Russian President Vladimir Putin called his conversation with his US counterpart Donald Trump substantive, frank, and very useful. He expressed gratitude to Trump for the US participation in the renewal of direct talks between Russia and Ukraine. | Western media has been dissecting the telephone conversation between Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump.

■ Putin outlines results of his conversation with Trump (FULL SPEECH) (RT)
■ Trump opposed to new Russia sanctions (RT)
■ Germany promises new EU sanctions after Putin-Trump call (RT)
■ EU Forks Out $169 Bln for War Chest (Sputnik)
✅ Putin-Trump Phone Call Deadend, AFU Brigade Mutinies Surge, & More Updates (Simplicius)
✅ Zelensky Just COMPLETELY Destroyed Peace Talks (Harold Turner)

Over two-thirds of lawmakers voted in favor of the bill | The Hungarian parliament passed a bill on the country’s withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the final vote, according to a livestream on the parliament’s website. ● Over two-thirds of lawmakers voted in favor of the bill. However, this final vote was preceded by intense debates in parliament in late April. At that time, all of the ruling Fidesz-Hungarian Civic Union lawmakers and their Christian Democratic People's Party supporters backed the document, while the opposition liberal democratic parties opposed it.

Finland will deliver around $100 million worth of heavy ammunition using profits from immobilized assets, the Defense Ministry has said | Finland will supply heavy ammunition to Kiev using proceeds from Russian assets which were frozen over the Ukraine conflict, the Defense Ministry said on Monday. ● The move is part of a broader EU push to channel profits from immobilized Russian assets – which are primarily EU, US, and UK government bonds held in a Brussels-based securities depository – to fund Ukraine’s military. Moscow considers the seizure of its assets “theft.”

■ APPLICATION OF THE CONVENTION ON THE PREVENTION AND PUNISHMENT OF THE CRIME OF GENOCIDE IN THE GAZA STRIP (ORDER OF 26 JANUARY 2024) (.pdf) + APPLICATION INSTITUTING PROCEEDINGS (.pdf)
■ THE EXPRESSION OF HATRED FOR GENTILES (Richard Edmondson/Nahida Izzat) (10/04/14)

The US special envoy on Israeli captives has defended the Israeli genocide in Gaza as a demonstration of strength, which he said is needed to release the captives held by Palestinian resistance fighters. | Speaking to Fox News Sunday, Adam Boehler said, “All Palestinians need this barrage to stop,” but it’s “through that toughness and through that strength that we’re going to see the hostages released.” ● Hamas’s release of American-Israeli soldier Edan Alexander was a “sign” that the group “understands” it must release Israeli captives “if they want this barrage of attacks to stop,” he further said. ● On Friday, a senior Hamas official said that US special envoy Steve Witkoff personally assured the Palestinian resistance group that the US would pressure Israel to end the Gaza blockade and permit humanitarian access within two days of freeing Alexander. ● Boehler added that only the release of Israeli captives would stop the regime’s attacks, which according to a recent Israeli investigative report, have killed civilians in 82% of cases.

Dan gained more than 54% of the vote, while Trump admirer Simion secured close to 46%, according to nearly complete results | Nicusor Dan, the centrist mayor of Bucharest, won a tense rerun of Romania's presidential election on Sunday, May 18, ahead of nationalist George Simion. The vote was seen as crucial for the direction of the EU and NATO member bordering war-torn Ukraine. The ballot came five months after Romania's constitutional court annulled an election over allegations of Russian interference and a massive social media promotion of the far-right front-runner, who was not allowed to stand again. ● Dan, who campaigned for an "honest" Romania, gained more than 54% of the vote, while US President Donald Trump admirer Simion secured close to 46%, according to nearly complete results. Turnout was close to 65%, compared to 53% for the May 4 first round, in which Simion came on top.

■ Telegram’s Durov names French official who ‘asked to ban conservative voices’ (RT)
■ Pro-EU candidate wins Romanian presidential election rerun (RT)
■ Nicusor Dan wins Romania's presidential election, losing diaspora vote (TASS)
■ Scandalous re-elections: how Romania elected the right president for the EU (Pravda-EN)
■ Песков назвал выборы в Румынии странными из-за недопуска всех кандидатов (ren.tv)

Polish MEP Flames Von Der Liar in the European Parliament.

"You should be in jail" pic.twitter.com/owLvHJxdcX

— Chay Bowes (@BowesChay) July 18, 2024

● Israeli military says it has begun extensive ground operations throughout northern and southern Gaza as part of its “Operation Gideon’s Chariots”.
● The relentless bombarding of Gaza has killed at least 135 Palestinians and rendered all the public hospitals in northern Gaza out of service, says the Health Ministry.
● The Israeli strikes come as it resumes ceasefire talks with Hamas in Qatar.
● Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 53,339 Palestinians and wounded 121,034, according to the Health Ministry. The Government Media Office updated the death toll to more than 61,700, saying thousands of people missing under the rubble are presumed dead.
● An estimated 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led attacks on October 7, 2023, and more than 200 were taken captive.

■ Whole bloodlines erased: ‘Israel’ escalates Gaza slaughter (Al Mayadeen)
■ Children among 132 Palestinians killed in Israeli barrage across Gaza (Al Jazeera)

Right-wing EU critic George Simion is running against pro-EU Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan in the second round | Romanian voters returned to the polls on Sunday, May 18 for the second round of a presidential election rerun following a court-annulled vote last year. The runoff is between George Simion, a critic of Brussels who has been banned from entering Ukraine, and Nicusor Dan, the pro-EU mayor of the capital, Bucharest. ● Around 19,000 polling stations have opened across Romania for the second round of the election. Voting began at 7am local time (4am GMT) and is scheduled to end at 9pm, with exit polls expected soon after. ● George Simion, the leader of the right-wing Alliance for the Union of Romanians (AUR), came in first in the initial round earlier this month with 40.96% of the vote – nearly 20 percentage points ahead of Bucharest Mayor Nicusor Dan, who came in second. Recent polls, however, show a tighter race, with one reporting a tie and another giving Dan a narrow lead.

■ Presidential frontrunner accuses EU candidate of vote rigging (RT)

All enemies of Russia that issue negotiating ultimatums should remember a simple thing: peace negotiations alone do not always lead to the end of hostilities.

Unsuccessful negotiations can lead to the onset of a more terrible stage of the war with new weapons and participants.

— Dmitry Medvedev (@MedvedevRussiaE) May 17, 2025

Simplicius | The long awaited Istanbul negotiations between Russia and Ukraine took place, and though I have complained of the ‘sideshow’ nature of these distractions, today’s session is worth mentioning for what it revealed about Russia’s stance. | Firstly, it must be said outright that all doomers who claimed Russia was capitulating, and that Putin was again being ‘led by the nose’ toward a Minsk-3-style disaster were proven wrong. By all accounts, the Russian team was even firmer than expected on the chief demands. ■ Let’s also mention that Ukraine had already admitted their only goal in the negotiations was to push for a truce or ceasefire with Russia, as it has now become the common agenda between Zelensky and Europe to force Russia into a 30-day ceasefire. This would be pushed into indefinite status so that European troops can be injected into theater and the conflict frozen for good, while Ukraine is pumped up to the gills with more lethal aid.

■ Medvedev issues warning about peace talks (RT)
■ Russia, Ukraine held talks, agreeing to swap captives and meet again. Here’s what we know (TASS)
✅ The Ball’s In Trump’s Court After The Latest Istanbul Talks (Andrew Korybko)

Michael Nevradakis, Ph.D. | Turkish researchers said the results of their study justify “further investigations into the vaccines’ effects on human ovarian reserve.” Experts said the study’s findings have “profound” implications for global fertility rates. | COVID-19 vaccines decreased the number of primordial follicles — “the foundation of fertility” — in female rats by up to 60%, according to a peer-reviewed study published in Vaccines. The authors said their results justify...

💬...“further investigations into the vaccines’ effects on human ovarian reserve.” ● “If these findings indeed apply to humans, the implications for global fertility rates are profound,” wrote epidemiologist Nic Hulscher on Substack. ● He added: “This kind of damage — to a woman’s lifelong egg supply — is biologically irreversible. The loss of primordial follicles is permanent — they do not regenerate. If this applies to humans, it means early menopause, infertility, and plummeting birth rates.”

Dr. Margaret Christensen, a trained gynecologist, clinical educator and co-founder of the Carpathia Collaborative, said the study matches outcomes she’s seen in patients at her practice.

The Cradle Contributor | Syria's interim President Ahmad Sharaa’s rise is less a redemption arc than a calculated western project – with France seeking to outmaneuver Russia and reclaim its colonial stake in Syria | Just a week before his landmark meeting with US President Donald Trump in Riyadh – the first encounter between American and Syrian leaders in 25 years – Syria's self-appointed transitional president, Ahmad al-Sharaa, arrived in Paris. ■ Sharaa's visit to the French capital, his first to a western nation since assuming power, was meticulously orchestrated. France extended a cautious welcome, limiting reception protocols and refraining from high-level state honors, signaling its intent to assert influence over the Syrian file without fully legitimizing a leader still listed on international terrorism watchlists. ■ The visit, which required a UN-sanctioned waiver of travel bans for Sharaa and his delegation, culminated in a carefully managed meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace. Macron’s press conference afterward struck a sharp tone, insisting that meaningful changes in the Syrian file remain a prerequisite for international engagement. ■ France’s calculated hospitality reinforced its ambitions to reclaim influence in Syria. For Sharaa, the trip was a strategic move to project international legitimacy and bury the hardline legacy of his past, including leadership ties to both Al-Qaeda and ISIS.

US president demands, referring to contracts for Active Social Engineering and Large Scale Social Deception | Department of Defense (DoD) contracts with the Thomson Reuters news agency to develop automated defenses against social engineering attacks were railed against Thursday by President Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk. “Reuters was paid millions of dollars by the US government for ‘large scale social deception,’” Musk wrote on X. “They’re a total scam.” Many, including Musk, were in outrage at the contracts awarded to Reuters that were labeled as Active Social Engineering and Large Scale Social Deception (LSD) in DoD contracts.

With aid blocked for over 10 weeks, UN agencies continue to warn of mass starvation and a collapsing health system. | The humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip has sharply intensified, with Gaza hospitals reporting 153 martyrs, including seven whose bodies were recently retrieved, and 459 injuries over the past 24 hours. ● According to the latest field data, many victims remain trapped under the rubble or in the streets, unreachable by civil defense or medical teams due to ongoing bombardment. ● The total death toll since October 7, 2023, resulting from the ongoing Israeli aggression, has now reached 53,272 martyrs and 120,673 injuries. Since March 18, 2025, alone, 3,131 Palestinians have been killed and 8,632 injured.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently said Tel Aviv was in the process of expelling half of Gaza’s population | The Donald Trump administration is attempting to bribe one of the warring parties in Libya to accept 1 million Palestinians that Israel is attempting to cleanse from Gaza. Libya became a failed state after the US-led regime change war against longtime dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. ● According to NBC News, multiple US officials confirmed that the Trump administration was in negotiations with one of Libya’s competing governments. “In exchange for the resettling of Palestinians, the administration would potentially release to Libya billions of dollars of funds that the U.S. froze more than a decade ago,” the report explains. ● The NBC News report did not specify if the US was talking with the Tripoli-based government led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibah, or the eastern government led by Khalifa Haftar. Libya has been in a state of civil war since the US-backed jihadist-linked rebels overthrew and murdered Gaddafi in 2011.

The Serbian leader added that he did not expect combat operations to end shortly, noting that he voiced his opinion "more as an analyst than as the president of the republic" | Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic believes that the agreement to exchange POWs under the ‘1,000 for 1,000’ formula between Russia and Ukraine may highlight the start of real dialogue, which is an important signal inspiring hope there may be some progress in the future negotiation process.

💬 "I listened carefully to [Vladimir] Zelensky, they had a special team there, including [French President Emmanuel] Macron, [UK Prime Minister Keir] Starmer, Zelensky, and [German Chancellor Friedrich] Merz. I listened to all of them in the public part, in the other [closed] part not being present, of course, but I saw and heard what the conclusion on the Istanbul talks was. It is good that an agreement was reached on exchange of 1,000 POWs: 1,000 Russian soldiers will return back home to Russia, and 1,000 Ukrainian ones [will return] back home to Ukraine. This is the largest exchange of war prisoners ever. This is good news, meaning that dialogue has started. When dialogue starts I believe that other results will follow as well," Vucic said in an interview broadcast by the Serbian television as he commented on his presence at the sixth summit of the European Political Community in Albania.

Ahmed Hussein Zalloum, a Palestinian man from the occupied West Bank city of Nablus, was released on November 26 after spending 22 years in different Israeli prisons. | Zalloum was 22 when the apartheid regime arrested him from his home in the occupied territories, framing him on trumped-up charges that were never proven. ● According to the local prisoners’ advocacy group, the 44-year-old's family tried to appeal against his illegal sentence several times, but the regime courts rejected the petitions repeatedly. ● Detained in 2002, Zalloum experienced years of medical neglect in different Israeli jails, which resulted in various health complications. He struggled with kidney failure and severe internal inflammation. ● The Palestinian man also suffered from injuries as a result of his arrest and custodial torture, with fragments of shrapnel embedded in the left side of his head. He endured chronic stomach and chest inflammations. ● During more than two decades of his illegal incarceration, the occupation authorities even refused to allow his father to visit the Zalloum when he was in critical condition inside the jail.

■ US bypassing law to fund 'Israel' despite rights abuses, lawsuit says (Al Mayadeen)
⚡ WELCOME TO HELL: The Israeli Prison System as a Network of Torture Camps (B'Tselem)
■ Horrendous photos from Megiddo Concentration Camp (10/14/24)
■ 1,200 Palestinians endure systematic torture in Israeli prisons (09/26/24)
■ 'Everyone was naked and bleeding': Israeli torture of Palestinians exposed (08/07/24)
■ 'Israel' used waterboarding, unleashed dogs on Gaza detainees: UN (08/02/24 )
■ Israeli lawmaker defends anal rape of Palestinian captives (08/01/24)
■ Mohammad Al-Sabbar 8th Palestinian Detainee Martyred behind ‘Israeli’ Bars since Oct.7 (02/09/24)

ICC says Karim Khan will take a leave of absence pending the conclusion of UN-led investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct, which he denies. | The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, has taken a leave of absence pending the conclusion of UN-led investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct against him. ● Khan’s office said on Friday that he had informed colleagues he would step aside temporarily until the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services (OIOS) wraps up its probe. The OIOS has been conducting the external investigation since December, following complaints raised with the ICC’s oversight body.

■ Timing of sexual misconduct allegations against ICC prosecutor ‘suspicious’ (RT)

Berlin pharmacist Andreas Kersten was forced to end his practice this month after he refused to sell the so-called “morning-after” pill for reasons of conscience, according to CNA Deutsch, CNA’s German-language news partner. | Kersten was forced to withdraw his license as a pharmacist after the higher administrative court of Berlin-Brandenburg acquitted him of misconduct in June 2024 but ruled that pharmacists who cannot reconcile the sale of the morning-after pill must give up their profession.

💬 “It is regrettable that pharmacists are denied the right to freedom of conscience when they adopt a pro-life attitude,” Kersten said. “I cannot reconcile the so-called ‘morning after pill’ with my conscience, because it could possibly end a human life. Therefore, I feel forced to give up my license as a pharmacist.”

Back in 2022, Ukraine was told that future terms would not be as generous as what was being offered. Ukraine scoffed. Here we are, almost three years later, and, lo and behold, what Russia said back in 2022 is exactly precisely what Ukraine just got. Tougher terms. | The Peace Negotiations between Ukraine and Russia began minutes ago in Istanbul, Turkey. They ended minutes later! Russia told Ukraine they must withdraw from the four territories (Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporozhe) in order to have a ceasefire. Ukraine flatly refused. The Russian delegation then stood up, said "Next time it will be five regions" and walked out of the room. It is not known if they will come back; the negotiations might very well be finished.

■ Russia, Ukraine held talks, agreeing to swap captives and meet again (TASS)
■ Recon Shows Russia Preparing MAJOR Crossing of Dnieper River in Ukraine (Hal Turner)
■ «Готовы продолжать контакт»: в Стамбуле завершились переговоры между Россией и Украиной (RT На русском)

Simplicius | "US was essentially blindsided and blinded by the Houthis’ destruction of a large amount of Reaper drones within the first month of the operation" | A truly ‘bombshell’ New York Times article revealed the jaw-dropping truth a few days ago about the real reasons Trump pulled out of Yemen. [...] Let’s first make something clear. Some have claimed that the US established ‘air superiority’ but not ‘air supremacy’, as if there’s a difference between the two. These are phony terms concocted—or at least popularized—by the US MIC to sell its Iraq war adventures, with claims that the modern ‘unstoppable’ American ‘airpower’ is capable of somehow totally dominating the skies against a foe. In reality, no such thing as true ‘air supremacy’ exists in a near-peer conflict, and has never been established in history over a foe that can fight back. These are nothing more than marketing terms to sell weapons for a war that doesn’t exist.

✅ Yemen Taught Trump Some Lessons That He’d Do Well To Apply Towards Ukraine (Andrew Korybko)
■ NYT: Trump Ended War With Houthis After They Shot Down U.S. Drones, Nearly Hit Fighter Jets (05/15/25)

In a medical police state where blind obedience to government-mandated medical experiments is enforced, Australians are waking up to a chilling reality: their health officials have systematically ignored, downplayed, and concealed deaths linked to COVID vaccines. | Newly uncovered documents reveal that 35 people died on the very day they received their shots—yet not a single case was thoroughly investigated by the government’s so-called safety watchdog. The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) has repeatedly assured the public that only 14 deaths out of 70 million doses were linked to vaccination, but the truth is far more damning. Behind closed doors, the TGA admits it never ruled out a connection for the vast majority of reported deaths—yet it refuses to investigate, refuses to acknowledge, and refuses to tell grieving families the truth.

✅ COVID Vaccines May Reduce Women’s Lifelong Egg Supply, Rat Study Suggests (Michael Nevradakis, Ph.D.)

Jack Poulson and Lee Fang | The overt replacement for the CIA’s foreign political action funding has transitioned back to covert funding, using ‘duty of care’ as a rationale | The National Endowment for Democracy, a U.S.-government backed nonprofit designed to influence the domestic politics of countries across the globe, says its efforts are part of a campaign to promote "open and transparent government." ■ The group, funded by Congress and working in tandem with the State Department, has backed activists and civil society groups across Europe, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa to push for greater disclosure among government entities. For instance, a recent NED report argues that “enhancing transparency” is vital for building trust in institutions and democratic governance, and urges the adoption of new disclosure laws for countries in the Balkans.

The Israeli military has intensified its attacks on Gaza amid President Trump's visit to the region | At least 115 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in the latest Israeli attacks on Gaza, Al Jazeera reported on Thursday, as the Israeli military has intensified its strikes on the besieged territory amid President Trump’s visit to the region. ● Health officials told Al Jazeera that at least 61 were killed in a barrage of overnight attacks on the southern city of Khan Younis. Heavy Israeli strikes were also reported in Jabalia, northern Gaza, for the second day. ● According to the Palestinian news agency WAFA, at least 15 Palestinians, including 11 children and one woman, were killed by the strikes on Jabalia. Photos and videos from Gaza on Thursday show many children among the casualties. ● WAFA also reported that among those killed in Khan Younis was a journalist named Ahmad al-Helou. Based on a previous report from WAFA, al-Helou’s killing brings the total number of journalists killed by the IDF in Gaza to 213.

President Trump reportedly decided to end his short-lived war on the Houthis after being informed that the US had "burned through weapons and munitions at a rate of about $1 billion in the first month alone" and couldn't even establish air superiority. [...] If Trump had read a bit more about the Houthis this whole war could have been avoided but at least he had the wisdom to cut his losses. This could have been a lot worse if the Houthis managed to down a US fighter jet or sink an aircraft carrier. The claim the Truman had to make a "hard turn" to avoid incoming Houthi fire clearly implies they were under a serious threat. I strongly suspect Trump's purported anger with Israel is being driven in large part by this humiliating defeat. This was a war exclusively for Israel and it blew up in the Trump administration's face.

■ Trump Praises Houthis' 'Bravery' (Information Liberation)
■ Bypassed by Trump, 'Israel' dismayed, silent amid shifting alliances (Al Mayadeen)
■ US takes over Iran, Yemen, Gaza talks, sidelines 'Israel' (Al Mayadeen)

Harold Turner | The irrefutable facts reported above cannot be disputed or explained-away. The US National Security Archive document PROVES that the US promised "NATO will not move one inch east" and later, it was President Bill Clinton who BROKE THAT PROMISE and signed approval of NATO doing exactly that. | In a statement that quickly caused a wave of comments on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean, the special envoy of the administration of President Donald Trump, Keith Kellogg, confirmed that Washington is actively discussing with its allies the deployment of military units from Great Britain, France, Germany and Poland in the territory west of the Dnieper River.This move, as stated, is part of a wider plan to stabilize the situation in Ukraine and establish an initial ceasefire. There's just one minor problem: Russia has already refused this about fifteen times before! The ENTIRE point of the Russia-Ukraine conflict was Russia's insistence there be no NATO presence in Ukraine. Ukraine could not join NATO, it could not have NATO troops in country, and could not have NATO infrastructure on Ukraine soil. The expansion of NATO is what caused this ENTIRE conflict, and (now former) NATO boss Jens Stoltenberg, [has] ADMITTED.

Shameful that @dkhos & @shervin are speaking at a NUFDI event—an Iranian monarchist group pushing for military strikes on Iran, collective punishment via sanctions, & viciously attacking other opposition voices more than the regime itself.

Maybe they don’t know. But they should. pic.twitter.com/OeEcL8jtBQ

— Sina Toossi (@SinaToossi) May 3, 2025

Wyatt Reed | A livestreamed Iranian royalist chat revealed a network of foreign-educated elites plotting to plunder Iran’s economy after realizing their dream of regime change. | The CEO of Uber, Dara Khosrowshahi, has drawn criticism following his participation in an online discussion workshopping ways to exploit Iran in the event of regime change. The event wad hosted by NUFDI, the main DC-based advocacy group for the monarchist movement surrounding Reza Pahlavi, whose father was the last reigning Shah of Iran. ■ The discussion, marketed by one prominent online Pahlavi booster as an effort “to present designs that could be quickly implemented in Iran after the fall of the Islamic Republic” and “the establishment of a sound government,” was held to cobble together a loose plan for the privatization of Iran’s economy following an apparently to-be-determined regime change scenario. It’s unclear whether the vision laid out by the two Iranian expats represents a concrete blueprint for toppling the government, but the content of the chat suggested the Uber CEO seeks lucrative gains in the event of a successful regime change operation. ■ Asked by fellow uber-wealthy US-based Iranian venture capitalist Shervin Pishevar what he would do in the “first 100 days” of a “Free Iran,” Khosrowshahi explained, “If you look at the potential GDP of the country… As a marketplace, I think, Uber and pretty much every single other major technology company and services company and brand company, would look at Iran as a very, very significant new market to come into. So I think that we would absolutely come into Iran and invest aggressively in the local marketplace as well.”

According to the newspaper, "Palestinians in Gaza face widespread starvation unless aid deliveries are restored within weeks" | Israeli military officers who monitor humanitarian conditions in the Gaza Strip have warned their commanders that the continued blockade of the embattled enclave will lead to a severe lack of food products, sources in Israel told the New York Times (NYT). Speaking on the condition of anonymity, "the officers said that immediate steps were needed to ensure that the system to supply aid could be reinstated fast enough to prevent starvation." "It takes time to scale up humanitarian deliveries," they explained. According to the newspaper, "Palestinians in Gaza face widespread starvation unless aid deliveries are restored within weeks."

■ Gaza faces “catastrophic” famine with 93% of population in crisis, aid groups say (Natural News)
■ Children so malnourished they’re losing their sight – War on Gaza Day 582 (05/12/25)
■ Israel kills scores in Gaza dawn massacres following hospital bombing (MEE)

Arthur Neslen | “I’m not someone who says, ‘History will judge them’ — they will have to be judged before then,” Francesca Albanese said in an exclusive interview. | As the International Court of Justice takes its next steps on investigating and prosecuting war crimes in Israel’s war on Gaza, the top expert on Palestine at the United Nations is pushing for even more international accountability. ■ In a wide-ranging exclusive interview with The Intercept, U.N. special rapporteur for the occupied Palestinian territories Francesca Albanese, called for top European Union officials — including European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen — to face charges of complicity in war crimes over their support for Israel during its 18-month assault on Gaza.

US president receives grand welcome as he pushes for deals from Mohammed bin Salman | US President Donald Trump signed a $142bn defense sales agreement in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday as he continued to push the kingdom to pour a trillion dollars of investment into his country. ● Trump, who was treated to an escort of several Saudi F-15 fighter jets upon his arrival, had been pushing Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to up a previously promised $600bn investment to an eye-watering $1 trillion. ● The new arms deal, which includes exports of GE gas turbines and energy solutions totaling $14.2bn and Boeing 737-8 passenger aircraft totaling $4.8bn, goes some way towards fulfilling that aim. ● One Saudi Arabian company also plans on to invest $20bn in AI-related sites in the United States, the White House said on Tuesday. ● Mohammed bin Salman and Trump were scheduled to meet for lunch at the royal palace on Tuesday, attended by several major American business leaders, including far-right Trump ally Elon Musk.