The Babylon Times

📜 ISRAELI STRIKE HITS CAR IN AL-SA'DIYYAT NEAR SIDON HIGHWAY Israeli airstrike zeroes in on a car in the Al-Sa'diyyat area along the Sidon highway. Photos capture the vehicle struck and damaged right amid nearby civilian surroundings. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

UPDATE:📜 HEZBOLLAH ANNOUNCES AFTERNOON OPERATION AFTER RELEASING VIDEO OF STRIKE ON ISRAELI SOLDIERS IN SOUTHERN LEBANON Hezbollah announced an operation this afternoon and released footage of a prior Islamic Resistance attack targeting Israeli soldiers in Al-Bayyada, southern Lebanon. The video shows the strike on those soldiers, spotlighting direct engagement in the border area. This comes amid ongoing clashes between Hezbollah fighters and Israeli forces along Lebanon's southern frontier. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 HEZBOLLAH FPV DRONE SMACKS ISRAELI MERKAVA TANK NEAR ALMA AL-SHAAB Hezbollah dropped footage of an FPV drone zeroing in on an Israeli Merkava tank near Alma al-Shaab village in southern Lebanon. The video shows the drone's approach and direct hit on the tank. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 RUSSIA SHUTTLES SUPPLIES TO IRAN VIA CASPIAN SEA, DODGING U.S. SANCTIONS Russia ships military and commercial supplies to Iran across the Caspian Sea. Tehran evades U.S. sanctions and pressure through this handy route. It runs via the Volga-Don Canal, linking Caspian to Black Sea through the Sea of Azov—open in spring and summer, when it's not frozen solid. Moscow dropped $1 billion to modernize the canal for smooth warship and gear traffic. New York Times. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 BAGHDAD AIRPORT GETS FIRST FLIGHT FROM IRAN'S HOLY MASHHAD AFTER TWO-MONTH HIATUS Baghdad International Airport welcomed the first flight straight from Iran's holy city of Mashhad today, snapping a two-month suspension that had things on ice. The arrival marks business resuming between the spots, no drama attached. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 WASHINGTON BRIBES IRAN WITH SANCTIONS RELIEF FOR NUKES OFF AND STRAIT OPEN The New York Post reports Washington dangling sanctions relief to Iran. In return, Tehran would pause uranium enrichment and let ships back into the Strait of Hormuz. Classic carrot for compliance. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 BAHRAINI FORCES RAID SHIA SCHOLARS' HOMES, ARREST DOZENS Bahraini security forces swept through homes of dozens of Shia scholars this morning, hauling many off in cuffs. Sources tally at least 14 detained so far, as the crackdown rolls on. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

UPDATE:📜 LULA SARCASTICALLY BEGS TRUMP NOT TO YANK VISAS FROM BRAZILIAN SOCCER STARS FOR 2026 WORLD CUP Brazil's President Lula da Silva took a sarcastic swipe at Donald Trump after their White House meeting, pleading he not revoke visas for Brazilian players in the 2026 World Cup. Lula quipped they'd come to be crowned champions. The jab underscores U.S. visa tensions as Brazil preps to co-host. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 BAHRAINI ISLAMIC GROUP CLAIMS SHIA FACE WAR IN BAHRAIN The Bahraini Islamic National Accord Association dropped a statement declaring the Shia sect in Bahrain is facing war. No specific incidents, locations, or verified details of attacks or violence included—just the claim. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 BAHRAIN'S AL KHALIFA REGIME SNATCHES SHIA CLERICS JAMIEL AL AALI, MAHMOUD AL AALI, RADI AL QAFAS, JASSIM AL MU'MIN FOR SECTARIAN REASONS Bahrain's Sunni-led Al Khalifa regime arrested the Shia clerics Jameel Al Aali, Mahmoud Al Aali, Radi Al Qafas, and Jassim Al Mu'min over sectarian motives. Authorities hauled them to an unknown location, leaving their fate in the dark. The detentions spotlight the ongoing targeting of Shia religious figures by the Sunni rulers. No details released on the arrests or clerics' conditions. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 IRAN SPOTS US DESTROYER SNEAKING INTO UAE WATERS AMID GULF TENSIONS An informed source says Iran has detected a US destroyer slipping into UAE coastal waters and is keeping a sharp eye on it. This as US Central Command claims three of their destroyers endured repeated Iranian attacks over 500 miles through Gulf waters and the Strait of Hormuz. UAE defense folks report dealing with rocket and drone strikes straight from Iran. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 ISRAELI FORCES UNLOAD OVER 85 AIRSTRIKES ON SOUTHERN LEBANON IN 24 HOURS Israeli forces hammered southern Lebanon with more than 85 airstrikes over the past 24 hours. The attacks hit multiple locations across the region. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 NORTH KOREAN SOLDIERS WHO AIDED RUSSIA'S KURSK LIBERATION MARCH IN RED SQUARE VICTORY PARADE North Korean army soldiers, fresh from fighting alongside Russian forces to liberate Russia's Kursk region, strutted in the Red Square victory parade. The occasion marks Victory Day, with the soldiers blending into Moscow's Red Square festivities. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 IRAN'S RISE UNSTOPPABLE DUE TO US'S TERRIBLE STRATEGY American political scientist Robert Pape says Iran's growing power can't be stopped, thanks to the US picking a "terrible strategy" against it. He pins Iran's strength on geography plus cheap tech like drones and mines. That combo, Pape notes, turns Iran into a fourth global power center, letting it clamp down on the Strait of Hormuz. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 PUTIN DECLARES VICTORY ALWAYS OURS AS RUSSIAN FIGHTERS ADVANCE AGAINST NATO-BACKED AGGRESSORS Russian President Vladimir Putin laid it out plain:

"Victory has always been and will always be ours."

He described his fighters in Ukraine as facing down an aggressive force propped up by the full NATO bloc, all while they keep pushing forward. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 US INTEL SAYS IRAN CAN TOUGH OUT TRUMP BLOCKADE FOR MONTHS WITH 70% MISSILES INTACT The Independent reports US intelligence figures reckon Iran could shrug off a Trump-led blockade for several months. That's thanks to holding onto about 70% of its missiles, apparently. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 MIKE POMPEO WARNS YOUNG FOLKS ABOUT CCP NARRATIVES INFILTRATING THEIR PHONES Former U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo told a group including young people that the Chinese Communist Party's influence ops are likely beaming straight into their phones—or those of their kids and grandkids. He pointed out the messaging peddles how Canada sucks, its people are decadent, the West is crumbling, and America is the worst of the lot. Pompeo nudged them to watch out for these plays to mold the next generation and gut Western values. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 AOC SAYS SHE DOESN'T TRUST MTG, CALLS HER BIGOT AND ANTI-SEMITE ON GAZA-ISRAEL CALLS Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez declared she doesn't trust Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene—who she labeled a proven bigot and anti-Semite—to decide what's good for folks in Gaza and Israel. Ocasio-Cortez tacked on that cozying up to white nationalists like Greene doesn't help their cause. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 OBAMA MEETS CANADIAN PM CARNEY AMID GLOBAL TENSIONS FLAGGED BY TRUMP AND POMPEO Former U.S. President Barack Obama sat down with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney. The get-together unfolded against chit-chat on global issues, name-dropped in fresh remarks from Donald Trump and Mike Pompeo on international tensions and influence campaigns. Location and agenda details? Conveniently absent. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 US SANCTIONS CHINESE FIRMS FOR FEEDING IRAN SATELLITE IMAGERY USED AGAINST AMERICAN FORCES US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced sanctions on Chinese entities that handed Iran satellite imagery to back its strikes on US troops in the Middle East. The measures hit networks shipping arms to Iran from overseas, plus international players supplying raw materials for Tehran's missile and drone setups. @TheBabylonTimes