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Iran strikes Kuwait and Bahrain; Israel kills paramedics in Lebanon; Primary results
Drop Site Daily: June 3, 2026
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Iran strikes Kuwait and Bahrain in retaliation for Qeshm Island attack. U.S. strikes tanker in the Gulf. IAEA chief says many Iranian nuclear activities have ceased since start of war. Treasury sanctions Iran’s four largest cryptocurrency exchanges. Secretary of State Marco Rubio tells Senate any sanctions relief for Iran depends on nuclear concessions, declares “the war is over.” Israeli attacks continue on Tuesday and Wednesday. U.S. weighingmilitary training for Lebanese Army. Israeli attacks kill three in Gaza on Wednesday. Gaza children surviving on 6 liters of water daily. Hamas’s military spokesman tells mediators “moment of truth” has arrived amid escalating Israeli violations. Israel advances 2,162 new settlement units in occupied West Bank. Abraham Accords states overtake U.S. as buyers of Israeli arms. Primary results from Tuesday’s elections. President Donald Trump names housing finance official Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence. Senate Republicans circulate three-year Section 702 extension without key privacy protections. Supreme Court allows Alabama to use congressional map lower court found intentionally discriminates against Black voters. CBS fires Scott Pelley. Cuba calls recent U.S. sanctions an illegal escalation. Ukrainian drone strikes kill seven on bus in Donetsk. Tribal fighting in South Darfur kills at least 50 civilians. Trump endorses far-right Colombian presidential candidate. Bolivia’s defense and education ministers resign. Trump administration proposes 25% tariff on Brazilian imports. U.S. sanctions Congolese militia leaders.
FROM DROP SITE
“You Either Leave Right Now or You Die”—Israel’s Ethnic Cleansing of a Village in Lebanon
Livestream: Why the Iran Talks Now Hang on Lebanon + Election Primary Day
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Iran and Ceasefire
Iran strikes Kuwait and Bahrain in retaliation for Qeshm Island attack: Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed responsibility for missile and drone strikes on Tuesday on U.S. military installations in Kuwait—including Camp Arifjan and Ali Al-Salem Airbase—and reported attacks on Bahrain, saying the strikes were retaliation for a U.S. strike on Qeshm Island. Kuwait’s defense ministry also confirmed that around 30 missiles and drones were launched toward its territory, with eight explosions reported in Bahrain. The IRGC also reportedly launched heavy strikes against opposition groups in Erbil, in Iran’s Kurdistan.
Kuwait’s Ministry of Defense reported on Wednesday that drones struck Terminal 1 at Kuwait International Airport, killing one and injuring as many as 63 people; the attack caused significant damage to the terminal.
U.S. Central Command released a statement Tuesday saying that it intercepted multiple Iranian ballistic missiles and drones targeting Kuwait and Bahrain, and conducted a strike on an Iranian military ground control station on Qeshm Island in “self-defense,” while denying that any U.S. personnel were harmed. CENTCOM’s statement did not address Iranian claims of successful strikes on the U.S. Fifth Fleet headquarters in Bahrain, Camp Arifjan, or Ali Al-Salem Air Base in Kuwait.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi spoke with the foreign ministers of France, Turkey, Qatar, Egypt, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia after Tuesday’s attacks in Kuwait, according to a post from Iran’s Foreign Ministry on X.
Kuwait demanded two members of the Iranian diplomatic mission leave the country within 24 hours following the strikes, according to the state’s Foreign Ministry, which said it delivered a formal protest note announcing a reduction in embassy staff and declaring two diplomats persona non grata.
U.S. strikes tanker in the Gulf: CENTCOM confirmed on Tuesday that it struck the Botswana-flagged commercial tanker M/T Lexie after its crew ignored warnings while attempting to reach Iran’s Kharg Island. U.S. forces have now disabled six commercial vessels and redirected 122 since imposing a naval blockade of Iranian ports on April 13. War Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday shared footage of a U.S. Hellfire missile striking this tanker.
IAEA chief says many Iranian nuclear activities have ceased since start of war: International Atomic Energy Agency Director General Rafael Grossi said on Tuesday that many of Iran’s previously active nuclear operations have stopped, telling reporters in the UAE that the conflict has brought a fundamental change in how the agency assesses Iran’s nuclear program. IAEA inspectors have remained in Iran throughout the war but have been unable to access nuclear sites since strikes began.
Treasury sanctions Iran’s four largest cryptocurrency exchanges: The U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned Iran’s four largest cryptocurrency exchanges—Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Ramzinex—along with four Iranian nationals on Tuesday, as part of what Washington calls “Operation Economic Fury,” its financial warfare campaign running parallel to its military conflict with Iran. Nobitex, the largest, processed more than half of all Iranian digital asset inflows in 2025; it also allegedly helped the Central Bank of Iran access hundreds of millions of dollars in stablecoins to stabilize the collapsing rial.
Rubio tells Senate any sanctions relief for Iran depends on nuclear concessions, declares “the war is over”: Secretary of State Marco Rubio testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on Tuesday—his first public congressional appearance since the war began on February 28—insisting that any relief on sanctions for Iran is tied exclusively to concessions on its nuclear program.
Rubio alleged without providing evidence that Iran had undertaken plots to assassinate several prominent U.S. political figures on American soil. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei dismissed these allegations in a post on X on Wednesday morning. “Every accusation is a confession,” Baghaei wrote. “Playing victim can not whitewash your harrowing war crimes and crimes against humanity against the Nation of Iran.”
Rubio also declared “the war is over” during a heated exchange with Democratic Senator Cory Booker, as Democratic lawmakers blasted the administration for bypassing congressional oversight and providing insufficient information about its strategy for ending the conflict.
Trump says Supreme Leader “giving approval” in talks: Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is “giving approval” and “involved, absolutely,” in talks with the United States, President Donald Trump said, adding that “that’s the way it has been for a long, long time.” Speaking on the New York Post’s Pod Force One podcast, Trump said he and Khamenei “seem to be getting along quite well,” suggesting a future meeting could be possible “depending on how it all works out.” Trump stated he prefers a negotiated settlement with Iran over authorising military action, warning, “The other way is not nice.”
On the same podcast, Trump acknowledged that Israel’s continued assault on Lebanon was complicating peace talks with Iran and admitted that he had called Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “crazy” during a tense phone call Monday. “At some point I said, Bibi, we got to stop this. We got to stop it,” Trump said.
Iran executes man convicted of killing security officer during antigovernment protests: Iran executed a man convicted of murdering Major Mohammad Javad Bakhshian, a security officer stabbed during antigovernment protests in the western city of Hamadan on January 18, the semi-official Tasnim news agency reported Tuesday.
Lebanon
Casualty count: At least 3,516 people have been killed, and 10,674 wounded, in Israeli attacks on Lebanon since March 2, according to the Lebanese Health Ministry.
Israeli attacks continue on Tuesday and Wednesday:
Strikes on paramedics: An Israeli strike directly hit an ambulance belonging to the Al-Risala Association in the southern town of Shahour on Wednesday, killing two paramedics and seriously injuring a third, according to Lebanon’s National News Agency. Another paramedic from the Al-Risala was killed in a drone strike on the al-Ain neighborhood in Arab Salim. A Civil Defense team from the Islamic Health Authority was also struck Wednesday by an Israeli drone while responding to a previous strike in Zebdin, with reports of injuries among paramedics.
One Lebanese soldier was killed in an Israeli airstrike Wednesday on the Nabatieh–Kfour Tibnit road, according to the Lebanese army.
A strike on the town of al-Housh in the Tyre district killed six people. A separate strike in al-Zrarieh killed one person and injured another on Wednesday.
Israeli forces issued more forced displacement orders on Wednesday, telling residents of Sidon, Mazra’at Kawkariya al-Riz, and al-Zarariya in southern Lebanon to evacuate immediately and move north of the Zahrani River.
The Israeli military claimed that part of its Givati Brigade crossed the Litani River on Wednesday morning and entered the villages of Zawtar al-Sharqieh and Zawtar al-Gharbieh in southern Lebanon, as part of an operation involving more than 100 airstrikes on the region. Israel claimed, without evidence, that its troops killed around 20 Hezbollah fighters and seized weapons caches.
A wave of strikes on Monday and Tuesday in the Bint Jbeil area killed 5 and injured 48 others, including a child and six medical staff at Tibnin Government Hospital; the hospital was also damaged, in what officials described as repeated Israeli strikes on medical facilities.
The Lebanese Army deployed intelligence units to search the Christian quarter of Tyre on Tuesday after the Israeli military alleged that Hezbollah fighters were operating there, according to L’Orient-Le Jour. Several families fled to Sidon and Beirut ahead of potential Israeli strikes, while residents told the outlet they were deeply skeptical of the Israeli military’s claim.
Hezbollah claimed two successful attacks on Tuesday against Israeli forces near Beaufort Castle in southern Lebanon, one of which involved artillery and the other a missile barrage.
“You Either Leave Right Now or You Die”: Israel’s forced displacement of Ain Arab in southern Lebanon: Israeli forces forcibly expelled residents of the border village of Ain Arab in southern Lebanon during a ground incursion that witnesses told Drop Site involved soldiers going door to door and ordering civilians out at gunpoint—as part of a broader Israeli campaign of redrawing lines in the south of Lebanon, which has left more than 1.2 million people displaced since early March. According to residents, soldiers declared the area inside a newly designated Israeli “yellow line” and told people they had two hours to leave, with one soldier reportedly saying, “You either leave right now or you die.” One resident, Nasreen Abd Elaal, said troops entered the village with armored vehicles and a bulldozer before ordering evacuation, adding that “they didn’t even give us that” time to prepare. “To say we are destroyed is not enough…We left our livelihoods in the soil and fled.” Read the full report from Drop Site contributor Lylla Younes here.
U.S. weighing military training for Lebanese Army: The United States is considering a plan to train the Lebanese Army as part of broader efforts to disarm Hezbollah, according to Israeli public broadcaster Kan, citing sources familiar with ongoing Lebanese-Israeli negotiations in Washington.
Palestine
Casualty count: Over the last 24 hours, three Palestinians were killed and 35 were injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza. The total recorded death toll since October 7, 2023 has risen to 72,945 killed, with 173,011 injured. Since October 11, the first full day of the so-called ceasefire, Israel has killed at least 936 Palestinians in Gaza and wounded 2,903, while 781 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.
Three Palestinians killed on Wednesday: Three Palestinians were killed in Israeli strikes across central and southern Gaza on Wednesday, according to WAFA. An Israeli drone strike in the Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza killed one person and injured several others, while another drone-fired missile in the Al-Maghraqa area killed a second person. In southern Gaza, a woman died from wounds sustained about a week earlier in an Israeli strike on Khan Younis.
Gaza children surviving on 6 liters of water daily as summer heat raises epidemic fears: More than one million children in Gaza are surviving on roughly 6 liters of water per day—a fraction of the global standard—as infrastructure destruction and the ongoing Israeli blockade continue to devastate water supplies, Gaza Health Ministry chief Dr. Muneer Alboursh said Tuesday. He noted that overflowing sewage, accumulating garbage, and rodent infestations in displacement centers are creating mounting disease risks as temperatures rise in the summer.
Hamas’s military spokesman tells mediators “moment of truth” has arrived amid escalating Israeli violations: Abu Obaida, spokesperson for Hamas’s armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, said in a recorded speech released Tuesday that mediators and guarantors of the Sharm el-Sheikh agreement face “a moment of truth” amid continued Israeli attacks, assassinations, and ceasefire violations carried out under what he described as “false agreements and deceptive understandings.” “Where are your guarantees?” he asked, urging mediators to “restrain the occupation” and compel it to fulfill its obligations.
Israel advances 2,162 new settlement units in occupied West Bank:Israeli authorities have approved 2,162 new housing units across three settlements in the occupied West Bank in a move that advances large-scale expansion plans, the Times of Israel reported. These expansions include 1,006 units in Gvaot, 922 units in Har Bracha in an early planning stage that could ultimately triple its size, and 234 units in Kiryat Arba near Hebron at the final approval stage. Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich described this move as strengthening Israeli control and preventing a Palestinian state. “This is not just a planning step, but a national development that solidifies our hold on the territory, strengthens Israel’s security, and establishes clear facts that prevent the establishment of an Arab terrorist state in the heart of the country,” Smotrich said.
Abraham Accords states overtake U.S. as buyers of Israeli arms: Arab countries that signed the Abraham Accords, a series of normalization deals that bypassed the Palestinians, bought more Israeli defense equipment than the United States in 2025, according to Israeli Defense Ministry figures published Tuesday and reported by Haaretz. Israel’s arms exports surged 30 percent year-on-year to a record 55.25 billion shekels ($19.2 billion), with exports to Abraham Accords countries rising to 15 percent of total sales, jumping fivefold in two years, while Europe’s share fell sharply to 36 percent from 54 percent a year earlier and Asia-Pacific’s share climbed to 32 percent. The figures show Israeli defense exports have more than doubled in five years and now account for about 12 percent of Israel’s total exports, with roughly 90 percent of sales generated by Elbit Systems, Israel Aerospace Industries, and Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.
UK has transferred no wounded Palestinian children for NHS care in 2026, Sky News reports: Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government pledged to evacuate up to 300 sick and injured Palestinian children from Gaza for National Health Service treatment, but only around 50 have arrived since the medical taskforce was established in late summer 2025, with zero transfers recorded in 2026, Sky News reported Tuesday. Officials and charities cite strict Home Office entry requirements—including biometric processing that cannot be conducted inside Gaza—as key bottlenecks, while a group of Palestinian children who had already received NHS care traveled to Parliament on Tuesday to lobby MPs to scale up the program.
U.S. News
By Julian Andreone, with Ryan Grim. Have a tip on Capitol Hill? Email Andreone at Julian@dropsitenews.com.
Primary results from Tuesday’s elections:
Adam Hamawy, a former U.S. Army combat surgeon endorsed by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), won the Democratic primary in New Jersey’s 12th Congressional District on Tuesday, defeating 12 other candidates. Hamawy, who served as a combat surgeon in Iraq, provided medical aid in Gaza in 2024, and supports Medicare for All and opposing military aid to Israel, overcame last-minute attacks which speciously linked his medical volunteer work in Bosnia to Al Qaeda and which sought to tie him to Omar Abdel-Rahman, after it was revealed he testified at his 1995 trial. He will face Republican Gregg Mele in the general election, though his victory is essentially guaranteed in the deep-blue district.
California’s highly contested gubernatorial election remains uncalled. As of Wednesday morning, roughly 60 percent of the vote has been counted. Republican pundit Steve Hilton leads all candidates with 27.8 percent of the vote, closely followed by former Democratic congressman and HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra, at 25.4 percent. Tom Steyer, a billionaire running on a progressive platform of challenging the state’s utility monopolies and who has also advocated for a single-payer healthcare system for the state, has garnered 19.6 percent of the vote. Under California’s “jungle primary” arrangement, the top two finishers in the primary advance to the general election, regardless of their party affiliation.
In Los Angeles, incumbent mayor Karen Bass is guaranteed a spot in the general election. Bass will face either reality TV star Spencer Pratt, a right-wing populist, or Nithya Raman, a left-wing city councilwoman. With 63 percent of the vote counted, Pratt leads Raman by 8 points.
Auto mechanic Randy Villegas leads his Democratic opponent, Dr. Jasmeet Bains, by 4 points in California’s 22nd district, which covers a sizable chunk of the state’s Central Valley. Bains has received the backing of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee and, notably, reversed her position on Israel after receiving support from the AIPAC-offshoot Democratic Majority for Israel. One of these Democrats will face Republican incumbent David Valdao, a moderate Republican who voted in favor of President Trump’s second impeachment in January 2021.
San Diego city councilwoman Marni von Wilpert will advance to face Jim Desmond in the San Diego area’s 48th district. Von Wilpert defeats her primary challenger, Ammar Campa-Najjar, after her campaign received millions of dollars from pro-Israel groups, most notably receiving a $1 million ad-buy from DMFI.
Incumbent Democrat Doris Matsui will likely face her progressive challenger, Mai Vang, in the November general election, though the race remains close and has yet to be called. Zachariah Wooden, a Republican who Matsui reportedly boosted in hopes of nullifying Vang’s challenge, trails Vang by less than a percentage point with less than 50 percent of votes counted.
Longtime AIPAC ally and current Rep. Jimmy Gomez defeated his progressive challenger, Angela Gonzalez-Torres, in the 34th district, which covers much of east-central Los Angeles, according to a call by the AP. Gomez faces another non-electoral challenge, however: the House Ethics Committee has reportedly opened an investigation into sexual misconduct involving the congressman and aide, it was reported yesterday.
State Sen. Scott Wiener will face San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan in California’s 11th district, where one of the Democrats will replace former Speaker Nancy Pelosi. Chan, who had Pelosi’s endorsement, was able to defeat progressive challenger Saikat Chakrabarti in their contest for the second spot in the general; Wiener won a strong plurality of the vote and will be the presumptive favorite in November.
Iowa state representative Josh Turek defeated state senator Zach Wahls in that state’s Democratic senate primary. Turek had received the clandestine backing of the Democratic leadership, with Chuck Schumer facilitating a dark-money campaign in support of Turek’s candidacy (involving $10 million funnelled to the campaign through a group called “Vote Vets). Turek will face Rep. Ashley Hinson, who Trump endorsed. The President’s endorsement was less decisive in Iowa’s gubernatorial primary, however. Rep. Randy Feenstra, who Trump endorsed, lost to businessman and farmer Zach Lahn. Lahn will face State Auditor Rob Sand in the general election.
In Montana, firefighter Sam Forstag holds a 4-point lead over former gubernatorial candidate Ryan Busse in the Democratic primary for the state’s 1st congressional district, though the race has yet to be called. Forstag was endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who held a rally for the candidate in Missoula last week.
Trump names housing finance official Bill Pulte as acting director of national intelligence: President Donald Trump on Tuesday namedFederal Housing Finance Agency director Bill Pulte—a political ally with no intelligence background—as acting director of national intelligence. Because Pulte is assuming the title of “acting” director, he is able to bypass Senate confirmation. It is unclear whether he is Trump’s permanent choice for the role. Pulte replaces Tulsi Gabbard, who announced her resignation last month, and has previously used his FHFA post to pursue criminal referrals against Democratic political figures, including New York Attorney General Letitia James and Sen. Adam Schiff.
Senate Republicans circulate three-year Section 702 extension without key privacy protections: Senate Intelligence Committee Chair Tom Cotton and Judiciary Chair Chuck Grassley are privatelycirculating a bill that would extend Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act through June 2029, Politico reports. The bill includes penalties for violating search standards and requires that an attorney sign off on some FBI searches, and also narrows the definition of “an electronic communications service provider.” It omits, however, two major demands made by a bipartisan privacy coalition: warrant requirements for searching Americans in foreign intelligence databases and for law enforcement purchases of Americans’ data from brokers.
Supreme Court allows Alabama to use congressional map lower court found intentionally discriminates against Black voters: The Supreme Court’s conservative majority on Tuesday ruled in favor of Alabama, allowing it to use a Republican-drawn congressional map that a lower court found contained “undisputed evidence” of intentional racial discrimination against Black voters. Alabama had appealed to the court requesting the ability to use a map that has just one majority Black district, as opposed to a map previously ordered by a court that had two. Alabama has seven congressional districts in total. The three liberal justices dissented, with Justice Sonia Sotomayor warning the ruling will lead to an election “held under a never-before-used congressional map that intentionally discriminates against Black Alabamians.”
CBS fires Scott Pelley: CBS News terminated veteran journalist Scott Pelley on Tuesday, one day after he reportedly accused the network’s new editor-in-chief, Bari Weiss, of “murdering 60 Minutes” at a tense staff meeting with Nick Bilton, who was hired last week as executive producer of the program. Pelley released a statement following his termination, in which he claimed that “new management” had “instructed” him “to inject falsehoods and bias into a politically sensitive story,” the New York Times reported. “I’ve been told to include assertions that are unverified,” Pelley said.
Schumer meets with Maine Senate candidate Platner in Washington: Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer met Tuesday with Maine Senate candidate Graham Platner, offering no details of their talk beyond a pledge to defeat incumbent Republican Sen. Susan Collins. Schumer initially backed Gov. Janet Mills for the race before endorsing Platner after Mills suspended her campaign in April. “I met with Graham Platner today,” Schumer told reporters. “We’re going to beat Susan Collins and take back the Senate.”
Other International News
Cuba calls recent U.S. sanctions an illegal escalation: The Cuban government on Tuesday defended the Grupo de Administración Empresarial (GAESA), a business conglomerate linked to its military, after the Trump administration designated it a sanctions target under Executive Order 14404 on May 1, and called the move “the most intense, disproportionate and dangerous escalation in recent history.” Responding in state outlet Granma, Havana rejected U.S. characterizations of the organization as corrupt, describing it instead as a legitimate economic institution that has funded housing, schools, clinics, and infrastructure.
More major international companies are withdrawing from Cuba ahead of a June 5 deadline for compliance with the executive order. Spanish hotel operators Iberostar and Meliá, Canadian mining giant Sherritt International, shipping firms CMA CGM and Hapag-Lloyd, and airlines including Air Canada have suspended or scaled back operations in the country. Foreign companies face exclusion from the U.S. financial system if they continue doing business with GAESA after the deadline.
Ukrainian drone strikes kill seven on bus in Donetsk: A Ukrainian drone strike killed at least seven people and wounded 11 on a bus traveling through Russian-controlled Donetsk on Wednesday, Al Jazeera reports. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also confirmed additional overnight strikes on the Petersburg Oil Terminal, a weapons facility in the Tambov region, and military targets at the Kronstadt base.
Tribal fighting in South Darfur kills at least 50 civilians: At least 50 civilians have been killed in clashes between the Salamat and Beni Halba tribes in South Darfur’s Kubum area since May 23, including approximately 21 people—among them women and children—killed in a drone strike launched from Nyala, according to a local community leader, the Sudan Tribune reported. The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has been accused of backing one of the tribes with combat vehicles and drones, though both tribes had previously pledged allegiance to the group.
Sudanese Sovereign Council Chairman and Armed Forces Commander-in-Chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan held unannounced talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Ankara on Tuesday, with official state media having not disclosed his departure from Sudan in advance. The two leaders discussed bilateral cooperation and regional issues, according to a brief statement from the Sovereign Council’s media office.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio publicly described Sudan’s conflict as a “proxy war” on Tuesday, noting that two U.S. allies, the UAE and Saudi Arabia, are backing opposing sides in the war. This is the first acknowledgment by the Trump administration that the UAE is supporting a party to the conflict. The admission comes despite years of reporting and United Nations findings that the UAE has provided military and financial support to the Rapid Support Forces, the paramilitary group credibly accused of genocide and crimes against humanity.
Trump endorses far-right Colombian presidential candidate: President Donald Trump on Tuesday endorsed far-right candidate Abelardo de la Espriella in Colombia’s June 21 presidential runoff, calling him a “smart, strong, and tough leader” and describing his opponent, leftist Senator Iván Cepeda, as a “radical left Marxist.” The country’s incumbent president, Gustavo Petro, swiftly condemned the endorsement as a threat to Colombian sovereignty, invoking the country’s founding fathers and writing that “when a country interferes in the decisions of another country, freedom dies.”
Bolivia’s defense and education ministers resign: Bolivian Defense Minister Marcelo Salinas and Education Minister Beatriz Garcia resignedTuesday amid a month of anti-government protests. The protesters have called upon center-right President Rodrigo Paz to roll back austerity measures and address rising living costs in the country. The resignations mark the highest-level departures yet under Paz as he considers implementing a state of emergency to bring an end to the widespread protests.
Sexual torture, starvation, and TB reported in Ecuador’s military-run prisons: One inmate died every seven hours over the past year in Ecuador’s military-controlled prisons—surpassing death rates from the era of cartel control—with reports of sexual torture, mass starvation, physical abuse, and tuberculosis emerging from facilities that also hold political detainees. The U.S. has recently expanded its security cooperation with the Ecuadorian government, with the Pentagon transferring weapons and deploying military personnel to the country earlier this year.
Tunisian court sentences opposition leader Rached Ghannouchi to life in prison plus 30 years: A Tunis court on Tuesday sentencedEnnahdha party leader and former parliamentary speaker Rached Ghannouchi to life imprisonment plus 30 years on terrorism-related charges in the so-called “secret apparatus” case, which stems from accusations linking his Islamist party to the 2013 assassinations of leftist politicians Chokri Belaid and Mohamed Brahmi. Twenty-four alleged co-conspirators received sentences related to the case, 11 of which were life sentences.
Trump administration proposes 25% tariff on Brazilian imports: U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer announced a proposed 25 percent tariff on Brazilian imports under Section 301 of the Trade Act of 1974 late on Monday, alleging unfair practices on the part of Brazil, including illegal deforestation, ethanol market access restrictions, and anticorruption enforcement failures. The tariff was announced despite recent data showing that the U.S. had a $420 million trade surplus with Brazil in March. The newest tariffs would partially replace a 50 percent levy imposed on Brazilian goods last year.
U.S. sanctions Congolese militia leaders: The U.S. Treasury Department on Tuesday announced sanctions on M23 intelligence chief John Imani Nzenze and FDLR commander Gustave Kubwayo, high-profile leaders of armed groups on opposing sides of the ongoing conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. Nzenze’s M23 has reportedly received Rwandan backing, and the FDLR, a Hutu militia, has been active since that country’s 1994 genocide. Fighting in the country has continued despite U.S. attempts at mediation.
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