Author: Steven Sahiounie

The fast-food chain’s Israeli franchise’s announcement of free meals for IDF soldiers drew boycott calls and protests Fast food giant McDonald’s Israeli franchise’s announcement of free meals for Israeli security forces triggered counter-donations from many of the chain’s Arab subsidiaries to the Palestinian cause on Saturday, posts on X (formerly Twitter) revealed. Amid a growing backlash against McDonald’s over its apparent support for Israel’s war on Gaza, local McDonald’s franchises in Oman, Türkiye, Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates responded with donations to the Palestinian cause, along with reminders that each individual country’s McDonald’s business is independent…

The bloc insisted it remains committed to peace and a two-state solution amid mounting Palestinian casualties The EU has condemned Hamas and ordered the militant group to release Israeli hostages without preconditions. The bloc also affirmed its support for Israel’s right to self-defense within the confines of international law, in a statement released by the European Council on Sunday. Affirming the EU’s commitment to “a lasting and sustainable peace based on the two-state solution through reinvigorated efforts in the Middle East Peace Process,” the statement called for continued engagement with “legitimate Palestinian authorities” and their regional and international partners. The…

The Jewish nation is no longer “homeless,” and Palestinians also deserve statehood, China’s top diplomat has said Foreign Minister Wang Yi has said China will continue to stand on the side of international law, peace and justice, condemning all acts of violence against civilians in Israel’s war with Hamas. The unprecedented militant raid on October 7 claimed over 1,400 lives in Israel and prompted it to declare war, with hundreds of Palestinians now dying daily from retaliatory strikes on Gaza. “China condemns all acts that harm civilians and opposes any violation of international law,” China’s top diplomat said, as he met with the…

A Reuters reporter was killed on Lebanese territory on Friday by suspected Israeli shelling An attack on Sunday on the northern Israeli town of Shtula that killed one person was a response to the death days earlier of a Reuters journalist and Lebanese national, the militant group Hezbollah said, as cross-border tensions ramp up amid Israel’s war with Hamas. Hezbollah said in a statement shortly after Sunday’s rocket attack on the farming community along Lebanon’s border with Israel that it had “targeted a Zionist enemy army center in the Shtula area with guided missiles.” One person died and another three were injured,…

Lindsey Graham has vowed to introduce a resolution calling for US military action, should the Tehran-backed Hezbollah attack Israel US Senator Lindsey Graham has warned Iran that the American military could target its oil industry in response to any escalation in the Middle East. The lawmaker said he would put forward a resolution to this effect, citing concerns that the Tehran-backed Hezbollah could join the fighting between Israel and Hamas. Appearing on NBC’s ‘Meet the Press’ on Sunday, Graham described Hezbollah as a “proxy of Iran” and claimed that a “massive attack on Israel” by the Lebanon-based militant group would pose an “existential” threat…

The funeral of six civil defence workers killed in an Israeli air raid on Sunday night has been held in Gaza City. “These heroic martyrs sacrificed their blood, time and life to save the lives of their country’s citizens. They pushed through the recent Israeli aggression and spent day and night in service of Palestinian people so they can save their lives,” a member of the defence team said during the funeral proceedings. He added that the killings would not scare civil defence workers from doing their duty. “No matter what price we have to pay and no matter the…

Russian President Vladimir Putin is going to speak with several leaders today, including Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, a Kremlin spokesperson says. Earlier on Tuesday, Putin spoke with Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. His call with Netanyahu is going to be the first between the two leaders since Hamas’s attack inside Israel on October 7. In his first remarks on the conflict, Putin last week voiced concern at the “catastrophic increase” in the number of civilians killed in Israel and the Gaza Strip. He also took…

According to a Reuters/Ipsos two-day poll, a bipartisan majority of Americans want the US to help Palestinians flee fighting. However, support for Israel is higher than it was in a survey conducted in 2014 when Israeli forces clashed with Hamas. The poll found that 41 percent of respondents agreed with the statement that “the US should support Israel”, while 2 percent said, “the US should support the Palestinians.” Source: AlJazeera

The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani says the world is turning a blind eye to Gaza but reaffirmed that Iran remains steadfast in its quest to stand by the Palestinian people and Resistance if the aggression continues. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanaani confirmed today, Monday, that Iran is making persistent diplomatic efforts to end the Israeli occupation’s aggression against the Gaza Strip and its crimes against the Palestinians, and also to deliver aid to the Gaza Strip. In a press statement, Kanaani stated that “Iran is serious in its efforts,” pointing out that “a meeting of foreign ministers of…

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and his Russian counterparty Vladimir Putin discussed today the latest developments in the Palestinian arena, and the efforts made to stop Israel’s attacks on the Palestinian people. During a phone call, President Abbas offered condolences to President Putin and to the families of the Russian victims who were killed during the current escalation in the Gaza Strip. President Abbas appreciated Russia’s positions in support of the rights of our Palestinian people and a comprehensive and just peace in the Middle East based on the resolutions of international legitimacy. The President reiterated the need to stop attacks,…