The Lebanese situation remains fraught amidst ongoing Israeli attacks in the south and a presidential deadlock. Governmentally, the Cabinet will convene on Thursday morning with a single agenda item regarding the Defense Ministry's request to enlist officer cadets at the military academy.
Regionally, the inferno of the Gaza war continues amidst despair for life and peace. Ahmed Al-Soufi, Mayor of Rafah, confirmed that over 50,000 citizens are trapped in Rafah neighborhoods without basic services due to "ongoing brutal aggression."
The Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza reported that more than 38,664 Palestinians have been killed and 89,097 others injured in the Israeli military campaign since October 7.
On the international front, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad stated, "If a meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan leads to results and serves the country's interest, I will proceed."
In the United States, former President Donald Trump, in an interview with the New York Post following an assassination attempt during a campaign rally in Pennsylvania, remarked, "I was supposed to be dead," describing the experience as "surreal."
In recent updates, U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas acknowledged the assassination attempt as a "security failure," promising an independent review to analyze its causes and provide recommendations to prevent recurrence.
The Kremlin announced that Russian President Vladimir Putin has not contacted Trump after the assassination attempt and has no plans to do so.
Elsewhere, the European Union extended sanctions on Iran for another year, citing allegations of "supporting Russia and destabilizing the Middle East and the Red Sea region," as stated in the EU Council's statement.
Following his visits to Kyiv, Moscow, Beijing, and Washington, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán presented EU leaders with his plan to settle the conflict in Ukraine, which includes "realistic goals and timelines."
Economically, the Central Bank of the United Arab Emirates saw a 12% increase in its gold reserves over four months, surpassing 20 billion dirhams (approximately 5.45 billion dollars) by the end of April this year.