Fire erupts at the World Heart Hotel in the Iraqi city of Baghdad.

Does anyone here know the Iranian born western academic Vali Nasr? He wrote "The Shia Revival" a while back and also a book titled "The Rise of Islamic Capitalism: Why the New Muslim Middle Class Is the Key to Defeating Extremism" (just so you know where he stands).

Anyway he put out a book written right before the Assad government fell called "Iran's Grand Strategy: A Political History", it's what it says on the tin. I think for anyone confused about why the fuck Iran does what it does and what its leaders think, usually in their own terms and not the author's, this is a good read.

But before reading just listen to that episode of about the terms "proxy" and "backed" because the author views Iran's "Forward Defense" strategy of supporting these organizations as reprehensible, while no doubt he would not say the same about whatever NGOs the US literally funds. Despite that, it's not too axe-grindish a read I think he did a good job of relaying what the hardliners and reformists believe and why, and any sensible reader will read this and note how in plenty of matters the hardliners are correct.

There's lots of good stuff about Khamenei too, like how he was influenced by new left theories of anti-imperialism and dependency theory. Also explains why Iran for a long time (and even until today) is very reluctant to join a Russia-China axis (the iranian foreign minister literally has "neither east nor west" on its entrance)

At the end he puts out a warning to the regime that basically there's a chasm forming between its commitment to its strategies for resisting the united states as a means of becoming a regional power and the wishes of many iranians to adopt a more """""pragmatic""""" approach (like nuclear negotiations). This was obviously all before the recent missile lobbing war so I hope that chasm as been reduced in favor of the regime.

It's on the audiobook torrent site too

EDIT: Found the guy's twitter and he seems to understand that Iran is not just going to return to the negotiating table after one happens, and it may have only hardened Khamenei's already incredibly hard will to resist the US

trump announced a ceasefire to begin in 6 hours, no mention of gaza

details are odd tho, seems iran ceases fire in 6 hours and then 12 hrs later the entity will.

FUCK THIS NO CEASEFIRE TIL THE ZIONIST REGIME IS FINISHED

: "Why would the so-called “Supreme Leader,” Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, of the war torn Country of Iran, say so blatantly and foolishly that he won the War with Israel, when he knows his statement is a lie, it is not so. As a man of great faith, he is not supposed to lie. His Country was decimated, his three evil Nuclear Sites were OBLITERATED, and I knew EXACTLY where he was sheltered, and would not let Israel, or the U.S. Armed Forces, by far the Greatest and Most Powerful in the World, terminate his life. I SAVED HIM FROM A VERY UGLY AND IGNOMINIOUS DEATH, and he does not have to say, “THANK YOU, PRESIDENT TRUMP!” In fact, in the final act of the War, I demanded that Israel bring back a very large group of planes, which were heading directly to Tehran, looking for a big day, perhaps the final knockout! Tremendous damage would have ensued, and many Iranians would have been killed. It was going to be the biggest attack of the War, by far. During the last few days, I was working on the possible removal of sanctions, and other things, which would have given a much better chance to Iran at a full, fast, and complete recovery - The sanctions are BITING! But no, instead I get hit with a statement of anger, hatred, and disgust, and immediately dropped all work on sanction relief, and more. Iran has to get back into the World Order flow, or things will only get worse for them. They are always so angry, hostile, and unhappy, and look at what it has gotten them - A burned out, blown up Country, with no future, a decimated Military, a horrible Economy, and DEATH all around them. They have no hope, and it will only get worse! I wish the leadership of Iran would realize that you often get more with HONEY than you do with VINEGAR. PEACE!!!"

Belarus and Cuba Strengthen Their Alliance in Response to Western Sanctions - Telesur English

Looking forward to next week when Israel bombs Iran again and Iran is completely blindsided by it.

Anyone on here well versed enough to explain the reasons for New York’s demographic decline? All you get when talking to liberals is that it’s because of the progressive income tax and the weather.

There is no ceasefire, this is just an attempt to manufacture a casis belli for when the next round of Iranian missiles are fired "Look the mullahs violated the ceasefire (that they never agreed to) poor little Israel

NYT

ISNA, an Iranian state news agency, is also reporting President Trump’s comments about the United States holding talks with Iran “next week.”

Imperialist Vanguard: Denmark Supports NATO Militarization, Backs American Aggression Against Iran

At today’s NATO summit in The Hague, Denmark emerged as one of the most fanatic supporters of the American demands for aggressive military expansion. The nordic hermit kingom's authoritarian leader Mette Frederiksen and Lars Løkke Rasmussen, the powerful and corruption-tainted head of the nation's Moderate Party-controlled Ministry of Foreign Affairs, voiced full-throated support as American vassal states aquiesced to Washington’s radical demands to channel 5% of their national GDP into military spending.

Grand Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi has issued a fatwa against the enemies of God. (Grand Ayatollah is the highest ranking title in Twelver Shiism)

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Any individual or regime that threatens the Islamic Ummah and its leadership, the Rahbar, or Marjaiyyah, or – Allah forbid – attempts any aggression against them, is classified as a Muharib (one who wages war against Allah).

Any form of cooperation with them or strengthening them is Haram (religiously forbidden) for Muslims and Islamic governments.

It is incumbent upon all Muslims across the world to make such enemies regret their words and actions.

And if they (the Muslims) endure hardships or incur a loss while doing so, they shall – Allah willing – have the rewards of a Mujahid on the path of Allah.

May Allah protect the Islamic community from the evil of its enemies and hasten the reappearance of the Master of the Age and the Time (Imam Mahdi).

May you always be successful.

Ayatollah Makarem Shirazi; 8 Tir 1404; 29 June 2025

Gang I think it's true, getting that same impending sense of doom from the resistance infosphere that I felt after the strike on Nasrallah and before Assad's fall...

Hah I wouldn't trust Al Jazeera's reporting on this

The Parliamentarian has decreed that Mike Lee's provision to sell off millions of acres of federal land out west should be struck from the Big Beautiful Bill. Lee wants to bring it back, but this time only selling BLM land, not Forest Service land, and only within 5 miles of cities, but i guess we'll see.

Regardless of whether the ceasefire holds or not (it will be violated by the Zionist entity either way), the IRGC could always use the humiliating terms and implications of the ceasefire to stage a coup or declare martial law against the reformist government, correctly blaming the general predicament that the IRI is currently facing squarely on the reformist's shoulders. Iran needs nukes and good AA, but they have to take care of the rot inside first. It makes no sense to remodel a house without first handling the termite problem.

As communists, we gotta get our money up. What Ws have we got since 1991? Don’t say China, we just spent a week shitting on them for sleeping through any chance at saving themselves from western domination

I suspect that we're going to see a rather massive exodus of settlers from The Genocidal Entity in the wake of True Promise 3. Pissrael's sense of invulnerability has without a doubt been absolutely shattered, regardless as to who "won" this recent flare up.

They're wanting to expand to "Greater Israel" while simultaneously having fewer and fewer settlers to actually make that happen. Burning the candle at both ends, as it were.

With the exception of the truly rabid / extreme Zionazi settlers that are absolutely committed to the project I would think a lot of them are probably realising that they'd be best advised to get the hell out of dodge.

Everything on Resistance media is indicating one thing: Iran will strike Al Udaid Base in Qatar possibly tonight. Every piece is moving in that direction.

As long as we get to see LGBT hold, I don't really gaf about the game of hand slapping between the US and Iran.

The ceasefire took place a few minutes ago, Iran is still sending missiles

Okay now let's step back and see what was the goal of all this, my guess is that it's a psyop to get the hardliners against Iran, trick the Iranians into thinking the country got sold for them to rise up and get hijacked by the U.S.

Supreme Court curbs injunctions that blocked Trump's birthright citizenship plan - NBC News

The Trump administration wants to end automatic birthright citizenship as enshrined in the Constitution’s 14th Amendment.

WASHINGTON — The Supreme Court on Friday handed a major win to the Trump administration by allowing it to take steps to implement its proposal to end automatic birthright citizenship.

In a 6-3 vote, the court granted a request by the Trump administration to narrow the scope of nationwide injunctions imposed by judges so that they apply only to states, groups and individuals that sued. That means the birthright citizenship proposal can likely move forward at least in part in the states that challenged it as well as those that did not. The court was divided on ideological lines, with conservatives in the majority and liberals in dissent.

"When a court concludes that the executive branch has acted unlawfully, the answer is not for the court to exceed its power, too," Justice Amy Coney Barrett wrote for the majority. But she indicated that the nationwide injunctions are limited "only to the extent that the injunctions are broader than necessary." Lower courts, she added "shall move expeditiously" to figure out how broad the injunctions can be.

The court also said that the administration can continue working administratively on how the policy would be implemented. Liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor read a summary of her dissent from the bench in the courtroom, saying the ruling was a "travesty for the rule of the law" and an "open invitation to bypass the constitution."

Federal courts "will be hamstrung" when it comes to nationwide injunctions but she urged potential plaintiffs to immediately file class action lawsuits, a legal avenue the court left open. In a separate dissenting opinion, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote that the decision was “an existential threat to the rule of law.”

The policy remains blocked for now in one additional state, New Hampshire, as a result of a separate lawsuit that is not before the Supreme Court. As a result of the ruling, the proposal can potentially move forward nationwide, although individual plaintiffs could still file their own lawsuits in those states and the current challengers can still move to reinstate injunctions that are less broad in scope. Trump's original executive order said the plan would go into effect after 30 days, but it was almost immediately blocked.

The decision does not address the legal merits of the plan, but only whether judges had the authority to put it on hold across the entire country. President Donald Trump and his MAGA allies have been harshly critical of judges who have blocked aspects of his agenda, although it is not a new phenomenon for courts to impose nationwide injunctions.

It has long been widely accepted, including by legal scholars on left and right, that the Constitution’s 14th Amendment confers automatic citizenship to almost anyone born in the United States.

“All persons born or naturalized in the United States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens of the United States,” the amendment says. Based on historical practice, the only exception is people who are the children of diplomats. Trump wants to adopt a completely new meaning of the language that would confer citizenship only on those who have at least one parent who is a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

Trump’s executive order, issued on his first day in office in January, was immediately challenged, and every court that has ruled on the proposal so far has blocked it. At issue at the Supreme Court were cases filed in Maryland, Massachusetts and Washington state. In court papers, former acting Solicitor General Sarah Harris said judges did not have the authority to issue nationwide injunctions and that the states that sued did not have legal standing.

The Trump plan has the backing of 21 other states. The administration has complained bitterly as judges have issued nationwide injunctions in response to Trump’s bold and aggressive use of executive power to implement his contentious agenda, which has included ramping up deportations, downsizing federal agencies, targeting law firms and universities, and firing thousands of federal employees.

Justice Department officials say there have been dozens such rulings and have described them as being an unconstitutional attack on the president’s authority. Previous administrations, both Republican and Democratic, have also had their agenda’s threatened by nationwide injunctions, although they have become more commonplace in recent years.

Venezuela, Uruguay agree to renew consular services - Latin American Reports

Good on President Orsi for re-establishing relations with Venezuela, the article does not mention it, but Uruguay no longer recognizes Edmundo Gonzalez as President of Venezuela (Juan Guaido 2). I guess Uruguay only recognizes the Status Quo (meaning they de facto recognize Maduro as President but not de jure, so as not to anger USA and EU. Mexico, Colombia and Brazil also did the same thing).

Well Iran needs to rearm fast, because Israel is surely going to break this "ceasefire" in short order. They need to develop nukes, for real this time, and buy every anti-air platform the Chinese are willing to sell them as soon as possible. Maybe complete the training of those Sukhois the Russians gave them too. There's not a minute to waste, and if Iran doesn't do this then what the fuck was the point of this "ceasefire" in the first place, knowing you cannot expect any agreements with the West to ever be honored?

“A vow to the days: you shall not be defeated… for victory springs where blood nourishes the soil.”

Martyr Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades mourn the great martyr, Commander Saeed Izadi – “Hajj Ramadan,” Bearer of the banner of Palestine and head of its portfolio in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Martyr Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, mourn to the masses of our Palestinian people, our Arab and Islamic Ummah, the free people of the world, and the entire Axis of Resistance, the martyr Commander Saeed Izadi (Hajj Ramadan)—the bearer of Palestine’s banner and its portfolio chief within the IRGC—who ascended as a martyr on the path to Al-Quds in a treacherous Zionist assassination while carrying out his sacred duty in service of the Ummah’s causes, foremost among them: Palestine.

The martyr commander was one of the most prominent security leaders within the IRGC and among the most ardent believers in the justice and centrality of the Palestinian cause. He dedicated his life, position, and very being to the service of the resistance project and the development of its capabilities on every level.

Hajj Saeed Izadi was a steadfast and essential supporter of the development of the military arms of the Palestinian resistance factions. He directly coordinated efforts and meetings with resistance leaders and oversaw the training of generations of Palestinian fighters across multiple fields.

He was, in every sense, a man of the shadows and the field—a figure who believed that supporting Palestine was a doctrinal, revolutionary, and strategic obligation.

As we in Martyr Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades bid farewell to a great brother and a loyal friend to Palestine, we affirm that this tremendous loss only deepens our loyalty to the martyrs and our resolve to continue along the path they walked.

We extend our heartfelt condolences to the leadership of the Islamic Republic of Iran, the leadership of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the family of the martyr, and his comrades-in-arms. We also salute with pride and gratitude the dear Iranian people, who have never hesitated in their support for Palestine and the oppressed throughout this Ummah.

Palestine and the resistance shall never forget this great commander, whose soul was bound to Al-Quds, whose efforts were aimed at dismantling the Zionist entity, and whose positions served as a solid bridge between Palestinian blood and the revolutionary Iranian will.

Glory and eternity to the martyr commander, Hajj Ramadan. Glory to the martyrs of the resistance across every land. Victory to our people and our resistance until liberation and return. And tomorrow, the fog shall lift from the hills. Indeed, we shall surely be victorious.

Martyr Abu Ali Mustafa Brigades Military wing of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine June 26, 2025

Man, you really do gotta ruthlessly purge all the compradors and dumbass moderates from positions of power, huh?