Free Republic

Donald Trump revealed that he has 1,000 missiles 'locked and loaded' and aimed at Iran in the event he is assassinated by the Islamic republic. The president shared details of his plans for a massive military retaliation warning Iran would be 'completely decimated' if it ever carried out its long-running threats against him. He issued the extraordinary warning on Friday night in a fiery Truth Social post following renewed calls for his death during the funeral of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. In one of his most explicit threats yet against Tehran, Trump revealed he has already instructed military...

For four years, Russia has bet on outlasting Ukraine in a war of attrition. Now, as Kyiv’s drones inflict growing damage on both Russia’s army and oil industry, Moscow is finding out that time isn’t necessarily on its side. Russian President Vladimir Putin’s invasion force is making ever-smaller gains at the front line, its losses exceed recruitment, and it is struggling to adapt to a Ukrainian drone campaign pounding its supply routes to its forward positions. Meanwhile, Ukraine’s stretched army hasn’t buckled as Russia hoped and is even pushing back the invaders in places with small counterattacks. Its increasingly capable...

SAWYER, Mich. (AP) — A completed bridge linking Detroit and Canada is expected to open by the end of the month after U.S. and Canadian officials reached an agreement to resolve the dispute that delayed its debut, according to two people directly involved in the negotiations.The sources were not authorized to publicly disclose the deal before a formal announcement.A ribbon-cutting ceremony scheduled for early June was postponed after the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority said the two countries needed more time to resolve “outstanding issues.” The delay followed President Donald Trump’s earlier threats to block the bridge’s opening.Commercial traffic is now expected...

China's 'big four' banks took the top spots in The Banker's latest global ranking, with JPMorgan Chase following in fifth place China's "big four" state-run banks are the largest in the world in terms of asset scale, a new report has found, underscoring Beijing's rising ambitions to build the country into a global financial powerhouse. The ranking released by The Banker magazine on Wednesday was topped by the four Chinese banks - Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, China Construction Bank, Agricultural Bank of China and Bank of China - with JPMorgan Chase following in fifth place. Chinese banks collectively...

Israeli Prime Minister suggested he's breaking away from the U.S. and forming a new alliance with India as Tel-Aviv and Washington butt heads over the former's strikes in Lebanon. The eyebrow-raising comments come as the apparent rift between the U.S. and Israel widens during the 4-month war with Iran. "You have to build new alliances and develop new relationships. That's what I'm doing right now with India," Netanyahu told Sharon Gal, a prominent right-wing journalist in Israel. Last month, Israeli officials denounced the fragile peace deal struck between the U.S and Iran, which seemed to disturb Vice President JD Vance,...

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has found an unusual way to keep this week’s NATO summit in Ankara in the headlines—by presenting fellow alliance leaders with personalized revolvers, leaving several governments to figure out how to legally transport, store, or dispose of the unusual diplomatic gifts. The presentation, intended to showcase Turkey’s growing defense manufacturing sector, quickly evolved into a logistical puzzle as visiting delegations confronted strict firearms regulations in their home countries. Each guest reportedly received a Turkish-made .357 Magnum revolver, engraved with the recipient’s name and displayed in a wooden presentation case alongside a cleaning kit, certificate, and...

President Trump noted the weapons being used against the small boats are “the same exact missile” as those being used against narco boats attempting to smuggle drugs north to the United States from South America. While the President didn’t specific which missile that is, the chances are good it is either the old Cold War stalwart the AGM-114 Hellfire or the modern budget killer the APKWS. Created to kill Russian tanks in Central Europe in case the Cold War turned hot in the 1980s, the Hellfire remains an effective anti-armour air-to-ground weapon but both in terms of capability and cost...

The new Air Force One, which President Trump flew on earlier this week to Turkey, lacks the same defensive countermeasures that were security features of the old model, including its advanced antimissile capabilities, according to multiple officials who have been briefed on how the jet was retrofitted.Experts say the absence of those capabilities on the Boeing 747-8 aircraft, which was donated by Qatar, creates potential risk in using the jet abroad, a dynamic underscored by the abrupt decision on Wednesday for Mr. Trump to leave Turkey on the old Air Force One at the urging of the Secret Service.The episode...

Israel recently shared intelligence with the US about a new Iranian plot to assassinate President Trump, according to a report. The latest assassination plan, reported by the Wall Street Journal on Thursday, comes after years of Iranian regime threats to kill Trump as revenge for the 2020 killing of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Gen. Qasem Soleimani by US forces. When asked for comment, the White House referred The Post to Trump’s Wednesday remarks at the NATO summit in Ankara. ”They want to take out the US leader — me,” Trump said. “I’m on whatever list. I saw this morning I’m...

In the aftermath of two powerful earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24, the human cost continues to mount. According to figures released by National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez, at least 3,811 people have now died, with 16,740 injured, and 17,907 left homeless. VIDEOS AT LINK.................. The twin quakes, measuring magnitudes 7.2 and 7.5, caused widespread destruction, particularly in coastal areas like La Guaira and the capital region of Caracas. Buildings collapsed, infrastructure failed, and entire communities were left in ruins — exposing the fragile state of much of the country's housing and public works after years of economic mismanagement...

Technical talks between the United States and Iran are ongoing despite recent strikes and apparent rising tensions. A United States official confirmed to Townhall that “the United States is still committed to finding a resolution, and technical talks continue,” adding that “Iran can never possess a nuclear weapon.”The official added that the Memorandum of Understanding signed by the two countries last month “is performance-based, and Iran’s actions constitute failed performance at an unacceptable level.”NEW: @townhallcom can independently confirm other reporting that Iran talks are ongoing despite recent strikes.From a U.S. official:“President Trump made his feelings very clear yesterday in no...

The Trump administration, led by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, is ridding America's roadways of noncitizen truck drivers. But the death toll continues to rise amid legal and blue state pushback. Flags are flying at half staff in the state of Pennsylvania in honor of Michael Pahira Jr., a state trooper killed after a tractor-trailer struck him on the morning of July 1. Pahira, a 20-year veteran of the force, was conducting a safety check of another commercial truck on the shoulder of 1-80 when Michael Bon, an illegal immigrant from Haiti, crashed into Pahira’s vehicle then hit the truck he...

Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz on Thursday rejected President Donald Trump's suggestion that Israel could withdraw from southern Lebanon. He said Israel does not need anyone's approval to maintain its military presence there. "We didn't ask for anyone's approval to enter Lebanon, and we don't need approval to stay in Lebanon," Katz said in a statement, according to The Washington Examiner. "It is our right and duty to defend the residents of the Galilee and Israeli citizens from the threats of the jihadist terror group Hezbollah, which aims to destroy the State of Israel." Katz said Israel would continue to...

The White House on Thursday claimed President Trump’s switch from the new Qatari-donated Air Force One to the original presidential plane on his flight home from Turkey Wednesday was a strategic “distraction” to keep the commander-in-chief safe. Denying that any physical security factors led to the swap out, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung said the new jet “is a state-of-the-art aircraft that has been fitted with high-level security protocols that ensure the safety of the President and his staff.” “As the President has said recently, there are many enemies of America who have their sights on him, and we...

Iran launched missiles and drones toward American military bases in four Middle Eastern countries Thursday following a second night of US strikes on the Islamic Republic. Tehran said it targeted Patriot missile interceptors in Kuwait, early warning systems in Qatar, and fuel depots in Bahrain, which is also the home of the US Navy’s 5th Fleet. Iran also fired at least 10 ballistic missiles toward Jordan’s Azraq military base, which hosts the US Air Force’s 332nd Air Expeditionary Wing, according the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). Mourners at a funeral procession in Mashhad, Iran, hold a red banner with "WE...

US President says he loves Spain and its people while escalating criticism of Pedro Sánchez’s government Donald Trump has delivered one of his strongest attacks yet on Spain, but this time there was a notable shift in his language. While again threatening trade consequences and describing Spain as a poor NATO ally, the US President also made a point of separating the country from its political leadership, insisting that he has affection for Spain and the Spanish people even as he condemned the government’s stance. That distinction is becoming increasingly noticeable. Rather than portraying Spain itself as the problem, Trump’s...

Mediterranean voyage changes course twice after Turkey, then Egypt refuse accessThe Scarlet Lady cruise ship has changed its itinerary for the second time this week, after first Turkey and now Egypt denied it entry to their ports. The ship, owned by Virgin Voyages and chartered by 2SLGBTQ+ travel company Atlantis Events, is carrying 1,900 passengers, including legendary Broadway performer Patti LuPone. The passengers found out on Thursday the cruise would not be heading to Alexandria, Egypt, as a replacement for previously planned stops to Kuşadası and Istanbul in Turkey. Earlier this week, Turkish authorities canacelled the planned port calls, saying...

The European Parliament has approved an urgent procedure to fast-track legislation that would revive the EU's expired “Chat Control 1.0” rules. This development sets up a decisive vote on July 9 over whether online platforms may once again be allowed to voluntarily scan private user communications for child sexual abuse material (CSAM). MEPs voted 331 in favor and 304 against using the urgency procedure, allowing Parliament to bypass the usual committee stage. The procedural vote does not itself reinstate the law but accelerates consideration of a proposal that would effectively restore the temporary legal framework that expired in April.

Two American allies, Germany and Japan, already have permission to build the American interceptors, a license that President Trump says he will also grant to Kyiv. In 2022, as fears mounted over Europe’s missile defense capabilities against Russian strikes, the Biden administration granted permission for Germany to build a factory to manufacture state-of-the-art Patriot air defense interceptors. That factory has yet to produce a single Patriot — a sign of the time it can take and how difficult it can be to ramp up production of American weapons abroad, even after winning approval from the United States government to do...

Prosecutor General's Office hasn't established Ukraine's involvement in the sabotage of the Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines, prosecutors said on July 9, adding that the investigation and evidence collection are still underway. The statement comes a week after Germany's federal prosecutor filed charges against a Ukrainian national suspected of sabotaging the Nord Stream gas pipelines in 2022. The suspect is Serhii Kuznietsov, Ukrainian veteran who was extradited to Germany in November 2025. Ukrainian law enforcement is investigating the case as part of criminal proceedings into Russia's war against Ukraine and other alleged offenses. Investigators are reviewing information...