China's Brahmaputra mega-dam | Iran-Europe nuclear talks | Hook News Brief

Hook News Brief | 21.07.25

IRAN TO HOLD NUCLEAR TALKS WITH EUROPEAN NATIONS ON FRIDAY

Iran has agreed to resume nuclear negotiations with France, Germany and the UK. The new round of talks will be held on Friday, in Turkey’s Istanbul. This development comes after the three European nations, also called the E3, threatened Iran with a reimposition of sanctions. The E3 nations, along with Russia and China, are the remaining parties to the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. The US unilaterally withdrew from the deal in 2018, during US President Donald Trump’s first term. This was despite Iran adhering to the terms of the deal. US attempts to sign a fresh nuclear deal have been derailed, after Washington bombed Tehran’s nuclear facilities last month.

ISRAEL KILLS OVER 60 PALESTINIANS WAITING FOR FOOD

Israeli forces killed at least 115 Palestinians in Gaza on Sunday. At least 67 were killed by an Israeli strike while they were lining up for food. It was reportedly one of the deadliest incidents for Palestinian seeking aid since May. The death toll for Gazans trying to access food relief has crossed 900. The United Nations says that the situation in Gaza has become “catastrophic”, and that “children are wasting away”. Israel has been blocking aid to Gaza since March.

CHINA BEGINS CONSTRUCTING MEGA-DAM ON BRAHMAPUTRA RIVER

On Saturday, China began construction on a mega-dam along the Brahmaputra/ Yarlung Tsangpo river in Tibet. Chinese Premier Li Qiang attended the project’s groundbreaking ceremony in Tibet. The dam and its hydropower stations are expected to cost over $160 billion. It is projected to supply 300 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity annually, making it the largest hydro-electric facility in the world. But the project has caused concerns in India. The river known as the Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibet is called the Brahmaputra River in India. It flows into the Indian state of Arunachal Pradesh, and then crosses Assam, before entering Bangladesh. New Delhi is concerned that the Chinese dam could disrupt the flow of water into India, affecting both water and food security. India is also concerned that China may weaponise the dam in the event of a conflict.