Israel vs Palestine/Lebanon/Iran/Yemen/Syria: a New Middle East War

[Bill Ryan]

The synopsis of all the posts on the previous page, I think, is that Trump (and/or his advisers/controllers) has decided the following:

1. It's impossible to free the Strait of Hormuz; and so
2. Iran must be totally destroyed by targeting its civilian infrastructure.

This is what this is all about now, and it's a MAJOR destructive escalation.

When Iran responds, the global economy is going to start going into cardiac arrest, and Israel may well be destroyed to the extent that Iran can accomplish that.

After that, all bets are off.

My tentative conclusion from all this is that whoever is advising/controlling Trump may have consciously decided not only to bring down the global economy but maybe also Israel and the US itself.

[Ravenlocke]

Drop Site

🚨 REPORT | Israel expands strikes on civilian infrastructure across southern Lebanon, targeting bridges, fuel stations, and financial lifelines

The latest strikes and threats point to a three-part strategy: cutting off the south, hitting fuel stations, and targeting financial institutions tied to Hezbollah.

▪️ 1. Bridges: isolating southern Lebanon

💢 Israeli forces have begun bombing crossings over the Litani River, a key geographic boundary separating southern Lebanon from the rest of the country.

Civilians were ordered to move north, with the military warning that “any movement southward may put your life at risk.”

Bridges targeted include:
▪️ Al-Qinayat Bridge (Al-Qasmiya, near Tyre) struck today
▪️ Qaaqiya Bridge (inland south Lebanon) hit today
▪️ Burj Rahhal crossing (coastal Tyre district) confirmed hit
▪️ Zrariyeh Bridge (central Litani corridor) destroyed March 13

These crossings are critical civilian routes. Their destruction effectively cuts off large parts of southern Lebanon.

▪️ 2. Fuel stations: targeting energy access

Israel says it struck fuel stations operated by the “Al-Amanah” company, claiming they generate millions of dollars for Hezbollah through accounts linked to Al-Qard Al-Hassan.

But these stations also serve civilians across southern Lebanon, meaning the strikes directly hit access to fuel in already strained areas. Israel has framed the attacks as part of a broader effort to damage what it calls Hezbollah’s economic infrastructure by striking at “the heart of the civilian population.”

▪️ 3. Financial institutions: targeting Al-Qard Al-Hassan

Israel has also explicitly cast these strikes as an attack on the financial system tied to Al-Qard Al-Hassan, a Hezbollah-linked institution that it accuses of helping fund military activity.

But Al-Qard Al-Hassan also functions as a major financial lifeline for many Lebanese, especially in the south, providing loans and services in areas where access to traditional banking is limited.

▪️ Scale of attacks:

Israel says it has destroyed more than 80 “infrastructure targets” over the past week as part of what it calls a “forward defense” campaign.

▪️ Legal implications

The UN Human Rights Office warned March 17 that strikes on bridges, healthcare facilities, residential buildings, and other civilian objects could amount to war crimes, stressing that deliberate attacks on civilian infrastructure are prohibited under international law.

🎥 Video 1: Qasmiyeh crossing (not the main bridge)
Video 2: Israeli military attack on infrastructure, target undisclosed

https://x.com/DropSiteNews/status/2034321260000219217

[Ravenlocke]

Mohamad Safa
Almost a week ago, US First Lady Melania Trump chaired a UN Security Council meeting on "children in conflict" while the US and Israel killing children in Lebanon, Gaza and Iran.

Today, US envoy Tom Barrack, who is accused of raping children on Epstein Island, is chairing the UN Security Council on the human rights situation in the Middle East.

This is the most hypocritical things we have seen in the history of the Security Council.

https://x.com/mhdksafa/status/2034295676603879435

[Ravenlocke]

MFA Russia 🇷🇺

💬 #Zakharova: Russia strongly condemns the absolutely unacceptable missile strike on the inner perimeter of the Bushehr NPP.

The US & Israel must abandon reckless attacks on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.

❗️ We expect a clear & unequivocal condemnation from
@iaeaorg

https://x.com/mfa_russia/status/2034291235188535728

[Ravenlocke]

МИД России 🇷🇺

Translated from Russian
💬 M.V.#Zakharova:

We strongly condemn the irresponsible and absolutely unacceptable missile strike carried out on the inner perimeter of the Bushehr Nuclear Power Plant.

Tel Aviv and Washington must refrain from reckless attacks on nuclear infrastructure facilities.

https://t.me/MID_Russia/75828

https://x.com/MID_RF/status/2034297761323978851

[Ravenlocke]

Tehran Times

#BREAKING
Tajikistan sent pharmaceutical, medical, hygiene, food and construction materials aid to Iran

https://x.com/TehranTimes79/status/2034236372723126420

[Ravenlocke]

🇷🇺 STANISLAV KRAPIVNIK 🇷🇺

🔥 Photos of the consequences of Iran's attacks on the Al Dhafra airbase* in the UAE

*The Al Dhafra airbase in the UAE is a key US hub in West Asia, where the 380th Expeditionary Air Wing of the US Air Force is based, with reconnaissance drones (MQ-9 Reaper, MQ-4C Triton), AWACS aircraft (including the UAE's Saab GlobalEye), fighter jets, and refueling aircraft.

This base is used for criminal operations against Iran, coordinating the actions of the CENTCOM command, and intensifying pressure on the entire region

https://x.com/STANISKRAPIVNIK/status...02655300866170

[Jaak]

Posted by Ravenlocke (here)
DD Geopolitics

🇦🇪 Operations at Abu Dhabi’s Shah gas plant have been halted after a drone strike, disrupting one of the world’s largest ultra-sour gas facilities and raising concerns over energy and fertiliser supply chains.

According to reporting by The National, operations were suspended while damage is assessed. No injuries were reported.

The plant, operated by ADNOC Sour Gas (a joint venture between ADNOC and Occidental Petroleum), is the world’s largest ultra-sour gas processing facility and supplies roughly 20% of the UAE’s gas demand. It also produces significant volumes of sulphur, a key input for phosphate fertilisers and industrial chemicals.

The shutdown is expected to add pressure to already strained global fertiliser markets, amid wider regional tensions affecting energy and shipping routes, including the Strait of Hormuz.

https://x.com/DD_Geopolitics/status/2034238878945611842

[Ravenlocke]

Daniel Foubert 🇵🇱🇫🇷

#Breaking: Poland sends its 2 aircraft carriers Paweł and Gaweł to the Gulf, being the first European country to positively answer Trump's request.

Trump's comment: "Now everyone should follow the lead of our BEST European ally!"

https://x.com/Arrogance_0024/status/2034278364609970437

[Ravenlocke]

The Cradle

Photos of major destruction at the US Naval Support Activity (NSA), Fifth Fleet Base in Bahrain, following strikes by the Islamic Republic of Iran.

https://x.com/TheCradleMedia/status/2034324881739788722

[Kryztian]

Iraq’s capital Baghdad rocked by powerful blasts near US embassy
The attacks are part of an escalating cycle of violence between US forces and Iraqi groups aligned with Tehran.
https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/...ear-us-embassy

Iraq’s capital, Baghdad, has been rocked by a series of explosions close to the United States embassy in the city’s heavily fortified Green Zone as the rapidly escalating US-Israeli war on Iran continued to spill over the border.

“We’ve had drone activity here in Baghdad’s Green Zone, where the US embassy is located … and we understand that two drones [were] intercepted, while the third disappeared off radar,” said Al Jazeera’s Assed Baig, reporting from the capital on Tuesday night.

Security sources told the Reuters news agency that at least three explosive drones also targeted a US diplomatic facility near Baghdad International Airport, activating C-RAM air defence systems.

Baig said he heard a series of loud explosions and that debris had fallen across the city, causing “damage to windows and infrastructure” in a university compound in the neighbourhood of al-Dura.

A fire also broke out near the Central Bank in the al-Jadriyah district, where “debris from an aerial object” had fallen close to the building’s main gates, said Baig, citing Iraqi authorities.

There were no immediate reports of casualties from Tuesday’s attacks, which are part of an escalating cycle of violence between US forces and Iraqi armed groups aligned with Tehran.

The violence came a day after four people were killed in an air raid on a building used as a headquarters by the Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF), which includes several groups aligned with Iran. The building reportedly hosted Iranian advisers.

The PMF, known in Arabic as Hashd al-Shaabi, is an umbrella group of mostly Shia paramilitary factions, which was founded in 2014 to stop lightning advances by the ISIL (ISIS) group, and has now been formally integrated into Iraq’s state security forces.

Baig said the attacks demonstrated the “constant threat” faced by Iraqis. “There’s really no let-up,” he said. “But the real question is some of these drones are being launched from within Baghdad, and that raises serious security questions.”

Baig said there had also been attacks on Erbil, the capital of Iraq’s semi-autonomous Kurdish region, where the headquarters of an Iranian Kurdish opposition group was targeted by drones.

He also reported that the US carried out air strikes against a tribal meeting in Anbar province, and debris fell on agricultural land near the city of Mosul.

original story with embedded videos: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/...ear-us-embassy

Source: https://youtube.com/watch?v=AZdY84A8Tcc

[Ravenlocke]

The Cradle

Spain to evacuate troops from Iraq amid rising tensions in Iran and Gulf
——
Spain plans to evacuate and redeploy its troops stationed in Iraq in the coming days due to the US-Israeli war on Iran, Spain's Defense Minister Margarita Robles said today.

Approximately 300 Spanish troops are currently in Iraq, participating both in the international coalition against ISIS, established in 2015 under Operation Inherent Resolve, and in a separate NATO mission advising Iraqi government forces since 2018.

The ministry had already announced on Sunday that a special forces unit of 71 soldiers had been temporarily relocated from their base due to the impossibility of carrying out tasks such as training Iraqi counter-terrorism forces

https://x.com/TheCradleMedia/status/2034322713976664089

[Ravenlocke]

The Cradle

“You dare to invade Iran? Be prepared for the consequences,” says Vice President of the Center for China and Globalization, Victor Gao.

Full episode http://youtube.com/watch?v=gexeyFBsrQg

https://x.com/TheCradleMedia/status/2034309549381783559

[Ravenlocke]

Embassy of the I.R. of Iran, Tokyo / 駐日イラン大使館

Telephone Conversation between the Foreign Ministers of the Islamic Republic of Iran and Japan

Seyyed Abbas Araghchi, Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Toshimitsu Motegi, Foreign Minister of Japan, discussed the latest regional developments in light of the continued military aggression by the United States and the Zionist regime. They also addressed the regional and global effects and consequences of this aggression in a telephone conversation held last evening Tokyo time.

The Iranian Foreign Minister, while providing an assessment of the latest developments, emphasized that the Islamic Republic of Iran will continue to defend itself strongly against the military aggression of the United States and the Zionist regime with firm determination. He stressed that it is now necessary for the international community to responsibly condemn the gross violations of international law and the Charter of the United Nations by the aggressors and to hold them accountable for their lawlessness and crimes.

Foreign Minister Araghchi considered Iran’s defensive measures against the bases and facilities of the aggressors in the region—which are the source of attacks against the Iranian nation—to be in line with Iran’s right to legitimate defense. He emphasized that these measures should in no way be considered attacks by Iran on these countries.

Araghchi attributed the current situation in the Strait of Hormuz to the war imposed by the U.S. and the Zionist regime on the region. He noted that the U.S. must be held accountable not only for this imposed war and the war crimes committed but also for the economic consequences of the insecurity in the Persian Gulf region. Araghchi also referred to the U.S.'s malicious attempts to drag others into war under the pretext of helping to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. He stated that any participation in the U.S.-Zionist military aggression will be considered complicity in the aggression and heinous crimes committed by the aggressors.

The Japanese Foreign Minister, while explaining his country’s views on the effects and consequences of the U.S. and Israeli military aggression on the region, stressed the need to reduce tensions through diplomatic efforts.

The Iranian and Japanese Foreign Ministers emphasized the continuation of their contacts and consultations.

https://x.com/IraninJapan/status/2034241008871862413

[Ravenlocke]

Lin Jian 林剑

Wang Yi, Director of the Office of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the CPC Central Committee, held talks with Khaldoon Khalifa Al Mubarak, Presidential Special Envoy of the UAE to China, in Beijing.

This is a war that should not have happened, and there is even less justification for it to drag on. Further casualties and losses must be avoided.

#China firmly supports the #UAE in safeguarding its sovereignty, security, and territorial integrity, and condemns attacks against civilians and civilian facilities. China will continue to actively engage in mediation for a ceasefire, striving to restore peace and stability to the Middle East at an early date.

🔗https://fmprc.gov.cn/wjbzhd/202603/t...11876961.shtml

https://x.com/SpoxCHN_LinJian/status...49431181390196

[Ravenlocke]

Free Palestine TV

Get ready you all; the Jewish Empire just committed suicide on behalf of all the "west" & GCC by attacking Pars Gas field, the largest in the world and jointly managed by Iran & Qatar.

The IRGC just announced it will retaliate by destroying all the Oil/Gas infrastructure in the Vassals around it.

All countries in North Africa, West Asia & South Asia are already feeling the effects of the attack on Pars; with most of them heavily dependent on its gas for regular life needs, from Turkey to India and every country in between.

Now imagine in the next few hours, as all the GCC and Zionist Colony gas/oil fields go up in flames?

Let the whole world come to its knees; either Humanity comes and takes the Jewish Colony garbage back to Europe; or all of humanity will live the same life we have been living in West Asia for the past one hundred years.

https://x.com/TVFreePalestine/status...93474455953854

[Ravenlocke]

RT_India

‘Real Risk of Major Nuclear Disaster’: Moscow Sounds Alarm Over IAEA Response to Israeli Missile Strike Near Iran’s Bushehr NPP

‘I'm not sure the Agency's response matches the gravity of the situation,’ Mikhail Ulyanov, Russia’s Permanent Rep to Vienna’s international orgs posted on X.

‘The missile exploded just 200 metres from an operational nuclear reactor. The possibility of another strike cannot be ruled out,’ he added.

The IAEA called for ‘restraint during the conflict to avoid any risk of a nuclear accident.’

https://x.com/RT_India_news/status/2034284943451324511

[Ravenlocke]

The Cradle

Israel doubles troops on Lebanon border, searches evacuated villages
——
Israel has more than doubled its troop presence along the border with Lebanon since 1 March, with forces conducting searches of homes in southern villages that the military has ordered evacuated, a senior Israeli commander told Reuters today.

"The plan is to make sure that Hezbollah does not have military infrastructure," said the commander.

He described Israeli fortifications inside Lebanon as "defensive positions" and said forces were searching "the villages to see if Hezbollah hid weapons or communications centers".

When asked whether this included homes abandoned after evacuation orders, he said: "In some of the cases they hid their weapons in houses. We have no choice but to make sure that house is not a military installation."

https://x.com/TheCradleMedia/status/2034332229007007765

https://x.com/TheCradleMedia/status/2034330893217903101

[Ravenlocke]

The Cradle

NATO’s Mark Rutte calls for reopening of Strait of Hormuz
——
NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said on Wednesday that the Strait of Hormuz needs to be reopened, adding that allies are working together to determine the best course of action.

Rutte highlighted the alliance’s shared commitment to restoring safe navigation through the key maritime route.

"I have been in contact with many allies. We all agree, of course, that strait has to open up again," he said at a news conference alongside Tore O. Sandvik and Espen Barth Eide during a visit to Exercise Cold Response, a Norwegian-led NATO drill.

"And what I know is that allies are working together, discussing how to do that, what is the best way to do it? They are working on that collectively to find a way forward," he added.

https://x.com/TheCradleMedia/status/2034327233397993566

[Ravenlocke]

Sony Thăng

If you want to understand why Washington panics at the word petroyuan, stop thinking like an economist and start thinking like a gangster.

A gangster does not fear the first lost dollar.

He fears the first open act of disobedience.

He fears the moment the neighborhood realizes the tribute was never sacred.

It was enforced.

And what is enforced can be outwaited, bypassed, negotiated around, or one day ignored.

Hormuz is dangerous to the United States because it dramatizes that possibility.

A toll booth at the center of global energy where the old collector no longer controls every lane.

That is why the rhetoric gets so frantic.

The empire is not hearing a different currency.

It is hearing the sound of tribute becoming optional.

https://x.com/nxt888/status/2034254162469494809