Our September print issue went to press last night. It has a lot of sobering news—but one article we included is very inspiring. It’s about the new Vera C. Rubin Observatory, which has been called “the most ambitious astronomy project ever.” The images and data this new space telescope is generating are truly jaw-dropping. Read Richard Palmer’s “A Look at the Heavens in Astonishing Detail.”

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Israel to proceed with Gaza takeover: The rumors are true: Benjamin Netanyahu’s security cabinet approved his plan to send in the troops to establish full military control over Gaza City, then likely take over the whole Gaza Strip.

They want to destroy Hamas and then hand the territory to “Arab forces that will govern it properly without threatening us,” the prime minister told Fox News yesterday.

• The cabinet laid out five principles for ending the war: disarming Hamas, returning all hostages both alive and dead, demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, Israeli security control over Gaza, and establishing a civilian administration that excludes Hamas and the Palestinian Authority.
• It has told Gaza City’s 800,000 residents to evacuate by October 7—the two year anniversary of the Hamas attack—at which point the siege will begin.
• Netanyahu said he would halt the operation if Hamas agreed to Israel’s demands.

Criticism from inside and outside Israel was immediate.

• Israel Defense Forces Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir argues that the operation risks the lives of the remaining hostages—Hamas has threatened to execute them if it detects Israeli troops—and could spark a humanitarian disaster.
• Hostage families, fearing for their loved ones, staged a violent protest in Tel Aviv last night along with thousands of supporters.
• Condemnation flowed from global leaders, the United Nations and aid agencies who claim the plan violates international law, risks mass displacement and famine, and endangers hostages.
• Israeli ally Germany took the remarkable step this morning of suspending military exports that could be used in Gaza. (Exports for systems unrelated to the Gaza campaign, such as missile defense or naval equipment, may continue.)

One exception was Donald Trump, who took a neutral stance. He said the decision on Gaza was “really up to Israel” and focused on increasing humanitarian aid.

Israel truly is in a tough position. After 22 months of war, its armed forces are exhausted and the world is outraged. Netanyahu is determined to finish the job—but where will this lead?

The Trumpet we just sent to press includes a powerful feature story from executive editor Stephen Flurry called “What Is Israel’s Sin?” that shows why the world’s criticisms of the Jewish state are wrong—and yet why Israel finds itself in this impossible situation. Watch for that next week.

President Trump ordered a new census: He announced on Truth Social yesterday that the Department of Commerce will start on a “new and highly accurate” census to exclude illegal immigrants from the population count.

• This is a significant departure from the constitutionally mandated census that occurs every 10 years, which would next be in 2030.

With the apportioning of congressional seats and the distribution of more than $1.5 trillion in federal funding on the line, you know this is going to create a political brawl.

Trump and other Republicans have called the 2020 census “flawed” or “crooked,” since counting noncitizens inflates representation in states with large immigrant populations, such as California, Texas and New York, which could favor Democrats. The 2020 Post Enumeration Survey of the census shows some major mistakes that denied congressional seats to Republicans.

But a new census will face legal challenges. Critics argue that, besides the Constitution saying it must happen once a decade, it mandates counting “the whole number of persons in each state.” As if the founders foresaw millions of illegal immigrants residing in the country and intended their presence to skew congressional apportioning.

Like the gerrymandering kerfuffle in Texas, it appears the nation is in for another political melee caused by leftists who will do anything to gain power, and Republicans who have had enough and are finally rolling up their shirtsleeves and throwing some punches.

Trump demands Intel CEO resign: Lip-Bu Tan, head of tech giant and chip manufacturer Intel, needs to step down now that Senate Republicans have uncovered his links to the Chinese Communist Party, President Trump says.

• “The CEO of Intel is highly CONFLICTED and must resign, immediately,” Trump posted on Truth Social yesterday. “There is no other solution to this problem.”

Earlier in the day, Republican Sen. Tom Cotton sent a letter to the company’s board chair to “express concern about the security and integrity of Intel’s operations and its potential impact on U.S. national security.”

• Tan has investments in Chinese technology companies, including SMIC, China’s largest chipmaker.
• Intel plays a critical role in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing, something Trump is trying to expand to reduce America’s dependence on China.
• But the company has been struggling, and Tan has been overseeing a major restructuring, including slowing U.S. factory construction and abandoning European investments.
• This has fueled perceptions of Intel retreating from its global ambitions, which some see as a precursor to the company selling assets or going under.

It seems President Trump is right to point out Tan’s conflict of interest, and his possible intent to simply oversee the fire sale of this important corporation.

Isaiah 2:6 says God “hast forsaken thy people the house of Jacob, because they be replenished from the east, and are soothsayers like the Philistines, and they please themselves in the children of strangers.” America has committed the same sin in trading with and growing dependent on Communist dictatorships, even inviting Communist professors from the East to teach generations of young Americans. Such sins have consequences.

IN OTHER NEWS

10,000 killed in Syria under new government: The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has documented almost 10,000 violent deaths in Syria since President Ahmed al-Sharaa took power late last year. Not all of these are the government’s fault. But it shows that the evils of Syria have not ended since President Bashar Assad left power. Trumpet World recently interviewed a representative of the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights who shed more light on what is happening.

The EU wants to censor your chats: Momentum is building for a new “chat control” after Denmark introduced a proposal on July 1, their first day holding the rotating European Union Council presidency. Rather than breaking end-to-end encryption, it wants messaging apps like WhatsApp or Telegram to pre-scan messages before you can send them. It is “a bit like if the Post Office came to read all your letters in your living room before you put them in the envelope,” wrote French tech blogger Korben. Apple tried to do something similar in 2021, where software would detect if an image contained child pornography. It didn’t work. The key question now is, will Germany support it? If yes, it will pass. It would be another step toward Germany controlling what you say online.

Rheinmetall keeps boosting military production: The German automotive and arms manufacturer just took over another company that specializes in light aircraft and drone technology. As our In Brief reports, this is a small part in a nationwide trend toward converting civilian industrial activity into weapons production.

The press loves terrorists: AP recently ran a sympathy piece on the “survivors” of Israel’s pager attack on Hezbollah terrorists. Our In Brief shows how this is but one example of mainstream press coverage looking for ways to undermine and attack Israel while legitimizing and defending radical Islamists.