Randomized trial finds Transcendental Meditation improves happiness, resilience and self-efficacy in rural Lebanese women

Three months of TM practice significantly reduced perceived stress among women living amid ongoing social, economic and environmental pressures

Maharishi International University

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Three-month changes in resilience, happiness, self-efficacy, and perceived stress among women practicing Transcendental Meditation (TM; blue) and women in the control group (red). Bars show mean change from baseline, including standard errors within parentheses. Compared with the control group, the TM group showed significantly greater improvements in all four measures after three months (p ≤ .001).

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Credit: Maharishi International University

A randomized controlled trial of rural Lebanese women found that three months of Transcendental Meditation practice significantly increased happiness, resilience and self-efficacy while reducing perceived stress, according to research published in the peer-reviewed journal Women's Health. 

The study included 114 women from approximately 20 villages in Lebanon's Chouf region, an area where residents have faced continuing economic instability, political unrest and environmental challenges. Researchers from Maharishi International University in Fairfield, Iowa randomly assigned participants either to learn the Transcendental Meditation technique or to an active control group that received weekly videos on self-development and well-being. 

After three months, the women practicing Transcendental Meditation showed significantly greater improvements than the control group on all four measures assessed by the researchers: happiness, resilience, self-efficacy and perceived stress. The differences between groups were statistically significant at p ≤ .001 for each measure. 

“This is a significant study considering the methods: a randomized controlled trial with 140 subjects, and the findings of statistically significant changes in every measure. This is very encouraging because it shows the women improved across several dimensions of psychological well-being at the same time,” said Marie Loiselle, PhD, principal investigator and researcher in the Department of Maharishi Vedic Science at Maharishi International University. “The results suggest that Transcendental Meditation may offer these women an additional way to cope with the significant pressures they face in daily life.” 

Happiness showed the largest change 

Happiness showed the largest change among the four measures. Women in the Transcendental Meditation group reported increases in happiness at both one and three months. In contrast, the control group showed a small improvement at one month followed by a marked decrease at three months. 

The researchers also found that self-efficacy and perceived stress were significantly related to levels of happiness. In their statistical model, self-efficacy entered as the strongest predictor, followed by perceived stress; together, the two variables accounted for 42% of the variance in happiness. 

Self-efficacy refers to a person's perception of their ability to achieve desired results through their own actions. The researchers found that self-efficacy increased in the Transcendental Meditation group while decreasing in the control group after three months. 

High adherence to the practice 

Participants were encouraged to practice Transcendental Meditation for 20 minutes twice a day. Adherence was high: 60% reported practicing twice a day every day or most days, 18% practiced once a day, and 20% practiced irregularly. No harmful events related to participation were reported. 

The study's randomized controlled design included an active control condition, allowing researchers to compare the effects of learning Transcendental Meditation with participation in another structured activity focused on self-development and well-being. 

“The improvements in self-efficacy and reductions in perceived stress are particularly important because both were related to happiness in our analysis,” said Frederick Travis, PhD, statistician and senior advisor on the study. “These findings provide a basis for further research into approaches that may help people cope with persistent environmental stress.” 

A population facing chronic stress 

The study focused on women in Lebanon's Chouf region. The researchers note that women in Lebanon can face multiple sources of stress, including economic instability, political unrest, environmental problems and gender inequality. Previous research has also identified cultural and social barriers that may discourage some people from seeking professional help for stress and related psychological difficulties. 

The research was conducted in collaboration with the Ladies Foundation for Pure Knowledge, which was nearing the end of a project to teach Transcendental Meditation to approximately 1,000 women in the Chouf region. The organization approached the researchers to investigate whether the practice was producing measurable benefits among the women learning the practice. Susan Hamza, the foundation’s director, reflected on the project, “So many of the participants told me their life had been transformed in many ways that words could not even begin to describe it. We are deeply grateful for all those who were involved in realizing this project.” 

Further research needed 

The researchers emphasize that the findings require confirmation through larger and longer studies. Of the 114 women who enrolled, 83 completed both posttests, and participants were followed for three months. The researchers recommend future studies with six- or 12-month follow-up periods and larger populations in Lebanon and potentially elsewhere in the Middle East. 

The study was approved by the Maharishi International University Research Institute Review Board and registered with the U.S. Clinical Trials Registry (NCT05836129). Funding was provided by the Ladies Foundation of Pure Knowledge in Lebanon and individual donors. The authors reported no potential conflicts of interest. 

About the study 

The study, Improving happiness, resilience, and self-efficacy while reducing stress for rural Lebanese women using the Transcendental Meditation practice: A randomized controlled trial, was authored by Marie Loiselle, PhD, and Frederick Travis, PhD, of Maharishi International University and published in Women's Health in 2026. 

About the Transcendental Meditation Technique

Transcendental Meditation is a simple, natural technique practiced 20 minutes twice each day while sitting comfortably with the eyes closed. It is easily learned, and is not a religion, philosophy, or lifestyle. It does not involve concentration, control of the mind, contemplation, or monitoring of thoughts or breathing. The practice allows the active thinking mind to settle down to a state of inner calm. For more information visit www.tm.org

Some of the Lebanese women from approximately 20 villages in Lebanon's Chouf region, an area where residents have faced continuing economic instability, political unrest and environmental challenges. After three months, the women practicing Transcendental Meditation showed significantly greater improvements than the control group on all four measures assessed by the researchers: happiness, resilience, self-efficacy and perceived stress.

Credit

Ladies Foundation of Pure Knowledge in Lebanon

---

DOI

10.1177/17455057261479602

Method of Research

Randomized controlled/clinical trial

Subject of Research

People

Article Title

Improving happiness, resilience, and self-efficacy while reducing stress for rural Lebanese women using the Transcendental Meditation practice: A randomized controlled trial

 

Iran Says It Offered the US a New Proposal to Open the Strait of Hormuz

Iran reports it gave mediators a new proposal for open the Strait of Hormuz after a week in which it struck at least four vessels (Oman Maritime Security Center)

Published Sep 25, 2026 8:02 PM by The Maritime Executive

Iranian officials appearing at the United Nations on Friday, September 25, said they have offered a new proposal for opening the Strait of Hormuz in a week’s time. They said it all depends on the U.S. response to the proposal, which was reportedly conveyed by mediators from Qatar.

The core of the proposal appears little changed from the previous interim agreement and terms that have been repeatedly presented and then violated. Iran set as the key conditions the lifting of the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports and embargo on Iranian shipping, waiving the sanctions on Iranian oil sales, and observing a ceasefire with Iran that would also include Lebanon. 

The reports indicated that, as a “sweetener” or “enticement,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said Iran would restart talks with the U.S. on its military program, seven days after the agreement is accepted. Reuters, however, is quoting another “senior Iranian official” who it says indicated on Friday that Iran would show no flexibility over its nuclear program even if the United States accepts its proposal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

Today’s message came, Reuters reports, after Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian told the media at the UN on Thursday that he hoped a deal to end the hostilities could be reached before the US midterm elections on November 3. Donald Trump has said in the past that he thinks a deal will be reached after the elections and that Iran was waiting to see the outcome of the vote.

There was no immediate response from the White House to the Iranian comments, but it said earlier in the week that U.S. officials had positive and constructive conversations with mediators on the Iran war. The Associated Press is citing Saudi Arabian officials who said they were “skeptical of the latest push for a deal.”

Trump had used harsh words after the collapse of the June deal, saying Iran did not respect its agreements and that he accused it of prolonging the discussions and wasting time. He has said he was skeptical that an agreement would be honored and, in his speech to the United Nations this week, threatened Iran with “annihilation.” 

The administration continues to insist the Strait of Hormuz is open despite at least four vessels being struck in the past few days. At least two were reported on fire and abandoned, with casualties among the crew. U.S. Central Command on Friday also reported that it has redirected 122 commercial vessels to ensure strict compliance with the blockade.

Exact numbers on the number of passages are hard to confirm, as most vessels are currently turning off AIS transmission for a “dark” passage. However, Reuters, citing data from Kpler, said crude oil flows out of the Strait of Hormuz so far this week reached 33.7 million barrels, versus a total of 49.2 million barrels of crude for the full period last week. It is also citing a consistent trickle of vessels, which remains below last year's levels. Bloomberg is also reporting that Qatar increased LNG shipments, reaching the highest tanker traffic through the Strait in more than two months.

Iran’s so-called Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) continues to assert that it is responsible for the safe, secure, efficient, and coordinated passage of vessels navigating through the Strait of Hormuz. It says vessels must seek its approval and that it is ensuring compliance with national and international maritime regulations. Although it did not announce it, its non-compliant list has been expanded to a total of 81 vessels that it says are violating Iranian protocols for the Strait of Hormuz and shall face restrictions on future passages, including fines, detention, or confiscation.

The International Maritime Organization now lists 85 confirmed incidents as of September 24. It says there are 24 confirmed seafarer fatalities, although there is no accurate count of the number of seafarers injured or who remain trapped in the Persian Gulf.

France to send military to protect Saudi Arabia on Red Sea oil route

France will send troops and defence systems to Saudi Arabia to help protect the Red Sea port city of Yanbu, which is key for energy transport, French President Emmanuel Macron has said in a TV interview. He also denied a report by Spanish newspaper El Mundo that the US Central Intelligence Agency had warned European governments of possible Russian drone attacks from the Mediterranean.


Issued on: 25/09/2026 - RFI

"The situation is serious", President Emmanuel Macron said in an live interview on Thursday on the international situation. © LUDOVIC MARIN / AFP

"We are going to send military resources, that is to say, soldiers, radar systems and defence systems, to protect this site – not to get us involved in any conflicts, but to protect this site," Macron told TF1 and France 2 on Thursday in a wide-ranging primetime interview on the international situation.

Crude oil prices have surged recently as the main alternative route for Saudi oil exports through Yanbu has come under missile attacks from Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis.

Facing growing pressure at home over high fuel prices, Macron sought to reassure the French people that France has adequate gas and oil supplies as winter approaches.

He said Paris was actively working to ensure flows were not disrupted.


On the subject of a 90-day US ban on diesel exports, under consideration by the White House but which Washington denies, the president said it would be "catastrophic" both globally and for the US economy.

“I think all the experts around [President Donald Trump] and all the American refiners can only tell him the same thing: 'this decision would be a bad one – not just for the rest of the world, but for the US economy as well'," he said

No CIA warning

President Macron also talked about possible Russian attacks on French soil.

He denied a report in Spanish newspaper El Mundo that the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) had warned European governments about the threat of potential drone attacks from the Mediterranean.

"I can deny it. The CIA did not inform French services," he said.

Macron nonetheless said Russia is multiplying its hostile and criminal acts against European countries, and France could face strikes similar to the failed attack in Leipzig airport in August, which Germany has blamed on Russia.


Growing Russian threat

Macron gathered French party chiefs at the Elysée last week to brief them on the growing threat from Russia. He later said he had ordered his government to draw up a plan to protect critical infrastructure against drone and cyber attacks.

Macron said Moscow was seeking to intimidate Europe and break the continent's resolve in supporting Ukraine.

On Monday , rance's interior minister said the hybrid warfare threat being waged by Russia is "real and documented".

Russia says European allegations of hybrid attacks are baseless and the result of anti-Russian hysteria.

Macron's position on Russia was weakened this week after France persuaded EU members to get Russian-Uzbek metals tycoon Alisher Usmanov exempted from EU sanctions, citing national security concerns.

That prompted Azerbaijan to pardon a French national jailed for espionage.

What Washington’s Defense Pledge To Saudi Arabia Means As Houthi Attacks Intensify – Analysis

SWEET FUCK ALL!


September 25, 2026
Arab News
By Gabriele Malvisi

Key Takeaways:

Gulf Research Center chair Abdulaziz Sager tells Arab News that Rubio’s Wednesday pledge to honor the Nov. 2025 U.S.–Saudi Strategic Defense Agreement will be judged on kit, operational know-how, and intel—not an automatic U.S. fight on Riyadh’s behalf.

 Coalition spokesman Maj. Gen. Turki Al-Maliki: six ballistic missiles toward Taif and Yanbu intercepted Thursday; Houthis claimed strikes on Jazan sites without evidence.

Sager wants planning help, timely imagery, and treating Hormuz and Bab al-Mandeb as one problem. Chatham House’s Neil Quilliam calls Rubio’s line a “sop”: reassurance without promising intervention if the waterways worsen. Tests he names: a major strike on energy/civilians, or a lasting Red Sea shipping campaign. 

CENTCOM’s Adm. Cooper (May): 6,000+ drones and 1,500+ ballistic missiles intercepted since the Feb. 28 war began; an Arab News tally had GCC states taking 83% of early Iranian missiles/drones vs. 17% at Israel.

Sept. 8–19: reported hits and intercepts from energy sites to Riyadh; East–West pipeline shut Sept. 11 (Saudi blame on Iraqi militias), restart reported this week. July civilian nuclear cooperation deal is background. Quilliam: “America First” and Gulf self-help.

From the perspective of Saudi Arabia, the value of Washington’s renewed defense assurances will lie in the support they deliver as Houthi attacks intensify, according to Abdulaziz Sager, founder and chairperson of the Gulf Research Center.

“For Riyadh, that support rests on three areas: military equipment, operational expertise and intelligence,” he told Arab News.

A partnership intended to strengthen deterrence is now being tested by attacks on Saudi territory and threats to the waterways on which regional trade depends. The immediate question, Sager said, was how Washington would put its commitments into practice.

On Thursday, the Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen said Saudi air defenses had intercepted six ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis toward Taif and Yanbu. Damage or casualties were not immediately clear, Reuters reported.

“Escalations and violations by the terrorist Houthi militia will be dealt with firmly,” the coalition’s spokesperson, Maj. Gen. Turki Al-Maliki, said.

The Houthis separately claimed, without providing evidence, that they had used missiles and drones to attack military sites in Jazan.

The latest developments followed an assurance from US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Wednesday that Washington would honor its defense commitments to Saudi Arabia, and was closely monitoring the regional situation.


“We have a very strong defense agreement with Saudi Arabia, and we will live up to our commitments in that agreement,” Rubio said when asked whether President Donald Trump was prepared to take further action against the Houthis.

Rubio declined to specify what further military action Trump might take, while reiterating Washington’s commitments to Riyadh.

“The US has made commitments to them. We will live up to those commitments. We are living up to those commitments now,” he said, adding that Trump had “many options available” without specifying what they might be.

The distinction between practical defense assistance and direct US intervention is central to understanding that pledge, Sager said.

“Rubio’s remarks should be understood as a commitment to continue the defense support Saudi Arabia expects from the US, rather than a promise that American forces would fight on its behalf,” he explained.

The US-Saudi Strategic Defense Agreement, signed in November 2025, built on more than eight decades of defense cooperation. The White House described its aims as a strengthening of the partnership, and reinforced deterrence across the Middle East.

According to Sager, the immediate question was not whether Washington would honor the agreement, but how it would do so, particularly in terms of strengthening readiness and coordinating defense capabilities.

“Saudi Arabia would expect assistance with planning and identifying threats, alongside timely intelligence and satellite imagery to help it defend its territory and critical infrastructure,” he said.


“Rubio’s words offer reassurance on those practical forms of cooperation, but they leave open the question of whether Washington would take a direct military role if the crises in the Strait of Hormuz and the Red Sea escalate.”

Neil Quilliam, an associate fellow with the Middle East and North Africa Programme at Chatham House, offered a slightly different reading of the scope of Washington’s assurances.

“Rubio’s remarks were essentially a sop to Riyadh, offering reassurance without removing the ambiguity that surrounds US support for Saudi Arabia,” he told Arab News.

“He reaffirmed Washington’s commitment to the 2025 defense agreement, but avoided any promise of automatic military intervention should the Strait of Hormuz and Red Sea crises intensify.”

Those questions have become more pressing as the war with Iran increasingly places Gulf states under sustained security and economic pressure, despite their efforts to contain the conflict through diplomacy.

The scale of the pressure was apparent even early in the war. An Arab News analysis published on March 26 found that Gulf Cooperation Council member states had faced 83 percent of the Iranian missile and drone attacks tallied since the conflict began on Feb. 28, compared with 17 percent directed at Israel.

The defensive response has also been substantial. Adm. Brad Cooper, commander of US Central Command, told Congress in May that regional missile defenses had intercepted more than 6,000 attack drones and more than 1,500 ballistic missiles targeting US and partner forces, according to reporting on a subsequent Pentagon inspector general’s review.

Houthi attacks have intensified over the past month, targeting Saudi cities and energy infrastructure. On Sept. 8, a wave of strikes wounded 73 people and caused fires that halted operations at some energy facilities, Saudi authorities said.

The following day, the Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen reported further ballistic missile and drone attacks on Abha, Khamis Mushayt and Jazan.

By Sept. 19, the escalation had reached Riyadh, with the coalition reporting it intercepted a ballistic missile aimed at the capital, and thwarted attacks on Yanbu, Taif, Baish and Farasan.

The expanding geographic reach of the attacks underscored the challenge of protecting population centers and critical infrastructure while also safeguarding the Kingdom’s Red Sea export route.

The pressure on energy infrastructure has come from more than one direction; Saudi Arabia attributed a drone attack that forced its East-West Pipeline to close on Sept. 11 to Iraqi militias. Reuters reported on Tuesday that pipeline operations had restarted, citing sources briefed on the matter.

The pipeline provides an alternative delivery route to the Red Sea for Saudi crude when passage through the Strait of Hormuz is disrupted. Protection of that route therefore requires security for both the infrastructure that carries the oil and the shipping lanes used to export it.


Rubio did not directly address media reports of requests to Trump for US intervention, but described attacks on regional energy infrastructure as “very disturbing.” His remarks came as a Houthi military adviser told news agency Agence France-Presse that the group would target US interests in the region if Washington intervened in the conflict in Yemen.

Disruption in the Strait of Hormuz and the escalation in the Red Sea have underscored how closely interconnected are the Gulf’s territorial security and economic interests. Attacks on energy facilities or shipping can affect regional revenues, international supply chains and global markets.

Sager said a key test of the US-Saudi defense agreement would be whether Washington treated Hormuz and Bab Al-Mandab as parts of the same security challenge.

“If Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia or shipping near Bab Al-Mandab intensify while Washington remains focused primarily on Hormuz, Rubio’s pledge will come under scrutiny,” he said.

Quilliam said there were several scenarios that could test the US commitment.

“The most immediate test would be a major Iranian or Houthi strike that causes substantial damage to energy infrastructure or results in significant civilian casualties,” he said.

“A second scenario would be a sustained campaign against shipping in the Red Sea that disrupts Saudi exports and impacts global energy markets.”

He suggested that Washington might act before either scenario fully materialized, although Rubio had announced no such decision.

“The US appears to be preparing for another round of escalation against Iran and may use that opportunity to intensify military operations against the Houthis,” Quilliam said.

“Rubio’s remarks may therefore have been intended to reassure Riyadh ahead of a possible expansion of US military activity in the region.”

The security debate is unfolding alongside broader bilateral collaboration. In July, Washington and Riyadh signed a peaceful nuclear cooperation agreement, providing a legal foundation for US participation in Saudi Arabia’s civilian nuclear energy program.

That expanding relationship provides context for Rubio’s assurances, but does not in itself define at what point Washington would commit forces to another military campaign. Quilliam said any such decision would be shaped by the administration’s approach.

“We should bear in mind that the Trump administration is focused on ‘America First’ and it will only intervene if to do so serves that interest,” he added.


According to Quilliam, Gulf “decision-makers have learned over the past decade — and even more so during the current Trump administration — that US policy is now unpredictable and poorly served by an overarching strategy, and so must plan for all eventualities and take regional security into its own hands and share the burden with regional partners.”

Sager said the most immediate measure of the partnership remains the practical support available to Saudi Arabia across the connected threats it faces.

“Riyadh would expect its defense partner to recognize the links between the threats and provide timely intelligence, equipment and operational support where they are needed,” he added.

“Protecting navigation in the Gulf while leaving the Red Sea exposed would address only part of the security challenge.”

The test, then, is how assurances from Washington translate into the capabilities Sager identified — and whether those capabilities help protect Saudi territory, critical infrastructure and access to both waterways.

America’s Arsenal: While Supplies Last

American imperial overstretch is coming home to roost in Saudi Arabia.

by Nolan Denaro | Sep 25, 2026

Smoke rose over Riyadh last week as Houthi forces launched strikes on the Saudi capital, as well as on crucial oil infrastructure in major coastal cities.

It has been a disastrous month for Saudi Arabia as Houthi forces have made substantial gains along the west coast of Yemen. The Yemeni group scored massive victories in early September, capturing the port city of Mocha along with other key islands in the Red Sea. This will allow the Houthis to more effectively restrict Saudi transit through the Bab Al-Mandeb strait, dealing a severe blow to the already battered global oil market.

The problems for Saudi Arabia don’t come solely from their south, however. Militia groups in Iraq have gotten involved, and they’ve begun launching missiles from Saudi Arabia’s north. Targets have included crucial oil infrastructure, most notably the East-West Pipeline – a crucial means of getting oil trapped in the Persian Gulf across the country to the Red Sea.

Saudi Arabia is in a moment of serious peril. Pinched between militias from Yemen in the south and Iraq in the north, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has sought the assistance of President Donald Trump. MBS called Trump two times on September 10 urging him to take military action against the Houthis, a request Trump has refused thus far.

Mohammed bin Salman’s plea for help highlights a broader dynamic in his relationship with the U.S., one which places Saudi Arabia in the position of relying heavily on America for their military. This is not only true offensively for Saudi, but also defensively. Their ability to shoot down incoming missile fire is reliant on American-made defensive systems, such as Patriot interceptors. Their supply of these systems has been dramatically reduced in recent months due to the conflict in Iran.

With America being similarly low on crucial defensive systems, which are needed to protect U.S. bases, Saudi Arabia is now left unable to effectively defend key oil and military sites. Iran – which is aligned with the Yemeni and Iraqi militias in a coalition known as the Axis of Resistance – is able to watch as economic pressure builds on Saudi Arabia, and by extension the United States.

Conventional strategic thinking is being thrown into question due to this war. America’s military bases in the region have been a burden rather than an asset. They’ve served as easy targets for Iran to strike, helping them climb the escalation ladder at their own pace. The Gulf Arab nations – who were under the impression that these bases would deter Iranian attacks on their soil – are now reconsidering their close ties to the United States. The decision by these nations to become reliant on America for their defense is also being questioned. They’ve been battered by Iranian missiles and drones all throughout the conflict, and have been left largely defenseless due to the shortage of American-made interceptor systems.

America has served as the world’s arms salesman for decades. Our government has built up a long list of clients who rely on our country for their defense, as Patrick Buchanan pointed out in his book A Republic, Not an Empire. After going down a list of the many foreign entanglements Washington has roped us into, Buchanan pointed out that we have become, in effect, a global empire.

“Nothing can destroy this country except the overextension of our resources, Republican Senator Robert A. Taft once said. Indeed, it would be an understatement to describe the commitments above as an overextension of our resources. In their totality, they make the nineteenth-century British Empire look isolationist; truly, this is imperial overstretch.”

“Our situation is unsustainable. The steady expansion of global commitments, as relative national power declines, is a prescription for endless wars and eventual disaster.”

Buchanan’s decades-old assessment has been proven correct.

What has been made apparent by the shortage of defensive weapons is that we cannot maintain this posture of perpetually arming nations across the globe. Not only are we being tasked with ensuring the defense of nations in the Middle East amid the Iran war, but we also must protect our own troops – stationed at U.S. military bases – from incoming fire.

Of course, we must also supply Israel with the defensive systems necessary to strike at Lebanon, Gaza, Syria, and elsewhere while enjoying protection guaranteed by the United States.

Escalation also continues in eastern Europe, as Ukraine’s provocative strikes on Moscow will undoubtedly lead to a Russian response. America will once again feel obligated to ensure Kyiv’s defense, not only by supplying them with weapons, but also intelligence assistance. In the Pacific, American weapons stationed in South Korea and Japan were relocated at the beginning of the Iran war due to the lack of defensive systems in the Middle East, further proving that American attempts to police the entire world are futile. The U.S. does not possess infinite resources.

American troops at bases across the Middle East have tragically been killed by Iranian strikes, as the military is forced to ration the remaining stockpile of defensive weapons. Just days into the war, America’s client-states in the Gulf were said to have depleted years worth of munitions. In the months of conflict that followed these dire reports, the effects of what Buchanan called “imperial overstretch” were being felt. Bases faced an onslaught of Iranian missiles and drones. Damage was so severe that many will likely not be returned to by the U.S. military. A chaotic withdrawal, of sorts.

The American regional order in the Middle East is collapsing in real time. In this period of chaos, there is the option to change course. Our leaders could realize the errors of their ways and bring the troops home.

This is not what Washington is known for, however.

My fear is that rather than acknowledge the failures of imperialism and chart a new path of restraint, the War Party will dig its heels in. The tendency of those at the helm of all failed government programs – especially war – is to blame every factor but themselves for the disaster. We often hear “if only we stayed longer,” or “we just needed more funds.” Many war hawks are more appalled at the act of leaving a war than they are at the decision to launch one unnecessarily. Take the neoconservative’s response to Biden’s Afghanistan withdrawal or Trump’s attempts to leave Syria, for example.

If every crisis is met with another new foreign commitment, this cycle of imperial overstretch will never end. Eventually, something has to give. We can only hope that somebody in power can recognize that the empire is decaying, accept this reality, and guide us back to a sane foreign policy with grace.

It would be delusional and reckless of me, however, to tell you that I am hopeful. Our leaders possess no such humility.

Nolan Denaro is a political analyst, writer, and host of “The Quest For Clarity” podcast, available on YouTube and Spotify. He is a columnist at Antiwar.com, and his work has been published by Responsible Statecraft, the Libertarian Institute, The Daily Caller, and the Ludwig von Mises Institute. He writes on U.S. foreign policy, economics, and current events, with a particular focus on war and imperialism. He maintains a personal Substack blog, and you can follow him on X @nolandenaro. Nolan can be reached for correspondence at nolansdenaro@icloud.com.

Abbas Barred From US by Trump While Netanyahu, Wanted by ICC for War Crimes, Gets Welcome Mat

A director at Amnesty International said the US had made clear it was seeking to “punish the state of Palestine for pursuing international justice and accountability at international institutions.”


Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gives a news conference in Jerusalem 
(Photo by Ronen Zvulun/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

Stephen Prager
Sep 18, 2026
COMMON DREAMS

While the Trump administration bars Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas and his delegation from entering the US to attend the United Nations General Assembly for the second year in a row, it is welcoming Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is accused of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza by the International Criminal Court.

In November 2024, the ICC found “reasonable grounds to believe” that Netanyahu bore criminal responsibility for the use of starvation as a method of warfare and the crimes of murder, persecution, and other inhumane acts, including intentionally targeting civilians.

Since October 2023, Israel’s assault on Gaza has killed at least 73,000 Palestinians, including more than 21,000 children, while reducing much of the landscape to rubble and leaving most of the population displaced. Meanwhile, Israel’s restrictions on food, water, medicine, electricity, and other essentials have created conditions of severe hunger, dehydration, the collapse of medical care, and civilian deaths.

President Donald Trump has previously assured Netanyahu that he would not be arrested while visiting New York on the basis of the ICC warrant. The US and Israel are not parties to the Rome Statute, meaning that they are not obligated to enforce the ICC’s warrant.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani examined whether his administration had the legal authority to detain Netanyahu earlier this year. Officials determined they did not, but Mamdani called on the federal government to execute the ICC warrant and said, “Benjamin Netanyahu is not welcome in New York City, nor is any other war criminal at large.”

As The Jerusalem Post reported earlier this week, there has been “unusual involvement” from the US Secret Service with the prime minister’s visit next week, with more than 60 New York Police Department security officers and detectives expected to participate in his security detail.

Netanyahu is set to take the podium on Thursday, September 24, amid intense international scrutiny and condemnation of the aggressive US-Israeli war against Iran, the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements across the West Bank and the explosion of settler terrorism against Palestinians, and Israel’s occupation of southern Lebanon.



The US State Department has emphasized that it barred Abbas and around 80 other Palestinian officials from attending—forcing Abbas to appear at the UNGA remotely via video call—partially in response to Palestinian leaders bringing evidence of Netanyahu’s crimes before international tribunals including the ICC and the International Court of Justice (ICJ), where Israel has been accused of violating the 1948 Genocide Convention in Gaza.

The State Department described the use by Palestinians of international legal bodies like the ICC and ICJ as part of an effort to “internationalize the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.” Incidentally, around two-thirds of the weapons Israel has imported between 2021-25 have been from the US.

Erika Guevara Rosas, a senior director at Amnesty International, said on Thursday that “the State Department’s statement makes it obvious: This decision is designed to punish the state of Palestine for pursuing international justice and accountability at international institutions, including through the International Criminal Court (ICC) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ).”

“This measure is part of a relentless campaign of reprisals against the very notion of international justice,” Guevara Rosas continued.

The Trump administration has also sanctioned ICC personnel over its case against Netanyahu, as well as Palestinian human rights organizations that provided evidence that assisted in the prosecution of Israeli nationals.

In July, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the US was launching a “whole-of-government response” intended to “systematically disable” the ICC’s ability to operate and threatened to dismantle the institution “brick by brick, if necessary.”

Guevara Rosas argued that the ban on Abbas constituted a “clear violation” of the 1947 UN Headquarters Agreement, which states that the US cannot block individuals from entry simply because of poor relations with their home government.

The State Department acknowledged this explicitly on Thursday when it announced that it would allow the president and foreign minister of Iran—a nation with which the US has been at war for more than six months—into the country “consistent with our host country obligations,” though they have faced some shopping and travel restrictions.

Guevara Rosas said the Trump administration was “setting a dangerous precedent in which the US instrumentalizes its privilege as the host country of the UN to impose arbitrary restrictions on attending the UNGA, and other UN meetings.”



On Thursday, the General Assembly voted 152-3 calling on the US to reverse its decision to deny entry to the Palestinian delegation in person and allow them to participate via a pre-recorded message.

Itay Epshtain, an Israeli international humanitarian law expert who works with the Norwegian Refugee Council, argued that the UN could do much more, including voting to move part of the General Assembly to a location where the Palestinians would be allowed to participate.

“The [UNGA] decision to allow President Abbas to speak remotely is welcome,” he wrote on social media. “But precedent is more exacting: In 1988, when the US barred PLO chairperson [Yasser] Arafat, the assembly moved its Palestine debate to Geneva.”

Human Rights Group Urges Congress to Block ‘Illegal’ Sale of 2,000-Pound Bombs to Israel

“A vote to let this sale proceed is a decision to help Israel commit more war crimes.”

Crew members with the 28th Munitions Squadron warehouse 2,000-pound MK-84 bombs inside a hardened structure at Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota on April 21, 2010.
(Photo by Airman 1st Class Corey Hook/United States Air Force)

Brett Wilkins
Sep 18, 2026
COMMON DREAMS

A human rights organization called on members of Congress to block the Trump administration’s proposed $2.8 billion transfer of 40,000 2,000-pound bombs to Israel, warning that approving the massive weapons package could violate US law and expose lawmakers to potential liability for complicity in war crimes.

In a letter to congressional lawmakers, Democracy for the Arab World Now (DAWN) urged legislators to introduce joint resolutions of disapproval under the Arms Export Control Act (AECA) once the administration formally notifies Congress of the sale.

“Forty thousand of the bombs that flattened Gaza is not a defense package, it is a down payment on the next round of atrocities,” DAWN executive director Omar Shakir said in a statement. “Every member of Congress now has the law and the evidence in front of them. A vote to let this sale proceed is a decision to help Israel commit more war crimes.”

The proposed package includes 20,000 MK-84 general-purpose bombs and 20,000 BLU-117s, along with 20,000 I-2000 penetrator warheads, according to reporting by The Washington Post. The weapons would be purchased largely through Foreign Military Financing, meaning US taxpayers would pay for Israel’s acquisition of the munitions.

The MK-84 is among the largest conventional bombs in the US arsenal. The Post reported that its blast can propel metal fragments thousands of feet, penetrate thick concrete and metal, and create large craters.

“Munitions experts [said] that US forces almost never drop bombs of this size in populated areas,” DAWN wrote in its letter. “Israel has used them hundreds of times in Gaza and Lebanon. The Biden administration paused a shipment of these bombs in May 2024 precisely because of the risk of mass casualties in Rafah; President [Donald] Trump released it within days of taking office.”

Loosened rules of engagement implemented by the Israel Defense Forces following the Hamas-led attack of October 2023, combined with the IDF’s use of artificial intelligence technology to select targets far more rapidly than humans, resulted in a staggering loss of civilian life in Gaza when 2,000- and 1,000-pound bombs were dropped.

“Israel’s assault has killed more than 73,000 Palestinians in Gaza, including more than 21,000 children, and the killing has not stopped,” DAWN said on Friday, adding that the United Nations Children’s Fund “said last month that at least 300 children had reportedly been killed since the October 2025 ceasefire, an average of one child every day.”

DAWN argued that the proposed transfer would violate multiple US laws, including provisions of the AECA and Foreign Assistance Act governing how American weapons may be provided and prohibiting assistance to governments engaged in consistent patterns of gross human rights violations. The organization also invoked the Leahy Laws, which prohibit certain assistance to foreign military units credibly implicated in gross human rights abuses.

The group further warned that knowingly providing weapons that are subsequently used to commit war crimes could also be “illegal” under the Rome Statute governing the International Criminal Court (ICC). Although Israel and the US are not signatories to the Rome Statute, the treaty stipulates that people from nonsignatory nations who commit crimes in states that are party to the treaty—as Palestine is—can be held criminally accountable for their acts.

The ICC has issued warrants for the arrest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza, including murder and forced starvation. The Hague-based court also ordered the arrest of three senior Hamas leaders; all three were extrajudicially assassinated by Israel.

The proposed sale has already encountered some congressional resistance. Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, announced Wednesday that he would not clear the transfer, citing the absence of sufficient assurances that the weapons would be used consistently with US and international law and concerns about civilian protection in Gaza and Lebanon. Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) has also vowed to block the sale in the upper chamber.

However, DAWN cautioned that a congressional hold is not necessarily sufficient to stop the transfer. The organization noted that the Trump administration has previously invoked emergency authorities to bypass congressional review of arms sales to Israel.

Under the AECA, Congress can attempt to block a major arms transfer through a joint resolution of disapproval. DAWN is urging lawmakers to bring such resolutions to recorded votes in both chambers and to hold public hearings examining the administration’s use of emergency authorities to circumvent congressional oversight.

“The administration is betting that Congress will do what it always does: complain, then look away,” DAWN advocacy director Raed Jarrar said on Friday. “Congress should show the administration that it’s no longer the rubber stamp it long has been on arms to Israel and block this sale.”