A Weakened Iran Poses an Alliance Test for China, Russia and North Korea
As Iran reels from its gravest threat in decades, its alliance with China, Russia and North Korea—an axis that has increasingly alarmed the U.S. and allies—is facing a vital test: Will its partners come to its aid?
Beijing, Moscow and Pyongyang could offer Iran crucial assistance to recover from the damage inflicted by U.S. and Israeli strikes on its nuclear program and arsenal of conventional weapons. That could deepen the alliance, sending a powerful signal for potential conflicts in Taiwan, the Korean Peninsula and Eastern Europe.
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Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
British woman stranded in Israel remains in dark about evacuation flights
A British woman stranded in Israel said she has still not heard from the Government about chartered evacuation flights – despite registering and paying hundreds of pounds last week. The first RAF flight set off from Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv on Monday afternoon carrying 63 British passengers, who landed in Cyprus and were then flown back to Birmingham Airport, where they arrived in the early hours of Tuesday. In the days since, more Britons have made the journey home as part of the Government's evacuation strategy. It comes as Israeli airspace reopened on Monday after being closed for 10 days following the start of the conflict between Israel and Iran on June 13. British-Israeli Mali Smith, 66, said she has not heard from the Foreign Office since registering for the repatriation flights on Wednesday June 18, leading her to book a flight home to London for 600 US dollars (£439) as she 'can't bear the stress anymore'. Mrs Smith, a solicitor born in Tel Aviv but who now lives in Hampstead Garden Suburb, London, with her husband, had arrived in Israel on June 11 to see her mother and friends. The mother-of-two has twice booked flights to Luton Airport, one with Wizz Air and one with Israir, which were both cancelled. She said: 'After my flights were cancelled, the Foreign Office sent many of us an email saying that they were planning on sending an RAF plane to rescue us and take us back to the UK. 'But it's been days now and I'm still waiting for a response – even though we had to pay them £350 for the pleasure. 'They have been in touch with some Brits but many of us are still waiting and I don't understand why they are sending such a small aeroplane with only 63 seats, while there are thousands who have applied for the flights. 'I sent them emails and I called them, but they couldn't give me an answer – I have been in touch with my MP and she has tried hard to help some of us here, but we've had no success. 'It's nerve-wracking and it's really hard to sit around and wait for them to do something. 'Now the war has a ceasefire, so I don't know what's going to happen – they might cancel it all even before they have rescued us.' Mrs Smith says that the lack of information about the flights has left those who remain in the country feeling stranded waiting for more support. She said she had also been told that British nationals have had phone calls from the Foreign Office as late as 3am in the morning, asking them to be at the airfield just six hours later at 9am, only for their flight to be delayed until 1pm. Mrs Smith said: 'The organisation of the evacuation has not been good enough. 'I'm in Tel Aviv, right next to the Iron Dome, and the noise is really loud and scary, and it means you can't sleep properly. 'The community has been great, they've been so supportive and there's a lot of warmth from everyone. 'But the UK Government has been so slow to respond and I'm just disappointed that it's taken them that long and that the communication is that bad. 'I don't know whether to book another flight and forget about the evacuation flight, and whether I can claim the money back. 'The situation has improved here with the ceasefire which seems like it's holding, but the Foreign Office needs to be so much better.' The FCDO has been contacted for comment.
The Intercept
25 minutes ago
- The Intercept
War Powers Resolution From House Democratic Leaders May Not Limit Trump's War Powers
As Democrats try to push forward legislation that would block further strikes on Iran, one measure advanced by House leadership could actually strengthen the Trump administration's justification for subsequent attacks, anti-war advocates warn. House progressives on Wednesday were trying to reach a compromise with Democratic leaders that would curb further U.S. military involvement in Iran while satisfying concerns from pro-Israel members about American support for Israel's missile defense. There are three different war powers resolutions in play in Washington. In the Senate, a resolution from Tim Kaine, D-Va., appears to be on track for a vote on Friday. In the House, however, Democrats remain sharply divided between two resolutions. 'There's no upside to advancing a competing War Powers Resolution. It's not just unnecessary — it's actively counterproductive,' Cavan Kharrazian, a senior policy adviser at Demand Progress, said in a statement. 'There's still time to reconcile this on the House side, and we hope an agreement can be reached to enable a strong vote with the best possible language.' The resolutions in both chambers face long odds, thanks to near-unanimous support from the majority Republicans for President Donald Trump's strikes. Congressional Democrats are responding to Trump's strikes by pursuing a vote under the War Powers Act, the Vietnam War-era law designed to limit presidents' ability to launch military action abroad without congressional approval. Kaine's initial resolution introduced last week directs Trump to halt hostilities against Iran, while making clear that the president can still defend the U.S. from imminent attack. Kaine's resolution has drawn support from Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. It is expected to come to a voter later this week. Amid concerns from pro-Israel Democrats, Kaine said Tuesday that he was co-sponsoring an amendment to his resolution with Sens. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., and Andy Kim, D-N.J. The amendment is intended to continue to allow the U.S. to participate in Israeli missile defense. Pentagon officials said last April that the U.S. — not Israel — shot down most Iranian drones and missiles during an Iranian attack. 'This amendment would leave no doubt that Senator Kaine's resolution would ensure that President Trump has to make the case to the American people for further action against Iran without constraining our ability to help defend the Israeli people from Iranian attacks,' Kim said in a statement. While most Senate Democrats appeared to have coalesced around Kaine's resolution, House Democrats remained split on Wednesday over how to respond to Trump's strikes. Advocates last week said they were frustrated that Democratic leaders were not moving forward with a resolution as Trump publicly mulled attacking Iran. Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., teamed up with Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., to introduce a resolution. After the strikes were launched, three House Democratic committee ranking members introduced an alternative resolution that its authors claim would also force Trump to cease hostilities with Iran. The sponsors are Reps. Jim Himes of Connecticut, Adam Smith of Washington, and Gregory Meeks of New York. Anti-war advocates worry that the House leadership measure could actually wind up strengthening Trump's justification for launching further strikes on Iran. In an apparent nod to Israel, the leaders' resolution would give the president the power to 'defend the United States or an ally or partner of the United States from imminent attack.' Trump has already justified his strike on Iran as an act of 'collective self-defense of our ally, Israel,' according to a letter he sent Congress, despite the assessment of U.S intelligence agencies that Iran was not building a nuclear weapon. Critics say the House Democratic leadership resolution mirrors the language of Trump's justification far too closely. 'We think if it passes, it would be worse than not having a war powers resolution.' 'We think if it passes, it would be worse than not having a war powers resolution,' said Yasmine Taeb, the legislative and political director for the Muslim advocacy group MPower Change. 'This war powers resolution gives the impression that the president has broad authority to be able to engage in military offensive action with respect to Iran — if Israel is asking us to.' Spokespersons for Himes, Meeks, and Smith's offices did not immediately comment. Khanna has said that his resolution is intended to preserve the U.S. military's ability to participate in Israeli missile defense. Advocates said they understood there were ongoing discussions about a compromise. The two sides have ample time: A vote on the measure is not expected to come to the floor before mid- to late-July. Whether or not the two sides come to an accord, however, the push to respond to Trump's strikes could face serious pushback from Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson. Johnson said Tuesday that he thought the War Powers Act itself was unconstitutional and signaled that he may use a procedural move to prevent it from coming to the floor. The War Powers Act states that resolutions brought under its auspices must be fast-tracked to the House floor within 15 working days. Johnson, however, could try to block the resolution from receiving such a 'privileged' status — although that would likely force a vote on the procedural maneuver itself. Massie's co-sponsorship of the resolution gave it bipartisan support, but it's unclear whether he will continue to push its passage in the face of intense pressure from the White House and the ceasefire announced by Trump on Monday. Massie has said he is taking a 'wait and see' approach. As a shaky ceasefire between Israel and Iran continued to hold Wednesday morning, progressives in the House said they were pursuing a vote on their preferred resolution despite the opposition from Johnson. Khanna said at a Capitol press conference that blocking the vote with a procedural maneuver would be an 'unprecedented abrogation of congressional power.' 'The fundamental point here is that we don't know what the strikes accomplished, but we do know a lot of the harm,' Khanna said. 'It has hardened the resolve in Iran to now race towards a nuclear weapon.'
Bloomberg
37 minutes ago
- Bloomberg
Trump Says He Thinks Middle East War is 'Over'
President Donald Trump said the US would hold a meeting with Iran next week, but cast doubt on the need for a diplomatic agreement. Trump claimed that US bombing had "obliterated" Iran's key nuclear sites, including Natanz, Isfahan, and Fordow facilities, and that the country's nuclear materials were buried under "granite, concrete and steel". The US and Iran are set to resume talks, with Trump citing Iran's foreign ministry assessment that its nuclear installations were "badly damaged" by US airstrikes. Bloomberg's Ethan Bronner reports. (Source: Bloomberg)
