Qatar mediates as US and Iran stay far apart on conditions for talksAbu Dhabi talks open as Trump prepares Ukraine for territorial lossSaudi pipeline attacked and dozens reported killed near Sanaa as Yemen war widensSteel plant blast in western Turkey kills at least 16Krakow gunman dies in hospital as Poland disputes motive and securityKirishi refinery burns as Russia hits Ukraine's grid and Dnipro bridgesFrance blames Iran's Revolutionary Guards for supermarket fridge hacksCOP31 opens in Antalya without US delegation as UN warns of record heatSand embankment collapse kills five as storm floods Gaza campsBrent falls to 10-week low as Trump plays down new Iran strikesTrump expects trilateral meeting with Xi and Putin at China summitAsian and European stocks rebound after AI selloff, but caution remainsFire in Taiyuan high-rise kills 14Nvidia opens board probe after CEO Huang admits affair with suspected Chinese agentHouse faces Hegseth impeachment vote as Trump shifts on deportationsChina extends tariff and export-control pauses on US as Shenzhen summit nearsSenegal boat sinking toll rises to at least 39 as Canaries declare migrant emergencyGreece recovers dead migrants off Crete as coast guard rescues more than 100 peopleLeaked Rosstat data suggests more than 400,000 Russians killed in UkraineANC posts worst local election result since 1994Norway's Statnett pauses new grid capacity for data centresFrance brings forward 1.6% minimum wage rise as unions call it insufficientParaguay raids ex-president Peña's mansion in Ueno Bank investigationMore than 50,000 displaced by deadly Ethiopia border clashesPressure grows on Egypt's transport minister after deadly train crashMerz threatens to block EU budget unless all members back Ukraine fundingNetanyahu and Eisenkot compete for coalition partners in IsraelUniCredit posts record profit and plans earlier Commerzbank-HVB mergerRace to succeed Lagarde at the ECB heats upEuropean power prices top €600 as wind output slumpsEbola trials start in Bunia as patients flee militant attackMexico arrests alleged senior Jalisco cartel leader 'R2'Novaya Gazeta closes, citing government clampdownKhor Mor gas field hit by renewed attacks in Iraqi KurdistanIsrael approves first 250 foreign troops for Gaza forcePope Leo presses Milei on economy as huge crowds gather in Buenos AiresOusted Bangladesh leader Hasina applies for new passport to return from exileChina's producer inflation hits four-year high as oil costs biteEU plans crackdown on addictive social media and AI chatbot features as Meta rolls out age checksCyprus leaders agree to open two new crossingsColombia's ombudsman warns of violence in southern Bolivar after army base attackAnthropic unveils new Fable and Mythos models as IPO waiting period expiresQatar mediates as US and Iran stay far apart on conditions for talksAbu Dhabi talks open as Trump prepares Ukraine for territorial lossSaudi pipeline attacked and dozens reported killed near Sanaa as Yemen war widensSteel plant blast in western Turkey kills at least 16Krakow gunman dies in hospital as Poland disputes motive and securityKirishi refinery burns as Russia hits Ukraine's grid and Dnipro bridgesFrance blames Iran's Revolutionary Guards for supermarket fridge hacksCOP31 opens in Antalya without US delegation as UN warns of record heatSand embankment collapse kills five as storm floods Gaza campsBrent falls to 10-week low as Trump plays down new Iran strikesTrump expects trilateral meeting with Xi and Putin at China summitAsian and European stocks rebound after AI selloff, but caution remainsFire in Taiyuan high-rise kills 14Nvidia opens board probe after CEO Huang admits affair with suspected Chinese agentHouse faces Hegseth impeachment vote as Trump shifts on deportationsChina extends tariff and export-control pauses on US as Shenzhen summit nearsSenegal boat sinking toll rises to at least 39 as Canaries declare migrant emergencyGreece recovers dead migrants off Crete as coast guard rescues more than 100 peopleLeaked Rosstat data suggests more than 400,000 Russians killed in UkraineANC posts worst local election result since 1994Norway's Statnett pauses new grid capacity for data centresFrance brings forward 1.6% minimum wage rise as unions call it insufficientParaguay raids ex-president Peña's mansion in Ueno Bank investigationMore than 50,000 displaced by deadly Ethiopia border clashesPressure grows on Egypt's transport minister after deadly train crashMerz threatens to block EU budget unless all members back Ukraine fundingNetanyahu and Eisenkot compete for coalition partners in IsraelUniCredit posts record profit and plans earlier Commerzbank-HVB mergerRace to succeed Lagarde at the ECB heats upEuropean power prices top €600 as wind output slumpsEbola trials start in Bunia as patients flee militant attackMexico arrests alleged senior Jalisco cartel leader 'R2'Novaya Gazeta closes, citing government clampdownKhor Mor gas field hit by renewed attacks in Iraqi KurdistanIsrael approves first 250 foreign troops for Gaza forcePope Leo presses Milei on economy as huge crowds gather in Buenos AiresOusted Bangladesh leader Hasina applies for new passport to return from exileChina's producer inflation hits four-year high as oil costs biteEU plans crackdown on addictive social media and AI chatbot features as Meta rolls out age checksCyprus leaders agree to open two new crossingsColombia's ombudsman warns of violence in southern Bolivar after army base attackAnthropic unveils new Fable and Mythos models as IPO waiting period expires
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Narrative thread · 6 events

West Bank settler siege

Symbolic image: West Bank settler siegeSymbolic image

Where things stand

Washington is pressing Benjamin Netanyahu to condemn the settlers besieging Palestinian families in Qusra, where the UN says about 15 people are trapped without water or electricity. He has not commented, days after Defence Minister Israel Katz shifted West Bank policing to the police.

The Al-Aqsa compound in Jerusalem's Old City, holy to Muslims and revered by Jews as the Temple Mount, is governed by long-standing arrangements known as the status quo, which regulate who may pray and visit there. Israel has controlled the site since 1967, while Arab states and Palestinians treat any change to those rules as a red line.

Timeline in detail

Sunday, 16 August 2026Geopolitics

US presses Netanyahu over settlers as Qusra homes are occupied

Washington is pressing Israel's prime minister to condemn settlers besieging Palestinian families in the West Bank village of Qusra. Benjamin Netanyahu has not commented.

Daily SabahJerusalem PostTehran Times

Saturday, 15 August 2026GeopoliticsIsrael to hand West Bank policing to police as Qusra siege holds

Israel to hand West Bank policing to police as Qusra siege holds

Israel's defence minister ordered the army on Friday to hand civilian law enforcement in the occupied West Bank to the police. Settlers have besieged Palestinian families in Qusra since Sunday.

The GuardianThe NationalDaily Sabah

Friday, 14 August 2026GeopoliticsIsraeli troops empty besieged Qusra homes, settlers stay put

Israeli troops empty besieged Qusra homes, settlers stay put

Israeli soldiers moved Palestinian families out of their besieged homes in Qusra in the occupied West Bank on Thursday, but the settlers blockading them since Sunday stayed.

The GuardianAl JazeeraLe MondeJerusalem Post

Thursday, 13 August 2026GeopoliticsSettlers hold Qusra siege as Israeli troops pull back

Settlers hold Qusra siege as Israeli troops pull back

Settlers have kept two Palestinian families trapped in their homes in the West Bank village of Qusra since Sunday. Israeli troops sent to lift the siege pulled back on Wednesday without ending it.

The GuardianThe NationalJerusalem PostJerusalem Post

Wednesday, 12 August 2026GeopoliticsPalestinians urge Security Council to act on West Bank settlements

Palestinians urge Security Council to act on West Bank settlements

Palestine's UN envoy asked the Security Council on Tuesday to enforce international law in the occupied West Bank. A UN official said settlement expansion must be treated as an emergency.

The NationalDaily SabahJerusalem PostTASS

Tuesday, 11 August 2026GeopoliticsArab states warn of eroding status quo at Al-Aqsa

Arab states warn of eroding status quo at Al-Aqsa

The Guardian reported on Monday that Jerusalem's Al-Aqsa compound has entered a new phase of confrontation, with Arab states and former Israeli officials warning that the long-standing arrangements at the site are being eroded. According to the newsletter, those critics accuse Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of complicity.