âWhen the future of humanity is at stake, we need a PAUSE on advanced AI development and a ban on artificial superintelligence â an AI mind smarter than any human and capable of operating independently beyond our control,â Sanders said.
The US Senator further said: âAt their upcoming AI summit, Trump and Xi must negotiate a treaty to pause AI and ban superintelligence before it is too late.â
Russian President Vladimir Putin just held a high-stakes bilateral meeting with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on the sidelines of the SCO Summit in Bishkek. The optics and message were unmistakable.
(10 hours ago)
„I state explicitly that if the United States returns to its commitments under the aforementioned memorandum of understanding, the Islamic Republic of Iran will immediately take reciprocal action,“ Pezeshkian said, according to the Iran presidency‘s website.
The memorandum aimed at ending hostilities between Tehran and Washington that began in late February with US and Israeli attacks on Iran that killed former supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The deal, meant to set the stage for final peace talks, later collapsed, with both sides accusing each other of violating its terms.
Since the start of the war, the Rapid Support Forces leadership has maintained high-level contacts with Tel Aviv. Its senior figures and leader‘s family members have made several trips there in a security cooperation that predates the conflict.
According to the investigation published on Friday, two RSF delegations travelled to Tel Aviv – one in May 2025, and another in February 2026.
Africa Intelligence found that members of the delegations convened with officials within the Africa Division of Israelâs foreign ministry and with Israeli intelligence.
The investigation reported that the contacts were embedded in a security and intelligence partnership that began before the outbreak of Sudanâs war in April 2023.
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin both vowed to strengthen the role of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) during their meeting on Monday, as the two countries seek to deepen strategic coordination amid mounting tensions with Washington and its allies.
The two leaders met on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
(August 28, 2026)
ussian President Vladimir Putin will meet the leaders of China, India, Turkey and Iran at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek next week, his foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov said in Moscow on Friday.
Meetings of participants in the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Summit have begun in Bishkek. It will be the main concluding event of Kyrgyzstan‘s SCO chairmanship in 2025â2026, held under the motto „25 Years of the SCO: Together Towards Sustainable Peace, Development and Prosperity“, according to the website of the President of Kyrgyzstan.
The Sultanate of Oman and Japan underlined the importance of reaching a final agreement and a political solution to reduce tensions in the region.
They also called for intensified international efforts to ensure freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz in accordance with international law and to maintain the smooth flow of maritime transport and energy supplies.
This was stated during a joint press conference held at the Foreign Ministry by Omanâs Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi and Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi.
The Omani and Japanese foreign ministers have emphasised the need to intensify international efforts to ensure the freedom of maritime navigation in the Strait of Hormuz in accordance with international law.
Badr bin Hamad Al Busaidi met Motegi Toshimitsu in Muscat.
(July 30, 2026)
Documents obtained by Statewatch through transparency requests show that Europol nevertheless hosted Israeli delegationsâincluding representatives of the Israeli National Policeâon at least four occasions between August 2024 and March 2026. The meetings, involving several departments within the agency, were facilitated by Israelâs liaison officer at Europol and culminated in a visit by Israelâs ambassador to the Netherlands to the agencyâs headquarters in March 2026.
(July 28, 2026, 10:26 PM)
The meetings with Trump were expected to give both leaders a chance to push their agendas with the president at a time when U.S. policy towards Iran and the Russia-Ukraine war continues to be in flux.
(July 28, 2026)
Kyiv on Saturday launched an attack on an Iranian commercial vessel in the Caspian Sea, an incident which Tehran said left one sailor dead and injured several others. The Islamic Republic has threatened retaliation over the strike, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying via social media that it âCANNOT GO UNANSWERED.â
In a post on X on Saturday, Zelenskyy said Ukraine had âachieved very strong results with longârange strikes in the Caspian Sea â including vessels used in military cargo shipments involving Iran, as well as a warship.â
The meeting comes as new polling shows that a growing share of the presidentâs base no longer believes the war is worth its economic costs. And Republicans are increasingly resigned to the fact that the war will likely still be hanging over voters in some form when they head to the polls in November.
Curt Mills, executive director of the American Conservative magazine, described the meeting as âDEFCON 1.â
Netanyahu has been working to secure an invitation to the White House for several weeks, according to a US official and an Israeli source, to discuss progress in the Iran war and warn Trump against diplomatic concessions.
Trump had been resistant to meeting, and some White House officials have been frustrated at what they regarded as Israeli attempts to secure a meeting through media leaks â to âwill a meeting into existence,â the US official said
At Trumpâs invitation, Netanyahu flew to Washington on Monday for the service, his office announced. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also plans to attend the Washington funeral, a White House official confirmed.
Both leaders are planning to meet with Trump during their respective visits.
(July 23, 2026)
Al Jazeeraâs Barnaby Lo reported from an anti-US protest taking place outside the ASEAN summit in the Philippines, which US Secretary of State Marco Rubio is attending.
Protesters condemned the US war on Iran and said that Rubio is a âwar criminalâ.
(July 23, 2026)
MANILA â A confrontation broke out between police officers and protesters during a rally in Pasay City on Wednesday, staged by the progressive group Bayan and other groups in connection with the visit of United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio to the Philippines.
(…)
They also decried the Pax Silica AI-native industrial hub project in New Clark City jointly worked on by the two countries, which critics fear for its possible effect on the environment, food, and water supply in surrounding communities.
(August 6, 2023)
In Israel, there‘s concern that the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, might delay and consider pushing the U.S. agreement until after the 2024 presidential elections.
Israel has sent signals to Saudi Arabia emphasizing the advantages of forging ahead under the current Democratic regime. If a future Republican government, possibly under the leadership of former President Donald Trump, were to take over, bridging bipartisan support for the deal might become an uphill battle.
(…)
Beyond a defense pact, the Saudis also have raised requests with the US for civilian nuclear capabilities, advanced weaponry, and beyond. Israeli agreement would be crucial for these components.
(May 23, 2023)
Amid reports that the US is mediating a normalization deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia, Channel 12 reports on apparent Saudi and US demands for the deal to go ahead.
The report says that Saudi Arabia is demanding the Biden administration unfreeze several major arms deals, a military alliance with the US and a full nuclear program.
An unnamed US official told The Washington Post on Sunday that the Trump administration is „planning for a wider war“ in Iran, though the official warned that US forces likely lack the weapons capacity to „safely sustain operations.“ The official said they don‘t believe that „the White House is aware of that.“
The anonymous official‘s comments corroborated reporting last week indicating that Trump, who has not sought or received congressional authorization for the Iran war, is leaning toward expanding the assault, possibly with ground forces.
„Trump hosted a Situation Room meeting Tuesday evening to discuss the potential seizure of Kharg Island and other territory along the Strait of Hormuz using US troops, as well as the potential bombing of a tunnel complex at Pickaxe Mountain, a nuclear-linked site the US has yet to target,“ The Wall Street Journal reported. „Expanding airstrikes against more targets in Iran, including energy sites, also remains a possibility.“
During his stay, Iranian minister is scheduled to hold separate meetings with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Chief of Defence Forces and Chief of Army Staff Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir.
Following that meeting, MK Odeh stated, âI met with UN Secretary-General Guterres. I thanked him for his principled stances during this difficult time and made it clear that the war of destruction in Gaza must be ended through a comprehensive deal. I emphasized that there is no solution other than ending the occupation and establishing a Palestinian state alongside the State of Israel. It is the duty of the international community to recognize this right, and the UN plays a pivotal role in correcting this historical injustice.â He stressed, âThere is no other way but the path of peace and justice.â
The meetings are being held in coordination with Washington and are focused on implementing existing US-Iran MoU while resolving the disputes that triggered the latest standoff between the two countries. Among the central issues is the long-running disagreement over navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, one of the worldâs most critical energy corridors.
Oil prices rose, and stock markets dropped in shaky trading worldwide Wednesday after President Donald Trump raised doubts about the temporary truce in the war with Iran.
The S&P 500 fell as much as 1.1% after Trump said the agreement to pause fighting was âover,â but the index then trimmed its loss to 0.3% after Trump said the most recent exchange of fire with the Islamic Republic did not herald a return to full-scale war. Theyâre his latest mixed messages on what will happen with the war, which threatens to worsen inflation for the world.
After that, an expanded talks session was convened with the participation of a number of ministers and senior officials from both sides. The discussions addressed various tracks of cooperation â including economic, investment and logistic domains â and explored opportunities for their development in a manner that supports integration, enhances the smooth flow of trade and opens broader horizons for practical partnership at both the bilateral and regional levels, as well as within the framework of Gulf cooperation among the GCC member states.
This comes as Trump meets world leaders at the NATO summit in Turkey, where the Strait of Hormuz is expected to be a key topic.
As conflicts proliferate and risks to civilians mount around the globe, embracing the âresponsibility to protectâ â an international norm aimed at preventing mass atrocity crimes, such as genocide â is more crucial today than ever before, the General Assembly heard today, in its annual debate on the topic.
âTwenty-one years ago, world leaders made a milestone commitment to protect populations from genocide, war crimes, ethnic cleansing and crimes against humanity,â said Courtenay Rattray, Chef de Cabinet of Secretary-General AntĂłnio Guterres, who delivered opening remarks on his behalf.
Referring to the outcome of the 2005 World Summit, where Member States agreed to unprecedented new parameters for atrocity prevention, he said States remain primarily responsible for the protection of their populations. âHowever, in cases where national authorities have failed to do so, Member States undertook a promise â a promise to take collective, decisive and timely action in line with the UN Charter.â
MILWAUKEE â The 227th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) voted last week 454-15 to adopt RIW-04, declaring that the government of Israel has violated the international law prohibiting genocide in its war in Gaza. The Reformed Identity Around the World (RIW) Committee approved the overture with amendments, 55-4, before it reached the floor of the assembly.
Two Senate Republicans who supported a previous resolution calling for an end to the US war on Iran changed their votes late Wednesday after President Donald Trump publicly and privately berated GOP lawmakers, calling them âlosersâ who provided âaid and comfort to the enemy.â
In Wednesdayâs procedural vote, Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.)âwho reportedly got into a shouting match with Trump over the Iran war during a closed-door lunch hours earlierâsided with virtually every other Republican in opposing the war powers resolution, just a day after he supported a separate, symbolic resolution calling for the removal of US forces from the conflict. Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) also switched, changing his vote to âpresentâ at the urging of the president.
Updated on: June 24, 2026 / 11:37 PM EDT / CBS News
Later in the day, however, signs emerged that some of the Senate Republicans who had previously voted to constrain Mr. Trump‘s war powers were reconsidering.
Cassidy was briefed on Iran at the White House by Vice President JD Vance and special envoy Steve Witkoff, the senator confirmed on X, writing that the conversation „address[ed] many of my concerns.“ Cassidy voted against advancing the resolution Wednesday night.
And Paul voted present on Wednesday, despite voting in favor of the last several Iran war powers resolutions. He said on X his goal was to „give the President more space and leverage to negotiate a lasting peace.“