The United States will deploy a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East and keep the one that is already positioned there in place, the Pentagon said on Tuesday. The Harry S. Truman carrier strike group, which is already stationed in the region, will be joined by the Carl Vinson carrier strike group, “to continue promoting regional stability, deter aggression, and protect the free flow of commerce in the region,” the Pentagon said in a statement. The Carl Vinson group will be on its way as soon as it completes a scheduled exercise in the Indo-Pacific. US President Donald Trump stressed on Monday that US air strikes against the Yemen-based Houthis will continue until they are no longer a threat to “Freedom of Navigation.” “To complement the CENTCOM maritime posture, the [Defense] Secretary [Pete Hegseth] also ordered the deployment of additional squadrons and other air assets that will further reinforce our defensive air-support capabilities,” the Pentagon statement reads.
Israel’s military has bombed the Lebanese capital, Beirut, for the second time in a week, killing at least three people and threatening the ceasefire it agreed with Hezbollah four months ago. The attack on Beirut’s Dahiyeh suburb, early on Tuesday morning, came without warning and wounded at least seven others, according to the Lebanese Ministry of Health. The Israeli military said in a statement that it had attacked a Hezbollah member who had been helping the Palestinian group Hamas in the Gaza Strip in attacks against Israeli civilians. It said the air raid was “under the direction of the Shin Bet”, Israel’s domestic intelligence agency.There was no immediate comment from Hezbollah. Lebanon’s President Joseph Aoun condemned the attack, calling it a “dangerous warning” of intentions against his country. “Israel’s persistence in its aggression requires more effort from us in addressing Lebanon’s friends around the world and rallying them in support of our right to full sovereignty over our land,” Aoun said in a statement released by the Lebanese presidency.
Videos of the aftermath of the attack showed plumes of smoke rising from Dahiyeh.
They also showed damage to the top three floors of an apartment building and piles of debris covering cars below the structure.
The latest attack came three days after Israeli forces bombed Beirut for the first time since the ceasefire deal with Hezbollah in November.
That agreement, guaranteed by France and the United States, brought a halt to a yearlong conflict and mandated that Israeli ground troops withdraw from southern Lebanon. It also called for Hezbollah fighters to withdraw from southern Lebanon and that Lebanese troops deploy to the area. Israel, however, delayed a promised troop withdrawal in January and has continued to occupy several hilltops in Lebanon. It has also carried out near-daily attacks on the country, claiming its targets are Hezbollah fighters and weapons. It launched the attack on Beirut on Friday, saying they were in response to rockets fired from Lebanon. Hezbollah has denied any involvement in the rocket firings. Its leader, Sheikh Naim Kassem, also warned on Saturday that if Israel’s attacks on Lebanon continued and if Lebanon’s government does not act to stop them, the group would eventually resort to other alternatives. Analysts blamed Israel’s continued attacks on Lebanon on a lack of action from the US.
Phyllis Bennis, a fellow with the Institute for Policy Studies, told Al Jazeera that the Trump administration has effectively greenlighted Israel’s attacks on Lebanon, as well as in Gaza and Syria.
“There’s no question that the Trump administration has made very clear that they will not criticise Israel. They will not stop sending the weapons that enable it to continue these attacks,” she said from Washington, DC. “What we’re seeing now is really an extension of the genocidal war that Israel has been waging in Gaza, to Lebanon, where they’re not only carrying out the attacks in the capital, but have expanded the former UN buffer zone,” she said.
Israel has now “unilaterally collapsed the ceasefire” in Lebanon, but Bennis said both France and the US – the guarantors of the deal – have stood back and let the Israeli assaults continue, without taking any punitive action.
NN: This is past of all hell breaking loose. Called the warm up
United States President Donald Trump has expressed his frustration with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin as he believes the latter is “slow-rolling comprehensive ceasefire talks,” Fox News reported on Tuesday, citing sources. According to the sources, due to such behavior, the Trump administration is mulling “aggressive” sanctions enforcement that would affect Russia’s “shadow fleet,” among other things. The sources explained that the sanctions enforcement is currently “low,” more specifically “level 3 out of 10.” The sources went on to say that some 70% of Russia’s illegal oil sales are done with the use of the “shadow fleet.”
United States President Donald Trump said on Monday that the “Iran-backed Houthi Terrorists” have been “decimated” over the past two weeks amid “relentless” attacks. “Many of their Fighters and Leaders are no longer with us. We hit them every day and night — Harder and harder,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social, insisting that the militant group’s capabilities are being destroyed “rapidly.” Washington’s strikes on Houthis will continue until they are no longer a threat to “Freedom of Navigation,” the US head of state underlined. As soon as they stop shooting the US ships, the country will stop its attacks, Trump explained. Should the militant group decide to continue with its strikes, however, “the real pain” will come, he warned.
President Trump has threatened Russia with new oil tariffs if it obstructs cease-fire initiatives in Ukraine and has also pressured Ukrainian President Zelenskyy to finalize a rare earth minerals deal with the United States.
Ukraine is considering the US draft agreement on rare earth minerals, but internal consensus is needed before making a final decision, as these minerals are crucial for defense and technology.
Amidst diplomatic efforts for a cease-fire, Ukraine has accused Russia of war crimes, citing attacks on civilian targets, including a military hospital, and calls for tougher sanctions and more air defense capabilities. US President Donald Trump threatened Russia with new tariffs on oil products if Moscow blocks his cease-fire initiatives, while he also said Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelenskyy faces “big, big problems” if he doesn’t sign a key minerals deal with Washington. “He’s trying to back out of the rare earth deal, and if he does that he’s got some problems, big, big problems,” Trump told reporters on March 30 in reference to the Ukrainian president. “We made a deal on rare earth. And now he’s saying, well you know, I want to renegotiate the deal.” “He wants to be a member of NATO, but he’s never going to be a member of NATO. He understands that,” Trump added. On March 28, the Ukrainian government said it was still considering a draft agreement from the United States on the country’s rare earth minerals amid media reports Washington had changed the terms of the deal several times. Ukrainian Economy Minister Yulia Svyrydenko announced at a government meeting that Kyiv was forming its position on the agreement, but lawmakers would only state their stance once there was consensus. Before then, she said, public discussion would be harmful. Ukraine possesses significant deposits of critical minerals, including rare earths, although their exact size remains uncertain. Rare earth minerals are highly valued for their use in defense technologies, as well as in devices such as computers, smartphones, and batteries. Ukraine and the United States earlier this month agreed to conclude a comprehensive agreement for developing Ukraine’s critical mineral resources. Efforts to seal the deal had earlier fallen apart on February 28 after a heated exchange between Trump and Zelenskyy at the White House. Meanwhile, earlier on March 30, Trump said he would impose secondary tariffs of 25-50 percent on all Russian oil if he feels President Vladimir Putin is blocking his efforts to end the war in Ukraine. During a phone interview with NBC news, Trump said he was “very angry” and “pissed off” when Putin called for a transitional government to be put in place in Ukraine, which could effectively push out Zelenskyy. “If Russia and I are unable to make a deal on stopping the bloodshed in Ukraine, and if I think it was Russia’s fault — which it might not be — but if I think it was Russia’s fault, I am going to put secondary tariffs on oil, on all oil coming out of Russia,” Trump said. “That would be that if you buy oil from Russia, you can’t do business in the United States,” Trump said. “There will be a 25 percent tariff on all oil, a 25- to 50-point tariff on all oil.” Trump added that the trade measures would be put in place within a month if no cease-fire agreement is reached. The highly sensitive diplomatic juncture comes after the White House announced on March 25 that both Russia and Ukraine agreed to a cease-fire and to allow navigation in Black Sea, as well an agreement to not strike each other energy facilities. Kyiv says that it would take effect immediately and Moscow has stated that it would follow the partial lifting of sanctions pertaining to Russian companies and banks involved in the international food trade.
Tougher Tone Toward Putin
The comments by Trump mark a shift from the softer approach the White House had taken toward Russia since the US president made ending the war in Ukraine a top foreign policy priority. They also come after he had previously criticized Zelenskyy, saying he was “sick” of his handling of the war and called him a “dictator without elections.” Trump told NBC that he will speak with Putin during this week.Meanwhile, in his nightly video address on March 30, Zelenskyy said “Russia’s response to the American proposition of unconditional cease-fire are drones, bombs, artillery shelling, ballistic missiles on a daily basis. Putin is demonstrating that he doesn’t give a damn about diplomacy.” “What is needed are tougher sanctions against Russia, more air-defense capabilities for Ukraine, and more unity among our partners,” Zelenskyy added. Amid the US-led diplomatic efforts to reach a cease-fire deal, Kyiv accused Moscow of a “war crime” on March 30 after Russian drones struck a military hospital. The overnight strike hit Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, as part of an attack that also hit a shopping center, apartment blocks, and other targets, killing at least two people according to authorities. The Ukrainian military’s general staff accused Russia of “violating the norms of international humanitarian law” in the attack, which they denounced as “deliberate, targeted shelling.” They added on March 30 that casualties included soldiers undergoing treatment in the medical center. In total, Ukrainian authorities said that the overnight attacks killed at least two people and injured 26 others across the country. The Ukrainian president added that “for too long,” a US proposal for an unconditional cease-fire has been on the table “without a proper response from Russia. That says a lot.”
The price of oil futures jumped on Monday, with both West Texas Intermediate (WTI) and Brent reaching their highest point since late February, with worries on the supply side growing. Recently, United States President Donald Trump warned that he would slap additional tariffs on Russian crude if Russian President Vladimir Putin continues to stall negotiations to end the war in Ukraine. WTI for May deliveries soared 2.41% at 11:45 am ET, going for $71.27 per barrel. Brent, for the same month settlements, advanced by 1.34% a minute later, selling at $74.71 a barrel.
Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmail Baghaei took to X on Monday to denounce the United States after President Donald Trump threatened to bomb his country, warning of “consequences” if Washington resorts to force. “An open threat of bombing by a Head of State against Iran is a shocking affront to the very essence of International Peace and Security. It violates the United Nations Charter and betrays the Safeguards under the IAEA [International Atomic Energy Agency]. Violence breeds violence, peace begets peace,” he wrote. Earlier, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the US would receive a “strong response” if it attacked his country.
French oil company Etablissements Maurel et Prom S.A., better known as Maruel & Prom and M&P, confirmed on Monday that the United States Treasury Department Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) revoked the licence given to the company to operate in Venezuela, effective May 27. “M&P is currently assessing the implications of this decision in close consultation with its legal advisors. The Group remains actively engaged with US authorities and continues to monitor the situation as it develops,” the enterprise’s statement read. “It is M&P’s understanding that this action is part of a broader initiative by OFAC affecting both US and international oil companies operating in Venezuela under similar authorisations, pending a possible agreement between the US and Venezuela as the situation continues to evolve.” The statement came after the US revoked the licenses of foreign oil companies operating in Venezuela. Caracas dismissed the decision as illegal and said it is ready to continue cooperating with those firms.
nn: now add russia and iran in essence embargos and you got a oil supply crises building
The prices of most precious metals surged on Monday, with gold hitting a fresh all-time high, as market participants sought refuge in the safe-haven asset amid fears that US President Donald Trump’s proposed trade measures would escalate international trade tensions. He intends to announce a fresh set of reciprocal tariffs on April 2. Furthermore, Trump pledged to implement hefty financial sanctions on Russian oil imports unless Moscow agrees to a Ukraine ceasefire agreement within the coming month. Over the weekend, the American leader also said he “couldn’t care less” if foreign automakers raise prices due to tariffs, further propelling the metals rally.
Gold added 1.30% at 5:24 am ET, going for $3,123.21. At the same time, silver improved by 0.86%, selling at $34.39. Platinum gained 0.78%, going for $993.32, while palladium was 0.94% up, trading at $970.19.
nn: sucker play…… suckering in the stupid money….a great short is forming!!
Trumps latest comments came during a interview with NBC News on Saturday evening. During the interview, Trump threatened “bombing” and “secondary tariffs” on Iran if the country did not make a deal with the U.S. to ensure it did not develop a nuclear weapon. “If they don’t make a deal,” Trump said about Iran, “there will be bombing. It will be bombing the likes of which they have never seen before.” U.S. and Iranian officials are “talking,” Trump said. However, in a statement on Sunday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said he rejected direct negotiations with the U.S. over its nuclear program, in the country’s first response to a letter sent by Trump to the Islamic Republic’s supreme leader.
