Eilat Port to Close as of July 20 Due to Financial Crisis
The Israeli Ports and Maritime Authority, part of the Ministry of Transportation, announced on Wednesday that the port of Eilat will completely cease operations as of next Sunday, July 20, due to the worsening debt crisis.
A letter issued by the National Emergency Authority stated that the closure decision stems from the Eilat Municipality imposing a lien on the port's bank accounts due to accumulated debts, hindering the port's ability to continue operating.
The authority emphasized that this step threatens to halt logistical support for the Israeli Navy in the Red Sea region, warning of potential security repercussions.
Israel had previously requested the United States to resume military operations against the Houthis, citing the Houthis' intensified attacks on maritime traffic in Yemen.
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Al-Ahram Weekly
an hour ago
- Al-Ahram Weekly
Egypt, Qatar FMs discuss Gaza ceasefire efforts - Foreign Affairs
Egyptian Minister of Foreign Affairs Badr Abdelatty held a phone call on Sunday with Qatari Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani to discuss the latest developments in the Gaza Strip and ongoing efforts to reach a ceasefire. The call focused on the horrific humanitarian situation in Gaza due to Israel's mass starvation policy and the Egyptian-Qatari efforts to halt the Israeli genocidal war against Palestinian civilians, the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said. During the call, both foreign ministers reaffirmed their commitment to intensifying diplomatic efforts to reach a comprehensive ceasefire agreement that would allow for the unhindered entry of humanitarian aid to starving Palestinians and end the repeated Israeli attacks on civilians. Moreover, they discussed the ongoing preparations for the upcoming International Conference on the Recovery and Reconstruction of Gaza, which Egypt will host. The conference will focus on implementing the Arab-Islamic plan for rebuilding the war-battered Gaza. Egypt and Qatar also stressed the importance of sustained coordination between them and mobilizing international support for establishing an independent Palestinian state based on the 4 June 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital. On Thursday, the US and Israel pulled back from Gaza ceasefire talks in Doha. However, Egypt and Qatar said Friday they will continue the mediation efforts to halt the brutal war in Gaza, end the humanitarian tragedy, protect civilians, and facilitate a captive-prisoner exchange. Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Al-Ahram Weekly
an hour ago
- Al-Ahram Weekly
What to expect, and what not to, at the UN meeting on an Israel-Palestinian two-state solution - War on Gaza
The U.N. General Assembly is bringing high-level officials together this week to promote a two-state solution to the decades-old Israel-Palestinian conflict that would place their peoples side by side, living in peace in independent nations. Israel and its close ally the United States are boycotting the two-day meeting, which starts Monday and will be co-chaired by the foreign ministers of France and Saudi Arabia. Israel's right-wing government opposes a two-state solution, and the United States has called the meeting 'counterproductive' to its efforts to end the war in Gaza. France and Saudi Arabia want the meeting to put a spotlight on the two-state solution, which they view as the only viable road map to peace, and to start addressing the steps to get there. The meeting was postponed from late June and downgraded from a four-day meeting of world leaders amid surging tensions in the Middle East, including Israel's 12-day war against Iran and the war in Gaza. 'It was necessary to restart a political process, the two-state solution process, that is today threatened, more threatened than it has ever been," French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said Sunday on CBS News' 'Face the Nation." Here's what's useful to know about the upcoming gathering. Why a two-state solution? The idea of dividing the Holy Land goes back decades. When the British mandate over Palestine ended, the U.N. partition plan in 1947 envisioned dividing the territory into Jewish and Arab states. Israel accepted the plan, but upon Israel's declaration of independence the following year, its Arab neighbours declared war and the plan was never implemented. Under a 1949 armistice, Jordan held control over the West Bank and east Jerusalem and Egypt over Gaza. Israel captured the West Bank, east Jerusalem and Gaza in the 1967 Mideast war. The Palestinians seek those lands for a future independent state alongside Israel, and this idea of a two-state solution based on Israel's pre-1967 boundaries has been the basis of peace talks dating back to the 1990s. The two-state solution has wide international support. The logic behind it is that the population of Israel — along with east Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza — is divided equally between Jews and Palestinians. The establishment of an independent Palestine would leave Israel as a democratic country with a solid Jewish majority and grant the Palestinians their dream of self-determination. Why hold a conference now? France and Saudi Arabia have said they want to put a spotlight on the two-state solution as the only viable path to peace in the Middle East — and they want to see a road map with specific steps, first ending the war in Gaza. The co-chairs said in a document sent to U.N. members in May that the primary goal of the meeting is to identify actions by 'all relevant actors' to implement the two-state solution — and 'to urgently mobilize the necessary efforts and resources to achieve this aim, through concrete and time-bound commitments.' Saudi diplomat Manal Radwan, who led the country's delegation to the preparatory conference, said the meeting must 'chart a course for action, not reflection.' It must be 'anchored in a credible and irreversible political plan that addresses the root cause of the conflict and offers a real path to peace, dignity and mutual security,' she said. French President Emmanuel Macron has pushed for a broader movement toward a two-state solution in parallel with a recognition of Israel's right to defend itself. He announced late Thursday that France will recognize the state of Palestine officially at the annual gathering of world leaders at the U.N. General Assembly in late September. About 145 countries have recognized the state of Palestine. But Macron's announcement, ahead of Monday's meeting and amid increasing global anger over desperately hungry people in Gaza starting to die from starvation, makes France the most important Western power to do so. What is Israel's view? Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejects the two-state solution on both nationalistic and security grounds. Netanyahu's religious and nationalist base views the West Bank as the biblical and historical homeland of the Jewish people, while Israeli Jews overwhelmingly consider Jerusalem their eternal capital. The city's eastern side is home to Judaism's holiest site, along with major Christian and Muslim holy places. Hard-line Israelis like Netanyahu believe the Palestinians don't want peace, citing the second Palestinian uprising of the early 2000s, and more recently the Hamas takeover of Gaza two years after Israel withdrew from the territory in 2005. The Hamas takeover led to five wars, including the current and ongoing 21-month conflict. At the same time, Israel also opposes a one-state solution in which Jews could lose their majority. Netanyahu's preference seems to be the status quo, where Israel maintains overall control and Israelis have fuller rights than Palestinians, Israel deepens its control by expanding settlements, and the Palestinian Authority has limited autonomy in pockets of the West Bank. Netanyahu condemned Macron's announcement of Palestinian recognition, saying it 'rewards terror and risks creating another Iranian proxy, just as Gaza became." What is the Palestinian view? The Palestinians, who label the current arrangement 'apartheid,' accuse Israel of undermining repeated peace initiatives by deepening settlement construction in the West Bank and threatening annexation. That would harm the prospect of a contiguous Palestinian state and their prospects for independence. Ahmed Majdalani, a member of the PLO Executive Committee and close associate of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said the meeting will serve as preparation for a presidential summit expected in September. It will take place either in France or at the U.N. on the sidelines of the high-level meeting, U.N. diplomats said. Majdalani said the Palestinians have several goals, first a 'serious international political process leading to the establishment of a Palestinian state.' The Palestinians also want additional international recognition of their state by major countries including Britain. But expect that to happen in September, not at Monday's meeting, Majdalani said. And he said they want economic and financial support for the Palestinian Authority and international support for the reconstruction and recovery of the Gaza Strip. What will happen — and won't happen — at the meeting? All 193 U.N. member nations have been invited to attend the meeting and a French diplomat said about 40 ministers are expected. The United States and Israel are the only countries who are boycotting. The co-chairs have circulated an outcome document which could be adopted, and there could be some announcements of intentions to recognize a Palestinian state. But with Israel and the United States boycotting, there is no prospect of a breakthrough and the resumption of long-stalled negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians on an end to their conflict. Secretary-General António Guterres urged participants after the meeting was announced 'to keep the two-state solution alive.' And he said the international community must not only support a solution where independent states of Palestine and Israel live side-by-side in peace but 'materialize the conditions to make it happen.' Follow us on: Facebook Instagram Whatsapp Short link:
Egypt Independent
2 hours ago
- Egypt Independent
US used about a quarter of its high-end missile interceptors in Israel-Iran war, exposing supply gap
US forces countered Tehran's barrage of ballistic missiles by firing more than 100 THAADs (short for Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) – and possibly as many as 150 – a significant portion of America's stockpile of the advanced air defense system, the sources said. The US has seven THAAD systems, and used two of them in Israel in the conflict. Using so many THAAD interceptors in such a short period exposed a gap in the US missile defense network and depleted a costly asset at a moment when American public support for Israeli defense has reached historic lows. Former US defense officials and missile experts told CNN that the rapid drawdown has also raised concerns about America's global security posture and ability to regenerate supplies at speed. Last year, the US produced only 11 new THAAD interceptors and is expected to receive just 12 more this fiscal year, according to the 2026 budget estimates from the Department of Defense. A Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptor is launched during a successful test in this undated handout photo provided by the US Department of Defense. THAAD systems are capable of intercepting and countering ballistic missiles. U.S. Department of Defense/Missile Defense Agency/Reuters/FILE In response to questions regarding the US's THAAD stockpile and the expenditure of interceptors during the 12-day conflict, Pentagon Press Secretary Kingsley Wilson said the US military 'is the strongest it has even been and has everything it needs to conduct any mission anywhere, anytime, all around the world. If you need further proof, look no further than Operation Midnight Hammer and the total obliteration of Iran's nuclear capabilities.' CNN reported that an early intelligence assessment determined the US' strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities last month did not destroy the core components of the country's nuclear program and likely only set it back by months. The US administration dismissed the assessment, and the CIA later said it had evidence Iran's nuclear program was 'severely damaged.' A defense official declined to provide information on the THAAD inventory due to operational security concerns, but said the Defense Department 'remains postured to respond to any threat.' The number of THAADs spent in the 12-day war was first reported by The Wall Street Journal. Despite the heavy use of THAADs during the 12-day war to help fend off Tehran's assault last month, dozens of Iranian missiles still struck Israel. THAAD is a mobile system that can engage and destroy short-, medium-, and intermediate-range ballistic missiles both inside and outside of the Earth's atmosphere during their final phase of flight. Each battery is operated by 95 American soldiers, armed with six launchers, and 48 interceptors. The interceptors are manufactured by Lockheed Martin and cost roughly $12.7 million, according to the 2025 Missile Defense Agency budget. The US plans to acquire 37 THAAD interceptors next year, according to the 2026 Department of defense budget estimates, financed partially by the latest addition to President Donald Trump's so-called 'big, beautiful bill.' A defense official said the 2026 budget 'prioritizes funding in the defense industrial base, a core strategic asset that provides and sustains our military's technology, equipment, and supplies.' 'The budget includes an additional $1.3 billion for industrial based supply chain improvements, and an additional $2.5 billion for missiles and munitions production expansion,' the official said. 'The Department's role is to ensure that the President is armed with the best possible military options for any scenario – and all options remain on the table.' But experts and former defense officials warn that supplies need to be ramped up significantly to deal with the shortfall. 'It is important to recognize the level of commitment and the level of expenditure here in defense of Israel is significant,' said a missile defense expert who has been tracking the US government's expenditure. 'The reports about THAAD expenditure are concerning. This is not the sort of thing that the US can afford to continue to do on and on,' he added. 'It was a major commitment to our Israeli ally, but missile defense interceptor capacity is definitely a concern, and THAAD is a very scarce resource.' A senior retired US army officer who asked not to be named said around 25% of THAAD's total inventory was used by US forces in Israel participating in the war effort. 'The (Department of Defense) is looking at wartime stockage levels of critical munitions and attempting to significantly increase annual production capacity, an effort that is long overdue,' the source said. US Air Force aerial porters load Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) support equipment being sent to Israel onto a C-17 Globemaster III on Oct. 16, 2024. Airman 1st Class Zeeshan Naeem/U.S. Air Force US interceptor stockpile concerns preceded the 12-day war, according to four former senior US defense officials who say that the problem is most acute in inventories of high-end interceptors that are a key part of deterrence against China. 'What I can say without giving any numbers is I was surprised at how low some of the levels of readiness were,' said one former defense official who left his post in the last year. 'Stockpiles are dropping. We need more. We need them faster than they are being built,' said the same ex-official. 'This is a concern. It was a concern during the Biden administration. I'm sure it's a concern now during the Trump administration,' one former senior Biden defense official said. 'Air defense is relevant in all of the major theaters right now. And there's not enough systems. There's not enough interceptors. There's not enough production and there are not enough people working on it,' said Mara Karlin, former US Assistant Secretary of Defense for Strategy, Plans, and Capabilities under Biden. 'You have the challenge of something being both incredibly relevant and also there's a dearth of them,' she added. There are nine active THAAD batteries globally, according to manufacturer Lockheed Martin. The US military has seven of those and plans to have an eighth active by 2025, according to the Congressional Research Service. Data available in 2019 showed that five of the US' THAADs were stationed at bases in Texas, one in Guam and one in South Korea; by last year, the Pentagon had moved two of those batteries to the Middle East to protect Israel. Two others were delivered to the United Arab Emirates and have been used to intercept Houthi militant ballistic missiles. Missile shortages and damage in Israel While most of Iran's missiles were downed by Israeli and US air defenses, experts, open-source data and video from the ground reviewed by CNN showed that dozens did manage to get through. Tehran's success rate rose as the war raged on, amounting to some of the worst damage Israel has seen in decades. The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Iran fired over 500 long-range ballistic missiles, and it was able to intercept around 86% of those – with 36 Iranian missiles striking built-up areas. Major cities like Tel Aviv suffered extensive damage, whole apartment buildings were destroyed, sensitive military sites targeted, parts of the power grid were taken out and 29 people were killed. Israel's tax authority estimated in late June that the war would cost the country at least $1.8 billion in damage, but with claims still yet to be filed that number was expected to rise. Analysis conducted by DC-based think tank Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA) estimated that THAADs – alongside Israel's Arrow-2 and Arrow-3 interceptors – downed 201 of Iran's 574 missiles, with 57 hitting populated areas. The report estimated that the US' THAAD system accounted for almost half of all interceptions, indicating that Israel's Arrow interceptor stockpiles were insufficient. Israel's Iron Dome system was designed to deflect shorter-range rockets than those being fired by Iran. 'After burning through a large portion of their available interceptors, the United States and Israel both face an urgent need to replenish stockpiles and sharply increase production rates,' Ari Cicurel, author of the report, wrote, estimating that it would take three to eight years to replenish at current production rates. According to data compiled by JINSA, interception rates lagged as the war wore on. Only 8% of Iranian missiles penetrated defenses in the first week of the war. That doubled to 16% in the second half of the conflict and eventually culminated at 25% on the final day of the war before the ceasefire. Analysts say there are several possible reasons for the trend, including an Iranian shift of focus from military targets to populated urban areas, where interception is less robust. Iran also fired more sophisticated missiles as the war progressed. Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men inspect the damage at the site of an Iranian missile strike in Bnei Brak, east of Tel Aviv, on June 16, 2025. Iran unleashed a barrage of missile strikes on Israeli cities after Israel struck military targets deep inside Iran. John Wessels/AFP/Getty Images '(Iran) increasingly employed more advanced systems,' said Mora Deitch, head of the data analytics center at Israel's Institute for National Security Studies (INSS). 'These included newer missiles with multiple warheads or decoys, which may individually cause less damage but can overwhelm and saturate air defense systems.' Deitch also suggests that Israel may have deliberately relaxed its interception rate. 'Israel's air defense policy may have evolved over time to accommodate a protracted engagement with Iran,' said Deitch. 'What appears as a decline in interception effectiveness might instead reflect a deliberate shift in strategy rather than a technological shortfall.' Still missile defense analysts say they saw clear signs of air defense depletion. 'The presence of the THAAD battery in the first place suggests that the Israelis don't have a super deep interceptor magazine,' said Sam Lair, research associate at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS). Lair published analysis of interceptors seen in a series of social media video taken by a Jordanian photographer, Zaid Abbadi, from his rooftop in an Amman suburb as the missiles flew overhead. Lair counted 39 THAAD among 82 advanced interceptors in the sample, which consisted of sporadically recorded night-time recording. CNN was able to verify the THAAD tally from the videos. Over half a dozen experts say the number represents a very conservative baseline. Drawing on calculations about publicly available data on batteries, interceptor reloads, and the number of Iranian ballistic missiles fired, experts believe that the US military fired at least 80 THAAD interceptors. 'The 12-day war in June of this year essentially saw the first significant expenditure of THAAD interceptors,' said Timur Kadyshev, a senior researcher at the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy at the University of Hamburg. 'Israel was relatively successful in defending (with the US assistance) against unsophisticated Iranian missiles – at the cost of depleting available arsenals of interceptors.' US Army soldiers demonstrate how they prepare the THAAD missile defense system at Fort Bliss, Texas, on Sept. 20, 2023. Cpl. David Poleski/U.S. Army The problem for the US is especially acute in the Indo-Pacific where China has tried to keep the US navy at arm's length, experts say. 'From a narrowly military standpoint, the Chinese are absolutely the winners in that these last almost two years in the Middle East have seen the US expend pretty substantial amounts of capabilities that the American defense industrial base will find pretty hard to replace,' said Sidharth Kaushal, senior research fellow at Royal United Services Institute. Ex-defense officials said dwindling defensive capabilities in the Indo-Pacific was a growing concern for the former administration of President Joe Biden as they used the US stockpile to battle Yemen's Houthi rebels. 'God forbid there should be a conflict in the Pacific, for example, then it really will put a huge strain our missile capacity and the ability for our military to have the munitions necessary to keep up,' said one former senior Biden administration defense official with direct knowledge of the US campaign against the Houthis. 'You have to make choices,' said Jennifer Kavanagh, senior fellow and director of military analysis at Defense Priorities. 'The Biden administration also should have thought about these trade-offs, but they were able to shrug them off because it was early in these wars… stockpiles were still deep enough that they could turn a blind eye to it.' 'But the Trump administration now is getting to a point where they're not going to be able to ignore the trade-offs.'
