Supreme Court expands Trump′s power; Israel kills eight in Gaza; AIPAC spending in Colorado
Drop Site Daily: June 30, 2026
From Drop Site:
U.S. negotiators arrive in Doha as Iran rules out direct meetings. Oman backs Iran’s “service fee” framework for Strait of Hormuz transit. Iran rejects French offer to help clear Strait of Hormuz mines. Qatar suspends recreational maritime activity. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian: U.S. deal approved by Supreme Leader, backed by National Council. Two IRGC members killed in shooting near Iran-Iraq border. Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri rejects U.S.-backed “Trilateral Framework” with Israel. Israeli stun grenades, airstrike target southern Lebanon in continued ceasefire violations. Israeli soldier wounded near Beaufort Castle. About 400,000 displaced Lebanese have returned home since March, minister says. Israeli bombardment, home demolitions across Gaza. Israeli strike on displaced Palestinians kills two, wounds 20. Israel shoots and kills 15-year-old Palestinian in West Bank. Hamas delegation arrives in Cairo to discuss Gaza ceasefire roadmap. Committee to Protect Journalists set to narrow journalist definition. Primaries in Colorado on Tuesday. Monday’s Supreme Court decisions. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez introduces NDAA amendment that could halt U.S. military aid to Israel. House Rules Committee blocks Massie-Khanna amendment to remove Israel tech provision from NDAA. Progressive Caucus chair Greg Casar to back Massie amendment cutting U.S. military aid to Israel. Iraq sets September 30 deadline for Iran-aligned factions to disarm under U.S. pressure. Russian strikes across Ukraine kill at least eight, including a child. Secretary of State Marco Rubio meets Libyan commander Saddam Haftar. South Africa deploys police as anti-immigrant groups’ deportation “deadline” sparks fear, business closures. UK national security bill could expose journalists to “terrorism” prosecution, legal experts warn.
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Iran and Ceasefire
U.S. negotiators arrive in Doha as Iran rules out direct meetings:
President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner and Special Envoy Steve Witkoff are in Doha but will not hold direct meetings with Iranian officials, spokesperson for Qatar’s Foreign Ministry Majed Al-Ansari said on Tuesday. Instead, they are expected to meet with mediators to discuss the progress of negotiations.
Al-Ansari said the $6 billion in frozen Iranian assets has not yet been transferred to Iran, adding that the release of the funds is directly linked to the progress of negotiations between Tehran and Washington.
Meanwhile, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said Tehran has no plans to meet U.S. officials “at any level in the next few days.” He said discussions in Doha would instead focus on “the implementation of clauses of the memorandum of understanding, including the clause related to the release of Iran’s restricted assets with the Qatari parties,” adding: “We have not planned any meeting with the American side at any level for the next few days.”
Oman backs Iran’s “service fee” framework for Strait of Hormuz transit: Oman’s Foreign Minister Badr al-Busaidi backed the legal basis for Iran’s proposed Strait of Hormuz fees in an interview with Monte Carlo Doualiya on Monday, saying Oman opposes transit tolls but distinguishes those from voluntary fees for maritime, environmental, and navigational services.
Al-Busaidi said Iran bears primary responsibility under the memorandum for clearing roughly 80 mines and securing shipping lanes, with Oman contributing through regional and international efforts, and that any future arrangements would remain within international law, a position that aligns more closely with Iran’s stance than Washington’s.
Iran rejects French offer to help clear Strait of Hormuz mines: Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Kazem Gharibabadi pushed back after French President Emmanuel Macron said France would work with partners to clear mines from the Strait of Hormuz, saying the Islamabad memorandum assigns demining exclusively to Iran and that no other country will be permitted to participate “in principle.”
Gharibabadi warned France against what he called provocations that could “further complicate” the situation, describing conditions in the Strait as “sensitive and complex.”
Qatar suspends recreational maritime activity: Qatar temporarily suspended sailing and most non-commercial maritime activities until further notice on Monday, citing public safety amid heightened regional unrest, according to Al Jazeera.
The Transport Ministry said the measure covers leisure boats, fishing vessels, jet skis, and other small craft, while vessels covered by international maritime conventions remain exempt, a day after a Qatari national was reportedly killed by shrapnel.
Pezeshkian: U.S. deal approved by Supreme Leader, backed by National Council: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian defended his government’s negotiations with the United States on Tuesday following criticism from some conservative factions, saying the talks were conducted in “full and continuous coordination” with the Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamanei, the Islamic Republic News Agency reported. Speaking in Qom, Pezeshkian said the final text of the agreement had received “strong backing” from the Supreme National Security Council, adding that the government had pursued “the rights of the Iranian people from a position of dignity, authority and safeguarding national interests” and “has not and will not succumb to the enemy’s imposed demands.”
Two IRGC members killed in shooting near Iran-Iraq border: Two members of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps were killed and two others wounded in a shooting in Paveh County near Iran’s border with Iraq, Iranian state media reported on Tuesday via Anadolu Agency. According to the IRGC’s Public Relations Office in Kermanshah Province, unidentified gunmen opened fire at the entrance of a house on Monday evening in what it described as a “cowardly and treacherous terrorist act.” The two men killed were identified as local IRGC members. The IRGC said an investigation is underway to establish the circumstances of the attack and identify those responsible.
Lebanon
Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri rejects U.S.-backed “Trilateral Framework” with Israel: Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri rejected the U.S.-backed “Trilateral Framework” with Israel, calling it a set of “diktats” that is “ten times worse” than the unpopular 1983 May 17 Agreement, which stipulated the withdrawal of Israeli forces following their invasion of Lebanon and siege of Beirut, Al-Akhbar reported on Monday.
Berri said the framework’s most dangerous aspect is its potential to incite internal Lebanese divisions.
Berri also said the deal conditions Israeli withdrawal on Lebanon on meeting a list of demands, and that it makes no reciprocal demands of Israel. ”This agreement will not pass, and it will not be implemented,” Berri said.
Israeli stun grenades, airstrike target southern Lebanon in continued ceasefire violations: Israeli forces continued operations across southern Lebanon on Tuesday, with a drone dropping a stun grenade near the Ain Badda spring between Aita Al-Jabal and Hadatha, as farmers were tending their land, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency. No injuries were reported. Israeli drones also dropped stun grenades on a house in Hadatha and on the eastern outskirts of Braachit in Bint Jbeil District, while Israeli warplanes carried out a predawn airstrike on Deir Siryan in Marjeyoun District.
Israeli soldier wounded near Beaufort Castle: An Israeli reservist was “seriously injured” Monday in an explosion in southern Lebanon near Beaufort Castle, in the Nabatieh area, the Israeli army said, according to Haaretz. The military said it was still investigating the incident and that the soldier was hospitalized.
About 400,000 displaced Lebanese have returned home since March, minister says: About 400,000 forcibly displaced people in Lebanon, roughly 40% of the more than 1.2 million uprooted since Israel re-escalated its war on March 2, have returned to their home regions, Social Affairs Minister Haneen Sayed said Monday.
The number of people sheltering in reception centers has fallen to 13,000 from 37,000, he said, though many remain unable to return as Israel occupies a strip of southern Lebanon behind the “Yellow Line.”
Palestine
Killed and wounded: Over the last 24 hours, eight Palestinians were killed and 26 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza.
The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 73,066 killed, with 173,514 injured, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 1,053 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 3,406, while 786 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble.
Israeli bombardment, home demolitions across Gaza: Several Palestinians were wounded on Tuesday after an Israeli airstrike targeted a group of people near the Sheikh Radwan junction in Gaza City, according to WAFA. In southern Gaza, Israeli troops carried out four large-scale demolitions of homes and civilian structures in Khan Younis, while artillery shelled northwestern Rafah. In Gaza City, Israeli forces destroyed homes in the Al-Tuffah neighborhood, alongside heavy gunfire in Shujaiya.
Israeli strike on displaced Palestinians kills two, wounds 20: An Israeli drone strike on displaced people in the Al-Mawasi area west of Khan Younis killed two Palestinians and wounded more than 20 others Monday, according to medical sources cited by Al Jazeera.
Separately, a Palestinian man was shot and killed by Israeli forces in Al-Qarara, northwest of Khan Younis, according to WAFA, bringing Monday’s death toll from Israeli attacks across Gaza to at least eight, two of whom were children.
Israel shoots and kills 15-year-old Palestinian in West Bank: Israeli forces shot a 15-year-old in the head and chest on Monday during a raid in el-Bireh, near Ramallah, WAFA reported.
The head of the area’s governorate called the killing a “clear-cut execution in broad daylight” and said it made a mockery of “institutions that claim to uphold democracy and human rights.”
B’Tselem, the Israeli human rights organization, issued a report on Monday saying Israeli forces have killed 241 Palestinian children and teenagers in the occupied West Bank since October 7, 2023.
Hamas delegation arrives in Cairo to discuss Gaza ceasefire roadmap: A Hamas delegation arrived in Cairo on Tuesday for talks with Egyptian officials and mediators on implementing the Gaza ceasefire agreement and advancing negotiations on the next phase, according to a statement released by the group. Hamas official Taher Al-Nunu said the delegation, led by Zaher Jabarin, will press for an end to “the escalating Israeli violations” in the Gaza Strip, including “the daily killings and assassinations,” while demanding that Israel allow the full entry of humanitarian supplies and reconstruction materials and implement the remaining provisions of the Sharm el-Sheikh Agreement. The delegation will also discuss the second phase of the roadmap presented by Nickolay Mladenov, leading up to “full Israeli withdrawal from all of Gaza.” Read the latest on Gaza negotiations from Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill and Jawa Ahmad here.
Committee to Protect Journalists set to narrow journalist definition: The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) will reportedly revise its definition of who qualifies as a journalist in a move that would broadly exclude slain Palestinian and Lebanese journalists working for government-funded outlets, while journalists from Israel, the U.S., and Ukraine at state-funded or military-embedded outlets would remain classified as journalists. The change follows pressure from the right-wing publication The Free Beacon, which has repeatedly alleged that Palestinian and Lebanese journalists were militants or cited their political views to justify their killings by Israeli forces.
Later on Monday, Drop Site News publisher Dr. Nika Soon-Shiong announced that she had been removed from the CPJ board, after opposing this proposal. Soon-Shiong published an email she sent to the board arguing that the proposal would politicize CPJ’s mission, could exclude journalists based on their employer or alleged conduct, and could undermine protections for journalists, particularly those in Gaza.
An internal CPJ email shared with Drop Site calls reports that the organization plans to change its definition “false allegations” and “untrue.” It says the review, led by CPJ’s Middle East and North Africa team, is focused on its documentation of journalists killed in the Israel-Gaza war after some individuals previously listed as journalists were later determined to have been combatants, and is expected to be completed in July.
Released Palestinian detainees describe starvation, sleep deprivation at Israel’s Ofer Prison: Released Palestinian detainees described days of starvation, sleep deprivation, and humiliation inside Israel’s Ofer Prison in interviews conducted by Mohamed Ahmed for Drop Site News.
Nasser Ghaleb Mohammed Al-Haj Ahmad, 35, said detainees were denied food, water, sleep, and bathrooms. “If you sleep, you sleep on iron. There is no sleep, no life.”
Jamal Shukri Mohammed Abu Shanab, 68, said detainees ate only plain yogurt for 10 days and were bound, forced onto their stomachs, and jolted awake whenever they tried to sleep.
The International Committee of the Red Cross, which has been denied access to Israeli-held Palestinian detainees since October 7, 2023, said it transferred 13 released Palestinians from the Kerem Abu Salem crossing to the hospital Monday, with more than 9,400 Palestinians, including over 3,200 held without charge, still imprisoned by Israel.
Israeli lawmaker says bill to bar Red Cross visits to Palestinian prisoners defeated: Israeli lawmaker Ofer Cassif, the only Jewish member of the anti-occupation Hadash party in the Knesset, said on Monday that lawmakers defeated a bill that would have barred the Red Cross from visiting Palestinian detainees in Israeli prisons. Cassif said the measure was intended to prevent the world from seeing “the marks of torture and inhumane conditions” on Palestinian prisoners. He called for the immediate resumption of Red Cross visits to prisons.
U.S. News
By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.
Primaries in Colorado on Tuesday:
Colorado’s Democratic establishment is reportedly increasingly concerned that a progressive wave could reshape Tuesday’s primaries, with Politico reporting that Sen. John Hickenlooper is in a “dead heat” with state Sen. Julie Gonzales in Denver and that Rep. Diana DeGette’s campaign is alarmed by internal polling showing her race with progressive challenger Melat Krios tightening. Allies of Sen. Michael Bennet also reportedly acknowledged his gubernatorial race against Colorado Attorney General Phil Weiser is closer than expected, per private polling cited by Politico.
A last-minute infusion of funds into DeGette’s campaign from AIPAC and big tech is discussed in the latest from Ryan Grim, Julian Andreone, and Toby Jaffe for Drop Site, available here.
Monday’s Supreme Court decisions:
Upholds state laws counting late-arriving mail ballots: The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Monday that election officials may count postmarked mail-in ballots that arrive after Election Day, rejecting a Republican National Committee challenge to a Mississippi law and finding it does not conflict with federal law setting Election Day in early November. The ruling, authored by Justice Amy Coney Barrett with two conservatives joining the three liberals in the majority, keeps the Mississippi law and similar measures in 13 other states in effect ahead of November’s midterms.
Splits on Trump’s power to fire independent agency officials, blocks Fed’s Cook ouster but allows FTC firing: The Supreme Court ruled 5-4 Monday that President Donald Trump cannot fire Federal Reserve board member Lisa Cook for now, with Chief Justice John Roberts writing that for-cause protections shield the Fed from being treated as “at-will employment.” In a separate 6-3 ruling, however, the Court overturned the 1935 precedent Humphrey’s Executor v. United States and allowed Trump to remove Federal Trade Commission member Rebecca Kelly Slaughter without cause. Roberts wrote in the Slaughter ruling that “subordinates who exercise the president’s power are subject to removal by him.” Trump indicated on Truth Social that he would still seek to fire Cook, whom he has accused of committing mortgage fraud. Cook denies the claims.
Rejects Trump’s bid to overturn $5 million E. Jean Carroll verdict: The Supreme Court declined Monday, without explanation or noted dissents, to hear President Donald Trump’s appeal of a jury’s $5 million finding that he sexually abused writer E. Jean Carroll at a Manhattan department store in the mid-1990s and later defamed her, according to the Associated Press.
AOC introduces NDAA amendment that could halt U.S. military aid to Israel: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) introduced an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act on Monday that could effectively halt offensive and defensive U.S. military aid to Israel.
The proposal would require U.S. defense transfers to comply with international law and, building on Section 620I of the Foreign Assistance Act, would require the president to affirmatively certify that a recipient isn’t restricting U.S.-backed humanitarian aid.
Ocasio-Cortez’s amendment requires the president to affirmatively certify that the laws banning the restriction of aid are being followed and also requires Congress to authorize the weapons transfers before they can proceed.
Ocasio-Cortez has also pursued amendments that focus on the U.S. military’s presence in Latin America, requiring the Pentagon to publish a report on its use of military facilities in Puerto Rico, demanding an accounting of human rights violations in Peru between 2022 and 2024 and in Colombia for the last 3 decades, and barring military cooperation with Ecuador’s current government.
The congresswoman spoke with Drop Site’s Julian Andreone on Tuesday about her proposed amendments. Watch here.
House Rules Committee blocks Massie-Khanna amendment to remove Israel tech provision from NDAA: The House Rules Committee blocked a bipartisan amendment from Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.) and Ro Khanna (D-Calif.) that sought to remove a provision expanding U.S.-Israel military technology integration from the FY2027 National Defense Authorization Act, meaning it will not receive a House floor vote.
The underlying provision, which remains in the NDAA, would deepen U.S.-Israel defense technology cooperation, including joint weapons development and other military collaboration.
Progressive Caucus chair Greg Casar to back Massie amendment cutting U.S. military aid to Israel: Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas), chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said on Monday that he will vote for Rep. Thomas Massie’s amendment to end U.S. taxpayer-funded military aid for Israel, arguing the Israeli government “committed war crimes in Gaza and helped drag America into war with Iran.”
The amendment would bar funds in the bill from going to Israel and cut Foreign Military Financing by $3.3 billion, though it would not constitute an arms embargo or ban all U.S. arms sales to Israel.
Jewish Voice for Peace Action endorses Abdul El-Sayed for Michigan Senate seat: Jewish Voice for Peace Action issued its first-ever Senate endorsement to Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed on Monday, citing his consistent stance on human rights and progressive foreign policy.
Colorado Supreme Court blocks Democratic redistricting effort: The Colorado Supreme Court dealt a blow Monday to Democratic efforts to redraw the state’s congressional maps ahead of 2028, ruling that twin ballot initiatives violated the state constitution’s “single subject requirement” because each measure was contingent on the other’s passage.
Democrats behind the effort said time has run out to gather the roughly 125,000 signatures needed by August 3 to qualify for November’s ballot, dealing a setback to a plan that aimed to draw up to three new Democratic-leaning districts as part of the broader national redistricting fight.
Rep. Yassamin Ansari calls Israel’s actions in Gaza “genocide,” vows to reject AIPAC funding: Rep. Yassamin Ansari of Arizona, the first Iranian American Democrat elected to Congress, called Israel’s actions in Gaza and Lebanon a “genocide” and pledged to stop accepting money from pro-Israel groups including AIPAC, in an interview with Zeteo on Monday.
The shift marks a reversal for Ansari, who won her 2024 primary as a self-described “proud pro-Israel progressive” backed by Democratic Majority for Israel, opposed Sen. Bernie Sanders’s effort to block $20 billion in arms sales to Israel, and voted to sanction the International Criminal Court over its warrants for Israeli leaders.
DOJ opens investigation into Sen. Ruben Gallego days after Senate Ethics Committee clears him: The Justice Department has opened an investigation into Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) stemming from a “whistleblower complaint” out of Southern California related to his use of a political committee’s PAC to fund family trips to Miami, Chicago, Disneyland, and Disney World, coming days after the Senate Ethics Committee closed its inquiry into separate sexual misconduct and campaign finance allegations after finding no rule violations.
Gallego, who has hired former Biden deputy press secretary Andrew Bates for crisis communications help amid fallout from his public friendship with former Rep. Eric Swalwell, has denied wrongdoing and said the allegations are politically motivated as he weighs a potential 2028 presidential run.
NYC Council Member Paladino suggests CIA, FBI should “neutralize” DSA leaders: New York City Council Member Vickie Paladino suggested in a post on Monday that the CIA and FBI once would have “neutralized one way or another” “unabashed revolutionaries” while sharing a post identifying Democratic Socialists of America leadership members.
Congressional candidate Darializa Avila Chevalier called the remarks a “thinly veiled call” for the federal government to kill DSA members and demanded Paladino’s expulsion from the City Council.
Other International News
Iraq sets September 30 deadline for Iran-aligned factions to disarm under U.S. pressure: Iraq’s government has given Iran-aligned armed factions until September 30 to disarm. The deadline was announced ahead of a visit to the U.S. by Iraq’s new Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi. Iraqi government spokesman Haidar al-Aboudi said Monday that groups possessing weapons would face legal action after that date, which also marks the end of the international anti-ISIS coalition’s presence in the country.
Two factions, Kataeb Imam Ali and Asaib Ahl al-Haq, have already agreed to turn over administration of their brigades to the state, while others among Iraq’s dozens of Iran-aligned factions, some of which attacked U.S. bases during this year’s Iran war, have yet to comply, according to AFP and The New Arab.
Also on Monday, Iraqi security forces, including the elite Counter-Terrorism Service, arrested 47 people, including lawmakers, senior officials, and prominent politicians, in an anticorruption crackdown ordered by Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi, raiding homes in Baghdad’s Green Zone and other neighborhoods. Iraq’s Federal Commission of Integrity said the arrests were based on judicial warrants tied to alleged misappropriation of public funds, with lawmakers’ parliamentary immunity lifted beforehand. They follow last month’s arrest of Deputy Oil Minister Adnan al-Jumaili and the seizure of roughly $86 million in cash.
Russian strikes across Ukraine kill at least eight, including a child: Russian missile and drone strikes across Ukraine killed at least eight people and wounded 34 others Monday, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said, including five killed and 28 wounded in a missile attack on Dnipro and three killed and six wounded, among them a child, in a drone attack on Zaporizhzhia.
Additional Russian strikes hit the Sumy, Odesa, Chernihiv, Kherson, and Kharkiv regions.
The Kremlin said Monday that Russia’s position on a peace deal has remained unchanged since 2024, when Putin said Kyiv must withdraw from four regions Moscow claims and drop its NATO bid.
Rubio meets Libyan commander Saddam Haftar: Secretary of State Marco Rubio met Monday with Libyan National Army Deputy Commander Saddam Haftar to discuss unification efforts in the country and possible cooperation between the U.S. and Haftar’s LNA, according to a State Department readout.
The meeting came the same day a new documentary by Evident, Sudan War Monitor, and LightHouse presented new evidence that Haftar has worked with the UAE to facilitate arms and training for Sudan’s RSF militia.
South Africa deploys police as anti-immigrant groups’ deportation “deadline” sparks fear, business closures: Businesses across South African cities closed and police were deployed on Tuesday as anti-immigrant protests continued nationwide ahead of a “deadline” anti-immigrant groups have given undocumented foreign nationals to leave, falsely claiming they will otherwise face arrest and deportation, according to Al Jazeera.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said the right to protest “does not allow people to threaten or intimidate others, or to engage in acts of vandalism or violence.”
Weeks of xenophobic violence in the country have killed people from Mozambique, Ethiopia, and Malawi, according to AFP, with thousands of foreign nationals, including some in the country legally, sheltering at consulates or being repatriated by their home countries.
UK national security bill could expose journalists to “terrorism” prosecution, legal experts warn: British journalists reporting from countries like Iran could face terrorism prosecutions under a UK national security bill expected to complete its final parliamentary stages this week, according to reporting Monday in the Guardian.
Legal expert David Anderson warned the bill could criminalize foreign correspondents for obtaining information from sources within state-designated groups because it lacks explicit protections for journalists, and press freedom groups are urging amendments.
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Sounds like the Committee to Protect Journalists is transitioning to the Committee to Protect War Criminals.
It's become very difficult not to view any legacy institution today as anything other than a putrefying shell of its former self acting in total subservience to the interests they were chartered to counter.
Both the UK and the Committee to Protect Journalists are going after journalists. And both the Democratic Party and a city councilwoman going after candidates and newly elected representatives of the DSA. Where to find hope and a way forward?