NEW: According to Syrian sources, Israel carried out two separate strikes within 500 metres of the Syrian presidential palace.

The Gaza Freedom Flotilla reported that one of its vessels issued SOS calls after catching fire, allegedly following a drone attack in international waters off the coast of Malta early Friday.

Trump:

I am hereby renaming May 8th as Victory Day for World War II and November 11th as Victory Day for World War I. We won both Wars, nobody was close to us in terms of strength, bravery, or military brilliance, but we never celebrate anything...

US Secretary of State Rubio:

Chinese want to meet and talk, those talks will come soon.

JD Vance:

Waltz's job change is not the result of the signal chat leak.

JD Vance on the war in Ukraine:

It's not going to end any time soon. And I think the Ukrainians, yeah they're angry they were invaded, but are we going to continue to lose thousands and thousands of soldiers over a few miles of territory?"

JD Vance:

India's response to the terrorist attack should not lead to a broader regional conflict.

Pakistan must cooperate with India so that the terrorists are hunted down.

China Says It’s Assessing US Talks, Hinting at Possible Thaw

China's Commerce Ministry said it is evaluating the possibility of trade talks with the US, after senior US officials expressed willingness to talk to Beijing about tariffs.

The ministry urged the US to show "sincerity" towards China and correct its "wrong practices" by scrapping unilateral tariffs as a condition for negotiations.

Source: Bloomberg

Trump Plans Record $1.01 Trillion National Security Budget

President Donald Trump will request a record $1.01 trillion in national security spending for the fiscal year beginning Oct. 1.

The defense budget will fund priorities such as the Golden Dome missile defense project, shipbuilding, and nuclear modernization, and includes a 3.8% military pay raise.

Source: Bloomberg

NEW: The moment of the drone attack on the Gaza Freedom Flotilla.

The attacked ship, the Al-Dameer, was travelling from Tunisia and carrying 30 international human rights activists. It was targeted in international waters near the Maltese coast.

Gaza’s misery only deepened in Trump’s first 100 days

Trump's second term began with big Gaza promises—now 100 days in, the Strip is under total siege. Aid is blocked, famine looms, 50,000 are dead, and Israel signals long-term occupation. Saudi Arabia slams "ethnic cleansing."

Source: WaPo

NEW: Defense Minister Israel Katz:

The air force attack last night on the presidential palace in Damascus, which the Prime Minister and I directed, is a clear warning message to the Syrian regime.

When Joulani wakes up in the morning and sees the results of the Israeli air force attack, he understands very well that Israel is determined to prevent harm to the Druze in Syria.

US State Department:

The US will no longer be a mediator in negotiations between Ukraine and Russia.

We will continue to help, but we will no longer fly around the world as mediators in meetings. Now it is up to the two sides, the time has come when they must present and develop concrete ideas on how to end this conflict. It will be up to them.

IDF soldier Niv Dayag, 19 years old, was killed in a road accident in the Golan Heights.

NEW: Pakistan-administered Kashmir urged residents near the de facto border with India to stockpile food on Friday amid rising tensions following a deadly attack last month.

Source: AFP

🇺🇦 Ukraine holds vast critical mineral wealth—from lithium and graphite to titanium and rare earths.

Many of these deposits now lie within Russian-occupied zones, including Crimea and Donetsk.

Map: BBC / ISW

Hindu nationalists in Pune ‘purified’ a prayer spot with cow urine after Muslim women prayed there.

A U.S. AGM-88B anti-radiation missile, designed to target radar systems, landed unexploded in Hodeidah, Yemen.

Houthi forces later recovered the intact missile.

BIG: Germany’s intelligence agency has officially labeled the far-right AfD as an extremist threat, enabling expanded surveillance powers.

AfD is now fully classified—not just “suspected”—as extremist.

Authorities can use informants and tap communications.

Civil servants may be barred from joining; new members deterred.