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Middle East conflict

Hamas to face 'gates of hell' in Gaza until it accepts Israel’s terms — defense minister

Israel Katz also announced that the authorities had approved the Israel Defense Forces’ operational plan against Hamas in Gaza

© Khasan Alzaanin/TASS

TEL AVIV, August 22. /TASS/. The "gates of hell" will open for the Palestinian radical movement Hamas in Gaza and will remain open until the radicals accept Israel's conditions and release all hostages, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said.

"Soon, the gates of hell will open over the heads of the murderers and rapists of Hamas in Gaza [and will remain open] until they agree to Israel's terms for ending the war, the main ones being the release of all hostages and disarmament," he wrote on his X page, commenting on the Israeli decision to approve army plans to crush the radical movement in Gaza.

"If they [Hamas] do not comply, Gaza, the capital of Hamas, will become Rafah and Beit Hanoun (cities where Israeli military operations have already been carried out - TASS)," Katz added.

The defense minister also announced that the authorities had approved the Israel Defense Forces’ operational plan against Hamas in Gaza. "We have approved the IDF's plan to defeat Hamas in Gaza with intensive fire, evacuation of residents, and ground maneuvers," Katz stated.

IDF plan for Gaza

On August 21, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in the Gaza Strip, where he recorded a video statement announcing that he was there to approve the army's plan for Gaza. Netanyahu also said that he had instructed his team to begin negotiations immediately on the release of all hostages and the end of the war in Gaza on terms acceptable to Israel. According to Netanyahu, defeating Hamas and freeing all hostages will happen simultaneously.

On August 20, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz approved a plan to capture Gaza City. According to the Kan state broadcaster, the operation was codenamed "Gideon's Chariots II."

Middle East conflict

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World Athletics chief Coe immovable on reinstating Russia to int'l competition

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Russia rescued Ukrainians abandoned by Kiev in Sumy Region — human rights commissioner

Russian troops brought them to a safe place in Belgorod

Due to raids in Ukrainian parliament, less than 30 deputies present during session

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Kupyansk under control of Battlegroup West — Russian defense ministry

TASS has compiled the main information about the situation in the special military operation zone over the past 24 hours

Liberation of Gulyaipole opens good prospects for offensive — Putin

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Russian detained in Donetsk for inciting murder of military personnel, strikes on Moscow

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Russia’s naval nuclear forces fully modernized, says Navy Chief

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Poll reveals Soviet Union’s most outstanding achievement according to Russians

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Russian troops liberate eight communities in Ukraine operation over week — top brass

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Russia supplies another batch of Su-30SM2 fighters to Belarus — Defense Ministry

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Putin expects next decade to bring unprecedented breakthrough in technology

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West's policy on Ukraine rules out peaceful coexistence with Russia — German expert

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Air defense forces shoot down 83 Ukrainian drones over Russian regions in two hours

48 of them were destroyed over the Bryansk Region

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According to its information, Dion passed away on December 26 in a hospital

West has been using fakes for centuries to justify attacks on Russia — Swiss MP

Guy Mettan explained that the earliest fabricated document accusing Russia of seeking to conquer the West and establish European hegemony was the so-called last will and testament of Peter the Great

Over 200,000 personnel desert from Ukrainian army in 2025

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Russia will achieve all military operation goals by force if Kiev rejects peace — Putin

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Russia open to contacts, but Europe is not interested in that — senior Russian diplomat

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Trump says Zelensky’s peace plan means nothing without his approval — Politico

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Russia creates powdered Ebola vaccine for convenient transportation

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Air defenses destroy 43 Ukrainian UAVs over Russian regions within three-hour period

15 of them were destroyed over the Rostov Region

US currently has no plans to recognize Somaliland — Trump

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Trump sees good chance for resolving Ukrainian conflict

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German customs involved in legal arbitrariness against Russians — Foreign Ministry

According to Maria Zakharova, Germany has de facto been turned into a territory of lawlessness for people of a certain nationality, in this case, citizens of Russia

Russian troops liberate Svyato-Pokrovskoye community in Donetsk region over past day

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Updated US National Security Strategy questions for first time NATO’s expansion — Lavrov

According to Sergey Lavrov, one thing worth mentioning is the fact that the strategy does not contain any calls to subject Russia to a system-wide containment and deterrence policy

African Union condemns Israel’s recognition of Somaliland

"The Chairperson of the Commission reiterates the African Union’s unwavering commitment to the unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of Somalia," Chairperson of the African Union Commission Mahmoud Ali Youssouf said

Zelensky to call referendum for Trump’s plan if he is not satisfied — Axios

Vladimir Zelensky plans to agree on a framework agreement with the US leader to end the conflict

Cambodia, China, Thailand to discuss settlement of Thai-Cambodian conflict — Thai MFA

On December 27, Thailand and Cambodia have signed an agreement to establish a ceasefire in the border conflict zone, reaffirming their determination to return to dialogue through previously reached agreements with the aim of resolving the border conflict

Those who expect to defeat Russia in open conflict deeply mistaken — senior diplomat

According to Sergey Ryabkov, politicians who make such statements are either forgetting or deliberately pretending not to notice that it is nothing but an attempt to defeat a nuclear power

Politico awards anti-prizes to Sarkozy, Trump, von der Leyen for 2025

In addition to them, the Titanic award "for grand ideas that fail" went to the Italian bridge project intended to connect Sicily to the mainland

Japanese MP, who visits Moscow, notes Russia’s might

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France looks to reinforce Kiev’s army with four PMCs — Russian administration in Kharkov

Recruitment offices for the four PMCs will be established in nine French cities

Risk of nuclear conflict not eliminated, Russia ready to negotiate — senior diplomat

Sergey Ryabkov said that contacts with the US now intensified, "there is a businesslike, substantive conversation, but great efforts are needed to move further away from this edge"

Group of mercenaries from Ukrainian National Guard wiped out Kharkov Region

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Russia ready for further work with US to devise agreements on Ukraine — Lavrov

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Russia can receive unlimited number of Indian specialists — first deputy PM

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European leaders, Zelensky, Trump to hold phone call on December 27 — Reuters

According to his information, the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will also take part in the discussion

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Moscow calls detention of Russia’s Adler vessel by Sweden 'farce majeure'

Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Sweden should apologize for the incident

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DPRK leader sends New Year greetings to Russian president — KCNA

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"Somaliland welcomes and appreciates Israel’s historic and principled decision to recognize its sovereignty and independence," the self-proclaimed republic said in a statement

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Guy Mettan argues that Europeans have failed to recognize that they have lost their soft power worldwide

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Ruble becomes strongest-performing currency in 2025 — Bloomberg

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Russia-US agree to maintain dialogue on Ukraine after Dmitriev’s trip to Miami — Kremlin

Negotiations on the Ukrainian settlement took place in Miami on December 20 and 21

Ukrainian anti-corruption agencies announce exposure of criminal group in parliament

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Silver price hits record high

By 1:14 a.m. GMT, the value of silver accelerated its growth to $75.235 per troy ounce

Deployment of Oreshnik was response to West’s aggressive moves — Belarus' defense minister

Only time will reveal how this will influence the broader situation, Viktor Khrenin added

All car plants left by foreigners to be launched by summer 2026 — First Deputy PM

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Belarus designates combat patrol areas for Oreshnik missiles — senior military official

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Eight Tu-214 aircraft may be produced in 2026, 12 in 2027, industry minister says

Anton Alikhanov emphasized that current efforts and ongoing work provide confidence in meeting the 20-aircraft annual production goal by the end of 2027

Press review: Kiev's Western support weakens as experts weigh in on Putin’s Q&A statements

Top stories from the Russian press on Monday, December 22nd

Gazprom highlights challenges with gas supplies in the Baltics

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Russian Army firmly holds strategic initiative on frontline — Lavrov

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Zelensky says US has proposed 15-year settlement agreements

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West uses sanctions to cling to fading dominance — Russian diplomat

Maria Zakharova emphasized that unilateral coercive measures represent a serious obstacle to establishing a just and equitable multipolar world order

Rutte pushes back against idea that EU can only rely on itself for defense

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Russian forces destroy company of Ukrainian soldiers by FAB bomb in Dnepropetrovsk area

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Russia develops Yunost-82 unmanned sub able to circumnavigate the globe

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Trump threatens Democrats with 'last Christmas' in light of Epstein case

The US leader also noted that Democrats will "have a lot of explaining to do" when their involvement in US financier scandal becomes known

Ukrainian army pulls forces toward key cities in Donbass — DPR official

Igor Kimakovsky noted that the Ukrainian military was building fortifications and preparing a line of defense in these areas

Russia terminates agreement on cross-border cooperation with Finland — decree

The Russian Foreign Ministry has been instructed to notify the other party of the decision

Trump-Zelensky meeting unlikely to achieve breakthrough in Kiev's favor — German expert

Neumann believes that the meeting could be deemed successful if Zelensky manages to communicate to Trump the extent to which Ukraine is willing to make concessions

Russia recognizes Karabakh as Azerbaijani territory — MFA spokeswoman

Vladimir Medinsky "commented exclusively on the tragedy around the armed conflict," Maria Zakharova emphasized as she cautioned against "pulling out non-existent messages or recombining words"

Russia will be able to offer domestically developed aircraft systems to the global market

"We have elevated these complex avionics to a competitive, global standard, enabling us to offer them to international customers," Alikhanov explained

Russia’s destroyer Vice Admiral Kulakov returns to base after long-distance voyage

The fleet specified that Rear Admiral Oleg Gladky, Chief of Staff of the Kola Flotilla of the Northern Fleet Joint Strategic Command, received a report on the successful accomplishment by the warship crew of the assigned mission

Zvezda correspondent Nikita Goldin seriously wounded, he was with deceased journalists

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Ukrainian government may declassify data on uranium reserves

"At this point, only the information on uranium and uranium ore reserves remains classified," the head of Ukraine’s National Extractive Industries Association of Ukraine, Ksenia Orinchak, said

Russia still stands for establishment of Palestinian State — Lavrov

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov stressed that the main thing here is to remedy the historical injustice and provide for establishing a viable Palestinian State, which would coexist with Israel

Zelensky’s regime not ready to engage in constructive talks — Lavrov

Russian Foreign Minister emphasized that Kiev's regime terrorizes civilians by targeting civilian infrastructure

Liberation of Gulyaipole and Dimitrov: Putin's statements at meeting with Gerasimov

The Russian leader also pointed out that the establishment of a buffer zone on the Russian-Ukrainian border is proceeding well

Voting begins in parliamentary elections in Cote d'Ivoire

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Press review: Zelensky peace plan is no-go for Russia and Trump puts on peacemaker hat

Top stories from the Russian press on Thursday, December 25th

Trump administration recalls heads of nearly 30 foreign diplomatic missions — news agency

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West’s eyes are 'wide shut' to corruption scandals in Kiev, says Lavrov

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Artemiev beats Carlsen, leads World Rapid Championship

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Trump says he expects to speak with Putin soon

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Russia plans to upgrade nuclear triad through 2036 — Kremlin

The state arms program is a long-term planning document that stipulates developing, producing and maintaining the combat readiness of armaments, military and special equipment