(2026-04-18). US-Iran conflict: Iran threatens Hormuz closure amid Trump's blockade warning, says '7 claims, all false'. ptcnews.tv PTC News Desk: Iran's Parliament Speaker, Mohammed Bagher Ghalibaf warned US President Donald Trump of closing Strait of Hormuz after if the US continues its naval blockade, shortly after the US President said the blockade will remain in "full force". | Qalibaf said that decisions about the strait and its rules will depend on what actually happens on the ground, not on statements made on social media. His comment comes as US and Iranian officials continue to exchange messages online, often making important announcements there. | He also said that media influence and public opinion are important in this conflict,…
(2026-04-18). Israel's long history of stoking sectarian tensions in Lebanon, and what it means for the ceasefire. mondoweiss.net 
Netanyahu may have been "coerced" by Trump into a ceasefire with Lebanon, but this won't stop Israel from following a well-worn playbook: exploit sectarian divisions to weaken or disarm resistance while entrenching Israeli expansionism.
(2026-04-18). Trump sees 'good news' on Iran, still threatens renewed strikes. tribune.com.pk 
US President Donald Trump said there had been "some pretty good news" about Iran, suggesting optimism about peace talks to end the war in the Middle East, but he said a ceasefire in the conflict may not be extended without a deal by Wednesday. | Iran, hours earlier, had temporarily reopened the Strait of Hormuz following a separate US-brokered ceasefire agreement by Israel and Lebanon. But subsequent statements from both sides left uncertainty over how quickly shipping might return to normal through the global oil choke point. | Trump, speaking on Air Force One late on Friday, declined to elaborate on what the…
(2026-04-18). 10-day ceasefire between Israel, Lebanon goes into effect. ecns.cn A 10-day ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon took effect at midnight between Thursday and Friday local time (2100 GMT), following an earlier announcement by US President Donald Trump.
(2026-04-18). Trump: Iran truce ends if no deal reached by Wednesday, U.S. may dropping bombs. haaretz.com
(2026-04-18). Outrage as Trump disguises himself as Jesus Christ, mocks Pope. ummid.com A massive outrage erupted on Sunday April 12, 2026 — the Orthodox Easter Day, after U.S. President Donald Trump disguised himself as Jesus Christ and mocked Pope Leo XIV.
(2026-04-18). Trump-Vatican feud escalates? Pope Leo's brother 'threatened' with bomb scare near his US residence. hindustantimes.com
(2026-04-18). Trump is blustering as usual but in reality praying for Iran peace deal. asiapacificreport.nz COMMENTARY: By Lim Tean Many American apologists cannot see the forest for the trees and think that the reopening of the Strait of Hormuz represents a huge win for the United States and that Iran has caved in. Wrong. When the Iran ceasefire was first announced by US President Donald Trump on April 8, it…
(2026-04-18). Trump announces complete blockade of Strait of Hormuz. ummid.com U.S. President Donald Trump Sunday April 12, 2026 announced complete blockade of Strait of Hormuz, hours after Pakistan mediated talks between Iran and the United States collapsed.
(2026-04-18). Trump's foe starts new war? While world watches Iran, China quietly repositions for Taiwan conflict. hindustantimes.com China is quietly changing the game while the world is distracted. As Donald Trump doubles down on Iran, a different story is unfolding thousands of miles away, one that could reshape the balance of power in Asia. Is Beijing using this moment to redraw its Taiwan strategy? And more importantly, is this about war… or something far more calculated? For years, the assumption was simple: China would move on Taiwan when it was militarily ready. But what if that timeline is no longer the point? What if Beijing is now betting on politics, pressure, and patience instead of pure force? As tensions rise with Japan, warnin…
(2026-04-18). US court lets Trump resume work on US$400 million White House ballroom — for now. scmp.com A US appeals court allowed President Donald ‚Å Trump's administration on ‚Å Friday night to continue construction ‚Å of a US$400 million ballroom on the site of the White House's demolished East Wing, setting a June hearing to review a Washington judge's order halting the project. | An order by a three-judge ‚Äåpanel of the US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit put the lower court's preliminary injunction on hold for now, giving the panel time to consider the US Justice Department's…
(2026-04-18). New Zealand defends military patrol flight near China. tribune.com.pk 
New Zealand on Saturday defended the actions of a military patrol aircraft flight near China after Beijing said it had undermined its security interests. | China's foreign ministry said on Friday that a New Zealand P-8A patrol aircraft had "conducted continuous close-in reconnaissance and harassment in the airspace and waters of the Yellow Sea and East China Sea". | "The action undermined China's security interests, increased risks of misunderstanding and miscalculation, and gravely disrupted the order of civil aviation," spokesperson Guo Jiakun said, according to an official transcript. | Read: Trump sees "go…
(2026-04-18). The "cake" being pushed in front of Xi is getting bigger and bigger. moderndiplomacy.eu The smartest thing Trump can do for the United States is to adopt a "cake-sharing" strategy to cope with the arrival of a multipolar era. He wants to ensure that America still gets the largest slice of the cake, with its power base rooted in traditional energy—oil and natural gas. This aligns well with "Cold …
(2026-04-18). Rohana Kuddus: Prabowo's Year One. newleftreview.org A critical-analytical portrait of Southeast Asia's answer to Trump, as the Indonesian President—formerly the Suharto dictatorship's crown prince and chief butcher in East Timor—re-centralizes power in the archipelago, strengthening the Army's place within the civil administration.
(2026-04-18). Nausicaa Renner: Party and Class. newleftreview.org Nausicaa Renner on Paul Heideman, Rogue Elephant. Hollowed-out parties and capitalist sectoralization said to underlie the Trumpian capture of the GOP.
(2026-04-18). Trump Order Halts Legal Aid for Migrant Youth as Colleges Partner With ICE. truthout.org She was beginning her spring semester as a second-year law student and paralegal when she received the news: The immigration clinic where she volunteered would have to stop all work, a demand directly from the Trump administration. The White House issued a stop-work order on Feb. 18, 2025, cutting off aid to federally funded unaccompanied children programs (UCPs) across the U.S. The programs… |
(2026-04-18). Susan Watkins: Trump Abroad. newleftreview.org In which direction is America heading, amid the strategic cacophony of Trump's second term—counter-revolution in the Caribbean, onslaught on Iran, somersaults on China? Analysis of the political logics at stake as the US ratchets up from covert to overt assassinations; from wars of attrition to wars of overthrow.
(2026-04-18). Trump lied? Oil shortage hits US amid Iran war: This state's gasoline stock falls to lowest ever… hindustantimes.com California fuel stocks have plunged to record lows as the Iran war triggers an oil shock across the U.S. With gas prices soaring, a Hormuz blockade causing disruption, and Trump claiming victory, Americans are facing rising costs and new uncertainty. Could this become a full-blown energy crisis?
(2026-04-18). Trump administration continues torment of El Gamal family as detained mother remains in severe pain. wsws.org Hayam El Gamal, mother of five children, was taken to the emergency room earlier this month after repeated medical complaints were ignored at the Dilley detention camp.
(2026-04-17). American farmers bet on solar. Then Trump changed the rules. grist.org 
Over the past few years, Kentucky sheep farmer Daniel Bell has been expanding his flock, and that meant he needed to build a new barn. His land is far from the power lines he'd need to heat it, so he figured rooftop solar would be ideal. | To help pay for it, he wanted to apply for a renewable-energy grant through the US Department of Agriculture's Rural Energy for America Program, or REAP — only to find that the Trump administration had effectively halted grants through the program. Bell said that made it impossible to proceed with the idea on his land. | "For me, it's just been about freedom. Freedom t…
(2026-04-17). Drone Kills Lebanon Man Minutes After Trump Said Israel Prohibited From Striking. news.antiwar.com President Trump declared on Friday, shortly after the start of the Israel-Lebanon 10-day ceasefire, that Israel was absolutely "PROHIBITED" by the United States from carrying out any strikes on Lebanon because "Enough is enough!!!" Mere minutes after that declaration was posted on social media, the first strike was reported. An Israeli drone in Beit Yahoun, …
(2026-04-17). TRUMP SAYS "ENOUGH" —BUT ISRAEL PUSHES ON IN LEBANON WAR LATEST. scheerpost.com Staff A fragile pause in the widening Middle East war is colliding with escalating rhetoric, conflicting claims, and continued violence on the ground. In a flurry of social media posts, President Donald Trump declared that the United States had directly intervened to halt further Israeli strikes on Lebanon. "Israel will not be bombing Lebanon any …
(2026-04-17). The Collapse Is Real; Lebanon Ceasefire Marks A Historic Strategic Defeat. popularresistance.org A ceasefire in Lebanon was announced on Thursday by US President Donald Trump, but its reality tells a very different story. The ceasefire was not the product of American diplomacy, nor Israeli strategic calculation. It was imposed—largely as a result of sustained Iranian pressure. | Washington, Tel Aviv, and their allies—including some within Lebanon itself—will continue to deny this reality. Acknowledging Iran's role would mean admitting that a historic precedent has been set: for the first time, forces opposing the United States and Israel have succeeded in imposing conditions on both.
(2026-04-17). Report from Beirut: Israel-Lebanon Ceasefire Met with "Cautious Optimism" democracynow.org 
A 10-day ceasefire has begun in Lebanon. The news is being celebrated across the country, but major questions remain over what happens next. President Trump announced the deal between Israel and Lebanon on Thursday. Hezbollah, which is not a party to the agreement, says it will observe the ceasefire. The Israeli military is occupying a large swath of southern Lebanon, about 10% of the country. Early on in the current war, the Israeli military announced the intention to create a "security zone" from the Lebanese-Israeli border all the way to the Litani River, 20 miles north of the border. | Many in the…
(2026-04-17). Trump, Jesus, And White Supremacy. popularresistance.org Donald Trump's downward spiral has become more evident in recent weeks. His behavior substantiates the evidence provided by medical experts that he suffers from both dementia and a serious personality disorder. Beginning on the evening of April 12, he posted all night on his Truth Social platform on various obsessions including his ballroom, Joe Biden, and the Strait of Hormuz. Those comments have since been forgotten because of his 334-word tirade directed at Pope Leo XIV for being "weak on crime", "weak on nuclear weapons," an associate of Obama "sympathizers," who is also "catering to the radical left."
(2026-04-17). US army 'defeat' in Iran confirmed as Trump drops military, reveals new plan amid Hormuz failure. hindustantimes.com The U.S. intensifies its economic war against Iran as President Donald Trump pivots from military pressure to sweeping new sanctions amid the ongoing Strait of Hormuz crisis. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent has warned countries and financial institutions against purchasing Iranian oil, with China emerging as a key focus due to its dominant role in Tehran's export market. As the naval blockade faces scrutiny and mixed enforcement reports, Washington is now targeting Iran's "shadow fleet," banks, and global trade networks to choke off revenue streams. With tensions rising and diplomacy uncertain, the latest sancti…
(2026-04-17). The Strait Of Hormuz Is Kinda Sorta Open: Let Me Explain. newsone.com 
Source: TOM NICHOLSON / Getty | The ongoing war in Iran can only be described as an absolute s—tshow. The conflict was started under dubious pretenses, and President Donald Trump seemingly keeps saying the war will end within two-to-three weeks every two to three weeks. There is some slight hope on the horizon as Iran has announced that the Strait of Hormuz is open. |
(2026-04-17). Mojtaba's reply to Trump's blockade: Shock for entire world; US war on Iran causing new crisis. hindustantimes.com Global markets are bracing for shockwaves as Iran halts petrochemical exports in retaliation to Donald Trump's naval blockade in the Strait of Hormuz. The move—combined with strikes on key Iranian energy hubs—threatens to disrupt supply chains and push already fragile economies toward instability. With the Gulf accounting for a significant share of global petrochemical output, the suspension risks ripple effects across industries worldwide.
(2026-04-17). Tucker Carlson may have Turned on Israel and Trump, but he's no friend to Progressives or Muslims. juancole.com Oakland, Ca. (Special to Informed Comment; Feature) — Republicans seem to have reached the Donner party stage now, cannibalizing one another, as is illustrated by
(2026-04-17). CARTOONS: latest weapons of mass. independentaustralia.net 
(2026-04-17). In Empire We Trust — Who Gains and Who Loses in Trump's America. portside.org In Empire We Trust — Who Gains and Who Loses in Trump's America |
(2026-04-17). Pentagon in panic mode? Trump pushes civilian firms to make missiles as stocks run dry amid Iran war. hindustantimes.com Is the world's "most powerful military" quietly running out of weapons? And is that what's really driving Washington's sudden shift in tone? As the Iran conflict stretches on, reports suggest the U.S. is facing a deepening munitions crunch, one that didn't begin in this war, but may be reaching a breaking point because of it. Years of supplying Ukraine, followed by sustained operations in the Middle East, have reportedly drained critical missile stockpiles. Now, the question is no longer just about battlefield strategy but industrial capacity. Why is the Pentagon reportedly reaching out to civilian giants like Fo…
(2026-04-17). Bill Clinton: Is He a Lifetime Supporter of a CIA Dictatorship? indybay.org The Wikipedia article on Bill Clinton with in parenthesis what the article proves and what other sources have said, making it appear Bill Clinton is a lifetime supporter of turning America into the same dictatorship Donald Trump wants.
(2026-04-17). After Trump attack, Pope Leo slams 'tyrants' spending billions on wars. geo.tv 
Pope Leo XIV arrives to hold a holy Mass for peace and justice at Bamenda airport in Bamenda, Cameroon, April 16, 2026. — ReutersBAMENDA: Pope Leo blasted leaders who spend billions on wars and said the world was "being ravaged by a handful of tyrants", in unusually forceful…
(2026-04-17). Is America on the Verge of a Nuclear Renaissance? wattsupwiththat.com It has been more than seven years since President Donald Trump signed the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Modernization Act (NEIMA) into law — and it has taken all seven years (including four during the Biden Administration) for the Nuclear Regulatory Commission to issue a final rule implementing its provisions.
(2026-04-17). Pentagon drafts plans for military assault on Cuba. wsws.org The Trump administration has ordered preparations for a military attack on Cuba as part of its broader campaign for hemispheric dominance.