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Flash Floods Swallow Indian Village, at Least Four Dead, Over 50 Missing 

A man sits outside his house partially submerged in floodwaters after heavy monsoon rains induced a rise in water level of river Ganges in Varanasi on August 4, 2025. (AFP)
A man sits outside his house partially submerged in floodwaters after heavy monsoon rains induced a rise in water level of river Ganges in Varanasi on August 4, 2025. (AFP)
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Flash Floods Swallow Indian Village, at Least Four Dead, Over 50 Missing 

A man sits outside his house partially submerged in floodwaters after heavy monsoon rains induced a rise in water level of river Ganges in Varanasi on August 4, 2025. (AFP)
A man sits outside his house partially submerged in floodwaters after heavy monsoon rains induced a rise in water level of river Ganges in Varanasi on August 4, 2025. (AFP)

Surging flood waters swept through a village in the northern Indian Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, killing at least four people and more than 50 others were missing, India Today TV channel reported on Tuesday. 

Teams from army and disaster response forces had reached the area, local authorities said, with workers trying to rescue people trapped under debris and sludge, authorities added. 

TV news channels showed water, mud and debris surging down a mountain, sweeping away homes and a road. 

The mudslide cleaved through Dharali village, burying some houses, according to a video update shared by the state chief minister's office. 

"A massive mudslide struck Dharali village in the KheerGad area near Harsil, triggering a sudden flow of debris and water through the settlement," the Central Command of the Indian Army said in a post on X. 

Uttarakhand is prone to floods and landslides, which some experts blame on climate change. 

At least 200 people died in 2021 when flash floods swept away two hydroelectric projects in the state. 

There are about 10,000 glaciers in the Indian Himalayas, and many are receding due to the warming climate. 

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World

Netanyahu Skeptical of an Iran Breakthrough

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leaves after a meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House February 11, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leaves after a meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House February 11, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)
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Netanyahu Skeptical of an Iran Breakthrough

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leaves after a meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House February 11, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)
Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu leaves after a meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House February 11, 2026, in Washington, DC. (Photo by Brendan Smialowski / AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he was skeptical that US nuclear talks with Iran will lead to a breakthrough but described his meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House as “excellent.”

Speaking to reporters Thursday in Washington before boarding a plane to return to Israel, Netanyahu said Trump’s terms and Iran’s “understanding that they made a mistake the last time when they did not reach an agreement, may lead them to agree to conditions that will enable a good agreement to be reached.”

While he said he did “not hide my general skepticism” about any deal, he stressed that any agreement must include concessions about Iran’s ballistic missiles program and support for militant proxies.

He added that the conversation Wednesday with Trump, which lasted more than two hours, included a number of other subjects, including Gaza and regional developments but focused on the negotiations with Iran.

World

German Court Rejects Palestinian's Claim over Weapons Exports

A view shows the front of the Reichstag building, the seat of the German parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany March 5, 2025. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse/File Photo
A view shows the front of the Reichstag building, the seat of the German parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany March 5, 2025. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse/File Photo
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German Court Rejects Palestinian's Claim over Weapons Exports

A view shows the front of the Reichstag building, the seat of the German parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany March 5, 2025. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse/File Photo
A view shows the front of the Reichstag building, the seat of the German parliament, the Bundestag, in Berlin, Germany March 5, 2025. REUTERS/Annegret Hilse/File Photo

Germany's highest court on Thursday threw out a case brought by a Palestinian civilian from Gaza seeking to sue the German government over its weapons exports to Israel.

The complainant, supported by the European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR), had been seeking to challenge export licences for German parts used in Israeli tanks deployed in Gaza.

After his case was rejected by lower courts in 2024 and 2025, he had appealed to the Federal Constitutional Court.

But the court in Karlsruhe dismissed the case, stating that "the complainant has not sufficiently substantiated that the specialized courts misjudged or arbitrarily denied a possible duty to protect him", AFP reported.

While Germany is obliged to protect human rights and respect international humanitarian law, this does not mean the state is necessarily obliged to take specific action on behalf of individuals, the court said.

"It is fundamentally the responsibility of the state authorities themselves to decide how they fulfil their general duty of protection," it added.

The ECCHR called the decision "a setback for civilian access to justice".

"The court acknowledges the duty to protect but only in the abstract and refuses to ensure its practical enforcement," said Alexander Schwarz, co-director of the NGO's International Crimes and Legal Accountability program.

"For people whose lives are endangered by the consequences of German arms exports, access to justice remains effectively closed," he said.

The ECCHR had been hoping for a successful appeal after the Constitutional Court ruled last year that Germany had "a general duty to protect fundamental human rights and the core norms of international humanitarian law, even in cases involving foreign countries".

In that case, two Yemenis had been seeking to sue Berlin over the role of the US Ramstein airbase in a 2012 drone attack.

The complainant was one of five Palestinians who initially brought their case against the German government in 2024.

 

 

 

 

World

2 Israelis Charged with Using Classified Military Information to Place Bets

The Israeli Iron Dome air defense system intercepts missiles during an Iranian attack on Tel Aviv, Israel, June 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa, File)
The Israeli Iron Dome air defense system intercepts missiles during an Iranian attack on Tel Aviv, Israel, June 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa, File)
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2 Israelis Charged with Using Classified Military Information to Place Bets

The Israeli Iron Dome air defense system intercepts missiles during an Iranian attack on Tel Aviv, Israel, June 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa, File)
The Israeli Iron Dome air defense system intercepts missiles during an Iranian attack on Tel Aviv, Israel, June 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Leo Correa, File)

Two Israelis have been charged with using classified military information to place bets on how future events will unfold, Israeli authorities said Thursday, accusing the individuals of “serious security offenses.”

A joint statement by the Israeli Ministry of Defense, domestic security service Shin Bet and police said that a civilian and a reservist are suspected of placing bets on the US-based prediction market Polymarket on future military operations based on information that the reservist had access to, The AP news reported.

Israel’s Attorney General’s Office decided to prosecute the two individuals following a joint investigation by police, military intelligence and other security agencies that resulted in several arrests. The two face charges including bribery and obstruction of justice.

Authorities offered no details on the identity of the two individuals or the reservist's rank or position in the Israeli military but warned that such actions posed a “real security risk” for the military and the Israeli state.

Israel’s public broadcaster Kan had reported earlier that the bets were placed in June ahead of Israel’s war with Iran and that the winnings were roughly $150,000.

Israel's military and security services “view the acts attributed to the defendants very seriously and will act resolutely to thwart and bring to justice any person involved in the activity of using classified information illegally,” the statement said.

The accused will remain in custody until the end of legal proceedings against them, the Prosecutor's Office said.

Prediction markets are comprised of typically yes-or-no questions called event contracts, with the prices connected to what traders are willing to pay, which theoretically indicates the perceived probability of an event occurring.

Their use has skyrocketed in recent years, but despite some eye-catching windfalls, traders still lose money everyday. In the US, the trades are categorized differently than traditional forms of gambling, raising questions about transparency and risk.