Iran’s Foreign Ministry said on June 1 that a ceasefire in Lebanon remains a key condition for any deal with the US to end the Middle East war.
“We insist that a ceasefire in Lebanon is an essential condition for any deal aimed at ending the war,” the ministry’s spokesman, Esmaeil Baqaei, said at a weekly news briefing, as Israel expands its offensive in Lebanon.
Tasnim added that Tehran and allied militant groups in the region have placed on their agenda the “complete closure of the Strait of Hormuz and the activation of other fronts,” including the Bab el-Mandeb strait at the southern end of the Red Sea, where Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels have previously launched attacks on passing vessels.
“The Strait is going to be open to everybody,” Trump told reporters at the White House. “It’s international waters and Oman will behave just like everybody else or we’ll have to blow them up. They understand that, they’ll be fine.”
Oman, a strategic partner of the U.S. for more than 50 years, has played a key role in efforts to mediate a peace deal between the U.S. and Iran.
The reported draft agreement said Iran would reopen the Strait of Hormuz in return for the United States’ lifting its naval blockade.
Several European countries on Wednesday condemned Israel’s assault on activists aboard the Global Sumud Flotilla, following the interception of the vessel in international waters and the detention of its participants, describing their treatment as horrific, shocking and appalling.
The condemnations came after Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir published a video showing dozens of activists kneeling with their hands tied inside the port of Ashdod.
Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir sparked outrage after confronting detained flotilla activists at Ashdod Port following Israel’s interception of Gaza-bound vessels. Viral footage showed heated exchanges between Ben-Gvir and pro-Palestine protesters, triggering political backlash and fresh diplomatic tensions.
International outcry was sparked after video showed Israel’s far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir taunting flotilla activists at the Port of Ashdod who were detained in international waters after attempting to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza.
(…)
(May 14, 2026)
Twice this week, U.S. President Donald Trump has expressed interest in turning Venezuela into his country’s 51st state. The latest came via a Truth Social post Tuesday with a map showing the South American country filled with the U.S. flag.
Previous statements doubting Venezuela’s sovereignty over the past 25 years have been met with immediate derision from senior government officials, including the president.
(January 16, 2026)
CIA director John Ratcliffe met with Venezuela‘s interim President Delcy Rodríguez for two hours Thursday in Venezuela‘s capital, Caracas, to „deliver the message that the United States looks forward to an improved working relationship,“ a U.S. official told CBS News Friday.
The official described the trip as historic, noting that Ratcliffe was the first Cabinet-level official to visit Venezuela since the U.S. military operation to remove the country‘s autocratic leader Nicolás Maduro nearly two weeks ago.
A U.S. delegation led by CIA director John Ratcliffe met with his counterpart at Cuba‘s Interior Ministry in Havana on Thursday, the Cuban government said in a statement, as tensions worsen over a U.S. fuel blockade that has starved the island of fuel and power generation.
(May 8, 2026)
As some of you might already know, my name is Hüseyin Doğru. I am a German citizen, a father of three, a journalist, and the founder of red., a now defunct English-language media outlet.
On 20 May 2025, I was placed on an EU sanctions list.
Not after a criminal conviction. Not after a trial. Not after a court had examined evidence against me.
I was placed on a list.
The reason given was not violence. It was not incitement. It was not a finding by any court. The reason was political: my journalism, my reporting on Gaza, and my coverage of Palestine solidarity protests in Germany were folded into the language of Russia, destabilisation, information manipulation and hybrid threats.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the European Union on Monday after the bloc imposed sanctions on some Israeli settler organisations over violence against Palestinians.
„As Israel and the U.S. are ‚doing Europe‘s dirty work‘ by fighting for civilisation against jihadist lunatics in Iran and elsewhere, the European Union exposed its moral bankruptcy by drawing a false symmetry between Israeli citizens and Hamas terrorists,“ Netanyahu‘s office said on its official X account.
Alle haben eines gemeinsam: Sie berichten außerhalb des NATO-/EU-Narrativs – sei es zur Ukraine, zu Gaza oder zur Energiepolitik.
Die Folgen für die Betroffenen sind existentiell: Konten werden eingefroren, Zahlungen blockiert, Reisen innerhalb der EU unmöglich gemacht. Sogar Familienangehörige (wie die nicht sanktionierte Ehefrau von Hüseyin Doğru) werden mit „Sanktionsumgehung“ bedroht. Doğru beschreibt seinen Zustand treffend: „On an existential level, you’re reduced to zero.“ Ein Vater von fünf Kindern kann nicht einmal mehr Windeln oder Medikamente kaufen, ohne dass Helfer Gefahr laufen, selbst strafrechtlich verfolgt zu werden.
Known by the name „Ulm Five“, the activists allegedly entered the factory on the 8 September 2025 by smashing a glass facade and subsequently destroyed office equipment, including computers, screens and telephones.
Shortly after, the five were arrested and have since been held in pretrial detention in different prisons across southern Germany.
(April 28, 2026)
In the early hours of Sept. 8, 2025, a group of activists wearing black hoodies that bore the red and white logo of Palestine Action broke into the offices of Israeli arms manufacturer Elbit Systems in Ulm, southern Germany.
Once inside the compound, according to prosecutors, they damaged and partly destroyed furniture, windows, and technical equipment with axes; sprayed slogans on the walls; lit pyrotechnics; and chanted “Free, free Palestine” and “Germany finances, Israel bombs.” As visible from the activists’ own filming of the break-in, no one was harmed during the action. They remained on site and called the police, who later detained them.
Since their arrest, the five activists — Daniel Tatlow-Devally (an Irish citizen), Leandra Rollo (a Spanish citizen), Crow Tricks and Zo Hailu (British citizens), and Vi Kovarbasic (a German citizen) — have been held in pre-trial detention in separate prisons across southern Germany.
In the shattered neighbourhoods of Khan Younis and Deir el-Balah in the Gaza Strip, the roar of Israeli drones and the concussive thud of controlled demolitions are daily reminders that the war has never really ended.
Despite a “ceasefire” in place since October, families continue to pull bodies from the rubble. According to local medical sources, 828 Palestinians have been killed since the “truce” began. Now, families in Gaza are bracing for a renewed offensive as Israeli officials threaten to tear up the fragile agreement to force a surrender.
(July 28, 2025)
Footage shared by Turkish outlet TRT showed people climbing onto vehicles, reportedly after the Israeli military paused hostilities to facilitate aid deliveries.
(August 6, 2025)
U.N. convoys have been repeatedly overwhelmed by looters and desperate crowds in recent days, and witnesses say Israeli forces have repeatedly opened fire. At least 28 Palestinians were killed overnight and into Wednesday in the Morag Corridor, an Israeli military zone in southern Gaza.
(August 22, 2025)
Editor’s note: This gallery contains disturbing images. Viewer discretion is advised. Some captions in this gallery have been updated to reflect new information regarding the condition of some of the subjects in the photos.
Parts of Gaza are officially experiencing a “man-made” famine, according to a report by a United Nations-backed initiative on August 22.
Sulla‘s Dictatorship: A Precedent for Tyranny
Lucius Cornelius Sulla, a brilliant but ruthless general, became one of the first to exploit this new reality. In the 80s BCE, he marched his legions on Rome – an act unheard of in previous centuries – to oust his political rivals. He then appointed himself dictator, not for a limited term as allowed in emergencies, but with the stated intention of reforming the Republic. His proscriptions, a brutal process of listing enemies of the state who could be summarily executed and their property confiscated, instilled widespread terror and eliminated many of his opponents. Sulla‘s actions were a stark violation of Republican norms. While he claimed to be restoring the Republic‘s authority, his methods effectively demonstrated that military might could override the rule of law and the established political order. He voluntarily relinquished his dictatorship, a move that might have been seen as restoring the Republic. However, the precedent had been set. He had shown that an ambitious general could seize absolute power through force, and that the Republic‘s institutions were vulnerable to such a challenge. This event loomed large in the minds of subsequent generations, particularly Julius Caesar, who would later replicate and exceed Sulla’s actions.
Die Behörde erklärte auf Anfrage des „Handelsblatts“ (Dienstagsausgabe):
„Neu ist die Warnung HAYIs, sich nunmehr nicht mehr nur auf ‚einfache‘ Angriffe zu beschränken, sondern langfristig auch gefährlichere Tatmittel einzubeziehen.“
(…)
Bei dem jüngsten Angriff am Samstag war eine Flasche mit einem Brandbeschleuniger durch das Fenster einer Synagoge in Harrow vor den Toren von London geworfen worden.
Nach Angaben der Organisation SITE Intelligence Group übernahm die bislang wenig in Erscheinung getretene Gruppe HAYI die Verantwortung für einen Teil der Angriffe. Die Organisation unterhält demnach enge Verbindungen zu Iran.
Quelle: AFP
When asked if a government could be formed “without the support of MKs Ahmad Tibi or Aida Touma-Sliman” from the Hadash-Ta’al faction, Bennett replied: “We have a large majority even without them.” This statement comes despite a series of recent polls indicating that the Zionist parties opposing Netanyahu are unlikely to secure a majority without the support of Hadash and the Arab parties. (…)
Following the unification, Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the new “Yashar” party, called this morning for a meeting of opposition leaders excluding Hadash and Islamist Ra’am, “in order to ensure victory through Zionist and statesmanlike votes without Arabs.” In his announcement, Eisenkot mentioned the leaders of the “Together” list, Bennett and Lapid, as well as Yisrael Beiteinu chairman MK Avigdor Lieberman and The Democrats leader Yair Golan.
(April 22, 2026)
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) signed a $300 million blanket purchase agreement with AI company Palantir Technologies to update the government agency’s digital infrastructure and address the goals of the National Farm Security Action Plan.
Mr. Herzog, the officials said, believes that there are many options beyond the binary pardon-or-no-pardon choice, and that the main role of Israel’s president is to foster unity. So he does not plan to say yes or no to Mr. Netanyahu’s request for a pardon at this stage, the officials said, preferring to try to resolve the issue through negotiations.
Secret Service Director Sean Curran said his agents “performed admirably” tonight, pointing to the quick apprehension of the suspect at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner as a prime example of what the agency is trained to do.
“We got to see what they do, and that individual, when he charged a checkpoint, was apprehended,” Curran said. “It shows that our multi-layered protection works.”
12 hr 9 min ago
President Donald Trump was swiftly escorted off the stage by Secret Service at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington, DC, on Saturday.
Vice President JD Vance and some members of Trump’s Cabinet who were also in attendance were also rushed out.