Colombian Authorities Deport Two Hezbollah Operatives

Colombian Defense Minister Diego Molano (Reuters)
Colombian Defense Minister Diego Molano (Reuters)
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Colombian Authorities Deport Two Hezbollah Operatives

Colombian Defense Minister Diego Molano (Reuters)
Colombian Defense Minister Diego Molano (Reuters)

The Colombian authorities arrested and deported two members of the Lebanese Hezbollah who were spying on US and Israeli diplomats.

The Colombian Defense Minister Diego Molano said that the Hezbollah operatives attempted to carry out attacks against Israeli and US targets in Colombia.

Israeli intelligence (Mossad) confirmed that Hezbollah sent its agents to Bogota to carry out operations in retaliation for the assassination of Qasim Soleimani, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Quds Force commander.

Soleimani was killed in an airstrike in early 2020 carried out by a US drone near Baghdad International Airport.

In the wake of the assassination, Iran warned that US bases, ships, and forces would be potential targets for a response.

In turn, Hezbollah threatened, in the wake of Soleimani's assassination, to expel all US from the Middle East.

Earlier this year, Hezbollah Sec-Gen Hassan Nasrallah said Iran "does not need help" from its allies and would retaliate "when it decides so."

Nasrallah added that Tehran would not ask any other country or body to conduct a retaliatory strike on its behalf, stressing that Iran is a "strong country and will decide when and how to react.

"It does not need to rely on others."

Iran also threatened to attack Israel in retaliation for killing a prominent nuclear scientist, Mohsen Fakhrizadeh.



Kremlin: Putin and Trump Discussed Middle East Tensions, Ukraine Talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, June 12, 2025. (Sergei Bulkin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, June 12, 2025. (Sergei Bulkin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
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Kremlin: Putin and Trump Discussed Middle East Tensions, Ukraine Talks

Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, June 12, 2025. (Sergei Bulkin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Thursday, June 12, 2025. (Sergei Bulkin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)

Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump held a 50-minute phone call Saturday to discuss the escalating situation in the Middle East and Ukraine peace talks, Putin foreign affairs adviser Yuri Ushakov said.

During the conversation, Putin briefed Trump on his recent talks with the leaders of Iran and Israel and reiterated Russia’s proposal to seek mutually acceptable solutions on the Iranian nuclear issue.

“The dangerous escalation of the situation in the Middle East was naturally at the center of the exchange of opinions,” Ushakov told journalists following the conversation between Putin and Trump.

“Vladimir Putin, having condemned the military operation against Iran, expressed serious concern about the possible escalation of the conflict,” he said, warning of “unpredictable consequences for the entire situation in the Middle East.”

Putin also emphasized Russia’s readiness to carry out possible mediation efforts, and noted that Russia had proposed steps “aimed at finding mutually acceptable agreements” during US-Iran negotiations on the Iranian nuclear program.

“Russia’s principled approach and interest in the settlement remain unchanged,” Ushakov said.

Trump described the regional situation as “very alarming,” Ushakov said, but acknowledged the “effectiveness” of Israel’s strikes on targets in Iran.

The leaders did not rule out a possible return to negotiations on the Iranian nuclear program, according to Ushakov.

According to Ushakov, Putin told Trump about the implementation of the agreements during peace talks in Istanbul between Russian and Ukrainian delegations, including the exchange of prisoners of war.

“Our president noted that an exchange of prisoners of war is taking place, including seriously wounded and prisoners of war under 25 years of age,” Ushakov said, along with expressing readiness to continue negotiations with the Ukrainians.

Trump, he said, “noted his interest in a speedy end to the Russian-Ukrainian conflict.”

Putin also congratulated Trump on his 79th birthday.