In the early afternoon, 2:20 PM Italian time, the head of the Gaza Administration Committee arrived in Washington to attend a meeting of the Peace Council. Around 3:30 PM Italian time, the Peace Council officially opened its meeting. Mexico declined a seat on the Peace Council due to the absence of Palestinian representatives. The meeting was opened by Donald Trump, who arrived with delegations at the Peace Council headquarters in Washington. Delegations present: Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Egypt, El Salvador, European Union, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Mongolia, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Paraguay, Poland, Qatar, South Korea, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia.
Donald Trump stated: “Many believe that peace is impossible in the Middle East, but we finally achieved it. Hamas promised us they would hand over their weapons, and we are waiting for them to keep their promise. We are working to resolve the Lebanese issue, which is a minor problem compared to what we are doing. I thought I would receive the Nobel Peace Prize, but they didn’t correct their mistake. However, this issue no longer concerns me. I ask Iran to sign an agreement with us. If they don’t, something will happen. We will contribute $10 billion to the Peace Council.” Donald Trump gave Iran 10 days to sign the agreements. Trump also said: “The United Nations has great capabilities, but they have not yet lived up to my expectations.”
Jordanian Foreign Minister, in a speech to the Security Council: “The entire international community rejects the annexation of the West Bank, and Trump has confirmed that he will not allow it. However, the Israeli government has accelerated its illegal actions to impose annexation as a fait accompli, which undermines the chances of achieving peace. The annexation of the West Bank destroys any possibility of achieving a just peace and must end immediately. The massacre in Gaza has ended, but the suffering of its population continues, with homes destroyed, schools demolished, children starving, wounded, and sick without treatment.
According to The Guardian: “The Trump administration plans to establish a military base in Gaza of more than 350 dunams, for thousands of international fighters, including 26 observation towers and underground shelters.”
After arriving at Ben Gurion Airport today for a meeting with US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckbee, Tucker Carlson told the Daily Mail: “Airport security took my passport and that of my main producer, took them into an interrogation room, and tried to figure out what I was talking about with Ambassador Huckbee.” US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee commented on Carlson’s statements: “Anyone entering or leaving Israel (or any other country) is subjected to passport checks and regularly questioned. Even me, who enters or leaves with a diplomatic passport and a diplomatic visa.”
A spokesperson for the US Embassy in Israel, speaking to the Daily Mail, denied Carlson’s detention and stated that “he received the same passport checks that countless visitors to Israel, including Ambassador Huckabee and other diplomats, undergo as part of their routine entry and exit from Israel.”
Regarding relations with Iran, Senator Lindsey Graham: “The United States’ decision on Iran has already been made. All these ships won’t be coming here just because the weather is nice this time of year.” Senator Ted Cruz: “Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, has only one option: to resign. I don’t think President Trump will fall for that.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar mocked Russia yesterday at the United Nations Security Council, during a meeting dedicated to international criticism of the government’s actions in Judea and Samaria: “It was quite funny to hear the Russian representative talk about law and international law, occupation, annexation of territories, and the peaceful resolution of the conflict. I must admit, I had to hold back my laughter during her speech.”
Sergei Lavrov told al-Arabiya in an interview: “The Syrian authorities consider the Russian presence in Khmeimim and Tartus a stability factor that counterbalances the influence of of different actors; The United States is acting wisely by withdrawing forces from northeastern Syria, but this risks unleashing new threats in the region. Lavrov warned of “unpleasant consequences” in the event of new attacks against Iran; Lavrov called Geneva’s attempts to demand that Iran completely renounce its right to enrich uranium incorrect. The Kremlin wrote in a statement on February 19: “We are witnessing an unprecedented escalation in Iran.”
Rep. Thomas Harold Massie and Rep. Rohit Khanna say they will force the US Congress to vote on a war powers resolution next week to prevent Trump from attacking Iran without prior congressional approval.
Staff from several European embassies have left the Middle East in recent weeks, leaving only essential personnel behind.
According to CNN: Israel has raised its alert level in the last 24 hours. The Israeli security system has been declared in A state of high alert has been put in place, and emergency services have been instructed to “prepare for war,” according to local channel N12. If the United States were to actually attack Iran, Israel would join them. Officials consider an American attack inevitable, according to the Ynet portal. The joint military operation between the two countries will likely continue for weeks and will be significantly larger than a “surgical strike.”
The Israeli Ministry of Health held a meeting with hospital officials and asked them to demonstrate their preparedness for a possible war with Iran, even in the event of power outages. The Ministry of Education also called for maintaining a state of preparedness, while settler platforms have spoken of opening and setting up shelters and protective rooms in strategic locations.
Mahdi Mohammadi, advisor to the speaker of the Iranian parliament: “The threat against Iran has reached an unprecedented level, or more precisely, America wants us to believe it has. In return, Iran has raised the threat against America to an unprecedented level. The stage is now set for a historic confrontation. I don’t know what America thinks, but Iran has no reason to retreat.
And now a look at the military scenarios unfolding in the Middle East and Western Asia, updated at 4:30 PM on February 19. British Times: “Britain is blocking the United States from using its bases to attack Iran, due to the dispute over the handover of the Diego Garcia base. The British have not yet given the Americans permission to use their bases to attack Iran, against the backdrop of the dispute. Trump and Starmer spoke on Tuesday evening, and Trump subsequently released last night’s statement regarding the joint island.
Numerous tankers, military transport aircraft, and AWACS aircraft have arrived from the United States in Europe and are now headed to the Middle East. Nine KC-135R tankers; three C-130J and C-17 military transport aircraft; two Boeing E-3 Sentry AWACS aircraft. Most of the tankers are expected to land soon in Crete for a stopover and then escort their fighters to the Middle East. There is no doubt that air traffic from the United States to the Middle East has been unusually high and significant over the past 48 hours.
The aircraft carrier CVN 78 Gerald R. Ford is currently off the coast of Morocco, en route to the Middle East as part of a military buildup against Iran. On the afternoon of February 18, an American MQ-4C reconnaissance drone was monitoring Oman. Reuters: “All U.S. forces concentrated in the Middle East are expected to be in place by mid-March.”
A Tu-214PU left Tehran on February 19. Iran closed its airspace in the south of the country, in the area of the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf of Oman, for several hours on February 19 due to missile drills. For the past two or three weeks, Iran has closed the secret Talkan-2 facility at the strategic Parchin base, effectively protecting it from a possible attack. Lindsay and Craig Foreman, a married couple from the United Kingdom detained in Iran for over a year, were sentenced to ten years in prison for espionage. The Iranian ambassador to Russia, regarding the Russian Il-76TD cargo planes that recently landed in Iran: “In recent years, we have signed excellent military contracts with Russia, and the planes landing in the country are implementing these contracts.”
France Press: “The German army is “temporarily” transferring some forces from Erbil, in the north Iraq, due to the escalation of tensions in the Middle East, while maintaining essential services.
According to the Wall Street Journal, “the Syrian government plans to completely close the Al-Hol camp, in the east of the country, by 2027. It is the detention center for thousands of women and children of ISIS fighters. The decision to close the infamous camp was made following the unrest following the Syrian army’s seizure of territory from the Kurds who controlled and managed the camp. Damascus accuses the Kurds of deliberately creating chaos during their hasty retreat from the area, and it took hours for Syrian troops to retake the camp. During this time, many fled, and the camp’s infrastructure was damaged. Most of the prisoners in this facility will soon be transferred to a new camp near Aleppo. The United States is ending its operations in the country and withdrawing all troops from Syria.
Israel carried out a wave of airstrikes against targets in Lebanon in the early hours of February 19. Israeli airstrikes targeted southern Lebanon, the areas of Ansar, Tabna, the al-Rihan heights, Iqlim al-Tuffah, and al-Baysariyeh. The Israel Defense Forces say their wave of airstrikes in southern Lebanon overnight targeted Hezbollah infrastructure, including weapons depots, rocket launchers, and other military sites. The northern border is on high alert due to fears of an escalation with Hezbollah.
Hundreds of accounts have appeared in the last 72 hours, all in support of Netanyahu and Reza Pahlavi. They all have the same header image on the social network “X.”
According to Israeli social media sources, Israel is deploying long-range missile batteries in strategic locations, in anticipation of a possible attack by Iran. At Beilinson Hospital, nurses have been asked to be available over the weekend. Hadashot: “Shelters have been opened in several locations across Israel.”
Displaced people crowd outside a soup kitchen in the town of Khan Younis, seeking breakfast, as living and humanitarian conditions continue to deteriorate and Israel refuses to comply with relief and reconstruction provisions.
Young people tear down the Israeli flag after it was raised by a settler on the outskirts of the town of Beit Ummar, north of Hebron. Clashes between young people and the IDF in the town of Burqa, northwest of Nablus. The IDF continues to burn vehicles after confiscating them from Palestinians at the northern entrance to the town of Al-Zahiriya, south of Hebron.
Antonio Albanese e Graziella Giangiulio
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