English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News & Editorials
For  September 05/2025
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
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Bible Quotations For today
See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are.The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him
First Letter of John 03/01-10/:"See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God; and that is what we are. The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we will be has not yet been revealed. What we do know is this: when he is revealed, we will be like him, for we will see him as he is. And all who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure. Everyone who commits sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he was revealed to take away sins, and in him there is no sin. No one who abides in him sins; no one who sins has either seen him or known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. Everyone who does what is right is righteous, just as he is righteous. Everyone who commits sin is a child of the devil; for the devil has been sinning from the beginning. The Son of God was revealed for this purpose, to destroy the works of the devil. Those who have been born of God do not sin, because God’s seed abides in them; they cannot sin, because they have been born of God. The children of God and the children of the devil are revealed in this way: all who do not do what is right are not from God, nor are those who do not love their brothers and sisters."

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on September 04-05/2025
Hezbollah’s Sanctification of Its Weapons Is Idolatry… Worshiping a God of Iron Destined to Rust/Elias Bejjani/September 04/2025
Reflections on the 105th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Greater Lebanon/Elias Bejjani/September 02/2025
Lebanon Faces Crunch Point on Hezbollah Arms
4 Killed in Israeli Escalation in South Lebanon
Hezbollah Slams Govt Ahead of its Meeting to Discuss Army Plan on State Monopoly over Arms
Lebanon lays foundation stone for restoration of Mar Mikhael train station in Beirut
Lebanon condemns Israeli attacks on south, calls for international action
The weapons question: Will Friday's Cabinet session ignite Lebanon's streets?
'Little Lebanon': Inside Israel's mock village built to train for war
Israel targets engineering equipment: Lebanon border zone sees new raids
4 killed, 17 hurt in Wednesday's Israeli escalation in south Lebanon
Neglected invoices at Beirut Port: Over $1 million recovered for Lebanese treasury
Hezbollah continues exploiting Canadian vehicular theft and money-laundering schemes/David Daoud/FDD's Long War Journal/September 04/2025
And then there were none: Ending Hezbollah’s weapons/Makram Rabah/English Alarabiya/September 04/2025
Disarming Hizbullah: Much Talk, Little Action/Ehud Yaari//The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune/August 2025
Disarming Hizbullah in Lebanon/Yaakov Lappin//The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune/September 04/2025

Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on September 04-05/2025
Suspected Houthi Attack Targets Ship in Red Sea after Missiles Fire on Israel
Larijani, British Counterpart Discuss ‘Snapback’, Resumption of Nuclear Talks
Iran says Australian ambassador left country, ties downgraded in reciprocal move
Drone strike near Syria’s Aleppo airport kills two: Security official
Thousands of Palestinians defy evacuation orders amid Israeli bombardment on Gaza City
Palestinian Death Toll Passes 64,000, Health Officials Say, as Israel and Hamas Dig in on Demands
Israeli West Bank annexation plans cause regional alarm, spark stern warning from UAE
US told other countries Palestinian recognition will create more problems: Rubio
Israel urges France to reconsider recognizing a Palestinian state
Hamas ready to release hostages but Israel stresses conditions to end war
Egypt, Bahrain Agree to Coordinate Stances on Regional Issues, Bolster Cooperation
Jordan calls for joint Arab action to stop Israel 'changing map of Middle East'
26 Nations Vow to Give Ukraine Postwar Security Guarantees, Macron Says
Trump tells Europe to put economic pressure on China over Ukraine
Europe leaders call Trump after Ukraine security guarantees summit

The Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on September 04-05/2025
Turkey’s Quiet Relationship with ISIS/The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune/September 04/2025
The fake energy revolution ...America’s national security requires hydrocarbons/Clifford D. May/The Washington Times/September 04/2025
Syria Is No Longer a Narco-State, But the Captagon Trade Rolls On/Ahmad Sharawi/FDD/September 04/2025
A Few Remarks on Weapons as Israel's Accomplice in our Murder/Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
Netanyahu Has Found No Country Willing to Take Gaza’s Displaced/Abdulrahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
The ‘Parallel’ Government in Sudan: A Ploy Destined to Fail/Osman Mirghani/Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
Tianjin Summit 2025: The Region at the Center of the New Global Order/Nadim Koteich/Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
From ambition to action: The Middle East’s blueprint for inclusive energy growth/Suhail Mohamed Al Mazrouei/English Alarabiya/September 04/2025
Slected X tweets For September 04/2025

Titles For The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on September 04-05/2025
Reflections on the 105th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Greater Lebanon
Hezbollah’s Sanctification of Its Weapons Is Idolatry… Worshiping a God of Iron Destined to Rust
Elias Bejjani/September 04/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/09/146998/
Hezbollah's transformation into idolatry
It is no longer hidden from anyone that what is called “Hezbollah” is no longer merely an armed militia or a military proxy of Iran, but has in its rhetoric and practices transformed into an idolatrous gang that sanctifies weapons made of iron and worships them as if they were a divine revelation. These weapons, which were deceitfully and falsely presented as a means to defend Lebanon, the resistance, liberate Palestine, and pray in Jerusalem have today become an end in themselves, a sacred text placed above the state and above human beings, to which obedience and loyalty are imposed—even at the cost of the Lebanese people’s lives, dignity, and future.
It is not surprising that such heresies come from a mafia-like gang that has mastered terrorism, crime, and assassinations, traded in every forbidden thing from drugs to money laundering, supported the criminal Assad regime, and carried out terrorist operations in Lebanon and dozens of other countries. Whoever practices this degree of violence and depravity, it is no wonder that he openly declares his blasphemy and denial of God, and boasts that his weapon is “sacred” and tied to the honor, pride, destiny, and very existence of his Lebanese Shiite community—whom, since 1982, has kidnapped and taken hostage, fighting with their youth and sacrificing them in terrorist operations and in Iran’s sectarian and expansionist wars.
Blasphemy and Heresy
This gang calls itself, in blasphemy and heresy, “Party of God,” and in boundless arrogance claims that its weapons are sacred—meaning it does not even understand the meaning of its own name—while worshiping weapons that are mere iron. And iron, no matter how long it lasts, will rust. What kind of god is this that Hezbollah worships, whose end is rust and inevitable extinction? The undeniable truth is that just as the ancient idols fell with their worshippers, this iron idol—these weapons—will also fall, and those who sanctify them will be defeated.
The Phenomenon of Weapon Sanctification in Political Discourse
Since Iran created Hezbollah in 1982, with the cooperation of Hafez al-Assad’s Baathist Syrian regime, It has transformed its weapons from an alleged means of defense into a “sacred end.” This heresy appeared in its ugliest forms in the speeches of this Iranian armed proxy leaders—most recently Sheikh Naim Qassem, who spoke of the weapons as though they were a revealed creed. Similarly, Nabih Berri, head of the Amal Movement and Speaker of the Lebanese Parliament, in his most recent speech also leaned toward the same idolatry, elevating the weapons to the level of gods that must be sanctified and guarded with souls.
But the truth is that these weapons are nothing but iron. And iron, as science, history, and experience all attest, rusts. What kind of “god” is this that is worshiped, when it is destined for decay?
The Bible says: “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything... You shall not bow down to them nor serve them” (Exodus 20:4–5).
And the Qur’an says: “Have you considered al-Lat and al-‘Uzza, and Manat, the third—the other?... They are nothing but names which you have named—you and your fathers—for which Allah has sent down no authority” (Al-Najm 19–23).
These texts clearly reveal that what Hezbollah is doing—sanctifying and worshiping a new idol called “weapons”—is idolatry.
The Consequences of This Sanctification on the Lebanese State
When a tool of war is transformed into a sacred text, political dialogue is abolished and the state is killed. The Lebanese citizen is asked to offer his water, electricity, medicine, and education as sacrifices upon the altar of iron. The state is no longer an end in itself, but merely a detail in service of a mafia-idolatrous project.
History delivers its stern judgment: “Every nation that sanctified its sword ended up burying itself with it.”
The Relationship Between Hezbollah and Iran and Its Influence on Lebanon
Hezbollah has never been a Lebanese party. Since its inception, it has been a military, security, and cultural arm of Iran, established to serve the "Welaet Al Fakeah," not the Lebanese state. Therefore, the sanctification of weapons is merely a reflection of the sanctification of Iran itself, which views Lebanon as a mere colony run from Tehran.
The Political and Social Control the Party Exercises over the Shiite Community
Since 1982, the party has worked to hijack the Shiite community and turn it into a hostage in the service of Iran's project. Lebanese Shiites have been forced to sacrifice their sons in wars that have nothing to do with them: in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Gaza. Entire neighborhoods in the south and the southern suburbs have been transformed into weapons depots and tunnels, and their residents are no longer free citizens, but soldiers in a foreign army.
The losses incurred by Lebanon and the Shiite community as a result of Hezbollah's wars 
Since Hezbollah embroiled Lebanon in absurd wars, the Lebanese people in general, and the Lebanese Shiite community in particular, have paid a heavy price, including thousands of martyrs and victims, unprecedented displacement, the collapse of the economy and infrastructure, massive destruction in the south, the southern suburbs of Beirut, and the Bekaa Valley, impoverishment, and stifling international isolation.
National decision-making has been confiscated and the state has been transformed into a failed entity.
The latest chapter of these disasters was the 2023 war, when Hezbollah declared war on Israel in support of Hamas. The result was a crushing defeat, in which most of its leaders, including Hassan Nasrallah, were killed. The "sacred" party has become a burden, begging for a ceasefire and then refusing to abide by it.
Conclusion
Hezbollah is neither a resistance party nor a movement of faith. It is a gang of deceivers and hypocrites who turned iron into an idol they worship, while true religion forbids the worship of idols. The party knows neither faith nor principle. It is a Persian occupation project seeking to keep Lebanon captive and colonized, using weapons as an eternal excuse for domination.
“Having a form of godliness but denying its power. And from such people turn away” (2 Timothy 3:5).
“And of the people are some who take others as equals to Allah. They love them as they should love Allah” (Al-Baqarah 165).
The god of Hezbollah is a weapon made of iron. And its weapon will rust, and its project will collapse, just as all idols throughout history have collapsed.

Reflections on the 105th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Greater Lebanon
Elias Bejjani/September 02/2025
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2025/09/146914/
105 years ago, the declaration of the State of Greater Lebanon took place. The only historical era in which Lebanon truly enjoyed peace, prosperity, and stability lasted until the early 1970s. After that came disintegration, along with divisions, wars, and chaos triggered by the armed Palestinian invasion, the rise of local nationalist, Arabist, leftist, and jihadist movements, the Nasserist tide, and militant leftist activities.
The process of disintegration and collapse deepened with the Taif Agreement, which was imposed due to an imbalance of local and regional power. Today, Lebanon has reached the peak of its decline and loss of sovereignty under the Iranian occupation, enforced through its jihadist and terrorist military proxy that blasphemously and heretically carries the name “Hezbollah” (“God’s Party”).
From the Mutasarrifate to the State: Contexts of Greater Lebanon’s Birth
The proclamation of Greater Lebanon was a pivotal event in the modern history of the Levant, occurring against the backdrop of the Ottoman Empire’s collapse and the rise of competing national and regional projects. While some local and regional forces sought to realize the “Greater Syria” project under Emir Faisal I, supported by the Arab Revolt, an alternative vision backed by France emerged: the establishment of a distinct political entity in the coastal and mountainous regions of Bilad al-Sham. This paper offers a deep analytical reading of the 105th anniversary of Greater Lebanon’s proclamation, moving beyond traditional historical narratives to deconstruct the root causes, outcomes, and enduring implications of this event on Lebanon’s state structure and identity up to the present day.
The Proclamation of Greater Lebanon: Between Local Aspirations and Colonial Reality
The proclamation of Greater Lebanon was not a unilateral decision imposed by the French Mandate authority; it was the culmination of intersecting local, regional, and international interests. The entity was formally declared through an administrative decree issued by General Henri Gouraud, the French High Commissioner in Syria and Cilicia, on August 31, 1920, which took effect the following day, September 1, 1920.
The Local Role: Patriarch Elias al-Huwayek
Maronite Patriarch Elias Boutros al-Huwayek played a decisive role in the birth of Greater Lebanon, and is considered one of the four most important figures in this context. His vision went beyond creating a mere sectarian refuge for the Maronites; he was firmly convinced of the need for a viable economic entity.
After the famine that devastated Mount Lebanon during World War I, Patriarch al-Huwayek realized that the Mutasarrifate, with its narrow borders, was unable to feed its inhabitants and was plagued by poverty and mass emigration. In response, he led a delegation to the Paris Peace Conference in 1919, where he presented a detailed memorandum on October 24, 1919, demanding expanded borders for Lebanon.
His demands were based on historical and geographical arguments, claiming they coincided with the ancient borders of Phoenicia, as well as those of the Ma‘nid and Shihabid principalities, and with maps from an old French military mission. These claims extended Lebanon’s boundaries from Lake Homs in the north to Lake Huleh in the south, incorporating vital agricultural plains absent from the Mutasarrifate. Thus, Patriarch al-Huwayek was not advocating for a closed sectarian enclave, but for a pluralistic homeland capable of sustaining its people economically.
The French Role: Strategic Support
France had long viewed Lebanon as its foothold in the Middle East, casting itself as the “protector” of Eastern Christians since the 17th century. Supporting al-Huwayek’s demands was therefore not mere benevolence, but part of a strategic plan to cement French influence in the Levant against rising Arab nationalism. The proclamation of Greater Lebanon crowned this French role, with France presenting itself as the protector of minorities in constant tension with their Muslim surroundings. In his speech, General Gouraud praised Patriarch al-Huwayek as “the great Patriarch of Lebanon who descended from his mountain to attend this glorious day.” Thus, the proclamation resulted from the convergence of two wills: a local will for a viable entity and a colonial will for dominance. The economic crisis and famine of Mount Lebanon pressured the Maronite Patriarchate to demand territorial expansion, while France saw in those demands the perfect justification for its military and political presence under the guise of “protecting minorities.” The outcome was the creation of a new entity that satisfied part of the Lebanese population but clashed with the vision of another part.
A New Map and a Divided Identity: Voices of Opposition and Faisal’s Project
Despite local support, the proclamation was met with fierce rejection from most inhabitants of the newly annexed regions. This opposition reflected deep divisions in national visions — divisions that remain alive today.
Annexed Areas and Local Positions
Decree No. 318 defined the new entity’s borders to include the Mutasarrifate of Mount Lebanon plus the districts of Baalbek, the Beqaa, Rachaya, and Hasbaya, as well as the sanjaks of Beirut and Sidon. These regions, which had previously belonged to Ottoman provinces like Damascus and Beirut, suddenly found themselves part of a political entity with different orientations. The general stance of Muslims (both Sunni and Shia) was rejection, though expressed differently across regions:
Tripoli and Beirut: resistance took the form of strikes, civil disobedience, and political opposition led by Sunni notables.
Jabal ‘Amil (South Lebanon) and the Beqaa: resistance was armed, with guerrilla warfare waged against French forces. At the Wadi al-Hujayr Conference, Shia leaders openly pledged allegiance to King Faisal in Damascus.
The roots of this opposition lay in their shift from being part of a ruling majority under the Ottomans to becoming a minority within a Christian-led entity. Many preferred integration into a larger Arab state — “Greater Syria” (Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, and Jordan) — under Emir Faisal’s leadership.
The Faisal Era and the Collapse of the Arab National Project
Prince Faisal ibn al-Husayn was the preferred monarch for opponents of Greater Lebanon. On March 8, 1920, the Syrian General Congress declared Syria’s independence within its “natural borders” and crowned Faisal as king. This Arab nationalist project was the favored alternative for Muslims who rejected the French Mandate and Lebanon’s separation. Yet, the dream was short-lived. In July 1920, France issued Faisal an ultimatum to accept the Mandate; though he reluctantly agreed, French forces advanced on Damascus and defeated the Syrians at the Battle of Maysalun on July 24, 1920. Faisal’s withdrawal from Damascus removed the Arab nationalist alternative that opponents had hoped for. This collapse was not incidental but an essential precondition for the success of the Greater Lebanon project. With Faisal gone, opponents were left with no choice but reluctant acceptance of the new reality.
Ottoman Provinces and Their Reactions to Greater Lebanon
Region (annexed) Previous Ottoman Affiliation Reaction
Baalbek, Beqaa, Rachaya, Hasbaya Province of Damascus Armed resistance (guerrilla war)
Beirut & Sidon Sanjaks Province of Beirut / Province of Haifa Political resistance (strikes, civil disobedience)
Tripoli Province of Tripoli Strong political resistance (strikes, civil disobedience)
This early divergence between armed resistance in the South and Beqaa, and political resistance in coastal cities, reveals deeper fractures within Lebanese society — fractures that predated the state’s creation and continued to resurface thereafter.
The “Golden Age”: Superficial Prosperity, Deep Inequality
After full independence in 1943 and the establishment of the Lebanese Republic under its sectarian system, Lebanon experienced an unprecedented economic and social boom during the 1950s and 1960s. Beirut earned nicknames like “the Paris of the Middle East” and “the California of the Eastern Mediterranean.”
Signs of Prosperity and Modernization
This boom was built on services, particularly banking and tourism. Beirut became a regional financial and tourist hub, attracting visitors from across the world. Cultural and artistic life flourished, with thriving nightclubs, cafés, and theaters. Landmarks like the Phoenicia Hotel and Casino du Liban, which hosted international figures, symbolized the era. Infrastructure also improved, including trams and railways.
Roots of Economic and Social Crisis
But the boom was superficial, masking deep contradictions. The Lebanese economic model was unbalanced — a “dependent capitalism” relying heavily on foreign capital and remittances, centered on services at the expense of agriculture and industry. This produced severe income inequality: families in Beirut and Mount Lebanon disproportionately benefited from opportunities. By 1954, average annual income in Beirut was five times that of rural agricultural families. Just 4% of Lebanese controlled 33% of national income, while most suffered from poverty. These regional and class disparities — with sectarian dimensions — formed a ticking time bomb awaiting ignition.
From Fragile Balance to Civil War: Palestinian Presence and the National Movement
Lebanon’s “golden age” rested on a fragile internal balance, which soon collapsed under regional pressures.
The Rise of Armed Palestinian Presence
Initially, Palestinians in Lebanon lived quietly. But after the 1967 defeat, fedayeen activity escalated, leading to clashes with the Lebanese army in 1968–1969. The situation worsened after the PLO leadership relocated from Jordan to Lebanon in 1970 following Black September.
The Cairo Agreement: A State within a State
Signed on November 3, 1969, between the Lebanese army and the PLO under Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser’s mediation, the Cairo Agreement effectively granted the PLO semi-autonomous authority in the camps and the right to launch armed operations from Lebanon. This created a “state within a state,” undermining sovereignty and dividing Lebanese society between supporters and opponents.
The Lebanese National Movement
The Palestinians were not the sole cause of civil war; they were the spark that ignited pre-existing contradictions. Armed Palestinian presence found strong support from the Lebanese National Movement, a coalition of leftist, Arab nationalist, and Syrian parties led by Druze leader Kamal Jumblatt. The Movement’s goals went beyond supporting Palestinians: it called for abolishing political sectarianism, implementing social and economic reforms, and affirming Lebanon’s Arab identity. It included members from various sects — Muslims, Druze, and even some Christians — showing it was not merely sectarian, but a transformative force challenging Lebanon’s system. Thus, Lebanon’s war was not Lebanese vs. Palestinians, but an internal struggle over Lebanon’s identity and future. The Palestinian cause became a tool in domestic battles, leading to civil war on April 13, 1975.
Key Clauses of the 1969 Cairo Agreement and Consequences for Lebanese Sovereignty
Right to armed struggle from Lebanese territory → undermined sovereignty.
Increased Israeli retaliatory raids → weakened the army.
Creation of autonomous committees in camps → state within a state.
Camps turned into security zones beyond state control.
Facilitated fedayeen movement across borders → weakened border control.
Heightened tensions between army and Palestinian factions.
Failure of the Experience or National Necessity?
One hundred and five years after the proclamation of Greater Lebanon, a critical re-examination is necessary, away from founding myths.
Foundational Myths: Critical Deconstruction
Lebanon’s identity was built on narratives such as being a “refuge for minorities” or a “Mediterranean Phoenician entity.” Its identity remained contested between “Mediterranean” and “Arab”.
Conclusion: Can It Continue?
The Greater Lebanon experiment has not been a total failure, but as proclaimed, it has proven unsustainable. The liberal economic model was fragile, dependent on external wealth, and incapable of ensuring social justice. It deepened inequalities between rich and poor, center and periphery.
The sectarian system, designed as a political solution for power-sharing, was never applied in its spirit; sectarian elites exploited it for influence, obstructing state-building on the basis of citizenship and equality. The problem was not the idea of Lebanon itself, but the flawed foundations on which it was built, and the fact that parts of the Muslim community never truly embraced it, preferring an Arab-Islamic entity.
Centralized sectarianism was never a permanent solution — at best, a temporary fix. Once it became the problem itself, it opened the door to Palestinian, Syrian, and later Iranian penetration, leading to the state’s collapse. Lebanon now requires a “new national formula”, one that establishes a just civil entity based on federalism. But before moving to federalism, a precondition is the complete disarmament of all Lebanese, Iranian and Palestinian militias, and the dismantling of their educational, military, intelligence, and financial structures, so that all communities and regions stand equal. A federal system would guarantee each sectarian and ethnic community its rights, preserve its identity, history, and culture, and enable coexistence within a fair and viable state.

Lebanon Faces Crunch Point on Hezbollah Arms
Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
Lebanon's government is set to discuss a plan on Friday for disarming Hezbollah, a critical juncture in a standoff between the Iran-backed group which is refusing to give up its weapons and rivals who want it to disarm in line with US demands. Calls for Hezbollah's disarmament have taken center stage in Lebanon since last year's devastating war with Israel, which upended a power balance long dominated by the Shiite group. Despite mounting pressure, Hezbollah has rejected any move to dismantle its arsenal, leaving a deep divide between the group and its Shiite ally Amal on the one hand, and other Lebanese, among them leading Christian and Sunni politicians. Friday's cabinet session takes place against a backdrop of an escalation in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon, which killed four people on Wednesday, adding to fears in Lebanon of further attacks if Hezbollah does not disarm. The Israeli military said it targeted a site where Hezbollah stored engineering tools being used for "the organization's recovery". Longstanding tensions in Lebanon over Hezbollah's arms have sharpened since the administration led by President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam tasked the US-backed army on August 5 with devising a plan to establish a state monopoly on arms by the end of the year. It is not yet clear how Friday's session will pan out. With the army keen to avoid confrontation with Hezbollah, the plan could avoid any disarmament timeline, a diplomat and a Lebanese source said. Any cabinet decision opposed by Hezbollah is likely to prompt a walk-out by Shiite ministers loyal to the group and Amal, stripping the government of sectarian consensus. One possibility could be to delay a vote on the plan. The army, drawn from Lebanon's mosaic of religious groups, split along sectarian lines at the start of the 1975-90 civil war, and has been widely regarded as the guarantor of civil peace since being rebuilt after that conflict. Israel last week signaled it would scale back its military presence in southern Lebanon if the army took action to disarm Hezbollah. But Hezbollah has ruled out disarming, saying its weapons protect Lebanon from Israeli attack. Senior Iranian official Ali Akbar Velayati last month criticized Beirut's moves on disarmament. Hezbollah politician Mohammed Raad said on Wednesday it was "imperative" for Lebanese authorities to refrain from agreeing on any plans regarding Hezbollah's arms. A US proposal discussed by Beirut last month foresaw Hezbollah's disarmament by the end of the year, along with Israel's withdrawal and an end to its military operations in Lebanon. It also held out the prospect of economic support. A source close to Hezbollah said Lebanon faced mounting US pressure to implement the proposal, but that the group continued to communicate, including to the army, that it would neither hand in its arms nor allow anyone to take them.
'BALL OF FIRE'
Amal leader and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri had been insisting that any discussion happen without a deadline, the source said. Berri, in an August 31 speech, indicated that the Shiite parties were ready to discuss the fate of Hezbollah's arms, but "within the framework of a calm and consensual dialogue".He said it was "nationally unacceptable to throw the ball of fire into the lap of the Lebanese army" by requiring it to tackle the long taboo issue of Hezbollah arms too abruptly. A US-backed ceasefire agreed in November 2024 required Hezbollah's disarmament, beginning in areas south of the Litani River, the area adjacent to Israel. Hezbollah says the deal only applies to that region and that it has handed over weapons to Lebanese troops in that area. Israeli forces continue to occupy five hilltops in the south and to carry out airstrikes on Hezbollah fighters and arms depots.

4 Killed in Israeli Escalation in South Lebanon
Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed at least four people on Wednesday, the health ministry and state media said. The health ministry reported four killed and 17 wounded, including children, in separate Israeli strikes across the south. The Israeli military did not immediately comment on all incidents, but said it killed Hezbollah member Al-Munim Moussa Sweidan in a strike on Yater. The Israeli army later added that it struck "a Hezbollah site in the Ansariyeh area," alleging the site stored "engineering vehicles" intended to rebuild the group's capabilities. The Lebanese health ministry said that at least 10 people were wounded in Ansariyeh, including three children. Israel regularly bombs Lebanon despite a November ceasefire that ended over a year of hostilities with Hezbollah. The ceasefire stipulates that only the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers can deploy in south Lebanon, excluding both the Israeli army and Hezbollah from the region. However, Israel has maintained troops in five locations it deems strategic. Lebanon's government is expected to convene on Friday to discuss the Lebanese army's plan to disarm Hezbollah, a mission the cabinet assigned it in early August.

Hezbollah Slams Govt Ahead of its Meeting to Discuss Army Plan on State Monopoly over Arms
Beirut: Caroline Akoum/Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
Hezbollah has intensified its criticism of the Lebanese government ahead of its meeting on Friday that is dedicated to discussing the army’s plan on limiting the possession of weapons in the country to the state, which effectively calls on the Iran-backed party to disarm.
The government had last month tasked the army with drafting the plan, which would see the disarmament of all armed groups before the end of the year. Hezbollah has slammed the government decision and is refusing to lay down its weapons, launching a fierce campaign against the government, especially Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, that has taken a threatening tone. Before being weakened by Israel during their war last year, Hezbollah would simply dismiss government decisions that don’t align with its interests, saying that they do not concern it. Now, with the massive political changes in Lebanon and the region, the party is unable to ignore government decisions. This is reflected in its stances where it is calling on the government to go back on its decision, when in the past it would have simply ignored them. This shift demonstrates Hezbollah’s realization of the seriousness of the government’s intention to disarm it and impose state monopoly over arms. Former Minister Rashid Derbas recalled how the ministers of Hezbollah and its ally the Amal movement walked out in protest of the government session that took the disarmament decision. In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, Derbas said Hezbollah “has grown convinced that the decision has become a local and regional reality. Even though force has not been used to enforce it, the party is not taking it lightly.”“Hezbollah cannot remain in denial with the current political situation in Lebanon, which largely backs the government decision,” he added. “The government today is in charge of negotiations, and it is in control after it used to be the mediator between Hezbollah and international envoys,” he noted. On the fierce campaign against Salam, Derbas said the government “is not worried.” He revealed that he has been in contact with government officials, and that the stances of President Joseph Aoun and the cabinet make it evident that “everyone is commitment to the decision and going ahead with it.”“Everyone needs to act rationally, especially given the pressure Lebanon is coming under, most notably from Israel,” Derbas added.
Hezbollah attacks
Hezbollah has throughout the week kept up its attacks on the government and Salam.
On Tuesday, through its Al-Manar television, Hezbollah made an open threat, saying that “if the government remains insistent on the disarmament, then the party may not even cooperate in area south of the Litani” where Hezbollah is supposed to lay down its arms in line with the ceasefire agreement with Israel. It also accused Salam of seeking “the country’s destruction” and that he has turned “a deaf ear to internal and foreign advice,” revealed sources close to Hezbollah. On Wednesday, Hezbollah’s Loyalty to the Resistance parliamentary bloc said: “Defending Lebanon and protecting its national sovereignty demand that the government reconsider its decisions and cease handing out free gifts to the enemy.”“It must go back on its un-national decision about the resistance’s [Hezbollah] weapons and refrain from adopting plans related to this issue,” it said. “It must go back to reason and the dialogue that Berri had proposed to reach a solution to the crisis that the government landed itself and the country in due to its compliance with foreign dictates.”
Grand Mufti Derian
On the other side of the divide, Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdel Latif Derian declared that imposing state monopoly over arms “is a purely Lebanese demand.”Speaking on the occasion of the Prophet Mohammed’s birthday, he said: “We have been fortunate that that our state institutions have come together amid such regional upheaval. We have stood behind the president’s swearing in speech and government’s policy statement that called for reclaiming the state and its institutions, army and weapons. This should have happened years and years ago.”“We may have differences over small or large matters, but we must not differ over reclaiming the state from corruption and the weapons,” he added. “There can be no country with two armies. The militias present in Arab countries have obstructed the rise of the state for all citizens. The alliance between the weapons and corruption can no longer control Lebanon,” he stressed. “We must not differ over the state and army. Accusations of treason and dismissing the interests of the nation and its authority are unacceptable. The decision of war and peace must remain in the hands of the state and its institutions,” he urged.

Lebanon lays foundation stone for restoration of Mar Mikhael train station in Beirut
LBCI/September 04/2025
Public Works Minister Fayez Rasamny on Thursday laid the foundation stone for the restoration of the historic Mar Mikhael train station in Beirut, joined by Culture Minister Ghassan Salameh, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, and Italian Embassy chargé d’affaires Silvia Tosi. Rasamny highlighted the symbolic value of Lebanon’s long-dormant railway network, saying the tracks “were never just iron and stone, but bridges that connected cities, people and economies. They carried ambition and innovation, and remain etched in our collective memory.”He said the revival of the station represents more than a renovation effort. “What matters today is that life has returned to this station, and with it the hope that these tracks will one day reconnect our cities,” he told attendees. The project, supported by international partners, aims not only to preserve the station’s historic buildings and trains but also to transform the site into a space for memory, culture, and creativity—while keeping it ready for any future revival of Lebanon’s railway network. US backs $100M Super Tucano support for Lebanon in key show of military aid. “It is more than a restoration project,” Rasamny said. “It is an act of resilience. This place, long neglected and scarred by the tragedy of August 4, is being reborn as a space for life, art, and community.”

Lebanon condemns Israeli attacks on south, calls for international action
LBCI/September 04/2025
Lebanon’s Foreign Ministry condemned Israel’s repeated attacks, which struck several southern towns and villages on Wednesday, killing and wounding civilians, including children.
The attacks, it said, also targeted international peacekeeping forces operating in Lebanon, in a clear and direct violation of international law, U.N. Security Council Resolution 1701, and the ceasefire agreement, representing an open challenge to international will.
The ministry called on the international community to pressure Israel to halt its ongoing attacks and to respect Lebanon’s sovereignty, territory, and citizens. It also reaffirmed its commitment to the safety of UNIFIL forces and their role in maintaining stability in southern Lebanon.

The weapons question: Will Friday's Cabinet session ignite Lebanon's streets?
LBCI/September 04/2025
Hours before Friday afternoon's Cabinet session, which is set to debate a controversial plan to place all weapons under state authority, uncertainty loomed over whether the meeting would pass without unrest spilling into the streets. According to LBCI, President Joseph Aoun has been working to ease political tensions and prevent potential security incidents, amid threats of partisan protests that could provoke counter-demonstrations. Despite rising rhetoric between rival political forces, no party has formally called for street action. Minister Mohammed Haidar told LBCI that both Amal and Hezbollah favor dialogue over street pressure. Still, security agencies are not leaving anything to chance. Starting Thursday night, the Lebanese Army, in coordination with other security bodies, will step up precautionary measures, especially around sensitive areas. The army will raise its alert level and prepare for possible flashpoints.
Lebanon's PM Salam pledges cabinet session on waste crisis after Bchannine landfill fire. The central question remains whether ministers from Amal and Hezbollah will join discussions on the weapons issue. Haidar said all options are still on the table, particularly in light of ongoing Israeli strikes in recent days on areas south and north of the Litani River.Sources close to the presidency say Aoun is keeping communication channels open with political blocs to secure a consensus-based Cabinet meeting. The military plan, expected to be presented Friday, reportedly avoids specific timelines but reiterates Lebanon's commitment to the principle of exclusive state control of arms. Supporters argue the plan would increase international pressure on Israel to withdraw from occupied positions and halt its attacks in Lebanon. Political sources stress that approving the plan does not mean unilateral Lebanese disarmament, but rather ties implementation to conditions involving Israel, Syria, and the United States. However, Hezbollah has rejected proposals so far, insisting on reversing decisions made in the Cabinet's August 5 and 7 sessions that it views as undermining Lebanon's negotiating position. Amal and Hezbollah ministers have linked their participation to last-minute consultations. If guarantees are secured that no binding timetable will be imposed, they may attend for the record. Otherwise, boycotting the session remains a possibility. According to political leaks, Army Commander General Rodolph Haykal is expected to address logistical challenges, raise the question of Hezbollah's weapons, and seek the government's stance on handling public unrest if the plan moves forward. While the army will lay out the framework, sources highlight that execution will ultimately depend on the political leadership.

'Little Lebanon': Inside Israel's mock village built to train for war
LBCI/September 04/2025
Israeli military officials described recent threats of launching 120 simultaneous strikes against Lebanon as a "preemptive deterrent," warning of devastating retaliation if Hezbollah attacks either inside Israel or against its forces stationed in occupied Lebanese territory.
The threat coincided with a wave of Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday, underscoring Tel Aviv's readiness for escalation. Alongside the warnings, the Israeli army released images of what it called its largest northern training facility, built to simulate combat with Lebanon.
The mock village, constructed on the ruins of the Syrian town of Zaoura in the occupied Golan Heights, has been dubbed "Little Lebanon." It includes tunnels, residential towers, narrow alleys monitored by dozens of cameras, and fortified urban settings meant to replicate the battlegrounds of southern Lebanon. Israel's army conducts bulldozing operation near southern Lebanon village, gunfire reported in separate incident. The site, once a minefield cleared after previous wars, has hosted repeated training drills. Just two weeks ago, Israeli commando units completed an intensive exercise there. The simulations feature mountain and underground warfare, overseen by officers with direct combat experience against Hezbollah during the last war. While Israel presented the drills as a deterrent message to Hezbollah, some analysts interpreted them as a signal to Washington about Israel's determination to maintain pressure in the region. The ongoing military preparations came as Israeli media leaked claims that Mossad operatives had carried out missions deep inside Beirut during the recent war, allegedly gathering intelligence that contributed to the assassination of Hezbollah's Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah. By framing September 27 as a "historic turning point," Israeli officials sought to emphasize that their campaign had not only weakened Hezbollah's military infrastructure but also dealt a heavy blow to its morale.

Israel targets engineering equipment: Lebanon border zone sees new raids
LBCI/September 04/2025
In recent hours, Israel has expanded its targeting of what it calls engineering equipment used by Hezbollah in attempts to rebuild its military infrastructure, according to the Israeli army. Notably, one of these strikes destroyed a gathering of such equipment in Ansariyeh, a town in the Sidon district, located dozens of kilometers from the border area. Most of the attacks on this equipment, however, occur in the border zone, specifically within a range extending from the border line up to a maximum depth of three kilometers from the Blue Line. In two statements issued on Wednesday, the Israeli army reported attacks targeting engineering equipment in Ansariyeh, Yaroun, and Rab el-Thalathine, claiming these activities violated agreements between Israel and Lebanon. The army said the site in Ansariyeh was used by Hezbollah to store engineering equipment intended to rebuild the group and carry out what it called “terrorist plans.”
Local, regional, and international observers of the south generally interpret these strikes on engineering equipment—especially in the border zone—as Israel’s effort to maintain a buffer zone along the border, up to three kilometers deep, and to prevent any reconstruction activity within that area. Lebanese security sources said they believe the strike on the Ansariyeh site may have been intended as a strong message to those possessing such equipment not to move it into the border area. They added it could also be related to equipment that previously left the site and operated in the border zone, where it had already been targeted.

4 killed, 17 hurt in Wednesday's Israeli escalation in south Lebanon
Agence France Presse/September 04/2025
Israeli strikes on southern Lebanon killed at least four people on Wednesday, the health ministry and state media said, after a morning Israeli drone attack on United Nations peacekeepers. Israel regularly bombs Lebanon despite a November ceasefire that ended over a year of hostilities with Iran-backed Hezbollah. The health ministry reported four killed and 17 wounded, including children, in separate Israeli strikes across the south.
The Israeli military did not immediately comment on all incidents, but said it killed Hezbollah member Al-Munim Moussa Sweidan in a strike on Yater, south Lebanon.
The Israeli army later added that it struck "a Hezbollah site in the Ansariyeh area of southern Lebanon," alleging the site stored "engineering vehicles" intended to rebuild the Lebanese armed group's capabilities. The Lebanese health ministry said that at least 10 people were wounded in Ansariyeh, including three children.
'Serious violation' -
Early on Wednesday, the United Nations Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) said that Israeli drones dropped four grenades near their peacekeepers in Lebanon a day prior.
"One grenade impacted within 20 meters (yards) and three within approximately 100 meters of U.N. personnel and vehicles," it added, reporting no casualties. The Israeli military said troops "deployed several (stun) grenades" in response to "suspicious activity," adding that "no intentional fire was directed at UNIFIL personnel." The U.N. force said Israel had been informed in advance of its plans to carry out road clearance work in that area, southeast of the border village of Marwahin. It said endangering the lives of peacekeepers was "unacceptable and a serious violation" of a 2006 U.N. Security Council resolution that formed the basis of last year's ceasefire. UNIFIL has been deployed in south Lebanon since 1978 to separate it from Israel. Under the November agreement, it has been assisting the Lebanese Army to dismantle Hezbollah military infrastructure in the south.
France condemned Tuesday's incident, calling for "the protection of the peacekeepers."
Qatar called for "an urgent investigation into this attack and for those responsible to be brought to justice." The U.N. Security Council voted last week for peacekeepers to leave Lebanon in 2027, allowing only one final extension of its mandate after pressure from Israel and its U.S. ally to wind up the nearly 50-year-old force. Last year's ceasefire stipulates that only the Lebanese Army and U.N. peacekeepers can deploy in south Lebanon, excluding both the Israeli army and Hezbollah from the region. However, Israel has maintained troops in five locations it deems strategic. Lebanon's government is expected to convene on Friday to discuss the Lebanese Army's plan to disarm Hezbollah, a mission the cabinet assigned it in early August.

Neglected invoices at Beirut Port: Over $1 million recovered for Lebanese treasury
LBCI/September 04/2025
More than $1 million has entered the Lebanese treasury in recent days, not from new taxes on citizens or additional fees. These funds are unpaid invoices that had not been collected from their owners, even though they became due in 2022. Due to negligence and administrative lapses, they were left uncollected. According to information obtained by LBCI, at the end of June, the State Security office at the Port of Beirut received reports that nearly 50 companies operating in the free zone had not paid invoices due since 2022. The invoices covered rented port spaces and water and electricity fees. The Lebanese State Security, led by Major Joseph Naddaf, launched an investigation and found that the invoices had gone uncollected because four employees from the Beirut Port management committee failed to perform their duties. Lebanese PM Salam from Beirut Port: No one is above accountability. The four employees included the head of the insurance and contracts department, the head of the free zone department, the head of the contracts division, and a fourth staff member. The employees admitted to State Security investigators that they had neglected their duties, though they said it was not intentional and that they had not received bribes to overlook the invoices. When LBCI asked Beirut Port Director General Omar Itani why the employees’ work had not been monitored, he said the necessary measures had been taken: the employees were removed from their positions, several days’ pay were deducted, and formal warnings were issued. The four employees were referred to the public financial prosecution office, and the invoices were reissued, with the companies paying the amounts owed. Officials noted that the most important takeaway from the case is that the Lebanese state is not bankrupt. It has substantial funds that have been wasted but could be invested if properly managed, before requesting aid and donations from the international community.

Hezbollah continues exploiting Canadian vehicular theft and money-laundering schemes
David Daoud/FDD's Long War Journal/September 04/2025
https://www.fdd.org/analysis/2025/09/02/hezbollah-continues-exploiting-canadian-vehicular-theft-and-money-laundering-schemes/
Last week, the Canadian government issued its 2025 report assessing money laundering and terrorist financing risks in Canada. The report noted that Hezbollah was using both illicit and otherwise legal channels in the country to fund its activities in Lebanon—including exploiting the charitable and non-profit sectors and trade-based money laundering techniques.
One noted example was Hezbollah’s continued utilization of the used car trade to raise revenue. The report stated that the Port of Montreal in Quebec Province is a “known link where luxury vehicles are shipped to Lebanon, financially supporting Hezbollah.”
Hezbollah’s ties to the automobile trade
US law enforcement publicized Hezbollah’s longstanding link to the transnational automobile trade over a decade ago. In 2011, the US district attorney for the Southern District of New York and the Drug Enforcement Administration filed a joint complaint “against a Lebanese bank and a network of Hezbollah-connected companies, including U.S. shipping and used-car firms.”The suit alleged, among other things, that from January 1, 2007 to early 2011, “Lebanese Financial Institutions” wired at least $329 million to approximately 30 car buyers in the United States—mainly in Michigan, but also in Tennessee, Maryland, and Connecticut— through Lebanese banks and exchange houses for the “Purchase and Shipment of Used Cars to West Africa as Part of [a] Money Laundering Scheme.”The cars were transported from the United States by Michigan-based transportation company Cybamar Swiss GMBH, LCC, owned by Hezbollah operative Oussama Salhab and his relatives, to West Africa, which is home to a large Lebanese Shiite diaspora with strong links, including financial ties, to Hezbollah. From there, the cash from the sales, along with proceeds from narcotics trafficking, was funneled to Lebanon through a Hezbollah-controlled system of money couriers, cash smugglers, hawalas, and currency brokers, with the group taking “substantial portions of the cash.” Cash was also often received at Beirut’s Rafic Hariri International Airport, where Hezbollah-controlled security safeguarded its passage to the group.
The complaint alleged that this used-car and money-laundering infrastructure was also used to conceal and funnel hundreds of millions of dollars in narcotics proceeds from Latin America and West Africa to Lebanon. Hezbollah couriers were paid fees for facilitating the laundering of the proceeds, which US officials alleged reached as much as $200 million a month in business.
Hezbollah in Canada
Hezbollah has long used Canada as a consistent hub for fundraising and money laundering. One of the financial entities involved in this money-laundering scheme was the now-defunct Lebanese Canadian Bank (LCB), where much of the cash was deposited, and Hezbollah’s Yousser Company and Martyr Foundation maintained accounts among almost 200 other potentially Hezbollah-linked accounts. Based in Beirut, LCB was founded in 1960 as Banque des Activities Economiques SAL and was a subsidiary of the Royal Bank of Canada Middle East from 1968 to 1988, prior to becoming a privately owned Lebanese bank. The bank maintained 35 branches in Lebanon and a representative office in Montreal, Canada. However, Hezbollah’s presence in Canada predates the revelation of the scheme involving LCB by over a decade. In October 2002, Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) documents revealed that Hezbollah had been using Canada as an offshore base for raising money and purchasing supplies to conduct and record attacks against Israel. The group laundered tens of thousands of dollars through Canadian banks while drawing on the accounts to buy military equipment.
These operations stretched back at least to the early 1990s, involving Lebanese Shiite Hezbollah operatives who had immigrated to Canada with their families. They used Canada to buy materiel, forge travel documents, raise money, and steal luxury vehicles—activities similar to those noted in the 2025 report. Per CSIS, in 1999 and 2000, Hezbollah directly sent “shopping lists” to these agents operating as part of its networks in Vancouver and Montreal, who filled the orders and sent the equipment back to Lebanon in courier packages.
Additionally, these networks used Canadian banks, like Bank of Nova Scotia, to move hundreds of thousands of dollars to finance purchases for Hezbollah. They also took out life insurance policies on Hezbollah operatives who were later killed in clashes with Israeli forces in Lebanon.
As a result, Ottawa proscribed Hezbollah in its entirety on December 10, 2002—but this listing failed to completely curb the group’s activities in Canada or weed out its operatives. In 2011, The National Post reported on Hezbollah’s potential involvement in an extortion racket that, among other activities, used local agents to threaten Lebanese expatriates into purchasing vehicles that were intended to be shipped to Lebanon through the Port of Montreal.
The current significance of vehicular theft for Hezbollah
As a result of its recent war with Israel, Hezbollah is suffering an acute financial crisis. Significant portions of the group’s once-massive arsenal and financial assets were destroyed by the Israelis. More importantly, however, the conflict decimated large swathes of the predominantly Shiite areas of Lebanon in which the group had ensconced itself. Unless the aftermath of this destruction is remedied soon, Hezbollah risks confronting a massive wave of Shiite anger that could deprive the group of critical social support at a time when Lebanon is considering pathways to the group’s disarmament.
A March 2025 assessment by the World Bank estimated that the reconstruction and recovery needs following the conflict stood at $11 billion. Some reports indicate that Iran immediately transferred $1 billion to Hezbollah via a regional country at the onset of the Lebanon-Israel ceasefire on November 27, 2024. However, Iranian funding has been hampered by Tehran’s own financial constraints, the curtailment of Hezbollah’s Syrian lifeline after Bashar al Assad’s downfall, and Israeli operations in Lebanon that have forced Beirut to limit Iranian efforts to finance the group.
This situation has left Hezbollah scrambling for sources of funding to cover the difference. For example, since the November 2024 ceasefire, Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem has repeatedly placed the onus of rebuilding on the Lebanese government—to shift both the financial burden of reconstruction onto Beirut, as well as the potential public anger if assistance is delayed.
However, the Lebanese government’s ability to finance reconstruction adequately also seems to be a non-starter, as Lebanon’s traditional financiers, like the United States, France, and the Gulf States, have been withholding funding from Beirut for years, absent significant political and economic reforms, including curtailing Hezbollah. Hezbollah has leaned into its connection with criminal enterprises while being financially constrained in the past. This makes the group’s financial reliance on its network of diffuse operatives in Western countries even more significant—where they can readily take advantage of “strong, open and stable econom[ies] and financial sector[s]” that, per the 2025 report, have made Canada an “an attractive source, destination, and transit point for proceeds of crime for both organized groups and third-party enablers.” Through these networks, only tacitly linked to Hezbollah, the group can exploit the strengths of Western economies and financial streams to raise funds in countries where it is otherwise proscribed.
Canada is considered a hub for automobile theft and international smuggling, and Hezbollah stands to benefit from tapping into that preexisting stream of criminal activity. Per INTERPOL’s 2024 numbers, “Canada ranks among the top 10 countries” for car theft. According to a 2017 study by the Insurance Bureau of Canada, a significant portion of the tens of thousands of vehicles stolen annually in Canada are smuggled abroad by organized crime groups, including to West Africa via Italy and Lebanon.
Meanwhile, in the intervening years, car theft and automobile smuggling to foreign destinations have been on the rise in Canada. The Groupement des asseurers automobiles, a group of automobile insurers in Quebec, noted a 55 percent increase in automobile thefts in the province between 2013 and 2023, in what the Insurance Bureau of Canada subsequently described as a “national crisis.” Other statistics put the number at 58 percent. Ontario Province experienced a 48 percent increase in car theft in the same period.
The Port of Montreal is considered “the principal exit port for stolen vehicles going overseas,” according to the National Odometer and Title Fraud Enforcement Association, which listed Beirut as a significant destination for stolen cars. According to Ben Jillett, a former Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer who now works with the Insurance Bureau of Canada, theft rings will often use stolen identities to lease or buy vehicles on credit and then drive them straight into containers or staging areas for later shipment.
In just one 2024 action, “Operation Vector,” Canadian authorities recovered 598 vehicles valued at $34.5 million that were set to be smuggled through the Port of Montreal for sale in foreign markets, including the Middle East.
The year prior, 1,000 cars were similarly recovered, a “great number” of which were reportedly in the process of being shipped to Montreal. By April 2023, Canadian law enforcement had seized 53 vehicles valued at $2.6 million—mostly new high-end SUVs and pickup trucks—that were loaded onto containers bound overseas. Hezbollah, as one criminal actor among many tapped into this illicit financial stream, is likely taking only a fraction of the proceeds from the resale of cars successfully smuggled out of Canada. However, even a fraction is significant now, as it allows the group to continue buying time and delaying a potential Shiite backlash until a more permanent solution to its financial constraints presents itself.
**David Daoud is Senior Fellow at at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies where he focuses on Israel, Hezbollah, and Lebanon affairs.

And then there were none: Ending Hezbollah’s weapons
Makram Rabah/English Alarabiya/September 04/2025
On Friday, September 5, Lebanon’s cabinet will take up the Lebanese Armed Forces’ (LAF) proposed timeline and mechanism to disarm Hezbollah. If adopted and enforced, this plan would convert a long-overdue principle into state practice: in a republic, there is only one legal bearer of arms, and it serves the elected government—not a foreign agenda. For Washington, this is more than a regional subplot. It’s a test of whether American diplomacy can help an ally reclaim the monopoly over force and stabilize the frontier between war and normalcy.
This moment has been building. In early August, the government approved the objectives of a framework to disarm Hezbollah and restore unambiguous state primacy. Hezbollah’s allies exited the cabinet room; the system did not. That matters. For years, Lebanon’s opponents have relied on a simple illusion: that the state can be endlessly gamed, vetoed, or rented. August punctured that illusion; Friday can rupture it—if the cabinet endorses a credible, sequenced plan from the army and commits to enforcing it.
Israel has signaled that credible Lebanese action would be matched by reductions—and eventual withdrawal—at several forward positions in the south. That step-for-step logic is precisely what denies spoilers their favorite script. The more the Lebanese state asserts control, the less oxygen there is for Hezbollah to justify what remains of its decrepit arsenal. The more Israel translates its signals into visible moves in response to Lebanese state action, the harder it becomes for Hezbollah to sell fatalism at home.
Some will ask whether a plan on paper can move a militia entrenched in neighborhoods and narratives. The answer begins with clarity about institutions. The LAF is not a neutral referee between “two sides.” It is an organ of the Lebanese state, commanded by the cabinet, funded by the taxpayer, and bound to implement government decisions. Disarmament of a non-state militia is not “mission creep” for the army; it is the mission the constitution implies and the cabinet directs. Hezbollah cannot be allowed to hide behind the uniform it has spent years undermining—claiming that dismantling an Iranian franchise somehow contradicts the national army’s function. It does the opposite: it restores that function.
What must follow from Friday’s session is a disciplined sequence that drains mythology from the gun and re-threads authority across the map. This begins not with theatrical raids but with state primacy at the logistics points that turned “informal sovereignty” into impunity: Crossings, smuggling routes, storage and transit nodes. The LAF can do this, if given political cover at home and targeted backing abroad. Success here has a multiplier effect: When the arteries are under law, the limbs lose strength.
Washington’s role is decisive, and its posture is evolving in the right direction. The expected return to of US envoy Morgan Ortagus to Beirut next week – alongside the Commander of US Central Command (CENTCOM) – is more than a diplomatic calendar entry. It is a signal that the United States is aligning political leverage with military-to-military support to give the Lebanese state both the backbone and the tools to execute.
Ortagus has been clear-eyed and public-minded, speaking to citizens as much as to elites; pairing that approach with CENTCOM’s practical cooperation underscores that America’s support to Lebanon and its armed forces is robust, real, and conditioned on the state’s own will to act.
That US support should translate into enablers tied to performance, not platitudes. Mobility, intelligence support, engineering assets, non-lethal kit – these are the building blocks that let the LAF interdict, hold, and repeat. But assistance must be calibrated to a ladder of milestones that the government itself publishes and enforces. If the milestones are met, the ladder rises; if they slip without cause, support pauses. Conditionality is not punishment – it is how friends help friends keep promises.
Meanwhile, the “rules-based drawdown” in the south should be exactly that: Rules-based. As Beirut meets benchmarks, Israel reduces its footprint according to a transparent sequence coordinated with the UN and key donors. The point is to prevent a vacuum. Peacekeepers cannot hold what the state will not own; nor should they be asked to.
There will be spoilers. Some will be loud – threats of civil war, sectarian panic, invented red lines. Others will be subtler – bureaucratic sand in the gears, judicial foot-dragging, the ritual claim that “now is not the time.” Here the US and Europe should be blunt with all parties, friend and foe: Actions that endanger UN personnel or obstruct the LAF’s mandate are not cost-free. Conversely, actions that protect UNIFIL, enable the army, and lower the temperature will be recognized and reinforced.
Security without reform is a sandcastle. Reform without security is a slogan. Lebanon needs both, together. If the state restores the rule that only its agents may bear arms, investors will test the waters they have long avoided. If the cabinet couples disarmament with practical measures on customs, ports, courts, and municipal finance, the gun loses its last alibi: That it is the only thing that “works” in a broken country. It never was; it only crowded out what could. The skeptics will say that Hezbollah will never yield, so nothing matters. But the party already failed to block the cabinet’s August decisions. It failed to mobilize a national street veto. And it has yet to explain why a movement once marketed as “resistance” now resists nothing so fiercely as the laws of its own country. This is not 2008, when domestic muscle could be masked as “consensus.” It is not 2016, when foreign cash bought time. The money is gone; the patience is gone; and – if Friday lands well – the impunity may be next.
Clarity cuts through noise. The LAF answers to the cabinet; the cabinet speaks for the state; the state alone holds the right to use force. Disarming an Iranian militia is not a favor to a foreign power; it is fidelity to Lebanon’s constitution and an investment in its recovery. The path is not easy, but it is visible. Publish the plan. Name the dates. Secure the routes. Enforce the law. Match every Lebanese state step with an Israeli step that shrinks the space for escalation and expands the space for normal life.
If we succeed, we will argue – at long last – about municipal budgets and power plants rather than hilltops and rockets. That is what victory looks like in Lebanon: The freedom to fight over boring things. Friday is the hinge. America can steady it; the army can swing it; only the state can walk through.

Disarming Hizbullah: Much Talk, Little Action
Ehud Yaari//The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune/August 2025/
The new Lebanese president, General Joseph Aoun, says in closed-door meetings that he has no intention whatsoever of sending his military to clash with Hizbullah. He insists that implementing the Lebanese government’s agreement to disarm Hizbullah must be preceded by dialogue and solid understandings.
Aoun, as military chief before becoming president in January, instructed his staff officers to present him with a plan for collecting Hizbullah’s weapons by September 2. Yet the government now has conveyed to the US Special Envoy Tom Barrack and deputy Morgan Ortagus that collection of arms cannot be completed by the end of the year, as initially promised in Prime Minister Nawaf Salam’s cabinet statements. Hizbullah, for its part, falls back on its old call to discuss national “defense strategy,” highlighting its role in resistance to Israel. At the same time, Sheikh Hasan Nasrallah’s pale successor, Naim Qassem, vows to refuse handing over the organization’s still impressive arsenal, repeatedly threatening to fight the Lebanese army and warning of civil war. President Aoun knows perfectly well that the military chief of staff who replaced him in March, General Rodolphe Haykal, was selected over other well-qualified commanders simply because he was Hizbullah’s preferred candidate. Haykal had developed a close working relationship with Hizbullah operatives when he commanded troops in the South Litani sector. On August 9, when a Lebanese army unit arrived at a Hizbullah bunker in south Lebanon, searching for rockets, Hizbullah operatives detonated a remotely-controlled booby trap, killing six US-trained Lebanese demolition experts and wounding others. Neither the government nor Hizbullah called this an accidental explosion. On August 14, addressing a crowd of followers, Sheikh Naim Qassem warned that his troops would fight “a Karbala battle if necessary.” [Note: A reference to the historic battle in which Hussein, the third Shi’ite imam and grandson of prophet Muhammad, encircled by much larger forces, essentially chose to commit suicide by means of fighting a hopeless battle]. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, who acted extensively on the PLO’s behalf before serving as a judge on the International Criminal Court in The Hague, has repeatedly said that weapons will only be possessed by the state. However, Hizbullah doesn’t appear to take him too seriously after forcing him to appoint Hizbullah supporters to a number of key security jobs. The “Party” [al-Hizb in Arabic] as it is known in Lebanon counts on the relative fragility of Salam’s narrow power base within his Sunni community.
US Special Envoy Barrack has publicly demanded that Israel take preliminary steps: a gradual withdrawal from the IDF’s five hilltop positions in south Lebanon and a slowing down of the pace of air attacks on Hizbullah attempts to reconstitute their strongholds, both north and south of the Litani River. But Israel should not agree to any gesture or concession, as long as the promises of disarmament are not translated into significant actions; Israeli concessions are not a pre-condition to the longstanding Lebanese agreement to disarm Hizbullah.
In the Israeli northern border village of Metulla (my family’s roots), only 40 percent of the 2,800 residents, all of whom were evacuated following Hizbullah rockets attacks, have begun to return. Metulla will be hard pressed to recover without an IDF protective presence on the adjacent Hammamis Ridge across the border in Lebanon.
Israel’s five outposts inside southern Lebanon.
For Metulla’s residents, replacing the IDF presence inside the Lebanon border with a Lebanese army unit would be an acceptable solution only after Hizbullah loses its military wing. The same is true for the other four outposts.
The US will have to apply significant pressure on Aoun and Salam in order to encourage them to stop dragging their feet. That should include withholding economic aid to the bankrupt country and sanctioning those responsible for the delays, especially Hizbullah’s main ally, the once strong Amal movement, and its leader Nabih Berri, the speaker of Lebanon’s parliament. Flipping the 87 year-old Berri would isolate the “Party” and endanger its prospects in the general elections.
Israel has its own set of incentives to encourage Hizbullah to hand over its weapons. The IDF can expand the scope of its targets to include the remaining Hizbullah military, security and intelligence commanders who continue to run the organization: Wafiq Saffa, head of liaison and coordination, the two current senior military chiefs, Abu Ali Khaidar and Haitham Tabatabai, and the Head of Unit 910 (external operations) Talal Hamiya, among others. These are all wanted terrorists, many designated under the US Rewards for Justice program, who believe they are invulnerable living in Beirut.
In addition, Israel should have a list of bilateral diplomatic steps to be taken as confidence-building measures before completing the land border demarcation and before discussing a comprehensive security agreement. These should include establishing a joint committee to oversee the flow of water in the Hazbani River (the main tributary of the Jordan River), the Ayoun creek and the Wazani spring; reopening the border crossing at Rosh Hanikra; and reopening airspace that will mainly serve flights from Lebanon to Saudi Arabia. Lebanese official recognition that the Sheba’a Farms and the village of Ghajar were in Syrian territory prior to the 1967 war would deprive Hizbullah of a major excuse for confronting Israel. There are quite a few additional Israel-Lebanon steps that can be agreed upon during the period of waiting for Hizbullah’s disarmament.
As of late August 2025, the situation is not encouraging. The Lebanese Armed Forces lack both the will and the strength to implement even the agreement that was reached in May between President Aoun and PLO Chairman Abu Mazen to demilitarize the 12 refugee camps in Lebanon. On August 21, a ludicrous performance was on display in which a single “arms truck” was removed from Burj al-Barajneh Palestinian refugee camp in Beirut, a miserable sham. If Lebanon’s army can’t take an anti-tank missile away from Hamas in Lebanon, how will it be able to take Hizbullah’s Zelzal rockets in the Beka’a Valley? At a minimum, Lebanon and the PLO should annul the 1969 Cairo Agreement in which the Lebanese Armed Forces ceded to the PLO exclusive control over the refugee camps in Lebanon. In summary, Hizbullah has been terribly weakened and has lost nearly all of its local allies as a result of launching a war against Israel. But it insists on retaining all of its remaining military capabilities. Lebanese friends tell me there isn’t a realistic chance that the parliamentary elections in May 2026 will result in a solid majority against Hizbullah. Hizbullah’s success in the recent municipal elections shows that its money machine is still able to buy support on local television stations. Thus, President Aoun may continue promising the Americans to disarm Hizbullah, but he delivers a different message to Hizbullah.
**Ehud Yaari is the chief Middle East commentator of Israel television Channel 12 and the Lafer International Fellow of The Washington Institute for Near East Policy. He has covered the Palestinian-Israeli conflict for over five decades and authored Fatah (1971), The Year of the Dove (1979), Israel's Lebanon War (1984) and Intifida (1990) among other books.

Disarming Hizbullah in Lebanon
Yaakov Lappin//The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune/September 04/2025
https://jstribune.com/lappin-disarming-hizbullah-in-lebanon/
The Lebanese government has taken the unprecedented political step of forming a committee to create a plan for disarming the militia groups in the country, starting with “the low hanging fruit” of collecting weapons from Palestinian armed groups in a Palestinian camp in Beirut. But Israeli assessments indicate the new Lebanese government and its army leadership are unable to disarm the largest armed group, Hizbullah. One obstacle to Lebanese action to disarm Hizbullah is Hizbullah’s infiltration of the army. Example: On August 22, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson revealed that a senior Lebanese officer, Colonel Suhail Harb, head of military intelligence in southern Lebanon, collaborated with Hizbullah to cover up the December 2022 murder of an Irish peacekeeper with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon, Private Seán Rooney. According to the IDF, Colonel Harb disrupted the Lebanese military’s own investigation and prevented the prosecution of the Hizbullah terrorists responsible. Meanwhile, the pro-Hizbullah newspaper Al-Akhbar reports that the Lebanese Armed Forces command sent a message to the group’s political leadership, stating that it would not carry out any action that could harm internal stability or create a confrontation between the army and Hizbullah.  On August 24, US special envoy Tom Barrack and his deputy Morgan Ortagus arrived in Israel, with messages from the Lebanese government asking Israel to tamp down the attacks on Hizbullah. Publicly, the Lebanese government is calling on Israel to vacate its five military outposts along the border inside southern Lebanon.  But Israel has no intention of abandoning its post-October 7, 2023 doctrine of forward defense. In Israel’s estimation, the new Lebanese government is well intentioned but cannot be relied upon to disarm Hizbullah.
This new Israeli doctrine was forged during the campaign against Hizbullah in September-November 2024. According to one Israeli assessment, the IDF killed between 4,000 to 5,000 Hizbullah commanders and operatives, with another 9,000 casualties among Hizbullah combat reserves, either killed or injured. The terror group’s Radwan commando force was rendered “not fit for a large-scale offensive operation,” with all of its frontline infrastructure dismantled. Furthermore, the IDF dismantled between 70 to 80 percent of Hizbullah’s short-range rocket launchers and destroyed approximately 1,500 underground infrastructure sites.Following the November 27 ceasefire, the IDF remained in a proactive “forward defense” based on two main efforts. The first is five IDF outposts in southern Lebanon aimed at preventing the formation of a new Hizbullah invasion force near the Israeli border. From these positions, the IDF strikes remaining weapons and infrastructure, restricts the movement of Hizbullah operatives, and prevents the group from rebuilding. The second effort involves continuing targeted air strikes on terrorists and terror targets throughout southern Lebanon.
As the IDF monitors Hizbullah’s movements and decisions, it also communicates with the ceasefire mechanism that includes the US, Lebanon, and France. According to the Alma Research and Education Center in northern Israel, between November 2024 and early August, some 1,300 reports of Hizbullah ceasefire violations were sent to the mechanism by Israel, and the Lebanese Army was asked to enforce 700 cases. Yet it was the IDF that ended up dealing with two thirds of these cases.
The Lebanese government’s talk of disarming Hizbullah is positive but is not currently backed by either capabilities or intentions. Israel’s proactive military posture is currently the only viable strategy to ensure the security of its northern border and prevent the Iran-backed terror organization from recovering its former strength.
**Yaakov Lappin is an analyst at the MirYam Institute, a research fellow at the Alma Center and a media analyst specializing in Israel’s defense establishment.

The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News published on September 04-05/2025
Suspected Houthi Attack Targets Ship in Red Sea after Missiles Fire on Israel
Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
A suspected attack by Yemen's Houthi militias targeted a ship in the Red Sea on Thursday, officials said, as the group increases its missile fire targeting Israel. The attack off the coast of Hodeidah follows an Israeli strike last week that killed the militias' prime minister along with several officials. The Houthis have been using cluster munitions - in the missile attacks on Israel - which open up with smaller explosives that can be harder to intercept, raising the chances of strikes. The attack Thursday saw an “unknown projectile” land off the side of a vessel as electronic interference was particularly intense, the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center said. It added that the ship and crew were safe after the apparent assault. The private maritime security firm Ambrey also acknowledged the apparent attack, as did the firm EOS Risk Group, which noted the Houthis have launched multiple missile attacks targeting Israel in recent days as well. “The current tempo reflects a clear escalation, shifting from sporadic launches to multiple daily attempts,” said Martin Kelly of EOS Risk Group. From November 2023 to December 2024, the Houthis targeted more than 100 ships with missiles and drones over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip. In their campaign so far, the Houthis have sunk four vessels and killed at least eight mariners. The Iranian-backed Houthis stopped their attacks during a brief ceasefire in the war. They later became the target of an intense weekslong campaign of airstrikes ordered by US President Donald Trump before he declared a ceasefire had been reached with the militias. The Houthis sank two vessels in July, killing at least four on board with others believed to be held by the group.

Larijani, British Counterpart Discuss ‘Snapback’, Resumption of Nuclear Talks
Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council (SNSC) Ali Larijani said he exchanged with British counterpart, Jonathan Powell, views on the ‘snapback mechanism’ which could result in the return of UN sanctions on Iran, as well as ways to resume nuclear negotiations. Last week, France, Germany and the UK launched a 30-day process to reimpose sanctions on Iran over its nuclear program, sending a letter stating their intent to the UN Security Council. The European countries, known as the E3, had offered Iran a delay of the snapback during talks in July if Iran met three conditions: resuming negotiations with the United States over its nuclear program, allowing UN nuclear inspectors access to its nuclear sites, and accounting for the over 400 kilograms of highly enriched uranium the UN watchdog says it has. Tehran, which now enriches uranium at near weapons-grade levels, has rejected that proposal. In a short statement posted Wednesday on Telegram, Larijani’s office said the Secretary of Iran’s SNSC had a phone conversation with Powell and the two men agreed that consultations should continue with the aim of addressing nuclear matters through dialogue. A day earlier, Larijani said the path to nuclear negotiations between Iran and the United States is not closed but US demands for curbs on Iranian missiles are obstructing prospects for talks. A sixth round of Iran-US talks was suspended after the start of a 12-day war in June, in which Israel and the US struck Iranian nuclear facilities and Iran retaliated with waves of ballistic missiles against Israel. “We indeed pursue rational negotiations. By raising unrealizable issues such as missile restrictions, they set a path that negates any talks,” Larijani said in a post on X. Western countries fear Iran's uranium enrichment program could yield material for an atomic warhead and that it seeks to develop a ballistic missile to carry one. Iran says its nuclear program is only for electricity generation and other civilian uses and that it is enriching uranium as fuel for these purposes. It has denied seeking to create missiles capable of carrying nuclear payloads and says its defense capabilities cannot be open to negotiation in any talks over its atomic program.

Iran says Australian ambassador left country, ties downgraded in reciprocal move
Reuters/September 04/2025
Iran has downgraded diplomatic ties with Australia, its foreign ministry said on Thursday, a week after Australia expelled the Iranian ambassador over accusations that Tehran directed two antisemitic arson attacks in the cities of Sydney and Melbourne. “According to diplomatic law and in response to Australia’s action, the Islamic Republic has also reciprocally reduced the level of Australia’s diplomatic presence in Iran,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said, adding that Canberra’s ambassador had left Iran. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said last week that operations at Australia’s embassy in Tehran were suspended and all Australian diplomats were safe in a third country. Canberra’s decision to expel the Iranian ambassador, its first such move since World War Two, was the latest example of a Western government accusing Iran of carrying out hostile covert activities on foreign soil. The Islamic Republic has denied the Australian accusations. “The accusation of antisemitism against Iran is ridiculous and baseless,” Baghaei said, adding that Tehran does not welcome the deterioration in bilateral relations with Canberra.
Iranian officials said Tehran’s embassy in Canberra was continuing to provide consular services.

Drone strike near Syria’s Aleppo airport kills two: Security official
AFP/September 04/2025
A Syrian security official said a drone strike near Aleppo airport on Thursday killed two people, with state media reporting the attack but without saying who may be behind it.
An AFP correspondent saw a vaporized car near the airport in Syria’s north, with shrapnel scattered around it. Official news agency SANA reported that “a drone targeted a civilian car on the road to Aleppo International Airport.”Citing the health ministry, it added that at least one person was killed.

Thousands of Palestinians defy evacuation orders amid Israeli bombardment on Gaza City
Reuters/September 04/2025
Israeli bombardment pushed more Palestinians out of their homes in Gaza City on Thursday, while thousands of residents defied Israeli orders to leave, remaining behind in the ruins in the path of Israel’s latest advance. Gaza health authorities said Israeli fire across the enclave had killed at least 28 people on Thursday, most of them in Gaza City, where Israeli forces have advanced through the outer suburbs and are now a few km (miles) from the city center.
Israel launched the offensive in Gaza City on August 10, in what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says is a plan to defeat Hamas militants once and for all in the part of Gaza where Israeli troops fought most heavily in the war’s initial phase. The campaign has prompted international criticism because of the dire humanitarian crisis in the area, and has provoked unusual expressions of concern within Israel, including accounts of tension over strategy between some military commanders and political leaders. “This time, I am not leaving my house. I want to die here. It doesn’t matter if we move out or stay. Tens of thousands of those who left their homes were killed by Israel too, so why bother?” Um Nader, a mother of five from Gaza City, told Reuters via text message. Residents said Israel bombarded Gaza City’s Zeitoun, Sabra and Shejaia districts from ground and air. Tanks pushed into the eastern part of the Sheikh Radwan district northwest of the city centre, destroying houses and causing fires in tent encampments. There was no immediate Israeli comment on those reports. The Israeli military has said it is operating on the outskirts of the city to dismantle militants’ tunnels and locate weapons. Much of Gaza City was laid to waste in the war’s initial weeks in October-November 2023. About a million people lived there before the war, and hundreds of thousands are believed to have returned to live among the ruins, especially since Israel ordered people out of other areas and launched offensives elsewhere. Israel, which has now told civilians to leave Gaza City again for their safety, says 70,000 have done so, heading south. Palestinian officials say less than half that number have left, and many thousands are still in the path of Israel’s advance.
‘Most dangerous displacement’ of the war
Displacement could further endanger those most vulnerable, including many children who are suffering from malnutrition, said Amjad al-Shawa, the head of the Palestinian NGOs Network, an umbrella group of Palestinian NGOs that coordinates with the UN and international humanitarian agencies.“This is going to be the most dangerous displacement since the war started,” said Shawa. “People’s refusal to leave despite the bombardment and the killing is a sign that they have lost faith.”Palestinian and UN officials say there is no safe place in Gaza, including areas Israel designates as humanitarian zones. The war has caused a humanitarian crisis across the territory. Health officials in Gaza say 370 people, including 131 children, have so far died of malnutrition and starvation caused by acute food shortages, most in recent weeks. Israel says it is taking measures to improve the humanitarian conditions in Gaza, including increasing aid into the enclave. The war began on October 7, 2023, when gunmen led by Hamas attacked southern Israel, killing some 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and taking 251 hostages into Gaza. Israel’s offensive has since killed more than 63,000 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to local health officials, and left much of the territory in ruins. Prospects for a ceasefire and a deal to release the remaining 48 hostages, 20 of whom are thought to still be alive, appear dim. Protests in Israel calling to end the war and reach a deal to release the hostages have intensified in the past few weeks.

Palestinian Death Toll Passes 64,000, Health Officials Say, as Israel and Hamas Dig in on Demands
Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
More than 64,000 Palestinians have been killed in the nearly two-year war in the Gaza Strip, local health officials said Thursday, as Hamas and Israel reiterated their incompatible demands for ending the fighting sparked by the militant group’s 2023 attack.
Local hospitals said that Israeli strikes killed 28 people, mostly women and children, overnight and into Thursday, as Israel pressed ahead with the initial stages of its offensive in famine-stricken Gaza City. In the occupied West Bank, Israelis established a new settlement in a Palestinian city, according to an anti-settlement monitoring group. Hamas released a statement late Wednesday saying that it was open to returning all 48 hostages it still holds — around 20 of them believed by Israel to be alive — in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, a lasting ceasefire, the withdrawal of Israeli forces from all of Gaza, the opening of border crossings and a start to the daunting challenge of rebuilding Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office dismissed the offer as “spin” and said that the war would continue until all the hostages are returned, Hamas is disarmed and Israel has full security control of the territory, with civilian administration delegated to others. Talks on a temporary ceasefire that would have seen some of the hostages returned broke down last month when US Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff walked away, blaming Hamas. The group later accepted a proposal that Hamas and Arab mediators said was almost identical to an earlier one accepted by Israel, but there’s been no public indication that talks have resumed. The latest strikes came as Israeli troops were operating on the outskirts of Gaza City, in the initial stages of a planned offensive to take over the most populous Palestinian city, home to around a million people, many of whom have already been displaced multiple times. Shifa Hospital in Gaza City received 25 bodies, including nine children and six women, after Israeli strikes hit tents housing displaced people, according to hospital records. Among those killed was a 10-day-old baby. Another three people were killed in southern Gaza, according to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli military, which says it only targets fighters and tries to avoid harming civilians. It blames civilian deaths on Hamas, saying militants are entrenched in densely-populated areas.
Gaza’s Health Ministry said that 64,231 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the war. The latest update includes around 400 who were presumed missing but whose deaths it says have been confirmed. It doesn't say how many of those killed in the war were militants or civilians. It says women and children make up around half the dead. The ministry is part of the Hamas-run government and staffed by medical professionals. Its figures are seen as a reliable estimate of wartime deaths by UN agencies and many independent experts. Israel has disputed them without providing its own toll.
Hamas-led fighters killed around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and abducted 251 people in their attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Most have since been released in ceasefires or other agreements. Israelis establish new settlement in West Bank city
An anti-settlement watchdog group said Israelis have established a new settlement in the heart of the Palestinian city of Hebron, in the occupied West Bank. Peace Now says the government-backed settlers took over a building on a main thoroughfare used by Palestinians to access the Old City, where hundreds of hardline settlers already live in a decades-old settlement guarded by Israeli troops adjacent to Palestinian homes. There was no immediate comment from the Israeli government. Hebron’s Old City is home to a major holy site revered by Jews and Muslims, where the biblical patriarchs Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and their wives, are believed to be buried. It has often been the scene of Israeli-Palestinian violence. Israel captured the West Bank, along with Gaza and east Jerusalem, in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians want all three territories for a future state and along with most of the international community view settlements as illegal and an obstacle to peace. “The goal of establishing a settlement in the heart of Hebron’s casbah is to seize new areas of the city and displace Palestinians from them, similar to what was done in the city center around the existing settlements,” Peace Now said. “The settlement in Hebron is the ugliest face of Israeli control in the territories. Nowhere else in the West Bank is apartheid so blatant,” it said.

Israeli West Bank annexation plans cause regional alarm, spark stern warning from UAE
The Arab Weekly/September 04/2025
Israeli moves to annex parts of the occupied West Bank have sparked alarm in the region causing shock waves that extended to the UAE, one of the few Arab countries with formal ties to Israel, which called any such moves a “red line.”The UAE’s position prompted Israel to remove the issue of annexaton from its cabinet session Thursday. Developments in the Palestinians territories topped the agenda of talks held Wednesday by UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Lana Nusseibeh, the Emirati foreign ministry’s assistant minister for political affairs said on Wednesday annexation in the West Bank would “severely undermine” the Abraham Accords that established ties in 2020. “From the very beginning, we viewed the Accords as a way to enable our continued support for the Palestinian people and their legitimate aspiration for an independent state,” Nusseibeh said in a statement. “The proposals to annex parts of the West Bank, reportedly under discussion in the Israeli government, is part of an effort that would, in the words of an Israeli minister, ‘bury the idea of a Palestinian state’,” Nusseibeh added. The comments by Nusseibeh marked the UAE’s strongest criticism of Israel’s conduct since the start of the Gaza war in 2023. Coming from Abu Dhabi, the warning against West Bank annexation is likely to carry particular significance in the region and beyond. The Abraham Accords, signed during President Donald Trump’s first term in office, saw the UAE, Bahrain and Morocco normalise diplomatic relations with Israel after US mediation.Trump had hoped he could persuade Saudi Arabia, a deeply influential regional country that is home to some of Islam’s holiest sites, to also normalise ties with Israel and ease its isolation in the region.
But Israel’s war in Gaza, which has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, demolished the enclave and created an humanitarian disaster, stopped the Saudi normalisation momentum. “Annexation in the West Bank would constitute a red line for the UAE,” Nusseibeh said. “It would severely undermine the vision and spirit of (the) Accords, end the pursuit of regional integration and would alter the widely shared consensus on what the trajectory of this conflict should be, two states living side by side in peace, prosperity and security.”Israeli settlements in the West Bank are considered illegal under international law.
Critics and the international community have warned construction on the E1 site east of Jerusalem would undermine hopes for a contiguous future Palestinian state with east Jerusalem as its capital. “We call on the Israeli government to suspend these plans. Extremists, of any kind, cannot be allowed to dictate the region’s trajectory. Peace requires courage, persistence and a refusal to let violence define our choices,” said Nusseibeh. A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Monday that “any annexation or settlement activity by Israel is illegitimate, condemned, and unacceptable.”
The situation in the occupied Palestinian territories was one of the main topics discussed by the UAE president and Saudi crown prince in Riyadh on Wednesday, state media reported. The two sides focused in their discussions on “recent developments in the Middle East, especially the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories and ongoing efforts to address the resulting humanitarian and security implications,” said Emirati news agency WAM. The two leaders, it added, “emphasised the importance of reinforcing the foundations of regional stability, security and peace through the establishment of a clear pathway towards a just, comprehensive and lasting peace based on the two-state solution, in a manner that serves the interests of all peoples and nations in the region.”
Statements made by Israel’s far-right finance minister have raised regional alarm after saying on Wednesday that maps were being drawn up for annexing territory in the occupied West Bank, land the Palestinians seek for a state. At a press conference in Jerusalem, Bezalel Smotrich stood before a map that suggested the possible annexation of 82 percent of the West Bank. It amounts to the majority of the territory with the exception of six large Palestinian cities, including Ramallah and Nablus. Smotrich said he wanted “maximum territory and minimum (Palestinian) population” to be brought under Israeli sovereignty, urging Netanyahu to accept his plan that is being drawn up by a department under Smotrich’s supervision in the defence ministry.
“The time has come to apply Israeli sovereignty to Judea and Samaria, to remove once and for all from the agenda the idea of dividing our tiny land and establishing a terror state in its centre,” he said, using biblical names widely used in Israel and the administrative name used by the state to describe the area. “Who can defend a state with such small strategic depth? And this is why the goal of the sovereignty is to remove, once and for all, a Palestinian state from the agenda. And this is done when applying (sovereignty) to all of the territory, other than Arab population centres. I have no interest in letting them enjoy what the state of Israel has to offer,” he said. Smotrich, a settler leader, has long called for annexation of the West Bank, which Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war and which is among territories the Palestinians seek for a future independent state. Netanyahu’s office did not comment on Smotrich’s remarks but the prospect of any concrete annexation steps by the Netanyahu government is unclear. According to some Israeli media reports, Netanyahu has removed annexation of parts of the West Bank from the immediate agenda of his cabinet.
“After the UAE warned that West Bank annexation is a ‘red line,’ Netanyahu dropped the sovereignty issue from Thursday’s agenda. Ministers will instead discuss West Bank security risks as the UN prepares to recognize Palestinian statehood,” wrote The Jerusalem Post on Thursday. It is also unclear where US President Donald Trump stands on the matter. Israel, which is facing mounting international criticism over the war in Gaza, has been angered by pledges by France, Britain, Australia and Canada to formally recognise a Palestinian state during the UN General Assembly in September. Reuters reported on Sunday that Israel was considering annexing the West Bank as a possible response to those pledges. The United Nations’ highest court said in 2024 that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories, including the West Bank, and its settlements there were illegal and should end as soon as possible.

US told other countries Palestinian recognition will create more problems: Rubio
Reuters/September 04/2025
The United States has told other counties that recognition of a Palestinian state will cause more problems, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday. “We told all these countries, we told them all, we said if you guys do this recognition stuff it’s all fake, it’s not even real, if you do it you’re going to create problems,” Rubio said from Quito, where he met with President Daniel Noboa and his Ecuadorean counterpart. “There’s going to be a response, it’s going to make it harder to get a ceasefire and it may even trigger these sorts of actions that you’ve seen, or at least these attempts at these actions,” Rubio said, adding he would not opine on Israeli discussion of annexation of the West Bank but that it was not final.

Israel urges France to reconsider recognizing a Palestinian state
Reuters/September 04/2025
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar urged France to reconsider its plan to recognize a Palestinian state during a call with French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot, Israel’s foreign ministry said on Thursday. Saar also said there was “no room” for a visit by French President Emmanuel Macron as long as Paris “persists in its initiative and efforts that harm Israel’s interests,” the ministry said.

Hamas ready to release hostages but Israel stresses conditions to end war
The Arab Weekly/September 04/2025
Hamas reiterated on Wednesday that it is ready for a comprehensive Gaza deal through which all Israeli hostages are released in exchange for the release of an agreed upon number of Palestinian prisoners. The group’s remarks came shortly after US President Donald Trump called on Hamas to release all 20 hostages suggesting such a move would end the war in Gaza. Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s office dismissed Hamas’ comments in a statement. “Unfortunately, this is yet another spin by Hamas with nothing new in it,” it said. Netanyahu’s office repeated that the war in Gaza would only end if all hostages were released, Hamas was disarmed, the strip was demilitarised, Israel established security control over the enclave and an alternative civilian administration was established. Hamas in August agreed to a 60-day ceasefire proposal with Israel that includes the return of half the hostages held in Gaza and Israel’s release of some Palestinian prisoners. An Egyptian official source said the proposal accepted by Hamas included a suspension of Israeli military operations for 60 days and outlined a framework for a comprehensive deal to end the nearly two-year-old conflict. Netanyahu said days later that Israel would immediately resume negotiations for the release of all hostages held in Gaza and an end to the war, but on terms acceptable to Israel. Trump had called on Wednesday for Hamas to release all hostages suggesting Israel’s war in Gaza would end if they did.
“Tell Hamas to IMMEDIATELY give back all 20 Hostages (Not 2 or 5 or 7!), and things will change rapidly. IT WILL END!,” he said in a post on Truth Social. The Israeli military moved deeper into Gaza City on Wednesday, with soldiers and tanks pushing into Sheikh Radwan, one of the urban centre’s largest and most crowded neighbourhoods. In recent weeks, Israeli forces have advanced through Gaza City’s outer suburbs and are now just a few kilometres from the city centre despite international calls to halt the offensive. Gaza City residents said the military had destroyed homes and tent encampments that had housed Palestinians displaced by nearly two years of war. At least 24 Palestinians, some of them children, were killed by the military across Gaza on Wednesday, most of them in Gaza City, according to local health officials. A senior Israeli military official said on Wednesday that authorities estimated that an imminent offensive in the Gaza Strip would displace one million Palestinians, planning a new “humanitarian area” for them. The vast majority of Gaza’s more than two million people has been displaced at least once during nearly two years of war. The Israeli military has been gearing up to seize Gaza City, the Palestinian territory’s largest urban centre, with the United Nations estimating that nearly a million people live in and around the northern city. A senior official from COGAT, the Israeli defence ministry body that oversees civil affairs in the Palestinian territories, said that in recent days, “we saw a movement of people from the north to the south.”“Until now, approximately 70,000” Gazans left the north, the official said, briefing journalists on condition of anonymity. Without giving a specific time-frame, the official said Israeli authorities expected “a million people” to flee south. In late August, an Israeli military spokesman said the evacuation of Gaza City was “inevitable,” while the Red Cross has warned that any Israeli attempt to do so would be impossible in a safe and dignified manner.

Egypt, Bahrain Agree to Coordinate Stances on Regional Issues, Bolster Cooperation
Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi stressed on Wednesday his country’s pride in the fraternal relations that bind it with Bahrain. He received in Cairo Bahrain’s Crown Prince and Prime Minister Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa for talks on bilateral relations and regional developments. Both countries are aligned on regional issues and in agreement on bolstering bilateral cooperation, said Sisi. The meeting was attended by Egyptian Prime Minister Mostafa Madbouly and several ministers from bother countries, said Egyptian presidency spokesman Mohammed Shennawy. Sisi welcomed his guest “in his second home Egypt,” while Crown Prince Salman conveyed the greetings of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa. The officials stressed the importance of bolstering the strong bilateral ties between Cairo and Manama, especially in the economic, trade and investment fields. They also stressed the need to accelerate the implementation of joint projects that serve the interests and aspirations of people in both countries. On regional developments, Prince Salman hailed Egypt’s efforts in coordination with Qatar and the United States to reach ceasefire in Gaza, ensure the release of prisoners and hostages and end the humanitarian suffering in the Palestinian enclave.The leaders rejected the forced displacement of the Palestinian people, underling the need to begin the reconstruction of Gaza and revive the political process to establish an independent Palestinian state based on the June 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.
The implementations of the two-state solution and international resolutions are the only to achieve lasting peace in the region, said the leaders according to the spokesman. Egypt and Bahrain signed several memorandums of understanding during the Crown Prince’s visit covering the industry, tourism and investment sectors.

Jordan calls for joint Arab action to stop Israel 'changing map of Middle East'
Amr Mostafa/The National/September 04, 2025
Ayman Safadi sharply condemns Israeli attacks on Lebanon, Syria and Palestinian land
Jordan's Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Thursday called for "joint Arab action" to confront Israeli threats to redraw the Middle East.
In a strongly worded speech to Arab foreign ministers in Cairo, Mr Safadi said the Israeli government "seeks to change the map of the region to impose Israeli hegemony over our Arab world". A Palestinian representative said Israel meant to eliminate her people from Jerusalem. His warning came as Israeli attacks killed 31 people in Gaza, according to health authorities. Several died in strikes on Gaza city - where Israel says it now controls 40 per cent of the city as a new Israeli offensive gathers pace. Hamas said it was ready to agree a ceasefire deal in which it hands over Israeli hostages, after US President Donald Trump told the group to release "all 20" surviving captives. But Israel has shown no sign of backing off. "The Israeli government openly declares that it wants to change the map of the region. It does not care about international law, nor is it deterred by human values," Mr Safadi said in Cairo. Mr Safadi said that Israel has destroyed Gaza and "steals" Palestinian land in the West Bank. He added that Israel has also occupied Syrian land and "exploits the pains" of a transitional phase there after the fall of Bashar Al Assad. Israel's actions in Syria "tamper with its national fabric, violate its sovereignty, and create strife targeting its security, stability, and unity," the Jordanian minister said. He said Israel "continues to occupy Lebanese lands and refuses to implement even what it committed to in previous agreements"."This is the danger that must compel a reassessment of all our tools of joint action," he said. "The challenge is unprecedented. The threat is to our common security, to the stability of our region, to our interests, and to our future.
"We must work together according to a comprehensive strategy – political, economic, legal, and defensive – that employs all available tools to protect our future and interests, and to protect the region's right to live in just and lasting peace."Israel says it is protecting its interests by attacking militants in Syria and Lebanon, where its troops maintain a presence. It rejects claims it is committing war crimes or genocide in Gaza, where UN experts say many people are living in famine conditions. An investigation published on Thursday by British newspaper The Guardian, the Israeli-Palestinian online outlet +972 Magazine and the Hebrew-language news website Local Call claimed that only a quarter of Gazan detainees held by the Israeli military were combatants. Israel denied that. Pope Leo XIV called for a "prompt resumption of negotiations" over Gaza in a meeting with Israeli President Isaac Herzog at the Vatican on Thursday. Mr Herzog told him the release of hostages is a "first and essential step". At the Cairo meeting, UAE Minister of State Khalifa Shaheen Al Marar called for mobilising global efforts for the Israelis and Palestinians to return to the negotiating table to reach a just, comprehensive, and sustainable solution to the conflict. "The UAE is employing its contacts and political tools to pave the way for negotiations between the two sides," he said. Mr Al Marar called for ending the war in Gaza and delivering life-saving humanitarian aid in sufficient amounts and without obstacles into the Gaza Strip. He also called for ending illegitimate Israeli practices in the West Bank, including acts by Israeli settlers and extremists. An Israeli minister this week ramped up pressure on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to annex most of the occupied West Bank. Mr Netanyahu himself last month expressed support for the idea of an expanded "Greater Israel".
Greater Israel refers to a biblical interpretation of the nation's territory during the time of King Solomon, which could encompass not only present-day Palestinian territories but also parts of modern Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. Israel's war has left many Gazans living in hunger and despair. EPA
The war in Gaza has caused a humanitarian crisis across the territory. Health officials in Gaza say 370 people, including 131 children, have so far died of malnutrition and starvation caused by acute food shortages, most in recent weeks. Israel says it is taking measures to improve the humanitarian conditions in Gaza, including increasing aid into the enclave. Israeli operations in the occupied West Bank have also worsened violence and economic malaise in the area. Palestinian Foreign Minister Varsen Aghabekian Shahin said Israel was imposing a "tragic reality" on Jerusalem by trying to "alter the historical, religious, demographic, and legal character", news agency Wafa reported. She said Israel was accelerating efforts "aimed at eliminating the Palestinian presence in the city". Protests in Israel calling to end the war and reach a deal to release the hostages have intensified in the past few weeks. Nonetheless, prospects for a ceasefire and a deal to release the remaining 48 Israeli hostages, 20 of whom are thought to still be alive, appear dim.

26 Nations Vow to Give Ukraine Postwar Security Guarantees, Macron Says
Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
Twenty-six nations have pledged to provide postwar security guarantees to Ukraine, which will include an international force on land and sea and in the air, French President Emmanuel Macron said after a summit meeting of Kyiv's allies on Thursday.
Macron said he, fellow European leaders and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy held a call with US President Donald Trump after their summit and US contributions to the guarantees would be finalized in the coming days. The meeting of 35 leaders from the "coalition of the willing" - of mainly European countries - was intended to finalize security guarantees and ask Trump for the backing that Europeans say is vital to make such guarantees viable. Security guarantees are intended to reassure Ukraine and deter Russia, which launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022, from attacking its neighbor again. "The day the conflict stops, the security guarantees will be deployed," Macron told a press conference at the Elysee Palace in Paris, standing alongside Zelenskiy. European officials say peace looks a distant prospect for now, but they want to be ready whenever the war ends. They also see the planning of security guarantees as a way to reassure Kyiv of their support and hope Trump will join their efforts. Macron initially said the 26 nations - which he did not name - would deploy to Ukraine. But he later said some countries would provide guarantees while remaining outside Ukraine, for example by helping to train and equip Kyiv's forces.
He did not say how many troops would be involved in the guarantees.
'VERY SPECIFIC SUBSTANCE'
Germany and other countries pledged they would be involved in that effort. But Berlin said it would decide on a military commitment only when conditions were clear, including the extent of US involvement in security guarantees. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni made clear she would not send troops to Ukraine but said Italy was open to monitoring a ceasefire and training Ukrainian troops outside the country. France and Britain, which co-chair the coalition of the willing, have indicated they are open to deploying troops to Ukraine after the war ends. "We are working out which countries will take part in which security component," Zelenskiy said. "Twenty-six countries agreed to provide security guarantees. Today, for the first time in a long time, this is the first such serious, very specific substance."On his call with the coalition leaders, Trump said Europe must stop purchasing Russian oil that he said is helping Moscow fund its war against Ukraine, a White House official said. "The president also emphasized that European leaders must place economic pressure on China for funding Russia’s war efforts," the official said. Macron said the coalition and the United States had agreed to work more closely on future sanctions, notably on Russia's oil and gas sector, and on China.
MONTHS OF TALKS
European governments have said European forces in Ukraine would need their own US security guarantees as a "backstop". Trump has made no explicit commitment to go that far. His special envoy, Steve Witkoff, met French, British, German, Italian and Ukrainian senior diplomats ahead of the summit, before briefly attending the opening session. European officials also wanted to highlight a lack of progress toward direct peace talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Zelenskiy since Trump hosted Putin in August, and to prod Trump to raise pressure on Moscow now. Having rolled out the red carpet in Alaska, Trump on Wednesday accused Putin of conspiring with China and North Korea after the three countries' leaders staged a show of unity in Beijing at a lavish commemoration of the end of World War Two. Putin told Kyiv on Wednesday there was a chance to end the war in Ukraine via negotiations "if common sense prevails", an option he said he preferred, although he was ready to end it by force if that was the only way. Putin also ruled out the deployment of troops from NATO nations to Ukraine as part of a peace settlement. But NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte dismissed his objections.
"Why are we interested in what Russia thinks about troops in Ukraine? It's a sovereign country," he said at a conference in Prague before joining the Paris summit by video link."Russia has nothing to do with this," he said. "I think we really have to stop making Putin too powerful."

Trump tells Europe to put economic pressure on China over Ukraine
AFP/September 04/2025
US President Donald Trump urged European countries Thursday to put economic pressure China because of its support for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the White House said. Speaking by video conference with European leaders gathered in Paris, Trump also said “Europe must stop purchasing Russian oil that is funding the war,” a senior White House official told AFP on condition of anonymity. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who also took part in the meeting, said earlier that Trump is “very dissatisfied” with European purchases of Russian oil, saying the buyers were Hungary and Slovakia. Zelenskyy also said he discussed sanctions on Russia and protecting Ukraine’s airspace in the call that he and European leaders held with Trump. Trump, whose efforts to mediate between Russia and Ukraine have failed to produce a breakthrough, has been tightlipped on what his next move will be as he seeks an end to the war. The United States has already decided to impose sanctions on India as punishment for buying Russian oil. Trump so far has not done this with China, which imports a lot of Russian oil and is holding trade talks with Washington. Trump has been talking tough of late about China, however.On Tuesday he accused Chinese President Xi Jinping of conspiring against the United States with Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un when the three gathered in Beijing to watch a big military parade commemorating the end of World War II.

Europe leaders call Trump after Ukraine security guarantees summit
AFP/September 04/2025
European leaders on Thursday spoke to US President Donald Trump after holding a summit with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on security guarantees for Kyiv in the event of a peace accord to end Russia’s three-and-a-half war against Ukraine. The guarantees by the so-called coalition of the willing, which remain under wraps but are expected to include ramped-up training for the Ukrainian army and deployment of troops by some European states, have angered Russia. They form part of a push led by French President Emmanuel Macron to show that Europe can act independently of Washington after Trump upended US foreign policy and launched direct talks with Russian leader Vladimir Putin after returning to the White House. The summit, co-chaired by Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, aimed to firm up plans on security guarantees for Ukraine if or when there is a ceasefire, and get a clearer picture of US involvement. The United States was represented at the talks by Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff, who also met with Zelenskyy separately. Some of the leaders, such as Zelenskyy, attended in person while others, including Starmer, remotely. The call with Trump took place by videoconference. During the summit Starmer said it was necessary “to go even further to apply pressure on Putin to secure a cessation of hostilities,” a Downing Street spokeswoman said. “The prime minister said Putin could not be trusted as he continued to delay peace talks and simultaneously carry out egregious attacks on Ukraine,” she added. Russia has heaped scorn on European security guarantee plans, with Putin saying Moscow is willing to “resolve all our tasks militarily” in the absence of a peace deal acceptable to the Kremlin. He has indicated he does not want to see European troops in post-war Ukraine. The coalition of the willing includes around 30 nations backing Ukraine, mainly European but also Canada, Australia and Japan.
‘Not up to them’
“Europe is ready, for the first time with this level of commitment and intensity,” Macron said Wednesday as he welcomed Zelenskyy, adding that preparatory work on the guarantees was complete. But there appears to be no agreement on a course of action, with the nature of the guarantees sketchy and some countries reluctant to commit to sending troops. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has said it is premature to discuss the possible deployment of German peacekeeping troops to Ukraine, while not entirely ruling out the prospect. Germany wants to help strengthen Ukraine’s air defenses, offer other weaponry and military training, a government source told AFP. Frustration has been building in the West over what leaders say is Putin’s unwillingness to strike a deal to end the conflict. Zelenskyy says he has not seen “any signs from Russia that they want to end the war.” Before the Paris talks, Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow would not consider the deployment of foreign troops in Ukraine “in any format.”
“It’s not for them to decide,” NATO chief Mark Rutte shot back Thursday.
“I think we really have to stop making Putin too powerful.”
‘War criminal’
The gathering took place after Putin’s high-profile trips to China and the United States. Speaking Wednesday in Beijing, where he attended a massive military parade alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping, Putin hailed his forces’ progress in Ukraine, adding that Russian troops were advancing on “all fronts.”In unprecedented scenes, Putin was pictured shaking hands and chatting with Xi and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as they walked down a red carpet by Tiananmen Square. Last month Trump rolled out a red carpet for Putin in Alaska but those talks yielded no breakthrough. Trump has indicated the United States could back up any European peacekeeping plan, but would not deploy US soldiers to Ukraine. European leaders have been growing exasperated with Putin, sharpening their criticism and warning that the Ukraine war could last for many more months. “Putin is a war criminal,” Merz said on X on Tuesday. “He is perhaps the most severe war criminal of our time that we see on a large scale.”Macron last month called Putin “an ogre at our gates,” while his Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said Russia might continue to wage its war against Ukraine “for as long as it can.”

The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials from miscellaneous sources on September 04-05/2025
Turkey’s Quiet Relationship with ISIS
The Jerusalem Strategic Tribune/September 04/2025
https://jstribune.com/ciddi-turkeys-quiet-relationship-with-isis/
On June 29, 2014, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State in al-Sham (ISIS), was recorded on video speaking at the al-Nuri Mosque in Mosul, Iraq. (“Al-Sham” is the traditional Arabic name for the Levant.) He declared himself to be the caliph or divinely inspired absolute ruler of an Islamic state.
ISIS had risen from the ashes of al-Qa’ida in Iraq, bringing together Syrian jhadists released by Asad’s regime, former members of Saddam Hussein’s army in Iraq, and Sunni tribal fighters from across rural Iraq. In Syria, ISIS joined other jihadist groups in fighting Asad. As its battlefield victories mounted, ISIS broke with al-Qai’da in declaring an Islamic state across eastern Syria and northern Iraq, with al-Raqqa in Syria as its capital. For the Obama administration, the central challenge was clear: degrade ISIS and destroy the terrorist threat it posed. For Ankara, however, the enemy remained Bashar al-Asad. Erdoğan viewed Assad’s regime – not ISIS – as the greater threat to regional stability, resulting in Turkey’s permissive attitude toward jihadist actors. As Erdoğan saw it, ISIS might be extreme, but it was a useful battering ram to topple the Asad regime. The risk of blowback was downplayed.
Turkey had already forged ties with al-Qa’ida’s branch in Syria, Jabhat al-Nusra, as detailed earlier in this series of reports. Turkey permitted al-Nusra fighters to stage attacks from Turkish territory, including from the Hatay province in spring 2014. Al-Nusra later acknowledged that Turkey had done them a “big favor.” Unlike the Free Syrian Army, which Ankara had once fostered but which soon collapsed under corruption and infighting, al-Nusra was effective, capable of seizing and holding territory, including parts of Aleppo. Turkey by mid-2014 became a recruitment hub and transit point for ISIS. Estimates suggested that between 600 and 1,000 Turkish citizens had joined the Caliphate. The New York Times reported that ISIS offered Turkish recruits $150 per day to fight. Newsweek and Hurriyet reported on ISIS recruitment drives in Turkey’s conservative urban neighborhoods. In 2013, some 30,000 foreign fighters are estimated to have joined the Caliphate by crossing into Syria via Turkey. Brett McGurk, the US Special Envoy to the coalition to defeat ISIS, even alleged that Turkey had harbored the caliph, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.
In January 2014, President Obama likened ISIS to a junior varsity basketball team. But Turkey was treating ISIS as a potentially useful tool. When ISIS laid siege to the Kurdish-majority border town of Kobani in September 2014, the Turkish military remained passive spectators. Only when Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the PKK (then in peace negotiations with Ankara), threatened to end talks did Turkey grudgingly allow a handful of Kurdish fighters to cross into Syria and help defend the town. Turkey’s entanglement with ISIS also had economic motives. After capturing Syrian oil fields, ISIS sold smuggled oil to Turkish buyers. Middlemen transported the crude across the border while Turkish authorities turned a blind eye. ISIS sold $1–2 million worth of oil daily to Turkish smugglers, according to estimates, though it also smuggled smaller amounts of oil into Iran via northern Iraq. Hussain Allawi of the Iraq Energy Institute noted that ISIS smuggled “about 210 oil tank trucks into Turkey and other places every day.” Turkish parliamentarian Ali Ediboğlu (from the opposition CHP) confirmed in June 2014: “$800 million worth of oil that ISIS obtained from regions it occupied this year is being sold in Turkey… They transfer the oil to Turkey and parlay it into cash.”There were also occasional frictions between Turkey and ISIS. In June 2014, ISIS stormed the Turkish consulate in Mosul, taking 49 Turkish citizens hostage. While the Turkish intelligence agency MIT claimed it rescued the hostages in a covert operation, subsequent reports revealed a prisoner swap: 180 jihadists were exchanged for the hostages. After the deal, US Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes stated that the Obama administration hoped “to see Turkey play an active role with our coalition in taking the fight to ISIS.” That role never materialized. Indeed, Newsweek reported that ISIS fighters claimed to have “full cooperation with the Turks.” That cooperation extended to weapons transfers. In January 2014, Turkish gendarmes stopped three trucks in Adana province carrying rockets, ammunition, and explosives destined for Syria. The receiving end, across the border, was controlled by ISIS and the hardline group Ahrar al-Sham. The Turkish government insisted the trucks belonged to MIT and were carrying ‘humanitarian aid’ to ethnic Turkmen in Syria. But paperwork told a different story. Erdoğan later confirmed MIT’s role, but not the trucks’ contents. The prosecutors and gendarmes who inspected the trucks were fired, prosecuted for revealing state secrets, and jailed on terrorism charges. In the end, Turkey’s gamble unraveled. ISIS didn’t confine its role to the Syrian civil war. It metastasized into a regional and global menace. Whatever tactical benefits Turkey hoped to gain from tolerating the flow of fighters, weapons and money to ISIS were buried under the rubble of al-Raqqa. And Erdoğan’s Turkey, once the “model Muslim democracy” of Western allies, saw its reputation marred by its flirtation with the caliphate.
**Sinan Ciddi is a non-resident senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies where he contributes to its Turkey Program  and Center on Economic and Financial Power. You can follow Sinan on X, @sinanciddi.

The fake energy revolution ...America’s national security requires hydrocarbons/
Clifford D. May/The Washington Times/September 04/2025
“A clean energy revolution is helping to save this planet.” Thus spoke President Barack Obama in 2015. “The age of fossil fuel is coming to an end. The rise of renewable energy is irreversible.” Thus spoke Antonio Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, in July of this year. I could give you dozens of similar quotes from editorial boards, opinion writers, and academics all prophesizing an “inevitable transition” from oil and gas to energy sources that are renewable, “green” and “clean.” It turns out that these anti-hydrocarbon Pollyannas are all bananas (as Ira Gershwin might say).
To understand why the much-ballyhooed energy revolution ran out of steam, I suggest you read a recently published monograph by Brenda Shaffer, who served as senior advisor for energy at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), my think tank, and is a research faculty member at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School. In “Blackout: International Energy Polices Threaten U.S. National Security,” she argues that the energy policies being aggressively promoted by the U.N., many American and European politicians, and a media chorus are serving to “increase the power of the new alliance among China, Russia, Iran, and North Korea at the expense of the West.”Let’s start with the basic data revealing “no signs of an imminent energy transition.” In 1973, fossil fuels provided 84.5% of global energy. In 2023: 81.5%. That modest decline is explained in part by the “growth of wind and solar,” Ms. Shaffer writes. “However, part is explained by counting as renewable the burning of dung, wood, and other biomass.”While I don’t dispute the evidence that dung is renewable, I would suggest that animal waste doesn’t qualify as either “green” or “clean.”  Nor, it seems to me, is it humanistic to tell African mothers “to save the planet” by sticking to smoky dung when cooking for their children – a major cause of respiratory infections and worse – foregoing dreams of using electricity generated from natural gas.  Wind and solar can augment existing energy systems, not inexpensively, but they can’t replace them because (no news bulletin here) the sun doesn’t always shine, and the winds don’t always blow. Ms. Shaffer points out something else that should concern fossil fuel foes: There is “no non-fossil fuel option to replace commercial fertilizer, which is produced mainly from natural gas.” And without fertilizer many farmers will remain poor and those who depend on them will go hungry. Even hydropower, the leading source of renewable energy globally, is problematic because it destroys aquatic ecosystems. Important as such issues are, Prof. Shaffer’s main concern is that prioritizing renewables weakens America’s energy security which is intrinsic to America’s national security. She notes that “under the Biden administration, energy policy became a subset of climate policy.” America’s 2022 National Security Strategy, published eight months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, “focuses on transitioning away from fossil fuels” and ignores the beneficial strategic implications of the fact that “the United States is the world’s largest producer of oil and natural gas.”
What is to be done (as Vladimir Lenin might say)?
Ms. Shaffer contends that to “reverse the setback of the past four years, the new administration needs to integrate energy security for the fuels in use today into U.S. national security policies and U.S. foreign policy.” That requires cutting U.S. funding to the climate programs of the United Nations and the International Energy Agency. The Biden administration prohibited technical support for natural gas projects abroad, barring U.S. agencies and embassies from even “engaging in policy discussions with foreign interlocutors on energy security policies that include fossil fuels.” Such orders should, obviously, be canceled. You won’t be surprised to learn that China, Russia, Iran, North Korea – what we at FDD call the Axis of Aggressors – have been pursuing “energy and climate policies that enhance their national security while exploiting the self-defeating policies of the West.”
As a result, while carbon emissions in the West “are flat or declining” those of the anti-American axis are increasing. In fact, China is the world’s largest emitter of greenhouse gases largely because it relies on coal even as it “controls most of the necessary minerals along with critical elements for producing wind and solar energy hardware, not to mention the electric vehicle supply chain.” Ms. Shaffer also argues also for a change of policy at the Pentagon. Under the Biden administration, the Department of Defense “invested efforts and extensive funds to replace fossil fuels in military missions – with no success.”
Her monograph offers a list of additional recommendations which I am confident will be given due consideration by President Trump’s new National Energy Dominance Council. Chaired by Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum and vice-chaired by Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, the NEDC’s mandate is to use energy security to bolster both America’s national security and economic strength. A final point: There have been energy transitions in the past, but they came about through market forces – not government subsidies, mandates, and prohibitions. As Ms. Shaffer observes, it “did not require killing horses and camels to convince consumers to acquire cars and trucks.”Less than a year ago, President Joe Biden said: “It’s true some may seek to…deny or delay the clean energy revolution that’s underway in America, but nobody — nobody can reverse it.”He was “misinformed” (as Rick Blaine might say). And the policies intended to create the illusion of an energy revolution are now being reversed. I suspect you know by whom.
Clifford D. May is founder and president of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD), a columnist for the Washington Times, and host of the “Foreign Podicy” podcast.

Syria Is No Longer a Narco-State, But the Captagon Trade Rolls On
Ahmad Sharawi/FDD/September 04/2025
Interim Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa pledged to dismantle his country’s massive illegal drug trade when he took power in December, but the dangerous amphetamine captagon is still flowing. On September 1, Jordanian security forces announced that they “foiled two large-scale drug-smuggling attempts along the country’s eastern border [with Syria].” In August, Jordanian authorities intercepted at least 10 drug shipments, a significant increase from previous months.
Captagon Has Long Meant Big Business in Syria
Under deposed leader Bashar al-Assad, Syria emerged as a significant hub for the production and trafficking of captagon. The trade ballooned into a $10 billion industry during the country’s civil war, with the government directly involved. The money the Assads made served as a critical financial lifeline for a regime under crushing sanctions. But captagon was never purely the province of the Assad government; it thrived through a web operating across Syria, primarily in the border regions. Players included regime-linked actors, criminal families, and smugglers, many of whom Damascus failed to hold accountable after Assad fell.
Captagon Kingpins Still at Large
Sharaa’s forces cracked down on the factories tied to the Assad military’s elite Fourth Division and Bashar’s brother Maher. But the new government has disregarded other captagon kingpins, leaving them to operate in the Daraa governorate, bordering Jordan. One of the drug bosses is Imad Abu Zureiq, whom Washington sanctioned in 2023 for using his militia to “sell contraband, operate protection rackets, and smuggle drugs into Jordan.” Sharaa met with Abu Zureiq in December, along with other militia leaders, to discuss his role in the new government. Instead, Sharaa should have arrested him for taking part in the illicit trade. Other drug lords have also remained untouched by the new government.
Southern Syria’s Chaos Fuels the Trade
The lawlessness of Syria’s border regions, particularly in the south, has contributed to the free flow of captagon. The Syrian government has struggled to maintain a stable presence in both Daraa and the predominantly Druze province of Suwayda. In Daraa, local armed factions resisted integration into the state until April. Further complicating any interdiction efforts, Israel has issued an order prohibiting Syrian forces from operating in southern Syria. Drug smugglers in Suwayda have also taken advantage of the lack of state control in the region. In at least one case, nothing seems to have changed. According to one investigative report, members of the Mazhar family of Suwayda, once linked to the Assad regime, still “run a captagon factory seven kilometers from their neighborhood and are actively involved in trafficking.”In July, clashes between government forces, Druze militias, and Bedouin tribes in Suwayda left more than a thousand people dead and no single authority over the area. Between August 1 and September 2, Jordan intercepted 150 percent more smuggling attempts from Syria than in the previous month.
U.S. Should Keep Pressure on Captagon Networks
Captagon continues to flood the Middle East, and while the Syrian government has dismantled production facilities linked to the Assad regime to curb the trade, Damascus is far from eliminating it.When President Donald Trump lifted most sanctions on Syria in June, the restrictions on drug traffickers remained. While the administration has emphasized engagement with Syria’s current government, there also needs to be accountability. Washington should warn Damascus that relations will suffer if captagon kingpins play a role in Sharaa’s government. And the United States should be ready with new sanctions on narco-traffickers if they are allowed to flourish.
**Ahmad Sharawi is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD). For more analysis from Ahmad and FDD, please subscribe HERE. Follow Ahmad on X @AhmadA_Sharawi. Follow FDD on X @FDD. FDD is a Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy.

A Few Remarks on Weapons as Israel's Accomplice in our Murder
Hazem Saghieh/Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
The Israeli strike that killed the Houthis’ prime minister and most of his ministers affirmed what had previously been affirmed by the assassinations of Iranian military leaders and scientists, and before them, of Hezbollah and Hamas’s leaders and senior security and military cadres. These weapons, all of them, are meant not for this war. They can no longer serve any purpose other than waging war against us or inviting conflict. That is, they have the capacity to harm their owners and their countries and nations, but they can do nothing else.
Claims to the contrary amount, at this point, to obscene nonsense that insults our intelligence and goes against reality and the national interest. Hezbollah, for example, claims that if it weren't for its weapons, Israel’s army would have reached Beirut. If they had reached Beirut, the party would have claimed that they would have reached Tripoli if it weren't for its weapons. Mind you, the Israelis have reached Beirut, killing Hezbollah’s Secretary-General and the rest of the party's leadership in the Lebanese capital, where Israeli drones continue to roam the skies. Given the coarseness of these weapons and the coarseness of the situation they have caused, the observations below are somewhat simplistic and coarse by necessity.
First, Israel’s military superiority, underpinned by its broader organizational, educational, and cultural superiority, is overwhelming- whatever one thinks of this state of affairs, whatever reasons one has to hate Israel and fear it, and regardless of the narcissistic wound we suffer from recognizing the backwardness of our levers of power compared to Israel’s.
Second, the function of the arsenal confronting the Israelis weakens it further and drains its energy. Indeed, its task ranges from waging civil war to dominating segments of the local population that are different from it, or, in the case of Iran, dominating neighbors in the region. Third, since October 7, 2023, and the war it provoked, there has been no real exchange or contest, with the losses and deaths all but exclusive to one side. The Houthis present the latest and most glaring case and point; on one side, a ruling elite is eliminated, and on the other, Ben Gurion Airport is shut down for hours or hundreds of thousands of Israelis are sent to shelters. We must also add the civilian losses, particularly in Gaza, and the material costs in all fronts of the conflict.
Fourth, because of the communal and contradictory dynamics that shape politics in the countries involved (religious, sectarian, or ethnic dynamics), prolonging this war that has already been lost, or taking any action that engenders additional calamities, would broaden the part of the population that refuses to coexist with these weapons and those who carry them. Accordingly, these arms offer the Jewish state additional valuable gifts, none more precious than tearing deeper into the national fabric across the region, country by country. More than that, broad segments of the population, who consider themselves victims of a war that had been imposed on them, could be driven to sympathize with Israel’s brutality, coming to see it as protection and radical salvation from the state of war.
Fifth, any effort to cling to these weapons, any delay in turning the page on the war, and any intransigence that incurs further costs would not only weaken the negotiating position of the forces waging the war, but also that of their countries. The Israelis, and the Americans behind them, are effectively behaving like victors, accepting nothing less than recognition of defeat and surrender to Israel’s conception of peace. The longer the war continues, the more stringent the terms will become, and by extension, the stronger the dose of humiliation.
Sixth, by weakening us further, perpetuating the war results in increased interference by foreign powers and erodes sovereignty in the Levant further. This, at a moment in international politics when an international conference to examine and positively address the region’s issues seems highly unlikely.
Seventh, so long as the arms remain, there can be no viable political or military path to better terms. Iran's requests for "dialogue" have fallen on deaf ears, while the major non-Western powers, like Russia and China, have little influence, if any at all.
Eighth, while it is true that Israel has been on the receiving end of strong moral blows, these blows will not be reflected in the military balance of power, and building on them politically requires time and diligent, consistent efforts.
Ninth, every consideration obliges the combatants to turn the page on this war as soon as possible. Whatever the price for ending it, it will be far lower than the cost of allowing it to continue, which Israel’s frenzy will raise to astronomical heights. Contrary to the claims of the frivolous, this is not defeatist propaganda; rather, it is an attempt to cut our losses. It is not a celebration of the "Israeli era" either, but a rational attempt to limit its immense pain and bitterness. If we do not acknowledge the defeat, the humiliation and subjugation of the "Israeli era" will only intensify. Tenth, regarding the honor and dignity so dear to the lips of the forces of resistance, they can look to the phrase used by the Emperor of Japan and Japanese intellectuals after their country's defeat in World War II: "bearing the unbearable." These are words of honor and dignity that our militants would do well to echo rather than insisting on farcical rhetoric about weapons and resistance. Committing to a deep introspection could also be useful, providing these militants with insights into what drove us to reach this point and could still lead us to a point of no return.

Netanyahu Has Found No Country Willing to Take Gaza’s Displaced
Abdulrahman Al-Rashed/Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
Even US President Donald Trump seems to have lost his patience with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, offering him both a note and a piece of advice. He said: “They’re gonna have to get that war over with. But it is hurting Israel. There’s no question about it. They may be winning the war, but they’re not winning the world of public relations.”Netanyahu is searching for alternative countries to which he could send one million Gazans. Syria, Somalia, Somaliland, South Sudan, and Indonesia were mentioned. Of course, Netanyahu does not want them geographically close, nor has he tried to look into Canada or Europe for fear they could become a counterforce. Netanyahu only knows one thing clearly: The slow destruction of Gaza. Yet he has not come up with a solution for the post-war phase. It seems he does not want to end the war without a program to displace a large portion of Gaza’s residents and it seems he has failed to secure suitable destinations. And it is not true, as has been rumored, that he wants to push Palestinians into Israel’s security periphery, such as Syria, because settling them there could become a future threat, as it did in Lebanon. Nor does it appear that any of the other countries agreed to the numbers he seeks to deport. In the Gaza war, Netanyahu committed widespread crimes that killed more than 50,000 people and also led to the deaths of dozens of Israeli hostages. Yet this does not seem to trouble him or keep him awake at night. He continues his response not to stop the war, and he has rejected all versions of ceasefire proposals, including those engineered by Trump’s envoys. He allows only small amounts of food and medical aid in, claiming suspicion over their contents and who controls them. Yet this was an issue that could have been resolved from the start. He questions the aid passing through the Egyptian crossing or airdrops of relief supplies, though other solutions exist. He could have allowed aid through Israel itself under its supervision. Israel’s Ashdod seaport is only 40 kilometers from Gaza. Likewise, by air, aid could have been sent through Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, which lies just 70 kilometers away by road. As for the hostages, they rank last in Netanyahu’s priorities. He is backed in this by military leaders who share in defining the goals of the war. Hamas’s continued holding of them has made it easier for Israel to justify the war to the world.
The truth is, Netanyahu has for years used Hamas to serve his agendas in three propaganda tracks: first, to split the Palestinian ranks; second, to stall any political solution; and third, to brand Palestinians, through Hamas, as armed Islamist groups dangerous to the West. When Hamas launched its wide-scale attacks on October 7, 2023, the region opened up to him, granting him license to destroy all opposing armed forces.
From the start of the military campaign in Gaza, Hamas should have withdrawn from the Strip to deny Netanyahu the chance to destroy it and commit these massacres. This is what Yasser Arafat did when Sharon’s forces besieged Beirut in 1982, choosing to leave with his men. Hamas caused all these massacres and, in every round, bends and offers new concessions that are no longer enough for Netanyahu. If Iran, bristling with weapons, has refrained from escalating further and accepted its losses, and if Hezbollah, the giant militia, signed a ceasefire agreement and endured heavy losses of leaders, fighters, and resources, then who is Hamas to continue its defiance and give Israel justification to destroy what remains? The few who defend Hamas might cite Trump’s words mentioned earlier in this article that Netanyahu is losing public opinion. They consider public opinion a victory, but such victories are flimsy illusions and media bubbles that people soon forget. Netanyahu has been losing in the media for twenty years, and it does not bother him much. It would matter only if President Trump worried about its effect on his own elections, forcing him to intervene or rally UN Security Council members to punish Israel. None of this has happened, nor will it happen. The media and political embarrassment for Israel is nothing more than background noise for Netanyahu. In fact, it gives him the image of a leader protecting Israelis before the world, winning him more support and admiration. Added to his gains in Gaza is his victory in the battle against US universities, defeating protesters and tightening the noose around pro-Gaza groups. So what has Hamas – or the Palestinian cause – gained from this war in propaganda terms? Nothing but fleeting boastfulness, while in reality the losses on the ground are catastrophic.

The ‘Parallel’ Government in Sudan: A Ploy Destined to Fail
Osman Mirghani/Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
This week, the debate over the so-called “parallel government” returned to the fore in Sudan. In an attempt to present themselves as an alternative political authority, the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) released a video of their commander, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as Hemedti, and members of his “presidential council” taking their oaths of office. However, this spectacle does not change the fact that this is an imaginary government. Regardless of the slogans they use to prop up their legitimacy, these theatrics are nothing more than a gambit aimed at sowing confusion and projecting influence following the RSF’s crushing military defeats over the course of the army and its allied forces’ ongoing advance. Nothing underscores the fact that this “government” exists only in the media than its very first decision: appointing a “permanent representative” to the United Nations. It is an absurd move: how can they appoint a representative to an international institution that had clearly refused to recognize parallel authorities and reaffirmed its firm commitment to Sudan’s sovereignty, independence, unity, and territorial integrity?
This so-called government does not change anything on the ground, nor does it enhance the legitimacy of the forces behind it. Moreover, it does not have the means to achieve its stated objectives, and several factors render the failure of this inevitable; some of these factors are presented below:
- Lack of legitimacy: International and regional organizations, as well as several countries, have refused to either acknowledge or engage with it, affirming their support for Sudan’s official state institutions and the country’s unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity.
- RSF’s record of human rights abuses. It is broadly despised in Sudan because of its long history of atrocities against civilians across the country, from Khartoum and from Gezira to Darfur and Kordofan. The hatred of the Sudanese for the RSF rules out the possibility of popular legitimacy; indeed, most citizens see its pretense to being a “government of peace” as a farce. Wherever these forces go, they bring death, ethnic violence, mass displacement, and famine with them. They are a vehicle for terror, not security or stability.
- The RSF is a militia unfit to govern. The group’s structure is designed for war, and its modus operandi is founded on brute force. It lacks any of the capacities required to run a state, as demonstrated by the failures of the administrations it had formed in areas that used to be under its control. Indeed, these bodies were little more than a media stunt whose activities were largely limited to occasional video appearances on social media, with real authority in the hands of unruly recruits.
- Fragile alliances: Hemedti and his brother Abdelrahim’s alliance with Abdelaziz al-Hilu, leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, as part of “Tasis” (or the Sudan Founding Alliance), is a fragile marriage of convenience. The parties have a long history of military and tribal clashes, and their tenuous partnership will probably not last long. Moreover, the RSF’s adoption of the SPLM’s slogans about secularism is a joke. What do these forces or their leader know of secularism - a term he even struggled to pronounce as they took their oaths?
- Internal schisms: The RSF is not a unified bloc, but a coalition of militias bound by tribal and regional loyalties. Its forces have clashed amongst themselves on several occasions, and various factions have complained of discrimination and racism. Disputes over resources and power remain probable. During the formation of the “Tasis government,” some tribal groups complained of marginalization and threatened mutiny. Powerful tribal constituencies openly oppose RSF leadership and its project, declaring it a threat to be confronted.
The RSF leadership sought to show that they are more than an armed militia through the announcement of this government, projecting an image of the RSF as a political actor that can govern and implement a “state-building project” alongside its “Tasis” allies. However, this image quickly collapses in the face of reality: international and regional bodies have refused to recognize it because they know they are dealing with a militia, and there is nothing to suggest that it could transform from a military force into a governing authority.
At most, international actors may treat the RSF as an armed group that must be negotiated with to end the war, but they will never recognize it as a government. The Sudanese army remains the state’s official military institution, and the world continues to engage with it on that basis. In truth, the RSF’s so-called government cannot even fully impose its authority across Darfur and Kordofan, let alone claim to represent all of Sudan. The RSF does not have absolute control in these regions, as the Sudanese army and its allied forces maintain a strong presence in some pockets. They have repelled more than 235 attacks on al-Fashir, held key towns and military garrisons in Kordofan, and are currently preparing a major operation that could turn the balance of power on its head.
Accordingly, the RSF’s “government” is nothing more than a media spectacle, a political illusion, and a ploy to project relevance after the series of military defeats it has suffered. In short, it is a government on paper only; it has neither substance nor prospects for success.

Tianjin Summit 2025: The Region at the Center of the New Global Order
Nadim Koteich/Asharq Al Awsat/September 04/2025
The recent Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Summit held in the Chinese city of Tianjin placed the Arab region, particularly the Gulf, at the heart of the processes reshaping the balance of power in Eurasia. Presided over by Chinese President Xi Jinping and attended by Russian President Vladimir Putin, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and other leaders, the Summit further consolidated new geopolitical realities in the Middle East, strengthening the diversification of alliances that allow for avoiding reliance on Washington alone. More than any other since the SCO’s founding as a security framework in 2001 and its gradual expansion over a quarter century (it now represents nearly 40 percent of the world’s population), the Tianjin Summit underscored the organization’s growing relevance for the Middle East. Indeed, Iran became a full member in 2023, and Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt obtained “dialogue partner” status in 2022.
This shift has effectively made the Red Sea and the Arabian Gulf into a natural extension of the Eurasian bloc, positioning the region at the center of future trade routes, logistics, and energy flows. In one sign of this new reality, ten Gulf ports were ranked among the world’s seventy most efficient in 2024.
Most importantly, the principles of the “Tianjin Declaration” clearly resonate with the current mood in the Arab world, particularly on questions of sovereignty, non-interference, and global governance reform.
It was unequivocal in rejecting tutelage or unilateral sanctions, positions deeply familiar to most Arab capitals that have long been wary of Western pressure framed as a defense of democracy and human rights. The statement also made a striking call for granting developing countries, including Arab states, more weight within international institutions such as the United Nations Security Council and the International Monetary Fund. These themes are inseparable from the summit’s long-standing push for equitable development, particularly debt relief. Yet, this year the statement went further: regulating the field of artificial intelligence and technology transfers, and freeing them from political constraints that hinder many nations’ progress and exacerbate their economic crises. In this context, Russian President Vladimir Putin’s calls to accelerate de-dollarization, coupled with proposals to establish a development bank managed by the SCO, were not merely slogans of a confrontation with the West. Rather, they reflect emerging economic and geopolitical realities that have placed Gulf oil and gas at the heart of a multi-currency financial framework and a multipolar political order.
Nonetheless, this effort presents both challenges and opportunities for the Gulf states, which hold massive dollar-denominated surpluses exceeding six trillion dollars in sovereign wealth fund assets, and which export most of their energy in US dollars. However, it is one component of a deliberate repositioning strategy led by Gulf governments: diversifying their economies through multipronged initiatives, foremost among them linking China’s Belt and Road Initiative to maritime corridors through the Suez Canal and the Arabian Sea, thereby enhancing the strategic position of Egypt, the UAE, and Saudi Arabia as pivotal hubs in the emerging global trade map. From this perspective, the Summit’s rejection of what the leaders called a “Cold War mentality” is particularly significant, emphasizing the economic dimension of security in today’s world and underscoring the need for a shared security framework that addresses the concerns and interests of all parties. While the message was aimed primarily at Washington and NATO, it is also relevant for the Middle East, as the conflicts in Gaza, Lebanon, Yemen, and Iran are intertwined with global power struggles and the multipolar contest around the US security umbrella in the region.
In this sense, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, alongside BRICS, brings Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Iran to the same table at a non-Western platform. It thereby offers a space, creating a new framework for managing disputes without Western mediation, with all its biases, shortcomings, and declining efficacy. If Afghanistan has been a testing ground for the SCO’s intentions, the Middle East will be the ultimate test of its ability to translate principles into material shifts that reshape spheres of influence and to open the door to new actors to play a role in shaping regional security. All of that could pull Arab security out of the web of entrenched polarization.
The Summit’s outcomes and its aspiration to affirm the end of US unipolarity are not merely academic abstractions to Arab states. They reflect the material realities that Riyadh, Abu Dhabi, and Cairo are navigating as they seek to balance relations with Washington, Beijing, and Moscow. Still, divergences within the organization persist, especially between China and India. Moreover, whether the SCO has the capacity to evolve by translating statements into robust institutional frameworks remains an open question. These challenges do not, however, take anything away from the Summit’s success in shaping a new geopolitical climate that lays the groundwork for an institutional alternative to the Western-dominated order. The Tianjin Summit has yet to develop a new global system, but it has placed the Middle East at the center of this process, meaning that Arab actors’ roles, interests, and choices are key to shaping the balance of the new era. From the ports of the Red Sea to the oil fields of the Gulf, from investment forums to negotiating tables, the region is asserting itself as an indispensable partner in crafting the world of tomorrow.

From ambition to action: The Middle East’s blueprint for inclusive energy growth
Suhail Mohamed Al Mazrouei/English Alarabiya/September 04/2025
Economies today face a twin imperative: Deliver reliable, affordable energy today, while building cleaner, smarter energy systems of tomorrow. The fastest and fairest way of accomplishing both is not to reduce the challenge to a choice between the two, but to integrate them, linking traditional fuels, renewables, and nuclear power through digital intelligence. Diversifying, connecting, and optimising with artificial intelligence (AI) enables energy systems to create resilient growth that reaches every household and business. It is precisely this approach that the United Arab Emirates has opted for. Guided by the UAE Energy Strategy 2050, we are pursuing a significantly cleaner energy ecosystem in a bid to reach net zero by 2050. The strategy targets 32 percent clean energy generation by mid-century and aims to triple the share of renewable energy by 2030 supported by an investment of AED 150–200 billion to meet the country’s rising energy demand driven by rapid economic growth. At the same time, we are raising ambition on the demand side. The updated strategy sets a goal of improving energy-consumption efficiency by 42–45 percent by 2050, while also committing to doubling energy efficiency by 2030.
In parallel, we are embedding AI across the value chain – from predictive maintenance that helps mitigate supply interruptions to real-time analytics that balance supply and demand. This reflects the UAE National Strategy for Artificial Intelligence 2031, which identifies energy and resources among its priority sectors. This approach has already delivered results, with our clean-energy share reaching 27.83 percent of the national energy mix in 2023, powered by rapid solar build-out and the contribution of the Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant. In 2024, the plant’s Unit 4 entered commercial operation, bringing it to full-fleet status and the ability percent of the UAE’s electricity generation needs.
The UAE’s energy policy is also closely tied to our industrial ambitions. Our industrial sector’s contribution to the GDP had expanded from a baseline of AED 133 billion to AED 205 billion by the end of 2023 – proof that reliable, affordable, cleaner power attracts long-term capital and enables complex manufacturing. By powering industry in this way, we are providing our national workforce with secure opportunities and well-paying jobs. Through energy-linked localisation and industry programmes, more than 17,000 private-sector jobs for Emiratis have been enabled since 2018, including 5,500 private-sector roles facilitated in 2024 alone under ADNOC’s In-Country Value program. With this kind of synchronicity between energy and digital policy, infrastructure spending can readily be turned into economic opportunity, rather than being just an abstract line item.
There are a number of significant lessons that other nations can draw from the UAE’s experience. First, design for diversity: A balanced portfolio makes systems robust and prices stable. Natural gas and cleaner liquid fuels remain critical for reliability and industrial heat, while renewables bring low-cost electrons at scale and nuclear energy provides a zero-carbon baseload. The policy question, therefore, does not revolve around an ‘either/or’ choice but ‘how to coordinate all of the above’, which depends on grids that can absorb variable generation, storage that can time-shift supply, and market signals that reward flexibility. These capabilities are all embedded in the phased additions and efficiency mandates of the UAE Energy Strategy 2050.
Second, make AI a core utility, with machine learning enabling forecast of demand by neighbourhood and sector. Digital twins can stress-test entire networks before a single cable is installed, and predictive maintenance extends asset life while cutting costs. The UAE’s AI 2031 strategy places energy squarely in scope, accelerating deployment of these tools in generation, transmission, and end-use efficiency.
Third, treat efficiency as a growth engine, not an austerity plan. The most affordable and cleanest kilowatt-hour is one that does not need to be generated. At the national level, demand-side management (DSM) programs translate this principle into measurable targets. For example the National Water and Energy Demand Management Programme aims to achieve a 42-45 percent efficiency goal by 2050, aligning incentives across buildings, industry, transportation and agriculture. This approach also promotes behavioural change within the UAE community, ensuring that efficiency becomes a driver of sustainable growth rather than a constraint.
Fourth, align energy investment with industrial strategy. The UAE’s manufacturing expansion is anchored to reliable, affordable, cleaner power and a carefully calibrated ‘Make it in the Emirates’ agenda that links long-term offtake with local supply-chain depth and advanced technology adoption. This reduces risk, accelerates deployment, and keeps value in the domestic economy.
Fifth, develop people for the energy-digital frontier. Job creation is the clearest test of inclusive growth, which can only be truly all-encompassing if citizens are able to participate through scholarships, vocational pathways, and lifelong learning that blend electrical engineering with data science, and safety culture with software skills. Finally, finance at scale and speed. Blended finance, green bonds, and performance-based contracts can gather private capital while protecting public budgets. Stable, long-dated policy signals such as the UAE Energy Strategy 2050 lower the cost of capital for clean generation, efficiency retrofits, and grid modernisation. Regional interconnections and cross-border trade further reduce costs by pooling resources and smoothing variability.
In this context, integrated systems are more affordable to run, more resilient to shocks, and better for public health. They also open doors for innovation: startups flourish as utilities modernise, and as grids digitise, new services appear, from demand response for factories to smart tariffs for households.
Our region is uniquely positioned to lead this model, with abundant solar resources, world-class delivery at scale, and a pragmatic path that cuts the hydrocarbon footprint while accelerating clean power under a diversified 2050 mix and near-term efficiency goals. Fused with AI and advanced engineering, we export not just energy but know-how. And as decisionmakers from the UAE and the wider Gulf convene at ADIPEC 2025 – the world’s largest energy event that we proudly host every year – we invite peers to apply a simple blueprint: diversify supply, digitise operations, drive efficiency, align with industry, invest in people, and mobilise finance, so inclusive growth can reach every home and enterprise.
Through this strategic approach, the UAE has been able to turn its ambitions into action, leveraging cleaner energy to strengthen competitiveness today while building the resilient economy of tomorrow. By operationalising the blueprint we have provided, other nations in the region and beyond can translate their own aspirations into opportunity, productivity, and long-term prosperity.

Slected X tweets For September 04/2025
Ambassador Amir Hayek
The Abraham Accords are crucial for Middle East stability & prosperity.
We all must preserve these agreements and their core values: peace, cooperation, mutual respect, for a brighter, secure future for all.

Kadmous
Lebanese Christians lack critical thinking & it’s scary: South gone + Hezb still armed; North tilts HTS/Turkey; Iran erases/steals Maronite heritage (Keserwen, Kebe Naye…same ‘mahroumin’ propaganda to fuel Shia hate). Aim: land split Iran/Turkey. Samir & Aoun = trojans. Awake??

MRM58
With what's going around I'm growing fond of hermit's life
I totally embrace the life of Saint Charbel who isolated himself from people their wrongdoings and deeds. Yes life is too short to live it with regrets and sorrow for what should have been done or said
Back to roots

Hussain Abdul-Hussain
Islamist Qatar's Aljazeera claims #Israel is racist for Judaizing the Negev by building new towns in Beersheba and Dimona.
Negev is not disputed by any international resolution; it is part of Israel proper, forever.
Yet, Al Jazeera incites the world against Israel building towns there.
Next, Jews may not be allowed to build houses in Tel Aviv.

wassim Godfrey
This is the result of dhimmitude when you give trust for pharaonic leader of corruption and vote to leftie majority government congratulations the folklore continues since 7 months Bravo big champagne to big brother and charchabil boys libanoiranokandahar version 6

Secretary Marco Rubio
Arrived in Quito, Ecuador last night. I’m meeting with President @DanielNoboaOk
to strengthen the U.S.-Ecuador relationship, which ultimately makes both our nations more secure and more prosperous. We're aligned as key partners on ending illegal immigration and combatting transnational crime and terrorism.