OT subject but worth a main-stream read- OT News Feeds...

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Monday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Ukraine’s Air Force says it shot down 43 out of 61 Russian drone attacks in an overnight raid targeting nine regions across Ukraine. No major damage or casualties were immediately reported.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy appealed again for “the strong support” from Ukraine’s allies and for more United States-made Patriot air defence systems. This follows a week of more than 1,000 Russian air offences."

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Tuesday Middle East update:

"Israel released 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees early yesterday, concluding the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement following Hamas’ return of three female Israeli hostages on Sunday. The Washington Post reports.

Hamas yesterday said it would next release additional hostages held in Gaza on Saturday, in accordance with the agreed ceasefire timeline. Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Emily Rose report for Reuters.

The Israeli military today announced it has begun an operation in the occupied West Bank’s city of Jenin, without providing further details. James Mackenzie reports for Reuters.

The U.N. said 915 aid trucks entered Gaza yesterday on the second day of the ceasefire, citing information from Israel, the United States, Qatar and Egypt. Michelle Nichols reports for Reuters.

Israel expects Trump to lift the Biden administration's hold on the supply of 2,000-pound bombs, outgoing Israeli U.S. ambassador Mike Herzog told Axios in an interview. Barak Ravid reports.

Hamas is ready to enter into dialogue with the United States, a senior Hamas official said on Sunday, a rare move for the group which has long excoriated Washington for supporting Israel. Adam Rasgon reports for the New York Times. 

Yemen's Houthis will limit their attacks on commercial vessels to Israel-linked ships if the Gaza ceasefire is fully implemented, the Houthi-associated Humanitarian Operations Coordination Center said in an email dated Friday. Jonathan Saul reports for Reuters."

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Tuesday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Ukraine’s Air Force claimed it shot down 93 of 141 drones Russia launched in attacks overnight. The Air Force also said that 47 of the drones were “lost” while two returned to Russia.

Russia said it destroyed 31 Ukrainian drones which had primarily targeted industrial sites in Russia’s Tatarstan region, located about 1,000km (about 600 miles) from the Ukrainian border. No victims or damage have been reported.

The governor of Russia’s Bryansk region, Alexander Bogomaz, said 14 Ukrainian drones were neutralised in the region, which borders Ukraine. He claimed Kyiv also fired four United States-made HIMARS missiles at targets in Bryansk.

Putin said he was “open to dialogue” with Ukraine under Donald Trump’s administration. He also said any settlement should ensure “lasting peace based on respect for the legitimate interest of all people”.

French President Emmanuel Macron warned that Russia’s war on Ukraine would not end “tomorrow or the day after” in response to Trump’s pledge to end the war quickly."

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Wednesday Middle East update:

"Trump’s nominee for U.S. ambassador to the U.N., Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), yesterday said she agrees with extremist members of the Israeli cabinet that Israel has a “biblical right” to the entire West Bank. She also denounced what she described as an “antisemitic rot that is pervasive within the U.N. system.” Karen DeYoung and Missy Ryan report for the Washington Post. 

Qatar's prime minister yesterday said he hopes the Palestinian Authority will play a role in governing post-war Gaza. Separately, the country’s foreign minister said Qatar is “confident” in the ceasefire deal but expects the next stage of negotiations to be much more complex. Samia Nakhoul and Marwa Rashad report for Reuters. Susannah George reports for the Washington Post.

More than 900 aid trucks entered Gaza yesterday with no apparent law-and-order issues so far, a senior U.N. official said. Michelle Nichols reports for Reuters."

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Wednesday Russia-Ukraine update:

"The Ukrainian Air Force said Russia launched four missiles and 131 drones towards Ukraine overnight. The Air Force also said that 72 of the drones were destroyed while 59 disappeared without reaching their targets.

Moscow’s Ministry of Defence said its troops intercepted and destroyed 55 Ukrainian drones in six Russian regions overnight. Six drones were downed in Voronezh where, according to the region’s Governor Aleksandr Gusev, falling debris started a blaze just six days after remnants of another intercepted drone triggered an earlier fire. No injuries were reported.

President Donald Trump said he planned to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin and told reporters that Putin was “destroying Russia” by refusing to strike a ceasefire deal with Ukraine. Trump said he thought “Russia’s going to be in big trouble” and expressed concern for Moscow’s economy.

Trump warned Putin that he would impose new sanctions on Russia if the Kremlin refused to negotiate a ceasefire deal with Ukraine. Trump also said the US was looking into sending weapons to Ukraine but added that the European Union should do more to support Kyiv.

Chinese President Xi Jinping held a video call with Putin during which the pair discussed the outlook for a potential peace deal to end Moscow’s war with Ukraine, Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said. The two leaders also touched on issues relating to the Korean Peninsula, the Middle East, Syria and Taiwan, Ushakov said."

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Thursday Middle East update:

"Israel will maintain control of the Rafah crossing into Gaza during the first phase of the ceasefire, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said yesterday. AP News reports.

Israel has not yet decided whether to help fund the reconstruction of Gaza, Israel's Economy Minister Nir Barkat said yesterday. Elisa Martinuzzi and Brad Haynes report for Reuters.

Hamas’ continued hold on power in Gaza poses a challenge to implementing a permanent ceasefire, regional diplomats and security experts say. Nidal Al-Mughrabi reports for Reuters."

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Thursday Russia-Ukraine update:

"NATO is willing to “pay the bill” to ensure the continued supply of U.S. weapons to Ukraine, Secretary-General Mark Rutte said today. Sudip Kar-Gupta and Lili Bayer report for Reuters.

The Ukrainian air force said Russia launched 99 drones towards Ukraine overnight in what has become a daily volley of strikes. The air force said Kyiv’s troops destroyed 65 drones while 30 disappeared from radar. Six regions in Ukraine reported attacks as a result of the drones.

Russia’s Interfax news agency reported that Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said that Moscow only sees a small window of opportunity to forge an agreement with the new United States administration under President Donald Trump.

Trump gave an ultimatum to his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, to “stop this ridiculous war” with Ukraine “now” or face tariffs and sanctions on “anything sold by Russia to the United States”. He threatened similar consequences for Russia’s allies as well.

Russia’s deputy UN ambassador, Dmitry Polyanskiy, responded to Trump’s threats, saying Moscow would have to see what Trump means by a “deal”. Polyanskiy also said although Trump is not responsible for the US’s “malicious anti-Russia” policy, he now holds power to put an end to it."

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Friday Middle East update:

"Clashes between Hamas and organized looters temporarily interrupted the influx of aid to southern Gaza late on Wednesday, according to residents, transport workers and video footage of the gunfight. Claire Parker, Heba Farouk Mahfouz, Hajar Harb, and Adam Taylor report for the Washington Post.

U.S. security contractors will help secure the return of displaced Palestinians to northern Gaza by screening returning Gazan vehicles for weapons, U.S. officials said. It is not yet clear when the mechanism will be put into effect. Patrick Kingsley, Ronen Bergman, and Aaron Boxerman report for the New York Times.

Palestinians in north Gaza are readying tent encampments for displaced families set to return to their home areas on Saturday following the expected release of the second round of Israeli hostages. Nidal Al-Mughrabi, Mahmoud Issa, and Dawoud Abu Alkas report for Reuters.

The Israeli government has told the Trump administration it wants to keep its military positions in southern Lebanon for at least 30 days past the Sunday withdrawal deadline, according to an Israeli official. Hezbollah said yesterday that the IDF’s continued presence would be a “brazen breach of the [ceasefire] agreement.” Mick Krever and Jeremy Diamond report for CNN.

Syria’s central bank yesterday ordered commercial banks to freeze all accounts linked to former President Bashar al-Assad’s regime, according to a document seen by Reuters. Riham Alkoussa and Timour Azhari report.

Syria’s new authorities are using Islamic teachings to “instill a sense of morality” in the country’s fledgling police force, five senior police officers said. Analysts say the move risks sowing new tensions in the diverse country and alienating foreign governments. Amina Ismail and Khalil Ashawi report for Reuters.

Two Russian ships linked to Moscow’s military have docked at the Kremlin's naval base on the Syrian coast at Tartus, which analysts say may indicate the anticipated evacuation of the facility has begun. Nick Eardley and Matt Murphy report for BBC News."

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Friday Russia-Ukraine update:

"North Korea is preparing to send additional troops to Russia after suffering heavy casualties, South Korea’s military said today. Hyung-Jin Kim reports for AP News.

Hundreds of North Korean weapons are flooding into Russia to aid Moscow’s war effort in Ukraine, according to the head of Kyiv’s Defense Intelligence Directorate. Serhii Korolchuk reports for the Washington Post.

Russia said Friday it shot down 120 drones over a dozen regions overnight, including over the capital Moscow, in one of the biggest such barrages of the nearly three-year conflict. One drone was also intercepted over the Russian-annexed Crimean peninsula. Russian media reported damage in various regions, including fires.

Kyiv’s air force said it shot down 57 of 92 drones that Russia launched in attacks overnight. The air force also said 27 of the drones were “electronically lost” and did not cause any damage.

President Donald Trump said he wants to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin immediately, and told reporters that Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is ready to make a ceasefire deal.

Belgium’s prime minister, Alexander De Croo, told a panel in Davos that an analysis by the European Union concluded that the Russian economy could sustain its war with Kyiv for at least another year. De Croo also said it was vital that the 16th package of sanctions against Moscow include gas, energy and fertilisers.

NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte said at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, that Ukraine would one day join NATO when there is sustainable peace, and warned NATO must make it clear that Russia has no right to veto a vote on who joins the alliance."

dbCooper

George Will has relevant commentary on Pete Hegseth . . .

https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2025/01/24/pete-hegseth-defense-department-unqualified/

Opinion

George F. Will

There are ample reasons, not about his personal life, for rejecting Hegseth

Pete Hegseth has shown no evidence of being capable of managing the Pentagon behemoth.

January 24, 2025 at 7:00 a.m. ESTToday at 7:00 a.m. EST

4 min

Pete Hegseth, President Donald Trump's choice to be defense secretary, appears during a confirmation hearing on Capitol Hill on Jan. 14. (Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post)

A thought experiment: Suppose you assembled 100 intelligent, public-spirited people experienced with the complexities of managing enormous bureaucracies, deeply familiar with today’s geopolitical challenges, alert to the importance and sensitivities of allied nations, and acquainted with large private-sector manufacturing and the precarious condition of the U.S. defense industrial base.

Suppose you asked each of these 100 to list 100 people qualified to be defense secretary. There could be, cumulatively, 10,000 different names. What is the probability that even one of those would be Pete Hegseth? Approximately zero.

If the task is to capture a heavily defended hill, select Hegseth, a decorated combat veteran. Or perhaps Army Gen. George S. Patton. Or Marine Lt. Gen. Lewis “Chesty” Puller. But you would send none of those three — Patton commanded an army, Puller a division, Hegseth a platoon — to command the Pentagon.

Today, defense secretary is the most demanding and consequential Cabinet position. So, let us stipulate certain things:

Follow George F. Will

Hegseth, 44, should be presumed sincere when he says his alcohol-fueled sexual rowdiness is in his regretted past. Controversies about his past loutishness should not be dispositive when deciding whether he should be confirmed. There are ample other reasons to reject his nomination.

An independent forensic accountant found evidence of gross financial mismanagement while Hegseth was administering two small nonprofits. This information is redundant evidence of what is facially obvious: his unreadiness to manage the Pentagon’s almost $900 billion budget (soon, one hopes, $1 trillion), 3.4 million military and civilian employees, and relations with myriad contractors and foreign military leaders.

Hegseth worries that the military’s “warrior culture” has been diluted by DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) preoccupations that have seeped in from portions of the civilian culture, distracting the services from focusing on lethality that deters wars or wins them. Wokeness can, however, be scrubbed from the military in a morning: Orders sent down the chain of command will be obeyed. More daunting problems — e.g., reviving military and nonmilitary shipbuilding, deciding whether aircraft carriers, F-35 fighters and other weapons systems are right for a rapidly changing threat environment — are many orders of magnitude more difficult to solve.

Granted, one miscast defense secretary had glittering credentials. Robert S. McNamara came to the Kennedy administration from Ford Motor Co.’s presidency. He was considered an administrative wizard and a polymath. He surrounded himself with “systems analysts,” who were the policy fad du jour in the 1960s. He and they thought that “the best and the brightest,” armed with MBAs and sufficient data, could subdue Vietnam, Capitol Hill and other trouble spots. House Speaker Sam Rayburn was skeptical: “I’d feel a whole lot better about them if just one of them had run for sheriff once.”

In government’s upper reaches, prior credentials, acquired in the private and public sectors, should include judgment, gained from political or government experience. These do not guarantee success, but their absence foretells failure.

Some Senate Armed Services Committee Democrats in Hegseth’s confirmation hearing were preoccupied with questions pertaining to gender (e.g., women in combat). These, while important, are less so than others. One exemplary Democrat highlighted some.

In his opening statement, Sen. Jack Reed (D-Rhode Island), West Point Class of 1971, former chairman of the committee, now its ranking minority member, noted Hegseth’s “disregard for the law of armed conflict” and “support for service members who have been convicted of war crimes. You have championed the pardoning of military members who were turned in by their fellow soldiers and SEALs, as well as military contractors convicted of killing 14 Iraqi civilians without cause.”

Hegseth, Reed said, has advocated the reinstitution of interrogation methods such as waterboarding that the United States considers torture. How, Reed wondered, would Hegseth as secretary “maintain good order and discipline”?

Reed noted Hegseth’s statements, in books and in cable television fulminations, against “modern leftists” who are “the soul of the Democratic Party.” Reed could have cited Hegseth’s “welcome to the Warring Twenties!” And: “If you don’t own a gun, buy one. Train to use it. Then buy more.” Because, “Yes, there will be some form of civil war.”

Reed, who has voted to confirm nine defense secretaries, including those of the first Trump administration, said: The defense secretary’s challenge “is to remove partisan politics from the military. You propose to inject it.”

In last Monday’s inaugural address, President Donald Trump vowed to encourage a “merit-based” society. He certainly did not start with the Pentagon’s E-ring.

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Too bad the totally unqualified is now SecDef.  

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Saturday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Ukraine’s military said that Russia launched 61 drones and two missiles into the country in an overnight attack, adding it shot down both missiles and 46 drones. It said 15 other drones disappeared from radars without reaching their targets.

Moscow said it intercepted 121 Ukrainian drones, including 37 in Russia’s Bryansk, 20 in Ryazan and 17 in the Kursk and Saratov regions of the country.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has suggested meeting in person with US President Donald Trump to discuss an end to the Ukraine war.  Putin said he always had a “pragmatic and trusting” relationship with Trump and supported his view that he was the real winner of the 2020 US election.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has accused the Russian president of seeking to manipulate Trump to secure an end to the war on Moscow’s terms."

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Sunday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Ukrainian forces downed 50 of 72 drones launched by Russia overnight. It said nine drones were “lost”, in reference to Ukraine’s use of electronic warfare to redirect Russian drones, while one is still in Ukrainian airspace.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence said its air defence systems destroyed 15 Ukrainian drones over Russia and two sea drones in the Black Sea.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Saturday said allies should work towards determining a format for potential peace talks with Russia, reiterating that only talks involving Kyiv could bring about sustainable peace.

Zelenskyy said US military assistance to Kyiv has not been affected by the State Department’s foreign aid freeze. According to him, the suspended aid concerns humanitarian support. “I am focused on military aid. It has not been stopped,” he said."

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Monday Middle East update:

"President Trump on Saturday said he spoke with Jordan’s King Abdullah II about “cleaning out” Gaza and urged Jordan and Egypt to “take on” about “a million and a half” refugees from the territory. Annabelle Timsit and Gerry Shih report for the New York Times.

Jordan’s Foreign Minister yesterday said his country’s opposition to the Gaza refugee transfer plan floated by Trump is “firm and unwavering.” Separately, Egypt’s foreign ministry reiterated its position against “the displacement of Palestinians from their land through forced eviction.” Will Weissert reports for AP News; Betsy Klein and Lex Harvey report for CNN.

The White House on Friday instructed the Pentagon to release the former Biden administration’s hold on the supply of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel,according to Israeli officials. Barak Ravid reports for Axios.

Israel on Friday gave the U.N. aid agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) six days to stop all operations in East Jerusalem, according to a letter from Israel’s U.N. Ambassador to U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres. Farnaz Fassihi reports for the New York Times.

The White House yesterday announced that the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Lebanon will extend until February 18, following Friday’s statement from Netanyahu’s office that the IDF would not complete its withdrawal from southern Lebanon in accordance with the agreed ceasefire schedule. The White House statement did not indicate whether both parties had agreed to the extension. Patrick Kingsley, Ronen Bergman, and Natan Odenheimer report for the New York Times; Barak Ravid reports for Axios; Abbie Cheeseman reports for the Washington Post."

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Monday Russia-Ukraine update:

"A barrage of more than 100 Russian drones sparked a fire at an industrial facility in western Ukraine and damaged residential buildings in other regions, Ukrainian officials said. The strikes resulted in two fires at an industrial facility in the western Ivano-Frankivsk region.

The Ukrainian army said Moscow’s units launched 38 attacks with artillery support at various points against the Ukrainian lines of defence.

Ukraine said its armed forces, together with the country’s defence intelligence, repeatedly struck Russia’s Ryazan Oil Refining Company for a second time just two days after its initial overnight attack on the facility. Kyiv said the oil refinery is one of the four largest in the Russian Federation."

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CHEETO and the Canal and why we are here:

A Bet on Nationalism (Tasos Katopodis / Getty)

View in browser Stephanie Bai: In Donald Trump’s inauguration speech, and even before he assumed office, he promised to retake the Panama Canal. Is this an issue that Americans care about? Franklin Foer: Until Trump started talking about it, the Panama Canal hardly ranked on the list of the top 500 strategic threats to America. Best I can tell, there were some toll increases, and the Chinese have started to pay greater interest to the canal over time. But there’s zero national-security reason for the United States to deploy its prestige and military might to take back the canal. When it comes to his domestic audience, I think what Trump is betting on is a rising sense of nationalism that he can tap into. And I think by framing the canal as a lost fragment of the American empire and implying that it’s rightfully ours, he’s betting that it will be a piece of the broader “Make America great again” sentiment that he coasts on. Stephanie: You wrote in your recent story that “reclaiming the Panama Canal is an old obsession of the American right.” Why is it important to that faction of the country? Franklin: Many countries failed to build a canal connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, so America’s success was seen as a feat of engineering—at least, Americans viewed it that way for much of the 20th century. But its construction exacted an enormous human toll; thousands of workers died. And by the 1960s, most American presidents pretty clearly realized that the canal generated so much resentment toward the United States that keeping it didn’t make sense. But you also had a large sector of the American right that felt like we were abandoning our empire. And so Ronald Reagan, when he ran for president in 1976, made reclaiming the Panama Canal one of his central slogans. The issue was something that the insurgent New Right movement, a rising force in American politics, exploited mercilessly in order to raise money and garner enthusiasm. Stephanie: Trump’s grievances include his claim that the canal’s neutrality has been violated because it’s under the control of China. Franklin: China likes to involve itself in the operation of infrastructure, and it has lots of global trading routes that it aims to control and exert influence over. There is a new Chinese presence in the canal, but that doesn’t mean that they’re about to take it over. One of the things that’s ludicrously self-defeating about Trump’s strategy within the hemisphere is that he’s deliberately aggravating countries that could conceivably be thrown into the arms of China. So Panama may not want to enter into any sort of alliance with the Chinese, but because Trump is threatening military action against it, the country may decide that aligning more closely with China is in its interest. Stephanie: In response to Trump’s inauguration speech, Panama President José Raúl Mulino said that “the canal is and will remain Panama’s.” As you noted, Trump has already floated the idea of using military force to retake the canal. Do you think this could actually come to pass? Franklin: I think Trump is testing limits to see what he can get. I would be surprised if he was asking the Pentagon to draw up plans right now to retake the Panama Canal. But the problem is: Once he goes down this road of threatening to use military force to take something back, what happens when Panama doesn’t give it back? I don’t think there’s an extremely high chance that we will go to war to take back the canal. But I think there’s at least some possibility that we’re going down that road. Stephanie: American expansionism seems to be top of mind for Trump. He talked about his “manifest destiny” vision in his inauguration speech, and he has repeatedly spoken about annexing Greenland and Canada in addition to taking back the Panama Canal. Franklin: The fact that he’s using the term manifest destiny, which is a callback to American expansion in the West in the 1840s and 1850s, shows that this is not a departure from American history but a return to the American history of imperialism. This is a big shift in the way that America now thinks of its role in the world. I think for Trump, who is a real-estate guy, acquiring real estate is a token of his greatness. He looks at Vladimir Putin and sees the way in which Putin has projected his power to expand his territory with Ukraine and thinks, Well, that’s what powerful leaders and powerful nations do. And here he is starting to explore that possibility himself.

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Tuesday Middle East update:

Over 300,000 displaced Palestinians crossed into northern Gaza yesterday,Hamas said. Gerry Shih, Abbie Cheeseman, Hazem Balousha, Lior Soroka, and Shira Rubin report for the Washington Post. 

The U.N. aid agency for Palestinians (UNRWA) is preparing to vacate its East Jerusalem office following Israel’s order to cease its operations in the city yesterday. Reuters reports.

The EU will restart a civilian mission monitoring the Rafah crossing, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Kaja Kallas said yesterday. Reuters reports.

Palestinians “must not be expelled from Gaza,” the German foreign ministry said yesterday in response to Trump’s suggestion that Jordan and Egypt should take in more Gazans. Reuters reports."

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Tuesday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Russia’s Ministry of Defence said Moscow’s air defences destroyed 32 Ukrainian drones in an overnight attack. Nearly half were destroyed over the Voronezh region that borders Ukraine, the ministry said.

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Kyiv’s forces downed 57 of 104 Russian drones in an overnight attack. The air force said 39 drones were also lost. The barrage of attacks reportedly sparked a fire at an industrial facility in western Ukraine, damaged infrastructure facilities, an apartment block and private houses. No casualties were reported.

The Kremlin said Washington has not yet contacted it to set up a meeting between Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Moscow believes the US is still interested in organising a meeting with Trump, who recently said that he wanted to meet Putin “immediately”."

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Wednesday Middle East update:

"Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet with Trump next week, Netanyahu’s office said. Barbara Tasch reports for BBC News.

Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, yesterday met with a senior adviser to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ahead of Witkoff’s planned Gaza trip today, sources said. Barak Ravid reports for Axios; Susannah George reports for the Washington Post.

Hamas should never govern Gaza again, Secretary Rubio told his Egyptian counterpart in a phone call yesterday, the State Department said. Kanishka Singh and Jasper Ward report for Reuters.

Jordan yesterday launched an air bridge to bring urgent medical supplies to Gaza under a U.S.-sponsored deal, Jordanian officials said. Suleiman Al-Khalidi and Jehad Shalbak report for Reuters.

Israeli airstrikes injured 24 people in southern Lebanon’s Nabatieh city yesterday, the Lebanese health ministry said. The Israeli military claimed it had targeted Hezbollah vehicles transporting weapons. Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati said he raised the incident with the ceasefire monitoring committee. Reuters reports."

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Wednesday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Russia’s Ministry of Defence said Moscow’s air defences destroyed 32 Ukrainian drones in an overnight attack. Nearly half were destroyed over the Voronezh region that borders Ukraine, the ministry said.

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, Kyiv’s forces downed 57 of 104 Russian drones in an overnight attack. The air force said 39 drones were also lost. The barrage of attacks reportedly sparked a fire at an industrial facility in western Ukraine, damaged infrastructure facilities, an apartment block and private houses. No casualties were reported.

The U.S. military this week transferred around 90 Patriot air defense interceptors from storage in Israel to Poland with a view to deliver them to Ukraine, following months of back-and-forth between Israel and Kyiv, sources say. Barak Rabid reports for Axios.

The Kremlin said Washington has not yet contacted it to set up a meeting between Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump. Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said Moscow believes the US is still interested in organising a meeting with Trump, who recently said that he wanted to meet Putin “immediately”."

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Thursday Middle East update;

"Israeli authorities said they would stop working with the U.N. agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) from today, as legislation threatening aid deliveries for Palestinians comes into effect today. Omar Abdel-Baqui and Carrie Keller-Lynn report for the Wall Street Journal. 

The Trump administration’s Middle East envoy, Steven Witkoff, made a rare visit to Gaza yesterday in a bid to reinforce the Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement, according to a White House official. Lara Jakes, Adam Rasgon, and Thomas Fuller report for the New York Times.

The Syrian rebel coalition that ousted Bashar al-Assad last month yesterday appointed its leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, as the country’s president for a transitional period. A spokesperson for the coalition also declared that the Constitution had been nullified, while the legislature and army formed under al-Assad were dissolved. The moves amounted to Syria’s first first official steps toward establishing a new government. Christina Goldbaum reports for the New York Times.

Russia has accelerated its military withdrawal from Syria by “removing vehicles and containers from its key Tartus port on the country’s Mediterranean coast,” analysis by BBC Verify suggests. Nick Eardley, Matt Murphy, and Joshua Cheetham report."

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Thursday Russia-Ukraine update:

"The Russian Ministry of Defence said its air defence systems destroyed 104 Ukrainian drones overnight. One man was reportedly injured with a “non-penetrating chest wound”. Buildings and cars were also damaged in the drone attacks.

Vasily Anokhin, the mayor of Smolensk in western Russia, said the Smolensk Nuclear Power Plant, the largest power generating facility in the northwest area of Russia, was among Kyiv’s targets of the overnight attack. Anokhin said the unmanned aerial combat vehicle was destroyed.

Kyiv’s military claimed to have shot down 29 of the 57 drones launched by Russia in an overnight attack, while 14 were unable to reach designated targets. Ukraine said Russia also launched an Iskander-M ballistic missile.

Ukraine’s military also said it struck an oil refinery in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region, resulting in a large fire. Regional Governor Gleb Nikitin confirmed the fire and said debris from a destroyed drone ignited the blaze.

Russia’s Andreapol oil pumping station was also hit by a Ukrainian drone strike, causing an oil leak and fire, Reuters news agency reported citing a source in the Ukrainian Security Service. A missile storage facility was also hit in the Tver region, causing a string of explosions."

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Friday Middle East update:

"White House envoy Steve Witkoff told Axios in an interview at the end of his Middle East trip that rebuilding Gaza could take between 10-15 years, adding, “there is almost nothing left of Gaza… It is stunning just how much damage has occurred there.” Barak Ravid reports.

A U.S. security firm is hiring 96 U.S. Special Forces veterans to help run a Gaza checkpoint during the Israel-Hamas ceasefire, according to a company spokesperson and an email seen by Reuters. Jonathan Landay and Aram Roston report. 

Israel has lodged a complaint to the U.S.-led committee overseeing the ceasefire in Lebanon that Iranian diplomats and others are delivering tens of millions of U.S. dollars in cash to Hezbollah, according to a U.S. defense official. Dov Liever, Michael R. Gordon, Benoit Faucon, and Adam Chamseddine report for the Wall Street Journal.

The Israeli military today said it struck several Hezbollah targets overnight in the Bekaa Valley and along the Syria-Lebanese border. Yesterday, Israel said it intercepted a drone launched by Hezbollah, calling it “a breach of the ceasefire agreement.” Reuters reports."

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Friday Russia-Ukraine update:

"North Korean soldiers who joined Russian allies in the war against Ukraine have been pulled off the front lines after suffering major losses, Ukrainian and U.S. officials say. Michael Schwirtz and Julian E. Barnes report for the New York Times.

Kyiv’s military said Moscow launched 81 drones towards Ukraine in an overnight attack with the air force reportedly shooting down 37 drones and 39 failing to reach their targets.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence said air deference units downed 17 Ukrainian drones in four regions over the course of two hours. Eleven of the drones were reportedly destroyed over the Kursk region, while the remaining six were taken down over Russia’s Belgorod and Voronezh regions, as well as Russian-occupied Crimea."

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Saturday Russia-Ukraine update: (not much out there.)

"Russian forces have launched missiles at the centre of Ukraine’s Black Sea port of Odesa, a UNESCO World Heritage site, seriously damaging historic buildings and injuring seven people, officials said. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said the attack was “a deliberate strike”.

Firefighters have extinguished a blaze that had burned for two days at a petrochemicals plant in Russia’s Nizhny Novgorod region struck by Ukrainian drones, state news agency TASS reported, citing emergency services.

President Donald Trump has said he would speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin. He also said he thinks they will perhaps do something he described as “significant”. Trump said Washington was having “serious” discussions with Moscow.

It is believed that Pyongyang deployed more than 10,000 soldiers to support Russian forces fighting against Ukraine."

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Sunday Russia-Ukraine update:

"The Ukrainian air force said Russian forces launched 123 drones and more than 40 missiles. Its air defence units shot down 56 of the drones and redirected 61, it said. The air force provided no figures on how many missiles were intercepted.

Russian forces shot down 44 Ukrainian drones and a US-made HIMARS rocket launch system in the last 24 hours, the Russian Defence Ministry said.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence said its forces launched attacks aimed at Ukraine’s gas and other energy infrastructure and shot down 108 Ukrainian drones in the last 24 hours, Russian news agencies reported.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has warned that excluding his country from talks between the United States and Russia over the ongoing war would be “very dangerous”, and asked for more discussions between Kyiv and Washington to develop a plan for a ceasefire.

The US wants Ukraine to hold presidential and parliamentary elections, potentially by the end of the year, especially if Kyiv can agree a truce with Russia in the coming months, President Donald Trump’s top Ukraine official Keith Kellogg said."

lousubcap

Monday Middle East update:

"The Rafah border crossing reopened on Saturday for the first time in nine months, allowing 50 sick and wounded Gazans to cross into Egypt, the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry said. Adam Rasgon reports for the New York Times.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will start negotiations on the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire when he meets with Trump’s Middle East Envoy, Steve Witkoff, in Washington today, Netanyahu’s office said. Netanyahu is also expected to meet Trump tomorrow. Reuters reports; CBS News reports.

Thousands of Egyptians on Friday demonstrated against Trump’s proposal for Egypt and Jordan to accept Gazan refugees in a rare state-sanctioned protest at the Rafah border crossing. Reuters reports. 

The United Kingdom, France, and Germany on Friday issued a joint statement reiterating “grave concern” over Israel implementing a law forbidding contacts between Israeli officials and UNRWA. Reuters reports."

lousubcap

Monday Russia-Ukraine update:

"Russian President Vladimir Putin said that not inviting Moscow to the Auschwitz liberation events was “strange “and “shameful”. Putin also said the matter could have been handled more subtly and that the relatives of Soviet soldiers who liberated the camp could have been invited if it was not possible to invite the soldiers due to health or age.

Putin also praised US President Donald Trump’s political style, saying the recently inaugurated president would bring the European elite back in line. He said that it would happen very soon and that “they will be at their master’s heel and wagging their tails nicely”.

Trump’s Ukraine envoy Keith Kellogg said both Kyiv and Moscow must be willing to compromise to successfully negotiate an end to the ongoing war. “I think both sides will give a little bit,” he said.

Trump told reporters that talks with Russia and Ukraine are going “pretty well”. He said meetings and talks were scheduled with relevant parties, including both Kyiv and Moscow."

lousubcap

Tuesday Middle East update:

"The Trump administration has asked Congress to approve new transfers of roughly $1 billion worth of bombs and other military hardware to Israel, according to U.S. officials. Jared Malsin and Nancy A. Youssef report for the Wall Street Journal.

The Foreign Ministers of Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar, together with a senior Palestinian official this week sent a joint letter to Secretary Rubio opposing plans to displace Palestinians from Gaza and demanding Palestinian involvement in its reconstruction. Barak Ravid reports for Axios. 

Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan are expected to discuss a bilateral defense pact today, sources say. Suleiman Al-Khalidi, Maya Gebeily, and Khalil Ashawi report for Reuters."

lousubcap

Tuesday Russia-Ukraine update:

A Moscow explosion yesterday killed the leader of a pro-Russian paramilitary group in eastern "Ukraine, according to Russian media. Ukraine has yet to comment on the blast. Laura Gozzi reports for BBC News.

Trump yesterday said he wants to strike a minerals-for-aid deal with Ukraine,with Kyiv “secur[ing]” U.S. aid with its “rare earths and other things.” Constant Méheut reports for the New York Times.

Russia’s Ministry of Defence said Moscow’s air defence units intercepted and destroyed 70 drones in a Ukrainian offensive overnight. The ministry said Kyiv had also targeted energy facilities, including an oil refinery in Volgograd which had caught fire.

Ukraine’s military claimed responsibility for strikes on Russian energy facilities, claiming that it hit a Russian oil refinery in Volgograd and a gas processing plant in Astrakhan. Both establishments supplied fuel to the Russian Army, according to the military.Kyiv’s Air Force said it destroyed 38 of 71 Russian drones launched at Ukraine in an overnight attack. Some 25 drones disappeared from radars without reaching their targets, the Air Force said.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov backed the United States’s call for Ukraine to hold a presidential election by the end of the year, saying elections in Ukraine were necessary for legitimisation. He also said there had been no serious discussions on who would participate in talks to end the war.

According to the Reuters news agency, Moscow also said that it was too early for Russia to consider the four-way peace talks model proposed by Zelenskyy, which would include the US, Ukraine, Russia and the EU. Zelenskyy previously said it would be “very dangerous” if Washington and Moscow held ceasefire talks without involving Kyiv."