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Barcelona mayor who severed ties with Tel Aviv loses election
MADRID (JTA) — Ada Colau, Barcelona’s left-wing mayor who made headlines for breaking off the city’s long-standing relationship with Tel Aviv, was unseated in Sunday’s municipal elections after eight years in power.
She was defeated by Xavier Trias, the right-wing candidate from the Junts party, a former mayor who Colau had previously unseated in 2015.
Colau, known in the past for backing the boycott, divestment and sanctions movement against Israel, caused a media stir last February when she opted to dissolve the twin city pact between Barcelona and Tel Aviv. The Catalan capital had been twinned with the Israeli city for 25 years.
Addressing Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu in a written letter, Colau wrote in February that around 4,000 constituents had petitioned her to “condemn the crime of apartheid against the Palestinian people, support Palestinian and Israeli organizations striving for peace, and nullify the twinning contract between Barcelona and Tel Aviv.”
The move was met with sharp disapproval by the Federation of the Jewish Communities of Spain, which condemned the move as “sophisticated antisemitism.”
Shortly after, José Luis Martínez-Almeida, the mayor of Madrid who won reelection last weekend, offered to twin the Spanish capital with Tel Aviv.
“It would be an honor to be twinned with Tel Aviv,” he wrote in February.
Political figures on the right in Spain, including Martínez-Almeida, a member of the People’s Party, have been making diplomatic and commercial overtures towards Israel in recent years. Despite his proposal, the Madrid government has not announced specific plans for actualizing a twin city relationship.
Previously a housing rights activist, Colau has cited “the recurring human rights infringements against the Palestinian population and non-adherence to United Nations resolutions” as her reasoning for the Israeli boycott.
Around 3,500 Jews live in Barcelona as of 2022.
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China, Saudi Arabia Agree to Strengthen Coordination on Regional, Global Matters
Flags of China and Saudi Arabia are seen in this picture, in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, December 7, 2022. REUTERS/Mohammed Benmansour
China and Saudi Arabia agreed to have closer communication and coordination on regional and international issues, with Beijing lauding Riyadh’s role in Middle East diplomacy, statements following a meeting between the nations’ foreign ministers on Sunday showed.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi is on a three-nation tour in the Middle East that began in the United Arab Emirates and is expected to end in Jordan. He met with Saudi Arabia’s Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al-Saud in Riyadh on Sunday.
A joint statement published by China’s official news agency Xinhua did not elaborate on what issues the countries will strengthen coordination on, but mentioned China’s support for Saudi Arabia and Iran developing and enhancing their relations.
“(China) appreciates Saudi Arabia’s leading role and efforts to achieve regional and international security and stability,” the statement released on Monday said.
The statement also reiterated both countries’ support for a “comprehensive and just settlement” of the Palestinian issue and the formation of an independent state for Palestinians.
At a high-level meeting, Wang told his Saudi counterpart that China has always regarded Saudi Arabia as a “priority for Middle East diplomacy” and an important partner in global diplomacy, a Chinese foreign ministry statement on Monday said.
He also encouraged more cooperation in energy and investments, as well as in the fields of new energy and green transformation.
The countries have agreed to mutually exempt visas for diplomatic and special passport holders from both sides, according to the joint statement.
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Report: Iran Considers Removing Hezbollah Leader Naim Qassem
Lebanon’s Hezbollah Chief Naim Qassem gives a televised speech from an unknown location, July 30, 2025, in this screen grab from video. Photo: Al Manar TV/REUTERS TV/via REUTERS
i24 News – Iran is reportedly dissatisfied with the performance of Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem and is preparing to reorganize the group’s leadership, potentially removing him from his position, according to a report by Emirati outlet Erem News citing senior Lebanese diplomatic sources.
The report claims Tehran views Qassem as “unsuitable to lead Hezbollah at this critical stage,” arguing that he has failed to meet the leadership standards set by his predecessor, longtime Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah.
Iranian officials are said to believe Qassem lacks sufficient political acumen and hold him responsible for the deterioration in relations between Hezbollah and the Lebanese state.
According to Erem News, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is expected to oversee preparations for restructuring Hezbollah’s internal leadership during an upcoming visit to Beirut.
The visit is intended to assess the organization’s internal climate through direct meetings with senior Hezbollah figures and influential operatives.
“The Iranian minister seeks to monitor the general climate within Hezbollah and convey an accurate picture of the internal situation to decision-makers in Tehran,” the report said, adding that the findings would be used to inform “crucial decisions regarding anticipated changes at the head of the organization, most notably the fate of Naim Qassem.”
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Iran’s Foreign Minister to Visit Russia and Belarus, Foreign Ministry Says
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi speaks during a meeting with foreign ambassadors in Tehran, Iran, July 12, 2025. Photo: Hamid Forootan/Iranian Foreign Ministry/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
Iran‘s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araqchi, will visit Russia and Belarus in the next two to three days, foreign ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said on Sunday.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian met Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Turkmenistan on Friday.