Mario Nawfal

🇺🇸🇮🇷 Washington has sanctioned Iranian crypto exchange BitBank, saying it processed payments tied to ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz and transferred hundreds of millions of dollars to the IRGC. Treasury says BitBank sits at the center of Iran’s digital sanctions-evasion infrastructure and was used to move payments connected to the Hormuz Safe Marine Services Authority. The exchange is controlled by Babak Zanjani, a longtime sanctions-evasion figure whose death sentence in Iran was later reduced. The interesting part is the plumbing. The battle over Hormuz is not just ships, missiles and insurance anymore. It now runs through crypto rails too. Source: U.S. Treasury, Investing .com, Reuters / Writer: Oliver

🇮🇱 Netanyahu: “𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘮𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘢𝘩 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐 𝘢𝘮 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨. 𝘈 𝘬𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥. 𝘐 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘦𝘥.” Alright folks, we can relax. Bibi's neither the monarch nor the Messiah. Israeli politics remains completely normal. 😐 Writer: Oli t.co/McernU6BGw

🇬🇧 A 14-year sentence for raping two 14-year-old girls is sparking outrage in the UK. Afghan national Sultani Bakatash has been convicted of raping both girls and other sexual offences in Bolton. Police say he groomed one of the girls online before luring her and her friend to his flat. It should be life behind bars. Writer: Lynn t.co/YCuidNi7Ei

🇮🇱🇺🇸 Netanyahu says Israel needs to actively shape American public opinion to preserve and expand U.S. support. “𝘞𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮, 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘮𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘢, 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘴.” The remarkable part is how openly he says it. Influence the audience, influence the media environment, "preserve" the alliance... Writer: Oliver t.co/QK1mAA8G67

🇮🇱🇮🇷 Netanyahu made regime change in Iran his top priority. He says the mission now is to “bring down the Iranian regime,” calling it both his personal mission and Israel’s top objective. Netanyahu has the mission. Washington apparently gets the implementation phase. Writer: Sol t.co/VTmrUrgAKg

🇮🇱🇮🇷 Netanyahu says Israel’s attack on Iran may have saved the country itself. He says Israel acted just in time, claiming that without the attack, there might not have been a State of Israel today. Netanyahu is defending the decision with the biggest possible counterfactual: Israel might otherwise not be here. Writer: Daniyal t.co/d5NIf4PwcH

🇺🇸 Ana Kasparian: “𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘴𝘰 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘊𝘖𝘝𝘐𝘋” Ana says one of the biggest changes in her politics came from realizing how badly she had failed at something more basic: Questioning herself. “𝘐 𝘵𝘰𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘢𝘶𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘳𝘪𝘵𝘺. 𝘐 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘨𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵. 𝘐𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘨 𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦.” Between 2020 and 2022 she stayed inside a left-wing media bubble, failed to seek out competing perspectives and became far too certain that her own side had the facts right. She says she still beats herself up over mistakes she made on air during that period. But the more interesting part is what she says changed afterward. Her media diet widened. She began deliberately seeking debates with people she disagrees with. And she now tries to continually ask herself whether she might be wrong, rather than treating disagreement as proof the other person is malicious or stupid. That is also how she explains something that would have sounded almost absurd 5 years ago: Ana Kasparian now likes Tucker Carlson. She still disagrees with him on plenty, and even criticizes him in this interview for failing to challenge false claims from a guest. But she says she values his willingness to admit past mistakes and believes they can disagree in good faith. There are plenty of people in media willing to explain why everyone else was wrong. Admitting you were one of them is considerably rarer. @AnaKasparian

🇮🇱🇮🇷 Netanyahu on Iran: “𝘞𝘦 𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘶𝘮𝘰𝘳, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦. 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘶𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘢𝘭 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩.” That is a striking way to describe Israel’s approach to the region: not a war with a defined endpoint, but a permanent search for the next threat to cut out. Writer: Oliver t.co/zuuaKQinds

The speed is insane 🤯 Writer: Sol t.co/0CGM21p4vo

🇮🇷 Iran is flexing its gasoline production as fears of a global shortage grow. Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad says the country no longer needs gasoline imports and has already increased domestic output. He says the new Persian Gulf Mehr Refinery should be fully operational by the end of the year, adding even more production capacity. While everyone else worries about supply, Iran says it’s preparing to pump out more. Writer: Sol t.co/5OV24FRTo5

For some people with disabilities, Tesla's FSD is a lot more than a cool feature. It can mean getting to work, visiting family or just going where you need to go without relying on conventional steering. That kind of independence is hard to put a price on. Sometimes the biggest upgrade is simply getting more of your independence back. @Tesla / Writer: Annette, Grok Imagine Designer: Janné

🇺🇸🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia is getting the jet Washington swore only Israel could fly in the Middle East. The State Department has approved a possible $24.3 billion sale of 48 F-35s to the kingdom, its first ever, along with 49 Pratt & Whitney engines, comms gear, spare parts and support, and Congress has been formally notified. Israel has been the only country in the region flying the F-35, protected by a U.S. law that requires Washington to keep Israel's military edge over its neighbors. The State Department insists the sale won't change the military balance in the region. U.S. intelligence has a different worry, warning that China could get its hands on F-35 secrets through Saudi Arabia's defense ties with Beijing. Riyadh still doesn't have formal relations with Israel, and now it's buying the same stealth fighter. Source: Reuters / Writer: Daniyal

🇺🇸 U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright with maybe the most reasonable take on AI lately: "𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘯𝘦𝘸 𝘱𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘵𝘰𝘰𝘭, 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘳𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵𝘧𝘶𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵. 𝘚𝘰 𝘐 𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘥𝘪𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦’𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘴 𝘢𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘪𝘵, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘦-𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘲𝘶𝘪𝘵𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘵 𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴." AI may be the first technology whose sales pitch and warning label are being written at the same time. Writer: Oliver t.co/xPjixXIaZl

🚨🇺🇸 An F-16 has crashed in Blair Township, Michigan. Reports indicate the pilot was able to eject safely. The cause of the crash is still unknown. Writer: Sol t.co/lnVo91EsYj

🇺🇸🇮🇷 Ian Bremmer’s biggest concern in the Iran war is command and control. Washington and Tehran may both want to contain the conflict. That doesn’t mean every decision remains under their control. “𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘢 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘭 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘶𝘱 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘥, 𝘩𝘪𝘵𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢𝘯 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯?” Bremmer points to softer targets such as a major Gulf desalination plant. One mistaken strike could cause mass panic and force political leaders into a response they never intended. The longer the war runs, the more opportunities there are for one decision far below the top to become the decision that changes the entire war. @ianbremmer

🇩🇪 Chancellor Friedrich Merz calls antisemitism the worst form of xenophobia Germany can face given its history. He never thought Jewish people would again become targets of attacks from parts of German society. For Merz, the line is clear: Germany cannot tolerate antisemitic hatred or crimes committed by foreigners. Writer: Daniyal t.co/yuiKYHVwgS

🇺🇸🇮🇷 Trump and Vance have repeatedly suggested the Iran war could end after the midterms. Ian Bremmer doesn’t think that reflects some hidden diplomatic breakthrough. His argument: promising an endpoint after November pushes the reckoning beyond an election increasingly shaped by high fuel prices and a war now stretching beyond six months. Bremmer also sees a deeper political danger for Trump: part of his appeal was precisely that he would keep America out of another prolonged Middle Eastern war. The awkward question is no longer why it hasn’t ended. It’s what actually changes the morning after the midterms. @ianbremmer

🇺🇸 Amazon's own chatbot snitched on Amazon, and now 2 senators want answers. A study from Lina Khan's think tank found that Amazon's Alexa and Walmart's Sparky shopping assistants hide info on American-made products while showing where Chinese and other foreign goods come from. Asked why there's no "Made in USA" filter, Alexa said one would "redirect significant sales away from their largest seller base," meaning overseas manufacturers. The bots can often spot fake "Made in USA" labels too, but neither company uses that to clean up listings, and Sparky blamed weak FTC enforcement when asked why. Senators Tammy Baldwin and Rick Scott are now asking the FTC to investigate both companies, a year after it warned them about the same problem. Source: Reuters / Writer: Daniyal

🇺🇸🇮🇷 Ian Bremmer still doesn’t expect Trump to dramatically escalate the Iran war before November. Afterward, he sees the calculus changing. “𝘊𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘴𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘭 𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱 𝘰𝘧 𝘮𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘜.𝘚. 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘮𝘪𝘥𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘮𝘴? 𝘐 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘬 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘴𝘸𝘦𝘳, 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘴, 𝘺𝘦𝘴.” Bremmer’s reasoning is political: record diesel prices and elevated gasoline prices give Trump little incentive to take additional risks before Americans vote. The midterms may not be an off-ramp for the war. They may simply be the restraint keeping the next escalation on hold. @ianbremmer

🇾🇪🇸🇦 Thousands are fleeing Yemen by sea as fighting between the Houthis and Saudi-backed government forces intensifies. Families arriving in Djibouti described dangerous crossings and the chaos they left behind, with many saying they simply had no safe option left. For civilians, the war is becoming a race to get out before the next round of fighting reaches them. Heartbreaking 💔 Writer: Sol t.co/asWHdfhXme

🇩🇪 Germany’s Chancellor Merz: "𝘓𝘦𝘵’𝘴 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦: 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘰𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘴 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩 𝘢𝘴 𝘯𝘰 𝘨𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘦." A housing crisis, the pension bill for three generations and now a year of compulsory service. The gift basket is extraordinary. Writer: Oliver t.co/XumUvLApIS

🇸🇦🇾🇪 Saudi Arabia went to war with the Houthis. Now it's reportedly asking them for a truce. What has happened in Yemen over the past few days is extraordinary. The Houthis have seized huge amounts of territory, consolidated their position around Bab el-Mandeb and repeatedly attacked Saudi. Riyadh asked Trump for help and got a hard no. It turned to its regional defense partners. Very little arrived. It even went to China, asking Beijing to pressure Iran into restraining the Houthis. And now, according to a report from Al Mayadeen, Saudi has approached the Houthis through Omani mediators seeking a two-week ceasefire. The timing matters. Saudi is also reportedly running low on missile interceptors and has asked Britain, France, Pakistan and Egypt to deploy additional air-defense support. America, its principal military supplier, is facing interceptor pressures of its own after six months of war. So Riyadh now finds itself in an extraordinary position. Unable to defeat the Houthis, or rely on America to do it for them, and increasingly unable to sustain the cost of defending itself from them. It's been a wild week for Riyadh. @WeTheBrandon

🇬🇧🇺🇸 Britain asked Apple to help it snoop on its own people, and Apple walked away. Last year the government quietly ordered Apple to build a backdoor into iCloud, a hidden key that would let officials see your photos, messages and files. Rather than build it, Apple pulled its strongest iCloud security from Britain entirely. Now Apple is fighting the order in a special spy court, but the UK has secrecy rules, and those rules mean neither the government nor Apple is allowed to admit the order even exists. That's why most of the case would be heard behind closed doors, even though Trump and JD Vance have already talked about the order publicly. Today Apple and 2 human rights groups asked the court to end the charade and hear the case in public, with one lawyer calling it the "emperor's new clothes." The court hasn't ruled yet, and British iPhone users are still stuck without Apple's strongest security. Source: The Telegraph / Writer: Daniyal

🇸🇦🇮🇷 After initially refusing direct engagement following attacks on the kingdom, Ian Bremmer says Saudi Arabia has now agreed to participate in talks with Iran. What changed? Riyadh asked Washington for direct military help against the Houthis. Bremmer says the U.S. offered intelligence, but not renewed strikes. Pakistan has also stopped short of activating the Mecca agreement. “𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘚𝘢𝘶𝘥𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦’𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘰 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘰 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘦𝘧𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮.” Meanwhile, Iran has demonstrated it can hit Saudi energy infrastructure again. That changes the negotiating equation rather quickly. @ianbremmer

🇺🇸🇮🇷 Trump says he is approaching a major decision in the Iran war: make another push for diplomacy, or return to full-scale combat. “𝘐 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘢 𝘣𝘪𝘨 𝘥𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱. 𝘋𝘰 𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘰 𝘪𝘯 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘮 𝘰𝘳 𝘥𝘰 𝘐 𝘯𝘰𝘵?” The immediate pressure point is Tuesday’s meeting with Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Oman at the UN. Trump says he wants to hear directly from them before deciding the next phase. Meanwhile, U.S. forces are being kept at current levels in the Middle East through the end of the year, the blockade remains in place, Hormuz traffic is still below pre-war levels, and Washington is already drafting a post-war strategy for containing Iran. The war is sitting in an armed holding pattern. Trump now has to decide whether that becomes the off-ramp or the loading screen. Source: Axios / Writer: Oliver

🇩🇪 German Chancellor Merz just gave the obituary for Germany’s old economic model. Cheap goods from China. Cheap energy from Russia. Security from America. Germany got very comfortable outsourcing the expensive parts of being a major power. Merz says that era is over and it is not coming back. The harder question is what replaces it. Writer: Oliver t.co/tukwg0jBND

🇺🇸 Well, this is an unfortunate look for a political canvasser. Footage circulating online appears to show someone wearing a Stronger Maine shirt, a super PAC supporting Sen. Susan Collins, walking off with a package from someone’s porch. Seems like “door-to-door outreach” got a little lost in translation. Writer: Lynn t.co/oIsbgb4Srp

🇮🇹🇷🇺 PM Meloni says Putin is trying to bait Europe into an escalation. She argues Moscow’s provocations are multiplying because the war in Ukraine has not gone the way Putin promised, and he now needs to shift attention. "Don’t take the bait." She says reacting aggressively would play straight into Moscow’s hands. Writer: Sol t.co/8zg4berA5w

🇺🇸🇨🇳 Trump's answer to the AI race with China is to put everyone at the same dinner table. Jensen Huang, Sam Altman and Tim Cook are all expected at next week's state dinner for Xi, and AI is the real item on the menu. Huang's invite is the loud one, since Beijing has spent years hunting for ways around the U.S. ban on his best Nvidia chips, and now he's eating dinner with the man doing the hunting. The ban hasn't worked that well anyway, with Chinese open-weight models already breathing down the necks of American labs. Trump officials are even weighing a private sit-down with the tech bosses on the sidelines of the visit. A White House official said Trump invited "several great American business leaders" because he will always prioritize making good deals for the country. The guest list tells you exactly what this dinner is really about. Source: CNBC / Writer: Daniyal

Starship has been to space before. This time, it plans to go around Earth. Flight 14 is targeting September 22 for Starship’s first true orbital insertion, roughly 275 km up and six full laps around the planet. If all goes to plan, it’ll deploy 26 Starlink V3 satellites before deorbiting and coming back down over the Pacific. Up until now, Starship went to space and came back. This time it plans to stay up long enough to circle the world. @SpaceX @Starlink / Writer: Annette, Grok Imagine Designer: Janné