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Israel Behind Report on Iranian 'Suicide' Drones Sent to Houthis in Yemen

A projectile and a drone launched at Saudi Arabia by Yemen's Houthis are displayed at a Saudi military base, Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia, June 21, 2019. (Reuters)
A projectile and a drone launched at Saudi Arabia by Yemen's Houthis are displayed at a Saudi military base, Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia, June 21, 2019. (Reuters)
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Israel Behind Report on Iranian 'Suicide' Drones Sent to Houthis in Yemen

A projectile and a drone launched at Saudi Arabia by Yemen's Houthis are displayed at a Saudi military base, Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia, June 21, 2019. (Reuters)
A projectile and a drone launched at Saudi Arabia by Yemen's Houthis are displayed at a Saudi military base, Al-Kharj, Saudi Arabia, June 21, 2019. (Reuters)

A high-ranking Israeli official is the source behind reports published two days ago by Newsweek saying Iran has sent “suicide drones” to its allies in Yemen, military sources in Tel Aviv revealed Friday.

Newsweek said Thursday that imagery seen by the magazine and confirmed by an expert, who follows Iranian activities in the region, indicate the presence of Iranian Shahed-136 loitering munitions deployed to the northern Yemeni province of Al-Jawf, an area of the country controlled by the Houthi militias.

The release of the report aims to convey a message to Iran that Israel’s security agencies “see everything that it is doing to boost its military powers in the region and increase its threats to Israel and its allies,” the sources said.

They stressed that the report also coincides with official reports published this week in Tel Aviv saying Israel deployed Iron Drone batteries around the southern Red Sea city of Eilat amid concerns of an attack from the Houthis and had stepped up its flights near the border with Lebanon and Syria.

“Israel is indirectly saying it is ready to confront Iran and its proxies,” the sources added.

Meanwhile, Israeli media published statements delivered by current and former Israeli military officials about Tel Aviv’s plan to confront Iran, including its nuclear program, ballistic missiles and even its presence in Syria.

Those statements were clear in showing that Israel would continue to launch airstrikes against Iranian positions in Syria even with the change of administration in the United States.

Haaretz's military expert Amos Harel wrote: “Besides an apparent renewed effort to disrupt Iran’s attempt to move arms and militias through Iraq and Syria, there’s the message that Israel will continue to strike regardless of the new president’s Iran policy.”

Maariv's military analyst Tal Lev Ram wrote Friday that despite the series of successful attacks attributed to the Israeli military, “Tel Aviv understands that the exit of Iran and its proxies from Syria will only be possible thanks to apolitical move led by the US and Russia.”

“Until then, the conflict will continue and may even intensify,” he warned.

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World

Bus-truck Head-on Collision in Brazil Kills at Least 21

An ambulance arrives at the 28 de Agosto, in Manaus, Brazil, April 16, 2020. REUTERS/Bruno Kelly
An ambulance arrives at the 28 de Agosto, in Manaus, Brazil, April 16, 2020. REUTERS/Bruno Kelly
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Bus-truck Head-on Collision in Brazil Kills at Least 21

An ambulance arrives at the 28 de Agosto, in Manaus, Brazil, April 16, 2020. REUTERS/Bruno Kelly
An ambulance arrives at the 28 de Agosto, in Manaus, Brazil, April 16, 2020. REUTERS/Bruno Kelly

At least 21 people died and four others were injured in a head-on collision between a bus and a truck in the BR-373 highway in Brazil's southern state of Parana, ⁠the road operator ⁠said on Wednesday in an X post.

All the fatal victims were on the bus, Via Araucaria ⁠added.

The road was completely blocked with no estimated time for it to be cleared, according to the toad operator.

Local media reported that the bus involved in the accident belonged to the Imbituva ⁠municipal ⁠health department. City authorities did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment or confirmation.

Imbituva is a city of about 30,000 people, roughly 180 km (110 miles) west of Parana's capital Curitiba.

World

France to Expel Two Iranian Diplomats in Coming Days, Foreign Minister Says

French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot arrives to attend the annual Bastille Day military parade on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, July 14, 2026. (Reuters)
French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot arrives to attend the annual Bastille Day military parade on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, July 14, 2026. (Reuters)
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France to Expel Two Iranian Diplomats in Coming Days, Foreign Minister Says

French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot arrives to attend the annual Bastille Day military parade on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, July 14, 2026. (Reuters)
French Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Jean-Noel Barrot arrives to attend the annual Bastille Day military parade on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, July 14, 2026. (Reuters)

France will expel two Iranian diplomats in the coming days in response to an incident in July involving two staff of the French embassy in Tehran.

"I had announced that this intolerable act would have consequences. And ‌so it has. ‌Two Iranian diplomats in ‌France will ⁠be expelled in ⁠the very near future," Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said in a post on X.

Last month, the French ministry said the two French embassy staff had been detained and physically intimidated by ⁠Iranian security services in Tehran.

Barrot had ‌summoned the ‌Iranian charge d'affaires in Paris in protest following ‌the incident on July 19.

Barrot's comments ‌came one day after the Iranian ministry said two French embassy employees, who were involved in July in a diplomatic dispute ‌in Tehran, would not be allowed to return to Iran.

Iranian Foreign ⁠Ministry ⁠spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the two French staff had violated the Vienna Convention, which defines the rules and privileges of diplomatic missions, by engaging in activities supporting Iranian civil society.

French Foreign Ministry spokesperson Pascal Confavreux said in a statement that "the Iranian authorities have chosen to make completely false accusations against our agents and to fabricate a case of interference to justify their actions."

World

US Expands Charges Against Iranians in Massive Hacking Scheme

A U.S. Justice Department logo or seal showing Justice Department headquarters, known as "Main Justice," is seen behind the podium in the Department's headquarters briefing room before a news conference with the Attorney General in Washington, January 24, 2023. (Reuters)
A U.S. Justice Department logo or seal showing Justice Department headquarters, known as "Main Justice," is seen behind the podium in the Department's headquarters briefing room before a news conference with the Attorney General in Washington, January 24, 2023. (Reuters)
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US Expands Charges Against Iranians in Massive Hacking Scheme

A U.S. Justice Department logo or seal showing Justice Department headquarters, known as "Main Justice," is seen behind the podium in the Department's headquarters briefing room before a news conference with the Attorney General in Washington, January 24, 2023. (Reuters)
A U.S. Justice Department logo or seal showing Justice Department headquarters, known as "Main Justice," is seen behind the podium in the Department's headquarters briefing room before a news conference with the Attorney General in Washington, January 24, 2023. (Reuters)

US authorities expanded its prosecution of a sprawling Iranian hacking network Tuesday, bringing to 17 the number of indicted suspects for an alleged campaign against universities, companies, and government agencies.

The Department of Justice unveiled a new indictment targeting eight additional individuals, with nine of the 17 defendants having already been indicted in 2018.

Prosecutors are offering a $10 million reward for information leading to the prosecution of five of them, identified as Behzad Mesri, Mojtaba Galekuhi, Arman Kahzadian, Keyvan Fayaz, and Saber Shahbazi Ballojeh.

All are linked to the Mabna Institute, an organization based in Iran that is said to have carried out hacking operations on behalf of the Iranian government and the Revolutionary Guards, prosecutors said.

The campaign, carried out mainly between 2013 and 2017, was aimed in particular at stealing scientific data and intellectual property.

The expanded case now covers the hacking of 144 US universities and 178 foreign universities, as well as at least 42 US companies, 11 foreign firms, five US government agencies, and two NGOs.

The hackers are said to have targeted more than 100,000 accounts belonging to professors, the Justice Department said.

They are believed to have stolen some 31.5 terabytes of data, including scientific articles, dissertations and other research work.

"More than eight years after making the original indictment public, these charges make clear that the passage of time will not deter us from identifying and pursuing those who target the United States from abroad," said US Attorney Jamie McDonald for the Southern District of New York.

The US Treasury announced in 2018 that it had imposed sanctions on the nine individuals initially indicted, as well as on a tenth suspect who was allegedly involved in an attempted extortion case against HBO, from which he had stolen the script of an unaired episode of the hit series "Game of Thrones."