Friday, Apr 03rd
Last update07:42:12 AM GMT
Aero Sol’s systems are used across Israel’s defense sector, making the plant a significant node in Israel’s military drone production network.
The company produces a family of four tactical drone platforms built for reconnaissance, intelligence, and surveillance missions, and also manufactures composite components for major Israeli defense programs including parts used in F-15 and F-16 fighter jet pilot helmets.
More than 100 US-based international law experts have warned that the US-Israeli war on Iran raises “profound concern” over potential violations of international law.
In a letter published by the Just Security Forum, the signatories said the campaign may breach the UN Charter and raised concerns about possible violations of human rights and humanitarian law, including potential war crimes.
The letter pointed to growing civilian harm, environmental damage and wider regional risks.
It also criticised US officials’ focus on “lethality”, warning such rhetoric could undermine global norms protecting civilians.
The Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) in March liberated a bit more territory held by enemy forces than it lost to Russia, according to compiled data made public by the AFU on Wednesday and reviewed independently.
Ukrainian troops in March in battles across the Russo-Ukraine War’s 1,200-kilometer (745-mile) fighting front scored a net gain of 27 square kilometers (10.4 square miles) more ground recaptured from Russian forces, for the first time since at least October, a March 31 review published by the Washington D.C.-based Institute for the Study of War said. The finding tallied with Kyiv Post research during the month.
The finding that Ukraine has actually shifted combat dynamics to the point where its forces have the initiative and are making net ground gains against Russia was noted by Ukraine’s army commander General Oleksandr Syrsky in comments to ICTV television on Tuesday. In an hour-long interview, Syrsky said that since late January, his troops have been advancing slowly but continuously, with local counterattacks in the southern Olesandrivka-Zaporizhzhia sectors scoring the biggest successes.
More than 10,000 veterans lost their homes to foreclosure since May of last year, when the Trump administration shut down a key safety net in the VA home loan program, according to the latest industry data. That is the highest pace of foreclosures for VA loans in a decade.
Another 90,000 vets are heading toward foreclosure. This comes after a years-long debacle inside the Department of Veterans Affairs has whiplashed thousands of vets between various enacted and canceled programs and left many of them on the brink of losing their homes — often through no fault of their own.
A loan backed by the VA is considered one of the most valuable benefits for military service members and has helped millions achieve homeownership. But for nearly a year now, vets have had worse protections and options than most other homeowners if they fall behind.
" We should have something in place to try to stem people from losing their homes," said Steve Sharpe, an attorney with the nonprofit National Consumer Law Center.
Responding to public health concerns about microplastics and pharmaceuticals in the nation's drinking water, the Trump administration for the first time has placed them on a draft list of contaminants maintained by the Environmental Protection Agency.
The EPA announced the move Thursday, touting it as a "historic step" for the Make America Healthy Again, or MAHA, movement, which often raises concerns about toxic chemicals and plastic pollution in our food and environment.
"This is a direct response to the concern of millions of Americans, who have long demanded answers about what they and their families are drinking every day," EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a briefing Thursday.
Also Thursday, the Department of Health and Human Services announced a $144 million initiative, called STOMP, to develop tools to measure and monitor microplastics in drinking water and in a later stage, to remove them.
The president of Wisconsin’s largest mosque was detained by federal immigration agents, drawing accusations from local officials and religious leaders that the arrest was motivated by his statements against Israel.
Salah Sarsour, a Palestinian-born legal permanent resident of the United States, was taken into custody by nearly a dozen US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on Monday in Milwaukee after he left his home, according to the Islamic Society of Milwaukee.
Supporters called for his immediate release on Thursday and his attorneys said he was detained on the grounds that he is a foreign policy threat. His attorneys say the claims have no merit.
Instead, they believe Sarsour, 53, was targeted for speaking out against Israel and for a conviction as a minor by Israeli military courts, which have faced scrutiny over allegations of limited due process and high conviction rates of Palestinians. Israel rejects those claims. The offenses included allegedly throwing rocks at Israeli officers, according to attorney Munjed Ahmad.
The firing of Attorney General Pam Bondi, who received widespread criticism for her handling of the Jeffrey Epstein files, was celebrated Thursday by the sexual predator’s surviving victims, who have long felt Bondi could be more transparent about their cases.
Marina Lacerda, one of the survivors, shared a news article about Bondi’s firing on her Instagram stories, writing, “WE KNEW IT WOULD COME DOWN TO THIS.”
She also shared a satirical reel from the Instagram account @mermaidmamamaggie that poked fun at all the names Bondi had redacted from the Epstein files.
“What? You’re firing me,” the comedian said in the reel, posing as Bondi talking to President Donald Trump. “But I’ve done everything you’ve asked, sir. I’ve ignored the facts, buried the evidence, and I even learned how to say ‘no comment’ in five different tones of panic.”
Amanda and Sky Roberts — the family of Epstein survivor Virginia Roberts Giuffre, who died by suicide last year — said in a statement to independent journalist Aaron Parnas that they hope Bondi “has the courage” to “do right by survivors.”
Roughly half of Iran’s missile launchers are still intact and thousands of one-way attack drones remain in Iran’s arsenal despite the daily pounding by US and Israeli strikes against military targets over the past five weeks, according to recent US intelligence assessments, three sources familiar with the intel told CNN.
“They are still very much poised to wreak absolute havoc throughout the entire region,” one of the sources said of Iran.
The US intelligence assessment total may include launchers that are currently inaccessible, such as those buried underground by strikes but not destroyed.
Thousands of Iranian drones still exist — roughly 50% of the country’s drone capabilities — two of the sources said the intelligence indicated. The intelligence, compiled in recent days, also showed a large percentage of Iran’s coastal defense cruise missiles were intact, the sources said, consistent with the US not focusing its air campaign on coastal military assets though they have been hitting ships. Those missiles serve as a key capability allowing Iran to threaten shipping traffic in the Strait of Hormuz.
The intelligence offers a more nuanced picture of Iran’s continuing capabilities compared to sweeping assessments of military victory offered publicly by President Donald Trump and administration officials.
The U.S. is sending thousands of additional U.S. service members to the Middle East aboard the aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush, even as President Trump on Wednesday claimed Iran has asked the U.S. for a ceasefire.
The George H.W. Bush deployed Tuesday en route to the Middle East along with three destroyers, a carrier strike group that consists of more than 6,000 sailors, two U.S. officials told The Associated Press.
The new deployment follows the Trump administration’s decision to send 2,500 Marines and 2,000 paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division to the region last week. Officihttps://thehill.com/policy/defense/5810825-us-sends-troops-middle-east/?tbref=hpals have not disclosed what those troops would be doing.
The Pentagon and U.S. Central Command, the military command that oversees troops in the Middle East, did not immediately respond to questions on the deployments from The Hill.
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