#faction-war

#faction-war

"Six months into the ceasefire, civilians in Gaza remain trapped amid attacks on civilians, restricted aid and an uncertain political process that is now shaping whether recovery will begin or collapse."

Both Iran and the U.S. think they won the war - Iran withstood two powerful armies and despite weeks of intense bombardment has shown no sign that it is willing to capitulate on the core issues that have divided them from the U.S. and Israel over decades.

The Pentagon's law of war manual states unequivocally that such statements are war crimes. It's one of the reasons that the United States ensured Germany's senior military officials were prosecuted for the crime after World War II. The best thing Secretary Hegseth can do for the country and for the US military is to say he misspoke and to retract the statement.

Much of the fighting was concentrated around the strategic hilltop city of Khiam, with the Israel Defense Forces carrying out an air and artillery campaign against Hezbollah fighters dug into the city. Fighting escalated there after days of clashes, with a Hezbollah spokesperson acknowledging there were heightened clashes on the eastern and northern outskirts of the city.

The incident occurred in friendly airspace during Operation Epic Fury. A statement said the crash was not the result of hostile or friendly fire and involved one other refueling plane. The second plane landed safely in Israel, officials said. A US official, speaking to Reuters on the condition of anonymity, said the KC-135 that crashed had as many as six service members on board.

Today every senator, every single one, will pick a side: Do you stand with the American people who are exhausted of forever wars in the Middle East? Or stand with Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth as they bumble us headfirst into another war?

OPINION - The global terrorism landscape in 2026 - the 25 th anniversary year of the 9/11 terrorism attacks - is more uncertain, hybridized, and combustible than at any point since 9/11. Framing a sound U.S. counterterrorism strategy - especially in the second year of a Trump administration - will require more than isolated strikes against ISIS in Nigeria, punitive counterterrorism operations in Syria, or a tougher rhetorical posture.

United States President Donald Trump launched the Board of Peace on Thursday, saying it's one of the most consequential bodies ever created in the history of the world. This is all part of the agreement to reach a ceasefire in Gaza after more than two years of Israel's genocidal war on Palestinians in the territory. Trump said the board will work in partnership with the United Nations to address crises far beyond Gaza.

Within hours of the United States-Israeli attacks on Iran, US assets in Iraq's Kurdistan region came under retaliatory attacks from Tehran-backed groups, dragging the country into the conflict that has since expanded across the Middle East and beyond. Since then, US assets located in Iraq have come under multiple attacks from pro-Iran groups and Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard Corps (IGRC).

Anthony Glees, Emeritus Professor at the University of Buckingham, called the US and Israeli decision to attack Iran a 'war of choice' and the first red flag which previously led to the last two world wars. He claimed that the conflict in the Middle East did not start out of necessity or self-defense, but as a deliberate decision by two leaders focused on gaining power and keeping it.

The ongoing United States-Israel attack on Iran, triggered by the assassination of Iran's supreme leader last Saturday, has rekindled military and political action between Lebanon and Israel, as Hezbollah again takes centre stage while facing the most existential crisis in its history. Every aspect of Hezbollah's political position in Lebanon, its military capabilities, and its war plans against Israel is now under intense scrutiny from regional and domestic actors.

Among the rebels who, on December 8, entered Damascus and put an end to almost 14 years of conflict and the Assad family regime one of the cruellest and longest-lasting in the Middle East was one who spoke Spanish with a slight Caribbean accent. Dr. Bachar Alkaderi, a graduate of the University of Medical Sciences of Havana, specializing in general and thoracic surgery, became, through the twists of fate and history, a revolutionary commander.