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The Cradle is an online news magazine covering West Asian geopolitics from within.
❗️Secretary-General of Iraq's Asa'ib Ahl al-Haq, Qais al-Khazali:
"There are relations between the two neighboring countries, Iraq and Syria, and the matter is a necessity, and in its interest, they share. However, the presence of the current Syrian regime's president in Iraq is previously a point of concern, as it could lead to repercussions if the law is implemented and arrests are made by the military forces before it is applied, in light of the existence of an arrest warrant against him. It is necessary for there to be an immediate arrest of the individual in question, and action must be taken accordingly with the judicial decisions issued by the Iraqi courts, respecting and adhering to them by everyone."
Israeli occupation forces have taken over a residential building in the town of Turmus Ayya, north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, detaining residents and turning it into a military barracks.
There are no clashes or resistance groups in the area.
❗️Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on talks with the US:
– "Relatively positive atmosphere in Rome has enabled progress on principles and objectives of a possible deal."
– "We made clear how many in Iran believe that the JCPOA is no longer good enough for us. To them, what is left from that deal are "lessons learned." Personally, I tend to agree."
– "The initiation of expert level track will begin in coming days with a view to hammer out details. After that, we will be in a better position to judge."
– "For now, optimism may be warranted but only with a great deal of caution."
❗️UPDATE | Israeli army confirms its first "combat fatality" in Gaza in over three months.
Warrant Officer G'haleb Sleiman Alnasasra, a Bedouin soldier, was killed in an ambush by resistance fighters in north Gaza.
The fighters emerged from a tunnel that was said to have been "cleared," firing an RPG at a military vehicle before detonating an explosive device. Three other soldiers, including a female officer, a combat medic, and another tracker, were severely wounded.
Pentagon confirms plan to cut troop presence in Syria to less than 1,000
US troops have occupied Syria's major oil fields since 2017, regularly looting the country's resources to fund its Kurdish proxies
❗️Former Lebanese Progressive Socialist Party (PSP) leader Walid Jumblatt responded to US envoy Morgan Ortagus’s comment about him on X, posting the following photo with the caption: "The ugly American # MorganOrtagus."
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❗️Iranian TV:
"Iran–US nuclear talks in Rome have concluded."
❗️BREAKING | Spokesman for Hamas's Qassam Brigades Abu Obeida:
– "We were able to retrieve a martyr who was tasked with guarding the captive Edan Alexander. The fate of the captive and the rest of the fighter captors remains unknown."
– "We are trying to protect all captives and preserve their lives despite the brutality of the aggression. However, their lives are in danger due to the criminal bombing operations carried out by the enemy army."
– "The occupation is lying about the inhumane treatment of captives and fabricating false testimonies from former prisoners, with the aim of inciting against the resistance and covering up the scandal of its killing of a number of its captives, causing the continued suffering of the rest."
Israel mulls 'limited attack' on Iran as second round of nuclear talks takes place in Rome
US and Iranian officials are engaged in a new round of talks, facilitated by Omani mediation, in hopes of securing a new nuclear and sanctions relief deal
⭕️ The United States is prepared to abandon its push for a Russia-Ukraine peace agreement if tangible progress isn't made soon, President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday.
"Quickly, we want to get it done," Trump told reporters at the White House. "Now if for some reason one of the two parties makes it very difficult, we're just going to say, 'you're foolish, you're fools, you're horrible people, and we're going to just take a pass. But hopefully we won't have to do that."
“If I die, I want a loud death.”
Just days before her wedding, 25-year-old photojournalist Fatima Hassouna was murdered by an Israeli massacre on Wednesday when an airstrike struck her home in northern Gaza. The attack also killed ten members of her family, including her pregnant sister.
“If I die, I want a loud death,” Hassouna posted on social media. “I don’t want to be just breaking news, or a number in a group, I want a death that the world will hear, an impact that will remain through time, and a timeless image that cannot be buried by time or place.”
Israel claimed that the strike targeted a Hamas member.
One day before her death, it was announced that a documentary about Hassouna’s life in Gaza during Israel's assault on the Strip would premiere at a French independent film festival held alongside Cannes.
(The Guardian)
⭕️ Diplomatic movement around US-Iran nuclear talks intensifies
Following Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi's high-level consultations with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Omani mediators appear to be making parallel diplomatic moves. Omani Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said is expected to arrive in Moscow for Kremlin talks on Tuesday, signaling continued regional coordination ahead of the critical second round of US-Iran nuclear negotiations.
The scheduled meeting will address bilateral economic cooperation while undoubtedly covering the nuclear negotiations that Oman has been mediating. This comes as Russia reaffirms its offer to facilitate the talks, with both Moscow and Beijing positioned as potential guarantors should a new nuclear agreement materialize.
❗️Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said that the premier “will deliver a special statement when Shabbat ends [Saturday evening] on a diplomatic matter.”
Hebrew media speculates that the statement will be recorded, without an opportunity for media questions, with potential “diplomatic matters” on the table including the mounting pressure to release the detainees in Gaza and talks between the US and Iran.
❗️Israeli settlers, accompanied by the occupation army, prevented Palestinian crews from the Beit Dajan Village Council, east of Nablus, from installing an electricity line east of the town and confiscated two municipal trucks.
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A video shows German police - notorious for their violent suppression of pro-Palestine protests - providing security for Zionist demonstrators.
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Iran-US talks wrap up in Rome with agreement to establish framework for potential nuclear deal
Omani officials stated that the indirect talks are 'gaining momentum' after Tehran and Washington agreed to establish technical delegations to draft a potential replacement for the Obama-era JCPOA
❗️Scenes from the aftermath of the latest US attacks on Hodeidah, western Yemen.
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⭕️ According to military correspondent Doron Kadosh:
– At 12:58 p.m., resistance fighters fired an RPG at an unarmored Israeli vehicle traveling on an internal route in Beit Hanoun, near Nir Am and Mefalsim, in the Gaza buffer zone.
– Three combat reconnaissance soldiers were seriously injured in the RPG attack.
– The fighters reportedly emerged from a tunnel recently cleared by Israeli forces, part of ongoing operations in the buffer zone.
– A rescue force arrived shortly after the attack, led by the Northern Brigade commander, Col. A, with special forces and reconnaissance units.
– At 1:25 p.m., 30 minutes after the RPG attack, an explosive device hit the scouts' vehicle, killing one soldier and injuring two others.
– Air Force helicopters evacuated the wounded to hospitals, with a total of one soldier killed and five others seriously injured.
❗️BREAKING | US warplanes launch at least 13 airstrikes on Hodeidah port and airport in Yemen.
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🇾🇪 BREAKING | Yemeni Armed Forces announces the downing of a US MQ-9 drone over Sanaa Governorate, the 21st since 7 October, 2023.
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❗️ Medical sources tell Al Jazeera:
"44 martyrs in Israeli raids on Gaza since dawn today."
❗️The moment Israeli occupation forces bombed the tents of displaced Palestinians in the Mawasi area of Khan Yunis, southern Gaza.
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❗️Israeli police prevent worshippers from reaching Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre for Holy Saturday celebrations.
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❗️Hebrew media reports that a "difficult security incident" occurred in Gaza leaving at least one soldier in critical condition, with an evacuation operation carried out by helicopter.
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❗️Axios reports that prior to the second round of nuclear talks between the US and Iran, US Special Envoy to West Asia Steve Witkoff held a meeting with Israeli Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer and Mossad Chief David Barnea, who traveled specifically to see him.
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"His mother endured 700 injections to bring him into this world—only to lose him in an instant."
A grieving family mourns Kinan Adwan, their beloved only child, murdered by an Israeli airstrike on their home in Khan Yunis, southern Gaza.
BREAKING | Al-Akhbar's correspondent in southern Lebanon:
"An Israeli drone dropped a bomb on the vicinity of a house in Mays al-Jabal."
⭕️ Ford Motor Company announced on Friday that it has stopped sending its SUVs, pickup trucks, and sports cars to China, as retaliatory tariffs—reaching up to 150% on vehicles—begin to take a toll.
"We have adjusted exports from the US to China in light of the current tariffs," Ford said in a statement.
The wreckage of an Israeli military suicide drone used to bomb the tents of displaced Palestinians in Mawasi, Khan Yunis, southern Gaza.
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❗️Axios, citing a US official, reports that the second round of nuclear talks between Iran and the US has begun at the residence of the Omani ambassador in Rome.
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