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US military prepared to look at all options for Gaza, US defense secretary says
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Wednesday the Pentagon was prepared to look at all options for Gaza, a day after President Donald Trump said he would like the U.S. to take control of and redevelop the Gaza Strip.
“On the question of Gaza, the definition of insanity is attempting to do the same thing over and over and over again,” Hegseth said before the start of his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the Pentagon, Reuters reported.
“The president is willing to think outside the box, look for new and unique, dynamic ways to solve problems that have felt like they were intractable … We’re prepared to look at all options,” Hegseth added.
The White House said earlier on Wednesday that Trump has not committed to putting U.S. troops in the Gaza Strip as part of his proposal for a U.S. takeover of the Palestinian enclave.
Trump’s idea prompted international condemnation and some dissent from Republicans in Congress, who have largely fallen in line behind Trump’s initiatives such as pausing foreign aid and eliminating thousands of federal workers.
It was unclear whether Trump would proceed with his proposal or was taking an extreme position as a bargaining strategy, as he has done on other issues.
Hegseth said the Pentagon would strive to supply weapons to Israel that “were previously not supplied, that are useful in eradicating radical enemies.”
Trump has instructed the U.S. military to release a hold imposed by Democratic former President Joe Biden on the supply of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel.
One 2,000-pound bomb can rip through thick concrete and metal, creating a wide blast radius. Reuters reported last year that the Biden administration had sent thousands of 2,000-pound bombs to Israel after the Oct. 7, 2023, attack by Palestinian Hamas militants from Gaza but had put a hold on one shipment.
United Arab Emirates President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan arrived in Islamabad on Friday on his first official visit to Pakistan, at the invitation of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, Geo News reported.
He was received by Prime Minister Sharif and senior officials, with his aircraft escorted by Pakistan Air Force jets upon entering Pakistani airspace. The UAE president is accompanied by a high-level delegation.
According to Pakistan’s Foreign Office, the visit aims to review bilateral relations and discuss regional and international issues of mutual interest.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has signaled that the country will continue developing missiles over the next five years, following visits to major munitions enterprises in the last quarter of 2025, state media KCNA reported on Friday.
Kim said the country’s missile and shell production sector is “of paramount importance in bolstering war deterrence,” according to KCNA.
The report said Kim ratified draft documents on the modernization of key munitions enterprises, which will be submitted to a major ruling party congress expected to be held in early 2026. The congress is set to outline North Korea’s development plan for the next five years.
KCNA’s report follows Thursday’s disclosure that Kim oversaw the construction of an 8,700-ton nuclear-powered submarine alongside his daughter, widely seen as a potential successor, as well as the test-firing of long-range surface-to-air missiles.
Turkish authorities have detained 115 suspected Daesh members they said were planning to carry out attacks on Christmas and New Year celebrations in the country, the Istanbul chief prosecutor’s office said on Thursday.
Istanbul Police obtained information that Daesh members had planned attacks in Turkey, against non-Muslims in particular, during Christmas and New Year celebrations, the prosecutor’s office posted on X, Reuters reported.
The police raided 124 places in Istanbul, capturing 115 of the 137 suspects they were seeking, the statement said. Several pistols and ammunition were seized, it said.
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