The BRICS Summit, attended by heads of state, is held in Kazan, Russia, on 22-24 October. | The 16th annual BRICS summit began on Tuesday in the Russian city of Kazan, in the Republic of Tatarstan. The three-day summit will bring together officials from 36 countries, including 22 top ones, as well as leaders of six international organizations. [...] The summit will be devoted to discussions on strengthening multilateralism, integrating new members of the bloc and addressing regional challenges. Russian President Vladimir Putin will host the summit.

⚡ Dumping US dollar ‘keeps politics out of economic development’ – Putin (RT.com)
■ BRICS not aiming to ‘defeat the dollar’ – Kremlin (RT.com)
■ Putin to have a series of bilateral meetings on sidelines of BRICS Summit (TASS)
■ Developments on payment mechanisms expected in BRICS — Russian Foreign Ministry (TASS)
■ BRICS Economic Dominance Taking Shape, West Can Do Nothing About It - French Politician (Sputnik)

❗️ FOUR PEOPLE KILLED, 24 INJURED IN ISRAELI STRIKE NEAR RAFIK HARIRI UNIVERSITY HOSPITAL – LEBANESE HEALTH MINISTRY

According to preliminary data, an Israeli strike near Rafik Hariri University Hospital in southern Beirut has killed four people, including a child, and injured… https://t.co/AB5fyqJUd6

— Sputnik (@SputnikInt) October 21, 2024

(Hitting Hospitals...just like they did in Gaza.) | Casualties have been reported at the Site of the Israeli Airstrike earlier at Hariri University Hospital in Downtown Beirut, with Civil Defense Teams searching through the Rubble for Survivors. UPDATE 5:09 PM EDT -- The attack near Rafic Hariri Hospital targeted Al-Mekdad Street, a busy and densely populated neighborhood in Jnah. Civil defense teams are on the scene searching for survivors under the rubble. Despite no evacuation orders being issued, the area was targeted and has suffered numerous casualties. This part of Beirut, rarely attacked, still holds a large civilian presence.

■ Live blog: Death toll from Israeli strike on Beirut hospital climbs to 18 (TRT World)
■ Beirut: Israeli strike near Rafik Hariri government hospital kills four, including child (The New Arab)
■ Israeli raids target residential areas, hospitals threatened: Beirut (Al Mayadeen)

Iran will hold the United States accountable for the coming Israeli attack. | The Iranian Embassy at the United Nations in New York City said this afternoon, "President Biden’s remarks in Berlin on Friday, stating he knows “when and how” Israel will attack Iran, amount to “tacit approval and explicit support” for Israel’s “illegal aggressive actions” against Iran. They added, “The United States will bear full responsibility for its role in any Israeli act of aggression against Iran.” It is widely believed that this means Iran WILL make good on its word to "hit all U.S. Bases in the Middle East" if/when Israel attacks.

■ Iran ready to deliver 'crushing blow' to Israel: Army chief (Mehr News)

Israel expanded the scope of its attacks from the devastated Gaza Strip to Lebanon last month, carrying out a ground offensive against Hezbollah forces in the southern border areas, along with relentless daily airstrikes. | US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has embarked upon a Middle East tour as Washington makes a last-ditch attempt at pushing Israel towards some semblance of a negotiation process before the US presidential election. The itinerary of the week-long visit takes Blinken first to Israel on Tuesday, then on to Jordan and Qatar. ● Blinken has been tasked with discussing how to bring an end to Israel’s war on Hamas in Gaza, humanitarian assistance for the devastated enclave, and "day after" plans, such as security, governance, and reconstruction for the region after the fighting ends, a senior State Department official told reporters.

The ex-lawmaker’s presence on the campaign trail will anger Arab-Americans, the former US president has claimed | Former US President Donald Trump has hammered Vice President Kamala Harris for campaigning with Liz Cheney, a prominent neoconservative whom Trump accused of wanting “to go to war with every Muslim country known to mankind.” ● Cheney, a former member of Congress and the daughter of former US Vice President Dick Cheney, endorsed Harris last month, and will tour the swing states of Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin this week in a bid to drum up establishment Republican support for the Democratic nominee. Michigan is home to around 250,000 Arab-Americans, who reportedly favor Trump, due to their opposition to Harris' position on the Israel-Hamas war. ● In a post on his Truth Social platform on Monday, Trump predicted that Ms. Cheney’s appearance will further infuriate the cohort.

💬 “Arab Voters are very upset that Comrade Kamala Harris, the Worst Vice President in the History of the United States and a Low IQ individual, is campaigning with ‘dumb as a rock’ War Hawk, Liz Cheney, who, like her father, the man that pushed Bush to ridiculously go to War in the Middle East, also wants to go to War with every Muslim Country known to mankind,” he wrote.

If Kamala gets four more years, the Middle East will spend the next four decades going up in flames, and your kids will be going off to War, maybe even a Third World War, something that will never happen with President Donald J. Trump in charge,” he continued.

Russia needs to be discouraged from launching new operations against its neighbor once a ceasefire is reached, Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu says | The West should seriously consider placing “conventional deterrence” assets, which could include long-range missile sytems, on Ukrainian soil once the hot phase of the conflict is over, French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu has said. In an interview with the broadcaster TF1/LCI on Monday, Lecornu weighed in on Vladimir Zelensky’s much-touted “victory plan,” which the Ukrainian leader presented to the national parliament last week.