Brandon Friedman

SCOOP: ​Shin Bet Director David Zini recently visited the UAE and met with Mohammed Dahlan, according to multiple regional and Israeli sources. The Shin Bet responded to me and @roysharon11: "We do not comment on the Director's schedule"

#Iran’s Account of the Latest Exchange of Fire with U.S. Forces 🔹CENTCOM confirmed overnight clashes with Iranian forces near the Strait of Hormuz, describing U.S. operations as defensive responses to unprovoked Iranian attacks. The statement provided limited details on the sequence of events or casualties. 🔹Iranian sources offer a different – and more detailed – account of what happened. According to that account, the exchange unfolded in several rounds over roughly 24 hours. 🔹It reportedly began when U.S. forces attacked two IRGC naval boats, killing four Iranian military personnel. Iran responded with anti-ship missiles targeting U.S. vessels. Iranian air defense systems then shot down at least one – some reports say three – U.S. drones operating in the area. 🔹The U.S. subsequently struck Iranian anti-ship missile launch sites and air defense systems. Iran responded again, firing multiple anti-ship missiles at U.S. vessels in the Arabian Sea. 🔹Independent verification of these claims – including the casualty figures and the extent of damage on both sides – remains limited. The competing narratives follow the familiar pattern in which each side frames its actions as a response to the other’s aggression. 🔹The more significant point is that the exchange has now moved through multiple rounds of attack and counter-attack within a single 24-hour period. That pattern is harder to contain than a single incident. It also raises the question of how this cycle interacts with the indirect negotiations currently underway…

1/ 🧵As attention stays fixed on Hormuz, three developments in the Eastern Mediterranean suggest the region is drifting away from the Greece-Cyprus-Israel "3+1" logic and toward an Egypt-centric export architecture while Turkey steadily positions itself as an alternative route.

🇧🇭 1984 🇧🇭 Where in Bahrain is this? Thanks to Nim Singh for sharing.

QATAR EMIR HOLD PHONE CALL WITH U.S. PRESIDENT TRUMP - AMIRI DIWAN

فعالیت‌های مشکوک در خلیج عدن سازمان عملیات تجارت دریایی انگلیس: گزارش‌هایی از فعالیت مشکوک در خلیج عدن در یمن دریافت کردیم

A report published in @SharghDaily describes Iran’s growing “demographic black hole,” a term used by health and population experts to warn of a potential shift into negative population growth in the coming years if current trends continue. Experts caution that without urgent intervention, Iran could enter a long-term demographic crisis around 2041–2042, characterized by an aging population, shrinking workforce, rising healthcare costs, and increasing social and economic pressure. A key focus of the report is the sharp decline in marriage and childbirth rates, driven largely by economic hardship. The high cost of marriage alone (estimated at hundreds of millions of tomans for basic household setup and wedding expenses) has led many young couples to delay or avoid marriage altogether. Even when marriage occurs, financial pressure continues into parenthood, particularly due to the high cost and limited availability of essential infant supplies such as diapers and infant formula, which can exceed three million tomans per month for a single child. The article also highlights strict quotas and supply limitations on infant formula purchases, as well as rising prices for basic baby goods, which further discourage family formation. Experts and officials cited in the report confirm a steady decline in births (around 7–9% annually) and marriages, alongside a growing number of single adults, including hundreds of thousands considered unlikely to ever marry. Finally, the report warns that Iran is still in a “demographic window of opportunity,” where the working-age population is large, but this window is closing as the population ages. Without policy changes to increase marriage rates, reduce economic barriers, and address infertility issues, the country risks entering a severe demographic crisis described as a “black hole” scenario. sharghdaily.com/%D8%A8%D8%AE%D…

🇸🇦 1937 🇸🇦 Dakhnah Gate in old Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Built of mud-brick, it was a vital checkpoint for people entering the city, acting similarly to modern customs and passport control. While the gate itself still stands, the surrounding defensive wall has since been removed.

السبعة الكبار.. هؤلاء يحسمون قرار إيران في زمن الحرب

Is a new era emerging for East Med gas? A changing of the guard is underway in the Eastern Mediterranean, as BP discusses selling its directly-held Egypt assets. Meanwhile Cyprus is moving towards first gas, with development plans approved for the Cronos field. Read more in this week's MEES here: tinyurl.com/yc3xs554 And here: tinyurl.com/mrymw8n9

Following today’s #UN Security Council briefing, I am publishing the core elements of the proposed 15-point “Roadmap to Complete the Implementation of President Trump’s Gaza Comprehensive Peace Plan” in plain language. • Points 1–5: Principles • Points 6–11: Security • Points 12–14: International Stabilization Force and IDF Withdrawal • Point 15: Reconstruction A thread (1/16) 🧵

Important #Iran developments in the past 24 hours: 🔹Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir is on his way to Tehran. 🔹The Pakistani prime minister will travel to China, probably conveying some Iran-related messages. 🔹Qatar has reportedly sent a negotiating team to Tehran, in coordination with the U.S., to help secure a deal. 🔹Tehran has been easing passage through the Strait of Hormuz. Reportedly, 35 ships passed yesterday; the figures were 31 and 28 on the previous two days. 🔹Ghalibaf has appointed Esmaeil Baghaei, the Foreign Ministry spokesperson, as the spokesman for the Iranian negotiating team.

(Reuters) - A Qatari negotiating team arrived in ​Tehran on Friday ‌in coordination with United States to help secure ​a deal to ​end the war with ⁠Iran and resolve ​outstanding issues, a source ​with knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Friday. Doha, ​which has worked ​as a mediator in the ‌Gaza ⁠war and other areas international tensions, had till now distanced ​itself ​from ⁠playing a mediation role in the ​Iran war after ​it ⁠came under attack from Iranian missiles and ⁠drones ​during the ​latest conflict.

🟡@semafor scoop from @MattMartin128: Saudi Arabia is halting work on The Line until after 2030 semafor.com/article/05/22/…

🇧🇭 1961-1962 🇧🇭 The Phoenix Club, Awali. Thanks to Jacqui Pearson for sharing these photos taken by her father, who was in Bahrain from 1960 to 1963.

عاجل | وكالة: قائد الجيش الباكستاني يتوجه إلى طهران اليوم لإجراء مفاوضات aawsat.com/node/5246834?p…

🇪🇬 Egypt signs gas infrastructure MoU with @exxonmobil @qatarenergy to explore possible pipelines from Cyprus egypttoday.com/Article/3/1473…

נשמח לראותכם איתנו בכיתה בשנה הבאה... go.tau.ac.il/he/internation…

Multiple oil tankers are attempting crossing the Strait of Hormuz (via the Iranian shipping lane), including 2 Chinese VLCC and 1 South Korean. All are carrying non-Iranian oil.