June 26th, 2026 | Weekly Issue
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In Historic First, Congress Passes Concurrent War Powers Resolution To End Iran War
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The bill passed the Senate in a vote of 50-48 after it was advanced by the House
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The Senate on Tuesday approved a House passed concurrent War Powers Resolution directing President Trump to end hostilities against Iran, marking the first time Congress has approved a concurrent resolution under the 1973 War Powers Act directing the termination of an unauthorized war.
In previous years, Congress has passed joint resolutions directing the president to end wars, such as the 2019 bill to end US support for the Saudi war in Yemen, which President Trump vetoed at the time, but a concurrent resolution doesn't require the president's signature.
Section 5(c) of the 1973 War Powers Act states that "at any time that United States Armed Forces are engaged in hostilities outside the territory of the United States, its possessions and territories without a declaration of war or specific statutory authorization, such forces shall be removed by the President if the Congress so directs by concurrent resolution."
The bill passed the Senate on Tuesday by a 50-48 vote, with four Republicans - Senators Rand Paul (KY), Lisa Murkowski (AK), Susan Collins (ME), and Bill Cassidy (LA) - voting in favor. Senator Jon Fetterman (PA) was the only Democrat to oppose the effort, and Republican Senators Mitch McConnell (KY) and Dave McCormick (PA) were not present for the vote.
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Vance Says Iran Agreed To Establish a Direct Line Between the IRGC and the US Military
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Vice President JD Vance has said that during talks in Switzerland, Iranian officials agreed to establish a direct line of communication between Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the US military.
Vance told Sohrab Ahmari, the US editor for UnHerd, that one of the things the US wanted to "come out" of the talks with was a "channel on the Iranian side” for reducing conflict.
"Which we did. They were like, 'OK, fine, we'll send somebody from the IRGC to go hang out in Doha with somebody from CENTCOM,' and that’s how we’re going to settle a lot of these disputes," the US vice president said during an interview conducted aboard Air Force Two on the flight home from Switzerland.
Flare-ups between the US and Iran remain possible, as the US hasn’t reduced its forces in the region and there appear to be differences between the two sides' views on the situation in the Strait of Hormuz. A direct communication channel between the two militaries, if implemented, could help de-escalate tensions after any flare-up to prevent the region from plunging back into full-scale war.
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Pentagon Tells Lawmakers It Needs Additional $80 Billion for Iran War and Other Costs
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The White House is expected to formally request a supplemental spending bill in the coming days
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The Pentagon has told Congress that it needs $80 billion to pay for the Iran war and other non-war-related costs, The Wall Street Journal has reported.
The Pentagon had previously claimed that the war cost $29 billion as of mid-May, a number that doesn’t hold up to scrutiny, as an analysis from Stephen Semler of the Security Policy Reform Institute found that the war had cost about $72 billion in just the first 60 days, an estimate that doesn’t factor in indirect costs.
The costs have continued to add up despite the ceasefire, and the US-Iran Memorandum of Understanding, as the US is maintaining its military posture in the Middle East, which includes major naval armadas that were enforcing a blockade of Iranian ports.
The breakdown of what exactly the $80 billion will cover is unclear, but much of it is expected to go toward munitions procurement, as the US used an enormous number of missiles and air-defense interceptors in the war.
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US Africa Command Says It Has Launched 68 Airstrikes in Somalia This Year
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The record-shattering bombing campaign has received virtually no US media coverage
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US Africa Command has launched at least 68 airstrikes in Somalia this year, the command told Antiwar.com in an email on Tuesday, putting it on track to break the record for annual US airstrikes in the country that the Trump administration set last year at 124.
President Trump oversaw a dramatic escalation of US airstrikes in Somalia since returning to office after he loosened the rules of engagement by lifting restrictions on US drone strikes and raids carried out outside of officially declared combat zones.
According to New America, an organization that tracks the air war, the 124 airstrikes launched in 2025 were more than those conducted during the administrations of Joe Biden, Barack Obama, and George W. Bush combined.
After a seeming lull in US airstrikes in Somalia since early May, AFRICOM announced a series of strikes against al-Shabaab in southern Somalia in recent days. The US has also been bombing an ISIS affiliate in northeastern Somalia’s Puntland region, and AFRICOM told Antiwar.com that the latest airstrikes launched in that area were conducted in early May.
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UN Commission: Israeli Forces Deliberately Targeted Children in Gaza, Resulting in Genocide
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A UN fact-finding body set up to investigate potential war crimes in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories has published a report that concluded Israeli forces deliberately targeted children in Gaza, resulting in genocide and crimes against humanity.
The report, published by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Israel, found that from October 7, 2023, to October 7, 2025, Israeli forces killed at least 20,179 children and wounded 44,143 in Gaza.
"The evidence shows that Palestinian children have been deliberately targeted and killed by the Israeli security forces," said Srinivasan Muralidhar, the chair of the commission, according to Middle East Eye.
The report said that Israeli forces have targeted children in two distinct ways: "Directly by shooting at their vital organs using precision weapons such as quadcopters and snipers; and through use of high impact weapons causing widespread and systematic attacks on residential buildings, schools, and displacement camps crowded with children."
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Over 11,000 Buildings Destroyed During Israeli Invasion of Southern Lebanon
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Thousands more damaged as Israeli forces systematically destroy the far southern villages
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Since early in the Israeli invasion of Lebanon, there have been persistent reports of the Israeli military engaging in deliberate destruction operations aiming to entirely destroy the Lebanese Shi'ite villages near the blue line in the far south. New reports reveal the extent of the destruction.
A joint statement from Lebanon's National Council and the UN Development Program (UNDP) said that through April, 11,095 buildings were completely destroyed south of the Litani River. Since some of those were multi-residential dwellings (mainly apartment buildings), 17,891 residential units were lost.
On top of that, a lot more buildings were damaged, 2,242 partially damaged, and 9,311 more damaged in a minor way. Between the two of them, that’s another 23,500 residential units that have been damaged to varying degrees.
The research report was conducted based on satellite images from April 29, which when compared to images from the previous October showed which buildings were leveled or otherwise damaged. Obviously, since the war has raged another two months since, a lot more destruction can be expected.
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