Amos Hochstein

Israel is reportedly moving closer to a potential ceasefire agreement with Hezbollah in Lebanon, according to reports by Reuters and Axios, which cited a senior Israeli official. However, Israel's public broadcaster Kan, quoting another Israeli official, reported that no final agreement had been reached, with some issues still unresolved.

Hezbollah's leader delivered a defiant speech on Wednesday, saying Israel cannot impose conditions for a truce in Lebanon, as visiting U.S. envoy Amos Hochstein headed to Israel to try to negotiate an end to the war.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar, in a near-simultaneous statement, said any ceasefire deal must ensure Israel still has the "freedom to act" against Hezbollah.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken on the sidelines of the G20 conference in Rio de Janeiro, underscoring the importance of Türkiye's role in advancing diplomatic solutions to pressing regional conflicts.

At least 10 strikes hit Beirut's southern suburbs early Friday, after the Israeli army issued orders for buildings in the Hezbollah stronghold to be evacuated.

The strikes come a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met visiting U.S. officials to discuss a possible deal to end the war in Lebanon with the death toll mounting on both sides of the border.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a security council meeting at 20:00 today, gathering his cabinet ministers and intelligence chiefs to discuss diplomatic efforts for a resolution to the conflict in Lebanon, reported Axios journalist Barak Ravid on X, citing two sources and Israeli med

Expert Michael Rubin, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and former Pentagon official, joins Thanos Davelis to break down why Biden administration officials like Amos Hochstein, who are encouraging Iraqi Kurds to sell oil to Turkey, are doing not only Iraq, but Iraqi Kurds and US interests from the Middle East to the Eastern Mediterranean a disservice.

Two Saudi officials told The Associated Press the Saudi energy minister informed the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, or OPEC, of the kingdom's commitment to the group's current roadmap of cautious monthly  increases. They spoke anonymously because they were not authorized to brief journalists.

The amount of oil smuggled into Turkey from areas of Syria controlled by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) is economically insignificant, the United States said on Dec. 4, after Moscow accused Ankara of profiting from the trade.

The U.S. has adjusted its policy in the campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), turning its focus on targets, including energy infrastructure facilities, that are more difficult to replace, U.S. Special Envoy and Coordinator for International Energy Affairs Amos Hochstein has said.