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Multiple people were wounded, some suffering life-threatening injuries, after a woman allegedly stabbed travelers with a knife on Friday at Hamburg Central Station in Germany.

The 39-year-old woman, who has not yet been publicly identified, was arrested shortly after the attack without incident, Hamburg Police announced on X.

SUSPECT ARRESTED AFTER STABBING AT BERLIN'S HOLOCAUST MEMORIAL NEAR US EMBASSY

Officials believe the woman acted alone, but the motive is unknown.

"Investigations into the background are in full swing," police said.

NYC SUBWAY CONDUCTOR MAKES TRAGIC DISCOVERY ON TRAIN: DEAD WOMAN

The attack happened in the late afternoon inside the station on the platform between tracks 13 and 14, according to a report from the Associated Press. 

Hamburg’s fire service said six people suffered life-threatening injuries, three people were seriously injured, and three others had slight injuries, German news agency Deutsche Presse-Agentur reported.

However, police later said the number was not firm, only confirming "several" people had life-threatening injuries, according to the AP.

State-owned railway company Deutsche Bahn posted to X saying they were "deeply saddened" by the act of violence.

Tracks 11 to 14 at the main station were closed, and delays and diversions were announced for long-distance trains.

GERMAN CHRISTMAS MARKET ATTACK VICTIM DIES AT HOSPITAL WEEKS LATER, INCREASING DEATH TOLL TO 6

"We are fully supporting the authorities in their investigations on site," Deutsche Bahn wrote in a post.

Police confirmed a "major" operation is currently underway.

NYC MAN CHARGED WITH ATTEMPTED MURDER AFTER ALLEGEDLY SHOVING COMMUTER IN PATH OF SUBWAY

More than 550,000 travelers pass through Hamburg's main station each day, making it the most frequented passenger railway station in Germany, according to its website.

The station, which opened in 1906, is just a short walk from the city center and features 75 shops and restaurants.

In February, one person was seriously injured in a stabbing at Berlin's Holocaust memorial near the U.S. embassy.

On Wednesday, Elias Rodriguez, of Chicago, was charged with killing two Israeli Embassy staffers during a shooting at an event hosted by the American Jewish Committee in Washington, D.C.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

The U.S. and Iran resumed nuclear negotiations on Friday in Rome as differences over demands have spilled over into the public sphere, making the red lines for both parties increasingly clear. 

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei this week criticized Washington’s position that has called for an apparent ban on all uranium enrichment in Iran and suggested a deal may not be possible.

The White House did not answer Fox News Digital’s questions about whether it is in fact calling for a ban on uranium enrichment for civil needs like nuclear energy, but on Friday Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei told reporters that "This round of talks is especially sensitive."

IRAN'S KHAMENEI SAYS AMERICANS SHOULD AVOID TALKING 'NONSENSE' IN NUKE TALKS

According to Iranian media outlets, Tehran's Foreign Minister Abbas AraqchiI left the negotiations and said, "I hope that in the next one or two meetings we can reach solutions that will allow the negotiations to progress. 

"With Oman's solutions to remove obstacles, there is a possibility of progress," though he did not expand on what the hiccups were or what Oman's solutions may have been.

Araqchi, who was set to negotiate largely indirectly with Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff through Omani mediators, made Tehran’s position on Washington’s apparent demands clear in a post to X early on Friday. 

"Figuring out the path to a deal is not rocket science," he said. "Zero nuclear weapons = we DO have a deal. Zero enrichment = we do NOT have a deal. 

"Time to decide," he added.

IRAN FOREIGN MINISTER VOWS NUCLEAR ENRICHMENT WILL CONTINUE 'WITH OR WITHOUT A DEAL'

Iran has claimed it has no intention of building a nuclear weapon. But steps Tehran has taken, like bolstering its missile program, which could give it the technology to launch a nuclear warhead, and stockpiling enough near-weapons-grade enriched uranium to possess five nuclear weapons, have experts worried, including the U.N.’s International Atomic Energy Agency. 

While uranium enrichment for nuclear energy is a power source many countries, including the U.S., rely on for their energy needs, Iran's nuclear energy amounts to less than 1% of its energy consumption. 

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Tuesday that the U.S. is attempting to form a deal that would enable Iran to have a civil nuclear energy program that does not include enriched uranium, though he admitted that this "will not be easy".

"Washington's insistence on zero enrichment, I think, is the only sober, sane, non-proliferation approach you can take [with] the Islamic Republic of Iran, which has not stopped enriching uranium at various levels since April 2006 when this entire crisis really was kicked off," Behnam Ben Taleblu, Iran expert and senior fellow with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies told Fox News Digital.

"Iran has more to lose by pushing away from the table," he continued. "Iran is engaging in 2025 for a very different reason than 2013 and 2015. It's trying to blunt maximum pressure. It's trying to prevent an Israeli military attack, and it's trying to prevent European snap-back [sanctions]. 

"This is why Iran is engaging today, and the Trump administration needs to be cognizant that, because of that, it does have the leverage in these negotiations and can demand more," Ben Taleblu urged. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not hold back in his criticism of U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. 

The Israeli leader’s condemnation comes after the U.K., France and Canada issued a joint statement demanding that Israel end its military campaign in Gaza.

In a video statement released on Thursday, Netanyahu said Hamas does not want a Palestinian state; rather, the terror group wants the destruction of the state of Israel. He questioned how this "simple truth evades the leaders of France, Britain, Canada and others." Netanyahu went on to accuse the U.K., France and Canada of giving Hamas "the ultimate prize" in their insistence on the establishment of a Palestinian state.

ISRAEL FIRES BACK AT UK OVER SUSPENDED TRADE TALKS, REJECTS ‘EXTERNAL PRESSURE’

"Well, for 18 years we had a de facto Palestinian state. It’s called Gaza. And what did we get? Peace? No. We got the most savage slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust," Netanyahu said in the video statement.

Hamas issued a statement thanking the U.K., France and Canada for "rejecting the policy of siege and starvation pursued by the occupation government against our people in the Gaza Strip, and the Zionist plans aimed at genocide and displacement," according to the Jerusalem Post.

The terror organization also urged Arab and Islamic countries, the European Union and others "to take urgent action and adopt firm positions and concrete measures to halt the barbaric Zionist aggression," among other things.

ISRAELI AMBASSADOR LASHES OUT AT UN OFFICIAL, CONDEMNS UK, FRANCE, CANADA STATEMENT ON AID

"I say to President Macron, Prime Minister Carney and Prime Minister Starmer: When mass murderers, rapists, baby killers and kidnappers thank you, you're on the wrong side of justice," Netanyahu said in a video statement on Thursday. "You're on the wrong side of humanity and you're on the wrong side of history."

Netanyahu went on to say that while Starmer, Macron and Carney may think they are "advancing peace," they’re actually "emboldening Hamas to continue fighting forever."

In response to a Fox News Digital request for comment on Netanyahu’s statement, Starmer’s office pointed to the prime minister’s post on X condemning the murders of two Israeli Embassy staffers in Washington, D.C.

TWO ISRAELI DIPLOMATS SHOT, KILLED DURING EVENT AT CAPITAL JEWISH MUSEUM IN WASHINGTON, DC

"I thoroughly condemn the antisemitic attack outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington DC. Antisemitism is an evil we must stamp out wherever it appears. My thoughts are with their colleagues, family and loved ones, and, as always, I stand in solidarity with the Jewish community."

Netanyahu also spoke about the murdered embassy employees, saying the two "weren’t the victims of a random crime. The terrorist who cruelly gunned them down did so for one reason and one reason alone – he wanted to kill Jews."

Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim were murdered on Wednesday night outside an event at D.C.’s Capital Jewish Museum. The two met at the embassy, fell in love, and were supposed to travel to Israel next week, where Lischinsky planned to propose.

Prime Minister Mark Carney's office did not immediately respond to a Fox News request for comment. Fox News Digital is attempting to make contact with President Emmanuel Macron's office.

A major prisoner swap between Russia and Ukraine is underway, a senior Ukrainian official said Friday.

The swap is not yet finished, the official told the Associated Press, despite President Donald Trump declaring Friday that Russia and Ukraine completed a "major prisoners swap." 

The announcements come after Russian and Ukrainian officials took part in direct talks in Turkey last Friday for the first time since the early days of the war, agreeing to release around 1,000 prisoners of war. 

"A major prisoners swap was just completed between Russia and Ukraine. It will go into effect shortly," Trump wrote on Truth Social. "Congratulations to both sides on this negotiation. This could lead to something big???" 

WILL VANCE REMARK ABOUT US BAILING ON UKRAINE ENCOURAGE PUTIN TO SINK NASCENT PEACE TALKS? 

On Thursday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy wrote on X that "I held a meeting on the preparation for an exchange" and "The agreement to release 1,000 of our people from Russian captivity was perhaps the only tangible result of the meeting in Turkey." 

Trump had a phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday. Following the conversation, Trump said "I believe it went very well." 

"Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War. The conditions for that will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of," Trump said. "The tone and spirit of the conversation were excellent. If it wasn’t, I would say so now, rather than later." 

PUTIN VISITS KURSK REGION FOR FIRST TIME SINCE BOOTING UKRAINIAN FORCES FROM TERRITORY 

Putin, in a statement after the call, also noted that "a ceasefire with Ukraine is possible" but noted that "Russia and Ukraine must find compromises that suit both sides." 

The Kremlin then said Thursday that both sides had no direct peace talks scheduled. 

"There is no concrete agreement about the next meetings," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said, according to the Associated Press. "They are yet to be agreed upon." 

Fox News Digital’s Morgan Phillips contributed to this report. 

President Donald Trump secured $2 trillion worth of deals with Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE during his trip to the Middle East last week in what some have argued is a move to counter China’s influence in the region. 

While China has increasingly bolstered its commercial ties with top Middle Eastern nations who have remained steadfast in their refusal to pick sides amid growing geopolitical tension between Washington and Beijing, Trump may have taken steps to give the U.S. an edge over its chief competitor. 

But concern has mounted after Trump reversed a Biden-era policy – which banned the sale of AI-capable chips to the UAE and Saudi Arabia – that highly coveted U.S. technologies could potentially fall into the hands of Chinese companies, and in extension, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

TRUMP SIGNS 'STRATEGIC ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP' WITH SAUDI ARABIA

China hawks on both sides of the aisle noted their concern after Trump entered into an agreement with the UAE to build the largest artificial intelligence hub outside the United States, coupled with the tens of billions of dollars’ worth of deals U.S. companies like Nvidia, ChatGPT, Google, Amazon and Qualcomm entered into with state-backed Saudi AI ventures, including direct chip sales.

"This deal could very well be dangerous because we have no clarity on how the Saudis and Emiratis will prevent the Chinese Communist Party, the Chinese government, the Chinese manufacturing establishment from getting their hands on these chips," Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer said on the Senate floor last week. 

"Inevitably, when foreign countries end up with American-made chips, the CCP, the Chinese Communist Party, sooner or later gets ahold of these American chips and their secrets in them," he said. "That’s why we’ve had such strong restrictions against exporting these chips to other counties."

Similarly, following the announced deals, Republican chair of the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Mich., took to X to say, "The CCP is actively seeking indirect access to our top tech. Deals like this require scrutiny and verifiable guardrails. 

"We raised concerns about G42 last year for this very reason—and we need safeguards in place before more agreements move forward," he added in reference to an Emirati AI development holding company.

TRUMP WRAPS MOMENTOUS MIDDLE EAST TRIP WITH ECONOMIC DEALS, SYRIA SANCTIONS RELIEF AND WARNING TO IRAN

By the end of Trump’s trip, the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party had introduced new legislation "to stop advanced U.S. AI chips from falling into the hands of adversaries like the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)."

"The ambition is understandable – drawing the Gulf states deeper into the U.S. tech ecosystem is a logical way to counterbalance China’s growing influence," Craig Singleton, China Program Senior Director and Senior Fellow with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies told Fox News Digital. "But the devil is in the details. 

"Without rigorous safeguards and clear conditions on technology transfer, there’s a real risk of leakage — whether it’s advanced chips, know-how, or access to AI platforms," he warned. "If these deals lack meaningful restrictions, they could end up strengthening the very actors they’re meant to contain."

The Commerce Department did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s questions on AI security.

While questions remain about the future of AI security, some reports suggested that the expanded U.S. agreements could help cement the U.S. as the global leader in the emerging technology and help shape its landscape.

But China has interests outside of AI in the region that pertain to security, economic and energy sectors – all of which the U.S. has a vested interest in deterring. 

Trump was the first president in nearly 20 years to visit the UAE, which security experts have told Fox News Digital will go a long way to further not only geopolitical goodwill amid major unrest stemming from the wars in Gaza and Ukraine, but it could even further bolster economic and security opportunities between Washington and Abu Dahbi.

"Trump showing up and re-committing American military and economic power to support the UAE’s stability, security, and success in a dangerous neighborhood can pay real dividends going forward," John Hannah, former national security advisor to Dick Cheney and current Randi & Charles Wax senior fellow at the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA), told Fox News Digital. 

 "Since at least the time of President Obama’s nuclear deal with Iran, there’s been a slow, but noticeable drift in UAE strategy away from its deep reliance on the United States toward more of a hedging policy of playing all sides of the global great game, including an increasingly close relationship with China," he added.

Hannah explained that a period of American weariness of the Middle East enabled China to effectively expand its geopolitical interests in the vital region.

The expert pointed out that not only does the UAE host U.S. troops on its soil, but its trade value with the U.S. – even prior to the $1.4 trillion deal it reached earlier this year – was worth some $35 billion annually.

"With a country as influential and resource-rich as the UAE, correcting that unhelpful perception and putting the strategic relationship back on a much more positive dynamic is an important goal," Hannah said. 

Fox News Digital could not immediately reach the UAE foreign ministry for comment. 

North Korean dictator Kim Jung Un was left fuming this week when he attended the botched launch of a new 5,000-ton naval destroyer.

The launch, at the northeastern port of Chongjin, was intended to tout the communist nation’s military advancement but ended in embarrassment for Kim after the ship slid off a ramp and became stuck, state media reported.

The flatcar failed to move alongside the ship, throwing it off balance and crushing parts of the ship’s bottom, North Korean news agency KCNA reported. Its stern slid down the launch slipway while its bow section failed to leave the ramp.

KIM JONG UN SUPERVISES NORTH KOREA'S AIR DRILLS, PUSHES FOR ENHANCED WAR PREPARATION

The total extent of the damage was unclear and it isn’t known if there were any injuries.

North Korea did not release photos from the scene, although satellite imagery released by South Korea on Thursday indicated that the ship was lying on its side in the water after the failed launch.

According to KCNA, Kim, who was present at the ceremony on Wednesday, blamed military officials, scientists and shipyard operators for a "serious accident and criminal act caused by absolute carelessness, irresponsibility and unscientific empiricism." 

Kim warned that the errors caused by the "irresponsibility of the relevant officials" would need to be investigated at a ruling Workers’ Party meeting slated for late June.

He said that restoring the destroyer before the meeting was directly related to the prestige of the state and the restoration should be completed unconditionally.

Moon Keun-sik, a navy expert who teaches at Seoul’s Hanyang University, said that despite the embarrassment, Kim still wanted to publicly report on the mishap. 

"It's a shameful thing, but the reason why North Korea disclosed the incident is it wants to show it's speeding up the modernization of its navy forces and expresses its confidence that it can eventually build," he told The Associated Press. 

Moon suspected that the incident likely happened because North Korean workers aren't yet familiar with such a large warship and had been rushed to put it in the water.

It was the second naval destroyer the secretive nation launched in a month after Kim attended the successful launch of another 5,000-ton destroyer from Nampo, a port on the west coast of North Korea. Kim later watched missiles fired from the ship, with experts saying that it appeared to have been built with Russian technology.

Experts said that both ships are likely designed to carry weapons systems including nuclear-capable ballistic and cruise missiles.

600 NORTH KOREAN TROOPS KILLED WHILE FIGHTING UKRAINE, SOUTH KOREA SAYS

A report by the North Korea-focused 38 North website assessed last week that the destroyer in Chongjin was being prepared to be launched sideways from the quay, a method that has rarely been used in North Korea. The report said the destroyer launched in Nampo, in contrast, used a floating dry dock.

Kim has framed the arms buildup as a response to perceived threats from the United States and South Korea, which have been expanding joint military exercises in response to the North’s advancing nuclear program.

In March, Kim oversaw tests of newly developed AI-powered suicide drones and called for their increased production. He was seen walking with aides on what appeared to be an unmanned surveillance aircraft that resembles the U.S. RQ-4 Global Hawk high-altitude surveillance aircraft parked on the tarmac in the background.

Other images showed a fixed-wing drone zeroing in on a tank-shaped target then exploding in flames.

Kim has said that unmanned control and AI capability must be the top priorities in modern arms development.

Kim was also seen walking to a large aircraft with four engines and a radar dome mounted on the fuselage. Analysts have previously reported that North Korea was converting the Russian-made Il-76 cargo aircraft for an early-warning role to help augment the North's existing land-based radar systems, which are sometimes limited by the peninsula's mountainous terrain, London's International Institute for Strategic Studies said in a report in September.

North Korea also revealed this year that it has a nuclear-powered submarine under construction, a weapons system that could pose a major security threat to South Korea and the U.S.

Meanwhile, North Korea has sent between 11,000 and 15,000 military personnel to fight alongside Russia in the war against Ukraine in its first involvement in a large-scale conflict since the 1950-53 Korean War. 

The South Korean military assessed that around 4,700 of them have been killed or wounded.

The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

Wednesday's attack that killed two employees of the Israeli embassy in Washington, D.C. is part of a long history of assaults against Israeli targets around the world. 

The victims, who were a soon-to-be-engaged couple, were identified as Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim. Their murders happened outside the Capital Jewish Museum, after which the suspected shooter yelled, "Free, free Palestine!" and security officers apprehended him.

The shooting comes as tensions over Israel’s operations in the Gaza Strip have drastically escalated this week amid growing humanitarian concerns, though it is not the first time since the war broke out following the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel that its D.C. embassy has been a target.

Since 1969, there have been at least 31 terror attacks targeting Israeli embassies and diplomatic staff across the globe. Here is a breakdown of some of the biggest incidents tracked by the Israeli government.

WHO IS THE ANTI-ISRAEL SUSPECT IN THE KILLING OF TWO ISRAELI EMBASSY STAFFERS?

FEBRUARY 2024

FEBRUARY 2012 

JULY 2004

FEBRUARY 1999

JULY 1994

MARCH 1992

JUNE 1982

NOVEMBER 1979

DECEMBER 1972

MAY 1971

MAY 1970

SEPTEMBER 1969

RED CROSS FIGHTING TO REACH HOSTAGES, ALLEVIATE 'CATASTROPHIC' SITUATION IN GAZA

FEBRUARY 2024

In February last year, an active-duty member of the U.S. Air Force, Aaron Bushnell, set himself on fire outside the embassy in an apparent act of protest.

The 25-year-old died, but no embassy staff were injured in the incident.

FEBRUARY 2012

On Feb. 13, 2012, Delhi, India was the site of the last known attack on Israeli embassy personnel when a diplomatic vehicle was bombed, and one woman was seriously injured. 

JULY 2004

Dual suicide bombings outside the Israeli and American embassies in Tashkent, Uzbekistan on July 30, 2004, killed the Israeli ambassador's personal bodyguard and four local policemen.

WITNESS RECOUNTS CHILLING MOMENT DC JEWISH MUSEUM SHOOTER CONFESSED, 'I DID THIS FOR GAZA'

FEBRUARY 1999

Roughly 100 rioters broke into the offices of the Israeli Consulate General in Berlin, Germany, on February 17, 1999, brandishing clubs, hammers, and iron bars before they took a woman hostage. Three of the perpetrators were killed during the attack.

JULY 1994

A bomb detonated outside the Israeli Embassy in London on July 26, 1994, injuring several embassy staff.

MARCH 1992

In one of the largest ever attacks on an Israeli embassy, a bombing attack in Buenos Aires, Argentina on March 17, 1992, injured some 300 people and killed 29 others, including nine Israeli embassy employees, as well as elderly residents of a nearby nursing home, and schoolchildren on a passing bus.

Just 10 days earlier, on March 7 in Ankara, Turkey, the security chief for the Israeli embassy, Ehud Sadan, was killed in a car bombing. Hezbollah and the Islamic Revenge Organization claimed responsibility.

AT LEAST 82 KILLED IN ISRAELI STRIKES ON GAZA AS CRITICAL AID FAILS TO REACH PALESTINIANS

JUNE 1982

On June 4, 1982, Israeli Ambassador to the UK, Shlomo Argov, was seriously wounded after he was shot in the head when leaving a diplomatic event in the center of London. Three perpetrators were apprehended and sentenced to up to 35 years in prison. 

NOVEMBER 1979

An assassination attempt was carried out on Israeli Ambassador Ephraim Eldar in Lisbon, Portugal on November 13, 1979. While the ambassador was wounded along with his chauffeur and a local policeman, a guard at the embassy was killed.

DECEMBER 1972

On December 28, 1972, the Israeli embassy in Bangkok, Thailand, was taken over by four terrorists and six embassy personnel were taken hostage. They were released a reported 19 hours later. 

JULY 1973

Yosef Alon, Israeli air force attaché to the embassy in Washington, D.C. was shot to death outside his home on July 1, 1973.  The murder was believed to be in retaliation for Israel’s killing of the leader of a terrorist group known as Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine.

MAY 1971

The Israeli Consul-General, Efraim Elrom, was assassinated in Istanbul, Turkey, on May 28, 1971, by the Turkish Liberation Army.

Two armed Palestinians broke into the Israeli Consulate in Asuncion, Paraguay, on May 4, 1970, and opened fire. An Israeli secretary, Edna Pe'er, was killed in the attack while a local worker was also injured.

SEPTEMBER 1969

On September 8, 1969, what appeared to be a coordinated bombing campaign targeted two Israeli embassies in the Hague in the Netherlands and in Bonn, Germany, as well as Israel's El Al airline in Brussels in an attack that occurred within minutes of each other.

Though no injuries were reported during the embassy attacks, three El Al employees and a customer were injured in the Brussels bombing.

The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has not had the opportunity for more than 590 days to visit hostages in Gaza and provide them with medical care. However, Communications Coordinator for the International Committee of the Red Cross Jacob Kurtzer tells Fox News Digital that the organization has been ready to provide hostages with medical assistance "from day one" — despite not being granted access to them.

"It’s no secret that the ICRC has not been able to visit hostages to carry out the work that’s mandated — to carry out our humanitarian work, to visit, to bring medicine," Kurtzer told Fox News Digital. "I can assure you it’s not for lack of trying, and I can assure you that every single day, our colleagues here, our colleagues at headquarters, and our colleagues at other delegations are working to try to find a way to get access."

ISRAELI AMBASSADOR LASHES OUT AT UN OFFICIAL, CONDEMNS UK, FRANCE, CANADA STATEMENT ON AID

Since its establishment over 160 years ago, the ICRC has prided itself on serving as a neutral body focused on delivering aid and medical care. However, since the war in Gaza began, the ICRC has faced criticism from some for not pushing to visit the hostages and for its volunteers taking part in Hamas-led hostage release ceremonies.

When asked by Fox News Digital about the ceremonies, Kurtzer said that ICRC workers in Gaza have "very little ability to dictate the terms and the protocols of the release operations." However, he added that the organization believes these hostage release operations "must be done in dignity and should be done privately."

"So, certainly there were things that we saw that we didn't like. We conveyed our views about those directly through what we call our bilateral and confidential dialogue," Kurtzer said. 

Despite facing mounting pressure and obstacles, the ICRC seems to be sticking to its mission. Kurtzer said that the organization is ready to "jump at" any opportunity to reach the hostages and provide them with assistance. However, Hamas has still not given them that opportunity.

ISRAEL FIRES BACK AT UK OVER SUSPENDED TRADE TALKS, REJECTS ‘EXTERNAL PRESSURE’

Kurtzer also addressed the ICRC’s position on access to Palestinian detainees held by Israel.

When discussing the lack of opportunities to visit the hostages who have been held in Gaza since Hamas’ brutal Oct. 7 massacre, Kurtzer also mentioned that the ICRC would like to have the opportunity to visit Palestinians being held by Israel. Fox News Digital then pressed Kurtzer on whether the ICRC saw the situation of hostages in Gaza and Palestinians being held in Israel as equivalent. Kurtzer later clarified the comments in a statement to Fox News Digital.

"The ICRC recognizes the distinction between hostages and detainees enshrined in international humanitarian law (IHL). Hostages are captured or held with the threat of being harmed or killed to pressure another party into doing something, as a condition for the hostage’s release or safety. Hostage-taking is a violation of IHL," he said. "We provide assistance and work to alleviate suffering on all sides of a conflict. Under IHL, the ICRC must be notified of and granted access to Palestinians in Israeli custody, and we continue to seek this access."

AT LEAST 82 KILLED IN ISRAELI STRIKES ON GAZA AS CRITICAL AID FAILS TO REACH PALESTINIANS

Beyond the hostages, ICRC is tasked with providing humanitarian assistance in Gaza, something Kurtzer said is urgently needed. He called the situation in the Strip "catastrophic."

Kurtzer recalled the relief that the recent ceasefire provided those on the ground in Gaza. 

"It provided hope. It provided hope for families on all sides. It provided hope to families of the hostages. It provided hope for people living inside Gaza," Kurtzer said. However, the resumption of military action has "contributed to a sense of despair," he said.

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Since Kurtzer spoke with Fox News Digital, Israel has altered its position on humanitarian access, now allowing some aid trucks into Gaza. However, critics argue that the scale of assistance remains insufficient.

U.K. Foreign Minister David Lammy announced on Tuesday that his country was suspending trade talks with Israel over the handling of the war in Gaza. French President Emmanuel Macron also condemned Israel in a post on X. Additionally, U.N. Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said the aid being allowed in was a "drop in the ocean."

"We really believe that the path forward is one where humanitarian assistance is allowed in and we urgently and we appeal over and over again for the parties themselves to find a better path forward because what we're seeing now is just really very, very devastating," Kurtzer told Fox News Digital.

Not even wild animals are safe from Mexico’s cartel violence.

Tigers, elephants, lions and monkeys were evacuated this week from a wildlife refuge in Culiacán, Sinaloa, a city overrun by cartel gunmen.

The animals, some of which were once kept as pets by drug lords, were moved to another facility after staff faced threats and gunfire — a total collapse of law and order.

The Associated Press reports that the Ostok Sanctuary, which housed over 700 animals, was forced to pack up and flee after months of violence and intimidation from rival factions of the Sinaloa Cartel.

WEALTHY SUBURB ROCKED BY SUSPECTED CARTEL MURDER-FOR-HIRE SHOWS DRUG LORDS' REACH ACROSS US: EXPERT

Some animals went days without food. Others began shedding fur from stress. Two big cats died.

"We’ve never seen violence this extreme," sanctuary Director Ernesto Zazueta told the AP.

This is what happens when cartels run the show and the government steps aside.

For years, Culiacán was under firm control of the Sinaloa Cartel, one of the world’s most powerful drug trafficking organizations. That "order" shattered when a son of El Chapo Guzmán kidnapped a rival cartel leader and handed him over to U.S. authorities.

MEXICO OFFERS PROTECTION TO FAMED SINGER AFTER DRUG CARTEL DEATH THREATS

Now, the cartels are fighting each other for turf. And civilians, including children and families, are paying the price.

Security analyst David Saucedo told the AP that the two warring factions are "extorting, kidnapping and robbing" to fund their war. Roads are blocked. Shootings happen almost daily. Parents check the news each morning to see if it’s safe to send their kids to school.

When night falls, the streets go dark. Bars close. Businesses shut down. The police? Mostly absent.

The animal refuge sat near Jesús María, a stronghold of the Chapitos, a faction run by El Chapo’s sons. That made it a dangerous place to operate.

According to the UK’s Mirror, exotic animals were being caught in the crossfire. Tigers, lions, even elephants were showing signs of trauma from hearing gunfire and helicopters nearby. 

Some of the animals were once owned by cartel bosses. One tiger was found chained in a plaza during a shootout. Locals whisper that drug lords feed enemies to their pet lions — a disturbing rumor that reflects just how broken things are.

Staff say they received threats to burn down the sanctuary and kill the animals unless payments were made.

"There’s no safe place left in this city these days," rescuer Diego García told the AP.

After months of pleading for help, the sanctuary got nothing from the government. Not a single authority stepped in to protect the animals or the workers.

The last straw came when one of the sanctuary’s elephants, Bireki, injured her foot. No vet in Mexico or even the U.S. was willing to travel to cartel territory to treat her.

"We asked ourselves, ‘What are we doing here?’" Zazueta told the AP. "If we don’t leave, who will treat them?"

That led to the quiet decision to evacuate: not just the elephant, but every animal on site.

Trucks with white flags were loaded with sedated tigers, lions, jaguars and elephants. Some workers whispered calmly to the animals, trying to ease their stress. The convoy rolled out of Culiacán, past masked cartel lookouts on motorbikes, and into Mazatlán.

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It took months of training and planning. But the animals made it. For now.

Sanctuary staff are praying that Mazatlán will be a true refuge. But they know cartel violence has spread like a disease. And the fear is that it could follow them.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Israeli strikes continued to pound the Gaza Strip Wednesday, despite a surge in international anger at Israel's widening offensive. The attacks killed at least 82 people, including several women and a week-old infant, according to the Gaza Health Ministry and area hospitals.

Israel began allowing dozens of humanitarian trucks into Gaza on Tuesday, but the aid has not yet reached Palestinians in desperate need.

Jens Laerke, the spokesperson for the U.N.'s humanitarian agency, said no trucks were picked up from the Gaza side of Kerem Shalom, the Israeli border crossing with southern Gaza.

U.N. spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric said Tuesday that although the aid had entered Gaza, workers were not able to bring it to distribution points after the Israeli military forced them to reload the supplies onto separate trucks and workers ran out of time.

The Israeli defense body that oversees humanitarian aid to Gaza said trucks entered Wednesday morning, but it was unclear if that aid would move deeper into Gaza for distribution. The U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, said its staff had waited several hours to collect aid from the border crossing but were unable to do so on Tuesday.

ISRAEL BLOCKS HUMANITARIAN AID INTO GAZA AFTER HAMAS REJECTS CEASEFIRE EXTENSION PROPOSAL

A few dozen Israeli activists opposed to Israel's decision to allow aid into Gaza while Hamas still holds Israeli hostages attempted to block trucks carrying supplies Wednesday morning, but were kept back by Israeli police.

Diplomats come under fire in Jenin

A group of diplomats came under fire while visiting Jenin, a city in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, according to the Palestinian Authority. The diplomats were on an official mission to observe the humanitarian situation in Jenin when shots rang out.

An aid worker, who did not want to be named for fear of reprisal, said a delegation of about 20 regional, European and Western diplomats were standing near the entrance of the Jenin refugee camp when they heard gunshots Wednesday, she said. No one was injured, she added.

The Israeli military said the delegation "deviated from the approved route" and Israeli soldiers fired warning shots to distance them from the area. The military apologized and said they will contact all countries involved in the visit.

Footage shows a number of diplomats running for cover as rapid shots rung out. European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said firing even warning shots was unacceptable and called on Israel to investigate.

The Italian government of Premier Giorgia Meloni also demanded an explanation, saying that its vice consul was among those who came under fire.

Jenin has been the site of Israel’s widespread crackdown against West Bank militants since earlier this year.

On Jan. 21 — just two days after its ceasefire deal with Hamas in Gaza — Israeli forces descended on Jenin as they have dozens of times since Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel. The fighting displaced tens of thousands of Palestinians, one of the largest West Bank displacements in years.

International pressure on Israel

On Tuesday, the United Kingdom suspended free trade talks with Israel over its intensifying assault, a step that came a day after the U.K., Canada and France promised concrete steps to prompt Israel to halt the war. Separately, the European Union was reviewing an EU pact governing trade ties with Israel over its conduct of the war in Gaza, according to its foreign policy chief.

Israel says it is prepared to stop the war once all the hostages taken by Hamas return home and Hamas is defeated, or is exiled and disarmed. Hamas says it is prepared to release the hostages in exchange for a full Israeli withdrawal from the territory and an end to the war. It rejects demands for exile and disarmament.

ISRAEL FIRES BACK AT UK OVER SUSPENDED TRADE TALKS, REJECTS ‘EXTERNAL PRESSURE’

Israel called back its senior negotiating team from ceasefire talks in the Qatari capital of Doha on Tuesday, saying it would leave lower-level officials in place instead. Qatari leaders, who are mediating negotiations, said there was a large gap between the two sides.

Meanwhile, Israeli strikes continued across Gaza. In the southern city of Khan Younis, where Israel recently ordered new evacuations pending an expected expanded offensive, 24 people were killed, 14 from the same family. A week-old infant was killed in central Gaza.

The Israeli military did not immediately comment on the strikes, but has said it is targeting Hamas infrastructure and accused Hamas militants of operating from civilian areas.

Desperate need for food

Experts have warned that many of Gaza’s 2 million residents face a high risk of famine. At one displacement camp in Gaza City, a charity group distributed thin and watery lentil soup.

Somaia Abu Amsha scooped small portions into bowls for her family, saying they have not have had bread for over 10 days and she can’t afford rice or pasta.

"We don’t want anything other than that they end the war. We don’t want charity kitchens. Even dogs wouldn’t eat this, let alone children," she said, pointing at the soup.

Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday called for aid to reach the Gaza Strip and for an end to the "heartbreaking" toll on its people during his first general audience in St. Peter’s Square.

Hospitals surrounded

Israeli troops also have surrounded two of northern Gaza’s last functioning hospitals, preventing anyone from leaving or entering the facilities, hospital staff and aid groups said this week.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday urged world leaders to take immediate action to end Israel’s siege on Gaza, issuing the appeal during a visit to Beirut, where he was expected to discuss the disarmament of Palestinian factions in Lebanon’s refugee camps.

ISRAEL ENCIRCLES 2 OF NORTHERN GAZA’S LAST FUNCTIONING HOSPITALS, GROUPS SAY

"It is time to end the war of extermination against the Palestinian people. I reiterate that we will not leave, and we will remain here on the land of our homeland, Palestine," Abbas said, demanding the immediate entry of aid, the release of detainees, and a full withdrawal from Gaza.

The war in Gaza began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducting 251 others. The militants are still holding 58 captives, around a third of whom are believed to be alive, after most were returned in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel’s retaliatory offensive has destroyed large swaths of Gaza and killed more than 53,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry, which doesn’t differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count.

Israel’s military encircled two of the last functioning hospitals in the northern Gaza Strip, staff and aid groups say, as the World Health Organization is warning that the activity is "stretching the health system beyond the breaking point." 

The development comes as an Israeli military spokesperson said Wednesday that "We are entering a new phase, different in size and strength, to achieve the war's objectives of returning the kidnapped soldiers and defeating the terrorist [group] Hamas. 

"Forces from the 401st Brigade and the Givati Brigade, under the command of the 162nd Division, began operating in the northern Gaza Strip, where they identified and destroyed suspicious buildings in the area and eliminated dozens of Hamas terrorists," IDF Col. Avichay Adraee wrote on X. 

The Indonesian hospital and al-Awda hospital are among northern Gaza's only surviving medical centers, according to the Associated Press. 

ISRAEL FIRES BACK AT UK OVER SUSPENDED TRADE TALKS, REJECTS ‘EXTERNAL’ PRESSURE 

Israeli authorities issued evacuation orders Friday for large parts of northern Gaza ahead of military activity intended to pressure Hamas to release more hostages. 

Both hospitals as well as another and three primary health care centers are within the evacuation zone, though Israel has not ordered the evacuation of the facilities themselves. Another two hospitals and four primary care centers are within 1,000 yards of the zone, said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization. 

Israeli military operations and evacuation orders "are stretching the health system beyond the breaking point," he said. 

Israeli drones have been hovering around the Indonesian hospital since Sunday, an aid group that supports the hospital told the AP. 

The Israeli military said its forces were operating around the hospital and targeting Hamas infrastructure but that troops had not entered the facility and ambulances were allowed to move. 

However, Israeli bulldozers demolished a perimeter wall of the hospital, according to the aid group MERC-Indonesia and a hospital staff member who had since evacuated. Then on Tuesday, airstrikes reportedly targeted the hospital’s generators, sparking a fire and damaging its main power supply. 

TRUMP HOSTAGE ENVOY DISMISSES REPORT OF ISRAEL HOSTAGE ABANDONMENT AS ‘FAKE NEWS’ 

At least one staff member was killed, according to WHO, which said those who remained in the hospital were in urgent need of water and food. The U.N. said it was working to transfer remaining patients to other facilities. 

Nearly a half a mile away, Israeli drones fired Monday into the al-Awda hospital courtyard, preventing movement, Rami Shurafi, a board member of that hospital, told the AP. 

On Tuesday, Israeli drones fired at two ambulances that transferred three patients to Gaza City as the crews tried to return to the hospital, spokesperson Khaled Alhelo reportedly added. 

"Anyone moving in the hospital is fired at. They are all keeping low inside the hospital," he said. 

About 47 patients, including nearly 20 children and several pregnant women, and some 140 doctors and medical staff members are still at the hospital, according to Shurafi. 

Israel has also begun allowing a trickle of food and medicine into the Gaza Strip after sealing the territory’s 2 million Palestinians off from all imports for more than 2 1/2 months. 

A few dozen trucks have entered since Monday, but none of the aid has been distributed because of delays caused by Israeli military procedures, the U.N. said. 

The Associated Press contributed to this report. 

A suicide car bomber struck a school bus in Pakistan on Wednesday, killing five people, including at least three children, and wounding 38 others, according to officials.

This is just the latest attack in Balochistan province, which has seen a long-running insurgency, with an array of separatist groups carrying out attacks, including the outlawed Balochistan Liberation Army, or BLA, which has been designated as a terror group by the U.S. in 2019.

A local deputy commissioner, Yasir Iqbal, said the attack on Wednesday happened on the outskirts of the city of Khuduzar as the bus was taking children to their military-run school in the area.

Troops quickly arrived at the scene and cordoned off the area as ambulances rushed the victims to hospitals.

TRUMP VOWS TO INCREASE TRADE WITH INDIA PAKISTAN AFTER PRAISING CEASEFIRE AGREEMENT: 'A JOB WELL DONE!'

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, but ethnic Baloch separatists, who frequently target security forces and civilians in the region, are likely to be blamed.

Pakistan’s Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi strongly condemned the attack and expressed deep sorrow following the children’s deaths. He also said the attackers are "beasts" who deserve no leniency and who committed an act of "sheer barbarism by targeting innocent children."

Officials initially reported that four children were killed but later changed the death toll to say two adults were among the dead. The death toll may rise, as several children were listed in critical condition.

INSIDE THE WHITE HOUSE'S EFFORT TO PULL INDIA, PAKISTAN BACK FROM THE BRINK OF WAR

The military claimed the bombing was "yet another cowardly and ghastly attack" allegedly planned by neighboring India and carried out by "its proxies in Balochistan."

Most of the attacks in the province are claimed by the BLA, which Pakistan alleges has the back of India. However, India has denied the allegations.

Pakistan's Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif expressed his condolences and also attributed the attack to India without providing evidence.

"The attack on a school bus by terrorists backed by India is clear proof of their hostility toward education in Balochistan," Sharif said, saying that the government would bring the perpetrators to justice.

Pakistani officials regularly accuse India of violence in their country. The accusations have intensified amid heightened tensions between the two countries during a cross-border escalation since last month over the disputed Himalayan region of Kashmir. Both countries rule part of Kashmir but claim full control.

The escalation prompted fears of a broader war, and the BLA during this time appealed to India for support, although India has not commented on the appeal.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Russian President Vladimir Putin visited the western Kursk region on Tuesday, the first time he stopped by since Russian forces ejected Ukrainian troops from the area last month.

During the visit, Putin met with volunteer organizations in the region and went to the Kursk-II nuclear power plant, according to the Kremlin.

State TV showed the Russian president, accompanied by Kremlin first deputy chief of staff Sergei Kiriyenko, meeting volunteers and local officials in the region, including acting Gov. Alexander Khinshtein.

US AWAITS CEASEFIRE PROPOSAL AFTER TRUMP PHONE CALL, RUBIO SAYS

Russia said late last month that it had ejected Ukrainian forces from the Kursk region, putting an end to the biggest incursion into Russian territory since World War II.

On Aug. 6, Ukraine carried out its boldest attack, pushing through the Russian border into the Kursk region, supported by swarms of drones and heavy Western weaponry.

Ukrainian forces have claimed as much as about 540 square miles of Kursk.

PRESIDENT TRUMP CONFIDENT PUTIN WANTS PEACE WITH UKRAINE, THINKS HE'S 'HAD ENOUGH' OF WAR

This comes after Russian and Ukrainian officials met in Turkey last week for their first direct peace talks in years, but the two sides failed to reach a ceasefire agreement.

The negotiations were the first face-to-face talks between the two countries since the early weeks of the war that began with a February 2022 invasion by Moscow.

Reuters contributed to this report.

JOHANNESBURG — President Donald Trump is scheduled to meet South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the White House on Wednesday for a make-or-break session, despite new accusations from the president this past Friday that South Africa is "out of control" and committing genocide.

Speaking on Air Force One as it returned from the Persian Gulf region, Trump repeated his claim that white Afrikaner South African farmers are being slaughtered and forced off their land. The Afrikaners are descendants of mostly Dutch settlers who first arrived in South Africa in 1652.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio elaborated on these claims Sunday on CBS, saying "all evidence [indicates] the farmers in South Africa are being treated brutally."

Some 50 Afrikaners were flown to the U.S. as refugees last week. Rubio said there’s "more to come". South Africa, and its president, denies claims of genocide and harassment.

INCOMING TRUMP ADMIN, CONGRESS SHOWDOWN LOOMS WITH SOUTH AFRICA OVER SUPPORT FOR RUSSIA, US FOES

Could the Oval Office and the Wednesday meeting be the setting for a Zelenskyy-style dressing down of the South African president? In February, Ukraine’s president was involved in a shouting match with Trump and others, which reportedly led to him being ejected from the White House.

"The meeting is set to occur at a time when the relationship between the two countries has soured to unprecedented lows," analyst Frans Cronje, Yorktown Foundation for Freedom advisory board member, told Fox News Digital.

TRUMP ADMIN MAKES NEW MOVE TO BRING SOUTH AFRICAN REFUGEES TO US AS PRESIDENT BLASTS NATION'S RULERS AGAIN

South Africa is "hosting Hamas and Hezbollah, doing business with Iran’s IRGC, prosecuting Israel at the ICJ and cozying up to Beijing and Moscow. These choices have consequences," Max Meizlish, senior research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told Fox News Digital.

Meizlish said South Africa has "attracted the ire of the president and key members of Congress, who play significant roles in shaping the future of U.S.-South African relations. Unfortunately, President Ramaphosa and his colleagues in the ANC do not appear to fully appreciate this fact. President Trump should insist on meaningful change and be ready to back his demands up with tools like targeted sanctions and tariffs."

But will the White House meeting be icy, feisty, even loud? Not from the South African side, former U.S. diplomat and Daily Maverick Associate Editor J. Brooks Spector told Fox News Digital. "Ramaphosa has a long track record of careful negotiating with adversaries."

"He doesn’t raise his voice, even when others become heated. I’ve seen this firsthand. In a smoke-filled room in 1990 in South Africa’s dusty Free State, I watched Ramaphosa, then a leader of a black miners' union, sometimes even smile as he quietly and successfully calmed down [the] often-shouting white miners accused of killing black colleagues underground and got the murders stopped."

Spector continued, "It is almost certain Ramaphosa and his team have closely studied the way three recent prior meetings with Trump have gone – those with Zelenskyy (Ukraine), Starmer (the United Kingdom) and Carney (Canada) – in an effort to draw lessons about how to present their best face. He will not make neophyte negotiation mistakes."

WHITE SOUTH AFRICAN REFUGEES BROUGHT TO US DUE TO ‘GOVERNMENT-SPONSORED RACIAL DISCRIMINATION’: STATE DEPT

Cronje told Fox News Digital that Ramaphosa and his country badly need the U.S.

"At home, Mr Ramaphosa is presiding over economic stagnation, with South Africa facing a rate of economic growth estimated at just over 1% together with an unemployment rate of over 30%. Mr. Ramaphosa will, therefore, be under great pressure to secure a deal."

Some 600 U.S. companies operate in South Africa. Ramaphosa has taken four top ministers to Washington hoping to offer new deals, especially reportedly on natural gas, minerals and agricultural product sales to the U.S., and possibly finally the licensing of Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet system in South Africa.

Cronje noted a military perspective the U.S. will also want to consider: "South Africa commands the southern sea route between the Indian and Atlantic oceans, which is an important trade and naval choke point."

Meizlish added that South Africa "holds vast mineral wealth and could anchor U.S. investment in Africa, but that doesn’t mean we should turn a blind eye to its alignment with America’s enemies." 

South Africa’s chief rabbi, Dr. Warren Goldstein, told Fox News Digital that South Africa could "easily withdraw" its ICJ case against Israel if it wanted to, adding that "opinion polls show that there is very little domestic support for his (Ramaphosa’s) anti-Israel stance, with most holding positive views towards Israel, sharing the same conservative Christian values that deeply resonate with Mr. Trump’s support base in the U.S."

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Meizlish said, "This visit can’t be about optics or deals that fail to address the root of South Africa's malign foreign policy. Trump needs to push Ramaphosa to make substantive, structural reforms in his country's foreign policy while also creating pathways for greater U.S. investment. It can't just be one or the other."

As South African politicians swept through Washington on Tuesday on a major lobbying exercise, trying to get traction on the idea of focusing on trade, Rubio told senators during a hearing that a reset in relations might be possible.

"If there's a willingness on their side to reset relations, obviously [that's] something we'll explore, but we do so with eyes wide open to what they've done so far," he said.

Fox News Digital reached out to the South African government for comment but received no response.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry issued a fiery statement after the U.K. suspended free trade talks over Jerusalem’s handling of the war in Gaza. The U.K. simultaneously imposed new sanctions on the West Bank as it condemned the "persistent cycle of serious violence undertaken by extremist Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank."

The ministry claimed that talks for a new U.K.-Israel free trade agreement were already at a standstill before London’s announcement on Tuesday. Additionally, it accused the U.K. of harming its own citizens due to its "anti-Israel obsession and domestic political considerations."

"Even prior to today’s announcement, the free trade agreement negotiations were not being advanced at all by the current UK government," Israel’s Foreign Ministry wrote. "More than that, the agreement would serve the mutual benefit of both countries. If, due to anti-Israel obsession and domestic political considerations, the British government is willing to harm the British economy – that is its own prerogative."

Israel also slammed the additional sanctions on the West Bank in light of the recent death of Tzeela Gez, an Israeli woman who was shot and killed in a terror attack while she was en route to the hospital to give birth. The Israeli Foreign Ministry noted that doctors are still "fighting for her newborn’s life."

ISRAELI AMBASSADOR LASHES OUT AT UN OFFICIAL, CONDEMNS UK, FRANCE, CANADA STATEMENT ON AID

The ministry dismissed the U.K.’s threats toward the end of the post, saying, "[T]he British Mandate ended exactly 77 years ago. External pressure will not divert Israel from its path in defending its existence and security against enemies who seek its destruction."

HAMAS CAPTIVITY SURVIVORS APPEAL TO NETANYAHU, TRUMP AFTER EDAN ALEXANDER'S RELEASE

U.K. Foreign Minister David Lammy announced the suspension of trade talks as he addressed British lawmakers, saying Israel’s latest offensive in Gaza, Operation Gideon’s Chariot, marked a "dark new phase in this conflict." In his announcement, Lammy said "the Netanyahu government’s actions have made this necessary."

Lammy reiterated U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s demand that Israel allow aid to flow into the Gaza Strip. In a joint statement from the U.K., France and Canada, the countries urged Israel to work with the United Nations to "ensure a return to delivery of aid in line with humanitarian principles."

"If Israel does not cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid, we will take further concrete actions in response," the statement read.

Israel stopped the flow of aid into the Gaza Strip 11 weeks ago, but has resumed allowing limited aid. Israeli U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon told Fox News that the NGOs that are being allowed to distribute aid have ensured that Hamas has not infiltrated their ranks or taken aid meant for civilians.

ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER SLAMS UN, CALLS IT 'ROTTEN, ANTI-ISRAEL, AND ANTISEMITIC BODY'

While aid is being allowed to enter Gaza, Israel has faced backlash over the stringent restrictions, with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot saying it was "insufficient."

Tom Fletcher, the U.N. undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator who recently accused Israel of committing genocide, described the aid as "a drop in the ocean of what is urgently needed" and called for "significantly more aid" to Gaza.

"We have been reassured that our work will be facilitated through existing, proven mechanisms. I am grateful for that reassurance, and Israel’s agreement to humanitarian notification measures that reduce the immense security threats of the operation. I am determined that our aid reach those in greatest need, and that the risk of theft by Hamas or other armed groups is minimized," Fletcher said in a statement.

Efrat Lachter contributed to this report.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Tuesday called U.S. demands that Tehran stop enriching uranium entirely "utter nonsense" and questioned whether future nuclear talks could succeed. 

"For the Americans to say, ‘We won’t allow Iran to enrich uranium,’ is utter nonsense," he said in a post on X. "We aren’t waiting for anyone’s permission. 

"The Islamic Republic has certain policies, and it will pursue them," he added, without expanding on what these policies are. 

IRANIAN PRESIDENT CALLS FOR NEGOTIATION AND DIALOGUE AS NUCLEAR TALKS CONTINUE

Iran in recent years has been under international pressure to halt its nuclear program, as many fear Tehran is actually in pursuit of nuclear weapons development. 

Iran has not stated it intends to build a nuclear weapon, but it has enriched uranium to near-weapons grade and bolstered its missile program in what experts argue is an important step to ensure Tehran could fire a nuclear warhead.

While uranium can be enriched for civil nuclear power and nations across the globe rely on nuclear energy, including the U.S., which utilizes nuclear energy to supply nearly 20% of its energy needs and is its largest source of clean energy, Iran’s reliance on nuclear energy amounted to less than 1% in 2022, according to the International Energy Agency. 

IRAN'S KHAMENEI LAUNCHES BLISTERING ATTACK ON TRUMP AFTER MIDDLE EAST VISIT

The White House did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s questions over whether it has in fact demanded that Tehran halt all uranium enrichment. 

However, Khamenei suggested the Trump administration’s push to negotiate on Iran’s nuclear program could be short-lived. 

"Indirect negotiations took place during Martyr Raisi's term similar to what’s happening now. Needless to say, there was no result," he added in reference to negotiation attempts under the Biden administration. "We don’t think these negotiations will yield results now either. We don’t know what will happen."

Reports suggested that the fifth round of nuclear talks could take place this weekend in Rome, but Khamenei, as well as his Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi, said Iran had not yet agreed to the talks following the U.S.’ latest demands.  

"A date has been suggested, but we have not yet accepted it," Araqchi told reporters Tuesday, according to a Reuters report. "We are witnessing positions on the U.S. side that do not go along with any logic and are creating problems for the negotiations. 

"That's why we have not determined the next round of talks, we are reviewing the matter and hope logic will prevail," Araqchi added.

FIRST ON FOX: In an exclusive interview with Fox News Digital at the annual Jerusalem Post Conference in New York, Special Envoy for Hostage Response Adam Boehler responded to a Washington Post report that claimed President Donald Trump threatened to abandon Israel unless the war ended as "fake news." 

"That sounds like fake news to me," he said. "I think the president has maintained a very high degree of support for Israel." He added, "He may be saying, 'Hey, listen, let’s try to end the war,' he might speak strongly, but I think American president, in particular, this president's support, President Trump’s support for Israel is ironclad."

Separately, U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee also rejected the claim. In an interview with Israel's Ynet, he said, "Their reporting is nonsense. They need to listen to what the President says - not what some uninformed 'source' pretends to know.'"

ISRAELI AMBASSADOR LASHES OUT AT UN OFFICIAL, CONDEMNS UK, FRANCE, CANADA STATEMENT ON AID

Boehler emphasized that the U.S. government's primary focus remains on securing the release of the 58 hostages still held by Hamas. "I think there's obviously continued back and forth. The President made it very clear that he wants something to come to conclusion."

"I know that he and Steve [Witkoff] are working very hard right now to try to bring that home. So, a very fluid situation, but our primary focus is number one, the hostages, and number two, Israel’s security," he said.

On the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, Boehler addressed the recent development of opening borders to allow aid trucks into Gaza after two months of a blockade. He also discussed the new U.S.-backed mechanism that could potentially replace the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). 

"Perhaps there needs to be a replacement for UNRWA. We’ve had a lot of issues with the U.N. And if this works, if it gets food to the Palestinian people who need it, then I greatly favor it," Boehler said.

Later, in an interview on stage at the Jerusalem Post conference, Boehler recalled the tense moments surrounding the release of American-Israeli soldier Edan Alexander. "It’s an unbelievable moment. It was an unbelievable moment on Sunday. The whole time, we couldn’t sleep. It was exciting, nerve-wracking. We watched pretty much real-time. We were waiting for Steve Witkoff to come. We were waiting the whole time for the Red Cross. When the helicopter landed, we saw it on TV. That first phone call was unbelievable. It was right on Mother’s Day when we went over. It had a lot of meaning — for me, Steve, and everybody."

ISRAEL TURNS TABLES ON UN OFFICIAL CLAIMING 'GENOCIDE' IN GAZA WITH BASIC QUESTIONS

As for the timeframe for the hostage deal, Boehler expressed cautious optimism: "I think it's getting closer and closer to making a deal here. If Hamas wants to come forward and make a legitimate offer, they’re willing to stand by and release hostages, we’re always open to that." 

He also credited the recent Israeli ground operations for increasing pressure on Hamas, saying, "I do think we’re closer than we ever were. Part of that is because of the movement of Israel and the IDF on the ground."

Finally, addressing the recent joint statement from the leaders of the United Kingdom, France and Canada, which condemned Israel’s military operations in Gaza and called for an immediate ceasefire, Boehler responded firmly. "The United States has always been a fervent supporter of Israel. If I were a European country, I'd be particularly sensitive in how I criticize Israel."

FIRST ON FOX: Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon slammed international criticism from the U.K., France and Canada over Israel's war against Hamas terrorists.  

Responding to the criticism, Danon told Fox News Digital in an exclusive interview at the Jerusalem Post conference in New York that while Israel values international law, it will not stop fighting Hamas until all hostages are released. 

"We have 58 hostages in Gaza. This war will not end when the hostages are left behind. We will bring all of them back," Danon said, emphasizing Israel's determination to finish the war and bring home those held captive. Danon also expressed frustration that the international community has not placed more pressure on Hamas over the hostages, urging those countries to make stronger statements on their behalf.

The joint statement issued by the leaders of the United Kingdom, France and Canada condemned Israel's military operations in Gaza, criticizing the humanitarian situation and calling for an immediate ceasefire. The statement also urged Israel to allow more aid into Gaza, specifically calling on the Israeli government to engage with the United Nations to resume aid in line with humanitarian principles and to push for the release of all hostages held by Hamas.

ISRAEL TURNS TABLES ON UN OFFICIAL CLAIMING 'GENOCIDE' IN GAZA WITH BASIC QUESTIONS

Danon also took issue with remarks made by Tom Fletcher, the U.N.'s undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, who accused Israel of committing genocide during his speech before the U.N. Security Council. Fletcher criticized Israel’s actions in Gaza, stating that most of the region was either under Israeli military control or subjected to displacement orders.

"What Mr. Fletcher said at the Security Council was unacceptable and shameful, accusing us for committing a genocide. He knows better than that. That’s a libel and I expect him to take back those words and apologize. We will not work with him until he will make it clear that Israeli isn’t committing a genocide. We have no intention for that, he knows that. We are doing our best to defeat the terror group Hamas. We will defeat Hamas, but blaming us for committing such atrocities, that is something we cannot accept from any U.N. official."

ISRAELI FOREIGN MINISTER SLAMS UN, CALLS IT 'ROTTEN, ANTI-ISRAEL, AND ANTISEMITIC BODY'

Regarding the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Gaza and the recent opening of the borders to allow aid trucks into Gaza after two months, Fletcher commented on X, calling Israel's temporary permission to deliver limited aid a "drop in the ocean." 

Danon stressed that the aid was only granted to NGOs that ensure Hamas does not infiltrate their ranks or loot aid intended for civilians.

"Let’s stick to the facts," Danon said. "We are still expecting a retraction of the inappropriate libel that you asserted last week at the Security Council."

In a briefing today, Stéphane Dujarric, spokesperson for the secretary-general, also referenced the statement by Fletcher, who stressed that the scale of aid is still insufficient to meet the overwhelming needs of the population. He called for more crossings to be opened and for the simplification of procedures to ensure a regular flow of aid, emphasizing that without such measures, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza would continue to worsen.

In the interview, Danon also addressed the future of humanitarian aid in Gaza, specifically in response to proposals for replacing the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) with a new U.S.-backed aid mechanism. 

"We decided that UNRWA will not have anything connected to Israel. They know it, the U.N. knows it," he said, criticizing the U.N.'s role in the region. He voiced support for the U.S. initiative, calling it a welcome step toward addressing Gaza’s humanitarian crisis. "I cannot understand how anyone can boycott a humanitarian effort," he added. "If those people in the U.N. care so much about the humanitarian crisis, they should take part in these efforts, not boycott them."

Michael A. Ledeen, a major American historian and intellectual, died after suffering a series of small strokes on Sunday at his daughter's house in Texas. He was 83 years old. Ledeen was a vigorous participant in contributing to the demise of the communist Soviet Union and its Iron Curtain allies in Eastern Europe.

Ledeen served as a special advisor on terrorism to President Ronald Reagan’s secretary of state, Alexander Haig, and later worked as a consultant for the National Security Council. Writing for the Asia Times, author and journalist David P. Goldman argued that Ledeen’s "personal contribution to America’s victory in the Cold War is far greater than the public record shows." 

Goldman noted that the Reagan administration, in 1983, sent Ledeen, a scholar of Italian history and fascism, to meet Italian Prime Minister Bettino Craxi to convince the Italian leader to allow the U.S. to deploy Pershing missiles to counter rising Soviet jingoism. Goldman added, "The incident reflects the high trust that Ledeen commanded in the Reagan administration and the strategic role that he played." 

TRUMP SAYS US HAS GIVEN IRAN PROPOSAL FOR NUCLEAR DEAL

After Italy accepted the Pershings, the then-Social Democratic German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt, who was reluctant for his nation to be first to house Pershing missiles, agreed to Reagan’s demand. 

Leeden was a fan of former anti-communist American philosopher Sidney Hook, who declared during the Cold War that "Freedom is a fighting word."

Ledeen would take his hard-charging world view against a new set of U.S. enemies after the ground zero of communism was defeated: radical Islamism in Iran, North Korea’s totalitarian regime, and Arab and Latin American despots bent on the eradication of the U.S.

In 2003, while working as the resident scholar in the Freedom Chair at the American Enterprise Institute, Ledeen wrote about former President George W. Bush’s Axis of Evil (Iran, North Korea and Iraq), "Most commentators ridiculed the very idea of the Axis of Evil, just as they laughed at Reagan’s description of the Soviet Union as an Evil Empire. The deep thinkers laughed at Reagan, and then somberly warned that such language was not only misguided but provocative, as if the Kremlin would be more aggressive as a result of the president’s speech."

Ledeen stressed the importance of American leadership breeding inspiration among dissidents trapped in totalitarian systems: "The greatest of the Soviet freedom fighters, from [Vladimir] Bukovsky to [Natan] Sharansky, have since written about the surge of hope they felt when they saw that the American president understood why they were fighting." 

He would bring his same intellectual freedom toolkit to his principal worry in this century: the Islamic Republic of Iran. Ledeen garnered enormous respect and praise from Iranian dissidents seeking to dissolve the theocratic regime in Tehran, the world’s worst state-sponsor of terrorism, according to the U.S. State Department.

His wife, Barbara, told Fox News Digital about her late husband, "My only regret is that he didn’t outlive the regime."

IRAN’S LONG TRAIL OF DECEPTION FUELS SKEPTICISM OVER NEW NUCLEAR DEAL AS TALKS CONTINUE

Leeden did not advocate military intervention in Iran. He was in the business of replicating Reagan’s anti-Soviet playbook for Iran’s clerical regime. 

He told Fox News Brit Hume in 2005 that "the Western world, and in particular the United States" needs to support political prisoners in Iran and demonstrations against the regime. 

He told Hume, "We should be giving money to the various ... Farsi-language broadcasters, some here, some in England, some in Sweden and so forth, some in Germany, to go on the air and share with the Iranian people the now-demonstrated techniques for a successful, nonviolent revolution."

He coined the phrase "Faster, please!" for his widely read blog at PJ Media to denote the great urgency to dismantle America’s enemies and stop Islamist-animated terrorism.

Israel's Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, paid tribute to Ledeen in a post on X. He wrote in part, "Michael's understanding of the American people and the Jewish people formed the basis of his abiding faith in the future of America and Israel and in our enduring alliance and friendship."

Ledeen was born in Los Angeles in 1941 and authored numerous books on national security, including "Perilous Statecraft: An Insider’s Account of the Iran-Contra Affair." He earned a Ph.D. in history and philosophy from the University of Wisconsin–Madison. His academic advisor at Wisconsin was the prominent historian George Mosse, who fled Nazi Germany because of antisemitism. 

Ledeen cultivated a new generation of academics, journalists, think tank scholars and authors at his Chevy Chase home. His residence became a kind of informal salon for intellectuals and foreign policy types who had freshly arrived in Washington, D.C.

He was also a top-level bridge player and won a national championship, the Truscott/U.S.P.C. Senior Teams. He is survived by his wife, a daughter, Simone, who served as a deputy assistant secretary of defense during the first Trump administration, and his two sons, former Marine Corps officers Gabriel and Daniel.

President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a 2-hour call on Monday in what the U.S. said was a push to get Russia to end its deadly war in Ukraine. 

Both Trump and Putin described the call as "frank" and "useful," but it is not immediately clear what results were achieved. 

Trump took to social media to praise the call as having gone "very well" and said, "Russia and Ukraine will immediately start negotiations toward a Ceasefire and, more importantly, an END to the War."

RUSSIA BOMBARDS UKRAINE WITH DRONES HOURS AFTER TRUMP ANNOUNCES TALKS WITH PUTIN

"The conditions for that will be negotiated between the two parties, as it can only be, because they know details of a negotiation that nobody else would be aware of," he added. 

Putin, in a statement after the call, also noted that "a ceasefire with Ukraine is possible" but noted "Russia and Ukraine must find compromises that suit both sides."

Any concrete details on the nature of these compromises remain unclear, despite negotiation attempts in Turkey on Friday.

Ceasefire talks fell through last week after a Ukrainian delegation said it was presented with demands from the Russian delegation that were "unacceptable," including reported calls for the complete removal of Ukrainian troops from four Ukrainian regions that Russian illegally annexed in 2022, including Kherson, Donetsk, Luhansk and Zaporizhzhia.

The Russia delegation also allegedly demanded that the international community not only recognize the regions as now Russian, but cease all aid to Ukraine, including plans to supply peace-keeping troops once the fighting concludes.

This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.