🇺🇸❌🇮🇷 — The recent waves of U.S. strikes on Iran aimed at forcing open the Strait of Hormuz are also targeting Iranian military capabilities that the U.S. would want to destroy before any broader military campaign, according to Reuters, citing U.S. officials.

One U.S. official said the strikes are "helping set the stage, if needed."

🇺🇸❌🇮🇷 — NEW: U.S. Central Command:

At 3 p.m. ET, U.S. forces launched operations for a second wave of strikes today against Iran.

The strikes are targeting Iranian military capabilities used to threaten vessels freely transiting through the Strait of Hormuz, an international waterway vital to global commerce.

The U.S. military is holding Iran accountable at the Commander in Chief's direction.

🇰🇵 🤝 🇨🇳 North Korean Foreign Relations: Satellite imagery shows that the PRC resumed covert shipments of supplies to North Korea, possibly indicating deepening bilateral economic ties. Satellite imagery from Planet revealed likely smuggling at sites near the Yalu River, a river on the PRC-North Korea border. The sites’ proximity to a major highway project suggests the PRC likely knew of and approved the smuggling. South Korean media outlet NK Pro reported on activity at 13 points and the “apparent cargo” seen at five sites between June 19 and 24 and at another five sites between June 28 and 29. Satellite imagery similarly revealed activity at a cargo depot in Samsu County, North Korea, and at a nearby train station.

North Korea has made efforts to deepen its ties with the PRC in recent months, likely to gain foreign currency and bolster North Korea’s struggling economy. The transfer of supplies took place following meetings between WPK General Secretary Kim Jong Un and Chinese Communist Party (CCP) General Secretary Xi Jinping in June, Xi’s first visit to North Korea in seven years. North Korea likely aims to balance its relationship with the PRC against its relationship with Russia, increasing its own material gains while avoiding dependency on the PRC.

📎 ISW

🏹 🇺🇦 🇷🇺 Many strikes by the Code 9.2 unit against Russian logistics and armor. They claim in total they hit 107 pieces of Russian equipment in 3 days.

📎 Woofers

🇺🇸❌🇮🇷 — NEW: U.S. Central Command says it disabled the Curaçao-flagged tanker M/T Belma as it sailed toward Iran’s Kharg Island earlier today.

➡️ CENTCOM said the unladen vessel ignored repeated warnings before a U.S. aircraft fired Hellfire missiles into its smokestack, stopping it from continuing toward the Iranian port.

🗳 🇺🇸 🇮🇱 103 democrats voted to cut off aid to Israel. 10 present.

Nearly half of House Democrats voted to cut off aid to Israel Wednesday, underscoring a seismic shift in political support for the longtime U.S. ally.

The amendment to a State Department spending bill would have eliminated $3.3 billion in funding, and thanks to strong Republican support for the Jewish state, it failed 314-104. But the vote served as a moment of reckoning for House Democrats who have had to confront years of voter outrage about Israel’s handling of the war in Gaza.

“There’s also a real sense that the status quo cannot continue,” the House’s No. 2 Democrat, Rep. Katherine Clark of Massachusetts, said in an interview before voting for the amendment.

The vote came after months of contentious primary elections where progressive candidates toppled incumbent after incumbent by publicly eschewing spending from pro-Israel groups and promising to recast America’s relationship with the nation.

Just over two years ago, only 37 House Democrats — mostly on the party’s hard-left flank — voted for a similar bid to crack down on U.S. for Israel.

This time, a much broader swath of Democrats came along — 103 of the 211 members voting Wednesday, plus another 10 who voted “present.”

https://www.politico.com/news/2026/07/15/israel-aid-vote-house-democrats-00999917

📎 Politico

🗳 🇺🇸 🚷 The U.S. House has passed the NDAA, 217-209, with the SAVE America Act language included.

📝 Anon: "The House passed the State Department/national security/foreign affairs appropriations bill today, not the NDAA. Save America was not Included in the base text of the bill but the rule passed on Tuesday merges them together upon passage."

📎 Breaking911

🇲🇦 🇨🇳 🇪🇺 Thriving Morocco-China partnership raises European auto fears

Rabat and Beijing are closer than ever, but Europe fears that China could use Morocco to bypass its tariffs on subsidised Chinese automobiles.

While Chinese investment into Morocco has become increasingly important to Rabat’s economy, there are growing concerns that this could impact ties with another vital partner, the European Union (EU). Brussels is Morocco’s single largest trading partner, with more than a third of its exports heading to Europe.

China’s massive investment in Morocco’s automotive industry has raised eyebrows in Brussels, with some officials suspecting that Beijing is using Rabat as a way to circumvent European tariffs. The EU has taken significant steps to protect its domestic auto manufacturing – including a baseline 10% import duty on all vehicles – with special measures aimed at ensuring European manufacturers are not undercut by cheaper competitors from China, many of whom are subsidised by the Chinese state.

Savic suggests that the EU may consider targeted measures against Morocco to protect against the risk of Chinese firms avoiding tariffs via Rabat; but he is sceptical that more wide-ranging measures against the country would be under consideration.

The coming years will test whether Morocco’s growing status as a hub for Chinese investment in North Africa can coexist with its deep economic ties to Europe – or whether Rabat will face some harder choices.

⬇️ Continued:

https://african.business/2026/07/trade-investment/thriving-morocco-china-partnership-raises-european-auto-fears-2

🇺🇸❌🇮🇷 — President Trump is leaning toward expanding U.S. military operations against Iran after receiving briefings on new military options from senior officials, WSJ reports.

➡️ Discussions have included broadening the air campaign against Iranian military and energy infrastructure, deploying U.S. ground forces to seize Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export hub, and striking the deeply fortified, nuclear-linked Pickaxe Mountain complex, which has not yet been targeted.

➡️ Trump has not made a final decision and continues to say he would prefer a diplomatic solution.

➡️ However, officials say he has requested more escalatory options as Iran has refused to meet U.S. demands regarding its nuclear program and continues threatening commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.

👨‍💻 🇺🇸 🌐 The internet economy is seeing historic growth.

Over the last decade, the way people build businesses has rapidly transitioned from brick-and-mortar to online.

With the growth of AI, this trend has only accelerated, and the digital economy is now officially valued at over $20 trillion.

The digital economy also now accounts for ~18% of global GDP.

As a result, US business formation is experiencing a record-breaking boom, with over 3.1 million applications filed in the first half of 2026, up +17% YoY.

Today, more than 200 million people worldwide identify as creators, entrepreneurs, or online business owners.

AI continues to transform the digital economy.

📎Kobeissi Letter

🗳 🇺🇸 🇮🇱 How each member of the US House voted on Thomas Massie’s amendment to cut US military aid to Israel.

📎 Politics & Poll Tracker

🇺🇸🇸🇦🇰🇼⚡️ — The U.S. State Department has approved the potential sale of nearly $2.45 billion in military equipment to Saudi Arabia and Kuwait, pending congressional review.

➡️ The $1.96 billion package for Saudi Arabia includes up to 20,000 Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System (APKWS) guidance kits, launchers, warheads, spare parts, training, and logistical support.

➡️ The $484 million package for Kuwait will provide sustainment and support for its C-17 transport aircraft, including components, maintenance, software, training, and logistics services.