IRAN - The US has lifted sanctions on Iranian oil exports for two months. The general license, announced by the US treasury as peace talks continued in Switzerland, is a move promised under the memorandum of understanding between Washington and Tehran. It authorised the production, delivery and sale of Iranian oil until August 21. During Monday’s peace talks, Iran’s foreign ministry said the removal of sanctions on its oil exports was a key promise Washington had to honour to continue negotiations for a final peace agreement. The removal fulfils one major aspect of the memorandum, in which the US pledges to “terminate all types of sanctions” against Iran and to “make fully available for use the frozen or restricted funds and assets” of Tehran. Scott Bessent, the US treasury secretary, wrote on X: “In line with the ongoing productive talks in Switzerland, Iran has committed to free and open transit in the Strait of Hormuz and to permit International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) inspectors into their country."

USA - Donald Trump has summoned Pentagon officials and defence contractors for crunch talks about replacing US missile stockpiles depleted in the war with Iran. The White House is expected to pressure defence companies to speed up production of critical weapons amid concerns the US is running low. The US has used one-third to one-half of its stocks of Tomahawks and Patriots and its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) interceptor system, according to a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies in April, following the initial ceasefire. The timetable for replacing this inventory is four to five years. There have also been concerns that the Pentagon has shifted US defence systems and assets from Europe and Asia to the Middle East, reducing the US’s ability to defend itself and its allies from the threats from China and Russia.

UK - The Government’s control over information available to the public is tightening. The rise of censorship and narrative control for our “safety” is one of the most disturbing trends to emerge in modern politics – and unless there is a course correction, it risks becoming a permanent feature of public life. The Prime Minister is now reportedly planning to “crackdown” on private media companies and promote BBC News, ITV and Channel 4 news content across social media. Hand-picking broadcasters to be artificially boosted for public viewership smacks of manipulation over what the public can read, watch, and ultimately think.

SWITZERLAND - The talks in Switzerland may have calmed markets and lowered the volume for a day. They have not answered the question that matters: Is Iran being forced to retreat or merely being paid to pause? The United States and Iran concluded talks in Switzerland on Monday. Mediators Qatar and Pakistan described “encouraging progress” and announced a 60-day road map toward a final agreement. The talks included discussion of a Lebanon “deconfliction cell” aimed at preventing renewed escalation between Israel and Hezbollah. Israel was absent. Iran was present. Over the past 24 hours, criticism has focused on one concern: Tehran appears to have gained a road map without publicly accepting the hard conditions that would make it meaningful. It appears to have secured breathing room on sanctions while its proxies remain armed. It appears to have turned the Strait of Hormuz into a bargaining chip and Lebanon into part of a broader US-Iran understanding.

LEBANON - Earlier on Monday, CNN reported that Israel is contemplating announcing a "symbolic" withdrawal from certain territories in southern Lebanon as part of the upcoming round of talks. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that the IDF retains freedom of action to act against threats in Lebanon. "My directive and that of the Minister of Defense to the IDF is clear and has not changed," said Netanyahu. "Our fighters in southern Lebanon have full freedom of action to thwart any direct or emerging threat to them or to the residents of the North. The IDF has no restrictions in this regard," he said. "I stand behind them; the entire nation stands behind them."

USA - Americans that are over the age of 55 control approximately 73 percent of all wealth in the United States. Americans that are age 55 or younger control just 27 percent of all wealth in the United States. Never before in history has there been a generational divide of this magnitude. One of the reasons why there is such a generational divide is because housing has become so insanely unaffordable. If you purchased a home 20 or 30 years ago, it has appreciated in value a great deal and you are sitting pretty. But many young adults today look at current housing prices and wonder how they will ever be able to buy a home. During the pandemic, we witnessed a surge of young adults moving back in with their parents. But once the pandemic was over, things were supposed to go back to normal. Unfortunately, that never happened. In fact, the percentage of young adults that are living with their parents is now higher than it was at any point during the pandemic…We have tens of millions of young adults that cannot form their own households. That is a major national crisis.

NETHERLANDS - For the first time since a change in the law in the Netherlands, a child under the age of 12 has died by euthanasia. The death of the child was confirmed by the country's health minister, Sophie Hermans, as she presented the annual report by the committee that reviews all late-term abortions and medically-assisted deaths of children to parliament on Monday. According to the report, the child was under the age of 12 and had been seriously ill, but no further details were given. Assisted dying for terminally sick children aged from one to 12 has been legal for two years in the Netherlands. Before the change in the law, only newborns and those over 12 could be euthanised. Under Dutch law, parents must be consulted, the child must be suffering unbearably, and there can be no chance of recovery.

UK - Children as young as six are on the gender care waiting list, figures have revealed. The children are among more than 250 of primary school age who are waiting for care at NHS gender clinics in England. At least one child is aged six or younger. The FoI data, obtained by the Press Association, also reveal that there were 4,079 children waiting to be seen at one of the three services at the end of March this year. This is down 34 per cent from 6,225 children on the waiting list – which covers England and Wales because the latter does not have its own dedicated children’s gender clinic – at the same point last year.

USA - US President Donald Trump warned Iran to stop supporting proxies in Lebanon, warning that he could resume strikes on the country should they fail to do so in a Sunday Truth Social post. "Iran must immediately stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble," Trump wrote, implying Hezbollah. "If they don’t, we’ll hit Iran very hard again," he added. Additionally, Trump warned Iran not to close the Strait of Hormuz in an overnight conversation, Fox News reported Sunday. "You close it, and you won't have a country," Trump said he told Iranian officials, according to the Fox News report. "You won't even make it back to your f***ing country."

USA - For nearly half a century, Iran has waged war against the United States, Israel, and the civilized world through terrorism, proxy armies, hostage-taking, and revolutionary fanaticism. Administration after administration chose accommodation, appeasement, or delay. He chose confrontation. The results of that decision are impossible to ignore. The Iranian regime enters these negotiations weaker than at any point since the Islamic Revolution of 1979. Its military infrastructure has been battered. Its air defenses have been exposed. Much of its command structure has been disrupted, with senior military and intelligence leaders killed. Its economy, already crippled by years of sanctions, corruption, and mismanagement, is struggling to survive.