Iran threatens retaliation, Hezbollah delays disarmament, and global crises deepen

Tehran vows a forceful response to US economic blockade as the IRGC claims a thwarted terror cell and links Hamas disarmament to Hezbollah's.

Iran threatens retaliation, Hezbollah delays disarmament, and global crises deepen — Iran's Interior Ministry spokesman threatened today that Tehran "will respond forcefully" to the US economic blockade, escalating rhetoric as the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively closed and all ship passage is coordinated by Iran. [^1] The threat came hours after the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps published a statement on behalf of Mojtaba Khamenei, calling "the Zionists and Americans the enemies of all Muslims in the world" and claiming to have thwarted an Israeli- and US-linked terror cell in southeastern Iran. [^2] The dual messaging — a military claim of domestic security and a diplomatic threat — suggests Tehran is calibrating its response to the blockade on multiple fronts, while Qatari and Pakistani mediators push for a return to the negotiating table. [^3] In Lebanon, a new entanglement is emerging: a Saudi report reveals an Iranian-Hezbollah move to link the disarmament of Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Palestinian refugee camps to discussions on Hezbollah's own disarmament. [^4] Beirut fears this linkage allows Iran to delay the process and keep an additional card. Most of Hamas's weapons are concentrated in the Al-Rashidiyah camp in southern Lebanon, including Grad rockets. Meanwhile, President Joseph Aoun sent a message to Hezbollah insisting that "the only legitimate weapon is that of the state," [^5] but the group appears in no hurry to comply. The Turkish Foreign Ministry, in a separate escalation, compared Israeli hasbara to the propaganda machine of Goebbels in Nazi Germany, asserting that "the international community no longer believes the lies of the Netanyahu government." [^6] Elsewhere, the IDF confirmed it eliminated a Nukhba commander in Jabalia, northern Gaza, yesterday. [^7] In the West Bank, armed settlers detained British activist Finn Joughin in Umm al-Kheir on Saturday, accusing him of an indecent act against a minor, and handed him over to police. [^8] In Nepal, rescuers drilled an opening into the tunnel at the Trishuli A3 station, supplying oxygen and food to 933 workers believed trapped. [^9] The death toll in Tibet reached 16, with 261 fore