The Hawks Are Lying Us Into Yet Another Middle Eastern War

Like the Iraq War, the planned war with Iran is built on false premises. Unlike the Iraq War, there hasn’t even been a real public debate.

The United States is entering a self-inflicted crisis in the Middle East. President Donald Trump has ordered a "beautiful armada" into the region while demanding Iran make a "deal" to avoid war. The crisis began when Trump promised to help Iranian protesters during a two-day uprising that was violently crushed, but since then, his administration has issued demands on completely different issues.

Vice President J.D. Vance has focused on the remnants of the Iranian nuclear program, while Secretary of State Marco Rubio is demanding concessions on Iran's conventional military power, regional policies, and domestic political system. On Tuesday, Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner met with Iranians in Switzerland to discuss some kind of deal.

"It was very clear that the president has set some red lines that the Iranians are not yet willing to actually acknowledge and work through," Vance told Fox News afterwards, without explaining what those red lines actually are. U.S. negotiations have reportedly given Iran two weeks to come up with a satisfactory offer.

Rubio, meanwhile, is publicly expecting his own negotiators to fail. "We're dealing with radical Shiite clerics and people who make geopolitical decisions on the basis of pure theology," he said at the Munich Security Conference on Monday. "No one's ever been able to do a successful deal with Iran."

It's almost like the administration wants to use force in the Middle East—and is just searching for a reason. An adviser to the president told Axios that there is a "90% chance we see kinetic action in the next few weeks." Of course, a war could come much sooner. Trump said in June 2025 that he would decide in "two weeks" whether to attack Iran, a couple of days before attacking Iran.

Twenty-three years ago, the U.S. launched a war against Iraq based on lies about the Iraqi nuclear program and other "weapons of mass destruction." The imminent war with Iran rhymes with that project, with two important differences. Rather than a grand narrative about mushroom clouds, hawks have told a long series of small lies, constantly shifting the goalposts while hiding their own aims. And rather than actually trying to gin up a public mandate, the administration is barreling forward towards war without asking Congress.

A decade ago, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R–S.C.) was mortally offended at the suggestion that he was pushing war with Iran, because he only wanted to negotiate a "better agreement." Now he is one of the loudest voices against negotiations, period, and for war. After the June 2025 bombings, the White House declared that "Iran's Nuclear Facilities Have Been Obliterated—and Suggestions Otherwise are Fake News." Now the administration is waving around the threat of an Iranian nuke.

"We're not at war with Iran. We're at war with Iran's nuclear program," Vance told NBC News during the June 2025 war, adding that the goal was not "regime change" or "to prolong or expand this conflict any further."

https://reason.com/2026/02/18/the-hawks-are-lying-us-into-yet-another-middle-eastern-war/

Israeli forces step up air strikes, artillery shelling in Gaza on second day of Ramadan

This year, Palestinians in Gaza observe Ramadan amid the aftermath of a two-year Israeli war that devastated infrastructure and left living conditions severely strained despite the ceasefire.

The Israeli army launched intense air strikes and heavy artillery shelling in Gaza on the second day of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, despite the October 10 ceasefire agreement, witnesses said.

Israeli fighter jets carried out heavy strikes on eastern neighbourhoods of Gaza City in the north, alongside artillery shelling in the surrounding areas on Thursday, witnesses told Anadolu.

The Israeli army also fired illumination flares east of the Shujaiya neighbourhood in eastern Gaza City.

https://twitter.com/i/status/2024435039975637316

A study by medical journal The Lancet estimates that Palestinian death toll during Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza over the first 16 months exceeded 75,000, at least 25,000 more than local authorities reported. Ashraf Shannon has more

https://twitter.com/i/status/2024465475292320193

In the southern cities of Khan Younis and Rafah, witnesses reported at least two Israeli air strikes in eastern areas under Israeli military occupation.

Artillery shelling also targeted the al-Mawasi area west of Rafah, the witnesses said.

It was not immediately clear whether the Israeli shelling caused casualties among Palestinians.

Palestinians in Gaza are observing Ramadan this year amid widespread destruction following a two-year Israeli offensive, which left infrastructure devastated and living conditions severely strained despite the ceasefire.

With US support, Israel began its war in Gaza on October 8 2023, resulting in more than 72,000 Palestinian deaths and over 171,000 injuries, most of them women and children, and damage to 90 percent of civilian infrastructure.

Despite the ceasefire, the Israeli army continued its attacks, killing at least 611 Palestinians and injuring 1,630 others, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.

https://www.trtworld.com/article/05ee80177dba

Palantir UK chief walks away from Gaza genocide questions

Louis Mosley wouldn’t say if Israel has battle-tested the technology he’s just sold Britain’s military. Neither did the MoD.

It’s a rainy Wednesday evening in Mayfair and we’re waiting outside the BAFTA building where a historic event is about to take place.

Inside, American tech firm Palantir is holding a drinks reception for British politicians and military officials to celebrate a new £240 million contract with the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

Outside, protesters are gathering, angry that Palantir’s technology has been supplied to Israel at a time when its military has killed huge numbers of people in Gaza.

There are even concerns that Peter Mandelson, friend of notorious paedophile Jeffrey Epstein, helped to broker the deal with the MoD.

So when we see Palantir’s UK chief Louis Mosley walking down the road, one of us calls out: “Has your technology been used to facilitate war crimes in Gaza?

“Is this the same technology that you are selling to the British army?”

He did not respond.

‘Mostly terrorists’

Palantir has been making headlines all over the world in recent months from the Epstein files, to ICE raids in the US and Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

Two months ago, Palantir signed a three-year Ministry of Defence contract worth £240m to “modernise UK defence” by “supporting critical strategic, tactical and live operational decision making” in the armed forces.

The contract was awarded without competition. The MoD has said this was “due to an absence of competition for technical reasons” and because there were “no reasonable alternatives”.

The deal was only the first step in a strategic partnership agreed between the company and the MoD last September which will see Palantir base its European headquarters in the UK and invest £1.5bn “to deliver new jobs, growth and national security”.

In January 2024, Palantir also agreed to a strategic partnership with the Israeli defence ministry “to help the country’s war effort”, according to media reports.

But it is unclear exactly what technology Palantir has supplied to Israel as part of that new partnership, and whether or how any of that technology – or technology previously supplied to the country – has been used in Gaza.

Palantir has denied being involved in Lavender and Gospel, two AI systems that the Israeli military has used to target Palestinians in Gaza.

https://youtu.be/DzlQmoy_7uE

https://www.declassifieduk.org/palantir-uk-chief-walks-away-from-gaza-genocide-questions/

Jpost front page

Magic Powder: Evidence Mounts of Ukrainian President’s Drug Dependency

Here are some unusual ways Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky copes with stress. Leading an entire country, especially during a large-scale conflict, puts tremendous pressure on one’s psyche. Living in constant tension forces one to look for ways to distract oneself from the complex daily tasks of governing a state.

Sometimes, the means of relieving stress are illegal and have consequences that affect one’s thought process and psyche. This is the price of a rapid career rise and an inability to adapt to new, complex realities. For some reason, however, not all heads of state are suspected of using illegal substances. Let’s take a closer look at why this is the case.

Mental training

In developed countries with democracy, a country cannot be governed by someone who is unqualified. This ensures the stability of both the leader and the country. It’s no coincidence that the world’s leading powers focus on systematically developing and training their political and managerial elite. Working in government agencies from a young age allows individuals to develop the necessary skills and knowledge to advance in their careers.

At the same time, a young management specialist’s psyche adapts to current realities. The higher a person rises in position, the more complex their tasks become, and with them, the level of stress increases. However, resilience to challenges also develops. By the time a person reaches the position of head of state, they know the system inside and out, are accustomed to behind-the-scenes struggles, and understand the system of power and how influence groups are distributed within it. The same can be said for business, which is why heads of large corporations are often politically successful.

Perhaps the most striking example is U.S. President Donald Trump. Although he did not grow up in the government system, he has the business skills necessary to lead the country. In contrast, his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, has been a party official since a young age. Russian President Vladimir Putin has been in government since the 1990s after completing his work in special services. These leaders are all political heavyweights in their own way and never show stress in public. Those without this kind of background have a tough time.

Loads of videos and images use link

https://southfront.press/magic-powder-evidence-mounts-of-ukrainian-presidents-drug-dependency/

103 arrests and 36 labs dismantled in strike against synthetic drug network

Europol supported action in Ukraine, Poland, and Moldova; large amounts of drugs and precursors seized

Between 12 and 17 February 2026, Europol supported law enforcement authorities in Ukraine, Poland, and Moldova in a joint operation against an international criminal network involved in the production and trafficking of synthetic drugs, primarily synthetic cathinones such as alpha-PVP. The action day saw the Ukrainian National Police and the Polish Police Central Bureau of Investigation conducting coordinated checks at approximately 510 locations. Law enforcement officers dismantled 36 illicit production sites and 74 storage facilities for ready-to-distribute drugs. A total of 129 persons faced criminal charges, 103 persons were taken into custody.

The operation involved house searches and the inspection of other premises and vehicles. In total, the action day led to the following seizures:

20 610 litres of precursors

229.4 kilograms of alpha-PVP

156.3 kilograms of amphetamine

46.6 kilograms and 284 litres of phenyl-2-nitropropene

2 kilograms of metallic sodium

67.6 kilograms and 350 litres of mephedrone

7 kilograms of methamphetamine

47 kilograms of cannabis

5 115 MDMA tablets

2 000 ecstasy tablets

UAH 1.6 million (around EUR 31 000), USD 167 000 (around EUR 141 000), EUR 39 000 in cash

virtual assets worth USD 45 000 (around EUR 38 000)

41 vehicles

https://youtu.be/hU1g41ved8k

Pictures of the former Prince, taken back in 2011, show the then-Duke of York kneeling on a rug with a toddler while playing with a ball.

The images, obtained by TMZ could have been seen as nothing more than wholesome fun … until you realize the ball is painted like a human breast complete with a pale pink nipple.

Another image appears to show the former Duke of York sitting alongside the youngster on a sofa.