Plus: Israeli defence minister calls for inquiry into 7 October failings, and Shelley Duvall dies at age 75. ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏ ͏
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| Hello. We're carrying on our coverage of the Nato summit in Washington DC, where the White House and Berlin announced the return of long-range US missiles in Germany for the first time since the Cold War. In Israel, the military released its first findings on what happened during the 7 October attacks, stirring up calls for a broader investigation. Kenyan politics and Greek basketball are also on the menu. | |
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QUESTIONS ANSWERED | US cruise missiles to return to Germany |
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| | Germany's defence minister said the missiles would fill a serious gap in capability. Credit: U.S. Navy via Getty Images | Washington and Berlin announced long-range US missiles would be deployed periodically in Germany from 2026 for the first time since the Cold War. The joint US-German statement, issued during Nato's 75th anniversary summit, made clear the "episodic" deployment of the missiles was initially seen as temporary but would later become permanent. |
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| | Paul Kirby, Europe digital editor |
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| What's new in this announcement? | The Tomahawk cruise, SM-6 and hypersonic missiles have a significantly longer range than missiles currently deployed in Germany. German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius said the idea behind the US plan was to encourage Germany and other European countries to put their own investment into developing and procuring longer-range missiles. | Why is this a "return"? | These missiles were banned under the Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty, which was signed at the end of the Cold War and covered ground-launched missiles that could travel between 500-5,500 km (310-3,400 miles). Russia's Vladimir Putin felt it was too restrictive and in 2014 the US accused him of violating the pact with a new type of nuclear-capable cruise missile. The US finally pulled out of the treaty in 2019, and Russia followed suit. | How has Russia responded to the announcement? | Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Moscow would react with a "military reponse to the new threat". "This is just a link in the chain of a course of escalation," he argued, accusing Nato and the US of trying to intimidate Russia. | | | Zelensky in DC: Ukraine's President has urged Nato Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg to "drop all limitations" on striking military targets in Russia "if we want to win". Meanwhile in Beijing: China has fiercely rejected accusations from Nato that it has been a "decisive enabler” of Russia’s war in Ukraine, with its "large-scale support for Russia’s defence industrial base". All eyes on Biden: The US president will give a news conference at 18:30 EDT (23:30 BST) at the Nato summit, his first after the debate that sent shockwaves throught his re-election campaign. Follow it on our live page. | |
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| Israeli army 'failed in mission' to protect kibbutz | | Around 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken back to Gaza as hostages on 7 October. Credit: Reuters | Israel's defence minister has called for a state inquiry into what led to the Hamas attacks on 7 October as the military admitted it failed in its duty to protect a small community were 101 people were killed. Yoav Gallant made his comments after the first in a series of official Israeli military reports laid bare how the army operated in Kibbutz Be’eri, which is near the Gaza perimeter fence. |
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| | | The report, carried out by a senior military officer, commended the bravery of security personal but said the IDF was not prepared for the extensive infiltration by Hamas and “for the first seven hours of combat, the kibbutz residents defended themselves”. It said: “The inquiry team determined that the IDF failed in its mission to protect the residents of Kibbutz Be'eri.”
A statement issued by Kibbutz Be’eri residents said it was of great importance to them that the IDF had asked for their forgiveness for not protecting them from what they called “an unparalleled attack of evil”. “The failure of the army has been burned into our bodies and in our hearts for nine months,” their statement said. They also called for a national [state] inquiry, which prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been unwilling to initiate. |
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THE BIG PICTURE | The 'Greek freak' goes to Paris |
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| | | Giannis Antetokounmpo is a two-time NBA Most Valuable Player. Credit: Getty Images | For the first 18 years of his life, Athens-born Giannis Antetokounmpo was effectively stateless, having no papers either from Greece or Nigeria, his parents' country. In two weeks, the NBA star will become the first black athlete to bear the flag in Paris for the nation that birthed the Olympics. |
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FOR YOUR DOWNTIME | Logical fallacies | There is such a thing as a bad argument - in fact, there are at least seven types. | |
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And finally... in Germany | England football fans demonstrated their support for coach Gareth Southgate by serenading a lookalike police officer in Dortmund. The man looked vaguely embarrassed and confused, but not too displeased with the performance. | |
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Medal Moments | Your daily newsletter guide to the Paris Olympics, from global highlights to heroic stories, throughout the Games. | |
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