The Babylon Times

📜 PETE HEGSETH INSISTS CEASEFIRE HOLDS AS ISRAELI AGGRESSION ROLLS ON SEPARATELY Pete Hegseth claims the ceasefire is still in effect and not over. He calls recent actions a separate project. The ceasefire supposedly holds for now, but they'll be watching it very closely. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 TURKISH ROKETSAN UNVEILS NEŞTER GLIDING MUNITION AT SAHA 2026 EXPO ROKETSAN, the Turkish defense outfit, showed off its Neşter smart gliding munition at the SAHA 2026 expo in Istanbul. It's a MAM-L variant with a proximity sensor and warhead packing deployable cutting blades that spring into action right before impact. Targets get neutralized by precise kinetic action—no explosives needed. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 UAE LOCKS DOWN FLIGHTS TO PATHETIC APPROVED ROUTES AMID IRAN WAR CHAOS This after multiple flights bound for UAE got rerouted to Muscat International Airport in Oman. Middle East aviation's a mess from the war with Iran. Dubai, Doha, and Abu Dhabi airports sit closed or crippled, with Dubai International—hooking up 291 destinations—canning up to 82% of flights and stranding hundreds of thousands of travelers in the conflict's first week. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 EGYPTIANS BACK IRAN AGAINST ISRAEL'S LATEST AGGRESSION Egyptians are openly cheering Iran on in its standoff with Israel, flooding social media with chatter and public gripes. Queries like "Why do Egyptians support Iran in its current war?" pop up everywhere, spotlighting shared fury over Israeli military moves. No hard numbers confirm how deep this runs across Egypt's population. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 IRAN'S JUDICIARY HEAD DECLARES END OF INTERIM REGIME IN GULF WATERS Iran's judiciary chief Gholam Hossein Mohseni Eje'i announced the interim regime in Gulf waters is kaput. He insists legal backing for the "new regime's" sovereignty there is non-negotiable duty. Any security disruption in the Strait of Hormuz gets a firm smackdown from Iran's forces, with full legal cover for guarding those waters. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 MACRON WARNS AGAINST ESCALATION AS ISRAEL AND US COORDINATE STRAIT OF HORMUZ STRIKE PLANS French President Emmanuel Macron stated any escalation or unilateral military strike against tankers, container ships, or third countries would be a mistake. This follows reports of Israel coordinating with the U.S. on potential actions in the Strait of Hormuz, where tensions threaten the Iran ceasefire. Israeli sources detail plans for a short, targeted campaign possibly hitting Iran’s energy infrastructure and senior officials to pressure Tehran in stalled talks, with the final call on U.S. President Trump. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 US AIR FORCE KC-46A TANKER SQUAWKS EMERGENCY 7700 OVER PERSIAN GULF EN ROUTE TO TEL AVIV A US Air Force KC-46A tanker, playing the role of a KC-135R over the Persian Gulf, hit emergency transponder code 7700 minutes ago while heading back to Tel Aviv through Saudi airspace. An OSINT account on X chimed in:

"I wouldn't be surprised if these two aircraft collided in flight."

@TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 IRAN DENIES REGIONAL ENMITY, CALLS OUT SUPPORTERS AS COMPLICIT IN AMERICAN AGGRESSION Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesperson insists the country harbors no enmity toward any regional state. He clarifies Iran targeted them anyway. Per international law, he adds, supporters of this aggression are complicit in the American variety. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 US COMMERCIAL SHIPS STUCK IN OMAN'S ROCKY SHALLOWS NEAR STRAIT OF HORMUZ Two US commercial ships, which Washington insists passed through the Strait of Hormuz, sit trapped in the rocky, shallow waters off Oman's southern coast by Masirah and Al Khuyala islands. The vessels can't exit or turn back thanks to the area's hazardous geography. This southern stretch offers nothing but dangerous rocky shallows unfit for any real shipping route. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 HANDALA CYBER GROUP INFILTRATES ISRAEL'S NATIONAL SECURITY THINK TANK FOR YEARS The cyber outfit Handala claims it pulled off a stealthy, years-long hack into Israel's Institute for National Security Studies. In their statement, the group says they quietly snagged secret documents from the outfit without a peep. @TheBabylonTimes

📜 ISRAEL’S FINANCE MINISTER SMOTRICH DANCES IN OCCUPIED IBRAHIMI MOSQUE WITH SETTLERS Israel's Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich linked up with rabbis and settlers to dance inside the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron, turning Muslim prayer halls into a Jewish holiday party for Lag BaOmer. The site, holy to Muslims and Jews as the Cave of the Patriarchs, hosted their traditional festivities. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 MIGRATORY BIRDS SPOTTED OVER IRAN'S MEEGAN WETLANDS FIRST TIME SINCE 2019 Migratory birds have flown over the Meegan wetlands for the first time since 2019. Iran's Central province wetlands protection head announced the 12,000-hectare site's revival after years of drought. Sufficient rainfall finally restored the water. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 HOUSE DEMOCRATS URGE TRUMP TO OFFICIALLY BLESS ISRAEL'S NUCLEAR ARSENAL More than two dozen House Democrats nudge the Trump administration to formally recognize Israel's nuclear weapons program. It's long been suspected, despite decades of U.S. policy playing coy. This would shatter longstanding precedent and rubber-stamp an open secret in intel circles since the 1960s. The Washington Post has the letter. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 NETANYAHU HOSTS PEACE COUNCIL DIRECTOR IN OCCUPIED JERUSALEM WITH US AMBASSADOR TAGGING ALONG Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed Nikolai Mladenov, director general of the so-called "Peace Council," and his team into his office in occupied Jerusalem. The US ambassador to Israel joined the little gathering, naturally. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

UPDATE:📜 IRAN FOREIGN MINISTER HEADS TO BEIJING FOR DIPLOMATIC TALKS Iran's Foreign Ministry says Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi is off to Beijing today to keep chatting with various countries. Because nothing says progress like more talks amid the usual aggressions. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 TRUMP SLAMS POPE FOR GREENLIGHTING IRAN'S NUCLEAR WEAPON AND ENDANGERING CATHOLICS Trump stated the Pope endangers many Catholics and others by deeming it acceptable for Iran to possess a nuclear weapon. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 TRUMP SAYS HE WAS READY TO TANK STOCKS 20-25% AND SPIKE OIL TO $200-250 AGAINST IRAN Former US President Donald Trump reminisced about his Iran moves, figuring a 20-25% stock market dip was fine since it'd bounce back, while oil would conveniently hit $200 or $250 a barrel. Instead, oil's merely at $100 to $102. Lately, he calls Iran's military "essentially over" and bets armed ordinary Iranians would put up a real fight. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 IRAN MP WARNS STRAIT OF HORMUZ STAYS IRAN'S CALL, NO BACKING DOWN Iranian parliamentary energy committee member Mohammad Bahrami Seif Abadi states Iran's grip on the Strait of Hormuz is among the Persian Gulf's touchiest geopolitical spots. Iran won't budge from its strategic management and control. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 IRAN FM HEADS TO BEIJING AMID ISRAELI STRIKES ON IRANIAN TARGETS Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi jets off to Beijing today for a sit-down with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi. The trip unfolds against heightened regional tensions, thanks to fresh Israeli strikes on Iranian targets. Agenda details remain unconfirmed. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum

📜 TRUMP SAYS IRANIANS NEED GUNS, CLAIMS THEY'LL FIGHT LIKE CHAMPS ONCE ARMED Trump told the Iranian people they need guns and figures they're getting their hands on some. He added that, armed up, they'll scrap as effectively as anyone in the region. This comes right after he called Iran's military essentially defeated. @TheBabylonTimes | Forum