U.S. exits UNESCO again, agency calls move "regrettable" but "expected"

The United States announced Tuesday its decision to pull out of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization two years after rejoining.

According to a statement by the U.S. State Department, the withdrawal was due to what Washington saw as the UN cultural agency's policy to "advance divisive social and cultural causes" over the Israel-Palestine conflicts.

"UNESCO's decision to admit the 'State of Palestine' as a member state is highly problematic, contrary to U.S. policy, and contributed to the proliferation of anti-Israel rhetoric within the organization," the statement said.

The U.S. exit will take effect at the end of December 2026.

Meanwhile, UNESCO said Tuesday the U.S. exit was regrettable but came as no surprise.

"However regrettable, this announcement was expected, and UNESCO has prepared for it," UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said in a statement.

U.S. nuclear weapons deployed to UK for first time since 2008

Several U.S. nuclear bombs have reportedly been delivered to a British air base, marking what is believed to be the first deployment of American nuclear weapons on British soil since 2008, local media reported Tuesday.

The weapons, identified as B61-12 thermonuclear gravity bombs, were flown into RAF Lakenheath, a U.S.-operated base in Suffolk, eastern England, the UK Defence Journal reported on Sunday. The B61-12 is a free-fall nuclear bomb designed to be dropped from aircraft and weighs approximately 320 kg.

The delivery is believed to have originated from the U.S. Air Force Nuclear Weapons Center in New Mexico and involved the C-17 military transport aircraft, reports said. The aircraft flew with its transponders switched on, making it easily trackable by foreign governments and aviation observers.

Israeli media reports progress in Gaza ceasefire talks

Israel's state-owned Kan TV News reported Tuesday that progress has been made in indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas over a Gaza ceasefire agreement, including the release of hostages and prisoners.

According to the report, the talks focus on a key dispute regarding the presence of Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip during the proposed 60-day ceasefire.

Sources involved in the negotiations told the channel that the sides are discussing the size of a buffer zone between the Philadelphi and Morag corridor routes in southern Gaza, where Israeli troops would remain deployed. One source noted that "agreements can be reached."

Israeli military says it intercepts missile from Yemen

Israel's military said it intercepted a missile launched from Yemen toward Israeli territory early Tuesday morning.

"A missile launched from Yemen was intercepted by the IAF (Israeli Air Force)," the military said in a statement.

The missile triggered air raid sirens across central Israel.

No immediate casualties or damage were reported following the interception, according to local media.

Iranian FM says Tehran cannot give up nuclear enrichment

Iran "cannot give up" its nuclear enrichment program which suffered major damage in recent U.S. airstrikes, Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi told U.S. media on Monday.

"Our facilities have been ... seriously damaged. The extent of which is now under evaluation by our atomic energy organization," Araghchi told Fox News in an interview via video link, adding that the damage has ceased Iran's enrichment capabilities for the time being.

On June 22, the U.S. Air Force bombed three Iranian nuclear facilities of Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan, the impact of which, according to the Pentagon's assessment, had set back Tehran's nuclear program "by one to two years."

"We cannot give up enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists. And now, more than that, it is a question of national pride," Araghchi said. "Our enrichment is so dear to us."

15 Palestinians killed in Israeli airstrike in Gaza City

At least 15 Palestinians, including six children and a paramedic, were killed Tuesday in an Israeli airstrike on a residential house in the west of Gaza City, said the civil defense authority in Gaza.

Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson of the civil defense authority in Gaza, told Xinhua that an Israeli airstrike targeted a house belonging to the Mashtaha family, destroying it and killing all those inside.

He said that the airstrike destroyed several neighboring houses and nearby tents sheltering displaced people.

Basal added that a large fire broke out in the area, and firefighters and ambulances rushed to extinguish the blaze and transport the injured and victims.■