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Biden to Visit Israel Despite its Political Turmoil

US President Joe Biden meets with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in the Oval Office at the White House (Getty Images/AFP)
US President Joe Biden meets with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in the Oval Office at the White House (Getty Images/AFP)
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Biden to Visit Israel Despite its Political Turmoil

US President Joe Biden meets with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in the Oval Office at the White House (Getty Images/AFP)
US President Joe Biden meets with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett in the Oval Office at the White House (Getty Images/AFP)

The US State Department confirmed that President Joe Biden is proceeding with his plans to visit Israel, despite the current political turmoil.

US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken promised his Israeli counterpart Yair Lapid and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett that the United States would continue its support for Israel in light of growing concerns about Iran's nuclear program.

Blinken also addressed the dissolution of the Knesset, underscoring "our respect for democratic processes and reiterated our unwavering commitment to the strong US-Israel strategic relationship."

The Secretary emphasized the continuing close coordination on regional and global issues and noted that President Biden looks forward to his visit to Israel next month.

Earlier, Blinken spoke with Lapid after the decision to dissolve the Knesset, saying the visit to Israel is "an opportunity to emphasize the president's deep personal connection to Israel, to America's commitment to Israel's security, and to strengthening Israel in the region."

The US Ambassador to Israel, Tom Nides, confirmed that Biden would go through with the visit to Israel next month.

If the legislative process moves forward as expected, Lapid will be prime minister when Biden lands in Israel on July 13 for his first visit as president.

State Department Spokesman Ned Price told reporters on Tuesday, "The strength of our relationship does not depend on who sits in the Oval Office. It doesn't depend on who sits in the prime minister's chair in Israel."

The early elections could witness the return of former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who had tense relations with former US President Barack Obama when Biden was Vice President.

Before announcing the Knesset's disbandment, an Israeli official stated that Biden would meet in Israel with Bennett and Lapid, President Isaac Herzog, and Defense Minister Benny Gantz.

It is customary for US presidents to meet with the leader of the opposition as well, which means a possible meeting between Biden and Netanyahu, who have a long relationship of political differences.

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World

Russia: Man Suspected of Shooting Top General Detained in Dubai

An investigator works outside a residential building where the assassination attempt on Russian Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev took place in Moscow, Russia February 6, 2026. REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova
An investigator works outside a residential building where the assassination attempt on Russian Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev took place in Moscow, Russia February 6, 2026. REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova
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Russia: Man Suspected of Shooting Top General Detained in Dubai

An investigator works outside a residential building where the assassination attempt on Russian Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev took place in Moscow, Russia February 6, 2026. REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova
An investigator works outside a residential building where the assassination attempt on Russian Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev took place in Moscow, Russia February 6, 2026. REUTERS/Anastasia Barashkova

Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Sunday that the man suspected of shooting top Russian military intelligence officer Vladimir Alexeyev in Moscow has been detained in Dubai and handed over to Russia.

Lieutenant General Vladimir Alexeyev, deputy head of the GRU, ⁠Russia's military intelligence arm, was shot several times in an apartment block in Moscow on Friday, investigators said. He underwent surgery after the shooting, Russian media ⁠said.

The FSB said a Russian citizen named Lyubomir Korba was detained in Dubai on suspicion of carrying out the shooting.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused Ukraine of being behind the assassination attempt, which he said was designed to sabotage peace talks. ⁠Ukraine said it had nothing to do with the shooting.

Alexeyev's boss, Admiral Igor Kostyukov, the head of the GRU, has been leading Russia's delegation in negotiations with Ukraine in Abu Dhabi on security-related aspects of a potential peace deal.

World

Factory Explosion Kills 8 in Northern China

Employees work on an electric vehicle (EV) production line at the Volkswagen Anhui factory in Hefei, Anhui province, China, February 4, 2026. REUTERS/Florence Lo
Employees work on an electric vehicle (EV) production line at the Volkswagen Anhui factory in Hefei, Anhui province, China, February 4, 2026. REUTERS/Florence Lo
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Factory Explosion Kills 8 in Northern China

Employees work on an electric vehicle (EV) production line at the Volkswagen Anhui factory in Hefei, Anhui province, China, February 4, 2026. REUTERS/Florence Lo
Employees work on an electric vehicle (EV) production line at the Volkswagen Anhui factory in Hefei, Anhui province, China, February 4, 2026. REUTERS/Florence Lo

An explosion at a biotech factory in northern China has killed eight people, Chinese state media reported Sunday, increasing the total number of fatalities by one.

State news agency Xinhua had previously reported that seven people died and one person was missing after the Saturday morning explosion at the Jiapeng biotech company in Shanxi province, citing local authorities.

Later, Xinhua said eight were dead, adding that the firm's legal representative had been taken into custody.

The company is located in Shanyin County, about 400 kilometers west of Beijing, AFP reported.

Xinhua said clean-up operations were ongoing, noting that reporters observed dark yellow smoke emanating from the site of the explosion.

Authorities have established a team to investigate the cause of the blast, the report added.

Industrial accidents are common in China due to lax safety standards.
In late January, an explosion at a steel factory in the neighboring province of Inner Mongolia left at least nine people dead.

World

Iran Warns Will Not Give Up Enrichment Despite US War Threat

Traffic moves through a street in Tehran on February 7, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)
Traffic moves through a street in Tehran on February 7, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)
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Iran Warns Will Not Give Up Enrichment Despite US War Threat

Traffic moves through a street in Tehran on February 7, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)
Traffic moves through a street in Tehran on February 7, 2026. (Photo by ATTA KENARE / AFP)

Iran will never surrender the right to enrich uranium, even if war "is imposed on us,” its foreign minister said Sunday, defying pressure from Washington.

"Iran has paid a very heavy price for its peaceful nuclear program and for uranium enrichment," Abbas Araghchi told a forum in Tehran.

"Why do we insist so much on enrichment and refuse to give it up even if a war is imposed on us? Because no one has the right to dictate our behavior," he said, two days after he met US envoy Steve Witkoff in Oman.

The foreign minister also declared that his country was not intimidated by the US naval deployment in the Gulf.

"Their military deployment in the region does not scare us," Araghchi said.