USA - The crisis in the Strait of Hormuz caused immediate shocks to the world oil market, but analysts are also afraid that rising food prices and fertilizer shortages could increase the risk of famine in struggling nations. Vespucci Maritime CEO Lars Jensen told Fox News Digital on Thursday that the “worst-case” scenario would resemble “the eight-year closure of the Suez Canal from 1967 to 1975.” “Best case, there is an agreement between the US and Iran within the next few weeks, and the Strait reopens — and it has to be a deal where there is trust that Iran is sufficiently satisfied with the deal such that they do not suddenly close the strait again,” Jensen said. “Even in that case, it will still take months for the supply chains to revert back to normality,” he added.

GERMANY - Trump has publicly criticized German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and the leaders of other NATO member states for not getting directly involved in the US's military campaign against Iran. The US military has a massive presence in Germany dating back to the aftermath of World War II and the Cold War. More than 36,000 active duty troops were assigned to bases throughout Germany as of last December, along with nearly 1,500 reservists and 11,500 civilians, according to Defense Department figures. Japan is the only foreign country with a larger presence of US troops. Germany is also home to the headquarters of US European Command and Africa Command, and its Ramstein Air Base is a key hub for US operations. Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said the withdrawal will take place over the next six to 12 months.

USA - The Pentagon is preparing “short and powerful” strikes to break Iran’s chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz. The US has drawn up plans to target the regime’s infrastructure, before pressing it to return to the negotiating table. Details emerged from sources briefing Axios, whose reporters also spoke directly with Donald Trump. The US president has appeared increasingly frustrated by Iran’s refusal to give up its nuclear ambitions, an issue on which peace talks have foundered. Mr Trump signalled on Wednesday that he believed the US’s blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, designed to choke off Iran’s oil revenues, was paying dividends. “The blockade is somewhat more effective than the bombing. They are choking like a stuffed pig. And it is going to be worse for them,” Mr Trump said. Scott Bessent, the US treasury secretary, claimed Iran was on the cusp of losing some $170 million per day in revenues as it struggled to store its unsold oil.

IRAN - It appears that China has decided to provide Iran with highly advanced anti-ship missiles that are known as “aircraft-carrier killers”, and that is really bad news for the US Navy. Our vessels do not have any effective defenses against the Chinese-made CM-302. During this ceasefire, the Iranians have been feverishly re-arming, and it appears that they are getting some new toys to play with. If the Pentagon does not take these threats seriously, we could end up with warships on the bottom of the ocean. President Trump has repeatedly stated that he is not going to end the naval blockade of Iran until a permanent deal to end the war is reached. But a permanent deal to end the war is not going to be reached any time soon, because Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is pledging to relentlessly protect Iran’s nuclear and missile capabilities… An Iranian media source is reporting that if the blockade is not lifted soon we will see “practical and unprecedented action”…

IRAN - Whisper it, but Economic Fury may be working. For almost 50 years, the regime has weathered Western sanctions by covertly selling oil to China via shadow ships. So far, the US navy has intercepted 44 such vessels, with an estimated value of up to $6 billion (£4.8 billion). You can’t eat stockpiles of oil. More than a million Iranians are out of work, amid soaring food prices and an internet blackout that has strangled online commerce. Strikes have been raging across all 31 provinces; the Iranian rial has surged to 1.81 million against the dollar. With power and fuel shortages, and ruined petrochemical and steel industries, Iran is enduring its worst economic crisis since 1979 (when 70 rials bought you a dollar). Some in the regime are calling on the beleaguered Revolutionary Guards to assault American warships or disrupt global internet traffic by sabotaging undersea cables in the Strait. This, they say, will raise oil prices and increase the pressure on Donald Trump. The less rabid fanatics think a deal may buy them some time. But how much sand is left in the Iranian hourglass?

MEXICO - Mexico City is sinking by nearly 10 inches (about 25 centimeters) a year, according to new satellite imagery released this week by NASA, making it one of the world’s fastest-subsiding metropolises. One of the world’s most sprawling and populated urban areas, at 3,000 square miles (about 7,800 square kilometers) and some 22 million people, the Mexican capital and surrounding cities were built atop an ancient lake bed. Many downtown streets were once canals, a tradition that continues in the rural fringes. Extensive groundwater pumping and urban development have dramatically shrunk the aquifer, meaning that Mexico City has been sinking for more than a century, leaving many monuments and older buildings — like the Metropolitan Cathedral, where construction began in 1573 — visibly tilted to the side. The contracting aquifer has also contributed to a chronic water crisis that is only expected to worsen.

UK - Anti-Semitic attacks are out of control in the UK, Israel has said after two Jewish men were stabbed in a terror attack in Golders Green. The Israeli foreign ministry said Sir Keir Starmer’s words were “no substitute for confronting the roots of anti-Semitism” after the men, aged 76 and 34, were stabbed as they walked near a synagogue on Wednesday morning. The victims were taken to hospital and were in a stable condition. Sir Keir is under mounting pressure to take tougher action to protect British Jews following a wave of attacks and firebombings on Jewish sites in north London in the past month. The area’s Jewish residents have expressed fears that they are “sitting ducks”. Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said Britain had lost control of anti-Semitic hate crime and demanded Sir Keir do more to “protect the Jews of England”. He added: “Weakness gaslights one anti-Semitic attack after another in London. Words are not enough to confront this scourge.”

USA - In a historic speech to US Congress, King Charles called the bond between America and the United Kingdom “unbreakable” and urged the two allies to “rededicate ourselves to each other”. President Trump’s warm reception of the royal couple suggested willingness to repair diplomatic relations with London, fractured in recent months over the Starmer Government’s position on the Iran war, as he noted that the US had “no closer friends than the British”. But a closer examination of recent public statements made by the president and his key cabinet members suggests that America is in fact still working to decouple from Europe.

USA - Donald Trump has said the German chancellor should fix his “broken country” before criticising the US. On Thursday, Mr Trump posted online that Friedrich Merz had been “ineffective” in ending the war in Ukraine and claimed Germany was “broken” because of its migration and energy policies. The president made the comments hours after he announced that he may soon withdraw American troops from Germany, where they are stationed as a deterrent against Russia. Mr Trump said on Truth Social: “The chancellor of Germany should spend more time on ending the war with Russia/Ukraine (Where he has been totally ineffective!), and fixing his broken country, especially immigration and energy, and less time on interfering with those that are getting rid of the Iran nuclear threat, thereby making the world, including Germany, a safer place!” The post may have been prompted by a comment about the Iran war Mr Merz had made earlier on Thursday. In it, he called for a “reliable” partnership with the US, saying: “Our compass remains clearly set on a strong NATO and a reliable transatlantic partnership.”

USA - The MSM will falsely claim the Secretary of the Navy was fired because of Battleships. Throughout the Biden administration, and later during DOGE’s audit work, I translated every major spending bill into a unit every American can actually visualize: one nuclear aircraft carrier.