MMN Editor

Proving that the famous saying coined by the Mexican farm worker labor movement of the 1960s—and later adopted by Barack Obama—can apply to the once seemingly impossible task of securing the border, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) reveals that for 10 consecutive months no illegal immigrants have been released into the United States. It is cause to celebrate considering during the Biden administration a record-breaking 7.6 million illegal aliens entered the country, including hundreds of thousands with serious criminal records and more than 1.7 million from countries that DHS determined pose a national security threat to the U.S. In about a year the Trump administration has turned it around, establishing that, “Si se puede” (yes we can), as the renowned labor leader Cesar Chavez, recently exposed for raping and sexually abusing girls and young women in his movement, shouted during marches. Decades later Obama adopted the three-word phrase, until then best known as the rallying cry for Chavez’s United Farm Workers, as his presidential campaign slogan.
The adage comes to mind because the Biden administration falsely claimed the unprecedented influx of illegal immigrants could not be contained as millions fled hardships at home and therefore the border could not be properly secured. The latest figures released by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the frontline DHS agency, contradict that narrative and demonstrate that federal authorities can indeed secure the once-porous 1,954-mile border we share with Mexico. The records show not only a trend of historically low border crossings but also record high drug seizures. In fact, in February CBP recorded the most drug seizures in more than four years (79,609 pounds), which marks an 84% increase from the previous month. Released just days ago, the statistics go through February. CBP Commissioner Rodney Scott says they are a “clear reflection of the enforcement-first posture restoring integrity to our nation’s borders.” He added that while threats to economic and national security evolve so does the Trump administration’s resolve to meet them.
The sustained decline in illegal border crossings and apprehensions is the lowest in over three decades, CBP confirms, demonstrating the impact of robust enforcement policies. Daily apprehensions are down an extraordinary 95% from the Biden administration with 13 consecutive months of fewer than 9,000 southwest border apprehensions, which means the region is more secure than at any point in history. Last month CBP encountered 26,963 illegal immigrants, marking an 88% decline in the monthly average under Biden. Additionally, CBP’s total encounters of 153,155 this fiscal year are 40% lower than just the month of February 2024 under Biden. “The U.S. Border Patrol’s apprehensions along the southwest border in February (6,603) were 92% lower than the monthly average over the last 33 years and 97% below the peak of the Biden administration (December 2023),” the latest DHS figures show. The number of daily Border Patrol apprehensions in February were less than a single hour during the height of the Biden administration when 336 illegal immigrants were arrested per hour in December 2023. This clearly shows “we have the most secure border in American history,” according to CBP.
Drug interdictions are also a major part of border security since CBP is responsible for preventing dangerous narcotics from reaching American communities. Under Biden tens of thousands of pounds of illicit drugs flowed over the border. Under Trump the record February drug seizures include a 129% increase in marijuana, 67% increase in fentanyl, 46% increase in methamphetamine and 39% increase in cocaine seizures over the previous month. Agents also seized 10% more heroin over January. CBP also helped safeguard the American economy by targeting forced labor and counterfeit goods, stopping 266 shipments valued at more than $11 million for potential forced labor violations. Over 440 shipments containing counterfeit goods valued at more than $580 million were also seized and hundreds of civil penalties were issued for undeclared prohibited agriculture items. This is all part of President Trump’s Operation Take Back America, a nationwide initiative launched last March to repel the invasion of illegal immigration, eliminate drug cartels and transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), and protect American communities from perpetrators of violent crime.
The post Border Finally Secure With Zero Illegal Aliens Released Into U.S. for Tenth Consecutive Month appeared first on Judicial Watch.

How regulators are balancing the “untraceable” promise of ZK-proofs with strict new anti-money laundering mandates – and what it means for the future of anonymous wealth.

FIRST ON FOX—Sen. Todd Young, R-Ind., is asking President Donald Trump to reinstate the “Protect Life Rule” which would block Title X funding from abortion clinics, in a letter sent to the White House Thursday. In a letter obtained by Fox News Digital, Young, joined by nine colleagues, wrote, “During your first term in March 2019, your Administration proposed and finalized the Protect Life Rule.” “That Rule ensured that Title X family planning funds could no longer flow to clinics that perform, promote, or refer for abortions, and required clear physical and financial separation between Title X-funded projects and abortion facilities,” Young said. TRUMP ADMIN STOPS FUNDING FOR RESEARCH THAT INVOLVES ABORTED BABY TISSUE”As a direct result, organizations such as Planned Parenthood were removed from the program when they refused to comply, redirecting those funds to community health centers and other providers that offer genuine family planning services without promoting abortion,” he continued.”While the Biden-Harris Administration moved swiftly to undo this progress by rescinding the Rule, we stand ready to support your Administration in reinstating the policy by promulgating a new proposed rule with the same objective.” In March 2019, Trump’s first administration announced the implementation of the Protect Life Rule, similar to pro-life regulations during former President Ronald Reagan’s administration, which barred Title X funds from going to the abortion industry.KRISTAN HAWKINS: COLLEGES SHOULD RUN FROM ‘DANGEROUS,’ COSTLY ABORTION DRUGS ON CAMPUS”We further wish to note that the principles underlying the Protect Life Rule are firmly rooted in the text of Title X itself. Section 1008 of the Public Health Service Act has always prohibited the use of Title X funds ‘in programs where abortion is a method of family planning,’” the signers wrote. “Your first Administration honored that statutory mandate; the Biden-Harris Administration abandoned it.” The signers, who include Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, and Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., asked Trump to reinstate the Protect Life Rule, pledging their support.”We believe this is an important moment, and we are committed to working alongside your Administration every step of the way,” they wrote. “We stand prepared to support the rulemaking process. The American taxpayer should not be forced to be complicit in the taking of innocent life.” Fox News Digital reached out to the White House for comment. PRO-LIFE ORGANIZATION CALLS ON HHS AND FDA TO SUSPEND ABORTION PILL APPROVAL, TIGHTEN SAFETY RULES

President Trump launches an attack on the Supreme Court during a D.C fundraising dinner. Credit: C-SPAN screenshot
An angry President Trump appears to have regrets about at least two of the people he appointed to the Supreme Court during his first term, as he launched a surprising attack during what was supposed to be a motivational dinner for the GOP.
As The Gateway Pundit previously reported, the US Supreme Court on February 20 struck down President Trump’s tariffs in a 6-3 decision.
The Court stated that Trump lacked the authority to impose the tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA).
Chief Justice Roberts, Justice Amy Coney Barrett, and Justice Neil Gorsuch sided with the three leftist justices. Justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and Brett Kavanaugh dissented.
Justice Roberts wrote the majority opinion, which stated in part:
It is also telling that in IEEPA’s half-century of existence, no President has invoked the statute to impose any tariffs, let alone tariffs of this magnitude and scope.
Accordingly, the President must ‘point to clear congressional authorization’ to justify his extraordinary assertion of that power. He cannot.
While speaking at the National Republican Congressional Committee dinner at Washington, D.C.’s Union Station last night, Trump issued a blistering attack on the Court regarding the ruling.
Specifically, he pointed his finger at two people he appointed to the Court, saying “they sicken him,” and “are bad for the country.”
Though he didn’t mention them by name, Trump was almost certainly referring to Justices Barrett and Gorsuch, whom he appointed to the Court in 2017 and 2020, respectively.
WATCH:

HOLY SMOKES. President Trump just UNLOADED on Supreme Court Justices Amy Coney Barrett and Neil Gorsuch
“Not that it matters, but 2 of the people that voted for that I APPOINTED. They SICKEN ME. They sicken me because they’re BAD for our country.”
“The Supreme Court is… pic.twitter.com/x1UAxduGl4
— Eric Daugherty (@EricLDaugh) March 26, 2026

TRUMP: The Supreme Court of the United States cost OUR country hundreds of billions of dollars and they couldn’t care less.
Not that it matters, but two of the people that voted for that I appointed voted for that, and they sicken me!
They sicken because they’re bad for our country.
The post “Two of the People I Appointed, They Sicken Me!…They’re Bad for Our Country” – Trump Launches a BLISTERING Attack on Supreme Court During GOP Dinner (VIDEO) appeared first on The Gateway Pundit.

Buckle up, Boomers and Gen Xers, because I’m going to serve you up some nostalgia bait. Stop at the concession booth to pick up your complimentary rose-colored glasses, and don’t feel shy.Generation X was born between 1965 and 1980. We are the last generation who experienced the real, physical world the way most humans have experienced it. We came along when generational transitions were gradual. We knew our Boomer parents’ music and movie stars, and we know our Silent Generation grandparents’ music and movie stars. As a kid, I knew who the Andrews Sisters were, and I could sing along because my grandmother played their records.There will be Slant Six engines running in good health long after I’m dead, just as God intended.Compare to today: The average Gen Z kid has no idea who Michael Jackson, Madonna, or Lucille Ball are. Starting with Millennials, a chasm opened up between generations. People a generation younger asked who some of the most world-famous stars were when they were working and alive just 20 years earlier. With Gen Z it’s even starker. They were given digital poison in the form of smartphones in their tender years, and the entire cultural landscape fragmented into a billion bespoke Balkan states.It’s hard to convince young people that some of the technologies from the bad old world of analog were actually superior to what we have today. They don’t believe that phone calls on copper wire were clear and never dropped (it’s true, though). Hilariously, they think film photography was always blurry and little better at capturing detail than an Impressionist painter.Well, some of these things were better. And I want them back.1. Kodachrome film Smith Collection/Gado/Getty ImagesI trained as a photographer in college, and that was going to be my career. But then digital came along. I was in romantic love with the hands-on craft that was film photography. When computers took over, I packed it all away because I was in love with silver gelatin emulsions, not silicon chips.The loss of Kodachrome color slide film was the worst, and I shed real tears when Kodak pulled the plug. There was no color film in history that reproduced color as well as Kodachrome did; there’s a reason Paul Simon wrote the song. He was right.Kodachrome was actually a black-and-white film with no built-in dyes like all other color films. Instead it captured the blue, red, and green light on three layers in the film separately. The color dyes were added during the wet chemical processing, and those dyes were richer and more time-stable than ordinary color film. This is why a Kodachrome slide from the 1940s looks like a high-quality photograph taken today — there’s no fading or washed-out colors like many of us see in old color photos in our family albums.It was also the sharpest film with the highest resolution. A scene taken on Kodachrome was reproduced in such detail that looking at the slide was nearly like looking at real life through a window.Because you’re reading this on a computer screen, you and I can’t see what the slide “really” looks like. It’s mediated by an electronic screen. But you can still see the rich color and fine detail that no other film could achieve.2. Three-strip TechnicolorPeople today talk about bright hues looking like “Technicolor,” but few people understand what that really meant. For decades in Hollywood, the patented Technicolor film process was different from every other color film technology, and it reined supreme. Motion pictures shot in Technicolor were brighter and more vivid than any other process. They made real life look like the Land of Oz.The quality came at a price. Like Kodachrome, Technicolor used black-and-white film, adding stable, rich color dyes later during processing and printing. This made the shooting process difficult. The film was “slow,” requiring so much light on set that actors sometimes got eye damage. They certainly sweat a lot.Technicolor cameras ran three separate strips of black-and-white motion picture film through the camera at the same time. A “beam splitter” separated the light into red, green, and blue, directing one color only to each of the three strips of film. The cameras were heavy and needed to be sound-baffled during a shoot.Striking the final print for projection required precision machines that could line up each of the three strips of film in perfect registration to lay down cyan, yellow, and magenta dyes. It took precision-machining, skill, time, and money. That’s why the process was abandoned when cheaper, easier all-in-one color motion picture film became available.But that’s also why the Technicolor process was so beloved that songs were written about it. This is from the Technicolor production “Silk Stockings” with Janis Paige singing to Fred Astaire. 3. Air-cooled Volkswagen enginesI went outside to play in 1978 and came upon my stepfather on his knees behind the 1967 beige VW bug that was our family car. “God — son of a *@^%!” he cussed as the engine cranked and cranked and wouldn’t fire up. He was trying to gap the points in the distributor, a job he was never good at. I learned to do it decades later from a classic butch lesbian, and it didn’t seem that hard to me.My stepdad was doing this because that’s what normal people did in those days. You tuned up your own car. Most dads had a toolset and the know-how to do car maintenance at home. Repairs were less expensive, and you didn’t have to have a computer technician “scan” your engine to figure out what the bloody computer thought was wrong with it.Sure, the old VWs were simple and had few features. The heaters were so bad that winter driving required an ice scraper for the inside of the windscreen. The bugs were tiny compared to modern cars, but you could get a surprising amount in there if you were clever.Sure, they were light (some people call them death traps), but that was great when my mother went off a snowy road in Upstate New York, and four boys from the local college fraternity just picked it up out of the ditch and set it back on the road.I’d give anything to hear that musical, metallic tinkle of the exhaust pipes on America’s roads today.4. The Chrysler Slant Six engineIf you know, you know. America never built a more durable engine than the famous Chrysler Slant Six. The engine got its name because the designers tilted it 30 degrees to fit the block under the lower, sleeker hoods that became stylish in the early 1960s.This six-cylinder may not have had the raw horsepower of a big block V8, but it produced a surprising amount of oomph for its size, and it was an engine that never died. If you’ve owned one, you can hear the sewing machine-like purr and tick in your mind.We had two Slant Six-powered family cars growing up. As an adult, I’ve had a Dodge Dart and a Plymouth Belvedere powered by this motor. There’s no better way to spend an afternoon than adjusting the valves on a Slant Six while it’s running. I miss how easy it was to work on these engines, made in the days when you could move around under the hood and adjust something without taking off 15 components just to get enough room to put a finger in the engine bay.There will be Slant Six engines running in good health long after I’m dead, just as God intended.RELATED: My 1966 Plymouth Belvedere let her 225 Slant-6 do the talking NBC/Getty Images5. Customer serviceThis is a social technology that needs to make a comeback. My first jobs as a teenager were running the cash register at a Wegman’s grocery store and bringing burgers to tables at a Big Boy restaurant. Friendly, efficient customer service was mandatory. It was expected by every customer and every employer.You were to greet customers with a friendly hello and an offer to help. Smiles were either compulsory or strongly encouraged. If a customer needed to find an item, you found it for them and walked them over to the right aisle.What do you get today when you walk into any retail store? Dead-eyed, silent stares from any staff younger than 35. Need to find a pipe fitting in a big store like Lowe’s? Try asking. You’ll get, “Um … a what? If we had any, they’d be, like, over there,” as “Jonas” waves in a northeasterly direction.Surprisingly, a young clerk at my local McDonald’s reminded me of the good old days of customer service last week. Like so many places, McDonald’s is making its restaurants hostile to humans. In addition to the ugly, gray, brutalist “updated” architecture, the lobbies are crammed with touch-screen kiosks, while the staffed registers have been reduced to one or two maximum. As recently as 15 years ago, McDonald’s had a reputation for employing staff that were neater, tidier, and friendlier than the competition.That’s gone now — except for this one young man at my local McD’s. I walked past the kiosks and up to the register, expecting to be ignored for five minutes as is now McDonald’s standard. “Jeff” was about 22. His shirt was tucked in. He was neatly groomed. He smiled at me and said, “Welcome to McDonald’s; how are you today?” He meant it. He was looking me in the eye. I was so pleasantly surprised I thought I was dreaming, and I made a point to thank him for being human and polite.The other day, I saw this old early ’80s commercial for McDonald’s Shamrock Shake. Take a look, and try not to tear up. If you’re 35 or under, you probably think the chipper and upbeat tone looks “fake.” You may not believe anyone ever acted that way. You might even find this level of cheer “cringe.”Well, it was like that. I was there. And I want it back.

To escape having to define “woman” in a resolution honoring women, Pennsylvania House Democrats shelved a vote to designate March as “National Women’s Month” on Tuesday.

“They pulled it because they were scared to define what a woman actually is,” Republican state Rep. Aaron Bernstine said Wednesday, commenting on Democrat House Speaker Joanna McClinton’s decision to table the resolution, rather than address his proposed amendment.

When Speaker McClinton brought up the resolution (HR 390) for a vote, Bernstine offered an amendment to add the definition of who it is they would be honoring. After briefly silencing her microphone and consulting her colleagues, McClinton declared the resolution temporarily “off,” ostensibly to give Democrats time to regroup and devise a strategy to reintroduce it without having to define what constitutes a woman.

Speaker McClinton’s response to the proposed amendment prompted laughter among some in attendance.

“If Democrats want to celebrate what they refuse to define, it is clear they do not take this issue seriously,” a spokesman for the Pennsylvania House Republican Caucus told Fox News Digital.

Berstine said it shouldn’t be controversial to define a woman based on biology (having XX chromosomes).

The resolution was intended to piggyback off March’s “National Women’s History Month” by creating a state-level month “celebrating the extraordinary accomplishments of women,” according to the bill’s sponsor, Democrat state Rep. Carol Hill-Evans.

 

The scholar of Yiddish Ruth Wisse began her Jefferson Lecture last night at the Trump Kennedy Center in Washington with the observation that “There have been many far more distinguished speakers in this series, but I think none has been older, and no one more grateful.”
Wisse didn’t explicitly make the connection between her age—89—and her topic—”our anxieties about endurance”—but I’m old enough myself to begin to understand what she was talking about. So is America, in its 250th birthday year.
Wisse introduced her talk as “a grateful Jewish message on staying power, in three parts.”
Part one focused on a Yiddish poem by Abraham Sutzkever that asks “Who will last? And what?” It concludes “Who lasts? God abides — isn’t that enough?”
I took Sutzkever—and Wisse—to be suggesting that faith in God is one secret to endurance, and also that the anxiety about endurance is eased by the knowledge that only God is eternal.
As Wisse put it, “To find lastingness, he insisted, you must look to its source. Trust in eternity can be sought only in the eternal.” Or, as she concluded, “Sutzkever, who survived the sacrifice of his formative world—when that’s what it cost to remain a Jew—reminds us to acknowledge before whom we stand. If that secure knowledge could restore him and resurrect the Jewish people, so can it inspire this nation to reach its 2,500th anniversary.”
Part two focused on an essential Jewish prayer, the Shma, which begins, “Hear, O Israel. The Lord is our God, the Lord is One. You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. And these words which I command you today shall be upon your heart. You shall teach them thoroughly to your children, and you shall speak of them when you sit in your house and when you walk on the road, when you lie down and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for a reminder between your eyes. And you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gates.” As she put it, the “ratio of content to transmission is about 1:7.”
Transmission, she said, requires teachers who inspire and reinforce rather than only complain. “The absence of insistent, creative intellectual formation, particularly in the humanities, does not just leave a vacuum; it gets filled by adversarial ideas: Marx for Madison, Lenin for Lincoln, and lately the Islamist incursion for the American Revolution. … If there is to be enduring government of, by, and for the people, the people would have to be instructed and reminded to respect and confidently to perpetuate their precious inheritance.”
Part three had to do with military force—appropriate for Wisse. Michael Segal of Harvard Advocates for ROTC wrote me to say that Wisse “was one of the key faculty members supporting return of ROTC to Harvard. … the example of Israel was very much in mind for the importance of having capable people in the military. ”
Wisse said in the Jefferson lecture that “the United States is still this planet’s main hope … and that hope depends on the fighting strength of its armed forces and the fighting spirit of its citizenry. … Jews who represent the principle and practice of coexistence—and who paid the highest price when they’ve tried to endure without self-defense—can testify that soldiering is the mainstay of any society that intends to protect its members.”
Faith, teaching, and soldiering—as Wisse put it, “May these messages from the Blue and White forever help to strengthen and to secure the Red, White, and Blue.”
The full text is up, paywalled, at the Free Press, and YouTube has video. For those fortunate enough to attend in person, it was a large crowd heavy with some of the most prominent American Jewish rabbis, writers, editors, professors, and philanthropists, including some who traveled from Florida, Boston, and New York. The standing ovation for Wisse even before she started speaking “to all my fellow lovers of America out there” attested to the warmth, respect, and affection for a speaker who in the teaching, faith, and soldiering departments hasn’t only lectured but has lived as an example.
The post For America at 250, Some Jewish Wisdom on How to Last 3,000 Years appeared first on .

Gamio et al., NYT Trade is trickling through the vital artery connecting the Persian Gulf and the world, creating an economic shock thousands of miles away.

Doyle et al., NBC News The montage, which typically runs for about two minutes, has raised concerns among some of the president’s allies that he may not be receiving the complete picture of the…

Diplomacy Has Not Stopped, Iran Says, While Vowing To Continue The Fight; Trump Mulls Plan To Deliver ‘Final Blow’

Summary

Iran rejects US plan but says diplomacy continues (indirectly, apparently) – White House, Pentagon reviewing options for ‘final blow’ as Trump tells Iranians ‘get serious’ about talks.

Trump said to want ‘speedy end to war’ (WSJ) while at the same time warning Tehran of ‘no turning back’ if it doesn’t negotiate.

Israel says it has killed Alireza Tangsiri, commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps navy.

Iran “laying Traps” & “building up defenses” on Kharg Island; NYT report says 13 US regional bases largely ‘uninhabitable’ in wake of Iran ballistic missile retaliation on Gulf.

*  *  *

‘Diplomacy has Not Stopped’ – Iran says while saying No Direct Talks

Iran is confirming that only within the last 24 hours it formally received the US ’15-point’ plan via Pakistani mediators, but stated its assessment that it is “one-sided and unfair”. Iran has also slammed the proposals as ‘deceptive’. So in effect little has changed from reports earlier this week.

There is still no arrangement for negotiations, no realistic plan for talks at this moment, state media conveyed further on Thursday. However, there also this from state Tasnim: “Diplomacy has not stopped, if realism prevails within the US, then a way forward could be found.” Previously Tehran media stated “An informed source told Tasnim that Iran’s response to the 15 articles proposed by the US was officially sent last night through intermediaries.” So there’s ‘hope’ for an offramp through what are so far only indirect talks, but then Iran is also vowing to keep fighting, after some reports Tehran leaders are ready for a ‘long war’:

IRAN REJECTS U.S. PROPOSAL DELIVERED VIA MEDIATOR, VOWS TO CONTINUE FIGHTING

Slight dip in oil on the headlines:

‘Final Blow’

President Trump on Thursday is on the one hand calling on Iran “to get serious soon” in negotiations with the US “before it is too late” – while on the other he’s said to be mulling plans for a “final blow” in the military campaign. Axios writes that several possibilities are being considered, all which point toward serious escalation and in some cases even ground troops. All but one of the below “final blow” options carry the potential for US to get stuck in Iran for years:

— Seize or blockade Kharg Island (Iran’s main oil export hub).

— Invade/control Larak Island (key to Strait of Hormuz control).

— Take Abu Musa + nearby islands (strategic entrance to the strait).

— Block or seize Iranian oil tankers in the region.

— Launch massive airstrikes on nuclear/energy sites.

— (More extreme) Ground operations inside Iran to secure nuclear material.

Axios elsewhere reminds: “Trump’s five-day pause on strikes against Iranian energy infrastructure expires Saturday, and a dramatic military escalation will grow more likely if no progress is made in diplomatic talks, particularly if the Strait of Hormuz remains closed.”

Negotiations or ‘No Turning Back’

Meanwhile, below are a couple of the latest Iran-related Truth Social posts by President Trump, at a moment Iran has made clear it will reject direct talks until its ‘five conditions’ are met. Iran has said it won’t be “fooled again” and even though Trump has declared ‘success’ and that Iran has been “militarily obliterated, it’s clear that Tehran has serious strategic leverage given its de facto control of the Hormuz Strait.

Trump threatens in all caps that if Iran doesn’t relent then there is “no turning back” – however, the WSJ is at the same time reporting Trump has told aides he wants a speedy end to the war.

“President Trump has told associates in recent days that he wants to avoid a protracted war in Iran and that he hopes to bring the conflict to an end in the coming weeks,” WSJ writes.

The publication continues, “Nearly one month into the war, the president has privately informed advisers he thinks the conflict is in its final stages, urging them to stick to the four-to-six-week timeline he has outlined publicly, according to people familiar with the matter. White House officials planned a mid-May summit with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing with the expectation that the war would be concluded before the meeting begins, some of the people said.”

And then it states the obvious which should have been known before Operation Epic Fury was launched: “The problem is Trump has no easy options for ending the war, and peace negotiations are at a nascent stage.” Certainly all of the above-mentioned ‘final blow’ options all carry extreme risk of quagmire (which might make the Iraq and Afghan wars easy by comparison). Path to offramp or more massive escalation coming?

Iran War: We are not watching a path to peace
Three warning signs now visible:
1. “Talks” without a ceasefire
2. Expansion to economic choke points
3. Quiet preparation for ground forces
This is how limited wars become global disasters pic.twitter.com/GTTOc4o4YB
— Robert A. Pape (@ProfessorPape) March 26, 2026
IRGC Navy Commander Killed, Says Israel

Israel says one of its air strike has killed Alireza Tangsiri, commander of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps navy, in another reported top-level death. Defense Minister Israel Katz described the strike was carried out on Wednesday night “in a precise … operation” and targeted other “senior officers of the naval command.” He played a central role in controlling the strategically vital Strait of Hormuz and recently issued direct warnings to Israel and the United States, including threats to close the waterway; however, just like all Iran’s military commanders, he’ll likely soon be replaced.

Overnight and in the last 24 hours, Iran has targeted more key refineries in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, which Gulf states have described as a “brutal aggression” against the global economy. Gulf Cooperation Council officials said the situation is an “international responsibility,” warning that “what is a threat today will grow” and stressing that oil supply chains must be protected.

Reminder: Israel keeps an ‘assassination list’ and has reportedly removed these two men from it, to leave room for negotiations, apparently. Below: Mohammad-Bagher Ghalibaf and Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi

The GCC called for de-escalation, stating their goal is a “diplomatic solution” to end the attacks, at a moment Pakistan, Turkey, and Egypt are said to be seeking mediation to get peace talks off the ground. “Our main message to our partners in the world is to send an international message, a unified message to Iran to stop immediately and unconditionally their attacks against the GCC countries.” They added their objective is not to “destroy” Iran but to build a “good relationship,” warning that “the deterioration of the situation in the Arab Gulf will be a warning that will exceed the Gulf area.”

Casualties in Iran: Iran’s Deputy Health Minister Ali Jafarian said at least 1,937 people have been killed during the war, including 240 women and 212 children. He added that at least 24,800 people have been injured, including around 4,000 women and 1,621 children.

Meanwhile Iran continues to send steady missiles and drones on Israel, with mounting Israeli casualties and much infrastructure, cities, and neighborhoods suffering severe damage.

⚡️ Iranian cluster munition hit in Israel’s Kafr Qasim earlier today pic.twitter.com/jEs6fdK8ON
— War Monitor (@WarMonitors) March 26, 2026
’13 US Regional Bases Uninhabitable’: NYT

…Something analysts suspected was the case over the course of the last weeks of expanding war: “Many of the 13 military bases in the region used by American troops are all but uninhabitable, with the ones in Kuwait, which is next door to Iran, suffering perhaps the most damage.” This is based on statements by unnamed US defense officials who admit they’ve had to scramble to find ‘alternative’ housing and office solutions for personnel.

The revelation comes on the heels of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) having earlier warned that if American troops are ‘stationed’ in hotels or civilian office complexes, then those hotels and locations effectively become targets.

The Times report suggests that the US saw early fatalities and casualties (CENTCOM figures say 13 dead and some 300 injuries thus far) in part due to lack of preparedness for such a robust Iranian ballistic missile retaliation on US regional bases.

Iran “Laying Traps” & “Building Up Defenses” On Kharg Island

Iranian forces are said to be “laying traps” and “building up defenses” on Kharg Island, in preparation for a possible US ground attack and takeover. Iran has recently bolstered its defenses around Kharg Island, anticipating a possible US move to seize the key oil export hub, CNN reported this week. The island is vital to Iran’s economy, handling roughly 90% of its crude shipments, and has become a focal point in escalating tensions.

There is also growing skepticism among US allies and policymakers about whether capturing the island would achieve its broader objective. Even some Republicans are starting to publicly push back against any possible plans involving ground forces.

*  *  *

More headlines and latest developments:

Iranian state TV quoted an anonymous official saying Tehran rejected the plan delivered via Pakistan and will “end the war when it decides to do so and when its own conditions are met”.
Iranian FM: “At present, our policy is the continuation of resistance. We do not intend to negotiate – so far, no negotiations have taken place, and I believe our position is completely principled.”
The White House said the US is “very close to meeting the core objectives in Iran” and warned Donald Trump is prepared to “unleash hell” if Iran does not accept defeat.
Trump said negotiations are under way and claimed Iran wants “to make a deal so badly” but that “they’re afraid to say it, because they figure they’ll be killed by their own people”.
VP Vance may travel to Pakistan this weekend for potential talks with Iran.
Iran has threatened to disrupt the Bab el-Mandeb Strait—the vital Red Sea route connecting the Mediterranean with MENA and Asia—if attacks target its territory or islands.
Iran attacked a power plant in Israel; the state monopoly said there was no infrastructure damage.
Iran said the US and Israel attacked the vicinity of the Bushehr nuclear plant.
Media coverage of potential Kharg Island takeover scenarios has intensified in the past 24 hours.
Iran’s parliament is working on a bill to impose fees on ships in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Israeli military said it carried out a “wide-scale wave of strikes on Iran” this morning.
The Telegraph: Russia has begun arming Iran with drones in the first known transfer of lethal munitions from Moscow to Tehran since the war began.
The United Kingdom is discussing with global partners “a viable plan” to secure maritime traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
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Tyler Durden
Thu, 03/26/2026 – 10:15