USA - After Saturday reports widely said that Israel requested direct US military assistance in attacking Iranian nuclear sites, President Trump in fresh comments to ABC News has begun to change the White House tune a little, as he now says it's 'possible' the US 'could get involved' in the Israel-Iran conflict. He told ABC's Rachel Scott that "it's possible we could get involved" - however he emphasized that the US military is "not at this moment involved" in the conflict. He pivoted to calling for peaceful resolution, saying the US would be "open" to Russian President Vladimir Putin being a mediator. "He is ready. He called me about it. We had a long talk about it," Trump said. Of course, he campaigned against new wars starting and said these major conflicts would not have happened if he was president.

UK - It was the moment that Benjamin Netanyahu had awaited for decades: at 3am on Friday, the Israeli prime minister’s forces launched a massive attack on Iran, aiming to wipe out swathes of its nuclear weapons programme. Israel said its goal was to “roll back” Tehran’s programme, which it considers an existential threat, and has signalled that more strikes will follow, which could destroy the nuclear project altogether. But as the dust settles following Israel’s initial salvo of air strikes, the risk of this operation unleashing an all-out regional war – and one that could even drag in Britain – looks higher than ever. The Iranian statement also claimed that “grave and far-reaching consequences” will be inflicted on Mr Netanyahu’s “supporters” – raising the possibility that key allies Britain and France might be dragged into regional conflict as well.

IRAN - Iran's supreme leader is facing a backlash from members of his own regime amid the escalating conflict between Israel and the Islamic Republic. Israel unleashed airstrikes across Iran for a third day on Sunday (June 15), with critical oil, gas and nuclear facilities hit. Iran has retaliated with strikes on Israel, killing at least 13, including children. Tehran said on Saturday (June 14) that 78 people had been killed and over 320 wounded. The Middle East is braced for a protracted conflict after Israel's surprise bombardment of Iran's nuclear and military sites, which killed top generals and nuclear scientists.

NIGERIA - Fulani Islamic militants have unleashed another round of unspeakable violence on the village of Yelewata in Nigeria’s Benue State. Over the weekend, attackers stormed homes, locked families inside, and set them ablaze — killing over 100 civilians, including women and children. The attack, which began late Friday and stretched into the early hours of Saturday, left dozens missing and hundreds injured. With no access to medical aid, survivors watched their communities reduced to ash. Benue is located in Nigeria’s “Middle Belt,” an important area where the Muslim North meets the Christian South. The Yelewata massacre is not an isolated event, but rather a systematic campaign of genocide and extermination. Just days prior, in coordinated assaults across Benue and Plateau States, Fulani jihadists murdered over 130 Christians in cold blood.

UK - Guardian investigation finds almost 7,000 proven cases of cheating – and experts says these are tip of the iceberg. Thousands of university students in the UK have been caught misusing ChatGPT and other artificial intelligence tools in recent years, while traditional forms of plagiarism show a marked decline, a Guardian investigation can reveal. The data highlights a rapidly evolving challenge for universities: trying to adapt assessment methods to the advent of technologies such as ChatGPT and other AI-powered writing tools. A government spokesperson said it was investing more than £187 million in national skills programmes and had published guidance on the use of AI in schools. They said: “Generative AI has great potential to transform education and provides exciting opportunities for growth through our plan for change. However, integrating AI into teaching, learning and assessment will require careful consideration and universities must determine how to harness the benefits and mitigate the risks to prepare students for the jobs of the future.”

USA - Back in 2023, when we reviewed the practicality of meat products grown from laboratory processes, a new study had just revealed that it was up to 25 times worse for the environment than real beef. Despite the potential environmental impacts and lack of current technology to safely upscale production to meet current consumer needs, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) approved its sale to the public, clearing the way for two California companies to sell chicken produced from animal cells. Now lab-grown salmon has recently been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), marking a significant milestone in the alternative protein industry. The approval was granted to Wildtype, a San Francisco-based cellular agriculture company, making it the first lab-grown fish to receive FDA clearance for public consumption in this country. What distinguishes the new product is that unlike the chicken and beef, this salmon is meant to be eaten raw.

USA - “The US is helping to intercept incoming ballistic missiles, according to an Israeli official and a senior US official,” Axios reported. AP also confirmed the US is assisting Israel: The US official did not say how the US provided assistance, however both US Air Force fighter aircraft and destroyer-based missile defenses have intercepted missiles in previous attacks. The US has been moving assets nearer to Israel to assist in missile intercepts and to provide better protection of US bases in the region. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss ongoing operations. Fox News is reporting that the US is shooting down Iranian missiles with “Patriot Pac-3 missiles and with Thaad.”

USA - Donald Trump sensationally threatened to respond to any attack by Iran on the US with "the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces" as tensions in the Middle East racheted up. In a post on Truth Social, the US president said America had "nothing to do with the [latest] attack” on Tehran. He said: "If we are attacked in any way, shape or form by Iran, the full strength and might of the US Armed Forces will come down on you at levels never seen before." In response a senior Iranian military official said Tehran would strike the joint US-UK naval base on Diego Garcia in the event of any attack. He said: “There will be no distinction in targeting British or American forces if Iran is attacked from any base in the region or within the range of Iranian missiles."

IRAN - Exiled Iranian Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi on Friday urged both the Iranian people and the country’s conventional military to rise up against the increasingly unpopular regime led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. He accused the regime of dragging Iran into an unnecessary war with Israel. “Ali Khamenei, the reckless leader of the anti-Iranian Islamic Republic regime, has once again involved our country in a war,” Pahlavi wrote in Persian on social media. “This is not Iran’s war, nor the war of the Iranian people. It is Khamenei’s war and the Islamic Republic’s war." Pahlavi is the son of the late Iranian monarch Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, who was overthrown during the Islamic Revolution in 1979.

USA - At a Catholic funeral Mass for the father of a good friend, I watched as the priest in a white alb paced the sanctuary for at least an hour prior to the ceremonies, his half-detached Roman collar swinging like a broken door jam around his neck as he attended to the details of the service. When the time came to put on his vestment, he pulled the polyester liturgical poncho over his head in front of the congregation as if he was putting on a sweat shirt in Planet Fitness.

NORTHERN IRELAND - It was a gorgeous summer evening in Ballymena on Wednesday. The weather was warm, and as dusk fell and a pink moon rose, hundreds came out and mingled on the grassy bank above Bridge Street: there were old couples, young families, groups of girls in their skimpiest tops. There was a carnival feel in the air. They’d all come to watch the riot. This was civil disobedience as a social event. Old friends greeted each other before turning to comment on the action below. “Ah, he’s got a good arm there,” said a middle-aged man next to me as, 50 yards in front of us, one of an eddying mob of masked and hooded lads lobbed a brick towards the line of armoured police Land Rovers.

JAPAN - Toyota Chairman Akio Toyoda has raised concerns about the environmental benefits of battery electric vehicles (EVs), suggesting that hybrids offer a more practical path to reducing carbon emissions in certain regions. He argues that Toyota’s 27 million hybrid vehicles have the same carbon footprint as only nine million when the entire lifecycle of emissions is taken into account. Toyoda highlighted that Toyota has sold approximately 27 million hybrid vehicles, which he claims have had a similar carbon reduction impact as nine million EVs. Toyoda argues that EVs are still significantly “dirtier” than gasoline-electric hybrids when factoring in the full lifecycle emissions.

USA - US president Donald Trump faces a make or break moment in his long-running confrontation with Iran. The UN’s nuclear watchdog has just reached the damning conclusion that Iran is in breach of its non-proliferation agreement for the first time in 20 years. Trump’s offer to reopen talks with Tehran, made in a personal letter sent to Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei shortly after the president returned to the White House this year, held out the prospect of lifting the punitive sanctions imposed against Tehran during his first term in office. This would be in return for Iran curbing her nuclear ambitions.

ISRAEL - National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir welcomed the launching of Operation Rising Lion today (Friday), which was authorized unanimously by the cabinet, in a post on X: "We are in historic moments. The State of Israel is currently engaged in an operation in Iran — an action carefully designed and planned over many months by the cabinet and all security forces. I send strength and love to the soldiers of the IDF and to all branches of the security system operating with dedication and courage."

ISRAEL - Israel Pounds 300+ Sites, Kills Iran’s Military Chief and 12 Nuclear Scientists Within a Few Hours. Opening strike hits nuclear sites and command centers; Iranian regime scrambles military amid coup fears and confirms death of Armed Forces Chief. The scope and impact of Israel’s military campaign against Iran continue to unfold dramatically, with fresh reports confirming high-profile assassinations, nationwide military alerts in Iran, and significant regional tensions. Opposition-aligned Iranian sources report that the regime has begun deploying military units across the country amid fears of an internal coup. The move follows what many Iranians are calling an unprecedented intelligence and security failure.