Links to report from the Cradle and Reuters; others or at least headlines are accessible by clicking on their names. (Scroll down for today’s WEST BANK, GAZA, IRAN, UKRAINE and COVID ETC.; scroll down for YEMEN 7-26-26 or click HERE.) — MCM

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Yeman targets Najran Airport in Saudi Arabia with drone attack. From the Cradle. The Yemeni Armed Forces announced today that it targeted a “sensitive site” at a Saudi airport with a drone attack, just days after the leader of Yemen’s resistance warned Riyadh that it will face “full escalation” from Sanaa if renews its war against the country. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 3  Six Saudi tankers turn away from Gulf of Aden, ship-tracking data shows, by Jonathan Saul | Reuters  LONDON – Six Saudi-flagged supertankers have changed course in the Gulf of Aden in recent days and are heading to southern Africa following threats by Yemen’s Houthi movement to target Saudi shipping, tracking data showed on Monday. READ MORE . . .

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A link to a report from Middle East Monitor; others are accessible by clicking on its name. (Scroll up or down for today’s YEMEN, GAZA, IRAN, UKRAINE and COVID ETC., and down for WEST BANK 8-3-26.) — MCM

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Israel allocates $37M to develop alleged Jewish heritage sites in occupied West Bank. From Middle East Monitor. Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich today announced the allocation of $37 million to develop alleged Jewish heritage sites in the West Bank, amid intensified illegal settlement expansion in the occupied territory, Anadolu reports. READ MORE . . .

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Links to five reports and a commentary: from the Associated Press, Middle East Eye, and Middle East Monitor; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll up or down for today’s YEMEN, WEST BANK, IRAN, UKRAINE and COVID ETC., and down for GAZA 8-3-26.) — MCM

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Links to four reports: from Reuters, Middle East Eye, the Cradle, and ABC News, and to a commentary from Indian Punchline; others or at least headlines are accessible by clicking on their names. (Scroll up or down for today’s YEMEN, WEST BANK, GAZA, UKRAINE and COVID ETC., and for UKRAINE 8-3-26.) — MCM

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Iran demands Hormuz inbound control, outbound oversight, source says. From Reuters. DUBAI — Iran wants control over inbound shipping through the Strait of Hormuz ​and visibility over outbound traffic, with the ability to intervene if necessary, under a plan being discussed with Oman to reopen the strategic waterway, a senior Iranian source said Tuesday. READ MORE . . .

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Trump insists Iran talks under way, warns Tehran’s ‘last chance’ to secure deal. From Middle East Eye. U.S. President Donald Trump claims that direct negotiations with Iran are under way, and has warned that the latest round is Tehran’s “last chance” to secure a deal to end the war. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 3  India’s imports of Russian oil hit all-time high despite U.S. tariff threat. From the Cradle. India’s imports of sanctioned Russian crude hit an all-time high of 2.8 million barrels per day in July, according to vessel-tracking data from Kpler cited today by the Times of India. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 28  Senate overwhelmingly advances Russia sanctions bill named after Sen. Lindsey Graham, by Allison Pecorin | ABC News  With Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy overlooking the floor, the Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly advanced a Russia and Iran sanctions bill named in honor of Sen. Lindsey Graham. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 30  Graham sanctions bill has bite. Trump will use it to terrorise India, by M.K. Bhadrakumar | Indian Punchline  The Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal’s characterisation of the reports suggesting the U.S. could impose a 100 percent tariff on countries such as India that import Russian oil as speculative cannot be taken as a statement of fact. READ MORE. . .

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Links to three reports: from the Moscow Times, the Cradle, and ABC News, and to a commentary from Indian Punchline; others are accessible by clicking on their names. (Scroll up or down for today’s YEMEN, WEST BANK, GAZA, IRAN and COVID ETC., and down for UKRAINE 8-3-26.) — MCM

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At least 5 killed in Ukraine’s latest drone attacks against Wildberries. From the Moscow Times. Ukrainian drones struck multiple warehouses across Russia overnight, including two run by online retailer Wildberries, killing at least five people, local officials said today. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 3  India’s imports of Russian oil hit all-time high despite U.S. tariff threat. From the Cradle. India’s imports of sanctioned Russian crude hit an all-time high of 2.8 million barrels per day in July, according to vessel-tracking data from Kpler cited today by the Times of India. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 28  Senate overwhelmingly advances Russia sanctions bill named after Sen. Lindsey Graham, by Allison Pecorin | ABC News  With Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy overlooking the floor, the Senate on Wednesday overwhelmingly advanced a Russia and Iran sanctions bill named in honor of Sen. Lindsey Graham. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 30  Graham sanctions bill has bite. Trump will use it to terrorise India, by M.K. Bhadrakumar | Indian Punchline  The Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal’s characterisation of the reports suggesting the U.S. could impose a 100 percent tariff on countries such as India that import Russian oil as speculative cannot be taken as a statement of fact. READ MORE. . .

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Links to an interview from ScheerPost and to a report from the Associated Press; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll up for today’s YEMEN, WEST BANK, GAZA, UKRAINE and COVID ETC., and down for COVID ETC. 12-15-25 and 12-1-25, or click HERE and HERE.) — MCM

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FROM AUG. 3_ Monday With McGovern: Fauci, Covid origins, and the intelligence community’s quiet war over the truth. Robert Scheer of ScheerPost talks with former CIA analyst Ray McGovern. From ScheerPost intro: “Anthony Fauci was once presented as the unimpeachable voice of science. Now, confronted with questions about gain-of-function research, the Wuhan laboratory and . . . Click HERE for video, an introduction, transcript and summary.

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FROM JULY 29  Fauci repeatedly invokes the Fifth Amendment in a contentious Senate committee hearing, by Lauran Neergaard and Ali Swenson | AP  WASHINGTON — Dr. Anthony Fauci on Wednesday repeatedly invoked the Fifth Amendment and declined to answer dozens of questions from senators in a Republican-led committee hearing about his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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A link to a report from the Cradle; others are accessible by clicking on its name. (Scroll down for today’s GAZA, IRAN and UKRAINE, and for WEST BANK 7-31–26.) — MCM

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FROM AUG. 1  Israeli settler gangs shoot 10-year-old Palestinian child in latest West Bank pogrom.  From the Cradle. Israeli settler gangs on Saturday carried out multiple attacks across the occupied West Bank, shooting a 10-year-old child, setting cars on fire, and damaging property. READ MORE . . .

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Links to reports from the Cradle and Middle East Monitor, and a commentary from Z Network; others are accessible by clicking on their names. (Scroll up or down for today’s WEST BANK, IRAN and UKRAINE, and down for GAZA 8-1-26.) — MCM

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FROM AUG. 2  Israeli energy minister says no deal reached to halt attacks on Gaza as killings continue. From the Cradle. Israel has not agreed to stop military strikes in Gaza, a senior Israeli minister stated on Sunday, amid a new wave of Israeli attacks that killed at least nine Palestinians. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 2  Hamas says Israel escalating attacks to derail ceasefire understandings. From Middle East Monitor. Hamas accused Israel on Sunday of deliberately escalating its attacks on the Gaza Strip to derail understandings reached with mediators and the U.S. administration on completing implementation of the ceasefire agreement, Anadolu reports. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 31  The death count trap: Why tallying victims won’t stop Israel’s genocide, by Ramzy Baroud | Z Network  The words “killed,” “injured,” “maimed,” and the like often lose a great part of their meaning when they are repeated so relentlessly. Take, for example . . . READ MORE . . .

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Links to nine reports, interviews, analyses, and commentaries: from the Cradle, CNN, Reuters, National Public Radio, Middle East Monitor, Informed Comment, and Truthdig; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll up or down for today’s WEST BANK, GAZA and UKRAINE, and down for IRAN 8-1-26.) — MCM

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Pentagon orders U.S. troops to devise ‘creative options’ for ‘punishing Iran: report. From the Cradle. The U.S. military has asked its forces to devise “creative and unconventional” options and attack plans aimed at “punishing” the Islamic Republic of Iran, according to an exclusive CNN report released today. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from CNN.

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Iran says no talks are underway or meeting plans with U.S. after Trump calls off attacks. From Reuters. Iran said on Monday that no talks were underway with the United States and there were no plans for any meetings, contradicting U.S. President Donald Trump, who had cited talks he said would take place that afternoon as justification for calling off attacks. READ MORE . . .

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Trump calls off strike against Iran, says a deal is close. Reported by Hadeel Al-Shalchi and Steve Inskeep | NPR  President Trump backed away from a threatened attack on Iran again, claiming regional diplomacy has opened a path to a deal. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

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Iran expert on Tehran’s view as Trump says there’s a pending deal. A Martínez of NPR speaks with Iran expert and analyst Karim Sadjadpour about the view from Iran as President Trump says there is potential to wind down the war. Cick HERE to listen and, later, read.

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How Iran is widening its pressure campaign to force U.S. concessions, by Samia Nakhoul | Reuters  BEIRUT — Iran is betting it can outlast Washington by turning the Middle East’s trade routes, shipping lanes and energy infrastructure into pressure points that steadily raise the cost of confrontation, according to Gulf officials and analysts. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 2  Iran denies seeking halt to U.S. attacks, agreement to reopen Strait of Hormuz. From Middle East Monitor. Iranian military officials on Sunday dismissed US President Donald Trump’s claim that Tehran had asked for a halt to a planned US attack as a “lie,” as sources denied reports of an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. READ MORE . . .

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FROM AUG. 1  How long will U.S. be gaslighted by Israeli ops? Land blockade of Iran floated. By Juan Cole | Informed Comment  ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The Telegraph reports in the wake of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s almost furtive visit to the White House on Tuesday that he pressed on Donald Trump the idea of a land blockade on Iran. The Telegraph is owned by . . . READ MORE . . .

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FROM JULY 28  U.S. media: Maybe Iran didn’t want nukes after all, by Matt Bivins | Truthdig  Over his decades as Iran’s religious and government leader, the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had consistently rejected nuclear weapons. He ruled that these ridiculously violent explosives . . . READ MORE . . .

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Links to reports from the Associated Press, Reuters, and Tass; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll up for today’s WEST BANK, GAZA and IRAN, and down for UKRAINE 8-1-26.) — MCM

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Russia fires glide bombs at a southern Ukraine city, killing 1 and wounding dozens, by Illia Novikov | AP  KYIV — Russian planes dropped eight powerful glide bombs in a span of 90 minutes on residential districts of the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia, killing one person and wounding dozens of others, regional chief Ivan Fedorov said today. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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Russia says Ukraine drone attack on holiday-makers killed 7, including 3 children. From Reuters. MOSCOW — Russia said on Monday that seven people, including three children, had been killed and 40 injured at its Black Sea holiday resort of Gelendzhik in what it said was a deliberate Ukrainian drone attack on civilians. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for earlier report from Tass.

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