Selma Blair has revealed new details about the career fallout she faced following a controversial Instagram comment she made amid the Israel-Hamas war in February 2024.
The veteran star said she lost her entire career and the team that supported it — talent agency CAA, a manager of 30 years, a lawyer and personal and book publicists — in the wake of leaving a comment widely criticized as anti-Islamic under a video posted by immigration reform advocate Abraham Hamra. Though she apologized, Blair noted it wasn't enough and not only did she lose that team but also brand deals, payment for a supposed Super Bowl advertisement, her son's godmother and more. So much that, she says, she came to learn "what erased feels like."
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#Career #Instagram #Israel #islamic

BAGHDAD (AP) — The U.S. military announced on Wednesday that it has completed the withdrawal of all American troops from Iraq, ending a 12-year mission to fight the Islamic State group. The last U.S. troops left an air base in northern Iraq under a deal between Baghdad and Washington.
The withdrawal, agreed on two years ago, comes against the backdrop of the ongoing war between the United States and Iran that has also sometimes spilled over into Iraq, with Iran-backed militias firing on U.S. troops and the U.S. striking the groups' strongholds.
Baghdad touted the end of the U.S. mission as a sign of the country's increasing strength and sovereignty.
The withdrawal was also celebrated by Iran-backed groups but raised concerns among some other Iraqis, particularly in the Kurdish region. Meanwhile, questions loom around the future of the Iraqi militias, which the Baghdad government has sought — with little success so far — to disarm.
Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement that U.S. troops and equipment had completed an "orderly departure" from the air base in Irbil, in northern Iraq's semi-autonomous Kurdish region.

#baghdad #withdrawal #kurdish #northern

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), antifa and the Muslim Brotherhood will be labeled domestic terrorist organizations under a new state law, after Florida leaders OK'd the designations at their Sept. 29 meeting.
These designations were in a 427-page packet submitted by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement for approval by Gov. Ron DeSantis and Florida Cabinet members: Attorney General James Uthmeier, Agriculture Commissioner Wilton Simpson and state Chief Financial Officer Blaise Ingoglia.
The packet also named numerous other groups labeled by the federal government as foreign terrorist organizations.
Although the Governor and Florida Cabinet approved these notices without any discussion, these designations don't come as a surprise. Weeks earlier, the governor and Cabinet approved an emergency rule setting procedures under a new state law (HB 1471) allowing them to designate terror groups.
Additionally, the day this law took effect, DeSantis announced his intentions to declare CAIR, the country's largest Muslim advocacy group, and antifa as domestic terror groups.

#Florida #muslim #governor

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York filed a civil forfeiture complaint on Sep. 14 seeking approximately $61 million in cryptocurrency linked to black-market sales of Iranian crude oil.
According to the DOJ, the funds were allegedly meant to support the Iranian government and its military, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC. The U.S. government has designated the IRGC as a terrorist organization.
A civil forfeiture complaint is a legal action in which the government seeks to seize money or property it believes was involved in or resulted from criminal activity. It is not a criminal charge, the allegations are not proven until a court rules in the government's favor.
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The complaint alleges that two Chinese companies, Blessed Trust and Hexa Whale, used trading accounts at Binance to launder proceeds from sanctioned Iranian oil sales. Binance is the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange by daily trading volume.

#government

Iran is deliberately targeting U.S. naval drones in the Strait of Hormuz to gather intelligence on American surveillance capabilities and learn how to evade U.S. defenses, drone experts warned Tuesday.
Tehran's strategy is coordinated, they said, and involves exposing critical insights into U.S. Navy theater operations in the world's most vulnerable maritime choke point even when classified data is uncompromised.
The warning came as tensions escalated in the Gulf region Sept. 14 after the U.S. military destroyed two Iranian small boats amid an attempted seizure by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of an American unmanned surface vessel (USV) patrolling the area, according to reports.
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A cargo ship sails in the Persian Gulf toward the Strait of Hormuz, Wednesday, April 22, 2026.

#Iran #sept

September S&P 500 E-Mini futures (ESU26) are down -0.15%, and September Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures (NQU26) are down -0.66% this morning as rising oil prices and bond yields weigh on investor sentiment ahead of crucial U.S. producer inflation data and earnings from debt-loaded AI hyperscaler Oracle.
Oil prices extended their advance on Thursday as escalating attacks between the U.S. and Iran risked prolonging disruptions to energy flows in the Middle East. Brent crude rose above $103 a barrel, while WTI crude climbed above $99 a barrel. A senior Iranian official said on Wednesday that Tehran has no plans to back down in the face of an American naval blockade and will intensify its strikes if the U.S. continues attacking its territory. Also, Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard warned on Wednesday of additional restrictions on shipping around the Strait of Hormuz. Meanwhile, U.S. President Donald Trump said the war with Iran would not end until after the November midterm elections.
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#Iran

DUBAI, Sept 6 (Reuters) - Iran said it will step up efforts to tackle problems created by the U.S. sanctions that are crippling its economy, while a senior Iranian official warned of a "painful response" if it comes under further attack.
Six months after U.S.-Israeli strikes against Iran, the war appears to be at a stalemate. A preliminary ceasefire accord ‌reached in June has unravelled and little progress has been made in diplomatic efforts to get the peace process back on track.
After a pause in military action for much of ‌August, ******* -for-tat strikes have resumed with U.S. Central Command saying it hit three Iranian tankers on Saturday after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched ballistic missiles at two U.S. Navy ships.
Following the attacks, Iran's Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said on Sunday that the U.S. should understand that the rules of the game in the war against Iran have changed "before it is too late".
"From now on, any attack against Iran's interests and security will receive a faster, heavier and more painful response," he said in a speech published on his Telegram channel.

#Iran #painful

DUBAI, Sept 5 (Reuters) - U.S. and Iranian forces fired at vessels in waters around Iran on Saturday, including three Iranian oil carriers struck by the Americans and three tankers that Iran said it targeted while on unauthorized ‌routes in the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. Central Command said it struck the three Iranian vessels, including one off the ‌coast of Kharg Island, near Iran's oil export hub, after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps launched ballistic missiles at two U.S. Navy ships.
"Let the message to the IRGC be clear: If you shoot at two of our ships, we will impose an even higher economic cost — taking out three of yours," said Admiral Brad Cooper, head of U.S. Central Command, which oversees the U.S. military in the Middle East.
The IRGC responded by threatening intensified strikes against U.S. military vessels in the region, and said later it targeted the three tankers as well as three U.S.-linked vessels in other areas.
"Do not be deceived ‌by the 'terrorist' U.S. military and refrain from any suspicious ⁠movement aimed at passing through unauthorized waterways," the IRGC Navy said in a statement carried on Iranian state TV. "Otherwise, you will be targeted."

#central

September S&P 500 E-Mini futures (ESU26) are up +0.08%, and September Nasdaq 100 E-Mini futures (NQU26) are down -0.09% this morning, pointing to a muted open on Wall Street as bond yields stabilized near multi-year highs, while investors digested the latest batch of tech earnings.
The price of WTI crude reversed earlier losses and rose more than +1% on Thursday after Tehran's claims of fresh retaliation overshadowed U.S. President Donald Trump's prediction of a short-lived operation against Iran. The state-run Islamic Republic News Agency reported on Thursday that Iran's military launched missile and drone attacks on U.S. bases in Kuwait and the UAE. Oil prices initially moved lower after President Trump told reporters that he does not expect the renewed U.S. bombing campaign against Iran to last "too long."
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#Iran

DUBAI, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Iran's semi-official Tasnim news agency reported on Thursday the deaths of six more military personnel from ‌U.S. strikes this week, bringing the military death toll to ‌at least 13.
The U.S. strikes on Tuesday were the most extensive for weeks. In the latest report on military deaths, Tasnim said six members of the regular military, including three pilots, had been killed in southern Iran. It gave no additional detail on the location.
Tasnim had earlier reported that Tuesday's ‌strikes had killed three members ⁠of the paramilitary Basij on Lavan Island in the Gulf, with their funeral taking place in southern Iran ⁠on Wednesday.
The strikes also killed four members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' (IRGC) Aerospace Force in western Iran, according to a statement by the guards published on Wednesday.
Iranian military casualties in the conflict that began in late ‌February have been reported periodically, without official confirmation of overall tolls.

#reported #killed

There is always a winner in any major global oil crisis. In 1973/74, it was Saudi Arabia and its OPEC brothers who shifted the balance of power in the market away from the previous arrangement dominated by the West's 'Seven Sisters' to the oil producers of the Middle East. After the 2014-2016 Oil Price War, it was the U.S. whose earlier nascent shale oil sector resisted the threat to its very existence from Saudi Arabia and OPEC, reorganising into a meaner, leaner, lower-cost oil production machine. The U.S. was the winner again in the short-lived 2020 Oil Price War, and this, along with all the other major crises mentioned, is ****** ysed in full in my latest book on the global oil markets. The latest rupture in the global oil market order that followed the U.S.'s 'Operation Epic Fury' against Iran that began on 28 February has also produced a clear winner. It is neither the U.S., Saudi Arabia, nor the other OPEC states -- it is China. So, how inclined will Beijing be to heed Washington's newly announced sanctions on Iran ahead of the meeting of its President Xi Jinping with U.S. counterpart Donald Trump on 24 September at the White House?
The sanctions in question were announced on 20 August by U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, who stated they would be "the ‌toughest sanctions in history" on Iran, under the umbrella of 'Economic D-Day' for the country. The direct sanctions on Iran aim for the complete financial isolation and economic shutdown of the regime by cutting off all domestic and international revenue streams. To this end, the U.S. Treasury blacklisted five core sectors of Iran's economy -- Digital ****** ets/Crypto, Technology, Gold, Aviation, and Shipping -- making any business operating within them subject to immediate ****** et freezes. At the same time, all longstanding humanitarian, academic, athletic, and personal remittance exemptions were indefinitely suspended, including a complete ban on non-commercial family money transfers and joint research collaborations. In parallel with this, the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL) and commercial aviation fleets were put under a strict operational embargo, cutting off access to foreign ports, refuelling, and aircraft spare parts. Immediate ****** et freezes were also levied against procurement networks, cyber warfare units, and business syndicates tied to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
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In tandem with this, the U.S. Treasury, along with sister organisations, will fully utilise secondary sanctions to force foreign governments and companies to choose between trading with Iran or trading with the U.S., under the umbrella of 'Operation Economic Outcast'. This aims to target the complete financial isolation of Tehran by cutting off its remaining economic lifelines. To that end, the U.S. Treasury has already blacklisted nearly 60 entities, individuals, and vessels, focusing heavily on thir

Kenneth Lonergan has taken a firm stand for Mark Ruffalo amid antisemitism accusations tied to his Israel-Gaza remarks. The Oscar-winning filmmaker and longtime friend of Ruffalo addressed the allegations in a letter to The Hollywood Reporter. He called the antisemitism accusation against Ruffalo "overtly preposterous" and said it was being used to silence his criticism of Israel.
Ruffalo's latest controversy followed his criticism of Oracle founder Larry Ellison and the company's reported ties to Israeli military technology. He also faced backlash from Paramount Skydance after criticizing the proposed Warner Bros. Discovery merger. The company accused him of using antisemitic tropes, but Ruffalo denied it and said he was criticizing political and corporate actions.
Lonergan's relationship with Ruffalo dates back to You Can Count on Me, his 2000 directorial debut starring Laura Linney and Ruffalo. The film was widely praised and marked the beginning of their friendship, which has continued for decades.
Their long friendship led Lonergan to publicly defend the actor. In his letter, he referred to Ruffalo as his "dear friend for thirty years." Lonergan called the antisemitism accusation "a cynical and disgusting lie" and questioned the motives behind it. He wants the Simon Wiesenthal Center to review its response and clarify where it detects any antisemitism.
Lonergan said that attacking Ruffalo personally helps critics avoid addressing his actual arguments. He also acknowledged that he "disagrees profoundly with many of his positions on the Middle East, Israel, Gaza, and Iran's constellation of fanatical Islamic fundamentalist proxies." However, Lonergan said people can disagree with Ruffalo's views without labeling his criticism of Israel as antisemitic.

#ruffalo #friend #letter #accusation

A 17-year-old North Carolina girl who recorded a livestream of a shooting that killed three people at a San Diego mosque and disseminated the attackers' white-supremacist writings has been charged with murder by aiding and abetting, a district attorney said Monday.
Forsyth County District Attorney Jim O'Neill said at a news conference in Winston-Salem that the girl, whose name was not mentioned during the news conference, was arrested last week. On Monday, just before she was due to begin the school year, a grand jury indicted her on three counts of murder and one count of conspiracy.
Under North Carolina law, the aiding-and-abetting charges carry the same penalties as if the girl had committed the attack herself, O'Neill said.
"The individual here, locally, was the person who was recording the livestream," O'Neill said. "She disseminated that information and she published their manifesto."
Cain Clark, 17, and Caleb Vazquez, 18, stormed the Islamic Center on May 18 before being driven back outside by a security guard who exchanged gunfire with them as he initiated a lockdown, helping to protect 140 children who were just steps away.

#Monday #district #Attorney #year

Aug 30 (Reuters) - Iran's Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei urged Muslim countries, particularly those in the Gulf, to unite against what he ‌called their "real enemy" and said divisions among Muslims served the ‌interests of their adversaries.
The message was published on Khamenei's Telegram account for Islamic Unity Week, which marks the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad.
It called for Muslim unity, cooperation in various fields and mutual defence, saying anyone who creates divisions among Muslims, "knowingly or unknowingly," helps Islam's enemies.
It asked whether Palestinians would have been left "so ‌helpless" if Muslims had ⁠been united.
Khamenei has not been seen in public since being injured in U.S.-Israeli airstrikes six months ago that launched ⁠the Iran war, killing his father and previous supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

#supreme

By Parisa Hafezi and Angus McDowall
DUBAI, Aug 28 (Reuters) - Six months after the airstrikes that began the war and propelled a badly wounded Mojtaba Khamenei into the role of Iran's supreme leader, he remains entirely unseen and unheard by Iranians — a vacuum at the heart of his country's leadership.
Questions over his condition and role are growing increasingly fraught, with Iran facing critical ‌decisions over a war that has set the Middle East aflame while trashing the country's already fragile economy.
Iranian officials and other senior sources in the country say Khamenei remains in control, ruling ‌from the shadows for security reasons as he recovers from disfiguring wounds while delegating broad daily authority to a coterie of top figures.
But with no photograph, video or audio message released since his appointment a week into the war, Iranians are ever more sceptical about his position in an Islamic Republic in which the leader's voice is meant to be absolute.

#khamenei #hafezi #angus

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump arrives at an awkward moment for his presidency on Friday as the U.S.-Israel war against Iran reaches the six-month mark, a notable milestone for a conflict that the Republican leader repeatedly ****** ured Americans would be a "little excursion" lasting a matter of weeks.
The war isn't over, though Trump claims that through bombs and blockade, he has already devastated Iran's leadership, military and economy.
And this week his administration said it would turn its focus to increasing economic pressure — rather than military action — to try to finish off Iran. The shifting strategy centers on threats to punish any country or entity that continues to conduct business with Tehran.
The turn to using sanctions as the cudgel of choice comes as the administration weighs diminished munitions stockpiles after months of war, sparking concerns that the prolonged conflict could undermine U.S. military readiness in other parts of the globe.
As the conflict grinds on, Trump's talk of finding a quick end to the war also appears to be fading. He stressed this week that he's "not in a hurry" to get Iran back to the negotiating table, and he continues making the case that the Islamic Republic's leadership is on the ropes.

#Trump

By Ruma Paul
DHAKA, Aug 25 (Reuters) - Bangladesh could consider joining the Mecca pact, a mutual defence agreement signed this month between Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan, a minister said, a move that could complicate its foreign relations, particularly with neighbouring India.
Ties have been strained ‌as Bangladesh accused Indian border forces of forcibly pushing in people while it seeks extradition of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who has lived ‌in exile in India since her ouster in a protest movement in August 2024.
"If there is a security arrangement among Islamic nations in the Middle East, it is not unusual for us to consider participating. It is being viewed positively," said junior foreign minister Humayun Kabir.
"They are inviting the leadership of Bangladesh, particularly Prime Minister Tarique Rahman, to come and participate," he told reporters on Monday.

#India #ruma

Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed sparked controversy on social media Monday night after comparing Sharia law to Christian canon law during an interview with Fox News anchor Jesse Watters.
"Getting rid of Sharia law is White supremacy?" Watters said to El-Sayed, bringing up past comments from the Michigan candidate opposing a ban on Sharia law and comparing those efforts to White supremacy. "Can you explain that one?"
Sayed responded by comparing Sharia, Islamic law based on religious texts, to Catholic Church law and governance.
"Nobody is trying to push Sharia law on anyone else, just like I hope **** ody is trying to push canon law on anybody else, because we live in an America where you should have the freedom of your religion," El-Sayed said.
Trump Inauguration Pastor Says Dearborn Christians 'Afraid' To Speak Out In Muslim-majority City

#sharia

By Yasmine Ghania and Kanishka Singh
CAIRO/WASHINGTON, Aug 24 (Reuters) - The U.S. threatened Iran with what it called "the greatest financial offensive ever marshalled" as it prepared to roll out economic sanctions on Monday that target Iran's trade partners.
Iran in turn vowed to shut down all ‌oil exports from the Gulf "if the economic war continues."
U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent will hold a press conference at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT) ‌on Monday amid promises to reveal even more severe measures on a country that has endured near-continuous economic sanctions since the Islamic Revolution of 1979.
"At dawn begins an economic D-Day — the single greatest financial offensive ever marshalled against an adversary," Bessent wrote in an opinion piece published in the Financial Times on Sunday.

#Iran #Monday #greatest #marshalled

The new head of Iran's top security body warned Sunday that Tehran will see any country's support for new U.S. economic measures against the Islamic Republic as an "act of war," while Iran's president defended a memorandum of understanding with the United States as the best way out of the stalled conflict.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday is expected to announce the new measures after the U.S. vowed to impose an "unprecedented" level of economic warfare and isolation on a country that has lived for decades under sanctions. Also Monday, Pakistan's army chief is expected to visit Iran as mediators try to revive talks.
Meanwhile, attacks calmed on the Strait of Hormuz but posturing did not, as a recently created Iranian authority listed dozens of vessels it said will face restrictions on future transits.
Here's a look at the latest developments in the Iran war and the wider Middle East on Sunday. Full coverage can be found here.
The hard-line leader of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, Mohsen Rezaei, issued his latest warning on X, with the comments quickly shared by Iranian state media.

#iranian #security #expected

The United Arab Emirates suspended all trade, commercial exchanges and financial transactions with Iran after accusing Tehran of firing ballistic missiles toward maritime traffic.
The action severs one of the Islamic Republic's most important commercial and financial links and threatens to close off an economic route President Donald Trump's sanctions have struggled to reach. It also further deepens Iran's isolation amid its standoff with the U.S.
The UAE supplied 31% of Iran's imports, valued at roughly $21 billion, in 2024, and was the destination for 13% of its exports, according to World Trade Organization trade data.
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Miad Maleki, a senior fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies and former Treasury official, said the UAE is one of Tehran's two key economic lifelines.

#trade #islamic

By Parisa Hafezi and Katharine Jackson
DUBAI/WASHINGTON, Aug 18 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday no talks were taking place with Iran and insisted the Strait of Hormuz was open, contradicting Iran's **** ertion that the critical waterway remained shut to shipping.
The receding prospects of a deal to end the nearly six-month conflict drove up oil prices again on Tuesday, while ‌stock markets sagged and borrowing costs for major economies including the U.S. hit multi-decade highs, amid concerns about the long-term inflationary and fiscal impact of the crisis.
A temporary ceasefire agreement expired on Monday ‌and a senior Iranian official told Reuters that his country was moving to a "fully offensive" military posture due to the diplomatic stalemate, though there were no reports of fresh strikes by either side on Tuesday.
"There are no talks or conversations going on, or scheduled, with the Islamic Republic of Iran," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.

#talks #parisa #Dubai

By Parisa Hafezi
DUBAI, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Iran will escalate tensions in the Strait of Hormuz and beyond, and launch an attack ‌if the U.S. fails to implement an interim peace deal ‌fully in a matter of weeks, a senior Iranian official told Reuters on Monday.
If the U.S. does not meet that deadline and diplomacy fails, Tehran would conduct a "timely and precise" military attack to break the U.S. naval blockade on the Islamic Republic, the official added.
Diplomatic efforts to bring Tehran and Washington back ‌to talks under a ⁠June agreement have stalled in recent weeks.
Iran's foreign minister has said the Strait of Hormuz will not reopen until ⁠the U.S. first returns to the deal, while the U.S. Treasury Secretary has warned of unprecedented economic isolation for Iran.

#Iran #tehran #fails

By Parisa Hafezi
DUBAI, Aug 17 (Reuters) - Even as Iran projects resilience in the war with the United States, its leaders are worried that a threat of more economic punishment by Donald Trump could increase hardships, reignite unrest and further erode the Islamic Republic's legitimacy.
The U.S. president vowed on Friday to hit Iran hard economically, a day after Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Washington would impose measures on ‌Tehran that have "never been seen" as early as next week. Washington has not said what those measures will entail.
For all the bravado of Iran's leaders after holding out in nearly six months of conflict and effectively ‌closing the Strait of Hormuz, a vital global oil supply route, they face mounting pressure at home that could result in nationwide unrest, according to three Iranian officials.
The officials, two political insiders, a former Iranian official and a dozen ordinary Iranians spoke to Reuters for this story on condition of anonymity, either for fear of retribution or because they are not authorised to speak to media.

#officials

Gov. Greg Abbott is calling out Texas airports over ablution facilities, or Islamic foot-washing stations.
Abbott directed a review of all state grants awarded to entities that operate airports in Texas, after reports surfaced that Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW) would be adding ablution facilities.
In an Aug. 14 letter shared by the governor, Abbott argued that ablution facilities used for Islamic washing rituals are unconstitutional. The letter was sent to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy.
"These facilities appear designed to single out one subset of the population for special treatment based on religion. I am unaware of either airport installing standalone facilities to meet the particular needs of the many other religious groups represented across Texas," Abbott wrote in the letter.
Abbott also argued that the facilities violate constitutional protections against religious discrimination.

#ablution

MADRID, Aug 15 (Reuters) - A magnitude 5 earthquake struck the southern ‌Spanish city of Granada in ‌the early hours of Saturday, with the regional government saying houses and cars were damaged but no injuries had been reported.
The quake hit the metropolitan ‌area of ⁠Alhendin just after 1 a.m. (0000 GMT).
Spanish television channel TVE showed ⁠debris strewn on the street and some damage to cars in the popular tourist city. Andalusian emergency services ‌rescued a number of people from damaged buildings.
Antonio Sanz, the Andalusia region's top emergencies official, said on Saturday there was no damage to the ‌Alhambra palace, an important example of Andalusian Islamic architecture.
"There is no serious structural ‌damage, no serious material damage and there are no casualties," he said, adding that the Alhambra had "not been ‌affected in any way".

#andalusian #alhambra

JERUSALEM — Fox News Digital gained rare access to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Tzrifin Base in Central Israel, where a vast number of confiscated rockets, grenades, drones, sniper rifles, automated weapons, anti-tank rocket launchers, mortars and other military firepower used by Hezbollah and Hamas are stored.
The seized ***** nal of weapons, ranging in manufacturers from the Islamic Republic of Iran to Russia, China to homegrown producers in Lebanon and Gaza and even a ***** -era gun, were part of the war machinery used by Hamas and Hezbollah against Israeli civilians and the IDF since Hamas terrorists attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
The IDF said Hezbollah also used weapons against Lebanese civilians.
Hezbollah and Hamas, members of Iran's so-called "axis of resistance," have killed over 300 American citizens, according to reports.
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#digital

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — As Afghanistan's Taliban rulers mark five years since sweeping back to power, some Kabul residents say they feel safer after decades of conflict and upheaval but stress the leaders should now focus on creating jobs and expanding access to schools in the country where girls above the age of 12 are banned from education.
The Taliban regained control of Afghanistan on Aug. 15, 2021, after it launched an offensive as the U.S. and other NATO troops withdrew from the country after two decades of war. The withdrawal led to chaotic scenes at and around Kabul's airport with thousands wanting to leave.
"Thank God, the past five years have passed in safety," said Mohammad Qasim, 30, reflecting on the anniversary that comes against a backdrop of economic hardship in a conflict-stricken country. "Our wish and hope from the government is to create job opportunities for the youth."
"We, along with the entire nation, call upon the government to create employment opportunities for the youth and to encourage them to pursue education," he added.
Before the takeover, the Taliban stated that, upon **** uming power, it would allow women access to education, employment and public participation, albeit in accordance with its interpretation of Islamic principles.

#conflict

By Kanishka Singh
WASHINGTON, Aug 6 (Reuters) - The U.S. Department of Justice said on Thursday a man charged ‌in connection to a mid-July fire at the Northeast ‌Philadelphia Islamic Center had targeted the house of worship because it was a mosque.
DETAILS:
• Vincent Lang, 60, "was charged by indictment with one count of malicious damage by means of fire to a building used in interstate commerce and one count of damage ‌to religious real property," ⁠the DOJ said in a statement.
• The indictment alleged "Lang carried out the act because of ⁠the religious character of that property, that is, because it was a mosque."

#mosque #indictment

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Gold (GC=F) December futures opened at $4,109.60 per troy ounce on Tuesday, August 4, 2026, up 0.5% from Monday's closing price. The price of gold moved higher this morning to $4,136.30 per troy ounce as of 8:03 a.m. ET.
The opening price of gold continues to hold above $4,100 this week, and the precious metal continues to gain value in early trading, despite inflammatory comments from President Trump. While the president hopes his comments will accelerate a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, they could prolong the war and raise energy costs even further:
"I want to give them every last chance before decapitation," Trump told reporters on Monday. "You'll find out today or tomorrow. I mean, they're going to go quickly, one way or the other. It's not very complex."
This is a "last chance" for Iran to come to an agreement, the president said, after he called off what he described as a major attack on the Islamic Republic over the weekend that would have likely involved Israel.

#last