INTERNACIONAL
Six Kurdish fighters killed in IRGC ambush as clashes spread across western Iran
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Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Thursday it killed five members of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, while the Kurdish opposition group told Fox News Digital that six of its Peshmerga — a term commonly used for Kurdish fighters — were killed in what it described as an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps ambush in northwest Iran.
The clash marks another escalation in Iran’s Kurdish-majority west after days of reported attacks and clashes involving Iranian security forces, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Kurdish armed factions.
It also underscores the current position of Iranian Kurdish opposition groups that recently were viewed by U.S. and Israeli officials as a possible pressure point against Tehran during the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran but ultimately stayed out of the conflict amid mixed signals from Washington and pressure from both Iran and Turkey.
WAVE OF ATTACKS ON IRAN’S IRGC RAISES QUESTIONS ABOUT RENEWED KURDISH INSURGENCY
The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan said six of its Peshmerga — Karo Hormuziari, Fardin Changizi, Mohammad Khaki, Abdullah Mohammadpour, Twana Osmani and Mohammad Amin Bayezidi — were killed in a clash with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps near Piranshahr in Iranian Kurdistan July 1, 2026. (The Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan)
Majeed Gly, president of the American Kurdish Committee, told Fox News Digital the latest clashes should not be read as a full-scale uprising, but also should not be dismissed as routine border violence.
«What I’m hearing is, this is not business as usual,» Gly said. «This is not like periodic clashes on the border. This is operations, and it seems to be deep inside.»
Gly said Kurdish frustration has grown sharply after months of Iranian attacks on Kurdish areas and opposition-linked sites, including in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. He said the region has been hit by more than 850 attacks since February, leaving at least six civilians dead and dozens more wounded.
Hejar Berenji, the U.S. representative of the Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, or PDKI, confirmed to Fox News Digital that six PDKI Peshmerga were killed in a clash with IRGC forces in the Piranshahr area of Iranian Kurdistan.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said it had killed five members of the banned PDKI in northwest Iran, Reuters reported Thursday, citing state media. The IRGC said the group was ambushed after entering Iranian territory in mountainous border areas near Piranshahr in West Azerbaijan Province.
WAVE OF ATTACKS ON IRAN’S IRGC RAISES QUESTIONS ABOUT RENEWED KURDISH INSURGENCY
Kurdish separatists attempted an Iran crossing from Iraq amid protests. (Mustafa Ozer/AFP via Getty Images)
Berenji identified the six Peshmerga as Karo Hormuziari, Fardin Changizi, Mohammad Khaki, Abdullah Mohammadpour, Twana Osmani and Mohammad Amin Bayezidi. He said the incident took place Wednesday night in the village of Qizqapan, near Piranshahr, and said the PDKI unit was on a «political and organizational mission» when it was «ambushed by a large and heavily equipped IRGC force.»
«This should be understood in the broader context of the Islamic Republic’s continued repression in Iranian Kurdistan and its repeated attacks on Iranian Kurdish civilian camps in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, even during ceasefire and negotiation periods,» Berenji said. «The regime has increased pressure on Kurdish communities because it understands that Iranian Kurds remain among the most organized and determined democratic forces inside Iran.»
The PDKI is one of Iran’s oldest Kurdish opposition movements. The group has been involved in decades of intermittent conflict with the Islamic Republic, while Tehran has long viewed Kurdish armed groups as separatist threats, while others describe it as a historic, centrist and nationalist Iranian Kurdish opposition group that Iran has targeted for years, including through assassinations of its leaders decades ago.
The Kurds are one of the largest stateless ethnic groups in the Middle East with communities spread across Iran, Iraq, Syria and Turkey. In Iran, many Kurds live in the country’s mountainous west and northwest, where Kurdish opposition groups have long accused Tehran of repression, executions, forced assimilation and military crackdowns. Iranian authorities view armed Kurdish factions as separatist or «terrorist threats.»
The latest clash followed several days of violence in western Iran. A similar incident near Piranshahr was reported by Iranian state media Tuesday, with the IRGC saying it had killed six members of what it called an «opposition and separatist group.»
Two IRGC members were killed and two wounded in a shooting in Kermanshah Province Monday evening, an attack claimed by a newly formed Kurdish armed group seeking retaliation for the IRGC’s role in suppressing the 2022–2023 protest movement, according to the Kurdish rights group Hengaw.
Iran also appeared to be expanding pressure on Kurdish opposition groups beyond PJAK, the Kurdistan Free Life Party, after days of clashes between PJAK and the IRGC, The Jerusalem Post reported Thursday.
Berenji said the latest clash was not a response to ongoing U.S.–Iran memorandum of understanding negotiations, which remain unresolved as talks continue without a finalized agreement.
WAVE OF ATTACKS ON IRAN’S IRGC RAISES QUESTIONS ABOUT RENEWED KURDISH INSURGENCY
Vice President JD Vance (center) speaks with Army Chief and Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir (left) and Pakistan Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar after arriving for the U.S.-Iran peace talks in Islamabad April 11, 2026. (Jacquelyn Martin/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)
«The Kurdish struggle for freedom, democracy and national rights predates the current negotiations and is not dependent on them,» Berenji said. «At the same time, any agreement that ignores the Kurdish question, the regime’s attacks on Kurdish civilians and the repression inside Iran will not bring real stability.»
Gly said Kurdish anger has been compounded by language in the U.S.–Iran memorandum of understanding that critics interpret as Washington agreeing not to interfere in Iran’s internal affairs.
KHAMENEI BODY IN COLD STORAGE AS FEARED BASIJ MOBILIZES AHEAD OF HISTORIC IRAN FUNERAL
People take part in a march in Erbil, Iraq, April 21, 2026, expressing support for the unity of Iranian Kurdish parties and condemning Iranian missile strikes and military actions against Kurdish groups in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq. (Rasul Gawhari/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)
«This sentence has taken every Iranian opposition group the wrong way, especially the Kurds,» Gly said.
He argued that even during negotiations with hostile powers, the United States should not abandon its public support for freedom movements, invoking former President Ronald Reagan’s approach to the Soviet Union during the Cold War.
Gly said he does not see clear evidence that Kurdish groups have gained major new military capabilities but said the perception of Iran’s strength has changed.
«What has changed is the perception of weakness of Iran,» Gly told Fox News Digital. «They are less afraid of the regime.»
The new violence carries broader significance for Washington because Iranian Kurdish opposition groups were recently discussed as a possible ground pressure point against Tehran.
U.S. officials and Kurdish groups had discussed a potential military operation against Iranian security forces in western Iran, Reuters reported in March, while a separate report said Israel was backing Iranian Kurdish plans to seize Iranian border areas, though such an operation would likely require U.S. and Israeli support.
But those expectations quickly faltered. In April, Kurdish fighters ultimately stayed out of the war because of mixed signals from Washington and Israel and Iranian threats and strikes against Kurdish positions in Iraq. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged President Donald Trump during the conflict to prevent Kurdish forces from launching a ground operation inside Iran, reflecting Ankara’s longstanding opposition to Kurdish armed movements gaining ground in the region, Reuters also reported.
During the conflict, Trump told Reuters he would be «all for it» if the Kurds wanted to move against Iran and said their objective should be «to win,» but Kurdish commanders were frustrated by the lack of a clear U.S. or Israeli strategy.
Berenji said the PDKI does not seek chaos, but insisted Kurdish forces have the right to defend themselves.
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Naval units from Iran and Russia simulate the rescue of a hijacked vessel during joint drills at the Port of Bandar Abbas in Hormozgan, Iran, on Feb. 19, 2026. (Iranian Army/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)
«We seek a democratic, pluralistic, secular and federal Iran where all nations and communities can live with dignity and rights,» he said. «But the Kurdish people also have the right to defend themselves against repression, intimidation, and attacks by the IRGC.»
Fox News Digital has reached out to Iran’s mission to the United Nations for comment.
middle east, war with iran, middle east foreign policy, iraq, iran
INTERNACIONAL
Las ventas de autos nuevos mantienen el acelerador en Panamá y superan las 26 mil unidades hasta mayo
La venta de autos nuevos en Panamá mantiene su ritmo de crecimiento en 2026 y consolida al segmento de las SUV como el principal motor del mercado automotriz. Entre enero y mayo se inscribieron 26,689 vehículos nuevos, un aumento de 12.7% frente a las 23,679 unidades registradas en el mismo periodo de 2025, según cifras preliminares de la Contraloría General.
El resultado confirma que la industria avanza por encima de la proyección inicial de crecimiento que manejaba el sector para este año. La expectativa preliminar apuntaba a un aumento cercano al 5% y a un cierre de alrededor de 63 mil unidades, pero el comportamiento observado hasta mayo sugiere que esa meta podría ser superada si la demanda mantiene el impulso durante el segundo semestre.
En 2025, el mercado cerró con 60,233 autos nuevos vendidos, un crecimiento de 10.8% frente a 2024, cuando se comercializaron 54,384 unidades. De sostenerse la tendencia acumulada hasta mayo, 2026 podría convertirse en otro año de expansión para una actividad que viene recuperándose de forma sostenida tras la pandemia, apoyada en mayor oferta de modelos, competencia de precios, nuevas marcas y acceso al crédito.
El crecimiento no ha sido uniforme durante el año. Marzo fue el mes de mayor dinamismo, con 6,473 autos nuevos inscritos, un salto de 42.5% frente al mismo mes de 2025. Abril moderó el ritmo con 5,312 unidades y un incremento de 4.1%, mientras que mayo cerró con 4,972 vehículos, 7.4% más que en igual mes del año anterior.
El liderazgo del mercado sigue concentrado en las SUV, que se han convertido en el modelo preferido por los consumidores panameños. Entre enero y mayo se inscribieron 14,987 SUV, lo que representa 56.2% del total de autos nuevos vendidos en el país. Este segmento creció 12.8% frente a las 13,283 unidades registradas en el mismo periodo de 2025.
La preferencia por las SUV responde a una combinación de factores: mayor sensación de seguridad, espacio interior, altura de manejo, versatilidad familiar y una oferta cada vez más amplia en versiones compactas, medianas y grandes.
Otro de los factores que continúa transformando el mercado automotriz panameño es la consolidación de las marcas chinas. La mayor disponibilidad de modelos, una estrategia de precios más competitiva y una oferta cada vez más amplia de tecnología y equipamiento han permitido que estos fabricantes ganen terreno frente a las marcas tradicionales.
De acuerdo con estimaciones de la industria, las marcas de origen chino ya representan cerca del 30% de las ventas de vehículos nuevos en Panamá, una participación que ha venido aumentando de forma sostenida en los últimos años.
Este cambio ha intensificado la competencia entre distribuidores y ha ampliado las opciones para los consumidores, especialmente en el segmento de las SUV, donde se concentra buena parte de la oferta de fabricantes chinos. No obstante, las marcas japonesas continúan liderando el mercado, con Toyota manteniendo la primera posición en ventas, respaldada por su red de distribución, servicio posventa y trayectoria en el país.
Después de las SUV, los automóviles regulares ocuparon el segundo lugar del mercado con 5,282 unidades, un crecimiento de 23.9%, el mayor avance entre los segmentos de alto volumen. Esta categoría incluye sedanes, coupés, camionetas y hatchbacks.
Le siguieron los pick ups, con 3,663 unidades, un aumento de 11.6%, impulsados por la demanda comercial, agropecuaria y de usuarios que buscan vehículos de trabajo con doble propósito.
El segmento de autos de lujo mostró un avance más moderado, con 975 unidades inscritas hasta mayo, apenas 1.5% más que en el mismo periodo de 2025. Aunque el crecimiento es bajo, mantiene una tendencia positiva en una categoría que durante varios años tuvo un comportamiento más débil por el encarecimiento del financiamiento y la cautela en el consumo de mayor valor.
No todos los segmentos crecieron. Las minivans cayeron 18.5%, al pasar de 367 a 299 unidades; los buses bajaron 25.7%, con 211 unidades; y los camiones retrocedieron 4.7%, hasta 785 unidades. Estos descensos muestran que la recuperación está más concentrada en vehículos de uso particular y en segmentos de alta preferencia familiar.
Hacia adelante, voces de la industria prevén que el desempeño dependerá de tres factores principales: disponibilidad de inventario, condiciones de crédito y confianza del consumidor. El financiamiento seguirá siendo clave, porque una parte importante de las compras de autos nuevos se realiza mediante préstamos bancarios o planes ofrecidos por financieras vinculadas a las agencias.
Si el ritmo actual se mantiene, Panamá podría cerrar 2026 por encima de las 63 mil unidades estimadas inicialmente y consolidar otro año de crecimiento para uno de los sectores más visibles del consumo interno.
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INTERNACIONAL
Vulnerable House Dem’s bipartisanship push clashes with fantasy to ‘beat the s— out of’ Hegseth
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Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., a swing-district Democrat who touts herself as a bipartisan dealmaker, told a liberal audience she wants to «work across the aisle» before saying moments later that watching Pete Hegseth testify made her want to «beat the s— out of him.»
Lee made the remarks during an appearance last month before the Sun City Liberal Club in Las Vegas while discussing rare earth minerals and her work supporting MP Materials, a Las Vegas-based company involved in U.S. critical minerals production. The comments come as she seeks re-election in Nevada’s closely divided 3rd Congressional District.
«I want to be bipartisan. I want to work across the aisle,» Lee told the crowd, according to video of the remarks. But moments later, while discussing Hegseth appearing before her committee, she said, «Now listen, it’s so easy. It’s so easy. Like you just wanna beat the s— out of him.»
SWING-DISTRICT DEMOCRAT FACES BACKLASH AFTER VULGAR LATE-NIGHT POST TARGETING TRUMP, DOUBLES DOWN
«But you got to bite it,» Lee said of wanting to «beat the s—» out of Hegseth.
Rep. Susie Lee (D-NV) speaks at a Dignity Coalition news conference on Capitol Hill on March 25, 2026, in Washington, D.C. The Dignity Coalition is a bipartisan group that has formed to support the «Dignity for Immigrants while Guarding our Nation to Ignite and Deliver the American Dream Act of 2025» (the DIGNIDAD Act or Dignity Act, H.R. 4393) which they argue is a solution to fix the immigration system in the United States. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)
The Hegseth remark is not the first profanity-laced comment to draw scrutiny for Lee. In April, Fox News Digital reported that Lee deleted an expletive-filled late-night social media post targeting Trump after online backlash, then defended her remarks by saying her «nerve was touched» by what she described as attacks on the Constitution.
«Secretary Hegseth has made life less safe and more expensive for Americans. The war of choice that he and President Trump started has placed more burden on working families by increasing the cost of gas and groceries. And despite promising to immediately review Congresswoman Lee’s request to get Nevada Test and Training Range veterans the health care they need, Secretary Hegseth has dragged his feet for nearly two months,» a spokesperson for Lee told Fox News Digital. «Clearly, there are many areas in which Congresswoman Lee does not see eye to eye with the Secretary.»
Lee’s comments about wanting to beat up Hegseth came while she was teeing up a story to the Sun City Liberal Club about pressing the Secretary of War during a hearing on the Pentagon’s decision to invest in an Australian company while supposedly leaving a U.S.-based one out to dry. Lee said she appealed to Hegseth by telling him she believed in «made in America» and questioned why the Pentagon had invested more heavily in a different Australian company as opposed to MP Materials, an American one.
«Now listen, it’s so easy. It’s so easy. Like you just wanna beat the s— out of him. I mean yea, but you just got to bite it. So this is what I did – he came in front of my committee twice,» Lee said as she told the story about the rare earth investments.
«You got to lay on their ego, right?» she continued. «Well, three weeks later, they announced a $2 billion investment in MP Materials, okay? I didn’t want to be sweet with Hegseth, okay, I didn’t. But, you know, you got to do what you got to do to get s— done, right?»
U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
«Congresswoman Lee set aside [her differences with Hegseth] on behalf of her constituents to secure an investment in a Nevada-based employer that will create hundreds of jobs in southern Nevada,» Lee’s spokesperson told Fox News Digital. «She will continue putting politics aside and working with anyone — regardless of party — to lower costs, create jobs, and make life better for her constituents.»
But Republicans took aim at the remarks as evidence that Lee’s bipartisan brand is at odds with how she talks about Trump administration officials behind closed doors.
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«It’s unfortunate for our Republic, near our 250th birthday of this great experiment we call America, that town hall comments like this reveal the truth, and Republican voters should be warned that Democrats, if they take over the majority, will simply spend their time going after President Trump and his administration,» said Mark Bednar, former head of communications for former Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy.
Republicans also took issue with Lee’s claim that her exchange with Hegseth helped spur a major Defense Department investment in MP Materials, accusing the Nevada Democrat of overstating her role while using the story to burnish her bipartisan credentials.
«Either Susie Lee believes her words contain the persuasive power of the word of God, or she’s making stuff up and being completely unhinged to boot,» said Republican National Committee spokesperson Nick Poché. «Nevadans deserve a leader who will work to deliver for them, not posers whose only objective in office is to improve their stock portfolios like Susie Lee.»
Democrat Rep. Susie Lee sparked backlash after going on a late-night expletive-filled rant against President Donald Trump. (Madeline Carter/Las Vegas Review-Journal)
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MP Materials eventually signed a major agreement with the Defense Department, including a $400 million Pentagon investment that made the federal government the company’s largest shareholder and other commitments aimed at strengthening the U.S. rare earth magnet supply chain.
democratic party, pete hegseth, nevada, house of representatives politics, pentagon
INTERNACIONAL
Se esfuman las chances de rescatar a Fabio, un nene venezolano que lleva 9 días bajo los escombros: «No hay señales de vida»
Fabio tiene 9 años. Está desaparecido junto a su madre desde que se registró el doble terremoto en Venezuela. Es un caso similar al de Lucas Gámez, el argentino de 8 años al que buscan bajo los escombros en La Guaira. Pero en el caso de Fabio este viernes las autoridades dieron malas noticias, aunque su padre no pierde las esperanzas de encontrarlo con vida.
«No se han encontrado señales«, dijeron los rescatistas de varias nacionalidades que han usado sonar y georadar, sin obtener indicios favorables para la familia de Fabio Bastardo y de su madre, Kiriaki Navarro.
Los equipos inspeccionaron durante toda la mañana el edificio derrumbado de doce plantas buscando la oportunidad de comenzar un complejo rescate del niño que se quedó atrapado en los escombros del edificio Taihiti en la localidad de Caraballeda, en la región costera, el epicentro de la devastación del doble terremoto de la semana pasada.
Los rescatistas, que hoy utilizaron perros y drones para las inspecciones, aseguraron que el edificio se mueve y que incluso tiene nuevas grietas, por lo que la estructura está muy delicada.
Ya son varios los equipos de rescate que usan la tecnología de búsqueda y rescate sin encontrar signos de vida en el edificio, a pesar de que la familia afirma que el niño está con vida.
«No pierdo la esperanza de que mi hijo va a aparecer. Hasta que el Gobierno me lo permita seguiré buscando a mi muchacho porque no he visto un cuerpo real, pero yo lo siento acá en mi corazón, lo siento en mi cuerpo que Fabio sigue vivo porque el responde a mis llamados», dijo a EFE el padre del niño, Francisco Bastardo.
Su padre estaba en el estrecho de Ormuz y hacía videollamada cuando ocurrió el doble terremoto
El hombre es marinero. La noticia del doble terremoto lo encontró en otro rincón complicado del planeta: estaba navegando por el estrecho de Ormuz. Llegó a Venezuela el domingo y desde entonces hace guardia junto al edificio de doce pisos derrumbado en el que se encontraban Fabio, su hermano mayor y la madre de ambos.
«El menor fue el que se dio cuenta, mi niño siempre ha sido un muchacho muy inteligente, llegó corriendo a la sala y le dijo a su mamá que va a temblar, me llegó el mensaje por la aplicación. La mamá lo abraza y ahí se corta la señal«, explicó Bastardo que estaba hablando con su familia por videoconferencia en el momento del temblor.
Por ese relato es que las autoridades, en principio, buscaban a Fabio al lado de su madre, que se cree está sin vida.
El padre relató que por allí han pasado antes varios equipos de rescate y que han descartado seguir con la búsqueda a pesar de que él y la gente que lo ayuda saben que Fabio sigue con vida.
A las afueras del edificio, donde trabajaban más de medio centenar de rescatistas nacionales e internacionales custodiado por varios militares y policías, la abuela del niño exclamaba que nadie hacía nada por sacarlo.
«No han podido hacer nada en ese edificio«, gritaba la señora dolida, clamando que le dicen que no hay nadie con vida pero no les dejan entrar a buscar a sus familiares.
Rebeca, la abuela del niño, aseguró que desde el pasado jueves ella y otros familiares buscan a su nieto. El domingo, según la familia, Fabio respondió a llamados con un silbido y en la mañana de este viernes escucharon ruidos como de golpes.
En el mismo sentido, Manuel Mendes González -un venezolano que sigue de cerca las labores de rescate, incluso los de Fabio y Lucas- aseguró a última hora del jueves en un video en redes sociales que el chico venezolano sigue dando señales.
Los equipos de rescatistas internacionales siguen este viernes con las operaciones de salvamento después de que el rescate del venezolano Hernán Gil del jueves llenara de esperanza a los afectados a pesar de que las probabilidades de sacar a alguien más con vida disminuyen a medida que pasan las horas.
El vigilante, de 43 años, fue rescatado tras ocho días bajo los escombros de un edificio después de un dispositivo de más de 72 horas en el que participaron más de 100 rescatistas internacionales en la costera urbanización de Playa del Mar.
El número de fallecidos por los terremotos de magnitud 7,2 y 7,5 ocurridos en la zona norte de Venezuela el pasado 24 de junio asciende a al menos 2.645, mientras que la cantidad de heridos es de 12.666.
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