Month: August 2026

The editor-in-chief of the Stars and Stripes US military newspaper said Friday that he was being fired for insubordination, and a source familiar with the matter told Reuters the Pentagon had sent notices to the paper’s leadership informing them they would be let go. 

"According to the notice, I am being fired for stating in a CBS interview that hypothetical censorship of news for service members would constitute a personal red line," Erik Slavin said in a statement.

The source familiar with the matter, who was not authorized to speak publicly, said that Max Lederer, the long-time publisher of the newspaper who was set to retire at the end of September, was also removed.

In his email this week announcing his retirement, Lederer wrote that it was clear that the Pentagon had a new vision for the newspaper that was different from his own.

Lara Korte, who covered the Middle East for the newspaper, said on social media on Friday that she had also been fired. She said it was because she had told CBS News that she works for Stars and Stripes and not the Pentagon.

The Pentagon did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Stars and Stripes, which has published a newspaper continuously since World War Two and provides news to US troops around the world, receives funding from the Defense Department but has historically been editorially independent.

The Pentagon recently appointed a military deputy to the publisher for the newspaper. In a post on X, Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell quoted from an open letter the military deputy had written.

"We may never be able to have the same impact for our service members digitally that our paper had during World War II in a vastly different media environment, but I also believe that we can do better – that we must do better for our most important constituency, the men and women who make up the US Armed Forces," the letter said.

In his first administration, US President Donald Trump reversed the Pentagon’s decision to shut down the newspaper altogether. 

Press freedom advocates have criticized broader policy changes ‌under the Trump administration that have limited journalists' access to the Pentagon, saying they suppressed freedom of speech.

Russian President Vladimir Putin inspected on Thursday the open sarcophagus of medieval Russian warrior prince Dmitry Donskoy, whose remains were recently uncovered during restoration work at Moscow’s Cathedral of the Archangel.

Lying within the Kremlin fortress, the Orthodox cathedral served as the burial site for more than 40 Russian tsars and princes down the centuries.

The body of Russian Grand Prince Donskoy was known to lie there, but its discovery last month in a crypt by the southern wall surprised historians, who had believed it was located elsewhere in the building.

The lid of Donskoy’s sarcophagus was found split into four parts, the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences said in a Friday statement. After removing it, archaeologists found Donskoy’s remains dusted with white stone chips and bits of mortar that had fallen through the cracks. 

Donskoy's remains were clothed in ornate burial attire, according to the statement, with a well-preserved outer layer made of a dense fabric woven in a complex geometric pattern, and a less-well preserved inner layer, including a braided chord, fragments of the sleeve, collar, and a shoe.

"We conducted the research using a specialized method, without a full archaeological protocol," said Nikolai Makarov, Russian Academy of Sciences vice president and Institute of Archaeology director, according to Russian state-owned news outlet RIA Novosti. "Nothing was removed."

“Textile remains and several fragments of remains were collected for subsequent laboratory analysis, but the objective was to avoid damaging anything and preserve the prince’s remains as they were found.”

Putin lit a candle inside the frescoed cathedral and stood beside the white-stone sarcophagus as experts explained how they had identified the remains as those of the 14th-century prince, RIA reported.

The Russian Orthodox Church announced the discovery on Tuesday, saying the well-preserved remains were nearly complete and belonged to a man of just under 180 cm (5 feet 11 inches), who had died of natural causes between the ages of 35 and 45.

"All these characteristics correspond with written sources and historical testimony concerning the life and death of the grand prince," it said.

Donskoy, who died in 1389 aged 39, ruled the principalities of Muscovy and Vladimir, which would later become the core of the Russian state.

A prominent figure in Russian history, Donskoy oversaw the construction of the first stone Kremlin fortress, increased the territory of Muscovy, and routed forces of the Mongol horde in a famous battle near the Don river in 1380.

At least 14 people were killed and more than 120 wounded on Friday when two Russian drones struck a shopping center in the central Ukrainian city of Kryvyi Rih, authorities said.

Twenty-two children were among the wounded in the daytime attack on President Volodymyr Zelensky’s hometown, regional governor Oleksandr Hanzha said on the Telegram messaging app.

"There are 29 people in serious condition, including five children," he said.

He posted a photo of black smoke billowing from a large industrial building.

Zelensky called the attack "absolutely cynical and despicable," saying that a second Russian drone hit the shopping center half an hour after the first in a deliberate attempt to target emergency services.

“Attacks like these are nothing less than terrorist acts,” Zelensky said on Telegram, urging the world to hold Russia to account.

Russia is escalating its air war on Ukraine as fighting on the battlefield grinds toward the 4-1/2 year mark. On Thursday, 17 people were killed in a Russian ballistic missile attack on the Ukrainian capital Kyiv.

Ukraine has also stepped up its own attacks on Russia, targeting oil facilities and logistics infrastructure to try to undermine Moscow's ability to wage war.

NATO’s top commander convened a videoconference earlier this week to facilitate possible contributions to support freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz, his spokesperson told Reuters, adding that this is not a NATO mission.

“Supreme Headquarters Allied Powers Europe hosted a meeting of interested Allies at the chief of defense level on Wednesday, 19 Aug 26, in order to facilitate their possible contributions to support freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz," a spokesperson for the alliance's top commander US Air Force General Alexus Grynkewich said on Friday.

"To be clear, this is not a NATO mission. But given NATO’s unique strengths in its ability to bring together Allies and understand the capabilities they bring to bear, it makes sense for NATO to facilitate in this way," the spokesperson added.

NATO allies have sought to avoid direct involvement in the Iran conflict, instead focusing on plans outside the alliance to reopen the strait, which before February carried about a fifth of all traded oil.

France and Britain have led efforts to build a coalition among roughly a dozen countries to guarantee safe passage through the ​strait once tensions ease or the conflict ​is resolved, though any long-term arrangement ⁠would ultimately require Iranian acquiescence. 

Several people were injured on Friday at a Swedish school by a person armed with a sword, the Fagersta municipality in central Sweden said in a statement.

"A call was received regarding a case of ongoing deadly violence at a school in Fagersta. Police have responded to the scene and one person has been taken into custody," the police said in a statement.

"Police are continuing to work at the scene with a number of different resources. The public is urged to respect the roadblocks and listen to police instructions," it added.

The government is in close contact with the police following the attack, Justice Minister Gunnar Strommer said in a statement to Reuters.

"We have been informed of a serious incident in Fagersta. The police are on site and working very intensively on the incident," Strommer said.

This is a developing story. 

Prince Harry, Elton John and other high-profile claimants face paying millions of dollars out of their own pockets to cover the legal costs of the Daily Mail’s publisher after a judge ruled their failed privacy lawsuits were conducted in an unreasonable way.

Judge Matthew Nicklin’s judgment on costs, which was published on Friday, also ordered an interim payment from the claimants of £9.54 million towards the legal costs of Associated Newspapers.

Last month, judge Matthew Nicklin comprehensively rejected the case brought by King Charles’ younger son, John, and five other figures, rejecting allegations that the Mail titles had engaged in widespread unlawful activities, such as phone hacking.

Friday's judgment delivered a damaging blow to Harry and the others by ruling that the outstanding amount should be paid on an "indemnity basis."

This means that, as the losing party, the Prince and the others must pay towards Associated‘s costs without the publisher needing to show these were reasonable and proportionate.

Explaining his decision, Nicklin was highly critical of the way the claimants' case had been put, including that serious allegations had rested on "speculative and inferential" foundations.

"In my judgment, the cumulative effect of these matters takes the case well outside the norm. The conduct was unreasonable to a high degree," Nicklin said.

A spokesperson for Harry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A spokesman for Associated Newspapers called the ruling “another overwhelming victory for the Mail and its journalism.”

The court was told at a hearing in July that Associated had incurred a legal bill of £34.5 million ($45.8 million), while Harry and other claimants had an insurance policy that covered only £16 million.

Associated's lawyer Antony White argued the claimants had made wide-ranging and serious "egregious" allegations without supporting evidence, which had added to their costs.

He also said Harry’s statement following the ruling was an abuse of his position and celebrity status.

Nicholas Bacon, the lawyer for the claimants, said in their submissions that Associated's £34.5 million legal bill was "eye-watering," far exceeding an agreed budget.

“Claims of US munitions shortages are false,” Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell told the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.

“America’s military remains the most powerful fighting force on earth. We have everything required to strike at the time and place of the President’s choosing,” Parnell added

A Reuters report on August 4 found that the US Army had used up “virtually all” of its stockpile of highly accurate long-range missiles during its five-month war with Iran.

These long-range munitions allow the military to carry out accurate strikes from a safe distance, playing a crucial role in the US-Iran conflict.

When asked for comment on the stockpile data, the White House issued a statement from Trump, saying the US had “far more munitions than anyone in the world” and “far more than we need,” Reuters reported.

"Our defense companies are, at this moment, making more munitions than they have ever made before, in addition to expanding their plants and equipment at record levels," Trump said.

The Washington Post found that in the first month of the conflict with Iran, the US had fired more than 850 Tomahawk cruise missiles and over 1,000 Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missiles, and used at least 1,300 tactical ballistic missiles.

Additionally, Reuters reported that between February and July the US had used around 65% of its Patriot interceptors.

"The US has massive amounts of 'munitions'" Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on August 6, adding that claims of any munitions shortage were fabricated.

The Pentagon told US defense industry leaders to prepare plans to escalate production and delivery of weapons as reports of munitions shortages escalate, The Washington Post reported on August 8, citing a Defense Department memo. 

Deputy Defense Secretary Steve Feinberg wrote that the leaders had no more than 21 days to present plans to “drive significantly faster, more aggressive delivery schedules and/or increased production for critical capabilities,” on Wednesday, according to the memo.

“Years-long development cycles are not acceptable. We must dramatically accelerate our program schedules and expand our production capacity now.”

Danya Saperstein contributed to this report.

US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) accelerated efforts to deport Iranian nationals in the aftermath of the 12-Day War, emails obtained by the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) show.

The emails detailed by the NIAC concern deportation surges in 2025, which it claims were ordered directly from the White House. During June of that year, the organization claims ICE ramped up efforts to arrest Iranian nationals, apprehending 192.

Acting ICE Director Todd Lyons ordered this wave of arrests only days before the US struck Iranian nuclear facilities and entered the war, the report claims. Despite ICE officials noting that Iran's airspace was closed and that the country was in internal chaos, the expedited process went ahead.

This action led to a deportation flight on September 30, which landed in Qatar in order to transfer deportees headed to Iran onto another flight.

During this stopover in Qatar, authorities realized that one Iranian deportee wasn't on the flight manifest but was still repatriated to Iran, the organization said.

“These documents expose an operation that demands answers from the highest levels of government,” said NIAC Policy Director Ryan Costello.

“ICE somehow deported an Iranian who was not even on the flight manifest, an extraordinary breakdown that raises serious questions about unlawful or involuntary cross-border transfer.

Moreover, the report states that an ICE attaché in the US Embassy branch in Tel Aviv was “heavily involved” in the process to deport Iranians. Based on this, the report appeared to suggest that the Israeli government could have influenced the operation, though no evidence was provided.

“As Israel and the US were dropping bombs on Iran and the President was warning Iranians to evacuate major cities, ICE in Tel Aviv was coordinating a mass deportation operation to force vulnerable Iranians in the US back to the country being bombed,” said Jamal Abdi, President of the National Iranian American Council.

“The same administration that would later promise Iranians ‘help is on the way’ was working to accelerate deportations of asylum seekers back to Iran, even as officials acknowledged that Iran’s airspace was closed and people were desperately trying to flee the country.”

“The US government cannot claim to stand with the Iranian people while bombing their country, arresting Iranians here at home, and forcing people back into the danger it helped create,” said Abdi. “We need to know who was wrongly put on that plane, why ICE’s Tel Aviv office was so deeply involved, and exactly what the White House ordered.”

"NIAC is committed to dragging these facts into the light and fighting to ensure Iranians are not treated as disposable collateral of US foreign and immigration policy,” Abdi concluded.

The NIAC has criticized foreign intervention in Iran extensively, including sanctions and military action, though it has condemned the regime in Tehran and previously stated its support for Iranians to overthrow the Islamic Republic.

Jailed former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan was transferred to a hospital in Islamabad early on Friday for medical examination, his party said, fulfilling a long-standing demand by supporters who say his health has deteriorated during more than three years in prison.

The move followed a Supreme Court order this week and is seen as a potential first step toward easing tensions between Khan’s party and Pakistan’s powerful military establishment, which have been at odds since his ouster from office in 2022.

“Former Prime Minister Imran Khan has been shifted from Adiala Jail to Shifa International Hospital in Islamabad following Supreme Court order,” Khan’s party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, said in a text message to journalists.

His lawyers say his health has deteriorated in prison and that he has lost significant vision in his right eye. The government has said medical reports disclosed no condition requiring immediate treatment.

Pakistan’s Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered authorities to transfer Khan, 73, to Shifa International Hospital in the capital city within 48 hours and allow him access to a medical panel that includes his personal physician.

In an interview with Reuters on Wednesday, PTI spokesperson Zulfikar Bukhari called the ruling a “new ray of hope” but said the party would proceed with a nationwide march on September 27 to demand access to Khan, speedy hearings in his cases and his release.

Khan has been imprisoned since August 2023. He says the cases against him are politically motivated, an accusation the government denies.

"We are going to collapse this [the Iranian] regime," US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC in an interview on Thursday.

"You are either with us or against us," he added, "we are going to squash the economy of this murderous regime."

Bessent explained that the US will be increasing economic pressure pressure on Iran, reiterating US President Donald Trump’s statements on Truth Social on Wednesday night, when the president announced that Iran would face “an ECONOMIC D-DAY.” 

He added that he will be holding a press conference on Monday to discuss exactly what the economic pressure will entail, noting that if any of American allies continue doing business with Iran, whether transferring money, or buying their oil, “then the US Treasury and the US government, they will put its full might and force toward enforcing against you.”

"I see lots of reports that said, 'oh, well, this has never worked.' It does work, because we have a combination. It is a one-two punch," Bessent told CNBC. "We have the blockade, and we are going to have the toughest sanctions in history. And I will tell you, this will work. It worked in Venezuela once we put up the blockade. It is working in Cuba right now. And it is going to work in Iran, and we are going to collapse this regime."

Bessent also echoed Trump's claim that the US, not Iran, controls the Strait of Hormuz.

"We do have control of the strait," he said, adding "You would have seen media reports that large amounts of energy are getting out. And I think that we can continue doing that in the southern lane, and that I think oil markets are misinterpreting what this economic pressure means."

"The economic pressure means that we are going to, all of our allies, and this is going to be the greatest coordinated economic isolation in the history of the world."

Trump warned on Wednesday of economic consequences against any country that provided "any type of lifeline to Iran."

In a post on Truth Social, Trump promised "Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale," although details were limited.

"ANY country that allows its financial institutions, businesses, airports, or government entities to provide any type of lifeline to Iran will itself face TREMENDOUS Economic Consequences," Trump wrote.

However, Iran Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in a post on X/Twitter that Trump’s comments were an attempt to divert American public opinion away from domestic financial problems, including record debt and rising interest rates.

Trump did not say what specific steps the US would take against such a country.

Jerusalem Post Staff contributed to this report.