Trump2026-09-10 08:04:24Trump warns Iran over Pickaxe Mountain as Strait of Hormuz attacks intensifyU.S. President Donald Trump said on Sept. 9 local time that Iran should not carry out any further activity at the suspected nuclear-related site known as Pickaxe Mountain, warning that the United States would strike "very strongly" if it did. Trump said Washington had observed recent "activity" at the location. A new satellite imagery assessment from the Center for Strategic and International Studies, or CSIS, said road traffic at the site has reached its highest level on record this year and construction activity has increased sharply, with work appearing to shift from underground excavation to internal buildout and perimeter reinforcement. The site is about 2 kilometers from the heavily damaged Natanz nuclear facility, though CSIS said it could not confirm whether Iran had moved centrifuges or other nuclear infrastructure there. At the same time, attacks tied to the Strait of Hormuz continued to escalate. Iran said it launched ballistic missiles at a U.S. base in Jordan and struck 10 vessels near the strait, while U.S. Central Command said it had earlier destroyed five Iranian oil tankers in response to two ballistic missile attacks by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on U.S. warships. Brent crude briefly moved above $100 a barrel before trading at $99.19.830
North Korea2026-08-07 09:02:31Bloomberg analysis says North Korea pulled in $22 billion over four years, with crypto hacks and arms sales driving inflowsA Bloomberg analysis said North Korea amassed $22 billion in foreign-currency revenue from 2022 to 2025, the highest level seen during Kim Jong Un’s 15 years in power and nearly four times the total from the previous four-year period. The report said the war in Ukraine became the country’s biggest economic support, with data from the Center for Strategic and International Studies showing $14.02 billion in revenue tied to Russia, more than 90% of it from arms sales including 122 mm and 152 mm artillery shells and short-range ballistic missiles. It also said North Korea deployed between 16,000 and 22,000 troops to support Russian operations, with each receiving about $2,000 a month. Beyond weapons sales, the report pointed to overseas labor, dispatched IT workers and crypto-related cyberattacks as key funding channels. TRM Labs said groups linked to North Korea now account for more than 70% of global cryptocurrency theft, up from 30% in 2017. The Bank of Korea estimated North Korea’s economy grew 3.5% in 2025, marking a third straight year of expansion, while infrastructure activity, border trade and port traffic all picked up.2100
