US Forces No Longer Allowed Into Strait of Hormuz – Iranian Army Commander

US Forces No Longer Allowed Into Strait of Hormuz – Iranian Army Commander

Sputnik

The United States has no right of passage through the Strait of Hormuz or access to the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman, while control of Hormuz is a necessary condition for ending the military conflict with Washington, Iranian Army Commander Major General Amir Hatami said on Sunday.

“US forces have been expelled and are no longer permitted to enter the Persian Gulf, the Gulf of Oman, or the Strait of Hormuz. Everyone should understand that American bases will never be able to return to their previous state, and Iran will never allow that to happen,” Hatami said as cited by Iran’s state broadcaster IRIB.

He also stressed that the Strait of Hormuz represents a geopolitical opportunity for Iran and that the situation in the waterway will never return to what it was before.

“This leverage [the Strait of Hormuz] is one of the necessary conditions for ending the war with the United States,” Hatami added.

Earlier, Saudi broadcaster Al-Hadath reported that Iran and Oman had reached an agreement on the full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz to shipping, pending approval by Iran’s Supreme National Security Council. According to the channel, the agreement is expected to be officially announced in the coming days.

In recent weeks, Washington and Tehran, with the involvement of Middle Eastern mediators, have been trying to agree on the terms of a new deal to end the conflict. On August 9, US President Donald Trump said Washington was conducting negotiations with Tehran only “half-heartedly,” while claiming that Iran’s economic situation was deteriorating.

EU Net Zero Regulations Are Killing Off Agriculture

Dutch farmers rolled up with HUNDREDS of tractors to protest the government trying to shut down 5 poultry farms.

—The Whatfinger  News Team: Alex and Luke

Dutch farmers rolled up with HUNDREDS of tractors to protest the government trying to shut down 5 poultry farms. Their excuse? “Too much nitrogen.” These farms had valid permits and followed the rules… Now the province wants to strip them because of EU-driven nature regulations that treat farmers like environmental criminals. Dutch agriculture has been suffocating under this kind of regulatory overreach for years. Brussels writes the rules, local politicians enforce them, and working farmers get screwed… Writer: Sol – Mario Nawfal Post

Hundreds of Dutch farmers rolled into Den Bosch this past Friday with tractors, blocking roads and surrounding the provincial government building. Their target: North Brabant’s plan to revoke nature permits for five poultry farms over “too much nitrogen.” These farms held valid permits and followed the rules. The province wants to strip them anyway because they sit near protected Natura 2000 areas. Brussels writes the nitrogen rules. Local politicians enforce them. Working farmers get the bill.

This is not an isolated spat. It is the latest chapter in the European Union’s long campaign to shrink, regulate, and ultimately break independent farming under the banner of climate and nature protection. The Dutch nitrogen crisis has already forced hundreds of livestock operations off the land through buyout schemes. Government packages still aim for deep cuts in agricultural nitrogen emissions—figures in the 42-46% range by the early 2030s—while courts and Brussels pressure keep the pressure on. Farmers Defence Force and other groups keep the tractors rolling because the alternative is watching family businesses get legislated out of existence.

The same script played out in 2024 and 2025 with tractor blockades from the Netherlands to France, Belgium, Germany, and the streets outside the European Parliament. The stated reasons were the Green Deal and Farm to Fork strategy: slash pesticide use, cut fertilizer, force land out of production, shrink livestock herds, and hit ambitious nutrient-loss targets. When the political cost became too high, Brussels walked back some of the most aggressive pesticide targets. The underlying machinery—Nitrates Directive limits, Natura 2000 designations, emissions trading pressure, and the push for “nature restoration”—never went away. Dutch farmers still face manure limits, permit uncertainty, and the threat of more buyouts. Irish plans once floated large-scale cow culls. Elsewhere the squeeze continues through regulation, subsidy conditions, and import competition that ignores the same standards European producers must meet.

Call it environmental policy if you want. The practical effect is fewer farms, higher costs, greater reliance on imports from countries that do not play by the same rules, and more power concentrated in the hands of unelected officials and activist NGOs. Productive land is treated as a problem to be managed rather than the foundation of food security and rural communities. When governments offer “generous” buyouts, the message is clear: exit the industry on our terms or get regulated into failure.

The climate and biodiversity language is cover. The operating theory is central planning dressed up as planetary emergency. Reduce domestic production capacity, control the remaining operators through permits and targets, open the door to favored global supply chains, and call the whole process “justice.” Traditional farming families—independent, rooted, skeptical of urban ideology—are obstacles to that vision. Nitrogen becomes the new lever. Livestock becomes the villain. Family land becomes a resource to be reallocated.

This is the same impulse that treats energy production, housing, and free speech as threats to be managed by experts. In the EU it runs through Brussels first. Member-state politicians then do the dirty work while pretending their hands are tied. Farmers who followed every rule suddenly discover the rules can be rewritten after the fact. Valid permits become temporary favors. Public support for the protests shows ordinary people see through the theater.

America should pay attention. The same network of foundations, bureaucrats, and activists pushes similar land-use, emissions, and “sustainable” food agendas here. The difference is that American farmers still have political room to fight, and voters in farm country have repeatedly rejected the full package. Europe is the live demonstration of what happens when those restraints disappear: tractor convoys, empty barns, and officials insisting the destruction is for the greater good.

Dutch farmers are not anti-nature. They are against being sacrificed so that distant policymakers can claim moral victory while food security and rural economies erode. The nitrogen numbers are real. The selective enforcement, the moving targets, and the refusal to treat agriculture as a strategic asset rather than a pollution source reveal the priorities. When the same institutions that lecture about food systems quietly accept lower production and higher import dependence, the environmental concern is secondary.

The tractors in Den Bosch are a reminder. European farmers keep showing up because the alternative is quiet extinction by regulation. The woke green project has never been about saving the planet. It is about who controls the land, the food, and the people who produce it. The Dutch farmers just refused to go quietly this week. More will follow.

Hezbollah awaits green light from Tehran to escalate Lebanon-Israel tensions

Hezbollah awaits green light from Tehran to escalate Lebanon-Israel tensions

Shachar Kleiman

A Lebanese source said Sunday that Hezbollah is deliberately seeking to derail direct negotiations between Israel and Lebanon, claiming the terrorist organization is stepping up its military activity while awaiting a green light from Iran to escalate further.

Lebanese newspaper Nidaa al-Watan cited a local political source as warning of Hezbollah's plans. The source said the organization was trying to disrupt the US-sponsored negotiations and was waiting for instructions from Tehran before broadening the military confrontation, against the backdrop of tensions between Iran and the US administration.

According to the Lebanese source, the current escalation in southern Lebanon is opening the door to dangerous scenarios that could lead to renewed war and the collapse of diplomatic talks. At the same time, the source also pointed a finger at Israel, claiming Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was seeking a military achievement on the southern Lebanon front. The source claimed Netanyahu's goal was to improve his political standing ahead of the upcoming Israeli elections and to use developments on the ground to pressure the Lebanese side in the negotiations.

Meanwhile, Lebanese security officials told the Saudi-owned Asharq Al-Awsat that any Hezbollah attempt to repel the IDF's advance in the Ali al-Taher Ridge area would likely be met with an expansion of Israeli strikes deeper into Lebanon. The officials said the aim was to increase pressure on both Hezbollah and the Lebanese state. They added that Lebanon continued to maintain that the ceasefire should be consolidated and that additional pilot zones should be designated for an IDF withdrawal.

The warnings came after a tense weekend in southern Lebanon. Three IDF soldiers were seriously wounded Saturday when an explosive drone launched by Hezbollah struck a force operating in the Ali al-Taher Ridge area, in violation of the ceasefire. In response, the IDF struck a series of targets, including a Hezbollah headquarters from which the attack order had been issued. In one strike in the Deir al-Zahrani area, Abu Hassan Alaa, a senior commander in Hezbollah's Badr Unit, was killed.

Following the attack on the soldiers, the Prime Minister's Office issued an unusual English-language statement accusing Hezbollah of using civilians as human shields, after Lebanese authorities reported that 11 people had been killed in the Israeli strikes. The United States backed Israel, with a State Department spokesperson saying Hezbollah bore sole responsibility for the Israeli military presence on Lebanese soil and that the terrorist organization must be disarmed to ensure long-term stability.

Hamas, Hezbollah coordinating attacks with Iran as IDF warns of rebuilt ‘axis of evil’

Hamas, Hezbollah coordinating attacks with Iran as IDF warns of rebuilt ‘axis of evil’

AMIR BOHBOT

Hamas and Hezbollah have begun coordinating their increased activity with Iranian assistance in recent weeks, the IDF has assessed, as the military has identified increased friction between Israeli forces and terrorists on both the northern and southern fronts.

The IDF has expressed that the coordination is likely an effort to rebuild its axis of evil that would increase pressure on Israel.

According to a military source, a ‘battle of wits’ is taking place around the Ali Taher ridge between the Northern Command and Hezbollah. 

The terrorist organization is trying to determine where IDF troops are positioned, and when it detects movement, it attempts to attack in a "gray area," as it did early Saturday morning with a fiber-optic drone. Three soldiers from the IDF's Yahalom special engineering unit, operating under the Commando Brigade combat team, were wounded as a result.

At the same time, according to reports, Hezbollah is attempting to resupply its operatives who are trapped in underground infrastructure. The IDF, meanwhile, is trying to locate Hezbollah infrastructure and terrorists on the Ali Taher ridge and destroy them.

"Whoever comes out of the underground and surrenders will be taken for questioning in Israel, and whoever remains underground will either die, or we will kill him," a senior military source said.

The Northern Command is also conducting a complex intelligence effort to locate all hidden supply routes and drone activity intended to resupply Hezbollah operatives in the area.

"We are blocking access to the area where they are located. They will not be able to hold out forever," a senior military source familiar with the details said.

According to reports, the operatives have been emerging from underground to search for food.

"What happened on Saturday was that they exposed us with a drone. Whoever is more determined will win. A lot of patience is needed," the source added.

In response, the IDF struck in the Nabatieh area and within territory under the IDF's operational control. Beirut and senior officials from the Shi'ite organization who are hiding there have remained off-limits due to a US demand.

Terry James: God Restrains while Punditry Complains

God Restrains while Punditry Complains

Terry James

President Trump showed beyond any question that he would use the American military to, as he put it, “obliterate” Iran’s nuclear development facility. Operation Midnight Hammer did just that apparently, despite pundits and news sources on the left offering their doubts about the destruction Trump proclaimed.

Therefore, knowing this president’s proclivity to deliver on what he promises—he has proved this many times—the question arises: Why does he keep holding off finishing the job of destroying Iran’s war-making ability? Why does he keep going back to the negotiation table time after time when the Iranian regime reneges on agreements about giving up their nuclear program and continue to assault shipping in the Strait of Hormuz?

It could be conjectured that this incongruity is because Mr. Trump is a master negotiator; after all, he wrote and has lived his book, The Art of the Deal. He likely believes he can work around the Iranian regime negotiators’ lies and deception. He thinks, I imagine, that he can thereby peaceably resolve impending war.

From the biblical prophecy perspective, it seems that he couldn’t be less understanding of what’s ahead for that region of the world and for all of humanity. No matter the results of the endless negotiations or the eventual military action by this president to end Iran’s nuclear ambition and open the Strait of Hormuz, Bible prophecy will prevail. God cannot lie, and His Word on things to come says that Persia will bring a force against Israel. A Persian (Iranian) regime of some sort, hate-filled against Israel, along with the Gog-Magog coalition members, will storm toward Jerusalem. The prophet Ezekiel, in chapters 38–39 of the book by his name, lays out the prophecy.

I will let you look it up.

As of this writing, the situation is that President Trump has decided, despite attacks by Iran on ships passing through the Strait, thus again breaking all negotiation promises, to again refrain from completely destroying Iran’s war-making ability. Here is a report:

President Donald Trump says he has reached the “parameters” of a deal with Middle East allies aimed at ending the Iran war—while for now, holding off on fresh U.S. strikes that could further inflame an already dangerous conflict.

In a Saturday evening post on social media, Trump said that the emerging agreement would include the immediate, complete, and total opening of the Strait of Hormuz, alongside an end to what he described as Iran’s nuclear threat. He said he agreed to cancel attacks “for the future benefit of the WORLD” and “likewise, the survival of a successful and prosperous Iran,” adding that the pause would last only so long as Washington could rapidly make a deal.

Trump’s message also indicated Israel would join the U.S. in pushing to finalize the understanding. Iran, meanwhile, offered no immediate public response.

The announcement marks another sudden turn in a war now about five months old—one that has repeatedly shifted in purpose, timing, and intensity. When the United States and Israel began strikes on Feb. 28, the stated objectives included destroying Iran’s missile capabilities, preventing Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, and ending support for allied armed groups across the region. But the administration’s timeline and operational targets have come under strain, as the conflict has swung between negotiations and escalation. (“Trump Says Mideast Allies Have Reached Outlines of Deal to End Iran War, Says US to Stop New Strikes,” SRN News (AP) August 3, 2026)

Many pundits on the political left, and even those on the right who agree with most of the Trump administration policies, have accused that Mr. Trump is falling prey to Iran’s (Persia’s) legendary ability to outwit those with whom they deal. Others express that the Trump brain trust is just making sure all-out war doesn’t break out just before mid-term elections. This might greatly sway voters to vote against such a war-making president, thus against his party’s candidates for Congress.

My own thinking on this is quite different. I’m of the conviction that at the center of all of this are considerations found within the pre-Trib view of God’s prophetic Word (the view that, incidentally, makes the most sense in the overall prophetic truth I find in the Bible).

In this regard, I have no doubt it is God Himself who is holding things up at this point, in the matter of Trump considering whether to negotiate with or destroy militarily what’s left of Iran’s war-making capability. God, the Holy Spirit, is the Restrainer, God’s Word informs. He—the Restrainer—is holding back the complete destruction of this evil regime. He is doing so for the fulfillment of the entirety of Bible prophecy.

This might seem confusing until one knows and accepts that the God of all Creation is outside time that governs this earthly sphere. He knows the end from the beginning and has, to a large degree, said what will come to pass in the near and distant future.

God has said the Persians (Iranians) will attack His chosen people, Israel. He Himself will destroy all but one-sixth of the Iranian (Persian) force as it comes with the Gog-Magog coalition in that future assault described in the prophetic Word. So, whether those of the current evil regime are in control or a future such regime is formed, an army of Iranians (Persians) will come down over the mountains of Israel from the north They will be, as Mr. Trump would say, “obliterated”—all but totally destroyed by the very hand of Almighty God.

I strongly suspect that this—the restraining hand of God—is at the heart of the incongruency apparent in the Trump-Iranian negotiation/military action matter. Thus so that there will be at least a nucleus of that wicked regime to gather forces when the prophetic timing is in place for the Gog-Magog attack.

This will not be God being complicit in the evil intended by those forces that will come against Israel; rather, it will be proof of His omniscience and His omnipotent control in bringing this world that opposes Him to judgment. The Ezekiel prophecy says that through this God will reveal to the world Who He is:

Thou shalt fall upon the open field: for I have spoken it, saith the Lord GOD. And I will send a fire on Magog, and among them that dwell carelessly in the isles: and they shall know that I am the LORD. (Ezekiel 39:5–6)

King Jesus is the ultimate proof of God’s staying hand of restraint and judgment. Christ will, one millennial day, sit on the throne ruling and reigning for a thousand years. Present-day arrangements are being orchestrated by that restraining hand in preparation for Heaven’s promise as follows:

Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him. (Psalms 2: 6-12)