Real-time News

According to Israel's i24 channel: The United Arab Emirates has erected a large metal protective fence around fuel storage tanks in Abu Dhabi to protect critical energy facilities from potential Iranian drone attacks.

Russian President Vladimir Putin: The global market will not face food shortages due to the issue of Ukrainian exports.

According to TASS, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Ukraine's crackdown on economic targets has opened "Pandora's box".

On August 22, French President Emmanuel Macron announced that he had spoken with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy by phone and that France would further strengthen its military support for Ukraine, including providing interceptor missiles. Macron stated that France would also continue its cooperation with Ukraine in the field of air defense and missile defense. He did not disclose the specific type, quantity, or delivery time of the interceptor missiles to be provided. Zelenskyy said the two leaders spoke for nearly two hours, and Macron agreed to assist Ukraine in contacting partner countries possessing missiles compatible with the Patriot air defense system and to coordinate the provision of air defense supplies to Ukraine.

On August 22, Israeli Defense Minister Katz issued a statement regarding the Israeli airstrike on the Abdul-Hur airbase in Syria. He stated that according to intelligence intercepted by the Israeli military, Turkey was attempting to conduct activities at the base that endangered Israel's national security, and the Israeli military had repeatedly recommended to higher authorities that the base be targeted. After consultations with Israeli military and other security officials, Katz and Prime Minister Netanyahu decided to first take deterrent measures. They issued direct warnings to senior Syrian officials and shared relevant intelligence with US officials. Since Syria ultimately failed to heed the warnings, Katz and Netanyahu formally authorized the airstrike. Turkey has not yet responded.

According to Saudi media Hadas, military sources said that the Yemeni National Resistance Navy destroyed a Houthi speedboat loaded with explosives in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

Axios, citing U.S. officials, reported that approximately 16 million barrels of oil left the Strait of Hormuz via the southern shipping lane on Friday night.

August 22nd - Analysts say US President Trump is attempting to achieve what tens of thousands of bombs and missiles failed to do: force Iran to end the war according to US conditions by imposing a new round of sanctions, a naval blockade, and increased economic pressure on Iran's trading partners. However, this old approach of "forcing Iran to submit" has a fatal flaw: Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has effectively controlled the Strait of Hormuz and has repeatedly launched large numbers of attack drones towards the Persian Gulf. The Revolutionary Guard is largely immune to economic pressure and has ample means of retaliation. A key turning point in this round of US action is Monday, when Treasury Secretary Bessant will announce details of a new plan. This plan aims to shift the conflict from mutual airstrikes in the Middle East to comprehensive economic isolation. However, if the new economic pressure proves effective, Iran is likely to retaliate with military strikes, targeting energy facilities along the Persian Gulf coast, attempting to drive up oil prices, increase the cost of US action, and force Trump to change course again.

According to Fox News, U.S. Trade Representative Greer stated that there are no plans for new negotiations with Canada.

Ukrainian President Zelenskyy: He discussed the air defense shortage with French President Macron, and Macron agreed to expedite the delivery of the latest French equipment.

Syrian Foreign Ministry: Israel’s continued attacks have exacerbated tensions and instability.

The Syrian Foreign Ministry stated that Israel's attack on Beitkin, a suburb of Damascus, constituted a violation of national sovereignty.

Syrian Foreign Ministry: We condemn the attack by Israeli occupying forces on a civilian vehicle in Beitkin, a suburb of Damascus, which resulted in civilian injuries.

August 22nd - According to Iranian sources, during Iranian Parliament Speaker Qassem Ghalibaf's visit to Iraq, Iraq requested special passage permits for Iraqi oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz. It is understood that Iraq had previously made this request to Iran through various channels multiple times, and Iran currently allows some Iraqi oil tankers to pass through the Strait of Hormuz.

According to Saudi media Hadas, Israel conducted airstrikes between the towns of Salbin and Rashaf in southern Lebanon.

French President Macron: France will provide interceptor missiles to Ukraine.

August 22 - According to Shana, the official website of the Iranian Ministry of Oil, 70% of the repair work on the South Pars Phase 14 natural gas refinery, which was attacked by Israel last June, has been completed. Touraj Dehqani, CEO of Pars Oil and Gas Company, stated that the refinery will be fully operational by the end of this year, and the damaged sections will be fully integrated into the production cycle.

On August 22, according to Iran's Mehr News Agency, Iranian Defense Ministry spokesman Reza Tarai-nik stated in an interview with Iranian state television that Iran's weapons and defense equipment production has doubled in the past year. Tarai-nik said that after the 12-day conflict with the US and Israel last June, Iran's overall weapons and defense equipment production doubled, with some strategic equipment prioritized for wartime deployment seeing production more than triple. This directly contradicts claims made by US and Israeli leaders that "Iranian defense production will stagnate."

On August 22nd, the Hengqin Guangdong-Macao In-Depth Cooperation Zone achieved a milestone in its departure tax refund business—completing over 1,000 tax refund transactions and driving over 7.3 million yuan in inbound shopping spending, injecting new momentum into the integrated consumption of Hengqin and Macao. Since the official opening of the Hengqin Port departure tax refund service point on July 1st this year, the Cooperation Zone has fully leveraged its geographical advantage of being adjacent to Macao, actively implemented the national departure tax refund 2.0 policy, and launched a series of "low-threshold, high-efficiency, and intelligent" service measures. To date, over 100 departure tax refund shops have been registered in Hengqin and Zhuhai, covering diverse business formats such as digital products, apparel and department stores, and cultural and creative products. Overseas tourists can apply for a tax refund for a single purchase of 200 yuan or more, effectively stimulating inbound consumption.

On August 22, Bulgarian Defense Minister Stoyanov told the media that the US KC-135 tanker aircraft formerly stationed at Bezmer Air Base in Bulgaria had left on August 21. Stoyanov further explained that the US tanker aircraft primarily conducted training activities during their deployment in Bulgaria and did not leave NATO airspace. On July 22, the Bulgarian parliament approved the deployment of eight US KC-135 tanker aircraft and 250 US military personnel to Bezmer Air Base in eastern Bulgaria until October 1.