Bennett: Israel Won't Be Bound by Any Nuclear Deal with Iran

Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett speaks during the weekly cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, September 5, 2021. Sebastian Scheiner/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett speaks during the weekly cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, September 5, 2021. Sebastian Scheiner/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
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Bennett: Israel Won't Be Bound by Any Nuclear Deal with Iran

Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett speaks during the weekly cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, September 5, 2021. Sebastian Scheiner/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett speaks during the weekly cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, September 5, 2021. Sebastian Scheiner/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said on Monday that Israel will not be bound by any nuclear deal with Iran and will continue to consider itself free to act against its nemesis if necessary.

"In regard to the nuclear talks in Vienna, we are definitely concerned ... Israel is not a side to the agreements. Israel is not bound by what will be written in the agreements, if they are signed, and Israel will continue to maintain full freedom of action anywhere any time, with no constraints," he said in public remarks in a briefing to a parliamentary committee.

Negotiations in Vienna to restore the nuclear deal resumed in late November after they were suspended in June as Iran elected a new, ultraconservative government.

The deal offered Iran sanctions relief in exchange for curbs on its nuclear program.

But then-president Donald Trump withdrew the US in 2018 and derailed the accord, prompting Tehran to begin rolling back on its commitments.

Israel has called on world powers to maintain a credible military option against Iran while they pursue an agreement.



UN: 100 Mln Children Out of School from Conflict, Climate

 A school class visit the zoo of Kronberg near Frankfurt, Germany, Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (AP)
A school class visit the zoo of Kronberg near Frankfurt, Germany, Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (AP)
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UN: 100 Mln Children Out of School from Conflict, Climate

 A school class visit the zoo of Kronberg near Frankfurt, Germany, Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (AP)
A school class visit the zoo of Kronberg near Frankfurt, Germany, Tuesday, June 23, 2026. (AP)

The number of children and adolescents whose education is disrupted by conflict and climate-related shocks has soared past 250 million, including nearly 100 million out of school altogether, according to a UN report released Tuesday.

"The number of children affected by crises has increased by 21 million in just 18 months, reaching an estimated 258 million worldwide," according to the study by Education Cannot Wait, the United Nations fund for education in crisis zones.

The report focused on school-age children and adolescents whose education had been disrupted by conflict, displacement, climate shocks and protracted socio-economic crises.

It found that 93 million children were completely out of school, and that nearly 60 percent of the 258 million affected overall lived in just nine countries: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Myanmar, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sudan and Yemen.

Conflict and violence are the leading drivers of children dropping out of school, the report found.

"The evidence is clear: conflict and climate change are rolling back hard-won gains in education," said Maysa Jalbout, director of Education Cannot Wait.

"These findings show us where needs are greatest and where investments can have the greatest impact," she added. "Now is the time to invest in the futures of crisis-affected children."


Lavrov Says Russia Ready to Resume Talks with Ukraine from Point Where They Left Off

 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a joint press conference with Madagascar's Foreign Minister following their talks in Moscow on June 19, 2026. (Sergei Ilnitsky / Pool / AFP)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a joint press conference with Madagascar's Foreign Minister following their talks in Moscow on June 19, 2026. (Sergei Ilnitsky / Pool / AFP)
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Lavrov Says Russia Ready to Resume Talks with Ukraine from Point Where They Left Off

 Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a joint press conference with Madagascar's Foreign Minister following their talks in Moscow on June 19, 2026. (Sergei Ilnitsky / Pool / AFP)
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov attends a joint press conference with Madagascar's Foreign Minister following their talks in Moscow on June 19, 2026. (Sergei Ilnitsky / Pool / AFP)

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Tuesday that Russia was ready to resume peace negotiations with Ukraine from the point where they left off.

"We are ready ‌to talk ‌with Kyiv, ‌as ⁠we have always ⁠been," Lavrov told reporters, referring to talks that took place in Istanbul soon after the start ⁠of the war in ‌2022 ‌and were resumed in 2025.

However, ‌he did not ‌signal any shift in Moscow's demand, rejected by Kyiv, for Ukraine to ‌surrender the remaining part of the Donbas region ⁠that ⁠it has successfully defended from Russian forces.

The last US-mediated peace talks took place in February, before the United States and Israel launched a war against Iran.


Armed Group in Nigeria Kills at Least 20 People and Exchanges Gunfire with Police

Security personnel stand guard near Eagle Square during a Democracy Day protest in Abuja, Nigeria, June 12, 2026. REUTERS/ Marvellous Durowaiye
Security personnel stand guard near Eagle Square during a Democracy Day protest in Abuja, Nigeria, June 12, 2026. REUTERS/ Marvellous Durowaiye
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Armed Group in Nigeria Kills at Least 20 People and Exchanges Gunfire with Police

Security personnel stand guard near Eagle Square during a Democracy Day protest in Abuja, Nigeria, June 12, 2026. REUTERS/ Marvellous Durowaiye
Security personnel stand guard near Eagle Square during a Democracy Day protest in Abuja, Nigeria, June 12, 2026. REUTERS/ Marvellous Durowaiye

An armed group killed at least 20 people in a community located in the north-central region of Nigeria, police said Monday.

The attack occurred Sunday in the Kawel community located in the Bokkos area of Plateau State, The Associated Press quoted police spokesman Alfred Alabo as saying in a statement.

Police officers quickly arrived at the scene and exchanged gunfire with the assailants, forcing them to retreat, Alabo said. No arrests were reported.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack in a region that has experienced a recurring pattern of violence.

“The remains of the victims have since been released to their families for burial, as the families declined autopsy,” Alabo said.

Plateau State Gov. Caleb Mutfwang instructed the government's emergency management and humanitarian agencies to provide immediate relief and support to victims and families, spokesperson Joyce Ramnap said in a statement.

An insurgency in northeastern Nigeria has killed thousands of people and displaced millions over the years, according to the United Nations. Armed gangs are also active in the northwest and north-central parts of the country.

A nighttime attack in March, killed 20 people in Gari Ya Waye community in Plateau.