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Donald Trump on Friday dismissed claims that families of service members aboard the USS Abraham Lincoln have concerns about conditions aboard the aircraft carrier, which has been deployed for nearly nine months supporting operations in the Middle East. UMEH JOSEPH 🇺🇲🇺🇲✅

US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said on Thursday that the United States could maintain its naval blockade on Iran for as long as necessary

Benjamin Netanyahu..

Israel Rejects Latest Gaza Peace Proposal, Netanyahu Demands Hamas Disarmament

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel has rejected the latest U.S.-backed proposal aimed at ending the conflict in Gaza, arguing that any agreement must include the complete disarmament of Hamas.

Netanyahu’s position places the future of Israeli military forces in Gaza at the center of the negotiations. According to his comments, Israel would not agree to a full withdrawal unless Hamas gives up its weapons and no longer has the military capability to operate in the territory.

The disagreement highlights the enormous gap that remains between the two sides. While Washington has continued to push for a framework that could lead toward a ceasefire and a broader political settlement, Israel says security guarantees and the removal of Hamas’s military infrastructure must come first.

For Palestinians in , however, the key demands include an end to Israeli military operations, the withdrawal of Israeli forces, humanitarian access and a path toward rebuilding the devastated territory.

The latest dispute suggests that reaching a lasting agreement will remain extremely difficult. The central questions Hamas’s future, Israeli withdrawal, Gaza’s governance and long-term security remain unresolved.

As negotiations continue, pressure is likely to grow on all sides to find a formula that can stop the fighting while addressing the security and political demands of both Israelis and Palestinians.

The outcome could have major consequences not only for Gaza, but for the wider Middle East and U.S. foreign policy in the region.

NEW✅: President Trump says the U.S. "will keep" the Strait of Hormuz, as it now has "total control" of the critical waterway.

Trump says there is nothing Iran can do about the U.S. "WALL OF STEEL" blockade in the Strait.

"They have no Navy, they have no Air Force, their remaining soldiers are unpaid, the IRGC is decimated and fleeing, and their “Leadership” is uncertain, at best!"

"Iran is all talk and no action."

Former Syrian President Bashar al-Assad sentenced to death in absentia for crimes during the country's 14-year deadly conflict