Russian President Vladimir Putin on Thursday defended U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff against accusations of him having a bias supportive of the Kremlin against Ukraine, calling him “an intelligent man” who is properly representing the position of his country and leader, while adding that he is “not too Pro-Russian.”

U.S. President Donald J. Trump stated in a post earlier on Truth Social that he would be “terminating” any document signed by President Joe Biden using an autopen, which he claims represented approximately 92% of all his Executive Orders. While there appears to be no legal basis for this statement or action by President Trump, there is nothing stopping him from overwriting Biden’s Executive Orders by way of his own Executive Orders, as has been the case with all previous Presidents.

In an exclusive released today by The Washington Post, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth gave a spoken directive, according to two people with direct knowledge of the operation, to “kill everybody” in the strike on an alleged narco-trafficking vessel targeted on September 2 in the Southern Caribbean.

Following the initial strike, reportedly carried out by the U.S. Navy’s SEAL Team 6, a live drone feed showed that two of the eleven crewmembers onboard the vessel had survived and were clinging to the burning wreck, leading the commander of the operation to order a second strike to comply with the instructions given by Secretary Hegseth. The order, essentially a directive to show no quarter, would be considered a war crime if proven to have given by Hegseth.

Adm. Frank M. “Mitch” Bradley, who at the time was the Commander of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), gave the order to carry out the second strike, telling others on a secure conference call that the survivors were still legitimate targets because they could theoretically call other traffickers to retrieve them and their cargo, with him having since been promoted to lead U.S. Special Operations Command (SOCOM).

U.S. President Donald J. Trump has announced that if Tito Asfura wins the election for President of Honduras, he will grant a “Full and Complete Pardon” to Former President Juan Orlando Hernandez, who is currently serving a 45-year sentence in a federal prison after being convicted in March 2024 of three counts of drug trafficking and weapons conspiracy, for trafficking over 400 tons of cocaine from Honduras into the United States.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and the State Department have announced an immediate pause in all visa issuances for individuals traveling on a passport issued by the Islamic Emirate/Republic of Afghanistan.

U.S. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth has made a post responding to today’s exclusive from The Washington Post, which claimed that he gave an order to “kill everybody” in September’s first strike on a narco-terrorist vessel in the Southern Caribbean, in possible violation of the Geneva Conventions and the Hague Convention of 1907. While not officially denying the article, Hegseth calls the report “fake news” starting that it is “fabricated, inflammatory, and derogatory reporting to discredit our incredible warriors fighting to protect the homeland,” adding that everyone killed has been “affiliated with a Designated Terrorist Organization.” A few minutes later, Hegseth, on his personal account, posted: “We have only just begun to kill narco-terrorists.”

Former Head of Ukraine’s Office of the President, Andriy Yermak, who was seemingly forced to resign earlier today over allegations of corruption, has told the New York Post that he doesn’t want to cause any more problems for Zelensky, adding that he is an “honest and decent person” and that he is going to the frontline in Eastern Ukraine.

In a sudden post earlier this morning addressed to “All Airlines, Pilots, Drug Dealers, and Human Traffickers,” President Donald J. Trump announced that the airspace over and surrounding Venezuela will be “CLOSED IN ITS ENTIRETY.”

Footage today posted by Pearce Robinson on Facebook, appears to show a U.S. Marine Corps AN/TPS-80 Ground/Air Task Oriented Radar (G/ATOR) - likely with Marine Air Control Squadron 2 (MACS-2) - deployed at A. N. R. Robinson International Airport in Trinidad and Tobago, as part of a much larger military installation reportedly under construction on the eastern end of Crown Point Runway.

Footage published earlier today by the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), showing yesterday’s attack by a drone swarm of “Sea Baby” Unmanned Surface Vehicles against two Gambian-flagged oil tankers part of the Russian Shadow Fleet, M/T KAIROS and M/T VIRAT, in the Southern Black Sea off the coast of Turkey, while enroute to the Russian Port of Novorossiysk.

Firefighting operations continue alongside the Russian Shadow Fleet, Gambian-flagged oil tanker M/T KAIROS off the coast of Turkey, following an attack yesterday by several Ukrainian uncrewed surface vessels in the Southern Black Sea. The vessel appears to be a total loss, suffering significant fire damage to its aft section and bridge, with all crewmembers onboard having previously been safely evacuated to Turkey.

The Senate Armed Services Committee has issued a statement from Chairman Roger Wicker (R-MS) and Ranking Member Jack Reed (D-RI), stating that they are aware of recent reports regarding alleged follow-up strikes on suspected narco-trafficking vessels in Southern Caribbean, adding that they have directed inquires into the incident to the Department of Defense.

U.S. officials who spoke to Reuters said they were surprised by today’s announcement on social media from President Donald J. Trump, and unaware of any ongoing military operations by the United States that would enforce a closure of the airspace over Venezuela. The Pentagon did not respond to requests for comment and no further explanation was provided by the White House.

F/A-18E/F Super Hornets with Carrier Air Wing Eight (CVW-8) have been conducting continuous flights today over the Southern Caribbean, only miles off the coast of the Dutch Islands of Aruba and Curaçao, as well as Venezuela, with them now returning to the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78).