Crooked Bough News Round-up

— Books or Bombs? France’s Student Revolt vs. NATO’s Spending Push

 

at 10/9/26 1:36pm

Fund our high schools instead of genocides Photo: Stephane Jouteux For the third week in a row, high school students across France are taking to the streets demanding more investment in their education. They want more teachers, smaller classes, decent school buildings and a public education system that works for poor and working-class students. But their struggle comes at a moment when France faces mounting pressure to cut public spending while dramatically increasing its military budget. The question at the heart of this uprising goes far beyond education: Will France invest in its young people—or in missiles, weapons and war? Books or bombs? What began in the Paris suburbs has spread to more than a thousand schools. On October 6, more than 250,000 people reportedly took to the streets in demonstrations supporting the students. The governments response has only deepened the anger. Instead of addressing students demands, authorities have unleashed riot police, tear gas, grenades and mass arrests. More than 6,500 people have reportedly been arrested since the protests began, most of them minors. Some young protesters have suffered horrific injuries, including a 15-year-old who lost his hand after a police grenade exploded. Amnesty International has condemned what it calls the disproportionate use of force against young people peacefully demanding their right to education. The contrast is striking: Students are asking for teachers and decent schools, while the government deploys riot police against them—and finds billions more for its military. The student movement is unfolding just as NATO is pressuring European governments to massively increase military spending. Under intense pressure from Washington, NATO leaders agreed in 2025 to a staggering new target: 5 percent of each member countrys GDP by 2035. At least 3.5 percent is supposed to go directly to military expenditures, with another 1.5 percent devoted to military-related infrastructure, cybersecurity and resilience. This represents an enormous shift from NATOs previous 2 percent target, which many members already struggled to meet. For countries facing growing deficits, heavy debt and deteriorating public services, such an increase comes at a steep price. France provides a glaring example. The country has nearly $4 trillion in public debt—roughly 119 percent of GDP, one of the highest levels in Europe. To tackle its deficit, the government has proposed approximately $48 billion in spending cuts and tax increases, putting already strained public services under even greater pressure. Yet even as the government demands belt-tightening, its proposed 2027 budget increases military spending by approximately $7.2 billion in a single year, compared with just $1.2 billion more for education. The education budget would also eliminate 1,588 permanent teaching positions. Imagine being a 16-year-old sitting in an overcrowded classroom, with a leaking ceiling and no regular teacher, hearing that your government cannot afford better schools—but can somehow find billions more for weapons. Frances own fiscal watchdog has pointed out that increases in central government spending are being driven largely by rising interest payments, contributions to the European Union and increased military expenditures. NATO officials insist that this massive military buildup is necessary to protect Europe from Russia and other threats. But the notion that Russia is poised to invade France is absurd, and the push for ever-greater military spending raises a fundamental question: What kind of security is the French government actually providing if their schools, hospitals and other public services are left to deteriorate? France is not alone. Students and teachers in Belgium, Spain and Portugal have also taken to the streets over education funding and working conditions, reflecting growing frustration across Europe with governments that claim there is not enough money for basic public services. An entire generation is being asked to accept austerity while Europe embarks on one of its largest military buildups since the Cold War. Political leaders may insist that education and military spending are separate issues. But they compete for the same limited public resources. And some French students are already making that connection themselves. Protest signs have declared money for schools, not war and fund high schools, not genocide, linking their immediate demands to the broader question of what—and whom—the government chooses to fund. These young people are challenging the very definition of security. NATO measures security in tanks, missiles, drones and ammunition. The students are demanding another kind of security: decent schools, equal opportunity, and a society that invests in their future instead of sacrificing it to an endless arms buildup. Their demands should resonate throughout the NATO alliance, including in the United States, where public services are under attack while Trump seeks a staggering 54 percent increase in the military budget. Thats why CODEPINK and allied groups are organizing a Taxpayer Uprising in Washington, D.C., November 10–12, bringing people into the halls of Congress to demand a fundamental reorientation of our national priorities. Instead of funneling ever more tax dollars into war and weapons manufacturers, our government should invest in healthcare, education, affordable housing, green energy and a sustainable future. From the classrooms of France to the halls of Congress, the question is the same: Will our governments invest in life—or in war? Books or bombs? Medea Benjamin is co-founder of Global Exchange and CODEPINK: Women for Peace. She is the co-author, with Nicolas J.S. Davies, of War in Ukraine: Making Sense of a Senseless Conflict, available from OR Books in November 2022. Other books include, “Inside Iran: The Real History and Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran” (2018); “Kingdom of the Unjust: Behind the U.S.-Saudi Connection” (2016); “Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control” (2013); “Don’t Be Afraid Gringo: A Honduran Woman Speaks from the Heart” (1989), and (with Jodie Evans) “Stop the Next War Now” (2005). The post Books or Bombs? France’s Student Revolt vs. NATO’s Spending Push appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Foreign Affairs, Investigations, National, News, Opinion & Analysis, France, genocide, Macron, NATO, protest]

— Yemen’s Ansarallah Unveil Strategic Weapons As Israeli-US Backed Offensive Backfires

 

at 10/6/26 2:30pm

Yemen’s Armed Forces have imposed a no-fly zone over Riyadh following a massive assault by Saudi Arabia using 100 aircraft, combined with a shock offensive aimed at capturing Bab el-Mandeb. In this Monday’s edition of The Target, MintPress News’ Robert Inlakesh breaks down the conflict on the ground and why the US-Israeli backed surprise attack is a failure. In the early hours of Monday morning, Saudi Arabia carried out over 1,000 airstrikes across Yemeni territory, in what would soon be declared by the Kingdom’s proxy forces as Operation Yemen’s Dawn. The attempted offensive, which has already collapsed, sought to seize the Western coast of the country from the rule of the Ansarallah-led government based in Sana’a. Forces belonging to the Salafist-dominated Southern Giants Brigades, alongside allied Saudi-backed militias, initiated a series of ambush attacks which succeeded in penetrating the strategic Bab el-Mandeb area. Backed up by the airpower of their allies in Riyadh, they inflicted scores of casualties amongst soldiers belonging to the Yemeni Armed Forces and even filmed themselves committing ramming attacks on fighters who had already surrendered. On the Target Stream, we take a look at the Yemeni retaliatory attacks on Saudi Arabia’s airbases, oil refineries and even the missile fire that has sought to impose a no-fly zone on the Kingdom. Robert Inlakesh also breaks down the conflict in Yemen and the context behind the two warring sides. An enormous amount of propaganda has created a shield behind which the Gulf Monarchies, United States and Israel hide in this war. This includes everything from the spread of sectarian propaganda, unsubstantiated allegations of Yemeni missile attacks on Holy Sites, as well as claims that the Bab el-Mandeb Strait will be closed to international shipping. In reality, only Saudi Arabia has been subjected to a blockade in the Red Sea so far, while the other potential target could be Israel assuming it resumes its genocide in Gaza or launches another major assault on Lebanon. We also look at Yemen’s use of strategic precision-guided ballistic missiles, both long and short range, that are being used to destroy militant convoys and successfully target Saudi ARAMCO facilities. The capture of Bab el-Mandeb and the entire West coast of Yemen collapsed part of Israel’s strategic foothold developed in Red Sea and Horn of Africa, as the Ansarallah-led government forces now control the Mayyun Island where a joint Emirati-Israeli project was uncovered in 2025. In a new joint statement, Pakistan and Turkiye have now declared their intentions to enter the war on Yemen on the side of Saudi Arabia. This includes sending more weapons, fighter jets, air defense systems and troops to aid Riyadh. The recently signed ‘Mecca Pact’ agreement was previously advertised as a defence alliance that could represent a new ‘Sunni Muslim NATO’, yet is now fighting a war against a Muslim country using Israeli targeting data to do so. Inlakesh also analyses the question of regional national sovereignty, using the case of Iraq’s recent detention of its own citizens for driving vehicles over an American flag at a parade. He explores the ways in which the US continue to exert pressure on Baghdad, holding their leadership hostage financially. US imperialism and Israeli expansionism is on the line in Yemen, making it an important and the most active front in the ongoing regional war. It is a battle for national sovereignty, control of strategic water-ways and to end decades of aggression. The post Yemen’s Ansarallah Unveil Strategic Weapons As Israeli-US Backed Offensive Backfires appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarallah, Israel, Middle East, MintPress News, Robert Inlakesh, Saudi Arabia, United States, West Asia, Yemen]

— Iran Strikes Vital Facilities As Evidence Emerges Of US Invasion Preparations

 

at 10/4/26 11:00am

Oil facilities in the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia have again been struck by ballistic missiles and drones, while evidence has emerged that the US could be plotting raids into north-eastern Iranian territory. In the latest episode of The Target stream, MintPress News’ Robert Inlakesh looks at the incidents that are being used to justify a renewal of regional war. This Thursday, US President Donald Trump claimed that Iran is likely involved in the controversial Flydubai flight incident, while on the same day the UK government arrested a British-Iranian dual-national in relation to the RAF Fairford incident. Both instances lack any publicly presented evidence to suggest Tehran had anything to do with them, and yet the accusations are already spreading like wildfire in the corporate media. In the case of the Flydubai flight incident, no investigation has concluded a cause and the airliner initially put the emergency landing of the plane down to a fight breaking out between the two co-pilots. However, the Israeli media and government instantly jumped to the conclusion that what occurred was an attempted terrorist hijacking, carried out by an Omani national. On the stream we look into the implausibility of the claim that the Iranian government was somehow involved and what the results of that allegation could be. On September 27, headlines were made around the world as UK counter-terrorism police detained five individuals near RAF Fairford, an airbase in the United Kingdom used by the United States Airforce. Initially the headlines indicated that a major terrorist plot was being foiled and that the threat of potential explosive devices in the area had led to the evacuation of dozens of families from their homes. However, the five individuals who were arrested under the Terrorism Act were quickly granted bail, followed by reports that confirmed no explosives to have been found on the scene. Despite this, UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham still decided to point the finger at Iran, a charge that officials in Tehran have vehemently denied. With no clear picture of what actually occurred at RAF Fairford and confirmation that no explosives existed on scene, then came the news that an Iranian national was detained in connection to the incident. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia also announced that the Yemeni Armed Forces had struck a power station located near the city of Madina. Although Sana’a denied it, the claims began emerging that the partially operational power station was supplying power to the Mosque of the Prophet Mohammed; considered by Muslims to be the Second Holiest Site in the world. OSNIT reports also presented evidence for what appears to be a new US military buildup occurring in the Caspian Sea area. Signs that US combat search and rescue teams have been deployed on the Orurja Ada island, combined with reports of US special forces teams having set up positions elsewhere in Turkmenistan, appear to indicate a future possibility of attempted incursions into Iranian territory. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has also been asserting its dominance in the Persian Gulf and firing missiles towards US military bases, as one of Abu Dhabi’s largest on-shore oil facilities goes up in flames. A pumping station connected to Saudi Arabia’s East-West pipeline was also struck, as Yemeni retaliatory strikes on the Saudi Capital of Riyadh have caused damage to military infrastructure. On the stream, Robert Inlakesh also looks at the Saudi-Israeli alliance against Yemen and the concerted effort to stir sectarian tensions across the region. The post Iran Strikes Vital Facilities As Evidence Emerges Of US Invasion Preparations appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarallah, Iran, Israel, Middle East, MintPress News, Robert Inlakesh, Saudi Arabia, UAE, United States, West Asia, Yemen]

— The Saudi-Israeli War On Yemen’s Resistance: Intelligence Sharing, Civilian Targets & Sectarian Propaganda

 

at 10/2/26 12:20pm

Scrambling to halt the ongoing offensive of Yemen’s Armed Forces, Israel and Saudi Arabia have strengthened ties through a joint covert campaign aimed at salvaging what remains of their supremacy in the Red Sea region. Tel Aviv and Riyadh’s losses of key military strongholds in Yemen’s Western coast, has ushered in a new era of soft-normalisation. Saudi Arabia has carried out hundreds of airstrikes in Yemen, resulting in thousands of casualties since its renewed bombing campaign began this July. It now heavily relies on Israeli targeting intelligence backing in order to conduct dozens of strikes across Yemeni territory on a daily basis, including attacks on civilian market places and residential buildings.  Meanwhile, Israeli officials heaped praise on Riyadh this Wednesday for facilitating the first ever commercial flight between Israel and Saudi, following the Kingdom’s intervention to aid Israeli passengers on-board a Flydubai plane that was forced to undergo an emergency landing.  In contrast, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) initiated the renewal of the Saudi-Yemen war, by bombing the runway of Sana’a International Airport in order to prevent an Iranian civilian jetliner from landing inside the country. This measure was taken to enforce a long-standing aerial blockade on Yemen, while Israeli aircraft freely use Saudi airspace. Riyadh’s pivot to the Israeli orbit entails a covertly coordinated campaign centered around Yemen, bearing regional consequences – from joint intelligence operations, target bank sharing, direct meetings between officials and a calibrated propaganda campaign. In early September, Israel’s national broadcaster Kan News reported that Tel Aviv had begun supplying intelligence to aid Saudi Arabia in building up a target bank to strike inside of Yemen. Neither side has any formal diplomatic ties and yet Israel is already aiding Saudi Arabia in the military sphere — a development that would usually be a major regional scandal, yet the primarily Gulf State funded Arabic-language media has all but ignored it. Come mid-September, only days after the Yemeni Armed Forces had liberated the West Coast of their country from Saudi-backed Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) militias, Axios News revealed that US Central Command had organised a private Arab-Israeli military retreat in Germany. At the private retreat, both Israeli and Saudi military officials were able to directly discuss issues concerning Iran and Yemen’s Ansarallah-led government. Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman recently visited Cairo, formally meeting Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi to discuss issues of trade and foreign affairs. On the sidelines of this trip, CENCTOM officials repeatedly presented a proposal to form a regional command structure and coordination mechanism, that would include Israel, in order to properly confront the Ansarallah-led forces in Yemen. Even more damning is that when Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited Abu Dhabi on September 27, he didn’t only attend a meeting with Emirati-ruler Mohamed bin Zayed – according to Israeli Channel 14 News, Netanyahu also secretly met with a Saudi delegate. While analysts argued over whether the recently signed ‘Mecca Pact’ – between Riyadh, Islamabad and Ankara – was signalling the beginning of ‘Sunni Muslim NATO’, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has instead drifted towards a covert strategic alliance with Israel instead. Collusion between the two leaderships – which between them rule over all three of the Islamic Holy Sites – has reached historic heights. Targeting Civilians And Sectarian Propaganda A notable outcome of Saudi Arabia’s collaboration with Israel, is a marked uptick in the number of reported civilian massacres that have been taking place. The corporate media’s reporting on such attacks have drawn enormous parallels to the way similar strikes were covered in the Gaza Strip. Take for example a recent strike carried out by Saudi fighter jets in the Taiz governorate, which killed at least seven civilians in a market place and destroyed a food storage site. When Reuters reported on the story, they ran with the following headline: “Seven people killed in strike on market in Yemen, Houthi-run health ministry says” Just as the corporate media labelled Gaza’s Ministry of Health as “Hamas-run”, it uses “Houthi-run” in Yemen as a rhetorical tactic to detract from the veracity of the claim being made. In Gaza, Hamas is indeed the political Party that heads the local government of the territory, technically making this linguistic trick somewhat accurate, despite it being clear cut propaganda. However, in the case of Yemen it isn’t even vaguely accurate, as the political Party that controls the government is called Ansarallah, “the Houthis” are a family from northern Yemen. Saudi Airstrikes also targeted other civilian locations such as residential buildings in the Mokha Port area, recently taken over by the Ansarallah-led government’s forces, killing at least 6. While US Central Command has been cited as arguing that Tel Aviv’s targeting data provided to Riyadh is essential, there has been no evidence that the intelligence provided has led to any material change on the battlefield.  It is not currently possible to verify whether the civilian infrastructure struck by Saudi Arabia’s airforce were targets located by Israeli intelligence gathering efforts or not, it is clear that Israel’s own strikes on Yemen have killed overwhelmingly civilians. Both Israel and Saudi Arabia do indeed have shared interests in Yemen. Both seek the overthrow of the nation’s Sana’a based government. The recent capture of the Bab al-Mandab coastline by the Yemeni Armed Forces threatens both Tel Aviv and Riyadh, as they are the only two nations which Sana’a has reason to impose a blockade on. The Yemeni imposed blockade on Israel, beginning in late 2023, completely bankrupted the southern Israeli Port of Eilat. This measure was taken in support of Gaza and the blockade ended with the implementation of the October 8, 2025 ceasefire. In the case of Saudi Arabia, a blockade has been imposed upon them in the Red Sea as a retaliatory measure against the long-standing Saudi blockade of Yemen. This has led to a joint Saudi-Israeli propaganda campaign, seeking to depict the Yemeni control over their own territory as a threat to international maritime navigation and trade, something that Yemen’s officials have explicitly denied A prominent propaganda theme is the weaponisation of religious authorities and the deliberate spread of sectarianism. Take prominent Saudi Islamic Scholar Dr. Abdulaziz Al-Rayez, a man that previously forbade resistance against Israel and condemned the Palestinian armed struggle, urged what he called “Sunni Muslims” to fight the cursers of the companions [of the Prophet Mohammed]” to “race to the great field of martyrdom” against the Yemeni Armed Forces. Al-Rayez promotes factually inaccurate sectarianism, deeming the Sana’a based government as an evil Shia opposition to a righteous Saudi-backed Sunni force.  Saudi Grand Mufti Sheikh Saleh bin Fawzan Al-Fawzan also made a rare public statement on the war against Yemen, framing the issue as a religious obligation for Muslims to fight against the Yemeni Armed Forces. Additionally a top Saudi-linked Pakistani cleric, infamous for praising Osama bin Laden as “a Muslim warrior”, deemed Ansarallah to be “terrorists” and claimed that they are not even Muslims. Across Gulf State owned Arabic-language media there has been a virulently anti-Ansarallah coverage of the war, with various pundits attempting to claim that the Zaydi Muslim sect in Yemen are conspiring with Iran to usher in a Shia Muslim tyranny across West Asia; aimed oppressing the Sunni majority. While Saudi Arabia conspires alongside Israel to strike targets across Yemen and its officials meet with their Israeli counterparts, a concerted propaganda effort attempts to convince the region’s public that Riyadh is the victim; weaponising sectarianism as a means of distracting from its continued pivot towards the Israeli sphere of influence.    Robert Inlakesh is a political analyst, journalist and documentary filmmaker currently based in London, UK. He has reported from and lived in the occupied Palestinian territories and hosts the show ‘Palestine Files’. Director of ‘Steal of the Century: Trump’s Palestine-Israel Catastrophe’. Follow him on Twitter @falasteen47 The post The Saudi-Israeli War On Yemen’s Resistance: Intelligence Sharing, Civilian Targets Sectarian Propaganda appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, News, Ansarallah, Israel, Middle East, Red Sea, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Yemen war]

— Iran Seizes US Submarine As Anti-Ship Missiles Inflict Soldier Casualties

 

at 9/29/26 3:28pm

Damning reports confirm dozens of casualties amongst US navy sailors and marines in Iranian attacks this month, as the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) seize another American unmanned submarine in the Strait of Hormuz. Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh looks at the latest blows dealt to Washington across West Asia in this Monday’s episode of The Target. Nine US marines and a total of twenty-nine sailors have been confirmed injured as a result of the ongoing war on Iran over the past month. What makes these particular figures so significant is that US Central Command is no longer even bothering to engage in tit-for-tat exchanges with the Islamic Republic in order to uphold their image of strength. On The Target stream we look at the emerging reports that US President Donald Trump’s Ministry of War is set to replace their USS George Washington aircraft carrier strike group with the USS Theodore Roosevelt. This comes following Iranian claims that they launched a missile attack that managed to inflict damage to the USS George Washington, along with an accompanying Destroyer. The Israeli media has also been expressing its concern over the withdrawal of American and NATO alliance forces from Iraqi territory, indicating that the lack of US presence could embolden Iraq’s resistance factions who possess weapons capable of striking Tel Aviv. Meanwhile, Iran has been conducting waves of ballistic missile and drone strikes on Israeli-backed Kurdish militant groups in northern Iraq. According to reports, Tehran has conducted over 1,000 strikes on Israeli and US-backed Kurdish militant groups since early March. Iran’s IRGC also seized a modern US surveillance submarine in the Strait of Hormuz. The REMUS 600 was seized through electronic warfare methods, it is the second unmanned submarine seized this month by the Iranian navy. The first was a DIVE-LD submarine, which was a significant loss for the United States navy as it will now be reversed engineered by Iran’s domestic weapons industry. Yemen’s Armed Forces continue to deliver blows to Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities, conducting routine attacks on military targets located near Riyadh itself, as Saudi-proxy forces continue to suffer major defeats on the battlefield. As a result, the impending capture of the strategically important city of Taiz has resulted in Saudi airstrikes on civilian targets in the city. The main road connecting Taiz City to the Saudi-proxy stronghold in Aden has been cut. Following this development, Riyadh decided to conduct airstrikes targeting a civilian market place inside the city itself, taking out food storage sites. Robert Inlakesh looks at how the corporate media covered this story, drawing parallels with the coverage of Israel’s assaults on civilian targets in Gaza. This edition of The Target also covers developments on the Lebanon front, as well as a dive into the issue of sectarian propaganda, while covering the Israeli media revelations regarding a Saudi official meeting with Benjamin Netanyahu in the United Arab Emirates. We provide the historical context underpinning the rise of sectarian violence across West Asia and how it has been used to achieve US-Israeli led regime change efforts. A new campaign seeking to stir up ethnic and religious animosity is now underway, in an attempt to shield both Tel Aviv and Riyadh from accountability. The post Iran Seizes US Submarine As Anti-Ship Missiles Inflict Soldier Casualties appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarallah, Hezbollah, Iran, IRGC, Israel, Middle East, MintPress News, Robert Inlakesh, Saudi Arabia, United States, West Asia, Yemen]

— Iran Strikes Mossad Proxies As Yemen Collapses Saudi-Israeli Plot In Dramatic Fashion

 

at 9/25/26 2:15pm

As US President Donald Trump threatens Iran with annihilation, Iranian missiles and drones have been targeting Israeli Mossad proxies, American bases and destroying tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. Washington’s allies in Riyadh are meanwhile suffering enormous losses due to their war on Yemen, which has collapsed a joint project that sought to inflict regime change. In the latest episode of The Target stream, MintPress News’ Robert Inlakesh takes a look at the silent ballistic missile attacks that are being carried out against US bases in Jordan that are no longer even receiving comment from US Central Command. As President Trump’s rhetoric at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) suggested genocidal intent, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has been acting preemptively to take out rising threats. With gas prices continuing to go up, hitting working class people in their pockets, the Trump administration is refusing to end the war on Iran and continues to back up Israel at every turn. The US media, on the other hand, is leaking more damning reports about the stunning military failure in the Persian Gulf, exposing that the Navy noted a total of 8 attempted suicides aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln strike group. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also addressed the General Assembly, speaking to an almost empty room as up to 77 nations delegates walked out upon him taking to the podium. During his speech, he played victim while also holding up a prop pager in reference to the Mossad operation carried out against Hezbollah in Lebanon two years ago. Up to 3,000 people were wounded in what the former head of the CIA, Leon Panetta, labelled an act of terrorism. Beyond that, the Israeli Premiers speech was received as weak. Robert Inlakesh notes that two years ago Netanyahu had ordered the assassination of Hezbollah leader Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah from the United Nations building, while this time around he decided to complain about popular streamer Hasan Piker. Back in Tel Aviv, the Israeli media have been signalling that their aid in targeting the Yemeni Armed Forces could be a stepping stone towards normalisation with Saudi Arabia. Yet, it hasn’t proven a very successful one. Riyadh’s proxy forces in Yemen continue to take a beating, losing more territory by the day, as the Ansarallah-led government in Sana’a vows to deliver more crushing blows to Saudi infrastructure in retaliation for ongoing air strikes. Israel’s presence on the strategic Mayyun Island in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait has officially come to an end, as Yemen keeps a close eye on its military buildups in Somaliland and Socotra Island. Last year, the Israeli leadership were presenting their grand plans for regional hegemony to the world, openly discussing the Greater Israel Project, however, the repeated failures of the US-Israeli alliance in their war against Iran and its allies have left them lashing out irrationally with no clear route to victory. The Target stream analyses this growing shift, the change in power dynamics, the footage coming from the battlefield in Yemen and the desperate propaganda of the US empire’s allies. The post Iran Strikes Mossad Proxies As Yemen Collapses Saudi-Israeli Plot In Dramatic Fashion appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarallah, Hezbollah, Iran, IRGC, Israel, Jordan, Middle East, MintPress News, Mossad, Robert Inlakesh, Saudi Arabia, United States, West Asia, Yemen]

— Revealed: German “Anti-Semitism Expert” Driving Crackdown on Palestine Solidarity is Former Israeli Spy

 

at 9/25/26 10:34am

A Munich-based “anti-Semitism expert” organizing political action helping restrict pro-Palestine protests across Germany is a former Israeli spy, MintPress can reveal.  Since October 7, 2023, Guy Katz, professor of international management at Munich University of Applied Sciences, has become one of the leading figures in German politics on the subject of Israel and anti-Semitism. Katz has founded numerous organizations purporting to fight anti-Semitism, spoke in parliament, and worked with police to help them crack down on anti-Israel speech. He is, however, reportedly a former spy for Israeli intelligence outfit, the Mossad—something that is never disclosed in the widespread coverage and amplification he receives in German and international media.  MintPress News explores this operation.  Anti-Semitism Kaiser Since October 2023, Guy Katz has emerged as one of the most influential political actors in Germany on the question of Israel/Palestine, founding numerous pressure groups and working with authorities to crush opposition to genocide, all under the guise of fighting anti-Semitism.   Earlier this year, he founded “Anti-Semitism? Not in My Name!” – a cross-party organization aimed at stamping out Jewish hatred across Germany. Katz has managed to enlist every major party in the Bavarian State Parliament, with the exception of the fascist Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) Party, who were barred from joining. (This, despite the AfD’s strong support for Israel). The group aims to make philo-Semitism extremely visible and send a message to the whole country. “Many are against anti-Semitism, but too few make their stance visible. This campaign makes taking a stand part of everyday life, Katz explained.  Anti-Semitism Without Me builds upon the work of Dach Gegen Hass (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland Against Hate), an alliance of over 200 organizations, and the Munich branch of Run For Their Lives, a group that organizes marches demanding the release of Israeli prisoners from Gaza, both of which Katz founded or co-founded.  On October 6, 2024, he also planned and led a large rally in solidarity with Israel in Munich, an action that brought 30,000 people together to denounce Hamas and anti-Semitic violence.  Katz’s activism has led to him being invited into the halls of German power. Last year, he addressed the Bavarian parliament, lecturing them on anti-Semitism and telling them explicitly, “Never again is now.” He now works with the police and with universities in Germany, developing training programs to instruct them on how to best eliminate what he identifies as Jew hatred.  In October 2025, he hosted an event in Munich commemorating the second anniversary of the October 7 attacks. There, he interviewed Naftali Bennett, the former Israeli prime minister who has strongly supported the Israeli Defense Forces’ (IDF) actions in Gaza and has participated in numerous war crimes. Katz, however, declared himself “impressed” by the politician.  Katz is constantly quoted in media, both German, Israeli, and also the international press, who universally accept his self-appointed designation as an anti-Semitism expert.  In short, it is difficult to overemphasize how influential he has been in the debate around Israel and the supposed explosion of anti-Semitism in Germany.  Throughout his tireless activism, his message is clear: the primary threat comes not from the fascist right (who, less than a century ago, carried out a genocidal extermination campaign against Jewish people across Europe), but from the left. “I believe that left-wing extremism and Islamist extremism are far more dangerous for us Jews,” he told local newspaper, Jüdische Allgemeine, claiming that the situation for German Jews today is “very similar” to the lead-up to World War Two, thanks to the threat the left poses.  He decried a German court’s ruling not to ban a pro-Palestine march at Ludwig Maximilian University in Munich, claiming that it was “blatantly anti-Semitic” because it “incites hatred towards Israel,” by engaging in “the original form of anti-Semitism”: alleging that Israel is killing Palestinian babies and stealing organs from their victims.  In this case, however, it is not a blood libel, but an established fact. Israel has a long and well-documented recent history of organ theft, and has killed more than 20,000 Palestinian children in the past three years, over 1,000 of whom were infants under the age of one.  One particular person of the left that Katz has singled out is Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg, who, in 2025, was abducted by Israeli special forces while trying to deliver lifesaving aid to Gaza.  Katz simultaneously rejects the categorization of Israel’s actions in Gaza as a genocide while asserting that Hamas has committed a genocide against Christians and intends to carry out another “until all Jews are annihilated.” In a public video, he insists that Israel’s attacks on schools and hospitals are justifiable because Hamas was hiding weapons there, and refers to the people of Gaza (including children) as “so-called innocents” and “so-called civilians.” On the other hand, Katz has singled out President Donald Trump for unique praise, describing him as “the architect of peace” in the Middle East.  Spy Games  Guy Katz moved to Germany in 2004 and has built a successful career, now teaching conflict resolution, management, negotiation, and strategy at Munich University of Applied Sciences. What he does not adequately disclose in his political activism and his media interviews are the details of his pre-German past. That is because Guy Katz is a former Mossad spy.  In a lecture he gave at the University of Nairobi in 2023, before he became nationally known as one of the chief pro-Israel activists in Germany, he reportedly revealed that he is a former secret agent with the infamous spying agency.  During the lecture, he gave details about the adage that “former” spies never truly leave the business of espionage. Katz told those attending, the university wrote on its official website, that Mossad has “learned the art of releasing an agent.” “He stated that in the military and secret service, there is a department that caters for retired security officers,” an admission that raises the question of how much contact former Mossad operatives have with the organization.  This assertion appears to be corroborated by Katz’s profile on Expert Marketplace, a digital booking platform for public speakers. Katz notes that one of his lecture topics is called “Communicating Like a Mossad Agent”—a presentation that is “based on real stories and shows what managers can learn from them.” In other profiles, he is listed as a former IDF intelligence officer, a designation that hints at his possible involvement with controversial group Unit 8200.  The reason this past is problematic is that these organizations have a long history of carrying out espionage, psychological operations, terror attacks, and targeted killings around the world, even in allied countries.  Mossad executed a series of assassinations of Iranian scientists involved in the country’s nuclear energy program, while both it and Unit 8200 have been identified as behind the 2024 Lebanese Pager Attack, an incident near-universally decried as an act of terror that injured thousands of civilians.  Unit 8200, meanwhile, is the centerpiece of Israel’s hi-tech surveillance and digital warfare operation. The elite group handles Israel’s cyberwarefare, hacking, and influence operations. Its “former” agents were, for example, behind the creation and distribution of the notorious Pegasus app. Pegasus is a piece of software that was used to hack into and spy on more than 50,000 prominent individuals worldwide, including journalists, human rights leaders, activists, and politicians (including European heads of state). Pegasus gave the Israeli intelligence services backdoors into the devices of all those affected, allowing them to spy on dozens of countries at once.  It is surely relevant that a member of this sort of organization is leading a pressure campaign aimed at prohibiting pro-Palestine speech in Germany.  Destroying Democracy to Defend a Genocide The German establishment, including all major parties, has offered virtually unqualified endorsement for Israel and its actions in Gaza. This support has included signing a military collaboration and cooperation agreement, and the sale of nearly $1 billion in weapons in the first five months of 2026 alone. The most significant transaction was the delivery of a German-made Dolphin II-class attack submarine, delivered to Tel Aviv in July.  This elite wall-to-wall solidarity is in stark contrast to the general population. A 2025 YouGov survey found widespread revulsion with Israel, with eight times as many Germans holding highly negative views of the country as highly positive ones. In total, only 21% of the public see Israel in a positive light (including only 4% highly positive), with with 65% displaying open opposition (including 32% who strongly dislike it). Another recent poll found that 62% of all voters believe Israel is carrying out a genocide in Gaza. When taking out those who said they did not know or did not answer, nearly four-in-five Germans responded that they considered Israel’s actions genocidal.  Germany has seen widespread pro-Palestine actions across the country, but they have been met with force from authorities. Thousands have been arrested, while images of masked riot police brutalizing non-violent protestors across the country regularly go viral.  The German state has moved to effectively criminalize pro-Palestine speech and protest, under the rubric of Staatsräson, or Reasons of State, a doctrine that claims that commitment to Israeli security is a non-negotiable and unquestionable pillar of the German state. In 2024, in response to the growing wave of unrest, the government passed a law requiring those applying for German citizenship to swear what amounts to a loyalty oath to Israel and Zionism, acknowledging the state’s “right to exist.” More than 9,000 criminal charges were registered at pro-Palestine protests in Berlin alone in the first 18 months after the October 7 attacks. Numerous Palestinian or pro-Palestine groups have been outlawed, as have popular chants, such as “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” The reaction from authorities, arguably the toughest in Europe, has drawn bitter condemnation from the United Nations, and from groups such as Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, who have highlighted issues such as state-sanctioned discrimination against Muslims, and soft bans on symbols of resistance, such as keffiyehs.  Israel itself has identified Germany as a key battleground in what Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calls the country’s eighth front: the battle for Western public opinion. To that end, it has spent vast sums targeting the country with German-language messaging extolling Israel, and comparing Hamas to ISIS and other terrorist groups, a 2025 MintPress News investigation found.  Israel and the pro-Israel lobby are trying hard to conflate any opposition to its actions in Gaza, Lebanon, and beyond as akin to terrorism and anti-Semitism. Katz and his campaign are a major part of this. But whether they will succeed in stemming the wave of pro-Palestine sympathy remains to be seen. The post Revealed: German “Anti-Semitism Expert” Driving Crackdown on Palestine Solidarity is Former Israeli Spy appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Front Page: National, Investigations, Nation, National, News, Top Story]

— Iran Launches Surprise Attacks On US Bases As Trump Covers Up Soldier Casualties

 

at 9/23/26 8:06am

Iran’s IRGC has been striking various US targets and an average of two to three tankers in the Strait of Hormuz on a daily basis, as gas prices hit working class Americans where it hurts. On this episode of The Target stream, Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh explains how these blows have been compounded by revelations that the Pentagon is concealing its Iran War casualties. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) carried out another ballistic missile attack against what they would later state was a US military base in Jordan, in the latest edition of The Target we cover the story before it was officially announced and put it together with a broader series of strikes on American military targets that are no longer even being acknowledged by US Central Command. Tehran’s preemptive operations are not receiving much attention in the corporate media, despite visual confirmation of them occurring, alongside on the ground reports and later confirmations from Iranian military officials. Combined with the fact that multiple vessels are being targeted in the Strait of Hormuz by the IRGC’s naval forces on a daily basis, this spells a new regional equation. So long as the Iranian attacks are not on a larger scale as to demand a response, the US military is simply pretending as if they are not happening at all. The previously announced equation was that Iran’s civilian infrastructure would be targeted each and every time a tanker is struck in the Persian Gulf. Compounding the US’s declining hegemony and military embarrassments have been reports that the Pentagon has deliberately hid the deaths of a number of American military personnel. According to a bombshell report from the Washington Post, five sources who are familiar with the US’s casualty figures claimed that they knew about four deaths that were not publicly registered by the Pentagon, an additional source said that number could be five. Meanwhile, gas prices are burdening working class Americans who are growing increasingly frustrated with the Trump administration’s mismanagement of the economy. A Reuters/Ipsos Poll, published this Monday, found that only 17% of US citizens say that they are happy with the federal governments management of the economy. Although it has remained largely out of the mainstream spotlight, Saudi Arabia’s war on Yemen continues to backfire as it faces new rounds of ballistic missile and drone strikes against their oil infrastructure. The Yemeni Armed Forces continue to liberate territory from Saudi-proxy forces, as airstrikes based upon intelligence granted to Riyadh by officials in Tel Aviv have resulted in a growing number of civilian massacres. Also on the stream, Robert Inlakesh takes an in depth look at the Lebanon front and what its weapons arsenal could mean during the upcoming regional escalation, analysing the Israeli predicament on southern Lebanese occupied lands. Hezbollah had proven it possessed a large range of weapons during its 2024 war with Israel. In 2026, the Party has chosen not to use its strategic arsenal so far, indicating that it is following a carefully calibrated escalation ladder. The post Iran Launches Surprise Attacks On US Bases As Trump Covers Up Soldier Casualties appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarallah, Iran, Israel, Jordan, Middle East, MintPress News, Robert Inlakesh, United States, US-Israel War on Iran, West Asia, Yemen]

— Robert Kraft: The Billionaire Friend of Netanyahu Pulling The Strings Behind the Macklemore/Ed Sheeran Blow Up

 

at 9/17/26 10:37am

The world of pop culture is ablaze with fury, as billionaire plutocrat Robert Kraft successfully pressured Ed Sheeran into dropping Macklemore from his North American tour over the rapper’s pro-Palestine statements.  The incident has ignited widespread outrage, and blown up in the Israel Lobby’s face, and caused all of his supporting artists to quit in protest, and brought worldwide attention to both Israel’s crimes and its attempts to silence dissent across the world.  But who is Robert Kraft? MintPress exposes the American oligarch’s funding of the pro-Israel Lobby, the network of organizations he has built to shut down pro-Palestine activism, and his extremely close personal, political, and financial relationship with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu himself.  Netanyahu’s Right-Hand Man “Israel does not have a more loyal friend than Robert Kraft,” Benjamin Netanyahu stated at the 2019 Genesis Prizes, an Israeli government-backed ceremony that honors prominent individuals (such as Kraft) that have advanced Jewish or Israeli interests with a $1 million prize.  Netanyahu is right. The 85-year-old American businessman and owner of the New England Patriots NFL franchise has dedicated his entire life to advancing the Zionist cause. Kraft married his wife in Israel in 1962 and has made well over 100 trips to the country since, including leading dozens of P.R. missions there, bringing a host of celebrities and sports stars with him. Kraft not only maintains a close personal friendship with Netanyahu, he very likely funded his political rise. His name appears on the “Netanyahu’s Millionaires” document – a leaked, handwritten list penned by the prime minister himself, detailing his wealthiest patrons and those he could most steadfastly rely on to bankroll his political career. Ninety-eight percent of Netanyahu’s funding came from abroad.  When it comes to American politics, Kraft is no less influential, using his monetary power to push the Israeli agenda in Washington. In addition to directly funding Donald Trump, he has spent vast sums bankrolling virtually every group constituting the U.S. Israel Lobby, including:  The American Friends of the Israel Museum The American Friends of the Yitzhak Rabin Center The American Israel Public Affairs Committee’s (AIPAC) The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting and Analysis (CAMERA) The Friends of the Israeli Defense Forces The Israel Project The Jewish Agency for Israel The Jewish National Fund StandWithUs Robert Kraft, in other words, is the Israel Lobby. Israel’s Big Money Backer He also personally created the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism (FCAS), an extremely well-funded group that purports to be an anti-racist non-profit fighting prejudice across the country. Upon closer inspection, however, it becomes clear that the FCAS is simply another pro-Israel group using the language of anti-racism to crush grassroots opposition to Israeli actions abroad.  Firstly, many of its key figures are former Israeli officials or lobbyists. For example, the organization’s Director of Partnerships and Strategy, Clara Schwartz, previously served as a secretary to multiple Israeli Ambassadors to the United States. Meanwhile, Maya Buki Dabby, FCAS’ Chief Philanthropy Officer, is the former director of AIPAC, the principal Israel lobbying institution in the United States. Secondly, the FCAS equates anti-Zionism as in the same bracket as support for or denial of the Holocaust, one of the many reasons why its in-house “antisemitism tracker” notes a massive spike in incidents in recent years.   It is difficult to overstate how well-funded and polished this operation is. In one December 2023 pledge alone, Kraft donated $100 million to the organization. Today, Kraft’s Gillette Stadium – which was to host the Sheeran/Macklemore concert until he personally intervened – is home to an enormous command center where vast numbers of staff track anti-Israel, pro-Palestine sentiment across the world and on social media. Critics have dubbed the institution a “massive Zionist surveillance and propaganda center inside Gillette Stadium.” The FCAS has spent enormous amounts of money on high-profile pro-Israel advertising campaigns, including producing numerous ads played during successive Super Bowls. One 2024 commercial features Clarence B. Jones, the former advisor to Martin Luther King, who drafted his famous “I Have a Dream” speech. Jones’ message is that there is a growing tidal wave of racist intolerance in America. Not from the likes of Trump (who Kraft donated $1 million to in 2017), but against Jews. The commercial ends by telling viewers to reject anti-Semitism and visit the FCAS project, StandUpToJewishHate.com.   The next year, it was back with another Super Bowl ad, this time featuring Snoop Dogg bemoaning the rise in “hatred,” which, in context, is a reference to opposition to the State of Israel’s policies in West Asia. Numerous commenters quipped that this was the most embarrassing thing the celebrity rapper has ever done for money.  As their content suggests, the commercials were part of a wider FCAS attempt to target black Americans, who are, according to polls, far less likely to support Israel’s genocide and more likely to side with Palestine than the general population. The FCAS, in their own words, see these efforts as part of their plan to “develop social change initiatives and continuously improve the Black-Jewish alliance.”  Silencing Critics of Apartheid Another way in which Kraft has attempted to shape U.S. politics is by trying to keep pro-Palestine voices out of Congress by funding right-wing Democrats standing against progressives and advocates for justice in Palestine. In 2021, for example, he donated to little-known but staunchly pro-Israel candidate Shontel Brown in her contentious face-off for Ohio’s 11th congressional district against Nina Turner, a democratic socialist, national co-chair of Bernie Sanders’ 2020 election campaign, and an outspoken critic of Israel’s policies. Vast amounts of pro-Israel money flowed into Brown’s campaign, helping her to defeat Turner. In her acceptance speech, Brown praised Israel and later thanked the Jewish community for “help[ing] me get over the finish line.” Kraft has also given money to pro-Israel Democrats, including David Cicilline; Juan Vargas; Ted Deutch; Jake Auchincloss and Ritchie Torres. His actions, donations and public pronouncements have drawn condemnation from some who have followed them. Sports journalist Dave Zirin, for example, wrote that: “He appears to think that any criticism of Israel is inherently antisemitic. For Kraft, it is Jews like myself, rabbis, and Holocaust survivors calling for a ceasefire and a free Palestine that are part of the problem. And Kraft seems to think that opposition to Israel, the IDF, and the AIPAC agenda is antisemitism.” Kraft has been just as ruthless against student opponents of genocide. Amid unprecedented nationwide campus protests for Palestine in 2023 and 2024 (in which estimated 10% of all U.S. students actively participated) the billionaire worked both publicly and privately to crush them.  The epicenter of this movement was Columbia University, where students occupied buildings and set up encampments calling for an end to the college’s complicity in Israeli actions. An angry Kraft sprang into action, publicly announcing that he was cutting the university off from his lavish funding due to its failure to suppress the protests effectively enough. “I am deeply saddened at the virulent hate that continues to grow on campus and throughout our country,” he said in a statement, claiming that Columbia was not protecting its Jewish students. The turning point, Kraft said, was watching a publicity stunt by Shai Davidai, an Israeli-American academic at Columbia, who claimed his access to campus was revoked. Davidai had previously called the student protestors “Nazis” and “terrorists” and called for the National Guard to be set upon the encampment, obliquely referencing the Kent State University Massacre while doing so. Kraft is one of Columbia’s most important donors, giving the institution millions of dollars, including a single $3 million donation to fund the Kraft Center for Jewish Student Life. He also vented his frustration on MSNBC, denouncing students taking part as supporters of terrorism. “It’s horrible to me that a group like Hamas can be respected and people in the United States of America can be carrying flags or supporting them … Hamas is preaching the eradication of all Jewish people from the Earth” he said.  In the end, Kraft got his wish, and the protests were ruthlessly stamped out in actions that made headlines across the world. Hundreds of students were arrested, dozens were expelled, and some of its ringleaders were abducted by ICE and faced deportation.  A Coward Choosing Between Two Different Types of Cowardice Kraft and the Israel Lobby have been able to cut down the flowers, but they have not been able to keep the spring from coming. Nationwide disillusionment with Israel and sympathy with Palestine continues to grow, and has manifested in popular culture, including with big acts like Macklemore, who have spoken out against the ongoing genocide. Tens of thousands of impressionable fans heard the rapper speak up every night.  But, like with the Columbia protests, Kraft (with an estimated net worth of over $15 billion) found a way to use his influence to shut down pro-Palestine activism. He organized his fellow stadium owners into intimidating Sheeran, presenting him with an ultimatum: either drop Macklemore from the tour, or be blocked from performing at their stadiums.  In a statement, Kraft described Macklemore’s actions as “deeply offensive” and insinuated – like he did with the Columbia protestors – that he supports terrorist organizations. The ultimatum was presented as a necessary response to stop anti-Semitism. The fact that many of these same stadiums are currently hosting and promoting the tour of Ye (aka Kanye West), a self-identified Nazi who recently released the song, “Heil Hitler,” casts doubt on this sincerity, however.  Kraft leant in to his personal relationship with Sheeran, who attended and even played at his 2022 wedding.  The English pop star immediately folded, agreeing to throw Macklemore under the tour bus. On Tuesday, he released a bizarre, inaccurate, and much panned statement on Instagram explaining his actions – one that has been widely characterized as a spineless post hoc justification for capitulation. Sheeran’s statement begins with a literal both-sidesing of the genocide. “I am appalled by the conflict between Israel and Palestine. The suffering and pain caused on both sides is a human tragedy,” he wrote, suggesting the level of violence and distress is somehow equal.  He then went out of his way to distance himself from Macklemore  – his close friend of 13 years – claiming that the rapper was only appearing with him because “he asked to join my tour last year and I agreed.” He described Macklemore’s activism as mere “shouting,” before adding that, “If we only focus on shouting the loudest, nothing will ever change.” His statement almost hinted at a relief or an approval that Macklemore was gone, noting that his own music was about “bring[ing] people from all backgrounds and cultures together,” and that “those who come to my shows do not expect a political forum.” “I do not use my professional platform for politics,” he concluded.  This, however, is clearly untrue. He filmed the music video for his song, “2Step” in Ukraine, and subsequently released a remix in collaboration with local group, Antytila, whose members are actively serving in the Ukrainian military. He has appeared on stage carrying an enormous Ukrainian flag and raised money for various Ukrainian charities.  The difference between Ukraine and Palestine, of course, is that with the former, virtually the entire Western establishment supports it, rendering it safe and “apolitical.” Sheeran has also publicly endorsed the Labour Party on multiple occasions, slammed the Conservative U.K. government for their handling of Brexit, and urged Congress to pass pro-LGBT legislation.  Furthermore, he has not even been absent on the Israel/Palestine issue, and has allowed himself to be used in official Israeli government propaganda. In September 2024, he met with Noa Argamani, an Israeli captured by Hamas during the October 7 attacks. The meeting, and Sheeran’s smiling face, was posted to the State of Israel’s official social media channels, with no public pushback from the singer.  Sheeran also tried to wash his hands of any agency in the matter, insisting that, “Macklemore coming off the tour was the promoter’s decision, it was not mine. Macklemore’s contract for the tour was with the promoter, not me.” Thus, he presents himself as a powerless bystander in the affair, as if, in his position as the headline act and a global superstar, he could not have stood up for his friend and co-worker if he was inclined to.  Anticipating that some might challenge this, Sheeran presented the act as a fait accompli, and insisted that he was morally obligated to continue, as a service to all the other poor artists on the tour whose livelihoods depended on its continuation. “I would never let down the fans who had made plans, nor would I abandon the touring crew and the other support acts and musicians who rely on me for work and to make a living,” he explained.  This seemingly courageous decision was quickly undermined however, as every single support act – four separate acts plus Sheeran’s own live band – announced in unison that they would be pulling out of the tour in solidarity with Macklemore and the Palestinian people. This, despite the fact that few of them have even 0.1% of the estimated $400 million net worth of Sheeran.  Artists must not be silenced when they speak up for the oppressed, said Finneas. Meanwhile, Beoga condemned what they described as “the silencing of Macklemore by Zionist lobbies.” Sheeran appeared to try to head off any accusations by personally and publicly absolving himself, concluding that: “I am not complicit. I have my personal views on this devastating conflict. Just because I choose not to speak publicly, it doesn’t mean I don’t have them, and it doesn’t mean I don’t care. Nor does it mean I don’t support causes in my own, personal way.” Yet the statements of the support artists all made clear that it was precisely because they felt their inaction would make them complicit in Israel’s crimes, hence their decision to withdraw from the tour.  Standing Up For What Is Right Sheeran’s much-mocked statement stands in stark contrast to Macklemore’s, which has been praised for its graciousness, even describing Sheeran as a “friend” and a “brother,” despite Sheeran’s notable coolness to him, and his decision to betray him. First of all, he states, “I am not a victim. Ed Sheeran is not a victim,” adding: “The victims are the Palestinian people. The men, women and children who have been killed, starved, displaced and forced to live through unimaginable violence. More than 20,000 children have been killed in Gaza alone. People are being killed today, and people will be killed tomorrow. I want to make sure that as I tell this story, we don’t lose sight of that.” Even as he explained Sheeran’s treachery, Macklemore was magnanimous, and made excuses for his behavior. “Ed was in a fucked up position,” he said, noting that “He told me that the words ‘Free Palestine’ and the image of the Palestinian flag were hurtful to a lot of people he spoke with [i.e. Kraft].” Indeed, Sheeran comes off across better in Macklemore’s statement than he does his own.  Sheeran told him that he “doesn’t take sides.” Macklemore, however, explained that: “[T]here is no neutral position between the oppressor and the oppressed. When one side has the bombs and bottomless financial and military support from America, refusing to take a side doesn’t leave you in the middle.” The rapper also succinctly explained exactly why pro-Israel billionaires like Kraft fear him and his cultural power so much. “If I kept doing the shows, saying Free Palestine, with Ed implicitly supporting it, the crowd getting loud and showing undeniable support for Palestinian liberation, what artist might speak out next? The stage becomes resistance. Maybe that’s why this time it became so important to silence me.” A Tipping Point For now, Sheeran’s decision to appease Kraft and the Israel Lobby appears to have completely backfired – for both parties. Sheeran has gone viral for the wrong reasons, with dozens of parody songs mocking his actions. Having lost every supporting artist (including his own live band), his tour is in a shambles, and he faces the prospect of having to fill a multi-hour show with nothing but himself and a guitar.  In effect, then, in one fell swoop, he has nuked his own tour, destroyed his credibility and his “good guy” reputation, and stabbed his longtime friend in the back, all to appease an octogenarian Zionist Epstein-adjacent billionaire.  The issue has escaped contagion from the mere political realm and has shot to prominence to become the number one trending story worldwide, with pop stars from across the planet weighing in on Sheeran’s perceived obsequiousness to power. In Ireland, a country Sheeran strongly associates with due to his heritage, the phrase “He’s English” trended on social media – a measure of the widespread rejection the singer is facing. “Ed Sheeran should never feel welcome in Ireland ever again,” ran the headline of one article in The Irish Mirror.  The acts who did withdraw, however, are gaining massive new followings online, while other artists have already been emboldened by the incident to speak up for Palestine on stage.  Kraft, meanwhile, openly played his hand and tried to use his influence as a power play. Never has there been a clearer example that pro-Israel billionaires really do control our media and culture, and attempt to suppress free speech.  And the fact that Ye is performing at many of the same venues Macklemore is banned from makes it more obvious than ever that this has nothing to do with anti-Semitism. In effect, then, Kraft has Streisanded himself in order to stop a few pro-Palestine messages slipping through. He may have been able to suppress college protestors, but he did not count on the pushback from the music community, who have elevated his actions into international headlines.  In an effort to stem the torrent of bad publicity, Kraft announced that he and Sheeran would donate millions to unspecified aid efforts in the Middle East “region.” But without specifying even a destination country for the money, let alone an organization, this was immediately publicly interpreted as another cash transfer to Israel under the guise of helping Palestinians.  Ultimately, what this story underlines is that power operates best when it is hidden in the shadows. Kraft, however, has inadvertently shone a worldwide spotlight on his own operations, on Israel’s crimes, and on how pro-Israel billionaires silence free speech in the U.S. His miscalculation risks becoming a monumental cultural tipping point where pro-Palestine activism goes truly mainstream, and supporting Israel becomes untenable.    Alan Macleod Alan MacLeod is Senior Staff Writer for MintPress News. He completed his PhD in 2017 and has since authored two acclaimed books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent, as well as a number of academic articles. He has also contributed to FAIR.org, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, and Common Dreams. Follow Alan on Twitter for more of his work and commentary: @AlanRMacLeod. The post Robert Kraft: The Billionaire Friend of Netanyahu Pulling The Strings Behind the Macklemore/Ed Sheeran Blow Up appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Front Page: National, Investigations, National, News, Top Story]

— Iran Targets US Warships In Shock Clashes Ongoing In Strait Of Hormuz-Saudi Gas Pipeline Eliminated

 

at 9/15/26 3:12pm

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) continue to target US vessels and tankers violating the Strait of Hormuz blockade, as its advanced weapons program has aided its allies in Yemen to become the regions second most feared ballistic missile power. On this episode of The Target Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh looks at the latest developments inflicting major blows on the international oil market. After managing to capture the entire West Coast of Yemen last week, the Ansarallah-led government’s forces continue to close in on the strategically important cities of Marib and Taiz, largely considered the stepping stones to a takeover of Aden in the south. If the Yemeni Armed Forces succeed, they could either advance upon or negotiate to seize control of the most vital Port City currently under the control of Saudi Arabia’s proxy forces. The city of Aden, if it falls into the hands of the Ansarallah-led government, will mean the de facto end of the Saudi-Yemen war that has been raging on since 2015. Already, the liberation of all the key islands and territory surrounding the Bab al-Mandab Strait, has spooked the Israeli leadership in Tel Aviv. According to Israeli Hebrew media reports, Tel Aviv has not only been aiding Saudi Arabia with intelligence and targeting data, but is also considering being part of a joint air campaign against the Yemeni Armed Forces. Israeli media pundits and security officials have been repeatedly stressing the need to push Yemen’s Army away from Bab al-Mandab, arguing that their newly acquired ability to close it with such ease could have catastrophic consequences on them. In this Monday’s edition of The Target, we also run through the latest footage surfacing from the battles raging on inside Yemen, including documentation of the capture of Mokha and other coastal cities. Robert Inlakesh runs us through the consequences of the ongoing retaliatory ballistic missile strikes on Saudi Arabia’s military and oil infrastructure. The vital East-West Pipeline has been at least temporarily severed after extensive attacks on at least three separate pumping stations, integral to the pipelines function, one of which was totally destroyed. Without this pipeline, Riyadh is unable to export any gas via the Red Sea. Yemen’s government in Sana’a previously announced a counter-blockade on Saudi ports, which dramatically reduced the export of oil through the Red Sea, now this process of cutting off some 6 million barrels per day of oil exports has been completed. Yet, it is not just Saudi Arabia’s oil infrastructure that is taking repeated hits, burdening the already struggling global oil market, its air bases are consistently being saturated with drone and missile salvos. According to Citi Research, the projections for the price of oil is that they will rise to roughly $150 a barrel, if the attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz persist. So far, the United States has strayed away from directly participating in Riyadh’s war this time around, however, if US President Donald Trump chooses to back up his Israeli allies further down the line then the Bab al-Mandab Strait could also be closed, triggering an even sharper rise in gas prices. The Target Stream also focuses on the excuses being provided for the current US-backed administration in Damascus that is facing nationwide protests. Demonstrations in Syria have reached a peak that has not been witnessed since the reign of deposed President Bashar al-Assad. Protesters initially reacted to a 40% spike in the price of diesel overnight, yet have escalated the complaints and are now focusing on various other elements of Syria’s ever declining economy. The post Iran Targets US Warships In Shock Clashes Ongoing In Strait Of Hormuz-Saudi Gas Pipeline Eliminated appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarallah, Iran, Israel, Jordan, MintPress News, Robert Inlakesh, United States, US-Israel War on Iran, West Asia, Yemen]

— Iran’s Electro-Optical Missiles Take Out F-15s & Warships – Yemen Offensive Shocks Israel

 

at 9/14/26 8:46am

Ansarallah-led government forces have liberated the entire west coast of Yemen from Saudi-backed forces, triggering an Israeli media meltdown. Meanwhile, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have taken out a series of US assets and began firing new-generation electro-optical missiles at American warships. In this episode of the Target Stream, Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh breaks down the latest developments in West Asia’s regional war, walking the audience through battle footage and evidence of major strategic breakthroughs for the Iranian led-Axis of Resistance. Major blows are being dealt to the US-led imperialist power structure, undermining the decades old illusion of US military invincibility. Earlier this week, in a period of just over twenty-four hours, the Yemeni Armed Forces managed to capture the towns of Hays and al-Khawkhah, before marching on the strategic port city of Mokha. The forces backed by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, having pledged just days earlier to advance upon the Yemeni Capital of Sanaa, experienced a dramatic collapse of their frontlines. The successful advance, which ended up resulting in the liberation of the entire coastline and key islands, including Mayoun Island in the Bab al-Mandab Strait, now places the Ansarallah-led government forces in control of territory that grants them authority over an important international trade passage. In reaction to this, the Israeli media have threatened that the consequences of the ground progress made by Yemen’s Army may prove more devastating to them than Iran’s authority of the Strait of Hormuz. On Tuesday night, the US decided to carry out strikes that disabled five Iranian oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. Almost immediately, the IRGC began carrying out retaliatory missile strikes from its ballistic missile bases across Iranian territory. At least 40 missiles appear to have been fired towards US military bases in Jordan. The Jordanian military announced that it had shot down 18 of 20 missiles fired towards its territory, with the two other missiles having landed in “open areas”. As we show on this Thursday’s edition of The Target, the video evidence reveals this to be patently false. Furthermore, evidence emerged to suggest at least 5 US Blackhawk Helicopters were damaged and evacuated from the Muwaffaq al-Salti Base. Later came a report from CBS, citing unnamed officials, who revealed that the Iranian strikes had damaged at least 8 F-15 fighter jets and one A-10 Thunderbolt II, with no mention of the helicopters in the article. As we look into on the show, the US media have admitted that Iran’s IRGC have also started to use their advanced Qassem Bassir missiles to strike American warships, a munition that uses cameras and thermal sensors to accurately locate its target. Tehran claimed to have damaged two US Destroyers this way, a charge that US Central Command has since denied. What has become undeniable is the Iranian capture of the Dive LD unmanned submarine, which Washington fears is now being reverse engineered. Robert Inlakesh also addresses the context behind a new expose published by Israeli daily Haaretz, accusing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of refusing to pass on threat warnings communicated to him by the Emirati leadership. The post Iran’s Electro-Optical Missiles Take Out F-15s Warships Yemen Offensive Shocks Israel appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarallah, Iran, Israel, Jordan, MintPress News, Robert Inlakesh, United States, US-Israel War on Iran, West Asia, Yemen]

— Iran Targets US Warships With New Precision Munitions As Shock Offensive Rocks The ‘Greater Israel’

 

at 9/9/26 8:46am

Iran launches newly acquired precision missiles towards US warships in the Persian Gulf as the Trump administrations ‘Economic D-Day’ backfires tremendously. In this Monday’s episode of The Target Stream Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh takes a look at the latest developments reshaping the US-Israeli war on the Islamic Republic. Tel Aviv has raised its level of alert anticipating a potential surprise attack during the Jewish holiday period of Yom Kippur, fearing that Tehran may have in store a major multi-front offensive in the coming month. Whether the fears of a large-scale missile attack are based upon dependable intelligence or not, the Israelis have decided to escalate the war on neighbouring Lebanon regardless. The Israeli army recently claimed that it had secured full “operational control” over the strategically important Ali Al-Taher Hills area in southern Lebanon, without providing any proof that such control has in fact been established. Seemingly contradicting their claims, they have continued to launch hundreds of strikes against the Ali Al-Taher hills and its surrounding area, which is of military value due to its position overlooking southern Lebanon’s Nabatieh governorate. An advance of this magnitude, which includes an attempt to dismantle a known missile base there, constitutes yet another flagrant violation of the shaky Lebanon ceasefire. Meanwhile, Hezbollah has occasionally launched drone operations against Israeli soldiers and military vehicles, while holding itself back from reviving its daily operations against the occupying army. On this edition of the stream we also look at the decision taken by the Ansarallah-led Yemeni government to launch new offensive actions to capture strategic locations towards the south of the country. The offensive led to major breakthroughs, including the encircling of the city of Taiz. In reaction, Saudi-proxy forces unsuccessfully launched their own counter-offensives in a bid to capture new territory in the province of al-Jawf and towards the city of Bayda. Inlakesh also analyses the latest battle footage from Yemen, including new video documentation of the Yemeni Armed Forces using anti-personnel munitions dropped from Quadcopter drones and precision missile strikes, one of which eliminated an entire convoy of trucks carrying munitions. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) also released footage of its missile strikes against US targets and for the first time drone strike documentation against tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. All of this contributes to the continued spike in oil prices, which US President Donald Trump has continually stated will begin falling. Another issue addressed at length in the newest edition of The Target is the viral debate ongoing with Streamer Sneako, on whose show a number of guests have argued that former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is responsible for more civilian deaths than Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. We look at what the figures actually show and why so many people are engaged in spreading disinformation that works to undermine the Gaza genocide. The post Iran Targets US Warships With New Precision Munitions As Shock Offensive Rocks The ‘Greater Israel’ appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Greater Israel, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, MintPress News, Robert Inlakesh, United States, Yemen]

— “Beyond Critical” US-Israeli Munitions Depletion Revealed As Iran’s Response To D-Day Begins

 

at 8/28/26 1:15pm

US President Donald Trump’s ‘Economic D-Day’ is following home as the daunting reality of America’s dwindling Strategic Petroleum Reserves becomes inescapable. In this episode of The Target, Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh explores the latest revelations to emerge regarding “beyond critical” shortages in air key munitions. The damage inflicted to US military and intelligence sites by Iranian strikes has been far more extensive than we were previously led to believe. Over the months the extent of the damage has become clearer, as satellite imagery and independent investigations uncover extensive damage to 20 US bases across West Asia, many of them having been completely destroyed or rendered inoperable. Now the statistics are beginning to pour in. The CIA and other US spy agencies have confirmed that their sites were struck, amounting to billions of dollars in damage to American intelligence facilities and equipment. Prior to this, only Iran had claimed these strikes, without any verification from the other side. What this demonstrates is that Iran’s munitions are not only accurate, but so is their intelligence on US targets. Then came the bombshell story this Thursday morning, as a US defence official alongside an NATO official both divulged to the Associated Press that there is a “beyond critical” shortage in Patriot air defence munitions. Such a shortage could mean that US and other NATO targets will be left wide open in the event of potential Russian strikes. The reason for the shortage in the MIM-104 Patriot missiles is the war on Iran, which has weakened the security of the US and its allies. This, when combined with the fact that some 80% of US THAAD air defence munitions have already been used, along with a large portion of the military’s long-range standoff munitions, represents a disaster that limits US military power. In this Thursday’s edition of The Target, we also look at the battle-front in Yemen and the recent downing of Saudi reconnaissance aircraft, along with the latest evidence of damage inflicted to Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities in Jazan. The Lebanon so-called ceasefire is also breaking down after the Israeli occupying army declared its agreement with Beirut to begin operating controversial “pilot zones” in south Lebanon has failed, choosing instead to raise its level of alert and begin ramping up its air campaign, inflicting a number of civilian casualties in the process. Palestine Action has also been declared by the Trump administration to be a “terrorist organisation”, just days apart from the decision to remove Syria from the ‘State Sponsors of Terrorism’ list. An interesting move considering the new Syrian leadership and its party Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, are a rebrand of Syria’s Al-Qaeda wing Jabhat al-Nusra. According to Donald Trump, Al-Qaeda is permissible, but a group of activists who seek to shut down Israeli weapons factories in the United Kingdom go a step too far. The post “Beyond Critical” US-Israeli Munitions Depletion Revealed As Iran’s Response To D-Day Begins appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarallah, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, United States, USMunitionsShortage, Yemen]

— Trump’s Alt-Right Pro-Israel Strategist Behind Palestine Action Ban is former British Intelligence

 

at 8/28/26 12:57pm

The U.S.’ designation of U.K.-based activist collective Palestine Action as a global terrorist group is part of a wider project, concocted by far-right pro-Israel strategist Sebastian Gorka, to criminalize left-wing or pro-Palestine dissent against Trump’s rule. MintPress exposes this plan.  The Man Behind It All The Trump administration announced Wednesday that it was placing Palestine Action on its list of global terrorist groups, as part of what it called a “broader U.S. government effort to address the threat of transnational far-left terrorism.” The designation is one of the first clear signs that the Trump administration is making good on its promise to reorient its domestic and international strategy towards clamping down on what Secretary of State Marco Rubio described as “far-left terror” groups. The policy shift was summed up in an ominous 16-page White House document published in May, titled “United States Counterterrorism Strategy.” The policy document was reportedly written by Trump’s counter-terrorism czar, Sebastian Gorka, who stated he was pouring his “life’s work” into making it a “blueprint” for American strategy.  “Currently,” the document claims, “we face three major types of terror groups: narcoterrorists and transnational gangs, legacy Islamist terrorists, [and] violent left-wing extremists, including anarchists and anti-fascists.” It is, however, the third group that the report appears most concerned with, noting that, “we recognize that a new type of domestic terrorism has emerged, driven by violent extremists who have adopted ideologies antithetical to freedom and the American way of life.” “Our national CT [counterterrorism] activities,” it concludes, will “prioritize the rapid identification and neutralization of violent secular political groups whose ideology is anti-American, radically pro-transgender, and anarchist.” A former British military intelligence operative, the London-born Gorka has built a wide following among the global alt-right community. He was a controversial pick for Trump’s team, even in conservative circles. Described in Esquire magazine as the most “ridiculous” character in an “endless parade of whackadoos, smackbrains, rockheads, fanatics, lunatics, and general shit-for-brains” following Trump, he has openly flirted with fascism and Nazism, and is considered among the most hardline Islamophobes in the administration.  He was previously fired from his position in the FBI because of his extreme anti-Muslim rhetoric. Yet this sort of speech is creeping its way into official counterterrorism policy when the White House document advises that Europe can only remain strong if it has “honest conversations about Islamism.” It also states that their priority is to track and crush the supposed “new and evolving alliances between the far-left and Islamists, i.e., the ‘Red-Green’ alliance.” For the White House, Palestine Action, which blends leftism and pro-Palestine agitation, fits this niche perfectly. Founded in 2020, Palestine Action is a direct action group that attempts to end global complicity in Israeli war crimes by taking direct action against Israeli weapons plants operating in the United Kingdom, occupying their factories and destroying their machinery and inventory. They have proven highly effective, costing Israeli manufacturer, Elbit Systems billions of dollars in damages and lost contracts.  At times, the White House document reads like a far-right manifesto, and even claims that Christians are “the most persecuted people on Earth.”  Like many in Trump’s inner circle, Gorka made a name for himself not as an administrator, but as a media anchor, becoming a popular pro-Trump radio host. This has led to many suggesting he is dangerously underqualified for his position, including his former PhD advisor who stated that he would not consider Gorka an expert in terrorism.  His appointment as deputy assistant to the President of the United States was therefore quite the surprise, not least to Gorka himself, who, just a few years previously, was in the political wilderness, selling fish oil pills to make ends meet.  A deeply Christian man, he is among Israel’s loudest and most passionate advocates in Washington D.C. He has strongly supported its post-October 7 assault on Gaza, and had previously condemned liberal American Jews for their supposed insufficient loyalty towards the Jewish State. On Iran, he is a hardliner, strongly supporting Trump’s campaign against Tehran, and describing, in his typical style, critics of the war as “testicularly challenged” individuals who take a “low-T approach to threats to the United States.”   It is hardly surprising, therefore, that an administration spearheaded by him would take a very dim view of Palestine Action.  Part of a Wider Plan This summer, the Trump/Rubio State Department has attempted to concoct links between leftist activists on the one hand, and Latin American narcoterrorists and Islamic terrorists on the other. It recently claimed that the George Floyd Protests were secretly driven by a covert Cuban influence campaign, and that American Antifa collectives are connected to Hamas and Iran’s IRGC.  Gorka’s document has been widely interpreted as the administration’s blueprint and legal justification for a crackdown on civil liberties and political opponents, and curtailing the right to oppose Trump’s rule.  Quite apart from the numerous spelling and grammatical errors, there are a number of serious flaws with the thesis. Firstly, the only example of “far-left terrorism” it cites is the assassination of Charlie Kirk by “a radical who espoused extreme transgender ideologies.” But the alleged attacker came from a Utah Republican family and was fascinated by Hitler, Nazism, and Christian nationalism. Thus, his motives and ideology were mixed, at best.  Moreover, left-wing terror in the United States pales into comparison to that of the right-wing attacks, the leading cause of political deaths. The White House, however, is completely uninterested in pursuing those cases, and does not mention the violence from the political right at all, possibly because it draws its most militant support from precisely those ranks.  An Extraordinary Ban Palestine Action is now sanctioned and will be treated as akin to organizations like ISIS and Al-Qaeda. “Far-left extremists, their fronts, and their enablers should be on notice: We will bring the full weight of our economic tools to bear,” said Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent; “Political terrorism has no place in our society, and we will continue to cut the financial lifelines of these groups until they are eliminated.” The group, which describes itself as a “direct action movement committed to ending global complicity with Israel’s genocidal apartheid regime” was controversially placed on the United Kingdom’s terrorist list last year (possibly due to pressure from President Trump himself). The designation is currently being debated in the U.K.’s Supreme Court as in February, the High Court ruled that the prescription was unlawful and a breach of the European Convention on Human Rights.  Why a small British group would be considered a threat to the United States was explained in an official press release that noted: “Palestine Action has promoted its violent, criminal, and terrorist acts on social media, encouraging the use of similar tactics internationally, including within the United States and along the U.S.-Mexican border.”  The organization gained notoriety for its direct action technique of occupying military bases and Israeli-owned weapons plants in the U.K. and damaging the machinery in order to disrupt the flow of arms to Israel. The group’s co-founder, Huda Ammori, was horrified by the designation. “As a Palestinian and Iraqi, the fact the country which destroyed both my homelands is calling me a terrorist, is beyond hypocritical. Trump is the antithesis to everything Palestine Action stands for,” she wrote on Twitter.  Destroying Democracy For Israel The Trump administration’s actions builds on the United Kingdom’s decision last year to ban Palestine Action and designate it a terror group. Since then, it has imprisoned members and arrested over 3,000 individuals for supporting the group. An inordinate number of these arrests have been of retirees. Images of an 83-year-old priest and a blind, wheelchair-bound 63-year-old man behind led away by police, merely for holding signs, have gone viral around the world. Those convicted of supporting Palestine Action face up to 14 years in prison under the new laws.  The U.K.’s actions have drawn sharp criticism from human rights groups like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, the latter of whom wrote that, “by equating direct action protest with terrorism, the government is treating dissent as a security threat.” Successive British governments have had to deal with enormous pro-Palestine demonstrations. In both November 2023 and March 2026, an estimated one million people marched on the streets of London to support Palestinian liberation.  There is some evidence that the U.K.’s decision to treat Palestine Action so harshly was influenced by Donald Trump personally. After the group vandalized the Trump Turnberry golf course in Scotland, Trump phoned Prime Minister Keir Starmer to discuss a response. Trump also publicly called for a “harsh” response to the “terrorists” who did “serious damage” to his property, directly echoing the specific wording of the Terrorism Act – a fact that Declassified UK suggested may have been a deliberate attempt to justify the upcoming ruling.  Today, it was announced that the group’s action spray-painting the walls of the Turnberry clubhouse would be treated by police as an “act of terrorism,” with Ammori herself wondering aloud if Trump’s anger was the reason for its proscription.  Cracking Down on Dissent in America In the wake of the genocidal Israeli assault of Gaza, universities across the United States saw unprecedented waves of strikes, protests, demonstrations. College campuses across 45 of the 50 states saw major actions, with at least 10% of all college students in the United States estimated to have participated in the overwhelmingly peaceful action.  The response from authorities was overwhelming: thousands were arrested, charged, fined, lost their degrees, or even deported. A MintPress News investigation found that Israeli and pro-Israel billionaire benefactors of the universities were pressuring the institutions to crack heads.  Trump has cracked down on a wide range of dissent across America, identifying groups such as Antifa, pro-abortion rights network, Jane’s Revenge, and those opposing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), U.S. Border Patrol, and the construction of the giant “Cop City” training center in Georgia as dangerous extremists who must be suppressed.  His administration is also expecting massive, nationwide anti-A.I. riots in the coming years, as the technology destroys communities and industries. Ironically, as another MintPress News investigation found, the government is using A.I. to create a massive security dragnet in order to identify potential hotspots and troublemakers before they happen.  The Trump administration’s labeling of Palestine Action as a terror group, then, should be seen in the wider context of a far-right administration intent on criminalizing protest, opposition, and organizing against its increasingly authoritarian rule. Counterterrorism czar Sebastian Gorka has found a willing ally in Trump. And given that both major parties remain committed to supporting Israel’s expansionist aims, there will be little official pushback to the designation. With an emboldened Trump and an increasingly disjointed economy offering Americans very little, it is likely that we will see more actions such as this one. Palestine Action will likely not be the last group added to the growing list. The post Trump’s Alt-Right Pro-Israel Strategist Behind Palestine Action Ban is former British Intelligence appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Front Page: National, Investigations, Nation, National, News, Top Story, Alt-Right Christians, Israel, Israel Lobby, Palestine Action, Sebastian Gorka, Trump]

— Israel Tangled In Spiderweb As Army Braces For West Bank Explosion – Iran War Blunts Expansion

 

at 8/25/26 1:35pm

Israeli Commanders warn their political leadership of a pending explosion in the occupied West Bank, while the United States unleashes a new economic offensive in a desperate attempt to pressure the Iranians to open to Strait of Hormuz. In the latest episode of The Target Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh breaks down why the regional escalation spells strategic disaster for Tel Aviv and Washington. US President Donald Trump has announced the beginning of ‘Operation Economic Outcast’, yet another sanctions campaign aimed explicitly at bringing about “regime collapse” inside Iran, as US strategic petroleum reserves drop to their lowest level since 1982. Iran, meanwhile, has been putting the finishing touches on its Qom missile base, set to be the largest in the country, and rejected proposals to renew negotiations with the US government. The United States only has 41 days of its strategic oil reserves left, meaning that it will have to start taking some extreme measures in order to try and solve the Strait of Hormuz crisis. Roughly 25% of the global supply is still offline. If you think that oil prices are bad now, they are about to get a lot worse. Something that no number of delusional claims from the White House that the Strait is open and is owned by Washington, will be capable of getting around. Yemen’s Armed Forces have also sent a strong message to Saudi Arabia over their continued support for proxy militias inside the country. On Monday, the spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces, Yahya Saree, announced that they hit a Saudi mega-tanker with a series of ballistic missiles, destroying it off the coast of the Saudi port city of Yanbu. Ansarallah also published 10-minutes of drone footage, showing their forces obliterating enemy troop gatherings and military vehicles with unguided bombs dropped from quadcopters. The footage reveals a high level of training amongst the Yemeni forces, who managed to successfully take out tanks, excavators, enemy hide-outs and more, with shocking precision. The blockade is now tightening the noose around Riyadh, while a decision to escalate will only result in further ballistic missile and drone strikes on their oil infrastructure. In this episode, Robert Inlakesh runs through the history of the Palestinian resistance factions in the occupied West Bank, in particular the groups such as the Lions Den and Jenin Brigades that emerged after the May 2021 unity uprising and where they are today. We look at why they were not able to seize the moment following October 7, 2023, and the predicament of the occupied population of the territory. Israeli Generals have also sounded the alarm bell over a potential widespread escalation inside the West Bank, something they attribute to ever growing settler violence. Yet it is the Israeli army itself that is part of this problem, in this Monday’s stream the settler state within a state that is emerging is exposed, along with the weaknesses of the armed forces of Israel and why their defeat has become inevitable. The post Israel Tangled In Spiderweb As Army Braces For West Bank Explosion Iran War Blunts Expansion appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarallah, Hezbollah, Iran, Israel, Lebanon, Palestine, United States, West Bank]

— From Lionel Messi, Kanye West to Taylor Swift: Celebrities are “Protected” By Israeli Security Teams

 

at 8/21/26 10:45am

From Taylor Swift and Kim Kardashian to Jennifer Aniston and Lionel Messi, celebrities across the world are hiring teams of Israeli bodyguards made up of former Shin Bet, Mossad, and Israeli special forces.  But how safe is it to entrust your life and most intimate details to agents from spying agencies with a long track record of infiltrating, surveiling, and blackmailing foreign targets?  MintPress explores how Israeli security took over Hollywood and the world.  In High Demand Israeli Secret Service agents do not die or fade away, writes The New York Post. Instead, they move to Hollywood. The Tel Aviv-to-Tinsel Town pipeline has been well established over decades, and there are now a myriad of Israeli security agencies, both in Los Angeles and across the world, guarding many of the planet’s richest, most famous, and influential figures.  Inter Miami soccer superstar Lionel Messi – who, in 2020 became the face of an Israeli A.I. company staffed by Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) spies –  is accompanied by an select force of former Israeli agents everywhere he goes.  Hollywood royalty Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston are known to have relied on the services of Israeli security, as have pop stars, Madonna, Pink, and Jennifer Lopez.  Actress Lucy Liu, meanwhile, is followed around everywhere by a troupe of Israeli minders.  And Canadian singer Justin Bieber’s relationship with Israeli security came to public attention in 2013, after he allegedly beat up his ex-IDF handler Moshe Benabou, the CEO of Israguard Security Services.  In short, Israeli bodyguards are highly sought after. “There’s demand around the world, and rightly so. Israeli security is like Coca-Cola,” said Roman Tukh, the co-founder of Guise Security, “You don’t have to advertise yourself – you have a name. The question is whether you manage to maintain it or not. That’s why it’s easier for us as Israelis.” Bodyguards do not come cheap. The services Tukh and others like him provide cost between $125 and $1,500 per hour, depending on the level of security needed.  Two other famous names well acquainted with Israeli security dispatches are Bill Maher and Charlie Kirk. In a 2025 conversation, the former revealed that he spent his entire European vacation “wedged between these two giant Israeli bodyguards the whole way.” “When I went to Europe in 2015, I had like two Israeli bodyguards and my security person,” he told the conservative influencer. “If you want security, the Israelis know what they are doing,” Kirk responded, knowingly.  Maher edited this conversation out of the video he released to the public. It only exists as a reaction video on Kirk’s official channel, which appears to be unmaintained since his death. Only a few months later, Kirk would be publicly assassinated. His death, and his precise relationship with Israel and Israeli security, has triggered all manner of speculation online. Stars and Spies One of the pioneers of the pipeline was Moshe Alon. A former longtime IDF officer and Israeli Secret Service veteran, Alon came to the United States in 1984 as head of the security team protecting Israeli athletes at the Los Angeles Summer Olympics.  He never left, setting up Professional Security Consultants (PSC) the next year and bringing over large numbers of former colleagues to protect Hollywood royalty. Today, PSC is licensed in over 40 states and employs more than 4,000 people across the country, and Alon himself provided security for Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Caine, Armand Hammer, and Goldie Hawn.  Many bodyguards come from top-tier units in the Israeli military or national security state that have carried out major war crimes in Gaza and beyond. Yet these allegiances are not seen in the U.S. as a mark against them, but rather a selling point.  Kfir Goldin, director of Safe Security and bodyguard to Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra, boasts of his past as a member of the elite IDF unit, the Givati Brigade. The Givati Brigade is known for its mass bulldozing and torching of civilian Palestinian homes. “In every place where [our] soldiers walk, the place turns into scorched earth,” declared Givati commander, Avraham Zeriviv. Meanwhile, before he was a bodyguard to the stars, Lior Raz served in the notorious Duvdevan Unit of the IDF, an elite group of spies who live deep undercover in Arab communities, secretly spying on them. Raz moved to the U.S. and became the personal bodyguard of Arnold Schwarzenegger and Maria Shriver. He later created “Fauda,” a TV series glamorizing the lives and work of Duvdevan operatives.  “Israel is branded around the world as a counterterrorism success, so that catches on overseas. The question is what happens in practice, what’s the product you get. Duvdevan is something that people flaunt because of ‘Fauda,’” said Yechiel Salomon, an Israeli Special Forces veteran whose company, BHS Security, protects the likes of Helen Mirren, Michael Douglas, and Catherine Zeta-Jones. “People want bodyguards ‘like in “Fauda.”’ It’s great marketing,” he added. Another Duvdevan operative turned bodyguard to the stars is Aaron Cohen. Born in Canada, Cohen made Aliyah at 17-years-old and served for three years in the Duvdevan, where he learned Arabic and participated in over 200 missions infiltrating Arab communities.  Coming from a screenwriting family, he moved to Los Angeles and founded IMS Security Consultants, and provided security for a host of stars, including Britney Spears, Katy Perry, and Brad Pitt.  And after she was robbed at gunpoint in 2016, Kanye West tasked Cohen with revamping his then-wife Kim Kardashian’s security. Given West’s political trajectory, it is remarkable that, less than 10 years ago, he was paying an armed former Israeli spy to follow his every move, entrusting his life to him.  But one does not have to descend to Ye’s level of paranoia to raise serious concerns about the problematic relationship between Israeli spies and the world’s celebrity elite.  The Duvdevan is an elite Israeli spying force who are charged with going deep undercover in enemy territory for years, passing themselves off as friends or as one of their targets. All the while, they are secretly collecting information and data on these marks, in order to control, extort, blackmail, or even kill them. Why any celebrity would want an individual such as this near them – especially a foreign national from a country known for their international espionage operations – is an open question.  National Security Threat It is often said that one never truly retires from the spying business. Cohen’s case is of particular note, as he called his security firm “Cherries” – the English translation of the Hebrew word, duvdevan.  Is it unfair to ask to whom – state or celebrity – these former Israeli commandos owe their allegiance? This question was put into sharp relief in 2023, when, after the October 7 attacks, a spate of high-profile security guards quit their American jobs to rejoin their units.  The most notable of these was Taylor Swift’s bodyguard, who discussed his reasons for rejoining his IDF unit with local outlet, Israel Hayom. “I have a pretty great life in America, a dream job, great friends and a comfortable home. I didnt have to come here, but I couldnt stand by while families were slaughtered and burned alive in their homes… I couldnt stand by and do nothing,” he said.  Another example is Oded Krashinsky, the founder of Advanced Security Concepts and Nicole Kidman’s personal bodyguard. Krashinsky previously served for many years as an officer in an unnamed IDF Secret Service operations unit. In 2023, he dropped everything to fight for Israel. “I came here to help my unit. The morale is tense. The main threat is invasion — we have to deflect it, fight it, and protect against it,” he said, “I am who I am because I came from here. At the end of the day, it’s about experience, decision-making, tactics, and leadership — that’s what I felt I could bring and that’s what I do now.”  The individuals and companies Hollywood stars trust with their lives and their most intimate secrets come from some of the same organizations infamous for creating and spreading malware and spyware targeting tens of thousands of notable figures, including political leaders, journalists, and royals. Former agents of elite IDF group, Unit 8200, launched Pegasus, software that attacked the devices of heads of state, giving the Israeli government intimate knowledge of the ongoings of both their enemies and their allies. Known victims include President Emmanuel Macron of France, Prime Minister Imran Khan of Pakistan, and Iraqi president, Barham Salih.  Authoritarian governments around the world used Pegasus to suppress their enemies. Indian prime minister Narendra Modi used the software to dig up dirt on his personal opponents. Meanwhile, the government of Saudi Arabia targeted Washington Post journalist Jamal Khashoggi before dismembering him with a bone saw.  IDF spooks also spy on Palestinian Arab populations, reading their texts and listening to their calls for the purposes of blackmail and extortion. If a target was found to be homosexual or cheating on their spouse, that information would be used against them. One IDF whistleblower revealed that, as part of their training, they were assigned to memorize different Arabic words for “gay” so that they could listen out for them in conversations.  Hollywood itself, though, has been bastion of support for Israel. A MintPress News investigation based on leaked emails published by Wikileaks found top movie producers coordinating with Israeli government and military officials on how best to promote the country in the United States and how to stamp out pro-Palestinian voices within the industry.  Therefore, it should hardly come as a shock that many in Tinseltown see little problem in hiring former Israeli operatives to provide security services. Perhaps more surprising, however, is the amount of ex-secret agents from a foreign country the United States allows to live and operate within its own borders.  If this were any other country, it would doubtless be considered a massive security risk. Given how quickly the United States and Israel are beginning to merge, however – the House of Representatives just passed a $1.5 trillion bill integrating the two countries’ militaries – it is likely that we will see more of the same in the future.  That individual celebrities do not see the risk in entrusting their most intimate security to foreign nationals from agencies infamous for undercover surveillance and extortion of high-value targets, is deeply concerning.  Taylor Swift and Kim Kardashian: you have been warned.   Alan Macleod Alan MacLeod is Senior Staff Writer for MintPress News. He completed his PhD in 2017 and has since authored two acclaimed books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent, as well as a number of academic articles. He has also contributed to FAIR.org, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, and Common Dreams. Follow Alan on Twitter for more of his work and commentary: @AlanRMacLeod. The post From Lionel Messi, Kanye West to Taylor Swift: Celebrities are “Protected” By Israeli Security Teams appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Editors Picks, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Front Page: National, Investigations, National, Top Story, Charlie Kirk, israeli military, Israeli security services, Kanye West, mosaad, Moshe Alon, Pegasus, shin bit, UNIT 8200]

— Hezbollah Take Out 3 Israeli Elite Soldiers As Iran Issues Final Ultimatum

 

at 8/19/26 10:10am

Hezbollah have blunted yet another Israeli attempt to seize the strategic Ali al-Taher Hills in southern Lebanon, falling into a costly ambush – meanwhile, Iran issues a threat that it will not stand idly by and could soon escalate unless the US backs down over the Strait of Hormuz. Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh explores the escalation in the latest episode of The Target livestream. Over the weekend, the Israeli military decided to disregard the ceasefire agreement they had signed with Lebanon and instead moved to occupy more land in the south of the country. A special forces unit was deployed to lead the charge towards the strategically important Ali Al-Taher Hills, but were caught in an embarrassing ambush inflicting casualties amongst their ranks. Israel attempted to cover up its failure by claiming Hezbollah fired on them for no reason and that they then responded by targeting a military site. At least 11 Lebanese were killed and dozens of others were wounded in a series of deadly raids carried out around the Nabatieh Municipality, many of whom were women and children. The Israeli occupying forces have failed in around half a dozen attempted advances, to seize the area, where there is believed to be a significant Hezbollah military facility. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)’s Navy also reportedly seized an Emirati tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, intercepting it near Qeshm Island, representing a significant escalation and sending the price of Brent Crude (oil) Futures past $90 per barrel. This, as US President Donald Trump continues to claim both that the Strait open and that his naval blockade is effective, doubling down on earlier comments that he seeks to make the area officially part of American territory. Yemen’s Ansarallah-led government forces have also continued to hit positions belonging to their Saudi-backed opposition, while retaliating to Riyadh’s violation of Yemeni airspace with more UAV strikes on oil facilities in Jazan. The Yemeni Armed Forces have also advanced and captured more towns located near the coastal Port city of Mukha, a strategic location which has come under constant fire and where multiple cargo vessels were destroyed. Clashes between the Ansarallah-led forces and Saudi-backed militants have persisted near Taiz, Mukha and Marib, with heavily casualties inflicted. In this Monday’s edition of The Target, we also look at the US led campaign to disarm all of Iran’s allies, where it came from and why these moves are all happening in sync with one another, exploring the roles of regional actors in the regional war that is still raging on; albeit at a slower pace than it currently was. US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner has also been holding talks with his Israeli counter-parts, in pursuit of disarming the Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip, disingenuously claiming to have a reconstruction plan and holding the population of the territory hostage as Israel seeks to take away their ability to even fight back against ethnic cleansing. The Target’s Monday show brings you all of the latest in the battlefield developments, while providing the historical context which is, more often than not, missing from coverage elsewhere. The post Hezbollah Take Out 3 Israeli Elite Soldiers As Iran Issues Final Ultimatum appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarrallah, Emirati Tanker, Gaza Strip, Iran, IRGC, Israel, Lebanon, Palestine, Saudi Arabia, straight of hormuz, Yemen]

— US Meddling In Brazilian Elections, Preparing For Possible Military Intervention

 

at 8/18/26 10:29am

The United States is interfering in the Brazilian presidential elections, pressuring the Brazilian electorate into voting for right-wing candidate Flavio Bolsonaro, the son of disgraced former president, Jair Bolsonaro. If that does not work and President Lula da Silva secures a fourth term in office, the groundwork is already being laid for a potential military intervention. From sanctions and economic warfare, to coaching influencers and journalists on how best to attack the left-wing government, the Trump administration is doing everything it can to overthrow Lula.  Meanwhile, the State Department’s recent decision to designate Brazilian gangs as “foreign terrorist organizations” just as it did with Venezuela’s Tren de Aragua, signals a willingness to intervene militarily.  Brazil is Trump’s next target, and builds upon recent U.S. and Israeli interference in May’s Colombian elections, where pro-Trump candidate Abelardo de la Espriella won a razor-thin victory.  MintPress examines the Trump administration’s attempts to undermine Brazilian democracy and install another Bolsonaro back into power.    A Thumb on The Scale Brazil’s October elections are rapidly approaching, and while thirteen people are standing for president, two principal candidates have already emerged: current left-of-center president Lula da Silva, and far-right challenger, Flavio Bolsonaro. Flavio is the son of disgraced former president, Jair (sentenced to 27 years in prison for leading a January 6th-inspired coup attempt), and the brother of Eduardo (convicted in absentia for lobbying the United States to intervene in his father’s trial).  It is obvious which candidate Washington prefers. The Bolsonaro’s are politically, ideologically, and personally very close to the MAGA movement, and Flavio has already promised that, if elected, his country will become one of the U.S.’ closest allies. Lula currently holds a double-digit lead on Bolsonaro (40% to 28%, with no other candidate holding more than 10% of the public’s voting intentions). But Brazilian politics can change very quickly; in 2018, Lula held a 20-point lead over Jair Bolsonaro when the Brazilian Supreme Court blocked him from running. He was imprisoned on bogus charges in a case orchestrated by the U.S. government, leaving the path clear for Bolsonaro’s victory.  Lula has sounded the alarm that Brazilian democracy is once again under threat from Washington. “As far as I’m concerned, [Trump] can continue liking Bolsonaro, the father, the son, the grandson… There is no problem with that. It’s his problem. There’s no accounting for taste,” he said. “Now, don’t meddle in the Brazilian elections, because the Brazilian elections are a Brazilian problem, just as American elections are their business, not mine,” he added: “All I want is the same respect for Brazil that I have for the United States. That’s it.” Washington, however, has other ideas. On May 26, Flavio Bolsonaro traveled to Washington to meet with Trump, Vice President J.D. Vance, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to sell them on the concept of military intervention in Brazil. Two days later, the U.S. State Department designated two Brazilian gangs, Comando Vermelho and Primeiro Comando da Capital, as “Specially Designated Global Terrorists” and “Foreign Terrorist Organizations, a decision that Brian Mier, an American journalist who moved to Brazil in 1991 and is now Brazil correspondent for TeleSur English, described as “a preemptive move to possibly invade if Lula wins reelection.”  In 2025, the State Department did the same with Venezuelan gang, Tren de Aragua. Just months later, the U.S. carried out an operation to kidnap President Nicolás Maduro, decapitating the Venezuelan government.    Free Speech or Hate Speech? Mier noted that the United States government is also actively coaching Brazilian influencers in methods and techniques to best attack Lula and the government. Earlier this year, it was revealed that the U.S. Consulate in São Paulo held a series of workshops with selected prominent right-wing figures.  One of these is influencer Maria Fernanda Schmidt, who confirmed the validity of the reporting by posting a set of pictures of the event on her Instagram. “It was an excellent opportunity to share with diplomats the challenges faced by influencers, journalists, and content producers in the digital environment, in an enriching dialogue about the direction of freedom of expression in Brazil,” she wrote.  The U.S. Consulate has also arranged for visas and trips to the United States for local journalists. The objective was to entice them into attacking Lula and promoting Bolsonaro’s candidacy by promoting the U.S.-backed line that freedom of speech and freedom of expression is under attack in Brazil, thanks to Lula’s government.  This idea is based largely on a 2024 spat between Brazilian authorities and U.S. billionaire Elon Musk. Musk refused to comply with a Brazilian court order to delete far-right accounts on Twitter (now officially called X) that broke the country’s hate speech and misinformation laws. Musk, a champion of far-right politics himself, and someone who has openly used his platforms to promote regime change around the world, refused to do so, leading to X’s temporary shutdown across Brazil.  “Powerful actors in the Trump administration and Republican Party as well as Silicon Valley tech allies and pundits who make up part of the integral U.S. state (Steve Bannon, Elon Musk, Peter Thiel, Michael Shellenberger, etc.) have been working closely with the Bolsonaro family since Jair Bolsonaro first ran for President in 2018,” Mier told MintPress.  Its no secret that the Brazilian right-wing are deeply influenced by the MAGA movement. Indeed, Brazil even had its own January 6 moment – on January 8, 2023. After he lost the 2022 presidential election to Lula, Flavio’s father, Jair Bolsonaro took to the airwaves denouncing the result, claiming irregularities, and calling for an insurrection. Thousands of people marched on the streets in Brasília, rioting and calling for the military to intervene.  Like the United States’ January 6, the rioters were unsuccessful. But unlike in America, Bolsonaro was held to account for his coup attempt, and was sentenced in 2025 to 27 years in prison.  There is little doubt of his guilt. During his trial, Bolsonaro admitted that he met with top Brazilian generals to discus how to hold onto power, even after losing the election.  Trump, however, was incensed by the decision. “The way that Brazil has treated former President Bolsonaro, a Highly Respected Leader throughout the World during his Term, including by the United States, is an international disgrace,” he said, demanding the immediate end of the trial. Trump placed punishing economic sanctions on Brazil, and against the country’s Supreme Court Justice, Alexandre de Moraes.  This decision was likely influenced by Jair’s son and Flavio’s brother, Eduardo, who heavily lobbied the Trump administration on his father’s behalf, demanding his country be sanctioned. Brazil considered this an attempt to pervert the course of justice, and sentenced Eduardo to four years in prison in absentia. He currently lives in a mansion in Texas and cannot return to his homeland. There, he plays a similar role to what Maria Corina Machado did in Venezuela, lobbying the U.S. to militarily intervene in his country to put his family back in power. In October, he publicly called for the U.S. military to bomb Rio de Janeiro under the guise of fighting drug trafficking.  Trump also commented on Eduardo’s trial, although he appeared to believe Eduardo is his sibling, Flavio.“ I hear they arrested somebody that’s running for office today,” Trump said in June. “ I heard that they arrested the Bolsonaro junior, who was doing well in the polls.” In fact, it is Flavio Bolsonaro who is running for president.  Economic and Diplomatic Warfare If elected, Flavio has promised the United States considerable influence inside the country, offering the Trump administration control over his transition team. This would mean, according to some, that U.S. officials would take considerable power over of Brazil’s economy and society, in a not too dissimilar way in which they controlled Iraq.  The upcoming elections between Lula and Flavio Bolsonaro are also taking place in a context in which the United States is actively trying to crash the Brazilian economy, in order to sink Lula’s chances. The United States has placed sweeping 40-50% tariffs on Brazilian goods, with more in the pipeline. These measures were quite different to the generalized tariffs placed on much of the world last year. For one, the U.S. actually maintains a healthy trade surplus with Brazil, unlike most other countries. Secondly, in his executive order, Trump explicitly stated that (emphasis added): “Should the government of Brazil take significant steps to address the national emergency declared in this order and align sufficiently with the United States on national security, economic and foreign policy matters described in this order, I may further modify this order.” The clear implication of this statement is that Brazil is being punished for being insufficiently loyal to Washington.  Diplomatic ties worsened earlier this month, after the United States revoked the visa of Brazilian Ambassador, Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti, forcing her to return home. That same day, Brazil had instructed the Argentinian ambassador to leave the country.  “The Trump administration has been closely working with [Argentinian president] Javier Milei to delegitimize left parties, leaders, and administrations across Latin America,” Mier said, noting that Milei had traveled to São Paulo in July to attend the far-right Liberal Party’s national convention, where Flavio Bolsonaro was officially chosen as the party’s presidential candidate. Milei has been extremely vocal about his wish to see Lula’s demise, attending Bolsonaro rallies and calling Lula “corrupt,” a “thief” and a “convict.” “A Gift From the CIA” Milei’s use of the word convict refers to Operation Car Wash, a U.S.-backed scheme that saw Lula imprisoned on corruption charges. Lula had been leading Jair Bolsonaro by over 20 points in the polls for the 2018 general election, but was incarcerated and forbidden from running for office, even from his prison cell.  The prosecution worked closely with Washington to ensure Lula remained behind bars and unable to contest the election, paving the way for Bolsonaro’s rise. Bolsonaro later appointed Sergio Moro, the judge that sent Lula to prison, as his justice minister.  It later transpired, however, that Moro had been coordinating the whole time with the prosecution, including chief prosecutor Deltan Dallagnol, who remarked that Lula’s arrest was “a gift from the CIA.” Shortly after his election, both Bolsonaro and Moro flew to Langley, VA, for meetings at CIA headquarters.  In Washington’s eyes, the affair was a massive success. Leslie Backschies, then-FBI liaison and later head of the bureau’s international corruption unit, boasted that her organization had “toppled presidents in Brazil.” Thus, what was sold to the Brazilian public as an “anti-corruption” crusade, was actually a prime example of modern lawfare, one, that Lula described as “having the hands of the United States on it.” The brazen corruption of the case drew widespread domestic and international outrage, with Lula becoming the world’s most well-known political prisoner. After huge public pressure, he was released from prison, and his convictions annulled. In 2022, he swept to power in an election the Bolsonaro’s worked hard to overthrow.  Life In America’s Backyard Lula is now seeking an unprecedented fourth term in office. And even though he has been a major political figure since the 1980s, he has maintained a significant level of popular support. Born into a lower working-class family, he worked as a shoeshine boy and a metalworker, losing part of his left hand in an industrial accident while still a teenager. He entered politics at a metalworkers’ union leader in 1969, under the repressive U.S.-backed fascist military dictatorship. Once in power, his party’s innovative social programs lifted tens of millions out of poverty and strengthened his support base among Brazil’s working class.  It is his international moves, however, that has led to so much outrage in Washington. Lula has regularly attempted to block or at least refused to fully support U.S. imperial ambitions in the region. But it is Brazil’s leadership of the BRICS economic bloc and its increasing cooperation with Russia and China (the “R” and “C” of the BRICS acronym) that is perhaps the key reason why Trump wants him gone.  In recent years, BRICS has moved from a nondescript economic alliance to one threatening U.S. hegemony throughout the world, principally through their contestation of the U.S. dollar as the world’s dominant reserve currency – a position that gives Washington extraordinary power and influence over global economics.  BRICS is at the forefront of de-dollarizing global trade. And that effort is being spearheaded by Brazil. Last year, the organization held a successful summit in Rio de Janeiro. The head of the BRICS Development Bank (now called the New Development Bank or NDB) is Dilma Rousseff, a key Lula ally and former president of Brazil herself. Focusing on funding large development projects in poorer countries, the NDB could become a serious challenger to the U.S.-dominated World Bank and International Monetary Fund. “Every night I ask myself why all countries have to base their trade on the dollar,” Lula said in a speech at the NDB in Shanghai, “Why can’t we do trade based on our own currencies? Who was it that decided that the dollar was the currency after the disappearance of the gold standard?” he added. “The president is pissed every time he looks at the BRICS de-dollarization effort” Trump advisor Steve Bannon revealed. Trump has stated that BRICS could “destroy the dollar,” and, if they are successful in doing so, it would be “like losing a war, a major world war; we would not be the same country any longer.” Trump implemented extra tariffs on BRICS nations, including Brazil, stating: “They have to pay 10% if they’re in BRICS. Because BRICS was set up to hurt us. BRICS was set up to degenerate our dollar, and take our dollar as the standard, take it off as the standard.” “The dollar is king, and we’re going to keep it that way,” he concluded.  When asked why is Trump so involved in the upcoming elections in Brazil, Mier responded:  “Hegemony. Brazil is arguably the last sovereign left of center government in South America, but it also has the second-largest economy after the U.S. in the Americas and is home to roughly half of the population of Latin America. In accordance with Trumps new Monroe doctrine, the US wants a completely subordinate Brazil, free of Chinese influence.” Sure enough, on Tuesday, the State Department released a statement reading: “The Monroe Doctrine has shaped U.S. foreign policy for over two centuries. American dominance in the Western Hemisphere will never be questioned again.”  First declared in 1823, the Monroe Doctrine (and subsequent corollaries) suggest that the entirety of the Americas belong to the United States alone, that no other foreign powers are welcome in the region, and that the United States can intervene militarily in any country in the hemisphere if and when it wants. Generations of academics, politicians, and pundits have downplayed the doctrine, attacking scholars who claim that this policy is still active as misguided or conspiracy theorists. But the Trump administration, with its ongoing tendency to say the quiet part out loud, has openly embraced the Monroe Doctrine and declared it official U.S. government policy.  Mier also explained what he saw as Washington’s ultimate goal for Brazil:  “Looking at the U.S. as an integral state and taking into consideration the history of the U.S. State Department as an agent of U.S. corporate interests, it is clear that the Silicon Valley tech fascists want chaos. These powerful transnational actors want a completely unregulated environment for crypto, social media brainwashing operations, A.I. and online betting.”  “This is what they are getting right now in El Salvador and Argentina,” he concluded, “and they want it in Brazil,” too. Meddling Across the Continent The Trump administration has certainly been attempting to enforce the Monroe Doctrine, and has been openly meddling in the political affairs of nations across the hemisphere. President Trump publicly gave his “complete and total endorsement” to far-right candidate (and U.S. citizen) Abelardo de la Espriella in May’s Colombian presidential elections, a contest de la Espriella narrowly won.  Outgoing president Gustavo Petro accused both the United States and Israel of interfering in the elections. Petro had been a target of Washington for some time; in December Trump said he was “next” on his list for regime change operations and that a military operation “sounds good” to him.  In response, Petro warned that “a clan of pedophiles wants to destroy democracy” in Colombia. To keep the Epstein List from coming out,” he explained, “they send warships to kill fishermen…and invade our brother country [Venezuela]… Epsteins list, his friends, they want to start violence here so that the people of the U.S. dont think about their government.”  In the end, Washington got its way without a single shot fired.  New president de la Espriella immediately moved to recognize Israel’s annexation of Syria’s Golan Heights, and announce that he would open an embassy in Jerusalem, even as his country suffered a devastating earthquake that has killed at least 265 people.  On Cuba, Trump has turned up the pressure with a new campaign of economic warfare, including putting the country on the State Sponsors of Terrorism List, shutting down remittances to the island, enacting a fuel blockade, and stopping foreign businesses trading with Cuba. As a result, the economy has nosedived. “Cuba is gonna fall pretty soon,” Trump predicted in March. A MintPress News investigation also found that the U.S. government is quietly bankrolling a host of supposedly independent media on Cuba, all of whom are laying the groundwork for a potential U.S. military operation against the Caribbean nation.  The optimism on Cuba is no doubt influenced by the success of Trump’s Venezuela coup. In January, elite U.S. forces stormed Caracas, kidnapping President Nicolás Maduro and First Lady Cilia Flores and bringing them to New York.  Trump described the attack as a successful and lucrative “48-minute war.” Since then, the U.S. has been illegally profiting off the country’s resources. Trump, however, was unrepentant: “We’re taking a lot of oil from Venezuela,” he said, adding: “To the victor belong the spoils.”  The far-right has been surging in Latin America, with victories in Peru, El Salvador, and a recent strong showing for Milei in legislative elections. The latter was thanks in part to Trump explicitly announcing that $20 billion in U.S. economic aid would only be granted if the people voted the right way. We will not “waste our time” if Milei loses, Trump warned.   Things, therefore, are looking good for the United States in Latin America. Brazil, however, stands in their way. The largest and most populous country in the region remains as a bulwark against Trumpism. While the far-right is advancing across the region, polls show that the Brazilian public still put their faith in the 80-year-old Lula and largely reject Flavio Bolsonaro.  Brazil, then, is blocking of a U.S. clean sweep of South America. With nearly two months to go until polls open, nothing about its result is written in stone. What is certain, however, is that the United States will continue to meddle and try to dominate the region Trump describes as America’s own backyard.    Alan Macleod Alan MacLeod is Senior Staff Writer for MintPress News. He completed his PhD in 2017 and has since authored two acclaimed books: Bad News From Venezuela: Twenty Years of Fake News and Misreporting and Propaganda in the Information Age: Still Manufacturing Consent, as well as a number of academic articles. He has also contributed to FAIR.org, The Guardian, Salon, The Grayzone, Jacobin Magazine, and Common Dreams. Follow Alan on Twitter for more of his work and commentary: @AlanRMacLeod. The post US Meddling In Brazilian Elections, Preparing For Possible Military Intervention appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Front Page: National, Investigations, National, News, Brazil, Brazilian elections, CIA, Flavio Bolsonaro, Jair Bolsonaro, Lula da Silva]

— Iran’s Covert Offensive Averts The Collapse Of Lebanon – US Aircraft Carriers Inbound

 

at 8/18/26 9:30am

Tehran has imposed a series of equations on the US-Israeli alliance, using covert and asymmetric warfare tactics, that may have just set in motion a series of regional shifts. In this episode of The Target stream, Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh breaks down the local and global implications of these shocking developments. US Central Command is choosing to simply ignore Iran’s ongoing drone and missile strikes, which target vessels attempting to violate the siege imposed on the Strait of Hormuz. Similarly, US-backed Kurdish-Iranian opposition groups are being subjected to round the clock strikes on their headquarters, training facilities and weapons depots, as the American military draws back and abandons its allies. Meanwhile, Yemen’s Ansarallah led Armed Forces have continued to bombard strategic targets affiliated with their Saudi-backed opposition in Yemen. Satellite imagery, which is featured in this Thursday’s episode, reveals significant damage to the Port of Mokha that is controlled by Saudi proxy forces. Riyadh has sought to flood their allies with reinforcements, particularly along Yemen’s strategic Marib front, as the Yemeni Armed Forces strike Saudi’s Jazan Oil Facilities twice within forty-eight hours. Mysterious precision drone strikes also continue to target oil related targets in north Africa. A number of drones struck Libya’s largest oil refinery in az-Zawiya, which comes a week after drones struck two petroleum storage tankers docked in Damietta, Egypt. According to Iranian-State media, Tehran sent a direct threat to Damascus, through Ankara, communicating that if Syria attacks Lebanon, Iran will intervene militarily. This may have just worked to change the calculations of the Trump administration and his allies in Tel Aviv, who were pushing for a Syrian offensive against Lebanese Hezbollah. Other major developments have also surfaced, like a major crisis aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln Aircraft Carrier. The carrier has been deployed for over 9 months and now faces a crisis in moral, a food shortage impacting 5,000 sailors and even reports of deaths and suicide attempts on board. The US Department of War has sought to replace the Aircraft Carrier with the USS George Washington, but faces domestic pushback over the embarrassing situation. Will the occupied West Bank also explode in the face of enormous strain placed upon its people? Is this simply part of Israel’s plan to ethnically cleanse the Palestinian people from their lands, or could it dramatically backfire? Each front on this ever expanding war appears to be coming towards a head, all of which the latest edition of The Target investigates. A US military in crisis, a dramatic loss of munitions and drained supply of drones are all indicators of a pending defeat for the empire. Can US President Donald Trump admit defeat and withdraw from the region with a deal, or is the Israel Lobby going to get the best of him? The post Iran’s Covert Offensive Averts The Collapse Of Lebanon US Aircraft Carriers Inbound appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Front Page: National, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarrallah, Iran, IRGC, Israel, Lebanon, Libya, Saudi Arabia, straight of hormuz, Syria, Yemen]

— Iran Eliminates US Strategic Targets As Yemen’s Shock Offensive Dismantles Israeli Scheme

 

at 8/17/26 10:01am

Yemen’s Ansarallah launches deadly precision strikes on Saudi Arabia’s proxy forces as the blockade on Saudi Ports tightens the noose on an already suffering global oil market. In the latest episode of The Target stream, Mint Press News’ Robert Inlakesh presents the evidence that is being hidden from the public of the damages inflicted on US strategic targets by Iran and how the wider war is rapidly spinning out of control. US President Donald Trump has been adamant that the Strait of Hormuz is open, issuing statements that run contrary to the reality imposed over the strategic waterway. Iranian missiles and drones have continued to take out tankers that seek to break the blockade with US naval coordination, as the American armed forces have responded by striking a vessel themselves. Meanwhile, the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has continued to fire ballistic missiles and drones at targets affiliated with US-backed forces in Iraq’s northern Erbil province. Weapons depots, training camps and headquarters for Kurdish-Iranian opposition groups based in Iraqi territory are being subjected to relentless precision strikes. US Central Command has chosen to ignore many of the strikes altogether, choosing silence over responding to a series of Iranian assaults, as Washington’s promises of opening the Strait of Hormuz as early as last Monday have passed without any result. Israel, the driving force behind the war of aggression against Iran that began on February 28, has for its part continued its aggression against Gaza and Lebanon, drawing retaliatory fire from Hezbollah. The Israeli media recently covered up an incident in which an Israeli military vehicle was subjected to a drone attack, choosing to escalate their bombing campaign and detonate the remaining civilian homes in the south of the country. Satellite imagery has also been leaked, revealing the extent of the damage inflicted by Iranian strikes carried out against US military facilities in the United Arab Emirates and Syria during the first 40-days of the war, exposing a series of clear cut cover ups. In Yemen, the Ansarallah led government’s forces have continued their offensive actions in an attempt to retake strategic areas occupied by Saudi-proxy forces, resulting in clashes that have been erupting near Taiz, Marib and other fronts. In the latest stream we look at how important the developments in Yemen are to the wider regional war and the implications that extend beyond just West Asia. Newly released footage from the Islamic Resistance Front in Syria, featuring their forces firing unguided rockets towards an Israeli military post in occupied southern Syrian territory. Robert Inlakesh also looks at the rising sectarian tensions in the country and how this could potentially boil over. Where is this all heading and what is the corporate media hiding? These questions and more are addressed in our latest edition of The Target. The post Iran Eliminates US Strategic Targets As Yemen’s Shock Offensive Dismantles Israeli Scheme appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Behind The Headlines, Daily Digest, Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, National, News, The Target, Top Story, Videos, Ansarrallah, Houthis, Iran, IRGC, Israel, Saudi Arabia, straight of hormuz, Syria, Tankers, Yemen]

— UK Government Targeting of Muslim Scholar Part of a Coordinated Campaign to Clamp Down on Pro-Palestine Solidarity

 

at 8/6/26 11:18am

Amid a deepening crackdown on Palestine solidarity in the country, a senior member of the British parliament is leading a campaign to have a popular activist and Muslim scholar arrested. Alicia Kearns, the Shadow Minister for Home Affairs has called on the U.K. Home Office to detain Sayed Hussain Makke.  Her letter accuses him of providing “sustained public support” for Hezbollah (a proscribed organization in the United Kingdom), organizing “combat training camps” for British Muslims where “radicalization is alleged to have occurred,” and relocating to southern Lebanon, the heartland of Hezbollah itself.  A spokesperson for Counter Terrorism Policing London said that “All reports are reviewed and, if it is assessed that further police action is required, then it will get passed to the relevant police force or counter-terrorism unit to carry this out.” Makke strongly contests Kearns’ framing, claiming that he is the victim of a coordinated attack by the pro-Israel lobby. “I have always acted in accordance with UK terrorism law, and any allegation to the contrary is defamatory, ludicrous and racist. British counter-terrorism police should be commended for ignoring the malign Zionist influence-peddlers calling for my arrest,” he said in a statement, adding: “It is an open secret that Alicia Kearns is a British intelligence asset, but she appears to be an asset of the Zionist regime as well. She should be investigated for working against British interests on behalf of a hostile foreign power.” That there is an Israel or antisemitism angle to this story appears to have been confirmed by Kearns herself, who told The Daily Telegraph that:  “Months ago, I handed the Government evidence about Hussain Makke. This week he walked into Britain unchallenged. He is here now. If that’s what ‘stopping at nothing’ looks like, the Government’s promises to Britain’s Jewish community aren’t worth the paper they’re written on.” The campaign against Makke has also been led by The Jewish Chronicle, a stridently pro-Israel newspaper that refuses to disclose its ownership, even amid widespread speculation of foreign powers or agents controlling the outlet.  Last year, following a pressure campaign from pro-Israel forces Australia revoked Makke’s visa, citing his support for Hezbollah and other forces resisting Israel’s ambitions in the region. He had been scheduled to carry out a speaking tour across the country. Shadow Australian Home Affairs Minister James Paterson welcomed the decision, stating that, “No one who praises a deceased terrorist [Hezbollah’s Hassan Nasrallah], let alone attends the funeral organized by a listed terrorist organization, should be welcome in Australia.”  Listing Hezbollah as a terrorist organization, however, is fraught with difficulties and inconsistencies. To begin with, the group holds 15 seats in the Lebanese parliament and has held positions inside the cabinet. Founded in 1982 in response to the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, it has, since 2023, proved to be the only force effectively resisting the ongoing Israeli occupation. Thus, it has earned significant support, particularly among the population of South Lebanon. Therefore, by proscribing Hezbollah, the U.K. government is effectively criminalizing resistance to Israeli colonialism, occupation, and land left – a violation of international law.  Paterson also would likely not be impressed with Makke’s assessment of Ayatollah Khamenei, who was killed in a U.S./Israeli attack in February. In an Instagram post, Makke described him as a “true miracle of a man”, a man “who embodied Islam,” and one with “deep knowledge, political insight and wisdom.” In July the government of the United Kingdom officially outlawed support for Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), claiming that the organization was responsible for at least seven recent terrorist attacks on Jewish targets in Britain. It is now a criminal offense to express a positive opinion about even assisting the IRGC, one punishable with fourteen years imprisonment. Hezbollah is also proscribed under U.K. counter-terrorism laws, with the same penalty applying to support for the Lebanese organization.  In January, the European Union also added the IRGC to its terror list, following the wave of anti-government demonstrations in Iran.  The increasing pressure on Makke is part of a wider crackdown on freedom of speech and criticism of the State of Israel by British authorities. In October 2024, around 10 police officers carried out a dawn raid at the house of Electronic Intifada journalist, Asa Winstanley. Winstanley had seven devices, including work computers and phones, seized. Months later, a court ruled that the raid and seizures were unlawful.  Last year, academic and journalist David Miller was stopped at Heathrow Airport by counter-terrorism police upon his return from Lebanon, where he had been reporting on the assassination and funeral of Nasrallah.  A similar occurrence befell journalist Kit Klarenberg, who was met at the airport by six anonymous plainclothes counter-terror officials, who seized his electronic devices, and memory cards and took his fingerprints and DNA. In an interview with MintPress News, Klarenberg said of his experience: “Britain has, for a very long time, had the most sweeping counter-terror laws in the Western world and arguably in the world. They have overturned centuries-old and hard-fought-for rights, protections, and freedoms that average citizens enjoy, and have granted police sweeping and disturbingly vague powers.”  These figures, however, are but a drop in the ocean compared to the U.K.’s crackdown on pro-Palestine groups. Palestine Action in particular has faced rigorous suppression, with London designating the organization a terrorist group. More than 3,500 individuals have been arrested and over 1,500 charged under laws which equate the group to organizations such as ISIS and Al-Qaeda, primarily for holding signs in public reading “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”  A significant proportion of those arrested are retirees, and the sight of huge numbers of elderly and disabled individuals being led away in handcuffs, supposedly as dangerous terrorists, has shocked human rights organizations. Amnesty International, for example, described it as a dangerous blow to basic rights. “It is completely disproportionate to punish protesters for criminal damage as if they were terrorists, a sentence that will stay with them for the rest of their lives. The use of terrorism laws against direct action protesters must end,” they wrote.     Makke has attempted to take the scrutiny and suspicion in his stride. “I am not moved in the slightest. Rather, I am more determined than ever before to BE A GOOD PERSON, which is why [they] want me to be arrested,” he said in a post on Instagram, “I will enjoy my freedom with dignity, and continue to be successful in everything I do by the will of God, as long as God is pleased. My voice will be louder and I will work harder.” The post UK Government Targeting of Muslim Scholar Part of a Coordinated Campaign to Clamp Down on Pro-Palestine Solidarity appeared first on MintPress News.

[Category: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Foreign Affairs, Front Page: Inside Stories, Investigations, Top Story, counter terrorism police, Israel, Israel Lobby, Lebanon, South Lebanon, terrorism, UK home office]

As of 10/13/26 6:46am. Last new 10/9/26 3:06pm.