Breakfast News Recap: Ukraine nuclear strike, Middle East tensions and trade moves dominate the morning

A drone strike near the occupied Zaporizhzhia Nuclear Power Plant in southeastern Ukraine killed one nuclear specialist and wounded 17 people, underscoring the danger around the site as fighting continues close to critical infrastructure.  🔗

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In the Middle East, tensions around Iran deepened after Donald Trump said there were no talks planned with Tehran and insisted the Strait of Hormuz remained open, even as reports emerged that a projectile hit a ship in the waterway. The United Arab Emirates also imposed an indefinite trade embargo on Iran after accusing Iranian forces of firing two ballistic missiles at the country.  🔗  🔗

Israel's regional campaign widened further with an airstrike on a cafe inside Gaza City's fishing harbour that killed at least six Palestinians and wounded 14, while the United States issued a rare rebuke after reports that eight Israeli airstrikes hit the Abu Duhur airbase in north west Syria. Turkey rejected Israeli claims that it was preparing to send troops to the Syrian base, and the IAEA said inspectors had found several tons of undeclared nuclear material at a site in Syria.  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗

Washington is also sharpening pressure on Tehran, with US officials warning of new sanctions and broader economic measures as Iranian authorities said they could shift to offensive operations. At the same time, the Pentagon ordered a major increase in Tomahawk missile production, a move described as a multibillion dollar deal.  🔗  🔗

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Elsewhere in the region, Lebanon is preparing for talks in Rome with Italy and France on the future of UNIFIL as the peacekeeping mandate nears expiry, while Beirut faces pressure to extradite former Syrian regime officials after the arrest of an ex general.  🔗  🔗

In Europe and Ukraine, the war's political and military strain remained visible as Ukraine's ousted defence minister Mykhailo Fedorov renewed calls for wartime elections. In the Pacific, a US Navy destroyer, the USS Benfold, lost power for four days after a major engineering failure, and US lawmakers separately sought answers over conditions aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln after its extended deployment.  🔗  🔗  🔗

On trade and diplomacy, the United States paused planned 50 percent tariffs on Canadian goods for three days after the two countries said they had reached an agreement in principle, pending final details. South Korea and the United States also shortened their Ulchi Freedom Shield drills, with the exercises now due to end six days early after pressure from Trump for talks with Kim Jong Un.  🔗  🔗

In the Americas, Minnesota sued Texas Governor Greg Abbott over the extradition of ICE agent Christian Casanueva in the Minneapolis shooting case, while a US judge allowed the Trump administration to proceed with ending Temporary Protected Status for Ethiopians. The United States also sanctioned International Criminal Court President Tomoko Akane and senior trial lawyer Abdoulaye Seye, and Disney and ABC sued the Federal Communications Commission over an early licence renewal push.  🔗  🔗  🔗  🔗

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Other US legal and law enforcement developments included a Chinese national being sentenced in North Carolina to 15 years for laundering drug trafficking proceeds, Wyoming federal authorities monitoring polling sites for election integrity, and arrest warrants being issued for six current and former Metropolitan Police Department members in an overtime fraud case.  🔗  🔗  🔗

Health and security concerns also widened beyond the conflict zones, with the Democratic Republic of the Congo's Ebola outbreak passing 5,000 confirmed cases as the death toll rose.  🔗

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