Israel kills 70 in Lebanon; Trump rejects Iran proposal; Putin says Ukraine war “coming to an end”
Drop Site Daily: May 11, 2026
Iran says it seeks its “legitimate rights.” Iran proposal centers on an immediate ceasefire, sanctions relief, and guarantees against renewed attacks. Three tankers cross the Strait of Hormuz with trackers switched off. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says war “not over,” demands Iran’s enriched uranium be physically removed. UK and France deploy warships toward Hormuz as Iran warns of “decisive and immediate” response. President Donald Trump says Iran “defeated” but not done. Bahrain arrests 41 people over alleged IRGC ties. Israel using AI targeting system in Lebanon that experts warn cannot distinguish fighters from civilians. Hezbollah claims strikes on an Iron Dome battery and Israeli soldiers at Shlomi helicopter pad. Israeli reservist killed in drone strike near Lebanon border. Two Palestinians shot on Monday. Israeli strikes kill at least five across Gaza on Sunday, including Khan Younis police chief. Israel deports last two detained flotilla activists after nearly two weeks in custody. Israeli settlers force Palestinian family to exhume father’s body in occupied West Bank. U.S. military kills two in Pacific boat strike. Family of Florida State University shooting victim sues OpenAI. Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro quietly working to block progressive candidate in Philadelphia primary. Virginia Supreme Court strikes down voter-approved Democratic redistricting plan. U.S. military carries out reconnaissance flights off Cuba’s coast. Armed militia kills at least 69 in eastern Congo. Israel built a secret military outpost in Iraq, WSJ reports. Vladimir Putin says war in Ukraine “coming to an end.” Attacks kill 21 police officers in northwestern Pakistan. Lebanese and Syrian leaders report “significant progress” in Damascus talks. Sudanese army strikes RSF positions in Nyala. Philippine VP Sara Duterte impeached, now faces Senate trial.
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Iran and Ceasefire
Iran says it seeks its “legitimate rights” in response to U.S.: Iran and the United States remain at an impasse on Monday as a ceasefire that went into effect last month grows increasingly shaky. Iran sent its response to Washington’s latest proposal via Pakistani mediators on Sunday but President Donald Trump quickly rejected it in a social media post, calling it “TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE!” The ceasefire has been largely observed despite some exchanges of fire and reports of strikes in the Strait of Hormuz. Iran effectively blocked the strategic waterway after the U.S. and Israel launched the war in February. Since April 13, the U.S. military has blockaded Iranian ports, claiming it has turned back 61 commercial vessels and disabled four. Iran’s foreign ministry insisted Monday it was only seeking its rights. “We did not demand any concessions. The only thing we demanded was Iran’s legitimate rights,” said Ministry Spokesman Esmael Baghaei in a weekly press briefing, as reported by Iranian news agency Tasnim. “The American side still insists on its one-sided views and unreasonable demands.” Tehran’s proposal included, “Demanding an end to the war, lifting the blockade and piracy, and releasing Iranian assets that have been unjustly frozen in banks due to U.S. pressure,” Baghaei said. “Safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz and establishing security in the region and Lebanon were other demands of Iran, which are considered a generous and responsible offer for regional security.”
Iran proposal centers on immediate ceasefire, sanctions relief, and guarantees against renewed attacks: Iranian media and regional outlets reported Sunday that Tehran’s response to the latest U.S. proposal centers on an immediate end to the war and binding guarantees against renewed attacks on Iran and the wider region, with a ceasefire in Lebanon described by diplomatic sources cited by Al Mayadeen as a “red line” in negotiations. According to Tasnim, Tehran’s proposal calls for an immediate end to the war, guarantees against renewed aggression, lifting of U.S. sanctions, ending the maritime blockade, removal of OFAC restrictions on Iranian oil sales within 30 days, release of frozen Iranian assets within 30 days, and Iranian management and oversight of Strait of Hormuz transit. An Iranian official source told Al Jazeera the response was “realistic and positive,” proposing 30 additional days of negotiations after the war ends to finalize details and calling for reciprocal steps to test Washington’s seriousness, adding that negotiations “could move quickly if the U.S. responds positively.”
Second Qatari tanker crossing Strait of Hormuz through Iran-approved route: A second Qatari LNG tanker is transiting the Strait of Hormuz days after the first such vessel crossed under an arrangement involving Iran and Pakistan, according to LSEG shipping data seen by the Reuters. The vessel left Qatar’s Ras Laffan and is heading northeast toward Port Qasim in Pakistan, where it is expected to arrive tomorrow. This comes after an LNG tanker, Al Kharaitiyat, managed to cross the strait on Sunday through the Iranian-approved northern route.
Three tankers cross Strait with trackers switched off: Three tankers carrying crude oil have transited the Strait of Hormuz with their trackers switched off to avoid Iranian attacks, according to Reuters, which cited shipping data from Kpler and LSEG. Two very large crude carriers, each carrying 2 million barrels of Iraqi crude, reportedly exited the strait on Sunday. A third tanker, with 2 million barrels of crude from Abu Dhabi National Oil Co’s Zirku terminal, exited the strait on Wednesday.
Netanyahu says war “not over,” demands Iran’s enriched uranium be physically removed: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday the war with Iran is “not over,” telling CBS News’ 60 Minutes that Iran’s enriched uranium stockpile must be physically extracted and its enrichment facilities dismantled before any resolution can be considered complete, and claimed President Donald Trump had privately expressed a desire to “go in there” to retrieve the material. International monitors estimate Iran holds roughly 970 pounds of near-weapons-grade uranium, which Netanyahu said U.S.-Israeli operations had “degraded” but not eliminated. Netanyahu also claimed that Israel has “gained much” from its wars, transforming itself from being “on the verge of extermination, of annihilation” into the dominant military power in the Middle East. He said Israel dismantled much of Iran’s regional “terror axis” and predicted deeper alliances with Arab states. Asked if Israel’s military actions in Gaza or Lebanon contributed to collapsing U.S. and international support, Netanyahu said “mistakes” occur in war, and civilians sometimes die unintentionally.
UK and France deploy warships toward Hormuz as Iran warns of “decisive and immediate” response: Britain is deploying HMS Dragon, a Type 45 air-defense destroyer, to the Middle East to pre-position for a potential multinational mission to protect shipping through the Strait of Hormuz—but only once hostilities between the U.S., Israel, and Iran have ended—while France has deployed its Charles de Gaulle carrier strike group to the Red Sea, Reuters reported. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said dozens of nations are ready to contribute to the operation, which both he and French President Emmanuel Macron stressed would be strictly defensive and independent of the U.S.-Israeli war. Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister warned Sunday that the presence of French, British, or any other nation’s warships accompanying U.S. forces in the strait “will be met with a decisive and immediate response from Iran’s armed forces,” according to Fars News Agency, after which Macron clarified at a press conference in Nairobi that France has “never considered” a deployment to the strait itself and that any joint mission—backed by around 50 countries—would proceed in coordination with Iran and only when conditions allow.
Iran denies oil spill near Kharg Island despite satellite imagery showing slick covering 52 square kilometers: Iran’s Oil Terminals Company denied any leak near Kharg Island on Sunday, saying field inspections and lab tests found “not even the smallest trace” of leakage, even as satellite imagery from the European Space Agency’s Copernicus Programme showed a slick covering up to 52 square kilometers drifting west and south of the island between May 6 and 8. Estimates of the spill’s size vary from 3,000 to 80,000 barrels, while its origin remains unconfirmed. Theories including a rupture in aging undersea pipelines connecting to the Abuzar oil field, ballast water discharge from foreign tankers as some Iranian lawmakers claimed, or storage overflow at Kharg Island, through which 90% of Iran’s oil exports flow, with tanks reportedly near capacity due to U.S. blockade-related shipping bottlenecks.
Trump says Iran “defeated” but not done: President Donald Trump said Sunday he held a “very nice” call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as Washington reviewed Iran’s response to a U.S. proposal on ending the war. Trump declared Iran had been “defeated” militarily while stopping short of saying combat operations were over. “They are defeated, but that doesn’t mean they are done,” Trump said, claiming roughly 70% of U.S. targets in Iran had been hit and adding: “We could go in for two more weeks and do every single target.”
Iran executes man on espionage charges: Iranian authorities on Monday executed another man on charges of espionage, the state-run Mehr news agency said. Erfan Shakourzadeh, 29, was hanged after being convicted for collaborating with the CIA and the Mossad. He is the fifth person to be executed on espionage charges since the beginning of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran in late February.
Bahrain arrests 41 people over alleged IRGC ties: Bahrain’s Interior Ministry announced Saturday the arrest of 41 people accused of belonging to a group linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, saying legal proceedings are underway in connection with earlier investigations into espionage and expressions of support for Iranian attacks during the war. The arrests are the latest in a series of crackdowns: Bahraini authorities carried out earlier rounds of IRGC-linked arrests in March, and in late April stripped the citizenship of 69 people accused of sympathizing with Iran, a move the London-based Bahrain Institute for Rights and Democracy described as a violation of international law. The UAE has similarly arrested dozens of alleged Iran-linked group members since the outbreak of conflict, with both Gulf states among those targeted by Iranian missile and drone strikes during the war.
Lebanon
Weekend attacks: Over 70 people were killed in Israeli attacks on Lebanon over the weekend, with 51 killed on Saturday and 23 on Sunday, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health, bringing the total death toll since March 2 to 2,869, including at least 108 medical workers. At least 8,730 people have been wounded.
Saturday: At least 51 people were killed in Lebanon on Saturday after a sweeping wave of Israeli attacks across southern Lebanon and parts of the Beqaa Valley, according to Al Jazeera. Israeli forces struck more than 50 locations through airstrikes, drone attacks, artillery shelling, and demolition operations, according to journalist Courtney Bonneau. The attacks hit areas across the Nabatieh and Tyre districts in particular, including Nabatieh, Harouf, Kfar Tebnit, Al-Mansouri, Majdal Selm, and Burj Rahal, while Israeli forces also carried out demolitions of civilian homes and infrastructure in border towns including Mais Al-Jabal, Aitaroun, Yaroun, Al-Khiam, and Kfarkela. One victim, a 12-year-old girl, was reportedly targeted in three separate strikes on Saturday, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency, and died after succumbing to injuries.
Sunday: Israeli drones carried out six strikes across southern Lebanon in a three-hour window early Sunday, hitting Qalaway, Deir Qanoun El-Nahr, Sama’iyeh, Rmadiyeh, Qlayleh, and Nabatieh, according to Press TV journalist Hadi Hoteit reporting from the south. Among those struck were a paramedic team in Qalaway, agricultural workers in a field in Deir Qanoun El-Nahr, and two Syrian nationals on a motorcycle in Qlayleh. Separate large-scale airstrikes hit entire town centers in Jibchit, Doueir, Nabatieh’s Christian neighborhood, and Rzay. Hoteit described what he called a new and indiscriminate pattern of attack, saying “Israeli drones lock on an area and just start attacking anything moving or present or ‘suspicious’ without any filtering.” The country’s health ministry later confirmed that two paramedics were killed in Sunday’s attacks.
Israel using AI targeting system in Lebanon that experts warn cannot distinguish fighters from civilians: Israel’s military is using an AI-powered targeting system to track and kill individuals in Lebanon that experts warn cannot reliably discern between fighters and civilians, the Los Angeles Times reported this week. The system draws from phone metadata, facial recognition, drone surveillance, SIM card tracking, and social media, processed through platforms including Palantir’s Maven, and generates target profiles in seconds—work a senior Israeli military AI official told the Times once required hundreds of analysts and weeks of effort. Experts flagged two core concerns: that the system identifies threats through behavioral patterns rather than direct evidence of combatant activity, meaning relatives, financiers, and administrators are routinely flagged because their communications resemble those of fighters; and that the system can only pattern-match rather than reason, meaning flawed input data produces the same lethal errors repeated at scale, with no human stopping to question the output.
Hezbollah claims strikes on Iron Dome battery and Israeli soldiers at Shlomi helicopter pad: Hezbollah’s military wing released footage Sunday claiming a strike on an Iron Dome air defense platform and its crew at the Jal al-Alam border site across two separate attack maneuvers on May 7–8, and a separate strike on a gathering of Israeli soldiers at a helicopter landing pad in the Shlomi area of northern Israel on May 9, with a combat helicopter visible overhead at the time of the attack.
Lebanese PM calls Bint Jbeil “a version of Gaza”: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said on Sunday that Bint Jbeil, the town in southern Lebanon which Israeli forces have laid siege to, “has become a version of Gaza,” according to Lebanon’s National News Agency. In the same remarks, Salam also discussed negotiations to end the war, noting that Beirut is demanding a clear timetable for Israeli withdrawal during talks. He said Lebanon was “dragged” into the Iran-U.S. confrontation and estimated that 68 Lebanese villages are now under Israeli control.
Israeli reservist killed in drone strike near Lebanon border, 18th soldier killed since March: An Israeli soldier was killed Saturday in an explosive drone strike inside Israel near the Lebanon border, Kan News reported—the 18th Israeli soldier killed since the current round of fighting began on March 2.
Palestine
Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, three Palestinians were killed and 16 were injured across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,740 killed, with 172,555 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 854 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,453, while 770 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Two Palestinians shot on Monday: Two Palestinians were shot by Israeli forces on Monday morning in Gaza, according to WAFA. A child was injured by Israeli gunfire in the Al-Atatra area west of Beit Lahia and a young man was wounded near Al-Samer junction in Gaza City.
Israel launches wave of strikes on Saturday: On Saturday evening, an Israeli drone struck an electric bicycle in the Falluja area of Jabalia refugee camp, killing one person and wounding others, according to local media. At least one more person was killed in an Israeli strike in Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza. Gaza’s Health Ministry reported on Saturday morning 5 people recorded killed and 15 wounded in the previous 48 hours across Gaza, including four newly killed and one body recovered from beneath rubble. Gaza’s Civil Defense said Israeli forces struck more than 32 residential buildings in Shati refugee camp on the western edge of Gaza City on Saturday, following evacuation warnings to residents, displacing dozens of families and causing widespread destruction. Six people were wounded, including a child, when Israeli forces struck the home of the Al-Adm family after the evacuation orders.
Israeli strikes kill at least five across Gaza on Sunday, including Khan Younis police chief: Israeli drone strikes killed at least five people across Gaza on Sunday, including Lieutenant Colonel Wissam Fayez Abd al-Hadi, head of the Khan Younis police criminal investigations unit, and Sergeant Fadi Abd al-Muati Haikal, whose vehicle was struck in the Al-Amal neighborhood west of Khan Younis, according to Gaza’s Interior Ministry. Two more people were killed in a separate strike on a civilian jeep near a reconstruction center in the same area, and a drone strike near the Maki roundabout in Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza killed one person and wounded others. Additional Israeli military activity Sunday included artillery shelling of eastern Al-Qarara and northeastern Al-Bureij camp, heavy quadcopter drone fire near the port area west of Gaza City, naval gunboat fire toward the city’s shore, and the demolition of several residential and civilian buildings in eastern Gaza City in the early morning hours.
Israel deports last two detained flotilla activists after nearly two weeks in custody: Israel deported Saif Abu Keshek, a Spanish national of Palestinian origin, and Brazilian Thiago Ávila on Sunday after holding them for nearly two weeks following the Israeli navy’s interception of the Global Sumud Flotilla in international waters off Crete on April 30, with the pair arriving in Athens after Israel’s Foreign Ministry said they had been released following an investigation. Abu Keshek had been on a dry hunger strike, and Swedish consular officials had reported he was subjected to threats, psychological abuse, violent transfers, and prolonged blindfolding during his detention. Israel claimed he was suspected of affiliation with a “terrorist” organization and that Ávila was suspected of illegal activity—allegations both denied, saying they were on a humanitarian mission and their arrest in international waters was unlawful. Spain, Brazil, and the United Nations had all called for their swift release.
Palestinian security force claims ambush of Israeli collaborator militia in Khan Younis: The Radaa force in Gaza said it killed three members of an Israeli-backed Palestinian militia led by Husam al-Astal in an ambush south of Khan Younis on May 6. Al-Astal is a former Palestinian Authority security officer with alleged Israeli intelligence ties dating to the 1990s who was accused of orchestrating the 2018 assassination of Palestinian scientist Fadi al-Batsh in Malaysia.
Israeli court freezes demolition of 50 Palestinian facilities in al-Eizariya linked to E1 settlement road: Israeli authorities notified around 50 Palestinians to evacuate shops and commercial facilities at the entrance to al-Eizariya, east of occupied Jerusalem, before Sunday morning, but the Jerusalem Legal Aid and Human Rights Center secured a court order freezing the demolitions, Anadolu Agency reported. The demolitions are tied to Israeli plans for a “Sovereignty Road” between al-Eizariya and al-Zayim that would fully close the E1 corridor—the main artery connecting the northern and central West Bank to the south—to Palestinians.
Israeli settlers force Palestinian family to exhume father’s body in occupied West Bank: Israeli settlers, reportedly under military protection, forced a Palestinian family in Asasa village near Jenin to dig up their father’s body and rebury him elsewhere shortly after his burial Friday, with the United Nations condemning the act as “appalling and emblematic of the dehumanisation of Palestinians.” Hussein Asasa, 80, died of natural causes and was buried in the village cemetery after his family coordinated the burial in advance with Israeli security forces and obtained all necessary permits, but settlers shortly afterward threatened to use a bulldozer to exhume the body themselves, claiming the cemetery land was part of an Israeli settlement.
Israeli settlers launch wave of West Bank raids, torching homes and attacking a Palestinian child: Israeli settlers carried out a fresh wave of attacks across the occupied West Bank on Friday, torching a home in al-Lubban Asharqiya south of Nablus, burning a vehicle and writing racist slogans on homes in Abu Falah northeast of Ramallah, and attacking a man and his child with sharp instruments in Khirbet Shuweika south of Hebron, hospitalizing both with head injuries. Settlers also attacked a Palestinian man in Beit Fajjar south of Bethlehem and stole his phone, while Israeli forces fired stun grenades at Palestinians picnicking near Solomon’s Pools south of Bethlehem and tear gas and sound bombs at worshippers leaving a mosque in Tuqu southeast of Bethlehem.
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 two in Pacific boat strike: The U.S. military conducted a strike against a boat in the Eastern Pacific on Friday, killing two people, according to U.S. Southern Command. SOUTHCOM posted a video of the strike and said, “Two male narco-terrorists were killed during this action” without providing evidence. Over 190 people have been killed in dozens of U.S. strikes on vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific since September.
Family of Florida State University shooting victim sues OpenAI: The widow of Tiru Chabba, one of two people killed in the April 2025 mass shooting at Florida State University, filed a federal lawsuit against OpenAI on Sunday alleging that ChatGPT enabled the attack by failing to detect threatening intent in extensive conversations with accused shooter Phoenix Ikner. According to the complaint, Ikner shared images of firearms with ChatGPT, discussed his interest in Hitler, Nazism, and past mass shootings over several months, and asked the chatbot about peak hours at the FSU student union. OpenAI said ChatGPT “provided factual responses to questions with information that could be found broadly across public sources” and did not encourage illegal activity, but the lawsuit argues the chatbot “flattered” and “praised” Ikner while failing to connect the dots as he raised questions about suicide, terrorism, media coverage of shootings, and legal consequences—part of a growing wave of litigation alleging AI chatbots played a role in real-world violence.
Pennsylvania Gov. Shapiro quietly working to block progressive candidate in Philadelphia primary: Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D) is privately working to derail Chris Rabb, a progressive state lawmaker from Philadelphia backed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), ahead of a May 19 Democratic primary for a U.S. House seat, Axios reported. Shapiro has not publicly endorsed a candidate but has privately told allies he disapproves of Rabb and has advised Philadelphia’s building trades unions—which back center-left candidate Sharif Street—to avoid running negative ads against a third contender, Ala Stanford, which political insiders say is designed to prevent vote-splitting that could benefit Rabb. A recent poll shows Rabb trailing Stanford by just five points in a race whose Democratic primary winner is all but certain to win the deep-blue seat in November.
Virginia Supreme Court strikes down voter-approved Democratic redistricting plan: The Virginia Supreme Court ruled 4-3 Friday to strike down a voter-approved Democratic congressional redistricting plan, finding the Democratic-led legislature violated procedural requirements when it placed the constitutional amendment on the ballot by casting its initial vote after early voting had already begun in the 2025 general election. The ruling renders null a vote narrowly approved by Virginians on April 21 that Democrats had hoped would deliver as many as four additional U.S. House seats. Virginia Democrats announced they intend to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court—a longshot bid, as the nation’s highest court typically defers to state courts on interpretations of their own constitutions.
Trump to visit Beijing May 13–15: President Donald Trump will travel to Beijing from May 13 to 15 at the invitation of President Xi Jinping, China’s Foreign Ministry confirmed Monday, marking the first visit by a U.S. president to China in nearly nine years. Trump will attend a bilateral meeting with Xi on Thursday, visit the Temple of Heaven, and attend a state dinner, accompanied by Melania Trump and a delegation of American executives including representatives from Boeing and Mastercard. The agenda spans trade, technology, Taiwan, rare earth export controls, artificial intelligence, and the Iran war, according to CNBC, with pre-summit trade talks between Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng scheduled in South Korea on May 12 and 13.
Other International News
U.S. military carries out reconnaissance flights off Cuba’s coast: The U.S. Navy and Air Force have conducted at least 25 intelligence-gathering flights off the coast of Cuba since February 4, most of them near Havana and Santiago de Cuba and some coming within 40 miles of the coast, a CNN analysis of publicly available aviation data showed—a sudden surge with no precedent in recent years. The aircraft involved include P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol planes, RC-135V Rivet Joint signals intelligence aircraft, and MQ-4C Triton high-altitude drones—the same platforms that conducted surveillance ahead of U.S. special forces’ capture of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and ahead of joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran. CNN noted that a similar pattern of escalating rhetoric coinciding with a visible uptick in surveillance flights preceded both of those operations, and that the aircraft are capable of masking their location beacons but have not done so, raising the question of whether the flights constitute a deliberate signal to Havana.
Thailand’s former prime minister released from prison: Former Thai Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, 76, was released Monday from Klong Prem Central Prison in Bangkok after serving eight months of a one-year sentence on corruption-related charges. He was greeted by hundreds of supporters, family members, and political allies. Thaksin dominated Thai politics for a quarter-century before a military coup toppled him in 2006 while he was abroad. He returned from 15 years in self-exile in 2023 to face an eight-year sentence for abuse of power, later commuted to one year by Thailand’s king—much of which he spent in the VIP wing of a hospital. Shinawatra will wear an electronic ankle monitor for the remainder of his sentence.
Armed militia kills at least 69 in eastern Congo: Armed fighters affiliated with the CODECO coalition of militia groups killed at least 69 people, including 19 militia members and soldiers, in retaliatory attacks on several villages in Ituri province in northeastern Democratic Republic of the Congo on April 28, according to reporting from the AFP. CODECO claims to protect the Lendu ethnic group in the region, which has been locked in a long-running violent conflict with its Hema neighbors in the gold-rich province bordering Uganda and South Sudan. The UN stabilization mission MONUSCO said it had rescued nearly 200 people caught in the crossfire and issued a statement “strongly condemning” the escalating violence in the region.
Israel built a secret military outpost in Iraq, WSJ reports: Israel constructed a clandestine military outpost in Iraq’s western desert to support its air campaign against Iran and launched airstrikes against Iraqi soldiers who nearly discovered it in early March, the Wall Street Journal reported Saturday, citing U.S. and other officials familiar with the matter. The base, built just before the war began, housed Israeli special forces and served as a logistical hub for the Israeli air force. The installation was built with U.S. knowledge and was nearly exposed after a local shepherd reported unusual helicopter activity, prompting Iraqi troops to investigate at dawn. These troops came under intense fire that killed one soldier and wounded two, after which Iraq lodged a formal complaint with the UN.
Putin says war in Ukraine “coming to an end”: Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday he believes the war in Ukraine is “coming to an end” and expressed willingness to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in a third country—the first time he has made such an offer. Russia and Ukraine agreed to a three-day ceasefire, which Trump announced in a Truth Social post on Friday, as well as to a reciprocal exchange of 1,000 prisoners each. The ceasefire is scheduled to expire today.
Attacks kill 21 police officers in northwestern Pakistan: A car bombing at a police post, followed by an intense firefight, killed at least 21 officers in the Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province on Saturday, with the Ittehad-ul-Mujahideen Pakistan, a possible splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban, claiming responsibility for the attack. Three wounded people remain hospitalized, according to Al Jazeera.
Lebanese and Syrian leaders report “significant progress” in Damascus talks: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said Saturday that talks with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus produced “significant progress” on security, transport, infrastructure, economic matters, and the release of more than 2,000 Syrian prisoners held in Lebanese jails. On the last of these in particular: “We discussed continuing efforts to address the issue of detained Syrians,” in Lebanon, Salam said, “and to uncover the fate of the missing and forcibly detained in both countries.”
Venezuelan acting President Delcy Rodriguez travels to The Hague: Acting President of Venezuela Delcy Rodriguez arrived at The Hague Sunday to represent Venezuela at the International Court of Justice in its long-running land dispute with Guyana over the oil-rich Essequibo region. This trip is Rodriguez’s first trip abroad since President Nicolás Maduro was abducted by U.S. forces in January.
Sudanese army strikes RSF positions in Nyala: The Sudanese army launched drone strikes against Rapid Support Forces (RSF) positions in Nyala, the capital of South Darfur, for the second consecutive day Sunday, with at least three explosions reported by the Sudan Tribune. The strikes coincided with a reported visit from RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, known as Hemedti, and several senior leaders to the city, which the RSF has designated as the capital of its parallel “Foundation Government.” In related news, an RSF defector and former commander outlined in a press conference last week the ways the United Arab Emirates supports the militia, alleging that the UAE provides the group with training, supplies it with weapons, and more. His remarks, translated by Middle East Eye, are available here.
Philippine VP Sara Duterte impeached, now faces Senate trial: The Philippine House of Representatives voted 257–25 on Monday to impeach Vice President Sara Duterte, surpassing the threshold needed to send the case to the Senate. The charges against Duterte include misuse of confidential government funds, failure to disclose wealth, bribery, unexplained financial transactions, and threats against a political rival. Duterte denies the allegations and her legal team says it is ready to mount a defense before the Senate impeachment court. If convicted by the Senate, Duterte would be blocked from a widely expected 2028 run for the country’s leadership.
More:
Today marks the fourth anniversary of the killing of Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh by an Israeli sniper in Jenin in the occupied West Bank. On May 11, 2022, Abu Akleh was shot by the Israeli military in broad daylight, while wearing a helmet and flak jacket emblazoned with the word “Press” on it, walking on a street near the entrance of the Jenin refugee camp, with no crossfire in the area. While the incident was captured on video and supported by the eyewitness testimony of her colleagues, no one was held accountable in her death. Despite Abu Akleh being a U.S. citizen, President Biden refused to meet with her family and the U.S. adopted Israel’s narrative of her death. An FBI investigation into her killing has stalled. On Thursday, the Committee to Protect Journalists sent a letter to the Justice Department urging “transparency on the status and timeline for a seemingly languishing investigation into the killing of Abu Akleh.” CPJ Regional Director Sara Qudah said in a statement that, “The killing of Shireen Abu Akleh and the subsequent failure to hold anyone responsible is not an isolated tragedy; it is a symptom of a systematic failure to protect journalists that has now reached a breaking point.” She added, “The prevailing culture of complete impunity enjoyed by Israel is a direct factor in the continued targeting of journalists without deterrence.” Watch an in-depth investigation of Abu Akleh’s killing and her family’s fight for accountability by Drop Site’s Middle East North Africa editor Sharif Abdel Kouddous with Laila al-Arian and Kavitha Chekuru for Fault Lines. Watch the video here.
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The failed state of Israel has an estimated 90 nuclear warheads. I’m more worried about this religious zealot war criminal having nukes than Iran at this point.