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Hegseth Defends Second Boat Strike, Citing ‘Fog of War’

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
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Hegseth Defends Second Boat Strike, Citing ‘Fog of War’

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth speaks during a Cabinet meeting at the White House, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth on Tuesday defended the secondary strike on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean Sea, citing the “fog of war” as reason for his not seeing any survivors in the water when the strike was ordered and launched.

Hegseth’s comments came during a cabinet meeting hosted by President Donald Trump the day after the administration insisted the strike, which it says was ordered by Navy Vice Adm. Frank “Mitch” Bradley, was lawful.

Legal experts say the US military would have committed a crime if survivors were killed, and lawmakers have announced congressional reviews of the strikes.

Bradley is expected to provide a classified briefing Thursday to lawmakers overseeing the military.

Meanwhile, a bipartisan group of senators is pledging to call up legislation to check Trump’s ability to use military force against Venezuela if the US military carries out a strike against Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro.

Democrats, joined by Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, have already tried unsuccessfully to use war powers resolutions to mitigate attacks both in international waters off the Venezuelan coast, as well as against the country itself. Those were defeated by Republicans.

But Sens. Tim Kaine, Chuck Schumer, Adam Schiff and Paul warned that “unauthorized military action against Venezuela would be a colossal and costly mistake that needlessly risks the lives of our servicemembers.”

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World

Iran Says US No Longer in Position to ‘Dictate’ Policy to Other Nations

Women carry Iranian flags as they cross an intersection to attend a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 27, 2026. (AP)
Women carry Iranian flags as they cross an intersection to attend a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 27, 2026. (AP)
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Iran Says US No Longer in Position to ‘Dictate’ Policy to Other Nations

Women carry Iranian flags as they cross an intersection to attend a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 27, 2026. (AP)
Women carry Iranian flags as they cross an intersection to attend a pro-government gathering in Tehran, Iran, Monday, April 27, 2026. (AP)

Iran said on Tuesday that the United States was no longer able to "dictate" what other countries do, as Washington weighed a new proposal from Tehran on unblocking the Strait of Hormuz.

Iran has effectively sealed off the strategic waterway since early in the war with the United States and Israel, sending shockwaves through global energy markets and putting the strait at the center of negotiations to end the conflict.

"The United States is no longer in a position to dictate its policy to independent nations," defense ministry spokesman Reza Talaei-Nik said, according to state TV, adding Washington would "accept that it must abandon its illegal and irrational demands".

While a ceasefire has halted the fighting between Iran, the US and Israel, talks on bringing a permanent conclusion to the conflict have been inconclusive.

The proposal being considered in Washington would reportedly reopen the Strait of Hormuz -- a vital conduit for global oil and gas shipments -- as broader negotiations on the war continue.

Talaei-Nik, speaking ahead of a Shanghai Cooperation Organization defense ministers' meeting, said Iran was also "ready to share its defensive military capabilities with independent countries, especially the member states" of the SCO.

World

Philippines Is Not Concerned Iran War Will Distract US from Region, Defense Secretary Says

Troops from New Zealand, the Philippines, US, and Australia pose for a photo with their national flags after participating in counter-landing live fire exercises during Balikatan, the annual joint military exercises between the US and the Philippines, at Long Point Beach, Brgy. Aporawan, Aborlan, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2026. (Reuters)
Troops from New Zealand, the Philippines, US, and Australia pose for a photo with their national flags after participating in counter-landing live fire exercises during Balikatan, the annual joint military exercises between the US and the Philippines, at Long Point Beach, Brgy. Aporawan, Aborlan, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2026. (Reuters)
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Philippines Is Not Concerned Iran War Will Distract US from Region, Defense Secretary Says

Troops from New Zealand, the Philippines, US, and Australia pose for a photo with their national flags after participating in counter-landing live fire exercises during Balikatan, the annual joint military exercises between the US and the Philippines, at Long Point Beach, Brgy. Aporawan, Aborlan, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2026. (Reuters)
Troops from New Zealand, the Philippines, US, and Australia pose for a photo with their national flags after participating in counter-landing live fire exercises during Balikatan, the annual joint military exercises between the US and the Philippines, at Long Point Beach, Brgy. Aporawan, Aborlan, Palawan, Philippines, April 27, 2026. (Reuters)

The Philippines is not worried about any reduction in US deterrence capabilities in the Indo-Pacific due to the Middle East war, though China would likely try to seize on any perceived opening, the Defense Secretary said ‌on Tuesday.

China's recent ‌actions in the ‌South ⁠China Sea and ⁠the Taiwan Strait were "not surprising", Gilberto Teodoro told Reuters in an interview, saying Beijing looked to take advantage when it thought rival powers were preoccupied ⁠elsewhere.

"It is not surprising ‌that ‌any opportunity they see, perceived opportunity, or ‌with a perceived weakness ‌or a perceived opening, they will take advantage," Teodoro said.

Teodoro said he had full confidence in the ‌Mutual Defense Treaty, the long-standing security pact between Manila ⁠and Washington, ⁠and was not worried by concerns that the Iran war could weaken US strategic bandwidth in Asia.

"I'm not concerned at all about reduced deterrence," he said, pointing to joint military exercises currently underway with the US as a sign of Washington's commitment.

World

Ukrainian Strikes Kill 3 in Russian Border Region

A crater is seen at the site of the Russian strike on a residential area in Odesa, Ukraine, 27 April 2026. (EPA)
A crater is seen at the site of the Russian strike on a residential area in Odesa, Ukraine, 27 April 2026. (EPA)
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Ukrainian Strikes Kill 3 in Russian Border Region

A crater is seen at the site of the Russian strike on a residential area in Odesa, Ukraine, 27 April 2026. (EPA)
A crater is seen at the site of the Russian strike on a residential area in Odesa, Ukraine, 27 April 2026. (EPA)

A Ukrainian drone attack Tuesday killed three people in the Russian border region of Belgorod, regional governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said.

"Three civilians were killed following drone attacks by the Ukrainian armed forces," he wrote on Telegram, adding that three others were wounded.

The drones targeted a car, killing a man and a vehicle in another area where a man and a woman died, he said.

Since the start of its offensive in Ukraine in February 2022, Russia has been regularly bombing Ukraine, especially key infrastructure sites.

In response, Kyiv strikes targets in Russia, insisting it is aiming at military sites as well as energy facilities in order to reduce Moscow's ability to finance its war effort.

A fire broke out on Tuesday at an oil refinery in Tuapse, in southern Russia, after debris from a Ukrainian drone that had targeted the facility fell on it, according to local authorities.