Important Takeaways:
- Two days after Israel’s historic strike on Iran, the Middle East is still processing its impact. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the attack on Iran was precise, powerful, and achieved all of its goals.
- “We severely damaged Iran’s defense capacity and the ability to produce missiles aimed at us,” he said.
- Three waves of attacks, involving more than 100 warplanes, struck targets over 1,000 miles from Israel. However, the IDF Chief of Staff noted that Israel used only a fraction of its capabilities.
- Satellite images reveal extensive damage to key Iranian military installations, potentially delaying Iran’s ballistic missile production for years. Israel also dismantled air defenses in Iraq, Syria, and Iran, including advanced S-300 and S-400 systems.
- Former U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman sees this as a powerful message to Iran. “Most importantly, it’s sending the message to Iran. Anytime, we want. We gotcha,” Friedman told CBN News. “And we didn’t do it this time but keep it up, keep up this nuclear program and you’ll see us in the near future.”
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Important Takeaways:
- Israel and Iran have never been closer to opening up a new and far more dangerous front in the war that has engulfed the Middle East.
- Iran threatened on Tuesday that if Israel responds with force to the nearly 200 missiles it launched on Tuesday, it will attack again.
- If that happens, Israeli officials say all options will be on the table – including strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
- Many Israeli officials point to Iran’s oil facilities as a likely target, but some say targeted assassinations and taking out Iran’s air defense systems are also possibilities.
- “The regime in Iran does not understand our determination to defend ourselves and our determination to retaliate against our enemies. They will understand. We will stand by the rule we established: whoever attacks us, we will attack him,” Netanyahu said.
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Important Takeaways:
- The U.S. is sending a small number of additional troops to the Middle East in response to a sharp spike in violence between Israel and Hezbollah forces in Lebanon that has raised the risk of a greater regional war, the Pentagon said Monday.
- Gen. Pat Ryder, Pentagon press secretary, would not say how many more forces would be deployed or what they would be tasked to do. The U.S. now has about 40,000 troops in the region.
- “In light of increased tension in the Middle East and out of an abundance of caution, we are sending a small number of additional U.S. military personnel forward to augment our forces that are already in the region,” Ryder said. “But for operational security reasons, I’m not going to comment on or provide specifics.”
- The State Department is warning Americans to leave Lebanon as the risk of a regional war increases.
- Ryder would not say if the additional forces might support the evacuation of American citizens if needed.
- “Given the tensions, given the escalation, as I highlighted, there is the potential for a wider regional conflict. I don’t think we’re there yet, but it’s a dangerous situation,” Ryder said.
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Important Takeaways:
- New wars, old wars, famine, panic everywhere. So much for a quiet August
- From Bangladesh to Venezuela, one calamity rapidly overtakes another, but common denominators include poverty, corruption and lack of hope
- [Bangladesh] Last week’s revolution in Bangladesh captured the tone. Recalling the 1986 “people power” overthrow of Ferdinand Marcos in the Philippines, Sheikh Hasina, a pro-democracy prime minister turned late-life autocrat, did not merely lose her job. She nearly lost her head, legging it into last-minute exile. Bangladesh, in turmoil and beset by score-settling, must piece itself back together. It won’t be easy.
- [Venezuela] …the uproar following Venezuela’s election travesty. President Nicolás Maduro, no Chávez he, thought it was in the bag. Then the actual votes started coming in. Appalled, he belatedly realized he was losing. Publication of results was abruptly suspended, Maduro claimed a bogus victory, and the familiar lies, crackdowns and violence began.
- Except, this time, like Bangladesh, repression hasn’t worked. Vote tallies have not been released, so no one believes him. The US and Europe say that opposition candidate Edmundo González won. Even friendly leftwing governments in Brazil, Colombia and Mexico are jibbing. Hundreds have been arrested, dozens have died. Yet Maduro won’t budge, and so the crisis deepens.
- [Africa] Poverty, lack of opportunity and official corruption roil the global street. In Kenya, young anti-government demonstrators sparked copycat generation Z protests in Nigeria and Uganda. About 70% of Africa’s fast-expanding population is under 30. Youthful insurrection is not confined to a single calendar month. It’s ongoing.
- In the Middle East, matters go from bad to seriously worse, fueling fears of region-wide war. Iran’s response to the assassination of Hamas’s leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran is awaited with trepidation. It’s an old story. Western countries conduct emergency evacuations. Israel, backed by the US, prepares to strike back.
- [Ukraine] The conflict dramatically intensified this month after a large Ukrainian force invaded Russia right back.
- Sudan’s civil war is a catastrophe with dire implications for the whole Sahel region, terrorism and migration – yet few seem to notice, let alone care.
- At the opposite end of the spectrum, the wealthy wolves of Wall Street and other financial centers were busy making their own contribution to international insecurity with an irresponsible, rollercoaster display of record stock market instability. Yet jobbers’ jitters surely reflect the fears and uncertainties of a world running clean out of control.
- Speaking of control, the “indispensable” country that much of the world looks to in times of trouble spent August hopelessly distracted by domestic political tumult. Don’t expect the US to sort things out, unless Joe Biden produces a parting rabbit. Harris v Trump is shaping up to be the knock-down, scratch-your-eyes-out, photo-finish fight of the century.
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Important Takeaways:
- This is not a drill. We stand on the brink of multiple dangerous and life-altering precipices. Act accordingly.
- As the rhythmic beat of war drums grows louder, the global economy quivers, with stock markets plummeting in a dizzying freefall.
- The storm is coming, and we need to prepare for it.
- If you think stocks are cratering now, just wait until Iran closes the Straight of Hormuz, sending energy prices skyrocketing globally. Food prices will explode. Businesses will be hit by mass bankruptcies. Russia will receive a windfall of energy profits… Prepare accordingly. Gold, in other words. Plus shoring up necessary supplies in food, medicine, emergency comms, etc.
- Venezuela
- The situation remains tense and fluid, with the opposition continuing to challenge the election results and the government maintaining its stance on Maduro’s disputed victory. Venezuela is in the midst of a civilian uprising. The conflict is primarily between a majority of citizens and Maduro’s government, which is accused of stealing the election from opposition candidate Edmundo González.
- Middle East
- The tensions between Israel and Iran have reached a critical point in recent months, with both nations engaging in direct and proxy confrontations that threaten to destabilize the entire Middle East region and world.
- NEARLY $2 TRILLION GONE OVERNIGHT
- As most of you know by now, stock markets have experienced significant drops as investors react to the growing instability. Disruptions in oil supplies have led to spikes in energy prices, exacerbating inflationary pressures worldwide.
- UK’S PUBLIC OUTCRY, THE GOVERNMENT’S BETRAYAL & ENGINEERED RACE WAR
- The sharp rise of violent crimes by migrants while UK leaders not only ignore the protests but blatantly protect the migrants has fueled a fast-spreading fire of rebellion. This is being repeated in nations throughout the EU.
- The recent tragic stabbing of three young girls in Southport, UK, has ignited a firestorm of outrage and violence across the country and into Ireland. The incident, which took place at a Taylor Swift-themed summer dance class, left Alice Dasilva Aguiar, 9, Elsie Dot Stancombe, 7, and Bebe King, 6, dead, and several others injured. The suspect, 17-year-old Axel Rudakubana, has been charged with murder and attempted murder.
- While Rudakubana may not be a migrant, his murder spree on children did the trick and has fueled violent protests and attacks on mosques and asylum seeker accommodations, leading to widespread chaos and fear in towns and cities throughout the UK.
- The UK’s lack of response to the migrant hostility has sparked further outrage among those who believe the government is not doing enough to tackle the root causes of the unrest — most likely by design. The perception that the rise in violent crimes may be due to the activation of sleeper cells has only intensified the public’s fear and anger.
- NO SCARE-MONGERING INTENDED
- I know the news I’m reporting is frightful, but I believe it is necessary to relay it in order for people to truly understand our dangerous position. The transgressions we are seeing in the UK will surely erupt here as well. This appears to be a well-funded and oiled machine at play, potentially backed by influential figures like Soros. In the US, the situation may escalate further, with guns likely to be involved, not “simply” machetes and knives as seen in the UK.
- The fencing that appeared around the Capitol last week suggests that our leaders expect massive unrest.
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Important Takeaways:
- Middle East crisis looks set to explode into all out war as America threatens retaliation for rocket blast that hit soldiers in Iraq – as military scrambles destroyers and fighter jets to Israel
- American defense officials are planning for the crisis in the Middle East to become even worse following a rocket blast that injured several soldiers at a military base in Iraq Monday.
- The base in the west of the country was targeted by two Soviet-made Katyusha rockets amid soaring tensions in the Middle East – with Iran threatening to strike Israel as early as Monday night.
- Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announced Monday night the US was deploying additional fighters, carrier strike groups, ballistic missile defense-capable cruisers and destroyers to the region, as Israel awaits retaliation from Iran for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
- ‘These posture adjustments add to the broad range of capabilities the US military maintains in the region, including the USS Wasp amphibious ready group/Marine expeditionary unit operating in the eastern Mediterranean,’ a DOD spokesperson said.
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Important Takeaways:
- President Joe Biden is weighing more US defenses in the Middle East as the US prepares for an Iranian retaliation against Israel that officials say could include an attack on American forces.
- In a phone call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Thursday, Biden said the US would “support Israel’s defense against threats,” which would include “new defensive US military deployments,” according to a readout of the call.
- The statement did not detail what new deployments would occur ahead of an anticipated Iranian attack in response to the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.
- The USS Wasp amphibious assault ship and several other Navy vessels are currently operating in the Mediterranean Sea. The group includes a Marine expeditionary unit capable of carrying out an evacuation of American citizens from Lebanon if the US ordered such an evacuation.
- The US is expecting the anticipated Iranian attack may be similar to the barrage of ballistic missiles and drones launched against Israel on April 13, officials said. But this attack could be larger and more complicated than before, including the possibility of a coordinated attack with Iranian proxies from multiple directions.
- “Because they have picked a fight with everyone, they don’t know where the response will come from … the response will come separately or coordinated,” Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah said in a speech Thursday.
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Important Takeaways:
- How ancient hatreds are reshaping the Middle East and forging unlikely alliances. The rise of Iran – and its chilling proximity to a nuclear weapon – has driven old foes closer, explains STEPHEN POLLARD
- The competition is strong, but for my money the most important geopolitical statement so far this year came on Monday from an obscure Israeli news site.
- A member of the Saudi Arabian royal family had reportedly told the broadcaster Kan that, in his view, Iran had started the Gaza war by instructing its proxy group Hamas to massacre Israelis on October 7.
- Tehran’s intention, according to this nameless royal, was to thwart the imminent normalization of diplomatic relations between Israel and the Saudis.
- Why is that so important? Because it symbolizes the extraordinary transformation under way in the politics of the Middle East. For a Saudi royal to express such a view – that a Muslim country instigated the conflict for the purpose of spreading discord – would have been unimaginable only a few years ago. But that’s not the only way in which the winds of change are resettling alliances in this volatile region.
- On Saturday night, the ayatollahs of Iran inflicted their first direct attack on Israel since they came to power in the 1979 revolution.
- Allies such as the US and UK played a role in this. But they were joined by two other countries for whom defending the Jewish state would have been fanciful until recently: Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
- For most of the time Israel has existed, Saudi, as one of the world’s leading Muslim nations and home to the holy city of Mecca, has been its implacable foe. But now it is on the verge not just of tolerating Israel but becoming an ally.
- Similarly, back in 1967, Jordan actually invaded Israel – a disastrous move which lost it the territories of East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Yet now Jordan, too, has stood alongside Israel to protect it from Iranian bombs. This newfound co-operative spirit continues: just yesterday it emerged that both the Saudis and the United Arab Emirates had passed helpful intelligence to America to use in Israel’s defense, with Jordan further agreeing to let the US and ‘other countries’ warplanes’ use its airspace, as well as sending up its own jets.
- One thing is clear. The rise of Iran – and its chilling proximity to a nuclear weapon – has driven old foes closer.
- There is a logic, then, to the gradually deepening alliances between Sunni states and Israel. The Arab nations understand that while Israel has no ambitions to dominate its neighbors, Iran [the Ayatollah] seeks to control all of the Middle East.
- In Gulf states such as the UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain and especially Saudi Arabia, the Shia threat – in other words the threat from Iran – is seen as existential.
- It needs to be stressed that the vast majority of Sunnis and Shias would rather just get on with their lives than embroil themselves in these disputes
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Important Takeaways:
- How could Iran’s attack on Israel affect gas prices? What you should know
- Iran, one of the world’s largest producers of crude oil, has long been engaged in a shadow war with Israel, but there have been concerns the Israel-Hamas war could become a broader regional conflict.
- Any ripple effects on gas prices depend on the countries’ next moves and whether they seek further retaliation against the backdrop of an already raging war, said Michael Walden, Reynolds Distinguished Professor Emeritus at North Carolina State University.
- “We’re uncertain about what’s going to happen,” he said. “And so the impacts are going to be very dependent upon what does evolve.”
- The average price for a gallon of regular gas in the U.S. was $3.63 as of Monday, according to AAA, up almost 4 cents from a week earlier and 22 cents from a month ago. The price was down 3 cents from a year ago, however.
- Oil benchmarks had risen on Friday in anticipation of Iran’s retaliatory assault, with prices soaring to their highest since October.
- If you are planning a last-minute road trip, though, it may be worth going somewhere closer or putting off travel until a later date. Drivers who can take other modes of transportation, such as walking or biking, could consider that as well.
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Important Takeaways:
- Russia has called for restraint from both Iran and Israel as a wider war in the Middle East becomes a real possibility.
- Russia has sent a navy frigate, Marshal Shaposhnikov, armed with Kinzhal supersonic missiles into the Mediterranean Sea via the Suez Canal just hours after Iran attacked Israel with hundreds of missiles and drones.
- The Kremlin confirmed the ship’s presence in the area, adding that it will continue performing the tasks assigned to it under the expedition plan.
- Dmitry Peskov said: “Right now it is very important for everyone to maintain restraint in order not to lead to a complete destabilization of the situation in the region, which does not exactly shine with stability and predictability.”
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