This Week in the World Affairs Brief
ISRAEL’S ATTACK ON IRAN—THE REAL OBJECTIVE
Israel this week expanded the targets hit during their bombing raids beyond Iran’s military facilities to also attack government buildings, oil and gas infrastructure and many targets in major cities. It has become obvious that decapitating Iran’s nuclear program was merely the excuse to trigger an all-out war. They are now clearly also going after regime change and the general destruction of the industry so that Iran can never become a major opposing force again. Israel wants complete hegemony over the Middle East. Every major residential area in Tehran has now been hit as Israel goes after dozens of Iranian leaders, despite the rising death toll of other civilians. Long lines of cars are leaving Tehran in a desperate attempt to escape the war. Meanwhile, Donald Trump is holding his cards close, keeping the world guessing as to whether the US will join in the fight, in two weeks. Part of his reluctance is a strong anti-war trend among his supporters. But the US has already been secretly involved in the Israeli attack since the beginning, providing munitions, air-refueling tanker support for Israel’s super long-distance attacks, and now with the agreed upon use of B-2 bombers, the only aircraft capable of delivering 14 ton bunker busting bombs. To receive a free one-time sample of the Brief, along with options on how to subscribe, click on Request a Sample on the left.
Also:
- “No Kings” Anti-Trump Agenda was not Spontaneous
- Supreme Court Goes After Botched SWAT Raids
More waves of missiles and strikes were exchanged between Israel and Iran overnight, with Israeli's military announcing that 1,100 Iranian targets were hit since Friday.
The Israeli Air Force affirmed Wednesday that it is currently striking "military targets belonging to the Iranian regime in Tehran." The war shows no signs of abating, and as yet there are no announcements that Iranian and US negotiators plan to meet.
Following multiple rounds of Iranian missile barrages that have proven far more effective than many "experts" anticipated, the Israeli Defense Forces are already running low on defensive Arrow interceptor missiles, making Israel all the more desperate for the United States to join the war Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government initiated on Friday the 13th. Meanwhile, as Iran's retaliation continues, reports of war-fatigue among Israel's population are already emerging.
General He Weidong, once the second-highest-ranking officer in China’s military and a close ally of President Xi Jinping, has been purged—three months after vanishing from public view.
His removal is now clear, following his absence from a high-profile funeral and other political signals
We know exactly where the so-called “Supreme Leader” is hiding. He is an easy target, but is safe there - We are not going to take him out (kill!), at least not for now. But we don’t want missiles shot at civilians, or American soldiers. Our patience is wearing thin. Thank you for your attention to this matter!
Are we witnessing the start of another regime change war in the Middle East - and with no Congressional input or authorization whatsoever?
Or is this all one big game of [nuclear] chicken, where the hope is that Iran will suddenly raise the white flag? Trump is now suggesting that Israel and the US could go all in until there's nothing short of "unconditional surrender!"
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) on Monday introduced a War Powers Resolution that would require a debate and a vote in Congress before the US enters Israel’s war against Iran with offensive support.
Gabbard had previously firmly stated before the Senate Intelligence Committee that the US intelligence community "continues to assess that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon and Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has not authorized the nuclear weapons program he suspended in 2003."
Russia overnight unleashed one of its largest and sustained attacks on the Ukrainian capital of Kyiv in recent months, resulting in 15 people killed and over one hundred wounded.
The assault, which lasted some ten hours, involved a coordinated barrage of drones, ballistic, and cruise missiles - and severely impacted residential areas, including a direct hit on a nine-story apartment building in the city's Solomyanskyi district.
Both sides are clearly trying to take out the other's military and intelligence leadership and sites. Israeli warplanes are also especially focusing on destroying Iranian oil depots in order to wreck the Islamic Republic's economy.
On the other side, Israel also continued to tout battlefield successes. Israel has announced its forces killed a senior Iranian general overnight, shortly after eliminating his predecessor. The campaign against Iran’s nuclear program and Iran’s retaliatory missile attacks on Israel is now in its fifth day.
the US Embassy in Tel Aviv has sustained "minor damage" by an Iranian ballistic missile.
A volley of Iranian missiles targeted the area early Monday, amid a major overnight surge in missile launches on Israel out of the Islamic Republic. There are no reports which say there was any kind of direct hit.
US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee confirmed on X: "Some minor damage from concussions of Iranian missile hits near Embassy Branch in @TelAviv but no injuries to US personnel," he wrote.
The USS Nimitz aircraft carrier strike group is on its way to the Middle East from the South China Sea, a U.S. official tells Fox News. The Nimitz was previously scheduled to replace the USS Carl Vinson carrier strike group which has been deployed for several months, but is now heading to the Middle East ahead of schedule. The two will now be in the Middle East at the same time.
Vance Luther Boelter - a Democrat activist and 2019 appointee of Gov. Tim Walz - is the suspect in a targeted shooting of MN lawmakers Melissa Hortman and John Hoffman.
California, Washington state, and Oregon differ from the updated CDC guidance regarding COVID-19 vaccination for pregnant women.
Bloomberg reports a surge in GPS jamming around the Strait of Hormuz, scrambling navigation for more than 900 vessels and hinting at a new form of disruption for the world's most critical maritime chokepoint.
Here's more from the report:
Starboard Maritime Intelligence and Bloomberg data showed vessels sailing impossibly straight lines in the region, zig- zagging across the water, or appearing onshore. The glitches — which have affected oil tankers, cargo ships, tugs and fishing boats among others since Friday — increase reliance on radars, compasses and eyesight, boosting the likelihood of collisions.
The Joint Maritime Information Center, an international naval task force monitoring the area, warned on Sunday that there are instances of "extreme jamming" of signals from the Iranian port of Bandar Abbas.
GPSJam—a site that publishes daily heat maps of GPS/GNSS disruptions affecting aircraft—shows multiple "high-interference" zones clustered around the Strait of Hormuz.
The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations said on Monday it had received multiple reports of increasing GPS interference in maritime chokepoint:
UKMTO has received multiple reports and monitoring of AIS confirms, that there is increasing electronic interference within the waters of the Gulf and Straits of Hormuz. Whilst the level of electronic interference continues to rise across the wider region, the levels and intensity inside the Gulf are having a significant impact on vessels positional reporting through automated systems (AIS).
Despite reports of "high" GPS jamming across parts of the maritime chokepoint, there are currently no signs of an imminent Iranian blockade. However, any move to choke off the strait, which handles roughly a quarter of global oil trade, would likely send Brent crude futures soaring into triple-digit territory.
However, a separate Bloomberg report found some oil tanker operators and managers have paused offering their vessels for Middle East routes since Friday to let the dust settle.
JPMorgan commodity analyst Natasha Kaneva issued a warning over the weekend, stating that the odds increased of a "worst-case scenario" —defined as "the oil price reaction turning exponential rather than linear, with the impact on supply potentially extending beyond a 2.1 mb/d reduction in Iranian oil exports"—could push prices as high as $120–$130 per barrel. Read the full note here.
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Regional sources are reporting on Sunday the highest number of observed strikes in daylight in an around Tehran. Israel's military says that over 80 sites were hit overnight, and has vowed to "hunt down" ballistic missile launchers in western Iran. Radar and anti-air defense batteries were also struck "as part of the IDF’s aerial superiority in Iranian airspace."
Cnossen chose to tackle his recovery with the same determination and grit that had carried him through the notoriously grueling training to become a U.S. Navy SEAL and subsequent deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan. Cnossen not only recovered from his wounds, but went on to become a Paralympic athlete of the highest order, winning multiple gold medals in skiing. All these experiences have honed Cnossen’s resilience to a diamond-hard edge. Drawing on his past, Cnossen shared five rules for resiliency.
Axios underscores that "Israel lacks the bunker buster bombs and large bomber aircraft needed to destroy Iran's Fordow uranium enrichment site, which is built into a mountain and deep underground. The U.S. has both within flying distance of Iran."
Meanwhile, the images coming out of Iran show unprecedented and shocking scenes of oil refineries burning uncontrollably while nearby highway traffic has been forcibly stopped...
The New York Post noted that the Boelter "left behind a "manifesto" listing the names of 70 politicians, including Walz and his Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan, and a stack of papers stating "No Kings" in reference to the nationwide anti-Trump protests."
"They are way ahead on power and power generation. They're behind on chips, but catching up on chips. They are ahead of us on data. China has had, again since 2018, a large-scale operation to dominate on data. I think there were over 2 million people in China who were working inside data factories, basically as data labelers or annotators, basically creating data to fuel into those AI systems,” Wang told Ryan. "I think that number in the U.S., by comparison, is something like 100,000. They're outspending us 12 to 1 on data. They have over seven cities, full cities in China, that are dedicated data hubs, um, that are basically powering, you know, this broad approach to data dominance. And then on algorithms, I think they are on par with us because of large-scale espionage.”
Wang said it was “open secret” in the tech industry that Chinese intelligence is systematically stealing U.S. intellectual property and secrets
The strike caused a powerful explosion and fire, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported, adding that a separate fire also broke out at the Fajr Jam gas refinery, which processes gas from South Pars as well as the Nar and Kangan fields and is one of Iran’s largest refineries.
The U.S. Army is assisting in shooting down incoming Iranian missiles with Patriot Pac-3 missiles and with Thaad
Israel completely evacuates Ben Gurion International Airport — including civilian aircrafts
US confirms: American equipment and assets used in defending Israel against Iran strikes
International media widely confirms several major strikes on Israeli cities
At least seven Israelis injured, some in serious condition
AJ: Israeli attacks could push Iran to pursue nuclear weapon
Iran closes airspace until tomorrow afternoon
Iran says the missiles are the ‘beginning’ of its ‘crushing response’
Trump warns Iran to agree to a deal ‘before there is nothing left’
Axios reports that the Trump admin briefed lawmakers before Israeli strikes began
Hezbollah is warning of grave escalation that "crosses all red lines" the day after Israel's major missile attacks on Iranian nuclear sites. But so far the Iran-backed group is indicating it doesn't plan to reopen a war front against Israel.
Iran is likely to suspend or end nuclear negotiations with the United States and European Powers (the United Kingdom, France and Germany) seeing little advantage in continuing the talks. From Iran’s perspective, the purpose of the talks was to avert a direct military strike on the enrichment facilities and other military and state targets. Iran is unlikely to agree to resume negotiations unless it receives a clear assurance from the United States that it can and will restrain Israel from further military operations.
the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has rubber-stamped Wildtype Inc.'s lab-grown salmon, the first of its kind approved for human consumption in the U.S.
Iran's military says it's ready for anything at a moment President Trump has reiterated that an Israeli attack on Iranian nuclear sites could be imminent. Such a strike "could very well happen," the president said Thursday.
Following Ukraine's long-range drone assault on June 1st which was dubbed 'Operation Spider's Web' - and which resulted in the destruction of at least several aircraft, including strategic bombers - Russia has relocated dozens of strategic bombers to remote airbases, new satellite imagery shows.
Executives at voting software firm Smartmatic ordered the deletion and doctoring of key evidence tied to the company’s $2.7 billion defamation case against Fox News, according to claims in a bombshell court filing made Wednesday in New York.
"Now, the share of the state-of-the-art weapon systems and equipment in our strategic nuclear forces comes to 95%," Putin said, according to state media translation. He added Russia is making "good progress" on the nuclear readiness front.
It will be remembered as the greatest mass delusion in the history of the world – that CO2, the life of plants, was considered for a time to be a deadly poison.
Harvard Emeritus Professor Richard Lindzen
Sirens have gone off in Tehran as Israel said it launched “pre-emptive strikes” in Iran
Explosions have been heard at nuclear facilities in Fordow and Natanz
Meanwhile the WaPo - a conduit for the deep state - writes that "the United States is on high alert in anticipation of a potential Israeli strike on Iran, with the State Department authorizing the evacuation of some personnel in Iraq and the Pentagon green-lighting the departure of military family members across the Middle East."
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