A battery commander gathered his troops to warn them about a wave of espionage cases within the corps, as the Israeli Air Force quietly tightened its information security protocols.

Don’t lecture Israel about the “inviolable sovereignty & territorial integrity” of Lebanon, Syria, and Gaza or the “internationally mandated territorial contiguity” of the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank. These are hackneyed concepts, extinguished by reality in the region.

The army is working to create a security buffer along the northern border, as residents call its disarmament announcement a betrayal of government promises.

The CMA CGM Kribi sailed close to the Iranian coastline and broadcast its French ownership throughout the crossing; in Tehran, an informal transit-approval system appears to be emerging.

The US and Israel are preparing for escalation by expanding strikes and hitting Iran’s economy, while talks remain deadlocked amid mistrust and conflicting demands over Hormuz and the nuclear issue.