Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Vows US, Israel’s Demise

Commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami speaks at Sunday's rally in Tehran. (AFP)
Commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami speaks at Sunday's rally in Tehran. (AFP)
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Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Vows US, Israel’s Demise

Commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami speaks at Sunday's rally in Tehran. (AFP)
Commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami speaks at Sunday's rally in Tehran. (AFP)

Commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Maj. Gen. Hossein Salami declared on Sunday that the United States and its ally Israel were on their way to their demise if they did not change their behavior.

He vowed that the “resistance front” and Iran will do everything they can to confront Israel.

He was speaking at a rally of hundreds of Iranians in central Tehran marking the 45th anniversary of the raid on the US embassy in Iran and hostage taking of its diplomats and staff in 1979.

Salami slammed the US for supporting Israel, saying they cannot “survive without the killing of Muslims and carrying out massacres against them.”

He warned Washington and Tel Aviv that the “Islamic resistance will deal the evil front a harsh response,” reported ISNA state news agency.

Despite its talk of democracy, freedom and human rights, the US is the source of unrest, crime and occupations in the world, he went on to say.

The US is not content with its own geographic borders but believes that the entire world is within its influence, and it wants to control the political will of peoples through wars, occupation and assaults, he declared.

Moreover, he blamed the US for the emergence of extremist groups, such as ISIS. “For 45 years, the US has turned the Islamic world into a war zone. It has sought to subjugate the free people in the name of freedom,” he alleged.

“The US brought backwardness and instability to Iraq and quit Afghanistan after 20 years of occupation and a cost of 85 billion dollars,” he added.

Furthermore, Salami dismissed Washington’s ability to confront Iran, saying it has failed in its “soft war against it and its political influence is waning. It is no longer capable of imposing its will or achieving victories the way it used to.”

On Lebanon, he stressed that Hezbollah “was still strong in spite of all Zionist attempts to weaken it.”

“Hezbollah will not make do with not being defeated, but it will seek to bury the Zionist regime and its followers in southern Lebanon and occupied Palestine,” he stated.

“Israel will inevitably meet its end,” he vowed.

Demonstrators at the rally in front of the former US embassy in Tehran carried Iranian, Palestinian and Hezbollah flags. Many carried banners reading “death to America” and “death to Israel” in both Persian and English and some burned Israeli and American flags.



Florida Airport to be Renamed after US President Donald Trump

President Donald Trump gets ready to exit the stage after speaking at a rally at Coosa Steel Corporation in Rome, Ga., Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
President Donald Trump gets ready to exit the stage after speaking at a rally at Coosa Steel Corporation in Rome, Ga., Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
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Florida Airport to be Renamed after US President Donald Trump

President Donald Trump gets ready to exit the stage after speaking at a rally at Coosa Steel Corporation in Rome, Ga., Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)
President Donald Trump gets ready to exit the stage after speaking at a rally at Coosa Steel Corporation in Rome, Ga., Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Mark Schiefelbein)

An airport in Florida will soon be renamed after US President Donald Trump, after a bill proposing the change was approved by the state's legislature on Thursday.

Trump, a real estate mogul who has plastered his name on buildings around the world, has sought to leave his mark on the country in an unprecedented image and building campaign.

Florida's Republican-led legislature approved a bill to rename the Palm Beach International Airport as the "President Donald J. Trump International Airport," state records show. Governor Ron DeSantis, once a Trump opponent, is expected to sign the measure into law.

The airport in Palm Beach, a town known for its sandy beaches and luxurious estates, is just minutes away from Trump's Mar-a-Lago residence.

The airport renaming will also require the approval of the Federal Aviation Administration, AFP reported.

It would then become the latest institution to be renamed after Trump.

The president's handpicked board of the Kennedy Center, an arts complex and memorial to late president John F. Kennedy in Washington, voted in December to rename itself the "Trump-Kennedy Center."

Trump has also sought to rename New York's Penn Station and Washington's Dulles International Airport after himself, according to US media reports, although those efforts were rebuffed.

The Treasury Department has also confirmed reports that drafts have been drawn up for a commemorative $1 coin featuring Trump's image, even though there are laws against displaying the image of a sitting or living president on money.


Venezuela: Amnesty Law Excludes those who Promoted Military Action

National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez, center, presides over a session debating an amnesty bill in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Crisitian Hernandez)
National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez, center, presides over a session debating an amnesty bill in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Crisitian Hernandez)
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Venezuela: Amnesty Law Excludes those who Promoted Military Action

National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez, center, presides over a session debating an amnesty bill in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Crisitian Hernandez)
National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez, center, presides over a session debating an amnesty bill in Caracas, Venezuela, Thursday, Feb. 19, 2026. (AP Photo/Crisitian Hernandez)

Venezuela's parliament unanimously approved an amnesty law on Thursday that could free political prisoners, almost two months after President Nicolas Maduro was captured by US forces.

“The law on democratic coexistence has been approved. It has been forwarded to acting president Delcy Rodriguez for announcement,” said National Assembly President, Jorge Rodriguez, before parliament.

Acting president Delcy Rodriguez signed the legislation after it was handed to her by Jorge Rodrigez, her brother.

The passage of the law led to the end of a hunger strike by relatives of political prisoners.

Ten women have participated in a hunger strike outside the Zona 7 police facility in the capital Caracas last Saturday, setting up camps outside the prison and demanding the release of their relatives, according to AFP.

Because they experienced health problems, nine of them stopped the protest on Wednesday evening. Only one woman continued until Thursday, ending “136 hours,” or more than five days, of strike.

But the amnesty law excludes those who have been prosecuted or convicted of promoting military action against the country – which could include opposition leaders like Nobel Peace Prize winner Maria Corina Machado, who has been accused by the ruling party of calling for international intervention like the one that ousted Maduro.

Article 9 of the bill lists those excluded from amnesty as “persons who are being prosecuted or may be convicted for promoting, instigating, soliciting, invoking, favoring, facilitating, financing or participating in armed actions or the use of force against the people, sovereignty, and territorial integrity” of Venezuela “by foreign states, corporations or individuals.”


Türkiye’s Approval of Peace Roadmap is Important Step, PKK Source Says

A Turkish parliamentary commission’s approval of a report setting out a roadmap for legal reforms alongside the disbandment of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) group is an important step and the beginning of a fundamental change in Turkish policy, a PKK source said Thursday. (AFP/File)
A Turkish parliamentary commission’s approval of a report setting out a roadmap for legal reforms alongside the disbandment of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) group is an important step and the beginning of a fundamental change in Turkish policy, a PKK source said Thursday. (AFP/File)
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Türkiye’s Approval of Peace Roadmap is Important Step, PKK Source Says

A Turkish parliamentary commission’s approval of a report setting out a roadmap for legal reforms alongside the disbandment of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) group is an important step and the beginning of a fundamental change in Turkish policy, a PKK source said Thursday. (AFP/File)
A Turkish parliamentary commission’s approval of a report setting out a roadmap for legal reforms alongside the disbandment of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) group is an important step and the beginning of a fundamental change in Turkish policy, a PKK source said Thursday. (AFP/File)

A Turkish parliamentary commission's approval of a report setting out a roadmap for legal reforms alongside the disbandment of the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) group is an important step and the beginning of a fundamental change in Turkish policy, a PKK source told Reuters on Thursday.

The commission voted overwhelmingly on Wednesday to approve the report, advancing a peace process designed to end decades of conflict.

"The vote is considered an achievement and an important ‌step toward consolidating democracy ‌in Türkiye," said the PKK source.

The PKK - designated a ‌terrorist ⁠organization by Türkiye, ⁠the United States and the European Union - halted attacks last year and said in May it had decided to disband and end its armed struggle.

The parliamentary vote shifts the peace process to the legislative theatre, as President Tayyip Erdogan, Türkiye’s leader of more than two decades, bids to end a conflict focused in mainly Kurdish southeast Türkiye.

The insurgency began in 1984 and has killed more than 40,000 people, sowing deep discord at home and ⁠spreading violence across borders into Iraq and Syria.

IMPORTANT ISSUES OUTSTANDING

The PKK ‌source said there were foundations for resolving ‌the Kurdish issue, but there was a lack of clarity on the issue in the report.

"There also ‌remain other important issues, such as initiating constitutional amendments, especially in aspects related to ‌the Kurdish language as well as amendments to the anti-terrorism law," the source said.

Another issue was legislation concerning the return of PKK militants to Türkiye and their integration into society, the source said.

A key element of Wednesday's report recommended strengthening mechanisms to ensure compliance with decisions by the ‌European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) and the Constitutional Court.

Among key ECHR decisions related to Türkiye are rulings that the rights of ⁠jailed former pro-Kurdish ⁠party leader Selahattin Demirtas had been violated and that he should be released immediately.

Ankara's final appeal against that was rejected in November.

SIGN OF INTENT

Demirtas' lawyer Mahsuni Karaman told Reuters the report's comments on the ECHR were important as a sign of intent.

"We hope this will be reflected in judicial practice—that is our wish and expectation,” Karaman said.

Demirtas was detained in November 2016 on terrorism-related charges, which he denies. In May 2024, a court convicted him in connection with deadly 2014 protests and sentenced him to more than 40 years in prison.

Turkish nationalist leader Devlet Bahceli, a key Erdogan ally whose call in 2024 triggered the current PKK peace process, said in November that it "would be beneficial" to release Demirtas from prison.

The opposition pro-Kurdish DEM Party — the successor party of Demirtas' HDP — remains parliament's third-largest bloc and has cooperated closely with the parliamentary commission.