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Monday, January 12, 2026

Pro-Freedom Protests Surge in Iran; Regime ‘Massacres’ Protestors

The people are emboldened, standing up the Ayatollah and his authoritarian Shi’ite clerics. The regime is pushing back in a brutal way. New York Post: Iranian authorities have mercilessly slaughtered more than 500 people in a ruthless crackdown on the nationwide anti-regime uprising — in what human rights groups have warned is a state-sponsored “massacre” in progress. Disturbing images show body bags piling up in Tehran, prompting former top military officials to urge President Trump to take decisive action. At least 496 protesters have been killed in the two weeks of unrest that has engulfed the oppressive theocracy, according to alarming estimates released Sunday from US-based Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRANA). In addition, 48 security personnel have lost their lives and more than 10,600 people have been arrested, the rights group said. Retired Army Gen. Jack Keane warned Sunday that many of those jailed would likely be executed (New York Post). Telegraph: Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRANA), a US-based group, said it had verified the deaths of 490 protesters and 48 security personnel, with more than 10,600 people arrested. The Telegraph was unable to verify the figures independently. It puts the series of protests, now entering their third week, on course to be the bloodiest since 2019. Because of suppression of the media and Iran’s internet blackout, the figure is likely to be an underestimate, as anecdotal reports come in of hospitals overwhelmed with seriously wounded protesters shot by regime forces…. Doctors reported an increasing trend of protesters being shot in the head and neck, often at close range. The Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights said on Sunday that unverified reports suggested more than 2,000 people may have been killed. It denounced the regime’s sweeping crackdown as a “mass killing” and a “major international crime against the people of Iran” (Telegraph). First-hand account: Here, it’s truly hell. For us, it smells of victory, and for them, it reeks of the stench of overthrow, and they know it too (Berg).

Shah to the People of Iran: ‘Iran’s freedom is near’

More precisely, Reza Pahlavi is the son of the last Shah, but he’s become the leader and rallying point—with chants of “Pahlavi will return,” “long live the Shah” and “death to Khamenei.” After directing the people of Iran to continue their courageous efforts, he ends: We stand on the threshold of reclaiming our beloved Iran from the Islamic Republic. Khamenei and his regime have already suffered several heavy blows at your hands, and we must not allow them a moment to recover. The regime faces a severe shortage of forces of repression; the increase in gunfire against the people is not a sign of strength, but of fear—fear of collapse and an accelerated downfall. We will not allow these criminals to spill any more of our young people’s blood. We will not give them that chance. We will not retreat. Iran’s freedom is near. The blood shed by Iran’s immortal sons and daughters guides our path to toward victory. We are not alone. International support will soon arrive. Standby for my next messages. Very soon, we will reclaim our beloved Iran back from the Islamic Republic, and celebrations of freedom and victory will fill every corner of our country (Pahlavi).

Senior Administration Officials to Give Trump Briefing on Tuesday With Options on Iran

The Wall Street Journal reports: The president’s planned meeting with senior administration officials will be a discussion about the next steps, which could include boosting antigovernment sources online, deploying secretive cyber weapons against Iranian military and civilian sites, placing more sanctions on the regime and military strikes, the officials said. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Joint Chiefs Chair Gen. Dan Caine are expected to attend the Tuesday meeting, the officials said. Trump isn’t expected to make a final decision at the meeting as the deliberations are at an early stage (Wall Street Journal). Israel Hayom: Also included in the American target bank are kinetic strikes against military objectives, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps facilities, and bases of the Basij, the militia forces involved in suppressing the protests. The most significant lever, however, is economic. The US is planning to impose additional sanctions on Iran beyond those already in place on oil exports and military components. The goal is to reduce maritime and air trade with Iran to an absolute minimum, especially exports from the country, in order to entirely paralyze Iran’s economy (Israel Hayom).

Pro-Hamas Chants Outside Queens Synagogue: ‘We support Hamas here’

It’s exactly the sort of thing opponents of Mamdani were warning about. CBS News: A protest that took place outside a Queens synagogue Thursday evening is sparking outrage. The group Palestinian Assembly for Liberation organized a rally outside Young Israel of Kew Gardens Hills yeshiva in protest of an event promoting real estate investments in Jerusalem. Protesters gathered on the sidewalk behind barricades across the street from the yeshiva at the corner of 150th Street and 70th Road, some carrying Palestinian flags. In at least one video posted to social media, the demonstrators appear to be chanting, “We support Hamas here.” … The apparent chanting is reverberating far and wide (CBS). New York Mayor Mamdani condemned the chants, but few are believing he’s speaking sincerely. Twitchy: Suddenly, Mayor Mamdani is wholly opposed to Hamas and it is very vocal about his distaste with the terrorist group. His past behavior, however, tells a much different story (Twitchy). Joel Petlin: Just two years before becoming the mayor of NY City, this man was leading a chant against Senator Gillibrand with the same terrorist supporters he is criticizing today. Forgive me if I don’t believe that Zohran Mamdani has changed at all (Petlin).

Arson at Largest Synagogue in Mississippi

It’s the same house of worship that was bombed by the Ku Klux Klan in 1967. Yes: We have a problem with resurgent anti-Semitism and leaders who seed it and flirt with it. Mississippi Today: A fire heavily damaged Mississippi’s largest synagogue before dawn Saturday…. The Jackson Fire Department, the FBI and the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives arrested a suspect Saturday night in the latest blaze after the fire department ruled it arson, according to chief fire investigator Charles Felton. Investigators did not immediately release the name of the suspect or the charges the person could face. The fire was reported shortly after 3 a.m. at Beth Israel Congregation on Old Canton Road. No congregants were injured (Mississippi Today). Israel’s Ambassador to the US, Yechiel (Michael) Leiter: If you’re not seeing the events of this weekend as cause and effect- you’re not looking. The very same synagogue in Mississippi that was firebombed by the ku-klux-klan in 1967, was set on fire this weekend. Not even 48 hours earlier, “protesters” in New York prided themselves on their support for Hamas, across the street from a synagogue. A reality in which people can freely exclaim their support for a barbaric terrorist organisation, like we saw in New York on Friday, is exactly what leads to people setting synagogues on fire (Leiter) . John Podhoretz: The fact this isn’t the biggest story of the morning, or the day so far, should tell you just how normalized anti-Semitic action is becoming (Podhoretz). Becky Noble at Red State: Jackson Mayor John Horhn issued a statement, saying, “Acts of antisemitism, racism, and religious hatred are attacks on Jackson as a whole and will be treated as acts of terror against residents’ safety and freedom to worship.” Horhn also confirmed that one person was in custody in relation to the blaze, but the suspect’s name had not been released or what charges that person may be facing. Beth Israel is the only synagogue in Jackson, and the largest in the state (Red State).

Trump Delivers Blunt Message to Cuba: ‘NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA’

President Trump on Sunday morning: Cuba lived, for many years, on large amounts of OIL and MONEY from Venezuela. In return, Cuba provided “Security Services” for the last two Venezuelan dictators, BUT NOT ANYMORE! Most of those Cubans are DEAD from last weeks U.S.A. attack, and Venezuela doesn’t need protection anymore from the thugs and extortionists who held them hostage for so many years. Venezuela now has the United States of America, the most powerful military in the World (by far!), to protect them, and protect them we will. THERE WILL BE NO MORE OIL OR MONEY GOING TO CUBA – ZERO! I strongly suggest they make a deal, BEFORE IT IS TOO LATE. Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DJT (Truth). Matthew Rice for the New York Sun: The president and his staff have been reveling in the new “Trump Corollary” to the Monroe Doctrine in recent days, which states that Mr. Trump has the right to intervene across the western hemisphere if it serves America’s interests. The Cuban government is the latest target of that policy (New York Sun). Cuba’s response? Via the Hill: Cuba has responded to President Trump’s demand to cut a deal with the United States, saying, “No one dictates what we do.” “#Cuba is a free, independent, and sovereign nation. No one dictates what we do. Cuba does not aggress; it is aggressed upon by the United States for 66 years, and it does not threaten; it prepares, ready to defend the Homeland to the last drop of blood,” Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel said Sunday (The Hill).

Details Coming Out of Maduro Operation Confirm Elite Nature of US Military

U.S. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt encouraged her followers to, “Stop what you’re doing and read this” (Leavitt). The first-hand account of the Maduro raid stirs pride and gratitude. Quoting a Venezuelan security guard: After those drones appeared, some helicopters arrived, but there were very few. I think barely eight helicopters. From those helicopters, soldiers came down, but a very small number. Maybe twenty men. But those men were technologically very advanced. They didn’t look like anything we’ve fought against before. Interviewer: And then the battle began? Security Guard: Yes, but it was a massacre. We were hundreds, but we had no chance. They were shooting with such precision and speed… it seemed like each soldier was firing 300 rounds per minute. We couldn’t do anything. Interviewer: And your own weapons? Didn’t they help? Security Guard: No help at all. Because it wasn’t just the weapons. At one point, they launched something—I don’t know how to describe it… it was like a very intense sound wave. Suddenly I felt like my head was exploding from the inside. We all started bleeding from the nose. Some were vomiting blood. We fell to the ground, unable to move…. We had no way to compete with their technology, with their weapons. I swear, I’ve never seen anything like it. We couldn’t even stand up after that sonic weapon or whatever it was (Netter). Apparently, it’s an “Active Denial System”—or some updated derivative of it—that Peter Doocy looked at over a decade ago: (Daugherty).

DHS Secretary Noem Defends ICE, Sending More Agents to Minneapolis

The Homeland Security Secretary was bold in defending her agents generally and, more specifically, the agent who was forced to use lethal force to defend himself last week. Scott McClallen at Fox News: Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem slammed CNN’s Jake Tapper in a Sunday interview about the fatal ICE shooting in Minneapolis. A federal employee fatally shot a woman who drove her SUV into him. CNN’s Jake Tapper: “I’m wondering if you’re not doing a disservice to the officer by reaching a conclusion before the investigation takes place.” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem responded: “I haven’t heard you say once what a disservice it’s done for Mayor Frey to get up and to tell ICE to get the eff out of his city and AOC to stand up before she had any of the facts and call this officer a mu*derer.” “Call them out, Jake. Spend as much time calling them out,” Noem said (Townhall.com). Secretary Noem has promised to send hundreds more agents to Minneapolis this week—from her conversation with Mario Bartiromo on Sunday Morning Futures (Fox News).

Tragic Loss of Life in Minneapolis Comes on Heels of 3,200 Percent Increase in Vehicular Attacks on Law Enforcement Officers

When vehicles are used to ram and charge and block law enforcement, it was only a matter of time before someone was going to get hurt. DHS: Today, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) released new statistics on assaults against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) law enforcement who now face a more than 1,300% increase in assaults, a 3,200% increase in vehicular attacks against them, and an 8,000% increase in death threats. Sanctuary politicians have created an environment that encourages rampant assaults on law enforcement. During the first year of the Trump administration, from January 20 – December 31, 2025, DHS officials reported 275 assaults as compared to the 19 reported assaults during the same period in 2024. This is a horrific 1,347% increase in assaults against ICE officers. From January 21, 2025 – January 7, 2026, ICE law enforcement officers experienced 66 vehicular attacks against them, compared to only 2 during the same time period the previous year. This is a 3,200% increase in vehicular attacks (DHS).

10.

Venezuela, Cuba, Iran, Greenland and Beyond: Trump and Our Volatile Moment

As the news narrative shifts quickly from one nation and continent to another, the volatility of our moment is where Trump has thrived. Walter Russell Mead has been watching Trump closely this past decade. Mead’s latest: while other American presidents would view this extreme volatility and risk as a problem to be solved, the current president sees it as a condition to exploit. It is not merely that his high-wire act supports and intensifies the drama and excitement that made him the dominant figure in American and then global politics for the past decade. It is also that his ability, real or perceived, to change the course of world politics on a whim increases his leverage at home and abroad. When a man can make war or peace, promote or block trade, make you rich or freeze you out, other people do what they can to stay on his good side. Imagine for a moment that Mr. Trump’s various gambles pay off. Cuba presumably will have to make its peace with America if Venezuela cuts off the oil and Washington tightens the screws on Havana. If six months from now Cuba, Venezuela and Iran have all changed alignment, Mr. Trump will tower above his recent predecessors…. It is, however, at least equally possible that it all goes awry…. If Mr. Trump fails, his successors will struggle to clean up the mess he leaves behind. If he succeeds, he will have built a new world. In the moment of maximum drama and uncertainty in which we now live, nobody knows what the outcome will be. Your Global View columnist is only confident that, whatever is coming next, it won’t be boring (Walter Russell Mead).

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