Episode Details

For review:

1. The head of the U.S. military's Southern Command met with top Cuban military officials Friday at the edge of the American naval base at Guantanamo Bay.

2. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu confirmed Friday that troops of the IDF’s 36th Division have crossed Lebanon’s Litani River. 

PM Netanyahu:  “Our forces crossed the Litani, and they’ve advanced to the dominating terrain,” Netanyahu said on a visit to troops on the northern border. “We’re also operating in Beirut, and in the Beqaa, across the entire front, and hitting Hezbollah hard.”

3. The International Stabilization Force for Gaza was announced with great aplomb at the inaugural meeting of US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace in February.

Three months on, none of the five countries that pledged troops have made any significant contributions. Hamas has refused to disarm and Israel has seized more territory while continuing to strike terror targets.

4. US President Donald Trump announced on Friday that he was entering the White House Situation Room to make a “final determination” on a MOU to extend the ceasefire with Iran and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

5. The proportion of vessels not linked to Iranian ownership that are transiting the Strait of Hormuz has risen, according to data from maritime firm Lloyd’s List Intelligence shared Thursday.

6. The United Arab Emirates launched dozens of airstrikes in Iran in the first days of the US-Israeli war on Iran, and after the ceasefire in April was announced, according to a WSJ report published Friday.

7. Norway’s Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide said Thursday that Europe cannot combine its strong backing for Ukraine with a neutral mediator role in future peace talks, as EU foreign ministers met informally in Lemesos, Cyprus.

8. NATO accused Moscow on Friday of reckless behavior and pledged to “defend every inch of Allied territory” after Romania said a Russian drone had crashed into an apartment block in the alliance member state during an attack on neighboring Ukraine.

Russia’s TASS news agency cited Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov as saying President Vladimir Putin had been informed about the incident.