The Cradle ✔

❗️Gaza health officials reported at least three Palestinians killed and 11 injured in the latest 24-hour period. According to the health ministry, one person was killed in a recent Israeli strike, while two others succumbed to earlier injuries. Ministry figures also show 1,568 Palestinians killed and 5,649 injured since the so-called ceasefire took effect.

❗️The moment Israeli occupation forces blew up the family homes of Palestinian prisoners Ibrahim and Zakaria Dawood in Beita, south of Nablus, in the occupied West Bank.

❗️Paris vows to pursue two-state 'solution' regardless of Israeli election outcome French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot declared today that Paris will press forward with its push for a two-state 'solution' irrespective of the final outcome of Israel’s parliamentary elections. Speaking to France 2 television as vote-counting remained deadlocked, Barrot stressed that diplomatic pressure and regional objectives will remain unaltered. "Our course will not change; our position remains unchanged," whether outgoing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition retains power or the opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot emerges victorious. Relations between Paris and Tel Aviv have deteriorated sharply over the past year, strained significantly by French President Emmanuel Macron’s official recognition of a Palestinian state and subsequent measures to sever trade ties with illegal Israeli settlements across the occupied West Bank. Reaffirming the French government's long-term diplomatic baseline, Barrot emphasized that European policy focuses on achieving comprehensive stability in the region. “What we want is security for Israel, but also the prospect of two states living side-by-side — recognized, respected in their rights, and at peace,” he stated.

❗️Qatar presents Iran with new seven-day proposal to end US-Israeli war Qatari mediators delivered a new draft proposal to Iran on Sunday aimed at ending the US-Israeli war on Iran, with Tehran expected to respond by the end of the week, an official familiar with the negotiations told Reuters on Wednesday. The proposal, currently under consideration by Iran, outlines a seven-day framework to address concerns raised by both Tehran and Washington, with confidence-building measures to be implemented by each side on a daily basis, the official said. The process could begin early next week, with several countries expected to serve as guarantors of the agreement, the official added.

❗️As inconclusive partial Israeli results continue to be announced, Israel's main stock indices have recorded losses. The main index of blue-chip companies, Tel Aviv 35, decreased 1.7 percent, while Tel Aviv 125, the benchmark index, dipped 2.5 percent, falling below 4,000 as of 12:00 GMT.

❗️IAEA finds no evidence Iran has rebuilt nuclear facilities damaged by US-Israeli strikes The head of the UN nuclear watchdog said on Tuesday that there is no evidence Iran has attempted to repair or rebuild nuclear facilities damaged in US and Israeli military strikes this year or last year. Addressing a UN Security Council meeting, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi called on Iran to grant inspectors access to all nuclear facilities, including those damaged in the attacks. The agency has been unable to verify the status of Iran’s stockpile of near weapons-grade uranium since the US bombed its nuclear sites last year. However, Grossi said that “since June 2025, we have not identified any activity to repair or reconstruct any of the facilities damaged in the military attacks of 2025 and 2026.” (AP)

BREAKING | US military enforces maritime blockade, threat level raised to 'severe' across Strait of Hormuz, Persian Gulf The Joint Maritime Information Center has issued a severe threat advisory following the activation of US military blockade enforcement operations across the Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, Gulf of Oman, and Arabian Sea. Vessel owners, operators, and mariners in the region are advised to maintain extreme vigilance and contact NAVCENT NCAGS or UKMTO immediately for further operational directives.

⭕️ Oil prices climbed more than 1% on Wednesday after a refinery in Saudi Arabia was attacked by Ansarallah, reigniting concerns over potential supply disruptions in West Asia. As of 08:58 GMT, Brent crude futures had risen $1.36, or 1.2%, to $115.24 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate crude gained $1.62, or 1.6%, to reach $101.52 a barrel.

❗️Israeli-American brothers sentenced to 30 years in federal prison for serial sex trafficking Alon, Oren, and Tal Alexander—three brothers from a prominent Israeli-American family who once dominated high-society real estate and security circles in New York and Miami—were each sentenced to 30 years in federal prison on Tuesday for sex trafficking, conspiracy, and multiple counts of sexual abuse. Presiding US District Judge Valerie Caproni delivered the sentences in a Manhattan courtroom following an emotional, hours-long hearing where more than a dozen survivors delivered harrowing impact statements detailing years of systemic abuse. During the five-week trial, federal prosecutors laid out evidence demonstrating how the brothers exploited their immense wealth, high social status, and Israeli-American background ties to lure women to luxury properties—including estates in the Hamptons and international locations such as Tel Aviv—before drugging and violently assaulting them while incapacitated. While Tal and Oren operated elite luxury real estate brokerages, their twin brother Alon worked as an executive at their family’s security firm, utilizing their network to shield their predatory conduct. Judge Caproni firmly rejected the defendants' late assertions of innocence and unconvincing appeals for mercy, describing their actions as "monstrous" and likening them to "sadistic, misogynistic sexual predators." The landmark sentencing marks a dramatic downfall for the brothers, who maintained their defiant stance even as victims confronted them directly in court. Federal prosecutors had pushed for life sentences, citing the profound psychological trauma inflicted upon more than 70 victims who came forward to investigators.

❗️Rights monitors oppose UAE diplomat Lana Nusseibeh’s bid to lead UN Human rights advocates criticized the candidacy of senior UAE diplomat Lana Nusseibeh for the position of UN secretary-general on Tuesday, pointing to her defense of the country's foreign policy and her denial of the UAE's role in fueling the war in Sudan. "She ⁠has been asked about the UAE's role in arming and supporting the RSF, and she just blatantly denies it without regard to the facts — that is not what ​we need as UN Secretary-General," Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch, said during a webinar hosted by online campaigning group Avaaz. "This is the opposite of the kind of moral standing of the human rights leadership that we want from a UN Secretary-General," Roth said during the webinar, titled "Call To Stop UAE Minister's Bid for UN Top Job Amid Sudan Genocide." "Electing (the UAE's) senior diplomat as Secretary-General would hand leadership of (United Nations) institutions to that government’s chief defender, at the very moment Sudanese civilians most need the UN to hold powerful states accountable," said Husam Mahjoub, a Sudanese advocate and founder of independent media outlet Sudan Bukra TV. (Reuters)

❗️'Netanyahu lost': Yair Golan calls for government with 'Arab' parties, rejects exclusion of Palestinian votes Israeli so-called "Democratic Party" leader Yair Golan called on the opposition, led by Gadi Eisenkot, to form a government in partnership with 'Arab' (Palestinian) parties following Israel's elections. In a post on X, Golan declared that Netanyahu had lost, arguing that the opposition commands a 65-seat majority against Netanyahu's 55. He condemned Netanyahu's distinction between Jewish and 'Arab' votes as racist, insisting that the vote of a Palestinian citizen in Tayibe carries exactly the same weight as that of a Jewish citizen in Givat Shmuel. Responding to Netanyahu's insistence on a "Zionist majority," Golan pointed to the 16 lawmakers from non-Zionist ultra-Orthodox parties within Netanyahu's bloc, criticizing their support for widespread military draft exemptions. He argued that the opposition holds both a Zionist majority of 49 seats against 39 and an overall parliamentary majority of 65 against 55 when Palestinian parties are included. Golan urged opposition leaders to abandon their reluctance to cooperate with Palestinian representatives and establish a government serving all citizens. "We have a majority. We have responsibility. And we have an opportunity to form a government of change in partnership with Israel's Arab citizens," he wrote. Meanwhile, with counting still underway, the latest reported results give Netanyahu's bloc 54 seats, Eisenkot's bloc 48, and Arab parties 18, leaving no bloc with a majority on its own.

❗️Pakistani forces strike Afghan border positions after deadly artillery fire in South Waziristan Pakistani security forces launched heavy retaliatory bombardments along the Afghan border today after cross-border shelling killed one civilian and wounded five others in South Waziristan, according to Anadolu Agency. Local administrative officials reported that mortar rounds fired from Afghan territory struck residential homes and commercial storefronts in the Angoor Adda border sector. The deputy commissioner for Lower South Waziristan stated on social media that Pakistani military units are "responding effectively and heavily" to the unprovoked escalation. The violent border flare-up highlights the deepening security crisis and mutual distrust governing relations between Islamabad and the Taliban administration in Kabul. Pakistani authorities have repeatedly accused neighboring governments of sheltering anti-state armed factions that launch cross-border raids, while Kabul denies these allegations and maintains that security enforcement is an internal domestic matter for Pakistan. Simultaneously, domestic counter-terrorism operations intensified across the country's southwest. In a separate military statement issued today, Pakistan's Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) announced that security forces killed nine militants during two separate intelligence-based raids in the Kachhi and Wadh districts of Balochistan province.

❗️Yemeni Armed Forces announced on Tuesday evening that Saudi warplanes have carried out 81 airstrikes and missile attacks over the past 24 hours, targeting civilian sites in the capital, Sanaa, and the governorates of Taiz, Lahj, Saada, Hajjah, and Ibb. The attacks involved F-15 and Typhoon aircraft taking off from the Khamis Mushait and Taif airbases, alongside missile strikes launched from Jizan, resulting in civilian deaths and injuries. The total number of Saudi airstrikes and missile attacks against Yemen since the escalation began has reached 3,379, according to the group.

❗️Israel's Central Elections Committee announces that Netanyahu's bloc has secured 54 seats, compared with 47 for Eisenkot's bloc, while 'Arab' (Palestinian) parties have won 19 seats, with 70.7% of votes counted.

❗️Netanyahu claims right-wing mandate as exit polls show deadlocked Israeli Knesset race Following a high-stakes parliamentary election marked by soaring voter turnout, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed early this morning that right-wing parties had secured a "decisive majority" among the Zionist public, calling for the immediate formation of a "national right-wing government." Netanyahu's defiant declaration came despite exit polls and preliminary counts indicating that neither the incumbent coalition nor the opposition bloc has managed to cross the 61-seat threshold required to command an outright majority in the 120-seat Knesset. Television exit polls released immediately after voting closed at 10:00 PM showed a razor-thin margin, placing Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc only slightly ahead of the primary opposition alliance, according to i24 News. While official vote tabulation remains underway through the Central Elections Committee, the fragmented projections point to a political stalemate, dashing the prime minister's hopes of an unencumbered parliamentary victory. The deadlock sets the stage for intensive backroom coalition maneuvering as both sides court smaller factions to break the legislative paralysis.

Riyadh’s costly road to war Saudi Arabia’s renewed confrontation with Yemen is exposing the limits of its defenses and threatening the economic ambitions it can scarcely afford to sacrifice. BY Mawadda Iskandar

Canada, UAE to sign economic partnership amid US tariff war fallout The deal marks the latest step in Ottawa’s drive to reduce its reliance on Washington

BREAKING | Israel’s Central Elections Committee is slated to meet at 7:15 pm local time (17:15 GMT) to consider requests from multiple parties to extend voting hours in today's election, according to Arutz Sheva.

Yemeni army repels Saudi-backed incursion toward Bab al-Mandab Sanaa’s forces also targeted the Saudi Defense Ministry building in Riyadh, as well as a key energy site and other facilities

❗️Latest developments in Israeli elections: As voting continues, the Central Elections Committee reported that national turnout reached 55.7 percent by 4:00 PM local time, marking an 8.2 percentage-point jump compared to the same hour during the 2022 elections. Political figures across the spectrum have urged their bases to head to the ballot boxes before polls close at 10:00 PM, amid widespread reports of heavy congestion and procedural hurdles. Seeking to leverage the frantic final hours of voting, Netanyahu’s ruling Likud party officially petitioned the Central Elections Committee to extend legal voting hours beyond the standard 10:00 PM closing time, a move joined by the ultra-Orthodox Shas party under the pretext of accommodating long lines. The high participation rates have been accompanied by sharp political friction. Ta'al party leader Ahmad Tibi asserted that settlers were intentionally slowing down the voting process in Palestinian communities, while the legal rights organization Adalah noted it had received “numerous reports” regarding obstacles faced by Palestinians with Israeli citizenship at polling stations. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cast his ballot in occupied West Jerusalem and urged his supporters to rush to the polls, claiming that Palestinian citizens were “racing to the ballots.” Joint List leader Yousef Jabareen accused Netanyahu of continuing “to incite against Arab citizens and question our legitimacy to vote and influence the political map.” Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot similarly criticized the incumbent leader, blasting the Likud campaign for relying on “tricks, lies and fearmongering” to mobilize right-wing voters.