Israel admits killing five-year-old Hind Rajab but clears troops over aid worker deaths

Australia has summoned the Israeli ambassador over the decision not to investigate the deadly World Central Kitchen strike

Israel has acknowledged that its troops killed Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl, and opened a criminal investigation into the incident. At the same time, it has refused to pursue a probe into the death of seven World Central Kitchen aid workers in a separate attack.

Both incidents occurred in 2024 and prompted international outrage over the conduct of Israeli forces, making them among the most notorious civilian casualties of the Gaza war.

The contrasting decisions have triggered outrage over Australian citizen Zomi Frankcom, who was among the seven slain aid workers. Canberra summoned Israeli Ambassador Hillel Newman on Thursday, with Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong demanding accountability.

The killing of Hind Rajab

Five-year-old Hind Rajab was fleeing Gaza City’s Tel al-Hawa neighborhood with relatives in January 2024 when their car came under heavy Israeli fire. Independent investigators later found hundreds of bullet impacts and estimated that an Israeli tank had been only meters away and would have easily identified the car passengers as civilians.

Hind survived the initial attack and spent hours trapped inside the car alongside her dead relatives, pleading with Palestinian Red Crescent dispatchers by phone to rescue her. An ambulance sent to reach her after coordinating its movement with the Israeli military was subsequently shelled, killing two paramedics.

Hind’s body and those of her relatives and emergency workers were recovered 12 days later, after Israeli forces withdrew from the area

Israel’s response

Despite initially denying that its forces were even in the area where Hind was killed, the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) acknowledged for the first time on Wednesday that its troops had indeed fired on the car carrying the girl and her relatives. It also admitted that a shell was later fired at the Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance sent to rescue her.

The IDF said the findings and alleged failures surrounding coordination with the ambulance warranted a criminal investigation.

In the WCK case, however, the military stated that despite “serious failures” in the attack, commanders’ actions did not raise reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct and no criminal investigation would be opened.

Israel claimed its troops had mistakenly believed a Hamas fighter was traveling with the convoy and claimed it had deviated from an agreed route.

Australia demands answers

Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said Israel’s decision on the WCK killings fell “far short of the accountability we expect” and said Australia was “outraged.”

She questioned why, if the first strike on the convoy was a “catastrophic error,” two more missiles were fired minutes later. Canberra has also said Israel has still not handed over requested audio from the drone involved in the attack.

Frankcom’s family said it was “deeply disappointed” and called for an independent investigation.

https://www.rt.com/news/644444-israel-killing-criminal-probe/

Summary

US shifts toward economic warfare, away from military strikes: Bessent says maximum sanctions likely mean no major new military campaign for now.

Regime change rhetoric persists: Bessent says Washington intends to "collapse" Iran's regime.

USS George Washington arrives: A new US carrier is now operating in the Middle East, relieving the over-extended USS Lincoln.

Iran rejects US threats as a Trump "diversion": Tehran calls the campaign "economic terrorism" and says Washington is seeking an exit.

Axios claim of 'stealth corridor' where oil is moving steadily through Hormuz results in skepticism & some pushback.

Mass Casualties In Large Russian Assault On Ukraine's Capital, Air Defenses Dwindle

The expected major Russian retaliation has come overnight, with a huge missile and drone barrage on the Ukrainian capital. Many dozens were sent, killing over 16 people and injuring more than 40, local authorities report.

The casualty rate was high despite that Ukraine says it managed to intercept nearly 90% of inbound projectiles, which it did not give a total figure for.

Local media reports indicate the capital city's Solomianskyi district district was the worst hit:

In the Sviatoshynskyi district, a Russian attack damaged buildings on non-residential property. In addition, a fire broke out in the warehouse facilities there.

In the Solomianskyi district, debris damaged the upper floors of a 9-story residential building, after which a fire broke out there. Rescue workers have already extinguished it. Windows were also shattered in four nearby residential buildings.

At another location, debris caused a fire on the upper floors of a 4-story building.

In addition, a school and a children's hospital were damaged in the Solomianskyi district. Windows were shattered at the hospital, and cars caught fire on its grounds. The fire has been extinguished. Garages were also damaged.

President Zelensky used the devastation to once again call on the West to urgently provide more Patriot systems, amid dwindling anti-air supplies.

"The interceptors for Patriot systems have not yet been replaced, and they are needed every day," Zelensky wrote in a Telegram post on Thursday. "Each additional missile saves the lives of our people."

The Russian defense ministry said in familiar messaging that it was targeting military-industrial sites connected to the Ukrainian armed forces.

https://twitter.com/i/status/2090370756400312333

FBI Seizes Eric Swalwell's Electronic Devices At San Francisco Airport Amid Sexual Misconduct Investigation

The FBI executed a search warrant against former congressman Eric Swalwell on Saturday after he landed at San Francisco Airport - seizing his electronic devices, including his cell phone, as part of a federal investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct, the Daily Mail reports.

According to the report:

The agents, armed with additional court-approved search warrants, then entered his house in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, seizing additional undisclosed potential evidence, well-placed sources tell the Daily Mail.

Sources say Swalwell started his day Saturday in Washington, where he still maintains a residence with his wife and three children.

He headed to the airport later in the day and flew to his home state of California. The feds were waiting for him when he stepped off the plane.

According to sources, Swalwell was cooperative.

The following day, neither he nor his wife Brittany Watts were home when the feds rolled up to their property in Northeast DC.

The DOJ launched a criminal investigation into multiple sexual assault and misconduct allegations lodged against the California democrat. Meanwhile, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office is investigating an alleged 2024 sexual assault in a New York City hotel room involving a former staffer, while the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and District Attorney’s Office have opened inquiries into a separate 2018 claim. Prosecutors have been assigned to review evidence in the LA case.

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/fbi-seizes-eric-swalwells-electronic-devices-san-francisco-airport-amid-sexual-misconduct

OpenAI hits brakes on training over security risks

One of the company’s models escaped its testing environment and hacked another firm’s database

ChatGPT maker OpenAI has announced it is decelerating the development of its AI models, citing security risks.

In July, one of the company’s advanced AI bots unknowingly escaped its testing environment, gained internet access, and hacked into the servers of the Hugging Face online repository for AI models and datasets.

OpenAI said in a statement on Tuesday that the Hugging Face incident and the overall rise in the capabilities of its artificial intelligence models “have added urgency to our work on strengthening our monitoring, alignment and containment safeguards across all stages of the training process.”

“As models become more capable, the risks associated with developing and testing them internally also grow. Our standards for monitoring, alignment, and security must stay ahead of those risks,” the statement read.

The company, headed by CEO Sam Altman, said it has “temporarily slowed the pace of scaling” while it works on implementing the upgrades.

The measures include a two-week pause in the training of the latest OpenAI models and the assignment of additional AI bots to monitor the behavior of AI agents during testing, it announced.

The company’s largest planned training run “remains on hold while we conduct smaller-scale training and evaluations to assess model behavior, validate our safeguards, and establish more evidence of alignment before proceeding,” the statement read.

Alignment is a key process of making AI systems behave as intended by the developers and being responsive to human oversight.

https://www.rt.com/news/644437-openai-ai-altamn-slowdown/

‘Totalitarian society’: Iconic Serbian filmaker hits out after YouTube ban

Emir Kusturica says the Google-owned platform is seeking to suppress any dissent contradicting the mainstream narrative

Serbian filmmaker Emir Kusturica has accused YouTube of waging a “war” against people who think independently and “tell the truth,” after the Google-owned platform deleted his channel without any warning.

YouTube removed Kusturica’s ‘My Life’ channel on Wednesday, without publicly elaborating on the decision, according to several media reports. The project, produced with Sputnik’s Serbian service, contained more than 200 videos and had roughly 30,000 subscribers. Some of the videos are dedicated to the fate of Yugoslavia, the clash of civilizations, and the collision between Christian and Western values.

After the escalation of the Ukraine conflict in 2022, YouTube banned both Sputnik and RT as the West imposed sweeping sanctions on Russia. Moscow condemned the Western crackdown on the outlets as proof of an anti-Russian agenda and Western censorship.

Commenting on the ban, Kusturica told TASS that “a totalitarian society” was behind the move, adding that “for them it is normal that they closed the channel on YouTube. They are at war with us, with people who think, who tell the truth and bring truth to the masses.”

Separately, he said that “they don’t want anyone in that choir who doesn’t sing a song in which the algorithms reflect what those at the top want, those richest people in the world, plus the intelligence services.”

https://www.rt.com/news/644434-kusturica-youtube-ban-totalitarian-society/

Labour Confirms Plan to Spread Migrants All Over Britain.

British Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has confirmed government plans to spread illegal migrant settlements across the country, supposedly to ensure “no one type of community is bearing the brunt,” sparking widespread backlash.

https://thenationalpulse.com/2026/08/20/labour-confirms-plan-to-spread-migrants-all-over-britain/

Government Releases Guide for Migrants Explaining That Rape and Pedophilia Are Not Allowed.

The British government has released a guide for asylum seekers advising that raping women and pursuing relationships with children is culturally unacceptable.

“[Labour] know that they are a menace and they are living in taxpayer-funded hotels. You are paying for their living costs in HMOs [Houses in Multiple Occupation], in hotels. They are being dispersed all around the country, and they are in your local area. In some cases, they’re near schools.” – Reform Shadow Home Secretary Zia Yusuf

https://thenationalpulse.com/2026/08/20/government-releases-guide-for-migrants-explaining-that-rape-and-pedophilia-are-not-allowed/

Halloween "Purge Night" Plot To Take Down Flock Cameras Spreads Online

Posts on social media are promoting the notion of a national "DeFlock America" campaign to take place on Halloween night 2026. While lacking much of any actual organization, the idea is sparking broader discussion online.

Halloween is being promoted as “De-Flock America” night on social media, with Americans urged to turn October 31st into a night of action against Flock surveillance cameras.

The very loosely organized movement appears to be targeting Flock Safety’s automated license plate recognition (ALPR) cameras, with some users openly advocating vandalizing, disabling or obscuring the devices.

But just how big is “De-Flock America” really? Cybernews found a small number of posts explicitly promoting Halloween action, alongside a much larger wave of posts reporting on the supposed campaign.

Social media may now even be amplifying the event faster than activists are actually organizing it.

De-Flocking American on Halloween night

The earliest posts appeared on August 7th in the "DeFlock America" Facebook group.

One user proposed using Halloween masks as cover to bring cameras down, while warning participants against carrying phones, smartwatches or other technology.

“Halloween, we all wear masks and bring them down. No phones, no smart watches, no tech. Who is funding these?” the user wrote.

https://cybernews.com/privacy/de-flock-america-halloween-flock-surveillance-cameras/

Peter Thiel-Funded Company Anduril to Triple the Number of Autonomous Surveillance Towers Along the US-Mexico Border

The expansion of autonomous surveillance towers will come at a cost of $1 billion to the American taxpayer, funds that were originally allocated under Trump’s Big Brother Bill.

In June, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a new report that detailed how the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has contracted with Anduril Industries—a Peter Thiel-funded company—to nearly triple the number of surveillance towers along US borders. The report outlines the plan to increase the number of surveillance towers from 830 to 2,300 by 2034.

The new GAO report describes the “Integrated Surveillance Towers” (IST) program that currently consists of “803 fielded towers located along US borders that detect items of interest, such as people or vehicles.”

The IST program includes towers from four legacy systems, including Autonomous Surveillance Towers (AST). An AST is a solar-powered surveillance tower that the DHS says can “provide autonomous surveillance operations 24 hours per day, 365 days per year.” The towers are equipped with radar, optical, and thermal cameras.

According to the GAO report, in August 2024, DHS approved the purchase of up to 42 additional ASTs. DHS had previously approved Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) request to purchase up to 133 additional towers between 2022 and 2023. The report states that the program should be completed by March 2034, with 2,300 deployed by that date.

The GAO was established in 1921 to serve as an independent and nonpartisan agency that audits the federal government. The GAO releases annual reports on key issues and details its findings to Congress.

The Electronic Frontier Foundation, a non-profit dedicated to digital privacy and rights, called the expansion of border surveillance a “digital dumpster fire for human rights and civil liberties.”

“It’s not just surveillance towers; drones, aerostats, surveillance vehicles, ground sensors, game cameras, and license plate readers are also part of the vast taxpayer-funded infrastructure that threatens all those who live, work, or seek refuge in the borderlands,” the EFF wrote in response to the GAO report. “This technology isn’t exclusive to U.S. federal agencies: it’s also deployed by state and local law enforcement, and even by governments on the Mexican side.”

The EFF also noted that these rapidly expanding surveillance technologies place residential neighborhoods in Arizona within the sight of the towers, making them “capable of spying on homes on both sides of the border.”

Anduril Industries and the Surveillance Lattice

The GAO report notes that the contract for construction of the Autonomous Surveillance Towers went to Anduril Industries.

Anduril was founded by Trump donor Palmer Luckey with funding from Palantir co-founder Peter Thiel. They are one of several Thiel-associated companies that have seen their stars rise under Trump 2.0.

The Last American Vagabond has previously reported how numerous acolytes of Thiel are or were serving in the second Trump administration, including numerous employees of Anduril.

One such example is Trae Stephens, the co-founder and chair of Anduril Industries. According to Bloomberg, Trump and his team have consulted with Trae Stephens. Stephens is a partner at venture capital firm Founders Fund, which was organized by Peter Thiel, Ken Howery, and Luke Nosek in early 2005. Stephens also worked for Thiel’s Palantir Technologies.

In December 2024, Anduril, along with Palantir, SpaceX and OpenAI, announced a partnership on U.S. military contracts. The move marked the latest efforts by the Technocrats to replace the old guard of the Military Industrial Complex—companies like Lockheed Martin, Raytheon, and Boeing.

As part of that effort, Anduril is aiming to be the main provider of Autonomous Surveillance Towers along the border. As far back as July 2020, Anduril was awarded a contract by CBP to set up over 200 mobile surveillance towers in border communities.

The surveillance towers use an Anduril AI software known as Lattice that automatically detects, classifies, and tracks people and vehicles from miles away, during the day and at night. Anduril describes Lattice as a software platform that “takes data from disparate and distributed sensors, feeds, and systems and moves this data into a single integration layer”.

Over the last couple of years, Anduril has secured numerous contracts with the US government to build weapons of war and surveillance tools.

https://thefreethoughtproject.com/government-surveillance/peter-thiel-funded-company-anduril-to-triple-the-number-of-autonomous-surveillance-towers-along-the-us-mexico-border

Walmart drops 9%, Dow drops 400 points. Without AI spending, we’d already be in a very deep recession?

A pullback in Walmart shares hit the broader market as well. The retail giant dropped 9% after its U.S. comparable sales missed analyst expectations, as did its adjusted earnings forecast for both the third quarter and full year.

Wall Street is coming off a winning session, with the S&P 500 snapping a three-session losing streak, as yields on longer-dated U.S. Treasurys pulled back from multi-year highs after the government unveiled a plan to ease pressure from a recent bond market rout.

Michael Schumacher, former head of macro at Wells Fargo, doesn’t think bond market respite will last, however.

“I’m still negative. I think long-term rates go up for a few reasons. In the U.S. case in particular, there’s just a huge budget deficit. Not much sign that’s going to improve. On top of that, you’ve got defense spending going up,” he told CNBC in an interview. “I think that was the case really before the conflict in Iran, and that’s intensified.”

Without AI spending, we'd already be in a very deep recession.

It's only postponed the inevitable.

https://www.investmentwatchblog.com/walmart-drops-9-dow-drops-400-points/

Israel spent over $140bn over three years to finance genocide of Palestinians in Gaza

Israel expects military spending to exceed $500 billion in the coming decade

The genocide of Palestinians in Gaza is the longest and most expensive military campaign in Israel's history, costing an estimated $142 billion so far and set to approach roughly $169 billion, Haaretz reported on 16 August.

Tel Aviv's genocide has driven Israel's national debt up by some $130 billion, with the state set to spend around $500 billion on the military over the coming decade, according to Haaretz.

Israeli War Ministry Director General Amir Baram, who took office in March 2025, set out that trajectory in a strategy paper preparing the army for what he called an intense decade ahead.

The commitment was made without Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu identifying where the money would come from, Haaretz noted, with US aid of $3.8 billion a year expected to shrink and then end entirely in the coming years.

Officials told Haaretz that cost was never a consideration once the wars began. Emergency call-ups went out without restraint, and reservists were held in service for extended periods when there was no need or cheaper options were available.

Soldiers also fired ammunition freely and without restraint, often indiscriminately, as soldiers were encouraged by their officers to shoot unarmed civilians even if no danger was present.

Within days of 7 October 2023, it had mobilized some 220,000, doubling in size and outstripping its own supplies. Haaretz noted one division being sent to Gaza without receiving training for entry into the besieged enclave.

“You send them into Gaza, and you don't have suitable equipment. Everyone scrambled for tactical helmets and protective vests from whatever they could find,” a senior officer said.

Beyond the annual $3.8 billion provided under the 10-year US–Israel memorandum of understanding (MoU), which is due to expire in 2028, Washington has accelerated a massive flow of military assistance and arms to Israel since October 2023.

In 2025 and 2026 alone, the current US administration notified Congress of potential arms sales worth at least $19 billion, including advanced aircraft, missiles, bombs, ammunition, helicopters, and armored vehicles.

While some of these deals involve future contracts whose payment and delivery will take place over several years, the administration also invoked emergency authorities to bypass the standard congressional review period for nearly $4 billion in munitions and equipment.

Taken together, the US has provided at least $21.7 billion in military assistance to Israel since 7 October 2023.

https://thecradle.co/articles-id/39445

The entire UN raised its hand for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza

Except for one country

https://twitter.com/i/status/2090022683249447118

🇺🇸🇨🇳 The Chinese are now making fun of the US financial situation and the massive $40 trillion debt

https://twitter.com/i/status/2090383416915116276

https://www.antiwar.com/

🇫🇷🇮🇱 The French Government have found hard evidence of election interference in France, Africa and even Scotlands elections

Not by Russia-But by an Israeli based company called "Blackcore"

https://twitter.com/i/status/2090164499080737017

Amb. Mike Huckabee acts like he's holding Israel to account for settler violence… while repeatedly referring to the West Bank as "Judea and Samaria."

"It's not in keeping with the Torah… this idea that you can go and steal people's land…"

https://x.com/infolibnews/status/2090244591588901109

Ted Cruz hails $3.2 billion in Israeli investment, 4,200 jobs created in Texas

"Now that investment is expanding into AI, cyber, defense, water, and agriculture," said Cruz. "Texas gets the jobs, the capital, and the technology. That’s a partnership worth growing."

“Israeli companies are betting big on Texas, investing $3.2 billion and creating more than 4,200 jobs across our state,” Texas Senator Ted Cruz posted on X/Twitter.

The figures in Cruz’s post on Wednesday are based on US Bureau of Labor Statistics data from the 2024 financial year, which revealed that trade between Texas and Israel reached roughly $4b. in 2024. Texas exports to Israel totaled $757.9 million, and imports from Israel reached $3.2b.

This is the culmination of years of partnership.

In the last decade, Israeli companies reported 34 investment projects into Texas and, as mentioned, more than 4,200 new jobs.

During that same time period, Texas companies reported seven investment projects into Israel, $178.6m. in capital investment, and more than 545 new jobs.

Israel ranks among top sources of foreign investment, jobs in Texas

Israel is the 19th-largest source country for foreign direct investment (FDI) projects into Texas and the 17th-largest source for new jobs created by FDI. Texas itself is the number 1 exporting state in the USA and the leading state for FDI over the last two decades.

According to the Texas Governor’s Office and the Texas Economic Development & Tourism Office, the Israeli companies with the highest capital investment in Texas over the last 10 years are: Nofar; Doral; Wiz; Elbit Systems; Ellomay; Tower Semiconductor; Starplast; Incredo Sugar; Percepto; and BOS.

“Now that investment is expanding into AI, cyber, defense, water, and agriculture,” said Cruz. “Texas gets the jobs, the capital, and the technology. That’s a partnership worth growing.”

Additionally, the State of Texas Israel Office was approved during the 89th Legislative Session in 2025. As of August 2026, Texas is still in the process of establishing the office, having issued a request for proposals in June seeking a contractor to operate a physical office in Jerusalem. This marks a slight delay from the early-2026 planned launch date.

The deepening economic relationship is also reflected in capital markets.

Texas doubles investment in Israel Bonds to $280 million

In February, Acting Texas Comptroller Kelly Hancock announced that Texas was doubling its investment in Israel bonds from approximately $140m. to $280m., marking the largest one-time investment in Israel bonds in Texas history.

“Texas proudly stands with Israel,” Hancock said at the time. “This expanded investment reinforces our long-standing relationship and shared commitment to faith, freedom and economic opportunity. Texas and Israel have built a partnership that stretches beyond finance, and this step reflects both our solidarity and our belief in what we can accomplish together.”

In the private sphere, Commissioner Grant Moody has suggested potential collaboration between the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange and the planned Texas Stock Exchange in Dallas.

Moody, who represents Bexar County, spoke of opportunities around dual listings, cross-border investment, and institutional cooperation.

https://www.jpost.com/diaspora/article-906133

Trump and his moron minions are losing control of their Ponzi debt scheme. Bessent is a deviant Soros acolyte beholden to the Wall Street cabal and Lutnick is Trump’s Israeli handler. Once this shitshow starts to implode, expect a false flag and/or a nuclear strike to take our minds off of the economic devastation headed our way. Brace for impact.

https://www.theburningplatform.com/2026/08/20/were-going-to-need-a-bigger-buyback/

August 19, 2025: "President Trump and I are laser-focused on paying down the debt." - Scott Bessent

August 19, 2026: One year and $3 trillion more in debt later, the National Debt crosses above $40 trillion for the first time.