U.S. President Donald Trump says it’s “possible” he may ramp up bombing of Iran after the Nov. 3 midterm elections and that he rejected Iran’s latest peace offer because it’s not good enough.
uncertain
it → say → offer
Fighting between Houthi rebels and government forces overnight stirred fears that the Iran-backed rebels may be advancing toward Taiz City in southwestern Yemen.
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rebels → stir → Yemen
Trump says Iran’s peace offer doesn’t measure up
Trump said in a Time magazine interview published Thursday that he won’t now accept proposals from Iran that “he wouldn’t have approved a year ago.”
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he → say → that
He left open the possibility of resuming bombing Iran after the Nov. 3 election.
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He → leave → election
He refused to offer details, telling journalists, “I can’t tell you that because look, you know, you’re asking, where are you going to bomb?”
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you → refuse → that
Trump rejects reports Israeli leader was warned about Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack
The U.S. president told Time magazine that he only heard about those reports on the same day that the Sept. 28 interview was conducted with Time reporters, adding “I can’t imagine this.”
Trump said had Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu been forewarned, “he would have done something about it” or “would have had people at least alert.”
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people → reject → it
An Israeli newspaper reported that Netanyahu was directly warned by the president of the United Arab Emirates that Hamas was planning a major offensive just days before the militant group attacked on Oct. 7, 2023.
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group → report → Oct.
Netanyahu strongly rejected the report.
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Netanyahu → reject → report
Trump dodges question whether Netanyahu deserves reelection
In the same Time magazine interview, Trump repeatedly avoided answering directly whether Netanyahu should be reelected in elections later this month.
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Netanyahu → dodge → elections
Trump said that he’s “not involved in politics anymore” and touted his own record on Israel.
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he → say → Israel
But he said Netanyahu shouldn’t be underestimated even if “people have written off Bibi many, many times, just like they’ve written off me many, many times.”
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they → say → me
Of Netanyahu’s opponent, Gadi Eisenkot, Trump said: “I don’t hear bad things about him.”
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I → say → him
Clashes raise fears Houthi rebels ready to make more gains
Iran-backed Houthi rebels clashed with government forces overnight into Thursday in residential neighborhoods in eastern Taiz, located about 100 kilometers (60 miles) from Mokha, which the Houthis seized last month.
A main road linking Taiz and Aden was cut off due to the latest clashes.
Al-Thawra Hospital, located a few kilometers from the clashes, received six bodies and 35 wounded people Thursday, according to hospital manager Abdelrahman al-Sabry.
The official told The Associated Press by phone Thursday the number of dead and wounded was similar to those in early September, when fighting was intense before clashes de-escalated.
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clashes → raise → September
Renewed violence in Yemen has killed hundreds and displaced tens of thousands.
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violence → renew → thousands
The Houthis captured the strategic city of Mokha and a number of Red Sea islands last month, extending their reach to the key maritime waterway of the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
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Houthis → capture → Strait
It was the Houthis’ biggest land grab in years, and ended a 2022 ceasefire that largely stopped major fighting in Yemen’s 12-year civil war.
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that → end → war
Meanwhile, the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis said Thursday the rebels targeted a power distribution station in the area of Medina two days earlier.
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rebels → lead → Medina
The strike shut down a transformer, but didn’t affect the power grid.
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strike → shut → grid
The Houthis have yet to respond to the claim.
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Houthis → have → claim
___
By Marzouk al-Jaberi and Fatma Khaled
Iran admonishes U.K. for linking Tehran to air base sabotage plot
Iran’s Foreign Ministry summoned Britain’s ambassador in Tehran on Thursday to “strongly protest” allegations by British Prime Minister Andy Burnham linking Iran to a sabotage plot at RAF Fairford, Iranian state television reported.
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television → admonish → Fairford
The ministry dismissed allegations that Iran was connected to the alleged plot as “baseless” and called on the British government to provide an official explanation and change its approach toward Iran.
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Iran → dismiss → Iran
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had also posted on X that the U.K. was “barking up the wrong tree.”
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U.K. → post → tree
Netanyahu says FlyDubai suspect slipped through the security cracks
Netanyahu told Fox News Thursday that the suspect in the FlyDubai incident was an Omani national who got through a loophole in Israeli constraints barring pilots from countries like Oman that don’t have diplomatic relations with Israel.
He said both countries are “interested in making sure this doesn’t happen again” and warned that “it might be attempted again because we have indications that Iran and its proxies are trying to conduct attacks against Israel and Israelis right now in this election season.”
FlyDubai passenger says pilots who landed plane were British
Yaniv Hayoun, a passenger aboard the FlyDubai flight, said after arriving in Tel Aviv Wednesday night that the two British pilots who safely brought the aircraft in to land were sitting “one row in front of me, row six, and I was in row seven.”
Saudi Arabia nixes popular Soundstorm music festival
The Soundstorm music festival in Saudi Arabia has been canceled for this year, and organizers said it will return in 2027.
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it → say → 2027
No reason was given for the cancellation.
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reason → give → cancellation
The festival, which in the past has featured international stars including Bruno Mars, Cardi B and DJ Khaled, is the latest major entertainment event in the kingdom to be cancelled this year.
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which → feature → kingdom
Organizers MDLBEAST had earlier announced the cancellation of the 1001 music festival in Riyadh, which was scheduled for the end of the month.
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which → announce → month
A week ago, organizers postponed the sixth edition of the Red Sea International Film Festival from December to the fourth quarter of 2027.
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organizers → postpone → 2027
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This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.
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developments → update → day