Friday, May 8, 2026

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Donald Trump, the US President, announced on Friday, May 8th, that Russia and Ukraine have reached an agreement on a three-day ceasefire starting Saturday, as well as a mutual exchange of 2,000 prisoners (1,000 from each side). Trump expressed hope in a message that this ceasefire on Saturday, Sunday, and Monday would be "the beginning of the end of this long, deadly, and difficult war." @ VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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The "Tasnim" news agency, a media outlet close to the Revolutionary Guards, quoted a military source as saying that "after a period of gunfire exchange, the clashes have now stopped and the atmosphere is calm." However, he continued that "if the Americans intend to enter the Persian Gulf again or create any interference for Iranian vessels, they will once again receive a decisive response. Therefore, the possibility of renewed engagement in such clashes in this region still exists." @ VahidHeadline 📡 @VahidOnline

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The United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced that as part of implementing a naval blockade of Iran, American forces disabled three Iranian-flagged tankers that intended to enter the country's ports in the Sea of Oman through two separate operations. In the latest action on May 8th, an F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jet launched from the aircraft carrier "George H.W. Bush" disabled the tankers "Sea Star III" and "Sevda" by firing precision munitions at their smokestacks, preventing these empty cargo ships from entering Iranian ports. Also on May 6th, a fighter jet from the "Abraham Lincoln" carrier targeted the rudder of the tanker "Hasna" with 20mm cannon fire and stopped it. Admiral Brad Cooper, CENTCOM commander, emphasized American forces' commitment to fully implementing the blockade and announced that these three vessels are no longer moving toward Iran. According to CENTCOM's statement, several commercial ships have been disabled by American forces so far, and more than 50 others have been forced to change course. @ VahidOOnLine Fars News Agency, affiliated with the Revolutionary Guards, reported on Friday, May 8th, about "scattered clashes" between the Islamic Republic's armed forces and America in the Strait of Hormuz area. Fox News, citing an American official, announced that these clashes resulted from America's action to counter the movement of an Iranian tanker. According to this report, the mentioned tanker intended to break the blockade but was confronted by American vessels. @ VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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Rouhollah Momen-Nasab, Secretary of Tehran's Committee for Enjoining Good, wrote that it is unacceptable for the armed forces to close our borders and the Strait of Hormuz to enemies while the government gives them access to cyberspace. He added that "cyberspace must never return to its previous state; just as our martyred Imam will never return to his previous state." @ VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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Donald Trump posted a simulated image on his Truth Social account showing the destruction of an Iranian drone by a U.S. Navy laser weapon, comparing the downing of Islamic Republic drones to "a moth falling toward its grave." In response to the nighttime clashes between destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz, he called this exchange of fire merely a "love tap" and emphasized that the region's fragile ceasefire remains in place. The weapon Trump is referring to is the anti-drone laser system "LOCUST" which was previously announced to have been installed and tested on the aircraft carrier "USS George H.W. Bush." According to "War Zone" website reports, this is the first time a directed energy weapon has been installed on a Nimitz-class aircraft carrier. High-ranking Navy officials have announced that their ultimate goal is to make these advanced weapons the primary option for countering close-range threats in international waters. @ VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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Minab Governor: US attack on a cargo dhow left one dead and four missing. The Minab Governor says that in last night's US attacks, a cargo dhow was targeted, resulting in the death of one sailor and four others going missing. [Apparently they had previously said five were missing, but later one body was found] According to Mohammad Radmehr, 10 other sailors from this dhow were also injured and transferred to hospital. According to Mr. Radmehr, this attack occurred near the waters of Minab county. Search operations continue to find the other missing persons. Last night Iranian and American forces exchanged fire in Iran's southern waters, although Donald Trump says the ceasefire remains in place. The US says its forces were "unprovoked" targets of Iranian missiles, drones and speedboats, while Iran says its attacks were retaliatory and in response to the US attack on an Iranian tanker and another ship in the Strait of Hormuz region. @ VahidHeadline 📡 @VahidOnline

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Marco Rubio, the U.S. Secretary of State, said America's military action against Iran in the early hours of Friday was "separate and distinct" from the "Epic Fury" operation, and the United States will continue to respond "defensively." Rubio announced to reporters on Friday in Rome, Italy's capital, that "Epic Fury," which he said earlier this week had ended, "was an offensive operation designed to destroy their missile launch platforms, naval forces, and air force." He added that what happened hours earlier was "American destroyers moving in international waters that were fired upon by Iranians, and America responded defensively to protect itself." The senior American diplomat said: "Only foolish countries don't respond when they're fired upon. And we are not a foolish country." When Rubio was asked whether America had conveyed red lines to Iran, he replied: "The red line is clear: if they threaten Americans, they will be destroyed." The U.S. Secretary of State also reported that Washington expects to receive Iran's response to Washington's proposal to end the war on Friday. Rubio explained in this regard: "We'll see what this response includes. Our hope is that it will be something that can bring us into a serious negotiation process." He also condemned Iran's efforts to control the Strait of Hormuz and said: "Iran now claims to own this international waterway and has the right to control it... This is an unacceptable action that they're trying to normalize." @ VahidHeadline 📡 @VahidOnline

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The Foreign Minister of the Islamic Republic accused America of sacrificing diplomacy through "reckless military adventurism." Abbas Araghchi wrote in a post on the social media platform X: "Every time a diplomatic solution is put on the table, the United States turns to reckless military adventurism." Mr. Araghchi continues, writing that whether this action is "merely a blind tactic to apply pressure" or "the deception of a saboteur" who wants to "drag the American president into a new quagmire," or any other reason, "the result is always the same: Iranians never bow to pressure, but it is diplomacy that is always sacrificed." He also described the CIA's assessment of Iran's missile stockpiles as incorrect and wrote: "Our missile stockpiles and launcher capacity compared to February 28th is not at 75 percent; the correct figure is 120 percent." @ VahidHeadline 📡 @VahidOnline

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CENTCOM, the United States Central Command, announced that since the beginning of the naval blockade until Friday, May 7th, it has prevented more than 70 oil tankers from entering or leaving Iranian ports. CENTCOM wrote in its latest message on the social network X that these commercial vessels have the capacity to carry more than 166 million barrels of Iranian oil with an estimated value of over $13 billion. This was announced hours after the U.S. military said its forces intercepted "unprovoked" Iranian attacks against American destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz in the early hours of Friday morning, and in response, targeted "Iranian military facilities." @ VahidHeadline 📡 @VahidOnline

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Today marks the 70th day of internet cuts in Iran, and according to NetBlocks reports, this disruption exceeded 1,656 hours on Friday morning, May 8th. This is while officials and people close to the government, or those whom the government selects by providing "white SIM cards," still have access to the internet. Additionally, some operators have recently made so-called "class-based" internet available at exorbitant prices to certain businesses and social classes. @ VahidHeadline 📡 @VahidOnline

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Ismaeil Baghaei, spokesperson for the Islamic Republic's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, published a "threatening" message in Arabic on Friday, May 8th, following mutual attacks in the Persian Gulf, the Strait of Hormuz, and the release of reports about the UAE's air defense confronting missiles and drones. In this message, Baghaei wrote: "If you see the lion's teeth are bared, don't think the lion is smiling." It appears that given the attacks in recent days on Fujairah port and other UAE locations, and the accusations by Khatam al-Anbiya headquarters following clashes in the Strait of Hormuz, Baghaei has threatened the United Arab Emirates with this message. @VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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The United Arab Emirates announced early Friday that its air defense systems are countering drone and missile attacks from Iran. @ VahidHeadline 📡 @VahidOnline

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Trump, in a conversation with reporters in Washington, referring to the new clash between America and the Islamic Republic in the Strait of Hormuz, said Islamic Republic forces "played around" with America, but they were destroyed within about two minutes. He said: "Today three first-class American destroyers passed through the strait. No other country would do such a thing under these circumstances. They fired missiles and drones at those destroyers and sent these stupid boats toward them. They were destroyed within about two minutes. Their oil tanker was targeted. Do you know what we did to the tanker? We didn't want to create a serious situation, so we hit its steering and the tanker started spinning around itself. They shouldn't have done this today." Trump added: "All their missiles were shot down. All their drones were shot down and those who fired them are no longer among us." @ VahidOOnLine Donald Trump, the US President, said Thursday that Washington's proposal to end the conflict with Iran was far beyond a "one-page proposal." CNN wrote that Tehran is still reviewing messages sent by America through Pakistani intermediaries. Trump, responding to a question about whether Iran has responded to what was described as a "one-page proposal," rejected this description. He told reporters: "Well, this is more than a one-page proposal. This was a proposal that basically said they will not have nuclear weapons, they will hand over nuclear dust to us, and many other things we want." When asked if Iran has agreed to these conditions, Trump said: "They have agreed. But when they agree, it doesn't mean much, because the next day they forget they had agreed." He added: "And you know, we're dealing with different sets of leaders." @ VahidOOnLine Trump told reporters in Washington: "Iranian officials better sign their agreement very quickly. Negotiations are going very well, but they need to understand that if it's not signed, they will have a lot of pain. They want to sign much more than I do." Trump said: "We are now dealing with different sets of leaders in Iran. When you talk about regime change, they constantly talk about regime change. We removed the first government. We removed the second government. We mostly removed the third government. Then they say is this regime change? I think this is the ultimate regime change." @ VahidOOnLine Donald Trump said Thursday evening: "We will never allow" the Islamic Republic to obtain nuclear weapons. Mr. Trump said: "The chance of that is zero. They know this themselves and have agreed to it. Now we have to see whether they're willing to sign the agreement or not." @ VahidHeadline Trump told reporters Thursday that America, despite the latest exchange of fire with the Islamic Republic near the Strait of Hormuz, is negotiating with Iran's government and added that Pakistan has asked Washington not to pursue his plan to escort ships out of this waterway during these talks. @ VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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Trump: Iran is led by lunatics Trump's post, machine translation: Three top-tier American destroyers recently exited the Strait of Hormuz with complete success while under fire. No damage was inflicted on these three destroyers, but heavy damage was dealt to Iranian attackers. They were completely destroyed, along with numerous small boats that are now being used to replace their completely beheaded navy. These boats quickly and with complete efficiency went to the bottom of the sea. Missiles were fired at our destroyers and were easily shot down. Drones also came and were burned in the air. They fell toward the ocean very beautifully; just like a butterfly falling toward its grave! A normal country would have allowed these destroyers to pass, but Iran is not a normal country. They are led by lunatics and if they had the opportunity to use nuclear weapons, they would undoubtedly do so — but they will never have such an opportunity and just as we knocked them down again today, if they don't quickly sign their agreement, we will knock them down much harder and much more brutally in the future! Our three destroyers, along with their extraordinary crews, will now rejoin our naval blockade; a blockade that is truly a "wall of steel." President Donald J. Trump realDonaldTrump 📡 @VahidOnline

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♦️ Donald Trump, President of the United States, following attacks on Iran's southern ports and explosion sounds heard in western Tehran, told ABC that the U.S. military has given the Iranian regime a "friendly caress" in a defensive action, and the ceasefire is still being implemented. He said the retaliatory strikes on Iran were just a friendly caress. @ VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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♦️ Jennifer Griffin, Fox News correspondent, reported on social media platform X, citing a senior U.S. official, that the United States has conducted military strikes on Qeshm Port and Bandar Abbas Port. The American official emphasized that this action does not signify the resumption of war or the end of the ceasefire. These strikes come two days after Iran launched ballistic missiles at Fujairah Port in the UAE. Reports also indicate an attack on the maritime inspection station at Kargan Port in Minab. @ VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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The US Central Command, CENTCOM, announced that on May 7th, American forces intercepted missile, drone, and small boat attacks by the Islamic Republic simultaneously as US guided missile destroyers were passing through the Strait of Hormuz toward the Gulf of Oman, and struck the sources of these attacks in Iran. According to CENTCOM's announcement, Islamic Republic forces carried out these attacks with several missiles, drones, and small boats while the USS Truxtun, USS Rafael Peralta, and USS Mason were transiting this international maritime passage, and none of the American equipment or assets were targeted. CENTCOM said American forces, while repelling these threats, targeted Iranian military facilities responsible for attacking American forces, including missile and drone launch sites, command and control centers, and intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance nodes. CENTCOM emphasized it is not seeking to escalate tensions, but remains well-positioned and ready to protect American forces. @ VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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The Khatam al-Anbiya Headquarters, which manages war operations in Iran, issued a statement an hour after reports of attacks and exchanges of fire near the Strait of Hormuz, calling these attacks a "ceasefire violation" following "cooperation between several regional countries and America." The statement said: "The aggressive, terrorist, and pirate American army violated the ceasefire by targeting an Iranian oil tanker traveling from Iran's coastal waters in the Jask region toward the Strait of Hormuz, as well as another ship entering the Strait of Hormuz off the port of Fujairah in the UAE. Simultaneously, they conducted aerial attacks on civilian areas in cooperation with some regional countries along the coasts of Khamir port, Sirik, and Qeshm Island." The headquarters further claimed that Iran's military forces responded to these attacks: "The Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran immediately retaliated by attacking American military vessels east of the Strait of Hormuz and south of Chabahar port, inflicting significant damage on them." @ VahidHeadline 📡 @VahidOnline

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It seems the message received in the previous post was correct: Mehr News Agency reported early Friday morning, May 8th, citing Mohammad Radmehr, Deputy Governor and Special Governor of Minab, that a naval base in this city has been targeted in an attack. According to Radmehr, this attack was carried out at 00:10 by Israel and America. Meanwhile, Fox News reported that America has conducted attacks on Qeshm Island and Bandar Abbas in southern Iran. @ VahidOOnLine 📡 @VahidOnline

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Hormozgan received messages: Vahid Bandar sound of explosion came just now just now 12 midnight sound of two more explosions heard in Bandar Abbas just now Bandar Abbas sound of explosion came hello Bandar Abbas 00:00 a sound came 00:02 Friday dawn 18th Ordibehesht sound of single explosion this time from much further distance apparently from areas near Lark or Hormuz island. I'm still in this same area near Bahman dock, Doha neighborhood and Chabahar 👈 Bandar Kargan police station in Minab, Hormozgan province was hit by American missile. It's a naval station. They said the drone took off from this point. 📡 @VahidOnline