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Iraq pulled into Iran war as US targets Iran-aligned groups

Al Jazeera

Air strikes have targeted the headquarters of the Iran-aligned Popular Mobilisation Forces (PMF) in Iraq's capital, Baghdad, as the country becomes a two-way battlefield between armed factions and the United States during its war with Iran . The US carried out strikes against the Shia paramilitary umbrella group, also known locally as Hashed al-Shaabi, late on Sunday after attacks on a US diplomatic and logistics centre at Baghdad International Airport. The attack was carried out after Iraqi security officials said four explosions were heard near Camp Victory, a US logistics centre at the capital's main airport. Al Jazeera's Assed Baig, reporting from Baghdad, said some drones "breached air defences and caused damage, more symbolic damage than anything else". "At the same time, Iraqi security forces have set up checkpoints around Baghdad to try and stop these drone strikes because some of these factions are launching drones from the vicinity of Baghdad," he said.


Meet the Gods of AI Warfare

WIRED

In its early days, the AI initiative known as Project Maven had its fair share of skeptics at the Pentagon. Today, many of them are true believers. The rise of AI warfare speaks to the biggest moral and practical question there is: Who--or what--gets to decide to take a human life? And who bears that cost? In 2018, more than 3,000 Google workers protested the company's involvement in "the business of war" after finding out the company was part of Project Maven, then a nascent Pentagon effort to use computer vision to rifle through copious video footage taken in America's overseas drone wars. They feared Project Maven's AI could one day be used for lethal targeting. In my yearslong effort to uncover the full story of Project Maven for my book,, I learned that is exactly what happened, and that the undertaking was just as controversial inside the Pentagon. Today, the tool known as Maven Smart System is being used in US operations against Iran . How the US military's top brass moved from skepticism about the use of AI in war to true believers has a lot to do with a Marine colonel named Drew Cukor. In early September 2024, during the cocktail hour at a private retreat for tech investors and defense leaders, Vice Admiral Frank "Trey" Whitworth found his way to Drew Cukor. Now Project Maven's founding leader and his skeptical successor were standing face-to-face. Three years earlier, Whitworth had been the Pentagon's top military official for intelligence, advising the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and running one of the most sensitive and potentially lethal parts of any military process: targeting.


Dad loses custody of autistic son after fighting sex change, gets support from Elon Musk

FOX News

Alexandre Rocha, a French father in Iceland, claims he lost parental rights after opposing his autistic son's sex reassignment, alleging courts prioritized ideology over his rights.


Drone strike near Iraqi intelligence headquarters in Baghdad kills officer

Al Jazeera

Will Gulf states join war? One police officer has been killed in a drone strike by "outlaw groups" on the headquarters of the Iraqi National Intelligence Service in the heart of capital Baghdad. "A drone targeted the headquarters of the Iraqi National Intelligence Service in the Mansour district" at about 10am local time (07:00 GMT), General Saad Maan, head of the Iraqi government's security media unit, said in a brief statement on Saturday. Another drone, filming the operation, crashed into a private members ' sports club popular with the Iraqi elite and foreign diplomats, according to the same source. The drone attack on the headquarters of the National Intelligence Service came hours after another attack on the US military complex.



Ros Atkins on... Trump's mixed messages on the war

BBC News

Ros Atkins on... Trump's mixed messages on the war For every day of this war, President Trump has been sharing his perspective and his thinking - whether in press conferences, in video statements or in posts on social media. In the last week, that's continued - as strikes have been exchanged - and pressure has built on the supply of oil and gas from the region. The BBC's Analysis Editor Ros Atkins has looked at what the President's been saying. Watch: Sean Penn receives'Oscar' in Ukraine after skipping US ceremony The Academy Award winning US actor won his third Oscar on Sunday, but skipped the ceremony to visit Ukraine. Voiced by Domhnall Gleeson and directed by John Kelly, Retirement Plan is nominated for Best Animated Short Film at the 98th Academy Awards.


Mystery drones fly near DC-area military base as Iran tensions escalate

FOX News

Unidentified drones were reported near Fort Lesley J. McNair in Washington, D.C., as the U.S. has heightened security at military installations amid strikes on Iran.


The Pentagon Wants an Obedient A.I. Soldier. Will It Get One?

The New Yorker

The reported use of Claude in recent military operations has shifted the Overton window around A.I. in warfare--and sparked a battle between Anthropic and the Department of War. The staff writer Gideon Lewis-Kraus joins Tyler Foggatt to discuss the escalating standoff between the A.I. company Anthropic and the Department of War. They consider recent reporting on the use of Claude--Anthropic's family of large language models--in military operations in Venezuela and Iran, and how that news has pushed the company's relationship with the Pentagon to a breaking point. They also explore how the tech industry is responding to the conflict between the Trump Administration and Anthropic, and the thorny question of whether A.I. should be subject to greater safeguards and more oversight than previous technological innovations. " The Pentagon Went to War with Anthropic. " The Iran War Is Another Reason to Quit Oil," by Bill McKibben " How Should We Remember the Hippies?


Iran war: What is happening on day 19 of US-Israel attacks?

Al Jazeera

Iran war: What is happening on day 19 of US-Israel attacks? Iran has pledged "revenge" after Israeli strikes killed security chief Ali Larijani and commander of Basij paramilitary forces Gholamreza Soleimani, with Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi saying Tehran's political system remains strong as the war entered its 19th day . Iran launched more attacks on Israel, causing extensive property damage, after an earlier strike killed two people in Ramat Gan. Political tensions are also rising in the United States, as senior counterterrorism official Joe Kent resigned, saying "we started this war due to pressure from Israel and its powerful American lobby". Meanwhile, President Donald Trump criticised NATO allies and partners for failing to provide stronger military support in efforts to end Iran's chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz.


Drone attacks hit near US embassy in Baghdad

Al Jazeera

Fires have broken out in Baghdad's Green Zone after a drone swarm, believed to have been launched by groups aligned with Iran. Araghchi: Iran's system holds despite targeted leaders Experts discuss'Israeli strategy' in killing of senior Iran official Ali L'We'll be doing something with Cuba very soon', Trump says Pakistan'strongly' rejects claim it struck Kabul hospital