Strikes on Bemani damaged key water reservoir for 20,000 people living in area amid a historic drought in the country
Military strikes that damaged two water storage facilities in southern Iran may constitute a war crime, military and legal experts say, after reviewing media reports and visual evidence of a 10 June strike on Bemani, a small district about 2 miles from the strait of Hormuz.
It’s unclear if the strikes deliberately targeted the district’s water tanks, or if they unintentionally destroyed a key reservoir for about 20,000 people living nearby. But if the tanks were the target, then the legal question becomes critical, Brian Finucane, a former state department lawyer, said. “It’s either a military objective or it’s a civilian object: attacking one is lawful, attacking the other is a war crime,” Finucane said.
US president urges congressional Republicans to use budget reconciliation procedure to enact his priorities
Donald Trump has demanded that congressional Republicans get to work on a party-line measure that would ensure defense spending reaches its highest level in decades and also make a likely fruitless attempt to impose a host of new restrictions on voters nationwide.
In a post on Truth Social on Wednesday, the president said he was “calling on Republicans in Congress to IMMEDIATELY advance and pass the forthcoming $350 Billion Reconciliation Bill”, which would also include the Save America Act, a rightwing makeover of elections that his allies in Congress have sought to pass for months, without success.
Washington claims vessel was violating its blockade of Iranian ports and failed to comply with instructions
The Indian government has voiced a “strong protest” after three Indian seafarers were killed in US military strikes against oil tankers travelling through the strait of Hormuz.
US Central Command confirmed that its aircraft had fired two Hellfire missiles at the engine room of the MT Settebello as it sailed through the Gulf of Oman on Wednesday.
A digital depiction of a battle during the Byzantine-Norman wars. Credit: Greek Reporter archive
The invasion of the Byzantine Empire by the Normans is a fascinating chapter of Roman history that is often overlooked.
Imagine descendants of Viking raiders, now known as Normans after settling in northern France, setting their sights on southeastern Europe and threatening the Eastern Roman (Byzantine) Empire. Eager to expand their influence beyond their French territories, these ambitious warriors turned their attention to the wealthy Byzantine lands. What followed was a century-long struggle that would fundamentally reshape the balance of power in medieval Europe.
The beginning of the story between the Normans and the Byzantine Empire
The first signs of trouble appeared around AD 1017, when small groups of Norman knights began turning their attention toward southern Italy, initially in search of mercenary work. The Byzantines, who still controlled significant territories on the Italian peninsula, believed these foreign fighters could prove useful in defending their holdings. After all, they needed additional manpower to deal with local rebellions as well as the frequent Arab raids originating from Sicily.
What the Byzantine administration failed to grasp early on was that the Normans came from a culture that placed extraordinary value on land acquisition above almost everything else. In Normandy, in northern France, younger sons were often left landless due to inheritance laws that favored the eldest child. Southern Italy, with its patchwork of competing communities and loosely defined borders, therefore looked like an ideal opportunity for expansion.
The Byzantines would learn this lesson the hard way. Within a few decades of their arrival, the Normans—initially seen as hired help—had begun establishing permanent bases across the region. Although Norman groups often fought one another in the early years, a more unified front gradually emerged. They would accept Byzantine payment for military service, only to use their positions to seize territory for themselves and steadily challenge Byzantine authority throughout the region.
The rise of Robert Guiscard
A man who would play a crucial role in what followed was Robert de Hauteville, better known as Robert Guiscard, “the Cunning.” This Norman was not the eldest son nor was he especially wealthy, and he was certainly not expected to carve out lands and establish his own realm. Nonetheless, he did so anyway.
Guiscard arrived in southern Italy around AD 1047 and immediately set about strengthening and consolidating Norman power. He possessed an almost uncanny ability to turn enemies into allies and allies into subjects. Through a combination of strategic marriages—a common practice at the time—military strength, and sheer boldness (which others might have called recklessness), he gradually unified the fragmented Norman factions under his leadership.
It would take until AD 1071 for Byzantine Italy to finally collapse. Guiscard captured Bari, the last major Byzantine stronghold on the Italian peninsula. For the Byzantines, the loss was deeply symbolic. For more than five centuries, the Eastern Roman Empire had maintained a presence in Italy, a living link to the legacy of the Western Roman Empire and the origins of the Roman world itself. That connection was now severed by a band of opportunistic outsiders.
Norman aggression against Constantinople
The conquest of southern Italy was only the beginning for the Normans. Robert Guiscard’s ambitions extended far beyond the Italian peninsula. His ultimate goal was Constantinople itself. In AD 1081, he launched what can only be described as one of the most audacious military campaigns of the Middle Ages.
The plan was bold in scope. Guiscard intended to cross the Adriatic Sea, establish a beachhead in what is now Albania, and then march overland toward the Byzantine capital through northern Greece. His first objective was Dyrrhachium, the critical fortress controlling access to the main route into the Greek mainland.
Emperor Alexios I Komnenos suddenly found himself confronting a nightmare scenario. The Normans had already demonstrated their ability to seize and hold territory, and now they were effectively at his doorstep, threatening the survival of the Byzantine Empire itself. To make matters worse, his army was a patchwork force of mercenaries, including (ironically) Anglo-Saxon refugees who had fled the Norman conquest of England.
The Battle of Dyrrhachium in October AD 1081 proved disastrous for the Byzantines. Guiscard’s tactical skill, combined with his son Bohemond’s aggressive cavalry charges, shattered the imperial army. The road to Constantinople lay open, and for a brief moment, it seemed as though the thousand-year-old Eastern Roman Empire might actually fall to these descendants of Viking raiders.
Desperate measures and unlikely alliances
Alexios I was many things, but he was not a man to surrender easily. Faced with the possibility of total collapse, he executed one of the most impressive diplomatic maneuvers of the medieval world. First, he effectively bribed the Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV to attack Norman territories in Italy, forcing Guiscard to divide his attention across two fronts. Then, in a move that would have lasting consequences, he granted extensive trading privileges to Venice in exchange for naval support against the Normans.
These concessions were enormous for an empire like Byzantium. The commercial rights awarded to Venice would eventually help transform the city-state into one of the wealthiest powers in Europe, often at Byzantium’s own expense. However, in AD 1082, Alexios was fighting for survival, and generosity was not a choice but a necessity.
The strategy worked—but only just. Guiscard was compelled to return to Italy to confront the German intervention, leaving Bohemond to continue the eastern campaign against Constantinople. What followed was several years of brutal mountain warfare across the Balkans, with neither side able to secure a decisive victory and both remaining locked in a tense stalemate.
The long shadow of conflict and the Byzantine Empire attack by the Normans
Although Robert Guiscard’s ambition to destroy the Byzantine Empire ultimately failed, the Norman-Byzantine conflict did not end with his death in AD 1085. A few years later, Bohemond attempted to revive the campaign in AD 1107, launching another invasion that also ended in failure. The final (and perhaps most devastating) Norman assault came in AD 1185, when a joint Norman-Sicilian force captured and sacked Thessaloniki, the empire’s second-largest city.
The events in Thessaloniki were brutal. Contemporary sources describe widespread slaughter of civilians and the systematic destruction of the city. The scale of devastation shocked even medieval observers, who were accustomed to the violence of war. For the Byzantines, the psychological impact was profound. It demonstrated that no part of the empire was truly safe from Norman ambition, as even its greatest cities could fall to such overwhelming force.
The Norman campaigns against Byzantium had consequences that extended far beyond Thessaloniki. They helped establish a powerful Catholic kingdom in southern Italy that would remain a persistent rival to the Byzantine Empire for centuries. More importantly, they drained Byzantine resources at a time when the empire was increasingly pressured by Turkish advances in the east.
The prolonged conflict also deepened the divide between the Greek Orthodox and Roman Catholic worlds, turning former Christian counterparts into bitter adversaries. The Normans saw themselves as champions of Latin Christendom, while the Byzantines regarded them as little more than barbarian raiders. This growing hostility would ultimately culminate in the Fourth Crusade, when Crusader forces turned against Constantinople itself and sacked the city.
Even today, traces of this once-forgotten conflict remain scattered across the Mediterranean. Norman castles still stand along the coastlines of southern Italy and Sicily.
Iranian leadership has not confirmed claim, after the US president announced that planned strikes on Iran had been cancelled
Donald Trump claimed on Thursday that Washington and Tehran were on the verge of signing a peace agreement, and announced that he was cancelling fresh missile strikes, after two days of escalating attacks on Iran that threatened to collapse the fragile ceasefire.
His comments followed a new bout of public diplomacy by social media, but were dismissed by Iran’s foreign ministry, which said a final decision on an agreement had not been reached.
Former defence secretary accuses PM of putting UK’s security at risk at a time of growing international threats
Keir Starmer’s premiership has been pushed to the brink of collapse after the shock resignationof John Healey as defence secretary undermined his security credentials and risked shredding his remaining political authority.
In a blistering resignation letter, Healey accused Starmer and his chancellor, Rachel Reeves, of putting the country’s security at risk, saying the long-awaited defence investment plan (Dip) fell well short of what was required.
With some matches being held in nearby Miami, a Cuban response to US military action could mar the tournament
As Cuba crumbles under a nearly five-month-long US oil blockade, many on the island hope that the World Cup might save the island from US attack – or at least offer a respite until the competition ends on 19 July.
“The beginning of the World Cup will make it more difficult for the United States to carry out a military action in Cuba,” said Carlos Alzugaray, Cuba’s former ambassador to the EU. “Cuba is very close to the US, and can hit many targets inside the US, especially in south Florida, with drones or other weapons.”
Government confirms Jarvis’s move from role as security minister to replace John Healey
Ryan Henderson, assistant chief constable for the Police Service of Northern Ireland, is about to hold a press conference about last night’s rioting.
Andy Burnham is facing criticism after saying that he thinks the Waspi women should be entitled to “some” compensation.
I’ll stick by the Waspi women because they deserve some recompense for the unfairness.
One government figure decried Burnham’s intervention as “pathetic”, adding: “He can’t say no to anyone.”
An ally of Sir Keir Starmer likened Burnham’s economic agenda to that of hard-left former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, and argued that the mayor’s intervention would harm his chances of manoeuvring the prime minister out of Downing Street.
Andy Burnham’s continued support for Waspi women is both welcome and hugely refreshing. While some politicians have broken their promises, it takes real courage to speak out and say what millions of people across the country and hundreds of MPs from all parties already know - that 1950s-born women deserve justice.
Andy has always recognised the unfair way in which state pension equalisation was introduced.
As mayor of Greater Manchester, he supported Waspi women in the city-region with early access to concessionary travel, providing some recompense to them within affordability limits.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the military would strike Iran "hard" Wednesday night following threats for more strikes from Trump earlier in the day.
US defense secretary continues ramp-up of pressure against country including sanctions and devastating oil blockade
Pete Hegseth has warned Cuba against acquiring weapons that could threaten the United States, during a visit to the US military base at Guantánamo Bay.
Washington has ramped up pressure against Cuba with sanctions and a devastating oil blockade, and Donald Trump has repeatedly signaled that the Cuban government could be the next after Venezuela to fall to US pressure.
President Trump told reporters on Wednesday that the U.S. military could continue strikes against Iran after targeting about two dozen sites, mostly near the Strait of Hormuz, in retaliatory attacks on Tuesday. Trump said he still wanted to work toward a “meaningful deal” with Iran but wasn’t done punishing Iran for shooting down an Apache…
President Trump told reporters on Wednesday that the U.S. military could continue strikes against Iran after targeting about two dozen sites, mostly near the Strait of Hormuz, in retaliatory attacks on Tuesday. Trump said he still wanted to work toward a “meaningful deal” with Iran but wasn’t done punishing Iran for shooting down an Apache…
Greece is close in approving the ‘Achilles Shield’, a program similar to the Iron Dome, the Israeli air defense system, which intercepted missiles fired from Iran, in Junee 2025. Credit: EPA/ABIR SULTAN via AMNA
A trio of major Israeli defense contractors recently delivered their final proposal dossiers for Greece’s €3 billion ($3.5 billion) ‘Achilles Shield’ program, a sophisticated, multi-layered air, anti-ballistic, and counter-drone defense network powered by cutting-edge Israeli technology.
The proposals by Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI), its subsidiary ELTA Systems, and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, satisfy all criteria mandated by Greece’s General Directorate for Defense Investments and Armaments (GDAEE), according to a report by newmoney.gr.
The nationwide shield stands out as one of the most critical crown jewels within Greece’s broader Long-Term Defense Procurement Program (2025–2036), which outlines an overall budget of €30 billion.
Industrial co-production
The final procurement contracts are now navigating the signature pipeline through the Ministry of National Defence (YETHA) and the General Staffs. Officials are pushing to have the program formally added to the agenda of the upcoming KYSEA session, tentatively scheduled for June 18, 2026, or the subsequent meeting in early July.
The report notes that a pivotal victory for Greek industry was securing a domestic industrial participation rate locked at a minimum of 25%, spanning both localized manufacturing and technology transfers.
The Israeli consortium has already engaged in extensive talks with domestic contractors, signing several Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and strategic partnerships. Industrial analysts estimate that the final domestic footprint could realistically reach 30%, backed by fully drafted proposals to establish dedicated production lines on Greek soil.
Key examples and partners already tapped for the program include:
IAI & Hellenic Aerospace Industry (EAB): This existing partnership has already yielded results, notably the successful integration of Greece’s proprietary “Centaur” counter-drone system into the Barak weapon architecture.
Domestic Consortium Partners: Major Greek defense, industrial, and infrastructure players have secured preliminary roles, including Metlen, Miltech, Scytalys, Akmon, Salamis Shipyards, and GEK TERNA, with the roster expected to expand over the program’s three-year rollout.
Tactical Logistics: The specialized utility vehicles tasked with transporting the mobile defense systems will be sourced from IVECO, represented in Greece by the Syngelidis Group in partnership with Metlen.
The tech blueprint: Inside Greece’s ‘Achilles Shield’
The architecture of the shield relies on a unified, network-centric ecosystem. It is designed to seamlessly interface with Greece’s upcoming Belharra (FDI) frigates, upgraded F-16 Viper fighters, incoming F-35 stealth jets, and existing Patriot missile batteries.
The primary systems slated for integration comprise:
IAI Barak MX: Operating as the backbone of the entire network. Utilizing three missile variants with ranges spanning 35 to 150 kilometers, it will completely phase out legacy, Cold War-era Hawk systems.
Rafael David’s Sling: Tasked with mid-to-upper-tier interception of advanced ballistic missiles and long-range threats. This system will functionally replace the Soviet-origin S-300 systems currently in the Hellenic inventory.
Rafael SPYDER: Providing short-to-medium range coverage (15, 20, and 40 kilometers). These mobile batteries will replace aging eastern-bloc legacy systems like the OSA-AK and TOR-M1.
ELTA EL/M-2084 MMR Radars: These mobile, Multi-Mission Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA) radars will overhaul the Hellenic Air Force’s Air Control System. The state-of-the-art arrays can simultaneously track up to 1,200 airborne targets at ranges up to 475 km, or up to 200 weapon ballistic trajectories within a 100 km radius.
Greek-Built C4I Hub: The vital Command, Control, Communications, Computers, and Intelligence (C4I) architecture will be co-developed and assembled in Greece alongside domestic software and engineering firms.
Russian military personnel load a missile onto a transport vehicle. Nuclear powers spent a record of $119 billion on their arsenals in 2025, according to ICAN. Credit: Russian Defence Ministry / EPA / AMNA.
Nuclear powers spent a record of $119 billion on arsenals in 2025, as the world’s nine nuclear-armed states significantly increased their weapons-related expenditure, according to a new report by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN).
The figure marks a 19 percent rise from 2024, with nuclear powers spending $17 billion more than the previous year. ICAN warns that the increase reflects a broader trend that is likely to continue for decades. The report covers the United States, Russia, China, the United Kingdom, France, India, Israel, Pakistan, and North Korea.
ICAN warns of a new nuclear arms race
As per the Nobel Peace Prize-winning organization, rising geopolitical tensions are fueling what it describes as a new nuclear arms race. ICAN has also raised concerns over the possible role of artificial intelligence in nuclear decision-making, warning that AI could accelerate the process leading to the potential use of nuclear weapons.
Susie Snyder, ICAN’s program coordinator and one of the report’s authors, described the figures as deeply troubling. Speaking to Agence France-Presse, she declared it’s deeply terrifying.
US spent more than all other nuclear powers combined
The United States remained the world’s largest nuclear spender in 2025, allocating $69.2 billion to its arsenal. That was $12.4 billion more than in 2024 and more than the combined total spent by the other eight nuclear-armed states. China ranked second, with estimated spending of $13.5 billion. The United Kingdom followed with $12.6 billion, while Russia spent $9.5 billion.
According to ICAN, the nine nuclear-armed countries have spent over $470 billion on their arsenals in the past five years.
Long-term nuclear programs could last beyond 2100
The report reveals that nuclear weapons spending is expected to continue rising as countries modernize and maintain their arsenals over time. ICAN points to spending plans in the United States, the United Kingdom, and France that could necessitate billions of dollars through the end of the century. Other nuclear-armed states are also developing weapons systems designed to remain in service for decades.
In the United States, the planned Sentinel intercontinental ballistic missile program is expected to remain operational beyond 2100. Based on the report, expanded US production of plutonium pits could support nuclear warheads until at least 2120. ICAN estimates that the United States alone is expected to spend nearly $1 trillion on its nuclear arsenal between 2025 and 2034.
Report compares record spending by nuclear powers with global needs
The scale of spending, ICAN says, comes as governments face pressing global challenges, including health care, food security, and humanitarian needs. According to Snyder, the amount spent by nuclear-armed states in 2025 would have been enough to fund the United Nations budget dozens of times over. She added that a single day of nuclear weapons spending could have guaranteed food security for two million people last year.
The report argues that nuclear-armed countries are committing public resources to weapons that, according to Snyder, they “could not use without committing a war crime.” ICAN maintains that the latest figures show that nuclear weapons spending is becoming a long-term strategic priority rather than a short-term response to current global tensions.
A member of the US navy has been ordered to spend 44 years in federal prison after admitting that he fatally strangled a fellow sailor in his barracks room, violently squeezed the neck of a second woman onboard an aircraft carrier and illegally made secret video recordings of a third, including while they were being intimate.
Meanwhile, the family of the petty officer whom Jermiah Copeland acknowledged murdering, Angelina Resendiz, has called for reforms within the armed forces meant to better protect women serving in the military.
This blog has now closed – our coverage of this crisis in the Middle East continues here
If the US genuinely wants a deal it will have to engage with Iranian demands on sanctions relief, says Danny Citrinowicz, the former head of the Iran branch of Israeli military intelligence.
Today’s exchange of strikes shows how easily both Iran and the US can slide towards another round of escalation, says Citrinowicz, who is now a nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council.
If Washington is unwilling to accept that reality, it should recognize the likely alternative: continued confrontations with Iran that could eventually spiral beyond anyone’s control and lead to military conflict under less favorable conditions.
Even a limited military campaign designed to weaken Iran would not fundamentally alter Tehran’s negotiating position. It has not happened in the past, and there is little reason to believe it would happen now. Iran emerges from the latest exchange of blows convinced that it can absorb pressure and respond to attacks.”
Legal and moral responsibility of all countries in the region (especially those located along the southern shores of the Persian Gulf) to prevent the US military and Israel from using their territory or facilities to plan, organise, execute, or support hostile actions against Iran.
NATO will continue its support to Europe but will prioritize U.S. security. Photo credit: Touch of Light Wikimedia Commons CC BY-SA 4.0
The Pentagon has sharply reduced the number of religion codes used by the U.S. military, replacing a list of about 220 faith groups and denominations with 31 broader religious categories.
The updated system, which is expected to take effect in July, has sparked debate among veterans, chaplains, lawmakers, and religious groups over its potential impact on faith representation within the armed forces.
The new categories include Buddhism, Hinduism, Baha’i, Islam, Judaism, Sikhism, and a designation for people with no religious affiliation. Christian denominations make up most of the recognized categories.
Pentagon says change is administrative
Military officials said the change is intended to simplify record-keeping and improve data collection for military chaplains. The Pentagon explained that the revised list is not meant to determine which religions are officially approved or recognized by the government.
Service members whose faiths are not among the 31 listed categories will still be able to identify their religion and include it on military dog tags, officials said.
Critics question the impact on religious diversity
The policy change has drawn criticism from some veterans, former chaplains, and religious groups who argue that the consolidation could reduce the visibility of minority faiths within military records.
The Office of the Secretary of War is announcing a significant change to the Department’s categorization of religious affiliation. In a long overdue move, we reduced the list from over 200 unmanageable categories to 31. With this move, we are returning to the original intent of… https://t.co/dgHX5ytzjJpic.twitter.com/eho537O08J
A former U.S. Army chaplain said that the move raises concerns about the military’s commitment to religious diversity.
“When I raised my hand to become an Army chaplain, I swore that I would support and defend the Constitution,” the former chaplain said. “The First Amendment is the free exercise of religion for everybody. That’s what I was buying into.”
The update also arrives amid broader debate over Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and his public use of Christian prayers while discussing military operations. Some critics have questioned whether such expressions blur the line between personal faith and official government leadership.
Latter-day Saints’ designation draws attention
The revised system has also sparked concern among members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Under the new classification structure, the church appears as a separate category rather than being included among the military’s Christian denominations.
That decision prompted criticism from Mike Lee, a Republican senator from Utah and a member of the church.
“Can anyone tell me why The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was left out of the list of Christian churches?” Lee wrote on X.
Can anyone tell me why The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints was left out of the list of Christian churches? pic.twitter.com/t4u6PI29ON
Smaller faith groups lose separate classifications
According to an analysis, the consolidation removed separate classifications for numerous faith traditions, spiritual movements, and nonreligious belief systems. Those no longer listed individually include Eckankar, Heathen, Native American spiritual traditions, Rosicrucianism, Druidism, Deism, Asatru, Paganism, Humanism, Unitarian Universalism, Wicca, Shamanism, and Atheism, among others.
Defense Department officials have emphasized that the changes are administrative rather than ideological. Sean Parnell, a Defense Department official, said the military continues to place a high value on the First Amendment and the free exercise of religion for all service members.
The US has launched strikes against Iran after Donald Trump blamed Tehran for downing a US army helicopter near the strait of Hormuz, imperilling a shaky ceasefire that was announced by the two countries in April.
The attacks triggered a wave of retaliatory strikes from Iran on Wednesday morning, with Tehran saying it had targeted Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan.
Trump said in a social media post that military officials told him "the Iranians shot down one of our highly sophisticated Apache Helicopters." He added that both service members "are safe and uninjured."
Login
