Blasts Rock Damascus During President Macron Visit
Two improvised explosive devices detonated in central Damascus on Tuesday as French President Emmanuel Macron met Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, wounding at least 18 people, including four police officers, according to Syria's Interior Ministry. Macron was unharmed, and no group immediately claimed responsibility. The explosions occurred near the Four Seasons Hotel, where Macron had been staying, and close to the Ministry of Tourism. Macron had already departed for the presidential palace when the devices exploded, and the French presidency said his official programme continued as scheduled. Damascus-based security analyst Ismat Al-Absi told Al Jazeera it remained unclear whether the attack was intended to target Macron's convoy, adding that the apparent objective was to create insecurity and send a political message rather than inflict mass casualties. Tuesday's explosions came five days after a bombing at a café on al-Nasser Street killed at least nine people and wounded 22, the deadliest attack…
Azerbaijan’s assets hit by Russian attack on Ukraine
Azerbaijan summoned Russian Ambassador Mikhail Yevdokimov on July 6 and handed him a protest note over a July 5 drone strike on a fuel station belonging to SOCAR, the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republic, in Ukraine’s Mykolaiv region, Reuters reported. The Foreign Ministry said the recurrence of such attacks “indicates the deliberate nature of these attacks.” Two Shahed drones struck the SOCAR station in the village of Nechaiane, around 30 kilometers from Mykolaiv on the road to Odesa, at 19:16 and 19:33 on July 5, Ukrainska Pravda reported. The strikes damaged the station’s administrative building; no injuries were reported. Baku said the attack was not isolated, citing earlier strikes on a SOCAR gas compressor station and an oil depot in Odesa, as well as damage to Azerbaijan’s embassy in Kyiv and honorary consulate in Kharkiv, Reuters reported. The ministry called on Russia to meet its Vienna Convention obligations. Russia…
Ukraine Launches Large-Scale Drone Incursion Against Moscow
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said more than 430 drones flew toward the Moscow region overnight from July 6 to July 7, in what TASS calculations described as one of the largest attacks on the Russian capital area in two years, Kyiv Post reported. Sobyanin said most drones were intercepted on “distant approaches,” with 36 destroyed closer to Moscow. Russia’s Defence Ministry said air defences downed 452 Ukrainian drones across Russian regions overnight. Sheremetyevo, Vnukovo and Domodedovo airports operated under coordinated restrictions, while Zhukovsky airport suspended flights entirely. The reported wave followed two escalations on July 6. Russian missiles and drones struck Kyiv and the surrounding region; Ukraine’s State Emergency Service said the Kyiv city death toll had risen to 19 by July 7, with search-and-rescue under way in Darnytskyi district, while Kyiv Oblast separately reported eight dead, Euromaidan Press reported. The same day, Ukrainian drones struck the Omsk refinery, Russia’s…
At Least 330 Children Killed or Injured in Sudan in 2026 as Drone Attacks Intensify
At least 330 children were killed or injured across Sudan during the first six months of 2026, UNICEF said on Monday, warning that a surge in drone attacks – particularly in North Kordofan – is driving an increasingly deadly toll on civilians. UNICEF said the figure reflects verified child casualties and is likely an undercount, as insecurity continues to prevent independent monitoring across large parts of the country. Darfur and Kordofan recorded the highest numbers of verified child casualties. The agency described the situation in El Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, as especially alarming. Since May, at least 18 children have been killed and more than 17 injured in the city, ranging in age from two months to 17 years. According to UNICEF, drone strikes accounted for roughly 60 percent of those casualties, highlighting the growing impact of unmanned aerial warfare on civilians. Sudan's war between the Sudanese Armed…
Gazprom to Form Mobile Fire Groups From Reservists to Guard Gas Facilities From Drones
Russia’s Gazprom has reached an agreement with the Defence Ministry to form mobile fire groups tasked with defending gas infrastructure, including against drone strikes, according to internal company documents reported by Echo and cited by The Moscow Times on July 5. Neither Gazprom nor the Defence Ministry has publicly confirmed the arrangement. Under the reported plan, volunteers would join Russia’s mobilisation reserve rather than active military service, combining civilian employment with periodic training. Applicants would undergo medical screening, vetting and two months of preparation before deployment, according to the reports. Their principal task would be patrolling and guarding gas-supply facilities, with possible assignment to other critical infrastructure in the region where each contract is signed. The report fits a broader pattern of decentralised protection for Russian industrial and energy sites following repeated Ukrainian drone strikes deep inside Russian territory. Reuters reported in May that Russian business leaders had asked President…
Russia Hits Kyiv With Missiles and Drones Days After Deadliest Strike of the Year
Russia launched a major missile and drone attack on Kyiv overnight on July 6, killing at least 11 people and injuring at least 46 in the capital, just four days after the deadliest strike on the city this year, Reuters reported. Ukraine’s Air Force said Russia launched 68 missiles and 351 attack and decoy drones, with Kyiv as the primary target, according to The Kyiv Independent. The barrage included 23 ballistic missiles, 39 cruise missiles and six anti-ship missiles. Ukrainian air defences shot down 37 missiles and 326 drones, but Reuters reported that none of the ballistic, super- or hypersonic missiles were intercepted. The attack heavily damaged civilian areas. Residential buildings were hit in the Podilskyi, Obolonskyi, Holosiivskyi and Darnytskyi districts of Kyiv, including a building in Podilskyi district that was partially destroyed between its fifth and ninth floors. The Kyiv Independent also reported damage to homes, businesses and other…
