DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Israel unleashed airstrikes across Iran for a third day on Sunday and threatened even greater force as some Iranian missiles evaded Israeli air defenses to strike buildings in the heart of the country. Planned talks on Iran’s nuclear program, which could provide an off-ramp, were called off.

The region braced for a protracted conflict after Israel’s surprise bombardment of Iran’s nuclear and military sites on Friday killed several top generals and nuclear scientists, and neither side showed any sign of backing down. Israel reportedly targeted a gas installation, raising the prospect of a broader assault on Iran’s heavily sanctioned energy industry that could affect global markets.

U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed full support for Israel’s actions while warning Iran that it can only avoid further destruction by agreeing to a new nuclear deal.

New explosions echoed across Tehran and were reported elsewhere in the country early Sunday, but there was no update to a death toll put out the day before by Iran’s U.N. ambassador, who said 78 people had been killed and more than 320 wounded.

In Israel, at least 10 people were killed in Iranian strikes overnight and into Sunday, according to Israel’s Magen David Adom rescue service, bringing the country’s total death toll to 13.

Israeli strikes targeted Iran’s Defense Ministry early Sunday after hitting air defenses, military bases and sites associated with its nuclear program. The killing of several top generals and nuclear scientists in targeted strikes indicated that Israeli intelligence has penetrated Iran at the highest levels.

Death toll mounts in Israel

In Israel, at least six people, including two children, were killed when a missile hit an apartment building in Bat Yam, near Tel Aviv. Daniel Hadad, a local police commander, said 180 people were wounded and seven are still missing.

An Associated Press reporter saw streets lined with damaged and destroyed buildings, bombed out cars and shards of glass. Responders used a drone at points to look for survivors. Some people could be seen leaving the area with suitcases.

Four people were killed when a missile struck a building in the northern Israeli town of Tamra and another 24 were wounded. A strike on the central city of Rehovot wounded 42 people.

The Weizmann Institute of Science, an important center for research in Rehovot, said “there were a number of hits to buildings on the campus.” It said no one was harmed.

Israel has a sophisticated multi-tiered missile defense system that is able to intercept most projectiles fired at it, but officials have always said it is imperfect.

Urgent calls to deescalate

World leaders made urgent calls to deescalate. The attack on nuclear sites set a “dangerous precedent,” China’s foreign minister said. The region is already on edge as Israel seeks to annihilate Hamas, an Iranian ally, in the Gaza Strip, where the war is still raging after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu brushed off such calls, saying Israel’s strikes so far are “nothing compared to what they will feel under the sway of our forces in the coming days.”

Israel, the sole though undeclared nuclear-armed state in the Middle East — said it launched the attack to prevent Iran from developing a nuclear weapon.

Iran has always said its nuclear program was peaceful, and the U.S. and others have assessed it has not pursued a weapon since 2003. But it has enriched ever larger stockpiles of uranium to near weapons-grade levels in recent years and was believed to have been able to develop multiple weapons within months if it chose to do so.

The U.N.’s atomic watchdog censured Iran last week for not complying with its obligations.

Semiofficial Iranian news agencies meanwhile reported that an Israeli drone strike had caused a “strong explosion” at an Iranian natural-gas processing plant, in what could be the first Israeli attack on Iran’s oil and natural gas industry. Israel’s military did not immediately comment.

The extent of damage at the South Pars natural gas field was not immediately clear. Such sites have air defense systems around them, which Israel has been targeting.

Iran calls nuclear talks ‘unjustifiable’

The Arab Gulf country of Oman, which has been mediating indirect talks between the U.S. and Iran over Tehran’s nuclear program, said a sixth round planned for Sunday would not take place.

“We remain committed to talks and hope the Iranians will come to the table soon,” a senior U.S. official said on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive talks.

Iran’s top diplomat, Abbas Araghchi, said Saturday that the nuclear talks were “unjustifiable” after Israel’s strikes, which he said were the “result of the direct support by Washington.”

In a post on his Truth Social account early Sunday, Trump reiterated that the U.S. was not involved in the attacks on Iran and warned that any retaliation directed against it would bring an American response “at levels never seen before.”

“However, we can easily get a deal done between Iran and Israel, and end this bloody conflict!!!” he wrote.

‘More than a few weeks’ to repair nuclear facilities

In Iran, satellite photos analyzed by AP show extensive damage at Iran’s main nuclear enrichment facility in Natanz. The images shot Saturday by Planet Labs PBC show multiple buildings damaged or destroyed. The structures hit include buildings identified by experts as supplying power to the facility.

U.N. nuclear chief Rafael Grossi told the Security Council that the above-ground section of the Natanz facility was destroyed. The main centrifuge facility underground did not appear to have been hit, but the loss of power could have damaged infrastructure there, he said.

Israel also struck a nuclear research facility in Isfahan. The International Atomic Energy Agency said four “critical buildings” were damaged, including its uranium conversion facility. “As in Natanz, no increase in off-site radiation expected,” it added.

An Israeli military official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with official procedures, said that according to the army’s initial assessment “it will take much more than a few weeks” for Iran to repair the damage to the Natanz and Isfahan nuclear sites. The official said the army had “concrete intelligence that production in Isfahan was for military purposes.”

___

Lidman and Frankel reported from Jerusalem. Associated Press writers Natalie Melzer in Nahariya, Israel, and Nasser Karimi in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.

NUUK, Greenland (AP) — The first direct flight from the U.S. to Greenland by an American airline landed in the capital city of Nuuk on Saturday.

The United Airlines-operated Boeing 737 Max 8 departed from Newark International Airport in New Jersey at 11:31 a.m. EDT (1531 GMT) and arrived a little over 4 hours later, at 6:38 p.m. local time (1938 GMT), according to

A seat cost roughly $1,200.

Saturday’s flight marks the first direct passage between the U.S. and the Arctic Island for nearly 20 years. In 2007, Air Greenland launched a route between Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport and Kangerlussuaq Airport, some 315 kilometers (196 miles) north of Nuuk. It was scrapped the following year due to cost.

The United Airlines flight took place on U.S. President Donald Trump’s 79th birthday, which was being celebrated in Washington with a controversial military parade that’s part of the Army’s long-planned 250th anniversary celebration.

Trump has repeatedly said he seeks control of Greenland, a strategic Arctic island that’s a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark, and has not ruled out military force.

The governments of Denmark, a NATO ally, and Greenland have said it is not for sale and condemned reports of the U.S. stepping up intelligence gathering on the mineral-rich island.

United announced the flight in October, before Trump was re-elected. It was scheduled for 2025 to take advantage of the new Nuuk airport, which opened in late November and features a larger runway for bigger jets.

“United will be the only carrier to connect the U.S. directly to Nuuk — the northernmost capital in the world, providing a gateway to world-class hiking and fascinating wildlife under the summer’s midnight sun,” the company said in a statement at the time.

Saturday’s flight kicked off the airline’s twice weekly seasonal service, from June to September, between Newark and Nuuk. The plane has around 165 seats.

Previously, travelers had to take a layover in Iceland or Copenhagen, Denmark, before flying to Greenland.

The new flight is beneficial for the island’s business and residents, according to Greenland government minister Naaja Nathanielsen.

Tourists will spend money at local businesses, and Greenlanders themselves will now be able to travel to the U.S. more easily, Nathanielsen, the minister for business, mineral resources, energy, justice and gender equality, The route is also an important part of diversifying the island’s economy, she said. Fishing produces about 90% of Greenland’s exports.

Tourism is increasingly important. More than 96,000 international passengers traveled through the country’s airports in 2023, up 28% from 2015.

Visit Greenland echoed Nathanielsen’s comments. The government’s tourism agency did not have projections on how much money the new flights would bring to the island.

“We do know that flights can bring in much more than just dollars, and we expect it to have a positive impact — both for the society and travellers,” Tanny Por, Visit Greenland’s head of international relations, told The Associated Press in an email.

__

Associated Press writer Stefanie Dazio in Berlin contributed to this report.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — A sharp rise in global oil prices following Israeli strikes on Iran will benefit Russia and bolster its military capabilities in the war in Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said Friday in comments that were under embargo until Saturday afternoon.

Speaking to journalists in Kyiv, Zelenskyy said the surge in oil prices threatens Ukraine’s position on the battlefield, especially because Western allies have not enforced effective price caps on Russian oil exports.

“The strikes led to a sharp increase in the price of oil, which is negative for us,” Zelenskyy said. “The Russians are getting stronger due to greater income from oil exports.”

Global oil prices rose as much as 7% after Israel and Iran exchanged attacks over the past 48 hours, raising concerns that further escalation in the region could disrupt oil exports from the Middle East.

Zelenskyy to address concerns with the US

Zelenskyy said he planned to raise the issue in an upcoming conversation with U.S. President Donald Trump.

“In the near future, I will be in contact with the American side, I think with the president, and we will raise this issue,” he said.

Zelenskyy also expressed concern that U.S. military aid could be diverted away from Ukraine toward Israel during renewed tensions in the Middle East.

“We would like aid to Ukraine not to decrease because of this,” he said. “Last time, this was a factor that slowed down aid to Ukraine.”

Ukraine’s military needs have been sidelined by the United States in favor of supporting Israel, Zelenskyy said, citing a shipment of 20,000 interceptor missiles, designed to counter Iran-made Shahed drones, that had been intended for Ukraine but were redirected to Israel.

“And for us it was a blow,” he said. “When you face 300 to 400 drones a day, most are shot down or go off course, but some get through. We were counting on those missiles.”

An air defense system, Barak-8, promised to Ukraine by Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu was sent to the U.S. for repairs but never delivered to Ukraine, Zelenskyy said.

The Ukrainian president conceded that momentum for the Coalition of the Willing, a group of 31 countries which have pledged to strengthen support for Ukraine against Russian aggression, has slowed because of U.S. ambivalence over providing a backstop.

“This situation has shown that Europe has not yet decided for itself that it will be with Ukraine completely if America is not there,” he said.

Coalition of the Willing offer under consideration

The offer of a foreign troop “reassurance force” pledged by the Coalition of the Willing was still on the table “but they need a backstop, as they say, from America,” Zelenskyy said. “This means that suddenly, if something happens, America will be with them and with Ukraine.”

The Ukrainian president also said the presence of foreign contingents in Ukraine would act as a security guarantee and allow Kyiv to make territorial compromises, which is the first time he has articulated a link between the reassurance force and concessions Kyiv is willing to make in negotiations with Russia.

“It is simply that their presence gives us the opportunity to compromise, when we can say that today our state does not have the strength to take our territories within the borders of 1991,” he said.

But Europe and Ukraine are still waiting on strong signals from Trump.

Without crushing U.S. sanctions against Russia, “I will tell you frankly, it will be very difficult for us,” Zelenskyy said, adding that it would then fall on Europe to step up military aid to Ukraine.

Body and prisoner returns follow Istanbul talks

In other developments, Russia repatriated more bodies of fallen soldiers in line with an agreement reached during peace talks in Istanbul between Russian and Ukrainian delegations, Russian officials said Saturday, cited by Russian state media. The officials said Ukraine did not return any bodies to Russia on Saturday.

Ukraine’s Coordination Headquarters for the Treatment of Prisoners of War confirmed in a statement that Russia returned 1,200 bodies.

The first round of the staggered exchanges took place Monday. The agreement to exchange prisoners of war and the bodies of fallen soldiers was the only tangible outcome of the talks in Istanbul on June 2.

Russia says push continues

Continuing a renewed battlefield push along eastern and northeastern parts of the more than 1,000-kilometer (over 600-mile) front line, the Russian Defense Ministry claimed Saturday that its troops captured another village in the Donetsk region, Zelenyi Kut. The Ukrainian military had no immediate comment on the Russian claim.

Russia launched 58 drones and decoys at Ukraine overnight into Saturday, according to the Ukrainian air force, which said its air defenses destroyed 23 drones while another 20 were jammed.

Russia’s defense ministry said it shot down 66 Ukrainian drones overnight.

Attacks have continued despite discussions of a potential ceasefire in the war. During the June 2 talks in Istanbul, Russian and Ukrainian negotiators traded memorandums containing sharply divergent conditions that both sides see as nonstarters, making a quick deal unlikely.

___

Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

PARIS (AP) — A top-level U.N. conference on a two-state solution for Israel and the Palestinians scheduled for next week has been postponed amid surging tensions in the Middle East, French President Emmanuel Macron said Friday.

France and Saudi Arabia were due to co-chair the conference hosted by the U.N. General Assembly in New York on June 17-20, and Macron had been among leaders scheduled to attend. The Palestinian Authority hoped the conference would revive the long-defunct peace process.

Macron expressed his “determination to recognize the state of Palestine” at some point, despite the postponement. France has pushed for a broader movement toward recognizing a Palestinian state in parallel with recognition of Israel and its right to defend itself.

After Israel’s strikes on Iran on Friday, Macron said that France’s military forces around the Middle East are ready to help protect partners in the region, including Israel, but wouldn’t take part in any attacks on Iran.

Macron told reporters that the two-state conference was postponed for logistical and security reasons, and because some Palestinian representatives couldn’t come to the event. He insisted that it would be held “as soon as possible” and that he was in discussion with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman about a new date.

The U.N. ambassadors from France and Saudi Arabia said in a letter to the 193 U.N. member nations that the delay is “due to the current circumstances in the Middle East that prevent regional leaders from attending the conference in New York.”

France’s Jerome Bonnafont and Saudi Arabia’s Abdulaziz Alwasil said the conference will open on June 17 in the General Assembly hall, but only to propose and agree to its suspension. They invited all countries to attend the opening.

“We are determined to resume the conference at the earliest possible date,” the two ambassadors said.

Macron said the aim of the conference “is a demilitarized Palestinian state recognizing the existence and the security of Israel.” Any such state would exclude any Hamas leaders, he said.

Macron said that the Israel-Iran conflict, the war in Gaza and the situation for Palestinians around the region are all “interlinked.”

Macron spoke on Friday with 10 world leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu, about the Israeli strikes on Iran and consequences.

One of the aims at the U.N. conference was to increase the number of countries recognizing Palestinian territories as an independent state. So far, more than 145 of the 193 U.N. member nations have done so. The Palestinians view their state as encompassing Gaza and the West Bank with east Jerusalem as the capital.

Netanyahu has rejected the creation of a Palestinian state, and Israel refused to participate in the conference.

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico (AP) — An unusual request from the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights about Cuban medical brigades that operate worldwide and provide much needed help has roiled countries in the Caribbean and the Americas.

In a letter obtained by The Associated Press, the commission asks members of the Organization of American States, OAS, for details including whether they have an agreement with Cuba for medical missions, whether those workers have labor and union rights and information about any labor complaints.

“This was an unprecedented move,” said Francesca Emanuele, senior international policy associate at the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington. “It’s deeply troubling.”

Cuba has more than 22,000 doctors working in more than 50 countries, including in the Caribbean and the Americas, according to its government. A breakdown for the region was not available, but many impoverished nations in the Caribbean rely heavily on those medical professionals.

The commission, an independent body of the OAS, which is heavily funded by the U.S., said it plans to analyze the data collected as well as offer recommendations “given the persistence of reports of rights violations.”

A spokesperson for the commission declined comment, saying the letter is private.

The letter was sent after U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced visa restrictions in late February for Cuban or foreign government officials accused of involvement in Cuba’s medical missions, which he called “forced labor.”

“The timing is really suspicious,” Emanuele said, noting that the information requested “falls squarely” within the member states’ sovereign decision-making. “The role of this organization should not be distorted.”

In June, the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump slapped several unidentified officials from Central America with visa restrictions.

A deadline looms

Silence has prevailed since the human rights commission issued its May 24 letter giving OAS member states 30 days to respond.

“I’m awaiting a regional approach,” said Ralph Gonsalves, prime minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

He said in a phone interview that he would raise the issue next week during a meeting of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States as chairman.

“There are no human rights issues involved here,” he said, noting that St. Vincent is party to several international and labor conventions. “They have not been breached and will not be breached.”

Gonsalves said Cuban doctors run the sole hemodialysis center in St. Vincent that provides free care to 64 patients at a rate of $5 million a year.

“Without the Cubans, that dialysis center will close,” he said.

When asked if he worried about potential visa restrictions, Gonsalves said he met earlier this year with Rubio and provided a lengthy letter that he declined to share detailing the work of Cuban medical professionals in St. Vincent.

“We didn’t scrimp on any of the details,” he said. “I didn’t walk away from that meeting thinking that there was any possibility or threat of sanctions.”

A divided region

Guyana ‘s foreign minister, Hugh Todd, told The Associated Press on Friday that the government plans to amend its payment and recruitment system involving Cuban medical professionals.

He said their main concern “is to make sure we are compliant with international labor laws.” Todd did not say whether the planned amendments are related to concerns over U.S. visa restrictions.

Late Thursday, Guyanese Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo said the government wants to ensure that “the conditions of work here don’t run afoul of the requirements set by the United States of America.”

Guyana depends heavily on the U.S. for support, especially given an ongoing and bitter border dispute with neighboring Venezuela.

Some Caribbean leaders have said they would risk losing a U.S. visa, noting that Cuban medical professionals provide much needed help in the region.

“If we cannot reach a sensible agreement on this matter…if the cost of it is the loss of my visa to the U.S., then so be it,” Barbados’ Prime Minister Mia Mottley told Parliament in March as legislators pounded a table in support.

No Cuban medical workers are currently in Barbados.

Echoing Mottley’s sentiment was Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Keith Rowley.

“I just came back from California, and if I never go back there again in my life, I will ensure that the sovereignty of Trinidad and Tobago is known to its people and respected by all,” he said in March.

In April, Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel criticized what he described as a campaign against the Caribbean country.

“There is no doubt that that desperate campaign to block Cuban cooperation has two clear objectives: to close off any avenue of income for the country, even in an activity as noble and necessary to other nations as healthcare services,” he said.

“The other reason is political and ideological: they want to sweep Cuba away as an example. And they resort to methods as immoral as threatening any foreign official involved in that activity,” he added.

Rubio has defended visa restrictions, saying they promote accountability.

___

Associated Press reporters Bert Wilkinson in Georgetown, Guyana, and Andrea Rodríguez in Havana contributed.

HONG KONG (AP) — Oil prices surged and Asian shares were lower Friday after Israel struck Iranian nuclear and military targets in an attack that raised the risk of all-out war between them.

U.S. benchmark crude oil rose by $3.93, or 5.8%, to $71.97 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, increased by $3.82 to $73.18 per barrel.

In share trading, Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 fell 0.9% to 37,834.25 while the Kospi in Seoul edged 0.9% lower to 2,894.62. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng retreated 0.9% to 23,831.48 and the Shanghai Composite Index lost 0.7% to 3,378.76.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 drifted 0.2% lower to 8,547.40.

“An Israeli attack on Iran poses a top ten of our global risk, but Asian markets are expected to recover quickly as they have relatively limited exposure to the conflict and growing ties to unaffected Saudi Arabia and the UAE,” said Xu Tiachen of The Economist Intelligence.

On Thursday, U.S. stock indexes ticked higher following another encouraging update on inflation across the country.

The S&P 500 rose 0.4% to 6,045.26. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2% to 42,967.62, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.2% to 19,662.48.

Oracle jumped 13.3% after reporting stronger profit and revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected.

That helped markets offset a 4.8% loss for Boeing after an Air India plane crashed Thursday, killing more than 240 people. It was the first crash of a Boeing 787 Dreamliner, and the cause wasn’t immediately known.

Stocks broadly got some help from easing Treasury yields in the bond market following the latest update on inflation. Thursday’s update said inflation at the wholesale level wasn’t as bad last month as economists expected, and it followed a report on Wednesday saying something similar about the inflation that U.S. consumers are feeling.

Wall Street took it as a signal that the Federal Reserve will have more leeway to cut interest rates later this year in order to give the economy a boost.

The Federal Reserve has been hesitant to lower interest rates, and it’s been on hold this year after cutting at the end of last year, because it’s waiting to see how much President Donald Trump’s tariffs will hurt the economy and raise inflation. While lower rates can goose the economy by encouraging businesses and households to borrow, they can also accelerate inflation.

The yield on the 10-year Treasury fell to 4.35% from 4.41% late Wednesday and from roughly 4.80% early this year.

Besides the inflation data, a separate report on jobless claims also helped to weigh on Treasury yields. It said slightly more U.S. workers applied for unemployment benefits last week than economists expected, and the total number remained at the highest level in eight months. That could be an indication of a rise in layoffs.

The Fed’s next meeting on interest rates is scheduled for next week, but the nearly unanimous expectation on Wall Street is that it will stand pat again. Traders are betting it’s likely to begin cutting in September, according to data from CME Group.

Trump’s on-and-off tariffs have raised worries about higher inflation and a possible recession, which had sent the S&P 500 roughly 20% below its record a couple months ago. But stocks have since rallied nearly all the way back on hopes that Trump will lower his tariffs after reaching trade deals with other countries.

Many of Trump’s tariffs are on hold at the moment to give time for negotiations, but Trump added to the uncertainty late Wednesday when he suggested the United States could send letters to other countries at some point “saying this is the deal. You can take it or you can leave it.”

In currency trading early Friday, the U.S. dollar gained to 143.70 Japanese yen from 143.46 yen. The euro edged lower, to $1.1537 from $1.1590.

BANGKOK (AP) — Australia’s defense minister dismissed concerns Thursday that a deal between the U.S., Australia and Britain to provide his country with nuclear-powered submarines could be in jeopardy, following a report that the Pentagon had ordered a review.

Australian Defense Minister Richard Marles told Sky News Australia that he had known about the review of the deal “for some time,” saying that it was a “very natural step for the incoming administration to take.”

He noted that the UK’s government also reviewed the deal, the centerpiece of a three-way alliance known as AUKUS after it was elected, and that his own government had looked at it as part of its own review of Australia’s entire defense posture.

“I think an incoming government having a look at this is something that they have a perfect right to do and we welcome it and we’ll work with it,” he said.

The deal, worth more than $200 billion, was signed between the three countries in 2021 under then President Joe Biden, designed to provide Australia, one of Washington’s staunchest allies in the region, with greater maritime capabilities to counter China’s increasingly strong navy.

The deal also involves the U.S. selling several of its Virginia-class submarines to Australia to bridge the gap as the new submarines are being jointly built.

In January, Australia made the first of six $500 million payments to the U.S. under the AUKUS deal, meant to bolster American submarine manufacturing.

Marles met with U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on the sidelines of a defense conference in Singapore less than two weeks ago, and told reporters afterward that he had come away with “a sense of confidence about the way in which AUKUS is proceeding.”

“AUKUS is on track and we are meeting all the timelines that are associated with it,” he said. “We are very optimistic.”

Hegseth’s address to the defense forum made multiple mentions of cooperation with Australia but no reference to AUKUS, however, though he did later mention the deal when he was taking questions.

Hegseth did urge allies in the Indo-Pacific to increase their defense spending, and underscored the need for a “strong, resolute and capable network of allies and partners” as the U.S. seeks to counter China.

VIENNA (AP) — The U.N. nuclear watchdog’s board of governors on Thursday formally found that Iran isn’t complying with its nuclear obligations for the first time in 20 years, a move that could lead to further tensions and set in motion an effort to restore United Nations sanctions on Tehran later this year.

Iran reacted immediately, saying it will establish a new enrichment facility “in a secure location” and that “other measures are also being planned.”

“The Islamic Republic of Iran has no choice but to respond to this political resolution,” the Iranian Foreign Ministry and the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran said in a joint statement.

U.S. President Donald Trump previously warned that Israel or America could carry out airstrikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities if negotiations failed — and some American personnel and their families have begun leaving the region over the tensions. The escalation over Iran’s nuclear program comes ahead of a new round of Iran-U.S. talks Sunday in Oman.

Nineteen countries on the International Atomic Energy Agency’s board, which represents the agency’s member nations, voted for the resolution, according to diplomats who spoke on condition of anonymity to describe the outcome of the closed-doors vote.

Russia, China and Burkina Faso opposed it, 11 abstained and two did not vote.

In the draft resolution seen by The Associated Press, the board of governors renews a call on Iran to provide answers “without delay” in a long-running investigation into uranium traces found at several locations that Tehran has failed to declare as nuclear sites.

Western officials suspect that the uranium traces could provide further evidence that Iran had a secret nuclear weapons program until 2003.

The resolution was put forward by France, the U.K., Germany and the United States.

Iran under pressure as Trump warns of possible airstrikes

Speaking to Iranian state television after the vote, the spokesman for the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran said that his agency immediately informed the IAEA of “specific and effective” actions Tehran would take.

“One is the launch of a third secure site” for enrichment, spokesman Behrouz Kamalvandi said. He did not elaborate on the location. Iran has two underground sites at Fordo and Natanz and has been building tunnels in the mountains near Natanz since suspected Israeli sabotage attacks targeted that facility.

The other step would be replacing old centrifuges for advanced ones at Fordo. “The implication of this is that our production of enriched materials will significantly increase,” Kamalvandi said.

According to the draft resolution, “Iran’s many failures to uphold its obligations since 2019 to provide the Agency with full and timely cooperation regarding undeclared nuclear material and activities at multiple undeclared locations in Iran … constitutes non-compliance with its obligations under its Safeguards Agreement.”

Under those obligations, which are part of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, Iran is legally bound to declare all nuclear material and activities and allow IAEA inspectors to verify that none of it is being diverted from peaceful uses.

The draft resolution also finds that the IAEA’s “inability … to provide assurance that Iran’s nuclear program is exclusively peaceful gives rise to questions that are within the competence of the United Nations Security Council, as the organ bearing the main responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security.”

The draft resolution made a direct reference to the U.S.-Iran talks, stressing its “support for a diplomatic solution to the problems posed by the Iranian nuclear program, including the talks between the United States and Iran, leading to an agreement that addresses all international concerns related to Iran’s nuclear activities, encouraging all parties to constructively engage in diplomacy.”

Still a chance for Iran to cooperate with IAEA

A senior Western diplomat last week described the resolution as a “serious step,” but added that Western nations are “not closing the door to diplomacy on this issue.” However, if Iran fails to cooperate, an extraordinary IAEA board meeting will likely be held in the summer, during which another resolution could get passed that will refer the issue to the Security Council, the diplomat said on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to discuss the issue with the media.

The three European nations have repeatedly threatened in the past to reinstate, or “snapback,” sanctions that have been lifted under the original 2015 Iran nuclear deal if Iran does not provide “technically credible” answers to the U.N. nuclear watchdog’s questions.

The authority to reestablish those sanctions by the complaint of any member of the original 2015 nuclear deal expires in October, putting the West on a clock to exert pressure on Tehran over its program before losing that power.

The resolution comes on heels of the IAEA’s so-called “comprehensive report” that was circulated among member states last weekend. In the report, the U.N. nuclear watchdog said that Iran’s cooperation with the agency has “been less than satisfactory” when it comes to uranium traces discovered by agency inspectors at several locations in Iran.

One of the sites became known publicly in 2018, after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu revealed it at the United Nations and called it a clandestine nuclear warehouse hidden at a rug-cleaning plant. Iran denied this, but in 2019, IAEA inspectors detected the presence of uranium traces there as well as at two other sites.

___

The Associated Press receives support for nuclear security coverage from and . The AP is solely responsible for all content.

___

Additional AP coverage of the nuclear landscape: https://apnews.com/projects/the-new-nuclear-landscape/

___

Gambrell reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Associated Press writer Amir Vahdat in Tehran, Iran, contributed to this report.

CAIRO (AP) — A unit of the Hamas-run police force said it killed 12 members of an Israeli-backed militia after detaining them early Thursday in the Gaza Strip. Hours earlier, an Israel-supported aid group said Hamas attacked a bus carrying its Palestinian workers, killing at least five of them.

The militia, led by Yasser Abu Shabab, said its fighters had attacked Hamas and killed five militants but made no mention of its own casualties. It also accused Hamas of detaining and killing aid workers. It was not immediately possible to verify the competing claims or confirm the identities of those killed.

The Israeli military circulated the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation ‘s statement on its social media accounts but declined to provide its own account of what happened.

Aid initiative already marred by controversy and violence

The aid group’s operations in Gaza have already been marred by controversy and violence since they began last month, with scores of people killed in near-daily shootings as crowds headed toward the food distribution sites inside Israeli military zones. Witnesses have blamed the Israeli military, which has acknowledged firing only warning shots near people it said approached its forces in a suspicious manner.

Earlier this week, witnesses also said Abu Shabab militiamen had opened fire on people en route to a GHF aid hub, killing and wounding many.

The United Nations and major aid groups have rejected the Israeli and U.S.-backed initiative, accusing them of militarizing humanitarian aid at a time when experts say Gaza is at risk of famine because of Israel’s blockade and renewed military campaign.

Last week, Israel acknowledged it is supporting armed groups of Palestinians in what it says is a move to counter Hamas. Abu Shabab’s militia, which calls itself the Popular Forces, says it is guarding the food distribution points set up by the Israeli- and U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation in southern Gaza. Aid workers say it has a long history of looting U.N. trucks.

GHF has denied working with the Abu Shabab group.

‘They were aid workers’

In a statement released early Thursday, the foundation said Hamas had attacked a bus carrying more than two dozen “local Palestinians working side-by-side with the U.S. GHF team to deliver critical aid” near the southern city of Khan Younis.

“We condemn this heinous and deliberate attack in the strongest possible terms,” it said. “These were aid workers. Humanitarians. Fathers, brothers, sons, and friends, who were risking their lives everyday to help others.”

It did not identify the men or say whether they were armed at the time.

Israel and the United States say the new system is needed to prevent Hamas from siphoning off aid from the long-standing U.N.-run system, which is capable of delivering food, fuel and other humanitarian aid to all parts of Gaza. U.N. officials deny there has been any systematic diversion of aid by Hamas, but say they have struggled to deliver it because of Israeli restrictions and the breakdown of law and order in Gaza.

U.N. officials say the new system is unable to meet mounting needs, and that it allows Israel to use aid as a weapon by controlling who has access to it and by essentially forcing people to relocate to the aid sites, most of which are in the southernmost city of Rafah, now a mostly uninhabited military zone. Some fear this could be part of an Israeli plan to coerce Palestinians into leaving Gaza.

Hamas says it killed traitors

Hamas has also rejected the new system and threatened to kill any Palestinians who cooperate with the Israeli military. The killings early Wednesday were carried out by the Hamas-run police’s Sahm unit, which Hamas says it established to combat looting.

The unit released video footage showing several dead men lying in the street, saying they were Abu Shabab fighters who had been detained and killed for collaborating with Israel. It was not possible to verify the images or the claims around them.

Mohammed Abu Amin, a Khan Younis resident, said he was at the scene of the killings and that crowds were celebrating them, shouting “God is greatest” and condemning those killed as traitors to the Palestinian cause and agents of Israel.

Ghassan Duhine, who identifies himself as a major in the Palestinian Authority’s security forces and deputy commander of the Abu Shabab group, posted a statement online saying they clashed with Sahm and killed five. He denied that the images shared by Sahm were of Abu Shabab fighters.

The Palestinian Authority, led by rivals of Hamas and based in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has denied any connection to the Abu Shabab group, but many of the militiamen identify themselves as PA officers.

Mounting lawlessness as Israel steps up military campaign

Israel renewed its offensive in March after ending a ceasefire with Hamas and imposed a complete ban on imports of food, fuel, medicine and other aid before easing the blockade in mid-May.

The ongoing war and mounting desperation have plunged Gaza into chaos, with armed gangs looting aid convoys and selling the stolen food. The Hamas-run police force, which maintained a high degree of public security before the war, has largely gone underground as Israel has repeatedly targeted its forces with airstrikes. The military now controls more than half of the territory.

The war began when Hamas-led militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 hostage. They are still holding 53 captives, less than half of them believed to be alive, after most of the rest were released in ceasefire agreements or other deals.

Israel’s military campaign has killed over 55,000 Palestinians, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which has said women and children make up more than half of the dead. It does not say how many of those killed were civilians or combatants.

Israel’s offensive has flattened large areas of Gaza and driven around 90% of the population of roughly 2 million Palestinians from their homes. The territory is almost completely reliant on humanitarian aid because nearly all of its food production capabilities have been destroyed.

___

Chehayeb reported from Beirut. Associated Press writer Sam Mednick in Tel Aviv, Israel, contributed.

___

Follow AP’s war coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/israel-hamas-war

GENEVA (AP) — The U.N. refugee agency says the number of people forcible displaced by violence and persecution around the world has risen to more than 122 million, up by about 2 million from last year and a near-doubling over the last decade.

UNHCR chief Filippo Grandi nonetheless pointed to some “rays of hope” over the last six months, including the return home of nearly 2 million Syrians as their country tries to recover from more than a decade of civil war.

The findings come as the refugee agency released its Global Trends Report on Thursday, which said the number of people driven abroad or displaced in their home countries by war, violence and persecution as of April rose to 122.1 million, up from 120 million a year earlier.

Among those, the numbers of internally displaced people jumped by more than 9% to 73.5 million at the end of last year. The numbers represent cumulative figures from years of conflict, violence and persecution, and some displaced people returned home last year even as others fled.

The report comes at a time when humanitarian groups are facing budget cuts from the United States and other traditional Western donors.

UNHCR said nearly two-thirds of people who crossed national borders to flee remained in neighboring countries, countering the “widespread perception in wealthier regions” that a majority of people were fleeing in a bid to reach places like Europe or the United States.

The agency said Sudan, which has been riven by civil war, has become home to the world’s largest displacement crisis, with more than 14 million people displaced by the conflict — surpassing Syria, at 13.5 million. More than 10 million in Afghanistan have been forcibly displaced, and some 8.8 million within or from Ukraine, UNHCR said.

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — There will be a sixth round of negotiations between Iran and the United States over Tehran’s rapidly advancing nuclear program this weekend, Oman’s foreign minister said Thursday.

Badr al-Busaidi made the announcement on the social platform X.

“I am pleased to confirm the 6th round of Iran US talks will be held in Muscat this Sunday the 15th,” he wrote.

Iran for days had been saying there would be talks, but Oman, which is serving as the mediator, had not confirmed them until now.

There was no immediate comment from the U.S.

Tensions have been rising over the last day in the region, with the U.S. drawing down the presence of staffers who are not deemed essential to operations in the Middle East and their loved ones due to the potential for regional unrest.

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares were trading mixed early Thursday after Wall Street’s rally stalled as investors appeared not to react much to the results of the latest round of China-U.S. trade talks.

U.S. futures slipped and oil prices slipped.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 lost 0.5% to 38,213.20.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng sank 0.5% to 24,234.80, while the Shanghai Composite index edged 0.1% lower to 3,404.66.

In South Korea, the Kospi gained 0.8% to 2,929.94, while Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged 0.1% higher to 8,604.50.

Taiwan’s Taiex lost 0.8%.

On Wednesday, the S&P 500 fell 0.3% to 6,022.24 for its first loss in four days. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was virtually unchanged at 42,865.77 after edging down by 1 point. The Nasdaq composite slipped 0.5% to 3,400.30.

All told, the S&P 500 fell 16.57 points to 6,022.24. The Dow Jones Industrial Average slipped 1.10 to 42,865.77, and the Nasdaq composite sank 99.11 to 19,615.88.

Several Big Tech stocks led the way lower, and a 1.9% drop for Apple was the heaviest weight on the market. It’s been listless this week after unveiling several modest upcoming changes to the software that runs its devices.

The action was stronger in the bond market, where Treasury yields eased after a report suggested President Donald Trump’s tariffs are not pushing inflation much higher, at least not yet.

U.S. consumers had to pay prices for food, gasoline and other costs of living that were 2.4% higher overall in May than a year earlier. That was up from April’s 2.3% inflation rate, but it wasn’t as bad as the 2.5% that Wall Street was expecting.

A fear has been that Trump’s wide-ranging tariffs could ignite an acceleration in inflation, just when it had seemed to get nearly all the way back to the Federal Reserve’s 2% target from more than 9% three summers ago. It hasn’t happened, though economists warn it may take months more to feel the full effect of Trump’s tariffs.

Trump said Wednesday that China will supply rare-earth minerals and magnets to the United States, while his government will allow Chinese students into U.S. universities in a deal that still needs an agreement by him and by China’s leader. Trump also said that “President XI and I are going to work closely together to open up China to American Trade. This would be a great WIN for both countries!!!”

Investors are still hoping for a more sweeping trade deal that would ease tensions between the world’s two largest economies.

Hopes for such deals between the United States and countries around the world have been one of the main reasons the S&P 500 has charged nearly all the way back to its all-time high after dropping roughly 20% below a couple months ago. Without them, the fear is that Trump’s high tariffs could drive the economy into a recession while pushing inflation higher. The S&P 500 is now sitting 2% below its record.

Tesla swung between gains and losses before finishing with a rise of 0.1% to continue its shaky run. It’s been recovering much of its big losses taken last week after Elon Musk’s relationship with Trump imploded, which in turn raised fears about a loss of business for the electric-vehicle company. Musk on Wednesday backed away from some of his earlier comments and said they went “too far.”

In the bond market, the yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.41% from 4.47% late Tuesday. Shorter-term yields, which more closely track expectations for what the Fed will do with overnight interest rates, fell more.

Wednesday’s better-than-expected reading on inflation raised expectations along Wall Street that the Fed could cut its main interest rate at least twice by the end of the year.

In other dealings early Thursday, U.S. benchmark crude oil lost 33 cents to $67.82 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, shed 37 cents to $69.40 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar slipped to 143.89 Japanese yen from 144.60 yen. The euro rose to $1.1520 from $1.1487.

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Denmark’s Parliament on Wednesday approved a bill to allow the United States to have military bases on Danish soil, a move that comes as U.S. President Donald Trump seeks to take control of the kingdom’s semi-autonomous territory of Greenland.

Critics say the vote ceded Danish sovereignty to the U.S. The legislation widens a previous military agreement, made in 2023 with the Biden administration, where U.S. troops had broad access to Danish airbases in the Scandinavian country.

The new parameters follow Trump’s coveting of the strategic, mineral-rich Arctic island even as the U.S. and Denmark are NATO allies.

The legislation now goes to Danish King Frederik X for his signature. Ninety-four lawmakers voted for it, while 11 voted against.

Greenland’s prime minister previously said U.S. statements about the island have been disrespectful and it “will never, ever be a piece of property that can be bought by just anyone.”

TOKYO (AP) — Asian shares mostly rose Wednesday after China and the U.S. said they had reached agreement on a framework for following up on the trade truce reached last month in Geneva.

Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 surged 0.5% in morning trading to 38,385.37. Data from the Bank of Japan data showed wholesale inflation slowed in May, meaning there might be less pressure for the central bank to raise interest rates in its next policy board meeting.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng gained 0.8% to 24,364.77, while the Shanghai Composite rose 0.5% to 3,402.72.

Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 edged up 0.3% to 8,612.40. South Korea’s Kospi added 0.6% to 2,889.88.

Tuesday on Wall Street, the S&P 500 rose 0.5% to 6,038.81 as the trade talks between the world’s two largest economies carried into a second day. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 0.2% to 42,866.87, and the Nasdaq composite gained 0.6% to 19,714.99.

Stocks have roared higher since dropping roughly 20% below their record two months ago, when President Donald Trump shocked financial markets with his announcement of tariffs that were so stiff that they raised worries about a possible recession. Much of the rally has been due to hopes that Trump would lower his tariffs after reaching trade deals with countries around the world, and the S&P 500 is back within 1.7% of its record set in February.

Analysts said that after two days of discussion in London, the late-night agreement reached appeared to be a consensus on what was already agreed upon before.

“So what did 48 hours of talks actually produce? Apparently, a reaffirmation to eventually do what they had already said they would do. If markets were expecting substance, they got process instead,” said Stephen Innes, managing partner at SPI Asset Management.

U.S. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick said Tuesday evening in London that talks with China were going “really, really well.” Both the United States and China have put many of their tariffs announced against each other on pause as talks continue.

Even though many tariffs are on hold for the moment, uncertainty over what is to come is still affecting companies and their ability to make profits.

Designer Brands, the company behind the DSW shoe store chain, became the latest U.S. company to yank its financial forecasts for 2025 because of “uncertainty stemming primarily from global trade policies.”

The company, which also owns the Keds, Jessica Simpson and other shoe brands, reported a larger loss for the start of the year than analysts were expecting, and its revenue also fell short of forecasts. CEO Doug Howe pointed to ”persistent instability and pressure on consumer discretionary” spending, and the company’s stock tumbled 18.2%.

The uncertainty is moving in both directions, to be sure. A survey released Tuesday of optimism among small U.S. businesses improved a bit in May.

“While the economy will continue to stumble along until the major sources of uncertainty are resolved, owners reported more positive expectations on business conditions and sales growth,” according to Bill Dunkelberg, chief economist at the National Federation of Independent Business.

Tesla helped to make up for such losses by rising 5.7%. The electric vehicle company has been recovering since tumbling last week as Elon Musk’s relationship with Trump imploded. That raised fear about possible retaliation by the U.S. government against Tesla.

Shares that trade in the United States of chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. rose 2.6% after the company known as TSMC said its revenue in May jumped nearly 40% from the year earlier.

In other dealings early Wednesday, the yield on the 10-year Treasury eased to 4.48% from 4.47% late Tuesday.

Benchmark U.S. crude oil slipped 12 cents to $64.86 a barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, fell 15 cents to $66.72 a barrel.

The U.S. dollar rose to 144.94 Japanese yen from 144.84 yen. The euro cost $1.1414, down from $1.1425.

___

AP Business Writer Stan Choe contributed.

LONDON (AP) — The U.S. and China held a second day of talks Tuesday in London aimed at easing their trade dispute, after President Donald Trump said China is “not easy” but the U.S. was “doing well” at the negotiations.

A Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng met U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer for several hours on Monday at Lancaster House, an ornate 200-year-old mansion near Buckingham Palace.

Wang Wentao, China’s commerce minister, and trade negotiator Li Chenggang are also in Beijing’s delegation.

Lutnick said as he arrived Tuesday morning that the talks were “going well,” and he expected them to continue all day.

Asked late Monday how the negotiations were going, Trump told reporters: “We are doing well with China. China’s not easy.”

The two sides are trying to build on negotiations in Geneva last month that agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the 100%-plus tariffs they had imposed on each other in an escalating trade war that had sparked fears of recession.

Since the Geneva talks, the U.S. and China have exchanged angry words over advanced semiconductors that power artificial intelligence, visas for Chinese students at American universities and rare earth minerals that are vital to carmakers and other industries.

Trump spoke at length with Chinese leader Xi Jinping by phone last Thursday in an attempt to put relations back on track. Trump announced on social media the following day that the trade talks would resume in London.

China, the world’s biggest producer of rare earths, has signaled it may ease export restrictions it placed on the elements in April, alarming automakers around the world who rely on them. Beijing, in turn, wants the U.S. to lift restrictions on Chinese access to the technology used to make advanced semiconductors.

Trump said that he wants to “open up China,” the world’s dominant manufacturer, to U.S. products.

“If we don’t open up China, maybe we won’t do anything,” Trump said at the White House. “But we want to open up China.”

___

Associated Press writer Josh Boak in Washington contributed to this story.

JERUSALEM (AP) — Activist Greta Thunberg is being deported from Israel, Israel’s Foreign Ministry said Tuesday, after the Gaza-bound ship she was on was seized by the Israeli military.

In a post on X, the Foreign Ministry shared a photo of Thunberg on a plane, saying that she was headed for France.

Thunberg was one of 12 passengers on board the Madleen, a boat carrying aid destined for people in war-torn Gaza.

The activists said they were protesting the ongoing war and the humanitarian crisis in Gaza. Israel says such ships violate its naval blockade of Gaza.

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Waves of Russian drone and missile attacks killed one person and wounded at least eight others in two major Ukrainian cities in the early morning hours on Tuesday, Ukraine officials said.

One person was killed and four injured in the southern port city of Odesa said regional governor Oleh Kiper. A maternity hospital and residential buildings in the center of the city were also damaged in the attack.

Four people were injured in Ukraine’s capital, said Kyiv’s mayor Vitali Klitschko. Associated Press journalists heard explosions, including the buzzing of drones, in different parts of the city for hours early Tuesday.

The fresh wave of Russian attacks came hours after Moscow launched almost 500 drones at Ukraine in the biggest overnight drone bombardment in the three-year war. Ukrainian and Western officials have been anticipating a Russian response to Ukraine’s audacious June 1 drone attack on distant Russian air bases.

Plumes of smoke were visible in Kyiv as air defense forces worked to shoot down drones and missiles on Tuesday morning.

Meanwhile, Ukrainian residents took shelter and slept in metro stations during the hours-long attack. Nina Nosivets, 32, and her 8-month-old son Levko were among them.

“I just try not to think about all this, silently curled up like a mouse, wait until it all passes, the attacks. Distract the child somehow because its probably the hardest thing for him to bear,” she said.

Krystyna Semak, a 37-year-old Kyiv resident, said the explosions frightened her and she ran to the metro at 2 a.m. with her rug.

Russia has been launching a record-breaking number of drones and missiles targeting Ukraine while the two countries continue to swap prisoners of war, the only tangible outcome of recent direct peace talks held in Istanbul. A ceasefire, long sought by Kyiv, remains elusive.

In Kyiv, fires broke out in at least four districts after debris from shot down drones fell on the roofs of residential buildings and warehouses, according to the Kyiv City Military Administration.

Vasyl Pesenko, 25, stood in his kitchen, damaged in the attack.

“I was lying in bed, as always hoping that these Shaheds (drones) would fly past me, and I heard that Shahed (that hit the house),” he said. “I thought that it would fly away but it flew closer and closer and everything blew away.”

NEWCASTLE, Australia (AP) — An Australian television journalist was hit in the leg by a nonlethal round Sunday while reporting live from downtown Los Angeles on the large-scale protests over President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown and subsequent deployment of California National Guard troops to the city.

Video of the incident released by 9News shows correspondent Lauren Tomasi, microphone in hand, reporting live when an officer behind her suddenly raises their firearm and fires a nonlethal round at close range. Tomasi, who doesn’t appear to be wearing personal protective equipment, cries out in pain and clutches her lower leg as she and her cameraman quickly move away from the police line.

“You just (expletive) shot the reporter,” a voice off-camera can be heard shouting.

Tomasi assured her crew she was okay: “Yeah, I’m good, I’m good.”

The shooting came after a tense afternoon in which Tomasi and her crew were caught between riot police and protesters. At one point, she struggled to speak over the sound of clashes, while a protester grabbed the camera mid-broadcast.

“They’ve told people to get out of this area, and protesters have been refusing,” she reported. “We are safe here. It’s just noisy. But you can see the volatility.”

Speaking later Monday to 9News, Tomasi confirmed she was safe and unharmed.

“I’m okay, my cameraman Jimmy and I are both safe. This is just one of the unfortunate realities of reporting on these kinds of incidents,” she said.

9News is part of Nine, one of Australia’s largest media companies, which operates across television, radio, print and digital channels. Its major platforms include free-to-air Channel Nine and leading newspapers like The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age.

The demonstrations, which began with a few hundred people on Friday, had swelled by Sunday to thousands of people who blocked a major freeway and set several self-driving cars on fire.

President Trump’s sent National Guard troops to the city over the objections of Gov. Gavin Newsom, in the first deployment without state consent since 1967.

LONDON (AP) — High-level delegations from the United States and China are meeting in London on Monday to try and shore up a fragile truce in a trade dispute that has roiled the global economy,

A Chinese delegation led by Vice Premier He Lifeng is due to meet U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer at an undisclosed location in the city.

The talks are due to last at least a day.

They follow negotiations in Geneva last month that brought a temporary respite in the trade war. The two countries announced May 12 they had agreed to a 90-day suspension of most of the 100%-plus tariffs they had imposed on each other in an escalating trade war that had sparked fears of recession.

Since then, the U.S. and China have exchanged angry words over advanced semiconductors that power artificial intelligence, “rare earths” that are vital to carmakers and other industries, and visas for Chinese students at American universities.

President Donald Trump spoke at length with Chinese leader Xi Jinping by phone last Thursday in an attempt to put relations back on track. Trump announced on social media the next day that trade talks would be held on Monday in London.

The U.K. government says it is providing the venue and logistics but is not involved in the talks.

“We are a nation that champions free trade and have always been clear that a trade war is in nobody’s interests, so we welcome these talks,” the British government said in a statement.

HONG KONG (AP) — Shares rose in Asia on Monday ahead of the second round of trade talks between Washington and Beijing, due later in the day in London.

Tokyo’s Nikkei 225 gained 1.1% to 38,137.09 as the government reported that the Japanese economy contracted by 0.2% in the January-March quarter.

In South Korea, the Kospi added 1.9% to 2,865.52.

Chinese markets rose even though the government reported that exports slowed in May, growing 4.8% from a year earlier after a jump of more than 8% in April. Exports to the United States fell nearly 10% compared with a year earlier.

China also reported that consumer prices fell 0.1% in May from a year earlier, marking the fourth consecutive month of deflation.

Hong Kong’s Hang Seng picked up 1.4% to 24,119.64 while the Shanghai Composite Index climbed 0.4% to 3,397.13.

Australia’s market was closed for a public holiday.

On Friday, stocks gained ground on Wall Street following a better-than-expected report on the U.S. job market.

The gains were broad, with every sector in the S&P 500 rising. That solidified a second consecutive winning week for the benchmark index, which has rallied back from a slump two months ago to come within striking distance of its record high.

The S&P 500 rose 1% to 6,000.36. The Dow Jones Industrial Average added 1% to 42,762.87 while the Nasdaq gained 1.2%, to 19,529.95.

Technology stocks, with their outsized values, led the broad gains. Chipmaker Nvidia jumped 1.2% and iPhone maker Apple rose 1.6%.

Tesla rose 3.7%, regaining some of the big losses it suffered on Thursday when Trump and Musk sparred feverishly on social media.

Circle Internet Group, the U.S.-based issuer of one of the most popular cryptocurrencies, rose 29.4%. That adds to its 168% gain from Thursday when it debuted on the New York Stock Exchange.

U.S. employers slowed their hiring last month, but still added a solid 139,000 jobs amid uncertainty over President Donald Trump’s trade war. The closely watched monthly update reaffirmed that the job market remains resilient, despite worries from businesses and consumers about the impact of tariffs on goods going to and coming from the U.S. and its most important trading partners.

President Donald Trump’s on-again-off-again tariffs continue to weigh on companies. Lululemon Athletica plunged 19.8% after the maker of yoga clothing cut its profit expectations late Thursday as it tries to offset the impact of tariffs while being buffeted by competition from start-up brands.

Lululemon joins a wide range of companies, from retailers to airlines, that have warned investors about the potential hit to their revenue and profits because of tariffs raising costs and consumers potentially tightening their spending.

Hopes that Trump will lower his tariffs after reaching trade deals with other countries are a main reason the S&P 500 has rallied back so furiously since dropping roughly 20% two months ago from an all-time high.

The economy is absorbing the impact from tariffs on a wide range of goods from key trading partners, along with raw materials such as steel. Heavier tariffs could hit businesses and consumers in the coming months.

The U.S. economy contracted during the first quarter. Recent surveys by the Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing managers, found that both American manufacturing and services businesses contracted last month. On Tuesday, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development forecast 1.6% growth for the U.S. economy this year, down from 2.8% last year.

The uncertainty over tariffs and their economic impact has put the Federal Reserve in a delicate position.

In other trading early Monday, U.S. benchmark crude oil lost 3 cents to $64.55 per barrel. Brent crude, the international standard, gave up 5 cents to $66.42 per barrel.

The U.S. dollar retreated to 144.42 Japanese yen from 144.85 yen. The euro edged higher, to $1.1422 from $1.1399.