Muslim countries condemn Israeli rejection of Gaza plan
Eight countries are accusing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of jeopardising the Gaza Peace Plan pushed by US President Donald Trump. (Reuters: Jonathan Ernst)
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· Associated Press
Israel condemned for obstructing peace effort in Gaza | The National
The UAE joined seven other Arab and Islamic nations in condemning Israel for rejecting renewed efforts to implement US President Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza, as his son-in-law and envoy Jared Kushner held talks with Hamas in Egypt on Sunday to help push it through.
· Amr Mostafa
US envoy Kushner visits Hamas leader in push for Gaza road map before Netanyahu meeting
Israeli PM Netanyahu last week rejected the US-backed 15-point plan in a rare public show of defiance against the Trump administration
· Associated Press
US envoy Kushner visits Hamas leader in push for Gaza road map before Netanyahu meeting
Israeli PM Netanyahu last week rejected the US-backed 15-point plan in a rare public show of defiance against the Trump administration
· Associated Press
Pope calls for end to Israeli violence against Palestinians in occupied West Bank
Pope Leo XIV renewed his call for an end “to the repeated acts of violence against the Palestinian population of the West Bank," Vatican News reported.
· Middleeasteye
HaMiffal cultural center marks ten years and counting of community-oriented creation
HaMiffal is an oasis, albeit not exactly one of peace and quiet right now. That is due to the invasive, extraneous roar emanating from construction sites in downtown Jerusalem. Still, there is a definite tranquility vibe about the place – a feeling that positive energies abound, and that good things are in the offing.
· BARRY DAVIS
Metula's Israeli Poets’ Festival returns to Jerusalem with all disciplinary guns blazing
"You’re a poet, and you don’t know it” was a schoolyard chant back in the day if some kid or other inadvertently said something that rhymed.
· BARRY DAVIS
Mecca pact unites Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan - but what does it mean? - opinion
The Mecca Joint Defense Agreement, signed in the holy city by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, marks one of the most significant strategic developments in the Islamic world in decades.
· VAS SHENOY
Jewish educators should stop relying on archaeology to prove Israel’s history - opinion
I sat with a good friend on a sunny afternoon, sharing a cigar and enjoying the views of the mountains around my home. The air carried the faint scent of desert sage. He handed me a small gift, an old coin from the time of the Hashmonaim, the era of Hanukkah. I turned the tiny coin between my fingertips, feeling its…
· URI PILICHOWSKI
Norwegian Center for Conflict Resolution engaged directly with Hamas, NGO Monitor claims
The Oslo-based Norwegian Center for Conflict Resolution (NOREF) engaged in direct, systematic coordination with high-ranking Hamas officials, according to internal Hamas documents recovered from Gaza, declassified by the IDF and translated by NGO Monitor.
· MATHILDA HELLER
What Netanyahu’s ‘Islamic Republic of Britain’ remark reveals - analysis
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent comment about the “Islamic Republic of Britain” is better fodder for political psychologists than political scientists. While political science tries to explain what happens in global politics, political psychology tries to explain why.
· HERB KEINON
Jared Kushner meets Hamas chief in Egypt to discuss Gaza ceasefire
Palestinians remove iron from the rubble of buildings destroyed by Israeli airstrikes during the war with Hamas, repair and recycle it for construction, building tents or selling it, in Gaza City, Sunday, Aug. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Jehad Alshrafi)
· Samy Magdy
Stalemate on the strait as deadline for US-Iran agreement expires | The National
The 60-day deadline that the US and Iran had set to reach a longer-term peace deal has expired with neither side giving ground on the big issues nor willing to extend the window for further negotiations.
· Jihan Abdalla
Report: US envoy Kushner meets Hamas leaders in Egypt
Hamas leaders met on Sunday in Egypt with President Donald Trump's son-in-law and envoy Jared Kushner, who is seeking to push a Gaza plan rejected by Israel, sources with knowledge of the talks told AFP.
· Middleeasteye
Iran offers US$30,000 bounty for killing or capturing US soldiers
‘Courageous Iranian women who carry out such an action will receive double the reward,’ said Iran’s army chief Amir Hatami
· Agence France-Presse
Iran offers US$30,000 bounty for killing or capturing US soldiers
‘Courageous Iranian women who carry out such an action will receive double the reward,’ said Iran’s army chief Amir Hatami
· Agence France-Presse
Israeli military attacks strategic hill in southern Lebanon
The Israeli military has attacked Ali al-Taher Hill in southern Lebanon with explosives, according to the National News Agency.
· Middleeasteye
Israeli attacks push Lebanon deeper into economic crisis (VIDEO)
Lebanese families are struggling to make ends meet as the country’s long-running financial crisis deepens amid Israeli attacks that have devastated homes and farmland, RT correspondent Steve Sweeney reports from Beirut.
· RT
Israeli attacks push Lebanon deeper into economic crisis (VIDEO)
Lebanese families are struggling to make ends meet as the country’s long-running financial crisis deepens amid Israeli attacks that have devastated homes and farmland, RT correspondent Steve Sweeney reports from Beirut.
· RT
Canadian man charged after targeted vandalism of Saskatchewan synagogue
A 31-year-old man from Dundurn, Saskatchewan, has been charged following a targeted vandalism attack against the Congregation Agudas Israel Synagogue, police announced on Thursday.
· ALEX CARSON
Several Arab, Islamic countries condemn Israeli rejection of BoP's Gaza plan
The foreign ministries of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Jordan, Indonesia, Pakistan, Turkey, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt condemned Israel’s rejection of the Gaza Board of Peace’s (BoP) 15-point roadmap for implementing US President Donald Trump’s peace plan in a joint statement released on Sunday.
· GOLDIE KATZ
'Don't let them win': Likud billboard highlights Mamdani, Khamenei, Erdogan, Qassem as enemies
Likud launched a billboard ahead of election season featuring Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, and Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem, according to posts from Israeli social media accounts shared on Sunday.
· CORINNE BAUM
Death toll increases in Lebanon since Israeli invasion
Israeli attacks have killed at least 4,346 people and wounded more than 12,000 in Lebanon since invading the south on 2 March, according to the Lebanese health ministry.
· Middleeasteye
Centcom chief visits US carrier enforcing Iran blockade amid reports of severe strain on crew
The head of the United States Central Command (Centcom), Admiral Bradley Cooper, has visited the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea, which is enforcing the US blockade of Iran.
· Middleeasteye
Trump admin. secretly contacted IRGC through Iraq's KRG President Barzani, sources say - report
The Trump administration spoke with Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps by using Kurdistan Regional Government President Nechirvan Barzani as a secret backchannel, Axios reported on Sunday, citing three sources with direct knowledge of the talks.
· JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Election Committee to publish polling-station turnout while keeping voter identities secret
The Central Elections Committee will publish turnout figures for individual polling stations several times on election day while keeping the identities of those who have voted confidential, committee chairman Justice Noam Sohlberg ruled on Sunday.
· SARAH BEN-NUN
Iran and Oman work on temporary Hormuz shipping route as Trump threatens to claim the strait
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said on Sunday that Tehran and Muscat were working to establish a temporary maritime route through the Strait of Hormuz, while stressing that the talks were separate from any decision on reopening the strategic waterway.
· Middleeasteye
What Australian trauma doctors found when they came to Israel
A group of Australian trauma physicians was in Israel earlier this month for a special medical mission focused on ongoing learning and training, with the goal of improving trauma care in both countries.
· JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Iranian parliament advances bill to curb foreign influence
Iran's parliament approved on Sunday the general principles of a bill that would criminalise interviews and other communications with media deemed hostile to the Islamic Republic, including US or Israeli media and outlets financed by either country, Iran's Shargh newspaper reported.
· Middleeasteye
Centcom chief visits US carrier enforcing Iran blockade amid reports of severe strain on crew
The head of the United States Central Command (Centcom), Admiral Bradley Cooper, has visited the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier in the Arabian Sea, which is enforcing the US blockade of Iran.
· Middleeasteye
'Delusional': Iran Fires Back At Trump's Make 'Hormuz Strait A Territory Of The US' Ambitions
Predictably, Iran has on Saturday issued a full-throated rejection of President Trump's Friday evening words related to the status on the conflict and energy transit in the region.
· Tyler Durden
Hamas leader meets Egyptian intelligence chief
A Hamas delegation has met Egypt's intelligence chief, Hassan Rashad, in the Egyptian city of El-Alamein to discuss the implementation of the US-backed post-war plan for Gaza.
· Middleeasteye
Aliados de Trump nas Américas abrem os braços para Israel
Quando uma ofensiva militar matou mais de 1,4 mil pessoas na Faixa de Gaza em 2009, o então presidente da Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, expulsou o embaixador de Israel em sinal de protesto. Romperam-se, então, as relações diplomáticas entre os dois países.
· Gabriel González
Shots fired, several arrested after Palestinians surround IDF soldiers in Hebron - report
Several Palestinians were arrested by the IDF after attempting to attack Israeli soldiers in the West Bank city of Hebron, Ynet reported on Sunday.
· JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Recent Kurdistan Region attacks expose Baghdad’s struggle with Iran-backed militias - analysis
Three drones were intercepted over Erbil, the capital of the Kurdistan Region of northern Iraq, on Friday.
· SETH J. FRANTZMAN
Iran’s accusing Qatar of holding Iranian pilots an attempt to ‘flip narrative,’ analyst to 'Post'
Iran’s accusations that Qatar is holding three Iranian pilots shot down during attacks on Gulf states are an attempt to “flip the narrative” on Tehran’s “failed military gamble,” Gulf analysts told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday.
· DANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD
Gulf markets climb despite Iran impasse and Hormuz disruption | The National
Most Gulf stock markets advanced on Sunday, with Saudi Arabia leading gains despite a lack of progress in efforts to end the Iran conflict and continuing disruption to shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
· Salim A. Essaid
Israel's Ben-Gvir advocates killing '30 to 40' people in Gaza every night
Israel’s Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, prays during the mourning ritual of Tisha B’Av at the Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest site, in Jerusalem’s Old City, Wednesday, July 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
· Julia Frankel
China-based Hengli Group main importer of sanctioned Iranian crude oil, analysts say - report
Hengli Group, a Chinese company that employs over 300,000 people and earns over $100 billion per year, is a primary importer of Iranian crude oil, The Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday, citing industry analysts, shipping brokers, and the US Treasury.
· TZVI JASPER
WATCH: Ancient shopping center unearthed during excavations prior to construction in central Israel
A 1,300-year-old industrial and commercial complex was uncovered during excavations over the past few months in the Winter Stadium parking lot in Ramat Gan, the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) announced on Sunday morning.
· MIRIAM SELA-EITAM
Renewed Moscow-Damascus flights signal revival of ties after Assad's fall - analysis
A Syrian Airlines flight from Moscow arrived at Damascus International Airport on Sunday, August 16, the first civilian flight from Moscow since the fall of the Assad regime. This “marks the resumption of the carrier’s air services between Syria and Russia,” Syrian state media SANA said.
· SETH J. FRANTZMAN
Iranian parliament votes to further criminalize interviews with US, Israeli media outlets
Iran's parliament approved a bill on Sunday that would criminalize interviews and other communications with media deemed hostile to the Islamic Republic, including US or Israeli media and outlets financed by either country, Iran's Shargh newspaper reported.
· REUTERS
Gaza genocide: How Israel made horror a ritual of daily life
Life under genocide has its familiar daily rituals. A discerning eye detects latent horrors in the scenes that unfold in succession across screens.
· Middleeasteye
Knesset asks High Court to unfreeze budget transfers approved during election recess
The Knesset asked the High Court of Justice on Sunday to allow five frozen budget transfers to proceed, arguing that Speaker Amir Ohana acted within his authority when he approved a Finance Committee meeting during the election recess.
· SARAH BEN-NUN
UK Dept Ed. reviewing Muslim schools run by Al-Khair Foundation following reports of Hamas ties
The UK's Department of Education (DfE) is assessing information regarding four Muslim independent schools after the Charity Commission opened a statutory inquiry into the Al-Khair Foundation, the organization that runs the schools.
· MATHILDA HELLER
Hamas’s popularity is falling, but Khalil al-Hayya remains more popular than PA’s Abbas - poll
Though Hamas’s popularity has declined among Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza, Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya still commands more support than Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, according to a new poll published by the Ramallah-based Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research on Wednesday.
· DANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD
Palestinian Alaa Shehada wins second consecutive Fringe First with new one-man show | The National
Palestinian actor Alaa Shehada has won a Fringe First Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe for The Bridge, a one-man show that turns an arduous journey between the occupied West Bank and Jordan into a story about family, separation and daily life under occupation.
· Faisal Al Zaabi
Iran war pushes Middle Eastern airlines towards $4.3bn loss in 2026
As the US and Israel launched air strikes on Iran on 28 February 2026, Iran struck back near US military installations in the Gulf, including in Qatar and the UAE.
· Middleeasteye