The U.S. Justice Department unsealed an indictment against former Cuban President Raúl Castro, over him allegedly ordering the 1996 shoot-down of the Brothers to the Rescue planes that left four men dead. This is a good thing, right? Justice will finally be served. Before you agree, you may want to dig beyond what the mainstream media is pushing out, and also contemplate why the U.S. chose to do this 30 years after the fact. The media paints a picture of Cuba needlessly shooting down two planes belonging to a Miami-based non-profit organization. A group that was known for its humanitarian search-and-rescue flights across the Florida Straits, where they attempted to find and assist Cubans trying to sail to the U.S. End of story… full stop. There’s actually more to this story, though, and the Cuban Embassy shed some light on this: “Cuba acted in legitimate self-defense within its jurisdictional waters, following repeated and dangerous violations of our airspace by notorious terrorists,” and “the U.S. government distorts other historical truths about the event it uses as a pretext.” What are these historical truths? The Brothers to the Rescue leader, José Basulto, had a long history of anti-Cuban militant crimes and was a former CIA-trained Cuban political dissident. The group repeatedly violated Cuban airspace, as well as dropped anti-government leaflets over Havana. The bottom line is that they were flying U.S. planes into restricted airspace and were viewed as a threat. It’s clear that Cuba didn’t shoot them down on the fly. Between 1994 and 1996, the group reportedly committed 25 deliberate violations of Cuban airspace. Before the incident, Cuba repeatedly attempted to resolve the matter through diplomatic channels, notifying U.S. officials who held the responsibility to stop the flights, including the U.S. State Department, the FAA, and the ICAO. Just four weeks before the planes were shot down, an FAA worker warned her superiors that another unauthorized overflight occurred, and that it was “seen as further taunting of the Cuban Government.” She also noted that the State Department was “asking from the FAA what is this agency doing to prevent/deter these actions.” Also stating, “Worst case scenario is that one of these days the Cubans will shoot-down one of these planes and the FAA better have all its ducks in a row.” Cuba continually reported what it felt were threatening violations, and Washington did nothing. So who was really in the wrong here then? And now, decades later, Raúl Castro, at 94 years old, is being indicted for this incident. So, why now? Many believe the timing is tied to the United States’ current playbook for manufacturing a “regime change” in Cuba. And it looks like they might be making their next move, laying the groundwork for a similar operation to the January 3 abduction of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. The post What Really Happened in 1996 appeared first on Redacted.

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir sparked international outrage this week after posting a video appearing to mock pro-Palestinian activists detained by Israeli forces while attempting to deliver aid to Gaza as part of the Global Sumud Flotilla. The footage showed activists kneeling with their hands restrained behind their backs, all while Israel’s national anthem played in the background. Many were face down on the floor of what appeared to be an Israeli military vessel after Israeli forces intercepted more than 50 aid boats in international waters. Later evidence appeared to show that some detained activists suffered physical abuse. Several governments immediately condemned the treatment after citizens from their own countries appeared in the footage. Italy, France, Canada, and the Netherlands reportedly summoned Israeli ambassadors in protest. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni called the images “unacceptable,” saying the treatment violated “human dignity.” France’s foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, stated that the activists “must be treated with respect.” In what seemed like a collateral damage move, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu chimed in, saying, “the way that Minister Ben Gvir dealt with the flotilla activists is not in line with Israel’s values and norms.” I think that statement could certainly be debated. What’s striking, though, is how suddenly world leaders found outrage once their own citizens were humiliated on camera. Have they not seen the images and videos of how Palestinians are treated? Did they miss the footage of them being stripped, beaten, detained, bombed, and buried beneath rubble while much of the international community remained largely silent? I guess dignity only becomes urgent when your own citizens are the ones on their knees. Sure, they’ll condemn online, but then what…? Israel never faces consequences like sanctions or anything like that. The post Selective Outrage appeared first on Redacted.

The U.S. has managed to push two global powers closer than ever. Russia and China are now building what may become the most powerful economic and strategic alliance outside the Western system and Western leaders helped make it happen by trying to prevent it from happening. It is the classic example of an evil plan backfiring. The United States spent years trying to isolate Russia through sanctions, proxy wars, and economic pressure. Instead, Washington may have helped create the strongest anti-Western economic alliance of the modern era. This week, Russian President Vladimir Putin met with Chinese President Xi Jinping and the two signed a sweeping series of agreements covering energy, finance, artificial intelligence, transportation, manufacturing, and military coordination. Among the most significant developments was renewed momentum behind the massive Power of Siberia 2 pipeline project, which would permanently redirect huge volumes of Russian energy away from Europe and toward China. The two nations are also rapidly expanding trade outside the U.S. dollar system, building financial channels designed to bypass Western sanctions and banking pressure altogether. What is emerging is not just a trade relationship, but a parallel economic architecture stretching across Eurasia. The timing is especially striking given President Trump’s own agreements with China announced just last week. Those deals were largely transactional: tariff pauses, trade concessions, agricultural purchases, and efforts to stabilize markets. The Putin-Xi agreements go much further. Russia and China are building long-term infrastructure, integrated industrial systems, alternative financial rails, and strategic technological cooperation designed to reduce dependence on the West entirely. All of this comes as Europe struggles with high energy costs, deindustrialization, stagnant growth, debt pressure, and the economic fallout from years of sanctions and war policy. What Western strategists once feared most may now be taking shape in real time: a Russia-China economic axis powerful enough to challenge the Western-led global order itself. The post Trump Made Trade Deals. Putin and Xi Made History appeared first on Redacted.

Israel just amended its death penalty law to include the occupied West Bank, which appears to be an obvious move toward advancing its goal of ethnically cleansing Palestinians. The mandate builds on legislation that was passed in March by the Knesset, under which a military order makes execution the default punishment for Palestinians convicted in military courts of killing Israelis. The law states: “Where a court has imposed a death sentence, it shall issue an order specifying that the sentence shall be executed by hanging,” and “shall be executed within 90 days of the date it [the sentence] becomes final.” The law applies exclusively to Palestinians tried under Israel’s military court system. Jewish Israelis are not prosecuted under the same courts, nor are they subject to the same mandatory punishment structure. Israel is already holding thousands of Palestinians in detention, many of whom are held without fair trials, subjected to torture, and now face the death penalty. These are individuals who may be innocent, with children and grieving families. Related to this, Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich was recently informed that the ICC had issued a confidential arrest warrant for him. The reason for the warrant was not stated, but seeing how the ICC slogan is, “Trying individuals for genocide, war crimes, crimes against humanity, and aggression,” we can make an educated guess on that one. He seems to think he’s untouchable and above international law, as he responded by saying the warrants are “a declaration ⁠of war,” and “in the face of a declaration of war, we will fight back with a vengeance.” Smotrich proceeded to announce that he “will sign an order to evacuate Khan al-Ahmar,” a Palestinian village in the West Bank. Some are interpreting this as a threat to ethnically cleanse the area. Either way, with the death penalty law now in effect in the region, more Palestinians are being placed in grave danger. It’s clear Israel is operating without restraint or consequences and is positioning itself as a state with the authority to decide who lives and who dies, with no regard for basic human rights. If another country committed acts of genocide and introduced laws such as these, do you think the U.S. would openly support and fund them, too? How is this even allowed to happen? The post Israel Expands Death Penalty appeared first on Redacted.

In one of the highest-stakes primaries of our lifetimes, voters in Kentucky’s 4th Congressional District unseated U.S. Rep. Thomas Massie. If it were only that simple… The sad reality is that the outcome didn’t actually reflect the will of ordinary Kentuckians, but the influence of billionaire donors and foreign lobbying interests tied to Israel. What’s the evidence for this? $32 million was spent on just one small Kentucky primary. Doesn’t that seem a little strange? Massie’s Trump-backed challenger, Ed Gallrein, an opponent who refused to debate Massie, has received support from powerful pro-Israel billionaire donors, alongside heavy involvement from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). “Track AIPAC” calculated that Gallrein had reeled in $15 million from AIPAC alone, while Massie’s campaign raised over $5.5 million through grassroots donations from ordinary Americans, with the average donation between $80 and $100. Massie knew what he was up against, stating that his primary “turned into a referendum on whether Israel gets to buy seats in Congress. And what they found out is that my seat is really expensive.” He’s right. The race became the most expensive primary contest in American history. Again, all for a single Kentucky primary. One that even prompted Pete Hegseth to travel to Kentucky on Monday to show his support for Gallrein. Really, the Secretary of War takes the time to fly to Kentucky to rally for Massie’s opponent while we are in the middle of a war. Along with this, President Trump went to great lengths to turn the American people against a person he called “the worst Congressman in the history of our country.” Trump even took to X to personally write a post about Massie rather than sticking to his usual pattern of recycling a Truth Social repost, which made the whole thing feel unusually desperate. So why did Israel and the U.S. government go to such extremes to push Massie out? Because he refused to fall in line with powerful political interests and instead acted on what he believed was best for the American people. Massie has repeatedly opposed U.S. military aid to Israel, but he rejected all foreign aid, not just to Israel but also to Egypt, Syria, and Ukraine. He introduced the “Americans Insist on Political Agent Clarity (AIPAC) Act,” which would require organizations to register as a foreign agent, and he has voted against foreign wars. He’s also pushed for transparency with the Epstein files, which Israel has its fingerprints on. They can’t have someone in Congress who won’t comply, right? That’s why it was a desperate race to force Massie out of office. Thomas Massie is one of the good guys who was willing to put everything on the line to fight for the American people. Losing his seat may not silence him, though. It could push him to continue fighting outside his government role and become even more dangerous to these groups. The post He Fought for the American People, Not Israel appeared first on Redacted.