Iran Vows to Avenge the Death of 2 IRGC Members in Syria

Site after the Israeli strike in Damascus (Reuters)
Site after the Israeli strike in Damascus (Reuters)
TT

Iran Vows to Avenge the Death of 2 IRGC Members in Syria

Site after the Israeli strike in Damascus (Reuters)
Site after the Israeli strike in Damascus (Reuters)

Israel awaits with anticipation Iran's retaliation for the airstrike on Syria that killed four people on Monday, including two of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC).

Syrian state media said that two civilians were killed during the attack, while the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) said they were two Syrian militants fighting with pro-Iran militias.

The Observatory said the two dead Iranians killed were affiliated with al-Quds Force. Six militiamen were also wounded, it added.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Saeed Khatibzadeh said revenge for Monday's strike will be taken, adding that holding Israel accountable for such attacks "is one of the main goals of the resistance (forces) in the region."

The IRGC's Sepah News website said: "Guard colonels Ehsan Karbalaipour and Morteza Saidnejad were martyred, a crime committed by the Zionist regime, during a rocket attack on the suburbs of Damascus, Syria, yesterday morning."

The site stated that Israel would "pay for this crime."

The strike's target was an ammunition depot operated by Iran-backed militias near Damascus international airport.

SOHR said Israel has carried out raids in Syria at least seven times this year.

Iran is Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's strongest ally in the conflict. The Syrian army and thousands of Iranian-backed militants are fighting the Syrian opposition, backed by the Russian air force.

According to Walla's military correspondent, Israel is aware of Iran's determination to respond to the killing of the two IRGC members.

The Israeli army raised the state of alert and readiness of its units operating the "Iron Dome" systems along the border with Syria and stated that it was preparing for a possible missile attack from Syria.

In April, Iran admitted to casualties among its forces during an Israeli attack on sites in Syria, including seven fighters killed in an attack on T4 airport east of Homs. A month later, Iran responded with a barrage of missiles fired by armed militia at Israeli sites.

The Quds Force unofficial Telegram channel reported that Iran retaliated for the death of its members at the Syrian T4 base after an Israeli raid that killed seven Iranian forces in 2018.

The channel reported that Tehran responded by bombing an Israeli base in the occupied Golan with fifty missiles, noting that Israelis did not report the attack and the damage incurred.

Several Israeli experts admitted that the firing of 50 missiles from Syria at Israeli bases was an unprecedented matter that surprised observers.



Belgian Wildfire ‘Encircled’ but Situation Still ‘Complicated’

A firefighter gestures to another as smoke emanates from burnt vegetation during operations against a wildfire at the Hautes Fagnes (High Fens) nature reserve near Baelen, on August 18, 2026. (AFP)
A firefighter gestures to another as smoke emanates from burnt vegetation during operations against a wildfire at the Hautes Fagnes (High Fens) nature reserve near Baelen, on August 18, 2026. (AFP)
TT

Belgian Wildfire ‘Encircled’ but Situation Still ‘Complicated’

A firefighter gestures to another as smoke emanates from burnt vegetation during operations against a wildfire at the Hautes Fagnes (High Fens) nature reserve near Baelen, on August 18, 2026. (AFP)
A firefighter gestures to another as smoke emanates from burnt vegetation during operations against a wildfire at the Hautes Fagnes (High Fens) nature reserve near Baelen, on August 18, 2026. (AFP)

Firefighters managed overnight to fully surround Belgium's largest wildfire in a century, but the situation on the ground "remains complicated" with crews battling several new flare-ups, authorities said Wednesday.

Crisis cell spokesman Tony Hosmans said the fire raging in the High Fens nature reserve "has been encircled" and is not moving east towards Germany, with the goal today to bring it under control "if possible with aerial support".

"The situation remains complicated due to a number of flare-ups that have occurred in various parts of the site," he added.

The blaze charring the expanse of peatland, pine trees and hiking trails grew over the weekend to half the size of Manhattan -- 3,000 hectares (7,500 acres) -- although hundreds of firefighters working night and day have managed to stop it spreading further.

The last area to be circumscribed was a hard-to-access front closest to the German border, with ground crews working all night to close the gap, coming in from the east and north under very difficult conditions.

On-site operations have been complicated by the fens' terrain -- a patchwork of heath, peat bogs and raised wooden boardwalks.

Water-bombing aircraft from Norway, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands flew in to help, but they were unable to operate at all on Tuesday due to low clouds.

Rain falling intermittently on the area has slowed the fire's spread by increasing humidity levels, but the weather has badly hampered aerial support since Monday.

- Burning underground -

Europe has been swept by weeks of devastating wildfires fueled by dry conditions and a historically hot summer, with France, Greece, Portugal and Spain also battling major blazes.

The High Fens blaze broke out Friday for reasons still unknown in an area that was ravaged by massive fires in 1911, during a similar period of heatwaves.

It is the country's largest wildfire since.

The fire triggered evacuation orders in the German border town of Monschau as well as two Belgian villages, although residents of the hamlet of Sourbrodt have been given the green light to return home.

Even once brought under control, officials have warned it will take weeks or even months of soaking and dousing to prevent the fire from reigniting.

"The fire is burning in the peat, so it is actually underground, sometimes quite deep," explained area fire chief David Covens on a trip into a fire zone.

"Whenever we disturb the ground, when we cut down a tree and expose the soil, the fire can reignite," he said. "We're doing everything we can with the resources available, but we know this is going to take a long time."


Hotel Blaze in India's West Bengal Kills 9 and Injures 6

FILED - 16 November 2024, India, New Delhi: An Indian ambulance is parked on the side of the road. Photo: Dirk Godder/dpa
FILED - 16 November 2024, India, New Delhi: An Indian ambulance is parked on the side of the road. Photo: Dirk Godder/dpa
TT

Hotel Blaze in India's West Bengal Kills 9 and Injures 6

FILED - 16 November 2024, India, New Delhi: An Indian ambulance is parked on the side of the road. Photo: Dirk Godder/dpa
FILED - 16 November 2024, India, New Delhi: An Indian ambulance is parked on the side of the road. Photo: Dirk Godder/dpa

A fire broke out at a hotel in Kolkata in the early hours Wednesday, killing at least nine people and injuring six in the capital of India’s West Bengal state, police said.

The blaze erupted around 1:45 a.m. at a hotel in central Kolkata close to the West Bengal Fire Department headquarters, the Press Trust of India news agency reported.

Five fire engines were deployed to bring the blaze under control, while police and disaster management teams carried out rescue operations, the report said. The injured were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.

Firefighters struggled to reach people trapped on the upper floors as thick smoke engulfed the building, a police officer told the news agency.

The fire was brought under control, The Associated Press quoted the officer as saying.

Authorities said their immediate focus was on rescuing anyone still trapped inside and investigating the cause of the fire, which was not immediately known.

Nine people have been confirmed dead but the toll could rise, police told PTI.

Deadly fires, often linked to electrical faults or gas cylinder explosions, are common in India where investigators have frequently pointed to safety lapses and inadequate enforcement of fire regulations as contributing to recurring loss of life.

On Monday, a blaze at a hotel in West Bengal’s temple town of Tarapith left at least seven people dead and several others critically injured.


Ebola Cases in Congo Exceed 5,000

People wearing protective clothing prepare for the burial of a man at Nyamurongo Cemetery in Bunia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 18 August 2026. EPA/DIEUDONNE DIROLE
People wearing protective clothing prepare for the burial of a man at Nyamurongo Cemetery in Bunia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 18 August 2026. EPA/DIEUDONNE DIROLE
TT

Ebola Cases in Congo Exceed 5,000

People wearing protective clothing prepare for the burial of a man at Nyamurongo Cemetery in Bunia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 18 August 2026. EPA/DIEUDONNE DIROLE
People wearing protective clothing prepare for the burial of a man at Nyamurongo Cemetery in Bunia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, 18 August 2026. EPA/DIEUDONNE DIROLE

The number of confirmed Ebola cases in the Democratic Republic of Congo now exceeds 5,000, government data showed late on Tuesday, as health officials warn that response efforts are failing to contain the deadly disease.

Congo's 17th Ebola epidemic turned into the biggest in the country's history ⁠in terms of ⁠number of cases in late July and over the weekend the death toll hit 2,378, the public health institute said, surpassing the previous worst outbreak ⁠in 2018-2020.

The institute has so far logged 5,021 cases, according to its latest situation report, making it the second-worst outbreak globally, behind only the 2014 to 2016 epidemic in West Africa in both infections and deaths.

The ongoing outbreak is caused by the Bundibugyo species of Ebola, ⁠which ⁠has no approved vaccines or treatments.

It has gained momentum since it was declared on May 15, as weak health infrastructure, community resistance, instability and protests by response workers hinder efforts to identify and respond to cases.