Billions of dollars in Iranian crude are still reaching China through a &#8220;shadow fleet&#8221; of anonymous, aging oil tankers, evading both U.S. sanctions and the American naval blockade of Iran&#8217;s ports, a Wall Street Journal <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/iranian-oil-shadow-fleet-black-market-3dc7fb6c?mod=hp_lead_pos7">report</a> revealed Wednesday.
The Journal&#8217;s investigation revealed what amounts to a floating black market for Iranian oil roughly 45 miles off the coast of Malaysia, where sanctioned tankers quietly offload their cargo to anonymized vessels bound for Chinese refineries — keeping Tehran&#8217;s most vital revenue streams alive despite U.S. efforts to choke off trade.
China, the Iranian regime&#8217;s strongest ally throughout its conflict with the United States, has made a significant effort to help the regime sustain its oil industry, which accounted for nearly 15% of China&#8217;s oil imports last year.
For Tehran, the black-market arrangement with the Chinese Communist Party is the financial lifeline that has allowed it to persevere through the economic devastation of Operation Epic Fury and U.S. sanctions. The Iranian regime hauled in roughly $31 billion in oil revenue from China over the past year, according to data from the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission. That trade represented about 90% of the oil Iran sold abroad and covered nearly 45% of the regime&#8217;s annual government budget.
The Journal observed the process unfold in real time in early May. A U.S.-sanctioned tanker, loaded with Iranian oil, joined dozens of other vessels in a stretch of ocean known as the Eastern Outer Port Limits, or EOPL. The area lies within Malaysia&#8217;s exclusive economic zone but outside its territorial waters — a legal gray area that no government has clear authority to police.
After arriving at the EOPL, the Iranian vessel carried out &#8220;ship-to-ship transfers,&#8221; pumping its cargo through massive hoses into a second, anonymized tanker, which then departed toward Chinese refineries.
These secondary vessels, according to the Journal, belong to a network of about 1,500 aging oil tankers that mask their true owners behind “flags of convenience,” registering in countries like Liberia and Sierra Leone with limited maritime enforcement. As an additional precaution, the ships switch off their tracking transponders to conceal their movements and remove anything on board that could identify them. Many of the ships observed by the reporters were staffed by Chinese crews.
The Trump administration, for its part, is aware of the shadow fleet and has ramped up efforts to clamp down on the illicit oil trade — most recently dispatching U.S. Special Forces to rappel from helicopters onto the decks of two shadow-fleet tankers in the Indian Ocean. As part of the administration&#8217;s &#8220;Economic Fury&#8221; campaign, the Treasury Department also announced new sanctions targeting individual tankers and Chinese oil infrastructure.
“Under President Trump’s strong leadership, Treasury will continue to stop the Iranian regime from plundering the country’s natural resources in the name of terrorism,” a spokeswoman for the Department of the Treasury told the Journal.
The effort is likely to become more effective over time. Energy firm Vortexa estimates that roughly 90 million barrels of Iranian oil were in international waters before the blockade even began. Because Iranian tankers need two to three months to reach Chinese ports and two to three more to collect payment, the regime will eventually exhaust this floating reserve, leaving it with little to no fresh crude able to leave Iran to replace it.
This comes amid reports that U.S. and Iranian negotiators have reportedly agreed to a tentative 60-day framework extending the ceasefire that, pending President Trump&#8217;s final approval, would reopen the Strait of Hormuz and draw down the blockade in stages. If finalized, the noose would be at least temporarily loosened around the Iranian oil industry before its offshore reserves run dry in order to pursue a long-term peace deal.

ShadowFleet

Trump’s ‘Economic Fury’ Hits Iran Hard. A Shadow Fleet Keeps The Oil Flowing.

Iran

News

Operation Epic Fury

Strait of Hormuz

U.S. Navy

The Trump-led redistricting effort in South Carolina failed in the state senate Tuesday after several Republicans defected to join Democrats in blocking the new map from advancing to a final vote.
The 20-24 vote fell short of the 26 needed to move the map forward, a defeat that came despite Trump&#8217;s public pressure on South Carolina Republicans to follow the lead of red states such as Texas, Florida, and North Carolina and give the GOP a stronger advantage in November&#8217;s pivotal elections.
The new map, which passed the state house last week, would have axed the state&#8217;s lone Democratic district, represented by longtime Democratic Rep. James Clyburn. The failed vote is a significant setback to President Trump&#8217;s redistricting agenda, which suffered an additional defeat Tuesday after a panel of federal judges blocked the use of a Republican-backed map in Alabama.
Several Republican defectors joined all Democrats in voting against advancing the map, a move that closely <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/indiana-senate-rejects-trump-backed-redistricting-bid-dealing-blow-to-gops-2026-outlook">mirrors</a> the Indiana state senate&#8217;s December action after it rejected a map that would likely have flipped two Democratic seats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections.
The vote reportedly came as a surprise to the Trump administration, with an administration official <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/south-carolinas-redistricting-effort-fails-state-senate-gop-opposition-rcna346962">telling</a> NBC News that &#8220;the votes were there&#8221; and that the White House had &#8220;no new information&#8221; indicating the map would fail to advance. Another White House adviser called the vote a &#8220;betrayal.&#8221;
GOP leadership in the state senate had shown some resistance to enacting the new map, given that primary elections were already underway across the state.
“Republicans are stronger when the Democrat Party is vibrant and viable,” GOP Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2026-election/south-carolina-state-senate-rejects-effort-tackle-redistricting-pressu-rcna344815">said</a> earlier this month, adding that he refused to surrender to Trump on this issue. “I have too much Southern blood in me to surrender. Indeed, as some of you will recognize, it is my heritage to stand erect, proud and unafraid, to think and act for myself.”
Following the vote, several Republican state senators defended their votes on more practical grounds.
“South Carolina citizens are going to the polls today. And neither my conscience or common sense is going to let me stop an election that is already underway,” Republican state Sen. Richard Cash <a href="https://www.southcarolinapublicradio.org/sc-news/2026-05-26/sc-senate-rejects-president-trumps-call-to-redraw-congressional-maps">said</a>.
To proponents of the bill, the &#8220;too late&#8221; rationale expressed by defecting GOP state senators is simply a cover for ducking a tough vote, given that the senators had debated the map for weeks before voting even began. The affected congressional primaries, after all, would merely have been rescheduled to August.
Earlier this month, President Donald Trump had personally urged South Carolina lawmakers to move forward with the measure. In a post on Truth Social, Trump said he was “watching closely” and called on state Republicans to “be bold and courageous,” citing Tennessee’s recent decision to split up its only deep blue district.
Tuesday&#8217;s vote arrives on the heels of state senate <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/trump-flexes-political-muscle-against-republicans-who-bucked-him-on-redistricting?author=Drew+Berkemeyer&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=13&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=Trump+Flexes+Political+Muscle+Against+Republicans+Who+Bucked+Him+On+Redistricting">primaries</a> in Indiana, where five of the seven Republican state senators who resisted a Trump-aligned redistricting effort were ousted in their primaries by challengers carrying the president’s endorsement — a stark omen for the South Carolina defectors.
Drew Berkemeyer contributed to this report.

trump_southcarolina

Republicans Revolt And Hand Dems Stunning Win Against Trump’s Redistricting Push

Redistricting

Republicans

South Carolina

A House lawmaker introduced a constitutional amendment this week that would do exactly what Daily Wire host Matt Walsh called for last month: bar foreign-born citizens from serving in Congress.
The proposed constitutional amendment, introduced this week by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC), would require members of Congress, federal judges, and Senate-confirmed appointees to be natural-born citizens — the same standard the Constitution already sets for president and vice president.
In late April, Walsh <a href="https://youtu.be/OMzr9b2Rd8o?si=TkMAiOYDoYi3CnIP">proposed</a> his &#8220;heritage American Bill of Rights,&#8221; the first rule of which was intended to do exactly this:
&#8220;Rule number one: First-generation immigrants should not be permitted to serve in Congress at all, especially illiterate Somali ones,&#8221; Walsh said. &#8220;We already require that presidents must be natural-born citizens. And that requirement should simply be extended to Congress as well.&#8221;
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Hmm seem to recall <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@MattWalshBlog</a> saying this 🤔 <a href="https://t.co/2wJ4bbORFj">https://t.co/2wJ4bbORFj</a> <a href="https://t.co/I6RqggfKTb">pic.twitter.com/I6RqggfKTb</a>
— Daily Wire (@realDailyWire) <a href="https://twitter.com/realDailyWire/status/2057566502669127935?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 21, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Walsh added that &#8220;if you just got here, then you have no business telling Americans how to live their lives,&#8221; or &#8220;spend their money. &#8221;
Both Walsh and the amendment proposed by Mace point to Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN), along with the 18 other foreign-born members of Congress.
Members of Congress like Omar have made clear &#8220;their loyalty is not here,&#8221; Mace <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/house/5887636-nancy-mace-amendment-foreign-born-citizens-holding-office/">said</a>. Walsh argued that first-generation immigrants like Omar have no business &#8220;complaining all the time or defaming millions of people,&#8221; adding that &#8220;it&#8217;s the height of humiliation for Americans to have to listen to a member of Congress talk about <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/ilhan-omar-hits-rock-bottom-with-her-dumbest-remarks-yet-as-trump-delivers-his-best-speech-ever">World War 11</a>.&#8221;
Mace&#8217;s proposal faces an uphill battle in its form as a constitutional amendment. Ratification would require a two-thirds vote in both the House and the Senate, followed by approval from three-fourths of the states — a bar that has not been cleared by any amendment since 1992.
Democrats reacted furiously to Mace&#8217;s amendment, with Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), herself a naturalized citizen born in India, <a href="https://jayapal.house.gov/2026/05/20/jayapal-statement-on-hateful-mace-legislation-to-ban-naturalized-citizens-from-government-service/">calling</a> the measure &#8220;racist legislation&#8221; and saying it &#8220;denies the very history of a country that has been proudly shaped by immigrants.&#8221;
In his &#8220;heritage American Bill of Rights,&#8221; Walsh further proposes deporting (or denaturalizing and then deporting) foreigners and naturalized citizens who cannot speak English or who become a net drain on taxpayers, as well as barring new citizens from voting for 10 years.
&#8220;We can&#8217;t prevent people from voting based on race, and we shouldn&#8217;t, and no one is suggesting that,&#8221; Walsh said. &#8220;But we can protect our institutions by taking basic steps to make sure that voters are actual adult citizens of the country who are assimilated into the culture and invested in it.&#8221;
Walsh calls for requiring all voters to pass a fifth-grade civics exam in English, and disenfranchising welfare recipients — even if they&#8217;re native-born U.S. citizens.
&#8220;If you want to vote, there has to be some legacy you want to protect,&#8221; Walsh said. &#8220;You should not be able to vote yourself money from the public treasury.&#8221;

WalshOmarDC

Matt Walsh’s Idea For Foreign-Born Lawmakers Makes It To The House Floor

Constitution

Constitutional Amendment

Ilhan Omar

Matt Walsh

Nancy Mace

A Utah judge ruled Friday that cameras, microphones, and still photographers will be allowed inside the courtroom for the murder trial of Tyler Robinson, the man accused of assassinating Turning Point USA founder Charlie Kirk.
Fourth District Court Judge Tony Graf denied a request from the defense to ban all forms of electronic media coverage, instead requiring reporters to file requests at least two weeks prior to each scheduled proceeding.
Robinson, 23, has been charged with the September 10, 2025, killing and could face the death penalty if convicted.
The defense argued that allowing cameras would jeopardize Robinson&#8217;s “fair trial rights,” telling the judge that restrictions were necessary &#8220;to ensure Mr. Robinson’s rights to due process, to a fair and impartial jury, to counsel, to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures, and to be free from cruel and unusual punishment.&#8221;
At a hearing last month, the defense argued that media coverage in pre-trial hearings had already tainted the jury pool, pointing to several examples of pundits branding Robinson as a &#8220;monster&#8221; and fixating on items pulled from court filings, such as alleged post-shooting texts to his transgender-identifying roommate, rather than the substance of the proceedings.
The prosecution dismissed this argument, arguing that transparency strengthens public trust.
“Mischief lurks in the dark or in secret,” Deputy Utah County Attorney Chad Grunander said. “Conspiracy theories abound, and the antidote is the actual, real proceedings&#8230; Let’s shine a light on these proceedings, a bright light, so the public can have confidence in what happens in this courtroom.”
Utah courts have generally permitted cameras by default for a decade, and no criminal case in the state has been fully closed to cameras, according to the Salt Lake City Tribune.
Graf said the court has implemented several measures to address the defense&#8217;s concerns, including requiring cameras to remain at the back of the courtroom to avoid capturing sensitive materials or conversations.
He also pushed back the preliminary hearing for July 6 through July 10, rejecting the defense&#8217;s request for a six-month delay to sort through the &#8220;voluminous&#8221; discovery materials.

Tyler Robinson

Judge Rules On Cameras In Charlie Kirk Murder Trial

Charlie Kirk

Courts

Murder

trial

President Donald Trump announced a three-day ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine beginning Saturday, hinting at the possibility of the “beginning of the end of a very long, deadly, and hard fought War.”
&#8220;I am pleased to announce that there will be a THREE DAY CEASEFIRE (May 9th, 10th, and 11th) in the War between Russia and Ukraine,&#8221; Trump <a href="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/116540259118606629">posted</a> Friday on Truth Social, adding that the ceasefire would mark the anniversary of Victory Day in World War II — one of Russia&#8217;s most important national holidays.
President Trump said the ceasefire will mean the &#8220;suspension of all kinetic activity&#8221; in a conflict that began in February 2022 and has resulted in more than 2 million casualties.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky confirmed the details of the ceasefire, adding that &#8220;a prisoner exchange in the format of 1,000 for 1,000&#8221; would also take place between Russia and Ukraine.
&#8220;Within the framework of the negotiating process mediated by the American side, we received Russia’s agreement to conduct a prisoner exchange in the format of 1,000 for 1,000,&#8221; Zelensky wrote on X. &#8220;A ceasefire regime must also be established on May 9, 10, and 11. Ukraine is consistently working to bring its people home from Russian captivity. I have instructed our team to promptly prepare everything necessary for the exchange.&#8221;
Russia had spent weeks lobbying Ukraine for a Victory Day ceasefire, threatening to strike Kyiv if the planned Victory Day parade was disrupted. Ukraine dismissed the ceasefire proposal as &#8220;unserious&#8221; until Trump intervened and brokered a prisoner exchange.
Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov told Russian media that Moscow agreed to the arrangement following a phone call between Putin and Trump.
The three-day truce will mark the first mutual ceasefire between the two nations since Russia&#8217;s full-scale invasion began more than four years ago. Russia has previously declared unilateral pauses around Orthodox church holidays and Victory Day in past years, and the two nations briefly observed a one-month halt to strikes on energy infrastructure earlier this year. A deep mutual distrust between the two sides has prevented any comprehensive cessation of hostilities from being reached until now.
&#8220;Hopefully, it is the beginning of the end of a very long, deadly, and hard fought War. Talks are continuing on ending this Major Conflict, the biggest since World War II, and we are getting closer and closer every day,&#8221; Trump said.

Donald Trump, Volodymyr Zelensky, Vladimir Putin

Trump Announces Ceasefire In Russia-Ukraine War

Ceasefire

Russia

Trump Administration

Ukraine

Tennessee Attorney General Jonathan Skrmetti accused a Nashville public school of &#8220;promoting particular religious viewpoints&#8221; through its accommodation of Muslim students during Ramadan, saying the school crossed the line from allowing religious exercise to actively facilitating it.
In a Tuesday <a href="https://tennesseestar.com/justice/tennessee-ag-skrmetti-weighs-legal-implications-of-muslim-prayer-accommodations-in-nashville-public-school/khousler/2026/04/15/">interview</a> with the Tennessee Star, Skrmetti responded to reports that a Metro Nashville Public Schools employee set up a dedicated Islamic prayer room at John Overton High School and encouraged Muslim students to skip class to use it.
“Free exercise says the government can’t stop you from practicing your religion,” Skrmetti explained. “The establishment clause, as interpreted, and as we hear about every time the legislature tries to do anything these days, says that the state can’t … participate in promoting particular religious viewpoints.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
🚨BREAKING &#8211; I asked <a href="https://twitter.com/AGTennessee?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AGTennessee</a> Skrmetti today if the MNPS decision to allow Muslim prayers during school hours in a dedicated room led by an MNPS employee at Overton High School coerces non-Muslim students and violates the Religious Establishment Clause of the First Amendment. <a href="https://t.co/LhaaXAwEgL">pic.twitter.com/LhaaXAwEgL</a>
— Michael Patrick Leahy (@michaelpleahy) <a href="https://twitter.com/michaelpleahy/status/2044187616606859387?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 14, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
John Overton High School, according to a <a href="https://nashvillebanner.com/2026/04/07/ramadan-muslim-students-overton-high-school/">report</a> from the Nashville Banner, permitted more than 80 students to skip class daily during Ramadan prayer sessions, in addition to separate “food-free” classrooms for fasting Muslim students. Students reportedly used paper towels as improvised prayer mats and set up a divider separating boys and girls before one student recited passages from the Quran. Outside of the month of Ramadan, students are reportedly permitted to leave school grounds once a month to pray.
“So if the school is dedicating resources to something, that’s a very different situation than if the students are self-organizing,” Skrmetti added. “I look at it as an attempt to propagandize and proselytize [non-Muslim] students. That’s my view.”
In a similar vein, the U.S. Department of Education guidance released in February <a href="https://www.ed.gov/about/news/press-release/us-department-of-education-issues-guidance-prayer-and-religious-expression-public-schools">states</a> that “public schools may not sponsor prayer nor coerce or pressure students to pray.”
“School officials should allow members of the public school community to act and speak according to their faith, as long as&#8230; The school itself does not engage in religious activities or speech as an institution,” the guidance continues.
The Tennessee attorney general teased further state action on the issue, concluding: “I expect that we’ll be hearing more about it one way or another.”
The controversy comes as Tennessee lawmakers grapple with the role of religion in public schools more broadly. State House Bill 1491, which would have required public schools to set aside a period for prayer and Bible reading, was temporarily <a href="https://www.tnfirefly.com/news/protecting-religious-liberty-and-expression-in-public-schools-act-tabled-for-summer-study?ref=pamphleteer.co">tabled</a> in a 12-7 committee vote last week in favor of further research on the issue over the summer.
Proponents of the bill argue that the bill aligns with the Supreme Court&#8217;s Kennedy v. Bremerton decision in 2022, which held that the First Amendment protects individuals engaging in religious activities from government reprisal.

Cultural Center In Chicago Aids Rohingya Refugees Resettling In The U.S.

Prayer Mats. Gender Dividers. Quran Readings. Classroom Changes During Ramadan Paid For By Taxpayers

Islam

Public Schools

Religious Freedom

Tennessee

An American journalist has reportedly been freed after being held captive for more than a week by an Iran-backed militia, with the group demanding she &#8220;leave the country immediately&#8221; as a condition of her release.
In late March, Shelly Kittleson was <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/watch-video-shows-moment-american-female-journalist-is-kidnapped-in-iraq?author=Nathan+Gay&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=WATCH%3A+Video+Shows+Moment+American+Female+Journalist+Is+Kidnapped+In+Iraq">stopped</a> in the middle of a road in Baghdad by a group of armed men who then threw her into a van and fled the city. The kidnappers were later identified as members of Kataib Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Shiite Iraqi militia.
Kataib Hezbollah said in a Tuesday statement on Telegram that it had decided to release Kittleson following productive discussions with Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani. The militia said they had an “appreciation of the patriotic stances” of the prime minister, and released the journalist &#8220;on the condition that she leaves the country immediately.”
Middle Eastern outlet Al-Monitor, which Kittleson worked for prior to her kidnapping, <a href="https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2026/04/us-journalist-shelly-kittleson-released-iran-backed-kataib-hezbollah-iraq">reported</a> that two Iraqi officials confirmed Kittleson&#8217;s release, and according to one official, Kittleson was in the Iraqi prime minister&#8217;s office on Tuesday.
The officials declined to give further details on her release, and neither the Iraqi nor U.S. government has verified Kittleson&#8217;s release at the time of publication.
Alhurra, an Arabic outlet based in Washington, D.C., <a href="https://alhurra.com/en/17856" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> Monday, citing Iraqi intelligence sources, that Kittleson had been moved to a militia-controlled area in Iraq&#8217;s Babil province — which is known as a hub for smuggling operations and attacks on U.S. forces — where she was believed to be held as a &#8220;human shield&#8221; against American strikes. The outlet also reported that Kataib Hezbollah was seeking the release of four of its members detained by Iraqi authorities for their role in attacks on Syria. It is unclear if the Iraqi government met this demand.
Kataib Hezbollah released footage purporting to show Kittleson earlier Tuesday, with her supposedly admitting to gathering intelligence on Iranian-backed militias for the U.S. government. The unverified video would be the first sign of life of Kittleson since her abduction.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Iraqi Hezbollah releases footage of American journalist Shelly Kittelson in captivity, showing her “admitting” she gathered intelligence on Shia militias for the U.S. consul in Baghdad.
They say she will be freed and must leave Iraq immediately. <a href="https://t.co/M8nTZaFNRC">https://t.co/M8nTZaFNRC</a> <a href="https://t.co/bUiqbTiCCm">pic.twitter.com/bUiqbTiCCm</a>
— Open Source Intel (@Osint613) <a href="https://twitter.com/Osint613/status/2041561782574084606?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 7, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Kittleson, a journalist specializing in the Middle East who has reported for the BBC, Foreign Relations, and POLITICO, was in Baghdad reporting on Iraqi politics for the outlet Al-Monitor at the time of her kidnapping.

TOPSHOT-IRAQ-MEDIA-SECURITY-KIDNAPPING

American Journalist Released By Iran-Backed Militia, Sets Exit Deadline

Crime

Iran war

Iraq

kidnapping

Middle East

World

An American journalist was kidnapped off the streets of Baghdad, Iraq, by armed men in an abduction likely carried out by an Iranian-backed militia — and Iraqi security forces scrambled in their unsuccessful attempt to intercept the kidnappers.
A group of armed men stopped Shelly Kittleson&#8217;s car in the middle of the street, pulled her out, and quickly fled the scene with her in tow. Iraqi security forces immediately pursued, but were unable to stop the kidnappers,
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
CCTV video shows the moment American journalist <a href="https://twitter.com/shellykittleson?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@shellykittleson</a> was taken in Baghdad. <a href="https://t.co/JqJcdW7TOb">pic.twitter.com/JqJcdW7TOb</a>
— Trey Yingst (@TreyYingst) <a href="https://twitter.com/TreyYingst/status/2039047721001095275?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 31, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
CNN National Security Analyst and former Pentagon official Alex Plitsas <a href="https://x.com/alexplitsas/status/2039036851046990259">stated</a> via X that Kittleson was likely taken hostage by Kataib Hezbollah, an Iranian-backed militia with ties to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Kittleson, a journalist specializing in the Middle East who has reported for the BBC, Foreign Relations, and POLITICO, was in Baghdad reporting on Iraqi politics for the outlet Al-Monitor at the time of her kidnapping.
The Iraqi Ministry of Interior said in a statement that efforts are underway to track down the perpetrators and rescue Kittleson.
&#8220;Security forces immediately launched an operation to apprehend the perpetrators, acting on precise intelligence and through intensive field operations, tracking the kidnappers’ movements,&#8221; a translated statement from the Iraqi Ministry of the Interior <a href="https://moi.gov.iq/?article=20535">reads</a>. &#8220;The pursuit resulted in the interception of a vehicle belonging to the kidnappers, which overturned as they attempted to escape. Security forces were able to arrest one of the suspects and seize one of the vehicles used in the crime.&#8221;
Assistant Secretary of State Dylan Johnson said in a <a href="https://x.com/ASDylanJohnson/status/2039068022451613858">statement</a> on X that the State Department was &#8220;aware of the reported kidnapping&#8221; and that Kittleson had been warned of the dangers of continuing to work in Iraq.
&#8220;The State Department previously fulfilled our duty to warn this individual of threats against them and we will continue to coordinate with the FBI to ensure their release as quickly as possible,&#8221; the statement reads. &#8220;An individual with ties to the Iranian-aligned militia group Kataib Hezbollah believed to be involved in the kidnapping has been taken into custody by Iraqi authorities.&#8221;
&#8220;Iraq remains at a Level 4 Travel Advisory and Americans are advised not to travel to Iraq for any reason and to leave Iraq now. The State Department strongly advise all Americans, including members of the press, to adhere to all travel advisories,&#8221; the statement concludes.

Baghdad

WATCH: Video Shows Moment American Female Journalist Is Kidnapped In Iraq

A shocking report from The New York Times revealed Wednesday that labor union “hero” Cesar Chavez allegedly sexually abused multiple young girls and women prior to his death in 1993.
Multiple women accused Chavez, who co-founded and led the United Farm Workers (UFW) labor union, of assault, harassment, and rape dating back to 1960.
The previously unpublished allegations were corroborated by the Times investigation, which was based on more than 60 interviews with Chavez&#8217;s top aides, relatives, and former UFW members. Reporters also reviewed hundreds of pages of union records, confidential emails, photographs, and audio recordings of UFW board meetings.
Two women in the Times report, Ana Murguia and Debra Rojas, both now 66, say Chavez began sexually abusing them when they were 13 and 12 years old, respectively. Both women were children of farm workers represented by Chavez’s prominent union.
Rojas was groped by Chavez in his office when she was 12, and the abuse continued for years, culminating in what Rojas described as rape at a motel during a union march in 1975, when she was 15. According to the New York Times, Rojas&#8217;s account is corroborated by a handwritten letter she sent to Chavez at age 13 that exists in the Wayne State University archives.
In 1972, Murguia recalled Chavez calling her to his room at the age of 13, which she did enthusiastically, describing the union leader as her “hero” at the time.  Chavez locked the door, forced Murguia onto a yoga mat, and molested her.
Chavez told the girl, “Don’t tell anyone. They’d get jealous,” after kissing her. Murguia said she was raped “dozens” of times until 1977, and she had attempted suicide multiple times by the age of 15. “I wanted to die,” she said.
Several other women accused Chavez of sexual abuse, including his longtime confidant and fellow UFW co-founder, Dolores Huerta, who is now 95 years old. Huerta accused Chavez of raping her in 1966 in a vehicle and of an earlier coerced sexual encounter during a work trip in 1960. She says two children resulted from these encounters.
The Times investigation concluded that Chavez fathered at least four children with three women outside his marriage based on 23andMe test results.
Chavez has been an icon of the Left for decades, and in California, Cesar Chavez Day is a paid state holiday. Following the Times&#8217; report, prominent Democrats scrambled to condemn Chavez, including California Governor Gavin Newsom, who previously said a photo of the union leader is &#8220;the first photo&#8221; he &#8220;wake[s] up to.&#8221;
&#8220;It&#8217;s been hard to absorb this, Jenn and I are very close with Dolores [Huerta], so many of us are and have been for decades and decades, and none of us knew,&#8221; Newsom said Wednesday. &#8220;All of us, I think, are processing it, and these kids have to process this now. There are almost three dozen schools in the state that are named after Cesar Chavez.&#8221;

Farmworker Union Icon Cesar Chavez Accused Of Sex Abuse Of Girls In Explosive New Report

Left-Wing Icon Accused Of Serially Sexually Abusing Young Girls

Cesar Chavez

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Sexual Abuse

Bracket season has arrived, and we can state confidently without even looking for evidence that there will be more AI-created entries than ever before.
Gone are the days where the people who don&#8217;t follow college basketball are left to bothering the biggest bro in the office for his picks. Or, better yet, submit an outlandish bracket that miraculously nails the 14 seed that makes it to the Elite 8. Now everyone is just going to turn to their imaginary friends named Claude, and end up submitting the same brackets.
Literally, the same brackets. The Daily Wire had the four leading AI models predict the 2026 NCAA March Madness Basketball Tournament. The first round of projections from all four models was exactly what you’d expect from robots trained on the internet’s safest instincts: Duke, Duke, Duke, and Duke.
The Daily Wire fed the complete 68-team bracket to four of the top AI systems — OpenAI&#8217;s ChatGPT, Anthropic&#8217;s Claude, Google&#8217;s Gemini, and Perplexity — and asked each to produce a full bracket prediction from the First Four through the national championship. Each model received the same seed lines, win-loss records, KenPom efficiency ratings, key injuries, betting odds, and conference placement data.
This is unsurprising, as given a straightforward prompt to process sports predictions, top AI models default to the most obvious answer: The top-ranked team with the best stats. The Blue Devils enter March Madness as the No. 1 overall seed, sat atop the NET, AP Poll, and KenPom, and went 11-2 against AP Top 25 opponents.
There was very little divergence in the projections of all four AI models. ChatGPT, Gemini, and Perplexity all had Duke beating Arizona in the final. The models read the same numbers, weighted the same KenPom rankings, and arrived at the same safe, predictable conclusion: the No. 1 overall seed with the nation’s best defense and best player wins it all.
So we asked AI to think harder&#8230; 

As hard as it might be for AI chatbots to admit, Duke is not a lock to win this tournament. The pre-tournament favorite has won the NCAA men’s tournament only 7 times in the last 19 played tournaments over the past 20 years.
In a second round of analysis, The Daily Wire gave each model the same background information but supplemented the prompt with historical upset base rates dating to the 1985 expansion, specific vulnerability profiles for each No. 1 seed, injury data, and regional geography advantages — factors not fully captured in the first analysis. The models were instructed to abandon tournament-favorite Duke in order to play the role of &#8220;upset analyst&#8221; and to account for the fact that the best team on paper wins the national championship less than 35% of the time.
ChatGPT switched its prediction to Houston, projecting Kingston Flemings as MOP and routing the Cougars through a South Region where they’d essentially play home games at Toyota Center. Gemini also landed on Houston, envisioning a title-game win over Arkansas. Claude pivoted to Michigan, betting on the Wolverines’ No. 1-ranked defense to grind Duke down in the championship game, 71-65.
Perplexity had the boldest prediction, picking 4-seed Arkansas behind freshman point guard Darius Acuff Jr., who it projected to average over 30 points per game through the tournament.
<div id="attachment_1060705" style="width: 1034px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1060705" class="size-large wp-image-1060705" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/Untitled-design-47-1024x559.jpg" alt="" width="1024" height="559" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/Untitled-design-47-1024x559.jpg 1024w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/Untitled-design-47-300x164.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/Untitled-design-47-768x419.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/Untitled-design-47-1536x838.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/03/Untitled-design-47.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" />Illustration via Daily Wire staff.</div>
Without Duke as the default option, all four models agreed that the bracket would devolve into organized chaos.
All four models picked 12-seed Akron to upset 5-seed Texas Tech, citing the Red Raiders’ devastating loss of star J.T. Toppin to a torn ACL and Akron guard Tavari Johnson’s 20-plus points per game. All four picked 9-seed Iowa over 8-seed Clemson, noting that the Hawkeyes are ranked 11 KenPom spots higher despite being the lower seed. And all four picked 11-seed VCU to knock off North Carolina, a team missing projected top-5 NBA pick Caleb Wilson due to a broken thumb.
Here are the results.
ChatGPT 5.4:
<ul>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Final Four: (2) UConn, (6) BYU, (3) Virginia, (2) Houston</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Semis: Houston over UConn, BYU over Virginia</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Championship: Houston over BYU</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Champion: Houston</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">MOP: Kingston Flemings (Houston) — 16.4 PPG, 5.3 AST</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">1-seeds in Final Four: Zero</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Where Duke died: Elite Eight (lost to UConn)</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">First-round upsets by double-digit seeds: 7</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Boldest call: BYU to the Final Four behind AJ Dybantsa (25.3 PPG, nation&#8217;s leading scorer)</li>
</ul>
Claude Opus 4.6:
<ul>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Final Four: (1) Duke, (4) Arkansas, (1) Michigan, (2) Houston</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Semis: Duke over Houston 78-72, Michigan over Arkansas 64-56</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Championship: Michigan 71, Duke 65</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Champion: Michigan</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">MOP: Yaxel Lendeborg (Michigan) — 19 pts, 9 reb in title game</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">1-seeds in Final Four: Two (Duke and Michigan)</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Where Duke died: Championship game (only model to get Duke to the Final Four)</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">First-round upsets by double-digit seeds: 6</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Boldest call: Michigan&#8217;s No. 1-ranked defense grinds Duke into submission in the title game despite Boozer&#8217;s 24 and 11</li>
</ul>
Gemini 3:
<ul>
<li>Final Four: (2) UConn, (4) Arkansas, (2) Iowa State, (2) Houston</li>
<li>Semis: Arkansas over Iowa State, Houston over UConn</li>
<li>Champion: Houston</li>
<li>MOP: Kingston Flemings (Houston)</li>
<li>1-seeds in Final Four: Zero</li>
<li>Where Duke died: Elite Eight (lost to UConn)</li>
<li>First-round upsets by double-digit seeds: 13 (tied with Perplexity for most chaotic bracket)</li>
<li>Boldest call: All four 1-seeds eliminated before the Final Four; McNeese to the Sweet 16; Arizona bounced in the Round of 32 by 9-seed Utah State</li>
</ul>
Perplexity Sonar:
<ul>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Final Four: (3) Michigan State, (4) Arkansas, (2) Iowa State, (2) Houston</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Semis: Houston over Michigan State, Arkansas over Iowa State</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Championship: Arkansas over Houston</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Champion: Arkansas</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">MOP: Darius Acuff Jr. (Arkansas)</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">1-seeds in Final Four: Zero</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Where Duke died: Elite Eight (lost to Michigan State)</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Where Michigan died: Round of 32 (lost to 9-seed Saint Louis — the single wildest pick of the experiment)</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">First-round upsets by double-digit seeds: 13 (by far the most chaotic bracket)</li>
<li class="whitespace-normal break-words pl-2">Boldest call: 1-seed Michigan bounced in the Round of 32 by Saint Louis; 4-seed Arkansas wins it all</li>
</ul>
Duke may still cruise to a championship, but if not, these projections offer alternative brackets to help sort through the chaos of March Madness.

MarchMadnessAI

We Asked 4 AI Models To Do March Madness. They Picked The Same Team — Then We Made Them Think Harder

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Block, the parent company of Cash App and Square, announced Thursday it will be laying off more than 4,000 employees — a move that sent the company&#8217;s stock up 25% in after-hours trading.
For most companies, laying off nearly half the workforce would send stockholders into a panic, tanking the stock within minutes of the announcement. But in 2026, investors in Block appear to have the opposite perspective — viewing humans as a liability in the modern economy, thanks in large part to the AI revolution.
Block CEO Jack Dorsey <a href="https://x.com/jack/status/2027129697092731343?s=20">said</a> in a statement on X that the layoffs did not happen “because we&#8217;re in trouble,” but rather because “something has changed.”
“We&#8217;re already seeing that the intelligence tools we’re creating and using, paired with smaller and flatter teams, are enabling a new way of working which fundamentally changes what it means to build and run a company [sic]. and that&#8217;s accelerating rapidly,” Dorsey said.
Dorsey viewed job cuts resulting from AI implementation as inevitable and chose to rip off the band-aid.
“i had two options: cut gradually over months or years as this shift plays out, or be honest about where we are and act on it now [sic]. i chose the latter,” Dorsey said. “repeated rounds of cuts are destructive to morale, to focus, and to the trust that customers and shareholders place in our ability to lead [sic].”
The layoffs are part of a broader shakeout in tech, where companies including Salesforce, CrowdStrike, Pinterest, and Chegg are shedding workers as AI absorbs key functions.
In a letter to shareholders, Dorsey predicted that, within the next year, “the majority of companies will reach the same conclusion and make similar structural changes.”
Block’s Q4 <a href="https://s29.q4cdn.com/628966176/files/doc_financials/2025/q4/Q4-2025-Shareholder-Letter_Block.pdf">numbers</a> were otherwise in the green, with gross profit increasing 24% year-over-year. Block CFO Amrita Ahuja told investors that the cuts are necessary “for our next phase of long-term growth.”
&#8220;We are choosing to shift how we operate at a time when our business is accelerating and we see an opportunity to move faster with smaller, highly talented teams using AI to automate more work,&#8221; Ahuja said.

Business investment and AI artificial intelligence data analysis technology. Businessman and robot future investor, stock market, forex, and crypto currency finance investment.

4,000 Jobs Gone — So Why Does The Market Love It?

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The armed intruder who was shot dead on Sunday after attempting to breach Mar-a-lago has been identified after being reported missing by his family.
Austin Tucker Martin, who was reported missing by his family on Saturday, was identified as the man armed with a shotgun and a gas can attempting to breach Mar-a-Lago, law enforcement sources <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/02/22/us-news/mar-a-lago-shotgun-wielding-madman-idd-as-north-carolina-golf-course-artist/">told</a> the New York Post.
Martin’s family has been desperately searching for Martin since Saturday, according to the Post’s review of Martin and his family&#8217;s social media accounts.
Martin’s social media reveals an obsession with drawing golf courses in the Sandhurst region of England, as well as local courses surrounding his hometown of Cameron, North Carolina.
As The Daily Wire previously <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/armed-intruder-with-shotgun-sparks-deadly-secret-service-response-at-mar-a-lago?topStoryPosition=undefined&amp;author=Jordan+Schroeder&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=0&amp;row=1&amp;rowHeadline=Top+Stories&amp;rowType=Top+Stories&amp;title=Armed+Intruder+With+Shotgun+Sparks+Deadly+Secret+Service+Response+At+Mar-A-Lago">reported</a>, the shooting happened at around 1:30 a.m. when Secret Service agents, alongside a deputy from the Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office, responded to an unauthorized breach near the north gate of the property.
Authorities said the suspect was carrying what looked like a shotgun and a fuel can when he was confronted. Shots were fired after Martin refused to drop the shotgun and gas can, and he was pronounced dead at the scene.
President Trump and his family were not on the property during the incident, the Secret Service confirmed.
No agents or deputies were injured during the incident, and the FBI director Kash Patel confirmed the bureau is investigating the shooting.
&#8220;[The] FBI is dedicating all necessary resources in the investigation of this morning’s incident at President Trump’s Mar-A-Lago — where an armed individual was shot and killed after unlawfully entering the perimeter,&#8221; the director <a href="https://x.com/FBIDirectorKash/status/2025596613738000645">said</a> on X. &#8220;We will continue working closely with @SecretService as well our state and federal partners and will provide updates as we are able.&#8221;

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Nathan Gay