Eliot Higgins

Trump administration underestimated Iran war’s impact on Strait of Hormuz | CNN Politics The Pentagon and National Security Council significantly underestimated Iran’s willingness to close the Strait of Hormuz in response to US military strikes while planning the ongoing operation, accord...

"Top Trump officials acknowledged to lawmakers during recent classified briefings that they did not plan for the possibility of Iran closing the strait in response to strikes."

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA
www.cnn.com/2026/03/12/p...

Sadly exactly as expected

I’ve got a load of teenage and younger family in Australia, this chimes with them and their parents experience

A veneer of protection that gives false assurance to parents, schools and politicians is dangerous of and in itself

Those little girls didn't stand a chance!

#Putin 's chief financial advisor Dmitriev celebrates lifting of US sanctions on #Russia oil until April 11

"The United States is effectively acknowledging the obvious: without Russian oil, the global energy market cannot remain stable"

#Ukraine #UkraineWar #IranWar

Explosions rattled buildings in Dubai and a large cloud of smoke hung over a central area of the financial hub on Friday, AFP correspondents report.

Sirens could be heard coming from the direction of Sheikh Zayed Road, the United Arab Emirates city's main artery

The Preschool Teaching Assistant Shot by Border Patrol, Then Called a “Domestic Terrorist” When Marimar Martinez was shot five times by a Border Patrol agent, the D.H.S. justified it by calling her a “domestic terrorist.” In the aftermath, she’s been trying to recover her reputation and, wi...

important read: www.newyorker.com/news/annals-...

The Iranian school bombing and the information war Evidence suggests that the US was most likely to be behind the attack that killed over 100 children

"The result is an information vacuum unusual for a modern conflict in countries with easy access to advanced technology: a war fought in the digital age but shrouded in a level of opacity reminiscent of an earlier era."

Breakfast Wrap: Ex-US defence specialist questions Iran strikes - ABC listen We hear from the man who once ran the Pentagon's civilian protection department, tasked with providing guidance on strikes and investigating killings in war.   He is accusing the Trump administration...

Fmr Pentagon civilian protection chief @wesjbryant.bsky.social echoes @eliothiggins.bsky.social's concerns that he's not confident the US investigation into the #IranSchool strike will be thorough.

LISTEN: tinyurl.com/5fesf7ej
#RadioNationalBreakfast #ABCBreakfastWrap
Produced w/ Brooke Young

U.S. OFFICIALS REPORT THAT IRAN IS LAYING MINES IN THE STRAIT OF HORMUZ, ACCORDING TO THE NEW YORK TIMES. THIS CONTRADICTS EARLIER REMARKS BY TREASURY SECRETARY BESSENT WHO STATED IRAN HAD NOT MINED THE STRAIT.

And there I was thinking that Stephen Miller was emphatically against foreign politicians interfering with national sovereignty.

British tourist among 20 charged in Dubai over videos of Iranian missile strikes UAE cybercrime law means sharing images or footage of war can bring jail, prison time and deportation

British tourist among 20 charged in Dubai over videos of Iranian missile strikes www.theguardian.com/world/2026/m...

Via the full release sent to media, "This was not due to hostile fire or friendly fire."

Killing Anna - CPH:DOX A Syrian woman creates a fake identity on Facebook to trap war criminals in a gripping psychological thriller sparked by a shocking video.

Bellingcat's latest documentary, Killing Anna, a tale of catfishing Syrian war criminals and exposing their roles in a massacre, will be shown at CPH:DOX in March. The ultimate Doxxing at DOX.
cphdox.dk/film/killing...

Trump shouts out Kellyanne Conway ... and seems to think she still works for him?

If I had to pick the worst/least appropriate person to host an event for Women’s history, it would probably be the guy who was best friends with Jeffrey Epstein.

And only because Jeffrey isn’t available.

Could this be a solution?

John Solly Is the DOGE Operative Accused of Planning to Take Social Security Data to His New Job A whistleblower complaint alleges John Solly claimed to have stored highly sensitive Social Security data on a thumb drive. Solly and Leidos, his current employer, strongly deny the allegations.

SCOOP: John Solly Is the DOGE Operative Accused of Planning to Take Social Security Data to His New Job

w/ @telliotter.bsky.social

www.wired.com/story/john-s...

I Watched 6 Hours of DOGE Bro Testimony. Here's What They Had to Say For Themselves The hours of videos provide fascinating, or perhaps horrifying, insight into the thinking of someone inside DOGE.

What stands out to me is the arrogance. The surefootedness that this was the correct thing to do despite no experience in government. The presumption that they were entitled to use their own uninformed judgement to cut funds to things that they don’t personally value www.404media.co/i-watched-6-...

I Watched 6 Hours of DOGE Bro Testimony. Here's What They Had to Say For Themselves The hours of videos provide fascinating, or perhaps horrifying, insight into the thinking of someone inside DOGE.

I have watched 6 hours of a DOGE bro deposition. The whole thing, start to finish. It's a fascinating, and horrifying, look at the people who caused so much damage, didn't really achieve anything at all, while still being so sure they are right. Here's what they said: www.404media.co/i-watched-6-...

Gunman opens fire at Old Dominion University, injuring 2 people; suspect killed A shooter was killed after opening fire in a building on the campus of Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, the university said.

NEW: The Old Dominion University gunman was identified as Mohamed Bailor Jalloh, an ex-National Guardsman previously imprisoned for trying to support ISIS, sources say.

Starmer may face more resignations after release of Mandelson WhatsApp messages, say sources PM has apologised for his handling of Peter Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador, but next tranche of files could contain further damaging details

Starmer may face more resignations after release of Mandelson WhatsApp messages, say sources www.theguardian.com/politics/202...

a while back a guy I knew was trying to justify having gone to Curtis Yarvin's wedding, and his girlfriend said "Don't you find him thrillingly contrarian' and I said 'That's how boring people excuse being racist'

Afraid I don't know anything about that

AI Used to Promote Non-Existent Evacuation Flights From the Middle East - bellingcat A Dutch newspaper published a story about private evacuation flights from Dubai, but the photo shows signs of AI generation and the flights appear never to have existed.

De Telegraaf, the Netherlands’ largest newspaper, recently published an interview with a woman promoting €1,600 seats on private evacuation flights from Dubai. Bellingcat found that her image was likely AI-generated, and flight data suggests no such plane took off. www.bellingcat.com/news/2026/03...

congratulations to FIFA on their incredible choice of recipient for the first FIFA peace prize

The Defense Minister of Israel says it was "blood libel" to go after Israeli soldiers caught on camera raping a Palestinian.

How cognitive manipulation and AI will shape disinformation in 2026 Advanced AI and synthetic media are driving a systemic global crisis that risks destabilizing modern democracies.

Cognitive manipulation and AI will shape disinformation in 2026. Here's how to build resilience
www.weforum.org/stories/2026...

Israeli military drops charges against soldiers accused of sexually assaulting Palestinian detainee The Israeli military says it is dropping charges against five soldiers who were accused of sexually abusing a Palestinian detainee in an encounter partially caught on camera.

The IDF will drop charges against 5 soldiers accused of sexually abusing a Palestinian detainee in an incident partially caught on camera.

apnews.com/article/isra...

In 30 minutes, Bellingcat researcher @easybakeovensz.bsky.social — one of the investigators behind this work — will be speaking with our community about how to identify weapons being used in the conflict involving Iran, the US, and Israel.
Join us live for a Q&A: discord.gg/V45bwzmq?eve...

The IDF has issued an evacuation order in *central Beirut* in Bachoura near the Saint Joseph University. These are all heavily populated areas. There’s a school near the red zone. This is where Israel is going to bomb.