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At least two oil and chemical tankers were forced to turn away from the Strait of Hormuz on Monday after the United States moved to enforce a naval blockade, according to maritime tracking data. One of the vessels, Rich Starry, which had listed its destination as China, reportedly reversed course within minutes of the blockade taking effect, data from MarineTraffic showed. Responding to the developments, China issued a strong message signalling it would continue its maritime activity in the region. Defence Minister Dong Jun said Chinese vessels would keep operating in the area and warned against external interference. “Our ships...

The Trump administration will celebrate the groundbreaking of a controversial new natural gas pipeline in New York City on Tuesday — with the project set to run off the coast of the city to boost the region’s energy supply. President Trump strongly backs the Northeast Supply Enhancement pipeline and used his influence to persuade Democratic Gov. Kathy Hochul to approve the permits allowing the project to proceed, despite fierce opposition from anti-fossil fuel environmentalists. Energy Secretary Chris Wright, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum and Environmental Protection Secretary Lee Zeldin will attend the event at Brooklyn’s Floyd Bennett Field, hosted by Williams...

According to a Phys.org report, Haichao Li of Sichuan University led a team of researchers in the analysis of fragments of iron discovered in southwestern China at the Sanxingdui site, a city occupied between 2800 and 600 B.C. So far, eight sacrificial pits containing metal objects such as bronze masks, trees, and figurines have been excavated at the site. The three iron fragments, which appear to have been parts of an ax-like weapon, were discovered in Pit 7. Because this object was found in the sacrificial area, the researchers suggest that it had ritual significance. Metallographic and scanning electron microscopy-energy...

According to a Phys.org report, a team of researchers led by Jean-Luc Houle of Western Kentucky University explored two Late Bronze Age mounds in Mongolia known as khirigsuurs for evidence of feasting. Khirigsuurs, found in Mongolia and parts of southern Siberia, usually contain human burials and are surrounded by deposits of horse skulls. These are sometimes accompanied by horse neck vertebrae and hooves, and the burned bones of sheep or goats. Houle and his colleagues looked for the rest of these horses and evidence of butchering at khirigsuur ZK-956, which has been dated to between 1054 and 906 B.C. A...

The first group of migrants deported from the US to third countries has arrived in Costa Rica. About 25 migrants — including citizens of Albania, Cameroon, China, Guatemala, Honduras, India, Kenya and Morocco — touched down in the island nation’s capital of San Jose on Saturday. “Upon entering the country, the migrants will receive primary care from the Professional Migration Police, with ⁠the cooperation of the International Organization for Migration (IOM),” Costa Rica’s General Directorate of Migration and Foreigners said in a statement. The group of 25 was the first to arrive in the Central American country since the US...

Checking out Janet’s bad cough. Started Jan. 4. We had just returned from China and may have both been patient zero in U.S. (@ West Coast Sports Institute in Santa Clara, CA)

The banking giant HSBC "knowingly" provided support to four of Mexico's most notorious drug cartels by laundering their money and providing material support to terrorists, according to a new lawsuit filed by four families. The papers filed in U.S. District Court in Brownsville, Texas, on Tuesday say that laundering drug money made it possible for the cartels to operate. "HSBC's substantial and systemic money laundering support materially aided the activities of the Mexican cartels, including the Sinaoloa, Juárez, and Los Zetas cartels," court documents read.

President Donald Trump announced a U.S. blockade on the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday. Trump made the announcement in a post on his Truth Social account, blaming the failure to reach a deal with Iran during talks in Pakistan this weekend. "So, there you have it, the meeting went well, most points were agreed to, but the only point that really mattered, NUCLEAR, was not. Effective immediately, the United States Navy, the Finest in the World, will begin the process of BLOCKADING any and all Ships trying to enter, or leave, the Strait of Hormuz," Trump wrote. "At some point,...

In UN Watch's press release, the NGO cited the UN's Economic and Social Council's (ECOSOC) recent nomination of Iran to the UN’s Committee for Program and Coordination. UN Watch demanded an explanation on Saturday from democratic countries for why they'd allowed "serial abusers of human rights" to be elected to key positions in the United Nations. In UN Watch's press release, the NGO cited the UN's Economic and Social Council's (ECOSOC) recent nomination of Iran to the UN’s Committee for Program and Coordination, which would include an active role in shaping policy on women's rights, disarmament, and terrorism prevention, as...

The deployment aimed to enhance joint military coordination, improve operational readiness between the armed forces of the two countries, and support security and stability at regional and international levels

DETROIT -- Two men pleaded guilty Friday to charges of conspiracy to violate the "Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act" (RICO), U.S. Attorney Stephen J. Murphy announced today. Imad Majed Hamadeh, 51, of Dearborn Heights, and Theodore Schenk, 73, of Miami Beach, Fla., pleaded guilty here before U.S. District Judge Gerald E. Rosen to the following charges: operating a criminal enterprise to traffic in contraband cigarettes, counterfeit Zig Zag rolling papers and counterfeit Viagra; producing counterfeit cigarette tax stamps; transporting stolen property; and money laundering. Sixteen other defendants faced the same charges. Some of the profits derived from the illegal...

US intelligence indicates China is preparing to deliver new air defense systems to Iran within the next few weeks, CNN reported late on Friday, citing three people familiar with recent intelligence assessments. According to intelligence outlined in the CNN report, Beijing is preparing to transfer shoulder-fired anti-air missile systems known as MANPADs. These systems pose an asymmetric threat to low-flying US military aircraft, as demonstrated during the five-week war, and they could continue to do so if the ceasefire breaks down. Two sources informed CNN that there are signs Beijing is attempting to route shipments of the weaponry through third...

American intelligence agencies have obtained information that China in recent weeks may have sent a shipment of shoulder-fired missiles to Iran for its conflict with the United States and Israel, according to U.S. officials. The officials said that the intelligence is not definitive that the shipment has been sent, and that there is no evidence that the Chinese missiles have yet been used against American or Israeli forces during the conflict.

As the United States turns its focus away from Asia and dials in on the Middle East, China is reportedly ramping up its deployment of naval power on the high seas. The Chinese navy and coast guard have deployed 100 vessels in the East and South China Seas, according to information that two Taiwanese security officials told Reuters. China’s presence is highly heightened when compared with the usual strength in the theater of about 50-60 ships, according to a statement that one official provided to Reuters. However, these ships are nowhere to be seen on the map. They are all...

Britain will host further talks on reopening the vital Strait of Hormuz shipping lane with a coalition of countries next week. The meeting will continue the Government’s efforts to restore freedom of navigation to the strait, which provides shipping routes for oil and gas. It comes after the Prime Minister spoke to Donald Trump about the need for a “practical plan” to get ships going through the area amid suggestions Iran wants to charge vessels for passage. An official with knowledge of the planning has said the meeting is expected to look for ways to support a sustainable end to...

A former staffer for Rep. Eric Swalwell has reportedly accused the congressman of sexual assault and taking advantage of her over the course of several years — allegations the Democratic frontrunner for California governor is denying as false and politically motivated. The woman, who worked for Swalwell for nearly two years, said the most serious incident occurred in April 2024, when she alleges he sexually assaulted her after a charity gala in New York, according to a report published Friday by the San Francisco Chronicle. The woman, who was not named in the story, said she became heavily intoxicated while...

A Palo Alto father who has filed multiple lawsuits against major university systems over his son's college rejections says artificial intelligence has become the key to pursuing the cases after no law firm agreed to represent them. The legal fight stems from a 2023 ABC7 News story about Stanley Zhong, then an 18-year-old Gunn High School student with a 4.4 GPA and a near-perfect 1590 SAT score who was rejected by 16 out of the 18 colleges he applied to. Despite the rejections, he was later hired as a software engineer at Google. Two and a half years later, his...

Chinese President Xi Jinping reiterated his opposition to Taiwanese independence during a meeting with Cheng Li-wun, leader of Taiwan's pro-Beijing opposition Kuomintang (KMT) party. Her official trip to Beijing, the first such visit in a decade, sparked controversy in the self-ruled island that China claims as its territory. Cheng's trip comes a month before US President Donald Trump is scheduled to visit Beijing for a summit with Xi. The United States has been piling pressure on Taiwanese opposition lawmakers to back a proposal for defence purchases, including US weapons, to deter a potential Chinese attack. Cheng has railed against the...

Goodfellow’s BedfellowsWho’s in Bed with the Washington PostBy Fedora Introduction I. A Radical Education: Boston University and Cambridge-Goddard II. Vietnam Roots: Indochina Resource Center A. Luce at International Voluntary Services B. Luce and Cornell’s Hanoi for Lunch Bunch C. Luce’s Tiger Cages and the Indochina Mobile Education Project D. Luce and Branfman: The COLIFAM Connection E. Luce, Branfman, Winter Soldier, and Project Air War F. The Indochina Resource Center: Branfman, Luce, and Goodfellow G. The IRC and the Indochina Peace Campaign: The Hayden-Fonda Link III. Post-Vietnam Transition: Campaign for a Democratic Foreign Policy and Coalition for a New Foreign and...

We've come a long way from the 2003 British lectures about American obtrusive ray-bans and Kevlar losing what British soft hats and smiles had won. That quote about defeat from "a senior U.S. official" about the British withdrawal from southern Iraq is probably accurate, but it belongs to a larger, more disturbing context: (1) the popular British anger at the U.S. (whether evidenced by the "poodle" slur or the latest Pew poll finding that a bare majority of British subjects approves of the U.S.); (2) a growing acknowledgement of British weakness and appeasement, as exemplified not just by the escape...