Iran, 5-2-26

First, links to reports from the Associated Press and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll down for IRAN 5-1-26.) — MCM

   

FROM MAY 1  Trump says he’s ‘not satisfied’ with Iran’s proposal to end the war, by Toqa Ezzidid, Munir Ahmed and Collin Binkley | AP  ISLAMABAD — U.S. President Donald Trump rejected Iran’s latest proposal to end the war between the countries, saying Friday he still was not satisfied while blaming Iran’s “fractured” leadership. He turned back the latest proposal almost as soon as it was delivered. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish; and HERE for others.

   

FROM MAY 1  Iran war shakes Global economy as energy costs surge and recession fears grow. Reported by Lauren Frayer, Eyder Peralta, Diaa Hadid and Jewel Bright | NPR  From energy markets to everyday prices, the fallout from the Iran war is reshaping the global economy. Click HERE to listen and, later, read.

   

TO BE CONTINUED

Gaza, 5-1-26

Links to reports and commentary from Middle East Monitor and Middle East Eye; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names. (Scroll down for GAZA 4-29-26 and IRAN, ENERGY and FORESTS.) — MCM

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Gaza media office reports 377 Israeli ceasefire violations in April. From Middle East Monitor. The Government Media Office in Gaza said Israeli forces committed 377 violations of the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip during April 2026, resulting in 111 people killed and 376 injured. READ MORE . . .

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U.S. criticises allies over failure to stop GAZA aid flotilla, by Shraddha Joshi | Middle East Eye  U.S. Department of State spokesperson Tommy Pigott on Thursday described a Gaza-bound aid flotilla, which was raided and seized by Israeli naval forces this week, as a “baseless, counterproductive stunt.” READ MORE . . .

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Flotilla defiance, Zionist terror, and the cowardice of Muslim regimes, by Junaid S. Ahmad | Middle East Monitor  There are moments when power stops pretending to be lawful and simply performs its obscenity in public. READ MORE . . .

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Iran, 5-1-26

Links to FIVE-plus reports: from the Associated Press, Reuters, Middle East Monitor, and National Public Radio (11); others are accessible by clicking on its name or initials. (Scroll down for IRAN 4-30-26, and up or down for GAZA, ENERGY and FORESTS.) — MCM

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Trump administration says Iran war has been ‘terminated’ before 60-day deadline. Edited by Bridget Brown | AP   The Trump administration is arguing that the war in Iran has already ended because of the ceasefire that began in early April, an interpretation that would allow the White House to avoid the need to seek congressional approval. READ MORE . . .

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Iran sends proposal for negotiations with U.S. to mediator Pakistan. From Reuters. Iran has sent its latest proposal for negotiations with the United States to Pakistani mediators, according to a CNN report, citing sources familiar with the negotiation process. READ MORE . . .

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FROM APRIL 30  U.S. could attack Iran again during negotiations, Iranian president warns. From Middle East Monitor. Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned Thursday that the U.S. could attack Tehran again during negotiations, saying that trust in Washington has been “completely destroyed,” Anadolu reports. READ MORE . . .

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A look at the conditions of sailors stuck in the Strait of Hormuz face.  of NPR speaks with Jacqueline Smith of the International Transport Workers’ Federation about conditions for sailors stranded on ships in the Strait of Hormuz. READ MORE . . . Click HERE to listen and, later, read; and HERE and HERE for links to all seven Iran war-related reports last night and today from NPR‘s “All Things Considered” and “Morning Edition.”

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Energy, 5-1-26

Links to EIGHT reports, analyses and commentaries: from the Associated Press, Common Dreams, resilience.org, Agence France-PresseMiddle East Eye, Middle East Monitor, and El País; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll up or down for GAZA, IRAN and FORESTS.) — MCM

   

FROM APRIL 30  Countries end Colombia fossil fuel summit with focus on next steps and financing, by Steven Grattan | AP  SANTA MARTA, Colombia — A first-of-its-kind international conference on moving away from fossil fuels wrapped up in Colombia Wednesday with a clear message: the global conversation has shifted from whether to phase out oil, gas and coal to how to do it, with financing emerging as one of the biggest obstacles. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others. Click HERE for report from Common Dreams.

   

FROM APRIL 30  The 2026 energy crisis and our Wile E. Coyote moment, by Richard Heinberg | resilience.org  Pop culture has long memorialized the Warner Brothers cartoon gag in which Wile E. Coyote, lured by his nemesis, the Roadrunner, races off a cliff. Instead of immediately falling, Coyote keeps running, then looks down and realizes there’s nothing beneath him but empty space. READ MORE . . .

   

FROM APRIL 30  Why Iran’s oil industry is increasingly threatened by U.S. blockade, by Jon Gambrell | AP  DUBAI — Even as Iran squeezes world energy supplies with its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, its own oil industry is increasingly being threatened by an American blockade. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

   

FROM APRIL 29  France unveils plan to ditch all fossil fuels by 2050. From AFP.  SANTA MARTA, Colombia — France on Tuesday announced a “first of its kind” plan to phase out coal by 2030, oil by 2045 and gas by 2050 during a global conference aimed at breaking reliance on fossil fuels. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AFP report in French; and HERE for headlines of others.

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UAE’s OPEC exit seeks to hit Saudi Arabia where it hurts, by Mohamad Elmasry | Middle East Eye  When the United Arab Emirates announced on Tuesday that it intended to exit the 12-member, six-decade-old Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, the move was read by some analysts as a purely economic one — on its face not an unreasonable initial interpretation. READ MORE . . .

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Who is drawing the new gas map of the Middle East? by Kamran Yeganegi | Middle East Monitor  In today’s Middle East, competition over energy resources is no longer confined to oil and gas fields; it is increasingly centered on routes — and the power to design them. READ MORE . . .

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FROM APRIL 28  Las contradicciones fósiles y climáticas de Colombia hacen eco en la conferencia de Santa Marta, por María Mónica Monsalve S. | El País  Santa Marta, Colombia, es la sede de la primera conferencia internacional para abandonar los combustibles fósiles, un espacio que reúne a representantes de más de 50 países que tienen un consenso claro: la necesidad de dejar atrás el gas, el petróleo y el carbón. El punto está en cómo hacerlo. READ MORE . . . This report is not available in English.

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Forests, 5-1-26

Links to a report from New England Public Media, an article from richardheinberg.com and another from the Aotearoa Permaculture Workshop via resilience.org, and a report from ScienceDaily; other published material is accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll up for GAZA, IRAN and ENERGY.) — MCM

   

FROM APRIL 30  UMass forestry expert explores ‘hidden cogs’ of an old forest. Reported by Carrie Healy | NEPM  We’re walking into a forest in Plainfield, Massachusetts. It’s quiet here, but far from empty. “This is what I would call an old forest,” says Paul Catanzaro, coauthor of Tending Your Forest. Click HERE for audio, a transcript, and photos, and for previous reports in Healy’s series. Click HERE for the book publisher’s online promotion.

   

FROM APRIL 2026  The future of forests, by Richard Heinberg | richardheinberg.com  Our species’ origin and destiny are entangled with the roots and branches of trees. We evolved in and around trees, and we’ve learned . . . READ MORE . . .

   

Forest gardening for resilience, by Gary Marshall | Aotearoa Permaculture Workshop / resilience.org  Forest gardening has been practised by indigenous people around the world for millennia. Click HERE to read this second article in a two-part series.

   

FROM DEC. 15, 2022  Early humans may have first walked upright in the trees. From ScienceDaily. In a new study published today in the journal Science Advances, researchers explored the behaviours of wild chimpanzees — our closest living relative — living in the Issa Valley of western Tanzania. READ MORE . . .

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Heinberg, 4-30-26

A link to a “Museletter” from richardheinberg.com; others are accessible by clicking on the author’s address. (Scroll down for POWER, HEINBERG 9-28-22 or HEINBERG 11-29-22 (not practical; click on them instead), IRAN, LEBANON and WEST BANK.) — MCM

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FROM FEBRUARY 2026  The empire crumbles, Part 1by Richard Heinberg | richardheinberg.com or Post Carbon Institute  Systems scientists have been warning for decades that the current growth-based world economic order is unsustainable, and that it will inevitably become smaller and more simplified during the remainder of the 21st century. READ MORE . . .

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Iran, 4-30-26

Links to SEVEN-plus reports, analyses, commentaries and interviews (12 or more): from the Cradle, PressTV, Reuters, Middle East Eye, the Associated Press, and National Public Radio; others are accessible by clicking on their names or initials. (Scroll down for IRAN 4-29-26, and up or down for HEINBERG, LEBANON and WEST BANK.)

   

Iran’s supreme leader declares ‘new chapter’ for Strait of Hormuz. From the Cradle. Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei made a statement today declaring the start of a “new chapter” for the Strait of Hormuz and the beginning of a “bright future without” the U.S. in the Persian Gulf region. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from Iran’s state-owned PressTV.

   

Iran threatens painful response if U.S. resumes attacks, oil prices seesaw. From Reuters. WASHINGTON / DUBAI / ISLAMABAD — Iran said today that if Washington renewed attacks it would respond with “long and painful strikes” on U.S. positions, complicating U.S. plans for an international coalition to open the Strait of Hormuz. READ MORE . . .   Click HERE for report from Middle East Eye.

   

Iran’s supreme leader vows to protect nuclear and missile capabilities, by Jon Gambrell | AP  DUBAI — Iran’s supreme leader said today that the Islamic Republic will protect its “nuclear and missile capabilities” as a national asset, likely seeking to draw a hard line as U.S. President Donald Trump presses for a wider deal to cement the war’s shaky three-week ceasefire. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

* Among the news organizations with frequent war updates, photos and occasionally maps are Al Jazeera, the Associated Press, Middle East Eye, and Middle East Monitor. They are found HEREHERE, HERE, and HERE. AP and El País reports in Spanish are HERE and HERE. *

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Lebanon, 4-30-26

A link to a report from the Associated Press; others are accessible by clicking on its name or initials. (Scroll down for LEBANON 4-29-26, and up or down for HEINBERG, IRAN and WEST BANK.)

   

With mass evacuation warnings, Israel upends lives and reshapes south Lebanon, by Isabel Debre | AP  HARET SAIDA, Lebanon — The warnings to flee come suddenly: Texts pinging thousands of phones, automated calls from strange numbers, hard-to-read maps shared on social media by an Israeli military spokesperson. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same AP report in Spanish, and HERE for others.

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West Bank, 4-30-26

A link to an analysis from Middle East Monitor; others are accessible by clicking on its name. (Scroll down for WEST BANK 4-28-26.  Scroll up for HEINBERG, IRAN and LEBANON.)

   

How ceasefires enable Israel’s quiet annexation, by Farwa Imtiaz | Middle East Monitor   While fragile ceasefires hold in Gaza and Lebanon and attention shifts to Iran, Israel is pressing ahead with its settler-colonial project in occupied East Jerusalem and the West Bank. Click HERE to read more including three comments.

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Iran, 4-29-26

For now, links to EIGHT reports, analyses and commentaries: from or via Middle East Monitor, the Associated Press, the Cradle, Reuters, and Middle East Eye; other published material is accessible by clicking on its name. (Scroll down for IRAN 4-28-26 and today’s GAZA, LEBANON and MEDIA so far.) — MCM

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Trump tells aides to prepare for extended blockade of Iran: WSJ. From Middle East Monitor. Citing U.S. officials, the Wall Street Journal report said that in recent meetings, Trump opted to continue squeezing Iran’s economy and oil exports by preventing shipping to and from its ports. READ MORE . . .  Click HERE for report from the Cradle.

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Iran’s currency hits record low as ceasefire holds, by Amir Vahdat | AP  TEHRAN — Iran’s national rial currency hit a record low today of 1.8 million to the dollar as a shaky ceasefire with the U.S. and Israel holds. READ MORE . . . Click HERE for same report in Spanish.  Click HERE for report from the Cradle

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Iran’s Guards seize wartime power, weakening Supreme Leader’s role, by Samia Nakhoul, Parisa Hafezi and Asif Shahzad | Reuters  DUBAI — Two months into a war with the U.S. and Israel, Iran no longer has a single, undisputed clerical arbiter at the pinnacle of power — an abrupt break with the past that may be hardening Tehran’s stance as it weighs renewed talks with Washington. READ MORE . . .

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Report: 52 Iranian ships breach U.S. blockade within 72 hours. From Middle East Monitor. Iran’s Fars News Agency cited satellite tracking data covering the three days leading up to 10 p.m. local time on Monday, saying the vessels included 31 oil tankers and 21 cargo ships. READ MORE . . .

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How St. Petersburg became Tehran’s last strategic lifeline, by Jannus TH Siahaan | Middle East Monitor  The Iran crisis of 2026 has become a high-stakes geopolitical marketplace where sovereignty is collateral, alliances are transactional, and survival depends less on ideology than on access to patrons with leverage. READ MORE . . .

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FROM APRIL 28  Trump’s threats to steal Iran’s oil continue a long history of U.S. pillage, by Joseph Massad | Middle East Eye  The U.S. pillage of Third World resources is hardly a new development. It has continued U.S. imperialist policies since the Second World War, and long predates it in the case of U.S. theft of Latin America‘s resources, let alone . . . READ MORE . . .

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TO BE CONTINUED