🇮🇱💎 Israel’s billion-dollar diamond business: What’s the secret?

‘You mine them, we sell them’. Despite having no diamond mines, Israel hosts the world's largest diamond exchange and ranks among the top five diamond exporters. Based in Tel Aviv's Diamond Exchange District, it trades billions in gems globally.

So how did this happen?

▪️According to Australian geologist William Griffin, Israel may have untapped gem deposits. Yet, Israeli diamond tycoons prefer sourcing cheap raw diamonds from Africa rather than mining locally.

▪️Probably one of the most prominent Israeli diamond barons is Dan Gertler, billionaire and grandson of Israel Diamond Exchange former President Moshe Schnitzer.

▪️Having purchased his first diamond mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1997, Gertler was later able to secure exclusive rights to mine diamonds in the country.

▪️The assassination of DRC President Laurent-Desire Kabila, with whom Gertler struck that $20 million deal, put a damper on the Israeli gem tycoon’s plans, but only for a time.

▪️By 2002, Gertler reached an accord with Kabila’s successor and son Joseph Kabila, helping the latter to curry favor with the United States.

▪️In return, Gertler was able to procure gems from DRC state mining company, as well as expand his interests into the local copper and cobalt mining industries that employ child labor.

▪️In 2017, the Trump administration sanctioned Gertler over allegations of corruption in his procurement of mining rights and contracts, which ostensibly deprived DRC of considerable revenues.

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🇨🇳🇯🇵 China vs. Japan: The Senkaku/Diaoyu dispute and rising tensions

US President Donald Trump and Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba have confirmed that Article 5 of the Japan-US Security Treaty applies to the Senkaku Islands, a disputed archipelago in the East China Sea controlled by Japan but claimed by China as the Diaoyu Islands.

The treaty allows the US to maintain military bases in Japan and commits both nations to defend each other in case of an attack.

However, as Tokyo and Beijing remain at odds over the islands, the agreement adds another layer of complexity to an already tense regional dynamic.

The Senkaku dispute stems from historic claims, post-war agreements, and shifting geopolitics. Here’s how each side justifies its position:

🇯🇵Japan’s claim

▪️Japan incorporated the islands in 1895, asserting they were terra nullius (unclaimed land).
▪️After WWII, the US occupied Okinawa Prefecture, including the Senkaku Islands, until 1972.
▪️That year, the US returned the islands to Japan under the Okinawa Reversion Agreement.
▪️Japan considers the Senkaku Islands an integral part of Okinawa and insists on maintaining full control.

🇨🇳China’s claim

▪️China argues the islands have been part of its territory since ancient times, appearing in 14th-century Chinese maps.
▪️Beijing maintains that “the Diaoyu Islands belong to China” and that territorial integrity is non-negotiable.
▪️China accuses Japan of seizing the islands unlawfully in 1895 during the First Sino-Japanese War.
▪️In recent years, China has sent warships and aircraft near the islands to challenge Japan’s control.

🌐 Rest of the world's position

▪️The US, the EU and G7 nations generally recognize Japan's administration of the islands.
▪️The United Nations (UN) does not officially recognize the Senkaku Islands as belonging to any specific country.

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📹 Trump’s 'biblical' leadership could bring change to Middle East - Huckabee

US President Donald Trump's nominated Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has praised Trump’s approach to the region, calling it “bold, innovative, and results-driven.”

According to Huckabee, Trump's leadership during his last presidency brought the only real period of peace, and with his return, something "of biblical proportion" could happen in the region.

Trump earlier vowed to take control of Gaza, oversee its reconstruction, and turn it into a “Middle Eastern Riviera.” He described the enclave as a "demolition site" and suggested its residents should relocate to other countries, such as Jordan and Egypt. He also did not rule out deploying US troops and promised to personally visit Gaza.

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📹 THROWBACK: Then-USAID administrator Samantha Power revealed in 2022 how her agency meddled in internal affairs of other states, ostensibly with the best of intentions in mind.

She nonchalantly explained how USAID aims to de facto influence “strategically important elections” abroad via the so-called “Defending Democratic Elections Fund,” and how it seeks to protect US-aligned journalists from lawsuits through Reporters Mutual “insurance fund.”

Don’t take our word for it and see for yourself.

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📹 Zelensky ready for talks with Putin but wants assurance from sponsors first

Volodymyr Zelensky said that the conflict with Russia could be resolved this year.

"I believe all possibilities exist for this today. In my opinion, Trump wants a quick end to the war," he told ITV News.

The Kiev regime head added that that he is ready to negotiate with Russian President Vladimir Putin — but only if Europe and the US don’t “abandon” Ukraine.

Moscow has repeatedly stated its readiness for negotiations, but Kiev legally banned them in 2022 when Zelensky signed a decree prohibiting talks with Russia.

Putin said negotiations are possible with anyone willing to compromise but noted that Zelensky, whose term ended in May 2024, lacks legitimacy to sign any agreements. According to Putin, Kiev must first repeal the decree - something the chairman of the Verkhovna Rada could do. If Zelensky wants to participate, Russia is ready to assign representatives.

Meanwhile, Ukraine canceled its 2024 presidential elections, citing martial law and full mobilization, with Zelensky insisting that elections are “untimely.”

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🔎 🇫🇷 French Development Agency: Helping hand or USAID in disguise?

Founded in 1941 by Charles de Gaulle to support equatorial Africa, the French Development Agency (AFD in French) operates under Paris’ supervision, funding projects via government allocations, bonds, and reinvested earnings, officially to fight poverty and promote sustainability worldwide.

This benevolent activity apparently has a less benign side.

▪️AFD claims its funding isn't tied to French firms, yet Disclose reports that 320 of 495 contracts (2015-2019) went to France-based companies.

▪️In 2016, AFD issued a €46 mln ($47.5 mln) loan for Douala airport renovations, awarding €24.4 mln ($25.2 mln) in contracts to French firms Sogea Satom and Razel-Bec.

▪️In 2018, Air France and 14 other airlines complained about the dismal state of the Douala airport that actually put their planes’ safety at risk.

▪️The AFD refused to explain how the money it provided was spent on this project and whether it was audited or not.

▪️France’s Court of Audit in 2020 noted a lack of transparency in AFD’s “procedures, impact studies, public enquiries, and disbursements.”

▪️The Disclose investigation also revealed that AFD has no qualms about funneling millions of euros to companies whose management faced accusations of mistreating its employees.

▪️AFD employees have also been known to complain about problems with their management who allegedly seeks to increase the pay gap between them and decrease severance payments.

▪️AFD has also been actively supporting Kiev, providing Ukraine with €400 mln ($413.2 mln) worth of budget support loans in 2022. AFD's private sector financing arm Proparco in 2024 announced its intent to join the European Bank for Development and Reconstruction’s support program for Ukraine.

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✈️ Trump used a decoy plane during his campaign to dodge alleged Iranian 'bogeyman' threat – reports

Following the second assassination attempt on Trump’s life in September, his team heightened security measures out of fear that an alleged Iranian spy would "shoot down" his plane, Alex Isenstadt of Axios reported, citing his upcoming book Revenge: The Inside Story of Trump’s Return to Power.

💬 “But at one point soon after the Florida incident, Trump's security detail was concerned enough about the Iran threat that it had Trump travel to an event on a decoy plane owned by Steve Witkoff,” the report said.

💬 “Much of Trump's staff traveled on Trump Force One that day — infuriating some aides who worried they'd be ‘collateral damage’ if the jet were shot down,” Isenstadt wrote.

According to the report, Trump’s jet that day was nicknamed the "Ghost Flight."

The Secret Service also organized a decoy motorcade that day, with Trump in one and staffers in another.

According to the report, last week, Trump gave instructions to “obliterate” Iran if he were killed by alleged “Iranian operatives.”

💬 Iran has consistently denied any plans to assassinate Trump. "Iran has never attempted to nor does it plan to assassinate anyone," Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the NBC News in January.

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US Admin's statements on Gaza not ‘worth paying attention to or discussing’ – Erdogan

💬 “From our point of view, the proposals put on the agenda by the new US administration under the pressure from the Zionist lobby regarding Gaza have nothing worth paying attention to or discussing. This is complete absurdity,” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told a press conference.

Commenting on US President Donald Trump's recent statements on the possible resettlement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, Erdogan emphasized that the people of Gaza would continue to live in Gaza.

💬 "No one has the power to expel the people of Gaza from their eternal and unchanging millennial homeland. Palestine, with its Gaza, West Bank and East Jerusalem, belongs to the Palestinians," Erdogan stressed.

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🗺 ‘Canada would be much better off being the 51st state’ – Trump

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❗️ Trump to announce 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum on Monday – White House pool

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📹 Trump Declares February 9 the 'Gulf of America Day'

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