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Ukraine war briefing: Two Chinese nationals arrested in Neptune missile espionage case | Ukraine

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  • Ukraine said it had arrested a Chinese father and son, both suspected of spying on Kyiv’s Neptune cruise missile programme. Counterintelligence officials detained a 24-year-old former student in Kyiv after they provided him with “technical documentation” related to Neptune production, Ukraine’s SBU said. They later swooped on his father when he visited Ukraine from China to “personally coordinate” his son’s work and smuggle out the documents to the Chinese special services, the SBU said.

  • A Ukrainian official told Reuters the two men were the first Chinese people arrested for spying since Moscow’s 2022 full-scale invasion. Kyiv has repeatedly accused China of supplying parts and technologies central to the Russian drone and missile programme. China’s government insists there has been no such trade. The Chinese embassy in Kyiv did not respond to a request for comment from Reuters on the Neptune case and a lawyer for the men could not immediately be found.

  • The US resumed delivering artillery shells and mobile rocket artillery missiles to Ukraine, US officials told Reuters and the Associated Press on Wednesday, on the instructions of Donald Trump who claimed he did not know who ordered the shipments’ suspension last week. The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said 155mm artillery shells and GMLRS (mobile rocket artillery) missiles were being provided. The shipment paused last week included 30 Patriot missiles, 8,500 155mm artillery shells, more than 250 precision GMLRS missiles and 142 Hellfire air-to-surface missiles.

  • Kyiv was again under bombardment early on Thursday morning. As air defences fought off Russian drones, one struck an apartment building in the centre of the capital, said Tymur Tkachenko, head of the Kyiv military administration, and debris fell in different districts of the city. Reuters witnesses reported loud explosions.

  • On Wednesday, Russia pummelled Ukraine with its largest missile and drone attack in more than three years of war – a dark record that is seemingly reset higher every few days. Lutsk, a town in western Ukraine, was heavily targeted for its military airfield and infrastructure. Kyiv’s air force said Russia fired 728 drones and 13 missiles at Ukraine, with air defence systems cutting down 711 drones and seven missiles. Air force representatives said new Ukrainian drones played an important role in defending against the attacks and most of the Russian drones were decoys.

  • A one-year-old boy was killed in a Russian attack on the village of Pravdyne in the southern Kherson region, local officials announced. Some reports said he was hit by a drone in his back yard along with his grandmother who was badly injured. Ukrainian prosecutors said Russian drone and bombing attacks in two towns in Donetsk killed eight civilians on Wednesday. Officials published images showing the remains of two people burnt to death in their car, which officials said was hit by a Russian drone.

  • Casualties included three people killed and one injured in the frontline town of Kostiantynivka in Donetsk region, the national emergency services said. A one-storey administrative building was destroyed and rescue teams pulled bodies out of the rubble. Firefighters extinguished blazes in four buildings. Vadym Filashkin, governor of Donetsk oblast, said it was time to “take a responsible decision. Evacuate to less dangerous regions of Ukraine!”

  • Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Keith Kellogg had a “substantive” conversation, the Ukrainian president said after meeting the US president’s Ukraine envoy in Rome. “We discussed weapons supplies and strengthening air defence … We also covered the purchase of American weapons, joint defence manufacturing, and localisation efforts in Ukraine.” Both men were in Italy ahead of a conference on 10-11 July dedicated to Ukraine’s recovery and long-term reconstruction.

  • Zelenskyy said he and Kellogg had discussed at length proposals to slap tougher sanctions on Moscow. He expressed hope for progress in a sanctions bill before the US Congress, sponsored by Republican Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Democrat Richard Blumenthal of Connecticut. Donald Trump has been aiming unusually direct criticism at Vladimir Putin, saying the Russian ruler’s statements on moving towards peace were “meaningless” and “bullshit”.

  • The Guardian’s diplomatic editor, Patrick Wintour, considers whether the Trump-Putin bromance may have run its course. “If so it is a transformatory moment, and a vindication for both Volodymyr Zelenskyy as he arrives in Rome for the annual Ukraine reconstruction conference and for those others, notably the British and the French governments, who have patiently helped the scales to fall from Trump’s eyes about Putin’s true intentions. At long last and after many false starts, the US president seems to have accepted he is unpersuadable on ending the war.

  • Europe’s top human rights court delivered damning judgments on Wednesday against Russia in four cases brought by Kyiv and the Netherlands. Judges at the European court of human rights ruled that Russia committed a string of human rights violations in backing anti-Kyiv separatists in eastern Ukraine from 2014, in the downing of the MH17 flight that year and in invading Ukraine in 2022. Russia violated the convention through “extrajudicial killing of civilians and Ukrainian military personnel” outside of combat, “torture”, “forced labour”, “unlawful and arbitrary detention of civilians” as well as looting in its invasion of Ukraine, the judges found.



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    Wimbledon women’s semifinal results: Iga Świątek dominates, Amanda Anisimova advances to final with win over Aryna Sabalenka

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    The Wimbledon final is set. American Amanda Anisimova will take on Poland’s Iga Świątek on Saturday. The winner will walk away with the first Wimbledon title of their careers.

    Anisimova punched her ticket to the final first with a 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 win over Aryna Sabalenka. It was a fantastic, back-and-forth match, but Anisimova came out on top in the end.

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    The American relied on a fantastic serve, which registered just two aces, but put Sabalenka in tough positions all game. While Anisimova showed signs of frustration and poor body language during the match, she recovered enough to take a huge 4-1 lead in the final set. While Sabalenka battled back, that gap proved to be too big. Anisimova pulled out a narrow 6-4 win in the final set to advance to her first Wimbledon final.

    The second match of the day proved to be far less dramatic, as Świątek dominated Belinda Bencic 6-2, 6-0 to advance to the final. Świątek played a phenomenal match and looked absolutely determined to reach the final at Wimbledon for the first time in her career.

    Her serve was dominant, registering two aces and contributing to Świątek’s 26 winners. While she made more unforced errors compared to Bencic, Świątek excelled everywhere else. She was 6-for-6 on net points and 5-for-5 on break points.

    While Świątek will hold the advantage in the final, Anisimova could prove to be a difficult opponent. The two have never faced each other in a singles match, which could provide Anisimova with an opportunity to surprise Świątek in the final.

    Catch up below on all the action from Thursday’s Wimbledon women’s semifinals:



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    Wimbledon 2025 live: Novak Djokovic suffers injury scare plus Swiatek vs Bencic score and result

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    NEW: Novak Djokovic cancels practice session ahead of Jannik Sinner showdown at Wimbledon

    The 38-year-old suffered an awkward fall very late on in his quarter-final victory over Flavio Cobolli on Wednesday.

    He picked himself up to finish off the four-set victory but admitted afterwards he would likely not know the full effect until Thursday, and the signs did not appear positive when Djokovic first delayed and then cancelled his scheduled practice session at the All England Club.

    Kieran Jackson10 July 2025 18:28

    Bencic struggled to hold serve against Swiatek (Getty Images)
    Swiatek and Bencic embrace after match point
    Swiatek and Bencic embrace after match point (Getty Images)
    Swiatek will play in her first Wimbledon final next
    Swiatek will play in her first Wimbledon final next (Getty Images)

    Alex Pattle10 July 2025 19:00

    Swiatek breezes past Bencic and into her first final at Wimbledon

    Report from Centre Court:

    Alex Pattle10 July 2025 18:49

    Swiatek is asked what music she listened to on her way onto court

    Swiatek: “Same as every time, I like to keep my routines, so there’s some AC/DC, Guns ‘N’ Roses, Led Zeppelin, the Rolling Stones.

    “Yeah, I mean, before the match [I like rock music]. Everybody’s asking me if I listen to that all the time, they keep buying me vinyl records and everything.

    “And I’m like, ‘Guys, if I would listen to that all the time, I wouldn’t be able to sleep,’ so it’s just pre-match, just to pump myself up.

    “But off the court, when I don’t compete, I’m more of a pop, jazzy, something, I don’t know…”

    Alex Pattle10 July 2025 18:20

    Swiatek speaks after reaching first Wimbledon final

    Swiatek: “Honestly, I never even dreamt that it’s gonna be possible for me to play in the final.

    “So, I’m just super excited and just proud of myself, and I don’t know… Tennis keeps surprising me.

    “I thought I lived through everything, even though I’m young. I thought I’d experience everything on the court, but I didn’t experience playing well on grass, so that’s the first time, so I’m just enjoying it.

    “Every opponent is different, so every match I also need to adjust my game, but for sure I feel like I improved my movement, and I’m serving really well.

    “And I feel really confident, so I’m just going for it – and for sure it’s working, so I’ll keep doing that.”

    A victorious Switaek on Centre Court
    A victorious Switaek on Centre Court (Getty Images)

    Alex Pattle10 July 2025 18:17

    GAME, SET AND MATCH! SWIATEK BOOKS FINAL SPOT

    Bencic gets ahead at 15-0, but Swiatek turns the game around for 15-30.

    The former world No 1 then drags a forehand into the net, 30-30.

    But she brings up match point on the next go…

    Saved! Credit to Bencic, who bravely takes on a forehand. Somehow, Swiatek gets it back, and the next shot, but Bencic eventually slams home a smash. Deuce.

    A slight slip from Bencic, and she nets a backhand. Another match point for Swiatek…

    TAKEN! A winner, past a stranded Bencic, and Swiatek reaches her first Wimbledon final!

    She bagels Bencic in the second set, wow.

    Alex Pattle10 July 2025 18:13

    Bencic really struggling here

    Swiatek races up to the net, then pings a forehand just inside the baseline. Bencic’s return effort is valiant, but the ball floats narrowly long. 0-15.

    Bencic with a better serve this time, and Swiatek’s return is nowhere. 15-15. Same again! 30-15.

    The pair exchange backhands on the next point, before Swiatek puts a forehand near Bencic in the corner. Although it’s close to her, it slightly wrongfoots her, and Bencic bows her head as she’s beaten. 30-30.

    Swiatek’s next return fails to beat the net, though. 40-30.

    Swiatek saves one game point by pushing Bencic into the corner, where the Swiss stretches and can’t get much on her backhand. Deuce.

    Double fault, and Swiatek has a break point on advantage… Saved! Swiatek’s forehand in the corner is just wide.

    But more poor serving gives Swiatek a break point again, which she takes with a powerful forehand in the corner. Again, Bencic just can’t get anything on it.

    (Getty Images)

    Alex Pattle10 July 2025 17:55

    Deja vu

    For the second set in a row, Swiatek rushes to 3-0.

    It would take a tennis miracle for Bencic to pull this one back.

    But stranger things have happened, it’s why we love this sport.

    Alex Pattle10 July 2025 17:49



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    Judge blocks Trump’s order restricting birthright citizenship

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    CONCORD, N.H. — A federal judge in New Hampshire granted class-action status Thursday to a lawsuit seeking to protect babies who would be denied birthright citizenship by the Trump administration and granted a temporary block of the president’s order restricting birthright citizenship from going into effect throughout the country.

    The suit was brought on behalf of a pregnant immigrant, immigrant parents and their infants and had sought class-action status for all babies and their parents around the country who would be affected by the executive order.

    Cody Wofsy, the plaintiffs’ lead attorney with the American Civil Liberties Union, argued for class-action status in front of U.S. District Judge Joseph Laplante on Thursday morning, saying that the plaintiffs would suffer irreparable harm by being denied birthright citizenship, a claim the judge found credible.

    Laplante ordered that class-action status be certified in the case but only for the babies who would be affected by the restrictions, not for the parents.

    The judge also ordered a preliminary injunction temporarily blocking President Donald Trump’s order from going into effect, but stayed his order for seven days, allowing the government time to appeal.

    “This is going to protect every single child around the country from this lawless, unconstitutional and cruel executive order,” Wofsy said at a news conference after the hearing.

    Attorneys for the Department of Justice had argued that the relief the plaintiffs were seeking was too broad and challenged whether the requirements for class-action status had been met. The department also argued that the request for the preliminary injunction and class status were premature and argued for time to appeal.

    Laplante said during Thursday’s court hearing that depriving a person of the longstanding right of birthright citizenship was “irreparable harm” and that birthright citizenship was “the greatest privilege that exists in the world.”

    The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the judge’s order.

    Before Thursday’s hearing, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson told NBC News: “The Trump Administration is committed to lawfully implementing the President’s Executive Order to protect the meaning and value of American citizenship and which restores the Fourteenth Amendment to its original intent.”

    After the hearing, the Department of Justice referred NBC News to a previous statement from Attorney General Pam Bondi last week that followed another judge’s order in a separate immigration case, saying a “rogue district court judge is already trying to circumvent the Supreme Court’s recent ruling against nationwide injunctions.” Bondi added in that statement, “the American people see right through this” and that Department of Justice attorneys will continue to fight for Trump’s agenda to secure the U.S. border.

    That statement from Bondi on July 2 was in reference to a judge in Washington, D.C., blocking Trump’s asylum ban at the U.S.-Mexico border last week, saying the president had exceeded his authority.

    The hearing comes as the ACLU and other organizations filed a new round of lawsuits in late June that seek class-action status after the Supreme Court limited the ability of judges to block orders nationwide through other means, known as nationwide injunctions.

    The Supreme Court did not decide on the merits of the Trump administration’s birthright citizenship order, but said it could begin to go into effect on July 27, barring further action from the courts.

    Under Trump’s plan, birthright citizenship would be limited to those who have at least one parent who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident. The order also denies citizenship to children whose mothers are temporarily in the United States, including those visiting under the Visa Waiver Program or as tourists, or who are students and whose fathers are not citizens or lawful permanent residents.

    That is at odds with the widely accepted understanding of the Constitution’s 14th Amendment, which grants citizenship to anyone born in the United States, with a few minor exceptions.

    In a written order issued Thursday, Laplante wrote that the court certified class action status to the following group when issuing the nationwide block of Trump’s birthright citizenship order: “All current and future persons who are born on or after February 20, 2025, where (1) that person’s mother was unlawfully present in the United States and the person’s father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth, or (2) that person’s mother’s presence in the United States was lawful but temporary, and the person’s father was not a United States citizen or lawful permanent resident at the time of said person’s birth.”

    “Every court to have looked at this cruel order agrees that it is unconstitutional,” Wofsy, the deputy director of the ACLU’s Immigrants’ Rights Project, said in a statement announcing the lawsuit in late June. “The Supreme Court’s decision did not remotely suggest otherwise, and we are fighting to make sure President Trump cannot trample on the citizenship rights of a single child.”

    Devon Chaffee, executive director of the ACLU of New Hampshire, said in the statement at the time: “This executive order directly opposes our Constitution, values, and history, and it would create a permanent, multigenerational subclass of people born in the U.S. but who are denied full rights. No politician can ever decide who among those born in our country is worthy of citizenship — and we will keep fighting to ensure that every child born in the United States has their right to citizenship protected.”

    Shortly after taking office in late January, Trump issued an executive order limiting birthright citizenship, which he called “Protecting the Meaning and Value of American Citizenship.”

    As a result, nearly two dozen states have filed lawsuits arguing that the order violates the 14th Amendment, which says: “All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States and of the State wherein they reside.”

    The Supreme Court’s decision last month restricted judges’ authority to block presidential orders nationwide, as opposed to just within their jurisdictions. But it allowed judges to issue such nationwide decisions in class-action cases, leading immigrant rights organizations and others to file several additional legal challenges to the birthright citizenship order that are now moving through the courts.



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