamas continues to control parts of Gaza, even after Israeli forces expanded their presence across more than 60% of the territory. UN Deputy Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Ramiz Alakbarov, said in a statement he “strongly” condemns the obstruction of humanitarian operations by Gaza’s de facto authorities. Hamas’s actions “endangered humanitarian personnel, intimidated workers delivering life-saving food assistance and disrupted life-saving humanitarian operations”, he said. Armed men linked to Hamas allegedly on Saturday forced their way into a food distribution point in Jabalia, in the northern Gaza Strip, the UN statement said. Gunmen“also entered a WFP (World Food Programme) warehouse and reportedly assaulted two truck drivers

Israel striking an industrial area in Gaza City on Monday. – AFPPIC