*) Isolated, US & Israel see UN states back report on Israeli genocide in Gaza

The UN expert who concluded Israel was committing acts of genocide in besieged Gaza has received broad support at the United Nations, with countries speaking up to back her and her report.

Francesca Albanese, the special rapporteur on human rights in the Palestinian territories, told the UN Human Rights Council that countries should impose an arms embargo and sanctions on Israel.

Albanese said Israel was characterising the entire Palestinian population in besieged Gaza as “targetable, killable and destroyable” and had ostentatiously laid bare its “genocidal intent” to “rid Palestine of Palestinians.”

*) ‘He swam to get food for his children’: 12 drown as US drops aid off Gaza

Palestinian resistance group Hamas has demanded a halt to aid airdrops after 18 people drowned while attempting to reach the dropped supplies.

The group said Israel must lift its brutal siege and allow aid into Gaza via land crossings.

Six people were killed in stampedes and 12 others drowned off the territory’s Mediterranean coast trying to salvage aid packages.

*) Russia claims downing 18 airborne targets in Belgorod

Russia has claimed that its air defence units downed 18 airborne targets over the southern region of Belgorod bordering Ukraine, the regional governor said.

Writing on the Telegram messaging app, the governor of the Belgorod region said one person was injured and there was damage to private homes and cars.

Ukraine has been staging air attacks for months on Belgorod and two nearby regions, Kursk and Voronezh.

*) India court bans Muslim religious schools in UP state ahead of election

A court in India has effectively banned Muslim religious schools in the country’s most populous state of Uttar Pradesh.

The ruling last week scraps a 2004 law governing Muslim religious schools in Uttar Pradesh, saying it violates India’s constitutional secularism and ordering that students be moved to conventional schools.

The Allahabad High Court order affects 2.7 million students and 10,000 teachers in 25,000 religious schools across the state.

*) Türkiye stands firm against false claims of defence ties with IsraelTürkiye has rejected allegations of cooperation with Israel, particularly defence-based cooperation, saying the country will not do anything that will harm Palestinians and their cause.

The country’s defence ministry said, “It is not possible for the Republic of Türkiye, which has always supported Palestine, to carry out or engage in any activity that would harm Palestinians.”

The statement came after false claims by some media outlets that Türkiye continues to export gunpowder, weapons and ammunition to Israel.