Russia Launches Springtime Offensive On Ukraine, As "That Other War" Drags On

Just days after we reported that trilateral peace negotiations between Russia, Ukraine, and the Trump administration had been suspended -  likely indefinitely - thanks to Washington's escalating involvement in the Iran war, Reuters is now confirming the inevitable: Moscow is pressing ahead with a fresh springtime offensive while Kiev scrambles to hold the line.

As we reported before, from the collapse of talks in Geneva and Miami to Putin's envoy shuttling back for what turned out to be fruitless charades, the Iran war has not only sucked up U.S. attention and air-defense munitions Ukraine desperately needs, but has also juiced Russian oil revenues at the worst possible moment for Kremlin planners. 

According to the latest from Kiev, Ukraine's strategy now boils down to "building on recent tactical successes and battlefield innovations like mid-range strikes" to blunt the assault on the so-called Fortress Belt, the heavily fortified cluster of cities in Donetsk including Sloviansk (northern anchor), Pokrovsk, and Kostiantynivka. Russia, fresh off capturing nearly all of the key logistics hub at Pokrovsk this winter, has already launched a battalion-sized push northeast of Sloviansk and smaller probing attacks around the southern end of the belt. The U.S.-based Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and Finnish analysts at Black Bird Group are calling it exactly what it is: Moscow creating conditions for a broader offensive now that the ground has thawed.

Sloviansk authorities just ordered the compulsory evacuation of children as Russian forces sit a mere 20 km away — a grim sign the "deteriorating security situation" is no longer hypothetical. Russian General Staff chief Valery Gerasimov boasted last week that the offensive is "underway in all directions," explicitly naming Sloviansk, Kramatorsk, and Kostiantynivka as targets. Over the past four days alone, Ukrainian General Staff data shows Russia conducted more than 600 assaults across the front, with the heaviest concentration (163) near Pokrovsk.

This is precisely the momentum we highlighted in our March 17 piece, "Russia Touts Capture Of A Dozen Ukrainian Settlements In Opening Weeks Of March," where Gerasimov himself confirmed 12 settlements "liberated" in just two weeks, with street fighting already deep inside Kostiantynivka.

Ukraine's Counter-Narrative: Drones, Starlink Sabotage, And "Metrics"

Kyiv isn't exactly waving the white flag. Officials point to modest territorial gains last month - around 400 sq km in Zaporizhzhia, the first net positive since summer 2024 - aided in no small part by Elon Musk's crackdown on Russian Starlink usage, which reportedly scrambled Moscow's comms. Ukraine's new Defense Minister Mykhailo Fedorov (the former digital guru) is pushing a "technology-driven, metrics-focused" plan, claiming Ukrainian forces are now eliminating more Russian troops than Moscow can recruit.

New recruits of the 65th Separate Mechanized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces attend a military training near a frontline, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine March 21, 2026.

Analysts like Rob Lee at the Foreign Policy Research Institute and Vladyslav Urubkov of the Come Back Alive charity acknowledge Russia's manpower edge but argue improved Ukrainian drone integration and tactical assaults could cap Moscow's gains at a few hundred square kilometers per month. ISW, for its part, expects "some tactical gains" around the Fortress Belt in 2026, but no major breakthrough.

The Real Story: Manpower, Money, And Distraction

Reality check: Ukraine is still bleeding manpower, struggling to recruit enough bodies for the meat grinder, while its finances teeter after Hungary vetoed a €90 billion EU loan package this month. Russia, meanwhile, watches oil prices soar courtesy of the Iran war, boosting export revenues (earlier we reported that India purchased 60 million barrels of Russian oil courtesy of the recent unsanctioning by the Trump admin). And those U.S. air-defense stocks Ukraine relies on? Now being diverted to the Middle East theater.

President Zelensky himself admitted on Sunday that Russia is exploiting warmer weather to intensify operations, a far cry from the "we're winning" rhetoric that dominated Western media for years. Commanders on the ground describe the expected Russian playbook: multi-axis pressure to rupture Ukrainian formations at weak points, with armored pushes (now rarer thanks to drone dominance) signaling Moscow's desire to accelerate.

The "Peace" Theater Was Always a Sideshow

Recall our coverage of the endless cycle: Zelensky exploding under U.S. pressure in February ("no time for unsuccessful decisions"), Putin reportedly floating intel-sharing swaps tied to Ukraine aid, and European meddling that only prolonged the agony while Russian forces kept grinding forward.

The Iran conflict didn't just pause talks — it exposed the whole farce. Washington can't mediate while fighting on another front, Europe can't deliver the cash, and Kyiv can't hold the line forever against a Russia that has already captured thousands of square kilometers since 2025.

The grinding war of attrition continues. Fortress Belt under assault. Peace talks? Suspended, likely indefinitely, especially with the world's attention glued to that "other", far bigger war.

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 22:35

Chevron Warns California Facing Historic Fuel Crisis As Diesel Hits Record $7

The world's biggest energy execs are currently at the annual CERAWeek conclave in Houston where, understandably, they are dropping bulletin bombs reeking of fire and brimstone, and warning the already critical oil/gas situation will only get worse if the pre-war status quo isn't restored (which incidentally will be great for their bottom lines... until the world is tipped into a recession).

Take US oil giant Chevron, which warned that California is careening toward an energy crisis because of the Iran war (which will likely be resolved soon), and that the company may quit refining oil in the state unless officials roll back taxes and regulations (which is unlikely to ever be resolved as long as Dems are in charge of the Golden State).

California is highly exposed to the disruption rippling across commodity markets because it imports about 20% of its refined fuels from Asia. But as extensively discussed here, oil product shipments from China, South Korea, Singapore and elsewhere are at risk of slowing significantly as Iran blocks the Strait of Hormuz, leaving Asian nations struggling to meet their own demand at home let alone export to California.

Chevron’s oil refining head Andy Walz said the potential for fuel shortages in California is his worst fear: “We have refineries in Asia that are having to cut crude, and so they’re going to make less products,” Walz said in an interview Tuesday. “What if San Francisco doesn’t have the jet fuel it needs? Or Los Angeles? Or maybe gasoline?”

And as if to confirm his warning, just hours later the price of California Diesel hit a record high just above $7 per gallon, or $7.072 to be precise. 

That topped the previous record of $7.012 in June 2022, in the first months of Russia’s war in Ukraine.

Source: AAA

Since California is disconnected from the US fuel-making centers of Texas and Louisiana, it is essentially an energy island. That’s compounded by multiple refinery closures in recent years due to increased costs driven by regulations designed to fight climate change and cap oil industry profits, not to mention the state's toxic and oppressive regulatory regime. 

As a result, California consumers are more exposed than most other Americans to surging energy prices because of the Iran war. They already pay nearly $6 for a gallon of gasoline, compared with a national average of close to $4, due to the state's ruinous legacy "green" regime. It’s a growing political problem for Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat who is expected to run for president in 2028.

“California has decided that they’re going to rely on imports,” Walz said at the CERAWeek by S&P Global conference in Houston. “It’s a dangerous game", Walz added tongue-in-cheek.

California officials should declare an “energy emergency,” reform its climate and tax rules and promote in-state oil production, Walz said. Without such action, Chevron could quit refining in California within a decade, he said.

A spokesman for California Governor Newsom’s office said oil companies are “cashing in” on the war in Iran and running a “coordinated campaign” to attack California. In other words nothing will change until prices get to be so high, the state's residents demand change.

“If they’re serious about protecting consumers, they should direct that concern where it belongs: at Donald Trump. There’s no end in sight to Trump’s war taxing American families at the pump,” the spokesman, Anthony Martinez, said in an email, confirming Newsom's plan is... to pretend there is no problem.

Meanwhile, anyone with a brain can see what's coming: the problem in California is one of the state’s own making, Walz said.

The Trump administration has already used emergency wartime powers to authorize Sable Offshore, a Houston-based driller, to restart oil production off the California coast. The president has also temporarily waived a century-old maritime law called the Jones Act to help make it cheaper and easier to ship gasoline, diesel and other commodities between US ports.

Meanwhile, California already has the nation’s toughest fuel standards as well as a carbon cap-and-trade program that critics say forces consumers to pay the highest prices in the nation. Its goal to reduce carbon emissions 85% by 2045 relies heavily on a near-complete phaseout of gasoline-powered cars and a large reduction in heavy industry — including refining. 

Nonetheless, California remains the country’s second-largest consumer of gasoline and the largest market for jet fuel, for which there’s currently no practical low-carbon alternative. The Democratic state's recent revulsion toward Elon Musk, and Tesla, has not helped the looming fuel crisis. 

“The California intent to offshore carbon to other nations has offshored their security of supply,” Walz said. “They’ve offshored jobs and they haven’t had any impact on carbon.” 

Chevron, which has tankers sitting idle on each side of the Strait of Hormuz, is taking the unusual step of shipping Gulf Coast oil to California through the Panama Canal as the war disrupts shipments from the region that West Coast refiners typically use, Walz said. 

China has already imposed a fuel export ban as shipments from the Gulf dwindle. If the Strait of Hormuz remains blocked long enough, other Asian countries could follow suit. Chevron’s scenario planning initially looked at the Strait being closed until the end of March.

“Now our scenario plans are worse,” Walz said. “It’s going to be longer and we’re trying to look around the corner.”

California is home to more than 30 military bases. That includes one of the largest in the US, Travis Air Force Base, which Chevron supplies from its Richmond refinery.

“I think the US government should be concerned,” Walz said.

But wait, there's more because the state's green lunatics threaten to make an already dire crisis something truly historic: new emissions rules proposed by the California Air Resources Board, if implemented, threaten to drive costs for the state’s remaining refineries even higher. Chevron estimates the additional expenses could hit $500 million within five years.

“They need to abandon the tax on refineries or they won’t have any refineries in 10 years,” Walz said. “If it stays that way — Chevron will be gone in 10 years for sure. We won’t be able to make it.”

* * *

But it's not just California that faces a historic crisis: Europe is about to get crushed as well. 

According to Shell CEO Wael Sawan, Europe will soon begin to experience the same kind of disruption to fuel supplies that Asia has faced due to the war in Iran in recent weeks. Sawan said the effects of the conflict continue to ripple out across global fuel markets, first in South Asia, then Southeast Asia and Northeast Asia, and increasingly in Europe as April approaches.

“We are trying to work with governments to just alert them to the various levers they will need to pull, including on the demand side, including what they need to do around storage,” he said Tuesday at the same CERAWeek conference. 

Just like California, expect Europe to do nothing besides pointing fingers, until it is too late. 

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 22:10

"I'm Done": Robert Malone Exits CDC Vaccine Advisory Role

Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times,

Dr. Robert Malone said on March 25 that he will no longer advise health officials on vaccines.

“I’m done,” Malone told The Epoch Times.

Malone was vice chair of the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP), which advises the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on immunizations.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. selected Malone and other new ACIP members in 2025, after removing the previous slate.

A federal judge recently ruled that Kennedy did not follow proper procedure in appointing the members and stayed the appointments. The judge also blocked changes to the CDC vaccine schedule, some of which were prompted by votes from the remade ACIP.

Malone, a former EpochTV host and an adjunct professor at Louisiana State University, has panned the decision, noting that the judge deemed him unfit even though he has decades of experience in the vaccine field.

Malone said Wednesday that he had already been trying to figure out how to leave ACIP “in some sort of a graceful, professional way for months now,” in part because of criticism from health care groups over matters such as the ACIP vote to recommend the CDC narrow guidance for messenger ribonucleic acid and other vaccines against COVID-19.

He is also focusing on working with the State Department on biological warfare agreements.

Malone said that members, who do not receive compensation, have not been treated well by the Trump administration, pointing to how Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) spokesman Andrew Nixon responded after Malone publicized how officials allegedly told members they would be reconstituting ACIP rather than appeal the judge’s ruling.

“I’m tired of thousands of hours of free labor for just chronic disrespect for all of us,” Malone said.

The Epoch Times has requested a comment from HHS, the CDC’s parent agency, which Kennedy heads.

Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. in Washington on Jan. 29, 2026. Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images

Nixon pointed to how HHS adviser and former ACIP Chairman Martin Kulldorff told Roll Call, which first reported Malone’s departure, that he found Nixon “professional and honest in all his work supporting ACIP.”

The administration has still not appealed the ruling. Nixon told The Epoch Times in a March 20 email, “Unless officially announced by us, any assertions about what we are doing next is baseless speculation.”

Malone said that Kennedy called him on March 25 to provide an update.

“They’re still making decisions about what they’re going to do, trying to come up with a strategy that they can win on,” Malone said.

“And he gave me an update where that sat, but it would be inappropriate for me to share it.”

Dr. Wafik El-Deiry, director of the Legorretta Cancer Center at Brown University, who worked on an ACIP workgroup on COVID-19 vaccines with Malone, wrote in a post on X that he was sad to learn Malone was departing ACIP.

El-Deiry said in a follow-up post on X that his experience of working with Malone was “seeing only extremely knowledgeable, well-informed, always prepared, spontaneous and up to date, sharp, respectful and appropriately critical input as one would expect on a national advisory panel.”

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 19:15

Hot Pot, Hot Mess: Service Robot Goes Berserk In San Jose Dining Room, Must Be Tackled By Staff

On Tuesday, diners at a Haidilao hot-pot restaurant in San Jose saw an unexpected disruption when a service robot, apparently part of an in-house performance, malfunctioned and began moving erratically. Instead of entertaining guests, it knocked dishes to the floor and sent chopsticks flying as employees rushed to contain it. Video from the scene shows staff dodging the machine before eventually tackling it; no injuries are apparent, Hoodline wrote.

A malfunctioning service robot dances uncontrollably at a Haidilao hotpot restaurant in San Jose, California, knocking over tableware as staff members attempt to restrain it, March 2026. pic.twitter.com/6DFCojpeTS

— Future Adam Curtis B-Roll (@adamcurtisbroll) March 17, 2026

A short clip shared online captures the robot, dressed in an orange apron, flailing through the dining area and upsetting tableware. At one point, a worker appears to grab it near the neck while looking at a phone, seemingly trying to access controls as the situation unfolds.

The episode comes amid Haidilao’s broader push into automation. The company has spent years integrating technology into its restaurants, including delivery robots and highly automated kitchens. It also introduced a pilot “smart” restaurant in Beijing in 2018 that relied on robotic arms and guided vehicles.

After the footage spread, many online commenters focused on how the robot was shut down. Some pointed out that no obvious emergency stop button was visible and questioned whether clearer manual override systems should be required in restaurants using such machines.

Reports indicate the robot appeared as part of a promotional tie-in for Disney’s “Zootopia 2.” The incident has renewed concerns about how quickly staff can intervene and safely regain control when robotic systems malfunction in crowded public spaces.

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Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 18:50

More Than 450 TSA Agents Have Quit During DHS Shutdown

Authored by Savannah Hulsey Pointer via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

More than 450 Transportation Security Administration agents have quit since the start of the partial Department of Homeland Security (DHS) shutdown.

Travelers wait in long security lines at George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston, Texas, on March 23, 2026. Ronaldo Schmidt/AFP via Getty Images

The partial shutdown has been ongoing since March 15, when funding for the agency lapsed without additional funding in place. 

Lauren Bis, acting assistant secretary for Public Affairs at DHS, told the Epoch Times in an emailed statement that as of day 38 of the partial shutdown, American travelers are facing hours-long waits at airports across the country.

“More than 450 TSA officers quit and thousands have called out sick from work because they are not able to afford gas, childcare, food, or rent,” Bis said. 

“President [Donald] Trump is taking action to deploy hundreds of ICE officers, who are currently funded by Congress, to airports being adversely impacted. This will help bolster TSA efforts to keep our skies safe and minimize air travel disruptions.”

The department stated that callout rates for TSA agents remained elevated, reaching almost 11 percent on March 23, representing 3,200 officers absent from duty. The recorded high callout rate for the shutdown was nearly 12 percent the day before.

Major airports saw higher than average absences among agents, including 33.7 percent at John F. Kennedy International Airport, 30.4 percent at Baltimore/Washington International Airport, and 27.5 percent at Pittsburgh International Airport

LaGuardia Airport’s callout rate was 20.3 percent, 37.4 percent at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, 34.9 percent at Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, and 40.3 percent at William P. Hobby Airport in Houston.

Federal immigration agents were deployed to 14 U.S. airports starting on March 23.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents went to the international airport in Atlanta, airports in New York City, and a dozen others to help TSA personnel as long lines formed due to a lack of agents. 

As part of the deployment, ICE agents have been sent to Chicago-O’Hare International Airport, Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport, Houston’s William P. Hobby Airport, John F. Kennedy International Airport (New York), LaGuardia Airport (New York), Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport, Luis Munoz Marin International Airport (San Juan, Puerto Rico), Newark Liberty International Airport, Philadelphia International Airport, Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, Pittsburgh International Airport, Southwest Florida International Airport (Fort Myers, Florida), and Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

Senate Republicans are working on a plan to fully fund DHS, but that would exclude ICE enforcement and removal activities. The lawmakers say they would then look to fund the remainder of ICE through the reconciliation budget, which could be accomplished through a simple majority, rather than the 60 votes needed for the current funding plan.

Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.) is cautiously optimistic but said the proposal needs to be in writing.

“I think the deal is possible, but we’re down to that point where, like lots of people are talking, but you’ve got to reduce it to writing, and you’ve got to actually trade paper,” he told reporters.

Coons said he won’t support a bill that doesn’t include reforms to ICE’s detention and deportation operations.

“Conversations are ongoing, but this deal seems to be acceptable,” a White House official told The Epoch Times on March 24.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-S.D.) said, “All I can say is that the discussions have been very positive and productive, and hopefully headed in the right direction.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) offered a similar sentiment, telling reporters, “Both sides are working in a serious way.”

Jackson Richman and Nathan Worcester contributed to this report. 

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 18:25

Baltimore Democrats Triggered After Grok Generates Bikini Elon Musk, Sue xAI Over Sexual Deepfakes

The left-wing one-party rule in Baltimore City can barely govern its own imploding metro area. Parts of downtown are ghost towns; the resident exodus has been severe; taxes are through the roof; industry has left; and decades of progressive policies have helped transform large parts of the metro area into crime-ridden no-go zones. Yet somehow, city officials still found the time to weaponize local agencies and go after Elon Musk. 

Baltimore Mayor Brandon M. Scott and the City Council of Baltimore, represented by the Baltimore City Law Department and DiCello Levitt, filed a lawsuit in the Circuit Court for Baltimore City against Elon Musk's xAI, claiming Grok users were able to create non-consensual sexual deepfakes, including images involving minors, and that the defendants violated Baltimore's Consumer Protection Ordinance.

The core claim in the lawsuit is that Grok was marketed as a general-purpose AI chatbot with supposed safeguards, but in reality, it allegedly allowed users to "undress," sexualize, and manipulate photos of real people, including children, with minimal prompting and without meaningful guardrails or age verification.

"Beginning in late 2025, x.AI expanded Grok's image-generation and image-editing features, which 'edit' existing photographs, including images of private individuals and children, into photorealistic, sexually explicit, or otherwise degrading content. These features allow Grok, with minimal prompting, to 'undress,' sexualize, or otherwise manipulate images uploaded by or depicting third parties," the lawsuit reads.

The lawsuit claims xAI knew the chatbot could be abused on a large scale. It cites allegations that millions of sexualized images were generated in a short period, including thousands that appeared to depict children, and argues users in the metro area were exposed either to the content itself or to the risk that their own images could be turned into deepfakes. 

"These deepfakes, especially those depicting minors, have traumatic, lifelong consequences for victims, who are left with no way to prevent the spread of disturbing, sexualized images created of them without their consent," Mayor Scott wrote in a statement.

The only image in the lawsuit: 

DiCello Levitt Founding Partner Adam Levitt stated, "The City is setting a powerful example for municipalities nationwide in confronting a novel and rapidly advancing technology, and an emerging area of law, where accountability has not yet caught up with innovation."

Baltimore is seeking civil penalties, injunctive relief, restitution, disgorgement, and a jury trial.

What's odd is that Baltimore City officials weirdly found the time to hyperfocus on all things Elon Musk while ignoring all other chatbot companies. This lawsuit is merely a copy of how anti-free-speech Europeans went after Grok over nonconsensual deepfake images while failing to address other chatbots.

We wonder why Baltimore was chosen to target Musk. Let's not forget this is political warfare from the high-ups of the Democratic Party.

Mayor Scott appears to have Soros connections. 

The Govenor of Maryland with Alex Soros ... 

Perhaps the lawsuit from Baltimore is merely a shakedown of the world's richest man. These local Democrats have badly mismanaged the city's finances due to overspending and deficit woes. This mismanagement and failed progressive policies have sparked an exodus of residents, and since 2000, the metro area's population has declined by 1% per year, according to the city's own data.

This is political warfare. Shouldn't Baltimore focus on rebuilding the Key Bridge or stopping the mass hemorrhaging of residents, or perhaps the power bill crisis?

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Christmas is right around the corner... pic.twitter.com/TXc7STNYQW

— ZeroHedge Store (@ZeroHedgeStore) November 3, 2025

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 18:00

BLM Activist Ordered To Pay Back $224,000 In COVID Relief Funds, Donations

Authored by Jill McLaughlin via The Epoch Times,

A Black Lives Matter activist in Boston was ordered on March 23 to pay back more than $224,000 in pandemic relief funds and donations to her nonprofit.

Monica Cannon-Grant, 44, pleaded guilty last fall to multiple fraud charges and filing false tax returns. She was sentenced to serve six months of home confinement, 100 hours of community service, and four years of probation.

Federal District Court Judge Angel Kelly in Boston set the monetary judgment equal to the amount of money Cannon-Grant admitted taking from nonprofit Violence in Boston, which Cannon-Grant founded and where she formerly served as CEO.

In March 2023, a grand jury handed down a 27-count indictment against Cannon-Grant and her husband Clark Grant, charging them with fraud in connection to Violence in Boston, which they founded in 2017. Grant died in a motorcycle crash three weeks after the indictment was served while driving about 30 minutes east of Boston.

Federal prosecutors said Cannon-Grant paid herself about $25,100 in 2020 and more than $170,000 in 2021 from the nonprofit’s account, according to the charging documents.

About $181,037 of the total funds in question were donated to the organization and diverted for her personal use, $33,426 was obtained from pandemic unemployment assistance benefits, and $12,600 were from rental assistance funds, according to the judge.

In September, Cannon-Grant admitted to diverting thousands of dollars in donor money earmarked for the nonprofit for her own personal use, according to federal prosecutors.

In one instance, prosecutors say after receiving about $54,000 in pandemic relief funds from the city of Boston, Cannon-Grant withdrew about $30,000 in cash from the nonprofit’s account and made deposits of $5,200 and $1,000 into her personal checking account. She also made payments on her personal auto loan and car insurance policy.

Cannon-Grant also pleaded guilty to filing false tax returns for two years, among other tax charges.

“Monica Cannon-Grant repeatedly scammed multiple public financial programs and stole money donated by members of the public who believed their donations would aid in reducing violence and promote social awareness,” U.S. Attorney Leah Foley said in September in a statement. “She betrayed the trust of everyone who donated and the public who supported her fraudulent charity.”

Cannon-Grant’s attorneys asked the judge for a lighter sentence of two years of probation, no fine, and a special fee of $1,650. They described their client as a “loving mother, wife, and daughter who had dedicated her life to advancing social justice and serving communities in need.”

Black Lives Matter activists in Los Angeles on Dec. 30, 2020. John Fredricks/The Epoch Times

“She has inspired a generation of social activists to speak out against injustice and to support those around them who need a voice and access to daily essentials like food and housing,” her attorneys wrote in a sentencing memo to the judge.

“Ms. Cannon-Grant made fundamental errors in judgment. She is deeply sorry and has now taken full responsibility for her actions.”

Her attorneys also described Cannon-Grant’s home life as traumatic and violent. She grew up in deep poverty and subsidized housing, and lived on welfare and food stamps with a violent and alcoholic father, according to court documents.

Her attorneys didn’t immediately return a request for comment.

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 17:40

Report Alleges Trump's Daily Military Briefing Scrubs Out Iran War Setbacks

A fresh NBC report has alleged that President Trump is being presented with a very incomplete picture of how the Iran war is going, with the conflict now approaching its first month, and as Washington struggles to find an offramp amid global oil market disruptions.

The report says that his daily military briefing provided by the Pentagon features a roughly 2-minute long video update for President Trump that shows the biggest, most successful strikes on Iranian targets of the prior 48 hours. Negative developments frequently get omitted or glossed over.

via Associated Press

Anonymous US officials have voiced fears that the video briefings, which the president tends to respond positively to, fail to represent the full scope of what's going on. Also, Trump's aides have reportedly voiced greater approval for the briefings, which feature Iranian military equipment and bases and sites getting blown up.

The NBC report, which has been rejected by White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, in essence suggests Trump is not getting properly briefed on major negative developments.

Or in other words, the fear is that briefers are simply favoring information that he wants to hear, and too afraid to deliver bad news. According to NBC:

They said the videos are also driving Trump’s increasing frustration with news coverage of the war. Trump has pointed to the success depicted in the daily videos to privately question why his administration can’t better influence the public narrative, asking aides why the news media doesn’t emphasize what he’s seeing, one of the current U.S. officials and the former U.S. official said.

Again, Leavitt has called all of this "an absolutely false assertion" from people who aren't in the briefing room; however NBC does offer the following example which seems consistent with its reporting:

One example came this month when five U.S. Air Force refueling planes were hit in an Iranian strike at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, according to one of the current U.S. officials. Trump wasn’t briefed about the strikes, and he learned what had happened from media reports, the official said. When Trump inquired, he was told the planes weren’t badly damaged, the official said.

The official said Trump reacted angrily behind the scenes to the news coverage. Publicly he posted on Truth Social calling coverage of the strike misleading and accusing media organizations of wanting the U.S. “to lose the War.”

Given the initial projections by the administration that Operation Epic Fury would be rather quick (a mere 'days' was initially floated at the opener), there's been growing criticism concerning strategy, tactics, and vision - even from former Trump officials. For an example:

Former U.S. Sec. of Defense Jim Mattis on Iran War:

15,000 targets have been hit.

There have been significant military successes, but they are not matched by strategic outcomes.

Now, some of the strategic outcomes floated early on — unconditional surrender, regime change,… pic.twitter.com/mxuO1fpB4W

— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 25, 2026

Many independent analysts have been pointing out, amid the effort to drum up some level of official Washington-Tehran peace talks, that Iran is in fact in a position to impose a high cost on the United States - particularly on the economic and political fronts. 

But still, official US military statements seem to just provide fodder for Trump's 'We Won' statements, which have lately been repeated by the president more and more. Pentagon/DOD spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement, cited by NBC: "Operation Epic Fury has been an overwhelming success, with our forces executing the mission with unmatched precision and achieving every objective set out from the beginning. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth is in constant communication with President Trump regarding every aspect of Operation Epic Fury. We are proud of the exceptional performance by our warfighters and remain fully confident in the commander-in-chief's decisions."

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Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 17:20

Pope Leo XIV Suggests Aerial Bombing Campaigns Should Be 'Banned Forever'

Authored by Dave DeCamp via Antiwar.com,

Pope Leo XIV suggested on Monday that aerial bombing campaigns should have been “banned forever” following the atrocities committed from the sky during the 20th century, as he continues pushing an antiwar message following the start of the US-Israeli war against Iran.

“Airplanes should always be carriers of peace, never of war,” Leo said while hosting executives and staff from ITA Airways, Italy’s national airline, and the Lufthansa Group, according to Vatican News.

“No one should be afraid that threats of death and destruction might come from the sky.”

The Vatican News report said the US-born pope recalled the bombing campaigns of the World Wars and other conflicts.

“After the tragic experiences of the twentieth century, aerial bombings should have been banned forever,” he said.

“Instead, they still exist, and technological development, positive in itself, is being placed at the service of war. This is not progress; it is regression.”

Since World War I, the Vatican has been highly critical of modern war.

“The combatants are the greatest and wealthiest nations of the earth; what wonder, then, if, well provided with the most awful weapons modern military science has devised, they strive to destroy one another with refinements of horror,” Pope Benedict XV said in an encyclical in November 1914, a few months after the outbreak of the First World War.

“There is no limit to the measure of ruin and of slaughter; day by day the earth is drenched with newly-shed blood, and is covered with the bodies of the wounded and of the slain,” Benedict added.

Pope Pius XII, who led the Catholic Church during World War II, was outspoken about the impact that the strategic bombing campaigns and the war in general had on civilians.

“We have had to witness the harrowing scene of death leaping from the skies and stalking pitilessly through unsuspecting homes, striking down women and children,” Pius said in a 1943 letter to US President Franklin D. Roosevelt after US warplanes bombed Rome.

The Second Vatican Council’s 1965 document Gaudium et Spes strongly denounced strategic bombing campaigns aimed at destroying cities, saying:

“Any act of war aimed indiscriminately at the destruction of entire cities or extensive areas along with their population is a crime against God and man himself. It merits unequivocal and unhesitating condemnation.”

Leo has made opposing war a major theme of his pontificate since his election as pope on May 8, 2025.

Since the outbreak of the US-Israeli war on Iran, he has repeatedly called for an end to the conflict and suggested Christian leaders involved in starting wars should examine their conscience and go to confession, remarks seen as aimed at the Trump administration since Leo is American.

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 17:00

Two Years Later, No Key Bridge As Maryland Dems Focus On Tampons In Men's Bathrooms

The two-year anniversary of the catastrophic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge at the Port of Baltimore is on Thursday.

Gubernatorial candidate Ed Hale criticized Democrats in the one-party-ruled state for their inability to properly manage the reconstruction of the Key Bridge, which is critical to the port and local economy and regional supply chains across the Mid-Atlantic region. 

Hale described the Democrats as exhibiting a "failure of leadership" and cited "unacceptable delays" in rebuilding one of Maryland's major freight networks, which links to broader regional supply chains.

"Two years. And what do the people of this community have to show for it?" Hale asked reporters earlier. 

He said, "As a Maryland developer, I know what it takes to move projects forward. These delays are unacceptable, and Maryland families and businesses are paying the price every single day."

Two years later. Where is the bridge?

It's now been 2 years since Key Bridge fell in Baltimore. This is how much is rebuilt: pic.twitter.com/Gnc7uslGjq

— End Wokeness (@EndWokeness) March 24, 2026

Meanwhile, Maryland Democrats in Annapolis have prioritized providing "appropriately sized tampons" for men's bathrooms while advancing a failed left-wing agenda that has sparked a massive exodus of residents, as the state's fiscal status deteriorates.

Maryland Delegate Kathy Szeliga (R) EMBARESSES Democrats who want to force "appropriately sized tampons" into men's bathrooms.

Szeliga: "I've never heard of such a thing... what do you consider appropriate???"pic.twitter.com/jjasHIMtRE https://t.co/gsjXEzXVre

— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) March 24, 2026

Baltimore City is broken. Maryland is broken. This is the direct result of one-party-ruled, left-wing politicians who masquerade as competent managers but are, in fact, incompetent DEI activists.

*  *  *

Click pic, add to cart, sleep like the dead with no grogginess Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 15:50

Washington State's Race-Based Housing Finance Program Faces Federal Probe

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

The Trump administration’s housing department launched an investigation into the Washington State Housing Finance Commission for allegedly violating the Fair Housing Act via its race-based housing finance program, according to a March 24 press release.

President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for Secretary of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Eric Scott Turner, testifies before the Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs on Capitol Hill in Washington on Jan. 16, 2025. Madalina Vasiliu/The Epoch Times

The Department of Housing and Urban Development’s (HUD) Office for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) notified the commission of the investigation into the state’s Covenant Homeownership Program.

Launched in 2024, the program offers down payment and closing cost assistance to homeowners, which, according to its website, seeks to rectify “state-sanctioned racial discrimination in housing.” Applicants for the program must have a household income at or below 120 percent of the area median income, and be a first-time homebuyer who had family living in the state before April 1968. Also, those relatives must have been black, Hispanic, Native American/Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander, Korean, or Asian Indian.

Persons of European, Japanese, Arab, or Jewish ancestry do not appear to qualify, said the HUD statement.

“Fair housing is about equal rights, not extra rights. As HUD secretary, I will not stand for illegal racial and ethnic preferences that deny Americans their right to equal protection under the law,” HUD Secretary Scott Turner said in an X post.

According to the Fair Housing Act, direct providers of housing, including lending institutions, must not discriminate based on the applicant’s race or color, religion, sex, national origin, familial status, or disability.

“DEI is dead at HUD,” Turner said, referring to the so-called diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. “HUD will work to ensure Washington state follows the law and provides equal opportunity for all citizens seeking assistance under the commission’s programs. Under President [Donald] Trump’s leadership, HUD will vigorously enforce the Fair Housing Act and ensure all Americans have an equal shot at the American Dream.”

Regarding the eligibility of certain racial groups compared to others, the FAQ section on the Covenant program’s website said that the “initial eligibility criteria are intentionally narrowly tailored. While many racial, ethnic and religious groups in Washington were subject to unjust and egregious housing discrimination, the Covenant program considers not only this history but also its current impacts.”

“Some of the groups discriminated against continue to show much lower homeownership rates compared with the general white population. These are named in the initial eligibility criteria. However, for other groups (such as Jewish residents), the data is limited when it comes to documenting the lasting impacts of historical discrimination.”

The Epoch Times reached out to the Washington State Housing Finance Commission for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.

On March 16, a coalition of 16 attorneys general filed a lawsuit against HUD for withholding funding from state and local fair housing enforcement agencies, and imposing what they alleged were illegal conditions on HUD funding.

According to Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul, who co-led the coalition lawsuit, the Trump administration is seeking to undermine the existing partnership, based on the Fair Housing Act, between HUD and state agencies, by attacking the states’ ability to combat housing discrimination under their own democratically enacted state laws.

“These actions are part of a broader, ongoing effort by the Trump administration to subvert the legal protections our country has put in place to combat discrimination and to tear down the hard-fought progress we have made for civil rights,” Raoul said.

In a letter sent to the Commission notifying it about the investigation, Craig W. Trainor, HUD’s assistant secretary for Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity, said that the Covenant program was “groundbreaking” and “remarkably generous” but was discriminatory.

“This government-sponsored housing experiment appears to dole out spoils based on race and ancestry,” Trainor said. “[This discrimination] is morally reprehensible, socially perverse, and destructive of America’s pluralistic polity. The Trump Administration will not tolerate it. Not now. Not ever.”

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 14:45

From Zimbabwe To Washington: The Farce Of "Independent" Central Banks

Authored by Nick Giambruno via InternationalMan.com,

When Zimbabwe makes the news, it’s rarely for good reasons.

There’s a good reason for that.

The country has spent years in a state of perpetual crisis.

Hyperinflation obliterated its currency and decimated the economy.

Yet beneath the surface lies extraordinary wealth.

Zimbabwe is rich in natural resources: gold, platinum, diamonds, and some of the most fertile farmland on Earth.

That’s what led me to organize a research trip there about 10 years ago alongside legendary investor Doug Casey.

We also sat down with Gideon Gono, the former head of the central bank, who made everyone “trillionaires.”

From left to right: Nick Giambruno, Doug Casey, Gideon Gono

Gideon Gono was Zimbabwe’s central bank chief during the infamous hyperinflation of 2008–2009.

His signature appears on the now-iconic 100-trillion-dollar Zimbabwe note—the highest denomination of any currency ever printed.

Today, that bill is completely worthless… except as a novelty or collector’s item.

During our meeting, Gono recounted his impossible position as Zimbabwe’s central banker in the 2000s.

The country was flat broke—and it needed to pay the army.

In any country, failing to pay the military spells trouble. But in Africa, it almost guarantees a coup.

So when the Zimbabwean government ordered Gono to print money to pay the army and its other bills, he obeyed. There was no alternative.

He described it as “being in a car without gas,” yet being ordered to drive from point A to point B.

Everyone—Gono included—knew exactly where this was headed.

You didn’t need to be a financial genius to understand that printing currency to fund soaring deficits would end in hyperinflation.

And that’s exactly what happened.

The Gono episode lays bare the uncomfortable truth about central banks.

Central banks were never truly “independent.” It was always an illusion—a societal myth. They exist to siphon wealth from the public through inflation and funnel it to the politically connected.

What Gono did is no different from what the Federal Reserve is doing right now.

Just as the Zimbabwean central bank’s independence was always a sham, so too is the Federal Reserve’s. It’s a mirage—and it’s now fast disappearing.

Even establishment stalwarts like the Bank of England have explicitly recognized this. Here’s what they recently wrote:

“Central bank operational independence underpins monetary and financial stability. A sudden or significant change in perceptions of Federal Reserve credibility could result in a sharp repricing of dollar assets, including US sovereign debt markets, with the potential for increased volatility, risk premia and global spillovers.”

The Federal Reserve maintained its mirage of independence for over 110 years. But that’s changing as an increasingly imminent debt crisis forces the US government to fund itself more explicitly through the Fed’s printing presses.

Trump is simply doing what any leader in his position would do. No one believes China’s central bank is independent of Xi. If any nation faced a similar situation, its central bank would fall in line with government demands for easy money.

What is happening in the US is not that different from what happened in Zimbabwe—or in any other country where government finances became desperate. They always turn to the central bank to print currency to help finance their spending.

As the issuer of the world’s reserve currency and the most powerful government in the world, the US can extend the charade of solvency longer than any other entity on the planet. However, even the mightiest empires in human history couldn’t do so indefinitely—especially once they begin to struggle to service their debt.

One of the most potent and underappreciated forces responsible for the downfall of the most powerful empires throughout history has been debt.

While military defeats, political upheavals, and external invasions often dominate historical accounts of the fall of great powers, excessive debt—the “Empire Killer”—has quietly but relentlessly eroded the foundations of empires across the centuries.

From Rome to the Soviet Union, the over-extension of resources, poor financial management, and the inability to service massive debts have led to economic collapse, social unrest, and, ultimately, the demise of these once-mighty empires. The same pattern is playing out in the US right now.

In short, the US government cannot stop spending, which means deficits cannot stop growing, which means more debt must be issued, which means the government leans on the central bank to help ease the debt burden, which means the illusion of central bank independence evaporates.

And once that happens, ever-increasing currency debasement becomes unstoppable. That’s where we are today. But it won’t end with just higher prices. Capital controls, people controls, price controls, tax hikes, wealth confiscations, and countless other destructive government interventions are all on the menu.

The Gideon Gono story isn’t just a Zimbabwean cautionary tale—it’s a clean, unvarnished look at what happens when a government hits the point of no return and the central bank’s “independence” gives way to political necessity.

That same endgame is now advancing in the US, and when the “reset” phase arrives, the biggest losses will hit those who wait for official confirmation.

To help you prepare, I’ve put together a free special report, The Most Dangerous Economic Crisis in 100 Years… the Top 3 Strategies You Need Right Now, outlining the key trends unfolding now, what they could mean for your money and personal freedom, and the three strategies to consider immediately. Click here to download the free PDF.

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 14:05

Jury Finds Meta and Google Liable in Landmark Social Media Addiction Trial

A jury in Los Angeles Superior Court reached a verdict Wednesday in a major "social media addiction" personal-injury trial  -  finding both Meta Platforms Inc. (Instagram) and Google (YouTube) liable for harms suffered by the plaintiff.

Lawyer Mark Lanier, of the plaintiff Kaley G.M., arrives at court in a key test case accusing Meta and Google's YouTube of harming children's mental health through addictive social media platforms, in Los Angeles, California, U.S., March 25, 2026. REUTERS/Mike Blake

The jury awarded the plaintiff - a now-20-year-old woman identified in court filings as K.G.M. (publicly referred to as “Kaley”) - $3 million in compensatory damages, assigning 70 percent of the award to Meta and 30 percent to Google, according to Courthouse News' Hillel Aron. The verdict came after more than eight days of deliberations. 

Case Details

KGM alleged that she became addicted to YouTube beginning around age 6 and to Instagram beginning around age 9. Her lawsuit claimed the companies’ platforms were defectively designed with features such as infinite scroll, algorithmic content recommendations, notifications, autoplay, and engagement-reward systems that foreseeably caused or worsened her depression, anxiety, body dysmorphia, and suicidal thoughts.

"This case is about two of the richest corporations in history, who have engineered addiction in children’s brains," Lanier said in February.

TikTok and Snap Inc. settled with the plaintiff before trial for undisclosed amounts. The case against Meta and Google proceeded as the first “bellwether” trial in a massive coordinated proceeding involving approximately 1,600 similar lawsuits filed by individuals, families, and school districts.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg, center, leaves the Los Angeles Superior Court after testifying in the social media trial tasked to determine whether social media giants deliberately designed their platforms to be addictive to children, in Los Angeles, on Feb. 18, 2026. Apu Gomes / AFP via Getty Images

Plaintiff attorneys argued that internal company documents showed Meta and Google were aware of the risks to minors but prioritized user engagement and revenue. Defense attorneys, meanwhile, maintained that the plaintiff’s mental-health struggles had other causes predating her social-media use and that the companies provide parental controls and safety tools. At the beginning of the trial, the jury was instructed that the companies could not be held liable merely for hosting user-generated content under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act.

The trial, presided over by Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Carolyn B. Kuhl, featured roughly one month of testimony, including from the plaintiff, mental-health experts, former platform employees, and Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

This Los Angeles verdict follows by one day a separate March 24, 2026, decision in New Mexico in which a jury found Meta liable under the state’s Unfair Practices Act and ordered the company to pay $375 million in a consumer-protection lawsuit focused on child safety and misleading marketing. Google was not a defendant in the New Mexico case.

The K.G.M. case is one of nine selected bellwether trials expected to guide resolution of the larger litigation wave. While the verdict is not binding on other plaintiffs, it is widely expected to influence settlement discussions across the consolidated cases.

* * * Get addicted to some nice Mangoes

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 13:20

Terrible 5Y Auction: Worst Bid To Cover In 4 Years, Highest Tail Since 2024, Dealers Jump

Another day, another very ugly auction.

After yesterday's appallingly bad 2Y auction, moments ago the Treasury sold $70BN in 5Y paper in what was another terrible auction.

Just after 1pm, the auction stopped at a high yield of 3.966%, up from 3.608% in February and the highest since May 2025. It also tailed the When Issued 3.966% by 1.4bps, the biggest tail since Oct 2024.

The bid to cover was 2.29, down from 2.32 last month and the lowest since Sept 2022. 

The weak demand picture was also seen in the internals, where Indirects dropped to 61.9% from 62.5%, but was above the recent average of 61.7%. Like yesterday, Directs dropped - if to a lesser extent - taking down 22.48% of the auction, down from 24.70% and the lowest since May 2025. Dealers were left to cover the balance, taking 15.6%, the most since May 2024. 

Overall, this was another very ugly auction, if slightly better than yesterday's dismal sale of 2Y paper. Still, that is hardly a endorsement at a time when the US is about to see a surge in war-related deficit funding demands. 

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 13:18

China Signals Strong Support For Pakistani Offer To Host US-Iran Peace Talks

China has made clear that it condemns the US-Israeli attack on Iran, saying the war should have never started, but is now signaling strong support to Pakistani-mediated efforts at finding peace.

Beijing has commented on the Pakistani offer to host US-Iran talks aimed at ending the war, with Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lin Jian telling reporters in Beijing: "Ceasefire and peace talks are more important tasks at hand." The statement comes amid fresh reports that Tehran has rejected an initial 15-point draft plan delivered by Islamabad. 

US Navy/Handout via Reuters

"China supports all efforts conducive to easing tensions, de-escalating the situation and restoring dialogue," the statement added.

On Iran's continued control of the Strait of Hormuz, Lin said: "Maintaining peace and stability in the Middle East and keeping shipping routes safe serves the common interests of the international community."

Iran has said "non-hostile" vessels can still pass through the Strait of Hormuz - of course largely with its main crude buyer China in mind - even as traffic through the chokepoint collapses and fuels what's shaping up to be the worst global energy shock in decades.

In a statement Tuesday delivered to the United Nations, Tehran said ships may use "safe passage" - but only if they "neither participate in nor support acts of aggression against Iran" and strictly adhere to its security rules, which has included reports of paying a $2 million passage fee.

Also on Tuesday, Chinese Special Envoy to the Middle East Zhai Jun said at a briefing after his ​shuttle-diplomacy trip that included recent stops in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait that the US-Israeli operation against Iran must immediately cease or else a "vicious cycle" toward destabilizing the region and disrupt global trade would persist.

"Should hostilities continue to escalate and the situation deteriorate further, the entire region will be plunged into chaos. The use of force will only lead to a vicious cycle… the war should not have begun in the first place," Zhai declared.

It was only days ago that President Trump called on China and Japan to assist in getting the Hormuz Strait back open, but something which especially China has little incentive to do on a military front, as its instead content to watch the US get bogged down in a quagmire amid Tehran's unexpected resilience under the bombs. China itself presumably also already had guarantees of safe passage directly from Tehran.

Iran's foreign minister meanwhile held a phone call with China's foreign minister on Tuesday, per Bloomberg: "Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday called on all parties in the Iran war to seize every opportunity and window for peace and start peace talks as soon as possible, Xinhua reports. Wang made the appeal in a phone conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi."

China Warns Escalation in Iran Conflict Could Spiral Into Chaos, Urges Ceasefire and Talks

Beijing’s Foreign Ministry cautions against further military escalation in the Middle East, calling for an end to hostilities and a return to diplomatic negotiations to prevent regional… pic.twitter.com/gMXwcaNjUj

— Washington Eye (@washington_EY) March 23, 2026

China has long been a powerful ally of Tehran providing with diplomatic cover, institutional support, military cooperation and an economic lifeline - especially as its major oil buyer; however, China is not expected to go further with any kind of direct military support.

There are claims that it could be, alongside Russia, providing some intelligence support though. If this is the case, there is not much Washington can do about it - also as the White House response to widespread reports of Russian intelligence-sharing has been met with some pretty mild and meager statements out of the White House.

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 12:45

In Win For Putin, India Buys 60 Million Barrels Of Russian Oil, As Refiners Increasingly Transact In Yuan, Dirham

Indian refiners have bought about 60 million barrels of Russian oil for delivery next month, which is set to ease some supply concerns as the Middle East war chokes flows.

Citing people familiar, Bloomberg reports that the cargoes were booked at premiums of $5 to $15 a barrel to Brent. The volume is similar to the amount of purchases for this month, but more than double than that for February, according to data intelligence firm Kpler.

The buying spree followed a US waiver that allowed India to take Russian oil that was already loaded onto vessels before March 5 to offset shortages caused by the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz. The measure was subsequently expanded to include other countries and updated to allow purchases of crude already at sea before March 12.

India has bought ~60 million barrels of Russian oil in March, and already booked a similar amount for delivery in April.

The purchases are at a premium of $5-$15 a barrel **above** the Brent benchmark. And current prices, that’s worth >$6.5 billion for each month.

Putin wins.

— Javier Blas (@JavierBlas) March 25, 2026

The South Asian nation has been among the heaviest hit by the Hormuz blockade and the plunge in oil supply as it is heavily reliant on imported oil, and became a major buyer of discounted Russian crude following the invasion of Ukraine in early 2022. However, India sharply cut back purchases from late last year under US pressure, turning instead to barrels from Saudi Arabia and Iraq, much of which then became trapped inside the Persian Gulf after the outbreak of the war. 

Indian officials expect the US waiver to be extended as long as disruptions in Hormuz persist, the people said. Refiners such as Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals and Hindustan Mittal Energy, which had avoided Russian oil since December, have returned to the market, they said.

Separately, Bloomberg also reports that Indian refiners are increasingly settling purchases of Russian oil in alternative currencies, as they seek to reduce reliance on the dollar amid rising geopolitical tensions and shifts in US policy. Transactions are being carried out by depositing Indian rupees into special overseas bank accounts held by Russian sellers which are then being converted into UAE’s dirham or the Chinese yuan. The trades are being facilitated by Indian banks with limited offshore presence.

In addition to the dirham and yuan, firms are also considering the Singapore dollar and Hong Kong dollar, though transactions depend on individual banks’ comfort levels, one of the people added.

While the US earlier this month granted India a waiver to ramp up purchases of Russian oil, it is set to expire on April 11. Ahead of that deadline, some Russian oil firms are pushing for more durable arrangements, seeking payment in alternative currencies to limit exposure to shifting US policy.

In a note on Tuesday, Deutsche Bank said the conflict is testing the Petrodollar’s role as the currency for global oil trade, with one long-term consequence being a potential shift toward the yuan.

No matter what currency is used, Russia is reaping bumper profits on renewed demand and elevated prices for its oil. The Kremlin is earning the most from its crude exports since March 2022, shortly after Moscow’s troops poured into Ukraine.

In addition to buying more Russian oil, Indian processors are also looking elsewhere to diversify their supply as the war drags on. The country’s purchases of Venezuelan crude for April arrival are projected at 8 million barrels, the highest since October 2020, according to Kpler.

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 12:25

Meta To Lay Off Hundreds Of Workers Today As AI Pivot Accelerates

Meta Platforms is laying off a few hundred employees today as its workforce restructuring continues, following years of terrible metaverse bets and overhiring during the Covid era. Reports of another round of layoffs surfaced earlier this month, and just last week, Meta shut down Horizon Worlds, its virtual reality social network for Quest headsets.

The Information reports that a few hundred employees will be let go today as part of the company's effort to reposition itself in the AI space.

People familiar with the workforce restructuring say a majority of the cuts will focus on staff in Reality Labs, social media teams, recruiting, and a smaller number of sales roles.

“Teams across Meta regularly restructure or implement changes to ensure they’re in the best position to achieve their goals. Where possible, we are finding other opportunities for employees whose positions may be impacted," a Meta spokesperson told the outlet.

In mid-March, Reuters reported that a new round of layoffs at Meta was imminent and would reduce the workforce by 20%. The outlet said that the workforce restructuring is intended to redirect capital flows toward AI infrastructure.

The latest Bloomberg data show Meta's total workforce at the end of 2025 was about 79,000. Any layoffs today would amount to only a quarter of a percent.

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been downsizing the workforce since the 2022–23 "year of efficiency" layoffs.

Shares of Meta peaked in August 2025 at around $790 and have since been locked in a bear market, down around 25%.

The reason for Meta's underperformance can be found in our note on Tuesday titled "What's The Matter With Meta: Goldman Explains The Stock's Ongoing Slump."

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 12:05

US Has Been Engaged In Major Airstrikes On Pro-Iran Paramilitaries In Iraq

Authored by Dave DeCamp via AntiWar.com,

Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) said Tuesday that US airstrikes in Anbar, western Iraq, killed 15 of its fighters, including a senior commander.

"In a blatant and cowardly attack, the commander of the Anbar Operations in the Popular Mobilization Forces, Saad Dua al-Bayji, was martyred along with a group of his heroic comrades following a treacherous American airstrike that targeted the command headquarters while they were performing their national duty," the PMF said in a statement, according to The Cradle.

The group added that it was holding the Iraqi government "fully responsible" for "confronting these repeated American violations and taking clear and resolute positions to preserve the country’s sovereignty and put an end to these grave transgressions.”

Iraqi media later reported that Iraq's National Security Council, chaired by Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, has given the PMF the green light to respond to attacks on its positions, a significant step from the US-backed Iraqi government that will likely lead to further escalations inside the country.

The PMF is a coalition of mostly Shia militias aligned with Iran that formed in 2014 to fight ISIS and is officially part of Iraq's security forces. Since the US and Israel launched the war against Iran on February 28, the US has launched extensive strikes against the PMF, killing dozens of its fighters.

US bases and diplomatic facilities in Iraq have come under constant missile and drone attacks and have mostly been claimed by a group that calls itself the Islamic Resistance in Iraq (IRI), which includes some of the factions in the PMF. Amid the heavy attacks, the US ordered all American citizens to leave Iraq, and NATO has withdrawn its forces from the country.

The IRI said on Monday that the US has also pulled all of its forces out of Camp Victory, a major US base near the Baghdad airport, but the withdrawal hasn’t been confirmed. "We confirm that the American and NATO forces have completed their withdrawal from Camp Victory near Baghdad Airport via cargo planes and vehicles overland towards Jordan," the group said. "We will not allow the current government, or the future government, God willing, to allow the Americans and NATO to return to Iraq."

If the US did pull its troops out of Baghdad, there would still be US forces in Iraqi Kurdistan. Kataib Hezbollah, one of the main Iran-aligned militias in Iraq, has said that it has halted attacks on the US Embassy in Baghdad to give the US time to evacuate the facility. "Our primary condition is the expulsion of all foreign troops from the north to the south of Iraq," a Kataib Hezbollah official said.

*  *  *

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 11:25

Supreme Court Limits ISPs' Liability For Online Piracy

The Supreme Court on Tuesday sharply curtailed when internet service providers can be held liable for copyright infringement committed by their subscribers, handing a major victory to broadband companies and dealing a setback to Sony Music Entertainment and other major labels seeking to combat online piracy.

In a 7-2 decision (with Justices Sotomayor and Jackson concurring only in the judgment), the justices ruled that Cox Communications Inc. cannot be held liable for the actions of customers who illegally downloaded and shared songs using its network, even after the company received more than 163,000 infringement notices from copyright holders. The ruling reverses a $1 billion jury verdict against the Atlanta-based cable and internet giant and clarifies long-standing uncertainties about secondary liability under U.S. copyright law.

The case stemmed from a 2018 lawsuit in which the labels accused Cox of willful contributory and vicarious infringement for failing to terminate repeat offenders. A federal jury in Virginia sided with the labels on both theories and awarded $1 billion in statutory damages. The Fourth Circuit upheld the contributory-liability finding but tossed the vicarious-liability verdict, leading to the Supreme Court appeal on the contributory issue alone.

Writing for the majority, Justice Clarence Thomas said a service provider is liable for a user’s infringement only if it intended its service to be used for that purpose. “The provider of a service is contributorily liable for a user’s infringement only if it intended that the provided service be used for infringement, which can be shown only if the party induced the infringement or the provided service is tailored to that infringement,” he wrote.

Such intent exists only when the provider actively induces infringement - such as by marketing a product as a tool for piracy - or offers a service that is “not capable of ‘substantial’ or ‘commercially significant’ noninfringing uses,” the opinion stated, citing the court’s landmark 1984 decision in Sony Corp. of America v. Universal City Studios Inc. and the 2005 ruling in Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc. v. Grokster Ltd. 

“Mere knowledge that a service will be used to infringe is insufficient to establish the required intent to infringe,” Thomas emphasized, rejecting the broader “material contribution” standard applied by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

The decision rejects the Fourth Circuit’s holding that Cox could be liable simply by continuing to provide internet service to subscribers whose accounts were linked to repeated violations. “The Fourth Circuit’s holding went beyond the two forms of liability recognized in Grokster and Sony,” the opinion states.

Cox, which serves about six million subscribers, had argued it took reasonable steps to address piracy, including sending warnings, suspending service and terminating accounts after multiple notices. The company contractually prohibits subscribers from using its network for infringing activity. Sony Music Entertainment and other major labels countered that Cox’s efforts were insufficient.

Tuesday’s ruling is expected to have ripple effects across the telecom and entertainment industries - with industry executives long warning that expansive secondary-liability rules could force providers to monitor and police all user activity, raising costs and privacy concerns. Copyright owners have argued that without stronger accountability for intermediaries, online piracy remains rampant.

For Cox, the ruling caps years of litigation. The company has said it will continue to cooperate with copyright holders through the Digital Millennium Copyright Act’s notice-and-takedown process, though the court noted that the statute creates defenses rather than new causes of action.

The decision comes as Congress continues to debate updates to copyright law in the digital age. In the meantime, Tuesday’s opinion provides clear guidance: Internet providers cannot be turned into copyright enforcers simply by virtue of knowing that some of their subscribers are breaking the rules.

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 11:05

Democrats Flip Trump's Mar-a-Lago District In Florida Special Election Upset

Democrats flipped a reliably red Florida state House seat that includes President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate on Tuesday, scoring a narrow but symbolically significant victory in a special election that drew national attention.

Democrat Emily Gregory defeated Trump-endorsed Republican Jon Maples in House District 87 by just over 2 percentage points, according to unofficial results. The win marks an approximately 11-point swing toward Democrats compared to the 2024 performance in the Palm Beach County district.

Gregory, a first-time candidate who runs a fitness center for postpartum moms and has a background in public health and mental health administration, campaigned on affordability, taxes and kitchen-table issues. Maples, a financial planner and former local council member, had received an endorsement from Trump, who along with first lady Melania Trump and their son Barron voted by mail in the contest.

“I think it demonstrates where the Florida voter is,” Gregory told Politico after her victory. “They want someone who is focused on solutions and the issues and not focused on the noise.”

Democrats also picked up a narrow win in a Tampa-area state Senate seat, where union leader and Navy veteran Brian Nathan defeated former state Rep. Josie Tomkow by a slim margin despite being outspent roughly 10-to-1.

The two Democratic victories will not alter Republican supermajorities in the Florida Legislature. But they come as the latest data point in a series of special-election overperformances and flips for Democrats in the state since Trump’s 2024 victory there - and amid a broader national trend of Democrats gaining ground in state legislative races over the past year.

Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried credited the party's sustained organizing with the win. 

“This victory reiterates an undeniable trend in Florida: With year-round organizing and infrastructure investment, Democrats can run and win anywhere - including Donald Trump’s backyard,” Fried said in a statement. “Floridians are tired of the chaos, corruption, and sky-high prices on everything from groceries to gas and health care.”

In 2024, the House District 87 race had been held by Republican Mike Caruso, who won it by 19 points before being appointed to a local post by Gov. Ron DeSantis, triggering the special election. The contest grew heated in its final days, with sharp exchanges in mailers and text messages.

Democrats poured significant resources into the Palm Beach County race, viewing it as a chance to compete in Trump’s home turf. Republicans, meanwhile, downplayed the significance of the low-turnout special election.

In the state Senate District 14 race, which opened after DeSantis appointed Lt. Gov. Jay Collins last August, Nathan’s upset win was described as a surprise even by some Democrats. Tomkow, a rancher who previously held a House seat in neighboring Polk County, faced questions about her residency in the district.

Nathan, a union leader and veteran, was outspent by roughly 10 to 1 in the race to replace Collins and had received scant support from state Democrats. He narrowly defeated former state Rep. Josie Tomkow, a rancher who had held a House seat in neighboring Polk County. Tomkow’s residency had come under question, although she said she planned to move into the district once she was elected. But even Fried acknowledged that Nathan’s win was in state Senate District 14 was a surprise.

A separate House race created by Tomkow’s departure was won by Republican Hilary Holley by nine points - a solid victory but narrower than Tomkow’s margin in 2024.

Tuesday’s outcomes add to Democratic momentum in Florida special elections, even as the GOP maintains firm control of state government. Party strategists on both sides will be watching whether the results signal anything larger heading into the 2026 midterm cycle.

* * * Must-try Mangoes

 

Tyler Durden Wed, 03/25/2026 - 10:45