Istanbul mayor boycotts court hearing in one of many cases that could see him banned from politics

ISTANBUL (AP) — Istanbul's imprisoned opposition Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu and his lawyers boycotted a court hearing Thursday, claiming a late change of venue was 'unlawful.'
Thursday's case, which was over comments Imamoglu made over the prosecution of other officials from his Republican People's Party, or CHP, is one of numerous criminal allegations Imamoglu faces.
The mayor was arrested in March alongside other prominent politicians as part of investigations into alleged corruption and terror links. His arrest triggered the largest street protests Turkey has seen in more than a decade.
A conviction in any of the cases could see Imamoglu banned from holding or running for public office.
Imamoglu is regarded as the main challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan 's 22-year rule and was officially nominated as his party's presidential candidate following his imprisonment. Turkey's next election is due in 2028 but could come sooner.
In a statement, the CHP said neither Imamoglu nor his legal team would attend Thursday's hearing due to a change in venue through 'unlawful procedures.'
Imamoglu, in a post from jail, described the hearing as 'irregular' and said it 'does not comply with the principles of the trial. I refuse to be a part of such a process and therefore I will not attend this hearing.'
CHP Istanbul Provincial Chairman Ozgur Celik posted on X that the hearing had been moved from Caglayan courthouse in central Istanbul to Silivri prison 24 hours beforehand. Imamoglu is being held at the prison, west of Istanbul.
Prosecutors have requested a prison sentence of two to four years and a political ban on charges of 'attempting to influence' an expert witness in the case. The hearing was adjourned to Sept. 26.
Officials from CHP-controlled municipalities have faced waves of arrests this year. Many people in Turkey consider the cases to be politically driven, according to opinion polls. Erdogan's government insists the courts are impartial and free from political involvement.

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Trump offered to meet Iranian leader but couldn't reach him

Donald Trump tried to arrange a meeting between senior US and Iranian officials but was unable to do so because Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei could not be contacted. The US news website Axios reports that Mr Trump worked with Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish president, to set up negotiations between the US and Iran in Istanbul this week. Mr Trump was willing to send JD Vance and Steve Witkoff, the White House envoy, or even travel to Turkey himself if necessary in order to reach a deal. The proposals were passed on to Masoud Pezeshkian, the Iranian president, and Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, who could not reach Khamenei for a sign-off, according to three US officials. The Telegraph reported this week that Khamenei is being protected by an elite security unit and does not have access to his electronic devices. Mr Trump is expected to convene his national security team in the White House Situation Room on Saturday evening to discuss whether to enter the conflict between Israel and Iran. On Friday, Mr Trump told reporters that he will make a decision on whether to join the war within 'two weeks'. The US has launched strikes on Iran, bombing three of the country's nuclear facilities. Donald Trump authorised the strikes on the Fordow, Natanx and Esfahan sites on Saturday evening, calling it a 'successful attack'. 'We have completed our very successful attack on the three nuclear sites in Iran, including Fordow, Natanz, and Esfahan,' Mr Trump said on Truth Social. 'All planes are now outside of Iran air space. A full payload of BOMBS was dropped on the primary site, Fordow. All planes are safely on their way home. Congratulations to our great American Warriors. There is not another military in the World that could have done this. NOW IS THE TIME FOR PEACE! Thank you for your attention to this matter.' Pressure had been mounting on the US to intervene in the escalating conflict in support of Israel, and to force Iran's leaders to end its nuclear programme. Follow the latest updates in our new liveblog. Donald Trump has returned to the White House ahead of a US National Security Council meeting. The president walked across South Lawn and declined to answer questions from reporters. Mr Trump also did not give a statement before boarding Air Force One in New Jersey, hours after news broke that US B-2 stealth bombers had been moved to the US military base in Guam. Instead, he wrote posts on his Truth Social platform. Sharing a Fox News report about whether he will authorise US military strikes on Iran, Mr Trump wrote: 'Only time will tell!' Following the alerts in the Golan Heights, the Israeli military has said it has since shot down an Iranian drone in that area. The IDF said it was responding to reports of an 'intrusion of a hostile aircraft' shortly before 1am local time in Ramat Magshim and Haspin. 'The Air Force intercepted an unmanned aerial vehicle that was launched from the east towards Israeli territory,' the IDF said. An 'unrecognised aircraft' has been detected near two communities in the Golan Heights of Israel. Residents of Ramat Magshimim and Haspin are on alert for drone attacks. Iran has announced the launch of suicide drones towards Israel, the latest wave of attacks as fighting between the two countries enters the 10th day. 'A vast wave of attack and suicide drones has been heading for hours towards their strategic targets throughout the regime's territory, from the north to the south of the occupied territories,' Iran's Revolutionary Guards spokesman Ali Mohammad Naini was quoted as saying by state television. Israel has launched strikes on the southern city of Shiraz, the capital of Fars province, according to Iranian media. 'Shiraz's air defences have been activated in some areas of the city and have been engaged in fighting hostile targets and Zionist aircraft,' the Mehr news agency reports. Previously, images from June 15 showed damage to the Shiraz missile and electronics production facilities after Israeli strikes. Israeli officials have reportedly told the Trump administration that they do not want to wait two weeks to find out if the US will join the conflict between Israel and Iran. According to Reuters, which cites two unnamed sources, Israel wants swift action to target the nuclear facility at Fordow before its narrow window of opportunity closes. The US is the only country with bombs powerful enough to reach the nuclear site, which is buried 300ft inside a mountain and makes up one of three key pieces of nuclear infrastructure in Iran. Mahmoud Khalil, the pro-Palestinian Columbia University activist who spent more than three months in immigration detention, has returned to New Jersey. Mr Khalil emerged from security at Newark airport with his wife and infant son, smiling triumphantly. A high-profile voice in Columbia University's pro-Palestinian protests, the US government has been seeking to deport Mr Khalil, saying his activism is harmful to foreign policy interests. Speaking at the airport and flanked by Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the New York Democratic congresswoman, he accused the White House of trying to 'dehumanise anyone who does not agree with the administration.' Ms Ocasio-Cortez said that the Trump administration is 'waging a losing legal battle' to deport migrants in the US who support Palestinians. US B-2 stealth bombers have left America, heading towards Guam, as Donald Trump continues to mull striking Iran's Fordow underground nuclear facility. As many as four aircraft took off from the Whiteman Air Force base in Missouri on Saturday morning accompanied by four refuelling tankers, according to flight tracking data. Two US officials confirmed that they are heading west towards the US Naval Base Guam in the Pacific Ocean. From there, they could head to the US base on Diego Garcia, in the Chagos Islands, which is within striking distance of Iran. The B-2 is the only aircraft capable of delivering the 30,000-lb 'Massive Ordnance Penetrator' precision-guided bunker busters that could be used to target Iran's underground nuclear facility at Fordow. Buried 300ft inside a mountain, the Fordow enrichment plant is one of three key pieces of nuclear infrastructure in Iran, alongside the Natanz enrichment plant and research facilities in Isfahan. The US B-2 bomber is thought to cost $2.1 billion, making it the most expensive military aircraft ever built. On Thursday, Donald Trump said that the decision on whether to strike Iran would be made 'in the next two weeks.' Israel's military has said that it is currently striking unmanned aerial vehicle and weapons depots in Bandar Abbas, southwestern Iran. Effie Defrin, the IDF spokesman, claimed that Israel has reduced Tehran's missile launch capabilities to 'merely a fraction of what they were at the outset of the operation.' Iranian media also reported on Saturday that an Israeli strike had hit a military base in the Qom province. 'A few minutes ago, one of the evacuated military bases… was hit by projectiles from the Zionist regime,' ISNA news agency reported, citing official statements. Iran's armed forces have threatened to strike shipments of military aid to Israel. 'We warn that sending any military or radar equipment by boat or aircraft from any country to assist the Zionist regime will be considered participation in the aggression against Islamic Iran and will be a legitimate target for the armed forces,' a spokesman said in a broadcast on state TV. It comes after Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, told journalists in Istanbul on Saturday that it would be 'very, very dangerous for everyone' if the US becomes involved in the war with Israel. A member of the Lebanese armed group Hezbollah was killed by an Israeli air attack, reports Reuters, citing a senior Lebanese security source. The source identified the member as Hussein Khalil, commonly known as Abu Ali, who once served as the bodyguard of Hassan Nasrallah, the former Hezbollah chief who was killed in an Israeli attack on Beirut in September 2024. The former bodyguard had appeared alongside Nasrallah over the years in the leader's rare public appearances. AFP reports that Khalil was killed alongside a member of an Iraqi armed group in an Israeli drone strike. The US Department of State has started assisted departure flights from Israel amid its conflict with Iran, Mike Huckabee, the US Ambassador to Israel, has said. This is the first time that such flights have been offered there since the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. In a social media post, Mr Huckabee said that US citizens and lawful permanent residents can complete an online form for updates. The US has also told its citizens in Iran who wish to leave to go via Azerbaijan, Armenia or Turkey if they feel it is safe. Masoud Pezeshkian, the Iranian president, has said that his country will not halt nuclear activity 'under any circumstances' amid ongoing fighting with Israel, according to AFP citing the IRNA news agency. 'We are ready to discuss and cooperate to build confidence in the field of peaceful nuclear activities, however we do not agree to reduce nuclear activities to zero under any circumstances,' Pezeshkian is reported to have said during a phone call with Emmanuel Macron. Iran admitted it has detained a German cyclist on spying allegations for the past year for the first time on Saturday. Marek Kaufman has been held in the notorious Evin prison since his arrest last year near the Arak nuclear facility in Markasi Province. He is accused of recording the coordinates and locations of military and nuclear facilities A propaganda video of him confessing to filming a nuclear facility has been released on Telegram by an Iranian news agency. It appears to show him cycling and being arrested by Revolutionary Guards. Iran has been accused of forced confessions in the past. The announcement comes after Britain and Europe warned Donald Trump that any US attack on Iran would endanger westerners held hostage by the Islamic Republic. In recent years, Iran's elite Revolutionary Guards have arrested dozens of dual nationals and foreigners, mostly on charges related to espionage and security. Among them are at least 20 European citizens. Two British nationals, a man and a woman, were arrested in Iran in February and accused of security-related offences. In recent years, at least 15 people with links to the UK have been arrested in the country and accused of espionage offences. Emmanuel Macron vowed that Europe would step up its diplomatic efforts a day after Donald Trump dismissed European efforts to end the war between Iran and Israel. The French President spoke with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Saturday. Afterwards he said on X, 'I am convinced that a path exists to end war and avoid even greater dangers. 'To achieve this, we will accelerate the negotiations led by France and its European partners with Iran.' 'Iran must never acquire nuclear weapons,' he added, 'It is up to Iran to provide full guarantees that its intentions are peaceful.' On Friday, President Trump was asked about a Geneva meeting that day between Iran's foreign minister and the foreign ministers of France, Germany, the UK and the EU. 'Iran doesn't want to speak to Europe. They want to speak to us,' he told reporters in New Jersey, 'Europe is not going to be able to help in this one.' The US military is moving several of its B-2 bombers to Guam, Reuters has reported, citing two US officials. The B-2 aircraft can deliver the 30,000lb bunker buster bombs that would be needed to launch a successful attack on Fordow, the Iranian nuclear facility buried 300ft inside a mountain. Israel has claimed that Iran's Revolutionary Guards tried to attack Israeli citizens in Cyprus. Gideon Saar, Israel's foreign minister, said in a post on X: 'The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps… tried to carry out an attack on Israeli citizens in Cyprus.' 'Thanks to the activity of the Cypriot security authorities, in cooperation with Israeli security services, the terror attack was thwarted.' He did not provide further details of the alleged attack, but claimed that Iran is 'deliberately targeting Israeli civilians both in Israel and abroad.' Earlier today, Cypriot authorities said that they had arrested a suspected Iranian spy thought to be plotting a terror attack on an RAF base in Cyprus. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan predicted Iran would win its war with Israel on Saturday. Speaking at a gathering of Organisation of Islamic Cooperation foreign ministers in Istanbul, he said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not want to 'resolve issues through diplomatic means.' Mr Erdoğan said he was 'optimistic that victory will be Iran's' and urged diplomats to use international law and UN resolutions to put pressure on Israel. He accused Israel of sabotaging nuclear talks between Iran and the US by launching strikes on June 13, when negotiations were ongoing. Mr Erdoğan will join fellow NATO leaders, including Donald Trump, in the Hague for a summit next Wednesday. The Israeli military says that it has completed another series of strikes in southwestern Iran today. It said that around 30 jets attacked dozens of military targets in the area of Ahvaz using more than 50 munitions. The military also claimed that jets struck radar detection system sites and other military infrastructure. Yemen's Houthis have threatened to target US ships in the Red Sea if Washington gets involved in Israel's attacks on Iran, according to a military spokesperson from the group. 'In the event of the American involvement in the attack and aggression against Iran with the Israeli enemy, the armed forces will target its ships and warships in the Red Sea,' Yahya Saree said. In May, the US and the Houthis agreed to a ceasefire to halt the latter's attacks on US vessels in the Red Sea. 'The Houthis have announced… that they don't want to fight any more. They just don't want to fight. And we will honour that, and we will stop the bombings, and they have capitulated,' Donald Trump said at the time. A suspected Iranian spy has been arrested near an RAF base in Cyprus following intelligence suggesting he was planning a terrorist attack. The man, believed to be of Azerbaijani descent, has links to Iran's Revolutionary Guards, according to local media reports. Cypriot authorities confirmed they arrested the individual on suspicion of espionage and terror-related offences. The suspect was thought to have had Britain's Akrotiri base, home to the RAF's Typhoons, and Cyprus's own Andreas Papandreou air base under surveillance since mid-April, ANT1 news portal reported. The island country's counter-terrorism unit received information from a foreign intelligence service that he was planning an immediate terrorist attack, Israeli outlet Channel 12 reports. The individual appeared before a district court on Saturday, which has ordered an eight-day detention pending enquiries. No further details would be issued, police said, citing national security. Cyprus, situated close to the Middle East, has in recent days been used as a transit point for the region amid the spiralling conflict between Israel and Iran. The UN nuclear agency confirmed that an overnight Israeli strike hit a centrifuge manufacturing workshop at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site, reports Agence France-Presse. 'A centrifuge manufacturing workshop has been hit in Esfahan, the third such facility that has been targeted in Israel's attacks on Iran's nuclear-related sites over the past week,' the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in a statement quoting its chief Rafael Grossi. The Israeli Air Force bombed the Isfahan nuclear site early on Saturday for the second time since the conflict began. Local news in Iran quoted a security official saying that there had been no leakage of hazardous materials from the site. Mr Grossi appeared to confirm this, saying 'there was no nuclear material at this site and therefore the attack on it will have no radiological consequences'. Credit: Eyepress via Reuters Turkey is ready to facilitate the resumption of nuclear talks between Iran and the US, according to the office of Tayyip Erdogan, the Turkish president. The Turkish president's office said that Mr Erdogan had met Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, on the sidelines of an Organisation of Islamic Cooperation meeting in Istanbul. In a statement, Mr Erdogan's office said that the Turkish president told Mr Araghchi that resuming Iranian-US talks on Tehran's nuclear programme is the only way to end the conflict with Israel. 'Steps should be taken as soon as possible to open up diplomacy via technical and leaders-level talks between Iran and the US,' Mr Erdogan's office said. The discussions and proposals made by the European powers to Iran over its nuclear programme in Geneva were unrealistic, a senior Iranian official told Reuters. The official indicated that Iran is unwilling to negotiate over its defensive capabilities, including its missile programme, or agree to zero uranium enrichment. The senior official added that if Europe insists on these proposals the parties will not come any closer to an agreement. 'In any case, Iran will review the European proposals in Tehran and present its responses in the next meeting,' the official said. Emmanuel Macron, the French president, said 'it is up to Iran to provide full guarantees that its intentions are peaceful' and reiterated his position that 'Iran must never acquire nuclear weapons'. Following a call with his counterpart Masoud Pezeshkian, the Iranian president, Mr Macron also said that negotiations between Europe and Iran will 'accelerate'. 'I am convinced that a path exists to end war and avoid even greater dangers,' Mr Macron wrote on X. Several powerful explosions have been heard in Ahvaz, the capital of Iran's southwestern Khuzestan Province, according to local media. Khuzestan is Iran's primary oil-producing region, situated on the border with Iraq. Israel's military had previously announced strikes on military infrastructure in Iran's south-west. Avichay Adraee, an IDF spokesman, wrote on X: 'Air Force warplanes are currently launching raids targeting military infrastructure in southwestern Iran.' Iran said more than 400 people have been killed since start of war with Israel. That death toll is believed to include more than 200 civilians as well as military commanders and nuclear scientists killed in Israeli strikes. The suspected Iranian spy arrested in Cyprus was seen walking near RAF Akrotiri almost daily, carrying a camera with a magnifying lens and three mobile phones, according to reports. The man is said to have been taking photos with his phones and other electronic devices as well as writing notes, reports to Phileleftheros, Cyprus's largest newspaper. The Akrotiri RAF base in Cyprus is the UK's largest military installation outside Britain and plays a key role in supporting operations in the Middle East. Aircraft deployed at the base include Eurofighter Typhoons, which have been used in strikes against the Islamic State and Yemen's Houthis. Puma helicopters, Voyager tanker aircraft and the Shadow R1 reconnaissance aeroplane are also deployed to the base. Israel launched a new wave of air strikes against the Iranian regime overnight as it claimed to have set back Tehran's development of nuclear weapons by 'years'. In a post on X, the Israeli air force said it targeted 'missile storage and launch infrastructure in central Iran' on Saturday morning. 'According to the assessment we hear, we already delayed for at least two or three years the possibility for them to have a nuclear bomb,' Israel's foreign minister Gideon Saar said in an interview with Bild on Saturday. Interceptions were visible in the sky over Tel Aviv on Saturday morning as Israel's air defence systems responded to a fresh barrage of projectiles from Tehran. The war has entered its second week and Israel's military chief last night warned of a 'prolonged campaign'. An Iranian drone on Saturday hit a home in the Beit She'an valley, marking the first time a drone has hit a residential area in Israel since the conflict began on June 13. At least 25 people have been killed in Israel since the violence erupted. Iran said last weekend that Israeli strikes had killed at least 224 people, including military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians, but Tehran has not issued an updated toll since. The Islamic Republic on Friday ruled out further nuclear talks with the United States until Israel halts its attacks. Credit: Reuters / Turkish foreign ministry Two to four US B-2 bomber aircraft have taken off from their base in Missouri, according to flight tracking data. The B-2s are the only aircraft capable of carrying the 30,000-lb 'Massive Ordnance Penetrator' bunker busters, that Israel estimates could destroy Iran's underground nuclear facility at Fordow. The aircraft took off from the Whiteman Air Force Base on Saturday morning, accompanied by four refuelling aircraft, and are heading west towards the Naval Base Guam in the Pacific Ocean. It comes amid a great American military build-up in the Middle East as Donald Trump plots whether to join Israel's strikes against Iran. Four fighters from Iran's Revolutionary Guards were killed in an Israeli attack on a training centre, the ISNA state news agency reported. 'Four people have died as martyrs and three others were wounded in an Israeli attack against a training camp of the Revolutionary Guards in Tabriz,' ISNA reported. The city in north-west Tehran has been repeatedly targeted since Israel began striking Iran more than a week ago. Credit: X / almayadeen_es A senior Israeli military official said on Saturday morning that IDF strikes on Iran would continue for 'as long as possible' and anyone saying otherwise was making 'empty promises'. Originally, Israeli government officials publicised a 'two-week' time frame for the campaign, saying its objectives could be met in that period. Overnight, 50 Israeli jets hit targets across Iran with 150 munitions, killing three senior Iranian military commanders, including the new commander of its drone force. Israel also hit the Isfahan nuclear site in Iran for the second time, further degrading its capacity to manufacture the centrifuges required to produce weapons-grade uranium. Israel had dealt a 'severe blow to centrifuge production' in Iran and had taken out '50 per cent or more' of its ballistic missile launchers, said the senior military official. The launchers were being hit 'in real time' by Israeli jets, they added, suggesting that they were being hit opportunistically while out in the open, rather than at their bases. Iran fired a barrage of five ballistic missiles at central Israel overnight, triggering sirens in Tel Aviv and numerous surrounding towns at around 2:40am. All were intercepted while the nation hunkered down in shelters. The three senior Iranian commanders killed overnight were named as Saeed Izadi, head of the Palestinian Division in the IRGC's Quds Force, Behnam Shahriyari, head of the Quds Force's Unit 190, and Aminpour Joudaki, head of the IRGC Aerospace Force's drone unit. It would be 'very, very dangerous for everybody' if the US was to join Israel's strikes on Iran, the country's top diplomat said. Abbas Araghchi, Iran's foreign minister, said: 'Unfortunately we have heard that the US may join this aggression. 'That would be very unfortunate and very, very dangerous for everybody.' Araghchi was speaking to reporters in Istanbul on his way home from talks in Geneva, which failed to produce a diplomatic breakthrough. Donald Trump has delayed a decision on whether to join Israeli strikes against Iran's military and nuclear facilities by two weeks, giving Iran a window of opportunity to sign a nuclear deal. An Iranian drone has hit a residential building in the Beit She'an valley. It is the first known case of an Iranian drone hitting a populated area since the conflict began on June 13. 'A drone strike hit a two-storey residential building in northern Israel,' the Magen David Adom said in a statement, adding that its rescue teams found no visible casualties as they arrived. The Israeli military has said that it killed a second commander of the Revolutionary Guards' overseas arm during a precision strike on his vehicle overnight in western Tehran. Benham Shariyari, the IDF said, 'was responsible for all weapons transfers from the Iranian regime to its proxies across the Middle East'. Shariyari supplied missiles and rockets launched at Israel to Hezbollah, Hamas and Yemen's Houthis, the IDF added. The announcement came shortly after Israel said it had assassinated Saeed Izadi, who led the Palestinian Corps inside Iran's elite Quds Force, in his apartment. Credit: Israeli Army handout Vladimir Putin said that Russia has repeatedly notified Israel that Iran has no intentions of obtaining nuclear weapons. In an interview with Sky News Arabia, the Russian president said: 'I must say that Russia, like the IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency], has no evidence that Iran is preparing to acquire nuclear weapons.' 'If Israel has any concerns, then they need to be addressed, and there are forms and possibilities for addressing these concerns, as I have already said, in my opinion,' he added. Moscow has repeatedly called for the end to Israeli strikes on Russia's key ally since war broke out last week. There has been a large movement of US military aircraft towards the Middle East in recent days, with some passing through UK airspace. Flight tracking data shows 52 warplanes flying over the eastern Mediterranean in the direction of the Middle East between Monday and Thursday. The military build-up comes as Donald Trump mulls whether to join Israel's strikes against Iran's military and nuclear facilities. The US will be seeking to bolster its defences in the region to brace against a possible Iranian retaliation. The USS Carl Vinson Carrier Strike Group is already in the Arabian Sea, while the Nimitz group is en route from the Indo-Pacific. Donald Trump's special envoy to the Middle East has remained in 'correspondence' with Iranian officials, according to the White House. Steve Witkoff, however, did not attend talks between top diplomats from the UK, France, Germany, the European Union and Iran in Geneva on Friday to find a diplomatic solution to the conflict. Mr Trump dismissed the meeting, which ended with no breakthrough. 'Europe is not going to be able to help on this one,' he told reporters. 'Iran doesn't want to speak to Europe. They want to speak to us.' Donald Trump has said it is 'very hard' to ask Israel to stop bombing Iran. 'I think it's very hard to make that request right now,' the US president told reporters after stepping off Air Force One in New Jersey on Friday. 'If somebody is winning, it's a little bit harder to do than if somebody is losing, but we're ready, willing and able, and we've been speaking to Iran, and we'll see what happens.' Tehran has repeatedly stated that it will not hold direct talks with the US until Israel pauses its strikes. Credit: Reuters Israel's military said its navy hit a Hezbollah 'infrastructure site' near the southern Lebanese city of Naqoura on Saturday, despite an ongoing ceasefire. 'Overnight, an Israeli Navy vessel struck a Hezbollah 'Radwan Force' terrorist infrastructure site in the area of Naqoura in southern Lebanon,' the military said in a statement, adding that it was used 'to advance terror attacks against Israeli civilians'. The Iran-aligned Lebanese group, which was heavily degraded by Israeli strikes before a November ceasefire, has condemned Israel's strikes on Iran, threatening there would be 'dire consequences'. But the group has stopped short of making explicit threats to intervene. Israel Katz, Israel's defence minister, on Friday warned Hezbollah against joining the war. 'If there is terror, there will be no Hezbollah,' he said. Iran's supreme leader has been moved to a highly secure location where he is under the protection of a top-secret elite unit, The Telegraph has learned. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who has ruled Iran since 1989, has entrusted his survival to a previously unknown group of deeply vetted bodyguards, amid increasingly overt threats from Israel on his life, according to officials in Tehran. Believing Israeli intelligence has comprehensively penetrated the regime, the unit was kept so secret that even senior officials within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) were unaware of its existence. 'He's not hiding from death, he's not in a bunker,' said one Iranian official. 'But his life is in danger, and there is a unit responsible for his protection that no one even knew existed to avoid any chance of infiltration.' Police in Iran's Qom province said that 22 people 'linked to Israeli spy services' had been arrested since June 13. '22 people were identified and arrested on charges of being linked to the Zionist regime's spy services, disturbing public opinion and supporting the criminal regime,' the IRGC-backed Fars news agency reported, citing police. It came after Iranian police announced the arrest on Thursday of 24 people accused of spying for Israel and of seeking to tarnish the country's image. Israel's defence minister said that Saeed Izadi, commander of the Palestinian Corps inside Iran's elite Quds Force, was assassinated in his apartment. Israel Katz said: 'He funded and armed Hamas ahead of the October 7 massacre. A huge achievement for Israeli intelligence and air force, justice for the murdered and kidnapped. Israel's long arm will reach all its enemies.' The Israel Defence Forces, confirming the strike, said Izadi was responsible for co-ordination between the senior commanders of the IRGC and Hamas leaders. Unverified footage showed the burnt remains of the upper floors of an apartment block in the city of Qom, south of Tehran, where Izadi allegedly lived. Iran's Quds force is the external branch of the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), tasked with overseeing the country's foreign operations and is tied to Iran-aligned armed groups in the region. Iran's Isfahan nuclear site was targeted by Israel, Tehran's military-backed Fars news agency reported on Saturday. Quoting a security official, it said Israel carried out multiple attacks, including on the Isfahan site, saying 'most of the explosive sounds heard in these attacks were related to air defence activity'. There was no 'leakage of hazardous materials', the official added. Israel struck the Isfahan facility earlier this week, damaging four 'critical buildings', including a Uranium conversion facility and a fuel plate fabrication plant. Over the past seven days, Israeli warplanes have been attacking Iran's most precious military and nuclear targets with ease and speed, after knocking out its air defence missile launchers and radar sites last week. In his many years as Supreme Leader of Iran, Ali Khamenei has gained a reputation for political caution, deep conservatism, and absolute ruthlessness. But above all, he is stubborn. Faced with the killing of numerous members of his military high command, the destruction of swathes of the Islamic Republic's treasured nuclear programme and with enemy jets operating freely over his capital, he responded to Donald Trump's demand for surrender this week by declaring: 'The Iranian nation will stand firmly against any imposed war, just as it always has.' 'The Iranian nation also firmly stands against any imposed peace. The Iranian nation will not capitulate to anyone in the face of coercion,' the 86-year-old cleric went on. It is fighting talk. But many believe it is at odds with reality. Welcome to our live coverage of the Israel-Iran conflict. Here are today's top stories: Iran has been told by the West to stop funding its proxies, end its nuclear programme, and limit manufacturing ballistic missiles in exchange for a deal to halt Donald Trump's plans for military strikes The UK believes US military action is real and approaching, and that Mr Trump is not stalling with his two week deadline, The Telegraph understands European officials warned their counterparts in the White House that any attack could imperil the lives of Western hostages held by Tehran Iran is rushing to export as much oil as possible amid fears a wider war could result in the closure of the Strait of Hormuz Britain announced it would withdraw its embassy staff from Iran Rafael Grossi, the head of the UN's nuclear watchdog, warned that strikes on Iran's Bushehr plant could trigger 'a very high release of radioactivity' Read more: Britain tells Iran to stop funding proxies or face Trump strikes Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 1 month with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.

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Sen. Padilla claps back after JD Vance calls him 'Jose': 'He knows my name'

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Belarus frees jailed opposition leader, 13 others after visit from U.S. envoy

Belarus freed top opposition figure Sergei Tikhanovsky and more than a dozen other political prisoners Saturday following an appeal from the White House, Tsikhanouskaya's team announced on Saturday, a sign of warming ties between Washington and Belarus-ally Moscow. The release came just hours after retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, President Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, met Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in Minsk, the highest-profile visit of a U.S. official to the authoritarian state in years. Tikhanovsky's wife Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who took the mantle of the opposition movement after her husband's jailing, thanked President Trump directly for brokering the deal. Lukashenko's spokeswoman said the Belarusian leader had ordered the release of the prisoners on Mr. Trump's "request," Russian state media reported. Mr. Trump appeared to take credit, writing "Thank you President Trump!" on his Truth Social platform, alongside a link to a news story about the prisoner release. European politicians and members of Belarus's exiled opposition also welcomed the news. "This is fantastic news and a powerful symbol of hope for all the political prisoners suffering under the brutal Lukashenka regime," European Union chief Ursula von der Leyen said on X. "Europe continues to call for their immediate release," she added. Poland's Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski expressed his "sincerest joy," while Latvian President Edgars Rinkevics called Tikhanovsky's freedom a "much awaited and long overdue moment." German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul welcomed Tikhanovsky's release as "fantastically good news," in a post to X. "At the same time, we must not forget the many other prisoners in Belarus. Lukashenko must finally release them," he added. Pavel Latushko, a former culture minister in Belarus who supported the 2020 protests against Lukashenko, also hailed Tikhanovsky's release as an "important moment". Tikhanovsky, 46, had been imprisoned for more than five years. The popular Youtuber had planned to run against Lukashenko in the August 2020 presidential election, but was arrested and detained weeks before the vote. He was sentenced in 2021 to 18 years in prison for "organizing riots" and "inciting hatred," then to another 18 months for "insubordination." Svetlana — a political novice at the time of her husband's arrest — ran against Lukashenko in his place but lost after what the opposition described as widespread falsification. She later fled Belarus. "It's hard to describe the joy in my heart," she said in a post on X following her husband's release. Among the 13 others freed were Radio Liberty journalist Ihar Karnei, arrested in 2023 and jailed for participating in an "extremist" organization. They have now been transferred from Belarus to Lithuania, where they were receiving "proper care," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kestutis Budrys said. Though none of the released prisoners needed emergency medical assistance, "one of them needed emergency medical attention" as "they were imprisoned in difficult conditions," Budrys told the LRT public broadcaster, without elaborating. Swedish-Belarusian citizen Galina Krasnyanskaya, arrested in 2023 for allegedly supporting Ukraine, was also freed, said Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson. Belarus, ruled by Lukashenko since 1994, has outlawed all genuine opposition parties. It is the only European country to retain the death penalty as a punishment. The eastern European country still holds more than 1,000 political prisoners in its jails, according to Belarusian human rights group Viasna. Since taking office, Mr. Trump has engaged in direct talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, ending his predecessor's policy of isolating the Russian president. The two nuclear powers have since worked to normalize diplomatic ties, which have for years lingered at their lowest point since the Cold War. In February, a U.S. citizen who had been detained in Belarus was one of three prisoners freed into U.S. custody. Chris Smith, deputy assistant secretary for Eastern Europe, said at the time that the deal was negotiated by Belarusian authorities and signaled a desire by Lukashenko to have a stronger relationship with the U.S. And in January, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that Belarus had "unilaterally" freed an American woman from detention. Tikhanovsky was for years held incommunicado, and in 2023 his wife was told that he had "died." In a video published by Viasna on Saturday, he appeared almost unrecognizable, his head shaven and face emaciated. A charismatic activist, Tikhanovsky drew the ire of authorities for describing Lukashenko as a "cockroach" and his campaign slogan was "Stop the cockroach." Lukashenko claimed a landslide victory in the 2020 election, a result that sparked massive opposition protests which authorities violently suppressed. The Belarusian autocrat claimed a record seventh term in elections earlier this year that observers dismissed as a farce. Some Spanish residents, armed with water guns, want tourists to go home Dodgers respond to ICE raids in Los Angeles Israeli military planning for possibility of a lengthy war with Iran