JEWISH KING JESUS IS COMING AT THE RAPTURE FOR US IN THE CLOUDS-DON'T MISS IT FOR THE WORLD.THE BIBLE TAKEN LITERALLY- WHEN THE PLAIN SENSE MAKES GOOD SENSE-SEEK NO OTHER SENSE-LEST YOU END UP IN NONSENSE.GET SAVED NOW- CALL ON JESUS TODAY.THE ONLY SAVIOR OF THE WHOLE EARTH - NO OTHER.
1 COR 15:23-JESUS THE FIRST FRUITS-CHRISTIANS RAPTURED TO JESUS-FIRST FRUITS OF THE SPIRIT-23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ’s at his coming.ROMANS 8:23 And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body.(THE PRE-TRIB RAPTURE)
WAR WITH IRAN - DAY 74 MAY 12,26 - TRUMPS NOT A HAPPY CAMPER WITH IRAN.
THE NEXT US-ISRAEL HIT ON IRAN SHOULD BE VERSE 37. ALL OFFENSIVE NUKE SITES MISSLES,DRONES,AND OF COURSE KHEMENI AND THE IRGC GUARDS.THEN AFTER IRANS REGIME CHANGE. MUSLIMS COME TO JESUS BY THE MILLIONS.
JEREMEIAH 49:32-39 (IN IRAN AT THE BUSHEHR OR ARAK NUKE SITES AND ALL OFENSIVE WEAPONS DESTROYED IN IRAN)
Jeremiah 49:32-39
32 Their camels shall be a booty, and the multitude of their cattle a spoil: and I will scatter to all winds those who have the corners [of their hair] cut off; and I will bring their calamity from every side of them, says Yahweh.
33 Hazor shall be a dwelling-place of jackals, a desolation forever: no man shall dwell there, neither shall any son of man sojourn therein.(Location & Size: It was strategically located along the Via Maris (Way of the Sea), a major trade route connecting Egypt with Syria and Mesopotamia.)
34 The word of Yahweh that came to Jeremiah the prophet concerning Elam,(IRAN) in the beginning of the reign of Zedekiah king of Judah, saying,
35 Thus says Yahweh of Hosts: Behold, I will break the bow of Elam,(IRANS OFFENSIVE WEAPONS) the chief of their might.(MISSLES AND NUKE SITES)
36 On Elam (IRAN) will I bring the four winds from the four quarters of the sky, and will scatter them toward all those winds; and there shall be no nation where the outcasts of Elam shall not come.(SINCE 1979 IRANIANS HAVE GOTTIN OUT OF IRAN BECAUSE OF KHEMENI AND HIS APOCOPOLIPTIC DEATH CULT BELIEF-BLACK HATER 12ERS)
37 I will cause Elam (IRAN) to be dismayed before their enemies, and before those who seek their life;(ISRAEL THE LITTLE SATAN AND THE U.S THE BIG SATAN) and I will bring evil on them, (MISSLES) even my fierce anger,(FIRE) says Yahweh; and I will send the sword after them,(IRANS OFFENSIVE WEAPONS) until I have consumed them; (DESTROYED THEM ALL NUKE SITES,MISSLES ETC)
38 and I will set my throne in Elam,(IRAN WILL BECOME A CHRISTIAN NATION) and will destroy from there king (KHEMENI, ISLAM) and princes, says Yahweh.(IRANIAN ARMY GUARDS)
39 But it shall happen in the latter days, that I will bring back the captivity of Elam,(IRAN) says Yahweh.(WERE IN THE LATTER DAYS NOW)
WHEN ARE THE 500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS IN ISRAEL IN THE SPRING TIME.(GET READY ISLAM TO BE BIRD SEED FOR THESE BIRDS)
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/m0bXU5Xqc5M
The 500 million migratory birds in Israel during the spring arrive from Africa and head toward Europe and Asia, with the peak migration occurring in March and April. While migration starts in late February, the most intense movements, particularly of birds of prey, storks, and pelicans, occur during the third week of March and continue into April.
Key Details on the Spring Migration
Peak Period: Mid-March through April.
Main Migration Route: The birds use the Great Rift Valley, which includes the Hula Valley and Eilat, acting as a "bottleneck" where millions of birds fly through the narrow land bridge.
Best Spots: The Hula Lake Park (Northern Israel) and the Eilat Birding Center (Southern Israel) are primary locations for observing the migration.
Key Species: Hundreds of thousands of white storks, along with black kites, raptors, and pelicans, pass through over these months.
uration: The spring migration runs from late February and continues into June, though the heaviest traffic is in March/April.
The 500 million migratory birds fly over Israel in the fall between late August and mid-December. The peak migration period for the autumn, when the highest volume of bird traffic occurs, is typically October and November.
Key Fall Migration Details
Location: The Hula Valley (Agamon Hula Park) in northern Israel is the premier spot to witness this phenomenon.
Timing: Migration starts as early as late June with some waders, but intensifies from mid-August through November.
Peak Festival: The "Annual Hula Valley Bird Festival" is usually held in November to align with the peak migration traffic.
Key Species: Many birds of prey (raptors), including honey buzzards and steppe eagles, cross during this time, along with massive flocks of storks and cranes.
While roughly 500 million birds pass through in the autumn on their way to Africa, the same number crosses again in the spring (mid-February to May) on their way back to Europe and Asia.
JEREMEIAH 49:23-27
23 Concerning Damascus.(SYRIA) Hamath is confounded, and Arpad: for they have heard evil tidings: they are fainthearted; there is sorrow on the sea;(WAR SHIPS WITH NUKES COMING ON SYRIA) it cannot be quiet.
24 Damascus is waxed feeble, and turneth herself to flee, and fear hath seized on her: anguish and sorrows have taken her, as a woman in travail.
25 How is the city of praise not left, the city of my joy!
26 Therefore her young men shall fall in her streets, and all the men of war shall be cut off in that day, saith the LORD of hosts.
27 And I will kindle a fire (NUKES OR BOMBS) in the wall of Damascus, and it shall consume the palaces of Benhadad.(ASSADS PALACES POSSIBLY IN DAMASCUS)
Iran says US must accept peace plan or face 'failure'.
Tehran, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-Iran's chief negotiator said Tuesday that Washington must accept Tehran's latest peace plan or face failure, after US President Donald Trump warned the truce in the Middle East war was on the brink of collapse.The war, which erupted more than two months ago with US-Israeli strikes on Iran, has spread throughout the Middle East and roiled the global economy despite the ceasefire, impacting hundreds of millions worldwide.Both sides have refused to make concessions and repeatedly threatened to resume fighting, but neither appears willing to return to all-out war."There is no alternative but to accept the rights of the Iranian people as laid out in the 14-point proposal. Any other approach will be completely inconclusive; nothing but one failure after another," Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in a post on X."The longer they drag their feet, the more American taxpayers will pay for it."Iran sent its proposal in response to an earlier US plan, details of which remain limited. Media reports have said the American plan involved a one-page memorandum of understanding aimed at ending the fighting and establishing a framework for negotiations on Iran's nuclear programme.Iran's foreign ministry said its response called for ending the war on all fronts, including Lebanon, halting the US naval blockade on Iranian ports and securing the release of Iranian assets frozen abroad under longstanding sanctions.But Trump slammed Tehran's reply as "TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE", saying the US would enjoy a "complete victory" over Iran and that the truce that has halted fighting for over a month was on its last legs.In a show of defiance, Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they carried out drills in Tehran aimed at "enhancing combat capability to confront any movement of the American-Zionist enemy", state media reported Tuesday.The war of words has unnerved people in Iran who do not know what the coming months will bring."We are just trying to dig our nails into anything that could help us survive. The future is so uncertain and we are just living day to day," Maryam, a 43-year-old painter from the capital Tehran, told Paris-based journalists."We are trying to find a way to continue. Keeping hope is very difficult right now."- Energy shock -Trump's angry reaction to Iran's counteroffer sparked a spike in oil prices and dashed hopes that a deal could be quickly negotiated to reopen the Strait of Hormuz to commercial shipping.Iran is restricting maritime traffic in the waterway and has been setting up a payment mechanism to charge tolls for crossing ships, sparking a global energy crisis."The energy supply shock that began in the first quarter is the largest the world has ever experienced," the CEO and president of Saudi oil giant Aramco, Amin Nasser, told investors.US officials have stressed it would be "unacceptable" for Tehran to control the strait, which usually carries about a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas."Iran should not use this strait as a weapon to pressure or to blackmail the Gulf countries," Qatari foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani told reporters in Doha on Tuesday.Trump told Fox News that he was considering reviving a short-lived US operation to guide oil tankers and commercial ships through Hormuz, but that he had not yet taken a final decision.The maritime standoff has also left the world facing a shortage of fertiliser -- much of which comes from Gulf ports -- and risks food supplies for tens of millions of people.Jorge Moreira da Silva, executive director of the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS), told AFP there were just a few weeks left to avert a potentially "massive humanitarian crisis" that could force 45 million more people into hunger.- Battlefield 'hell' -Meanwhile, the US ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee told a conference Tuesday that Israel sent Iron Dome air defence batteries and personnel to operate them in the United Arab Emirates during the war, after it was targeted more than any country by Iran.And elsewhere in the Gulf, Kuwait said that four people arrested earlier this month as they attempted to enter the country by sea had confessed to belonging to Iran's Revolutionary Guards.On the war's Lebanon front, Israeli strikes on a town in the south killed six people and wounded seven others, state media said Tuesday, as fighting continued despite a ceasefire agreement.Israel has intensified its attacks in south Lebanon as it trades fire with Iran-backed Hezbollah even after the April 17 truce took effect.More than 2,800 people have been killed in Lebanon since the country was dragged into the wider war on March 2, according to health authorities.Hezbollah chief Naim Qassem said Tuesday his group's weapons were not part of a third round of upcoming negotiations between Lebanon and Israel this week, vowing not to surrender "however great the sacrifices"."We will not abandon the battlefield and we will turn it into hell for Israel," he said in a statement.bur-jfx/smw
Pentagon says US cost of Iran war nearing $29 billion.
Washington, United States, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-The Pentagon said Tuesday that the cost of the war with Iran had climbed to nearly $29 billion, as President Donald Trump faced mounting scrutiny over the conflict and its impact on military readiness.The new figure, revealed by the Defense Department during a budget hearing on Capitol Hill, is about $4 billion higher than the estimate offered by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth two weeks ago.Hegseth and General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, were testifying on a $1.5 trillion budget request for 2027 alongside Pentagon finance chief Jules Hurst III when they were asked for an update on the war's price tag."At the time of testimony... it was $25 billion dollars," Hurst told lawmakers, referring to Hegseth's April 29 estimate. "But the joint staff team and the comptroller are constantly looking at estimates and now we think it is closer to 29."
Sensing an edge, Iran 'ready to gamble' it can outlast Trump.
Paris, France, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-Iran's leadership is betting it can outlast an under-pressure Donald Trump in its peace negotiations with Washington, but its defiance risks renewed military confrontation and further stoking domestic tensions, analysts say.With a shaky ceasefire holding almost two-and-a-half months after the US-Israeli war against the Islamic republic began, the US president has angrily dismissed Iran's responses to a US proposal for a settlement, warning the truce is on its last legs.But analysts say that even after the killing of long-time supreme leader Ali Khamenei on the first day of the war, Iran's leadership remains fiercely ideological and dedicated to the preservation of the Islamic republic set up in the 1979 revolution that ousted the shah."They do think they can outlast Trump. The war is existential for them," Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at the Chatham House think tank in London, told AFP.Iran understands that by blocking the Strait of Hormuz -- the first time it has restricted shipping traffic in the key bottleneck for trade and energy supplies after years of threats -- it has a major strategic lever.Trump, meanwhile, is under pressure to find an off-ramp to the conflict, which has proven unpopular at home and driven up prices at the pump, with midterm elections right around the corner.Iran "is committed to negotiations but what they don't want is surrender. They want to extract concessions because of their improved hand," Vakil said."They are prepared for another round of conflict and they are ready to gamble on that, which is a risk as the costs for Iran would be huge."- 'Overplayed its hand' before -Analysts say it remains unclear who is currently running Iran, with the slain supreme leader's son and successor Mojtaba Khamenei likely involved in decision-making but not the only player in a scene dominated by the ideologically driven Revolutionary Guards.Parliament speaker and Guards veteran Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who has emerged as Iran's frontman in negotiations, said Tuesday there was "no alternative" to the plan submitted by Iran to Trump."For the leadership, the perception is that negotiating the best conditions possible is essential to their very survival," said Thomas Juneau, professor at Ottawa University."They are therefore entirely willing to absorb significant economic pain if it means waiting out Trump."Juneau said the "Hormuz lever is essential for Iran", with the leadership calculating that Trump will lose patience with the ensuing higher oil prices as the US midterms near.But he cautioned that the leadership was taking a gamble, facing a "hugely discontented population" in the wake of January protests, a struggling economy, and major damage to civilian and military infrastructure after US-Israeli attacks."The Islamic Republic has overplayed its hand in the past, and it absolutely is at risk of doing so again," he said.- 'More intransigent' -Summing up Tehran's official stance, a new giant billboard appeared this week in Valiasr square in the capital depicting Trump's mouth bound by a Hormuz-shaped gag alongside the slogan "At the breaking point".Arash Azizi, lecturer at Yale University, said Iran's leadership believed it had a "magic bullet" in its control of Hormuz and was hoping to "corner" Trump into obtaining better terms."It appears a bit delusional. It might backfire and lead to resumption of war by Trump or Israel," he said.But journalist and political analyst Maziar Khosravi told AFP in Tehran that Trump and Israel could no longer wield the threat of military action to pressure the leadership."Trump could try the military option again, hoping to eliminate another layer of leadership in the Islamic Republic," he said."But this doesn't seem like a viable option to me, because each new generation of leaders coming to power is more intransigent than the last."Vakil said neither side wanted to see a resumption of full hostilities, but noted it wasn't out of the question, saying the Trump administration appeared to fundamentally misunderstand the rigidity of the Iranian leadership's mindset."The military path is unlikely to push Iran into submission. The Trump administration lacks a true appreciation for the Islamic republic's ideological position. It sees everything from a military vantage point."
Iran's Guards hold military drills in capital as ceasefire teeters.
Tehran, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-Iran's Revolutionary Guards held military exercises in capital Tehran to prepare for any confrontation, state media reported Tuesday, after US President Donald Trump warned a ceasefire in the Middle East war was on the brink of collapse.The drills involved the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or IRGC, the ideological arm of Iran's military, as well as the Basij, a paramilitary force affiliated with the Guards, according to state TV."Enhancing combat capability to confront any movement of the American-Zionist enemy was one of the goals and scenarios implemented in this drill, which was successfully carried out," Brigadier General Hassan Hassanzadeh, commander of the Tehran Revolutionary Guards, was quoted as saying by state TV.The war, which started more than two months ago with US-Israeli strikes on Iran, spread across the Middle East and damaged the global economy, affecting hundreds of millions worldwide.Iran has choked off the Strait of Hormuz -- a vital route out of the Gulf for oil, gas and fertiliser, seeking to wield economic leverage over the United States and its allies.The US Navy, meanwhile, is blockading Iran's ports, at times disabling or diverting ships heading to and from them.
Kuwait says foiled infiltration attempt by four members of Iran's Guards.
Kuwait City, Kuwait, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-Kuwait said Tuesday that four people arrested earlier this month as they attempted to enter the country by sea have confessed to belonging to Iran's Revolutionary Guards.The four men -- two navy colonels, a captain, and a lieutenant commander -- admitted they had been tasked by Iran's ideological army with "infiltrating" Bubiyan Island, Kuwait's interior ministry said in a statement published by state news agency Kuna.The island is Kuwait's largest and is located near the Iranian coast. The group attempted to enter on May 1 "aboard a fishing boat specially chartered to carry out hostile actions against Kuwait", the ministry said.A Kuwaiti serviceman was wounded during an exchange of fire with Kuwaiti forces on the island, and two of the Revolutionary Guard members managed to escape, it added.On May 3, the defence ministry said it arrested four people attempting to enter Kuwait by sea.Since the Middle East war began in late February, Kuwaiti authorities have sought to crack down on individuals and groups with alleged links to Iran.And in mid-April, 24 people were arrested in the country for financing "terrorist" entities, according to the interior ministry, while a security source said five former lawmakers were among those arrested.
Analysis-Iran gambles that Trump will blink first in Hormuz standoff, but risks overplaying its hand-Analysts say Tehran, viewing talks with US as existential, is willing to suffer to outlast president who faces midterm elections; however, Iran also faces ‘discontented population’By Stuart Williams Today, 8:03 pm-MAY 12,26
PARIS, France (AFP) — Iran’s leadership is betting it can outlast an under-pressure Donald Trump in its peace negotiations with Washington, but its defiance risks renewed military confrontation and further stoking domestic tensions, analysts say.With a shaky ceasefire holding almost two-and-a-half months after the US-Israeli war against the Islamic Republic began, the US president has angrily dismissed Iran’s responses to a US proposal for a settlement, warning the truce is on its last legs.But analysts say that even after the killing of longtime supreme leader Ali Khamenei on the first day of the war on February 28, Iran’s leadership remains fiercely ideological and dedicated to the preservation of the Islamic Republic set up in the 1979 revolution that ousted the shah.“They do think they can outlast Trump. The war is existential for them,” Sanam Vakil, director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at the Chatham House think tank in London, told AFP.Iran understands that by blocking the Strait of Hormuz — the first time it has restricted shipping traffic in the key bottleneck for trade and energy supplies after years of threats — it has a major strategic lever.Trump, meanwhile, is under pressure to find an off-ramp to the conflict, which has proven unpopular at home and driven up prices at the pump, with midterm elections right around the corner.Iran “is committed to negotiations but what they don’t want is surrender. They want to extract concessions because of their improved hand,” Vakil said. “They are prepared for another round of conflict and they are ready to gamble on that, which is a risk as the costs for Iran would be huge.”‘Overplayed its hand’ before-Analysts say it remains unclear who is currently running Iran, with the slain supreme leader’s son and successor, Mojtaba Khamenei, likely involved in decision-making but not the only player in a scene dominated by the ideologically driven Revolutionary Guards.Parliament speaker and Guards veteran Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, who has emerged as Iran’s frontman in negotiations, said Tuesday there was “no alternative” to the plan submitted by Iran to Trump.“For the leadership, the perception is that negotiating the best conditions possible is essential to their very survival,” said Thomas Juneau, professor at Ottawa University. “They are therefore entirely willing to absorb significant economic pain if it means waiting out Trump.”Juneau said the “Hormuz lever is essential for Iran,” with the leadership calculating that Trump will lose patience with the ensuing higher oil prices as the US midterms near.But he cautioned that the leadership was taking a gamble, facing a “hugely discontented population” in the wake of January protests, a struggling economy, and major damage to civilian and military infrastructure after US-Israeli attacks.“The Islamic Republic has overplayed its hand in the past, and it absolutely is at risk of doing so again,” he said.‘More intransigent’Summing up Tehran’s official stance, a new giant billboard appeared this week in Valiasr Square in the capital depicting Trump’s mouth bound by a Hormuz-shaped gag alongside the slogan: “At the breaking point.”Arash Azizi, lecturer at Yale University, said Iran’s leadership believed it had a “magic bullet” in its control of Hormuz and was hoping to “corner” Trump into obtaining better terms.“It appears a bit delusional. It might backfire and lead to resumption of war by Trump or Israel,” he said.But journalist and political analyst Maziar Khosravi told AFP in Tehran that Trump and Israel could no longer wield the threat of military action to pressure the leadership.“Trump could try the military option again, hoping to eliminate another layer of leadership in the Islamic Republic,” he said. “But this doesn’t seem like a viable option to me, because each new generation of leaders coming to power is more intransigent than the last.”Vakil said neither side wanted to see a resumption of full hostilities, but noted it wasn’t out of the question, saying the Trump administration appeared to fundamentally misunderstand the rigidity of the Iranian leadership’s mindset.“The military path is unlikely to push Iran into submission. The Trump administration lacks a true appreciation for the Islamic Republic’s ideological position. It sees everything from a military vantage point.”
Trump says Iran ceasefire ‘on life support’ after Tehran submitted ‘garbage’ proposal-US president says he’s considering renewing operation to escort ships through Hormuz, as Netanyahu convenes security cabinet and Iran calls US ‘greatest threat’ to world peace By Jacob Magid,Lazar Berman,Nava Freiberg and Agencies 11 May 2026, 5:16 pmUpdated at 9:06 pm
WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump on Monday said the ceasefire with Iran was “on life support,” a day after he rejected the proposal submitted by Iran over the weekend for a permanent truce.“It’s unbelievably weak,” Trump said of the truce, while speaking to reporters in the Oval Office. “I would call it the weakest right now, after reading that piece of garbage they sent us. I didn’t even finish reading it.”The US president claimed that Iranian negotiators told their American counterparts that they were prepared for the US to retrieve Tehran’s stockpiles of highly-enriched uranium, but then refrained from putting that concession in the response paper submitted over the weekend. Iran has shown no public indication that it is prepared to make such a concession.“Two days ago, they said, ‘You’re going to have to take it.’ We were going to go with them. But they changed their mind because they didn’t put it in the paper,” Trump told reporters.Trump also asserted that Iran’s negotiators said that the uranium stockpiles are difficult to retrieve due to Washington’s strikes on Tehran’s nuclear sites last year, and that only the US or China have the tools capable of pulling it out from underground.He also claimed that Iranian negotiators had also “guarantee[d that they wouldn’t obtain] nuclear weapons for a very long period of time,” only to leave that out of Tehran’s official proposal as well.The fact that Trump indicated he would have accepted such a guarantee, even though it was not indefinite, appears to be out of step with his longstanding insistence that he intends to ensure Iran can never obtain a nuclear weapon.Asked whether he still thinks he can make a deal with the current regime, Trump responded in the affirmative, while adding that it is comprised of moderates who desperately want to reach an agreement and “lunatics” who want to keep fighting.Addressing criticism that he has no coherent plan in dealing with Iran, Trump insisted: “I do have a plan. The plan is Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon.”He then repeated his unproven claim that the US sent Kurdish militants guns for use against the Iranian regime but that the Kurds decided to keep them.Earlier Monday, in an interview with Fox News, Trump asserted that the Iranian regime was “going to fold” in talks with the US.Trump also said that he is considering renewing the operation to assist stuck ships out of the Iran-blocked Strait of Hormuz after he called it off last week about a day after it began. He told the TV station that if he decides to renew Project Freedom, it would “only be a piece” of a larger military operation.Asked if he’ll need to take out another layer of Iran’s leaders amid stalled diplomatic efforts, Trump responded: “I will deal with them until they make a deal.”A US official told The Times of Israel on Sunday evening that Trump was holding a high-level security meeting in the White House Situation Room to discuss next steps on Iran.Participants in the meeting include Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, CIA Director John Ratcliffe, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine, and special envoy Steve Witkoff.Meanwhile, Netanyahu on Monday convened a security consultation in his office in Jerusalem, as Israeli military officials have repeatedly asserted that Israel is ready to return to fighting at any point.Further details on the prime minister’s discussion, reported to The Times of Israel by the office of one of the attendees, were not immediately available.The meeting — for which Netanyahu’s testimony in his corruption trial was cut short — came the day after Trump deemed Iran’s response to an American ceasefire proposal “unacceptable,” and after the premier himself told “60 Minutes” that the war was “not over,” citing Iran’s remaining stockpile of highly enriched uranium.It also came ahead of direct Israel-Lebanon talks in Washington later this week, and amid a continued US blockade on Iranian ports and Iran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz.Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei, in a press conference Monday, pronounced the US “the greatest threat to international peace and security.”“The very presence of the United States in the region, the US military bases in the region,” said Baghaei, “are an example of creating a cycle of violence and bullying in the region.”Contrasting what he called Iran’s “generous and responsible offer” to Washington’s “unreasonable demands,” Baghaei listed Tehran’s demands as “an end to the war, lifting the [US] blockade and piracy, and releasing Iranian assets that have been unjustly frozen in banks.”The demands also included “safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, and establishing security in the region and Lebanon.”The US has been blockading Iran’s ports as Iran has blocked the Strait of Hormuz. Iran has demanded a ceasefire in Lebanon as part of the talks as well; while there is technically a truce in place there, it has largely unraveled.“Iran has shown that it is a responsible power in the region, and at the same time, we are not bullying,” Baghaei said. “We are against bullying.”Baghaei called on European countries not to send warships to the Strait of Hormuz, saying: “They should refrain from any move that would undermine their interests.”“This war is not only unethical but also illegal. The US and Israel started their aggression against Iran. European countries shouldn’t be fooled,” he said.Hours after Baghaei’s warning, however, the United Kingdom and France announced they will host a multinational meeting on Tuesday of more than 40 defense ministers, on military plans to restore trade flows through the strait.France has already sent its nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the Charles de Gaulle, to the region, and the UK on Saturday said it was sending a destroyer, HMS Dragon.The virtual meeting follows a two-day gathering in London in April of military planners who thrashed out the practicalities of a multinational mission led by the UK and France to protect navigation in the key waterway following a sustainable ceasefire.Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad acknowledged on state TV that the country’s oil industry has run into trouble as a result of the war and blockade, but said the country was taking countermeasures, without giving further details.“During the 40 days of war, our production didn’t decrease and the export process was favorable,” Paknejad says. “Naturally, in the days following the (US) blockade, we have faced challenges but measures were taken and this process continues” adding that “the enemy is full of delusions.”Agios Fanourios I, a Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) tanker loaded with Iraqi crude oil and bound to Vietnam, crossed the straight through Iran’s designated route on Sunday, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency said, after it was reported that the ship crossed by switching off trackers to avoid Iranian attacks.Agios Fanourios I, a VLCC tanker loaded with Iraqi crude and bound to Vietnam crossed the Strait of Hormuz through Iran’s designated route, Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency says, after it was reported it crossed by switching off trackers to avoid Iranian attacks.… — Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) May 11, 2026-Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan is expected to visit Qatar on Tuesday for talks on the Iran war, a Turkish diplomatic source told Reuters.The discussions will focus on the war’s impact on the Gulf and efforts to ensure navigational safety in the Strait of Hormuz, according to the source.Times of Israel staff contributed to this report.
UAE secretly launched strikes on Iran during war, attacked oil refinery — report-April attack on Persian Gulf site only specific instance mentioned in report; US said to welcome Abu Dhabi’s involvement after other Gulf countries refused to join war effort By ToI Staff and Reuters Today, 3:14 am-MAY 12,26
The United Arab Emirates carried out military strikes on Iran, making it the only other country to join the United States and Israel in their war against the Islamic Republic, according to a Monday report.The strikes, which the UAE has not publicly acknowledged, included an attack on a refinery on Iran’s Lavan Island in the Persian Gulf, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing people familiar with the matter.The attack took place in early April, according to the report, which said it was around the time US President Donald Trump announced a ceasefire, but did not specify if it was before or after the declaration.Iran acknowledged at the time that the site had been attacked by an unspecified enemy, then responded by firing missiles and drones at the UAE and Kuwait, the Journal noted.The Lavan Island attack was the only specific instance of the UAE participating in the war mentioned in the report.One of the sources told the Journal that Washington positively received Abu Dhabi’s participation in the war, after other Gulf countries refused to actively join in the conflict.The UAE’s Foreign Ministry declined the Journal’s request for comment on the reported strikes, but pointed to past declarations that it had a right to respond to Iran’s attacks. The Pentagon also declined to comment.In March, multiple Hebrew media outlets put out near-simultaneous reports that the UAE had struck a desalination plant in Iran in response to Tehran’s strikes across the Gulf. The accounts sparked fury among Emirati officials, who called out what they called false Israeli media reports.The Journal article did not shed light on that report.During the US-Israel war on Iran, Tehran launched sustained attacks on the UAE, firing some 550 ballistic and cruise missiles and more than 2,200 drones, according to the Emirati defense ministry, making it the most-targeted country in the region, including Israel.The UAE reported likely Iranian attacks restarted over the past week in their territories, as Tehran appeared to be ramping up its strikes in the region despite the fragile ceasefire.Iran, which had vowed to strike US bases in the region, targeted states across the Gulf with missile fire during the war. It also blocked the Strait of Hormuz, choking off a key pathway for the flow of oil and natural gas.While most projectiles fired at the UAE were intercepted, some struck military and civilian targets.Israel launched its campaign against Iran, alongside the US, to degrade the Iranian regime’s military capabilities, distance threats posed by Iran — including its nuclear and ballistic missile programs — and “create the conditions” for the Iranian people to topple the regime, the military and other Israeli leaders have said.The ceasefire declared by Trump in April came with the core declared goals of the war unfulfilled.
PROOF HALF ON EARTH DIE DURING THE 7 YR TRIBULATION PERIOD (8 BILLION ON EARTH) (DO NOT EVER LISTEN TO ANYBODY THAT SAYS THE WORLD IS ENDING.ITS NEVER GONNA HAPPEN-4 BILLION WILL BE LEFT ON EARTH TO GO INTO JESUS" 1000 YEAR RULE)(THAT DOES NOT SOUND LIKE THE END OF THE WORLD TO ANY ONE, DOES IT-NOT ME.THE EARTH IS JUST RENOVATED.NEVER ENDED.
REVELATION 6:7-8 (8 BILLION- 2 BILLION = 6 BILLION)
7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.
8 And I looked, and behold a pale horse:(CHLORES GREEN) and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth,(2 BILLION) to kill with sword,(WEAPONS) and with hunger,(FAMINE) and with death,(INCURABLE DISEASES) and with the beasts of the earth.(ANIMAL TO HUMAN DISEASE).
REVELATION 9:15,18 (6 BILLION - 2 BILLION = 4 BILLION)
15 And the four(DEMONIC WAR) angels were loosed,
18 By these three was the third part of men killed,(2 BILLION) by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.(NUCLEAR ATOMIC BOMBS)
HALF OF EARTHS POPULATION DIE DURING THE 7 YR TRIBULATION.(THESE VERSES ARE JUDGEMENT SCRIPTURES NOT RAPTURE SCRIPTURES)
LUKE 17:34-37 (8 TOTAL BILLION - 4 BILLION DEAD IN TRIB = 4 BILLION TO JESUS KINGDOM) (HALF DIE DURING THE 7 YR TRIBULATION PERIOD JUST LIKE THE BIBLE SAYS)(GOD DOES NOT LIE)(AND NOTICE MOST DIE IN WAR AND DISEASES-NOT COMETS-ASTEROIDS-QUAKES OR TSUNAMIS)
34 I tell you, in that night there shall be two men in one bed; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other shall be left.(half earths population 4 billion die in the 7 yr trib)
35 Two women shall be grinding together; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other left.
36 Two men shall be in the field; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other left.
37 And they answered and said unto him, Where, Lord? And he said unto them, Wheresoever the body is, thither will the eagles be gathered together.(Christians have new bodies,this is the people against Jerusalem during the 7 yr treaty)(Christians bodies are not being eaten by the birds).THESE ARE JUDGEMENT SCRIPTURES-NOT RAPTURE SCRIPTURES.BECAUSE NOT HALF OF PEOPLE ON EARTH ARE CHRISTIANS.AND THE CONTEXT IN LUKE 17 IS THE 7 YEAR TRIBULATION OR 7 YR TREATY PERIOD.WHICH IS JUDGEMENT ON THE EARTH.NOT 50% RAPTURED TO HEAVEN.
MATTHEW 24:37-42 (THESE ARE JUDGEMENT SCRIPTURES-SURE NOT RAPTURE SCRIPTURES)
37 But as the days of Noe were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
38 For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noe entered into the ark,
39 And knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
40 Then shall two be in the field; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other left.
41 Two women shall be grinding at the mill; the one shall be taken,(IN WW3 JUDGEMENT) and the other left.
42 Watch therefore:(FOR THE LAST DAYS SIGNS HAPPENING) for ye know not what hour your Lord doth come.
WORLD TERRORISM
GENESIS 6:11-13
11 The earth also was corrupt before God, and the earth was filled with violence.(WORLD TERRORISM,MURDERS)(HAMAS IN HEBREW IS VIOLENCE)
12 And God looked upon the earth, and, behold, it was corrupt; for all flesh had corrupted his way upon the earth.
13 And God said unto Noah, The end of all flesh is come before me; for the earth is filled with violence (TERRORISM)(HAMAS) through them; and, behold, I will destroy them with the earth.(CAN YOU SAY TORNADOES,HURRICANES,VOLCANOES,EARTH QUAKES,LANDSLIDES,FLASH FLOODING,EXPLOSIONS,SNOW STORMS,THEN FINALLY NUKESAND ANY OTHER JUDGEMENTS THE EARTH CAN VOMIT THE SINNERS OFF THE FACE OF THE EARTH WITH.
MARK 13:8
8 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:(ETHNIC GROUP AGAINST ETHNIC GROUP) and there shall be earthquakes in divers places, and there shall be famines and troubles: these are the beginnings of sorrows.
LUKE 21:11
11 And great earthquakes shall be in divers places,(DIFFERNT PLACES AT THE SAME TIME) and famines, and pestilences; and fearful sights and great signs shall there be from heaven.
2 Peter 3:6-7 Amplified Bible (AMP) (HOT SUN, NUKES ETC)
6 By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed.
7 By the same word the present heavens and earth are reserved for fire, being kept for the day of judgment and destruction of the ungodly.
LUKE 21:25-26
25 And there shall be signs in the sun,(HEATING UP-SOLAR ECLIPSES) and in the moon,(MAN ON THE MOON-LUNAR ECLIPSES) and in the stars;(ASTEROIDS-PROPHECY SIGNS) and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity;(MASS CONFUSION) the sea and the waves roaring;(FIERCE WINDS)
26 Men’s hearts failing them for fear,(TORNADOES,HURRICANES,STORMS) and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth:(DESTRUCTION) for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.(FROM QUAKES,NUKES ETC)
GENESIS 16:11-12
11 And the angel of the LORD said unto her,(HAGAR) Behold, thou art with child, and shalt bear a son, and shalt call his name Ishmael;(FATHER OF THE ARAB/MUSLIMS) because the LORD hath heard thy affliction.
12 And he (ISHMAEL-FATHER OF THE ARAB-MUSLIMS) will be a wild (DONKEY-JACKASS) man;(ISLAM IS A FAKE AND DANGEROUS SEX FOR MURDER CULT) his hand will be against every man,(ISLAM HATES EVERYONE) and every man's hand against him;(PROTECTING THEMSELVES FROM BEING BEHEADED) and he (ISHMAEL ARAB/MUSLIM) shall dwell in the presence of all his brethren.(LITERAL-THE ARABS LIVE WITH THEIR BRETHERN JEWS)
ISAIAH 14:12-14
12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer,(SATAN) son of the morning!(HEBREW-CRECENT MOON-ISLAM) how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north:
14 I (SATAN HAS EYE TROUBLES) will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.(AND 1/3RD OF THE ANGELS OF HEAVEN FELL WITH SATAN AND BECAME DEMONS)
JOHN 16:2
2 They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service.(ISLAM MURDERS IN THE NAME OF MOON GOD ALLAH OF ISLAM)
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE.
Joel 3:2-King James Version (YOU DIVIDE JERUSALEM IN HALF - YOUR POKING GOD IN THE EYE - GOD SAYS AN EYE FOR AN EYE AND A TOOTH FOR A TOOTH- YOU WANNA DIVIDE JERUSALEM IN HALF - HALF OF EARTHS POPULATION 4 BILLION DIE ON EARTH.
2 I will also gather all nations, and will bring them down into the valley of Jehoshaphat, and will plead with them there for my people and for my heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations, and parted my land.
And here are the bounderies of the land that Israel will inherit either through war or peace or God in the future. God says its Israels land and only Israels land. They will have every inch God promised them of this land in the future.
Egypt east of the Nile River, Saudi Arabia, Israel, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, The southern part of Turkey and the Western Half of Iraq west of the Euphrates. Gen 13:14-15, Psm 105:9,11, Gen 15:18, Exe 23:31, Num 34:1-12, Josh 1:4.ALL THIS LAND ISRAEL WILL DEFINATELY OWN IN THE FUTURE, ITS ISRAELS NOT ISHMAELS LAND.12 TRIBES INHERIT LAND IN THE FUTURE.
Forest fire burns near Chernobyl nuclear plant after drone crash.
Kyiv, Ukraine, May 8 (AFP) May 08, 2026-A large forest fire burned through the Chernobyl exclusion zone on Friday following a drone crash near the disaster-tainted nuclear plant the previous day, Ukrainian authorities said.Radiation levels at the site were within "normal limits", authorities reported, adding that firefighters were working to contain the blaze.Images showed columns of white smoke billowing from the area, parts of which are closed off to the public due to high levels of radioactivity.The site surrounding the Chernobyl nuclear plant has been largely deserted since the plant suffered a catastrophic meltdown in 1986. It has since been converted into a nature reserve."As of 3:00 pm (1200 GMT) the estimated area of the fire, which broke out after two drones crashed within the Chernobyl nature reserve, is about 1,180 hectares (12 square kilometres, five square miles)," the reserve's director Denis Nesterov said in a post on Facebook.He did not say the origin of the drones.The governor of the neighbouring Chernigiv region gave a higher estimate, suggesting the fire had spread across an area spanning 40 square kilometres (15 square miles)."The aggressor is preventing the fire from being extinguished. Their drones are constantly hovering over the area," Chernigiv governor Vyacheslav Chaus added.Kyiv has repeatedly accused Moscow of recklessly attacking its nuclear sites, including the Chernobyl complex.A Russian drone last year punctured a hole in one of the radiation shells covering the reactor unit that exploded on April 26, 1986.Rescuers were working to prevent the further spread of the fire, Ukraine's state emergency service said."Due to strong gusts of wind, the fire is rapidly spreading across the territory, covering new sections of the forest," it said."The situation is complicated by dry weather, strong winds and mine danger in certain areas of the territory, which significantly limits the possibility of extinguishing work."The exclusion zone suffered wildfires in 2020, which lasted several weeks and caused a spike in background radiation.Ukraine only last month marked 40 years since the disaster.
Drone attack kills six in Sudan's Darfur.
Khartoum, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-A drone attack killed six people on Tuesday in the paramilitary-controlled city of al-Daein in Sudan's Darfur region, a medical source and two residents told AFP, as the Rapid Support Forces face a wave of defections.Drone strikes by both Sudan's army and the paramilitary RSF have intensified across Sudan in recent months, with some attacks killing dozens of civilians at a time.A medical source at al-Daein hospital said six bodies were received after Tuesday's strike, which also wounded five people, three of them critically. The source did not identify who was responsible.Two locals said an army drone hit residential neighbourhoods in the north and west of the city early on Tuesday. They spoke via Starlink satellite internet, widely used in Darfur amid widespread communications outages.An RSF-led alliance accused the Sudanese army of carrying out the attack, saying in a statement that drone strikes began late on Monday and continued into Tuesday morning. The army has not commented.Sudan's war between the army and the RSF, now in its fourth year, has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced millions and triggered what the United Nations has described as one of the world's worst humanitarian crises.After the RSF seized control of North Darfur capital El-Fasher, the army's last stronghold in the region, fighting spread to southern Kordofan and Blue Nile state in the southeast, near the borders with Ethiopia and South Sudan.But the RSF has faced mounting defections of late.On Monday, a senior commander in East Darfur, Ali Rizqallah, known as "Savanna", announced in a video posted on social media that he had split from the force.Last week, RSF commander Bashara al-Huweira defected in North Kordofan, weeks after another leader, al-Nur al-Quba, said he and his fighters had left their positions in North Darfur and joined the Sudanese army.In Blue Nile state, where control remains contested, the army said last week it had captured the Keili area, which lies on a strategic road linking state capital El-Damazin to the border town of al-Kurmuk.AFP has been unable to independently verify which side controls the area due to access restrictions.The United Nations said on Tuesday that nearly 50,000 people had fled Blue Nile between January and May, including about 19,000 from Kurmuk alone.
Israeli troops conduct raid along south Lebanon's Litani river.
Jerusalem, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-The Israeli military said on Tuesday its troops had conducted a days-long raid in the area of the Litani river in south Lebanon, where exchanges of fire with Hezbollah persist despite a ceasefire.In a statement, the military said that over the past week, troops had conducted a "special operation to clear terrorist infrastructure from the Litani area and establish operational control in the area".It said soldiers had been operating south of the Israeli-declared "yellow line" that runs around 10 kilometres (six miles) north of the border and where Israeli forces continue to be stationed.Israeli media reported that troops had gone beyond the Litani river and operated on the outskirts of the town of Zawtar al-Sharqiyah.When asked by AFP, the Israeli military said it was unable to confirm whether troops had crossed the Litani, but it published photos from the operation showing soldiers walking along a bridge traversing a river.Other photos published by the military showed tanks and soldiers operating along the riverbank."During the operation, the troops located compounds used by Hezbollah terrorists, underground tunnel routes containing large quantities of weapons, weapons storage facilities, and missile launchers," the military said, adding that it had struck more than 100 targets.It also said troops had "struck and eliminated dozens of terrorists in close-quarters combat, alongside aerial support."Israel and Iran-backed armed group Hezbollah have been trading fire in south Lebanon despite a ceasefire in place since April 17 between Israel and Lebanon.Lebanon's health ministry on Tuesday told AFP that Israeli strikes have killed 380 people since the ceasefire took effect.The Israeli military says five soldiers have been killed by the fighting in south Lebanon since the start of the truce.Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East conflict on March 2 when it launched rockets at Israel to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader.Israel responded with airstrikes and a ground invasion.In a separate statement on Tuesday, the Israeli military said it had identified an "unsuccessful attempt to launch a surface-to-air missile toward an Israeli Air Force aircraft," but that no damage or injuries were caused.The military's Arabic-language spokesman, Avichay Adraee, issued fresh evacuation warnings for several villages in south Lebanon on Tuesday.
Israel sent Iron Dome batteries, personnel to UAE: US ambassador to Israel.
Jerusalem, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-Israel sent Iron Dome air defence batteries and personnel to operate them in the United Arab Emirates during the war with Iran, the US ambassador to Israel said on Tuesday."Can I say a word of appreciation, deep appreciation and admiration for the United Arab Emirates?" Mike Huckabee said during a conference at Tel Aviv University."They were the first Abraham Accords member but look at the benefits that they have had as a result. Israel just sent them Iron Dome batteries and personnel to help operate them. How come? Because there's an extraordinary relationship between the UAE and Israel based on the Abraham Accords," he said.Iran targeted the UAE more than any other country during the war, which was sparked by US-Israeli strikes on the Islamic republic at the end of February.Despite a ceasefire that came into effect last month, the UAE has since reported multiple missile and drone attacks from Iran.The oil-rich United Arab Emirates is a top US ally in the region and among the Arab nations with official ties to Israel after signing the Abraham Accords during US President Donald Trump's first term in 2020.
US-Iran deadlock pushes oil higher, Seoul falls on calls for AI social tax.
Hong Kong, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-Oil prices climbed on Tuesday as US-Iran talks stalled, while South Korean calls for a social tax on AI profits dragged down the tech-rich Kospi index.Seoul plunged five percent after a top official proposed a "national dividend" to redistribute excess corporate profits from artificial intelligence.South Korea is riding an AI chip boom driving massive earnings for tech giants Samsung and SK hynix, which had sent the Kospi to record highs in recent weeks.Southeast Asia's biggest economy Indonesia also took a hit, with Jakarta falling two percent at one point after the rupiah hit a record low against the dollar.Hong Kong, Shanghai, Sydney, Bangkok, Manila and Singapore were marginally down, while London, Paris and Frankfurt also opened in the red.Taipei and Kuala Lumpur posted marginal gains.Tokyo closed 0.5 percent higher after Finance Minister Satsuki Katayama said Japan and the United States were "coordinating very well" on currency policy during Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent's visit.The mixed picture follows US President Donald Trump's warning that the US-Iran ceasefire was "unbelievably weak" after Tehran rejected his administration's proposal to ease the conflict.The impasse, which leaves the vital Strait of Hormuz mostly closed to oil tanker traffic, unnerved global energy markets.The international benchmark Brent crude jumped 2.2 percent to $106 a barrel, while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate rose 2.7 percent to $100 a barrel.- Wait and see -Traders are now looking to Beijing, where Trump lands this week to meet President Xi Jinping, the first visit by a US president since his own in 2017.Taiwan, tariffs, rare earths and the war in Iran are set to top the agenda, while top executives including Tesla boss Elon Musk and Apple's Tim Cook will fly in to back Trump's push to ramp up trade with Beijing.Iranian officials will be keeping a close eye on Trump's visit, where he is expected to press Xi -- whose country is a major buyer of Iranian oil.Analysts said traders were in wait-and-see mode as the war creeps towards its three-month mark."For now, President Trump is still talking about the idea that the ceasefire is on a 'massive life support'," analyst Rodrigo Catril told the NAB Morning Call podcast, referring to comments to reporters on Monday."The theme, I think, for markets is that as much as President Trump is not happy with what is on offer, he's also not suggesting that there's going to be an escalation."US stocks held modest gains in Monday's trade, finishing a meandering session marginally higher as enthusiasm about artificial intelligence managed to offset concerns about higher oil prices.But analysts have warned crude prices could spike dramatically if the war drags on into next month as supplies dwindle."Beneath the surface calm sits a market increasingly dependent on the assumption that the Strait of Hormuz will gradually reopen sometime before late June," said Stephen Innes, analyst with SPI Asset Management."An extended disruption (to traffic in the strait) would almost certainly force oil prices materially higher, tighten global financial conditions, and inflict far more serious economic damage than markets currently price in," he said.- Key figures at around 0815 GMT -Brent North Sea Crude: UP 1.3 percent at $105.55 a barrelWest Texas Intermediate: UP 1.6 percent at $99.65 a barrel-London - FTSE 100: DOWN 0.6 percent at 10,208.71-Paris - CAC 40: DOWN 0.7 percent at 8,003.16-Frankfurt - DAX 30: DOWN 1 percent at 24,115.43-Tokyo - Nikkei 225: UP 0.5 percent at 62,742.57 (close)-Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 0.2 percent at 26,347.91 (close)-Shanghai - Composite: DOWN 0.3 percent at 4,214.49 (close)-Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1754 from $1.1775 on Monday-Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3554 from $1.3628-Dollar/yen: UP at 157.42 from 157.23 yen-Euro/pound: UP at 86.72 pence from 86.40 pence-New York - DOW: UP 0.2 percent at 49,704.47 (close) cms/ami
Trump brushes aside Taiwan concerns ahead of Xi meet.
Washington, United States, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-President Donald Trump has said he is ready to discuss US arms sales to Taiwan during his visit to Beijing this week, as he suggested his personal chemistry with counterpart Xi Jinping would prevent a Chinese invasion of the island.The White House said Trump will bring along top US executives including his former nemesis Elon Musk and Apple's Tim Cook for a trip expected to focus heavily on the US president's hopes to ramp up trade.China said it hoped to achieve greater stability between the world's two largest economies during the visit lasting Wednesday through Friday, the first by a US president since Trump went in 2017.Asked if the United States should keep selling weapons to Taiwan, a key irritant for Beijing, Trump did not answer directly but said on Monday: "I'm going to have that discussion with President Xi.""President Xi would like us not to, and I'll have that discussion. That's one of the many things I'll be talking about," he told reporters in the Oval Office.Trump, after referencing Russia's invasion of Ukraine, said of Taiwan, "I don't think it'll happen.""I think we'll be fine. I have a very good relationship with President Xi. He knows I don't want that to happen," he said.But Trump also noted that the United States was "very, very far away" compared with China.When asked for a response to Trump's remarks, Taiwan's foreign ministry vowed to "continue to strengthen cooperation" with the United States, the island's main security backer, and "build effective deterrence capabilities in order to jointly maintain peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait."Beijing's foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said on Tuesday that "China's opposition to the United States' sale of weapons to China's Taiwan region is consistent and clear".- Congress backs Taiwan -The United States recognizes only Beijing but under domestic law is required to provide weapons for the defense of Taiwan, a self-governing democracy which China considers its own.Under the 1982 "Six Assurances," a key foundation of US policy on Taiwan after the switch of recognition, the United States said it would not "consult" with Beijing about arms sales to the island.Trump has long berated allies as not spending enough on their own defense. Days ahead of his trip to China, Taiwan's parliament Friday approved a $25 billion defense spending bill, although it fell short of the government's proposal.Pointing to the vote by parliament, a group of US senators led by Jeanne Shaheen, the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that Trump should immediately green-light a $14 billion arms package to Taiwan."We urge you and your team to make clear that America's support for Taiwan is inviolable," wrote the senators, mostly Democrats but including two centrists from Trump's Republican Party.Trump should also state that "American support for Taiwan is not up for negotiation," they wrote.- New sanctions over Iran -Trump delayed the trip once due to the war he launched with Israel against Iran, which is still rebuffing his appeals for an agreement.China is the main international customer for Iran's oil, which Trump has tried to stop all countries from buying through unilateral US sanctions.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in an interview Sunday with CBS News' "60 Minutes," said he was unhappy that Beijing had shared missile technology with Iran.Trump's Treasury Department on Monday issued sanctions against 12 individuals and entities it said facilitated the sale and shipment of Iranian oil to China.The sanctions came even as Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent prepared to set up Trump's visit during talks with Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng in Seoul on Wednesday.Bessent and He have been the chief negotiators for the United States and China on all trade and economic issues.Foreign ministry spokesman Guo added on Tuesday that China "firmly opposes" to the sanctions and would safeguard the interests of domestic enterprises."Regarding the Iran conflict, the most pressing tasks is to do everything to avoid the resumption of fighting rather than use the conflict to maliciously smear China," he told a regular news briefing.Trump and Xi last met face-to-face in October on the sidelines of a regional summit in South Korea.They agreed then to a one-year truce in a blistering trade war that saw tariffs on many goods exceed 100 percent.burs-sct-amj/dhw/abs
Big hug' or colder shoulder? Xi-Trump talks spotlight contrasting styles, expectations.
Beijing, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-Donald Trump has said he expects a "big, fat hug" from China's Xi Jinping when they meet in Beijing this week, though multiple thorny issues between the two sides could see the US president kept at arm's length.Taiwan, tariffs, rare earths and the war in Iran are among the contentious topics set to be discussed by the two leaders, whose styles of communication could hardly be more different.Trump's often bombastic, freewheeling comportment on the international stage contrasts dramatically with Xi's measured, tight-lipped approach to foreign policy.In mid-April, the US president predicted that Xi would greet him with a "big, fat hug" upon his arrival in Beijing, adding that "we are working together smartly, and very well!"China, in contrast, did not confirm the visit was taking place until Monday, typical of its reserve on such matters.Despite the clash of styles, Beijing's foreign ministry said Monday that China considers leader-to-leader diplomacy as playing an "irreplaceable strategic guiding role in China-US relations".Trump's trip to China, set to begin Wednesday, is the first by a US president since his own in 2017.During that first-term sojourn, he received what the Chinese termed "state visit-plus" treatment, including a private tea reception in the Forbidden City.His 2026 trip is expected to include a tour of the Temple of Heaven and a state banquet, but analysts say the pomp will not match that of nine years ago.Since Trump's first visit, China has learned that while "aggrandisement... plays to his ego, it cannot prevent him from a quick flip-flop in his attitude towards China", Wu Xinbo, director of the Center for American Studies at Shanghai's Fudan University, told AFP.- 'Less romantic' -In 2017, Chinese state media presented "personal diplomacy as opening a new phase of pragmatic cooperation and great power diplomacy", wrote the National University of Singapore's Bert Hofman in a newsletter on Monday.But Trump's subsequent anti-China policy tack over the course of his first term, followed by a blistering trade war at the beginning of his second, disabused Beijing of that notion."The revived Trump-era discourse in 2025-2026 is less romantic about leader chemistry (in contrast to Trump's continued mentioning of his friendship with Xi)," Hofman wrote.While there is no longer hope the two men's personal relationship can be transformative, there is acknowledgement it could "prevent derailment, restart channels, and produce tactical bargains", he said.Beijing has rolled out the red carpet for a broad swathe of other foreign guests recently.Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un were among the attendees to be warmly welcomed at a military parade in Beijing in September.And French President Emmanuel Macron got significant facetime with Xi both in the capital and in the southwestern city of Chengdu.But some analysts think the connection between the leaders of the world's two largest economies is unforced.John Gong, professor at the University of International Business and Economics in Beijing, told AFP he thought Trump and Xi "really do get along very well"."I think they genuinely have some kind of a warm relationship towards each other," he said.- 'Modest' expectations -Whether that personal relationship trumps the many sore points in the bilateral one remains doubtful.Trump, who will turn 80 next month, and Xi, who will turn 73 a day later, last met face-to-face in October on the sidelines of a regional summit in South Korea.There, the two agreed to a one-year truce in a trade war that saw tariffs on many goods exceed 100 percent.This week's talks will be overshadowed by the US-Israel war in Iran, the most recent addition to a long roster of issues on which the two sides find themselves at loggerheads.Expectations for outcomes this time should be "modest", said Wendy Cutler, a trade diplomat and vice president of the Asia Society Policy Institute, in the Geoeconomic Competition podcast last week."This year, we may see a number of meetings between Presidents Trump and Xi Jinping, and so all the deliverables don't have to be announced at the first meeting," she said."For each leader, stabilisation makes sense in the relationship," she added.
North Korea says not bound by nuclear non-proliferation treaty.
Seoul, May 7 (AFP) May 07, 2026-North Korea's UN envoy said his country was not bound by the Non-Proliferation Treaty on nuclear weapons and external pressure would not change its status as a nuclear-armed state, official media reported Thursday.Pyongyang threatened to withdraw from the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) in 1993 and formally did so in 2003.It has since conducted six nuclear tests -- prompting a raft of international sanctions -- and is believed to possess dozens of nuclear warheads.Signatories of the NPT have been holding a review meeting of the landmark pact at the United Nations.There, "the United States and certain countries following its lead are groundlessly calling into question the current status and exercise of sovereign rights" of North Korea, Pyongyang's top UN envoy Kim Song said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency."The status of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea as a nuclear-armed state will not change based on external rhetorical claims or unilateral desires," he added, using North Korea's official name."To make it clear once again, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea will not be bound by the Non-Proliferation Treaty under any circumstances whatsoever."He continued that the country's status as a nuclear-armed state has been "enshrined in the constitution, transparently declaring the principles of nuclear weapons use".North Korea has insisted that it will not give up its nuclear arsenal, describing its path as "irreversible" and vowing to strengthen its capabilities.The NPT, which went into force in 1970 and is signed by almost all countries on the planet -- with notable exceptions including North Korea, Israel, India and Pakistan -- aims to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, promote complete disarmament and encourage cooperation on civilian nuclear projects.But the spirit of the treaty has been "eroding", UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in his opening remarks at the review session last week."Commitments remain unfulfilled. Trust and credibility are wearing thin. The drivers of proliferation are accelerating," he said.The nine nuclear-armed states -- Russia, the United States, France, the United Kingdom, China, India, Pakistan, Israel and North Korea -- possessed 12,241 nuclear warheads in January 2025, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) reported.The US and Russia hold nearly 90 percent of nuclear weapons globally and have carried out major programmes to modernise them in recent years, according to SIPRI.Pyongyang has sent ground troops and artillery shells to support Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and observers say Pyongyang is receiving military, economic and technical assistance from Moscow in return.
Serbia hosts first-ever joint military exercise with NATO.
Belgrade, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-The first joint NATO-Serbia military exercises are under way in the Balkan country, the defence ministry said Tuesday, marking a significant cooperation with a country the Alliance once bombed.Around 600 troops from Serbia, Italy, Romania and Turkey are taking part in the "NATO-Serbia" exercise, alongside military planners and observers from several Alliance countries, the ministry said.It is the first military exercise conducted directly with NATO, which remains a sensitive subject in Serbia following the Alliance's 1999 air campaign against Yugoslavia during the Kosovo war.Photographs released Tuesday showed Serbian and NATO soldiers now standing side by side at a military training ground near Bujanovac in southern Serbia, alongside armoured vehicles from both forces.The tactical exercise will run until May 23 under NATO's Partnership for Peace programme, which Belgrade said "respects Serbia's military neutrality"."The cooperation is aimed at preserving peace and stability in the region," the ministry said.Serbia is one of the few Balkan countries not in the Alliance, with Belgrade insisting on a long-held policy of neutrality while enjoying close ties with both NATO and Russia.Serbia has been part of the Partnership for Peace programme for nearly two decades, and regularly participates in drills with NATO members.The country has also invested heavily in arms over the past decade, buying weapons from NATO member states as well as Russia and China."This is an important training activity. It will be hosted by Serbia and conducted in full respect of Serbia's stated policy of military neutrality," a NATO official told AFP ahead of the exercise.NATO-led peacekeeping force has remained deployed in Kosovo since the end of the war in Serbia's former province, whose independence Belgrade has never recognised.
Russia tests long-range missile after US nuclear treaty expires.
Moscow, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-Russia on Tuesday tested a new long-range missile capable of carrying nuclear warheads, months after the last treaty with the United States limiting their atomic arsenals lapsed.The ending of the New START agreement in February formally released the world's two largest nuclear powers from a raft of restrictions."This is the most powerful missile system in the world," claimed Russian President Vladimir Putin after receiving a report of a successful launch of Sarmat, an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).He said the missile could carry a warhead more than four times more powerful than anything Western militaries possessed, adding that Sarmat would be on "combat duty" by the end of this year.Even though Moscow and Washington agreed to reestablish high-level military dialogue shortly after New START expired, there were no immediate signs of renewing or prolonging it.US President Donald Trump has repeatedly pressed for a new treaty to include China, whose arsenal is growing but still significantly smaller than those of Russia or the US, but Beijing has publicly rejected the pressure.Trump had been mostly silent on Russian calls to extend New START, which was signed in 2010 and imposed the last restrictions on Moscow and Washington after decades of agreements dating from the Cold War.Both countries have repeatedly accused each other of failing to adhere to the agreement.Sarmat, referred to as "Satan II" in NATO designation, is the first ICBM produced in post-Soviet Russia to be classed as "super heavy".Put said it was capable of travelling 35,000 kilometres (22,000 miles).
Lebanon says Israeli strikes have killed 380 since truce.
Beirut, Lebanon, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-Israeli strikes on Lebanon have killed 380 people since a ceasefire in the Israel-Hezbollah war began on April 17, Lebanon's Health Minister Rakan Nassereddine told a press conference on Tuesday.The overall toll in Israeli strikes since the war erupted between Israel and Hezbollah on March 2 has reached 2,882 people including 279 women and 200 children, he added.Since the ceasefire, "380 people have been killed and 1,122 wounded," Nassereddine said.A ministry official told AFP that the toll includes 39 women and 22 children.Under the terms of the truce released by Washington, Israel reserves the right to act against "planned, imminent or ongoing attacks".In addition to carrying out ongoing airstrikes, Israeli troops have been operating behind a so-called "yellow line" that runs around 10 kilometres (six miles) north of the border between the two countries.Some 108 emergency and health workers are among the overall death toll while 249 others have been wounded and "16 hospitals have been damaged" since the start of the conflict, Nassereddine said."It's a massacre... there are no armed men or fighters in these (ambulance) vehicles, just medical equipment and wounded, contrary to what Israel says," he added.Israel has accused Hezbollah of using ambulances and medical facilities for military purposes, an accusation the group denies.Hezbollah drew Lebanon into the Middle East conflict on March 2 when it launched rockets at Israel to avenge the killing of Iran's supreme leader in US-Israeli strikes.Israel responded with massive strikes and a ground invasion in the country's south.The Iran-backed Hezbollah says its fighters are included in the government tolls.Lebanese leaders on Monday urged the United States to pressure Israel to halt its attacks, which have intensified in recent days.The appeal came as Lebanese and Israeli representatives are set to meet later this week in Washington for a third round of direct talks.
FINALLY THE EUROPEAN UNION IS TALKING ABOUT HAVING THEIR OWN ARMY.AND IT MUST HAPPEN.
REVELATION 19:16-21
16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King Of Kings, And Lord Of Lords.(JESUS RETURNG TO EARTH LITERALLY ON A WHITE HORSE WITH THE RAPTURED CHRISTIANS 7 YEARS EARLIER)
17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;
18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.(2ND TIME GOD-JESUS TELLS THE 500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS TO GET READY TO EAT HUMAN FLESH.THE FIRST TIME WAS WHEN GOD TOLD THE 500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS-TO EAT RUSSIA,GERMAN,ARAB, MUSLIM BODIES FOR 7 MONTHS IN EZEK 38 @ 39.
19 And I saw the beast,(E.U WORLD LEADER) and the kings of the earth, and their armies,(HERE IT SAYS THE E.U WILL HAVE ITS OWN ARMY) gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, (JESUS) and against his army.(RAPTURED CHRISTIANS)
20 And the beast (E.U WORLD LEADER) was taken, and with him the false prophet (POPE FRANCIS) that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
21 And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.
Zephaniah 2:1-15
1 Gather together, yes, gather,O shameless nation,
2 before the decree takes effect[a] -before the day passes away like chaff—before there comes upon you the burning anger of the Lord, before there comes upon you the day of the anger of the Lord.
3 Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do his just commands;[b] seek righteousness; seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the anger of the Lord.
4 For Gaza shall be deserted, and Ashkelon shall become a desolation; Ashdod's people shall be driven out at noon, and Ekron shall be uprooted.
5 Woe to you inhabitants of the seacoast, you nation of the Cherethites! The word of the Lord is against you, O Canaan, land of the Philistines; and I will destroy you until no inhabitant is left.
6 And you, O seacoast, shall be pastures, with meadows[c] for shepherds and folds for flocks.
7 The seacoast shall become the possession of the remnant of the house of Judah, on which they shall graze, and in the houses of Ashkelon they shall lie down at evening. For the Lord their God will be mindful of them and restore their fortunes.
8 “I have heard the taunts of Moab (JORDAN) and the revilings of the Ammonites, how they have taunted my people and made boasts against their territory.
9 Therefore, as I live,” declares the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, Moab shall become like Sodom, and the Ammonites like Gomorrah, a land possessed by nettles and salt pits, and a waste forever.The remnant of my people shall plunder them, and the survivors of my nation shall possess them.”
10 This shall be their lot in return for their pride, because they taunted and boasted against the people of the Lord of hosts.
11 The Lord will be awesome against them; for he will famish all the gods of the earth, and to him shall bow down, each in its place, all the lands of the nations.
12 You also, O Cushites, shall be slain by my sword.
13 And he will stretch out his hand against the north and destroy Assyria,(SYRIA) and he will make Nineveh a desolation, a dry waste like the desert.
14 Herds shall lie down in her midst, all kinds of beasts;[d] even the owl and the hedgehog[e] shall lodge in her capitals; a voice shall hoot in the window; devastation will be on the threshold; for her cedar work will be laid bare.
15 This is the exultant city that lived securely, that said in her heart, “I am, and there is no one else.” What a desolation she has become, a lair for wild beasts! Everyone who passes by her hisses and shakes his fist.Sa'ar: No free meals; talks possible if more hostages freed Israel halts aid into Gaza, citing Hamas refusal to extend first phase of truce
Footnotes-a -Zephaniah 2:2 Hebrew gives birth, b-Zephaniah 2:3 Or who carry out his judgment, c-Zephaniah 2:6 Or caves, d-Zephaniah 2:14 Hebrew beasts of every nation, e-Zephaniah 2:14 The identity of the animals rendered owl and hedgehog is uncertain
DANIEL 2:37-45
37 Thou, O king, art a king of kings: for the God of heaven hath given thee a kingdom, power, and strength, and glory.
38 And wheresoever the children of men dwell, the beasts of the field and the fowls of the heaven hath he given into thine hand, and hath made thee ruler over them all. Thou art this head of gold.
39 And after thee shall arise another kingdom inferior to thee, and another third kingdom of brass, which shall bear rule over all the earth.
40 And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.
41 And whereas thou sawest the feet and toes, part of potters' clay, and part of iron, the kingdom shall be divided; but there shall be in it of the strength of the iron, forasmuch as thou sawest the iron mixed with miry clay.
42 And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.
43 And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.
44 And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.
45 Forasmuch as thou sawest that the stone was cut out of the mountain without hands, and that it brake in pieces the iron, the brass, the clay, the silver, and the gold; the great God hath made known to the king what shall come to pass hereafter: and the dream is certain, and the interpretation thereof sure.
DANIEL 7:17-26
17 These great beasts, which are four, are four kings, which shall arise out of the earth.
18 But the saints of the most High shall take the kingdom, and possess the kingdom for ever, even for ever and ever.
19 Then I would know the truth of the fourth beast, which was diverse from all the others, exceeding dreadful, whose teeth were of iron, and his nails of brass; which devoured, brake in pieces, and stamped the residue with his feet;
20 And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more stout than his fellows.
21 I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;
22 Until the Ancient of days came, and judgment was given to the saints of the most High; and the time came that the saints possessed the kingdom.
23 Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.
24 And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.
25 And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time.
26 But the judgment shall sit, and they shall take away his dominion, to consume and to destroy it unto the end.
THE WORLD IN 10 WORLD TRADE BLOCS LEAD BY THE EUROPEAN UNION THE WORLD LEADER, NOT AMERICA.I PREDICT.
THE EUROPEAN UNION AND REVIVED ROMAN WORLD GOVERNMENT
DANIEL 2:31-33,36-43, DAN 7:3-8,17
First From Daniel Chapter 2
1 EGYPT
2 ASSYRIA
3 BABYLON (HEAD OF GOLD) DAN 2:31-32,36-38, DAN 1:1
4 MEDO-PERSIANS (CHEST & ARMS OF SILVER) DAN 2:32,39, DAN 9:1
5 GREECE (WAIST & HIPS OF BRONZE) DAN 2:32,39, DAN 11:2
6 ROME (2 LEGS OF IRON) DAN 2:33,40, ROM 1:6
7 REVIVED ROME (EU) (FEET IRON & CLAY) DAN 2:33,41-43,10 TOES
Now From Daniel Chapter 7
1 EGYPT
2 ASSYRIA
3 BABYLON (LION WITH EAGLES WINGS) DAN 7:4, DAN 1:1
4 MEDO-PERSIANS (BEAR ON HIND LEGS) DAN 7:5, DAN 9:1
5 GREECE (LEOPARD 4 WINGS, 4 HEADS) DAN 7:6, DAN 11:2
6 ROME (HUGE IRON TEETH) DAN 7:7 (10 HORNS), ROM 1:6
7 REVIVED ROME (EU) DAN 7:8,19-20,23-25 10 HORNS, 10 KINGS
REV 17:9,12, 10 HORNS, 10 KINGS, 7 HILLS ROME. REV 13:1 BEAST WITH 7 HEADS. THE E.U LEADER OF WORLD GOVERNMENT DAN 2:40-45, 7:7-8,23-25,27, 8:23, REV 13:3,7,8,12,14,16
REVELATION 17:10-12
10 And there are seven kings (7TH WORLD EMPIRE IN HISTORY) five are fallen, (EGYPT, ASSYRIA, BABYLON,:MEDO-PERSIAN,GREECE and one is,(IN POWER IN JOHNS DAY-ROME) and the other is not yet come; and when he cometh,(FUTURE-REVIVED ROMAN EMPIRE-EUROPEAN UNION TODAY) he must continue a short space.(7 YEARS OF WORLD DOMINATION-BUT 3 1/2 YEARS OF NEW WORLD ORDER OR ONE WORLD GOVERNMENT)
12 And the ten horns (10 WORLD TRADE BLOCS OR REGIONS) which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
REVELATION 17:12-13
12 And the ten horns (10 WORLD TRADE BLOCS-NATIONS) which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
13 These have one mind,(WORLD SOCIALISM) and shall give their power and strength unto the beast.
We shall have World Government, whether or not we like it. The only question is whether World Government will be achieved by conquest or consent.James Paul Warburg appearing before the Senate on 7th February 1950
Like a famous WWII Belgian General,Paul Henry Spock said in 1957:We need no commission, we have already too many. What we need is a man who is great enough to be able to keep all the people in subjection to himself and to lift us out of the economic bog into which we threaten to sink. Send us such a man. Be he a god or a devil, we will accept him.And today, sadly, the world is indeed ready for such a man.
DICK MORRIS-This truly creates a global economic system. From now on, don’t look to Washington for the rule making, look to Brussels.
THE CLUB OF ROME FOUNDER AURELIO PECCEI WANTS THE WORLD IN 10 REGIONAL TRADING BLOCKS.
REVELATION 16:1-2
1 And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.
2 And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.
REVELATION 13:16-18
16 And he(FALSE POPE) causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, (SLAVE) to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads:(CHIP IMPLANT)
17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name.
18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.(6-6-6) A NUMBER SYSTEM
I KNOW THIS MARK WILL BE A MICROCHIP IMPLANT UNDER THE SKIN. LETS LOOK UP WHAT THE WORD MARK SAYS IN REVELATION 13:16-18, 14:9,11, 15:2, 16:2, 19:20, 20:4-ALL THESE VERSES FROM THE BOOK OF REVELATION SPEAK OF THIS DICTATORS MARK. NOW LETS SEE WHAT IT MEANS FROM STRONGS EXAUSTIVE CONCORDANCE OF THE BIBLE. UNDER MARK PAGE 684.MARK UNDER MARK. THE OLD TESTAMENT IS UNDER HEBREW AND THE NEW TESTAMENT IS UNDER GREEK. SO WHEN WE LOOK UNDER REVELATION 13:16-17 WE SEE IT IS UNDER GREEK, SO WE GO TO GREEK IN THE BACK SECTION AND GO TO 5480 TO SEE WHAT IT SAYS THIS MARK WOULD BE. SO LETS GET TO IT.MARK IN STRONGS GREEK 5480 XAPAYUA CHARAGMA, KHAR-AG-MAH: FROM THE SAME AS 5482: A SCRATCH OR ETCHING, I.E STAMP (AS A BADGE OF SERVITUDE), OR SCULPTURED FIGURE-(STATUE):-GRAVEN, MARK FROM 5482 XAPAE CHARAX, KHAR-AX; FROM XAPAOOW CHARASSO (TO SHARPEN TO A POINT; AKIN TO 1125 THROUGH THE IDEA OF SCRATCHING); A STAKE, I.E (BYIMPL.) A PALISADE OR RAMPART (MILITARY MOUND FOR CIRCUMVALLATION IN A SIEGE): - TRENCH FROM 1125 YPAPOE GRAPHO, GRAF-0; A PRIM. VERB; TO "GRAVE", ESPEC. TO WRITE; FIG. TO DESCRIBE:-DESCRIBE, WRITE (-ING, -TEN).G5516-GO TO G4742-666 - STRONGS NT 4742: ĻĻĪÆĪ³Ī¼Ī± - ĻĻĪÆĪ³Ī¼Ī±, ĻĻĪ¹Ī³Ī¼Ī±ĻĪæĻ, ĻĻ (from ĻĻĪÆĪ¶Ļ to prick; (cf. Latinstimulus, etc.; German stechen, English stick, sting, etc.; Curtius, § 226)), a mark pricked in or branded upon the body. According to ancient oriental usage, slaves and soldiers bore the name or stamp of their master or commander branded or pricked (cut) into their bodies to indicate what master or general they belonged to, and there were even some devotees who stamped themselves in this way with the token of their gods (cf. Deyling, Observations, iii., p. 423ff); hence, ĻĪ¬ ĻĻĪÆĪ³Ī¼Ī±ĻĪ± ĻĪæįæ¦ (ĪŗĻ
ĻĪÆĪæĻ
so Rec.) į¼øĪ·ĻĪæįæ¦, the marks of (the Lord) Jesus, which Paul in Galatians 6:17 says he bears branded on his body, are the traces left there by the perils, hardships, imprisonments, scourgings, endured by him for the cause of Christ, and which mark him as Christ's faithful and approved votary, servant, soldier (see Lightfoots Commentary on Galatians, the passage cited). (Herodotus 7, 233; Aristotle, Aelian, Plutarch, Lcian, others.)
THE INVENTOR OF THE MICROCHIP IMPLANT-CARL SANDERS MICROCHIP ENGINEER LEADER
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgH9D6n4ZWo
THE MICROCHIP IMPLANT IN YOUR RIGHT HAND OR FOREHEAD.
LEVETICUS 19.28
Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.
HERES WHAT THE WORLD WOULD LOOK LIKE (SINCE THERE WILL BE WORLD GOVERNMENT IN THE FUTURE)-UPDATED VERSION (10 WORLD TRADE BLOCS)
01 CANADA, U.S.A, MEXICO
02 EUROPEAN UNION,WESTERN EUROPE
03 JAPAN
04 AUSTRALIA,NEW ZEALAND, S AFRICA, ISRAEL AND PACIFIC ISLANDS
05 EASTERN EUROPE
06 SOUTHERN, CENTRAL AND LATIN AMERICAS
07 NORTH AFRICA, AND MIDEAST (MOSLEMS)
08 CENTRAL AFRICA
09 SOUTH AND SOUTHEAST ASIA
10 CENTRAL ASIA
THE CLUB OF ROME WANTS A WORLD CHARISMATIC DICTATOR (EITHER RELIGIOUS, POLITICAL OR SCIENTIFICAL) TO HEAD THIS WORLD GOVERNMENT. REV 13:3,7-8, DAN 7:23-24
WORLD POWERS IN THE END TIME
NORTH - RUSSIA EZEK 38:1-2, 39:1-2
SOUTH - EGYPT DAN 11:42
EAST - CHINA DAN 11:44,REV 16:12
WEST - EUROPEAN UNION DAN 7:23-24 (NOT THE U.S.A)
http://israel7777777.blogspot.ca/2012/03/10-world-trade-blocs-one-world.html
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2006/09/how-eu-takes-world-control.html
http://israndjer.blogspot.ca/2012/05/one-world-religion-crislam.html
FINALLY THE EUROPEAN UNION IS TALKING ABOUT HAVING THEIR OWN ARMY.AND IT MUST HAPPEN.
REVELATION 19:16-21
16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, King Of Kings, And Lord Of Lords.(JESUS RETURNG TO EARTH LITERALLY ON A WHITE HORSE WITH THE RAPTURED CHRISTIANS 7 YEARS EARLIER)
17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;
18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great.(2ND TIME GOD-JESUS TELLS THE 500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS TO GET READY TO EAT HUMAN FLESH.THE FIRST TIME WAS WHEN GOD TOLD THE 500 MILLION MIGRATING BIRDS-TO EAT RUSSIA,GERMAN,ARAB, MUSLIM BODIES FOR 7 MONTHS IN EZEK 38 @ 39.
19 And I saw the beast,(E.U WORLD LEADER) and the kings of the earth, and their armies,(HERE IT SAYS THE E.U WILL HAVE ITS OWN ARMY) gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, (JESUS) and against his army.(RAPTURED CHRISTIANS)
20 And the beast (E.U WORLD LEADER) was taken, and with him the false prophet (POPE FRANCIS) that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.
21 And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.
COUNCIL FOR EUROPE ON DEFENCE
https://defence-industry-space.ec.europa.eu/document/download/6d6f889c-e58d-4caa-8f3b-8b93154fe206_en?filename=SAFE%20Regulation.pdf
EU says could expand naval mission to Strait of Hormuz.
Brussels, Belgium, May 12 (AFP) May 12, 2026-EU top diplomat Kaja Kallas said Tuesday the bloc could expand a naval mission it has in the Red Sea to cover the Strait of Hormuz, once the Iran war ends."Operation Aspides already makes a crucial contribution in protecting shipping in the Red Sea but its activities could also be extended to the strait," Kallas said after a meeting of European Union defence ministers.Kallas said that some countries were already promising to contribute more ships to the mission and that could help if the decision is taken to extend its scope.Reeling from Trump's war on Iran and the global economic fallout, Europe has been scrambling to play a role to get shipping moving again once the conflict ends.France and Britain have led talks on a potential naval effort in the region, with defence ministers from four dozen countries to hold a fresh round of discussions Tuesday.EU defence ministers in March initially rebuffed proposals to expand the Red Sea mission.Negotiations between the United States and Iran to end the Middle East war and re-open the crucial waterway appear to have stalled.Iran's blockade of the strait, through which about a fifth of the world's oil and natural gas usually passes, has pushed up global energy prices.The EU's Aspides mission was launched in 2024 to help protect shipping in the Red Sea, another crucial Middle East waterway, from attacks by the Houthis in Yemen.
VPNs on regulatory block in EU, UK as lawmakers address age check circumvention-Are VPNs ‘loophole that needs closing,’ bastions of privacy – or just profit-driven companies? May 11, 2026, 1:33 pm EDT | Joel R. McConvey
A philosophical tug-of-war is at play in the debate over whether Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) enable easy circumvention of age assurance mechanisms.On the one hand, there is the notion that biometric age checks have users flocking to VPNs to protect their anonymity. A paper newly pushed out by the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) suggests “there has been a significant surge in the number of virtual private networks (VPNs) used to bypass online age verification methods in countries where these have been put in place by law.”Given this, some see VPNs as a “loophole that needs closing,” arguing that “access to VPN services should be restricted to users above a digital age of majority.” The UK has floated this idea, as well. And in the U.S., Utah recently passed Senate Bill 73, which explicitly applies to anyone in Utah, regardless of whether or not they are pretending to not be in Utah by using a VPN.A competing idea says VPNs represent the spirit of a free, anonymous internet free from censorship and surveillance. Regulating VPNs would mean everyone, everywhere doing age checks – and the spike in use as a workaround for age verification legislation simply proves that the laws as structured do not and cannot work.So far, the age assurance industry’s response to the latter argument has involved pointing out that compliance doesn’t stop counting when users turn to VPNs. In a sense, the Age Verification Providers Association (AVPA) agrees with the loophole theory, but doesn’t see the need to ban VPNs: “in practice, there are ways to detect and address circumvention and there is no need to even consider banning VPNs outright.”VPNs not charities, can also exploit user data for gain-Another argument that may ultimately have more force is highlighted in a “multi-perspective study of VPN users and VPN providers” conducted by researchers at the University of Michigan in 2023. Whereas age assurance is fighting against the idea that it invades privacy, VPNs are positively associated with privacy – but that reputation may be unearned. A quantitative survey of 1,252 VPN users in the U.S. and qualitative interviews with nine providers show that “users rely on and trust VPN review sites, but VPN providers shed light on how they are mostly motivated by money.” Worryingly, say the researchers, “we find that users have flawed mental models about the protection VPNs provide, and about the data collected by VPNs.”Like age assurance providers, VPNs are online businesses with a bottom line. Unlike age assurance providers, they aren’t regulated.“Commercial VPNs are now a multi-billion global industry with numerous VPN providers, and apps on almost every platform,” says the research paper. “As our VPN provider interviews highlight, many of these companies have unknown ownership and multiple providers mention that setting up a VPN and offering a service is not technically difficult, especially with the existing open source solution.” One provider suggests that “two people in a basement with half-decent power can run a VPN.”That’s a lot of uncertainty shouldering a lot of risk. “In simple terms, a user using a VPN is simply transferring trust, say from their internet provider, onto the VPN provider,” the paper says. “internet service providers (ISPs) have been around for longer and have many regulations globally. However, such regulations and advocacy has not yet caught up to the VPN industry.”The notion that VPNs increase privacy hinges on the assumption that VPN companies will respect and not exploit users’ private data for profit. That’s a convenient bit of optimism that highlights a largely unspoken truth: VPN providers benefit from an unearned trust of the sort the age assurance industry is trying to earn.
ICE smart glasses plan points to broader DHS push to make biometrics mobile and routine-May 11, 2026, 10:57 pm EDT | Anthony Kimery
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is moving toward a broader biometric enforcement architecture that would extend facial recognition and identity-matching tools from airport checkpoints and ports of entry into the field, including through a proposed smart glasses prototype for immigration agents.Biometric Update reported last month that the smart-glasses effort appears in DHS’s fiscal year 2027 budget justification for the Science and Technology Directorate (S&T), where it is placed under the Border Security and Immigration Mission Center’s Detention and Removal Operations program.S&T is developing the smart glasses for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to supplement Mobile Fortify, the facial recognition app already used by ICE and Customs and Border Protection officers to identify people in the field.According to 404 Media, a DHS official and another person who attended a recent conference said ICE is exploring smart glasses that would work with or support Mobile Fortify.The S&T program is funded at $7.5 million for FY 2027 and is designed to support new data analytics methods, automated systems, and hardware for immigration enforcement operations.The project schedule says S&T plans in FY 2027 to “develop an operational prototype of smart glasses that enables biometric identification of illegal aliens.”The budget language is striking because it does not describe smart glasses as a speculative concept or future-facing technology experiment. It says the project will “deliver innovative hardware” that includes operational prototypes of smart glasses intended to give immigration enforcement agents real-time access to information and biometric identification capabilities in the field.The significance is not only that ICE may eventually use the smart glasses being developed inside S&T. It is that DHS is describing the glasses as part of a broader operational shift toward mobile, real-time biometric identification.The glasses would serve as a field interface for immigration enforcement agents, potentially allowing them to access identity information and biometric matching capabilities while conducting arrests, field interviews, custody transfers, or other enforcement operations.That would mark an escalation from phone-based biometric checks to wearable biometric systems. Mobile Fortify already allows agents to capture facial images, contactless fingerprints, and identity document photographs, sending that information to CBP for matching against government biometric systems.DHS’s 2025 AI Use Case Inventory identified NEC as the vendor behind the app, said the tool was in deployment for both CBP and ICE, and described ICE as having access to it as of May 20, 2025.The app has already generated civil liberties concerns because it is used not only at borders or checkpoints, but in domestic field settings. Mobile Fortify is used to identify undocumented immigrants and U.S. citizens alike and can return possible matches and biographic information after facial or fingerprint matching.The smart-glasses proposal would build on that architecture by making the biometric interface more seamless and less visible. Instead of an officer holding up a phone to scan a person’s face, camera-equipped glasses could place facial recognition capability directly in an agent’s line of sight.That raises new questions about notice, consent, accuracy, retention, and whether people would know when they are being scanned.The DHS budget places the smart-glasses project within a larger effort to improve immigration enforcement data collection, validation, and coordination between CBP and ICE.The budget language frames the work as part of an attempt to automate information flows, support custody transfers and removals, and improve field access to identity data.In practical terms, the glasses are not being developed as a standalone gadget. They are being developed as a mobile biometric endpoint for a department-wide identity infrastructure.That broader infrastructure is visible across DHS’s FY 2027 budget request. In the S&T Border Security and Immigration portfolio, DHS requests $16 million for Biometrics and Identity Management, including $6 million for Biometric Emerging Concepts and $10 million for Biometrics and Identity Screening.The Biometrics and Identity Screening project is aimed at helping CBP identify, evaluate, and implement advanced biometric tools that can strengthen traveler vetting, improve security, and streamline travel at ports of entry.S&T says the project will deliver software and hardware that allow rapid identification and verification of people entering, exiting, and traveling within the United States.The budget says those capabilities are intended to reduce the risk of fraudulent identities and help confirm familial relationships, including in cases involving the trafficking of minors.The FY 2027 milestone is to deliver software and hardware solutions for rapid identification and verification at ports of entry.ICE appears in the budget as an operational user of biometric tools developed, funded, or integrated elsewhere in DHS.Its Fugitive Operations budget lists biometric readers among the equipment used for law enforcement operations, while the smart-glasses project appears in S&T’s research portfolio rather than ICE’s component budget.DHS is not simply buying isolated biometric tools. It is building a layered identity environment in which facial recognition, fingerprint capture, document authentication, traveler vetting, mobile field checks, and backend database matching can reinforce one another.For supporters inside DHS, that architecture promises faster identification, more efficient screening, stronger fraud prevention, and better coordination between border and interior enforcement.For critics, the same architecture points toward a future in which biometric surveillance becomes increasingly hard to see, hard to avoid, and hard to challenge.The smart glasses make that tension more concrete. A phone-based app is already controversial because it allows agents to scan faces and fingerprints in the field.Wearable smart glasses could make that process faster, less obvious, and more continuous. The budget request shows that DHS is treating that possibility not as science fiction, but as an operational prototype to be developed in FY 2027.
Stop treating identity as a compliance step. It’s infrastructure now-May 6, 2026, 5:10 pm EDT | Harry Varatharasan By Harry Varatharasan, Chief Product Officer, ComplyCube
The UK governmentŹ¼s digital identity consultation is closing, and for most commentators, this represents just another milestone in a slow-moving legislative process. For companies building the systems that power digital identity at scale, it embodies the moment ID verification stops being a back-office compliance function and becomes infrastructure.Across regulated sectors such as fintech, telecoms, insurance, digital assets, and government services, ID verification has become the primary mechanism through which organizations establish trust, grant access, and prevent fraud at scale.It is no longer niche, and over the past year, weŹ¼ve seen a significant shift in how the industry deploys it. Businesses have stopped asking about verification accuracy in isolation and have started asking about orchestration, reuse, and interoperability. They are consolidating toward a single, reusable identity capability across products and user journeys rather than building separate verification processes for each service.Identity is now embedded as a shared layer. It is no longer a compliance upgrade; it is the infrastructure that everything else sits on top of.The policy conversation has not caught up. Regulated businesses are already designing onboarding flows, fraud controls, and customer journeys on the assumption that verification can be trusted, ported, and built upon. The consultation is one of the first chances for UK policy to meet that reality, and to set the terms on which the next decade of digital services gets built.The starting point for getting it right is being honest about what infrastructure actually demands.What ‘infrastructureŹ¼ actually means in practice-ID verification has become a foundational layer on which other systems, services, and interactions depend. If it fails or fragments, the downstream effects are significant. Infrastructure-grade ID verification has three defining characteristics.The first is reliability at scale — systems must perform consistently across high-volume, real-time environments — not as one-off checks but as continuous, automated processes. The second is interoperability: as public and private verification systems begin to converge, the ability to operate across frameworks, certifications, and jurisdictions becomes essential. The third is trust by design, where governance, audit trails, and certification are no longer optional extras but the foundation on which public and regulatory confidence rests.Of these three, interoperability is the bottleneck. The industry has largely solved for point-in-time verification and is making progress on trust frameworks and governance – but identity still does not port well, especially across use cases. Businesses are being asked to treat identity as reusable infrastructure, yet the ecosystem is fragmented across standards, regulators, and geographies. Until identity can be reliably reused across contexts, it behaves like a series of siloed checks. And even where portability exists in theory, the burden of liability does not automatically transfer: an identity previously approved within one sector or geography can still be deemed too risky by a new business operating in a different context. Interoperability must solve for liability, not just technical compatibility.What the UK consultation signals for regulated industries-The consultationŹ¼s practical implications are already taking shape – regardless of what the final policy framework looks like. Three shifts are worth naming.Assurance levels are becoming the unit of procurement. The DIATF framework is already pushing organizations to demonstrate not just that they verify identity, but at what level of confidence. That changes how verification is bought and evaluated – and the consequences will land hard once assurance levels get written into sector-specific regulation. To confidently stand behind a particular assurance level, that level must be considered equivalent across jurisdictions and regulators. It must also be practically attainable by the actual customer demographic a business serves. Raising the bar is only meaningful if the bar can be cleared.‘Verify once, reuse’ is moving from principle to expectation. Across sectors from property to financial services, customers and regulators alike now expect that identity checks should not need to be repeated for the same individual at every touchpoint.That expectation is colliding with an ecosystem not yet built to deliver it, and the compliance overhead falls on businesses operating across multiple product lines.Private-sector verification systems are being asked to do more than the policy frameworks anticipate. Online safety legislation, age verification mandates, and AML requirements are all expanding the contexts in which verification is required – often faster than policy frameworks can formalize them. The regulated sector is not waiting for governments to catch up. It is building ahead of the curve.Where public and private systems are already converging-The blurring line between government-led digital identity initiatives and private-sector verification infrastructure is not a future scenario. It is already underway.Telecoms is one of the clearest examples. Onboarding is conducted through private deployments, yet those verified identities are increasingly used as a supporting signal in law enforcement and public sector investigations. When a number is linked to a criminal inquiry, disclosure processes draw on the identity infrastructure built and maintained by private operators. The boundary between public infrastructure and private verification has, in this context, already dissolved.Certified identity service providers operating under DIATF frameworks, DVLA-connected driver entitlement verification, ACCS-approved age verification — these are not future convergence points. They are the present. The private sector is not waiting for governments to build digital identity infrastructure. It is already building the systems that national frameworks will depend on. The policy question is not whether to enable this convergence, but how to govern it.The cost of fragmented standards-If trust infrastructure does not keep pace with adoption, specific things break. This is not a theoretical concern.Fragmentation hits hardest where organizations operate across multiple regulatory environments at once. A fintech platform may need to meet AML/KYC requirements while aligning with fraud-prevention standards and, in some cases, age-verification or platform-safety obligations — each with different expectations of what “good” verification looks like. Telecoms companies conducting onboarding checks meet strict identity requirements, but those verified identities are not always portable to adjacent services such as banking, insurance, or employment checks. A group holding company director managing a portfolio of businesses across banking, property, and telecoms may need to repeat verification to varying levels across each: duplicated effort, with no shared benefit.The consequences compound across three dimensions. Operationally, businesses absorb higher compliance costs and integration overhead as they scale across use cases. From a risk perspective, inconsistent assurance levels create exploitable gaps, particularly where lower-assurance checks in one context are wrongly relied on in higher-risk environments. And from the user’s perspective, fragmentation translates into friction: people encounter different verification processes and data requirements across what feels, to them, like a single connected journey.From a risk perspective, inconsistent assurance levels across the sectors create exploitable gaps — particularly where lower-assurance checks in one context are incorrectly relied upon in higher-risk environments. From a user perspective, this fragmentation translates into friction and confusion: individuals encounter different verification processes and data requirements across what feels, to them, like a single connected journey.Identity is being treated as reusable in theory. In practice, it remains siloed, with different industries interpreting, verifying, and trusting identity in inconsistent ways.Policy must keep pace with practice-The digital identity consultation closing is not the end of a debate — it is the beginning of an implementation challenge. The systems being built now will determine how the UKŹ¼s digital identity infrastructure actually functions in practice.The question worth asking now is not whether identity verification is critical infrastructure. That argument is already won. The question is whether standards and governance being written today are being written for the industry that exists, or the one that existed five years ago.
Agentic AI pushes financial sector toward continuous identity-Industry turns to biometrics, passkeys and behavioral signals as AI agents challenge traditional authentication-May 7, 2026, 3:48 pm EDT | Joel R. McConvey
Agentic AI is forcing a rethink of identity and authentication in payments, as systems designed for human approval struggle to handle transactions initiated by autonomous software.A new paper from the International Monetary Fund warns that AI agents capable of executing payments expose gaps in Know Your Customer (KYC) and multifactor authentication, which rely on explicit human action. The shift is driving demand for new frameworks that can verify both the identity of an AI agent and the user’s delegated authority — effectively introducing “Know Your Agent” models and continuous identity verification.AI agents capable of making transactions challenge traditional identity and authentication frameworks in payments: Common authorization mechanisms, such as Know Your Customer (KYC) and multifactor authentication (MFA), are designed for human users who explicitly approve transactions.However, when AI agents are tasked with initiating payments, verifying the identity of the agent and the intent of the users becomes significantly more complex, says the report, authored by IMF’s digital technology experts Herve Tourpe and Sonja Davidovic.“Traditional fraud models rely on human behavioral patterns, which become ineffective when transactions are initiated by autonomous agents,” the paper notes. “Hence, developing authentication frameworks that verify both the AI agent’s identity and the user’s delegated authority remains key.”Payment networks and technology providers will need to move towards trusted identity frameworks and interoperable standards for Know-Your-Agent verification and delegated authority. Digital wallet providers should also introduce “agent-ready” capabilities and build agent-friendly authentication using passkeys and biometric verification. At the same time, regulators will need to find new ways to regulate and supervise the use of AI in the financial industry.“Mitigating these risks will require coordinated action from both private and public stakeholders,” the report notes.Identity industry proposes integrated approach for AI agents-The rethink of authentication within the industry from the arrival of AI agents and other AI technologies is also pushing the market towards continuous verification.An April analysis from LexisNexis Risk Solutions revealed that agentic traffic rose a whopping 450 percent in 2025, driven mainly by credit card payments and logins to gaming and gambling sites. The trend has shed light on the challenges of detecting fraud in a world where transactions are conducted by bots.“Cybercriminals are experimenting with the same technologies that are transforming digital commerce and organizations must prepare for a future where both legitimate users and malicious actors rely on automated agents to interact online,” says Stephen Topliss, vice president of fraud and identity at LexisNexis Risk Solutions. “Those that succeed must be able to confidently distinguish between humans, bots and agents as well as determining intent.”Because a single login or credential check is no longer sufficient to prevent fraud, the financial industry is seeing a shift from a model in which a human user undergoes a single authentication process to gain access to a service to continuous, independent validation by autonomous AI.Organizations will likely move towards integrated approaches that combine biometrics, document analysis, device intelligence and real-time behavioral signals, according to Henry Patishman, executive vice president of identity verification solutions at Regula. The goal is ensuring that the identity behind an action remains valid, current and uncompromised throughout the interaction.“Authentication can no longer rely on a single login,” he told news site Pymnts. “In an agent-led environment, it also needs to focus on identity assurance throughout the whole journey.”Identity will, in other words, become a gatekeeper, a layer that determines whether an AI system is reliable, according to B. Scott Swann, CEO at biometrics company ROC.Both public and private organizations are prioritizing systems that offer transparency, control, and reliability at scale, driving the shift from isolated tools toward integrated identity platforms that can operate across environments. This makes identity a core layer of modern systems, with the industry potentially worth over $100 billion, he told financial news outlet Benziga.“Cybersecurity protects systems, but biometric identity determines who is accessing them,” says Swann.iProov also emphasizes the importance of continuous identity threat detection and alignment with standards. The company is also warning businesses about the “accountability vacuum,” in which high‑impact decisions are made without verifiable human authorization.“Identity is becoming the new battleground in cybersecurity,” says Andrew Newell, the firm’s chief scientific officer. “Generative AI is allowing attackers to industrialize digital impersonation at scale. To defend against this, organizations must be able to establish genuine human presence in digital interactions to ensure trust and security.”
FTC reminds tech platforms of deadline to comply with Take It Down Act-May 11, 2026, 10:19 pm EDT | Anthony Kimery
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is warning major technology companies that they must comply with the Take It Down Act (TIDA) by May 19, when covered platforms are required to have systems in place for removing nonconsensual intimate images from their services.Signed into law on May 19, 2025, TIDA is designed to combat non-consensual intimate imagery, including AI-generated deepfakes. It criminalizes the publication of these images, requires platforms to remove them within 48 hours, and provides victims a legal pathway for removal.FTC Chairman Andrew N. Ferguson sent letters to more than a dozen companies, including Amazon, Alphabet, Apple, Automattic, Bumble, Discord, Match Group, Meta, Microsoft, Pinterest, Reddit, SmugMug, Snapchat, TikTok, and X.The letters outline the law’s definitions, compliance obligations, and penalties for violations.TIDA requires covered platforms to provide clear and conspicuous notice of a removal process for victims, including children, whose intimate photos or videos were shared without consent.Platforms must remove the reported content, along with identical copies, within 48 hours after receiving a valid request.The law applies broadly to online services such as social media, messaging, image and video sharing, and gaming platforms, placing responsibility on companies that host or distribute user-generated content.Ferguson said the FTC is prepared to monitor compliance, investigate violations, and enforce the law, framing the measure as part of the agency’s effort to protect children and other victims from online abuse.“We stand ready to monitor compliance, investigate violations, and enforce the Take It Down Act,” said Ferguson. “Protecting the vulnerable – especially children—from this harmful abuse is a top priority for this agency and this administration. The Trump-Vance FTC is grateful for the First Lady’s leadership on the Take It Down Act and on children’s issues.”Under the law, “covered platforms” include various websites, apps and online services, such as social media, messaging, image or video sharing, and gaming platforms.The FTC has issued guidance about what companies should do as they prepare to comply with TIDA.
Face biometrics use cases outnumbered only by important considerations-May 9, 2026, 12:30 pm EDT | Chris Burt
With face biometrics now used regularly in many different sectors and areas of life, stakeholders are asking questions about a wide range of details. Top stories of the week on Biometric Update reflect the importance of details in regulation, testing, new technology and partnerships involving facial recognition and authentication, across law enforcement, government contract opportunities, online age checks, smartphones and airport tech. Elsewhere, experiences in the UK and Sri Lanka show that the early stages of national ID projects are filled with pitfalls.National ID trust and sustainability-Trust in national identity systems is vital but fragile, even in the planning stages, as seen in the UK and Sri Lanka.Tony Allen of the ACCS warns against governments building their own digital ID systems on grounds they are not as good at maintaining their effectiveness over time. But responses to the UK’s consultation by Richard Oliphant and the ADVP warn that even if the government can manage the digital ID as a product, there are legal market competition reasons it cannot.Allen argues that digital ID is more like a product than infrastructure, but ComplyCube CPO Harry Varatharasan makes the case in a Biometric Update guest post that establishing trust and preventing fraud across sectors at scale makes ID verification exactly that.Sri Lanka’s government added Madras Security Printers to the short list of bidders for the Master Systems Integrator contract for the country’s national digital ID after it published its initial list. The irregularity is drawing criticism from a civil society group, which referred to a previous issue in a tender involving the same company.UK tenders-The UK Home Office has launched two market engagements: an initial step for SCBP and a third round for producing the country’s biometric passports.The platform, which is used for biometrics, identity and law enforcement applications, may change significantly to include new technologies or delivery models based on two potential future procurements.Thales holds the current passport contract, and the replacement has grown to £576 million over 12 years.The Department for Work and Pensions has a £2 million tender out for surveillance hardware and software for use in benefits fraud investigations.Age restrictions target VPNs and AI chatbotsLawmakers in Utah have tightened the language in a bill targeting the use of VPNs to get around age assurance. The EFF warns that legal risk could push websites to ban traffic from VPNs, and NordVPN warns that is not technically possible, so all users will have to be subjected to age checks just in case they are in Utah.U.S. legislators are also considering age verification at the federal level, with a pair of bills that would impose restrictions on AI chatbots.Across the border, Canada’s privacy regulator has set out guidelines for what age assurance would have to look like. The guidance sets out principles for compliant — meaning privacy-preserving — age checks, taking lessons from the UK and Australia.An independent report suggests one of the key lessons from the UK is that for the Online Safety Act to deliver its intended effect, enforcement must be robust.Face biometrics testing, innovation, regulation and deployments-CLR Labs has been accredited to the ISO standard for testing laboratories by COFRAC. Since COFRAC is the NAB, that means CLR’s PAD, IAD and biometrics performance evaluation services are now recognized throughout the EU.Metalenz has developed an under-display payment-grade face biometric authentication system for smartphones with its optical metasurface technology. Polar ID UDC debuted at Display Week, and the company says it blocks all spoof attempts.UK Biometrics Commissioners past and present are united in their view that the legal underpinning for police use of facial recognition is inadequate and must be fixed. A look at existing policies and similarity thresholds shows a kaleidoscope of approaches and beliefs about the technology’s effectiveness.New strategic partners Leidos and Idemia Public Security plan to deploy biometric eGates and CAT-2s in American airports rapidly at scale. Smooth integrations can help move passengers through quickly with high security, they say.Teresa Wu of Idemia Public Security and the Security Industry Association joins the Biometric Update Podcast to discuss the SIA’s new Corporate Credential Design Guide.Congratulations to the Okta’s Identity 25 for 2026. The list includes recent guests of the Biometric Update Podcast as well as ID4Africa EC Dr. Joseph Atick.Biometric Update will report from on location at ID4Africa’s 2026 AGM in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire next week.Please let us know if you spot any video presentations, podcasts or other content you would like us to share with the people in biometrics and the digital identity community, either using the comment form below or through social media.
World Bank unveils DPI procurement guide for more integrated digital services-May 11, 2026, 6:23 pm EDT | Ayang Macdonald
The World Bank Group has published a guidance note that aims to assist countries in selecting the most appropriate procurement methods to build digital ID systems that are scalable and future-ready.The publication, according to the Bank, offers practical insights on procurement practices that can offset the challenges of scaling digital systems and services. It is accompanied by three annexes on procurement neutrality for digital ID, framework agreement templates, and key example contract clauses.Countries often pursue procurement models that lead to fragmented systems, hence making integrated service delivery a nightmare, the publication notes.These challenges not only have to do with procurement missteps, but also architectural requirements and design implementation, especially at a time when countries are accelerating efforts to digitize almost everything. The result is monolithic turnkey contracts, proprietary data silos, and systems that risk collapsing once project funding runs out.With the guide, the objective is to enable nations to make procurement decisions that advance inclusion, interoperability, sustainability, and public value for the digital infrastructure they intend to put in place.One of the key recommendations of the report is for countries to pivot from technology-prescriptive to outcome-based and technology-neutral procurement. This means that countries must focus on the goal they intend to achieve in terms of interoperability, scalability, security, and user-centricity, and not on which product or vendor to use. When procurement is designed like this, it enables competition, innovation, better value for money, and also reduces lock-in risk, the report says.Apart from focusing on outcomes rather than on the vendor, countries must also avoid what the Bank calls “gold-specs” that exceed actual needs, define clear acceptance criteria, and balance specificity by being careful not to over-specify which may stifle innovation, or under-specify, which may create ambiguity.The blueprint, which is produced by the World Bank’s Vice Presidency for Digital & AI, calls for keen attention to certain evaluation criteria such as solution design and architecture which can account for between 25-30 percent of the success of a DPI project.It also suggests the inclusion of clear criteria in procurement documents, which must provide clarity on issues including data ownership, source code control, documentation obligations, interoperability and portability, and the right to audit.Other useful points include designing procurements that treat cybersecurity as a core contractual obligation, encouraging the participation of local and regional SMEs and startups, considering an Independent Verification Agent for technical oversight, requiring vendors to provide a comprehensive handover strategy to ensure sustainability planning, and establishing governance and implementation support bodies such as a technical review committee, performance monitoring, and contract management.UNDP experts consider procurement a key part of digital ID developments and recommend that countries make it a part of their process right from the design stage, and not an afterthought.Procurement advice is a regular feature at ID4Africa’s AGMs. The 2026 edition opens tomorrow, May 12, in CĆ“te d’Ivoire.
MainMoney palm biometrics platform to support DRC’s financial inclusion drive-May 11, 2026, 6:12 pm EDT | Ayang Macdonald
The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is looking to strengthen its financial inclusion push with MainMoney, a digital payment platform which has been integrated with the country’s national payments infrastructure. Recently, the company launched its palm-based biometrics system in Kinshasa to facilitate digital payments in the Central African country, Bankable Africa reports.In 2024, Keyo announced that its palm biometrics system was also integrated by local partner AI.Tech to launch MainMoney, with the aim of facilitating secure digital payments in DRC.Speaking at the launch of the system, the CEO and Founder of AI.Tech, the company that owns MainMoney, Sylvain Mubenga, underscored the importance of the innovation, saying it will enable individuals to easily make payments by using their palm as a wallet. They will not need to hold a bank card or a smartphone, he said.Mubenga noted that the idea is to strengthen the digital payments landscape in the country and expand financial inclusion because cash-based transactions currently still dominate, despite almost 30 million citizens having a mobile money account.Meanwhile, MainMoney has been made a part of the DRC Central Bank’s strategy of modernising and strengthening the national financial ecosystem, writes Africa Digital News.This, according to officials, is to address some of the challenges that have hindered access to financial services in the country in the past, such as high cost and infrastructure inadequacies.With MainMoney, the government hopes to ensure Congolese have access to easy and secure payments, even in the most remote parts of the vast country. The government is aiming to raise financial inclusion to nearly 70 percent by 2028, according to the country’s 2023-2028 National Financial Inclusion Strategy.The company wrote on LinkedIn that being integrated with the DRC’s national financial strategy is not only a validation of their services, but also a responsibility they must be sure to meet.“From the very beginning, our conviction has been simple. Every Congolese person, wherever they may be, deserves access to simple, secure, and reliable financial services,” said MainMoney.It adds that the three main pillars on which MainMoney has been built are inclusion, which seeks to reach all those left behind by traditional banking systems; modernization which is driving the shift to digital payments; and trust which means ensuring that all payment transactions are traceable and secure.According to MainMoney, its integration into the DRC’s national financial strategy is not the end of the road, but the beginning of a deep structural transformation of the country’s financial ecosystem.In an interview with Observers in 2024, Mubenga said the platform seeks to build trust in the country’s digital financial ecosystem. He said because of lack of a national digital ID system t the time, they tapped in Keyo palm biometrics to help with identity verification for MainMoney users.The financial inclusion push is part and parcel of the DRC’s ongoing digital transformation journey which includes efforts to establish a fully functional digital government through major digital public infrastructure (DPI) undertakings. The government launched DRCPass last year with Singaporean partner Trident.
Idex’ $1.75M deal with ID Centric for biometric payment cards back on-May 11, 2026, 6:06 pm EDT | Chris Burt
Singapore and Malaysia-based ID Centric will build fingerprint sensors from Idex Biometrics into its biometric payment cards through a $1.75 million initial binding purchase order that replaces a more elaborate near-agreement that would have seen the former become a major investor in the latter.Under the new agreement, Idex becomes the exclusive supplier of biometric technology for ID Centric’s card portfolio, and the companies are planning comprehensive coordination on technology development, product strategy and go-to-market execution, according to a new announcement.Idex and ID Centric announced a proposed private placement in April that included a NOK 90 million Norwegian kroner (approximately US$9.7 million) investment in Idex for a 20 percent stake, along with an initial order of fingerprint sensors under terms agreed to in March and consistent with those of the new announcement.Deliveries were scheduled to begin in April, though the agreement was announced May 8.Idex booked only $254,000 in revenue during fiscal 2025. Therefore, while the company replaced the proposed financing from ID Centric with NOK 20 million ($2.2 million) from CEO Anders StorbrĆ„ten and board member Robert Keith, bringing in significant revenue by selling its inventory of biometric sensors represents an important step towards restoring Idex’ fiscal balance.
Police drone programs raise questions about use of AI, facial recognition-Data retention remains one of the weakest links in drone oversight-May 11, 2026, 5:25 pm EDT | Anthony Kimery
Law enforcement drone programs are moving from specialized public safety tools into a broader surveillance infrastructure that can put aerial cameras, live video feeds, automated tracking, and data sharing into routine policing.The concern is not simply that police departments are flying drones. It is that drone programs are being built into larger public safety ecosystems before privacy rules, data retention limits, facial recognition restrictions, and public oversight have caught up.Across the country, agencies describe drones as tools for search and rescue, crash reconstruction, tactical support, missing person cases, barricaded suspects, disaster response, and officer safety. Those uses can be legitimate and, in some cases, lifesaving.A drone can get eyes on a dangerous scene without sending officers into it and can help firefighters assess a burning building, help rescue teams search difficult terrain, or give commanders a wider view of an emergency.That is the public-facing case for the technology and why drone programs win support from local officials.But the same capabilities that make drones useful in emergencies also make them powerful surveillance tools. A drone can hover over a neighborhood, monitor a protest, track a vehicle, record people moving through public space, or stream video into a command center.And when those feeds are retained, searched, shared, or combined with other systems, the drone becomes more than a flying camera. It becomes a node in a surveillance network.Funding is one reason the technology is spreading quickly. Police drone programs can be paid for through ordinary municipal budgets, federal grants, state homeland security programs, private donations, police foundations, asset forfeiture funds, or vendor pilot programs. This funding patchwork matters because each funding route can bypass or dilute public debate.A city council may approve a small drone purchase as a public safety expense without fully considering the data systems, analytics software, retention policies, or future integrations that come with it. A department may start with a limited use case and then expand operations once the aircraft, operators, policies, and vendor relationships are in place.Federal funding is also helping normalize drone-related infrastructure. The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems Grant Program supports state, local, tribal, and territorial governments in combatting unlawful drone use, and the program is tied to detection, tracking, identification, monitoring, and mitigation capabilities.The Department of Homeland Security also launched a Program Executive Office for Unmanned Aircraft Systems and Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems, with a $115 million counter-drone investment for America250 and the 2026 FIFA World Cup in final stages.Counter-drone systems are primarily designed to detect, track, identify, and mitigate unauthorized aircraft, not to surveil people on the ground. But it is still relevant because it shows how rapidly drone-related procurement pipelines are expanding under the banner of public safety and event security.Major events can justify large investments in sensors, cameras, command centers, detection platforms, and interagency coordination. And once those systems are purchased and deployed, they can become part of the permanent security architecture.The same dynamic applies to local law enforcement drone programs. The initial justification may be narrow, but the operational environment tends to expand.A department may begin by using drones only for SWAT calls or missing persons, but later may use them for traffic enforcement, crowd monitoring, routine patrol support, or “drone as first responder” deployments in which a drone is launched to 911 calls before officers arrive.At that point, drones are no longer occasional tools. They become part of the front end of policing. The core issue is that many drone policies regulate flight operations, but not the broader surveillance lifecycle created by drone data.They may limit when drones can be launched or how long footage is formally retained but often fail to address whether that footage can be streamed, copied, analyzed with AI, shared with other agencies or vendors, used for facial recognition, deployed at sensitive First Amendment events, or preserved indirectly through another system.In practice, the privacy risk comes less from the drone itself than from what happens to the images, video, metadata, and analytics after collection.Those gaps create opportunities to sidestep privacy and data retention restrictions. Many cities have adopted rules limiting or banning facial recognition, but those laws may not cover drone footage unless they are written broadly.This is where facial recognition becomes a critical concern. The danger is not only live facial recognition from a drone, although that is one possible future. The more immediate risk is workflow convergence.An original drone program may have been approved as an aerial response tool, but the practical result is biometric identification from aerial surveillance imagery.Object recognition and tracking raise similar concerns even when no face is identified. AI-enabled video analytics can be used to detect vehicles, people, bags, weapons, crowds, or unusual movement.A drone that can automatically follow a person or vehicle changes the scale of police monitoring by reducing the labor needed for surveillance.If analysts no longer need to manually watch every feed, departments can monitor more places, more often, at lower cost. That is how a technology designed for situational awareness can become a mass surveillance tool.The risks are especially acute around First Amendment activity. Drones used over protests, demonstrations, labor actions, religious gatherings, or political events can chill lawful activity even if no arrests follow.People may not know whether they are being recorded, how long footage will be kept, whether their movements are being analyzed, or whether images will later be compared against identity databases.Aerial surveillance can be less visible than officers on the ground, and that invisibility can weaken public accountability.The vendor market is likely to push these programs toward deeper integration. Drone companies and public safety technology vendors increasingly sell platforms rather than standalone devices.The aircraft may come with cloud storage, video management, mapping, analytics, automated flight tools, thermal imaging, live-streaming, evidence management, and links to command center software.Broader debates over AI-powered drones also reflect how autonomy, spectrum access, domestic drone manufacturing, and national security are becoming intertwined.Once agencies buy into an ecosystem, additional capabilities can be added through software updates, new modules, or integrations with existing surveillance tools.Data retention is one of the least resolved issues. Some agencies delete footage quickly unless it is tied to a specific case. Others retain video for longer periods, especially if it is classified as evidence, training material, intelligence, or part of an ongoing investigation.Counter-drone debates show that retention rules are already becoming contested as agencies argue that longer retention is needed to identify patterns and adapt to evolving drone threats.The same argument can easily migrate to law enforcement drone footage: agencies may say they need to keep aerial data to identify crime patterns, support investigations, train AI systems, or improve response.The result is a familiar pattern in surveillance policy. Technology is adopted for a narrow purpose, expanded for efficiency, integrated for interoperability, and normalized before lawmakers revisit the rules. By the time privacy concerns surface, agencies can argue that the tools are already essential.The most meaningful oversight would focus on the full lifecycle of drone data. Communities need to know not only when drones fly, but what they collect, where footage goes, who can access it, how long it is retained, whether it can be searched later, whether AI analytics are used, whether biometric identification is prohibited, and whether vendors can use the data for product development or model training.The question is not whether drones can help police respond to emergencies. They can. The question is whether the same systems, funded through fragmented grants and local procurement, will quietly create routine aerial monitoring without meaningful democratic control.Without strict limits, police drone programs risk becoming another surveillance technology that arrives as a public safety tool and matures into an infrastructure for tracking, identifying, and analyzing people in public space.
Webinar to demystify biometric physical access control decisions-Alcatraz, RealSense present innovations, discuss deployment considerations-May 11, 2026, 2:50 pm EDT | Chris Burt
The biometric physical access control is changing, with shifts driven by factors including ubiquitous face biometrics, alignment between logical and physical access systems and privacy regulations. Biometric Update is hosting a webinar on May 19 to highlight these changes, and how businesses can take advantage of them to improve security, lower costs or strengthen compliance.A new report on “Biometric physical access control in 2026: what to know before choosing a solution,” from Biometric Update and Goode Intelligence, unpacks the implications of the evolving market to help organizations select the kind of technology they can get full benefit from.Biometric Update and Goode Intelligence will present and discuss the report’s key findings in the May 19 webinar. They will be joined by Alcatraz and RealSense, which will each demonstrate new technologies influencing the market’s direction.Goode Intelligence forecasts the global biometric physical access control market will surpass $9.8 billion by 2028.Register for free to attend the webinar and learn about the latest developments in biometric physical access control.Phygital access cards and cloud-based phone systems-The most recognizable product on the market for many consumers is the e-gates used at airports, but several other areas, including biometric access control card deployments by enterprises, are growing.The convergence of physical and logical access control is part of this trend, as seen in the launch of the Crayonic Badge, a wearable identity wallet which integrates biometric sensors from Fingerprint Cards. The product is designed for multi-factor authentication to support secure access control for demanding environments like hospitals and critical infrastructure.Phone-based access control is also on the rise, with Paxton launching cloud-based solution Solo for easy integration with its physical access portfolio and authentication with native device biometrics. The company says Solo is designed for small businesses, residential settings and places where fixed data infrastructure is unavailable.
Digital ID systems fail migrants due to policy gaps, Caribou finds-Research says exclusion stems from governance and policy choices rather than technology limits-May 4, 2026, 9:38 am EDT | Ayang Macdonald
A new report by research organization Caribou has warned that digital ID systems around the world have continued to deepen and exacerbate the very exclusionary tendencies they were designed to address.The report, which is titled Digital Identity and Migration: Struggles for Equitable Technology Governance, is premised on years of fieldwork conducted in Kenya and Germany under Caribou’s “Identity in the age of migration” project.It makes a thorough assessment of the discriminatory and biased manner in which biometric digital ID systems are being deployed, and warns that the global digital identity revolution is headed in the wrong direction if adequate corrective measures are not taken as a matter of urgency.In Kenya and Germany, the research highlights cases of documented migrants trapped in bureaucratic cycles that the digital systems in place do little to break. In Germany, for instance, one asylum seeker recounted receiving an ID document stating their nationality was “unclear” despite providing extensive proof of Syrian origin.It’s the same scenario in Kenya where refugees are reported to be routinely shut out of the country’s digital public infrastructure (DPI), including mobile money services, due to SIM card registration issues or exclusion from the national health database. Kenya has faced severe criticisms over issues of exclusion, human rights and privacy related to its successive digital ID projects.To the researchers, the lingering issue of digital ID exclusion for migrants and other forcibly displaced persons is more of a fundamentally political problem that one of technology. This point is substantiated by a look into three different digital ID cases that deploy one kind of technology, but with totally different political agenda.The report looks at the EU digital ID wallet which excludes non-EU migrants by design, the proposed BritCard in the UK which is partly farmed as a tool to fight illegal immigration, as well as Red Cross’s DIGID initiative in Kenya, a blockchain-based wallet for refugees without official IDs, which showed genuine promise for inclusion, but ultimately failed to scale beyond its pilots partly due to lack of funding.In order to fix the problems and make digital public infrastructure systems better serve migrants and other vulnerable persons in society such as the elderly and those with physical disabilities, the report calls for political reforms which cannot be substituted even by the most cutting-edge technological solutions.“Technological solutionism cannot substitute for political reform. Centering the experiences of the most marginalized is not only a matter of justice but a strategic approach to building systems that work for everyone,” a part of the report reads.Some of the actionable principles for policymakers which the report suggests include aligning digital ID with policies that can facilitate access to a broad range of services like banking and healthcare; adopt risk-proportionate standards which means not requiring maximum security verification for low-risk services where vulnerable users are excluded; embed privacy by design into systems; put in place the right connectivity infrastructure to guarantee basic digital access for everyone; and design inclusive access methods.Other measures include creating digital ID interfaces that are usable across literacy levels, languages, and cultural contexts; establish participatory governance; invest in capacity building by provide digital literacy support; train staff to work effectively with diverse populations; and put in place appropriate mechanisms to ensure accountability and oversight in the way those systems run.Last year, Caribou, in a brief, called on countries to first address the legal and institutional causes of statelessness before they can begin to think of having inclusive digital identity systems.IOM efforts to close gaps-Meanwhile, during a legal identity conference last month in Ankara, TĆ¼rkiye, stakeholders explored ways of closing existing gaps with regard to global digital identity access.Convened by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the conference, which is part of the COMPASS program, rallied government representatives, international organizations, the private sector and academia.This conference comes at a critical moment as governments transition toward digital identity systems, especially in Africa and the Middle East,” Nelson Goncalves, IOM Head of Legal Identity Unit, said. “We see strong interest in learning and exchanging experiences to ensure these systems are inclusive, secure, and benefit the most vulnerable.”
Thailand mandates biometric IDV for all social media advertisers to curb scams-Advertisers must verify identity through facial recognition matched to national ID cards or recognized digital ID systems-May 11, 2026, 1:28 pm EDT | Masha Borak
Social media platforms in Thailand, such as Facebook, will need to introduce identity verification for advertisers, according to a new decision from the Thai government, which cites the growing danger of fake ads and scams.Users placing ads will need to verify their identity through facial recognition matched with a national ID card, or through a legally recognized digital ID system, according to the Technology Crime Prevention Measures (No. 2), officially published last week.The rules also require overseas-based nationals to undergo mandatory verification if they want to target users in Thailand. Foreign nationals will need to submit a passport or corporate documents, thereby closing a loophole used by foreign fraudsters.“This measure forces platforms to screen 100 percent of advertisers, making it much harder for fake pages or fraudsters abroad to target Thai users with ads,” says Pawat Pongwityapanu, a candidate for the Minister of Digital Economy and Society by the People’s Party at the upcoming Thai elections.The measures come amid an explosion of financial scams and fraud on popular social networks driven by criminal organizations in Cambodia, Myanmar and Laos. Funds stolen by criminal syndicates based in Mekong countries likely exceed US$43.8 billion a year, according to data from the U.S. Institute of Peace.Facebook has become a favorite destination for scammers, as approximately 85 percent of the population uses the platform. The Thai government has previously threatened to shut down Facebook in the country, accusing Meta of not doing enough to screen the advertisements it runs.The new measures cover all social platforms that sell advertisements. Platforms would be required to hold advertiser records, including those of anyone paying on their behalf, for at least 90 days post-campaign, giving authorities a window to investigate fraud.The enforcement of the new rule is expected to start within 180 days, in early November 2026, Nation Thailand reports.The news comes as other countries in the ASEAN region attempt to reign in widespread scams on Facebook. Last year, the Singaporean authorities implemented a directive that required Meta to bring in measures including facial recognition to curb scams.Malaysia looking into legal action against Meta over impersonation-Last week, the Malaysian government announced it was considering legal action against social media platforms after fake accounts impersonating members of royal families appeared on Facebook. More than 15,000 fake accounts impersonating 26 members of the royal family were identified between January and April 2026.“We will study several measures, including legal action against platforms that continue to fail in curbing the existence of fake accounts, especially those involving the Malay rulers,” says Communications Minister Fahmi Fadzil.The country is also looking into the proliferation of scams and gambling on social platforms, The Straits Times reports. Under the Malay Online Safety Act (ONSA), fines could reach up to 10 million Malaysian ringgits (US$2.5 million).ASEAN countries signed a declaration in January pledging to boost collaboration to prevent online scams and to invest in technologies such as AI.
Jordan grants legal status to Sanad digital ID as users pass 2.6M-Amended Civil Status Law gives app-based IDs full legal validity across public services-May 11, 2026, 12:19 pm EDT | Joel R. McConvey
Jordan’s Sanad digital identity app, which operates using iris biometrics from IrisGuard, now has full legal status. A report from the Jordan Times says it comes with publication of the amended Civil Status Law of 2026, which “explicitly recognises digital IDs issued through applications approved by the Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship, granting them the same legal validity as physical national ID cards for all purposes under Jordanian law.”Specifically, an amendment to Article 39 of the law dictates that digital ID is officially defined as “the electronic version of the national ID card and is legally accepted for all procedures and transactions covered by existing legislation.”The piece quotes Sanad Director Mohammad Battikhi, who says that, “in simple terms, your digital ID on Sanad now carries the same legal authority as the physical civil status card in your pocket.”According to Jordan’s Ministry of Digital Economy and Entrepreneurship, more than 2.6 million citizens have activated their digital identities through the Sanad app, with 600,000 of those activated since the beginning of 2026. Adoption is driven partly by the introduction of a unified service model which includes a fully mobile digital identity issuance process, eliminating the need for users to visit a physical service station. But uptake is not much of a surprise, given that the amendments to the country’s civil status legislation make digital ID mandatory for access to public services.In total, Sanad offers access to more than 500 online services – around 80 percent of the whole. Sanad users can remotely activate digital IDs, update phone numbers, reset passwords, enhance the display of digital documents, enable offline access to documents through fingerprint authentication, and link documents to related services.Recent upgrades to the app added e-passport services, vehicle registration renewals, and digital signature services, and added payment support for Apple Pay and Google Pay alongside credit cards and direct transfers. In effect, it is Jordan’s version of the government wallet, and it is at the center of Jordan’s digital transformation efforts, which aim to position it as a digitalization leader in the Middle East.
Sri Lanka launches data-driven early warning system for conflict response-Platform uses real-time analytics to detect tensions, as digital identity is framed as a tool for inclusion and trust-May 11, 2026, 12:13 pm EDT | Duruthu Edirimuni Chandrasekera
As part of a broader push to strengthen governance through digital infrastructure, Sri Lanka has launched a new Early Warning and Early Response (EWER) system designed to detect and address potential ethnic or religious tensions using real-time data analytics. The early warning system operates under the National Council for Disaster Management, supported by the National Emergency Operation Plan (NEOP).The Ministry of Digital Economy has positioned the Sri Lanka Unique Digital Identity (SL-UDI) as a “cornerstone for inclusive governance,” aimed at expanding access to public services across regions, particularly in former conflict zones in the North and East. Digital ID is also framed as a tool to improve transparency by reducing corruption and administrative friction, while extending formal identity to historically underserved groups such as plantation workers and war widows. However, access gaps remain, highlighting the challenge of translating digital identity infrastructure into meaningful inclusion.The system, introduced by the Office for National Unity and Reconciliation (ONUR) and the Ministry of Digital Economy, aims to identify risks early and coordinate responses across government agencies, community leaders and security services. Officials say the platform will support non-violent conflict resolution by enabling faster, more coordinated interventions. Deputy Minister of Digital Economy Eranga Weeraratne said the initiative aligns with the country’s National Digital Economy Strategy 2030, which prioritizes digitization of public services, payments and cybersecurity.This is done by integrating socioeconomic data, which may be linked to digital identity, which can help in identifying early warnings of conflict situations, the Minister said. He also said that the digital ID will integrate community reporting, digital technology, and, with multi-stakeholder coordination, it will identify risks and prevent conflicts, or disaster impacts in the Island. The rollout also highlights how Sri Lanka is linking its reconciliation agenda to broader digital transformation efforts, including the development of a national digital identity system. Officials emphasize that the EWER system will operate with safeguards for data privacy and individual freedoms, in line with international standards, as the government seeks to balance security, governance and civil liberties.The initiative reflects a broader trend toward using data-driven systems to manage social risk, raising questions about how such platforms are governed, how data is used and what oversight mechanisms are in place as digital infrastructure expands.
