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The development underscored both the hostility that exists on social media against Israel and the usage of bots to amplify hate on such networks. The weeklong visit, which was organized by American evangelical leader Mike Evans with the Israeli Foreign Ministry, was the single largest gathering of pastors in Israel since the establishment of the state in 1948. It included a tour of the southern communities that came under attack during the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas-led massacre as well as meetings with survivors and former hostages (Read more at JNS).
US Ambassador to Türkiye Tom Barrack said, “As laid out in U.S. law, Türkiye must no longer operate nor possess the S-400 system to return to the F-35 program.” Barrack said the “positive relationship” between President Donald Trump and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has created “a new atmosphere of cooperation,” leading to the “most fruitful conversations we have had on this topic in nearly a decade.” (Read more at Anadolu Ajansi)
Debra Tice, the mother of American journalist Austin Tice who went missing in Syria thirteen years ago, is asking Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to allow her to review all the information Israel's intelligence services have gathered about her son's whereabouts (Read more at Axios).
The US Treasury Department imposed sanctions Tuesday on four individuals and four entities accused of recruiting fighters for the civil war in Sudan. "The RSF has shown again and again that it is willing to target civilians—including infants and young children. Its brutality has deepened the conflict and destabilized the region, creating the conditions for terrorist groups to grow," said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John Hurley (Read more at Anadolu Ajansi).
CAIR, the largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy group in the U.S., has already filed a lawsuit against Texas after Gov. Greg Abbott (R) last month designated the two groups as foreign terrorist organizations. Neither group features on the U.S. government's list of designated foreign terrorist organizations (Read more at Axios).
Speaking at a panel on Syria during the Doha Forum on Sunday, Barrack praised the Syrian administration of President Ahmad al-Sharaa’s "epic" and "heroic" achievements following the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024. The US envoy warned against western efforts to impose democratic models on the Middle East, arguing that such initiatives "have not been successful". (Read more at Middle East Eye)
The IDF said the exercise brings together the Israeli Navy and the US Fifth Fleet for coordinated maritime training. The joint drill comes as the IDF’s chief of staff warned that the military must be prepared for a sudden, large-scale conflict (Read more at Mehrnews).
In a recent interview, the pro-Israel senator said that he doesn’t see a need for the United States to get involved with Hamas, but he’d encourage U.S. President Donald Trump to “consider joint operations with Israel if we can’t do diplomacy to disarm Hezbollah like we did with Iran.” (Read more at JNS)
The House of Representatives released its proposal for 2026 defense spending that would see a $50 million shift in funds for Israel from countering short-range rockets and mortars to systems that intercept ballistic missiles. The 2026 National Defense Authorization Act, released on Sunday, would spend $60 million on the U.S.-Israeli co-development and production program for Iron Dome, down from $110 million in 2025 (Read more at JNS).
The US Congress could soon repeal the so-called Caesar Act sanctions on Syria, with the proposal appearing in the National Defence Authorisation Act for Fiscal Year 2026. The repeal of the sanctions comes with conditions, however: it mandates a review of the situation in Syria every 180 days over the course of four years to ensure that Damascus is taking appropriate action in areas including combating ISIS, removing foreign fighters from government roles, and upholding religious and ethnic minority rights, among others (Read more at The National).
Netanyahu said that he would discuss with Trump how to bring an end to Hamas rule in Gaza. A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas is entering its second month, although both sides have repeatedly accused each other of violating the truce agreement. Netanyahu said that it was important to ensure Hamas not only upholds the ceasefire but also follows through on "their commitment" to the plan to disarm and for Gaza to be demilitarized (Read more at Reuters).
No American president has ever sided with an Arab state over Israel until Donald Trump forced Bibi to apologize to Qatar. A reaction from Qatar’s PM (Listen here).
The U.S. officials say Netanyahu must first approve a strategic gas deal with Egypt and take other steps to entice Sisi to meet. The U.S. is considering similar initiatives focused on economic incentives in areas like tech and energy between Israel and Arab countries such as Lebanon, Syria and Saudi Arabia (Read more at Axios).
The U.S., Israel, and Qatar are holding a trilateral meeting in New York on Sunday to rebuild relations after the failed Israeli strike in Doha. This is the highest-level meeting between the countries since the deal to end the war in Gaza, for which Qatar served as a key mediator. It's taking place as the Trump administration prepares to announce that the Gaza peace process is moving to a new phase (Read more at Axios).
They traveled to Washington to thank officials who were involved in securing the release of their sons’ remains from the Gaza Strip. Their visit included meetings with about 20 senators and 20 members of the House of Representatives from both the Republican and Democratic parties. “Throughout the entire struggle we insisted on maintaining a nonpolitical approach,” the families said. “We worked with the Biden administration during an election year and, after the transition, with the Trump administration as well.” (Read more at JNS)
Fifty-five Iranians deported from the United States will return to their home country in the coming days. In September, officials said the US had identified about 400 Iranians to be deported, with a first flight carrying 120 people making its way to Tehran via Doha (Read more at Straits Times).
Washington removed Ankara from its advanced F-35 fighter jet programme and imposed the sanctions in 2020 over its acquisition of Russian S-400 air defence systems. Turkey has called the move unjust, and voiced hope that the sides could overcome the issue during President Donald Trump's second term (Read more at Yahoo News).
Texas Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller, the cowboy hat-wearing Republican who often draws attention for posting controversial messages on social media, made a bold geopolitical statement during an international trip he wrapped up Wednesday: He opened up trade relations with a group of Israeli settlements in the West Bank that neither the United States nor the United Nations legally recognizes (Read more at Texas Tribune).
'The days in which the Middle East dominated American foreign policy in both long-term planning and day-to-day execution are thankfully over,' says the document (Read more at Anadolu Ajansi).
On December 6, 2017, during my first term in office, I proudly signed a proclamation to officially recognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and to relocate the United States Embassy to that marvelous city—a transformative step forward in the pursuit of peace in the Middle East. Today, 8 years later, my Administration renews its commitment to ushering in a new era of peace, prosperity, and stability in the region and all around the world (Read more at Whitehouse).
The president was asked whether he was concerned about a growing skepticism regarding Israel in the U.S., especially among the younger generation. “I believe that the underlying fountain that we all drink from is the same,” Herzog answered, adding that he was following the anti-Israel trends permeating American youth “very closely.” (Read more at JNS)
A federal appeals court ruled on Thursday that a Chicago landlord lawfully evicted a Palestinian-American for displaying a Palestinian flag in her apartment window. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit upheld a district court ruling, which held that Manal Farhan failed to prove claims of national origin discrimination or violations of the Fair Housing Act (Read more at JNS).
The UAE has struck a sweet spot. It is hedging against the US even as it leverages good ties in Washington to load up on AI chips and assert itself in hotspots from Yemen to Sudan that put it in conflict with the rest of the US’s Arab partners. The contrast between the UAE’s approach to Washington and that of its Gulf neighbours and rivals, Qatar and Saudi Arabia, has been brought into stark relief this year (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The bill passed the committee with bipartisan support, with Democrats Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, Greg Stanton, Jared Moskowitz, Jim Costa, George Latimer, and Brad Schneider joining all the Republicans. To become law, the bill needs to pass the full House of Representatives and the Senate (Read more at Middle East Eye).
In a statement issued on Wednesday after its annual meeting in The Hague earlier this week, the Assembly of States Parties (ASP) vowed to uphold the integrity of the Rome Statute and said it was “gravely concerned” by threats and coercive measures targeting the court. The meeting took place in the shadow of US sanctions already imposed against a number of ICC senior officials, including judges and the chief prosecutor, Karim Khan (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Turkish Petroleum is in talks with Chevron, Exxon Mobil and other U.S. majors to take positions in upstream assets, as part of Turkey’s plan to expand from its growing exposure to liquefied natural gas, the country’s Energy Minister Alparslan Bayraktar said Wednesday on the sidelines of the World LNG summit in Istanbul. Announcements might come as early as next month, he said (Read more at Politico Pro).
The Feasibility Review of Emerging Equipment for Digital Open Media (FREEDOM) Act would require the U.S. Departments of State and Treasury and the Federal Communications Commission to study new direct-to-cell technology that would let cell phones connect directly to satellites (Read more at JNS).
This visit underscores the United States' commitment to advancing regional stability, implementing President Trump's 20-Point Plan for Gaza. While in Jordan, Ambassador Waltz will meet with senior Jordanian officials, including King Abdullah II and Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi, to discuss bilateral cooperation and Jordan’s critical role in facilitating humanitarian aid to Gaza. In Israel, Ambassador Waltz will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog to advance U.S.-Israel cooperation at the United Nations and discuss shared priorities for regional security and humanitarian aid. His visit will include briefings on the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 2803 and stops at Karem Shalom and the Coordination and Monitoring Mechanism for Gaza (Read more at Anadolu Ajansi).
Speaking in a video interview with the Dealbock Summit, organised by The New York Times, Netanyahu said: “Yes, I will come to New York.” When asked if he would try to speak with Mamdani, the Israeli leader added: “If he changes his mind and says we have the right to exist, that would be a good start for a conversation.” (Read more at Middle East Monitor).
U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Wednesday urged more than a thousand visiting American pastors and Christian leaders to “light the pulpits of America” with the truth about Israel, and to quash criticism of the Jewish state from both the left and the right with the facts and the Bible (Read more at JNS).
New York City’s mayor, Eric Adams, has issued two executive orders he says are meant to combat antisemitism, less than a month before he hands over the keys to the mayoralty to Zohran Mamdani, an outspoken critic of Israel. The first order prohibits city agency heads and staff from engaging in “any policy that discriminates against the state of Israel, Israeli citizens based on their national origin, or individuals or entities based on their association with Israel”. A second order directs the New York City police commissioner, currently Jessica Tisch, to evaluate proposals for regulating protest activity occurring close to houses of worship (Read more at Guardian).
The fragile ceasefire in Gaza is the biggest foreign policy achievement of Trump's second term so far, and his administration wants to proceed to the second phase to avoid sliding back into war (Read more at Axios).
The Department of Defense’s inspector general released the much-anticipated unclassified report on Thursday about Pete Hegseth’s disclosure of plans for military airstrikes in Yemen in a Signal group chat earlier this year, triggering fresh demands for his resignation (Read more at Guardian).
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition on Wednesday boycotted a Knesset vote endorsing US President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza. The vote, initiated by opposition leader Yair Lapid, passed with 39 votes in favor and none against. As the period to debate the proposal began, members of Netanyahu’s coalition fled the Knesset plenum, hastily rushing to the exits as the vote neared (Read more at AOL).
US pressure led to the restart of the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline in Iraq after Iranian drone strikes on US-operated oilfields in Kurdistan. This move is seen as a shift in influence from Tehran to Washington, highlighting US energy ambitions and diplomatic ties. The pipeline resumption agreement is temporary, with future complications due to legal and political factors (Read more at Long Bridge).
A federal judge questions the termination of Ozturk’s student status after the op-ed. Ozturk’s visa was revoked due to pro-Palestinian activism. The Judge said she was “struggling” to understand why President Donald Trump’s administration is preventing a Tufts University PhD student who had engaged in pro-Palestinian activism from working on campus nearly seven months after the Turkish citizen was released from an immigration detention center (Read more at Arabnews).
The U.S. military has stood up its first operational unit armed with Low-Cost Uncrewed Combat Attack System (LUCAS) kamikaze drones, a design reverse-engineered from the Iranian-designed Shahed-136, in the Middle East. The establishment of Task Force Scorpion Strike (TFSS) is a major development, and offers a way “to flip the script on Iran,” according to a U.S. official (Read more at The War Zone).
The meeting in Naqoura on the border between the countries was the first such direct, public engagement between Israel and Lebanon since 1993. The Trump administration has been tying to foster this sort of dialogue between Israel and Lebanon for nine months (Read more at Axios).
The program, which is the vision of the late OU leader and rabbi Moshe Hauer, involved a partnership with the religious Zionist group Rabbanei Haaretz Hatova and Gesher, an Israeli organization that promotes Jewish unity (Read more at JNS).
Israel will be among a select group of countries participating in the Pax Silica artificial intelligence summit at the White House on Dec. 12. Pax Silica is a strategic economic security coalition-building effort for the AI era that unites countries whose interests converge around securing the entire silicon to compute supply chain (Read more at JNS).
There was a clear “threat” delivered in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s formal letter to President Isaac Herzog requesting a pardon in his corruption case, senior Haaretz columnist Dahlia Scheindlin said on the Haaretz Podcast. On the podcast, Scheindlin discusses the impact a pardon would have on a future election and the U.S.-led efforts to pursue the goals laid out in the Gaza cease-fire agreement, as well as what she believes Israel’s opposition needs to do to seize this moment ahead of next October’s election in order to formulate a “winning strategy” to defeat Netanyahu (Listen here).
At one point, Clinton recalled her recent teaching experience at Columbia University, where she saw how students’ opinions were being shaped by social media clips, which she said often contained propaganda or misinformation, including about the Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel in 2023. “When you would try to talk to them to engage in some kind of reasonable discussion, it was very difficult because they did not know history,” she said. “They had very little context. And what they were being told on social media was not just one-sided, it was pure propaganda.” (Read more at Hallywood Reporter)
Exxon Mobil has approached the Iraqi oil ministry to express its interest in buying Russian firm Lukoil's majority stake in the giant West Qurna 2 oilfield, five Iraqi official sources with direct knowledge of the matter said (Read more at Yahoo Finance).
The possible Saudi Arabian Foreign Military Sales (FMS) cases are each valued at $500 million. “The proposed sale will enhance Saudi Arabia’s capability to meet current and future threats by providing initial through advanced aviation operator and maintainer training for the safe and professional operation of the [Royal Saudi Land Forces Aviation Corps] US-procured helicopter fleet,” says the DSCA. Separately, the DSCA has announced a possible $445 million sustainment sale for Bahrain’s F-16s. It covers a broad range of components, spares, and other support (Read more at Global Flight).
A visit to the White House would mark the Israeli prime minister's fifth since Mr Trump returned to office in January. The two leaders have publicly projected a close relationship, though US and Israeli sources have said Mr Trump has at times expressed frustration with Mr Netanyahu (Read more at Strait Times).
“The two leaders stressed the importance and obligation of disarming Hamas and demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, and discussed expanding the peace agreements,” the prime minister’s office wrote. It’s not clear what peace agreements the two leaders discussed, but earlier on Monday, Trump wrote that there was a “historic opportunity” for “peace in the Middle East” under Syria’s new president (Read more at J Wire).
"It is very important that Israel maintain a strong and true dialogue with Syria, and that nothing takes place that will interfere with Syria's evolution into a prosperous State," Trump said on his Truth Social platform. Tensions have risen over hundreds of strikes by Israel on Syria, and in the deadliest so far, Israeli forces killed 13 people on Friday in an operation in the southern village of Beit Jin. Syria called the Israeli operation a "war crime." Israel said it targeted an Islamist group (Read more at France 24).
Some 100 evangelical Latinos and their pastors gathered to express solidarity with Israel and launched a new Zionist nonprofit targeting Spanish speakers. “We in the Jewish community need to show our appreciation to our Christian friends, who are standing with us and Israel,” Rabbi Ruben Malekan said (Read more at JNS).
The “No Immigration Benefits for Hamas Terrorists Act of 2025,” which Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.) introduced, would amend the Immigration and Nationality Act to bar from the United States “any alien who carried out, participated in, planned, financed, afforded material support to or otherwise facilitated any of the attacks against Israel initiated by Hamas beginning on Oct. 7,” including members of Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (Read more at JNS).
Besides the inauguration of the new Consulate General in Erbil, Rigas is expected to meet with Iraqi officials and tour US diplomatic facilities (Read more at Iraqinews).
Opposition politicians have come out against the request, with some arguing that any pardon should be conditional on Netanyahu retiring from politics and admitting guilt. Others have said the prime minister must first call national elections, which are due by October 2026, before requesting any pardon (Read more at Arabnews).
According to U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM), American and Syrian forces identified and eliminated the storage facilities across the Rif Damashq province during a series of airstrikes and ground demolitions conducted between 24 and 27 November. “The combined operation destroyed over 130 mortars and rockets, multiple assault rifles, machine guns, anti-tank mines, and materials for building improvised explosive devices,” CENTCOM said in a statement (Read more at Anewz).
Did the Biden administration help cover up the killing of Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh by Israeli forces? This week on UpFront, Marc Lamont Hill speaks to Steve Gabavics, a colonel-turned-whistleblower who was sent by the United States Department of State to investigate Abu Akleh's killing in 2022. Gabavics found that Israel intentionally killed Abu Akleh, who was fired at 16 times while wearing a blue vest marked “press”, but the State Department labelled her killing "accidental" to avoid angering the Israeli government. Gabavics claimed that Abu Akleh is among several American citizens killed by the Israeli military for whom the US has taken no action to hold Israel accountable (Listen here).
The makers of the popular satirical cartoon show South Park turned their sights on Saudi Arabia in their latest episode, attacking American media personalities, politicians and sporting events for taking money from the state. Struggling to find funds due to the economic crisis in the US, one character suggests there is someone "who'd be willing to give South Park a bunch of money", adding "they're giving money to everyone else" (Read more at Middle East Eye).
American missionaries were dispatched to Palestine as early as 1821 but remained only until 1844, when competition from British Protestant missions rendered their presence redundant and led them to relocate to Syria and Lebanon. The Palestinians opposed the colonists, prompting the Ottomans to protest to the US minister that 'the natives' were being driven 'from their fields by a colony of Yankees' (Read more at Middle East Eye).
A spokesperson for the Iranian football federation (FFIRI) described the decision to reject the visa application as “unrelated to sport”, and the move raises the prospect of Iran withdrawing from the tournament altogether. Iran is one of 19 countries whose citizens are restricted from entering the US since a directive issued by Donald Trump in June. An exemption to the ban was granted to athletes, coaches or “persons performing a necessary support role” who were travelling for the World Cup or “other major sporting event”, but appears not to have been applied in this instance (Read more at Guardian).
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called a cabinet meeting this month to discuss settler violence, but this sudden interest stands in stark contrast to years of inaction by the state. Settler attacks in the occupied West Bank hit a record high in October, the worst monthly toll since record-keeping began almost two decades ago. The violence is happening with impunity and under the protection of the army, according to evidence collected by rights groups and testimonies from Palestinians. The question is: why are authorities only now taking an interest? Is new pressure from Washington pushing them to take a stronger stand against settler attacks? In this episode of Beyond the Headlines, host Nada AlTaher examines Israel’s reaction to settler violence. She speaks to Kobi Michael from the Misgav Institute and to political analyst Ori Goldberg (Listen here).
The feud between U.S. President Donald Trump and MAGA congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene may not be exclusively about Israel, “but Israel is one of the pillars of the narrative” that fueled Greene’s decision to resign earlier this week, Haaretz’s Washington correspondent Ben Samuels told the Haaretz Podcast (Listen here).
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar offered condolences to the American people after an Afghan national shot two National Guard members near the White House in a suspected terrorist attack. “My thoughts are with the families of the two brave National Guardsmen,” Sa’ar wrote on X (Read more at JNS).
“Thank you, Speaker @MikeJohnson, for your strong and principled words about Israel. Your clarity and conviction strengthen our shared stand against terror,” the premier stated on his office’s X social media. Johnson emphasized Israel’s role as the only stable democracy in the Middle East and said the alliance serves American interests regardless of religious motivations (Read more at JNS).
A senior Trump official has confirmed that the US administration is working on a plan to divide the Gaza Strip by constructing housing units for thousands of Palestinians in Israeli-occupied areas behind the so-called yellow line in Gaza, and not allowing them to leave those sites (Read more at Imemc).
In a statement, the group said it firmly opposes the executive order issued on the 24th of this month. It stressed that the move is politically motivated and the result of external pressure from Israel and the UAE to push President Donald Trump’s administration to issue the decision. The statement said: “Many Democratic governments, including the United States government, have previously reviewed such proposals and reached the same conclusion: that classifying the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist group is completely detached from reality and not supported by any evidence (..) The facts have not changed.” (Read more at Middle East Monitor)
If implemented, the measure would undermine core US interests, destabilise the Middle East, and empower the very actors Washington claims to be combatting. Firstly, the designation represents a triumph for the far-right extremists surrounding Trump - figures such as Sebastian Gorka, Trump’s senior director for counterterrorism, with widely reported ties to ultranationalist and neo-Nazi groups in Europe; and Laura Loomer, a far-right activist known for Islamophobic campaigns across the US. Both have long framed the Brotherhood as part of a global Islamist conspiracy, and lobbied aggressively for its designation (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The union said Cornell University supported human rights abuses against Palestinians through research and ties to the weapons industry, and the decision allows it to "join a larger movement to end the genocide in Palestine". “Cornell is implicated in the Israeli genocide of Palestinians through research, recruitment, and financial ties with the weapons industry, and endowment investments,” a statement from the union reads (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Late on Monday night in Samaria, Senator Jason Rapert of Arkansas, the founder and president of the National Association of Christian Lawmakers (NACL), gathered a contingent of 20 U.S. lawmakers in quiet prayer before the army arrived to escort them into Joseph’s Tomb, one of the holiest and most sensitive sites in the region. They were guided by Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council (Read more at Newsrael).
The US president's direct engagement brings political weight and leverage, but risks tying the nation's future to transactional geopolitical interests (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Federal officials alleged that, in addition to overstaying his visa, Marouf donated nearly $14,000 to the Holy Land Foundation, a terror organization, in the 1990s, reported Fox 4 in Dallas. The leaders of the foundation were subsequently convicted of sending $12 million to Hamas (Read more at JNS).
The lawsuit filed Monday in U.S. District Court in North Dakota came one month after President Donald Trump pardoned Binance founder Changpeng Zhao, who had pleaded guilty to failing to combat money laundering on the crypto exchange (Read more at CNBC).
Anwar Gargash, the diplomatic adviser to the United Arab Emirates' president, said on Tuesday the UAE welcomed US efforts to end war in Sudan and condemned "atrocities" committed by both Sudan's army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (Read more at Khaleej Times).
The United States has presented Sudan's warring parties with a proposal for a truce but neither side has formally accepted it, U.S. envoy Massad Boulos said Tuesday, as the army accused its rivals of staging an attack despite declaring a ceasefire. Boulos said that while there were no objections to the content of the U.S.-proposed plan, the Sudanese army had come back with "preconditions" he described as impossible to achieve (Read more at CBC).
Widespread anger at the Gaza genocide poses serious problems for any Arab or Muslim-majority leader thinking of signing an Abraham Accord. Whether this shifts in the coming months will depend on what happens in the devastated enclave (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The trip advances the U.S. “commitment to advancing stability, security, religious freedom and prosperity across the region. Michael Rigas’s visit will reaffirm the “ironclad” U.S.-Israel relationship. the U.S. official will meet with Iraqi officials and tour U.S. diplomatic sites during his visit to Baghdad and Erbil, and inaugurate the consulate general in the latter city (Read more at JNS).
In March 2006, the Harvard Kennedy School published a working paper, “The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy,” by influential political scientists John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt. Unknown at the time, Jeffrey Epstein gave feedback on talking points to discredit Mearsheimer and Walt, and used his extensive social network to circulate allegations of anti-semitism against the two scholars (Read more at Drope Site News).
The Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which had four food distribution sites that became flashpoints of chaos and deadly violence between May and October, said in a statement that it would shut down permanently, having “successfully completed its emergency mission” (Read more at Guardian).
The diary, which was published this week at the request of the non-profit group Hatzlaha, showed that Netanyahu held seven meetings and nine phone calls with Republican Senator Lindsay Graham. The discussions with Graham came at a time of heightened tension between Israel and the administration of then-US President Joe Biden over Israel's genocide in Gaza (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The contract covers base operating support, life support, and security services to be carried out at the Martyr Brigadier General (BG) Ali Flaih Air Base, located in Iraq’s Salah al-Din province. Work is expected to be completed by September 24, 2026 (Read more at Defense Post).
The contract coincides with the opening of a $33-million production facility in East Camden, Arkansas, established to support the Israel Missile Defense Organization’s push to accelerate Iron Dome interceptor production. The site will manufacture Tamir warheads for Israel’s Iron Dome air and missile defense system, which has been operational since 2011 and uses radar-guided interceptors to shoot down rockets, artillery, and short-range missiles with a reported success rate above 95 percent (Read more at Defense Post).
United States President Donald Trump “looks at Saudi Arabia like a piggy bank or an ATM machine” and that’s why the recent Saudi-US summit focused on deals instead of strategic regional issues, such as Sudan, Palestine, Iran and Syria, argues political scientist Gregory Gause, professor emeritus of international affairs at Texas A&M University. Gause tells host Steve Clemons that if Riyadh can seal a deal to house a joint AI data centre, “that's the best guarantee of US security.” He adds that China may be Saudi Arabia’s biggest customer but the US is Riyadh’s “preferred partner on security, AI, economics and defence cooperation”. (Listen here)
The United States is moving forward with plans to establish new communities for Gazans on the Israeli-controlled side of the line dividing the Strip, part of an effort to draw civilians away from Hamas-run areas (Read more at JNS).
Representative Vindman urges the White House to release the transcript of Trump's 2019 call with Prince Mohammed after Khashoggi's murder. Vindman claims the classified call was "shocking" and involved a quid pro quo, sparking controversy and demands from Democrats (Read more at Straits Times).
Lebanon’s army has been beefing up its presence in south Lebanon near the Israeli border since a US-brokered ceasefire last November sought to end more than a year of hostilities between Israel and the Iran-backed militant group (Read more at Defense Post).
Under the new status, Saudi Arabia will gain access to American defense technologies, priority delivery of military equipment, and the ability to host US war reserves. The kingdom also becomes eligible to bid on Pentagon contracts for maintenance and repair of US systems abroad (Read more at Defense Post).
“Regarding the F-35, I had a long conversation with Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who reiterated his commitment that the United States will continue to preserve Israel’s qualitative military edge in everything related to supplying weapons and military systems to countries in the Middle East,” Netanyahu said in a Hebrew-language interview widely circulated on X (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Several anti-Palestine groups, including Canary Mission and Betar USA, claimed credit for Khalil’s arrest in March. The lawsuit comes after the Trump administration failed to respond to a Freedom of Information Act request Khalil filed for the documents (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Members of the delegation stressed that their mission would continue until the remains of the last captive are returned home for burial. In a message shared by the White House on X, he told them: “You’re not a hostage anymore … today you’re heroes.” (Read more at JNS)
Following a “series of precise security surveillance and monitoring operations”, security forces arrested Zaitar in an ambush in the city of Baalbek in Lebanon’s eastern Baalbek-Hermel governorate, the Lebanese military said. “The detainee is one of the most dangerous wanted individuals, pursuant to a large number of arrest warrants, for crimes of forming gangs operating across numerous Lebanese regions in drug and arms trafficking, manufacturing narcotic substances, and robbery and theft by force of arms,” the military said (Read more at Aljazeera).
The White House has said it was unaware that a meeting took place earlier this year between United States ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee and Jonathan Pollard, a former US Navy officer who was convicted of spying for Israel and jailed for decades (Read more at Aljazeera).
While living in Maryland from late 2024 until March 2025, Dizajgan allegedly used TikTok to post images and videos of U.S. citizens marked with upside-down red triangles—an icon that Hamas uses to single out targets—accompanied by threatening remarks, per the indictment (Read more at JNS).
Two members of Congress with long pro-Israel records have called on U.S. President Donald Trump to respond to what they say is increasing “settler violence” in Judea and Samaria. Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) and Rep. Dan Goldman (D-N.Y.) wrote to the president, stating that matters have gotten worse since they first raised these concerns with Trump’s predecessor, former President Joe Biden (Read more at JNS).
Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) and Leo Terrell, chair of the U.S. Justice Department task force to combat Jew-hatred, were among the honorees awarded for speaking out on behalf of Israel and the Jewish people at a ceremony in Washington. Speaking at the Endowment for Middle East Truth’s annual “Rays of Light in the Darkness” gala, Fetterman said that the more people “back away from Israel,” the more he would “lean in stronger.” (Read more at JNS)
A federal judge on Wednesday blocked President Donald Trump’s administration from terminating temporary deportation protections and work permits for more than 6,100 Syrians while a legal challenge proceeds. U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla in Manhattan said the abrupt elimination of temporary protected status for Syrians was likely illegal, agreeing with seven Syrian migrants who had sought to block the policy from taking effect on Friday. They claim the change was arbitrary and motivated by racial animus (Read more at NBC News).
Both companies are receiving approvals to purchase the equivalent of up to 35,000 Nvidia Blackwell chips (GB300s), said the department in a statement. “These approvals will promote continued American AI dominance and global technological leadership – consistent with President Trump’s July 2025 AI Action Plan. The approvals also follow landmark U.S.-Saudi and U.S.-UAE AI partnership agreements,” the statement added (Read more at Middle East Economy).
The multi-year arrangement will see Hartree Partners deliver liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes to Egypt’s existing import terminals and the country’s regasification facilities. The supplies are intended to support Egypt’s domestic energy requirements, particularly during periods of peak seasonal demand and as the country works to maintain stable electricity generation (Read more at World Energy).
Nearly all recent US administrations have worked with leaders with poor human rights records in order to advance US interests. But more than any recent occupant of the White House, Trump has not only praised prominent autocratic rulers, from Saudi Arabia and Hungary to China and El Salvador, but has shown little interest in reining them in, instead taking a more transactional approach (Read more at Business Standard).
"We sent (a) greeting message to all our international correspondent banks. We started with the Federal Reserve," Husrieh said. "We're telling them that ... we are back to the international financial system, and we are looking forward to long-term business relationships." (Read more at Market Screener)
In this episode of Middle East Focus, hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj sit down with MEI Visiting Scholar F. Gregory Gause, III, to analyze the policy implications of Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman Al Saud's (MBS) first visit to the US in seven years. What do US and Saudi officials hope to achieve from MBS's historic trip? Gause breaks down how the kingdom has changed under MBS's leadership and the prospects for a bilateral defense agreement between the US and Saudi Arabia. Gause also examines the evolving US-Saudi relationship and how the turbulent regional landscape is affecting Riyadh's foreign policy calculations (Listen here).
Oil giant Saud Aramco said on Wednesday it had signed 17 preliminary deals with US companies with a potential overall value of more than $30 billion, during a visit to Washington by the Saudi Crown Prince. The projects span liquefied natural gas, financial services, advanced materials manufacturing and procurement of materials and services, it said in a statement (Read more at New Arab).
The joint venture plans to deploy up to 1 GW of AI infrastructure by 2030, with the shared ambition to expand capacity to multiple gigawatts, as a key pillar of HUMAIN’s overall ambitions. This joint venture is expected to begin operations in 2026, with a phase 1 deployment of 100 MW planned, powered by HUMAIN modern data center capacity, AMD Instinct™ MI450 Series GPUs and Cisco critical infrastructure solutions (Read more at CISCO).
"It is about civilian, civil use of nuclear power. It's not about enrichment. It's not about anything related to weapons. It's just about generating electricity, secure, reliable, affordable electricity," U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said (Read more at Yahoo).
Saudi Arabian Mining Company (Maaden) and the Pentagon will create a joint venture to process rare earth materials from Saudi Arabia and other parts of the world to supply the US and Saudi manufacturing and defense sectors (Read more at Al-Arabiya).
A handful of Republican members of Congress, including House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson, Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Jim Risch and House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast attended a black-tie dinner at the White House for bin Salman on Tuesday, according to a White House official (Read more at Dawn).
Founded in 2019 and fully state-owned by Abu Dhabi, EDGE Group is a rapidly growing advanced technology and defense conglomerate. Its portfolio spans a wide range of capabilities—from drones, armored vehicles, and radar systems to cyber and secure communications tech (Read more at Defense Watch).
This conversation will explore the emerging forces shaping the next wave of technological progress, highlighting the architectures, models, and investments powering a more intelligent and interconnected future. The discussion will be moderated by Abdullah Alswaha, Saudi Arabia's minister of communications and information technology. Both Musk and Huang attended a dinner Trump held for the crown prince (Read more at Yahoo Finance).
Since his 2023 signing for the Riyadh-based club – majority owned by the Saudi sovereign wealth fund that the crown prince chairs – Ronaldo has been the face of the Saudi league and has featured in promotional videos for the Saudi Tourism Authority (Read more at Aljazeera).
The crown prince's lavish White House reception marked his full rehabilitation and secured major economic, defence and technology deals that could shift the US-Saudi balance. More broadly, Arabs interested in democracy, freedom and human rights will be discouraged by the crown prince's increased power and influence. After the Arab Spring, the Saudi government helped guide counterrevolutions in Egypt, Tunisia, Yemen, Libya, and elsewhere (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The F-35 is just one item on Saudi Arabia's shopping list. Deliveries of the F-35 could still take years, so the kingdom is looking at more futuristic weapons systems, like Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) drones. The agreement will put Saudi Arabia far ahead of other Gulf states and US partners in terms of wait times and negotiations for sophisticated US weapons (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Clips from a Jewish-American panel discussion are racing across social media and fuelling backlash this week after a former Obama speechwriter claimed young people falsely believe the Holocaust teaches you to “fight the big, powerful people hurting the weak people". Sarah Hurwitz argues young Jewish people 'can’t hear anything through the wall of carnage in Gaza' and are misapplying lessons about antisemitism (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The Trump administration has approached Yemen’s internationally recognised government in Aden about potentially contributing to the "international stabilisation force" being assembled for Gaza. News of the Aden government's involvement comes one day after US President Donald Trump feted Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the White House. The kingdom is a key backer of the Aden government, and has waged a war on the Houthis since 2015, creating what became one of the world's worst humanitarian crises (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Saudi Arabia has agreed to allow US citizen Saad Almadi to return home to Florida, five months ahead of the scheduled lifting of travel restrictions and a day after Saudi crown prince and prime minister Mohammed bin Salman met Donald Trump at the White House. Almadi, 75, was sentenced to 19 years of incarceration in the kingdom in 2021 after he wrote 14 tweets critical of the Riyadh government. Two years later, the charges were reduced to so-called “cyber crimes” and he was sentenced to a 30-year ban on leaving Saudi Arabia (Read more at Guardian).
Senator Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said any deal with Saudi Arabia must include enhanced inspections through an agreement known as the Additional Protocol, which boosts the ability of the International Atomic Energy Agency to verify peaceful use of all nuclear material. It is critical that the U.S. hold Saudi Arabia to the "gold standard" in what is known as a 123 Agreement to ensure Riyadh will not enrich uranium or reprocess plutonium, as the United Arab Emirates agreed in 2009 when it signed a civil nuclear pact with Washington, she said. "We must not fuel a nuclear arms race in the Middle East." (Read more at Yahoo News)
"His majesty would like me to do something very powerful having to do with Sudan," Trump said at a Saudi-US business forum on Wednesday. "It was not on my charts to be involved in, I thought it was just something that was crazy and out of control," he added. "But I just see how important that is to you, and to a lot of your friends in the room, Sudan. And we're going to start working on Sudan." (Read more at TRT World)
The controversy over the killing of Khashoggi, a Washington Post columnist and U.S.-based critic of the Saudi leadership, flared again in the Oval Office in front of cameras as the kingdom's de facto ruler made his first White House visit in more than seven years seeking to further rehabilitate his global image tarnished by the incident. U.S. intelligence agencies concluded that bin Salman approved the capture or killing of Khashoggi at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul. The crown prince denied ordering the operation but acknowledged responsibility as the kingdom's de facto ruler. "A lot of people didn't like that gentleman that you're talking about, whether you like him or didn't like him," Trump said. "Things happened, but he knew nothing about it, and we can leave it at that." (Read more at Japan Times)
In addition to Resolution 2803's vague wording and unclear commitments, the biggest obstacle is Israel's relentless opposition to a Palestinian state (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Tommy and Ben discuss Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Washington, his request for F-35 fighter jets and a NATO-like security guarantee, the real estate deals the Trump family might get in return, and how corruption is driving US foreign policy, including in the case of a gold-bar bribe from the Swiss. Then they talk about new reports on embattled (and embarrassing) FBI Director Kash Patel, what leaked emails tell us about Jeffrey Epstein’s relationship with Israeli intelligence and former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak, how Chinese hackers used AI in a game-changing new way, why the former prime minister of Bangladesh was sentenced to death, a massive corruption scandal in Ukraine, an update on civilians fleeing violence in Sudan, and a new documentary about how Adolf Hitler’s teeny tiny secret caused big problems. Then Ben speaks with author and former assistant administrator at USAID, Atul Gawande, whose new documentary “Rovina’s Choice” highlights the staggering rise in preventable malnutrition and deaths after American cuts to foreign aid (Listen here).
Muhammad bin Salman’s first visit to the White House in seven years earned the Saudi crown prince new weapons, giant tech deals and a burnished reputation. Our correspondent explains Trump’s warm welcome. Why gay rights in Hong Kong are going backwards. And how snail farms help Britons dodge tax (Listen here).
"Iran must ... provide the (International Atomic Energy) Agency without delay with precise information on nuclear material accountancy and safeguarded nuclear facilities in Iran, and grant the Agency all access it requires to verify this information," read the draft submitted on Tuesday, which diplomats said is highly likely to be passed (Source: Yahoo News).
It's a massive, long-term commitment — and one that appears to shrug off doubts regarding the tank's role on the battlefield of the future. General Dynamics Land Systems makes the Abrams main battle tank. It's used by the U.S. Army and has been adopted overseas, including by Ukraine (Read more at Axios).
While Trump and his advisers acknowledge the gaps between the Saudis and the Israelis are still wide, the White House told the Saudis it wanted to see some progress on this issue during the Trump-MBS meeting, U.S. officials said (Read more at Axios).
“I will say that we will be doing that,” Trump told reporters at the White House, "We'll be selling F-35s". In a potential multibillion-dollar deal, Riyadh wants to buy as many as 48 US-made jets. Through the deal, Saudi Arabia is seeking to strengthen its security in the face of threats from countries such as Iran and militias across the Middle East (Read more at Euronews).
Senior executives from IBM, Alphabet's Google, Salesforce, Andreessen Horowitz, Halliburton, Adobe, Aramco, State Street and Parsons Corp are also expected at the Nov. 19 event at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The event is planned for the day after the crown prince, widely known by his initials MBS, meets with President Donald Trump (Read more at Reuters).
As a result, both groups would be barred "from purchasing or acquiring land" in the state of Texas. The proclamation gives the state's attorney general leeway to sue the groups accordingly (Read more at Middle East Eye).
A new initiative named the Anti-Zionist America Political Action Committee (Azapac) released an unprecedented video ad on Monday calling for donations and volunteers to help it build momentum and counter pro-Israeli lobbying groups in the US. The project, which kicked off earlier this year, is spearheaded by former New York University professor and author Michael Rectenwald, a self-described Libertarian, and has amassed more than 22,000 followers on X (Read more at Middle East Eye).
For days leading up to his visit, diplomats and Middle East watchers were placing bets on whether Saudi Arabian Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman would subject himself to one of US President Donald Trump’s notorious, and often raw, Oval Office press briefings. Payments are now due in full. For about 40 minutes, Trump and the crown prince fielded reporters' questions on almost every topic, from the murder of Middle East Eye and Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi to AI chips and arms sales - all with the cameras rolling (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The foreign ministry spokesperson Yvonne Mewengkang said it welcomed the resolution and stressed the importance of every party's involvement in it, "especially the Palestinian Authority". "The resolution prioritises conflict resolution and prolonged peace through the capacity building of the Palestinian authorities," Yvonne said in a statement. "Indonesia will always support an independent and sovereign Palestinian nation." (Read more at Jakarta Post)
'It is essential now to translate the diplomatic momentum into concrete and urgently needed steps on the ground,' says Antonio Guterres. "The adoption of the resolution on Gaza by the Security Council is an important step in the consolidation of the ceasefire, which the Secretary-General encourages all parties to abide by," said his spokesperson, Stephane Dujarric, in a statement (Read more at Anadolu Ajansi).
US President Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan wins UN Security Council backing. A mixed reaction from Palestinians: the Palestinian Authority welcomes the resolution, but Hamas rejects it along with plans for an international stabilisation force. So, what's next? (Listen here)
The Saudi Crown Prince believed Trump's direct pressure was needed to break a logjam in talks to end more than two and a half years of war, pointing to his work to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza last month (Read more at New Arab).
Saudi luxury real estate developer Dar Global hopes to fund much of its latest Trump hotel in the Maldives by selling blockchain-based crypto tokens to U.S. retail investors. London-listed Dar Global is one of The Trump Organization's main overseas partners, with seven projects under development including an 80-storey tower in Dubai, a golf resort in Qatar and hotels and high-end homes across Saudi Arabia and Oman (Read more at MSN).
The decision was made just hours before his planned departure and despite extensive preparations for the visit. The Lebanese Embassy in Washington announced the cancellation of a reception that had been arranged in honor of the army commander, expressing appreciation for guests’ understanding and saying it would inform them of a new date once set, without offering the Lebanese community any further explanation (Read more at Arabnews).
Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas agreed last month to the first phase of Trump's 20-point plan for Gaza - a ceasefire in their two-year war and a hostage-release deal - but the UN resolution is seen as vital to legitimizing a transitional governance body and reassuring countries that are considering sending troops to Gaza. Hamas, in a statement, reiterated that it will not disarm and argued that its fight against Israel is legitimate resistance, potentially pitting the militant group against the international force authorized by the resolution (Read more at Reuters).
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Washington marks his first U.S. trip since the killing of Jamal Khashoggi. Discussions are centered on significant defense agreements, access to artificial intelligence technology, and progress toward a civilian nuclear deal with the United States. The visit underscores a strategic realignment prioritizing security and technological advancement for Saudi Arabia (Read more at Fundfa).
Seven years on, MbS now casts himself as a broker of peace, repairing ties with Iran, pushing for a Gaza ceasefire and welcoming Syria back into the Arab fold, a striking pivot from a prince once branded reckless for plunging into Yemen’s war. Both reformist and autocrat, MbS has emerged as the most momentous and audacious leader in the kingdom’s modern history -- driving its transformation and shaping its future (Read more at Global Banking and Finance).
Temporary legal protections for Syrians will end on Friday, rendering thousands vulnerable and at risk of being separated from their families (Read more at Middle East Eye)
The chief executive of Diriyah said the Trump family business and Saudi giga-project could announce a deal 'soon'. “Nothing announced yet, but soon to be,” Jerry Inzerillo said, adding it was “just a matter of time” before the Trump Organization reached a deal (Read more at Middle East Eye).
"Iran's use of military forces to conduct an armed boarding and seizure of a commercial vessel in international waters constitutes a blatant violation of international law, undermining freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce," CENTCOM's statement read (Read more at MSN).
A planned $500 million American base near Gaza faces questions, as no one other than the Israel Defense Forces is willing to engage in hostilities with Hamas (Read more at JNS).
Given this official and personal bond between the president and the crown prince, expectations are high about how their latest meeting will influence relations between their countries and the wider region. In Washington, I heard extensive policy discussions about what this visit could achieve and what its implications might be for peace with Israel, ties with Iran, the region’s geopolitical balance and the long-term economic, military and nuclear partnership that Riyadh and Washington are trying to structure through the mid-21st century and possibly beyond (Read more at Arabnews).
Steve Lutes says Saudi-US ties are resilient and rapidly shifting toward technology, innovation and next-generation economic cooperation. Saudi Vision 2030 reforms are driving a surge in US corporate interest across sectors like AI, cloud services, biotech and advanced manufacturing (Read more at Arabnews).
What began as a reliance on oil and gas has expanded to more diverse economic collaboration built on Vision 2030 initiatives. Economic cooperation between the two nations was solidified in the early 1930s when King Abdulaziz granted the right of oil exploration to the American company Standard Oil through a 66-year contract. This led to the formation of the Arabian-American Oil Company, better known as Aramco (Read more at Arabnews).
Washington’s current approach toward Tehran does not indicate any readiness for “equal and fair negotiations”, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday, after US President Donald Trump hinted last week at potential discussions (Read more at Dawn).
Document 109, dated June 5, 1974, at 5:15 p.m., captures a pivotal Washington encounter between King Fahd, who was then serving as Saudi Arabia’s second deputy prime minister, and US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Historians of bilateral relations recognize this gathering as the bedrock upon which numerous subsequent economic and military initiatives were constructed. Kissinger declared: “It is our firm view that a strong Saudi Arabia is in the interest of the United States and will contribute to peace and stability in the area" (Read more at Arabnews).
Nearly every American President since Richard Nixon in 1974 has visited Saudi Arabia either to avoid regional conflicts or to reinforce bilateral relations in foreign and economic policy. But none of them have made the Kingdom more of a foundation of America’s foreign and economic policies than President Donald Trump (Read more at Arabnews).
Relationship between the two countries “can be as diverse as the Saudi economy is becoming. Once upon a time, oil and defense really dominated the relationship. The big change was really Saudi’s decision to start diversifying its economy. That created huge opportunities for cooperation with the US, particularly with the US companies (Read more at Arabnews).
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Nov 16 that Israel remained opposed to a Palestinian state after protests by far-right coalition allies over a US-backed statement indicating support for a pathway to Palestinian independence. Mr Netanyahu spoke two days after Israel’s key ally US and many Muslim-majority nations endorsed a draft UN resolution backing President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan, saying the process offered a route to Palestinian statehood (Read more at Straits Times).
Israel is not opposed to the US sale of F-35s to Saudi Arabia — but is insisting Washington condition it on whether Riyadh and Jerusalem make diplomatic progress. “We told the Trump administration that the supply of F-35s to Saudi Arabia needs to be subject to Saudi normalization with Israel,” an unnamed Israeli official said (Read more at NY Post).
It may be a coincidence, but history rarely writes itself without purpose. Next week’s meeting in Washington between Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman and US President Donald J. Trump falls 80 years after the seminal 1945 encounter between King Abdulaziz and President Franklin D. Roosevelt aboard the USS Quincy. That meeting laid the foundation for a strategic partnership that has endured wars, oil shocks and political transitions. The parallels between then and now are striking — and significant (Read more at Arabnews).
Valued at potentially $142 billion as part of a broader defense framework, this proposed sale represents one of the largest weapons transactions in recent history, aimed at bolstering Saudi Arabia's air superiority against regional threats like Iran. Pentagon insiders warn that approving the deal could expose America's most sophisticated aviation technology to unintended vulnerabilities, potentially reshaping the balance of power in the volatile Gulf region (Read more at Aeronews Journal).
Israeli officials have begun weighing significant changes to the long-standing framework of American security assistance, which for decades has formed a central pillar of defense ties between Jerusalem and Washington. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hinted on Thursday that he intends to reduce Israel’s reliance on U.S. security aid, saying, “The direction is much greater independence. I expect to have something to say about this soon.” (Read more at JNS)
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi called for the United Nations to impose "appropriate measures" against the United States and Israel over military strikes in June against Iran's nuclear sites. Araghchi said that President Donald Trump and other U.S. officials bear "criminal responsibility" for the strikes after Trump's statement last week that he directed Israel's initial attack on Iran on June 13 (Read more at Straits Times).
-- Saudi Aramco, one of the world's largest oil exporters, wants to become a major liquefied natural gas player, especially in the U.S., where capacity is expected to grow quickly in the coming years (Read more at Market Screener).
While the proposal released on Friday has little chance of passing in the Republican-controlled House of Representatives, it underscores the growing criticism of Israel in US politics. If the resolution did pass, it would officially recognise that “Israel has committed the crime of genocide against the Palestinian people in Gaza” and call for an end to the transfer of weapons suspected of being used to commit atrocities to the US ally (Read more at Aljazeera).
Ramsi Woodcock’s lawsuit, filed in federal court against the University of Kentucky, is part of a growing backlash against US universities over a clampdown on pro-Palestine speech and activities. His suit argues that his first amendment and due process rights were violated when the university placed him under investigation in July, days after he was promoted to full professorship. The decision was based on allegations that he had violated university policy on anti-discrimination rules (Read more at Arabnews).
President Trump told Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman (MBS) in a phone call last month that, with the Gaza war ending, he expects Saudi Arabia to move toward normalization with Israel, two U.S. officials said (Read more at Axios).
A total of 32 individuals and entities based in Iran, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, China, Hong Kong, India, Germany and Ukraine that operate multiple procurement networks are being targeted in Wednesday’s designations, the Treasury Department said in a statement. “These networks pose a threat to U.S. and allied personnel in the Middle East and to commercial shipping in the Red Sea,” the department added Source: Iran Front Page).
The United States had evidence last year that Israeli officials discussed how their soldiers sent Palestinians into tunnels in Gaza that the Israelis believed were potentially lined with explosives. The information was shared with the White House and analysed by the intelligence community in the final weeks of former President Joe Biden’s administration (Read more at Aljazeera).
US Central Command said on Wednesday its forces assisted and enabled more than 22 operations against ISIS in Syria. The operations took place from October 1 to November 6. “Our success in countering the ISIS threat in Syria is a notable achievement,” said Adm. Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander (Read more at Alarabiya).
“I hope not,” Rubio told reporters after a meeting of Group of Seven foreign ministers in Canada, when asked whether the West Bank events could endanger the Gaza ceasefire. “We don’t expect it to. We’ll do everything we can to make sure it doesn’t happen.” (Source: Arabnews)
The move, which follows a phone call last week between Mohammed bin Salman and Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) commander Abdul Fattah al-Burhan, would mark a rare direct engagement between the Saudi ruler and Trump on Sudan. A Sudanese source briefed on the call between Mohammed bin Salman and Burhan said that the general told the crown prince there was no way the war in Sudan would end without US pressure on the UAE. The source told MEE that Mohammed bin Salman promised Burhan he would raise the issue with Trump (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Speaking to reporters at the end of a G7 foreign ministers meeting in Canada, Rubio said “something needs to be done to cut off the weapons and support that the RSF is getting as they continue with their advances". “Someone’s giving them the money and someone’s giving them the weapons, and it’s coming through some country,” he said (Read more at Middle East Eye).
“I hereby call on you to fully pardon Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been a formidable and decisive War Time Prime Minister, and is now leading Israel into a time of peace, which includes my continued work with key Middle East leaders to add many additional countries to the world changing Abraham Accords,” Trump wrote (Read more at Aljazeera).
A new US-run system for Gaza aid is bringing Americans, Israelis and humanitarian workers around the same table for the first time since the start of the two-year war. Operations at the Civil Military Co-ordination Centre (CMCC) stand in contrast to the former Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which sidelined well-established organisations such as the UN that had been operating in the West Bank and Gaza for decades. The installation of four GHF sites in the south and centre of the strip earlier this year led to stampedes and massacres in which at least 1,400 people died, UN figures show (Read more at The National).
A de facto partition of Gaza between an area controlled by Israel and another ruled by Hamas is increasingly likely, multiple sources said, with efforts to advance US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war beyond a ceasefire faltering. Six European officials with direct knowledge of the efforts to implement the next phase of the plan told Reuters it was effectively stalled and that reconstruction now appeared likely to be limited to the Israel-controlled area. That could lead to years of separation, they warned (Read more at Dawn).
The Nov. 19 event at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts will be co-hosted by the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia and the U.S.-Saudi Business Council. The forum will "explore new investment horizons across critical sectors, including energy, technology, financial services, infrastructure, and healthcare" and will be a platform for "exclusive business matchmaking (Read more at AOL).
“We are engaged in direct negotiations with Israel, and we have gone a good distance on the way to reach an agreement,” Sharaa said. His comments mark the first time the Syrian leader has confirmed the discussions with Israel. Syria’s official state news agency said in August that the two sides were engaging in direct discussions. US envoy and ambassador to Turkey Tom Barrack has been mediating between them (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Tommy and Ben discuss Syrian transitional President Ahmed Al-Shaara’s historic and improbable visit to the White House, Trump’s sanctions waiver and special favors for Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban ahead of his election, why the US is boycotting the G20 in South Africa, and how a sham election in Tanzania that’s led to mass protests and potentially thousands dead. Then they talk about how Trump could bring an end to bloodshed in Sudan with one phone call to the United Arab Emirates, a new list of problems undercutting Trump’s case for the Nobel Peace Prize, why Trump is suing the BBC for $1 billion, and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman’s colossal infrastructure failure in the desert. Then Tommy speaks to Josh Paul and Tariq Habash about why they resigned from the Biden administration over Gaza, and how they’re trying to change Democrats' approach to US-Israel policy with their organization, A New Policy (Listen here).
By aligning diplomatic decisions with national interests and regional responsibilities, Saudi Arabia has developed a sophisticated approach to statecraft. Jonathan Panikoff, a former career US intelligence officer for Middle Eastern affairs, noted that Saudi Arabia will not move forward with normalisation until a tangible path to a Palestinian state exists. He added that the crown prince is expected to use his influence in Washington to secure clear American support for a sovereign Palestinian state, a move that reflects the kingdom’s diplomatic skill in managing global power dynamics without compromising national principles. The kingdom has also demonstrated its ability to balance national security with strategic independence by ensuring that negotiations with Washington do not affect the autonomy of its national decisions or vital interests (Read more at Arab Weekly).
The three-judge panel affirmed most of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida’s decision to throw out the case for lack of jurisdiction under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act and the Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act. The three judges identified one exception. “One group, or bundle, of the plaintiffs’ claims—those based on the theory that the kingdom had been grossly negligent in vetting, hiring and sending airman al-Shamrani to the United States. Mohammed Saeed al-Shamrani was a second lieutenant in the Royal Saudi Air Force who came to the United States in 2017 to take part in a Pentagon-sponsored pilot training program for foreign nationals. In 2019, he shot 11 people at Naval Air Station Pensacola, killing three, before police shot and killed him (Read more at JNS).
Katie Wilson, a Council on American-Islamic Relations endorsed progressive who has accused Israel of “genocide,” pulled even further ahead of incumbent Bruce Harrell. Wilson had 137,217 votes (50.08%) to Harrell’s 135,871 (49.59%). (Read more at JNS)
The Hamas organization has a higher overall favorability rating (19%) and lower unfavorable rating (45%) than does the Israeli government (18%, 56%) on U.S. campuses. That difference in favorability ratings is not statistically significant, because it falls in the margin of error of plus or minus four percentage points (Read more at JNS).
"He comes from a very tough place, and he's a tough guy. I liked him. I get along with him, the president, the new president in Syria," the US president said in the Oval Office. Trump forecasted forthcoming announcements on Syria but did not detail them, saying only that "we want to see Syria become a country that's very successful, and I think this leader can do it." (Read more at Anadolu Ajansi)
The two discussed some of the most sensitive aspects of phase two, Israeli government spokeswoman Shosh Bedrosian told journalists. “Together the two discussed phase one, which we are currently still in, to bring our remaining hostages, and the future of phase two of this plan, which includes the disarming of Hamas, demilitarising Gaza and ensuring Hamas will have no role in the future of Gaza ever again,” Ms Bedrosian said (Read more at Straits Times).
In practical terms, Washington’s stance strengthens Damascus’ hand in integrating the SDF into state command structures while Kurdish leaders say key protections and timelines remain unfulfilled (Read more at Media Line).
The US and Israeli officials working on the plan termed them as "Alternate Safe Communities". Palestinians would be screened for “anti-Hamas” sentiment before being granted entry into the compounds. The proposal was discussed in an email by US Lieutenant General Patrick Frank, who is heading the civil-military coordination centre overseeing the Gaza ceasefire, which has been marred by regular Israeli violations (Read more at Middle East Eye).
Iran aims to reach a "peaceful" nuclear agreement with the United States to settle a decades-long dispute, but will not compromise its national security, Deputy Foreign Minister Saeed Khatibzadeh said on Tuesday. Speaking at the 12th Abu Dhabi Strategic Debate, Khatibzadeh said Washington was delivering conflicting messages to Tehran about nuclear talks through third countries (Read more at CGTN).
A landmark meeting between Presidents Donald Trump and Ahmed al-Sharaa at the White House.The historic sit-down signals a major shift in US-Syria relations. So, how will it shape Trump’s legacy in the Middle East? And what impact could it have on the region? (Listen here)
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa on Sunday met with Republican Congressman Brian Mast as part of efforts to secure the full repeal of the 2019 Caesar sanctions during his historic visit to Washington. Mast, a pro-Israel lawmaker and chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, has been an opponent of repealing the Caesar Act, which imposed sweeping penalties on Syria in 2019 following evidence of human rights violations under the rule of Bashar al-Assad. In a statement after the meeting, Mast said he and Sharaa “had a long and serious conversation about how to build a future for the people of Syria free of war, ISIS and extremism.” (Read more at Anadolu Ajansi)
"The city that once stood as a symbol of global freedom has handed over its keys to a Hamas supporter," Israel's right-wing Minister of Diaspora and Combating Antisemitism Amichai Chikli wrote on X. "New York will never be the same again, especially not for its Jewish community," he added (Read more at TRT World).
Hamdi was detained on 26 October at San Francisco international airport. At the time, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (Cair) said his detention appeared to be in retaliation for the Muslim political commentator’s criticism of Israel while touring the US, calling it a “blatant affront to free speech”, and called for his release. The family of British political commentator Sami Hamdi, who was detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) in late October while on a speaking tour in the US, say he is set to be released and will be able to “return home soon” (Read more at Guardian).
Eric Adams, the mayor of New York City, stated that he will travel to Israel on Friday for a four-day visit, during which he will meet with government officials, economic development leaders and technology workers (Read more at JNS).
The Society of Foreign Consuls in New York, which is celebrating its 100th year, stated earlier this month that it is “thrilled” to welcome Israel as a new member and offered the Jewish state “heartfelt congratulations.” The group refers to itself as the “world’s largest consular corps, comprising consulates, consulates general and honorary consulates.” It offered “special thanks” to Ofir Akunis, consul general of Israel in New York, for “his outstanding leadership.” (Read more at JNS)
The World Bank backs language in a US-drafted United Nations Security Council resolution on Gaza that would authorize a two-year mandate for a transitional governance body, according to a letter to the United States (Read more at Daily Sun).
Betsy Berns Korn, Chair, and William Daroff, chair and CEO respectively of the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations, stated on Sunday that they welcome the liberation of the remains of former Israeli soldier Hadar Goldin with “profound relief and gratitude.” “We thank President Trump and his administration for their leadership and resolve in bringing Hadar home,” the umbrella group’s leaders said (Read more at JNS).
Zimnako Salah, 46, whom a jury convicted in March of placing a backpack around a toilet in a church in Roseville, Calif., to “convey a hoax bomb threat and to obstruct the free exercise of religion of the congregants who worshipped there,” was sentenced to six years in prison. The Justice Department added that Salah “had consumed extremist propaganda online,” including searching “for videos of ‘infidels dying,’” and watching “videos depicting ISIS terrorists murdering people.” “In a cellphone video taken days before the crimes of conviction, defendant Salah declared, ‘America. We are going to destroy it,’” it said (Read more at JNS).
It also told the university to bar speakers who are being investigated for or found to have committed “genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity or systematic human rights violations.” The resolution added that the International Court of Justice has said it is “plausible” that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza (Read more at JNS).
The document, titled AWWG Palestine Policy Meeting Meeting Agenda & Notes, lists the following demands:
John Hurley, the undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said Iran has managed to funnel about $1 billion to Hezbollah this year despite a raft of Western sanctions that have battered its economy. Late last week Washington sanctioned two individuals accused of using money exchanges to help fund Hezbollah, which is deemed a terrorist group by several Western governments and Gulf states. “There’s a moment in Lebanon now. If we could get Hezbollah to disarm, the Lebanese people could get their country back,” Hurley said (Read more at Indian Express).
The United States has gathered intelligence that Israeli military lawyers warned there was evidence that could support war crimes charges against Israel for its genocide in Gaza — attacks carried out with American-supplied weapons. The information circulated more widely within the US government only in the final weeks of the Biden administration, ahead of a December 2024 congressional briefing (Read more at TRT World).
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-Ark.) asked Pam Bondi, the U.S. attorney general, to investigate whether the far left, anti-Israel group Code Pink has violated U.S. law by failing to register as a foreign agent or supporting terror organizations. “Alongside Samidoun, Code Pink organized a campaign calling for the release of Ahmad Sa’adat, a PFLP secretary-general who was convicted and sentenced to 30 years for leading a terrorist organization responsible for multiple attacks against Israeli military and civilians,” the senator wrote. “These activities raise serious questions about whether Code Pink has provided material support to designated foreign terror organizations.” (Read more at JNS)
The U.S.-led Civil-Military Coordination Center (CMCC) will replace Israel in overseeing aid into Gaza. Israel was part of the process but that CMCC would decide what aid enters Gaza and how. A spokesperson for the U.S. embassy in Jerusalem said that the U.S. was "working hard, in tandem with Israel and regional partners, on the next phases of implementing" the president's "historic peace plan" (Read more at New Arab)
President Donald Trump said Thursday he expects a US-coordinated international stabilization force to be on the ground in Gaza “very soon,” following two years of war in the territory between Israel and Hamas. The multinational force — likely to include troops from Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates — is part of Trump’s post-war governance plan for Gaza (Read more at Defense Post).
A Foreign Ministry source told the state-run Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA) on Thursday that "there is no truth to what Reuters published regarding American bases in Syria". The official said the current phase "is witnessing a shift in the American position toward direct engagement with the central Syrian government, supporting efforts to unify the country, and rejecting any calls for partition" (Read more at New Arab).
"Kazakhstan is the first Country of my Second Term to join the Abraham Accords, the first of many. This is a major step forward in building bridges across the World," Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform. "Today, more Nations are lining up to embrace Peace and Prosperity through my Abraham Accords. We will soon announce a Signing Ceremony to make it official, and there are many more Countries trying to join this club of strength. So much more to come in uniting Countries for Stability and Growth — Real progress, real results," he added (Read more at Anadolu Ajansı).
"Iran has been asking if the sanctions could be lifted. Iran has got very heavy US sanctions, and it makes it really hard for them to do what they'd like to be able to do. And I'm open to hearing that, and we'll see what happens, but I would be open to it," Trump said (Read more at TRT World).
The deal with the Cantor Fitzgerald-backed special purpose acquisition company comes as this unconventional route to the public markets has regained popularity in the U.S. after years of subdued activity, following poor share performance and regulatory roadblocks (Source: Reuters).
The US Department of the Treasury removed al-Sharaa, a former fighter linked to al-Qaeda, from the Specially Designated Global Terrorist list on Friday. The United Nations Security Council also removed al-Sharaa from a largely symbolic sanctions list on Thursday (Read more at Aljazeera).
He will also sign onto a US-led coalition against his one-time rival, the Islamic State militant (IS) group. Sharaa’s bid to cement his alignment with the US comes as his government faces an Israeli occupation in a swath of southern Syria, festering problems with Kurdish fighters in the north and a sputtering economy that has been unable to draw outside investment because of sanctions. None of those topics is expected to be resolved outright when Sharaa visits, but the image of Sharaa - who Trump has praised as an “attractive”, “strong”, and a “tough guy” - sitting in the Oval Office is going to resonate far (Read more at Middle East Eye).
The proposal would grant a two-year mandate for a transitional governing body and an international stabilisation force. The United States circulated the draft to all 15 council members on Wednesday evening, saying it already has regional backing from Egypt, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and the United Arab Emirates (Read more at Anews).
