English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For  September 01/2025
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
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Bible Quotations For today
God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true
First Letter of John 01/01-10/:”We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete. This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on August 31-September 01/2025
Elias Bejjani/Text and Video: An analysis in Nabih Berri's Televised Speech on the 48th Annual Remembrance Day of the Disappearance of El Emam Mousa Al-Sadr
Venerable Brother Estephan Nehmé and His Beatification/Elias Bejjani/August 30/2025
Text and Video: The return of the hero Etienne Saqr-Abu Arz to his homeland, Lebanon, is a national, religious, and moral duty/Elias Bejjani/August 28/2026
Video link to an interview from “Al-Siyasa” Youtube Platform with Dr. Charles Chartouni
Berri says open to dialogue on weapons future, considers 'unacceptable' to burden Lebanese Army
Lebanon parliament speaker calls for dialogue over Hezbollah weapons
Violent Israeli airstrikes hit Nabatieh al-Fawqa hills
LBCI correspondent reports from Nabatieh as residents clear rubble after Israeli strikes
Border on edge: Israeli strikes in South Lebanon raise escalation fears
Israel army strikes Hezbollah site in south Lebanon
Israeli airstrikes hit motorcycle in Nabatieh and Ali Taher area in South Lebanon
Hezbollah's Qassem condoles Houthis after Israeli strike kills Yemeni officials
New exit incentives: Syrian families crowd Lebanon border in mass return

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 31-September 01/2025
Israel kills Hamas spokesman as dozens reported killed in Gaza City
Houthi PM and several ministers killed in Israeli strike
Houthis raid UN offices in Yemen and detain at least 11 employees
Yemen’s Houthis vow to intensify attacks on Israel after group’s PM killed
Israeli army chief vows to target Hamas leaders abroad
Israeli forces disperse rally in Hebron to release bodies of individuals held since 1967
US senators urge Rubio to push for baby formula deliveries to Gaza
Global religious summit urges swift action to end Gaza conflict
Israel mulls West Bank annexation in response to moves to recognize Palestine
Post-war plan sees US administering Gaza for at least a decade: Washington Post
Aid flotilla with Susan Sarandon, Greta Thunberg sets sail for Gaza
Economists praise King Abdullah II visit to Central Asia for opening up markets
Alawites flee Damascus neighborhood in face of death threats
Macron's decision to recognize a Palestinian state in September angers Israel and the US

Titles For The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on August 31-September 01/2025
France's New Guillotine: Silent Dictatorship/Drieu Godefridi/Gatestone Institute/August 31/2025
Can Gaza forge Saudi-Iranian unity?/Hassan Al-Mustafa/Arab News/August 31, 2025
UK-Germany-France triumvirate returning to prominence/Andrew Hammond/Arab News/August 31, 2025
How to use AI without losing our minds/Ngaire Woods/Arab News/August 31, 2025
Recognizing the growing value of virtual communities/Sara Al-Mulla/Arab News/August 31, 2025
Slected X tweets on August 31-September 01/2025

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on August 31-September 01/2025
Elias Bejjani/Text and Video: An analysis in Nabih Berri's Televised Speech on the 48th Annual Remembrance Day of the Disappearance of El Emam Mousa Al-Sadr
Dead Rabbits, Torn Hats, Iranian Mouthpiece, Bundles of Contradictions, a Return to the Parrot-like Repetition of Dialogue and the National Strategy, an Adoption of the Mullahs' Stances, the Sanctification of Their Criminal Weapon and tying them to the Fate of the Shiite Community... Iranian stances via Berri the Mouthpiece & Trumpet
Elias Bejjani/August 31, 2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/08/146865/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9SwixM28WI&t=42s
Once again, House Speaker Nabih Berri confirms that he is more dangerous than the terrorist and criminal Hezbollah, the assassination machine, and the Mullahs' jihadist armed proxy. In practice, Berri is currently impersonating Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah, Naim Qassem, Khamenei, Mohammed Raad, and Wafiq Safa, but in a suit and tie. This acrobatic politician is the king of corruption and subversion, specializing in playing on all sides and is the inventor of the "hats and rabbits" heresy. He has been in forceful control of the Lebanese Parliament for nearly four decades through "alleyway power." Meanwhile, he was and still is the product of the Palestinian, Syrian Assad's Ba'athist, and Iranian Mullah occupations, serving as their mouthpiece and tool.
His speech today was a bundle of contradictions as he stupidly tries to fool the minds and intelligence of the Lebanese, where he demands something and its opposite.
He praises the Lebanese army and its role, yet at the same time does not want it to perform its duties, claiming that the "ball of fire" should not be thrown into its lap. This means Hezbollah should not be disarmed, as if the army is a sole traffic police force and a forest guard, and not responsible for defending Lebanon.
He demands legitimacy and national consensus, yet he turns a blind eye to the fact that all his 40 years of violations of the constitution, his heretical acts of obstructing the work of Parliament, his chronic corruption, all of Hezbollah's wars, terrorism and assassinations at home and abroad, the lie of the resistance, throwing oneself into the arms of occupations, and defiling the constitution are not all starkly contradictory to legitimacy and consensus.
He supports the Taif Agreement, international resolutions, and the ceasefire agreement he personally negotiated and signed on his and on Hezbollah's and Iran's behalf. Yet at the same time, he does not want to abide by its most important provision, which is the dismantling of all Lebanese and non-Lebanese militias and the extension of state authority over all its territories by its own forces... With prior intent and design, he violates every national pact and the constitution, sanctifying Iran's weapon in Lebanon and linking it to the fate of the Shiite community.
He stupidly returns to the heretical tune of "dialogue" and the national (defense) strategy, forgetting that all the dialogue conventions including the one held in 2006 were merely theatrical plays to circumvent the state and its constitution, and not a single one of their clauses was implemented. Here, he acts foolishly, despite knowing that the ceasefire agreement with Israel, which he sponsored, specifies who can bear arms and makes no mention of dialogue or defense strategies.
He talks about the resistance and the liberation of land and people, yet he knows for a fact that this false resistance first fought against him personally and his Amal Movement in the Iqlim al-Tuffah region, where it destroyed his influence and his movement and made him and his Amal Movement mere facades, mouthpieces, and tools in the service of the Iranian occupation, sectarian, and expansionist evil schemes. The number of killed in that "liberation" battle (the Battle of Iqlim al-Tuffah) exceeded 1,200, most of whom were members, supporters and leaders of his movement. He also turns a blind eye to the fact that Hezbollah and all those who claim the lie of resistance did not liberate South Lebanon in 2000, and that Israel decided to withdraw unilaterally in accordance with an international and regional agreement with Israel.
Mr. Berri also contradicts himself regarding the current government in which he and Hezbollah are among its members. They both participated in drafting its statement, and they both elected Joseph Aoun and still support his oath speech... The ministerial statement and the oath speech do not mention "resistance" or "dialogue" at all.
We point out here that the Iranian ambassador to Lebanon met with Berri at length yesterday, which indicates that his speech today was inspired by what the ambassador dictated to him... We remind that this military and intelligence ambassador was among those who were hit badly and wounded in Israel's bombing of Hezbollah's pagers.
In conclusion, Berri's speech today was an Iranian one par excellence, and it contradicts the ministerial statement, the oath speech, the constitution, the Lebanese-American paper, and violates all international resolutions (1701, 1559, and 1680), the Taif Agreement, and the ceasefire agreement. In the event the Lebanese government falters in its next session and succumbs to Berri's edicts and Hezbollah's pressures and does not set a timetable for the withdrawal and disarmament of Hezbollah, then Israel will be free from any restrictions, and it will continue its war and completely eliminate Hezbollah. It is capable and willing, and what it did in Yemen yesterday and today with Abu Ubaida in Gaza is the best proof of what is unfortunately to come in terms of blood, destruction, and catastrophes as a result of the stupidity, delusions, daydreams, empty bravado, and mental and intellectual deficiency of Berri, Hezbollah, and their patron, Iran... Tomorrow is soon enough for those who watch.

Venerable Brother Estephan Nehmé and His Beatification
Elias Bejjani/August 30/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/08/146829/
The Maronite Orders and Their Role in the History of Lebanon
The Lebanese Maronite Order is the heart of Maronite spirituality and its backbone from the Middle Ages until today. From the monasteries of Mount Lebanon began the movements of evangelization, education, the protection of the Christian faith, and the preservation of the Lebanese identity in the face of invasions and occupations. The Maronite monks were guardians of the land and protectors of the Word: they tilled the fields and watered the vineyards, they educated generations and copied manuscripts, and they kept Lebanon united with the Apostolic See in the Vatican.
From this spiritual soil and sacred land, the saints of Lebanon arose: Charbel, Rafqa, Nimatullah, Estephan Nehmé, and others, bearing witness that Lebanon is truly a land of holiness and spiritual heroism.
The Birth of Blessed Estephan Nehmé
Youssef Estephan Nehmé was born on March 8, 1889, in the village of Lehfed – Byblos, into a devout family of six children. He grew up in a simple agricultural mountain environment, learning the basics of reading and writing in the village school, then at Our Lady of Grace School in Rasmiya, which belonged to the Maronite Order.
From his childhood, signs of prayer, meditation, and solitude were visible in him, and he often repeated in his heart the phrase that would become the motto of his life: “God sees me.”
Entering the Monastery
Two years after the death of his father, and at the age of sixteen, Youssef decided to dedicate his life to God. In 1905, he entered the Monastery of Saints Cyprian and Justina – Kfifan, of the Lebanese Maronite Order.
Upon entering, he took the name Estephan, in honor of his father and the patron saint of his village. After two years of novitiate under Father Ignatius Dagher of Tannourine, he professed his religious vows on August 23, 1907, beginning a long journey of prayer, labor, and spiritual struggle in the service of the monastery.
His Character and Way of Life
Brother Estephan was known for his humility, silence, and deep spirituality. He was a hardworking monk, never idle, strong in body, dedicating himself to fieldwork, carpentry, and construction with skill and quiet dedication.
He combined labor and prayer: rising before dawn to pray, then heading to the monastery’s fields. A smile never left his face, and calmness and composure marked his entire demeanor.
He loved the land and understood its value, often saying: “The farmer is a hidden king.” He lived simply, in food and clothing, detached from worldly possessions, clinging only to God and to the Virgin Mary, whose rosary he prayed unceasingly.
His Miracles
During his life, he radiated peace and love to those around him. After his death, many miracles were attributed to his intercession:
Healings from incurable diseases.
Helping the poor during the years of famine and the First World War.
The preservation of his body, which remained incorrupt after his death in 1938, a clear sign of his sanctity.
These miracles were documented by the Church in his cause for beatification and became the reason for the spread of his veneration among the faithful in Lebanon and abroad.
His Death and Beatification
Brother Estephan passed away peacefully on August 30, 1938, at the Monastery of Kfifan, at the age of 49, after a life rich in prayer and work. He was buried in the same monastery, near Saint Nimatullah Al-Hardini.
The investigation into his holiness began in 2001, and on December 17, 2007, Pope Benedict XVI confirmed his heroic virtues. He was beatified in a solemn celebration in Lebanon on June 27, 2010, becoming the fourth blessed of the Lebanese Maronite Order, after Charbel, Rafqa, and Nimatullah.
His Sayings
Brother Estephan left behind only a few words, but they reveal the depth of his spirituality:
“God sees me.” (His lifelong motto)
“Blessed is the one adorned with knowledge that leads to God.”
“Love does not need knowledge, for it comes from the heart.”
His Evangelical Witness
Brother Estephan left an enduring evangelical witness: he was the example of the simple, hardworking monk, who wrote no books and gave no sermons, but preached by his silent holiness and by a Gospel that could be read in his face and his actions.
His life was a silent testimony that holiness is not in outward greatness but in simple, daily faithfulness: prayer, work, love, obedience, and joy.
For this reason, he is considered today the patron of workers and farmers, and of all who labor with their hands to live with dignity.
Conclusion
Brother Estephan Nehmé is both a farmer of the land and a farmer of holiness. His life reflects the journey of the Maronites and their monks in Lebanon: struggle, sacrifice, work and prayer, a deep bond with both earth and heaven.
He is a living image of Lebanon the message, Lebanon of the saints, Lebanon rooted in faith and always lifted up to God.

Text and Video: The return of the hero Etienne Saqr-Abu Arz to his homeland, Lebanon, is a national, religious, and moral duty
Elias Bejjani/August 28/2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/08/146764/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GZ_s7J5ikU&t=3s
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing..” (02 Timothy 04:07-08)
Is it not shameful that Lebanon, after decades of sacrifices and blood, remains estranged from its true heroes?
Is it not disgraceful that the great Lebanese fighter and patriot, the historic leader Etienne Sakr – Abu Arz, still lives in exile, far from the homeland he loved, defended, and to which he gave his every effort, alongside the blood of his comrades and martyrs?
Who is Abu Arz?
Etienne Sakr was born in 1937 in the southern town of Ain Ebel. Educated in French schools in Tripoli and Beirut, he came from a deeply rooted Maronite family. He adopted the name “Abu Arz” – Father of the Cedar – as a symbol of his unshakable belonging to Lebanon’s eternal cedar tree and all that it represents in the nation’s identity.
In 1975, he founded the Guardians of the Cedars, a movement that swiftly rose to become one of the most prominent nationalist forces in Lebanon during the wars imposed on the country by others – most notably the Syrian Baathist Assad regime, Palestinian armed organizations, and their allies among leftist and pan-Arab extremist movements.
His party was marked by clarity of vision, uncompromising sovereignty, and fierce determination. Abu Arz stood courageously against every form of occupation – Palestinian, Syrian, jihadist, leftist, or pan-Arabist – raising the bold slogan: “No Palestinian will remain in Lebanon.” Under his leadership, the party sacrificed hundreds of martyrs in defense of Lebanon’s land, identity, and independence.
He personally commanded decisive battles against Palestinian terrorist organizations and the invading Syrian army, as well as their Trojan collaborators at home. He played a key role in the Battle of Zahle (1981) and the East Beirut battles (1978), proving beyond doubt that Lebanon would never be a land for foreign domination or a substitute homeland for anyone. True to his principles, he withdrew from the Lebanese Front the moment some of its factions accepted Syrian tutelage, refusing any compromise on sovereignty.
Exile and Unjust Sentences
When the Syrian army stormed Baabda Palace in 1990 and toppled General Michel Aoun’s government, Abu Arz was forced to flee Beirut for his safety. He took refuge in South Lebanon, where he remained until the Israeli withdrawal in 2000, after which he relocated to Israel and later settled in Cyprus.
In the absence of genuine justice, the Syrian-controlled Military Court issued an unjust, arbitrary, and politically motivated sentence against him in absentia: seven years of hard labor on charges of “collaboration with Israel.” This sentence was a farce – void of legal or constitutional legitimacy. That so-called military court was nothing more than an instrument of occupation, designed to crush Lebanon’s free men.
His Political and Intellectual Legacy
Despite decades in exile, Abu Arz remained a towering voice of freedom, warning of the dangers of sectarianism and affirming that Lebanese identity transcends religious and sectarian divisions. In every interview and article, he remained unshakably committed to one eternal principle: Lebanon first, last, and always – free, sovereign, and independent.
What Is Required Today
Today, after all the collapses and tragedies Lebanon has endured – after the total exposure of the false narrative of so-called “resistance and liberation”; after Iran’s decline and the crushing defeat of its terrorist proxies, foremost among them Hezbollah – the time has come to restore honor and justice to one of the bravest, most patriotic, and most selfless Lebanese leaders: Abu Arz.
It is first and foremost the duty of His Excellency the President of the Republic, General Joseph Aoun, himself a son of the South, to exercise his constitutional authority by granting a special pardon to Abu Arz. This would allow him to return to his homeland and spend the remainder of his life among his people and on his soil. It is the least Lebanon can offer to a man who dedicated his very existence to its cause.
It is also the duty of all so-called Christian “sovereignist” political parties – those who claim to defend freedom and independence – to adopt this demand openly and to press for his honorable return, instead of turning a blind eye to his case, as they did in the past. The same applies to the Maronite Church and most political forces that once benefited from his struggle, only to later abandon him.
Honoring Abu Arz and bringing him back to Lebanon is not only a national and moral duty, but also a message to every struggler and every free Lebanese: that Lebanon – the land of holiness, saints, and mission – does not forget its heroes, nor does it bury their sacrifices in the graves of denial. A nation that does not honor its heroes is unworthy of leadership.
Let us, then, raise our voices loud and clear:
The time has come for Abu Arz’s return.
The time has come for his vindication.
The time has come for Lebanon to embrace one of its most loyal and heroic sons.

Video link to an interview from “Al-Siyasa” Youtube Platform with Dr. Charles Chartouni
August 31/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/08/146858/
Dr. Charouni in this very informative & patriotic interview strongly asserts that Hezbollah is Iranian, a terrorist, coup-plotting, criminal, and jihadi entity that contradicts everything Lebanese, including its constitution. He claims its destructive role, along with the time and era of its Iranian masters’ evil schemes, has ended. He predicts a regional war within a few weeks to completely eliminate the Persian axis of evil and militarily destroy all its armed proxies, foremost among which is Hezbollah.

Berri says open to dialogue on weapons future, considers 'unacceptable' to burden Lebanese Army
LBCI/August 31/2025
Lebanon's Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri marked the 47th anniversary of the disappearance of Imam Musa al-Sadr with a speech on Sunday, accusing the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi of orchestrating the crime and criticizing Libya's continued lack of cooperation with Lebanon.“The crime of abducting the Imam was carried out by Gadhafi, and the Libyan authorities have failed to cooperate with Lebanon, placing them under suspicion of conspiracy,” Berri said.Recalling past political compromises, Berri said Lebanon once overcame divisions to secure a presidential election and a unified inaugural address, warning against those who he claimed “bet on Israeli aggression to revive old projects.”He cautioned that rising hate speech in the country was more dangerous than Hezbollah’s weapons, which he described as having “liberated the land, preserved dignity, and safeguarded the people.” Parliament Speaker Berri offers condolences to Lebanese soldiers' families: We stand with the army. Still, Berri said he remained open to dialogue on the future of Hezbollah’s arsenal, provided discussions are held in a calm and consensual framework leading to a national security strategy. The speaker also underscored Lebanon’s full compliance with U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, contrasting it with what he called Israel’s persistent violations. Defending Shiite ministers’ recent stances in cabinet, Berri stressed their decisions were “national, not sectarian,” and rejected proposals in a U.S. paper that he said went beyond limiting weapons to the state. “It is unacceptable to throw the burden onto the army. The Lebanese Army is the shield of the nation,” Berri said. He also aimed at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who recently described himself as being on a historic mission. “Did you see the blue map he displayed? Notice how it included all of Lebanon in that promised dream,” Berri noted.

Lebanon parliament speaker calls for dialogue over Hezbollah weapons
AFP/August 31, 2025
BEIRUT: Lebanon’s Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri, an ally of the Iran-backed Hezbollah, called on Sunday for dialogue over its weapons, days before the government is expected to approve an army plan to disarm the group. Months after Hezbollah’s devastating war with Israel and under heavy US pressure, Lebanon’s government this month tasked the army with drawing up a plan to disarm Hezbollah by the end of the year. Hezbollah strongly opposed the decision and Shiite ministers, including representatives from the group and Berri’s Amal Movement, withdrew from the last government session in protest.
“We reiterate that we are open to discussing the fate of those weapons... in a calm and consensual dialogue,” Berri, an influential Shiite leader, said in a speech commemorating the 1978 disappearance of Amal founder Musa Al-Sadr. Lebanon’s ministers are set to meet again on Friday after receiving the army’s plan. Berri criticized the government’s moves, which are based on a US proposal. “What is proposed in the American paper goes beyond the principle of (a state) weapons monopoly, and rather appears as an alternative to the November ceasefire agreement,” he stated. Hezbollah emerged heavily weakened from a devastating war with Israel that ended in a ceasefire signed in November. Israel has kept up attacks in Lebanon despite the truce. Earlier on Sunday, the Israeli army said it carried out a strike on a site run by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Lebanon’s National News Agency reported intense strikes in the area, where serious damage was recorded. A later strike on a motorcycle killed one man, according to the NNA. The agreement states that Hezbollah is to pull its fighters north of the Litani River, around 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of Israel. Israel was to withdraw its troops from Lebanon but has kept them at five points it deems strategic, with Washington linking a full Israeli withdrawal with the disarmament of Hezbollah. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has also suggested the two issues are linked. Berri rejected holding a dialogue under “threats” that undermine the truce agreement.

Violent Israeli airstrikes hit Nabatieh al-Fawqa hills
Agence France Presse/August 31, 2025
Violent Israeli airstrikes on Sunday targeted the Ali al-Taher hills in the southern area of Nabatieh al-Fawqa, an area that has been bombed several times since the November ceasefire. The Israeli army claimed the strikes hit a site run by Hezbollah. "A short while ago, the IDF (army) struck military infrastructure, including underground infrastructure, at a Hezbollah site in which military activity was identified, in the area of the Beaufort Ridge in southern Lebanon," it said in a statement. "The existence of the site and the activity within it constitute a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon," it added. Lebanon's National News Agency reported intense strikes in the wooded area of Ali al-Taher, where fires were later declared, and in al-Dabsheh, where serious damage was recorded. According to NNA, jets fired "a large number of missiles," with AFP images showing thick columns of smoke rising into the sky. After the outbreak of the war in Gaza, Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel engaged in more than a year of hostilities that culminated in two months of open war last year. Under a November ceasefire that sought to end the violence, Lebanon's army has been deploying in the south and dismantling Hezbollah's infrastructure with the support of U.N. peacekeepers. Israel, however, has kept up its strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon despite the truce and has vowed to continue them until the militant group has been disarmed. Under U.S. pressure, the Lebanese government has ordered the Lebanese Army to draw up a plan to take away Hezbollah's weapons by the end of the year, but the group has vowed to resist the effort.

LBCI correspondent reports from Nabatieh as residents clear rubble after Israeli strikes
LBCI/August 31/2025
LBCI correspondent Rana Jouni toured areas in Nabatieh hit by the latest Israeli strikes, documenting the destruction and speaking with residents as they worked to clear rubble from their homes and livelihoods. Amid the ruins, families described the challenges of rebuilding and voiced their positions following the assault.

Border on edge: Israeli strikes in South Lebanon raise escalation fears
LBCI/August 31/2025
Israeli airstrikes on South Lebanon on Sunday pushed the border region into a new phase of escalation, raising fears of a wider confrontation.The heavy bombardment sent shockwaves across northern Israeli towns along the frontier, prompting heightened alert levels and leaving residents on edge. The Israeli army claimed Hezbollah continues to expand its military and rocket capabilities in preparation for a potential escalation against Israel. While Israeli surveillance drones maintained a constant presence in Lebanese skies, the army announced it would press on with operations to prevent Hezbollah from bolstering its arsenal, including what it alleged were underground facilities. Military analysts described Sunday’s strikes as preemptive, underscoring Israel’s insistence on maintaining control over five occupied border positions and its reluctance to scale back its campaign. Instead of reducing hostilities, Israel has sought to intensify its operations, arguing that disarming Hezbollah would be a drawn-out process, one that the group could exploit to strengthen its forces. An Israeli security report described the disarmament of Hezbollah as a highly complex task with slim chances of success, even over the long term. Despite international condemnations of Israel’s near-daily operations, Israeli officials said the strikes and the looming threat of escalation remain their strongest tools to keep Hezbollah militarily weakened, noting that the group has yet to restore the capabilities it lost in the war fully.

Israel army strikes Hezbollah site in south Lebanon
AFP/August 31, 2025
JERUSALEM: The Israeli army said it carried out a strike on a site run by Hezbollah in southern Lebanon on Sunday. “A short while ago, the IDF (army) struck military infrastructure, including underground infrastructure, at a Hezbollah site in which military activity was identified, in the area of the Beaufort Ridge in southern Lebanon,” the military said in a statement. “The existence of the site and the activity within it constitute a violation of the understandings between Israel and Lebanon,” it added. After the outbreak of the war in Gaza, Iran-backed Hezbollah and Israel engaged in more than a year of hostilities that culminated in two months of open war last year. Under a November ceasefire that sought to end the violence, Lebanon’s army has been deploying in the south and dismantling Hezbollah’s infrastructure with the support of UN peacekeepers. Israel, however, has kept up its strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon despite the truce and has vowed to continue them until the militant group has been disarmed. Under US pressure, Beirut has ordered the Lebanese army to draw up a plan to take away Hezbollah’s weapons by the end of the year, but the group has vowed to resist the effort.

Israeli airstrikes hit motorcycle in Nabatieh and Ali Taher area in South Lebanon
LBCI/August 31/2025
An Israeli airstrike targeted a motorcycle on the road to Nabatiyeh El Faouqa in South Lebanon on Sunday, while another strike hit a forested area in Ali Taher, local reports said.
Details on casualties or damage were not immediately available, as rescue teams rushed to the scenes.

Hezbollah's Qassem condoles Houthis after Israeli strike kills Yemeni officials
LBCI/August 31/2025
Hezbollah's Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem sent a condolence message to Abdul Malik al-Houthi, the leader of Yemen's Houthi movement, following the killing of Yemen's prime minister and several ministers in an Israeli strike on Saturday. Qassem said the attack reflected what he described as Israel’s inability to confront resistance commanders directly on the battlefield.

New exit incentives: Syrian families crowd Lebanon border in mass return
LBCI/August 31/2025
At Lebanon's northern Arida border crossing, hundreds of buses and small trucks formed long lines as families of Syrian refugees packed their belongings for a final return to their homeland. The surge in departures in recent days has been linked to a decision by Lebanon's General Security to ease procedures for Syrians and Palestinians, whether legally residing or in violation of residency laws. The directive waives fines and fees above $50 per person for those who leave before September 30. Authorities have warned that stricter measures will follow after that date. Walking among the waiting vehicles, many families cited not only the new exemptions but also shifting economic and political conditions in both Lebanon and Syria as reasons for their decision to go back. Truck drivers transporting household goods for returnees said they faced long delays at the crossing, often waiting longer than buses and cars. Still, many refugees described their determination to return as outweighing the hardship of the journey, especially with expectations of even heavier congestion at the border in the coming days. The wave of returns also coincides with financial incentives offered by the United Nations, which provides $100 per person and $400 per family upon arrival in Syria to those who choose to go back.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 31-September 01/2025.
Israel kills Hamas spokesman as dozens reported killed in Gaza City
AP/August 31, 2025
DEIR AL-BALAH: Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced Sunday that a spokesperson for Hamas’ armed wing, Abu Obeida, was killed in Gaza over the weekend. Obeida’s last statement was on Friday as Israel began the initial stages of a new military offensive in Gaza City, declaring the area a combat zone. Hamas has not commented on Israel’s claim. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier said Israel had attacked Obeida, the longtime spokesperson for Hamas’ Qassam Brigades, but did not know whether he had been killed. “I do notice there is no one addressing this question on the Hamas side,” Netanyahu told ministers at a weekly cabinet meeting. Obeida is the latest Hamas representative targeted and killed by Israel as it attempts to dismantle the group’s military capacity and prevent an attack like Oct. 7, 2023, when militants abducted 251 people and killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Israel has assassinated many of Hamas’ top military and political leadership.
A ‘death trap’
At least 43 Palestinians were killed since Saturday, most of them in Gaza City, according to local hospitals. Shifa Hospital — the territory’s largest — said 29 bodies had been brought to its morgue, including 10 people killed while seeking aid and others struck across the city.
On Sunday morning, hospital officials reported 11 more fatalities from strikes and gunfire. Al-Awda Hospital said seven of them were civilians trying to reach aid. Witnesses said Israeli troops opened fire on crowds in the Netzarim Corridor, an Israeli military zone that bisects Gaza. “We were trying to get food, but we were met with the occupation’s bullets,” said Ragheb Abu Lebda, from Nuseirat, who saw at least three people bleeding from gunshot wounds. “It’s a death trap.”The corridor has become increasingly perilous, with civilians killed while approaching UN convoys overwhelmed by looters and desperate crowds, or shot on their way to sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an Israeli-backed US contractor. Neither the foundation nor the Israeli military responded to questions about Sunday’s casualties.
Malnutrition and displacement
Israel has for weeks been operating on the outskirts of Gaza City as well as the Jabaliya refugee camp to prepare for the initial stages of its offensive, which it announced on Friday. Its military has since intensified its air attacks in coastal areas of the city, including Rimal.
Its Arabic-language army spokersperson has urged the hundreds of thousands of Palestinians still in Gaza City to flee south, but only tens of thousands have done so. Many say they are too exhausted after repeated displacements or unconvinced that anywhere is safer.
The United Nations says roughly 65,000 Palestinians have fled their homes since Aug. 1, including 23,199 in the past week. Many are living in temporary shelters after multiple displacements. More than 90 percent of the 2.1 million Palestinians in Gaza have been displaced at least once during the war, and many multiple times, according to the UN. Israel has announced new infrastructure projects in southern Gaza and signaled that aid to Gaza City could be cut — steps Palestinians say amount to forced displacement. Israel has for weeks been operating on the outskirts of Gaza City as well as the Jabaliya refugee camp. It also intensified its air attacks in the coastal areas of the city.Seven Palestinian adults died of causes related to malnutrition and starvation in the Gaza Strip over the last 24 hours, the territory’s health ministry reported Sunday.That has brought the death toll from malnutrition-related causes to 215 since late June when the ministry started to count fatalities among this age category, it said. Another 124 children died of malnutrition-related causes since the start of the war in October 2023, the ministry said. At least 63,371 Palestinians have died in Gaza during the war, said the ministry, which does not say how many are fighters or civilians but says around half have been women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. The UN and independent experts consider it the most reliable source on war casualties. Israel disputes the figures but has not provided its own.

Houthi PM and several ministers killed in Israeli strike
Agence France Presse/August 31, 2025
Yemen's Houthi rebels said Saturday their prime minister had been killed in an Israeli air strike earlier this week, the most senior official known to have died in a series of attacks during the Gaza war. An Israeli army statement later Saturday confirmed the strike and that it had killed Ahmed Ghaleb Nasser Al-Rahawi. The Iran-backed Houthis, who have launched repeated drone and missile attacks on Israel since the Gaza war erupted in October 2023, vowed to avenge his death. Rahawi, who was appointed last year, was killed along with other officials during the attack Thursday, the rebels said. Israel has been striking Houthi targets for months in response to the rebels' attacks, which they say are in support of the Palestinians in Gaza. "We announce the martyrdom of the fighter Ahmed Ghaleb Nasser Al-Rahawi... along with several of his ministerial colleagues, as they were targeted by the treacherous Israeli criminal enemy," a Houthi statement said. "Others among their companions were injured with moderate to serious wounds and are receiving medical care since Thursday afternoon," it added. On Thursday, Israeli forces had said they "struck a Houthi terrorist regime military target". Unsourced Yemeni media reports of Rahawi's death were not confirmed at the time. But on Saturday, Israel's military said in a statement: "Among the senior officials present at the site during the strike was the Houthi Prime Minister, Ahmed Al-Rahawi, who was eliminated in the strike, along with additional senior officials."
Miftah takes over
The Houthis called Thursday's gathering "a routine workshop organized by the government to evaluate its activities and performance over the past year". The head of the rebels' supreme political council, Mehdi al-Mashat, vowed to avenge the killings. "We promise to God, to the dear Yemeni people and the families of the martyrs and wounded that we will take revenge," Mashat said in a video message posted on Telegram. He warned foreign companies to leave Israel "before it's too late". U.S.-based Yemen analyst Mohammed Al Basha noted that previously, the Israelis had targeted infrastructure such as ports and power stations. "The strikes indicate a shift in Israeli operational focus away from transportation and energy infrastructure toward targeted assassinations of high-value personnel," Basha, author of the Basha Report, told AFP. It is "an escalation that, regardless of the final casualty count, is likely to shake the Houthi leadership at its core", he added. "This operation bears the hallmarks of a signals intelligence–driven strike, and it is possible that additional senior Houthi leaders were en route to the location."Rahawi had made a public appearance on Wednesday, attending an event organized by the Houthi endowments ministry in Sanaa. He was from the southern province of Abyan, which is not part of the large swathes of Yemen under Houthi control. The rebels have traditionally reserved the premiership for southerners in an attempt to win hearts and minds in the south. Deputy prime minister Mohammed Ahmed Miftah was appointed as interim prime minister following Rahawi's death, the Houthis announced separately. The rebel group is part of Iran's "axis of resistance", an anti-Israel alliance.

Houthis raid UN offices in Yemen and detain at least 11 employees
AP/August 31, 2025
CAIRO: Iran-backed Houthis on Sunday raided offices of the United Nations’ food, health and children’s agencies in Yemen’s capital, detaining 11 UN employees, officials said. The rebels tightened security across Sanaa following the Israeli killing of their prime minister and several Cabinet members. Abeer Etefa, a spokesperson for the World Food Program, told The Associated Press that security forces raided the agencies’ offices in the Houthi-controlled capital on Sunday morning. Also raided were offices of the World Health Organization and UNICEF, according to a UN official and a Houthi official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they weren’t authorized to brief the media. The UN official said armed forces raided the offices and questioned employees in the parking lot. Ammar Ammar, a spokesperson for UNICEF, said a number of the agency’s staffers were detained, and UNICEF was seeking additional information from the Houthis. Both Etefa and Ammar said their agencies were conducting “a comprehensive head count” of their employees in Sanaa and other Houthi-held areas. UN Secretary-General António Guterres in a statement late Sunday said at least 11 personnel had been detained. He condemned that and the “forced entry into the premises of the World Food Program, the seizure of UN property and attempts to enter other UN premises in Sanaa.” He called for the immediate and unconditional release of the personnel. The raids were the latest in a long-running Houthi crackdown against the UN and other international organizations working in rebel-held areas in Yemen. They have detained dozens of UN staffers, as well as people associated with aid groups, civil society and the now-closed US Embassy in Sanaa. The UN suspended its operations in the Houthi stronghold of Saada in northern Yemen after the rebels detained eight UN staffers in January. At least 5 ministers confirmed killed in the Israeli strike. Sunday’s raids came on the heels of the killing of the Houthi prime minister and several of his Cabinet members in an Israeli strike Thursday. It was a blow to the Iran-backed rebels who have launched attacks on Israel and ships in the Red Sea in relation to the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. Among the dead were Prime Minister Ahmed Al-Rahawi, Foreign Minister Gamal Amer, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Local Development Mohammed Al-Medani, Electricity Minister Ali Seif Hassan, Tourism Minister Ali Al-Yafei and Information Minister Hashim Sharafuldin, according to two Houthi officials and the victims’ families. Also killed was a powerful deputy interior minister, Abdel-Majed Al-Murtada, the Houthi officials said. They were targeted during a “routine workshop held by the government to evaluate its activities and performance over the past year,” a Houthi statement said Saturday, two days after the strike. The Houthis said a funeral for all those killed is scheduled for Monday in Sabeen Square in central Sanaa. Defense Minister Mohamed Nasser Al-Attefi survived the attack while Abdel-Karim Al-Houthi, the interior minister and one of the most powerful figures in the rebel group, didn’t attend the Thursday meeting, the Houthi officials said. UN envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg expressed “great concern” over Israel’s recent strikes in the Houthi-controlled areas following Houthi attacks against Israel. “Yemen cannot afford to become a battleground for a broader geopolitical conflict,” he said in a statement. He called for de-escalation. Thursday’s strike came after the Houthis attacked Israel on Aug. 21 with a ballistic missile that its military described as the first cluster bomb the rebels had launched at Israel since 2023. The missile, which the Houthis said was aimed at Ben Gurion Airport, prompted air raid sirens across central Israel and Jerusalem, forcing millions into shelters. The Houthis are likely to escalate their attacks on Israel and ships in the Red Sea, after they vowed in July to target merchant ships belonging to any company that does business with Israeli ports, regardless of nationality. “Our military approach of targeting the Israeli enemy, whether with missiles, drones or a naval blockade, is continuous, steady, and escalating,” Al-Houthi, the group’s secretive leader, said in a televised speech Sunday.

Yemen’s Houthis vow to intensify attacks on Israel after group’s PM killed
AFP/August 31, 2025
SANAA: The leader of Yemen’s Houthis said on Sunday his group would keep launching attacks against Israel, a day after confirming that an Israeli strike had killed their government’s prime minister. An attack on Thursday killed the Houthis’ prime minister, Ahmed Ghaleb Nasser Al-Rahawi, and other officials, the Iran-backed group has said. Israel’s military has confirmed the strike on Sanaa, Yemen’s capital, and that it had killed Rahawi — the most senior official known to have died in a series of attacks during the Gaza war. In a speech broadcast Sunday on the Houthis’s Al-Masirah TV, group leader Abdul Malik Al-Houthi vowed to continue “targeting Israel with missiles and drones” and to escalate these attacks. He added that recent Israeli strikes on Houthi-held areas of Yemen would not weaken the group or discourage its fighters. The Houthis have launched repeated drone and missile attacks on Israel since the Gaza war erupted in October 2023. Israel has been striking Houthi targets for months in response to the militants’ attacks, which they say are in support of the Palestinians in Gaza. A Yemeni security source told AFP on Saturday that Houthi authorities had arrested dozens of people in Sanaa and other areas “on suspicion of collaborating with Israel.”The Houthis’ leader said in his speech that “the coming days will see additional success... in thwarting the Israeli enemy’s attempts to commit crimes against our dear people or to target official institutions and cities.”

Israeli army chief vows to target Hamas leaders abroad
AFP/August 31/2025
The Chief of Staff of the Israeli army, Eyal Zamir, vowed Sunday to target Hamas leaders abroad after the military killed Abo Ubeida, spokesman for the group's military wing, in Gaza the day before. "In the Gaza Strip, yesterday we struck one of Hamas's senior leaders, Abo Ubeida. This is not the end, most of Hamas's leadership is abroad, and we will reach them as well," Zamir said during a situational assessment at the army's Northern Command center, according to a statement released by the military.

Israeli forces disperse rally in Hebron to release bodies of individuals held since 1967
Arab News/August 31, 2025
LONDON: Hundreds of Palestinians rallied in the city of Hebron in the southern occupied West Bank to demand the release of the bodies of slain individuals before being dispersed by Israeli forces on Sunday. Israeli forces fired tear gas canisters to disperse participants at Ibn Rushd Square in Hebron, causing several cases of suffocation, according to the Wafa news agency. Since Israel occupied the Palestinian territories during the 1967 Middle East War, it has held 726 bodies of Palestinians and Arab citizens in various unidentified cemeteries and locations. Those include the bodies of 67 children, 85 prisoners, and 10 women. The rally aimed to raise awareness of the issue and urge human rights organizations and the UN to take action to ensure the release of the bodies. Last week, Israeli forces suppressed a similar rally in Ramallah, injuring 58 Palestinians with live ammunition, rubber-coated steel bullets, and tear gas, Wafa reported.

US senators urge Rubio to push for baby formula deliveries to Gaza
Arab News/August 31, 2025
LONDON: Five Democrat senators have written to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging him to help get more baby formula into Gaza. Israel has intensified military operations in the Palestinian enclave, with fears mounting for vulnerable civilians and reports of famine coming from international observers. The senators called on Rubio to use his “full power and authority” to allow a “massive surge” of baby formula to reach those most at risk, with 119 young children having died in Gaza of hunger-related causes since the start of the war in October 2023, according to local authorities. The signatories are Ruben Gallego of Arizona, Peter Welch of Vermont, Tim Kaine of Virginia, Mark Kelly of Arizona and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts. “We write to you today with urgency about the grave crisis that infants in Gaze face as a result of severe restrictions on the entry and distribution of humanitarian aid,” they said. “We appeal to you not only in your capacity as a government official but as a parent,” they added. “No child should face the desperation and suffering we are witnessing in Gaza in real time.”They said they expect a reply from Rubio by Sept. 8. “This moment demands moral clarity and decisive action,” they added. “We must use our leverage to ensure the most vulnerable are protected.”The letter comes after more than 100 Democrats in the House of Representatives issued a similar call to Rubio to scale up formula supplies last week. US public opinion strongly supports the government sending aid to Gaza, with a recent Reuters/Ipsos poll finding around 65 percent of registered voters in favor. A Quinnipiac poll for the same period found that 60 percent of voters oppose the war in Gaza, and 77 percent of registered Democrats believe Israel is committing genocide.

Global religious summit urges swift action to end Gaza conflict
Arab News/August 31, 2025
RIYADH: Global leaders urged governments and religious leaders to condemn the war in Gaza and act urgently to stop the massacre, pressing the Israeli occupation government to end the crisis. They said the tragedy exposes the failure of international law and accountability. The statement concluded the second International Summit of Religious Leaders, “The Role of Religious Leaders in Conflict Resolution,” held in Kuala Lumpur by the Malaysian Prime Minister’s Office in cooperation with the Muslim World League, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday. The summit was inaugurated by Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim and the secretary-general of the MWL, Dr. Mohammed bin Abdulkarim Al-Issa, with 400 prominent religious leaders from around the world in attendance. In their statement, the religious leaders urged the international community to pressure the Israeli occupation government to comply with international and human rights treaties, end the suffering of the Palestinian people, guarantee their legitimate rights, and establish an independent state in line with relevant international resolutions. They expressed support for the final document of the high-level international conference on the peaceful settlement of the Palestinian question and the two-state solution, hosted by Saudi Arabia and France at the UN in New York. In his speech, Ibrahim emphasized that all religions aim to promote humanity, stressing the need for unity among faiths against those who reject humanity’s shared values, and calling on religious leaders to defend the essence of humanity. He warned against conflict-driven theories, such as the “Clash of Civilizations,” noting that the Gaza crisis reflects the international community’s waning commitment to justice and humanity. Al-Issa also said that global peace is not optional but essential, tied to both human survival and the credibility of the UN Charter. He recalled that on June 26, 1945, the UN’s founding nations pledged to save future generations from war and to live together in peace. Al-Issa expressed deep concern over global wars and conflicts that threaten world security and societal stability, noting that the extermination and starvation in Gaza set a dangerous precedent for human rights. He said such events, unprecedented since the founding of the UN Charter, cast doubt on international legitimacy and threaten the cohesion of nations committed to justice under the charter. He announced two initiatives: to strengthen the spiritual and moral role of religious leaders worldwide; and to protect minorities in countries with religious, ethnic, and cultural diversity. The summit’s final statement expressed support for two historic MWL documents: the Makkah Declaration and the Charter of Building Bridges between Islamic Schools of Thought, both unanimously approved by Muslim scholars and sponsored by King Salman. Participants recommended forming a permanent committee with representatives from the Malaysian Prime Minister’s Office and MWL to prepare for the third International Summit of Religious Leaders and develop strategies to address societal challenges from a spiritual perspective. They also endorsed MWL initiatives to activate the spiritual and moral role of religious leaders in promoting peaceful conflict resolution and to protect minorities in countries with religious, ethnic, and cultural diversity, as outlined by Al-Issa.

Israel mulls West Bank annexation in response to moves to recognize Palestine
Reuters/August 31, 2025
JERUSALEM: Israel is considering annexation in the occupied West Bank as a possible response to France and other countries recognizing a Palestinian state, according to three Israeli officials, and the idea will be discussed further on Sunday, another official said. Extension of Israeli sovereignty to the West Bank — de facto annexation of land captured in the 1967 Middle East war — was on the agenda for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security Cabinet meeting late on Sunday, which was expected to focus on the Gaza war, a member of the small circle of ministers said. It is unclear precisely where any such measure would be applied and when, whether only in Israeli settlements or some of them, or in specific areas of the West Bank, such as the Jordan Valley.
FASTFACT
The UN’s highest court in 2024 said that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, and its settlements there are illegal and should be withdrawn as soon as possible. Additionally, it is unclear whether any concrete steps, which would likely entail a lengthy legislative process, would follow discussions. Any step toward annexation in the West Bank would likely draw widespread condemnation from the Palestinians, who seek the territory for a future state, as well as Arab and Western countries.
A spokesperson for Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar did not respond to a request for comment on whether Saar had discussed the move with his US counterpart Marco Rubio during his visit to Washington last week. A past pledge by Netanyahu to annex Jewish settlements and the Jordan Valley was scrapped in 2020. The office of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas did not immediately respond to a request for comment.  The US said on Friday it would not allow Abbas to travel to New York for the UN gathering of world leaders, where several US allies are set to recognize Palestine as a state.
Israel, which is facing mounting international criticism over the war in Gaza, is angered by pledges by France, Britain, Australia, and Canada to formally recognize a Palestinian state at a summit during the UN General Assembly in September. The UN’s highest court in 2024 said that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, and its settlements there are illegal and should be withdrawn as soon as possible. Israel argues the territories are not occupied in legal terms because they are on disputed lands, but the UN and most of the international community regard them as occupied territory. Its annexations of East Jerusalem and the Golan Heights decades ago have not won international recognition. Members of Netanyahu’s ruling coalition have been calling for years for Israel to formally annex parts of the West Bank, territory, to which Israel cites biblical and historical ties.

Post-war plan sees US administering Gaza for at least a decade: Washington Post
Reuters/August 31, 2025
WASHINGTON: A post-war plan for Gaza is circulating within President Donald Trump’s administration that would see the US administer the war-torn enclave for at least a decade, the relocation of Gaza’s population and its rebuilding as a tourist resort and manufacturing hub, the Washington Post reported on Sunday. The Washington Post said that according to a 38-page prospectus it had seen, Gaza’s 2 million population would at least temporarily leave either through “voluntary” departures to another country or into restricted areas within the territory during reconstruction.
Reuters previously reported there is a proposal to build large-scale camps called “Humanitarian Transit Areas” inside — and possibly outside — Gaza to house the Palestinian population. That plan carried the name of the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, or GHF, a controversial US-backed aid group. Anyone who owns land would be offered a “digital token” in exchange for rights to redevelop their property, the Post reported, adding that each Palestinian who left would be provided with $5,000 in cash and subsidies to cover four years of rent. They would also be provided with a year of food, it added.
The Post said the plan is called the “Gaza Reconstitution, Economic Acceleration and Transformation Trust, or GREAT Trust,” and was developed by the GHF.
GHF coordinates with the Israeli military and uses private US security and logistics companies to get food aid into Gaza. It is favored by the Trump administration and Israel to carry out humanitarian efforts in Gaza as opposed to the UN-led system which Israel says lets militants divert aid. In early August, the UN said more than 1,000 people have been killed trying to receive aid in Gaza since the GHF began operating in May 2025, most of them shot by Israeli forces operating near GHF sites. The White House and State Department did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but the plan to rebuild Gaza appears to fall in line with previous comments made by Trump. On February 4, Trump first publicly said that the US should “take over” the war-battered enclave and rebuild it as “the Riviera of the Middle East” after resettling the Palestinian population elsewhere. Trump’s comments angered many Palestinians and humanitarian groups about the possible forced relocation from Gaza. Israeli forces pounded the suburbs of Gaza City overnight from the air and ground, destroying homes and driving more families out of the area as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet was set on Sunday to discuss a plan to seize the city. The Israeli military has gradually escalated its operations around Gaza City over the past three weeks. On Friday it ended temporary pauses in the area that had allowed for aid deliveries, designating it a “dangerous combat zone.”On Sunday, the head of the World Food Programme said Israel’s designation would impact food access and put humanitarian aid workers in danger. “It’s going to limit the amount of food that they have access to,” WFP executive director Cindy McCain said on CBS News’ “Face the Nation” program. A report released earlier this month by the global hunger monitor, Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), said that approximately 514,000 people — nearly a quarter of Gaza’s population — are facing famine conditions in Gaza City and surrounding areas. Israel has dismissed the IPC’s findings as false and biased, saying it had based its survey on partial data largely provided by Hamas, which did not take into account a recent influx of food.

Aid flotilla with Susan Sarandon, Greta Thunberg sets sail for Gaza
AP/August 31, 2025
BARCELONA: A flotilla carrying humanitarian aid and activists, including Swedish climate campaigner Greta Thunberg and Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon, left Barcelona on Sunday vowing to try to “break the illegal siege of Gaza,” organizers said. This comes as Israel has stepped up its offensive on Gaza City, limiting the deliveries of food and basic supplies in the north of the Palestinian territory. Food experts warned earlier this month that the city was in famine and that half a million people across the strip were facing catastrophic levels of hunger. The Global Sumud Flotilla is carrying food, water, and medicine. The story here is how people are being deliberately deprived of the very basic means to survive
Greta Thunberg, Climate campaigner
Activists on board demanded safe passage to deliver the much-needed aid and the opening of a humanitarian sea corridor, according to a statement. The almost 23-month war has killed more than 63,000 people, with at least 332 Palestinians dying of malnutrition, including 124 children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. The maritime convoy of about 20 boats and delegations from 44 countries is claimed to be the largest attempt to date to break the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip by sea, which has now lasted 18 years. They will be joined by more ships from ports in Italy and Tunisia in the coming days, on the route from the western end of the Mediterranean to the Gaza Strip, organizers said. Thousands of supporters flocked to the Barcelona pier, some of them wearing kaffiyehs and chanting “Free Palestine!” and “Boycott Israel!” to send off a wide variety of boats, flying Palestinian flags, from rundown old luxury yachts to tiny wooden sailboats and industrial-looking vessels.
One of them, the Sirus, is more than 100 years old.
Around 70 boats are expected to take part in the final leg of the journey, flotilla spokesperson Saif Abukeshek told Spanish public television after the departure.  The fleet could reach Gaza around Sept. 14 or 15, he added. “The story here is about Palestine. The story here is how people are being deliberately deprived of the very basic means to survive,” said Swedish activist Greta Thunberg at a news conference. She is one of the most recognizable figures on the expedition, formed by hundreds of activists, politicians such as the former mayor of Barcelona, Ada Colau, and journalists. Ships carrying tons of humanitarian aid departed from the Italian city of Genoa and will join the expedition in the coming days. It is not the first time Thunberg has attempted to reach Gaza waters this year. She was deported by Israel in June when the ship she was traveling on with 11 other people, the Madleen, was stopped by the Israeli military. “It has been very clear that Israel has been continuously violating international law by either attacking, unlawfully intercepting the boats in international waters, and continuously preventing the humanitarian aid from coming in,” said Thunberg in an interview on Saturday. The Global Sumud Flotilla will be the fourth attempt to break the maritime blockade so far this year. The Conscience first attempted to sail in May, but was attacked by drones after setting sail from Malta. After the Madleen, the Israeli military stopped another aid ship, the Handala, in late July, detained 21 international activists and reporters, and seized its cargo, including baby formula, food, and medicine, according to the Freedom Flotilla Coalition. In a news conference before the departure in Barcelona, actor Liam Cunningham played a video showing a girl singing while planning her own funeral. The girl, Fatima, died four days ago, he said. “What sort of world have we slid into where children are making their own funeral arrangements?” Cunningham told reporters. An Israeli official said on Saturday that the country will soon halt or slow humanitarian aid into parts of northern Gaza, as it expands its military offensive against Hamas, a day after the city was declared a combat zone.

Economists praise King Abdullah II visit to Central Asia for opening up markets
Arab News/August 31, 2025
AMMAN: Jordanian economists have hailed King Abdullah II’s recent visits to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan as a pivotal step in diversifying Jordan’s trade and investment ties, opening access to fast-growing Central Asian markets. The king was in Uzbekistan on August 25 to 26, and in Kazakhstan from Aug. 26 to 27. Former Minister of Investment Kholoud Al-Saqqaf said the visit aligned with Jordan’s Economic Modernization Vision 2023–2033 by reducing reliance on limited export destinations, the Jordan News Agency reported.
“(King Abdullah’s) sustained economic diplomacy consistently opens high-value channels for the national economy,” she noted, adding that reforms in Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan create opportunities in agriculture, pharmaceuticals, renewable energy, technology, and logistics.
Iyad Abu Haltam, President of the East Amman Industrial Investors Association, said the royal visits would drive export growth and partnerships. “Kazakhstan’s vast reserves of oil, gas, uranium, and gold, and its role as a top grain exporter, together with Uzbekistan’s diversification strategies, present Jordanian exporters with tremendous opportunities,” he said. He added that Jordan’s plan to boost exports from JD9 billion ($12.6 billion) to JD 20 billion would benefit from tapping into such markets. Mousa Al-Saket, board member of the Amman Chamber of Industry, described the visit as a turning point, moving relations “from limited, protocol-based trade to a multi-dimensional economic partnership.” He highlighted agreements to establish a joint governmental committee, a Jordan-Uzbekistan Business Council, and business forums, as well as steps like visa exemptions and direct flights to cut costs and boost connectivity. Economic analyst Ahmad Al-Majali said the trip marks “a strategic shift in Jordan’s external economic engagement,” positioning Jordan as a stable investment hub and logistics bridge linking Central Asia with the Middle East.
He pointed to Jordan’s strengths in pharmaceuticals, agriculture, and tourism as areas where joint ventures could thrive.

Alawites flee Damascus neighborhood in face of death threats
Agence France Presse/August 31, 2025
Dozens of families have fled a historically Alawite neighborhood of Damascus under threat of death, amid fears for the community's future in the Syrian capital under Islamist rule, residents told AFP. The mass killing of hundreds of civilians in the Alawite heartland on the Mediterranean coast in March stoked fears of retribution for the privileged position the community enjoyed under the rule of ousted president Bashar al-Assad, who is himself Alawite. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said gunmen who stormed the Al-Sumaria neighborhood of west Damascus on Thursday had threatened Alawite residents with the loss of all their possessions if they did not leave the neighborhood voluntarily within two days. "Armed men, some masked and others dressed entirely in black, resembling the uniforms of the (security forces), are passing by and asking us to leave our homes or they will kill us," said a 20-year-old journalism student who asked to remain anonymous. "We have gathered what personal belongings we can and will leave our home today, not knowing where to go," she said. The Britain-based Observatory said evictions were already underway, "accompanied by violence and intimidation, including the use of electric batons to force residents out". Since Assad's overthrow by Islamist-led rebels in December, several Alawite-majority neighborhoods outside the community's coastal heartland have witnessed similar evictions at gunpoint. Al-Sumaria mayor Mazhar Shoeir insisted that the situation was now under control with a panel set up to address any violations. "I assure residents that the situation has stabilized and they should stay in their homes and not leave them," Shoeir told AFP. He said a committee was "closely monitoring any violations, and people will notice the difference in the coming hours". But few residents gave much credence to the reassurances from the authorities. "The threats are stronger than the assurances. We see the threats on the ground, while we only see the assurances on social media," said a resident who gave his name only as Youssef. The 39-year, who already lost his civil service job in the months after Assad's ouster, said he was "extremely afraid". "There's no room for gambling with our lives. I have children and I fear for their lives," he said, as he left with his family for the mainly Alawite town of Maryamin, in Homs province close to the coastal heartland.

Macron's decision to recognize a Palestinian state in September angers Israel and the US
Associated Press/August 31, 2025
French President Emmanuel Macron's decision to recognize a Palestinian state, prompting similar moves from other Western nations, angered Israel and its U.S. ally by putting a two-state solution back at the heart of diplomatic efforts to end the devastating war in Gaza.
In a letter to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week, Macron wrote that "our determination to see the Palestinian people have their own state is rooted in our conviction that lasting peace is essential to the security of the state of Israel."
France's diplomatic efforts "stem from our outrage at the appalling humanitarian disaster in Gaza, for which there can be no justification," Macron added. Israel on Friday declared Gaza's largest city a combat zone as the death toll surpassed 63,000 Palestinians, according to the territory's Health Ministry, since the war started on Oct. 7, 2023, with a Hamas-led attack on Israel. France, the U.K., Canada, Australia and Malta have said they would formalize their pledge during the annual gathering of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly, which starts Sept. 23. Some others, including New Zealand, Finland and Portugal, are considering a similar move. Netanyahu rejects Palestinian statehood and plans to expand the military offensive in Gaza. Macron's letter comes after Netanyahu accused him of "fueling" the "antisemitism fire" with his call for a Palestinian state, remarks Macron denounced as "abject." Last week, U.S. Ambassador to France Charles Kushner also wrote a letter arguing that "gestures toward recognition of a Palestinian state embolden extremists, fuel violence and endanger Jewish life in France." Kushner was summoned by the French foreign ministry and represented in his absence by his deputy. Such angry reaction "shows that symbols matter," said geopolitics expert Pascal Boniface, director of the Paris-based Institute for International and Strategic Relations. "There is some kind of race against time between the diplomatic path, with the two-state solution back at the heart of the debate, and the situation on the ground (in Gaza), which is every day making this two-state solution a little more complicated or impossible."
Boniface said some supporters of a two-state solution showed disappointment at leaders' decision to wait until September to officially recognize a Palestinian state, because they "fear that recognition will come when Gaza has even more become a graveyard."
Macron and other international leaders have urged Israel to stop its offensive in the besieged territory, where most of its over 2 million residents are displaced, neighborhoods lie in ruins and a famine has been declared in Gaza City. "The occupation of Gaza, the forced displacement of Palestinians, their reduction to starvation ... will never bring victory to Israel," Macron wrote in his letter to Netanyahu. "On the contrary, they will reinforce the isolation of your country, fuel those who find pretext for antisemitism, and endanger Jewish communities around the world."
More than 140 countries already recognize a Palestinian state in what is a mostly symbolic move. "The world will be the same the day after," said Muhammad Shehada, a Gaza political analyst and visiting fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations think tank.
Still, it adds diplomatic pressure on Israel, he stressed. Heavyweight Western nations demonstrating strong support for a two-state solution "shatters the illusion that Netanyahu is trying to sell to the Israelis and to the international community that mass population transfer or depopulation is the only way to solve the Palestinian issue," Shehada said. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot insisted this week that diplomatic efforts led by France and Saudi Arabia also resulted, for the first time, in highly significant condemnation of the Hamas attacks against civilians by all 22 members of the Arab League.
During a July conference co-hosted by France and Saudi Arabia at the U.N., Arab League nations agreed in their New York Declaration that "Hamas must end its rule in Gaza and hand over its weapons to the Palestinian Authority." Shehada expects the move to strengthen the camp of moderate Palestinians, including by demonstrating to the public that the Palestinian Authority is gaining weight in negotiations. He said it may weaken the most violent leadership in Hamas by "creating a diplomatic track that provides Palestinians with an alternative to violence, sending a message that diplomatic engagement will pay off and will lead to a Palestinian state, whereas violence will not take you anywhere." The Palestinian Authority hopes to establish an independent state in the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza — areas captured by Israel in the 1967 Mideast war. Hamas drove out the PA when it seized Gaza in 2007, a year after winning Palestinian parliamentary elections. After the Hamas takeover of Gaza, the PA was left with administering semiautonomous pockets of the Israeli-occupied West Bank.

The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on August 31-September 01/2025
France's New Guillotine: Silent Dictatorship
Drieu Godefridi/Gatestone Institute/August 31/2025
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/21877/france-silent-dictatorship
On March 31, 2025, the Paris Criminal Court sentenced Marine Le Pen to five years of electoral "ineligibility" with immediate effect.... This sentence, described by the defendant as a "witch hunt", bars the frontrunner in the polls from standing in the 2027 French presidential election.
The aim of this maneuver is clear: to remove the opposition leader from competing for the highest office in the land.
These court rulings form an impenetrable wall: an elected majority can vote, but the "wise" guardians of the left ensure that nothing passes that offends egalitarianism, environmentalism or the dogma of open borders. In France, sadly, democracy, has become nothing more than an illusion: the people vote, but the bureaucracy blocks the will of the voters.
The new dictatorship appears based on a single ideology and the gradual suppression of freedoms and subverting the constitutional order in favor of a supposedly superior caste, whose contours, methods and appetites are reminiscent of what our American friends call the "deep state" – self-appointed bureaucrats running your life behind the scenes, where there is no transparency, accountability or readily available means to remove them.
On March 31, 2025, the Paris Criminal Court sentenced Marine Le Pen to five years of electoral "ineligibility" with immediate effect. This sentence, described by the defendant as a "witch hunt", bars the frontrunner in the polls from standing in the 2027 French presidential election.
In a cruel twist of history, France, the self-proclaimed cradle of the Enlightenment and freedom, has turned into a regime where democracy is nothing more than a mask, concealing a dictatorship that is still in its infancy but nonetheless unflinching. It is not a dictatorship of boots and uniforms; it is a hushed tyranny, judicial and institutional, crushing any hint of real change under the weight of its legal trappings.
I. France, a formal dictatorship: the judicial elimination of opponents
In a democracy, elections are the inviolable sanctuary of the popular will. In the France of 2025, justice, like a partisan guillotine, falls on opposition figures with surgical precision, rendering them supposedly too disqualified to compete. Examples reveal a damning pattern: searches (National Rally party), convictions (François Fillon, Marine Le Pen, Nicolas Sarkozy), smear campaigns (Éric Zemmour).
On March 31, 2025, the Paris Criminal Court sentenced Marine Le Pen to five years of electoral "ineligibility" with immediate effect, in the so-called European parliamentary assistants case. This sentence, described by the defendant as a "witch hunt", bars the frontrunner in the polls from standing in the 2027 French presidential election.
The aim of this maneuver is clear: to remove the opposition leader from competing for the highest office in the land. The judges justified their decision on the grounds of misappropriation of European funds for the party's national activities. Money it seems, intended for the party's operations at European level was instead used by the national party in France. That is the whole story. It is a far cry from a violent crime or personal enrichment. No personal enrichment on the part of Le Pen was ever found. The timing of this ruling and the provisional exorbitant enforcement, betray the manipulation of the justice system by her opponents.
This is not an isolated case. The legal persecution of Le Pen's National Rally is far from over. On July 9, 2025, in Paris, around 20 police officers from the financial brigade, accompanied by two investigating judges, raided the headquarters of the National Rally at dawn as part of a new investigation supposedly into illegal campaign financing. During the raid, accounting documents, correspondence, laptops, hard drives and servers were seized, all targeting the financing of the party's recent campaigns. Apparently, they included loans granted by individuals and some alleged overcharging to obtain undue reimbursements from the state. The Paris public prosecutor's office said that the investigation aimed to determine whether these practices constituted fraud, aggravated money laundering, or forgery.
The president of the National Rally party, Jordan Bardella, denounced the operation as "spectacular", "relentless" and a "serious attack on the pluralism of the political system and democratic alternation." Bardella said he believes that "no opposition party has ever been treated like this under the Fifth Republic."
Also in July 2025, another case unrelated to the previous two, involving €4.3 million in European funds misused by the Identity and Democracy Group, of which the National Rally was a member, was threatening the integrity and reputation of the party.
National Rally leaders are crying foul, not without reason: are these operations really aimed at ensuring the proper use of public funds, or are they paving the way for the National Rally to be outlawed? The pattern is chilling: weaken, discredit and potentially dissolve the main rival of the alliance between the moribund Macron camp and the Islamo-leftist forces of the France Unbowed party. Macron's Renaissance party had earlier allied itself with the France Unbowed party to "block" the main opposition force – Le Pen's National Rally.
Since 2017, militant magistrates have become emboldened. On January 25, 2017, in what will probably go down in history as the inaugural act of this judicial jihad, the satirical weekly, Le Canard Enchaîné revealed the fictitious jobs of the wife of candidate François Fillon and his children as "parliamentary assistants." A preliminary investigation was opened -- that same day -- against the poll favorite for the presidential election by the National Financial Prosecutor's Office. Fillon, charged with embezzlement of public funds, saw his campaign collapse. He fell from 26% in the polls in January, to 20% in the first round. Behind Macron and Le Pen, he was immediately eliminated. Without the Financial Prosecutor's Office, Emmanuel Macron would most likely never have become president.
Sentenced in 2020 to five years in prison, including two without parole, Fillon announced that there had been a "media-judicial conspiracy". As with Marine Le Pen, the justice system did not merely punish; it changed the course of the election, depriving the right of a winning candidate.
To be clear: what Fillon did was stupid and despicable. But Fillon is part of a "long tradition," as La Tribune puts it. Before 2017, around 20% of MPs employed a family member as an assistant, with no real checks and balances. This served to circumvent party financing limits or to "place" relatives. Fillon's legal fate — an investigation opened on the same day as the press article, extreme speed, constant communication with the left-wing media — is exceptional. This exceptionality decided the outcome of the 2017 presidential election, favoring the left-wing candidate Macron.
In 2022, Éric Zemmour, another figure on the "right," was convicted of inciting "racial hatred", tarnishing his campaign. These cases form a continuum: the form of a democracy is preserved, but the substance is corrupted by a politicized justice system that determines guilt -- but only on the "right."
II. France, a substantive dictatorship: the judge-legislator
Beyond appearances, the unlikely French dictatorship of the 21st century is embodied in its laws and regulations. Even when a right-wing or centre-right majority, with the cooperation of the centre-left, manages to pass a law that strikes at the totems of the left – egalitarianism, multiculturalism, punitive taxation, environmentalism, open borders, the sanctity of Islam – the guardians of the temple of the "never right" – the Constitutional Council and the Council of State – swiftly destroy it.
Such was the case with the recent immigration law of January 2024. Adopted under the leadership of a right-of-center Senate majority, this law tightened immigration quotas, restricted social assistance to foreigners and facilitated deportations. On January 25, 2024, the Constitutional Council struck down 35 of the 86 articles, 32 of them in their entirety were the additions made by the "right." Among the provisions struck down – in particular for procedural irregularities – were the most "controversial" ( to the "left") in the Senate: annual immigration quotas, abolishing or restricting the AME (free healthcare for undocumented migrants), tightening residence permits (for students, illness, family reunification), limiting social benefits, ending the abolition of personalized housing assistance (APL) and conditions for nationality. The result? A law stripped of its substance, preserving the multiculturalist and open borders dogma of the left.
On August 7, 2025, the Constitutional Council declared that Article 2 of the so-called Duplomb law, which aimed to facilitate, to a limited extent, the work of farmers, was unconstitutional. The Constitutional Council singled out, in particular, Article 1 of the Environmental Charter, which enshrines the right of everyone to "live in a healthy and balanced environment" -- which is actually a political program, not a right.
According to Jean-Eric Schoettl, former secretary general of the Constitutional Council:
"Tabled in November 2024 by 185 senators in response to the needs of French agriculture — and to the demands expressed by farmers in the spring of 2024 — the 'Duplomb-Ménonville' bill was adopted by a large majority in Parliament. Its aim was to 'remove constraints on the practice of farming' in accordance with European legislation, which is the most protective in the world."
Article 2 purported to introduce an extremely limited, restricted and monitored loosening of the ban on neonicotinoid pesticides, including acetamiprid. The Constitutional Council considered that the reintroduction of these substances – which are legal throughout Europe – was not sufficiently "regulated" in terms of conditions of use, duration or the nature of the sectors concerned. This decision was purely opportunistic, and therefore political, rather than a legal, judgement. Its main consequence, apart from emasculating the will of the parliament as well as the majority, is to euthanize industries in France while products treated with the same molecule are imported on a massive scale from abroad.
A revealing detail: the appeal to the Constitutional Council against the Duplomb law was lodged by far-left MPs from the France Unbowed party and the Communist Group (GDR). The same goes for the Council of State, the armed wing of the ruling caste, which rails every day against any initiative that in any way deviates from the dogmas and interests of the ruling caste and its "left-wing" values.
Philippe Fontana, a lawyer and essayist, denounced "the worrying drift in the Council of State's case law on migration," and explained that by approving public funding for associations that promote illegal migration to France, the Council of State is taking a moralizing stance that is legally nonsensical and diametrically opposed to the wishes and expectations of the overwhelming majority of French people: 70% of French people want a tougher immigration policy.
These court rulings form an impenetrable wall: an elected majority can vote, but the "wise" guardians of the left ensure that nothing passes that offends egalitarianism, environmentalism or the dogma of open borders.
Dictatorship in France
In France, sadly, democracy, has become nothing more than an illusion: the people vote, but the bureaucracy blocks the will of the voters. The end of this damning picture is a formal dictatorship through the removal of opponents, a substantive dictatorship through the obstruction of laws.
The new dictatorship appears based on a single ideology and the gradual suppression of freedoms and subverting the constitutional order in favor of a supposedly superior caste, whose contours, methods and appetites are reminiscent of what our American friends call the "deep state" – self-appointed bureaucrats running your life behind the scenes, where there is no transparency, accountability or readily available means to remove them.
Faced with this formal and substantive dictatorship, the French people are regaining their full natural and conventional rights — Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, August 26, 1789 — to resist oppression.
Will they make use of it? The history of the last two centuries indicates not without pressure. If they did, the ruling caste theoretically would repress their revolt with ferocity, thereby revealing the true nature of its hold.
**Drieu Godefridi is a jurist (University Saint-Louis, University of Louvain), philosopher (University Saint-Louis, University of Louvain) and PhD in legal theory (Paris IV-Sorbonne). He is an entrepreneur, CEO of a European private education group and director of PAN Medias Group. He is the author of The Green Reich (2020).
**© 2025 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute. No part of the Gatestone website or any of its contents may be reproduced, copied or modified, without the prior written consent of Gatestone Institute.

Can Gaza forge Saudi-Iranian unity?
Hassan Al-Mustafa/Arab News/August 31, 2025
The emergency session of Organization of Islamic Cooperation foreign ministers held in Jeddah last Monday transcended routine diplomatic proceedings. Convened during one of the Gaza war’s most brutal chapters, the gathering highlighted how Palestinian affairs have evolved beyond regional politics into a litmus test for the global commitment to justice and legal principles. The summit’s closing declaration employed unusually blunt language, denouncing “Israeli schemes for the total occupation and military dominance of Gaza,” while characterizing “blockades, forced starvation and mass expulsions as severe breaches of humanitarian law constituting war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.” Beyond demanding the immediate cessation of hostilities and unrestricted humanitarian corridor access, delegates called for sanctions and Israel’s UN suspension — language reflecting documented legal assessments rather than political rhetoric. Saudi Arabia assumed a pivotal conference role. Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan condemned the “occupation forces’ most abhorrent practices, including murder, starvation and forced displacement,” and demanded “the termination of Gaza’s siege and urgent, adequate crossing openings for relief supplies.” He rejected the “Greater Israel concept,” while reaffirming the Kingdom’s commitment to “Palestinians’ historic right to statehood within the 1967 boundaries with East Jerusalem as capital.”
The proceedings in Jeddah extended beyond collective statements toward meaningful diplomatic engagement. Prince Faisal’s meeting on the sidelines with his Iranian counterpart, Abbas Araghchi, represented a crucial test of the potential for Riyadh-Tehran practical cooperation. While Araghchi endorsed the OIC declaration, he emphasized that “implementation matters most,” advocating that Islamic nations “sever commercial and diplomatic Israeli ties.” Saudi Arabia prioritized pragmatic international mechanisms encompassing humanitarian assistance and legal channels.
The contrasting approaches are evident: Iran’s maximalist positions regardless of feasibility versus Saudi Arabia’s balance between principles, realism and effective diplomatic-legal pressure. Nevertheless, Saudi-Iranian convergences remain significant — particularly shared concerns that ongoing warfare destabilizes the region and that impunity erodes international legal credibility. Prince Faisal’s meeting with Araghchi represented a crucial test of the potential for Riyadh-Tehran cooperation.
Should Tehran temper its ideological messaging and embrace practical steps within established international institutions, Saudi-Iranian collaboration through OIC frameworks could amplify efforts toward Gaza ceasefire possibilities, despite the extremist Israeli government’s persistence with policies of starvation, occupation and forced displacement.
Europe’s positioning, especially France’s stance, reinforces this approach’s significance. President Emmanuel Macron consistently maintains that the two-state solution represents the sole sustainable pathway to peace. Paris supports international conferences establishing clear conflict resolution roadmaps. The alignment of Saudi Arabia’s strategic two-state commitment with France’s revival of a comprehensive peace process creates opportunities for broader international cooperation that transcends condemnation and leads to concrete action. Such developments would present US President Donald Trump with additional political and humanitarian considerations amid mounting pressure due to the famine in Gaza. More than 40 senators in July petitioned the State Department, warning that the current aid distribution mechanisms are ineffective and crisis-aggravating. These pressures also reflect shifting public sentiment, with recent polling showing 55 percent of Americans want a ceasefire. Trump faces a stark choice: either maintain unconditional support for Israel despite the domestic and international political costs or pursue negotiations and a truce to restore America’s credibility as a peace broker. Riyadh’s preferred outcome would be Washington guaranteeing a comprehensive and permanent termination of the Gaza war. The escalating humanitarian conditions and constrained political options confronting Israel and its supporters enhance the value of the regional initiatives, including potential Saudi-Iranian cooperation. This creates cumulative contexts supported by multiple European and global capitals, as well as widespread public opinion, which Washington and Tel Aviv are increasingly struggling to dismiss indefinitely.
The Jeddah OIC foreign ministerial meeting demonstrated the capacity for Islamic convergence on Palestinian issues despite the divergent perspectives. However, the developments in Gaza and the West Bank test not only the Palestinian leadership — requiring internal reconciliation around coherent, rational programs — but also the effectiveness of joint Islamic action in restoring international law and regional stability, granting this organization genuine influence over urgent matters.
• Hassan Al-Mustafa is a Saudi writer and researcher interested in Islamic movements, the development of religious discourse and the relationship between the Gulf Cooperation Council states and Iran.X: @Halmustafa

UK-Germany-France triumvirate returning to prominence
Andrew Hammond/Arab News/August 31, 2025
French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk visited Moldova last week to celebrate that nation’s independence day, in the face of Russian meddling. Two of those nations are also part of another European political triumvirate that is reemerging as the leading group of powers in the region. In recent months, there has been a growing warmth in relations between Merz, Macron and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. This was displayed most recently during the summit on Ukraine with US President Donald Trump at the White House on Aug. 19.
This growing cordiality in post-Brexit relations between the UK, Germany and France did not start this year. Since the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022, there has been a growing realization in France and Germany of the need for greater collaboration with the UK, and vice versa.
So, this trilateral warming process actually began some time ago, under the leaderships of former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, Macron and Germany’s former Chancellor Olaf Scholz. More recent developments, including the second Trump presidency and the UK-EU “Brexit reset” framework deal in May, have simply added impetus. This rejuvenated E3 dynamic has been evident in several high-profile platforms in recent years, including a visit by US President Joe Biden to Berlin last October, when Starmer, Macron and Scholz were the European leaders with whom he held a quadrilateral meeting.
This so-called E3 dynamic has been championed in bilateral relations between members of the group too. In July, Starmer and Merz signed a UK-Germany friendship treaty that covers defense and economic growth, along with other wider issues. It also includes a mutual assistance clause specifying that a threat to one nation would be regarded as a threat to the other. This agreement helps cement the E3 trilateral alliance — France was already linked to Germany through the Aachen Treaty and to the UK through the Lancaster House Treaties.
With Macron leaving office in 2027 after two presidential terms, the relationship between Starmer and Merz could prove to be especially key for European and wider international relations during the remainder of the Trump presidency. Both leaders could be key reformers whose periods in office overlap. The next UK general election is likely to take place in 2028 or 2029 and the next German ballot in 2029. The next US presidential election will be in November 2028. At the same time as ties are warming between the UK and Germany, it is also key that London and Paris and Paris and Berlin have grown closer too. Of course, the Franco-German alliance has long been the motor of European integration in the postwar era and Macron enjoyed a generally positive relationship with former Chancellor Angela Merkel, allowing them to achieve much together on the international stage.
The relationship between Starmer and Merz could be especially key for European and wider international relations.
However, cooperation between the two powers ebbs and flows depending upon the personalities of the top office holders in Berlin and Paris. Macron had an uneven relationship with Merkel’s successor, Scholz, but ties might be moving in a more positive direction under Scholz’s successor, Merz.
Warmer Franco-British ties were on display in July, when Macron made his first state visit to the UK. The last official visit by a French president to Britain was by Nicolas Sarkozy almost two decades earlier, in 2008.
Whereas much of the UK-German bilateral relationship has centered on economics, security is key to UK-French ties, as both countries are nuclear-armed states with permanent membership of the UN Security Council, unlike other European partners. The 2010 Lancaster House deals between the two powers opened the door to jointly updating their nuclear arsenals and there is the potential for broader military coordination as well.
As positive as the reemergence of the British-French-German relationship is for Europe, their ties will continue to face challenges in the post-Brexit era. This is especially the case in terms of the UK’s bilateral ties with the other two.
Take, for example, the relationship between Paris and London. Macron adopted one of the most hard-line stances in response to the UK’s departure from the EU. This reflected the complex, often contradictory, relationship that Paris has long had with London in the context of European affairs.
Macron’s position on Brexit, including his robust stance precluding any future UK economic access to the single market, has been reinforced by broader French plans to pitch Paris as a rival financial center to London. Macron hailed the post-Brexit decision to relocate the European Banking Agency to Paris from London in 2019 as “recognition of France’s attractiveness and European commitment.” He hoped the relocation of the agency would help bring more banking jobs to Paris from the UK. The French position on Brexit underlines the fact that each of the EU states has distinct political, economic and social interests that inform their stance on the UK’s departure from the bloc. This varies according to factors such as trade and wider economic ties, patterns of migration with the UK, domestic election pressures and levels of support for euroskepticism within their populaces. While Paris has now moderated its position somewhat, the UK and France remain misaligned in some key areas, including fishing rights. Another example is migration, a matter on which Starmer is under growing pressure to prevent people illegally crossing the English Channel and entering the UK from France. In July, Starmer and Macron agreed a new “one in, one out” system of returns, under which the UK will deport to France undocumented migrants who arrived in small boats in return for accepting an equal number of legitimate asylum seekers with UK family connections. However, it remains unclear how successful this will be in preventing migrants from attempting to make so-called small-boat crossings. The reemergence of the E3 has significant potential to further increase collaboration between Europe’s three leading economies. However, the distinct post-Brexit interests of each state will continue to create tensions from time to time, which might remain a barrier to the full resetting of trilateral relations.
• Andrew Hammond is an associate at LSE IDEAS at the London School of Economics.

How to use AI without losing our minds
Ngaire Woods/Arab News/August 31, 2025
The recent launches of Gemini Deep Think and GPT-5 have highlighted the rapid evolution of large language models. With 67 percent of organizations worldwide now using them, you have probably experimented with them too. Perhaps you were impressed — or less so, in the case of the new ChatGPT. But you may also have noticed that you are more easily distracted, your memory is not as reliable as it was and tasks that once felt effortless now seem harder to manage. It is not your imagination. While artificial intelligence-powered tools can dazzle with their speed and fluency, relying on them too heavily can stupefy us, making us slower, duller and less able to think for ourselves. Four trends highlighted by ongoing research stand out. Digital distraction is reducing our ability to focus and concentrate. Over the last two decades, smartphones and other devices have increasingly undermined our ability to sustain attention, make decisions and complete tasks, distracting us with constant notifications and luring us into endless scrolling. The urge to check our phones, reinforced by the small reward the brain registers with every message or update, is as addictive as it is debilitating. Studies show that these interruptions, combined with the instant gratification of scrolling, make it harder to focus on demanding, long-term tasks. Ever easier-to-access information causes memory erosion, which means less capacity to retain and organize information when making decisions. Researchers began looking at the “Google effect” some time ago, highlighting the adverse impact on memory of growing reliance on smartphones. By contrast, earlier generations had to memorize telephone numbers, poetry and even the periodic table. Declining ability to reason well and construct a good argument is the most recent effect of AI, as more people delegate their thinking to ChatGPT, Gemini or DeepSeek. Studies show that this “cognitive offloading” impedes our ability to think clearly, recognize logical connections and spot flawed arguments. It is the mental equivalent of outsourcing your exercise routine — you may conserve energy in the short term but, over time, your own strength diminishes. In the pre-large language model era, researchers had to search the internet — or, earlier, the library — and carefully evaluate each new source. Was it useful? How did it compare to other sources? Could ideas be combined or tested against one another? The research process trained the mind to remember, apply, analyze and synthesize. Without that work, those abilities inevitably weaken. No longer scrutinizing, debating and challenging ideas leads to duller minds. “Cognitive friction” is vital for sharpening brainpower. The sycophancy of large language models, which are trained to be pleasing and rely on user approval, dulls our thinking. There is also a dark side to sycophancy, such as when AI models agree with incorrect self-diagnoses or make harmful suggestions. Relying on AI-powered tools too heavily can stupefy us, making us slower, duller and less able to think for ourselves. Alarmingly, a recent study shows that the more users insist on falsehoods, the more mainstream models echo them. OpenAI is now working to curb sycophancy by (in the words of ChatGPT itself) “encouraging honesty, constructive disagreement and independent thinking instead of automatic praise or deference.” The problem is that friction makes users uncomfortable, even though that tension is precisely what drives personal growth.
Tech companies, workplaces, educational institutions and individuals must take up the challenge of ensuring that AI strengthens human capacity. For me, sitting in a university, the challenge is immediate. In 2023, one-third of US college students reported using ChatGPT for coursework; by 2024, another survey found that 86 percent of students across 16 countries relied on AI in their studies. With an AI-powered device always within reach, the question we must have a convincing answer to is: why struggle to remember things, reason or piece together an argument when a large language model will do it for you? The answer is that if you do not train your brain to remember, to reason and to welcome cognitive friction, the result will be an erosion of the capacity for learning, reasoning, creativity, metacognition and critical thinking. Some solutions have a long history. Perhaps it is time to bring back memorization as a form of brain training. As a simple exercise, you can try to teach your favorite large language model something you just learned: explaining new material to someone else — even an AI assistant — helps knowledge stick.Reducing distraction can include creating spaces, classes and time without constant recourse to devices. In the UK, roughly 90 percent of schools have banned smartphones during lessons. Universities and workplaces could create more device-free environments for reading, reflection and debate. By embracing problem-based learning and simulations, they can help students and colleagues tackle complex, open-ended problems using (and honing) judgment and creativity. The choice we face is whether to surrender our minds to AI or to treat large language models as sparring partners that enable us to sharpen our cognitive abilities. The data revolution has entered a new phase and only by training our minds can we keep up.
• Ngaire Woods is Dean of the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford.
©Project Syndicate

Recognizing the growing value of virtual communities
Sara Al-Mulla/Arab News/August 31, 2025
Virtual communities are the new gathering spaces of our time, thriving and becoming ever more central to digital life. Enabled by digital platforms, virtual communities bring together people with shared interests from every walk of life, powered by passionate users who drive dialogue on an extraordinary scale.
A YouGov survey conducted in 2020 revealed an interesting trend; for many people, the deepest sense of meaning and belonging was found predominantly in virtual communities. They have blossomed across every facet of our lives. From swapping travel tips with 400 million Tripadvisor users to studying the reading lists of 150 million Goodreads members or sharing posts by the 900 million Snapchat storytellers, virtual communities are reshaping how people connect, learn and feel inspired. They also take countless other virtual forms, from support groups and information desks to professional circles, cultural salons and artistic spaces, each one a reminder of the universality of common interests.
Virtual communities can enrich people’s lives in many ways, often acting as vibrant spaces for connection, creative expression and friendship. One method is allowing individuals to share their ideas, celebrate their hobbies and showcase their creative talents in multiple realms, such as literature, photography, fashion, gaming or gastronomy. Virtual communities also provide practical advice from experts or seasoned individuals on various topics, ranging from well-being and parenting to personal finance and home-building.
They are also spaces where the experiences and reviews of members intertwine to create a library of valuable knowledge in the form of special interest forums, online group classes and research-focused communities. In fact, many virtual communities thrive on their devoted members’ contributions.
Virtual communities are also becoming engines for generating economic value. For instance, professional platforms such as LinkedIn allow individuals to showcase their expertise and find job opportunities, while e-commerce platforms like Etsy help creators monetize handmade or digital products to reach a global clientele. On the other hand, freelancer networks such as Upwork offer opportunities for skilled individuals to serve global clients and social platforms like Instagram offer entrepreneurs the space to cultivate their brands, engage audiences and expand their businesses.
For policymakers, the opportunity is clear: virtual communities should be recognized as flourishing arenas with immense social, cultural and economic value. To maximize their multifaceted benefits, while mitigating their risks, several policy avenues should be considered.
Primarily, policymakers should recognize the evolving prominence and influence of virtual communities in shaping public behaviors and perceptions. This influence on how societies learn, create and collaborate is expected to grow even more intensely.
From a policy perspective, virtual communities can serve as a valuable partner, as their activities frequently intersect with government priorities such as public health, lifelong learning, employment and skills development, environmental sustainability, entrepreneurship, and youth empowerment. Policymakers can harness such platforms to bolster policy outcomes by delivering important awareness programs, promoting key public services and amplifying positive practices among their target audiences.
Governments could consider supporting digital platforms that prioritize community-driven interests through grants or innovation funds.
To achieve that, digital inclusion should be prioritized as, without equitable access to digital infrastructure, marginalized groups may remain excluded from the opportunities that virtual communities can offer. Policy interventions should therefore focus on expanding universal connectivity and establishing public Wi-Fi hubs. Additionally, digital inclusion should include comprehensive digital literacy programs to equip communities with the skills needed to navigate online platforms safely and responsibly.
Educational programs focusing on these skills could also be rolled out within school curricula. Moreover, it would be advantageous to provide specialized training programs for the leaders and users of virtual communities on content creation, audience engagement and discussion management.
Another critical aspect is safeguarding the safety and accountability of virtual communities. It is critical to work closely with tech companies to develop sound guidelines on platform accountability and content moderation, in addition to establishing clear channels for the reporting of harmful content, cyberbullying and misinformation. Policymakers could also work with active leaders and members of virtual communities to ensure adherence to safety measures, while also helping to deliver important awareness building on issues tied to the government’s priorities, such as early childhood development or mental health.
Closely linked is the need for robust legislation on cyberbullying, misinformation and data protection. Members of virtual communities must have confidence that their personal information is secure and responsibly managed by digital platforms. Therefore, comprehensive data protection legislation should address issues tied to consent requirements, transparency in data collection and usage, clear accountability mechanisms for platforms that manage community interactions, and dispelling misinformation and fake news. This is especially important to safeguard the well-being of vulnerable groups, such as children.
Governments could also consider supporting digital platforms that prioritize community-driven interests through grants or innovation funds. For instance, public awareness campaigns could make regular appearances on relevant virtual communities to achieve policy outcomes. Furthermore, policy accelerator labs that co-design services in partnership with virtual communities may glean many useful insights that could be channeled toward crafting more responsive policies.
All in all, virtual communities can play a transformative role in building more connected, innovative and productive societies. By investing in training, inclusion, safety and innovation, policymakers can harness their many valuable social and economic contributions.
• Sara Al-Mulla is an Emirati civil servant with an interest in human development policy and children’s literature. She can be contacted at www.amorelicious.com.

Slected X tweets on August 31-September 01/2025
Dr Walid Phares
The George Washington of the Druse..
The moment Sheikh Al-Hijri of #Souaida became the George Washington of the Druze of Syria: he declared his people's desire for self-determination and an independent Druze state—much like the 13 American colonies once demanded independence from Britain. He stated that the new nation would align with the civilized, free world and strive for peace.

Hussain Abdul-Hussain
https://x.com/i/status/1961937370577609068
Desperate times call for desperate measures. Rarely in their history have the Druze demanded a state, always assimilating into their host countries and minding their own business. Their only request has been local autonomy for their villages. Under Sharaa, Syria's Druze face mortal danger and are now calling for secession. If achieved, their landlocked, barren state would rely on Israel as its lifeline. America is unlikely to notice. Barack, whose Christian grandfather was forced to emigrate from the Ottoman Empire, aims to revive the Sunni Caliphate in Istanbul. If successful, this would severely disadvantage the Druze. In a video, their leader Hajri calls for independence. I support Druze independence, a right deserved by them and every non-Muslim minority in the Middle East. However, U.S. focus on Qatari and Turkish investments in Syria, and the commissions they generate for the middlemen, makes this unlikely.

@ahhmedshh
Today marks a victory for every family torn apart by Hamas’s cruelty. Abu Obeida, the voice of terror who glorified massacres, kidnappings, and rape, is no longer speaking to the world. His elimination is a precise strike against the machinery of fear that Iran built through Hamas. For Gazans held hostage by this ideology, and for the Middle East seeking stability, this moment is more than military success, it is the removal of a symbol of darkness. A day of relief, a day that proves justice reaches even those who hide behind masks and rhetoric.
Justice delivered.

Roger Bejjani
Apart from HZB ministers, the other useless and destructive ones (very bad choices) are undoubtedly: Tarek Mirti, Ghassan Salame and Nora Bayrakdarian. 3 useful idiots, doing nothing but compromising Lebanon.

Roger Bejjani
So in short Berri is saying that all communities, except Shi’a, have no honor, since they are not armed and don’t have squads of assassins.
For him and for many in the Shi’a community in Lebanon, their honor is limited to holding on weapons that proved totally useless, have caused the occupation of part of Lebanon, the massive destruction of the country and over 10,000 dead…..in a war that HZB has started.
Ya hek sharaf ya bala.