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Metro Manila, Philippines –  Severe tropical storm Francisco may intensify into a typhoon by Sunday evening, the state weather bureau said.  The Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said in its 11 a.m. bulletin that the cyclone will likely remain over the Philippine Sea east of Luzon during the forecast period and that it is not likely to make landfall. No wind signals have been raised as of this writing.  PAGASA said Signal No.1 may be hoisted over northern and eastern portions of Cagayan, Babuyan Islands, and Batanes on Monday morning.  Francisco entered the Philippine Area of Responsibility on Saturday night.  It is currently located 1,170 kilometers east of Southeastern Luzon with center winds of 110 kilometers per hour (kph) and gusts of up to 135 kph.

Metro Manila, Philippines – Twenty-four Filipino workers who were detained in Russia returned to the Philippines on Sunday, June 21, following a meeting between President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Kazan. The workers—reportedly victims of illegal recruitment—had been detained for nine months in the Siberian region of Russia. The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said the repatriated Filipinos arrived early Sunday morning via a connecting flight from Bangkok, Thailand.  Officials from the agency were on site to welcome the returning workers. President Marcos raised the detainees’ situation directly with Putin during his state visit to Russia. “They have not been charged with any wrongdoing, but they have still been kept in detention for nine months,” Marcos said, quoting the Russian leader.

(Reuters) – Negotiators from the United States and Iran were set to start peace talks in Switzerland on Sunday, even as U.S. officials disputed Iranian claims about closing the key ​Strait of Hormuz. A high-level Iranian team arrived in Switzerland for peace talks with the U.S., Iranian state media reported, as U.S. Vice President JD Vance departed Washington for meetings that ‌Pakistan said will begin on Sunday. Although the U.S. and Iran had agreed to a 60-day ceasefire while negotiations take place, Tehran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on Saturday declared the Strait of Hormuz shut, though the U.S. military said commercial vessels had continued operating in the waterway. Those developments could complicate talks in which both sides seek to advance an interim deal brokered by Pakistan and signed on Wednesday by U.S. President Donald Trump and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian to end their almost four-month war. Pointing to what it called Israeli “crimes”…

Dubai/Washington – U.S. President Donald Trump’s personal envoy and Iran’s foreign minister were headed to Switzerland for talks, Axios said, although deadly strikes by Israel in Lebanon on Saturday could test a new ceasefire key to ending the Iran war. The talks, led by Steve Witkoff and Abbas Araqchi mark an effort to turn this week’s interim 14-point pact into a lasting regional deal to end the war that the United States and Israel launched on February 28. But just hours after a ceasefire took effect in Lebanon between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group Hezbollah, Israeli air strikes and drone attacks killed at least five people in the south on Saturday, Lebanese state media said. A halt to the fighting in Lebanon is a condition for starting 60 days of U.S.-Iranian talks to resolve disputes over Iran’s nuclear program and other thorny issues needed to forge a more durable deal critical to reopening the Strait of Hormuz and…

Metro Manila, Philippines – Filipino tennis ace Alex Eala continued her impressive run at the WTA 500 Berlin Tennis Open, defeating World No. 8 Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, 6-3, 6-4, on Friday, June 20, to advance to the semifinals. Fresh off her upset victory over World No. 2 Elena Rybakina, Eala delivered another composed performance against the sixth-seeded Svitolina, earning the sixth Top 10 win of her career. The Filipina took control early, breaking Svitolina’s serve in the opening game and building a 4-1 advantage in the first set. Svitolina managed to cut the deficit to 4-3, but Eala quickly regained momentum with another service break before closing out the set with a forehand winner. The second set followed a similar pattern, with Eala once again securing an early break to move ahead, 2-0. Svitolina fought back to level the set at 2-2, but Eala responded immediately with another break…