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Brent crude over $119 as Trump sticks with blockade A late update: Oil is now approaching its highest level since the Iran war began. Brent crude has risen over $119 a barrel, up 7% today, after president Donald Trump told Axios he will not lift a naval blockade of Iran’s ports until he secures a deal with Tehran to address the country’s nuclear program. ...

Foreign media are now required to obtain prior military censorship approval before filming missile impact and crash sites. Foreign photographers will no longer be allowed to film at the scenes of missile strikes in Israel without prior written approval from military censors, under new directives issued by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi. ...

Iran is set to OFFICIALLY declare war against Israel, per state media

The Biden Administration is dangerous. After nearly a year of fighting a proxy war in Ukraine against a nuclear power, Biden has driven Russia and China closer together and the world is now facing a nuclear WWIII. President Trump has a plan to stop this madness.Steve Cortes discussed how Biden has pushed Russia and China together with his feckless actions in Ukraine. The world hasn’t been closer to a World War since World War II.Cortes explained how Nixon went to China in the 1970’s to build a relationship with China, not to help China’s communist party but to prevent Russia...

Danish authorities on Monday asked ships to steer clear of a five nautical mile radius off the island of Bornholm after a gas leak overnight from the defunct Russian-owned Nord Stream 2 pipeline drained into the Baltic Sea. The German government said it was in contact with the Danish authorities and working with local law enforcement to find out what caused pressure in the pipeline to plummet suddenly. On Monday evening, the operator of the Nord Stream 1 pipeline, which ran at reduced capacity since mid-June before stopping supplies altogether in August, also disclosed a pressure drop on both lines...

George Soros takes credit for Ukraine war, saying that all the Ukrainian leaders that wanted to join the EU and NATO were in contact with his “civil societies” foundation. ...

DEVELOPING: U.S. announces another $1.7 billion in aid to Ukraine. The money is for humanitarian purposes, intended to support the salaries of hospital workers as the nation reels from the ravages of war.

The exchange rate reached 57.67 rubles per dollar at 08:13 GMT, its firmest against the US currency since March 2018, according to data from the Moscow Exchange. The ruble also gained nearly 5% on the euro, with the exchange rate now below 60 rubles per euro, hitting a seven-year high. According to Bloomberg, the Russian currency has become the world’s best-performing currency this year despite its sharp drop in April sparked by unprecedented economic sanctions placed on Russia.