Feed aggregator

President Donald Trump will commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks at the Pentagon rather than attending the annual ceremony at the World Trade Center site in New York City, according to The New York Times.

Trump had reportedly sought an opportunity to deliver remarks at the Ground Zero ceremony. However, the National September 11 Memorial & Museum has prohibited speeches at the observance since 2012, a policy established to preserve the nonpartisan and solemn character of the event, according to the Times.

Instead, Trump will participate in the Sept. 11 commemoration at the Pentagon, two people familiar with the plans told the newspaper. Vice President JD Vance is expected to represent the White House at the Manhattan ceremony.

The president is scheduled to travel to Ireland the following day to attend a tournament at his golf course there. According to the Times, departing for Ireland from the New York area would create greater disruptions to local air and road traffic than leaving from Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.

Trump most recently attended the Ground Zero commemoration in 2024. During that visit to New York, he also stopped at a city fire station.

“On the 25th anniversary of this tragic day, the president will remember those who were killed at the hands of evil terrorists, honor their loved ones, and pay tribute to the brave first responders who put their lives on the line to rescue their fellow Americans,” Anna Kelly, a spokeswoman for the president, told the Times.

Trump is expected to address those gathered at the Pentagon ceremony, as he did during last year’s 9/11 observance there.

Among those expected to attend the 25th-anniversary ceremony in Manhattan are former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani, Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush and Barack Obama, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and former first lady Laura Bush.

{Matzav.com}

U.S. forces have cleared Iranian sea mines from internationally recognized shipping lanes in the Strait of Hormuz, CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper announced Thursday, marking a significant development in American efforts to keep the vital waterway open while enforcing a naval blockade against Iran.

In an operational update, Cooper said thousands of American servicemembers are simultaneously carrying out the blockade and working to ensure that commercial vessels can continue navigating the strategically crucial Strait.

“We have successfully cleared sea mines in the Strait’s international shipping lanes that were laid months ago by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps,” Cooper said. “Internationally recognized transit routes in the Strait are free of Iranian sea mines thanks to the incredible work of the US military.”

Cooper said the operation brought together Navy divers and Navy SEALs, along with aerial assets belonging to the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps. The mission was carried out under hazardous conditions, he said, but U.S. personnel succeeded in eliminating the mines from the designated shipping routes.

“The circumstances were challenging and dangerous to say the least, but we got the job done,” he said. “Bottom line, today, international shipping lanes are open and momentum is building.”

The routes cleared by American forces are part of the internationally recognized traffic separation system used in the Strait of Hormuz, which organizes ships traveling in opposite directions through the narrow passage.

Cooper said the U.S. military has assisted nearly 1,500 commercial ships in navigating the Strait under coordinated protection in recent months. Collectively, those vessels carried nearly 750 million barrels of crude oil to markets around the world.

Iran, meanwhile, has been prevented from shipping oil from its own shores since the United States resumed its naval blockade in mid-July, according to the CENTCOM commander.

“And while American forces have supported 750 million barrels of crude oil leaving the Gulf, Iran has exported zero oil from its shores since we resumed the naval blockade in mid-July. We have been highly effective,” Cooper said.

Cooper said that no ships have been permitted to enter or leave Iranian ports without U.S. authorization since the blockade resumed, aside from vessels granted exceptions for humanitarian purposes.

The operation has involved thousands of U.S. servicemembers, more than 20 warships and hundreds of aircraft. Cooper said American forces have forced 75 vessels attempting to violate the blockade to turn around and disabled three others after they refused to comply with U.S. instructions.

Cooper commended the American personnel participating in the mission and said CENTCOM remains fully committed to carrying out its objectives.

“We remain vigilant, lethal, and resolved,” he said.

The CENTCOM commander also said he recently traveled to the region, where he met with American servicemembers directly involved in the ongoing operations.

“I just could not be prouder of their efforts, and I know that the American people share that same pride,” Cooper said. He concluded by calling on U.S. personnel to remain ready for what comes next and to continue looking out for one another.

{Matzav.com}

The Trump administration has rejected the possibility of returning to the preliminary agreement reached with Iran in June, according to a new report, as the White House says there are currently no negotiations taking place between Washington and Tehran.

The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday, citing people familiar with the matter, that the administration has declined to revive the June framework, creating another obstacle to efforts to restart diplomatic negotiations with the Islamic Republic.

The report emerged as White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt publicly confirmed that Washington and Tehran are not presently holding talks.

Appearing on Fox News on Thursday, Leavitt said, “There are currently no negotiations happening,” while emphasizing that “all options remain on the table.”

The administration’s position comes after President Donald Trump said a day earlier that he has established no deadline for ending the conflict with Iran and is prepared to allow the confrontation to continue for as long as he believes necessary.

During an interview with Al Jazeera, Trump said he was “not in a hurry” to return to the negotiating table with Tehran, adding: “I have no time schedule, none.”

The president said the two principal forms of pressure Washington has employed against the Islamic Republic — economic measures and military force — had been “both effective.”

Trump also described Iran as facing an increasingly severe economic crisis, pointing to “massive inflation” and saying its economy was “falling apart.” He additionally accused the Iranian regime of “treating their people very badly, they are killing many, many protesters.”

On Thursday, Trump pushed back against reports claiming that he is attempting to arrange a meeting with Iranian officials to reach a new agreement. The president said it is Iran, rather than the United States, that is seeking a return to negotiations.

“Jonathan Hunt of FoxNews did a particularly inaccurate report on the Failing Islamic Republic of Iran. I don’t want to meet, they do. In fact, they are begging to make a deal. Bret Baier should straighten out his flunkies, for a change!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Trump subsequently posted another brief message, declaring, “Iran Is a Failing Nation!”

Efforts to reach a permanent agreement between Washington and Tehran remain at an impasse. Although U.S. military strikes against Iran continued until recently, the administration has increasingly turned its attention to a sweeping campaign of economic pressure. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on Monday announced “Operation Economic Outcast,” an initiative aimed at further isolating Iran economically and choking off sources of revenue that sustain the regime.

The current pause in U.S. military strikes does not mean that Washington has ruled out renewed attacks. U.S. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Monday that military action remains among the options available to the Trump administration.

“By no means are we foreclosing using kinetic strikes anywhere in the Strait of Hormuz or around Iran,” Hegseth told reporters.

Hegseth also argued that the Iranian regime cannot withstand the level of economic pressure the United States is now applying.

{Matzav.com}

LISTEN:

​​For more info, email bitachon4life@gmail.com.

LISTEN: