English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News &
Editorials
For August 17/2026
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news
The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/aaaanewsfor2026/english.August
17.26.htm
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Bible Quotations For today
God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we
say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie
and do not do what is true
First Letter of John 01/01-10/:”We declare to you what was from
the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have
looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life this life was
revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal
life that was with the Father and was revealed to us we declare to you what we
have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our
fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing
these things so that our joy may be complete. This is the message we have heard
from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness
at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in
darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he
himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of
Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we
deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he who is
faithful and just will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all
unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his
word is not in us.”
Titles For Latest English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related
News & Editorials published on August 16-17/2026
The rulers & state of occupied Lebanon are mere marketing megaphones for
the occupation of the Party of Satan and their foolish mullahs./Elias Bejjani/August
15, 2026
Elias Bejjani/Text, Video, Arabic and English/The Dhimmi and Sin of the Amnesty
Law as it relates to the heroic South Lebanon Army and those forcibly displaced
since 2000
With a reading of the article by director and writer Youssef Y. Khoury, which
exposes and condemns the monstrous law: When Marika pardons Saint Rita/Elias
Bejjani/August 14/2026
The Lebanese Army is an institution subordinate to the state, executing its
orders and not the other way around./Elias Bejjani/August 12, 2026
Link to an important video report in English by Israeli Rabbi Pesach Wolicki,
The Use by President of the Republic Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam,
State Institutions, and the Media of the Terms “Massacre” and “Civilians” Is a
Grave Mistake/Nadim Koteich/X Platform/16 August 2026
The South Lebanese Army SLA Was the Legitimacy When Legitimacy Fell/Attorney
Maroun Al-Amil – Secretary-General of the Guardians of the Cedars Party
Bashir Gemayel Academy/Testimonials from some of the academy's graduates
Lebanese Ministry of Health Reveals Cumulative Toll of the War in Lebanon Since
March
Tensions Escalate in Ali Taher as Israel Prepares for a New Round of Fighting
Katz: We will strike hard… Ben-Gvir to Netanyahu: Bomb Beirut and crush them!
Hezbollah is trying to supply its fighters besieged underground.
Video filmed by the Israeli army in Naqoura as security escalation continues in
the south.
Documents Reveal Hamas's Military Project in Lebanon
US responds to Qassem remarks, says Hezbollah bears responsibility for Israeli
presence in Lebanon
US official says Hezbollah 'bears sole responsibility for Israel's presence' in
Lebanon
Israel vows to go after Hezbollah as it names another killed
Strike in southern Lebanon’s Deir Al-Zahrani kills senior Hezbollah commander,
Israeli military says
Lebanon sees sharpest Israeli escalation since framework agreement
Fears of renewed fighting force southern Lebanon residents to leave homes again
Israeli minister calls for escalation with Lebanon, says threats must be
‘crushed’ in Beirut
Lebanon Civil Defense warns against swimming along coast amid high waves
LBCI Exclusive footage shows massive fire raging through Aitou forest
Lebanon’s creative talent suffers as Iran war pressures Gulf economies
Titles For The Latest English LCCC
Miscellaneous Reports And News published on August 16-17/2026
Iran holds Hormuz line as Trump warns of higher fuel prices
Trump welcomes defense pact between Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan
Iran, US no closer to deal as ceasefire set to expire
Iran offers $30,000 bounty for killing, capturing US soldiers
Shipping via Hormuz strait slows after tanker attacks, data shows
US Central Command chief visits aircraft carrier USS Lincoln
Iran accuses Qatar of thwarting probe into fate of pilots
Netanyahu election billboard groups New York Mayor Mamdani among Israel’s
enemies
Sentencing of Syrian regime figures ‘a turning point,’ rights groups say
Taliban regime has itself become a proxy trying to destabilize the region,
Pakistan’s UN envoy tells Arab News
Qatar denies holding Iranian pilots after Tehran claimed three pilots detained
by Doha
'Everyone lives in fear': Yemenis worry about return to all-out war
Over 200 Houthis killed in drone strikes, clashes in Yemen, military sources say
Hamas delegation, Egypt spy chief hold talks on Gaza plan
Eight Muslim countries condemn Israel's rejection of Trump's Gaza plan
Hamas delegation, Kushner in Egypt for Gaza plan talks
Saudi Arabia, seven others condemn Israel’s rejection of Trump’s Gaza plan
Mass drone attack on Moscow as Russian strikes kill three in Ukraine
Pope calls for an end to West Bank violence against Palestinians
Titles For The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials
from miscellaneous sources published
on August 16-17/2026
Iranian Regime's Dangerous Strategy:
Outlast Trump, Return Stronger/Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/August
16, 2026
Taliban regime has itself become a proxy trying to destabilize the region,
Pakistan’s UN envoy tells Arab News/Ephrem Kossaify/Arab News/August 16, 2026
Erdogan says Egypt could join Turkiye-Saudi-Pakistan defense pact/Arab
News/August 16, 2026
Republican silence and Democratic ambiguity/Eyad Abu Shakra/Asharq Al-Awsat/August
16, 2026
Ceuta plot, a failed challenge to Morocco’s sovereignty/Berrak Chadi Abdeslam/The
Arab Weekly/August 16/2026
Selected Face Book & X tweets on August 16/2026
Latest English LCCC Lebanese &
Lebanese Related News & Editorials published on August 16-17/2026
The rulers & state of occupied Lebanon are mere marketing megaphones for
the occupation of the Party of Satan and their foolish mullahs.
Elias Bejjani/August 15, 2026
Berri, Salam, and Aoun condemn Israeli strikes like parrots, while shamelessly
and disgracefully marketing the crimes and occupation of the Iranian Hezbollah
and the jihadism of the insane mullahs, failing to implement the required
resolutions for Israeli withdrawal and the establishment of peace. It is truly a
time of misery, drought, and eunuchs.
Elias Bejjani/Text, Video, Arabic and English/The
Dhimmi and Sin of the Amnesty Law as it relates to the heroic South Lebanon Army
and those forcibly displaced since 2000
With a reading of the article by director and writer Youssef Y. Khoury, which
exposes and condemns the monstrous law: When Marika pardons Saint Rita
Elias Bejjani/August 14/2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/08/156651/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PJnA_J3-JNo
A thousand salutes of respect and pride to our free and heroic southern people,
who have been refugees since the year 2000 in Israel and various free nations.
To them we say: You are Lebanon, you are the cedar, and wherever you are,
patriotism, faith, and Lebanon reside.
You are the ones who should forgive Lebanon’s rulers and political parties, not
the other way around. The miserable reality is that both you and we are living
in an era ruled by proxy rulers, puppets, and dhimwis—under the care of corrupt
political party leaders who falsely claim to be Christians while, in heart,
soul, and practice, they are Judases.
Yes, we live in a time when the majority of our heedless people are partisans
like flocks of sheep led to the slaughterhouse without even a bleat.
And a thousand yes, our time is the time of people with robes, birettas, and
bellies, whom the saints of the Church disown.
The remaining and most dangerous of our misfortunes lies in our country’s proxy
and mercenary, humiliating Membersof the Parliament who sold their dignity, the
homeland, and the citizens for less than thirty pieces of silver.
O our honorable displaced southern people wherever you are, strengthen your
faith and be certain that you will return when Lebanon returns to its true
Lebanese identity, for its return will not be complete until you return to it
honored and cherished.
The Lebanese Army is an institution subordinate to the
state, executing its orders and not the other way around.
Elias Bejjani/August 12, 2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/08/156604/
The theatrical performance by the Minister of Defense in the Parliament
yesterday, and his sullenness after being prevented from delivering his speech,
is merely a heresy, a brazen tool, and illegal, aimed at sowing discord and
serving the Iranian occupier and its army of local mercenaries—blasphemously and
sacrilegiously named “Hezbollah”—while in reality and operational terms, it is
the Iranian-Jihadist army of devastation.
The Lebanese Army is an institution just like all other state institutions
subordinate to the Council of Ministers, the “executive authority,” and not a
state within a state that decides, accepts, and rejects as it pleases. Hence,
everything termed as the army’s opinion on the general amnesty law file is a
violation of the constitution, a heresy, and an encroachment on the authority of
the Council of Ministers.
This crude, theatrical deviation from the law is written, produced, and directed
by Nabih Berri, the king of corruption, the corrupt, and 100% sectarian, who has
worked for decades to expel Christians from all state institutions and entrench
the Persian mullahs’ state.
As for the positions of the one who failed in all of Satan’s trials, Michel Aoun,
and his son-in-law—who is listed on international corruption lists—along with
all remaining MPs and stooges who are with him, in addition to the Syrian
nationalist Elie Bou Saab and all the rest of the mercenaries funded by
Hezbollah, they are bundles of stupidity, treason, subservience, and dhimmitude.
In our lived reality, the Lebanese Army has not been a national army after
Commander Ibrahim Tannous; rather, it has transformed into a repressive force
affiliated with occupying powers and their local tools—Palestinian, leftist,
Syrian nationalist, jihadist, Syrian Baathist, Iranian etc.
The current role of the army, under the mullah-aligned leadership of Rudolph
Haykal who acts on his own accord, lies outside the framework of the executive
authority regarding all its positions and practices—specifically concerning
negotiations with the State of Israel, as well as what is termed the army’s
opinion on the general amnesty law… and the list of heresies goes on and on.
In conclusion, Lebanon’s army is not an independent state, but an institution
like the rest of the state institutions, and everything outside this legal and
constitutional framework is merely theatrical plays and heresies backed by the
corrupt Nabih Berri, the Party of Satan, and the rest of the hired extras such
as the contemptible Gebran Bassil.
Note: The attached image is AI-generated and not real.
Link to an important video report in English by Israeli
Rabbi Pesach Wolicki,
Pesach Wolicki, presents facts, evidence, and documentation revealing the truth
about what took place yesterday in southern Lebanon after Israel launched
airstrikes and assassinated the military officials of the terrorist Hezbollah
organization, Samir Al-Hajj Hassan and Mohammad Fakhr El-Din.
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/08/156690/
A complete exposure and debunking of the falsehoods contained in the Lebanese
presidential statement, the fabrications of Lebanese officials, and the
narratives promoted by much of the paid Lebanese and Arab media. The reality is
that the jihadist terrorist organization Hezbollah, which occupies Lebanon, was
the party that violated the ceasefire and triggered all Israeli military
responses, resulting in the deaths of 11 people, most of them Hezbollah
commanders and members.August 16/2026
The Use by President of the Republic Joseph Aoun, Prime
Minister Nawaf Salam, State Institutions, and the Media of the Terms “Massacre”
and “Civilians” Is a Grave Mistake
Nadim Koteich/X Platform/16 August 2026
The use by President of the Republic Joseph Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam,
state institutions, and the media of the terms “massacre” and “civilians” is a
grave mistake, because it generalized a dramatic narrative before the facts had
been fully established.
What happened in Ansar is clear:
A commander in the Radwan Force was targeted, and the victims were his six
family members. He alone is responsible for their safety and no one else. He
appears to have used them as human shields, or he was negligent in protecting
them and overestimated his ability to remain undetected.
As for Deir al-Zahrani, there is still no precise information regarding the
targets, where four people were killed, including a child, as reported by news
agency reports.
At least 7 out of the 11, at a minimum, died as a result of Hezbollah’s
insistence on a battle it has lost and continues to stubbornly pursue, while
preventing arrangements that could protect people.
The rush to use dramatic expressions does not give Nawaf Salam or Joseph Aoun
any credit with the other side’s audience. Rather, it diminishes their personal
credibility, as well as the credibility of Lebanese legitimacy and the
protection of the ongoing negotiations.
If these are truly massacres, then why do we continue the negotiations!?
This old habit must stop out of concern for the national effort to end the war
and save Lebanon. It adds nothing practical to protecting civilians or advancing
the negotiations.
The party responsible for the bloodshed that occurred yesterday is Hezbollah
first, second, tenth, and last.
Any other narrative only reinforces the militia’s narrative.
The South Lebanese Army SLA Was the Legitimacy When
Legitimacy Fell
Attorney Maroun Al-Amil – Secretary-General of the Guardians of the Cedars Party
August 16, 2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/08/156698/
The South Lebanese Army was the legitimacy when legitimacy fell.
It was the Lebanese Army when the Lebanese Army disintegrated.
It was the non-sectarian state in an age of sectarianism.
It was the guardian of identity and the entity in a time when the entity was
fracturing and identity was being lost.
The South Lebanese Army was not a party working for the benefit of political
leaderships and their interests.
The South Lebanese Army was part of the Lebanese Army and worked to defend the
border villages and towns of diverse religions, protecting the church as well as
the mosque and the khalwa.
The South Lebanese Army was innocent of the bloody leadership rivalries, the
conflicts of interests, illicit money, the theft of the state, and the
dismantling and fragmentation of its institutions.
The South Lebanese Army was not part of the moral corruption that turned Lebanon
into a sanctuary for gangs and outcasts.
The South Lebanese Army was a unique Lebanese phenomenon, innocent of all the
betrayals, deadly conflicts, and the buying and selling of the country at public
auction for the sake of a handful of money or a worn-out chair of power whose
only purpose was the selling of blood and the selling of consciences.
Bashir Gemayel Academy/Testimonials from some of the
academy's graduates
Bachir Gemayel Academy
August 16/2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/08/156701/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y599BDls5mg&t=20s
"The nation is not an inheritance; it is a legacy." — President Bachir
Gemayel
Because we cannot build our future without a profound understanding of our past;
the graduates of the Bachir Gemayel Academy share what they have learned, their
deeper understanding of Bachir, and their conviction on what must be done for
the country based on the knowledge they acquired.
Lebanese Ministry of Health Reveals Cumulative Toll of
the War in Lebanon Since March
Al-Markazia/August 16, 2026 (Google translation from Arabic)
The Emergency Operations Center of the Ministry of Public Health announced in a
statement that “the total cumulative toll of the war from March 2 to August 16
is as follows: 4,346 dead and 12,301 wounded.”
Tensions Escalate in Ali Taher as Israel Prepares for a New
Round of Fighting
Al-Markazia/August 16, 2026 (Google translation from Arabic)
The Israeli army is preparing for military operations that could last “for
several days” in Lebanon, according to Israel’s Channel 12 on Sunday evening.
The channel’s report stated that “this current tension with Hezbollah comes
amidst army movements in the Ali Taher Heights,” where Israel insists on
destroying the militia’s infrastructure in the area. The report indicated that
the Israeli army is not considering backing down from completing its mission to
destroy what it called “terrorist camps,” and hinted at a political “green
light” to complete the mission, after a period of “restraint,” as it put it.
According to Channel 12, dozens of Hezbollah fighters are trapped underground in
the Ali al-Taher Heights. The channel reported that the Israeli army thwarted
attempts by Hezbollah operatives to provide them with assistance. It stated that
Israel "exercised restraint in recent days, keen not to undermine the
negotiations with the Lebanese government, which were being mediated by the
United States. This is also why the political leadership has not approved some
of the measures proposed by the army in response to Hezbollah's actions." The
report indicated that following yesterday's incident, in which three Israeli
soldiers were seriously wounded in the Ali al-Taher Heights area, the army
responded overnight (between Saturday and Sunday) with a wide-ranging wave of
attacks. Abu Hassan Alaa, a senior commander in Hezbollah's Badr Unit, was
killed in the Deir Zahrani area. Prior to this, Ali Samir al-Hajj Hassan, a
battalion commander in the Radwan Unit, was killed at its headquarters in the
village of Ansar in the Nabatieh region.
Katz: We will strike hard… Ben-Gvir to Netanyahu: Bomb
Beirut and crush them!
Al-Markazia/August 16, 2026 (Google translation from Arabic)
Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz commented on the airstrikes targeting
towns in southern Lebanon, vowing to defend Israeli soldiers and residents of
northern Israel with full force. Katz stated on his X-rated account: “No account
will remain open in any arena. We will defend our soldiers and citizens with all
our might.” Meanwhile, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir
expressed hope that Israel was on the verge of a military escalation in Lebanon,
calling for “not only thwarting threats but also granting Israeli forces greater
freedom of action,” and demanding that “Hezbollah be crushed and Beirut
targeted.” Ben-Gvir also called on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to
"move towards the full occupation of the Gaza Strip and encourage emigration
from it, in addition to continuing military operations aimed at destroying
Hamas."
Hezbollah is trying to supply its fighters besieged
underground.
Al-Markazia/August 16, 2026 (Google translation from Arabic)
The Israeli website Walla reported that security assessments in Israel indicate
that Hezbollah is trying to supply its fighters besieged in underground
positions in the Ali al-Taher Heights, while Israel is working to locate and
destroy the infrastructure and personnel in the area.
Video filmed by the Israeli army in Naqoura as security
escalation continues in the south.
Al-Markazia/August 16, 2026 (Google translation from Arabic)
Israeli platforms published a video filmed by the Israeli army in Naqoura,
southern Lebanon. An Israeli drone crashed into a house in Kfar, and the Israeli
army shelled a house in Yahoun and the outskirts of Haddatha in the Bint Jbeil
district. Israeli artillery shelling targeted the town of Bani Hayyan in
southern Lebanon, coinciding with an Israeli drone dropping explosives on the
Ali al-Taher hill in southern Lebanon. Israeli artillery shelling targeted the
town of Bani Hayyan in southern Lebanon this afternoon. An Israeli drone flew
over the town of Marwaniyeh in southern Lebanon, coinciding with Israeli
artillery shelling targeting the outskirts of the town of Tallousa and Wadi al-Salouqi.
An Israeli drone dropped a stun grenade on the town of Kfar, without causing any
injuries. Israeli warplanes also conducted sorties in the airspace of the
western and central sectors at medium altitude, while Israeli drones flew over
Mansouri and the coast between Tyre and Mansouri, passing over Ras al-Ain. The
Israeli army carried out extensive bombing operations in the Mansouri area of Majdal
Zoun, south of Tyre. Israeli drones were also seen flying over Beirut's southern
suburbs before noon. Shortly after midnight and into the early morning, the
Israeli army continued its security escalation in southern Lebanon, launching a
series of airstrikes targeting Doha Kfar Rumman and Deir Siryan. It also
conducted a wave of intense airstrikes, resembling a ring of fire, on Ali Taher
and Dabsha, dropping flares and phosphorus bombs on the Ali Taher heights and
surrounding areas. Additionally, the towns of Sajd and Mansouri were subjected
to artillery shelling. Several villages in southern Lebanon witnessed heavy
bombings carried out by the Israeli army overnight.
Documents Reveal Hamas's Military Project in Lebanon
Al-Markazia/August 16, 2026 (Google translation from Arabic)
Documents that the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation (Kan) claims the Israeli
army seized from Hamas in the Gaza Strip reveal details of the movement's
years-long efforts to establish a military infrastructure in Lebanon, with the
aim of opening an additional front against Israel, according to a study
published by the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center of the Meir Amit
Brigade. According to the study, the documents show that senior Hamas officials
discussed, since 2012, with former Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah
and a representative of the Iranian Quds Force, the establishment of a Hamas
military force in Lebanon. The plan, according to the Kan report, included
forming combat teams, carrying out rocket launches, preparing for infiltration
operations into Israel, and securing sources for supplying and producing
weapons. The report indicated that the military infrastructure became
operational during Israel's "Operation Protective Edge" in 2021, when Hamas
launched rockets from Lebanese territory with Hezbollah's approval, while a
joint command center operated in Beirut with the participation of
representatives from Hezbollah and Iran. Following that round of fighting, Yahya
Sinwar, according to the documents cited in the study, sought to expand the
project. Documents dating back to 2022 reveal a plan to recruit approximately
2,000 fighters, aiming to form a vanguard force alongside Hezbollah's Radwan
Force and to carry out infiltration operations into Israel. Although the project
did not reach the scale Hamas had hoped for, the movement's military wing in
Lebanon participated in the war that erupted after the October 7 attacks,
coordinating with Hezbollah and claiming responsibility for 13 attacks targeting
northern Israel, according to the Israeli study. The study traces the movement's
activity in Lebanon back to the early 1990s, noting that a major turning point
came in 1992 when Israel deported 415 Hamas and Islamic Jihad activists to the
Marj al-Zuhur area. This period allowed Palestinian activists to strengthen ties
with Hezbollah and Iran, as well as expand their connections with Palestinians
in refugee camps within Lebanon. According to the study, the importance of these
data is not limited to the military aspect, as any Lebanese decision to impose
the disarmament of Hamas will not only neutralize another arena for military
action against Israel, but will also weaken Hamas's control over the refugee
camps and its stance against Fatah and the Palestine Liberation Organization.
US responds to Qassem remarks, says Hezbollah bears
responsibility for Israeli presence in Lebanon
LBCI/16 August ,2026
The United States reiterated its call for Hezbollah to be disarmed and
dismantled, saying the group remains the main obstacle to Lebanon’s economic
recovery, security and stability. Responding to recent remarks by Hezbollah
chief Naim Qassem, a U.S. State Department spokesperson criticized what they
described as “a lecture on sovereignty and surrender” from a leader of a group
that allegedly takes direction from Iran. “Hezbollah has been the primary
obstacle to Lebanon’s economic recovery, the only blemish on its international
reputation, and the biggest threat to the safety and stability of Lebanon,” the
spokesperson said. The statement added that Hezbollah bears “sole
responsibility” for Israel’s presence on Lebanese territory, arguing that this
is why the group must be disarmed. Washington also reaffirmed its support for
the Trilateral Framework, saying the pilot zone process remains “the only viable
path to long-term peace and security for Lebanon and Israel.”The spokesperson
said the United States was awaiting the Lebanese Armed Forces’ completion of
clearance operations in the first pilot zones, adding that the process would
expand once the clearance is verified. “The disarmament of Hezbollah is an
integral part of this process,” the spokesperson said.The United States will
continue supporting the Trilateral Framework as part of its efforts to promote
regional stability, prevent further conflict and advance President Donald
Trump’s agenda of promoting peace between nations, according to the statement.
US official says Hezbollah 'bears sole responsibility for
Israel's presence' in Lebanon
Naharnet/16 August ,2026
A U.S. State Department spokesperson has said that Hezbollah "bears sole
responsibility for Israel's presence on Lebanese soil," following the latest
deadly Israeli strikes in south Lebanon. "This is precisely why Hezbollah must
be disarmed and dismantled," the spokesperson said. "The pilot zone process
remains the only viable path to long-term peace and security for Lebanon and
Israel. We look forward to the LAF's (Lebanese Army's) completion of clearance
operations in the first pilot zones and, after clearance is verified, the
process will expand. The disarmament of Hezbollah is an integral part of this
process," the spokesperson added. They said that the United States will continue
to support the Trilateral Framework "in keeping with our interest in regional
stability, the prevention of further conflict, and President Trump's agenda of
promoting peace between nations."
The spokesperson added that "Hezbollah has been the primary obstacle to
Lebanon's economic recovery, the only blemish on its international reputation,
and the biggest threat to the safety and stability of Lebanon." "It bears sole
responsibility for Israel's presence on Lebanese soil. This is precisely why
Hezbollah must be disarmed and dismantled," they added.
Israel vows to go after Hezbollah as it names another
killed
AFP/16 August ,2026
Israel vowed Sunday it would hit Hezbollah again if threatened, as it identified
what it described as a commander killed in strikes a day earlier that also left
several children dead. Israeli strikes on Saturday killed 11 people in southern
Lebanon, according to authorities, in the deadliest attacks since a deal was
reached in June aimed at ending hostilities.Israel said the strikes were a
response to Hezbollah setting off explosive drones inside a so-called “security
zone” in southern Lebanon, seriously injuring three Israeli troops including an
officer. “No score will be left unsettled in any arena. We’ll defend our
soldiers and our civilians with full power,” Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote
on X. The Israeli military identified one of those killed on Saturday as Abu
Hassan Alaa, saying he was a senior commander of Hezbollah’s Badr unit who had
been involved in firing drones at Israeli troops. Israel earlier said that the
strike killed a commander in Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force, Ali Samir Al-Haj
Hassan. The Israeli military acknowledged that Hassan’s family was present but
defended the strike by saying they were not the target. Lebanese President
Joseph Aoun said a “whole family” had been killed in the strike in the village
of Ansar, with Lebanon’s health ministry reporting that three children and two
women died. Imran Riza, the UN humanitarian coordinator for Lebanon, condemned
the strike. “Children and civilians continue to pay an unacceptable price.
International humanitarian law is clear: civilians must be protected at all
times,” he said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office accused Hezbollah of
deliberately placing civilians in harm’s way. Hezbollah denied the account,
saying that “another entire family has been wiped out following orders issued by
Netanyahu.”“Netanyahu, who is the subject of proceedings before the
International Criminal Court over war crimes and crimes against humanity
committed in Gaza, is once again presiding over the killing of Lebanese
civilians,” Hezbollah said in a statement. Hezbollah pulled Lebanon into the
regional war in March by firing rockets at Israel in support of Iran, after
US-Israeli strikes there sparked war in late February. Lebanon and Israel signed
a US-brokered deal in which Lebanon’s army will gradually take over security in
southern areas occupied by Israel, but Hezbollah has refused to disarm.
Strike in southern Lebanon’s Deir Al-Zahrani kills senior
Hezbollah commander, Israeli military says
Arab News/August 16, 2026
LONDON: An Israeli airstrike on Saturday in the southern Lebanese village of
Deir Al-Zahrani killed a senior Hezbollah commander following a drone attack by
the Iran-backed group that seriously wounded three Israeli soldiers, the Israeli
military said. The military identified the commander as Ali Mohammad Fakhreddine,
also known as Abu Hassan Alaa. It said he led Hezbollah’s Badr regional
division, which operates north of the Litani River, and was involved in numerous
attacks on Israeli troops in southern Lebanon, the Times of Israel reported. The
strike on Saturday in Deir Al-Zahrani came after Hezbollah launched an explosive
drone attack before dawn, Israel said. The military described the operation as a
response to that attack. Lebanese media, citing the country’s Health Ministry,
reported that the Deir Al-Zahrani strike killed four people and wounded 17
others. Fakhreddine’s death followed the killing of another Hezbollah commander,
Ali Samir Al-Haj Hassan, in a separate Israeli strike on Saturday in the nearby
town of Ansar. Israel identified Al-Haj Hassan as a battalion commander in
Hezbollah’s elite Radwan Force. The Ansar strike hit a home on the town’s
outskirts, killing seven people, including three children, according to
Lebanon’s Health Ministry. Hezbollah said the Israeli attacks would be “met with
what they deserve.”Lebanese leaders condemned the Saturday bombings, which have
killed at least 11 people in the heaviest attacks since a ceasefire was renewed
in June through US mediation.
Lebanon and Israel reached truce agreements on June 4 and June 26 under the
administration of President Donald Trump. The June 4 deal was contingent on a
“complete cessation” of Hezbollah fire and the withdrawal of its fighters. The
June 26 framework did not explicitly require Israeli forces to withdraw, instead
linking any withdrawal to Hezbollah’s disarmament.Those agreements followed an
April truce that collapsed. None of the ceasefire agreements has halted Israeli
military operations or its expansion of control over Lebanese territory, where
the strikes have continued to claim civilian lives and destroy infrastructure.
Lebanon sees sharpest Israeli escalation since framework
agreement
The Arab Weekly/August 16/2026
At least 11 people were killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon on
Saturday, the Lebanese health ministry said, some of the deadliest in the weeks
since the country agreed to a US-mediated peace framework with neighbouring
Israel. The Israeli military said it struck Hezbollah infrastructure overnight
in what it describes as a security zone in southern Lebanon in response to
actions against its soldiers there.Iran-backed Hezbollah said in a statement
that the attacks would be “met with what they deserve.” The framework leaves
Israeli troops inside occupied southern Lebanon until Hezbollah is disarmed and
the Lebanese army takes control, terms the group has rejected as
surrender.Lebanon’s official National News Agency said seven people were killed
when Israeli warplanes struck a house in the southern village of Ansar, while
four others were killed in a strike on the village of Deir El Zahrani.
The seven people killed in Ansar included three children and two women, NNA
said, adding that a total of 19 people were wounded in the attacks.At least
4,300 people have been killed in Lebanon in the latest round of hostilities
since March 2. NNA also reported other airstrikes across southern Lebanon,
including on a strategic area north of the Litani River known as Ali al-Taher
hill. One, targeting a valley next to Ansar, was the deepest strike into Lebanon
in two months. The office of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, in a
statement on X, accused Hezbollah of violating the ceasefire and attacking
Israeli soldiers leading to three injuries. “The IDF (Israel Defense Forces)
responded by striking the Hezbollah terror headquarters which ordered the
attack,” the statement said. “Only later did the IDF learn that Hezbollah
deliberately put civilians in that military compound.”The Israeli military said
in a statement it killed Ali Samir al-Haj Hassan, a commander in Hezbollah’s
elite Radwan Force unit and others when it struck “a central headquarters of the
Radwan Force unit,” in Ansar. “At the time of the strike, Hassan’s family was
also present with him inside the military headquarters and, according to the
claim, was harmed in the strike,” the statement added, emphasising that the
family was not the target of the strike.
‘Clear message’, says Lebanon’s president
“The martyrs of the Israeli raid on the village of Ansar are not ‘military
infrastructure’ and the women and children killed in it are not military
targets,” Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said in a post on X.Nabih Berri,
the speaker of Lebanon’s parliament, who is a Hezbollah ally, called in a
statement for national unity and for the sponsors of the peace talks and
ceasefire agreements to assume responsibility for stopping the war before it was
too late. Israel’s military seized a swathe of southern Lebanon during its war
with Hezbollah earlier this year, triggered after the group fired at Israel two
days into the Iran war.
Israel has said it will keep its forces there to protect the north of the
country from further attacks. During a visit to southern Lebanon on Thursday,
Defence Minister Israel Katz said Israel would not withdraw from areas under its
control until Hezbollah was disarmed. A US State Department official said a
permanent Israeli military presence there was not consistent with commitments
set out in the deal. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun, in a statement on X, said
the attacks were a “clear message” aimed at the negotiations and US efforts
towards implementing the framework agreement.Doron Spielman, international
spokesperson for the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, said Saturday’s strikes
would “tighten up” negotiations. “I think it should make the negotiations more
serious and more real, because it highlights the whole reason we got into these
negotiations in the first place,” he added.
Fears of renewed fighting force southern Lebanon residents to leave homes again
LBCI/16 August ,2026
Fear has become a constant reality for residents of southern Lebanon, who are
living through a never-ending journey of displacement. A resident was seen
carrying her sick husband and fleeing into the unknown, as their home near Ali
al-Taher was no longer a safe shelter. The direct strikes on Deir el-Zahrani and
Ansar were not the only reason behind the displacement. A report that a battle
near Ali al-Taher was imminent was enough for residents to pack their bags, with
Sidon becoming their first destination. Sidon is relatively the closest and
safest option, and its social fabric provides reassurance to displaced people
who prefer to remain near their hometowns. Most of those displaced in the latest
wave, however, are people returning to shelters they had left after the
ceasefire, where their places remained reserved in anticipation of any
developments linked to the situation imposed by Israel through lines it draws
and expands according to military needs. The Yellow Line has not changed since
June, but incursions and airstrikes continue, while military operations are
carried out according to clear rules of engagement. In this context, Israel
claims that Hezbollah is violating the framework agreement, while Hezbollah,
which has not claimed responsibility for any operation so far, maintains through
sources close to it that the party continuously violating the agreement is
Israel, and that the land remains Lebanese regardless of any other
considerations.
Israeli minister calls for escalation with Lebanon, says
threats must be ‘crushed’ in Beirut
LBCI/16 August ,2026
Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said in an
interview with an Israeli radio station that “assassination operations should be
carried out in Gaza every night,” rather than being limited only to those who
pose a direct threat to Israel.
He added: “God willing, we will enter all of Gaza, and I strongly hope we are
heading toward an escalation with Lebanon. It is not enough to focus on
thwarting threats; they must also be crushed in Beirut.”
Lebanon Civil Defense warns against swimming along coast
amid high waves
LBCI/16 August ,2026
Lebanon’s Civil Defense warned citizens and residents on Sunday against swimming
along the country’s coastline due to dangerous sea conditions. In a statement,
the Civil Defense said rising waves and strong marine currents are increasing
the likelihood of drowning incidents and putting swimmers’ lives at risk.
LBCI Exclusive footage shows massive fire raging through
Aitou forest
LBCI/16 August ,2026
Exclusive drone footage obtained by LBCI shows a massive fire engulfing parts of
the Aitou forest in northern Lebanon. The footage captures the scale of the
blaze as flames spread across the forested area, with firefighting teams working
to contain the fire and prevent it from expanding further.
Lebanon’s creative talent suffers as Iran war pressures
Gulf economies
The Arab Weekly/August 16/2026
For decades, the Gulf served as the centre of gravity for much of Lebanon’s
creative talent, with swathes of designers and marketing executives flocking to
its cities to find clients or relying on its foundations and cultural centers
for funding. But with Gulf economies now under pressure from a nearly
six-month-old regional war, Lebanese creatives say financing and work
opportunities are drying up. Uncertainty linked to the conflict has prompted
Gulf-based clients to postpone projects, reduce budgets and slow payments,
leading to layoffs and income declines, Lebanese professionals in advertising,
branding and communications told Reuters. Fashion school Creative Space Beirut (CSB)
relied on donations and partnerships with individuals and institutions in the
Gulf to keep its courses free for underprivileged students. CSB hoped those
avenues could yield $500,000 this year, but its co-founder and CEO Sarah Hermez,
told Reuters the regional war meant Gulf-based donors went into “survival mode”
and that many “promises weren’t able to be met”. Donors were unable to renew
contributions or had to downsise them significantly, Hermez said, putting
student scholarships at risk. Late last month, within CSB’s tranquil walls near
downtown Beirut, students toiled on their projects. One sewed at a table while
another stitched a dress on a mannequin. Since it opened its doors in 2011, the
school has weathered the impacts of Lebanon’s economic contractions following
the war in neighboring Syria, 2019’s full-blown financial crisis and the Beirut
port blast of 2020.
All along, CSB relied on the Gulf for funding.
But now, with only enough money to operate four more months and little
visibility into what Gulf contributions could come next year, it has turned to
crowdfunding campaigns and a hunt for new partners to maintain free courses.
Most Gulf economies will contract more sharply this year than previously
expected before rebounding in 2027, a Reuters poll found in July. Marwan Barakat,
group chief economist and head of research at Lebanon’s Bank Audi, said the
Gulf’s key indicators all show downgrades, including GDP growth, aviation
traffic, stock market performances and fiscal balances. While Lebanese had long
relied on salaries in the Gulf to send remittances back to their families at
home, some fear they will have less to send in the coming months. Lebanon itself
was pulled back into war when armed group Hezbollah fired at Israel in early
March in support of its ally Iran, triggering a conflict that has left more than
4,300 dead in Lebanon. Wassim Haddadn who runs an advertising and strategy
consultancy based in Lebanon with clients who operate in the Gulf, estimates a
70% hit to his firm’s revenues, mostly due to economic pressures in the Gulf,
that have forced him to cut his staff by half. “It feels like most of the
clients who are not from the region don’t understand how to move forward while
war is happening,” the 33-year-old said, referring to Western firms seeking to
set up shop in the Gulf. Several people spoke to Reuters on condition of
anonymity, fearing more of their professional work would be at risk if they
commented publicly. One branding professional based in Beirut said he once
earned up to $12,000 per project for Gulf clients, but opportunities are now
rare and firms are seeking discounts. A client of the branding professional
based in Saudi Arabia cut his pay and said they would increase it if more
projects came along. A regular Qatari client told the professional their firm
could no longer commit to new projects. A Lebanese communications professional
reported a 30% hit to her projected income. “If things keep going this way, I’ll
have to go back to my parents’ house,” she said. At CSB, Kim Heshme sat below
rows of jackets, gowns and dresses. She wears many hats: a single mother, a
freelancer branding expert and CSB’s head of operations. Her income has dropped
by around 60% as freelance work dried up due to the regional war. She has had
trouble collecting fees owed for completed projects, with some clients only
paying her a third of her dues and others ignoring her invoices. Heshme said
Gulf clients appeared less accustomed than their Lebanese counterparts to
operating through periods of war and prolonged uncertainty.
“Ideas are not cheap,” Heshme said. “They don’t want to pay for the value of
it.”
The Latest English LCCC
Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on August 16-17/2026
Iran holds Hormuz line as Trump warns of higher fuel prices
The Arab Weekly/August 16/2026
Iran called on the US to accept defeat on Saturday, while President Donald Trump
blasted Tehran as “very evil” and told Americans to prepare for continued high
fuel prices as a result of the war. Progress towards peace talks and oil tanker
traffic through the strategic Strait of Hormuz remained halted, with no sign the
warring parties were moving toward ending the conflict that the US and Israel
launched on February 28.
“This strait will be opened and closed only under Iran’s command, and so long as
you do not accept the reality of defeat and stop indulging in fantasies, Iran
will continue to enforce the blockade,” Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem
Gharibabadi posted on X.
US gasoline up 29% on year, Iran also feels impact
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran had not decided to resume talks with
the US. He told Iranian news outlet Shahrara News in an interview published on
Saturday that Washington must meet conditions on the strait in order for
shipping to resume in the waterway that handled one-fifth of the world’s oil
before the war.Trump urged Americans to accept slightly higher gasoline prices
while the conflict continues.He told a political rally in Garden City, New York,
on Friday that paying “a tiny little bit more for your gasoline” is worth the
cost of ensuring “a very evil country” could not have a nuclear weapon, one of
his stated rationales for the war. “After we finish defeating Iran … pretty soon
I’ll be declaring the Hormuz Strait a territory of the United States,” said
Trump. Throughout the conflict, the president has alternated between threats of
escalation and assertions that a peace deal is imminent.
In a trend that has sparked inflation and disappointed voters, the average US
price of a gallon of gasoline was about $4.08 on Friday, up 29 percent from a
year earlier, according to the American Automobile Association.
Trump, a Republican, campaigned for reelection on a promise to lower energy
costs, and Democrats are seeking to make the war’s fallout an issue in November
congressional elections. Crude oil futures rose $1 a barrel on Friday. Benchmark
Brent futures were on track for a weekly rise of 6.0 percent and West Texas
Intermediate 5.4 percent. Tehran, too, has stepped up its rhetoric in recent
days as attempts to bring a permanent end to the war appear deadlocked. “The
Strait of Hormuz cannot be seized by a tweet or an aircraft carrier, by issuing
an order or by delivering an election speech,” Gharibabadi said.
Despite Iran’s defiant tone, though, there were also signs of an economic toll
there. President Masoud Pezeshkian, in remarks on state television, blamed high
inflation on a US blockade of Iranian ports and sanctions on Iran’s oil exports.
No crude oil vessels transiting Hormuz
Trump and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent each pledged to inflict more
financial damage on Iran. Bessent told Newsmax’s “Rob Schmitt Tonight” programme
on Thursday that announcements of more measures against Iran were coming next
week. Tehran calls its enforcement of strait traffic a blockade, the term
Washington uses for its threat against Iranian vessels leaving their ports.
“What we’re doing is a great service for the world, not only for ourselves … and
we’re really doing a great job,” Trump said. Only two vessels passed through the
Strait of Hormuz on Friday with no crude oil shipments visible, according to
analysis from ship-tracking firm Kpler.Some ships may cross the strait
undetected with their transponders off, but the figures are nowhere near the
more than 130 ships that traversed it daily before the war. Vessels that dare
navigate the strait without Iranian permission risk missile or drone strikes.
The UAE accused Iran of attacking a third vessel operated by Abu Dhabi National
Oil Company that was transiting the strait on Friday, the Emirati state news
agency WAM reported, after blaming it for two other incidents involving ADNOC
vessels in the strait on Thursday evening. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade
Operations Centre reported a bulk carrier was struck in the hull by an unknown
projectile in the strait on Friday. It was not immediately clear if it was
referring to the same incident involving the ADNOC vessel. A tentative June deal
to end the war is in tatters. “We did not have a ceasefire in the first place
that we would now want to extend,” Araghchi said.“We had ‘the end of the war,’
and now there is a new situation.”Attacks by Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen
renewed concerns about a widening regional war. Yemen’s internationally-recognised
government said the Houthis fired six ballistic missiles at the Red Sea port of
Mocha on Friday, killing four civilians.
Trump welcomes defense pact between Saudi Arabia, Turkiye
and Pakistan
AFP/August 17/2026
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump said Sunday he was pleased by the recent
signing of a defense pact between Saudi Arabia, Turkiye and Pakistan. “Very
happy to see that Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, and Pakistan have recently, and
finally, signed the Makkah Joint Defense Agreement,” he wrote on his Truth
Social platform.“It shows how the Middle East is coming together, and how
Countries will finally be able to defend themselves in a more meaningful way,”
he wrote, calling it a “BIG, BOLD, IMPORTANT FIRST STEP.”
The three-way agreement, signed August 7, comes amid a US-Iran war that has
extended violence to the region, including Iran-backed Houthi rebel attacks.
Pakistan’s foreign ministry said the pact meant an attack on any member would be
regarded as an attack on all, adding it was “intended to strengthen collective
deterrence.”The agreement declared a “shared commitment to further strengthening
their collective security and to promoting peace, security and stability in the
region and beyond.” The three countries will also share a commitment to
participating in efforts to resolve the conflict between Iran and the United
States.
Iran, US no closer to deal as ceasefire set to expire
The New Arab Staff/16 August, 2026
A 60-day deadline for Iran and the United States to negotiate a final agreement
expires on Monday without either side implementing the terms of a memorandum of
understanding signed in Islamabad on 18 June. The agreement, which envisaged
talks over Iran’s nuclear programme, sanctions relief and other outstanding
issues, effectively collapsed within weeks amid mutual accusations of
violations. Tehran has since reclosed the Strait of Hormuz following what it
says was a US attempt to establish an alternative shipping route, while
Washington reinstated a naval blockade. The two sides also dispute what the
expiry of the deadline means. Washington reportedly views it as the end of a
ceasefire, while Tehran insists the Islamabad memorandum concerned ending the
war rather than a temporary truce. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said
on Saturday that there was "no 60-day ceasefire" requiring an extension. "What
was declared in the Islamabad memorandum of understanding was the end of the
war. The United States violated the memorandum, and the conflicts resumed. We
did not have a ceasefire to extend," Araghchi said, adding that the two-month
period had been intended for negotiations towards a final settlement.
He said Qatar and Pakistan continued to exchange messages with Tehran, but
stressed that this did not amount to active negotiations and that no decision
had been made on resuming talks with Washington. Araghchi also said Iran’s
ongoing contacts with Oman were separate from the US track and focused on
technical discussions over maritime boundaries and regulating traffic through
the Strait of Hormuz.
Iranian conditions
Mehdi Maleki, an Iranian expert, told The New Arab that the memorandum had
initially represented a potential diplomatic breakthrough, but had unravelled
after the US reimposed the blockade and pursued a new maritime corridor. He said
the agreement had envisaged an end to hostilities across Iran and the wider
region, including Lebanon, the reopening of Hormuz for one month, the return of
Iranian assets and talks on sanctions. According to Maleki, Washington breached
a provision allowing Iran and Oman to discuss management of shipping through
Hormuz after 23 days. He accused the US of directing vessels through a "southern
corridor" with their tracking systems switched off, prompting Iran to shut the
waterway again. Iran has since set six conditions for any renewed negotiations,
including a permanent end to attacks against Iran and its regional allies, the
lifting of the naval blockade and sanctions, the withdrawal of US forces from
Iran’s vicinity, compensation for wars imposed on Iran, and the unconditional
release of frozen Iranian assets. Former Supreme National Security Council
secretary Mohammad-Baqer Zolghadr said earlier this month that Hormuz would not
reopen until Washington "corrects its behaviour". Maleki said limited military
escalation now appeared more likely than a diplomatic breakthrough, given what
he described as US escalation and excessive demands. Regional states are
continuing overt and behind-the-scenes efforts to revive the Islamabad
understanding, he added, but their chances of success remain slim.
Iran offers $30,000 bounty for killing, capturing US soldiers
Al Arabiya English/16 August ,2026
Iran’s military announced on Sunday that it was offering a bounty equivalent to
$30,000 for killing or capturing US soldiers, with the reward doubled if carried
out by a woman. Army chief Amir Hatami said the plan had been drawn up following
a “large number of requests” to participate, according to the IRNA state news
agency.There has been no known deployment of US ground forces in Iran during the
Middle East war, with the exception of a rescue mission in April for a downed
American airman. Hatami did not provide any details on where or when the killing
or capturing of US soldiers was expected to take place. “Anyone who kills or
captures and hands over an invading American military personnel will receive a
reward equivalent to $30,000 or 5 billion tomans from the Islamic Republic of
Iran’s Army,” Hatami said, using an informal unit equivalent to 10,000 Iranian
rials. “Courageous Iranian women who carry out such an action will receive
double the reward,” he added. Hatami repeated Iran’s call for the US to leave
the Middle East, and said “they no longer have permission to enter the [Arabian]
Gulf, the Gulf of Oman or the Strait of Hormuz.”The war between Tehran and
Washington began on February 28 when the United States and Israel attacked Iran.
Just over a month into the war, the US launched a massive rescue operation to
retrieve the weapon systems officer of an F-15 jet, involving around 200 US
troops and more than 170 aircraft racing to find the airman ahead of Iranian
forces.
During the rescue, Iranian troops damaged an A-10 ground attack aircraft which
was ditched over friendly territory. The US also reportedly abandoned and
destroyed aircraft used during the mission including a C-130 transport plane.
Days before, the pilot of the F-15 was rescued by a helicopter crew in a smaller
operation. The war was later paused by an April ceasefire after nearly 40 days
of fighting, followed by a June framework for peace talks that later collapsed.
Iran and the United States have since traded fire sporadically, with fighting
mainly centered in southern Iran and around the Strait of Hormuz.
Indirect contact between the two sides via mediators has continued with little
sign of any diplomatic breakthrough. Iran has also set out a list of demands for
reopening the strait, including war damages. The number of US military personnel
killed since the start of the war stands at 17, with the most recent deaths in
July. They have all been killed outside of Iran, in countries including Jordan
and Iraq. With AFP
Shipping via Hormuz strait slows after tanker attacks, data
shows
Reuters/August 17, 2026
SINGAPORE: Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz slowed over the weekend, data
showed on Monday, following attacks on tankers, while US-Iran talks to
resolve the Middle East conflict stalled. Five commodity vessels transited
the strait on Saturday, with none registered for Sunday, shiptracking data
from Kpler showed, versus 31 in the prior weekend.
US Central Command chief visits aircraft carrier USS Lincoln
AP/August 16, 2026
The top US military commander in the Middle East visited the USS Lincoln in the
Arabian Sea during a 10-day tour in the region that concluded on Saturday, US
Central Command said. Adm. Brad Cooper visited the USS Lincoln in the Arabian
Sea as reports have emerged of mental health and supply issues aboard the
long-deployed aircraft carrier.The Lincoln arrived in the Middle East in January
and has been supporting the US war against Iran, including the blockade on
Iranian ports. Its deployment has included a record-setting uninterrupted time
at sea of more than 240 days.“History will record this deployment as one of the
most operationally intense and consequential of the modern era,” Cooper said of
the Lincoln strike group in a statement released Saturday. Extended deployments
of carriers – which can have more than 5,000 sailors and Marines on board – have
raised concerns about the impact not only on the ships but on service members.
In a statement Sunday, Cooper praised the leadership on the carrier for making
mental health and resilience a priority. He described his visit to the ship as
"awe-inspiring" and hailed the crew's "resilience" Cooper also went to Bahrain,
Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE to meet with civilian and
military leaders, according to the Central Command statement. The US Navy’s
blockade was in response to Iran’s asserting control over the Strait of Hormuz
after the war started on Feb. 28 with US and Israeli strikes. About one-fifth of
the world’s traded oil and natural gas passed through the waterway at the mouth
of the Arabian Gulf before then. Talks between the US and Iran have stalled
while Iran is in discussions with Oman about how to manage the strait that runs
between them and had been considered an international waterway.
Iran accuses Qatar of thwarting probe into fate of pilots
Agence France Presse/August 16, 2026
Iran accused Qatar on Sunday of thwarting efforts to work out what happened to
three pilots Tehran says were captured during the Middle East war, though the
Gulf state has denied detaining them. The Islamic republic had previously
reported one pilot killed and others missing after a sortie to Qatar in March,
but had not claimed at the time that any of them had been captured. "A team of
experts from the Iranian Air Force has been waiting for several months to travel
to Qatar to conduct an on-site investigation," said General Mohammad Bagherzadeh
of the Iranian armed forces. "However, due to persistent delays by Qatari
authorities, the return of our brave pilots to their homeland remains
impossible," he added, according to the Tasnim news agency. He called on Doha to
authorise the team to travel to Qatar. Bagherzadeh had accused Qatar on Saturday
of having captured three Iranian pilots who were carrying out an operation
against the United States' Al Udeid air base in early March and demanded their
release.Qatar denied holding the pilots and said an invitation had been sent to
Iran "to be briefed on the details of the search & rescue operations in April,
but the Iranian side has yet to respond". Last month, Iran's military said it
had retrieved the body of pilot Majid Kazemi, who was killed during the attack
on Al Udeid Air Base. The largest U.S. military base in the Middle East, it
hosts forward elements of U.S. Central Command, as well as its air and special
operations forces. In early March, Qatar's defence ministry said it had shot
down two Iranian Sukhoi Su-24 bombers. It was not immediately clear whether they
were the same aircraft referred to by Iran, as Qatar and other countries across
the region faced retaliatory attacks following the US and Israeli strikes that
triggered the war.
It was the first time a Gulf country had reported shooting down an Iranian
aircraft since the war broke out on February 28. The Middle East war broke out
when the United States and Israel attacked Iran which retaliated with attacks
across the region. Diplomatic efforts led to an April ceasefire that ended
nearly 40 days of fighting, followed by the signing of a framework for peace
talks in June that later collapsed. Iran and the United States have since traded
fire sporadically, with fighting mainly centred in southern Iran and around the
Strait of Hormuz. Qatar, which took part in mediation efforts to end the
fighting, came under fire after the truce broke down, reporting attacks on its
territory and at least one Qatari tanker transiting the strait.
Netanyahu election billboard groups New York Mayor Mamdani
among Israel’s enemies
Arab News/August 16, 2026
LONDON: The party of Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu has grouped New York
Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Turkiye’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan together with
the leaders of Iran and Hezbollah in a campaign poster depicting Israel’s
enemies.The giant Likud billboard in Tel Aviv for the October election shows
images of the four men with the slogan “They want Netanyahu to lose. Do not let
them win.”Netanyahu posted an image of the sign on his X account on Sunday.
While Mamdani and Erdogan have been staunchly critical of Netanyahu and Israel’s
war on Gaza, grouping them with the Iranian leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei,
and Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem will be viewed as highly
provocative. Netanyahu has led Israel to war with both Iran and Hezbollah in
Lebanon and the country and the militant group are viewed as mortal enemies of
the country.
Mamdani, who became New York mayor at the start of the year, has called for
Netanyahu to be arrested if he visits the city for the United Nations General
Assembly next month. The International Criminal Court has issued an arrest
warrant for the Israeli prime minister on war crimes charges over the Gaza
conflict. “Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City, nor is any other
war criminal at large,” Mamdani said last week. Netanyahu hit back, accusing
Mamdani of “fomenting hate.”Relations between Turkiye and Israel deteriorated
sharply after the start of the Gaza war. Erdogan has been one of the most vocal
critics on the international stage of Israel’s conduct in the conflict, accusing
the country of committing genocide. Netanyahu is once again fighting for his
political survival ahead of the Oct. 27 election with polls suggesting strong
support for opposition parties.
The Israeli leader last week provoked anger from one of the country’s key
allies, the UK, when he said Britain has become an “Islamic republic.”
Sentencing of Syrian regime figures ‘a turning point,’ rights groups say
SANA/August 16, 2026
DAMASCUS: Trials of leading figures from the deposed Syrian regime represent a
significant turning point in the country’s transitional justice process, two
rights organizations said. Speaking to SANA, the organizations said the judicial
process moves documented rights cases into national courts, ensuring victims’
access to justice and strengthening accountability while preventing impunity.
Samer Aldeyaei, executive director of the Free Syrian Lawyers Association, said
the trials represent a major shift in the justice process and send a clear
message that no one is exempt from accountability for serious violations.
The comments came after the Fourth Criminal Court in Damascus on Tuesday
sentenced the head of the deposed regime, Bashar Assad, along with Atef Najib
and other fugitives — Maher Hafez Assad, Fahd Jassem Al-Freij, Mohammad Ayman
Ayoush, Louay Ali Al-Ali, Qusay Ibrahim Mahyoub, Wafiq Saleh Nasser, and Talal
Fares Al-Aissami — to death. Aldeyaei said the importance of the proceedings
lies in transferring documented rights cases to national courts, and allowing
victims and witnesses to seek justice through Syrian institutions. Aldeyaei
highlighted the need to systematically expand the process to include
decision-makers and senior figures responsible for the repression system, while
adhering to fair trial standards, defense rights, and judicial independence. He
said the trials form a foundation for a broader national process aimed at
strengthening institutions, ensuring victims’ rights and providing remedies for
those affected.He added that accountability through fair judicial procedures
would help reinforce confidence in the judiciary and state institutions.
Almoutassim Billah Al-Kilani, director of the Rased Syria community network at
the Stabilization Support Unit and a specialist in international criminal law
and human rights, said the trials have played a key role in Syria’s transitional
justice process. He said the proceedings have transformed victims’ right to
justice from a moral demand into a practical legal process, demonstrating that
state-building and the rule of law begin with accountability rather than
revenge. Al-Kilani said the trials must be accompanied by truth-seeking,
reparations, the preservation of memory, and institutional reform to ensure that
violations are not repeated. He said investigations, documents, and witness
testimonies have helped move beyond focusing only on direct perpetrators and
toward examining chains of command and individual criminal responsibility. This
includes those who ordered, encouraged or assisted in crimes, as well as
commanders who knew or should have known about violations and failed to prevent
them, he said, stressing that responsibility is individual and not based on
collective identity or affiliation. Al-Kilani said the trials have contributed
to examining killings, torture, enforced disappearance, and displacement within
their broader systematic context, allowing for their legal assessment as
potential war crimes or crimes against humanity under international law. He
stressed the importance of protecting witnesses and survivors, assessing risks,
and providing psychological and legal support while ensuring defense rights.
Public hearings, the publication of reasoned judgments, and the preservation of
evidence will help create a public record that protects the truth for future
generations and reinforces accountability, he said.
Taliban regime has itself become a proxy trying to
destabilize the region, Pakistan’s UN envoy tells Arab News
Ephrem Kossaify/Arab News/August 16, 2026
NEW YORK CITY: Five years after the Taliban swept into Kabul, Pakistan’s
ambassador to the UN, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, is not walking back Defense Minister
Khawaja Asif’s February declaration that the two countries are in “open
war.”“The trends are posing grave concern,” Ahmad told Arab News in an interview
marking the fifth anniversary of the takeover, pointing to reports from the UN’s
own sanctions monitoring team and the secretary-general on Afghanistan’s renewed
role as “a safe haven for a number of terrorist groups.”Ahmad described a steady
deterioration in Kabul’s conduct since the Taliban returned to power on Aug. 15,
2021. “Pakistan’s basic position and basic approach towards Afghanistan and the
people of Afghanistan remains the same,” he said, describing the two countries
as “next door neighbors” bound by “deep rooted and longstanding” ties. He
stressed that Islamabad’s quarrel is not with ordinary Afghans, who he said have
borne the brunt of “decades of instability and conflict.” Pakistan, he added,
has “felt and has been impacted directly by the consequences of that period of
instability” more than any other country.Ahmad traced the international
community’s current frustration to expectations set out during the 2020 Doha
talks between the US and the Taliban, and reaffirmed as the group took power the
following year. There were three core benchmarks: an inclusive government,
respect for human rights — particularly the rights of women and girls — and a
guarantee that Afghan soil would not be used to stage terrorism against any
other country. Pakistan did not simply wait to see whether Kabul would deliver,
Ahmad said. Within four months of the takeover, Islamabad convened an
extraordinary session of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s foreign
ministers in December 2021 to rally international support for Afghanistan’s
recovery. Five years on, he said, the record is one of regression rather than
progress on all three fronts, with continued restrictions on girls’ education
and women’s employment as evidence on the human rights front, and an
exclusionary governance structure that has failed to broaden. It is on the third
benchmark, counterterrorism, that Ahmad said Pakistan has paid the heaviest
price. Ahmad said the frequency and intensity of attacks linked by Pakistan to
militant groups operating from Afghanistan had surged. He cited more than 5,200
terrorism-related incidents in Pakistan in 2025 and more than 1,300 deaths —
figures that include categories broader than independently verified attacks
traced to Afghan soil. The Global Terrorism Index recorded 1,045 incidents and
1,139 terrorism-related deaths in Pakistan in 2025. In the first six months of
2026, he said, the pattern “has not subsided” — in fact, it has intensified,
with more than 3,000 attacks and upward of 830 Pakistani deaths in that period
alone. Behind those numbers, Ahmad named three groups he holds primarily
responsible: Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan, the Balochistan Liberation Army and the
Majeed Brigade, alongside Daesh’s regional affiliate. He described the first
three as increasingly acting “as proxies to our adversaries in the region.”Asked
directly whether the Taliban are deliberately sheltering the TTP or simply
unable to rein it in, Ahmad said the evidence, from UN monitoring team reports
and Pakistan’s own intelligence, points to the more serious explanation.“It’s
not just lack of capability or absence of political will,” he said. “The Taliban
regime is actually actively providing support” — safe havens, arms and
ammunition, some of it advanced weaponry left behind by international forces,
along with financing, planning assistance and facilitation of cross-border
infiltration, he said.
“In fact, the way the whole thing is operating now, it’s basically the Taliban
regime itself is a proxy, trying to destabilize the entire region,” Ahmad said,
arguing this serves neither Pakistan’s interests nor those of ordinary Afghans.
The Taliban has denied fostering ties with the TTP or other militant
groups.Pressed on what should happen next — whether the burden falls on
Pakistan’s military, or on outside powers with leverage over Kabul — Ahmad said
responsibility lies squarely with the Afghan side, even as he acknowledged
Pakistan’s own forces have paid “a heavy toll” patrolling the porous, roughly
2,600-kilometer Durand Line and striking militant targets. He raised the
possibility of a formal religious edict, or fatwa, from senior Taliban clergy
against groups like the TTP, paired with “concrete, verifiable steps” to deny
them safe haven and financing. Multiple regional powers have tried, without
success, to extract such commitments. Ahmad listed Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, China
and Qatar as “common friends” of both Islamabad and Kabul who have attempted to
mediate — all of whom were involved in brokering the ceasefire and subsequent
Istanbul talks earlier this year — but said the Taliban side has consistently
declined to give the assurances sought. Asked who, if anyone, the Taliban
leadership actually listens to, Ahmad was blunt: “It’s a strange situation. I
think it’s up to them to decide,” adding that “some serious introspection is in
order” given Afghanistan’s isolation, frozen assets and lack of formal
recognition — outcomes he said the group could reverse if it wanted development
and investment instead. Ahmad argued that the “time and space” given by the
international community to the Taliban after 2021 — including through the UN’s
own engagement framework — has yielded no reciprocal steps from Kabul on any of
the three benchmarks. “It has been difficult for the many members of the
international community … to explain how they are engaging if there is no
progress,” he said. He drew a comparison with Washington’s approach to the
Taliban’s detention of American nationals, noting that the US has denied the
group’s leadership travel-ban exemptions over what it calls “hostage
diplomacy.”If that standard applies to individual hostages, Ahmad argued, it
should apply with even greater force to a “continuous stream of attacks” against
Pakistani citizens that he says Kabul actively enables. Existing UN Security
Council sanctions on the Taliban — frozen assets, a travel ban on its
leadership, and the absence of a recognized seat at the UN — remain in place,
Ahmad noted, but he said what is missing is sustained pressure specifically tied
to the counterterrorism failure, rather than the current holding pattern in
which “there is no crisis” only because no one is forcing a resolution. On
whether fellow Muslim-majority states retain unique leverage over the Taliban,
Ahmad recalled Pakistan working alongside Indonesia and Saudi Arabia after 2021
to make the case — including on girls’ education — that the Taliban’s
restrictions on women “are not actually in line with Islamic teachings or
traditions.” But he said the outcome ultimately rests with the Taliban’s own
leadership, not with outside religious or diplomatic pressure of any origin,
Muslim or otherwise. Western governments, he added, have no objection in
principle to an Islamic system of government in Kabul, only to policies that
discriminate against women or minorities — an obstacle he said is entirely
within the Taliban’s power to remove.
Qatar denies holding Iranian pilots after Tehran claimed three pilots detained
by Doha
Al Arabiya English/16 August ,2026
Qatar denied on Saturday that it was holding Iranian pilots, saying they had
violated Qatari airspace in March and had failed to respond to attempts to
contact them. A Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson said on X that search and
rescue teams later found the remains of one of the pilots and that it had
contacted Iran to coordinate a handover. The spokesperson said Tehran had yet to
respond to an invitation to review details of its operations.Iranian military
official said on Sunday that Qatar should let an Iranian team in to investigate
the fate of Iranian pilots who Tehran says are being held there, Iranian media
said on Sunday. Mohammad Baqerzadeh, commander of the Committee for the Search
for Missing Persons of Iran’s Armed Forces General Staff, said the air force and
fact-finding team had been waiting for months to enter Qatar, according to the
semi-official Tasnim news agency. Baqerzadeh accused Qatari officials of
repeatedly delaying the investigation and preventing the pilots’ return to Iran.
He called for the International Committee of the Red Cross to urgently follow up
on the case. Meanwhile, Iran’s Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) said that Qatar
refuses to allow an Iranian expert and fact-finding committee to investigate the
fate of Iranian pilots, adding that Doha should allow a team of experts to be
present instead of denying the issue of the pilots’ detention. The Qatari
statement came after Iranian state news agency IRNA cited a senior military
official as saying three Iranian pilots had been captured alive by Qatari forces
after ejecting from fighter jets during a combat mission targeting a military
base in Qatar. The official called on the International Committee of the Red
Cross to follow up on their fate. IRNA said the mission took place during Iran’s
response to US and Israeli attacks that started on February 28. Qatar said it
took measures to defend its territory after the pilots entered its airspace and
did not respond to attempts to communicate with them. The US-Israeli attacks on
Iran in February triggered a wider regional war, with Tehran striking targets in
Israel and US military facilities in the Gulf.
With Reuters
'Everyone lives in fear': Yemenis worry about return to all-out war
Agence France Presse/August 16, 2026
Yemen's years-long civil conflict killed tens of thousands of people, uprooted
millions and drove the country to the brink of famine before a 2022 truce
restored relative calm. Now, renewed hostilities between the Houthi rebels and
the government have many fearing the return of all-out war. Hodeida native
Anwar, a father of two, recalls fleeing the advance of the Iran-backed Houthis,
seeking refuge in the city of Mokha.Last week, explosions startled him and his
children as the rebels hit Mokha port, reviving fears of another cycle of
displacement and violence. "I do not want our lives to be haunted by constant
panic caused by Houthi terror. Mokha used to be a safe city and a haven for many
Yemenis," he told AFP. "The hardest part is not fearing for my own safety, but
fearing for my children and family," he said. Yemen, which has been embroiled in
more than a decade of civil conflict, last month became the latest country to be
dragged into the Middle East war as the Houthis upended the 2022 truce with the
Saudi-backed government, ramping up attacks on areas it holds. The government
said it had retaliated after deadly attacks that hit military camps in the
central Marib province and the Mokha port on the Red Sea, as well as residential
areas in Marib home to displaced people.Anwar's three-year-old daughter was born
after the truce and has "no idea what war is", he said. When she heard
explosions, she ran to her father and asked what was happening, he said, but he
did not have the heart to tell her, saying they were fireworks for a
wedding.With the spectre of war back, Najem Hammoud al-Wahbani, another Mokha
resident, said "everyone lives in fear"."Every day, Houthi missiles and drones
fly overhead. We hear shelling in the distance, but we fear that, tomorrow, it
could be right here."
- 'It could destroy everything' -Last month, the Houthi rebels welcomed an
Iranian plane landing in the capital Sanaa, setting off a spate of tit-for-tat
attacks. They later announced a maritime blockade of the government's backer
Saudi Arabia -- which led a coalition that heavily bombed the country throughout
the war -- hitting its tankers in the Red Sea and attacking government forces in
Yemen. Mohammed Ali, who was displaced from Hodeida province to al-Khokha, north
of Mokha, was considering moving his family further east to Aden. If fighting
reaches Khokha, where he runs a construction business , "it could destroy
everything, including my future and my children's future", he said. The Houthis
have ramped up provocations of their Saudi foe since last month. Earlier this
month, the rebels launched their deadliest attacks in years, killing 58
government troops, according to a military source, mainly in oil-rich Marib
province.Two civilians were killed in Houthi shelling on residential areas and
displacement camps in Marib that same day.
'Where would I flee?' -
Marib is divided between the government and the Houthis and has become a
flashpoint for attacks. It hosts 60 percent of all internally displaced people
in Yemen, according to the International Organization for Migration. Ali Munif,
46, has been living in a displacement camp on the outskirts of Marib city since
his village was overrun by the rebels in 2021. "If war returns to Marib, where
would I flee?" he asked. A mother of one living near one of the military camps
that were hit told AFP the strikes shook the windows and doors like a quake. "It
brought back the fear, anxiety, and despair we experienced at the height of
war," she said, requesting anonymity for security concerns. The experience shook
the charity worker, who has had trouble sleeping since the attacks. "We now live
with the constant thought that we could become a target at any moment," she
said.
Over 200 Houthis killed in drone strikes, clashes in Yemen, military sources say
Al Arabiya English/16 August ,2026
More than 200 Houthi fighters have been killed over the past 48 hours, most of
them in Yemen’s southwestern Taiz province, amid fierce clashes and drone
strikes, military sources in Sanaa said on Sunday, marking some of the
Iran-backed militia’s heaviest losses since the latest round of escalation in
Yemen began. Most of those killed belonged to the Houthis’ so-called al-Samad
Brigade, the sources said, adding that large numbers of bodies had arrived at
hospitals in the Houthi-controlled capital Sanaa over the past two days,
according to military and medical sources. Independent Yemeni media outlet Yemen
Future, citing the sources, reported that the Houthis had sent fresh
reinforcements to the al-Barh front west of Taiz city in an attempt to
compensate for their losses and resume their offensive. The reinforcements
reportedly included members of the group’s elite forces, commandos and
mobilization units. In another indication that the militia is seeking additional
fighters, sources in Sanaa said the Houthis had begun releasing hundreds of
prisoners in areas under their control in exchange for joining the fighting.
Around 850 prisoners and detainees have been released from prisons in Saada,
Hajjah and Sanaa, including people accused of criminal and drug-related
offenses, according to the sources. Preparations are also underway to release
around 1,400 additional prisoners in Dhamar province. The sources said those
released were required to sign pledges to join the battlefronts in exchange for
having cases against them dropped or their legal status settled. The Houthis
also offered some of the prisoners formal recruitment and financial support,
while paying off the debts of some inmates imprisoned for their inability to
repay them in exchange for joining the fighting.
Hamas delegation, Egypt spy chief hold talks on Gaza plan
AFP/August 16, 2026
Cairo: A Hamas delegation met Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad on
Sunday to discuss ways to advance the implementation of a post-war plan for
Gaza, Egypt’s state news agency reported. The Middle East News Agency said the
delegation led by Hamas chief Khalil Al-Hayya “reaffirmed commitment to
completing US President Donald Trump’s plan.”Hamas had said in late July that it
was ready to hand over its weapons to a nascent technical committee set to
govern Gaza, as part of a 15-point plan announced by Trump’s Board of Peace. But
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has rejected the plan, vowing there
would be no withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza until the full disarmament of
Hamas. The delegation arrived in Egypt on Saturday evening, ahead of a visit by
Trump’s envoy Jared Kushner to the region. A Hamas official had told AFP the
talks in the Mediterranean city of El-Alamein would cover “the latest
developments in the negotiations and the efforts being made to compel Israel to
abide by the agreement, which includes the 15-point roadmap, and to begin its
implementation.” “The delegation will brief Egyptian officials on Israeli
violations of the ceasefire agreement, and Hayya will emphasize the movement’s
commitment and readiness to implement the agreement as soon as Israel announces
its commitment to it.”Another Hamas source told AFP that a meeting was being
arranged between the Hamas negotiating delegation, the Board of Peace’s high
representative for Gaza Nickolay Mladenov and US officials during Kushner’s
visit to Egypt this week, to discuss obstacles related to the agreement. The
source added that contacts were underway with Egyptian, Qatari and Turkish
mediators “to compel Israel to abide by the agreement.”Kushner is scheduled to
visit Israel and Egypt this coming week in a bid to bridge the gaps in the Gaza
plan rejected by Netanyahu.
Eight Muslim countries condemn Israel's rejection of Trump's Gaza plan
LBCI/August 16, 2026
The foreign ministers of eight Muslim countries on Sunday condemned Israel's
rejection of a recently released roadmap for fully implementing U.S. President
Donald Trump's Gaza peace plan. The top diplomats of Saudi Arabia, Egypt,
Jordan, Pakistan, Indonesia, Turkey, Qatar and the UAE said in a joint statement
that they "condemn the declared Israeli rejection of the Road Map" and of
Palestinian statehood, accusing it of undermining the plan's implementation and
the "efforts undertaken to achieve a just and lasting peace."AFP
Hamas delegation, Kushner in Egypt for Gaza plan talks
Al Arabiya English/16 August ,2026
A Hamas delegation led by Khalil al-Hayya began meeting with the head of
Egyptian intelligence chief on Sunday, a source told Al Arabiya English. Both
sides discussed ways to advance the implementation of a post-war plan for Gaza,
an official from the Palestinian group told AFP. Donald Trump’s envoy and
son-in-law Jared Kushner discussed the US leader's plan for Gaza with Egyptian
President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi on Sunday, hours after Hamas chief al-Hayya met
with Cairo’s spymaster.Kushner and al-Hayya, both in the Mediterranean city of
El-Alamein, held separate talks on the implementation of Trump’s post-war plan
for Gaza, which has largely been stalled since a ceasefire between Israel and
Hamas was declared last October. Kushner will also meet with Hamas
representatives in the presence of mediators after his meetings in Israel,
sources told Al Arabiya English.
Hamas had said in late July that it was ready to hand over its weapons to a
nascent technical committee set to govern Gaza, as part of a 15-point plan
announced by Trump’s Board of Peace. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu has rejected the plan, vowing there would be no withdrawal of Israeli
forces from Gaza until the full disarmament of Hamas. The delegation led by al-Hayya
arrived in Egypt on Saturday evening. The delegation began a meeting with
Egyptian intelligence chief Hassan Rashad in the Egyptian city of El-Alamein,
the Hamas official said. He added that talks would cover “the latest
developments in the negotiations and the efforts being made to compel Israel to
abide by the agreement, which includes the 15-point roadmap, and to begin its
implementation.”“The delegation will brief Egyptian officials on Israeli
violations of the ceasefire agreement, and Hayya will emphasize the movement’s
commitment and readiness to implement the agreement as soon as Israel announces
its commitment to it.” Kushner to meet Hamas delegation on Gaza plan
implementation. Kushner is set to meet the Hamas delegation on Sunday for talks
on implementing Trump’s Gaza plan and facilitating the transfer of
administrative responsibilities to the National Committee for the Administration
of Gaza, sources told Al Arabiya English. The talks are expected to address the
deployment of an international stabilization force, the withdrawal of Israeli
forces from Gaza and the delivery of humanitarian aid, according to the sources.
The Board of Peace’s high representative for Gaza, Nickolay Mladenov, along with
representatives from Turkey, Egypt and Qatar, are also expected to attend the
meeting. The aim is to advance implementation of Trump’s plan rather than
renegotiate its terms, the sources said, with discussions also focused on ending
the cycle of violence in Gaza. With AFP
Saudi Arabia, seven others condemn Israel’s rejection of
Trump’s Gaza plan
Agencies/16 August ,2026
The foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia and seven other Muslim countries on Sunday
condemned Israel’s rejection of a recently released roadmap for fully
implementing US President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan. The top diplomats of
Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Jordan, Pakistan, Indonesia, Turkey, Qatar and the UAE said
in a joint statement that they “condemn the declared Israeli rejection of the
Road Map” and of Palestinian statehood, accusing it of undermining the plan’s
implementation and the “efforts undertaken to achieve a just and lasting
peace.”Trump announced last month that there had been a breakthrough in his plan
to end the war. Trump’s peace plan calls for the immediate cessation of military
operations in Gaza. It foresees Hamas disarming as Israeli troops withdraw from
the enclave and Gaza is rebuilt under a new civilian Palestinian administration.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed opposition to the US plan
even after he was assured by Nickolay Mladenov, the Board of Peace’s high
representative for Gaza, that Israel would not need to pull troops out of the
war-battered territory until complete disarmament by Hamas. Hamas said it had
agreed to the plan to avoid a resumption of the conflict, but added that
implementation of the deal would depend on Israel first meeting its own
commitments, including withdrawing its forces and halting attacks.
Mass drone attack on Moscow as Russian strikes kill three in Ukraine
AFP/16 August ,2026
Hundreds of drones targeted Moscow on Sunday as Russia launched missile strikes
that killed three people and wounded more than a dozen in Kyiv and other
Ukrainian cities, officials on the two sides said. Amid the intense hostilities,
three people were also killed in the Russian city of Rostov, while a Spanish
NATO fighter jet shot down a drone that crossed into Romanian territory -- the
second time in two days that the war has spilled over into eastern Europe.
Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported a sustained overnight drone assault on the
capital, issuing a string of updates over several hours.
Air defenses intercepted more than 600 drones headed towards Moscow, with around
200 which were shot down in the region, according to his statements on the
state-backed MAX platform. Moscow regional governor Andrey Vorobyov described
the assault as “one of the most massive drone attacks in recent memory”, adding
that six people were wounded in the region.“In Podolsk, a UAV hit caused a fire
at a Wildberries warehouse in the Koledino Industrial Park,” Vorobyov added.
Ukraine has increasingly targeted warehouses linked to the Wildberries online
retailer, arguing its strikes are a response to Moscow’s bombardment of
Ukrainian towns and infrastructure.
Kyiv explosions
Since mid-July, Ukraine has struck around 20 Wildberries warehouses and
buildings. Russia’s missile strikes killed two people in Ukraine’s Zaporizhzhia
region with another fatality in Kryvyi Rig, President Volodymyr Zelensky’s
hometown. More than 20 people were wounded across Kyiv, Brovary, Kryvyi Rig,
Odesa, and Dnipetrovsk. Russian forces hit two industrial sites in Kryvyi Rig,
local defense council head Oleksandr Vilkul said on Telegram. In Kyiv,
authorities issued an air raid alert just before 2:00 am (2300 GMT) and several
explosions were heard shortly after. Mayor Vitali Klitschko said Kyiv was “under
ballistic missile attack” and urged residents to remain in shelters. The strikes
sparked fires in the Obolonsky and Holosiivskyi districts of the capital.
Kremenchuk in the central Poltava region also came under attack, local officials
said, without providing details of damage or casualties. Russia has maintained
near-daily missile and drone strikes across Ukraine since launching its
full-scale invasion in early 2022. Zelensky has said Ukraine’s increasing
attacks deep inside Russia, on refineries as well as the warehouses, aim to
undermine Russia’s war economy. Romania’s defense ministry said that a Spanish
F-18 fighter jet shot down a drone that breached its airspace near the border
with Ukraine and Moldova. Debris fell in an unpopulated area of the Galati
region, near the Ukrainian border, it added, though it was not known where the
drone came from. Countries bordering the conflict have faced increasing
spillovers from the drone war between Ukraine and Russia. NATO said Friday its
fighter jets shot down a drone that entered Latvian airspace. It was the second
time in a week that a drone had been shot down in Latvian airspace, the
country’s defense ministry said. In July, Romania expelled a Russian embassy
employee in what it called “a firm response” to drones repeatedly breaching the
country’s airspace. Romania shot down three drones on three consecutive days
before the expulsion.
Pope calls for an end to West Bank violence against
Palestinians
Reuters/16 August ,2026
Pope Leo called on Sunday for an end to violence against Palestinians in the
occupied West Bank, amid a surge of attacks by militant settlers and a siege in
the territory’s village of Qusra. Israeli settlers encircled houses after
cutting off water and electricity, in what rights groups have said is a
concerted effort to seize more land, and further eat into territory where
Palestinians aim to establish a state. “I renew my appeal for an end to the
repeated violence against the Palestinian civilian population in the West Bank,”
the Pope said, without mentioning specific confrontations or attacks. “I
urgently ask the international community to take action so as to advance the
two-state solution, for a fair and lasting peace,” the Pope added after noon
prayers at his Castel Gandolfo residence outside Rome. The Vatican has long
backed the idea of a future Palestinian state, which has been recognized by more
than 150 of 193 UN member states as encompassing the Gaza Strip and West Bank,
including East Jerusalem. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing
coalition government has overseen massive settlement construction in the West
Bank that Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich says is aimed at burying the idea of
such a state. The United Nations and most governments consider the settlements
to be illegal under international law related to military occupation. Israel
seized the West Bank in the 1967 war, but argues the territory is disputed
rather than occupied.
The Latest LCCC analysis & editorials from
miscellaneous sources published
on August 16-17/2026
Iranian Regime's Dangerous Strategy: Outlast Trump, Return Stronger
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh/Gatestone Institute/August 16, 2026
Tehran believes its path to victory is not necessarily through defeating the
United States militarily, but through managing the confrontation until President
Donald Trump's term ends in January 2029.
For the remaining time of Trump's presidency, the regime plans to play a
familiar game of opening and closing the waterway, dangling intermittent
negotiations, employing intermediaries, walking up to the table and then walking
away. Before anyone notices, two years will have passed.
The only priority is surviving Trump.
Iran's regime evidently plans to control who passes, under what conditions, and
to impose fees or "navigational services" the minute Trump leaves office.
The wealth that Iran would obtain by extorting global energy markets would
reinvigorate its support for proxy militias and terrorist groups, and, above all
-- with continuing help from China, Russia, and North Korea -- the regime's
ultimate insurance policy: its nuclear program, which is now reportedly tucked
under Pickaxe Mountain.
Are free nations prepared to accept an expansionist revolutionary theocracy that
wholly rejects Western norms and violates freedom of navigation as the permanent
gatekeeper of a key maritime shipping chokepoint? Probably.
That is the peril of leaving the job half-finished. Trump's campaign has already
inflicted severe damage. Allowing the regime to stay in place to continue
developing nuclear weapons and asserting control over the Strait of Hormuz and
Bab al-Mandab at the mouth of the Red Sea would squander that advantage.
The necessary objective is unconditional surrender, not some bogus deal.
The only responsible response is to deny the regime the opportunity. Continue
the economic pressure, resume the military pressure, remove every layer of
leadership, support those inside and outside Iran ready to end the theocracy's
rule, and refuse any outcome short of complete unconditional surrender. With
anything less, Trump will go down in history as having ushered in a far more
dangerous world.
The wealth that Iran would obtain by extorting global energy markets would
reinvigorate its support for proxy militias and terrorist groups, and, above all
-- with continuing help from China, Russia, and North Korea -- the regime's
ultimate insurance policy: its nuclear program, which is now reportedly tucked
under Pickaxe Mountain. Pictured: A Fattah ballistic missile is displayed during
the annual military parade in Tehran, on September 22, 2023. (Photo by AFP via
Getty Images)
For decades, the Iranian regime has guarded its strategic intentions behind
ambiguity, denials and carefully calibrated statements. Its current strategy has
now become unusually explicit. Recent comments attributed to Majid Shakeri, an
adviser to Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, suggest that
Tehran believes its path to victory is not necessarily through defeating the
United States militarily, but through managing the confrontation until President
Donald Trump's term ends in January 2029. Shakeri described the approach as
maintaining a state of neither war nor peace and exercising "strategic patience"
and "getting along with him [President Trump] until his term ends." It is a
strategy that Washington and its allies should take seriously.
The original American and Israeli war aim was the regime's unconditional
surrender and strategic defeat — crippling its military capacity, eliminating
key leadership layers, and forcing genuine surrender on nuclear, missile, and
regional aggression issues. Tehran has since redirected the fight onto the
Strait of Hormuz. For the remaining time of Trump's presidency, the regime plans
to play a familiar game of opening and closing the waterway, dangling
intermittent negotiations, employing intermediaries, walking up to the table and
then walking away. Before anyone notices, two years will have passed.
This is a regime that prolonged its war with Iraq for eight grisly years; it
knows how to extend conflict. Because Iran's leaders do not care about the
suffering of their own people — evident in ongoing executions, suppression of
protests, and indifference to economic pain — it will absorb sanctions, oil
revenue losses, and hardship that would collapse most governments. Selling oil
or not selling oil is secondary. The only priority is surviving Trump.
Control of the Strait— through which roughly one-fifth of the world's traded oil
normally passes — has become Iran's "golden weapon," eclipsing even the nuclear
file as the central bargaining chip. Iranian officials have repeatedly stated
that the waterway will not return to its pre-war status as an open international
passage. Iran's regime evidently plans to control who passes, under what
conditions, and to impose fees or "navigational services" the minute Trump
leaves office.
Negotiations open and close; memoranda of understanding are signed and then
violated; attacks on shipping resume when leverage needs refreshing. The regime
has turned a military confrontation aimed at its own survival into a prolonged
contest over a global energy chokepoint.
It took nearly five decades for a U.S. president to emerge who was willing to
take decisive military action against the Islamic Republic. Tehran calculates —
correctly — that another leader with the determination of President Trump is
unlikely to appear soon again. Perhaps the regime counts on the possibility of a
Democrat-controlled Congress after the midterm elections this November, which
the regime seems to will have no political appetite for sustained pressure.
The wealth that Iran would obtain by extorting global energy markets would
reinvigorate its support for proxy militias and terrorist groups, and, above all
-- with continuing help from China, Russia, and North Korea -- the regime's
ultimate insurance policy: its nuclear program, which is now reportedly tucked
under Pickaxe Mountain.
Are free nations prepared to accept an expansionist revolutionary theocracy that
wholly rejects Western norms and violates freedom of navigation as the permanent
gatekeeper of a key maritime shipping chokepoint? Probably.
Iran could eventually arm its proxies with nuclear capabilities and proliferate
the regime's longstanding practice of targeted assassinations -- since 1979,
littered with the elimination of dissidents, political opponents, and
foreigners. Even family members and close associates have not been spared. A
triumphant, wealthier, and eventually nuclear-armed Iran would go on a
full-scale campaign of revenge against Americans, Israelis, and Iranian
opposition figures.
That is the peril of leaving the job half-finished. Trump's campaign has already
inflicted severe damage. Allowing the regime to stay in place to continue
developing nuclear weapons and asserting control over the Strait of Hormuz and
Bab al-Mandab at the mouth of the Red Sea would squander that advantage.
The necessary objective is unconditional surrender, not some bogus deal.
This outcome will likely require systematically removing successive layers of
hardline leadership until the structure collapses. New hardliners installed in
the military and security apparatus who seek revenge need to be neutralized. The
regime cannot be permitted to recover.
The global order of freedom of navigation that has underpinned Western
democracies and open commerce would be permanently altered. The only responsible
response is to deny the regime the opportunity. Continue the economic pressure,
resume the military pressure, remove every layer of leadership, support those
inside and outside Iran ready to end the theocracy's rule, and refuse any
outcome short of complete unconditional surrender. With anything less, Trump
will go down in history as having ushered in a far more dangerous world.
https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/22789/iran-dangerous-strategy
**Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a political scientist, Harvard-educated analyst, and
board member of Harvard International Review. He has authored several books on
the US foreign policy. He can be reached at dr.rafizadeh@post.harvard.edu
Follow Majid Rafizadeh on X (formerly Twitter)
© 2026 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do
not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute.
Taliban regime has itself become a proxy trying to
destabilize the region, Pakistan’s UN envoy tells Arab News
Ephrem Kossaify/Arab News/August 16, 2026
NEW YORK CITY: Five years after the Taliban swept into Kabul, Pakistan’s
ambassador to the UN, Asim Iftikhar Ahmad, is not walking back Defense Minister
Khawaja Asif’s February declaration that the two countries are in “open war.”
“The trends are posing grave concern,” Ahmad told Arab News in an interview
marking the fifth anniversary of the takeover, pointing to reports from the UN’s
own sanctions monitoring team and the secretary-general on Afghanistan’s renewed
role as “a safe haven for a number of terrorist groups.”Ahmad described a steady
deterioration in Kabul’s conduct since the Taliban returned to power on Aug. 15,
2021.
“Pakistan’s basic position and basic approach towards Afghanistan and the people
of Afghanistan remains the same,” he said, describing the two countries as “next
door neighbors” bound by “deep rooted and longstanding” ties.
He stressed that Islamabad’s quarrel is not with ordinary Afghans, who he said
have borne the brunt of “decades of instability and conflict.” Pakistan, he
added, has “felt and has been impacted directly by the consequences of that
period of instability” more than any other country.Ahmad traced the
international community’s current frustration to expectations set out during the
2020 Doha talks between the US and the Taliban, and reaffirmed as the group took
power the following year. There were three core benchmarks: an inclusive
government, respect for human rights — particularly the rights of women and
girls — and a guarantee that Afghan soil would not be used to stage terrorism
against any other country.
Pakistan did not simply wait to see whether Kabul would deliver, Ahmad said.
Within four months of the takeover, Islamabad convened an extraordinary session
of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation’s foreign ministers in December 2021
to rally international support for Afghanistan’s recovery.
Five years on, he said, the record is one of regression rather than progress on
all three fronts, with continued restrictions on girls’ education and women’s
employment as evidence on the human rights front, and an exclusionary governance
structure that has failed to broaden. It is on the third benchmark,
counterterrorism, that Ahmad said Pakistan has paid the heaviest price. Ahmad
said the frequency and intensity of attacks linked by Pakistan to militant
groups operating from Afghanistan had surged. He cited more than 5,200
terrorism-related incidents in Pakistan in 2025 and more than 1,300 deaths —
figures that include categories broader than independently verified attacks
traced to Afghan soil.
The Global Terrorism Index recorded 1,045 incidents and 1,139 terrorism-related
deaths in Pakistan in 2025. In the first six months of 2026, he said, the
pattern “has not subsided” — in fact, it has intensified, with more than 3,000
attacks and upward of 830 Pakistani deaths in that period alone. Behind those
numbers, Ahmad named three groups he holds primarily responsible: Tehreek-e-Taliban
Pakistan, the Balochistan Liberation Army and the Majeed Brigade, alongside
Daesh’s regional affiliate. He described the first three as increasingly acting
“as proxies to our adversaries in the region.”
Asked directly whether the Taliban are deliberately sheltering the TTP or simply
unable to rein it in, Ahmad said the evidence, from UN monitoring team reports
and Pakistan’s own intelligence, points to the more serious explanation.
“It’s not just lack of capability or absence of political will,” he said. “The
Taliban regime is actually actively providing support” — safe havens, arms and
ammunition, some of it advanced weaponry left behind by international forces,
along with financing, planning assistance and facilitation of cross-border
infiltration, he said.
“In fact, the way the whole thing is operating now, it’s basically the Taliban
regime itself is a proxy, trying to destabilize the entire region,” Ahmad said,
arguing this serves neither Pakistan’s interests nor those of ordinary Afghans.
The Taliban has denied fostering ties with the TTP or other militant groups.
Pressed on what should happen next — whether the burden falls on Pakistan’s
military, or on outside powers with leverage over Kabul — Ahmad said
responsibility lies squarely with the Afghan side, even as he acknowledged
Pakistan’s own forces have paid “a heavy toll” patrolling the porous, roughly
2,600-kilometer Durand Line and striking militant targets. He raised the
possibility of a formal religious edict, or fatwa, from senior Taliban clergy
against groups like the TTP, paired with “concrete, verifiable steps” to deny
them safe haven and financing. Multiple regional powers have tried, without
success, to extract such commitments. Ahmad listed Saudi Arabia, Turkiye, China
and Qatar as “common friends” of both Islamabad and Kabul who have attempted to
mediate — all of whom were involved in brokering the ceasefire and subsequent
Istanbul talks earlier this year — but said the Taliban side has consistently
declined to give the assurances sought.
Asked who, if anyone, the Taliban leadership actually listens to, Ahmad was
blunt: “It’s a strange situation. I think it’s up to them to decide,” adding
that “some serious introspection is in order” given Afghanistan’s isolation,
frozen assets and lack of formal recognition — outcomes he said the group could
reverse if it wanted development and investment instead.
Ahmad argued that the “time and space” given by the international community to
the Taliban after 2021 — including through the UN’s own engagement framework —
has yielded no reciprocal steps from Kabul on any of the three benchmarks.
“It has been difficult for the many members of the international community … to
explain how they are engaging if there is no progress,” he said.
He drew a comparison with Washington’s approach to the Taliban’s detention of
American nationals, noting that the US has denied the group’s leadership
travel-ban exemptions over what it calls “hostage diplomacy.”If that standard
applies to individual hostages, Ahmad argued, it should apply with even greater
force to a “continuous stream of attacks” against Pakistani citizens that he
says Kabul actively enables. Existing UN Security Council sanctions on the
Taliban — frozen assets, a travel ban on its leadership, and the absence of a
recognized seat at the UN — remain in place, Ahmad noted, but he said what is
missing is sustained pressure specifically tied to the counterterrorism failure,
rather than the current holding pattern in which “there is no crisis” only
because no one is forcing a resolution.
On whether fellow Muslim-majority states retain unique leverage over the
Taliban, Ahmad recalled Pakistan working alongside Indonesia and Saudi Arabia
after 2021 to make the case — including on girls’ education — that the Taliban’s
restrictions on women “are not actually in line with Islamic teachings or
traditions.” But he said the outcome ultimately rests with the Taliban’s own
leadership, not with outside religious or diplomatic pressure of any origin,
Muslim or otherwise. Western governments, he added, have no objection in
principle to an Islamic system of government in Kabul, only to policies that
discriminate against women or minorities — an obstacle he said is entirely
within the Taliban’s power to remove.
Erdogan says Egypt could join Turkiye-Saudi-Pakistan
defense pact
Arab News/August 16, 2026
DOHA: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has said Egypt could become the
next country to join a newly established mutual defence pact between Turkiye,
Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. In an interview with Al Jazeera, Erdogan described
Cairo’s possible accession as one of several options being considered as the
alliance looks to expand its membership.The agreement, formally known as the
Makkah Joint Defence Agreement, was signed in the Saudi holy city last Friday by
Erdogan, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Pakistani Prime Minister
Shehbaz Sharif. Under the pact, an armed attack against any one of the three
signatory states would be treated as an attack against all of them, committing
the countries to a coordinated response in the event of an external threat.
“This agreement has sent an important message to the world,” Erdogan told Al
Jazeera’s Ali Al Dafiri during an interview for the programme Al Muqabala.While
the collective defence clause has prompted comparisons with NATO’s Article 5,
Pakistani officials have cautioned against describing the agreement as a
regional equivalent of the Western military alliance. Islamabad has also said
the pact is not aimed at any particular country. Erdogan said the agreement
remained open to additional members and indicated that Egypt’s participation was
possible. His comments come as regional governments seek to deepen security
cooperation amid continuing wars and political instability across the Middle
East. During the interview, the Turkish president also addressed tensions
surrounding the Strait of Hormuz, as well as the conflicts in Gaza, Lebanon and
Syria. Erdogan said reopening the Strait of Hormuz was a priority for Ankara,
arguing that the continued disruption of the strategic waterway was damaging to
all sides.
The strait is one of the world’s most important energy corridors, linking Gulf
oil and gas producers with international markets.
He also praised Qatar’s role in regional mediation efforts, saying Doha had
contributed significantly to attempts to reduce tensions and bring an end to
ongoing fighting. On Syria, Erdogan said Turkiye would continue to support
efforts to restore stability and would not abandon its neighbours during a
period of regional turmoil. He said he planned to visit Syria and stressed that
the country’s Kurdish population should share in any future peace and stability.
According to Erdogan, Turkiye would continue strengthening its relations with
Kurdish communities and supporting their rights across the region.
Turning to Gaza, he said Ankara could not leave Palestinians in the territory to
face the conflict alone. “Turkiye cannot leave Gaza alone,” Erdogan said, adding
that his government would continue to provide political and humanitarian
support. He said Hamas was acting in good faith and meeting its commitments,
while accusing Israel of continuing its military campaign. Erdogan also
expressed concern over Israeli attacks on Lebanon and said he had discussed the
conflict with US President Donald Trump during Trump’s recent visit to Turkiye.
The Turkish leader said Washington had an important role to play in bringing the
fighting to an end and that he had urged the US president to support efforts to
halt the war.
Erdogan also addressed developments in Sudan and Libya.
He said Turkiye would continue supporting Sudan and described his relationship
with Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, the head of Sudan’s Sovereignty Council, as
positive. On Libya, he said relations between Ankara and Tripoli remained stable
and insisted that Turkiye would not abandon the country. Erdogan also used the
interview to signal a further shift in Turkiye’s relationship with the European
Union. He said EU membership was no longer a major priority for Ankara and
accused European leaders of lacking the political will to admit Turkiye.
According to Erdogan, Europe would ultimately lose more than Turkiye if
accession efforts remained stalled. Turkiye has been formally recognised as a
candidate for EU membership since 1999, but negotiations have been frozen for
years amid disagreements over democratic standards, regional disputes and
foreign policy.The Turkish president also spoke about Ankara’s long-running
attempt to rejoin the US-led F-35 fighter jet programme. Erdogan said Trump had
made a commitment regarding the aircraft and that Turkiye was waiting for the US
administration to honour it.Washington expelled Turkiye from the multinational
F-35 programme in 2019 after Ankara purchased the Russian-made S-400 air defence
system. US officials argued that the S-400 could collect sensitive information
about the F-35’s stealth capabilities and compromise the security of the wider
programme. The United States subsequently imposed sanctions on Turkiye under the
Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act in December 2020. During
a NATO summit in Ankara last month, Trump said his administration planned to
lift those sanctions and would consider allowing Turkiye to return to the F-35
programme. However, any agreement is likely to encounter opposition in the US
Congress. A law passed in 2020 prevents the Pentagon from transferring F-35
aircraft to Turkiye for as long as Ankara retains the S-400 system. Erdogan’s
comments underline Turkiye’s efforts to strengthen its regional alliances while
pursuing a more independent defence and foreign policy. The possible inclusion
of Egypt in the Mecca pact would bring together four of the region’s most
influential military powers and could significantly reshape security cooperation
across the Middle East and the wider Islamic world.
Republican silence and Democratic ambiguity
Eyad Abu Shakra/Asharq Al-Awsat/August 16, 2026
The US midterm elections in early November promise to be exceptional in every
sense of the word. They will amount to a series of major tests taking place on a
single day — tests that could lead to a different set of calculations for
President Donald Trump’s second term and redefine the interests of the various
factions, or what remains of them, within the two major parties, Republican and
Democratic. At the top of the Republicans’ priorities, undoubtedly, is
solidifying the master of the White House’s position in the face of an
opposition whose resentment grows in parallel with Trump’s. Meanwhile, the
hard-line right-wing faction that supports him hopes to tighten its grip on the
three powers — executive, legislative and judicial — which have rarely been
dominated by not just one of the two parties but a specific faction within the
dominant party. There is no longer any coexistence between the two wings of the
Republican Party — one moderate and the other more hard-line. This is because
any dissenting or critical voice that is capable of pushing for internal
dialogue or advocating a change in course that may be uncomfortable for broad
segments of the American public has effectively faded away.
Things were not always this way for the Republican Party, particularly following
the American Civil War in the second half of the 19th century. Indeed, by many
measures, most Republicans — particularly those in the Northeastern US — were to
the left of Democrats in the agrarian Southern states.
During that period, Democrats, driven by their interests as owners of vast
agricultural lands, were keen to maintain slavery, which provided them with
cheap Black labor brought from Africa. Religiously, they were predominantly
conservative Protestants (especially Southern Baptists). In contrast, Northern
Republicans built their wealth through industry, trade, banking, education and
fostering innovation and technological progress. With the growth of cities and
the prosperity of industry, services, finance and the transport and
communications revolution, Northern cities, especially in the Northeast, became
attractive for ambitious and active European immigrants of various religions and
cultures.
In short, this equation continued until the late 19th century, with the only
change being the gradual collapse of the Democratic Party in the secessionist
Southern states, which lost the Civil War at the hands of the great Republican
President Abraham Lincoln.
Another major turning point came with the New Deal in the first half of the 20th
century, during the presidency of Franklin Roosevelt. This marked a significant
expansion of government intervention in the economy in the aftermath of the
Great Depression, whose causes had accumulated during a period when Republicans
had largely monopolized the White House. There is no longer any coexistence
between the two wings of the Republican Party — one moderate and the other more
hard-line.
For clarification, it must be noted here that Democratic President Woodrow
Wilson, who was in office from 1913 to 1921, might not have governed at all had
it not been for the Republican split at the time between former Presidents
Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft. Indeed, after Wilson, Republicans
held the White House throughout the presidencies of Warren Harding, Calvin
Coolidge and Herbert Hoover between 1921 and 1933. After the Second World War,
the US experienced the Cold War and the era of McCarthyism (named after the
hard-line Republican Sen. Joseph McCarthy). Then came the period of the Vietnam
War and the civil rights movement and, with it, the ideological content of both
the Republican and Democratic parties began to change.
After the fall of the Berlin Wall and the collapse of the Soviet Union, the new
identities of the two major parties became entrenched. The Republican Party
became the platform for the conservative right and the Democratic Party became a
haven for a spectrum of opposing forces, from centrist liberals to left-wing
democratic socialists.
In the recent battles over nominations for the midterm elections, it is fair to
say that a kind of silence has prevailed within the Republican camp. No serious
candidate — or significant faction — was willing or able to break ranks and put
forward an explicit alternative to the Trumpism that dominates every level of
the party. This was underscored in the recent vote to confirm the new attorney
general, Todd Blanche, Trump’s former lawyer. On the Democratic side, the
picture was markedly different. Here, while the word “liberal” was almost an
insult in the lexicon of President Ronald Reagan and his conservative Republican
movement, the Democratic left no longer shies away from using the word
“socialism” in its election campaigns. In fact, the de facto leader of this
left, Sen. Bernie Sanders, considers himself a socialist before being a
Democrat, while the Democrats in Congress include members who describe
themselves as “democratic socialists.”In key northern states such as Michigan,
Wisconsin and Minnesota, the internal contests for Democratic nominations were
particularly intense. Commentators and analysts followed them closely, seeking
to assess the extent to which a more radical, reformist current is gaining
ground within the party in opposition to its centrist leaders, who remain
confident in the support of traditional lobbies.In Michigan, socialist Senate
candidate Abdul El-Sayed won despite opposition from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and
the Democratic establishment, both of which had backed his opponent. In
Minnesota, lieutenant governor and socialist Senate candidate Peggy Flanagan,
who is Native American, also won by a wide margin.The opposite happened in
Wisconsin, where socialist candidate Francesca Hong, who is of Asian descent,
narrowly lost to her African American opponent. What was particularly striking,
however, was that some of the Democratic Party’s most prominent left-wing
leaders — including Sanders — declined to endorse her in this race. Based on
this, the picture is still far from complete. I expect plenty to happen between
now and November and I would rule nothing out — particularly given the
algorithms controlled by the oligarchs, lobby money and a media landscape rife
with incitement, polarization and disinformation.
• Eyad Abu Shakra is managing editor of Asharq Al-Awsat, where this article was
originally published. X: @eyad1949
Ceuta plot, a failed challenge to Morocco’s sovereignty
Berrak Chadi Abdeslam/The Arab Weekly/August 16/2026
The crisis exposed the direct involvement of regional intelligence services and
their separatist Polisario arm in operating digital war rooms and feeding
disinformation to Spanish extreme-right figures.
The recent orchestrated influx of migrants toward the enclaves of Ceuta and
Melilla represents a classic textbook case of contemporary hybrid warfare
designed to paralyse Morocco’s sovereign decision-making centers through
cross-border digital and human pressure. Strategic analysis of this assault
reveals a calculated spatio-temporal plot timed in late July to coincide with
Throne Day celebrations, directly targeting the symbolic and spiritual standing
of the Monarchy as the foundational pillar of national stability and unity.
Tactically, this hybrid manoeuvre sought to sabotage security coordination
between Rabat and Madrid, shift the Straits conflict deeper into the Gibraltar
zone to disrupt Mediterranean maritime balances, and exert pressure on the joint
2030 World Cup bid.
This physical escalation was preceded by a systematic digital setup engineered
in the dark rooms of hostile intelligence circles. The revival of allegations
surrounding “Pegasus” spyware served as an intelligence-driven ploy to demonise
national sovereign institutions, aiming to strip them of moral and diplomatic
legitimacy prior to taking legitimate border defense measures. Complementing
these cyber tactics was a fabricated human rights campaign surrounding
journalist Ali Lmrabet, intended to force a high-profile arrest. However, the
national judicial system’s transparent decision to prosecute him while at
liberty deflated this counter-propaganda strategy, depriving the conspiracy of
its international legal cover. In the face of these challenges, Morocco’s
strategic foresight was evident in the stern, advance warnings issued by
sovereign agencies to their counterparts in Madrid following Spanish judicial
rulings that human trafficking networks exploited to encourage migration.
On the ground, the sovereign system demonstrated operational excellence,
transitioning immediately from analytical monitoring to decisive field
intervention under a comprehensive mobilisation led by the Royal Armed Forces
(FAR) as the primary shield of the kingdom’s territorial integrity.
This military mobilisation operated in total synergy with key security organs:
the General Directorate for Territorial Surveillance (DGST) handled intelligence
monitoring and dismantled cyber-driven mobilisation networks; the General
Directorate for National Security (DGSN) secured urban centers and strategic
gateways; the Royal Gendarmerie established strict security perimeters along
rural routes and contact zones; and the Auxiliary Forces provided a resilient
front line to absorb and neutralise the incoming waves.
Simultaneously, the General Directorate for Studies and Documentation (DGED)
managed external intelligence monitoring to dismantle cross-border plotting.
This institutional integration successfully defused the crisis within 72 hours,
neutralising the element of surprise. The crisis exposed the direct involvement
of neighbouring regional intelligence services and their separatist Polisario
arm in operating digital war rooms and feeding disinformation to Spanish
extreme-right figures (such as Vox and other radical groups) to provoke regional
turmoil against the government of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
However, this covert alignment unraveled against the vigilance of Moroccan and
Spanish sovereign services. Similarly, internal calls to incite domestic unrest
in early August collapsed against the collective of the Moroccan public and
their firm cohesion behind core national principles. Looking forward, two main
geopolitical scenarios emerge: either hostile actors double down on asymmetrical
warfare through transnational organised crime networks, or Rabat and Madrid
formalise a comprehensive, long-term strategic partnership based on real-time
intelligence sharing, driven by European recognition that its security is
inextricably tied to Morocco’s stability.
Domestically, the crisis highlighted an execution gap and structural deficit
within political parties and civil society in keeping pace with the ambitious
strategic initiatives led by the Monarchy. While political actors remained
entangled in electoral calculations, the Royal Vision continues to prioritise
human development and social justice. Royal patronage remains the primary
catalyst for reforming the domestic political landscape, rebuilding public
trust, and safeguarding the national front.Ultimately, the Monarchy stands as
the strategic mind and primary guarantor of regional and national stability.
Beyond guiding foreign policy, His Majesty the King serves as the Supreme
Commander of the Royal Armed Forces and directly oversees all sovereign security
bodies (DGST, DGSN, Royal Gendarmerie, Auxiliary Forces, and DGED), ensuring
seamless harmony between intelligence, foresight and decisive field enforcement.
The organic, historical bond between the Throne and the People remains the
unbreakable rock upon which all regional plots shatter, cementing Morocco’s role
as an indispensable regional power for peace and stability in the Mediterranean
and Atlantic domains.
**Berrak Chadi Abdesslam is a Moroccan writer and geopolitical researcher.
Selected Face Book & X tweets
on August 16/2026
Barak Ravid
President Trump's envoy, Jared Kushner, met on Sunday with Hamas
leaders in Egypt and pressed them to begin implementing their commitment to
disarm, according to two sources familiar with the meeting's details
Why it matters: This was the first meeting between Kushner and Hamas leaders
since the signing of the agreement to end the war in Gaza last October
The unusual meeting took place as the White House and President Trump's Gaza
Peace Council are pressing both Hamas and Israel to advance to the next phase of
the U.S.'s 20-point plan
Kushner is expected to arrive in Israel on Monday and meet with Prime Minister
Netanyahu to discuss "parallel steps" that Israel needs to take, according to a
source familiar with the details
Behind the scenes: The Peace Council's senior representative, Nikolai Mladenov,
and former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, a member of the Peace Council,
joined Kushner at the meeting in Al-Alamein
Hamas's head of the political bureau, Khalil al-Hayya, participated in the
meeting alongside the head of Egyptian intelligence, General Hassan Rashad, the
Qatari minister Ali al-Thawadi, and a Turkish official
A source familiar with the meeting said its purpose was to "translate" the
commitments Hamas took upon itself under the Gaza disarmament agreement "into
concrete steps that can be verified for implementation"
Focus: The source said these steps include maintaining the ceasefire in Gaza,
beginning the transfer of all governing authorities to the Palestinian
technocratic government, and ensuring that Hamas will have no role in Gaza's
future administration
According to the source, the Peace Council wants Hamas to begin the process of
dismantling weapons and military infrastructure, allow the deployment of the
international stabilization force, and assist in advancing Gaza's reconstruction
and rebuilding, without stealing materials or intimidating Palestinians
participating in these efforts
The Peace Council also wants Israel to carry out "parallel withdrawals" in Gaza
if Hamas begins to disarm, and to accelerate the entry of humanitarian aid into
the Strip
"There can be no ambiguity: Hamas must relinquish governing authorities and all
its weapons and military infrastructure. And Gaza can never again become a
source of terror against Israel," the source said
Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו
This morning Hezbollah violated the ceasefire in Lebanon by
attacking our soldiers in the security zone, which protects Israeli communities
just across the border.
The Hezbollah attack seriously injured three of our soldiers. The IDF responded
by striking the Hezbollah terror headquarters which ordered the attack. Only
later did the IDF learn that Hezbollah deliberately put civilians in that
military compound. Hezbollah is willing to do
anything, including using its own civilians as human shields, to falsely accuse
Israel of deliberately targeting civilians, which the IDF clearly did not.
Jean Riachi
https://x.com/riachi_jean/status/2088954833977946601/video/1
I may be naïve. But the U.S. ambassador to Lebanon is a true
Lebanese, whose heart beats in time with that of the Lebanese people. How can
one not see this as a chance for Lebanon? Hate Trump all you want — the fact
remains that he treated President Aoun with genuine respect and spoke of Lebanon
in the warmest terms. Having a Lebanese son-in-law and grandson is surely not
unrelated. Let us make the most of this opportunity.
Azat@AzatAlsalim
https://x.com/tounsiahourra/status/2088918072295866558/video/1
Lebanese Christian singer ,Elissa, refuses to put the Pali
Kaffiya on her and throws it away!
Nadim Koteich
Iran brags daily it has “closed” the Strait of Hormuz and that
nothing moves without its permission. In practice, the only major exporter that
has been effectively cut off from the strait is Iran itself. The decisive
restriction is the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports and Iranian-origin
shipping. Other producers continue moving oil: some vessels still transit the
southern lanes, and larger volumes leave via pipelines that bypass the strait
entirely.
Iranian exports through Hormuz are near zero, costing Tehran hundreds of
millions daily ($500M in some accounts), while global prices sit around $82,
near years average.
Harassment of ships occurs, but it has not stopped residual non-Iranian flows.
None of this means the Hormuz situation should not be resolved now, or
that the sense of urgency has subsided.
Hussain Abdul-Hussain
My maternal great grandparent Sayyed Muhammad Saiid Mortada
(front row, third from left) received Grand Ayatollah and Mufti of Tyre Sayyed
Abdul-Hussain Sharafiddine (the cleric in the black turban) in Baalbek, in 1920.
Sharafiddine led the inauguration of the (Shia) shrine of Sayyedah Khawlah,
re-opened after (Sunni) Ottoman occupation of Lebanon had destroyed it, a
century prior. When Sharafiddine died, in 1956, he was succeeded by a cousin
whose grandfather cleric had escaped the prison of Ottoman Wali of Akka, Ahmad
Pasha The Butcher. The cousin who had grown up in Iran returned to Lebanon. His
name was Mussa al-Sadr and he founded the Higher Islamic Shia Council in the
1960s. Sadr’s partner in founding the council was my grandpa Toufic, Saiid’s
third son. After Toufic retired from public life, Sadr created the Amal militia
in the 1970s. Amal surrendered its arms with the end of the civil war in 1991
and its chief Nabih Berri was elected speaker a year later. He’s been reelected
half a dozen times since, serving his seventh term today.
ToniMrad
A State Department spokesperson comments on the latest developments in southern
Lebanon over the past few hours:
@LBCI_NEWS
Hizballah has been the primary obstacle to Lebanon's economic recovery, the only
blemish on its international reputation, and the biggest threat to the safety
and stability of Lebanon. It bears sole responsibility for Israel's presence on
Lebanese soil. This is precisely why Hizballah must be disarmed and dismantled.
The pilot zone process remains the only viable path to long-term peace and
security for Lebanon and Israel. We look forward to the LAF's completion of
clearance operations in the first pilot zones and, after clearance is verified,
the process will expand. The disarmament of Hizballah is an integral part of
this process.
The United States will continue to support the Trilateral Framework in keeping
with our interest in regional stability, the prevention of further conflict, and
President Trump's agenda of promoting peace between nations.
Nadim Koteich
Turkey and Pakistan are enjoying the limelight of “being” the rising powers of
the Muslim world.
Their loud ambition is suppressing the alarming whispers about their economies.
Turkish prices climb almost 32% a year. Every twelve months an ordinary family
loses a third of what it holds, and the central bank fights back with interest
rates so high they choke growth and investment.
Pakistan sells its 3.7% growth as a sign of success, but that number sits on low
incomes and reserves too thin to survive the next hit.
Both economies signal ongoing stress, limited resilience, and insufficient
strength for sustained prosperity or shock absorption.
The stubborn and old pattern has always shown that powers, addicted to strength
abroad, fall when their ambitions outrun the economy that has to pay for them.
Turkey should have learned that from the Ottomans who borrowed their way to
glory and woke up in 1881 with European clerks collecting their taxes. Pakistan
carries a fresher wound of a country that reached too far in 1971 and lost half
of itself in a fortnight.
This has always been the case. Ambition signs the check. The economy cannot
cover it. The state pays the difference in land, or in collapse.
Turkey and Pakistan are reaching again, but the arithmetic of the game has not
changed.
Hussain Abdul-Hussain
Analysis: I’ve been expecting Hezbollah to test Israeli limits by targeting
Israel’s security zone. Israel, too, seems to have been expecting it and reacted
brilliantly to it by taking out the commander who was designing the attack.
Only the Lebanese state, including President Aoun and PM Salam, continue to
pretend that their pro-Hezbollah army has things under control, when it clearly
does not. The only purpose the Lebanese state is serving at this point is to
prove that Israel has no reliable Lebanese partner to hand them Lebanese
territory now turned into a depopulated security zone. Israel is forced to
continue to rely on its own muscle to deal with lawless Lebanon. Sad.
https://x.com/hahussain/status/2088680001977692232/video/1
Hussain Abdul-Hussain
Top Lebanese officials condemned Israel committing of “a massacre of a whole
family” in south Lebanon. Hezbollah then announced that the strike killed
Hezbollah military chief Samir Hajj-Hassan and his family (he carelessly caused
his family’s death). Another Israeli strike took