■ Children killed in southern Iran following US-Israeli criminal aggression against the country (Press TV)
■ Israeli strike kills 70 school children in Iranian city (RT)
■ Images of elementary students killed in US-Israeli aggression in the Iranian city of Minab (Press TV)
■ The number of schoolgirls killed after a US-Israeli missile strike has reached 57 (СВЕЖЕСТИ)
■ Scenes of destruction in Iran after US-Israeli strikes (Al Jazeera) (VIDEO)

Iran is under attack in what will likely be a massive regional war that cannot be contained. Seyed Mohammad Marandi is a professor at Tehran University and a former advisor to Iran's Nuclear Negotiation Team.
■ Spain slams US and Israeli strikes on Iran, reflecting shift in foreign policy (EuroNews)
✅ Empire ‘sleepwalking’ into Iran war catastrophe (Kit Klarenberg)

At least five key U.S. military bases in the region have come under heavy fire from Iranian missiles, as Iran continues to respond to the U.S.-Israeli attacks that targeted Tehran and other Iranian cities Saturday morning. | The targeted bases include Al-Udeid airbase in Qatar, Al-Salmiya base in Kuwait, Al-Zafra airbase in the UAE, the 5th U.S. base in Bahrain, and King Hussein Air Base in Jordan, the Tehran Times can confirm. ● Reports from Arab media indicate that air raid sirens have been sounding continuously in Kuwait, Bahrain, and the UAE following the missile strikes. Additionally, explosions have been reported in the occupied territories, specifically in Tel Aviv, occupied al-Quds, and Be'er Sheva. ● Some reports suggest explosions in Saudi Arabia and Dubai, which the Tehran Times is currently unable to verify. ● This marks the second instance of the U.S. and Israel launching strikes against Iran amidst ongoing diplomatic negotiations. Iran and the U.S. concluded a third round of nuclear talks in Geneva on Thursday and were scheduled to reconvene next week in Vienna for more detailed discussions. Iran had previously warned that any further attack on its soil would not be contained like the conflict in June, threatening a regional conflagration.

■ Iran’s retaliatory attack completely destroys sophisticated US radar system in Qatar (Press TV)
■ Iran: ‘Decisive defense’ after US bombs negotiating table a second time (Tehran Times)
■ Iran launches retaliatory strike on Israel (RT)

СВЕЖЕСТИ | (Translation: Google) | The scale of the attack is illustrated by a video from Iraq showing cruise missiles flying toward Iran. Israel has launched what it claims is a "preemptive attack" on Iran. As part of Operation Judah Shield, it has struck 30 targets across Iran, including the Supreme Leader's residence and intelligence headquarters. Israel estimates that Tehran will delay its response until at least this evening.

U.S. President Donald Trump has appealed to the Iranian people to “take over your government.” | The United States and Israel launched an attack Saturday on Iran, with the first apparent strike happening near the offices of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. ● Iranian media reported strikes nationwide, and smoke could be seen rising from the capital. ● President Donald Trump said in a video posted on social media that the U.S. had begun “major combat operations in Iran.” He claimed Iran has continued to develop its nuclear program and plans to develop missiles to reach the U.S. ● Ahead of the strikes, Trump has built up the largest U.S. military presence in the Middle East in decades and repeatedly threatened to use force to compel Iran to reach a deal to constrain its nuclear program and, earlier, to halt its bloody crackdown on nationwide protests.

■ US and Israel attack Iran: What we know so far (Al Jazeera)
■ Iran launches retaliatory strike on Israel (RT)
■ Israel, US launch attack on Iran amid escalating protests (Fox News)
■ Israel Launches ‘Preemptive Strike’ Against Iran — Defense Minister (Sputnik)
■ U.S., Israel Strike Iran: Live Updates (WSJ)

Alice Weidel has accused Brussels of using “every means necessary” to force “regime change” in Hungary ahead of April parliamentary elections | The EU is desperately attempting to engineer “regime change” against Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in next month’s parliamentary election, employing tactics such as poll manipulation and energy blackmail, German opposition leader Alice Weidel has claimed. ● In a post on X on Wednesday, the co-chair of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party accused Brussels of using “their puppet,” Hungarian opposition leader Peter Magyar, in a bid to remove Orban.

Weidel was responding to a recent survey by Hungarian pollster Median showing Magyar’s opposition Tisza Party with a 55% to 35% lead over Orban’s ruling Fidesz-KDNP alliance. Irish economist Philip Pilkington dismissed the figures as “really crazy polls,” comparing them to surveys in Georgia ahead of elections in 2024, which were followed by unrest. ● Hungarian opposition pollsters have a track record of significant inaccuracies. In 2022, left-leaning polling firm Publicus was wide of the mark by 20 points, while Median itself underestimated Fidesz by 7 points in its final pre-election survey. Orban ultimately secured a 20-point victory.

Simplicius | It’s becoming more and more clear that many inside the Pentagon believe the US will face generational disaster if it over-commits to a large-scale conflict with Iran. | While the Iranian saga has kept the world on its toes, it has now turned from travesty-in-making to total farce. The USS Gerald R. Ford—the most expensive and ‘advanced’ aircraft carrier in history—has become “mired” in quite a stink—pun intended—as it was revealed that demoralized sailors are potentially sabotaging the ship by flushing items like clothing and mop heads into the ship’s sewage systems, causing widespread septic blockages—a kind of “color revolution of the seas” (color mutiny?), with the color being brown. ■ Now Trump’s initiative is collapsing before his sallow eyes amidst internal revolts as staff leak all kinds of damaging bulletins to the press. The latest from the Pentagon stovepipe is that the US only has munitions for days of a sustained high-intensity conflict with Iran, a fact we’ve known all along.

■ Report: US intelligence debunks Trump's claim of Iran working on ICBMs (Press TV)
✅ If Iran Kills US Troops, The Blame Rests Solely On The US And Israel (Caitlin Johnstone)
✅ Preparing a “decapitating strike” against Iran as a bargaining chip (Elena Panina)
✅ Iran – U.S. Negotiators Block Progress With Unreasonable Demands (Moon of Alabama)

A referendum on resuming membership talks had been expected in 2027, but could come as early as this August. | Iceland is weighing a vote on restarting EU membership talks as early as August, according to two people familiar with the country’s accession preparations. ● It comes as momentum for EU enlargement appears to be growing, with Brussels working on a plan that could give Ukraine partial membership in the bloc as early as next year, and with accession front-runner Montenegro closing another negotiating chapter last month. ● Reykjavík’s governing coalition had promised to hold a referendum on restarting EU accession talks by 2027, after a previous government froze negotiations in 2013. But the timeline is being sped up at a time of geopolitical upheaval and following a decision by Washington to impose tariffs on Iceland and threats by U.S. President Donald Trump to annex Greenland.

■ Евросоюз скоро может расшириться за счет Исландии (Nezavisimaya Gazeta)

🇺🇸🇮🇷 U.S. demands presented to Iran in Geneva:

- Destroy all three nuclear sites: Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan

- Transfer all enriched uranium to the U.S.

- No sunset clauses, meaning restrictions would be permanent

- 0 enrichment, though the Tehran reactor could remain

-… https://t.co/NnDM6pqpMJ pic.twitter.com/CbNUS2rsm2

— Mario Nawfal (@MarioNawfal) February 26, 2026

✅ Preparing a “decapitating strike” against Iran as a bargaining chip (Elena Panina)
✅ Iran – U.S. Negotiators Block Progress With Unreasonable Demands (Moon of Alabama)

Jeremy Scahill and Murtaza Hussain | “In case we don’t make a deal, we’ll need it,” Trump has said. Iran remains defiant in the face of ultimatums, pledging unprecedented retaliation to any attack. | The U.S. military is in the midst of amassing an enormous fleet of aircraft and warships within striking distance of Iran as the region enters the Islamic holy month of Ramadan. It is the largest buildup of firepower in the Middle East since President Donald Trump authorized a 12-day bombing campaign against Iran last June that killed more than 1,000 people. ■ While Iranian and U.S. negotiators are speaking in cautiously optimistic tones about the latest round of indirect talks held Tuesday in Geneva and suggested another meeting was possible, comments from the highest levels of power in both countries drive home the reality that the U.S. may be on the verge of attacking the Islamic Republic.

Nate Bear | A US attack on Iran, a flagrant violation of international law, if such a thing is even worth mentioning any more, appears imminent. | The US has amassed the largest military force in the Middle East since the invasion of Iraq almost 23 years ago and is poised once again to commit mass murder and gleefully perpetrate an astonishing amount of war crimes. Why? For Israel, for oil, for power projection, for Trump’s legacy. ■ Because the logic of the military-industrial complex demands that $1 trillion dollars a year and an astonishing array of killing machinery doesn’t just sit idle. Because this is what empires do. Because the US is violence. And there is no more stunning display of American violence than a big war. ■ The US has been at war for 222 out of 239 years since 1776. The country is hardly going to stop now, especially not with the stars aligning for a project the US-Israel-Zionist axis has been desperate to undertake for nearly 50 years.

The suspects’ boat was loaded with tactical gear, assault rifles and improvised explosives, according to authorities on the island | Cuba’s Interior Ministry has released new findings from its investigation into the deadly gunfight between Cuban border guards and a US‑flagged speedboat, saying the vessel was carrying ten armed men who allegedly intended to execute a “terrorist infiltration.” ● Havana said the clash erupted on Wednesday when border guards approached a Florida‑registered vessel, FL7726SH, operating roughly one nautical mile off the northern coast of Villa Clara province for an identification check. The individuals aboard the boat allegedly opened fire first, wounding the commander of a Cuban patrol craft before guards returned fire, killing four people and injuring six others. ● Cuban officials said weapons and tactical gear were found aboard, including assault rifles, sidearms, handmade explosive devices such as Molotov cocktails, ballistic vests, telescopic sights and camouflage uniforms – equipment the ministry said was consistent with an attempted “infiltration with terrorist objectives.”

Elena Panina | In such a scenario, Russia [might] lose its ad hoc companion in Orbán. Slovakia, under Robert Fico, is a weak substitute. | The reason is Kyiv's halting of oil pumping through the Druzhba pipeline. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban sent a letter on this matter to European Council President António Costa. Orban emphasized that there are no technical obstacles to resuming oil pumping through the Druzhba pipeline to Hungary—"all that is required is a political decision by Ukraine." ● Orban explained his position as follows: "You, of course, also see the absurdity of the situation. We make a decision that is financially beneficial for Ukraine [a €90 billion loan], which I personally do not approve of. Then Ukraine creates an energy catastrophe in Hungary. And you ask me to pretend nothing happened. This is impossible." ● Of the stated amount, €60 billion will be allocated directly to military aid to Kyiv. Moreover, the entire loan is calculated for 2026-2027, i.e., for two years of war with Russia. [...] Parliamentary elections in Hungary are scheduled for April 12. This means Kyiv only needs to maintain its oil blockade for six weeks. Despite some costs, it seems worth the end result, if the end result is considered to be Orbán's ouster. [Read the rest in Russian here. DeepL]

Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine has been advising President Trump and top officials that a military campaign against Iran could carry significant risks, in particular the possibility of becoming entangled in a prolonged conflict, according to two sources with knowledge of those internal discussions. | There's an ongoing debate at the top levels of the Trump administration about how to handle the Iran standoff and what the consequences of each option would be. At the moment, several of the voices in Trump's circle are urging caution, though some sources think Trump himself is leaning towards a strike. ● Just as with the planning for the operation to capture Nicolás Maduro, Trump has empowered a small brain trust to think through problems in Iran and present him with a range of options he can exercise at a time of his choosing that maximizes leverage and minimizes risk, a U.S. official said. [...] [A] person advocating for strikes is Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He has been growing more concerned since meeting Trump ten days ago that the U.S. will stand down.

Dmitry Medvedev (Deputy Chairman of the Russian Security Council) | I'll bluntly state something obvious:

■ NATO nations plotting to smuggle nuke into Ukraine – Russian intel [?] (02/24/26)
✅ Foreign Affairs: Confrontation with Russia the new norm for Europe & NATO (Elena Panina)(02/24/26)
✅ Carnegie Foundation: The war in Ukraine will continue (Elena Panina)(02/19/26)
✅ К заявлению СВР о намерении Британии и Франции передать Киеву ядерное оружие (Елена Панина)
■ Лондон и Париж готовятся вооружить Киев ядерной бомбой (svr.gov.ru)

The UK and France are also considering a radioactive “dirty bomb” as an option for Kiev, the SVR service has claimed | France and the UK could give Ukraine atomic bomb components, which Kiev could assemble and claim as domestically built, or provide it with a complete nuclear warhead, Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR) said on Tuesday. ● According to the agency, British and French officials are considering the “covert transfer of relevant European-made components, equipment, and technologies to Ukraine,” and are laying the groundwork for an information campaign that would misrepresent the nuclear capacity as domestically-developed.

■ Moscow will respond if NATO gives nukes to ‘Nazi regime in Kiev’ – Medvedev (RT)
■ Arming Ukraine with nukes: Western elites have ‘lost touch with reality’ (RT)
■ Ukraine's Nuclear Blackmail: Timeline (Sputnik)
■ Лондон и Париж готовятся вооружить Киев ядерной бомбой (svr.gov.ru)
✅ К заявлению СВР о намерении Британии и Франции передать Киеву ядерное оружие (Елена Панина)

✅ Foreign Affairs: Confrontation with Russia the new norm for Europe & NATO (Elena Panina)(02/24/26)
✅ Carnegie Foundation: The war in Ukraine will continue (Elena Panina)(02/19/26)
■ Jeffrey Sachs: An Open Letter to Chancellor Merz - Security Is Indivisible and History Matters (12/19/25)
■ Jeffrey Sachs: NATO & Russia On the Brink of Nuclear War (09/25/25)

Budapest has also opposed the bloc’s proposed 20th package of sanctions against Russia amid an oil supply row with Kiev | Hungary has blocked the EU’s proposed €90 billion ($106 billion) emergency loan for Ukraine, as well as the latest package of sanctions on Russia, citing Kiev’s allegedly deliberate disruption of oil supplies to the country. ● Hungary placed the double veto on the initiatives on Monday as Kiev and Budapest remain locked in a bitter row over the Soviet-era Druzhba oil pipeline – which carries Russian crude to Hungary and Slovakia and has been out of commission since late January. Kiev claims that it was damaged by Russia, which has denied the allegations. ● Budapest has echoed Moscow’s stance, accusing Kiev of deliberately withholding supplies for political reasons and subjecting the country to an “oil blockade,” and threatening retaliation.

■ Slovakia halts electricity supplies to Ukraine (RT) | Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico has said his country will not provide emergency electricity supplies to Ukraine until Kiev restores the flow of Russian oil to Slovakia through the Druzhba pipeline. [...] Both Slovakia and Hungary have accused Ukraine of deliberately withholding supplies for political reasons and threatened retaliation. Announcing the halt to electricity supplies to Ukraine, Fico reiterated that Ukraine’s actions were a “purely political decision aimed at blackmailing Slovakia.”

Caitlin Johnstone | There is no excuse for a grown adult to believe the US empire wants to bring democracy to Iran. | This is what US-imposed “democracy” looks like in practice: giving a nation the freedom to do what Washington tells them to do and elect the leaders that Washington allows them to elect. ■ Anyone silly enough to believe the US wants to bring democracy to Iran should have a look at what the US is currently doing to sabotage democracy in Iraq. ■ President Trump has been aggressively threatening to cut off Iraq’s oil revenue if it allows the return to office of former prime minister Nouri al-Maliki, whom the Trump administration views as too sympathetic to Iran.

✅ Condoleezza Rice and Robert Gates Demand USG Military Involvement in Ukraine (Kurt Nimmo)(01/13/23)
✅ The Ukraine in Turmoil (Israel Shamir) (05/21/14)
✅ The Brown Revolution of the Ukraine (Israel Shamir) (02/26/14)
■ US State Department Revealed As Mastermind Behind Ukraine Unrest (02/07/14)

"Russian soldiers are acting cohesively and accurately in the special military operation zone." | On Defender of the Fatherland Day, Putin presented state awards to military personnel who have been awarded the title of Hero of Russia and the Order of Courage. Other key statements:

■ NATO Must Return to 1997 Borders for Peace in Ukraine - Finnish Politician (Sputnik)

Ryan Grim and Murtaza Hussain | Security equipment and alarms were installed by the Israeli government at a notorious Manhattan residence frequented by former PM Ehud Barak. | The Israeli government installed security equipment and controlled access to a Manhattan apartment building managed by convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, according to a set of emails recently released by the Department of Justice. The equipment was installed starting in early 2016 at 301 E. 66th Street—the residence where former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak frequently stayed for stretches at a time. ■ The security operation at “Ehud’s apartment” was in place for at least two years, emails from the DOJ disclosure show, with officials from the Israeli permanent mission to the United Nations corresponding regularly with Epstein’s staff regarding security. The apartment was technically owned by a company connected to Epstein’s brother, Mark Epstein, but was effectively controlled by Jeffrey Epstein. Units in the building were frequently loaned out to Epstein’s contacts and used to house underage models.

Russian Foreign Ministry’s official spokeswoman Maria Zakharova recalled numerous accusations against Russia, adding that the country came up with "arguments and facts" to refute them | The Epstein files have shed light on the "heinous scum" who were been inventing myths about Russia for many years to divert attention from their own crimes, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s official spokeswoman, Maria Zakharova, told TASS in an interview.

Roger Sollenberger | The document, which was re-posted after I reported the removal, shows Maxwell's lawyers possess three FBI interviews with an underage Trump accuser that haven't been released to the public. | On Wednesday, I reported that the Justice Department had removed from its Epstein file database a key document about a woman who told the FBI that Donald Trump sexually assaulted her when she was a child. By Thursday evening, it was once again live. ■ It’s unclear why the DOJ deleted the document in the first place. ((Here’s proof the document had been taken down.) It’s also unclear why they put it back up after my reporting, which included a screenshot of the relevant information and a link to an internet archive of the full record. The information in the document pertaining to the Trump accuser — whom the DOJ identifies as a victim of Jeffrey Epstein in the early-mid 1980s — doesn’t appear altered in any way. (Compare the record on the DOJ site today with the version they removed.)

✅ DOJ Removed Record of Multiple FBI Interviews with Underage Trump Accuser, Epstein Data Shows (RS)

Norman Finkelstein was on The Triggernometry Podcast with Konstatin Kisin and Francis Foster discussing Israel Palestine

US envoy to Israel argues Israel has 'biblical right' to land stretching from Nile to Euphrates rivers, saying ‘It would be fine if they took it all’ | Fourteen countries and three regional organizations on Sunday condemned remarks by Mike Huckabee, the US ambassador to Israel, who said "it would be acceptable for Israel to exercise control over territories belonging to Arab states, including the occupied West Bank." ● In a joint statement, the foreign ministries of Türkiye, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Indonesia, Kuwait, Palestine, Qatar, Oman, Pakistan, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and the United Arab Emirates expressed “strong condemnation and profound concern” over the comments. ● The statement was also issued with the participation of the secretariats of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the League of Arab States, and the Gulf Cooperation Council.

■ Israeli army launches airstrikes, artillery shelling on Gaza despite ceasefire (Anadolu)
■ US envoy Mike Huckabee says it would be ‘fine’ if Israel took all Middle East land (The Guardian)

The Ukraine conflict can be settled only if the US fully grasps Moscow’s goals and red lines, President Donald Trump’s envoy has said | US President Donald Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, has said that President Vladimir Putin has always been candid with him about Russia’s goals and red lines in the Ukraine conflict, stressing that a settlement is impossible without a clear understanding of Moscow’s position. In an interview with Fox News on Saturday, Witkoff – who has played a central role in diplomatic efforts – reflected on his extensive contacts with the Russian leader.

Witkoff said Putin has clearly outlined his red lines and also argued that negotiations cannot succeed unless both sides understand each other’s motivations. The envoy also raised the prospect of a direct summit between Putin and Ukraine’s Vladimir Zelensky.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been deliberately steering the United States toward confrontation with Iran in an escalation that pushes America into a “slave state for Israel’s expansionist dreams,” says an American analyst.

Michael Rectenwald, founder of the Anti-Zionist America Political Action Committee (AZAPAC), said Trump’s record stood in stark contrast to his campaign vows to end wars.