“I know what it’s going to take to get a peace deal done: Donetsk and maybe a land swap somewhere,” Witkoff reportedly said.
Bloomberg did not say how it obtained the recording, which was likely made by US intelligence agencies who routinely monitor and eavesdrop on foreign officials’ conversations.
When CNN asked whether the president had received the bill or whether any timing had been set, officials did not respond.
“I have nothing to add today,” Miller told reporters when pressed for an update on the legislation.
The Speaker also revealed he has spoken with Senate Majority Leader John Thune, saying the Senate is likely to slow things down and push amendments to ensure safeguards for victims before any release of the files.
Lawmakers are also perplexed by the timing of the briefing. After an unsteady first 16 months in office left Starmer one of the most unpopular British prime ministers on record, Labour MPs had previously signaled that the prime minister would not face a serious leadership contest until after local elections in May 2026, giving his government time to reverse its decline in the polls.
At least 236 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes since the ceasefire took effect, according to the Palestinian health ministry.
Three Israeli soldiers have been killed by Palestinian fighters in the same period, according to the Israeli military.
The Israel Defense Forces directly blamed Hamas for the attack, but Trump’s comment appeared to echo the assertion by the terror group that the incident occurred in an area under Israeli control, where they claim to have had no contact with their operatives for months.
“As you know, they’ve been quite rambunctious. They’ve been doing some shooting, and we think maybe the leadership isn’t involved in that,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.
(…)
Two Israeli soldiers — Maj. Yaniv Kula, 26, and Staff Sgt. Itay Yavetz — were killed and three were wounded when terror operatives launched an attack on troops in the Rafah area.
The anticipated reopening of the Rafah crossing comes under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s peace plan, which established the ceasefire and a prisoner exchange between Hamas and Israel as part of the first phase.
The plan also led to a surge in humanitarian aid entering to the famine-stricken enclave.
„We do not believe Hamas has breached the agreement with regard to the bodies of hostages so far,“ the official said, adding that the US has entered the next stage of the Gaza deal.
(,,,)
The comments came after Israeli intelligence shared with Washington claims that Hamas still has access to more bodies of Israeli hostages than it has admitted, Axios reported.
But some experts say Israel fears Barghouti for another reason: An advocate of a two-state solution even as he backed armed resistance to occupation, Barghouti could be a powerful rallying figure for Palestinians. Some Palestinians view him as their own Nelson Mandela, the South African anti-apartheid activist who became his country’s first Black president.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office publishes photos of the premier alongside US President Donald Trump’s special envoy Steve Witkoff and son-in-law Jared Kushner, as they participate in the full cabinet meeting where ministers are due to vote on the first phase of Trump’s plan to end the war in Gaza.
Far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir says his Otzma Yehudit party will vote against the first phase of the ceasefire deal announced today, in which Palestinian prisoners will be released in exchange for all 48 Israeli hostages held in Gaza.
Ben Gvir’s party is not exiting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition now, but he warns that if Hamas is not dismantled, Otzma Yehudit will “bring down the government.”
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a fellow far-right leader, likewise announced that his Religious Zionism party would oppose the deal.
Trump noted the widespread support in Israel for a hostage deal that ends the war, demonstrating a level of familiarity with domestic Israeli politics that has led him to squeeze Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into accepting his proposal, even though it places the premier at odds with his far-right coalition partners who want to continue the war and permanently occupy Gaza.
Tensions are at a breaking point in Israel as thousands gather in Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, demanding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accept Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan and end the war. Hostage families, holding banners reading “It’s Now or Never,” have issued an emotional plea to the Israeli gove ment to ensure that Trump’s proposal is not sabotaged.
A further possible boost to hopes for peace came with a supportive statement from Iran-backed Islamic Jihad, which is smaller than Hamas but seen as more hardline.
(…)
„What is important is that Netanyahu does not sabotage this, because now that Hamas agreed, Netanyahu will disagree, as he usually does,“ said Jerusalem resident Jamal Shihada.
Two of Scandinavia’s busiest airports – Oslo and Copenhagen – were forced to close for several hours due to drone sightings overnight into Tuesday, disrupting the travel plans of tens of thousands of people.
The airspace over Denmark’s Copenhagen Airport was closed for almost four hours on Monday night after two to three large “unidentified” drones were spotted in the area. No flights were allowed to take off or land.
Earlier today, the Palestinian Telecommunications Regulatory Authority said telephone lines and internet connections were down due to Israeli attacks on several main routes supplying the region.
NetBlocks attributed the disruption to connectivity to “the targeting of one of the main fibre optic routes”.
(September 11, 2025)
In fact, Trump and top aides have come to question whether Netanyahu, who authorized the strike and has threatened more, was trying to sabotage the talks, according to the person close to Trump’s team.
“Every time they’re making progress, it seems like he bombs someone,” the person said. “That’s why the president and his aides are so frustrated with Netanyahu.”
(August 28, 2025)
According to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, at least eight people were killed in the Russian airstrikes in Kiev, and dozens were injured. The Kyiv Independent newspaper reported the death toll was at least 10.
The Russian military used not only drones but also ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and Kinzhal (Dagger) hypersonic missiles.
Russia has killed at least 23 people including four children in a massive wave of drone and missile attacks on Ukraine’s capital that has drawn international condemnation.
Sir Keir Starmer accused Vladimir Putin of “sabotaging hopes of peace” with the attacks that took place in the early hours of Thursday and saw more than 600 drones and over 30 missiles launched.
(4 hours ago)
Commenting on the ceasefire proposal agreed to by Hamas, the former Egyptian Assistant Foreign Minister Hussein Haridy said Israel may not back a deal – even though the current proposal agreed to by the Palestinian group is “almost identical” to one Israel agreed to a few weeks ago.
Far-right Israeli ministers have called on Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to ignore a proposal for a temporary ceasefire in Gaza accepted by Hamas on Monday.
The area was under Israeli military control and the roads were rugged and dangerous, civil defence agency spokesman Mahmoud Basal said.
The private transport association now operating in Gaza said that 26 commercial trucks entered the territory on Tuesday. Six were looted, and four of those overturned, resulting in deaths and injuries.
(June 19, 1996)
Arafat, speaking in China, said the peace accords were an international agreement rather than a bilateral one between the Palestinians and Israel.
„Now it is the turn of the international community. I am not alone now,“ Arafat said. „We hope everyone will be committed to what has been agreed upon.“
Khalil Shakaki, head of a West Bank think tank, predicted Netanyahu will eventually support a Palestinian state confined only to the Gaza Strip – where almost half the Palestinians now under autonomy live. He predicted a complex „arrangement“ in the larger West Bank, possibly including a role for neighboring Jordan.
Netanyahu‘s first test of intentions will come soon: He must decide whether to honor the outgoing government‘s commitment to withdraw troops from Hebron, the last West Bank city under Israeli occupation.
(March 4, 1996(
In a leaflet distributed in Jerusalem today, „The Cells of the Martyr the Engineer Yahya Ayyash — the New Pupils“ said the bombing was „the end of our violent revenge“ for the death of Mr. Ayyash, a Hamas bomb maker killed on Jan. 5 in the Gaza Strip by an exploding cellular phone widely believed to have been planted by Israeli agents.
The Cells of the Martyr group had taken responsibility for the suicide bombings last Sunday in Jerusalem and in the coastal Israeli town of Ashkelon, and appears to be a renegade offshoot of the armed wing of Hamas, the Qassam Brigades.
A leaflet issued last Thursday by the Qassam Brigades offered an eight-day respite from attacks while Israel considered the Brigades‘ conditions for a cease-fire: an end to Israeli violence against Hamas members and other Palestinians and the release of all Hamas prisoners in Israel jails.
Ignoring that offer, The Cells of the Martyr blew up a bus today and set its own terms for a cease-fire, declaring that it would halt attacks for three months to enable Hamas and Israel to reach a truce mediated by the Palestinian Authority, the governing body led by Yasir Arafat.
The Cells criticized the Qassam Brigades for its truce offer, and warned that attacks would resume if Israel pursued Hamas militants. Addressing Israelis ahead of the May 29 national election, the group said, „Neither the Labor party nor the Likud party will give you security as long as your Government practices terrorism against us and continues to arrest members of our people.“
(July 20, 2025)
Just hours before launching, Handala was the target of two deeply alarming incidents that appear to be deliberate sabotage intended to obstruct our mission and harm our crew.
On the night of July 19 or early morning July 20, a rope was discovered tightly wound around the boat’s propeller. This could not have occurred through normal use or by accident. It was a direct threat to the safety of our vessel and its ability to sail.
Even more dangerous, on the morning of July 20, the truck sent to deliver fresh water to our boat for washing and cooking on the journey, carried not water, but sulfuric acid. It splashed on a crew member’s leg, causing chemical burns. Another crew member who smelled the substance and opened the container sustained burns to his hand.
We have video footage of the individuals who delivered this dangerous substance. We call for an immediate investigation and full accountability for these acts.
Despite this suspected sabotage, we remain undeterred. The attempt to harm our team and silence this mission will not succeed.
The departure was marred by two alarming acts of suspected sabotage. In the hours leading up to the launch, crew members discovered a rope tightly wound around the vessel’s propeller. The coalition said the incident was unlikely to have occurred accidentally and posed a significant threat to the ship’s ability to sail safely.
In a second incident, a truck delivering what was supposed to be fresh water for the voyage instead carried sulfuric acid. Two crew members suffered chemical burns, with one sustaining injuries to his hand after opening the container, and another to his leg from splashing liquid.
7:04 Is Iran Open to Diplomacy?
“We have no problem with negotiation. But the atrocities Israel has committed in the region and against our country, and its war crimes…have caused a crisis,” he said.
The president said that returning to the negotiating table has a prerequisite, which is based on a confidence-building attitude.
“Israel must not be allowed to attack again right in the middle of talks and ignite a new war,” Pezeshkian stated.
The Israeli regime launched a blatant and unprovoked act of aggression against Iran on June 13, assassinating many high-ranking military commanders and nuclear scientists in addition to civilians.
On June 22, the United States officially joined the war against Iran by launching attacks on three nuclear facilities in the country in violation of the United Nations Charter and the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
Seated next to President Donald Trump, NATO chief Mark Rutte and Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the start of a day of meetings, Hegseth didn’t provide details of the investigation, but did confirm the classified intelligence assessment and its findings, saying its conclusions are “low confidence.”
The assessment, which has not been previously reported, was produced by the Defense Intelligence Agency, the Pentagon’s intelligence arm. It is based on a battle damage assessment conducted by US Central Command in the aftermath of the US strikes, one of the sources said.
The analysis of the damage to the sites and the impact of the strikes on Iran’s nuclear ambitions is ongoing, and could change as more intelligence becomes available.
In a post on X, Araghchi said Netanyahu was „a con man who has duped successive US Presidents into fighting his own wars for almost three decades. By all indications, the purpose of Netanyahu‘s criminal attack on Iran – killing hundreds of innocent civilians, including women and children – is to scuttle a DEAL between Iran and the US, which we were on the right path to achieve.
Araghchi also accused Netanyahu of „playing“ President Donald Trump and American taxpayers „for absolute fools“. He said if Trump was serious about diplomacy, it would take „one phone call from Washington to muzzle someone like Netanyahu“. He also warned that an absence of a negotiated solution would have untold consequences for regional security and the global economy and get the US „mired in the Mother of Forever Wars“.
Der iranische Außenminister wies in diesem Telefongespräch auf die eklatante Verletzung der Prinzipien der Charta der Vereinten Nationen und des Völkerrechts durch das zionistische Regime während des Verhandlungsprozesses zwischen Iran und den USA hin und sagte: Das zionistische Regime hat nur zwei Tage vor der sechsten Verhandlungsrunde in Muscat mit der Verletzung der Souveränität und territorialen Integrität Irans die nuklearen Einrichtungen und Wohngebiete im Iran angegriffen. Es ist offensichtlich, dass das Hauptziel dieses Übergriffs des Regimes darin besteht, die diplomatischen Prozesse zu stören und andere in einen ungerechten Krieg zu verwickeln.
Among the senior Iranian officials who were killed in Israel’s initial wave of airstrikes on Iran on Friday was Ali Shamkhani, a senior advisor to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who wanted to strike a nuclear deal with the US.
In an interview with NBC News in May, Shamkhani said Iran was willing to recommit to its pledge to never build a nuclear weapon, reduce uranium enrichment to low levels, and get rid of its stockpiles of highly enriched uranium in exchange for sanctions relief from the US.
“It’s still possible. If the Americans act as they say, for sure we can have better relations,” Shamkhani said at the time. “It can lead to a better situation in the near future.”