Yearly Archives: 2026

Iran claims retaliatory strikes on 85 US facilities in Bahrain, Kuwait following US attacks

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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Smoke rises after an Iranian drone attack struck fuel tanks at Kuwait International Airport in Kuwait City, Kuwait on April 01, 2026. [Stringer – Anadolu Agency]

Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said on Wednesday that it had targeted 85 US military facilities in Bahrain and Kuwait with missiles and drones, in response to US attacks on the south of Iran overnight.

Iran’s Fars News Agency quoted an IRGC statement as saying that the United States had violated a ceasefire by carrying out airstrikes on sites in the coastal cities of Hormozgan and Mahshahr.

The statement said the IRGC, in cooperation between its naval and aerospace forces, carried out a joint operation using missiles and drones as its initial response to the US attacks.

It said the operation targeted Salman Port and the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain, as well as Ali Al Salem Air Base in Kuwait, among the 85 US military facilities.

The statement also said that a US MQ-9 drone had been shot down over Bushehr Province, without providing further details about the operation.

On Tuesday evening, the US Central Command (CENTCOM) announced a series of strikes on Iran, saying they were carried out “as an immediate response to its attacks targeting three commercial vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz”.

Over the past 24 hours, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported that three oil tankers had come under attack while passing through the Strait of Hormuz, causing minor damage, without disclosing their nationalities.

The Strait of Hormuz has witnessed intermittent security tensions linked to the war launched by the United States and Israel against Iran on 28 February.

On 18 June, Washington and Tehran signed a memorandum of understanding and have continued difficult negotiations aimed at reaching a final agreement, mediated by Pakistan and Qatar.

READ: Kuwait intercepts Iranian missiles and drones as Bahrain sounds air raid sirens

This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ... unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone … unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up

Continue ReadingIran claims retaliatory strikes on 85 US facilities in Bahrain, Kuwait following US attacks

Israeli forces raid Syria’s Daraa countryside

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This work by Middle East Monitor is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

A view of military vehicles patrolling the Syrian-Israeli border in the Majdal Shams area of the Golan Heights, as the Israeli army reinforces its ground forces amid ongoing military mobilization in the region on December 15, 2024. [Saeed Qaq – Anadolu Agency]

Israeli forces raided the Wadi al-Raqad area in the western Daraa countryside in southern Syria on Wednesday, opening fire before withdrawing from the area, Syrian state media reported.

Syria’s Alikhbariah TV said Israeli forces entered the Wadi al-Raqad area, opened fire and later withdrew.

There were no reports of casualties or material damage, and Israeli authorities did not immediately comment on the raid.

The incursion came a day after Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa condemned continued Israeli violations that he said undermine regional security and called on Israel to withdraw from areas it has occupied in southern Syria.

Southern Syria has witnessed repeated Israeli raids and attacks in recent months, including search operations, arrests and the establishment of military checkpoints.

The moves escalated after the overthrow of Bashar Assad’s regime in December 2024, when Israel announced the collapse of the 1974 Disengagement Agreement and seized control of the Syrian buffer zone.

Syrian authorities have repeatedly urged Israel to return to the 1974 deal and withdraw fully from occupied areas.

READ: Israel to keep troops in Lebanon, Syria and Gaza indefinitely

Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel's genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism "without qualification". Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Keir Starmer explains that UK is actively supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion and repeats his previous quotation that he supports Zionism “without qualification”. Keir Starmer said “I said it loud and clear – and meant it – that I support Zionism without qualification.” here: https://www.jewishnews.co.uk/keir-starmer-interview-i-will-work-to-eradicate-antisemitism-from-day-one/
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it's fun to kill everyone ... unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Donald Trump sings and dances, says that it’s fun to kill everyone … unless he gets distracted or falls asleep.
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up
Orcas discuss rotting brain, front Orca says Sundown Syndrome is a dead givaway and he wishes someone would Lock Him Up

Continue ReadingIsraeli forces raid Syria’s Daraa countryside

Why this by-election is just ‘Me vs The Establishment’, by Count Binface

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https://newsthump.com/2026/07/08/why-this-by-election-is-just-me-vs-the-establishment-by-count-binface/

People keep asking why I’m standing in the Clacton by-election, and the answer is simple.

This is no ordinary election. This is me versus The Establishment.

On one side, there’s me: a self-funded independent in a shiny bin, taking on the political machine armed with little more than a manifesto and several kilos of reinforced aluminium.

On the other side, there’s Nigel Farage.

Now, I know what you’re thinking. “Surely Nigel Farage is the anti-establishment candidate?”

Well, he was. Then he spent thirty years becoming the establishment.

When you’ve got billionaire donors, wealthy financiers, television studios, newspaper columns, a party built around your own personality and enough millionaire backers to make a yacht club feel underfunded, you don’t really get to call yourself the outsider any more.

I, meanwhile, remain proudly unsupported by foreign-based billionaires, convicted fraudsters or cryptocurrency tycoons. If anyone has been secretly wiring millions into my campaign account, I can assure you they’ve used the wrong account number.

Nigel says this election is about letting the people decide whether he should be allowed to carry on secretly enriching himself in the shadows and doing whatever Nigel Farage wants Nigel Farage to do. I couldn’t agree more. That’s exactly the sort of thing The Establishment always says.

…

Article continues at https://newsthump.com/2026/07/08/why-this-by-election-is-just-me-vs-the-establishment-by-count-binface/

Nigel Farage explains that he's called another byelection in Clacton-on-Sea because he should be able to secretly enrich himself without scrutiny and accountabilty and that the rules shouldn't apply to him.
Nigel Farage explains that he’s called another byelection in Clacton-on-Sea because he should be able to secretly enrich himself without scrutiny and accountabilty and that the rules shouldn’t apply to him.
Continue ReadingWhy this by-election is just ‘Me vs The Establishment’, by Count Binface

Betting odds slashed on Count Binface to beat Farage in Clacton by-election

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https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/clacton-byelection-count-binface-farage-b3010969.html

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Count Binface at the vote counting for the Makerfield by-election (Reuters)

The Tories, Lib Dems, Greens and Labour have all announced that they will not stand in the by-election with Tory leader Kemi Badenoch describing it as “fake” and Sir Keir Starmer calling it “a desperate political stunt”.

Count Binface, who has become a cult figure in elections up and down the UK, posted on X with a picture similar to the Batman symbol used to call the superhero into action, with the words “On my way, Clacton.”

The comedian, … an “independent space warrior” and wears a bin on his head, has contested a number of elections, most recently the by-election in Makerfield, where he received 95 votes.

On X on Tuesday, the count wrote: “Any Clacton residents who want to nominate your friendly neighbourhood intergalactic space warrior, ping me a line!”

…

The … candidate has pledged to make corners in football properly refereed, end subsidy for food and drink in parliament, conscript people who play loud music on public transport and force cyclists who break the highway code to ride unicycles instead.

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Count Binface has become a focus of a potential tactical voting campaign to oust Mr Farage.

It comes as supporters of Mr Farage insist that he has not made a fool of himself despite the other political parties refused to stand against him. [Is that not grammatically correct? despite that?]

…

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/clacton-byelection-count-binface-farage-b3010969.html

Nigel Farage reminds you that he's the man that brought you Brexit and asks what could possibly go wrong.
Nigel Farage reminds you that he’s the man that brought you Brexit and asks what could possibly go wrong.
Nigel Farage explains the politics of Reform UK: Racism, Fake anti-establishmentism, Deregulation, Corporatism, Climate Change Denial, Mysogyny and Transphobia.
Nigel Farage explains the politics of Reform UK: Racism, Fake anti-establishmentism, Deregulation, Corporatism, Climate Change Denial, Mysogyny and Transphobia.
Nigel Farage urges you to ignore facts and reality and be a climate science denier like him and his Deputy Richard Tice. He says that Reform UK has received £Millions and £Millions from the fossil fuel industry to promote climate denial and destroy the planet.
Nigel Farage urges you to ignore facts and reality and be a climate science denier like him and his Deputy Richard Tice. He says that Reform UK has received £Millions and £Millions from the fossil fuel industry to promote climate denial and destroy the planet.
Continue ReadingBetting odds slashed on Count Binface to beat Farage in Clacton by-election

Morning Star: Josh Simons in Downing Street would poison a Burnham premiership from the start

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https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/josh-simons-downing-street-would-poison-burnham-premiership-start

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Reports that McSweeney’s successor Josh Simons will head Burnham’s No 10 policy unit suggest this is part of a wider ruling-class project to reassemble as much of the Mandelson-McSweeney project as possible and ensure it remains the dominating influence in government.

Simons headed Labour Together when it hired private investigators to smear and intimidate journalists who had helped expose its financial misconduct, notably Holden but including the Morning Star’s Andrew Murray.

It would be the height of folly for Burnham to give Simons a political role, whether or not this was the gentlemen’s agreement that saw Simons resign his Makerfield seat to let Burnham run.

It would reinforce the “jobs for the boys” impression of government by clique and confirm that the system looks after its own, no matter how outrageous their behaviour.

It would show that the disgraced think tank is still in charge …

https://morningstaronline.co.uk/article/josh-simons-downing-street-would-poison-burnham-premiership-start

dizzy: Looks like we have no change apart from the front man. I am disappointed in those that abandoned their stated intentions and contributed to achieving this … It wasn’t without warning, was it?

Continue ReadingMorning Star: Josh Simons in Downing Street would poison a Burnham premiership from the start