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Harvard, Trump Administration Set For Court Clash Over Cancelled Funding
Harvard University will ask a federal court on Monday to compel the Trump administration to reinstate roughly $2.5 billion in cancelled federal grants and halt attempts to terminate the school’s research funding.
The court hearing before U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs in Boston marks a crucial moment in the White House’s escalating conflict with Harvard, which has been in the administration’s crosshairs after it rejected a list of demands to make changes to its governance, hiring and admissions practices in April.
The Cambridge, Massachusetts-based university says hundreds of research projects, including ones concerning cancer treatments, infectious diseases and Parkinson’s disease, will be in jeopardy unless the judge declares the grant cancellations unlawful.
The country’s oldest and richest university has become a central focus of the administration’s broad campaign to leverage federal funding to force change at U.S. universities, which Trump says are gripped by antisemitic and “radical left” ideologies.
“The Trump administration’s proposition is simple and commonsense: Don’t allow antisemitism and DEI to run your campus, don’t break the law, and protect the civil liberties of all students,” White House spokesperson Harrison Fields said in a statement.
Among the earliest actions the administration took against Harvard was the cancellation of hundreds of grants awarded to researchers on the grounds that the school failed to do enough to address harassment of Jewish students on its campus.
The Trump administration has since sought to bar international students from attending the school, threatened Harvard’s accreditation status, and opened the door to cutting off more funds by finding it violated federal civil rights law.
Endowment Tax Hike
As part of Trump’s spending and tax bill, the Republican-led Congress increased the federal excise tax on Harvard’s income from its $53 billion endowment to 8% from 1.4%. Income from the endowment covers 40% of Harvard’s operating budget.
Harvard President Alan Garber said last week that the various federal actions since Trump returned to office in January could strip the school of nearly $1 billion annually, forcing it to lay off staff and freeze hiring.
Harvard has said it has taken steps to ensure its campus is welcoming to Jewish and Israeli students, who it acknowledges experienced “vicious and reprehensible” treatment following the onset of Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza in October 2023.
But, Garber has said the administration’s demands have gone far beyond addressing antisemitism and unlawfully seek to regulate the “intellectual conditions” on its campus by controlling who it hires and who it teaches.
Those demands, which came in an April 11 letter from an administration task force, included calls for the private university to restructure its governance, alter its hiring and admissions practices to ensure an ideological balance of viewpoints and end certain academic programs.
After Harvard rejected those demands, it said the administration began retaliating against it in violation of the free speech protections of the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment by abruptly cutting funding that the school says is vital to supporting scientific and medical research.
Burroughs, an appointee of Democratic President Barack Obama, in a separate case, has already barred the administration from halting its ability to host international students.
Trump has expressed optimism that Harvard will eventually settle with his administration. Fields on Friday said a good deal was more than possible and that the administration is “confident that Harvard will eventually come around and support the president’s vision.”
In court, the administration has argued that Burroughs lacks jurisdiction to hear the challenge and that the grant contracts made clear they could be cancelled if the funded projects do not carry out federal government policy objectives.
(With inputs from Reuters)
India-Nepal Sports Diplomacy Gains Ground As Cricket Cooperation Expands
India’s support for Nepal’s cricket development is emerging as a steady pillar of bilateral ties, aligning with its broader ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy. Next month, the Nepalese national cricket team will train at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
The training programme, scheduled from August 20 to September 4, 2025, is aimed at preparing the Nepalese team for the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Qualifiers in Oman later this year.
Facilitated by the Government of India, in coordination with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Cricket Association of Nepal (CAN), the initiative builds on a series of similar engagements over the past two years.
Earlier this year, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met Nepal’s national team and CAN officials in New Delhi, reaffirming India’s commitment to supporting cricket in Nepal. The collaboration included coaching camps, competitive exposure with Indian state teams and youth-level exchanges that are helping build a more robust pipeline of cricketing talent in Nepal.
In addition to hosting senior teams, India has supported Under-19 and women’s cricket in Nepal. Notably, Nepal’s women’s team held a training camp in Delhi ahead of their successful run to the finals at the ICC Women’s Asia World Cup Qualifiers in Thailand this May. Promising junior cricketers have also benefitted from specialised coaching programmes in Bhopal and elsewhere.
Oli to Visit India Soon
This growing sports partnership comes amid expectations of a visit by Nepal’s Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli, who assumed office for a fourth term in July 2024. Though no dates have been officially announced, sources suggest his visit to India could take place in late August or early September, following his trip to Turkmenistan for a UN conference.
In his current term as PM, Oli’s first visit abroad was to China in November 2024, and while there had been a delay in scheduling a trip to India, bilateral contacts have remained active. His phone call to Prime Minister Modi in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terror attack—in which he condemned the violence—was seen as a positive diplomatic gesture. The two leaders also met earlier this year during the BIMSTEC Summit in Bangkok.
With a shared border of over 1,700 km and longstanding cultural and economic ties, India and Nepal continue to maintain regular high-level exchanges. Since 2014, there have been 17 visits at the level of Head of State or Government, underscoring the importance of sustained engagement.
Iranian Lawmaker Warns Of Regional Instability If UN Sanctions Return
Iran may withdraw security commitments if European countries trigger a U.N. mechanism to reimpose sanctions, a parliamentary security commission member said on Monday, according to Borna News.
“We have many tools in our disposition. We can withhold our commitment to security in the region, Persian Gulf and Hormuz Strait as well as other maritime areas,” Abbas Moqtadaei said in reference to Tehran’s potential counter-measures to the reimposition of international sanctions.
He was speaking ahead of a meeting on Friday between Iranian deputy foreign ministers and British, French and German diplomats in Istanbul.
Sanction Threat
The three European states, known as E3, have said they would restore international sanctions on Iran by the end of August if the country did not enter productive talks on its nuclear programme with Western powers, notably the United States.
E3 countries and Iran have, in recent months, held inconclusive talks on Tehran’s nuclear programme, in parallel to indirect nuclear negotiations between Tehran and Washington. Israel’s attack on Iran in June led to the suspension of such talks.
“Europe is not in a position to endanger itself in the… Hormuz Strait, when it is itself in political, economic and cultural conflicts with Russia, China and even the United States,” Moqtadaei said in an interview with Iran’s semi-official Borna news agency.
Last week, Iran’s foreign ministry spokesperson said Tehran would react to the three European states if they invoked the UN snapback mechanism, which expires on October 18.
In a letter to the UN Secretary-General, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Sunday that the E3 lack the legal standing to invoke the mechanism, arguing that their stance on Israeli and U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities last month made them no longer participants in the 2015 nuclear deal to which the snapback mechanism is linked.
The three European countries, along with China and Russia, are the remaining parties to the nuclear pact – from which the U.S. withdrew in 2018 – that lifted sanctions on Iran in return for restrictions on its nuclear programme.
In the past, Iran has used the threat of disrupting maritime transit in the Strait of Hormuz or no longer stopping Europe-bound drug trafficking as a means to push back against Western pressures on its nuclear programme.
(With inputs from Reuters)
Two Killed, 15 Wounded As Russia Strikes Ukraine Overnight With Missiles, Drones
Russia launched an overnight assault on Ukraine using missiles and hundreds of drones, killing two, injuring 15, and causing widespread damage and fires, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Monday.
Explosions lit up the night sky, and the high-pitched whine of drone engines reverberated through Kyiv in an attack that Ukraine’s air force said involved the launch of 426 drones and 24 missiles, with 23 drones hitting their target across Ukraine.
“Russia’s attacks are always against humanity: a kindergarten, residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure burned in Kyiv,” Zelenskyy wrote on Telegram.
Russian media said Ukraine had also carried out drone attacks, causing chaos at airports serving Moscow, where thousands of passengers waited in queues or slept on the ground after flights were cancelled or delayed.
Russia’s defence ministry said it had downed 117 Ukrainian drones overnight, including 30 over the Moscow region.
The war in Ukraine shows no sign of abating nearly 3-1/2 years after Russia began its full-scale invasion, and efforts led by U.S. President Donald Trump have failed to secure a ceasefire.
Zelenskyy said on Saturday he wanted to accelerate the ceasefire negotiations and that Kyiv had proposed new talks next week.
In comments broadcast by Russian state television on Sunday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said President Vladimir Putin was ready to move towards a peace settlement but that Moscow’s main objective remained to achieve its goals.
Trump has become increasingly frustrated with Putin and last week announced a wave of weapons supplies to Ukraine, including Patriot surface-to-air missile systems.
The European Union also approved more sanctions against Russia last week, including measures aimed at further dealing blows to the Russian oil and energy industry.
“Only real pressure on Russia can stop this aggression,” Zelenskyy said on Monday.
‘Unbelievable War’
Putin has yet to accept a proposal from Trump for an unconditional ceasefire, which was quickly endorsed by Kyiv.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot underlined the need for more pressure on Russia after seeing some of the damage caused by Russian airstrikes while visiting Kyiv on Monday.
“This is why the massive package of sanctions we adopted at the European level last Thursday is welcome. It increases pressure on Vladimir Putin, increases the cost of this unbelievable war,” he said.
Putin’s conditions for peace include a legally binding pledge that NATO will not expand eastwards, Ukrainian neutrality and limits on its armed forces, and acceptance of Russia’s territorial gains, sources told Reuters.
Zelenskyy has said Ukraine will never recognise Russia’s sovereignty over regions it has occupied, and that Kyiv retains the sovereign right to decide whether it wants to join NATO.
In the latest attack on Kyiv, a central subway station, commercial property, shops, houses and a kindergarten were damaged, city officials said. Many people sheltered in underground stations.
Dazed Kyiv residents stood among shattered glass and scorched walls, surveying the damage after a drone hit the lower floors of an apartment building.
The mayor of Ivano-Frankivsk said his city in western Ukraine suffered its heaviest attack of the war. The state emergencies service said four people, including a child, had been hurt in the region of Ivano-Frankivsk.
The northeastern city of Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second largest, was hit by 12 strikes overnight and a civilian industrial facility caught fire, its mayor said.
(With inputs from Reuters)
At Least 19 Killed As Bangladesh Air Force Training Jet Crashes Into Dhaka College Campus
At least 19 people were killed on Monday when a Bangladesh Air Force training aircraft crashed into a college and school campus in Dhaka, according to a fire services official.
More than 50 people, including children and adults, were hospitalised with burns, a doctor at the National Institute of Burn and Plastic Surgery told reporters.
The incident occurred at the Milestone School and College in Dhaka’s northern area of Uttara, officials said.
“Bangladesh Air Force’s F-7 BGI training aircraft crashed in Uttara. The aircraft took off at 13:06 (0706 GMT),” the military’s public relations department said in a statement.
Videos of the aftermath of the crash showed a big fire near a lawn emitting a thick plume of smoke into the sky, as crowds watched from a distance.
Fiery Wreckage
Firefighters sprayed water on the mangled remains of the plane, which appeared to have rammed into the side of a building, damaging iron grills and creating a gaping hole in the structure, Reuters TV visuals showed.
“A third-grade student was brought in dead, and three others, aged 12, 14 and 40, were admitted to the hospital,” said Bidhan Sarker, head of the burn unit at the Dhaka Medical College and Hospital, where some victims were taken.
Visuals also showed people screaming and crying as others tried to comfort them.
“When I was picking (up) my kids and went to the gate, I realised something came from behind…I heard an explosion. When I looked back, I only saw fire and smoke,” said Masud Tarik, a teacher at the school.
Yunus Assures Investigation
Muhammad Yunus, head of Bangladesh’s interim government, said “necessary measures” would be taken to investigate the cause of the accident and “ensure all kinds of assistance”.
“The loss suffered by the Air Force…students, parents, teachers and staff, and others in this accident is irreparable,” he said.
The incident comes a little over a month after an Air India plane crashed on top of a medical college hostel in neighbouring India’s Ahmedabad city, killing 241 of the 242 people on board and 19 on the ground, marking the world’s worst aviation disaster in a decade.
(With inputs from Reuters)
Torrential Rains Kill At Least 18 In South Korea, Leave Widespread Devastation
Severe wet weather in South Korea subsided on Monday after days of torrential rain caused floods and landslides, leaving at least 18 dead, according to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety.
Nine people remained missing as of Sunday evening, the ministry said, with residents of the worst-hit areas in shock.
At Gapyeong, some 62 kilometres (38.5 miles) northeast of the capital Seoul, some residents recalled narrow escapes from the floods after 173 millimetres (6.8 inches) of rain deluged the area over just 17 hours on Sunday.
Record Rainfall
Gapyeong was among a number of places that saw a record amount of rain in a single day and broke the previous high for national daily precipitation of 156.3 mm that was set on September 30, 1998.
“The ground just sank beneath me, and the water rose all the way up to my neck. Luckily, there was an iron pipe nearby. I held on to it with all my strength,” said Ahn Gyeong-bun, the owner of a restaurant that was almost completely destroyed.
Two people died and four were missing after a landslide engulfed homes around Gapyeong and floods swept away vehicles as of Sunday, the ministry said.
For those remaining, like Ahn, an uncertain future awaits.
“I’ve run this restaurant for 10 years … What am I supposed to do now?” said Ahn, as she stood next to the badly damaged structure of her building perched next to a still swollen river.
At times breaking down in tears, the 65-year-old said several of the restaurant’s refrigerators were washed away by the flood.
Widespread Destruction
Across South Korea, rain damage had been reported to 1,999 public structures and 2,238 private facilities, including farms, the interior ministry said.
While the rain has eased, the national weather agency has now issued a nationwide heatwave watch.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has ordered a thorough response to the disaster, his office said.
“As local heavy rains have become commonplace, customised measures based on regional characteristics are urgently needed,” said Kang Yu-jung, the spokesperson for Lee’s office.
“If serious laxity or mistakes are found in civil servants’ discipline, we will hold them accountable and thorough measures will be taken to prevent a recurrence.”
Lee, who took office in June, has promised to make the country safer and to prevent any repeat of the disasters in recent years that have often been blamed on the inadequate response by authorities.
(With inputs from Reuters)
India Trains Maldives Commandos In VIP Security Ahead Of Modi’s Visit
India has provided special VIP security training to 10 personnel from the Maldives Police Service ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming two-day state visit to the island nation on July 25–26. The visit, the first since Maldivian President Dr Mohamed Muizzu took office in November 2023, is set to reinforce economic, strategic and cultural ties.
The ten Maldivian commandos, trained in VIP protection by India’s Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), will be deployed as part of President Muizzu’s personal security detail. After two weeks of intensive training at the VIP Security Training Centre in Noida, the officers met CRPF Director General GP Singh in New Delhi on Saturday. DG Singh praised the collaboration as “a testimony to our shared commitment towards peace, professionalism and regional cooperation in policing.”
Modi’s Visit To The Maldives
Prime Minister Modi will attend the 60th Independence Day celebrations of Maldives on July 26 as the Guest of Honour, marking a double milestone—the 60th anniversary of Maldives’ independence and 60 years of diplomatic relations between the two nations. President Muizzu had personally extended the invitation. And Modi will be the first head of govt/state to visit the Maldives under Muizzu’s presidency.
The visit is expected to significantly ease past tensions. In 2023, shortly after assuming office, President Muizzu had requested the withdrawal of Indian defence personnel stationed in the Maldives, sparking diplomatic unease. Known for his pro-China stance, Muizzu’s early moves raised concerns in New Delhi. However, subsequent engagements, including his own visit to India in October 2024, have helped stabilise the relationship. During that visit, both leaders adopted a Joint Vision Statement on a Comprehensive Economic and Maritime Security Partnership, monitored by a newly established High-Level Core Group (HLCG).
Economic Aid, Security & Strategic Ties
The meetings in Malé will focus on deepening cooperation in maritime security, economic development, climate resilience and regional connectivity. Both sides are expected to review progress under the Joint Vision for a ‘Comprehensive Economic and Maritime Security Partnership’ and finalise new agreements under that framework.
During Modi’s visit, several agreements—on development cooperation, ferry services, healthcare, infrastructure and capacity building—are expected to be signed.
Economic Support And Developmental Aid
India remains Maldives’ largest development partner, contributing through a mix of grants, lines of credit and currency swap arrangements. In 2024, India provided over US $400 million in emergency financial assistance, in addition to a ₹3,000 crore currency swap line and an interest-free roll-over of US $100 million in Treasury Bills.
India and Maldives have already signed 13 MoUs under Phase III of the High Impact Community Development Projects (HICDP), committing MVR 100 million in grant assistance to expand ferry connectivity across the archipelago.
India also plays a vital role in Maldives’ trade and investment ecosystem, with bilateral trade crossing US $548 million. Indian businesses have significant stakes in Maldivian tourism and infrastructure, contributing to job creation and economic diversification.
Defence And Maritime Security
Defence and maritime security cooperation forms a key pillar of India-Maldives relations. Regular bilateral exercises, joint surveillance operations and training programs have enhanced operational synergy between their forces. India has also supplied aviation assets, naval platforms and maintenance support to bolster the Maldives’ maritime capabilities.
Regional Partnership With Global Implications
Maldives holds a pivotal place in India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy and its maritime strategy, ‘Vision MAHASAGAR’. Given its strategic location in the Indian Ocean, cooperation with Maldives is vital for India’s goals of ensuring regional stability and countering growing Chinese influence in the region.
The continued high-level exchanges between New Delhi and Malé—including frequent ministerial visits and meetings between the two leaders at COP28, the swearing-in of the Indian government and state visits—underscore the shared commitment to strengthening ties.
Looking Ahead
As the two nations mark 60 years of diplomatic ties, the visit signals a renewed chapter of collaboration, mutual respect and regional leadership in the Indian Ocean.
Israeli Tanks Enter Gaza’s Deir Al-Balah, Stirring Fears Among Hostages’ Families
Israeli tanks advanced into southern and eastern areas of Deir Al-Balah in Gaza on Monday, where Israeli sources believe some remaining hostages may be held.
Gaza medics said at least three Palestinians were killed and several were wounded in tank shelling that hit eight houses and three mosques in the area, and which came a day after the military ordered residents to leave, saying it planned to fight Hamas militants.
The raid and bombardment pushed dozens of families who had remained to flee and head west towards the coastal area of Deir Al-Balah and nearby Khan Younis.
In Khan Younis, earlier on Monday, an Israeli airstrike killed at least five people, including a man, his wife, and their two children, in a tent, medics said.
There was no immediate Israeli comment on the Deir Al-Balah and Khan Younis incidents.
Israel’s military said it had not entered the districts of Deir Al-Balah subject to the evacuation order during the current conflict and that it was continuing “to operate with great force to destroy the enemy’s capabilities and terrorist infrastructure in the area.”
Israeli sources have said the reason the army has so far stayed out is that they suspect Hamas might be holding hostages there. At least 20 of the remaining 50 hostages in captivity in Gaza are believed to be still alive.
Families of the hostages expressed their concern for their relatives and demanded an explanation from the army on how it would protect them.
Hunger Crisis
The military escalation comes as Gaza health officials warned of potential “mass deaths” in the coming days due to mounting hunger, which has killed at least 19 people since Saturday, according to the territory’s health ministry.
Health officials said hospitals were running out of fuel, food aid, and medicine, risking a halt to vital operations.
Health ministry spokesperson, Khalil Al-Deqran, said medical staff have been depending on one meal a day, and that hundreds of people flock to hospitals every day, suffering from fatigue and exhaustion because of hunger.
At least 67 people were killed by Israeli fire on Sunday as they waited for UN aid trucks to enter Gaza.
Israel’s military said its troops had fired warning shots towards a crowd of thousands of people in northern Gaza to remove what it said was “an immediate threat.”
It said initial findings suggested reported casualty figures were inflated, and it “certainly does not intentionally target humanitarian aid trucks.”
The new raid and escalating number of fatalities appeared to be complicating ceasefire talks between Hamas and Israel that are being mediated by Qatar and Egypt, with U.S. backing.
A Hamas official told Reuters on Sunday that the militant group was angered over the mounting deaths and the hunger crisis in the enclave, and that this could badly affect ceasefire talks underway in Qatar.
Indirect Talks
Israel and Hamas are engaged in indirect talks in Doha aimed at reaching a 60-day truce and hostage deal, although there has been no sign of a breakthrough.
UNRWA, the U.N. refugee agency dedicated to Palestinians, said in a post on X on Monday, it was receiving desperate messages from Gaza warning of starvation, including from its own staff, as food prices have increased 40-fold.
“Meanwhile, just outside Gaza, stockpiled in warehouses, UNRWA has enough food for the entire population for over three months. Lift the siege and let aid in safely and at scale,” it said.
Israel’s military said on Sunday that it “views the transfer of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip as a matter of utmost importance, and works to enable and facilitate its entry in coordination with the international community.”
The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed into Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.
The Israeli military campaign against Hamas in Gaza has since killed more than 58,000 Palestinians, according to health officials, displaced almost the entire population and plunged the enclave into a humanitarian crisis.
(With inputs from Reuters)
Trump Vowed To Save Afghans, But UAE Had Already Deported Some, Leaked Cable Reveals
Just days before U.S. President Donald Trump pledged to assist Afghan evacuees stranded in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Emirati government had already started repatriating them to Afghanistan, and it had notified Washington of its actions, according to an internal State Department cable reviewed by Reuters on Sunday.
The UAE, a close security partner of the United States, agreed in 2021 to temporarily house several thousand Afghans evacuated from Kabul as the Taliban ousted the U.S.-backed government during the final stages of the U.S.-led withdrawal.
Throughout the years, about 17,000 Afghan evacuees have been processed through the Abu Dhabi facility, known as Emirates Humanitarian City. However, more than 30 remaining Afghans have been stuck with their fate in limbo.
News outlet “Just the News” reported on Sunday that UAE officials were preparing to hand over some Afghan refugees to the Taliban.
“I will try to save them, starting right now,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Sunday that linked to an article on the Afghans held in limbo there.
However, it may already be too late for some.
UAE Plans Final Repatriations
In a July 10 meeting with U.S. officials in Abu Dhabi, Salem al-Zaabi, UAE Special Advisor to the Foreign Minister, told the Americans that two families had been “successfully and safely” sent back to Afghanistan in early July, the cable, which had the same date as the meeting, said.
Al-Zaabi told the Americans that while the UAE understood the current policy from Washington, it was going to move to “close this chapter for good” and therefore would move to return the remaining 25 individuals by Sunday, July 20, according to the cable. He added that the Emirati government would seek assurances from the Taliban that their safety is guaranteed.
It was not immediately clear if the remaining individuals had been sent back or the circumstances of the two families returned to Afghanistan.
The cable and the return of the two Afghan families back to Afghanistan have not been previously reported.
Trump, based on his Truth Social post, appeared to be out of the loop on the UAE’s plans.
The State Department, the White House and the UAE government did not have immediate comment for this story.
Afghans In Qatar Also Stuck
Al-Zaabi told the U.S. officials that the two families were returned to Afghanistan in early July “at their request, since they were tired of waiting,” the cable said.
But two sources familiar with the matter disputed that account, saying that the UAE government and the Taliban’s ambassador to the UAE were making Afghan families at the Emirates Humanitarian City choose between signing a ‘voluntary’ deportation letter to Afghanistan or being arrested to be forcefully deported to the country on Monday.
The cable also said Al-Zaabi asked the U.S. to coordinate “perception management” to ensure Washington and Abu Dhabi were aligned on their messaging on the topic, as the UAE did not want criticism from the NGOs “due to the inability of the United States to resettle the population in the United States or elsewhere.”
The fate of the more than 30 Afghan evacuees and how the administration handles their cases is crucial for the future of another 1,500 Afghan men, women and children who have been stuck in a similar facility in Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar.
Former President Joe Biden’s administration, since its chaotic U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan, has brought nearly 200,000 Afghans to the United States.
Trump’s Immigration Crackdown
Trump, a Republican who promised a far-reaching immigration crackdown, suspended refugee resettlement after he took office in January. In April, the Trump administration terminated temporary deportation protections for thousands of Afghans in the U.S..
Democrats have urged Trump to restore temporary protected status for Afghans, saying women and children could face particular harm under the Taliban-led government.
Since seizing power, Afghanistan’s Taliban administration has rolled back hard-fought rights won by Afghan women and girls during two decades of rule by American-backed governments. They have imposed limits on schooling, work and general independence in daily life.
Refugees include family members of Afghan-American U.S. military personnel, children cleared to reunite with their parents, relatives of Afghans already admitted and tens of thousands of Afghans who worked for the U.S. government during the 20-year war.
Advocacy group #AfghanEvac urged Trump to follow up on his post with action.
“That means working to immediately secure protections and departures for the Afghans at the Emirates Humanitarian City in UAE and Camp As Sayliyah in Qatar and ensuring they are not deported back into the hands of the Taliban,” the group said in a statement.
(With inputs from Reuters)
Iran To Resume Nuclear Talks With European Powers On Friday
Iran, Britain, France, and Germany will meet for nuclear talks in Istanbul on Friday, an Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson announced on Monday, following European warnings that failure to resume negotiations could trigger renewed international sanctions.
“The meeting between Iran, Britain, France and Germany will take place at the deputy foreign minister level,” Esmaeil Baghaei was quoted by Iranian state media as saying.
The talks scheduled for Friday come after foreign ministers of the E3 nations, as those European countries are known, as well as the European Union’s foreign policy chief, held their first call on Thursday with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi since Israel and the U.S. attacked Iranian nuclear facilities a month ago.
The three European countries, along with China and Russia, are the remaining parties to a 2015 nuclear deal reached with Iran – from which the United States withdrew in 2018 – that lifted sanctions on the Middle Eastern country in return for restrictions on its nuclear programme.
Sanction Threat
The E3 have said they would restore U.N. sanctions on Tehran via the “snapback mechanism” by the end of August if nuclear talks that were ongoing between Iran and the U.S. before the Israel-Iran air war do not resume or fail to produce concrete results.
“If EU/E3 want to have a role, they should act responsibly, and put aside the worn-out policies of threat and pressure, including the ‘snap-back’ for which they lack absolutely [any] moral and legal ground,” Araqchi said earlier in the week.
The snapback mechanism can be used to restore U.N. sanctions before the U.N. Security Council resolution enshrining the deal expires on October 18.
Prior to the Israel-Iran war, Tehran and Washington held five rounds of nuclear talks mediated by Oman but faced major stumbling blocks such as uranium enrichment in Iran, which Western powers want to bring down to zero to minimise any risk of weaponisation.
Tehran maintains its nuclear programme is solely meant for civilian purposes.
Damaged Air Defences ‘Replaced’
Iran has replaced air defence systems damaged during last month’s conflict with Israel, Defah Press reported on Sunday, citing army operations deputy Mahmoud Mousavi.
During the conflict in June, Israel’s air force dominated Iran’s airspace and dealt a heavy blow to the country’s air defences while Iranian armed forces launched successive barrages of missiles and drones on Israeli territory.
“Some of our air defences were damaged; this is not something we can hide, but our colleagues have used domestic resources and replaced them with pre-arranged systems that were stored in suitable locations in order to keep the airspace secure,” Mousavi said.
Prior to the war, Iran had its own domestically-made long-range air defence system, Bavar-373, in addition to the Russian-made S-300 system. The report by Defah Press did not mention any import of foreign-made air defence systems to Iran in the past weeks.
Following limited Israeli strikes against Iranian missile factories last October, Iran later displayed Russian-made air defences in a military exercise to show it recovered from the attack.
(With inputs from Reuters)