Archive June 29, 2025

On Sunday, June 29, 2018, this is how things are going.

Fighting

• According to Ukrainian authorities, a teacher and her husband were killed in an attack by a Russian drone in Odesa, Ukraine, and 14 others were hurt. A child was one of the three victims who were in critical condition.
• According to Governor Vadym Filashkin, at least two others were killed in a separate, broad-based Russian assault on Friday in the eastern Donetsk villages of Kostiantynivka and Ivanopillia.
• According to the official Ukrinform news agency, explosions were audible on Saturday night in the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv, with Mayor Vitali Klitschko advising residents to leave their homes in case of Russian drones “heading for the city.”
• According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, Chervona Zirka in Donetsk has been under Russian control. The area between the Vovcha and Mokri Yaly rivers was later claimed by the ministry as well.
• Top Ukrainian commander Oleksandr Syrskii added on Telegram that the Russian military was “surging towards” the important city of Kostiantynivka in Donetsk, but that it had “nothing to accomplish” despite suffering “multiple losses.”
• A 43-year-old man in the Kursk region was injured by a Ukrainian drone attack in Russia, including a traumatic brain injury, according to a local official citing a local official.
• Three attack helicopters and an anti-aircraft missile system were destroyed, according to Ukraine’s SBU security service, which used special drones to attack the Russian-occupied Crimean military airfield.
• Overnight and into Saturday, the Russian military claimed to have detained 64 Ukrainian drones over western Russia and Crimea.

diplomacy and politics

Andrzej Duda, the incoming president of Poland, addressed Ukraine to “please be patient” during the transition to Karol Nawrocki, his nationalist successor. After taking office, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy promised to “of course” invite Nawrocki to Ukraine.
• According to Ukrinform, Ruslan Stefanchuk, the speaker and chairperson of the Ukrainian Parliament, a bill is being developed to hold elections following the war.

Authorities in the Palestinian-occupied Gaza said that in Gaza, at least 66 children have died from malnutrition as a result of Israel’s war, praising the more stringent Israeli siege that has hampered the entry of milk, nutritional supplements, and other food aid.

At least 60 Palestinians were killed, 20 of whom were killed in the Tuffah neighborhood of Gaza City, according to the statement released by the government media office in the Gaza area on Saturday.

Israel’s deadly blockade, according to the media office, is a “war crime” and highlights its “deliberate use of starvation as a weapon to kill civilians.”

The office criticized “the shameful international silence regarding the suffering of children who are left to fall prey to hunger, disease, and slow death” as well as “this ongoing crime against children in the Gaza Strip.”

Additionally, it alleged that “this catastrophe” involved Israel, as well as its allies, including the United Kingdom, France, and Germany, and called on the UN to immediately intervene and reopen the crossings into Gaza.

The UNICEF agency issued a warning days later that the number of malnourished children in the Gaza Strip was “alarmingly rising”. According to the report, at least 5, 119 children between the ages of 6 months and 5 years old were all admitted for acute malnutrition in May alone.

The figure, according to UNICEF, is nearly 50% higher than the 3,444 children who were admitted in April, and 150 percent higher than the ceasefire’s effect in February, when significant aid was arriving in Gaza.

According to Edouard Beigbeder, the organization’s regional director for the Middle East and North Africa, “16, 736 children – an average of 112 children per day – have been admitted for treatment for malnutrition in the Gaza Strip in just 150 days,” according to the agency’s regional director for the Middle East and North Africa.

“Everyone of these situations can be avoided. They are being prevented from getting the food, water, and nutrition treatments they so desperately need, he continued. “Man-made choices that are killing lives,” Israel must urgently permit the extensive movement of life-saving aid across all border crossings.

North Gaza is being increased by Israel’s attacks.

Palestinians were decrying the 60 people who were killed in Saturday’s Israeli attacks. After two consecutive Israeli strikes flatten several residential buildings, leaving at least 20 people dead, rescuers in Gaza City’s Tuffah neighborhood continued searching for survivors.

The victims included nine children, roughly.

A private number called the family’s residential area, forcing us to evacuate the entire block, and we were sitting in peace. The block is almost completely destroyed, according to one resident, Mahmoud al-Nakhala, according to Al Jazeera.

It’s heartbreaking that people watch what’s happening in Gaza, the suffering and the massacres, and remain silent, “but we still don’t know why two three-story homes were targeted.” We are unable to even comprehend what is happening right now,” he said.

Following a second airstrike on tents containing displaced people in Gaza City, the bombings in Tuffah came after.

At least 13 people were killed, many of whom were children.

A person was shot and killed close to a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) distribution point in southern Rafah, among others.

Since the contentious organization started conducting operations on May 19th, Israeli forces have killed more than 550 people at and near the GHF sites, according to officials in Gaza.

Hani Mahmoud, a journalist for Al Jazeera from Gaza City, reported from Gaza City that Israel continues to impose severe restrictions on the movement of supplies between the Gaza Strip and the GHF as the only source of food.

Because of the deliberate and ongoing shootings of aid seekers there, “a lot of people here are trying to stay away from the GHF’s centers,” Mahmoud said. Staying away is not a solution, because going to bed hungry means that children will not have food packages.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres stated on Friday that the US-backed operation in Gaza was “inherently unsafe” and “killing people” while aid organizations have condemned the GHF’s “militarized” operations.

According to one soldier, one of the soldiers described the scenes as “killing field,” according to Israel’s Haaretz newspaper.

The claim was refuted by the Israeli military.

The GHF’s aid distribution system in Gaza is “abomination and utter disgrace,” according to Chris Doyle, director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding.

He told Al Jazeera, “It is an inversion of all the fundamental principles of global humanitarian law: neutrality, impartiality, and independence.”

According to Doyle, “around 550 Palestinians have died trying to get food there, to travel by foot, to travel for a long distance, and then the families worry whether they’ll ever return again,” she said.

He continued, citing the situation as another illustration of how “Israel is completely and unafraid of any international law or rule of war.”

Following a 4-1 victory over Benfica in North Carolina following extra time, Chelsea became the first English team to advance to the quarterfinals of the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.

Reece James hit the game’s opening goal in the 64th minute on Saturday with a stunning free kick from a tight angle on the left.

After making a soft handball save against Malo Gusto, Angel Di Maria scored from the penalty spot in the fifth minute of stoppage time.

In extra time, Christopher Nkunku, Pedro Neto, and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall gave Chelsea a 2-0 lead before a quarterfinal meeting with Palmeiras.

After dominating the game from beginning to end, the Blues finally got what they deserved.

The referee at Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte caused the players’ exit from the field of play due to a nearby lightning storm, which significantly delayed the game.

Despite having only four minutes left before the players left the field, the delay lasted nearly two hours. With victory in sight, the decision to halt the game so close to the full-time whistle stung with the players’ apparent resentment.

The inclement weather was caused by unusually high temperatures for the time of year. The United States hosting the FIFA 2026 World Cup, which will also take place in the United States in the summer, raises both the issue and the cause.

A Club World Cup game has been postponed six times because of bad weather.

When thunder or lightning strikes, outdoor sports events are required to be postponed for at least 30 minutes according to accepted public safety guidelines in the US.

The Blues had the best of the possession and chances in the first half, which came from Benfica’s Antonio Silva’s curling effort from just inside the box, well off the line.

When Cole Palmer was slipped into the box and fired a shot at the near post, it was Anatoliy Trubin’s Ukrainian goalkeeper, who made the best save possible.

The wide player’s effort was met with a moment of magic from James, who won the match at the near post, with the goalkeeper seemingly being more concerned with a potential cross.

Gusto left his arms flailing in the air, and the Video Assistant Referee had no choice but to call the referee to have the decision reviewed after the lightning delay. Despite the stormy conditions that surrounded the stadium, Di Maria coolly slotted home the kick.

After the lengthy delay in the match, Benfica’s comeback was merely another annoyance for Chelsea, whose job was made easier by Gianluca Prestianni’s second yellow yellow.

After just two minutes of extra time, the Benfica forward received a second yellow for a late tackle after being booked during the celebrations for his side’s equaliser.

First to reach the CWC quarterfinals, Palmeiras

With a 1-0 victory over Brazilian league rival Botafogo, Paulinho fought his way between two defenders before heading home in extra time on Saturday to place Palmeiras in the quarterfinals.

In the 100th minute, Paulinho made an inside cut from the right wing and dribbled through the defense. He has made one appearance for Brazil’s national team. The lower left corner of John’s net was then slashed with left-footed effort.

In the final minutes, Botafogo had numerous chances to equalize, but he was unable to do so.

A total of 35 shot attempts were made during the game at Lincoln Financial Field. However, Palmeiras’ substitution for defender Gustavo Gomez resulted in the match being ended with 10 men.

In the 116th minute, Gomez tackled Igor Jesus in midfield to stop Botafogo from starting a counterattack, but he was shown a second yellow card.

The 33, 657 fans who were present helped to create the atmosphere for the game by continuously cheering and bringing the South American feel to the game.

Bruno Fuchs, the defender for Palmeiras, said: “Coach has been saying since the beginning of the season that we have a dream and dreaming costs nothing.”