Authored by Steve Watson via Modernity.news,

In yet another assault on free expression in British classrooms, schools are being instructed by Labour councils to treat kids’ innocent drawings as potential offenses under Islamic interpretations. 

Guidelines warn that depicting humans or prophets could spark blasphemy complaints, forcing teachers to tiptoe around religious sensitivities at the expense of creativity and open education. 

The push comes amid a broader Labour government drive to monitor and suppress any perceived slights against Muslims, turning schools into surveillance outposts rather than places of learning.

Pupils’ drawings could be blasphemous under Islamic law, Labour councils tell schools – while music and dance classes may go against the teachings of Islam https://t.co/fB8uWaSvx8

— Daily Mail (@DailyMail) March 11, 2026

The guidance, titled “Sharing the Journey,” originates from northern Labour councils like Leeds, Calderdale, Oldham, and Wakefield, and has been adopted by others including Sefton and Tameside. It explicitly states that “for some Muslim parents, sensitivities may exist in connection with the teaching of aspects of art, dance, drama, music, physical education, religious education and RSHE”.

Teachers are advised: “It is very important that the school understands this and is also careful not to ask its students to reproduce images of Jesus, the Prophet Mohammed or other figures considered to be prophets in Islam. Some Muslim pupils may not wish to draw the human figure.” This stems from hadith interpretations prohibiting images of living beings, viewed as idolatrous by some sects.

The restrictions don’t stop at art. On music, the document notes: “in Islam, music is traditionally limited to the human voice and non-tuneable percussion instruments as in the days of the Prophet, when they were only used in marriage ceremonies and on the battlefield”. It adds that “schools should listen to any concerns, discuss the place of music in the curriculum and ensure that students are not asked to join in songs that conflict with their religious beliefs”. 

Dance lessons face similar scrutiny, with warnings that they could cause parental concerns over “physical contact between males and females”. The overall aim, per the introduction, is to play a part in “building harmony and understanding” and fostering “cohesion” in local communities. 

This guidance ties directly into Labour’s escalating surveillance in schools. As we previously reported, Communities Secretary Steve Reed announced: “Today, we are adopting a non-statutory definition of anti-Muslim hostility. This gives a clear explanation of unacceptable prejudice, discrimination and hatred targeting Muslims, so we can take action to stop it.” 

Critics like Richard Holmes from the Free Speech Union countered: “It risks hindering free speech under the law and legitimate criticism of Islamism.” 

‘We do not need a government supplied definition of Islamophobia!’

GB News contributor Connie Shaw explains why the free speech union has claimed the new Islamophobia definition could stifle legitimate criticism of faith and freedom of speech. pic.twitter.com/mk5kYyNzIb

— GB News (@GBNEWS) March 11, 2026

Such monitoring creates a “chilling effect” on debate. It’s no surprise, given the regime’s pattern of stifling dissent. 

While all this is going on, the authorities are pushing propaganda depicting teenage white boys as terror threats.

The indoctrination is reaching into schools.

We have also highlighted earlier indoctrination efforts, including teaching children how to “spot extremist content and misinformation”. 

You can guess what constitutes that from the government’s perspective.

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson announced she was “launching a review of the curriculum in primary and secondary schools to embed critical thinking across multiple subjects,” which really meant training kids to dismiss anything the state labels as “putrid conspiracy theories.” 

What started as spotting ‘fake news’ in English and maths has now morphed into policing playground sketches for blasphemy, all under the same veil of ‘critical thinking’ that stifles genuine inquiry and enforces ideological conformity.

The overreach also extends to online freedoms, with the government once again threatening to shut down X over Grok being recently prompted to produce ‘insults’ and ‘offensive language’.

Even national symbols aren’t safe from this all out assault on British culture. The leaked ‘Social Cohesion’ Strategy draft absurdly claims that “Flying a Union Jack flag is a ‘tool of hate’.

These interconnected policies reveal a clear agenda: under the guise of “cohesion,” the government is dismantling free speech and cultural expression. From classrooms to online platforms, the surveillance state expands, criminalizing everything from kids’ sketches to national flags.

The Batley Grammar School incident in 2021, where a teacher remains in hiding after showing a prophet image, underscores the real dangers of such accommodations. Yet instead of defending educators, authorities double down on restrictions.

This isn’t about harmony—it’s about control. As free-speech advocates warn, these measures inhibit legitimate criticism and debate, all while ignoring actual threats from unchecked migration and extremism.

Britain’s freedoms hang by a thread. Resisting this creeping authoritarianism means championing open discourse and national pride, rejecting a playbook that sacrifices liberty for appeasement.

Your support is crucial in helping us defeat mass censorship. Please consider donating via Locals or check out our unique merch. Follow us on X @ModernityNews.

In what could prove to be a major step up the escalation ladder in the two-week-old US-Israeli war on Iran, President Trump on Friday evening (notably after US market closure) announced that US Central Command had carried out a major bombing raid on Kharg Island, which handles upwards of 90% of Iran’s crude oil exports. Importantly, Iran has previously warned that an attack on the island would cross a red line, and precipitate Iranian attacks on energy infrastructure up and down the Persian Gulf.  

Perhaps with that previous Iran warning in mind — and to allay the fears of US allies in the region who don’t want to see their energy facilities go up in smoke — Trump emphasized that the attack was focused on military assets: 

“Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island.

Our Weapons are the most powerful and sophisticated that the World has ever known but, for reasons of decency, I have chosen NOT to wipe out the Oil Infrastructure on the Island. However, should Iran, or anyone else, do anything to interfere with the Free and Safe Passage of Ships through the Strait of Hormuz, I will immediately reconsider this decision.” 

Iran’s FARS news agency confirmed the attack, saying at least 15 explosions were heard as it unfolded. FARS reports that targets included air defense assets, a naval base, an airport control tower and a helicopter hangar associated with Iranian Offshore Oil Company. The Trump administration released video highlights from the bombing raid: 

Footage has now been published by President Donald J. Trump showing today’s strikes against Iranian military targets on Kharg Island in the Northern Persian Gulf, which acts as a port hub for the export of up to 90% of oil products leaving Iran. In the footage, strikes can be… pic.twitter.com/WH3iWw74sE

— OSINTdefender (@sentdefender) March 14, 2026

Trump’s threat to “reconsider” the decision not to damage the energy infrastructure on the island if Iran continues to shut down the Strait of Hormuz will surely cause deep concern among Gulf allies and everyone else who’s wary of the looming global economic catastrophe that will unfold if the Persian Gulf energy shutdown persists.

With Iran apparently bent on imposing a devastating cost for the US-Israeli war — one that will deter future attacks — there’s little reason to think Tehran is going signal “all clear” on the strait anytime soon. 

Five miles long and situated 15 to 20 miles off the mainland-Iranian coast, Kharg Island is essential to Iran’s export of petroleum. Facilities there have continued to operate throughout the war, with at least 10 tankers hauling off nearly 19 million barrels since the US-Israeli surprise attack on Feb 28. Iran has, however, sought to add a small measure of export-facility diversification, by reopening energy exports at the Jask terminal, which is southeast of the Straight of Hormuz, in the Gulf of Oman.     

Earlier on Friday, Trump said the US Navy would shortly begin escorting oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, telling reporters, “It will happen soon, very soon.”  A few hours after his Kharg Island announcement, Trump reiterated his latest war-justification that centers on Iran’s supposed schemes for regional conquest, posting that “Iran had plans of taking over the entire Middle East, and completely obliterating Israel. JUST LIKE IRAN ITSELF, THOSE PLANS ARE NOW DEAD!” 

The administration has reportedly contemplated seizing Kharg Island. Given its close proximity to the Iranian mainland — which is teeming with drones, cruise missiles and weapon-bearing speedboats — landing a strike force on the island and then occupying it could come at a high casualty rate.

On Friday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth approved a CENTCOM request for a Marine expeditionary unit to be deployed to the theater of operations. This would typically comprise some 5,000 Marines and sailors on several ships. 

Iranian armed forces statement in response to Trump’s threat to attack oil infrastructure on Kharg Island (published by Iranian state media) pic.twitter.com/8J40dzIE7C

— Steve Lookner (@lookner) March 14, 2026

Some speculation on Trump White House’s thinking regarding this ultra-risky Kharg Island gambit (or what might eventually prove a point of no return) via Jim Bianco:

Recognizing that this could freak out oil markets, they announced it on Friday evening to give markets 48 hours to digest the news. Trump also made it explicit that oil infrastructure would be next if Iran did not allow ships to pass freely through the Strait of Hormuz.

In football terms, they’re throwing a Hail Mary pass now, hoping it works. They don’t have any more time on the clock. Oil markets and the world economy cannot wait weeks or months for the military to open the Strait. Further, I could envision political advisors suggesting that if oil prices are destined to hit $200 without this action, it might as well happen next week, giving six months to bring them down before the midterm elections.

For now, though, all eyes are on Iran, and whether its leaders view a Kharg Island attack that was confined to military targets as within the red-line boundary — or if energy assets across the region will soon be beset by drone swarms and ballistic-missile barrages, sending oil and gas prices rocketing higher. 

Summary:

• Five US Air Force refueling planes were struck and damaged on the ground at Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia: WSJ

• Over 3 million people forcibly displaced by US-Israeli war on Iran: UN

• Iran reportedly approves Indian government sending two liquefied petroleum tankers through Hormuz

• Japan-based USS Tripoli and its attached Marines headed toward Middle East

• WSJ says Pentagon sends Marine expeditionary unit to Middle East. Oil jumps higher

• Pentagon has just confirms two additional deaths in Thursday’s downing of a KC-135 refueling tanker aircraft over Western Iraq: all six US crewmembers are deceased.

• Trump and the Pentagon claim the US and Israel are “totally destroying” Iran as the war enters day 14, with Trump warning Tehran to “watch what happens” and “I am killing them” and “what a great honor it is to”

• Iran’s new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei is reportedly alive but wounded, “damaged,” and “disfigured”

• France and Italy open talks with Iran in hope of securing safe Hormuz Strait passage, FT reporting

• Hegseth briefing: US and Israel have hit more than 15,000 enemy targets since conflict began

• Several senior Iranian officials have been openly marching through the streets of Tehran today even amid smoke from US-Israeli bombing lingers in background.

• CENTCOM: four of six crew members aboard a US refueling aircraft that crashed in Iraq have died. Active search and rescue operation underway 

• Strategic risks remain high as Iran reportedly begins laying mines in the Strait of Hormuz, though oil eased slightly after India said one tanker successfully exited the strait.

* * * 

Update(1955): Things are not OK in the Gulf. Below is a fresh Wall Street Journal update:

Five U.S. Air Force refueling planes were struck and damaged on the ground at Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia, according to two U.S. officials.

The tankers were hit during an Iranian missile strike on the Saudi base in recent days, the officials said. U.S. Central Command declined to comment. The tankers were damaged but not fully destroyed and are being repaired, one of the officials said. No one was killed in the strikes.

The news brings the total number of Air Force refueling planes damaged or destroyed to at least seven.

* * *

Update(1715ET): As was reported earlier this afternoon, the Pentagon is moving a Marine expeditionary unit and additional warships to the Middle East, which strongly points to the Iran war escalating and not de-escalating, for the time being at least.

Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth approved a request from US Central Command for elements of an amphibious ready group and its attached Marine expeditionary unit – typically several warships carrying roughly 5,000 Marines and sailors, as reported in The Wall Street Journal. The reality is that 5,000 Marines still isn’t exactly an invasion force – especially for a country the size of Iran.

Most directly, this seems a response to Iran intensifying attacks around the critical Hormuz Strait shipping lane, but any Marine detachment of this size certainly raises the prospect of deepening involvement, potentially ‘on the ground’ or on shore at least to some extent. 

President Trump and admin officials have repeatedly downplayed a ‘ground war’. Rejecting ground forces was articulated from day one – but it seems each day has brought some WH variety of a no options off the table response, or more of an open-endedness in terms of timeline. The big question remains, and also something global markets are closely watching is… what’s the plan for offramp or achievable ‘victory’ here? Coupled with that of course is how long?

President Trump and his advisers may in fact have a clear (internal) plan in place, which they don’t wish to openly “signal the enemy” with. But the pressure continues to build, and even administration-friendly Fox news has begun nervously asking the question regarding Iran operations. Below is what Trump told Fox News host Brian Kilmeade on Friday:

President Trump says the Iran War will end “when I feel it in my bones.” pic.twitter.com/WenSdyCbU5

— The American Conservative (@amconmag) March 13, 2026

* * *

Update(1105ET): Are we really doing this (again)? The WSJ is reporting a breaking bombshell which suggests US ground forces could be introduced, or else this could also be about securing other areas of the Gulf region:

The Pentagon is moving a Marine expeditionary unit to the Middle East, as Iran steps up its attacks on the Strait of Hormuz, according to two U.S. officials. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has approved a request from U.S. Central Command, responsible for American forces in the Middle East, for the expeditionary unit, typically consisting of up to 2,500 Marines, the officials said.

A follow-up update by WSJ appears to offer confirmation:

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has approved a request from U.S. Central Command, responsible for American forces in the Middle East, for an element of an amphibious ready group and attached Marine expeditionary unit, typically consisting of several warships and 5,000 Marines, the officials said.

The Japan-based USS Tripoli and its attached Marines are now headed for the Middle East, two of the officials said. Marines are already in the Middle East supporting the Iran operation, the officials said.

 The headline was enough to cause oil to immediately jump higher:

* * * Please consider supporting ZeroHedge with the purchase of a hat, t-shirt, or multitool. Thank you. 

President Trump and the Pentagon have claimed that the US and Israel are “totally destroying” Iran as the war enters day 14. Trump warned Iran to “watch what happens” in a social media post, claiming the United States is “totally destroying” the country militarily and economically as the conflict enters its second week.

Writing on Truth Social, Trump said: “We are totally destroying the terrorist regime of Iran, militarily, economically, and otherwise, yet, if you read the Failing New York Times, you would incorrectly think that we are not winning. Iran’s Navy is gone, their Air Force is no longer, missiles, drones and everything else are being decimated, and their leaders have been wiped from the face of the earth.”

He continued: “We have unparalleled firepower, unlimited ammunition, and plenty of time – Watch what happens to these deranged scumbags today. They’ve been killing innocent people all over the world for 47 years, and now I, as the 47th President of the United States of America, am killing them. What a great honor it is to do so!”

War Secretary Pete Hegseth meanwhile claimed Iran’s new supreme leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, is wounded and disfigured. According to Reuters, Trump said he believes Khamenei is alive but “damaged.” He also spent a lot of time complaining about media coverage: “This is always what they do, hold the strait hostage. CNN doesn’t think we thought of that? It’s a fundamentally unserious report,” Hegseth said. “The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better.” Doubling down…

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the U.S. and Israel have hit more than 15,000 enemy targets since the Iran conflict began and that the regime’s new supreme leader is likely wounded, as he doubled down on the war’s impact on Iranian military capabilities.

Mojtaba Khamenei – whose father, Ali Khamenei, was killed on the first day of the war after strikes by the United States and Israel – has not appeared publicly since being selected by a clerical assembly. His first comments were read on state television.

On the ground in Tehran, thousands gathered in Enqelab Square in a show of defiance as fighter jets roared overhead and multiple explosions shook the capital. Additional blasts were reported in the nearby city of Karaj.

According to Dropsite News journalist Jeremy Scahill: 

War Secretary Pete Hegseth just claimed that Iranian leaders have gone underground and are hiding, saying “that’s what rats do.” Meanwhile, several senior Iranian officials have been openly marching through the streets of Tehran today even as US-Israeli bombing continues.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi:

Today is Quds Day in Iran, and despite the brutal attacks by the Zionist regime and the United States, millions of Iranians have taken to the streets in Tehran and other cities, demonstrating their strong will and determination.

The… pic.twitter.com/GvRkfZw1HT

— Clash Report (@clashreport) March 13, 2026

Oil prices edged lower after India said one of its tankers had exited the Strait of Hormuz, raising hopes some shipping may resume. But CNN reports the Pentagon and the National Security Council significantly underestimated Iran’s willingness to shut the strait during planning for the operation.

On the battlefield, Israel said it launched a new “extensive wave” of strikes on Tehran while issuing evacuation orders, as attacks also intensified around Beirut. Meanwhile, Israeli media reported that 11 Iranian cluster missiles penetrated Israeli defenses, with one dispersing about 70 bomblets over central Israel.

WOW. Iran’s top national security official Ali Larijani is marching in Tehran today in broad daylight as part of Al Quds day pic.twitter.com/wlsH195zbj

— Ragıp Soylu (@ragipsoylu) March 13, 2026

In Oman, two people were killed after a drone was shot down in Sohar province, according to state media. Saudi Arabia said its air defenses intercepted eight more drones over the kingdom, including near Riyadh.

United States Central Command said four of six crew members aboard a US refueling aircraft that crashed in Iraq have died. It has an active search and rescue operation underway 

NATO also confirmed it intercepted a ballistic missile fired from Iran toward Turkey the third such alleged interception since the war began. “NATO remains vigilant and stands firm in its defense of all allies,” NATO spokesperson Allison Hart said.

Ongoing evidence of severe damage in the heart of Tel Aviv and elsewhere in Israel:

זוהי המציאות של מה שקורה בישראל, מציאות שהעולם אינו רואה עקב יהירותה של ממשלת נתניהו והצנזורה הצבאית המחמירה המונעת את הפצת תמונות ההרס והנזק העצומים שנגרמו לתל אביב על ידי טילים איראניים.

באמצעות ניהול מלחמה נגד איראן, נתניהו וקבוצתו הקיצונית הפכו את תל אביב להעתק של רצועת עזה. pic.twitter.com/oC4cyckEWh

— إسحاق حمومي | יצחק אל-חמומי 🇮🇱 (@A_Ham96) March 12, 2026

As for the Lebanon front, during a visit to Beirut, Antonio Guterres urged Israel and Hezbollah to “stop the war.” He said “My strong appeal to those parties, to Hezbollah and to Israel, is for a ceasefire to stop the war and… allow Lebanon to become a country independent… where its authorities have the monopoly on use of force.” He added: “This is no longer the time of armed groups… This is the time of strong states.”

According to the Wall Street Journal, Israeli officials now believe Iran’s ruling system is unlikely to collapse soon, despite heavy strikes. US intel reports even before Trump ordered the war had forecast as much. Separately, the New York Times reported that Iran has begun laying naval mines in the Strait of Hormuz using thousands of small naval vessels.

Seriously? You think you’re going to retain any credibility by claiming that we prepared for months to use military force to clear the Strait of Hormuz, but now 13 days into a war with Iran after they closed it down and we still haven’t moved?

There’s no reality to this claim at… https://t.co/AbihaizDQ4

— Daniel Davis Deep Dive (@DanielLDavis1) March 12, 2026

As for European involvement, an Iranian Shahed drone strike in Iraq’s Erbil killed a French soldier, 42-year-old Arnaud Frion, and wounded several others, according to French military officials. Germany also signaled it will not join naval protection efforts in the Strait of Hormuz. Chancellor Friedrich Merz said during a visit to Norway: “Germany is not part of this war and we do not want to become part of it.”

Authored by Mollie Engelhart via The Epoch Times,

As an American, a mother, and a rancher, I have been reflecting on what it means when our country enters another war—and what history tells us often follows at home.

There will be endless debate about who is right and who is wrong. Some will praise our leaders, others will criticize them, and neighbors will disagree about how we got here and how events will unfold in the future. Those conversations are natural in a free society.

But there is another conversation that deserves just as much attention, one that history quietly asks every time the United States goes to war: What freedoms will Americans lose this time?

History suggests that wartime often reshapes the relationship between citizens and government.

The United States remains one of the last English-speaking countries where speech and thought are still broadly protected. That did not happen by accident. It is the inheritance of a constitutional republic built on the understanding that rights do not come from government; they come from God. The Constitution did not grant Americans their freedoms. It recognized them and placed limits on what government may do.

Yet when we look honestly at the past century, a pattern becomes difficult to ignore. Nearly every major war America has entered has been followed by some erosion of liberty at home.

During World War I, Congress passed the Espionage Act of 1917, followed by the Sedition Act of 1918. Under these laws, Americans could be arrested and imprisoned simply for criticizing the war or discouraging military enlistment. Speech that would normally fall under the protection of the First Amendment suddenly became criminal. One of the most famous cases involved Eugene V. Debs, a political leader who received a 10-year prison sentence for delivering a speech opposing the war and the draft.

The war eventually ended, but the Espionage Act remains on the books more than a century later.

World War II produced an even more direct violation of civil liberties. After the attack on Pearl Harbor, the federal government issued Executive Order 9066, authorizing the forced relocation of Japanese Americans living on the West Coast. More than 120,000 people, mostly American citizens, were removed from their homes and placed in internment camps. Families lost farms, businesses, and property, and people were detained without criminal charges or trials. The Supreme Court upheld the policy at the time, though it is now widely regarded as one of the most troubling civil liberties failures in modern American history.

The war ended and the camps were eventually closed, but the lesson remained clear: in times of fear and national emergency, the rights of citizens can be pushed aside.

The Cold War era introduced another form of government intrusion into American life. Fear of communist infiltration led to sweeping investigations into the political beliefs of citizens. The House Un-American Activities Committee summoned Americans to testify about their associations and views, while the Smith Act allowed prosecutions for advocating certain political ideas. Teachers, actors, writers, and government employees were blacklisted or pressured into oaths of loyalty. Careers were destroyed not because someone had committed a crime, but because they held—or were suspected of holding—the wrong political beliefs.

The Vietnam War era expanded another category of government power: domestic surveillance. During this period, the FBI operated a secret program known as COINTELPRO, which monitored activists, journalists, and political organizations across the country. Civil rights groups, anti-war movements, student organizations, and political activists found themselves under federal surveillance. What began as intelligence gathering against perceived threats grew into widespread monitoring of American citizens engaged in political activism.

The pattern continued into the modern era. In response to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, the United States launched what became known as the War on Terror, a series of conflicts that included military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya, and later involvement in the war in Syria.

At home, these wars were accompanied by some of the most significant expansions of federal surveillance authority in modern American history. Congress passed the Patriot Act, granting intelligence agencies broader powers to monitor communications, access financial records, and collect data connected to national security investigations. The federal government also created the Department of Homeland Security, dramatically expanding the domestic security infrastructure of the United States.

Airport travel changed almost overnight with the creation of the Transportation Security Administration, bringing new searches, body scanners, and security databases that monitor millions of travelers. Years later, whistleblower Edward Snowden revealed that intelligence agencies had been collecting vast amounts of digital information through programs designed to monitor global communications networks. Phone metadata, internet traffic, and other digital communications were gathered on a scale few Americans had previously imagined.

The technology had changed, but the pattern had not. Once again, a national crisis and the wars that followed led to an expansion of government authority over the lives and communications of ordinary citizens.

None of this history is meant to pass judgment on any particular war or moment in time. Every generation faces dangers that require difficult decisions, and national security is not an abstract concern. But history does reveal a pattern. War has often expanded the power of government while gradually narrowing the freedoms of citizens. Perhaps our generation can be the one that finally recognizes that pattern and refuses to let the erosion continue.

It is easy to succumb to the emotions of the moment.

War brings grief, anger, fear, and uncertainty. Families pray for sons and daughters in uniform, and communities mourn the innocent lives lost in conflicts far from our shores. Those responses are deeply human.

But between the praying and the grieving, there must also be vigilance. Americans must stand shoulder to shoulder and guard the freedoms that define this country.

Foreign policy decisions are often far beyond the control of ordinary citizens. Individuals living in small towns and rural counties do not set global strategy, but we do have a voice when it comes to the preservation of liberty at home. Whether someone supports this war or opposes it should not matter when it comes to defending constitutional freedoms. Americans across the political spectrum should be able to agree that freedom of speech, privacy, and due process matter. Our disagreements about policy cannot become an excuse to surrender the principles that allow us to disagree in the first place.

History shows that government often expand their reach during wartime through censorship, surveillance, or emergency authority that remains long after the emergency has passed. Americans should make one thing clear: war must never become an excuse to erode the freedoms of citizens at home.

Do not use technological capabilities, border crises, or fears of instability to justify mass surveillance of the American people. Military intelligence tools and artificial intelligence designed for battlefield awareness do not belong in the daily lives of citizens. The American people are not subjects of the state. We are sovereign citizens, and sovereignty means something simple but powerful: government authority ultimately flows from the consent of the governed.

Many forces in the world are beyond the control of ordinary people. Wars between nations are often among them. But the preservation of liberty inside our own country has always depended on the vigilance of citizens, and that responsibility does not disappear in wartime. In fact, wartime is when it matters most.

If the past century teaches us anything, it is that freedom rarely disappears all at once. It erodes slowly, piece by piece, often justified by fear and the promise that restrictions will only be temporary.

Americans have heard that promise before.

This time we should respond that we will pray for peace, we will pray for our troops, and we will mourn innocent lives lost in war. But we will also stand together in sending a clear message:

Our freedoms are not negotiable.

Not this time. Not ever.

Views expressed in this article are opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times or ZeroHedge.

The US Department of State’s Rewards for Justice program has newly issued a $10 million reward for information on the whereabouts of Iranian Supreme leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei and Secretary of the Supreme National Security Council Ali Larijani.

The alert calls for information on the two “Iranian terrorist leaders” at a moment of ongoing heavy bombardment of Iran by the US and Israel. Interestingly the State Department said that informants could make people eligible for “relocation”. The Pentagon on Friday said it believes the new Ayatollah is likely wounded and disfigured.

“These individuals command and direct various elements of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which plans, organizes and executes terrorism around the world,” the alert stated.

It actually also seeks information on other top security and government officials. Below is the official US statement in part:

Rewards for Justice is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information on the key leaders of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and its component branches. These individuals command and direct various elements of the IRGC, which plans, organizes, and executes terrorism around the world.

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), part of Iran’s official military, plays a central role in Iran’s use of terrorism as a key tool of Iranian statecraft.

Already amid the US-Israeli operation, at least 40 high-ranking government and military leaders have been killed. Many were slain in the opening days of the war, including Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

All of this seems part of a US-Israeli effort to foment spying and defections within Iranian ranks and society. There have been claims this week that Iranian citizens are feeding information to Israel – which of course means they are spying as assets.

It seems the US may not even know what some of the “wanted” officials look like, based on some of the blank photos below:

The U.S. State Department’s Rewards for Justice program is offering up to $10 million for credible information on senior leaders of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The reward aims to identify or locate key figures linked to the IRGC’s leadership and operations. pic.twitter.com/QgTLTQWiAX

— ILRedAlert (@ILRedAlert) March 13, 2026

Israel says it is even bombing Basij/IRGC security checkpoints, and that spotter and spies have assisted on the ground. Whether or not this latter claim is true, it is at the very least intended to sow confusion and distrust on the ground.

Israel and the US are seeking to collapse the system and regime, however, it is showing signs of resiliency on the ground, also as many military analysts have said it is nearly impossible to completely dislodge a government system through sheer airpower alone – also as they warn of the obvious scope creep happening.

Authored by Jonathan Turley,

There has been an ongoing struggle between district court judges and the Trump Administration over a variety of policies. In the first year, some district court judges issued nationwide injunctions that were largely rejected by the Supreme Court and appellate courts. These conflicts have continued and the intracourt tensions have increased. That was evident with the recent decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit, which delivered a virtual haymaker in reversing Judge Sara Ellis, an Obama nominee.

The panel criticized Ellis for limiting the operation of federal officers in Chicago, saying that she “effectively established the district court as the supervisor of all Executive Branch activity in the city of Chicago.”

Protesters and journalists went to Ellis to restrain “Operation Midway Blitz.”  They challenged the conduct of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Customs and Border Protection (CBP), and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) under the First and Fourth Amendments, specifically raising  the use of tear gas and other chemical agents. Judge Ellis issued a preliminary injunction described by the panel as “sweeping”:  “It enjoined all law enforcement officers in the Northern District of Illinois, as well as federal agencies and the Secretary of the DHS, from using certain crowd control tactics and tools. It also required the defendants to regularly inform the court of its efforts at implementing the injunction.”

That included requirements that U.S. Border Patrol Commander Gregory Bovino report to her daily to brief her on his activities. The panel found that her order  “impermissibly infringes on separation of powers principles.”

Notably, this order came after various district courts were reversed on such orders, but Judge Ellis went forward with another attempt at a sweeping injunction. She reinforced her order by certifying a class action and then including 170 pages of fact-finding in her long order.

After the operations ended, the plaintiffs were not eager to have the case reviewed on appeal. While the plaintiffs asked for dismissal with prejudice, Judge Ellis refused. She instead dismissed without prejudice and departed from standard rules on such dismissals. This was meant to allow a resumption of litigation.

That led to an interesting (and telling) issue for the Seventh Circuit. Ordinarily, the court would have simply declared the case moot (as Judge Frank Easterbrook would have in dissent). However, two judges clearly felt that Judge Ellis needed a corrective measure on appeal for her future handling of such cases:

“The district court’s order may also spawn adverse legal consequences. Because the district court dismissed this case without prejudice—against the plaintiffs’ unopposed request for a dismissal with prejudice—any class members or the lead plaintiffs could refile these claims tomorrow. They could ask the district court to reinstate a near-identical preliminary injunction, adopting the facts and legal reasoning from the district court’s order.”

It reaffirmed that Judge Ellis’s order was  “overbroad” and “constitutionally suspect.”

It made clear that “federal courts do not exercise general oversight of the Executive Branch” and that the district court “likely abused its discretion by issuing such a sweeping injunction.”

The decision not to simply dismiss this case was clearly meant to send a message not only to Judge Ellis but also to other such judges who are exceeding their authority in seeking to limit Trump policies and programs.

Here is the opinion: Chicago Headline Club v. Noem

The Minnesota Senate rammed through sweeping gun control measures on Friday, after deliberately sidelining the state’s largest pro-Second Amendment organization with just 6 minutes of testimony, while gun control supporters got 32 minutes of speaking time on the flagship gun ban bill. 

The Democrat-controlled Senate Judiciary and Public Safety Committee, chaired by Sen. Ron Latz (DFL), advanced S.F. 3655 – a near-total ban on semiautomatic rifles and magazines holding more than 10 rounds – on a strict 6-3 party-line vote. Latz admitted they “prioritized individual testifiers over organizations” – yet anti-gun groups still got slots while the state’s biggest 2A voice was frozen out.

Before allowing input from the public, the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus – representing tens of thousands of law-abiding citizens – warned the public yesterday that committee staff had already told them the hearing schedule was “full” – effectively blocking them from offering in-person testimony on the core bills: the semi-auto ban, the magazine ban, repeal of state preemption (opening the door to a patchwork of local gun laws), and new carry restrictions at the State Capitol and schools.

The largest & most effective gun rights group in Minnesota was just told we can’t testify against most of the gun control bills tomorrow.

Why?

Because the schedule is “full.”

Apparently, there’s plenty of room for gun control activists and other testifiers, but not the people… pic.twitter.com/NJqhnB3BXb

— MN Gun Owners Caucus (@mnguncaucus) March 12, 2026

Caucus Director of Government Relations & Advocacy Anna Leamy did manage to testify on a secondary privacy bill (S.F. 3836, which would expose permit-to-carry holder data to harassment and passed on a voice vote). She stood firm when Latz tried to grill her on the partisan ties of the “Violence Prevention Project” pushing for taxpayer-funded gun-control propaganda. But on the bills that actually matter – the ones that would turn everyday hunters, sport shooters, and self-defense gun owners into felons – the largest gun rights group in Minnesota was effectively silenced.

Senator @RonLatzMN attempted to grill our Anna Leamy, challenging her testimony about the partisan alignment of the Violence Prevention center, who are trying to get a $1 million blank check from MN taxpayers to push for gun control. Anna stood firm, because she’s right.

The…

— MN Gun Owners Caucus (@mnguncaucus) March 13, 2026

“This isn’t democracy. That’s rigging the hearing,” the caucus stated bluntly before today’s vote — and the numbers proved them right.

Because SCOTUS hasn’t ruled clearly on semi-automatic rifle bans and magazine bans – so they pull this crap.

— MN Gun Owners Caucus (@mnguncaucus) March 13, 2026

These bills are textbook draconian. S.F. 3655 doesn’t just target so-called “assault weapons”; it criminalizes nearly every modern semiautomatic rifle and standard-capacity magazine in common use. Grandfathering is a joke: current owners face registration, home inspections by law enforcement, storage mandates, and transfer bans. 

The Bills

SF 3655 (Semiautomatic Military-Style Assault Weapons and Large-Capacity Magazines Ban)

Bans manufacture, import, transfer, ownership, or possession of “semiautomatic military-style assault weapons” (e.g., AR-15, AK-47 variants and similar rifles/pistols/shotguns with features like pistol grips, folding stocks, threaded barrels, or detachable magazines) and large-capacity magazines (>10 rounds or parts to make them). Current owners can grandfather items by certifying/registering with state/local authorities by Feb 1, 2027 (fee required, renew every 3 years), with strict storage rules, limited use (e.g., no hunting, only on private property or ranges), no transfers (except surrender/destruction), and possible inspections. Violations are felonies (up to 5 years prison/$25,000 fine). Effective August 1, 2026. Exceptions for law enforcement/military.

SF 3836 (Firearm Permit Data Classification and Retention)

Makes data on revocation, suspension, or voiding of a permit to carry a firearm public (previously more protected). Also makes permit data public if the holder dies by suicide with a firearm or from police use of force. Extends retention requirements for these records (e.g., 6 years for denied/revoked/voided permits or specified death cases). General active permit application/purchase data remains private; sheriffs must purge non-essential inactive records annually except in these cases. No broad public release of current permit holder lists.

Democrats hold the trifecta in Minnesota. Gov. Tim Walz and his DFL allies have been itching to push this agenda since taking full control. Today they showed exactly how they plan to do it: limit debate, stack the clock, and steamroll constitutional rights while pretending it’s “public safety.”

Authored by Naveen Athrappully via The Epoch Times,

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) beneficiaries sued the Department of Agriculture on March 11 over the issuance of waivers to five states restricting certain types of foods that can be purchased under the program.

On May 19 last year, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins issued a waiver to Nebraska that bans SNAP recipients in the state from buying soda or energy drinks. As of March 4 this year, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) has approved similar waivers for 22 states in total.

In addition to soda and energy drinks, the additional waivers prohibit the purchase of fruit and vegetable drinks with less than 50 percent natural juice, as well as candy, unhealthy drinks, soft drinks, prepared desserts, sugar-sweetened beverages, and processed foods and beverages. Different states ban one or more of these items.

In the lawsuit, filed at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, plaintiffs argued that the USDA’s actions amount to “authorizing a patchwork of state-by-state food prohibition regimes.”

“These changes deprive SNAP recipients and their families of the food they need to maintain their health and employment, and in some cases, to survive,” the lawsuit alleged. “Individuals with chronic illnesses are losing access to products they need to manage blood sugar or sustain diets they need to maintain baseline health care needs.

“Families must choose between using scarce cash to purchase restricted items or foregoing essential household expenses such as rent, utilities, or transportation. These harms are tangible, ongoing, and irreparable.”

The lawsuit specifically challenges SNAP waivers issued for Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, Tennessee, and West Virginia, the states in which the five plaintiffs reside.

In 2018, the USDA had rejected similar food restriction proposals on SNAP purchases. According to the lawsuit, this was because the agency concluded that the restrictions would force the government to draw arbitrary lines among food products, limit food choices for households without clear evidence of health benefits, impose significant burdens on retailers, and increase administrative costs.

“Even though the challenged waivers present the same defects USDA previously recognized, they were approved without any attempt to address, let alone resolve, those concerns,” the complaint stated.

By approving the five waivers, the defendants are in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act and the Food and Nutrition Act of 2008, the lawsuit claims.

Plaintiffs have asked the court to deem the food restriction waivers as unlawful.

The Epoch Times reached out to the USDA for comment but did not receive a response by publication time.

SNAP Restrictions and Health

While announcing SNAP waiver approvals for six states in December 2025, Rollins justified the need for food restrictions as a way to improve people’s health.

“President Trump has made it clear: we are restoring SNAP to its true purpose—nutrition. Under the MAHA initiative, we are taking bold, historic steps to reverse the chronic diseases epidemic that has taken root in this country for far too long,” Rollins said in a Dec. 10 statement.

“With these new waivers, we are empowering states to lead, protecting our children from the dangers of highly-processed foods, and moving one step closer to the President’s promise to Make America Healthy Again.”

Rollins and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. are strong advocates of banning food items deemed unhealthy from SNAP as part of the Make America Healthy Again agenda. Kennedy said he hopes that all states will have asked for, and received approval for, SNAP restrictions by the end of 2026.

In June 2025, Kennedy called on all state governors to exclude sugary drinks from the SNAP program. “Taxpayer dollars should never bankroll products that fuel the chronic disease epidemic,” he said at the time.

A study published on Dec. 8, 2024, in Frontiers in Public Health found that consuming more sugary drinks was linked to a higher risk of developing cardiovascular diseases than eating sweet food items such as pastries.

“Liquid sugars, found in sweetened beverages, typically provide less satiety than solid forms—they make you feel less full, potentially leading to overconsumption,” Suzanne Janzi, the study’s co-author, said in a statement.

“Context also matters—treats are often enjoyed in social settings or [for] special occasions, while sweetened beverages might be consumed more regularly.”

The waivers have already been implemented in eight states: Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Utah, and West Virginia.

The waivers will come into effect in the remainder of the year in Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Missouri, North Dakota, Ohio, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, and Virginia.

The waivers are set to be implemented in 2027 or 2028 in three states: Kansas, Nevada, and Wyoming.

In his first public statements of the war, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei stressed Thursday that “the Strait of Hormuz must remain closed.” Or rather, it is clearly closed to all but those countries Tehran gives approval to.

Simultaneously Iranian state TV circulated rare “on the ground” direct reporting from the Strait of Hormuz. In fact, they had a correspondent literally in a fast-boat narrating what he saw in terms of surrounding stranded tankers.

Clearly it’s also meant to intimidate the United States and the West – a form of psychological warfare – at a moment when extreme uncertainty lingers over global oil markets. 

The footage is possibly the first such local ‘from the scene of the crisis’ reporting – given the whole area has been on de facto lockdown under continued threat of Iranian missile and drone attacks, also given new reports the strait is being mined by the IRGC Navy.

The country’s ambassador to the United Nations Amir Saeid Iravani has said, “Iran fully respects and remains committed to the principle of freedom of navigation under the law of the sea.” However, he stressed that “the current situation in the region, including in the Strait of Hormuz, is not the result of Iran’s lawful exercise of its right of self-defense. Rather, it is the direct consequence of the destabilizing actions of the United States in launching aggression against Iran and undermining regional security.”

As for the fresh ‘inside the Strait’ view offered by the Iranian war correspondent below, PressTV describes the dramatic clip as “A field documentary from the heart of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, which shows vessels that remain silent – yet are targeted by the IRGC if they shift even a few meters.”

A field documentary from the heart of the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz, which shows vessels that remain silent—yet are targeted by the IRGC if they shift even a few meters.

Follow https://t.co/B3zXG73Jym pic.twitter.com/XBqz6bWwq0

— Press TV 🔻 (@PressTV) March 12, 2026

Authored by Jeff Eager via RealClearPolitics,

Seattle, which is home to Amazon and Microsoft, currently employs some 193,000 well-compensated Washingtonians working in the tech sector. One major reason that Seattle emerged as the first big tech hub outside of California is obvious: It is the only West Coast state with no state income tax. Its state constitution forbids an income tax. High wage workers and entrepreneurs seeking a piece of the relatively laid back, outdoors-focused Pacific Northwest lifestyle can move to Washington without taking a state-mandated pay cut.

For the progressive Democrats who dominate state politics in the Pacific Northwest, money in the pockets of anyone other than the government and its political allies is wasted. To grab more of it, legislative Democrats in Washington are pushing through an income tax in the guise of a “millionaire’s tax” that would levy a 9.9% tax on incomes over $1 million. Just yesterday, as the “millionaire’s tax” neared the finish line in the Washington legislature, former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz announced he and his wife have relocated from Seattle, where they lived for 47 years, to Miami. Florida has neither a state income tax nor a state income tax masquerading as a “millionaire’s tax.”

The constitutionality of the bill rests on progressives’ expectation that the Washington Supreme Court will completely abandon decades of precedent deeming income taxes unconstitutional. The expectation may not be unfounded: Five of nine justices were appointed by Democratic governors. Democrats also voted down an amendment to forbid applying an income tax to lower income levels, signaling the “millionaire’s tax” is likely to become a “thousandaire’s tax” if Democrats get their way.

What makes this proposed tax truly egregious, however, is its attempt to stop voters from having any say in it. The Democrats’ tax bill includes a necessity clause that precludes a voter referendum that could overturn the new income tax. So long as the majority-progressive-appointed state Supreme Court goes along, progressives will have upended 90 years of constitutionally prohibited income taxes while shielding it from a vote of the people.

Additionally, Washington progressives have taken a brazen step to undermine local governance in the state. The state house just passed a bill giving unelected bureaucrats appointed by the governor the power to remove any elected sheriff in the state based on vague guidelines, overriding local voters’ ability to select their own law enforcement. The move is an effort to exert progressive control of sheriffs in rural parts of the state who have questioned unpopular and difficult-to-enforce laws, such as COVID restrictions and gun regulations.

Not to be outdone by its neighbor to the north, Oregon’s progressive governance is also thumbing its nose at the will of the voters. The Beaver State, which has made itself into an economic backwater, has long levied high state income taxes, driving businesses and people who earn money for a living out of state. (The state’s second largest business, the $12 billion Dutch Brothers coffee chain, left the state last year, taking its corporate tax revenue with it.) The state’s economy, always tenuous, is now crumbling. Oregon’s unemployment rate of 5.2% is third worst in the nation, better than only California (5.5%) and New Jersey (5.4%). Layoffs since the beginning of 2025 are comparable to job losses during the Great Recession.

Oregon progressives charge forward undaunted. The Democratic legislative supermajority voted in February to disconnect Oregon’s tax code from the federal code so the state can continue to tax job-creating business investment at the higher rate eschewed by D.C. Republicans’ Big Beautiful Bill. The disconnect will not help attract the investors needed to stabilize Portland’s cratering downtown real estate market, where values, when buyers can be found, are a fraction of what they were five years ago. Investors recently rated Portland as the worst place in the country to invest in real estate other than Hartford, Connecticut. 

Punitive rates of income taxation are not enough for Oregon Democrats. For the past year, they’ve tried to muscle through the largest tax increase in state history. It is a deeply unpopular package consisting of fuel tax increases to pay for more unionized transportation workers and a doubling of the state payroll tax to fund public transportation – even though the state is shedding jobs at an historic rate and such a massive payroll tax will only make things worse.

Those increases, which would hit consumers’ wallets directly, fomented a tax revolt among Oregon’s left-leaning and normally placid electorate. It took Gov. Tina Kotek and the backroom persuasion of the Service Employees International Union two legislative sessions, including the longest special session in state history, to eke out passage of the tax increases in the face of overwhelming public opposition.

Kotek then waited to sign her signature bill to try to deprive opponents of the ability to collect signatures to repeal it. That tactic backfired spectacularly; opponents collected nearly 250,000 signatures from an electorate of 3 million voters in weeks, setting the tax hike on a path to near-certain defeat this November.

Not having learned their lesson, Oregon Democrats are again trying to frustrate voter involvement by moving the date of the repeal vote from November to May, so that Kotek, who is up for reelection, and other Democrats, need not appear on the same ballot as their radioactive tax increase. This is in spite of the fact that the voter repeal petition signed by so many Oregonians specifically said the ballot measure was to be voted on in the November election. 

Pacific Northwest progressives’ crusade against allowing the voters a direct say in their schemes is ironic. In 1902, Oregon was one of the first states in the union to adopt voter initiatives and referenda to supplant, in the eyes of that era’s progressives, the corrupt and elite legislators blocking the popular will. Washington state joined not long after.

Yet, today’s progressives are the elites in Washington and Oregon, dominating every function of state government and culture. Their rule depends on seizing an ever-increasing share of the resources of private citizens to distribute among progressives’ sprawling and union-dominated political coalitions.

And despite their obvious policy failures and responsibility for crumbling state economies, Pacific Northwest progressives have decided that the will of the people no longer matters. Voters cannot be permitted to stand in the way of the elite definition of “progress.”

Jeff Eager is an attorney, former mayor of Bend, Oregon, and author of “Oregon Roundup” on Substack.