Israel’s former attorney general took the witness stand Sunday in corruption cases against Benjamin Netanyahu, as the political future of the country's longest-serving prime minister hangs in the balance, with national elections just weeks away.
Saudi Arabia, meanwhile, was on high alert after a deadly attack on the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh, allegedly by Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis.
uncertain
Arabia → take → Houthis
Former legal adviser testifies in Netanyahu's corruption case
Israel's former attorney general took the witness stand Sunday in Netanyahu's long-running corruption trial.
asserted
general → testify → trial
Avichai Mandelblit indicted the prime minister seven years ago for fraud, breach of trust and accepting bribes.
asserted
Mandelblit → indict → bribes
The charges were the first-ever against a sitting Israeli prime minister.
asserted
charges → sit → minister
Netanyahu was seated in the courtroom to hear Mandelblit testify.
asserted
Mandelblit → seat → courtroom
The prime minister handpicked Mandelblit, his former Cabinet secretary, for the attorney general job.
asserted
minister → handpicke → job
His tenure ended in 2022.
asserted
tenure → end → 2022
“The truth comes to light,” Netanyahu said before entering the courtroom.
asserted
Netanyahu → come → courtroom
Netanyahu has been accused of offering or exchanging favors with wealthy associates and media moguls for political gain.
asserted
Netanyahu → accuse → gain
He denies any wrongdoing.
asserted
He → deny → wrongdoing
The latest proceedings come weeks before national elections.
asserted
proceedings → come → elections
Saudi on high-alert after deadly attack, Houthi warn of new strikes
Saudi Arabia kept its main international airport closed and moved Riyadh schools online on Sunday after a deadly strike by Yemen’s Houthi rebels the day before.
asserted
airport → warn → rebels
The rebels threatened new airstrikes across the kingdom after a missile attack on the King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh killed 12 people and wounded more than 300 on Saturday.
asserted
attack → threaten → Saturday
The Houthis have not claimed responsibility for that, but claimed two previous deadly attacks on the Riyadh airport earlier in the week.
asserted
Houthis → claim → week
Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, the Houthis' military spokesperson, urged “everyone to take our warnings seriously.”
asserted
everyone → urge → warnings
The airport strike marked a major escalation in the war between the Iran-backed Houthis and the kingdom, and further complicated sputtering efforts to halt the U.S.-Iran war.
asserted
strike → mark → war
U.S. President Donald Trump said he was considering whether to join Saudi strikes against the rebels, a scenario that could prompt the Houthis to halt shipping through a crucial waterway and further restrict the flow of oil out of the Persian Gulf.
uncertain
that → say → Gulf
Gaza residents return to rubble as strikes continue amid ceasefire
Residents in central Gaza returned home Sunday morning to assess the damage caused by Israeli strikes after they had been warned to evacuate the buildings the day before.
asserted
they → return → buildings
Bassam Abed said that at least 10 residences housing some 300 families were reduced to rubble.
asserted
residences → say → rubble
He said families were not given enough time to flee before the military struck their buildings.
asserted
military → say → buildings
“Women slept outdoors.
asserted
Women → sleep → ?
We did not take clothes,” Abed said.
asserted
Abed → take → clothes
The Israeli military said it had targeted militant infrastructure, including three weapons storage facilities, a rocket launch site and a command center used by Hamas militants to carry out attacks on Israeli soldiers.
asserted
it → say → soldiers
The strikes fell one year after Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire deal, but Israel continues to launch near-daily strikes.
asserted
Israel → fall → strikes
Trump officially lifts ban on direct flight to Lebanon
The White House has officially lifted a decades-old ban on direct flight between the U.S. and Lebanon, following through on a commitment President Donald Trump made in July.
U.S. carriers may be reticent to begin offering flight to Lebanon soon, however, as the war with Iran continues to disrupts air traffic in the region and questions over Hezbollah’s influence in parts of the country persist.
uncertain
questions → lift → country
Direct flights between the two countries were suspended in 1985 by the Reagan administration after the hijacking of TWA Flight 847.
asserted
flights → suspend → Flight
The Lebanese embassy in Washington said on social media that it welcomed the move as “a major step toward resuming direct flights.”
asserted
it → say → flights
The U.S. embassy in Beirut said the change would make it easier for family members to visit one another and for American businesses to invest in Lebanon.
asserted
businesses → say → Lebanon
“We look forward to working with our Lebanese partners to turn this opportunity into a reality,” the statement added.
asserted
statement → look → reality
The Aporia
