Israeli strikes kill at least six in Gaza as West Bank olive farmers face settler violence
Israeli attacks on war-torn Gaza over the weekend killed at least six Palestinians, including children, despite a year-old ceasefire agreement. The source does not give further details on the strikes, but says the violence continued over the weekend and caused multiple deaths. In the occupied West Bank, settler violence continued through the ongoing olive harvest. The source links the attacks to conditions facing Palestinian farmers during the harvest period, but does not name specific locations, victims, or damage. UN independent experts on Monday urged Israel to protect Palestinian farmers. The source frames the situation as a continuing pattern of attacks... [Continue Reading]
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HSBC Sharia fund invested in firms linked to Israel's military supply chain
HSBC has come under scrutiny after a report said its Islamic Global Equity Index Fund invested more than $130 million in companies linked to Israel's military supply chain. The fund is marketed as Sharia-compliant and is one of the United Kingdom's largest Islamic investment products. The report said the holdings included firms associated with components, technology and equipment used in military applications.The companies named in the report include Palantir and RTX, which it described as part of the wider supply chain supporting Israel's military. HSBC's fund, which has more than $8bn in assets, is designed to channel savings into global... [Continue Reading]
Israel arrests 10 over West Bank settler attacks as diplomatic pressure grows
Israeli police said on Monday that they had arrested 10 suspects in connection with weekend violence in the occupied West Bank, including attacks on a United States photojournalist and European diplomats. The detentions were carried out before dawn at several locations, according to police, who said the suspects were taken for questioning. Authorities said the case involves alleged violence, breach of a closed military zone order and illegal construction.The arrests came after pressure from the United States, France, Belgium and Poland following the assaults. Among those targeted was Heidi Levine, a photojournalist for The Washington Post, who was attacked while... [Continue Reading]
World Food Programme cuts Gaza food aid for a second day as funding shortfall deepens
The World Food Programme has confirmed it is ending monthly assistance for about 500,000 people in Gaza because of a funding shortfall. The agency said the reduction lowers the number of people receiving food or cash support from 1.6 million to 1.1 million. The cut affects a territory where the agency says needs remain acute and two thirds of the population is still food insecure.Shaun Hughes, the WFP country director, said the agency is now cutting half a million people from the number it assists. The latest figures mean the organisation will still reach roughly half of Gaza's population each... [Continue Reading]
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Israel election battle over Arab-led and ultra-Orthodox kingmakers ahead of October 27 vote
Israel's election campaign is increasingly focused on the role of smaller parties that could decide who forms the next government after the October 27 vote. Arab-led parties Ra'am and the Joint List are being cast as possible kingmakers, with polls projecting them to win 13 seats together. That would make them potentially decisive in coalition talks in the 120-seat Knesset if neither of the main blocs secures a majority.The immediate political fight has centred on accusations and counter-accusations between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's camp and its rivals. Netanyahu has repeatedly attacked opponents over their ties to Ra'am and the Joint... [Continue Reading]
Gaza food prices rise after Israel halts commercial shipments
Prices of basic food items are rising in Gaza after commercial shipments were halted for a fifth consecutive day, according to residents and market traders. The disruption has affected Gaza City and other parts of the enclave, where families are already under severe economic strain. People who can afford to do so are buying extra supplies in case the closure continues and shortages deepen.The restrictions were announced on Wednesday, when Israel said commercial goods would no longer enter Gaza. The reported halt has come amid a dispute over fees involving Palestinian merchants and Hamas, which still has some authority in... [Continue Reading]
Day News Recap: Ukraine energy strikes deepen as Hormuz attacks, Yemen missiles and global unrest spread
Ukraine said Russian strikes hit more than 15 energy sites in a large overnight assault, as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that limits on Starlink were hampering interceptor operations and that Moscow was intensifying pressure on the power grid. He also said Donald Trump’s pause on a new sanctions package would encourage Russia to step up the war. 🔗 🔗Fighting in eastern Ukraine remained contested, with Kyiv rejecting Russian claims of major territorial gains in Donetsk, while a separate Russian drone strike on Kharkiv killed two people during Zelenskyy’s talks with European leaders in Brussels. 🔗 🔗In the Middle East, the... [Continue Reading]
Israeli rabbi ruling on stolen Palestinian olives deepens West Bank harvest tensions
A hardline Israeli rabbinic ruling has intensified outrage in the occupied West Bank after a prominent rabbi said settlers may take olives from Palestinian orchards. The ruling, issued on Friday by Rabbi Dov Lior, comes as attacks on Palestinian farmers continue during the olive harvest season. It adds a new religious and political dimension to a period already marked by repeated violence.According to the supplied report, Lior said Jews are permitted to pick olives from Palestinian land and described the theft as an "additional virtue." He argued that Palestinian landowners had already been compensated in years when they could access... [Continue Reading]
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Gaza malnutrition and starvation reach catastrophic levels, health ministry says
Malnutrition and starvation in Gaza have reached what the Palestinian Ministry of Health described as catastrophic levels, with the warning issued on World Food Day. The ministry said the crisis is unfolding despite a United States-brokered ceasefire that was intended in part to improve the flow of food and medical supplies into the Strip. It said the situation remains severe as winter approaches and food insecurity continues to affect a large share of the population.According to the ministry, about 67% of Gaza's population is projected to face crisis-level food insecurity or worse through the end of 2026. It said at... [Continue Reading]
China urges Israel to halt West Bank settlement expansion as talks continue in Azerbaijan
China's foreign minister has told Israel to stop what Beijing described as the "forced establishment" of settlements in the West Bank and to reverse its actions. The remarks were made during a face-to-face meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog on the sidelines of a conference in Azerbaijan, according to a statement from China's foreign ministry. Wang Yi also said the Palestinian question is "the greatest historical injustice of this century," giving the exchange clear diplomatic weight.Wang said the two-state solution remains the correct direction for resolving the conflict and called for the Gaza Strip to be fully opened to access.... [Continue Reading]
Azerbaijan hosts rare Baku summit bringing together rival Middle East and Asian leaders
The seventh summit of the Conference on Interaction and Confidence-Building Measures in Asia has brought together leaders and senior officials from countries often divided by regional disputes in Baku. The meeting in Azerbaijan on Thursday included representatives from Israel, Iran, Turkey, Russia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Palestine and China, as well as leaders from several Central and South Asian states. The gathering was marked by tense moments, but also by bilateral meetings and efforts to explore areas of cooperation.Azerbaijan's President Ilham Aliyev hosted the summit and presented his country as a bridge between Asia and Europe. The forum is... [Continue Reading]
Balkan politics shape ties with Israel as domestic divisions drive divergent positions
Balkan countries are taking markedly different positions on Israel, with domestic politics, defence deals and strategic interests shaping their responses rather than any shared regional line. The divergence has become more visible during Israel's war on Gaza, as concern over Israeli conduct has grown across much of Europe. In the Balkans, however, experts say the region's fragmented politics make a common stance unlikely.Marko Prelec, an analyst at the International Crisis Group, said the region has "almost no common positions at all", adding that it is therefore not surprising that views on Israel and Gaza are "all over the map". Florian... [Continue Reading]
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Israeli forces raid Palestinian NGO offices and deploy snipers near Ramallah hospital
Israeli forces raided the offices of several Palestinian non-governmental organisations in Ramallah on Tuesday, while snipers were deployed around the entrances to the Palestine Medical Complex. The operation took place in the centre of the city in the occupied West Bank and affected both civil society offices and the area around the largest government medical facility in the territory. The presence of armed forces in a busy urban area caused panic among residents and disrupted normal activity.The official Palestinian news agency reported that snipers were positioned outside the hospital entrances, while Israeli forces searched the Union of Palestinian Women's Committees... [Continue Reading]
Gaza ceasefire anniversary marked by continued Israeli strikes and fresh displacement
Gaza marked the first anniversary of its ceasefire on 10 October with continued Israeli attacks and new displacement in Gaza City. The truce has been described by more than 100 humanitarian and human rights organisations as existing "in name only". Israeli forces have also continued to push the so-called Yellow Line deeper into residential neighbourhoods, adding to pressure on civilians already uprooted by the war.Gaza's Health Ministry said 1,493 people had been killed and 5,299 wounded since the ceasefire took effect, as of 12 October. That was up from 1,460 a week earlier, according to the same figures. The ministry... [Continue Reading]
Fear the Shia, Arm the Sunnis: The Uncomfortable Numbers Behind America’s War Narrative
“When fear is managed carefully enough, a nation can be taught to look away from the blood on the floor and stare instead at the shadow on the wall.” A friend of mine, whose name I will not reveal because he asked me not to, sat across from me over dinner and placed a question on the table that would not leave me alone. He was born into a Muslim Shia background, and for the angle of this article, that detail matters, not because I wish to reduce a man to a sect, but because sect has become one of... [Continue Reading]
The Madness of Power, From Balfour to the Edge of World War Three
A Voice in the Wilderness of War: Who Still Dares to Speak Truth While Empires March There are moments in history when the world suddenly accelerates toward disaster, moments when anyone who has studied history can feel the temperature rising even before the explosions reach their peak. The current escalation in the Middle East is one of those moments. According to the facts we now see unfolding, the United States and Israel made the unilateral decision to attack Iran without the approval of the United Nations, without a global coalition mandate, and without the support of most of the international... [Continue Reading]
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