INTERNACIONAL
Iran’s $800M oil smuggling scheme uses tankers posing as Iraqi ships to dodge blockade
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Sanctioned tankers disguised as Iraqi vessels are moving hundreds of millions of dollars in Iranian crude as President Donald Trump doubled down on the port blockade to squeeze Tehran’s oil lifeline, according to maritime intelligence.
Windward AI claimed Wednesday that a group of U.S.-sanctioned tankers are falsifying their location data to come off as anchored off Iraq while secretly loading Iranian oil at Iranian ports.
«Among the tankers spoofing their location in the area identified by Windward are four VLCCs: Alicia (IMO 9281695), RHN (IMO 9208215), Star Forest (9237632), and Aqua (IMO 9248473), using various flags, including fraudulent registries from Curacao and Malawi,» the firm told Fox News Digital.
«For the four VLCCs, each VLCC can hold about 2 million barrels, so four of them would hold 8 million barrels, worth about $800 million at $100 per barrel,» Windward said.
TRUMP CASTS MADURO’S OUSTER AS ‘SMART’ MOVE AS RUSSIA, CHINA ENTER THE FRAY
A cargo ship sails in the Persian Gulf toward the Strait of Hormuz on April 22, 2026. (AP Photo)
This came as Trump said Wednesday he will keep Iran under a naval blockade until it agrees to a deal addressing U.S. concerns about its nuclear program.
The U.S. administration has demanded that Iran dismantle its uranium enrichment program, while Tehran maintains that enrichment is a sovereign right and nonnegotiable, leaving little room for compromise.
Windward AI noted a «cluster» sanctioned tankers spoofing locations and sighted to the West of the Strait of Hormuz.
«A cluster of 10 Iran-trading, U.S.-sanctioned tankers is now spoofing its AIS location to falsely appear at anchorages off Basrah, Iraq, as the blockade continues to constrict Iranian ports,» Windward explained.
«The vessels identified by Windward Multi-Source Intelligence are manipulating their signals to create a digital alibi,» the intelligence firm claimed.
«By broadcasting fake destination messages to Iraqi ports, the tankers appear to be in Iraqi waters while covertly sailing to Iran to load sanctioned oil.
US AND UKRAINE TARGET 1,000-VESSEL ‘DARK FLEET’ SMUGGLING SANCTIONED OIL WORLDWIDE
«Once loaded, the vessels re-emerge on AIS to suggest a legitimate Iraqi origin for the cargo.»
The U.S. blockade on Iranian ports began April 13 as part of a broader effort to pressure Iran into renegotiating limits on its nuclear program.
The blockade has unfolded in stages, starting with naval deployments and restricted maritime enforcement to limit Iran’s oil exports and economic activity.
Windward said more than two dozen tankers are currently confined west of Hormuz as of Wednesday, with the blockade cutting Iranian oil loadings and exports by more than half.
«This deceptive practice is under intensified scrutiny as the vessels are part of a larger group of more than two dozen tankers currently confined west of Hormuz,» the firm said.
«The handysize tanker Paola and Long Range One tanker Adena, both signaling ‘Iraqi owner’ but linked to a sanctioned network.»
TRUMP DECLARES ‘VENEZUELAN REGIME’ A FOREIGN TERRORIST ORGANIZATION, ORDERS OIL TANKER BLOCKADE
Former President Donald Trump weighs a potential attack on Iran’s oil hub at Kharg Island amid expert predictions of market chaos. (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto)
The firm claimed three medium-range tankers, including Aqualis, Kush and Charminar, and the LPG carrier Royal H (IMO 9155341), which was newly sanctioned in February, are currently displaying «erratic voyage trails to suggest a loading at the Iraqi port of Khor Al Zubair.»
«The tell-tale spoofing signs, including erratic patterns and fake port signals, highlight the shifting tactics used by the dark fleet as the blockade more than halves Iranian oil loadings and exports,» the firm said.
Meanwhile. Iran’s Mohammad Ghalibaf slammed U.S. policymakers Wednesday, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, over the impact of the U.S. blockade of Iranian ports.
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The parliamentary speaker cited «junk advice» and blamed the Treasury for pushing up oil prices.
«Three days in, no well exploded,» Ghalibaf said in a post shared on X.
us navy, middle east, war with iran, iran, sanctions
INTERNACIONAL
Estados Unidos aprobó ventas de armamento militar por USD 8.600 millones a sus aliado de Medio Oriente
La administración del presidente estadounidense Donald Trump aprobó ventas militares por más de USD 8.600 millones a sus aliados de Medio Oriente. Israel, Qatar, Kuwait y los Emiratos Árabes Unidos figuran entre los países beneficiados por estas transacciones, anunciadas por el Departamento de Estado el viernes.
El secretario de Estado estadounidense, Marco Rubio, determinó que existía una emergencia que requería la aprobación inmediata de las ventas, por lo que quedaron exentas de los procedimientos habituales de revisión por parte del Congreso.
Entre las operaciones autorizadas se encuentra la venta a Qatar de servicios de reabastecimiento de defensa aérea y antimisiles Patriot por USD 4.010 millones, además de sistemas avanzados de armas de precisión (APKWS) por USD 992,4 millones.
El permiso para Kuwait incluyó un sistema integrado de mando de batalla por USD 2.500 millones, mientras que Israel recibió autorización para adquirir sistemas APKWS valorados en USD 992,4 millones. Los Emiratos Árabes Unidos podrán acceder también a APKWS por USD 147,6 millones.
El Departamento de Estado especificó que BAE Systems (BAES.L) es el contratista principal en las ventas de APKWS a Qatar, Israel y los Emiratos Árabes Unidos. RTX (RTX.N) y Lockheed Martin (LMT.N) lideran los contratos para el sistema de mando de batalla a Kuwait y el sistema Patriot a Qatar. Northrop Grumman (NOC.N) figura como contratista principal en la venta a Kuwait.
En paralelo, la agencia de telecomunicaciones de la ONU condenó los ataques de Irán contra la infraestructura de telecomunicaciones en Medio Oriente desde el inicio de la guerra. La Unión Internacional de Telecomunicaciones (UIT) indicó que mantiene una supervisión sobre las consecuencias de estos incidentes.
El Consejo de Cooperación del Golfo, con el respaldo de Jordania, presentó una demanda ante la UIT por los ataques dirigidos a las redes de comunicaciones en Bahréin, Kuwait, los Emiratos Árabes Unidos y Jordania.
La aprobación de las ventas de armamento coincide con el contexto de la guerra entre Estados Unidos e Israel contra el régimen iraní, que suma nueve semanas desde su inicio y más de tres semanas de un alto el fuego. Las negociaciones, pausadas por las exigencias de Teherán, no vislumbran un final concreto del conflicto.
Desde Estados Unidos, el inquilino de la Casa Blanca expresó el viernes su insatisfacción con la nueva propuesta de Irán para iniciar negociaciones de paz con Washington, en un contexto marcado por el estancamiento de las conversaciones y la vigencia de un alto el fuego desde hace varias semanas.
“En este momento no estoy satisfecho con lo que están ofreciendo”, afirmó Trump ante periodistas, aunque reconoció que el régimen iraní “ha hecho avances” en las conversaciones con Estados Unidos. El mandatario también admitió no estar seguro de que Irán pueda cumplir con los requisitos solicitados por su administración.
Consultado sobre la posibilidad de enviar una nueva delegación a Pakistán para reanudar conversaciones, luego de la cancelación del viaje la semana pasada, Trump respondió: “Sentimos un gran respeto por Pakistán e Islamabad, y un enorme respeto por el primer ministro y el mariscal de campo. Están colaborando con nosotros. Siguen colaborando con nosotros”.
El presidente añadió que, a pesar de la distancia, su administración “está haciendo todo lo posible en cuanto a negociaciones en este momento”, en referencia a las comunicaciones telefónicas sostenidas entre las partes.
Luego, durante un discurso en Florida, Trump atribuyó a los bombarderos B-2 la interrupción del programa nuclear iraní antes de que Teherán pudiera desarrollar un arma atómica. “Si no hubiéramos hecho eso, habrían tenido un arma nuclear. Israel habría quedado destruido. El Medio Oriente habría quedado destruido. Creo que Europa también”, afirmó.
A su vez, describió a Irán como una potencia militar desmantelada. Según sus palabras, el país no dispone de armada, fuerza aérea, equipos antiaéreos, radar ni liderazgo operativo: “Sus líderes han desaparecido. El primer grupo, el segundo grupo, Khamenei, todos se han ido”.
El conflicto comenzó el pasado 28 de febrero, cuando Estados Unidos e Israel atacaron a Irán, que respondió con ataques propios contra Israel y estados del Golfo con bases estadounidenses.
(Con información de Reuters)
Domestic,Politics,North America,Government / Politics
INTERNACIONAL
Estados Unidos retirará 5.000 soldados de Alemania y profundiza su enfrentamiento con Europa
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Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito pushed back on claims this week that ending deportation protections for Haitian migrants was racially motivated, pressing an attorney to explain how that argument works when the policy has been applied broadly to migrants from many countries.
«You have a really large — you have a really broad definition of who’s White and who’s not White,» Alito, an appointee of former President George W. Bush, said during oral arguments, challenging a claim leveled by the migrants’ lawyer that the Trump Department of Homeland Security (DHS) intentionally targeted non-White migrants when it decided to terminate their temporary protected status (TPS).
The exchange came as the Supreme Court weighed a high-stakes case over the Trump administration’s authority to end TPS protections for tens of thousands of Haitian and Syrian migrants.
The high court’s decision could strip their legal protections and have similar implications for hundreds of thousands of other migrants, meaning DHS could then move to detain and deport them.
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Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito pushed back on claims that ending deportation protections for Haitian migrants was racially motivated. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Congress created temporary protected status as a form of protection for migrants fleeing war and natural disaster, and the law requires DHS officials to periodically review whether an origin country qualifies under those terms.
Attorney Geoffrey Pipoly, representing the migrant plaintiffs during oral arguments, argued the courts had some authority to review the government’s TPS decisions and that the decision to end the protected status for Haitians, in particular, did not follow the law because it was driven by racial bias against «non-White immigrants.»
«The president has disparaged Haitian TPS holders specifically as undesirables from a ‘s—hole country,’ and days after falsely accusing them of ‘eating the dogs and eating the cats of Americans,’ he vowed that he would terminate Haiti’s TPS, and that is exactly what happened,» Pipoly said.
Alito grilled the lawyer over the claim, noting the government’s TPS terminations applied to a range of countries.
«Do you think that if you put Syrians, Turks, Greeks and other people who live around the Mediterranean in a lineup, do you think you could say those people, that all of them, are they all non-White?» Alito asked.
«I don’t like dividing the people of the world into these groups.»
Alito began to test Pipoly on which bucket he would sort various nationalities into, White versus non-White, leading Pipoly to argue that the bar for finding racial animus was low.
SCOTUS TO REVIEW TRUMP EXECUTIVE ORDER ON BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP
A protester raises a sign seeking protection for Haitians in the U.S. (Lynne Sladky/AP)
«Irrespective of how you do the classification … bare dislike of an unpopular group is a sufficient basis,» Pipoly said.
The case is centered on whether courts can review the government’s TPS decisions and the processes that went into reaching those decisions. Migrants’ lawyers have also made arguments that DHS officials failed to properly assess a country’s conditions or relied on unlawful factors, such as whether termination was of national interest.
The Department of Justice (DOJ) told the Supreme Court those decisions are not subject to judicial review and fall solely under the purview of the executive branch. The DOJ warned that allowing challenges could open the door to widespread litigation over immigration policy.
The migrants’ lawyers, meanwhile, argued in court papers that the DOJ had taken an «extreme position that would insulate flagrantly unlawful executive action from judicial review.»
COURT OF APPEALS TO HEAR ORAL ARGUMENTS IN HIGH-PROFILE DEPORTATION SUIT INVOLVING VENEZUELAN NATIONALS
The facade of the U.S. Supreme Court building in Washington, D.C., in October 2024. (Valerie Plesch/picture alliance)
The conservative justices appeared largely sympathetic to the Trump administration’s arguments, while the liberal justices zeroed in on whether the government’s alleged racial bias could be unconstitutional.
Justice Sonia Sotomayor, an Obama appointee, suggested Trump’s public claim that migrants are «poisoning the blood of America» would be a violation of constitutional prohibitions on discrimination by the government, since it was «showing that a discriminatory purpose may have played a part in this decision» to end temporary protected status.
Homeland Security has already terminated the legal status of migrants from six countries, including Venezuela and Honduras, moves that the Supreme Court temporarily greenlit through previous emergency requests. The high court is making a decision on the merits regarding the Haitians and Syrians, meaning it will carry finality and could apply more broadly.
The status of migrants from seven other countries remains on hold while the case is pending, including more than 6,000 Syrian and almost 350,000 Haitian migrants, as well as those from Ethiopia, Myanmar, Yemen, Somalia and South Sudan.
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The Supreme Court is expected to issue a ruling by the end of June.
Fox News’ Bill Mears contributed to this report.
supreme court, homeland security, deportation, immigration, immigrant rights
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