00:00Israeli strikes hit Beirut's southern suburbs early Friday as thousands of IDF soldiers have
00:05been deployed across the border while Hezbollah militants continued rocket attacks on Israel.
00:10Ukraine and Saudi Arabia have signed a landmark defense cooperation deal focusing on developing
00:14capabilities to counter aerial threats from missiles and drones.
00:20Israeli strikes hit Tehran and Beirut early Friday with smoke scene blowing from the southern
00:25suburbs of the Lebanese capital. The Israeli military has called for the immediate evacuation
00:29of Sojoud village in southern Lebanon warning of imminent attack against Hezbollah.
00:34Hezbollah fighters continued attacks on Israeli troops in southern Lebanon where Israel has
00:40deployed thousands of soldiers across the border. Officials in Israel intend to cease control of the
00:45entire area south of the Litani River a move that prompted Saudi Arabia to urge its citizens to leave
00:51Lebanon immediately. Rockets fired from Lebanon were intercepted over Haifa on Thursday though
00:56Israeli reports confirmed one man was killed and four others were wounded by shrapnel.
01:01In a letter to the military on Friday, the parents of combat soldiers, a group representing 600 families,
01:07called for an end-to-the-ground offensive urging a political solution instead.
01:12Lebanon was drawn into the war on 2nd of March when Hezbollah began firing rockets into Israel to avenge the
01:18killing of Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The war has claimed over 1,900 lives in Iran
01:24and 1,100 in Lebanon. In Israel, 18 people have died, including four soldiers killed in combat in Lebanon.
01:38An invasion, not a limited operation. This is how the Lebanese culture minister Hassan Salami
01:44described the Israeli military campaign in his country on Euronews Morning Show Europe today on Friday.
01:51Yesterday, AP has shifted from something quite vague into saying exactly that it's an invasion.
02:00I used to say it's a creeping action by the Israeli military and I say since yesterday it's now an
02:07invasion.
02:08Lebanon was drawn into the wider Iran war in early March when the Tehran-backed militia Hezbollah,
02:14began firing rockets into Israel and Israel fired back. In three weeks, the UN says over 1 million
02:21people have been internally displaced and over 1,000 are dead, including scores of humanitarian and
02:28medical staff. Minister Salami said the conflict had now entered a more dangerous face, noting a shift
02:34in Israel's strategy on the ground. He believes plans for a buffer zone south of the Litani River
02:40could amount to a long-term territorial grab. Salami feels the current approach is different from
02:47previous buffer zones, as now entire villages are being destroyed in South Lebanon, leaving no
02:53infrastructure or conditions for civilians to return.
03:00Cyprus Minister of Foreign Affairs, Constantinos Combos, has issued a clear warning to citizens planning to
03:06travel to the Middle East. With the Orthodox Easter holiday approaching, authorities have observed
03:12an increase in travel plans to countries in the region. The Minister emphasized that anyone
03:17choosing to travel will do so at their own risk and the government will not arrange
03:22repatriation flights for those who may become stranded.
03:26The efforts of our international cooperation from such areas, which was the last time, was difficult,
03:35was completed, but it was not possible and is not possible to return to the future.
03:41However, I also confirm that the request must be addressed from the United Arab Emirates,
03:49and in the context of human responsibility.
03:53Following the outbreak of the war, around 1.000 citizens were repatriated to Cyprus, mainly from the United Arab Emirates.
04:00Updated travel advisories now urge Cypriot citizens to avoid all travels to the United Arab Emirates,
04:07Iraq, Israel, Qatar, Kuwait, Lebanon, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia.
04:14Ukraine and Saudi Arabia have signed a landmark defense cooperation deal, the first of its kind in the Gulf,
04:20focused on developing capabilities to counter aerial threats from missiles and drones.
04:25During a visit to Jeddah one month into the Iran war, President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that Kyiv aims to strengthen
04:31its international role
04:33as a security donor by sharing battle-tested technologies and expertise.
04:38While acknowledging Saudi capabilities, Zelensky highlighted Ukraine's specific interest in air defense systems
04:44to counter Russian ballistic missiles.
04:47The President also met with over 200 Ukrainian anti-drone experts already deployed to Saudi Arabia,
04:53the UAE, and Qatar.
04:55The deployment follows a recent Moscow attack in which Ukrainian air defenses achieved a record 97% interception rate against
05:02drones.
05:03Earlier at the Joint Expeditionary Force Summit in Helsinki,
05:07Zelensky urged leaders to ramp up European defense production.
05:10He urged that Europe must rely on its own industries rather than external partners
05:15to ensure long-term stability in energy and global markets.
05:25Switzerland's new army chief says the country does not yet have the necessary defenses against potential drone attacks,
05:31such as those being used in the war in the Middle East.
05:34Because against the threats that we see now in Iran, we have more or less nothing, nothing, zero.
05:43And you see, after, that's the reason why we have to invest in this domain-là.
05:48And one thing that makes me really a problem, it's what we do if these new systems,
05:54the drones and all that, go in the hands of terrorists.
06:04The assessment comes as the Swiss government prepares to boost its defense spending,
06:09focused on expanding ground-based aerial defense, protection against drones and additional cyberspace capabilities.
06:16The army chief says there are two main priorities.
06:34Earlier this month, Switzerland and the EU also said they planned to deepen cooperation on security and defense,
06:40including the exchange of information in areas ranging from Ukraine to the Middle East.
06:48Maria Kolasnikova, the belarusian opposition leader, is now in Berlin after nearly five and a half years in prison.
06:55She was awarded the prestigious Charlemagne Prize while in detention, which she was only now able to receive.
07:02Euronews spoke with her about the future of her country.
07:05Welche Entwicklungen machen Ihnen Hoffnung in Belarus und welche machen Ihnen Sorgen?
07:12Wenn man denkt und spricht über die Zukunft, es gibt große Sorgen,
07:19umso dass Belarus ihre Souveränität verloren kann.
07:23Und es ist ganz nah eigentlich, weil wir ökonomisch nicht mehr so unabhängig sind als früher.
07:32Und das ist eigentlich ein Teil, es ist ein Ergebnis von Sanktionen.
07:40Wenn die Sanktionen ganz starkes Druck auf Lukaschenko machen,
07:46der kehrt sich nach Russland.
07:48Und Russland hat natürlich profitiert dafür, dass Belarus keinen Kontakt mit der EU hat.
07:58But what about the majority of people in Belarus?
08:01Are they moving towards the EU or towards Russia?
08:05Es gibt jetzt eine riesige russische, aggressive Propaganda in Belarus.
08:12Und es ist vielleicht sogar viel gefährlicher als Sanktionen,
08:20weil es ist schon fünf Jahre vorbei und es gibt jüngere Generationen,
08:28die haben 2020 und Proteste nicht mitgekriegt.
08:32Sie wissen jetzt nicht mehr, was ist das, was ist was.
08:38Und Gefahr ist, dass in noch ein paar Jahren oder noch fünf Jahren,
08:44es würden schon mehrere Generationen sein,
08:47die würden überhaupt nicht verstehen, was die EU ist und was demokratische Werte sind.
08:53The EU muss therefore communicate with Lukaschenko
08:56und clearly defend its interests, says Kolesnikova.
08:59Und wenn man nicht mit Lukaschenko keine Gespräche wollen,
09:05irgendwann kommt die Zeit,
09:07der Staat Lukaschenko, die müssen mit Putin sprechen.
09:10Und das ist, finde ich, viel schlimmer.
09:12Maria Kolesnikova counts on Europe's support.
09:16She hopes that Solidarity will, in the long term,
09:19strengthen the path towards more democracy and independence in Belarus.
09:28Belenja Shah, Nepal's youngest prime minister,
09:31took the oath of office on Friday,
09:34after his party won a landslide victory in elections earlier this month.
09:39In September, a youth-led uprising toppled the government.
09:43The 35-year-old rapper-turned-politician
09:47was appointed prime minister by President Ramchandra Pudel on Friday,
09:52after his Rashtriya Swatantra party
09:55won nearly two-thirds of the seats in the House of Representatives.
09:59Shah will lead a government tasked with navigating deep public frustration
10:04with Nepal's established parties,
10:07who were widely blamed by voters for corruption
10:09and chronic political instability.
10:12The structural engineer, widely known as Balin,
10:15rose to fame as a rap artist
10:17before becoming Kathmandu's mayor.
10:21Shah emerged as a prominent voice
10:24during the bloody youth-led uprising in September,
10:27although he did not directly participate in them.
10:36The whale is finally free.
10:39The marine mammal, measuring around 10 metres in length,
10:42had become stranded earlier this week
10:44near Nindorf in Germany,
10:46north of the city of Lübeck.
10:49For several days, rescue teams had been working for free the male whale.
10:53Boats were initially used to create waves.
10:57Rescuers eventually resorted to using excavators
11:00to dig a passage through the sand.
11:02In a final effort, the humpback whale managed to reach the open sea,
11:07accompanied by several boats.
11:10Although the rescue operation was a success,
11:12marine biology specialists are tempering the optimism.
11:31The animal is believed to be ill,
11:33and it faces a long journey before finding its way back to the ocean.
11:36and it faces a long journey before finding its way back to the ocean.
11:36and it faces a long journey before finding its way of having a
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