Iran’s Constitutional Council has validated the first round’s results of the country’s 14th presidential election, meaning candidates could now begin electoral campaigns for the run-off.

The announcement was made by Hadi Tahan Nazif, spokesman for the council, an institution that oversees the process and results of elections, in a televised interview with the state-run IRIB TV on Sunday.

He said the institution confirms the results following investigation and reviews, Xinhua news agency reported.

None of the four candidates vying in the first round had made any objection to the election results during the legal time frame for voicing complaints, he said, adding that the election campaigns could continue until Thursday morning, or 24 hours before the run-off.

In the first round of voting for the snap presidential race that started early on Friday and ended at midnight after being extended three times, no candidate obtained more than 50 per cent of the total votes needed to call a winner.

The country was thus sent into a run-off scheduled for July 5 between top contenders — reformist Masoud Pezeshkian, Iran’s former Health Minister, who received more than 42 per cent of the votes in the first round, and principlist Saeed Jalili, the former chief negotiator in the nuclear talks between Tehran and world powers, who garnered more than 38 per cent of the total.

Iran’s 14th presidential election, initially set for 2025, was rescheduled following the unexpected death of former President Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash on May 19. AGENCIES

 Iraqi explosive experts have defused six bombs, believed to have been planted by Islamic State (IS) militants years ago in the historic al-Nuri Mosque in Mosul, a police source said.

“They were homemade bombs planted in a complex way, but the explosive experts have dismantled them without causing any casualty,” Major Ahmed Saber from Mosul police told Xinhua news agency.

He said the site is now ready to resume the restoration work undertaken by the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), which was halted after the reported discovery of bombs in the southern wall of the mosque’s prayer hall on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported.

The IS blew up the al-Nuri Mosque and its iconic leaning minaret on June 21, 2017, with deliberately placed bombs.

UNESCO has been overseeing efforts to rebuild the mosque and other heritage sites in Mosul following the defeat of the IS. AGENCIES

Explosions were heard in Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital amid Russian missile attacks, a local official and media outlets reported.

The air defence was operating near the capital, and the debris from the destroyed missile hit an apartment block in Kyiv’s northern Obolonskyi district, said the city’s mayor, Vitali Klitschko, on social media.

There were no immediate reports of casualties, reports Xinhua news agency, citing Klitschko.

According to the media reports, an air raid alert was declared in Kyiv and five regions in northern, central and northeastern Ukraine during the attacks. AGENCIES

Medical professors at three South Korea University-affiliated hospitals vowed on Monday to start an indefinite voluntary walkout later this month, amid a prolonged standoff between doctors and the government over its medical reform plan.

The emergency committee of the professors serving as senior doctors at the university announced the walkout starting July 12, excluding the operation of emergency rooms and intensive care units, calling for the government to “withdraw its pressure on medical students and trainee doctors” and engage in dialogue, Yonhap news agency reported.

“The medical community sought to launch a dialogue by offering solutions and compromises, but the government has flatly ignored all and abused its administrative orders,” the committee said in a statement.

The announcement came after professors at Severance Hospital, Gangnam Severance Hospital and Yongin Severance Hospital also began suspending the treatment of outpatients, non-emergency surgeries, and other services from Thursday last week.

Senior doctors at Asan Medical Center are also anticipated to launch a one-week walkout starting Thursday.

Despite strong opposition from doctors, the government finalised an admissions quota hike of some 1,500 students for medical schools in May to address the shortage of doctors.

Last month, the government asked hospitals to swiftly accept the resignations of trainee doctors who have left their worksites in protest of the government’s medical reform, in an apparent move to appease the junior doctors.

About 12,000 trainee doctors have left their jobs since late February to protest against a hike in the number of medical students. In a punitive step, the government ordered hospitals not to accept the resignations of trainee doctors to prevent them from seeking jobs at other clinics.

Last week, a committee formed by the medical community to navigate joint responses to its monthslong standoff with the government over the medical reform plan, decided to convene a nationwide debate on July 26 regarding the government’s medical reform. AGENCIES

A plenary Central Committee meeting of North Korea’s ruling Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) has continued for the third day in a row, state media reported on Monday, amid attention being paid to whether it would announce follow-up measures to implement a new partnership treaty with Russia.

The third day of the 10th plenary meeting of the WPK’s eighth Central Committee was held on Sunday “to work out detailed and practical measures for successfully fulfilling the tasks for 2024,” the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said.

“The participants are intensifying the discussion while conducting an in-depth study of the draft resolutions to be submitted to the plenary meeting and thoroughly exploring ways to carry out the tasks for the second half of the year entrusted to their sectors and units,” the KCNA said as reported by Yonhap news agency.

The plenary meeting began on Friday, with five agenda items approved by all members of the WPK Central Committee, the KCNA said, without further disclosing other details.

On the second day, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un attended the meeting to “discuss and decide on a series of important immediate issues arising in maintaining the upturn in the comprehensive development of Korean-style socialism,” it said.

North Korea usually holds a party plenary meeting for a few days in June. But this year’s meeting has drawn more attention due to the possibility that it could discuss detailed measures to expand cooperation with Russia following its signing of a comprehensive strategic partnership treaty with Moscow.

Kim and Russian President Vladimir Putin held a summit in Pyongyang on June 19 and clinched the treaty that calls for providing military assistance to each other without delay if either side comes under an armed attack. AGENCIES

North Korea fired two ballistic missiles in an eastward direction on Monday, South Korea’s military said, after warning of countermeasures against a joint military exercise held by South Korea, the US and Japan. The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said one short-range ballistic missile was launched from the Jangyon area in South Hwanghae province at about 5:05 a.m. in a northeastern direction. Another unidentified ballistic missile was launched at around 5:15 a.m.

It did not provide further details, such as how far the missiles flew, Yonhap news agency reported.

“While strengthening our monitoring and vigilance against additional launches, our military is maintaining a full-readiness posture while sharing North Korean ballistic missile data with US and Japanese authorities,” the JCS told the media.

On Sunday, North Korea’s Foreign Ministry denounced the three-day multi-domain “Freedom Shield” exercise, saying the country would take “offensive and overwhelming” countermeasures against what it called an attempt to strengthen a military bloc.

The drills, which ended on Saturday, involved fighter jets and warships, including a US aircraft carrier.

The latest launch came five days after North Korea fired a ballistic missile toward the East Sea on Wednesday.

North Korea claimed the next day to have successfully conducted a multiple warhead missile test, but South Korea has dismissed the claim as “deception”, saying the launch failed as the missile exploded in midair.

North Korea has ratcheted up cross-border tensions in recent weeks, launching trash-carrying balloons to South Korea in a tit-for-tat move against anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent by North Korean defectors and activists in South Korea.

The latest launch also took place amid growing concerns over deepening military cooperation between Pyongyang and Moscow after North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a “comprehensive strategic partnership” treaty during a summit last month in Pyongyang.

The pact includes a pledge for the two countries to come to each other’s aid if attacked. AGENCIES

 North Korea fired an unidentified ballistic missile eastward on Monday, South Korea’s military said, marking its second launch in a week.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff said it detected the launch but gave no further details, saying an analysis is underway.

The latest launch comes after North Korea fired a ballistic missile toward the East Sea on Wednesday, Yonhap news agency reported.

North Korea claimed to have successfully conducted a multiple warhead missile test, but South Korea has dismissed the claim, saying the launch failed as the missile exploded in the air. AGENCIES

 The ruling Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) secured a narrow majority in regular parliamentary elections, as confirmed by the official results from the General Election Commission (GEC).

“The results from the hand-counted ballots matched those from the voting machines. Therefore, the GEC has approved a resolution confirming 126 candidates who have been declared winners as members of parliament,” the GEC said in a statement, reported Xinhua news agency.

A total of 1,341 candidates from 19 political parties and two coalitions, along with 42 independents, competed in the elections for the State Great Khural, the country’s parliament.

The MPP won a total of 68 seats, while the main opposition Democratic Party secured 42 seats. The Hun Party, translating to “Person” in Mongolian, obtained eight seats. Additionally, the Civil Will-Green Party and the National Coalition, consisting of the Mongolian National Democratic Party and the Mongolian Green Party, each secured four seats.

In May 2023, the State Great Khural passed amendments to increase the number of legislators from 76 to 126.

The elections were conducted under a mixed electoral system, with 78 legislators elected through majority representation and 48 through proportional representation.

Mongolia’s unicameral parliament operates on a four-year term. AGENCIES

 The Palestinian presidency has rejected any foreign presence on Palestinian lands, in response to Israeli statements calling for the handover of the Gaza Strip to international forces.

In a declaration carried by the official news agency WAFA, Nabil Abu Rudeineh, spokesperson for the presidency, said on Sunday that “there is no legitimacy for any foreign presence on Palestinian lands, and only the Palestinian people can decide who governs and manages their affairs”.

He stressed that the Israeli government “is delusional if it thinks it can decide the fate of the Palestinian people and cement the occupation by bringing in foreign forces” as reported by Xinhua news agency.

The Spokesperson called the Palestine Liberation Organisation the sole legitimate representative of the Palestinian people, which “has legal authority over all of Palestine’s territory, including Gaza, the West Bank, and Jerusalem”.

He emphasised that “the Palestine issue is about land and statehood, not just humanitarian aid; it is a sacred issue and the central cause for Arabs”.

On Friday, Israeli public radio Kan reported that Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant discussed the transitional phase plan for Gaza during his visit to the US days ago.

The plan would be overseen by a steering committee led by the US and involving moderate Arab countries, according to the radio.

The international forces, possibly including soldiers from Egypt, Jordan, the United Arab Emirates, and Morocco, would oversee security in Gaza while the American side would handle leadership and logistics from outside the strip, likely in Egypt, it reported.

The plan will be implemented in stages from north to south Gaza and aims for the gradual transfer of local security responsibilities to Palestinian forces, the report said.

It noted that the plan assumes that Hamas’s military capabilities have been sufficiently reduced, rendering the group unable to conduct large-scale attacks.

Israel’s National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi said last Tuesday during a conference at the Reichman University in Herzliya that “the post-war plan for Hamas and Gaza has been prepared in recent weeks, and we will soon see practical steps towards this”.

He added, “We do not have to wait for Hamas to disappear, as it is a long process,” explaining, “We cannot eliminate Hamas as an idea; we need an alternative idea.”

Hanegbi believes that establishing an alternative to replace Hamas is essential for achieving long-term victory, saying that the alternative should be a government supported by local residents who wish to live alongside Israel, with backing from moderate Arab countries.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had faced widespread criticism from within and outside Israel for not presenting a clear post-war plan for Gaza.

Israel has been conducting a large-scale offensive against Hamas in Gaza to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on October 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and more than 200 were taken hostage. AGENCIES

The driver and the passenger of a motorcycle were killed after their vehicle was hit by a sport utility vehicle in Cavite province, south of Manila, police said on Monday.

The police said the male and female victims, aged 26 and 30, were travelling along a road in General Mariano Alvarez town on Sunday afternoon when the SUV crashed into them, tossing the victims off the motorcycle and running them over, reports Xinhua news agency.

Rescuers rushed the victims to a local hospital, but they succumbed to their injuries.The police detained the SUV driver, who is facing criminal charges. AGENCIES