Today In Issues:
FDD Research & Analysis
The Must-Reads
U.S. makes new push for Gaza cease-fire, building on Iran deal Trump calls for Netanyahu's trial to be canceled JPost Editorial: Iran is not finished but Israel has bought itself crucial time Rubio fleshes out Trump’s case that Iran nuclear capacity was eliminated Supreme leader’s absence raises alarm in Iran Trump says US to hold nuclear talks with Iran next week AEI’s Michael Rubin: Will the Houthis survive if Iran cuts them off? Putin will not go to BRICS summit in Brazil due to ICC arrest warrant, Kremlin aide says Why powerful pro-Tehran militias in Iraq stayed quiet amid Iran conflict North Korea may send more troops to Russia in July or August for Ukraine war, Seoul says Erdogan tells Macron to include Turkey in Europe's defense plans WSJ Editorial: Trump wins the battle of NATOIn The News
Israel
The U.S. is making a fresh push in negotiations to end the fighting and free the hostages in Gaza, as President Trump hopes to build on the momentum of a deal that paused hostilities between Israel and Iran and bring an end to the conflict that sparked nearly two years of war in the Middle East. – Wall Street Journal
The Israeli military said on Wednesday that seven of its soldiers were killed by an explosive device in southern Gaza a day earlier. This was the highest death toll in a single incident in Gaza for the Israeli military since a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas collapsed in March, and a reminder of the ongoing conflict in the coastal enclave two weeks after the Israel-Iran war grabbed the world’s attention. – New York Times
U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday called for Israel to pardon Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or cancel his corruption trial, saying the U.S. would save him like it did his country. – Reuters
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu likes to remind his country and the world that in the disorienting first days after Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, he predicted Israel would “change the Middle East.” Now, 20 months later, a regionwide war has all but crushed the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza, thrashed Hezbollah in Lebanon, toppled Bashar Assad in Syria and delivered a harsh blow to archenemy Iran. – Associated Press
Families of hostages held in Gaza hope the ceasefire with Iran, which went into effect on Tuesday will mark a turning point — one that could lead to a truce with Hamas and finally bring their loved ones home. – Agence France-Presse
Mossad Chief David Barnea on Wednesday issued a rare video excerpt to the public of an address to his Mossad agents involved in the sensational operations against Iran on June 13 and afterward, which brought the Islamic Republic to its knees. – Jerusalem Post
IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Eyal Zamir revealed that commando forces operated on the ground covertly in Iran during the war, in joint efforts with the Air Force and along with the Mossad, in a televised address Wednesday. – Jerusalem Post
Israel currently has no intention of sending a delegation to Qatar or Egypt for negotiations on a hostage deal, an Israeli official told The Jerusalem Post on Wednesday. – Jerusalem Post
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that even if Israel had more time to undermine the Iranian regime, the regime may not have fallen, while at a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, behind closed doors. – Jerusalem Post
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will not attempt to harness Israeli successes in Operation Rising Lion against Iran by calling for an election in the near future, a senior minister told The Jerusalem Post. – Jerusalem Post
The US Embassy in Israel has announced that regular operations resumed on Wednesday following the lifting of restrictions imposed by the Home Front Command. – Jerusalem Post
Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas has sent a letter to US President Donald Trump thanking him for his role in brokering a ceasefire between Israel and Iran, calling the agreement a crucial step toward regional stability. – Arutz Sheva
Defense Minister Israel Katz announced Wednesday the designation of seven Iranian entities, including Iran’s Central Bank, as terrorist organizations and terror operatives, as part of a broad effort to cut off funding sources for the Ayatollah regime. – Arutz Sheva
Editorial: For a nation worn thin by war, “total victory” does not have to mean total destruction of the enemy. It can mean something simpler: We survived. We outlasted the threat. We saw what was coming, and we did what had to be done. The world may not appreciate it publicly, or even comprehend the potential Armageddon that was averted. But let others debate, delay, and equivocate. Israel acted. And in that clear-eyed courage lies the essence of victory. – Jerusalem Post
Ilan Evyatar writes: The strategic bet Israel placed in 2018 has helped shape today’s reality, very much including American warplanes targeting the heart of Iran’s nuclear program. With all that said – and with a ceasefire now announced on vague terms by an unpredictable Trump – Israel will need to remain vigilant and prepared to preserve its gains, through a continuation of the shadow war and overt military action when necessary, for as long as the Islamic Republic remains in power. – Jerusalem Post
Alex Traiman writes: And while Trump expressed his frustration with both Israel and Iran over their strikes leading up to and past the ceasefire deadline, all attacks stopped within just a few hours. No one will remember if the ceasefire took hold at 7 a.m. or 11 a.m. It doesn’t change the stunning outcome of the war one bit. Trump will be very happy with his strike on Fordow and the ceasefire he brokered. Israel should similarly be very satisfied with the ceasefire and very proud of its stunning war accomplishments. – Arutz Sheva
Iran
President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio made their most detailed case yet on Wednesday at a NATO summit in the Netherlands for why they believe the American attack on Iran dealt a fatal blow to its nuclear ambitions, pushing back on the findings of a U.S. intelligence report and more cautious statements from international nuclear inspectors. – New York Times
With the nation watching, the host on Iranian state television asked the question that so many people in Iran — from the political elite to people on the street — were wondering. – New York Times
Classified intelligence about the damage to Iran’s nuclear program from U.S. strikes was at the center of a political tempest on Wednesday as spy chiefs pushed out new assessments and President Trump continued to defend his assertion that Iran’s key facilities had been “obliterated.” – New York Times
There is a chance that much of Iran’s highly enriched uranium survived Israeli and U.S. attacks because it may have been moved by Tehran soon after the first strikes, U.N. nuclear watchdog chief Rafael Grossi said on Wednesday. – Reuters
Iranian authorities are pivoting from a ceasefire with Israel to intensify an internal security crackdown across the country with mass arrests, executions and military deployments, particularly in the restive Kurdish region, officials and activists said. – Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he would likely seek a commitment from Iran to end its nuclear ambitions at talks next week and credited U.S. strikes on Iran with bringing a swift end to the war between Israel and Tehran. – Reuters
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the U.S. has not given up its maximum pressure on Iran – including restrictions on sales of Iranian oil – but signaled a potential easing in enforcement to help the country rebuild. – Reuters
Asked if the United States would strike again if Iran rebuilt its nuclear enrichment programme, U.S. President Donald Trump said: “Sure.” – Reuters
For many Iranians it was a lightning sequence of events: A 12-day war with Israel and a sudden, U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Now, as they return to their neighborhoods deeply shaken by Israeli air assaults, fears mount over what the country’s theocracy may do next. – Associated Press
Internet connectivity has been restored in Tehran after repeated Israeli war strikes had taken it out, Iran’s communications minister said Wednesday. – The Hill
There is no question that the storage facilities for the 400kg highly enriched Iranian uranium have been hit in the US and Israeli airstrikes; however, it is not known how much uranium was destroyed nor if Iran can reach the uranium that was not damaged, Israeli officials told The Jerusalem Post Wednesday. – Jerusalem Post
Separately, Esmail Baghaei, spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, told Al Jazeera that “our nuclear installations have been badly damaged, that’s for sure” by the U.S. and Israeli strikes. – Newsweek
Asher Fredman writes: However, the Iranian regime, now publicly exposed in its vulnerabilities, will be driven by a powerful desire for revenge and to restore what it perceives as lost dignity. Going forward, Israel’s security will depend on unwavering vigilance and the readiness to act decisively – at any cost. Complacency and false quiet are not an option. – Jerusalem Post
Michael Borodkin writes: Meanwhile, AI-generated images of downed Israeli jets and fabricated stories of destruction in Israeli cities circulated widely. These tactics have become a staple of Iran’s information warfare playbook. Foreign journalists who choose to share such fabrications cross a dangerous line: from reporting the news to enabling the narrative of a regime that wages war not just with weapons, but with fiction. – Jerusalem Post
Michael Rubin writes: The Houthis might also engage in other criminal enterprises. Just as Hezbollah leveraged the drug trade to self-fund, smuggling heroin and cocaine through Africa and into Europe and the Middle East, the Houthis will likely seize an opportunity to activate Hezbollah’s African networks and Lebanese Shi’ite cells to bring drugs into the Arabian Peninsula to smuggle them into Saudi Arabia—a growing market—or via traditional smuggling routes into the Mediterranean. The question now is whether the United States and Europe will simply celebrate the Houthis’ potential loss of a patron or recognize that organized criminal groups and cartels are agile, and will do what is necessary to find new revenue streams when the old ones disappear. – Middle East Forum
Russia and Ukraine
A federal grand jury in Boston on Wednesday indicted Kseniia Petrova, a Russian researcher who works in a laboratory at Harvard Medical School, on criminal charges of smuggling goods into the United States and lying to customs officials. – New York Times
Russian President Vladimir Putin will not travel to next week’s BRICS summit in Brazil because of an outstanding arrest warrant issued against him by the International Criminal Court (ICC), Kremlin foreign policy aide Yuri Ushakov said on Wednesday. – Reuters
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday after talks with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy that he is considering sending more Patriot missile batteries to Ukraine to help Kyiv fend off Russian attacks. – Reuters
Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said on Wednesday that the European Union had evolved into an enemy of Russia that posed a direct threat to its security, and Moscow was now opposed to Ukraine joining the bloc. – Reuters
The whole of NATO, including the United States, is “totally committed” to keeping Ukraine in the fight against Russia’s invasion, alliance Secretary General Mark Rutte told Reuters in an interview on Wednesday. – Reuters
Last week, Ukrainian drone hunters picking up the debris from Russia’s nightly assault on their cities found a weapon that stood out from the rest. It had an advanced camera, a computing platform powered by artificial intelligence and a radio link, allowing an operator to pilot it remotely from Russia. – Associated Press
President Donald Trump will buck Europe’s pleas to ratchet up sanctions on Russia, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Wednesday, saying the U.S. still wants room to negotiate a peace deal. – Politico
David Kirichenko writes: Change is a long, long journey, and it is only fair to recognize that Ukraine is trying to repair an aircraft already in flight; something that’s enormously difficult and fraught with peril. Most people retain a trust in the armed forces and are extremely proud of its extraordinary performance against the Russian military. But if Ukraine is to win (something that NATO’s new Supreme Commander Europe, US Lieutenant General Alexus Grynkewich says remains possible) it needs to adapt. As the Russians have demonstrated so effectively, the old ways don’t work. – Center for European Policy Analysis
Iraq
When U.S. forces struck three Iranian nuclear facilities over the weekend, concern rippled through the population of neighboring Iraq, where pro-Iranian militias wield much influence and the majority of the people, like in Iran, are Shiite Muslims. – Washington Post
The World Bank approved a $930 million project to help improve Iraq’s railway performance, boost domestic trade, create jobs, and diversify the economy, the organisation said on Wednesday. – Reuters
Iraqi authorities said they arrested a political commentator on Wednesday over a post alleging that a military radar system struck by a drone had been used to help Israel in its war against Iran. – Agence France-Presse
Turkey
Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan told leaders at a NATO summit on Wednesday that a ceasefire between Israel and Iran needed to be made permanent, his office said, and called for a ceasefire in Gaza to alleviate the humanitarian crisis there. – Reuters
President Recep Tayyip Erdogan urged French leader Emmanuel Macron to involve non-EU allies like Turkey in shaping Europe’s new security architecture. – Bloomberg
Ron Jager writes: The epilogue to the current period ends with the total humiliation of Iran; militarily, technologically, and politically, while exposing Iran as nothing more than a “paper tiger”, and nothing close to the regional superpowerhood the Iranians have falsely claimed. The lesson should not be lost on the nations of Egypt and Turkey. Both nations have large populations of poor and uneducated citizens, allowing them to become just another Islamic nation that can be overthrown at any time. – Arutz Sheva
Middle East & North Africa
The World Bank has approved $250 million in financing for Lebanon to aid in the reconstruction of critical public infrastructure and the management of rubble in areas affected by the war, the organisation said on Wednesday. – Reuters
The United States and Qatar said Wednesday that the fragile, day-old ceasefire in Iran has created an opportunity to advance truce-hostage talks they are mediating between Israel and Hamas in Gaza. – Times of Israel
US President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, estimated on Wednesday that the US will soon make a significant announcement regarding the expansion of the Abraham Accords. – Arutz Sheva
Egyptian government sources report that Cairo is working to renew indirect negotiations between Israel and the Hamas terrorist organization following the announcement of the ceasefire between Israel and Iran. – Arutz Sheva
The foreign ministers of the Gulf Arab states issued a sharp condemnation of Iran’s missile strike on a US military base in Qatar, calling it a “blatant, unacceptable, and dangerous” violation of sovereignty, the Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported on Wednesday. – Al Arabiya
Korean Peninsula
A South Korean court rejected on Wednesday a request to issue an arrest warrant for former President Yoon Suk Yeol related to an investigation into his short-lived attempt to impose martial law, his lawyers said. – Reuters
South Korea President Lee Jae Myung asked the parliament to swiftly approve the $14.7 billion of extra government spending as the economy is in “desperate” situation across domestic consumption and exports. – Reuters
North Korea may deploy additional troops to Russia to fight in the war against Ukraine in July or August and Pyongyang is continuing to supply arms to Russia, South Korean lawmakers said on Thursday, citing a briefing by the intelligence agency. – Reuters
North Korea next week will open a signature tourist site on its east coast that it called a prelude to a new era in its tourism industry, though there is no word on when the country will fully reopen its borders to foreign visitors. – Associated Press
Eliot Wilson writes: Despite 35,000 American dead, the Korean War is often dubbed “the forgotten war.” That may stem from its lack of genuine conclusion and the absence of a clear narrative. But if history does not repeat itself, it can often rhyme, and Korea has sometimes found its counterpart in Ukraine. Seventy-five years after the Korean War began, that alone is worth pause for reflection. – The Hill
China
China has told companies in its rare-earth industry to give the government lists of employees with technical expertise, aiming to ensure they don’t divulge trade secrets to foreigners. – Wall Street Journal
President Trump’s decision to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, after earlier denouncing U.S. embroilment in foreign wars, introduces another complication for China’s leaders trying to fathom how he might handle conflict over Taiwan. – New York Times
China has strengthened controls on two chemicals that can be used to make fentanyl, its latest step in addressing an issue that has become tangled in its broader trade dispute with the United States. – New York Times
A tropical depression may hit southern China as early as Thursday, meteorologists cautioned, bringing rain and gales to a flood-hit region still recovering from the impact of Typhoon Wutip two weeks ago. – Reuters
Premier Li Qiang has projected confidence that China can turn consumption into a driver for the economy, while also portraying his nation as a stabilizing force in a rapidly shifting global trade landscape. – Bloomberg
Mordechai Chaziza writes: The region’s complexity, volatility, and strategic importance mean that no single power, including China, can dominate it outright. China’s influence continues to be defined by pragmatic economic engagement and cautious diplomacy, rather than by pursuing hegemony or a direct challenge to US security leadership. The Russia-Ukraine war has cast a shadow, quickening the pace of change, but it is not the architect of China’s long-term ambitions in the Middle East. – Jerusalem Post
South Asia
State-run Nuclear Power Corporation of India Ltd (NPCIL) has extended the deadline for proposals from industrial users to set up 220 megawatt electric (MWe) small nuclear reactors, amid growing interest from companies seeking cleaner energy sources. – Reuters
Retired Air Force officer Dinesh K. has seen a surge in demand for his $500 therapy course to help people overcome their fear of flying since Air India flight 171 crashed moments after take-off from Ahmedabad two weeks ago. – Reuters
Pakistan and the U.S. have resolved to conclude trade talks next week, the South Asian nation said on Wednesday after a meeting between its Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb and U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. – Reuters
Mihir Sharma writes: That enchanting prospect might be too tempting for them to back the sort of reform, including reductions in the defense budget, that Pakistan desperately needs. Pakistan’s military might prevail after every upheaval, but the country doesn’t. Without reform, it will keep falling, even as its establishment thrives. – Bloomberg
Asia
In 1969 in Nikiski, a small community in southern Alaska, a team of gas industry pioneers set in motion something that would reshape the global energy landscape. They shipped the United States’ first liquefied natural gas across the Pacific Ocean to Japan. – New York Times
An Australian court ruled on Wednesday that the country’s main public broadcaster had illegally fired a journalist for reasons that included a social media post critical of Israel’s war in the Gaza Strip. – New York Times
Thailand’s government is moving to recriminalise cannabis, plunging into limbo an industry estimated to be worth over $1 billion that has boomed since the substance was taken off the country’s narcotics list in 2022. – Reuters
Thailand’s prime minister and Cambodia’s influential former premier are visiting different parts of their disputed land border on Thursday as tensions simmer between the two neighbours over a territorial dispute and the Thai government teeters on the brink of collapse. – Reuters
A Japanese court has found a U.S. Marine guilty of sexually assaulting a woman on Okinawa and sentenced him to seven years in prison, in a case that has triggered anger and safety concerns on Japan’s southern island, which has a heavy American troop presence. – Associated Press
Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong emphasized his country’s commitment to maintaining close ties with both the US and China, even as rivalry between the two superpowers continues to rattle global stability. – Bloomberg
Europe
European members of NATO and Canada lag far behind the U.S. in defense-spending levels and military capabilities. Now they are trying to fix that, as Russia expands its arms production and rebuilds its fighting forces. – Wall Street Journal
A NATO summit designed to please President Trump ended on Wednesday with his European allies approving an ambitious spending goal to meet the threat of a militarizing Russia, and clinching a long-elusive public commitment from the mercurial American leader for the alliance’s collective defense. – New York Times
Eurostar, the high-speed train service that connects Britain with continental Europe, was facing a second consecutive day of severe delays after cables were stolen near Lille, France, and two people were killed when they were hit by trains, the company said. – New York Times
President Donald Trump said on Wednesday that the United States will make Spain pay twice as much for a trade deal after the country’s refusal to meet a NATO defense spending target of 5% of gross domestic product. – Reuters
Switzerland will enter into exploratory talks with the European Union on a non-binding partnership to take part in arms procurement projects, the government said on Wednesday, as the neutral alpine nation seeks closer EU security ties. – Reuters
NATO’s Article 5 is “very, very clear” about allies’ commitment to defend one another when attacked, the European Union’s top diplomat said after Donald Trump appeared to question its meaning. – Bloomberg
France’s minority government is set to survive a no-confidence vote over pensions as Marine Le Pen’s National Rally party reiterated its plans to abstain. – Bloomberg
A Syrian migrant accused of stabbing four people outside a bar in the German city of Bielefeld was a member of the Islamic State group, prosecutors said Wednesday. – Agence France-Presse
Editorial: Hear, hear to that clear strategic thinking, long overdue from Europe. Left out at the summit, however, is whether Mr. Trump is prepared to help Europe arm Ukraine as Russia refuses to end its brutal assault. The President’s strike against Iran bolstered deterrence, but the Ukraine decision is phase two. – Wall Street Journal
Lee Hockstader writes: Those are among the concerns foremost in the minds of European leaders. But don’t count on them having been aired, even sotto voce, at the NATO summit that ended on Wednesday. Instead, there was obsequious praise from NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte and nothing (in public) but the most assiduous docility directed at the American leader. Thus does fear distort truth-telling. The effect, sadly, is to erode Western resolve and resilience. – Washington Post
Africa
At least eight people were killed and hundreds were injured in Kenya on Wednesday, rights groups said, as thousands faced off with the police amid nationwide protests that laid bare the anger at President William Ruto’s government. – New York Times
On Africa’s dry western tip, Mauritania has become an unlikely staging post for Ukraine’s increasingly global struggle with its adversary Russia. – Reuters
Eritrea is trying to cancel the mandate of a U.N. expert investigating alleged abuses, a document sent to the U.N. Human Rights Council showed, in a rare move that Western diplomats fear may set a precedent for states looking to escape scrutiny. – Reuters
The Zambian government succeeded in getting a court order to stop the private burial of former President Edgar Lungu in South Africa on Wednesday after it filed a last-minute case that was heard on the day of the funeral. – Associated Press
The Americas
The U.S. Treasury Department on Wednesday accused three Mexican financial institutions of moving money for opioid traffickers and handling payments for cartels seeking imported chemicals to make fentanyl. – Washington Post
Authorities in Ecuador have detained the country’s most notorious drug trafficker, José Adolfo “Fito” Macías Villamar, more than a year after he escaped from the maximum-security prison he once controlled. – Washington Post
Honduras President Xiomara Castro and U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem discussed immigration and border security in their first meeting Wednesday, after Castro had previously rejected President Donald Trump’s calls for ramped up deportations. – Associated Press
Claude Joseph, who was Haiti’s acting prime minister when President Jovenel Moïse was gunned down in July 2021, came under fire Wednesday as judges investigating the killing questioned suspects in the case. – Associated Press
Twelve people were killed overnight in the Mexican state of Guanajuato when gunmen opened fire on a celebration in the city of Irapuato, authorities said Wednesday. – Associated Press
Prime Minister Mark Carney said he met with European defense suppliers about jets and submarines, and expects to conclude a review of a major contract for Lockheed Martin Corp. F-35 jets as soon as this summer. – Bloomberg
Trade negotiations between the US and Mexico are homing in on a possible quota system to reduce tariffs on a certain volume of steel imports, a move seen as assuaging concerns of American manufacturers of the metal. – Bloomberg
United States
The White House plans to limit classified intelligence sharing with Congress after leaks to the press of an early assessment undermined President Donald Trump’s claim that U.S. airstrikes obliterated Iranian nuclear facilities, a senior Trump administration official said, setting the stage for a contentious classified briefing before senators Thursday. – The Washington Post
Like the casino owner he once was, President Donald Trump has shown an appetite for risk during the first months of his administration. – Reuters
As President Donald Trump prepared to order the bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites, many prominent leaders of his “Make America Great Again” movement warned he was making a grave mistake. – Associated Press
It will take “a generation” to diversify some of the US dependency on China for rare earths and other segments of global supply chains, but that doesn’t mean Beijing holds the economic upper hand over Washington, former US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell said. – Bloomberg
US Senator Ted Cruz on Thursday condemned NYC Democratic candidate Zohran Mamdani for his anti-Israel statements, following Mamdani’s victory in his party’s primaries. – Arutz Sheva
US President Donald Trump on Wednesday vehemently called for the termination of CNN correspondent Natasha Bertrand, accusing her of disseminating “Fake News” regarding the impact of recent strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities. – Arutz Sheva
Eli Lake writes: It was that they tried to spin a tale that the leader of their movement, Donald Trump, was a chump, easily manipulated by the world’s only Jewish state. Trump proved them wrong on that as well. On Tuesday morning he lashed out at Israel for planning a counterattack to a final Iranian missile strike. Israel turned its jets around after the president made his disfavor known to the world. So much for the argument that he was just Netanyahu’s puppet. – The Free Press
Cybersecurity
A bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday planned to introduce a bill in both houses of Congress that would bar U.S. executive agencies from using artificial intelligence models developed in China, including those from DeepSeek. – Reuters
Citrix on Wednesday disclosed an actively exploited zero-day vulnerability affecting multiple versions of NetScaler products, an alarming development from a vendor that’s been widely targeted in previous attack sprees. – CyberScoop
With time running short before expiration of a cyber information-sharing law highly valued by the private sector, Congress is taking a look at the possibility of a short-term extension. – CyberScoop
The Navy released a new memo issued by its chief technology officer outlining priority areas for future investment by the sea services as they pursue modernization. – CyberScoop
French authorities have arrested several individuals suspected of running BreachForums, one of the world’s largest online marketplaces for stolen data, according to a French news report. – The Record
Glasgow City Council announced on Wednesday being impacted by a cyber incident which it said was “disrupting a number of online services and which may have involved the theft of customer data.” – The Record
Defense
With his order for B-2 bombers to strike Iranian nuclear sites on Sunday, President Donald Trump swerved away from his usual reluctance to use military force, directly involving the U.S. in a foreign war and alarming many of his “America First” supporters. – Reuters
At about 5 p.m. Eastern Standard Time on June 21, a U.S. Navy nuclear-powered submarine launched over two dozen Tomahawk land attack cruise missiles into Iran, striking targeted infrastructure sites in Isfahan. – Defense News
By year’s end, the Marine Corps will be fielding thousands of small aerial drones across its operational forces. Marine Corps training schools are now familiarizing Marines and small-unit leaders with the handling and tactical use of small drones. – USNI News
The Defense Department’s Office of the Chief Information Officer has officially kicked off its effort to improve how the Pentagon manages cybersecurity risks with advanced automation and continuous monitoring capabilities. – DefenseScoop