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The Cradle is an online news magazine covering West Asian geopolitics from within.
EXCLUSIVE | In an interview with the Cradle, Ansarallah official Ali al-Imad reveals how Israel and the US are directing the Riyadh–Abu Dhabi conflict from the shadows, and warns that any escalation will face region-wide resistance.
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Palestine Action activists on hunger strike reach ‘critical phase’ in British jail
Supporters warn that prisoners are ‘wasting away’ and facing ‘irreversible’ harm as UK ministers refuse to meet with the activists
Israel escalates Gaza violence ahead of 'phase two' of ceasefire
Israeli airstrikes have killed several Palestinians in different areas of the besieged strip over the last 24 hours
BREAKING | Casualties reported as a result of an Israeli airstrike on Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip.
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❗️Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the Syrian government for attacking SDF forces in Aleppo today, two days after Syria and Israel agreed on a joint mechanism to share intel.
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❗️Summary of Israeli attacks on Gaza today:
Israeli forces killed at least four Palestinians in two separate attacks in the Gaza Strip, just hours after the military reported striking what it claimed was the site of a failed rocket launch.
Medics reported that an Israeli airstrike hit a tent in the western Khan Yunis, southern Gaza, killing at least three Palestinians and injuring three others, including children.
A separate strike east of the city, near an area where Israeli forces operate, killed another Palestinian.
Israel claims Hezbollah disarmament ‘far from sufficient’ as Beirut says phase one complete
Reports in Hebrew media say US President Donald Trump has ‘greenlit’ a new Israeli war against Lebanon
❗️Local reports indicate that Israeli settlers are attacking Palestinian vehicles on the outskirts of the town of Beit Lid, in the northern occupied West Bank.
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❗️From the scene of the Israeli drone strike on a vehicle on the Zeita-Benafoul road in south Lebanon.
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White House orders 'immediate' US withdrawal from 66 international organizations
Donald Trump signed the memorandum directing the withdrawal from organizations deemed to be ‘contrary to the interests of the US’
BREAKING | Israeli drone strike targets a vehicle on the Zeita-Benafoul Road, southern Lebanon.
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BREAKING | Iranian hacker group Handala claims Mossad will soon 'encounter a shock they never saw coming':
"Tonight at 6:30 PM (Occupied Territories time), Mossad will encounter a shock they never saw coming.
While their officers were busy orchestrating unrest in other countries, they failed to notice that they were being watched right in their own backyard. Sometimes, when you’re so focused on destabilizing others, you become blind to the shadows following you at home.
The tables are turning, let’s see who is really in control."
Saudi Arabia seeks to acquire Pakistani fighter jets in loan conversion deal: Report
The deal comes months after the signing of a mutual defense pact between the two countries, and is said to be a culmination of years of talks
❗️The Israeli army claims that it struck a site in Gaza City where a rocket was launched from earlier today, adding that the launch failed and the rocket fell near a hospital.
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❗️From the funeral of Rosa Elena Gonzalez, the 80-year-old woman killed in Caita La Mar during the US attack on Caracas, Venezuela and the kidnapping of President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores.
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Syrian army shells civilian targets, issues forced evacuation orders in Aleppo's Kurdish neighborhoods
Authorities in Damascus are seeking to pressure the Kurdish-led SDF to relinquish its arms and territory
❗️Iranian hacker group Handala claims to have hacked and monitored key Mossad-linked figure tied to unrest in Iran
According to the Iranian hacking group Handala, "guiding officer" Mehrdad Rahimi was coordinating networks involved in the riots in Iran and channeled financial support to operatives, believing he was overseeing and directing the protest infrastructure:
"Mehrdad Rahimi, serving as the guiding officer for Iranian agents within Mossad’s Iran Desk, attempted to play a major role in organizing and directing networks behind the unrest inside Iran. By managing and directing Iranian operatives, he sought to establish greater coordination and cohesion among the main ringleaders of the riots, while also providing the financial support necessary to sustain and expand anti-Iranian activities."
Handala says it has obtained video footage recorded outside Mehrdad Rahimi’s residence during what it describes as an extended surveillance operation targeting the Mossad-linked officer. The group claims the material shows that Rahimi’s movements were closely tracked throughout the operation.
According to Handala, the surveillance extended to hacking Rahimi’s secure phone, which it says enabled the identification and monitoring of individuals allegedly connected to riot networks.
❗️Workers at NYC Israeli bakery chain form union, demand end of support towards genocide in Palestine
Workers at New York City’s largest Israeli bakery chain say they have unionized, with one of their key demands being “an end to this company’s support of the genocide happening in Palestine.”
They pointed to Breads Bakery’s involvement in last year’s Great Nosh, a citywide Jewish food festival held on Governors Island.
“The workers refuse to participate in Zionist projects such as fundraisers that support the Israeli occupation of Palestine, baking cookies with the Israeli flag, and catering events such as the Great Nosh, which are connected to organizations that donate millions each year to the IDF,” the newly formed union, calling itself Breaking Breads, said in a statement released on Tuesday.
The employees also accuse management of poor working conditions, inadequate and inequitable pay, and a lack of “respect.”
‘Outright piracy’: Russia blasts US theft of Venezuela-bound tanker
Washington has linked the seizure of the Bella 1 and the detention of a second vessel, Sophia, to the so-called ‘Shadow Fleet'
Trump proposes $1.5 trillion Pentagon budget to build 'dream military'
The US president is prioritizing military spending as the US national debt surpasses $38 trillion
❗️Health of British pro-Palestine activists continues to deteriorate after months-long prison hunger strike
Three British activists linked to Palestine Action are now on the brink of death after weeks without food, vowing to continue their prison hunger strike until their demands are met. Heba Muraisi and Kamran Ahmed have refused food for 67 and 60 days respectively, while Lewie Chiaramello, who recently turned 23, is also still on strike. The protest began in November and initially involved eight detainees, five of whom ended their strikes due to severe health risks.
Muraisi’s condition has sharply deteriorated. Friends say she is suffering from muscle spasms, breathlessness, extreme pain, and a dangerously low white blood cell count, and has been hospitalized three times in nine weeks. Visitors describe her as visibly emaciated, with worsening memory loss and difficulty maintaining conversation.
The hunger strikers are remand prisoners held in multiple UK jails over alleged actions targeting the British subsidiary of Israeli arms firm Elbit Systems in Bristol and a Royal Air Force base in Oxfordshire. They deny all charges. Supporters say the ongoing strike reflects desperation over prolonged detention and what they describe as the criminalization of protest against Israel’s war crimes and the UK’s military ties to it.
❗️The Palestinian Red Crescent reports that two Palestinians, aged 65 and 50 years old, were injured in a brutal assault by Israeli settlers near Al-Junaidi factory in Deir Sharaf, west of Nablus in the occupied West Bank.
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❗️Earlier today, the Lebanese army announced it has reached an advanced stage of restricting weapons to the state south of the Lebanon:
"In implementation of the decision of the Lebanese Council of Ministers issued on 5 August 2025, the Army affirms its full commitment to assuming and exercising exclusive responsibility for maintaining security and stability in Lebanon, alongside the other security agencies, particularly in the area south of the Litani River ... In this context, the Army confirms that its plan to restrict weapons has entered an advanced stage, after effectively and tangibly achieving the objectives of the first phase on the ground. This phase focused on expanding the Army’s operational presence, securing vital areas, and extending operational control over territories that have come under its authority in the sector south of the Litani, with the exception of lands and sites that remain under Israeli occupation.
The Army notes that work in the sector is still ongoing until the clearance of unexploded ordnance and tunnels is completed, in addition to Requests for Action (RFAs) to consolidate control, with the aim of preventing armed groups from rebuilding their capabilities in an irreversible manner.
Army Command will also conduct a comprehensive overall assessment of the first phase of the 'Homeland Shield' plan, on the basis of which the course of the subsequent phases of the plan will be determined.
In this regard, the Army points out that the continuation of Israeli attacks on Lebanese territory and the occupation of a number of sites within it, along with the establishment of buffer zones that restrict access to certain areas, in addition to the ongoing daily violations of the Agreement on the Cessation of Hostilities issued on 27 November 2024, all negatively affect the completion of the required tasks—particularly in the vicinity of these areas—and consequently the extension of the Lebanese state’s authority and the exclusive control of weapons by its armed forces without exception ... The Army also affirms the continuation of coordination and joint work with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and with the Ceasefire Monitoring Mechanism, contributing to the enhancement of stability in the area south of the Litani. In this context, the Army extends its thanks to the countries participating in UNIFIL, as well as its appreciation for the work of the American and French teams within the mechanism."
BREAKING | Israeli drone targets a displacement tent on Street 5 in the Mawasi area of south Gaza's Khan Yunis, killing at least 3 Palestinians and injuring several.
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❗️Internal Security Forces in Aleppo said their units repelled a large-scale ground and aerial assault by Damascus government-affiliated factions on the Sheikh Maqsoud and Ashrafieh neighborhoods after days of heavy shelling, claiming they destroyed a tank and several military vehicles, downed suicide drones, and inflicted dozens of casualties while defending residential areas from what they described as an attempted forced incursion.
On the other hand, Syrian state media, citing a military source, said Syrian Arab Army forces thwarted an advance by the SDF toward the Jalaa neighborhood and killed several fighters during the attempted advance.
As clashes continue, both sides are trading blame over the targeting of civilians, hospitals, and other civilian infrastructure. The Syrian army retains the overwhelming majority of heavy weaponry used in the fighting.
❗️Chinese hackers linked to Salt Typhoon group infiltrate US congressional staff emails
A Chinese hacker group known as Salt Typhoon has reportedly breached email systems used by staffers for several powerful US House of Representatives committees, according to the Financial Times.
The intrusions, detected in December, affected systems accessed by aides serving on the House China Committee, as well as committees focused on foreign affairs, intelligence, and armed services, exposing internal communications.
It remains unclear whether the hackers accessed lawmakers’ personal emails.
❗️Russia condemns US seizure of tanker as illegal act of 'outright piracy'
Russia has condemned the US for seizing the Russian‑flagged oil tanker Marinera, formerly known as the Bella 1, in the North Atlantic, calling the action illegal and “outright piracy.” Moscow’s Transport Ministry said contact with the vessel was lost after US forces boarded it in international waters, stressing that “no state has the right to use force against vessels duly registered in the jurisdictions of other states” under the 1982 UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.
The ministry emphasized that the Marinera had received a “temporary permit to sail under the state flag of the Russian Federation” on 24 December, 2025, in accordance with Russian and international law. Russia demanded that the US ensure “humane and dignified treatment” of the crew and allow their prompt return home, highlighting the civilian status and lawful registration of the vessel. Lawmakers called the seizure a dangerous escalation that violates maritime freedom and international norms.
The incident occurred following a two‑week pursuit by US forces and reports of Russian naval deployments nearby. Moscow insisted its actions uphold international law and sovereignty at sea, condemning Washington for using force to enforce sanctions and disrupt lawful oil transport linked to Venezuela.
❗️Israeli settlers storm a Palestinian farm in the town of Kafr ad-Dik, west of Salfit in the occupied West Bank.
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VIDEO | Large crowd gathers in Iran’s Ilam province for the funeral of Ehsan Aghajani, a police officer killed by armed rioters during recent unrest, with mourners chanting slogans against Israel and condemning those responsible for the violence.
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