Al Jazeera

By Enes Abuomer and Mahmoud Sayed

•     Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps says it has targeted a US early warning radar in Bahrain, in response to an attack on a telecommunications tower in Sirik on Thursday.
•     US President Donald Trump has said he held off on more strikes on Iran at Gulf allies’ request, just hours after he said he would not hesitate to launch new military strikes against Tehran.
•     The Gaza Board of Peace has called for the implementation of Trump’s peace plan following the Israeli strike on Nasser Hospital, which killed at least seven. Hamas has rejected the statement, accusing the board of adopting Israel’s narrative.
•     Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei has warned that countries providing military or logistical support for US operations against Tehran would be considered participants in Washington’s aggression.

France slams Israel’s ‘demagogic’ ban of left-wing LFI party from visiting

    France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot has called Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to ban officials from the French left-wing party La France Insoumise (LFI) from entering Israel “demagogic” from a “caretaker” leader.

    “This demagogic decision, coming from a government that has repeatedly violated international law, plays into the hands of those who, like La France Insoumise, make a living out of exploiting the Israeli-Palestinian conflict,” he wrote on X.

    He said France will continue to work towards peace and a two-state solution.

    Earlier, the Israeli government accused LFI of spreading “blood libels” against Israel.

    LFI is seen by centrist politicians like Barrot and President Emmanuel Macron as a far-left party with radical ideas. LFI’s leader Jean-Luc Melenchon is currently polling second highest in France’s presidential elections, behind far-right leader Marine Le Pen.

GCC chief condemns continued Israeli attacks on Gaza

    The secretary-general of the Gulf Cooperation Council, Jassim Mohammed Al-Budaiwi, has condemned the continued violations by Israel against Palestinians in Gaza, including the attack on the Nasser Medical Complex on Thursday.

    In a statement, Al-Budaiwi stressed that endangering those inside the facility, including staff and patients, “exacerbates the suffering of the Palestinian people, stressing that the continuation of attacks on them requires an international stance that puts an end to these violations and ensures that those responsible are held accountable”.

    He called on the international community, especially the UN Security Council, to assume its responsibilities and take “effective measures to stop the Israeli attacks, provide protection for civilians, ensure the unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid and medical supplies to all those in need in the sector, and enable relief agencies to carry out their tasks safely”.

UNRWA warns funding crisis could force staffing cuts

    The UN agency for Palestinian refugees faces a $250m budget deficit this year and may have to reduce staffing without urgent funding, acting chief Christian Saunders has warned.

    Addressing a UN General Assembly committee yesterday, Saunders said he would need to request an emergency loan to keep paying personnel through December.

    The agency continues to assist about 1.7 million Palestinians in Gaza, he said.

If you’re just joining us

    Here are the main developments:

•     Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it hit a US early warning radar in Bahrain in retaliation for an attack on a telecommunications tower in the Iranian port city of Sirik.
•     US President Donald Trump said Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other Gulf countries had asked him to hold off on further large-scale attacks on Iran. He claimed the US could destroy Iran’s energy infrastructure, bridges and manufacturing facilities within three days.
•     International airlines extended flight suspensions to several Saudi cities as Houthi attacks continued to disrupt air travel, with several cancellations stretching into January.
•     The UN Security Council unanimously renewed sanctions related to Yemen, while the UK said it would seek tighter restrictions on components used by the Houthis to manufacture weapons.
•     Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council chair Rashad al-Alimi told China’s Middle East envoy, Zhai Jun, that the Iran-backed Houthis had exploited efforts to de-escalate the conflict, insisting there could be no peace with a group claiming a “divine right to rule”.

US ambassador to UN heads to Lebanon as UNIFIL’s mandate nears expiry

    US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz is set to arrive in Lebanon next week, with the future of peacekeeping forces hanging in the balance as the mandate of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) nears expiry.

    Waltz attacked UNIFIL earlier this week, describing it as a “human shield for terrorists”, during the Israel Hayom Summit, an event organised by the Israeli newspaper Israel Hayom in New York on Tuesday.

    The US ambassador made clear during the event that his mission in Lebanon will be “to get rid of this human shield known as UNIFIL and change the peacekeeping mission that has been there for 20 years”.

    US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a news conference on Tuesday that the US is considering a “civilian mission” to replace UNIFIL.

    “It doesn’t have to be a military mission. It could be a civilian mission,” he said. The UNIFIL mandate ends on December 31, 2026, unless extended by the UN.

US Navy removed commander of destroyer deployed in Iran war: USNI

    The US Navy quietly removed the commander of the USS Michael Murphy on September 27 while the destroyer was deployed to the Middle East for the Iran war and naval blockade, USNI News, an outlet affiliated with the US Naval Institute, reported.

    Commander Caitlin Cunningham was relieved due to a “loss of confidence”, a Navy spokesperson told the outlet, without providing further details.

    The destroyer remained in the region after the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier strike group departed in August, and left in mid-October. It is expected back in Pearl Harbor this week after a 346-day deployment, according to USNI News.

    A British volunteer surgeon has documented the chaos and destruction inside Gaza’s Nasser hospital after a deadly Israeli strike. The bombing killed six people, including surgeon Rizq Abu Shuaira.

‘Why would you hit a hospital ’ Gaza surgeon films aftermath of Israeli strike

Jerusalem Daily: Gaza’s Nasser Hospital hit by Israeli air strike

Critic of Iran war and Israel seeks role as US Senate majority leader

    Maryland Senator Chris Van Hollen, who announced he is running to be majority leader as a potential alternative to Senator Chuck Schumer, has repeatedly challenged Washington’s relationship with Middle Eastern partners.

    Van Hollen, the son of a US diplomat, has called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu a “chronic liar“. He also attempted to push forward legislation in Congress that would have required the Trump administration to report on the killing of nine Americans in the occupied West Bank and on Israel’s treatment of Palestinian children in military detention.

    Van Hollen previously told Al Jazeera the US-Israel war on Iran “is making America and our allies less safe”.

    This week, Van Hollen and 10 Senate colleagues urged congressional leaders to remove provisions from the annual defence policy bill that would expand weapons development and intelligence sharing with Israel.

Iran’s IRGC says its forces targeted US radar in Bahrain

    Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) says it has targeted a US early warning radar in Bahrain in response to an attack on a telecommunications tower in Iran’s Sirik, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency.

    “This serves as a serious warning to the aggressor enemy to cease its aerial provocations and oil smuggling in the Strait of Hormuz. Should these violations and acts of aggression recur, the IRGC Aerospace Force stands in full readiness to engage without limits,” Tasnim reported, citing the IRGC.

    Iranian official sources, according to state news agency IRNA, said the southern port city of Sirik in Hormozgan province was hit by “enemy fire” on Thursday.

Airlines extend Saudi flight suspensions amid Houthi attacks

    Several international airlines have extended the suspension of flights to Saudi Arabia as Houthi missile and drone attacks continue to disrupt aviation across the kingdom.

    Indian carrier Akasa Air announced on Thursday that all flights to and from Riyadh and Jeddah would remain suspended until November 30, citing ongoing security concerns.

    Another Indian airline, IndiGo, extended its suspension of services to Riyadh and Dammam until November 30, while flights to Jeddah and Medina remain cancelled until November 21.

    Air India and Air India Express have also suspended flights to Riyadh, Jeddah and Dammam until November 14.

    European carriers have announced longer suspensions. KLM has cancelled services to Riyadh and Dammam until November 27, while British Airways has postponed the resumption of its London-Riyadh route until January 11, 2027.

    The United Arab Emirates’ Etihad Airways has suspended flights to Riyadh and Dammam until November 19, while Oman’s SalamAir has cancelled services to both cities until November 30.

    The disruptions follow repeated Houthi attacks targeting Saudi airports, energy facilities and other infrastructure, including King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh.

Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia escalate as UN renews Yemen sanctions

    Yemen’s Houthis have launched another wave of drone and missile attacks on Saudi Arabia, targeting oil facilities and military installations as the UN Security Council unanimously voted to extend sanctions related to the conflict.

    The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted several drones over Riyadh and the kingdom’s Eastern Province.

    Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed the group had targeted a pumping station along Saudi Arabia’s East-West Pipeline, an oil facility in Yanbu and military installations near the Yemeni border.

Yemeni government denies reports of withdrawal from Dhubab

    Yemen’s internationally recognised government has denied reports of its forces withdrawing from Dhubab in western Taiz governorate.

    The Yemeni information ministry said that pro-Houthi social media accounts circulated a video that allegedly showed government forces withdrawing from the coastal town.

    “The media verification centre of the Yemeni ministry of information has investigated the matter and determined that the claim is false and misleading,” the ministry’s statement said, adding that “there is no truth to what the terrorist Houthi militia is promoting”.

Israeli army says ‘false identification’ behind alarm sirens in Nahal Oz near Gaza

    The Israeli army says a “false identification” was behind alarm sirens that were activated in the Nahal Oz area near the Gaza Strip.

Yemen welcomes UN condemnation of Houthis but regrets lack of ‘terrorist’ label

    Yemen’s internationally recognised government has welcomed a UN Security Council resolution condemning Houthi attacks but criticised the council for failing to designate the group as a “terrorist” organisation.

    Yemen’s ambassador to the UN, Abdullah al-Saadi, said the resolution came at a critical moment as the Houthis intensified military operations and threatened maritime security in the Red Sea, the Bab al-Mandeb Strait and the Gulf of Aden.

    “We regret that the council was unable to call things by their names and describe the Houthi militias as terrorist groups,” he said, according to Yemen’s state news agency Saba.

    The Security Council unanimously adopted the resolution on Thursday, extending financial and travel sanctions related to the conflict in Yemen.

UK seeks tighter restrictions on Houthi weapons components after UN vote

    The United Kingdom says it will work with UN Security Council members to introduce further restrictions on components used by Yemen’s Houthis to manufacture weapons.

    Speaking after the council unanimously renewed sanctions on Yemen, British Ambassador Sarah MacIntosh said the resolution strengthened enforcement of the existing arms embargo.

    She said the measures addressed the Houthis’ reliance on dual-use components and precursor chemicals to support domestic weapons production.

    “We look forward to working with Council members in the coming months to agree a list of dual-use items to be subject to measures within the sanctions regime,” MacIntosh said.

    The ambassador also warned of Yemen’s worsening humanitarian crisis, saying more than 22.3 million people needed assistance and protection, while recent fighting had displaced more than 330,000 people.

    She called for the immediate and unconditional release of UN, humanitarian, civil society and diplomatic personnel detained by the Houthis. The UN said in October that more than 70 of its personnel were in Houthi detention.

‘No peace with group that claims divine right to rule’, Yemen’s al-Alimi tells Chinese envoy

    Yemeni Presidential Leadership Council chair Rashad al-Alimi has discussed developments in the Yemeni conflict and efforts to achieve peace in the country and the region with China’s envoy for the Middle East, Zhai Jun.

    Al-Alimi expressed appreciation for China’s diplomatic endeavours, saying his government “engaged positively with all de-escalation initiatives and made genuine concessions for the benefit of the Yemeni people”, according to a statement.

    “However, the Houthi militias, backed by Iran, have exploited these gestures,” the statement read, adding that “there can be no peace with a group that claims a divine right to rule and challenges the state’s exclusive authority”.