International
Iran’s drones and missiles pass through the Middle East, where they monitor the growing tension
Lebanese anti-aircraft defenses launched several missiles over the skies of Beirut, presumably to respond to Iranian projectiles passing through their airspace on their way to Israel, public television TeleLiban reported.
“Interceptor missiles explode on the Airport Highway in Beirut,” the channel said, reporting that explosions could also be heard in several parts of the country, from the east to the south, possibly motivated by more responses from the air defenses.
Several missiles sailed the skies of the Lebanese capital about three hours after Tehran announced the start of its attack, according to EFE.
All this coincides with the passage through the region of a large number of missiles and drones launched by Iran towards Israel, in response to the bombing that two weeks ago destroyed its consulate in Damascus and killed seven members of the Revolutionary Guard, including two generals.
More than a hundred Iranian drones intercepted outside Israeli airspace by the United States and the United Kingdom.
Drones and cruise missiles launched by Iran against Israel have passed through Iraq’s airspace, while explosions were heard in the sky of some regions of the north of the country, local media and a security source reported to EFE on Sunday.
A source from the Iraq Area Force said on condition of anonymity that the projectiles crossed several areas of the country, after the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority announced the closure of the airspace from 8:30 p.m. to 2:30 GMT on Sunday.
For their part, local media reported that several rounds of drones and missiles flew over the southern provinces of Maysan and Nasiriya, as well as that of Suleimaniya, in the semi-autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, in northern Iraq.
Likewise, the Kurdish media Rudaw indicated that explosions were heard in the sky of Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, without it being known so far whether they are projectiles intercepted by the regional authorities or by the international coalition led by the United States, which is established in that locality.
The media also indicated that the sirens of the US consulate in Erbil began to sound after the projectiles flew over the locality, while he pointed out that the air defense systems of the building itself could have intercepted the unmanned aircraft.
Several areas of Syria recorded explosions this Sunday amid attempts by Israeli forces to shoot down the large number of drones and missiles launched by Iran into its territory, two organizations reported.
The Syrian Observatory of Human Rights confirmed in its X account that deflagrations could be heard not only in Damascus but also in areas of the country as disparate as the provinces of Homs (center), Hama (northwest) or Deraa (south).
The NGO, based in the United Kingdom and a wide network of collaborators on the ground, attributed the explosions to missiles launched by the Syrian anti-aircraft defenses against Israeli projectiles that, in turn, tried to shoot down those sent by Iran.
However, the Syrian authorities, allies of Tehran, have not yet confirmed that they have attacked Israeli targets on their territory.
The network of local activists from the south of the country ‘Horan Free Media’ also reported in X of the shooting down of several Iranian drones in the airspace of the province of Deraa and released a video in which you can see the moment when they were intercepted in the middle of the night.
Several drones launched from Iran intercepted in the sky of Amman, the capital of Jordan, according to state television Al Mamlaka in a live broadcast, during which the anti-aircraft sirens could be heard.
The Jordanian Armed Forces intercepted drones in the capital’s airspace, the television said.
The unmanned aircraft were also seen, and destroyed, in the sky of the Gerasa region, in northern Jordan, according to EFE.
International
Trump to build $200M ballroom at the White House by 2028
The U.S. government under President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that it will begin construction in September on a new 8,000-square-meter ballroom at the White House.
The announcement was made by Karoline Leavitt, the administration’s press secretary, during a briefing in which she explained that the expansion responds to the need for a larger venue to host “major events.”
“Other presidents have long wished for a space capable of accommodating large gatherings within the White House complex… President Trump has committed to solving this issue,” Leavitt told reporters.
The project is estimated to cost $200 million, fully funded through donations from Trump himself and other “patriots,” according to a government statement. Construction is scheduled to begin in September and is expected to be completed before Trump’s term ends in 2028.
The Clark Construction Group, a Virginia-based company known for projects such as the Capital One Arena and L’Enfant Plaza in Washington, D.C., has been selected to lead the project.
The new ballroom will be built on the East Wing of the White House, expanding the iconic residence with a space designed for state dinners, official ceremonies, and large-scale events.
International
Three salvadorans in Florida sentenced in $146 million construction tax fraud scheme
Three Salvadoran residents living in Orlando, Florida, were sentenced for conspiracy to commit tax fraud and wire fraud involving a scheme exceeding $146 million in the construction industry, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida. The sentence was handed down by federal judge Timothy J. Corrigan on Tuesday, July 29.
Eduardo Aníbal Escobar (45) was sentenced to 4 years and 9 months in prison, Carlos Alberto Rodríguez (36) to 3 years and 4 months, and Adelmy Tejada (57) to 18 months in prison, followed by 6 months of house arrest. All three pled guilty on April 3, 2025.
In addition to the prison terms, the court ordered restitution payments totaling $36,957,616 to the IRS for unpaid payroll taxes, and $397,895 to two insurers for workers’ compensation claims related to the scheme.
Escobar and Rodríguez are permanent legal residents originally from El Salvador, while Tejada is a naturalized U.S. citizen of Salvadoran origin.
International
Kremlin hails preparedness after Kamchatka quakes leave no casualties
The Kremlin expressed relief that the earthquakes that struck Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula today —the first being the strongest since 1952— resulted in no casualties, and emphasized that the region is well prepared to face such natural disasters.
“Thank God, there were no victims,” said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov during his daily press briefing.
The presidential representative stated that “all alert systems were activated in time, and evacuations were organized for residents in areas requiring it in response to tsunami threats.”
“Overall, the seismic resilience of the buildings proved effective (…) Therefore, we can say that the technological preparedness demonstrated a high level,” Peskov added.
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