U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee on Israeli strikes in Syria:

I don’t know that the U.S. has taken a position one way or the other, certainly not publicly. We’d love to see calm in the region.

We want to see Syria succeed. We want to see Syria come to a security agreement with Israel. I think that’s very possible, but let’s hope it happens sooner rather than later.

But it won’t be helped if it appears that Türkiye is trying to establish a firm foothold in Syria.

Iran's Parliament Speaker Qalibaf:

No matter how much military power we have, if the people are hungry and we have no financial circulation, economic growth, and national production, we will not endure.

As combatants, we appreciate the value of peace more than those who merely talk about it.

Someone who has fought knows the value of peace.

Yemen's Houthis released drone strike footage showing attacks on Saudi military gatherings and vehicles in Marib and along Yemen's western coast.

The video shows loitering munition strikes hitting personnel groups, military vehicles, and equipment.

BIG: North Korea deployed 8,500 new troops to Russia including 400 drone operators, according to Ukrainian intelligence chief Skibitskiy in a CNN interview.

The drone unit is expected to conduct reconnaissance and strikes against targets inside Ukraine from Russian territory.

The remaining personnel include 1,000 engineers and sappers reinforcing rear positions in Russia's Kursk region.

Approximately 25,000 North Koreans have rotated through Russia since October 2024.

Ukrainian intelligence expects Putin to request up to 50,000 additional troops when he meets Kim Jong Un in September.

North Korea's Kim Yo Jong dismissed such claims as "groundless."

NATO massed roughly 25 aircraft near Russia's Kaliningrad exclave on August 18, including US and Norwegian fighters, an AWACS, the rare EA-37B Compass Call electronic warfare aircraft, and Apache attack helicopters.

The package flew orbits over northeastern Poland focused on the electromagnetic environment around Kaliningrad.

NATO framed it as planned training for interoperability and deterrence, not a response to any specific Russian action.

The operation continued over subsequent days and was first flagged by OSINT flight trackers before official confirmation.

Polish tourist says she didn’t believe the propaganda and decided to visit Syria.

She says, “Syria is nothing like Afghanistan. The girls here can walk and do anything,” and adds that she feels safer there than in India.

BIG: German authorities discovered a hidden weapons cache linked to Russian intelligence in a forest on the Berlin-Brandenburg border, containing two operational handguns and ammunition in a professionally built underground dead drop.

The weapons were disabled and the site placed under surveillance, but no one came to collect them.

A suspect was later arrested in Romania.

Germany's Interior Minister confirmed the find, saying the weapons were "certainly" intended for attack planning.

Security sources told German media the cache was prepared for Russian agents to conduct assassinations or attacks inside Germany, potentially targeting defense executives, Russian opposition figures, or Ukraine supporters.

Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud praised Türkiye for helping Somalia build lasting capacity rather than relying on short-term aid.

“Türkiye’s support for Somalia was not about giving us fish, but teaching us how to fish,” he said.

Mohamud credited Türkiye with supporting schools, hospitals, education, security and energy development, while also strengthening Somalia’s fight against al-Shabaab.

“Türkiye both trains our soldiers and provides the equipment they need. This has changed many things both for our security and for our fight against the terrorist organization al-Shabaab,” he said.

He said direct financial aid alone would have brought only temporary benefits.

“They could have given us the money and we would have spent it, and tomorrow we would need help again,” Mohamud said.

“Our relations are growing day by day,” he added. “Tomorrow it will be an even stronger partnership.”

Syrian FM Asaad al-Shaibani says Damascus is open to restoring ties with Iran if Tehran acknowledges its role in supporting Assad.

“Diplomacy has no limits,” he said, adding that talks could resume if there is “a real solution for what Iran has done to our people in the past 14 years.”

Retired FSB Major General Igor Laptev was found dead with a gunshot wound at his Moscow apartment.

Russian media reported he died by suicide, but authorities have not confirmed the circumstances.

Laptev had served in the KGB and FSB and later worked in the private sector, where his companies supplied secure communications equipment to Russia’s Defense Ministry, Interior Ministry and military communications infrastructure.

Source: Kommersant

Netanyahu's Office:

Erdogan is an antisemitic dictator who has massacred Kurds, harbors Hamas terrorists, occupies half of Cyprus, and jails record numbers of journalists and politicians who oppose him.

He now seeks to extend his aggression against Israel into Syria. Israel will not tolerate it.

Erdogan’s pathetic attempt to intimidate the leaders and soldiers of Israel, the only true democracy in the Middle East, will go nowhere.

Musk May Hold Key to Ukraine's Plan for Survival

Kyiv wants to hit Russian ballistic missiles before they are launched. It needs Musk's approval to use Starlink-equipped drones, and it recently fired the man with a direct line to Musk, Fedorov.

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Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi:

14 years ago: “Most crippling sanctions in history.” Failed.

8 years ago: “Maximum pressure.” Failed.

5 months ago: “Unconditional surrender.” Failed.

Today: “Most crushing economic operation ever.” Bound to fail.

We have seen this movie before. Same bull. Different bullies.

Senior Iranian MP Ebrahim Azizi:

Americans have proven that they do not understand the language of diplomacy, hence they will neither lift a sanction, nor free up resources, nor put an end to maritime piracy.

But history will show that with the language of power, they will not only be forced into these actions but will leave the region with an apology to the great nation of Iran.

German Authorities Uncover Hidden Russian Weapons Cache Near Berlin

German investigators are examining a concealed cache containing two handguns and ammunition near Berlin, suspecting it was established for Russian intelligence.

READ MORE

Israel Moves Ahead With Settlement Plan That Could ‘Bury’ Two-State Solution

Israel has invited bids for more than 1,200 homes in a settlement project critics say would divide the West Bank and further undermine prospects for a Palestinian state.

READ MORE

Türkiye’s AK Party Spokesperson Ömer Çelik:

In a statement issued by the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, they used language about our President that should in fact be used to describe Netanyahu.

The reason Netanyahu’s network targets our President day and night is that our President has taken an uncompromising stand, in the name of humanity, against all the massacres and lies of this network of slaughter and genocide.

Genocide, massacres, lies, murder, and crimes against humanity have become Netanyahu’s “identity card.”

BIG: Satellite imagery from today shows ~39 burn scars and vehicle fires in northeastern Chad, ~78 km from the Sudan border — likely a SAF strike on an RSF supply convoy.

If confirmed, it would be the largest SAF strike of its kind, hitting a well-known RSF logistics corridor running from Libya through Chad into Darfur.

The Trump administration has begun the process of paying $725 million toward the more than $4 billion the U.S. owes the UN.

The payment, which is less than 20% of the UN’s claimed debt, could help the organization avoid immediate spending cuts and salary disruptions.

Experts warned that without further payments, the UN could face serious cash shortages and the U.S. could lose its General Assembly voting rights in January.

Source: Reuters

Republic of Türkiye Directorate of Communications:

Israel's election campaign has fallen under the sway of an irresponsible security-focused populism and a threat politics that is growing ever harsher.

The Netanyahu administration's effort to construct Türkiye as a new figure of threat is part and parcel of this cheap politics.

This threat politics and escalation of tensions, pursued for the sake of domestic political rivalry, carries serious risks—not only for Israeli society, but also for regional and global peace and stability.

Türkiye, as yesterday, stands today as well on the side of the oppressed against the oppressor; come what may, it will steadfastly continue to defend peace, justice, and stability in our region.

JD Vance:

Politicians who came to Washington with a few thousand dollars, left after decades of public service with millions in stock portfolios.

What did all of you get? What did we get?