Efe Özkan
28 June 2025•Update: 28 June 2025
ISTANBUL
Here is a rundown of all the news you need to start your Saturday, including top Iran diplomat urging Trump to drop 'disrespectful' tone to Khamenei; Trump saying he thinks Gaza ceasefire will be reached 'within the next week'; and the DR Congo and Rwanda signing a peace deal.
TOP STORIES
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi issued a sharp rebuke to US President Donald Trump, warning that any effort to strike a deal with Tehran must begin with a shift in tone toward Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
"If President Trump is genuine about wanting a deal, he should put aside the disrespectful and unacceptable tone towards Iran's Supreme Leader, Grand Ayatollah Khamenei, and stop hurting his millions of heartfelt followers," Araghchi wrote on X.
His remarks came after Trump announced he immediately dropped work on sanctions relief for Iran after Khamenei said his country had scored a victory against the US.
US President Donald Trump said a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip will be reached soon.
"I think it's close," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office when asked how close his administration is to a deal on a ceasefire.
"I just spoke with some of the people involved ... We think within the next week we're going to get a ceasefire," Trump said.
The Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda signed a US-mediated peace agreement to end deadly fighting in eastern Congo.
"We're grateful that both of you were here, and it's instrumental. This is an important moment after 30 years of war," said US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at a signing ceremony.
The agreement includes commitments to respect territorial integrity, cease hostilities, disengage and disarm non-state armed groups, establish a joint security coordination mechanism and facilitate the return of refugees, humanitarian access, and regional economic cooperation.
NEWS IN BRIEF
- A magnitude 6.9 earthquake hit offshore east of Sarangani in the province of Davao Occidental in the southern Philippines, according to the Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs).
- Israel issued an expulsion order for Palestinians, threatening to attack neighborhoods in the central Gaza Strip.
- Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan highlighted the need for an agreement between Iran and the US, as both have the will to engage in negotiations following a period of airstrikes and heightened tensions.
- US Republican Rep. Bill Foster said US strikes against Iranian nuclear sites may not have hit existing stockpiles of enriched uranium, which could be used to produce weapons with the strength of a Hiroshima bomb in “a very small breakout time.”
- Ukraine will launch a digital marketplace for military equipment in July to accelerate and simplify arms deliveries to combat units, Defense Minister Rustem Umerov said.
- The UN welcomed a peace agreement between the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Rwanda in Washington as "a major step forward" toward ending the prolonged conflict in the region.
- Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis met his French counterpart, Jean-Noel Barrot, in Paris to discuss ties, European priorities and international issues, including Gaza, Ukraine and Syria.
- At least 56 military personnel were killed in recent Israeli attacks on Iran, the Iranian military said.
- Palestinian authorities in Gaza said narcotic pills had been found inside US-dispatched flour bags in the enclave.
- Illegal Israeli settlers launched a new attack on Palestinian towns in the occupied West Bank, a local activist said.
- Iran accused the UN nuclear watchdog chief of “betraying his duties,” saying his insistence on visiting bombed nuclear sites was “malign in intent.”
- Türkiye said the outcomes of the EU leaders' summit show that Greece and Southern Cyprus continue efforts to impose their maximalist claims.
BUSINESS & ECONOMY
- US stocks end week with gains
The New York Stock Exchange completed the last trading day of the week in positive territory.
The Nasdaq index, which saw all-time highs during the day, saw closing records in December last year and the S&P 500 index in February.
The Dow rose 1%, or 432.43 points, to close at 43,819.27.
- Türkiye-Kuwait, Germany-Jordan truck transport system launched in Istanbul
The Türkiye-Kuwait and Germany-Jordan truck transport systems were launched as part of the “Global Transportation Corridors Forum” in Istanbul.
Abdulkadir Uraloglu, the Turkish Transport and Infrastructure minister, said at the forum that Türkiye will track trucks from Türkiye via road transport, which will form the first leg of the Development Road Initiative, and reach Iraq, then Kuwait before reaching Jordan.
The Development Road is an important trade route project linking Iraq and Türkiye with railways, roads, ports and cities.
