Preparations for transferring the administration of government institutions in the Gaza Strip to the “National Committee for the Administration of Gaza” have been completed, according to Ismail al-Thawabta, Director General of the Government Media Office in Gaza.

Speaking to Ultra Palestine, Thawabta said government institutions have moved beyond declarations of readiness and have begun implementing practical measures, completing the administrative and legal arrangements required for the handover.

He said the completed arrangements have been formally presented to a national team representing Palestinian factions and forces, the Supreme Committee for Clans and Tribes, and civil society organizations, in the presence of a UN observer.

According to Thawabta, the political and negotiating aspects of transferring Gaza’s administration remain the responsibility of Hamas and the Palestinian resistance groups participating in the negotiations.

He added that technical and professional employees will remain in their positions to ensure the uninterrupted delivery of public services and prevent any administrative or technical vacuum during the transition.

The executive procedures governing the transfer of responsibilities and the management of government institutions, he said, will be implemented in line with any agreements reached and officially announced by the relevant authorities, while ensuring the continued operation of ministries and other government bodies.

French energy giant TotalEnergies CEO Patrick Pouyanne said he will meet Syrian officials on Tuesday to discuss the potential signing of an exploration agreement, speaking to reporters in Damascus.

Pouyanne is visiting Syria as part of a delegation accompanying French President Emmanuel Macron, whose trip was overshadowed by bomb attacks in Damascus on Tuesday.

In May, TotalEnergies signed a memorandum of understanding with the Syrian Petroleum Company to explore an offshore gas and oil block in the Mediterranean. The company has also recently highlighted the potential importance of building pipelines through Syria to transport Iraqi crude as an alternative route to the Strait of Hormuz.

“Syria’s offshore area has never really been explored historically, so we have partnered other companies to look into it. We will discuss it today with our Syrian counterparts to see whether we can move toward a contract,” Pouyanne said.

“Obviously we’d rather find oil than gas, but in the eastern Mediterranean most discoveries so far — in Cyprus and Israel, for example — have been gas,” he added.

Pouyanne also reiterated that Syria has become increasingly significant as a potential transit route for Iraqi oil exports.

Turkiye has committed to acquiring a substantial number of ground-launched long-range Atmaca cruise missiles, NATO Deputy Secretary General Radmila Shekerinska said Tuesday, as allies move to boost ‘defense’ production and enhance long-range strike capabilities.

Speaking at the NATO Summit Defense Industry Forum, held alongside the 36th NATO Leaders Summit in Ankara, Shekerinska said six allied countries had also joined a multinational initiative to develop and procure low-cost ground-launched cruise missiles on a large scale.

She added that, combined with ongoing 155 mm ammunition projects, the initiatives are now valued at around $1.6 billion.

The announcement came as NATO leaders convened in the Turkish capital for the 7–8 July summit, where expanding ‘defense’ industrial capacity, increasing ammunition production, strengthening deterrence, and supporting Ukraine are among the key priorities.

Israel has launched its fifth licensing round to explore for additional natural gas reserves in its economic waters, Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen said on Monday.

Israel currently relies on several offshore gas fields in the Mediterranean, with the Tamar field serving much of domestic demand. Most exports, primarily to Egypt and Jordan, are supplied by the nearby Leviathan field, located about 130 kilometers (81 miles) offshore.

Both Tamar and Leviathan are located within the Eastern Mediterranean’s Levant Basin, a region with significant offshore gas resources.

Cohen said the new tender will be conducted in three stages and is expected to take around a year to complete.

A newly released survey by the AP-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research reveals a seismic shift in US public opinion regarding the war in Gaza. Nearly one-third of all US adults, including an unprecedented 30 percent of US Jews and roughly half of all Democrats, now state that Israel has committed genocide against Palestinians. This collapsing narrative marks a critical fracture in the decades-long consensus that has historically shielded Israel from domestic political backlash.

The data exposes an accelerating rift within the Democratic Party, where the disconnect between the Washington establishment and its voting base has reached a breaking point. According to the AP-NORC findings, 58 percent of Democrats now believe the US is too supportive of Israel, a sentiment shared by a 51 percent majority of Jewish Democrats. Concurrently, 62 percent of party voters insist that Washington is failing to provide adequate support to the Palestinian population.

This ideological realignment is particularly striking among older demographics who were once considered the bedrock of pro-Israel sentiment. The poll notes that 57 percent of Democrats over the age of 45 now demand that the US government do more to support Palestinians, a massive spike from just 39 percent recorded two years earlier. As grassroots alienation deepens, the unconditional backing provided by the White House faces a looming legitimacy crisis at home.

President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has officially inaugurated the State Strategic Command Headquarters, known as “The Octagon,” in Egypt’s New Administrative Capital. Spanning over 22,000 acres, the sprawling complex is being heralded by Cairo as the largest and most advanced military command and crisis management center in the region.

Featuring eight octagonal buildings and integrated AI-driven intelligence systems, the facility is designed to centralize military operations and safeguard state institutions from future domestic and external threats.

The project has sparked intense debate, with critics highlighting the staggering cost, estimated between $57 billion and $85 billion, during a period of acute economic strain and rising debt. While official state media frames the headquarters as a “significant leap” in national security and modernization, independent observers argue the project serves an internal political purpose: shielding government power from the population.

The relocation of key ministries away from the density of Cairo arguably means that the administration is explicitly seeking to prevent a recurrence of the 2011 mass uprisings. President Sisi, appearing in military uniform for the first time in over a decade, defended the move as essential for “integrated planning” and maintaining readiness against the volatile regional backdrop.