International News Briefs for Tuesday, September 9, 2025
HAVANA TIMES – We bring you some of the top international news stories compiled by Democracy Now on Tuesday, September 9, 2025.
Israeli PM Warns Nearly 1 Million Palestinians in Gaza City to “Leave Now”
Sep 09, 2025
Image Credit: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Israel is escalating its attacks on Gaza City and has issued orders to forcibly displace the city’s entire population of nearly 1 million people. On Monday, Israeli planes dropped leaflets ordering Palestinians to head to al-Mawasi, a coastal strip of barren land Israel has designated as a so-called humanitarian zone despite frequent deadly attacks on the area. Israel’s latest forced evacuation order came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu boasted of blowing up high-rise buildings across Gaza City and warned of even more deadly attacks.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: “All this is only an introduction, opening act to the powerful main act, which is a ground maneuver of our forces, who are now assembling and organizing, into Gaza City. And this is why I say to the residents of Gaza, I take this opportunity — listen carefully: You have been warned. Leave now.”
Israel’s defense minister says his forces have leveled 30 major buildings across Gaza City, and threatened to bring more down. Among the high-rises bombed into rubble is the Al-Roya Tower, which housed the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights. This is a displaced Palestinian mother whose family was sheltering in a tent near a Gaza high-rise that was blown up Monday.
Janine Zoarob: “I am afraid for my children. I am afraid for myself, and I’m afraid for those around me. The Israelis have no mercy. Whatever they say, they carry out. It’s not that they are only trying to scare us or make us leave. They are actually killing us, burning us. Around four days ago, they burned children in a tent. And here we are, next to the towers. We live here, which means that shrapnel could have hit us.”
Gaza health officials say Israeli attacks since dawn have killed at least 35 Palestinians, including children and people seeking food. Meanwhile, health officials report six more Palestinians died of starvation over the past 24 hours due to Israel’s blockade.
Israeli Forces Kill Two 14-Year-Old Palestinians Amid Stepped-Up Raids Across West Bank
Sep 09, 2025
In the occupied West Bank, Israeli forces carried out violent raids Monday that killed two 14-year-old Palestinian boys. Both Islam Abdel Aziz Noah Majarmeh and Muhammad Sari Omar Maskala were killed by Israeli fire in the Jenin refugee camp. The stepped-up raids follow Monday’s shooting attack in occupied East Jerusalem that left six Israelis dead and 12 others wounded. In the wake of that attack, Israel’s far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich said the villages that the two Palestinian attackers came from should “become like Rafah and Beit Hanoun” — a reference to cities in Gaza reduced to rubble by Israel. On Monday, Israeli forces released footage of engineers preparing to destroy the homes of the alleged gunmen, part of a policy of collective punishment often deployed by Israel against the families of Palestinians accused of crimes.
Gaza Flotilla Activists Blame Israel for Apparent Drone Strike on Aid Vessel in Tunisian Port
Sep 09, 2025
Image Credit: Global Sumud Flotilla
In Tunisia, activists with the Global Sumud Flotilla say one of their main boats preparing to bring humanitarian aid to Gaza was attacked by a drone overnight Monday. Journalist Yusuf Omar was on the deck of the ship when the apparent bombing occurred.
Yusuf Omar: “Guys, I was sleeping right here on this mattress, and I hear this explosion and a big ball of flames, like burning the sides of your face. And then down here, you can see exactly what has happened. It landed here. The drone, it landed here, and it just — a big explosion happened right next to our diesel tanker.”
Tunisia’s National Guard disputed activists’ account of the explosion, saying the fire appeared to have started in a life jacket, caused by a cigarette butt or a lighter. That claim is directly contradicted by surveillance video showing a trail of fire falling onto the ship and exploding into flames. This is Yasemin Acar, a member of the Global Sumud Flotilla.
Yasemin Acar: “They have bombed a boat once again with civilians on it, in Tunisian territory. This is an attack against Gaza, because they don’t want us there. So, we need you to mobilize. Let’s not stay quiet.”
Activists Sabotage Equipment in German Weapons Factory That Supplies Arms to Israel
Sep 09, 2025
Image Credit: Instagram/@pal_action_de
In Germany, five members of the direct action group Palestine Action on Monday broke into a weapons factory operated by Elbit Systems, a major supplier to Israel’s military. Video released by Palestine Action shows an activist using a crowbar to pry open a door; the activists are then seen smashing equipment and spray-painting graffiti denouncing Israel’s assault on Gaza. Nobody was injured during the group’s acts of sabotage, and police ultimately arrested all five without resistance. Palestine Action later published a video by a member claiming responsibility.
Leandra: “My name is Leandra. And you are watching this video, because last night I took action against Elbit Systems in Ulm, Germany. … This criminal corporation makes millions of dollars year after year, especially since 2014, out of the extermination of the Indigenous people of Palestine and the occupation of their land. Most of the drones bombing the hell out of Gaza are being made by Elbit Systems. The surveillance systems of the walls that made Gaza an open-air prison and the humanitarian aid blockade possible are made by Elbit Systems.”
The action by Palestine Action Germany came after British police arrested nearly 900 people Saturday at a protest in London against the U.K. government’s ban on Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act. On Monday, the artist Banksy took credit for a mural that appeared on the Royal Courts of Justice depicting a British judge in a wig using a gavel to attack a man lying on the ground and holding a sign spattered in blood. Guards later covered the mural in black plastic; authorities say it will be removed.
Israel Attacks Lebanon and Syria; Yemen’s Houthis Strike Israeli Airport
Sep 09, 2025
Officials in Lebanon say at least five people were killed and five others wounded Monday as Israeli warplanes struck parts of the eastern Beqaa Valley. It’s Israel’s latest violation of a ceasefire deal signed last November.
Separately, Syrian media reports Israel’s Air Force bombed targets in Homs in central Syria, as well as the coastal city of Latakia and the historic city of Palmyra. Syria’s Foreign Ministry called Israel’s latest strikes “a blatant infringement” of Syrian sovereignty and a threat to regional stability.
Meanwhile, Yemen’s Houthis have claimed responsibility for a drone attack on an airport near the Israeli Red Sea city of Eilat. Two people were injured in the attack, which followed Israeli strikes in late August that killed the Houthi prime minister and other top officials in Sana’a.
Nepal’s Prime Minister Steps Down as 19 Are Killed in Crackdown on Anti-Corruption Protests
Sep 09, 2025
In Nepal, the Prime Minister K.P. Sharma Oli has resigned amid anti-corruption demonstrations that continue to roil the country. At least 19 people were killed and over 100 injured Monday as authorities cracked down on the protests, with police firing rubber-coated bullets and tear gas at protesters trying to storm the Parliament in Kathmandu. Organizers dubbed the protests “demonstrations by Gen Z,” as young people took to the streets to condemn government corruption — and a ban on social media platforms that has since been lifted.
Samundra Pokharel: “Every corruption in the country, from the local level to federal level, all the Nepalese citizens are fed up of corruption. Every youth are going outside the country. So we want to protect our youth and make the country’s economy better. For that, we need a new youth, new power and new politicians who are well educated to move the country forward.”
Trump Administration Asks Supreme Court to Allow It to Freeze $4 Billion in Foreign Aid
Sep 09, 2025
The Trump administration is asking the Supreme Court for an emergency order to allow it to freeze $4 billion in foreign aid that was already allocated by Congress. For the first time in nearly half a century, President Trump is relying on the Impoundment Control Act, which gives the president the authority to request the cancellation of funds approved by Congress. This follows a federal judge’s ruling last week that the administration is required to spend the funds. A study by The Lancet medical journal found that foreign aid programs funded by USAID over the past two decades have helped prevent more than 91 million deaths globally, including 30 million children.
SCOTUS Allows Federal Agents to Make Immigration Stops in Los Angeles
Sep 09, 2025
The Supreme Court has paused a federal judge’s ruling that barred federal agents from making immigration stops in the Los Angeles area and profiling people based on their appearance — or the languages they speak — while the Trump administration appeals the case. Attorney General Pam Bondi praised Monday’s 6-3 ruling by the court’s right-wing majority, writing on X, “Now, ICE can continue carrying out roving patrols in California without judicial micromanagement.” Justices did not state their reasons for overturning the lower court’s ruling. In a dissenting opinion, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote, “We should not have to live in a country where the government can seize anyone who looks Latino, speaks Spanish and appears to work a low wage job.” Los Angeles city officials and immigrants’ rights groups condemned the Supreme Court’s ruling. Armando Gudino is director of the Los Angeles Worker Center.
Armando Gudino: “By siding with the Trump administration, this court majority has revealed itself as highly prejudicial and has further empowered authoritarianism in this country. Immigration agents are now being given the power to profile, stop, detain and arrest people because of the color of their skin, the language they speak or the work that they do. In doing so, they have effectively legalized racial profiling and, by extension, racial discrimination.”
ICE Launches “Operation Midway Blitz” in Chicago to Ramp Up Mass Deportations
Sep 09, 2025
The Department of Homeland Security says it has begun “Operation Midway Blitz,” a stepped-up mass deportation campaign spearheaded by Immigration and Customs Enforcement. Monday’s announcement came just two days after President Trump declared, “Chicago about to find out why it’s called the Department of WAR,” in a social media post evoking the 1979 film “Apocalypse Now” about the Vietnam War. Trump also wrote, “I love the smell of deportations in the morning,” a reference to one of the most infamous lines in the film: “I love the smell of napalm in the morning.” We’ll have more on Trump’s threats against Chicago and Los Angeles later in the broadcast, as well as the references to “Apocalypse Now,” with Pulitzer Prize-winning author Viet Thanh Nguyen.
Prominent Sahrawi Activist Jamal Fadel Detained by ICE
Sep 09, 2025
A prominent nonviolent activist from Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara has been detained by federal immigration officers. Jamal Fadel was seized by masked ICE agents at Manhattan’s notorious federal building at 26 Federal Plaza on August 25 after a routine immigration hearing — an arrest that was caught on video.
ICE agent: “Stand back! Stand back! Move back!”
Jamal Fadel: “This is — this is the freedom! I’m coming to my process immigration.”
Bystander: “Sir, what country are you from?”
Jamal Fadel: “I’m from Western Sahara!”
Jamal Fadel is from the occupied city of Boujdour in Western Sahara. He’s been protesting nonviolently against Morocco’s occupation since he was a high school student, and was threatened by Moroccan authorities so many times that he left to seek political asylum in the United States. He’s currently being held by ICE at the Moshannon Valley Processing Center in Pennsylvania. His attorney expects ICE will move for an expedited removal hearing. If deported, Fadel faces lengthy imprisonment, torture — or worse.
Trump Downplays Domestic Violence During Remarks at the Museum of the Bible
Sep 09, 2025
In a speech at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C., on Monday, President Trump downplayed the seriousness of domestic violence, while claiming that crime is down after he deployed National Guard troops to the district.
President Donald Trump: “And much lesser things, things that take place in the home, they call crime. You know, they’ll do anything they can to find something. If a man has a little fight with the wife, they say, ‘This was a crime. See?’ So, now I can’t claim 100%. But we are — we are a safe city.”
House Oversight Committee Releases Trump’s Sexually Suggestive Birthday Note to Epstein
Sep 09, 2025
Trump’s downplaying of domestic violence at the Museum of the Bible came as the House Oversight Committee released a birthday note with a sexually suggestive drawing signed allegedly by Trump to sex offender Jeffrey Epstein back in 2003. The committee had subpoenaed Epstein’s estate for the birthday book and other files. Despite the note containing his signature, the White House denied the letter was from Trump, saying he “did not draw this picture, and he did not sign it.”
A second page of the birthday book featured an image of Epstein holding a large check. Democratic lawmakers said the photo showed Epstein and a longtime Mar-a-Lago member joking about selling a “fully depreciated” woman to Donald Trump for $22,500.
This follows a request by the Justice Department to a federal judge to reject NBC News’s request to unseal the names of two Epstein associates who both received wire payments of $100,000 and $250,000 from Epstein back in 2018. As part of his nonprosecution plea deal with federal prosecutors in Florida, Epstein helped ensure that his associates would not be prosecuted.
Meanwhile, a New York Times investigation has found that JPMorgan spent years bankrolling Epstein and ignored red flags and suspicious activity. We’ll have more on this story later in the broadcast.
Federal Appeals Court Rejects Trump’s Attempt to Overturn $83.3 Million E. Jean Carroll Verdict
Sep 09, 2025
A federal appeals court has rejected President Trump’s attempt to overturn his $83.3 million verdict for defaming the writer E. Jean Carroll. In their unanimous opinion, the judges wrote, “The jury’s duly rendered damages awards were reasonable in light of the extraordinary and egregious facts of this case.” This comes as President Trump and his lawyers said that they intend to ask the Supreme Court to review the jury’s $5 million verdict that he sexually abused E. Jean Carroll.