Today In Issues:
FDD Research & Analysis
The Must-Reads
American-Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin among six hostages shot dead in Gaza WSJ Editorial: Hamas murders six hostages, Israel is blamed ‘Moving in the dark’: Hamas documents show tunnel battle strategy WSJ Editorial: Israel’s strategic dilemma—and Iran’s US researchers find probable launch site of Russia's new nuclear-powered missile The Hill’s Alexander J. Motyl: The ordinary people swept up in Putin’s evil war 7 U.S. troops hurt in dramatic raid that killed numerous ISIS fighters Two U.S. marines attacked in Turkey by nationalist youth group South Korea says an official leaked a classified spy roster to China ‘Dark’ tanker crash exposes dangers of China’s thirst for cheap oil Far Right gets historic win in Eastern German elections Brazil says its resistance to Elon Musk is global exampleIn The News
Israel
The Israeli military said Saturday that it had located several bodies in Gaza and was in the process of extracting and identifying them, as concerns continued to mount over the fate of the remaining hostages nearly 11 months into the war there. – Wall Street Journal
The Israeli military said six bodies found in Gaza were hostages killed by Hamas, engulfing the country in grief and anger and deepening fissures over whether Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government should have reached a cease-fire agreement that might have saved their lives. – Wall Street Journal
Rachel Goldberg-Polin said a final goodbye to her son, Hersh, on Monday before thousands of mourners gathered in a hilltop cemetery in this holy city to share the grief of parents whose long and public fight to win their child’s freedom ended in tragedy in a tunnel in Gaza. – Wall Street Journal
Health workers vaccinated thousands of children in Gaza against polio on Sunday under a temporary, localized pause in fighting that was negotiated after the virus was detected in sewage samples and an infection was confirmed in a 10-month-old boy. – Wall Street Journal
Thousands of Israelis over two days staged the largest anti-government demonstration since Oct. 7, taking to the streets and joining a general strike Monday that brought much of the country to a halt as the last of six hostages recovered from Gaza over the weekend was laid to rest. – Washington Post
Britain is suspending some arms exports to Israel, Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced Monday, citing “a clear risk” that the arms might be used in “serious violation of international humanitarian law.” – Washington Post
Hamas’s handbook for underground combat describes, in meticulous detail, how to navigate in darkness, move stealthily beneath Gaza and fire automatic weapons in confined spaces for maximum lethality. – New York Times
President Biden issued a one-word rebuke on Monday to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s commitment to reaching a cease-fire and hostage release deal, the latest iteration of the White House’s monthslong effort to cajole and censure the Israeli leader. – New York Times
Gunmen killed three Israeli police officers on Sunday morning as they drove through the Israeli-occupied West Bank, the latest episode in the spiral of violence in the territory that includes attacks by Palestinian and Israeli extremists, as well as ongoing raids by the Israeli military in Palestinian cities. – New York Times
Residents of Tulkarm in the Israeli-occupied West Bank assessed the damage on Saturday from a raid by Israeli forces that has chewed up roads, brought sudden bouts of violence and left many Palestinians reeling. Israel’s military pressed on elsewhere in the territory amid signs that fighting with Palestinian militant groups could spread. – New York Times
Hamas’ armed wing said on Monday that since June the group has been operating under new instructions on how to handle hostages should Israeli forces approach their locations in Gaza. – Reuters
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday rejected calls to soften his demand to keep troops in the southern Gazan border area as the price for a ceasefire deal, saying it was vital for Israel to control a key lifeline for Hamas. – Reuters
Several U.S. Democratic lawmakers renewed calls for an Israeli-Hamas ceasefire on Sunday in reaction to the killing of six hostages in a tunnel under Gaza, while Republicans criticized President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for not giving stronger support to Israel. – Reuters
Israeli forces killed a local commander of the Islamist movement Hamas in the flashpoint city of Jenin on Friday as they pressed a major operation in the occupied West Bank for a third day, the Israeli military said. – Reuters
Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant urged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday to conclude a ceasefire deal with Hamas to bring the remaining hostages home from Gaza, as the bodies of six of those taken on Oct. 7 were brought home. – Reuters
Israel sought Russia’s help in making progress on a deal to free hostages from Gaza, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said, as efforts spearheaded by the US, Qatar and Egypt to secure a truce with Hamas advance slowly. – Bloomberg
A car exploded at a West Bank petrol station and another after crashing into a nearby Israeli settlement in what authorities described as terrorist attacks by assailants who were both killed. – Bloomberg
Hamas has released a video on Telegram on Monday showing the six recently slain hostages speaking into a camera, while also announcing that it will release their “last message to the world” before they were killed. – Jerusalem Post
The IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) eliminated on Tuesday Ahmed Fozi Nazer Muhammad Wadia, the commander of the Nukhba company who oversaw the massacre in Netiv Ha’asara on October 7, the military said. – Jerusalem Post
An IAF aircraft struck an armed terror cell that fired at IDF troops during a counterterrorism operation in Tulkarm, the military reported on Monday. – Jerusalem Post
Defending himself against charges of blocking a hostage deal on Monday evening, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu argued forcefully for what he said was the “strategic imperative” to keep Israeli troops stationed along the so-called Philadelphia Corridor along Gaza’s border with Egypt. – Times of Israel
The six dead hostages recovered from the Gaza Strip over the weekend were killed 48 to 72 hours before their autopsy, meaning between Thursday and Friday morning, the Health Ministry said Sunday. – Times of Israel
Troops have been operating in Jenin, considered by Israel to be one of the West Bank’s major terror hotspots, since early Wednesday, making it the longest operation in the territory in over 20 years. – Times of Israel
The Hamas terror group claimed responsibility on Monday for twin car bombing in the southern West Bank days earlier, on the heels of a call from a top official in the terror group to resume suicide bombings. – Times of Israel
A court ordered strikers back to work Monday afternoon, cutting short a labor action aimed at pressuring the government to seal a ceasefire and hostage deal in Gaza as thousands protested for an agreement nationwide – Times of Israel
The murders of six hostages, whose bodies were recovered Saturday from a tunnel in southern Gaza’s Rafah, is proof that Hamas is not interested in negotiating a cease-fire deal, former Israel Defense Forces spokesman Jonathan Conricus told Newsmax Sunday. – Newsmax
Editorial: The choices are heavy, and Israel’s leaders don’t need U.S. pressure driven by an American election calendar. Americans know right from wrong. When Mr. Polin and Ms. Goldberg spoke at the Democratic convention, the crowd chanted “bring them home.” That was also the chant at the Republican convention during the speech by the parents of Omer Neutra, a 22-year-old U.S. hostage still in Gaza. Israel is offering unprecedented strategic concessions and risking its soldiers’ lives to free hostages. U.S. pressure should be on Hamas, which took the hostages and murders them. – Wall Street Journal
Editorial: According to the Preamble of the UN Charter signed in 1945, the purpose of the United Nations is, inter alia, “to reaffirm faith in fundamental human rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained.” As we mourn for the six hostages, we urge the UN to change its course, condemn Hamas, and take action immediately on behalf of the 101 hostages it is still holding. – Jerusalem Post
Bari Weiss writes: Hersh, and those executed beside him in the tunnels under Rafah, were killed by Iran. It’s a country, now in league with China and Russia, that calls for death to America in the same breath it calls for the destruction of Israel. It is a country that began its tyrannical rule in 1979 by taking Americans captive, and that, as I write this, is actively targeting Americans on American soil. That is what we face. Statements of sorrow from the leaders of the free world are insufficient. The message to terrorists and those who support them should be that the defenders of civilization will defeat them. No matter the cost. – The Free Press
Iran
The helicopter crash that killed Iran’s president in May was mainly caused by bad weather, including dense fog, Iranian state media reported, citing the conclusions of a final investigation report. – New York Times
As Iran threatens to attack Israel over the assassination of a Hamas leader in the Iranian capital, its long-vaunted missile program offers one of the few ways for Tehran to strike back directly, but questions loom over just how much of a danger it poses. – Associated Press
European officials expect Iran to deliver ballistic missiles to Russia imminently, a move that could prompt a swift response from Ukraine’s allies, people familiar with the matter said. – Bloomberg
UN experts voiced alarm Monday at a surge in executions in Iran last month that pushed the total in the country so far this year to over 400. – Agence France-Presse
When Milavous Group Ltd. rented an upper floor in a swanky Dubai corporate tower two years ago, few had heard of the firm. Yet within months it won outsized influence in global energy markets — said to be steered by a businessman whom traders describe as one of the most powerful kingpins distributing Iranian oil worldwide. – Bloomberg
The Iranian regime is funneling money and its influence into anti-Israel college campus protests across the US, often through buzzily named organizations — and many who join the protests don’t realize who is really behind them. – New York Post
The IDF’s strike on Iran’s S-300 antiaircraft missile system on April 19 as retaliation for Tehran’s launching over 300 aerial threats against Israel days on April 13-14 significantly deterred the Islamic Republic and Hezbollah throughout August, top sources have told The Jerusalem Post. – Jerusalem Post
Editorial: U.S. forces are arrayed to shoot down Iran’s missiles—or more. Israel is ready to retaliate, and its air force and intelligence agencies have demonstrated the ability to strike anywhere in Iran. Iranian domestic opposition to costly involvement in faraway wars is also growing. But it’s the regime’s choice. The less hope Hamas has of an Iranian rescue, and the less daylight Hamas sees between the U.S. and Israel, the more likely it will be to settle for a cease-fire. – Wall Street Journal
Russia & Ukraine
In a meeting with U.S. senators in June 2022, two of Ukraine’s most prominent military pilots were making a pitch for F-16 jet fighters when one of the senators spoke up to temper their hopes […]By the time the country had possession of the F-16s, many of Ukraine’s best pilots, like Juice, were already dead. – Wall Street Journal
Ukraine struck a major oil refinery in Moscow and other targets across Russia in one of its largest aerial barrages since the start of Russia’s invasion, expanding a campaign of drone attacks on energy facilities and further highlighting the vulnerability of strategic infrastructure deep inside Russia. – Wall Street Journal
The brazen operation also stunned Russia when it launched on Aug. 6, overrunning weak border defenses and quickly seizing around 100 towns and villages in Russia’s Kursk region. The invasion embarrassed Russian President Vladimir Putin, raised Ukrainians’ morale after a year of grinding defensive war, and showed the U.S. and other backers that Ukraine still has plenty of fight in it. – Wall Street Journal
Ukraine’s incursion into Kursk isn’t just a brash bid to upend Russia’s invasion. It also marks the first time that a declared nuclear power has faced invasion and occupation by another country. – Wall Street Journal
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky dismissed the country’s air force commander on Friday after an F-16 jet fighter crashed while fending off a massive Russian missile attack earlier this week. – Wall Street Journal
Pokrovsk, located on a road and rail line that Ukraine’s military uses to supply other parts of the front line, now awaits the same fate visited on other towns in Russia’s path. It still stands mostly intact, though Russia has intensified its bombardment, dropping a 1,000-pound glide bomb on its industrial zone in recent days. – Wall Street Journal
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Monday made his first visit to a member state of the International Criminal Court since he was indicted on a charge of war crimes last year but faces little threat of arrest in Mongolia. – Washington Post
Russian airstrikes killed six people and injured nearly 100 in the northeastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, local officials said Saturday — the latest deadly attack by Russian troops using highly destructive glide bombs in the country’s east. – Washington Post
Russia carried out its third large-scale bombardment of Ukraine in a week on Monday, with explosions ringing out early in the morning in Kyiv and several other cities after a volley of missiles was fired on the first day of the school year. – New York Times
For more than two decades it has been standard practice in Russia: New conscripts doing mandatory military service have not been deployed on the front lines. It is codified in law and embraced by all parents hoping to keep their sons from the carnage of war. – New York Times
Venezuela appears to have sent two foreign members of Ukraine’s military this week to face trial in Moscow, a significant escalation of Kremlin’s campaign to punish its enemies abroad. – New York Times
The head of Ukrenergo, Ukraine’s power transmission network, was dismissed on Monday, public broadcaster Suspilne quoted sources as saying, on grounds of failing to protect energy facilities. – Reuters
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday that he will meet the head of the international nuclear agency in Kyiv after the official visits the Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant that has been in Russia’s hands since early in the war. – Reuters
Ukraine’s Foreign Ministry said on Monday that Mongolia’s failure to arrest visiting Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin, wanted on an international warrant, dealt a severe blow to the international criminal law system. – Reuters
Two U.S. researchers say they have identified the probable deployment site in Russia of the 9M370 Burevestnik, a new nuclear-powered, nuclear-armed cruise missile touted by President Vladimir Putin as “invincible.” – Reuters
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Monday Ukraine’s Western allies should not only allow their weapons to be used for strikes deep inside Russia, but also supply Kyiv with more of the arms themselves. – Reuters
A deputy commander of Russia’s Leningrad military district has been detained on suspicion of accepting a 20 million rouble ($224,000) bribe, Russia’s investigative committee said on Monday, in the latest in a string of corruption probes. – Reuters
The West is openly persecuting Russian journalists, President Vladimir Putin said in remarks published on Monday, days after Moscow banned dozens of U.S. journalists from entering the country. – Reuters
An eight-year-old boy was among two people killed in Russian attacks on Ukraine’s southeastern Zaporizhzhia region overnight, while a third person died in a missile attack on the central city of Dnipro, Ukrainian officials said. – Reuters
A Russian newspaper publisher was convicted by a court in Siberia on Friday and sentenced to eight years in prison after his paper reported on Russia’s attacks on civilians in Ukraine, local media and rights activists reported. – Associated Press
Nobody under 25 in Russia has known any other ruler than Vladimir Putin. The Kremlin is determined to ensure the new generation continues to be formed in the president’s image. – Bloomberg
A liquefied natural gas carrier is returning to the Arctic LNG 2 facility in Russia to load more of the super-chilled fuel, as Moscow presses ahead with exports despite tighter US sanctions. – Bloomberg
Ukraine will receive $800 million from the US to help stabilize severely battered energy infrastructure amid reports that the nation’s top grid manager will soon be ousted. – Bloomberg
Allies must give Ukraine what it needs to repel Russia’s invasion and not restrict the use of donated arms, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said. – Bloomberg
Alexander J. Motyl writes: There are many Mulkevyches in Ukraine. There are, alas, far too few Berkoviches in Russia. When the thousands who protested her imprisonment in an open letter become tens of thousands protesting the war on the streets of Moscow and St. Petersburg, Putin will be too busy running away to write a farewell letter. That happy day is sure to come, thanks in no small measure to the ongoing Ukrainian offensive in Kursk Province. The war has now been brought home to Russia and its people in ways that were unimaginable just a few weeks ago. There is no more pretending that it is far away. – The Hill
Janusz Bugajski writes: As Ukraine regains the initiative in the war with increasing volumes of Western weapons, domestically produced missiles and drones, and fresh recruits, Kremlin propaganda is ramping up its information offensive. The aim is to promote disarray among Western leaders, limit assistance to Ukraine and push Kyiv toward a ceasefire in which it surrenders its occupied territories and abandons the areas it has seized inside Russia. Amid an existential war against an imperialist aggressor, no part of the Ukrainian media should be permitted to maintain business links with Moscow and spread narratives scripted in the Kremlin. – The Hill
Peter Schroeder writes: After two and a half years, it should be clear that neither outcome is in the offing. The best approach is to play for time—holding the line in Ukraine, minimizing the costs for the United States, and preparing for the day Putin eventually leaves. This is an admittedly unsatisfying and politically unpalatable approach. But it is the only realistic option. – Foreign Affairs
Michael Kofman and Rob Lee write: Holding Kursk as a bargaining chip, expanding strikes, and putting economic pressure on Russia could significantly strengthen Ukraine’s hand, assuming Ukraine can also hold the line, exhaust Russia’s offensive potential, and withstand Russia’s strike campaign this winter. However it ends, the Kursk offensive needs to provide the impetus for Ukraine and its partners to get on the same page—and shake off the current drift. – Foreign Affairs
Elena Davlikanova writes: The European Commission also called on Mongolia to meet its obligations. The fact that it has chosen not to is the clearest possible demonstration of Western powerlessness in the face of Kremlin realpolitik. That will delight Putin, who is wholly contemptuous of rules-based politics. Russia’s approach is to win by any means, regardless of the consequences. The West and the institutions it has helped to build lack anything like the same focus or determination. – Center for European Policy Analysis
Afghanistan
A federal judge is in the rare position of having to decide whether to grant immunity under military law to a Taliban commander facing charges in the 2008 killings of three U.S. soldiers and the kidnapping of an American journalist in Afghanistan. – Washington Post
Police in the Afghan capital say a suicide bomber carried out an attack Monday, killing at least six people and injuring 13 others. – Associated Press
The United Nations will continue to engage all stakeholders in Afghanistan, including the Taliban, a U.N. spokesman said, even though Afghanistan’s rulers issued a ban on women’s voices and bare faces in public and severed ties with the U.N. mission after it criticized them. – Associated Press
Don Ritter writes: Finally, in a guilt-ridden attempt to curb the abject poverty and starvation for which we are largely responsible, the United States has delivered some $2.6 billion in taxpayer-funded aid to Afghanistan through the UN. The assistance passes through the Taliban-controlled Central Bank, so we have no firm idea how much actually gets through to the people in need and how much is skimmed off by Taliban officials. The size and scope of the calamity is unimaginable. The Afghanistan story is far from over. – The National Interest
Ahmad Sarmast, Lesley Rosenthal, and Jessica Lustig write: Afghanistan’s culture is burning, but it need not turn to ash. The global community must recognize that supporting Afghans means more than filling stomachs—it means feeding the soul and keeping alive the dream of a free, vibrant Afghanistan where music, art and self-expression flourish once again. – Wall Street Journal
Iraq
A dramatic military raid in western Iraq this week left at least 14 Islamic State fighters dead and seven American troops wounded, according to defense officials, who disclosed the injuries Saturday and said all were in stable condition. – Washington Post
Switzerland reopened its embassy in the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on Tuesday, 33 years after closing its previous representation in the country due to the 1991 Gulf War, the Swiss foreign ministry said in a statement. – Reuters
Iraq plans to offer 10 gas exploration blocks to U.S. companies during an upcoming visit by Oil Minister Hayan Abdel-Ghani to the United States, he announced on Saturday. – Reuters
Iraq will impose a two-day curfew in November for the country’s first census in 27 years, the authorities announced on Sunday. – Agence France-Presse
Mohanad Faris writes: Things could change in Kirkuk if it falls under the control of a strong central government capable of imposing the rule of law, or if it becomes politically isolated from Baghdad and Erbil in a semi-federal system of local rule without outside political influence. However, such scenarios are far removed from the current reality, and so for the foreseeable future Kirkuk should be considered a potential flashpoint and backdrop for local and regional tensions in the coming months. – Washington Institute
Turkey
The Turkish authorities said they had detained 15 members of a nationalist youth organization in connection with the assault of two U.S. Marines stationed in a port city in western Turkey on Monday. – New York Times
Turkey carried out air strikes in northern Iraq on Monday and destroyed 20 targets of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK), the Turkish Defence Ministry said in a statement, adding many militants had been “neutralised” in the attack. – Reuters
Turkish police have arrested a suspect believed to have been transferring money to operatives from Israel’s Mossad intelligence agency in Turkey, the state-run news agency reported Tuesday. – Associated Press
Turkey has formally asked to join the BRICS group of emerging-market nations as it seeks to bolster its global influence and forge new ties beyond its traditional Western allies, according to people familiar with the matter. – Bloomberg
Robert Ellis writes: Ten years ago, Muharrem Yilmaz, the president of Turkey’s Business and Industry Association (TÜSIAD), warned: “A country where the rule of law is ignored, where the independence of regulatory institutions is tainted, where companies are pressured through tax penalties and other punishments, where rules on tenders are changed regularly, is not a fit country for foreign capital.” Erdoğan accused Yilmaz of treason, and he was forced to resign, but his warning should be heeded. – The National Interest
Arabian Peninsula
Saudi shipping firm Bahri, said on Tuesday its tanker Amjad was not targeted in a Red Sea attack, and that it had been spared any damage from the incident that hit another tanker that was sailing nearby. – Reuters
Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels attacked two crude oil tankers – the Saudi-flagged Amjad and the Panama-flagged Blue Lagoon I – in the Red Sea on Monday, the U.S. military said, calling the assaults “reckless acts of terrorism”. – Reuters
United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan has pardoned the Bangladeshi nationals who were convicted in July after staging a rare protest in the Gulf country, UAE news agency WAM reported on Tuesday. – Reuters
Middle East & North Africa
Years into an economic crunch that has left the government scrambling for dollars and made life a misery for all but the richest, Egypt is short on natural gas and funds to buy more, necessitating daily countrywide blackouts until a few weeks ago. – New York Times
Tunisia’s electoral commission on Monday rejected a court ruling reinstating three presidential candidates and police arrested another candidate in what opposition critics said was another example of President Kais Saied stifling competition. – Reuters
Algeria has been authorised to become a member of the BRICS New Development Bank (NDB), the bank’s president, Dilma Rousseff, said on Saturday. – Reuters
The Egyptian prosecution office has ordered the detention of two Israeli citizens for assaulting three hotel workers in the Red Sea town of Taba, near the border with Israel, Egyptian security sources said on Sunday. – Reuters
The United Nations Support Mission in Libya said it held talks in Tripoli on Monday to help resolve a central bank crisis that sparked a blockade of oil production and threatens the worst crisis in years for the major energy exporter. – Reuters
The head of the Christian political party Lebanese Forces on Sunday accused Hezbollah of dragging the country into a war with Israel without consulting the people. – Agence France-Presse
Syria’s Kurdish authorities on Monday released 50 Syrian prisoners accused of belonging to the Daesh terrorist group as part of a general amnesty deal, an official told AFP. – Agence France-Presse
Ninety-five Libyans deported from South Africa last month were training to be special forces for a commander in eastern Libya from where they were monitored via webcam, whistleblowers told local media. – Agence France-Press
The fraught relations between France and its former colony Algeria had eased a little in recent years, but a new rift over Paris backing Morocco’s autonomy plan for disputed Western Sahara has sent rapprochement efforts into a tailspin. – Agence France-Presse
Sabina Henneberg writes: Going forward, the United States should use trade to support Morocco’s economic growth by focusing on industries such as light manufacturing, which can help generate new jobs, especially for women. […] Finally, given the kingdom’s past decision to bolster English-language instruction, Washington and other Anglophone countries should expand language training opportunities with Morocco for their mutual economic benefit. – Washington Institute
Jonathan M. Winer writes: Behind that agreement was a reported arrangement according to which Kabir agreed to bail out banks in Libya’s east that had previously been pillaged by Hifter and his associates, essentially recapitalizing the eastern part of the country and enabling its banks to lend once again for commercial development — including to businesses controlled by Hifter’s family members. In Libya, sharing the wealth can patch over even the most serious differences among well-positioned and properly motivated stakeholders, especially to stave off even more difficult things, like elections. – Middle East Institute
Korean Peninsula
An official at South Korea’s top military intelligence agency leaked classified data, including a list of undercover operatives, to a suspected Chinese intelligence agent for years in exchange for cash, defense officials said Friday. – New York Times
South Korea’s health ministry said on Monday it was deploying military doctors to assist in some hospital emergency rooms due to a shortage of medical staff, but disputed a warning by some physicians that the system was on the verge of collapse. – Reuters
South Korean police have launched an investigation into Telegram that will look at whether the encrypted messaging app has been complicit in the distribution of sexually explicit deepfake content, Yonhap news agency said on Monday. – Reuters
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol will skip the ceremony marking the opening of parliament, the nation’s first leader to do so in more than three decades, in a sign of the partisan strife that casts a shadow over the government’s prospects for achieving key policy initiatives. – Bloomberg
China
China is planning to open investigations into some agricultural and chemical imports from Canada, adding to rising trade frictions between the two countries. – Wall Street Journal
China, the world’s biggest importer of oil, is one of the few remaining customers of crude from countries such as Iran, Venezuela and Russia, which are subject to heavy sanctions by the United States. – Washington Post
What do snapping turtles, tissue boxes and college students looking for part-time jobs have in common? They all might be hiding threats to China’s national security. That, at least, is the message being pushed by the Ministry of State Security, China’s main intelligence agency, in a flurry of recent social media posts. – New York Times
The police in Sanhe City detained Gao Zhen, who moved to the United States two years ago, last week while he was visiting China, his younger brother said in an email, on suspicion of slandering China’s heroes and martyrs — a criminal offense punishable by up to three years in prison. – New York Times
The last batch of 45 Hong Kong activists entered their final pleas on Tuesday for light sentences in a landmark national security trial over charges that they had formed a “conspiracy to subvert the state power”. – Reuters
U.S. climate envoy John Podesta will visit China for three days from Wednesday to discuss climate change issues, the environment ministry said, as the world’s two biggest emitters of greenhouse gas look to bridge gaps on issues such as finance. – Reuters
China said its vessels passing through the Tokara Strait have the right of transit, and it is completely legitimate, a foreign ministry spokesperson said on Monday at a regular press briefing. – Reuters
If China’s claims on Taiwan are about territorial integrity then it should also take back land from Russia signed over by the last Chinese dynasty in the 19th century, Taiwan President Lai Ching-te said in an interview with Taiwanese media. – Reuters
China urged the European Union to be “objective and fair” and careful with words and actions on issues in the South China Sea, after the bloc remarked on an incident that occurred over the weekend. – Reuters
Editorial: “The only way for journalists to defend press freedom is to report,” Mr. Lam wrote in a statement to the court and translated into English by the Hong Kong Democracy Council. He and Mr. Chung know better than most in the West the price of fighting for a free press. The benighted leaders of Hong Kong deserve the world’s scorn—and sanctions. – Wall Street Journal
Karishma Vaswani writes: On the path to prosperity, Xi once said a nation “must first build ports.” There is no doubt he has been remarkably successful. Still, this global expansion opens the possibility of a diminished role for other countries — in particular the US — which reduces the checks and balances on Beijing’s actions. Ensuring that no one nation dominates is a better way to maintain this delicate balance of power. – Bloomberg
Tom Rogan writes: It’s time for bolder Western action. The United States should introduce sanctions on individuals such as Neuberger and organizations such as the American Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong that want to remain complicit in Hong Kong’s human rights implosion. The same approach should be taken against U.S. companies operating in Hong Kong. It shouldn’t be that complicated. – Washington Examiner
Taylor Fravel, George Gilboy, and Eric Heginbotham write: Legislation on assessments of Chinese defense spending now under consideration in Congress should compare like-for-like spending categories, use market exchange rates to convert Chinese spending or, if purchasing power parity is used, apply balanced and appropriate exchange rates for each category of Chinese defense spending. Reporting on China’s overall defense spending should appear alongside assessment of the material capabilities China is acquiring. – War on the Rocks
South Asia
After reverses in the general election and facing possible losses in state polls this year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s coalition has stepped up cash handouts, debt waivers and other freebies, although he has previously criticised the policy. – Reuters
Germany said it resumed flying convicted criminals of Afghan nationality to their home country on Friday, days before German regional elections in which migration is a campaign issue. – Reuters
Pakistan’s military has launched intelligence-based operations in the southwestern Balochistan province in response to attacks by insurgents that killed over 50 people this week, the army said on Friday. – Reuters
The start of operations at a Chinese-funded airport in Pakistan’s Balochistan province has been pushed back for a security review after last week’s deadly attacks by separatist militants in the area, government and aviation sources said. – Reuters
Insurgents on Saturday freed four people, including an army officer who was abducted three days ago from a former stronghold of the Pakistani Taliban, the military said. – Associated Press
Qamar-ul Huda writes: However, in this climate where the new Bangladesh is interested in forming tribunals against military officials and Awami League party members who committed atrocities against civilians, the United States needs to delicately support this transitional phase by emphasizing the importance of democratic institutions, the paramount importance of the rule of law, and allowing Bangladeshis to carve out a future that doesn’t emphasize economy and tyranny over democracy. – The National Interest
Asia
American businesses looking to reduce their reliance on China have increasingly been eyeing India in the past few years as a new manufacturing hub — and as a hedge against potential disruptions in Chinese supply chains caused by rising geopolitical tensions or another pandemic. – Washington Post
China and the Philippines traded new accusations of deliberately ramming into each other’s coast guard vessels near a disputed atoll in the South China Sea where the two countries are engaged in an escalating standoff. – New York Times
Singapore’s prosperity has long set it apart from many other former British colonies. There is another difference, too: Singapore has clung to honoring its former colonial ruler — and it wants to keep doing so. – New York Times
New Zealand said on Tuesday that “China remains a complex intelligence concern” in New Zealand, but there are other states that undertake malicious activity in the country. – Reuters
Myanmar’s military government will conduct a nationwide population and household census in October, state media said on Monday, paving the way for a promised election next year amid raging conflict across swathes of the country. – Reuters
Thailand’s new cabinet has been selected and should be submitted for royal endorsement within this week, Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra said on Monday. – Reuters
Azerbaijan’s ruling party retained its majority in Sunday’s snap parliamentary election, preliminary results showed, in the country’s first vote since staging a lightning offensive a year ago to recapture the breakaway territory of Karabakh. – Reuters
Japan lodged a protest with China after one of its naval survey vessels entered Japanese waters on Saturday, the second incursion into its territory by the Chinese military in less than a week. – Reuters
The Pacific Islands Forum removed references to Taiwan from a group communique after complaints from China – a change Taipei condemned as a “rude intervention” but which a forum official said did not alter the leaders’ decisions. – Reuters
Japanese companies cannot use a national security designation as a tool to thwart foreign takeovers, a senior finance ministry official said, pushing back at speculation Tokyo’s foreign exchange act could be manipulated for protectionism. – Reuters
Australia will hire 200 people over the next two years to gear up for the allied rotational submarine presence at its western naval base, the government announced today. The boost to the submarine workforce is part of the new Jobs for Subs effort that will hire personnel to work for the government-owned ASC Pty Ltd as maintainers of nuclear-powered submarines. – USNI News
Europe
Antiestablishment populism is on the rise in Europe, fueled not just by migration and economic and security fears, but by a deeper trend: Eroding confidence in governments’ ability to overcome those challenges. – Wall Street Journal
The nationalist AfD scored its first electoral victory in a German state election since its creation 11 years ago, according to projections on Sunday—a political earthquake and a milestone for a continent where centrist parties are increasingly on the defensive. – Wall Street Journal
Victories for Germany’s far-right Alternative for Germany in two eastern states prompted Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Monday to urge mainstream parties to forge coalitions without the anti-migrant party. – Washington Post
Dutch prosecutors said on Monday they want prison sentences of up to 14 years against two men from Pakistan over public calls for the murder of far-right anti-Muslim leader Geert Wilders. – Reuters
An ethnic Greek politician in Albania who also has Greek citizenship was released from jail on Monday in a case that has sparked tensions between Albania and neighbouring Greece. – Reuters
Finland’s government is proposing to ban most Russian citizens from buying property in the Nordic country in a move to protect national security, Defence Minister Antti Hakkanen said on Monday. – Reuters
Finnish utility Fortum, said on Monday it has successfully started using nuclear fuel from U.S.-based Westinghouse Electric as it seeks to replace Russian supply. – Reuters
Romania’s coalition government approved a draft law on Monday enabling the donation of a Patriot missile defence system to Ukraine and sent it to parliament for a final vote. – Reuters
Ireland is doubling down on subsea monitoring, a discipline of naval warfare the country has so far largely overlooked but that represents a key capability in the context of the country’s strategic location on the northwestern edge of Europe. – Defense News
Chris Bryant writes: Germany’s European allies have benefited enormously from its willingness to soak up refugees and its financial support for Ukraine — it’s the second largest provider of assistance after the US. Germany is also a top destination for exports for most EU member states. But if the economy doesn’t grow, battles over how the economic pie is distributed are destined to increase, providing succor to extremists on the left and right. A stronger, more confident Germany is in everyone’s interest — with the exception of Vladimir Putin, of course. – Bloomberg
Jakub Grygiel writes: As important as it is to raise production capacity on both sides of the Atlantic, those European countries that are taking defense seriously cannot wait for a defense industrial policy made in Brussels to catch up. It is in Washington’s interest to have a firm European frontier that will not require mass deployment of U.S. forces and the constant expenditure of scarce resources. The United States is more likely to achieve this outcome if it continues to bet on individual allies. – Foreign Policy
Ismail Einashe writes: They are bolstered by social media algorithms and support from online extremists, established media, and some of the billionaires who operate those very platforms. They systematically spread their hate. It is these forces that seek to warp and destabilize British culture rather that the tiny minority of asylum-seekers and larger group of regular migrants who seek to make their lives in Britain. Labour must not fall into their trap and let British democracy be undermined. – Foreign Policy
Africa
Democratic Republic of Congo’s government said at least 129 people were killed while trying to escape from the central Makala prison in the capital Kinshasa late on Sunday, adding that the situation was now under control. – Reuters
Nigeria on Monday charged 10 people with treason and conspiring to incite the military to mutiny following last month’s nationwide demonstrations that saw thousands take to the streets to protest against a cost of living crisis. – Reuters
China remains the major foreign power with the biggest positive influence on Africa’s youth, a new survey shows, indicating the limitations of a drive by the US to bolster its standing on the continent. – Bloomberg
Djibouti’s government plans to offer Ethiopia exclusive access to a new port to defuse tensions sparked by the landlocked nation’s ambitions to have a direct route to the sea. – Bloomberg
Keith B. Richburg writes: Some observers have asked, perhaps prematurely, whether Africa’s current protests might amount to an “African Spring.” But remember: While the Arab Spring did manage to bring democracy to Tunisia, it failed spectacularly to bring better governance to the region. Africa’s online activists should take note — and tread carefully. – Washington Post
The Americas
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said his country should serve as an example for the rest of the world on how to deal with Elon Musk after the Supreme Court voted to uphold a ban on the billionaire’s social-media platform X. – Wall Street Journal
The Biden administration said Venezuelan strongman Nicolás Maduro’s aircraft was confiscated in the Dominican Republic and flown to Florida on Monday, the latest strike by the U.S. at the regime in Caracas in the aftermath of a presidential election that country’s opposition said was fraudulent. – Wall Street Journal
After Brazil’s Supreme Court shut down the social-media platform on Saturday, Brazilians were migrating to other apps in Latin America’s biggest nation, which has one of the world’s most active online populations. – Wall Street Journal
Venezuela’s attorney general’s office filed an arrest warrant Monday against opposition candidate Edmundo González, who the United States and other countries say clearly beat the country’s authoritarian president, Nicolás Maduro, in the July 28 presidential election. – Washington Post
Unrelenting gang warfare in Port-au-Prince is fueling an exodus of people from Haiti’s capital, overwhelming already impoverished cities and towns and sparking fears that the gangs will follow. – Washington Post
Nearly eight million people — more than a quarter of the population — have fled Venezuela in recent years, driven out by economic misery and political repression. – New York Times
More than 80 teenagers have been released from prison over the weekend in Venezuela, according to a human rights group, after being arrested during anti-government protests following Venezuela’s disputed presidential election in late July. – Reuters
The US is laying the groundwork for new sanctions on Venezuelan government officials in response to Nicolás Maduro’s disputed reelection in July. – Bloomberg
Mary Anastasia O’Grady writes: But the world has moved on. We don’t hear about the 1,100-plus political prisoners, many of whom were taken into custody for participating in the protests. Most of them are faceless patriots. But even well-known leaders who were put behind bars that year have vanished from the conversation […]They are nonconformists whose honesty threatens the Castro family and its allies. Havana needs them to be forgotten […]Europe is financing the torment of these brave men and millions more. As Ms. Fotyga notes, it “is beyond ridiculous” that the European Union “is still funding Cuba.” – Wall Street Journal
North America
Over six years in power, President Andrés Manuel López Obrador reshaped Mexico’s political landscape with a pugilistic nationalism, but his policies often hit a roadblock in the country’s courts. With his final act in office, he is hitting back. – Wall Street Journal
Washington is seeking settlement talks with Canada over a recently introduced digital-services tax it says discriminates against U.S. companies. – Wall Street Journal
Mexico’s Lower House of Congress is slated to open debate on Tuesday on a controversial judicial reform and is expected to pass the legislation later in the week, Ricardo Monreal, the ruling party leader in the chamber said on Sunday. – Reuters
One of the most notorious drug chiefs in Mexico’s history, Osiel Cardenas, was released from a U.S. prison on Friday into the custody of immigration officials who may deport him. – Reuters
United States
Vice President Kamala Harris said U.S. Steel should stay in the hands of American owners, dealing another blow to the Japanese manufacturer Nippon Steel’s $15 billion proposal to acquire the storied American steel maker. – New York Times
An Arkansas woman has pleaded guilty to felony charges after she threatened in a phone call to bomb the office of Gov. Sarah Huckabee Sanders. – Associated Press
Ovidio Guzmán, a son of imprisoned drug lord Joaquín “El Chapo” Guzman, has entered the witness protection program in the US, daily El Universal reported on Friday citing a DEA source. – Bloomberg
Concordia University and its president Graham Carr were each served Friday with a mis-en-demeure filed in Quebec Superior Court that seeks a permanent injunction demanding that the university enforce its rules against hate and intimidation, in light of events that took place following the Oct. 7, 2023 Hamas terrorist attack against Israel.The University and Carr were each named separately as defendants. – The Suburban
Rebecca Cypess writes: Academic boycotts of Israel curtail the free exchange of ideas with Israeli scholars and institutions, and they seek to undermine the connection between diaspora Jews and the Jewish homeland in Israel. By giving its imprimatur to such anti-Israel boycotts, the AAUP has done a disservice to the principles of inclusion and academic freedom that it purports to champion. – Wall Street Journal
Lynn Kuok writes: Many of the difficulties the United States faces in Southeast Asia are not unique. They are part of a larger quandary for the country: namely, how to win over the global South—particularly developing countries that China is courting aggressively—or at least prevent it from sliding into China’s orbit. But Southeast Asia is especially important to U.S. strategy because it lies at the heart of a region that Washington has identified as a priority. It is in the Indo-Pacific, after all, that the battle with China will be won or lost. – Foreign Affairs
Cybersecurity
Philippine authorities raided a suspected illegal online gaming and cyberscam complex in a central province and took into custody more than 160 people — mostly Chinese and Indonesians — who were committing internet-based crimes, officials said Sunday. – Associated Press
A bipartisan Senate bill aimed at safeguarding Americans’ health care data in the aftermath of the Change Healthcare ransomware attack now has a House companion. – CyberScoop
Hackers allegedly connected to the North Korean government targeted the cryptocurrency industry using a zero-day affecting the Chromium browser. Microsoft revealed the campaign in a blog post on Friday, pointing the blame at a threat actor they call “Citrine Sleet.” – The Record
People and organizations in China are being targeted as part of a “highly coordinated” espionage operation, according to new research from Securonix. – The Record
Three men in the United Kingdom have pleaded guilty to running a website that helped fraudsters evade banking security checks during the COVID-19 lockdown, allowing criminals to target more than 12,500 members of the public. – The Record
The Toronto District School Board (TDSB) confirmed this week that the information of students was involved in a ransomware attack discovered in June. TDSB initially said the cybercriminals targeted a technology testing environment that is separate from the board’s official networks. – The Record
Defense
Defense contractor RTX Corp. agreed to pay a $200 million fine to settle US government allegations that it violated exports controls by transferring sensitive technology to adversaries such as China, Russia and Iran. – Bloomberg
The newest F-35 Joint Strike Fighters are now able to carry out more elaborate training missions, but the government is withholding millions of dollars in payment to Lockheed Martin until the jets can fight in combat. – Defense News
The death of Navy SEAL candidate Kyle Mullen, a fit 24-year-old who died at the tail end of the grueling SEAL BUD/s selection program in February 2022, became national news as his family sought to understand what had happened. – Military.com
Naval Air Systems Command has launched a new effort to integrate an artificial intelligence-enabled pilot with one of its aerial targets, laying the foundation for the service’s plans to introduce autonomous flight capabilities into its aviation fleet. – DefenseScoop
With aims to set a new government standard for assessing the robustness and reliability of computer vision models deployed for national security purposes, the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency is launching an artificial intelligence accreditation pilot program, Vice Adm. Frank Whitworth told reporters Friday. – DefenseScoop
Defense Innovation Unit Director Doug Beck traveled to Chile this week, where he joined senior U.S. military leaders and their counterparts from the Latin America and Caribbean regions to discuss shared aims for applying AI and machine learning to confront complex, collective security challenges. – DefenseScoop
Susan LeVine writes: As “more lethal” has become the Defense Department’s mantra, Zachary Tyson Brown noted the dangers of “a military culture myopically focused on increasing lethality could prevent it from seeing vulnerabilities or opportunities that lie beyond its immediate field of view.” The Defense Department is sitting on one of those opportunities — a nearly 30-year investment in advanced non-lethal weapons that can provide new options for dealing with complex operational situations across the spectrum of conflict. It’s time to take non-lethal weapons seriously and seize that opportunity. – War on the Rocks