Additional footage of firefighting operations earlier this morning at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego, California, following the violent crash landing of a U.S. Marine Corps F-35B Lightning ll.

Multiple major news outlets are reporting that President Donald J. Trump is actively weighing a major escalation alongside Israel that could target Iranian energy and other critical infrastructure, if diplomacy fails.

CBS News reports the U.S. and Israel are preparing options to strike Iran's energy sector as soon as this weekend, though officials stress no final decision has been made. Axios similarly reports the administration is seriously considering strikes on Iranian energy infrastructure as part of a broader effort to increase pressure on Tehran following the collapse of recent ceasefire talks.

The reporting marks a notable shift from earlier operations that primarily focused on military targets. Infrastructure attacks would represent a significant escalation with potentially broader economic consequences for Iran and global energy markets.

The UK Office of Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) is reporting an attack on a tanker in the Strait of Hormuz, roughly 11NM northeast of Lima, Oman. According to the UKMTO, the vessel was struck in its engine room by an unknown projectile suggesting this may have been an intentional disabling by the U.S. Navy as opposed to an attack by Iran.

Russia is providing valuable satellite and signals intelligence to Iran that is likely helping it to pinpoint U.S. military forces across the Middle East as well as jam American-made aircraft and munitions used in strikes against Iran, U.S. and European officials with knowledge of the matter have told NBC News.

The General Staff of the Kuwaiti Armed Forces has stated that air defenses are currently responding to hostile drone threats from Iran.

The commander of U.S. European Command has privately warned the Pentagon that he does not have enough naval forces to continue defending Israel against Iranian ballistic missile attacks and may soon have to prioritize defense of the U.S. homeland unless another Navy destroyer is assigned.

The warning from Gen. Alexus Grynkewich underscores the growing strain the Iran war has placed on U.S. military resources. The Washington Post reports that near-daily operations have stretched the Navy's destroyer fleet, while previous reporting from The Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and Reuters has detailed mounting concerns over dwindling stocks of Patriot and other air defense interceptors needed to protect U.S. forces and allies.

The Pentagon declined to comment on the correspondence, but officials told the Post the warning reflects the military's process for alerting senior leaders when operational risks begin to exceed available resources.

Source: https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/08/01/general-warns-pentagon-he-lacks-sufficient-forces-protect-israel/

Federal investigators are probing whether Iranian state-backed hackers are behind a series of malicious cyber attacks this week that targeted water supply systems in seven states across the United States, including Minnesota, as the conflict in the Middle East continues into its sixth month, officials tell CBS News.

On Friday, U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro filed a motion seeking to dismiss a felony charge against David Hearn, a former Olympic canoeist who was arrested and accused last month of pulling up a piece of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, instead accusing contractors chosen by President Trump of botching the renovation of the iconic pool in Washington.

In the extraordinary motion, Pirro broke with claims having been made over the last few months by the Trump Administration that damage to the pool had been caused by vandals, with President Trump himself claiming that people had “slashed” the lining of the pool with blades, something echoed initially by the Interior and Justice Department.

Pirro said in her motion that prosecutors had been misled by the Interior Department, who had blamed all the damage on vandals, when the lining applied by the first-time government contractor used had begun to peel within two days of installation. According to Pirro, the shoddy work done by the contractor caused “widespread damage” to the new blue lining of the pool located between the Lincoln Memorial and Washington Monument.

Following yesterday’s announced motion by U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro accusing contractors hired by the Interior Department, not vandals, of causing “widespread damage” to the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool, President Trump has stated that he disagrees with Pirro, claiming that it was a “pure case of VANDALISM.” Closing his statement with, “There may have been some contractor difficulty, but the major damage was caused by VANDALS!”

At least three killed and nearly two dozen injured in an explosion earlier today during a private event at the Balzi Rossi fine dining restaurant in Moscow, Russia.

President Donald J. Trump has announced on Truth Social that at the request of Iran, and other Middle Eastern countries, to 'hold off any attack in that the perimeters of a deal has been agreed to." President Trump says this potential deal will include the total opening of the Strait of Hormuz and an end to the Iranian nuclear threat.

The U.S. Air Force KC-135 "Stratotanker" that survived the fatal midair collision with another KC-135 over Iraq in March is now en route towards the United Kingdom, likely beginning its return to the United States.

Based on the extensive structural damage sustained in the collision, it is likely the aircraft was repaired using a replacement tail section sourced from a retired KC-135 at the 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group, aka the "Boneyard", at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona. While the U.S. Air Force has not publicly detailed the repair, such component replacements are a well established practice for returning heavily damaged aircraft to service.

Ukraine's long-range drone campaign appears to have struck another Wildberries distribution center, this time in Novosyomyeikino, continuing a sustained effort to target Russia's largest e-commerce and logistics network. According to Russian officials, the strike ignited a fire at the facility.

This video from Telegram purportedly shows a massive fire at the facility following the earlier Ukrainian drone strike.

Wildberries is essentially Russia's equivalent of Amazon, operating the country's largest online marketplace with an extensive nationwide warehousing and distribution network. Ukraine argues the company supports Russia's war effort by selling dual-use goods and equipment used by the military, an allegation Moscow denies.

The attack is the latest in a broader campaign that has targeted roughly a dozen Wildberries facilities since mid-July, disrupting an estimated 10% of the company's logistics capacity and forcing the retailer to reroute shipments, compensate victims, and absorb significant financial losses. The strikes reflect Ukraine's increasing focus on economic and logistics infrastructure well beyond the front lines, aiming to raise the cost of sustaining Russia's war effort while disrupting everyday commerce.

The U.S. State Department renewed its warning yesterday for Americans across the Middle East, urging heightened vigilance amid the increasingly volatile regional security environment.

Americans currently in the region are advised to consider departing while commercial travel remains available or be prepared to leave if the situation deteriorates. The advisory warns of potential flight cancellations, periodic airspace closures, and other travel disruptions. Americans outside the region are urged to reconsider travel to or through the Middle East.

The updated warning follows a series of increasingly specific security alerts issued in recent weeks, including notices for Jordan, Bahrain, and, for the first time, Egypt, reflecting the geographic expansion of Iranian attacks and concerns that Iran or Iran-backed groups could target U.S. diplomatic facilities, businesses, and other American interests both within and beyond the Middle East.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) has released video of a U.S. Marine Corps F-35C "Lightning II" assigned to Marine Fighter Attack Squadron 314 (VMFA-314) "Black Knights," based at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, California, launching from the flight deck of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) while transiting the Arabian Sea in support of operations enforcing the naval blockade of Iran.

According to CENTCOM, U.S. forces have now redirected 35 commercial vessels, disabled two that failed to comply with blockade directives, and boarded two others to verify compliance before allowing them to continue their voyages.

Spain is facing its most serious migration crisis in years after a mass surge into the North African enclave of Ceuta left at least 72 people dead and reignited debate over European border security.

According to Spanish authorities, more than 50,000 people attempted to enter Ceuta from Morocco by land and sea, overwhelming local resources. While the vast majority have since returned to Morocco, Spanish officials continue to recover bodies, reinforce the border, and investigate the role of human smuggling networks and online misinformation in fueling the surge.

The crisis has prompted a broader European response. Twenty-two EU member states have called for stronger external border protections, Spain has installed a 500-meter floating sea barrier off Ceuta, and Italy temporarily reinstated border controls with Spain, citing security concerns.

Until this incident, Spain had actually experienced a decline in irregular migration during 2026. Through the end of June, 12,138 migrants had entered Spain irregularly; 32% fewer than during the same period in 2025. Arrivals to the Canary Islands were down sharply, while land crossings into Ceuta and Melilla had already increased by more than 150% year-over-year, foreshadowing mounting pressure along Spain's North African land border.

Image: Wall Street Journal

Thanks to newly released photos from @havoc_aviation, we now know that U.S. Air Force KC-135 "Stratotanker" 63-8017 - the aircraft that survived the fatal midair collision over Iraq in March - was repaired using the tail section from KC-135 63-8002.

Aircraft 63-8002 last served with the 22nd Air Refueling Wing before being flown to the KC-135 depot maintenance facility at Tinker Air Force Base in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, where it appears to have become the donor aircraft for the repair.

Video widely circulating online appears to show a midair collision between two aerial firefighting helicopters west of Athens, Greece, earlier today.

According to Greek authorities, two crew members aboard one of the helicopters were killed, while two others survived the collision.

The footage appears to show one helicopter climbing into the flight path of another before the two aircraft collide. Following the impact, the lower helicopter crashes to the ground, while the second, despite apparent damage to its water bucket/tank assembly, remains airborne and is able to continue flying.

Both helicopters were operated by McDermott Aviation, an Australian aerial firefighting company with operations across Australia, the United States, and Europe. The cause of the collision remains under investigation.