An investigation has established that Israel is using US-manufactured electroshock weapons on Palestinian detainees, with human rights organizations including Amnesty International documenting repeated torture and ill-treatment in Israeli detention centres. The weapons are made by Axon, which continues to supply them despite the evidence. Amnesty has called for export restrictions. The Israel Defense Forces said abuse of detainees was "strictly prohibited." The detention story deepened when the Israeli military seized approximately 80 US, Israeli and British volunteers near Nahalin in the occupied West Bank. The group — which included New York Democratic congressional nominee Brad Lander, several rabbis, and Israel's former deputy attorney general — was helping Palestinians harvest olives near Bethlehem. Soldiers declared the area a closed military zone. Separately, Washington Post photojournalist Heidi Levine described how local Palestinians using slingshots drove off Israeli settlers who had beaten her severely on Friday. The regional picture is deteriorating. The US State Department ordered some diplomats and families of government employees to leave Saudi Arabia amid near-daily Houthi attacks from Yemen. Similar withdrawals are reported from the UAE, Jordan, Qatar and Bahrain, driven by concerns about a return to conflict with Iran after the US midterm elections. Domestically, Democratic state attorneys general and civic groups have accelerated coordination to counter potential federal interference in the November midterms by Donald Trump, who continues making false claims of widespread voting fraud. Trump's approval has sunk to 36%, the lowest recorded, with voters expressing frustration over the economy, cost of living and the Iran war. He was heckled at least nine times at a campaign event and praised a supporter who punched a demonstrator. Elon Musk's Super PAC has spent more than $500,000 in New York's 17th congressional district to support Republican incumbent Mike Lawler against Democrat Cait Conley — one of the races that could determine congressional control. Meanwhile, letters containing white powder have been sent to more than three dozen congressional offices, including Nancy Pelosi's. The Supreme Court blocked the Trump administration's attempt to immediately enforce sweeping restrictions on gender-affirming care for transgender individuals in prisons and federal facilities — an unusual victory for transgender rights before a court that has largely sided with opponents. Separately, a critical vulnerability in PHP — a language used by nearly 70% of websites — forced European governments to take sites offline, with the NSA ordering all affected organizations to patch or disconnect immediately. In other developments: Macron accused Trump and other foreign leaders of making "stupid comments" about French street unrest; a Kansas man was arrested for threatening to shoot Trump; Pope Leo's doctors said no further treatment was needed after lung cancer surgery; and Jeffrey Epstein's attorney and accountant were accused of facilitating and concealing his crimes in a civil lawsuit by New Mexico's attorney general.
