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The Cradle is an online news magazine covering West Asian geopolitics from within.
❗️Israeli UN envoy: Western plans to recognize Palestine are 'declarative statements,' hinder Gaza ceasefire talks
Israeli Ambassador to the UN Danny Danon said in a Wednesday interview with The Times of Israel, referring to France, the UK, Australia, and Canada’s plans to recognize the state of Palestine, that “these countries want to show that they are doing something, so they blow off steam by coming up with these declarative statements."
Danon argued that such announcements will not actually advance the creation of a Palestinian state on the ground. However, he said, they have directly affected negotiations over a ceasefire and the release of captives in Gaza.
“I have no doubt that these decisions are hindering the negotiations,” he added, noting that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has expressed a similar view.
❗️Israeli Army Radio announced that the military attempted to assassinate the Sanaa government's defense minster and Yemeni Armed Forces' chief of staff on Thursday and is awaiting the results of the attack.
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Iranian parliament drafts urgent bill to withdraw from Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
The move comes in response to European powers triggering snapback sanctions despite IAEA inspectors returning to Iran
❗️Gaza Ministry of Health:
– "In the past 24 hours, 59 martyrs arrived at Gaza Strip hospitals, including two whose bodies were recovered, along with 224 injuries."
– "Since 18 March 2025, to today, the total number of martyrs and injuries has reached 11,178 martyrs and 47,449 injuries."
– "In the past 24 hours, Gaza Strip hospitals recorded the arrival of 23 martyrs and 182 injuries among aid recipients, bringing the total number of aid-seeking victims to 2,203 and more than 16,228 injuries."
– "In the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip recorded 5 deaths due to famine and malnutrition, including two children."
– "This brings the total number of victims of famine and malnutrition to 322 martyrs, including 121 children."
– "Since the famine classification in the Gaza Strip was announced by the IPC on 22 August 2025, 44 deaths have been recorded, including 6 children."
#OnThisDay in 1987, the world lost one of the world’s greatest political cartoonists, Naji al-Ali from Al-Shajara, Palestine.
Naji al-Ali’s body of work exceeds 40,000 cartoons, and his ‘Handala’ character has become the symbol and personification of the Palestinian people – of resistance, defiance, and steadfastness in the face of occupation and displacement at the hands of Israel.
Naji was assassinated in London on July 22, 1987, when he was shot by an unidentified gunman. He entered into a coma and then died a little over a month later, on August 29.
He had received at least 100 death threats due to his relentless political commentary and strong criticism of Palestinian and Arab leadership, the Israeli occupation, and US involvement in the region.
Many until today insist that his assassination came as part of a PLO campaign to silence its critics.
Israel declares Gaza City 'dangerous combat zone' amid nonstop bombing
The Israeli army said its ‘tactical pauses’ aimed at allowing aid deliveries will no longer apply to Gaza City
❗️Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan claims Turkiye has cut all economic and trade relations with Israel and closed its airspace to its aircraft.
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❗️Israel bombs a residential building in Al-Zaytoun neighborhood.
The attacks on Gaza City are ongoing.
‼️ Israeli drone assassinates one person in an attack in Nabatieh, south Lebanon.
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Israel looks to create ‘Hebron emirate’ to weaken PA grip on West Bank: Report
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other top officials are set to meet to ‘examine the feasibility’ of the plan
❗️Lebanon releases collaborator who gave Israel 'highly sensitive' intelligence
According to Lebanese journalist Radwan Mortada, Lebanon’s Military Court of Cassation, headed by Judge Mounir Suleiman, released convicted collaborator Mehieddine Hasna after just 22 months in detention, despite a prior 15-year sentence by the Permanent Military Court.
Hasna was found to have provided Israel with highly sensitive information, including Wi-Fi data and pager/radio frequencies, allegedly used in operations that killed and injured hundreds of Lebanese.
The decision sparked outrage, with accusations that US and Israeli pressure, or political lobbying by Hasna’s father, led to his release.
WATCH | US envoy Tom Barrack attempts to explain his behavior during his last press briefing at the Lebanese Presidential Palace in Baabda.
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⭕️ Egypt signs $220M deal with UAE, Bahrain, China for solar production complex in Suez Canal
Egypt signed a $220 million agreement with investors from the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and China to develop an integrated complex for manufacturing solar cells, panels, and energy storage systems in the Suez Canal Economic Zone, the cabinet announced today.
The cabinet stated that the facility will have the capacity to produce 2 gigawatts of solar cells and 2 gigawatts of solar panels.
⭕️ China, Saudi ministers discuss linking 'Belt and Road' with 'Vision 2030'
China’s commerce minister called for stronger cooperation in new energy and capital markets during talks with Saudi Arabia’s visiting investment minister, the commerce ministry announced today.
During their meeting in Beijing, China’s Wang Wentao and Saudi Arabia’s Khalid bin Abdulaziz al-Falih explored the possibility of linking Chinese President Xi Jinping’s signature "Belt and Road" initiative with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman’s "Vision 2030."
According to the statement, Wang also noted opportunities to "expand bilateral trade volumes, elevate the level of two-way investment cooperation, and broaden collaboration in areas such as new energy, industrial supply chains and capital markets."
The statement made no reference to the China-GCC trade agreement.
❗️Testimonies from Gaza published by Haaretz reveal that many families in the city are facing an existential challenge, either because of the exorbitant cost of evacuation or the major logistical difficulties of relocating elsewhere.
Residents reported extremely high prices for essential evacuation services.
According to accounts from the Strip, the price of a tent ranges between 4,500 and 5,000 shekels [≈$1,200–$1,340], and transportation costs for evacuation are no less than 2,000 shekels [≈$535] and can reach around $1,000 per family, not including toilets and other necessities.
In total, a family would need to spend nearly 12,500 shekels [≈$3,350] to evacuate from the city to the south.
❗️Israel Hayom, citing Israeli assessments:
Fidan did not announce new decisions regarding Israel, but was boasting about previous decisions before parliament. The flight ban is meant to prevent military flights.
❗️Two satellite images of Al-Zaytoun neighborhood in Gaza City, one from 8 August and the other from 25 August, show the extent of destruction that Israel inflicted in just three weeks.
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Top Kremlin official says NATO seeks to 're-establish military presence' in Afghanistan
The US spent $2 trillion during its two-decade occupation of Afghanistan while helping the heroin trade flourish
VIDEO | Intense, relentless, fire belts carried out by Israel in Gaza City a short while ago.
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❗️US Senator Lindsey Graham on disarming the Lebanese resistance:
"If we cannot reach a peaceful disarmament solution, then we need to look at Plan B ... disarming Hezbollah by military force."
⭕️ Largest pro-Palestinian flotilla to sail from Spain to Gaza this Sunday
Pro-Palestinian activists planning to sail from Spain to Gaza on Sunday in dozens of boats carrying aid have urged governments to pressure Israel to permit their flotilla, the largest ever, through the naval blockade.
Among the hundreds of participants from 44 countries set to depart from multiple ports for Gaza as part of the Global Sumud Flotilla were Swedish activist Greta Thunberg and Portuguese left-wing politician Mariana Mortagua.
❗️Bahrain welcomes new Israeli ambassador
Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif bin Rashid al-Zayani received the credentials of Israel’s new ambassador to Bahrain, Shmuel Revel, on Wednesday, the Bahraini state news agency reported.
Bahrain, which established formal ties with Israel in 2020, noted that its ambassador to Israel returned home in November 2023 in solidarity with the Palestinian cause, and that the Israeli ambassador in Manama had also departed the kingdom.
❗️Israel's Channel 14:
Finance Minister Smotrich calls on Prime Minister Netanyahu to "apply sovereignty" by annexing the West Bank starting next Sunday.
❗️Iran’s parliament moves to withdraw from Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty
Iran’s parliament has initiated an urgent effort to withdraw the country from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).
Hossein Ali Haji Deligani, deputy head of the parliament’s Article 90 Commission, said lawmakers are drafting the proposal, which will be formally submitted to the parliamentary system today and discussed during next week’s open sessions.
Haji Deligani told Tasnim News Agency that the response was anticipated and not unprecedented, criticizing Iran’s negotiators for continuing what he described as “fruitless” talks that only encourage European actions. He called for a suspension of negotiations with the three European countries until they abandon their double standards.
UN experts condemn Israel for 'enforced disappearance' of Palestinians at Gaza aid sites
Palestinians abducted from Gaza suffer horrific torture in Israeli prisons
❗️Iran says Europe 'legally in no position' to invoke snapback mechanism
Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Tehran has held detailed talks with the UK, France, Germany, and the EU on UN Security Council Resolution 2231.
He stressed that Europe has no legal basis to invoke the snapback mechanism to reimpose sanctions, explaining that from a legal standpoint such an action would be invalid.
Gharibabadi added that the Europeans have failed to implement their JCPOA commitments for the past seven years and instead imposed new sanctions.
He reiterated that both the US, which quit the deal in 2018, and the Europeans have lost their standing to trigger snapback, and any such move would be a serious violation of international law.
The snapback mechanism, outlined in UNSC Resolution 2231 that endorsed the JCPOA, enables participants in the nuclear accord to reinstate UN sanctions on Iran if they determine Tehran is in serious breach of its commitments.
(Tasnim)
❗️Sources to Al-Jadeed TV:
– "[Lebanese] Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri told those close to him that he has run out of options in negotiating with the Americans, who raised their conditions during their recent visit."
– "After the results of the American delegation’s visit became clear, the duo (Hezbollah and Amal Movement) will start a series of popular protests next week, though their exact nature has not yet been determined."
❗️Israel’s Rafael inks $415 million deal with Germany
Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems announced on Tuesday a $415 million agreement with the German Air Force to supply advanced targeting technology for fighter jets.
“The German parliament has authorized the procurement of 90 Litening 5 targeting pods for its Eurofighter Typhoon fleet,” the 'defense' company said in a statement.
The company added that the fifth-generation Litening 5 targeting system is “already operational with 28 air forces worldwide.”
Earlier this month, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz declared that Berlin, Israel’s second-largest arms supplier, had halted arms sales to Israel.
Globes reported that the German Air Force is “conducting extensive cooperation with the Israeli defense sector,” which includes significant agreements with Israel Aerospace Industries and Israel’s War Ministry, “as well as the rapid deployment of the Arrow 3 system.”
❗️It is expected that the establishment of the Political Council for Central and Western Syria will be announced today.
The founding members of the council include: Amjad Badran, Salah Niouf, Issa Ibrahim, Ali Abboud, Kinan Waqaf, Ammar Ajib, Mustafa Rustum, Aws Darwish, Raif Salameh, Wahid Yazbek, and others.
The areas of Central and Western Syria include the Syrian coast and parts of Homs and Hama provinces, which have a predominantly Alawite population.
According to sources, a statement announcing the new political body will be issued at 7:00 pm Damascus time. A Facebook page has also been set up for the council, which claims that it represents the Alawite minority in Syria.
❗️US envoy Steve Witkoff says President Donald Trump will chair a White House meeting on Gaza Wednesday and that Washington expects Israel’s war on the territory to be “settled” by year’s end.
(Reuters)