International Glance
Luxembourg will not renew its approval for the sale of Israel Bonds in the European Union, the country’s finance minister has confirmed.
In an interview with broadcaster RTL, Gilles Roth said the decision had been taken solely by the CSSF, Luxembourg's financial regulator, which he said had decided two months ago not to extend the bond programme beyond its 31 August expiry date.
Campaign groups in Luxembourg and across the EU have long called for Israel Bond sales to European investors to be stopped. As previously reported by Middle East Eye, they say the programme, which raises billions of dollars for the Israeli government, has helped fund Israel’s wars in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran.
Roth defended the CSSF against criticism, arguing that the regulator had followed European criteria throughout and that many of the accusations levelled at it were unwarranted. The discontinuation, he insisted, was a matter of regulatory compliance rather than political pressure.
That account, however, sits awkwardly within the chronology of recent events.
Luxembourg will not renew approval for Israeli war bonds, finance minister confirms
Israeli settlers rampage through Palestinian village near Nablus
Hundreds of Israeli settlers attacked the Palestinian village of Sarra, southwest of Nablus, on Friday, burning homes, damaging property and assaulting residents.
The attacks forced several families in the occupied West Bank village to flee for safety, residents told Middle East Eye.
Residents said that at least two homes were set on fire, while several Palestinians suffered from smoke inhalation after the fires.
Eyewitnesses told MEE that villagers also attempted to confront the attackers and prevent further damage.
The attack on the village comes after a series of attacks carried out by settlers in the Nablus area, following the deadly attack on the town of Tell.
Mohammed Turabi, a resident of Sarra, said that he and his family were shaken by the settlers' attack on their home, where they hurled stones and Molotov cocktails.
The courtyard, vehicle and ground floor of the house were burned, but the family says it managed to escape unharmed.
Russia Cuts Funding for Putin’s Flagship Technology Projects
The Russian government has significantly slashed the 2025 budgets for the majority of its priority domestic technology initiatives, diverting financial resources to sustain unprecedented military expenditures amid widening fiscal deficits.
A recent analysis by the Moscow-based Center for Macroeconomic Analysis and Short-Term Forecasting (CMASF) indicates that allocations for eight primary “technological leadership” programs were cut by nearly 38%. The revised federal budget provides 201.9 billion rubles ($2.6 billion) for these sectors, down from the initially planned 324.4 billion rubles ($4.2 billion).
The space technology sector experienced the most severe reduction, losing its entire scheduled 10 billion ruble ($129 million) budget.
Initiatives focused on domestic machine tools and industrial robotics – grouped under the Means of Production and Automation national project – saw their funding drop by more than 75%, falling from a planned 52.2 billion rubles to 11.8 billion rubles ($152.2 million).
Harry Enten Spots 'Mammoth' Shift In Israel's Net Favorability Among Americans
CNN chief data analyst Harry Enten said Friday that U.S. voters from both sides of the aisle have soured on Israel, referencing multiple recent polls confirming a “mammoth” shift in favorability — which Enten suggested could pose a serious problem for the Republican Party.
Enten made his case during an appearance on “News Central” after host John Berman noted Israel has been “one of the key issues” raised by Democrats in recent months, and that continued U.S. military aid to the country is not a partisan matter anymore.
“These are some absolutely huge, mammoth changes, generational changes that we’re talking about,” Enten said Friday. “I think there are a lot of Republicans [who think], ‘Oh, we’ll be able to run against these anti-Israeli Democrats once we hit the general election.’”
The data guru said Republicans can continue to believe that voters feel “very differently” about the matter than Democrats, as criticism of Israel has largely come from the party’s more progressive wing, but noted Israel’s net favorability has been “all negative” since the spring.
Berlin Pride attack leaves 1 dead, many hurt after vehicle rams crowd
One person has been killed and 15 injured, with some in life-threatening condition, after a vehicle mowed down a crowd near Berlin's Pride celebrations on the evening of July 25, the city's police said.
Emergency services responded to an incident Saturday in the city's central Tiergarten park close to the Brandenburg Gate, where police said the white vehicle struck multiple people.
"According to our latest information, the vehicle drove ... into the Tiergarten around 10 p.m. (2000 GMT), injuring several people in the process, and then came to a standstill after hitting a tree here in the Tiergarten," a police spokesperson at the scene said.
"It was empty, which is why we are currently working intensively to track down the perpetrator or perpetrators."
Israeli settlers kill four Palestinians in West Bank attack
Israeli settlers and troops killed four Palestinians during an attack on a village in the occupied West Bank on Friday, during which a soldier and a settler were also shot dead.
According to eyewitnesses, a group of armed settlers stormed homes and farmland on the outskirts of Tel, southwest of Nablus, early in the morning.
Residents gathered to repel the attack, Mahmoud al-Hindi, a resident of the village, told Middle East Eye.
The confrontation escalated into physical clashes between unarmed Palestinians on one side and rifle-wielding settlers and Israeli soldiers on the other.
Israeli troops and settlement guards then opened fire on a group of Palestinians, according to Hindi.
The Palestinian health ministry said four men were killed and four others wounded, most of them shot in the upper body. Three of the wounded are in a critical condition.
The dead were identified as brothers Ibrahim Hussein Ali Saifi and Jawad Hussein Ali Saifi, their cousin Farouq Adnan Ali Saifi, and their relative Imran Ahmed Ali Saifi.
"This area often sees confrontations after settlers attack in an attempt to seize land, but today was the most violent," Hindi said.
ICC member states remove prosecutor Karim Khan by majority vote
Member states of the International Criminal Court (ICC) voted by a majority on Friday to remove chief prosecutor Karim Khan over misconduct claims, during a special session at the United Nations headquarters in New York City.
According to diplomatic sources, 82 out of the court's 125 members voted by a secret ballot to dismiss the prosecutor, surpassing the absolute majority threshold (63) needed for removal.
Thirteen voted against removal, while 15 abstained.
The President of the Assembly of States Parties (ASP), Paivi Kaukoranta, confirmed the vote results in a statement to assembly members broadcast live on UN Web TV.
She said the 82 states voted that "the elected official... committed serious misconduct and a serious breach of duty" by engaging in "prohibited conduct against a subordinate staff member".
It is the first time in the ICC's 24-year history that member states have voted to remove a sitting chief prosecutor from office.
The removal decision takes immediate effect, and elections for a new prosecutor will follow.
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