US Will Spend Over $1 Billion Building Military Bases for Israel
By Kyle Anzalone | The Libertarian Institute | July 7, 2025
The US is spending hundreds of millions of dollars to upgrade and build new military bases for Israel. The total cost of the facilities could exceed $1 billion.
Haaretz reports, “The US military aid construction program for Israel includes ongoing projects valued at more than $250 million, with future projects expected to exceed $1 billion.” The new bases will accommodate refueling aircraft and helicopters.
An additional project is building a new headquarters for an Israeli naval commando unit.
Washington provides Tel Aviv with a massive amount of military assistance. The US government has an agreement to send Israel $3.8 billion in security aid every year. Since October 7, 2023, Washington has provided Tel Aviv with an additional $18 billion in assistance.
The US military has also spent billions on operations to benefit Israel. The US fought a war against Ansar Allah in Yemen in an attempt to break the Red Sea blockade on Israeli-linked shipping. Washington has also spent billions of dollars on interceptors to shoot down Iranian missiles.
The military support for Israel has given Tel Aviv a blank check for genocide, multiple invasions, and provoking aggressive wars. Washington’s weapons, diplomatic support at the UN, and the US military shooting down Iranian missiles have insulated Israel from almost all conquest of its attacks on Gaza, the West Bank, Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, and Iran.
Iran ‘rapidly’ beefs up air defenses with Chinese help: Report
The Cradle | July 8, 2025
Iran has been beefing up its air defenses with help from China since a truce ended the 12-day war between Tel Aviv and Tehran last month, according to sources cited by Middle East Eye (MEE).
“Iran has taken possession of Chinese surface-to-air missile batteries,” the report said, adding that Tehran is moving “rapidly” to rebuild air defense capabilities targeted by Israel during the war.
An Arab official told the outlet that the Chinese batteries were delivered to Iran following the ceasefire.
Another Arab official said that US allies in the Gulf were aware of Iranian efforts to “back up and reinforce” air defenses, adding that the White House has been briefed on the matter.
The officials did not reveal the number of surface-to-air missiles that Iran has received from China since the end of the war. One official claimed Tehran was paying for the deliveries with oil shipments.
“The Iranians engage in creative ways of trading,” one of the officials said.
According to ship tracking data, Chinese imports of Iranian oil witnessed a significant jump in the month of June. Beijing is the world’s leading importer and biggest purchaser of Iranian crude oil.
Iran operates the locally produced Khordad and Bavar 373 air defense systems, which are capable of engaging drones, but have a limited ability to shoot down F-35 jets used by Israel.
The Bavar 373 is an Iranian-developed version of the Russian S-300. Iran is also believed to possess older Chinese systems such as the HQ-9.
Iranian air defenses shot down scores of drones during the 12-day war in June, including both drones launched from Israel and locally produced “small drones” operated by Mossad agents inside the country.
Unconfirmed reports of Israeli fighter jets being downed were never verified.
Israel said it launched strikes targeting Iranian air defenses across the country throughout the war, claiming “complete control” over Iran’s skies. It also said it was striking Iran’s missile capabilities.
The Israeli army said it would prevent Iran from being able to fire ballistic missiles at Israel, but failed to achieve that goal.
Iran’s missiles caused widespread destruction across Israel. Key universities, research centers, and technological hubs were struck.
Several military bases were also hit, yet media censorship has prevented details from being released.
The MEE report comes as there has been concern over a potential renewal of fighting between Israel and Iran.
Axios reported on Monday that Israel is preparing for additional military operations if Iran attempts to restart its nuclear program. Israeli officials cited in the report said that US President Donald Trump may approve renewed Israeli strikes.
In late June, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said he had instructed the Israeli army to prepare a military plan targeting Iran’s nuclear and missile programs, as well as its regional alliances.
In a post on X, Katz said the “enforcement plan” would focus on “maintaining Israel’s air superiority, preventing nuclear advancement and missile production, and responding to Iran for supporting terror activity against Israel.”
“We will act regularly to thwart such threats,” he added, warning Iranian leaders to “understand and beware: Operation Rising Lion was only the preview of a new Israeli policy, after 7 October, immunity is over.”
Speaking separately to Israel’s Channel 12, Katz elaborated that the plan would be implemented regardless of the current ceasefire.
Iran has vowed a severe response to any Israeli ceasefire violations.
American emergency doctor, Dr. Mimi Syed on her work in Gaza under ongoing Israeli genocide
“I had 18 documented cases of children that came in with gunshots to the head, neck, abdomen, chest”
Dr. Mimi Syed is an American emergency doctor who has twice worked in Gaza during the ongoing Israeli genocide of Gaza: she spent four weeks each in the Gaza Strip in August and in December 2024.
She spoke to me about her child patients, many of whom were shot in the head or chest by the Israeli army; about Israel’s preventing doctors from bringing aid or vital medical equipment with them into Gaza, hindering doctors’ ability to save Palestinian lives; about the (preventable) malnutrition and starvation she saw amongst Palestinian civilians, as well as the preventable water and sanitation-related diseases contributing to “indirect deaths” in Gaza.
Also on ODYSEE
Follow her:
On Instagram: drmimier
On X: https://x.com/Memers1st
Related Links:
[over 80% of my patients were children ]
https://x.com/Memers1st/status/1939417407296270396
[Mira whom I treated when I was in Gaza who had a bullet lodged in her head. When I showed the CT image to the world, I was accused of fabricating it.
https://x.com/Memers1st/status/1940278942604398678 ]
[Against all odds, she is ok but is now being starved due to the blockade. Her story was featured on Al Jazeera Fault Lines “kids under fire”. I recommend any tax paying American watch this film.]
~5 min, Mira shown
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-0zrQZWwDE
https://x.com/Memers1st/status/1940443774850891902
Ala’a Wafi is a 9-year-old girl I treated during my last trip to Gaza. Her skull was blown off by shrapnel. Against all odds, she survived, but there are thousands like her who didn’t. This is not self-defense. This is who we treated in Gaza: children.
https://x.com/Memers1st/status/1940664281798005142
Tom Barrack’s project to destabilize Lebanon
The Cradle | July 7, 2025
“A century ago, the west imposed maps, mandates, penciled borders, and foreign rule. Sykes-Picot divided Syria and the broader region for imperial gain-not peace. That mistake cost generations. We will not make it again.”
–Tom Barrack, US ambassador to Turkiye and special envoy to Syria
When US Envoy to Turkiye and Syria Tom Barrack made this declaration last month in Ankara, it suggested Washington was repudiating the colonial-era borders imposed on the Levant by Britain and France. But Barrack’s actual meaning was far more insidious: The Sykes-Picot agreement may be dead, but now the US intends to redraw the region’s frontiers to suit one purpose only – Israeli expansionism.
US envoy’s agenda: Redrawing the region by dismantling resistance
Lebanon’s fate remains tightly interwoven with that of Syria and occupied Palestine. Any imposed resolution to the so-called Israeli-Palestinian conflict will inevitably reverberate through both Damascus and Beirut, forcing their governments to make existential choices. Chief among these is the surrender of arms and capabilities, a demand embedded in the US-led effort to transform the region’s balance of power.
Enter Barrack, the Lebanese-American billionaire and close confidant of US President Donald Trump, now repurposed as a roving envoy to Lebanon and Syria. He has since positioned himself as a chief advocate of pulling both Syria and Lebanon into the Abraham Accords, a euphemism for normalizing ties with the occupation state.
Barrack met with top officials in Beirut today, where he was expected to peddle this political reconfiguration under the guise of regional peace.
Maximum pressure and the threat of force
Lebanon is at the sharp end of a US-Israeli campaign to disarm Hezbollah at any cost and within months. The escalation is not a reaction to local dynamics, but rather a consequence of Washington’s regional failures: from the quagmire in Ukraine to its inability to deter Iran or check Israel’s war crimes in Gaza.
With nothing substantive to offer, the US is leaning on coercion to twist arms at the top. Israeli military threats serve as a blunt instrument to corner Lebanese officials into signing off on the resistance’s disarmament – a fantasy the US is now aggressively chasing.
Trump, seeking a legacy boost, is betting on a high-stakes foreign policy gambit: force Lebanon – the last Levantine Arab state still tethered to the Axis of Resistance – into surrender, and break its last defensive stronghold against Israeli expansion.
A new kind of envoy, a new kind of threat
Barrack’s mission departs from the playbook of previous US envoys who, for all their meddling, took Lebanon’s fragility seriously. Not so today. Barrack, who also serves as US ambassador to Turkiye and envoy to Syria, represents a new breed of imperial proxy, unconcerned with sectarian fault lines or civil strife.
Washington now believes Hezbollah is vulnerable. The plan is to crush it politically, and if needed, militarily, even if that means weaponizing the Lebanese army against its own citizens. The Trump administration has made clear it will trade Lebanese stability for US-Israeli hegemony.
According to a Lebanese official cited by Anadolu Agency, Barrack handed Beirut a five-page proposal in June that centered on three main objectives. The first is the monopolization of all weapons under the Lebanese state’s control. The second involves enacting fiscal and economic reforms, including tighter border controls, anti-smuggling efforts, and boosted customs revenues. The third demands a reconfiguration of ties with Syria by demarcating borders and expanding trade.
No timeline is spelled out in the document, but US pressure suggests an expectation for full implementation by year’s end. Lebanon, the official claims, is drafting a unified response based on the ministerial statement and President Joseph Aoun’s inaugural address.
But Beirut has its own demands, including an end to Israeli violations, a full withdrawal from occupied territories, and the launch of reconstruction efforts in the south.
For now, Hezbollah’s official position remains undisclosed. Its response is expected to surface in the coming days, as Barrack returns to Beirut.
After meeting with President Aoun, Prime Minister Nawaf Salam, and Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri in Beirut today, Barrack announced that he is “satisfied” with the Lebanese authorities’ response to Washington’s request regarding the disarmament of Hezbollah. At the same time, he warned that Lebanon “will be left behind” if it does not move in line with the ongoing regional changes. Barrack also stated that “Hezbollah is a political party, and it also has an armed wing. Hezbollah needs to see that there is a future for them, and that this path is not meant to be only against them, and that there is an intersection between peace and prosperity for them as well.”
Empty promises, no Israeli restraint
During his last visit, Barrack met Lebanon’s three top officials to pitch a phased disarmament plan, divided by time and geography. He hinted at possible US pressure on Tel Aviv to vacate recently occupied points. But when pressed, he admitted there were no guarantees that Israel would halt its aggression.
This is no peace deal. It is an ultimatum.
Barrack’s push marks the culmination of a decades-long campaign to dismantle the region’s anti-imperialist front. With Egypt and Jordan long co-opted, Syria’s Baathist era gutted, and Iraq’s factions fragmented, apart from Yemen’s Ansarallah-aligned army, Hezbollah remains the last major armed deterrent to Israeli expansion.
Washington and Tel Aviv understand this. Disarming Hezbollah clears the path for diplomatic normalization not only with Beirut, but also with Syria’s so-called interim government under de facto President Ahmad al-Sharaa, a former ISIS chief who went by the nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al-Julani, now edging closer to normalization with Tel Aviv.
Capitulation without compensation
The US demands everything and offers nothing. There are no guarantees of Israeli withdrawal. No prisoner releases. No end to airstrikes or assassinations. Not even arms for the Lebanese army or funds for reconstruction.
Instead, Washington continues to throttle the army by blocking weapons transfers and targeting seized stockpiles, cementing its subservience.
Barrack’s so-called solution is a trap. It further strips Lebanon of sovereignty, invites more Israeli strikes across the south, the Bekaa, and even Beirut, and paves the way for sectarian fragmentation under the guise of national reform.
With some domestic factions parroting US-Israeli talking points, the threat is no longer just foreign. Western-backed, right-wing Lebanese elements are gaining narrative traction, openly adopting Tel Aviv’s discourse on resistance weapons. These forces could soon coordinate directly with the occupation state, becoming internal agents of destabilization.
Meanwhile, the proposal ignores the Palestinian refugee question, omits border security mechanisms, and offers no path to deter Israeli incursions. In effect, it sets the stage for a sectarian, security-driven partition of Lebanon.
Divide and conquer: Disarming in stages
Washington’s strategy is clear. It aims to isolate and disarm resistance factions one by one. Last month, the target was Palestinian groups. Now, Hezbollah. The aim is to prevent a unified front by cutting off cross-sectarian solidarity and picking off targets individually.
If these pressures are not absorbed and neutralized, the risks are existential. A major Israeli assault on Lebanon or a manufactured civil conflict is likely. At the same time, extremist groups are resurging in Syria under Sharaa’s watch, a man eager to appease Washington and Tel Aviv at all costs.
Hezbollah and its supporters face a stark choice. They must either surrender to foreign diktats or entrench their defenses and refuse to even entertain a debate on arms as long as threats persist.
This may be the gravest threat to Lebanon’s post-war existence. With the US shedding all pretense of neutrality and openly advocating for a new regional map, the country faces a binary future: resist, or be dismembered.
Lebanon’s salvation hinges on one truth. Only a united front behind the resistance can preserve its sovereignty and shield it from the vultures circling overhead.
Israeli forces arrest Al Mayadeen bureau chief Nasser al-Lahham in West Bank
By Al Mayadeen | July 7, 2025
Israeli occupation forces arrested Nasser al-Lahham, director of Al Mayadeen’s bureau in occupied Palestine, on Monday, during a pre-dawn raid on his home in Beit Lahm, southern West Bank.
Local sources reported that the arrest was accompanied by deliberate acts of vandalism, as soldiers stormed al-Lahham’s residence, smashing furniture and seizing personal mobile phones belonging to him and his family.
Exclusive sources informed Al Mayadeen that the Israeli security service, Shin Bet, is directly responsible for the arrest of al-Lahham in the occupied West Bank.
According to the sources, Shin Bet officers specifically targeted al-Lahham’s broadcasting studio during the raid and actively searched for electronic equipment and media devices linked to his journalistic work.
In a related development, the Israeli occupation extended al-Lahham’s detention until Thursday and has referred his case to the Ofer military court, located west of Ramallah, for a detention hearing. The move signals a potentially prolonged legal process against one of Palestine’s most prominent media figures.
Wider context
The arrest sparked widespread condemnation from Palestinian political and media circles. Palestinian political activist Sinan Shaqdeh told Al Mayadeen that “the arrest of journalist Nasser al-Lahham carries several implications, most notably an effort to target Al Mayadeen Network for conveying a narrative that challenges the Israeli version of events surrounding the ongoing genocide (in Gaza).”
This latest move comes as part of a broader, systematic campaign targeting journalists and media operations in occupied Palestine. In late October 2023, Israeli forces raided al-Lahham’s home, assaulting his wife and children, conducting an intrusive search, and detaining his two sons, Basil and Basel.
Meanwhile, Al Mayadeen’s correspondent Hanaa Mahamid continues to face repeated threats by Israeli authorities in an attempt to suppress independent media coverage from the occupied territories.
The Israeli government has renewed its ban on Al Mayadeen’s operation in occupied Palestine, confiscated its broadcasting equipment, and blocked its websites, in a crackdown against the network, amid the continued genocide in the Gaza Strip and the broad assault on the West Bank.
Al-Lahham’s arrest is an attempt at suppressing the press: Fatah
Munther al-Hayek, spokesperson for the Fatah Movement, told Al Mayadeen that the Israeli occupation’s arrest of Nasser al-Lahham aims to suppress press freedom and intimidate journalists.
Al-Hayek added, “What Israel is doing in the Palestinian territories is happening with a green light from the United States.”
He also emphasized that the free press’s coverage of Israeli massacres in Gaza has unsettled Netanyahu’s government, prompting it to resort to repressive and terror tactics.
Hamas rejects US allegations of Gaza aid centre attack
MEMO | July 7, 2025
The Government Media Office in Gaza has officially rejected claims by the US State Department alleging that the Palestinian resistance carried out a “bomb attack” targeting American personnel at aid distribution centres operated by the so-called “Gaza Humanitarian Foundation – GHF”.
In a statement issued on Sunday, the office said the accusations were entirely baseless and part of a clear attempt to justify the continued killing and starvation of Palestinian civilians in Gaza. It added that the claims reflect full alignment with the Israeli military narrative, which aims to legitimise war crimes by using fabricated security pretexts to justify excessive force against civilians.
The statement described GHF not as a humanitarian organisation, but as a security and intelligence front supported by both Israel and the United States.
The media office held the foundation responsible for the deaths of 751 civilians, injuries to 4,931 others, and the disappearance of 39 people. These casualties, it said, resulted from the chaos and danger surrounding the aid distribution centres established by the foundation in exposed and unsafe areas.
The statement stressed that the US State Department’s narrative seeks to whitewash the image of an organisation involved in war crimes. It also pointed out that over 130 international humanitarian organisations refuse to cooperate with GHF, viewing it as a cover for Israeli military objectives.
What Trump Should Tell Netanyahu
By Ron Paul | July 7, 2025
A few weeks ago I urged President Trump to make a deal with Iran that would satisfy his stated goal of no nuclear weapons production and would allow Iran to continue its lawful pursuit of civilian nuclear energy. The deal on the table, as described by the Iranian foreign minister himself, was a win-win “update” of Obama’s JCPOA “nuclear deal” that he could have avoided a costly and counter-productive war with Iran.
Unfortunately, the negotiations were cut short by an Israeli sneak-attack on Iran that led to a 12-day war that did not turn out as Israel imagined. This often happens in war, especially wars of aggression. After a day or so, Israel found itself overwhelmed by an Iran that proved to be more than capable of defending itself and Netanyahu called up Uncle Sam begging for assistance.
The resulting US bombing run on Iran’s nuclear sites did not lead to the end of that country’s capabilities, but to the expulsion of the UN monitoring organization and the emergence of Iranian “strategic ambiguity” regarding its program. In short, the bombing has blinded the world to what Iran may do in the future. That is not a win for Trump.
In a recent interview with Tucker Carlson, the Iranian president confirmed what most people understood at the time: President Trump promised Iran that while they were engaged in negotiations the United States would not allow Israel to attack the country. With the sixth round of negotiations just two days away, however, Israel thumbed its nose at the United States and launched an attack on Iran anyway.
Considering that Israel’s “military capabilities” are almost entirely provided by the United States, this betrayal of its benefactor will surely go down as one of the most brazen acts of ingratitude of all time.
This week Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is in Washington DC for the third time in Trump’s short second term in office. While we do not know what President Trump is telling him this time around, this might be the time to finally give Israel some “tough love” that many parents practice with their teenagers.
Donald Trump may be the most “pro-Israel” president we’ve ever had, but if he really wanted to help Israel he would make clear to Netanyahu that US support does Israel no favors. Continuing to spend tens of billions of dollars a year financing Israel’s war machine and backing up Israel’s attacks on its neighbors has not produced peace or security – much less prosperity – for Israel.
In fact, as soon as Israel attacked Iran so many Israelis tried to leave the country that Tel Aviv forbade its own citizens from leaving the country. Israelis are desperate to escape the wars of their own government’s making.
If President Trump really wanted to help Israel he would inform Netanyahu this week that not another US dollar would be sent to prop up his government. Not another missile or bomb would be sent. Not another American bullet would be available for Israeli soldiers to attack their neighbors or to shoot Palestinian civilians.
If Israel had to face the hard reality that it must learn to live with its neighbors instead of attacking them, the country may actually start seeing some peace and prosperity. Whatever the case, it is not our responsibility to finance the war machine of any foreign country. Time to put America first.
Yemeni air defenses confront Israeli aggression on Hodeidah
Al Mayadeen | July 7, 2025
At least 20 Israeli airstrikes struck the city of Hodeidah in Yemen early Monday, Al Mayadeen’s correspondent reported, while Yemeni air defenses managed to repel a significant portion of the assault.
The attacks targeted key locations including the ports of Hodeidah, Salif, and Ras Issa, as well as the Ras Qatif power station. Israeli media confirmed that these infrastructures had been hit by Israeli occupation forces on three previous occasions.
Additionally, our correspondent noted that one of the strikes hit the Galaxy Leader vessel, linked to “Israel” and captured by the Yemeni Armed Forces on November 19, 2023.
In a related statement, Israeli Security Minister Israel Katz declared that Israeli forces are “vigorously attacking” targets at Yemeni ports, the Ras Qatif power plant, and the Galaxy Leader ship.
Yemeni air defenses repel major part of Israeli aggression
Israeli media outlets reported that 53 projectiles were used in the operation, while our correspondent revealed that the Yemeni Armed Forces worked to repel the aggression, thwarting a substantial part of it.
Yemeni military sources told Al Mayadeen that air defenses launched the first wave of surface-to-air missiles, forcing 10 Israeli aircraft out of Yemeni airspace before they could carry out their attacks.
Sources also revealed that Israeli warplanes had to turn back and were not able to execute planned strikes on other Yemeni governorates.
Previously, the spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces, Brigadier General Yahya Saree, had announced that the Yemeni Air Force “is currently confronting the Zionist aggression against our country.”
“Our air defenses are ready and prepared to confront Israeli attacks on our country with full force and power,” Saree underlined.
Yemen vows continued support for Gaza, launching missile
At around 3:45 am (local time), two missiles were launched from Yemen toward Israeli targets in occupied Palestine. The missiles were reportedly intercepted by Israeli occupation forces, sounding sirens in several areas in the southern occupied West Bank and near the Dead Sea.
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Yemeni News Agency (SABA), Nasruddin Amer, said that operations in support of Gaza “will not cease until the aggression stops and the blockade is lifted,” in a post on X.
“The Zionist aggression has not and will not be able to stop the Yemeni strikes deep inside its territory,” Amer explained.
“Not a single ship will pass through our armed forces’ area of operations,” he added.
Meanwhile, Brigadier General Saree stressed that the Yemeni Armed Forces are “fully prepared and capable” of confronting the Israeli aggressors.
He stressed that the Israeli attacks will not affect Yemeni military capabilities, emphasizing that the country’s support for Palestine “will continue at a high pace.”
Details of Qatari negotiations framework for Gaza ceasefire revealed
Al Mayadeen | July 6, 2025
Qatari mediators put forward a negotiation framework to secure a lasting ceasefire deal between the Palestinian Resistance in Gaza and the Israeli occupation.
The Qatari proposal outlined the ceasefire’s terms and phases of implementation, though officials clarified that the published document was unofficial.
The proposed agreement calls for a 60-day ceasefire that would temporarily halt all military operations by both sides and includes a guarantee from US President Donald Trump that “Israel” will adhere to the truce throughout the agreed-upon period.
A complete halt to Israeli offensive operations in Gaza
The Qatari proposal states that all Israeli offensive military operations in Gaza will cease when the agreement takes effect, with the occupation’s aerial activities (both military and reconnaissance) halting daily for 10 to 12 hours during prisoner exchange days.
Additionally, the proposed terms outline “Israel’s” military redeployment in Gaza, specifying that on Day 1 after releasing 8 living Israeli captives, occupation forces will withdraw from northern areas and the Netzarim corridor to positions defined in previous agreement maps, with minor mutually agreed adjustments to be finalized later.
On day seven, following the release of 5 Israeli bodies, the occupation forces will redeploy in southern areas to positions previously agreed upon in the same past agreement maps, with minor adjustments to be finalized later.
Phased captive exchange
The proposed deal includes a prisoner exchange provision under which 10 living Israeli captives and 18 bodies from the previously agreed list of 58 would be released according to a phased schedule, with releases taking place on days 1, 7, 30, 50, and 60 following the ceasefire’s implementation.
The agreement outlines a specific release schedule, with 8 living Israeli captives to be released on the first day, 5 bodies to be returned on day 7, another 5 bodies on day 30, 2 living prisoners on day 50, and finally 8 bodies to be released on day 60 of the ceasefire period.
The proposal stipulates that “Israel” will simultaneously release Palestinian prisoners through a prearranged mechanism in exchange for both living Israeli captives and remains, with the process conducted discreetly without public displays or ceremonial events.
Ten days after the ceasefire takes effect, Hamas will provide complete documentation, including proof of life, medical reports, or death certificates, for all remaining Israeli captives. In return, “Israel” will provide complete records of Palestinians detained in Gaza since October 7, 2023, along with the number of deceased Gazans held in Israeli custody.
The Qatari proposal notes that Hamas is committed to ensuring the health, safety, and security of the captives throughout the ceasefire period.
A framework for negotiation
Moreover, Qatar supports continuing negotiations to establish the necessary arrangements for reaching a permanent ceasefire within 60 days while stipulating that upon reaching such an agreement, all remaining Israeli captives (both living and deceased) from “Israel’s” list of 58 individuals would be released. The proposal states that the temporary ceasefire may be extended if permanent ceasefire terms aren’t finalized in the given period.
The proposal affirms that negotiations mediated and guaranteed by international parties will begin on the first day to work out terms for a permanent ceasefire.
The negotiations will cover several key areas, including the terms for releasing all remaining Israeli captives in exchange for an agreed number of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails, the issues surrounding Israeli troop redeployment and withdrawal, along long-term security arrangements in Gaza. Additionally, the talks will cover post-war governance and reconstruction plans for Gaza that either party may propose, and announce a permanent ceasefire.
Support and guarantees
The document points out that Qatari Emir Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani is “serious about both parties’ commitment to the ceasefire agreement, and insists that the negotiations during the temporary ceasefire period, if successfully concluded through an agreement between the two sides, should lead to a permanent resolution of the conflict.”
Mediators, the United States, Egypt, and Qatar, will ensure the ceasefire holds throughout the 60 days and will guarantee that serious discussions take place regarding arrangements for a permanent ceasefire.
The mediators will also ensure negotiations continue seriously for an extended period until both parties reach an agreement and maintain all measures outlined in this framework.
US Special Envoy Steve Witkoff will arrive in the region to finalize the agreement and will lead the negotiations. Meanwhile, Trump announces a ceasefire, and the document states that the United States and President Trump are committed to working toward ensuring that fair negotiations continue until a final agreement is reached.
Humanitarian aid on the agenda
Regarding humanitarian aid, the proposal stipulates that assistance will be delivered to Gaza immediately upon Hamas’ acceptance of the ceasefire agreement, specifying that the delivery mechanism will align with the provisions outlined in the January 19th agreement.
The aid package covers rebuilding water, power, and sewage systems, restoring hospitals and bakeries, providing equipment for rubble clearance, and reopening the Rafah crossing for travelers, patients, and trade.
The Qatari proposal emphasized that humanitarian aid would be distributed to Gaza’s population through the United Nations and its agencies, along with the Palestinian Red Crescent.
Benjamin Netanyahu Is Coming to Town Again
Will Donald Trump surrender or will Bibi resort to a false flag?
By Philip Giraldi • Unz Review • July 4, 2025
Benjamin Netanyahu is on his way for his third visit to Washington during the first six months of the second term of President Donald Trump. Bibi requested the visit because he clearly wants something and he never likes to hear anyone tell him “No!” The American Jewish community and the state of Israel working together are already mustering their substantial resources to give the Prime Minister anything he wants, whatever that might be. If necessary, the so-called Israel Lobby, which controls many aspects of what is referred to colloquially as the United States Government, has a unique ability to lay down a serious guilt trip on anyone who tries to interfere with their prerogatives. Their ability to persuade is frequently based on repeated invocations of a semi-mythical event called the “holocaust,” which has been and will continue to be a burden on all the rest of humanity forever.
Many Jews have consequently successfully turned themselves into something like caricatures, where they are always the victims of an irrational hatred and therefore are entitled to extraordinary measures to protect themselves. Indeed, it all means that whatever happens that involves either Jews or Israel will ipso facto grant a “license to kill” in response to ensure that there will be “never again.” South African journalist Ilana Mercer describes the current process succinctly: “Israel’s ‘strategic perspective’ requires everywhere and always an enemy. This designated enemy will be tarnished by a blood libel, an abstraction: he, she or they will be said to be antisemitic, baying for Jewish blood. This blood libel ignores the truth, because when facts and reality are scrutinized, it’s Arabs that are being exterminated daily en masse, with western grants of government privilege, not Israelis. You have to hand it to Israel. It has positioned itself as the world’s cross, a curse that every individual not Jewish-Israeli is born into and must carry like an albatross.”
It is too bad that Netanyahu will be landing in Washington, where his arrival will no doubt be protected by the battalions of soldiers brought into the Capital two weeks ago to march down Constitution Avenue in their celebration of Vietnam War draft dodger Donald Trump’s birthday. If Bibi were to land in New York he just might be arrested on the warrant issued by the International Criminal Court. The Democratic candidate for New York mayor Zohran Mamdani has the Israeli Lobby and assorted Jewish identity groups hounding him relentlessly in part because he is a Muslim but also because he declared that if he is elected mayor he would arrest Netanyahu if/when he showed up in the city. The declaration had me and others cheering but we also wished that there were some mechanism for also arresting Genocide Joe Biden and Antony Blinken. Presumably Donald Trump, another genocide enabler, is untouchable except by impeachment as he is in office, which is a shame as he and his own batch of war criminals to match those around Biden richly deserve a bit of hard time.
Some journalists are speculating that while at the White House, Trump will pressure Netanyahu to agree to a new sixty day truce in Gaza, but Bibi is unlikely to have asked for the meeting if he thought he might be trapped into stopping the killing of Palestinians. I have my own theory about why Netanyahu will be in Washington and apart from the part where he has his butt kissed by Trump and four hundred bought-and-paid-for congressmen, it won’t be pretty. You see, Bibi wants to establish Israeli hegemony “from the rivers to the sea,” which means from the Euphrates, Litani and Nile rivers and all along the seafront with the Mediterranean. That will require regime change in Iran eliminating that nation as an adversary but the recent short war against the Iranians has made it clear that Israel cannot do it alone unless it goes nuclear, which would do possibly fatal damage to Tel Aviv’s ability to deal with the rest of the world and could easily mean the de facto end of the Jewish state. So he has to convince a gullible Donald Trump to do it for him and is prepared to lie effusively about the threat posed by Iran to make that happen.
Obviously, the problem confronting Netanyahu is that Iran really does not pose any threat to the United States or, indeed, even to Israel if the Israelis were willing to cease their quest for dominance and regional expansion. So he will have to make something up, which admittedly he has a great deal of experience in doing. But what will happen if Trump does not take the bait, whatever that will turn out to be? Will Trump Riviera Resort Gaza be enough to sway the New York Real Estate man who is pretending to be the President of the United States? I rather think that Netanyahu will have several possible schemes in reserve if he runs into a wall in Washington, including false flag operations plausibly blamed on Iran that will kill a lot of Americans to get across the message that the Iranians pose a real danger to the United States.
To be sure, Israel has demonstrated that it is not shy and will not hesitate to kill Americans when its own interests suggest a need for extreme measures, witness the deliberate killing of 34 US Navy sailors on the USS Liberty in 1967 and the recent deaths of US citizens in Gaza which the American government has done nothing about. Israel knows it can get away with murder, both figuratively and literally, and even though the American people might be sick of the slaughter of Palestinians the Israel Lobby knows that it has the support of both Congress and the media no matter what it does.
I rather think that what Israel will do will rely on the White House’s apparent belief that renewing war with Iran will result in attacks on some of the many US bases in the Persian Gulf region. As Iran is not likely to want to carry out that kind of escalation, Israel might decide to do the job itself but leaving evidence behind that it was Iran or an Iranian proxy that carried it out. Israel has many active agents run by Mossad throughout the region, as was evident in the assassinations of senior Iranian government officials and scientists together with their entire families back when the first phase of the so-called “twelve day war” began with an Israeli attack back a month ago. So Israel will blow up an American base or two and then loudly proclaim that the deed was done by Iran to get revenge for the US bombing of the Natanz, Isfahan and Fordow nuclear facilities.
Or if one really wants to explore options on the dark side, Israel might decide to really float the false flag, so it just might use one of its own nukes to do the job, embellishing the tale by pointing out that the blast was clear evidence of the claim that Iran had and still has a secret nuclear weapons program. Clowns in congress like Lindsey Graham, Tom Cotton and Ted Cruz will immediately take up the cry and loudly call for revenge. Trump will be unable to resist, or at least that is what Netanyahu will be thinking, and if a nuke was used on an American base the willingness to reciprocate in kind will be overwhelming in Washington. As both Bibi and the Donald have several times recommended that the 10 million plus folks living in Iran’s capital Tehran should evacuate their homes, it is, in my opinion, quite possible that both Israel and the US have in any event been thinking of going nuke for some time. So, if all goes well for Bibi they will get what they want, i.e. regime change in a devastated Iran and the end of the Iranian challenge to Israel. Let us hope that instead of that outcome, Trump will be listening to his better angel, if he has one, and Netanyahu will be rebuffed and will go home with his tail between his legs next week!
Philip M. Giraldi, Ph.D., is Executive Director of the Council for the National Interest, a 501(c)3 tax deductible educational foundation (Federal ID Number #52-1739023) that seeks a more interests-based U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. Website is councilforthenationalinterest.org, address is P.O. Box 2157, Purcellville VA 20134 and its email is inform@cnionline.org.
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene is fed up with U.S. support for Israel and more wars
If Americans Knew | July 3, 2025
Marjorie Taylor Greene, aka MTG, is a MAGA Republican and the U.S. representative for Georgia’s 14th congressional district since 2021.
Excerpts taken from Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene’s appearance on The Tucker Carlson Show (June 27, 2025):
• Marjorie Taylor Greene: AIPAC, NYC’s Futur…
