Speaking to press outside construction of the White House Ballroom, U.S. President Donald J. Trump spoke on Iran, highlighting Iran’s unreliable negotiating tactics saying that another “big hit,” referring to a possible resumption of strikes against Iran, may be necessary.

According to U.S. Central Command Commander Admiral Brad Cooper, in the past 7 months, the U.S. has transferred over 5,700 ISIS prisoners from Syria to Iraq. This, against the backdrop of the tiered reduction of the U.S. force-posture in Syria.

Speaking to reporters this morning, President Trump gave several new details about the ballroom being constructed to replace the East Wing of the White House, the roof of which he says is inspired by architecture from Greek and Rome, and will provide snipers with a 360° view of the Nation’s Capital.

President Trump claims that the ballroom will be not only “drone-proof” but will also act as a drone port that will protect all of Washington. In addition to drone capabilities, Trump states that structure below the ballroom will extend over six stories underground, featuring a military hospital, research labs, and other facilities for use by the military in coordination with the White House.

Latvia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has summoned the Chargé d’Affaires ad interim of the Russian Embassy and lodged a categorical protest against a public statement issued earlier today, May 18, by the Foreign Intelligence Service of Russian (SVR), which claimed that Ukraine was planning to use Latvian territory to launch drone attacks against Russia. This comes amidst reports that unidentified drones violated and the airspace today over both Estonia and Latvia.

U.S. Africa Command (AFRICOM) has announced that American forces, in coordination with the Nigerian Army, carried out a series of targeted strikes Monday, May 18, 2026, against an ISIS fighter camp in Northeastern Nigeria. This is the second wave of strikes to be carried out against ISIS positions in Nigeria since last week’s operation by U.S. and Nigerian Special Forces, which resulted in the successful elimination of several ISIS leaders, including Abu-Bilal al-Minuki, ISIS’ Director of Global Operations.

Israel has entered its highest level of alert since the since the start of the ongoing ceasefire with Iran, as U.S. and Israeli forces have now completed preparations for renewed military action against the Islamic Republic, with combat operations set to potentially resume soon, U.S. officials have told Israel’s Kann News.

Following reports the North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) and U.S. Northern Command (NORTHCOM) Commander General Gregory M. Guillot was temporarily pulled from a SOF Week panel, NORAD has said that F-16s from 1st Air Force intercepted a civilian aircraft that violated the Special Flight Rules Area (SFRA) over the National Capital Region. They also advised people to “Check NOTAMs before every flight!”

Tomorrow’s hearing in the corruption case against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been canceled due to a “diplomatic-security schedule,” as lawmakers are set to hold a preliminary vote Wednesday on dissolving the Knesset. Netanyahu has regularly asks for hearings on the case to be canceled or cut short due to his “duties” related to the recent conflicts in Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran.

As Israel’s ruling party pushes forward with a bill to dissolve the Knesset amid Ultra-Orthodox anger at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the two frontrunners for prime minister, Naftali Bennett and Netanyahu, remain neck-and-neck, with traders on Polymarket predicting with a slim 40% chance that Bennett will be the next Prime Minister of Israel.

On the first day of the Iran War, the Israeli Air Force carried out a strike on the Tehran home of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the former president of Iran known for his hard-line, anti-Israel and anti-American views, which was designed to free him from house arrest and place him in a position to take over the country following the elimination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Plans to place Ahmadinejad in power after the weakening of the current Iranian regime had been developed by the Israelis with the knowledge of the United States, and had been briefed to Ahmadinejad, though quickly went awry after the strike on his home, according to the U.S. officials who were briefed on the matter and spoke to The New York Times.

Ahmadinejad was accidentally injured in the Israeli strike on his home, which destroyed a security outpost at the entrance to his street and killed several members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) that were holding him hostage, and though he survived, after the near miss he became disillusioned with the regime change plan and halted further communication with Israel. He has not been seen publicly since then and his current whereabouts and condition are unknown.

U.S. President Donald J. Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a phone call last night that Israel’s N12 News described as “lengthy and dramatic.” U.S. President Donald J. Trump told the press earlier this week that he would allow 2-3 days for negotiations with Iran to play out. However, both sides continue to struggle to reach agreements on key points of contention.

According to the Jordanian Armed Forces, a drone of unknown origin was shot down over the Jerash Governorate, causing no damages or injuries.

Following the Russian ambassador to the UN’s claim that Ukraine was making preparations to launch drone strikes on Russia-proper from Baltic nations, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte characterized the claims as “totally ludicrous,” during a press conference earlier this morning.

Activity through the Strait of Hormuz appears to have increased over the last 24 hours, according to a visual analysis of automatic identification system (AIS) data available from MarineTraffic.com. Several vessels have transited utilizing the Iranian implemented traffic separation scheme with several more in progress.

Following drone strikes on the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from Iraqi territories, the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs has denounced the strikes on themselves and their Gulf neighbors and called on Iraq to take action against the threat-actors, likely Iranian-backed militias, responsible for the attacks. So far, the UAE has yet to directly call out Iran for backing the groups that are likely responsible for the most recent tranche of drone strikes on Iran’s Gulf neighbors.

According to a release from U.S. Central Command, since the beginning of the U.S. blockade of vessels traveling to and from Iranian ports, the U.S. has redirected 90 vessels and subjected 4 to disabling fire to ensure compliance with their directives.

U.S. President Donald J. Trump spoke to press on the tarmac at Joint Base Andrews before leaving to deliver the commencement speech for the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Connecticut. President Trump made comments on Iran, Taiwan, and noted that he thinks the China-Russia summit is positive.