INTERNACIONAL
Lebanon accuses Iran of inserting IRGC terrorists into country ‘under guise of diplomatic activity’
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The Lebanese government filed a sharply worded complaint with the United Nations arguing that the Islamic Republic of Iran has abused diplomatic immunity by refusing to recall its ambassador after Beirut demanded his expulsion and to stop alleged terrorist activities on its soil, according to a recently surfaced letter from late April.
The disclosure of the letter, which is reportedly a precedent-setting move by Lebanon, comes amid a second day of talks in Washington between Israel and Lebanon to normalize relations (the countries are in a state of war) and dismantle the Iranian-regime-backed Hezbollah terrorist movement in Lebanon.
A U.S. State Department spokesperson told Fox News Digital on Friday that «The United States facilitated talks between Israel and Lebanon have resumed today and are ongoing. The atmosphere of talks has been very positive, even exceeding expectations.»
FAMILY OF AMERICAN HOSTAGE TORTURED IN LEBANON WINS LANDMARK CASE AGAINST IRAN
A mourner holds a portrait of Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a funeral procession on March 5, 2026, for members of Iraq’s pro-Iran paramilitary group Kataeb Hezbollah killed in a strike in Baghdad the previous day. (Ahmed Al-Rubaye/AFP via Getty Images)
State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott wrote on X on Friday that «On May 14 and 15, the United States hosted two days of highly-productive talks between Israel and Lebanon. The April 16 cessation of hostilities will be extended by 45 days to enable further progress. The State Department will reconvene the political track of negotiations on June 2 and June 3.»
He added that, «In addition, a security track will be launched at the Pentagon on May 29 with military delegations from both countries. We hope these discussions will advance lasting peace between the two countries, full recognition of each other’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and establishing genuine security along their shared border.»
As the sides report back to their capitals, the potentially game-changing letter in which Lebanese ambassador to the U.N. Ahmad Arafa, slammed Iran for inserting alleged terrorists from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) into Lebanon «under the guise of diplomatic activity,» has given hope to critics of Iran and Hezbollah.
Arafa said, according to the letter, that Iran committed «unlawful acts in blatant defiance of the decisions of the Government of Lebanon.» He continued, «This Iranian conduct constitutes direct and blatant interference in the internal affairs of Lebanon and drags the country into a war it did not choose to become involved in.»
Michael Needham, counselor for the U.S. Department of State, U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. Ambassador to Lebanon Michel Issa, Lebanese Ambassador to the U.S. Nada Hamadeh Moawad, and Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Yechiel Leiter pose for a photo before a meeting at the State Department in Washington, D.C., on April 14, 2026. (Jacquelyn Martin/AP)
The U.S. and the European Union have classified the IRGC as a terrorist entity.
The letter took the Iranian Ambassador to Beirut, Mohammad Reza Sheibani, to task for «blatant interference» in Lebanon.
According to Lebanon’s U.N. letter, Beirut argued that Iran is violating the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and interfering in Lebanon’s state of affairs.
IDF SOLDIERS ACCUSE UN PEACEKEEPERS OF ENABLING HEZBOLLAH TERRORISTS AMID INCREASING CEASE-FIRE VIOLATIONS
Iranian protesters carry flowers in front of a large banner of Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah during a protest in Tehran on Sept. 30, 2024, condemning an Israeli air strike on Hezbollah’s Beirut headquarters and the killing of Nasrallah and IRGC Quds Force commander General Abbas Nilforoushan. (Morteza Nikoubazl/NurPhoto)
When asked about the details of the letter, a spokesperson for Lebanon’s ambassador to the U.S. declined to comment. The spokesperson also declined to weigh in on the current talks with Israel in Washington.
Walid Phares, a leading U.S. expert on Lebanon and the Mideast, told Fox News Digital that «Many have considered the Lebanese memo to the U.N. as the start of the Lebanese government change of attitude towards Iran and a sign of escalation by Beirut. While the tone of the letter and its narrative make people feel that there is a government resistance to Iran and Hezbollah reality is still lesser.»
He added that «The subject of the last quarrel is a legal change of status regarding the presence of Iranians on Lebanese soil. The Lebanese government has decided not to grant Iranians, government, and private citizens an automatic visa waiver, which upset Iran and Hezbollah. Besides, Tehran is furious at the fact that the Lebanese government has not been helpful in dealing with the elimination of a number of IRGC members killed in Lebanon by Israel. Tehran blames the foreign ministry of Lebanon, particularly foreign minister Youssef Raggi, for the ‘lessening of solidarity with Iran.»‘
Smoke rises from Israeli airstrikes in Dahiyeh, a southern suburb of Beirut, Lebanon, on April 5, 2026. (Emilio Morenatti/AP)
According to Phares, «Raggi represents a Lebanese Christian bloc in the parliament, who is not sympathetic to the regime. However, the actual talks in D.C. are designed by the Lebanese government to show the Trump administration that the ‘state wants to talk’ but not to reach an agreement that would trigger Hezbollah’s wrath. The leaders of the Lebanese state are not yet where the U.S. and Israel expect them to be.»
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A regional official well-versed in the U.N. dispute told Fox News Digital that Lebanon «argued that Iran had not given the Lebanese foreign ministry the list of all Iranians and the details about their place of stay. And that’s why Israel targeted that hotel in Lebanon in which six were killed, which is true.»
The official said that «Iran had not told the foreign ministry of Lebanon about those six people.»
war with iran, lebanon, united nations, israel, state department, terrorism
INTERNACIONAL
Rubio sanctions Cuban groups with ties to US nonprofit network funded by communist donor Neville Roy Singham
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Secretary of State Marco Rubio put U.S. organizations on notice: they can no longer do business with a key Cuban organization that has spent over six decades since the launch of Fidel Castro’s communist revolution in 1959, cultivating relationships with U.S. activists and groups, many of them now funded by communist American tycoon Neville Roy Singham.
The sanctions target the Cuban Institute of Friendship with the Peoples, known by its Spanish acronym ICAP, an organization founded by Castro in 1960 to spread Marxist ideology and support for Cuba. Long ago, U.S. officials and intelligence assessments concluded ICAP is a key component of Cuba’s intelligence apparatus.
«For decades, Cuba has been the world capital for radical left-wing terrorism,» Rubio said. «The regime in Havana has recruited, trained and backed violent Marxist and third-worldist movements across our hemisphere and beyond.»
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Marco Rubio moves to put sanctions on a group that Fidel Castro established in 1960 to spread Cuba’s communist influence in the world. (Sven Creutzmann/Mambo Photography/Getty Images; Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Earlier this year, ICAP worked with U.S. nonprofits, including the People’s Forum, Progressive International and CodePink — to organize a March «convoy» that included controversial Marxist streamer Hasan Piker landing in Cuba to support Cuba’s communist party.
The trip has since attracted federal scrutiny, with CodePink cofounder Medea Benjamin confirming she received questions from federal officials about the trip, investigating whether she violated sanctions.
Late last month, Fox News Digital published a three-part series, reporting that federal investigators are examining Cuba’s alleged malign foreign influence operation in the U.S., investigating a network of 145 groups with collective revenues of about $1 billion, promoting Cuba’s agenda and communist ideology.
«Today, we are targeting the network that enables and funds Cuba’s subversive and radical operations,» Rubio said.
The groups working closely with ICAP include the People’s Forum, CodePink, BreakThrough News and Tricontinental, funded by Singham, a Marxist tech tycoon living in Shanghai. As reported, Singham has pumped $285 million into nonprofits since 2017 in these nonprofits that have built very close relationships with ICAP and the communist government of Cuba.
Singham is married to CodePink co-founder Jodie Evans.
INSIDE CUBA’S FOREIGN INFLUENCE CAMPAIGN: FROM THE VENCEREMOS BRIGADE OF THE 1960S TO SATURDAY IN A UNION HALL
ICAP is today led by Fernando González Llort, one of five former Cuban intelligence officers, known as the «Cuban Five,» convicted in the U.S. years ago on espionage-related charges and released after spending time in jail. Critics say ICAP acts as aa gateway for revolutionaries from around the world to get embedded in the propaganda, organizing tactics and strategic goals of the Communist Party of Cuba. ICAP has denied wrongdoing and says it’s a civil society organization.
ICAP was one of five entities that Rubio designated as off-limits under sanctions authorities established by President Donald Trump’s Cuba executive order. The sanctions also target Cuba’s Ministry of the Revolutionary Armed Forces (MINFAR), the Committees for the Defense of the Revolution (CDR), Minera La Victoria S.A. and the state-run tourism company Amistur Cuba S.A., which has arranged trips to Cuba with U.S. nonprofits in the Singham network.
Experts said the move signals that the Trump administration is focused not only on the Cuban government but also on U.S. institutions that U.S. officials believe help project Cuban influence internationally.
A declassified CIA report from the Cold War era, «Cuba: Castro’s Propaganda Apparatus and Foreign Policy,» described Cuba’s international propaganda and influence activities as a central component of Castro’s foreign policy strategy. The report named ICAP among organizations that act as important instruments for cultivating sympathetic political movements abroad and extending Cuban influence beyond the island.
DOJ, TREASURY INVESTIGATE NONPROFITS AND LEADERS ALLEGEDLY COORDINATING WITH CUBA IN INFLUENCE CAMPAIGN
One of the most notable examples was the Venceremos Brigade, a Cuba solidarity program established in 1969 that brought generations of American activists to the island through exchanges organized with Cuban authorities and institutions including ICAP.
The program became one of the most visible pipelines connecting American activists to the Cuban revolutionary government.
Today, the Venceremos Brigade operates as a fiscally-sponsored project of People’s Forum.
Lawmakers and federal authorities are examining whether organizations funded by Singham have acted on behalf of foreign interests without properly registering and have helped amplify messaging favorable to the Chinese Communist Party and the Communist Party of Cuba.
Cuba’s President Miguel Diaz-Canel (C) listens to Progressive International’s general coordinator, David Adler, during an event at the Cuban Institute for Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP) in Havana, on March 21, 2026. A former Cuban intelligence officer who is now president of ICAP, sits to the right of Cuba’s president. (Photo by Ernesto Mastrascusa / POOL / AFP via Getty Images) (Ernesto Mastrascusa/AFP via Getty Images)
HOW A RHODES SCHOLAR WITH TIES TO CUBA’S PRESIDENT ORGANIZED THE CONVOY THAT BROUGHT HASAN PIKER TO HAVANA
During the recent convoy in March, Progressive International co-founder David Adler appeared alongside Cuban President Miguel Díaz-Canel and ICAP President González at an official event hosted by ICAP.
Years ago, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass participated in Venceremos Brigade trips, a connection that her mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt resurfaced during her campaign. Bass has denied any wrongdoing.
Supporters of such exchanges describe them as educational and humanitarian programs intended to foster international understanding. Critics argue they function as political influence operations designed to build support for the Cuban regime and its ideological objectives.
The Cuban government condemned Rubio’s sanctions shortly after the announcement.
President Miguel Díaz-Canel accused the United States of escalating economic pressure against Cuba and attempting to intensify tensions between the two countries.
Hasan Piker, a Democratic Socialists of America member, and CodePink co-founder Jodie Evans meet in Havana, Cuba, as part of a «United Front» supporting the communist regime. (CodePink via Storyful)
«The Treasury Department has added new names of Cuban leaders, organizations and companies to an illegitimate sanctions list,» Díaz-Canel wrote on social media. «They are aimed at reinforcing the blockade measures and the scenario of conflict between Cuba and the United States.»
Rubio’s warning extended beyond the sanctioned entities.
The action signals that the administration is increasingly focused on the networks, partnerships and influence channels that U.S. officials believe have helped advance Cuban interests abroad long after the Cold War officially ended.
«Anyone providing services to these sanctioned actors is at risk of sanctions themselves,» he said. «Foreign banks and other companies that provide services to these entities should freeze those activities.»
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Fox News Digital’s Reagan Schroeder contributed to this report.
cuba, cia, sanctions, marco rubio, secretary of state
INTERNACIONAL
Fuerza armada de El Salvador confirma a un militar herido en una base de la ONU en Líbano
El soldado salvadoreño Hugo Alfredo Ortiz Grivas, integrante del contingente de mantenimiento de la paz de la ONU en Líbano, resultó lesionado tras un ataque armado contra la base donde presta servicio, según informó la Fuerza Armada de El Salvador (FAES). El incidente ocurrió en una instalación de la Fuerza Interina de las Naciones Unidas en Líbano (FINUL) el 4 de junio de 2026, donde se encuentran destacados militares de diferentes países.
De acuerdo con el comunicado oficial, Ortiz Grivas, quien forma parte del XXI contingente salvadoreño, sufrió una herida en la pierna izquierda por el impacto de un proyectil durante el ataque a la base. La Fuerza Armada de El Salvador precisó que el soldado recibió atención médica inmediata y fue intervenido quirúrgicamente en el hospital de campaña. Actualmente, la condición de Ortiz Grivas es estable, según la información oficial.
El ataque no solo afectó a las fuerzas salvadoreñas. Otros dos integrantes de la fuerza internacional de mantenimiento de la paz resultaron heridos: un militar de las Fuerzas Armadas de España y otro de las Fuerzas Armadas de Serbia. El comunicado detalla que el militar serbio falleció posteriormente a causa de las lesiones sufridas.
La presencia de contingentes internacionales en Líbano responde a la misión de la ONU destinada a mantener la estabilidad y apoyar el cese de hostilidades en la región, marcada por tensiones y episodios de violencia esporádicos. La contribución de El Salvador a la FINUL comenzó en abril de 2026 con el despliegue del XXI contingente, que mantiene tareas de patrullaje, resguardo y apoyo logístico en la base de las Naciones Unidas.
La Fuerza Armada de El Salvador subrayó que tras el incidente se activaron los protocolos de emergencia y confirmó que el resto del personal salvadoreño destacado en la misión se encuentra fuera de peligro. “La condición de salud del soldado Ortiz Grivas es estable”, señala el comunicado, que también manifiesta solidaridad con los familiares de los militares afectados y con las fuerzas aliadas que sufrieron bajas en el ataque.
El ataque a la base de la ONU se produce en un contexto de renovadas tensiones en la frontera sur de Líbano, donde se registran esporádicos enfrentamientos entre grupos armados y las fuerzas internacionales. La misión de la FINUL permanece vigilante ante el aumento de la violencia, reforzando las medidas de seguridad para los efectivos desplegados.
La participación de El Salvador en operaciones de paz ha sido reconocida por organismos internacionales y forma parte de la política exterior y de defensa del país. Los contingentes salvadoreños han intervenido en diversos escenarios bajo mandato de la ONU, y su labor ha sido valorada por la comunidad internacional como un aporte a la estabilidad y la protección de civiles en zonas de conflicto.
Hasta el momento, la Fuerza Armada de El Salvador no ha ofrecido detalles adicionales sobre el origen del ataque ni sobre posibles cambios en la misión del contingente salvadoreño. El comunicado oficial cierra reafirmando el compromiso de las autoridades militares de mantener informada a la población sobre la evolución del estado de salud de sus efectivos y la situación en el terreno.
corresponsal:Desde San Salvador, El Salvador
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