For now, links to SIX reports: from Reuters, the Associated Press, the Cradle, and Middle East Monitor; others are accessible by clicking on their name or initials. (Scroll down for today’s GAZA, IRAN and ALL OF IT so far, and for LEBANON 6-26-26.) — MCM

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Hezbollah rejects Israel-Lebanon security deal. From Reuters. Hezbollah leader Naim Qassem today rejected a U.S.-brokered security agreement between Lebanon and Israel, a day after it was signed, describing it as a surrender to Israel. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE, HERE and HERE for reports from AP, the Cradle, and Middle East Monitor.

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Lebanon orders security crackdown on protests against ‘seditious’ Israel deal. From the Cradle. Lebanese judicial authorities today ordered state security to take forceful measures to suppress public “rioting” after protests erupted opposing the government’s signing of a “trilateral framework agreement” legitimizing Israel’s occupation of south Lebanon. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JUNE 26  Israel and Lebanon sign framework agreement with U.S. in ‘first step’ toward peace, Rubio says, by Ben Finley, Abby Sewell and Melanie Lidman | AP  WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Marco Rubio joined Israel and Lebanon’s ambassadors to the U.S. Friday to announce a framework agreement that was described as a first step toward peace following months of conflict between Israel and the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah. READ MORE . . .

First, a report from the Cradle; others are accessible by clicking on its name. (Scroll up or down for today’s LEBANON, IRAN and ALL OF IT so far, and down for GAZA 6-26-26.) — MCM

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Trump’s Board of Peace claims right to confiscate Palestinian land in Gaza, immunity from prosecution: report. From the Cradle. The Board of Peace for Gaza is planning to grant itself sweeping legal immunity for its actions in the devastated Palestinian enclave, The Guardian reported today. READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED

For now, links to SEVEN reports: from the Associated Press, the Cradle, Reuters, Middle East Monitor, and Middle East Eye.; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll up or down for today’s LEBANON, GAZA and ALL OF IT so far, and down for IRAN 6-26-26.) — MCM

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Via ScheerPost, links to the first two parts of a three-part series on the proposed merger of U.S and Israeli intelligence, military and biotechnology; other published material is accessible by clicking on its name. (Scroll up for today’s LEBANON, GAZA, and IRAN so far, and down for ALL OF IT 6-24-26.) — MCM

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FROM JUNE 22  Congress is preparing to surrender American sovereignty on the eve of America’s 250th anniversary, by Dennis Kucinich and Elizabeth Kucinich | ScheerPost  The United States Congress, on the very eve of the 250th anniversary of our Declaration of Independence from Great Britain, is preparing to formally diminish American independence and sovereignty through a proposed merger and long-term integration of executive functions throughout the government, coordinated by the Department of Defense. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JUNE 26  The NDAA proposed merger of the U.S. and Israeli military is strategically unwise and inherently unconstitutional, by Dennis Kucinich and Elizabeth Kucinich | ScheerPost  Prior to the American Revolution being fought on battlefields, it was fought as an argument about sovereignty. Who decides the fate of a nation? Who commands its armies? Who determines when its citizens go to war and when they remain at peace? READ MORE . . .

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Links to SEVEN reports: from the Cradle, Middle East Monitor, and Middle East Eye and to at least the opening paragraphs* of an essay from the Floutist; others are accessible by clicking on its name. (Scroll down for WEST BANK, LEBANON, SUDAN and UKRAINE, and for IRAN 6-25-26.) — MCM

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Iran condemns ‘hostile, interventionist’ U.S.-GCC statement. From the Cradle. Iran today condemned a joint statement issued by the U.S. and Gulf Cooperation Council regarding both parties’ stances toward the Islamic Republic, describing them as “interventionist, irresponsible, and provocative.” READ MORE . . .

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Pentagon seeks to ‘move’ Gulf bases away from Iran: report. From the Cradle.The U.S. is considering moving parts of its military presence in West Asia farther west, including to Israel, after retaliatory Iranian missile and drone strikes inflicted severe damage on U.S. bases in the region during the war, the Wall Street Journal reported today. READ MORE . . .

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IAEA chief says U.S.-Iran deals grants agency access to Iranian nuclear sites. From Middle East Monitor. The head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Friday said that the recent US-Iran agreement gives the UN nuclear watchdog responsibility for supervising Iran’s nuclear commitments, Anadolu reports. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JUNE 25  Oman rules out Hormuz transit fees as Tehran, Muscat advance joint oversight plan. From the Cradle. Omani Foreign Minister Badr Al-Busaidi announced on Thursday that no transit fees will be imposed for shipping through the Strait of Hormuz during a ministerial meeting between the Gulf Cooperation Council and the U.S. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JUNE 25  U.S., Gulf states call for re-opening Hormuz, reject ‘any tolls, fees, or attempts to assert control over waterway. From Middle East Monitor. The U.S and Gulf Cooperation Council countries called Thursday for reopening the Strait of Hormuz, stressing that free navigation through the strategic waterway remains “essential” to regional and global security. READ MORE . . .

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UN says 115 vessels, 2,500 seafarers evacuated from Strait of Hormuz since Tuesday. From Middle East Eye. Arsenio Dominguez, secretary-general of the International Maritime Organization, gave the update today after the IMO suspended efforts on Thursday to evacuate some 600 ships and 11,000 sailors, following an attack on a vessel in the Gulf of Oman. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JUNE 25  Netanyahu ‘convinces’ Trump to back Israeli occupation of south Lebanon: report.  From the Cradle. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly “convinced” U.S. President Donald Trump to support a continued Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon, Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Thursday. READ MORE . . .

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FROM JUNE 21  Iran and history’s ‘longue durée,‘ by Patrick Lawrence | The Floutist  What Trump has signed is a surrender to be celebrated. It is a 14–point text whose ruling principles are decency and law. In recognizing Iran’s sovereignty, its rights under international law, its claims to long-frozen assets, and the justice of a U.S.–funded reconstruction program of one or another kind, the memorandum serves the deserving nation and denies its aggressor’s objectives. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for parts of the extensive article, and others, in German at GlobalBridge.

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* Readers who are not already subscribers to thefloutist.substack.com are asked to sign up in one way or another — paid or not — to read the essay after the first eight paragraphs.

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A link to a report from Middle East Eye; others are accessible by clicking on its name. (Scroll up or down for IRAN, WEST BANK, LEBANON, UKRAINE and SUDAN, and down for WEST BANK 6-25-26.) — MCM

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Israel bans call to prayer at Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque for fifth day, by Lubna Masarwa | Middle East Eye  Israeli forces have banned the call to prayer at the Ibrahimi Mosque in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron for a fifth consecutive day, in the latest escalation against Palestinian presence at the site. READ MORE . . .

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Links to reports from Middle East Eye, Middle East Monitor, and the Cradle; others are accessible by clicking on their name. (Scroll up or down for IRAN, WEST BANK, SUDAN and UKRAINE, and down for LEBANON 6-26-26.) — MCM

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Israel will remain in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza ‘without time limit.’ From Middle East Eye. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz said Thursday that troops will maintain an indefinite presence in southern Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip. READ MORE . . .   Click HERE for a report from Middle East Monitor.

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FROM JUNE 25  Netanyahu ‘convinces’ Trump to back Israeli occupation of south Lebanon: report.  From the Cradle. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly “convinced” U.S. President Donald Trump to support a continued Israeli occupation of southern Lebanon, Yedioth Ahronoth reported on Thursday. READ MORE . . .

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A link to a report from the Associated Press; others are accessible by clicking on its name or initials. (Scroll up or down for IRAN, WEST BANK, LEBANON and UKRAINE, and down for SUDAN 8-25-26.) — MCM

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Links to FOUR reports: from the Associated Press, Reuters, and the Moscow Times; others or at least headlines are accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll up or down for IRAN, WEST BANK, LEBANON and SUDAN, and down for UKRAINE 6-25-26.) — MCM

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Ukraine unleashes one of its heaviest drone bombardments of Russia. From AP. Ukraine launched a major nighttime attack on a dozen Russian regions, Russian-held Crimea and the surrounding seas, Moscow’s Defense Ministry said today, in what appeared to be one of Kyiv’s biggest drone assaults since the Kremlin’s ’s full-scale invasion more than four years ago. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.  Click HERE for report from Reuters. 

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Crimea declares state of emergency after Ukraine strikes energy grid. From the Moscow Times. Kremlin-backed authorities in annexed Crimea declared a state of emergency today afternoon following days of intense Ukrainian attacks that have knocked out power in parts of the peninsula and compounded ongoing challenges for residents, including fuel shortages and restrictions on public transit. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for June 25 report from the Moscow Times.

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Links to reports from the Moscow Times and the Associated Press; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll down for WEST BANK,GAZA, LEBANON, GAZA, IRAN and SUDAN, and for UKRAINE 6-24-26.) — MCM

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Ukrainian attacks on Bryansk region and annexed Crimea kill at least 4. From the Moscow Times. At least four people were killed in Ukrainian drone attacks in western Russia and annexed Crimea, authorities said today, while multiple industrial sites were also targeted during the overnight air barrage. READ MORE . . .

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