U.S. floats “wish list” to end Iran war; Israeli strikes kill eight in Lebanon; Republicans want $1 billion for East Wing

U.S. floats memo to end the war in Iran. Secretary of State Marco Rubio declares conclusion of Operation Epic Fury. UAE says it faces Iranian attacks for the second day. Cargo vessels hit in the Gulf. Rubio defends U.S. blockade of Iran, sidesteps question on Kurdish arms transfer. U.S. and Gulf allies introduce UN Security Council resolution threatening sanctions over Hormuz blockade. Iran’s judiciary chief orders economic stabilization measures amid what he calls foreign “economic terrorism.” Iranian foreign minister visits Beijing. Israeli strikes kill eight across Lebanon on Wednesday. Rubio calls peace in Lebanon “imminently achievable.” Two Palestinians killed on Wednesday in Gaza. Israel orders demolition of 50 Palestinians shops and facilities as part of settlement project. Board of Peace told Gaza officials ceasefire would become “null and void” if Hamas refuses disarmament. U.S. military kills three in latest vessel strike in the Pacific. Senate Republicans slip $1 billion for White House East Wing renovation into $70 billion immigration enforcement bill. FDA blocked publication of multiple vaccine safety studies. U.S. gas prices spike to $4.48 a gallon, up 50% since Iran war began. Trump’s border czar threatens to “flood the zone” with ICE agents if New York passes sanctuary measures. China demands U.S. immediately lift Cuba embargo. Four pro-Palestinian activists convicted of criminal damage in raid on Elbit factory. RSF drone strikes in Sudan; Ethiopian ambassador recalled . Russian strikes kill 27 in Ukraine before ceasefire takes effect. Boko Haram kills 23 Chadian soldiers. Pakistan attack in Afghanistan condemned as “war crime.” West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee refuses to resign. Ethiopia’s TPLF reasserts political control in Tigray. U.S. set to lift sanctions on Eritrea. U.S. fires Typhon missile from the Philippines for the first time. 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Subscribe Secretary of State Marco Rubio speaks during a press briefing in the Brady Briefing Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on May 5, 2026. Photo by Kent NISHIMURA / AFP via Getty Images. Iran and Ceasefire U.S. floats memo to end the war: The U.S. has put forward a one-page memorandum of understanding to end the war, according to Axios. The document would formally mark an end to hostilities and launch a 30-day window for more detailed negotiations. Ebrahim Rezaei, the spokesperson of the Iranian parliament’s national security and foreign policy commission said in a social media post that the Axios article represented “the Americans’ wish list.” He added, “Americans will not gain in a lost war what they failed to achieve in face-to-face negotiations. Iran has its finger on the trigger and is ready.” According to Axios, a frequent recipient of Trump administration leaks, the deal would involve Iran committing to a moratorium on nuclear enrichment, the U.S. agreeing to lift its sanctions and release billions in frozen Iranian funds, and both sides allowing transit through the Strait of Hormuz. Washington reportedly expects Iran to respond to several key points within the next 48 hours. The news follows President Donald Trump’s announcement on Tuesday that the U.S. has paused its short lived “Project Freedom” operation to guide commercial vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz. Rubio declares Operation Epic Fury concluded: Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters at a White House news conference that the U.S. military campaign in Iran had ended. “The Operation Epic Fury is concluded,” Rubio said. “We achieved the objective of that operation.” In a social media post on Wednesday, Trump said, “Assuming Iran agrees to give what has been agreed to, which is, perhaps, a big assumption, the already legendary Epic Fury will be at an end, and the highly effective Blockade will allow the Hormuz Strait to be OPEN TO ALL, including Iran. If they don’t agree, the bombing starts, and it will be, sadly, at a much higher level and intensity than it was before.” Iranian sources told Drop Site’s Jeremy Scahill that they do not trust Washington and remain skeptical of the entire diplomatic process. “They also say that much of the U.S. media reporting on this is based on Trump admin spin. Iran is engaging in diplomacy, but also preparing for a resumption of the war,” Scahill reported. UAE says it faces Iranian attacks for second day: The Defense Ministry of the United Arab Emirates claimed on Tuesday that it had come under attack from Iranian missiles and drones for the second day in a row, attacks which the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps denied. Iran, it said, had “not carried out any missile or drone operations against the UAE in recent days,” though in the same statement, Iran’s Foreign Ministry warned the Emirates of the “dangerous consequences” of cooperation with “illegal and provocative actions of the American terrorist.” Monday saw 15 missiles launched from Iran towards the UAE, all of which the UAE claimed it intercepted, and a fire reportedly sparked by a drone attack at the Fujairah oil facility in the country’s east. Cargo vessels hit in the Gulf: After the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations Centre reported no incidents across the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman in the 24-hour period ending at 1600 UTC, a French cargo ship was reportedly struck by an unknown projectile in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday evening. The attack resulted in several injuries to crew members and damaged the vessel, the company said in its confirmation of the attack. Washington Post: Iran struck significantly more U.S. military assets than previously reported: Iranian airstrikes damaged or destroyed at least 228 structures or pieces of equipment at 15 U.S. military sites across the region since the beginning of the war on February 28, according to a Washington Post analysis of satellite imagery. U.S. hangars, barracks, fuel depots, aircraft and key radar, communications and air defense equipment have all been hit. More than half of the damage reviewed by the Washington Post occurred at the 5th Fleet headquarters, and three bases in Kuwait—Ali al-Salem Air Base, Camp Arifjan and Camp Buehring. Camp Arifjan is the U.S. Army’s regional headquarters. Rubio defends U.S. blockade of Iran, sidesteps question on Kurdish arms transfer: Rubio rejected the characterization that the U.S. naval blockade of Iranian ports constitutes an act of war, calling it instead “a defensive measure” and framing Iran’s control over the Strait of Hormuz as the real act of war. He avoided a question about whether U.S. weapons were transferred to Kurdish intermediaries for delivery to anti-regime demonstrators inside Iran, though Trump has explicitly confirmed the arrangement, saying the Kurds kept the weapons and would “pay a big price.” U.S. and Gulf allies introduce UN Security Council resolution threatening sanctions over Hormuz blockade: The United States and five Gulf states—Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Qatar— introduced a draft UN Security Council resolution demanding Iran immediately halt strikes on commercial shipping, disclose the location of sea mines, stop imposing what the resolution calls “illegal tolls,” and cooperate with UN efforts to establish safe passage for essential goods. The resolution is drafted under Chapter 7 of the UN Charter, meaning it could ultimately be enforced militarily. Rubio called the vote a “real test” for the UN while acknowledging uncertainty over whether text adjustments would be enough to avoid a Chinese or Russian veto, after both countries vetoed a previous Hormuz resolution in April. Hegseth says ceasefire is “not over,” Joint Chiefs chairman calls Iranian aggression below threshold for resuming combat: Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Tuesday the ceasefire with Iran remains in effect despite rising tensions in the Strait of Hormuz, and pushed back on suggestions that President Trump has been drawn into the conflict at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s urging, saying Trump “has led at every step of this based on his view of American interests.” Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine characterized Iran’s recent aggression as falling “below the threshold” for restarting major combat operations. Hegseth also dismissed Iranian claims of control over the strait, saying flatly: “They said they control the strait. They do not.” Iran’s judiciary chief orders economic stabilization measures amid what he calls foreign “economic terrorism”: Iran’s judiciary chief Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje’i directed officials Tuesday to help stabilize the country’s economy amid mounting pressure on household living standards, calling on authorities to streamline essential goods imports at border crossings and ports, deploy prosecutors to monitor production centers for basic necessities, and take firm legal action against price gougers and hoarders, according to Mehr News Agency. “The enemy’s objective is to undermine the country’s economy, and we must disarm them in this regard,” Mohseni-Eje’i said, framing the crisis as “economic terrorism” by foreign adversaries. The remarks reflect growing strain on Iranian households as the U.S. naval presence in the region continues to disrupt trade and currency markets. Iranian foreign minister visits Beijing: Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi arrived in Beijing Wednesday for talks with Chinese counterpart Wang Yi—his first visit to China since the war began—with bilateral relations and regional developments on the agenda, according to Tasnim News. The visit comes one week before President Donald Trump’s scheduled summit with President Xi Jinping in Beijing on May 14–15, with the Hormuz crisis expected to dominate both meetings; Secretary of State Marco Rubio used the occasion to publicly pressure Beijing, saying “I hope the Chinese tell him what he needs to be told—that what you are doing in the strait is causing you to be globally isolated.” China is Iran’s largest trading partner, purchasing at least 90% of its crude oil exports, and has reportedly worked behind the scenes to encourage Tehran to continue negotiating with Washington. Lebanon Israeli strikes kill eight across Lebanon on Wednesday: An Israeli strike on a vehicle along the road between Zawtar al-Sharqiya and Mifdoun killed two people on Wednesday, according to the National News Agency. In the town of Zalaiya, a strike on a house killed the mayor, Ali Qassem Ahmad, along with three members of his family, while others were wounded; the Lebanese Ministry of Public Health confirmed four dead, including two women and an elderly man, and five injured, among them a child. Additional drone strikes hit Mifdoun in multiple waves, killing two more people, and targeted emergency responders from the Islamic Health Society in Deir Kifa, injuring three. The Israeli military also issued urgent evacuation warnings for 12 towns and villages across southern Lebanon. Rubio calls peace in Lebanon “imminently achievable”: At a press conference on Tuesday, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said a peace deal between Israel and Lebanon is “imminently achievable.” He continued to foist the blame for the ongoing conflict on Hezbollah, however, despite near-daily Israeli attacks in violation of the ceasefire. “What has to happen in Lebanon, what everybody wants to see, is that you have a Lebanese government with the capability to go after Hezbollah and take Hezbollah apart,” Rubio said. Lebanese PM says talks with Netanyahu “premature,” stresses “peace” is the objective and not normalization: Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said Wednesday that talk of any potential meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is “premature,” stressing that “any high-level meeting with the Israeli side requires significant preparation.” Speaking to journalists, Salam insisted that the Lebanese government is not seeking “normalization with Israel, but