• UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed (MBZ) hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the weekend, the Gulf state’s official news agency has confirmed.

Bernie Sanders calls to end US military aid to Israel following election ban on Arab parties

US Senator Bernie Sanders has called for an end to US military aid to Israel after Israel’s election committee banned its two major Arab parties just four weeks before elections.

The move has potentially left Palestinian citizens of Israel without their principal representatives in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset.

“If it wasn’t already clear, Netanyahu and his far-right allies want an Israel where Palestinian citizens, 20% of the population, have no voice at all,” Sanders said on X.

“NO MORE U.S. MILITARY AID TO ISRAEL,” he wrote.

Erdogan pledges continued pursuit of accountability for crimes in Gaza and across region

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has strongly condemned crimes against humanity committed in Gaza and across the region, pledging that his administration will pursue accountability for those responsible.

In a statement posted on X, Erdogan said that “those who have shed the blood of 74,000 of our Gazan brothers and sisters” and those who “sow terror in our region from Lebanon to Syria” must face justice.

“We will never waver in our stance until they are held accountable before the law,” Erdogan wrote, adding that Turkiye would “courageously continue to proclaim the truth and boldly speak the facts”.

Israel’s Ben-Gvir and hundreds of settlers storm Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron

Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and hundreds of settlers have stormed the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron in the occupied West Bank, our colleagues on the ground report.

Over the weekend, Israeli authorities imposed sweeping restrictions on Palestinians in Hebron and occupied East Jerusalem for the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. Businesses were forced to close, residents were confined to their homes, and Muslims were barred from entering the Ibrahimi Mosque.

More than 900 settlers storm Al-Aqsa Mosque compound

The Jerusalem Islamic Waqf says 907 settlers stormed the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied East Jerusalem this morning.

It says they entered under the protection of Israeli police. The incursion comes during Sukkot, a Jewish holiday, amid repeated incursions into the compound this week.

Qatar calls Israeli annexation plans ‘flagrant challenge to international law’

Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs says it “completely rejects” Israeli remarks concerning the annexation of territory in southern Lebanon and the Gaza Strip.

In a statement on X, the ministry described the Israeli statements as “a flagrant challenge to international law and legitimate international resolutions”. It urged the international community to “assume its responsibilities” and compel Israel to halt what it called “expansionist plans and settlement policy in the occupied Palestinian territories”.

The statement renewed Qatar’s “firm and supportive stance towards the Palestinian cause”, urging an end to the occupation and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state along the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. It also reaffirmed Doha’s backing for Lebanon and its “sovereignty over all its territories”.

Netanyahu condemns ‘violent riots’ by settlers in West Bank, calls for full force of law against ‘rioters’

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has condemned what he called “violent riots” overnight in the northern occupied West Bank, saying security forces were harmed while trying to maintain order in a post on X.

Netahyahu said “a handful of rioters” does not represent what he called the “law-abiding settler community,” adding that they “do them a grave injustice” and hinder security forces in carrying out their mission.

He called on law enforcement authorities to “exhaust the full severity of the law against the rioters”.

".. and hinder security forces in carrying out their mission."

Our summaries about the West Bank includes tens of reports reading the the armed occupation belligerent protects the attacking colonists and often are taking part in colonist attacks.

Israeli military brings travel to a halt near Ramallah

Palestinians in the city were surprised to see Israeli forces coming in, shutting down roads, and preventing movement in an area known as an industrial area.

This happened because Israeli settlers stormed the area early this morning. They put up chairs, intending to hold some religious festivities during the holidays.

You can see the Israeli army and police preventing Palestinians from using the street that connects Ramallah to other towns in the occupied West Bank.

That daily commute has come to a complete halt because of the Israeli settlers, who continue to intimidate people. They are here not just to provoke Palestinians, but to remind them that the whole area is off limits.

UK has suspended or rejected more than 80 arms export licenses to Israel since 2024

The British government has suspended or rejected more than 80 export licenses to Israel for items that could be used by the Israeli military in Gaza, according to a report in the Jewish Chronicle.

Stephen Doughty, the UK’s Minister of State for the Middle East, said roughly 30 licenses were suspended when restrictions were first announced in September 2024, with more than 50 additional applications rejected since then, the UK publication cited Doughty as saying. The minister said new measures approved on September 8 introduced a “double lock” on arms exports, requiring licenses to be assessed both against existing international humanitarian law criteria and the government’s position on the illegality of the occupation.

Doughty said he personally reviews each license to ensure exports aren’t used in Gaza, noting that some publicly discussed licenses cover non-weapons items like cystic fibrosis medication and protective gear for journalists and NGOs.

Regarding the F-35 fighter jet program, Doughty said British-made components remain largely exempt from restrictions. While Britain has halted direct F-35 exports to Israel, it continues supplying spare parts to the program’s global supply chain, which Doughty defended on the basis of security interests shared with allies, warning that withdrawal could have serious consequences for the wider program.

UK’s Burnham says Labour will be ‘principled’ in securing two-state solution

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham has told the Labour conference in Liverpool that the party will continue to work towards a two-state solution in the Israel-Palestine conflict.

“We will be principled in our leadership in securing a two-state solution between Israel and Palestine, as Ed Miliband has shown,” said Burnham, referring to the foreign secretary’s speech yesterday calling the suffering in the Palestinian territories “a stain on the conscience of the world”.

“I want to say to the millions of people in this country and indeed elsewhere who have been moved and outraged by the plight of the Palestinian people. We hear you. You were right,” Miliband had told the conference.

Burnham, in his first speech at the Labour conference as prime minister, also said the UK would “stand up to threats wherever they come from, whether Russia, Iran, or anywhere across the world”.

Qatar criticizes Israeli ‘breaches of international law’ in Palestine, Lebanon and Syria

Qatar has said the continuation of Israeli violence in the Palestinian territories, Lebanon and Syria constitutes “grave breaches of international law”.

Dr. Hind Abdulrahman Al-Muftah, the Permanent Representative of Qatar to the United Nations Office in Geneva, delivered the country’s renewed condemnation of Israel’s continued attacks on the Gaza Strip and occupied West Bank during the UN General Debate on human rights in Palestine and other occupied Arab territories.

Israel’s refusal to implement the plan to end violence in Gaza was a deliberate attempt to undermine international efforts aimed at achieving lasting peace, Al-Muftah said, according to a statement published by the Qatari foreign ministry.

In her statement, she called on the international community to “shoulder its responsibilities to end the Israeli occupation, ensure accountability for the crimes committed against the Palestinians, and halt any support that contributes to the expansion and entrenchment of illegal Israeli settlements.”

Israel’s defence minister says Hamas leaders abroad ‘in crosshairs’ 

Israel’s Defence Minister Israel Katz has threatened to target Hamas leaders living outside of Gaza, saying they should not “die peacefully”.

“Hamas leaders abroad are also in the crosshairs,” said Katz, according to a video statement cited by Israeli media.

“None of these despicable murderers, who played a central role in the October 7 massacre, should die peacefully in their beds,” he added, referring to the Hamas-led attack on Israel in 2023.

In 2025, Israel struck Qatar’s capital, Doha, in lethal missile attacks that it said were a “targeted strike” aimed at senior leaders of Hamas. The strike killed a Qatari citizen.

Netanyahu says he has filed defamation lawsuits over October 7 warning allegations

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he has filed defamation lawsuits against what he calls “false allegations” that he received warnings ahead of the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.

In a post on X, Netanyahu called the claims “an absolute lie” that are being spread by “political rivals and hostile foreign actors” ahead of Israel’s October 27 elections.

Earlier this month, Israel’s Haaretz newspaper reported that UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed had warned Netanyahu about a possible attack by Hamas 10 days before the events of October 7, 2023.

According to Haaretz, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar had relayed the warnings to the UAE through an intermediary, saying he was preparing a “huge surprise” and that Israel should “expect an earthquake”, according to the report.

It said the Emirati president and his aides read this as a sign of an impending full-scale attack and passed the intelligence to Israel’s Shin Bet agency. But the internal security agency dismissed the threat.

The Emirati president then raised the warning directly with Netanyahu, who also brushed it aside, the report said.

Revealed: Netanyahu Received an Explicit Warning Days Before Oct. 7. He Didn't Brief Israel's Security Chiefs.

In September '23, UAE President bin Zayed called Netanyahu to deliver a harsh warning. Netanyahu did nothing. An extensive investigation, conducted for a new book, reveals the PM's failures surrounding Oct. 7. Netanyahu: 'This is an absolute lie'

These were the final days of September 2023. Terrorist attacks inflamed the West Bank, masses of Gazans regularly protested at the border fence, and the country was reeling from internal conflict over the judicial coup laws. Anyone watching the events with clear eyes could sense that an escalation was lurking around every corner.

Read more.

Our comment:

• 20231130 - news - Israel (read: Netanyahu) Knew Hamas’s Attack Plan More Than a Year Ago.
• 20240307 - Secret document reveals Israeli armed war belligerent knew since 2022 that Hamas was planning something.

Israeli minister Ben-Gvir campaigns to displace Palestinians, increase soldier salaries before October elections

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has said he intends to take over as defence minister in the next government before Israel’s elections on October 27.

Ben-Gvir has served under Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is facing a tough race against main political challenger, Gadi Eisenkot, head of the Yashar party and former army chief of staff. Eisenkot is also projecting an image as a security hawk.

Ben-Gvir outlined his priorities for a potential tenure in the role: a plan to accelerate the displacement of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, the disarmament of the Palestinian Authority and a dramatic increase in conscript soldiers’ salaries.

UAE condemns Israel’s Ben-Gvir, settlers for storming Al-Aqsa Mosque

The Emirati foreign ministry has issued a statement condemning the storming of Al-Aqsa Mosque by Israeli settlers, led by far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

As we reported, Ben-Gvir joined hundreds of Israeli settlers who stormed the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque compound, which Jews refer to as the Temple Mount, yesterday on the third day of the Jewish holiday of Sukkot.

Today, Ben-Gvir also joined settlers in storming the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, according to our colleagues on the ground.

The UAE called the storming of Al-Aqsa a “provocative escalation and an unacceptable extremist act”.

Ben-Gvir has repeatedly joined crowds of Israeli settlers storming Al-Aqsa. Yesterday, the Israeli minister said, “We are the owners of the place in Al-Aqsa and in the prisons, and we have turned the lives of terrorist prisoners into hell.”