Calling the Faithful to Freedom!

“It wasn’t immediately clear who was behind these incidents, but they happened as a senior Iranian official reiterated his country’s claim of control over the waterway and another said it had a right to seize oil tankers connected to the U.S.”: Tensions Flare near Strait of Hormuz as a Ship Is Seized and Another Is…

“[T]hree Republican senators broke with their party over President Donald Trump’s handling of the conflict” but the “deciding vote was cast by Senator John Fetterman, a Pennsylvania Democrat and staunch supporter of Israel”: 3 Republicans Join Democrats in Closest Senate Vote Yet to Halt Iran War (Time) “Sarsour says he never understood the charges presented…

The role of the Gulf states in the Iran war greater than previously known and the risks in the future are sobering: Saudi Arabia Launched Covert Attacks on Iran as Regional War Widened, Sources Say (Straits Times) UAE’s Secret Attack on Iran Risks Drawing Gulf States into the War (The Guardian) The rise in real…

The latest “proposal includes an effort to end the war in 30 days, the withdrawal of American forces from Iran, removal of sanctions on Iranian assets, reparations payments, end to fighting in Lebanon and … follows a staunch rebuke to its response to the U.S. agreement submitted over the weekend”: Iran’s Top Negotiator: Accept our…

“[T]he main focus of Iran’s response to the US proposal is on ‘ending the war and maritime security’ in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz” … Hormuz and Lebanon Dominate Iran’s Response to US Ceasefire Plan (EuroNews) … “”We did not demand any concessions from the US, but rather called for an end…

Iran expands its piracy … Iran Requires Ships To Submit Forms for Strait of Hormuz Transit Through New IRGC-Linked Authority (The Medialine) IRGC-linked Media Calls for Fees on Hormuz Undersea Internet Cables (Iran International) … as both sides attack shipping: Iran Ceasefire Tested as Cargo Ship Catches Fire After Being Hit off Qatar’s Coast (NPR)…

“The Trump administration, sidestepping a widening battle in and around the Strait of Hormuz, said it was anticipating a reply from Tehran on its latest terms for ending the war, as Iran denounced the latest clashes as a “crude pressure tactic” U.S. Strikes Two Iranian-flagged Tankers as Tensions Continue amid Ceasefire (Washington Post) “[V]essels and…

“No American vessels were hit, the statement said, and U.S. forces responded by striking Iranian military facilities deemed responsible … [for] an operation against three U.S. destroyers in retaliation for two ‘provocative actions’ by the U.S. military”: Trump Says Ceasefire Is Intact After U.S. and Iran Exchange Fire (Washington Post) “Trump says ‘nobody knows who…

“Hope that the two-month conflict could soon end buoyed international markets on Thursday, even as the U.S. military fired on an Iranian oil tanker attempting to breach an American blockade of Iran’s ports hours earlier” … Iran Reviewing US Proposal as Trump Pressures Tehran for Agreement on Deal to End War (AP) … but Iran…

Trump, Rubio and Hegseth insist the war is over … White House Insists Iran War Is Over, Even While Missiles Fly (NY Times) ‘Operation Epic Fury Is Over…’: Rubio Says US Has Achieved Objectives of Iran Operation (India Times) Hegseth Says Battle for Hormuz Is ‘Separate and Distinct’ from the Iran War (Politico) … but…