English LCCC Newsbulletin For Lebanese, Lebanese Related, Global News &
Editorials
For September 25/2026
Compiled & Prepared by: Elias Bejjani
#elias_bejjani_news
The Bulletin's Link on the lccc Site
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/aaaanewsfor2026/english.september25.26.htm
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Bible Quotations For today
But many who are first will be last, and the
last will be first
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Mark
10/28-31/:”Peter began to say to Jesus, ‘Look, we have left everything and
followed you. ’Jesus said, ‘Truly I tell you, there is no one who has left house
or brothers or sisters or mother or father or children or fields, for my sake
and for the sake of the good news, who will not receive a hundredfold now in
this age houses, brothers and sisters, mothers and children, and fields, with
persecutions and in the age to come eternal life.But many who are first will be
last, and the last will be first.”.
Titles For The English LCCC Lebanese & Lebanese Related News &
Editorials published on September 24-25/2026
An Attack on Peace: Praying for the Recovery of the Son of Israel’s
Ambassador to Washington, Mr. Yechiel Leiter/Elias Bejjani/September 24, 2026
Saint Takla (Thecla) the Martyr: Bride of Christ, First of the Women Martyrs,
and Equal-to-the-Apostles/Elias Bejjani/September 24, 2026
The Riachi Incense Burner and Patriarch Al-Rai Who Boasts of Ignoring Criticism
While Adoring Food and Sleep/Elias Bejjani/September 22/ 2026
Faith Reflections on the Meanings and Concepts of Humility/Elias Bejjani/September
21, 2026
Report: Lebanon arrests IS commander who was tasked with assassinating pope
EU adopts €505 million package to support Lebanon's stability, recovery and
reforms
South Lebanon: Latest developments
Salam comments after handshake snub by Trump
Salam turns 'new page' with Syria as he meets Sharaa in New York
Fadlallah says Lebanon can't be separated from region, Iran not replacing
Lebanese state
Jumblat doubtful US can shield Lebanon from further escalation
UK reaffirms support for Lebanon's security and sovereignty during senior
defense visit
The Hollowing Out Of Lebanon Will Have Fateful Consequences | MEMRI/Amb. Alberto
M. Fernandez/MEMRI/September 24/2026
Christians of the Arab World and a Partnership of Destiny/Fares Souaid/Asharq Al
Awsat/September 24/2026
Titles For The Latest English LCCC Miscellaneous Reports And News
published on September 24-25/2026
Video Link and Arabic/English Text of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s
Address at the United Nations General Assembly on September 24, 2026
Iran warns it may expand war to Indian Ocean if US attacks again
Highest volume of crude oil since July transited Hormuz this week: US defense
official
Xi and Trump call for peace in lavish White House state visit
US to hand over center at Baghdad airport: Iraq FM
US Senate rejects resolution to curb Trump’s Iran war powers
Iran Threatens to Expand War to Indian Ocean if US Attacks Again
UAE bars Iranian airline flights as US sanctions bite
Israel’s Netanyahu denounces enemies, allies in fiery UN speech
Israel policies threaten ‘life and existence’ of Palestinians: Abbas
Europe needs ‘decisive change’ in defense efforts to face Russia threat, EU
agency says
US and Iran discuss phased deal to reopen Hormuz and end US blockade, sources
say
Russia says will ‘consider’ US G20 invitation for Putin
Ukraine sent two captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea, Zelenskyy says
Meeting between al-Zaidi, Trump Raises Questions in Baghdad
Titles For The Latest English LCCC analysis & editorials
from miscellaneous sources published
on September 24-25/2026
La paix régionale est-elle une notion aporétique?/Dr. Charles Chartouni/Ici
Beyrouth/September 24/2026
Is Regional Peace an Aporia?/Dr. Charles Chartouni/Ici Beyrouth/September 24,
2026
A Message to His Beatitude Patriarch Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi/Mr. Anthony
Geagea/Facebook/September 24, 2026
Anthony Geagea: Un message à Sa Béatitude le Patriarche Mar Bechara Boutros Rahi/Facebook/24
Septembre 2026
Nothing Has Changed: Palestinian Authority Trying to Partner with Terrorists/Bassam
Tawil/Gatestone Institute/September 24, 2026
Kurdistan Region of Iraq announces Peshmerga unification/Seth J. Frantzman/FDD's
Long War Journal/September 24/2026
Iraq Delays Militia Disarmament, But Doesn’t Give Up — For Now/Bridget Toomey/FDD-
Policy Brief/September 24/2026
The Muslim Brotherhood Still Controls Jordan’s Rebranded Ummah Party/Ahmad
Sharawi/FDD- Policy Brief/September 24/2026
What the “Voice of Gaza” Chose Not to Tell the World /Simone Rodan-Benzaquen/Atlantico/September
24/2026
How Trump Redefined U.S.-Iran Policy At The UN/Behnam Ben Taleblu/The Daily
Wire/September 24/2026
Which is more powerful: Saudi Arabia or Iran?/Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Asharq Al
Awsat/24 September ,2026
Iran and the US: An October Surprise?/Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/September
24/2026
Selected Face Book & X tweets on September 24/2026
Latest English LCCC Lebanese &
Lebanese Related News & Editorials published
on September 24-25/2026
An Attack on Peace: Praying for the
Recovery of the Son of Israel’s Ambassador to Washington, Mr. Yechiel Leiter
Elias Bejjani/September 24, 2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/09/157770/
I share the deep pain of Israel’s Ambassador to Washington, Mr. Yechiel Leiter,
following the serious injuries sustained by his son in a vehicle-ramming attack
in Israel yesterday. Ambassador Leiter had previously lost another son during
the war in Gaza.
I pray for his son’s full and speedy recovery and for his safe return to his
family.
Ambassador Leiter is known for his commitment to peace and currently leads his
country’s delegation in the peace talks with Lebanon. What occurred was not only
an attack on an individual, but also an attack on the very spirit of peace and
on those who strive to advance it.
“Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.” (Matthew
5:9)
Saint Takla (Thecla) the Martyr: Bride of
Christ, First of the Women Martyrs, and Equal-to-the-Apostles
Elias Bejjani/September 24, 2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/09/157776/
Note: The information contained in this study is compiled from numerous
documented ecclesiastical, theological, academic, and media sources.
“Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress,
or persecution?” (Romans 8:35)
Saint Takla’s Annual Feast – September 24 in the Eastern Churches
The Eastern Church in all its families – Orthodox, Syriac, Coptic, Maronite, and
Melkite – commemorates Saint Thecla on the twenty-fourth of September each year.
This date is fixed in the Byzantine and Maronite Synaxaria, where she is
recorded under her official title: “The Great Holy Martyr Thecla, First of the
Women Martyrs and Equal-to-the-Apostles.” On this day, festive Divine Liturgies
are celebrated and her famous Troparion is chanted: “O holy God-bearer Thecla,
thou wast taught the Word by Paul, the God-inspired Apostle, and wast
established in the faith, O glorious one. Wherefore we celebrate thee and
venerate the divine and venerable memory.”
The Riachi Incense Burner and Patriarch Al-Rai Who Boasts
of Ignoring Criticism While Adoring Food and Sleep
Elias Bejjani/September 22/ 2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/09/157715/
https://chat.whatsapp.com/Gbhq3RVhcTI6Zg00aK8lOF
Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to stumble are bound to
come, but woe to anyone through whom they come. It would be better for them to
be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one
of these little ones to stumble. (Luke 17:01-06)
On the fifteenth of this current month (September 2026) the website of the
Municipality of Hamalaya published a report on Facebook covering the proceedings
of a ceremony held in the town, apparently related to Saint Rafqa, the daughter
of the town, attended by MP Melhem Riachi and Patriarch al-Rai.
Attached is the Video link and text of the video which is the subject of the
commentary… and it seems it was deleted from the municipality’s website after
the criticism it received.
Literal text of Melhem Riachi’s praise for the Patriarch and the Patriarch’s
reply:
Melhem Riachi: “Anyone who thinks or dreams of thinking that we want to change
Sayyidna Bshara and bring another Patriarch, must know that Sayyidna Bshara is
the Patriarch of the Catholics before the Maronites. We are with Sayyidna Bshara
at the bottom of the river and at the top of Mount Sannine. Long live you, long
live Sayyidna Bshara, and long live Lebanon”.
Patriarch al-Rai: “I want to thank you for your love. I want to thank you for
everything in which you express your love for the Church, for Saint Rafqa, for
me personally. And especially I want to thank His Excellency the MP, you made it
very precious. Thank you, thank you for your love. I know your love is great and
I know this talk comes from your heart. In any case, there is nothing new.
People write whatever they want to write. Today the media and means of
communication write whatever they want. I will tell you something, a secret: I
don’t read anything. I don’t know, I don’t know what they are writing.”
I know they tell me someone wrote, they tell me they wrote. What did they write?
I don’t know, I don’t read. I tell them I want to keep eating with a clear
conscience. I want to keep sleeping soundly seven hours, eight hours, and I want
to wake up to my work and keep my mind at ease.
I know my job, I know when I have to submit my resignation.
Personally, I was not at all surprised by the theatrical performance of both
Riachi and Sayyidna, but certainly, certainly many of the sons of our flock did
not know that the new standard of holiness announced in Hamalaya, the birthplace
of Saint Rafqa who lived in pain, fasting and prayer, is “the ability and
appetite to eat with a clear conscience no matter how harsh and painful the
circumstances are, and to sleep seven and eight hours” soundly without caring
about what befalls the flock and the nation.
And as shown in the video and its text, MP Melhem Riachi, known for his
Rasputin-like style and specialized in incense-burning, boot-licking, and vulgar
praise, presented us with one of his usual acts of flattery and sycophancy: “at
the bottom of the river and at the top of Sannine.” Words that no politician who
respects himself and his position as an MP for Metn would say, but rather a
doorkeeper at the palace gate would say. An MP of the Lebanese Forces, who is
supposed to represent the project of a state of law and institutions, announces
to us that the Patriarch is the Patriarch of the Catholics before the Maronites,
as if the Patriarchate has become a Vatican province and not an Antiochian See.
As for the major calamity, it came from the mouth of His Beatitude Sayyidna
himself. The Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, Beshara al-Rai, informs and
announces to his people and flock with all pride and without shame or fear that
he does not read, does not know, and does not want to know what is written. And
he tells us about his open appetite for eating and his deep sleep soundly.
O Your Beatitude the Patriarch, O Sayyidna al-Rai who does not read, does not
hear, and does not want to know what the flock says, he is not a shepherd, he is
merely a hired hand who sleeps while the wolf devours the sheep.
The Patriarch who boasts of his isolation from people, that is from his flock,
and boasts of his appetite for eating, indifferent to their concerns and their
opinions about his role and practices and that he does not read, insults first
and foremost his own position before insulting the flock. And it seems that due
to lack of faith and despair, it escaped Sayyidna’s mind that the position of
Patriarch is not a restaurant where he fills his stomach with delicious foods,
nor a hotel where he sleeps soundly seven-eight hours, but rather a position of
prayer, fasting, holiness, serious faithful work, preaching, staying awake,
anxiety and responsibility.
From the Holy Bible we borrow the following verses that narrate the concept and
culture of irresponsibility and isolation from the flock and selfishness and
death of conscience as is unfortunately the condition of Sayyidna.
Faith Reflections on the Meanings and
Concepts of Humility
Elias Bejjani/September 21, 2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/09/157698/
Humility is not weakness, nor artificial brokenness, nor a
garment we wear before people. Humility is truth. The truth that a person knows
himself before God, before himself, and before his fellow human being. And the
truly humble person is the one who knows that everything he has is a free gift,
so he does not boast and become arrogant and tyrannical as if he had not
received all that he has freely from his Creator.
For this reason, Saint Jacob of Serugh distinguishes between two kinds of
humility, saying: "There is a humility that comes from the fear of God, and
there is a humility that comes from God Himself. There is one who is humble
because he fears God, and there is one who is humble because he knows joy.
He who is humble because he fears God finds sweetness in his body, balance of
the senses, and a broken heart at all times. But he who is humble because he
knows joy finds great relief and an open heart and joy, so nothing restrains him
or weighs him down." The first humility is the beginning of the road, a holy
fear of being lost. The second humility is the summit of the road, the joy of
one who has realized that God loves him freely.
The Servant Returning from the Field
At the foundation of the moral theology of humility, the Lord Jesus lays down a
golden rule that demolishes every philosophy of human arrogance. In the Gospel
of Luke He says: "And which of you, having a servant plowing or tending sheep,
will say to him when he has come in from the field, ‘Come at once and sit down
to eat’? But will he not rather say to him, ‘Prepare something for my supper,
and gird yourself and serve me till I have eaten and drunk, and afterward you
will eat and drink’? Does he thank that servant because he did the things that
were commanded him? I think not. So likewise you, when you have done all those
things which you are commanded, say, ‘We are unprofitable servants. We have done
what was our duty to do.’" (Luke 17:7-10).
This parable is shocking to the ethics of this world.
In the logic of the world, he who does his duty we lift up, applaud, thank, and
we may even erect a statue for him. In the logic of the Gospel, he who does his
duty has no special merit. Why? Because duty is not a favor. The servant who
plowed and tended sheep and then prepared supper for his master and waited until
he finished, and then went to eat himself, deserves no thanks because he did
what he was supposed to do. So he said: I am a lowly servant, I have done my
duty and that is enough. And herein lies the dangerous moral and social disease
in our societies: We thank the official because he did not steal, and we thank
the employee because he came to work, and we thank the ruler because he
performed his most basic duties, and we thank the clergyman because he prayed,
and we thank the father because he raised his children. And this is a wrong and
value-destroying human behavior. When we thank someone for doing his duty, we
turn duty into a favor, and right into a gift, and faithfulness into heroism. So
we teach people that the norm is negligence, and that doing one's duty is an
exception that deserves a reward. And this is the very essence of moral
corruption.
The truly humble person does not wait for thanks because he completed his duty.
Rather, he says in his heart: "We are unprofitable servants." Not out of
self-contempt, but out of realization of the truth: that life itself, and
health, and talent, and the opportunity to serve, are all free gifts from God,
so how can I ask for a wage for what was given to me freely? And here comes the
decisive saying of Christ: "Freely you have received, freely give." (Matthew
10:8). We received salvation freely, we received talents freely, we received
gifts freely. So how can we sell what we received freely for the price of
thanks, praise, and power?
The Arrogant and the Humble: Two Opposite Schools
The arrogant lives in a constant argument: Who is the greatest? And this is what
the Lord revealed in Capernaum: "Then He and His disciples came to Capernaum;
and when He was in the house He asked them, 'What was it you disputed among
yourselves on the road?' But they kept silent, for on the road they had disputed
among themselves who would be the greatest." (Mark 9:33-34).
This is the arrogant person; even the Apostles before the coming of the Holy
Spirit upon them fell into it. He wants to sit at the right and at the left:
"Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in
Your glory." (Mark 10:37).
The arrogant wants glory before the cup, the chair before the cross, thanks
before work. He lives to be served, not to serve. And the Lord says about the
arrogant rulers of the nations: "Those who are considered rulers over the
Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them."
(Mark 10:42).
To lord over and to exercise authority. This is the language of arrogance. As
for the humble, his school is completely different — the school of the child:
"So Jesus sat down, called the twelve, and said to them, 'If anyone desires to
be first, he shall be last of all and servant of all.' Then He took a little
child and set him in the midst of them." (Mark 9:35-36). "Let the little
children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for of such is the kingdom of God.
Assuredly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God as a little
child will by no means enter it." (Luke 18:16-17).
The child does not argue about who is the greatest. The child does not ask for
thanks because he breathed or ate or played. The child receives freely and gives
freely with simplicity and joy. Therefore the Lord said: "Yet it shall not be so
among you; but whoever desires to become great among you shall be your servant.
And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. For even the Son
of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom
for many." (Mark 10:43-45).
Practical Humility: Freely Give
The Lord instructs His twelve disciples when He sent them to preach the Bible:
"Go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel... Heal the sick, cleanse
the lepers, raise the dead, cast out demons. Freely you have received, freely
give. Provide neither gold nor silver nor copper in your money belts." (Matthew
10:5-9).
This is the ethic of humility: Carry no gold. The humble does not trade with his
service. Heal freely. Do not ask for thanks or reward because you did your human
and evangelical duty. Enter the house and greet it. And if they reject you,
shake the dust off your feet and go on.
The humble does not impose himself, nor does he emotionally blackmail people to
thank him. As for the arrogant, Saint Jude says about him: "There will be
mockers in the last time who would walk according to their own ungodly lusts.
These are sensual persons, who cause divisions, not having the Spirit." (Jude
1:18-19).
The arrogant causes division because he always seeks the first seat, the thanks,
and the glory. The humble builds, as the Apostle says: "But you, beloved,
building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep
yourselves in the love of God." (Jude 1:20-21).
Conclusion
Humility is not to say with your tongue "I am lowly" while your heart waits for
people to tell you, "No, you are great." Humility is to do your duty in silence,
like the servant returning from the field, preparing the food for your master,
serving, then eating yourself in hiddenness, and saying in your heart with joy:
I have done what I had to do. And that is enough.
When we stop thanking people because they did their duty, we restore to duty its
sacredness. And when we ourselves stop waiting for thanks because we did our
duty, we become free.
So do not ask for thanks if you are a good father, for that is your duty.
And do not ask for thanks if you are a watchful mother, for that is your duty.
And do not ask for thanks if you are a faithful employee or an honest official,
for that is your duty.
Say with the Lord: I am an unprofitable servant, I have done what was my duty to
do.
And live with the joy of one who knows that everything he received freely, he
gives freely.
**The author, Elias Bejjani, is a Lebanese expatriate activist
Author’s Email:
Phoenicia@hotmail.com
Report: Lebanon arrests IS commander who was tasked with
assassinating pope
Naharnet/September 24/2026
The army intelligence directorate has arrested one of the most senior leaders of
the Islamic State group in north Lebanon after he was tasked with carrying out a
terrorist operation targeted against Pope Leo’s visit to Lebanon in late 2025,
MTV has reported.
The report said the Syrian detainee is known as Al-Daamish and previously held
the position of Aleppo’s deputy chief within the extremist organization. He was
later arrested by the former regime's security apparatus, where he remained in
prison for three years. Following the collapse of the Syrian regime, he managed
to escape and enter Lebanon illegally.Sources told MTV that as soon as the
extremist settled in Lebanon, he re-established contact with his commanders,
receiving direct orders from an Islamic State leader. Accordingly, he was
assigned the mission of preparing for the assassination of the head of the
Catholic Church, Pope Leo XIV, during his visit to Lebanon in 2025. According to
the investigations of the army intelligence directorate, Al-Daamish conducted
surveillance operations on the ground, monitoring the areas the pope was
scheduled to pass through in an attempt to find a security gap. However, he
failed to execute the mission due to the dense security deployment and the
strict measures accompanying the visit of the head of the Catholic Church.“He
was placed under surveillance, arrested, and his mobile phone was extracted
before he was handed over to the Military Court,” MTV added.
EU adopts €505 million package to support Lebanon's
stability, recovery and reforms
Naharnet/September 24/2026
The European Commission announced €505 million in financial support for Lebanon
for 2026 and 2027, the second half of the €1 billion support package announced
by President Ursula von der Leyen during her visit to Beirut in May 2024.
The new funding will cover three main areas and will support Lebanon in
advancing key reforms; strengthening its economic recovery, enhancing security
and border management; and maintaining essential services for the most
vulnerable. It will also support Lebanon in addressing the consequences of
instability, conflict and displacement in the region.The Delegation of the
European Union to Lebanon said the €505 million tranche will focus on basic
services and support for vulnerable people: maintaining access to education,
health, social protection and water. This includes cash assistance for
vulnerable families and people with disabilities, and access to primary
healthcare. EU will also support durable solutions for refugees from Syria,
including safe, voluntary and dignified returns, while helping Lebanese
authorities progressively take over and sustain essential services.
The €505 million package will also support Lebanon's reform agenda, including
the justice sector, oversight and regulatory bodies and Parliament, as well as
human rights and the security sector, border management, private sector
resilience and economic recovery in conflict-affected areas. The package will
also contribute to supporting organizations working on the rights of women,
young people, minorities and persons with disabilities, as well as initiatives
promoting democratic participation, transparency and the fight against
corruption. Support will also help strengthen social cohesion and protect
Lebanon's cultural heritage. Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica
announced the funding in New York, in the margins of the 81st United Nations
General Assembly. In May 2024, President of the Commission Ursula von der Leyen
announced a €1 billion EU financial support package for Lebanon for 2024–2027 to
contribute to the country's socio-economic stability, strengthen basic services,
support reforms and economic recovery, and enhance security and border
management. The first €500 million tranche, covering 2024 and 2025, was adopted
in August 2024. This year's escalation has resulted in over 1 million internally
displaced persons since March. For the displaced, humanitarian needs have been
particularly high. The EU has been providing €100 million in humanitarian aid in
Lebanon in 2026, delivering life-saving assistance including emergency
healthcare, shelter, basic needs, protection and education.
Beyond humanitarian aid, to address the current immediate needs, following the
escalation, the Commission has mobilized additional assistance under the €1
billion financial support package to support the government-led emergency
response, including cash assistance measures and support to healthcare and
education. Since 2011, the EU has provided more than €3.5 billion in assistance
to Lebanon, including support for vulnerable Lebanese and refugees from Syria.
EU support is implemented in cooperation with Lebanese authorities, U.N.
agencies, international organizations and civil society partners. "For as long
as Lebanon’s needs require it, the European Union will keep supporting the
country. That is why we are sending an additional €505 million to meet the
immediate needs of the Lebanese people and the country’s longer-term recovery.
In parallel, a new EU mission in Lebanon is in the works to advise and train the
country's armed forces to provide security across its territory. A strong and
stable Lebanon is fundamental for long-term peace in the Middle East," Kaja
Kallas, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security
Policy/Vice-President of the European Commission said. Dubravka Šuica,
Commissioner for the Mediterranean said that the European Union stands firmly
with Lebanon and its people. "With the adoption of the second €505 million
tranche of our €1 billion package, we are supporting Lebanon’s recovery and
reforms, strengthening its institutions and security, and helping protect the
most vulnerable. A strong and sovereign Lebanon, with effective state
institutions and the state exercising full control over its territory, is
essential for lasting stability and prosperity. As Mediterranean partners, our
futures are closely connected, and the EU will continue to support Lebanon on
this path."
South Lebanon: Latest developments
Naharnet/September 24/2026
Israeli forces carried out on Thursday a massive detonation around the city of
Bint Jbeil.
Artillery shelled overnight into Thursday Beit Yahoun, Shaqra, Kounine, Hadatha
and al-Mansouri, while strikes targeted Mayfadoun, al-Mansouri, Qantara, Wadi
al-Hujair and Wadi Slouqi. A detonation was also carried out for the second
night in a row in al-Khiam.
Salam comments after handshake snub by Trump
Naharnet/September 24/2026
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam has commented to reporters in response to the
controversy sparked on social media after U.S. President Donald Trump appeared
to have avoided shaking his hand during a meeting with foreign leaders in New
York.
“He shook hands with four people out of 15 present in the room,” Salam told al-Jadeed
television. Trump later shook hands with the rest of those present as he was
leaving the meeting, the premier noted. “Many are trying to fish in troubled
waters. They muddy the water first and then try to fish in it, but so far, they
haven't caught a single fish," Salam told MTV. The viral video highlights brief
moments where Trump appears to bypass Salam -- who was standing right in front
of him -- to begin his salutations in the other direction. “What great people,”
Trump says, as the leaders present in the room stand up to greet him. The U.S.
leader then proceeds to shake hands with Iraqi PM Ali al-Zaidi, Turkish leader
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Jordanian King Abdullah II, Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin
Hamad, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa and Egyptian PM Moustafa Madbouly. Trump
then greets the foreign ministers of Kuwait and Saudi Arabia from a distance,
without shaking their hands, as he sits in his chair.
Salam turns 'new page' with Syria as he meets Sharaa in New
York
Naharnet/September 24/2026
Prime Minister Nawaf Salam met Thursday with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey
Lavrov, Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa, and Minister of State for
International Cooperation in the UAE Reem Al Hashimon. The meetings took place
on the sidelines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York and focused on ending
the Israeli attacks and occupation and preparing for the post-UNIFIL phase.On
Wednesday Salam participated in a U.S. multilateral summit alongside the GCC
countries, Egypt, Jordan, Syria, and Turkey. He also chaired a high-level
meeting held at the joint invitation of Lebanon, the European Union, and the
UNDP and met with Prime Minister of Spain Pedro Sánchez, Vice President of the
Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council Abdullah Al-Alimi, EU Commissioner for
the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica, Romanian President Nicușor Dan, Crown Prince
of the State of Kuwait Sheikh Sabah Khaled Al-Hamad Al-Sabah, and Egyptian Prime
Minister Moustafa Madbouly. Salam said in a post on the X platform that his
meetings focused on intensifying efforts to de-escalate tensions and spare
Lebanon and the region further confrontations," while strengthening Lebanon's
Arab, regional, and international relations based on respect for sovereignty,
non-interference, and mutual interests." He stressed the necessity of a full
Israeli withdrawal from Lebanese territory and an end to its aggressions,
contributing to stabilizing the situation and enabling residents to return to
their towns and villages, and called for mobilizing support for the recovery and
reconstruction process. The meetings also discussed expanding economic,
investment, and regional connectivity cooperation, particularly in the fields of
energy, electricity, transport, and infrastructure, as well as leveraging
international expertise to modernize administration and digitize government
services. During his meetings, Salam underscored Lebanon’s commitment to
reforms, strengthening state institutions, and extending state authority over
all its territories, ensuring that weapons and decisions of war and peace remain
solely in the hands of the state. Salam stated that Lebanon has been working to
turn a new page with Syria and strengthen ties based on trust, mutual respect
for sovereignty, and shared interests.During his discussions with Sharaa, the
two leaders reviewed bilateral agreements and explored ways to boost regional
connectivity, with a focus on electricity, railways, and energy infrastructure.
Fadlallah says Lebanon can't be separated from region, Iran
not replacing Lebanese state
Naharnet/September 24/2026
MP Hassan Fadlallah, a member of Hezbollah’s Loyalty to the Resistance bloc,
stated Thursday that "the strength, steadfastness and sacrifices of the
Resistance -- combined with the resilience of its people and the powerful
regional equation shaped by the Islamic Republic of Iran -- are what will
ultimately compel the Israeli enemy to withdraw from our land, enable our people
to return, and facilitate the reconstruction of destroyed villages and
towns.""No matter how hard some may try to separate Lebanon from the region's
situation, it is impossible to do so, as the issues are deeply interconnected,"
Fadlallah emphasized.
"This does not mean Iran is replacing the Lebanese state; the Islamic Republic
of Iran has urged Lebanese authorities to negotiate on their own behalf while
benefiting from the umbrella of the (U.S.-Iran) Memorandum of Understanding.
This pathway remains open -- despite the various complications that have arisen
-- and Lebanon must capitalize on it,” Fadlallah added. “We place great hope in
this process, and we consistently hear from the Islamic Republic of Iran that
Lebanon will remain the top priority in any Iranian-American agreement," the
legislator reassured.
Jumblat doubtful US can shield Lebanon from further
escalation
Naharnet/September 24/2026
In an interview with L'Orient-Le Jour, former Progressive Socialist Party leader
Walid Jumblat said he would support the framework agreement if it guarantees the
total liberation of Lebanese territory. "I criticized the framework deal for
omitting the 1949 Armistice Agreement, which is clearly cited in the Taif Accord
and U.N. Resolution 1701," he noted. "However, if it leads to the full
liberation of Lebanese territory, I have no problem with it."He added that he
was "the first to support the negotiation track from Baabda." "I am not
currently in contact with Hezbollah. However, the massive destruction wrought
upon nearly 40 southern villages should compel Hezbollah to seek dialogue with
the state in order to curb further damage and losses.""Dialogue is possible and
necessary," he told L'Orient-Le Jour, adding that he is skeptical about sparing
Lebanon from regional instability."I do not see how Lebanon can be shielded from
further escalation. While American pressure on Israel remains a possibility, I
question its feasibility. Just last week, the Americans delivered new bombs to
the Israelis, leaving the future largely in the hands of (U.S. President Donald)
Trump and (Israeli PM Benjamin) Netanyahu."
UK reaffirms support for Lebanon's security and sovereignty
during senior defense visit
Naharnet/September 24/2026
UK Defense Senior Advisor to the Middle East and North Africa (DSAME), Vice
Admiral Edward Ahlgren, concluded a two-day visit to Lebanon on September 23,
the British embassy in Lebanon said. Ahlgren met President Joseph Aoun, Defense
Minister Michel Menassa and Lebanese Army Commander General Rodolphe Haykal. He
was accompanied by British Chargée D’Affaires Victoria Dunne and Deputy Defense
Attaché Squadron Leader Craig Pearson. Ahlgren underlined the UK’s “continued
partnership with the Lebanese Armed Forces and their vital role in securing
Lebanon’s borders, supporting stability in the south, and enabling
de-escalation,” a British embassy statement said. “The visit reaffirmed UK
support for the Government of Lebanon, including their diplomatic efforts to
secure a more peaceful future for the people of Lebanon that protects its
sovereignty and territorial integrity,” it added.
Following the visit, Chargée D’Affaires Dunne said: “The UK remains committed to
Lebanon’s sovereignty and long-term security. In our meetings, we reiterated our
partnership with the Lebanese Armed Forces as Lebanon’s sole legitimate
defender, and support to the Government of Lebanon as it works to strengthen
state authority, take full responsibility for security, and reduce tensions. The
UK stands ready to support efforts that protect Lebanon and its people.” Ahlgren
for his part said: “It was a privilege to return to Lebanon and meet senior
leaders at this important moment. The UK will continue to work with the Lebanese
Armed Forces in their central role to maintain security and stability across
Lebanon.’’Since 2009, the UK has contributed over £190m to Lebanon’s security
sector, including more than £69m for the Internal Security Forces and over £120m
for the Lebanese Armed Forces through equipment, infrastructure and training.
“Lebanon’s stability remains vital to the region,” the embassy added.
The Hollowing Out Of Lebanon Will Have Fateful
Consequences | MEMRI
Amb. Alberto M. Fernandez/MEMRI/September 24/2026
Lebanon is an ancient place with a unique history. For over a century, it has
also been a land of migration with thousands leaving for the promised lands of
the Americas, but later also Australia and Europe. The Lebanese Diaspora is by
most accounts at least twice as large as the entire population of Lebanon.[1]
But just because migration has been a Lebanese reality for many decades does not
mean that it does not have very real and consequential effects, especially if it
accelerates.
More overseas Lebanese means to many more money for Lebanon, in the form of
remittances. In 2023 that amount was $6.7 billion, equal to about a third of
Lebanon's GDP.[2] That windfall makes Lebanon the country with the third highest
recipient of remittances percentage-wise, after Tajikistan and Tonga.
But while the hard currency is no doubt welcomed, the flight of Lebanese will
have other consequences. An analysis of Lebanese data reveals a net departure
almost 730,000 Lebanese over the past six years (January 2020 to April 2026).[3]
This is almost four times the net flight of Lebanese during the 2014-2019
timeframe. The turbocharging of Lebanese leaving is connected to the crushing
economic crisis triggered by the 2019 bank collapse followed by the effects of
two wars launched by Hezbollah, in 2023 and 2026, against Israel.[4]
Many of those leaving, as often happens in such situations, are Lebanon's
youngest and best educated, those with the means and opportunities in the West
to do so: doctors, engineers, and other skilled professionals. In Lebanon, that
also means that significant percentages of Lebanese Christians are also
departing, deepening the relative decline in the country's Christian population
which has been going on for decades. Lebanon is not so different from other Arab
countries – say Jordan – where high percentages of the local population,
especially the young, want to emigrate in search of a better future.[5]
Although young people departing, and Christians departing Lebanon is sad, why is
this important? After all, migration has been going on for a long time and there
are still – and likely to continue for the foreseeable future – billions in hard
currency pouring into the country. There are three big reasons.
First of all, removing the youngest productive part of the population, young
adults and professionals with skills, impoverishes the country even if that is
partially offset by cash. An influx of financial capital does not fully
compensate for the loss of human capital. These are the creative,
entrepreneurial, and risk-taking elements of the population. Older populations,
those that remain, are needier, sicker, and less dynamic.
Secondly, while many diaspora Lebanese continue to have strong ties with their
homeland for years and contribute to it with their wealth and passion, over time
citizens living abroad will become more like tourists. For every investor or
returnee to Lebanon there are bound to be ten or more whose emotional or
personal ties will atrophy over time. As one Caribbean citizen of Lebanese
Maronite origin once told me, "the only thing we still preserve is the recipe
for kibbe." His family had emigrated a century ago.
Thirdly, as far as Christians disappearing, their population in steep decline,
this effects Lebanon by making it less distinctive, less unusual, and more like
the rest of the region. Lebanon's Christians (and many Lebanese in general, no
matter what religion) are a remnant – often caricatured or exaggerated – of a
unique Levantine mercantile mindset that once stretched from Constantinople to
Alexandria.[6]
A Lebanon without its Christians (and Druze) becomes more like "North Gaza" or
"Southwestern Syria," overwhelmingly Muslim and more in sync with the
prejudices, passions and enthusiasms of the Arab Muslim world. It will not
happen soon, but one could envision a scenario where Syria flourishes and at
least the Sunni parts of Lebanon would agitate to become part of a more
successful, larger neighboring state.
An overwhelmingly Muslim Lebanon is, by its very nature, of less immediate
interest to the West and more of an ideological and political battlefield
between Sunni and Shia Muslims. Some in the West may care about Christians while
others may care about "diversity" in Lebanon – once that disappears so will the
funding and solidarity. And such a changed Lebanese polity could also
conceivably become even more of a target in the constant wars with Israel. This
is not to say that a Muslim-dominated Lebanon with a small Christian remnant
would automatically be terrible (I think it probably would be) but that it would
be different, with a different ethos and a developing worldview that would
become more pronounced over time.
That the hollowing out of Lebanon would be not only a tragedy but dangerous is
not hard to understand. But it is easier to understand this than to make
consistent policy decisions aimed at reversing these trends.[7]
A Lebanon in peace and security, where the rule of law is respected and where
there is economic freedom is a possibility most Lebanese long for but one which
a ruling political class – not only those beholden to Hezbollah – talks about
but rarely takes concrete efforts to actually deliver.[8] Real leadership and
bold initiatives seem to be in short supply.[9] Little actually changes. Lebanon
today seems caught in a death spiral as various parasites seek to suck out what
little of value remains in the old carcass.[10]
No wonder that anyone who can in the country is trying to engineer an escape
from what looks like an increasingly unendurable situation. The amazing thing is
the quixotic existence of those patriotic Lebanese of good will who still
persevere and try to hold on in hopes for better days that never actually seem
to arrive.
*Alberto M. Fernandez is Vice President of MEMRI.
[1] Orientalist.substack.com/p/the-lebanese-diaspora, January 24, 2024.
[2] Today.lorientlejour.com/article/1419163/lebanon-received-67-billion-in-remittances-in-2023-world-bank.html,
July 3, 2024.
[3] Beirutwire.com/nearly-730-000-lebanese-have-left-since-the-2019-collapse,
September 20, 2026.
[4] Independentarabia.com/node/644216/%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%AA%D8%B5%D8%A7%D8%AF/%D8%A3%D8%AE%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%B1-%D9%88%D8%AA%D9%82%D8%A7%D8%B1%D9%8A%D8%B1-%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%AA%D8%B5%D8%A7%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%A9/%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%AA%D8%B5%D8%A7%D8%AF-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D8%B2%D9%85%D8%A9-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D9%84%D8%A8%D9%86%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%81%D8%B1%D8%B5%D8%A9-%D8%A3%D9%85-%D9%83%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%AB%D8%A9%D8%9F,
March 10, 2026.
[5] Ardd-jo.org/blogs/illegal-emigration-jordans-hidden-crisis, September 12,
2024.
[6] Levantineheritage.com, accessed September 23, 2026.
[7] Elnashra.com/news/show/1800408/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%91%D9%84-%D9%85%D8%B9%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A3%D8%B2%D9%85%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%82%D8%AA%D8%B5%D8%A7%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%A9-%D8%AA%D8%A8%D8%AF%D8%A3-%D8%A8%D8%A5%D9%86%D9%87%D8%A7%D8%A1-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%A7%D8%B2%D8%AF,
September 17, 2026,
[8] Nidaalwatan.com/article/399010-%D9%85%D8%B4-%D9%85%D8%A7%D8%B4%D9%8A-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D8%A7%D9%84-2,
September 21, 2026.
[9] X.com/beirut_politics/status/2102728025309692297, September 23, 2026.
[10] Imlebanon.org/newspaper/addiyar-1826, September 22, 2026.
Christians of the Arab World and a Partnership of
Destiny
Fares Souaid/Asharq Al Awsat/September 24/2026
The world around us is changing through rapid qualitative shifts whose impact is
inescapable, while our Arab world is changing along with it—stumbling and
confused—after October 7, 2023, gave the green light to accelerate the major
transformations in our region.
Our children in Lebanon, the Arab world, and the wider world are asking: Is it
conceivable that our Arab region, at the end of the third decade of the
twenty-first century, is the only region in the world still living in an age of
tutelage, occupation, and civil wars?
Today, a number of issues and questions occupy the center of our attention and
that of our children. The first is our region's entry into a transitional phase
whose features we are still trying to discern in horoscopes and the cups of
bitter Arabic coffee.
Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Palestine, and the Gulf are in a transitional phase that
the Italian thinker Gramsci summed up at the beginning of the last century: “The
old has ended, and the new is something whose horizons we have yet to discern.”
The second of these issues is globalization, which has imposed its burdens on
us—in our way of life, administration, economy, finance, the environment,
medicine, and beyond—and has created a new world order. Either we enter this
cycle competently and on our own terms, or we will join it later, compelled to
do so and on its terms.The third issue is a revolution in information,
communications, artificial intelligence, and social media that has entered our
homes and become tools in our children's hands, behind our backs and those of
our states. Do we reach an understanding with our children in their own
language, or do we confiscate what is in their hands? The fourth issue is the
resurgence in our countries of a political Islam that resorts to violence and
excommunicates anyone who is not in its camp, while at the same time its two
sectarian wings fight one another or form alliances when necessary.
The fifth of these issues is that, for the first time in contemporary European
history, we are witnessing Muslim communities becoming a significant electoral
force in their societies. This has fueled a wave of Islamophobia ridden by
Western extremism and its bigoted fascist parties, while extremists in our
countries unleash a counter-wave targeting Christians, with suicide bombers
wearing explosive belts heading toward the West riding that wave. At the same
time, our countries receive invading tanks and aircraft blessed with “holy
water.” Do we return to a clash of civilizations and religions, or do we incline
toward peace and human fraternity?
Do the Christians of Lebanon and the Arab world—and the writer of this article
is one of them—have the right to withdraw from the political scene at a historic
turning point in which the features of the region are being redrawn? And do we,
who have paid the price of experiences of violence in all its forms, have the
right not to help our children escape those experiences, while we repeat before
them in our daily prayers the plea that we not be led into temptation? The
solution is for us to jointly call for a search for the future of our region and
our culture under a globalization sweeping the world, at a time when non-Arab
regional powers are rushing to carve up our skin, just as international powers
once rushed to divide the legacy of “the Sick Man” in the region. If we
contribute to building a new Arab order in which Arabism moves away from its
religious and political character and is distilled into a cultural
Arabism—whoever speaks Arabic is an Arab—we will survive. If we sever ourselves
from our surroundings on the pretext of difference, we will fail; there is no
room in the region for a second or third Israel. We do not claim to invent
solutions; rather, we hope to achieve shared goals. We, the Christians of the
Arab world, are bound to its Muslims by a shared past, present, and future. We
have fought one another, just as we have built together shared interests, a
shared culture, and a shared world. We refused, and we refuse, to be part of an
alliance of religious minorities against the Sunni majority. We refused, and we
refuse, protection—whether internal, through authoritarian regimes and
state-affiliated militias, or external, through their arriving armies and
resident arms. We have learned that everyone who claimed to protect us was in
fact protecting his own interests, and that we were his sandbags.
All the living forces and those with a stake in Lebanon must move beyond the
past and declare a genuine ceasefire among political parties and personalities,
in order to search for a path to deliverance in which the interests of Muslims,
Christians, and all those of good faith in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Palestine,
Egypt, and the Gulf converge. Is “the Pope's peace” confined to Arab-Israeli
peace? Or does it transcend politics and its complications to encompass peace in
culture, peace with the different other, peace for women in a modern society,
peace among peoples, democracy and modernity, and peace between the two shores
of the Mediterranean? We hold fast to the Lebanese experience enshrined by the
Taif Agreement and the constitution that emerged from it, whose preamble states:
“There is no legitimacy for any authority that contradicts the pact of
coexistence.” This is the path to deliverance.
The Latest English LCCC
Miscellaneous Reports And News published
on September 24-25/2026
Video Link and Arabic/English Text of
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s Address at the United Nations General Assembly
on September 24, 2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/09/157796/
Note: The English text was transcribed by AI from USA Today TV channel.
Translated to Arabic verbatim by AI
The Speech text
Thank you, Mr. President.
Before I begin, just a quick announcement. If there are any other moral cowards
who haven’t yet left this hall, please do so now. Thank you very much.
Chapter 2: The threat from Iran
Ladies and gentlemen, 14 years ago, I stood on this podium and I drew a red
line. I vowed to prevent Iran’s murderous dictatorship from developing atomic
bombs. Nuclear weapons aimed at destroying Israel. Nuclear weapons that could
threaten the entire world. That’s exactly what we did. Now, let me say something
that might surprise you. Devastating Iran’s nuclear facilities was hard. It was
very hard to do. But for me, it was one of the easiest decisions I’ve ever had
to make as prime minister because if we hadn’t done it, we’d all be dead.Now you
want to hear the ultimate irony in defending itself. Israel is also also
defending many of the countries whose delegates just left this hall. In fact, I
want you to know that many of their leaders even thank us privately for taking
out Iran’s nukes.It’s hard to imagine more mind-blowing hypocrisy, but that’s
exactly what it is.
Chapter 3: Historical context of war
Now, this isn’t the first time we are faced with a threat of annihilation. On
June 5th, 1967, Israel was surrounded by enemies who openly swore to destroy us.
We weren’t then in Judea Samaria, the heart of the historic homeland of the
Jewish people. We weren’t in Gaza. We weren’t on the Golan Heights. Oh, and Mr.
Oshara, you should know the Jews have been on the Golan Heights since the days
of Moses. You can read it in the Bible. No, at that time on the eve of the
six-day war in 1967, we weren’t in any of these places. We were in a tiny sliver
of land. We still are. That is equal to about 1/3 of 1% of the land mass of the
entire Arab world. Yet they accuse Israel, tiny Israel, of colonialism, some
colonialism. And who’s accusing us? More among them are people in Britain and in
France. For God’s sakes, they invented the term. Their colonies braced the
entire globe. Colonialism give us a break. Another lie. Yet at the time on this
tiny patch of earth, no West Bank, no Gaza, no Golan Heights, just the very
survival of this one and only Jewish state because this is what this conflict is
about. It’s not about territories. It’s about the existence of a Jewish state at
any boundaries. And yet at the time, right at that time, we were threatened with
annihilation by three Arab armies that were about to invade us. You know what
Israelis were doing at the time? They were digging mass graves in preparation
for the thousands and thousands of casualties in preparation to bury our dead.At
the time, I was an Israeli high school student in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. 5
days before the war broke out, I flew back to Israel. I found a country in total
blackout. Israel braced for impact. I flew back to see my brother Jonathan
Yonatan Yoni. He was a 21-year-old paratroop officer and like the rest of his uh
the rest of the army, his unit was already mobilized. I went to find him. I was
told the paratroops are encamped in the orchards, the orange groves around Ramla.
So I went there and I asked some soldiers, “Do you know where Yoni Netanyahu
is?” Nope. Nope. Then one guy said, Oh, you mean the young guy? Yeah, he’s in
the next grove. So, I went there and suddenly at the end of a long row of trees,
I saw my brother. He was absolutely shocked to see me. BB, he said. BB, what are
you doing here? We ran. We hugged each other. And over a cup of a cup of
makeshift military coffee, I asked him the question that was on my mind. The
question that was on everybody’s mind. So Yoni said, “What’s going to happen?”
He paused and then he said something I’ll never forget. “We’re going to win.” He
said, “We have no other choice.” I remember those words as if it was
yesterday.We’re going to win. We have no other choice.
Chapter 4: The Entebbe rescue
And when we did, nine years later, Palestinian terrorists hijacked a passenger
airplane headed for Israel. They took it to Entebbe, Uganda. Like the Nazis, the
terrorists selected the Jewish passengers, men, women, children, babies. They
threatened to kill them all if Israel did not release Palestinian terrorists.
And then on July 4th, 1960, sorry, on July 4th, 1976, the bicentennial of the
United States in one of the most dramatic rescue missions in modern times, Yoni
led his brave soldiers to the heart of Africa. Miraculously, they rescued 103
Jewish hostages and brought them all home. Every single one of them. My brother,
the commander of the storming party, was the only soldier killed in this
mission. I want to thank Uganda again for recently erecting a statue of Yoni in
the place where he fell. My friends, Yoni’s words are as true today as they were
more than half a century ago. We’re going to win. We have no other choice.
Chapter 5: October 7th and aftermath
At no time was this demonstrated more clearly than on October 7th, 2023, the
darkest day in Israel’s history. On that horrific day, thousands of
Palestinians, terrorists, stormed into Israel from Gaza. Now, I want you to know
there wasn’t a single Israeli then in Gaza, not a civilian, not a soldier, not
one. But it didn’t matter one bit. The Hamas terrorists committed the worst
slaughter of Jews since the Holocaust. They went house-to-house, shooting
Israeli civilians point blank.They did so with fish glee, with sadistic joy.
They live streamed as they murdered. And who did they murder? The very Israelis,
their neighbors, who gave them jobs, who picked up Palestinian children at the
Gaza border and drove them to Israeli hospitals for cancer treatment and then
brought them back. Can you imagine such monstrosity? This these Hamas monsters.
They slaughtered Holocaust survivors. They burned babies alive in front of their
parents. They beheaded our men. They brutally raped our women. And then they
murdered them. Altogether they slaughtered 1,200 Israelis that day. I want to
give you an idea of what this means for a country of 10 million.
Proportionately, this is equal to 40,000 innocent Americans slaughtered in less
than 24 hours. That’s 16 times 9/11. 16 9/11s that occurred not very far from
here. On that darkest of days, our enemies expected us to collapse.Well, we
didn’t collapse. Instead, we rose and fought like lions.
Chapter 6: The seven-front war
For the past three years, our heroic soldiers have fought day in and day out in
a seven-front war. Do you know any other country the size of New Jersey capable
of fighting a seven-front war? And for three years, seven fronts, Hamas, the
Houthis, Iran, militias in Iraq, militias in Syria, Palestinian terrorists in
Judea, Samaria. They all ganged up on us to wipe us off the face of the earth.
They failed because instead of collapsing, we delivered crippling blows to all
of them. With our great American friends, we crushed Iran’s army, navy, air
force, and nuclear facilities.Israel hammered Hamas. We pummeled Hezbollah. You
remember the beepers? Remember these things? Remember them? Yeah.Well, I can
tell you this. Hezbollah certainly remembers them. Guess what happened to the
bulk of the vast arsenal of 150,000 ballistic missiles and rockets, all aimed at
our civilians, they’re gone. Hezbollah’s leaders dead, their spirit broken. The
arch terrorists, the worst mass murderers on earth, not only killing Israelis,
killing Americans, killing Brits, killing citizens of hundred, dozens of
countries. Khamenei, Deif, Sinwar, Haniyeh, Nasrallah, and thousands of other
terrorists who sought to destroy us. They’re all gone, too. The remaining
terrorists are desperately trying to regroup. Every day they try to murder our
people. And in particular, they try to murder our people in our historic
homeland in Judea. By the way, that’s where the word Jew comes from. Judea.
That’s our land.
They try to murder us. Thousands of attempts per year on families, peaceful
families driving along the roads. They shoot at pregnant women. They shoot
entire families. Of course, none of this is covered in the international press
or in the social media. None of it. None of it. What they cover is a handful of
young juvenile delinquents, about 150 in number, who go throw stones, who uh
chop down olive trees occasionally. They do they fire up they they lit some
fires. I can’t stand that. I won’t stand for vigilantism. We’re a country of
law.
So, we put our Shin Bet on them. But that’s what they call settler violence. And
the number of casualties a year, maybe two or three in the total time that this
is being discussed, maybe two or three dead compared to the thousands of
terrorist attacks against the peaceful settlers, honorable people, law-abiding
people. What a distortion. It’s an obsession. I hear this discussion here. I
mean, leaders of countries seriously talk about that and they say it with such
importance. We can’t stand settler violence. You don’t know what you’re talking
about. And listen, two days ago, two days ago, two days ago, I say this to my
colleague Emmanuel Macron. Two days, three days ago, a French citizen, Nataniel
Shukrun, a father of six, was gunned down when he visited a spring with his
16-year-old son, and a Hamas terrorist in Judea, Samaria, comes and fires point
blank at him in the last words he uttered, “Flee! Flee, son. Save yourself.”
That was three days ago. Two days ago in Judea Samaria, a reserve officer, a
reserve soldier, Naria Lighter was mowed down by a drive down terrorist,
Palestinian terrorist. He’s fighting for his life now in a Jerusalem hospital. I
visited the family right before I boarded the plane to come here. Nara, a father
of four, is the son of Yael Lighter, our brilliant ambassador to the United
States. Three years ago, Yel’s oldest son, Mo Moshe, a father of six, was killed
while clearing a booby trapped building in Gaza. Yael, my brother, your pain is
immeasurable. The entire people of Israel and many outside of Israel are praying
for Narya’s life. But despite the pain, despite the agony, we do not give in. In
a recent post before he was attacked, Nara wrote this. Listen to this. We have
no other country. It’s a privilege to defend it. To Nara and to all the heroes
of Israel, I pledge a sacred vow. Your sacrifice will not be in vain. We will
continue to defend our state. We will continue to win because we have no other
choice.
Chapter 7: Alliances and national unity
In this battle against the barbarians, we’ve had no greater partner than
President Trump. I thank him.I thank him for his bold leadership. He boldly
confronted an enormous danger to America, Israel, and the world.Decades ago, he
understood that if left unchallenged, the fanatic Ayatollahs who chant death to
America, death to Israel, would eventually carry out their mad fantasies. So,
Israel and America acted together not only to protect ourselves, but to save
civilization. Brave American pilots alongside brave Israeli pilots flew joint
missions over the skies of Iran. America and Israel also work together to bring
back our remaining hostages. We brought back every last one of them. You ask why
are we winning? Well, Yoni said it simply, we have no other choice. And
throughout this long war, our goal never wavered to win. To win with unwavering
resolve, to win with unrelenting courage. Because this is Israel, one nation
fighting for one future, left and right, young and old, religious and secular.
Do we have our differences? Of course we do. Who doesn’t? But in critical
moments, those moments that shape our destiny, we stand together because what
unites us is so much stronger. our history, our values, our courage, the
courage, the courage of our brave people who withstood 1,000 massive ballistic
missiles that Iran rained down on our cities, on our civilians. Ladies and
gentlemen, you’re sitting here in the general assembly hall of the UN. You know
what? one one ton one just one one ton ballistic missile would do if it hit this
place it would obliterate the entire compound in fact two such missiles would
obliterate the UN so you can imagine think about 1,000 gigantic missiles falling
from the skies on your cities on your homes I salute the courage of the people
of Israel. I salute the courage of our brave soldiers, Jews, Christians, Jews,
Muslim, the most moral army in the world, the IDF. For three years, our brave
soldiers have been valiantly fighting a seven-front war.
Chapter 8: The eighth front: Truth
But there’s an eighth front to this war.It’s the war for truth. It is waged in
the world’s media and most perniciously in social media. Several foreign
countries have spent untold billions to spread lies about my country. The first
to do so was Qatar. Decades ago, it started massively funding American
universities and toxic media outlets like Al Jazeera. They did the same in
Europe, by the way. And their goal was clear. Brainwash young minds to hate
Israel, hate America, hate the West. This is the same Qatar that hosts the Hamas
butchers of October 7th. Now, the latest country to become a super spreader of
anti-Semitic lies is Turkey. Erdogan Erdogan is a tyrant. He also hosts the
Hamas terror chiefs. He has murdered thousands of Kurdish civilians. He denies
the Armenian genocide. He jails journalists and opposition leaders. In fact, I
think he holds the world’s record on this. And that’s a tough call, but I think
he’s number one. He illegally occupies northern Cyprus, an EU member, and he
regularly transgresses against Greece, a NATO member. Now, he wants to take over
Syria. Well, that’s not surprising because he calls for Israel’s destruction
almost every single day. He says he’s going to be the ruler of Jerusalem. No,
sir, you won’t. This is our country, our city, our eternal capital. Tyrants the
world over seek to threaten us. They seek to undermine our resolve with their
campaign of lies.But ultimately, as on the military battlefield, the Jewish
people will prevail.
Chapter 9: Defending against genocide
It will take time. It will take time to vanquish the lies. It will take time for
the world to acknowledge what is so plain to see. That Hamas used Palestinian
civilians as human shields. That it used hospitals, schools, mosques as
terrorist command posts. That is it much of the food we let into Gaza. And while
Hamas did everything possible to keep Palestinian civilians in harm’s way, often
at gunpoint, Israel did everything possible to get them out of harm’s way. We
sent millions of text messages warning civilians to leave combat areas. We made
millions of phone calls. We dropped millions of leaflets. I want to ask you some
questions. What genocidal regime gives a million polio vaccinations to the
enemy’s population? What genocidal regime enables the distribution of 2 million
tons of food into Gaza? That’s a ton for every person. Accusing Israel of
genocide is the greatest lie of the century. If you want to know how big a lie,
if you want to know how absurd it is, listen to Colonel John Spencer. He’s head
of urban warfare studies at West Point. He’s considered one of the world’s or
perhaps the world’s foremost expert on urban warfare. I think he’s with us
today.
Colonel Spencer. Colonel Spencer has studied every urban war from antiquity to
modern times, from ancient Greece to Mosul to Gaza. And here’s what Colonel
Spencer says. Israel has done more to prevent civilian casualties in war than
any other military in history. In history, we’ve taken innumerable steps to
protect the civilian population. Is this genocide? Of course not. It’s the
opposite of genocide. So to all those spreading these lies about my country and
about our brave soldiers, whether they sit in this hall or in the office of the
anti-Semitic mayor of New York, I say this, shame on you. Shame on you for
distorting the facts. Shame on you for inverting victim and aggressor. Shame on
you for spitting in the face of truth. Mr. Mamdani, since you were elected mayor
of this city, many Jews no longer feel safe in New York. They talk to me. They
tell me, “This isn’t the city we remember. It changed so quickly.” Now, it’s no
wonder. You praise criminals convicted of supporting Hamas. You count as friends
people like Hassan who said, “America deserved 9/11.” America deserved 9/11.
Some friends you have. You invite into your home a Palestinian journalist who
filmed Hamas terrorists beating and torturing Israeli hostages and later
admitted that he refused to publish the videos in order to protect, you guessed
it, the terrorists. Your wife liked a post praising the October 7th massacre.
She liked another post saying Tel Aviv shouldn’t exist. You refused to condemn
any of that. You falsely repeatedly accuse Israel of genocide. Mr. Mamdani, you
tried to stop me from coming here. You tried You try to silence me. Well, you
can’t silence me. You can’t silence the truth. And here is the simple truth.
Chapter 10: Standing against antisemitism
Here’s a simple truth. Israel didn’t commit genocide. Israel prevented genocide.
And that’s exactly that’s exactly what Mr. Mamdani’s Hamas buddies would have
done to us had we not stopped them. They would have killed every last one of us.
The lies you and other anti-Semites spread about the Jews and the Jewish state
have real consequences. In New York, Jews are threatened on the way to
synagogue. Jews have been stabbed in the streets. Jews are demonized, targeted.
They’re targeted simply for being Jews. Jews have been murdered in Sydney,
Manchester, Montreal, Boulder, Colorado. They’ve been attacked in Los Angeles,
London, Paris, Berlin, Washington DC. The anti-Semites of the world want to
terrify our people. I have news for them. The days when Jews were defenseless
victims marched to the slaughter, those days are over. Today we have a state.
Today we have an army. Today I have a people ready and willing to defend
ourselves. So today, today I have one message for Jews around the world. Raise
your head high. Be proud. Be confident. Don’t be intimidated. Stand up. And for
everyone else, everyone else who wants to defend truth and justice, join us in
standing up to the barbarians who threaten our common civilization. But I have
to be candid with you, not everyone is standing up. We saw that because unlike
Israel, there are some and most recently especially in Western Europe who have
chosen not to stand up. The leaders of these countries have chosen to succumb to
the anti-Semitic mobs. They’ve chosen weakness. They’ve chosen appeasement. We
cannot evade the sad truth before us. Many in the free world are afraid to
defend freedom. And I asked them, what will this future, what will this
behavior, what will the world hold for you? The brotherhood of democracies or
the Muslim Brotherhood?How long will it take for you to see that these fanatic
jihadists are choking your waterways, your energy supply, your economic
lifeline? I can assure you, ladies and gentlemen, we in Israel, we do not wait
for others to wake up from their moral slumber. We forge ahead. We seize the
future. We pioneer incredible developments in health, agriculture, artificial
intelligence, superior intelligence, and we bring these amazing innovations to
all of humanity.
Chapter 11: Message to the Iranian people
So, Israel has never been stronger. We are not afraid. But I’ll tell you who is
afraid. The tyrants of Tehran. That’s who. And you know what? They’re most
afraid of their own people, the brave Iranian people who have sacrificed so much
for so long. The Iranian regime is especially afraid when their people have
this. when their people have this. This is a communications device Starlink that
allows people to access truth, to exercise choice, to exercise freedom of
thought and freedom of speech. That’s why the Iranian regime spills rather
spends millions and billions of dollars censoring the internet. Mr. President,
I’m going to leave this device with you so you can give it to the Iranian
delegation so when they inevitably defect, they too will be able to freely tell
their story on social media. To the protesters outside, to the hypocritical
delegates who left us all, I ask, “Where were you when the Iranian tyrants
butchered and maimed tens of thousands of unarmed Iranian civilians? When they
butchered and maimed thousands of their own people? Where were you? Did you
organize mass rallies, hunger strikes? Did you protest outside the Iranian
mission to the UN? Did you speak out for that matter for Christians persecuted
in Iran and throughout the Middle East? No. No, you didn’t do that because
you’re phony human rights protesters. on Christians. You know that their numbers
are plummeting everywhere in the Middle East where they’re being persecuted
andounded except one place, my country, Israel, where the Christian community is
growing, thriving, succeeding. In fact, you didn’t protest when we left
Bethlehem. It was controlled by us. It was 80 to 90% Christian and we gave it to
the Palestinian Authority. And today it’s 80 to 90% Muslim. Everyone, the
Christians were shoved out. Did you protest that? Did you speak about that?
Nothing. Nada.
And you said nothing about Iran just now. You said nothing about Iran. But I
want to give you the good news. Despite your silence, despite your hypocrisy,
it’s only a matter of time that in Iran, something incredible will happen. The
power of the people will overcome the people in power. I want you to listen to
my words carefully. One day, and it may not be far away, the Iranian people will
be free. Their murderous regime will be toppled by its lies, by its corruption,
by its cruelty. This evil regime will fall and we will all celebrate that day.
Chapter 12: Eternity of the Jewish state
Ladies and gentlemen, the story of my people, the Jewish people, goes back over
3,000 years. We speak the same language. We speak the same language today that
we spoke then. We live in the same land in which our ancestors lived then.David,
Solomon, Isaiah, Jeremiah. That’s our land, the land of Israel.Our prophets, our
purpose, and our people are unique in history. Our values have inspired humanity
for millennia. the belief in one God, the sanctity of life, the rule of law, our
eternal quest for peace, our eternal quest for justice.It is these sacred values
that propelled us throughout the ages. It is these values that helped us beat
the odds of history. The great American writer Mark Twain said it best 125 years
ago. He said it well before the rebirth of the modern Jewish state.Well before
the great victories of Israel’s soldiers. Here’s what he said. The Jew has made
a marvelous fight in this world in all the ages. And he has done it with his
hands tied behind his back. The Egyptian, the Babylonian, and the Persian rose,
filled the planet with sound and splendor, then faded to dream stuff and passed
away. Other peoples have sprung up and held their torch high for a time, but it
burned out, and they sit in twilight. The Jew saw them all, beat them all, and
is now what he always was, exhibiting no decadence, no infirmities of age, no
weakening of his spirits, no slowing of his energies.
Ladies and gentlemen, over the centuries, the tyrannies that tried to destroy us
failed time and again, and God willing, they’ll continue to fail. If we muster
our courage, if we steal our resolve, we will continue to win. As the Bible
says, the eternity of Israel will not falter. And the reason is simple. We have
no other choice. Thank you all. Israel. Thank you.
Iran warns it may expand war to Indian Ocean if US
attacks again
Agence France Presse/24 September ,2026
An adviser to Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned on Thursday that
Tehran may expand the Middle East war to the Indian Ocean if the U.S. or Israel
attacks again.
"Since the conflict has spread from the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz to the
Red Sea, it is possible that, in response to more war, the front will expand
even further, reaching the Indian Ocean and perhaps beyond," said Yahya Rahim
Safavi in a video released by Iran's Fars news agency.
Highest volume of crude oil since July transited Hormuz
this week: US defense official
Al Arabiya English/24 September ,2026
Around 60 vessels went through the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, marking the
highest volume of crude oil in one day since the summer, a US defense official
told Al Arabiya English. The total amount of crude oil that transited the
Strait, which Iran effectively shut down, was the highest since early July, the
official said.An estimated 40 of those vessels coordinated with the US military
for protection, the US defense official said. US and Iranian officials held rare
talks earlier this week on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York.
It is unclear whether a breakthrough is imminent to reopen the Strait in return
for the United States lifting its naval blockade on Iranian imports and exports.
Xi and Trump call for peace in lavish White House state
visit
AFP/24 September ,2026
Xi Jinping called Thursday for the United States and China to manage their
superpower rivalry and keep AI under human control as President Donald Trump
gave his Chinese counterpart a lavish welcome at the White House. Trump shook
hands with Xi at the start of a day full of pomp and pageantry, but their talks
will focus on tense issues – particularly how to handle the rising challenges
posed by artificial intelligence. The 80-year-old US president hailed what he
called his “truly great friendship” with the Chinese leader, with whom he has
met three times since returning to power last year.“Working together, President
Xi and I have made tremendous strides on the issues facing our two countries,”
Trump said. “During this visit, we will also discuss pressing issues concerning
security, technology, and super intelligence – SI.”But while billionaire Trump
has repeatedly dismissed fears that AI could pose a threat to humanity, Xi took
a more measured tone on the issue. “We have both the capability and
responsibility to develop and manage AI for good and ensure that the development
of AI is always under human control,” he said at the White House. Xi added that
the two countries had a “historic responsibility of advancing human development
and progress” and should “strengthen communication.”The Chinese leader also
announced that a pair of pandas – a traditional symbol of Beijing’s diplomacy –
would be heading to a US zoo in a few days.
‘Strong, vibrant and fit’
Few breakthroughs are expected during Xi’s state visit. Instead the trip is
likely to be more about pomp and pageantry as the world’s two biggest economies
seek to manage their rivalry. Trump kicked off things by personally greeting Xi
at the airport on Wednesday – the first time in more than six decades that a US
president welcomed a foreign head of state in person at Joint Base Andrews near
Washington. A formal welcome and a handshake on the White House South Lawn
launched Thursday’s events, which include a military flyover, talks in the Oval
Office, and a state dinner. Trump had earlier said that the 73-year-old Xi
looked “strong, vibrant, and fit,” following recent rumors about the Chinese
leader’s health. But the warm welcome masks deep tensions over thorny topics
including the trade war between the world’s top two economies, and Beijing’s
diplomatic and economic support for Iran. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on
Wednesday announced a two-month extension of a trade truce that was due to
expire in November.Both sides are keen to avoid plunging back into the trade war
sparked by the US president’s sweeping global tariffs last year.
Iran tensions
Trump confirmed on Wednesday that he would discuss his stalled Iran war with Xi,
despite earlier playing down reports that Beijing was giving Tehran
intelligence. “I’ll be talking about that and many other subjects – but it’s all
coming along well,” Trump said.
Taiwan will also be on the cards, with Trump’s words likely to be watched for
any sign of diminishing US support for the self-governing island that Beijing
claims as its territory.
Xi’s visit will wrap up on Friday morning when the two presidential couples have
tea at the
US to hand over center at Baghdad airport: Iraq FM
AFP/24 September ,2026
The United States will transfer to Iraq a diplomatic and logistics hub at
Baghdad airport that was repeatedly targeted by Iran-backed groups during the
Middle East war, the foreign ministry said Thursday. It said an agreement was
signed with the US charge d’affaires Steven Fagin “to hand over the diplomatic
support center affiliated with the US embassy at Baghdad International Airport
to the Iraqi government.”The move, it added, was part of efforts to end the
US-led coalition’s military presence in Iraq, with the remaining troops set to
complete their exit by September 30. For years, Iran-backed armed groups that
have long called for the withdrawal of foreign troops have targeted US
facilities and coalition forces in Iraq. During the Middle East war, those
groups targeted US sites more than 600 times, including the Baghdad airport
facility. An Iraqi security official and a diplomatic source told AFP earlier
this month that US troops have already evacuated the site. Baghdad and
Washington agreed in 2024 to end the coalition’s mission against ISIS in Iraq.
Coalition forces are now only present at Erbil airport after having withdrawn
from other bases. The coalition’s presence, especially after the defeat of ISIS,
has been a persistent point of friction between Iraqi authorities and
Tehran-backed factions in the country. Since taking office this year, Prime
Minister Ali al-Zaidi has pledged to reinforce the state’s monopoly on arms and
ensure that armed factions hand over their arms to the state. Authorities say
that ending the coalition’s mission removes a key justification used by those
groups to keep their weapons.
US Senate rejects resolution to curb Trump’s Iran war powers
Reuters/24 September ,2026
The US Senate on Thursday narrowly rejected a resolution demanding President
Donald Trump end the war in Iran or seek congressional authorization, as
Democrats sought to put Republicans on the defensive over the unpopular conflict
before November’s midterm elections.
With polls showing Trump’s Republicans struggling to keep their slim
congressional majorities on November 3, more of them have been edging away from
the war, which has pushed up food and fuel prices.However, Thursday’s Senate
vote was 50-49 against the resolution, largely along party lines. Four
Republicans — Senators Susan Collins of Maine, Rand Paul of Kentucky, Thom
Tillis of North Carolina and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska — voted in favor. Tillis,
who is leaving the Senate in January, was the only Republican to vote in favor
of a war powers resolution for the first time. Republicans in competitive
reelection races, including Jon Husted of Ohio, Dan Sullivan of Alaska, Roger
Marshall of Kansas, Pete Ricketts of Nebraska and Darline Graham of South
Carolina stuck with Trump. One Democrat, John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, voted
against the resolution, which passed the House of Representatives in July.
The vote was largely symbolic. The Trump administration has not changed policy
in response to previous war powers votes. Thursday’s vote took place two days
after Trump threatened that he could “annihilate the Islamic Republic” in a UN
speech. Democrats see the votes as a way to put Republicans on the record on a
conflict that has become increasingly unpopular with voters. Only 34 percent of
respondents in a Reuters/Ipsos poll this week said they approved of the strikes
on Iran.The Senate has considered Iran war powers resolutions14 times — voting
in favor only twice — since US and Israeli forces began bombing Iran on February
28. The House has held six votes, with three in favor of ending the conflict.
Only one has passed both the House and Senate, and the White House ignored the
result. The US Constitution says that only Congress, not the president, can
declare war, and Democrats have argued that Trump may have pulled the country
into a long conflict by failing to spell out a clear strategy. Republicans say
Trump’s actions are within his rights as commander-in-chief.
Shifts in tight races
A small number of Republicans have, however, broken ranks on the war. In the
House, seven Republicans voted with Democrats to pass a war powers resolution
last week. Three of the seven — Zach Nunn and Mariannette Miller-Meeks of Iowa
and Nancy Mace of South Carolina — voted against party leaders on the issue for
the first time. Nunn and Miller-Meeks face competitive reelection races in
November, when all 435 House seats and 35 of 100 Senate seats are up for grabs.
Mace is not seeking reelection after a failed campaign for South Carolina’s
governor. And two Republican Senate candidates called on Monday for a swift end
to the war, the latest sign that vulnerable candidates are trying to put some
distance between themselves and Trump. Both Mike Rogers in Michigan and Ashley
Hinson in Iowa had previously backed Trump’s authority to strike Tehran.
Representative Hakeem Jeffries of New York, the House’s Democratic leader,
suggested Republicans were calling for an end to the war only because they face
tough races. “It’s interesting to me that several of them who are in tight races
and on the verge of losing, including in places like Iowa or Michigan or
Wisconsin, are all now starting to say the war needs to end,” Jeffries told a
news conference on Wednesday.
Iran Threatens to Expand War to Indian Ocean if US
Attacks Again
Asharq Al Awsat/September 24/2026
dviser to Iran's supreme leader Mojtaba Khamenei warned on Thursday that Tehran
may expand the Middle East war to the Indian Ocean if the US attacks again.
"Since the conflict has spread from the Gulf and Strait of Hormuz to the Red
Sea, it is possible that, in response to more war, the front will expand even
further, reaching the Indian Ocean and perhaps beyond," said Yahya Rahim Safavi
in a video released by Iran's Fars news agency. Yemen's Houthis, fighting
government forces, recently took control of the Red Sea coastline, tightening
their grip on the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait, which links Asia to Europe via
the Suez Canal. Iran has long provided military support to the Houthis but
denies any involvement in the Yemen conflict. Tehran has also locked down the
Strait of Hormuz off the Iranian coast, in retaliation for US-Israeli strikes
that triggered the Middle East war at the end of February.
Iran and the United States are now vying for control of Hormuz, through which
much of the world's oil and gas passed before the war. Iranian officials had
already threatened to expand the geographic scope of the conflict if US strikes
resume. But Thursday's warning is the first time an adviser to Iran's supreme
leader explicitly mentioned the Indian Ocean, home to a strategic US-British
military base at Diego Garcia, nearly 4,000 kilometers from Iran. Officials from
both countries held talks in New York this week on the sidelines of the UN
General Assembly in a further attempt to end the conflict. Iran has put forward
its conditions for ending the war, including the lifting of sanctions targeting
its economy and the unconditional release of its frozen assets abroad. In an
exclusive interview with AFP on Tuesday, a spokesman for Iran's Revolutionary
Guards, Hossein Mohebi, also mentioned ending the war in Yemen.
UAE bars Iranian airline flights as US sanctions bite
Al Arabiya English/24 September ,2026
The United Arab Emirates said on Thursday it would no longer accept flights by
Iranian airlines as it joins US sanctions aimed at raising economic pressure
during the Middle East war. Dubai, the UAE’s commercial hub, is a major
destination for Iran’s carriers, with multiple daily flights, a large Iranian
community and close business links. Several other countries have suspended
Iranian flights, although routes to Turkey and China were among those that
remained open. “The General Civil Aviation Authority announced the suspension of
all flights operated by Iranian airlines to and from the UAE,” said a statement
carried by the official WAM news agency. The suspension, from Thursday, was
“based on the US sanctions imposed on Iranian airlines preventing them from
using airports around the world,” the statement said. The UAE was targeted by
thousands of Iranian missiles and drones in the war’s early stages. Last month,
the Gulf country suspended trade and financial exchanges with Iran. On
Wednesday, the UAE central bank blocked transactions to and from Iran by
branches of Iran’s Bank Melli, accusing it of violating laws on money
laundering, terrorism and arms proliferation. Iranian media had reported the
UAE’s suspension earlier on Thursday. An Iran Airtour flight from Tehran to
Dubai was cancelled shortly before its scheduled departure in the morning, after
tickets had been issued, one passenger told AFP. Dubai airport, which offers
connections to Europe, Asia and Africa, often serves as a transit point for
Iranian travelers, and is a common destination for business trips. In early
September, the US imposed sanctions on Iran’s aviation sector and vowed to come
down hard on companies that work with it. Those companies had until Wednesday to
comply – by stopping refueling Iranian plans, for example – or face the
possibility of being cut off from the dollar-based financial system. Starting on
Wednesday, the main Iranian airlines were forced to cancel their international
flights as neighboring countries adopted restrictive measures. Turkmenistan also
joined the list on Thursday, turning back a flight from Tehran to Dushanbe
“since Turkmenistan did not authorize Iranian airlines,” Iran’s Civil Aviation
Organization spokesman Majid Akhavan told the ISNA news agency. Despite the
sanctions, several small Iranian carriers continue to fly abroad, notably to
China, which refuses to bow to US pressure, as well as to Armenia. Iran has
nearly 30 airlines, most operating domestic regional routes. Iran Air, the
national carrier, and Mahan, a private company, are the largest for
international travel. With AFP
Israel’s Netanyahu denounces enemies, allies in fiery UN speech
Al Arabiya English/24 September ,2026
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, facing a difficult reelection
campaign at home, delivered a fiery UN speech Thursday assailing enemies and
allies alike – and sparking uproar in the chamber. Locked in a tight race to
stay in power in October 27 elections, Netanyahu used the global platform at the
UN General Assembly to attack everyone from the leaders of Iran to New York’s
first Muslim mayor and partners Britain, France and Turkey. Dozens of envoys
from across the world walked out, some jeering and booing, while Netanyahu’s own
team stood and applauded, and the speaker of the session shouted for order.“If
there are any other moral cowards who haven’t left this hall, please do so now,”
Netanyahu told those turning their back on him. He lashed out at New York’s
popular, leftist Mayor Zohran Mamdani as “antisemitic” and claimed that “since
you were elected mayor of this city, many Jews no longer feel safe.”Mamdani had
threatened to execute an ICC arrest warrant against Netanyahu, before conceding
he did not have the authority. The Hague-based International Criminal Court
(ICC) said in 2024 it had reasonable grounds to believe Netanyahu was
responsible for war crimes in the Gaza campaign, which responded to Hamas’
deadly October 7, 2023 attacks. Netanyahu denies the ICC claims. Adding to
tensions, dozens of protesters, some brandishing “stop the genocide” banners,
gathered near the UN. Several demonstrators were detained, including Hollywood
star actor Susan Sarandon. One of Netanyahu’s fiercest critics, Palestinian
President Mahmoud Abbas, was unable to attend the UN gathering after the Trump
administration refused him a visa. In a video message played ahead of
Netanyahu’s speech, Abbas said, “We reject these unlawful punitive measures, and
we reject the accusations and justifications on which they were based.”Britain
and France, historic partners of Israel that have become increasingly outspoken
in their criticism, were also in Netanyahu’s firing line.
Netanyahu attacks Britain, France
Britain and France have both imposed limited sanctions on Israeli exports from
the occupied West Bank. And French President Emmanuel Macron drew Israel’s ire
for claiming in his own UN speech that Hamas was not active in the West Bank.
Hamas’ stronghold has traditionally been Gaza. Netanyahu attacked Britain and
France for their past colonial empires during his turn at the lectern. “They
accuse Israel, tiny Israel, of colonialism – some colonialism. And who’s
accusing us? Among them are people in Britain and in France. For God’s sakes,
they invented the term,” he said. Netanyahu already had poor relations with
Macron, who led a push by Western nations at last year’s UN General Assembly to
recognize a Palestinian state.
Iran’s ‘murderous dictatorship’
Netanyahu had especially harsh language on Iran, calling it a “murderous
dictatorship.”He said the war in which Israeli and US forces have attacked Iran
for close to seven months had stopped Tehran from being able to develop nuclear
weapons. “I vowed to prevent Iran’s murderous dictatorship from developing
atomic bombs, nuclear weapons aimed at destroying Israel, nuclear weapons that
could threaten the entire world,” he said. He said the fall of Iran’s
leadership, whose envoy at the UN displayed a portrait of slain Quds Force
commander Qasem Soleimani on their vacant desk, was not “far.”Despite the
onslaught, Iran’s government has retained control and continues to defy the
United States by effectively blocking the Strait of Hormuz.
Pager bombs
During his speech, Netanyahu brandished a pager device like those that Israeli
intelligence reportedly engineered with explosives before having them shipped to
operatives of Iran-backed Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. They were later
detonated maiming dozens of Hezbollah operatives but also civilian bystanders.
He accused Turkey of backing Iran-backed group Hamas, going on to call the
country’s leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan a “tyrant.”Netanyahu is only making a
whirlwind stop in New York before rushing back to Israel where the election
campaign is in full swing. He is not scheduled to meet any top US leaders.With
AFP
Israel policies threaten ‘life and existence’ of Palestinians: Abbas
AFP/24 September ,2026
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said at the UN on Thursday that Israeli
policies no longer just jeopardized a two-state solution but were now
threatening the “very life and existence” of his people. He also slammed the
United States for denying him a visa to attend the United Nations’ top-level
annual meeting as “punitive.” He instead pre-recorded a video message that was
played to the gathering in New York. “The danger is no longer limited to
undermining the two-state solution and preventing the realization of the
Palestinian state. It has now come to threaten the very life and existence of
the Palestinian people on their homeland,” Abbas said. “What is taking place in
Gaza, the West Bank, and East Jerusalem are not isolated incidents, but rather a
malicious colonial scheme aimed at making the lives of Palestinians more
difficult in their homeland and forcing them to leave it.”Israel’s expansion of
settlement building on the occupied West Bank “aims to separate the northern
West Bank from its south, isolate East Jerusalem from its Palestinian
surroundings, and prevent the realization of a geographically continuous
Palestinian state.”“This requires urgent and responsible intervention by the
United Nations Security Council,” he said.
Election delay fears
The UN Trade and Development warned Thursday that Gaza is currently going
through the worst economic crisis ever observed. An Israeli military offensive
sparked by a Hamas militant attack in October 2023 devastated the territory of
two million people before a patchy ceasefire was announced in October 2025. In
the West Bank, violence by extremist Israeli settlers has surged, prompting
Britain, France and Canada to impose economic sanctions. With 160 countries now
recognizing a State of Palestine, Abbas called on the UN Security Council to
intervene urgently and responsibly. “Today we say to the world: saving the
solution begins with preserving the land on which the Palestinian state is to be
established and protecting the people who live on it,” he said. Abbas said that
Palestinians were heading toward legislative elections on November 28 “followed
by the completion of the renewal of the institutions of the Palestinian National
Council, followed by the Palestinian presidential elections.”In a letter sent in
June 2025 to French President Emmanuel Macron and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed
bin Salman, Abbas pledged to hold legislative and presidential elections on a
fixed timetable. On Wednesday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot urged
that those elections be held, amid mounting concerns in the international
community they will be postponed due to logistical difficulties.Those challenges
relate to delivering voting materials to the Gaza Strip as well as securing
Israeli visas for international observers to reach the West Bank, as requested
by the European Union.
Europe needs ‘decisive change’ in defense efforts to face Russia threat, EU
agency says
Reuters/24 September ,2026
The European Union is not rearming quickly or effectively enough to meet its
goal of being ready to defend against Russia by 2030, according to the executive
summary of an EU report prepared for the bloc’s leaders and seen by Reuters. EU
members’ current plans “do not seem to meet” the goal of filling gaps in areas
such as air and missile defense, ground combat, naval forces, munition
stockpiles and drones, the European Defense Agency said in its first annual
Defense Readiness Report. “Tackling the challenges of a contested and
deteriorating security environment and the threat posed by Russia’s aggression
requires moving further and substantially faster than now to reach defense
readiness by 2030,” the EU agency wrote. Achievements unprecedented but ‘not yet
enough’Leaders from the EU’s 27 countries ordered the report last year to assess
progress in their drive to ramp up Europe’s defenses, reflecting fears fueled by
Russia’s war in Ukraine and calls by US President Donald Trump for Europe to do
more for its own security. Trump has also threatened to withdraw from the NATO
alliance that has been the bedrock of European security for decades, although he
recommitted to its mutual defense clause at a summit in Ankara in July. Russia
has denied it has any intention of attacking an EU member and accused the
continent’s leaders of fearmongering. But EU leaders have dismissed Moscow’s
assertions, pointing out it made similar comments before its 2022 invasion of
Ukraine.
Against such an uncertain international backdrop, EU leaders last year set
themselves the goal of making Europe ready to defend itself by 2030. EU defense
ministers are expected to discuss the defense agency’s report in Brussels on
Monday and it will then go to the bloc’s leaders.
“The first Annual Defense Readiness Report shows progress in spending,
capability development, and industrial readiness, supported by deepened
partnerships, notably with Ukraine,” the summary seen by Reuters said. “However,
the current momentum and increased investment do not yet translate into
sufficiently deployable, sustainable and interoperable forces, while critical
capability gaps remain. What has been achieved so far, although unprecedented,
is not yet enough.”
US and Iran discuss phased deal to reopen Hormuz and end US
blockade, sources say
Reuters/24 September ,2026
US and Iranian negotiators in New York are exploring a phased path out of war
that would involve Tehran reopening the Strait of Hormuz and Washington lifting
its economic blockade of Iran, sources close to the talks said. The strait has
become the central bargaining chip in efforts to end the nearly seven-month
US-Iran conflict, with Iran seeking relief from the US blockade that is choking
its economy and Washington seeking free passage for ships on the global oil
supply route now blocked by Tehran. The talks face a big obstacle as neither
side wants to be the first to surrender its leverage, according to comments to
Reuters by two Iranian sources, two regional officials and two Western
diplomatic sources, but behind Iran’s stance is a recognition of the economic
cost of prolonged confrontation. A senior Iranian official said the most
plausible way to end the impasse would be a phased arrangement, with Iran
allowing navigation through Hormuz in return for the US lifting its economic
blockade and Tehran potentially gaining access to frozen assets. “One way
forward would be to solve the crisis in stages. The first would be to end the
blockade and reopen Hormuz,” he said on the sidelines of the UN General
Assembly. That would involve US President Donald Trump accepting another
temporary fix, after an earlier understanding collapsed in July. So a central
challenge facing the negotiators is not just to sketch out a deal but also to
ensure any concessions are durable enough for both sides to trust, the sources
said.
Trump has said he thinks the US and Iran could reach a deal after midterm
elections to Congress on November 3. A senior European official said the
Iranians “have a very long list of demands.”A White House official said that
while “Iran is desperate for a deal, President Trump holds all the cards and
will make whatever decision is best for the United States.”Trump, he said,
remained “open to talking with Iran under the right circumstances” but had no
need to negotiate, and the US was in a “very strong position” with control of
the Strait of Hormuz and an Iranian economy that was “collapsing.”The official
said “crushing sanctions” and “one of the most successful blockades in history”
have crippled Iran’s economy and left Iran completely broke. Trump was content
to let the “inevitable Iranian collapse” play out rather than be “played” by
Tehran, the official said. Former US negotiator Dennis Ross said he saw only a
30% chance of an agreement being reached before the vote, but that both sides
may have stronger reasons to make a deal before than after the midterms. “The
blockade is what’s really squeezing the Iranians. It’s strangling them,” Ross
said. A deal before the midterms could benefit Trump, as reopening Hormuz could
ease tensions in the Gulf, contain oil prices and help bring down politically
sensitive US gasoline prices. Iran’s chances of gaining much-needed economic
relief may be greater while Trump still has a greater political incentive to
strike a bargain.
After the midterms, Ross said, Trump may face fewer constraints and be more
willing to intensify pressure or consider military options.
Leverage as obstacle?
The leverage that brought Washington and Tehran back to negotiations could also
make compromise harder. Washington controls the pressure that is hurting Tehran
most, while Tehran controls access to a critical energy chokepoint. Neither side
wants to surrender that leverage without extracting something tangible in
return. This means the midterms may be less a deadline for diplomacy than for
preserving the conditions that make the diplomatic efforts possible. If
Washington and Tehran cannot turn leverage into a deal before the midterms, the
diplomatic window could narrow as the risk of escalation grows. Even as it seeks
a diplomatic off-ramp, Tehran is preparing for the possibility of renewed war
with Washington, the Iranian official said, accusing the US of using the
economic blockade and threat of force as tools of coercion.
“Our fingers are on the trigger,” said the senior Iranian official. “The
Americans know what they need to do but, because of their excessive demands, the
chances of diplomacy resolving this are extremely low.”Regional sources said
Tehran was willing to drop a demand for payment of transit fees to use the
Strait of Hormuz from the main agreement and put the demand in a side attachment
instead, as ending the blockade had become the more urgent priority. Gulf states
have rejected the proposal for payment of transit fees. Any arrangement would be
temporary, not a formal abandonment of Iran’s position, the regional sources
said. The US has tightened the economic vice on Iran, layering new sanctions on
top of a blockade that has choked off Iran’s oil exports, an important source of
hard currency. This month, it targeted Iran’s remaining commercial airlines and
support networks as part of a campaign to sever the economic lifelines
sustaining the government and the powerful Revolutionary Guards. Trump warned
that Iran’s economy could “rot” unless it reached a deal. “Iran is not primarily
focused on imposing tolls in Hormuz but on preserving its administrative control
of the waterway,” he said. “Iran may be willing to defer the toll issue, but
they are not going to give up administrative control of the strait.”At the heart
of the diplomacy in New York is a fundamental tension. Washington wants pressure
to produce concessions, Tehran wants pressure removed before making them, and
the Gulf states want the conflict resolved without allowing the region’s
strategic waterways to become enduring bargaining chips.
Fears of an open-ended conflict
During a separate meeting with Trump in New York, Gulf leaders sought clarity on
ashington’s endgame beyond the midterms, including on whether the US would
resume military action if Iran refused to return to negotiations. They conveyed
their collective rejection of any Iranian control of Hormuz, saying freedom of
navigation must be restored and that the strategic waterway should not become a
tool of coercion against Gulf states, regional sources said. Yet alongside their
warnings over Hormuz, Gulf leaders have pressed hard for de-escalation and a
political process, reflecting the region’s determination to stay out of any
further conflict between the US and Iran. “It’s still not clear what Trump’s
endgame is, or what the alternative to the pressure campaign would be,” said
Ebtessam al-Ketbi, president of the Emirates Policy Center think tank based in
Abu Dhabi. “The Iranians, by contrast, know what they want. They’re reshaping
the regional landscape through Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb with a clear objective
while Washington has yet to define its roadmap,” she said, referring to the Bab
el-Mandeb Strait, which connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. That
uncertainty is also shaping Tehran’s calculations. Danny Citrinowicz, a regional
analyst and former Israeli military intelligence officer, said the New York
talks had not altered the basic positions of either side and that Iran was
unlikely to retreat as long as it believed Trump wanted to avoid a wider
escalation before the midterms. “The blockade is hurting them, but rather than
softening their position, it is likely to drive them to escalate because they
believe that if they soften their position, they are dead,” said Alan Eyre, a
former US negotiator on Iran. A Western official familiar with the talks added:
“It is all about opening the Strait of Hormuz. We’re all under pressure
domestically and the Iranians know that.”
Russia says will ‘consider’ US G20 invitation for Putin
AFP/24 September ,2026T
Russia said on Thursday it would consider an invitation from the US government
for President Vladimir Putin to attend G20 summit in the United States in
December. President Donald Trump has invited Putin to attend the summit of world
leaders in Miami, a move announced earlier this week by US Secretary of State
Marco Rubio after his meeting with Russia’s top diplomat Sergey Lavrov. The move
comes as Washington struggles to secure a deal to end the four-and-a-half-year
war in Ukraine, with Trump insisting he is working with both sides. “No decision
has yet been taken” on whether Putin will travel to Miami for the summit,
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Thursday. “We certainly
receive this kind invitation with appreciation. We value this invitation. It
will be considered... and a decision will then be made,” Peskov added. While the
US and Russian presidents have spoken by telephone on various occasions, the
last time they met was in 2025. The G20 summit will take place on December 14-15
as the US holds the rotating presidency of the forum bringing together the
world’s major advanced and emerging economies. Its members include France,
Germany and Britain, all three prominent supporters of Ukraine as it fends off
Russia’s offensive launched by Moscow in February 2022.
Ukraine sent two captured North Korean soldiers to South Korea, Zelenskyy says
Reuters/24 September ,2026
Ukraine has transferred two North Korean prisoners of war to South Korea,
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Wednesday in an address to the
United Nations General Assembly. “Recently, we sent two North Korean prisoners
of war to the Republic of Korea,” said Zelenskyy in his speech. “These guys are
not easy to capture alive. One of them, when he realized he was going to be
taken prisoner, tried to kill himself. Zelenskyy did not provide more details
about the return. Ukraine captured the two North Koreans in Russia’s Kursk
region in January last year. They were the first North Korean soldiers to be
apprehended alive since the country joined the Russia-Ukraine war in 2024.
Zelenskyy said at the time that he would hand them over to North Korean leader
Kim Jong Un if he could facilitate their exchange for Ukrainians held captive in
Russia. Human rights groups, however, urged him to repatriate them to South
Korea, citing the risks of punishments the soldiers faced. South Korean media
reported that the two captured soldiers had expressed their desire to defect to
South Korea. South Korean opposition lawmaker Yu Yong-weon told reporters on
Thursday that the two North Koreans had left Ukraine last weekend, transited
through a third country and arrived in South Korea three to four days ago,
Yonhap News Agency reported.“While their exact location is unknown, I believe
our intelligence agencies are protecting them,” Yu was quoted as saying. South
Korea’s Foreign Ministry said it would not be able to confirm the matter, citing
the need to protect the safety of the soldiers and their families. The country’s
Unification Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. South
Korea in June said it would accept all North Korean prisoners of war who fought
for Russia and opposed any repatriation of them to Russia or North Korea.
Zelenskyy also criticized North Korea for sending its troops to fight for
Russia. “This is madness too. Why should Koreans give their lives in a war
against Ukraine? Kim Jong Un uses them like currency. And he gets something in
return,” he said. North Korea has sent around 14,000 to 15,000 soldiers since
2024 to support Russia’s war against Ukraine, according to Ukrainian and South
Korean estimates. Most of them have been deployed in the Russian region of
Kursk, where they helped Moscow’s forces repel a Ukrainian incursion. The
country has also supplied Russia with millions of artillery and mortar rounds,
ballistic missiles, long-range artillery and multiple-launch rocket systems,
according to Ukrainian and independent assessments.
Meeting between al-Zaidi, Trump Raises Questions in
Baghdad
Baghdad: Hamza Mustafa/Asharq Al Awsat/September 24/2026
A meeting between US President Donald Trump and Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi
in New York has raised questions due to the complete absence of the Iraqi
delegation, coming just one day after Baghdad’s announcement that it would
complete the plan to impose state monopoly over arms in June 2027. The plan was
supposed to be complete by the end of September, but it was postponed to next
year. A photograph released by the Iraqi government's media office on Wednesday
showed al-Zaidi alone during the meeting, which was attended by Trump alongside
senior US administration officials, including US Secretary of State Marco Rubio
and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent. Al-Zaidi's office said that he discussed
with Trump efforts by Iraq and the US to boost regional and international
security and stability. The government offered no explanation about the absence
of the Iraqi delegation, which included the ministers of foreign affairs,
finance, and electricity, and other officials. Iraqi observers said al-Zaidi
attended the meeting alone due to American suspicions that the discussions may
be leaked to other delegation members, who are members of the Iran-aligned
Coordination Framework coalition.
An Iraqi politician close to the State Administration coalition said the way the
meeting was held “reflects American unease, especially by Trump, over the
stalled process to impose state monopoly over weapons.”According to official
statements, September 30 will not mark the completion of the arms control
process, but it will instead serve as the launching point for a new phase
extending until June 2027. Al-Zaidi has evidently managed to convince the
Americans to grant an additional grace period for the arms control plan,
particularly after the new deadline was backed by US envoy to Iraq Tom
Barrack.Independent Iraqi politician Salah al-Arbawi said it remains to be seen
whether the timetable that will be announced at the end of the month will tip
the balance in favor of any political parties in the dispute over the factions’
weapons. In remarks to Asharq Al-Awsat, he said the political parties must
handle the factions’ weapons “rationally and calmly.”He noted that al-Zaidi has
managed to restore his control over the plan after it encountered obstacles in
recent weeks. Experts believe that recent discussions on the amendment of the
arms control plan could turn into an opportunity to improve Iraqi-American
relations. Researcher Abbas Abboud said that the Iraqi-American relationship is
being “restructured” by Barrack. Baghdad’s relations with Washington’s allies in
the region hinge on “decoupling Iraq from Iran”, he told Asharq Al-Awsat. US
Secretary of State Marco Rubio had issued a direct warning to Baghdad to "disarm
the militias to avoid the balkanization of Iraq." Rubio underlined US support
for al-Zaidi's government in its efforts to consolidate state authority, urging
the need to dismantle armed factions.
The Latest LCCC analysis &
editorials from miscellaneous sources published
on September 24-25/2026
La paix régionale est-elle une notion aporétique?
Dr. Charles Chartouni/Ici Beyrouth/September
24/2026
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/09/157787/
Les tractations avec le régime islamique en Iran ont à leur actif des décennies
d’échanges avec un gouvernement peu enclin à la diplomatie. Les négociations
avec le régime totalitaire comptabilisent des démarches de tous ordres.
Celles-ci n’ont mené à aucun résultat tangible du côté de la résolution des
conflits réels, à commencer par la question de la prise des otages de
l’ambassade américaine en 1979-1980 et à terminer avec la normalisation des
rapports avec la communauté internationale en 2026. Le blocage se situe en amont
de toute démarche diplomatique, nommément celle des relations du régime
islamique avec le reste du monde, avant même d'aborder des contentieux
spécifiques.
La comparaison avec le bolchevisme nous instruit largement sur les limites de la
diplomatie avec des régimes totalitaires. Il est inutile de s’investir dans la
diplomatie interétatique avec des régimes qui non seulement rejettent l’État de
droit mais cherchent à le subvertir. En effet, cela se fait au nom d’une
supercherie idéologique qui méconnaît la légitimité de toute vision qui la
contredit. On est dans le droit de s’interroger sur la légitimité d’une approche
diplomatique qui présuppose la communauté des nations et le principe de
reconnaissance et par voie de conséquence la possibilité d’une négociation entre
des entités politiques divergentes.
Les négociations s’avèrent impossibles en l’absence d’un changement des rapports
de force, comme il apparaît dans le cas du régime islamique iranien. À l’instar
de tout régime totalitaire, celui-ci se positionne et se définit à partir d’une
exception idéologique connotée d’une supériorité normative. Le bilan désastreux
à tous égards nous renvoie aux réalités d’une violence originaire. Celle-ci
s'est déployée tout au long d’une histoire investie de sacralité, prétendant
s’extraire des enjeux réels et prosaïques au profit d’une histoire hypostasiée.
Le pouvoir de l’idéologie se pose en substitut à la raison analytique et à la
déconstruction du réel.
Le régime islamique de l’Iran se recommande d’une triple généalogie, celle du
chiisme duodécimain, de l’héritage impérial persan et des impératifs
stratégiques qui en découlent. Le stratégique se pose en variable de modulation
à partir de laquelle se déploie l’action politique. L’inerrance idéologique sert
de support à une politique impériale qui se veut conquérante au sein d’une
région traversée par des clivages politico-religieux qui laissent peu de place
aux compromis politiques. Tout différend peut dégénérer en conflit qui remet en
cause des équilibres géopolitiques fragilisés.
La stratégie des plateformes opérationnelles intégrées du régime iranien
s’effondre et cède la place à des guerres civiles et aux réalités du désordre
régional. Le régime iranien se refuse aux négociations en cherchant à se définir
à partir d’une extraterritorialité idéologique qui lui sert de plateforme
opératoire. Les partenaires de la négociation doivent adhérer à des règles
formelles qui sanctuarisent, tant sur le plan idéologique que stratégique, le
refus de toute concession remettant en cause la prétendue supériorité normative
et la légitimité de l’action militaire et de ses acquis.
Il n’est pas question de remettre en cause les leviers de l’action stratégique,
son bilan, ainsi que leurs incidences sur un ordre régional volatilisé et les
risques de guerres civiles qui en découlent. Cette dialectique conflictuelle
opère en dehors de toutes contraintes normatives et semble induire des
dynamiques de décomposition aux permutations évolutives. La militarisation des
conflits, quels que soient leurs enjeux, est inscrite dans des logiques
strictement codifiées et dans des dynamiques de subversion. La déconstruction,
quoique préalable, est solidaire des politiques de reconnaissance, de
réconciliation et de reconstruction si l’on veut la paix dans cette région du
monde.
Or, le politique est fortement connoté et se laisse difficilement cerner en
dehors des rapports de force et des logiques asymétriques du pouvoir. La
grammaire des conflits est complexe et influence la quête de paix dans cette
région du monde. La résurgence des politiques revanchardes, la fragilité des
équilibres géostratégiques et la réinsertion dans des dynamiques de pouvoir
globales compliquent la quête de paix dans cette région du monde. L’effet de
rupture de la contre-offensive israélienne est loin d’être négligeable, comme
ses effets restructurants sur les plans politique et géostratégique. C'est à
partir d'une recension minutieuse des nouvelles données géostratégiques et
géopolitiques qu'il faudrait reprendre l'analyse et l'action. Nous devons
examiner les équilibres géostratégiques et politiques sous un nouvel angle et
réamorcer la réflexion sur les chances d'un rééquilibrage systémique. La paix en
dépend largement.
Is Regional Peace an Aporia?
Dr. Charles Chartouni/Ici Beyrouth/September 24, 2026
(Translated from French by AI)
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/09/157787/
Negotiations with the Islamic regime in Iran boast decades of exchanges with a
government little inclined toward diplomacy. Negotiations with the totalitarian
regime encompass efforts of every kind. Yet, these have led to no tangible
results regarding the resolution of real conflicts—beginning with the
hostage-taking crisis at the US Embassy in 1979–1980, and ending with the
normalization of relations with the international community in 2026. The
deadlock lies upstream of any diplomatic endeavor, namely the Islamic regime’s
relations with the rest of the world, even before addressing specific disputes.
The comparison with Bolshevism instructs us extensively on the limits of
diplomacy with totalitarian regimes. It is futile to engage in inter-state
diplomacy with regimes that not only reject the rule of law but seek to subvert
it. Indeed, this is done in the name of an ideological deception that disregards
the legitimacy of any vision contradicting it. One is fully entitled to question
the legitimacy of a diplomatic approach that presupposes a community of nations
and the principle of recognition, and consequently the possibility of
negotiation between divergent political entities.
Negotiations prove impossible in the absence of a shift in the balance of power,
as is evident in the case of the Iranian Islamic regime. Like any totalitarian
regime, it positions and defines itself from an ideological exception connoted
with normative superiority. The disastrous outcome in all respects brings us
back to the realities of an originary violence. This violence has unfolded
throughout a history imbued with sacredness, claiming to extract itself from
real and prosaic issues in favor of a hypostasized history. The power of
ideology posits itself as a substitute for analytical reason and the
deconstruction of reality.
The Islamic regime of Iran recommends itself through a triple genealogy: Twelver
Shiism, the Persian imperial heritage, and the strategic imperatives resulting
therefrom. The strategic dimension poses itself as a modulating variable from
which political action unfolds. Ideological infallibility serves as the support
for an imperial policy that aims to be conquering within a region crossed by
political-religious cleavages that leave little room for political compromises.
Any dispute can degenerate into a conflict that calls into question fragile
geopolitical balances.
The strategy of integrated operational platforms of the Iranian regime is
collapsing and giving way to civil wars and the realities of regional disorder.
The Iranian regime refuses negotiations by seeking to define itself from an
ideological extraterritoriality that serves as its operational platform.
Negotiation partners must adhere to formal rules that enshrine, both
ideologically and strategically, the rejection of any concession calling into
question its alleged normative superiority and the legitimacy of military action
and its gains.
There is no question of challenging the levers of strategic action, its record,
and their impacts on a vaporized regional order and the resulting risks of civil
wars. This conflicting dialectic operates outside all normative constraints and
seems to induce dynamics of decomposition with evolving permutations. The
militarization of conflicts, whatever their stakes, is inscribed in strictly
codified logics and dynamics of subversion. Deconstruction, although a
prerequisite, is interdependent with policies of recognition, reconciliation,
and reconstruction if peace is to be achieved in this region of the world.
However, the political is heavily connoted and is difficult to grasp outside
power relations and the asymmetrical logics of power. The grammar of conflicts
is complex and influences the quest for peace in this region of the world. The
resurgence of revanchist politics, the fragility of geostrategic balances, and
the reinsertion into global power dynamics complicate the quest for peace in
this region of the world. The disruptive effect of the Israeli counter-offensive
is far from negligible, as are its restructuring effects on the political and
geostrategic levels. It is from a meticulous inventory of the new geostrategic
and geopolitical data that analysis and action must be resumed. We must examine
geostrategic and political balances from a new angle and restart reflection on
the chances of a systemic rebalancing. Peace largely depends on it.
A Message to His Beatitude Patriarch Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rahi
Mr. Anthony Geagea/Facebook/September 24, 2026 (Translated from
Arabic by AI)
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/09/157790/
Do you both know the Lord Christ well? If so, why do we not enjoy the blessings
that others enjoy? And why does no one knock at our door bearing what was once
in the Master’s basket—bread and fish? But if you do not truly know Him, then
tell the President that he is unworthy of the Maronite identity that placed him
where he is; and let him tell you that you are unworthy of the Maronite identity
that bestowed upon you the “Glory of Lebanon.“
I know that councils are held in trust, and I know that secrets, once they cross
two ears, become a circle in people’s hearings, but forgive me this time and
tell your flock: What can you say, hear, or do whenever you turn your face
toward the Presidential Palace, as a visitor, friend, shepherd, or well-wisher?
What do you talk about with Mr. President? What brings you together? What
separates you? Do you praise his term? Does he praise your sermons? Was he
appalled by the humiliation and marginalization inflicted upon you? Were you
appalled by the insults and abuses inflicted upon the President every day?
And I ask further: Have you spoken about the emigration of Christians, their
conditions, livelihoods, and dreams, about Christian schools that speak more
about revenues than about crops, and about Christian parties and movements that
speak more about sizes than about man?
Have you broached in the ‘intimate conversation’ the loose borders, the
mini-state that is gnawing at the entity piece by piece, the poverty that
invades our pockets, bellies, and refrigerators, and the distant homes that
kidnap our children and families, house by house and village by village, street
by street and neighborhood by neighborhood?
Tell us, Mr. Patriarch, what is the Master of the Era’s opinion on what has
befell the country and the people? Does he know that garbage dumpsters have
become dining tables for some of his flock, and that others do not visit
hospitals, sometimes for lack of funds and sometimes for lack of medicine?
Does Mr. President know that most of those hospitals are Christian in sentiment
and affiliation? If he knows, did he implore you for leniency, tenderness, and
understanding? And if he does not know, did you tell him about something
else—about your church, for example, about the empty seats, about some silent
bells, about some bleeding crosses?
Did you tell him about the apple harvests thrown away without markets,
shepherds, or protectors? Did you tell him about Christian families who do not
possess what can buy a loaf of bread or even a bite of bread, and about
breadwinners who cannot find work that yields unto them the very least from the
sweat of the brow?
Did Mr. President admit that his term was not up to expectations and that he
disappointed his people, his supporters, and everyone who endured, struggled,
and betted for his sake?
Did he admit to you that the presidency is not merely a dream, an end, or an
ambition, and that following an entity that does not resemble us must inevitably
lead to a system that does not resemble us and to a homeland that does not
resemble Lebanon?
Did you whisper to him that ruin did not come only after the support wars, as
his circles propagate? Were you not, Mr. Patriarch, the one who emerged from the
Baabda Palace years ago to declare that the country is in a state of bankruptcy?
Why do you not defend your people if Mr. President is unable or unwilling? And
why does the Master of the Palace not defend his people humiliated on the
threshold of your hospitals and suffocated on the threshold of your schools if
you are unable or unwilling?
For God’s sake, what do you both do in every meeting? What do you decide? What
do you map out?
For God’s sake, which of you leans on the other, or which of you is more
truthful in his promises, or more majestic in his presence, or more dignified in
his station?
For God’s sake, tell us, Mr. Patriarch, are you truly followers of Maron?
Do you know Jesus Christ well?
If you are, why do we not enjoy what others enjoy? And why does no one knock at
our door who holds in his hand what was in the Teacher’s basket of bread and
fish?
And if you are otherwise, tell Mr. President that he does not deserve the
Maronitism that placed him where he is, and let him tell you that you do not
deserve the Maronitism that gave you the glory of Lebanon.
Anthony Geagea: Un message à Sa Béatitude le Patriarche Mar
Bechara Boutros Rahi
Facebook/24 Septembre 2026 (Traduit de l’arabe par une IA)
https://eliasbejjaninews.com/2026/09/157790/
Connaissez-vous bien Jésus-Christ ? Si oui, pourquoi ne profitons-nous pas des
mêmes bénédictions que les autres ? Pourquoi personne ne frappe-t-il à notre
porte, portant le pain et le poisson du Seigneur ? Sinon, dites au Président
qu’il ne mérite pas l’identité maronite qui l’a placé là où il est, et
laissez-le vous dire que vous ne méritez pas l’identité maronite qui vous a valu
la gloire du Liban.
Je sais que les assemblées sont des dépôts, et je sais que les secrets, dès
qu’ils dépassent deux oreilles, deviennent une ronde dans les oreilles des gens,
mais pardonne-moi cette fois et dis à ton troupeau : Que peux-tu dire, entendre
ou faire chaque fois que tu diriges tes pas vers le Palais présidentiel, en
visiteur, ami, pasteur ou bienfaiteur ?
De quoi parlez-vous avec Monsieur le Président ? Qu’est-ce qui vous rassemble ?
Qu’est-ce qui vous sépare ? Loues-tu son mandat ? Loue-t-il tes sermons ? A-t-il
été effrayé par le mépris et la marginalisation qui t’ont frappé ? As-tu été
effrayé par les insultes et les outrages que subit le président chaque jour ?
Et je demande de plus : Avez-vous parlé de l’émigration des chrétiens, de leurs
conditions, de leurs moyens de subsistance et de leurs rêves, des écoles
chrétiennes qui parlent plus de revenus que de récoltes, et des partis et
mouvements chrétiens qui parlent plus de tailles que de l’homme ?
Avez-vous abordé dans la « conversation intime » les frontières ouvertes, la
mini-État qui ronge l’entité morceau par morceau, la pauvreté qui envahit nos
poches, nos ventres et nos réfrigérateurs, et les demeures lointaines qui
enlèvent nos enfants et nos familles, maison après maison et village après
village, rue après rue et quartier après quartier ?
Dis-nous, Monsieur le Patriarche, quel est l’avis du Maître du mandat sur ce qui
est advenu du pays et du peuple ? Sait-il que les conteneurs à ordures sont
devenus des tables à manger pour certains de ses ouailles, et que d’autres ne
fréquentent pas les hôpitaux, tantôt par manque de moyens et tantôt par manque
de médicaments ?
Sait-il, Monsieur le Patriarche, que la plupart de ces hôpitaux sont d’esprit et
d’appartenance chrétiens ? S’il le sait, t’a-t-il supplié d’être indulgent,
tendre et compréhensif ? Et s’il ne le sait pas, lui as-tu parlé d’autre chose —
de ton église par exemple, des sièges vides, de certaines cloches silencieuses,
de certaines croix saignantes ?
Lui as-tu parlé des saisons de pommes jetées sans marchés, ni bergers, ni
protecteurs ? Lui as-tu parlé de familles chrétiennes qui ne possèdent pas de
quoi acheter un pain ou même une bouchée de pain, et de chefs de famille qui ne
trouvent pas de travail leur rapportant le strict minimum à la sueur de leur
front ?
Monsieur le Président a-t-il admis que son mandat n’a pas été à la hauteur des
espoirs et qu’il a déçu son peuple, ses partisans et tous ceux qui ont patienté,
lutté et parié pour lui ?
T’a-t-il avoué que la présidence n’est pas seulement un rêve, un but ou une
ambition, et que marcher derrière une entité qui ne nous ressemble pas mène
inévitablement vers un système qui ne nous ressemble pas et vers une patrie qui
ne ressemble pas au Liban ?
Lui as-tu murmuré que la ruine n’est pas venue seulement après les guerres de
soutien, comme le propagent ses cercles ? N’étais-tu pas, Monsieur le Patriarche,
celui qui est sorti du palais de Baabda il y a des années pour déclarer que le
pays est en état de faillite ?
Pourquoi ne défends-tu pas ton peuple si Monsieur le Président est incapable ou
réticent ? Et pourquoi le Maître du Palais ne défends-tu pas son peuple humilié
sur le seuil de tes hôpitaux et étouffé sur le seuil de tes écoles si tu es
incapable ou réticent ?
Par Dieu, que faites-vous tous les deux dans chaque réunion ? Que décidez-vous ?
Que tracez-vous ?
Par Dieu, lequel de vous s’appuie sur l’autre, ou lequel de vous est le plus
sincère dans ses promesses, le plus majestueux dans sa présence, ou le plus
digne dans sa fonction ?
Par Dieu, dis-nous, Monsieur le Patriarche, êtes-vous vraiment des disciples de
Maron ?
Connaissez-vous bien Jésus-Christ ?
Si vous l’êtes, pourquoi ne jouissons-nous pas de ce dont les autres jouissent ?
Et pourquoi ne frappe pas à notre porte celui qui détient dans sa main ce qu’il
y avait dans la corbeille du Maître en pain et en poisson ?
Et si vous êtes autrement, dis à Monsieur le Président qu’il ne mérite pas le
maronitisme qui l’a placé là où il est, et qu’il te dise que tu ne mérites pas
le maronitisme qui t’a donné la gloire du Liban.
Nothing Has Changed: Palestinian Authority Trying to
Partner with Terrorists
Bassam Tawil/Gatestone Institute/September 24, 2026
Abbas announced the legislative elections to appease Western donors. He just
wants more of their money.
Instead of talking about "reconciliation" with Hamas and other terrorist groups,
[Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud] Abbas should be demanding that they
surrender their weapons, answer for their actions, and disappear from the
Palestinian arena.
There are several problems. One is that Hamas and PIJ do not accept Abbas's
conditions. Another is that Abbas is not at all interested in requiring
accountability. A third problem that should not be overlooked is: Who is
requiring accountability from the Palestinian Authority (PA) itself? Abbas
cannot present Fatah and the PA as the "responsible" alternative to Hamas.
Hamas is a terrorist organization. Abbas and the PA, however, have their own
deeply troubling record, including authoritarian rule, suppression of dissent,
and a longstanding system of payments and benefits for Palestinian terrorists
and the families of those killed while carrying out attacks on Israelis, known
as "pay-for-slay."US State Department and Congressional reports have confirmed
that the PA continued making millions of dollars in payments to terrorists and
their families during 2025 and 2026. In 2025 alone, the PA provided $156 million
in payments and benefits to terrorists and their families: $126 million to
convicted terrorists in Israeli prisons and those released from prison, and $30
million to the families of Palestinian terrorists who died while committing
their acts of terrorism.
According to Palestinian Authority television, the prioritization of
"pay-for-slay" above all other PA budget expenses has caused the PA healthcare
system to be "on the verge of collapse." Without "pay-for-slay" salaries, one
released terrorist declared on PA television, it would be impossible to recruit
terrorists.
Abbas announced the elections to the Palestinian Legislative Council to appease
Western aid donors. He just wants more of their money. The elections will not
improve the situation for Palestinians: the choice for them remains between two
bad parties: Fatah and Hamas. The United States and the Europeans should demand
that Abbas stop paying terrorists and their families. That is more important
than holding elections.
Abbas's proposed "reconciliation" should not be presented as a choice between a
supposedly "moderate" Fatah and a supposedly extremist Hamas. That Hamas is
simply worse in certain aspects does not make the Palestinian Authority's
conduct acceptable.
If Abbas's conditions are genuine, all the terrorist groups would first have to
undergo a fundamental transformation, including the Palestinian Authority
itself. This change would include recognizing Israel's right to exist and
dismantling the armed wings of Hamas and all the other Palestinian terrorist
groups. Only then could they operate under Abbas's stated principle of "one
state with one set of institutions and one weapons and without militias."
Meanwhile, Abbas gets to retain his multi-million-dollar "pay-for-slay" program.
Bringing a terrorist group such as Hamas into a political arrangement, however,
hardly constitutes reform. For years, Fatah and Hamas have competed for power
while Palestinians have paid the price of political division, repression,
corruption and armed conflict. The political contest in the PA is not about who
will bring democracy and a strong economy to the Palestinians. It is still a
contest over power, money and control.
The Palestinians do not need another photograph of Fatah and Hamas officials
shaking hands and hugging each other in Cairo. They need functioning
institutions. They need accountability. They need freedom from political
repression. They need a political system in which no faction can maintain
private armies or militias. A Palestinian political system that incorporates
Iran's terror proxies – Hamas and PIJ – means that Palestinian leaders still
view these terrorist groups as legitimate actors.
Hamas is a terrorist organization. Abbas and the Palestinian Authority, however,
have their own deeply troubling record, including... a longstanding system of
payments and benefits for Palestinian terrorists and the families of those
killed while carrying out attacks on Israelis, known as "pay-for-slay." "[I]f we
have only a single penny left," he said in February 2025, "it will go to the
prisoners and the martyrs. I will not allow a reduction in our commitments to
them." (Image source: MEMRI)
On the eve of the third anniversary of the Hamas-led October 7, 2023 massacre in
Israel, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is seeking
"reconciliation" (musalaha) with Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist factions,
including Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ).
Instead of talking about "reconciliation" with Hamas and other terrorist groups,
Abbas should be demanding that they surrender their weapons, answer for their
actions, and disappear from the Palestinian arena.
Instead, during a recent visit to Cairo, Abbas said in an interview with Egypt's
Akhbar Al-Yom newspaper that he wanted "reconciliation" with all Palestinian
factions and that a "reconciliation conference would soon be held in the
Egyptian capital under the umbrella of the PLO and with Egyptian sponsorship."
"I want reconciliation with everyone and I do not exclude anyone. Every
Palestinian has the right to participate" in the upcoming legislative elections,
scheduled for November 28, 2026, he added.
Abbas then added a series of conditions: the Palestinian factions must agree
with the policy of the PLO, recognize what he called "international legitimacy,"
and accept "one state with one set of institutions and one weapon and without
militias." He said Palestinians had already "tried" militias and that he did not
want people to "die for nothing."There are several problems. One is that Hamas
and PIJ do not accept Abbas's conditions. Another is that Abbas is not at all
interested in requiring accountability. A third problem that should not be
overlooked is: Who is requiring accountability from the Palestinian Authority
(PA) itself? Abbas cannot present Fatah and the PA as the "responsible"
alternative to Hamas. Hamas is a terrorist organization. Abbas and the PA,
however, have their own deeply troubling record, including authoritarian rule,
suppression of dissent, and a longstanding system of payments and benefits for
Palestinian terrorists and the families of those killed while carrying out
attacks on Israelis, known as "pay-for-slay."
US State Department and Congressional reports have confirmed that the PA
continued making millions of dollars in payments to terrorists and their
families during 2025 and 2026. In 2025 alone, the PA provided $156 million in
payments and benefits to terrorists and their families: $126 million to
convicted terrorists in Israeli prisons and those released from prison, and $30
million to the families of Palestinian terrorists who died while committing
their acts of terrorism. Payments also went to families of 5,000 "martyrs" in
Lebanon.
According to Palestinian Authority television, the prioritization of
"pay-for-slay" above all other PA budget expenses has caused the PA healthcare
system to be "on the verge of collapse." Without "pay-for-slay" salaries, one
released terrorist declared on PA television, it would be impossible to recruit
terrorists.
Abbas announced the elections to the Palestinian Legislative Council to appease
Western aid donors. He just wants more of their money. The elections will not
improve the situation for Palestinians: the choice for them remains between two
bad parties: Fatah and Hamas. The United States and the Europeans should demand
that Abbas stop paying terrorists and their families. That is more important
than holding elections.
Abbas's proposed "reconciliation" should not be presented as a choice between a
supposedly "moderate" Fatah and a supposedly extremist Hamas. That Hamas is
simply worse in certain aspects does not make the Palestinian Authority's
conduct acceptable.
Hamas has never accepted the Oslo Accords signed between the PLO and Israel in
1993-1995, and the Palestinian Authority has not fulfilled its binding
obligations under the Accords. Both the Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas do
not recognize Israel's right to exist and have continued to reject the political
framework established by the Oslo process. Both do not accept the PLO's
commitment to United Nations resolutions pertaining to the Israeli Arab
conflict. Most importantly, Hamas and PIJ in Gaza have consistently refused to
surrender their weapons and dissolve their armed wings.
If Abbas's conditions are genuine, all the terrorist groups would first have to
undergo a fundamental transformation, including the Palestinian Authority
itself. This change would include recognizing Israel's right to exist and
dismantling the armed wings of Hamas and all the other Palestinian terrorist
groups. Only then could they operate under Abbas's stated principle of "one
state with one set of institutions and one weapons and without militias."
Meanwhile, Abbas gets to retain his multi-million-dollar "pay-for-slay" program.
Hamas and PIJ are not just political factions with which Fatah happens to
disagree. The United States and several other countries have officially
designated both Hamas and PIJ as Foreign Terrorist Organizations.
There is another striking feature of Abbas's interview. When asked about the
October 7, 2023 massacre and its repercussions, Abbas chose to focus only on the
destruction in the Gaza Strip, as if the invasion of Israel by Hamas had never
taken place. "After October 7, the result was the complete destruction of the
Gaza Strip," he said, referring to the destruction of infrastructure, roads, and
buildings. "What happened brought nothing but destruction and ruin."
There is no mention of the murders, kidnapping and torture of thousands of
Israeli and foreign nationals that caused the "destruction" he is lamenting.
If Abbas or any other Palestinian leader wants to convince Israelis and the
international community that the Palestinian leadership represents a different
political path from Hamas and PIJ, all they have to do is say plainly -- and
then actually do it. He must declare that attacking Israeli civilians
deliberately and taking hostages will no longer be accepted, that Hamas and all
the terrorist organizations must surrender their weapons, and that no
Palestinian political future will be built on terrorists or terrorism.
Abbas also appears to have forgotten -- or at least set aside -- what happened
between his Fatah faction and Hamas in 2007. Hamas members violently seized
control of the Gaza Strip, forcibly took over the government from the
Palestinian Authority. After days of deadly fighting and extrajudicial
executions -- including Hamas throwing Fatah members off tall buildings to their
deaths -- other Fatah members fled to Israel.
According to Human Rights Watch:
"For eight days, the fighting was intense, and both sides engaged in serious
violations of international humanitarian law, such as torturing and summarily
executing captured and incapacitated fighters, including those inside hospitals,
unnecessarily endangering civilians by fighting from populated areas, and
blocking medical access to the injured. Hamas security forces, including members
of the Executive Force and the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, shot several
captured Fatah security members multiple times in the legs – a practice that
continued over the following months."
Since then, Abbas has repeatedly stated that there could be no "reconciliation"
talks with Hamas so long as the terrorist group continues to control the Gaza
Strip. In June 2007, he also issued a presidential decree declaring the
Executive Force and Hamas militias to be "outlawed" due to their armed coup
against the Palestinian Authority.
The fundamental problems, however, have not disappeared. Hamas remains an
Islamist terrorist group committed to the destruction of Israel through jihad
(holy war), and while Abbas says that the Palestinians need one state, one
government, one set of institutions, and one weapon, Hamas continues to retain
its armed wing.For years, furthermore, Abbas has faced sustained international
pressure to reform his own Palestinian Authority and strengthen governance,
transparency, and the rule of law.
Recently, Abbas "renewed his commitment to the national reform agenda, including
improving governance and transparency, strengthening the justice and security
sectors, modernizing public administration, and developing education curricula
in line with UNESCO standards," according to the PA's official WAFA news
agency."He further emphasized efforts to enhance social protection systems,
combat corruption, and reinforce accountability and integrity, while working
with international and regional partners to implement reforms within set
timelines."
Bringing a terrorist group such as Hamas into a political arrangement, however,
hardly constitutes reform. For years, Fatah and Hamas have competed for power
while Palestinians have paid the price of political division, repression,
corruption and armed conflict. The political contest in the PA is not about who
will bring democracy and a strong economy to the Palestinians. It is still a
contest over power, money and control.
The Palestinians do not need another photograph of Fatah and Hamas officials
shaking hands and hugging each other in Cairo. They need functioning
institutions. They need accountability. They need freedom from political
repression. They need a political system in which no faction can maintain
private armies or militias.Finally, Abbas's proposal raises an even larger
question: Why is Palestinian reconciliation always discussed primarily as
reconciliation among Palestinian factions, while reconciliation between
Palestinians and Israelis remains so distant? A Palestinian political system
that incorporates Iran's terror proxies – Hamas and PIJ – means that Palestinian
leaders still view these terrorist groups as legitimate actors.
*Bassam Tawil is a Muslim Arab based in the Middle East. His work is made
possible through the generous donation of a couple who wish to remain anonymous.
Gatestone is most grateful.
© 2026 Gatestone Institute. All rights reserved. The articles printed here do
not necessarily reflect the views of the Editors or of Gatestone Institute.
Kurdistan Region of Iraq announces Peshmerga unification
Seth J. Frantzman/FDD's Long War Journal/September 24/2026
The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of northern Iraq announced on September
21 that its Peshmerga armed forces had completed unification. The announcement
follows years of attempts to reform and consolidate the Kurdish forces, which
have historically been divided along party lines. The announcement comes as US
forces that are part of the anti-Islamic State coalition are leaving Iraq, and
the Iraqi government is aiming to rein in and disarm armed groups in Iraq.
The Kurdistan Regional Government held a ceremony to announce the “unification
of the Peshmerga forces,” attended by KRG Prime Minister Masrour Barzani,
President Nechirvan Barzani, and Deputy Prime Minister Qubad Talabani. The
Barzanis and Talabani are members of Iraq’s two largest Kurdish political
parties, the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) and the Patriotic Union of
Kurdistan (PUK), respectively. Their families have historically played a key
role in the two parties’ leadership.
“We have reached the stage where we can announce the unification of the
Peshmerga forces today,” Prime Minister Barzani said, also stating that the
unification process has taken place over the last four years and has been
supported by the United States and the anti-Islamic State coalition. He added
that the Peshmerga would now enter a new phase that focuses on “strengthening
military capabilities, providing advanced weapons and air defense systems,
developing capabilities, and comprehensively advancing the Peshmerga forces,
particularly their human capabilities.”
The goal of the unification process is to reduce the role of the KDP and PUK
party structures within Peshmerga units. Lack of unity in the Kurdish forces
dates back to the 1990s, when there was a civil war in the Kurdistan Region,
even as the region was seeking autonomy from Baghdad. The PUK has controlled
Iraq’s Sulaymaniyah Governorate since then, while the KDP controls Erbil and
Dohuk Governorates. The 100,000-plus Peshmerga are drawn from these two regions,
and two large units have dominated the forces: Forces 70 and 80. Force 70 was
linked to the PUK and Force 80 to the KDP.
Now, the Peshmerga forces will be grouped into the First and Second regional
commands. However, The National Context pointed out that the new commands seem
to replicate the former system. Second Command will be led by the former
commander of Force 70, and the First Command will be led by a Force 80
commander.
The Peshmerga Ministry is supposed to oversee the two new regional commands. “We
have a memorandum of understanding with the US Department of Defense,” Bakhtyar
Mohammed, secretary-general of the Ministry of Peshmerga Affairs, told Rudaw
Media Network in May 2026. He added that “all Peshmerga forces must be brought
under the umbrella of the Peshmerga ministry by September this year, which is
the final deadline.”
Peshmerga Minister Shoresh Ismail told Rudaw on September 22 that the
unification process will strengthen the force. “He said unification would help
the Peshmerga obtain its financial entitlements from the Iraqi state. An Iraqi
soldier receives twice the pay of a Peshmerga member, according to Ismail, who
said that disparity should now be addressed,” Rudaw noted.
“We hope the federal government will cooperate with and support us in
safeguarding the rights of the Peshmerga and ensuring that their salaries and
financial entitlements are equal to those of their counterparts in the Iraqi
Army, with the same rights,” Masrour Barzani said on September 21. Peshmerga
commander Sirwan Barzani also said he hoped the announcement would increase the
Kurdish military’s capabilities, including air defenses. The Kurdistan Region
has sought stronger defenses against hundreds of attacks from Iran.
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al Zaidi praised the Kurdistan Region on the
unification announcement. “We congratulate the sons of our people in the
Kurdistan Region of Iraq, and the heroes of the Peshmerga, on the completion of
the unification of their formations under the umbrella of the Ministry of
Peshmerga Affairs, which strengthens national security and consolidates
institutional work,” Zaidi wrote on X. He linked the unification to other
processes in Iraq aimed at “solidifying our national security and the unity of
our defense decision.”
Although the Iraqi president didn’t mention recent pressure to disarm
Iranian-backed militias in Iraq, his statement appeared linked to this process
as well as a recent announcement that a Yazidi armed group would disarm.
The Peshmerga announcement also comes as the Kurdistan Region works to break
another political deadlock. “Around two years after the elections, the tenth
cabinet of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) has yet to be formed, and the
Kurdistan Parliament has remained unseated,” Rudaw noted on September 22. The
KDP and PUK cannot agree on forming a new government, and it remains to be seen
if the political gaps can be bridged.
**Reporting from Israel, Seth J. Frantzman is an adjunct fellow at FDD and a
contributor to FDD’s Long War Journal. He is the senior Middle East
correspondent and analyst at The Jerusalem Post, and author of The October 7
War: Israel’s Battle for Security in Gaza (2024).
Iraq Delays Militia Disarmament, But Doesn’t Give Up — For
Now
Bridget Toomey/FDD- Policy Brief/September 24/2026
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has reiterated his commitment to disarm
Iranian-backed militias in his country, but says he needs nine more months to
accomplish what may be an impossible task.
In June, the Iraqi government announced that militias must disarm by September
30 — also the departure date for the forces of the Global Coalition to Defeat
ISIS. The theory was that with the departure of American troops, the Iran-backed
militias — the primary targets of the disarmament campaign — would lose their
justification for remaining armed. They claim to be essential protection for
Iraq against occupying forces, which is how they describe the United States.
Now, Zaidi is saying the government will begin to implement a disarmament plan
on September 30 and complete the process by the end of June 2027. He promised a
detailed timeline to begin on that day with a 90-day ceasefire between the
United States and the militias. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) forces have
repeatedly struck militia targets during the conflict with Iran in response to
over 600 militia attacks between February and April. Saudi Arabia joined U.S.
airstrikes on July 30 after Iraqi militia attacks resumed, including on Saudi
energy infrastructure.
This delay reflects both the militia resistance and the limited government
capacity to accomplish a challenging and controversial task. However, continuing
forward with genuine disarmament efforts is better than giving up or declaring
success in exchange for only symbolic concessions.
Iran-Backed Militias Maintain Maximalist Requirements for Disarmament
Kataib Hezbollah, the most powerful Iran-backed militia designated as a
terrorist organization by the United States, demanded in August not only the
withdrawal of American forces, but also the removal of American political and
economic influence, the withdrawal of the Turkish military presence in northern
Iraq, and the disbanding of the Kurdish Peshmerga. Other militias, such as
U.S.-designated Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada have echoed these demands.
Harakat Hezbollah al-Nujaba (HHN), another Iran-backed designated terror group,
argued that the militias are still necessary due to threats against Iraq and the
region. So long as Washington and Tehran are at war, the militias are unlikely
to grant concessions on disarmament. HHN officials have also demanded the
preservation of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), a security organization
founded in 2014 to fight ISIS, but dominated by Iran-backed militias. The PMF
have become a vehicle for Iranian influence in the country and to siphon funds
from the state.
Zaidi Looks to Use PMF in Disarmament Campaign
Under the new disarmament plan, the PMF will reportedly be responsible for
documenting and storing weapons from the armed factions. Zaidi also said that
militia members “will join the Popular Mobilization Forces as individuals and
integrate into them.” The PMF is a government institution and therefore its
weapons are “state-controlled arms.” However, this is not possible, since the
PMF, as noted is dominated by the same Iran-backed armed factions that Baghdad
is attempting to disarm.
In parallel, Zaidi is planning to reintroduce legislation to formalize and
strengthen the PMF. Similar legislation was introduced twice in 2025 under Prime
Minister Mohammad Shia al-Sudani but ultimately withdrawn over American and
domestic objections. According to Shafaq, an Iraqi news site, some controversial
provisions are being removed after Washington vetoed elements of the bill.
Washington Must Continue to Engage With Baghdad on Meaningful Disarmament
The PMF will never be a reliable disarmament partner without a near-complete
overhaul, including the removal of Iranian and militia-affiliated commanders.
The Trump administration should require the involvement, or at a minimum
oversight, of disarmament efforts by other elements of Iraq’s security
apparatus. Recent sanctions by the U.S. Treasury highlight concerns related to
the PMF, including funding militias designated as terrorist groups. Treasury
should consider sanctioning the financial elements of the PMF that make these
payments if progress is not made on disarmament.
Furthermore, any commitment by the United States not to strike the militias
should be contingent not only on their adherence to a ceasefire, but also
compliance with disarmament.
*Bridget Toomey is a research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of
Democracies (FDD). For more analysis from Bridget and FDD, please subscribe
HERE. Follow FDD on X @FDD. Follow Bridget on X @BridgetKToomey. FDD is a
Washington, DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national
security and foreign policy.
The Muslim Brotherhood Still Controls Jordan’s Rebranded
Ummah Party
Ahmad Sharawi/FDD- Policy Brief/September 24/2026
The political wing of the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood (MB) elected a new leader
over the weekend. The Ummah Party elected Muath al-Khawaldeh as secretary
general at its seventh general conference, defeating Ahmad al-Qatawneh in a
closely contested race.
Khawaldeh served as the official spokesperson for the MB until Amman outlawed
the group in 2022 and later banned it in April 2025. The ban followed the
group’s involvement in a plot to procure drones and missiles and recruit
operatives for terror activities inside and outside Jordan. The United States
later designated the group as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT) for
providing material support to Hamas.
The Ummah Party has been on a rebranding kick since the ban of its parent
organization. After changing its name in May from the Islamic Action Front, it
sought to install new leadership to signal distance from the MB. But the changes
have been largely cosmetic. Despite the changes, party officials have said that
“opening up to a new name does not mean abandoning its identity.” The election
of an MB official to lead the party demonstrates the MB’s continuing influence.
MB Figures Take Top Spots in ‘New’ Party’s Leadership
Al-Khawaldeh has held an official role in the organization since at least 2015,
when he became its spokesperson. In 2024, he joined the Brotherhood’s executive
council, where he oversaw several political portfolios, including the Palestine
portfolio.
The Muslim Brotherhood’s foothold in Ummah is not limited to al-Khawaldeh. The
party’s Shura Council, its main decision-making body, also includes MB officials
and members. On the same day as al-Khawaldeh’s election, the party elected 21
members to fill vacant seats on the council, including several prominent MB
figures: Hamzah Mansour, a former head of the MB’s Shura Council; Jamil Abu
Baker, a former deputy leader of the MB and member of its executive council;
Mustafa Saqer, a member of the MB’s executive council; and Aref Hamdan, a member
of the MB’s Shura Council and a former member of its executive council.
The Party’s Rebranding Is Less Than Skin-Deep
Despite Amman banning the Muslim Brotherhood, it allowed its political wing to
continue operating and remain represented in parliament. Jordan has historically
sought to manage Islamist participation rather than eliminating it. The
government used a 2022 law restricting religiously affiliated party names in an
effort to push the Islamic Action Front to rebrand.
The party has not moved away from its Islamist leanings. Its new constitution
continues to emphasize the promotion of Islamic values and culture, as well as
mobilization against “colonial projects,” including Zionism, while framing the
Palestinian cause as a shared Arab and Islamic responsibility.
Following his election, al-Khawaldeh’s remarks adopted a more inclusive,
nationalist tone. “We extend our hands to the national community to serve our
country, our nation, and the causes of the nation,” he said. He described the
Palestinian cause as “a national cause par excellence,” and stressed the party’s
continued support for the Palestinians’ “resistance.”
U.S. Should Investigate Whether the Party’s Ties to the Jordanian MB Warrant
Sanctions
When Washington designated the Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood in January, the
designation did not extend to the movement’s leadership or to entities
subordinate or affiliated with it, including its political wing and charities.
The election of Muslim Brotherhood officials to senior positions in the Ummah
Party shows personnel continuity between the two organizations.
Washington should review the relationship between the Ummah Party and the
Jordanian Muslim Brotherhood, focusing on whether the two organizations share
decision-making structures, including individuals serving in dual capacities.
The United States should also investigate whether Brotherhood officials direct
or influence party decisions, and whether the party provides funds or other
material support to the designated organization.
*Ahmad Sharawi is a senior research analyst at the Foundation for Defense of
Democracies (FDD). For more analysis from Ahmad and FDD, please subscribe HERE.
Follow FDD on X @FDD. Follow Ahmad on X @AhmadA_Sharawi. FDD is a Washington,
DC-based, nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and
foreign policy.
What the “Voice of Gaza” Chose Not to Tell the World
Simone Rodan-Benzaquen/Atlantico/September 24/2026
In a wide-ranging interview lasting more than three hours with the
Arabic-language podcast Taqarob, photographer Motaz Azaiza discussed his work in
Gaza and what went on behind the scenes of local media coverage. His admissions
about self-censorship, Hamas repression and the withholding of footage from
October 7 challenge his image as the “perfect correspondent” and raise questions
about the ethics of Western media.
*This article was originally published in French
On January 24, 2024, the day after he left Gaza, Franceinfo quoted an activist’s
description of Motaz Azaiza as “the voice of Gazans.” A few months later, Time
named him one of the world’s hundred most influential people. His photographs
had shown the destruction, the wounded, the families left with nothing.
But being “the voice of Gaza” means answering a question: what did you choose to
leave unsaid?
In an interview lasting more than three hours with the Arabic-language podcast
Taqarob, published on September 3, the photographer provides some answers. He
says that on October 7, 2023, he came across a vehicle belonging to the Al-Qassam
Brigades carrying Israeli hostages. People approached and beat them; he followed
and filmed. He did not publish that footage.
In his response on Instagram, as the controversy grew, he cited the risk of
revealing the location and endangering Palestinian civilians.
Yet the choice was never simply between publishing everything and remaining
silent. Faces can be blurred. What was witnessed can be described. Footage can
be handed over to investigators.
The interview also sheds light on his relationship with Hamas. He speaks of
friends within the movement whom he could call on to fly a drone, gain access to
a filming location or resolve a problem. Worse, he says that on the morning of
October 7, he got goosebumps listening to Mohammed Deif and watching the first
images of the assault.
No one should be surprised by these revelations. As early as April 2024,
HonestReporting flagged a since-deleted October 7 post in which he shared a
video of Hamas men inside Israel, with a caption announcing their entry into
Israeli communities and an avalanche of exclamation marks. The organization
challenged Rashida Tlaib, who had just paid tribute to him.
In France, even before he received the Freedom Prize, Le Journal du Dimanche had
published an article about his positions. Nassim Lévy, a representative of
Jewish associations in Caen and Normandy, had challenged the choice of
recipient. Around twenty lawmakers from the presidential majority had also
protested. On June 4, 2024, the International Federation of Journalists
responded by publishing a statement of support, signed by, among others, the SNJ,
SNJ-CGT and CFDT Journalistes unions, describing Nassim Lévy’s accusations as
“defamatory statements.”
The warnings had been heard. People simply preferred not to listen.
He received the prize in Caen, along with €25,000, in front of nearly four
thousand high school students and Second World War veterans. As part of the
eightieth anniversary of D-Day, he was being honored for his commitment to press
freedom and the right to information. Those words also carry obligations for the
people who spoke them.
In July 2026, he was among the signatories of an opinion piece supporting Rima
Hassan. In the United States, Ms. Rachel, the star of videos for toddlers,
introduced him as a friend; Macklemore used one of his photographs for “Hind’s
Hall 2” and proudly appeared alongside him.
His account now raises a broader question: under what conditions was information
coming out of Gaza?
Azaiza describes photographers lowering their cameras whenever a resident
criticized Hamas; he says he kept filming. He mentions a WhatsApp group called
“Smart,” administered, according to him, by a Hamas media official connected to
the Rafah border crossing. Links were shared, phone numbers circulated and
participants encouraged to harass dissenting voices. He says he himself was
targeted.
Here, too, warnings already existed. In May 2025, the Committee to Protect
Journalists published an investigation into Hamas violence against Gaza’s press.
Tawfiq Abu Jarad had been ordered not to cover a demonstration. Mohammed Abu
Aoun recounted being beaten after interviewing a woman who insulted the
movement’s leaders. Others refused to have their accounts made public.
An official from the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate also explained that some
journalists hesitated to reveal their difficulties for fear of diverting
attention from the war. Alongside the threat of violence, there could also be a
conviction that exposing repression would undermine the cause.
The first people deprived of a voice are the Palestinians themselves. Azaiza now
accuses Hamas of having failed to protect a single resident with its weapons. A
Gazan who blames the movement for leading him into disaster is expressing a
political view. Silencing him means denying him the right to name his own
oppressors. Those who say they want Palestinian voices to be heard should be the
first to be concerned.
What did newsrooms do with these warnings? What did they tell the public about
the pressure on their sources and the testimonies that were suppressed?
The media outlets and public figures who gave Motaz Azaiza an enormous audience
should now examine their own ethical standards. They made him “the voice of
Gazans.” They must now listen to what he says about his ties to Hamas, the
system it established and the voices that were silenced.
Simone Rodan-Benzaquen is senior envoy for Europe at the Foundation for Defense
of Democracies (FDD).
How Trump Redefined U.S.-Iran Policy At The UN
Behnam Ben Taleblu/The Daily Wire/September 24/2026
Trump makes his case and raises the stakes for the Islamic Republic in New York.
Candor and clarity of purpose are not themes traditionally associated with
United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) meetings in New York. The annual summit,
now in its 81st year, has long been a preferred venue for dictators and
kleptocrats to make jargon-laden national — or, quite often, personal — cases
against the West, while ironically doing so from the Big Apple, the beating
heart of American capitalism.
In response, American presidents over the past two decades have pushed past
these theatrics, using the summits as opportunities to build consensus or rally
support for the American position on global affairs.
Not so with President Trump. And that may be a good thing.
Despite occasional references to domestic matters — by now a hallmark of almost
any Trump speech — his address offered remarkable clarity and candor on Iran
policy, casting the issue in zero-sum terms.
Trump outlined his multiple attempts to negotiate with the clerical regime over
its nuclear program, all to no avail. Each time, the regime’s spurning,
bad-faith engagement, foot-dragging, or delay brought about a fate that could
have been avoided. Put differently, the Islamic Republic is the main force
pushing Trump to embrace the role of Commander in Chief every time he tries to
act as Dealmaker in Chief.
Elsewhere, Trump framed Iran’s conventional and asymmetric missile and military
buildup as a shield designed to protect its nuclear infrastructure from attack.
In terms of range, these projectiles do not merely threaten U.S. military bases
or nations covered by CENTCOM. As Trump noted, the Islamic Republic even
possesses a ballistic missile capable of reaching continental Europe — a
capability that Iranian military officials, some of whom are no longer around,
previously dangled over European policymakers like a sword of Damocles. Ignoring
these threats would have allowed Tehran to hold a wider range of targets at risk
and, ultimately, threaten the U.S. homeland.
Trump used this background to reach an inflection point: Will there be more war,
or will the region settle down and focus on peace, prosperity, and stability?
Although the president framed this as a fork in the road for U.S. strategy
toward Iran, in reality, the choice is Tehran’s, not Trump’s.
The president’s nonchalant tone as he laid out his options underscored the
point. For now, the administration is playing a strong hand, thanks to the
economic, political, and military leverage Washington has accumulated over the
last few months. That leverage allows the United States to exploit the current
state of neither war nor peace with the Islamic Republic and box in the regime’s
leaders.
The U.S. has essentially zeroed out Iranian crude exports through a maritime
blockade and is cutting off Iran’s illicit network of foreign enablers through
tough sanctions. This one-two punch handicaps the regime’s efforts to move money
and generate the revenue needed to address the economic shortcomings at home
wrought by decades of mismanagement and spiraling inflation. To backstop all of
this, Washington is also maintaining significant U.S. military forces in the
region.
Accordingly, Trump need not rush into either a deal or a war. He has time to
explore his options and position the United States to capitalize on any Iranian
misstep or overreach, whether at the negotiating table or on the battlefield.
Come what may, be it engagement or escalation by Iran (and if the past is
prologue, there will be a bit of the former and a lot of the latter), Trump has
already told the world how the United States will respond.
The options Trump laid out starkly at the UN are to send the regime “into hell
with no chance of survival” or to ink a deal “that lets them rebuild and create
a far greater country than it ever was before.” By planting a flag early on
where the United States may go, Trump shifts the burden back onto the Islamic
Republic — and, with it, the costs of being the first mover in the latest
iteration of a 47-year crisis.
*Behnam Ben Taleblu is Iran Program Senior Director and a Senior Fellow at the
Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) in Washington, D.C.
Which is more powerful: Saudi Arabia or Iran?
Abdulrahman al-Rashed/Asharq Al Awsat/24 September ,2026
In the midst of the current war, a question is often raised: Why is Iran, a
country with fewer financial resources and under sanctions, seemingly more
capable of fighting than Gulf states such as Saudi Arabia? Is there something
deeper behind this? The idea that Iran represents a model of “superiority” has
been repeated for many years because of the military “victories” it has achieved
against more than half the countries in the region, not only Israel. To some
extent, this is true. Iran is a dangerous regional power. Over the past 30
years, the expansion of its influence and its militias to the shores of the
Mediterranean and the Red Sea, as well as its dominance over Lebanon, Syria,
Iraq and Yemen, has demonstrated that it is a regional offensive power whose
reach has historically surpassed that of Nasser-era Egypt and Saddam Hussein’s
Baathist Iraq at the height of their power.
Saudi Arabia and Iran are both major oil-producing states, but they have chosen
two very different paths to building power. Each country has a different vision
of success. Saudi Arabia has invested primarily in the strength of its economy
and state, while Iran has invested primarily in military power and influence
abroad.Saudi Arabia sees strength as stemming from a superior economy, advanced
infrastructure, modern cities and global investments. Iran, by contrast, defines
success and power largely through the military sphere: Missiles, drones, a
nuclear program, and the recruitment of tens of thousands of Afghans, Iraqis,
Lebanese and Yemenis into a vast force that it trains, finances and directs to
serve its strategy and fight on behalf of its ambitious expansion. While Saudi
Arabia hosts Yemenis and supports them economically and in their livelihoods,
Iran recruits tens of thousands of impoverished Yemenis and uses them to fight
on its behalf, just as it has done with the Zainabiyoun, Fatemiyoun, Hezbollah,
Asaib Ahl al-Haq and other militias across the region, as well as its allies in
Africa. It recruited them for military purposes, exploiting the desperate
humanitarian conditions in which they live.
Saudi Arabia, by contrast, has absorbed more than 10 million people who came
from countries such as these to support their families, improve their incomes
and participate in the country’s development.
And while Saudi Arabia builds vast rail and metro networks linking its regions
and cities, Iran digs trenches and carves through mountains to build and store
weapons intended for use across the region. When Saudi Arabia showcases its
products, most recently this week with Ceer electric vehicles, Iran recently
announced with pride a military drone carrier called the Shahid Bagheri, a
commercial vessel converted into a platform for transporting and operating
drones for combat.
Saudi Arabia is a major economic power, while Iran is a major offensive military
power. This does not diminish Saudi Arabia’s defensive strength, particularly
its superior combat air power. But that strength has not been transformed into
an aggressive political project. Saudi Arabia’s overseas projects are economic,
while Iran’s are military. Tehran has spent billions of dollars on Lebanon’s
Hezbollah over four decades, while its own population suffers from poverty and
the deterioration of the currency, which has fallen to two million tomans to the
dollar.
In recent years, the discussion and work in Riyadh have focused on a different
question: How can we safeguard our economy for the post-oil era and plan
alternatives? There is no doubt that the steps Saudi Arabia has taken since 2015
are what are protecting it today from the collapse in oil revenues caused by the
current war. In Iran, however, the question and the thinking have remained
largely the same since the 1990s: How do we build greater power, expand our
influence even further across the region and harness all of the country’s
capabilities for war?
The truth is that the Iranian model is not new to the region. It is itself an
imitation of what Saddam Hussein began, inspiring Tehran’s regime to make the
military project the foundation of the state, with all of the state’s
capabilities serving it rather than the other way around. Saddam succeeded in
developing missile capabilities and building an army of one million people. He
fought Iran fiercely for eight years, threatened Syria, invaded Kuwait and
threatened Saudi Arabia, before ultimately being destroyed after his invasion of
Kuwait.
Saudi Arabia itself is among the world’s biggest defense spenders. But this
spending forms part of a broader state-building project whose purpose is to
protect the economy, infrastructure and cities, rather than to pursue expansion,
occupation or an exaggerated sense of military power.
Iran’s officially declared military spending may appear far lower, but a
numerical comparison is misleading because of Iran’s lower production and labor
costs, the multiple channels through which the IRGC is funded, the financing of
proxies, and the lack of budgetary transparency. Iran spends most of its
revenues on its war machine while neglecting other sectors.
The real difference between the two neighboring countries is not the size of
their budgets, but how the money is spent. Saudi resources go toward tourism,
mining, energy, industry, technology, sports and aviation, while a larger share
of Iran’s resources goes toward the Revolutionary Guard, uranium enrichment,
missiles, drones and armed groups operating beyond its borders. It is not
difficult to determine which is stronger as a state, rather than merely as an
aggressive military power. Much of Saudi Arabia’s activity revolves around
building new companies and projects, such as Riyadh Air, the Red Sea, Diriyah,
Qiddiya and AlUla projects, alongside expansion in mining, renewable energy,
hydrogen and advanced industries.
Iranian spending, by contrast, is centered on projects such as the development
of its nuclear program, which was the largest project the country had ever
funded and was destroyed in June 2025. We should not misunderstand the true
meaning of power and genuine success, both today and in the future. Every
country that has exclusively adopted the model of an aggressive military state
has eventually ended up weakened or destroyed. Iran today is a striking example,
as Cuba was before it. North Korea, meanwhile, is a fearsome military power, yet
at the same time it remains one of the poorest and most troubled countries in
its region.There is no doubt that the wars involving Iran, Iraq and Yemen have
prompted Saudi Arabia to give greater attention to its defensive capabilities,
unless the region eventually awakens to a change that brings an end to tensions
and wars. The final question remains: Why does Saudi Arabia not want a major war
against Iran? I believe the reason is clear. Riyadh has an interest in peace and
understanding because it has built enormous economic assets and infrastructure,
and it will not enter a war unless it is forced to do so. Iran, by contrast, has
little to fear losing. Its assets are military, and it has hidden them
underground.
Iran and the US: An October Surprise?
Amir Taheri/Asharq Al Awsat/September 24/2026
“October surprise” is a shibboleth that denotes a foreign intervention affecting
the result of an American election that is always held in November. It was first
coined by Gary Sick, a CIA analyst who served as adviser on Iranian affairs in
the Jimmy Carter administration in late 1970s. According to Sick, who later
penned a book on his theory, Carter lost the presidential election in November
1980 after the regime in Tehran delayed the release of American diplomats held
captive because of a secret deal with the Republican Party in exchange for
promises made by Ronald Reagan’s election team.
No one has produced evidence that such a secret deal existed.But the fact is
that hostages were not released until the day Reagan started his presidency. The
delay was suspicious because Carter had negotiated the release of hostages with
Iranian mullahs by acceding to all their demands notably a promise never to
prosecute hostage-takers or their puppeteers.My guess is that Khomeini delayed
the release he had signed on as a vengeful Parthian shot at the hapless Carter,
rather than as part of a secret deal with the Reagan camp. Nevertheless, the
phrase has outlasted Sick, Carter, Reagan and Khomeini and has been
re-circulated half a dozen times.In 2009 the October surprise worked in the
opposite direction. A coalition of pro-American Islamic politicians and clerics
fomented a popular uprising in Tehran in the hope that incoming Democrat
President Barak Obama would offer a helping hand as Carter had done in February
1979 against the Shah. To their disappointment Obama expressed no sympathy for
protesters who were savagely crushed. In fact, with a nod and a wink, he
indicated sympathy with the mullahs whom he saw as champions of nations hurt by
the American big bad wolf.
In the past week or so, the cliché has been bandied around with reference to the
coming mid-term US elections. One theory is that the truncated Khomeinist clique
in Tehran might pull a rabbit out of their turbans to make sure President Donald
Trump gets a trashing at the polls. That surprise could take the form of a new
round of attacks on Iran’s neighbors to push gas prices even higher. An opposite
theory is that the clique may decide to sing from the hymn sheet written by
Trump to placate him with another fictitious “great victory” like the one he
chalked up over Greenland. In his address to the UN General Assembly, Trump once
again threatened to annihilate Iran, but later claimed that that US officials
had a “very good” three-hour meeting with Iranian leaders and that another one
was scheduled in the “very near future”.
Another theory, advocated by military historian Victor Davis Hansen, is that
Trump may decide to do something bigger than he has already done to Iran to
force Tehran leaders into unconditional surrender, thus ensuring the Republican
victory on November 3.
In a more optimistic scenario, Hansen says the October surprise might come in
the form of a nationwide uprising in Iran to install a new governing team keen
on making peace with US.
Another “surprise” talked about, especially in Israeli media, but also echoed by
Hansen, is an invasion of Iran’s western provinces by armed Kurdish insurgents
based in Iraq. Such an event could shake the Iranian military and expose its
inability to protect the national territory. And that could be the opening shot
in a popular revolt. The problem with all October Surprise theories is that they
stop at the point that an election has ended without bothering about what
happens next. The original October Surprise may have helped Reagan win the
presidency. But what good did do that to Iran?
What followed was 12 years of hostility by two Republican presidents, Reagan and
George H. W. Bush that included the first military clash between Iran and the US
in April 1988 and the sinking of half of Iran’s navy and over $1.3 billion in
damage done to Iranian offshore oil and bags installations. Three months later,
the US shot down an Iranian passenger plane, causing the death of 290 people.
The Americans didn’t reap any benefits either.The mullahs continued to seize
American hostages across the region and organized the terrorist attack on a US
base in Lebanon that killed 241 Marines, the single biggest American military
loss since World War II.
Let’s return to the present.
Suppose the mullahs do something to make Trump lose the election. In that case,
what incentive would he have to seek a settlement and enter history as an
appeaser? And who could make sure the victorious Democrats would revive Obama’s
pro-mullah strategy? Also how could anyone be sure Democrats get a veto-proof
majority in the Congress to chain a wounded Trump? At the other end of the
spectrum, suppose Tehran does a pirouette to please Trump and help him. Would
Trump be gullible enough to trust a turbaned Pinocchio, who sold a bill of goods
to seven US presidents over almost half a century?
The best October Surprise would be for the US to acknowledge that a confusing
and costly strategy is unlikely to work. Iran under current regime indeed cannot
stop acting as a source of instability and an exporter of ideology and terror.
The key reason for US failures in Iran is the assumption that one is dealing
with a normal nation-state rather than a vehicle for an ideology. As a result,
the US and others dealing with Iran have fallen in the trap of half measures:
half-serious diplomacy, half-imposed sanctions and now half-forceful war on a
big scale. They promised lifting sanctions, but never really did so. They
promised to build confidence through diplomacy, but stopped halfway. They
threatened “maximum pressure” but stopped before bones started to creak. They
boasted about regime change, but signed with an unchanged regime.
On Tehran’s side, we have heard boasts about imposing a new World Order in
alliance with China and Russia and establishing Iran as an “Islamist
superpower.” All the while, however, rival factions have pursued the dream of
making a sweetheart deal with the “Great Satan“ by hook or crook - mostly the
latter. The only October Surprise may turn out to be no surprise.
Selected Face Book & X tweets
on September 24/2026
Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו
My wife Sarah and I, together with all the people of Israel, are praying for a
miracle. Yechiel, my dear, we are all with you
Quote
Ambassador Yechiel (Michael) Leiter
I am grateful to the IDF and the medical team at Shaare Zedek who are now
fighting for the life of Neria Dev ben Chana, and to the prayers of the people
of Israel.
I believe in the power of prayer and believe that when the people of Israel
unite, miracles happen.
U.S. Embassy Beirut
Over the past 6 years, the United States has delivered more than $800 million
dollars in military assistance to the Lebanese Armed Forces to build their
long-term readiness and capacity. This delivery of sixteen million rounds of
ammunition represents another example of that ongoing commitment to strengthen
Lebanon’s sovereignty, secure its borders, counter internal threats, and disrupt
terrorist facilitation.
The United States remains committed to supporting the Government of Lebanon and
the Lebanese Armed Forces in strengthening state authority, protecting
civilians, providing services, and creating conditions that help bring about
lasting peace and stability.
Hussain Abdul-Hussain
Sharaa is much more self-confident, emboldened, and empowered at the annual UN
gathering, compared to last year. With his change of behavior came change in his
positions. Now he doesn’t regret his past, he only says that it’s history, and
he equates between Al-Qaeda’s terror and U.S. past global policies. In his mind,
both have now changed: Al-Qaeda triumphed over Assad and put on a suit, and the
United States — judging by Tom Barrack’s statements — was wrong when it
supported democracy and human rights, should have made deals with strongmen and
autocrats, which Barrack is cutting now.
Perhaps spending so much time with Barrack, Sharaa is now under the impression
that America has turned on its ally, Israel, and is planning to throw it under
the bus, hence, now Sharaa voices a demand he has not yet been loud about it: He
wants the Golan Heights back.
If this behavioral trend continues, expect Sharaa to become more assertive on
regional issues (and Washington has already invited Syria to under Sharaa to
reoccupy Lebanon as under Assad).
And given that no one is expecting democracy to strike root in Syria, the end
result would be the replacement of the Assad Shia autocracy with Sharaa’s Sunni
autocracy. The main difference will be which one is more tolerant domestically
and more enlightened economically than the other.
I try to avoid writing about Sharaa and Syria. I understand that he still enjoys
an overwhelming popular support, especially among Syrian Americans. But
sometimes, it’s good for everyone to hear a calm opinion that disagrees with
theirs, and not a slandering, off the cough, view that Sharaa was Al-Qaeda. I’m
the guy who wrote a book calling on the Arabs to let history be history, turn
the page, and look toward the future. My assessment of Sharaa is of his current
behavior and patterns and what to expect moving forward.
I’m just not optimistic, and Washington’s Turkey policy (a subset of which is
Syria) has made me even more pessimistic.
Haim Goldich | חיים גולדיטש
Ambassador Yechiel Leiter shares about the joy alongside the sadness and drama
yesterday when his daughter, married to Smit Givati, arrived yesterday at her
brother's bedside in her ninth month, two weeks before the due date—her water
broke and a granddaughter was born to him. They are lying forty meters apart
from one another
What a salt-of-the-earth family
Nadim Koteich
Additionally, @WSJ reported that Houthis are increasingly supplied by China.
Chinese firms are the biggest source of seized goods bound for the militant
group.
So Iran and China are Houthi enablers.
Majid
Look at the family of Ambassador
.They already paid the devastating price when their eldest son, Major Moshe
Yedidya Leiter, fell in battle leading his troops in Gaza in 2023. A medical
student and a father of six, Moshe gave everything for his nation. A tragedy
like that would bring most families to their knees. But when terror struck, his
brother Neria Dov put on his uniform, answered the call, and served hundreds of
days on the frontlines to protect the memory of his brother and the future of
his people. And now, Neria lies in a Jerusalem hospital, fighting for his life
after a cowardly terror attack.
This is what enemy regimes and terrorists will never comprehend. They choose
destruction, hatred, and death; families like the Leiters choose life, devotion,
and an unyielding commitment to their homeland. You cannot defeat a nation where
brothers and sisters step directly into the fire to shield one another,
generation after generation, paying with their own blood so that the Jewish
people can live free. Israel’s ultimate protection was never built from steel,
radar, or algorithms. The world looks at the Jewish state and marvels at the
Iron Dome, the technology, and the military power. But machines alone do not
defend a nation. People do. The unbreakable shield of Israel is the soul of its
people, a soul forged in millennia of resilience, carrying pain that would crush
any other nation, yet choosing life every single time.
Sending every ounce of strength, love, and hope to the entire Leiter family.
Praying for a complete recovery for Neria Dov ben Chana who is currently in
critical condition.
Refuah shleimah. Am Yisrael Chai.
חזקי ברוך@HezkeiB
Yechiel Leiter: "I had a fear that I would sigh without hope. We need a miracle
and a lot of prayers. Millions in the world, Jews and non-Jews, are praying for
his recovery."
Jerusalem News Syndicate
In a remarkable story of pain and hope, the daughter of Yechiel Leiter, Israel's
Ambassador to the US gave birth at Shaare Zedek Medical Center—just 40 meters
from where her brother Neria is fighting for his life after being injured in a
terror attack.
REPORT▸ https://eu1.hubs.ly/H0yzbKB0
Neria's Hebrew name, for prayers for his recovery, is Neria Dov ben Chana
Yigal Brand יגאל ברנד
The last Yom Kippur. Just three days ago.
At the end of the Mussaf prayer, Neriah approached the cabinet of prayer books
and started searching for something. I asked him what he was looking for.
"The piyyut 'The Bound and the Unbound.' To try to draw closer and bring even
more during the Ne'ilah prayer."
Neriah was the cantor for Ne'ilah in our settlement at Yair Farm. And anyone who
was there understands. What a prayer. What power. Neriah lifted us all
up—worshippers, men and women—in the holiest hour we have as Jews. He drew close
himself and brought us all along with him. A true emissary of the public in
every sense of the word. Yesterday, during reserve duty service, Neriah was
critically wounded in a murderous ramming attack. His brother, Moshe Leiter HY"D,
fell in Beit Hanoun during the first maneuver in the Gaza Strip. And despite the
bereavement, Neriah continued to volunteer and go out on reserve duty.It's hard
to grasp. Just three days ago, we stood together in Ne'ilah prayer. I pray that
his merit as a fighter and volunteer, and as the public emissary who drew us all
closer in prayer, will stand for him now. That, God willing, we will merit his
recovery and hear him again in our synagogue.
I ask all of you to pray for the recovery of Neriah Dov ben Chana. May we know
good tidings.
Danny Danon 🇮🇱 דני דנון
"Heal us, O Lord, and we shall be healed; save us, and we shall be saved."
Yechiel my friend, I embrace you, Hannah, and the entire family. The entire
people of Israel is praying for the complete recovery of your son, Neriah Dov
son of Hannah, who was severely wounded in the abominable terrorist attack, and
joins you in longing for good tidings.
Rate this translation:
Quote
Ambassador Yechiel (Michael) Leiter
I am grateful to the IDF and the medical team at Shaare Zedek who are now
fighting for the life of Neria Dev ben Chana, and to the prayers of the people
of Israel.
I believe in the power of prayer and believe that when the people of Israel
unite, miracles happen.
Ariel Kahana אריאל כהנא
https://x.com/arik3000/status/2102859134467178673/video/1
Just minutes before being updated on his son Neriah's severe injury (may God
grant him a full recovery), Ambassador Leiter was interviewed on the Newsmax
network and spoke about the circumstances of his eldest son's fall, Moshe
Yedidia. Leiter reiterated that if we had done what is attributed to us
(genocide) to his son, and another 900 soldiers would be alive today.
The ambassador, who is on his way to the country, was supposed to continue and
be interviewed today, ahead of Netanyahu's arrival at the UN rally.
Spokeswoman for the embassy, Tal Na'im, says: Being the spokesperson for the
Israeli Embassy in Washington over the past three years has been one of the most
challenging and demanding experiences of my life. It means navigating from
crisis to crisis, and dealing with moments I could never have imagined.
One of the hardest arrived this morning. I was with the ambassador in New York
for an interview when he received the terrible news that his son, Neriah, was
injured in a terrorist attack.
In our last interview before receiving the news — the ambassador spoke about the
inconceivable reality we live in in Israel, and made this point around the same
time that our son the terrorist attacker: "We sent our soldiers into the field
to prevent mass bombings, we lost our children because of that."
Please pray for Neriah
יואב ברנזון | yoav berenson
A wonderful nation, fucked-up leadership:
I'm not a Bibi-ist. I never have been. Probably never will be.
But when I hear Eisenkot. Lieberman. Bennett. And Golan. When I hear them, I
shudder.
Their pathetic performance. The low English. The failed arguments. The
psychobabble explanations. The reality-detached proposals. The recklessness. The
apathy. The ego. It turns my stomach.mvery time I hear them, I turn into a
forcibly Bibi-ist, by coercion. They really force me to love Netanyahu and
admire him. And I don't want to. Not at all.
Yeah, what can you do. That's what happens to me after I try to listen to them
and find some sense in their moves, their ideas, their actions.
Netanyahu isn't free of mistakes. He's far from perfect. I vote for Ben Gvir to
keep him from making us mistakes forever. Ben Gvir is my insurance policy for
Netanyahu.
But, when I hear the psychos on the left I say "God, thank you for Bibi." And
right away I start thinking to myself, "What will happen in another 4 years?"
"What will happen when Bibi goes?" "How will we survive here?" Bibi is really
our luck. No other word for it. Without him where would we be, if we'd even
exist at all? (No wonder Trump said that without Bibi Israel wouldn't exist now.
I believe him).
The country's leadership is so pathetic and shameful, so disappointing and
impotent, so stupid and fossilized, it's hard to believe.
We have a genius nation, strong, determined, sacrificial, creative, amazing,
wonderful. But we have pathetic leadership, weak, unskilled and fundamentally
fucked.
It doesn't make sense. Just like that. There's no match between the nation and
its leadership. Only thing is, at least for now - lucky we have Bibi. Really
lucky. Thank you God for him. Because without him we'd be stuck with the
clueless and dim-witted Gantz, with the fucked and demented Lieberman, with the
psychopath Eisenkot who just wants to bring in 150,000 potential terrorists here
every day to work for us and slaughter us, with Yair Golan who long ago stopped
being a Zionist and joined up with our worst enemies.
Is this all we've got? What did we sin and transgress to deserve this shit?!!?
We deserve more!! A lot more than this gang of trash! We deserve another
Netanyahu. That's what we deserve! More leaders on his level and of his quality.
U.S. Embassy Beirut
https://www.facebook.com/reel/2663631720701731
Cedars and Stars | Episode 8 is here: Lebanese Americans: 172 Years and Counting
From Antonios Bishallany, who landed in Boston in 1854, to the villages of Mount
Lebanon transformed by economic pressures, to the streets of New York's Lower
Manhattan, to factory floors, to culture, business, politics, and the military,
this episode traces 172 years of a community whose entrepreneurial spirit
carried it into every corner of American life
A story of "Amerka" as a second homeland. A story that, as Hitti once wrote, was
driven by the desire "to live a life free and unhampered from political
restraints."
A story of departure and arrival. A story of Amerka as a second homeland. A
story that, as Hitti once wrote, was driven by the desire "to live a life free
and unhampered from political restraints." This resource was produced with the
support of the U.S. Embassy Beirut See less
U.S. Embassy Beirut
https://www.facebook.com/reel/1432970162306282
Ambassador Michel Issa hosted his first Exchange Alumni reception earlier this
month. Over 130 alumni from exchange programs – such as the International
Visitor Leadership Program, Fulbright, MEPI, YES, and Access to name a few –
came together to reconnect and celebrate the entire Lebanon alumni community’s
contributions and aspirations for Lebanon’s future. During the event, six alumni
were honored for their leadership and positive impact in strengthening
U.S.-Lebanon ties over the past year.
This year's gathering carries extra meaning as America celebrates its 250th
anniversary, a milestone in a shared history that includes more than 21,000
Lebanese alumni who've taken part in U.S. government exchange programs over the
past 50+ years. ✨
Exchange Programs - U.S. Department of State
Michael C
All of Israel is praying for Neria Leiter. Neria is fighting for his life after
a Palestinian terrorist deliberately rammed him while he was serving in the IDF
reserves.
His father, Ambassador Yechiel Leiter, has already buried one son who fell
fighting in Gaza.
And Neria still returned to serve his country for hundreds of days.
This family has sacrificed more for Israel than most of us can imagine.
May Neria Dov ben Chana make a full recovery and return home to his family.