May Day 2026; Israel kills over 30 in Lebanon; Displaced Palestinians burn tents in protest of conditions; Mali rebels call for nationwide uprising
Drop Site Daily: May 1, 2026
Iran delivers latest ceasefire proposal to Pakistan, according to IRNA. U.S. gas prices hit $4.30 per gallon. Iranian president calls U.S. naval blockade “intolerable.” Air defenses briefly activated in Tehran. UAE bars nationals from traveling to Iran, Lebanon, and Iraq. Israel kills more than 30 in Lebanon in one day, despite ceasefire. Israeli soldier in Lebanon: “It isn’t terrorist infrastructure; we’re destroying everything.” Israel committed 377 ceasefire violations in Gaza in April, killing 111 Palestinians as aid deliveries reached only a quarter of agreed levels. Prominent Palestinian journalist freed after year in Israeli detention without charge. Displaced Palestinians burn tents in protest amid ongoing ceasefire violations. Congress extends warrantless surveillance law by six weeks. War Secretary Pete Hegseth argues that the temporary ceasefire in Iran means Trump doesn’t need congressional approval. Trump withdraws surgeon general nominee Casey Means, taps Fox News physician. House Speaker Mike Johnson urges states to redraw congressional districts before midterms following Voting Rights Act ruling. Congress ends 75-day DHS shutdown, funding agency through September. Purported Epstein suicide note sealed in New York courthouse for nearly seven years, NYT reports. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum rejects U.S. extradition request for Sinaloa governor. Ukraine strikes Black Sea port for the fourth time in one week. Gaza flotilla participants taken to Greece after Israeli interception; two remain in detention. Palestinian Football Association president walks off FIFA stage. Son of Norwegian diplomats in the Epstein files commits suicide. Turkey announces opposition to French troop deployment to Cyprus. Brazil’s Congress reduces Jair Bolsonaro’s prison sentence, overriding Lula’s veto. Amnesty International presses Nigeria to investigate reports of 150 deaths in army-run camp.
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Iran and Ceasefire
IRNA: Iran delivers latest ceasefire proposal to Pakistan: Iran delivered its latest proposal for negotiations to end the war to Pakistani mediators Thursday, according to the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA). No details have been made public regarding the latest proposal by Iran. Iranian officials have insisted the U.S. naval blockade on Tehran’s ports be lifted and a ceasefire in Lebanon implemented prior to any talks with the U.S.; Trump has demanded any potential deal with Iran addresses its nuclear program and military capabilities.
U.S. gas prices hit $4.30 per gallon, Trump says prices will “drop like a rock”: The national average price of gasoline in the United States reached $4.30 per gallon on Thursday—up from under $3.00 before the February 28 start of the U.S.-Israel war on Iran and $1.12 higher than a year ago—as oil prices surged above $100 per barrel, the American Automobile Association reported. President Donald Trump told reporters Thursday that gas prices would “drop like a rock” once the war ends, while insisting Iran is “dying to make a deal” and defending the naval blockade as “incredible.” Trump has rejected Tehran’s offers of a preliminary deal to reopen the strait, and Iran has refused direct talks until the U.S. naval blockade on its port is lifted.
Iranian president calls U.S. naval blockade “intolerable”: Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said the ongoing U.S. naval siege of Iranian ports amounts to an “extension of military operations” by Washington. In a post on X on Thursday, Pezeshkian wrote, “What is being done under the guise of a naval blockade is an extension of military operations against a nation paying the price for its resistance and independence. Continuation of this oppressive approach is intolerable.” Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei said that expecting rapid progress from ongoing talks with the United States is “not reasonable,” and cautioned against taking American public statements at face value. Speaking on Iranian state television in remarks shared by Tasnim News, Baghaei confirmed that Pakistan would remain the official mediator, praising Islamabad’s performance, while warning that the United States and Israel have a history of breaking their commitments and that Iran’s own military strength remains its primary security guarantee.
Air defenses activated in Tehran: Air defenses were activated across multiple parts of Tehran around 11:20 p.m. on Thursday local time, with residents reporting sounds in the west, east, center, and south of the city, according to AFP. The systems were reportedly responding to micro-drones and reconnaissance drones flying from southwest Iran to Tehran. The activity lasted about 20 minutes before subsiding.
UAE bars nationals from traveling to Iran, Lebanon, and Iraq: The United Arab Emirates Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Thursday announced a travel ban prohibiting Emirati nationals from traveling to Iran, Lebanon, and Iraq, and urged any nationals currently in those countries to return home immediately.
JPMorgan warns global oil inventories could hit stress levels by June if Strait of Hormuz disruption persists: JPMorgan analysts say global oil inventories have been absorbing ongoing supply disruptions but warn the buffers are far thinner than headline figures suggest, with stocks potentially reaching stress levels by June and falling below safe operational thresholds by September. Of the roughly 8.4 billion barrels that entered 2026, only around 800 million are readily usable, with 280 million already drawn down and another 580 million only partly accessible in offshore storage; OECD commercial stocks have already fallen from approximately 2.8 billion barrels in February to 2.72 billion in April. JPMorgan warns that below a certain operational floor—the minimum needed to keep pipelines pressurized, refineries running, and logistics functioning—oil flows begin to seize, and the supply cannot move reliably.
Lebanon
Casualty count: At least 2,618 people have been killed, and 8,094 wounded in Israeli attacks on Lebanon since March 2, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry. Over the past day, Israeli air strikes across southern Lebanon killed at least 32 people, many of them women and children, according to the Lebanese National News Agency (NNA).
Israeli attacks on Lebanon continue despite ceasefire:
Israeli airstrikes across Lebanon on Friday killed at least six people and wounded more than a dozen, according to NNA. One woman was killed and four others injured when a home was hit in Ain Baal, east of Tyre. In Borj Qallawiya in Bint Jbeil district, one person was killed in another air raid, while a strike on Deir Qanoun Ras al-Ain—al-Nassar area left two people dead and two injured. In Nabatieh al-Fawqa, the health ministry said two people were killed and 10 wounded in an Israeli attack.
Israeli warplanes, drones, and artillery carried out more than 70 strikes across southern Lebanon on Thursday, killing at least 32 people and wounding scores across Tyre, Bint Jbeil, and Nabatieh districts, according to NNA and the Public Health Ministry.
An Israeli drone strike on a cemetery in Zibdin, Nabatieh, killed six people on Thursday and wounded several others. The attack struck while civilians were present at the cemetery, mourning loved ones they recently lost.
The Amal Movement announced on Thursday morning that Rabi Ali Ismail, a member of its Risala Scouts, was killed in an Israeli strike on Braachit in the Bint Jbeil district on Tuesday.
Israeli soldier: “It isn’t terrorist infrastructure; we’re destroying everything”: Israeli soldiers told Haaretz their operations in southern Lebanon are focused on systematically leveling buildings in villages, not targeting Hezbollah infrastructure as claimed. The army’s plan, dubbed “Operation Silver Plow,” reportedly assigns units quotas for homes destroyed, with contractors paid per building destroyed. They must report “how many homes [they] destroyed” each day, a soldier said. Troops are ordered to guard them under drone threat: “We stand there, exposed… There’s no logic to this.” “The only mission is to continue the destruction,” one officer said. Another added: “It isn’t terrorist infrastructure; we’re destroying everything.”
Hezbollah carries out 10 operations in a single day: Hezbollah announced Thursday it conducted 10 separate operations against Israeli military positions in southern Lebanon, killing at least one Israeli soldier and wounding four others. Operations included drone strikes on four Merkava tanks in Bint Jbeil and Al-Qantara, a surface-to-air missile that downed an Israeli Hermes 450 surveillance drone over Nabatieh, a strike on a 155mm self-propelled artillery gun south of Yarin, drone swarm attacks on Israeli troop concentrations across five villages, and a strike on a Humvee in Al-Bayyada. Hezbollah said all operations were conducted in response to Israeli strikes on civilian villages, home demolitions, and systematic ceasefire violations, calling the attacks “the minimum duty to deter [Israel] and prevent it from persisting in its dangerous objectives against Lebanon.”
Gaza, the West Bank, and Israel
Israel committed 377 ceasefire violations in April, killing 111 Palestinians as aid deliveries reached only a quarter of agreed levels: Israel carried out 377 ceasefire violations in Gaza during April, killing 111 Palestinians and wounding 376 others, Gaza’s Government Information Office said Thursday. Humanitarian commitments went largely unmet: only 4,503 aid trucks entered Gaza out of 18,000 required, 187 fuel trucks out of 1,500 agreed, and 1,567 civilian crossings out of 6,000—representing 25%, 12%, and 26% of the three obligations respectively. Officials urged mediators to enforce full compliance.
Israeli attacks on Gaza:
At least four Palestinians were killed in Gaza on Thursday, according to Al Jazeera. Three civilians were killed and one critically injured when an Israeli drone struck an animal-drawn cart near Kuwait roundabout in southeast Gaza City. A fourth person was killed in central Gaza, as seven people were wounded, one critically, in a drone strike near Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah. A 35-year-old man, Hanoun Barbakh, also died of wounds from a prior strike in Khan Younis.
On Thursday, Palestinian poet Mosab Abu Toha reported that Israeli forces shot his 30-year-old aunt in the chest while she sat with her three young children in a school shelter in Jabalia Camp, northern Gaza. The bullet pierced her chest and exited through her back, leaving her in critical condition. She was holding her one-year-old son when she was shot. He fell from her lap and was found bleeding from one ear.
Israel blocks ISF visit amid stalled “ceasefire” plan: Israel blocked a planned visit by the International Stabilization Force (ISF) to Gaza’s Rafah area at the last minute, despite full prior coordination and preparations, Israel’s Kan 11 reported. The delegation—including dozens of military and political representatives from Indonesia, Morocco, Kosovo, Kazakhstan, and Albania—had already arrived and met Israeli army officials and U.S. command. The visit reportedly was canceled after the political leadership ordered the army to deny entry. Separately, IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir ordered increased readiness for renewed operations in Gaza, claiming Hamas is using talks to buy time and rebuild, even as Israel fails to meet its ceasefire obligations for the first phase of the ceasefire.
Prominent Palestinian journalist freed after year in Israeli detention without charge: Ali al-Samoudi, 59, a veteran West Bank correspondent for Al Jazeera and Al-Quds newspaper, was released Thursday after more than a year in Israeli detention where he was held in administrative detention without charge or trial. Al-Samoudi said he lost half his body weight—dropping from 120 kilograms (265 pounds) to 60 (132 pounds)—and described Israeli prisons as “a graveyard for the living.” He told his lawyer that Israeli authorities explicitly said they would not file journalism-related charges against him to avoid international scrutiny, while an earlier military accusation that he transferred funds to Palestinian Islamic Jihad was never presented in court. Al-Samoudi, who was arrested in April 2025, was present and wounded in May 2022 when an Israeli sniper killed Al Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh just outside Jenin refugee camp. Another journalist present at Abu Akleh’s killing, Mujahed al-Saadi—a Drop Site News contributor—was arrested by Israeli soldiers from his home in September 2024 and remains in administrative detention without charge or trial.
57 Palestinians killed in West Bank and East Jerusalem since start of 2026: Palestinian authorities reported Thursday that 57 Palestinians have been killed across the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem since the start of 2026, driven by near-daily Israeli military incursions, live fire, and settler attacks across multiple areas. Hebron recorded the highest toll with 15 killed, followed by Nablus with 14 and Ramallah with 11; seven were killed in Jerusalem, three in Qalqilya, two each in Jenin, Bethlehem, and Jericho, and one in Tubas. 240 Palestinian deaths in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem were recorded throughout all of 2025.
Displaced Palestinians burn tents in protest amid ongoing ceasefire violations: Displaced Palestinians in southeastern Gaza City set fire to their own tents on Thursday in protest against worsening living conditions and ongoing Israeli attacks despite a ceasefire, according to Anadolu Agency. The demonstration at Dar al-Salam camp in the Zeitoun neighborhood was held under the slogan, “We burn our tents before they burn us,” with residents calling for protection and humanitarian relief amid Israeli violations and restrictions on aid. “These tents no longer provide safety or a dignified life,” said displaced resident Asmaa Arhim, describing the act as a symbolic expression of anger. The camp is located near the “yellow line,” a line separating Israeli-controlled areas from the rest of Gaza, but residents say it remains exposed to repeated gunfire. Wissam Abdullah, who had been shot twice, said: “Despite talk of a ceasefire, the reality is completely different.”
U.S. News
By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.
International Workers Day: Demonstrators gathered in countries around the world for May Day rallies and protests on Friday calling for higher wages, better working conditions and an end to war. In the United States, where May Day is not a federal holiday, activists and labor unions are planning hundreds of “May Day Strong” events across the country to call for “no school, no work, no shopping.”
Congress extends warrantless surveillance law by six weeks: Congress voted Thursday to extend Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act by six weeks—hours before its midnight expiration—as lawmakers continued to clash over proposed privacy limits, marking the second short-term patch this month. The law, enacted in 2008, allows the government to collect communications of foreigners abroad without a warrant, including when those targets are in contact with Americans, by compelling domestic companies such as Google and AT&T to hand over data. The six-week extension passed 261 to 111 after Senate leaders bowed to a demand from Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) to seek declassification of a March ruling by the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court finding that analytical tools used by the CIA, FBI, and National Security Agency to process collected messages effectively circumvented rules protecting Americans’ privacy; a judge ordered the government to stop using the tools, and the Trump administration is appealing. A House faction of libertarian-leaning Republicans again opposed the extension without added privacy protections, forcing Republican leaders to use special procedures requiring a two-thirds supermajority to bypass their opposition.
Hegseth argues that the temporary ceasefire in Iran means Trump doesn’t need congressional approval: The Trump administration is arguing that the war against Iran has already ended because of the temporary ceasefire in Iran, which would allow the White House to avoid the need to seek formal congressional approval for its military action, which it is required by law to do within 60 days. During testimony to Congress on Thursday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said that it was the administration’s position that the 60-day clock was on pause during the ceasefire, which Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) called “a very novel argument I’ve never heard before” and one that “certainly has no legal support.” Several Republican Senators expressed their displeasure about the administration’s failure to meet the deadline, including Sens. Todd Young (R-Ind.), Josh Hawley (R-Mo.), Thom Tillis (R-N.C.), and John Curtis (R-Utah). The Senate failed to pass a War Powers resolution on Thursday, however, when the resolution was voted on for a sixth time in the chamber. Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who became the first Republican to change her vote and join Democrats in voting for the War Powers Act, told reporters on Thursday that the 60-day deadline “is not a suggestion; it is a requirement.” Collins and Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) were the only Republicans to vote for the measure; Sen. John Fetterman (D-Pa.) continued to be the lone Democrat to vote in support of the war.
Trump withdraws surgeon general nominee Casey Means, taps Fox News physician Nicole Saphier as replacement: President Donald Trump withdrew the nomination of Dr. Casey Means for surgeon general and named Dr. Nicole Saphier, a radiologist and frequent Fox News contributor who directs breast imaging at Memorial Sloan Kettering’s New Jersey branch, as his third nominee for the post. Means’s nomination had stalled amid opposition from three Republican members of the Senate health committee—Senators Bill Cassidy of Louisiana, Susan Collins of Maine, and Lisa Murkowski of Alaska—over her views on vaccines, her inactive medical license, and her experimentation with psychedelic therapy.
Senate unanimously bars members from trading on prediction markets: The U.S. Senate on Thursday unanimously passed a rule immediately barring senators from trading on prediction market platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket. On April 22, Kalshi suspended and fined one Senate candidate and two House candidates for trading on their own campaigns, and on April 23 the Justice Department arrested U.S. Army Special Forces Master Sergeant Gannon Ken Van Dyke on charges of using classified information to place Polymarket bets on the American military operation that captured Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, winning nearly $410,000.
House Speaker Johnson urges states to redraw congressional districts before midterms following Voting Rights Act ruling: House Speaker Mike Johnson on Thursday urged Republican-led states to promptly redraw their congressional district maps in the wake of the Supreme Court ruling limiting the Voting Rights Act. “All states that have unconstitutional maps should look at that very carefully, and I think they should do it before the midterms,” Johnson told reporters. Louisiana—Johnson’s home state and the subject of the lawsuit that produced the ruling—is already reportedly preparing to suspend ongoing primary elections in order to redraw district boundaries. Both parties acknowledge the ruling’s practical effect is to allow majority-minority districts drawn to help Black Democratic voters elect representatives to be redrawn to Republican advantage, with the bulk of affected districts concentrated in the South; Georgia, Tennessee, and South Carolina face similar pressure to redraw maps before November.
Congress ends 75-day DHS shutdown, funds agency through September: President Donald Trump signed legislation ending a record 75-day shutdown of the Department of Homeland Security, funding agencies including FEMA, the Coast Guard, the Transportation Security Administration, and the Secret Service through the end of September. The House passed the Senate-approved bill by voice vote hours before an emergency funding deadline that Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin had warned would leave thousands of federal workers unpaid. The bill excludes new funding for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Border Patrol, which Democrats have conditioned on reforms to immigration enforcement tactics; Republicans said they would pursue ICE and Border Patrol funding separately through the budget reconciliation process, which would allow passage without Democratic votes.
Purported Epstein suicide note sealed in New York courthouse for nearly seven years, Times petitions for release: A note purportedly written by Jeffrey Epstein and discovered by his cellmate weeks before Epstein’s August 2019 death has been locked in a federal courthouse in White Plains, New York for nearly seven years, the New York Times reported Thursday. Nicholas Tartaglione, a former police officer serving four life sentences for quadruple homicide, said he found the note tucked inside a graphic novel in his cell after Epstein was moved to a different unit following a July 2019 incident in which Epstein was found unresponsive with a strip of cloth around his neck. Tartaglione recalled the note, written on yellow legal pad paper, said investigators had looked into Epstein for months and “found nothing,” concluding: “What do you want me to do, bust out crying? Time to say goodbye.” Tartaglione’s lawyers had the note authenticated by handwriting experts and eventually turned it over to the court overseeing his case, where it became entangled in a sealed attorney dispute and was never referenced in any official investigation into Epstein’s death. The Times petitioned the presiding federal judge Thursday to unseal the document.
Other International News
Sheinbaum rejects U.S. extradition request for Sinaloa governor: The U.S. Justice Department has requested the extradition of 10 people from Mexico, including Sinaloa Governor Rubén Rocha Moya, on drug trafficking charges. Moya is a member of President Claudia Sheinbaum’s ruling Morena party. Sheinbaum rejected “interference from a foreign government” in national matters. “We will not protect anyone who has committed a crime,” Sheinbaum said. “However, if there is no clear evidence, it is evident that the objective of these accusations by the Department of Justice is political.”
Ukraine strikes Tuapse port for fourth time in a week: A Ukrainian drone strike on Russia’s Black Sea port of Tuapse ignited a fire at the sea terminal early Friday—the fourth attack on the port in a week. 128 firefighters and 41 emergency vehicles deployed to tackle the blaze, regional authorities said. The strike follows a Tuesday attack that sparked a massive fire at the Tuapse oil refinery, cut off production, and released oil slicks into coastal waters. Authorities have declared a state of emergency, advised residents to stay indoors, keep windows closed due to elevated benzene levels, and drink only bottled water; May holiday celebrations have been canceled. Separately on Thursday, Ukrainian drones struck oil refineries near Perm in the Ural Mountains and in the southern Orenburg region—both roughly 1,500 kilometers from Ukraine.
Gaza flotilla participants taken to Greece after Israeli interception: Upwards of 170 participants in the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF), who were detained by Israeli forces in international waters were taken to the Greek island of Crete late Thursday, while two activists remain in Israeli custody. Israeli authorities said the two organizers, Palestinian-Spanish citizen Saif Abukeshek and Brazilian citizen Thiago Á vila, are being taken to Israel for questioning. In a statement, the GSF said that when the Israeli military moved to take Abukeshek and Ávila, “our crew peacefully resisted and the response was sheer violence. Participants were punched, kicked, and dragged across the deck with their hands bound behind their backs. They suffered broken noses, cracked ribs and bloody beatings. Shots were even fired at them in the chaos.”
Palestinian FA president walks off FIFA stage after Israel sanctions bid fails: Palestinian Football Association President Jibril Rajoub refused to stand alongside or shake hands with Israeli Football Association Vice-President Basim Sheikh Suliman before walking off stage at the 76th FIFA Congress in Vancouver on Thursday. FIFA President Gianni Infantino had attempted to orchestrate a public reconciliation gesture moments after Rajoub had spent 15 minutes urging the body to sanction Israeli clubs based in illegal West Bank settlements. Palestinian FA Vice-President Susan Shalabi told Reuters that Rajoub said he could not shake the hand of someone brought to “whitewash fascism and genocide.” Infantino separately confirmed that Iran would participate in the 2026 World Cup and play its matches in the United States. Last month, FIFA declined to sanction Israel or its settlement clubs, claiming the legal status of the West Bank was unresolved. A case filed at the International Criminal Court in February accuses Infantino along with UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin of “aiding and abetting war crimes and crimes against humanity.” Read Drop Site’s coverage of the cases regarding FIFA and Palestine here.
Son of Norwegian diplomats implicated in Epstein files commits suicide: The son of two prominent Norwegian diplomats being investigated over their relationship to Jefferey Epstein has committed suicide, according to the Times of London. Edward Juul Rød-Larsen, 25, was found dead in Oslo three days after French and Norwegian police opened a joint investigation into his parents, Mona Juul and Terje Rød-Larsen. The two diplomats played a decisive role in brokering the 1993 Oslo accords between Israel and the PLO. They are facing allegations of corruption after it emerged that Epstein had helped them buy a luxury apartment and left $5 million to each of their two children in his will. Their son, Edward, was frequently mentioned in Norwegian media reports which often noted his parents took him to Epstein’s private island in the Caribbean when he was still a child.
Myanmar transfers Aung San Suu Kyi from prison to house arrest: Myanmar’s military government transferred former leader Aung San Suu Kyi, 80, from prison to house arrest on Thursday, with junta leader and newly sworn-in President Min Aung Hlaing ordering her remaining sentence served at a designated residence, state media reported.. A spokesman for United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres called the transfer a “meaningful step” and reiterated the U.N.’s call for the swift release of all political prisoners. Suu Kyi’s legal team said they learned of the house arrest through news reports and have not been permitted to meet with her in person since December 2022.
Turkey announces opposition to French troop deployment to Cyprus: Turkey’s Defense Ministry opposes a French plan to deploy troops to the Republic of Cyprus. The Status of Forces Agreement—expected to be signed in June—would allow French forces to be temporarily stationed on the island, conduct joint training, and access military facilities. France began deploying specialized anti-drone and anti-missile units to Cyprus following a March 2 strike by an Iranian-made Shahed-type drone on a British Royal Air Force base in southern Cyprus.
Brazil’s Congress reduces Bolsonaro’s prison sentence, overriding Lula’s veto: Brazil’s Congress voted Thursday to override President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva’s veto of a bill that sharply reduces former President Jair Bolsonaro’s 27-year prison sentence for plotting a coup after losing the 2022 election. The bill, originally passed in December, cuts Bolsonaro’s sentence to just over two years and reduces sentences for others convicted over the January 2023 riot in which Bolsonaro supporters ransacked the presidential palace, Supreme Court, and Congress. The Senate also rejected Lula’s nomination of Solicitor General Jorge Messias to the Supreme Court. Bolsonaro, 71, began serving his sentence in November and is currently under what authorities have described as “humanitarian house arrest” due to health concerns.
Malian rebels blockading Bamako call for nationwide uprising: Jihadist fighters in Mali called for a nationwide uprising against the ruling military junta on Thursday, as they tightened a blockade on the capital of Bamako following a campaign of coordinated attacks against the government and its Russian allies conducted alongside Tuareg separatists. The appeal came from the Group for the Support of Islam and Muslims (JNIM), an al-Qaeda affiliate, following a series of joint offensives launched on Saturday that struck towns and military positions across the country. In a statement, JNIM called for a “common front” uniting “political parties, the national armed forces, religious authorities, traditional leaders and all components of Malian society” to “bring down the junta” and pave the way for a “peaceful and inclusive transition.”
U.S. sanctions former Congo president: The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned former Democratic Republic of Congo President Joseph Kabila on Thursday for providing financial support to the Rwanda-backed M23 rebel movement and its political-military arm, the Congo River Alliance. Kabila, who spent nearly two decades in power before stepping down amid deadly protests, was sentenced to death in absentia by a Congolese military court last year on charges of war crimes, treason, and crimes against humanity; he has denied wrongdoing and is living primarily in South Africa. Kabila encouraged Congolese soldiers to defect to the rebel groups, the U.S. charged, so that he could regain control of the country.
Amnesty International presses Nigeria to investigate reports of 150 deaths in army-run camp: Amnesty International urged the government of Nigeria on Thursday to investigate reports that at least 150 people—most of them children—have died in an army-run displacement camp in Kwara state in north-central Nigeria. Roughly 1,500 members of the Fulani community were relocated after facing attacks by armed groups. Amnesty researchers who visited the Yikpata camp in April said survivors described widespread starvation and disease.
More from Drop Site
Hartzell Gray: PACs Are “Buying Out Black Faces to Stump for Genocide”: Hartzell Gray is an activist and organizer from Kansas City who is now running for Congress in Missouri’s 4th District. He spoke with Drop Site’s Julian Andreone on the House steps:
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"Israeli soldier: “It isn’t terrorist infrastructure; we’re destroying everything”: Israeli soldiers told Haaretz their operations in southern Lebanon are focused on systematically leveling buildings in villages, not targeting Hezbollah infrastructure as claimed. The army’s plan, dubbed “Operation Silver Plow,” reportedly assigns units quotas for homes destroyed, with contractors paid per building destroyed. They must report “how many homes [they] destroyed” each day, a soldier said. Troops are ordered to guard them under drone threat: “We stand there, exposed… There’s no logic to this.” “The only mission is to continue the destruction,” one officer said. Another added: “It isn’t terrorist infrastructure; we’re destroying everything.”"
Even Israeli soldiers and officers are speaking out on the atrocities. Perhaps time to conscript John Fetterman.