TODAY

The U.S. needs to change the way it tracks and defends against future missile threats, the deputy commander of U.S. Space Command (SPACECOM) said on Tuesday. The need to do so comes as changes in missile technology are moving faster than the current defeat system can keep up with.

“Historically, if you start from the high end here, missile defense and missile warning were operating on separate and distinct stovepipe networks,” Lt. Gen. Rick Zellman said during a panel at the Space and Missile Defense Symposium (SMD) in Huntsville, Alabama, attended by TWZ. “Missile warning, of course, was going to detect a launch and let people know something’s coming inbound and see a duck and cover and whatnot, and missile defenders were looking to get a little bit more fidelity in their track and be able to shoot down an incoming missile,” he continued. “But today we don’t really have any ballistic missiles. Everything is maneuvering. Everything is complex, and so we can’t provide warning without providing a lot more observations on these missiles.”

As a result of the evolution in missile technology, “the lexicon that we’re starting to see is missile tracking, right?” the general proffered. “And so missile warning and missile defense are really coming together in that realm. Missile warning was a space legacy mission area, and of course missile defense is missile defense. And you can see how these things are coming together. So really, the distinction between missile warning is almost obsolete at this point.”

The U.S. military has space-based early warning sensors that are integrated into its existing sensing, and has been for decades. But these warn of launches, they generally don’t track a weapon throughout its flight cycle. For some years now, work has been underway to substantially expand on space-based missile defense capabilities, to include the start of the fielding of new satellite constellations to help track ballistic missiles, as well as hypersonic boost-glide vehicles and other threats, during the mid-course portion of their flights. This is on top of a major push to move other kinds of terrestrial sensing to orbital layers, some of which could potentially have a secondary missile defense role.

To achieve the objective of fusing missile warning and tracking functions together, “we have to leverage a couple of really good partners,” Zellman stated, pointing to two in particular. One is the Space Development Agency (SDA), tasked with quickly delivering needed space-based capabilities to the U.S. military. The other is the Missile Defense Agency (MDA), charged with developing, deploying, and sustaining layered and integrated missile defense capabilities.

The SDA, noted the general, “is developing a number of missile-tracking satellites as part of their tranches that they’re launching.” The MDA, meanwhile, has “a long history of integrating battle management,” Zellman discussed.

“So those two together are really helping Space Command take separate disparate stovepipe information and bring it together,” he stated.

“It also has to talk about decision speed, and this really is going to require us to look at more than man-in-the-loop [MITL], and maybe a man on the loop [MOTL] situation,” he noted. MITL is when a human is fully engaged in assessing and controlling the operation compared to MOTL, which usually relies on more heavily automated systems where the human approves critical decisions, usually based on distilled data presented by the system. AI is becoming a large part of making that possible in an increasingly successful way.

The reason to make this change, Zellman explained, is that “we have to make these decisions faster, and that data flow has to be able to enable our layered defenses – whether that’s coming from a THAAD [Terminal High Altitude Area Defense], or a Patriot, or directed energy, or SM-3, or space-based interceptors in the future – all that is going to be dependent on our decision speed.”

“At the heart of all this for the United States Space Command is one of our unified command plan responsibilities, and that is as a global sensor manager,” the general said. 

“We don’t use sensors dedicated to a single mission,” he explained. “They may have originally been conceived to do space domain awareness or missile warning, or in some cases, missile defense, but we try to take the goodness of all those sensors and use them for all three of those mission areas.”

Under SPACECOM, “we take those sensors and we dynamically task them and prioritize accordingly, so we can support multiple commands around the globe. And that really, once again, gets to the theme about defending at home and abroad is being able to support these multiple commands simultaneously.”

The command’s “modern systems, whether it’s a long-range discrimination radar or some of our systems that have been around a little bit longer – like an upgraded early warning radar – they’re all inherently multi-mission,” Zellman put forth. “A single radar can see an object in space and give me space domain awareness information, and a little bit later it can see a missile launch and provide warning, and then hopefully down the road a bit more… provide essentially a track so that we can shoot an interceptor at it and kill it.”

“All these three things can be done in the same duty cycle with that same system, and so we have to be able to dynamically task these systems to ensure that whichever is the priority mission at that time is the one that is being serviced,” the general cautioned. “Historically, space domain awareness information went to space operators, and I would argue missile warning information probably went to both space operators and the missile defense community. But today, that information has to all be put in one data location, and we pull the information we need for the mission we have at hand.”

Long Range Discrimination Radar Capabilities

“We recognize that what we do in space at Space Command is really fundamental to what the missile defense community has to do for missile defense,” Zellman vocalized. “So that really talks about the high end. Let’s talk about the low end.”

Lt. Gen. John Rafferty, commander of the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command, Joint Functional Component Command for Integrated Missile Defense, and Joint Task Force-Gold “mentioned some of this today,” Zellman noted, referring to an earlier SMD panel. “We see, I think, the low end on Epic Fury. Sure, the missiles are more high end, but we’ve seen our adversary employ a number of one-way attack systems that are coupled with these ballistic missile volleys, and we are really at this point in the history of warfare because of the democratization of space.”

“Space isn’t a sanctuary,” the general shared. “It’s no longer just the playground of nations with a lot of money. The commercialization of space has created what many call essentially a transparent battlefield. And because I can see everything all the time with commercial ISR, it’s given our adversaries capabilities that they haven’t had in the past.” 

“That ISR [intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance], if you couple it with a platform that has access to GPS or some other PNT [position, navigation and timing] system, and then you add in another layer of over-the-horizon comms, like say from an Iridium or a Starlink, and you have a pretty lethal asymmetric weapon system that our adversaries can get a hold of.”

Regardless of how much integration and automation occurs, it’s still a people business in Zellman’s eyes.

“So whether it’s a combination volley of attack drones or hypersonic glide vehicles, the mission at SPACECOM remains the same, and that’s to synchronize global missile defense and space domain awareness using a common set of information,” Zellman said. “But that synchronization doesn’t just happen in a vacuum; it happens with the joint warfighters that are standing on watch.”

Contact the author: howard@twz.com

In one of the more unusual examples yet of where Ukraine is sourcing military hardware, a Danish military museum has begun transferring vehicles from its own collection for use in the war against Russia. Panzermuseum East, a privately run museum in Denmark specializing in Soviet and Warsaw Pact armor, announced that it has delivered its first batch of armored vehicles to Ukraine.

“We have now completed the first shipment of vehicles to Ukraine. The first one to be picked up was our fine BMP-1, and the second was the MT-LB SNAR-10. We hope they’ll last a long time and make a difference,” the museum said on social media today.

The museum describes itself as Scandinavia’s largest collection of vehicles, uniforms, and equipment from the former Eastern Bloc.

The donation includes a BMP-1 infantry fighting vehicle and an MT-LB amphibious tracked armoured fighting vehicle fitted with the SNAR-10 battlefield surveillance radar. This is an uncommon artillery reconnaissance variant that was designed to detect troop movements, vehicles, and artillery fire while directing friendly fires.

While governments across Europe have emptied Cold War stockpiles to support Kyiv, it is considerably rarer to see museum exhibits making the journey to the front. The transfer underscores the increasingly varied mix of equipment finding its way into Ukrainian service after more than four years of high-intensity warfare.

Entering service in the late 1960s, the BMP-1 is among the most iconic Soviet armored fighting vehicles ever built. Although obsolete by modern standards, Ukraine already operates the type in significant numbers, meaning integrating another example should be straightforward, assuming it remains mechanically sound.

The BMP-1 was a revolutionary design when it appeared, becoming the world’s first true infantry fighting vehicle by combining mobility, armor, and the ability for infantry to fight from within the vehicle. Armed with a 73mm low-pressure gun, a coaxial machine gun, and a 9M14 Malyutka (AT-3 Sagger) anti-tank missile launcher, it was designed to accompany tanks across the battlefield while carrying an eight-man infantry squad. More than 20,000 were built, and the vehicle was exported widely across the Warsaw Pact and beyond, spawning numerous variants and licensed copies.

Today, its armor and armament are outdated, but it continues to be prized on account of its amphibious capability, ease of maintenance, and the availability of extensive stocks of spare parts and upgrade packages.

Despite being more than half a century old, the BMP-1 continues to demonstrate its utility on modern battlefields. Reflecting sustained demand for the Soviet-designed infantry fighting vehicle, Slovakia’s STV Machinery secured a contract to serially produce newly manufactured BMP-1 hulls for an unnamed foreign customer. The company says the hulls will incorporate modern armor materials and updated production techniques, with manufacturing capacity expected to reach up to 100 vehicles annually, underscoring the enduring value of the platform.

Previously, there have been known BMP-1 transfers to Ukraine from Greek stocks (40 BMP-1A1s, delivered from October 2022 onwards), and from Slovak stocks (30 BVP-1s, from November 2022). Another 56 upgraded ex-East German BMP-1s were provided by the Czech Republic.

The more intriguing donation is the MT-LB SNAR-10. Based on the ubiquitous MT-LB multipurpose tracked vehicle, the SNAR-10 carries a ground surveillance radar intended primarily for artillery spotting and battlefield reconnaissance. The system can detect moving vehicles, troop concentrations, explosions, and shell impacts, helping artillery units adjust fire and build battlefield awareness.

Exactly what condition either vehicle is in is unclear. Museum vehicles are often maintained in running condition, particularly at private collections that conduct demonstrations, but they also lack military equipment, sensitive electronics, or functional weapons. The museum has not disclosed whether the vehicles required refurbishment or modification before transfer.

The donation nevertheless reflects a broader trend that has become increasingly apparent throughout the conflict. Ukraine has sourced equipment from virtually anywhere it can be found. Beyond government transfers, Kyiv has received privately donated vehicles, civilian pickups converted into military transports, restored Soviet-era equipment, commercially purchased armored vehicles, and even aircraft and helicopters acquired through unconventional channels.

As traditional Cold War reserves continue to shrink across Europe, previously overlooked sources of compatible Soviet-designed equipment have become increasingly valuable. Private collections, museums, training establishments, and industrial storage yards have all become potential sources of hardware that can be returned to operational service.

The SNAR-10 is especially noteworthy because it represents a relatively niche capability rather than simply another armored hull. Battlefield surveillance radars remain useful assets for locating enemy activity, adjusting indirect fire, and supporting reconnaissance, even if newer drone-based systems increasingly perform many of the same functions. Even if the SNAR-10 is delivered without an operational radar, it would still be useful for its MT-LB chassis.

More broadly, whether these two vehicles ultimately see frontline service, are used for training, or serve as sources of spare parts remains unknown.

However, the museum’s wording (“first shipment”) strongly suggests more donations for Ukraine may already be planned.

Beyond the BMP-1 and SNAR-10 that have now gone to Ukraine, the Panzermuseum East collection remains packed with Warsaw Pact hardware, including T-72 and T-55 main battle tanks, a PT-76 amphibious light tank, a 2S1 Gvozdika self-propelled howitzer, BRDM reconnaissance and anti-tank vehicles, BTR-60 command vehicles, and more. The museum also displays dozens of Cold War military trucks, field support vehicles, artillery pieces, and other specialist equipment.

Examples of foreign museums releasing collection vehicles for Ukrainian military use remain uncommon but not unheard of. Ukrainian museums have also returned equipment to military units, based on available reports, as well.

Britain’s Tank Museum did not donate vehicles, but it helped Ukraine by giving Cook Defense Systems — which also produces tracks for the British-made Challenger 2 main battle tank — access to its Soviet vehicle collection, manuals, and physical components to reverse-engineer tracks and sprockets for T-72s, BMPs, and MT-LBs. You can read more about that here.

The departure of these armored vehicles from a Danish museum floor for an active war zone is another reminder of the extraordinary lengths Ukraine and its supporters continue to go to sustain the country’s war effort, and of how almost any usable piece of Soviet-designed equipment can still find new life on today’s battlefield.

Contact the author: thomas@thewarzone.com

La Liga officials are set to carry out a pitch inspection at Celta Vigo’s Estadio de Balaidos following a suspected fungus outbreak.

Celta are due to host Osasuna on Sunday night in their opening match of the 2026-27 season, kicking off at 20:30 BST.

Following reports in Spain of the outbreak, sources close to La Liga have told BBC Sport that the league are due to visit the 24,870-capacity stadium in Vigo in the next 24 hours to assess if the match can be played as scheduled.

The pitch is said to have been hit by a fungus infection that has damaged the playing surface, with Celta Vigo believed to have requested that the match is postponed.

Meanwhile, opponents Osasuna are said to be open to playing the fixture as scheduled.

Spain’s national team played a friendly against Iraq at the Esadio de Balaidos in June ahead of their successful 2026 World Cup-winning campaign over the summer.

The stadium has been undergoing renovation works for more than a decade, with it planned to be among the 11 Spanish stadia used to co-host the 2030 World Cup alongside Portugal and Morocco.

Once renovation works are completed, the arena is set to increase its capacity to between 40,000 and 44,000.

Celta originally had the option to postpone the match due to striker Borja Iglesias reaching the World Cup final with Spain, but opted not too.

Three La Liga matches that were due to be played on the opening weekend, Valencia v Real Betis, Real Madrid v Real Sociedad and Barcelona v Athletic Club, have all been rescheduled for later in the month due to clubs having players involved in the World Cup final.

Three-quarters of the world has abolished the death penalty in law or in practice, according to Amnesty International.

Lebanon has become the first country in the Middle East to abolish the death penalty.

On Tuesday, a majority of the 128-member parliament voted in favour of scrapping capital punishment. Death sentences will be replaced with life imprisonment with aggravated hard labour.

Lebanon has observed an unofficial moratorium on executions since January 2004, but its courts have continued to issue dozens of death sentences.

At the end of 2025, 85 people were facing death sentences, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Justice’s Directorate of Prisons.

Which countries still have the death penalty?

According to the latest Amnesty International report on death sentences and executions, as of December, close to three-quarters of the world’s countries had abolished the death penalty in law or practice, meaning they have not carried out executions for the past 10 years.

Some countries have abolished the death penalty for “ordinary crimes” only, which refers to exceptional crimes such as those committed under military law or those committed in exceptional circumstances

Overall, this includes:

• Abolition for all crimes: 113 countries
• Abolition for ordinary crimes only: nine countries
• Abolition in practice: 23 countries
• Retention: 54 countries

The map below highlights where each country stands on capital punishment:

Amnesty International’s monitoring of worldwide use of the death penalty recorded 2,707 executions in 2025, up 78 percent from 1,518 in 2024. Amnesty attributed that spike primarily to executions in Iran, which more than doubled from 972 in 2024 to at least 2,159 in 2025.

Amnesty’s figures exclude what it says are thousands of executions that have been carried out in China. Executions were carried out in 17 countries, consistent with the historical lows seen since 2018.

Iran is set to join the New Development Bank (NDB), the development lender established by the BRICS group, Iranian central bank governor Abdolnaser Hemmati said on Wednesday, as Tehran seeks to deepen financial ties with emerging economies amid sweeping international sanctions.

Hemmati made the remarks ahead of a BRICS finance ministers and central bank governors meeting hosted by India, which holds the group’s rotating chairmanship this year.

Iran joined BRICS in 2024 as part of the bloc’s expansion and has since expressed interest in becoming a member and shareholder of the NDB. The bank was established in 2015 by Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa to finance infrastructure and sustainable development projects.

“The most important result of cooperation among BRICS member countries is the establishment of the New Development Bank, and our country will soon become a member of this bank,” Hemmati said, according to Iranian state media.

Iran Seeks Alternative Financial Channels

Membership of the NDB would give Iran another avenue for economic cooperation outside traditional Western dominated financial institutions, although the extent of any benefit would depend on the bank’s ability to operate with a heavily sanctioned Iranian economy.

Iran remains under extensive U.S. and international sanctions and has yet to reach a peace agreement to end its current conflict with the United States and Israel. These pressures have increased Tehran’s incentive to strengthen economic relationships with non-Western powers and reduce its exposure to dollar based financial systems.

The NDB has expanded beyond its original five members to include countries such as the United Arab Emirates and Egypt, increasing its role as a financial institution connecting emerging economies.

BRICS Pushes for Local Currency Trade

Hemmati also said Iran supported greater use of national currencies in trade among BRICS members.

BRICS countries have increasingly promoted mechanisms intended to reduce dependence on the U.S. dollar, including greater use of national currencies for bilateral trade and financial transactions.

Iran is also seeking bilateral and trilateral monetary cooperation with other BRICS members, Hemmati said.

A Strategic Financial Move for Tehran

Iran’s expected entry into the NDB is significant not simply as a development financing decision but as part of Tehran’s broader effort to build an alternative economic network amid Western sanctions.

For Iran, deeper integration with BRICS could provide additional channels for investment, infrastructure cooperation and financial transactions while strengthening economic ties with major emerging powers such as China, India and Russia. However, membership alone will not remove the restrictions created by U.S. sanctions or guarantee access to international capital.

The move also reflects the broader evolution of BRICS from an economic grouping into a platform through which its members can challenge aspects of the Western dominated financial order. Iran’s participation strengthens that trend, particularly as the group promotes greater use of local currencies and seeks to diversify international financial relationships.

For Tehran, therefore, joining the NDB would represent both an economic opportunity and a geopolitical signal: Iran is seeking to reduce its vulnerability to Western financial pressure by embedding itself more deeply within emerging non-Western economic institutions.

With information from Reuters.

UK Energy Minister Michael Shanks told BBC Radio Scotland Breakfast the UK’s power infrastructure had undergone decades of “woeful underinvestment”.

He said he understood the objections of those living nearby, but added the pylons were “crucial” to ensure the National Grid maintained future resilience.

“I totally accept that people might not like that, but it is critical national infrastructure and it has to be built somewhere,” he said.

“Building any kind of infrastructure in these communities does cause disruption. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t build any kind of infrastructure and I’m afraid in this country, for too long, we have taken that view, and the result is that we have been held back by not having the infrastructure the country needs.”

Shanks added: “Either we go through decades of not upgrading the grid and take the risk that the grid will actually fail, but we also lose the opportunity of cheaper bills, homegrown power connecting.

“We’re not prepared to take that risk.”

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero says Britain’s electricity grid was largely designed for an era when power came from coal and gas-fired power stations, and now needs major upgrades to cope with growing amounts of renewable energy.

Ministers say the lack of capacity means some wind farms are sometimes paid to switch off because there is not enough network infrastructure available to carry the electricity to homes and businesses that need it.

Greg Jackson, chief executive of the UK’s biggest domestic energy supplier, Octopus Energy, said the electricity system is inefficient, brittle and expensive.

He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme the discount scheme was a “positive first step”, adding that last year the UK spent more than £1bn paying wind farms to turn off on windy days.

“We should just be giving that electricity more cheaply to the people and businesses who live in the areas where we’re generating it,” he said.

“By doing that, you’d be able to stop wasting that money and instead put the electricity to use cutting bills for those people. But crucially cutting bills for everybody else as well because it’s less wasteful.”

Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz fell to its lowest level in a week on Tuesday as vessel operators continued to avoid the strategically vital waterway amid ongoing hostilities in the Middle East.

Kpler data showed that only eight vessels were tracked in the strait on Tuesday, below the 10-day average of around 12 and the lowest daily total since August 5. Of those vessels, only one, a coal carrier, had exited the strait, while the remaining ships were still making their way through.Seven vessels entered the waterway, all using the Iranian route, highlighting the limited movement through the strait as uncertainty over its security continues to weigh on shipping activity.

Separate data from LSEG recorded 11 vessel transits on Tuesday, down from 14 the previous day, also pointing to a slowdown in traffic through the crucial maritime passage.

The decline comes as the United States and Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis reported separate attacks, while prospects for an end to the Iran war appeared to weaken. Tehran has said the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed unless Washington accepts its conditions.

Hormuz Traffic Plummets

The scale of the disruption is stark compared with normal shipping activity. Around 130 to 140 vessels typically passed through the Strait of Hormuz before Iran closed the waterway following the start of U.S.-Israeli attacks on February 28.

The sharp reduction in traffic underscores the growing risks facing international shipping and energy markets as vessels avoid one of the world’s most important maritime chokepoints.

The strait is particularly important for global energy supplies, meaning prolonged restrictions could increase pressure on oil markets and raise transportation and insurance costs for vessels operating in the region.

Red Sea Traffic Holds Up

Shipping activity through the Bab al-Mandab Strait at the southern end of the Red Sea showed a different trend.

Kpler data recorded 30 vessels crossing the waterway on Tuesday, above its 10-day average of 25.

The contrasting figures suggest that while some shipping activity continues through alternative routes, the Strait of Hormuz remains heavily affected by the ongoing hostilities and uncertainty surrounding its reopening.

With information from Reuters.

New Delhi, India – The vapour heat treatment (VHT) facility in Rehmanpur village of Lucknow, the capital of the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh – used to sterilise fruit and vegetables – was preparing for the busiest time of the year when Japanese quarantine inspectors turned up in March.

Export documents had been cleared, shipping schedules finalised, and growers in the western states of Maharashtra and Gujarat reserved their best Alphonso and Kesar mangoes for export to Japan, one of Asia’s premium markets.

Everything appeared set for the season to begin when production ground to a halt. Japanese inspectors reviewing the fumigation, disinfection and certification procedures raised concerns about the whole process, prompting Japan to suspend imports of the fruits.

However, on March 31, the plant protection authorities in Yokohama sent a formal letter, saying all Indian mango shipments bearing inspection certificates issued on or after March 25 would be barred until inspectors could confirm that operational standards had improved.

It was the first major disruption in India-Japan mango trade in nearly two decades. In 1986, imports of the fruit were barred over fruit fly concerns. Restrictions were lifted in 2006 after the country built VHT infrastructure, strengthened pest surveillance and agreed to annual inspections.

Japan ‘gave us credibility’

The 2026 halt now affects six approved varieties of mango – Alphonso, Kesar, Langra, Banganapalli, Chausa and Mallika – covering the peak export window of April through to June.

Japan imported roughly $1.54m worth of fresh and processed mango products from India between 2025 and 2026. It might appear to be a modest sum, but the Japanese market holds huge significance for the rest of the global trade. Japan pays premium prices for mangoes and the country’s approval signals quality to the rest of the world.

The suspension came at an already challenging time for mango farmers in India. Sustained heatwaves through the Konkan belt had destroyed much of Maharashtra’s Alphonso crop. Geopolitical disruptions in West Asia had pushed freight costs higher, and exporters who had spent years establishing relations with the Japanese suddenly faced cancelled contracts and inventories rotting in storage.

Vikram Shah, a Mumbai-based exporter who shipped about 2.5 tonnes of mangoes to Japan in 2025, highlighted the importance of its market.

“Japan was never our biggest market in terms of quantity, but it was the one that gave us credibility,” Shah told Al Jazeera. “We spent six years building trust with buyers there. I travelled to Osaka twice, sat with importers, visited their cold storage facilities and learned exactly what they expected from us. Relationships like that take years to build and can disappear in a single season.”

Rajesh Patil, an Alphonso grower in Ratnagiri, Maharashtra, said his family had cultivated mangoes on a three-acre (1.2-hectare) orchard along the Konkan coast for two generations. The Japanese market, he said, consistently delivered far higher returns than domestic auctions, leading him to invest heavily in meeting Japan’s stringent import standards.

“We upgraded the orchard because Japan rewarded quality,” Patil said. “I spent nearly ₹80,000 [$840] on grading and handling equipment, attended pest-management training sessions, and changed the way we harvest and pack fruit,” he told Al Jazeera.

“The Japanese market paid almost twice what I could earn locally. When you make those investments, you expect the system supporting exports to be as reliable as the fruit you grow.”

China objects to rice

On April 17, China revoked the import licences of three Indian rice exporters after the General Administration of Customs rejected their consignments, claiming traces of genetically modified organisms (GMO).

The exporters disputed the finding, pointing out that their shipments received GMO-free certification before their departure and that the Indian government also said all domestic paddy and rice fields are free of genetic modification.

Rice makes up more than 20 percent of India’s agricultural exports, with a record-breaking $12.5bn of it shipped in the last financial year (2025-26). The three suspended exporters now face an uncertain path back into China, rattling their community.

Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority (APEDA), under India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry, notified the companies and, on June 8, published a list of laboratories approved for GMO tests on China-bound shipments.

SK Singh, an agricultural scientist in New Delhi, told Al Jazeera the dispute exposed weaknesses in India’s testing system.

“Our labs built expertise in pesticide residue and aflatoxin testing because that’s what most markets wanted,” he said. “China’s demand for GMO verification calls for a different scale of capacity.”

The exporters’ certificates came from accredited labs even if the certification network remains uneven, he added.

Only a handful of facilities, concentrated in New Delhi and Hyderabad in the southeastern state of Telangana, run the required protein analysis, forcing exporters in northern Punjab and Haryana states to ship samples hundreds of kilometres away.

Fragmented supply chain

There were other warning signs before the crisis hit mangoes and rice.

Hong Kong suspended several Indian spice products over pesticide residues, and testing found quality deviations in nearly 12 percent of the samples. The European Union also raised the inspection frequency on Indian cumin to 30 percent in January 2025, following 312 spice alerts on its rapid alert system in 2024.

Ananya Bose, a food safety scientist in Kochi in the southern state of Kerala, traced the problem to a fragmented supply chain.

“A farmer sells to an aggregator, who sells to a trader, who supplies a processor. Somewhere in that chain, the record of what was sprayed disappears,” she said. “The trail is detailed until the first sale, then it effectively ends.”

Bose has pushed for mandatory digital pesticide records, since regulators abroad expect traceability from field to shipment, a standard many states still treat as optional.

These setbacks may read as isolated incidents, but they expose a gap between India’s agricultural strength and the traceability, food safety and certification standards that Japan, the EU, the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada now demand. Those standards are tightened by consumer pressure for transparency, climate-driven pest concerns, food-security strategy and the COVID pandemic.

At the same time, competitors have moved faster, with Thailand building a nationwide traceability programme, Vietnam investing in farmers’ training, and Brazil and Chile pouring money into cold-chain systems.

India’s progress has lagged with just 207 registered pack houses, 72 percent of them concentrated in Maharashtra. Moreover, scarce cold storage facilities and logistical costs eat up roughly 15 percent of export value, almost double that of advanced nations. Small farmers owning less than 2 hectares (5 acres) of land make up more than 86 percent of India’s cultivators, making standardisation difficult at scale.

“India built its strategy around producing more, while premium markets reward proving quality along the way,” agricultural economist Anil Gupta told Al Jazeera.

Gupta pointed to some real gains: recognised laboratories grew from 22 to 89 over the past decade, and approved export certificates climbed from roughly 61,000 to more than 170,000.

“The progress is measurable, but so is the scale of the challenge,” he said. “These improvements mark a beginning, well short of the finish line.”

Ujjwal Kumar Ghosh, a senior official in the government’s Department of Commerce, has called for tighter controls on antibiotic residues, pesticides and aflatoxins in spices, tea, fruits and vegetables. He said funds have been set aside to upgrade laboratories, though without a timeline.

“The government is strengthening the system from testing to inspection and traceability. We are tightening controls on antibiotic and pesticide residues and aflatoxins, expanding laboratory capacity, introducing risk-based inspections and using digital systems and rapid screening to identify problems faster. The objective is to help exporters meet stricter global food-safety standards while protecting India’s access to international markets,” said Ghosh.

India still holds just 2.4 percent of global agri-exports despite ranking as the world’s second-largest agricultural producer, with processed exports stuck near 17 percent, against 25 percent in the US and 50 percent in China.

And growers are facing the fallout.

Gujarat’s Kesar mango farmers lost their strongest Japanese buyer. A basmati rice farmer in Haryana’s Karnal said local prices had already dropped 8 percent. And a turmeric processor in Kerala’s Erode said residue testing cost him 15,000 rupees ($157) last quarter, almost 10 percent of his profit.

Agriculture still employs about 42 percent of India’s workforce while producing less than a fifth of the national output.

“This is about far more than a few rejected shipments,” Gupta said. “The countries that succeed will consistently meet the standards global buyers demand.”

Indian farmers have long proven they can grow for the world. The task now is building systems that convince the world to keep buying.

Mérida, August 11, 2026 (venezuelanalysis.com) – Venezuela concluded a successful performance at the XXV Central American and Caribbean Games in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

The Caribbean nation’s delegation finished fourth in the overall medal table, securing 216 medals: 49 gold, 70 silver, and 97 bronze, finishing just two gold medals behind third-place Cuba. Mexico topped the standings with 407 medals, followed by Colombia with 266 medals. The competition lasted from July 24 to August 8 and featured athletes from 37 countries.

The Venezuelan athletes, with a mix of veterans and up-and-coming talents, enjoyed success across multiple disciplines. Olympic medallists Julio Mayora and Keydomar Vallenilla dominated their respective 73kg and 96kg weightlifting divisions, while 19-year-old phenom Mauricio Loaiza earned a breakthrough gold medal in the 110kg division. Venezuela racked up 11 weightlifting gold medals.

In aquatic events, open-water swimmer Paola Pérez successfully defended her regional title by taking gold in the 10-kilometer individual race, while swimmers María Yegres and Manuel Díaz won the 400-meter freestyle and 100-meter butterfly, respectively.

Combat sports also delivered critical victories. Venezuelan judokas Anriquelis Barrios and Karen León delivered dominant performances to secure two of the team’s three judo golds.

In women’s boxing, Omailyn Alcalá, Krisandy Ríos, and Maryelis Iriza achieved a historic three-gold sweep. Venezuelan fencers likewise maintained their regional dominance, winning their fifth consecutive title in men’s sabre and second in women’s epee, bolstered by gold in women’s foil by Anabella Acurero.

Rodolfo Monacelli secured first place in bowling, and chess grandmasters Vicmary Pérez and Félix Ynojosa captured top honors in their respective individual events. 19-year-old pole vaulter Ricardo Montes de Oca continued his promising career by soaring to victory in track and field.

Venezuela also achieved a gold medal in modern pentathlon, and surfer Rafael “Nono” Pereira edged out fellow countryman José Joaquín López in an all-Venezuelan shortboard surfing final at Encuentro Beach.

A major highlight of the South American nation’s performance came on the pitch, where Venezuela’s under-20 soccer team captured the gold medal by defeating a heavily favored Mexican squad in the final. The victory marked Venezuela’s third ever gold medal in men’s soccer at the Central American and Caribbean Games.

Venezuelan Acting President Delcy Rodríguez issued an official statement praising the national team’s performance at the games.

“The medals won reflect the strength, discipline, passion, and love for this land. My recognition goes to every athlete and coach who gave their all; they fought and dreamed to bring great joy to our people,” she said. 

Following the strong performance, the country’s best in eight years, Venezuela is set to host the XXVI Central American and Caribbean Games in 2030. Sports Minister Franklin Cardillo announced that Venezuela’s candidacy was officially ratified during the closing ceremony in Santo Domingo.

Cardillo affirmed that Venezuelan authorities and regional athletic federations are already coordinating logistics to prepare world-class facilities and host a successful edition of the Games in 2030. Venezuelan athletes will next represent the national tricolor flag at the upcoming South American Games in Argentina starting on September 12.

Edited by Ricardo Vaz in Caracas.

The deaths on board the Egyptian-owned Tihamah mark first shipping deaths linked to Houthis since the US-Israel war on Iran began.

Yemen’s internationally recognised government has accused the Houthi rebel group of killing at least six people and wounding 10 others in a double-tap strike on a cargo vessel in the Bab al-Mandeb strait.

The attack on the Egyptian-owned Tihamah on Tuesday marks the first shipping deaths linked to the Iran-aligned Houthis since the United States and Israel launched the war on Iran on February 28.

Yemen’s Transport Ministry said three Pakistani nationals and one Indonesian national were killed after the Houthis fired three ballistic missiles at the commercial ship, sparking a fire and causing “significant damage” to the vessel.

Yemen’s coastguard said in a separate statement that the Houthis fired another missile at the ship as rescue personnel were evacuating the dead and wounded.

“The attack struck the site of the rescue operation and resulted in deaths and injuries among the forces participating in the response operation,” the coastguard said.

At least two troops were killed in the second strike.

Ten people were wounded in total, including seven crew members, it added.

Houthi-Saudi truce unravels

Yemen’s Foreign Ministry condemned the attack and called on the international community “to move from condemnation to effective and decisive action” against the Houthis.

There was no official comment from the Houthis.

But the Houthi-run news agency Saba reported that the ‌group had attacked a Saudi ship carrying military equipment in Bab al-Mandeb. It did not name the ship, and there was no immediate Saudi response to the report.

In a separate incident on Tuesday, the US military said it fired on a ship attempting to break its blockade of Iranian ports in the Gulf of Oman. The US Central Command said a Navy helicopter fired two Hellfire missiles at the Panama-flagged Vela Nova cargo vessel, but did not say if any crew members were wounded.

The escalation in Yemen follows the collapse of a years-long truce in the country’s civil war between the Houthis and the Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government.

The breakdown of the United Nations-backed 2022 truce followed a Saudi air strike on the runway of Sanaa airport on July 13, preventing the landing of an Iranian flight carrying a high-ranking Houthi delegation.

The Houthis then attacked the Abha airport in southwestern Saudi Arabia and announced a blockade on Saudi shipping in the Red Sea. They have also attacked Saudi vessels as well as oil facilities in the kingdom, adding further disruption to the global economy.

The Saudi-led coalition, in turn, has struck Houthi-controlled Hodeidah and Kamaran, Yemen’s largest island in the Red Sea.

The Houthis have also launched attacks on government-held areas in Yemen, including the port city of al-Makha (Mocha) on the Red Sea and the central city of Marib, killing dozens of troops and civilians.

Yemen’s internationally recognised government on Tuesday said the Houthis launched 10 missiles and four drones during a series of further attacks on sites on the country’s western coast.

The Houthis said they had launched ballistic missile and drone attacks “targeting Saudi military buildups, weapons depots and command posts” in al-Makha and the central Marib province.

The UN has called for restraint, saying the renewed hostilities risk “drawing the country into a broader regional confrontation, with devastating consequences for its people”.

Political Pressure Puts Fed Independence Back in Focus

Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh’s efforts to keep the central bank insulated from political pressure have become more difficult after President Donald Trump renewed his push to remove Fed Governor Lisa Cook.

Trump’s move, based on allegations of mortgage fraud that Cook’s attorney has called baseless, has brought the issue of Federal Reserve independence back to the centre of markets’ attention. It also suggests that the White House remains concerned that the Fed could raise interest rates as early as next month, despite Trump’s longstanding demand for lower borrowing costs.

The timing is particularly important. Futures markets put the probability of a quarter-point rate increase before the November midterm elections at about 75%, while the outcome of the Fed’s September 15-16 meeting is viewed as almost evenly balanced.

The pressure on Cook could ultimately backfire. If Trump fails to remove her, she could become more inclined to support tighter monetary policy. At the same time, the administration could be calculating that publicly challenging Cook gives Trump a political target if the Fed raises rates before the midterms.

Trump could then argue that a rate increase was politically motivated and intended to undermine his administration.

Trump Challenges Cook Ahead of Critical Fed Meeting

The White House last week sent Cook a letter saying Trump was “considering” removing her and demanded a response within three weeks to the allegations against her.

The deadline falls only weeks before the Fed’s next policy meeting, when the balance of votes could prove crucial.

The move also comes after a June Supreme Court ruling that recognised the Federal Reserve’s special statutory protections while leaving unresolved whether the allegations against Cook would provide sufficient grounds for her removal.

The dispute highlights the continuing uncertainty over how far presidential authority extends over the central bank.

“The issue of Fed independence has not yet been resolved,” said Tim Duy, chief U.S. economist at SGH Macro Advisors.

For Warsh, the confrontation creates an uncomfortable situation. He has only recently taken over as Fed chair and would likely prefer the opportunity to establish his own policy approach rather than become involved in Trump’s campaign for lower rates.

Yet maintaining that distance could be difficult. Trump has reportedly called Warsh repeatedly since he became chair in May.

Trump has also publicly praised Warsh while criticising other Fed officials for keeping interest rates too high, saying Warsh would like to see lower rates but faces a board that wants to maintain higher borrowing costs.

Inflation Keeps Pressure on the Fed

The political confrontation is taking place against a difficult economic backdrop.

Inflation has remained above the Fed’s 2% long-term target, while core price pressures remain elevated. The Iran-related energy shock of the past six months has added another source of inflationary pressure.

Those conditions complicate the case for immediate rate cuts.

At the same time, the Fed’s policy committee is becoming increasingly divided. Three members voted for a rate increase at the previous meeting, while Governors Chris Waller and Lisa Cook voted to keep rates unchanged, although both have indicated that further tightening could eventually be necessary to bring inflation back under control.

If Waller and Cook both support a rate increase at the September meeting, the previous 9-3 balance in favour of holding rates could become 7-5.

Former Fed Chair Jerome Powell could then become decisive if he switched his previous position and supported a rate increase.

That makes the political pressure on Cook particularly significant.

Bond Markets Face an Inflation Risk

The implications extend beyond the Fed itself and into financial markets.

Long-term Treasury yields have periodically risen and the dollar has weakened during previous episodes of political pressure on the central bank. Investors remain divided over whether the latest confrontation represents a temporary political storm or a deeper threat to the credibility of U.S. monetary policy.

The bigger concern for bond markets is the possibility that political pressure could lead to a Fed leadership and governing board more willing to cut rates despite persistent inflation.

That could increase the inflation risk premium demanded by investors holding longer-term government debt.

Barclays strategists warned that if confidence in the Fed’s willingness to defend its inflation target has begun to deteriorate, long-term bond markets may be underestimating the risks.

The combination of political pressure and uncertainty over Warsh’s approach to inflation could therefore become particularly important for longer-dated Treasury yields and inflation expectations.

Analysis: Why the Fed Battle Matters

The central issue is no longer simply whether the Fed cuts or raises rates at its next meeting. It is whether investors continue to believe that the central bank can make those decisions independently of the White House.

If markets begin to believe that political considerations can influence the composition of the Fed’s governing board, expectations for future inflation could become less firmly anchored. Investors may demand higher yields to compensate for the possibility that inflation remains elevated for longer.

That would make government borrowing more expensive and could create wider financial-market volatility.

Warsh therefore faces a critical test. He must balance his desire to reform the Fed with the need to demonstrate that monetary policy remains driven by inflation and economic conditions rather than presidential demands.

His decision at the next meeting could become an important signal to markets.

If Warsh supports tighter policy despite Trump’s pressure, he could strengthen perceptions of Fed independence. If he instead supports a more dovish position while political pressure intensifies, doubts about the central bank’s commitment to price stability could deepen.

For bond investors, the consequences could be significant. The immediate question may be whether rates rise in September, but the larger question is whether markets still trust the Fed to control inflation independently of the White House.

With information from Reuters.

Gen. Michael Guetlein, the top U.S. military officer in charge of the Golden Dome missile defense shield, says he is confident that the initiative will be able to deliver the desired capabilities within its current stated budget of $185 billion. Operational elements of the huge new architecture are currently scheduled to start coming online in mid-2028. This is despite independent estimates that the required ‘system of systems’ could cost exponentially more to develop, field, and maintain. At the same time, Guetlein has now warned that work on Golden Dome could abruptly end, at least for a time, regardless of its total price tag, if a huge budgetary hurdle is not overcome.

Guetlein, whose current title is Director of Golden Dome and is presently assigned to the U.S. Space Force, shared new details about the initiative during a talk today at the annual Space & Missile Defense (SMD) Symposium in Huntsville, Alabama, at which TWZ is in attendance.

“What is the bill to the nation? How much national treasure are we asking the American public to commit to the defense of the homeland?” Guetlein said in his introductory remarks. “I’m on record, and I’m still up here saying the exact same number: $185 billion. We started at 175 billion dollars, and we added 10 more billion [dollars] worth of accelerating space capabilities that we thought the nation needed, that were not part of our original architecture.”

“That is a lot of money. It’s one of the biggest systems that we’ve ever put together as a nation. We [have] got to keep it affordable,” Guetlein continued. “There’s two other cost estimates out there that are exceptionally larger, but I’m going to tell you those cost estimates are not estimating what we are building.”

The general did not specify what cost estimates he was referring to, but the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has put out two top-level figures since the initiative was first unveiled in 2025. CBO’s first estimate in May 2025 said the complete architecture could cost up to $542 billion to develop, deploy, and then operate over a period spanning two decades. The office put out a second estimate in May of this year that said the full price tag might actually be nearly $1.2 trillion over the same 20-year timespan. At that time, CBO also explicitly said its analysis had been hampered by a lack of publicly available information about exactly what the so-called “objective architecture” for Golden Dome actually entails.

There are other independent estimates of Golden Dome’s full cost that are even higher than CBO’s May 2026 projection.

“We’re building something completely differently, and that architecture is coming together, and is being proven every single day,” Guetlein stressed today. “We have radars on contract. We have launchers on contract. We have space-based interceptors on contract. Hypersonic ballistic tracking system on contract. Space data network is on contract. Our construction contracts have been let [sic], and we are moving out with haste to get after what the President [Donald Trump] asked us to do in the summer of 2028.”

Space-based interceptors are notably vital to the Golden Dome plan as it has been described publicly to date. They are also central to CBO’s $1.2 trillion cost estimate, which projected that it would be necessary to have 7,800 of them in orbit at any one time for the architecture to work as intended.

The Northrop Grumman video below includes a computer-generated clip depicting a space-based interceptor engaging a target outside the Earth’s atmosphere, starting at 0:13 in the runtime.

Northrop Grumman Third Quarter 2025 Highlights

“We have our first operational site. We are digging dirt around the homeland, getting ready for the capabilities that the President asked us to deliver in the summer of 2028,” Guetlein also said, but did not elaborate on where that work was being done or its exact purpose.

“We’ve had two tests. We can’t talk about those tests, but those tests were phenomenally successful, and they demonstrated that the capabilities that we are putting together, both command and control, our sensor network, and our effectors, are going to be effective against the threats as they are currently designed,” the Golden Dome director added.

“We had committed to the President last year that we would do a major test every single year. So in January this year, I gave a challenge to the Missile Defense Agency of what test I needed to happen in the summer of 2026, and we executed that test,” Guetlein did note later on in the talk. “It was the most complex test with the most threats in the air in the history of WSMR [the U.S. Army’s White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico]. MDA pulled that off and executed that test in six months, and met every single test objective that I gave them.”

“So the MDA team, plus the WSMR team, plus SMDC [the U.S. Army’s Space and Missile Defense Command], plus PAE Fires [the Army’s Portfolio Acquisition Executive for Fires], plus Fort Bliss [in Texas], plus a whole host of other agencies, all came together in less than six months, starting from scratch, and delivered what I will argue is the most complex integrated missile defense test that we have pulled off as a nation,” he continued. “But that test is a fraction of what we got to do to deliver what they’ve asked us to do in [20]28. So the test in [20]27 will be even more complex.”

Despite all of this apparent progress and significant authority to keep pushing ahead, Guetlein warned today that Golden Dome is facing a potentially insurmountable budget impasse. This has to do with how the initiative has been paid for so far, with core funding coming from outside normal defense spending streams via a process called reconciliation.

“When the President submitted his President’s Budget over to the Hill for FY27 [Fiscal Year 2027], I was not in the top line. I’m in what they call mandatory funding, which is another reconciliation-type funding bill,” Guetlein explained. So, yes, we have a CR [continuing resolution], and we’re not going to shut down the federal government, but a CR doesn’t help me under Golden Dome because I don’t have a top line to fall back to to get that percentage of the continuing resolution.”

Continuing resolutions are short-term spending bills Congress passes to keep the government running in the absence of the approval of a full annual budget.

The defense budget for the 2027 Fiscal Year that the Trump administration submitted earlier this year was already historically large, in part because of expected reconciliation funding. The $1.5 trillion “topline” was broken down into a base budget of $1.1 trillion and then “$350 billion in additional mandatory resources through reconciliation.”

“So we’ve got to figure out, as a nation, a different way of funding Golden Dome, at least for [20]27. Right now, that’s under reconciliation,” Guetlein added. “I will tell you that if they don’t figure it out, there is no Golden Dome because there is no funding.”

Guetlein said today that $22.5 billion has been appropriated for Golden Dome so far, and that 95 percent of that money is already committed to specific work.

“I do believe, as a nation, we’re going to figure this out just because the sense of urgency is so great, but it is a challenging budget environment,” he continued.

As an aside, the Senate, which is currently controlled by President Trump’s Republican Party, just passed its version of the new continuing resolution last week. It notably omitted certain defense spending provisions the White House had sought, including $1 billion for work on the Trump class battleship program, another top priority for the administration. That bill still needs to be reconciled with a separate temporary spending bill making its way through the Republican-controlled House of Representatives before it can be sent to President Trump’s desk to be signed into law (or vetoed).

On top of all this, there has been some bipartisan pushback to further use of the reconciliation process and related mechanisms to boost defense spending outside of the U.S. military’s base budget.

“I think it’s safe to conclude there will not be another reconciliation bill,” Kentucky Senator Mitch McConnell, a Republican, said during a hearing on the U.S. Air Force’s proposed 2027 Fiscal Year budget back in June.

It is also worth noting here that a significant delay in additional funding could have a cascading impact on Golden Dome and its aggressive schedule. The Pentagon could also seek to redirect funds from other parts of its budget, but this could then have similar effects on other efforts. Guetlein did tell reporters after his talk at the SMD Symposium that the Pentagon is looking at contingency options to keep Golden Dome running in the absence of direct funding, according to Air & Space Forces Magazine.

“Several of the space capabilities that we are investing in are also being invested in by the Space Force,” he said, per Air & Space Forces Magazine‘s report. “So, if Golden Dome is not able to continue to invest in those type of capabilities, then the Space Force could decide at that time to continue the investments.”

“Because we have diversified execution of a lot of these capabilities, and a lot of these capabilities are already requested by combatant commands, there are some alternatives that we can pursue. We have not made any decisions on any pathway,” he also noted.

Still, this all comes a the U.S. military is currently in the midst of a host of other major modernization programs, many of which are also deemed critical to national security. This is especially true of costly and expansive programs now underway to update all three legs of America’s nuclear deterrent triad, as well as the command and control architectures that underpin them.

Based on Guetlein’s comments today, Golden Dome now looks to be approaching its first major watershed moment, with this budgetary dilemma set to have significant impacts on how the initiative continues to progress.

Contact the author: joe@twz.com

Pyongyang conducts second weapons test in less than a week as Seoul, Washington gear up for annual military exercises.

North Korea has launched a ballistic missile towards the Sea of Japan, according to Seoul and Tokyo, marking the second such test from Pyongyang in less than a week.

The launch on Wednesday came as South Korea and the United States announced plans to hold their annual Ulchi Freedom Shield military drills starting on August 17.

“Our military detected at around 6:00 am [21:00 GMT Tuesday] a ballistic missile launched by North Korea from the Wonsan area towards the East Sea,” South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a message to reporters, referring to a body of water also known as the Sea of Japan.

South Korea’s military said the missile flew more than 700km (435 miles).

It said it has boosted its surveillance posture and that it was closely exchanging information on the launch with Washington and Tokyo.

Japan’s Defence Ministry said on social media that the suspected ballistic missile had “already fallen”, without providing further details.

“North Korea has never simply let a South Korea-US joint military exercise pass without a response,” Lim Eul-chul, a North Korea expert at Kyungnam University, told the AFP news agency.

“This is a message that Pyongyang is closely watching the upcoming drills and could stage a provocation if it deems one necessary.”

US-South Korea drills

The Ulchi Freedom Shield training is to start on Monday and run for 11 days. Its scale will be similar to previous years, with 18,000 South Korean soldiers taking part, according to South Korea’s military.

North Korea has in previous years denounced the exercises as a rehearsal for invasion, and responded to the drills with weapons tests and harsh rhetoric. Seoul and Washington, however, have repeatedly said their training is defensive in nature.

On August 6, South Korea, the US and Japan detected the launch of a short-range ballistic missile from North Korea in what was Pyongyang’s first ballistic weapons testing activity since late June.

North Korea did not confirm the reported launch.

Pyongyang has ratcheted up its criticism of Tokyo’s defence policy, issuing statements at least seven times since July.

On Tuesday, North Korean state media condemned Japan’s latest defence white paper as a “re-invasion-minded” document, saying it “groundlessly described” Pyongyang as ⁠the greatest strategic challenge to “justify its reckless arms buildup”.

North Korea has also been accused of playing a more active role in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said on Tuesday that Moscow had used a North Korean ballistic missile during an attack that killed seven workers at a Ukrainian steel plant in the southeastern city of Zaporizhzhia.

Caracas, August 11, 2026 (venezuelanalysis.com) – The Venezuelan government led by Acting President Delcy Rodríguez is advancing diplomatic normalization with Israel after 17 years of severed relations.

In statements published on Tuesday, the Venezuelan and Israeli foreign ministries announced that, following “high-level talks,” the two countries would continue “bilateral technical cooperation” amid “recovery efforts” related to the June 24 double earthquake in the Caribbean nation.

“The two countries have also agreed to establish a coordination mechanism to provide consular services to their citizens residing in the other country,” the communiqués read.

Caracas additionally underlined that the ties between Israel and the Venezuelan Jewish community “constitute an important and historic friendship bridge between both countries.”

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar hailed the renewal of consular relations as “good news.” He added that the decision was agreed to in “conversations” with Venezuelan counterpart Félix Plasencia, creating “an official coordination channel” for the first time since 2009.

The announcement also followed a meeting Sunday between Plasencia and Orthodox Rabbi Isaac Cohen in which the latter formally requested that Venezuela reestablish diplomatic ties with Israel.

According to the Foreign Ministry, Cohen delivered a letter addressed to Acting President Delcy Rodríguez, arguing that normalizing relations with Tel Aviv is necessary to “tend to the needs of the Jewish community” in Venezuela.

Venezuela’s top diplomat thanked Cohen, on behalf of the Rodríguez administration and the Venezuelan people, for Israeli “assistance” following the June 24 double earthquake.

Cohen, a rabbi from the Venezuelan Jewish Association (AIV), was reportedly one of the intermediaries for the arrival of an Israeli diplomatic and military mission one week after the earthquake. The delegation included IDF officers and weapons contractors, while several Tel Aviv-aligned organizations likewise deployed on-the-ground teams.

Rodríguez held multiple meetings with the Israeli team, praising its members as “highly trained and professional” and thanking them for their work. IDF spokesman Roni Kaplan stated that the Israeli team had created a “dashboard” for Venezuelan authorities to evaluate damaged buildings, while Brigadier General Elad Edri was pictured presenting a “Project for Future Reconstruction” slideshow.

The Israeli mission has sparked growing protests, with Venezuelan popular movements reaffirming support for Palestine, condemning the genocide in Gaza and Lebanon, and burning Israeli flags.

Following the latest decision to deepen the engagement with Tel Aviv, the Venezuelan Movement in Solidarity with Palestine Al Awda issued a statement rejecting “normalization with the genocidal state of Israel.”

“We reject the use of ‘cooperation’ rhetoric to cover for barbarism and apartheid. Diplomacy cannot be used to whitewash crimes against humanity,” the text read.

Similarly, the International Platform in Solidarity with the Palestinian Cause argued that it was “unacceptable and unjustifiable” to strengthen relations “with a government formally accused of genocide.”

“We warn that reestablishing ties with [Israel] amounts to validating its crimes, in Palestine and all over the world, and becoming complicit before history,” its communiqué stated.

Former President Hugo Chávez severed ties with Israel in 2009, fiercely denouncing the US ally for genocide and demonstrating unwavering support for the Palestinian cause. His stance was maintained by Maduro, who endorsed South Africa’s activation of the Genocide Convention against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2024.

Following the January 3 US military strikes and kidnapping of Maduro, Rodríguez fast-tracked a diplomatic rapprochement with Washington alongside a broader radical shift in Caracas’ geopolitical alignment. 

Apart from re-engagement with Israel, the Venezuelan government is also reestablishing ties with far-right US allies in Latin America, including Chile, Peru, and the Dominican Republic, while distancing itself from historic partners in Havana and Tehran. During the recent US-Israel war against Iran, Caracas offered no backing for Tehran, instead voicing “solidarity” with US Gulf allies such as Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.

[Updated on August 11]

Edited by Lucas Koerner in Philadelphia, USA.

Trump labels US Democratic nominees ‘jihadists’ in inflammatory remarks made in the Oval Office.

United States President Donald Trump has described Democratic candidates in the midterm US elections as “jihadists” in an apparent reference to Muslim Democratic candidate Abdul El-Sayed securing his party’s nomination for the Michigan primary elections last week.

The pronouncements fuel a proliferating wave of Islamophobic discourse among Republican lawmakers and elected officials in the sprint to lock down ballots ahead of November’s midterm elections.

“We have jihadists being elected all over the place, whether it’s communism [or] jihadism,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Monday. “A friend of mine called up, he said, ‘You know […] you should use the word jihadist’, that’s what’s happening. If you take a look at what’s happening in other countries, I’m not really sure that’s the way we want to live.”

Trump also hurled another tirade against people of Somali descent, of which there are upwards of 260,000 across the US. He called them “not smart”, and said they have “no aptitude” and “nothing going” for them to “tell us how to run our country”.

Edward Ahmed Mitchell, the national deputy director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a Muslim civil rights and advocacy organisation in the US, said that Trump’s hateful anti-Muslim rhetoric “is putting a target on the back of Muslim elected officials across our nation” and that “this type of dangerous rhetoric is fueling the surge in complaints of anti-Muslim bigotry that our civil rights organization has documented over the past three years”.

Although the president refrained from explicitly naming any individual candidate, hours later, he focused his attention on El-Sayed, who is a son of Egyptian immigrants. The president shared a photo on Truth Social showing the Democratic contender positioned before a gathering that featured two women in headscarves, accompanied by the caption: “They are coming for your home and your belongings.”

Trump also targeted El-Sayed’s victory directly last week, calling him a “hater of Jews” and “hater of Israel” who will bring “filth, crime, death, destruction, embarrassment”.

Several other Republicans also beefed up their anti-Muslim rhetoric, following El-Sayed’s win, parroting remarks that Muslims do not belong in American society. Representative Nancy Mace of South Carolina claimed on social media that “every single Muslim holding public office in America is a Trojan horse, and a threat to both national security and our republic”.

Meanwhile, Alabama Senator Tommy Tuberville labelled El-Sayed a “TERRORIST” and wrote on social media that “Abdulrahman Mohamed El-Sayed is a RADICAL ISLAMIST.”

This outburst occurred just two days after Trump shared a social media post comparing a photo of himself and First Lady Melania Trump with one of El-Sayed and his wife Dr Sarah Jukaku, who is a psychiatrist. The image was captioned: “Two VERY DIFFERENT America’s.”

Speaking on CNN’s State of the Union with host Jake Tapper on Sunday night, the Democratic Senate candidate hit back, saying, “Sarah and I actually like each other”, adding “I don’t know about the first lady and the president, but from what I’ve heard, it’s a bit of a rocky road”.

With less than 90 days to go until the highly anticipated midterm elections come to a head, and with all 435 seats in the House of Representatives and 34 Senate seats up for grabs, Democrats are confronting an ideological schism between moderate leaders and triumphing democratic progressives, some of whom are increasingly being characterised as an endangerment to Washington’s national security establishment altogether.

“People don’t want to have radical lunatics involved in running our country,” said Trump on Monday, “and that’s what we have.”