ISTANBUL

Here’s a rundown of all the news you need to start your Friday, including Iran reiterating that it controls the Strait of Hormuz in a warning to the US and its partners, illegal Israeli settlers torching the entrance of a mosque in the West Bank, and law enforcement officials identifying a gunman who opened fire at Old Dominion University in Virginia as being previously convicted of providing material support to ISIS.

TOP STORIES

• ‘No right to pass’: Iran reiterates control of Strait of Hormuz, warns US and its partners

Iran’s Armed Forces reiterated that they control the strategic Strait of Hormuz and will not allow the US or countries involved in recent attacks on Iran to pass through the vital waterway.

“Without any doubt or negligence, the Strait of Hormuz is under the wise management of the brave naval forces of the Revolutionary Guards. American aggressors and their partners have no right to pass through here,” said the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, a unit responsible for overseeing military operations.

Iran previously announced it had closed the Strait of Hormuz to vessels belonging to countries linked to the US and Israeli attacks on the country.

• Illegal Israeli settlers torch entrance of mosque in West Bank

Illegal Israeli settlers set fire to the entrance of a mosque in the village of Duma, south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, and spray-painted Hebrew slogans on its walls, according to Palestinian sources.

Anti-settlement activist Suleiman Dawabsheh told Anadolu that a group of settlers infiltrated the village before dawn and set fire to the mosque.

Residents quickly extinguished the flames with the help of crews from the Palestinian Civil Defense before it had a chance to spread inside the building, he added.

Dawabsheh said the blaze damaged the mosque’s entrance, while smoke spread inside the prayer hall, causing damage to interior facades and prayer carpets.

• Gunman in shooting at Old Dominion University in Virginia is convicted ISIS supporter: Officials

The gunman who opened fire at Old Dominion University in Norfolk in the US state of Virginia, killing one person and wounding two others before being neutralized, has been identified as being previously convicted of providing material support to the ISIS (Daesh) terror group, NBC reported.

Citing two senior law enforcement officials, the shooter was identified as Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, 36, who had pleaded guilty in 2016 to attempting to provide material support to a designated foreign terrorist organization and was sentenced to 11 years in prison as well as five years of supervised release.

The shooting took place shortly before 10.49 am local time (1549GMT) in Constant Hall, the university said, with university police, Norfolk police and emergency personnel responding immediately.

The university later said there was no longer a threat on its premises.

NEWS IN BRIEF

• China said it was disappointed after the UN Security Council failed to adopt a Russia-backed draft resolution mourning the “tragic loss of life throughout the ongoing hostilities” in the Middle East.
• Iran has deployed fewer than 10 naval mines in the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz, according to a report released by a US-based research institute.
• China and North Korea resumed cross-border passenger train services for the first time in six years after the route was suspended during the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Rallying the public over the largely unpopular US war on Iran, US President Donald Trump said one US general told him they destroy Iranian vessels rather than capture them “because it’s more fun doing it this way.”
• Türkiye’s National Defense Ministry said that Greece’s actions regarding the status of certain islands violate existing treaties and undermine bilateral neighborly relations.
• Iran said it cannot accept US calls for negotiations or ceasefire while “war crimes” are being committed against the country.
• The US Naval Forces Central Command said that a fire broke out aboard the USS Gerald R. Ford aircraft carrier while the ship was operating in the Red Sea in support of operations in Iran.
• Thousands of protesters took to the streets of Brussels to denounce austerity measures and reforms introduced by the Belgian federal government, disrupting services across the capital.
• Israel’s Health Ministry said that 2,745 people have been injured in Iranian missile and drone attacks since late last month.
• The UN warned that more than 4.1 million people have been internally displaced across the Middle East since the beginning of the current military escalation, with humanitarian needs growing rapidly in several countries.
• More than 800,000 people have been displaced in Lebanon following "evacuation orders" by Israel, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said.
• A suspect was shot dead as FBI agents and police responded to reports of an active shooter at the Temple Israel synagogue in the US state of Michigan, media reports said.
• The Bahrain Defense Force’s General Command said that it has intercepted and destroyed 114 missiles and 190 drones from Iran since the beginning of “the brutal aggression.”

BUSINESS & ECONOMY

• Bangladesh secures diesel from Malaysia, Singapore, India amid Middle East energy tensions

Bangladesh has secured diesel imports from several nations including India, Malaysia, and Singapore to help ease a squeeze in energy supplies due to the ongoing conflict in the Middle East.

India has started supplying around 10,000 metric tons of diesel to Bangladesh through the Bangladesh-India Friendship Pipeline (BIFP).

• Nearly 1 in 3 US adults make financial sacrifices to afford health care: Poll

Nearly one in three US adults reported making financial sacrifices to cover health care costs in the past year, including skipping or rationing medications or borrowing money, according to a West Health-Gallup poll.

A separate survey by the group found nearly one in 10 adults has delayed retirement due to health care costs, while others said they postponed changing jobs, buying a home, or having a child.