News compact: Israel hints at end of war in Gaza

01.07.2025 July 1, 2025

According to Defense Minister Katz, the Israeli armed forces are nearing the end of their mission in the Gaza Strip. Denmark is taking over the EU Council Presidency. The most important information in brief.

One week after the ceasefire between Israel and Iran began, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz also said the war with the terrorist organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip is coming to an end. "We are now nearing the conclusion of the operation in Gaza," Katz said, according to his office. He also reiterated the goals Israel wanted to achieve in the war, including the release of all hostages.

A few days ago, US President Donald Trump declared that he expected a ceasefire in the Palestinian coastal strip next week. He did not provide any details.

According to the Israeli online newspaper "The Times of Israel," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will soon fly to Washington. He will meet with Trump at the White House on Monday, the paper reports.

USA lifts sanctions against Syria

Six months after the change of power in Syria, President Donald Trump formally lifted the US sanctions against the country by executive order. He announced the move in May. The lifting of the sanctions is intended to promote and support Syria's path to stability and peace, said Trump spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt. Sanctions against long-time former ruler Bashar al-Assad and members of his former government remain in place.

Younger men wave Syrian flags — In the Syrian capital Damascus, residents celebrate the lifting of US sanctions. Image: IMAGO/NurPhoto

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated on the online service X that he would examine whether Syria could also be removed from the list of states that support terrorism.

Turkish authorities continue to crack down on opposition

In Turkey , a ten-day broadcasting ban has been imposed on a television station close to the opposition. The media regulator RTÜK accuses Halk TV of "incitement to hatred." The complaint concerns a statement made by a guest invited by the station, who said that Turkey is becoming "not more religious, but more cult-like." Halk TV is close to the country's largest opposition party, the social democratic CHP.

Demonstrators demand the release of Ekrem Imamoglu at a rally — Istanbul: Supporters of the imprisoned former mayor Ekrem Imamoglu repeatedly demand his release (archive photo) Image: Tolga Uluturk/ZUMA Press/IMAGO

Meanwhile, prosecutors filed new charges against imprisoned former Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu . The popular CHP politician is accused of insulting two prosecutors during a court hearing following his arrest in March, according to the Anadolu news agency.

Severe forest fires rage in Turkey

According to the Turkish Civil Protection Agency, more than 50,000 people have been evacuated from forest and bush fires. 41 communities are affected by evacuation measures, the agency further stated. In the western province of Izmir alone, approximately 1,000 firefighters battled the flames on the ground and from the air. Television images showed residential buildings burned to the ground. The Turkish provinces of Bilecik and Hatay are also affected.

Thick black smoke, in front of it a strip of forest and a road — Fires also rage in the province of Manisa. Image: DHA

Change at the top of the EU Council

Denmark has assumed the six-month rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union . Germany's northern neighbor thus succeeds Poland on a rotating basis. Danish government representatives will chair ministerial meetings until the end of the year and act as mediators in disagreements among the 27 EU member states.

Denmark's Minister for European Affairs Marie Bjerre explains the priorities of the EU Council Presidency to journalists in Copenhagen. Photo: Liselotte Sabroe picture alliance / Ritzau Scanpix

Denmark practices a restrictive asylum policy and is one of Ukraine's most staunch supporters. Like Germany, the country has significantly increased its defense spending since the start of Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine in February 2022. Denmark also plays an important role in monitoring the Baltic Sea region and protecting it from attacks on infrastructure such as submarine cables.

Oldest unsolved murder case in Great Britain solved

A 92-year-old man has been convicted in Great Britain for a murder that occurred almost 60 years ago. It is reportedly the oldest cold case in British police history. A jury in Bristol found the man guilty of raping and strangling a 75-year-old woman in her own home in 1967. Although he left his fingerprints and the police compared them with those of 19,000 boys and men, the perpetrator could not be identified at the time.

However, traces of semen on the victim's skirt were now highly likely to be attributed to the 92-year-old. His DNA had been added to the police database during another incident in 2012. "Crimes of this magnitude must never go unpunished," said Chief Investigator Dave Marchant.

se/jj/fab (dpa, rtr, ap, afp, timesofisrael.com)

This article was created at 9:00 a.m. (CEST) and will not be updated further.