Here are Wednesday’s latest updates:<\/p>\n
\u25a0 Israel announced a series of retaliatory measures against Britain after London and 10 other countries announced restrictions on trade with Israeli settlements, with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar saying Israel will close the British Consulate in East Jerusalem, remove British representatives from the International Gaza Support Center in Kiryat Gat, end British training of Palestinian Authority security forces in the West Bank and bar 12 British politicians and nationals from entering Israel<\/a>. Sa’ar called Britain’s measures “scandalous” and warned Israel would consider further action against other countries taking similar steps.<\/p>\n \u25a0 Britain defended its decision to target settlement activity, with Prime Minister Andy Burnham <\/a>saying the measures were intended to support a two-state solution rather than target Israelis, while U.K. Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis<\/a> and the Jewish Leadership Council <\/a>condemned the move as dangerous for British Jews. Mirvis called it “truly a dark day for British Jews,” while the council warned that the policy could become a de facto boycott of Israel.<\/p>\n \u25a0 Israel accused Canada of interfering in its election after Ottawa joined the settlement trade restrictions, with the Israeli embassy in Ottawa saying Canada had chosen to sacrifice bilateral trade for political gain<\/a> and rejecting its claim that Israeli settlement expansion is undermining the possibility of a two-state solution.<\/p>\n \u25a0 The Trump administration signaled opposition to Britain’s settlement measures, with Secretary of State Marco Rubio<\/a> warning they could have implications for efforts to implement Trump’s 20-point Gaza plan and the Board of Peace, while saying Washington would not impose similar measures. <\/p>\n \u25a0 The UAE said direct communication and intelligence-sharing channels with Israel remain open after Haaretz reported that President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed personally warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu before October 7 that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing a major operation, but the Emirati Foreign Ministry did not confirm or deny that the conversation took place<\/a>. Netanyahu’s office has denied that the warning occurred.<\/p>\n \u25a0 Iran said its air defenses shot down a U.S. drone over the Bandar Abbas region in southern Iran, according to Iranian state media and Tasnim<\/a>, with no immediate confirmation from Washington. Separately, a U.S. official said an older American underwater military drone <\/a>malfunctioned more than a day earlier while surveying regional waters in support of the war with Iran.<\/p>\n \u25a0 A small Iranian oil tanker was reportedly hit by a U.S. projectile near Kharg Island, while Fox News, citing U.S. officials<\/a>, reported broader U.S. strikes targeting Iranian oil tankers near Kharg Island and Jask as part of an effort to pressure Iran economically.<\/p>\n \u25a0 The U.S. Treasury sanctioned 36 targets tied to Iran’s aviation sector, including 27 Iranian airlines, as part of a campaign to cut off the country’s remaining economic lifelines<\/a>, saying the airlines and associated front companies and foreign intermediaries help Iran move weapons and illicit cargo and acquire U.S.-origin aircraft and sensitive technology. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned companies dealing with the sanctioned airlines that they risk being cut off from the global financial system.<\/p>\n \u25a0 A UN commission investigating Syria said some Israeli military actions there may amount to war crimes, citing increasingly sustained ground incursions, raids and detentions of civilians, and said it had identified 49 Syrians, including two children, detained by Israeli forces on Syrian territory. Israel rejected the findings as an “Israel-bashing session,”<\/a> saying its deployment in southern Syria is temporary and necessary for security.<\/p>\n \u25a0 More than 30 people from Jerusalem and the West Bank were arrested over alleged terrorist activity, Israeli security agencies said, including five East Jerusalem residents accused of planning attacks on checkpoints<\/a>. Security forces said weapons and military equipment allegedly intended for attacks were also uncovered.<\/p>\n