Drop Site Daily: September 23, 2025
Israeli forces kill at least 29 people across Gaza since dawn, including 25 in Gaza City, according to Al Jazeera, while 38 killed and 190 injured Palestinians arrive at Gaza’s hospitals over the past 24 hours. Israel continues its assault on Gaza City, as health services collapse after bombing destroys the Jordanian field hospital and the only remaining children’s hospital. Both President Donald Trump and Hamas leadership indicate that they have drafted plans for an end to the genocide. Trump bails out Argentina’s economy after its peso collapses under the leadership of Javier Milei. France, Belgium, Monaco, Luxembourg, Malta, and Andorra recognized Palestine as a state on Monday at the United Nations, bringing the number of member states to recognize Palestine to 156 out of 193. Iran warns it may scrap its International Atomic Energy Agency cooperation deal if snapback sanctions are put in place.
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The Genocide in Gaza
- At least 29 people have been killed by Israeli forces across Gaza since dawn, including 25 in Gaza City, medical sources told Al Jazeera.
- In Gaza City, the health care system continues to collapse, with another hospital shutting down—the Jordanian Field Hospital in Tel al-Hawa. On Monday, al-Rantisi Children’s Hospital, the only pediatric facility in northern Gaza, and an eye hospital also ceased operations. The Jordanian army said it is relocating its field hospital to Khan Younis for the first time since October 7, 2023, noting it had never evacuated even during the war’s early bombardment.
- Israeli occupation vehicles are advancing into Gaza City’s Tel al-Hawa neighborhood, journalist Abdel Qader Sabbah reports, where explosive-laden robots are being detonated and shelter centers are being forcibly evacuated under threat of bombing. Residents describe a prevailing state of fear and panic.
- Israel threatened military action against the Global Sumud Flotilla, falsely claiming that it is “organized by Hamas” and “intended to serve Hamas,” and vowing to prevent it from reaching Gaza. Activists were instructed to dock in Ashkelon and hand over aid for Israeli-controlled delivery, as Israel maintains a naval blockade of Gaza that has been in place since 2007. Past flotillas, including the 2010 Mavi Marmara mission, were intercepted by force, resulting in ten deaths. Trump envoy Tom Barrack admitted in an interview with The National News’ Hadley Gamble that Israel struck Global Sumud Flotilla ships in Tunisia earlier this month, citing it as part of a broader pattern of attacks on the region.
Ceasefire Negotiations
- Trump will present Arab and Muslim leaders on Tuesday with U.S. principles for ending the Gaza genocide, in what officials describe to Axios as Washington’s most detailed proposal yet. The plan calls for the release of captives, an Israeli withdrawal, post-war governance in Gaza without Hamas, and Arab states contributing troops and funding for a transitional period, with Indonesia already offering soldiers. Arab officials said they view the proposal as an American plan requiring their input, and some signaled openness to sending forces if the Palestinian Authority is included and the process advances toward statehood, according to Axios.
- Hamas drafted a proposal offering the release of ten captives and two U.S. bodies in exchange for a two-month ceasefire, Saudi channel Al Arabiya reported, with American guarantees to uphold the truce and allow humanitarian aid. Senior Hamas officials told Asharq Al-Awsat that a new initiative is underway and that clarity may emerge within about ten days, with several Arab states involved at the UN in efforts to secure Israeli withdrawal from residential areas. Israel’s N12 reported that Hamas leaders in Qatar drafted a letter to Trump seeking a personal guarantee the ceasefire would hold, but the letter has not yet been signed or sent. Drop Site News has not independently verified these reports.
U.S. News
- The Trump administration is preparing a bailout for Argentina as President Javier Milei faces a collapsing peso and political setbacks, with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent saying Monday that Washington is ready to use tools from central bank swaps to peso purchases. The move briefly eased pressure on Argentine bonds and currency, as Milei—already dependent on a $20 billion IMF package—seeks U.S. backing to steady markets before October’s congressional elections. Investors have been pulling out since Milei’s September 7 local election defeat, a loss that sharpened concerns he may lack the congressional support to advance his agenda.
- President Trump signed an executive order officially designating Antifa as a domestic terrorist organization, citing what the order calls the group’s “coordinated efforts to obstruct enforcement of Federal laws through armed standoffs, organized riots, violent assaults on law enforcement, and routine doxing of political figures and activists.” Antifa is not an organization.
- The United States is considering sanctions as soon as this week against the entire International Criminal Court, six sources told Reuters, a move that could jeopardize the court’s day-to-day operations. The potential retaliation comes in response to the ICC’s investigations into suspected Israeli war crimes.
- Trump special envoy Tom Barrack, who faced backlash in August for telling Lebanese journalists to “act civilized,” today described ordinary Iranians as “thoughtful, civilized, and educated.” He said Iran’s regime was “manipulative,” adding that Israel may have to strike the country directly again, possibly with U.S. involvement. Barrack, the administration’s Special Envoy on Syria and Hezbollah disarmament, also said Hezbollah has “zero” incentive to disarm “when Israel is attacking everybody.”
- Former FTC Chair Lina Khan warns that today’s high economic concentration makes it easier for a president with authoritarian tendencies to control critics and censor dissent. With five firms dominating U.S. media markets, she notes, censorship is far simpler than if dozens of companies competed.
- The White House says it has received a letter from Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro but calls it “full of lies,” with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt asserting that the administration’s stance remains unchanged and continues to view Maduro as an “illegitimate leader.” The letter, from September 6, proposed direct talks with envoy Richard Grenell.
- Big Pharma is bracing for a “patent cliff,” with exclusive rights for nearly 200 top-selling drugs set to expire by 2030, amounting to $236B in lost revenue, according to The Lever. Rather than investing in new research, major firms are buying smaller companies and their patents, fueling consolidation that regulators warn could raise prices, stifle innovation, and increase the risk of drug shortages.
International News
- France, Belgium, Monaco, Luxembourg, Malta, and Andorra recognized Palestine on Monday, bringing the total number of UN member states acknowledging Palestine to 156 out of 193, or over 81%. The move follows recognition by the UK, Canada, Australia, and Portugal.
- Iran warns it will scrap its International Atomic Energy Agency cooperation deal if UN sanctions are reimposed, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi telling reporters in New York that snapback by the UK, France, and Germany would invalidate the agreement. He said Tehran would respond and seek new conditions with the agency, and stressed the moment is one to choose “cooperation or confrontation.”
- At the UN General Assembly in New York, Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa called for U.S. sanctions to be lifted, saying they punish ordinary Syrians, and urged a “new chapter” with Washington. He told retired U.S. General and former CIA Director David Petraeus that Syria has moved from the battlefield to the “theater of dialogue,” highlighting the country’s skilled workforce and urging the U.S. to seize the moment for diplomacy.
- Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas publicly condemned Hamas’s October 7 attack for the first time at the UN General Assembly, saying the PA “condemn[s] the occupation’s crimes just as we condemn the killing and capture of civilians as Hamas did,” while offering Hebrew New Year greetings and praising Palestinian steadfastness. He outlined a comprehensive reform agenda to improve governance, including financial and education reforms and a single social welfare system, which is now undergoing an international audit.
- Airports in Norway and Denmark were shut down for hours after multiple large drones entered restricted airspace, in what Denmark called the “most serious attack so far” on the country’s critical infrastructure. The drones reportedly flew over airports in Oslo and Copenhagen for several hours, causing shutdowns and massive flight disruptions for several hours before escaping without being intercepted. Though no one claimed responsibility, officials linked the incident to Russia’s hybrid tactics in northern Europe, echoing recent drone and aircraft intrusions in Poland, Romania, and Estonia.
- The Afghan Taliban again rejected President Trump’s demand that the U.S. be allowed to take back Bagram air base, saying that Afghanistan will not surrender “even an inch” of its territory. Bagram, abandoned during the 2021 U.S. withdrawal, has been under Taliban control since, but has recently drawn the attention of Trump and other U.S. officials who have discussed it as a possible counterterrorism asset, as well as forward base to surveil Chinese nuclear assets. Taliban officials cited the Doha Agreement, under which Washington pledged not to threaten Afghanistan’s independence, and warned that any attempt to retake Bagram would be seen as a violation.
- Italy’s state-owned channel TG3 opened its newscast with a statement of solidarity with the September 22 nationwide general strike for Gaza, condemning the “daily massacre of civilians, health workers, and journalists, and mass deportations carried out by the Israeli government.” The move marks a sharp break from the pro-Israel stance of Italy’s right-wing ruling coalition. Italy’s government oversees the public broadcaster RAI and has resisted EU measures targeting Israel.
- France is circulating a draft proposal for an “International Stabilization Mission” to replace Israeli forces in Gaza and oversee Hamas’s disarmament, according to the Times of Israel. The UN-mandated, regionally led force would be funded by Gulf donors, with Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar as preferred participants. The plan envisions an initial phase of ceasefire monitoring and humanitarian access, followed by transferring security to the Palestinian Authority, reconstruction, and elections, while stressing that dismantling Hamas is a “core element.”
- Indonesia’s President Prabowo Subianto told the UN two-state conference that Jakarta is ready to send troops to help secure Gaza after the war, reaffirming an offer first made last year. Indonesia remains the only country to make such a pledge publicly, while Arab states have hinted at joining the International Stabilization Mission backed by France but insist on a role for the Palestinian Authority that Israel rejects.
More from Drop Site
- Drop Site’s Sharif Abdel Kouddous appeared on Democracy Now! Tuesday to talk about the pardon of Egyptian-British activist Alaa Abd El-Fattah by Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi. El-Fattah, a human rights activist, was freed from prison after spending most of the past 12 years in prison. He was imprisoned in 2014 for protesting without permission. El-Sisi also freed five other prisoners.
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