Free Republic

ISTANBUL—The conflict between the U.S. and Iran is escalating just as the two warring parties are running up against the limits of what they can achieve through military force.The conflict widened this week after Iranian-allied militants in Yemen began striking ships transiting a key Red Sea chokepoint, helping drive oil prices above $100 a barrel for the first time in two months on Thursday.The U.S., meanwhile, has escalated its bombing campaign in Iran in recent days, striking throughout the country during the most intense period of fighting since President Trump and Israel began bombing Iran in late February.Trump and other...

President Donald Trump has placed a new condition on a nuclear agreement with Saudi Arabia a day after formally approving it, saying the country now must join the Abraham Accords. Trump wrote in a post on social media Thursday that the deal, which has already been signed, “will be approved,” but added, that it “is totally subject to Saudi Arabia joining the very respected and successful Abraham Accords.” The president also emphasized in the post that there would be “no enrichment” even though the agreement could lead to the country enriching its own fuel for civilian reactors. The deal has...

he U.S. military's Central Command repeated an assertion on Tuesday evening that has been made by the Trump administration many times over the last two weeks, insisting that "despite Iranian aggression, the Strait of Hormuz remains open for commercial vessel traffic." Despite the U.S. president and military continuing to urge vessels to use a southern route through the strait, in defiance of Iran's threats, few shippers seem willing to risk it. The Joint Maritime Information Center in Bahrain, a military partnership that includes the U.S., said commercial traffic in the Strait of Hormuz fell to a three-week low on Tuesday...

SUMMARY The US is due to sign a deal that will allow Saudi Arabia to develop a civilian nuclear programme - timeline of their talks An announcement is expected from US President Donald Trump's administration, according to CBS News, the BBC's US partner The deal will reportedly allow US companies to run nuclear power for the Saudis on Saudi soil Nuclear experts and former officials in Israel - the US's top ally in the Middle East - have warned that such an agreement could lead to Saudi Arabia being able to develop a nuclear weapon The fear is that if...

Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) pressed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth in a testy exchange on Iran and the state of the Strait of Hormuz. At a Tuesday Senate hearing, Kennedy questioned both Hegseth and Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. John D. Caine on the Strait as tensions have escalated between the United States and Iran with the U.S. launching days of strikes and Iran continuing to target ships in the Strait. “Will they put tolls on the Strait?” Kennedy asked Caine. “I don’t know, sir. That’s a decision that’s a hypothetical and will depend on what happens in the...

House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) was asked during a Capitol Hill press conference on Tuesday at what point he will move to use Congressional power to check President Donald Trump’s war in Iran. Johnson pointedly ended his reply by saying “we’ve got to wrap it up” in Iran, which many pundits and political insiders have warned is an additional threat to the GOP keeping its majorities in Congress. Johnson’s answer appeared to be at odds with Trump, who vowed earlier in the day to continue bombing Iran until they come to the negotiating table in good faith. “You repeatedly said...

Feckless and clueless, Donald Trump is lost in Iran, unable to find a way out of the disastrous war he started. Once again, the US military is pummelling the country and, increasingly, its civilian infrastructure. As before, this unlawful bludgeoning strengthens the resistance of a hardline regime that cares little for its people’s suffering. How often have Trump and Pete Hegseth, the Pentagon’s wildling lord of bones, hailed a bogus victory? The president claimed this week to be “winning big”. No one believes him. Even as it counts the vast human and economic cost of his Persian folly, a watching...

Tehran has spent decades preparing for — and welcoming — a U.S. ground invasion, a senior Iranian official has claimed, as fresh explosions rocked the region on the eighth day of renewed U.S.-Iran strikes. Seyed Mohammad Marandi, an Iranian American academic identified as a regime "Tehran had just launched a "new missile" while decentralizing and burying its arsenal deep underground to withstand sustained American air campaigns. "The Americans are planning an invasion. I'm not saying it will necessarily happen. I'm not saying it will necessarily happen in the next few days. But they have plans for an invasion," Marandi, a...

Israel paid at least $50 million to US-based firms to help its standing with Americans, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday. The report alleged that the Israeli government had retained at least six firms to help in its efforts to sway public opinion in the United States in its favor. It added that at least three dozen new people, many of them in the marketing industry, have registered as foreign agents for Israel. This comes as 42% of American adults hold an unfavorable opinion of Israeli people, and 69% hold an unfavorable opinion of the Israeli government, a July...

BRIDGEWATER, New Jersey (AP) — The U.S. military said on Saturday that two additional service members were killed as part of the war with Iran, bringing the total number of deaths to 16.The deaths reflect the complicated reality that American boots don’t need to be on the ground for there to be lethal risks in a conflict that involves drones, missiles and airplanes. American forces are arrayed across the Middle East, making other nations targets of Iran as the fighting has escalated after a breakdown in peace talks.President Donald Trump has said the war is necessary to stop Iran from...

Harvard Law professor emeritus Alan M. Dershowitz was told by his attorneys that he could not legally testify before the House Government Oversight Committee on Monday, he said. Dershowitz was scheduled to sit for an in-person, transcribed interview on his ties to the convicted sex criminal Jeffrey E. Epstein as part of the monthslong investigation into Epstein and his associates. Dershowitz, high-profile defense attorney, helped negotiate Epstein's controversial 2008 plea deal. But his attorney has now reversed course, a spokesperson for the House Oversight Committee confirmed Friday, indicating to the committee that Dershowitz would not be present for the interview....

Iran's supreme leader vowed to teach the United States "unforgettable lessons" on Saturday, as Washington reported its first military deaths since renewing its hostilities with the Islamic republic.A month after the foes signed a now-abandoned preliminary deal aimed at ending their war, Tehran struck infrastructure around the Gulf in retaliation for a week of intensifying US attacks, which Iran said had hit an airport, a railway station and bridges.Iran hit an oil facility in Kuwait as well as a power and water plant, authorities in the Gulf state said, while in Bahrain the army said air defences repelled a wave...

In a move likely to further raise tensions with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump, Pope Leo XIV will gather the world’s cardinals behind closed doors on Friday to hash out new guidelines on when war is justified. It’s a topic that has already fired a spat between the White House and the Vatican within the context of the Iran conflict. When Leo said the disciples of Christ were never on the side of those who “once wielded the sword and today drop bombs,” Vice President JD Vance retorted that the pontiff needed to be “careful” about his theology,...

I believe in the scriptural land rights given to Israel, I believe in fulfilment of prophecy, and, again, I'm not a theologian but I'm a Christian, my life was changed in Israel, the spiritual energy is so amazing there. I want them to win, I've said that repeatedly. However, you're hitting on something very potent and important. Now let me first say – I don't want to judge an entire group, because there's been many people in the pro-Israel group that have been very sweet, very kind, very nuanced...however, and I will say this, the behavior by a lot –...

US Senator Lindsey Graham: “I’m not with you, I’m with Israel, until my dying day.”

Amidst the Iran War said to be about Iran's quest to acquire nuclear weapons an idea France opposed President Emmanuel Macron this week rolling out expansion of France's nuclear weapons and their linkage to European defense... On Thursday evening President Macron spoke regarding the Iran War and France's response to it. The French military did not fire the opening shots in the war but has opened fire in defense of French military facilities established in the Persian Gulf region since...

The largest increases in gas prices were reported in these states: Indiana — $3.448 (+64.0¢) Ohio — $3.399 (+62.6¢) West Virginia — $3.375 (+55.1¢) Florida — $3.407 (+53.7¢) Texas — $3.094 (+53.2¢) Colorado — $3.357 (+52.9¢) Iowa — $3.159 (+52.5¢) New Mexico — $3.247 (+52.1¢) Maryland — $3.456 (+51.6¢) Oklahoma — $2.922 (+50.8¢) Even considering these recent increases, California drivers are still facing the highest gas prices in the country, at $5.048 per gallon of regular gas. Washington and Nevada followed with a price of $4.557 and $4.119, respectively.

@RealAlexJones HISTORIC VIDEO: Alex Jones & Tommy Robinson Meet For The 1st Time In Person At The Infowars Studio! (STRONG LANGUAGE)

President Donald Trump issued another warning to Tehran on Friday, saying “Iran should make a deal.” At a news conference, he described the situation as very sad and said the Iranian people are better than their leaders, adding that 32,000 protesters were killed in a short period of time. Amid the threats, The New York Times reported that Washington is preparing for a range of scenarios, including a broader confrontation than last year’s. Pentagon officials said hundreds of troops have been evacuated from Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, and personnel have also been moved from a cluster of US...

New Mexico Department of Justice opening an investigation into Jeffrey Epstein's... Five people killed in three separate avalanche... California Governor Democrat Gavin Newsom endorsing legislation to ban social media for under... Three more killed in the latest US military... Ukrainian cruise missile attack deep inside Russia...11 people wounded... "Your tariff taxes wreaked havoc on farmers...I demand a refund of $1,700 for every family..."...Illinois Governor J.N Pritzker...letter to President... White House leaking out the notion...Trump is open to some sort of "compromise" with Iran... Trump Administration rolling back emissions rules for coal-fired power plants... US and Chinese warplanes were in a...