Chief Correspondent with Reuters at Europe's political meeting point, Brussels, and financial meeting point Frankfurt. Views mine.

Brussels & Frankfurt
Joined August 2010
John O'Donnell retweeted
Three years ago, children in Gaza held a press conference in english to beg the world to stop the bombardment. ~22,000 children have been killed since then. No one listened.
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Sparred with Rubio for a bit over Starlink/Starshield as we left for Uzbekistan 🇺🇿 Raised as many questions as were answered quite frankly. Hard to remember such a lack of official answers over such a consequential natsec matter that has lasted so long
.@SecRubio on defense product Starshield: "It's not at this moment available to Ukraine."
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John O'Donnell retweeted
New: US and Russian officials, including Jared Kushner and Kirill Dmitriev, have directly discussed reopening Nord Stream under US ownership, per sources WH says talks not “recent”. Dmitriev talked w Treasury and Energy last month w @johnodonnell21 reuters.com/business/energy/…
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Anton Gerashchenko
@Gerashchenko_enOct 8
Russia and the United States are discussing bringing a US investor into the Nord Stream pipelines that delivered gas to Germany before Russia invaded Ukraine, according to a Reuters article by John O'Donnell @johnodonnell21, Gram Slattery @G_Slattery, and David Gauthier-Villars @gauthiervillars. The talks reportedly involved Putin's envoy Kirill Dmitriev and US envoy Jared Kushner. "Kushner, who has been trying to broker a truce between Russia and Ukraine, views doing business as central to restoring peace. Such a deal would enable US investors to profit from energy flows to Europe once the war ends," Reuters writes. Dmitriev and Kushner have recently met in Moscow and New York. It is unclear how extensively they discussed Nord Stream at those meetings. However, according to sources, the topic remains on the agenda. At the same time, an unnamed US official believes such a deal is unlikely in the medium term. The Nord Stream pipelines are under US and EU sanctions, meaning any resumption of their operations would be unlawful. "Germany and other European countries, which are spending billions of euros rebuilding their militaries to defend themselves from Russia, would strongly resist restarting Nord Stream," Reuters writes. Kushner and Dmitriev also discussed the sale of a number of businesses - from oil refineries to gas stations in Europe and other regions - owned by Russian energy company Lukoil. Under the plan, a consortium including the federal investment agency DFC and investors from Qatar and the United Arab Emirates would buy the assets, while US authorities would lift the sanctions.
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⚡️ Putin envoy Dmitriev, AfD prepare meeting on restarting Russian gas supplies to Germany, Reuters reports. Kremlin economic envoy Kirill Dmitriev and the leadership of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party are preparing to meet as early as March, Reuters reported, citing undisclosed sources. kyivindependent.com/putin-en…
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John O'Donnell retweeted
This morning's Haaretz bombshell article claims Netanyahu received a direct, explicit warning from UAE President Mohamed bin Zayed (MBZ) about 10 days before October 7, and never passed it on to Israel's security chiefs. The warning was that Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was preparing a major operation against Israel. The warning reportedly stemmed from a secret backchannel, through which Israel and Hamas had been quietly negotiating a temporary truce and prisoner/hostage-body exchange throughout 2023, with Netanyahu's knowledge but repeated delays on his part. As talks stalled and Sinwar "vanished" in early September, he later used the same channel to warn twice that Hamas was preparing a "zilzal" (earthquake). This warning reached Israel's Shin Bet on September 15, triggering security meetings on September 17 and October 1, but no decisive action was taken. The article also reports on early, reportedly serious offers from Hamas (via the network of Mohammed Dahlan) to release all civilian hostages unconditionally in the days right after Oct 7, and a parallel Qatari mediation offer to the head of Mossad) both of which Israeli officials reportedly rebuffed or failed to take seriously), as the political and military leadership turned its focus on on destroying Hamas rather than negotiating with it. Israel elections are scheduled for Oct 27th.
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.@kajakallas confirmed in #Ireland that @vonderleyen still has not sent a proposal to @EUCouncil on which EU govts could vote to ban trade with illegal Israeli settlements 🇮🇱🇪🇺
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Reuters
@ReutersAug 31
Exclusive: German drone maker Quantum Systems gained an early foothold in the United States with help from CIA-linked investor In-Q-Tel, its co-CEO said, highlighting how US capital and networks continue to shape Europe's emerging defense companies reut.rs/3UMOLQu
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Reuters
@ReutersAug 26
GRAPHIC WARNING: This video contains sensitive footage that may disturb some viewers. A massive flash flood in the Himalayan border areas of Nepal and ‌China's Tibet washed away villages while damaging roads, bridges and power projects in a region bordering Tibet, authorities said.
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Disappointed the BBC cancelled my interview on Israel's killing of Hind Rajab 2 producers eagerly reached out. They confirmed the time & one called to prepare a brief for the anchor She asked me whether Israel's announcement is positive, I explained in detail it was a cover up. The IDF is blaming the killing of Hind, her uncle, aunt & 4 cousins on the family itself for trying to flee by car & on the ambulance sent to rescue her for "failures in the co-ordination of the movement." None of this is remotely true! The Red Cross immediately informed the IDF about 5-year-old Hind who was hiding in that motionless car, & they requested permission from Israel to allow an ambulance to rescue them. After multiple long hours, Israel granted greenlight to the ambulance & provided them with a designated route on a GPS to drive on. As soon as the ambulance reached Hind's car, the IDF ambushed & bombed them immediately with an American made anti-tank missile then opened fire on Hind's car. The car was hit with 355 bullets. Israel then kept that area under lockdown for 12 days, & prevented anyone from approaching. Hind's mom went daily to the Ahli baptist hospital hoping to find her daughter, until her lifeless body was brought in along with the charred remains of the ambulance men. Israel then claimed after an "initial investigation" that its troops were NEVER in that area to begin with. They maintained that claim for 2 years despite ample recordings & satellite images debunking this lie. The only reason Israel is now making this new announcement of a deeper investigation is to shield its soldiers & generals from the International Criminal Court by invoking the principle of "complementarity;" that the ICC cannot investigate a state that is already investigating itself in good faith. I told the BBC producer Israel today also quietly shut down the investigation into the triple tap killing of American, Canadian, British, Australian & Polish citizens in the WCK massacre. Israel blamed the massacre on the aid workers themselves for "deviating from the predesignated route" & for hiring an armed security guard "without informing the IDF" (both claims where debunked by WCK themselves, who had coordinates their every step with the IDF). I told the producer the Israeli commander responsible for this massacre, Nochi Mendel, is a fanatical settler who had signed a petition calling for starving Gaza & that he was celebrated by settler leaders & supported by Israeli government leaders after what he did. Mendel even received a box of chocolate from the settler council's leader & a letter of support for what he did. Mendel was initially dismissed by the IDF & blamed for the massacre, but was quickly & quietly reinstated & promoted in the Defence Ministry as the head of the settlements and national infrastructure unit. It's abundantly clear Israel is NOT serious about prosecuting any of the atrocities committed in Gaza. Since the genocide began, only two soldiers were punished by the IDF; one for microwaving a living frog & another for cooking sausages in the army kitchen on Shabbat. The producer asked me: What about the 150 cases the IDF said are pending review? I answered: it's just a number designed to give the appearance of seriousness, but it's essentially meaningless. If it took the IDF two whole years to admit the simplest of facts that the entire world had already known, which is that their troops were the ones who fired on Hind Rajab's car, how do you expect them to do with the remaining cases that are not as high profile? Five minutes after the call, the producer wrote me that they decided to cancel the interview & will not even host anyone else to comment on the issue, & instead they'll play archival footage!
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Reuters
@ReutersAug 19
🔊 A Palestinian American returned to his besieged West Bank home, raised a US flag for protection and confronted an Israeli settler who entered his property. Reuters caught it on tape. Listen to the Reuters World News podcast to hear his story reut.rs/4glAmSI
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John O'Donnell retweeted
I renew my appeal for an end to the ongoing violence against the Palestinian civilian population in the West Bank, and I urgently call on the international community to work toward advancing the two-state solution, for a just and lasting peace.
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Another ship just left Ireland to russia filled with raw materials and the Irish prime minister @MichealMartinTD just arrived in Kyiv. If you’re a journalist here doing an interview with him then ask him about this. His team are too afraid to speak to me.
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Reuters
@ReutersJul 21
An Israeli airstrike killed a father, his wife and their four children in Gaza City, while setting their home ablaze, health officials said reut.rs/4fmyRD1
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Kevork Almassian
@KevorkAlmassianJul 20
U.S. soldiers were sent to die in the Middle East for Israel’s wars. Meanwhile, the families of the people who pushed those wars are enjoying the World Cup from luxury seats. The ruling class gets the view. Ordinary families get the coffins.
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Reuters
@ReutersJul 19
'Every day there’s killing and strikes': Palestinians mourned loved ones in Gaza’s Deir al-Balah, a day after an Israeli strike hit a house whose residents had been warned to evacuate
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Reuters
@ReutersJun 30
AfD leader vows to restore German-Russian ties as she eyes chancellery reut.rs/4eEw8pE reut.rs/4eEw8pE
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AfD leader Alice Weidel pledged to end Germany's Russian oil boycott and restore ties with Moscow if she becomes Chancellor The party remains under documented scrutiny by German intelligence for pro-Russia ties. AfD also wants to end military aid to Ukraine euromaidanpress.com/2026/06/…
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John O'Donnell retweeted
Reuters
@ReutersJun 30
Germany should end a boycott of Russian oil and gas to bolster its flagging economy, the leader of the far-right Alternative for Germany, Alice Weidel, told Reuters as she outlined the party's ambitions to lead a national government reut.rs/4oSdsWI
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