Congress Warns Biden Against Concluding Nuclear Deal with Iran

Republican Senator Ted Cruz, one of the fiercest critics of Biden's Iran policy. (AP)
Republican Senator Ted Cruz, one of the fiercest critics of Biden's Iran policy. (AP)
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Congress Warns Biden Against Concluding Nuclear Deal with Iran

Republican Senator Ted Cruz, one of the fiercest critics of Biden's Iran policy. (AP)
Republican Senator Ted Cruz, one of the fiercest critics of Biden's Iran policy. (AP)

Several Congressmen warned US President Joe Biden against concluding a nuclear deal with Tehran.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz accused US President Joe Biden of becoming the world's top funder of terrorism.

"Biden is committed to a new deal with Iran that will pour hundreds of billions of dollars into the terrorist regime. Let's be clear about what that means. Biden is about to become, literally, the number 1 funder of terrorism in the world," Cruz tweeted.

Cruz's statement reflects the anger among the Republicans and some Democrats, over the possibility of reaching an agreement with Iran, despite their repeated warnings.

The opposition against a deal with Iran escalated dramatically with the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in light of the US administration's reliance on Russia in the Vienna negotiations and the possibility of Moscow obtaining exemptions from sanctions as a result of reaching an agreement with Tehran.

Cruz and other Republican lawmakers had previously described this step as a "complete surrender to Putin," considering that the Russian president is the winner of returning to the nuclear agreement with Iran.

Also, the Biden administration is considering removing the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) from the list of terrorism in return for Iran's return to the nuclear agreement. The move sparked a wave of criticism from bipartisan representatives.

Jim Risch, the ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he strongly opposes delisting the IRGC.

"The IRGC is responsible for numerous attacks on US forces and interests and openly sponsors dangerous terrorist proxies that threaten the region. Any argument to the contrary is false," he said.

Democrats in the House of Representatives sent a letter to the White House warning against delisting the Corps, saying Iran's nuclear program and activities are not limited to the Middle East through Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad, but extend to the rest of the world.

A recent statement by the commander of Central Command, Gen. Kenneth McKenzie, supported those requests. He told the Senate Armed Services Committee members on Tuesday that the IRGC is a terrorist organization.

The Republicans put forward several draft bills in Congress, the latest of which prevents the US administration from lifting any sanctions imposed on countries and entities that cooperate with Iran in its nuclear program.

Cruz said the "Biden administration is dismantling sanctions and is aching to secure a new agreement with the Iranian regime that is even weaker than the original catastrophic Obama-Iran nuclear deal."

The Biden administration notified the Congress that it was giving Iran and its international partners, including Russia, a waiver for seven civil nuclear activities, which Tehran uses to build its nuclear program.

Cruz fought to rescind those waivers, and the Trump administration did so in 2019 and 2020.

"The Biden administration is so committed to their deal that they are willing to make Iran a nuclear client for Putin, including work that amounts to a $10 billion subsidy for his war machine."

"That's why I've introduced legislation to stop the Biden administration from issuing civil-nuclear waivers allowing Russia to build up Iran's nuclear program," said the Senator.

He warned that the Iranian regime uses these civil nuclear waivers to build up the nuclear program with the "express intention of eventually developing nuclear weapons to inflict destruction on America and our allies."

Furthermore, 49 of the 50 Republicans at the Senate told Biden, democrats, and the international community that an Iran agreement without broad congressional support would not survive.

"Republicans have made it clear: We would be willing and eager to support an Iran policy that completely blocks Iran's path to a nuclear weapons capability, constrains Iran's ballistic missile program, and confronts Iran's support for terrorism."

They warned that if the administration agrees to a deal that fails to achieve these objectives or makes achieving them more complex, Republicans will do everything to reverse it.

"Unless Iran ceases its support for terrorism, we will oppose removing and seek to reimpose any terrorism-related sanctions. And we will force the Senate to vote on any Administration effort to do so."



Millions Join Spain Housing Strike, Scores Arrested in Clashes

A worker sweeps broken glass behind the shattered entrance door of an Apple store in Plaza de Catalunya in Barcelona, northeastern Spain, 12 November 2026. EPA/QUIQUE GARCIA
A worker sweeps broken glass behind the shattered entrance door of an Apple store in Plaza de Catalunya in Barcelona, northeastern Spain, 12 November 2026. EPA/QUIQUE GARCIA
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Millions Join Spain Housing Strike, Scores Arrested in Clashes

A worker sweeps broken glass behind the shattered entrance door of an Apple store in Plaza de Catalunya in Barcelona, northeastern Spain, 12 November 2026. EPA/QUIQUE GARCIA
A worker sweeps broken glass behind the shattered entrance door of an Apple store in Plaza de Catalunya in Barcelona, northeastern Spain, 12 November 2026. EPA/QUIQUE GARCIA

More than 3 million Spaniards took to the streets on Wednesday as part of a mostly peaceful general strike protesting against a growing housing crisis, unions said, though 115 people were arrested, mainly during evening clashes in Barcelona and Madrid.

Workers endured stormy weather to set up picket lines, with large marches in Madrid, Barcelona and other cities across Spain less than three weeks before a snap general election.

In the evening, clashes between police and some protesters erupted in Barcelona. Furniture was set alight in the street after the main march ended, Reuters video showed.

Tensions also rose in Madrid, when riot police used foam bullets, tear gas and pepper spray to disperse protesters around the central Plaza de España, a Reuters witness said.

Police forces reported at least 115 arrests nationwide from incidents linked to the general strike, including blockades of offices and industrial estates.

Sumar, the Socialist government's junior coalition partner, called on Thursday for Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska to resign over what it described as an "excessive and ‌disproportionate" response by police.

Amnesty ‌International said it had documented excessive use of police force including blows with batons on peaceful protesters and ‌indiscriminate use ⁠of pepper ⁠spray on crowds.

Grande-Marlaska on Thursday ordered investigations into the incidents, the Interior Ministry said.

It was the first general strike since workers downed tools in 2012 against austerity measures during the euro zone debt crisis. The Tenants Union said more than 3 million people, including unionized workers as well as students, pensioners, tenants, the self-employed and jobless, took part in demonstrations to protest against rising rents and evictions.

A strike by Spanish women in 2018 drew 5 million people, according to unions.

Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez hopes to harness voter resentment over housing in the November 29 election to shift the attention away from a deadly migration rush into Ceuta and a train crash last month. His government has defended its handling of the disasters but so far, his Socialist Party still trails in opinion polls.

Unions described the strike as a success even though participation ⁠was uneven across Spain, with the strongest support in coastal regions where housing pressures have been particularly acute.

SHOPS SHUTTERED

On ‌Madrid's Gran Via, one of the capital's main shopping streets, protesters cheered as stores including Primark, H&M and ‌Pull&Bear brought down their shutters amid a heavy riot police presence.

"We're going to close the Mango store," the protesters chanted as they jangled sets of house keys above ‌their heads.

Spain has a deficit of about 750,000 homes, which is set to grow to more than a million by 2028, according to the ‌central bank.

With fewer people able to afford a home, renting has increased sharply, putting pressure on that market. The average rental price of €1,176 ($1,315) is equivalent to about 98.7% of a young person's average monthly salary in Spain, according to the Youth Council of Spain.

"I’m 36 years old and I still can’t move out on my own," said Madrid resident Jesus Gonzalez, who works in a hospital IT department and supports the strike. "Rents just keep going up, house prices just keep going up, and it’s simply impossible."

TURNOUT STRONGEST AT PORTS, ‌AUTO PLANTS

Angela de Miguel, vice president of Spain's main business lobby CEOE, said the strike was counterproductive because small businesses were also affected by the housing crisis, since shortages of homes made recruitment more challenging.

Speaking on ⁠state broadcaster TVE, she said the ⁠solution was to build more homes and to lower taxes on construction and the home-buying process.

Two heavy storms, dubbed Charles and Bruna, threatened plans for massive protest marches in the afternoon, with unions suspending demonstrations in the southern port city of Cadiz and other cities in the south.

According to UGT and CCOO, participation in the strike reached 90% at ports and in the automotive sector, with "total stoppages" reported at factories including Volkswagen's in Navarre and SEAT's in Barcelona.

LESS IMPACT DUE TO REMOTE WORKING

Barcelona's metro said no trains would run outside peak commuting hours, while Madrid's metro said peak-hour usage was down 42% compared with the same period last week.

However, with more people able to work remotely and the increasing weight of services in Spain’s economy, the impact of the strike is likely to be less pronounced than in previous years, according to Miguel Cardoso, chief economist at BBVA Research. He estimated that the strike could shave 0.1% to 0.2% off Spain’s annual gross domestic product.

Spain's fast-growing hospitality and finance industries are less unionized than the public and industrial sectors.

Unions said they would file a criminal complaint against what they described as a “disproportionate” response during a police operation involving tear gas and batons that injured 20 protesters. The Interior Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The strike follows weeks of demonstrations provoked by the eviction and subsequent death of an 87-year-old woman in Madrid.

Those protests, along with parliament's rejection last month of government decrees aimed at curbing evictions and limiting rent pressures, prompted Sanchez to call the snap election.


Iran's Guards Say 'Accident' Left Two Tankers on Fire in Hormuz

FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, August 28, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, August 28, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
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Iran's Guards Say 'Accident' Left Two Tankers on Fire in Hormuz

FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, August 28, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A drone view shows vessels near the Strait of Hormuz, as seen from Musandam, Oman, August 28, 2026. REUTERS/Stringer/File Photo

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Thursday that two tankers carrying over four million barrels of oil had caught fire after an "accident" on an unauthorized route in the Strait of Hormuz.

Since the outbreak of the Middle East war in late February, Tehran has heavily restricted traffic through the strategic shipping channel, insisting vessels use routes it has approved.

The United States has in response imposed a naval blockade on Iranian ports and helped tankers travel the strait, which normally carries about one-fifth of global oil, reported AFP.

"Last night, two tankers -- acting in violation of regulations and despite repeated warnings from the Revolutionary Guards Navy regarding the unauthorized and dangerous nature of the southern maritime route -- were involved in an accident while traversing this prohibited path in the strait," the Guards said in a statement.

They did not specify the nature of the "accident" but said it left the two tankers immobilized after they were hit with a "violent explosion".

"These two supertankers were carrying a combined total of over four million barrels of oil, which are now ablaze -- a consequence of the blind trust placed in the aggressive American military," the statement said.

Iranian forces have made multiple announcements in recent weeks of ships catching fire attempting to use routes that Tehran considers off-limits.

Tehran has often said they struck mines, but the US military recently claimed all mines had been cleared from the strait.


10 Police, 18 Militants Killed in Pakistan's Northwest

A wounded policeman receives treatment at a hospital in Kohat in northwestern Pakistan on November 11, 2026 following an attack on a police convoy. Basit SHAH / AFP
A wounded policeman receives treatment at a hospital in Kohat in northwestern Pakistan on November 11, 2026 following an attack on a police convoy. Basit SHAH / AFP
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10 Police, 18 Militants Killed in Pakistan's Northwest

A wounded policeman receives treatment at a hospital in Kohat in northwestern Pakistan on November 11, 2026 following an attack on a police convoy. Basit SHAH / AFP
A wounded policeman receives treatment at a hospital in Kohat in northwestern Pakistan on November 11, 2026 following an attack on a police convoy. Basit SHAH / AFP

Gunmen attacked police during an operation against illegal gold mining in northwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, killing 10 officers, while 18 militants died in the ensuing fighting, an official police statement said.

A statement by provincial police in Pakistan's Khyber Pakhtunkhwa said officers were returning from a mine in the Gumbat area of Kohat district when militants opened fire on them.

In addition to the 10 police and 18 militant deaths, 12 police personnel were wounded, the statement said.

In the aftermath of the clashes, the Pakistani Taliban, the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP), claimed responsibility for a series of attacks across the country, including one on a police convoy in the Gumbat area.

Earlier, a senior administrative official in Kohat told AFP that militants set two police vehicles on fire during the assault, while two other police vehicles and one private vehicle were missing.

Another senior administrative official in the Orakzai area of Kohat said that 10 militants belonging to the TTP were killed during a separate operation in the district.

A large quantity of weapons was also recovered from the militants, the official added.

Security forces are battling an intensifying militancy in the border province they say emanates from Afghanistan, an accusation its Taliban government denies.

A spokesman for a local emergency service earlier on Wednesday said there had been a "firing incident involving police personnel" in Kohat district, adding that rescue workers were treating a dozen wounded officers.

- 'Open war' -

Relations between Pakistan and Afghanistan have been fraught since the Taliban authorities took power in 2021, and worsened after deadly border clashes in October last year that led to near-total closure of the border.

Clashes subsided after mediation, but the conflict intensified again in February, with Pakistan declaring "an open war" on its neighbor.

In a statement, Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the attack, expressed his sorrow over the deaths of the police and said "national determination to completely eradicate terrorism from the country is unwavering".

Pakistan's foreign minister Ishaq Dar said he was "deeply grieved by the loss of precious lives in a cowardly terrorist attack on our police personnel in Kohat".

Islamabad accuses Kabul of allowing militants responsible for deadly attacks on Pakistani territory to operate from its soil. Afghanistan's Taliban authorities have denied the allegations.

Hundreds of civilians have been killed in fighting between the two countries since October last year, according to figures from the United Nations' mission in Afghanistan.

Earlier this month, militants in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa killed two police officers assigned to protect a polio vaccination team travelling near the Afghan border.

The province was placed under emergency rule last month in a move authorities said came in reaction to the failure by the provincial government to act against militancy.

The imposition of emergency measures sidelined the last remaining bastion of power for jailed former prime minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party.

The special constitutional measures also set off a province-wide crackdown on Khan's supporters, with hundreds of detentions.