Following breach of international humanitarian law, UK to halt some arms exports to Israel - report

The UK will suspend 30 of its 350 arms exports licenses to Israel due to a “clear risk” that they could be used in breaches of international humanitarian law, Foreign Secretary David Lammy told parliament.

Lammy added that the partial ban will include items “which could be used in the current conflict in Gaza” against Hamas but did not include parts for F-35 fighter jets, Al Jazeera reported.

However, Samel Perlo-Freeman of the Campaign Against Arms Trade told Al Jazeera that while the UK has “acknowledged for the first time that Israel is not complying with international law”, there is “one huge, huge loophole” regarding components for the F-35 fighter jets still being supplied to Israel.

“We had confirmation just today from a Danish NGO Danwatch which got confirmation from the Israeli military that an F-35 was used to drop 3,000-pound bombs on al-Mawasi, a so-called safe zone, on July 19,” he said. “So saying that you’re going to stop arms that might be used in Gaza except for the F-35 is a bit like saying you’re going vegetarian except for bacon.”

UK officials argued that suspending critical components within a global pool of "spare parts" could harm the maintenance of F-35s in other countries, the Financial Times reported.

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Scholz’s pro-war policy faces setback in Eastern Germany elections

Parties critical of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s support for the Western-backed Ukraine proxy war against Russia fared well in elections in eastern German states.

“The election results of Sunday are bitter,” said Scholz. “Our country cannot and must not become accustomed to this.”

The AfD and BSW were united in their expression of opposition to Scholz’s support for US proxy war against Russia. Both parties called for an end to arms shipments to the Kiev regime and immediate negotiations to bring about a peaceful end to the conflict. The BSW has also demanded a popular referendum on plans to station US missiles in Germany as a condition for any coalition.

Die Linke has been more internally divided on the issue, but influential figures within the party have also criticized Scholz’s pro-war stance.

The Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) party has strongly criticized German chancellor Olaf Scholz for his response to the apparent sabotage of the Russo-German Nord Stream gas pipeline in 2022, which is widely perceived to have been carried out by or on behalf of the United States.

“There is no reason to assume that the German government is seriously interested in unearthing the truth about who is behind the Nord Stream attacks,” said AfD politician Dr. Gunnar Beck recently. “The German government regularly yields to international pressure from both the EU and the US. It will not be able and not be willing, more importantly, to assert the national interests.”

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Landslide in pricey Los Angeles neighborhood prompt power cuts, property damage

Multimillion-dollar homes in the Southern California city of Rancho Palos Verdes are now under threat as a worsening landslide has prompted an evacuation warning for more than 100 homes in the oceanside community which is located just 30 miles south of Los Angeles.

Residents were advised to leave on Sunday after the Southern California Edison (SCE) utility company shut off power to 140 homes and warned that another 105 residents will lose electricity by Monday night, ABC News reported.

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Netanyahu refuses ‘surrender’ to Israeli protesters demanding hostage deal

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a defiant late-night speech amid mass protests in Tel Aviv Monday, rejecting pressure from the Israeli public to secure a deal to return hostages and bring about a ceasefire in Gaza.

“I will not surrender to the pressure,” said Netanyahu during the unusual press conference one day after a general strike shut down much of the country.

Key to the controversy is the question of who will maintain control over the so-called Philadelphi corridor, a narrow strip of land separating the Gaza Strip’s southern portion from Egypt. The corridor has been jointly controlled by Egypt and Palestinian authorities since Israel’s military disengagement from Gaza in 2005, with the terms of 1978’s Camp David Accords granting Egypt control of the Rafah border crossing that falls within the route.

But the IDF has seized control of both the Philadelphi corridor and the Rafah border crossing in recent months, insisting that Israeli authority over both is necessary for security reasons. That stance has proven to be a poison pill in ongoing negotiations with Hamas as Netanyahu refuses to compromise on his establishment of a “buffer zone” along the Gazan side of the route.

“This corridor is essential for our existence,” Netanyahu said Monday. “For this reason Hamas is insisting on it. And for the same reason I’m insisting on it.”

Israeli military officials have rebuked the prime minister for his sabotage of a hostage deal. Critics have claimed Netanyahu is stalling for time, working to prolong hostilities in Gaza to maintain his grip on power. The Israeli leader faces prosecution on corruption charges if he is forced to step down from his position.

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Volkswagen eyes plant closures in Germany as country’s economy sabotaged by US

Volkswagen is considering its first ever German plant closures in the company’s 87-year history as the destruction of the Nord Stream pipeline and US-backed sanctions on Russian gas continue to wreak havoc on the European country’s economy.

“The economic environment has become even tougher and new players are pushing into Europe,” said VW’s CEO Oliver Blume, referring to cheap, technologically-superior Chinese electric vehicles on the market in Germany and other countries. “Germany as a business location is falling further behind in terms of competitiveness.”

For years Germany’s status as the industrial powerhouse of the continent has been driven by its reliance on Russian natural gas. Access to the cheap form of energy kept homes warmed and industry humming as the Nord Stream pipeline transported the fuel from Russia to Europe.

All of that came to a halt in 2022 after the launch of Russia’s special military operation in Ukraine, which spurred Western-backed sanctions against Moscow. The transfer of gas via the Nord Stream pipeline had already slowed after the imposition of the coercive economic measures, but insult was added to injury in September when the pipeline suffered a catastrophic explosion.

The sabotage of the Russo-German infrastructure is widely assumed to have been accomplished by or at the behest of the United States, with investigative journalist Seymour Hersh and others describing how the act was carried out.

Now, companies like Volkswagen are considering drastic measures as Germany suffers deindustrialization, including plant closures and the severing of longstanding labor agreements.

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