US President Donald Trump has rejected Iran’s proposal for a seven-day ceasefire and told aides he expects to resume bombing Iran after the November midterm elections, the Wall Street Journal reports, citing US officials.
The officials say that Trump is reluctant to resume major combat operations however, with the scope of the envision strikes unclear, while noting his views could change and that he could also end up being swayed by the midterm results.
An Egyptian warning shortly before the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, invasion of Israel that the terror group was readying for a major attack was relayed by Egypt’s then-intelligence chief Abbas Kamel to senior Israeli officials at Ben Gurion Airport, the Atlantic says in a new report.
The warning was first reported two days after the October 7 onslaught, when an Egyptian intelligence official told the Associated Press that Israel ignored repeated warnings that Hamas was planning “something big” and the Ynet news site reported that Kamel personally warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu 10 days before the atrocities.
According to the Atlantic, Kamel didn’t give the Israeli officials any precise intelligence about when the attack would occur or how it would unfold when he landed on September 26 at Ben Gurion Airport, where his plane remained for just over an hour as he met with unspecified officials.
The report says Kamel told them that Israel needed to swiftly shift course or risk a combustion in Gaza, recommending Jerusalem grant further economic concessions to Hamas to prevent such a scenario, but notes it’s unclear what the Israeli officials did with this warning.
The Atlantic says Netanyahu’s spokespeople didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment, though his national security adviser at the time of the October 7 attack, Tzachi Hanegbi, denies to the magazine that Kamel visited Israel on September 26 or that there was any Egyptian warning. Netanyahu’s office has previously denied that Kamel personally warned the premier.
UNITED NATIONS — Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says that Tehran has offered Washington a plan that would see the Strait of Hormuz reopened to maritime navigation within seven days.
“Iran has conveyed to the United States, through Qatar, a concrete seven-day plan. If the necessary conditions are met, the strait can be reopened, and normal maritime passage restored within seven days,” he says at the UN.
“The choice now rests with the United States. Iran does not accept coercion, threats or intimidation, and Iran will not surrender its sovereign rights under pressure,” he says.
Key Update
The military chiefs of Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Turkey discussed enhancing intelligence sharing, military coordination and capability integration at a meeting in Riyadh, the Pakistan military says.
The chiefs reviewed the security situation and threats facing Saudi Arabia, affirmed a commitment to collective defense, and vowed to turn Makkah Joint Defense Agreement commitments into effective cooperation, the Pakistan military adds.
The military says the launch of an interceptor missile earlier today in southern Lebanon was caused by a “false identification.”
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