Which invasion? Iran or Cuba or both?

• A source close to Iran's Ghalibaf says Iran's "third struggle" plan announced by the IRGC will close Bab el-Mandeb Strait "by fire" and disable the seven submarine internet cables under the Strait of Hormuz, in immediate response to upcoming US strikes that Iran has assessed as "inevitable," for this weekend. The source adds that Iran will also respond with "next-generation missiles and drones" firing hundreds daily at the Gulf energy infrastructure, and that the US and Israel are playing "Russian roulette" with the outcome being the "collapse of the global economy and unprecedented gas prices."

• The United Arab Emirates has made a more concerted push for an end to the Iran war in recent days, joining Saudi Arabia and Qatar in urging Trump to give negotiations a chance, according to several people familiar with the matter. The conversations were prompted by the countries’ fears that any retaliation from Tehran, if hostilities resume, will plunge Gulf economies into chaos, the people said. 

• Stars and Stripes: The United States has approved a potential $108.1 million foreign military sale to Ukraine to help sustain the country’s HAWK air defense systems, the State Department announced this week. The HAWK, or Homing All the Way Killer, is a U.S.-made medium-range air defense system that Ukraine has used to defend against Russian missile and drone attacks.

• Trump: “China agreed not to supply weapons to Iran. I talked to them.” China Foreign Minister: “We want to end rumors that China agreed with the U.S. not to supply weapons to Iran. To be clear: no such communication occurred. China has neither confirmed nor denied supplying weapons to Iran. Our security agreements and defense cooperation are sovereign matters for China alone. No foreign country may interfere in China’s internal affairs.”
• The Trump Gaza Board of Peace is falling apart. Very few are paying, and there is serious remorse being expressed by those who joined initially. Nebenzia at the UN Security Council did not mince words. “Six months after the vote on Security Council Resolution 2803, the so-called 'Trump Plan' remains largely a dead letter, with declarative successes only serving as a smokescreen to conceal the grim reality in the #GazaStrip.”

• Sovereignista: Let’s count: Negotiations with Russia zip; Ukraine negotiations not happening; Negotiations with Iran not happening as not even the framework of a negotiation structure can be agreed upon; China debacle; Trump’s Gaza Peace Board a dead letter; Tariffs dead and must be paid back; US outplayed in the Strait of Hormuz; The world speaking out against the war on Cuba (and this just off the top of my head). I’m sure there are more for example, the US does not have diplomats in more than 100 countries. Counting Israel, the world is at last talking, because of the brutal treatment of the latest Flotilla to Gaza.
• Haaretz: An investigation unveiled that a secret spy unit is operating inside Israel’s Education Ministry and has been monitoring teachers who criticize the government, particularly left-wing and Arab educators, in an effort to silence critics.  The unit, headed by a former Shin Bet operative, compiled detailed files tracking educators’ social media posts, protest participation, and political statements.
• Two US Marine Corps MV-22 Osprey tiltrotor aircraft conducted an emergency response exercise at the US Embassy in Caracas. Venezuelan authorities authorized the flights. The USS Iwo Jima is operating off the Venezuelan coast. Sadly the US now occupies Venezuela. Are they practicing for the invasion of Cuba?

• Poland announced the arrival of the first three American-made Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II aircraft at Łask Air Base, with further deliveries scheduled through 2029. Warsaw ordered 32 F-35A fighter jets from Lockheed Martin in 2020 during President Trump’s first term in a deal worth $4.6 billion, and Polish pilots are already undergoing training in the U.S.
• The apartment of Oleksandr Udovichenko, deputy head of the Ukrainian State Security Bureau, who owns the Gorilla Casino. Price: $900,000. Zelensky and his cronies thank the people of the United States and Europe for their taxes. 

• Israel struck a road in southern Lebanon, killing a father and daughter. When medical teams arrived, a second strike hit the responders. Lebanese health authorities say over 100 medical workers have been killed since March 2026.
• Brazilian Global Sumud Flotilla activist Thiago Ávila: 'Israeli soldiers raped our people at the Global Sumud Flotilla. It was not one, not two, not three. They were taking food and medicine to Gaza. They were taking baby formula, and they got raped by Israeli soldiers.'  

• The President of Mexico, Claudia Sheinbaum announces that she will send oil to Cuba, no matter what Trump wants. “We will continue sending oil to Cuba. We will not cave, and we will not be a tool for implementing the U.S. embargo. Enough of the blackmail.”

• The Global Sumud Flotilla expresses its profound outrage and condemnation following a violent assault by the Ertzaintza (Basque autonomous police) against newly returned flotilla participants at Bilbao Airport, Spain. These activists, having just survived days of systematic abduction, torture, and severe psychological and physical violence at the hands of the israeli Occupation Forces (iOF), were met not with sanctuary, but with immediate, targeted police brutality upon stepping onto their home soil. When a family member, waiting anxiously in the arrivals terminal, attempted to cross a barrier to embrace their loved ones, the Ertzaintza suddenly and shockingly responded with violence. What should have been a moment of relief and familial comfort after such a harrowing experience was interrupted by even more brutality. See more photos and video on Fazebook https://www.facebook.com/reel/980692311003810