Israel smuggled Starlink systems into Iran, former PM says
Bennett said the receivers would let protesters keep internet access and coordinate during unrest, as Iran has shut down online services in past protests.

Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett revealed at the JNS International Policy Summit that Israel smuggled Starlink satellite internet receivers into Iran to support anti-government protesters.
The clandestine initiative sought to ensure internet continuity for Iranians, aiming to enable protesters to coordinate their activities and ultimately topple the government.
Criticizing the current administration, Bennett said, "Unfortunately, the current incompetent Israeli government stopped doing that," leaving vital infrastructure unavailable during recent unrest.
Netanyahu's office refused to respond to Bennett's remarks, and SpaceX remained unavailable for comment outside standard business hours.
Iran has previously accused Israel and the United States of smuggling devices to undermine security, though Starlink remains unlicensed there despite reports of active service.

https://ground.news/article/is...rmer-pm-bennett-says

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Originally posted by Some Shot:
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NO, it does not...I do not have a subscription, and I read it daily.

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Originally posted by abnmacv:
Iran wants be able to use their proxies to attack Israel deal or no deal. Iran doesn't play by the rules of international norms. Killing those who aren't Shia as they move toward the ultimate apocalypse is their path. Israel will not allow Iran to rocket their country and not pay a price. Israel want peace, Iran has repeatedly said they want to wipe Israel off the map. American left buys into this idea not knowing the US is another target as they have been murdering Americans for decades. President Trump needs new advisors who know the history if Islam and the Middel East. If long lasting peace is to e achieved it means the theocratic dictatorship in Iran must fall. Templet is how the WWII ended. We bombed Germany, we burned Hamburg and Dresden to the ground, with allies our military invaded, when Germany unconditionally surrendered we located the Nazi leader, put nooses around their necks and hung the bastards. Then denazified the government and helped rebuild the country. Until Iran's current government is crushed there will be no peace. Bibi Netanyahu understands this. Other Middle Eastern government understands this. For reasons unknown the US doesn't.

Maybe because the President realizes it's not worth tens of thousands of American lives? And this is really not our war to begin with?

The restraint we have shown is commendable, and the MOU was a great first step in the peace process. Hopefully within 60 days we can have something permanent. It's not worth risking one more American life over that godforsaken dump known as the middle east.

President Trump has done enough for Israel, and now that he is trying to make peace they are sabotaging him every step of the way. If they don't want to stop attacking Lebanon, and bulldozing ancient sites, displacing over a million people in the process, then they can deal with the repercussions. Alone.

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Originally posted by downtownv:

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Originally posted by Some Shot:
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NO, it does not...I do not have a subscription, and I read it daily.

It does have a pop up screen first, you need to click continue to story at the top and once you do, bam, it's gone.... the cover page that is...

quote:

Iran has previously accused Israel and the United States of smuggling devices to undermine security, though Starlink remains unlicensed there despite reports of active service.

There is an old saw in the community of people engaged in IP routing: "The Internet interprets censorship as damage, and routes around it." Kind of why the protocols were designed the way they were.

Closed-door outburst turns into victory for Trump’s Iran negotiations

By Alex Miller | Fox News
Published June 24, 2026 11:02pm EDT

An explosive meeting in the Senate turned into a win for President Donald Trump and his administration as key Republicans flipped on another bid to handcuff the administration’s authorities in Iran.

In its final act before leaving Washington, D.C., for an over two-week break, the Senate rejected Democrats’ attempt to rein in Trump’s war powers in Iran as talks continue between Iran and the U.S. to hammer out a long-term peace deal.

It was the same war powers resolution from Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., that passed over a month ago and stunned Republicans in the upper chamber.

What seemed like a predetermined outcome just hours after Trump and Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., sparred over the Iran war, and the administration's lack of forthcomingness with lawmakers, during a closed-door meeting to discuss the president's marquee voter ID and citizenship verification legislation turned into a surprise late night win.

Trump argued to the GOP that the previous war powers resolution, which passed on Tuesday thanks in part to a pair of Republicans being absent, hurt the administration's negotiating position with the Iranians.

Meetings with key holdouts at the White House helped change the minds of Cassidy and Sen. Rand Paul, R-Ky., who has routinely voted with Democrats on every war powers resolution brought forward, and provided the administration with a win as they work toward a deal beyond the 60-day memorandum of understanding with Iran.

"I want to thank Vice President [JD] Vance and Special Envoy [Steve] Witkoff for the thorough briefing this afternoon on Iran," Cassidy said on X. "I appreciate the quick invitation to the White House to address many of my concerns."

And Paul, who voted present, noted that his "opinion on the debate over war and executive power has not changed and I have voted that way several times."

"But since hostilities seem to be over and the President asked me to give consideration to his negotiating position, I will do so," Paul said on X. "My vote of present is a way to give the President more space and leverage to negotiate a lasting peace."

Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., who has been at the forefront among Democrats in pushing war powers resolutions in the upper chamber, acknowledged that "this is a different moment," but cautioned that the ceasefire appeared to be "precarious right now."

When asked if he believed Trump's case to Republicans that the successful war powers vote just a day before was hurting the administration's leverage, Murphy said, "The Iranians don't — you know, all they have to do is read a poll and find out that people in this country don't support the war. They didn't support the war."

Still, it marked a key win for Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., and the Senate GOP's whip operation, led by Senate Majority Whip John Barrasso, R-Wyo., to flip the skeptics into backers of the administration’s long game in Iran after several contentious weeks in the Senate spurred by Trump's last-minute decisions that either derailed or torpedoed several of his key agenda items.

Thune and Barrasso, accompanied by Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, huddled in the GOP leader's office as the vote wound down late Wednesday to call Trump, and share the news of the vote.

"Wow! The Senate just changed its vote on Iran from 50-48 against, to 50-47 for," Trump said on Truth Social. "Rand Paul and Bill Cassidy changed. Thank you to Leader John Thune, Lindsey Graham, Bernie Moreno, and all. This vote puts Iran on notice!"

It also comes at a time when speculation has swirled over the nature of Thune and Trump's relationship as the president, accompanied by chatter online, have ramped up the pressure to pass the Safeguarding American Voter Eligibility (SAVE) America Act.

Moreno made the case that the questions over their relationship, and Thune's position as leader, was just noise, and that "there's not a single solitary Senator running for office that says leader Thune should be replaced, not one, even non-incumbents."

"What today showed is that President Trump has a kind of relationship with John Thune where he says, ‘Hey, let me talk to the guys,’ understand the situation," Moreno said. "As much as Cassidy and Trump got into it, it was because they're both passionate, they're both smart people."

"And now, we've most importantly sent the Iranians a message that President Trump has the full backing of the Congress, and that was an incredibly important day," he continued. "That's a huge victory for us."

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Originally posted by AirmanJeff:


Maybe because the President realizes it's not worth tens of thousands of American lives? And this is really not our war to begin with?

The certainty of large, economically and politically powerful nation led by insane Muhammedans with nuclear bombs and long range missiles capable of reaching the continental USA is not our war to begin with?

^^^ Agreed. If not ours, whose?

This is not Iraq, where Hussein denied he had WMDs, outside inspectors couldn't find any, we invaded anyway, and sure enough none were found.. The assaholahs in Iran openly brag about it.

Trump Requests $88 Billion Supplemental Funding Package Focused On Iran War Funds, Farm Aid, And Ebola Response

President Donald Trump formally asked Congress on Wednesday for $87.6 billion in supplemental appropriations - your tax dollars - to cover urgent needs stemming from the U.S. military campaign against Iran, provide economic relief to American farmers, and respond to the Ebola outbreak in Central Africa.

The request, sent in a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson, comes as the administration seeks to replenish military stocks and address operational expenses from Operation Epic Fury, the joint U.S.-Israeli military effort launched on February 28, 2026.

Breakdown of the Funding Request

According to the White House letter and reporting from multiple outlets, the package allocates funds across several priorities:

Department of War (Pentagon): $67.146 billion - the largest share. This includes approximately $21 billion for munitions to rebuild stockpiles, substantial funding for operations and readiness, $2.4 billion for drones, $5.1 billion for cybersecurity and autonomy, fuel costs, and $12.1 billion for classified programs.
American Farmers (USDA): $11.1 billion - $10 billion in temporary economic assistance for row and specialty crops in 2026, plus $1.1 billion to help Florida agricultural producers recover from winter storm damage.
Ebola Outbreak Response: $1.4 billion - focused on detection, contact tracing, surveillance, humanitarian assistance in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, and Kenya, plus medical evacuation and departure support for U.S. citizens.
Infrastructure and Other: $500 million for restoration and capital projects in Washington, D.C.; $1 billion toward modernizing Penn Station in New York City; plus smaller amounts for the Department of Energy and other items.

The administration described most of the request as addressing “urgent needs related to Operation Epic Fury” while also tackling other critical domestic and international priorities.

https://www.zerohedge.com/poli...n-war-funds-farm-aid

Cargo Vessel Comes Under Apparent Iranian Attack Near Oman, Crude Jumps, After IRGC Warned It Controls Hormuz Strait

Update(11:28ET): A tanker appears to have come under (likely) Iranian attack close to the coast of Oman on Thursday. It seems that Iran is seeking to impose control, and its red lines as its military issues the following message: "Coordination with the IRGC Navy for passage through the Strait of Hormuz via Channel 16 is mandatory, and violator vessels will be dealt with."

Crude jumps, also as Bloomberg reports that already "At least three ships, including two oil supertankers, appeared to turn around while attempting to cross the Strait of Hormuz using a route that hugs Oman’s coastline."

Bloomberg continues: "It wasn’t immediately clear why the vessels turned around, but two maritime intelligence companies published broadcasts that purported to be from the Iranian navy instructing ships not to cross. Not all ships have turned around and some continued along the Oman route, according to tracking data compiled by Bloomberg."

This comes after there's been some optimism this week after the signing of the US-Iran MoU, as tanker traffic has clearly picked up. However, Tehran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority has been insistent that transit can't happen without express permission, and as Tehran seems to impose steep tolls under its protocol.

https://www.zerohedge.com/geop...plying-will-be-dealt

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Originally posted by chellim1:
Cargo Vessel Comes Under Apparent Iranian Attack Near Oman, Crude Jumps, After IRGC Warned It Controls Hormuz Strait

Shocked....absolutely shocked I tell you. I was so sure the nutjob Mullahs were going to keep their word this time.

^^^^^^
There are multiple factions claiming to be the Iranian government. A big problem for us.

Destroy the early favorites, then see who's left still talking smack. Run, rinse, repeat.

My opinion is worth more than anyone else on this subject but I think we should either process the conflict to the fullest (kill everyone that even may oppose us, and break ALL of their shit), or completely stay out of it.

It seems for now Iran's population isn't ready to throw off their government, understandable if the shortages and general pain of living isn't hard enough, or if they just don't want to get shot or hung, so since they're not headed for an inflection point in the near term, we're probably stuck with the current continuation of the old boss, or the new boss that's just like the old boss, either way everyone stays screwed. The real solution may be more like a purge in the biblical sense, but obviously that's not an option at this time, like it was securing full surrender and prosecution of Germany and Japan at the end of WWII.

I can't explain it, but it just feels like the Iranians just aren't up for it, they're just too accustomed to living under a black cloud, and as nasty as it is, it's something they understand and navigate on a daily basis.

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Originally posted by chellim1:
Trump Requests $88 Billion Supplemental Funding Package Focused On Iran War Funds, Farm Aid, And Ebola Response

I'd be happy to pay for that. Just take the funds out of the budget for SNAP/foodstamps and Section 8 (among others).