Iran Vows ‘Devastating’ Military Response: U.S. Readies to Unleash Toughest Sanctions to ‘Collapse’ Regime

Iran vowed a “devastating” military response Friday as the United States enters a new phase of economic warfare against Tehran, with the Trump administration preparing the “toughest sanctions in history” as part of an escalating campaign Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent says will “collapse” the Iranian regime. President Donald Trump made clear Friday that Washington’s shift toward economic pressure does not take further military action off the table, while again pointing to Iran’s battered armed forces, economic deterioration, and the U.S. blockade around the Strait of Hormuz as evidence of the mounting pressure on Tehran. 

“No, not at all,” Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews when asked whether the turn toward economic warfare meant U.S. military options against Iran had become limited. “It just means that we’re seeing what happens,” Trump said. “They have no money. They have no navy. They have no air force. They’re not paying their soldiers. They’re not paying their police. They have 350% inflation.”

Trump also said the United States has “total control” around the Strait of Hormuz through its blockade, extending, he said, “well into” the surrounding land areas. “They would love to make a deal, but they’re not ready to make the right deal, in my opinion,” he said. The latest warning from Tehran came from Armed Forces Chief of Staff Maj. Gen. Ali Abdollahi, who said Friday that Iran is prepared to retaliate across virtually every military domain in the event of what he called another enemy “miscalculation” or threat.

With comprehensive, intelligent and up-to-date readiness in all areas — ground, naval, air, air defense, space and cyber — [Iran’s armed forces] will confront any miscalculation and conventional or modern threats by the enemies with revolutionary, forceful, regret-inducing and devastating responses,” Abdollahi said in a message marking Iran’s Defense Industry Day. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian issued his own warning Friday even as he argued that the conflict should be brought to an end while Tehran remains, in his telling, in a “position of power and dignity.” “We will under no circumstances bow to bullying, and there is no doubt about that,” Pezeshkian said. “We will stand against them until our last breath and give them a crushing response.” (Read More)

Iran Mocks Trump Over Hormuz With Satire

After U.S. president labeled strategic waterway "new American territory," Tehran responds with viral image ridiculing the claim. The confrontation over the Strait of Hormuz has moved beyond naval vessels and diplomatic threats into the realm of online satire. Iranian media recently circulated a mocking image showing a figure resembling U.S. President Donald Trump standing in the strait's waters, wearing a yellow duck-shaped flotation ring and holding a sign reading "American Territory."

The satirical visual emerged amid escalating tensions between Washington and Tehranover control of the strategically vital waterway. The timing of Iran's response was deliberate. On August 23, Trump posted a map depicting the Strait of Hormuz as "new U.S. territory," his second such post following a similar map on August 18. Earlier, he had stated that after the United States "defeats" Iran, he intends to convert the strait into American territory. Tehran rejected the American claim outright, insisting the waterway will remain closed until Washington changes its policies and meets Iranian demands.

Behind the mockery lies a serious geopolitical standoff. The Strait of Hormuz serves as a critical chokepoint in the global energy system. Before the current conflict, a substantial portion of the world's oil and gas exports passed through it, meaning any disruption to shipping there could affect energy prices, maritime commerce, and the broader global economy.

Trump maintains that the United States controls the strait and that vessels cannot pass without American authorization. Iran presents the opposite picture, asserting the waterway is closed and will only reopen when U.S. policy shifts.The dispute intensified when Trump published his map marked "NEW U.S. Territory. International media outlets, including AFP, reported on the move, characterizing it as a rhetorical escalation in the battle over control of the waterway. (Ed note: Be sure to check out the short video by Iran.)   (Source)

Iran executes protest detainee accused of ‘operational actions’ for Israel

Iran executes Majid Adineh, arrested during January protests and sentenced to death on charges including alleged actions in favor of Israel and the US.

Iranian authorities early Sunday morning executed Majid Adineh, who was arrested during the January 2026 protests, the regime judiciary-affiliated Mizan News Agency reported. According to Mizan, the Karaj Revolutionary Court sentenced Adineh to death and ordered the confiscation of all his property after convicting him of carrying out “operational actions in favor of Israel, the US, and hostile groups."

The sentence was subsequently upheld by Iran’s Supreme Court following an appeal. Adineh was arrested on the evening of January 9 in the Mohammadshahr area of Karaj together with another person by intelligence forces of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Alborz Province, northwest of Tehran. Iran’s judiciary claimed that authorities found a handgun, three magazines, 30 rounds of ammunition, two electric shock devices, two cans of tear gas spray, a battery-powered saw, and a bottle of gasoline at the time of his arrest.

The claims regarding the circumstances of Adineh’s arrest, the items allegedly found in his possession, his interrogation, and statements attributed to him could not be independently verified. Human rights organizations have repeatedly questioned the accuracy of such claims by Iranian authorities. Mizan reported that during questioning, Adineh initially denied using a firearm and said he had gone to the area to purchase clothing. According to the judiciary’s account, he also said he intended to help security forces move people away from the protest. He reportedly said that he had the bottle of gasoline and saw with him to counter the effects of tear gas.

The judiciary claimed that laboratory examinations showed that the firearm allegedly recovered from Adineh had been fired on January 8 and 9. Mizan said that after being confronted with the findings, Adineh acknowledged possessing the firearm and other equipment and said he had been aware of calls to participate in protests. Mizan also alleged that Adineh was affiliated with and had received training from an opposition group based outside Iran. The report did not identify the group or provide evidence regarding the alleged connection. (Ed note: Hey, President Trump, the Islamic Republic is still killing its own people faster than you ever could in an all out war.) (Read More)

Netanyahu’s office scorns Turkish regime threat to arrest PM

Israel “has long ceased to be impressed by Turkey’s hypocrisy,” the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem said on Friday, hours after Ankara issued another arrest warrant for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan “is an antisemitic dictator who has massacred Kurds, harbors Hamas terrorists, occupies half of Cyprus, and jails record numbers of journalists and politicians who oppose him,” the PMO said in a separate statement in English. “He now seeks to extend his aggression against Israel into Syria. Israel will not tolerate it,” the statement read. “Erdoğan’s pathetic attempt to intimidate the leaders and soldiers of Israel, the only true democracy in the Middle East, will go nowhere,” it added.

In the Hebrew statement, the PMO stressed that Israel will continue to “act forcefully” against Turkey’s attempts to undermine stability in the region. Earlier on Friday, Turkey’s Justice Minister Akin Gürlek announced on X the issuance of arrest warrants for Netanyahu and other Israeli officials, as part of a supposed investigation into Israel’s interception of a Gaza-bound protest flotilla in spring 2026. Ankara issued its first arrest warrants on July 14 for Israel’s prime minister and another person identified as “Afek Moskovitch”—whose title was not clarified by Turkish authorities—over allegations of genocide in Gaza. AFP cited Turkish İhlas News Agency at the time as saying that Moskovitch is an Israel Defense Forces soldier who posted footage of himself on Instagram destroying property in Gaza.

Netanyahu, Moskovitch, and 33 other Israelis were mentioned by Gürlek on Friday in connection with the interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla that sought to breach the blockade of Gaza, which aims to prevent the Hamas terrorist organization from acquiring arms to boost its power. Gürlek wrote on X that Ankara “categorically reject[s]” the notion that Netanyahu’s government is “untouchable and unaccountable.”Following Netanyahu’s office’s statement, the Turkish Presidency’s Directorate of Communications lashed out at the “outrageous ravings” of the Israeli PMO, saying that they are “devoid of historical fact and political seriousness.” Jerusalem’s attempt to portray Turkey as a threat is part of a “cheap political strategy” and poses “serious risks” not only to Israeli society, “but also to regional and global peace and stability,” the Directorate of Communications said. (Read More)

Netanyahu Responds to Turkish Arrest Threat

Israeli prime minister calls Erdoğan an "antisemitic tyrant" after Turkish officials announce plans to pursue international arrest warrant and Red Notice.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a sharp rebuke to Turkey after senior officials in Ankara announced they would pursue additional arrest warrants and international legal measures against him. The Turkish government said it plans to seek a "Red Notice" (an international police arrest warrant issued through Interpol (accusing Netanyahu of violations of international law related to Israel's efforts to block Turkish aid shipments to Gaza.

Netanyahu responded forcefully to the Turkish threats, stating that "Israel has long since stopped being impressed by Turkey's hypocrisy." He characterized Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan as "an antisemitic tyrant who massacred Kurds, supports the massacre by the Hamas terror organization, and oppresses his own people."

The Israeli leader also vowed to counter Turkish regional ambitions that could affect Israeli security. "Israel will continue to act forcefully against Turkey's attempts to undermine stability in the region and against any threat to its security," Netanyahu declared. (Ed note: PM Netanyahu is correct. President Erdogan hates the Kurds almost as much as he hates the Jews.)    (Source)

In meeting with Kushner, Netanyahu makes ‘very clear, in no uncertain words, that he is against a Palestinian state’

“The other side heard the message very well,” a senior Israeli official says of the Israeli prime minister’s meeting with the Trump adviser.

(JNS) In a meeting on Monday with Jared Kushner, U.S. President Donald Trump’s son-in-law who advises the president on Middle East subjects, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made “very clear, and in no uncertain terms, that he is against a Palestinian state,” according to a senior Israeli official. Kushner and other visiting Americans didn’t press a Palestinian state, but the prime minister made it “abundantly clear that he is 100% firm on this,” the senior Israeli official told JNS.

Netanyahu “made it incredibly clear that this was something that he is against, and the vast majority of Israelis are against,” the Israeli official told JNS. “I think the other side heard the message very well.” The discussions come as implementation of Trump’s 20-point plan remains stalled over the issue of Hamas’s disarmament. The Jewish state has maintained that the terror group must disarm fully before Israeli forces withdraw and large-scale reconstruction can begin. Kushner traveled to Israel to meet Netanyahu with members of the Board of Peace, the group Trump created to oversee Gaza’s post-war administration, after Netanyahu publicly rejected a 15-point plan agreed to between the board and Hamas.

In late July, Trump touted the 15-point “road map,” which called for Hamas to be disarmed gradually while Israel withdrew from Gaza in a parallel and phased fashion, as a breakthrough. Netanyahu rejected the idea categorically on Aug. 9. “I want to be clear here,” the prime minister said at a cabinet meeting. “Israel is ruling out the 15-point document.” During the four-hour meeting on Monday at Netanyahu’s office, the sides appeared to iron out their differences. “We will not allow Gaza to be rebuilt until demilitarization occurs,” Kushner told Fox News on Monday. He added that no one wants to send money to a conflict zone “if it’s just going to be taken over by terrorists and blown up again.” “We’re also not going to restrict Israel’s right to defend itself if there are any imminent threats,” Kushner said.

Netanyahu supported Trump’s 20-point plan to end the Gaza war during a joint press conference at the White House on Sept. 29, 2025. The plan included a “credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood” once the Palestinian Authority completed a reform program. Among the reforms was an end to the authority’s pay-for-slay program, which rewards terrorists and their families with stipends.“One thing we did say, ‘We’re absolutely against a Palestinian state,’” Netanyahu said at the time. “Trump said he understood.”

The prime minister has repeatedly expressed his opposition to a Palestinian state. “Our opposition to a Palestinian state on any territory west of the Jordan River exists, is firm and has not changed in the slightest,” he said at a cabinet meeting in November 2025. “I have been pushing back against these attempts for decades, doing so against external pressure as well as internal pressure,” Netanyahu said at the time. “So I don’t need encouragement, tweets or lectures from anyone.” (Ed note: Jared said, “We’re also not going to restrict Israel’s right to defend itself if there are any imminent threats,” Wow, what a guy!)  (Source)

Trump envoy Barrack faces criticism over Syria stance and Golan comments - analysis

A dispute between Israel and US President Donald Trump’s special envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack, intensified this week after comments he made on the Golan Heights and Turkey’s role in Syria prompted criticism from Israeli officials and Trump allies who said his positions conflict with the president’s stated policy. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar criticized Barrack following the comments, saying they were “full of inaccuracies” and included positions that “contradict the position of Trump himself regarding the Golan Heights.”

Conservative activist Laura Loomer also joined the criticism. Loomer, who maintains close and regular ties with Trump and is considered to have the president’s attention, pointed to the proclamation Trump signed in 2019 and called on Barrack to resign over what she described as a lack of understanding of US foreign policy. This was not the first time this week that Loomer criticized the envoy. Following Barrack’s condemnation of the Israeli strike on the Abu al-Duhur base in Syria, she wrote that “Tom Barrack is without a doubt one of the worst choices of the Trump administration,” adding: “He always sides with the bad guys.”

Loomer claimed that Turkey attempted to deploy advanced Russian air defense systems at bases in Syria ahead of a possible deployment of Turkish aircraft in the country. A source familiar with the details confirmed to The Jerusalem Post that Turkey is indeed seeking to deploy radar systems there and, in the future, air defense systems operated by Turkish soldiers.

Barrack, however, offered a nearly opposite assessment. He described the government of Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa as one that does not take an aggressive approach, said Ankara is not interested in a military confrontation with Israel, and described the Israeli strike on the Syrian base as an “unnecessary escalation.” According to Barrack, Turkey was not warned about the strike, and its aircraft could have been scrambled toward Israeli aircraft, a scenario that could have led to a direct confrontation between Israel and a NATO member. (Ed note: US special envoy to Syria, Tom Barrack is no friend to Israel, and has proved it before.) (Read More)

IDF strikes Syrian terrorist poised to carry out imminent terror attack on Israeli soldiers

The IDF struck a terrorist in southern Syria on Saturday who was in the “final stages” of preparing a terror attack against Israeli soldiers, the military said. According to Army Radio, the terrorist was planning an improvised explosive device (IED) attack on IDF soldiers in the area. The statement by the military follows reports earlier on Saturday that one person was injured by an IDF drone strike in Syria on the outskirts of Damascus, according to Qatari state-funded broadcaster Al Jazeera.

The Israeli drone struck a vehicle in an Al-Ayn area farm, the report added, with an IDF spokesperson telling Maariv at the time that the details of the reported strike are being investigated. The strike follows an IDF attack against the Abu al-Duhurmilitary airfield in Idlib province in northwestern Syria on Tuesday. US Special Envoy to Syria and Ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack suggested in an interview earlier on Saturday that the IDF strike may have been intended to provoke Ankara and could have been linked to political considerations ahead of Israel’s elections. After Barrack's statements, Defense Minister Israel Katz said they were "full of inaccuracies" and argued they contradicted US President Trump's positions.

"The attempt by opposition figures and parts of the media to paint the operation in Syria in political colors stems from a combination of ignorance, a lack of understanding of Israel’s security interests, and a constant desire to attack the government, and deserves every condemnation. "The response of US envoy Barrack is full of inaccuracies and positions that contradict US President Trump’s own position regarding the Golan Heights.” Katz added that the IDF issued a direct warning to senior Syrian officials before strikes on the Abu al-Duhur airfield "in an attempt to prevent the move." (Read More)

Why Israel is moving attack helicopters north

Following an Air Force investigation into the October 7 massacre, Squadron 190 has relocated north as the IDF seeks faster response times and greater readiness along Israel’s northern border.

The Israel Air Force has completed a major operational relocation, with Squadron 190, which operates attack helicopters, transferring its activities from Ramon Airbase in the Negev to Ramat David Airbase in northern Israel. The move follows an Air Force investigation into the failures during the October 7th massacre and is intended to improve operational readiness and ensure a rapid response to developments along Israel’s northern border. During the October 7th massacre, air crews were forced to operate under exceptionally complex conditions as they attempted to assist ground forces and civilians while working with an unclear and rapidly changing operational picture.

As part of the lessons learned from the events, the IDF decided to move attack helicopters closer to the northern front. The Air Force has emphasized the critical role of attack helicopters on the modern battlefield, particularly during extreme and rapidly developing situations. One of the squadron’s crew members described the importance of the aircraft: “There is no substitute for this machine.

It has no substitute on dark nights, in crazy weather, in the toughest situations there are. When a combat helicopter arrives, it changes the battle." “I think the whole system today is a very well-oiled system, working amazingly," he added. “The ability to provide the fire ground forces need is on a significantly higher order of magnitude than what we had years ago. In the end, the security of the State and protecting the borders remain our only goals." (Source)

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Israel must stop Erdogan’s military expansion before Turkey reaches its borders - opinion

Unless Israel draws concrete red lines in Syria and the eastern Mediterranean, the Turkish army and navy will further encroach upon Israel’s northern and maritime borders. Israel could find itself facing Turkish tanks on the Golan Heights and Turkish frigates off the coast of Caesarea. This is the warning I heard this week from a very senior Israeli intelligence official.

The warning echoes the alarm expressed in the 2025 Nagel Commission report (which evaluated Israel’s security budget and force buildup) about the Turkish drive toward an Islamist-jihadist regional order with Ottoman-era hegemonic ambitions. Israel must be prepared, the commission’s report cautioned, for direct confrontation with Ankara and with Syrian proxies and armies aligned with Turkey.

The threat from Syria could evolve into something even more dangerous than the Iranian threat,” the report stated. This threatening reality explains the Israeli air strike several days ago on an airbase near Idlib in northern Syria, where the Turks apparently were setting up a radar and air defense system that was meant to interfere with the IAF’s operations in the north.

The Israeli strike sent a stark signal to Turkey’s radical Islamist dictator Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his Syrian satrap, the former ISIS terrorist named Ahmed al-Sharaa (a.k.a. Mohammed al-Julani), to back off. Understand: Erdogan is a true-blue believing old-school antisemite, who considers classic antisemitic myths like the Protocols of the Elders of Zion (where Jews control the global banking and media conglomerates) as truth. He honestly hates Jews and Israelis, and he openly seeks to lead a pan-Islamic coalition to crush Israel – while remaining a member of NATO. (Ed note: Be advised, old Gomer is not going to go away.) (Read More)

Turkey Seeks Interpol Warrant for Netanyahu

Turkish Justice Ministry formally petitions Interpol for international arrest notice against PM and other Israeli officials, citing alleged war crimes. Move follows Netanyahu's sharp warning to Ankara over Turkish military presence in Syria. Turkey's Justice Ministry has formally requested that Interpol issue a Red Notice—an international arrest alert, against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials. The move comes just one day after Netanyahu issued a stern warning to Ankara regarding Turkish military activity in Syria.

Turkish Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunç confirmed that the request follows arrest warrants issued in Turkey on July 14 as part of ongoing legal proceedings in that country. The Turkish investigation involves 35 Israeli defendants, including Netanyahu and an individual named Efek Moscovitz, in connection with Israeli naval forces' interception of an international activist flotilla in Mediterranean waters on Yom Kippur last year. Turkish authorities accuse the Israeli officials of genocide and crimes against humanity.

An Interpol Red Notice functions as an international request for law enforcement agencies to locate and provisionally arrest individuals pending possible extradition. It is distributed to all member countries of the international policing organization. Turkish officials said the relevant documentation has been forwarded to Turkey's Interior and Foreign Ministries to advance the request with Interpol headquarters.

The formal Turkish petition lists a lengthy series of charges against the Israeli officials, including genocide, crimes against humanity, deprivation of liberty under aggravated circumstances, hijacking of transportation vehicles, aggravated robbery, intentional assault, torture, and property damage. Turkey's Justice Ministry issued a sharp condemnation of Israeli policy in Gaza, stating that Turkey, under President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's leadership, will not allow those responsible to enjoy impunity and will continue using all available tools in national and international law to bring them to justice.

The legal escalation unfolds against a backdrop of mounting security tensions between the two countries. On Wednesday evening, Netanyahu held a security consultation with defense and intelligence chiefs focused on regional developments in Syria and concerns about Turkish entrenchment there. Earlier that day, the prime minister issued a forceful warning to Ankara following reports of closer ties between Syria's new government in Damascus and Turkey. "We will not tolerate Turkish military entrenchment in Syria that threatens Israel," Netanyahu declared. He emphasized that Israel's message had been conveyed in advance to relevant parties in the region, using the emphatic phrase "Don't." (Read More)

Iran leaders sound economic alarms under Trump’s Economic D-Day

Warnings from senior Iranian officials about the cost of prolonging the war are increasingly converging with Washington’s central pressure point: whether Iran can economically sustain the conflict. The warnings come as President Donald Trump launches an “Economic D-Day” against Iran, describing it as the “most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country” and seeking to deepen Tehran’s financial isolation. President Masoud Pezeshkian said Friday Iran should seek to end the war now, linking his appeal to mounting financial constraints and the economic consequences of continued fighting.

“It is better to end the war today, when we are powerful and respected and the whole world acknowledges our victory,” Pezeshkian said. His comments went beyond the case for ending hostilities. Pezeshkian said the maritime blockade had complicated Iran’s imports and exports and that the government lacked resources to meet some of its obligations to workers, retirees and government employees. “The government is facing financial constraints. When we chant slogans, we must also accept the hardship that comes with them,” he said. Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf delivered a similar economic warning during a visit to Baghdad, saying military strength could not preserve the Islamic Republic without growth, domestic production and functioning financial flows.

“No matter how much military power we have, if people are hungry and we don't have financial circulation, economic growth and domestic production, we will not endure,” Ghalibaf said Thursday. The comments put two of Iran’s most senior elected officials on the same terrain Washington has increasingly emphasized: the economic capacity of the Islamic Republic to keep fighting. President Donald Trump announced this week the “most crushing economic operation ever taken against any country,” targeting Iran and warning of economic consequences for countries, companies and financial institutions that continue providing it with support. (Read More)

US redesignates Hezbollah as terror group in ‘service to Iranian regime’

Hezbollah, the Iran-backed terrorist group that has controlled southern Lebanon for decades, “operates with little to no regard for Lebanese sovereignty, the Lebanese people or the Lebanese state,” a U.S. State Department official said on Thursday, as the Trump administration again sanctioned Hezbollah “for service to the Iranian regime.” “The United States will not relent in targeting Iran’s financial support networks, including those enabling Hezbollah to threaten peace, undermine the sovereignty of the Lebanese state and endanger the security of our regional allies,” wrote Tommy Pigott, spokesman for the State Department. The official said that Hezbollah, which has long been sanctioned as a foreign terrorist organization, is being re-designated “an Iranian proxy, not a stand-alone operation as implied by the previous designation.”

The action on Thursday “builds on years of U.S. designations that have repeatedly documented the operational, financial and logistical integration” between Hezbollah and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, which is Iran’s elite military wing specializing in unconventional warfare, foreign intelligence and management of Iran’s network of terrorist proxies throughout the Middle East. Thursday’s determination “formally recognizes” Hezbollah’s activities “as an extension of the IRGC-QF” and “not a Lebanese resistance movement.” Jointly, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned 10 people, who it said take part in a network that helps move hundreds of millions of dollars of sanctions-evading cash transfers between the Quds Force and Hezbollah, using commercial flights between Lebanon, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Iran.

“The investigation and disruption of this network are the result of close coordination and collaboration with our Turkish partners,” Pigott wrote. The State Department official said that Hezbollah has “twice dragged Lebanon into devastating wars, subordinating the country’s interests to Tehran’s regional agenda and leaving the Lebanese people to bear the consequences.” He called the terror group “the obstacle to Lebanon’s sovereignty, stability and economic recovery.” The United States, Israel and Lebanon have developed a trilateral framework to help restore Lebanese sovereignty to the southern part of the country, which Hezbollah has long used to launch attacks on Israel. As part of that pact, Israel and Lebanon are coordinating on so-called “pilot zones,” and Hezbollah, either voluntarily or by force, is to exit designated areas and relocate further north. (Read More)

US responds to Israel's E1 tender: 'We do not support' Judea and Samaria annexation (E1 Tender)

The US says it opposes Israeli annexation as Israel advances a 1,234-home tender in the E1 area between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adumim.

The United States does not support Israeli annexation of the Judea and Samaria region, a State Department spokesperson told Axios on Friday in response to Israel's decision to advance construction plans in the E1 area between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adumim. "As the President has clearly stated, the US does not support Israel annexing the West Bank. A stable West Bank keeps Israel secure and is in line with this Administration’s goal to achieve peace in the region," the spokesperson told Axios.

Israel issued a tender on Tuesday for seven residential compounds in E1, comprising 1,234 housing units. The projects are part of approximately 3,400 housing units approved for the area last August. The announcement has drawn criticism from several European governments. Britain's Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband called for the tender to be withdrawn on Wednesday. "This Israeli Government’s publication of a tender for the E1 settlement project is an unacceptable and destructive act. E1 would cut across the heart of Palestine and risks separating the West Bank from East Jerusalem, which would endanger the viability of a two-state solution," Miliband said in a statement condemning the move.

"The UK has been clear privately and publicly in our opposition to E1 and our support for a two-state solution as the only way to ensure long-term security and peace for both Palestinians and Israelis. All settlements damage that prospect and are a flagrant breach of international law," he claimed. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar rejected London's position on Thursday, accusing Miliband of adopting a patronizing tone. "I reject outright the statement of the UK Foreign Secretary and the patronizing tone of his words," Sa'ar wrote on social media.

"The Jewish people have the right to live throughout the Land of Israel, just as the British have the right to live in London and throughout the United Kingdom. More than a century ago, the Balfour Declaration formally recognized the historic right of the Jewish people to re-establish their national home in the Land of Israel - including in the area in question." (Read More)

International contention continues as eight more countries condemn Israel's E1 settlement plan (E1 Tender)

Foreign ministers from Jordan, the UAE, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Egypt condemned Israel’s E1 West Bank settlement plan in a joint statement on Friday. “The E1 settlement plan constitutes a dangerous escalation that further advances settlement expansion and annexation and undermines the geographical contiguity of the Occupied Palestinian Territory, particularly between the West Bank and East Jerusalem,” said the statement.

The ministers alleged that the plan threatens the “viability and realization of an independent, contiguous Palestinian State” and “constitutes a direct challenge to international efforts aimed at achieving peace, foremost among them [US] President Donald Trump’s Comprehensive Plan.” The ministers’ statement comes only a day after France, Germany, Britain and Italy released a joint condemnation of the E1 plan.

The countries called the project “unacceptable,” with the UK threatening to prepare targeted sanctions against those involved in settlement expansion. A spokesperson for the US State Department spoke to N12 News later on Friday, saying that the US government "does not support annexation, noting that the stance is something US President Donald Trump "has already made clear."

The government’s plan includes populating the West Bank’s E1 area, located between Ma’aleh Adumim and Jerusalem, with 3,412 new housing units expected to expand the settlement city by around 12 square kilometers. The Civil Administration's Higher Planning Committee approved the project in 2025. (Read More)

England's outrageous outrage

What is chutzpah? A Jew pouring a foundation in his ancestral homeland who gets a summons, a sanctions package, a joint communiqué with six other governments and a threat to label his tomatoes. Opinion.

"Britain will not stand back and accept the destruction of the two-state solution," the British Foreign Secretary declared this week, after summoning Israel's Chargé d'Affaires like a headmaster calling in a boy caught smoking behind the bicycle shed. The offense? A tender for apartments in E1, between Jerusalem and Ma'ale Adumim, in the Jewish homeland, approved in 2025, processed for months, and now suddenly the gravest threat to world peace since the fall of Singapore. Fine. Don't stand back. Sit down. Lie down. Have a smoke behind the bicycle shed. Do whatever it is you do these days instead of governing His Majesty’s Global Colonial Empire. Just spare us the sermon.

Because here is what has changed, and what London has not yet noticed: Jews are finished dying so that nations with unimaginable quantities of Jewish blood on their hands can feel comfortable with themselves. We are finished being the raw material for other people's moral self-portraits. And we are finished pretending that a fictitious nation with no coinage, no kings, no language, no archaeology, no literature and no recorded existence as a distinct people prior to roughly 1964 has a superior claim to the hills of Judea than the people whose entire civilizational library was written there. Let us review the résumé of one of many instructors in international morality.

In 1920 and 1921, a year after international law formally designated the Land of Israel as the national home of the Jewish people, your predecessor Winston Churchill took a pen and handed 78 percent of it to the Arabs to create the Emirate of Transjordan. He did not ask us. He did not consult us. He simply amputated the overwhelming majority of the Jewish national home and gifted it to a non-native Hashemite family from the Hejaz as a consolation prize. The two-state solution, if anyone in Whitehall is counting, was implemented over a century ago. It is called Jordan. It sits there to this day, seventy-eight percent of the promise, and nobody in London has ever once described it as an obstacle to peace.

...Which brings me to Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar's reply, which was excellent, and which I would nonetheless amend in one particular. Sa'ar said the Jewish people have the right to live throughout the Land of Israel "just as the British have the right to live in London and throughout the United Kingdom." With respect, no. Our right is greater than theirs. The British acquired Britain the way they acquired everything else, by conquest, only earlier, and with fewer witnesses. We were given this land by its Creator, and for those who find that argument insufficiently secular, our claim is anchored in a documentary record longer, deeper and more legally continuous than that of the overwhelming majority of states currently sitting in the General Assembly. Balfour. San Remo. The League of Nations. The United Nations Charter. Three thousand years of literature, liturgy, coinage, pottery and graves. Show me the Palestinian equivalent. Take your time. (Ed note: Tell it like it is, Daniel Winston!) (Read More)

Iranian president: It’s time to end war with US as Tehran is ‘in a position of power’

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian says it is time to end the months-long Middle East war with the United States and Israel because Tehran is in a position of strength over Washington.

“It is better that we bring the war to an end now, as we are in a position of power and dignity, and the whole world acknowledges our victory and emphasizes that America has attacked our schools, hospitals and infrastructure in violation of all regulations and is hated around the world,” he says in a meeting with doctors. (Ed note: Says Pezeshkian: "In your face, President Trump.) (Source)

Treasury Secretary Bessent says US will 'squash' Iranian economy, collapse 'murderous regime'

"We are going to collapse this [the Iranian] regime," US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC in an interview on Thursday. "You are either with us or against us," he added, "we are going to squash the economy of this murderous regime." Bessent explained that the US will be increasing economic pressure pressure on Iran, reiterating US President Donald Trump's statements on Truth Social on Wednesday night, when the president announced that Iran would face "an ECONOMIC D-DAY."

He added that he will be holding a press conference on Monday to discuss exactly what the economic pressure will entail, noting that if any of American allies continue doing business with Iran, whether transferring money, or buying their oil, "then the US Treasury and the US government, they will put its full might and force toward enforcing against you."

"I see lots of reports that said, 'oh, well, this has never worked.' It does work, because we have a combination. It is a one-two punch," Bessent told CNBC. "We have the blockade, and we are going to have the toughest sanctions in history. And I will tell you, this will work. It worked in Venezuela once we put up the blockade. It is working in Cuba right now. And it is going to work in Iran, and we are going to collapse this regime."

Bessent also echoed Trump's claim that the US, not Iran, controls the Strait of Hormuz. "We do have control of the strait," he said, adding "You would have seen media reports that large amounts of energy are getting out. And I think that we can continue doing that in the southern lane, and that I think oil markets are misinterpreting what this economic pressure means." "The economic pressure means that we are going to, all of our allies, and this is going to be the greatest coordinated economic isolation in the history of the world." (Ed note: Listen to the Treasury Secretary.) (Read More)

Iranian Parliament Speaker Ghalibaf's Iraq visit seeks to reshape ties amid regional unrest

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf’svisit to Iraq comes as Tehran seeks to “reshuffle relations with Iraq,” Dr. Yaron Schneider, a researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies (INSS) specializing in Iran-backed Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), told The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday. Ghalibaf traveled to Iraq on Wednesday for a three-day visit amid growing tensions over the September 30 deadline for militia disarmament and as Iraq grapples with a severe economic crisis stemming from the prolonged closure of the Strait of Hormuz. Upon his arrival, he insisted that the two countries needed to strengthen a “new regional order” and denounced “foreign interference.”

On Thursday, he met with the President of the Supreme Judicial Council of Iraq, Faiq Zidan, to discuss “mutual interests,” following talks on Wednesday with senior Iraqi officials on issues including “strengthening bilateral relations, border security, the fight against terrorism, expanding economic cooperation and implementing joint agreements,” according to Iran’s Tasnim news agency. The issue of economic cooperation is one that Iran has used to interfere in Baghdad’s domestic policies, Schneider explained.

Iraq’s economy remains heavily reliant on oil, which accounts for 90% of government revenue, 95% of export earnings, and more than 53% of the country’s gross domestic product.“Iraq is heavily reliant on oil exports as the basis of its economy. The government depends on that, and salaries are being delayed because of it. This is a crisis that is still ongoing and might undermine the state if it continues. They don’t have any short-term solution for this crisis,” he said, adding that Iraq’s monthly oil revenues fell from around $7–$8 billion down to $1.2–$1.9 billion. (Read More)

Qatar Rebukes Iran Over Hormuz Disruptions

Qatari foreign minister condemns what he calls "maritime extortion" in strategic waterway, as Iran faces mounting international isolation amid U.S. pressure campaign. Qatar publicly criticized Iran for the first time, joining other Gulf states in condemning Tehran's actions in the Strait of Hormuz, a notable diplomatic shift as Iran faces growing international pressure.

Qatar's Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman condemned what he called "maritime extortion and piracy" involving disruptions to shipping traffic through the strategic waterway, a vital route for global energy supplies. The statement follows Trump's announcement of a new phase in U.S. efforts against Iran, including what he described as complete economic strangulation of the Iranian economy, and the UAE's recent decision to sever all commercial ties with Tehran.

Sheikh Mohammed demanded that maritime traffic return to open shipping with no conditions, quotas, or restrictions from any party or state. He noted that other nations, particularly Oman, which Iran had approached as a potential partner in controlling access to Hormuz, have taken the same position. Qatar said it would keep trying to mediate between Iran and the U.S., but made clear it expects unrestricted navigation through the Persian Gulf waterway. (Source)

Huckabee says Turkish military was 'further south than supposed' before Israel's attack on Syria

"I don't think it was intended to be provocative. They saw the Turkish military moving at a level far further south than they were ever supposed to be," US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told Al Arabiya in a Thursday interview, when speaking about Israel’s strikes on the Abu al-Duhur military airfield in the Idlib province in northwestern Syria on Tuesday.

"When Israel sees a military start to build up closer and closer to them, and that the leadership of the country has said, uh, we're going to rebuild the Ottoman Empire and take over Jerusalem. They take that seriously," he added, saying that he hopes for both countries to agree about using dialogue to solve these disputes in the future.

He also said that, although Erdogan's comment about taking over Jerusalem might not be "an imminent threat,"Israel's actions can be seen as normal in a region like the Middle East, where tensions are high, and a fast reaction usually comes before an option to dialogue. "Nobody wants to see an escalation of the tension, an escalation of violence. So, every effort is being made to try to temper down any of the activity. And I feel like we can get there," he continued.

During the first segment of the interview, the ambassador was asked on repeated occasions about Israel's negative response to the 15-point plan agreed by the US, Hamas, and international mediators to disarm the terrorist group in Gaza. He explained that, even if there was an agreement, the lack of action by Hamas was what was delaying the implementation, while the Israeli response was only focused on ensuring that Hamas would disarm before any Israeli troops would leave Gaza. (Read More)

Sheikh who fought Hezbollah: “They brought ruin upon Lebanon"

Sheikh Muhammad Ali al-Fouani accuses Iran of brainwashing the disadvantaged population and claims that international pressure would lead to Hezbollah’s rapid collapse.

Exiled Shiite cleric Sheikh Muhammad Ali al-Fouani issued sharp and unprecedented criticism of the Hezbollah terrorist organization during an interview with Kan News. In his remarks, he accused the organization of destroying the country and severely damaging its standing. Speaking about the organization’s activities, al-Fouani said: “This organization has brought ruin upon Lebanon and caused us to become an object of hatred and revulsion."

He went on to question Hezbollah’s credibility, declaring: “Hezbollah claims to be religious and preaches modesty and morality, but its inner character does not match its outward appearance. Therefore, as long as its people do not keep their word, they are not truthful." The cleric also addressed Iranian influence over Lebanon’s Shiite community and the public price it has exacted.

“The Iranians brainwashed the ‘mustad’afin’ [the oppressed or disadvantaged] with the lie of ‘Wilayat al-Faqih’ [absolute rule of the Islamic jurist] and turned them into victims. They caused them to fight and be killed, and their dreams vanished. Now those whose children were killed harbor resentment toward Hezbollah." Asked whether there was a realistic possibility that Hezbollah would disarm, al-Fouani rejected the claim that such a scenario was impossible.“No, these are not dreams. Look at what happened to them in Syria-they fled from there," he replied. He further assessed that the organization’s standing among the Lebanese public is extremely precarious. “Hezbollah knows that when the time comes, the people will turn against it and subject it to a summary trial. If all the countries act against it simultaneously, it will collapse, just as it collapsed in Syria, within 72 hours." (Read More)

US plans to again bar Abbas from going to NYC for UN address next month — official

For the second year in a row, US President Donald Trump’s administration plans to prevent Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas from traveling to New York next month to speak before the United Nations General Assembly, a US official told The Times of Israel. The US refused to grant Abbas a visa to enter the US last year, claiming the PA had been taking steps that undermine prospects for peace. Washington didn’t elaborate on its specific grievances with Ramallah at the time, and the move was seen as part of an effort to undermine a conference that France and Saudi Arabia were hosting ahead of the General Assembly’s high-level week last year that was aimed at promoting a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

The Trump administration opposed the gathering, claiming that it was a reward to Hamas and undermined efforts to end the war in Gaza. No such conference is scheduled at the UN this year, but the US plans to maintain the precedent regarding Abbas that it set last year, the US official said. Hoping to reverse the policy, Abbas asked Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan if he could speak to Trump about the visa ban, anion Authority Presiden Palestinian official told The Times of Israel.

Erdogan heeded the request, which Abbas made during his visit to Ankara last week, the Palestinian official said, touting the Turkish leader’s assistance. Erdogan held a phone call on Tuesday with Trump, who has repeatedly called the Turkish president his “good friend.” (Ed note: Palestinian Authority President Mahmounc Abbas is now in his 22nd year of a 4 yr term as President.)   (Read More)

EU said readying cross-industry sanctions against Israel over E1 settlement project

The European Union is reportedly preparing a package of sanctions against Israel if it goes through with its plan for a major, controversial settlement expansion in the hot-button E1 area of the West Bank. The sanctions, reportedly covering commerce, academics and security, would add teeth to a range of Western condemnations of the plan. The government on Tuesday issued a tender for the construction of seven residential compounds with 1,234 housing units in the E1 area east of Jerusalem, which Israeli settlement activists seek to develop in order to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.

Channel 13 reported, citing two Western diplomats, that the EU has devised a list of initial sanctions if the construction begins. The list was said to include specifically labeling products from Israel — not only from West Bank settlements — as well as scaling down academic collaborations with Israel and halting certain security and diplomatic collaborations between Brussels and Jerusalem. This aspect of the unconfirmed report would go against longstanding EU policy of differentiating between Israel and West Bank settlements.

The E1 expansion would connect the Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim areas, effectively scuttling the prospect of contiguous Palestinian sovereignty between the population centers of Bethlehem, East Jerusalem and Ramallah. The project was frozen for long years amid fierce opposition from the international community, including past US administrations, which feared that building a new settlement neighborhood on the mostly empty tract of land would rule out a viable Palestinian state.

The housing units in the tender are some of the roughly 3,400 E1 housing units that the government greenlit in August 2025. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich lauded the E1 expansion plan at the time, saying it “practically erases the two-state delusion.” France, Italy, Britain and Germany on Thursday piled on mounting international condemnation of the project, warning businesses against bidding for the construction tenders by saying they would be at risk of “involving themselves in serious breaches of international law.” (Read More)

Undermining the TWO-STATE solution : driving a wedge through JUDEA & SAMARIA (Palestinian Tunnels)?

Malaysia, Canada and six European countries condemn Israel’s plans to expand settlements in the occupied West Bank, warning that the E1 project could divide the territory and undermine prospects for a Palestinian state and a two-state solution. Note: this video is pro-Palestinian.

David Grusch: The Whistleblower Who Told Congress We're Not Alone

Staff of Prophecy Headlines.com

It is very interesting that on a very mainstream podcast by well-known television personality Dr. Phil that he has a military intelligence whistleblower who testified before Congress in 2023 that the U.S. government has recovered what he says is craft of "non-human origin."

On Dr. Phil’srecent podcast below, entitled, David Grusch: The Whistleblower Who Told Congress We're Not Alone, incredibly he says the following to his viewers,

"My interest in this has always been, if there is something that is going to come out that involves aircraft not of this earth and intelligent non-human life forms that's going to have a significant impact certainly on a portion of our population that could be negative for them...We need to be prepared to support our society. If people feel like human exceptionalism doesn't hold true, the evangelical community can have a problem in what their belief systems have been."

Could these possible future events that Dr. Phil is talking about cause some Christians to turn away from the true faith? 

“Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons.” (1 Timothy 4:1, NLT) 

Stay tuned for the latest breaking news on this coming great deception in the weeks to follow exclusively for the readers of this Newsstand at PROPHECY HEADLINES.COM.

 

Ex-MK: Egypt Peace Treaty 'Just Paper'

Idan Roll cautions against relying on 1979 agreement, citing Egyptian military buildup and weapons smuggling into Gaza. Former Knesset member Idan Roll issued a stark warning Thursday about Israel's relationship with Egypt, arguing that the countries' peace agreement provides no assurance that Cairo won't initiate hostilities in the future.   

"A peace treaty is no guarantee that Egypt won't go to war, it's just paper," Roll wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. He contended that the agreement holds force only as long as Egypt has no interest in violating it. According to Roll, the treaty's effectiveness depends entirely on "Israeli deterrence and Egypt's own interests." He warned that "the day Egypt decides it's 'worthwhile' to attack Israel, no paper we signed will prevent her from doing so."    

Roll, who served in the Knesset with the centrist Yesh Atid party, clarified that he is not advocating for opening another military front. "I'm not saying Israel should open a front against Egypt, but rather that we must not view Egypt as a handled front and certainly not as an ally," he wrote. The former lawmaker rejected the framing that presents a choice between the Egyptian threat and Qatari involvement in the Gaza Strip. Both countries, he argued, pose potential problems for Israel: "Egypt in Gaza is dangerous to Israel. So is Qatar. Unfortunately, we have more than one problem."   

Roll maintained that evaluating relations with Egypt solely through the lens of the 1979 peace treaty is "deficient and even dangerous." The agreement, he noted, reflects a regional reality from decades ago, while conditions in the Middle East have changed dramatically since its signing. He went on to accuse Egypt of a series of actions since the October 7 Hamas attacks, including "repeated violations of the peace agreement" and a buildup of Egyptian military forces. Roll also addressed weapons smuggling into the Gaza Strip, asserting that the events of October 7 demonstrated that Egypt either cannot or will not prevent such smuggling operations.

 "Whoever cannot be trusted to prevent smuggling into the Strip, it stands to reason they should not be allowed to manage the Strip," he concluded.  (Ed note: The Rafah Border Crossing and the Philadelphia Corridor which includes that crossing is the source of much smuggling. Both Hal LIndsey and Bill Salus have well said that the treaties with both Egypt and Jordan, "are as thin as the paper they are printed upon.")   (Source)

Netanyahu: Syria was on verge of deploying Turkish troops—Israel warned against it

Syria was on the verge of breaching the status quo in security matters by permitting the deployment of Turkish troops at an airbase near Aleppo, Israel’s Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement on Tuesday night. Overnight Monday, the Abu al-Duhur Military Airbase in Idlib in northwestern Syria reportedly came under attack. Syrian authorities accused Israel of carrying out the offensive. “Israel repeatedly warned Syria that such a deployment would pose a threat to Israel’s security. Syria chose to ignore these warnings,” the PMO continued, apparently referencing the strikes. “Israel will not tolerate threats to its security, and would welcome a return to the status quo,” which was agreed to with Syria, the PMO added.

Syria’s foreign ministry on Tuesday blamed Israel for carrying out the attack, calling it “a violation of its sovereignty and territorial integrity.” Syria’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates described the strikes as “an unjustified act of aggression” and a “dangerous escalation” threatening the region’s security and stability, the state’s official Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) reported. Syria called on the international community and the United Nations Security Council to take a firm stance against any Israeli violations of Syrian sovereignty.

United States Ambassador to Turkey and Special Presidential Envoy to Iraq and Syria Tom Barrack said that “we are deeply concerned that the confirmed Israeli airstrikes on Abu al-Duhur Airbase constitute an unnecessary escalation that does not advance regional stability.” Barrack said in an X post that Syria’s al-Sharaa government had signaled a preference for deescalation with Israel and said Washington would continue facilitating discussions between the sides. He urged “restraint and engagement” and called on all parties to prioritize dialogue over additional military incidents. (Read More)

Syria Defends Its ‘Legal Right’ to Nuclear Energy as U.N. Atomic Chief Visits

The government of Syria, under former wanted al-Qaeda jihadist Ahmed al-Sharaa, granted the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) access to a formerly secret nuclear site in the country on Tuesday, vowing to cooperate with the United Nations agency. IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi’s tour of a Deir ez-Zor facility believed to have been used by former dictator Bashar Assad for illicit nuclear development follows over a year of communication between Sharaa’s new regime and Grossi’s office in the aftermath of the fall of the Assad regime. Over half a century of Assad dynasty rule came to an end in December 2024 when Sharaa’s jihadist militia, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), drove Assad and his family out of Damascus. 

During his time in Syria this week, Grossi visited the previously undeclared Deir ez-Zor nuclear site and engaged in several meetings with Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani, who emphasized in public statements that the Sharaa government initiated the invitation to the IAEA to inspect former Assad regime nuclear sites. “The visit, which included the site at Deir ez-Zor and a second location related to the nuclear material identified by Syria recently, marks the most significant advance to date in the cooperation between Syria and the Agency,” the IAEA said in a statement on Tuesday, “towards resolving the outstanding safeguards issues arising from undeclared activities related to the former regime, under Syria’s Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Safeguards Agreement.”

...“Al-Shaibani said Syria had granted access to the Deir ez-Zor site after more than 18 years on its own initiative and as a sovereign decision,” SANA reported. “He reaffirmed Syria’s sovereign and legal right to civilian and peaceful uses of atomic energy and to pursue a peaceful nuclear program and benefit from its applications.” (Ed note: Always keep one eye on the state of Syria.)  (Read More)

Hamas must be drained of its money as well as its weapons

I’d really like to think that the US Middle East peace team has gotten over Steve Witkoff’s delusion that Hamas is not ideologically intractable and that it can be persuaded to lay down its weapons and quietly slink away into history. I’d like to believe that when Jared Kushner meets, as he did again in Egypt over the weekend, with Khalil al-Hayya, he is thoroughly aware that the current Hamas chief was one of the architects of the October 7, 2023, invasion and massacre in southern Israel, and remains laser-locked on the goal of destroying Israel.

In purportedly agreeing to the US-established Board of Peace’s plan for its own disarmament and Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza, Hamas is manifestly playing the United States and playing for time: It is recruiting; it is training; it is awaiting a less intrusive, more anti-Israel American administration; it is awaiting a resumption of funding from the despicably resilient Iranian regime.

That does not mean that the US-led effort, via the Board, to marginalize Hamas and gradually change the face of Gaza is a lost cause. But success requires genuine Hamas disarmament; ongoing, relentless elimination of Hamas operatives preparing and attempting to carry out attacks… and a heightened focus on Hamas’s finances.

According to Yitzhak Gal, of the center-left Mitvim advocacy think tank, Hamas retains broad leverage over aid entering the near-50% of Gaza where it retains control, and is able to tax (at entry and in the markets), obstruct and loot supplies to the tune of some $2 million a day. (A Board of Peace official acknowledged to The Times of Israel that diversion of aid continues, but did not confirm Gal’s figure, and said the scale of Hamas intervention has been going down.) It is essential, therefore, urged Gal, that the Board’s yet-to-be-deployed International Stabilization Force fully control the entire aid distribution process. (Ed note: A long, but very interesting article from David Horovitz) (Read More)