Earlier on Thursday, Mehr News Agency reported that the Aq Tekeh Khan Bridge in the northern Golestan province had been struck by a projectile.
A US official told Axios that the American military targeted two railway bridges in northern Iran with cruise missiles as part of Wednesday‘s strikes.
The attack marked the first reported US strike on Iranian transportation infrastructure since the ceasefire took effect on April 8.
Yet Lead Left PAC has spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on Galindoâs behalf ahead of Tuesdayâs primary runoff. Democrats are accusing Republicans of orchestrating the effort.
âYou have an openly bigoted person who has no business in elected office getting boosted by a Republican PAC,â Rep. Greg Casar (D-Texas) said. âSo the Republican leadership here, of course, is going to go to great lengths to hide that.â
The district is a Trump +10, and Galindo would certainly be a weaker opponent for the GOP in November than Garcia.
The Congressional Leadership Fund, the GOP super PAC aligned with House Republican leaders, has declined to say if itâs behind Lead Left PAC.
Galindo caught Democrats off guard when she placed first in the March 3 primary, despite spending just a few thousand dollars on her campaign. After a mysterious super PAC spent nearly $1 million boosting her bid, Democrats were forced to grapple with the possibility that she could win the nomination â an outcome the party worried could jeopardize its chances in the district and tie them to rhetoric theyâve denounced.
Smotrichâs comments drew immediate condemnation from the opposition, with Raâam chairman Mansour Abbas asserting that âhuman life holds no value in his eyesâ. MK Ayman Odeh, the chairman of Hadash-Taâal parliamentary faction, also slammed Smotrich, declaring on X that âwhat the racists and Kahanists say is not important, what matters is what we will do.â âAnd we, the Arab citizens, together with the democratic Jews, will do everything, simply everything, to prevent Smotrich-Netanyahu-Ben Gvir from continuing to another term,â Odeh wrote.
(May 5, 2026)
Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich sparked an uproar on Tuesday when he asserted that former prime minister Naftali Bennettâs decision to include the Islamist Raâam party in his 2021-2022 government was far worse than the governmental failures tied to Hamasâs October 7, 2023, onslaught â the worst attack on civilians in Israeli history, which saw some 1,200 people murdered and 251 taken hostage, and which led to a multi-front war in which some 900 others have been killed.
Smotrichâs comments drew immediate condemnation from the opposition, with Raâam chairman Mansour Abbas asserting that âhuman life holds no value in [his] eyesâ and Bennett accusing the finance minister, as well as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, of âtrying with all their might to make people forget the atrocities that occurred on their watch.â
President Trump formally informed Congress in a letter Friday that the ongoing ceasefire with Iran extended the timeline between the start of the war and the 60-day deadline invoked by the War Powers Act.
Friday marks 60 days since the president officially notified lawmakers of the U.S. militaryâs operations in Iran that began on Feb. 28.
According to the War Powers Act of 1973, by Day 60 of being notified of a conflict, the president must come to Congress to formally declare war or seek approval of military action. The president can also request a 30-day extension of the conflict if needed to safely draw down troops, according to the law.
Lawmakers can revoke a presidentâs war powers at any time, but Democratic efforts to do so this time around have so far failed. Republican Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who has criticized how Trump has gone about the war, has talked about pushing an authorization to put guardrails on how the war is prosecuted, but has not yet followed through.
(7. Juni 2017)
Ohne auf alle in der Dokumentation dargestellten Entwicklungen und HintergrĂŒnde einzugehen, beleuchtet diese u.a. die jahrzehntelange Taktik des âWahrnehmungs-Managementsâ (perception management), die Manipulation der Ăffentlichen Meinung, die Lenkung vermeintlich verfeindeter oder sich gegenseitig bekriegender Gruppen durch die gleiche Hand (befördert durch die UnfĂ€higkeit zu dreidimensionalem VerstĂ€ndnis von Politik, links vs rechts, progressiv vs reaktionĂ€r, oben vs unten) die gezielte Konfusion jedweder Opposition und die permanente Formwandlung der Macht und der MĂ€chtigen, um sie nicht greifbar und damit unangreifbar erscheinen zu lassen.
Die untenstehenden und in der Dokumentation ĂŒber die Jahrzehnte genannten Beispiele sind im Zuge der Entwicklung von informationstechnischer Technologie, weltweitem Einsickern von kapitalistischen (Denk)Strukturen und deren Verschmelzung (âGlobalisierungâ), sowie Terrorkrieg in den letzten bald sechzehn Jahren praktisch auf jedes Land bzw jede Region ĂŒbertragbar.
Maha Yahya, director of the Carnegie Middle East Center think tank, told CNNâs Eleni Giokos that âweâre seeing a replay of things we have seen in Gaza.â
She said Israel had issued evacuation orders across roughly 10% of Lebanese territory, affecting an estimated half a million people.
âItâs the same story, mass evacuation notices, targeting of Israeli policy makers, threatening ambulances and accusing ambulances of carrying Hezbollah members,â Yahya said.
âItâs no more just about whether Hezbollah may have military assets. Itâs basically a collective punishment of the entire population,â she added.
More than 1 million people in Lebanon have been internally displaced and at least 886 people killed since the latest conflict began two weeks ago, according to Lebanese authorities.
Previous attacks have included the assassination of a top Iranian nuclear scientist travelling at high speeds in a car on an isolated road with a remote-controlled automatic machine gun; malware attacks on computers running key parts of Iranâs nuclear programme; and the theft of an archive of nuclear documents.
Another Iranian source told MEE that amid the latest attacks, Iran had „made a clear statement“ to Saudi Arabia that it was not behind the strikes on Saudi Aramco‘s Ras Tanura, which houses the kingdom‘s largest domestic refinery and is a key crude export terminal.
„This is an Israeli effort to sabotage regional peace and alliances between neighbours,“ the source added.
A Foreign Ministry official told Middle East Eye that Israel was behind strikes against Saudi Arabia and at least one attack on Oman, asserting: „I can categorically say that some of the attacks were not carried out by us [Iran].“
The claims follow at least five drone and missile strikes on Saudi facilities, including the Ras Tanura oil refinery and the US embassy in Riyadh, alongside two targets at Oman‘s Duqm Port.
In a statement on Thursday, the General Staff categorically rejected reports that a drone attack was launched from Iran toward neighboring Azerbaijan, stressing that Tehran respects the sovereignty of its neighbors.
âThe Islamic Republic of Iran, while respecting the sovereignty of all countries, particularly Muslim and neighboring countries, strongly rejects any drone launch by its Armed Forces toward the Republic of Azerbaijan,â it stated.
The statement emphasized that there is precedent for the âfake Israeli regimeâ taking such actions, through various means, in an attempt to disrupt relations between Muslim countries.
Taktiken, Techniken und Verfahren
Informationsmanipulation und Einflussnahme aus dem Ausland sowie Akteure, die Desinformation verbreiten bzw. Informationsmanipulation und Einflussnahme aus dem Ausland betreiben, setzen eine Vielzahl von Taktiken, Techniken und Verfahren ein, um Informationen zu manipulieren und die öffentliche Wahrnehmung zu beeinflussen.
Die am hÀufigsten verwendeten Taktiken, Techniken und Verfahren sind u. a.:
– Polarisierung durch die Förderung extremer Meinungen, um Konflikte innerhalb einer Gesellschaft zu verschĂ€rfen, was die demokratische Debatte erschweren kann
– Manipulation von Inhalten, indem authentische Informationen oder Medien verĂ€ndert werden, wie das Bearbeiten von Bildern oder Videos, um ihre Bedeutung zu verĂ€ndern
– Erstellung erfundener Inhalte, wie gefĂ€lschte Websites, die echte Quellen nachahmen, Deepfakes und KI-generiertes Ton- und Bildmaterial
– Schaffung falscher Narrative, IdentitĂ€tsbetrug und die missbrĂ€uchliche Verwendung diplomatischer oder institutioneller Konten in den sozialen Medien
– Diskreditierung zuverlĂ€ssiger Quellen und Umdeutung von Kontext
– Erweiterung der Reichweite durch den Einsatz von Bots, Trollen oder koordinierten Netzwerken, um die Sichtbarkeit und GlaubwĂŒrdigkeit von Desinformation kĂŒnstlich zu steigern
– Einsatz von Cyber-Tools, einschlieĂlich Hacking und anderer CyberaktivitĂ€ten, um Informationen zu stehlen, zu verĂ€ndern oder zu erfinden
White House envoy Steve Witkoff met secretly over the weekend with the exiled former crown prince of Iran, Reza Pahlavi, to discuss the protests raging in Iran, according to a senior U.S. official.
Trump schrieb in GroĂbuchstaben auch, dass Hilfe âauf dem Wegâ sei. Was er damit meinte, blieb unbeantwortet. Wegen der schweren Gewalt gegen Demonstrierende hatte Trump der iranischen FĂŒhrung bereits zuvor mit militĂ€rischen Mitteln gedroht. Die USA nĂ€hmen die Lage im Iran sehr ernst, so Trump am Sonntag. âDas MilitĂ€r befasst sich damit, und wir prĂŒfen einige sehr drastische Optionen. Wir werden eine Entscheidung treffen.â
He said Trumpâs warning of military action against Tehran should âprotests turn âviolent motivated âterroristsâ â to target protesters and security forces âto invite foreign intervention. âWe are ready for war but also for dialogue,â he added.
Araghchi also said Iran has footage of weapons being distributed to protesters, adding authorities will soon release confessions of detainees.
Saudi Arabia accused the UAE, its close ally, of âhighly dangerousâ actions in Yemen that threatened its national security. It said it had launched âlimitedâ airstrikes on Mukalla on Tuesday morning and backed a call for UAE forces to leave Yemen within 24 hours.
The UAE initially rejected the accusations and expressed surprise at the strikes, but the countryâs defense ministry later announced that, âin view of recent developments,â it would voluntarily withdraw the remaining âcounterterrorismâ units it had in Yemen.
The bombing followed tensions over the advance of Emirates-backed separatist forces known as the Southern Transitional Council. The council and its allies issued a statement supporting the UAEâs presence, even as others allied with Saudi Arabia demanded that Emirati forces withdraw from Yemen in 24 hoursâ time.
The UAE called for ârestraint and wisdomâ and disputed Riyadhâs allegations. But shortly after that, it said it would withdraw its remaining troops in Yemen.
The U.S. is preparing to intercept more ships transporting Venezuelan oil following the seizure of a tanker this week, as it increases pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, six sources familiar with the matter said on Thursday.
The seizure was the first interdiction of an oil cargo or tanker from Venezuela, which has been under U.S. sanctions since 2019. It came as the U.S. executes a large-scale military buildup in the southern Caribbean and as U.S. President Donald Trump pushes for Maduro‘s ouster.
Die Maschinen seien von der russischen Exklave Kaliningrad aus fĂŒr etwa 18 Sekunden ĂŒber litauischem Gebiet gewesen, teilt das MilitĂ€r mit. Als Reaktion seien spanische Eurofighter der NATO-LuftraumĂŒberwachung fĂŒr das Baltikum aufgestiegen und patrouillierten nun in dem Gebiet.
Operation Gideonâs Chariots II, as the new offensive is known, is a calculated campaign of territorial reconfiguration coordinated with the United States.
Ahead of the United Nations General Assembly summit that begins on Monday, Israel is preparing to bring the north fully under its control.
According to the Israeli officers, behind the scenes there is a belief that, if the Gaza City operation goes according to plan, Netanyahu plans to declare victory at the UN on 26 September.
Israeli journalist Yuval Abraham has alleged that Israelâs military intelligence created a special unit to help justify attacks in Gaza, including the killing of journalists.
âAfter October 7, a team called the âLegitimization Cellâ was established in AMAN,â Abraham said in a post on X.
âIntelligence personnel searched for information to provide âlegitimisationâ for the armyâs actions in Gaza, failed Hamas launches, use of human shields, exploitation of the civilian population.
Channel 13 has published internal Israeli government transcripts from March 2025 revealing that Israelâs war cabinet knowingly restricted all humanitarian aid to Gaza in hopes it would break Hamasâa strategy that inflicted mass suffering but failed to deliver desired results. The records also show that Israel was not met with resistance or bad faith in negotiations with Hamas â yet it broke the ceasefire and escalated anyway.
Hebrew media cited leaked documents showing that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu actively pursued a policy of starvation in a bid to bring about Hamasâs surrender.
The documents also show that Netanyahu refused to move forward with Phase 2 of the last ceasefire deal â despite internal warnings urging him to secure a release of captives before returning to fighting.
The documents confirmed that Netanyahu and the war cabinet âinstructed the [army] to stop all humanitarian aid and close the Rafah crossingâ in early March.
âIf people want to stay, they can stay, but if they want to leave, they should be able to leave. It shouldnât be a prison. It should be an open place and give people a free choice,â Netanyahu said.
âWeâre working with the United States very closely about finding countries that will seek to realise what they always say, that they wanted to give the Palestinians a better future. I think weâre getting close to finding several countries.â