While You Were Sleeping: 5 stories you might have missed, June 20
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An Israeli firefighter and another Israeli man lie on the ground, as a siren for incoming rockets from Lebanon goes off, in Kiryat Shmona, northern Israel.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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Head of Lebanon’s Hezbollah threatens Israel, Cyprus
The head of Lebanon’s Hezbollah said on June 19 that nowhere in Israel would be safe if a full-fledged war breaks out between the two foes, and he also threatened Cyprus and other parts of the Mediterannean.
Hezbollah has been trading fire with Israel for more than eight months in parallel with the Gaza War. On June 18, the Iran-backed group published what it said was drone footage of sensitive military sites deep in Israeli territory.
In a televised address on June 19, Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah said “there will be no place safe from our missiles and our drones” in Israel in the event of a broader war.
The group also had “a bank of targets” that it could target in precision strikes, he said.
Boys charged in France with rape of Jewish girl, 12
REUTERS
The gang-rape of a 12-year-old Jewish girl sparked nationwide outrage in France with President Emmanuel Macron on June 19 condemning the “scourge” of anti-Semitism after two 13-year-old boys were charged.
Amid recriminations between rival political parties campaigning for a national election later in June, hundreds took part in demonstrations against anti-Semitism in Paris and Lyon.
The girl told police she was approached by three boys aged between 12 and 13 whilst in a park near her home, in the northwestern Paris suburb of Courbevoie, on the evening of June 15, police sources said. She was dragged into a shed where the suspects beat her and “forced” her to have sex “while uttering death threats and anti-Semitic remarks”, one police source told AFP.
Britain’s Labour party tipped for historic election win
REUTERS
Two polls published on June 19 found the UK’s Labour party was set to win a record-breaking number of seats and the incumbent Conservatives due for a historic drubbing in July’s general election.
With voters heading to the polls in just over two weeks time, the latest pair of nationwide surveys – by YouGov and Savanta/Electoral Calculus – showed Labour set to win either 425 or 516 out of 650 seats.
Either of the results would be the current opposition party’s best-ever return of MPs in a general election.
Beluga whales evacuated to Spain from war-torn Ukraine
Two beluga whales have been evacuated from an aquarium in war-torn Ukraine to Spain by road and plane in a “high-risk” operation, officials at their new home said on June 19.
The whales, a 15-year-old male named Plombir and a 14-year-old female named Miranda, arrived “in delicate health” at the Oceanagrafic aquarium in Spain’s Mediterranean port of Valencia on the evening of June 18, officials there said.
They had completed “a gruelling journey across the war zone”, the aquarium said in a statement.
Germany ease past Hungary to reach last 16 at Euros
EPA-EFE
Jamal Musiala and Ilkay Gundogan scored as hosts Germany became the first team to qualify for the last 16 of Euro 2024 on June 19 after beating Hungary 2-0 in Stuttgart.
Musiala struck for the second game running midway through the first half, much to the anger of Hungary players who felt a foul should have been awarded in the build-up to the goal.
Gundogan grabbed his side’s second on 67 minutes as Germany eased to a second successive win in Group A, making sure they will progress to the knockout phase at least as one of the best third-placed sides.
