The funeral procession for Iran’s late Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, reached the Imam Reza shrine in Mashhad on July 9, 2026, marking the culmination of a week-long series of memorial events. As mourners gathered, the state-sanctioned display featured banners demanding revenge against U.S. The Succession Gap and Mojtaba Khamenei’s Absence While the clerical assembly … Read more
Mourners marched through the holy city of Najaf, Iraq, on Wednesday to follow the coffin of late Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The event is part of a six-day funeral procession that began in Iran and crossed the border after Khamenei was killed on February 28 in U.S. and Israeli airstrikes, according to reports from … Read more
Pakistan has officially urged all parties to maintain their commitments under the Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding, following a declaration by U.S. President Donald Trump that the interim agreement with Iran is “over.” The 14-point deal, established last month, was designed to halt the war and open the Strait of Hormuz. Did You Know? The 14-point … Read more
Novelist Salman Rushdie has characterized the global state of free speech as being under “real assault,” warning that democratic protections for writers and journalists are eroding. Speaking in London at the Liberatum Cultural Honour ceremony, the author noted that even in the United States, the land of the First Amendment, authorities are increasingly challenging dissenting … Read more
Iran and the United States have entered a cycle of direct military escalation following the collapse of a fragile ceasefire. According to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Iran targeted U.S. military sites in Bahrain and Kuwait on Wednesday, July 8, in response to U.S. strikes on Iranian air defenses and the revocation of oil … Read more
The coffin of Iran’s late Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, arrived in Najaf, Iraq, on July 7 following a series of funeral processions that began in Iran. The transition of the leader’s remains to this major Shi’ite holy site follows his death in a February 28 U.S.-Israeli strike, according to reporting by Reuters. Who Received … Read more
Two commercial vessels, including a Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG) carrier, were struck by drones in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, according to maritime security reports. The attacks occurred as regional tensions escalated following the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. While the LNG carrier Al Rekayyat reported an engine room fire … Read more
NATO leaders have unveiled arms deals worth tens of billions of dollars in Turkey, according to official reports from the alliance’s summit in Ankara. While the move signals a commitment to increased European military spending, President Donald Trump continues to express dissatisfaction with NATO allies, citing insufficient support during the U.S. war on Iran and … Read more
A federal judge dismissed a copyright infringement lawsuit on Monday against pop star Taylor Swift, ruling that the plaintiff failed to prove the artist plagiarized phrases from her poetry books. U.S. District Judge Aileen Cannon, presiding in Fort Pierce, Florida, dismissed the case with prejudice, effectively barring the plaintiff, Kimberly Marasco, from filing an amended … Read more
Ukrainian drones struck the Omsk oil refinery in Siberia on Monday, marking one of the longest-range strikes of the war, according to the Ukrainian General Staff. The facility, which processes approximately 460,000 barrels of oil per day, is located roughly 2,700 kilometers (1,700 miles) from Ukrainian-held territory. While Russian authorities confirmed the attack, regional governor … Read more