Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani has inaugurated the northern city of Mosul’s newly restored airport, more than a decade after it was destroyed in a series of battles to dislodge the now vanquished ISIL (ISIS) group.
“The airport will serve as an additional link between Mosul and other Iraqi cities and regional destinations,” the prime minister’s media office said in a statement on Wednesday.
Al-Sudani’s flight landed at the airport, which is expected to become fully operational for domestic and international flights in two months. Wednesday’s ceremony was held nearly three years after then-Prime Minister Mustafa al-Kadhimi laid the foundation stone for the airport’s reconstruction.
Airport director Amar al-Bayati told the AFP news agency that the “airport is now ready for domestic and international flights.” He added that the airport previously offered international flights, mostly to Turkiye and Jordan.
In June 2014, ISIL seized Mosul, declaring its “caliphate” from Iraq’s second biggest city after capturing large swaths of Iraq and neighbouring Syria, imposing hardline rule over millions of people, displacing hundreds of thousands and slaughtering thousands more.
Nouri al-Maliki, who was the Iraqi prime minister at the time, declared a state of emergency and said the government would arm civilians who volunteered “to defend the homeland and defeat terrorism”.
At its peak, the group ruled over an area half the size of the United Kingdom and was notorious for its brutality. It beheaded civilians, massacred 1,700 captured Iraqi soldiers in a short period, and enslaved and raped thousands of women from the Yazidi community, one of Iraq’s oldest religious minorities.
A coalition of more than 80 countries led by the United States was formed to fight the group in September 2014. The alliance continues to carry out raids against the group’s hideouts in Syria and Iraq.
The war against the group officially ended in March 2019 when US-backed, Kurdish-led fighters of the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) captured the eastern Syrian town of Baghouz, which was the last sliver of land ISIL controlled.
The group was also defeated in Iraq in July 2017 when Iraqi forces recaptured Mosul. ISIL then declared its defeat across the country at the end of that year. Three months later, the group suffered a major blow when the SDF took back the northern Syrian city of Raqqa, its de facto capital.
The airport, which was heavily damaged in the battle, has not been operational since the initial fall of Mosul.
Gaza’s children and elderly are bearing the brunt of the devastation inflicted by Israel’s war on the enclave, as the United Nations warns of a sharp rise in amputations, long-term disabilities and severe hunger.
More than 40,000 children have been injured since the conflict began, and nearly 90 percent of Gaza’s population has been displaced, often multiple times.
Amid worsening conditions, aid workers are also reporting a sharp rise in malnutrition among children, and growing hardship for elderly people, who are even less able to access food, care and essential medical support than the general population.
One in 10 Gaza children tested in UNRWA clinics malnourished
On Tuesday, UNRWA chief Philippe Lazzarini said: “One in 10 children screened in UNRWA medical facilities is malnourished.” He warned that child malnutrition is rising rapidly in Gaza amid severe shortages of food and medical supplies.
“Salam, a seven-month-old baby, died of malnutrition last week,” he added, addressing the growing urgency of the crisis.
He added that more than 870 Palestinians have been killed while trying to access food from aid distribution points set up by the highly criticised GHF, a private contractor backed by Israel and the United States.
(Al Jazeera)
Before the war began on October 7, 2023, about 500 trucks of humanitarian aid entered Gaza every single day.
That number collapsed following Israel’s assault on the besieged enclave, dropping to fewer than 80 trucks per day.
In March, Israel imposed a nearly three-month blockade, halting aid deliveries altogether.
On May 27, the GHF assumed control of aid operations, replacing 400 local distribution points with just four “mega-sites”.
These locations have become scenes of deadly violence, as Israeli forces have reportedly opened fire on Palestinians gathering for food, many of whom must walk several kilometres to reach the sites.
The more than 870 people who have been killed trying to collect aid from GHF points include at least 94 children and 11 elderly people. Despite mounting criticism, GHF remains the sole provider of food in the Gaza Strip.
Since January 2024, UNRWA has screened more than 240,000 boys and girls under the age of five in its clinics, adding that before the war, acute malnutrition was rare in Gaza.
Zainab Abu Haleeb, a five-month-old Palestinian girl diagnosed with malnutrition, according to medics, lies on a bed as she receives treatment at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip, July 15, 2025 [Hussam Al-Masri/Reuters]
“As malnutrition among children spreads across the war-torn enclave, UNRWA has over 6,000 trucks of food, hygiene supplies, medicine, medical supplies outside of Gaza. They are all waiting to go in,” UNRWA’s communications director, Juliette Touma, said in a press statement on Monday.
More than 139,000 people injured, including at least 40,500 children
As of July 1, 2025, more than 139,000 Palestinians have been injured in Gaza since the war began, and more than 40,500 of them are children, according to the Global Protection Clusters July report.
At least 58,479 people have been confirmed killed since the start of the war in October 2023, with an estimated 11,000 more buried under rubble, their bodies unrecovered due to restrictions on rescue teams or because it is simply impossible to reach them.
Roughly one in four of the injured are expected to require long-term rehabilitation care.
Children are especially vulnerable: 10 children lose one or both limbs each day, and 15 children per day are left with potentially life-altering disabilities.
(Al Jazeera)
By the end of 2024, more than 5,200 children were known to require significant rehabilitation, and at least 7,000 were living with permanent disabilities. The true number is believed to be far higher due to the collapse of Gaza’s health system.
Children with disabilities are among those most at risk in Gaza’s child protection caseload.
Of the 5,160 cases registered, 849 (16.5 percent) involve children with physical, sensory, intellectual or psychosocial disabilities.
Nearly half of these cases (49 percent) are children aged seven to 12, with a slight majority being boys (53 percent). These children face increased risks of violence, neglect, exclusion from essential services and deep social isolation in the current crisis.
Conditions like loss of hearing and vision are also on the rise. Based on screenings conducted between 2023 and this year by the Atfaluna Society for Deaf Children, UNRWA said about 35,000 people are at risk of temporary or permanent hearing loss due to constant bombardment and explosions.
The war has also severely affected older adults in Gaza. Of 111,500 people aged 60 and above, 97 percent report health problems, 96 percent have chronic illnesses and 86 percent live with disabilities – conditions made worse by medicine shortages, deteriorating hygiene and the destruction of health facilities.
At least 3,839 older people have been killed since the war began.
90 percent of the population of Gaza displaced
Across Gaza, 90 percent of the total population has been forcibly displaced – many of them multiple times; some 10 times or more. Since mid-March 2025, more than 665,000 people have been uprooted, often finding themselves with little or no access to food, water, shelter, healthcare or any basic life necessities.
(Al Jazeera)
According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), more than 86 percent of Gaza’s territory is either within an Israeli-imposed no-go zone or under active forced evacuation orders.
(Al Jazeera)
Older people and those with disabilities face extreme hardship as a result of displacement. Many cannot flee at all due to mobility challenges, illness or the loss of assistive devices – with more than 83 percent reporting that their wheelchairs, walkers, hearing aids or prosthetics have been lost or destroyed.
(Al Jazeera)
The terrain has become highly dangerous and inaccessible: Israeli forces have built sand mounds at checkpoints, making movement nearly impossible for families with someone who has a mobility impairment. At the same time, high levels of unexploded ordnance contaminate many of Gaza’s roads and disproportionately endanger those with physical, sensory or cognitive disabilities.
India seamer Kranti Goud sends down three consecutive wides then follows up by bowling Amy Jones for one during the first ODI at Utilita Bowl, Southampton.
England v India, first ODI: Live text updates, videos clips and TMS commentary
Liam and Noel Gallagher are loving playing in Heaton Park in Manchester but someone they would love to have alongside them is waiting for later tour dates
Oasis fans can see the Gallagher Brothers together again.(Image: GETTY)
Peggy Gallagher is set to miss Oasis homecoming Manchester gigs at Heaton Park.
The 92-year-old mum of Noel and Liam Gallagher is thrilled her sons have patched up their differences and reunited the band. She has spoken about planning to see them on the Oasis Live 25 tour too and still lives in Manchester, where she brought up her three sons in Burnage.
But the Mirror understands Peggy will be forced to wait to see them later on the tour, in a box or with seating and easier access to get to and from the show due to issues with her health.
Heaton Park is a standing only venue with even the VIP area consisting of a viewing balcony area when guests like Pep Guardiola stand.
An Oasis source said: “Peggy is really keen to go and see Oasis again and couldn’t be more proud reading about the shows in Cardiff and Manchester. But her health comes first and Liam and Noel want her to be comfortable if she does come to see the band. She had a recent knee operation so needs a comfortable spot if she is going to go to one of the shows and be there for a few hours.
“They’ll both be spending time with her whilst they are in Manchester but they’ll hold off getting her to a show.
“Somewhere like Dublin or Wembley is a more likely venue where she can be treated like a queen with any food she wants and there is better access and transport options.”
READ MORE: Oasis have released new tickets for UK tour – how to buy yours if you missed out
Oasis have made a triumphant return to Manchester playing two shows at the weekend with a third gig tonight/last night(Weds) before two more shows at the weekend.
After that the band play Wembley as well as dates in Edinburgh and Croke Park in Dublin. The band will then embark on a world tour.
Peggy with youngest son Liam as a child(Image: Daily Record)
Ahead of their third Manchester show huge steel fences were erected around an area of Manchester’s Heaton Park to stop ticketless Oasis fans from watching.
Previously fans had gathered in an area dubbed ‘Gallagher Hill’ to watch the video screens and hear the music from afar.
But Manchester City Council has urged ticketless Oasis fans not to travel to Heaton Park, after crowds previously gathered to get a glimpse of the big screens on an area that has been dubbed “Gallagher Hill”.
The Council said: “With three concerts still to be played by Oasis in Manchester’s Heaton Park following their two hugely successful concerts at the weekend, the city council is repeating its request for fans without tickets not to travel to the park.
“After taking stock of how the first two nights went, additional measures have now been deemed necessary and will be in place for the next three concerts, to protect the environment of the park, ensure areas of parkland and nearby livestock are protected, and maintain public safety.
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“These include the erection of steel fencing around a large area of the hill within the cattle field in the main park – which is currently being developed as a new woodland area for the park and has been recently planted with around 300 young whips including Hornbeam, Field Maple, Aspen, Downy birch, Rowan, Common Alder, Crab apple and more – as well as measures to protect the livestock in the field, which include expectant and nursing cows and a bull.
A ceasefire in Suwayda in Syria has collapsed, as fighting between Druze groups and Syrian forces continues. Israel, which says it wants to protect the Druze, has carried out more air strikes on Syrian troops.
The start of The Open Championship in Portrush on Saturday is being brought forward due to a band parade in the town.
More than 70 bands and about 2,000 people are due to be involved in the event which has been organised by Portrush Sons of Ulster on Saturday evening, as the golf tournament finishes for the day nearby.
The chief executive of the Royal & Ancient (R&A), Mark Darbon, said there would be “marginal adjustments” of about 15 minutes to the golf tee-times on Saturday to try to ensure both events could take place in a “seamless” way.
More than 275,000 spectators are expected to descend on Portrush over the coming days, making it the largest sporting event held in Northern Ireland.
The Open was first played at Portrush in 1951 and was last hosted in the town in 2019.
Organisers say The Open generates more than 5,000 hours of global television coverage, with the competition beamed into 500 million homes.
“We recognise that when we bring The Open Championship to town, we are a guest in the community in which we operate,” Mr Darbon said, at a press conference.
“On many occasions, there are concurrent events that take place around the action that we are very focused on here, within the rules of the venue.
“So, recognising the events that are taking place on Saturday, we have worked collaboratively with the organisers and across multi-agency groups to ensure, primarily, both events can run as seamlessly as possible.
“We are making a slight tweak to tee times to try and finish – it’s not dramatic, maybe 15 minutes or so earlier.
“At the same time, this is an outdoor sport; the weather can play a big role.
Asked about reports that the organisers of the band parade had been offered £20,000 to postpone their event, Mr Darbon did not answer the question directly.
He said the R&A had contributed “incremental costs” to the logistical operation involved on Saturday evening.
The Open normally finishes after 19:00 GMT on a Saturday.
No exact times are ever known due to weather and playing conditions on the day.
The band parade is due to begin at about 20:30, according to the Parades Commission website.
Band urges public to plan ahead
In a post on social media on Wednesday, Portrush Sons Of Ulster said the band has made it clear from the start of meetings that “we were having our parade and that hasn’t changed”.
“It has taken a serious amount of work for us to get where we are at today,” they said in their post on Facebook.
They urged people attending the event to plan ahead “due to the volume of golfers and parade goers” in the town on the same day.
“As is well known, our parade already draws a massive crowd but this year we expect it will be even bigger due to the publicity it has received,” they said.
Meanwhile, more than 4,800 people are staying at The Open’s camping village throughout the week.
Tents and glamping tee-pees have been set up on the grounds of Ulster University’s Coleraine campus.
The Open Camping Village
Tom Crutchley, who manages the campsite, said the idea started in 2016 as a way of encouraging young people to attend the golf tournament.
“The R&A said that one of the biggest barriers for youths and young families coming to The Open was the cost of accommodation so The Open Camping Village was created,” he said.
“We started with about 120 tents, which my team and I have put up ourselves, and we have now grown to 772 tents and we operate a bit like a hotel.
Ronan Cooper and his son, Alex, are huge golf fans and travelled up from Dublin on Tuesday for the tournament.
Mr Cooper stayed at the glamping site during The 152nd Open at Royal Troon last year with his father, and enjoyed it so much that he decided to use it again in Portrush with his wife and son.
“The accessibility to the course from the glamping site is great, and it’s great value with everything set up for you as well,” he said.
Ronan and Alex said they were very fortunate to attend a practice session earlier this week as well and got a selfie with US golfer Cameron Young.
Alex told BBC News NI that he was delighted to get a load of signatures on their Open flag, including that of Norwegian golfer Viktor Hovland.
