A man with a disability was killed Thursday by the Israeli army during an attack on southern Syria, where it has stepped up its invasion, Syrian state news agency said.

Since the fall of Bashar al-Assad in December 2024, the Israeli army has carried out hundreds of strikes in Syria and regular invasions into its territory.

"A civilian with a disability was killed Thursday by fire from the Israeli occupation forces during their incursion into the village of Jamla" in Deraa province, SANA news agency said.

Israeli forces deployed in one neighbourhood of the village and placed snipers on the rooftops after bombing the area late on Wednesday, the report said.

After Ahmed al-Sharaa came to power in Damascus in late 2024, Israel launched hundreds of strikes against Syria.

The Israeli military also expanded its occupation of Syria's south and deployed troops in the UN-monitored buffer zone along on the occupied Syrian Golan Heights.

In recent days, Israeli forces have also uprooted vast olive groves in Quneitra province, near Deraa, according to the agency.

Trees were destroyed across an area of about 1.3 hectares by the village of Saida, SANA said. The village faces the buffer zone where the Israeli army has been building fortifications.

"Tanks entered my land without any warning," Mohammad Ali al-Chaghla, 58, the owner of the field, told AFP. "They cut down and destroyed some 400 trees during their incursion."

The Syrian Foreign Ministry on Sunday condemned "the intensification of incursions by the Israeli occupation" in Quneitra and Deraa.

Israeli officials have repeatedly stated their intention to maintain troops in the "security zone".

The two countries have launched negotiations to reach a security agreement, so far without success due to Israeli actions.

A late-night attack on Saudi Arabia's Dammam airport killed two people and injured eight others, the civil aviation authority said on Thursday, as strikes by Yemen's Houthis intensify.

A Saudi and an Indian man were killed in the attack on Wednesday, the general authority of civil aviation said in a statement, updating an earlier death toll. Damage to the airport was being assessed, it added.

In recent weeks, Houthi attacks on Saudi oil and civilian infrastructure have reached an unprecedented scale, forcing Riyadh to shut its main airport and postpone a major investment conference.

A total of 22 people have been killed in attacks on Saudi airports this month, according to an AFP tally of official figures.

A Houthi maritime blockade in the Red Sea is also threatening oil shipments from Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest exporter of crude.

The Houthi attacks follow the collapse in July of a years-long truce in Yemen's civil war, where the Iran-backed group is fighting the government supported by a Saudi-led coalition.

The Houthis declared a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and began hitting its ships, territory and oil facilities, before launching a major offensive in September in which they seized government-held territory along the Red Sea coast.

In response, the Saudi air force has frequently targeted areas under Houthi control, which includes much of impoverished Yemen.

Welcome,

Here are the key updates:

• US president Donald Trump denied that negotiations were happening with Iran, adding that the situation will resolve "fairly soon" without elaborating
   
• Iran's IRGC reported that its navy struck four ships involved in oil transfers in the Gulf, with three other vessels on fire after hitting mines near Hormuz
   
• The Yemen war rages with deaths and wounded within the country and across the border in Saudi Arabia
   
• Israeli attacks continue on Gaza, occupied West Bank, south Lebanon and southern Syria despite any agreements or alleged ceasefires

And so we continue our live coverage of the day...

A Tunisian court on Wednesday sentenced 10 environmental activists to up to a year in prison over an anti-pollution protest they attended in 2020, a defence lawyer said.

Eight of them were sentenced to six-month suspended sentences, lawyer Hamida Chaieb said.

The activists had taken part in a demonstration against a major phosphate-processing factory in southern Tunisia's coastal city of Gabes, where locals have complained about pollution and health issues they linked to the plant.

The case stemmed from a complaint by the state-run factory, which accused the activists of obstructing its operations, Chaieb said.

The activists were arrested at the time but later released amid pressure from rights groups.

They believed the case against them had been dropped, said Khayreddine Debaya, head of the campaign group, Stop Pollution, which has led several protests against the facility.

But in March this year, the activists discovered they had been sentenced in 2023 to one year in prison in absentia.

The court retried them in their presence this time, handing only two of them one-year jail terms while Debaya was among those who received six-month suspended sentences.

The plant, inaugurated in 1972, processes phosphate to make fertilisers, and some of the gases and waste it discharges into the open air and the Mediterranean are radioactive and can cause cancer, researchers have found.

In February, a court rejected demands to suspend the facility's operations.

Taking advantage of rising prices for fertiliser on global markets, Tunisia now wants its output to increase more than fourfold by 2030.

President Kais Saied has long vowed to revive Tunisia's phosphate sector, hindered by years of underinvestment and unrest, calling it a "pillar of the national economy".

Egypt rejected on Wednesday Libya's eastern-based parliament's ratification of a long-disputed maritime agreement with Turkey, saying it infringed on Cairo's rights in the Mediterranean.

The agreement "constitutes a clear infringement upon Egypt's sovereign rights within its exclusive economic zone and continental shelf", Egypt's foreign ministry said.

Cairo said the agreement violates the Law of the Sea, and was therefore "null and void, possesses no legal effect, and its ratification by the Libyan House of Representatives carries no legal consequences for Egypt".

The agreement was ratified Tuesday by Libya's Benghazi-based parliament, backed by military leader Khalifa Haftar.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was historically one of Haftar's strongest backers, but experts say relations have cooled in recent years due to Haftar allowing his territory to be used to funnel support to Sudanese paramilitaries.

Turkey and Egypt are also currently close security allies, and cooperate on a host of regional issues, though they have historically been on opposing sides in Libya.

Haftar's forces have for years rivalled the internationally recognised government in Tripoli.

The parliament had also rejected the maritime deal first agreed by Ankara and the Tripoli-based government in 2019.

The deal has also angered European countries after it saw Ankara claim large and potentially gas-rich areas of the eastern Mediterranean.

The European Union on Tuesday reiterated its objection to the deal, calling it "null and void" and saying it "infringes upon the sovereign rights of third states", including member states Greece and Cyprus.

In recent years, relations between Turkey and the authorities in eastern Libya have warmed significantly, with both sides increasing political and economic contacts following years of hostility.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Egypt's military support for Saudi Arabia would be limited to defending the kingdom's territory and borders and would not include an attack on Yemen, the presidency said on Wednesday, as the Iran-allied Houthis intensify attacks on the kingdom.

Sisi's comments came as Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and intelligence chief Hassan Rashad met Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Riyadh, Saudi state news agency SPA said. Abdelatty delivered a written message from Sisi to King Salman, and the two sides discussed bilateral ties and regional developments, SPA said.

Any Egyptian military backing for Saudi Arabia could mark a significant escalation in the broader Middle East conflict, which has threatened global energy supplies and pushed oil prices higher since the US and Israel attacked Iran in February.

Egypt would also defend the territory of any other Arab country if asked, Sisi said, but its military effort would not extend beyond Egyptian territory or that of an Arab state whose security and stability Cairo was seeking to protect.

On Monday, Egypt's parliament delayed until October 26 a vote on authorizing the armed forces to support Saudi Arabia if requested, lawmakers said.

Fighting between the Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen's internationally recognised government and the Houthis, who control the capital Sanaa and much of the north, has escalated in recent weeks, opening another front in the US-Israeli war on Iran.

Egypt and Saudi Arabia are close strategic and economic partners. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states, including the United Arab Emirates, provided Egypt with billions of dollars in aid, central bank deposits and investments after the 2013 military overthrow of Islamist President Mohamed Mursi. Sisi became president a year later.

Egypt, a regional military power, previously joined the Saudi-led coalition that intervened in Yemen in 2015 in support of the government against the Houthis, though it played a limited combat role in the civil war.

Israeli forces on Wednesday briefly detained a US congressional candidate as he joined activists supporting Palestinians harvesting olives in the face of threats by extremist settlers.

Brad Lander, a left-wing Democrat who is expected to easily win a House seat in New York City on November 3, posted on social media that he was detained along with a group of rabbis and volunteers as they harvested olives west of Bethlehem in the occupied West Bank.

"The occupation is a crime under international law. Harvesting olives isn't a crime under any law I know," Lander wrote on X.

He later wrote that he was released on account of his prominence, adding that "Palestinians face far worse consequences every day".

The Israeli foreign ministry lashed out at Lander over what it called a "calculated political stunt", and said he had ignored guidance to coordinate with Israeli authorities.

"This was not about harvesting olives. It was about harvesting headlines," it said.

The Israeli military said that the Palestinian landowner had not requested permission to conduct the harvest.

"This coordination is necessary to ensure the security of the area and maintain public order," it said, pointing to the "security risk of an uncoordinated harvest" near an Israeli settlement.

Israel has faced growing international criticism over violence during the harvest, with rights groups documenting multiple attacks and other disruptions each day by settlers against Palestinians.

Israel on Monday announced it had made several arrests after settlers beat up a US photojournalist covering the incidents and a French mayor who had come for the olive season.

The violence comes in the final days before Israeli elections in which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sought to shore up his right-wing base, which is staunchly pro-settlement.

Israel has come under growing fire within the United States, traditionally its top ally.

Lander, who is Jewish, is a close ally of New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani, an outspoken critic of Israeli policies.

In a party primary in June, Lander ousted the sitting congressman, Dan Goldman, one of a dwindling number of Democrats who support Israel.

Millions of Egyptians are expected to take part in celebrations honouring the 13th-century Sufi saint Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi in the Nile Delta city of Tanta, as one of the country's largest religious festivals approaches its climax on Thursday.

The week-long festival, known as the Mawlid al-Sayyid al-Badawi, an annual celebration commemorating the birth of the revered Sufi saint, began on 16 October and is expected to attract more than two million visitors, according to Egyptian media reports.

Worshippers and pilgrims have travelled from across Egypt, including the Nile Delta and Upper Egypt, to visit al-Badawi's shrine and participate in collective prayers, devotional chanting and dhikr, the Sufi practice of remembering God through the repetition of sacred phrases.

The celebrations centre on the Sayyid al-Badawi Mosque in Tanta, where the saint is buried, while surrounding streets host religious gatherings, food stalls and traditional festivities.

Egypt's General Sheikhdom of Sufi Orders announced that the celebrations would culminate on 22 October, with a major Sufi conference scheduled for Wednesday in Tanta's Sigar district.

Who was Sayyid Ahmad al-Badawi?

Ahmad al-Badawi was a Muslim mystic who travelled through the Islamic world before settling in Tanta in the 13th century.

He became renowned for his asceticism, religious devotion and spiritual teachings, eventually becoming one of the most revered figures in Egyptian Sufism.

Al-Badawi also occupies a prominent place in Egyptian popular traditions surrounding the struggle against the Crusaders.

According to accounts passed down through Sufi traditions and folklore, he helped fight the Crusaders while blind during the Seventh Crusade, launched by King Louis IX of France in 1249, and was associated with the Egyptian resistance that culminated in the Crusaders' defeat and Louis IX's capture in 1250.

Although his personal participation in the fighting is not firmly established by contemporary historical evidence, the tradition helped establish his reputation as a spiritual protector of Egypt as well as a religious teacher.

Al-Badawi, who died in 1276, is associated with the founding of the Badawiyya, also known as the Ahmadiyya, one of Egypt's historic Sufi orders.

His followers regard him as a "wali", or friend of God, a designation used in Sufi traditions for individuals believed to have attained exceptional spiritual closeness to the divine.

For generations, his shrine has been a major destination for religious pilgrimage, and his annual mawlid has developed into one of the most prominent expressions of Egypt's popular Islamic culture.

For Egyptian Sufis, the occasion is both an act of religious remembrance and a celebration of spiritual continuity, connecting contemporary worshippers with centuries-old traditions of devotion, hospitality and communal solidarity.

The festival also attracts many Egyptians who do not belong to any particular Sufi order, reflecting the enduring place of saints, shrines and religious festivals in the country's social and cultural life.

The celebrations come ahead of another major Sufi festival honouring Ibrahim al-Desouki, which is scheduled to begin on Friday in the Nile Delta city of Desouk.

Lina Attalah, co-founder and editor-in-chief of independent news website Mada Masr, appeared for questioning on Wednesday after she was summoned by Egyptian authorities, who did not specify the reasons for the summons or the subject of the investigation.

The summons came after Mada Masr published a report detailing complaints by detainees who said they had been subjected to violations inside Egyptian prisons.

"Prosecutors have been investigating Mada Masr Editor-in-Chief Lina Attalah for three hours at the headquarters of the Supreme State Security Prosecution in New Cairo. Her defence team has been present with her throughout the questioning. The investigation session is ongoing," Mada Masr wrote on X on Wednesday.

The news site said this was the sixth case brought against the outlet, its journalists or its editor-in-chief over the past six years.

The most recent was in August 2025, when the State Security Prosecution ordered Attalah's release on bail of 30,000 Egyptian pounds after charging her with "publishing false news" and "using a website without a licence".

Egyptian authorities arrested Attalah in May 2020 while she was interviewing Laila Soueif, the mother of political activist Alaa Abdel Fattah, outside Tora Prison, where he was being held at the time. Attalah was detained for seven hours before being released on bail.

The latest summons comes amid mounting pressure and a continued crackdown on press freedom in Egypt. In September, authorities arrested six journalists from the fact-checking platform Matsad2sh (Don't Believe It).

After five days in secret detention under the country's anti-terrorism law, the six journalists appeared before the Supreme State Security Prosecution.

Some said they had been subjected to torture and ill-treatment, including blindfolding, being handcuffed behind their backs, being stripped of their clothes, beatings and electric shocks.

On 13 October, the prosecution ordered the journalists' detention to be extended by a further 15 days pending investigation by the Supreme State Security Prosecution. They face charges of joining and financing a "terrorist group" and "publishing false news".

Egypt ranks 169th out of 180 countries in Reporters Without Borders' 2026 World Press Freedom Index. The organisation says 18 Egyptian journalists are currently behind bars.

Israeli forces have resealed the only reopened entrance to a Palestinian village south of Nablus in the occupied West Bank, leaving around 2,500 residents isolated and facing severe restrictions on movement, as hundreds of olive trees have reportedly been uprooted during the harvest season.

Rami Nassar, head of Madama village council, told The New Arab that Israeli forces had closed the village's entrances with earth barriers, disrupting access to medical care, schools, workplaces and agricultural land.

A passage for humanitarian access was briefly reopened on Tuesday, but Israeli forces returned with a bulldozer on Wednesday and blocked it again, according to accounts provided by Nassar.

He said hundreds of olive trees had also been uprooted, describing the village as having become "a prison under the open sky".

The blockade began on 11 October, when Israeli bulldozers sealed roads connecting Madama with neighbouring Palestinian communities.

"On the morning of 11 October, we woke up to find that our village had been isolated from the world," Nassar said.

"It wasn't just the closure of one entrance, but a complete and tightly enforced closure."

He said Israeli forces blocked the northern entrance, the eastern road towards Burin and routes connecting Madama with Asira al-Qibliya, before obstructing smaller roads and dirt tracks.

Residents attempting to reach Nablus for work, education or medical appointments have consequently been forced to leave their vehicles behind and walk along difficult mountain paths.

Videos supplied to The New Arab show large mounds of earth and rocks obstructing paved roads. One recording shows schoolchildren carrying backpacks negotiating uneven, rocky ground beside an earth barrier, with a yellow school transport vehicle stopped nearby.

The restrictions have also disrupted deliveries of vegetables, cooking gas and essential medicines.

"This siege has suffocated our lives," Nassar said, warning of shortages of medication for chronic illnesses.

Among those most seriously affected are patients requiring regular kidney dialysis at An-Najah Hospital in Nablus.

Nassar said these patients had previously travelled by ambulance or private vehicle, but the blockade has made accessing treatment increasingly difficult.

He described an incident in which a resident suffered a serious medical emergency and villagers were forced to carry the patient along a rugged mountain path because an ambulance could not reach the village in time.

The blockade has coincided with the annual olive harvest, a vital source of income for Palestinian families.

Farmers have struggled to reach their groves, transport equipment and bring harvested olives home, while village accounts describe repeated attacks on agricultural land by Israeli forces and settlers.

Footage provided by Nassar shows uprooted olive trees lying amid disturbed earth, while separate recordings show excavators operating among olive groves on hillsides surrounding the village.

Nassar said Israeli forces had uprooted hundreds of trees, although the total number destroyed could not be independently established from the footage.

Other accounts shared with The New Arab describe a security guard from the nearby illegal Israeli settlement of Yitzhar confiscating harvesting equipment from a Palestinian farmer in the Al-Rasm area south of Madama and scattering collected olives across the ground.

Palestinian news agency WAFA separately reported attacks on olive harvesters in Madama and other villages around Nablus on Sunday, including the theft of agricultural equipment and crops.

"For us, this season is not merely about agriculture. It is our livelihood for the entire year. It is our memory," Nassar told The New Arab.

"The olive trees stand there waiting for us, but our farmers cannot reach their land."

He warned that families risk losing an entire year's agricultural income.

"We fear that an entire year's labour will be lost before our eyes."

The events in Madama come amid escalating Israeli settler violence across the occupied West Bank during the olive harvest.

According to the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, 199 harvest-related settler attacks were documented between 1 September and 12 October, leaving one Palestinian dead, 124 injured and more than 2,500 trees and saplings damaged.

The agency also documented settlers assaulting farmers and stealing harvesting equipment and crops in Madama itself earlier this month.

The agency said attacks on farmers have increased sharply in recent years, with restrictions on access to agricultural land threatening the livelihoods of tens of thousands of Palestinian families.

Nassar said the village council had contacted the Nablus governorate, Palestinian authorities, humanitarian organisations, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and the International Committee of the Red Cross, seeking intervention to reopen the roads.

He said Israeli authorities had provided no official explanation for the closures or indication of when they might end.

"Nobody has told us when this collective punishment will end," he said.

Egypt, a regional military power, has pledged to provide all forms of assistance to defend Saudi Arabia amid escalating Houthi attacks from Yemen, in a move aimed at maintaining its strategic position in the Gulf.

But analysts view another geopolitical objective behind the Egyptian support for Riyadh: countering Israel’s bid to play a security role in a region vital to Cairo’s political and economic interests.

On 17 October, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said Egypt would take any necessary measures to protect Saudi Arabia if Riyadh requested assistance. He called an emergency parliamentary session to authorise possible troop deployment.

The following day, the National Defence Council, Egypt’s top security body, pledged to provide all necessary and possible support to safeguard Saudi Arabia’s security, stability, and territorial integrity.

The Egyptian pledge came after US President Donald Trump said on 16 October that Israel had been helping Saudi Arabia counter Houthi attacks from Yemen and suggested Riyadh should accept further Israeli assistance.

It followed Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s visit to Cairo last month to seek support against the Iran-backed Houthis. The visit highlighted the importance of Egyptian-Saudi coordination on issues affecting the Red Sea and wider regional stability.

For Cairo, which has longstanding strategic ties with Riyadh, the prospect of Israel becoming a more prominent security partner for the kingdom adds urgency to its efforts to reinforce its role in regional security.

“Egypt’s interest lies in doing everything possible to strengthen its ties with Saudi Arabia, or at least to ensure that its relationship with Riyadh is closer than Israel’s,” Ahmed Aboudouh, an associate fellow at Chatham House in London, told The New Arab.

Strengthening ties with Saudi Arabia offers Egypt significant economic and geopolitical benefits as Cairo seeks foreign investment, financial support, and foreign currency. The kingdom is also important for millions of Egyptians working there, whose remittances provide a vital source of foreign currency.

Closer coordination with Riyadh also helps Egypt protect its interests in the Red Sea, particularly shipping through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, a key route to the Suez Canal and a major source of revenue for Cairo.

During Trump’s first term, the US brokered the Abraham Accords in 2020 to normalise relations between Israel and Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia’s neighbours, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain, allowing Tel Aviv to expand its economic, diplomatic, and security partnerships in the Gulf.

The American president has also pushed for normalising ties between Saudi Arabia and Israel, but Riyadh insists that any normalisation depends on resolving the Palestinian issue, including the establishment of a Palestinian state.

If Riyadh accepts any Israeli assistance against Houthi attacks, cooperation in areas such as intelligence sharing and air defence could expand, potentially giving Israel a greater role in Gulf security.

For Egypt, that possibility raises concerns about a changing regional balance in which Israel could become a more influential security partner for Arab states traditionally linked to Cairo.

Cairo's bid to keep Israel at bay

“Egypt would oppose any attempt by Israel to become a player in the Arab world’s collective security, regardless of who was involved, and Saudi Arabia would certainly stand with Cairo. This means keeping Israel out of regional military and intelligence cooperation,” Egyptian military expert Samir Ragheb told The New Arab.

Egypt was the first Arab country to sign a peace treaty with Israel in 1979, following decades of conflict and several wars, but their relations have remained largely cold despite formal diplomatic ties.

The relationship has been marked by mutual distrust, periodic tensions, and regional competition, particularly over Gaza and broader Middle East security arrangements.

Egyptian political analyst Mokhtar Ghobashi said Egypt’s pledge to defend Saudi Arabia could deter Israel from seeking a security role in the Gulf.

“Relying on Israel as a security guarantor for a country in the Arab world, amid divisions and conflicts between Arab states, is an extremely dangerous proposition,” he told The New Arab.

Since the 2020 Abraham Accords, security cooperation between Israel and some Gulf states has expanded, including arms sales and coordination on air and missile defence amid shared concerns over Iran.

Egypt’s support for Saudi Arabia reflects its interest in preserving its regional influence and maintaining a central role in shaping the security arrangements in the Middle East.

Cairo could face greater competition for influence if Riyadh turns to Israel for certain defence capabilities. While this would not necessarily weaken Egyptian-Saudi relations, it could reduce Egypt’s role in shaping the kingdom’s security policy.

The implications extend beyond bilateral relations. Closer security ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia could give Tel Aviv a greater role in shaping regional responses to threats, from Yemen’s Houthis to Iran.

Protecting Egypt's strategic interests

Red Sea security is another concern for Cairo. A broader Israeli security role in the Gulf could give Tel Aviv greater influence over decisions affecting the Bab el-Mandeb, a vital maritime corridor central to Egypt’s national interests.

Aboudouh said another objective behind Egypt’s pledge to defend Saudi Arabia is to protect its strategic interests in the Red Sea and around Bab el-Mandeb.

“Egyptian officials may have concluded that expanding the country’s regional role is now crucial to protecting maritime traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait against any Houthi attempt to exploit a conflict with Saudi Arabia to disrupt shipping, as they have done in the past,” he told The New Arab.

Egypt has been hard-hit by regional instability following Israel’s war on the Gaza Strip and Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea since 2023, losing an estimated around $20 billion in Suez Canal revenues.

Sisi framed Egypt’s potential role in Saudi Arabia as defensive, saying Cairo had no intention of attacking any party but was prepared to defend Saudi Arabia if requested. “We do not want to fight or attack anyone. We will only defend Saudi Arabia,” he said.

Egypt joined the Saudi-led coalition that intervened in Yemen against the Houthis in 2015, but its role remained limited. A deeper commitment now could expose Cairo to a costly conflict, particularly if operations extend beyond the defence of Saudi territory.

It could also strain Egypt’s resources and increase its exposure to instability along the Red Sea.

The extent and form of any Egyptian assistance will therefore be crucial. Intelligence-sharing, logistical support and maritime security cooperation would carry different risks from deploying troops to Yemen.

Cairo may seek to bolster Saudi Arabia’s defences while avoiding involvement in an open-ended conflict.

Mohamed Sabry is an Egyptian journalist based in Cairo with over two decades of experience covering Egypt, regional politics, foreign policy, and diplomacy. His work has appeared in Al-Monitor and InsideOver

Follow him on X: @MohamedSabry079

Edited by Charlie Hoyle

Israel’s annual music showcase is struggling to attract international guests ahead of its November edition, with organisers citing a growing cultural boycott amid the genocidal war on Gaza.

The Israel Music Showcase Festival, held annually in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, expects to welcome half as many international guests as last year, according to Israeli media reports on Wednesday.

The festival, which connects Israeli musicians with international music industry professionals, receives backing from Israeli state institutions, including the Foreign Ministry’s Cultural Diplomacy Division, the Culture Ministry and the Jerusalem Municipality.

As the event prepares for its November edition, organisers have acknowledged the growing impact of the cultural boycott amid continued international condemnation of Israel’s devastating military campaigns in Gaza, Lebanon and elsewhere in the Middle East.

Hadas Vanunu, the festival’s artistic director, told Israeli media that around 30 international guests were expected to attend this year, half the number who travelled from abroad last year.

Vanunu described the anticipated turnout as “both surprising and not surprising”.

The growing cultural boycott comes amid recent backlash against UK rapper Russ Millions, who cancelled his scheduled performance at the Boomerang Music Festival in Tel Aviv on Wednesday.

The rapper, known for hits including “Gun Lean” and “Body”, had been advertised as performing at the event.

His booking prompted criticism online, with fans and social media users questioning why a prominent British artist would perform in Israel amid its ongoing genocidal war on Gaza.

Russ Millions addressed the controversy during an Instagram Live session, saying: “If I was aware of any form of people killing, children or women I wouldn’t even have accepted any show.”

The growing international isolation of Israel’s music industry reflects a wider campaign by artists and cultural workers to oppose what they view as the normalisation of Israel’s actions against Palestinians through international cultural participation.

Long supported by pro-Palestine advocates, including the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, the campaign has gained greater visibility since Israel launched its assault on Gaza in October 2023.

Musicians have withdrawn from performances, filmmakers have pulled their work from Israeli festivals, and industry figures have urged cultural organisations to sever institutional ties with Israel.

Israel’s continued participation in the Eurovision Song Contest has also prompted a backlash, with the Netherlands, Ireland, Spain, Iceland and Slovenia withdrawing from the 2026 competition.

Israel’s inclusion has additionally sparked protests from critics opposing its participation.

Israel’s offensive has displaced nearly the entire population of Gaza and killed more than 74,450 people, according to the territory’s health ministry.

Israeli forces have continued to carry out near-daily strikes on Gaza, with the health ministry reporting that at least 1,500 people have been killed in attacks since the ceasefire came into effect in October 2025.

The UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry, chaired by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Navi Pillay, concluded that Israel is committing genocide against Palestinians in Gaza.

Lebanese judicial authorities have ordered the release of former Palestinian ambassador to Lebanon Ashraf Dabbour under a settlement requiring him to leave the country, the Almodon news site reported on Tuesday.

Security forces were expected to escort Dabbour to Beirut Airport for departure to Bulgaria, bringing to a close a judicial case that involved his detention and questioning. It was not clear exactly when he would be required to leave Lebanon.

The agreement, according to Almodon, includes halting all media campaigns waged by both his supporters and those aligned with his rival, Mazen Abbas, son of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

Sources close to Dabbour stressed that the agreement did not involve any financial settlement. The sources said several factors had contributed to his release, including a firm position by Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri against allowing the dispute to escalate, as well as repeated interventions by former Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblatt, who questioned the legal grounds for Dabbour's detention.

There were also concerns among Palestinian and Lebanese figures that handing Dabbour over to the Palestinian Authority (PA), if carried out, would set a legal precedent that could trigger further disputes and potentially prompt the authority to seek the detention of other Palestinians in Lebanon, the sources said.

Fatah leaders also played an important role in containing the dispute, which had begun to affect the movement's internal cohesion. Several messages were reportedly sent by senior Fatah figures to President Abbas, urging him to intervene and prevent the situation from escalating further.

Lebanese security forces arrested Dabbour in April, acting on an Interpol arrest warrant tied to financial corruption allegations. He was detained upon his arrival at Beirut Airport from Jordan, in implementation of a Red Notice issued in absentia.

In July 2025, Abbas relieved Dabbour of his duties as deputy to the general supervisor of the Palestinian file in Lebanon, reportedly as part of broader organisational and security changes within Fatah.

He later faced multiple financial allegations, including corruption and illicit enrichment.

Dabbour had been under scrutiny over his alleged role in the sale of properties in Beirut owned by the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO), which maintained a significant presence in Lebanon until Israel’s 1982 invasion.

Jumblatt had close and direct ties to the PLO during the Lebanese civil war.

During his tenure as ambassador from 2012 to 2015, Dabbour is accused of approving real estate deals for personal gain, including the purchase of a PLO-owned building in Beirut’s Corniche al-Mazraa area, and of transferring funds from embassy accounts into his personal bank accounts.

After refusing to appear before Palestinian judicial authorities, an arrest warrant was issued against him through Interpol.

Egypt has launched an AI-powered tool for countering disinformation, days after security forces detained journalists working for the independent fact-checking outlet Matsad2sh.

The Chat Egypt app, unveiled at the 2026 Egypt Forum on Monday, draws on state-owned media and official communications to counter information designated as false news published outside official channels.

The government describes the app as the "first unified platform to combat rumours using artificial intelligence".

Its algorithm screens text, images and video and flags content it identifies as misleading or manipulated, the cabinet's media centre said.

It also tracks the spread of rumours and their circulation rates, and enables users to report potentially false content to authorities.

Statements by government officials are uploaded to the platform daily, along with information published in state media.

The app appears to have had a rocky launch, with local news outlet Almanasa reporting that the image and video verification feature was disabled a day after it went live.

The platform warns users that its answers may contain errors, omissions and outdated information.

Chat Egypt's launch came less than three weeks after security forces forcibly disappeared Matsad2sh's entire editorial team.

Prosecutors charged the six journalists with terror offences after they were held incommunicado for almost a week. They allege that the platform, whose name means 'Don't Believe It' in Arabic, has links to the Muslim Brotherhood and receives foreign funding to spread disinformation.

Lawyers representing the journalists say they reported being subjected to "various forms of torture and mistreatment".

The arrests triggered protests by dozens of local reporters at the Journalists Syndicate and were condemned by dozens of international organisations.

Egypt ranks 169th out of 180 countries on the 2026 World Press Freedom Index.

It is one of the world's leading jailers of media workers, with more than two dozen currently behind bars, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Yemeni government forces and local anti-Houthi fighters are preparing to launch a counteroffensive to break the tightening Houthi siege of Taiz, after a series of battlefield setbacks left the country's third-largest city increasingly isolated, a senior military commander has told The New Arab.

Brigadier General Mohamed al-Mahmoudi, Yemen's deputy interior minister and commander of anti-Houthi forces on Jabal Sabir in Taiz governorate, said government forces had begun regaining the initiative after reorganising their ranks and strengthening defensive positions around the besieged city.

He warned, however, that the rapid collapse of government-held positions in the surrounding countryside had left Taiz facing a deepening humanitarian crisis, with around two million people at risk of being cut off from essential supplies.

"If Taiz falls it means the fall of the Yemeni republic and the legitimate government," al-Mahmoudi said. "It is the first and last stronghold of the republic. If it falls, that will carry huge symbolic significance."

Al-Mahmoudi attributed the latest setbacks to the collapse of National Resistance forces on Yemen's western coast, followed by the loss of al-Kadha, Shamir and Maqbana, and the Houthi advance into Jabal Habashi district and parts of the Al-Hujariyah region.

He said these areas had fallen rapidly because they were predominantly civilian population centres with a limited military presence, allowing Houthi forces to advance with little resistance and tighten their siege of Taiz.

"The Houthis' incursion into Jabal Habashi had extremely serious consequences," he explained, "as did their expansion into al-Hujariyah and their capture of its towns, which they were able to overrun at great speed, leading to a suffocating siege on Taiz."

Government complacency blamed for military setbacks

Al-Mahmoudi accused Yemen's internationally recognised government and military leadership of failing to prepare for the Houthi offensive, despite years of warnings about the group's intentions.

"Since the legitimate government agreed to a truce with the Houthi militias in 2022, they've been preparing for this day," he said.

He argued that the army, local authorities and other government factions had become distracted by internal disputes and secondary issues while neglecting the growing Houthi threat.

"Complacency, turning a blind eye and failing to focus on the real enemy led to this outcome."

Al-Mahmoudi said the country's military and political leadership must bear substantial responsibility for the territorial losses, calling for an investigation into how government-held positions had collapsed so rapidly.

Jabal Sabir becomes key to defending Taiz

The loss of surrounding territory has left around two million people facing an increasingly severe siege, according to al-Mahmoudi, who warned that prolonged isolation could have devastating consequences for civilians and the forces defending the city.

He identified Jabal Sabir, the strategic mountain overlooking Taiz, as central to the city's defence, recalling its importance during the fighting in 2015.

However, he acknowledged that the mountain had not been adequately prepared to serve as a frontline defensive position when the latest Houthi advance began.

Since Sunday, 18 October, government forces and local anti-Houthi fighters have reorganised their ranks, halted parts of the Houthi advance and reinforced their positions on the mountain, he said.

Al-Mahmoudi said the forces were now preparing to move beyond defensive operations towards a counteroffensive aimed at "breaking the siege".

He identified the battle for al-Misrakh as particularly important to reopening access to Taiz, warning that a prolonged blockade would deprive civilians of fuel, food and freedom of movement.

"All these factors will put enormous pressure on the resistance and the national army. We must act as fast as possible," he said.

Preparing to shift from defence to attack

Al-Mahmoudi said the immediate priority was to consolidate Taiz's defences before launching a separate military operation to push Houthi forces back from the city's southern approaches and reopen vital supply routes.

"It is essential to move the fighting out of Taiz city and into the southern rural areas of Taiz, and to open supply routes from Taiz to the interim capital, Aden, through Al-Hujariyah," he said.

The commander acknowledged that government forces remained constrained by limited military resources, particularly following the loss of key supply routes.

"Nevertheless, the national army is capable of standing firm. We must also work to arm ourselves and develop our own capacity using what we seize from the enemy."

He also highlighted Saudi Arabia's continued military support, saying Riyadh had maintained assistance through air power, communications and intelligence.

Despite the territorial losses and worsening siege, al-Mahmoudi expressed confidence that Taiz would withstand the offensive and that Houthi forces would ultimately be defeated.

He argued that domestic, regional and international developments were increasingly working against the group, which he accused of seeking to use the siege of Taiz to strengthen its negotiating position.

"The Houthis are weak internally right now and wish to wield greater leverage in negotiations by strangling the city and its civilians," he said. "However, Taiz will emerge victorious."

Saudi Arabia has agreed to supply extra diesel to France "for as many months as necessary", the Elysee Palace told AFP on Wednesday, as President Emmanuel Macron was visiting Riyadh days after violent rioting across France.

Macron and de facto Saudi leader Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman met in Riyadh where they also agreed to consult on expanding security cooperation and infrastructure projects to bypass the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, the palace added.

Macron landed in Riyadh in a surprise "solidarity" visit, making him the first Western leader to touch down in the kingdom since Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis intensified their attacks this month.

The unannounced trip sends a strong signal to his oil-rich Saudi ally as Riyadh comes under near-daily attack.

It was part of a Gulf tour to secure oil and diesel and bring down prices in France, following a weekend of violent protests over soaring living costs.

Faced with criticism of his Gulf tour in France, Macron told reporters he was just "doing his job" in a bid to "ease tensions" over gas prices, one of the causes of social unrest in France.

"There must be no sign of febrility," he said. "I am fulfilling my role. I am at my post."

The presidential jet landed in Riyadh, where he was set to meet Saudi de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman.

"The president of the republic is travelling to Saudi Arabia this afternoon to meet with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman," a statement from the presidency said earlier.

The visit aimed to "demonstrate France's solidarity with the kingdom in the face of the attacks carried out by the Houthis against its territory, and to continue efforts undertaken on securing and diversifying hydrocarbon supplies", it added.

In recent weeks, Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia have reached an unprecedented scale, forcing Riyadh airport to shut and the postponement of a major investment conference.

A Houthi maritime blockade is also threatening oil exports from the kingdom.

Macron's visit comes as Saudi Arabia seeks to rally Western support in the face of Houthi attacks.

'Personnel deployed'

Earlier Wednesday, Macron said France had sent troops to help shield the key Saudi oil terminal of Yanbu on the Red Sea from Houthi attacks, while insisting it was important "discussions resume" with the group.

"For the past eight days, we've had personnel and capabilities deployed (in Yanbu); we're working with Saudi Arabia in this direction, and so we have a defensive role to play," he told reporters in the Qatari capital.

The world's biggest crude exporter had been relying on Yanbu to export its oil, after Iran blockaded the Strait of Hormuz at the start of the Middle East war.

Last month, Macron said in a televised interview that France would send "military means" to help shield the Yanbu terminal from Houthi attacks.

On Tuesday, the UK government announced it would deploy British fighter planes to help Saudi Arabia defend itself against increasing attacks from Yemen's Houthis.

As part of his tour, Macron secured the delivery of an additional 200,000 tonnes of diesel per month from the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, as well as two terawatt-hours per month of LNG from Qatar.

In July, a fragile 2022 truce fell apart after the Houthis allowed an Iranian plane to land in Yemen's capital Sanaa in defiance of Riyadh's control over Yemeni airspace, setting off a spate of attacks.

Later, the Houthis declared a maritime blockade of Saudi Arabia and began hitting its ships, territory and oil facilities, before seizing government-held territory along the Red Sea coastline in a lightning campaign in September.

In response, the Saudi air force has been regularly targeting the group in support of the Yemeni government as hostilities resumed.

Israeli occupation forces have turned a Lebanese home into a polling station for Israel's upcoming parliamentary elections, bringing the country's electoral process onto occupied southern Lebanese territory as its military continues to seize land and destroy villages.

Footage filmed from a distance and circulated by Lebanese media appears to show Israeli soldiers using a house in the village of Zawtar al-Sharqiya as a polling station, transforming civilian property in an occupied Lebanese village into a voting site for the very forces occupying it.

Israeli media have also reported that soldiers deployed in occupied Lebanese, Syrian and Palestinian territories began casting their ballots on Wednesday ahead of Israel's 27 October election.

Lebanese media reported that Israeli soldiers were voting at military positions stretching from Naqoura to Zawtar al-Sharqiya, deepening the controversy over Israel's use of occupied Lebanese territory for its domestic political process.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz reported earlier this month that the military was preparing more than 800 polling stations, including sites in occupied lands in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, as thousands of Israeli soldiers remain deployed beyond the country's borders.

Around 850 polling stations had been established, including mobile voting facilities serving Israeli forces stationed at 40 military outposts in Gaza, numerous positions in southern Lebanon and nine outposts in souhwesern Syria, according to Israeli media reports.

The military has deployed approximately 3,000 soldiers to administer the voting process, which began on Wednesday and will continue until election day.

"Our mission is to enable all IDF service members to exercise their democratic right to a secret ballot, including during operational activities and combat beyond the border," Israeli Colonel Vered Ben Yehuda, who oversees the military's election preparations, told the Times of Israel.

The Israeli military's invocation of democratic rights stands in stark contrast to the reality in southern Lebanon, where occupation forces are using seized territory to hold their own elections while hundreds of thousands of Lebanese civilians remain displaced and unable to return to their homes.

Meanwhile, Lebanon itself has been forced to postpone its parliamentary elections amid the devastation and disruption caused by Israel's war.

Occupation and destruction of Lebanese homes

Israel has maintained a military presence in parts of southern Lebanon since its October 2024 invasion. Since March this year, it has significantly expanded its occupation, establishing a so-called security zone while destroying dozens of towns and villages.

Against this backdrop, the apparent use of a Lebanese house for an Israeli election illustrates how occupation forces are treating territory belonging to another country as an extension of their own military infrastructure.

Numerous videos have surfaced showing Israeli troops occupying and destroying Lebanese civilian property, often filmed by the soldiers themselves.

In one video that went viral on Tuesday, Israeli soldiers were seen boasting as they rigged a house with explosives at an undisclosed location in southern Lebanon.

Other footage has repeatedly shown entire neighbourhoods being demolished, with Israeli forces systematically reducing residential areas to rubble.

The reported use of a Lebanese home as a polling station comes as Israeli officials continue to insist that their forces will remain in occupied southern Lebanon, despite repeated demands from Beirut for their withdrawal.

Israeli elections extend into occupied Arab territories

The voting arrangements are not limited to Lebanon, with Israeli soldiers also casting ballots at military positions in occupied Palestinian and Syrian territories.

In Syria, Israeli forces crossed the armistice line and seized additional territory in the country's southwest, including the Syrian side of Mount Hermon, immediately after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad's regime in December 2024.

Israel has also occupied Syria's Golan Heights since 1967, with its annexation of the territory rejected under international law.

In Gaza, Israeli forces currently occupy close to 70 percent of the territory following three years of genocidal warfare that has killed more than 74,000 Palestinians and devastated much of the enclave.

The Israeli military has established polling arrangements at 40 outposts inside Gaza, allowing soldiers involved in the occupation to participate in Israel's elections from within the devastated Palestinian enclave.

The West Bank, meanwhile, has remained under Israeli occupation since 1967, with illegal settlement construction accelerating alongside increasingly frequent and violent settler attacks against Palestinian communities.

Israeli officials have repeatedly warned that their forces will remain in Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, citing security threats to justify their continued military presence.

Beirut and Damascus have demanded that Israel withdraw its forces from their territories, maintaining that they seek no further conflict.

A Turkish court will begin proceedings on Friday against 35 Israeli political and military officials, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, over attacks on humanitarian aid flotillas attempting to break Israel's blockade of the Gaza Strip.

The first hearing will take place on 23 October at Istanbul's 11th High Criminal Court, with defendants facing charges including torture, unlawful deprivation of liberty, armed robbery, hijacking of vessels, genocide and crimes against humanity.

The Global Sumud Flotilla movement announced the proceedings on Tuesday, saying the case seeks to hold Israeli officials accountable for intercepting civilian aid vessels in international waters, detaining their passengers and allegedly subjecting them to violence and mistreatment.

Among those named in the indictment are Netanyahu, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, Defence Minister Israel Katz and several senior military commanders.

The indictment was prepared in April and subsequently accepted by the court, which is examining the case under the principle of universal jurisdiction.

Turkish authorities have already issued arrest warrants for suspects in the case and completed the necessary legal procedures to request Interpol red notices, according to the movement.

The proceedings concern Israeli military operations against flotillas attempting to deliver humanitarian assistance to Gaza and challenge the naval blockade imposed on the Palestinian territory.

Italian prosecutors expand investigations

The Istanbul proceedings come as Italian prosecutors have expanded a separate investigation into alleged abuses against 50 Italian civilians who participated in Global Sumud Flotilla missions in 2025 and 2026.

According to the movement, Italian prosecutors announced on 16 October that their investigation, which initially examined Ben-Gvir's suspected involvement in torture, unlawful detention, deliberate injury, looting and damage to vessels, had been expanded to include Katz, Israeli military chief Eyal Zamir and 11 senior officials from the military, police and prison authorities.

Italian investigators also found that alleged abuses had been repeated during the April and May 2026 flotilla mission, with more severe methods reportedly employed, including electric shocks and rubber bullets.

The movement said judicial authorities investigating similar incidents had participated in a coordination meeting at Eurojust, the European Union's criminal justice cooperation agency, in The Hague.

Citing Italian newspaper La Repubblica, it said representatives from ten other countries attended the meeting, including Portugal, Spain, France, Sweden, Poland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Australia, Finland and Slovakia.

The developments indicate a growing international effort to investigate alleged Israeli violations against humanitarian activists attempting to reach Gaza.

The Global Sumud Flotilla movement said the legal proceedings in Turkey and Italy demonstrated that the interception of its vessels was no longer the end of the matter, but the beginning of criminal proceedings against Israeli decision-makers.

It also cited a UN investigative report issued on 9 September, which it said concluded that flotilla vessels had been unlawfully intercepted in international waters, with hundreds of participants arbitrarily arrested, forcibly transferred to Israel and detained.

Allegations of systematic violence

The Istanbul case covers alleged Israeli attacks on the vessel Conscience, its eight accompanying boats and the wider Global Sumud Flotilla.

According to the movement, evidence submitted to the court includes drone attacks on the Alma and Familia Madeira vessels near Tunisia, as well as the interception of 42 humanitarian boats carrying 462 civilian volunteers, including healthcare workers, parliamentarians, lawyers and journalists.

The movement said the evidence documented a pattern of violence, including drone attacks on civilian vessels near Malta and Tunisia, attacks on boats off Crete, forced deportations, physical assaults and humiliating searches.

Activists also reported degrading treatment in Israeli detention facilities, including Ketziot prison.

The organisation said the court proceedings represented a direct challenge to what it described as unlawful military interventions against unarmed civilians attempting to deliver aid to Gaza.

Push for accountability

Lawyers Without Borders International, an organisation established in Turkey in 2016 that is supporting victims in the case, said the proceedings concerned not only the 101 victims identified in the court file but also the broader question of accountability for alleged Israeli abuses.

The organisation argued that when states use armed force against unarmed civilians attempting to deliver essential assistance to people facing hunger, those responsible throughout the chain of command must be held accountable under international law.

The Global Sumud Flotilla movement said it would continue pursuing legal action through national courts, European judicial institutions and international mechanisms.

Its planned efforts include seeking the return of confiscated vessels and submitting a request to the Office of the Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court.

The movement said its ultimate objectives were to secure accountability for those responsible for alleged abuses, recover seized ships and bring about the permanent lifting of Israel's blockade of Gaza.