International
Iran’s drones and missiles pass through the Middle East, where they monitor the growing tension
Lebanese anti-aircraft defenses launched several missiles over the skies of Beirut, presumably to respond to Iranian projectiles passing through their airspace on their way to Israel, public television TeleLiban reported.
“Interceptor missiles explode on the Airport Highway in Beirut,” the channel said, reporting that explosions could also be heard in several parts of the country, from the east to the south, possibly motivated by more responses from the air defenses.
Several missiles sailed the skies of the Lebanese capital about three hours after Tehran announced the start of its attack, according to EFE.
All this coincides with the passage through the region of a large number of missiles and drones launched by Iran towards Israel, in response to the bombing that two weeks ago destroyed its consulate in Damascus and killed seven members of the Revolutionary Guard, including two generals.
More than a hundred Iranian drones intercepted outside Israeli airspace by the United States and the United Kingdom.
Drones and cruise missiles launched by Iran against Israel have passed through Iraq’s airspace, while explosions were heard in the sky of some regions of the north of the country, local media and a security source reported to EFE on Sunday.
A source from the Iraq Area Force said on condition of anonymity that the projectiles crossed several areas of the country, after the Iraqi Civil Aviation Authority announced the closure of the airspace from 8:30 p.m. to 2:30 GMT on Sunday.
For their part, local media reported that several rounds of drones and missiles flew over the southern provinces of Maysan and Nasiriya, as well as that of Suleimaniya, in the semi-autonomous region of Iraqi Kurdistan, in northern Iraq.
Likewise, the Kurdish media Rudaw indicated that explosions were heard in the sky of Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, without it being known so far whether they are projectiles intercepted by the regional authorities or by the international coalition led by the United States, which is established in that locality.
The media also indicated that the sirens of the US consulate in Erbil began to sound after the projectiles flew over the locality, while he pointed out that the air defense systems of the building itself could have intercepted the unmanned aircraft.
Several areas of Syria recorded explosions this Sunday amid attempts by Israeli forces to shoot down the large number of drones and missiles launched by Iran into its territory, two organizations reported.
The Syrian Observatory of Human Rights confirmed in its X account that deflagrations could be heard not only in Damascus but also in areas of the country as disparate as the provinces of Homs (center), Hama (northwest) or Deraa (south).
The NGO, based in the United Kingdom and a wide network of collaborators on the ground, attributed the explosions to missiles launched by the Syrian anti-aircraft defenses against Israeli projectiles that, in turn, tried to shoot down those sent by Iran.
However, the Syrian authorities, allies of Tehran, have not yet confirmed that they have attacked Israeli targets on their territory.
The network of local activists from the south of the country ‘Horan Free Media’ also reported in X of the shooting down of several Iranian drones in the airspace of the province of Deraa and released a video in which you can see the moment when they were intercepted in the middle of the night.
Several drones launched from Iran intercepted in the sky of Amman, the capital of Jordan, according to state television Al Mamlaka in a live broadcast, during which the anti-aircraft sirens could be heard.
The Jordanian Armed Forces intercepted drones in the capital’s airspace, the television said.
The unmanned aircraft were also seen, and destroyed, in the sky of the Gerasa region, in northern Jordan, according to EFE.
International
Trump orders immediate U.S. nuclear testing, ending 30-year moratorium
U.S. President Donald Trump’s order to begin “immediate” testing of the country’s nuclear arsenal could, if carried out, end the nuclear testing moratorium that the United States has maintained for over 30 years.
The announcement follows Russian President Vladimir Putin’s nuclear maneuvers on October 22 from the Kremlin, which involved land, sea, and air exercises and the launch of a Yars intercontinental ballistic missile with a range of up to 12,000 kilometers.
In 1992, the U.S. Senate approved a temporary suspension of nuclear tests in August, followed by the House of Representatives in September, initially for nine months, with the goal of ending all U.S. atomic testing by September 1996.
Although then-President George H.W. Bush, a Republican, and his successor Bill Clinton, a Democrat, threatened to veto the measure, the moratorium has remained in place ever since.
The decision came after the fall of the Soviet Union, the end of the Cold War, and a political climate in which many U.S. leaders and a significant portion of public opinion believed that the country should lead global denuclearization efforts. Technological advances have also allowed the United States to verify the reliability of its nuclear arsenal without conducting atomic explosions.
From World War II until 1992, the United States conducted over a thousand nuclear tests. Until 1963, these tests were atmospheric, after which only underground tests were performed.
Although the U.S. has not conducted nuclear detonations since September 1992, it has carried out several dozen subcritical experiments. These do not trigger chain nuclear reactions or produce atomic yield but are designed to verify the safety and effectiveness of the nuclear arsenal and remain within the limits established by the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty.
International
Brazilian president defends coordinated anti-drug operations after deadly Rio raid
Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva defended on Wednesday the integration of the country’s various police forces into an anti-drug strategy that avoids civilian casualties, commenting on Tuesday’s police operation in Rio de Janeiro that left 121 dead—the deadliest in Brazil’s history.
“We need coordinated efforts that strike at the backbone of drug trafficking without putting police, children, and innocent families at risk,” the progressive leader wrote on social media.
Lula, along with several of his ministers, emphasized that organized crime is not defeated through violent confrontations in the favelas, but by measures that decapitalize these groups and reduce their financial power.
“That was exactly what we did in August during the largest operation against organized crime in the country’s history, targeting the financial core of a major organization involved in drug trafficking, fuel adulteration, and money laundering,” he stated, referring to a recent operation against the Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC), a major national criminal group.
Lula stressed that Brazil cannot allow organized crime to continue destroying families, oppressing citizens, and spreading drugs and violence across cities.
He added that, in a federal country like Brazil, where public security is the responsibility of regional governments, it is necessary to unify the country’s police forces.
The head of state affirmed that integrating regional and national police forces to combat organized crime will be possible with the approval of a public security bill that the government has submitted to Congress.
International
US Deputy Secretary criticizes Mexico’s call to end Cuba trade embargo at UN
U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau reacted on Wednesday against Mexico’s request at the United Nations to lift the trade embargo on Cuba.
Landau expressed on X that he felt “sad” as a “friend of Mexico” after Mexico’s ambassador to the UN, Héctor Vasconcelos, reiterated solidarity with Cuba and stressed the “urgent need to end the trade embargo.”
“Let’s base ourselves on reality and not fantasies. There is no trade embargo on Cuba (…) Cuba freely receives goods and visitors from many countries,” Landau wrote.
The reaction from the State Department official came after the Mexican delegation urgently requested the removal of sanctions against Cuba at the United Nations headquarters in New York, where a majority of 165 countries voted in favor of ending the embargo imposed on the island since 1960.
Seven countries voted against the proposal, and twelve abstained. The United States, Israel, Argentina, Hungary, Paraguay, and Ukraine were among those opposing the measure, but the overwhelming support left the U.S. and its allies in the minority.
Trump orders immediate U.S. nuclear testing, ending 30-year moratorium
Brazilian president defends coordinated anti-drug operations after deadly Rio raid
US Deputy Secretary criticizes Mexico’s call to end Cuba trade embargo at UN
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