Spain cancels contract for anti-tank missiles built by Israeli subsidiary
The decision will affect the purchase of 168 SPIKE LR2 anti-tank missile systems with an estimated value of 285 million euros ($325 million). The systems would have been developed in Spain by Pap Tecnos, a subsidiary of Israel's Rafael Advance Defense Systems, according to local press.
The Spanish goverment approved the project on Oct. 3, 2023, four days before an insurgent assault led by Hamas on southern Israel that sparked a devastating war in Gaza.
Spain's leftist government says it stopped exporting arms to Israel as of Oct. 2, 2023, but there where reports some shipments slipped through.
In May last year, Spain formally recognized a Palestinian state in a coordinated effort with Norway and Ireland.
Israel faces legal action at two international courts in The Hague, Netherlands.
South Africa has filed a case at the top United Nations court, the International Court of Justice, alleging genocide by Israel against Palestinians in Gaza. Israel strongly denies the charge.
Judges at the International Criminal Court last year issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former defense minister, Joav Gallant. The warrants allege crimes against humanity, claiming they used 'starvation as a method of warfare' in Gaza. Netanyahu said Israel 'rejects with disgust the absurd and false actions' by the court.
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Reuters
27 minutes ago
- Reuters
Ukraine says it uncovers major drone procurement corruption scheme
KYIV, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Ukraine's anti-corruption bodies said on Saturday they had uncovered a major graft scheme that procured military drones and signal jamming systems at inflated prices, two days after the agencies' independence was restored following major protests. The independence of Ukraine's anti-graft investigators and prosecutors, NABU and SAPO, was reinstated by parliament on Thursday after a move to take it away resulted in the country's biggest demonstrations since Russia's invasion in 2022. In a statement published by both agencies on social media, NABU and SAPO said they had caught a sitting lawmaker, two local officials and an unspecified number of national guard personnel taking bribes. None of them were identified in the statement. "The essence of the scheme was to conclude state contracts with supplier companies at deliberately inflated prices," it said, adding that the offenders had received kickbacks of up to 30% of a contract's cost. Four people had been arrested. "There can only be zero tolerance for corruption, clear teamwork to expose corruption and, as a result, a just sentence," President Volodymyr Zelenskiy wrote on Telegram. Zelenskiy, who has far-reaching wartime presidential powers and still enjoys broad approval among Ukrainians, was forced into a rare political about-face when his attempt to bring NABU and SAPO under the control of his prosecutor-general sparked the first nationwide protests of the war. Zelenskiy subsequently said that he had heard the people's anger, and submitted a bill restoring the agencies' former independence, which was voted through by parliament on Thursday. Ukraine's European allies praised the move, having voiced concerns about the original stripping of the agencies' status. Top European officials had told Zelenskiy that Ukraine was jeopardising its bid for European Union membership by curbing the powers of its anti-graft authorities. "It is important that anti-corruption institutions operate independently, and the law adopted on Thursday guarantees them every opportunity for a real fight against corruption," Zelenskiy wrote on Saturday after meeting the heads of the agencies, who briefed him on the latest investigation.
Telegraph
27 minutes ago
- Telegraph
An insider's guide to DAF, by owners of the quirky Dutch cars
While DAF Trucks have been a market leader for decades, the Dutch company's venture into the car industry was disappointingly brief – only 15 years, to be exact. During that time, about 750,000 cars rolled off the production line in Eindhoven, beginning with the DAF 600 that made its debut at the 1958 Amsterdam motor show. Several incarnations followed, including the most popular 33, 55 and 66 models. Some critics joked that DAFs were driven mainly by elderly ladies and were inconsequential, however such blinkered views failed to acknowledge that, in some respects, the cars were ahead of their time, most notably in their automatic transmission. The company's founders, the Van Doorne Brothers, strived to produce a car accessible to all but with some luxuries associated with more expensive vehicles, such as a self-shifting gearbox. Unheard of in small cars, DAF broke new ground by creating the Variomatic transmission – inspired by a belt-driven lathe in the factory – utilising a pulley/belt system to achieve a stepless, automatic gearchange and deliver optimal engine speed for any driving situation. Ironically, the system's popularity increased after DAF stopped producing cars when Ford and Fiat, among others, fitted a continuously variable transmission (CVT) to their smaller models. DAF's short flirtation with the car industry ended in 1973 when Volvo bought the brand. Several factors contributed to the company quitting the car market, including failure to expand sufficiently to compete with rivals and the founders' conservatism restricting the cars' performance potential. This side of the North Sea, DAF only started making headway in the small vehicle market during its final years; before then, import tariffs had been prohibitive until they were lifted when the UK joined the Common Market in 1973. Today, it's estimated that only about 120 DAFs remain on UK roads. We caught up with three devoted owners to understand the enduring appeal of the quirky Dutch cars. I have a long affinity with DAFs because not only did my mother drive one, but I grew up just down the road from the factory in the Netherlands. Often, I'd cycle to school past the plant and see the works rally cars leave for a competition – they drove them to events back then. I bought my 55 in 1997 for £800 after having my eye on it for ages. When it won our concours, I asked the owner for first refusal if he sold it. Luckily, he did. DAFs rarely come up for sale in the UK, but typically I'd expect a 55 Coupé to sell for around £3,500 to £5,500. However, mine is modified and rally-prepared. Similar modified cars have been offered in Holland for about €20,000 (£17,320). For years they were regarded as 'uncool', yet in recent times people have started to seek them out, precisely for that reason. I increased the power of my 55 by, among other things, upgrading the engine to a 1,397cc Renault engine from a Volvo 340. Power has increased from about 50bhp to an estimated 85bhp, although it's getting tired now. I have completed track days, hillclimbs and taken part in classic tours but nothing competitive these days. Now, I just take it out every fortnight – it's certainly a fun car to drive. While the Variomatic transmission makes them unusual to drive, they have a decent chassis, are cheap to run and enjoy fine handling and precise steering. They allow fast progress, particularly in hilly terrain with lots of curves, and always seem to be in the right gear, allowing me to keep up with more powerful cars. Although lightweight, DAFs are strong where it matters, as in the admittedly rather quirky belt-drive CVT transmission; you can tell it was designed by a truck manufacturer. Earlier variants don't have a differential, the difference in rear-wheel speed around bends being taken up by belt slip. That also gives the effect of a limited-slip differential, making them useful rally cars. The only disadvantages with DAFs are that they rust and parts usually have to be sought in the Netherlands, where the Dutch owners' club has several warehouses full of old stock and newly made parts. I paid £2,500 for my DAF in 2016. When I collected it from Yorkshire, the guy asked where my trailer was, explaining that the car hadn't done more than about 25 miles per year so assumed I would trailer it back to Hertfordshire. So, with no AA membership or radio in the car and only a mobile phone for company, I headed off. The DAF performed perfectly, returning 40-plus mpg on the run home – it never missed a beat. I rebuilt the engine recently and now drive the car almost daily. While we also have a Subaru, which is superbly comfortable and quick, its economy around town is frighteningly low, whereas the DAF returns up to 47mpg. In addition, it's exempt from Ulez (ultra-low emission zone) charges in the capital and, being so small, can squeeze into parking bays that would defeat the Subaru. It has a huge boot, too, so a supermarket trip is no problem either. But wherever we go, we frequently receive hoots from the drivers of DAF trucks. They are the easiest car in the world to drive. You start it in gear, which sounds odd but you get used to it, put your foot down and off you go! One pedal to go, one to stop. The engine revs bear no resemblance to the car's speed and the sensation of the car going progressively quicker, but the engine revs remaining constant, takes some getting used to. Unlike 'normal' [torque converter] automatics, DAFs don't creep forwards on tickover, so you simply bring it to a stop using the footbrake. Although it only has a 750cc engine, the way the transmission works means the car is always in the right gear. Being air-cooled, the engine is a little noisy when driven hard, although on reaching a cruising speed the transmission adjusts and the engine becomes quieter. Drum brakes, meanwhile, are fitted all round on the 33 and need a good shove to make an emergency stop; you have to read the road more than in a modern car. People ask why I drive a DAF and it's quite simple: I came from a DAF family. My late father had a penchant for unusual vehicles and, in the late 1960s, bought a 33 van for his electrical business. So impressed was he with the van that he bought a DAF 66 as our family car, while my grandfather opted for a 55. When I passed my driving test, I asked a dealer to look out for a second-hand 33, which he did, so I drove that for several years, before moving to 'sensible' cars. Fast forward to 2016 and partial retirement from work. Wanting something to tinker with, I found this DAF 33 and the circle is complete. I paid £400 for my 1,108cc aubergine-coloured 66 in 2000. It has 18,000 miles on the clock and, to be honest, I don't drive it enough, although it has made two trips to Holland for major DAF events and been back to its birthplace in Eindhoven. DAFs have good road manners plus excellent suspension similar to the Morris Minor: torsion bars in the front, elliptical leaf springs at the rear. When I bought the car, the Variomatic transmission needed work so I demounted it to replace the vacuum diaphragms, which was a heavy but fairly easy job. Also, I replaced parts of the braking system and gained an MOT less than 24 hours before heading to catch the ferry for a week in Holland. In the days when I taxed the car at the Post Office, I was often asked where I stored my truck; few people recall that DAF also made cars. But I love cars which are a technical tour de force and dared to be different, such as the Citroën DS, NSU Ro80, Tatra 613 and the DAF Variomatic. The DAF was the only one I could afford. The interior of my 66 is unmistakably Giovanni Michelotti [among the 20th century's most inventive sports car designers ], like the BMW 1600 and Triumph Dolomite, where form and function conspire to give simple style and an excellent airy cabin with superb visibility. DAFs are well made and apart from the transmission are fairly mainstream. The Renault 1,108cc engine in the 66 is reliable and easy to maintain, while DAF's home-grown 746cc two-cylinder engine – the only car engine ever made by DAF – in the Daffodil, 32 and 33 required no development over its lifetime and is capable of starship mileages.'
The Guardian
27 minutes ago
- The Guardian
Israel closes 88% of cases of alleged war crimes or abuse without charges
Nearly nine out of 10 Israeli military investigations into allegations of war crimes or abuses by its soldiers since the start of the war in Gaza have been closed without finding fault or left without resolution, according to a conflict monitor. Unresolved investigations include the killing of at least 112 Palestinians queueing for flour in Gaza City in February 2024, Action on Armed Violence (AOAV) said, and an airstrike that killed 45 in an inferno at a tented camp in Rafah in May 2024. Also unresolved is an inquiry into the killing of 31 Palestinians going to pick up food at a distribution point in Rafah on 1 June. They were killed after Israeli forces opened fire, witnesses said. Shortly after, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said the reports were 'false' but the IDF told the Guardian that the incident was 'still under review'. Iain Overton and Lucas Tsantzouris, the team at AOAV, said the statistics suggested Israel was seeking to create a 'pattern of impunity' by failing to conclude or find no fault in the vast majority of cases involving 'the most severe or public accusations of wrongdoing by their forces'. The IDF said it 'conducts examination and investigation processes regarding exceptional incidents that occurred during operational activity, in which there is a suspicion of a violation of the law' in accordance with its obligations under Israeli and international law. It operates internal systems to conduct examinations and allegations of war crimes, including criminal investigations by the military advocate general's police department and fact-finding assessments (FFA) by a separate team in the general staff. The relatively short passage of time, in investigatory and legal terms, means other unresolved cases may also result in prosecutions, though the two researchers said IDF inquiries had become 'more opaque and slow-moving' as the number of civilian casualties in Gaza has mounted. AOAV said it had found reports of 52 cases in English-language media where the Israeli military said it had conducted or would conduct an investigation after allegations of civilian harm or wrongdoing by its forces in Gaza or the West Bank between October 2023 and the end of June 2025. They involve the deaths of 1,303 Palestinians and the wounding of 1,880. One case resulted in a prison sentence for an Israeli soldier. An IDF reservist received a seven-month jail term in February after he was convicted by a military court of the aggravated abuse of Palestinian security detainees. He had repeatedly attacked bound and blindfolded prisoners with his fists, a baton and his assault rifle at the Sde Teiman detention centre. Five other cases ended with violations found. In one, an IDF colonel and a major were sacked in April 2024 and three other commanders reprimanded a few days after seven aid workers from the World Central Kitchen were killed in an airstrike. The IDF said it was a 'grave mistake stemming from a serious failure due to a mistaken identification', though the charity said the rapid investigation lacked credibility. The remaining 46 cases, representing 88% of the total, seven were closed without any finding of fault, AOAV said. A further 39 remain under review or with no outcome reported, including four deadly incidents over the course of last month when Palestinians were killed near or at various food distribution points on the Gaza Strip. According to the IDF: 'Any report … complaint or allegation that suggests misconduct by IDF forces undergoes an initial examination process, irrespective of its source.' In some instances the evidence is such that a criminal investigation by military police is ordered, while in others an initial investigation takes place. These are referred to the IDF general staff's FFA mechanism to determine 'whether there is a reasonable suspicion of criminal misconduct'. Critics of the system, such as the Yesh Din human rights group, say FFA investigations can take years and have led to one known prosecution after 664 inquiries relating to previous IDF military operations in Gaza, in 2014, 2018-19 and 2021. In August 2024, the IDF said the FFA had collected information on 'hundreds of incidents' relating to the war in Gaza alone, while the military advocate general's office had launched 74 criminal investigations. Of these, 52 related to the deaths and mistreatment of detainees and 13 to the stealing of enemy ammunition, while a minority related to allegations of war crimes in combat situations. Three related to the 'destruction of civilian property without military necessity' and six concerning 'alleged illegal use of force'. The IDF statistics differ from the investigations tracked by AOAV because the research group used a different methodology. AOAV reviewed episodes where there were reports of an investigation being or having been conducted and also took in incidents on the West Bank as well as Gaza. The IDF said that 'dozens of military police investigations have been opened' and that 'most of these investigations are still ongoing'. The FFA mechanism, meanwhile, had 'completed its review in dozens of cases' and these had transferred to the military advocate general for possible criminal investigation.
