WEEKLY INTERNATIONAL NEWS REVIEW – June 27th – Jul 3rd 2026

SUDAN

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS WOUNDED: At least 22

LOCALITIES: El-Obeid, Tendelti, Koulbous, Am Dafock (CAR border), El-Facher

PERPETRATORS: Rapid Support Forces (RSF); ex-Seleka fighters allied with the RSF

VICTIMS: Civilians; Zaghawa ethnic group; UN peacekeepers

EL-OBEID UNDER RSF SIEGE, LARGE SCALE ABUSES ANTICIPATED

On June 29, 2026, residents of El-Obeid, capital of Sudan’s North Kordofan state, described worsening conditions as paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) tightened their siege of the city. The city of half a million people, hosting about 100,000 displaced people, has faced its most intense RSF attacks yet, including drone strikes on the main power plant and fuel depots that cut electricity and disabled water pumps. The UN warned of a build-up of RSF forces around the city, raising fears of a repeat of the atrocities committed when RSF seized El-Facher in October 2025. ACLED researcher Nohad Eltayeb said troop movements had been observed roughly 60 kilometers from El-Obeid in the past month. Mohamed Refaat of the International Organization for Migration warned that without immediate aid, conditions could soon resemble El-Facher, where the UN said more than 6,000 people were killed in the first three days of its fall. Residents in El-Obeid said drones buzz almost constantly and that civilians and infrastructure are “constantly targeted.”

THE ARMY CLAIMS BORDER TOWN OF KOULBOUS

On June 29, 2026, the Sudanese army announced it had recaptured the strategic town of Koulbous on the border with Chad, in what it called its most significant military gain since the fall of El-Facher to the RSF the previous year. The army said it had taken “full control” of Koulbous in Darfur, claiming heavy losses inflicted on the RSF and seized vehicles and weapons. The claims could not be independently verified and the RSF did not comment. A pro-army group accused the RSF of using Koulbous as a deployment base for “thousands of fighters crossing the border” and as a logistics hub linked to El-Geneina. Fighting has intensified in recent months along the Chadian border, which the Sudanese army accuses of aligning with the RSF.

3 UN PEACEKEEPERS WOUNDED NEAR SUDAN-CAR BORDER

On June 30, 2026, the UN Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) condemned an attack launched at 4:35 a.m. against the town of Am Dafock and gunfire targeting its base in Vakaga prefecture, near the border with Sudan. MINUSCA confirmed 3 Zambian peacekeepers were wounded, 1 seriously, and deployed aircraft to evacuate them. Ramadan Abdelkader, deputy prefect of Am Dafock, alleged that ex-Seleka fighters allied with RSF elements from Sudan carried out the attack on bases of the Central African Armed Forces and UN peacekeepers, and put the provisional toll at 22 wounded. He said Russian allied forces arrived by plane around 10 a.m. and began firing on rebel positions. Am Dafock, about 60 kilometers from Birao, is a strategic point regularly hit by cross-border incursions amid Sudan’s war since 2023.

AMNESTY ACCUSES RSF OF ‘ETHNIC CLEANSING’

On July 1, 2026, Amnesty International warned that crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing committed by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) before and during their 2025 capture of El-Facher, Darfur, would continue unless stopped. Amnesty Secretary General Agnès Callamard, presenting the report in Nairobi, said the RSF had committed “a litany of crimes against humanity” including massacres and ethnic cleansing, and called for urgent deployment of an international force to protect El-Obeid’s population. The report, titled “City of Siege, Children Targeted,” is based on testimony from 247 victims and witnesses of abuses committed between early 2024 and October 2025 in North Darfur, and found the RSF’s acts “could constitute the crime of genocide,” a conclusion Amnesty said it continues to investigate. A UN-mandated fact-finding mission had reported in February that “acts of genocide” were committed by the RSF during the capture of El-Facher. According to testimonies, the RSF systematically attacked villages and displacement camps around El-Facher, populated mainly by the Zaghawa ethnic group, burning homes, deliberately targeting children, committing rapes, forced recruitment and sexual slavery.

DRONE STRIKE DESTROYS UN AID IN DARFUR

On July 1, 2026, a truck chartered by the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) was struck by a drone in Sudan’s West Darfur region destroying 50 tonnes of aid intended for the population. UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said the truck was hit near Tendelti in West Darfur while carrying blankets, mattresses and solar lamps, toward Kordofan. The driver was unharmed but the cargo was destroyed. “Thousands of people who depend on this aid will have to go without the urgent support they need,” Dujarric said.

‘RED ALERT’ AS DRONE STRIKES KILL IN EL-OBEID

On July 3, 2026, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk issued a “red alert” over the unfolding “catastrophe” in El-Obeid, warning of possible displacement of hundreds of thousands of people. Speaking at an urgent debate on Sudan at the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva, requested by the United Kingdom with support from Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands and Norway, Türk said clear signs pointed to a new human rights catastrophe in North Kordofan’s capital. British representative Eleanor Sanders told the debate that mounting drone strikes had killed civilians and destroyed civilian infrastructure, including fuel stations and the power grid. The Human Rights Office documented 15 drone strikes on El-Obeid and its surroundings between June 6 and June 28, killing at least 45 civilians and wounding 41, while noting the true toll is likely higher. Türk said residents faced arbitrary detention if they stayed and accusations of collaboration if they fled RSF-controlled areas, “all against a backdrop of rising hate speech.”

SOUTH SUDAN

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS DEAD: At least 17

LOCALITIES: Duk County, Jonglei State

PERPETRATORS: Unidentified armed men

VICTIMS: Humanitarian workers; civilians

5 AID WORKERS KILLED IN AMBUSH ON HUMANITARIAN CONVOY IN SOUTH SUDAN

On June 29, 2026, the UN condemned an “unacceptable” attack on a clearly marked humanitarian convoy in Duk County, Jonglei State, South Sudan, that killed five aid workers. UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said the convoy, led by a local partner organization, was ambushed and that other civilians were also killed and wounded. He called the rising number of attacks on humanitarians in various conflicts “unacceptable” and a violation of international humanitarian law, demanding a swift investigation and prosecution of those responsible. According to local outlet Radio Tamazuj, the convoy belonged to the John Dau Foundation and was returning from a training session organized by the World Food Programme and Action Against Hunger when armed men attacked it; local sources said at least 17 people in total were killed. South Sudan has faced a series of deadly conflicts since gaining independence in 2011.

NIGERIA

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS DEAD: At least 93

LOOTING OR DESTRUCTION OF CIVILIAN PROPERTIES: YES

LOCALITIES: Lake Chad region; Niger State; Lassa, Askira Uba; Borno State

PERPETRATORS: Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP); armed groups; organized criminals

VICTIMS: Civilians, Kamuku and Fulani ethnic groups

37 STUDENTS MISSING AFTER JIHADIST RAID ON NIGERIAN SCHOOL

On June 29, 2026, local authorities said 37 students remained missing after suspected Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) fighters stormed a secondary school in Lassa, in Nigeria’s Askira Uba local government area, killing 3 people including a soldier. The military said 11 students were abducted during year-end exams, of whom 10 were later rescued. Mass abductions for ransom have become common in Nigeria, particularly in the North and center.

48 KILLED IN HERDER-FARMER CLASHES

On July 1, 2026, at least 48 people were killed in clashes between herders and farmers in Niger State, West-central Nigeria. A security report prepared for the UN said armed “herder militias” wielding machetes attacked farmers of the Kamuku ethnic group in Tegina, Rafi district, killing at least 42 people. Kamuku farmers retaliated against a group of herders working on a plantation near Tegina, killing 6. Community leader Abdullahi Alhassan said Fulani herders separately raided the Bargaja community on Tegina’s outskirts, attacking residents with machetes and burning others alive in their homes, killing 43 people, in reprisal for the killing of a herder patriarch the previous month, which herders blamed on Kamuku militias. Kamuku farmers then launched retaliatory attacks on three herder camps around Tegina, burning homes and killing at least 2 herders. The security report said the conflict began in May over a dispute concerning a financial donation from a state senator. The World Food Programme warned that renewed violence in northern Nigeria had pushed food insecurity to its highest level in a decade, with more than 17 million people facing crisis, emergency or catastrophic hunger levels.

WASHINGTON WITHDRAWS TROOPS FROM NIGERIA BUT KEEPS SHARING INTELLIGENCE

On July 2, 2026, the US said it had withdrawn most of the roughly 200 troops deployed to Nigeria for a special operation against jihadist insurgents in the northeast. Africa Command chief General Dagvin Anderson said that Washington had pulled back forces present solely for the operation but would continue intelligence-sharing and support. In May, US and Nigerian forces jointly conducted airstrikes in the Lake Chad region killing nearly 200 alleged Islamic State fighters, including the group’s global deputy leader. Anderson said the Nigerian army had been “very active” since, resulting in more defections and surrenders among Islamic State fighters in the Northeast.

NIGERIA SEEKS DEEPER MILITARY COOPERATION WITH NIGER AND BENIN

On July 2, 2026, Nigerian Defence Minister Christopher Musa said the country was strengthening military cooperation with Benin and Niger to counter Sahel-based jihadists advancing in its Northwest. Musa said Nigeria was opening a new sector to cover the border between Nigeria, Benin and Niger, as the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), al-Qaeda’s Sahel affiliate, sought to enter Nigeria via Benin from Burkina Faso. He said the plan was still being developed and that he intended to visit Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, all led by military regimes that broke from the West African bloc to form the Alliance of Sahel States. Videos recently circulated showing Beninese troops operating on Nigerian territory, which Musa said had Abuja’s authorization.

KENYA

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS WOUNDED: 6

LOCALITIES: Nairobi

PERPETRATORS: Kenyan police

VICTIMS: Protesters

6 PROTESTERS TORTURED AFTER MEMORIAL MARCH

On June 27, 2026, 6 Kenyan protesters were found “abandoned and tortured” after being arrested during a march marking the second anniversary of a deadly crackdown on protests. Families of people killed by security forces in June 2024, joined by activists and politicians, held the commemorative march through Nairobi as authorities sealed off major roads under heavy security. Interior Minister Kipchumba Murkomen said about 355 people were arrested nationwide. The six detained protesters were held as rights organizations demanded their immediate release, before being found abandoned in various Nairobi neighborhoods on Saturday, according to the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC), which said a seventh protester remained missing. The six said they had been “brutally assaulted by police” while in custody and were hospitalized, local media reported. In June 2024, tens of thousands of young Kenyans under the “Generation Z” banner protested peacefully for days against planned tax increases and endemic corruption. The crackdown that followed killed 62 people in 2024 and 6 more the following year.

MALI

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS DEAD: At least 8

LOCALITIES: Gao, Kidal, Tonka, Guimbé, Tené, Tidermène (Niger border)

PERPETRATORS: Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM); Azawad Liberation Front (FLA); Malian army; Africa Corps

VICTIMS: Civilians, Fulani communities

HRW DOCUMENTS ‘GRAVE ABUSES’ BY ALL SIDES

On June 29, 2026, Human Rights Watch (HRW) said jihadists from JNIM, their Tuareg rebel allies, the Malian army and the Russian Africa Corps had “committed grave abuses against civilians” since unprecedented coordinated attacks in April. Mali has faced a critical security situation since JNIM, al-Qaeda’s Sahel affiliate, and the Tuareg-dominated Azawad Liberation Front (FLA) carried out large-scale coordinated attacks on April 25 and 26 that killed the defense minister among others. HRW said clashes near Bamako and in other cities between JNIM-FLA forces and the army and Africa Corps killed 13 civilians and wounded at least 25 others on April 25 in Gao and Kidal. HRW said it conducted 34 remote interviews, including 30 with witnesses, and analyzed videos, photos and satellite imagery.

8 CIVILIANS KILLED IN AIRSTRIKE IN THE NORTH

On June 30, 2026, 8 civilians were killed when an airstrike hit their vehicle in northeastern Mali near the border with Niger. The vehicle was traveling through Tidermène district toward the weekly Inkadewane market, about 50 kilometers from the regional capital Ménaka. All the passengers, including teenagers, were killed instantly. Among the victims was an official from the Intadeyni health center’s expanded vaccination program. The Malian army and its Russian Africa Corps auxiliaries have intensified operations since the late-April JNIM attacks. Mali has also banned motorcycles of “125cc and above” outside major towns, considered as a favored jihadist mode of transport. a security source said travel by pickup and motorcycle has become highly risky for civilians, who now fear leaving major towns to buy supplies. The previous day, the Africa Corps published a video claiming to have destroyed, using a drone, a pickup truck it said belonged to “terrorists” in Tidermène district.

TANZANIA

TANZANIAN OPPOSITION DENOUNCES BAN ON POLITICAL RALLIES

On June 27, 2026, Tanzania’s opposition strongly condemned a government ban on political rallies, calling it growing repression days before planned protests over last year’s disputed election. Chadema party official John Kitoka wrote on X that the government’s response to rising demands for freedom was “fear, intimidation and repression,” calling the ban “unconstitutional.” Interior Minister Patrobas Katambi told parliament the decision was for “security reasons,” saying it applied to all political parties and citing arrests of people found with weapons and fuel cans. At least 518 people were killed in violence following last October’s election, according to a government-appointed commission, while opposition and religious groups say security forces killed thousands, with foreign diplomats estimating the toll between 1,000 and 2,000. The protests planned for July 7 coincide with the government-organized Dar es Salaam International Trade Fair. Western diplomats and rights groups have also accused the government of orchestrating a wave of abductions and killings of critics.

DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF CONGO

UN WARNS OF ‘EXCEPTIONALLY GRAVE’ ABUSES IN EASTERN DRC

On June 29, 2026, an independent UN commission of inquiry said in Geneva it had received information on violence of “exceptional gravity” in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, including sexual violence, unlawful killings and forced recruitment of children. Presenting to the Human Rights Council, commission chair Arnauld Akodjenou said investigators received “deeply concerning testimony” about children, conflict-related sexual violence including “sexual slavery,” forced recruitment, unlawful killings, arbitrary arrests and attacks on schools and health facilities. The commission, created by the Human Rights Council to investigate alleged violations of international humanitarian and human rights law in the two provinces, said its inquiry remains preliminary and it cannot yet draw conclusions on the nature or scale of the violations. It said it had also received reports of obstruction of humanitarian access, mistreatment in detention, and threats against human rights defenders and journalists documenting abuses, compounded by mass displacement and the Ebola outbreak’s impact on health, education and trade.

RDC OPPOSITION AND CHURCH UNITE AGAINST TSHISEKEDI THIRD-TERM

On July 3, 2026, opposition parties in the Democratic Republic of Congo called for street protests demanding President Félix Tshisekedi’s resignation, accusing him of seeking to amend the constitution to stay beyond his two-term limit. The opposition, which had initially called for a protest on Wednesday in Kinshasa, postponed its call to July 22 after a dialogue proposal from Burundian President Evariste Ndayishimiye, current chair of the African Union. President since 2019 and nicknamed “Fatshi,” Tshisekedi, 63, is constitutionally required to step down at the end of 2028. In early May he confirmed intentions long suspected by the opposition, saying “if the people wish me to have a third term, I will accept.” The opposition coalition C64, formed in mid-May, includes businessman and exiled former Katanga governor Moïse Katumbi, who won 18% of the vote in 2023; former minister Delly Sesanga; and Martin Fayulu, who won 5% in 2023 and maintains victory was stolen from him in the disputed 2018 election. Sesanga and Fayulu were both injured on June 12 in Kinshasa when clashes broke out between their supporters and pro-government militants and police during a rally against what they called a “constitutional coup”. The UN condemned the death of “at least one protester.”

LEBANON

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS DEAD: At least 1

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS WOUNDED: At least 4

LOCALITIES: Nabatiyé al-Fawqa, Baraachit, Seddiqine (near Tyre), Deir Seryan, Taybeh, southern Lebanon

PERPETRATORS: Israeli military

VICTIMS: Lebanese civilians

LEBANON & ISRAEL SIGN PEACE FRAMEWORK, HEZBOLLAH VOWS DEFIANCE

On June 26, 2026, Israel, Lebanon and the United States signed a framework agreement in Washington aimed at achieving “durable peace,” with Israel insisting its troops would remain in Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed. The deal calls for the “verified disarmament of non-state armed groups” and gradual transfer to the Lebanese army of two “pilot zones,” one north and one south of the Litani River, about 30 kilometers from the Israeli border, intended eventually to allow civilian return. Rubio announced $100 million in immediate humanitarian aid coordinated with the UN and more than $30 million for the Lebanese armed forces. Hezbollah lawmaker Hassan Fadlallah warned the text risked plunging Lebanon into “civil war,” while the group’s leader, Naïm Qassem, called it a “grave error” representing an “abandonment of sovereignty” that would “never be implemented.” Hezbollah supporters protested in Beirut, blocking roads with burning tires. Since fighting resumed on March 2, Israeli strikes have killed more about 4,300 people in Lebanon.

ISRAEL STRIKES THE SOUTH DESPITE FRAMEWORK DEAL, KILLS 2

On June 27, 2026, Israel’s military carried out fresh strikes in southern Lebanon in what it said was retaliation for attacks on its soldiers. Israeli forces said they struck a “terrorist” and destroyed a rocket launcher near Nabatiyé, despite a framework accord announced between Israel and Lebanon. Lebanon’s official news agency ANI reported additional strikes on June 28 that killed 1 person and wounded 2 in Seddiqine, near Tyre. The Israeli defense minister, Israel Katz, later said troops would prepare for a “prolonged stay” in the sector of south Lebanon they occupy. By July 3, Israel’s military said it had struck about 10 Hezbollah sites and a truck in southern Lebanon with ANI reporting 3 strikes near Baraachit and Nabatiyé al-Fawqa and 2 more people wounded in Deir Seryan and Taybeh. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited the occupied sector on June 30, saying “we will not leave South Lebanon” until Hezbollah is disarmed.

LEBANON VOWS TO DEPLOY ARMY IN THE SOUTH, ISRAEL DECLARES INDEFINITE MILITARY PRESENCE

On June 29, 2026, Lebanese President Joseph Aoun affirmed his determination to extend State authority by deploying the army in the South, where Hezbollah is positioned. The Lebanese army had begun consolidating positions in the south in 2024 under an international ceasefire monitoring mechanism, interrupted when hostilities resumed on March 2. On July 1, 2026, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz said the Israeli military would remain “indefinitely” in what it calls “security zones” in Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip. Katz said the forces would stay “to protect our residents and communities in these regions from jihadist elements.” The statement came as Iranian and American delegations met in Qatar to discuss the mid-June memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon. Netanyahu had earlier ordered the military in late May to extend control over 70% of the Gaza Strip, devastated by the Israeli forces.

SYRIA

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS DEAD: At least 10

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS WOUNDED: At least 21

LOCALITIES: Damascus; Sweida province; Abdine village (Deraa)

PERPETRATORS: Unidentified bomber (Damascus attack); Israeli armed forces; Druze factions, Bedouin tribes

VICTIMS: Civilians in Damascus; Druze and Bedouin communities in Sweida (referenced); residents of Abdine

DAMASCUS BOMBING KILLS 10

On July 2, 2026, a bomb exploded at a Damascus café, killing 10 and injuring 21. The blast occurred near the Palace of Justice in a busy central Damascus district, caused by a roughly one-kilogram homemade bomb packed with metal fragments that had been planted on site. No group immediately claimed responsibility. The attack is the deadliest in Damascus since the June 2025 church bombing that killed 25 people, claimed by a Sunni fundamentalist group, though authorities blamed the Islamic State.

TRIAL OVER 2025 SWEIDA MASSACRE

On July 3, 2026, Syrian authorities said several suspects had been referred to trial as part of the investigation into last year’s violence in the Druze-majority province of Sweida, with some trials already underway. The province was the scene of sectarian violence in July 2025 that killed more than 2,000 people, including 789 Druze civilians, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights. A government-appointed inquiry commission had counted at least 1,760 dead in a report presented in March. The commission said the military prosecutor had begun “referring several people to the investigating judge,” with some cases transmitted to Damascus’s military criminal court, which began public hearings on July 1st. It said the proceedings aim to “establish the facts and hold accountable anyone whose responsibility for violations is established, regardless of their status.” The commission had earlier drawn up a list of suspects from the State security forces, Druze factions and civilians, including Bedouins and tribal members. The violence, a week of clashes between Druze fighters and Bedouin armed groups that escalated after government forces intervened, followed by tribal fighters backing the Bedouins, was marked by summary executions and other abuses targeting Druze, according to survivors and NGOs.

ISRAELI TROOPS INCURSION INTO SOUTHERN VILLAGE

On June 29, 2026, Syria’s foreign ministry condemned Israeli incursions and gunfire in the South of the country, a day after tensions near the Golan Heights forced residents to flee temporarily. In the village of Abdine, western Deraa province, Israeli forces carried out an incursion on Sunday, June 28, which residents tried to block. Israel responded with artillery fire, and local notable Mahmoud Mouaffak said shells landed near homes, forcing residents to flee overnight to neighboring villages before Israeli forces withdrew and calm returned Monday morning. Syria’s foreign ministry “firmly” condemned the “Israeli aggressions” as a “flagrant violation of Syria’s sovereignty.” Since Assad’s fall in late 2024, Israeli forces have entered the UN-monitored buffer zone on the Golan Heights and increased incursions into Deraa and Quneitra provinces. The Syrian monitoring group Sijil documented nearly 300 Israeli operations or violations in the two provinces in June, including 107 incursions and raids. Israel said it had killed “several armed terrorists” in the “security zone” in Southern Syria, without specifying numbers or location. Defence Minister Israel Katz said on June 25 that Israel intended to keep troops in the sector it occupies in Syria “indefinitely,” as in Lebanon and Gaza. Israel seized most of the Golan Heights in the 1967 war and later annexed the areas under its control.

PALESTINE

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS DEAD: At least 11

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS WOUNDED: At least 27

LOCALITIES: Deir el-Balah, Khan Younès (Gaza); al-Bireh, Naplouse; Jaffa, Holon, Taybeh, Qalansawe

PERPETRATORS: Israeli military, organized crime

VICTIMS: Palestinians; Arab Israelis

5 ARAB ISRAELIS KILLED IN CRIMINAL ATTACKS

On June 28, 2026, the police announced that 5 members of Israel’s Arab minority were killed in gun and car-bomb attacks. In Jaffa, a car-bomb attack killed a man, described by the police as “a criminal matter”; his six-year-old son was wounded. A second car bomb exploded in Holon, South of Tel Aviv, fatally wounding another man, who district police commander General Haim Sargarof said was known for involvement in various disputes. A man was shot dead and another wounded in the town of Taybeh in what police called a ” family dispute,” and 2 more men were shot dead hours later in nearby Qalansawe, in what police, citing preliminary findings, linked to a local vendetta.

ISRAELI STRIKES KILL 5 IN GAZA

On June 29, 2026, 5 people were killed in the Gaza Strip by Israeli strikes, hospital and rescue officials said, as the Palestinian territory continued to face regular strikes despite the truce. Al-Aqsa Hospital in Deir el-Balah said 3 people were killed and several wounded after an Israeli drone struck a group of civilians. The Civil Defense also reported a strike on Deir el-Balah. An Israeli military source confirmed a strike in the area targeting “terrorists”. The Civil Defense later reported 2 more deaths and more than 27 wounded in a strike on a tent on the beach in Khan Younès.

PALESTINIAN TEEN SHOT BY ISRAELI ARMY

On June 29, 2026, a Palestinian teenager was killed by the Israeli army during a raid in the occupied West Bank, the Palestinian Authority’s health ministry said. The ministry said Amir Ahmad Jawad Jaber, 15, was shot in the head and chest by Israeli soldiers during an “incursion” into al-Bireh, near Ramallah. The Israeli army said a “riot” broke out during the operation, with stones thrown at soldiers, who “opened fire”. Ramallah and al-Bireh governor Laïla Ghannam called it “a blatant execution in broad daylight.” Israel has occupied the West Bank, home to 3 million Palestinians, since 1967.

ISRAELI ARMY SHUTS DOWN WEST BANK CHARITY

On July 1, 2026, the Israeli Army accused the al-Tadamon charity in Nablus of financing armed groups, claims denied by the organization. Soldiers sealed the association’s offices and seized 55,000 shekels (about $18,000) allegedly intended for terrorist activities. A source within al-Tadamon confirmed the seizure but stated the funds were part of the association’s official budget for social and educational activities, including managing three schools and aiding orphans and disadvantaged families in Nablus. Nablus Governor Ghassan Daghlas condemned the action, stating it targeted the poor. Israel frequently conducts operations against Palestinian organizations.

IRAN-GULF-ISRAEL-US

US STRIKES IRAN AS TRUMP RENEWS THREAT TO ‘ANNIHILATE’, IRAN ATTACKS KUWAIT & BAHRAIN

On June 28, 2026, the United States bombed Iran for a second consecutive day, in what it said was retaliation for an Iranian attack on an oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, as both countries accused each other of violating their fragile ceasefire. President Donald Trump again threatened to annihilate Iran after the strikes, which US Central Command said targeted “multiple” military surveillance, communications, air-defense, drone-storage and mine-laying facilities. Iranian media reported explosions in the Sirik and Qeshm areas. Centcom said the strikes came in response to an Iranian drone attack on the Panama-flagged tanker M/T Kiku, carrying more than two million barrels of crude through the Strait of Hormuz. The US had already struck Iran on June 27 for the first time since a June 17 memorandum of understanding established a ceasefire and opened a negotiation period. Bahrain’s government said it had been targeted by several Iranian drones. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards warned that “if the aggression is repeated, our response will be broader.” In retaliation, Iran then struck Kuwait and Bahrain, in an escalation threatening ongoing negotiations to end the war. Iran’s Revolutionary Guards said they fired missiles and drones at dawn in retaliation, claiming to have “destroyed eight important infrastructure facilities” at Kuwait’s Ali al-Salem base and Bahrain’s Fifth Fleet base at Port Salman. Kuwait denounced “hateful and repeated Iranian aggressions” and condemned a “flagrant violation” of its sovereignty; Bahrain’s military said air-raid sirens sounded twice overnight and it had “intercepted and destroyed a number of projectiles” from the attacks.

IRAQ GIVES PRO-IRANIAN GROUPS UNTIL SEPTEMBER TO DISARM

On June 29, 2026, Iraq’s government said it had given pro-Iranian armed groups on its territory until the end of September to disarm, a longstanding US demand that has grown more urgent since the groups were targeted during the war. Government spokesman Haidar Abboudi said all armed groups had been informed of a firm deadline of September 30, coinciding with the end of the international anti-jihadist coalition’s presence, after which “all weapons outside State control will face prosecution.” These groups have targeted US installations in Iraq more than 600 times during the war launched by the February 28 Israeli-American offensive on Iran, and also struck targets in Gulf countries. The US, which also bombed pro-Iranian positions in Iraq, said in early May it would resume financial transfers and security assistance once “concrete measures” were taken.

NEW IRAN’S LEADERSHIP

Iran’s leadership is now shared among military, religious, and civilian figures following the death of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, officially succeeded his father as Supreme Leader, holding ultimate authority, though his public absence and rumored injuries raise questions about his effective control. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, 64, Speaker of Parliament and former Revolutionary Guards air force commander, has emerged as a prominent public figure, leading negotiations with the US. Massoud Pezeshkian, 71, seen as a moderate, signed a protocol agreement with the US, with Mojtaba Khamenei attributing the decision to Pezeshkian. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, 63, a key nuclear deal architect, is involved in dialogue with the US. Ahmad Vahidi, 68, heads the Revolutionary Guards, remains discreet to avoid assassination. Mohammad Bagher Zolghadr, 71 or 72, leads the Supreme National Security Council. Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejeï, 69, head of the judiciary system, has intensified repression, ordering expedited death sentences against protesters and alleged spies.

AFGHANISTAN-PAKISTAN

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS DEAD: At least 36

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS WOUNDED: At least 163

LOCALITIES: Tsamkani, Paktia, Paktika, Kunar provinces (Afghanistan); Karachi (Pakistan); Torkham (border)

PERPETRATORS: Pakistani military; Jamaat-ul-Ahrar

VICTIMS: Afghan civilians

BOMB ATTACK AND SHOOTOUT IN KARACHI

On June 27, 2026, 3 members of the Pakistani Rangers paramilitary force were killed in an attack in Karachi following an explosion and heavy gunfire, the Pakistani military said. The armed forces said the group Jamaat-ul-Ahrar was responsible for the “cowardly” attack on a Rangers camp in Sindh province’s capital, in which attackers detonated explosives at the main gate before attempting to breach the perimeter, without success. Jamaat-ul-Ahrar is a faction alternately affiliated with and dissident from the Pakistani Taliban (TTP). Islamabad accuses Afghanistan of sheltering TTP fighters responsible for deadly attacks in Pakistan, an accusation Afghan authorities deny.

PAKISTAN LAUNCHES STRIKES ON AFGHANISTAN, KILLING 36

On June 29, 2026, Pakistan launched its deadliest attack on Afghanistan in months, killing 36 people in the country’s East. The Taliban government reported civilian casualties, while Islamabad said it had targeted a Pakistani Taliban faction. Pakistani Information Minister Attaullah Tarar said “3 targets in Paktia, Paktika and Kunar provinces were destroyed “. Afghan deputy government spokesman Hamdullah Fitrat said the strikes killed 36 civilians, including women and children, and wounded 163 others, adding that the area was struck a second time as residents gathered for rescue operations, an allegation the Pakistani military did not respond to. A resident described the children he saw at the hospital and said those killed were “innocent civilians, including children, elderly people and women,” asleep in a house in Tsamkani district. In neighboring Paktika, community leader Amin Mangal said a strike on a house killed 6 people who were “very poor and powerless,” living on charity. The operation is the deadliest since March, when a strike on a medical center in Kabul killed hundreds.

PAKISTAN ORDERS ARREST OF UNDOCUMENTED AFGHANS

On June 29, 2026, Pakistani authorities ordered law enforcement to arrest any Afghan national residing without a valid visa starting July 10, marking a new phase in Islamabad’s mass expulsion policy. The interior ministry order states that any Afghan found residing in Pakistan without a valid visa “will be immediately arrested.” Rights defenders say authorities have regularly detained Afghans and searched neighborhoods where many live in recent years. Karachi-based human rights lawyer Samar Abbas said the order “has created fear and uncertainty among thousands of people” struggling to renew immigration status, noting many have spent decades in Pakistan and are now “caught.” The directive is dated the day after a deadly attack on a paramilitary camp in Karachi that Pakistani authorities said involved an Afghan national. More than 2.3 million Afghans have returned to Afghanistan since 2023, according to the UN, including 516,000 since the start of the year. Pakistan still hosts more than a million Afghans, mostly refugees. On July 3, 2026, thousands of Afghans expelled from Pakistan waited at the Torkham border crossing to return to a country of origin where most lack identity documents. Many returnees receive a “return certificate” but no formal documentation. Ziad Salih, IOM’s regional official, said identity papers are “an essential piece” for building a new life and their absence risks “administrative and social exclusion,” including barriers to education, legal work, social benefits, property and inheritance rights, and passing security checkpoints. The UN aims to help secure 1.5 million valid identity documents over the next three years.

EASTERN EUROPE

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS DEAD: At least 60

PRESUMED CIVILIANS/NON-COMBATANTS WOUNDED: At least 210

LOCALITIES: Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odessa, Kherson, Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia, Sumy, Kryvyi Rih, Tokmak, Donetsk (Ukraine); Moscow region, Krasnodar region, Belgorod, Volgograd, Rostov, Nizhny Novgorod (Russia)

PERPETRATORS: Russian armed forces; Ukrainian armed forces

VICTIMS: Ukrainian and Russian civilians

5 KILLED, DOZENS WOUNDED IN CROSS-BORDER STRIKE EXCHANGES

On June 27, 2026, 2 people were killed by Russian strikes and 3 by Ukrainian attacks, local authorities in both countries said, with dozens more wounded on each side. In Ukraine’s Dnipropetrovsk region, one person was killed and two wounded, regional military chief Oleksandr Ganja said, adding the region was hit more than 30 times by drones and aerial bombs. In Sumy region, a man was killed in a drone strike on a house, governor Oleg Grygorov said, with 13 more wounded, including two children, in other strikes. Strikes on Zaporizhzhia city wounded at least nine, including two children, with a residential building partially destroyed. In Russian-controlled Horlivka, Donetsk region, a woman was killed by a Ukrainian strike, pro-Russian mayor Ivan Prikhodko said. A Ukrainian strike on an industrial enterprise in Volgograd killed at least one and wounded 11; President Zelensky said on social media that FP-5 Flamingo missiles had successfully struck the Titan-Barrikady military complex there. One person was killed in a Ukrainian drone strike on an industrial enterprise in Belgorod region, while 11 were wounded in a strike on a military museum in Rostov region.

FORCIBLY CONSCRIPTED GUINEAN RETURNS HOME

On June 27, 2026, a young Equatorial Guinean, Daniel Ángel Masie Nchama, forcibly conscripted into the Russian army and sent to fight in Ukraine, returned to Malabo. Placed under the protection of Equatorial Guinea’s embassy in Moscow after his release, his repatriation followed diplomatic efforts. Having left the country in December 2025 as a 22-year-old computer science student hoping to live abroad, he was contacted by a Cameroonian based in Russia and believed he was going for military training with a promised job as a bodyguard. After 45 days in Russia and two months of training in Murmansk, he was transferred without his consent to a Russian military base in Donetsk, in eastern Ukraine’s combat zone.

AT LEAST 2 WOUNDED IN RUSSIAN ATTACK ON KYIV & 1 KILLED IN UKRAINIAN STRIKE ON REFINERY

On June 28, 2026, at least 2 people were wounded in a Russian attack on Kyiv overnight, the capital’s military administration chief Tymour Tkachenko said. The Ukrainian military reported a ballistic missile attack on Kyiv in the early hours of Sunday. Meanwhile, 1 person was killed and another wounded in a “massive” Ukrainian drone attack on Russia’s southern Krasnodar region, where a fire broke out at a refinery, regional governor Veniamine Kondratiev said. Kondratiev said several homes in Slaviansk-sur-Kouban were damaged by falling drone debris, a fire broke out at an oil refinery, and a power line and gas pipeline were damaged. The Slaviansk-sur-Kouban refinery, one of the largest in southern Russia, has been struck repeatedly by Ukraine given its proximity to annexed Crimea. Russia’s defense ministry said a total of 213 Ukrainian drones were intercepted overnight across more than a dozen Russian regions, including Moscow.

9 KILLED IN RUSSIAN STRIKES

On June 29, 2026, Russian strikes on the Ukrainian cities of Dnipro, Zaporizhzhia and Kharkiv killed at least 9 people and wounded dozens, local authorities said. A Russian missile strike on Dnipro killed at least 5 and wounded 28, 4 critically, said Dnipropetrovsk regional military chief Oleksandr Ganja, with images showing a building with shattered windows and a body on the ground. Police said the strike hit “a private company” in the frequently targeted industrial city. In Zaporizhzhia, a Russian drone strike on a bus killed 3 and wounded 8, including a child, regional military chief Ivan Fedorov said, publishing images of a destroyed minibus. In Kharkiv, a bomb killed 1 person and wounded 5, mayor Igor Terekhov said.

RUSSIAN BABY KILLED IN UKRAINIAN ATTACK

On June 30, 2026, Russia shot down 419 Ukrainian drones overnight, including over the Moscow region, where a six-month-old baby was killed. Russia’s defense ministry said air defenses intercepted and destroyed the drones between 8 p.m. Moscow time on June 29 and 7 a.m. on June 30, with annexed Crimea and the Krasnodar and Moscow regions among the areas targeted. In Yegoryevsk, Moscow region, a house caught fire after a drone crashed, regional governor Andrei Vorobiov said. A six-month-old baby died on the road to the hospital, and another child and two adults were hospitalized. Moscow mayor Sergei Sobyanin said about 60 drones aimed at the city were shot down overnight and Tuesday morning.

UKRAINE LAUNCHES MECHANISM FOR PARTNERS TO BUY WEAPONS

On July 1, 2026, Ukraine announced a mechanism allowing partner countries to purchase Ukrainian weapons and military technology, aiming to raise funds for its armed forces. Defence Minister Mykhaïlo Fedorov said on Telegram that countries with relevant intergovernmental agreements would be able to buy Ukrainian arms and technology and work directly with manufacturers. Ukraine has depended on Western allies for many weapons categories but has developed its own technology in areas such as drones and counter-drone systems. Fedorov said the goal was to attract investment while ensuring Ukrainian forces’ needs are met first, with exports possible “only if supply to the Ukrainian army is guaranteed.”

6 KILLED IN SERIES OF RUSSIAN STRIKES

On July 1, 2026, at least 6 people were killed and about 50 wounded in a series of Russian bombardments across several Ukrainian regions, local authorities said. In Kharkiv seven bombs hit three districts, killing a 15-year-old and wounding 32, mayor Igor Terekhov reported. In Odessa region, 2 people died and 15 were wounded in a ballistic missile strike that sparked a fire at a business, according to regional governor Oleg Kiper. A minibus was struck by a drone in Kherson region, killing an 18-year-old woman traveling to submit a university application and another person, with 9 wounded, governor Oleksandre Prokoudine said. Another drone strike on an administrative building in Kherson region killed 1 person and wounded 2 more.

AT LEAST 30 KILLED IN WORST RUSSIAN STRIKES ON KYIV

On July 2, 2026, 30 people had been killed and 91 wounded in Kyiv in the worst drone and missile attack on the Ukrainian capital since the war began. Overnight on July 1-2, Ukraine was targeted by 496 drones and 74 missiles, of which 476 and 48 respectively were intercepted, according to the Ukrainian air force. Entire sections of residential buildings collapsed, a building housing ambulances was hit, and debris fell on a building housing diplomats, according to EU spokeswoman Anitta Hipper. One of the main Ukrainian Red Cross warehouses holding humanitarian supplies was also destroyed. Ukrainian publisher BookChef said it had lost nearly 800,000 books when a warehouse burned down following overnight Russian strikes. Mayor Vitali Klitschko called it the “most massive” attack on the capital since 2022 and declared a day of mourning. About 52,000 people, including 4,500 children, sheltered in the Kyiv metro overnight, the largest such gathering in recent years.

RUSSIA CLAIMS CAPTURE OF KOSTYANTYNIVKA

On July 3, 2026, the Kremlin claimed Russian forces had fully captured Kostyantynivka, a fortified Ukrainian position on the road to the last major Donbas cities under Kyiv’s control. The battle for the city, which had about 78,000 residents before the war, has raged since late 2025 and represents Russia’s main current effort along a front stretching more than 1,000 kilometers. Kostyantynivka is one of the last gateways toward Kramatorsk and Sloviansk.

NATO ALLIES PLEDGE €70 BILLION IN MILITARY AID TO UKRAINE

On July 3, 2026, European NATO countries were set to commit €70 billion in military aid to Ukraine for both 2026 and 2027, diplomatic sources said. The pledge, alongside the €60 billion the European Union has already committed for the two years, brings total aid to €140 billion over the period. The US, whose administration under President Donald Trump ended financial aid to Ukraine, is not part of the pledge, though it continues providing intelligence support and selling weapons, including Patriot missiles funded by European partners.

LITHUANIA SEEKS ROLE IN NUCLEAR DETERRENCE AGAINST RUSSIA

On July 3, 2026, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda said he wanted his country to take part in Western nuclear deterrence against Moscow, alluding to the possible deployment of nuclear weapons on Lithuanian territory. Speaking in Berlin alongside Baltic leaders and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz ahead of a NATO summit, Nauseda said he had proposed a constitutional amendment to remove the existing restriction on nuclear weapons deployment in Lithuania. The country, which borders Russia and its ally Belarus, spends more than 5% of GDP on defense this year and hosts a NATO multinational battlegroup, with Germany is deploying a permanent brigade of up to 5,000 soldiers.

MYANMAR

MYANMAR REJECTS ASEAN REQUEST TO MEET AUNG SAN SUU KYI

On June 30, 2026, Myanmar rejected a request by ASEAN’s special envoy to meet former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, 81, who remains in captivity. Spokeswoman Khaing Khaing Soe told reporters in Naypyidaw that Aung San Suu Kyi “has been prosecuted and is currently serving sentences” and is “therefore not permitted to meet international representatives” such as ASEAN special envoy Theresa Lazaro. The exact location of detained Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi remained unknown even to some officials, with authorities saying she is under house arrest somewhere in Naypyidaw. With a million residents spread over an area nine times the size of New York City, Naypyidaw is a maze of anonymous districts linked by vast empty avenues. Pro-military lawmaker Thein Tun Oo said “not everyone can know where she is.” She has not been seen in public since her imprisonment on charges rights groups call fabricated.

CHINA

CHINA’S ‘ETHNIC UNITY’ LAW, A TOOL TO ‘ERASE’ MINORITIES

On June 29, 2026, Tibetan and Uyghur representatives urged the UN to pressure China over a new “ethnic unity” law they described as a tool for erasing minority identities. The law officially aims to forge a “shared” national identity and “strengthen cohesion,” but rights defenders say it provides legal cover for forced assimilation policies favoring the majority, punishing involvement in “ethnic separatism”. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk had urged Beijing to review the law, warning the Human Rights Council it risked “deepening restrictions on linguistic, educational, religious, cultural, expressive and assembly freedoms.” At a Human Rights Council meeting on June 26, Tibetan representative Thinlay Chukki, representing the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan government-in-exile in central and eastern Europe, said the law meant Tibetans “no longer have the right to exist legally.” She said Tibetan children are already sent to boarding schools where they are “forcibly subjected to Mandarin and Chinese culture.” Uyghur World Congress vice president Zumretay Arkin said Beijing wants to “disrupt our identity, to disconnect generations,” saying the law would “completely eradicate Uyghur identity, culture and religion” and “force people to adopt Chinese identity.” Bhuchung Tsering of the International Campaign for Tibet denounced tactics aimed at detaching younger generations from their culture. Tibetan and Uyghur representatives also warned that a provision holding individuals or organizations abroad accountable could enable repression of dissidents beyond China’s borders.

INTERNATIONAL JUSTICE AND RELATIONS

ISRAEL RECOGNITION OF THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE

On June 28, 2026, Turkey denounced Israel’s recognition of the 1915 Armenian genocide as a “political decision” aimed at covering up “crimes” committed by the Israeli military against the Palestinian population in Gaza. Turkey’s foreign ministry said “the Israeli government, which has systematically persecuted the Palestinian people before the eyes of the entire world and is currently being tried before the International Court of Justice for genocide against the population of Gaza, is seeking to conceal its own crimes”. Turkey rejects the term to describe the massacres of Armenians under the Ottoman Empire.

POLAND SCRAPS PLAN TO SEND MIG-29 JETS TO UKRAINE

On June 29, 2026, Poland abandoned plans to send its remaining MiG-29 fighter jets to Ukraine after failing to reach an agreement to exchange them for Ukrainian drone technology. Poland had supplied Ukraine with MiG-29s early in the war and still holds about a dozen, having said in December it was ready for a swap. Defence Minister Wladyslaw Kosiniak-Kamysz said Ukraine initially accepted the “MiGs for drones” proposal but failed to implement it. Poland continues to serve as a hub for military and humanitarian aid deliveries to Kyiv and is awaiting delivery of 32 F-35 jets already ordered from Washington.

GERMANY ARRESTS ROMANIAN OVER NEO-NAZI PLOT AGAINST THE GOVERNMENT

On June 30, 2026, a Romanian national was arrested in Germany on suspicion of plotting to overthrow his country’s government and install a neo-Nazi regime, Germany’s federal prosecutor’s office said. The suspect, identified as Nichita P., is accused of attempting from early 2023 to found a ” terrorist organization” that would launch a “war of terror” in Romania to bring down the Romanian State and install a new entity modeled on National Socialism. He targeted young Romanians, urging to kill people he considered “subhuman,” and to burn buildings used by migrants or LGBT people. He allegedly published instructions for making poison and explosives. Germany has dismantled several conspiracy or far-right networks in recent years suspected of targeting its own institutions or leaders.

SOUTH KOREA & UKRAINE DISCUSS FATE OF NORTH KOREAN POWs

On June 30, 2026, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriï Sybiga and his South Korean counterpart Cho Hyun discussed in Seoul the fate of two North Koreans captured by Ukraine while fighting for Russia. The two ministers had “constructive discussions” on the sensitive issue and agreed it should be resolved according to “international law and humanitarian principles,” a South Korean foreign ministry spokesperson said. The two soldiers were captured by Ukrainian forces in January 2025 in Russia’s Kursk region and are sought by both Russia and North Korea. Rights groups warn of severe punishment awaiting them at home for having been captured alive instead of dying in battle, noting North Korean soldiers fighting alongside Russia are reportedly ordered to kill themselves rather than to surrender. The two North Koreans, the only ones captured alive by Ukraine since the war began, have expressed a wish to go to South Korea.

FINNISH BUSINESSMAN JAILED FOR BREACHING SANCTIONS ON RUSSIA

On July 1, 2026, a Finnish court sentenced a businessman to three years and eight months in prison for exporting trucks and trailers to neighboring Russia in violation of sanctions. The company of Risto Riihimaki, registered in Lappeenranta near the Russian border, exported 164 trucks and trailers in 2022 and 2023 in breach of sanctions imposed after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The firm had declared the vehicles were bound for Kazakhstan or Turkey via Russia, but the South Karelia district court found they were actually cleared through customs in Russia by a firm specializing in truck imports and resale, worth about €17 million according to Finnish customs. Riihimaki, in pretrial detention since mid-March, denied wrongdoing and said he had been deceived.

GERMAN PROSECUTORS ACCUSE UKRAINE OF NORTH STREAM SABOTAGE

On July 2, 2026, German federal prosecutors accused Ukrainian authorities of ordering the 2022 sabotage of the Russian-German North Stream pipelines, a day after the indictment of a first suspect was announced. Prosecutors said the suspect “and other military personnel devised, at the request of Ukrainian authorities, a plan to destroy the North Stream 1 and 2 pipelines,” which were sabotaged with explosives in September 2022. The suspect, identified as Sergiy Kuznietsov, was arrested in Italy on August 21, 2025, and extradited to Germany in September. He said he was a Ukrainian army commander at the time and that he was in Ukraine when the sabotage occurred. Prosecutors allege the suspect and accomplices, including divers, an explosives expert, rented a sailboat in Germany, sailed to the Danish island of Bornholm, attached explosive charges to the pipelines and detonated them, aiming to “durably prevent gas deliveries” and deprive Russia of gas revenue.

BURKINA FASO, MALI AND NIGER LEAVE ICC IN 2027

Sahel military governments of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger will formally leave the International Criminal Court (ICC) in June 2027, a year after filing their withdrawal notices. The three juntas jointly announced in September 2025 their withdrawal from the ICC, calling it an “instrument of neocolonial repression in the hands of imperialism.” The ICC said it had “taken note of the situation with concern” and regretted the withdrawals. Amnesty International’s West and Central Africa director, Marceau Sivieude, warned the decision “threatens to deprive thousands of victims of the chance to obtain truth, justice and reparations” and risks entrenching impunity. Human Rights Watch urged the African Union and ICC member States to press the three countries to reverse course.

GREENLAND: US PRESSURE REMAINS STRONG

On July 3, 2026, Greenland’s Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen said US pressure on the Danish autonomous territory “remains strong” but that Greenland “will never be for sale”. Nielsen said Greenland, coveted by President Donald Trump, has faced nearly two years of “unacceptable pressure” and called for “partnerships” with countries “that share the values of democracy,” citing the EU as strong supporters and naming Canada as another potential partner. Tensions have risen since Trump repeatedly said the US should annex the territory for national security.