Puppet MastersS


Airplane Paper

U.S. Navy Spy Drone Circles Cuba As Report Says Pentagon Weighing Possible Military Ops

Tyler Durden
ZeroHedge
Fri, 17 Apr 2026 15:54 UTC
Northrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton 2025
© Northrop GrummanNorthrop Grumman MQ-4C Triton 2025
With President Trump signaling on Thursday that a deal with Tehran could be close, and indicating that another round of talks may take place this weekend, the focus is already beginning to shift beyond the Gulf region and back toward the Gulf of America, where reports earlier this week suggested the U.S. military was preparing for some form of intervention against the communist regime in Cuba.

USA Today reported on Wednesday that the Department of War is preparing for a possible operation in Cuba. The report was based on two sources.

The DoW responded to the outlet, saying it plans for a range of contingencies and remains prepared to execute the president's orders as directed.

By early Friday, X user OSINTdefender reported that a U.S. Navy high-altitude, long-endurance maritime surveillance drone "flew an over-12-hour mission off the coast of Cuba."

Comment: Both Trump and Graham has warned everyone months ago:



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Snakes in Suits

New Hungarian Prime Minister says borders will remain shut to immigrants

Tyler Durden
Zero Hedge
Thu, 16 Apr 2026 08:17 UTC
Péter Magyar
© Associated PressHungary PM Péter Magyar
In the wake of Viktor Orbán's election defeat, one of the greatest fears among conservatives in the region is an unconstrained EU able to take action on foreign policy, health, and immigration without the threat of a veto. It is widely assumed that the incoming prime minister of Hungary, Péter Magyar, will seek a fast resolution of Brussels' key issues with Hungary in order to unlock some €35 billion in funding.

His election win was heralded as a substantial victory for the global left wing, from EU globalists to Democrats in the US. Their assumption is that with Orbán's veto power out of play, they will be able to do they want in Ukraine and in Hungary. However, the new Prime Minster may not be as cooperative as they initially believed.

Magyar has stated that he will not try to block a €90 billion EU loan to Ukraine which Orbán originally vetoed, but he also stated that Hungary will not be contributing to such loans and that the government will not support any attempt to induct Ukraine into the EU. He also announced this week that he will not allow Hungary to join in the EU's "Migration Pact" and that he plans to further strengthen Hungary's borders.
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Arrow Up

Russia backs Iran's 'inalienable right' to uranium enrichment: Lavrov


PRESSTV
Wed, 15 Apr 2026 08:58 UTC
Lavrov
© UnknownRussian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has defended Iran's inalienable right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes, saying that Russia accepts any decision that suits the Iranian side.

Speaking at a press conference in Beijing on Wednesday, following talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Lavrov asserted that Moscow is prepared to assist in resolving issues surrounding Iran's nuclear program.

He was echoing the stance that "every country has the right to enrich uranium exclusively for peaceful purposes," a right he affirmed extends to the Islamic Republic.

"Russia will accept any decision that suits the Iranian side" within these "legitimate rights," Lavrov stated, highlighting Moscow's readiness to play a role in any potential resolution concerning enriched uranium.

He outlined possible contributions, including reprocessing highly enriched uranium into fuel for nuclear power plants or transferring specified amounts to Russia for storage, all while respecting Iran's right to civilian nuclear energy.

Lavrov said Russia will accept any decision by Iran regarding enriched uranium, noting he has discussed the issue with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and with US, Israeli, and Iranian representatives, and that the topic has arisen repeatedly in contacts involving Russian President Vladimir Putin.
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Better Earth

Magyar's pragmatic conservatism - Hungary's return to Europe, on its own terms

Ricardo Martins
New Eastern Outlook
Thu, 16 Apr 2026 00:00 UTC
Peter Magyar
© UnknownHungarian PM Péter Magyar
A post‑Orbán reset is coming, but Péter Magyar's nationalism tempers his pro‑EU signals; expect cooperation on Ukraine and security, and resistance on cultural and sovereignty issues.

The Hungarian vote mattered far beyond Budapest: it would reshape EU unity on sanctions, funding, and enlargement; decide whether a NATO member remained a reliably cooperative partner; and influence Kyiv's lifeline amid war. Washington watched for the future of transatlantic cohesion; Kyiv for the fate of crucial EU aid and diplomatic backing; Brussels for a more aligned, rule‑of‑law‑compliant member; and Moscow for keeping a reliable Western partner. A single ballot thus carried outsized geopolitical weight, testing whether Hungary would stay an unpredictable outlier or return to the European fold.

Who Hungary's New Prime Minister Is

Péter Magyar's sudden ascent in Hungary has reset expectations in Brussels and Kyiv, but whether Hungary will become a reliable partner again depends on a simple, uncomfortable truth: Magyar is no liberal cosmopolitan — he is a conservative, nationalist politician who packaged pragmatism as a promise to fix corruption and restore competence.
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No Entry

Blockading the blockade?

Ron Paul
Mises Institute
Tue, 14 Apr 2026 00:00 UTC
Strait of Hormuz
© Adobe StockStrait of Hormuz
President Trump was presented with a great opportunity on Saturday to take the off-ramp from his war on Iran. After threatening Iran that "a whole civilization will die tonight," Trump managed to get a two week pause in the war with the intervention of the Pakistani government.

A window opened to end this illegal war. Vice President Vance traveled to Pakistan to negotiate with a high-level Iranian delegation and from press reporting progress was made on many issues.

Unfortunately, after a month and a half of war, where tens of billions of dollars have been spent, every US base in the region is either damaged or destroyed, and dozens of military aircraft have been lost, President Trump did not take the off-ramp. He hit the accelerator.

After 21 hours of negotiations, the talks blew up, reportedly because the US side again insisted that Iran turn over its enriched uranium, destroy its nuclear facilities, and never enrich uranium again. This may be the "maximalist" approach favored by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but there is no reason for the US to make such demands.

Comment: Simply put and powerfully spoken. 'Someone' could learn something.

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Attention

The EU just admitted it: Age verification was never about kids - It's the Orwellian digital identity wallet endgame


Islander Reports
Thu, 16 Apr 2026 18:22 UTC
ID Wallet
© Islander Reports
Ursula von der Leyen just crowed that the EU's age verification app is "technically ready" and will be shoved down our throats any day now. Ireland is one of the "frontrunners" already building a digital wallet that verifies your age using your PPS number (that's your Irish social security ID folks).

They want you to download their app, feed it your passport or national ID, and then "prove your age" every time you hit an online platform. Just like buying booze in a shop, says the EU President. "No more excuses" for platforms.

But here's the punchline they're ramming down with their jackhammer: the app "respects the highest privacy standards in the world," is "completely anonymous," and based on open source code so even non-EU countries can copy the surveillance model.

Bullshit.

This is the same EU that wrote GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation), their precious data-protection bible and then immediately violates every core principle in it.

Data minimisation? Gone. They're demanding your PPS, passport, or full digital wallet just to browse.

Privacy by design/default? Destroyed.

DSA (Digital Services Act) Article 28(3)? Ignored — it explicitly says platforms cannot be forced to process extra personal data for age checks.

eIDAS (electronic IDentification, Authentication and trust Services) 2.0? Exposed as a lie. The wallet was sold as "voluntary." Now it's the mandatory key to the internet.
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Handcuffs

DOJ Petitions Court To Toss Convictions Of Unpardoned Jan. 6 Defendants

Janice Hisle
The Epoch Times
Thu, 16 Apr 2026 15:31 UTC
Stewart Rhodes
© Roberto Schmidt/AFP/Getty ImagesStewart Rhodes speaks to members outside the DC Central Detention Facility.
The Justice Department is petitioning an appeals court to throw out the convictions of unpardoned defendants who were charged in connection with the U.S. Capitol breach on Jan. 6, 2021.

"The United States has determined ... that dismissal of this criminal case is in the interests of justice," read a motion filed April 14 in the case of Elmer Stewart Rhodes III, Kelly Meggs, Kenneth Harrelson, and Jessica Watkins.

All four defendants belonged to the Oath Keepers, a group that says its members are mostly former military, police, and medics who are dedicated to upholding Constitutional rights. Rhodes, the group's founder, had been one of the most high-profile Jan. 6 defendants; he was sentenced to 18 years in prison for seditious conspiracy and other charges.

In their motion filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, federal prosecutors said they would file separate motions-to-vacate in "similar" Jan. 6 cases.

Comment: Still waiting for the Jan. 6th investigation into Pelosi's involvment:

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Bad Guys

Netanyahu Says the Trump Administration Gives Him Reports on Iran Talks Every Day

Dave DeCamp
Antiwar
Mon, 13 Apr 2026 10:56 UTC
Netanyahu speaks with Kushner
© White House photoNetanyahu speaks with Kushner while greeting US officials in the West Wing Lobby of the White House, Monday, September 29, 2025.
The Israeli prime minister said US Vice President JD Vance spoke with him after the Pakistan talks.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Monday that he spoke with Vice President JD Vance after the US-Iran talks in Pakistan and described the call as part of a daily report the Trump administration provides him.
"I spoke yesterday with Vice President J.D. Vance. He called me from his plane on his way back from Islamabad. He reported to me in detail, as this administration does every day, about the development of the negotiations," Netanyahu said at a cabinet meeting, according to Axios reporter Barak Ravid.
The comments from Netanyahu highlight the close coordination between the US and Israel on Iran. Ravid reported in early March that US envoy Steve Witkoff and President Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who has known Netanyahu since he was a child, were speaking to Netanyahu and other Israeli officials nearly every day. Witkoff and Kushner led the negotiations with Iran in the lead-up to the war and both attended the Pakistan talks.
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Jet3

US Navy admits it lost a $240 million spy drone during the Iran war

Jake Epstein
Business Insider
Wed, 15 Apr 2026 21:31 UTC
navy MQ-4C Triton spy drone
© US Navy photoAn MQ-4C Triton drone crashed on April 9, the US military revealed this week.
The US Navy has confirmed the loss of an expensive spy drone amid the Iran war, its first known loss of this particular uncrewed aircraft.

Naval Safety Command revealed in a new aviation mishaps report that an MQ-4C Triton crashed on April 9, with no injury to personnel. The document did not specify where the drone went down, citing operational security.

Last week, an MQ-4C out of Naval Air Station Sigonella in Italy was flying a mission over the Persian Gulf when it suddenly and rapidly descended and disappeared from flight-tracking sites, leading to speculation that it had crashed in the Middle East.

The Navy report listed the MQ-4C under "Class A" mishaps, meaning the incident caused more than $2.5 million in damage and/or destroyed the aircraft. The designation is also used to indicate that an accident caused a fatality or permanent total disability, though that doesn't appear to apply in this case.
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Black Magic

Foggy, Foggy War

Michael Every
ZeroHedge
Wed, 15 Apr 2026 21:34 UTC
upside down usa
© ZeroHedge
With US stocks up, the Nasdaq with its longest winning streak since 2021, and screen oil down for a second day in a row, markets continue to price the starkly binary physical outcomes smack in front of us on the side that's full of stardust.

The IMF just warned of a potential world recession ahead if Hormuz stays shut. Its latest three global growth scenarios are 'weaker', 'worse' and 'severe' - "because markets", and politics, the Fund chose the most benign as its base case, even as "downside risks are clearly very elevated."

That's as Spain, for example, just released 4 of their 90 days of strategic oil reserves, with another 8 to follow. While that leaves 78, even if Hormuz reopened tomorrow, it would take at least 60 and possibly as many as 150 days before normal oil flows could be restored, according to IEA.

Imagine driving home in a convoy through a blazing desert in an air-conditioned car knowing you all have 50 miles of fuel in the tank, and the next station is 30 miles away... and then hearing on the radio that it could be shut, and the following one is at least 60 miles away. That's where much of the world economy stands now - and markets are opting to pump up the radio and aircon and say, 'The next station will be open and I want a slushy.'
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