Trump signals second carrier deployment as US-Iran prepare to resume talks
In interviews with Israeli media, Trump warned of consequences if negotiations fail. “Either we reach a deal or we'll have...
Geostrategy
Iran’s Khamenei likens protests to ‘coup’, warns of regional war
Iran's supreme leader on Sunday likened recent anti-government protests to a "coup", warning that any US attack on the Islamic...
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Geostrategy
Israel hits Rafah despite US warning on arms transfers
In an interview with CNN on Wednesday, Biden warned he would stop some US weapons supplies to Israel if it...
- An AFP correspondent and witnesses on Thursday reported Israeli strikes on several parts of Rafah, where the United Nations said 1.4 million people were sheltering
- Israel has already defied international objections by sending in tanks and conducting what it called "targeted raids" in the east of Rafah
Geostrategy
Israel destroys dozens of Bedouin homes in Negev desert
Israeli authorities destroyed around 50 homes belonging to Bedouins in the Negev desert on Wednesday, an AFP journalist reported, with...
- Israel considers the homes built in Wadi al-Khalil to be illegal
- Only 11,000 bedouins remained within Israel's borders after the 1948 Arab-Israeli War
Biden threatens to stop arm shipments if Israel invades Rafah
Biden, a self-described Zionist, had long resisted stopping any of the $3 billion in weapons the United States sends each...
- In an interview with CNN Biden also deplored the fact that civilians had been killed by the dropping of US bombs on the Palestinian territory
- His fresh warning came after the US last week halted a shipment of huge American bombs to Israel as it appeared ready to proceed with a major attack on Rafah
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Empty streets and ‘fear’ in Gaza’s Rafah since Israeli incursion
Rafah, Palestinian Territories - Displaced Gazan Marwan al-Masri, sheltering in Rafah, said on Wednesday "life has completely ceased" since Israeli tanks...
- More than 1.4 million people had crammed into Rafah, a city on the Gaza Strip's southern border with Egypt, as Israeli forces pushed their way southward
- Caught between Israeli shelling from the east, an Egyptian border to the south and the Mediterranean to the west, many fleeing Rafah went north
Geostrategy
Israel seizes Rafah crossing as Gaza truce talks resume
Egypt's state-linked Al-Qahera News reported that mediators from Qatar, the United States and Egypt were meeting with a Hamas delegation.
- A senior Hamas official warned this would be Israel's "last chance" to free the estimated 128 captives still held in Gaza, including 36 officials who are dead
- Israel's offensive has killed at least 34,789 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory's health ministry
Geostrategy
Hamas accepts Gaza truce proposal, Israel urges Rafah evacuation
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said the proposal "is far from Israel's essential demands", but the government will send...
- The Hamas announcement brought cheering crowds onto the street amid tears of happiness, chants of "Allahu Akbar" ("God is greatest") and celebratory shooting in the air
- Israel's military meanwhile reiterated an earlier call for residents of east Rafah to evacuate as it prepares for a "ground operation" in the southern Gaza city
Hamas says delegation heading to Cairo for truce talks
The hawkish prime minister has insisted he will send ground troops into Rafah, despite strong concerns voiced by UN agencies...
- Foreign mediators have been waiting for a Hamas response to a proposal to halt the fighting for 40 days and exchange hostages for Palestinian captives
- A major stumbling block has been that, while Hamas has demanded a lasting ceasefire, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to continue to fight
Geostrategy
EU pledges $1 bn for Lebanon, urges curbs against illegal migration
The EU Commission's spokesman said in Brussels the aid will be disbursed "in grants", with 736 million euros earmarked to...
- "I can announce a financial package of $1 billion for Lebanon that would be available from this year until 2027," the European Commission chief said
- She said the aid was designed to strengthen basic services such as education and health amid a severe economic crisis
Geostrategy
Blinken urges Hamas to agree truce to help Gazans
A Hamas official said the group would respond "within a very short period" to a plan proposed by mediators to...
- "Hamas needs to say yes and needs to get this done," said Blinken, who was in Israel on his seventh Middle East crisis tour since the war broke out in October
- He later added: "If Hamas actually purports to care about the Palestinian people and wants to see an immediate alleviation of their suffering, it should take this deal."
Geostrategy
Blinken says US ‘determined’ to get Israel-Hamas ceasefire deal ‘now’
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken renewed calls for Hamas to accept a ceasefire deal Wednesday as he started talks...
- Netanyahu: Israel will launch an invasion of Rafah "with or without" a ceasefire deal.
- Aid is coming to Gaza but more is needed
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Trump signals second carrier deployment as US-Iran prepare to resume talks
In interviews with Israeli media, Trump warned of consequences if negotiations fail. “Either we reach a deal or we'll have...
Geostrategy
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Trump issues ‘last warning’ to Hamas over hostages amid new proposal for ceasefire deal
"The Israelis have accepted my terms. It is time for Hamas to accept as well. I have warned Hamas about...
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Russia hits Ukraine govt offices in war’s biggest air attack
Kyiv, Ukraine -- Russia fired its biggest-ever aerial barrage at Ukraine early Sunday, killing four people and setting government offices...
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Saudi launches Damascus area reconstruction project
Damascus, Syria -- Saudi Arabia announced on Sunday humanitarian projects for Syria including the removal of wartime rubble around Damascus,...
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Israel warns recognizing Palestinian state could trigger ‘unilateral’ action
Several countries, including France and Britain, have pledged to recognize a Palestinian state during the UN General Assembly later this...
- French President Emmanuel Macron co-hosted a conference in July with Saudi Arabia to call for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
- Britain said it would recognize a Palestinian state if Israel failed to agree to a truce in the Gaza war, triggered by Palestinian group Hamas's October 2023 attack.
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First India-Pakistan match since conflict fires up Asia Cup
New Delhi, India -- A blockbuster between India and Pakistan headlines the Asia Cup starting on Tuesday as they face...
- Arch-rivals India and Pakistan clash in Dubai on September 14, with Pakistan bowling great Wasim Akram saying players and fans should "remain disciplined and not cross the line".
- The neighbors have not met on either side's soil in a bilateral series since 2012 and only play each other in international tournaments on neutral ground.
Geostrategy
Key OPEC+ members to boost oil production again
Oil ministers in the V8 grouping -- comprising Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria and...
- Those countries had already increased production by 2.2 million bpd in recent months.
- They said that the new incoming cycle could see up to an extra 1.65 million bpd eventually coming onto the market.