Extreme rainfall in southern China has triggered the largest floods since 1998 in the upper and lower reaches of the Lishui River in Central China's Hunan Province, affecting more than 400,000 people in seven cities and prefectures and forcing the relocation of more than 95,000 people. 

As of 5:00 pm Saturday, average precipitation across Hunan since Wednesday had reached 68.5 millimeters, with cities including Zhangjiajie, Changde, Huaihua, Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous prefecture recording precipitations over 100 millimeters. In particular, Zhangjiajie recorded the areal precipitation of 331.1 millimeters with the accumulated precipitation in Badagongshan township in Sangzhi county reaching 664.5 millimeters, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Saturday, citing the provincial water resources, meteorological and emergency management departments. 

In response to the widespread flooding, local governments across Hunan promptly activated corresponding emergency responses, strengthened early warnings for key locations and regions, issued over 1.39 million targeted alerts and more than 16,000 alert text messages, and reminded grassroots authorities to evacuate more than 95,000 residents. 

Mao Weiming, a deputy Party secretary of the CPC Hunan Provincial Committee and governor of Hunan Province, visited on Saturday the Hunan Provincial Department of Water Resources to review flood-control efforts and coordinate ongoing work. 

Mao also visited the provincial flood and drought disaster prevention center to assess the rainfall and flooding levels. In particular, the northern and northwestern areas of the province have been hit by extremely heavy rainfall since Wednesday. The location with the highest recorded precipitation was 648.0 millimeters at the Wuya station in Longshan county, leading to the formation of the No.1 Flood of Lishui River in 2025.

On Thursday, the second day of the national college entrance exams in Longshan county, heavy rain caused severe street flooding. A video posted by a local resident showed a student in white wading through waterlogged streets to reach the exam. The local education authority said some students were late for the exam due to the heavy rain. 

Heavy downpours began on Wednesday night in Longshan county, causing the Guoli River to surge and triggering the largest flood on record. As of Saturday, the flooding had affected 185,000 residents, Xinhua reported.

A local resident surnamed Chen from Longshan county told the Global Times on Sunday that many of the local residential compounds were built along the Guoli River.Compounds in lower-lying areas, including his own, were severely affected by the flooding. 

According to Chen, such a major flood had never happened before, local residents lacked experience and didn't take early warnings seriously. When the floodwaters rose early Thursday morning, most residents were still asleep. Although the property management had placed sandbags at the entrance of the underground garage, water still flooded in. 

Chen attempted to move his car at 5 am, when water levels were still low. But by the time he reached the garage, it was already halfway up the tires. By around 7:00 am, the water had completely submerged the garage ceiling, about half the vehicles inside the garage weren't moved in time. 

Meteorological and hydrological forecasts indicate heavy to torrential rain is expected from Saturday to Monday in central and northern Hunan, with heavy downpours anticipated in southern Xiangxi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture, western Changde, central and northern Huaihua and western Yiyang. 

Average rainfall over the next week are projected to reach 100 millimeters over the next week, with around 180 millimeters anticipated in the Lishui and Yuanshui river basins - significantly increasing the risk of major flooding. 

Local authorities urged heightened vigilance against river flooding, mountain torrents, and geological disasters, safety risks at small and medium-sized reservoirs, and urban waterlogging. 

In South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, heavy to torrential rain fell between 8 am and 8 pm on Saturday in parts of Baise, Fangchenggang, Hechi, Nanning and Chongzuo. As a result, 16 hydrological stations along 14 rivers reported water levels breaching the safety threshold by 0.01 meters to 3.77 meters, according to the local hydrological center, the Chinanews.com reported on Sunday. 

Data from the local hydrological center show that water levels at the Liuzhou station on the Liujiang River rose to 82.50 meters at 2:00 pm on Saturday, marking the No.1 flood of the river in 2025. At the Jinchengjiang station on the Longjiang River, the water level peaked at 191.77 meters - 3.77 meters above the warning level of 188.00 meters - the highest since 1983. 

Tension is continuously building up in the Middle East as the world is closely watching how Iran will respond to US' strikes on its nuclear sites. Iran issued a stark warning to the US government on Monday, saying that the attack on its nuclear sites expanded the range of legitimate targets for its armed forces, Reuters reported. 

Iran and Israel traded air and missile strikes on Monday, meanwhile, a US military base in Hasakah, northeastern Syria, was attacked, sources said, reported Mehr News Agency of Iran. The agency did not specify who fired on this American military base.

On Monday morning, the Israeli military said missiles had been launched from Iran towards Israel. It also said it had attacked six airports in Iran, BBC reported.

Citing an unidentified source, Iran's state television Press TV updated on Monday on X that Iran used Kheyber-Shakan, Emad, Qadr, and Fattah-1 missiles in today's attacks. 

Israeli Air Force fighter jets have dropped over 100 munitions on targets in Tehran in the past two hours, according to the IDF, the Times of Israel updated on Monday evening.

In a statement, Israel's military says it carried out an attack to "disrupt access routes" to the Fordow nuclear site that was hit by the US on Sunday, Al Jazeera reported on Monday. 

Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei issued what appeared to be his first public statement since the US attack on Iran, in a post on X on Monday, local time, according to Wall Street Journal.

"The Zionist enemy has made a grave mistake, committed a great crime," the post said, referring to Israel. "It must be punished, and it is being punished; it is being punished right now."

The top commander of Iran's Armed Forces has also issued a strong warning that the US has opened the door to retaliation, saying "we will never back down," in a statement reported by state-run media. Abdolrahim Mousavi, the Armed Forces' Chief of Staff, said on Monday morning "criminal America" had "opened the doors to the warriors of Islam in the armed forces for any action against its interests and army, and we will never back down in this regard," the CNN reported.

Iran's supreme leader sent his foreign minister to Moscow on Monday. Russian President Vladimir Putin has told Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi in talks in Moscow that aggression against Iran was groundless, Al Jazeera reported. 

Putin made the comments at the start of Kremlin talks and said Russia is ready to help the Iranian people. Meanwhile, Araghchi thanked Putin for condemning the US strikes on Iran, telling him Russia stood on "the right side of history," according to the report. 

"Overall, the current situation is in a highly uncertain stage of strategic maneuvering. Clear internal divisions exist within the US, while Iran is actively seeking diplomatic support," Sun Degang, director of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at Fudan University, told the Global Times on Monday. "Whether the tension in the Middle East will further escalate remains to be seen, and depends on the next moves by all parties involved," the expert noted. 

China, Russia and Pakistan proposed a draft resolution to the UN Security Council in New York on Sunday local time, calling for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire, protection of civilians, respect for international law, and engagement in dialogue and negotiation, following the US' strikes on three nuclear sites in Iran. China's envoy to the UN also condemned the US for the attacks, and a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Monday that the strike has further intensified tensions in the Middle East. 

Fu Cong, China's permanent representative to the UN, said on Sunday at the UN Security Council Emergency Meeting that China strongly condemns the US attacks on Iran and the bombing of nuclear facilities under the safeguards of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). 

The actions of the US seriously violate the purposes and principles of the UN Charter and international law, as well as Iran's sovereignty, security and territorial integrity. They have exacerbated tensions in the Middle East and dealt a heavy blow to the international nuclear non-proliferation regime, Fu said. 

Divided views

The US move to attack three nuclear sites in Iran has divided US President Donald Trump's supporters in the US and unsettled some allies, the Washington Post reported.

The prospect of escalation with Iran expanded the divide within the GOP over military intervention, and left some Republicans worried about political fallout, particularly if Iran retaliates by targeting Americans or curtailing crucial shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz, potentially increasing oil prices and undercutting the president's promises to reduce costs, according to the Washington Post.

Trump's decision to launch a military strike on Iran's nuclear sites without fully consulting the US Congress also layered a partisan approach onto a risky action, particularly because the White House briefed top Republican leaders beforehand while leaving Democrats with little information, the AP said on Monday.

From the perspective of US domestic politics, attitudes toward Iran are currently divided, some experts said. 

"On one hand, after the military strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities, certain forces within the US government appeared increasingly emboldened," Sun said. 

However, a different view also exists within the US, which argues that as a major regional power, any regime change in Iran could lead to chaos and instability, which could be a scenario that would come with an extremely high cost, Sun said. 

Strait of Hormuz in focus

Iran's Supreme National Security Council must make the final decision on whether to close the Strait of Hormuz following the US bombing raids, after parliament was reported to have backed the measure, Reuters said. 

The possible disruptions of the Hormuz passage also raised global concerns. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Sunday called on China to encourage Iran to not shut down the Strait of Hormuz, according to Reuters. 

When asked about Iran's parliament reportedly endorsing closing the Strait of Hormuz and China's comments and whether China has held talks with Iran regarding the issue, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said on Monday that the Persian Gulf and nearby waters are important route for international trade in goods and energy. 

Keeping the region safe and stable serves the common interests of the international community. China calls on the international community to step up effort to promote deescalation of the conflict, and prevent the regional turmoil from having a greater impact on global economic growth, Guo said. 

Iran has not yet made a formal decision on whether to block the Strait of Hormuz. While the Iranian parliament has expressed support for such a move, the final decision rests with the country's Supreme National Security Council, Liu Zhongmin, a professor from the Middle East Studies Institute of Shanghai International Studies University, told the Global Times on Monday. 

"From a practical standpoint, this posture appears more like a way for Iran to vent its anger and issue a stern protest to the US and the international community," Liu said. 

More substantive potential actions would include Iran announcing its withdrawal from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) or refusing to cooperate with IAEA inspections, Liu said, noting that these developments could signal a new phase of escalation. 

The current situation has entered a highly unstable phase, with a growing risk of a chain reaction that could escalate regional conflicts, Zhu Yongbiao, a Middle East affairs expert and director of the Center for Afghanistan Studies at Lanzhou University, told the Global Times on Monday. 

"The adventurist actions of the US and Israel have introduced significant uncertainty to the broader Middle East, and their impact may spill over into other already fragile regions, triggering wider geopolitical turbulence. The path ahead is filled with unknowns and carries substantial strategic risks," Zhu said. 

Queqiao-2, China's relay satellite for its lunar landing missions, is set to support future moon exploration endeavors by other countries, according to the country's Deep Space Exploration Lab.

The satellite, which supported Earth-moon communications for China's Chang'e-6 mission that has retrieved samples from the moon's far side, will provide relay services for lunar missions from China and other countries, the lab said on Monday.

Launched in March last year, Queqiao-2, also known as Magpie Bridge 2, is equipped with three scientific payloads -- an extreme ultraviolet camera, a two-dimensional-coded energetic neutral atom-imager and an Earth-moon very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) experiment system.

The satellite has been stably operating in orbit for 14 months, performing scientific tasks including large-scale imaging of Earth's plasma and magnetosphere layers, and VLBI experiments in the Earth-Moon system, according to the lab.

The satellite's extreme ultraviolet camera captured the first global 83.4-nanometer ionosphere image, providing crucial data for studying the impact of solar activity on the plasmasphere.

The satellite's VLBI experiment system, in coordination with the Shanghai 65m Radio Telescope, extended the observation baseline to 380,000 kilometers and successfully observed deep-space targets like radio source A00235 and the Chang'e-6 orbiter.

Queqiao-2 is poised to play a crucial part in the country's future Chang'e-7 and Chang'e-8 missions.

China plans to launch the Chang'e-7 mission around 2026 to explore the environment and resources of the south pole of the moon. The Chang'e-8 mission, set for around 2028, will conduct experiments for the in-situ utilization of lunar resources.