Iranian FM Abbas Araghchi goes on weekend diplomatic tour to Russia and Oman. Trump cancels U.S. negotiating trip to Pakistan. Israel deployed Iron Dome battery to UAE, Axios reports. Iranian official threatens fourfold retaliation against U.S.-allied Gulf state infrastructure. Iran attempts to repair damaged economy. Israeli attacks continue on day 11 of “ceasefire.” Hezbollah: Ongoing Lebanese-Israel talks irrelevant to the resistance. Israeli forces kill 14 in Lebanon on Sunday, including children and women—and at least 14 over the weekend in Gaza. 1,500 patients have died awaiting medical evacuation as Israeli restrictions block treatment abroad: Gaza Ministry of Health. Palestinian teen dies of heart attack during Israeli pursuit. Settler attacks sweep occupied West Bank. Abbas loyalists win Palestinian municipal elections after Hamas was barred from running. Bennett and Lapid merge parties to form unified opposition bloc against Netanyahu ahead of Israeli elections. Six Israeli teens arrested in deadly restaurant worker stabbing. Gunman opens fire at Washington Hilton during White House Correspondents’ Dinner. Suspect Cole Tomas Allen to be arraigned in federal court. Wall Street billionaires funnel millions into super PAC targeting Graham Platner with new attack ad. Supreme Court set to hear oral arguments on Bayer-Monsanto’s cancer-causing pesticide. Justice Department to allow firing squads for executions. U.S. military kills three in latest vessel strike in the Pacific. Insurgents launch attacks across Mali. RSF drone strike kills seven, wounds 22 in El-Obeid. Leaked photos contradict Uribe’s denials of a relationship with Noboa. Russian attacks kill five across Ukraine. FARC dissidents kill 14 in highway bombing. Peruvian authorities raid former election chief’s home. U.S. modifies Venezuela sanctions to allow government to fund Maduro’s legal defense. U.S. agents killed in Mexico were not authorized, Mexico says.

NEW from Drop Site: As Trump’s narrative on negotiations flails, Iran is setting its wn terms for ending the war: the latest from Jeremy Scahill. Maine’s House Majority Leader Matt Moonen is getting paid by Gov. Janet Mills’ Senate campaign (Details below from contributor Nathan Bernard). Displaced Lebanese pool money to buy satellite images to see what remains of their homes.

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Iran and Ceasefire

• Iranian FM weekend diplomatic tour: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Russia on Monday for a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin and other officials. Araghchi again blamed the United States for the failure of ceasefire talks: “The U.S.’s approaches caused the previous round of negotiations, despite the progress that had been made, not to reach its objective—the excessive demands they made and the incorrect approaches they adopted,” he said. Araghchi also met Oman’s Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said in Muscat on Sunday, with talks covering navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, security in the Persian Gulf, and the ongoing negotiations with the U.S. After the visit, Araghchi returned to Islamabad for talks aimed mainly at laying out Iran’s position regarding a potential deal with the U.S.

• Trump cancels envoy trip to Pakistan: After reports that Iran’s Foreign Minister and an American delegation were set to convene in Islamabad for an informal round of talks over the weekend, with Iran insisting there would be no negotiations and the visit was for “bilateral” discussions, President Donald Trump told reporters Saturday that he canceled plans to send U.S. envoys to Pakistan. Iran has continuously demanded the lifting of the U.S. blockade on its ports prior to a second round of talks. Trump summed up the U.S. position by saying, “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. Very simple,” and claimed that the U.S. has “all the cards.”

• Axios: Israel deployed Iron Dome battery to UAE: Israel sent an Iron Dome air defense battery and several dozen Israel Defense Forces operators to the United Arab Emirates early in the war with Iran, according to a report from Axios. This marks the first time Israel has ever deployed the system to another country and the first time it has been used operationally outside of the U.S. and Israel. A senior Israeli official said the battery intercepted dozens of Iranian missiles. “It was a real eye-opening moment. To see who our real friends are,” a senior Emirati official told Axios. “We are not going to forget it.”

• Iranian official threatens fourfold retaliation against U.S.-allied Gulf state infrastructure: Iran’s Vice President and Head of the Organization for Energy Optimization and Strategic Management, Ismail Saqab Esfahani, issued a direct threat warning that any damage to Iranian oil infrastructure caused by the U.S. naval blockade would be met with retaliation four times as severe against the same category of infrastructure in countries supporting the U.S. “We will respond to any act of war,” Esfahani wrote on X. The warning is directed at Gulf state energy facilities—including those of Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, and the UAE—whose oil infrastructure and ports have already sustained damage during the war and remain highly vulnerable to Iranian strikes.

• Iran attempts to repair damaged economy: Iran’s cabinet reinstated a preferential exchange rate of 285,000 rials per dollar—far below the open-market rate of 1.55 million rials—to fund up to $3.5 billion in subsidized imports of wheat, medicines, medical equipment, and baby formula, as the war with the U.S. and Israel continues to strain the economy. Authorities also authorized drawing up to $1 billion from the National Development Fund to replenish strategic reserves of sugar, rice, barley, corn, and meat, while the Food and Drug Administration said it would begin centralized distribution of strategic medical goods within two days. Millions of jobs have been lost or suspended during the war, food prices have risen dramatically, and some residents of Tehran have begun stockpiling canned goods and water, with fears over long-term food security in the country persisting.

Lebanon

• Israeli attacks continue on day 11 of “ceasefire”: At least one person was killed in an Israeli drone strike on the town of Al-Qulaylah in southern Lebanon on Monday, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency. Israeli warplanes and drones carried out multiple strikes targeting areas around Majdal Selm, Al-Mansouri, Tebnine, and Kafra in the Bint Jbeil and Tyre districts. Artillery shelling also hit several southern villages. Additionally, Israeli forces carried out demolitions of houses between Yaroun and Bint Jbeil. The casualty toll due to Israeli attacks on Lebanon from March 2 to April 26 has risen to 2,521 killed and 7,804 injured, according to the Ministry. At least 38 people have been killed in Israeli attacks since the announcement of the “ceasefire” on April 16.

• Hezbollah: Ongoing Lebanese-Israel talks irrelevant to the resistance: Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem rejected direct negotiations with Israel, stating any reported agreements between the Lebanese government and Israel are “as if they do not exist” from Hezbollah’s point of view. He reaffirmed that the group “will not give up weapons and defense,” and criticized the Lebanese government, accusing it of “abandoning Lebanon’s rights,” and giving up land. Qassem said any solution must be based on five conditions: ending Israeli attacks, Israel’s withdrawal, the release of detainees, the return of displaced residents, and reconstruction. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun defended the direct talks with Israel, saying in a statement on Monday, “What we are doing is not treason. Rather, treason is committed by those who take their country to war to achieve foreign interests,” he said in a reference to Hezbollah’s ties to Iran.

• 14 killed by Israel on Sunday, including children and women: Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon on Sunday killed 14 people, including two children and two women, and injured 37 others, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry, in the deadliest day since the “ceasefire” was announced on April 16. An Israeli airstrike struck a café at a crowded displacement hub in the southern Lebanese town of Kfar Tibneet in the Nabatieh district Sunday, killing at least six people and wounding many others. The IDF later claimed it carried out strikes targeting “Hezbollah terrorists and military infrastructure” in Lebanon.

• Israel attacks on Saturday: At least six people were killed in Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon, four of them in two strikes on Yohmor al-Shqif, the Lebanese Health Ministry reported. Israeli airstrikes hit the southern Lebanese towns of Hadatha, Sultanieh, Bazourieh, Zebqin, Safad al-Battikh, and al-Jmayjmeh in the Bint Jbeil district, according to Al Mayadeen. Two people were dead and 17 injured in southern Lebanon following an Israeli raid on the southern town of Safad al-Bateekh, Bint Jbeil.

• Hezbollah drone killed Israeli soldier, wounded six after tank became stranded: A Hezbollah drone strike killed one Israeli soldier and wounded six others—four seriously—after an Israeli tank from the Golani Brigade’s 12th Battalion became stranded in the village of Al-Taybeh in southern Lebanon, roughly four kilometers from the Israeli border, the Israel Defense Forces said Sunday. When a rescue crawler was deployed to retrieve the tank, a Hezbollah drone struck the site at around 9:30 a.m.; as an Israeli Air Force helicopter landed inside Lebanese territory to evacuate the wounded, Hezbollah launched two additional drones at rescue forces, one of which was intercepted while the second fell within meters of the evacuation helicopter. On Monday, Hezbollah said it targeted Israeli troops and vehicles near Kfarkela with a guided missile, claiming a direct hit.

• Israeli forces destroy solar panels and strike power substation serving dozens of villages in southern Lebanon: Israeli forces destroyed solar panels supplying electricity and water to Debel, a Christian village surrounded by Israeli troops whose residents have refused evacuation orders, Al Jazeera English journalist Heidi Pett reported Sunday from southern Lebanon. A nearby electricity substation serving Tebnine and 27 other locations was also struck in an Israeli airstrike. Debel is the same village where an Israeli soldier was previously filmed destroying a statue of Jesus, prompting a public apology and replacement by the Israeli military.

Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,593 killed, with 172,399 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 817 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,296, while 762 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israel kills at least 14 over the weekend in Gaza:

  • A 15-year-old boy, Aiham Al-Omari, was killed by Israeli gunfire Monday in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza, according to WAFA.

  • Israeli forces killed at least seven Palestinians Sunday in a series of strikes across Gaza, according to Palestine Online, citing Civil Defense and local sources. Three Palestinians were killed near the Kuwait Roundabout and the Al-Saqa Mosque south of Gaza City, and two others were killed by an Israeli drone strike south of Gaza City. A displaced woman was also shot and killed by Israeli forces south of Khan Younis.

  • At least six people were killed across Gaza on Saturday. Israeli warplanes struck a densely populated Ramzun area of Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood Saturday evening, killing three people and wounding several others. One Palestinian was shot in the head by Israeli forces in Jabalia, and another Palestinian, a child, died from gunshot wounds she sustained from Israeli fire in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza. A man also died from injuries sustained in an Israeli strike on Beit Lahia.

• Hamas official accuses “Board of Peace” mediator of pushing Phase Two talks while Israel skips phase one obligations: Senior Hamas political official Dr. Basem Naim marked 195 days since the Gaza ceasefire agreement Saturday with a public rebuke of mediator Nickolay Mladenov and Trump’s Board of Peace, accusing Mladenov of pressing for Phase Two negotiations without compelling Israel to fulfill its Phase One commitments. “All he asks for is ‘dismantling the resistance project’ in exchange for improving prison conditions and empty promises,” Naim wrote in Arabic on X. He closed the post with “No pasarán”—the Spanish anti-fascist phrase meaning “they shall not pass.”

• Gaza health ministry: 1,500 patients have died awaiting medical evacuation as Israeli restrictions block treatment abroad: The head of Gaza’s Ministry of Health reported Sunday that more than 1,500 patients on the medical evacuation list have died while waiting for treatment abroad due to Israeli restrictions blocking their departure, with 20,000 patients still trapped and unable to access care outside the territory. More than 90 percent of Gaza’s hospitals have been severely damaged by Israeli attacks or are entirely out of service.

• Palestinian teen dies of heart attack during Israeli pursuit: 17-year-old Obada Montaser Asaad Al-Qadi died after suffering a heart attack while being pursued and detained by Israeli occupation forces. He was from the town of Surif, north of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.

• Settler attacks sweep occupied West Bank; six Palestinian deaths recorded in the past week: Armed Jewish settler groups carried out widespread attacks across the occupied West Bank on Saturday, including forced displacement, arson, and armed assaults monitored by the Settlement Observatory, with incidents recorded in the Qalqilya, Nablus, Salfit, al-Khalil, and Jordan Valley governorates. Around 20 families in the Arab al-Khawli Bedouin community near Kafr Thuluth were forced to flee after settlers attacked their tents and land, while armed settlers opened fire and burned Palestinian vehicles and equipment in Qusra and Jalud, and an Islamic preacher was assaulted and worshipers detained in Khirbet Tana by settlers and Israeli soldiers.

• Abbas loyalists sweep Palestinian municipal elections as Hamas barred from running: Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and in Gaza’s Deir al-Balah voted Saturday in the first municipal elections to include Gaza since 2005 and a subsequent Fatah-Hamas split, with Fatah-aligned slates sweeping the West Bank—often running unopposed. Turnout reached 54% across 522,000 ballots cast across the West Bank, with women winning 33% of seats. Hamas and other political factions were barred from participating under a November 2025 decree by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas requiring candidates to commit to agreements made by the PLO with Israel. In Deir al-Balah—the sole Gaza constituency included—turnout was just 23% among roughly 70,000 eligible voters; a Fatah-backed slate won six of 15 seats, with Hamas-aligned candidates taking two. Hamas deployed over 500 personnel to support the process logistically.

• Dr. Mustafa Barghouti, Secretary-General of the Palestinian National Initiative, praised the symbolic significance of holding any vote in Gaza while sharply criticizing the structural weaknesses of the broader municipal election process, noting that out of 429 local councils in the West Bank, competitive elections took place in just 83, while 197 councils saw only a single slate submitted and 49 had no candidates at all. Hamas spokesperson Hazem Qassem called the vote “an important and necessary step” and for presidential and legislative elections to follow. Polls continue to show Hamas as the most popular faction across both territories.

• Bennett and Lapid merge parties to form unified opposition bloc against Netanyahu ahead of Israeli elections: Former Prime Ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid announced Sunday the merger of their parties—Bennett 2026 and There is a Future—into a new party called Together, with Bennett as its leader, in a bid to unite a fragmented opposition ahead of elections expected later this year. The alliance joins a right-wing and a centrist former prime minister whose primary common ground is opposition to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with Bennett pledging to establish a national commission of inquiry into failures leading up to the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack and Lapid having called the recent ceasefire with Iran a “political disaster.”

• Six Israeli teens arrested in deadly restaurant worker stabbing: Six Israeli teenagers aged 13 to 17 were arrested in the killing of 21-year-old pizzeria worker Yemanu Binyamin Zelka in Petah Tikva, Israel according to the Times of Israel. Zelka was stabbed to death after asking a group of youths to stop using party spray inside the restaurant where he worked. The group allegedly waited outside for Zelka to finish his shift before assaulting and killing him.

Correction: This post originally stated that Palestinians in the West Bank and Deir al-Balah voted Saturday in their first municipal elections since the 2007 Fatah-Hamas split. While the elections were the first to be held in Gaza since then, the West Bank held municipal elections in 2022.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Gunman opens fire at Washington Hilton during White House Correspondents’ Dinner: A gunman opened fire Saturday night in the lobby of the Washington Hilton during the White House Correspondents’ Dinner. President Donald Trump, First Lady Melania Trump, and senior administration officials were evacuated from the ballroom, and hundreds of journalists and celebrity guests were ordered to shelter under tables as heavily armed guards swarmed the venue. No injuries among dinner guests or officials have been reported; Trump had returned to the event this year as both guest of honor and keynote speaker after skipping it throughout his entire first term and the first year of his second.

• Suspect Cole Tomas Allen to be arraigned in federal court: Authorities identified Allen, 31, of Torrance, California—a Caltech-trained mechanical engineer and indie game developer, and part-time tutor once named “teacher of the month”—as the alleged shooter. Allen was reportedly armed with a shotgun, handgun, and knives, exchanging gunfire with law enforcement before being tackled and taken to a hospital without a gunshot wound. Minutes before the attack, Allen sent family members a note stating that Trump administration officials were “targets, prioritized from highest-ranking to lowest.” He wrote: “I am a citizen of the United States of America. What my representatives do reflects on me. And I am no longer willing to permit a pedophile, rapist, and traitor to coat my hands with his crimes.” Allen had never been flagged by the FBI’s domestic counterterrorism apparatus, a senior FBI official told Ken Klippenstein. Allen faces two counts of using a firearm during a crime of violence and assault on a federal officer. He is expected to be arraigned in federal court today.

• Wall Street billionaires funnel millions into super PAC targeting Graham Platner with new attack ad: Pine Tree Results PAC, a super PAC backing Republican Sen. Susan Collins, is spending nearly $2 million for attack ads against Democratic primary frontrunner Graham Platner ahead of Maine’s June 9 primary. The PAC has drawn funding from powerful figures in American finance, including Blackstone CEO Stephen Schwarzman ($2 million); Elliott Management CEO Paul Singer ($1 million); Reyes Holdings executives ($1 million); Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan ($50,000); and Palantir CEO Alex Karp ($100,000). Platner, a Marine veteran and oysterman running on Medicare for All and a billionaire minimum tax, has outraised both Collins and his primary opponent, Governor Janet Mills, for two consecutive quarters on small-dollar donations.

• NEW from Nathan Bernard in Maine: FEC filings show Maine House Majority Leader Matt Moonen has received more than $28,000 from Gov. Janet Mills’ U.S. Senate campaign since October. The Mills campaign paid him nearly $5,000 in biweekly salary installments throughout the fall, while the state legislature was in session. Majority Leader Moonen has not publicly endorsed Gov. Mill despite the campaign payments. To date, he has not attended any campaign events or made public statements in favor of the Governor’s Senate bid. As Majority Leader, Moonen controls floor scheduling, directs the House Democratic caucus, and determines which bills advance to a vote. He also chairs the Joint Rules Committee, governing how legislation is procedurally reviewed, and sits on the Legislative Council, the body that decides which bills are considered at all, including those sent by Mills’s own administration. Neither Majority Leader Moonen nor the Mills campaign responded to requests for comment regarding these potential conflicts of interest, or if they would support Graham Platner if he becomes the Democratic nominee.

• Supreme Court set to hear oral arguments on Bayer-Monsanto’s cancer causing pesticide: RoundUp weedkiller, a Bayer-Monsanto commercial product, has become the subject of tens of thousands of lawsuits filed by customers who claim it caused their cancer diagnoses, specifically non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Nonetheless, the Trump administration’s Environmental Protection Agency, led by former congressman and BlackRock consultant Lee Zeldin, has called the pesticide “safe” and is formally supporting Monsanto in its legal battle before the Court to keep the product on the market and dismiss claims against the company. The position marks a seismic reversal from the Biden administration’s stance. The majority conservative U.S. Supreme Court, known to take pro-corporate and deregulatory stances in recent years, will hear arguments today.

• Justice Department to allow firing squads for executions: The Justice Department announced on Friday it will adopt firing squads as a permitted method of execution to kill condemned federal prisoners as it moves to ramp up and expedite capital punishment cases. The Justice Department also said it was reauthorizing the use of lethal injections with pentobarbital, which was banned by the Biden administration over concerns about the potential for unnecessary pain and suffering. Only three defendants remain on federal death row after former President Joe Biden converted 37 of their sentences to life in prison, though the Trump administration has so far authorized seeking death sentences against 44 defendants.

Other International News

• U.S. military kills three in latest vessel strike in the Pacific: The U.S. military conducted a strike against a boat in the Eastern Pacific on Sunday, killing three people, according to U.S. Southern Command. SOUTHCOM posted a video of the strike and said, “Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action” without providing evidence. Over 185 people have been killed in dozens U.S. strikes on vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific since September.

• Insurgents launch attacks across Mali: Mali saw one of its largest coordinated insurgent operations in recent years over the weekend, with the West Africa al-Qaeda affiliate Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin, known as JNIM, partnering with the Tuareg-dominated Azawad Liberation Front to strike simultaneously in more than half a dozen locations, including near Bamako’s airport and in Mopti, Sevare, and Gao. Mali’s Defense Minister Sadio Camara was killed in one attack on Saturday after a suicide bomber drove an explosives-laden vehicle into his residence in Kati, roughly 15 kilometers north of Bamako. The strategic northern city of Kidal—a former Tuareg stronghold—appeared to have fallen to insurgents, with the Azawad Liberation Front claiming a deal was struck to allow Russian mercenaries to withdraw from a besieged camp outside the city, though Mali’s army chief of staff said forces had “tactically repositioned” and that operations were ongoing.

• RSF drone strike kills seven, wounds 22 in El-Obeid: The Rapid Support Forces launched a drone attack Saturday on residential neighborhoods in El-Obeid, the capital of North Kordofan, killing at least seven people and wounding 22, the Sudan Doctors Network reported. The network said the drones deliberately targeted densely populated civilian areas, calling the strike a “grave violation” of international law, and warned that local hospitals are struggling to cope with the wounded.

• Leaked photos contradict Uribe’s denials of meetings with Noboa: Drop Site News published photos posted on Instagram last year showing former Colombian President Álvaro Uribe Vélez meeting with Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa and First Lady Lavinia Valbonesi inside what appears to be the couple’s residence, revealing a longstanding relationship that Uribe has denied. Allegations have circulated that Uribe coordinated with Noboa to interfere in Colombia’s presidential race ahead of the May 31 vote, with Uribe’s visits having coincided with Ecuador’s imposition of tariffs on Colombian goods that escalated first to 50%, then to 100%. President Gustavo Petro accused Noboa of “handing over the border to the mafia,” and his allies suspect that Noboa is attempting to engineer a crisis to undermine Iván Cepeda Castro, Petro’s favored successor to the presidency.

• FARC dissidents kill 14 in highway bombing: A bomb detonated Saturday on the Pan-American Highway in the El Tunel sector of Cajibio, in Colombia’s Cauca region, killing at least 14 people and wounding more than 38, including five minors, in an attack Colombia’s Armed Forces commander General Hugo López attributed to the network of a fugitive known as “Iván Mordisco” and the Jaime Martínez faction—both dissidents of the demobilized FARC armed group. Southwestern Colombia has seen at least 26 violent incidents in over two days, including a shooting at a police station in Jamundi, an attack on a civil aviation radar facility in El Tambo, and vehicle bombs detonated near military units in Cali and Palmira on Friday.

• Syria opens first public trial of Assad-era official: Syria opened its first public trial of an official from Bashar al-Assad’s government, with proceedings beginning in Damascus on Sunday against Atef Najib—a cousin of al-Assad and former head of political security in the southern Deraa province. His charges include “crimes against the Syrian people” related to his oversight of the violent crackdown on protesters during the 2011 uprising. Al-Assad, his brother Maher, and other senior security officials were charged in absentia on counts including killings, torture, extortion, and drug trafficking. Authorities also recently arrested Amjad Yousef, the main suspect in the 2013 Tadamon massacre in Damascus, where nearly 300 civilians were killed.

• Russian attacks kill five across Ukraine: Russian attacks killed at least five people across multiple Ukrainian regions over the weekend, with drone strikes killing two civilians in the Sumy region’s Bilopil district, two more in the Zaporizhzhia region, and one person in Dnipropetrovsk. Seven people were wounded in shelling in Kherson. In Odesa, Russian forces struck port and logistics infrastructure, damaging warehouses, cargo storage tanks, and a civilian vessel flying the flag of Palau that was loading at the time, though its crew reported no injuries.

• Peruvian authorities raid former election chief’s home: Peruvian police raided the Lima home of Piero Corvetto, the former head of the National Office of Electoral Processes, on Friday as part of a judicial warrant, seizing mobile phones, laptops, and documents, with five other officials’ homes and offices of ballot transport company Galaga also targeted. Corvetto resigned Tuesday—denying any wrongdoing—amid mounting public frustration over the slow count from the April 12 presidential election and an effort by political elites in the capital to avoid a runoff vote that would include a left-wing challenger to four-time candidate Keiko Fujimori.

• China drills off Luzon as Japan joins U.S.-Philippine exercises: Beijing conducted live-fire military drills in waters near the Philippines this weekend, activities that coincided with annual U.S.-Philippines military drills, which kicked off this week with over 17,000 troops. For the first time the U.S. exercises also included Japanese combat forces participating, amid growing tensions between Tokyo and Beijing. China’s decision to drill on the Pacific-facing side of Luzon, rather than the western South China Sea approaches, has been widely read as a signal that Beijing can project military force beyond the first island chain in a naval conflict.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

• U.S. modifies Venezuela sanctions to allow government to fund Maduro’s legal defense: The United States agreed to modify its sanctions on Venezuela to permit the government to pay legal fees for kidnapped President Nicolás Maduro, backing away from a restriction that had threatened to derail his federal “narcoterrorism” case, according to a court filing made public Friday. Manhattan-based U.S. District Judge Alvin Hellerstein had signaled skepticism toward the sanctions restriction at a March 26 hearing, noting that Maduro and Flores “present no further national security threat” and that the right to constitutional counsel was “paramount over other rights.”

• U.S. agents killed in Mexico were not authorized, Mexico says: Two CIA agents who died in a car crash in northern Mexico were not permitted to conduct operations there, Mexico’s government said Saturday. The agents were allegedly returning from destroying a drug lab in Chihuahua when their vehicle drove into a ravine and “exploded.” Two Mexican officers also died. Mexico’s security cabinet said one agent entered as a visitor, the other on a diplomatic passport, adding that foreign agents cannot take part in local operations. The CIA has declined to comment.

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Iran’s Foreign Minister to visit Pakistan, Russia, and Oman in regional tour. Third U.S. aircraft carrier arrives in Middle East. Israel threatens to return Iran to the “Stone Age.” President Donald Trump claims Iran’s oil infrastructure will “explode” within days without a deal. Analysis: Less than a third of buildings hit in Tehran linked to military. NYT says Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei gravely wounded and governing via handwritten messages. The Iran war has eaten into U.S. stockpiles: report. Israeli strikes continue in Lebanon despite ceasefire extension. Hezbollah targets Israeli troops and downs drone. Trump says Lebanon ceasefire to be extended by three weeks. Israeli attacks continue across the Gaza Strip. Parents describe Israeli attack that killed their children. Gaza’s amputee crisis deepening. Israel approves new settlement-linked school in occupied East Jerusalem. Israeli minister says West Bank settlement expansion has Trump’s support. Netanyahu treated for early-stage prostate cancer. U.S. soldier charged with using classified information to win $400,000. Justice Department wants to strip 384 naturalized citizens of citizenship: NYT. Warner Bros shareholders approve merger with Paramount. Meatpacking workers win historic strike against JBS in Colorado. Pentagon email floats suspending Spain from NATO. Javier Milei bars accredited journalists from Argentina’s presidential palace. Gunmen kill at least nine at copper-gold mine in Pakistan. Meningitis and measles in eastern Chad. Russian drone strike on Odesa kills elderly couple, wounds at least 14.

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Iran and Ceasefire

• Iran’s Foreign Minister to visit Pakistan, Russia, and Oman in regional tour: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is expected to arrive in Islamabad with a small delegation as part of a regional diplomatic tour that may contribute to efforts to restart talks with the United States. Pakistani officials confirmed the visit following recent phone calls between Araghchi and senior Pakistani leaders. However, Iran’s state news agency IRNA said the trip is currently bilateral in nature, focused on “consultations” with Pakistani officials rather than immediate negotiations with the U.S. Araghchi is also expected to travel to Moscow and Muscat as part of the same diplomatic tour.

• Third U.S. aircraft carrier arrives in Middle East: A third U.S. aircraft carrier has arrived in the Middle East in a further buildup of naval firepower. “For the first time in decades, three aircraft carriers are operating in the Middle East at the same time,” U.S. Central Command said in a social media post. “Accompanied by their carrier air wings, the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN 72), USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN 78) and USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77) include over 200 aircraft and 15,000 Sailors and Marines.”

• Israel threatens to return Iran to the “Stone Age”: Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Thursday that Israeli forces are waiting for a “green light from the United States” to renew war with Iran. Israel is ready, Katz said in a video, “to complete the elimination of the Khamenei dynasty,” and he threatened to “return Iran to the Dark Age and the Stone Age by destroying key energy and electricity facilities and dismantling its national economic infrastructure.”

• Trump claims Iran’s oil infrastructure will “explode” within days without a deal: President Donald Trump warned Thursday that if a deal is not reached soon, Iran’s “whole oil infrastructure is going to explode” within days. Trump told reporters in the Oval Office he was “in no rush” for a deal and felt no “pressure whatsoever,” repeating his claim that delays were due to the Iranian government being “disorganized.” He also commented on the Strait of Hormuz, saying that Iran “came to us and said, ‘we will agree to open the Strait.’” He said, however, that he is the “one who kept” the Strait closed. “And it’ll open,” he threatened, “when they make a deal, or something else happens.”

• Analysis: Less than a third of buildings hit in Tehran linked to military: An analysis of damaged and destroyed buildings in Tehran by Bloomberg found that between the start of the Iran war on February 28 and the ceasefire on April 8, at least 2,816 buildings were hit in the capital, of which 32%—less than a third—were linked to the military. The analysis found that 25% were linked to industry, 21% to civilians, 19% were commercial and 2% governmental.

• NYT says Khamenei gravely wounded and governing via handwritten messages: A report from the New York Times alleges that Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei sustained severe injuries during the war—including a leg requiring three surgeries and awaiting a prosthetic, a hand that was operated on, and burns to his face and lips that have made speaking difficult. The Times also says that senior military commanders and government officials no longer visit him directly, fearing Israel could track them to his location; messages are instead passed through a human courier chain by car and motorcycle in handwritten, sealed envelopes. Khamenei is described as “mentally sharp and engaged,” with President Masoud Pezeshkian—a heart surgeon by training—involved in his care.

• Iran’s Supreme Leader, top officials issue coordinated rebuke of Trump’s claim that they are too divided to negotiate: Iran’s executive, legislative, and judicial branches issued near-identical statements on X Thursday, directly rejecting President Donald Trump’s assertion that Iran’s leadership is too fractured to negotiate. President Masoud Pezeshkian, Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and Judiciary Chief Gholam-Hossein Ejei wrote in unison: “In Iran, there are no ‘radicals’ or ‘moderates.’ We are all Iranian and revolutionary. With the firm unity of the nation and the state, and in full obedience to the Supreme Leader of the Revolution, we will make the aggressor criminal regret his actions.” Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei also emphasized national unity in a post, saying that as a result of this unity among Iranians, “the enemy has been fractured.”

• Trump amplifies op-ed calling for assassination of Iranian leaders: President Donald Trump reposted a Washington Post opinion column by Bush administration speechwriter Marc Thiessen, arguing he should resume bombing Iran and specifically target its leaders if Tehran fails to submit a serious counteroffer within days. Thiessen argued that Iran is “on the ropes” due to near-exhausted oil storage, impending domestic gas shortages, and a military dependent on oil revenue, and called on Trump to give Iran 72 hours before resuming strikes.

• The Iran war has eaten into U.S. stockpiles: report: The war in Iran has cost the United States between $28 billion and $35 billion, or roughly $1 billion a day, with $5.6 billion in munitions expended in the first two days alone, according to a new joint report by the American Enterprise Institute and the Center for Strategic and International Studies. Meanwhile, the United States has expended approximately 1,100 JASSM-ER stealth cruise missiles—nearly matching the total remaining stockpile—along with more than 1,000 Tomahawk cruise missiles, more than 1,200 Patriot interceptors, and more than 1,000 Precision Strike and ATACMS ground-based missiles during the 38-day Iran war, leaving inventories at worrisomely low levels, according to a New York Times report. The drawdowns have forced the Pentagon to redirect weapons from commands in Europe and Asia, including THAAD interceptors from South Korea. At current production rates, Senator Jack Reed (D-R.I.) warned this week, “reconstituting what we have expended could take years.”

• Kuwait says drones fired from Iraq struck border posts: The Kuwaiti military said on Friday that two drones launched from Iraq targeted border posts on its northern frontier. “This morning, two of Kuwait’s northern land border posts were targeted in a criminal act of aggression involving two explosive-laden drones guided by fibre-optic cables, originating from the Republic of Iraq, resulting in material damage but...no human casualties,” the military said in a statement.

Lebanon

• Israeli strikes continue in Lebanon despite ceasefire extension: Israel continued to carry out air strikes and demolitions across southern Lebanon during and after U.S.-brokered ceasefire talks between Israeli and Lebanese officials at the White House on Thursday. An Israeli airstrike on the town of Touline in the Marjayoun district early Friday killed two people, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency. Israeli forces also continued demolition operations in Al-Bayyada and Khiam, where multiple blasts were reported. Artillery shelling also targeted the outskirts of Al-Mansouri and Bayt al-Sayyad in the Tyre district, as well as the town of Qantara in Marjayoun. Israeli forces issued an evacuation warning to residents of Deir Aames in the Tyre district, ordering them to leave their homes immediately.

• Hezbollah targets Israeli troops and downs drone: Hezbollah said Friday it targeted a gathering of Israeli soldiers in the town of Qantara in southern Lebanon using an explosive drone, in response to “Israeli violations of the ceasefire by attacking civilians in Touline.” In a separate statement, the group also announced that it had shot down an Israeli military drone of the “Hermes 450” type over the Tyre–Al-Housh area using a surface-to-air missile.

• Trump says Lebanon ceasefire to be extended by three weeks: President Donald Trump announced on Thursday that the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, which was due to expire on Sunday, would be extended for three weeks. The announcement came after Trump hosted a meeting at the Oval Office with Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors at the White House for a second round of direct talks between the two countries. Israel’s ambassador to Washington, Yechiel Leiter, said that thanks to Trump’s leadership, “the possibility of degrading Hezbollah and liberating Lebanon from their occupation is real.” The Lebanese ambassador, Nada Hamadeh Moawad, thanked Trump and said, “I think with your help, your support, we can make Lebanon great again.” Trump said he plans to host Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun for a joint meeting at the White House “over the next couple of weeks.”

• Hezbollah rejects ongoing negotiations, warns they grant Israel “exception” to continue attacks: Hezbollah’s parliamentary bloc chief, MP Mohammad Raad, called on Lebanese authorities to withdraw from direct negotiations with Israel. In a statement on Friday, Raad said that “the authorities should be ashamed of their people and withdraw from what is called direct negotiations with the Zionist enemy,” warning that any “so-called truce” could give Israel “a special exception to open fire or carry out any military movement or action in areas of confrontation within Lebanese territory.”

Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Israeli attacks continue across the Gaza Strip: Two Palestinians were killed and others injured Friday in an Israeli drone attack on the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood in northern Gaza City, according to WAFA. A Palestinian girl was shot in the head by Israeli forces during a separate attack on displacement shelters in the Beit Lahia Project area. Several other displaced civilians were also injured inside a shelter at Khalifa School amid artillery shelling and gunfire. Israeli forces shelled the Al-Tuffah neighborhood east of Gaza City, while naval forces opened fire off the coast of Khan Younis. Nearly 800 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza since a so-called ceasefire agreement was signed in October.

• Parents describe Israeli attack that killed their children: Funerals were held at Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City on Thursday for five Palestinians, including three children, killed in an Israeli airstrike in Beit Lahia. Amna Al-Abed, the mother of two children killed in the attack—9-year-old Abdullah and 10-year-old Salah—told Drop Site her sons had gone out to eat with their father when an Israeli strike hit. “My husband was injured. My kids were dead,” she said, through tears, adding that one of her sons “took his last breath” in front of her after calling out, “Mama.” Bahaa Balousha, whose 14-year-old son Mohammed was also killed in the strike, told Drop Site the family had gone out after his children encouraged him to get dinner. “We go down to shop. Then tragedy struck us.” Balousha said despite the declared ceasefire, “There isn’t an hour of quiet during the day.”

• Gaza’s amputee crisis deepening: Gaza’s already unprecedented amputation crisis will continue to worsen, Humanity & Inclusion UK warned this week, as Israel continues to restrict medical supplies. The World Health Organization estimates that between 5,000 and 6,000 people have undergone amputations since the October 2025 ceasefire. At the height of the genocide, reports indicated up to 10 children per day were undergoing one or both leg amputations. Six months into the ceasefire, only nine prosthetists are operating in Gaza. Humanity & Inclusion UK has itself been blocked from bringing humanitarian supplies and prosthetics into the territory since February 2025.

• Israel approves new settlement-linked school in occupied East Jerusalem: Israeli authorities have approved plans to build a large ultra-Orthodox Jewish religious school in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood of occupied East Jerusalem, according to WAFA. In a statement, the Jerusalem governorate said the approval reflects “a clear exploitation of the current regional escalation” to push forward settlement plans, warning the project could lead to “dangerous demographic and geographic changes” in Sheikh Jarrah. The governorate described the move as part of a wider pattern of policies in the neighborhood, calling it a “full-fledged forced displacement” strategy amid ongoing threats to evict dozens of Palestinian families.

• Israeli minister says West Bank settlement expansion has Trump’s support: Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich told the Jerusalem Post that Israel’s accelerating settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank is being carried out with full U.S. support, coordinated directly with President Trump, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, and Ambassador Mike Huckabee. Over the past four years, over 51,000 housing units have been approved for the West Bank, according to Smotrich’s office. He acknowledged Trump has not yet backed full West Bank annexation, but claimed “we will also succeed in that.”

• UK shuts unit monitoring Israel’s international law violations: The British Foreign Office has closed the internal unit responsible for tracking potential breaches of international humanitarian law by Israel in Gaza and Lebanon, the Guardian reports, citing budget cuts. The shutdown ends UK funding for the Conflict and Security Monitoring Project, run by the Centre for Information Resilience, which operated the world’s largest open-source monitoring system for human rights incidents across Israel, Palestine, and Lebanon. Officials warned this closure means the Foreign Office will lose access to a database of 26,000 verified incidents in the Middle East.

• Netanyahu treated for early-stage prostate cancer: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has revealed, in a post on X, that he was treated for an early-stage prostate cancer, saying the condition was detected during routine medical monitoring and has since been successfully removed. Netanyahu said he asked to delay the publication of his annual medical report “so that it would not be released at the height of the war,” adding that he did not want it to be used by Iran for “false propaganda against Israel.”

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• U.S. soldier charged with using classified information to win $400,000: A U.S. Army Master Sergeant, Gannon Ken Van Dyke, 38, has been charged with using classified information about the January operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro to place roughly 13 bets on the prediction market platform Polymarket, winning more than $400,000, federal prosecutors in New York announced Thursday. Van Dyke, a special forces soldier stationed at Fort Bragg, allegedly created a Polymarket account in late December and bet on outcomes including U.S. forces being present in Venezuela and Maduro being removed by January 31, 2026; after the operation he moved most of his winnings into a foreign cryptocurrency vault and asked Polymarket to delete his account.

• Justice Department wants to denaturalize 384 U.S. citizens: NYT: The Justice Department will seek to revoke citizenship for 384 foreign-born Americans, anonymous officials told the New York Times in what a Justice Department spokesman said was “the highest volume of denaturalization referrals in history.” The officials described it as “the first wave” of a broader denaturalization campaign and a dramatic escalation. Between 1990 and 2017, the government filed an average of 11 denaturalization cases per year.

• Warner Bros shareholders approve merger with Paramount: Warner Bros. Discovery announced on Thursday that shareholders had voted to approve a $111 billion merger with Paramount Skydance, run by David Ellison, son of tech billionaire Larry Ellison, who are both vocal supporters of President Trump. The deal will still require approval from regulators in the U.S. and Europe. The merger would create the largest media conglomerate in U.S. history, spanning news, sports, movies, video games, theme parks, and more.

• Protest outside Ellison-Trump dinner: Dozens of protesters, including members of Congress, gathered on the National Mall in Washington D.C. close to where David Ellison hosted an invitation-only dinner attended by Trump at the U.S. Institute of Peace “in celebration of the First Amendment” and “honoring the Trump White House and CBS White House Correspondents.” Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland criticized the deal at the demonstration, saying “In the building behind us, David Ellison is hosting a dinner to honor President Trump, a dinner that’s designed to cement the Ellisons to the president in their years-running corrupt merger scheme.”

• AIPAC moving secret money to Philly House race: AIPAC has been funneling money into the campaign of Dr. Ala Stanford in Pennsylvania’s 3rd Congressional District, before the next slate of Democratic primaries, new federal campaign filings reveal. Stanford has denied taking AIPAC money in the race for an open Philadelphia seat, but the records show the pro-Israel group has been routing money directly to her campaign, using the AIPAC-linked Democracy Engine platform, as well as into a super PAC supporting her. The structure allows Stanford, a pediatrician, to distance herself from the group’s increasingly toxic political reputation with the American public, while still benefiting from its cash outlays. Read the full report from Ryan Grim and Julian Andreone here.

• EEOC allegedly refuses to enforce civil rights laws in cases involving LGBTQ Americans: The Legal Accountability Center filed a complaint Thursday with the Virginia State Bar alleging that Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Chair Andrea Lucas violated professional conduct rules by directing agency investigators to stop processing certain discrimination claims—including all charges based on disparate impact, sexual orientation, and gender identity. The complaint also alleges Lucas sent unauthorized information demands on official EEOC letterhead to 20 major law firms seeking extensive data on their diversity, equity, and inclusion practices. The complaint argues Lucas had no legal authority to send the firm letters, characterizing them as “an effort to intimidate and scare these employers into abandoning their DEI efforts in violation of Title VII — the very federal law the EEOC is supposed to enforce.”

• Trump administration considers doubling refugee cap for white South Africans: The Trump administration may expand the current 7,500-person annual refugee cap by 10,000 to allow more Afrikaners into the United States, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters. The U.S. Refugee Admissions Program has been redirected almost exclusively toward white South Africans since Trump paused all other refugee admissions at the start of his term. Of the roughly 4,500 South Africans admitted as refugees through the first six months of fiscal year 2026, the only non-South African refugees to enter the country were three Afghans, according to State Department statistics—a dramatic departure from the program’s 125,000-person ceiling under former President Joe Biden.

• Meatpacking workers win historic strike against JBS in Colorado: Some 3,800 workers at UFCW Local 7’s JBS Greeley beef packing plant in Colorado ended a three-week strike with near-total victory, winning $1.50 an hour in wage increases over two years, reimbursement for out-of-pocket protective equipment costs, and an end to the company’s practice of garnishing wages—sometimes up to $1,100—to replace lost or damaged safety gear. The strike united a workforce speaking 57 languages and cost JBS an estimated $20 to $30 million in daily revenue. Read more about the strike at Labor Notes here.

Other International News

• Pentagon email floats suspending Spain from NATO: An internal Pentagon email circulated within the Defense Department outlines potential measures against NATO allies—including suspending Spain from the alliance and re-evaluating Washington’s position on the British-held Falkland Islands—over what it describes as insufficient support for the U.S. war on Iran, a U.S. official told Reuters. The email, which alleges “a sense of entitlement on the part of the Europeans,” is intended as a signal to NATO partners and asserts that basing and overflight rights should be “just the absolute baseline for NATO”; Spain has refused to allow U.S. attacks on Iran from its airspace or bases, while the United Kingdom initially withheld authorization before allowing use of two British bases for what Prime Minister Keir Starmer described as “defensive purposes.”

• Javier Milei bars accredited journalists from Argentina’s presidential palace: Argentine President Javier Milei’s administration blocked accredited journalists from entering the Casa Rosada on Thursday, after two journalists were accused of secretly filming restricted areas of the governmental palace. Since taking office in 2023, Milei has called journalists “repugnant trash” and limited access at the palace, prompting Reporters Without Borders to condemn the “sharp decline in press freedom” in Argentina.

• Gunmen kill at least nine at copper-gold mine in Pakistan: At least nine employees, including two security guards, were killed when gunmen attacked National Resources Ltd’s Darigwan copper and gold project in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province on Wednesday evening, a local official told Reuters.

• Meningitis and measles in eastern Chad: Médecins Sans Frontières reported Thursday that a deadly meningitis surge in eastern Chad has killed 25 of 212 children admitted to its facilities between March and April—a case fatality rate the group called “shocking”—in an area housing more than 1.3 million Sudanese refugees, including survivors of mass killings and famine in Darfur. Measles is also spreading in the border town of Adre, where a recent surge in arrivals has left camps overcrowded, with MSF medical activity manager Isabelle Kavira warning that bed occupancy for meningitis is “close to 100%.” Chad’s health ministry and MSF are administering emergency vaccinations.

• Russian drone strike on Odesa kills elderly couple, wounds at least 14: A Russian drone attack on Ukraine’s southern city of Odesa overnight killed a married couple, both aged 75, and wounded at least 14 others, Ukrainian officials said Friday. The strike wrecked two two-story buildings and damaged two others, triggering fires and leaving a visible hole in the side of one structure, according to emergency services.

More from Drop Site

• Unmasking Canary Mission: The pro-Israel doxxing site Canary Mission has been notoriously secretive since its creation in 2015. The anonymous website, which began as an online blacklist targeting academics and activists who expressed pro-Palestine views, over the last year has been used by the Trump administration to select international students for arrest, detention, and deportation. Despite its increasingly high profile, the website’s operators have remained largely unknown. Drop Site contributor Jacqueline Sweet has now identified five more people employed by Megamot Shalom, a closely related group, as content writers, editors, and consultants. Read Drop Site’s full investigation.

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U.S. Navy intercepts at least four Iranian oil tankers in Asian waters. President Donald Trump says new Iran talks possible as soon as Friday. Trump orders Navy to shoot and kill Iranian boats laying mines in Strait of Hormuz. Israeli strikes and violations continue in southern Lebanon. Lebanese and Israeli envoys meet Thursday as Beirut seeks ceasefire extension and Israeli withdrawal. Hezbollah carries out four attacks on Israeli positions in southern Lebanon, citing ceasefire violations. Haaretz: Israeli soldiers engaged in widespread looting in Lebanon. Israeli strikes kill at least nine Palestinians across Gaza, including three children. Israeli settlers and soldiers have killed 40 Palestinians in 2026. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth fires Navy Secretary John Phelan mid-war. Senate Republicans advance $70 billion immigration enforcement funding blueprint. FBI opened inquiry into New York Times reporter who wrote about Kash Patel’s use of bureau resources for his girlfriend. Kalshi penalizes three political candidates for betting on their own elections. Chemical leak at West Virginia silver recovery plant kills two, hospitalizes nearly 30. Journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin acquitted in Kuwait after 50+ days in detention. Peru’s defense and foreign ministers, electoral chief resign. Sudanese military resumes manned air strikes over Kordofan. ICC confirms charges against former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte. King Charles will not meet Epstein victims during U.S. state visit.

From Drop Site: Lebanese Journalist Amal Khalil Bombed and Left to Die by Israel. Two Iranian Women in ICE Detention are not related to Qasem Soleimani. Meet the Top “Content” Producers Linked to Canary Mission.

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Iran and Ceasefire

• U.S. Navy intercepts at least four Iranian oil tankers in Asian waters: The U.S. military has intercepted at least four Iranian oil tankers in waters near India, Malaysia, and Sri Lanka in recent days, redirecting them as part of its naval blockade on Iran, Reuters reports. U.S. Central Command confirmed that the supertanker Dorena is under Navy escort in the Indian Ocean, with the Department of War reporting forces seizure of the tanker Majestic X also in the Indian Ocean; shipping sources also reported the interception of the Deep Sea and the Sevin, while a fifth vessel, the Derya, may have been stopped after last being tracked off India’s west coast Friday. CENTCOM also claimed to have directed 31 vessels to turn around or return to port as part of its blockade against Iran in a post on X.

• Trump says new Iran talks possible as soon as Friday: President Donald Trump told the New York Post Wednesday that good news on a second round of U.S.-Iran negotiations could come “as soon as Friday,” texting the paper: “It’s possible!” Pakistani sources told the Post they are working a 36-to-72-hour diplomatic window with Tehran, with one source saying “the ceasefire is holding despite heightened rhetoric, indicating positive intent on both sides.” Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said Tehran remains open to dialogue and a negotiated agreement, but meaningful talks are being undermined by “breach of commitments, blockade and threats.” In a post on X, he also accused the United States of “hypocritical rhetoric” and of acting in contradiction to stated positions.

• Two Iranian Women in ICE Detention are not related to Qasem Soleimani: Drop Site News reviewed Iranian birth records, identification papers and other personal documents and found no evidence connecting Hamideh Soleimani Afshar, 47, and her daughter Sarina Hosseiny, 25, to the late Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander Maj. Gen. Qasem Soleimani, whose green cards Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked on April 3 after right-wing activist Laura Loomer flagged them on social media. Soleimani’s own daughters publicly denied any family connection, with his youngest daughter, Zeinab Soleimani, calling the State Department’s allegations “false.” Hamideh, who suffers from autoimmune hemolytic anemia, has been repeatedly denied blood transfusions at the South Texas ICE Processing Center in San Antonio, where friends say she recently lost consciousness for more than ten minutes. “She’s basically just trapped in there watching her mom die,” a friend said of Sarina’s detention. Read the full report from Ryan Grim and Murtaza Hussain here.

• Trump orders Navy to shoot and kill Iranian boats laying mines in Strait of Hormuz: President Donald Trump announced Thursday on Truth Social that he has ordered the U.S. Navy to “shoot and kill any boat” laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, adding “there is to be no hesitation.” Trump also said he was ordering minesweeping operations already underway to continue “at a tripled up level.” The Pentagon told members of the House Armed Services Committee in a classified briefing Tuesday that fully clearing Iranian mines from the Strait of Hormuz could take up to six months and would likely not begin until the war ends, according to three officials who spoke to the Washington Post.

• Pakistan’s army chief emerges as lead U.S.-Iran mediator: Field Marshal Asim Munir, Pakistan’s most powerful figure, has taken on the role of the primary broker between Washington and Tehran, spending days in the Iranian capital meeting political leaders and Revolutionary Guards commanders while maintaining constant contact with the White House, the Financial Times reports. Analysts and diplomats are increasingly questioning, however, Pakistan’s ability to serve as an honest broker, citing its mutual defense agreement with Saudi Arabia, deepened financial ties with figures close to President Donald Trump, and its silence on the ongoing naval blockade.

Lebanon

• Israeli strikes and violations continue in southern Lebanon: Israeli violations of the ceasefire continued across southern Lebanon on Wednesday and Thursday, including airstrikes, demolitions, and forced displacement orders, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency. A drone strike targeted the Rihan heights in the Jezzine area, while another strike on the town of Yahmar al-Shaqif in Nabatieh killed two people and wounded two others Wednesday. Israeli forces also set fire to homes in the Mufailha neighborhood west of Mais al-Jabal on Thursday morning. Separately, the Israeli military re-issued warnings ordering residents not to approach areas near the Litani River, while prohibiting returns to dozens of villages across southern Lebanon.

• Lebanese journalist bombed and left to die by Israel: Prominent Lebanese journalist Amal Khalil was killed on Wednesday in southern Lebanon after what appeared to be a targeted Israeli strike, according to her employer Al-Akhbar. Khalil and freelance photojournalist Zeinab Faraj had been reporting on attacks in Bint Jbeil when a nearby vehicle was hit by a drone, killing two people, prompting the two journalists to take shelter in a house that was later bombed. Rescue efforts were obstructed amid continued Israeli fire, with reports that Red Cross teams and vehicles came under attack while attempting to evacuate the wounded. Faraj was eventually rescued with critical injuries, while Khalil’s body was recovered later after access was granted. The Committee to Protect Journalists condemned the incident, citing “repeated strikes on the same location” and the obstruction of humanitarian access as a serious violation of international law. Lebanese President Joseph Aoun expressed his condolences over Khalil’s death and said in a post on X that Israel’s “deliberate and consistent targeting of journalists” was aimed at “concealing the truth of its aggressive acts against Lebanon” and that such acts constitute “crimes against humanity punishable under international laws and conventions.” Read the full report from Drop Site contributor Jeremy Loffredo here.

• Lebanese and Israeli envoys meet Thursday as Beirut seeks ceasefire extension and Israeli withdrawal: Lebanese and Israeli envoys meet Thursday at the State Department—their second round of direct talks in two weeks and the first sustained direct negotiations between the two countries in decades—with Secretary of State Marco Rubio chairing the session. Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam stressed that Beirut cannot accept any deal without a “full withdrawal” of Israeli forces. In an interview with The Washington Post, Salam rejected the idea of a buffer zone, and urged an extension of the ceasefire. Salam said Lebanon is entering negotiations “convinced that the U.S. is the party that can have leverage over Israel.” President Joseph Aoun said any extension of the ceasefire, which expires Sunday, should be “significant, not just for a few days.”

• Hezbollah carries out four attacks on Israeli positions in southern Lebanon, citing ceasefire violations: Hezbollah said Wednesday it struck an Israeli artillery bunker on Lebanon’s Mediterranean coast in Al-Bayyada using loitering drones, and targeted a command vehicle and troop gatherings in Al-Qantara and the nearby Nabatieh-region villages of At-Tiri and Yohmor Al-Shaqif. The group also claimed it shot down four Israeli reconnaissance drones over Al-Mansouri, a coastal town south of Tyre. Hezbollah described the operations as retaliation for Israeli ceasefire violations and strikes on civilians in southern Lebanon, calling them the minimum necessary to deter further attacks and defend Lebanese territory.

• Haaretz: Israeli soldiers engaged in widespread looting in Lebanon: Israeli soldiers have been looting significant amounts of property from homes and businesses in southern Lebanon, according to testimonies given to Haaretz by Israeli soldiers and commanders stationed inside the country, including stealing motorcycles, televisions, paintings, sofas, and rugs on a wide scale.

Genocide in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, six Palestinians were killed and 18 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,568 killed, with 172,338 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 792 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,235, while 761 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israeli strikes kill at least nine Palestinians across Gaza, including three children: At least nine Palestinians, including three children, were killed in Israeli strikes across the Gaza Strip on Wednesday and Thursday, according to WAFA. Three people were killed Thursday when an Israeli aircraft targeted a vehicle at the entrance to Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza. In Khan Younis, a man was killed and three others injured after a drone strike hit an area south of the city. An Israeli drone strike on civilians near a mosque in the Beit Lahia Project area of northern Gaza killed five people, including three children, and wounded others Wednesday evening.

• Israeli settlers and soldiers have killed 40 Palestinians in 2026: At least sixteen Palestinians have been killed by settler gunfire in the occupied West Bank since the beginning of the year, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry—surpassing the total killed by settlers in 2025. Additionally, over 24 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli soldiers in the occupied territory since the start of 2026, reported OCHA. Data from the Wall and Settlement Resistance Commission shows that Israeli forces and settlers carried out 1,819 attacks in March alone, including 1,322 by Israeli forces and 497 by settlers.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Hegseth fires Navy Secretary Phelan mid-war: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth forced out Navy Secretary John Phelan on Wednesday, giving him the choice to resign or be fired, with the Pentagon announcing the departure as effective immediately and offering no public explanation. A person familiar with the situation told Axios that Hegseth believed Phelan “didn’t understand he wasn’t the boss,” was moving too slowly on shipbuilding reforms, and had irritated Hegseth by communicating directly with President Donald Trump. Navy Undersecretary Hung Cao will serve as acting Navy secretary.

• Senate Republicans advance $70 billion immigration enforcement funding blueprint: The Senate voted 50-48 just after 3:30 a.m. Thursday to adopt a budget blueprint that would send roughly $70 billion to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, Border Patrol, and other agencies through the remainder of President Donald Trump’s term, with only Republican Sens. Rand Paul of Kentucky and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska breaking from their party. The vote completed the first step in the GOP’s plan to fund the agencies through the filibuster-skirting reconciliation process, bypassing Democrats who have refused to approve the funding without new restrictions on how the agencies operate.

• Rep. Scott dies at 80: Rep. David Scott of Georgia, the first Black man to serve as chair of the House Agriculture Committee, died on Wednesday at the age of 80. Scott was seeking his 13th term in office despite concerns about his health. His death leaves Democrats with 212 seats in the House, compared to 218 members for Republicans

• FBI opened inquiry into New York Times reporter who wrote about Kash Patel’s use of bureau resources for his girlfriend: The FBI investigated New York Times reporter Elizabeth Williamson last month after she wrote about Director Kash Patel using bureau personnel to provide his girlfriend, Alexis Wilkins, with government security and transportation—interviewing Wilkins, querying databases for information on Williamson, and recommending a preliminary investigation into whether her reporting broke federal stalking laws, according to a person briefed on the matter. Justice Department officials determined there was no legal basis to proceed and blocked the inquiry, which some viewed as retaliation for an article Patel and Wilkins disliked. Times executive editor Joseph Kahn called the FBI’s actions “a blatant violation of Elizabeth’s First Amendment rights and another attempt by this administration to prevent journalists from scrutinizing its actions.” On Monday, Patel filed a $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic over an article that discussed allegations about his excessive drinking and mismanagement at the FBI.

• Kalshi penalizes three political candidates for betting on their own elections: Prediction market platform Kalshi announced Wednesday it had sanctioned three unnamed U.S. political candidates—from a Minnesota Democratic congressional primary, a Texas Republican congressional primary, and Virginia’s U.S. Senate Democratic primary—for placing bets on the outcomes of their own races, with fines ranging from $539 to $6,229 and five-year platform suspensions in each case. Kalshi and Polymarket are regulated federally by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, though Arizona became the first state to attempt to regulate the platforms, filing criminal charges against Kalshi in March for running an “illegal gambling platform.”

• Chemical leak at West Virginia silver recovery plant kills two, hospitalizes nearly 30: A chemical reaction involving nitric acid during a shutdown process at the Catalyst Refiners plant in Institute, West Virginia, killed two workers and sent approximately 30 others to hospitals on Wednesday, with one person in serious condition, according to Kanawha County officials. The reaction, believed to have occurred during a cleaning process, produced toxic hydrogen sulfide. Among the injured were seven ambulance workers who responded to the scene. A shelter-in-place order for the surrounding area was issued and lifted more than five hours later, with authorities saying all deaths occurred on the plant site and that local air quality and water supply were believed unaffected.

• Texas refineries emit benzene at rates five times higher than California peers: A new Environmental Defense Fund study published in Environmental Research Letters found that from 2018 to 2023, Texas and Louisiana refineries averaged five times the fenceline benzene levels of facilities in California and Washington state, with nine of the 20 worst benzene polluters in the country located in Texas—including Port Arthur’s TotalEnergies refinery, which ranked third nationally despite processing significantly less crude oil than California’s largest refinery. Pointing to a 2019 tank fire in the Houston area, one advocate said about the rising benzene levels: “It’s not just an immediate impact, but a multigenerational toxic harm that we experience because of emissions like benzene and all of these other petrochemicals.” More on Texas’ benzene problem from Capital & Main here.

Other International News

• Journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin acquitted in Kuwait after 50+ days in detention: U.S.-Kuwaiti journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin was acquitted of all charges by a court in Kuwait on Thursday and is expected to be released imminently, according to Caoilfhionn Gallagher, international counsel to Shihab-Eldin’s sisters. Shihab-Eldin was arrested by Kuwaiti authorities on March 3 reportedly over social media posts related to the Iran war. “We are relieved that, after 52 days in detention, Ahmed has been found innocent on all charges. Our focus now is upon ensuring the liberty and safety of our client,” Gallagher said in a statement. In its first ruling, a newly established court overseeing state security and terrorism crimes on Thursday issued verdicts for 137 defendants accused of “inciting sectarian strife on social media platforms,” according to Al-Rai newspaper. 17 defendants were sentenced to three years in prison; one was sentenced to 10 years; nine were acquitted; and 109 were not subject to any criminal penalty. Read Drop Site’s coverage of his case here.

• Peru’s defense and foreign ministers, electoral chief resign: Peru’s Defense Minister Carlos Diaz and Foreign Minister Hugo de Zela resigned Wednesday after interim President Jose Maria Balcazar announced he would defer the decision to buy 24 F-16 fighter jets from Lockheed Martin to the country’s next elected leader, with Diaz writing that “a strategic decision has been taken in the area of national security with which I have a fundamental disagreement.” The decision to postpone the $3.5 billion deal, drew a pointed warning from U.S. Ambassador Bernie Navarro, who posted on social media that if Peru dealt “with the U.S. in bad faith,” he would “use every available tool” on behalf of President Donald Trump to protect U.S. interests. Piero Corvetto, head of Peru’s National Office of Electoral Processes, also resigned Tuesday amid what legislators and analysts describe as a coordinated campaign by right-wing political forces to exploit logistical failures in the first-round vote and lay the groundwork for annulling results in certain districts.

• Sudanese military resumes manned air strikes over Kordofan: Sudanese army MiG fighter jets returned to the skies over South Kordofan on Wednesday, carrying out heavy strikes on Rapid Support Forces positions in the Al-Dulaymah, Al-Hujayrat, and Birno areas around Dilling—the region’s second-largest city—marking the first manned air operations over Kordofan and Darfur in months, according to eyewitnesses who spoke to Sudan Tribune. The resumed air campaign signals a broader Sudanese military effort to degrade RSF defensive capabilities, following a February operation in which the army said it neutralized a K-2000 air defense system in South Kordofan and destroyed drones at Nyala Airport.

• Report links UAE-backed Colombian mercenaries to RSF’s capture of El Fasher: A new report by the Conflict Insights Group found that Colombian mercenaries operating through a UAE-backed network provided direct military support to Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces during the October 2025 takeover of El Fasher, using commercially available advertising technology data, satellite imagery, and flight-tracking to identify more than 50 devices associated with the mercenaries operating in Sudan last year. The fighters were associated with the “Desert Wolves” brigade, employed by Global Security Services Group—a UAE-based company linked to senior Emirati government officials—and led by a U.S.-sanctioned retired Colombian army colonel; their roles included flying drones, training RSF troops and child soldiers, and serving as artillerymen throughout the El Fasher siege, with one device connecting to a Wi-Fi network named “ATACADOR”— Spanish for “attacker”—during the October 26 takeover. The mercenary pipeline ran through staging points in Somalia, Abu Dhabi, and Libya before deployment to Darfur. The fall of El Fasher was followed by mass atrocities, including the killing of more than 460 patients at the Saudi Maternity Hospital and filmed executions of elderly civilians. The group’s full report is available here.

• ICC confirms charges against former Philippine President Duterte: International Criminal Court judges on Thursday found “substantial grounds” to believe former Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, 81, played a key role in the murders of 76 people and the attempted murder of two others as part of his “war on drugs,” confirming all three counts of murder as crimes against humanity and committing him to trial. Prosecutors allege Duterte created, funded, and armed death squads to kill suspected narcotics dealers and users during his presidency from 2016 to 2022, with estimates of the overall death toll ranging from 6,000—the police figure—to 30,000 according to some human rights groups. Duterte, who was arrested in the Philippines last year, denies the charges and his defense team claims he is mentally unfit to follow proceedings.

• King Charles will not meet Epstein victims during U.S. state visit: Lawyers for King Charles III and Queen Camilla informed Rep. Ro Khanna, Democrat of California, that the king will not meet with survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s abuse during his state visit to the United States next week, citing “ongoing police inquiries” in the United Kingdom that prevent him from meeting survivors or commenting directly on related matters. Charles and Camilla are expected in Washington from April 27 to April 30 for events marking the 250th anniversary of the U.S. Declaration of Independence, including a White House state dinner and an address to a joint session of Congress; Khanna, one of Washington’s most vocal advocates for broader Epstein record disclosure, said Wednesday he was disappointed by the decision and called on the king to reconsider.

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Iran seizes two ships in Strait of Hormuz. President Donald Trump extends U.S.-Iran ceasefire indefinitely. EU Energy Commissioner warns war will affect prices for years. Israel continues attacks in Lebanon despite ceasefire. Hezbollah fires rockets and drones at Israeli artillery. Israel commits 220 violations in ceasefire’s first three days, report says. Lebanese president says talks to extend ceasefire are ongoing, ahead of meeting with Israel. Israeli attacks continue in Gaza. Raids and detentions in the occupied West Bank. Four Palestinian members of Board of Peace committee offer to resign in protest. Israeli military conducts operations in Syria’s Golan. Israel honors rabbi accused of war crimes as Independence Day torchbearer. Virginia voters approve Democratic redistricting map. Florida Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick resigns from Congress. Poll shows likely Democratic primary voters in N.J. district souring on U.S. support for Israel. Eleven Democratic senators accuse Hegseth of violating U.S. and international law. Treasury sanctions 14 targets across Iran, Turkey, and UAE. Justice Department indicts Southern Poverty Law Center on federal fraud charges. Trump administration blocks $500 million to Iraq, stops security cooperation programs. Paraguay agrees to accept 25 U.S. deportees with no ties to country. Russian drones strike Odesa port and Zaporizhia railway, killing train driver. U.K. parliament passes lifetime tobacco ban for anyone born after 2008.

From Drop Site: Trump Blinks First, Extending Ceasefire with Iran as Hormuz Deadlock Continues. Rare Survivors of Pacific Boat Strikes Allege U.S. Forces Kidnapped and Tortured Them.

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Iran and Ceasefire

• Iranian Revolutionary Guard seizes two ships: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps fired on a container ship in the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday, damaging the vessel without causing casualties or environmental harm, according to the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, which said a Guard gunboat opened fire without warning. Iran’s state-linked Nour News disputed that account, saying the ship had ignored warnings and suffered extensive damage, framing the attack as enforcement of Iranian control over the strait. In addition to this, the Iranian Navy captured two foreign commercial vessels on Wednesday and had moved them to the Iranian coast, according to Iranian state media. The move came a day after U.S. forces boarded and seized an oil tanker linked to Iran, the second one intercepted by the U.S.

• Trump extends U.S.-Iran ceasefire indefinitely: President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that the United States would extend its ceasefire with Iran indefinitely at the request of Pakistani Field Marshal Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif. In a Truth Social post, Trump said he has directed the military to maintain the naval blockade and remain on full readiness for the duration of the extension. The ceasefire will hold, Trump said, “until such time as their proposal is submitted, and discussions are concluded—one way or the other.” This follows reporting from Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill, who right before this announcement confirmed that Iran would not attend a second round of talks, primarily because Pakistan had promised that Trump would lift the blockade and he did not. This remains the position of the Iranian government after the announcement of the extension, according to Iran’s Permanent Representative to the UN. “As soon as [the U.S.] breaks the naval blockade, the next round of negotiations will take place in Islamabad.” Read the latest on the state of the ceasefire from Jeremy Scahill here.

• EU Energy Commissioner warns war will affect prices for years: European Union Energy Commissioner Dan Jørgensen said Wednesday the Iran war was costing Europe around 500 million euros (approx. $585 million) each day and would affect prices for years to come. “This is not a short-term, small increase in prices. This is a crisis that is probably as serious as the 1973 and the 2022 crises combined,” he said on Wednesday according to AP.

• CNN: Oil spills from Iran war visible from space: Multiple oil spills spreading across the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz are visible from space after Iranian and U.S.-Israeli strikes hit oil facilities and vessels in the region, according to CNN, with environmental experts warning of an impending ecological disaster. One image, taken on April 7, shows a spill spanning more than five miles in the Strait of Hormuz near Iran’s Qeshm Island. An Iranian vessel leaked oil in the same area after U.S. forces struck it on February 28, Greenpeace Germany spokesperson Nina Noelle told CNN.

• UK and France to lead multinational Hormuz conference: Britain is hosting military planners from more than 30 countries for two days of talks starting Wednesday on a UK- and France-led multinational mission aimed at protecting navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The defense ministry said the meeting will “advance detailed planning” to reopen the strait when conditions allow. UK Defense Minister John Healey said the goal is to “translate diplomatic consensus into a joint plan to safeguard freedom of navigation in the Strait and support a lasting ceasefire,” adding he is confident “real progress can be made.” The initiative follows a Paris meeting co-chaired by Prime Minister Keir Starmer and President Emmanuel Macron, with both countries stressing the force would be strictly defensive and deployed only once a lasting regional peace agreement is reached.

Lebanon

• Israel continues attacks in Lebanon despite ceasefire:

  • An Israeli drone strike on the village of Jabbour killed one person and wounded two others Wednesday, according to the National News Agency (NNA).

  • Two people were also killed in a separate Israeli attack on a car in at-Tiri in southern Lebanon.

  • Israel continued its demolition operations in Bint Jbeil and in the villages of Beit Leef, Shamaa, Tayf Harfa, and Hanin on Wednesday, NNA reported. Israeli shelling also targeted the towns of Houla and Al-Qusayr in the Marjayoun district.

• Hezbollah fires rockets and drones at Israeli artillery: Hezbollah said Tuesday it launched rockets and attack drones at an Israeli artillery position in Kfar Jaladi, in response to Israel’s continued ceasefire violations. Hezbollah also announced Wednesday that it targeted an Israeli artillery position in the town of Al-Bayyada using an explosive drone.

• Israel commits 220 violations in ceasefire’s first three days, report says: Lebanon’s National Council for Scientific Research and National Center for Natural Hazards and Early Warning recorded 220 Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement across more than 15 categories in the roughly 72 hours between midnight April 16 and noon April 19, according to figures published by legal research organization Al-Mofakira Al-Qanouniya. The violations included 52 artillery bombardments, 50 mining and detonation operations, 30 aerial violations by combat and surveillance aircraft, 15 ground patrols with automatic weapons, 7 airstrikes, 4 phosphorus bomb and sonic device deployments, and 62 additional recorded incidents. Three people were killed and seven were injured during the period, including four paramedics.

• Lebanese president says talks to extend ceasefire are ongoing, ahead of meeting with Israel: Lebanese President General Joseph Aoun said that “contacts are underway to extend the ceasefire deadline,” in meetings with parliamentary and political delegations Wednesday, ahead of a direct meeting with Israel on Thursday. Aoun also noted that Lebanon’s ambassador to Washington will “raise the issue of extending the ceasefire deadline and halting Israeli demolition operations in villages and towns in southern Lebanon,” amid continuing Israeli demolitions.

Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, two Palestinians were killed—one during new attacks, and another from wounds sustained during earlier attacks—and four were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,562 killed, with 172,320 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 786 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,217, while 761 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israeli attacks continue in Gaza: An Israeli drone strike on Jabaliya killed one and wounded others Wednesday morning, WAFA reports. The residents were struck as they were trying to remove rubble from their homes. Several Palestinians were also wounded on Tuesday after Israeli shelling near Al-Atatra roundabout in Beit Lahia, in the northwest of the Gaza Strip.

• Raids and detentions in the occupied West Bank:

  • Israeli forces fired on a funeral procession in Al-Mughayyir, near Ramallah on Wednesday. They reportedly fired live ammunition, stun grenades, and tear gas at the group. The mourners were attending the funeral of two Palestinians, one of whom was 14 years old, killed in an Israeli settler attack on a school on Tuesday.

  • A man was detained on Wednesday by Israeli forces in Masafer Yatta as settlers attacked Palestinian property in the area, WAFA reports. Israel also detained an employee of a charitable organization in Jerusalem.

  • At least 90 Palestinian women are currently being held in Israeli detention, according to the Palestinian Prisoners’ Society, including minors, a pregnant woman, journalists, and administrative detainees who are held without charge, the group stated Wednesday. The statement says detainees are subjected to harsh conditions including starvation, medical neglect, solitary confinement, and sexual abuse.

• Four Palestinian members of Board of Peace committee offer to resign in protest: At least four of the 13 members of the Palestinian committee appointed in January as part of President Trump’s Board of Peace offered their resignations in protest against the lack of any progress allowing the body to begin its work in Gaza, according to the Emirati-newspaper The National. The National Committee for the Administration of Gaza (NCAG), as it is formally known, is the only committee within the Board of Peace organizational structure to include any Palestinians. NCAG members have been based in Cairo since January, though Israel has not allowed them to cross into Gaza, saying their entry is conditional on Hamas disarming. Nickolay Mladenov, the Bulgarian diplomat who was appointed as High Representative of the Board of Peace and who supervises the NCAG, rejected the resignations, and urged the four members to stay on, The National reported.

• Israeli military conducts operations in Syria’s Golan: Israeli forces entered Quneitra, in the Syrian countryside, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency, raiding multiple villages and detaining at least three residents, including two children.

• Israel honors rabbi accused of war crimes as Independence Day torchbearer: Israel selected Avraham Zarbiv, a 52-year-old army reservist and state rabbinical judge facing an International Criminal Court complaint over his conduct in Gaza, to light one of 12 ceremonial torches at Tuesday’s Independence Day celebration—one of the country’s highest civic honors. Zarbiv rose to notoriety after being filmed throwing grenades at Palestinians in Khan Younis, recording himself demolishing Palestinian homes in Gaza and southern Lebanon, and boasting on Israeli television of mass destruction, with his name becoming a colloquial verb meaning to flatten or obliterate.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Virginia voters approve Democratic redistricting map: Virginia voters narrowly approved a ballot referendum Tuesday authorizing the Democratic-controlled state legislature to bypass the state’s bipartisan redistricting commission and implement a new congressional map through the end of the decade. This could allow Democrats to pick up as many as four House seats in this fall’s midterm elections, according to NBC News. The approved map is designed to leave just one solidly Republican district among Virginia’s 11 congressional seats, shifting from the current six-to-five Democratic advantage.

• Florida Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick resigns from Congress: Democratic Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick of Florida resigned from Congress Tuesday moments after a House Ethics Committee hearing convened to recommend disciplinary action against her, following a panel finding in March that she committed more than two dozen ethics violations related to allegations she funneled millions of dollars in Federal Emergency Management Agency funds into her 2021 congressional campaign. Cherfilus-McCormick, who was separately indicted on 15 federal felony charges last November and has pleaded not guilty, called the ethics process ‘not a fair process’ and said proceeding alongside a pending criminal indictment prevented her from defending herself. A special election will be needed to fill her seat representing Florida’s 20th Congressional District.

• Poll shows likely Democratic primary voters in N.J. district souring on U.S. support for Israel: A poll commissioned by Mussab Ali, a Democratic primary challenger to Rep. Robert Menendez (D) in New Jersey’s 8th Congressional District, found that the majority of likely Democratic primary voters are dissatisfied with U.S. foreign policy toward Israel. Conducted April 11–16 among 416 likely Democratic primary voters by Center for Strategic Politics Strategies, the survey found 40% of respondents calling for a full cessation of military aid to Israel, with an additional 35% calling for reductions or conditions on that aid. Just 16% said an endorsement from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee would make them more likely to support a candidate, compared with 49% who said it would make them less likely. The poll also tested the district’s congressional race between Menendez—son of former Sen. Bob Menendez, who was convicted and sentenced on bribery and foreign agent charges—and progressive challenger Ali. Before candidate biographies were shared, respondents favored Menendez over Ali 42% to 27%. After positive and negative biographical information was presented, Ali moved ahead 43% to 33%.

• Eleven Democratic senators accuse Hegseth of violating U.S. and international law: Led by Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), eleven Democratic senators have accused Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth of violating U.S. and international law in American military operations against Iran, citing four strikes they say caused unlawful civilian casualties—including a missile attack on a girls’ school in Minab that killed 175 people and a separate strike in Lamerd that killed 21. The senators warned that Hegseth’s “no quarter” remarks breach the laws of war and could invite retaliation against U.S. troops. They also charged that his dismantling of Pentagon civilian harm mitigation programs—including target vetting, risk assessments, and post-strike reviews—has stripped away key safeguards designed to limit civilian deaths and ensure legal compliance.

• Treasury sanctions 14 targets across Iran, Turkey, and UAE: The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control sanctioned 14 individuals, entities, and aircraft Tuesday as part of “Operation Economic Fury,” targeting networks procuring or transporting weapons components for the Iranian regime across Iran, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates. Targets include a network supplying servomotors found in downed Shahed-136 attack drones, a Turkish company shipping cotton linters used to produce solid rocket propellant to Iranian defense entities, and several individuals tied to Mahan Air, which Treasury says has transported unmanned aerial vehicles and other weapons, including to Venezuela. Separately, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent warned that Kharg Island—which handles roughly 90% of Iran’s crude oil exports—will exhaust its storage capacity within days due to the naval blockade, potentially forcing Iran to shut down oil wells entirely; prolonged shutdowns risk permanently damaging reservoir pressure, Bessent said, meaning Iran could lose production capacity requiring years to recover even after a deal is reached.

• Justice Department indicts Southern Poverty Law Center on federal fraud charges: A federal grand jury in Alabama returned an 11-count indictment Tuesday against the Southern Poverty Law Center, charging the civil rights organization with wire fraud, bank fraud, and conspiracy to commit money laundering over a program in which it allegedly funneled more than $3 million to confidential informants embedded in violent extremist groups, including the Ku Klux Klan, between 2014 and 2023. Acting Attorney General Todd Blanche alleged the SPLC concealed the payments through fictitious entities and misled donors by claiming their funds would be used to “dismantle” extremist groups, while FBI Director Kash Patel called the informant program “a serious and egregious violation.” SPLC Chief Executive Bryan Fair denied the allegations, saying the informant program “saved lives” and was shared with law enforcement, including the FBI. Fair called the prosecution an attempt to weaponize the federal government against organizations defending civil rights. Legal analysts noted the charges would be unusually difficult to prove against a corporate entity, and the American Civil Liberties Union condemned the indictment as “yet another example of the Trump administration’s extreme attempts to silence its critics.”

• Class action suit accuses North Carolina farm of confiscating immigrant workers’ passports: A class action lawsuit filed Friday accuses Jackson Farming Company of Autryville, North Carolina, and its labor contractors of confiscating the passports and visa documents of Mexican farmworkers on H-2A visas with the explicit goal of preventing them from leaving, while also charging illegal recruitment fees, making unlawful pay deductions, falsifying payroll records, and failing to provide bathrooms, drinking water, or adequate care for workers suffering heatstroke. Lead plaintiff Fernando Javier Rodríguez Luna, who was recruited in Mexico to harvest crops in North Carolina in 2024 and 2025, says contractors threatened workers who tried to leave that they would be blacklisted from future H-2A visas, and charged those who insisted on departing $300 to retrieve their own documents—even instructing workers to conceal the passport confiscations from a Department of Labor investigation. Attorneys with the North Carolina Justice Center, which is representing the workers, said the case reflects a structural vulnerability in the H-2A program that contractor middlemen exploit to shield farm owners from liability, and warned that the Trump administration’s deportation threats and recent cuts to the H-2A minimum wage—estimated to reduce pay for more than 350,000 farmworkers by 26 to 32 percent—are making abuse significantly more difficult for workers to report. For more on the lawsuit, read the American Prospect here.

• CFPB formally eliminates disparate-impact lending protections: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau formally rescinded disparate-impact requirements under the 1974 Equal Credit Opportunity Act Tuesday, ending a decades-old enforcement tool that barred lenders from policies with unintentionally discriminatory effects on borrowers even in the absence of explicit bias, Reuters reported. The change, published in the federal register, leaves intact prohibitions against intentional discrimination but removes a standard that the government has long used to police racial and gender discrimination in housing, lending, and education. Consumer advocates warned the move will make discrimination far harder to detect and prosecute, and said it opens the door to legal challenges, given that the disparate-impact doctrine is rooted in Supreme Court precedent.

Other International News

• Trump administration blocks $500 million to Iraq, stops security cooperation programs: The Trump administration has blocked a nearly $500 million cash delivery from Iraqi oil sale proceeds held at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and frozen security cooperation programs with Baghdad’s military, in an effort to pressure Iraq into taking action against Iranian-aligned armed groups, according to the Wall Street Journal. It is the second such shipment delayed since the U.S.-Iran war began in late February. Under a post-2003 arrangement, Washington holds Iraq’s oil revenues at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and ships up to $13 billion annually in physical cash to Baghdad to keep its cash-dependent economy functioning.

• Paraguay agrees to accept 25 U.S. deportees with no ties to country: Paraguay announced Tuesday it will receive an initial group of 25 Spanish-speaking deportees from the United States beginning Thursday, becoming the latest country to join the Trump administration’s expanding network of third-country deportation agreements that send migrants to nations they have no ties to. Countries including Costa Rica, El Salvador, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, and South Sudan have signed similar arrangements. The Associated Press has reported the Trump administration is seeking similar arrangements with 47 additional countries.

• Russian drones strike Odesa port and Zaporizhia railway, killing train driver: Russian drones struck Ukraine’s main Black Sea port in Odesa overnight Wednesday, damaging berths, warehouses, and railway infrastructure, while a separate attack on a sorting yard in the Zaporizhia region killed an assistant train driver and injured the main driver, according to Al Jazeera.

• U.K. parliament passes lifetime tobacco ban for anyone born after 2008: The United Kingdom’s parliament has approved the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which will permanently bar anyone born on or after January 1, 2009 from purchasing tobacco products for the rest of their lives, in what Health Secretary Wes Streeting called “the biggest public health intervention in a generation.” The bill, which awaits royal assent next week, will also grant ministers new powers to regulate the flavors, packaging, and advertising of vaping and nicotine products, and will extend smoke-free zones to playgrounds, school and hospital entrances, and cars carrying children. Smoking causes roughly 400,000 hospital admissions and 64,000 deaths annually in England alone and costs the National Health Service an estimated £3 billion per year in treatment costs, according to the Guardian.

More from Drop Site

• Ecuadorian fishermen allege kidnapping, torture by U.S. forces: Survivors of two separate attacks on Ecuadorian fishing vessels in the Pacific alleged Wednesday that U.S. military forces struck their boats with drones, hooded and detained crew members for days without food or medical care, and transported them roughly 900 nautical miles to El Salvador before returning them to Ecuador—accounts that, if confirmed, would constitute violations of international law. Sixteen survivors of the vessel La Negra Francisca Duarte told Drop Site News they were seized by armed English-speaking men aboard a blue U.S.-flagged patrol ship bearing the word “Spear”—a possible reference to Operation Southern Spear, the Trump administration’s counternarcotics program in the Americas—after a drone strike ignited their boat. Twenty additional fishermen from a third vessel, the Don Maca, reported a near-identical ordeal beginning April 3, including being held hooded for eight days and fired on with a pellet gun. “They’ve been threatened not to speak to the press. They’re scared for their lives,” said one wife and mother of the fishermen about the crew. Read the latest from Drop Site contributor Camila Lourdes Galarza here.

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Second round of U.S.-Iran negotiations remains uncertain. President Donald Trump refuses a ceasefire extension, says U.S. will resume attacks if there is no deal. IEA: U.S.-Israeli war on Iran causing “biggest crisis in history.” Despite ceasefire, Israel continues military activity in Lebanon. Israeli strike hits coffee shop in southern Lebanon, injuring six. Iran executes man accused of arson during January protests. Second round of direct Israel-Lebanon talks set for Thursday. Israel threatens to assassinate Hezbollah leader during ceasefire. Three Palestinians, including two children, killed in West Bank settler attacks. Palestinian security force claims strike on collaborator militia vehicles near Khan Younis. Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer leaving post. Two Florida politicians face expulsion votes from Congress. Maryland poised to become first state to ban dynamic grocery pricing. Iranian-American living in California was arrested on charges of trafficking weapons to Sudan. Homeland Security is developing smart glasses to identify people in real time using biometric surveillance. Spain, Slovenia, and Ireland push EU to debate suspending trade deal with Israel. Mexico demands answers after a fatal car crash in Chihuahua includes two U.S. officials. Japan lifts ban on lethal weapons exports. Gunman kills one and injures 13 at Teotihuacan pyramids. Ethiopia’s TPLF retakes control of regional government. María Corina Machado plans return to Venezuela before year’s end. Saudi Arabia nixes Pakistan’s $1.5 billion arms deal with Sudan. Twelve British universities paid private intelligence firm to surveil pro-Palestinian students and academics, investigation finds.

From Drop Site: Iranian analyst Hassan Ahmadian speaks with Jeremy Scahill about Iran’s strategy, a potential deal, and how decisions are being made in Tehran.

Drop Site is now live on WhatsApp. Get our latest reporting, podcasts, and breaking news, delivered directly. Join the channel here.

This is Drop Site Daily, our free daily news recap. We send it Monday through Friday. Today’s edition is being sent to more than 750,000 subscribers. Help us grow that number by forwarding and recommending this newsletter.

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Iran and Ceasefire

• Second round of U.S.-Iran negotiations uncertain: Uncertainty remains over whether a new round of talks between the U.S. and Iran will take place in Pakistan before the ceasefire agreement between the two countries is set to expire on Wednesday. An AP report citing regional officials said Tuesday morning that both sides are signaling they may attend discussions in Islamabad, with Pakistan-led mediators reportedly receiving confirmation that top negotiators, including Vice President JD Vance and Iran’s parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, could arrive early Wednesday. However, there has been no official confirmation from either Washington or Tehran. On Tuesday, Iran’s state broadcaster wrote in a post on Telegram that “no delegation from Iran has travelled to Islamabad.”

• Trump says he refuses a ceasefire extension, will resume attacks if no deal: U.S. President Donald Trump said he does not want to extend the ceasefire, which is due to expire on Wednesday. Speaking in an interview with CNBC, he said, “We don’t have that much time,” and argued that “Iran can get themselves on very good footing if they make a deal,” adding that Iranian officials have “no choice” but to negotiate. Trump was asked whether he would resume strikes if there is no progress in the coming talks in Islamabad. He responded, “Well, I expect to be bombing because I think that’s a better attitude to go in with,” adding, “But, you know, we’re ready to go. I mean, the military is raring to go.”

• “We do not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats,” says Iran: Iran’s chief negotiator, Ghalibaf, rejected pressure tactics on X early Tuesday, saying, “We do not accept negotiations under the shadow of threats,” and warning that the Islamic Republic has been preparing “to reveal new cards on the battlefield.”

• IEA: U.S.-Israeli war on Iran causing “biggest crisis in history”: The head of the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Tuesday that the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran is driving what he described as the worst energy crisis the world has ever faced, reported Reuters. Speaking to France Inter, IEA chief Fatih Birol said the situation is “the biggest crisis in history,” warning that it is already extremely severe when combined with ongoing pressures from earlier oil and gas disruptions linked to Russia. He noted that current global energy market conditions are worse than the crises of 1973, 1979, and 2022 combined. This could lead to higher oil prices, fuel shortages, disrupted flights, strained trade and economies, as well as rising global inflation.

• At least 26 Iranian vessels bypass U.S. blockade: At least 26 Iranian “shadow fleet” vessels have bypassed the U.S. naval blockade of the strait of Hormuz since April 13, according to Lloyd’s List, moving in and out of Iranian ports and exporting Iranian-origin cargo. U.S. Central Command said on Monday that since the blockade began, the U.S. has directed 27 vessels to turn around or return to an Iranian port. “The blockade, which we will not take off until there is a ‘deal,’ is absolutely destroying Iran,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social. Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said on Monday that the U.S. is “carrying out behaviors that do not in any way indicate seriousness in pursuing a diplomatic process,” citing the U.S. attack on an Iranian cargo ship and naval blockade on Iranian ports.

• Iran executes man accused of arson in January protests: Iran executed a man on charges of setting fire to a mosque in Tehran during the January protests and of being a leader of a network linked to Israel’s intelligence service Mossad, according to the Mizan news agency. His death sentence by hanging was carried out early Tuesday morning.

Lebanon

• Casualty count: Lebanon’s Disaster Risk Management Unit said Monday that the death toll from Israeli attacks has risen to 2,387, with 7,602 people wounded.

• Israel continues attacks in Lebanon despite ceasefire:

  • Israeli forces carried out demolitions and strikes across southern Lebanon Tuesday, including an explosion in the town of Tayr Harfa and artillery fire targeting the outskirts of Kounine in Bint Jbeil district, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency. Israeli troops were also reported to have blown up homes and infrastructure in multiple villages, including Beit Lif, Shamaa, al-Bayyada and Naqoura.

• Israeli strike hits coffee shop in southern Lebanon, injuring six: An Israeli strike on the village of Qaaqiyet al-Jisr, near Nabatieh in southern Lebanon, injured six people Monday evening, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said. The strike hit a coffee shop and damaged a nearby vehicle, with the wounded evacuated by al-Risala Scouts ambulances, according to local correspondents.

• Second round of direct Israel-Lebanon talks set for Thursday: A second round of direct Israel-Lebanon talks is scheduled for Thursday in Washington, following the first such official negotiations in over 33 years held on April 14. Lebanon’s delegation will be led by former Ambassador to the United States Simon Karam. Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter will again lead Israel’s delegation. Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem fiercely condemned the talks on Monday, calling them “a free concession” to Israel and the United States and urging Beirut to withdraw, arguing Lebanon cannot negotiate while under fire.

• Israel threatens to assassinate Hezbollah leader during ceasefire: Israeli defense minister Israel Katz on Tuesday threatened to kill Qassem amid the 10-day ceasefire, saying he will “pay with the loss of his head.” Katz said Israeli forces would continue to “act with strength” in Lebanon, “even during the ceasefire.”

Genocide in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, seven Palestinians were killed and 21 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,560 killed, with 172,317 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 784 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,214, while 761 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israeli attacks continue in Gaza:

  • Three Palestinians were killed in an Israeli airstrike on a Palestinian police checkpoint in the Al-Amal neighborhood of Khan Younis in southern Gaza Tuesday, according to WAFA.

  • A man was also killed in a drone strike near Sheikh Nasser in Khan Younis, while a child, Abdullah Dawas, died from wounds sustained days earlier after being shot by Israeli forces in Jabalia camp. Separately, a woman was killed by Israeli naval fire in the al-Salatin area west of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza.

  • In Rafah, southern Gaza, Israeli forces opened fire on tents sheltering displaced families, killing a pregnant woman.

  • In northern Gaza, several people were injured in the Fallujah area of Jabaliya, one critically. Airstrikes also hit a police position near the 17th roundabout west of Gaza City, killing and wounding several. Additional casualties were reported after a strike on a group at a major intersection in the al-Zaytoun neighborhood east of Gaza City. Five more were injured when Israeli fire targeted tents for displaced people in al-Mawasi, Rafah, in southern Gaza.

• Three Palestinians, including two children, killed in West Bank settler attacks: A 16-year-old Palestinian boy, Mohammed al-Jaabari, was killed Tuesday morning after being run over by a settler’s vehicle while cycling to school north of Hebron in the occupied West Bank, reported WAFA. The driver was reportedly part of a security convoy assigned to an Israeli government minister. Separately, Israeli settlers bulldozed the al-Maleh School in the northern Jordan Valley overnight and demolished nearby homes, according to local officials. In a separate incident the same day, two Palestinians, including a 14-year-old student, were killed and three others wounded by live fire during a settler attack on a boys’ school in al-Mughayyir village, east of Ramallah.

• Sexual violence by Israeli settlers and soldiers is systematically driving West Bank displacement, report finds: More than 70 percent of displaced Palestinian households in the occupied West Bank cited threats of sexualized violence against women and children by Israeli settlers and soldiers as the primary reason for fleeing their communities, according to a report by the West Bank Protection Consortium, led by the Norwegian Refugee Council. Drawing on 83 in-depth interviews and 12 focus group discussions across 10 communities, researchers documented at least 16 cases of sexual violence attributed to Israeli settlers and soldiers—a figure they say substantially undercounts actual incidents, as survivors rarely come forward due to stigma, fear of retaliation, and the threat of further targeting.

• Hamas confirms receiving ceasefire proposals: Hamas said in a statement Tuesday that it held several meetings in Cairo with “mediators and Palestinian factions” regarding implementing the remaining obligations of the ceasefire and preparing for a second phase “in light of President Trump’s plan.” The movement said it is committed to continuing talks to “overcome all obstacles,” adding it will present its response after further consultations within the movement’s leadership and Palestinian factions.

• Palestinian security force claims strike on collaborator militia vehicles near Khan Younis: The Radi’ Resistance Security Force, a Palestinian group targeting Israeli-backed collaborators in Gaza, said Monday it struck vehicles belonging to a collaborator militia, loyal to Hossam Al-Astal, operating near the so-called Yellow Line east of Khan Younis. According to the group’s statement, forces hit the first vehicle with an anti-tank Tandem shell and opened fire on two others with light and medium weapons after monitoring them attempting to distribute cigarettes and money as cover for recruiting informants. Radi’ alleged the Israeli air force then intervened to support the militia’s withdrawal before striking the abandoned vehicle.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Labor Secretary Lori Chavez-DeRemer leaving post: The White House announced that Secretary of Labor Lori Chavez-DeRemer would be leaving Trump’s cabinet, after a term marked by a series of scandals and investigations. The New York Post reported in January that she was under investigation for having an affair with a member of her security team and drinking in her office during work hours; she was also reportedly under investigation for using department resources to fund personal trips. That investigation was reportedly concluding, with the Secretary expected to be interviewed in the coming days. Chavez-DeRemer’s husband was also physically barred from entering the Labor Department’s offices in February, after being accused of sexually assaulting two of its staffers. Chavez-DeRemer is taking a job in the private sector.

• Two Florida lawmakers face expulsion votes this week: Reps. Cory Mills—a Republican facing allegations of financial misconduct, campaign finance violations, and sexual misconduct—and Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, a Democrat found guilty by the Ethics Committee of funneling $5 million in Covid-19 relief funds to her congressional campaign, could become the seventh and eighth members ever expelled from Congress. Speaker Mike Johnson signaled support for a Tuesday resolution to expel Cherfilus-McCormick, while Rep. Nancy Mace (R-S.C.) introduced a separate resolution Monday to expel Mills simultaneously. Expulsion requires a two-thirds vote of the House. As of Tuesday, Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) had not called for Mills’s expulsion, telling reporters he is “waiting for” Mills’s Ethics Committee investigation to conclude. Reporter Roger Sollenberger has the background on Mills’s scandals in Congress.

• Veterans protest Iran war at the Capitol; dozens arrested: Dozens of military veterans and their family members were arrested as they occupied the Cannon House Office Building on Capitol Hill on Monday to protest the Iran war. Over 60 people gathered in the Capitol rotunda and unveiled banners reading “End the War on Iran” and demanded a meeting with House Speaker Mike Johnson. The demonstration was organized by several veterans groups, including Veterans For Peace, About Face, the Center on Conscience and War, and Military Families Speak Out.

• Maryland poised to become first state to ban dynamic grocery pricing: Maryland’s legislature has passed the Protection from Predatory Pricing Act, which would ban grocery retailers from using technology to adjust prices based on demand or individual customer data, making Maryland the first state in the country to restrict the practice. The law would take effect in October, though Consumer Reports’ director of marketplace policy raised concerns about its enforcement, noting that violators face no fines.

• Iranian-American arrested on charges of trafficking weapons to Sudan: Shamim Mafi, 44, an Iranian national and U.S. lawful permanent resident living in the Los Angeles suburb of Woodland Hills, was arrested Saturday at Los Angeles International Airport and charged with brokering the sale of Iranian-made drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition to Sudan on behalf of Tehran. The federal indictment alleges that Mafi and an unnamed co-conspirator operated an Oman-based front company called Atlas International Business that received more than $7 million in payments in 2025, and separately brokered the sale of 55,000 bomb fuses to the Sudanese Ministry of Defense through Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

• Homeland Security is developing smart glasses to identify people in real time using biometric surveillance: The Department of Homeland Security is developing AI-powered smart glasses for Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents that would enable real-time biometric identification—including facial recognition and walking gait analysis—of individuals on federal watchlists, according to a new report from Ken Klippenstein, with prototypes expected by September 2027. A DHS attorney who spoke anonymously warned that the technology could be used against “all Americans, particularly protesters.”

• Silicosis epidemic ravages Latino immigrant stoneworkers in California: California has recorded at least 536 cases of silicosis and 29 deaths among engineered stone workers—predominantly young Latino immigrants—as the lung disease, caused by inhaling silica dust released when cutting quartz-based countertop material, has emerged as a full-blown occupational epidemic in the state. Lawsuits filed on behalf of roughly 800 workers allege that manufacturers, including Caesarstone, knew their products were hazardous for years but failed to provide adequate safety warnings, with a jury awarding one 34-year-old stoneworker $52.4 million in August 2024—while manufacturers simultaneously lobby Congress to ban such suits. The disease has no cure short of a lung transplant. An investigation into this epidemic is available here, from our friends at In These Times.

Other International News

• Spain, Slovenia, and Ireland push EU to debate suspending trade deal with Israel: The foreign ministers of Spain, Slovenia, and Ireland sent a joint letter Monday to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas demanding a debate on suspending the EU-Israel Association Agreement at Tuesday’s foreign affairs council meeting. Amnesty International backed the push, calling on German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to support the move. “The European Union can no longer remain on the sidelines,” the ministers wrote in the letter, urging “bold and immediate action” and saying all options should remain on the table.

• Mexico demands answers after a fatal car crash in Chihuahua includes two U.S. officials: Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said she is seeking explanations from the U.S. Embassy and the state of Chihuahua after four officials—including two U.S. embassy-linked personnel, reported by journalist Luis Chaparro to be CIA—died in a car accident following an anti-narcotics operation. Sheinbaum said she was unaware of any collaboration between her government and the U.S. in the state of Chihuahua, and ordered an investigation into whether a law requiring federal authorization for collaboration with foreign agents was violated.

• Japan lifts ban on lethal weapons exports: Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s cabinet on Tuesday lifted a decades-old ban on exporting lethal weapons—including fighter jets, missiles, and warships—opening sales to at least 17 countries. The move comes shortly after Japan and Australia signed a $7 billion deal for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries to build 11 warships for the Australian Navy. China condemned the shift, with its foreign ministry spokesperson vowing China would “firmly resist Japan’s reckless new-style militarization.” The announcement coincided with reports that Takaichi sent a ritual offering to the Yasukuni Shrine, which honors Japan’s war dead, including over 1,000 convicted war criminals from the Second World War, 14 of whom were convicted of “Class A” war crimes.

• Gunman kills one and injures 13 at Teotihuacan pyramids: A gunman opened fire Monday at the Teotihuacan archaeological site outside Mexico City, killing a Canadian woman and injuring at least 13 others—including Colombian, Russian, and Canadian tourists—before dying of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Local prosecutors identified the suspected shooter as Julio César Jasso Ramírez, a Mexican national who witnesses said fired from the platform of the Pyramid of the Moon as tourists descended the steps.

• Ethiopia’s TPLF retakes control of regional government: The Tigray People’s Liberation Front is reinstating the region’s suspended parliament and reclaiming control of Tigray’s government, effectively repudiating the 2022 Pretoria Agreement that ended a war in which at least 600,000 people were killed and 5 million were displaced. The TPLF accused Ethiopia’s federal government of violating the accord by provoking armed conflict within the region and withholding funds to pay civil servants.

• Ukraine and Russia trade overnight strikes: Ukraine’s military intelligence unit claimed strikes on two Russian landing ships and a radar station in Sevastopol Bay in Russian-occupied Crimea, while Ukrainian drones also hit the port of Tuapse on Russia’s Black Sea coast for the second time in three days, killing at least one person and damaging transport infrastructure. Russia struck multiple Ukrainian regions overnight including Kyiv, Kharkiv, Kherson, Sumy, and Zaporizhia, killing one person in Kherson and injuring more than a dozen across the affected areas.

• María Corina Machado plans return to Venezuela before year’s end: Venezuelan opposition leader María Corina Machado said Sunday she expects to return to Venezuela before the end of 2026, telling Reuters she “absolutely” sees herself back in the country soon and that she was coordinating the move with the United States. Her return would test acting President Delcy Rodríguez, who consolidated power following the January 3 capture of President Nicolás Maduro by the United States. Rodríguez said in February that Machado would have to “answer for her actions before the Venezuelan people.”

• Saudi Arabia nixes Pakistan’s $1.5 billion arms deal with Sudan: Pakistan has suspended a $1.5 billion deal to supply weapons and jets to Sudan after Saudi Arabia withdrew financing and asked Islamabad to terminate the agreement, according to Reuters. One source claims that Western countries have advised Riyadh to disengage from its proxy conflicts in Africa. A separate $4 billion Pakistani arms deal with the Libyan National Army is also in jeopardy, as Saudi Arabia is reportedly “revisiting its strategy” in both countries. Read Drop Site’s report on a classified mutual defense agreement between Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.

• More than 550,000 Sudanese refugees have entered Libya since war began, UN says: An estimated 559,920 Sudanese refugees have entered Libya since April 2023, according to a report from the UN on Monday. Fighting in eastern Libya has increased the risk of arbitrary detention and forced return to Sudan, and Libyan migrants often have difficulty accessing the country’s healthcare. The agency warned that women, children, and persons with disabilities face heightened risk of exploitation and gender-based violence.

• Twelve British universities paid private intelligence firm to surveil pro-Palestinian students and academics, investigation finds: A joint investigation by Al Jazeera and Liberty Investigates revealed Tuesday that 12 British universities—including Oxford, Imperial College London, University College London, and the London School of Economics—paid Horus Security Consultancy at least £443,000 since 2022 to monitor student protesters and academics through social media surveillance. Among those surveilled were a Palestinian-American academic invited to give a guest lecture at Manchester Metropolitan University and an LSE PhD student whose post-encampment social media activity was compiled into daily briefings sold to universities for £900 a month. The UN special rapporteur for freedom of peaceful assembly, Gina Romero, said the use of AI to harvest student data raises “profound legal concerns” and has contributed to a “state of terror” among UK student activists.

More from Drop Site

• Drop Site News Latin American Bureau Chief José Luis Granados Ceja spoke with Breaking Point about his recent visit to Cuba, saying that the overwhelming sentiment shared by the Cuban population is a desire for peaceful coexistence with the United States. However, there is also an incredible determination to defend their country’s sovereignty and resist any aggression, in line with their military doctrine known as the “war of all the people.” A video of his appearance on Breaking Points is available here.

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Official death toll in Iran tops 3,300. President Donald Trump says negotiations to start Tuesday, threatens Iran; Iran says no negotiations scheduled. U.S. warship attacks and takes control of Iranian cargo ship. Tanker fired upon near Oman. UAE in talks with U.S. about currency swap. Israel continues military activity in Lebanon despite ceasefire. French UNIFIL peacekeeper killed in southern Lebanon ambush; France points to Hezbollah. Israeli attacks continue in Gaza. Israel kills two UNICEF water truck drivers. Gaza reconstruction costs estimated at $71.4 billion. U.S. military kills three in latest vessel strike in the Caribbean. Pro-Israel candidates beaten in Michigan races. Gunman in Louisiana kills eight children. U.S. sanctions Colombian mercenary recruiters supplying fighters to Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces. Brazil, Spain, and Mexico warn against military intervention in Cuba. DRC government and M23 rebels agree to prisoner releases and aid access. 56 bodies, mostly infants, found abandoned at Trinidad and Tobago cemetery. Gunman kills six in Kyiv street attack. Strikes hit Russian and Ukrainian energy infrastructure. Fire destroys over 1,000 homes in Malaysia. Colombia’s Gustavo Petro threatens lawsuit against Ecuador’s Daniel Noboa.

From Drop Site: Trump’s erratic behavior might torpedo talks, Iranian official tells Drop Site.

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Iran and Ceasefire

• At least 3,375 killed in Iran during the war: The head of Iran Legal Medicine Organization released final casualty figures for the conflict from the start of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran to April 10, 2026, reporting a total of 3,375 deaths, including 2,875 men and 496 women, according to WANA. At least 383 children were killed in the attacks. The provinces most affected were Tehran, Hormozgan, and Isfahan.

• Trump says negotiations to start Tuesday, threatens Iran; Iran says no negotiations scheduled: President Donald Trump told Fox News on Sunday, ahead of a potential second round of negotiations, that if Iran did not sign a deal, “the whole country is going to get blown up.” The deal, Trump claimed, is “very simple“ and requires the full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. Trump announced on Truth Social that the U.S. negotiating team would arrive in Pakistan on Monday evening. Speaking to the New York Post on Monday, Trump signaled openness to a direct meeting with Iranian officials. “I have no problem meeting them,” he said. “If they want to meet, and we have some very capable people, but I have no problem meeting them.” The 10-day ceasefire expires tomorrow, on April 21st.

• Iran is undecided on another round of talks with the U.S.: “We have no plans for the next round of negotiation, and no decision has been made in this regard,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said in a briefing on Monday. The ceasefire with the U.S. is set to expire on Tuesday. “While claiming diplomacy and readiness for negotiations, the U.S. is carrying out behaviors that do not in any way indicate seriousness in pursuing a diplomatic process,” Baghaei said, citing the U.S. attack on an Iranian cargo ship and naval blockade on Iranian ports.

• U.S. warship takes control of Iranian cargo ship: An American destroyer fired on and seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship, U.S. President Donald Trump posted on Sunday. The USS Spruance intercepted the Touska after its crew refused orders to halt what he described as an attempt to breach the U.S. naval blockade, Trump posted, saying the Navy “blew a hole in the engine room” before U.S. Marines took custody of the vessel. The spokesperson for Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said Iran will take action, describing it as a “terrorist U.S. attack” on an Iranian vessel. He stated that Iran was initially prepared to respond but refrained due to the presence of crew members and their families on board.

• Pakistan holds emergency calls with Iranian leadership: Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar held back-to-back calls Sunday with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, respectively, as Islamabad scrambled to keep diplomatic channels open ahead of Tuesday’s ceasefire expiration with a second round of talks still unconfirmed.

• Tanker fired upon near Oman: A commercial tanker came under fire Saturday from two suspected Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps gunboats roughly 20 nautical miles northeast of Oman, the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations agency warned, saying the vessels approached without radio contact before opening fire. No injuries were reported, and the crew was confirmed safe. At least 8 tankers appeared to have exited the Persian Gulf after transiting the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, based on AIS data.

• Two Indian-flagged vessels struck in Strait of Hormuz: India summoned Iran’s ambassador on Saturday after two Indian-flagged ships were hit in separate Strait of Hormuz incidents—one involving Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps gunboats firing on a tanker and a second struck by an unknown projectile—as Reuters reported that vessels in the waterway were receiving Iranian VHF radio broadcasts declaring the strait “completely closed” to all traffic.

• Iran’s parliament speaker warns of full closure of Strait of Hormuz if U.S. blockade continues: Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, the speaker of Iran’s parliament, said Sunday in a televised address that the Islamic Republic holds effective control over the Strait of Hormuz and warned that passage will “definitely be restricted” if the United States does not lift its naval blockade of Iranian ports. Ghalibaf said Iranian forces responded to what he described as a U.S. mine-clearing operation in the strait—which Tehran considers a ceasefire violation—and claimed that during talks in Islamabad, he personally warned the American delegation that any forward movement by the vessel would be met with fire. “It is impossible for others to pass through the Strait of Hormuz while we cannot,” Ghalibaf said. CNN reported on Saturday that Iran would prioritize passage through the Strait of Hormuz for vessels that comply with new operating rules and pay security fees, with ships that decline at risk of having their transit “postponed.”

• UAE in talks with U.S. about currency swap: The United Arab Emirates has begun preliminary discussions with American officials about a potential financial backstop should the Iran war deepen its economic strain, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday. UAE Central Bank Governor Khaled Mohamed Balama reportedly raised the possibility of a currency swap line with Federal Reserve and Treasury officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, during meetings in Washington last week. The discussions reflect growing Emirati anxiety that the conflict could drain foreign currency reserves and trigger capital flight, threatening the country’s standing as an international financial center.

• Trump’s erratic behavior could torpedo talks, Iranian official tells Drop Site: A senior Iranian official with direct access to Tehran’s internal deliberations told Drop Site News that Iran believes there is a significant chance that Trump—urged on by Israel—will resume military strikes if no deal is reached before the ceasefire expires Tuesday. In that scenario, the official said, Tehran would suspend all diplomatic channels and seek to impose “significantly greater costs” on U.S. interests for a prolonged period. The latest from Jeremy Scahill and Murtaza Hussain for Drop Site here.

Lebanon

• Israel continues military activity in Lebanon despite ceasefire:

  • ​​Israeli airstrikes were reported on the town of Al-Tiri in the Bint Jbeil district Monday and on a house in Burj Qalawiyah, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency.

  • Overnight, multiple homes in the Duwayb area west of Meiss El Jabal were also demolished, alongside ongoing widespread destruction of infrastructure in southern villages.

  • The Israeli military published a map on Sunday, showing a newly established “Yellow Line” line inside Lebanon where its troops were deployed. The map named more than 50 villages in the south to which residents should not return. The deployment line on the map runs 5-10 km deep along the border into Lebanese territory. Israel also ordered residents to stay away from the area of the Litani River. Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah told AFP the group would work to break the so-called “Yellow Line.”

  • Israel’s military said Saturday it carried out airstrikes and artillery strikes in southern Lebanon after reporting that individuals crossed south of the “Yellow Line” toward Israeli troops.

• Hezbollah claims destruction of four Israeli tanks: Hezbollah said that an Israeli force of eight armored vehicles moving from Al-Taybeh toward the old Al-Sal’a position in Deir Seryan was hit by “a detonation of pre-planted explosive devices” on Sunday. The group claimed the blasts destroyed four Merkava tanks, which “were seen on fire,” and said Israeli forces later removed them from the site.

• Lebanese president meets with U.S. ambassador: Lebanese President Joseph Aoun held talks Monday with the U.S. ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa, focused on maintaining the ceasefire. Earlier Monday, Aoun insisted Lebanon will pursue “bilateral negotiations”—separate from the Iran talks. “The upcoming negotiations are separate from any other negotiations because Lebanon faces two options: either the continuation of the war with all its humanitarian, social, economic, and sovereignty repercussions, or negotiation to put an end to this war,” Aoun said.

• French UNIFIL peacekeeper killed in southern Lebanon ambush; France points to Hezbollah: A French soldier serving with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon was killed and three others wounded Saturday in an ambush near the village of Ghandouriyeh in southern Lebanon. French and UNIFIL officials blamed Hezbollah, though Hezbollah denied involvement. In late March, three Indonesian peacekeepers were killed in separate incidents—a UNIFIL vehicle explosion and a projectile strike.

Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, two Palestinians were killed and 22 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,553 killed, with 172,296 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 777 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,193, while 761 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israeli attacks continue in Gaza:

  • An Israeli drone strike targeted a group of Palestinians in the Zeitoun neighborhood, southeast of Gaza City. At dawn, one person was killed and another injured in a drone strike on the Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza. Three more people were injured on Al-Rashid Street, west of Gaza City, and others were wounded by gunfire in Khan Younis.

  • Israeli strikes killed at least three Palestinians across Gaza on Sunday, according to Palestinian media and medical sources. A child, Hala Darwish, was killed near Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza, Wafa reported, while Khalil Nasser, 62, was shot in the head outside his tent in a displaced families’ camp in Jabalia while helping others collect water. Ayman Abu Hasna, 38, was killed in an Israeli drone strike on a motorcycle along Salah al-Din Street northeast of Nuseirat camp, Al-Awda Hospital said.

  • Israeli forces killed a Palestinian identified as Yousef Bin Hasan northwest of Rafah, and a young girl was separately reported shot in the southern Mawasi area.

• Israel kills two UNICEF water truck drivers: Two truck drivers contracted by UNICEF to deliver clean water to Palestinian families in Gaza were killed by Israeli fire at the Mansoura water filling point in northern Gaza. Mansoura is the only operational truck filling point for the Mekorot water supply line serving Gaza City, according to UNICEF.

• Senior Hamas official denies NYT report on disarmament: The New York Times reported on Sunday that Hamas is willing to relinquish “thousands of automatic rifles and other weapons,” and that it would turn these weapons over to the Palestinian administrative committee set up under the Gaza Board of Peace. A senior Hamas official told Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill, however, that this report is “rubbish.”

• Satellite imagery shows Israeli military entrenchment expanding across Gaza: An investigation by Al Jazeera using satellite imagery found that Israeli military construction is accelerating across Gaza while civilian reconstruction has essentially ceased. Satellite images show Israeli forces have secretly moved concrete boundary markers hundreds of metres further into Palestinian territory, building new fortifications, paved roads, watchtowers, and permanent outposts expanding across the territory. Meanwhile, the “New Rafah” reconstruction vision promoted by Jared Kushner at Davos in January has shown no ground-level progress. Read the full report here.

• Gaza reconstruction costs estimated at $71.4 billion: A joint assessment by the European Union, United Nations, and World Bank estimates that Gaza will require $71.4 billion for recovery and reconstruction over the next decade, including $26.3 billion in the first 18 months to restore essential services and infrastructure. The report notes that more than 371,888 housing units have been destroyed or damaged, over 50% of hospitals are non-functional, nearly all schools have been affected, and the economy has shrunk by 84%. According to the report, development has been set back by an estimated 77 years, about 1.9 million people have been displaced, and over 60% of the population have lost their homes.

• Israeli attacks on the occupied West Bank:

  • Israeli forces detained more than 50 Palestinians on Monday during raids in Hebron, Yatta, Beit Ummar, and Anabta near Tulkarm, according to WAFA. Three others, including a local Prisoners Society director, were also detained in Tammun. Meanwhile, military bulldozers uprooted dozens of olive and almond trees for the second consecutive day. In the Tubas area, Israeli forces also destroyed water pipelines near Tammun as part of ongoing land clearing reportedly linked to plans for a 22-kilometer road connecting checkpoints east of Nablus and Tubas.

  • Israeli forces shot and killed a Palestinian who allegedly entered the illegal settlement of Negohot in the southern Hebron Hills on Saturday. The military claimed—without providing evidence—that the person was armed with a knife.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• U.S. military kills three in latest vessel strike in the Caribbean: The U.S. military conducted a strike against a boat in the Caribbean on Sunday, killing three people, according to U.S. Southern Command. SOUTHCOM posted a video of the strike and said, “Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action” without providing evidence. Over 180 people have been killed in dozens U.S. strikes on vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific since September.

• Pro-Israel candidates beaten in Michigan AG and Regents races: Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel coordinated with top figures on the board of the University of Michigan Board of Regents to attempt to prosecute student protesters in 2024 in connection with the encampment. At this weekend’s Democratic convention, the party rejected pro-Israel Regent Jordan Acker in favor of Dearborn attorney Amir Makled, despite an attempt to gin up scandal for social media posts favorable to Hezbollah, as well as a retweet of Candace Owens calling Israelis “demons.” The Regents who led the charge against the student protesters backed Oakland County Prosecutor Karen McDonald in the AG’s race to replace Nessel, yet she was beaten by Washtenaw County Prosecutor Eli Savit.

• Also at the convention: Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Rep. Haley Stevens—supported by AIPAC—was booed as she went onstage. A poll by Drop Site and Zeteo in April showed the race is neck and neck between Stevens and her opponents, Mallory McMorrow and Abdul El-Sayed. Poll here.

• Gunman in Louisiana kills eight children: A father in Shreveport, Louisiana shot and killed eight children Sunday morning and critically wounded two women, including the mother of seven of the children, in a domestic dispute before being killed by police. It was the deadliest U.S. mass shooting in more than two years, the Associated Press reported.

• Zohran Mamdani meets Obama in New York in first face-to-face sit-down: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani met former President Barack Obama in New York, Politico reported. During the meeting, the two read aloud to a group of children at a childcare center. The meeting follows Obama’s earlier offer to serve as a “sounding board” for Mamdani.

• Ben Rhodes discusses Biden-era Cuba policy: In a podcast appearance, Obama’s deputy national security advisor Ben Rhodes reviewed President Joe Biden’s Cuba policy, arguing it was largely the same as President Trump’s. “Biden was a chickenshit,” Rhodes said, “and was afraid to go back to the Obama policy because he was afraid of Bob Menendez.” (Ed Augustin wrote for Drop Site back in October 2024 about this very topic.)

Other International News

• Spanish prime minister calls on EU to terminate association agreement with Israel: Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called on the European Union to end its Association Agreement with Israel on Sunday during a rally in Andalusia, saying a government that violates international law and European values “cannot be our partner.” Spain will formally propose to end the agreement at a meeting of EU foreign ministers on Tuesday, Politico reports.

• U.S. sanctions Colombian mercenary recruiters supplying fighters to Sudan’s Rapid Support Forces: The U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions Friday against three individuals and two Bogotá-based firms for recruiting and deploying hundreds of former Colombian soldiers to fight alongside Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces. The sanctioned entities include the employment agency Fénix—established last year as a replacement for a previously sanctioned firm, A4SI—as well as a second recruitment agency, GQAB. Both are linked to retired Colombian military officer Alvaro Andres Quijano Becerra and his wife, who were sanctioned in December.

• Brazil, Spain, and Mexico issue joint statement warning against military intervention in Cuba: The governments of Brazil, Spain, and Mexico issued a joint statement Saturday expressing deep concern over Cuba’s humanitarian crisis and calling for respect for international law, territorial integrity, and the peaceful settlement of disputes under the United Nations Charter—an implicit warning against military intervention as Washington has declined to rule out military action against the island. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum called for a formal declaration against intervention in Cuba during her address on Friday in Barcelona. Sheinbaum also proposed directing 10% of global arms spending toward a UN-led reforestation program.

• DRC government and M23 rebels agree to prisoner releases and aid access: The government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and M23 rebels agreed Saturday to ease humanitarian aid deliveries, protect civilians, and release prisoners within 10 days following five days of talks in Switzerland. The two sides also signed a memorandum of understanding for a ceasefire monitoring mechanism to conduct surveillance and verification of a permanent ceasefire; fighting has persisted in the country’s east despite a December peace agreement.

• 56 bodies, mostly infants, found abandoned at Trinidad and Tobago cemetery: Trinidad and Tobago police launched a forensic investigation Saturday after 56 bodies—including 50 infants and six adults—were discovered abandoned at a cemetery in the town of Cumuto, roughly 40 kilometers from the capital Port of Spain. Preliminary indications suggest the case involves the unlawful disposal of unclaimed corpses, police said, noting that the adult remains bore morgue-style identification tags and that at least one adult male and one adult female showed signs of having undergone post-mortem examinations.

• At least 17 migrant bodies recovered on Libyan shore: At least 17 bodies of capsized migrants were recovered in recent days from the shore near Zuwara, roughly 117 kilometres west of Tripoli, Libya’s Emergency Medicine and Support Center said Saturday. Most were buried, while one was identified as a Bangladeshi national and received by his family in Tripoli.

• Gunman kills six in Kyiv street attack: A gunman killed six and wounded 10 others, including one child, in Kyiv’s Holosiivskyi district on Saturday before barricading himself inside a supermarket with hostages, officials said. After 40 minutes of attempted negotiations, he was shot and killed by special tactical police units. Ukrainian authorities identified the attacker as a 58-year-old born in Moscow, who carried a legally registered firearm and had renewed his weapons permit as recently as December 2025.

• Strikes hit Russian and Ukrainian energy infrastructure: Russian forces launched 219 long-range drones overnight Friday, damaging port infrastructure, agricultural warehouses, depots, and administrative buildings in Ukraine’s southern Odesa region and knocking out power to 380,000 consumers in the north, Reuters reported. Ukrainian drones struck two oil refineries in Russia’s Samara region, an oil depot in Crimea, and a Lukoil-operated terminal at the Vysotsk port on the Baltic Sea overnight Friday. Ukraine’s Security Service also said it struck two Russian landing ships and a warship based in Crimea on Friday night.

• Fire destroys over 1,000 homes in Malaysia: A fire tore through Kampung Bahagia, a coastal village on the island of Borneo, early Sunday, destroying more than 1,000 of the settlement’s roughly 1,200 homes and displacing over 9,000 residents, authorities said. The village, home to many Indigenous and undocumented residents living in wooden houses built over water, was declared a disaster zone. No deaths were reported, though several residents were injured. The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.

• Colombia’s Petro threatens lawsuit against Ecuador’s Noboa: Colombian President Gustavo Petro announced he will sue his Ecuadorian counterpart Daniel Noboa after the latter accused him of links to organized crime. Petro rejected the allegation and said it was an effort to interfere in Colombian politics as voters prepare for presidential elections at the end of May. Ecuador also recently announced 100% tariffs on Colombia, their largest trading partner in the region.

• Leaks point to illegal influence campaign in Colombian elections: An investigation by Señal Investigativa and Revista Raya revealed details of “Plan Júpiter,” a strategy allegedly led by Jaime Bermúdez, a longtime communications strategist linked to right-wing former President Álvaro Uribe. According to leaked documents and audio, the plan aims to unduly influence Colombia’s presidential election in order to undermine the chances of Iván Cepeda Castro, the left-wing candidate representing outgoing President Gustavo Petro’s Historic Pact.

• Cuban government underscores right to self defense amid U.S. threats: Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel responded to renewed U.S. threats of a military aggression by stressing that Cuba does not seek war but has the right of self-defense. The Cuban leader told teleSUR that the island has “the responsibility to defend” itself against threats but underscored his country’s willingness to dialogue with the Trump administration. Drop Site News’s José Luis Granados Ceja was in Cuba last week; you can watch his report on today’s episode of Breaking Points.

More from Drop Site

• Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) joined Sens. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) in calling attention to the case of Ahmed Shihab-Eldin, who was arrested on March 3 in Kuwait City and now faces prosecution in a special tribunal. “Shame on the Kuwaiti government,” she said on Friday. Drop Site’s reporting on Shihab-Eldin’s case is available here. A petition from The Committee to Protect Journalists demanding his release can be found here.

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Iran declares Strait of Hormuz “completely open” for the remainder of ceasefire. War Secretary Pete Hegseth vows to maintain Iran blockade indefinitely, warns of strikes on energy infrastructure. Three loaded Iranian tankers bypass U.S. blockade. Ceasefire between Lebanon and Israel announced Thursday, Israeli violations reported. Thousands of displaced Lebanese return south on the first day of the ceasefire despite warnings. Israeli troops will remain in southern Lebanon, defense minister says. Hezbollah says it will respect ceasefire but hands “remain on the trigger.” Israeli assault on Gaza and the occupied West Bank continue. Israel reinstates soldiers charged with raping Palestinian detainee at Sde Teiman. On Palestinian Prisoners Day, rights groups report a 83% surge in Palestinian prisoner population since start of Gaza genocide. Analilia Mejia wins New Jersey special election. ICE agent charged with assault after pointing gun at motorists on Minnesota highway. House rejects resolution to end U.S. war with Iran by one vote with one Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden, voting against it. House extends FISA over “serious reservations” of Congressional Black Caucus. Senior Treasury official bought oil, nuclear, and cybersecurity funds eight days before U.S. strikes on Iran. UK security vetting officials did not clear Peter Mandelson to be U.S. ambassador. IMF and World Bank resume ties with Venezuela. Myanmar junta leader grants amnesty to 4,000 prisoners. 2025 was the deadliest year on record for Rohingya sea crossings, UN says. Lula and Pedro Sánchez convene left leaders in Barcelona.

From Drop Site: Jeremy Scahill speaks with Hezbollah MP Ibrahim al-Moussawi.

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Iran and Ceasefire

• Iran declares Strait of Hormuz “completely open” for the remainder of ceasefire: Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi declared the Strait of Hormuz “in line with the ceasefire in Lebanon” will be “completely open for the remaining period of ceasefire,” in a post on X. Araghchi specified that the Strait will be open on “the coordinated route,” referring to the path that runs near Iran’s coast and Qeshm and Larak Islands. President Donald Trump responded by thanking Iran for opening the “STRAIT OF IRAN,” in a post on Truth Social. Shortly after, Trump added that “THE NAVAL BLOCKADE WILL REMAIN IN FULL FORCE AND EFFECT AS IT PERTAINS TO IRAN,” until ongoing negotiations are complete. “THIS PROCESS SHOULD GO VERY QUICKLY IN THAT MOST OF THE POINTS ARE ALREADY NEGOTIATED.” Iran’s state broadcaster reported that the opening of the Strait is conditional on a Lebanon ceasefire and the passage of military vehicles remains prohibited, citing a senior military official.

• Trump talks Iran ceasefire: President Donald Trump claimed on the White House lawn Thursday that Tehran had “agreed to not have a nuclear weapon” and that Iran would “give us back the nuclear dust that’s way underground because of the attack we made with the B-2 bombers.” He added he would travel to Pakistan “if the deal is signed.” “Pakistan has been great,” he told reporters. “I might go.” When asked about his spat with Pope Leo XIV, Trump said he had “nothing against the pope” but mischaracterized the pontiff’s position, falsely asserting that the Pope had suggested Iran could possess a nuclear weapon. “The Pope has to understand: Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”

• War Secretary Pete Hegseth vows to maintain Iran blockade indefinitely, warns of strikes on energy infrastructure: The U.S. will maintain its naval blockade of Iranian ports in the Strait of Hormuz and the Gulf “as long as it takes,” Hegseth said Thursday, warning Tehran that continued noncompliance would bring “a blockade and bombs dropping on infrastructure, power and energy.” Hegseth said the U.S. is using the current pause in fighting—which President Donald Trump announced Monday following the breakdown of talks in Pakistan and which is set to extend through early next week—to rearm and gather intelligence on Iranian military movements. Joint Chiefs Chairman General Dan Caine said 13 ships departing Iranian ports had already turned back in response to U.S. military warnings, adding bluntly: “If you do not comply with this blockade, we will use force.” Hegseth also said Washington had received assurances from Beijing that China does not intend to supply weapons to Iran during the pause.

• Three loaded Iranian tankers bypass U.S. blockade: Three tankers, Deep Sea, Sonia I, and Diona, left Iran with oil and crossed the Strait of Hormuz on Wednesday despite a new U.S. blockade aimed at stopping exports, according to maritime data company Kpler via AFP. Their tracking signals were turned off, but satellite imagery confirmed their passage. Separately, two sanctioned Iranian container ships exited the Gulf earlier in the week but reversed course near the Pakistan border and were last detected near the port of Chabahar, while two sanctioned cargo vessels transited the strait into the Gulf and were last detected near Bandar Abbas.

Lebanon

• A 10-day ceasefire in Lebanon announced by U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday went into effect at midnight local time. Israel bombed Lebanon heavily right up until the ceasefire went into effect with some its heaviest strikes of the past six weeks:

  • Lebanese media reported 60 different towns were struck in hours leading up to the ceasefire.

  • A series of airstrikes in the southern city of Tyre killed at least 13 people, wounded 35, and destroyed six residential buildings, according to AFP. Around 15 people remain missing under the rubble, authorities said, as emergency crews continue search operations.

  • Seven killed and 33 wounded in an Israeli attack on the city of Ghaziyeh, in Sidon district.

• Reported Israeli violation of ceasefire: The Israeli military violated the ceasefire hours after it went into place when it struck an ambulance in the town of Kounine close to the border with Israel on Friday, according to the National News Agency, with reported casualties among the targeted medical workers. Over 90 medical workers have been killed in Israel attacks since March 2, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. The Lebanese army also reported “a number of violations of the agreement, with several Israeli attacks recorded, in addition to intermittent shelling targeting a number of villages” and renewed its call for citizens to “exercise caution” in returning to their homes in southern Lebanon.

• Thousands of displaced Lebanese return south on the first day of the ceasefire despite warnings: Photos and video showed congested roads on Friday, with cars backed up for miles on the road leading south to the Qasmiyeh bridge, the last remaining bridge over the Litani River. The bridge was destroyed by Israel just a day earlier but partially repaired by the Lebanese army with a single reopened lane. More than 1.1 million people in Lebanon—one fifth of the country’s population—have been displaced since March 2.

• HRW: Israeli attack on bridge a possible war crime: Human Rights Watch said the Israeli military’s destruction of the Qasmieh bridge, which threatened to cut off Lebanese territory south of the Litani River, should be investigated as a possible war crime. “The Israeli military’s systematic and repeated attacks on bridges, which threaten to isolate civilians in southern Lebanon from access to means of survival, demonstrate a callous disregard for the welfare of the tens of thousands of people still living there,” Ramzi Kaiss, Lebanon researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.

• Israeli troops will remain in southern Lebanon, defense minister says: The 10-day ceasefire is “temporary,” Israel Katz said, and the Israeli military “holds and will continue to hold all the areas it has cleared and captured” in Lebanon, including a 10-kilometer buffer zone. He added that many homes in the area would be destroyed. “Disarming Hezbollah by military or diplomatic means was and remains the goal of the campaign to which we are committed—with significant political leverage now also due to the direct involvement of the U.S. president and his commitment to this goal—while applying pressure to the Lebanese government,” he said. “This would have to be done, either diplomatically or by resuming Israeli military activities at the end of the ceasefire.”

• Hezbollah says it will respect ceasefire but hands “remain on the trigger”: Hezbollah said in a statement on Friday that it would respect the ceasefire but that its hands “will remain on the trigger, vigilant against the enemy’s treachery and betrayal.” The group also praised the performance of its fighters, saying it carried 2,184 attacks during the war including drone and missile strikes targeting Israel and attacks targeting Israeli forces inside Lebanese territory.

• A recap of negotiations:

  • Trump reportedly called Lebanon’s President Aoun directly on Thursday afternoon and said a ceasefire would take effect “within hours,” according to Al Araby, which cited a Lebanese presidency source. A phone call between the two was also confirmed by Asharq, LBCI Lebanon, and Axios.

  • Trump publicly announced the ceasefire soon after with a Truth Social post, saying that he had “directed Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, together with the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Dan Caine, to work with Israel and Lebanon to achieve a Lasting PEACE.”

  • Israel’s i24 News reported on Thursday evening Israeli ministers are outraged at Trump’s announcement of a ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon

  • Israel, under the 10-day ceasefire agreement, is permitted to carry out strikes in Lebanon as long as it claims they are in “self-defense.” Article 3 reads: “Israel shall preserve its right to take all necessary measures in self-defense, at any time, against planned, imminent, or ongoing attacks. This shall not be impeded by the cessation of hostilities. Besides this, it will not carry out any offensive military operations against Lebanese targets, including civilian, military, and other state targets, in the territory of Lebanon by land, air, and sea.”

  • Iran repeatedly came close to resuming confrontation during efforts to secure a Lebanon ceasefire, with missile launch platforms prepared and ready on multiple occasions, a senior Iranian military source told Al Mayadeen. The source said Iran halted launch operations each time in response to diplomatic promises about a Lebanon ceasefire—promises that were subsequently broken by Israel.

  • Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill speaks with Hezbollah MP: Hezbollah parliamentarian Mohammad Al-Moussawi told Drop Site, “We will be respecting the ceasefire,” and, notably, said the deal is based on the original agreement between the U.S. and Iran that a ceasefire would apply to Lebanon. In an interview Moussawi told Scahill that the Lebanese government’s decision to accept bilateral negotiations outside the Iran framework had “opened a window for the Israelis to make more massacres,” and dismissed Israeli plans to establish a West Bank-style partitioned zone in southern Lebanon as categorically unacceptable. Full report here.

Genocide in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Israeli assault on Gaza continues: Two Palestinian brothers were killed, and two others were injured on Friday after Israeli forces targeted a water desalination station in the Shuja’iyya neighborhood, east of Gaza City; two brothers were also killed in a drone strike near a school in Beit Lahia on Thursday. A drone strike on the Bani Suheila roundabout east of Khan Younis, resulted in two injuries. On Thursday, Israeli forces shot and killed a 9-year-old body, Saleh Badawi, in the Zeitoun neighborhood of Gaza City.

• Israeli attacks on the occupied West Bank:

  • Israeli forces detained about a dozen Palestinians after early morning raids on the town of al-Ram, near Jerusalem, and on Nablus on Friday, WAFA reports. They also conducted raids in Yaffa and Beit Awwa in the Hebron governorate on Friday, blowing up the doors of stores in Yaffa and ransacking them.

  • Armed Israeli settlers set fire to two Palestinian cars in the Majd al-Baa community, near Hebron, a local activist reported to WAFA, leaving only the charred frames of the vehicles. Another settler attack in Al-Lubban ash-Sharqiya on Thursday evening left a Palestinian seriously injured; settlers reportedly threw a stone at his head after attacking his vehicle.

  • Settlers attacked the displaced Bedouins from the Arab Al-Mleihat community near Jericho, breaking into their dwellings and chasing livestock herders, according to WAFA.

• Israel reinstates soldiers charged with raping Palestinian detainee at Sde Teiman: Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir has approved the return of five soldiers to active duty after charges against them were dropped, Haaretz reported. The soldiers had been accused of beating, dragging, tasering, and sexually assaulting a Palestinian detainee at Sde Teiman prison, who was hospitalized with broken ribs, a punctured lung, and severe internal injuries. The military’s chief prosecutor withdrew the indictment last month, though no command-level investigation into the incident was completed. Defense Minister Israel Katz apologized to the soldiers and characterized their prosecution as an “injustice.”

• France denies visa to Palestinian human rights official: France refused to grant a visa to Shawan Jabarin, director of Al-Haq—one of the oldest human rights organizations documenting abuses in Palestine—blocking his attendance at planned briefings with French lawmakers, the foreign ministry, and European officials in Paris and Brussels. Al-Haq said the last-minute refusal undercut the group’s scheduled European campaign, in which it would seek “accountability” and advocate “for Palestinian rights.”

• On Palestinian Prisoners Day, rights groups report a 83% surge in Palestinian prisoner population since start of Gaza genocide: The number of Palestinian and Arab political prisoners held in Israeli prisons now exceeds 9,600—an 83% increase from the roughly 5,250 held before the war on Gaza began—according to a joint report Thursday by the Palestinian Prisoner’s Society, the Commission of Detainees’ Affairs, and Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association. Among those detained are 86 women, and approximately 350 children held primarily at Ofer and Megiddo prisons. Administrative detainees—Palestinians held without trial or charge—now number more than 3,532; the report notes that about half of all Palestinian political prisoners are currently held without trial or charge. The associations reported that 89 prisoners have died inside the Israeli prison system since the start of the Gaza war, bringing the total since 1967 to 326 identified deaths, with dozens from Gaza listed as forcibly disappeared. Israeli authorities are withholding the bodies of 97 slain Palestinian prisoners.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Analilia Mejia wins New Jersey special election: Progressive organizer Analilia Mejia won the New Jersey special election to replace Mikie Sherrill as the representative for New Jersey’s 11th Congressional District, defeating Republican Joe Hathaway and independent Alan Bond by more than 20 points. Mejia previously served as the national political director for Sen. Bernie Sanders’ 2020 presidential campaign and as the director of her state’s Working Families Party. She has also been a vocal critic of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, notably winning the primary after AIPAC ran attack ads against her opponent, former Rep. Tom Malinowski.

• ICE agent charged with assault after pointing gun at motorists on Minnesota highway: Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty on Thursday charged Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Gregory Donnell Morgan Jr. with two counts of second-degree assault, accusing him of pointing a handgun at two motorists from a moving, unmarked government vehicle on a highway near Minneapolis–St. Paul International Airport on February 5. The incident occurred during Operation Metro Surge, a federal immigration crackdown in the Twin Cities. Morgan told state investigators he feared for his safety after a car cut him off and yelled “Police, stop!” before drawing his weapon, though the motorists said they had no indication the occupants of the unmarked SUV were law enforcement and called 911, believing they were being threatened by a civilian.

• House rejects resolution to end U.S. war with Iran by one vote: The Republican-controlled House voted 213–214 on Thursday to defeat a resolution directing President Donald Trump to withdraw U.S. armed forces from hostilities against Iran, one day after the Senate rejected a similar measure 52–47. Only one Republican, Rep. Thomas Massie (Ky.), broke with his party to support the measure. One Democrat, Rep. Jared Golden (Maine) voted against it; Rep. Warren Davidson (Ohio), who had previously voted to end the war, voted present. The resolution, introduced by Rep. Gregory Meeks (N.Y.), would have required congressional authorization to continue military operations under the War Powers Resolution.

• House extends FISA over “serious reservations” of Congressional Black Caucus: The House passed an extension of Section 702 of FISA on Friday morning, keeping surveillance powers in place until April 30. Passed by unanimous consent, after two earlier attempts to extend by five years and eighteen months failed. Four Democrats joined Republicans to support the extension, 20 Republicans voted against. On Thursday, following reporting from Drop Site, The American Prospect, and The Lever, the Congressional Black Caucus said it had “very serious reservations about legislation that would allow the continued oversurveillance of our communities.” Before this, it was expected that the Caucus would support the “clean reauthorization” of FISA and its controversial Section 702 provisions, which allow for warrantless surveillance of Americans. The CBC statement called for “guardrails” and cited its objection to “documented instances of abuse” of the provision.

• AOC discusses endorsements and non-endorsements: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who has yet to endorse her former campaign manager and chief of staff Saikat Chakrabarti in his bid to succeed Nancy Pelosi in representing California’s 11th district, told Drop Site’s Julian Andreone that she is “trying to think about the role that I am trying to play more broadly” as candidates across the country court her endorsement. With Chakrabarti, as with all others, she said, “Once you go in it’s like ‘what about this, what about this, what about this one’ and I’m one person with an amazing but pretty lean team.”

• Congressman calls for sanctions on Israel: Rep. Jim McGovern (D-Mass.) called Thursday for the United States to sanction those involved in implementing Israel’s newly passed death penalty law, which applies exclusively to Palestinians. “Anyone involved in carrying out this directive should be sanctioned by the United States government,” McGovern wrote on X. “It is long past time to put our money where our mouth is and impose consequences for the Israeli government’s ongoing occupation of the Palestinian territories and two-tiered system of justice.”

• Trump and Mamdani talk relationship: President Donald Trump publicly criticized New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Thursday for the first time since their Oval Office meeting last November, accusing him of “DESTROYING” the city over a proposed tax increase on luxury properties. “They must change their ways,” Trump said in a post, “AND FAST.” He walked this back a bit, however, responding to a question from Drop Site contributor Timmy Facciola about whether or not he had fallen out with Mamdani by saying: “No, not at all. He’s going to ruin the city, however. His policies are no good.” Earlier in the day, Mamdani had said he and President Trump were “in touch” and were “honest” and “direct” about their disagreements. “There is one place of agreement that we have, which is that we both love New York City,” he told CBS. Also on Thursday, The New York Times reported that the Trump administration would release nearly $60 million in funding for New York City’s Second Avenue subway extension, reversing a prior hold that triggered a lawsuit by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

• Senate votes to allow copper mining near Minnesota wilderness: The Senate voted 50 to 49 on Thursday to repeal a Biden-era moratorium on new mining across more than 225,000 acres of Minnesota’s Superior National Forest, which encompasses the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness. The House had already passed the Republican-led resolution under the Congressional Review Act of 1996, and President Donald Trump is expected to sign it into law. The measure clears the way for Twin Metals Minnesota, a subsidiary of Chilean mining giant Antofagasta, to pursue a copper and nickel mine roughly five miles from the wilderness area. Environmentalists, Native American tribes who depend on the watershed for fishing and wild rice harvesting, and hunting and fishing groups had fought the project for years, warning of contamination from heavy metals and sulfuric acid.

• House passes Haitian TPS bill over GOP leadership opposition: The House passed legislation Thursday that would reinstate three-year Temporary Protected Status protections for approximately 350,000 Haitian immigrants, with ten Republicans breaking from party leadership to join all Democrats in a 224-204 vote. The bill was forced to the floor through a discharge petition, a maneuver made possible by the GOP’s razor-thin 218-213 majority. The White House issued a veto threat, with a senior official calling the bill “terrible” and saying it was “going nowhere.” The Trump administration moved last summer to terminate Haitian TPS, but a federal court blocked the effort; the administration’s attempts to end TPS for both Haitian and Syrian nationals are now pending before the Supreme Court.

• State Department announces restrictions on visas in Western Hemisphere: The State Department announced Thursday it is broadening visa restrictions against individuals “from countries in our hemisphere who support our adversaries in undermining America’s interests in our region.” Twenty-six people have already had their visas revoked under the policy, it said in a statement. Proscribed “activities” on the parts of Western Hemisphere nations “include but are not limited to: enabling adversarial powers to acquire or control key assets and strategic resources,” “destabilizing regional security efforts,” “undermining American economic interests,” and “conducting influence operations designed to undermine the sovereignty and stability of nations in our region,” the agency noted.

• Senior Treasury official bought oil, nuclear, and cybersecurity funds eight days before U.S. strikes on Iran: Jonathan Burke, the Treasury Department’s assistant secretary for terrorist financing, purchased between $15,001 and $50,000 in shares across three sector-specific exchange-traded funds—covering oil and gas exploration, nuclear energy, and cybersecurity—on February 20, eight days before President Donald Trump ordered the first strikes on Iran, according to reporting from NOTUS. The trades were part of a mandated divestiture process: Burke had been required to sell existing Citigroup holdings worth between $250,000 and $500,000 and reinvest in funds that do not conflict with his duties. Burke’s oil and gas fund gained several percentage points immediately after the war began and rose roughly 20% within a month, though it has since retreated. Read the full report from NOTUS here.

• LAUSD teachers win tentative agreements with District: A coordinated strike threat by nearly 70,000 Los Angeles Unified School District employees was averted hours before a scheduled April 14 walkout, after the acting superintendent reached separate tentative agreements with United Teachers Los Angeles, SEIU Local 99, and the Associated Administrators of Los Angeles/Teamsters 2010. Support staff won a 24% pay increase over three years, along with protections against subcontracting; teachers secured a nearly 14% raise over two years, plus an immediate bump in starting pay to approximately $77,000 and hundreds of new counseling and mental health positions; and administrators will see pay rise by an average of nearly 12% over two years.

Other International News

• UK security vetting officials did not clear Peter Mandelson to be U.S. ambassador: Britain’s security vetting officials recommended against granting Peter Mandelson the country’s highest level of security clearance before he was appointed ambassador to the United States, but were overruled by the Foreign Office, Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office confirmed. Downing Street said neither Starmer nor any government minister knew until this week that the Foreign Office had granted Mandelson the elevated clearance against the formal vetting team’s advice; David Lammy, currently the country’s Justice Minister, was the head of the Foreign Office when Mandelson was vetted. Mandelson was dismissed from the ambassadorship last September after leaked emails revealed his longstanding friendship with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein; he was subsequently arrested in February over accusations of passing confidential government information to Epstein in the late 2000s.

• Syria takes control of final U.S. military bases: The government of Syria announced that it has assumed control of all military bases previously hosting American forces, completing a withdrawal it had coordinated with Washington. U.S. Central Command said it would “continue to support” Syria in counter-terrorism efforts. Syria’s foreign ministry framed the handover as reflecting a shared assessment that the circumstances requiring American military presence had fundamentally changed, and credited the integration of Kurdish forces into national state structures as a factor enabling the transition.

• IMF and World Bank resume ties with Venezuela: The International Monetary Fund and the World Bank announced the restoration of institutional ties with Venezuela under acting President Delcy Rodríguez, ending a freeze that began in 2019 and clearing the way for Venezuela to request financial assistance from both institutions. The country carries an estimated $150 billion in external debt.

• Myanmar junta leader grants amnesty to 4,335 prisoners: The recently sworn-in military president of Myanmar, Min Aung Hlaing, approved an amnesty for 4,335 prisoners on Thursday, commuting all death sentences to life imprisonment, reducing life sentences to 40 years, and cutting all other terms by one-sixth. Former president Win Myint, detained since Myanmar’s February 2021 coup, was pardoned of his convictions and the sentence of former leader Aung San Suu Kyi—who is 80 and serving 27 years in prison—was reduced by one-sixth, her lawyer told Reuters.

• Russian drones strike Ukraine’s Izmail port, enter Romania: A Russian overnight drone assault damaged port infrastructure at Izmail on Friday, damaging but not shutting down Ukraine’s largest Danube river port, according to Reuters. Administrative and production buildings and railway infrastructure at Izmail were damaged, and fires were briefly ignited, with no injuries reported. The Romanian government confirmed that a drone also strayed across the border into Romanian territory.

• 2025 deadliest year on record for Rohingya sea crossings, UN says: Nearly 900 Rohingya refugees were reported missing or dead in the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal in 2025—the deadliest year on record for the route. More than one in seven of the estimated 6,500 who attempted the crossing perished, the UN refugee agency UNHCR reported. The numbers reflect a deepening “sense of desperation among the Rohingya population,” UNHCR’s spokesperson said, driven by ongoing conflict in Myanmar and deteriorating conditions in overcrowded refugee camps in Bangladesh. More than half of those attempting the crossings in recent years have been women and children.

• Chile carries out first deportation flight under Kast: Under new far-right President José Antonio Kast, Chile conducted its first deportation flight, sending 40 foreign nationals from the northern city of Iquique to Bolivia, Colombia, and Ecuador. Pavez described the flight as “the first of many” under a planned immigration crackdown the government has been developing since taking office on March 11.

• Lula and Sánchez convene progressive leaders in Barcelona: Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva arrived in Spain on Friday for a two-day visit that will include meetings with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, European Council President António Costa, Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Colombian President Gustavo Petro, and U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), among others. Meetings will focus on wage inequality and electoral strategy for left-leaning parties. “We are going to discuss the state of democracy, to see what went wrong and what we have to do to repair it,” Lula told the Spanish newspaper El País.

• Pope continues Africa tour with visit to Cameroon war zone: Pope Leo XIV delivered a sermon in the conflict-hit city of Bamenda on Thursday, the third day of his 11-day Africa tour, after stops in Algeria and ahead of visits to Angola and Equatorial Guinea. His visit to the heart of Cameroon’s Anglophone Crisis prompted a fragile three-day pause in fighting, as he met with religious leaders and called for lasting peace in a war that has killed more than 6,500 people and displaced hundreds of thousands. He also sharpened his criticism of global powers amid an escalating rift with Donald Trump, condemning a “handful of tyrants” who ravage the world with “killing and devastation,” while exploiting Africa’s resources and pouring wealth into weapons instead of rebuilding.

More from Drop Site

• Updates on journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin: A State Department spokesperson says the Trump administration is aware that American journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin has been detained in Kuwait and claims the safety of U.S. citizens is its top priority. Officials confirm awareness of the case and say consular assistance is being provided in line with U.S. and international law. They declined to give further details, citing privacy considerations, offering no additional comment on the circumstances of his detention. Sen. Chris Van Hollen joined Sen. Chris Murphy in calling for release, as well. The Committee to Protect Journalists launched a petition demanding that Kuwait immediately release Shihab-Eldin, whose case we recently reported on here—we encourage our readers to consider signing.

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Pakistan army chief arrives in Tehran for talks. UAE and Iran hold first high-level contact since diplomatic rupture. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warns China and Japan of “dangerous consequences” of U.S. posture in Hormuz. Iran has up to two months before blockade forces production cuts, analysts say. Top oil companies pocketed $30 million per hour in war profits during first month of Iran conflict. IEA chief says Europe has 6 weeks of jet fuel left. Israel continues its attacks on Lebanon. Hezbollah continues attacks on Israeli military. Israel kills three medical responders. BBC: Over 1,400 buildings confirmed destroyed in southern Lebanon. President Donald Trump claims direct meeting planned between leaders of Israel and Lebanon. 31 settler attacks documented across West Bank and East Jerusalem in 24 hours. 350 Palestinian students held in Israeli detention, ministry says. Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and wife found dead in an apparent murder-suicide. House Speaker Mike Johnson postpones then cancels FISA vote. Sen. Bernie Sanders leads charge to block arms sales to Israel. Senate Republicans block fourth Iran war powers resolution as 60-day deadline looms. Jury finds Live Nation and Ticketmaster held illegal monopoly over concert venues. U.S. military kills three in third Pacific boat strike in three days. Russia kills at least 16 in massive overnight attack on Ukraine. South Africa’s Julius Malema sentenced to five years for firing rifle at party rally. Sudanese army drone strike kills three at Chad border crossing. 14-year-old kills nine at Turkish middle school. Syria detains more than 40 Palestinians near Damascus. France and Italy advance antisemitism laws which could criminalize criticism of Israel. Leftist surges to second place in Peru vote count. Nine million stripped from voter rolls in West Bengal ahead of state election.

From Drop Site: “My Daughter Went Out to Learn, Not to Fight”: Gaza Grieves More Children Killed by Israel

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Iran and Ceasefire

• Pakistan army chief arrives in Tehran for talks: A high-level delegation led by Pakistan’s army chief Asim Munir arrived in Tehran on Wednesday evening for talks focused on arranging a new round of negotiations between Iran and the United States less than one week before the truce is set to expire. Meanwhile, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif is in Saudi Arabia for the first stop in a four-day Gulf tour. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that a second round of in-person talks would “very likely” be held in Islamabad, and that Pakistan is the “only mediator” between the U.S. and Iran.

• UAE and Iran hold first high-level contact since diplomatic rupture: UAE Vice President Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf spoke by phone Wednesday in the first high-level contact between the two countries since the war began. Per Ghalibaf’s office, the two sides exchanged views on “reducing tensions in the region and the prospects for developing bilateral relations in the security and economic spheres,” while UAE state media WAM characterized the call as focused on “de-escalation and regional stability.”

• Araghchi warns China and Japan of “dangerous consequences” of U.S. posture in Hormuz: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned of “the dangerous consequences of the provocative positions and actions of the United States in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz” in a call on Wednesday with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi. He also held a call with Japanese Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, briefing both on regional developments.

• Iran has up to two months before blockade forces production cuts, analysts say: Iran holds enough onshore crude storage capacity to absorb diverted output for up to two months before being forced to curtail upstream production, consultancy FGE NextantECA estimated, according to Reuters—as the U.S. naval blockade, which took effect April 13 following the collapse of Islamabad ceasefire talks, tightens around Iranian ports. Once onshore tanks reach capacity at roughly 122 million barrels total, with approximately 90 million barrels currently available, Iran would be compelled to cap upstream output—a far more damaging and difficult-to-reverse step than export disruptions alone. Brent crude has risen roughly 40% since the war began and is nearing $100 a barrel.

• Top oil companies pocketed $30 million per hour in war profits during first month of Iran conflict: The world’s top 100 oil and gas companies earned more than $30 million every hour in windfall profits during the first month of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, generating an estimated $23 billion in excess earnings in March alone as oil averaged $100 a barrel, according to analysis by Global Witness using Rystad Energy data reported exclusively by the Guardian. Saudi Aramco stands to make an estimated $25.5 billion in war profits in 2026 if the $100 price holds, while ExxonMobil is on track for $11 billion, Chevron $9.2 billion, and Shell $6.8 billion—with three Russian state-linked companies, Gazprom, Rosneft, and Lukoil, projected to collect a combined $23.9 billion, boosting Vladimir Putin’s war chest for the conflict in Ukraine.

• IEA chief says Europe has 6 weeks of jet fuel left: The head of the International Energy Agency Fatih Birol told the AP that Europe has “maybe six weeks or so [of] jet fuel left,” warning of possible flight cancellations “soon” if oil supplies remain blocked by the war. Birol characterized it as “the largest energy crisis we have ever faced,” adding: “It is going to have major implications for the global economy. And the longer it goes, the worse it will be for the economic growth and inflation around the world.”

• Ghalibaf demands Lebanon ceasefire, tells U.S. to abandon “Israel First” policy: Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf issued a pointed statement Wednesday demanding the United States honor its ceasefire commitments as Israeli strikes on Lebanon continued, writing that Washington “must comply with the agreement” and calling on America to “withdraw from the ‘Israel First’ mistake.” Ghalibaf credited Hezbollah and the Axis of Resistance with securing a ceasefire in Lebanon, asserting that “resistance and Iran are one soul, both in war and in ceasefire.”

• Iran proposes limited Strait of Hormuz passage in U.S. negotiations: Iran has proposed allowing commercial vessels to transit safely along the Omani side of the Strait of Hormuz as part of ongoing negotiations with the United States, contingent on a broader deal to avoid renewed conflict, a source told Reuters Wednesday—a potential first step back from Tehran’s plans to control or tax passage through the waterway. U.S. Central Command reported on Wednesday that 10 ships had been directly blocked from exiting Iranian ports since the beginning of the blockade on Monday, though on the same day, two U.S.-sanctioned tankers reportedly made it through the Strait to an Iranian port, according to Tanker Trackers.

• Iran halts petrochemical exports to shore up domestic supply amid war disruptions: Iran’s Petrochemical Industries Development Organization ordered an immediate suspension of all petrochemical exports Wednesday, directing companies to redirect output to the domestic market and report any undeparted cargoes for possible reallocation, citing war-related disruptions and price volatility. The directive reflects mounting pressure on Iran’s energy sector following early April strikes on key facilities including the Mahshahr Petrochemical Special Zone and South Pars plants, which sharply reduced output, compounded by a U.S. naval blockade that has paralyzed maritime trade into and out of Iranian ports.

• Iran used Chinese satellite to monitor and target U.S. bases, leaked documents show: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Aerospace Force acquired a Chinese spy satellite in late 2024 that it used to monitor and help target U.S. military bases across the Middle East during the war, the Financial Times reported Wednesday, citing leaked Iranian military documents confirmed by Fox News. The IRGC purchased the TEE-01B satellite from Chinese company Earth Eye Co for roughly $36.6 million, paid in renminbi, according to the report. Time-stamped coordinate lists, satellite imagery, and orbital analysis show Iranian commanders used the satellite to surveil Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia on March 13, 14, and 15—the same days President Donald Trump confirmed U.S. aircraft at the base had been struck—as well as Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan, the U.S. Fifth Fleet naval base in Bahrain, and Erbil airport in Iraq around the time of IRGC-claimed strikes on those facilities. China’s Foreign Ministry denied the report, calling it “not true.”

Lebanon

• Israel continues its attacks on Lebanon:

  • At least five people have been killed in Israeli air attacks on southern Lebanon on Thursday, according to the National News Agency (NNA).

  • An Israeli airstrike on Thursday destroyed the Qasmiyeh Bridge over the Litani River—the last bridge connecting southern Lebanon to the rest of the country, according to the NNA.

  • Heavy clashes broke out Thursday morning between Hezbollah fighters and Israeli forces in the town of Bint Jbeil, according to the NNA. The Israeli military has surrounded the town and has deployed warplanes and helicopters in the fighting. On Thursday, the Israeli military posted a video of a mass demolition in Bint Jbeil and said it destroyed “70 terror infrastructure sites in just one minute.”

  • The Israeli military demolished homes in Naqoura, near Tyre on Wednesday. Warplanes struck the town of Hanniyeh on the same day, and a drone targeted Aatit near Tyre. An airstrike also hit Meifdoun, and as rescue teams arrived, a second drone strike targeted the crew, according to Lebanon’s NNA.

  • Also on Wednesday, Israeli airstrikes hit Al-Shehabieh in the south, causing several injuries, and drone strikes hit a car on the road between Kfour and Kfarjouz in Nabtieh, the NNA reported. Airstrikes hit Deir al-Zahrani as well, and killed a Syrian national in Harouf. An additional Lebanese citizen was killed in an airstrike in Ibn-al-Saqi-Blat.

• Hezbollah continues attacks on Israeli military: Hezbollah claimed over a dozen attacks on northern Israel and Israeli ground troops in southern Lebanon, including in Khiam, Qantara, Rab el-Thalatheen, and Ras al-Naqoura.

• WHO chief documents Israeli attacks on Tebnine hospital in southern Lebanon: The head of the World Health Organization (WHO) Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus called for “the immediate protection of health care facilities, health workers, ambulances, and patients” across Lebanon amid Israel’s attacks. In a statement, he said that Lebanon’s “Tebnine Government Hospital, one of the busiest trauma management hospitals in the south, was damaged due to two consecutive strikes close by on 12 and 14 April.” He said at least 11 workers were injured, with the hospital’s emergency department and its equipment destroyed and that the hospital’s “pharmacy and outpatient clinics were also damaged.” Over 90 medical workers have been killed since March 2, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

• Israel strikes and kills three medical responders: Israeli forces carried out four successive waves of airstrikes outside Nabatieh on Wednesday, deliberately targeting emergency responders in sequence—first striking the area, then hitting ambulances dispatched to aid the wounded, followed by strikes on a second and third wave of responders, killing three medical workers and wounding six others.

• BBC: Over 1,400 buildings confirmed destroyed in southern Lebanon: Towns and villages in southern Lebanon are being leveled by the Israeli military, according to an analysis of satellite images and videos by BBC which found that more than 1,400 buildings had been destroyed since March 2. “This is just a snapshot of the overall damage caused by Israeli air strikes and demolitions, because of limited access on the ground and available satellite imagery. The true scale is likely to be much higher,” BBC said.

• Trump claims direct meeting planned between leaders of Israel and Lebanon: President Trump announced on social media that the leaders of Israel and Lebanon will speak on Thursday, as part of his efforts to “get a little breathing room” between Israel and Lebanon. “It has been a long time since the two leaders have spoken, like 34 years. It will happen tomorrow. Nice!” Trump said. Trump did not specify who would be present at the meeting or give any further details. Israel’s Minister of Science and Technology Gila Gamliel also said in a radio interview that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will speak with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Thursday. “We told America we aren’t ready to take that step,” a Lebanese official told CNN.

• Lebanon president thanks Rubio for “efforts”: The Lebanese presidency said on Thursday that President Joseph Aoun held a call with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio. In a statement posted on X, it said Aoun thanked Rubio “for the efforts Washington is undertaking to reach a ceasefire and its support at all levels.” In turn, Rubio “affirmed his continuation of the ongoing efforts to achieve a ceasefire as a prelude to establishing peace, security, and stability in Lebanon.” The statement made no mention of any possible talks between Aoun and the Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, one Palestinian was killed due to wounds sustained in earlier attacks, and eight were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,345 killed, with 172,250 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 766 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,147, while 760 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israel continues to attack Gaza: Three Palestinians, including two brothers, were killed on Thursday in Israeli attacks in northern Gaza and Gaza City, according to WAFA. The two brothers were killed in a drone strike near Abu Tammam School in Beit Lahia, while another man died from wounds sustained in a separate strike on a police vehicle on Al-Nafaq Street in Gaza City. In central Gaza, four people, including a woman, were injured by gunfire from Israeli forces east of Al-Maghazi camp toward Salah al-Din Street. Meanwhile, the body of Ismail al-Haddad was recovered in western Khan Younis nearly two years after he had gone missing.

• Israeli attacks on the occupied West Bank:

  • Israeli forces destroyed agricultural land and water pipelines on Wednesday in the Jordan Valley, south of Tubas, according to WAFA.

  • Israeli forces set up a military checkpoint near Bethlehem on Wednesday, according to WAFA, and Israeli settlers re-erected an iron gate in the village of Al-Maniya, near Bethlehem, after it had been previously removed. Settlers also continued to raid homes in the area. Four Palestinians were also detained on Wednesday from across the occupied West Bank, as part of raids on Silwan in East Jerusalem, the Tubas governorate, and near Hebron, and Israeli forces also reportedly detained a child from Al-Khader on Wednesday, after chasing and severely beating him.

  • Israeli forces shot and killed a 17-year-old Palestinian during a raid on Beit Tuqqu, near Jerusalem, on Wednesday, following extensive raid operations by the Israelis in the village.

  • Two Palestinians were injured in settler attacks near Bethlehem, which involved Israeli settlers throwing rocks and wielding knives at Palestinian vehicles.

  • Mobs of Israeli settlers attacked Palestinian citizens on Wednesday evening in the towns of Birzeit and Jifna, near Ramallah, where settlers attempted to attack Palestinians and destroy their properties. A group of settlers also staged attacks in Beita, near Nablus, and armed settlers threw rocks at cars and blocked roads to the northern entrance of Hebron, WAFA reported.

  • Armed settlers attacked and injured a Palestinian and his son in the village of Masafer Yatta on Wednesday, WAFA reported, assaulting a group of citizens and shepherds and spraying them with pepper spray.

• 31 settler attacks documented across West Bank and East Jerusalem in 24 hours: The Settlement Observatory documented 31 settler violations in a single day across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem, including assaults, land seizures, and infrastructure destruction, according to the Palestinian Information Center. Incidents included 120 settlers entering Al-Aqsa Mosque and performing rituals—part of over 1,000 incursions recorded since last week—alongside land bulldozing, the uprooting of 160 olive trees, and water line cuts in Nablus, where settlers also attempted to run over a child and stole livestock; further incidents in Bethlehem, Hebron, Ramallah, and Jericho included road construction on Palestinian land, a cemetery destroyed, farmers assaulted, homes raided, and water infrastructure sabotaged.

• 350 Palestinian students held in Israeli detention, ministry says: Approximately 350 Palestinian students are currently held in Israeli jails under conditions that violate international law, Palestine’s Ministry of Education and Higher Education said Wednesday in a statement marking Palestinian Prisoners’ Day. The ministry said detainees are subjected to nighttime arrests, harsh interrogations, solitary confinement, medical neglect, and denial of education. The ministry called the widespread detention of children “a direct attack on the Palestinian education system and a systematic attempt to undermine the future of generations,” and urged international human rights organizations—particularly those focused on children’s rights—to hold Israel accountable.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Former Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax and wife found dead in apparent murder-suicide: Former Virginia Lieutenant Governor Justin Fairfax, 47, and his wife Cerina Fairfax, a dentist, were found dead at their Annandale, Virginia home shortly after midnight Thursday in what Fairfax County Police Chief Kevin Davis described as a murder-suicide. Davis said the couple had been engaged in an ongoing domestic dispute tied to their divorce proceedings and that the couple’s teenage children were home at the time. Fairfax, a Democrat, served as lieutenant governor from 2018 to 2022 alongside Gov. Ralph Northam, and his tenure was overshadowed by sexual assault allegations from two women in 2019. Fairfax went on to finish his term and ran for governor in 2021, placing fourth in the Democratic primary with 3.6 percent of the vote.

• Johnson postpones then cancels FISA vote: Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-La.), who previously intended to bring the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act up for a vote on Wednesday afternoon, first postponed the vote on the measure before ultimately canceling it on Wednesday afternoon. The series of delays comes as Democrats, who had previously considered voting with Republicans to pass a “clean” reauthorization of the surveillance bill, have begun cautiously retreating amid grassroots backlash. Public outrage has centered mainly around two provisions in the legislation that allow the government to surveil American citizens without a warrant unconstitutionally. Drop Site’s Julian Andreone spoke with members of Congress on Wednesday:

  • Rep. Jim Himes (D-Conn.), the House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member, and Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), Chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus PAC, have led the push to whip Democratic votes for a “clean” FISA reauthorization without reforms. Andreone spoke directly with Meeks, asking him about the use of Section 702 to surveil Black Lives Matter activists. Meeks said he had to “do his job” to prevent “terrorist attacks,” and that 702 would enable him and intelligence agencies to do so. “Ultimately, I’m going to have to make a decision when it’s on the floor.… There is already information that I’ve been able to receive that have saved us or our allies.…[Section 702] has prevented terrorist attacks.” His full conversation with Andreone is available here.

  • Andreone spoke with more CBC members, including Reps. Shontel Brown (D-Ohio), Troy Carter (D-La.), Emmanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.), Nikema Williams (D-Ga.), Wesley Bell (D-Mo.), to ask how they would be voting on FISA reauthorization, how they felt about recent reports about the use of Section 702 against black activists, and the extent to which each had spoken with Rep. Meeks about the bill. The members he interviewed usually either refused to directly say how they were voting or offered that they “still had concerns.” Most did not comment on Meeks’s whipping of the bill. Rep. Jennifer McClellan (D-Va.) said she would “like to see some reforms” to the bill but did not want FISA to lapse entirely, and Rep. Hank Johnson (D-Ga.) explicitly said he would not be voting for a clean reauthorization. Andreone’s full set of interviews is available here.

  • In a separate interview, Democratic Whip Rep. Jim Clyburn (D-S.C.) told Andreone that he is “not worried” about warrantless surveillance of Americans, including BLM activists, ahead of the FISA vote. “I don’t worry about stuff. I just live through it,” he said.

• Sanders leads charge to block arms sales to Israel: Independent Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders moved Wednesday to force Senate votes on two resolutions that would block roughly $450 million in U.S. arms sales to Israel, including over $150 million in 1,000-pound gravity bombs and nearly $300 million in Caterpillar bulldozers used to demolish structures in Palestinian territories, Lebanon, and Syria. The resolution earned 40 votes in the Senate; last year, only 15 Democrats voted for similar measures. “It’s clear that Democrats are beginning to listen to the average American who is sick and tired of spending billions of dollars to support Netanyahu’s horrific wars when people in this country can’t afford housing or health care,” Sanders said after the vote. Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), however, did not support the measure and faced significant backlash for not doing so. “These bulldozers are used to illegally destroy Palestinian villages,” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) said about the measure, and said it is now time for the Leader to “step aside.”

• Senate Republicans block fourth Iran war powers resolution as 60-day deadline looms: Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked a fourth Democratic war powers resolution aimed at reining in President Donald Trump’s authority to wage war against Iran, with 52 Republicans voting against the measure—all but Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.)—while every Democrat voted in favor except Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.), who sided with Republicans. A similar House resolution sponsored by Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, is expected to reach the floor Thursday, though without Senate passage it would remain symbolic. The votes come as the war approaches the 60-day mark, after which troops must be withdrawn or their deployment approved by Congress—a threshold that Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) suggested could be a turning point, saying the administration “has got to start answering questions” about the war’s trajectory. Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) said the conflict has cost American taxpayers roughly $50 billion so far. “Trump’s war of choice in Iran is a moral tragedy and economic disaster playing out before our eyes. It is only making the United States and the world less safe.”

• Jury finds Live Nation and Ticketmaster held illegal monopoly over concert venues: A New York jury found Wednesday that Live Nation Entertainment and its Ticketmaster subsidiary maintained an illegal anticompetitive monopoly over large concert venues, ruling in favor of a lawsuit brought by dozens of states after four days of deliberation. The jury found that Ticketmaster’s anticompetitive practices caused concertgoers in 22 states to overpay by $1.72 per ticket—a figure that could result in hundreds of millions of dollars in damages once trebled, though Live Nation estimated the aggregate single damages figure would fall below $150 million. The penalty phase, including potential divestiture of venues such as amphitheaters, will be decided by the judge in a separate proceeding.

• Tillis blocks Fed nominee Warsh: Retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) is single-handedly blocking the confirmation of Kevin Warsh as Federal Reserve chair, telling NBC News he considers Warsh “a perfect candidate” but will not vote to confirm him until the Justice Department ends its criminal probe into outgoing Fed Chair Jerome Powell, who Tillis said did nothing wrong. Tillis, a member of the Senate Banking Committee whose vote is decisive as long as Democrats remain unified against the nominee, said he will cast his vote “simultaneously with the conclusion of that statement coming out of the DOJ, and not a day before.” The retiring senator, who said he has lost his political “filter,” also rebuked Trump’s attacks on Pope Leo XIV as incomprehensible, opposed any effort to eliminate the Senate filibuster, and suggested Trump’s presence on the campaign trail in purple North Carolina could be a liability for Republican senate candidate Michael Whatley.

• Sotomayor apologizes for remarks about Kavanaugh’s upbringing: Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor issued an unusual public apology Wednesday for remarks she made about Justice Brett Kavanaugh at a University of Kansas School of Law appearance last week, in which she criticized an opinion he wrote on immigration enforcement sweeps by saying “this is from a man whose parents were professionals” who “probably doesn’t really know any person who works by the hour.” In a statement issued by the court, Sotomayor said her comments “were inappropriate,” adding, “I regret my hurtful comments. I have apologized to my colleague.”

Other International News

• U.S. military kills three in third Pacific boat strike in three days: The U.S. military conducted a strike against a boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Wednesday, killing three people, according to U.S. Southern Command. SOUTHCOM posted a video of the strike and said, “Three male narco-terrorists were killed during this action” without providing evidence. On Tuesday, a similar strike killed four people, and a strike on Monday killed two people. The latest attacks bring the death toll to at least 178 people killed in dozens of U.S. strikes on vessels in the Pacific and Caribbean since September.

• Brazilian intelligence chief freed from ICE detention: Alexandre Ramagem, the former Brazilian intelligence chief convicted in connection with a 2023 coup plot in support of former President Jair Bolsonaro, was released from U.S. immigration detention Wednesday, according to Reuters. Ramagem was detained Monday in Orlando following a traffic stop that led to an ICE referral—a stop reportedly unrelated to Brazil’s outstanding request for his extradition. Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said Tuesday he had formally asked the U.S. to return Ramagem to serve his sentence in December. Ramagem has a pending asylum application in the U.S.

• Israel appoints first ambassador to Somaliland: Israel has appointed Michael Lotem, a former ambassador to Kenya, as its first ambassador to Somaliland, Israel’s public broadcaster reported Wednesday. Somaliland President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi told a joint session of parliament on Tuesday that Israel had proven itself a “reliable partner,” while Somalia’s foreign ministry condemned the ambassadorial appointment as a “direct breach” of its sovereignty and unity. Drop Site has reported twice on the relationship between Israel and Somaliland, discussing Somaliland’s push to acquire U.S. recognition after succeeding with Israel, and the involvement of financier Jeffrey Epstein in cultivating ties between the two parties. Those articles are available here and here.

• Russia kills at least 16 in massive overnight attack on Ukraine: Russia launched a wave of missile and drone attacks on Ukraine overnight, killing at least 16 people across the country following the end of a 32-hour Orthodox Easter truce. Strikes on Odesa killed nine people and wounded 23; attacks on Kyiv killed at least four, including a 12-year-old child, and wounded 48, with widespread damage across multiple city districts; and three were killed and 34 wounded in the central Dnipropetrovsk region. A Ukrainian drone strike on Russia’s Black Sea port of Tuapse killed two children aged five and 14 and sparked a large fire, Russian officials said.

• South Africa’s Malema sentenced to five years for firing rifle at party rally: Julius Malema, leader of South Africa’s far-left Economic Freedom Fighters and one of the country’s most prominent opposition politicians, was sentenced to five years in prison Thursday by Magistrate Twanet Olivier for unlawful possession of a firearm and discharging a weapon in a public place during a 2018 party rally at a stadium in the Eastern Cape. If upheld on appeal, the sentence would bar the 45-year-old from serving as a lawmaker—a significant blow to the EFF, the fourth-largest party in the country’s parliament.

• Sudanese army drone strike kills three at Chad border crossing: A Sudanese Armed Forces drone strike on the Adukong border crossing with Chad killed three porters and wounded dozens of workers—the majority of them Chadian nationals—while destroying civilian vehicles, food supplies, and fuel, Sudan Tribune reported on Wednesday. This is the fifth such strike on the crossing. The same drone also targeted the villages of Bir Daqiq and Habila, striking civilian areas north and east of Geneina in West Darfur. The Sudanese Army maintains it is targeting military equipment and cross-border fuel trucks used by the RSF to transport weapons, ammunition, and mercenaries from West Africa, and has accused Chad of facilitating the flow of UAE-supplied military equipment to the RSF in Darfur.

• Fire kills five at Darfur displacement camp: A fire tore through a displacement camp in the town of Rokoro in Central Darfur’s North Jebel Marra locality on Wednesday, killing at least five people, including two children, and leaving more than 1,400 people displaced and without shelter, Sudan Tribune reported. The camp houses thousands of people who fled El Fasher, North Darfur’s capital, after it was seized by the Rapid Support Forces in October 2025.

• Berlin Sudan conference pledges €1.3 billion: The Third International Sudan Conference convened in Berlin on Wednesday, as the war entered its fourth year three, with donors pledging over €1.3 billion—including €212 million from Germany, €168 million from the United Kingdom, and more than €811 million from the EU and member states—to address famine conditions and support over 11.6 million displaced people. The pledges fall well short of what is needed: the UN’s 2026 Sudan Humanitarian Needs and Response Plan requires roughly $2.9 billion for basic aid inside the country, with an additional $1.5 billion needed for the regional refugee response, leaving the overall effort less than half funded.

• Kazakhstan convicts 19 Xinjiang activists: A Kazakh court convicted 19 activists on Wednesday following a November protest near the Chinese border, sentencing 11 of the protesters to five years in prison for “inciting discord” and placing movement restrictions on the remaining eight. At the protest, the demonstrators burned Chinese flags and portraits of President Xi Jinping and called for the release of a Kazakh citizen detained in Xinjiang. The prosecutions were opened after Kazakhstan’s government received a diplomatic note from the Chinese consulate in Almaty describing the protest as “an open provocation against the national dignity of the People’s Republic of China.”

• 14-year-old kills nine at Turkish middle school: A 14-year-old student opened fire on two classrooms at a middle school in Kahramanmaraş, Turkey on Wednesday, killing nine people and wounding 13 others—six of them seriously—before being killed himself, Interior Minister Mustafa Çiftci said. The gunman, identified by state broadcaster TRT as İsa Araş Mersinli, arrived armed with five firearms and seven magazines, which reportedly belonged to his father. The attack comes one day after 16 people were wounded in a separate school shooting in nearby Şanlıurfa province.

• Rival of pro-Israel Druze leader killed in Suweida: Munir Najib al-Bahri, a prominent opponent of pro-Israel Druze militia leader Hikmat al-Hijri and one of the early participants in Syria’s 2011 anti-government uprising, was shot dead during an attempted kidnapping in Suweida city on Tuesday, according to local sources cited by Arabi21.

• Syria detains more than 40 Palestinians near Damascus: Syrian security forces have detained more than 40 Palestinians during a “security sweep” in the Damascus and Damascus countryside governorates in recent days, with at least 30 arrested from the Khan al-Shih camp southwest of the capital, according to a report by the Action Group for Palestinians of Syria. The majority were taken from their homes or detained en route to work and transported to unknown locations, with no official explanation provided by Syria’s Interior Ministry. Syria is home to approximately 450,000 Palestinian refugees, most of whom are descendants of Palestinians expelled during the establishment of the State of Israel in 1948.

• France and Italy advance antisemitism laws which could criminalize criticism of Israel: France and Italy are both advancing legislation this week that would codify new legal definitions of antisemitism, with France proposing to sanction speech “implicitly” supportive of “terrorism,” and the Italian bill looking to write into law the controversial International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance definition of antisemitism. The Italian bill passed the Upper House last month by a large majority and begins its Lower House passage on Thursday. The French law, scheduled for parliamentary debate on Thursday, references the IHRA definition without fully adopting it, and includes as sanctioned speech calling for the destruction of a state recognized by France, and comparing Israel to the Nazis.

• Leftist Sanchez surges to second place in Peru vote count: Leftist congressman Roberto Sánchez moved into second place Wednesday in Peru’s presidential election, with 91% of ballots counted showing him at 12.1%—just ahead of right-wing former Lima mayor Rafael López Aliaga at 11.9%—as conservative Keiko Fujimori held a comfortable lead at 17% and appeared certain to advance to the June 7 runoff. Sánchez, a 57-year-old congressman running for the left-leaning Together for Peru party, has called for a new constitution establishing a “plurinational” state giving greater voice to Indigenous communities, and is an ally of jailed former President Pedro Castillo.

• Australian court rejects ex-U.S. Marine pilot’s extradition appeal: A Federal Court of Australia judge dismissed former U.S. Marine Corps pilot Daniel Duggan’s appeal against extradition to the United States on Thursday, clearing the way for Duggan to be tried in the United States. Duggan has been charged with violating U.S. arms export control laws by training Chinese military pilots in South Africa between 2009 and 2012, and has been in custody since his October 2022 arrest.

• Nine million stripped from voter rolls in West Bengal ahead of state election: More than nine million people—nearly 12% of West Bengal’s 76 million registered voters—have lost voting rights ahead of the state’s two-phase assembly election on April 23 and April 29, following a controversial purging of electoral rolls conducted by India’s Election Commission, with analysis showing Muslims have been disproportionately affected. Nearly six million of those removed were declared absentee or deceased, while the remaining three million face a near-impossible path to reinstatement through special tribunals unlikely to process their cases before polling day. Research by the Kolkata-based SABAR Institute found that in the constituency of Nandigram, where Muslims constitute roughly 25 percent of the population, more than 95 percent of deleted names belonged to Muslims. Read more about the mass disenfranchisement in a full report on it from Al Jazeera, available here.

More from Drop Site

• The Committee to Protect Journalists launched a petition demanding that Kuwait immediately release journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin, whose case we recently reported on here. Shihab-Eldin, who was born in the United States and has worked with PBS, The New York Times, Al Jazeera, and Vice, has been detained since March 3 under vague “national security” charges widely used to silence reporters. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) also called for Shihab-Eldin’s release on Wednesday, accusing the Trump Administration of “trying to censor journalists reporting on the realities of this war.” The CPJ’s petition is available below—we encourage our readers to consider signing.

• Noa Avishag Schnall talks with GSF leader about flotilla: Drop Site contributor Noa Avishag Schnall spoke with Saif Abukeshek, a member of the Global Sumud Flotilla Steering Committee, in Barcelona on April 12, as participants prepared to launch the latest and largest Gaza-bound flotilla. Abukeshek said the war on Palestinians has continued largely out of public view despite a nominal ceasefire, and that reduced media attention has created the false impression that the violence has ended. “What we want to do is mobilize people again…to bring it to the streets, bring it to the ports, bring it to the factories…and to the political spaces,” Abukeshek said. His full discussion with Schnall is available here.

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Mediators reportedly move closer to extending U.S.-Iran ceasefire. President Donald Trump and Vice President JD Vance comment on war and ceasefire negotiations. President Masoud Pezeshkian says Iran seeks dialogue. U.S will send thousands more troops to Middle East. Report: Iranian supertanker crosses Strait of Hormuz despite U.S. blockade. Iranian Kurdish leader signals that he would support further U.S. attacks on Iran. Despite ceasefire talks, Israel continues to batter Lebanon. U.S., Israel, and Lebanon hold talks. Israel continues to attack Gaza and the West Bank. Joint Chiefs chairman lobbies Congress to renew warrantless surveillance law. State Department accuses Cuba of role in Russia’s war in Ukraine. Trump administration is ordering the Pentagon to prepare for military operations against Cuba, Zeteo reports. ICE arrests immigrant delivery drivers at California checkpoint. ICE pays $12.2 million for AI surveillance tool that maps immigrants’ daily routines. 86-year-old detained by ICE in Louisiana. Maine Gov. Janet Mills deflects genocide question, points to African countries instead. Tennessee passes act that would penalize student protest. Argentinian President Javier Milei’s disability agency at center of campaign corruption, report says. U.S. military kills four in second Pacific boat strike in two days. School shooting injures 16 in Turkey. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum rebukes Trump for his immigration policy. Spain approves amnesty program for half a million undocumented immigrants. Greece accused of recruiting migrants as “enforcers” to pressure other migrants out. Rival Libyan factions participate in U.S. special forces exercises together for the first time. Somali forces kill 27 al-Shabaab militants in Jubbaland. Russian strikes hit Dnipro and Izmail, killing civilians and hitting foreign-flagged ships.

From Drop Site: Voters Think Candidates Who Won’t Stand Up To AIPAC Won’t Fight On Other Issues, Either: New Poll

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Iran and Ceasefire

• Mediators reportedly move closer to extending U.S.-Iran ceasefire: Efforts are underway to restart negotiations between the United States and Iran to extend a shaky ceasefire before it expires next week. Regional officials told the Associated Press Wednesday that the U.S. and Iran had given an “in principle agreement” to extend it to allow for more diplomacy. The main three sticking points include Iran’s nuclear program, the Strait of Hormuz, and compensation for wartime damages, a regional official told the AP. Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif began a four-day trip to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Turkey on Wednesday as part of a diplomatic push to secure a new round of talks between the U.S. and Iran.

• Trump and Vance comment on war and ceasefire negotiations: In an interview with Fox Business on Wednesday, President Donald Trump said the U.S-Israeli war on Iran is “very close” to an end. “I think it’s close to over, yeah. I view it as very close to being over,” he told Fox Business. He appeared to break with that position in the same interview, however, threatening that the U.S. is “not finished,” and once again making dubious claims that the war was motivated by Iran’s near-acquisition of a nuclear weapon. Vice President JD Vance also talked about the war, telling attendees at a Turning Point USA event that there was a lot of mistrust between the Americans and Iranians, and “You are not going to solve that problem overnight,” but that he felt “very good about where we are.”

• Pezeshkian says Iran seeks dialogue: Iranian president Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran is seeking dialogue. “Iran is not seeking war or instability and has always emphasized dialogue and constructive engagement with various countries. However, any attempt to impose one’s will or force the country to surrender is doomed to failure, and the Iranian nation will never accept such an approach,” Pezeshkian said, according to the IRNA news agency.

• WP: U.S sending thousands more troops to Middle East: While diplomatic efforts are underway to extend the ceasefire, the United States is sending thousands of additional troops into the Middle East in the coming days, according to the Washington Post. Citing U.S. officials, the Post reported that the forces include 6,000 troops aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush and several warships escorting it, and 4,200 others with the Boxer Amphibious Ready Group and its embarked Marine Corps task force that are expected to arrive near the end of the month. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told the Post that Trump “has wisely kept all options on the table in the event that the Iranians will not forgo their nuclear ambitions and make a deal that is acceptable to the United States.”

• Report: Iranian supertanker crosses Strait of Hormuz despite U.S. blockade: A sanctioned Iranian supertanker crossed the Strait ⁠of Hormuz towards Iran’s ⁠Imam Khomeini Port despite a U.S. blockade, Iran’s Fars ‌News Agency reported on Wednesday. It was ⁠not clear ⁠if the tanker ⁠was returning with its cargo on board or ‌was empty, the report said. Fars also cited ship tracking data to report that a vessel transporting food supplies has entered the Gulf and is en route to Imam Khomeini port. On Tuesday, U.S. Central Command claimed that no ships calling at Iranian ports have passed the American blockade, saying six that merchant vessels were ordered to turn around re-entered an Iranian port on the Gulf of Oman. The commander of Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, Maj Gen Ali Abdollahi, warned on Wednesday that Iran’s military could block shipping beyond the Strait of Hormuz if the U.S. continues with its naval blockade, which Tehran would consider a breach of the ceasefire. Iranian armed forces “will not allow any exports or imports to continue in the Persian Gulf, the Sea of Oman or the Red Sea” if the U.S. blockade continues “creates insecurity for Iran’s merchant and oil tanker vessels,” Abdollahi said, according to the Tasnim news agency.

• World Bank prepares up to $100 billion in war relief funding for Middle East: World Bank President Ajay Banga said Tuesday the institution could mobilize $80 billion to $100 billion over the next 15 months for countries hit hard by the Middle East war—surpassing the $70 billion it deployed during the COVID pandemic. “I’m trying to create a toolkit that has a tiered response capacity, depending on how this continues, to at least be able to bring adequate firepower to do something about it,” he said at the International Monetary Fund’s spring meetings. The announcement came alongside an International Monetary Fund decision to cut its global growth outlook due to war-driven energy price spikes, with the IMF noting it would have upgraded its forecast by 0.1 percentage point to 3.4% absent the conflict. IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said the global economy could recover rapidly if the war ends within weeks, but warned the outlook would worsen significantly if the conflict extends through the summer.

• Iranian Kurdish leader signals that he would support further U.S. attacks on Iran: Iran launched four attacks on at least two Iranian Kurdish opposition groups inside Iraqi Kurdistan on Tuesday, continuing a campaign of drone and ballistic missile strikes against Kurdish targets, after Kurdish groups flirted with joining the U.S. and Israel in their war on Iran and reportedly received some “light weapons” from U.S. officials to help facilitate an uprising. The leader of the Kurdish Komala Party, Abdullah Mohtadi, told Al-Monitor in an exclusive interview, that “America and Israel sustaining their bombing campaign, weakening the regime any further, would make it easier for the people to rise up,” and did not rule out cooperating with any country “including Israel.” He also denied that Komala had received weapons from the U.S., while expressing admiration for Trump, for putting “an end to the policy of appeasement toward Iran.” More on the Kurds, from Al Monitor, here.

Lebanon

• Despite ceasefire talks, Israel continues to batter Lebanon:

  • At least 14 Lebanese civilians have been killed by Israeli airstrikes on Wednesday, according to the National News Agency, including four members of one family in Jbaa and five in Ansariyeh, with additional casualties reported in Qadmus. A drone strike on a motorcycle in Zahrani killed one person. Two Israeli airstrikes hit civilian vehicles south of Beirut on Wednesday morning without any reported casualties, artillery shelling struck the Bint Jbeil district, and strikes were reported in towns across the south, in the areas between Hallousiyeh and Zrariyeh.

  • The Israeli military renewed its sweeping displacement order for all Lebanese residents in areas south of the Zahrani River on Wednesday.

  • Intense fighting was reported in Bint Jbeil on Tuesday, as Israeli forces advanced toward the town center, according to Al Mayadeen. Machine-gun fire and shelling were heard across the area, with troops now about 500 meters from the main market, L’Orient reported.

  • Air strikes on Tyre and al-Abbasiyya on Tuesday killed least two, according to Al Jazeera.

  • Israel’s military claimed on Wednesday it struck more than 200 targets in southern Lebanon over the past 24 hours.

• U.S., Israel, and Lebanon hold talks: Lebanon and Israel held their first direct diplomatic talks in decades on Tuesday in Washington, DC. The trilateral meeting was convened by the State Department with the participation of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter, Lebanese Ambassador to the U.S. Nadeh Hamadeh, and other officials. In a statement, the State Department claimed the two sides had “productive discussions on steps toward launching direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon.” The U.S. also said any ceasefire agreement “must be reached between the two governments, brokered by the United States, and not through any separate track,” despite Lebanon being specifically mentioned as part of the U.S.-Iran ceasefire agreement. Hezbollah staunchly opposed the talks. The U.S. made a point of reiterating its support of Israel’s “right to defend itself from Hezbollah’s attacks.” The Lebanese delegation emphasized its sovereignty, called for full implementation of the November 2024 ceasefire, and sought urgent humanitarian relief. Israel’s delegation, which has claimed as its foremost priority the disarming of Hezbollah, said that it “discovered today” that it was on “the same side of the equation” as its Lebanese counterparts.

Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Israel continues to attack Gaza

  • The Israeli military said on Wednesday it killed one Palestinian in northern Gaza “who crossed the yellow line.”

  • Israeli gunfire and shelling wounded four Palestinians in the Zeitoun neighborhood and at the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza City on Wednesday, WAFA reports. Later attacks on Zeitoun destroyed several houses in the neighborhood.

  • At least 11 Palestinians were killed in separate Israeli attacks on Tuesday, including at least two children, according to Al Jazeera. Four people were killed, including a three-year-old in a strike targeting a police vehicle in Gaza City on Tuesday. Later in the evening, Civil Defense reported that another Israeli strike killed several people near an intersection in the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City. Another person was killed by Israeli fire in Beit Lahia.

  • Israeli forces shot and killed 14-year-old Adam Ahmed Khalaa near the Jabalia refugee camp in northern Gaza on Tuesday.

• Israeli attacks on the West Bank persist

  • Israeli forces demolished a house and several residential structures in Silwan and Issawiya in East Jerusalem on Wednesday morning, and assaulted several community members and foreign journalists in a raid on the Al-Bustan neighborhood.

  • Israeli settlers attacked a Bedouin family near Jericho on Wednesday, in the community of Halq al-Rumman, attempting to break into the house of a family in the community and causing widespread panic.

  • Israeli security forces arrested a former head of a local charity in Hebron on Wednesday, storming into the city’s Charitable Islamic Association and grabbing him.

  • Three Palestinians were detained in Bal’a, near Tulkarm, during a 15-hour raid on the village by the Israeli military, according to WAFA. Israeli soldiers reportedly conducted extensive raids in the town, handcuffing and blindfolding its young men before leading them to a “field interrogation center.” One of those still detained is a 63-year-old man.

  • An attack by Israeli settlers on the village of Tuqu’, near Bethlehem, injured three Palestinians on Tuesday. The settlers reportedly sprayed pepper spray in the faces of the Palestinians while attempting to steal their sheep. Another Israeli settler attack, conducted late at night near Nablus, involved the destruction of the road that connects the village of Duma to Khirbet al-Marajem. And in an attack on the Jerusalem suburb of Al-Ram, a bulldozer, reportedly belonging to Israeli military forces, razed a Palestinian horse stable.

• Palestinian political prisoner Marwan Barghouti repeatedly assaulted by Israeli prison guards: Ben Marmarelli, a lawyer for Palestinian political prisoner Marwan Barghouti, reported three violent assaults by Israeli prison guards against his client in the span of two weeks, including a severe beating on April 8 at Ganot Prison during which Barghouti was left bleeding for more than two hours and denied medical care, following an earlier attack during a prison transfer and a dog attack at Megiddo Prison. He said the attacks “form a pattern of rapidly escalating abuse” that places Barghouti “at immediate risk of severe harm or death,” and called for his immediate release.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• House Dems introduce bill which would formally assess Trump’s fitness for office: House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) introduced legislation on Tuesday that would establish a 17-member bipartisan commission authorized under Section 4 of the 25th Amendment to conduct a medical examination of President Donald Trump and assess whether he is mentally or physically unable to discharge the duties of his office, with 50 Democratic co-sponsors signed on. The bill faces long odds—Republicans control Congress, Trump could veto it, and any removal would ultimately require Vice President JD Vance’s sign-off and a two-thirds vote in both chambers—but comes after more than 85 House and Senate Democrats last week called for Trump’s impeachment or removal.

• Joint Chiefs chairman lobbies Congress to renew warrantless surveillance law: Joint Chiefs Chair General Dan Caine wrote a letter to several key congressional committees on Monday urging lawmakers to back President Donald Trump’s push for an 18-month clean reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act, which, though ostensibly used to collect data on “foreign targets abroad,” in effect permits the warrantless surveillance of Americans and the collection of their data. Caine warned that its loss would “increase risk to the Joint Force, degrade our worldwide combat lethality, and significantly impair U.S. security,” according to a copy of the letter obtained by Politico. The intervention signals White House anxiety about vote counts ahead of the law’s April 20 expiration, with more than a dozen House Republican holdouts citing privacy concerns. Several Democrats are expected to flip from their 2024 “yes” votes amid fears the Trump administration could weaponize the program against immigrants, and Rep. Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) introduced an amendment Monday to shorten the extension to one year.

  • Ahead of the Wednesday vote on whether to reauthorize FISA without any reforms, Drop Site’s Julian Andreone caught up with members of the Congressional Black Caucus to address reporting that, led by Rep. Greg Meeks (D-NY), the group sought to join the Trump administration—in particular, Stephen Miller—in pushing for a swift passage. Just hours before the vote, some CBC members are changing course and backing reforms. The video is available here.

• State Department accuses Cuba of role in Russia’s war in Ukraine: The Trump administration told Congress that between 1,000 and 5,000 Cuban nationals are fighting for Russia in Ukraine at any given time, while also supplying “diplomatic and political support for Moscow,” according to a five-page unclassified State Department memo reported on by Axios. The report stops short of concluding Havana officially dispatched “all Cuban fighters,” but states there are “significant indicators that the regime knowingly tolerated, enabled, or selectively facilitated the flow,” and dismisses Cuba’s claim to have prosecuted traffickers. In response to the report, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) told Axios, “If and when President Trump gets around to replacing” Cuba’s government, “and I believe that will happen sooner rather than later, it will be a very good day for the U.S. and our allies.”

• Trump admin is ordering the Pentagon to prepare for military operations against Cuba, Zeteo reports: The Trump administration has quietly directed Pentagon officials and other U.S. government agencies to step up preparations for possible military operations against Cuba, according to three sources familiar with the matter, Zeteo reported Tuesday.

• ICE pays $12.2 million for AI surveillance tool that maps immigrants’ daily routines and location: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement has awarded a $12.2 million contract to defense vendor Edge Ops LLC for an artificial intelligence tool called “Project SAFE HAVEN” that uses “persistent passive data collection” to map the “habitual locations, routes, and behavioral patterns” of its targets. It also purports to have the ability to build “profiles” of suspects by scraping data from Wi-Fi connections and mobile devices. The tool was purchased specifically for the Homeland Security Task Force National Coordination Center—a hub coordinating ICE, the Pentagon, and the FBI. Read more about this recent contract, and the expansion of ICE surveillance capacities, in the latest from The Lever, available here.

• ICE arrests immigrant delivery drivers at California checkpoint: An “interagency” pilot program at the Camp Pendleton Marine Corps Base in California has resulted in the detention of dozens of rideshare and delivery drivers, according to Capital & Main, with military police at the base’s gates calling Immigration and Customs Enforcement on any non-citizen or non-green card holder and attempting to persuade detainees to leave the United States. Among those caught up in the program is Assim Alkhawaja, a Palestinian man with a pending asylum claim and a valid work permit who was arrested in mid-February while dropping off two Marines at the base, shackled, pressured to voluntarily depart the country, before his community raised over $10,000 for his bail; another is a Haitian Uber Driver who complained about the exploitative nature of the detention facility, where detainees are made to pay for food, water, and calls to family. Read the full report from Capital & Main here.

• Thomson Reuters fires employee who dissented against selling data to ICE, lawsuit says: Thomson Reuters fired legal editor Billie Little on March 20, after more than 200 of its employees wrote a letter objecting to the use of the company’s CLEAR database, which contains significant amounts of personal data, by federal immigration authorities, according to a lawsuit filed Tuesday and reported on by 404 Media. Little was singled out for her resistance, and according to her attorneys appears to be the only employee fired for her resistance. Her team argues that the firing violated Oregon’s whistleblower protection law.

• 86-year-old detained by ICE in Louisiana: An 86-year-old French woman identified only as Marie-Thérèse, who moved to Alabama last year to marry a former U.S. Army colonel she had fallen in love with at a NATO base in France in the 1950s, is being held in a crowded Louisiana detention facility after ICE agents arrested and shackled her on April 1. Marie-Thérèse’s husband died in January 2026 before she had obtained a green card, leaving her immigration status unresolved. Her son told Ouest-France that her family fears for her life, given her heart and back conditions. “Given her health, she won’t last a month in such conditions of detention,” he said.

• Tennessee passes act that would penalize student protest: The Tennessee General Assembly passed the Charlie Kirk Act on Monday, “free speech” legislation that could subject students and faculty to suspension or expulsion for staging walkouts and using oversized signs during speaking events on campus. The bill also offers protections against disinvitation for individuals with certain views, including opposition to abortion, homosexuality, and “transgender behavior.” It also allows student organizations to deny membership or leadership roles to students who conflict with their “lifestyle.” The measure passed along partisan lines and needs only Gov. Bill Lee’s signature to become law.

• New poll shows Cori Bush tied with Wesley Bell in Missouri Democratic primary: A new poll commissioned by former Rep. Cori Bush and conducted by HIT Strategies shows Bush and incumbent Wesley Bell (D-Mo.) statistically tied among likely Democratic primary voters in Missouri’s 1st congressional district, with Bell at 44% and Bush at 40%, within the survey’s 5.4% margin of error. The poll, conducted February 19–23 among 401 likely Democratic primary voters, also found Bush holds higher overall favorability than Bell—52% to 45%—and that AIPAC, a major backer of Bell’s 2024 campaign, carries a 40% unfavorable rating among district Democrats, while ICE is 86% unfavorable to the same demographic.

• Mills deflects genocide question, points to African countries instead: Maine governor and senatorial candidate Janet Mills (D) was asked at a campaign event on Tuesday if she thinks Israel is committing a genocide in Gaza. After opening with a condemnation of events of October 7, using the word “horrific” to describe it and what has transpired in Gaza, she refused to answer the question directly. Instead she pointed to one African country with a widely reported genocide and two with historic genocides. “There’s a genocide right now going on in Sudan. Rwanda…there’s a genocide. There’s a genocide going on in Somalia.…There’s a lot we have to be concerned about, a lot on our plate.”

Other International News

• Milei’s disability agency at center of campaign corruption, report says: Argentina’s National Disability Agency (ANDIS) is at the center of an alleged kickback scheme in which pharmaceutical companies received government contracts in exchange for bribes worth roughly 3% of contract value, bribes paid to officials close to President Javier Milei, according to Página/12. One defendant has even implicated Milei’s sister, Karina, in the scheme. Milei himself is accused of having a campaign event financed by the Kovalivker family, which owns a pharmaceutical distributor and is implicated in the case, and is reportedly under investigation. Read more on this story here.

• U.S. military kills four in second Pacific boat strike in two days: The U.S. military struck a boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Tuesday, killing four people in the 50th such strike since early September, bringing the total death toll to at least 174, according to U.S. Southern Command. The command cited unspecified intelligence and said the vessel had been traveling on “known narco-trafficking routes,” releasing a 16-second video showing the boat exploding, but provided no evidence of drug smuggling.

• School shooting injures 16 in Turkey: An 18-year-old opened fire with a shotgun at a vocational high school he had once attended in Siverek, Şanlıurfa province, on Tuesday, wounding 16 people—including 10 students, four teachers, a canteen employee, and a police officer—before killing himself. Five of the wounded were transferred to a hospital in the provincial capital due to the severity of their injuries. The motive for the shooting remains unclear.

• Mexico’s Sheinbaum rebukes Trump for his immigration policy: Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum once again noted her disapproval of her northern neighbor’s immigration policy during a daily press briefing, calling the deaths of Mexican nationals in U.S. immigration detention “unacceptable” on Tuesday. Her remarks come a day after 49-year-old Alejandro Cabrera Clemente died at a Louisiana ICE facility, the fifteenth such death in little over a year. She announced she had opened investigations into all 15 deaths, instructed Mexican consulates to visit U.S. detention centers daily, and said she was bringing the cases before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, and was also considering an appeal to the United Nations. “We are going to defend Mexicans at every level,” Sheinbaum told the press, adding that “there are many Mexicans whose only crime is not having papers.”

• Spain approves amnesty program for half a million undocumented immigrants: Spain’s government approved a program on Tuesday that will allow up to 500,000 undocumented immigrants to apply for legal status. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez fast-tracked the measure via decree to bypass a parliament where his left-wing government lacks a majority, after a previous amnesty bill failed because of parliamentary objections. Eligible applicants must have arrived before January 1, prove at least five months of residency, and have no criminal record. They will receive a one-year work and residency permit, which can be renewed into a longer-term status. Sánchez called the move “an act of justice and a necessity,” arguing that immigrants have helped Spain become “the fastest-growing economy in Europe.”

• Greece accused of recruiting migrants as “enforcers” to pressure other migrants out: Greek police have been recruiting detained migrants to carry out violent illegal pushbacks along the Evros river border with Turkey since at least 2020, according to a new investigation from the BBC. Witnesses described masked units stripping new arrivals, robbing them, and beating them, with some migrants reporting sexual violence and death threats at the hands of their masked captors. The mercenary migrants were reportedly compensated for their services with Arab or Turkish currencies, and occasionally with sexual services, according to one source. The BBC’s full investigation is available here.

• Hundreds of former European ministers, diplomats call for suspension of EU-Israel Association Agreement: A group of 350 former European ministers, ambassadors, and senior officials has urged the European Union to suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement over Israel’s systematic violations of international law in Palestine. “With the world attention focussed elsewhere, Israel under the cloak of illegal military operations in Iran and Lebanon, has pursued the subjugation of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, by doubling down on its illegal occupation policy, the signatories said in a joint statement on Wednesday.

• Venezuela’s interim president calls for full sanctions relief: Venezuelan interim President Delcy Rodríguez called on Tuesday for the United States to lift all sanctions on Venezuela, writing on X that “We reiterate the need to advance towards a Venezuela free of sanctions, as a means of providing institutional legal certainty to investors coming to our country—a setting where they are guaranteed sustained investment over time and a forward-looking perspective.” She made this statement on the same day the U.S. Treasury Department announced it would be easing a small spate of restrictions on Venezuela’s banking system, by issuing licenses that would allow the country’s central bank and several state-owned financial institutions to make transactions.

• Hundreds of Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi nationals missing after boat capsizes: Approximately 250 Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi nationals are missing after a boat capsized in the Andaman Sea, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reported on Tuesday. The boat reportedly left Bangladesh and was en route to Malaysia. The Bangladesh Coast Guard rescued nine survivors on April 9, including one woman found floating on drums and logs; six of the nine are alleged traffickers and have been detained. One survivor, Rafiqul Islam, told AFP he had been lured aboard by traffickers who promised him work in Malaysia, that the vessel travelled for four days before capsizing, and that 25 to 30 people died from suffocation and overcrowding before he spent 36 hours floating in open water before rescue.

• U.S. to send third-country deportees to DRC. this week: The United States is set to send between 37 and 45 deportees—all nationals of countries other than Congo, including people from Colombia, Peru, Chile, and Guatemala—to the Democratic Republic of Congo by Friday under a third-country deportation agreement announced on April 5, with the deportees to be housed in a hotel near Kinshasa’s main airport for 10 to 15 days, Reuters reported Tuesday.

• Rival Libyan factions participate in U.S. special forces exercises together for the first time: Forces from Libya’s eastern and western rival administrations participated jointly in U.S. AFRICOM’s “Flintlock” special operations exercises in the central city of Sirte on Tuesday, the first such joint military event between the former civil war adversaries, with more than 30 countries taking part. The exercises come days after the two sides agreed to Libya’s first unified budget in more than a decade, marking a notable thaw between the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity and Khalifa Haftar’s eastern Libyan National Army, which attempted to seize the capital in 2019–2020.

• Somali forces kill 27 al-Shabaab militants in Jubbaland: Somalia’s armed forces and regional security forces killed 27 al-Shabaab militants, including “key members” of the group, in a “large-scale operation” in the Lower and Middle Jubba regions of the country, Reuters reported Tuesday. The operation was supported by airstrikes from undisclosed international partners, the military said. The U.S. military has previously conducted airstrikes in support of the Somali government’s military actions.

• Russian strikes hit Dnipro and Izmail, killing civilians and hitting foreign-flagged ships: A Russian missile strike killed at least five civilians and wounded more than two dozen others in the southeastern Ukrainian city of Dnipro on Tuesday, according to Reuters. At least 10 of the hospitalized were in severe condition, and an infrastructure facility was also damaged in the strike. Russian drones also struck Ukraine’s Izmail port in the Odesa region overnight, damaging a Panama-flagged vessel and parts of the port’s infrastructure, and a separate strike hit the Liberian-flagged merchant vessel “Lady Maris” as it travelled through a maritime corridor to load corn, Ukrainian officials reported Tuesday. The Lady Maris reached the port of Chornomorsk after its crew extinguished a fire on board.

• Accusations of fraud in Peru’s presidential race: Latest figures from Peru’s election authority place leftist candidate Roberto Sánchez in second place, which would advance him to the runoff. Presidential candidate Rafael López Aliaga, a wealthy businessman and leader of the ultraconservative Popular Renewal party, who had been in second, called for the annulment of the April 2026 general election, warning he could push for “insurgency” if authorities do not comply. He accused National Jury of Elections president Roberto Burneo of complicity in alleged electoral sabotage tied to logistics delays, a claim other candidates have also raised, but Burneo has rejected. Four-time candidate Keiko Fujimori, who placed first but failed to secure a majority, will proceed to the runoff.

More from Drop Site

• Weekly Livestream: Drop Site co-founder Jeremy Scahill and Middle East editor Sharif Abdel Kouddous host veteran Middle East analyst Rami Khouri to discuss the latest in Iran, cover the most recent developments in the ceasefire, and review the situation in Lebanon. The full livestream is available here:
  

• Panel on upcoming congressional renewal of warrantless surveillance: Drop Site’s Capitol Hill correspondent, Julian Andreone, hosted a conversation about the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act and the state of mass surveillance in America, in anticipation of Congress’ potential reauthorization of Section 702 of that act, which allows intelligence agencies to sweep up vast troves of personal data without a warrant in the pursuit of “security.” Andreone is joined by Liza Goitein of the Brennan Center, Sean Vitka of Demand Progress, and political commentator Jess Craven. That panel discussion is available here:

• Global Sumud Flotilla’s Spring Mission commences: Drop Site contributor Noa Avishag Schnall sent a video dispatch from the launch day of the Global Sumud Flotilla’s Spring Mission to Gaza, which launched from Barcelona on April 12 with 39 vessels and over 1,000 participants. The flotilla aims to break Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza. That video is available here:

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Pakistan proposes to host second round of talks on Iran war. At least 3 ships pass through Hormuz on first day of blockade. Vice President JD Vance discusses Islamabad talks, U.S. demands. Iran says damaged railway infrastructure repaired. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer rejects U.S. blockade push, calls for Lebanon ceasefire extension. HRW: Israel’s oil depot strikes in Iran likely war crimes. Most Israelis oppose Iran ceasefire, poll finds. Israel and Lebanese ambassadors set to meet in Washington. Hezbollah leader rejects talks between Israel and the Lebanese government. Israel continues to violate ceasefire, strikes Gaza City. President Donald Trump sparks backlash after posting AI image depicting himself as Jesus Christ. Rep. Eric Swalwell and Rep. Tony Gonzales announce resignations from Congress. Trump says “we may stop by Cuba.” Congressional Black Caucus set to back warrantless surveillance reauthorization, Rep. Lauren Boebert registers objection. Minnesota county investigates ICE arrest of American citizen as a potential kidnapping. Dozens arrested at NYC protest against the Iran war and arms sales to Israel. Sudanese army drones kill at least 20 civilians across Darfur. Former Brazilian intelligence chief detained by ICE in Florida. Philippines says China is using cyanide to poison contested maritime region. Police attempt to suppress Indian factory workers’ protest in Noida. Islamist militants kill seven soldiers at Nigerian army base near Chad border. U.S. military kills two in latest vessel strike in the Pacific.

From Drop Site: Prominent journalist Ahmed Shihab-Eldin has been in jail for six weeks in Kuwait. Former contractor outlines abuses at GHF aid sites. Leaked documents reveal secret Pakistan-Saudi defense pact. Student faces up to 34 years on felony charges over 51-second dispute.

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U.S.-Iran War

• Pakistan proposes to host second round of talks: Pakistan has proposed hosting a second round of talks between the United States and Iran in Islamabad in the coming days, according to the Associated Press. A Pakistani official told Al Jazeera that the country is ready to host the process to bring peace for as many rounds as it takes.

• At least 3 ships pass through Hormuz on first day of blockade: Three Iran-linked tankers have passed through the Strait of Hormuz on the first full day of the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports, according to shipping data. The three vessels were not heading to Iranian ports and so they were not covered by the blockade, Reuters reported. The U.S. military blockade of all Iranian ports and coastal areas along the Persian Gulf and Gulf of Oman, which Trump announced on Sunday, was supposed to go into effect at 10 a.m. ET on Monday. Trump told reporters that he did expect other countries to assist in the blockade, before refusing to name these countries. “We don’t need other countries,” he said. He also suggested that his threats against Iran still stood, saying he didn’t want to comment directly on those remarks, but that “it won’t be pleasant for them” if they refuse to meet the U.S. demands.

• Vance discusses Islamabad talks, U.S. demands: Vice President JD Vance discussed the peace talks in Pakistan over the weekend with Fox News, saying that “the meeting was useful in acquiring knowledge about how they are negotiating,” and saying that it is “up to the Iranians to take the next step.” In the same interview, Vance said that uranium enrichment was a non-negotiable red line for the U.S. delegation. Axios reported Monday that the United States proposed a minimum 20-year moratorium on uranium enrichment in Islamabad, with Iran countering with a “single digit” number of years. The U.S. also demanded Iran remove all highly enriched uranium from the country, while Tehran offered a “monitored process of down-blending” as an alternative. Vance told Fox News that the U.S. is insisting Iran fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz. “We need to see the Straits of Hormuz fully open,” he said, and warned that if Iran does not “continue to make progress” with the Strait, it would “fundamentally change the negotiations.”

• Iran says damaged railway infrastructure repaired: Iranian state-linked Tasnim News Agency reported on Monday that six railway sites struck in recent U.S.-Israeli attacks have been repaired and returned to service. The strikes damaged several bridges across the country, including in Qom, Kashan, and Zanjan, as well as along the Tehran-Mashhad line. Tasnim said a key bridge near Qom was rebuilt in under 40 hours, with repairs at the remaining sites taking longer to complete. Tasnim also reported on Monday that more than 40,813 residential units in Tehran were damaged during the war. Of those, 34,348 require minor repairs, 4,483 need moderate repairs, and 779 require structural reinforcement.

• Two tankers reverse course near Strait of Hormuz: At least two tankers reversed course near the Strait of Hormuz on Monday following the start of the U.S. blockade, according to MarineTraffic data. Both vessels had been eastbound out of the Gulf, with one departing the United Arab Emirates en route to China before turning back; one of the two ships was fully laden at the time of the course reversal. Trump claimed in a post on Truth Social that 34 ships went through the Strait on Sunday, a claim which no independent ship traffic monitor has confirmed and which all available data contradicts.

• Starmer rejects U.S. blockade push, calls for Lebanon ceasefire extension: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer dismissed U.S. calls to support a multinational blockade of the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, insisting the waterway must remain open and free of tolls, and announced that the United Kingdom and France will co-host a high-level summit this week to establish a “peaceful multinational mission” aimed at restoring freedom of navigation there. Addressing members of Parliament following a three-day visit to the Middle East, Starmer called Israel’s ongoing bombardment of Lebanon “wrong” and demanded the strikes “stop now.” He urged that Lebanon be “included urgently” in the fragile ceasefire between the U.S., Israel, and Iran. European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas made similar calls for an international coalition on maritime security during remarks at the United Nations Security Council on Monday.

• Spain becomes first Western nation to reopen embassy in Tehran: Spain formally reopened its embassy in Tehran on Monday, becoming the first Western country to restore a diplomatic presence in Iran since the ceasefire, with Ambassador Antonio Sánchez-Benedito declaring he had returned “in order to join in efforts for peace from every possible quarter.” The embassy had closed on March 7 when staff evacuated amid U.S.-Israeli airstrikes.

• HRW: Israel’s oil depot strikes in Iran likely war crimes: Human Rights Watch said that Israeli attacks on four oil depots in and around Tehran last month violated international law and are likely war crimes. “Israel’s March 7 attacks on oil depots surrounding Tehran may have devastating consequences on the environment and people’s health for many years and likely amount to war crimes,” Bahar Saba, senior Iran researcher at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement. “Israeli forces don’t appear to have factored in the foreseeable long-term harm in the Tehran vicinity, for which they should be held accountable.” Read Drop Site’s coverage of the strikes here.

• Iran formally demands war reparations at the UN Security Council: Iran’s United Nations envoy Amir Saeid Iravani formally submitted a letter to the Security Council on Monday, demanding reparations from Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan, accusing all five of facilitating or directly participating in the U.S.-Israeli assault on Iran. Tehran claims the states allowed their territory to be used for attacks and, in some cases, took part in strikes on civilian targets, and says it has submitted documented evidence based on military assessments to support its case.

• Bahrain summons Iraqi envoy over drone attacks: Bahrain summoned Iraq’s chargé d’affaires Ahmed Ismail al-Karawi on Monday to deliver a formal protest over continued drone attacks launched from Iraqi territory against Bahrain and other Gulf Cooperation Council states, one day after Saudi Arabia took similar diplomatic action. Bahrain’s Foreign Ministry strongly condemned what it called “continued malicious drone attacks” and called on Baghdad to address the threat “urgently and responsibly.”

• Pro-Iran hackers claim to have shut down major Bahraini and Saudi steel producers: The Handala cyber group claimed Monday to have hacked and disabled all operations at Bahraini steel producer Fulat and Saudi Arabia’s SULB, describing the operation as retaliation for recent attacks on Iran’s infrastructure, according to Iran’s Fars News Agency.

• Most Israelis oppose Iran ceasefire, poll finds: Nearly two-thirds of Israelis oppose the U.S.-Iran ceasefire, according to a new poll from the Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Agam Labs, conducted April 9 and 10 among over 1,300 respondents. Thirty-nine percent said Israel should resume attacks on Iran, 41 percent said it should respect the ceasefire, and 19 percent were unsure. More than 61 percent of Israelis said the ceasefire should not extend to the conflict in Lebanon.

Lebanon

• Casualty count: The death toll from Israel’s assault on Lebanon has risen to at least 2,089—with 6,762 wounded—since March 2, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. That figure includes more than 166 children and 88 health care workers.

• Continuing Israeli attacks: At least six people have been killed in Israeli attacks in Lebanon on Tuesday, according to the National News Agency, including three people from one family in Sahmar in west Bekaa where a series of air raids hit the town, destroying more than 10 homes. Three people were also killed in Israel strikes in the Sidon district in southern Lebanon.

• Hezbollah conducts series of attacks, kills Israeli soldier: Hezbollah said it conducted a series of attacks on Israel and on military troops on Lebanese territory. The group said it struck Israeli artillery positions established in the town of Biyyada in southern Lebanon. It said it also targeted the Kfar Jaladi outpost with attack drones, followed by rockets targeting the Misgav Am settlement. The Israeli military said one soldier was killed and three seriously wounded during fighting in southern Lebanon.

• Red Cross calls attacks on Lebanese medics “gravely concerning”: The International Committee of the Red Cross on Monday condemned a pattern of attacks on medical personnel in Lebanon as “gravely concerning,” after a strike hit a Red Cross facility in the Sour district of southern Lebanon on Monday, killing one person and damaging vehicles. The organization said it was also “deeply distressed” by the death of Lebanese Red Cross paramedic Hassan Badawi, who was killed while conducting a rescue mission in the south. At least 88 medical workers in Lebanon have been killed in Israeli attacks since March 2.

• Israeli and Lebanese ambassadors set to meet in Washington: Israeli and Lebanese officials are scheduled to meet in Washington, DC, today for their highest-level direct talks in decades. Lebanese Ambassador Nada Hamadeh and Israeli Ambassador Yechiel Leiter are due to meet at 11 a.m. ET according to a schedule published by the State Department. Secretary of State Marco Rubio will join the talks. Lebanon’s presidency has said the talks would focus on announcing a ceasefire and setting a start date for bilateral talks. However, Israel has said it would not discuss a ceasefire during the talks and instead would focus on disarming Hezbollah and establishing peaceful relations between Israel and Lebanon.

• Hezbollah leader rejects talks between Israel and the Lebanese government: Hezbollah Secretary-General Naim Qassem in a televised address Monday rejected the planned meeting between the Lebanese and Israeli ambassadors in Washington on Tuesday, calling the talks “futile” and urging the Lebanese government to take “a historic and heroic stance” by refusing to attend. Qassem said the negotiations are a ploy to pressure Hezbollah into disarming, noting that Netanyahu has openly stated disarmament as the talks’ objective. “We will not rest, stop or surrender. Instead, we will let the battlefield speak for itself,” he said.

Genocide in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Israel continues to violate ceasefire, strikes Gaza City:

  • The Israeli military bombed a police vehicle in Gaza City on Tuesday killing four Palestinians and wounding nine others, according to Drop Site contributor Mohammed Ahmed. Earlier on Monday, one Palestinian was killed in an Israeli bombing in Beit Lahia.

  • Israeli forces attacked a cafe near Dawood Tower in central Gaza City on Monday evening, WAFA reported, killing one and injuring several others. Earlier Israeli gunfire had left two Palestinians wounded, in the neighborhoods of Shujaiyya and Zeitoun east of Gaza City.

• Former contractor outlines abuses at GHF aid sites: A former British security contractor who managed a Gaza Humanitarian Foundation aid site in central Gaza between August and October 2025 has given his first on-record account of Israeli soldiers routinely and indiscriminately firing on unarmed Palestinians seeking food, telling Drop Site News and Middle East Eye that the killing of a boy of around 12 years old at the site was “straight up murder.” David McIntosh, a former Royal Marines commando, said Israeli soldiers positioned near Site 4 in the Netzarim corridor would open fire on crowds of Palestinians lying in a dry riverbed from 4 a.m. each morning, with snipers, machine guns, and tanks targeting anyone who moved. McIntosh said he filed detailed daily reports on the incidents to his employer, logistics firm Safe Reach Solutions, and never received a response. Read more about McIntosh and the abuses of GHF, in her latest for Drop Site News available here.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Trump sparks backlash after posting AI image depicting himself as Jesus Christ: President Donald Trump faced criticism from across the Christian political spectrum Monday after posting an AI-generated image of himself in a white robe performing what appeared to be a healing. He later claimed the image depicted him as “a Red Cross worker” or a “doctor.” Columnists and conservative activists accused the president of blasphemy for his post, and the criticism crossed political lines, with progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) posting on X: “Trump is now attacking the pope for speaking out against war while posting images of himself as a messianic figure. This is not only offensive. It is deranged, egomaniacal behaviour.”

• Swalwell and Gonzales announce resignations from Congress: Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) announced Monday he will resign from Congress, one day after suspending his campaign for California governor amid multiple allegations of sexual assault and misconduct. Swalwell apologized for what he described as “mistakes in judgment” from his past but explicitly denied the sexual assault claims and said he intends to fight them. Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas) also announced Monday that he will resign from Congress. Gonzales, a third-term Republican whose border district stretches from San Antonio to El Paso, faced mounting bipartisan pressure after text messages documenting his pursuit of a female staff member, Regina Santos-Aviles, became public earlier this year. Santos-Aviles, who worked in Gonzales’s Uvalde district office, died by suicide in September 2025. Gonzales was subsequently accused of pursuing a second staff member, reportedly pressing her for nude photographs and sex in 2020. “When Congress returns tomorrow, I will file my retirement from office,” Gonzales said in a social media post Monday.

• Trump says “we may stop by Cuba”: While addressing reporters after DoorDash-ing McDonald’s to the White House on Monday, President Trump threatened Cuba once again, saying that “we may stop by Cuba after we are finished with this,” referring to the war on Iran. “We’re gonna see with Cuba,” he said before calling it a “failing nation” and accusing the government of being oppressive, of “beating up” its citizens and “mugging” them.

• Congressional Black Caucus set to back warrantless surveillance reauthorization, Boebert registers objection: Congressional Black Caucus is quietly preparing to support a clean reauthorization of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act (FISA) this week, according to The American Prospect, which grants U.S. officials, in theory, the right to collect communications data from foreign targets living abroad, but in practice has been used to conduct warrantless surveillance on Americans and collect troves of their data. The CBC intends to support the law, despite its use to collect the personal data of 130 Black Lives Matter activists in 2020. The caucus’s shift follows behind-the-scenes lobbying by Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-N.Y.), the ranking member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, who persuaded CBC leadership to drop its push for reforms; CBC chairwoman Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.), who had opposed Section 702 as far back as 2010 and voted against its last reauthorization in 2024, appears to have reversed course. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) registered her objection to the provision, writing to NSA director Gen. Joshua Rudd and demanding answers over agency analysts’ use of Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act to search the private communications of individuals they had met on dating apps and a prospective tenant for a personal rental property, abuses first disclosed in a 2023 Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board report. For more on the potential renewal of 702 by Congress, read the latest The American Prospect, here.

• Minnesota county investigates ICE arrest of American citizen as a potential kidnapping: Ramsey County Attorney John Choi and Sheriff Bob Fletcher announced Monday they are investigating the January 18 arrest of ChongLy “Scott” Thao, a 56-year-old Hmong American man and longtime U.S. citizen, as a potential case of kidnapping, burglary, and false imprisonment after ICE agents broke down the door of his St. Paul home at gunpoint without a warrant, according to Ramsey County’s preliminary findings. The agents reportedly removed Thao in his underwear and a blanket in freezing temperatures, before eventually realizing that he had no criminal record and was a U.S. citizen, returning him home after several hours. Homeland Security later claimed ICE had been seeking two convicted sex offenders with ties to the property, but Thao said he had never seen the men.

• Energy secretary talks Hormuz, Venezuela: U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said Monday at the Semafor World Economy Forum in Washington that oil prices will continue rising until “meaningful” vessel traffic resumes through the Strait of Hormuz, predicting a peak within weeks. Wright also highlighted rapid growth in Venezuelan oil exports, saying roughly 150 million barrels have been sold since January 3 following the forced ouster of Nicolás Maduro, with production up approximately 25% over the same period. He said five U.S. companies are currently operating inside Venezuela and that a sixth is expected to be announced soon.

• Dozens arrested at NYC protest against the Iran war and arms sales to Israel: Nearly 100 people were arrested in New York City on Monday at a protest against the war on Iran and U.S. arms sales to Israel. Hundreds of demonstrators attempted to stage a sit-in inside the Manhattan offices of Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer (D) and Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D). After security blocked the demonstrators from entering the building, the protest continued on the street outside. Jewish Voice for Peace, which helped organize the protest, said among those arrested was whistleblower Chelsea Manning and New York City Council Member Alexa Aviles.

Other International News

• Sudanese army drones kill at least 20 civilians across Darfur: The Sudanese armed forces launched a series of drone strikes across East, West, and North Darfur on Sunday and Monday, killing at least 20 civilians, according to Sudan Tribune. In West Darfur, five people were killed and 20 others were wounded when a strike hit the crowded Al-Jumruk market, leaving bodies charred and the facility completely burned; five more civilians died when a separate drone struck a vehicle on the road linking Zalingei and Geneina in the Sisi area. In Ed Daein, East Darfur’s capital, at least 10 civilians were killed, including five environmental health workers, with strikes hitting multiple sites, including the General Intelligence Service headquarters, which the RSF uses as a detention center.

• Former Brazilian intelligence chief detained by ICE in Florida: Alexandre Ramagem, former head of Brazil’s intelligence agency under ex-President Jair Bolsonaro, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in Florida on Monday after fleeing Brazil last year, according to Reuters. Ramagem had been convicted and sentenced to more than 16 years in prison for his role in a plot to overturn Brazil’s 2022 presidential election won by Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and Brazilian authorities had requested his extradition in 2025. U.S. officials said he is being held on immigration grounds rather than in connection with the extradition request, with reports indicating he was initially stopped in Orlando before being referred to ICE. Ramagem also faces accusations of using Brazil’s intelligence apparatus to surveil political opponents and judges during his tenure.

• Philippines says China is using cyanide to poison contested maritime region: The government of the Philippines announced Monday that laboratory tests confirmed the presence of cyanide in bottles seized by the Philippine navy last year from Chinese boats at Second Thomas Shoal, a submerged reef in the Spratly Islands, and suggested that the substance may have been used to deliberately kill local fish populations and damage the reef, where a Philippine warship had intentionally grounded itself to reinforce Manila’s maritime claim to the area. National Security Council spokesperson Cornelio Valencia said the cyanide represented “a form of sabotage” that could deprive navy personnel of a vital food source and ultimately compromise the vessel’s structural stability. China’s Foreign Ministry rejected the allegations as a “stunt.”

• Police attempt to suppress Indian factory workers’ protest in Noida: Police fired tear gas and deployed anti-riot personnel Monday to contain a factory workers’ protest in Noida, one of Asia’s largest planned industrial townships on the outskirts of New Delhi, after demonstrations entered their fourth day with vehicles torched and stones thrown at security forces. Workers are demanding fixed hours, paid overtime, and compliance with India’s federal labor guidelines, grievances amplified by rising living costs linked to fuel supply disruptions from the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran. The unrest follows similar protests last week in the auto-manufacturing state of Haryana, where the government responded by ordering a 35% hike in minimum wages.

• Islamist militants kill seven soldiers at Nigerian army base near Chad border: Islamist militants riding motorbikes stormed an army base in Monguno, near Nigeria’s northeastern border with Chad, late Sunday, killing the base commander and six other soldiers, according to Reuters. The attack on the base was carried out by members of both Boko Haram and its splinter group Islamic State West Africa Province, the sources said, and came days after a string of coordinated attacks on military positions elsewhere in Borno State. At least 12 militants were also killed in a gunfight with officers.

• U.S. military kills two in latest vessel strike in the Pacific: The U.S. military conducted a strike against a boat in the eastern Pacific Ocean on Thursday, killing two people, according to U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM). SOUTHCOM posted a video of the strike and said, “Two male narco-terrorists were killed during this action” without providing evidence. At least 170 people have been killed in dozens U.S. strikes on vessels in the Pacific and Caribbean since September.

• Italy suspends defense agreement with Israel: Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni announced on Tuesday she was suspending Italy’s defense agreement with Israel “in light of the current situation,” according to Italian news agency Ansa. The agreement, first launched in 2005 and automatically renewed every five years, was designed to promote trade deals between Italy and Israel, particularly in the defense sector, according to Corriere della Sera.

More from Drop Site

• Leaked documents reveal secret Pakistan-Saudi defense pact: Classified documents obtained by Drop Site News reveal that Pakistan is bound by a secret defense agreement with Saudi Arabia that has never been reviewed by its parliament and that obligates Islamabad to send forces to the kingdom for defensive purposes—a treaty that directly complicates Pakistan’s posture as a neutral mediator in the U.S.-Iran conflict. Read about the history and contents of this agreement in Murtaza Hussain’s latest for Drop Site, available here.

• Student faces up to 34 years on felony charges for pro-Palestine protest: Muhammad Ali, a 23-year-old Muslim American college student, faces felony charges carrying a maximum sentence of 34 years in prison stemming from a 51-second confrontation at a pro-Palestine encampment at the University of Pittsburgh on June 3, 2024. Body camera footage shows Ali briefly pulling on a metal barrier before stepping back with his hands raised. Ali was expelled from the University of Pittsburgh one semester short of graduating and lost nearly a year of classes. He hopes to attend law school, but whether that’s possible depends on the outcome of his trial, which is scheduled for May. Drop Site contributor Mehr Shehr writes about Ali’s egregious case in her latest, available in full here.

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U.S.-Iran talks in Pakistan fail to produce a deal. U.S. announces blockades of Strait of Hormuz, Iranian ports. Three oil supertankers cross Hormuz. U.S. military members have a crisis of conscience. President Donald Trump attacks Pope Leo XIV as “weak.” Israeli tank rams UNIFIL vehicles twice in southern Lebanon. Israel escalates double-tap strikes on rescue crews in Lebanon, killing Red Cross paramedic. Israel and Lebanon agree to meet Tuesday for direct peace talks. Attacks on Gaza continue over the weekend. Settlers kill unarmed Palestinian near Ramallah. Trump says gas prices might not drop before midterms. Rep. Eric Swalwell drops California governor bid after sexual misconduct allegations. J Street now supports ending aid to Israel. Trump administration detains hundreds of DACA recipients, fires two judges who refused to deport pro-Palestinian students. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán defeated after 16 years in historic upset. Keiko Fujimori leads Peru presidential vote. U.S. military kills five people in strikes on two vessels in Eastern Pacific. Nigerian military airstrike kills at least 200 civilians. Libya’s rival governments approve first unified budget in over a decade. Senior RSF commander defects to Sudanese army. Gunmen kill Hazara Shia civilians in western Afghanistan. Three Pakistani coast guards killed in Baluch separatist attack. At least 30 killed during a stampede in Haiti. Cuba’s president discusses blockade.

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Ceasefire updates

• U.S.-Iran talks in Pakistan fail to produce a deal: Negotiations in Islamabad—attended by Vice President JD Vance, Envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, and a technical team on the U.S. side—ran for 21 hours from Saturday into Sunday. When Vance emerged from the negotiations on Sunday, he said that the United States had presented Iran with its “final and best offer,” framing the impasse around nuclear specifically—a framing Iran rejected.

  • According to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, who helped lead the Iranian delegation, Iran and the U.S. were “inches away” from an “Islamabad MoU” following “intensive talks at highest level in 47 years,” but the talks fell through because of U.S. “maximalism, shifting goalposts and blockade.” Araghchi added, “Zero lessons earned. Good will begets good will. Enmity begets enmity.” Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said the two sides had “reached understandings on a number of issues,” but had failed to resolve disagreements on “two to three major points.” Washington reportedly proposed early in the negotiation for joint administration of the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Financial Times, which the Iranian delegation rejected.

  • Vance said the core U.S. demand is a firm, long-term commitment from Iran not to pursue a nuclear weapon or the capability to rapidly build one, claiming Iran’s previous enrichment facilities have been destroyed and that the remaining obstacle is political will rather than capability. He said the U.S. was “flexible” and negotiated in good faith that Iran “chose not to accept.”

  • No date or location has yet been set for another round of negotiations, but Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar said on Sunday that Islamabad would “continue the necessary efforts” to come to an agreement.

• U.S. announces blockades of Strait of Hormuz, Iranian ports: President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that the U.S. will begin blockading all ships entering or leaving the Strait of Hormuz, ordering the U.S. Navy to interdict vessels and warning that any ship paying Iranian transit fees will be stopped: “No one who pays an illegal toll will have safe passage.” Trump said Iran “knowingly failed” to keep the Strait open and may have placed mines, and declared the U.S. will “begin destroying the mines,” adding that “any Iranian who fires at us… will be BLOWN TO HELL.” U.S. Central Command announced Sunday that it would begin a blockade of all maritime traffic entering and exiting Iranian ports on the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman at 10 a.m. ET on Monday. In response, Iran’s speaker of parliament Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf, who helped lead the talks for Iran posted online: “Enjoy the current pump figures. With the so-called ‘blockade’, Soon you’ll be nostalgic for $4–$5 gas.”

• Netanyahu, in “close coordination” with U.S., supports naval blockade: Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that Israel supports Washington’s decision to impose a naval blockade on Iran. “We, of course, support this firm position, and we are in constant coordination with the United States,” Netanyahu said, according to AFP. Axios’s Barak Ravid reported that Netanyahu told his cabinet that “[JD Vance] called me from his plane on his way back from Islamabad. He reported to me in detail, as this administration does every day, about the development of the negotiations.”

• U.S. says warships transited Hormuz, Iran disagrees: Iran disputed CENTCOM claims that two Navy destroyers—the USS Frank E. Peterson and USS Michael Murphy—had successfully transited the Strait of Hormuz. The ships did not appear on VesselFinder, Kpler, or MarineTraffic. Iranian state media described the attempt as “a very high-risk operation…basically to take a ‘souvenir photo,’” and “strongly denied” that any U.S. military ships had made the transit.

• Three supertankers cross Hormuz: Two Chinese supertankers and one Greek vessel crossed the Strait of Hormuz carrying a combined 6 million barrels of oil Friday—the largest single day of oil exits through the strait since the war brought traffic to a near-halt six weeks ago, Bloomberg reported. The Chinese vessels Cospearl Lake and He Rong Hai loaded their crude in Saudi Arabia and Iraq, respectively, while the Greek tanker Serifos loaded in Saudi Arabia and was bound for Malacca, Malaysia.

• Thousands of crew members still stuck on tankers: Thousands of crew members stuck on vessels in and around the Strait of Hormuz are running short on basics, according to Milind Kandalgaonkar, general secretary of the National Union of Seafarers of India. “Many of these seafarers are reportedly facing acute shortages of food, potable water, and essential medical supplies,” Kandalgaonkar wrote a letter to India’s national shipping board, according to AP, where he highlighted the plight of nearly 20,000 Indian crew members stranded in the region.

• U.S. military members have a crisis of conscience: The U.S. military is facing a significant and accelerating retention crisis driven by the Iran war, NPR reports, with the GI Rights Hotline—which was set up to inform service members of their options for military discharge—reporting more than 80 new clients in March alone, nearly twice its average annual caseload. An Army career counselor told NPR that retention is “crumbling fast,” with service members retiring early, declining to reenlist, and in some cases breaking contracts outright; the counselor also noted that 2025 saw nearly double the number of early retirees compared to 2024. One counselor said nearly all his callers cite the bombing of an elementary girls’ school in Iran on the first day of the war, which killed at least 165 school children and was later reported by multiple news outlets as a U.S. missile attack. “It comes up almost always. It’s like, ‘I can’t be a part of something that’s doing that,’” the counselor told NPR.

• Trump attacks Pope Leo XIV as “weak” after pontiff condemns Iran war as immoral: Pope Leo XIV issued a sharp rebuke of what he called “a delusion of omnipotence that’s becoming increasingly unpredictable and aggressive,” saying “those who pray don’t threaten death” and calling for an end to “the idolatry of self and money” and “the display of power.” Cardinal Robert McElroy also rebuked the U.S.-led war against Iran on Sunday, saying “we are in the midst of an immoral war” entered “not out of necessity but rather choice” and that negotiation was abandoned before it was exhausted. President Donald Trump responded by attacking the pontiff on Truth Social, calling Pope Leo XIV “WEAK on Crime, and terrible for Foreign Policy,” and told reporters he does not think the pope “is doing a very good job,” falsely claiming the pope had said “it’s ok to have a nuclear weapon.” “I am not a fan of Pope Leo,” Trump said.

• Iran says part of Lavan refinery to restart within 10 days: The chief executive of Iran’s National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company told SNN TV, an official news agency, on Sunday that part of the Lavan refinery—struck after the ceasefire took effect—will be brought back online within approximately 10 days. The executive also said that most damaged refining and distribution facilities are expected to return to 70-80% of pre-war capacity within one to two months, with full restoration to pre-strike levels to follow.

• Saudi Arabia reopens East-West Pipeline: Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Energy announced Sunday that full pumping capacity has been restored on the East-West Pipeline—the kingdom’s primary oil export route bypassing the Strait of Hormuz—returning throughput to approximately 7 million barrels per day. Saudi Arabia also said production of 300,000 barrels a day had been restored at the Manifa offshore field. Repair work at the Khurais facility, also struck during the war, remains ongoing, according to the Ministry’s announcement.

• Updated Iranian casualty information: The head of Iran’s Forensic Medicine Organization said the bodies of 3,375 victims of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran have been identified, according to Fars news. 2,875 of the bodies are male and 496 female.

• China sent a delegation to Islamabad to support mediation: A Chinese delegation was present in Islamabad to assist Pakistani mediation in Iran-U.S. negotiations, with Beijing potentially offering guarantees if the two sides reach an agreement, according to a Pakistani foreign ministry source cited by The New Arab. The development follows New York Times reporting that China played a last-minute role in persuading Iran to accept the original ceasefire, though Chinese officials have not confirmed involvement. Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said only that Beijing would “maintain communication with all parties and continue working toward de-escalation.”

• UN says Iran war could drive over 32 million into poverty: More than 32 million people around the world could be plunged into poverty by the economic fallout from the Iran war, according to a new report by the United Nations Development Program, with developing countries expected to be hit hardest. The report said the world was facing a “triple shock” involving energy, food, and weaker economic growth.

Lebanon

• Casualty count: The death toll from Israel’s assault on Lebanon has risen to at least 2,055—with 6,588 wounded—since March 2, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. That figure includes more than 165 children.

• Continuing Israeli attacks:

  • At least five people were killed in Israeli attacks on Monday on the towns of Bazouriyeh, Nabatiyeh El Faouqa, Sir El Gharbiyeh, and Choukine, according to the National News Agency (NNA).

  • An Israeli strike on Qana on Sunday killed five people, including three women, and wounded 25 others. NNA said the raid targeted “homes and infrastructure.” Israel struck around 30 locations across southern Lebanon and the West Bekaa on Sunday alone. On Sunday, Israel also cut off all main roads leading to the besieged city of Bint Jbeil, continuing to pound it with airstrikes, artillery, and white phosphorus.

  • An Israeli strike killed a one-and-a-half-year-old girl during her father’s funeral in the southern town of Srifa, according to Reuters. Relatives had returned to the village believing a U.S.-Iran ceasefire would reduce the risk of violence. “They said it was a ceasefire,” her grandfather said; the family lost four additional relatives in this week’s strikes.

  • A strike on a house in Ma’rub killed six civilians, including women and children, and wounded four children. A separate strike hit a three-story residential building in Zrarie.

  • Israeli airstrikes struck homes across multiple towns in southern Lebanon early Saturday, killing at least five and wounding others, including paramedics who were targeted by drones while responding to the scene, L’Orient-Le Jour reported. Two people were killed when a home was bombed in Zefta and three more died in a strike on a residence in Mayfadoun, both near Nabatieh, where raids also destroyed a three-story building in the Hay al-Rahibat neighborhood. In Toul, a drone struck an ambulance responding to a home attack, wounding paramedics, while generators in Jibsheet were hit and set ablaze. Israel also reportedly used white phosphorus bombs in attacks over the residential village of Al-Tiri in southern Lebanon on Saturday.

  • Israeli fighter jets struck the Jibsheet power station in the Nabatieh district of southern Lebanon—north of the Litani River—on Friday, according to Mehr News and Al Jazeera.

• Israel escalates double-tap strikes on rescue crews in Lebanon, killing Red Cross paramedic: Israeli forces carried out a surge of strikes targeting first responders across Lebanon over the weekend, including a direct drone attack Sunday on a Lebanese Red Cross unit conducting a humanitarian mission on the road to Beit Yahoun, killing paramedic Hassan Badawi and wounding another, according to Lebanon’s Red Cross. At least three double-tap strikes—in which a second strike hits rescuers responding to an initial attack—were reported Friday night, two more on Saturday. The offices of the Lebanese Red Cross in Tyre were also hit by a drone strike on Monday, according to NNA. The strike killed a wounded person being transported and damaged Red Cross vehicles. At least 87 medical workers have been killed and 190 wounded since March 2, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.

• Nearly 40,000 housing units destroyed or heavily damaged in Israeli attacks: Nearly 40,000 housing units have been destroyed or heavily damaged in Lebanon since March 2, according to the National Council for Scientific Research in Lebanon, a government-affiliated body. The most affected areas are Nabatieh, Bint Jbeil, Sour, and the southern suburbs of Beirut.

• Israeli tank rams UNIFIL vehicles twice in southern Lebanon: Israeli Defense Forces soldiers rammed United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon vehicles with a Merkava tank on two occasions Sunday, as Israeli forces blocked a road in Bayada used to access UNIFIL positions. The peacekeeping force reported a broader pattern of obstruction, including shots fired at and striking UNIFIL vehicles and the destruction of UN force protection cameras at six separate locations in southern Lebanon. “These actions hinder peacekeepers’ ability to report violations by both sides on the ground,” UNIFIL said.

• Hezbollah attacks Israeli settlements and military targets: Hezbollah said it carried out a series of strikes on Israeli settlements and military positions, including hitting the Misgav Am settlement, an attack on Israeli soldiers in Kfar Giladi, and the targeting of the Zarit barracks.

• Israel and Lebanon agree to meet Tuesday in Washington for direct peace talks: Israel and Lebanon held their first direct ambassador-level contact Friday via a phone call at 2 p.m. ET, mediated by the U.S. ambassador to Lebanon following an initiative by Lebanese President Joseph Aoun to secure a ceasefire and launch negotiations, according to NBC News. Both sides agreed to meet on Tuesday in Washington under U.S. State Department sponsorship to “discuss the announcement of a ceasefire” and begin formal negotiations despite Israel and Lebanon having no formal diplomatic relations. Israel’s ambassador to the U.S., Michael Leiter, confirmed the agreement but said Israel “refused to discuss a ceasefire with Hezbollah.”

Genocide in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, four Palestinians were killed and 10 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,333 killed, with 172,202 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 754 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,100, while 760 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Daily attacks on Gaza continue: An Israeli airstrike killed at least three Palestinians in central Gaza on Monday morning. This followed Israeli attacks Friday and Saturday across the territory that killed at least eight Palestinians, seven of whom died in attacks on the Al Bureij refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip.

• Ceasefire has failed to end the genocide: Doctors Without Borders: Since the “ceasefire” went into effect in Gaza on October 10, 2025, tams with Doctors Without Borders (MSF) have done over 40,000 dressings for patients with wounds from violent trauma, including gunshots, blasts or other kinds of weapons, the group said. “Six months on, the ceasefire has failed to end the genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, with Israeli authorities continuing to impose conditions intended to destroy conditions of life,” Claire San Filippo, emergency manager for MSF, said in the statement. “Despite the reduction of the intensity of violence, Israeli attacks are continuous and the situation remains catastrophic.”

• Settlers kill unarmed Palestinian near Ramallah: An unarmed 23-year-old Palestinian, Ali Majed Hamadneh, was shot and killed during a settler attack on the West Bank town of Deir Jarir on Saturday, according to the Associated Press. The Israeli military claimed that he was shot by “a soldier in the reserves,” though the head of the local village council said that his attacker was wearing civilian clothes, and that the military, which deployed into the town in response to a violent settler riot, arrived after Hamadneh had been killed. 33 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank this year, eight of them by settlers.

• Israel kills another Palestinian journalist: Palestinian journalist Mohammad Sayed was among at least six people killed in an Israeli airstrike on a police checkpoint in Al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza on Friday. Over 260 Palestinian journalists have been killed in Israel’s war on Gaza since October 2023.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Trump says gas prices might not drop before midterms: President Donald Trump acknowledged Sunday that gasoline prices—which have risen more than $1 per gallon over the last two months to a national average of $4.13—may not fall before the November midterm elections, telling Fox News that prices “should be around the same” and might be “a little bit higher.”

• Rep. Eric Swalwell drops California governor bid after sexual misconduct allegations: The California congressman suspended his gubernatorial campaign on Sunday, saying he was “deeply sorry for mistakes in judgment” in his past, after a San Francisco Chronicle report published Friday detailed allegations by a former staffer that he sexually assaulted her twice while she was too intoxicated to consent. CNN subsequently reported allegations from four additional women and the Manhattan district attorney’s office confirmed it has opened a sexual assault investigation into Swalwell. Reps. Jimmy Gomez and Adam Gray, his campaign co-chairs,former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, and Senator Ruben Gallego all called on him to step aside, with several others calling on him to resign from Congress. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-Fla.) also said she would bring a motion to expel Swalwell from the House floor, which may be joined by a motion to expel Rep. Tony Gonzales (R-Texas), who has also faced sexual misconduct allegations involving staffers.

• J Street now supports ending aid to Israel: The liberal, pro-Israel lobbying group J Street announced that it now calls for an end to all military subsidies to Israel, its president, Jeremy Ben-Ami, told Haaretz. Ben-Ami said that, in order for relations between the United States and Israel to normalize, there could be “no more exceptions to special treatment,” though it did clarify it would maintain its support for the Iron Dome until at least 2028. “The law should apply to whether we’re selling weapons to Ukraine or Turkey or Egypt,” Ben-Ami told Haaretz. “If those weapons are being used to commit gross violations of human rights, then we shouldn’t send those weapons.”J-Street also announced on Friday that it is endorsing Analilia Mejia, the Democratic candidate in New Jersey’s 11th congressional district, who won despite heavy opposition from AIPAC.

• Trump administration detains hundreds of DACA recipients: Hundreds of recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals protections have been detained under the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, NOTUS reports. The Department of Homeland Security has said it detained as many as 270 DACA holders and deported as many as 174 last year, and has argued that DACA “does not confer any form of legal status” and that recipients “may be subject to arrest and deportation,” a position that has shattered trust among the roughly 600,000 people who voluntarily provided their personal information to the government in exchange for protection. Read the full report here.

• Trump administration fires two judges who refused to deport pro-Palestinian students: The Trump administration fired immigration judges Roopal Patel and Nina Froes on Friday, after both dismissed high-profile deportation cases against international students Rümeysa Öztürk and Mohsen Mahdawi, targeted for deportation over their pro-Palestinian activism. Trump has dismissed more than 100 immigration judges, while hiring more than 140 new ones more aligned with his enforcement agenda.

Other International News

• Viktor Orbán defeated after 16 years in historic upset: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán conceded defeat Sunday after 16 years in power. Opposition leader Péter Magyar’s center-right Tisza party took a commanding lead, standing at 52 percent to Orbán’s Fidesz at 38% with over half of precincts counted, in an election that drew nearly 78% voter turnout—the highest in Hungary’s post-communist history. Magyar, a former Fidesz insider who broke with Orbán in 2024 over a government corruption scandal, promised in his campaign to restore EU ties, unfreeze billions in EU funds, and return Hungary to Western institutional norms.

• Fujimori leads Peru presidential vote, with runoff in June: Early exit polling by Ipsos Peru shows right-leaning candidate Keiko Fujimori leading Sunday’s presidential vote with 16.6%, followed by leftist Roberto Sánchez at 12.1%. With no candidate expected to clear the 50% threshold needed to win outright, the top two finishers would advance to a runoff scheduled for June 7. Peru’s electoral authority announced that voting will be extended into Monday after missing election materials disrupted the process in certain regions. Another potential runoff candidate, Rafael “Porky” López Aliaga, the former mayor of Lima and a far-right populist, has alleged “fraud” over missing ballot boxes.

• U.S. military kills five people in strikes on two vessels in Eastern Pacific: U.S. Southern Command carried out two strikes on April 11 against vessels it said were operated by designated cartel organizations along narco-trafficking routes in the Eastern Pacific, killing two people in the first strike and three in the second, as part of “Operation Southern Spear.” The U.S. military identified those killed as “narco-terrorists”—a designation with no standing under international law.

• Nigerian military airstrike kills at least 200 civilians in northeast: At least 200 people are feared dead after Nigerian military jets struck the Jilli weekly market near the border of the Yobe and Borno states on Saturday night. The military said that it was pursuing Boko Haram militants as part of “mop-up” strikes on areas where it had identified members of the group. The attack, which was condemned by Amnesty International, is not the first such incident where Nigerian military operations against jihadist groups have killed gatherings of civilians.

• Libya’s rival governments approve first unified budget in over a decade: Libya’s two rival legislative bodies approved a unified state budget for the first time since 2013 on Saturday, with the Central Bank of Libya confirming that both the eastern-based House of Representatives and the Tripoli-based High Council of State had endorsed the agreement.

• Four killed in a strike in Dilling strike: Four people—including a woman and two children—were killed, and others were wounded, when a strike hit a market in Al-Dilling city on Sunday during peak activity, according to the Sudan Doctors Network. The attack was attributed to forces aligned with the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement–Al-Hilu faction.

• Senior RSF commander defects to Sudanese army: Rapid Support Forces major general Al-Nour Ahmed Adam, known as “Al-Nour Guba,” defected to the Sudanese army on Saturday, taking with him 136 fully equipped combat vehicles, according to the Sudan Tribune. Guba’s defection followed internal friction after RSF leadership appointed rival commander Gedo Abunshouk as the military commander of North Darfur. One former Sudanese commander described Adam’s defection as “a painful blow” for the RSF, which would severely disrupt its morale and tactical balance.

• Gunmen kill multiple Hazara Shia civilians in western Afghanistan: Unidentified gunmen riding motorcycles opened fire on civilians gathered at a recreational area near the village of Deh Mehri in Herat province, Afghanistan on Friday, killing at least seven, people according to the Taliban interior ministry, though a doctor at a Herat hospital told the BBC that 12 people were killed and 12 injured—all Hazara Shia Muslims who had gone to a local shrine for a picnic. No group has claimed responsibility. Hazara Shia Muslims, a persecuted minority in Afghanistan, have been targeted by similar attacks in the past.

• Three Pakistani coast guards killed in Baloch separatist attack: Three members of Pakistan’s Coast Guard were killed Sunday when their patrol boat came under attack in Jiwani, a coastal town roughly 84 kilometers from Gwadar port in Balochistan province, according to Reuters. The Baloch Liberation Army, one of the most prominent Baluch separatist groups in Pakistan, claimed responsibility.

• At least 30 killed during a stampede in Haiti: At least 30 people were killed Saturday in a stampede at the Citadelle Laferrière, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and early-19th-century fortress in northern Haiti, during an annual celebration that had drawn large numbers of students and visitors, according to Al Jazeera. A Haitian official said the stampede occurred at the entrance to the site and was worsened by rain, with rescue teams continuing to search for missing persons and authorities warning the death toll could rise.

• Over 500 arrested in London at Palestine Action protest: Police in London arrested over 500 pro-Palestinian activists at London’s Trafalgar Square on Saturday as they protested Britain’s banning of the group Palestine Action. Palestine Action was declared a terrorist organization in the UK last year, making support for the group punishable by up to 14 years in prison. Britain’s High Court struck down the ban in February on free speech grounds. UK Interior Minister Shabana Mahmood has been granted approval to appeal the ruling.

• Cuba’s president discusses blockade: President Miguel Díaz-Canel told NBC’s Kristen Welker in the event of a U.S. attack the Cuban response would be “based on regular and asymmetrical warfare,” that “the U.S. might achieve initial success, but the occupation would be unsustainable,” and that, as the U.S. discovered in its war on Iran, “leadership in Cuba is not about one person…Removing one individual would not change anything.” In an extended interview Díaz-Canel acknowledged that “conditions [in Cuba] are difficult, but the country remains functioning.” He asserted that Cuba has a right to import oil. “If Cuba is truly weak, as some claim, then why has the United States spent decades trying to isolate and undermine it?” he asked Welker. “Why not let it fail on its own? The answer is clear.” He also told Welker that he had not spoken directly with Secretary Marco Rubio. “I do not know him. We have engaged in talks, and we will continue to engage through the representatives that the United States designates.” He added that Cuba’s “political system and our constitutional order are not under negotiation with the United States.”

More from Drop Site

• Drop Site’s Ryan Grim spoke with journalist and commentator Owen Jones about how Trump’s coalition is cracking. “Fox News remains very popular among people 65 to 70 and up in the United States—and that’s it,” he said. “That’s not a coalition.” Watch his full appearance here:

• Drop Site co-founder Jeremy Scahill spoke to Progressive International’s Varsha Gandikota-Nellutla on Al Jazeera about the latest developments in the war with Iran, and also about recent attacks on Drop Site and others who have made clear their opposition to the war. “I have never in my quarter of a century in journalism seen a greater effort to criminalize and demonize speaking to people on the other side of America’s wars,” he told her. His full discussion with her is available here:

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U.S. delegation heads to Pakistan as ceasefire talks hinge on Lebanon. U.S. President Donald Trump suggests Israel agrees to ceasefire in Lebanon, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says otherwise. Netanyahu says Israel will open direct talks with Lebanon “as soon as possible.” Iran-linked hackers claim breach of former Israeli army chief’s phone. Hormuz transit remains at a near standstill. Israeli army chief in Lebanon: “We are not in a ceasefire.” Israeli forces kill third-grade girl in northern Gaza. Inflation spikes on record energy price increases. White House told staff to stop insider trading. First Lady Melania Trump denies Epstein ties. DNC rejects resolution targeting AIPAC influence. Russia and Ukraine agree to Easter ceasefire. Trump wants to punish NATO for Iran War by withdrawing troops from Europe, report says. At least 56 killed, including 17 children, in drone strike on wedding ceremony in North Darfur. U.S. summons Iraq’s ambassador in Washington after “ambush.” Philippines opens coast guard base on disputed South China Sea island. Jihadists kill Nigerian brigadier general and 17 soldiers. UN expert warns Mexico has become a “garbage sink” for U.S. waste. Ecuador raises tariffs on Colombia to 100 percent. Argentina approves glacier mining bill amid protests.

NEW from Drop Site: Israel is running low on missile defense.

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Ceasefire updates

• U.S. delegation heads to Pakistan as ceasefire talks hinge on Lebanon: Vice President JD Vance will arrive in Pakistan on Friday to lead a U.S. delegation on high-level talks with Iran in Islamabad along with U.S. envoys Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner. Iran’s speaker of parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, are expected to lead the Iranian delegation, though there are mixed messages from Tehran regarding Iran’s participation as a result of Israel’s ongoing attacks on Lebanon. An analyst, reportedly close to Ghalibaf, said on Thursday “Iran has informed Pakistan that if Lebanon is not part of the ceasefire, Iran’s team will not go to Islamabad.” Aragchi posted on Thursday: “If the U.S. wishes to crater its economy by letting Netanyahu kill diplomacy, that would ultimately be its choice. We think that would be dumb but are prepared for it.”

• Trump suggests Israel agrees to ceasefire in Lebanon, Netanyahu says otherwise: After telling PBS yesterday that Lebanon was “not included in the deal,” President Donald Trump told Israeli journalist Neria Kraus on Thursday that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “is on board with the agreement,” and that he would “low key a little bit” with regards to Lebanon. In remarks to the Israeli public, however, Netanyahu unequivocally denied this, saying, “There is no ceasefire in Lebanon.” “We continue to strike Hezbollah with full force,” he said, and he said there would be no end to these strikes until the “security” of the Israeli people was “restored.” CBS News reported on Thursday that President Donald Trump had agreed to ceasefire terms with Iran that included Lebanon, according to multiple diplomatic sources, before Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called Trump, and the U.S. public position shifted.

• Netanyahu says Israel will open direct talks with Lebanon “as soon as possible”: Netanyahu announced on Thursday that Israel would enter direct negotiations with Lebanon “as soon as possible” after what he said were “repeated calls” from the Lebanese government to do so. He added that Israel would continue to strike Hezbollah in Lebanon. Lebanese Prime Minister Joseph Aoun welcomed the move. Hezbollah has rejected any talks with Israel. A U.S. official confirmed to AP that talks between Israel and Lebanon would take place starting next week at the State Department in Washington. AP cited a source as saying the talks would be led on the U.S. side by Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa and on the Israeli side by Israel’s Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter.

• Iran’s supreme leader declares victory, outlines objectives: On the 40-day anniversary of his father’s death, Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei gave an address in which he declared Iranian victory, discussed plans for the Strait of Hormuz, and stressed the unity of the “Resistance Front.” “Today… it can be said that you, the heroic Iranian nation, are the definitive victors. The emergence of the Islamic Republic as a major power and the decline of global arrogance are now visible to all,” he said. Khamenei also mentioned the upcoming ceasefire talks with the U.S. and pledged there would be a “new era” in the Strait of Hormuz.

• New figures on Iran war toll:

  • Abbas Masjedi, the head of Iran’s Legal Medicine Organization, an official government body, was quoted in state media as saying the death toll from the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran is over 3,000 people. A previous tally from the Ministry of Health on April 3 put the toll at 2,076.

  • The head of the Iranian Red Crescent Society said on Friday a total of 125,630 civilian units were hit across the country in U.S.-Israeli attacks on Iran, according to the IRNA news agency, including 32 universities, 857 schools, and 339 medical facilities.

• Iran-linked hackers claim breach of former Israeli army chief’s phone: The hacking group Handala, reportedly linked to the Iranian government, claimed on Thursday to have accessed more than 19,000 files from the phone of former Israeli Defence Forces Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, including images and videos from sensitive meetings. Some of the leaked material reportedly shows Halevi meeting with United States and Arab officials in Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, and Jordan. The group also claimed access to maps, command centers, and other classified systems, though much of that material has not been publicly released.

• Hormuz transit remains at a near standstill: A Gabon-flagged oil tanker became the first non-Iranian vessel to pass through the Strait of Hormuz since the ceasefire was announced Tuesday, carrying 44,000 barrels of fuel oil from Sharjah to India, MarineTraffic reported. Only nine vessels transited the strait on Wednesday and Thursday combined, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence, compared with a prewar daily average of more than 135. The International Maritime Organization estimates some 2,000 ships—including oil and gas tankers, bulk carriers, and six cruise liners—remain stranded in the Persian Gulf, with 20,000 seafarers aboard.

• “There will be no return to the pre-war status quo”: A senior Iranian source told Russian state news agency TASS on Thursday that Tehran will cap vessel transit through the Strait of Hormuz at fewer than 15 ships per day under the ceasefire terms, with all passage subject to approval by the IRGC. “There will be no return to the pre-war status quo,” the source said. Trump on Thursday, posted on Truth Social on Thursday that “Iran is doing a very poor job, dishonorable some would say, of allowing Oil to go through the Strait of Hormuz. That is not the agreement we have!” He also posted earlier: “There are reports that Iran is charging fees to tankers going through the Hormuz Strait – They better not be and, if they are, they better stop now!”

• Kuwait condemns drone strikes on vital facilities, blames Iran: The Kuwaiti Foreign Ministry on Friday accused Iran of launching drone attacks on Thursday that targeted “vital Kuwaiti facilities.” It blamed the attacks on Iran and its “allied factions, militias, and armed groups.” Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) denied launching attacks on Gulf states.

• Saudi government tallies damage from previous strikes: Strikes on Saudi energy infrastructure have reduced the kingdom’s oil production capacity by around 600,000 barrels per day and cut throughput on the East-West Pipeline—Saudi Arabia’s only crude export route while the Strait of Hormuz remains blockaded—by about 700,000 barrels per day, the Saudi Ministry of Energy said Thursday. The Saudi government had not previously provided details about strikes on its energy industry during the war. In its statement, it did not blame Iran directly (though it did note that it had intercepted many Iranian drones and missiles in recent weeks). It also announced the deaths of one Saudi national, an employee of the national oil company, and seven other foreign nationals.

• Kamal Kharrazi, senior adviser to Iran’s supreme leader, dies from airstrike injuries: Kamal Kharrazi, the former Iranian foreign minister and head of Iran’s Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, died Friday from injuries sustained in a United States-Israeli airstrike on his Tehran home on April 1, in which his wife was also killed. The 81-year-old served as Iran’s foreign minister from 1997 to 2005 and as ambassador to the United Nations from 1989 to 1997, and had continued as a senior adviser to Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei following the death of Ali Khamenei. At the time of the strike, Kharrazi had reportedly been working with Pakistani intermediaries to arrange a direct meeting between Iranian officials and Vice President JD Vance.

• Israel is running out of missile defense systems: A Trump administration source told Drop Site News on the eve of the ceasefire that Israel’s ballistic missile interceptor stockpile had fallen to double digits, forcing Israeli military officials to selectively choose which incoming missiles to shoot down. A recent analysis by the Royal United Services Institute for Defence and Security Studies estimated that by late March, Israel had expended the vast majority of its Arrow 2, Arrow 3, and THAAD interceptors—munitions that cost up to $12 million per unit and take months to replenish. The latest from Murtaza Hussain and Ryan Grim for Drop Site is here.

Lebanon

• Casualty count: The death toll from Israel’s assault on Lebanon has risen to at least 1,888—with 6,092 wounded—since March 2, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. The preliminary toll of Israel’s brutal Wednesday attack on Lebanon is currently at 303 killed and 1,150 wounded.

• UNICEF: Israel’s Wednesday attack on Lebanon killed 33 children and wounded 150: “Unicef is receiving reports of children being pulled from under the rubble, while others remain missing and separated from their families. Many are experiencing trauma, having lost loved ones, their homes, and any sense of safety,” the organization said in a statement.

• Continuing Israeli attacks:

  • At least 18 people were killed in Israeli strikes on Friday across Lebanon, according to the National News Agency (NNA). An Israeli airstrike on a car wash in the central square of Jbaa in the Iqlim al-Tuffah area killed six people, including the owner, his two sons, and three others, while a separate strike in the town of Ansar in the Bekaa region killed one person. A drone strike on the Samaiyah–Deir Qanoun Ras al-Ain area left two people dead, and another individual was killed in a drone strike while riding a motorcycle near the Al-Mahdi Schools junction in the town of Sharqiya.

  • In Nabatiyeh, the NNA reported heavy Israeli airstrikes hitting large parts of the city, including a state security office. At least eight state security personnel were killed and several buildings destroyed in what the state-run news agency described as a “horrific massacre.”

  • Israel bombed several ambulances and firetrucks in the town of Deir Qanoun Ras al-Ain in southern Lebanon on Friday, according to NNA. Israel’s military spokesperson on Friday reiterated a threat to target ambulances and medical facilities in Lebanon claiming without evidence that they were being used by Hezbollah for military activities. Over 50 medical workers in Lebanon have been killed in Israeli attacks since March 2.

  • Israeli airstrikes on Thursday hit the town of Kfar Dounin, a home in Ansarieh near the city of Saida, and a juice factory in Deir Takla. Artillery and gunfire struck Khiam in Marjayoun, with additional attacks on Bint Jbeil’s market, Kafra, and areas of Harouf. Drone strikes were reported in Haniyeh and Batoulieh, alongside multiple strikes on Qlalila and nearby areas, where three people were wounded. Further injuries were reported in Shehabieh, where ambulances were dispatched.

• Hezbollah vows to continue attacks until “Israeli-American aggression” stops: Hezbollah said its fighters launched rocket attacks targeting the settlements of Kiryat Shmona, Metula, and Misgav Am, vowing in a statement released on the group’s telegram channel Friday that “these attacks would continue until the Israeli-American aggression against the country and the people stopped.” The group also said it struck “a gathering of Israeli enemy soldiers east of the Khiam detention center” in southern Lebanon with a missile, and announced targeting the Israeli military naval base at the port of Ashdod Port with advanced rockets.

• “Resistance will continue until the last breath”: Naim Qassem, Secretary-General of Hezbollah, addressed “a message to the steadfast and sacrificing Lebanese people,” offering condolences for those killed and saying that “the Israeli enemy has failed in the field…and was unable to carry out a ground invasion as repeatedly declared.” He said Israel had turned to “bloody criminality” by targeting civilians across Lebanon “to cover its failure,” while praising Lebanese resilience and stressing that “the resistance will continue until the last breath.” He added, “we will not accept a return to the previous situation,” calling on officials to stop concessions and emphasizing unity between “the state, army, people, and resistance” to protect the country and expel the Israeli occupation.

• Israeli army chief in Lebanon: “We are not in a ceasefire”: Israeli army chief of staff Eyal Zamir said Israeli forces are continuing their combat operations in southern Lebanon. “The IDF is in a state of war, we are not in a ceasefire. We continue to fight here in this sector, this is our primary combat zone,” Zamir said in a video statement published by the Israeli military during his visit to the outskirts of Bint Jbeil on Thursday.

• WHO warns 450 Beirut hospital patients at risk after Israel orders evacuation of southern suburbs: The World Health Organization warned Friday that around 450 patients across two major Beirut hospitals—including 40 in intensive care—face serious risk following an Israeli evacuation order covering the capital’s southern suburbs. The affected facilities, Rafik Hariri University Hospital and Al Zahraa Hospital, are both operating at full capacity with no alternative facilities available to receive patients. The WHO called the evacuation order “operationally unfeasible” and urged Israel to reverse its directive. Lebanon’s Health Ministry said in a statement Friday, after contacting WHO and the Red Cross, that it received international assurances the hospitals won’t be targeted and all remain operating.

Genocide in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Israeli forces shoot and kill third-grade girl in northern Gaza: Israeli forces shot and killed Ritaj Rihan, a third-grade student, inside an educational tent in Beit Lahia, northern Gaza, on Thursday. The tent, which served as a makeshift classroom for children displaced by more than two years of war, stood atop the rubble of a school destroyed during the conflict. Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha, who attended the same school, said the site where Ritaj was killed was the ruins of his former high school. “Even when kids try to learn, after over two years of nonstop running from the bombs, Israel shoots them,” Abu Toha wrote.

• Palestinian journalist released from Israeli detention: Palestinian journalist Muath Amarneh, who spent seven months in Israeli administrative detention, was released today. He was detained by Israeli forces in August while traveling between Bethlehem and Hebron in the occupied West Bank, and had previously been imprisoned for nearly nine months at the start of the genocide in Gaza. Amarneh also lost an eye while covering protests against land confiscation in the West Bank in 2019, after an Israeli soldier shot him. He has described medical neglect in Israeli detention, with a severe infection causing his prosthetic eye to fall out of its socket.

• International flotilla departs Europe bound for Gaza: A French convoy of roughly 20 boats departed Marseille on April 4, set to join the larger Global Sumud Flotilla leaving Barcelona on April 12. The civilian effort aims to challenge Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza and deliver humanitarian aid. More than 1,000 activists, doctors, and engineers are expected aboard, alongside public figures including climate activist Greta Thunberg, actor Susan Sarandon, and actor Liam Cunningham, with support from Greenpeace’s Arctic Sunrise vessel. Organizers say the convoy could grow to around 100 vessels, with an expected arrival near Gaza around April 20.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Inflation spikes on record energy price increases: Consumer prices rose 3.3% in March from a year earlier, the Department of Labor said Friday, up significantly from just 2.4% in February and the biggest yearly increase since May 2024. The increase in inflation was driven by a record spike in energy prices. “The index for energy increased 10.9 percent in March, the largest monthly increase in the index since September 2005. The gasoline index increased 21.2 percent over the month, the largest monthly increase since the series was first published in 1967,” the Labor Department wrote.

• White House told staff to stop insider trading: The White House Management Office sent a staff-wide email on March 24 warning employees against using their positions to place well-timed bets in futures markets, according to a new report from the Wall Street Journal. Three accounts on the prediction platform Polymarket earned more than $600,000 by correctly betting on the timing of this week’s Iranian ceasefire, and a flurry of activity on oil futures markets—in which $760 million changed hands in less than two minutes—preceded this email by only 15 minutes. The White House confirmed the email’s authenticity but denied any wrongdoing, with Trump spokesman Davis Ingle calling any suggestion of insider trading “baseless and irresponsible.”

• Melania Trump denies Epstein ties: First Lady Melania Trump delivered an unscheduled address to reporters at the White House on Thursday, denying that she had any meaningful relationship with Jeffrey Epstein. She claimed she first crossed paths with Epstein in 2000 at an event she attended with her husband, and denied that Epstein introduced the couple, reaffirming that she met President Donald Trump in 1998 at a New York City party through Italian modeling agent Paolo Zampolli. Melania also addressed a 2002 email exchange with Epstein associate Ghislaine Maxwell, calling it “nothing more than casual correspondence.” She closed by calling on Congress to hold a public hearing specifically for survivors of Epstein’s abuse.

• Trump official allegedly threatened rival pope: The Trump administration is working to contain possible diplomatic outrage after reports emerged that a U.S. official invoked the medieval Avignon papacy—widely interpreted as a threat to sponsor a rival pope—during a January meeting at the Pentagon with the Vatican’s former ambassador to the U.S., Cardinal Christophe Pierre, according to the Financial Times. The meeting, which included Under-Secretary of Defense for Policy Elbridge Colby, was called after Pope Leo XIV publicly criticized the growing use of military force, saying “war is back in vogue.”

• Federal judge strikes down Pentagon press restrictions again: Judge Paul Friedman of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia declared a revised set of Pentagon restrictions on journalists covering the military unconstitutional on Thursday. This is the second time Judge Friedman has struck down elements of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s press policy. Friedman ruled that the Pentagon’s updated rules were “transparent attempts to negate the impact of this court’s order” and ordered the reinstatement of press access for New York Times reporters at the level they enjoyed at the time of his first ruling.

• DNC rejects resolution targeting AIPAC influence: The Democratic National Committee’s resolutions committee rejected a symbolic resolution targeting the influence of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee in Democratic primaries, and referred a pair of measures calling for conditioning military aid to Israel to the party’s Middle East Working Group, which was established last summer. “We had various resolutions that focused on different industries and groups,” DNC Chair Ken Martin said on X, “and instead of going one-by-one, we passed a blanket repudiation.” “I have made my position on this clear from day one: We must end the influence of dark money in our politics and restore power back to the people.” Pro-Israel groups claimed the stifling of the AIPAC resolution as a victory, saying that its failure showed that the “vocal, far-left faction” of the party is “in no way in charge.”

• Candidate for Pelosi’s seat calls for sanctions on Israel: Saikat Chakrabarti, a former software engineer and chief of staff to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), running to represent California’s 11th District (the San Francisco seat long held by Nancy Pelosi), became one of the first candidates to call for U.S. sanctions on Israel. “Israel has been committing a genocide in Gaza and is now committing ethnic cleansing in Lebanon,” Chakrabarti said. “Ending funding isn’t enough—we need sanctions.”

• Trump administration wants to let predatory lender off scot-free: The Trump Justice Department has proposed settling a landmark predatory lending lawsuit against Texas land developer Colony Ridge—which allegedly duped tens of thousands of Hispanic residents into high-interest mortgages—with no monetary compensation for victims, instead directing $20 million toward local policing and immigration enforcement in Liberty County. Eight former federal civil rights attorneys and investigators told ProPublica and the Texas Tribune they were stunned by the agreement, with one calling it “a complete misjustice.” A federal judge is scheduled to hear the proposal on Friday. Read the full report on Colony Ridge, from ProPublica and The Texas Tribune, here.

Other International News

• Russia and Ukraine agree to Easter ceasefire: Russian President Vladimir Putin announced on Friday that he has ordered Russian forces to cease fire “in all directions” from Saturday afternoon through Easter Sunday, with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy saying Kyiv is “ready for symmetrical steps.” The truce comes after Zelenskyy had asked the United States to pass a holiday ceasefire proposal to Moscow earlier this week. Zelenskyy added that “Russia has a chance not to return to strikes after Easter as well,” signaling Kyiv’s desire for the pause to extend beyond the weekend.

• Trump wants to punish NATO for Iran War by withdrawing troops from Europe, report says: President Donald Trump has discussed with advisers the possibility of withdrawing some of the more than 80,000 U.S. troops stationed in Europe, angered by NATO allies’ failure to help reopen the Strait of Hormuz and by stalled efforts to acquire Greenland, according to a White House official cited by Reuters. The White House official said Trump is specifically considering bringing troops back to the United States rather than repositioning them within Europe. “He asked NATO specifically to come up with a plan [to secure the Strait] when ​we were in Davos” in January, the official said, “and they’re sort of not taking it seriously.”

• At least 56 killed, including 17 children, in drone strike on wedding ceremony in North Darfur: At least 56 people were killed, including 17 children, and 107 others were injured when a drone strike hit a wedding ceremony in the Al-Salama neighborhood of Kutum, North Darfur, on Wednesday evening, according to Sudan Tribune. Local witnesses and the Rapid Support Forces blamed the Sudanese Armed Forces for the attack; the SAF has not commented. Kutum, located roughly 120 kilometers northwest of El Fasher, has been under RSF control since 2023.

• U.S. summons Iraq’s ambassador in Washington because of an “ambush”: The U.S. State Department summoned Iraq’s ambassador in Washington on Friday after what it called an “ambush of American diplomats” in Baghdad on April 8, blaming Iran-supported militias operating from Iraqi territory. Washington cited hundreds of recent attacks targeting American personnel, facilities, and regional interests, and warned Baghdad that it has failed to prevent them, even as it acknowledged some contributions by Iraqi security forces. For background, read Nir Rosen and Hajar al Obeidi on the indiscriminate U.S. attacks in Iraq.

• Philippines opens coast guard base on disputed island in South China Sea: The Philippines on Thursday unveiled a coast guard district command on Thitu Island in the South China Sea, describing it as a “steadfast sentinel of our sovereignty” in a region where Chinese forces maintain a heavy patrol presence. Hours after the ceremony, the Philippine coast guard accused Chinese forces of firing flares at its patrol aircraft over the disputed Subi Reef and Mischief Reef, calling it “a clear and deliberate act of bullying” that endangered Filipino personnel. China did not immediately respond to either development. Thitu Island, home to around 400 Filipino civilians, sits roughly 24 kilometers from Subi Reef, where China has built a major island base with a military-grade runway.

• Jihadists kill Nigerian brigadier general and 17 soldiers: Jihadists overran a military base in Benisheikh in Borno, according to the AFP, killing Brigadier General O.O. Braimah and at least 17 other soldiers and burning vehicles and buildings before withdrawing. It is the second killing of a high-ranking Nigerian officer in five months, following the death of Brigadier General Musa Uba at the hands of the Islamic State West Africa Province in November. The U.S. State Department on Wednesday authorized non-emergency government employees to depart Abuja, “due to the deteriorating security situation” in the country.

• UN expert warns Mexico has become a “garbage sink” for U.S. waste: Marcos Orellana, a United Nations special rapporteur on toxics and human rights warned Friday that Mexico is facing a “toxic crisis” driven in part by imports of hazardous and plastic waste from the United States, saying that “US overconsumption and economic activity are using Mexico as a garbage sink.” His report cited factories dumping hazardous waste into the Atoyac River in Puebla, industrial pig farms contaminating drinking water on the Yucatan peninsula, and a decade-old mining chemical spill still affecting communities along the Sonora River. Orellana said weak regulatory standards had produced what he called “the legalized poisoning of people,” and recommended Mexico use the upcoming review of the U.S.-Mexico-Canada free trade agreement to strengthen environmental enforcement. Read more at The Guardian, here.

• Ecuador raises tariffs on Colombia to 100 percent: Ecuador’s government announced Thursday that it will raise tariffs on Colombian exports to 100 percent effective May 1, citing Bogotá’s alleged failure to adequately address drug trafficking and border security. Colombian President Gustavo Petro responded declaring that Ecuador’s actions amounted to “the end of the Andean Pact for Colombia” and calling on his foreign minister to abandon the regional economic integration pact and instead pursue full membership in the Mercosur trade bloc.

• Cuba defends medical internationalism: Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez accused the United States of “extorting” Latin American and Caribbean nations into canceling medical cooperation agreements with the island. Rodríguez said Washington aims to cut a key source of hard currency for Cuba, whose medical brigades provide a key source of foreign currency. Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, and Guyana have recently ended such deals. Echoing U.S. criticisms, the president of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) recently charged that there are elements of forced labor and human trafficking in Cuba’s international medical missions.

• Argentina approves glacier mining bill amid protests: Argentina’s Congress passed a bill backed by President Javier Milei allowing mining in environmentally sensitive glacier and permafrost areas of the Andes, weakening a 2010 glacier protection law. Supporters say it provides legal certainty for copper and lithium extraction, while environmentalists warn it threatens water sources for 70% of Argentinians.

More from Drop Site

• Special Thursday livestream: Ryan, Sharif, and Murtaza discuss the assault on Lebanon, the current state of the ceasefire, and all the latest in the Middle East in yesterday’s livestream, available here:

• Ryan Grim responds to Ben Shapiro’s attacks on Drop Site: Drop Site co-founder Ryan Grim responded to Ben Shapiro’s attack on Drop Site on Breaking Points. Shapiro accused Grim of “despising America,” and Drop Site of having intentionally cloudy funding. Ryan makes clear just how we fund our reporting (mostly, with the contributions of readers like yourself). Watch Ryan here:

• Jeremy Scahill spoke to AJ+ on the meaning of the ceasefire in Iran, its prospects for survival, and our latest reporting on the conflict, here:

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President Donald Trump says U.S. warships will remain in the Middle East. Parliament Speaker Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf to lead Iran’s delegation in Pakistan. Lebanese inclusion in the ceasefire remains a sticking point. UAE says no attacks from Iran. Drone strikes Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline hours after U.S.-Iran ceasefire announcement. Vice President JD Vance says U.S. is “impatient” to reach a nuclear deal. Only three vessels have crossed Strait of Hormuz since ceasefire. Day of mourning in Lebanon. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insists Israel will continue attacking Lebanon. Israeli strikes kill two Lebanese journalists. Israeli drone strike kills Al Jazeera correspondent in Gaza. Israel approves record 34 new West Bank settlements. U.N. envoy Mladenov accused of blocking Gaza committee on Netanyahu’s behalf. Army veteran charged with leaking classified Delta Force tactics to journalist. U.S. to automatically register eligible men into draft pool by December. Federal judge blocks Trump’s termination of temporary protected status for Ethiopians. China brokers Afghanistan-Pakistan agreement to halt escalation in fighting. Ecuador recalls ambassador from Bogotá. Four migrants drown attempting Channel crossing off Calais. Haiti postpones voter registration for first presidential election in a decade. Global financial institutions warn Iran war is fueling global food insecurity.

NEW from Drop Site: Lylla Younes writes a dispatch from a bombarded Lebanon. Nir Rosen reports on the new U.S. war on Iraq.

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Ceasefire updates

• Trump says U.S. warships to remain in the Middle East: President Donald Trump on Wednesday insisted that the U.S. warships and troops deployed to the Middle East for the war on Iran will remain in the region. Trump posted on Truth Social: “All U.S. Ships, Aircraft, and Military Personnel, with additional Ammunition, Weaponry, and anything else that is appropriate and necessary for the lethal prosecution and destruction of an already substantially degraded Enemy, will remain in place in, and around, Iran, until such time as the REAL AGREEMENT reached is fully complied with. If for any reason it is not, which is highly unlikely, then the “Shootin’ Starts,” bigger, and better, and stronger than anyone has ever seen before.” Trump added, “In the meantime our great Military is Loading Up and Resting, looking forward, actually, to its next Conquest. AMERICA IS BACK!”

• Ghalibaf to lead Iran’s delegation in Pakistan: Iran’s speaker of parliament Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf will join Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in leading talks in Islamabad, Pakistani officials told Reuters on Thursday. Pakistan previously urged Washington not to target either official and to allow negotiations to proceed. Ghalibaf on Thursday reiterated that “Lebanon and the entire Resistance Axis, as Iran’s allies, form an inseparable part of the ceasefire,” he wrote in a post on X. He added that the Pakistani prime minister “publicly and clearly stressed the Lebanon issue; there is no room for denial and backtracking,” and that “Ceasefire violations carry explicit costs and STRONG responses. Extinguish the fire immediately.”

• Lebanese inclusion in the ceasefire remains a sticking point: The central dispute of the day was whether Tuesday night’s ceasefire agreement covered Israel’s ongoing war on Lebanon.

  • Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the terms of the ceasefire are “clear and explicit,” and told the U.S. directly that it “must choose—ceasefire, or continued war via Israel. It cannot have both.” Iranian President Masoud Pezeskhian also said in a post on X Thursday that Israeli bombardment of Lebanon “blatantly violates the initial ceasefire,” adding that Iranian hands “remain on the trigger,” and will “never forsake its Lebanese brothers and sisters.” Iran’s government reportedly signalled to mediators that its participation in the Islamabad talks is conditional on a ceasefire in Lebanon, and warned that it could reverse plans to reopen the Strait of Hormuz if this condition is not met, according to The Wall Street Journal.

  • President Donald Trump claimed in response to questions from PBS that Lebanon was “not included in the deal,” calling it a “separate skirmish.” Vice President JD Vance commented on the situation as well, saying that it “comes from a legitimate misunderstanding” on the part of the Iranians. They “thought the ceasefire included Lebanon, and it just didn’t. We never made that promise; we never indicated that was going to be the case.”

  • On the negotiating process, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a Wednesday press conference that Iran’s original 10-point proposal was “fundamentally unserious, unacceptable, and completely discarded,” and that it was “literally thrown in the garbage by President Trump and his negotiating team.” At the same press conference, Leavitt repeated the administration’s line that Lebanon is not covered by the ceasefire agreement. “Lebanon is not part of the ceasefire,” she claimed, and that position “has been relayed to all parties involved.”

  • Leaders from France and England both commented on the continued Israeli assault on Lebanon. President Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday that he had spoken with both President Trump and President Pezeshkian and had urged them to apply the ceasefire agreement to “all areas of confrontation,” including Lebanon. Macron told the leaders that a cessation of hostilities in Lebanon is “a necessary condition for the ceasefire to be credible and lasting.” Macron also reportedly spoke with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam and condemned the ongoing Israeli campaign against the country, reiterating “the need to preserve Lebanon’s territorial integrity and France’s determination to support the efforts of the Lebanese authorities to uphold the country’s sovereignty and implement the Hezbollah disarmament plan.”

  • Similarly, British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper told Times Radio on Thursday that Israel’s attacks on Lebanon are “deeply damaging” and risk destabilising the day-old ceasefire. “We want to see Lebanon included in the ceasefire,” Cooper said. “We want it extended to cover Lebanon, because otherwise that will destabilise the whole region.”

  • Drop Site’s Ryan Grim discusses the Lebanese angle to the ceasefire, and its potential to erode the ceasefire entirely, here.

• UAE says no attacks from Iran: The United Arab Emirates said its airspace has been free of any aerial threats on Thursday. “The Ministry of Defence announced that on 9th April 2026, UAE air defence systems did not detect any ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, or UAVs launched from Iran,” the UAE’s Defense Ministry posted on X.

• Drone strikes Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline hours after U.S.-Iran ceasefire announcement: A drone struck a pumping station along Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline on Wednesday at approximately 1 p.m. local time, with damage still being assessed, the Financial Times and Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Saudi Aramco declined to comment. The 1,200-kilometer pipeline carries crude oil from the Gulf across the Arabian Peninsula to the Red Sea port of Yanbu, bypassing the Strait of Hormuz entirely—a route that has become Saudi Arabia’s primary oil export artery since the effective closure of Hormuz.

• Vance says U.S. is “impatient” to reach a nuclear deal: U.S. Vice President JD Vance, who is set to head the American delegation in Islamabad, said on Wednesday that President Trump is “impatient” to reach a long-term deal dismantling Iran’s nuclear program.

• Only seven vessels have crossed Strait of Hormuz since ceasefire: Just seven ships crossed the Strait of Hormuz since the ceasefire was announced, including six bulk carriers using Iran’s coastal route and a Chinese-owned chemical tanker whose tracking signal disappeared mid-transit, ABC News Australia reports. No oil or gas tankers crossed the Strait of Hormuz today per Kepler. Pre-war traffic exceeded 130 vessels overall per day.

Lebanon

• Day of mourning in Lebanon: Lebanon has declared a day of mourning after a massive wave of Israeli bombardment killed more than 200 people and injured more than 1,000 in a single day on Wednesday, the highest single day death toll since March 2.

• Netanyahu insists Israel will continue attacking Lebanon: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday said Israel will continue bombing Lebanon, posting on X, “We will continue to strike Hezbollah wherever required, until we restore full security to the residents of the north.” Netanyahu said among those killed in Wednesday strikes was Ali Yusuf Harshi, an aide to Hezbollah leader Naim Kassem. Lebanese Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine on Thursday said at least 203 people were killed and over 1,000 wounded in the strikes. Lebanon’s Civil Defense had put the toll at over 250 killed and more than 1,100 wounded.

• Continuing Israeli attacks:

  • At least seven people were killed in an Israeli airstrike on the village of Abbasiyeh in southern Lebanon on Thursday, according to the National News Agency.

  • The Lebanese Army announced the deaths of four soldiers who were killed on Wednesday as a result of Israeli strikes: Staff Sergeant Hussein Yassin, First Sergeant Mohammad Shheitli, recruit Ali Qassem, and trainee officer Ali Nassereddine.

• Israeli strikes kill two Lebanese journalists: An Israeli airstrike killed Suzanne Khalil, a journalist with Al-Manar TV, in Keyfoun in the Aley district southeast of Beirut on Wednesday, the outlet reported. A separate strike on an apartment building in Tyre killed Ghada Dayekh, a presenter with Sawt Al-Farah radio who had been on air for 37 years, according to the station’s director. Six journalists have been killed in Lebanon during the current escalation, and eight total have been killed since the onset of the war on Iran.

• At least six Israeli soldiers killed in southern Lebanon since Monday: At least six Israeli soldiers have been killed in southern Lebanon since Monday, Kan News reported, including a Golani Brigade fighter killed in a close-range clash in Al-Taybeh near the border where five others were wounded, four reconnaissance soldiers killed in an earlier battle that left six more wounded, and one soldier killed in a separate friendly fire incident that also seriously wounded an officer. The Israeli military said 12 soldiers have been killed in Lebanon in total since the start of its Iran campaign.

• Drop Site reports on Wednesday’s bombardment of Lebanon: “The Israeli assault came without warning and was by far the heaviest single wave of attacks on Lebanon over the past five weeks. In Beirut, the speed and scale of the bombardment stunned a population that has experienced successive wars, but rarely like this: strikes landing almost simultaneously, in broad daylight, while the streets were crowded. Thick black smoke billowed across the city as the sound of ambulances echoed through the streets,” Beirut-based Drop Site contributor Lylla Younes reports on the massive wave of bombardment by Israel on the capital and across Lebanon yesterday. Read the full report here.

Genocide in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, two Palestinians were killed and 21 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,317 killed, with 172,158 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 738 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,036, while 759 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israeli drone strike kills Al Jazeera correspondent in Gaza: The Israeli military assassinated Al Jazeera Mubasher correspondent Mohammed Samir Washah on Wednesday in an airstrike on his car at the Al-Nabulsi roundabout, west of Gaza City. The Israeli military bragged about the killing, saying it had successfully “eliminated” Washah and calling him a “Hamas terrorist.” Paramedic Mahmoud Muhanna told Drop Site that after Washah’s car was hit, a second strike injured scores of people who gathered at the scene. “The jeep was hit, and the martyr’s body was transported. After that, the location was targeted again. Dozens were injured,” Muhanna said. Gaza’s Government Media Office condemned the killing and said the number of Palestinian journalists killed by Israel has risen to 262.

• Israel approves record 34 new West Bank settlements: The Israeli cabinet quietly approved the establishment of an unprecedented 34 new settlements in the occupied West Bank in a meeting two weeks ago, according to the Times of Israel and i24 News—the largest single approval of settlements by any cabinet to date. The decision brings the total number of new settlements established or retroactively legalized by the current government since it took office in 2022 to 103. By comparison, only six new settlements were formally approved by Israel in the three decades following the signing of the Oslo Accords in 1993.

• U.N. envoy Mladenov accused of blocking Gaza committee on Netanyahu’s behalf: A source familiar with meetings between Palestinian factions and Board of Peace High Representative Nickolay Mladenov told Ali Abunimah of Electronic Intifada that it is Mladenov himself who is preventing the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza from entering the Strip and beginning its work. The committee, tasked under the Trump-brokered ceasefire with replacing Hamas’s civil governance of Gaza, has remained in Cairo since its formation.

• Israeli settlers kill Palestinian man in West Bank village attack: Israeli settlers attacked the village of Tayasir in the occupied West Bank, killing Alaa Khaled Sbiah as he attempted to defend himself and his community, journalists Ihab Hassan and Jasper Nathaniel report, bringing the number of Palestinians killed by settlers to nine since the beginning of the year. The settlers who carried out the attack established a new illegal outpost on the village’s land last month and since then have been conducting daily assaults on Palestinians.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Army veteran charged with leaking classified Delta Force tactics to journalist: Courtney Williams, 40, a former Army veteran who supported Delta Force operations at Fort Bragg, North Carolina, appeared in federal court in Raleigh on Wednesday on a charge of unlawfully transmitting national defense information, accused of disclosing classified “tactics, techniques and procedures” of an unnamed special military unit to journalist Seth Harp, in whose book Williams is cited repeatedly and by name. Harp said Williams had endured years of sexual harassment while providing special operations troops with cover documents, including passports and credit cards for overseas deployments. “Courtney Williams is a veteran, a mother, and a patriotic American. She has committed no crime. Trump’s unhinged DOJ will not even say what ‘classified information’ she allegedly leaked. Her arrest and imprisonment is an outrage,” Harp wrote on X. FBI Director Kash Patel has also commented on the case, praising Williams’ arrest as “outstanding work” on the part of the Bureau and its partners. Williams faces a maximum penalty of ten years in prison.

• U.S. to automatically register eligible men into draft pool by December: Eligible men will be automatically enrolled in the Selective Service System’s draft registry within 30 days of their 18th birthdays by December, under a proposed rule submitted to federal regulators on March 30, replacing the previous self-registration process. The change was mandated by the fiscal 2026 National Defense Authorization Act and is designed to cut costs by drawing on federal data sources rather than relying on individuals to register. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in March that while a draft is “not part of the current plan” in relation to the war in Iran, Trump “wisely keeps his options on the table.” Any reinstatement of the draft would require an act of Congress.

• Federal judge blocks Trump’s termination of temporary protected status for Ethiopians: A federal judge in Massachusetts on Wednesday blocked the Trump administration’s effort to end temporary protected status for Ethiopian immigrants, ruling that the administration had terminated the designation “without regard for the process delineated by Congress.” The Department of Homeland Security announced in December that Ethiopia no longer met the conditions for the designation, which had been granted to thousands of Ethiopian immigrants beginning in 2022 under the Biden administration and extended in 2024. The Department of Homeland Security called the ruling the work of a “radical, Biden-appointed” judicial activist, adding that “temporary means temporary” and that conditions in Ethiopia had improved sufficiently to no longer qualify. The ruling is the latest setback for the administration, which has sought to end temporary protected status for immigrants from 13 countries; the Supreme Court is set to hear arguments in late April on a related challenge involving Syrian and Venezuelan recipients.

Other International News

• China brokers Afghanistan-Pakistan agreement to halt escalation in fighting: Afghanistan and Pakistan agreed on Wednesday not to escalate their conflict and to pursue a comprehensive resolution to their disputes following seven days of peace talks mediated by China in the western city of Urumqi, Beijing’s Foreign Ministry announced. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said all parties acknowledged that “terrorism is the core issue” in the relationship and agreed to continue dialogue, though Islamabad offered no public comment on the outcome.

• Ecuador recalls ambassador from Bogotá: Ecuador recalled its ambassador from Bogotá for consultations on Wednesday, after Colombian President Gustavo Petro described former Ecuadorian Vice President Jorge Glas as a “political prisoner” and called for his release amid reports of his declining health. Ecuador’s Foreign Ministry rejected Petro’s remarks as a “flagrant violation” of the principle of non-intervention. Glas was seized two years ago in a raid on the Mexican Embassy in Quito, where he had been granted asylum, triggering a case before the International Court of Justice. The dispute is the latest between the two countries, which are also embroiled in a trade war over tariffs and energy pricing.

• Four migrants drown attempting Channel crossing off Calais coast: Four migrants—two women and two men—died Thursday morning after a group of around 30 people attempted to board an inflatable dinghy off the beaches of Equihen and Ecault near Calais and got into difficulty, local mayor Christian Fourcroy told Reuters. A fifth person was in critical condition. The dinghy continued its journey to Britain. Some 4,776 migrants have crossed the Channel so far this year, according to U.K. government data, amid a wider pattern of traffickers using inflatable boats to pick up migrants along the northern French and Belgian coastline.

• Haiti postpones voter registration for first presidential election in a decade: Haiti’s electoral council said Wednesday it was delaying voter registration that should have begun April 1, and that it would shortly announce new dates to register for the country’s upcoming presidential election. The council had previously scheduled the first round of presidential elections for August 30, with a runoff in December; an official anticipates that if the voter registration issue is resolved, elections could still be held by the end of the year. This would be the country’s first election since 2016.

• Global financial institutions warn Iran war is fueling global food insecurity: The International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and World Food Program warned on Wednesday that the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran has triggered “one of the largest disruptions to global energy markets in modern history.” In a joint statement issued following a high-level meeting, the three institutions said that, “Sharp increases in oil, gas, and fertilizer prices, together with transport bottlenecks, will inevitably lead to rising food prices and food insecurity. The burden will fall most heavily on the world’s most vulnerable populations, particularly in low‑income, import‑dependent economies.”

More from Drop Site

Ryan Grim and Emily Jashinsky spoke with Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill about the fragile U.S.-Iran ceasefire and Tehran’s 10-point plan. Scahill explains Donald Trump was “desperate for an off-ramp,” after Tehran used the Strait of Hormuz to show it could cause “absolute global economic havoc.” He said Iran is treating the deal as a pause, with its “finger firmly on the trigger.” The pause now could be cover to “rearm Israel” before new strikes, especially as attacks in Lebanon continue. Both sides claim victory, but the truce is unstable and could unravel quickly, Scahill told Breaking Points.

If you want to continue getting this newsletter, you don’t have to do anything. But if this is too much—we do try to be mindful of your inbox—you can unsubscribe from this newsletter while continuing to get the rest of our reporting. Just go into your account here at this link, scroll down, and toggle the button next to “Drop Site Daily” to the off setting. It looks like this:

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President Donald Trump announces two-week ceasefire with Iran. Attacks in region continue, despite ceasefire. Trump decided on war with Iran after secret Israeli pitch, New York Times reports. Israel conducts “largest coordinated strike” against Lebanon. UAE says 375 have been arrested since war began. Defense for Children International–Palestine shuts down after 35 years. Congressmembers, NAACP call for invocation of the 25th Amendment. Liberal Chris Taylor wins Wisconsin Supreme Court seat, expanding majority to 5-2. Republican Clay Fuller wins Georgia special election. ICE agents shoot man during vehicle stop in rural California town. House Freedom Caucus breaks with leadership, demands full DHS funding in reconciliation bill. American journalist Shelly Kittleson freed in Baghdad. Protesters storm Kuwaiti consulate in Basra. One killed in gun battle near Israeli consulate in Istanbul. Four killed in India’s Manipur. Libyan businessman reportedly funded Haftar’s Tripoli offensive, arms transfers to Sudan. Ukrainian forces operating covertly in Libya launched March drone strike on Russian tanker. Armed men kill at least 20 and abduct villagers in Nigeria’s Niger state.

NEW from Drop Site: Israeli-backed militia raids Gaza refugee camp, killing at least ten.

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This is Drop Site Daily, our free daily news recap. We send it Monday through Friday. Today’s edition is being sent to more than 750,000 subscribers. Help us grow that number by forwarding and recommending this newsletter.

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Ceasefire announcement

• Trump announces two-week ceasefire with Iran: President Donald Trump announced around 6:30 p.m. ET on Tuesday that the United States would suspend bombing and attacks on Iran for two weeks in what he called a “double sided ceasefire,” conditioning the pause on the “complete, immediate, and safe opening of the Strait of Hormuz.” Trump said the U.S. had “met and exceeded all military objectives” and described a ten-point Iranian proposal as a “workable basis” for a broader deal, adding that the two sides were “very far along with a definitive agreement” on long-term peace and that the two-week window was intended to “finalize and consummate” that wider settlement. He called Tuesday a “big day for World Peace.” The ceasefire went into effect at 8:22 p.m. ET, according to Axios.

  • Iran’s ten-point proposal—which Trump said he accepted as the basis for negotiations—calls for a complete cessation of hostilities against Iran and allied resistance groups; withdrawal of U.S. combat forces from the region and a prohibition on attacks launched from regional bases; limited daily passage through the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks under Iranian supervision; cancellation of all primary, secondary, and United Nations sanctions; compensation for war damages through an investment and financial fund; Iran’s commitment to not building nuclear weapons alongside U.S. acceptance of Iran’s right to uranium enrichment; Iranian agreement to negotiate bilateral and multilateral peace treaties with regional countries; extension of any non-aggression guarantees to all resistance groups; and termination of all International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Governors resolutions and United Nations Security Council resolutions relating to Iran, with all commitments formalized in an official United Nations resolution.

  • Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, the Islamic Republic’s top security decision-making body, announced Wednesday that talks would begin “with complete distrust of the American side” on Friday, April 10, in Islamabad, with two weeks allocated to finalize the details of Tehran’s ten-point demands and codify them into a binding United Nations Security Council resolution—which the council said would render any agreements “binding international law.”

  • The ceasefire proposal reportedly allows Iran and Oman to charge fees on ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, with Iran saying it intends to use the funds for reconstruction, according to the Associated Press. The Omani government has not yet confirmed that it will participate in a program to charge fees on maritime traffic in the strait.

  • Trump commented on the details of the ceasefire related to Hormuz as well, saying that the U.S. “will be helping with the traffic buildup in the Strait of Hormuz,” but did not clarify the substance of this role (nor, it should be noted, is American activity in Hormuz addressed in the reported text of the ceasefire deal). “There will be lots of positive action! Big money will be made. Iran can start the reconstruction process,” Trump added.

  • The initial ceasefire announcement reportedly came after talks with Pakistan’s leadership. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had called earlier on Tuesday for a two-week extension of President Donald Trump’s deadline, and had asked Iran to open the Strait of Hormuz for two weeks as a “goodwill” gesture.

  • Israel later announced it would join the ceasefire with Iran, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office issued a statement that “the two-week ceasefire does not include Lebanon.” Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, however, announced after the release of this statement that the ceasefire between Iran, Israel, and the U.S., covers “everywhere including Lebanon and elsewhere, EFFECTIVE IMMEDIATELY.” The Associated Press also reported that Israel continued to strike Iran after the announcement of the ceasefire, according to an Israeli military official. Reported Iranian drone attacks also occurred in the UAE and Bahrain.

  • The Islamic Resistance in Iraq, an umbrella group of Iran-aligned Shiite militias that includes factions such as Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat al-Nujaba and operates within the broader Popular Mobilization Forces network, announced a ceasefire of its own on Tuesday evening.

  • Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on X that he held a “warm, substantive” conversation with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian on Wednesday and that “Pezeshkian reaffirmed Iran’s participation in the upcoming negotiations.”

  • Trump on Wednesday also threatened tariffs on countries that sell weapons to Iran writing on Truth Social: “A Country supplying Military Weapons to Iran will be immediately tariffed, on any and all goods sold to the United States of America, 50%, effective immediately. There will be no exclusions or exemptions!”

Ongoing attacks despite ceasefire

• An oil refinery on Iran’s Lavan Island came under attack at around 10 a.m. local time on Wednesday, according to PRESS TV, despite a two-week ceasefire agreement announced hours earlier. Firefighters were working to contain the blaze.

• The United Arab Emirates Defense Ministry said on Wednesday afternoon that its air defense had intercepted dozens of Iranian ballistic missiles and drones.

• Kuwait’s said it has intercepted an “extensive wave” of drone attacks targeting oil and power facilities despite the ceasefire announcement, according to AP.

• Bahrain also reported drone attacks.

War on Iran

• U.S.-Israeli warplanes strike major aluminum and petrochemical facilities: U.S.-Israeli warplanes struck two major Iranian industrial sites Tuesday night, previous to the announcement of the ceasefire, hitting the Arak Aluminum Plant, one of Iran’s largest aluminum production facilities, and the Fajr Petrochemical Complex in Mahshahr, part of Iran’s principal petrochemical hub in Khuzestan province.

• Russia and China veto Hormuz Security Council resolution: The United Nations Security Council failed Tuesday to pass a draft resolution that would have authorized “all defensive means necessary” to protect international navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, after Russia and China exercised their veto power. Sponsors had already stripped the resolution of any explicit Chapter VII language—which would have permitted offensive military force—in an effort to secure broader support, but the two permanent members argued the resolution failed to address “underlying regional dynamics” and warned that even defensive authorization risked further escalation.

• Missile debris strikes Qatari home: Debris from an intercepted Iranian missile struck a residential home in Qatar’s Marikh area Tuesday, injuring four people, including a child, the Interior Ministry said, with damage described as limited and all wounded transported to the hospital.

• Iranian strike sparks fire at Bahraini facility hours: A fire broke out at an unidentified facility in Bahrain following an Iranian strike Wednesday morning, the Ministry of Interior announced, with Civil Defense extinguishing the blaze and no injuries reported. The attack came several hours after a ceasefire was announced. A White House official told Axios that the strike was likely the result of the ceasefire news not yet having reached the lower ranks of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

• UAE says 375 arrested in Abu Dhabi since war began: Authorities in the United Arab Emirates 375 people have been detained across the capital, Abu Dhabi, over the course of the war, according to AP. Abu Dhabi police said the people are from various countries and were detained for filming and “disseminating false information” on social media. Cases have been referred to prosecutors on charges of violating the UAE’s laws aimed at “protecting the society.”

• Trump decided on war with Iran after secret Israeli pitch, New York Times reports: President Donald Trump authorized strikes on Iran following a February 11 Situation Room meeting in which Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, appearing alongside Mossad chief David Barnea and military officials, presented a four-part regime-change pitch that included a video montage of potential replacement leaders such as Reza Pahlavi, the New York Times reported Tuesday. Netanyahu argued Iran’s ballistic missile program could be destroyed within weeks, that the regime would be too weakened to close the Strait of Hormuz, and that Mossad-fomented street protests combined with a Kurdish ground front from Iraq could trigger an uprising. Trump’s immediate response was reported as: “Sounds good to me.” Vice President JD Vance was absent, stranded in Azerbaijan. U.S. intelligence officials pushed back sharply the following day. Central Intelligence Agency Director John Ratcliffe called the regime-change scenario “farcical,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio called it “bullshit,” and General Dan Caine told the president the Israelis routinely “oversell” plans that are “not always well-developed,” the Times reported. War Secretary Pete Hegseth was described as the strongest proponent of immediate action.

Lebanon

• Israel conducts “largest coordinated strike” against Lebanon: Israel conducted a massive wave of airstrikes in Lebanon on Wednesday afternoon, hitting over 100 targets in 10 minutes, in what the Israeli military said was “the largest coordinated strike across Lebanon” since its escalated military campaign began over a month ago. The strikes targeted Beirut, Beqaa, and southern Lebanon. Footage and photos from the capital showed large plumes of smoke rising in the air in different parts of the city. Lebanon’s Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine told Al Jazeera that, “Hospitals are overcrowded with martyrs and the wounded.” Drop Site contributor Lylla Younes said, “Ambulances nonstop and people screaming. Warplanes are back in the sky. That’s the soundscape in Beirut.”

• Israel vows to continue war on Lebanon: The Israeli military said Wednesday it is “continuing to conduct targeted ground operations against Hezbollah.” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier said Israel would honor the Iran ceasefire while continuing the war in Lebanon. The Israeli military on Wednesday reiterated its sweeping displacement order for all residents south of the Zahrani River to flee to the north. While Israel has denied Lebanon’s inclusion in the agreement, Pakistan, France and Egypt, have all have confirmed Lebanon’s inclusion in the deal.

• Continuing Israeli attacks:

  • Prior to the massive coordinated strike wave, Israeli strikes continued across southern Lebanon on Wednesday morning, with an attack on the town of Saida killing at least eight people and wounding 22, Al Jazeera reported, and a separate strike hitting a medical center in Chaqra and killing several paramedics. A targeted Israeli strike on an ambulance killed four paramedics in the southern town of Al-Qaliila according to Al Mayadeen.

  • In the 30 minutes following the announcement of the ceasefire, three airstrikes hit the village of Shutras, near the town of Khiam, where artillery shelling was also reported. Two earlier strikes were reported, one in the vicinity of a hospital in the city of Tyre, and the other in the Bekaa town of Lashkar, where Israel had previously destroyed two bridges across the Litani River.

  • Nine people were killed, most from the same family, including women and children, when an Israeli airstrike hit a home in Srifa, in the Tyre district of southern Lebanon, after residents returned overnight following the ceasefire announcement, AFP reported. Four others were wounded. Separately, Israeli drone strikes on the Qasmieh road killed two people, including a Syrian delivery worker, while another strike hit an ambulance, according to L’Orient Today and Quds News.

Genocide in Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, three Palestinians were killed, due to wounds sustained in the Israeli-backed militia attack on Al-Maghazi refugee camp, and three were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,315 killed, with 172,137 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 736 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,035, while 759 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israeli-backed militia raids Al-Maghazi refugee camp, killing at least ten: An Israeli-backed Palestinian militia raided the eastern part of Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza on Monday, killing at least ten Palestinians and wounding dozens more in an assault supported by Israeli airstrikes. Eyewitnesses told Drop Site that fighters from the Abu Nasira militia—which calls itself the “Free Homeland Forces” and is led by former Palestinian Authority security officer Shawqi Abu Nasira—entered the neighborhood and began firing at homes and children inside them. When residents fought back, Israeli aircraft struck the area with missiles and quadcopter-dropped explosives. “Whenever anyone tried to approach to provide aid to the injured, they were immediately targeted by the aircraft,” one resident told Drop Site. Read an account of the attack, from journalist Mohammed Ahmed here.

• Defense for Children International–Palestine shuts down after 35 years: Defense for Children International–Palestine, the primary reporting agency to the United Nations Security Council on the treatment of Palestinian children in Israeli military detention, announced Tuesday it has ceased operations after 35 years, saying it was “not able to overcome operational challenges resulting from Israel’s targeted criminalization of Palestinian human rights organizations.” The group had documented solitary confinement, coerced confessions, and torture in Israeli military detention, provided free legal representation to children prosecuted in Israeli military courts, and independently verified killings, injuries, and abuses carried out by Israeli forces and settlers. The closure follows years of escalating Israeli pressure. Israel designated the group a “terrorist” organization in 2021, and in August 2022, Israeli forces raided its headquarters, welded the doors shut, and declared it illegal. As of December 31, 2025, 351 Palestinian children were held in Israeli prisons, with 51% under administrative detention, the highest proportion ever recorded.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Congressmembers, NAACP call for invocation of the 25th Amendment: More than 80 members of Congress echoed the initial calls for Trump to be removed from office after he had threatened to kill “a whole civilization.” The second wave of calls for the invocation of the 25th Amendment included Reps. Summer Lee (D-Pa.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Delia Ramirez (D-Ill.), Seth Moulton (D-Mass.), Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.), Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.), Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), Steve Cohen (D-Tenn.), Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.), Mark Pocan (D-Wis.), Richie Torres (D-N.Y.), Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), and Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.). The NAACP also called for Trump’s removal—the first time it has called for the 25th amendment to be invoked, the group noted—with Derrick Johnson, the CEO of the organization, saying, “The president is unfit, unwell, and unhinged.”

• Liberal Chris Taylor wins Wisconsin Supreme Court seat, expanding majority to 5-2: Chris Taylor, a state appeals court judge and former Democratic state legislator, won a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court by more than 20 points on Tuesday, NBC News projected, giving liberals a 5-2 majority on the battleground state’s highest court and putting conservatives out of reach of reclaiming it until at least 2030. Taylor, who was backed by the state Democratic Party and held a commanding fundraising advantage over her conservative opponent, Maria Lazar, centered her campaign on abortion rights and voting rights. The expanded majority deepens Democratic hopes of using the court to challenge Wisconsin’s congressional map, currently controlled 6-2 by Republicans, and to challenge conservative legislation, including restrictions on public sector collective bargaining rights.

• Republican Clay Fuller wins Georgia special election: District attorney Clay Fuller won the special election runoff Tuesday for Georgia’s 14th Congressional District, the seat vacated by Marjorie Taylor Greene following her public break with President Donald Trump, with the Associated Press projecting a Fuller victory over retired Army General Shawn Harris. Fuller, who was endorsed by Trump, will serve out the remainder of Greene’s term and must win a primary and general election in November to serve a full two-year term.

• ICE agents shoot man during vehicle stop in rural California town: Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents shot Carlos Ivan Mendoza Hernandez during a vehicle stop in Patterson, a rural agricultural town in California’s Stanislaus County, on Tuesday, with ICE director Todd Lyons saying agents fired after Hernandez allegedly attempted to run over an officer with his car. Dashcam footage obtained by KCRA-TV showed a black sedan pinned between two vehicles before reversing and then moving forward toward agents who had their weapons drawn, though the clip contained no audio and the sequence of events remains under investigation by the FBI. Hernandez was hospitalized with an undisclosed condition. ICE described him as a member of the Los Angeles 18th Street gang wanted for questioning in El Salvador in connection with a murder, though Lyons provided no supporting evidence for the allegation. Tuesday’s shooting is at least the eighth involving ICE agents in 2026.

• House Freedom Caucus breaks with leadership, demands full DHS funding in reconciliation bill: The House Freedom Caucus on Tuesday rejected Speaker Mike Johnson’s two-step plan to fund the Department of Homeland Security, demanding instead that the entire department—including ICE and Customs and Border Protection—be funded through a Republican-only budget reconciliation bill rather than splitting enforcement funding from the rest of the agency. Johnson’s plan, which has the backing of Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) and appeared to have President Donald Trump’s support, would fund the bulk of DHS through a bipartisan Senate bill while using reconciliation to fund immigration enforcement separately, circumventing a Democratic filibuster. The Freedom Caucus argued that leaving ICE and Border Patrol dependent on a second reconciliation bill amounted to relying on “hopes and prayers.” “That’s why we must use reconciliation to fully fund ALL of the Department of Homeland Security!” the Caucus posted on Tuesday.

• Center-left think tank has board members with AI financial ties: The Searchlight Institute, a Washington think tank launched last fall to push the Democratic Party toward the center, has not disclosed that its board includes philanthropist Simone Coxe—whose multibillion-dollar fortune stems largely from her venture capitalist husband Tench Coxe’s investments in Nvidia—or billionaire hedge fund manager Stephen Mandel, whose firm Lone Pine Capital is heavily invested in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, Nvidia’s largest chip manufacturer, The Lever reported Tuesday. The think tank has been vocally opposing data center moratorium legislation proposed by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) while publishing white papers favoring lighter-touch AI regulation. Read the full report from The Lever here.

Other International News

• American journalist Shelly Kittleson freed in Baghdad: American journalist Shelly Kittleson, 49, was freed Tuesday after being held for more than a week by the Iran-backed Iraqi Shiite militia Kataib Hezbollah, which abducted her in Baghdad on March 31, two officials confirmed to Al-Monitor. Kataib Hezbollah announced on Telegram it had decided to release Kittleson “on the condition that she leaves the country immediately,” attributing the decision to its “appreciation of the patriotic stances” of Iraqi caretaker Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. Neither the U.S. nor the Iraqi government has confirmed Kittleson’s release.

• Protesters storm Kuwaiti consulate in Basra: Protesters stormed the Kuwaiti consulate in Basra, Iraq, on Tuesday after rockets fired from the direction of Kuwait struck a residential home in Khor al-Zubair, killing at least three people and wounding five, Reuters reported, citing Iraqi security and health officials.

• One killed in gun battle near Israeli consulate in Istanbul: One attacker was killed and two others were injured and “neutralized” by Turkish police Tuesday after opening fire near the building housing the Israeli consulate in Istanbul’s Besiktas district, wounding two officers in a densely populated commercial area. Both Israel and Turkey condemned the incident as a terror attack.

• Four killed in India’s Manipur: At least four people were killed in the northeastern Indian state of Manipur on Tuesday, ending months of relative calm in a region gripped by ethnic conflict since May 2023, Reuters reported. Two children from the mostly Hindu Meitei community died when a bomb exploded in a house in the Meitei-dominated Bishnupur district, with Meitei community members alleging the attack was carried out by Kuki militants—a charge Kuki groups denied. Later Tuesday, police opened fire on a crowd that had stormed a security forces camp, killing two more people, according to the state’s Interior Minister. Authorities imposed a curfew in the regional capital Imphal and surrounding areas and suspended internet service for five days.

• Afghanistan calls China-hosted peace talks with Pakistan “useful”: Afghanistan’s foreign ministry described the peace talks with Pakistan being held in the western Chinese city of Urumqi as “useful” on Wednesday. Mid-level delegations from both Pakistan and Afghanistan have been meeting in Urumqi since April 1, following a Chinese invitation to talks. According to the UNOCHA, the conflict has displaced 94,000 people overall.

• Libyan businessman reportedly funded Haftar’s Tripoli offensive, arms transfers to Sudan: A new investigation by The Sentry found that Libyan businessman Ahmed Gadalla helped secure $300 million in loans from an Abu Dhabi-based bank to help finance Khalifa Haftar’s failed 2019–2020 assault on Tripoli. After Haftar’s forces were repelled, the loans went largely unpaid, leaving Libyans to bear the cost, while Gadalla has since expanded his control over eastern Libya’s banking system and been linked to arms shipments to Sudan in violation of a United Nations embargo. More on Gadalla and Haftar is available from Al Jazeera, here.

• Ukrainian forces operating covertly in Libya launched March drone strike on Russian tanker: Ukrainian drone operators have been covertly deployed at military facilities in Libya’s capital Tripoli, the coastal city of Misrata, and the town of Zawiya as part of a deal between Kyiv and Prime Minister Abdul-Hamid Dbeibah’s government, according to the Associated Press. The deal is reportedly backed by a number of Western countries, including the United States. The AP also reported that Ukrainian operatives launched a sea drone strike from Tripoli on the Russian-flagged liquefied natural gas tanker Arctic Metagaz, which was badly damaged by the attack, and continues to drift off the Mediterranean coast.

• Cameroon confirms 16 of its soldiers killed fighting for Russia in Ukraine: Cameroon’s Foreign Ministry confirmed Monday that 16 Cameroonian nationals described as “military contractors” have been killed while fighting in Russia’s war against Ukraine, marking the first time the West African country has publicly acknowledged the involvement of its citizens in the conflict. The announcement came after Cameroon’s defence minister had issued an internal memo in March 2025 instructing commanding officers to monitor their units amid concerns that soldiers were leaving to join the war. Ukraine estimated in February that more than 1,700 Africans are fighting for Russia, with citizens from Kenya, Nigeria, and other nations also reported among the recruits—many allegedly lured by false promises of employment.

• Armed men kill at least 20 and abduct villagers in Nigeria’s Niger state: Armed men attacked villages in the Shiroro district of Nigeria’s Niger state on Tuesday, killing at least 20 people and abducting an unknown number of others over several hours of violence that overwhelmed local security personnel and destroyed homes, with residents fleeing to nearby towns, Reuters reported. Police spokesperson Wasiu Abiodun confirmed the attack on Bagna and Erena villages but estimated that the death toll was lower than the confirmed number.

• North Korea fires ballistic missiles at the sea: North Korea fired multiple short-range ballistic missiles from its eastern coastal Wonsan area Wednesday morning, with several traveling approximately 240 kilometers toward the North’s eastern waters and a later launch traveling more than 700 kilometers, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. This is the second launch event in two days, with a separate projectile launched Tuesday near Pyongyang believed to have failed after displaying abnormal behavior in its initial launch stage. The back-to-back launches came as North Korea’s state media announced that Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi will visit Pyongyang on Thursday for a two-day trip.

• Drone attacks continue in Ukraine and Russia: Russian attacks in southeastern Ukraine killed eight people and injured more than two dozen others, Reuters reported, with Ukrainian officials accusing Moscow of undermining the hopes for an Easter ceasefire. An attack on Kherson killed four elderly people and injured seven others, the region’s governor said on Telegram. Russian drones also attacked Ukraine’s largest Danube River port, Izmail, on Wednesday night, damaging the port’s infrastructure and a civilian vessel. Ukrainian drone strikes struck a school in Russian-controlled Zaporizhzhia, seriously injuring six people, five of whom were children, according to Yevgeny Balitsky, the governor of the region.

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Trump to Iran: “A whole civilization will die tonight.” U.S. and Israeli airstrikes pounded targets across Iran overnight and into Tuesday. Railway infrastructure targeted in Iran after Israeli threat. Explosions reported on Kharg Island. Petrochemical facilities struck in Iran and Saudi Arabia, including a critical hub for plastics and fertilizer. IRGC warns no more restraint if bridges, energy plants bombed. Iranians form human chains around critical infrastructure. Israel continues slaughter in Lebanon. Israeli strike kills entire family in southern Lebanon safe zone. Al-Maghazi camp attack leaves at least eight dead. U.S. lawmakers call Cuba sanctions “economic warfare” after Havana visit. ICE has detained over 6,200 children since start of Trump’s second term, new data shows. Poll finds Texas Democratic primary voters shifting sharply on Israel. Gov. Ron DeSantis signs law allowing Florida officials to designate domestic terrorist organizations and expel student supporters. Lawsuit accuses ExxonMobil and Empire Petroleum of $200 million accounting fraud in New Mexico. Vice President JD Vance arrives in Budapest to back Viktor Orbán ahead in approaching election. Australia’s most-decorated veteran arrested on five war crimes charges. Japan says journalist detained in Iran since January released on bail. Sudanese army breaks siege of Dilling. Taiwan’s opposition KMT leader arrives in China on “peace mission.” Six civilians killed in Ukrainian and Russian drone strikes on residential areas.

NEW from Drop Site: Tehran residents flee or brace as Trump threatens strikes on Tuesday.

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War on Iran

• Trump to Iran: “A whole civilization will die tonight”: President Donald Trump reiterated his extreme threats against all Iranians in a post on social media on Tuesday, writing: “A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will. However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS? We will find out tonight, one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the World. 47 years of extortion, corruption, and death, will finally end. God Bless the Great People of Iran!”

  • Trump had previously given a deadline of Tuesday 8 p.m. ET for Iran to “Open the Fuckin’ Strait” or he would target civilian infrastructure.

  • Reps. Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, and Shri Thanedar, as well as former Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, all called for the 25th Amendment to be used to remove the president over the threats. Sen. Ed Markey also called for Trump to be removed from office.

  • On Monday, Rep. Yassamin Ansari said she would introduce articles of impeachment for Secretary of War Pete Hegseth.

• U.S. and Israeli airstrikes pounded targets across Iran overnight and into Tuesday:

  • At least 17 civilian areas have been bombed across the country today, according to the Iranian Red Crescent, including multiple neighborhoods in Tehran, Alborz, Fars, and elsewhere.

  • At least 18 people were killed, including two children, and 24 wounded in attacks on residential areas in Alborz province, according to the state-linked Fars news agency.

  • At least nine people were killed in the city of Shahriar, west of Tehran, according to Iranian media.

  • At least six people were killed in the city of Paris, east of Tehran, according to Iranian media.

  • The Rafi Niya Synagogue in Tehran was destroyed in an airstrike on a residential building in the center of the capital that also hit the synagogue, according to the IRNA news agency.

  • Khorramabad International Airport was hit in an airstrike, according to the Mizan news agency.

• Railway infrastructure targeted in Iran after Israeli threat: Israeli strikes hit multiple railway bridges across Iran on Tuesday, according to the Mehr News Agency. The Yahya Abad railway bridge in Kashan, in Isfahan province in central Iran, was struck and killed two people, according to the Deputy Governor of Isfahan. Bridges in Qom and on the route between Hashtgerd and Tabriz were also hit. The strikes came after the Israeli military issued a warning telling Iranians to avoid using trains until 9pm local time. “Refrain from using and traveling by train throughout Iran. Your presence on trains and near railway lines endangers your life,” the statement said.

• Explosions reported on Kharg Island: Footage circulating online appears to show explosions on Kharg Island, Iran’s primary oil export terminal in the Persian Gulf. Axios’s Barak Ravid, citing an anonymous U.S. official, reports the U.S. military conducted strikes on “military targets” on the island.

• Petrochemical facilities struck in Iran and Saudi Arabia, including a critical hub for plastics and fertilizer: The Israeli military on Tuesday claimed it struck an Iranian petrochemical factory in Shiraz. Shortly afterwards, the IRGC claimed it launched retaliatory strikes on major American petrochemical companies in the Jubail region of Saudi Arabia, including Sadara—a $20 billion joint venture between Aramco and Dow that had already been forced offline by the war—as well as ExxonMobil and Dow Chemical, using medium-range missiles and suicide drones. The Jubail industrial complex, which accounts for roughly 7% of Saudi GDP, is home to 13 of SABIC’s 16 Saudi production plants, making it one of the world’s most critical hubs for plastics, fertilizers, and industrial chemicals. Fires were reported at SABIC facilities following the strikes, according to a source on the ground cited by AFP.

• Tehran residents flee or brace as Trump threatens strikes on Tuesday: Hundreds of thousands of Iranians are evacuating Tehran or sheltering in place ahead of a Tuesday 8:00 p.m. ET deadline set by President Donald Trump, who threatened on Truth Social to target power plants and bridges unless Iran opens the Strait of Hormuz. “I panicked when I saw this. He wants to ‘blow everything up’ and ‘take the oil’? He is gonna hit bridges?” one resident told Drop Site. “I am responsible for my family’s safety,” he said. “I cannot let them live in peril. I have no choice but to flee Tehran.” Read the latest dispatch from Tehran, written by a correspondent for Drop Site News, here.

• Iranians form human chains around critical infrastructure: Footage shared by Iranian media on Tuesday showed human chains being formed at key power plants and bridges in Iran, including the Kazerun Combined Cycle Power Plant, Rajee Power Plant, Bisotun Power Plant, Tabriz Power Plant, and bridges in Ahvaz and Dezful. Iran’s secretary of the National Council of Youth and Adolescents, Alireza Rahimi, said earlier on Monday amid threats from Trump to target Iranian infrastructure: “Tomorrow, human chains of young people will be formed around power plants across the country.”

• IRGC warns no more restraint if bridges, energy plants bombed: The IRGC warned on Tuesday it would “deprive the U.S and its allies of the region’s oil and gas for years” if President Donald Trump carried out his threat to attack power plants and bridges in Iran. “We have exercised great restraint and had considerations in choosing retaliatory targets, but from now on all these considerations have been removed,” the IRGC said.

• Iranian drone strike wounds 15 U.S. troops at Kuwait air base: Fifteen U.S. troops were wounded in an Iranian drone strike on Ali al-Salem Air Base in Kuwait overnight, two U.S. officials told CBS News, with most returning to duty shortly after. U.S. Central Command confirmed the cumulative toll of American wounded since the start of the conflict now stands at 373, of whom 330 have returned to duty and 5 remain seriously injured.

• IRGC claims fresh strikes on U.S. base in Kuwait: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said it launched new missile and drone strikes on Camp Buehring, also known as Al-Odeiri, in northwestern Kuwait, roughly 25 miles south of the Iraqi border, describing the attack as part of its “98th wave” of operations. Satellite imagery released by Iran’s Tasnim News Agency, corroborated by open-source analysis from late March through early April, purports to show eight distinct impact sites across the facility, including hits near personnel housing and troop barracks, damage to helicopter shelters and maintenance hangars, and fire damage to logistics warehouses and storage areas.

• Two Qatari LNG tankers turn back from Strait of Hormuz: Two fully loaded Qatari liquefied natural gas tankers, the Al Daayen and the Rasheeda, aborted an attempted transit of the Strait of Hormuz on Monday, reversing course after heading east toward the Omani side of the strait, according to ship-tracking data cited by Bloomberg and Reuters.

• Third Turkish vessel transits Strait of Hormuz: A third Turkish-owned ship, the Ocean Thunder, safely passed through the Strait of Hormuz overnight carrying Iraqi crude oil to Malaysia, Turkish Transport Minister Abdulkadir Uraloglu announced Monday. Turkey has positioned itself as a diplomatic intermediary between Tehran and Washington, with Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan speaking with Iranian counterpart Abbas Araghchi on Monday in their second call since Friday. Fidan also held talks with U.S. officials amid search and rescue efforts following the downing of a U.S. F-15E fighter jet over Iran.

• U.N. Security Council to vote on Bahrain’s Strait of Hormuz resolution: The United Nations Security Council is set to vote Tuesday on a revised resolution drafted by Bahrain addressing freedom of navigation through the Strait of Hormuz. The updated text “strongly encourages” interested states to coordinate “defensive” efforts proportionate to the circumstances to safeguard commercial shipping through the Strait, explicitly including the naval escort of merchant and commercial vessels, and to “deter” any attempts to close, obstruct, or interfere with international navigation through the waterway.

• Iran and Qatar trade rebukes over regional strikes: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told his Qatari counterpart on Monday that the regional crisis is “exclusively” the result of U.S. and Israeli aggression, accusing Washington of using bases in neighboring countries to launch strikes. Qatar’s prime minister pushed back, condemning Iran’s targeting of regional countries as a threat to stability and rejecting attacks on civilian infrastructure “under any circumstances.” Both sides called for an end to the conflict, with Iran reiterating its demand for a permanent cessation of hostilities.

• Trump’s statements in advance of Tuesday’s “deadline”: President Trump made other several statements to the press on the day before his self-imposed “deadline” for the Strait of Hormuz to be opened. Regarding the U.S.’ war aims, he said, “If I had my choice, what would I like to do, take the oil. Because it’s there for the taking,” a desire which is, “unfortunately,” constrained by the desire of the American people to end the war. Addressing whether or not the planned strikes on Iran’s infrastructure would be a war crime, Trump said that it would not be because “They’re animals.” He reiterated his threat to “decimate by 12 o’clock [Tuesday] night” every bridge and power plant in the country in a Truth Social post, claiming that “the entire country “can be taken out in one night,” and he refused to clarify whether or not schools or hospitals would be off limits to reporters. “I don’t want to tell you that.” When asked why Iranians would accept this destruction, he said, they would “be willing to suffer that for their freedom.” The Pentagon scrapped a planned Tuesday morning press briefing with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chairman General Dan Caine without explanation, Al Monitor reported.

• Iran delivers formal 10-point response to U.S. war proposal via Pakistan: Iran conveyed its official response to a U.S. proposal to end the war through Pakistani intermediaries Monday, Iran’s state news agency IRNA reported, rejecting a temporary ceasefire in favor of a permanent end to U.S.-Israeli hostilities. Tehran’s core conditions for a ceasefire include a complete cessation of fighting across the region, a protocol granting Iran control over passage through the Strait of Hormuz, reparations for war damages, and the lifting of sanctions. President Donald Trump told reporters the proposal was “a very significant step” but “not good enough.”

• Iran says energy infrastructure can withstand U.S. attacks: Iranian energy officials and parliamentarians reassured the public that the country’s electricity grid possesses “significant resilience” and can withstand potential U.S. strikes, according to The New Arab. Officials pointed to the country’s diversification of its production sources, the wide geographic distribution of power plants, and an interconnected national ring network capable of redistributing power.

Lebanon

• Israel continues its slaughter in Lebanon on Tuesday morning:

  • Israeli forces killed at least eight people on Tuesday morning, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency, including three in a strike on Tayr Debba, one in a strike in Zebedine, and another killed in Deir al-Zahrani; a woman in Tyre succumbed to injuries from an earlier strike on Tuesday as well.

  • The use of phosphorus shells by the Israeli military was reported in Ainata, and Israeli forces also reportedly opened fire on farmers in the Marjayoun plain, wounding a Syrian national.

• IDF targets seventh bridge over Litani River: The Israeli army struck another bridge over the Litani River—its seventh targeted so far—claiming it was being used by Hezbollah “to transfer weapons, rockets, and launchers in order to advance terror plots.” Israel has systematically targeted bridges along the Litani since March 12, a campaign that has further isolated parts of southern Lebanon and disrupted access to essential services for residents remaining in the south.

• Israeli strike kills entire family in southern Lebanon safe zone: An Israeli airstrike killed a family of seven, including three women and a five-year-old girl, in Kfar Hatta near Sidon in southern Lebanon, Spanish journalist Marta Mario reported. The strike hit an area to which Israel had ordered civilians to displace, mirroring a pattern documented in Gaza in which displaced families were subsequently struck in zones designated as safe.

• Israeli strike kills Lebanese beekeepers’ union official: Marouf Rammal, a board member of Lebanon’s Beekeepers’ Union, was killed Monday in an Israeli strike in southern Lebanon, according to separate reports by journalists Hadi Hoteit and Courtney Bonneau. Colleagues mourned Rammal as a central figure in developing the country’s apiary sector, crediting him with sourcing queen bee strains now widely used by beekeepers across the region.

• Attacks by Hezbollah: Hezbollah claimed multiple attacks on Israeli positions, including repeated rocket strikes on Kiryat Shmona, and strikes on Karm Ben Zimra, Margaliot, Misgav Am, Al-Ajil, Hamames Hill south of Khiam, Nimr al-Jamal, and Bayyada. The group released footage it said showed a strike on an Israeli tank in Rshaf, Bint Jbeil district. Artillery exchanges were also reported between Khiam and Abl al-Saqi in the Marjayoun district.

Genocide in Gaza, West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, ten Palestinians were killed and 44 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,312 killed, with 172,134 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 733 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,034, while 759 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Strikes on Gaza leave at least 12 dead on Monday: At least ten Palestinians were killed and many more wounded on Monday in Al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza after an armed group of collaborators attacked the camp’s eastern sector, triggering clashes with residents. Israeli forces provided cover for the armed militia and launched airstrikes during the fighting, according to witnesses.In Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood, an Israeli strike killed a child on an electric bicycle. Israeli forces also killed one Palestinian after they opened fire on a vehicle in Khan Younis.

• Ben Gvir storms Al-Aqsa Mosque amid 39-day closure: Far-right Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir entered the courtyards of Al-Aqsa Mosque—one of Islam’s holiest sites—on Monday with heavy Israeli police presence, reported WAFA. This move was condemned by several Muslim-majority countries, including Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Turkey. Ben Gvir’s storming of the mosque comes amid growing calls from settler groups to escalate such incursions, and a 39-day long Israeli closure of Al-Aqsa and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre since the onset of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, under the pretext of a “state of emergency.”

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• U.S. lawmakers call Cuba sanctions “economic warfare” after five-day Havana visit: Representatives Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) and Jonathan Jackson (D-Ill.) concluded an official five-day visit to Cuba on April 5, meeting President Miguel Díaz-Canel, Foreign Minister Bruno Rodríguez, and members of parliament to document the humanitarian impact of U.S. sanctions and the fuel blockade firsthand. In interviews following the trip, both lawmakers described a severe crisis in which power outages are disabling neonatal units, ventilators, incubators, and elevators across the country. Cuban leadership, they said, reiterated openness to direct negotiations with Washington. “This is the most sanctioned part of Planet Earth ⁠right now, just 90 miles off our shores,” Jackson told a group of reporters. ”Let´s bring ​the rhetoric down. People are suffering. And they are suffering for no good reason.”

• ICE has detained over 6,200 children since start of Trump’s second term, new data shows: Immigration and Customs Enforcement has detained more than 6,200 children since President Donald Trump returned to office, with a daily average of 226 minors taken into custody—a tenfold increase over the final year of the Biden administration—according to data obtained from ICE by the Deportation Data Project and analyzed by the Marshall Project. Nearly half of detained children have been held at the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas, where court filings by detainee advocates describe children going hungry, worms and mold found in food, inadequate medical care, and a 13-year-old placed in isolation after a suicide attempt. More than 1,600 children have been held beyond the court-mandated 20-day limit, and over 3,600 have been deported, often with little or no advance notice to their families.

• Poll finds Texas Democratic primary voters shifting sharply on Israel: A new survey by the IMEU Policy Project, conducted by Data for Progress, finds 76% of Texas Democratic primary voters believe Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, and 80% support ending U.S. weapons funding to the country. Congressional candidate James Talarico holds a four-to-one advantage over Rep. Jasmine Crockett among voters aware of his criticism of Israel, with 88% agreeing with his position opposing weapons transfers to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government and 44% of his supporters saying his stance on Israel directly influenced their vote. Just 2% of respondents said maintaining U.S. support for Israel was a priority.

• DeSantis signs a law allowing Florida officials to designate domestic terrorist organizations and expel student supporters: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed legislation Monday granting state leaders the authority to designate groups as domestic or foreign terrorist organizations, dissolve them, strip their state funding, and expel university students who support them. The law also mandates that expelled students on a study visa be reported to ICE. Designations require approval from the governor and three elected Cabinet members: the attorney general, chief financial officer, and agriculture commissioner. In December, DeSantis designated the Council on American-Islamic Relations and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist organizations under an executive order, the enforcement of which a federal judge temporarily blocked last month.

• Private credit crisis deepens from exposure to software loans: At least seven major private credit funds have suspended or limited investor redemptions in recent weeks amid growing alarm over exposure to heavily indebted software companies, with a Wall Street Journal analysis finding that the largest funds had understated their software loan holdings by as much as 46%, according to a new report from Maureen Tkacik at The American Prospect. Apollo co-president John Zito told an investment conference last month that most private credit software loans issued between 2018 and 2022 are worth no more than 20 to 40 cents on the dollar. Tkacik’s full investigation here.

• Lawsuit accuses ExxonMobil and Empire Petroleum of $200 million accounting fraud in New Mexico: A lawsuit filed in New Mexico District Court alleges that ExxonMobil and Empire Petroleum subsidiaries fraudulently undervalued their cleanup obligations by roughly 33 times their true cost when transferring several hundred aging oil wells in 2021, leaving the state potentially liable for nearly $200 million in remediation. New Mexico is already projected to face between $700 million and $1.6 billion in total cleanup costs if its bonding and transfer rules are not overhauled, according to a report from the state legislature’s finance committee. The latest from Capital and Main is here.

• Billionaires buy up Yellowstone after destroying global ecosystems: An investigation by In These Times found that seven of the ten largest landowners in Montana’s Park and Sweet Grass counties—home to some of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem’s most celebrated wildlife habitat—are ultra-wealthy investors and industrialists who accumulated their fortunes through industries that are actively destroying ecosystems elsewhere. The MacMillan family, majority owners of Cargill Inc. and proprietors of the 44,000-acre Wild Eagle Mountain Ranch in the Crazy Mountains, illustrate the pattern most sharply: Cargill’s 2003 opening of a soy export terminal in Santarém, Brazil, triggered an explosion of industrial soy cultivation on the Planalto Santareno that has razed more than 660 square miles of Amazonian forest cover since 2000, poisoned waterways, and displaced the Mundurukú and other Indigenous communities who had managed the land sustainably for generations. The investigation from Joseph Bullington is here.

Other International News

• Strikes on base in Syria: Drone strikes caused significant damage and ongoing fires at the U.S. military base at Al-Tanf in Syria on Tuesday, with two Shahed drones suspected as the culprits, Drop Site’s Ryan Grim reports. No fatalities were reported. The Syrian Arab Army took control of the facility in February, claiming it did so “through coordination” with U.S. forces.

• JD Vance arrives in Budapest to back Orbán ahead of April 12 election: Vice President JD Vance traveled to Budapest Tuesday for two days of bilateral meetings with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, whose Fidesz party faces its most competitive election in over a decade against opposition leader Péter Magyar and the Tisza Party. Most polls have Magyar, a former Fidesz official, leading Orbán by as many as 20 points; Magyar retains many of Orbán’s conservative views on immigration and social issues, and has centered much of his opposition to him on Orban’s combativeness towards the European Union.

• Italy airports affected by fuel shortages: At least four airports in northern Italy—Milan Linate, Bologna, Venice and Treviso—have imposed restrictions on jet fuel due to shortages, giving priority to long-haul and medical flights. Priority will be given to ambulance flights, state flights, and flights of more than three hours, according to an official notice.

• Australia’s most-decorated veteran arrested on five war crimes charges: Ben Roberts-Smith, a 47-year-old former Australian special forces soldier and Victoria Cross recipient, was arrested at Sydney Airport Tuesday and charged with five counts of war crimes in connection with the alleged murder of five Afghan civilians between 2009 and 2012, the Australian Federal Police announced. Roberts-Smith is accused of either directly shooting Afghans who were not participating in hostilities at the time of their deaths or of ordering these shootings by his subordinates. Each charge carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

• Japan says journalist detained in Iran since January released on bail: A Japanese national believed to be a journalist at public broadcaster NHK has been released on bail after being detained in Iran since January, Japan’s Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara confirmed on Tuesday.

• Sudanese army breaks siege of Dilling: The Sudanese army reopened the road linking Dilling in South Kordofan to North Kordofan on Monday after seizing the town of Al-Tukma, approximately seven kilometers east of Dilling, from a coalition of the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North, Sudan Tribune reports.

• Venezuela’s government and opposition seek pause in asset seizure case: Lawyers representing both the Venezuelan government and its political opposition jointly asked a U.S. federal magistrate on Monday to pause a case in which foreign creditors are seeking to seize funds linked to state oil company PDVSA, while the two sides determine who will best represent Venezuela’s interests in U.S. courts. The unusual coordination may prefigure future cooperation between the government and the opposition to protect the country’s U.S. assets—including Houston-based refiner Citgo Petroleum, which is owned by PDVSA—from foreign creditors, bondholders, and other claimants. The magistrate granted the pause for 45 days.

• Taiwan’s opposition KMT leader arrives in China on “peace mission”: Kuomintang chairwoman Cheng Li-wun arrived in Shanghai on Tuesday for what she called a “historic journey for peace,” the first visit by a KMT leader to China in a decade, meeting Taiwan Affairs Office head Song Tao before traveling by train to Nanjing. The trip, which could include a meeting with President Xi Jinping when Cheng reaches Beijing on Thursday, comes as five Chinese warships are currently deployed around Taiwan.

• Six civilians killed as Ukrainian and Russian drone strikes hit residential areas: A Ukrainian drone strike on the Alexandrovsky District in Russia’s Vladimir region killed a 12-year-old boy and both of his parents in their apartment overnight, regional governor Alexander Avdeev announced Tuesday. The boy’s five-year-old sister survived but suffered serious burns and was hospitalized, according to local officials. In the Dnipropetrovsk region of Ukraine, a Russian drone strike hit a city bus on Tuesday morning, killing three people and wounding 12 more as commuters headed to work, according to Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko.

• Bolivia’s Arce declares himself a political prisoner: Former Bolivian President Luis Arce, detained since December 2025, declared himself a “political prisoner” in a letter from jail. Arce denounced psychological torture, lack of due process, and the rejection of his defense’s requests including medical exams, claiming the government of President Rodrigo Paz and the judiciary seek his “civil and political death.”

More from Drop Site

• Utah State Senator Nate Blouin sat down with Drop Site News Capitol Hill correspondent Julian Andreone to discuss Israel, the war on Iran, Democratic House leadership, and his congressional campaign.

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U.S. and Israel continue to bombard Iran, striking residences, engineering university, petrochemical plants, and nuclear power plant. Iran responds with attacks on Israel and the Gulf. Israel assassinates Iranian military officials. U.S. reports rescue of downed F-15E crew members. Verified footage shows missiles fired from Kuwaiti territory into Iran. Trump threatens to “blow up” all of Iran. Mediators scrambling for ceasefire ahead of Trump ultimatum. Trump admits U.S. attempted to arm Iranian protesters. Araghchi conducts diplomatic blitz. Israeli assault on Lebanon continues, 36 killed over 24 hours. Israeli forces systematically demolish homes in southern Lebanon. Israel kills 10 in Gaza in weekend attacks. Israel attacks WHO vehicle, Rafah travel suspended. Video shows Israeli soldiers beating unarmed Palestinian in West Bank refugee camp. Rat bites surge among Gaza children. Democrats in Congress open space for Trump deal to end war. Mass surveillance fight in Congress pits reformer Jamie Raskin against Dem Rep. Jim Himes and House Speaker Mike Johnson. Mary Peltola surges in Alaska with populist message. Maine Gov. Mills skips tribal forum and Senate debate as Platner leads in polling. Anil Ambani sought White House access through Jeffrey Epstein, NYT reports. DRC agrees to accept U.S. third-country deportees. Drone strike ignites fire at foreign oil facility in Basra. Floods, landslides and lightning kill 77 across Afghanistan. Syrian Alawite women and girls are being abducted and brutalized, the NYT finds. Nepalese government cuts the work week short. Kidnappings and raids in northwestern Nigeria. Seven protesters arrested at UK air base used by the U.S. Ukraine escalates strikes on Russian ports and energy infrastructure. Over 70 people feared dead in Mediterranean after migrant boat capsizes.

NEW from Drop Site:

Iran Rejects Temporary Ceasefire, Says It Has Already Laid Out Terms for Agreement: A senior Iranian official who spoke to Drop Site said that they had rejected a proposal mediated by Pakistan for a temporary ceasefire with the U.S. and Israel, instead laying out their proposal for a permanent end to the war. Read the full story from Jeremy Scahill, Murtaza Hussain, and Jawa Ahmad.

Plus: Iran war threatens Gulf financing that underpins A.I. boom and Paramount-Warner merger.

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War on Iran

• U.S. and Israel continue to bombard Iran: The U.S. and Israel carried out a wave of airstrikes on Iran overnight and early Monday morning, killing at least 34 people, according to Al Jazeera.

  • In Tehran province, at least 23 people were killed, including six children. Five were killed in a residential neighborhood in the city of Qom, and six were killed in the port city of Bandar-e Lengeh.

  • U.S.-Israeli airstrikes hit Sharif University of Technology, Iran’s top engineering school, in Tehran on Monday. Tasnim News Agency reported damage to the campus mosque including shattered windows and collapsed ceilings, while a nearby gas distribution site was also struck, triggering outages across the Sharif area and District 9. Democratic Rep. Yassamin Ansari, denounced the attack in a post on X, writing: “Sharif University is Iran’s MIT. They’ve produced a huge number of engineers who’ve gone on to Silicon Valley and founded some of the most successful American tech companies. Why are we bombing a university in a city of 10 million people?”

  • U.S.-Israeli forces struck the Mahshahr petrochemical zone in Khuzestan province Saturday, hitting multiple facilities inside Iran’s largest petrochemical complex, according to Reuters and Iranian media. Local officials said explosions struck at least three companies within the Petrochemical Special Economic Zone, while Iran’s Bandar Imam Petrochemical Complex—part of the same industrial cluster—also sustained damage. At least five people were wounded, with officials warning the casualty toll may rise. People in Mahshahr reportedly are struggling to breathe due to the chemical pollution caused by the US and Israeli bombardment of the nearby petrochemical factories.

  • Israel attacked Iran’s petrochemical plant in South Pars on Monday, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency, which reported that plants in Asaluyeh, including Jam and Damavand, were targeted, while the companies Mobin and Damavand, which supply electricity, water, and oxygen to the Assaluyeh petrochemical plants, were also hit. Pars Petrochemical was not damaged. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement, “The IDF has just powerfully struck the largest petrochemical facility in Iran, located in Asaluyeh, a central target responsible for about 50% of the country’s petrochemical production, following last week’s strike on the second main facility. As a result, both facilities, which together account for 85% of Iran’s petrochemical production, are now out of operation. This represents a multi-billion dollar economic blow to the Iranian regime.”

  • A U.S.-Israeli strike hit the area near Iran’s Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant Saturday at approximately 8:30 a.m. local time, killing one security guard, according to Iranian reports. The attack marks the fourth strike on the facility since the start of the war.

  • Israeli forces struck the Alborz foothills north of Tehran just before midnight Friday, with Iranian media reporting massive explosions and the activation of air defenses in the capital.

  • U.S.-Israeli strikes killed Abolfazl Dehnavi, a 20-year-old Iranian Red Crescent Society volunteer, on Saturday in Isfahan province while he was carrying out humanitarian work, according to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Dehnavi is the fourth Red Crescent volunteer killed since the war began on February 28.

• Israel assassinates Iranian military officials: The head of intelligence for Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard Maj. Gen. Majid Khademi was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Tehran on Monday, according to state media. Israel claimed the killing, with Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz saying, “Iran’s leaders live with a sense of being targeted. We will continue to hunt them down one by one.” An Israeli military spokesperson also said on Monday that Israel killed the leader of the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard’s undercover unit in its expeditionary Quds Force Asghar Bakeri. Iran has not confirmed Bakeri’s killing yet.

• U.S. reports recovery of downed F-15 crew members but loses multiple aircraft in rescue operation: Both crew members of the U.S. F-15E shot down over Iran have reportedly been recovered alive, following a 36-hour search-and-rescue operation conducted inside Iranian territory. The operation appears to have cost multiple American aircraft, according to U.S. and Iranian accounts. The second recovered airman—who had not been identified—reportedly evaded Iranian forces in mountainous terrain before extraction. According to the U.S. account, two MC-130J Commando II special operations transport aircraft landed at a makeshift airstrip during the rescue but could not take off again. U.S. forces evacuated all personnel and deliberately destroyed the aircraft on the ground to prevent capture. Iranian military-linked sources, however, claimed Iranian forces destroyed two C-130/MC-130 transports, two Black Hawk helicopters, an MQ-9 Reaper drone, and a Hermes 900 drone in combat. Fars News Agency reported nine Iranians killed and seven wounded in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad province during the overnight operation. Iran’s foreign ministry also claimed the U.S. operation may have been a cover to “steal enriched uranium” from Iran. “The area where the American pilot was claimed to be present in Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad Province is a long way from the area where they attempted to land or wanted to land their forces in central Iran,” Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said, according to Al Jazeera. “The possibility that this was a deception operation to steal enriched uranium should not be ignored at all.”

• Verified footage shows missiles fired from Kuwaiti territory into Iran: Videos verified by France 24 show missiles being launched from Kuwaiti territory into Iran, directly contradicting Kuwait’s official position that it has not allowed its land to be used for attacks. At least 13 missiles were filmed firing on March 24 from near Abdali in northern Kuwait, with a second barrage recorded March 31 through April 1 from the same area. Weapons experts said the launches are consistent with U.S.-made Guided Multiple Launch Rocket System rockets fired from HIMARS platforms, which the Kuwaiti military does not operate but U.S. forces do.

• Iran responds with attacks on Israel and the Gulf:

  • Four people were killed in an Iranian missile strike on a residential building in Haifa on Sunday, according to the Israeli military. Other residential buildings in Haifa were hit over the weekend as well as a factory in the city. Iran launched at least five salvos targeting military and industrial infrastructure across Israel on Sunday, with one missile directly striking the Ne’ot Hovav Industrial Zone. Al Jazeera reported sirens and explosions across northern Israel including the Galilee, with fragments falling in areas including Petah Tikva.

  • Drone strikes hit multiple government and energy sites across Kuwait City Saturday, according to state news agency KUNA. The Ministries Complex sustained “significant material damage” after a drone strike, with the Finance Ministry reporting no injuries and ordering staff to work remotely while barring visitors. A separate attack on the Shuwaikh Oil Sector Complex near Kuwait City sparked a fire that emergency crews quickly contained. A Kuwaiti Ministry of Electricity spokesperson Fatima Hayat also announced on Saturday that two power generation units were out of service after drones struck power and water desalination plants.

  • Iran struck Bahrain’s Bapco Energies refinery complex Saturday, with witnesses and early reports describing a drone or missile hitting the Sitra/Ma’ameer industrial area and producing visible flames and thick smoke near the facility. No details on injuries or damage have been reported.

  • A drone strike damaged a state-funded telecommunications building in Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates on Monday, according to the state-run WAM news agency. Meanwhile, Emirati authorities confirmed on Saturday an Iranian attack on the Oracle building in Dubai, stating that the building’s facade was damaged by debris following an interception.

  • UAE authorities said on Sunday that fires broke out at the Borouge petrochemical plant after debris from intercepted aerial threats struck the facility, forcing a shutdown of operations, with no injuries reported.

• Trump threatens to “blow up” all of Iran: President Donald Trump issued an expletive-laden threat Sunday on social media, writing: “Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran. There will be nothing like it!!! Open the Fuckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell - JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah.” Trump also reportedly told ABC that the conflict may end in “days, not weeks,” but threatened that if no deal is reached, the U.S. could escalate dramatically with “very little” off limits. “If it happens, it happens… if it doesn’t, we’re blowing up the whole country.”

• Iran rejects ceasefire proposal, mediators scrambling ahead of Trump ultimatum: Egyptian, Pakistani and Turkish mediators have sent Iran and the U.S. a proposal calling for a 45-day ceasefire and the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, according to the AP. Officials said the proposal was sent late Sunday night to Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. Mideast envoy Steve Witkoff. A senior Iranian official who spoke to Drop Site said that they had rejected a proposal mediated by Pakistan for a temporary ceasefire with the U.S. and Israel, instead laying out their proposal for a permanent end to the war. Read the full story from Jeremy Scahill, Murtaza Hussain, and Jawa Ahmad. A senior Iranian official also confirmed to Reuters that Iran won’t reopen the strait of Hormuz in exchange for a “temporary ceasefire,” adding that Tehran would not be pressured into accepting deadlines and making a decision.

• Araghchi conducts diplomatic blitz: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has held calls with his counterparts in Turkey, Austria, Pakistan, Egypt, Russia, India, and France since Friday evening, in an intensive diplomatic push to build international pressure against U.S.-Israeli military operations. Across the calls, Araghchi described strikes on infrastructure, energy sites, residential areas, and nuclear facilities as “unprecedented war crimes,” called on the United Nations and international bodies to hold Washington and Tel Aviv accountable, and stressed Iran’s determination to defend its sovereignty.

• Trump admits U.S. attempted to arm Iranian protesters: President Donald Trump admitted on Sunday that the United States attempted to send weapons to anti-government protesters in Iran earlier this year, disclosing the covert effort in a phone interview with Fox News anchor Trey Yingst. Trump claimed “a lot of guns” were sent “through the Kurds” but said he believes the weapons never reached demonstrators, suggesting Kurdish intermediaries “kept them.”

• Oman and Iran hold talks on Hormuz transit: Oman and Iran held talks on Saturday to discuss options for ensuring smooth transit through the Strait of Hormuz, the Omani Foreign Ministry announced. The meeting follows an Iranian official’s statement Thursday that Tehran was drafting a formal monitoring protocol with Oman for strait traffic. Separately, tracking data monitored by Lloyd’s List showed three Omani vessels—two large oil supertankers and one liquefied natural gas carrier—transiting the strait Sunday, outside Iran’s approved corridor near Larak Island, sailing unusually close to the Omani coastline. On Sunday, Iran officially declared Iraq exempt from transit restrictions in the Strait of Hormuz, and a Portuguese-flagged tanker carrying one million barrels of Iraqi Basra heavy crude crossed the Strait of Hormuz Sunday, becoming the first Iraqi oil shipment to transit the waterway since the war began February 28.

• U.S. arrests supposed relatives of slain Iranian general Soleimani: The State Department announced Saturday that Hamideh Soleimani Afshar—allegedly the niece of the late Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander General Qasem Soleimani—and her daughter were arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and were set to be removed from the country. Qasem Soleimani’s daughter, however, denies that the two individuals arrested in the U.S. are related to the family. Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked the lawful permanent resident status of both women, describing Soleimani Afshar as “an outspoken supporter of the totalitarian, terrorist regime in Iran.” Gen. Soleimani, Iran’s most powerful military commander, was killed in a U.S. drone strike in January 2020.

• U.S. missile inventory: The United States has committed nearly its entire inventory of JASSM-ER cruise missiles to the Iran campaign, according to Bloomberg. An order issued at the end of March redirected weapons from Pacific and continental U.S. stockpiles to Central Command bases and RAF Fairford in the UK, leaving only approximately 425 of a prewar inventory of 2,300 available for the rest of the world. U.S. operations consumed more than 1,000 JASSM-ERs in the first four weeks of the war alone. Combined with shorter-range JASSM variants, roughly two-thirds of total U.S. cruise missile stockpiles have been committed to the war on Iran.

• Gulf funds are reconsidering American investments, including Paramount-Warner merger: Gulf sovereign wealth funds are reportedly reviewing their American investments as the Iran war continues to strain the region’s finances, Ryan Grim reports in his latest. One particular deal, $111 billion Paramount Skydance–Warner Brothers Discovery merger, is imperiled by this development, as $24 billion of that total came from the Gulf. The Qatar Investment Authority is set to reconvene within the week to reassess its role in the merger, with industry sources saying widespread divestment on the part of the Gulf is now a mathematical inevitability if the war continues. For more on the economic fallout from the war in Iran – particularly its threat to the artificial intelligence industry. Read the latest from Ryan Grim for Drop Site, here.

Lebanon

• Casualty count: The death toll from Israel’s assault on Lebanon has risen to at least 1,497, including 129 children—with 4,639 wounded—since March 2, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry. At least 36 people were killed and 209 injured as a result of Israeli attacks in Lebanon over the past 24 hours.

• Israeli strikes kill seven on Monday: Israeli strikes in Lebanon have killed at least seven people and injured several others on Monday, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency.

  • A missile strike on a vehicle at the Kafr Rumman roundabout in the Nabatieh district killed four.

  • An attack on the town of Siddiqine killed one and injured another.

  • In West Bekaa, a strike on Mashghara early today killed two people and injured five, according to preliminary reports.

  • The Israeli army reissued forced displacement orders to residents of southern Lebanon to move north of the Zahrani River and ordered those in southern Beirut neighborhoods—including Haret Hreik, Ghobeiry, Lilaki, Hadath, Burj Al-Barajneh, Tahwitat Al-Ghdeir, and Chiyah—to immediately evacuate.

• Weekend strikes: Israeli strikes across southern Lebanon and Beirut killed at least 14 people Sunday.

  • An Israeli strike on the Al-Jinah area south of Beirut killed at least four people and wounded 39 others Sunday, Lebanon’s Ministry of Health reported. The strike was within approximately 100 meters of the Rafik Hariri University Hospital, the country’s largest public medical facility.

  • An Israeli airstrike on Sunday night directly targeted a medical crew in the town of Haris, in the Bint Jbeil district, killing two medics, according to the state-run National News Agency. Over 50 Lebanese medical workers have been killed in Israeli attacks since March 2.

  • Israeli strikes killed 10 others in southern Lebanon on Sunday—including a family of six and a four-year-old girl among seven killed in Kfar Hatta, where Israel had issued a forced evacuation order the previous evening.

  • Israeli strikes killed two girls and wounded 22 others in the southern Lebanese village of Habbush on Saturday, Lebanon’s health ministry reported.

  • An Israeli strike on Saturday near the coastal city of Tyre, approximately 50 miles south of Beirut, damaged a hospital and wounded 18 people, including three paramedics.

  • Israeli attacks killed the mayor of Abba and a municipal police officer in southern Lebanon’s Nabatieh Governorate on Sunday. Abba is a majority Shia town of roughly 8,000 to 9,000 residents located north of the Litani River between Nabatieh and Tyre.

  • A Lebanese soldier was killed by ​an Israeli strike in ⁠southern Lebanon on Sunday, according to the Lebanese military.

  • An Israeli strike on the Ain Saadeh Hills suburb northeast of Beirut killed Pierre Moawad, a local leader of the Lebanese Forces party, and his wife on Sunday. The Christian party is staunchly anti-Hezbollah and has a history of collaboration with Israel. According to sources cited by L’Orient-Le Jour, the intended target may have been on the floor above the Moawad family.

• Israeli forces systematically demolish homes in southern Lebanon: Israel demolished homes in the southern Lebanese border towns of Naqoura and Taybeh on Sunday in large, controlled explosions. Naqoura, a coastal town sitting directly on the border with Israel along the Blue Line—an unofficial border drawn up by the UN between Lebanon and Israel—hosts the headquarters of the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon and was known before the war as a vacation destination. Most of its roughly 4,000 residents have been displaced.

• Israel threatens to strike Lebanon’s main border crossing with Syria: Israel announced Saturday that it intends to bomb the Masnaa border crossing between Lebanon and Syria “in the near future,” claiming Hezbollah is using the passage for military purposes. The threat carries severe humanitarian implications—Masnaa is one of Lebanon’s primary land crossings with Syria and is used by thousands of travelers and commercial vehicles daily.

• Hezbollah claims success against major targets: Hezbollah claimed on Sunday that it had struck an Israeli warship 68 nautical miles off the Lebanese coast using an anti-ship cruise missile, with Israeli Channel 14 reporting that Israeli officials believe the warship hit may have been a British vessel, not an Israeli one. British defense officials denied that any of their warships were struck, according to the Telegraph. Hezbollah also released footage Saturday showing the targeting of two Israeli Merkava tanks in Wadi al-Ayun, southern Lebanon, near the Israeli border.

Genocide in Gaza, West Bank, and Israel

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, seven Palestinians were killed and 17 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,302 killed, with 172,090 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 723 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 1,990, while 759 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

  • One Palestinian man was killed in a building collapse, raising the death toll from structural collapse to 29.

• Israel kills 10 over the weekend:

  • An Israeli airstrike killed four Palestinians and wounded others on Jaffa Street near the Darraj neighborhood in Gaza City on Sunday, local health authorities said.

  • In another attack on Sunday, a child was shot in the head in Mawasi Rafah in southern Gaza.

  • A strike on Saturday killed four people in Gaza City.

  • One Palestinian was killed in a separate strike east of Gaza.

  • At least six Palestinians were wounded by Israeli fire in tent camps in Rafah and Khan Younis.

• Rat bites surge among Gaza’s children: Medical workers in Gaza are reporting a surge in rat bites on children’s bodies and faces as Israel’s ongoing blockade denies displaced families proper shelter, with overcrowding and collapsing sanitation infrastructure leaving children especially vulnerable. Al Jazeera’s video report is available here.

• Israel attacks WHO vehicle, Rafah travel suspended: The Israeli military opened fire on a World Health Organization (WHO) vehicle transporting several WHO staff members in Khan Younis on Monday in an area designated as a “green zone,” according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. The driver of the vehicle was killed in the attack, which the Health Ministry blasted as “undermining the work of humanitarian organizations and imposing further restrictions on their operations.” As a result, the WHO informed the Palestinian Red Crescent it had temporarily suspended medical evacuations of Palestinian patients and of returnees to Gaza through the Rafah crossing, according to the WAFA news agency.

• Video shows Israeli soldiers beating unarmed Palestinian in West Bank refugee camp: Israeli soldiers were filmed assaulting an unarmed Palestinian man with his hands raised in the occupied West Bank refugee camp of Qalandia on Sunday, with multiple soldiers taking turns beating him before dragging him off camera.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Democrats in Congress open space for Trump deal to end war: Sen. Tim Kaine and Rep. Ro Khanna, both appearing on “Meet The Press” on Sunday, were pressed on whether they’d support a deal to end the war with Iran still in control of the Strait of Hormuz. The question itself is embedded in the American media’s propensity to push politicians in a relentlessly more hawkish direction, but both Khanna and Kaine pushed back, saying that the most important thing to do now is end the war.

• Mass surveillance fight in Congress pits reformer Jamie Raskin against Dem Rep. Jim Himes and House Speaker Mike Johnson: Reauthorization of what’s known as Section 702 is likely coming to a floor vote next week in the House, with the focus of the battle on whether to allow the Trump administration to use data brokers to evade the Fourth Amendment, hoover up personal information, and feed it into government-controlled AI programs. Himes has been attacking his fellow Democrat Raskin, who has argued against giving the Trump administration these powers. “Jamie’s argument…is the reason we’re splitting right now,” he said recently. “Day in and day out, I see what this authority is doing to keep people safe … whereas Jamie lives in a domestic world where he has Pam Bondi publicly humiliating him.” A left-right coalition is forming to block the FISA legislation. As the American Prospect reported, the CPC has committed its members to voting against reauthorization, and a lack of trust in Trump has led more to join. “There’s a lot of people who are going to switch from yes two years ago to no today,” Himes told The Hill. “Because even though Donald Trump’s been president for five years, and he has never abused the program—I would know it pretty much in real time if he did—even though that’s true, people don’t trust Donald Trump.” The Trump administration, however, has gutted the inspectors general and other internal police who would spot Trump abusing the program.

• Mary Peltola surges in Alaska with populist message: Democrats looking to flip the Senate are increasingly eyeing Alaska as a major pickup opportunity, with polls showing former Rep. Peltola, who half-jokingly has run as “pro-fish,” consistently ahead of incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan. What’s new this time, reports Alaska’s NPR station, is that Peltola is leaning hard into the kind of populist messaging that is working for candidates like Maine’s Graham Platner or independent Dan Osborn in Nebraska. “The former Alaska congresswoman is talking about more than fish, family and freedom as she runs for U.S. Senate,” Alaska Public Media reported. “Many of her posts are about ‘crooked politicians feathering their own nests,’ and an elite class that’s ‘rigging the system’ against regular people.”

• U.S. academics suspended or dismissed over opposition to Iran war: At least three American academics have been suspended or dismissed in the past month after voicing opposition to the U.S.-Israeli actions in the Middle East, the Guardian reported. Shirin Saeidi was formally dismissed from the University of Arkansas following social media posts supporting Palestine and praising Iranian leadership, as well as allegations she used university letterhead to advocate for the release of an Iranian official convicted in Sweden. Idris Robinson, a philosophy professor at Texas State University, filed a lawsuit after his contract was terminated following an off-campus talk on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and Aria Fani was removed as director of the Middle East Center at the University of Washington after sending emails via the center’s listserv criticizing Israel and U.S. policy, though he retains his faculty position.

• Maine Gov. Janet Mills skips tribal forum and Senate debate as Platner leads in polling: Mills cited “scheduling conflicts” for backing out of the April 11 U.S. Senate primary debate with challenger Graham Platner as well as an April 16 forum hosted by the Penobscot Nation. Also: Platner called on Sunday for an end to U.S. military assistance to Israel, saying “not a single taxpayer dollar should be spent on arming and defending a country that commits a genocide.” “This is a nation that right now is exterminating people,” he added, saying it would be “very difficult” for him to view Israel as a close partner of the United States ever again. A recent Emerson College poll shows Platner leading Mills 55% to 28%.

• Anil Ambani sought White House access through Jeffrey Epstein, NYT reports: Indian billionaire Anil Ambani turned to Jeffrey Epstein in 2017 to navigate U.S.-India defense and diplomatic relations, the New York Times reported, citing hundreds of newly released Epstein-related communications. Epstein reportedly provided Ambani with advance intelligence on White House appointments—including correctly predicting John Bolton would replace H.R. McMaster as national security adviser—in exchange for access to Modi’s government. Epstein also advised Ambani that India purchasing more Israeli weapons would improve its standing with the Trump White House, a suggestion that preceded Modi’s historic first visit to Israel and a roughly $2 billion Indian weapons purchase that year. Drop Site’s reporting on the Epstein-Ambani connection, which we published in January, is available here.

Other International News

• DRC agrees to accept U.S. third-country deportees: The Democratic Republic of the Congo announced it will begin receiving migrants deported from the United States this month. The Congolese government described the new arrangement with the Trump administration as “temporary” and reflective of Congo’s “commitment to human dignity and international solidarity.” The U.S. will reportedly cover costs of deportation, though no number of expected arrivals has not been specified. The Trump administration has spent at least $40 million to deport approximately 300 migrants to third countries since February 2025, according to Democratic staff of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

• Drone strike ignites fire at foreign oil facility in Basra: A drone attack triggered a fire Saturday at a storage facility belonging to foreign oil companies in Basra, Iraq’s principal southern oil hub, according to security sources who spoke to Reuters. No casualties were reported and the company was not identified.

• Floods, landslides, and lightning kill 77 across Afghanistan: Widespread flooding, landslides, and lightning strikes triggered by heavy rain and storms have killed 77 people and injured 137 across Afghanistan over the past 10 days, the country’s Disaster Management Authority reported. Almost 800 homes have been completely destroyed and thousands more damaged. Critical routes, including the main artery linking the capital to the Pakistani border, and one connecting Kabul to northern cities including Kunduz and Mazar-e-Sharif, have been blocked by the storms. More rain is forecast in the coming days.

• Syrian Alawite women and girls abducted and brutalized: NYT: Abductions of women and girls from Syria’s Alawite minority are far more widespread and brutal than authorities have acknowledged, according to a New York Times investigation. While the government officially recognized only one verified case, the Times confirmed the kidnappings of 13 Alawite women and girls and received reports of many more. Survivors described being seized in broad daylight, held in filthy conditions, beaten, and subjected to sexual violence; five of the victims had reportedly been raped and two returned home pregnant. One family paid a $17,000 ransom for a relative who was never released. Read the full report here.

• Nepalese government cuts the work week short: The government of Nepal announced Sunday it would shorten the working week for government offices and educational institutions from six days to five, adding Saturday as a day off to cope with an energy crisis triggered by the U.S.-Israel war on Iran. Nepal has no domestic fossil fuel supplies and relies almost entirely on India for its energy, leaving it acutely exposed to the global price shock.

• Kidnappings and raids in northwestern Nigeria: Armed bandits abducted more than 150 people—mostly women and children—from Zamfara state’s Bukkuyum area last Thursday, in one of northwest Nigeria’s largest recent mass kidnappings, according to Reuters. The gunmen opened fire on vehicles and homes before sweeping through the communities, forcing residents to flee. A local councilman said those abducted were taken toward surrounding forest areas. In the neighboring Kaduna state, Nigeria’s army rescued 31 civilians taken hostage during an attack on a church during its Easter service, with five people found dead at the scene. The head of a local Christian organization said that two churches were attacked in the village and that seven people were killed, with an undetermined number taken hostage.

• Seven protesters arrested at UK air base used by the U.S.: British police arrested seven people Sunday at a peace encampment outside RAF Lakenheath on suspicion of supporting the group Palestine Action. The United Kingdom has authorized the U.S. to use British military bases for “defensive” operations against Iran and to protect the Strait of Hormuz. The five men and two women were arrested wearing clothing bearing the message “We oppose genocide, we support Palestine Action,” according to the organizers. The Starmer government’s designation of Palestine Action as a terrorist organization last year was ruled “disproportionate” in February, though it remains in effect pending a government appeal. More than 2,700 people have been arrested over rallies in support of the group.

• Ukraine escalates strikes on Russian ports and energy infrastructure: Ukrainian drone attacks struck Russia’s Baltic Sea oil export terminal at Primorsk and set fire to the NORSI oil refinery in Nizhny Novgorod on Sunday. Russia’s military reported intercepting 148 Ukrainian drones over a three-hour window. Debris from the assault struck a high-rise apartment building in the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk, injuring at least eight people including children, while a civil defense volunteer was killed in a separate drone strike in the border region of Belgorod. Vladimir Saldo, the Russia-installed leader of occupied Kherson, also announced on Sunday that a Ukrainian drone sunk a wheat cargo ship in the Sea of Azov on Friday, killing one crew member and leaving two others missing.

• Over 70 people feared dead in Mediterranean after migrant boat capsizes: A boat carrying migrants that departed from Libya on Saturday capsized in the central Mediterranean sea, according to Reuters. Thirty-two people were rescued from the boat by two commercial vessels. Two bodies were recovered and the rest are missing. The International Organization for Migration estimates at least 683 people have died in the central Mediterranean this year, one of the highest death tolls since 2014.

• UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances refers Mexico case to General Assembly: The UN Committee on Enforced Disappearances requested the General Assembly to urgently consider Mexico’s situation, finding well-founded indications that enforced disappearances there have been crimes against humanity. The Mexican government protested the move, charging that the Committee is stretching its own definition of enforced disappearances and that the Convention’s procedure for widespread state‑committed disappearances with uncooperative authorities does not match current conditions in Mexico.

More from Drop Site

• Drop Site’s Capitol Hill correspondent Julian Andreone joined Don Lemon on “Lemon LIVE at 5” on Friday to discuss the firing of Pam Bondi, rumors about further Cabinet dismissals, the domestic political implications of the war on Iran, and more. Watch his full appearance here.

• Brace Belden of TrueAnon joined Drop Site’s Ryan Grim and Emily Jashinsky on Breaking Points to discuss his recent trip to Cuba — including a heartbreaking encounter with Carlos, a young boy with cystic fibrosis whose medical care has been made nearly impossible by the U.S. blockade. Listen here.

• Drop Site’s Latin America Desk Head José Luis Granados Ceja recently joined the Katie Halper Show alongside Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson to discuss U.S. policy toward Cuba, watch here.

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U.S. strikes and destroys Karaj Bridge, killing eight. Trump says U.S. destroyed three major Iranian bridges overnight. Iran shoots down U.S. fighter jet. Iranian missile strike on Petah Tikva hit Israeli drone manufacturer Aero Sol. IRGC claims strikes on Amazon and Oracle data centers in the gulf. Tanker and carriers attempt Hormuz transit. Forty nations meet on Thursday to talk Hormuz reopening. Iran reportedly working with Oman on Hormuz navigation protocol. U.S. intelligence finds half of Iran’s missile launchers intact. Hamas will not discuss disarmament unless Israeli troops withdraw from Gaza. Trump fires Pam Bondi. Homeland Security shutdown extends into recess. Hegseth demands resignation of Army chief, two senior generals in leadership purge. Trump imposes 100% tariff on imported brand-name drugs. Federal inspection finds 49 violations at nation’s largest immigration detention facility. Muslim civil rights groups condemn ICE arrest of Palestinian American community leader. Iraqi group claims 23 strikes on U.S. bases. U.S. special operations forces join Ecuador in raid of alleged drug compound. Senegal doubles prison term for same-sex relations. Satellite images show Chinese and Turkish combat drones at Haftar’s airbase in Libya. Russia and Ukraine trade strikes, with Kharkiv targeted. ISIS-linked ADF kills 43 civilians in northeast Congo attack. Drone strike on Sudan hospital kills 10. Morocco has less than two months of fuel reserves. Russia loads second oil tanker bound for Cuba. French-Palestinian MEP Rima Hassan detained in Paris over social media post.

NEW from Drop Site: Israel’s assault on southern Lebanon. Pakistan’s military campaign against Afghanistan ravages civilian population.

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War on Iran

• U.S. and Israel target civilian infrastructure in Iran:

  • President Donald Trump celebrated a double tap strike on a highway bridge linking Tehran to Karaj on Thursday, sharing video of the attack that killed eight people and wounded 95. The second strike occurred as rescue workers responded to the initial attack, according to the Fars news agency. Iranian officials told state media the casualties were civilians who had gathered beneath the bridge and along the riverbank to celebrate Nature Day in Iran. The unfinished bridge intended to connect Tehran to the Caspian Sea. “The biggest bridge in Iran comes tumbling down, never to be used again — Much more to follow! IT IS TIME FOR IRAN TO MAKE A DEAL BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE, AND THERE IS NOTHING LEFT OF WHAT STILL COULD BECOME A GREAT COUNTRY!” Trump wrote on social media. Trump told Time magazine in an interview on Thursday that U.S. forces destroyed three major bridges in Iran.

  • A large column of smoke was seen near Mashhad International Airport in northeastern Iran on Thursday after a reported strike. Iranian media said fuel tanks and a warehouse were likely targeted.

  • U.S.-Israeli airstrikes hit a Red Crescent relief warehouse in Iran’s Bushehr province on Friday, according to the Red Crescent. The attack destroyed two relief containers, a bus and an emergency vehicle.

• Iran shoots down U.S. fighter jet: Iran shot down a U.S. fighter jet over southern Tehran province, according to U.S. and Israeli officials cited by The New York Times as well as reports in Iranian state-affiliated media. An Iranian official told Drop Site News on Friday that the warplane was an F-15 fighter jet and that because of the nature of the strike, the pilot could not evacuate before crashing. Photos of the wreckage were published by the Fars News Agency. “The fighter jet belongs to the 48th Squadron of the U.S. European Command, based at Lakenheath Air Base, England,” the semi-official Tasmin news agency reported. “The squadron has been deployed to the CENTCOM mission area for operations against Iran.”

• Iranian missile strike on Petah Tikva hit Israeli drone manufacturer Aero Sol: An Iranian ballistic missile that struck Petah Tikva, a city in central Israel east of Tel Aviv, hit a facility belonging to Aero Sol, an Israeli defense company that designs, manufactures, and operates tactical drones for government and military clients. Aero Sol also manufactures composite components for Israeli aircraft, including parts used in F-15 and F-16 fighter jet pilot helmets.

• Kuwait desalination plant, oil refinery struck: An attack on a desalination plant in Kuwait on Friday caused “material damage to some of the plant’s components,” according to Kuwaiti authorities. About 90% of drinking water in Kuwait comes from desalination. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) denied targeting the plant and instead blamed Israel for the attack. Iranian drones also struck Kuwait’s state-run Mina al-Ahmadi oil refinery on Friday, sparking fires at the facility. The Mina al-Ahmadi refinery is one of the largest refineries in the Middle East. It has come under attack at least three times in the war.

• Operations suspended at major UAE gas facility: Debris from an intercepted missile caused a fire at the Habshan gas facility, a major Emirati gas processing complex, according to the Abu Dhabi Media Office. “Operations have been suspended while authorities respond to a fire. No injuries have been reported,” the office said.

• IRGC claims strikes on Amazon and Oracle data centers in the Gulf: Iran’s IRGC claimed Thursday it targeted cloud and data infrastructure in surrounding Gulf countries, including an Amazon computing center in Bahrain and an Oracle data center in Dubai. No confirmation has been provided for the Oracle attack, with Dubai’s Media Office calling it “fake news” in a post on X, but reports indicate that Amazon Web Services experienced a service outage Thursday. Iran had previously warned it would strike a list of 18 Western companies for each assassination attempt carried out against Iranian officials.

• IRGC says it conducted joint missile strike with Houthis on Israel: The IRGC said Thursday its aerospace forces, operating jointly with Yemen’s Houthi fighters, launched a major missile strike on the Tel Aviv area and the southern Israeli port city of Eilat, designating the attack the 91st wave of its ongoing missile operation against Israel. The IRGC said it deployed long-range liquid and solid fuel ultra-heavy missile systems targeting military-industrial facilities and troop positions, and claimed more than five million people sought shelter in underground facilities across Israel. Significant damage was reported in the central Israeli town of Ramat Gan, purportedly as a result of a falling Iranian fragmentation missile.

• IRGC claims it downed Israeli and American aircraft: In addition to downing an F-15 in southern Iran, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said Thursday it intercepted and destroyed a Hermes 900 drone over Shiraz in Fars province, according to a state news outlet. The IRGC also claimed on Thursday that it shot down an advanced enemy fighter jet south of Qeshm Island in the Persian Gulf, claiming the aircraft crashed between Qeshm and Hengam islands and sank.

• Tanker and carriers attempt Hormuz transit: Three vessels—two very large crude carriers and one liquefied natural gas tanker—are attempting to exit the Gulf eastbound by hugging the Omani coastline and broadcasting Omani ship identities via AIS signals, according to a reporter from Lloyd’s List. The maneuver appears to be a test of alternative transit routes through the strait, and if successful, it would be the first LNG shipment through the chokepoint since the war began.

• Forty nations meet on Thursday to talk Hormuz reopening: Forty countries met on Thursday to discuss restoring navigation through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran seized control of the route following U.S.-Israeli strikes. The United States did not participate. European nations who previously declined to contribute to a naval mission are reportedly considering reversing that stance, with Britain and France leading a potential coalition. The French, however, are not committing to any forcible opening, with French President Macron telling the media on Thursday that a forcible reopening would be “unrealistic,” might take years, and would leave ships exposed to Iranian attacks.

• Iran reportedly working with Oman on Hormuz navigation protocol: Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi said Thursday that Tehran and Muscat are developing a formal protocol to regulate navigation through the Strait of Hormuz, in an interview with Russia’s state-owned media outlet Sputnik. Under the proposed peacetime framework, ships would be required to coordinate with Iran and Oman in advance and obtain permits for passage. The draft is in its final stages, with formal negotiations between Tehran and Muscat expected once internal reviews are complete.

• U.S. intelligence finds half of Iran’s missile launchers intact: Roughly half of Iran’s missile launchers remain operational, and thousands of its attack drones are still functional, according to U.S. intelligence assessments reviewed by three sources who spoke to CNN. “They are still very much poised to wreak absolute havoc throughout the entire region,” one source told the outlet. The assessment directly contradicts Trump’s claim on Wednesday that Iran’s missile and drone capabilities are “dramatically curtailed” with “very few of them left.” The intelligence also found that a large percentage of Iran’s coastal defense cruise missiles—the weapons most capable of threatening Hormuz shipping—remain intact.

• Global food prices rise as Iran war raises energy costs: World food prices rose in March, due largely to higher energy costs ‌linked to the Iran war, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization said on Friday. The FAO Food Price Index, which ⁠measures changes in a basket of globally traded food commodities, averaged 128.5 points in March, up 2.4% from February. “If the conflict stretches beyond 40 days with high input costs with current low margins,” FAO Chief Economist Maximo Torero said in a statement, “farmers will have to choose: farm the same with fewer inputs, plant less, or switch to less intensive fertilizer crops.”

Lebanon and Gaza

• Casualty count: The death toll from Israel’s assault on Lebanon has risen to at least 1,345—with 4,040 wounded—since March 2, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

• Killings and forced displacement in Lebanon:

  • At least five people were killed in a series of Israeli strikes across Lebanon Friday, including two worshippers targeted by a drone as they left a mosque in Sahmar in the western Bekaa, one in Borj Qalaouiyeh, one in Yahmar al-Shaqif in the Nabatieh district, and one in Shaaitiyeh, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency.

  • The Israeli army also threatened to strike two bridges linking Sahmar and Mashghara, ordering residents to move north of the Zahrani River, while issuing evacuation warnings to residents of Beirut’s southern suburbs, particularly in Haret Hreik, Ghobeiri, Laylaki, Hadath, Borj el-Barajneh, Tahwitat al-Ghadir, and Chiyah, in posts shared by the Israeli military’s Arabic spokesperson.

• Two peacekeepers injured: Two Indonesian UNIFIL peacekeepers were injured in shelling targeting their unit in Adaisseh in southern Lebanon on Friday, according to a UNIFIL source speaking to Al Jazeera. Indonesia on Tuesday called for a direct UN investigation into the earlier deaths of three of its peacekeepers in Lebanon, with its UN representative saying, “We demand a direct investigation from the U.N., not just Israel’s excuses.”

• Israel admits disarming Hezbollah is “unrealistic”: Contradicting statements by Defense Minister Katz saying that Israel would not give up on disarming the resistance group, the Israeli military said its goal of disarming Hezbollah is unrealistic and not a “required goal” of the current military campaign. A senior military official quoted in multiple Israeli media outlets said to fully disarm Hezbollah would require the Israeli military to invade all of Lebanon. According to the official, the military is set to present to the political leadership its plan to establish a “security zone” in southern Lebanon, which would involve demolishing Lebanese villages near the border and setting up army posts several kilometers inside the country. The military later clarified in a statement that it was still committed to a “long-term objective” of disarming the group. Christian communities would not be demolished, the military said.

• Israel is conducting a campaign to ethnically cleanse southern Lebanon of Shia residents: The Israeli military is engaged in an attempt to ethnically cleanse the area of its Shia residents as part of its campaign in southern Lebanon. Last month, Israeli military officials called the heads of a cluster of majority Christian villages in southeastern Lebanon and ordered them to force out any “displaced people” that had taken refuge there, according to a municipal official in one of the villages who spoke to Drop Site. “Displaced people” was a thinly veiled reference to Shia residents who had been forced to flee nearby towns like Khiam. Meanwhile, the Lebanese army announced earlier this week its forces had withdrawn from southern border villages, leaving residents without even a semblance of protection. Read more the latest dispatch on southern Lebanon from Drop Site contributor Lylla Younes here.

• Hamas will not discuss disarmament unless Israeli troops agree to leave: Hamas told mediators Wednesday and Thursday in Cairo that it will not discuss laying down its arms without guarantees that Israel will fully withdraw from Gaza, according to Reuters. A Hamas delegation met with Egyptian, Qatari, and Turkish mediators to deliver its initial response to a disarmament proposal presented last month—conditioning reconstruction on Palestinian disarmament—and conveyed several demands, including an end to Israeli ceasefire violations and full withdrawal from the Strip, per the ceasefire agreement. Hamas also expressed concern about Israel’s occupation of over half of Gaza. Hamas is expected to meet with mediators again next week.

U.S. News

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Trump fires Pam Bondi: President Donald Trump fired Attorney General Pam Bondi on Thursday over her handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files release and what Trump viewed as insufficient speed in pursuing criminal cases against his critics and adversaries. Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, a former personal lawyer to Trump, will lead the Justice Department in the interim. Bondi had been scheduled to testify before the House Oversight Committee on April 14. Trump is reportedly considering EPA administrator Lee Zeldin as a potential permanent replacement.

• Homeland Security shutdown extends into recess: The Department of Homeland Security shutdown—already the longest partial government shutdown on record—will continue at least until Congress returns from recess on April 14. House Republicans declined on Thursday to take up a bipartisan Senate funding bill, despite Speaker Mike Johnson’s (R-La.) endorsement. Far-right members reportedly rejected the Senate during a disorderly afternoon conference call because it omits dedicated funding for immigration enforcement. Similarly, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) formally rejected a House counterproposal to fund the entire department for 60 days. Trump appeared to relieve pressure for immediate action by Congress posting that he would use executive authority to pay Homeland Security employees, “soon.”

• Hegseth demands resignation of Army chief, two senior generals in leadership purge: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth demanded the immediate resignation of Army Chief of Staff General Randy George and ordered the removal of Major General William Green Jr. and General David Hodne. Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said George “will be retiring from his position effective immediately,” in a statement posted on X. Hodne led the Army’s Transformation and Training Command which “unifies force design,” and William Green headed the Army’s Chaplain Corps.

• Justice Department declares Presidential Records Act unconstitutional: The Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel issued an opinion this week declaring the Presidential Records Act of 1978 unconstitutional, finding that the law exceeds congressional authority and unlawfully intrudes on executive independence, the Washington Post reports. The memorandum, signed by Trump appointee T. Elliot Gaiser, states that “the President need not further comply with its dictates.” The opinion does not carry immediate legal weight—changing the law would require either a lawsuit or an act of Congress. A White House spokeswoman said Trump “is committed to preserving records,” though the law could leave millions of records out of public reach. Gaiser has previously provided legal justifications for lethal U.S. strikes against alleged drug traffickers in Latin America and argued that the United States could forcibly remove Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

• Trump imposes 100% tariff on imported brand-name drugs: President Donald Trump signed an executive order Thursday imposing a 100% tariff on imported patented pharmaceuticals and their associated ingredients. Companies with plans in place to build U.S. manufacturing facilities will only be charged 20% tariffs, while drugs from the European Union, Japan, South Korea, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein are subject to a 15% tariff, and those from the United Kingdom are subject to an unspecified lower rate tied to a bilateral trade agreement. Generic drugs, orphan drugs, and brand-name drugs from companies that have entered Most Favored Nation pricing agreements with the administration are exempt.

• Federal inspection finds 49 violations at nation’s largest immigration detention facility: A February inspection of Camp East Montana, the nation’s largest immigration detention facility, in El Paso, Texas found 49 violations—an unusually high figure compared to a maximum of 13 found at any other facility inspected so far this year. The inspection cited the use of excessive force, the provision of medical care, security, and mental health. The facility—which houses nearly 3,000 detainees per day, the majority of whom have no criminal convictions—has recorded at least three deaths since opening last summer. Despite the 49 violations, the report rated the facility “acceptable/adequate.” Rep. Veronica Escobar (D-Texas), who has toured the facility, said the findings were “a drop in the bucket” of what is wrong there. “ICE is completely uninterested in really creating any change.”

• Los Angeles teachers and school workers inch toward strike: Nearly 68,000 Los Angeles Unified School District teachers, cafeteria workers, bus drivers, and other staff are moving closer to a joint strike set for April 14. UTLA, citing the rising cost of living in Los Angeles, is seeking an average 17% wage increase over two years, with an immediate boost for new teachers to nearly $80,000 annually. The district has countered with an 8% increase plus a one-time bonus. Union negotiators have pointed to the district’s nearly $5 billion in reserves, which officials say may be needed to offset rising budget deficits. The Los Angeles City Council unanimously passed a resolution on March 27 which noted that a first-year teacher cannot afford median rent anywhere in the city and that 65% of SEIU Local 99 members report food insecurity. Read Capital & Main’s full report here.

• ICE arrests Palestinian American community leader: Ten Muslim civil rights organizations issued a joint letter Thursday denouncing the March 30 arrest of Salah Sarsour, president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee and a prominent Palestinian American advocate. Sarsour, who was pulled over while driving, is a lawful permanent resident who has lived in the United States for 32 years; his wife and children are U.S. citizens. The letter said Sarsour “is being targeted on the basis of his Palestinian and Muslim background.”

Other International News

• Iraqi group claims 23 strikes on U.S. bases: The Islamic Resistance in Iraq claimed 23 drone and missile strikes against U.S. and allied bases in 24 hours on Thursday, targeting the American consulate in Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s Kurdistan region, and Victoria Base, a major U.S. military installation adjacent to Baghdad International Airport. Strong explosions shook Baghdad, while violent explosions and sirens were reported at the American consulate compound in Erbil. Separate strikes reportedly targeted PKK and Iranian Kurdish opposition headquarters in the Koya district of Erbil province, though these strikes await verification. Drone strikes were also reported at Iraq’s Traibeel border crossing, adjacent to Jordan.

• U.S. special operations forces join Ecuador in raid of alleged drug compound: U.S. special operations forces participated alongside Ecuadorian troops in a joint raid on a coastal compound linked to Los Choneros, a powerful Ecuadorian criminal organization, CBS News reported Wednesday. The operation, dubbed Lanza Marina, targeted a site believed to serve as a staging ground for high-speed drug smuggling boats along Ecuador’s Pacific coast. U.S. forces played an advisory role, the military said. The raid is the latest example of the close security relationship between Daniel Noboa’s government in Ecuador with the U.S., which has prioritized a militarized strategy in Latin America via initiatives such as the “Americas Counter Cartel Coalition.”

• Senegal doubles prison term for same-sex relations: Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye signed legislation Wednesday doubling the maximum prison sentence for same-sex relations to ten years. In February, 12 men were arrested in Dakar under the existing law, and a local Islamic organization claimed to hold a list of 635 names of gay people it intended to use to seek the dismantling of sixteen LGBT rights groups. During a parliamentary debate, lawmaker Diaraye Ba declared that “homosexuals will no longer breathe in this country.” The Trump administration declined to comment, referring reporters to the Senegalese government, while UN human rights chief Volker Türk and UNAIDS urged Faye not to sign the bill before it passed.

• Satellite images show Chinese and Turkish combat drones at Haftar’s airbase in Libya: Satellite imagery reviewed by three independent weapons experts shows what appear to be a Chinese-made surveillance and attack drone and at least two Turkish-made drones at Al Khadim airbase in eastern Libya, Reuters reported, in an apparent violation of the UN arms embargo in place since 2011. The drones belong to eastern Libya’s military leader Khalifa Haftar, whose Libyan National Army has attempted to form a unified Libyan government and is in conflict with the Tripoli-based central government. It is also accused of supporting the RSF in neighboring Sudan, which Haftar denies.

• Chevron returns to Libya with offshore exploration deal: Chevron has signed a memorandum of understanding with Libya’s National Oil Corporation to conduct a technical study of the offshore NC 146 exploration block in the Mediterranean, the Tripoli-based NOC announced. The agreement marks Chevron’s return to Libya after more than a decade’s absence. NOC chairperson Masoud Suleiman called the deal “a message of confidence in Libya’s investment environment.” The company was also separately awarded an onshore block in the Sirte Basin, a major oil-producing region in central Libya, in February 2026.

• Russia and Ukraine trade strikes, with Kharkiv targeted: Russian forces carried out a sustained drone barrage against Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, throughout Thursday and into the early morning hours of Friday, injuring at least two people, including an eight-year-old girl, according to Reuters. Further south, a Russian attack on Zaporizhzhia damaged a high-rise apartment building and a local business with no reported injuries. Across the border in Russia’s Belgorod region, Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said 13 people were injured in Ukrainian drone strikes, 11 of them in the village of Shebekino.

• ISIS-linked ADF kills 43 civilians in northeast Congo: At least 43 people were killed and 44 houses torched in an attack Wednesday night by the Allied Democratic Forces in Bafwakoa, in the northeastern part of Democratic Republic of Congo, according to the Congolese army. The ADF, a group led by former Ugandan rebels that has pledged allegiance to ISIS, killed some with machetes while others burned alive in their homes; two people were abducted. The territory’s administrator said search operations were continuing and the death toll could rise.

• Burkina Faso’s military killed more civilians than jihadists did, HRW finds: Burkina Faso’s military junta killed more than 1,200 civilians between January 2023 and August 2025, more than twice the number killed by militant jihadist groups during the same period, according to a new Human Rights Watch report. The figures are “most likely a gross undercount,” HRW told the AP, given widespread underreporting. Human Rights Watch accused both government forces and the Al-Qaeda-aligned group Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin of war crimes and crimes against humanity, saying the targeting of Fulani civilians by government forces appears to constitute ethnic cleansing that “senior leaders on all sides may be liable” for. In one documented incident in northern Yatenga province in early 2024, government forces allegedly executed 223 civilians including at least 56 children, accusing them of collaborating with militants.

• Drone strike on Sudan hospital kills 10: A drone strike on Al-Jabalain Hospital in Sudan’s White Nile State killed at least ten people, including seven medical staff, and wounded 19 others, Médecins Sans Frontières reported Thursday. The attack hit both the operating theatre and maternity ward and was attributed to the UAE-backed Rapid Support Forces. The wounded were transferred to Kosti, approximately 80 kilometers away, as aid organizations rushed emergency supplies to the region’s overwhelmed medical facilities.

• Morocco has less than two months of fuel reserves: Morocco has approximately 51 days of diesel supply and 55 days of petrol remaining, with coal and gas secured through the end of June, the country’s energy ministry told Reuters. Morocco has had no domestic refining capacity since its sole refinery shut in 2015 and relies entirely on imported fuel.

• Russia loads second oil tanker bound for Cuba: Russian Energy Minister Sergei Tsivilyov confirmed that a second oil tanker is being loaded for shipment to Cuba, following the arrival of the sanctioned Russian vessel Anatoly Kolodkin at the port of Matanzas on Tuesday. The first shipment carried approximately 730,000 barrels of crude oil, enough to meet Cuba’s energy needs for roughly nine to ten days.

• Cuban president joins electric vehicle protest past U.S. Embassy in Havana: Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel joined activists during a Thursday protest, in which a caravan of bicycles and electric tricycles rode along Havana’s Malecón boulevard, passing the U.S. Embassy in a show of defiance against U.S. sanctions. The caravan comes on the same day that Cuba announced the release of over two thousand prisoners in what was described as a “humanitarian and sovereign gesture.”

• French-Palestinian MEP Rima Hassan detained in Paris over social media post: French-Palestinian Member of European Parliament Rima Hassan was taken into police custody in Paris Thursday over a March 26 post on X that French authorities allege is an “apology for terrorism.” The post quoted Kozo Okamoto—a member of the Japanese Red Army convicted for his role in a 1972 attack at Ben Gurion Airport that killed 26 people—writing that resistance to oppression “is not only a right, it is a duty.” Hassan subsequently deleted the post. The complaint was filed by National Rally’s Matthias Renault. Hassan’s party, La France Insoumise, condemned the detention. “So there is no longer parliamentary immunity in France. Intolerable,” party leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon wrote on X.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​

• Pakistan plays peacemaker while bombing and blockading Afghan civilians: As Islamabad attempts a complex diplomatic maneuver on the world stage, its military is waging a campaign across its border with Afghanistan that has killed at least 212 civilians, according to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, with the actual toll likely significantly higher. In Nooristan’s remote Kamdesh and Barg-e Matal districts, Pakistani forces have effectively imposed a blockade by destroying the region’s only road, cutting off flour, rice, cooking oil, and medicine to thousands of civilians, Mohammad Zaman Nazari reports for Drop Site. “We left everything behind to save our children,” one fleeing resident, originally from Khost told Drop Site. “On both sides, there are Afghans. We consider them as brothers who were once separated from us. But the Pakistani army shows no mercy.” Drop Site’s report from the border provinces of Afghanistan is here.

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U.S.-Israeli attacks continue to pound Iran. Former Iranian foreign minister wounded in strike on Tehran residence. President Donald Trump discusses Iran war in an address to the nation. Trump threatens to leave NATO over Hormuz. U.S. military briefs Trump on plan to seize Iranian uranium in ground operation. UK to convene talks on Strait of Hormuz reopening with 35 nations. Houthis threaten to close Bab el Mandab strait. Israel kills Hezbollah’s southern front commander in Beirut strike. Israeli airstrike kills family of four in southern Lebanon. Israel privately pressures Christian and Druze towns in southern Lebanon to expel displaced Shiites. House Speaker Mike Johnson buckles under Trump pressure, end to record closure of DHS in sight. Possible Democratic hopefuls say Israel must pay for its own missiles. Top Trump lobbyist testifies in Venezuela lobbying trial. Democratic socialist Claire Valdez reports $750,000 fundraising haul. U.S.-Israeli strike kills three PMF fighters in northwestern Iraq. Magnitude 7.4 earthquake kills at least one in northern Indonesia. Pakistan and Afghanistan hold China-mediated peace talks. Russia claims full control of Luhansk. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy calls Easter ceasefire talks with U.S. envoys “positive.” New UN force leader and Chadian advance troops arrive in Haiti. Washington removes Venezuela’s interim president Delcy Rodríguez from sanctions list. RSF advance drives 10,000 displaced to Sudan’s Blue Nile region. Iran war drives sharp fuel price hikes across Africa.

NEW from Drop Site: Premature babies evacuated amid Israeli attack on Al-Shifa Hospital returned to Gaza after two and a half years

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War on Iran

• U.S.-Israeli attacks continue to pound Iran:

  • Strikes were reported across three locations in Khuzestan province on Thursday, including in the city of Abadan, according to the Mehr news agency.

  • American and Israeli aircraft struck multiple coastal sites in southern Iran on Wednesday, including Qeshm Island, the port of Charak, and nearby Hengam Island near the Strait of Hormuz, according to the Mehr News Agency. An official said the strike on Qeshm targeted the Doha fishing pier, injuring two people, and that the Charak strike damaged three landing craft at the port’s commercial pier.

  • U.S.-Israeli airstrikes have caused extensive damage to the Pasteur Institute of Iran, a century-old medical research center in Tehran, according to the spokesperson for Iran’s health ministry Hossein Kermanpour, who called the attack “a direct assault on international health security. This violates Geneva Conventions & IHL principles.”

  • U.S.-Israeli airstrikes hit a second pharmaceutical facility in western Tehran on Tuesday. The plant, the Daro Bakhsh Pharmaceutical Factory, is one of Iran’s oldest medical production hubs and produces a significant share of Iran’s domestic medicine supply, including antibiotics, cardiovascular drugs, and intravenous fluids used in hospital operations.

  • The U.S.-Israeli campaign has damaged more than 115,000 civilian units in Iran so far, according to the Iranian Red Crescent Society, Iran’s main humanitarian body. Its president, Pir Hossein Kolivand, said 44,391 of those units are located in Tehran.

  • The death of a third Iranian Red Crescent volunteer was announced on Wednesday.

• Former Iranian foreign minister wounded in strike on Tehran residence: Kamal Kharazi, an 81-year-old former Iranian foreign minister and a foreign affairs adviser to the late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, was severely injured Wednesday in a U.S.-Israeli strike on his Tehran residence that also killed his wife, according to Iranian media reports.

• CENTCOM reports 12,300 Iranian targets struck: U.S. Central Command claimed on Wednesday it had struck more than 12,300 Iranian targets since its campaign against Iran began, including command and control centers, ballistic missile facilities, and storage depots. More than 155 Iranian naval vessels have been damaged or destroyed, CENTCOM said.

• British Royal Air Force shoots down 10 Iranian drones: Britain’s Royal Air Force intercepted and destroyed 10 Iranian drones overnight in what the Ministry of Defense described as a “high-threat area,” without specifying the exact location, according to an announcement Wednesday. Typhoon and F-35 fighter jets are continuing defensive missions over Cyprus, Jordan, Bahrain, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, the ministry said.

• Iran fires largest missile barrage at Israel in weeks: Iran launched at least 10 ballistic missiles toward central Israel on Wednesday evening, just before Passover Seder began, in its largest barrage in weeks, according to the Israeli military, which said many missiles were intercepted and others landed in open areas. One missile carrying a cluster warhead dispersed bomblets over the cities of Rosh Haayin and Petah Tikva, damaging homes, cars, and a playground, according to Israeli rescue services. No injuries were immediately reported.

• Trump offers few new details in Iran War speech: President Donald Trump offered few new details about the Iran war in a primetime address on Wednesday night, despite the White House billing it as an “important update” on the war. Trump gave a vague timeline of when the U.S. will end its military campaign against Iran, saying, “We’re going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks—we’re going to bring them back to the Stone Age, where they belong.” Trump claimed the “core strategic objectives are nearing completion” and did not indicate he was preparing to send in ground troops. He said that if Iran does not make a deal with the U.S., “we are going to hit each and every one of their electric generating plants very hard and probably simultaneously.” Trump also said “This is a true investment in your children and your grandchildren’s future. The whole world is watching.” After his address, oil rose and stocks fell with U.S. crude surging over $110 a barrel Thursday—for the first time in over three weeks. In remarks to the press earlier in the day, Trump also noted the domestic cost of the war, and of the administration’s belligerent foreign policy generally, saying, “We can’t take care of daycare. We’re a big country. We’re fighting wars. It’s not possible for us to take care of daycare, Medicaid, Medicare, all these things.”

• Iran Foreign Ministry: “We will not tolerate this vicious cycle”: In response to Trump’s address, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said, “We will not tolerate this vicious cycle of war, negotiations, ceasefire, and then repeating the same pattern.” He added that Iran does not consider its Gulf neighbors as enemies. “We have repeatedly said that we are determined to continue our good neighborly relations with all of them. The problem is that the United States and Israel are exploiting their territories to carry out their military aggression against Iran.”

• Trump threatens to leave NATO over Hormuz: President Donald Trump threatened to withdraw the United States from PURL—the NATO program through which European nations fund weapons purchases for Ukraine—after NATO allies declined his demand that they join a coalition to force open the Strait of Hormuz, the Financial Times reported Wednesday, citing officials briefed on the discussions. One source described Trump as “rather hysterical” over the refusal. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte subsequently pressed allies to commit to a March 19 joint statement expressing their readiness to help secure the strait, according to the report. U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matthew Whitaker told interviewers on Wednesday that President Donald Trump is “evaluating and reevaluating everything,” including American participation in NATO and support for Ukraine. In an interview with Fox News, he said that NATO “has to be a two-way street” and that the U.S. could not indefinitely guarantee European security without “benefit for America.”

• Iran says supreme leader in good health: Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Wednesday that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei is “in perfect health” and that his absence from public view is a result of wartime precautions.

• Iranian healthcare system shows signs of collapse: Iran’s healthcare system is showing signs that it may be breaking down as a result of recent U.S.-Israeli attacks on key health infrastructure. A cancer patient told the Iranian newspaper Sharg that the MAHAK cancer charity informed them it had no post-chemotherapy medication available. Non-emergency surgeries are being postponed due to anesthesia shortages; and in some Tehran neighborhoods, a single doctor is seeing 200 to 300 patients per day. Iran’s deputy health minister said that 24 pharmaceutical and medical facilities have sustained partial or total damage since the war began. Also on Wednesday, a group of Austrian physicians pointed out that recent Israeli-U.S. strikes on Iranian pharmaceutical facilities fall “outside all legal frameworks of war,” in an interview with Deutsche Welle Persian.

• U.S. military briefs Trump on plan to seize Iranian uranium in ground operation: The U.S. military has presented President Donald Trump with a plan to seize approximately 970 pounds of highly enriched uranium stored at Iranian nuclear facilities, according to the Washington Post. The plan involves the airlift of potentially hundreds or thousands of troops, excavation equipment, and the construction of a runway inside Iran to fly the material out, according to two people familiar with the matter. The uranium, enriched to 60 percent, is stored primarily in tunnels more than 300 feet deep at a facility outside Isfahan, and additional material is stored at Natanz. The Isfahan site’s entrance is currently buried under rubble from the U.S. bombing in June. A former CIA officer and Defense Department official said the plan had the potential to be “one of, if not the largest, most complicated special operations in history.”

• Iran launches volunteer recruitment: Iran has launched a nationwide volunteer recruitment campaign, promoted via mass text message and state television, calling on citizens to defend the country against “the American-Zionist enemy’s threats against Iran’s shores, islands and borders” amid the prospect of a U.S. ground invasion, the Financial Times reports. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps has also begun a recruitment drive of its own, calling for individuals as young as 12 to take up roles at security checkpoints, caring for the wounded, or cooking for the military, or to donate financially to the group. Human Rights Watch on Tuesday called on Iranian authorities to revoke the campaign, warning that recruiting children under 15 constitutes a war crime under customary international law and that “children at military facilities would be at serious risk of death and injury.”

• UK to convene talks on Strait of Hormuz reopening with 35 nations: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced Wednesday that Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper will host a virtual meeting of 35 countries Thursday to coordinate diplomatic, political, and military planning to reopen the Strait of Hormuz “after the fighting has stopped.” Starmer said the talks would assess “all viable measures” to restore “freedom of navigation”, ensure the safety of trapped ships and seafarers, and “resume [the] movement of vital commodities.” He also noted that military planners would separately examine how to “marshal our capabilities” to make the Strait “accessible and safe” once hostilities cease. Starmer said that signatories to a recent joint statement on safe passage—including France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the Netherlands—would be among the participants. “I do have to level with people on this,” Starmer said. “This will not be easy.”

• Macron says Hormuz can only reopen through coordination with Iran: French President Emmanuel Macron said it was “unrealistic” to reopen the Strait of Hormuz through a military operation in comments to reporters Thursday during a visit to South Korea. “There are people who advocate the idea of the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz by force, through a military operation, a position that has at times been expressed by the United States,” he said. “That has never been the option we have chosen, and we consider it unrealistic.” The reopening of the Strait “can only be done in coordination with Iran,” through negotiations, Macron added.

• Houthis threaten to close Bab el Mandab strait: Houthi Deputy Information Minister Mohammed Mansour told Al-Monitor in a March 31 interview that the group could close the Bab el Mandab strait—the 32-kilometer chokepoint at the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula—if Gulf states become directly involved in military operations alongside the U.S. and Israel against Iran. The threat takes on heightened significance as the Strait of Hormuz remains closed, pushing more Saudi oil exports through Bab el Mandab to Asian markets than before the war.

Lebanon

• Casualty count: The death toll from Israel’s assault on Lebanon has risen to at least 1,318—with 3935 wounded—since March 2, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

• Israeli strikes kill seven on Thursday: At least seven people were killed in Israeli airstrikes in Lebanon on Thursday, including four in Ramadiya in the Tyre district and three in a dawn strike on a two-storey building in Kfarsir, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry and the National News Agency. Six others were wounded—three critically—after a strike destroyed the Abdul Raouf Sbaiti complex in Kafra.

• Israel kills Hezbollah’s southern front commander in Beirut strike: Israel assassinated Haj Youssef Ismail Hashem, the commander of Hezbollah’s southern front, in a strike on Beirut’s Jnah neighborhood Wednesday. Hezbollah confirmed Hashem’s death, calling him a “beacon of the Islamic Resistance.” He is the most senior Hezbollah figure killed since Lebanon was drawn into the war on March 2. The strike that killed Hashem was conducted near a school sheltering displaced civilians, according to Al Jazeera, and killed at least seven people in total.

• Israeli airstrike kills family of four in southern Lebanon: An Israeli airstrike killed two young sisters and their parents Wednesday when warplanes bombed their home in Houmeen al-Tahta in southern Lebanon’s Iqlim al-Tuffah district, approximately 20 miles from the Israeli border, Lebanon’s National News Agency reported. The victims were identified as sisters Nour and Hanan Hamiyeh and their parents, Mohammad Hamiyeh and Rima Jouni.

• Hezbollah claims strikes on Israeli military positions, engagements with Israeli aircraft: Hezbollah said on Wednesday that it launched rockets toward northern Israeli areas including Kiryat Shmona, Avivim, Kabri, and Nahariya, and struck Israeli military positions in southern Lebanon at sites including Qantara, Ainata, Aitaroun, Qouzah, Odaisseh, Markaba, and Robb Thalathin. The group also claimed air-defense success, saying it fired on an Israeli aircraft over Jwayya on Wednesday afternoon and struck a helicopter over Yaroun on Tuesday using surface-to-air missiles.

• Israel privately pressures Christian and Druze towns in southern Lebanon to expel displaced Shiites: While publicly ordering a blanket evacuation of all civilians within 25 miles of the Israeli border, Israeli military officials have privately called leaders of at least eight Christian and Druze villages in southern Lebanon, directing them to expel Shiite Muslims who had sought refuge in their communities, according a new report from New York Times. Local leaders said they complied out of fear their own towns would be bombed if they refused. “I visited the families one by one and told them to prepare themselves, that if we got an alert they would have to move,” one deputy mayor told the Times, who complied with the order “for the safety of the town.”

• France and Indonesia condemn Israeli actions against UNIFIL peacekeepers: France’s junior army minister Alice Rufo said on Wednesday that French peacekeeping troops serving in Lebanon had been subjected to “absolutely unacceptable intimidation” by Israeli forces, citing three incidents on March 28 between French and Israeli military personnel. Rufo, speaking at the War and Peace conference in Paris a day after returning from Lebanon, said she was sending “a message of solidarity” to French soldiers in the field. Separately, Indonesia called on the United Nations to investigate the deaths of three Indonesian UNIFIL peacekeepers killed in Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon this week.

The Gaza Genocide, Israel, and the West Bank

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, three Palestinians were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,289 killed, with 172,043 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 713 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 1,943, while 756 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israel continues to bombard Gaza: A Palestinian woman, Rawan Fayyad, was killed Thursday by Israeli gunfire near al-Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza, according to Palestinian writer Mosab Abu Toha. Three people, including a child, were also injured by Israeli gunfire Wednesday in separate areas of Gaza, with the child critically wounded in Khan Younis, while two others were shot near Gaza City’s Zeitoun neighborhood and east of Nuseirat refugee camp, WAFA reported. Sustained heavy strikes were also reported in eastern Gaza on Wednesday night.

• Premature babies evacuated amid Israeli attack on Al-Shifa returned to Gaza after more than two years: Eight Palestinian children who were evacuated to Egypt as premature babies in November 2023 were reunited with their families in Gaza on Monday after two and a half years of separation. The eight toddlers were among 31 Palestinian infants who were evacuated from the neonatal intensive care unit in Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, as the Israeli military laid siege to the medical complex and raided it in November 2023. 28 of the babies were transported across the border to Egypt for treatment. None were accompanied by family members. “These two years felt like forty, even more—a lifetime. During this time, I was a body without a soul. I couldn’t work or do anything,” Ahmed Al-Harsh, who was reunited with his son Mahmoud on Monday, told Drop Site. His wife gave birth to Mahmoud as she was gravely injured following an airstrike that killed their entire family. His wife succumbed to her injuries after giving birth. Read more from Drop Site contributor Abdel Qader Sabbah here.

United States

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Johnson buckles under Trump pressure, end to record closure in sight: House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) agreed to move forward with the two-track Senate deal to end the record-breaking Department of Homeland Security shutdown. Johnson and Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) announced on Wednesday that they would pass a bill funding most of DHS immediately, while routing money for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and parts of Customs and Border Protection through a separate reconciliation package. Johnson, who called the deal a “crap sandwich,” reversed course less than three hours after President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social, urging Republicans to fund ICE and CBP through reconciliation and demanding the legislation reach his desk by June 1. The House is not due back until April 14, though Johnson could recall members sooner or use a procedural maneuver to pass it during recess. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) both declared victory, with Jeffries saying Republicans “have come to realize that we will never bend the knee.”

• Possible Democratic hopefuls say Israel must pay for its own missiles: New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani voiced his agreement with Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), who announced on Tuesday that she would oppose all military aid to Israel. “I support what the Congresswoman said,” Mamdani said. Ocasio-Cortez issued another statement regarding her new position, saying that Israel is “well able” to fund its Iron Dome system, which she defended in principle as “critical [in keeping] innocent civilians safe from rocket attacks and bombardment.” Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) joined in on Wednesday, signalling he would not support additional funding for Israel’s Iron Dome. “Israel is a first-world country,” Khanna said, “and it can pay for the defensive systems it needs.” Former Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel made similar comments in an interview with Semafor’s Dave Weigel.

• Death of Rohingya refugee abandoned by Border Patrol at Buffalo doughnut shop ruled a homicide: The death of Nurul Amin Shah Alam, a 56-year-old nearly blind Rohingya refugee from Myanmar found dead on a Buffalo street in February—five days after Border Patrol agents dropped him at a Tim Hortons restaurant—was ruled a homicide by the Erie County Medical Examiner. The county determined he died from complications of a perforated duodenal ulcer brought on by hypothermia and dehydration. Shah Alam had been released from Erie County jail on misdemeanor charges the same day Border Patrol briefly detained him, determined he was ineligible for deportation, and then left him at the closed restaurant in jail-issued booties without notifying his family.

• Top Trump lobbyist testifies in Venezuela lobbying trial : Washington lobbyist Brian Ballard, a prominent figure in Trump’s political orbit, testified in federal court in Miami that he immediately severed ties with former Florida Rep. David Rivera (R-Fla.) after learning in 2020 that Venezuela’s government had paid Rivera a $50 million consulting contract, telling Rivera “I have nothing to do with this.” Rivera is on trial on charges for allegeding lobbying on behalf of Nicolas Maduro without registering as a foreign agent. Ballard’s testimony touched upon his work on behalf of Venezuelan media billionaire Raúl Gorrín—later indicted for allegedly bribing Venezuelan officials—who flew Ballard and Rivera to the Dominican Republic on his private jet to meet with Venezuelan opposition leaders. Susie Wiles, Trump’s chief of staff, was once registered as a lobbyist for Gorrín’s television network, though the White House has blocked efforts to compel her testimony in the trial. Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas), who prosecutors say secretly traveled to Caracas for a meeting with Maduro, is also scheduled to testify.

• FBI declares China-linked hack a major national security incident: The FBI determined that a suspected Chinese intrusion into an internal agency system containing law enforcement surveillance data was a “major incident” and poses “significant risks” to U.S. national security. The compromised system reportedly held pen register and trap-and-trace surveillance returns—tools that reveal which phones and websites are being monitored by the FBI—as well as personally identifiable information on subjects of FBI investigations.

• OpenAI built national security hiring pipeline to capture Pentagon contracts, Lever reports: OpenAI quietly removed longstanding prohibitions on military use of its models in January 2024 and embarked on a systematic hiring spree of national security insiders, recruiting more than a dozen former officials from the Defense Department, National Security Council, and Capitol Hill, according to a new report from the Lever. The strategy paid off last month when OpenAI secured a $200 million Pentagon contract after the Trump administration froze out rival Anthropic over its resistance to having its models used for surveillance and automated weapons without sufficient safeguards. OpenAI’s deal with the government was reportedly brokered by OpenAI’s lobbying chief Joseph Larson, a former deputy chief digital and artificial intelligence officer in the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Read more about this hiring spree here.

• Claire Valdez reports $750,000 fundraising haul: Claire Valdez, a democratic socialist running for New York’s 7th Congressional District, raised $750,000 from more than 11,200 donors in her first campaign finance reporting period, with an average contribution of $53.73, according to her campaign. Valdez has the endorsement of both Zohran Mamdani and Justice Democrats. Fundraising figures for her principal opponent, Brooklyn Borough President Antonio Reynoso, who is backed by outgoing Rep. Nydia Velázquez, have not been reported.

• Report: Internal power struggle “saps momentum” from UAW revival as Fain faces re-election challenge: A bitter rift has developed between UAW President Shawn Fain and Secretary-Treasurer Margaret Mock—the two leaders who jointly won control of the union in its first-ever rank-and-file election in 2022—a new report from The American Prospect details. Fain’s inner circle, drawn from the labor-radical publication Labor Notes, clashed repeatedly with Mock over financial oversight and staffing decisions. Neil Barofsky, a lawyer appointed by a federal court to oversee the union, has also been a major source of conflict, within and outside of the union. All of this has stalled the union’s organizing momentum following landmark contract wins with the Big Three automakers and a historic victory at Volkswagen’s Tennessee plant, and touches upon both the future of Fain’s leadership and (tangentially) upon the war in Gaza. Read Harold Meyerson’s full report here.

• NYC politician opposing Mamdani’s wealth tax accused of obscuring family fortune: New York City Council Speaker Julie Menin, a leading obstacle to Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s proposed tax on ultra-wealthy New Yorkers, publicly claimed under $500,000 in assets on disclosure forms. According to The Lever, however, her family’s total holdings may be worth well into the tens of millions of dollars, including a $22 million Hamptons home, luxury Manhattan properties, and access to private jets. She may have been able to obscure this wealth, furthermore, because of a disclosure rule that allows spouses’ assets to remain confidential on public filings. Menin, whose husband runs a major real estate firm, has advocated spending cuts over new taxes to address the city’s deficit, a position Mamdani has called “unrealistic,” warning her approach would “slash billions” from city agencies. The full report is available here.

Other International News

• U.S.-Israeli strike kills three PMF fighters in northwestern Iraq: A U.S.-Israeli strike on the 53rd Brigade of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces in Tal Afar, Nineveh province, killed three fighters Thursday, the Iraqi News Agency reported. Separately, the Islamic Resistance of Iraq—an umbrella of mostly Iran-aligned armed factions—said it carried out 41 retaliatory operations against U.S. bases in Iraq and the region on Wednesday, deploying “dozens of drones and missiles,” according to Iran’s state news agency ISNA.

• U.S. Embassy in Baghdad warns of potential attacks: The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad warned citizens Thursday that “militia groups aligned with Iran may intend to conduct attacks in central Baghdad in the next 24-48 hours.” The embassy said targets could include “U.S. citizens, businesses, universities, diplomatic facilities, energy infrastructure, hotels, airports, and other locations perceived to be associated with the United States, as well as Iraqi institutions and civilian targets.” It also added that “militias have targeted Americans for kidnapping. U.S. citizens should leave Iraq now.”

• Magnitude 7.4 earthquake kills at least one in northern Indonesia: A magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck the Molucca Sea near northern Indonesia on Thursday, killing at least one person, injuring several others, and generating tsunami waves of up to 75 centimeters at monitoring stations along the coast. A 70-year-old woman died in a building collapse in Manado, the capital of North Sulawesi province, while at least three people were hospitalized in Ternate, in neighboring North Maluku province. Dozens of aftershocks followed, including one of magnitude 6.2.

• Pakistan and Afghanistan hold China-mediated peace talks: Pakistan and Afghanistan opened the first round of China-mediated peace talks in Urumqi, in China’s northern Xinjiang region, on Wednesday, with negotiations expected to continue Thursday, according to the Associated Press. The talks came after weeks of the most severe cross-border fighting between the two countries in decades. Even as diplomats met, an Afghan police spokesman said Pakistani mortar fire killed two civilians and wounded six others, including four children, in Kunar province on Wednesday night. China has been pressing both sides toward dialogue since late February, with special envoy Yue Xiaoyong visiting both capitals.

• Russia claims full control of Luhansk: Russia’s Defense Ministry claimed Wednesday that its forces had completed the capture of the entire Luhansk region of Ukraine, a claim which the Ukrainian military denied (it claims it holds “small patches” and has held them “for a long time.” Russian claims of full Luhansk control have been made before—with a similar such claim made in June—and Ukrainian officials have previously said Moscow inflates battlefield gains to convince U.S. negotiators that a Russian victory is inevitable.

• Russia launches drone barrage on Ukraine, killing four: Russia launched more than 360 drones against Ukraine during daylight hours Wednesday—an unusual departure from overnight attacks—killing four people in the Cherkasy region and wounding at least eight others across the Poltava and Khmelnytskyi regions, Ukrainian officials said. Ukraine’s air force said it shot down 345 of the daytime drones. Strikes hit energy infrastructure and industrial facilities across western Ukraine, including critical infrastructure in the Zakarpattia region near the Slovak and Hungarian borders, cutting power to roughly 11,000 customers in the Ivano-Frankivsk region.

• Zelenskyy calls Easter ceasefire talks with U.S. envoys “positive”: President Volodymyr Zelenskyy described Wednesday’s remote talks with U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff, Jared Kushner, Senator Lindsey Graham, and NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte as “positive,” saying the Ukrainian and U.S. teams agreed to strengthen a document outlining American security guarantees for a future peace deal. Zelenskyy said he raised his proposal for an Easter ceasefire—Orthodox Easter falls on April 12—during the call, calling it a signal that “could tell everyone that diplomacy can be successful.” Russia’s foreign ministry publicly rejected the proposal as a “PR stunt” and the Kremlin reiterated its demand that Ukraine withdraw from the remainder of Donbas “yesterday.”

• New UN force leader and Chadian advance troops arrive in Haiti: Jack Christofides, a South African UN official appointed late last year to lead the UN-backed Gang Suppression Force, arrived in Haiti on Wednesday alongside an advance deployment of troops from Chad, the force announced. Chad has pledged 800 troops in total, though the overall force remains severely below its target—fewer than 1,000 personnel, mostly Kenyan, are currently deployed, representing less than 20 percent of the 5,500-troop number approved last year.

• Washington removes Venezuelan interim president from sanctions list: The U.S. Treasury Department removed Delcy Rodríguez, Venezuela’s interim president, from its sanctions list Wednesday, marking a shift in the Trump administration’s approach toward Caracas. Rodríguez welcomed the decision, calling it a step toward “normalization” and expressing hope it could lead to the lifting of broader oil sanctions and expanded bilateral cooperation.

• RSF advance drives 10,000 displaced to Sudan’s Blue Nile region: More than 10,000 displaced people from the Geissan district on the Sudan-Ethiopia border have arrived in Er Roseires, the second-largest city in Sudan’s Blue Nile region, after a coalition of the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North threatened the area, the Sudanese Doctors Network reported Wednesday. The displacement follows last week’s rebel alliance seizure of the strategic border city of Kurmuk, which intensified civilian flight toward Ed Damazin, the regional capital. The Doctors Network said the majority of arrivals are women, children, and the elderly facing acute shortages of food, medicine, and basic necessities, and issued an urgent appeal to national and international organizations for emergency aid, shelter, and civilian protection.

• RSF drone strike destroys medicine warehouse in Sudan’s White Nile State, injuring three: A drone suspected to belong to the Rapid Support Forces struck a medicine warehouse in Kosti, White Nile State, on Wednesday, destroying the facility and injuring three people, including a pharmacist, according to Sudan Tribune. The same drone fired additional missiles across parts of Kosti and targeted a water truck near the town of Al-Layyah.

• Munitions explosion at Burundi military camp kills 13, injures 57 after storage fire: A fire caused by a short-circuit in a storage unit at a military camp in Musaga, on the outskirts of Bujumbura, ignited explosives and triggered a series of blasts Tuesday night that killed 13 people and injured at least 57 others, the Burundian army said Wednesday. Army spokesperson Gaspard Baratuza said three soldiers were among the injured and confirmed the incident was not an attack.

• Iran war drives sharp fuel price hikes across Africa: African governments have imposed steep fuel price increases as the Iran war drives a surge in global oil prices, Reuters reports, with a number of import-dependent countries especially vulnerable to the changes. Ghana raised petrol prices roughly 15 percent and diesel 19 percent for the April 1–15 period, with President John Mahama saying the government was considering reducing fuel margins and exploring a supply agreement with Nigeria’s Dangote refinery to secure alternative sources. Malawi imposed the steepest increases, raising petrol 34 percent and diesel 35 percent. Tanzania raised petrol and diesel prices 33 percent each, while Mauritania raised petrol 15 percent and diesel 10 percent (and announced minimum wage increases and cash transfers to cushion low-income households). Botswana, Gambia, and Mali also announced sharp increases. South Africa moved in the opposite direction, temporarily reducing its fuel levy for one month following pressure from trade unions and business groups.

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U.S.-Israeli attacks hit Iran. IRGC claims hundreds of attacks on Israel and Gulf. Houthis launch third attack on Israel. Drone strike hits fuel tanks at Kuwait International Airport. Fires reported in Bahrain following missile strike. Oil tanker struck off Qatar coast. Drones strike BP subsidiary in Iraq. Debris kills Bangladeshi in UAE. UAE bars Iranian nationals from entering country. Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei praises Hezbollah. IRGC commander claims strike on U.S. personnel housing in Saudi Arabia. China and Pakistan propose five-point peace plan. WSJ: UAE willing to join Strait of Hormuz military operation. Israeli strikes hit Beirut, killing nine. Lebanese army withdraws from southern border towns. Israeli strikes kill three in Gaza. Israel to nix French defense imports. Israeli settlers attack West Bank village, injuring four. President Donald Trump signs executive order creating national voter list, restricting mail-in voting. Supreme Court strikes down Colorado conversion therapy ban. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez commits to oppose all U.S. arms funding for Israel. Pentagon weighs deploying anti-drone laser system to defend War Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. U.S. journalist kidnapped in Iraq. U.S. senators urge Taiwan not to be “naive” about China. MSF reports 3,300 sexual violence victims treated in Darfur in under two years. Sudanese army strikes kill RSF-aligned political figure in Nyala. Serbian students clash with police. Ukraine continues strikes on Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga. Colombian army rescues six siblings who hid in rainforest to evade rebel capture. Gang violence continues in Haiti’s Artibonite region.

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War on Iran

• U.S.-Israeli attacks hit Iran:

  • U.S.-Israeli airstrikes hit several civilian neighborhoods in Tehran on Wednesday morning as well as in the nearby city of Malard, according to the Iranian Red Crescent. Among the targets struck in Tehran appears to be the former U.S. Embassy compound, according to AP. The embassy has been controlled by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard since the 1979 hostage crisis.

  • On Tuesday, the Red Crescent said airstrikes hit multiple sites across Iran including the Mobarakeh Steel complex in Isfahan, Shahid Haghani Port in Bandar Abbas on the Persian Gulf coast, a steel complex in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province in western Iran, and meteorological facilities in Bushehr. A Red Crescent emergency worker was also reportedly killed on Tuesday morning in an airstrike on Zanjan.

• IRGC claims hundreds of attacks on Israel and Gulf: The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said Iran’s latest wave of attacks and its allied “resistance fronts” used more than 100 heavy missiles and attack drones, along with at least 200 rockets, according to IRIB. The IRGC claimed the attacks targeted various locations in Israel, a site hosting U.S. forces in Bahrain, and a U.S. helicopter unit at the al-Adiri base in Kuwait.

• Iran continues to hit sites in Israel: At least 25 people were wounded across 20 sites in Israel in attacks on Wednesday morning, according to Israeli media. A missile strike caused a four-story building south of Tel Aviv to partially collapse. Iran’s army also announced Tuesday that it launched drone attacks targeting what it believed to be Israeli military-linked industrial and communications facilities near Ben Gurion Airport and in Haifa, according to Fars News Agency. The army claimed the sites were affiliated with Siemens and AT&T, both of which, it claimed, support Israeli weapons production, artificial intelligence systems, and military communications infrastructure.

• Houthis launch third attack on Israel: The Houthis said in a televised statement on Wednesday that they fired ballistic missiles at “sensitive targets” in southern Israel. Brig. Gen. Yahya Saree, a military spokesman for the Houthis, said in the statement that Israel’s “aggression, crimes and attacks on Lebanon, Iran, Iraq and Palestine will only push us towards further military escalation.”

• Drone strike hits fuel tanks at Kuwait International Airport: A drone attack struck fuel tanks at Kuwait International Airport on Tuesday, sparking a large fire at facilities belonging to the Kuwait Aviation Fuel Supply Company, according to the country’s state news agency KUNA. Emergency crews moved to contain the blaze, with thick smoke reported at the scene. No injuries were immediately reported, though material damage was confirmed. KUNA said the attack may have been carried out by Iran-backed militias in Iraq.

• Fires reported in Bahrain following missile strike: Bahrain’s interior ministry said on Tuesday that it is working to extinguish a fire at a business facility following what it described as an Iranian attack, with images online showing thick black smoke rising over multiple sites in the Hamala area of western Bahrain. Unverified claims from open-source trackers suggest the strike may have hit infrastructure linked to Batelco, Bahrain’s main telecommunications provider and the host of AWS cloud operations in the country.

• Tanker struck off Qatar coast: An oil tanker leased to QatarEnergy was hit by an Iranian missile off the coast of Qatar early Wednesday, according to the Qatari Ministry of Defense, which added that it intercepted two other missiles.

• Drones strike BP subsidiary in Iraq: Multiple drones attacked a fuel warehouse in the northern Iraqi city of Erbil on Wednesday, according to the AP. The attack started a massive fire that sent a column of black smoke into the air. The facility is owned by Castrol, a subsidiary of BP.

• Debris kills Bangladeshi in UAE: Debris from an intercepted drone killed a citizen of Bangladesh in Fujairah, one of the UAE’s seven emirates, on Wednesday, according to authorities. The fatality brings the death toll in the UAE to nine civilians and two soldiers since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran on February 28.

• UAE bars Iranian nationals from entering country: Emirates, Etihad Airways, and Flydubai issued travel advisories Tuesday barring Iranian nationals from entering or transiting through the United Arab Emirates, with exceptions made for certain individuals, including holders of a UAE Golden Visa. Over 1,200 Iranians living in Dubai have returned to Iran since the war started, according to the Tasnim news agency. With direct flights to Iran closed, the returnees have flown via Afghanistan and Armenia.

• Mojtaba Khamenei praises Hezbollah: Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei sent a message of gratitude to Hezbollah Secretary General Naim Qassem on Wednesday. In a statement read on air by a state television anchor, Khamenei also vowed to continue “to support the resistance against the Zionist-American enemy.”

• IRGC commander claims strike on U.S. personnel housing in Saudi Arabia: IRGC Air Force commander Seyed Majid Moosavi claimed on Tuesday that Iranian forces struck a residence housing American pilots and aircrew in Al Kharj, Saudi Arabia. Moosavi said the attack caused multiple casualties and injuries among United States personnel, though the U.S. has yet to confirm either the casualties or the attack. Footage circulating online on Tuesday does appear to show an Iranian ballistic missile striking near a U.S. base in the Middle East, though the exact date and location of this video have not been verified.

• China and Pakistan propose five-point peace plan: China and Pakistan on Tuesday jointly issued a five-point plan aimed at ending the conflict in the Gulf. The plan, a result of a one-day meeting between Pakistani Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar and his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, calls for an immediate ceasefire, the launch of peace talks, protections for civilians, secure shipping in the Gulf, and a “comprehensive peace framework” under international law.

• Syrian president says Damascus will stay out of Iran war: Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa said at a Chatham House event on Tuesday that Syria will not involve itself in the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. “As long as Syria is not targeted by any party, it will remain outside any conflict,” Al-Sharaa said, adding that Damascus has had no official ties with Iran since the war began. Al-Sharaa did, however, note the risk of spillover from fighting in neighboring Lebanon and stressed the need to secure Syria’s borders against weapons smuggling.

• Aragchi confirms messages sent from Witkoff: Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview on Al Jazeera on Tuesday that he receives messages from U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff. “I receive messages from Witkoff directly, as before, and this does not mean that we are in negotiations,” he said. “We do not have any faith that negotiations with the U.S. will yield any results. The trust level is at zero.”

• Trump says U.S. achieved regime change in Iran, expects to leave in weeks: President Donald Trump told a reporter in the Oval Office on Tuesday that he expects the United States to withdraw from the war in Iran within two to three weeks, declaring that Washington has achieved regime change and eliminated the Iranian nuclear threat. He said a diplomatic deal between the countries is “irrelevant” to the timeline of American withdrawal, which he predicted could happen in “two to three weeks.” In similar remarks, Trump told NBC News during a phone interview on Tuesday that the United States military campaign against Iran is “coming to an end,” claiming on day 32 of the conflict that American strikes have “decimated” the Iranian military and that the U.S. is “way ahead of schedule” in its objectives. The White House announced President Donald Trump will provide “an important update on Iran” on Wednesday at 9 p.m. ET.

• Thousands of additional U.S. troops, carrier strike group deploy to Middle East: The aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush departed Tuesday for the Middle East, accompanied by three destroyers and more than 6,000 sailors, as thousands of soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division also began arriving in the region, the Associated Press reports. The Trump administration has not disclosed what role those troops will play, though the 82nd Airborne specializes in parachuting into hostile or contested territory to seize key ground and airfields. Describing the deployment, Pete Hegseth said, “Our adversary right now thinks there are 15 different ways we could come at them with boots on the ground. And guess what? There are.”

• WSJ: UAE willing to join Strait of Hormuz military operation: The United Arab Emirates is preparing to support a U.S.-led coalition to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by force, lobbying for a UN Security Council resolution to authorize military action and potentially becoming the first Gulf state directly involved in combat since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, Arab officials told the Wall Street Journal. Emirati officials say they are ready to assist with operations such as mine-clearing and have even proposed U.S. occupation of strategic islands. While Bahrain is sponsoring the resolution, Gulf states have so far supported the war against Iran without committing troops. Gulf countries fear a diplomatic resolution would give Iran a formal say over the Strait, the officials said. Following the report, an Emirati official said the country maintains a “defensive posture” and “remains ready to support collective international efforts aimed at safeguarding maritime security.”

• Argentina designates IRGC a “terrorist organization”: Argentina designated Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization on Tuesday, enabling the country to levy financial sanctions and other operational restrictions on the group, its presidential office said. Argentina also designated Mexico’s Jalisco New Generation Cartel as a terrorist organization earlier in the week.

Lebanon

• Israeli strikes hit Beirut, killing nine: A pair of Israeli strikes hit vehicles in two locations in the Beirut area, killing at least nine people and wounding 24, according to a Wednesday statement from Lebanon’s health ministry. One strike in the Khaldeh area south of Beirut killed two and wounded three; a second in the Jnah district killed seven and wounded 26. Israel’s military claimed both strikes targeted senior Hezbollah commanders but did not identify them or confirm whether they were killed.

• Casualty count: At least 21 people were killed and 70 wounded in Lebanon on Tuesday, according to the Public Health Emergency Operations Center, bringing the cumulative toll since the start of Israel’s war and invasion to 1,268 killed and 3,750 wounded. The dead include 125 children and 88 women. The country’s health system has sustained severe damage across the conflict: 52 healthcare workers have been killed and 128 wounded, 52 ambulances struck, 19 medical centers damaged, and five hospitals forced out of service.

• Israeli strikes in southern Lebanon kill at least 9: Israeli air raids, artillery, and drone strikes hit multiple towns across southern Lebanon Tuesday evening, killing at least nine people, according to Al Jazeera and L’Orient Today. Five were killed in Najjariyah near the coastal city of Sidon, including two women, in a strike on a house; three were killed and at least 19 were wounded in Srifa near Tyre; and one was killed in Arab Salim, inland from Tyre. Israeli strikes also hit towns across Nabatieh province, including Jibsheet, Aita al-Jabal, and Harouf, while artillery shelled border towns, including Kfar Tibnit, Zawtar, and Naqoura.

• Lebanese army withdraws from southern border towns: The Lebanese military said its forces have largely withdrawn from border towns in southern Lebanon as Israeli troops invade the area. In a statement, the army said troops had to reposition as they were being encircled and cut off from their supply lines. Lebanese citizens remain in the towns however. Israel has declared it will invade and occupy southern Lebanon up until the Litani River and residents will not be able to return until further notice. Over 1 million people in Lebanon have been displaced over the past month.

• Rockets, drone launched from Lebanon toward northern Israel: Around 50 rockets and a drone were launched from Lebanon toward northern Israel within the span of an hour, Israeli Channel 12 reported on Tuesday.

The Gaza Genocide, Israel, and the West Bank

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, four Palestinians were killed and 12 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,289 killed, with 172,040 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 713 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 1,940, while 756 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israeli strikes kill three in Gaza: Two Palestinians, a father and his child, Mahmoud and Yahya al-Byok, were killed in an Israeli strike in Khan Younis in southern Gaza on Tuesday, according to WAFA. A separate strike in Mawasi Rafah killed one and wounded eight others.

• Israel to nix French defense imports: Israel’s Defense Ministry announced Tuesday that it would reduce defense imports from France to zero, in retaliation for what it described as hostile French policies during the Iran war. “France has taken a series of actions that have harmed Israel’s security and the operational capabilities of its defense industry,” the statement said, which a spokesperson later clarified included the French recognition of a Palestinian state and its ban on Israeli aircraft carrying munitions through French airspace. Israeli procurement of French weapons totaled approximately $260 million between 2015 and 2024, according to the AFP.

• Israeli settlers attack West Bank village, injuring four: Israeli settlers launched an attack on the occupied West Bank village of Tayasir on Tuesday, injuring at least four Palestinians and setting homes, vehicles, and farm structures on fire, according to CNN. Witnesses said Israeli soldiers blocked ambulances and firefighters from accessing the area while allowing the assault to continue. The attack follows an earlier settler raid on the same village in which Israeli soldiers detained and assaulted a CNN crew. Despite limited disciplinary action against soldiers, no arrests have been made over either incident.

• Outgoing UNRWA chief calls for investigation into killing of nearly 400 agency staff: Philippe Lazzarini, outgoing commissioner-general of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), called on Tuesday for a “high-level panel of experts” to investigate the killing of more than 390 UNRWA staff members since the start of Israel’s war on Gaza in October 2023. Speaking at a press conference in Geneva, Lazzarini said many others had sustained life-changing injuries or been arbitrarily detained and tortured, and called for the inquiry to extend to the deaths of other United Nations personnel and the large-scale destruction of UN premises in Gaza. “The more time” before an investigation is started, he said, “the more difficult the task for the commission will be in the future.” Lazzarini said he had raised the matter with the office of Secretary-General António Guterres and with several UN member states.

• Protests in the West Bank and Gaza, amid widespread condemnation of death penalty law: Protests took place Wednesday in Ramallah, the occupied West Bank, where Palestinian demonstrators marched through the city rejecting Israel’s newly approved death penalty law targeting Palestinian prisoners, with calls for international intervention and a general strike declared across the northern West Bank, reported WAFA. A protest was also held outside the Red Cross headquarters in Gaza, with families of Palestinian prisoners present. The law has drawn widespread international condemnation, with UN High Commissioner Volker Türk calling it “deeply discriminatory” and a violation of international law, while a spokesperson for the UN Secretary-General said it is “particularly cruel and discriminatory” and reaffirmed opposition to the death penalty in all forms. The European Union also described the legislation as a “grave regression” and raised concerns over its discriminatory nature, urging Israel to rescind it.

United States

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Trump signs executive order creating national voter list, restricting mail-in voting: President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday directing the Department of Homeland Security and Social Security Administration to create a national list of verified eligible voters and seeking to bar the U.S. Postal Service from sending absentee ballots to those not on state-approved lists. Voting law experts say the move unconstitutionally usurps states’ authority to run elections. Federal funding could be withheld from states that do not comply.

• Supreme Court strikes down Colorado conversion therapy ban: The Supreme Court ruled Tuesday against Colorado’s law banning conversion therapy for LGBTQ+ minors, with an 8-1 majority finding the measure violates the First Amendment’s free speech protections. Justice Neil Gorsuch, writing for the court and joined by liberal justices Elena Kagan and Sonia Sotomayor, said the law “censors speech based on viewpoint” and sent the case back to a lower court for further review. Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson was the lone dissenter, warning the decision “opens a dangerous can of worms” that threatens states’ ability to regulate medical care. The ruling is expected to render similar laws in roughly two dozen other states unenforceable.

• Trump to attend Supreme Court arguments on birthright citizenship: Trump plans to attend Wednesday’s Supreme Court oral arguments over his executive order limiting birthright citizenship, which would make him the first sitting president to do so. The order, signed on the first day of Trump’s second term, declares that children born to non-citizen parents who are in the United States temporarily or without authorization are not American citizens.

• AOC commits to oppose all U.S. arms funding for Israel: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) said on Tuesday she would vote against “any spending on arms for Israel, including so-called defensive capabilities” at a candidate forum for the New York City branch of the Democratic Socialists of America. “There are a lot of organizations with which I may have a more transactional political relationship. I do not seek a transactional relationship with DSA,” she said. “I seek a relationship of mutuality and shared interest.” The remarks were reported by City & State NY’s Peter Sterne, full article here.

• Pentagon weighs deploying anti-drone laser system to defend Hegseth and Rubio: The Pentagon is considering using the Army’s LOCUST anti-drone laser system near Fort Lesley J. McNair in southwest Washington, where Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio reside, the New York Times reports, following reports of unusual drone activity over the installation. The potential deployment is complicated by an ongoing dispute between the Federal Aviation Administration and the Defense Department over the laser’s safety risks, especially in congested airspace—a dispute that came to a head last month when the laser fired near El Paso prompted the FAA to shut down the city’s airspace.

• Trump administration planning international summit to counter “antifa”: The Trump administration is organizing an international summit, tentatively scheduled for June or July, to convene officials from multiple nations to share intelligence and coordinate strategies against “antifa” (which is not an organization) and related left-wing groups, Reuters reports.

• Private equity’s “continuation fund” crisis: Private equity firms are increasingly selling companies to themselves through “continuation funds,” which allow fund managers to transfer aging investments into newer investment structures. A lawsuit by Abu Dhabi’s $330 billion sovereign wealth fund against Houston firm Energy & Minerals Group offers a rare window into the practice; the suit alleges the firm presented contradictory valuations to existing and prospective investors in the sale of a natural gas company. That case, and the private equity crisis at large, are discussed in the latest from David Dayen and Moe Tkacik at The American Prospect, here.

Other International News

• U.S. journalist kidnapped in Iraq: Iraq’s Interior Ministry said Tuesday that a foreign journalist was kidnapped by unknown assailants, with the victim later being identified as award-winning freelance journalist Shelly Kittleson, who covers Iraq and the broader Middle East for Al-Monitor, Foreign Policy, BBC World Service, and Politico. Security forces pursued the kidnappers as they fled, causing one of their vehicles to overturn and resulting in the arrest of one suspect. In an online post, Assistant Secretary of State for Global Public Affairs Dylan Johnson said the State Department was aware of the kidnapping, adding, “The State Department previously fulfilled our duty to warn this individual of threats against them and we will continue to coordinate with the FBI to ensure their release as quickly as possible.”

• U.S. senators urge Taiwan not to be “naive” about China: A bipartisan U.S. Senate delegation visiting Taipei on Tuesday pressed Taiwan to move forward on President Lai Ching-te’s proposed $40 billion defense spending increase, which has stalled in a Taiwanese parliament controlled by Ching-te’s opposition. Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) warned that Taiwan should heed the example of Hong Kong, where China’s “intentions…were made very, very clear.” “Please don’t be naive,” King said. The visit coincides with an invitation from China to Kuomintang chairwoman Cheng Li-wun, leader of Taiwan’s largest opposition party, to visit Beijing next week.

• Thousands held in overcrowded RSF prison in South Darfur: Around 13,000 people are being held at the Rapid Support Forces-operated Diqris prison near Nyala in South Darfur, according to the African Centre for Justice and Peace Studies, well over three times the facility’s capacity. Reports indicate detainees have died from disease and poor conditions at the site, which remains heavily guarded and largely inaccessible to independent monitors.

• MSF reports 3,300 sexual violence victims treated in Darfur in under two years: Médecins Sans Frontières said Tuesday it treated 3,396 survivors of sexual violence at facilities in Sudan’s North and South Darfur states between January 2024 and November 2025, identifying Rapid Support Forces fighters and allied militias as the primary responsible party for the widespread and systemic abuse. Women and girls accounted for 97% of victims, and one in five survivors in South Darfur were under 18, including 41 children under the age of five.

• ​​Sudanese army strikes kill RSF-aligned political figure in Nyala: A senior member of the Sudan Founding Coalition, the RSF-aligned political body that forms the basis of Mohamed Hamdan Daglo’s parallel government in Nyala, was killed Tuesday during Sudanese army drone strikes on the South Darfur capital. Local sources identified the victim as Osama Hassan, a prominent young coalition leader. The strikes hit multiple areas of the city including the Cinema neighborhood, areas near the Specialized Hospital, and a Starlink internet cafe where several people were injured, marking the second consecutive day of aerial bombardment of Nyala.

• Serbian students clash with police: Hundreds of students clashed with police in Belgrade on Tuesday after officers searched University of Belgrade offices, seizing computers and finding firecrackers, gas masks, and other materials. The police allegedly operated under a court order linked to the death of a 25-year-old female student who fell from a faculty building window last Friday. Antigovernment protests have been a feature of life in Serbia since the winter of 2024, when a train accident catalyzed opposition to President Aleksandar Vucic, who has been accused by his opponents of corruption, ties to organized crime, and stifling press freedom.

• Argentina detains Gaza aid activist at Buenos Aires airport: Brazilian humanitarian activist Thiago Ávila, known for co-leading Gaza aid flotillas alongside climate activist Greta Thunberg under the Global Sumud Flotilla, was detained Tuesday at Buenos Aires’ Aeroparque airport and separated from his wife and child. Ávila had previously been detained by Israel during each of his last two missions to Gaza.

• Ukraine continues strikes on Russian Baltic port of Ust-Luga: Ukrainian drones struck the Transneft crude oil loading terminal at Ust-Luga on Russia’s Baltic coast for the fifth time in ten days on Tuesday, with industry sources telling Reuters the attack hit oil export facilities at the port, which typically handles around 700,000 barrels of crude per day. At least 40% of Russia’s total oil export capacity has been halted through a combination of drone strikes, a disputed pipeline strike, and tanker seizures, according to Reuters calculations.

• Fire at Russian petrochemicals plant kills three, injures dozens: A gas explosion and fire at the Nizhnekamskneftekhim petrochemicals complex in Russia’s Tatarstan region killed at least three people—two employees and a firefighter—and injured 68 on Tuesday, with 21 remaining hospitalized. Owner Sibur said a gas mixture exploded following a loss of pressure at a facility producing synthetic rubber and plastics, with the cause of the ignition still unclear.

• Colombian army rescues six siblings who hid in rainforest to evade rebel capture: Colombia’s army rescued five children and their adult sister Tuesday after they spent three days hiding in a rainforest in the southwestern province of Caquetá to avoid capture by a rebel group that had kidnapped their parents, Defense Minister Pedro Sánchez said. The group responsible is led by Alexander Díaz, known as Calarca, a former Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia commander who refused to join the 2016 peace deal and now leads a militia faction currently in peace talks with President Gustavo Petro’s government.

• Gang violence continues in Haiti’s Artibonite region: Armed men from the Gran Grif gang and its ally Kokorat San Ras repositioned Tuesday in the town of Pont Benoit and attempted a new offensive on Marchand Dessalines, days after a weekend assault on Jean-Denis in Haiti’s Artibonite region left approximately 70 dead. Also on Tuesday, Haiti’s prime minister met with a UN delegation to discuss expanding the partially deployed international security mission, which has been hampered by shortages of equipment, troops, and funding.

• Video: A doctor describes the severe constraints on healthcare imposed by the U.S. blockade on Cuba, using the particularly harrowing case of a 6-year-old undergoing urological surgery. Watch the full video, from Liz Oliva Fernández here.

More from Drop Site

• Israel’s football violations against Palestinians have been “normalized” by FIFA and UEFA, sparking legal cases and an ICC complaint: The world’s leading football governing bodies, FIFA and UEFA, are confronting a growing backlash over their handling of Israeli football, including a February filing before the International Criminal Court accusing FIFA president Gianni Infantino and UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin of aiding and abetting war crimes by permitting Israeli settlement-based clubs in the occupied West Bank to compete in their competitions. Last week, FIFA declined to sanction the Israeli Football Association over the matter, citing the West Bank’s legal status as unresolved.” “In this decision, FIFA ignored 59 years of UN resolutions and settled international legal doctrine regarding the status of the West Bank as being nothing but Palestinian land that Israel occupies,” Iranian football journalist Nima Roodsari told Drop Site News. Read more about the crisis in football and the relationship of international sports bodies to Palestine in the latest from Drop Site contributor Abubaker Abed, available here.

• Report from Komala camp in Iraqi Kurdistan: Drop Site contributor Alexis Daloumis visited a camp of Komala, an Iranian Kurdish Marxist group banned and designated a terrorist organization by Tehran, in Iraqi Kurdistan on Tuesday, capturing new footage from inside the base. The group, led by Ibrahim Alizade and based near Sulaymaniyah, has faced growing pressure in recent months as Iraqi authorities push Kurdish opposition factions to relocate under security agreements with Iran, and its members have repeatedly been targeted in Iranian strikes. An interview with Komala’s leadership will be published by Drop Site soon.

• LIVESTREAM: Trump, Hegseth: Open Your Own Strait of Hormuz | Ep. 52

Ryan Grim and Murtaza Hussain discuss Trump and Hegseth, the Strait of Hormuz, recent events in Bahrain, and the Cuban blockade, recently broken by Russia.

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U.S.-Israeli attacks continue to target Iran. Over 90,000 residential units damaged in Iran. Israel shifts to attacking Iranian economic infrastructure. Iran strikes Sharjah industrial area. Kuwaiti oil tanker carrying 2 million barrels of crude struck. President Donald Trump to allies: “Get your own oil.” Broker for War Secretary Pete Hegseth reportedly attempted to buy defense fund ahead of Iran strikes. Trump willing to end war even if Strait of Hormuz remains closed. Secretary of State Marco Rubio says war on Iran is ahead of schedule and could end in weeks without ground troops. Gulf states push Trump to continue war. Iran plans to consolidate control over Hormuz. Dozens arrested in Iran, MEK members executed. Average U.S. gas prices jump to over $4 a gallon. Israel plans to demolish homes and occupy Lebanon south of Litani River. Israel opens new front in Lebanon. Four Israeli soldiers killed in southern Lebanon Monday. Israeli strikes kill five Palestinians in Gaza. Israeli Knesset passes death penalty law targeting Palestinians. U.S. embassies to work with Pentagon psychological operations unit and Elon Musk. Trump strips endangered species protections in Gulf of Mexico. New York City launches free on-site child care program for municipal workers. Gunmen kill more than 70 at South Sudan gold mine. Flooding and landslides kill at least 45 across Afghanistan and Pakistan. Russian strikes on Ukraine kill two and injure more than 20. Mexico to raise migrant deaths before regional commission. Jordan and Egypt make cuts to address energy shortages. Somali federal forces seize regional capital. Gang massacre kills at least 70 in Haiti. Gunmen kill at least 30 in attack on Nigeria’s Plateau state. British pro-Palestine activist arrested over Instagram post.

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War on Iran

• U.S.-Israeli attacks continue to target Iran:

  • U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Tuesday hit one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in Iran that produces anti-cancer drugs, anesthetic, and other specialized medicines, according to state news agency IRNA. The pharmaceutical company, Tofigh Daru Research & Engineering, is owned by a state-run firm. Iran has long faced chronic shortages of medicines, partly due to sanctions imposed over its nuclear program.

  • A U.S.-Israeli airstrike on the city of Mahallat in the Markazi province on Monday night killed 11 people, including three children, and injured 15 others, according to the Tasnim news agency. Four residential units were completely destroyed in the attack. Multiple waves of Israeli strikes also hit Tehran on Monday night, the Israeli military confirmed.

  • An uncaptioned video of a massive explosion shared by President Donald Trump on his Truth Social account appears to be of a major strike conducted outside the central city of Isfahan. According to AP, fire-tracking satellites from NASA suggest the explosions happened near Mount Soffeh, an area believed to have military positions. A U.S. official told The Wall Street Journal that a large ammunition depot in Isfahan was hit with 2,000-pound bunker buster bombs, and that a large number of the “penetrator munitions” were used in the strike. Iran has not formally acknowledged the attack but Fars news agency reported that US-Israeli attacks on Isfahan province targeted some “military sites.”

  • A U.S.-Israeli airstrike on an orphanage complex in Fardis, west of Tehran, killed at least two people and wounded five others Monday, according to Iranian media. At least 230 children have been killed and 1,800 injured since the war began, according to Iranian officials.

  • The northwestern city of Tabriz—near Iran’s border with Armenia and Azerbaijan—was hit at least 13 times on Monday, according to an Iranian Azeri group.

• Over 90,000 residential units damaged in Iran: The Iranian Red Crescent said Tuesday that over 90,000 residential units have been damaged in airstrikes on Iran since the start of the war, including 307 medical facilities and 760 schools.

• Israel shifts to attacking Iranian economic infrastructure: Israel has pivoted toward striking Iran’s economic infrastructure after largely exhausting its initial military target list, entering what Israeli officials are describing as the “completion phase” of the war, the Times of Israel reported Monday. After hundreds of strike waves and more than 13,000 bombs that Israeli officials claim have severely degraded Iran’s missile systems, air defenses, and weapons production capacity, leaders have ordered attacks on the country’s gas infrastructure and major steel plants. Israeli officials framed the shift as a strategy to weaken the Iranian government and “create conditions” for its collapse.

• Iran strikes Sharjah industrial area: Iranian missiles and drones struck the Sharjah industrial area in the United Arab Emirates early Monday, hitting an administrative building belonging to Thuraya Telecommunications. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said the strikes were carried out in retaliation for attacks on Iranian industrial infrastructure, targeting sites it described as linked to U.S. military operations and weapons production, including aluminum facilities.

• Kuwaiti oil tanker carrying 2 million barrels of crude struck: A fully loaded Kuwaiti oil tanker was struck Monday near Dubai. The vessel, the Al Salmi, was carrying approximately 2 million barrels of crude oil. Authorities in Dubai said Tuesday morning the situation has been “contained” and that there was “no oil leakage and no injuries reported.”

• Trump to allies: “Get your own oil”: President Donald Trump on Tuesday said nations upset by high fuel prices should “go get your own oil” as Iran continues to restrict passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth underlined Trump’s comment in a Pentagon briefing, saying “This Strait of Hormuz situation, we’ve set the conditions for success.”

• Broker for Hegseth attempted to buy defense fund ahead of Iran strikes: A broker acting on behalf of U.S. War Secretary Pete Hegseth attempted to purchase a multimillion-dollar stake in BlackRock’s Defense Industrials Active Exchange-Traded Fund through Morgan Stanley shortly before U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran began, the Financial Times reported Monday. The transaction was never completed because the fund was not yet available to Morgan Stanley clients. The Pentagon denied the report, calling it “fabricated.”

• Trump reportedly willing to end war even if Strait of Hormuz remains closed: President Donald Trump has told aides he is prepared to conclude the U.S. war on Iran even if the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday, marking a significant shift from earlier U.S. statements that the waterway would reopen “one way or another.” The revised strategy prioritizes degrading Iran’s military capabilities and winding down active operations within Trump’s stated four-to-six-week timeline, with diplomatic pressure on Tehran to restore free navigation as the primary follow-on tool. If diplomacy fails, U.S. officials said Washington would push European and Gulf allies to take the lead on reopening the strait.

• Rubio says war on Iran is ahead of schedule, could end in weeks without ground troops: Secretary of State Marco Rubio told Al Jazeera Monday that the U.S. war on Iran is progressing “ahead of schedule” and might conclude without the deployment of ground troops. Rubio said ongoing operations aim to substantially reduce Iran’s missile launcher inventory, eliminate its capacity to produce long-range weapons, end its sponsorship of regional armed groups, and ensure it never acquires nuclear weapons. Earlier Monday, Rubio added the destruction of Iranian factories to the list of U.S. war objectives. On the Strait of Hormuz, Rubio called Iran’s effective control over the waterway a “tollbooth system” that is “unacceptable” and “illegal,” and said the strait will reopen “one way or another.” Rubio said all of these goals could be achieved “in a matter of weeks,” and claimed the Iranian government was weaker than it had been in recent history.

• Netanyahu says no timetable for ending Iran war, predicts regime will “collapse internally”: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Newsmax Monday that there is “no set timetable” for ending the war against Iran, saying he is committed to an open-ended strategy of sustained military and strategic pressure aimed at forcing an internal collapse of the Islamic Republic. Netanyahu also boasted about the murder of four Iranian nuclear scientists by the Israeli military, and said Israel is examining options to reroute gas and oil pipelines from the Arabian Peninsula westward as a workaround to the disruption from the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

• Gulf states reportedly push Trump to continue war: Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, and Bahrain are privately urging President Donald Trump to press on with the war against Iran, according to a report from The Associated Press, arguing that a monthlong bombing campaign has not sufficiently weakened Tehran and that the moment presents a historic opportunity to cripple Iranian clerical rule. The push comes despite initial complaints from Gulf governments that they were given inadequate notice before the February 28 strikes and that Washington ignored their warnings about the war’s regional consequences. The UAE has reportedly emerged as the most hawkish voice among Gulf states, pushing for a U.S. ground invasion alongside Kuwait and Bahrain, with one Foreign Ministry official calling for Iran’s full disarmament in an article on Monday. Oman and Qatar, which have historically played mediating roles between Iran and the West, favor a diplomatic resolution.

• Iran plans to consolidate control over Hormuz: Iran’s National Security Commission has approved a formal plan to codify Iranian control over the Strait of Hormuz, according to Fars News Agency, with a member of the commission confirming the proposal Monday. The plan would establish transit tolls and new “financial arrangements” for vessels passing through the waterway, while banning U.S. and Israeli ships from passage entirely and restricting transit for countries that impose unilateral sanctions on Iran. The proposal also calls for expanded naval enforcement by Iran’s armed forces and identifies Oman as a potential partner in shaping the legal framework. The measure still requires a full vote by the Majlis and final ratification by the Supreme National Security Council before taking effect. A senior Iranian official reiterated to Al Jazeera on Tuesday morning that no cargo vessels belonging to “hostile nations” have passed through the Strait of Hormuz since the war began, and that no transit through the waterway will occur without Iranian authorization.

• Iran executes MEK members: Two members of the Iranian exile group Mujahedeen-e-Khalq (MEK) were hanged Tuesday in Iran, according to state media. The United Nations’ special rapporteur on Iran denounced the executions. Amnesty International said Iran’s Revolutionary Court convicted the men on charges of armed rebellion against the state “following a grossly unfair trial in October 2024.” Two other MEK members were hanged Monday over the same case.

• Dozens arrested in Iran: Iranian authorities have arrested 54 people, accusing them of planning attacks against Iran or passing information to Israel, according to the Tasnim news agency. The majority of the arrests, over 40, were made in Tehran of people accused of taking pictures of targets attacked by the U.S. and Israel and sending them to “the media headquarters of the Zionist regime,” the Ministry of Intelligence said.

• Average U.S. gas prices jump to over $4 a gallon: : U.S. gas prices rose past an average of $4 a gallon for the first time since 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. U.S. crude oil settled above $100 per barrel for the first time since the war on Iran began Monday, with Brent crude rising above $116 before closing above $114.

• Italy refuses permission to U.S. for use of base: Italy refused permission for the U.S. military to use the Sigonella air base in Sicily for an operation linked to the war on Iran, according to the AP. The refusal was reportedly issued a few days ago and concerned U.S. aircraft that were intended to land at the base before continuing toward the Middle East. According to the AP, the request was denied because Italian authorities were not alerted in time and the U.S. aircraft included bombers, the official said.

Lebanon

• Israeli attacks continue in Lebanon: Seven people were killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon Tuesday, according to the state-run National News Agency. A strike on a car in the al-Wasita al-Qasimiyeh area near Tyre in the south killed two people while another strike on Derikifa killed two more people. An overnight airstrike on the town of Aba killed a young man, Shadi Moallem, after his home was targeted, while another strike on Srifa in the Tyre district left two people dead and three injured. Civil defense personnel and Lebanese Red Cross teams suffered suffocation from chlorine inhalation while carrying out evacuations for wounded individuals Monday night after a leak caused by an Israeli airstrike on a water station in Marj al-Khokh–Marjayoun.

• Casualty count: The death toll from Israel’s assault on Lebanon has risen to at least 1268—with 3750 wounded—since March 2, according to Lebanon’s Health Ministry.

• Israel plans to demolish homes and occupy Lebanon south of Litani River: Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz announced on Tuesday that the Israeli military plans to occupy the entire area south of the Litani River in Lebanon and will not allow hundreds of thousands of residents to return to their homes. “At the end of the operation, the IDF will be positioned in a security area inside Lebanon—in a defensive line against anti-tank missiles—and will have security control over the entire area up to the Litani River, including the remaining bridges,” Katz said in broadcast comments. “The return of over 600,000 residents of the area south of the Litani River will be completely prohibited until the safety and security of residents of the north is ensured, similar to the model of Rafah and Beit Hanoun in the Gaza Strip.”

• Israel opens new front in Lebanon: Israel has opened a new front in its Lebanon campaign by striking roads in the west Bekaa Valley along the Syrian border, an area of strong Hezbollah presence, according to Al Jazeera correspondent Zeina Khodr. Strikes hit routes connecting the towns of Yohmor, Suhmor, and Loubaya, as well as a key road linking the west Bekaa to southern Lebanon. The strikes appear aimed at severing movement corridors and isolating Hezbollah-held areas by disrupting supply lines between eastern and southern Lebanon.

• Israel confirms four soldiers killed in southern Lebanon Monday: Israel confirmed on Monday that four of its soldiers were killed in southern Lebanon, with one additional soldier severely wounded and two others moderately injured and evacuated for treatment, according to Israeli broadcaster N12. It marked the single deadliest incident for the Israeli military since it launched a new ground offensive in Lebanon. A total of ten Israeli soldiers have been killed in southern Lebanon fighting Hezbollah.

• France calls emergency UN Security Council regarding attacks on peacekeepers: France has requested an emergency meeting of the United Nations Security Council following the deaths of three UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon within 24 hours, with Paris directly blaming Israeli forces for the incidents. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot called the violations “unacceptable and unjustifiable,” saying its concerns had been raised directly with Israel’s ambassador in Paris.

The Gaza Genocide, Israel, and the West Bank

• Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, five Palestinians were killed and 14 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,285 killed, with 172,028 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 709 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 1,928, while 756 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

• Israeli strikes kill five Palestinians in Gaza: An Israeli airstrike on Al-Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza killed one man and wounded six others Monday, while Israeli gunfire in the nearby Al-Nuseirat camp killed a 27-year-old woman, according to local reports. An Israeli strike on Jabalia in northern Gaza later on Monday killed three more Palestinians.

• Israeli Knesset passes death penalty law targeting Palestinians: Israel’s Knesset passed a law Monday imposing the death penalty on individuals convicted of killing Israelis in acts of “terror,” in a measure critics say is designed almost exclusively for use against Palestinians. The bill passed 62 to 48, with one abstention, and will go into effect within 30 days across all territory Israel functionally controls, including the occupied West Bank and most of the Gaza Strip. Advanced by far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir’s “Jewish Power” party, the law allows courts to impose the death penalty even without a request from the prosecution and without requiring unanimous consent among judges. Because the bill applies only to terrorism “with the intent to deny the state of Israel,” none of its punishments apply to Jewish Israelis. “The law is worded in such a way that it targets only Palestinians. And it will turn the killing of Palestinians into an accepted and common tool of punishment through several mechanisms,” Israeli human rights group B’Tselem said in response to its passage. The UN Human Rights Office urged Israel to “immediately repeal” its “discriminatory” death penalty law, saying it violates international obligations, while Council of Europe Secretary-General Alain Berset said the Council would closely monitor developments around the law and assess its implications for the conventions Israel is party to.

• Jordan’s king refuses to meet with Netanyahu amid closure of holy sites: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu recently requested a meeting with Jordanian King Abdullah II and was turned down, Israeli public broadcaster Kan reported on Monday. Jordan on Monday condemned Israel’s closure of Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in occupied East Jerusalem, calling it a “crime against religious freedom.” Government spokesperson Mohammad al-Momani told Anadolu that Israel, as an occupying power, “has no legal sovereignty over Jerusalem or its holy sites,” adding that the Jerusalem Islamic Waqf under Jordan is the only authority responsible for administering Al-Aqsa. Israel has kept the sites closed since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran on February 28, citing security concerns.

• Israeli forces shot and killed an 82-year-old Palestinian woman in Beit Lahia: Palestinian writer Mosab Abu Toha told the story on Monday of his 82-year-old neighbor, Yousra al-Ashqar, who Israel forces shot and wounded in Beit Lahia on March 23. Al-Ashqar died days later following surgery. Abu Toha described her as a decades-long fixture in their neighborhood, where she ran a small shop with her husband.

United States

By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.

• Trump urges Congress to cut recess short to resolve longest partial government shutdown in U.S. history: President Donald Trump is pressing Congress to return early from its two-week recess to resolve a funding impasse at the Department of Homeland Security, now the longest partial government shutdown in U.S. history at more than 40 days, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said Monday. Congress is not scheduled to return until mid-April. Though some TSA agents received their first paychecks since the shutdown on Monday, employees at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and civilian Coast Guard personnel remain unpaid.

• Trump administration partially lifts asylum freeze: The Trump administration announced Monday it would be scaling back the general pause on asylum adjudications that had halted hundreds of thousands of immigration applications since late November. The freeze will remain in place, however, for citizens from “high-risk” countries under travel restriction, including Afghanistan, Iran, Somalia, Nigeria, Senegal, Cuba, Haiti, and Venezuela.

• U.S. embassies to work with Pentagon psychological operations unit and Elon Musk: Secretary of State Marco Rubio signed a cable Monday directing every U.S. embassy and consulate in the world to launch coordinated campaigns against foreign propaganda, endorsing Elon Musk’s X platform as an “innovative” counter-disinformation tool and instructing diplomatic staff to coordinate with the U.S. military’s psychological operations unit, according to The Guardian. Embassies were directed to recruit local influencers, academics, and community leaders to carry counter-propaganda messaging in ways designed to appear locally organic rather than centrally directed by Washington. The cable specifically endorses X’s Community Notes feature as a crowdsourced instrument for countering anti-American propaganda “without compromising free speech or privacy.”

• Palestinian activist describes being chained to hospital bed during her ICE detention: Leqaa Kordia, a 33-year-old New Jersey resident arrested during protests at Columbia University, told MSNOW that immigration authorities chained her to a hospital bed following a seizure she suffered while in ICE detention, where she was held for more than a year. Her description of her time in ICE custody is available in full here.

• Trump strips endangered species protections in Gulf of Mexico: The Trump administration is convening the rarely used Endangered Species Committee—known informally as the “God squad”—to revoke protections for dozens of endangered species in the Gulf of Mexico, according to The Guardian, citing national security concerns. Among the species at risk are Rice’s whales, of which only approximately 51 remain, as well as whooping cranes and sea turtles. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth is seeking to exempt all oil and gas industry activities in the Gulf from the act, though neither the military nor the oil and gas industry has proposed a specific project or identified a conflict with existing species protections. The committee has been convened only three times in history, and has overridden the Endangered Species Act only once.

• New York City launches free on-site child care program for municipal workers: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani announced Monday a pilot program offering free, year-round on-site child care for city workers with children under three at the David N. Dinkins Municipal Building in Manhattan, the first free child care program for municipal employees in the city’s history. The pilot is part of Mamdani’s broader push toward universal child care, which received a boost from New York Governor Kathy Hochul, who agreed to expand the city’s existing universal pre-kindergarten program to include 1,000 new 3-K and 2,000 new 2-K slots beginning this fall, with the goal of making both programs universal and free by the end of Mamdani’s first term. David Dayen discusses this policy push, and its potential implications, at The American Prospect; the full article can be found here.

Other International News

• Gunmen kill more than 70 at South Sudan gold mine: Unidentified gunmen killed more than 70 people and wounded many others at a gold mining site at Jebel Iraq in South Sudan’s Central Equatoria State, on the outskirts of Juba, the Associated Press reports. The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army–In Opposition (SPLM/A-IO) blamed government forces, saying that “full responsibility for the massacre rests” with the government. Gold mining in South Sudan is largely unregulated, with state governments operating their own sectors without the involvement of the national government, and Jebel Iraq has previously been the site of violent clashes involving illegal gold miners.

• Flooding and landslides kill at least 45 across Afghanistan and Pakistan: At least 45 people have been killed and more than 100 injured over the past five days as severe flooding and landslides triggered by heavy rainfall swept across Afghanistan and Pakistan. Afghanistan’s National Disaster Management Authority reported 28 dead and 49 injured, with more than 100 homes destroyed and 1,140 families affected, with most deaths concentrated in the central and eastern provinces of Parwan, Maidan Wardak, Daikundi, and Logar. In Pakistan’s Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, bordering Afghanistan, 17 people were killed and 56 were wounded, according to the Provincial Disaster Management Authority. Afghan authorities closed several highways and warned citizens to avoid rivers and flooded waterways, with further storms forecast for Tuesday.

• Russian strikes on Ukraine kill two and injure more than 20: Russian attacks on Monday killed two people and wounded more than 20 others across central and northern Ukraine, according to Reuters. Falling drone debris near Poltava killed one person, injured three, and damaged a high-rise apartment building. In the adjacent Dnipropetrovsk region, drone attacks and artillery strikes near Nikopol killed one person and wounded 14 others across the region.

• Mexico to raise migrant deaths before regional commission: Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum announced Monday that her government will bring the deaths of Mexican nationals in U.S. immigration detention before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and file an amicus brief in a lawsuit challenging conditions at the Adelanto ICE Processing Center in California. The move was prompted in part by the March 25 death of José Guadalupe Ramos, 52, a Mexican citizen who was found unconscious in his bunk at the private facility northeast of Los Angeles. Sheinbaum said Mexico is also expanding its consular network in the United States to provide detained nationals with legal assistance and closer monitoring.

• U.S. Embassy in Caracas formally resumes operations: The United States Embassy in Caracas formally resumed operations on Monday. The embassy had been closed since March 2019, with U.S. diplomatic engagement conducted through a Venezuela Affairs Unit at the embassy in Bogotá, Colombia. Laura Dogu, who was sent to the country in January as the charge d’affairs, is tasked with a full return of personnel to the embassy and the eventual resumption of consular services “as soon as possible.”

• Jordan and Egypt make cuts to address energy shortages: Jordan and Egypt announced sweeping austerity measures Monday as regional governments struggle to absorb the economic impact of soaring energy prices driven by the U.S.-Israel war on Iran, Al Monitor reports. Jordanian Prime Minister Jafar Hassan announced a ban on air conditioning and heating in all ministries, government departments, and public institutions, alongside a prohibition on non-essential government vehicle use, a two-month freeze on international travel for officials, and a suspension of spending on official delegations and banquets. Egypt, meanwhile, began enforcing early closing times for cafes, restaurants, shops, cinemas, theaters, and wedding halls as of Saturday night, with most required to shut by 9 p.m. daily. Egyptian authorities are also dimming streetlights, cutting government vehicle fuel allocations by 30%, slowing major state infrastructure projects, and shifting some employees to partial remote work.

• Somali federal forces seize regional capital: Somalia’s national army took control of Baidoa, the administrative capital of the country’s South West state, on Monday, prompting regional president Abdiaziz Hassan Mohamed Laftagareen to resign days after being re-elected to a new five-year term. The takeover follows the South West state’s declaration two weeks ago that it was severing ties with the federal government in Mogadishu, a dispute rooted in Laftagareen’s opposition to constitutional amendments backed by federal authorities.

• Gang massacre kills at least 70 in Haiti: At least 70 people were killed and 30 injured in a gang attack on rural communities near Petite-Rivière in Haiti’s Artibonite region that began in the early hours of Sunday and continued into Monday, according to the Defenseurs Plus human rights group. Gang members stormed communities around Jean-Denis, setting homes ablaze, with Defenseurs Plus estimating 50 houses were destroyed and approximately 6,000 people displaced. An audio message circulating on social media attributed to Gran Grif leader Luckson Elan suggested the attack was retaliation for a rival armed group’s strike on Gran Grif’s base in Savien. The United States designated Gran Grif and the Viv Ansanm coalition as terrorist organizations, and earlier this month offered rewards of up to $3 million for information on their financial activities.

• Gunmen kill at least 30 in attack on Nigeria’s Plateau state: Gunmen attacked the Gari Ya Waye community in Angwan Rukuba district of Nigeria’s Plateau state late Sunday, killing at least 30 people and wounding an unknown number of others, according to Reuters. The identity of the gunmen remains unknown.

• British pro-Palestine activist arrested over Instagram post: Qesser Zuhrah, a 21-year-old pro-Palestine activist who had been released on bail last month after 15 months on remand without conviction, was arrested again Monday morning by masked police officers who took her from her home in Watford, near London. Hertfordshire Police said she was suspected of intentionally encouraging a crime and “encouragement of terrorism,” with supporters saying the arrest stemmed from an Instagram story in which she allegedly encouraged people to take “direct action.” Zuhrah is among the group known as the “Filton 24,” defendants alleged to have raided an Elbit Systems UK factory in Filton near Bristol in August 2024, which has been linked to Palestine Action. The aggravated burglary charge against the group was dropped last month, and the UK High Court ruled that the government’s designation of Palestine Action as a terrorist organization unlawful, but the ban on Palestine Action remains in place.

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