Real estate news: Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort rebrands amid renovation

• September 25, 2026

The Laguna Cliffs Marriott Resort & Spa has a new name, and soon a fashionable makeover.

JW Marriott and Aimbridge Hospitality are updating the Dana Point property, which has been rebranded The Ocean Cliffs at Dana Point, a JW Marriott Resort.

Hospitality design firms HKS and ROAM will give the nearly 40-year-old resort a contemporary aesthetic that strives to maintain Dana Point’s history of surf culture and painted cottages in its historic Lantern District.

The renovation work will update the 371-room resort’s overall design, expand communal spaces and improve amenities to match JW Marriott’s aesthetic, according to the company.

Enlarging and enhancing amenities are central to the renovation. JW Marriott said it’s adding a “destination-style” resort pool. Also new: a 6,000-square-foot ballroom, an expanded event lawn, a refreshed entry and a restaurant updated to include a signature chef.

““For nearly 40 years, this storied property has stood as a beacon overlooking Dana Point Harbor, calling both locals home and visitors to our shores to experience the quintessential Southern California coastal lifestyle,” said Ben Ly, the general manager of newly renamed resort.

The hotel will remain open during the renovations, which are expected to wrap up by early 2027, according to JW Marriott.

Brea office complex sells at a loss

The Brea office complex Fairway Center II is under new ownership after it sold this month for $27.85 million.

The 135,000-square-foot, three-story building at 675 Placentia Ave. was acquired by The Whittier Comstock LLC, a subsidiary of MW Investment LLC, which is owned by real estate investor Matthew Waken.

Property documents provided by PropertyShark.com indicate the seller was Redwood City-based Dollinger Properties, which bought Fairway Center II in 2019 for $33.5 million.

CBRE represented the seller in the transaction.

“Fairway Center II attracted significant interest amongst the investment and owner/user community alike,” said Anthony DeLorenzo, vice chairman at CBRE. “We received multiple competitive offers from a variety of buyer profiles and awarded the property to a private investor within the first 30 days of marketing.”

The property also has 617 parking spaces.

CBRE’s research team says north Orange County “continues to outperform the broader Orange County office market, supported by limited new construction, strong transportation connectivity and steady demand for well-located low-rise office properties.”

Twin apartment buildings sell for $3.4M in Anaheim

Twelve apartments in matching side-by-side buildings in Anaheim sold in mid-September for $3.4 million or $283,333 per unit.

Stanfield Real Estate Group represented the seller in a 1031 exchange. A single investor acquired both buildings.

Completed in 1956, the buildings at 1126 and 1122 W. Broadway each have six units, most of which are one-bedroom apartments. Each building features a single two-bedroom option that comes with a fireplace and private patio.

According to the brokerage, each building when fully leased took in roughly $141,240 in gross annual income. Rents range from $2,420 for the two-bedroom units to $1,850 for the one-bedroom apartments.

The real estate roundup is compiled from news releases and written by Business Editor Samantha Gowen. Submit items and high-resolution photos via email to  sgowen@scng.com . Please allow at least a week for publication. All items are subject to editing for clarity and length.

​ Orange County Register 

Xi is wrapping his visit to Washington with a peek at the Constitution and Bill of Rights

• September 25, 2026

By MICHELLE L. PRICE

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump is taking Chinese President Xi Jinping to visit the National Archives on Friday, showing off the sacred texts of U.S. democracy to the leader of the world’s most powerful communist country to cap off a three-day state visit criticized for being heavy on pomp and light on substance.

Xi is expected to depart Washington after touring the nation’s vault of records, where the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights are held. The two leaders have made a show of working to preserve harmony between the world’s two largest economies, though there were no major breakthroughs on issues such as trade or the safety of artificial intelligence.

The visit comes as the U.S. celebrates the 250th anniversary of its founding, and Trump, a Republican, said Thursday that he wanted to show Xi “some of the greatest treasures of that proud history.”

The Archives has a special exhibit marking the sesquicentennial, titled “The American Story,” which highlights the country’s accomplishments and advances, along with images depicting its darker moments.

Trump showed Xi one copy of the Declaration of Independence on Thursday — a wall-mounted copy he keeps in the Oval Office.

The U.S. president also said he wanted to show Xi artifacts about the relationship between the two countries.

“Just as our ancestors reached across the ocean centuries ago to trade, to learn, and to build a better world, our two countries do really the same thing, and we’re very proud of it,” he said.

Xi’s day will begin at the White House, where Trump and first lady Melania Trump will host the Chinese leader and his wife, Peng Liyuan, for tea.

The Trumps feted their guests Thursday night with a black-tie state dinner attended by technology industry titans. Earlier in the day, Trump gave Xi a personal tour of his White House flourishes, including a gallery wall of presidents and a new 100-foot-long (30-meter-long) granite helicopter landing pad — and pointed out his ballroom, still under construction. Melania Trump and Peng Liyuan toured the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Asian Art.

The two leaders also met behind closed doors for 90 minutes on Thursday, when they discussed issues such as the Middle East, Ukraine and the Korean Peninsula, according to the official Chinese government readout of the meeting. The White House has not provided any information about the private talks.

​ Orange County Register 

How one factory is surviving America’s solar policy whiplash

• September 25, 2026

Inside the vast Qcells factory in Cartersville, Georgia, workers — and a bevy of robots — move ultra-thin slices of polysilicon through a lengthy series of machines and chemical baths to get what are known as cells.

“The $2.5 billion, the 3.5 million gallons of water, the 90 megawatts of power, the 60 tons of chemicals on site, and all of the football fields’ worth of infrastructure you’ve seen is to arrive at this,” said Scott Bell of Qcells, holding up one of the paper-thin blue cells.

It’s the basic building block of a solar panel.

In June, the plant, about an hour northwest of Atlanta, began its expansion from assembling the major components of solar panels to bringing the whole production process under one roof. It’s a major milestone for the U.S. solar industry. China has dominated solar panel manufacturing since the 2010s, flooding the global market with far cheaper panels than anyone else could make. For a host of reasons — national security, labor practices, job creation — the U.S. is trying to bring back domestic production, Grist reports.

In its latest move, the Trump administration plans to levy new tariffs and impose minimum import prices on polysilicon, the key ingredient for solar cells. The new measures go into effect in December.

“Having the full supply chain is critical,” said solar manufacturing expert Ben Damiani, chief technology officer at Atlanta-based solar developer Cherry Street Energy. Moving that supply chain to the U.S., he said, hasn’t been a smooth road. “Probably the biggest hindrance has been the constant change of our own policies.”

The Biden administration took a carrot approach to attracting solar panel makers: The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act included tax credit bonuses for solar projects that used U.S.-made panels. Qcells, a South Korean firm, has said those incentives were a major reason they built their Cartersville plant.

The Trump administration, by contrast, is taking a stick approach. While last year’s “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” revoked most of the tax credits, it also made solar equipment from certain countries — including China — ineligible for the few tax credits that remain. That, along with the new tariffs, may help a U.S. manufacturer like Qcells compete with Chinese imports, which are now more expensive.

The two policy approaches have the same ultimate goal, according to researcher Coco Zhang of the banking and investment firm ING. But it’s been whiplash for companies.

Following Trump’s latest executive actions, Qcells is still likely able to find a way to be successful, Zhang said. But Qcells has already made a multibillion-dollar investment in its brand new facility that took more than three years to come online. For other companies with less capital and poorer timing, the supply-side incentives for domestic production may not be enough — especially when the policies could completely change again.

As a part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, the Trump administration closed the Inflation Reduction Act loophole that had left room for China-based solar companies to simply set up shop in the U.S., which, according to Zhang, may go further still toward rooting out Chinese competition. In the long run, she’s optimistic that the U.S. solar panel industry can complete its shift to domestic production. But because the rules discouraging foreign ownership cut deeper into the supply chain, those restrictions and the policy back-and-forth could make things harder to navigate in the short term, she said.

The short-term outlook is complicated for those buying solar panels, too. The phaseout of federal clean energy tax credits removed a major incentive to develop new solar projects, and the Trump administration has taken steps to cancel federal funding for clean energy projects and add new hurdles for solar and wind installations on federal land. The courts have blocked or reversed some of those actions, but the delays add costs and uncertainties even for projects that do ultimately move forward.

In the first quarter of this year, clean energy advocacy group E2 tracked nearly $13 billion in abandoned investments in solar, wind, and battery projects. But some $18 billion in new projects were announced as companies scrambled to meet the deadline of the expiring tax credits. While the new tariffs and price controls on polysilicon could help U.S. manufacturers compete to supply the solar developments that remain, they could also drive up costs for developers, Zhang said, and “limited U.S. supply means many will still depend on imports and face higher costs.”

But industry experts maintain that solar isn’t going anywhere. It’s still one of the cheapest sources of electricity at a time when energy demand is growing fast. Solar panels are also readily available, while gas turbines are backordered for years. Solar and storage made up 90 percent of new power added to the U.S. grid in the first quarter of the year, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association.

“We absolutely should make solar, right? Like, it is the fastest deployed, lowest cost foreseeable,” said Damiani. “Solar will be, for the next hundred years, a good portion of our energy.”

The questions, experts agreed, aren’t whether solar development will keep happening, but how quickly, how much it will cost, and who — and where — will make the solar panels.

This coverage is made possible through a partnership between Grist and WABE, Atlanta’s NPR station.​

This story was produced by Grist and reviewed and distributed by Stacker.

​ Orange County Register 

Could Americans move to a 32-hour workweek? What to know about the proposed bill

• September 25, 2026

By Maria Salette Ontiveros, The Dallas Morning News

A proposal in Congress would shorten the standard workweek for millions of Americans without reducing their pay or benefits if it passes.

Rep. Mark Takano, D-California, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vermont, reintroduced the Thirty-Two Hour Workweek Act on Sept. 8.

The legislation would amend the Fair Labor Standards Act and gradually lower threshold to earn overtime pay to 32 hours a week from 40.

The Fair Labor Standards Act is the federal law that sets basic rules for workers’ pay. It requires eligible workers to receive overtime pay after working more than 40 hours a week.

Here is what to know about the proposal

What would the Thirty-Two Hour Workweek Act do?

The legislation would gradually reduce the standard workweek for employees covered by federal overtime requirements.

Under the proposal, the overtime threshold would decrease over several years:

• More than 38 hours during the first year
• More than 36 hours during the second year
• More than 34 hours during the third year
• More than 32 hours after the third year

The first reduction would take effect at least 180 days after the legislation became law, according to the official bill text⁠.

Employees would generally have to receive at least 1 1/2 times their regular pay rate for hours worked beyond the applicable weekly threshold.

Would employees continue receiving the same pay?

The bill says employers can not reduce an affected employee’s total weekly compensation, regular pay rate or benefits because of the shorter standard workweek.

That provision is intended to allow employees to work fewer hours without losing income. Employees who continued working beyond the new threshold would qualify for overtime compensation.

Would everyone get a four-day workweek?

No. The proposal would not require employers to schedule workers for four eight-hour days or guarantee every employee a three-day weekend.

Instead, it would change the point at which covered workers qualify for overtime. Employers could determine how to organize schedules while complying with the new requirements.

The changes would primarily apply to nonexempt employees covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Why are lawmakers proposing a shorter workweek?

Takano and Sanders argue that federal labor standards have not kept pace with increases in worker productivity and developments such as artificial intelligence, automation and other technology.

“The 40-hour workweek was established in law nearly 90 years ago,” Takano said in a statement announcing the legislation⁠. “Work has fundamentally changed. It’s time that labor standards caught up.”

Sanders said the financial gains from artificial intelligence and robotics should benefit working families, not be concentrated among corporations and their executives.

Is the 32-hour workweek already law?

No. The proposal was introduced in the House as H.R. 10323⁠ and referred to the House Committee on Education and the Workforce.

Introducing a bill does not change federal labor law. The measure would have to advance through Congress, pass the House and Senate and be signed by the president before taking effect.

©2026 The Dallas Morning News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

​ Orange County Register 

US futures rising as bond market looks to be stabilizing

• September 25, 2026

By CHAN HO-HIM and MICHELLE CHAPMAN, AP Business Writers

U.S. futures are rising as the bond market looks to be stabilizing following another bond sell-off that brought U.S. Treasury yields to their highest levels in years.

Futures for the S&P 500 climbed 0.3%, while those for the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.2%. Nasdaq futures climbed 0.5%.

The Dow is off 0.6% for the week to date, which is pointing it toward its fourth straight losing week.

A global sell-off in the bond market has again added pressure to the stock market, as the yield on the U.S. 10-year Treasury reached its highest level since 2007. The U.S. 10-year Treasury eased slightly to around 5.18% on Friday, after rising above 5.20% on Thursday from around 5.11% Wednesday. Still, the 10-year Treasury is up 40 basis points since September, putting a squeeze on anyone who borrows money.

Government bond yields have been elevated as bond investors are demanding higher compensation under increasing risks and uncertainties, including growing inflationary pressure from the Iran war-driven energy shock and rising U.S. government debt.

ING Bank analysts wrote in a commentary this week that factors including elevated energy prices and inflation pressures are likely to continue to pressure U.S. 10-year Treasury yields higher.

Oil prices declined Friday as investors look for signs of the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, the key waterway for global oil transport. Brent crude, the international standard, dropped 1.4% to $98.83 per barrel, remaining below the $100 mark although it’s still well above the roughly $72 a barrel level in late February before the start of the war. Benchmark U.S. crude fell 1.7% to $92.97 per barrel.

While many investors are also monitoring the meeting in Washington between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, analysts said limited concrete progress has been made, although the two sides touched on topics including trade, artificial intelligence and the Middle East.

In Europe, Britain’s FTSE 100 climbed 0.3% to 10,707.98. France’s CAC 40 slipped 0.1% to 8,074.83, while Germany’s DAX rose 0.6% to 25,417.28. Some Asian markets were mixed.

Markets in mainland China, Taiwan and South Korea were closed because of a holiday.

In other dealings, the U.S. dollar fell to 157.77 Japanese yen from 158.86 yen. The euro was trading at $1.1402, up from $1.1380.

​ Orange County Register 

As health insurance costs soar, healthcare workers also feel the pinch

• September 25, 2026

By Hayat Norimine, KFF Health News

BOISE, Idaho — Joshua and Ashley Durham run a family medicine practice, and for the first time in their lives, they have no health insurance.

When the Durhams began their practice at the end of 2023 — he as a primary care physician and she as a pharmacist who handles the billing — the couple bought coverage for themselves and their two kids on the Affordable Care Act marketplace. But they said their monthly premiums for a similar health plan for this year rose several hundred dollars to nearly $1,600.

They decided to pay out-of-pocket for their medical expenses instead, leaning on $50,000 they had set aside in a health savings account over several years.

“It’s nerve-racking,” said Joshua Durham, 47. “It just takes, you know, one little accident, and then you got a big fat bill.”

The healthcare industry traditionally has more of its workforce on medical insurance than many other fields. Nationwide, 7% of all healthcare workers were uninsured in 2024, compared with 11% of all adults under 65, according to a KFF analysis of the most recent American Community Survey data. And doctors were especially unlikely to forgo health insurance, with just 2% uninsured.

But even healthcare workers are feeling the pinch as health insurance costs rise each year, with employers expecting that costs will jump an additional 8.2% for 2027.

The Republican-led Congress also opted last year not to renew Affordable Care Act marketplace credits enacted during the COVID pandemic. While subsidies remain in place for people with low incomes, the pandemic-era credits helped reduce many consumers’ premium payments, especially those working in small businesses such as independent medical practices. Nearly half of marketplace enrollees worked for small businesses or were self-employed in 2024; some of the most common occupations included chiropractic care and dentistry.

Jack Dillon, executive director of the Association for Independent Medicine, which represents 4,000 physician-led practices, said premium increases have become untenable for small businesses, whether employers seek coverage through the marketplace or directly from insurers.

“The cost has become so astronomical,” Dillon said. “You’re looking at it and saying, ‘What’s the value?’”

As health insurance continues to become less affordable, Dillon said, more healthcare employers may seek alternatives to their standard coverage, such as providing higher hourly wages or providing only minimal plans.

The number of people without insurance in the U.S. is expected to increase by roughly 15 million over 10 years because of the expiration of the expanded ACA subsidies and$1.1 trillion in estimated cuts resulting from President Donald Trump’s signature One Big Beautiful Bill Act, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Healthier people are the most likely to opt out of insurance. That leaves insurance covering a smaller pool of people who tend to be sicker and need more expensive care. So insurers raise prices to cover the remaining enrollees, which fuels even higher premium costs.

‘Healthcare Is a Business’

Samantha LeGault, a nurse practitioner at a health clinic in Boise, said her employer-offered plan’s premium payment rose from $700 to $1,500 a month this year to insure herself, her husband, and four of their kids. LeGault has Crohn’s disease and two of their daughters also have medical conditions, so she said her family has no choice but to continue to pay for that health coverage.

But she decided to skip dental insurance to save money, and she prioritizes dental visits for her children over herself.

She had already struggled to set aside retirement savings and had switched her children from a private school they liked to public school to cut down on costs. Then the new health insurance costs tightened her budget even more. She estimated that about one-fifth of her income now goes toward her monthly premium payments.

“I know how the clinics work, that I am an expensive patient,” LeGault said. “At the end of the day, healthcare is a business in the United States.”

The Durhams have three other employees in their practice. Two of them receive health insurance through their spouses, Ashley Durham said. The Durhams said they pay $420 monthly toward their physician assistant’s premiums.

As a primary care physician, Joshua Durham said he doesn’t need regular doctor visits, because he can diagnose and treat himself — and, if needed, the rest of his family, though he acknowledged that’s frowned upon. The American Medical Association’s code of ethics generally discourages doctors from treating themselves or relatives but makes exceptions for emergency situations or short-term, minor problems. Ashley Durham said she’s filled prescriptions for her family.

Arthur Caplan, a bioethicist and professor emeritus at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine, said that as more people are “turning toward relatives because they can’t access or easily see a regular doctor,” it may make sense to revisit that aspect of the code of ethics.

Out-of-Pocket Expenses

Healthcare workers with less advanced medical certifications than the Durhams often don’t have the option of treating themselves or family members — or don’t have savings to fall back on for healthcare expenses. And many healthcare professionals, such as Jill Kordick, a 64-year-old retired healthcare executive in Norwalk, Iowa, aren’t willing to go without the safety net of insurance.

In her work, Kordick saw hospitalizations become financially devastating for patients, so she said she would never opt out of health insurance — even for just the 16 months before she’d become eligible for Medicare at age 65.

Last year, she qualified for the enhanced Affordable Care Act tax credits, allowing her to pay $75 a month for health coverage. Her premiums rose to $800 a month this year when those subsidies expired.

Because she has a $10,000 deductible, she put off going to the doctor for weeks when she had a sinus infection this year, until it ultimately evolved into an ear infection. She said she regularly rethinks, and sometimes returns, nonessential groceries in her shopping cart. And she keeps her house’s thermostat at 80 degrees in the summer to cut down on air conditioning costs.

Kordick said healthcare is a universal struggle in this country, regardless of how familiar patients are with the industry. “It’s disheartening that it’s as broken and fragmented as it is,” she said.

The Durhams have seen the impact of unaffordable healthcare on their patients. They said they try to lend some leeway to patients when they can — a luxury they have, operating their own practice. In one case, Ashley Durham said, she wrote off $1,160 in bills for a single father whose son didn’t have health insurance rather than send their bills to a collection agency.

“It’s hard, because as a human I want to help them out,” she said. “At the same time, we need revenue for our office.”

Joshua Durham is more nervous about going uninsured than his wife. As a child, he witnessed his parents struggling to pay medical bills for their family of nine in south-central Idaho. Durham recalled that his dad, who was a carpenter, helped build a surgeon’s house to pay for an operation.

Today, Durham also sometimes exchanges work for care. He said he gets free eye exams from an uninsured optometrist and offers him free primary care.

He worries about a worst-case scenario: a car crash, a sports injury, a serious diagnosis.

“Do I have pancreatic cancer today?” Durham said wryly.

So far, the couple has paid around $9,000 total for expenses out of their health savings account this year, including physical therapy to help with the thoracic outlet syndrome that affects Durham’s neck and shoulder, mental health appointments, and contact lenses. The expenses were higher than the Durhams anticipated. But it was still less than what their monthly premiums would have cost them.

Their decision has paid off, Joshua Durham said. At least for now.

©2026 KFF Health News. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

​ Orange County Register 

It’s officially Dolly Parton Day, with parades, pink lights and book drives

• September 25, 2026

By KIMBERLEE KRUESI

Pour yourself a cup of ambition. It’s Dolly Parton Day.

Across the world, communities are dedicating Friday to honoring the beloved country singer. The day is falling on Sept. 25, a wink at Parton’s hit song “9 to 5.”

Parton, who died of cancer last month at age 80, built an impressive legacy over the decades as a singer-songwriter, actor, philanthropist and entrepreneur — leaving big and small ways to honor the icon.

So whether it’s dusting off your rhinestones, donating a book or throwing back a pink-themed cocktail, here’s how you can celebrate Dolly Parton Day.

Join a celebration

In the U.S., a growing number of state and local leaders are establishing Sept. 25 as an annual Dolly Parton Day from California to the borough of Manhattan in New York City. The proclamations highlight Parton’s successful career and stress her lifelong commitment to promoting literacy.

In Nashville — where Parton had lived since she was 18 — the city will honor the singer with pink lights and posters and give away stickers, buttons and bookmarks. Meanwhile, Southwest Airlines announced that it would hold a Parton-inspired karaoke Friday for travelers and employees. Tennessee state and local officials are currently in the process of renaming the airport after Parton.

“Dolly Parton’s impact on Nashville will be felt for generations, through the music she has given us, the people she has helped and the example she continues to set,” said Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell in a statement. “She has shown us that caring for a community means showing up for one another.”

Over in New Orleans, the marching group Krewe of Dolly will lead a parade through the city’s French Quarter to honor Parton.

And in San Francisco, organizers are planning a public event in the heart of the city, called “Dolly Day,” designed to be a celebration of life that will include “singing loud, dressing up, and being a little kinder than usual in her honor.”

Donate a book to Imagination Library

For those chained to their actual 9 to 5 job on Friday, sneaking away for an event may be challenging. Instead, you can channel Parton’s giving spirit.

Parton made it her mission to improve literacy through her Imagination Library book giveaway program. The program has quickly expanded, resulting in more than a million books sent out each month to children in the U.S., Canada, the United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia.

The Imagination Library is encouraging the public to give directly to their local Imagination Library Partner on Dolly Parton Day, or help establish a new program in their community.

Don’t know where to start? The Dollywood Foundation is directing people to ImaginationLibrary.com, where a ZIP code search can find nearby programs.

“For Dolly, giving was always personal and from her heart,” said Jeff Conyers, president of The Dollywood Foundation, in a statement. “She believed deeply in helping people, especially children, and she always felt if you are in a position to help, you should help.”

Get inspired by Parton’s style and songs

The Queen of Country was known for her over-the-top style, proudly wearing sequins with big hair and plenty of fringe in her signature color pink.

Parton especially adored butterflies, singing that “love is like a butterfly, as soft and gentle as a sigh.”

Dig into your closet and throw on something extra flashy, shiny or sparkly. Feeling adventurous? Some tattoo artists are offering Dolly-inspired tattoos on Friday, but a butterfly clip will also work.

Of course, there’s no easier way to celebrate Parton than by playing one of her many, many albums throughout the day.

Known for her hits “9 to 5,” “Jolene,” and “I Will Always Love You,” Parton’s catalog runs deep, and there’s room to discover new favorites.

It was Parton’s wish that her songs would have a lasting impact, and that in turn, she would be remembered for trying to make the world a better place.

“I hope that a lot of my songs may last that long. And I hope I’ll be remembered as somebody that tried to do some good in the world and left, you know, a few good things,” she told The Associated Press in 2024.

​ Orange County Register 

Top Saudi cleric urges troops to defend against the Houthis, and other Mideast developments

• September 25, 2026

By The Associated Press

Saudi Arabia’s top cleric has issued a rare statement, calling on the kingdom’s troops to defend the country from neighboring Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Meanwhile, the humanitarian situation in Yemen is deteriorating as fighting escalates, further straining the country’s overstretched health sector.

In New York, the wars in Iran and Gaza have dominated the agenda at the U.N. General Assembly, where the leaders of Iraq, Lebanon and Egypt were scheduled to address the United Nations later Friday.

Here is a look at the latest news from the Middle East. More coverage of the U.N. General Assembly is available here.

Top religious figure urges Saudi troops to be ready to defend the kingdom

With Saudi oil facilities, cities and ships off its coast coming under escalating attacks, the kingdom’s top religious authority has called on soldiers to be prepared to defend the country from Iran-backed Houthis.

The strongly worded statement from Grand Mufti Sheikh Saleh al-Fawzan, who traditionally avoids weighing in on politics in a country that holds enormous influence among Muslims worldwide, is a rare message on the ongoing conflict in the Middle East from the kingdom’s top religious authority.

Al-Fawzan addressed his message to soldiers defending the kingdom’s borders and members of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis in Yemen, peppering it with Quranic verses and religious edicts.

“Protecting this great nation, guarding its borders, defending against aggression and punishing those who want to harm any inch of it is one of the greatest duties … where lives are sacrificed for the sake of God,” he said. The Saudi Press Agency carried the statement late Thursday.

Saudi Arabia has said it intercepted a number of missiles launched at the kingdom but has struggled, along with its allies, to contain the Houthis.

Two Israeli soldiers are killed in Gaza

Israel’s military said two of its soldiers were killed in northern Gaza on Thursday while inspecting an unexploded Israeli drone near a military post. They were the first Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza in months.

The drone exploded as the soldiers approached it, the military said Friday. They were evacuated to a hospital, where they were pronounced dead.

The military called the explosion “a serious safety incident” and identified the soldiers as Ofek Moalem and Nadav Kali. It said the incident was under investigation.

Previously, five Israeli soldiers have been killed since last October’s ceasefire that attempted to halt a more than two-year war between Israel and the militant Hamas group.

While the heaviest fighting has subsided, the ceasefire has seen almost daily Israeli fire. Israeli forces have carried out repeated airstrikes and frequently fire on Palestinians near military-held zones and have killed 1,408 Palestinians, according to Gaza health officials.

Hospitals in Yemen struggle as the country’s civil war reignites

The human toll of renewed hostilities in Yemen has stretched beyond the battlefield, overwhelming a health system already battered by years of war.

More than 130,000 people have fled their homes as fighting escalates between the Iran-backed Houthis and Saudi-backed government forces. Fewer than 10% of health centers in affected areas are equipped to provide the trauma care wounded people need, according to the World Health Organization.

Years of war have left Yemen’s hospitals with little capacity. Children are sharing emergency room beds, pregnant women are being turned away from health centers and medical supplies are running low.

The most recent round of fighting began in July after the Houthis declared a blockade on Saudi ships in the key Bab el-Mandeb strait, adding to pressure on global trade already disrupted by the war in Iran and the blockaded Strait of Hormuz.

Former UNRWA chief defends agency’s role in Gaza

The U.N. agency for Palestinians has met behind the scenes with officials from the U.S.-created Board of Peace, though the board has declared that the agency — known as UNRWA — will have no role in a future Gaza.

Publicly, UNRWA has not been included in the board’s planning for the territory’s postwar future. But Philippe Lazzarini, the U.N. agency’s last chief, told The Associated Press that members of a Palestinian technocratic committee are clear they want to work with the agency.

“They know that if you get completely rid of the agency today, it might have a further additional devastating impact on the population,” Lazzarini said.

The dynamic underscores how central UNRWA remains to addressing Gaza’s humanitarian crisis during the fragile ceasefire, even as Israel has sought to marginalize it. Israel alleges the agency has been infiltrated by Hamas militants, claims the International Court of Justice has said have not been substantiated.

This report will be updated throughout the day as new developments emerge.

​ Orange County Register