🇺🇸🇪🇺 USA & EUROPE
ISIS Easter Threat
ISIS told supporters to torch churches and synagogues across USA and Europe over Easter weekend.
The call to action was published on its weekly al-Naba propaganda bulletin.
The threat also pointed at "Jewish gatherings" worldwide.
ISIS says this is a retaliation for Israel's closure of al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem due to security concerns during the military Iran war.
📌 Context. Al-Aqsa is Islam's third-holiest site. Muslims call the hilltop the Noble Sanctuary, while Jewish people call it the Temple Mount.
Although it is administered by an Islamic waqf under Jordanian custodianship, its location in East Jerusalem.
🇺🇳 UNITED NATIONS
Blocked by China, France, Russia
French President Emmanuel Macron (left), Chinese President Xi Jinping (center), and Russian President Vladimir Putin (right).
Arab states pushed a Bahrain-drafted UN resolution to reopen Hormuz by force.
Russia, China, and France blocked that push on April 2.
French President Macron called military reopening "unrealistic."
Bahrain’s initial draft would have allowed countries “to use all necessary means,” but the final draft eliminates any reference to allowing offensive military action.
A vote on the resolution is still set for Saturday, but the math looks bad.
🇨🇺 CUBA
Prisoner Release Push
Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel.
Cuba said on Thursday that it is pardoning and releasing 2,010 prisoners.
This is one of the largest prisoner releases in the country in recent years.
It's still unclear if political prisoners were included, but what's clear is that people convicted of violent crimes weren't eligible.
This comes amid Trump's increased pressure on Cuba.
Such pressure included threatened tariffs on countries supplying oil to Cuba and an effective/de facto oil blockade.
📌 Context. Cuba has been stuck in a severe energy crisis, with fuel shortages and repeated power problems. This prisoner release is the second one this year, after a smaller group of 51 detainees was freed in March.
🇮🇷🇺🇸 IRAN & UNITED STATES
Trump Handed Plan to
Seize Uranium
US President Donald Trump.
TLDR:
^ Trump asked for a plan to grab Iran's enriched uranium.
^ It would mean sending in troops, heavy gear, and air support.
^ The plan could take weeks under fire inside Iran—not a quick raid.
Details
Ask. President Trump was briefed in the past week on an option to seize nearly 1,000 pounds (454 kg) of highly enriched uranium in Iran after he asked for a proposal.
Risk. Former military and defense officials said that this would be one of the most complicated special operations missions the US has ever tried.
Recovering and moving radioactive material inside hostile territory could take weeks or even months.
That said, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said giving the president options does not mean he has decided to do it.
Satellite image of tunnel entrances at the Isfahan missile complex in central Iran on Feb. 27.
Scale. Most of the stockpile is now believed to be outside Isfahan, buried in tunnels more than 300 feet deep, with the rest at Natanz and possibly other sites.
Getting to it would mean excavation equipment, engineers, cargo aircraft, security forces, and likely civilian nuclear specialists.
The uranium is stored in sealed cylinders and still is not weapons grade. It is enriched to about 60%, but still below but close to weapons grade.
However, needless to say, it is extremely dangerous to handle and could contaminate the area if hit directly.
That means breaching teams would have to move slowly, watch for traps, and manage decontamination while also trying not to get killed on the way in or out.
Ground. The likely sequence looks like this:
Start with more strikes on Iranian defenses.
Troops flown or dropped in to secure the area.
Build enough of an airstrip and supply line to keep the whole thing running.
