US Soldiers Get Ready to Die for Israel

It is said that there are about 40,000 American troops scattered around at bases and on ships at any time around the Middle East region, including in Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, and United Arab Emirates. 

But as Donald Trump escalates the war in Iran, that number has reached more than 50,000, according to a US military official, as reported by The New York Times on March 29, 2026.

It doesn't matter how many soldiers are being deployed to fight Iran because there will be a bloodbath. For sure, the ruby tide will rise on Iranian soil, where the fallen Americans turn the ground beneath them crimson in their final moments.

Here's the truth about the US involvement in Iran:

I betcha Temu have already received a massive order of body bags from the US Department of War. 😆😆😆

Bombs, Missiles and Drones Cause Widespread Death and Destruction

Israel may have pulled the trigger first – but I blame US President Donald Trump! He, himself suggested on Tuesday that he may have “forced Israel’s hand” into a war with Iranian "lunatics" (The Times of Israel, March 03, 2026). 

It sure has been a very busy week so far for all parties involved. Yesterday, US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth touted as evidence of America's global reach in its war on Iran when he confirmed a US fast attack submarine had sunk an Iranian warship in the Indian Ocean – the Pentagon released footage of the strike. FYI, the IRIS Dena, had participated in a naval exercise in India just weeks ago. And according to Sri Lankan authorities, 32 sailors have been rescued, 61 are still missing and 87 bodies have so far been found. 

Iran's navy are already almost decimated, if you believe the Americans. Trump declared Monday that the US sank 10 Iranian battleships. But, on the same day, CENTCOM had stated that in two days, the Iranian regime had 11 ships in the Gulf of Oman and now they have none left. 

Whether 10 or 11, that hadn't stopped Trump from gloating: “They’re at the bottom of the sea”. 

Oil tanker traffic in the Strait of Hormuz has plunged by 90 percent since the outbreak of the Middle East war, energy market intelligence firm Kpler said on X. Iranian forces, meanwhile, claimed "complete control" of the strait, a vital route for world oil and gas supplies, after Trump said Tuesday the US Navy were ready to escort oil tankers through the channel. 

The British are joining in. Their F-35s shot down Iranian drones over Jordan, marking the first time that one of the Royal Air Force's stealth fighter jets had destroyed a target in combat, the UK defense ministry shouted out on Tuesday.

The Israel Defense Forces said they dropped more than 4,000 bombs on Iranian targets in just four days and on Tuesday, even hit “Minzadehei”, a secret underground site on the outskirts of Tehran where Iran transferred much of its nuclear program after the 12-day war with Israel in June. 

The commander of CENTCOM – the forward headquarters of United States Central Command in Qatar – Admiral Brad Cooper claimed the US has struck more than 2,000 targets with more than 2,000 munitions and severely degraded Iran's air defences.

It's not all one-sided though. Three US fighter jets were downed over Kuwait. The Americans explained on Monday that the F-15s were "mistakenly shot down by Kuwaiti air defences" and all six crew ejected safely. If you ask me, I don't believe this excuse of a "friendly fire incident".

A day earlier, Iran pounded a base housing US troops in Kuwait on Sunday, killing three service members. Since then, the death toll has risen to six, CENTCOM confirmed on Monday, an uptick that was forecasted by Trump and the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, General Dan Caine. 

Still, Iran maintained that more than 650 US military personnel were killed and wounded in the first two days of Operation True Promise 4, while its military say they fired over 700 drones and hundreds of ballistic missiles in 48 hours exceeding the total firepower of the June 2025 war. 

Also, on Monday, Saudi Arabia’s largest oil refinery at Ras Tanura halted operations after a drone strike in the area. Iran accused Israel of carrying out the attack, describing it as a “false flag” operation.

And on the same day too, a Shahed-type unmanned aerial vehicle struck a runway at a UK military base in Akrotiri, Cyprus. Consequently, Greece is sending two frigates and a pair of F-16 fighter jets to Aphrodite's Isle.

Amazon Web Services reported Monday that two data centers in the United Arab Emirates were “directly struck” and another facility in Bahrain was also damaged after a drone landed nearby. 

On Tuesday, two ballistic missiles were aimed at Qatar's Al Udeid Air Base. Air defenses intercepted one, while the second struck the base southwest of Doha without causing casualties. Al Udeid is the backbone of US military airpower in the Middle East, housing the Combined Air Operations Center that direct American and coalition missions across the region. The strike marks a direct hit on one of Washington’s most critical strategic assets there. 

There's been so many claims made by all sides; it's been difficult to establish the veracity of every claim. What is certain is the trail of death and destruction left behind! 

And then there's this widely-circulated story which according to Israeli journalist Nahum Barnea, Trump through Italy had sought an immediate ceasefire upon seeing that the Iranian government did not collapse after the killing of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, along with senior figures in the country’s leadership – but Iran rejected it outright.

They should fear Khamenei as a martyr, more than Khamenei alive!

This ambitious American-Israeli project targeting Iran envisioned a massive bombing campaign to last only 4-5 days and expecting Iran to surrender thereafter. 

Today is Day 6! 

IRAN HAS NOT SURRENDERED! 😂😂😂😂😂😂

And on Tuesday, parents in Minab, Iran held a mass funeral for the 165 students – most of them girls aged between 7 and 12 – as well as staff killed in the attack on the Shajareh Tayyebeh all girls' school by the evil Israel-US axis. 

The IRNA news agency had cited a local prosecutor as saying that 96 people had been wounded in Saturday’s strike. 

Ali Farhadi, spokesperson for Iran’s Education Ministry, said Sunday that three attacks struck the school, which he said had 264 students. 

Some social media accounts linked to Israel claimed the site was “part of an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps base”. However, an analysis by Al Jazeera’s digital investigations unit of satellite imagery compiled over more than a decade, as well as recent video clips, published news reports and statements from official Iranian sources, tells a very different story. 

The findings reveal that the school had been clearly separate from an adjacent military site for at least 10 years. The investigation also shows that the strike pattern raises fundamental questions about the accuracy of intelligence information on which the bombing was based.

The Minab massacre is a war crime.

Iran's official IRNA news agency said Wednesday Israel and US had killed 1,045 military personnel and civilians since the start of the war. Elsewhere, Al Jazeera reported at least 11 dead in Israel as well as six US soldiers and eight civilians killed in the Gulf states. And the death toll from Israeli military action in Lebanon has risen to 72, with 437 injured since this front of the war ignited on Monday.

Iran Attacked Again

A return to armed conflict. Truth be told, there's just no way to avoid it. It's gonna happen, sooner or later!

And so, on February 28, Israel in cahoots with the US attacked Iran! 

US President Donald Trump himself confirmed "major combat operations" had been under way, and he openly called for regime change. 

The office of Iran's supreme leader, and the presidential office in Tehran, were targeted, as well as military sites across the country. Innocents too were sacrificed when children were cold-bloodedly murdered – initial kill numbers were said to be at least 57 – and scores more were injured. A missile had hit an all-girls' elementary school in Minab, southern Iran. 

Iran promptly launched retaliatory strikes on Israel. And it wasn't just confined to this illegitimate state. Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain and Jordan, which hosted US assets, all admitted they had intercepted missiles fired from Iran at US military bases on their territory. 

Of course, they wouldn't acknowledge it but they were left battered and bruised. 

Defence Security Asia affirmed that an Iranian Shahed drone took out a key US-operated $1.1 billion early warning radar system, the AN/FPS-132 stationed in Qatar. And the Guardian reported that the 5-star Fairmont The Palm hotel in Dubai was struck by an Iranian missile. Social media videos showed smoke rising from the building and four people were injured. And I'm sure there was destruction and devastation in other places too.

Then the claim by Trump in his Truth Social post that Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had been eliminated. 

Today, at 08:38 AM GMT+8, Reuters citing Iranian state media reported that Khamenei has indeed been killed, along with his daughter, grandchild, daughter-in-law and son-in-law in the Israeli-US strikes.

And Trump openly urged Iranians to "take over" the government, saying: "This will be probably your only chance for generations".

Naked aggression must not go unanswered. Iran is not Venezuela. Or Cuba. 

I expect Iran will not spare the Americans nor the Israelis and Netanyahu knows it. One report is claiming he has hightailed out of Israel. Another report says he has fled to Berlin, Germany.

I anticipate Iran to unleash its full military might and punish and crush Israel. Once and for all, I hope. 

And I pray that the citizens of the US vassal states in the Middle East will have the courage to rise up, overthrow their puppet leaders and set their country back on the right side of history. Only then, can they say their nations are truly sovereign.

I'm not a Shi'ite and I’m not neutral. I firmly stand with Iran. 

Long live Iran! Zendeh baad Iran! (زنده باد ایران)! 

Donald Trump Promotes Gaza Plan in AI Video

US President Donald Trump posted a video on his Truth Social account on Tuesday, which appears to have been created with generative AI, promoting the transformation of Gaza into a Gulf state-like resort featuring a golden statue of himself, and even a hummus-eating Elon Musk.

The video opens on barefoot Palestinian children walking through Gazan rubble. “What’s next?” a title card asks. They walk towards a skyline of skyscrapers lining Gaza’s coast. 

“Donald’s coming to set you free”, a voice sings. “Trump Gaza shining bright. Golden future, a brand-new light. Feast and dance. The deed is done”.

The video, incongruously, features bearded and bikini-clad belly dancers, a child holding a golden balloon in the shape of Trump’s head, and Musk dancing on a beach under a shower of US Dollars. 

As the Truth Social video ends, the camera pushes in on Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sipping drinks on a beach.

The American president has proposed expelling 2.1 million Palestinians from Gaza and transforming the enclave into a “Riviera” that would be owned by the United States. 

The West Bank-based Palestinian Authority has called that proposal a “serious violation of international law”.

It is unclear whether Trump intends to carry through on his expulsion plan. After receiving forceful pushback from Egyptian and Jordanian leaders, Trump told Fox News on Friday: “The way to do it is my plan. I think that’s the plan that really works. But I’m not forcing it. I’m just going to sit back and recommend it”. 

Donald Trump's Plan for the Urban Regeneration of Gaza

Donald Trump on Tuesday floated two bombshell ideas about Gaza. 

The first: that the United States “will take over” Gaza and that he won’t rule out sending US troops to secure American ownership. His comments break with decades of US foreign policy, which has long emphasized a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine, as well as his past skepticism over US intervention in the Middle East. 

The real estate investor turned president sees Gaza as a business opportunity: A plan to redevelop Gaza and transform it into the “Riviera of the Middle East”. 

The second: Gaza's entire population would be relocated to other countries. (He had previously listed Jordan and Egypt). This is Trump’s vision for Palestine: No Palestinians! 

Only Trump can conceive these preposterous proposals. His madcap views parallel Israeli hardliners’ desire to see Palestinians ousted from part of what they view as the sacred land of Israel. 

The fallout has been fast and furious. Notably, Arab nations have rejected any suggestions to displace Palestinians from Gaza, which opponents argue would amount to ethnic cleansing.

Celtic demolished Dundee 6-0 to restore 13-point gap at the top of the Scottish Premiership yesterday. 

Arne Engels scored with a penalty in the eighteenth minute following the intervention of VAR before Adam Idah put the Scottish champions in control at the interval with a powerful finish. 

In the fifty-fifth minute, Daizen Maeda headed home a pinpoint Jota cross to make it three and just four minutes later, the Japanese forward found the net again with a delightful chip over the Dundee goalkeeper. In the 71st minute, Engels added his second and Celtic's fifth with a deflected strike from the edge of the box and substitute Nicolas Kuhn curled home a sixth ten minutes later to complete the rout for Brendan Rodgers’s side.

On this showing and given the big gap, it seems a certainty that the league title will be staying with Celtic come May. 

American Puppets

Do you know that US presidents are avid collectors of puppets? 

 

😎😎😎

 

You may have noticed that Canada is missing.

 

Well, that's because I always consider the country to be part of the United States. 

 

In fact, US President-elect Donald Trump shares the same sentiment. 

 

On Tuesday, he had called Prime Minister Justin Trudeau (left) a "governor" and referring to Canada as a "great state" – another suggestion by the incoming president that the country should be part of the United States. 

 

Trump apparently had alluded to Canada as the 51st state during his dinner with Trudeau at Mar-a-Lago, the former's Palm Beach estate in Florida, USA last month. In an interview with NBC News on Sunday, Trump said that if the US is going to run up lopsided trade deficits with Canada, it might as well become a state!

 

😁😁😁

The Cost of Defending Against Iranian Strikes

My post "Finally, Iran Retaliates" published yesterday refers. Israel may have claimed 99% success in defending itself against Saturday’s drone and missile barrages by Iran – but that effort reportedly came at a high price. 

 

The interceptors, jet fuel and other materials expended in shooting down Iran’s unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) and missiles cost about 4 billion to 5 billion shekels ($1.06 billion to $1.33 billion), Israeli Brigadier General Reem Aminoach told local media outlet Ynet News on Sunday. The estimate included only Israel’s direct costs, not counting the considerable weaponry used by the US and other allies in helping to defend against the attack. 

 

Aminoach, formerly the financial adviser to the IDF chief of staff, said Israel used such munitions as Arrow and David’s Sling interceptor missiles, which have per-unit costs of about $3.5 million and $1 million, respectively. He also included sortie expenses for the fighter jets that did the bulk of the work in shooting down Iranian drones.

 

He also lamented that it was far cheaper for Iran to launch the attack than for Israel to defend itself. 

 

“The attack cost Iran less than 10% of what it cost us to defend against it”, he told Ynet. “In the future – in a year, two years, or five years – they can carry out 50 such attacks. And let’s say that if the IDF’s net budget in 2023 was 60 billion shekels, with less than double that you have no chance of reaching a situation where we can maintain the required amounts”. 

 

Iran’s attack involved at least 170 drones, 120 ballistic missiles, and more than 30 cruise missiles, according to a report by The Associated Press news agency.

 

And if you believe the Israelis, the country escaped unscathed. More or less. Save for a 10-year-old Bedouin Israeli girl who suffered a shrapnel wound when she was hit while sleeping at her home in southern Israel. And “only minor damage to infrastructure” at the Nevatim Airbase (this is the Israeli airbase that is home to the F-35 fighters that attacked the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria). Hallelujah, it is a miracle! 😂😂

 

An Al Jazeera report had asserted that the vast majority of the projectiles were intercepted outside the country’s borders with help from the US, UK and France. Jordan betrayed the Palestinians when the Hashemite Kingdom also shot down some of the missiles aimed at Israel as they flew through Jordanian airspace.

 

According to the Wall Street Journal, citing sources, two other Arab nations – Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates – exchanged intelligence with the US and Israel, which contributed to their success in repelling the Iranian attack. 

 

The American lapdogs have exposed themselves – Iran should be wary!

 

And lsrael has been warned against any response. The chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces, Major General Mohammad Bagheri (left) said on state TV that if Israel retaliates, Iran’s response would be “much larger” than the overnight bombardment, according to a report by the Reuters news agency. 

 

Iran also pointedly told Washington that backing Israeli retaliation would lead to the targeting of US bases. 

 

Earlier, Iran’s mission to the United Nations cited the UN Charter’s provision for self-defence under Article 51 and said the country considered “the matter… concluded”.

 

Let's see if Israel will respond!

Finally, Iran Retaliates

On Saturday night, air raid alerts went off in Israel as Iran unleashed a massive retaliatory attack against the country. 

[FYI, the fierce blitz was to avenge for the deadly Israeli airstrike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria on April 01, 2024 that killed seven officers of the IRGC’s Quds Force, including two generals].

Over the weekend, more than 300 kamikaze drones and missiles (both cruise and ballistic) were launched from Iran as well as Iraq, Syria and Yemen. 

Israeli air defence systems went to work. And its allies kept themselves busy too. US forces began shooting down unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) in the skies over Iraq and Syria. British fighter jets joined Israeli planes to stop Iranian drones over Jordan. And a CNN report today had mentioned France's involvement in blocking the Iranian attacks but no further info was given.

Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari boasted that 99% of the incoming projectiles were intercepted either outside Israeli airspace or over the country itself. Even US President Joe Biden trumpeted that US forces "helped Israel take down nearly all" drones and missiles. 

At the same time, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps claimed that Tehran had managed to hit and destroy “important military targets”, without providing further details.

Hagari warns that Iran will pay for the consequences – and the threat of escalation is kicking it up a notch. 

Iran was right to punish Israel. And if there is to be war, so be it!

Russia, China and India Ditch USD in 95% of Trade

Ninety-five percent of Russia's trade with China and India were conducted in national currencies last year, Tatiana Monaghan, Secretary General of the Russian National Committee of the International Chamber of Commerce – World Business Organization, revealed on Monday. 

 

According to ICC Russia's Monaghan (right), the share of the US Dollar and euro in Russia's export settlements has dropped dramatically, from 85.6% in January-December 2021 to 34.1% over January-May of last year. The use of the Russian ruble in cross-border transactions surged to 39.1% over the same period and settlements in currencies of so-called "friendly" countries rose to 26.9%, the data showed. 

 

Russia and its trade partners began to switch to the national currencies in mutual trade after US-led sanctions effectively cut Moscow off from the Western financial system. 

 

It serves the US right!

 

Malaysia national football team, Harimau Malaya’s early exit in the group stage of the recently concluded 2023 Asian Cup in Doha, saw the nation’s ranking slip two spots, from No. 130 to No. 132, in the latest FIFA world rankings. 

 

In the Asian Cup competition, Harimau Malaya opened their campaign with a 0-4 defeat to Jordan, followed by a 0-1 defeat to Bahrain but managed a 3-3 draw against South Korea in the final group match. The one point earned against the Taeguk Warriors was not sufficient to lift the team past the group stage. 

 

Still, Malaysia’s position among Asian countries remains unchanged at the 23rd spot. And Malaysia holds out as the third best ASEAN team behind No. 101 Thailand and No. 105 Vietnam.

Nauru Abandons Taiwan (Again)

Nauru, a tiny Micronesian island with a population of about 10,800 and just one of twelve countries that kept diplomatic ties with Taiwan has decided to restore diplomatic relations with China.

 

This is a second time because in 2002, Nauru abandoned Taiwan in favor of China – only to resume relations with the former three years later. 

 

There was to be no roar from Harimau Malaya.

 

If Malaysia harbors any football illusion that they are back to Asian standards, this was brutally shattered by Jordan on Monday. Kim Pan Gon's team suffered a humiliating 4-0 loss in their Asian Cup Group E opener in Qatar. 

 

The one-sided game against Jordan – deemed the least strongest of Malaysia's three Group E opponents – underlined the huge gulf in standards between Malaysia and the Middle East teams. 

 

Though the Asian Cup will only end on February 10, the Malaysian team can start preparing to pack up and leave for home after their last group match, against South Korea on January 25.

Harimau Malaya Ready to Roar

Malaysia's national football coach Kim Pan Gon believes that Malaysia has what it takes to mount a strong campaign in the AFC Asian Cup (24 qualified teams, drawn into six groups of four) starting on Friday in Doha, Qatar. 

Pan Gon was pleased with his men's performance – world No. 130 Malaysia held higher-ranked world No. 91 Syria to a 2-2 draw in a friendly on Monday. This is a boost to the Malaysians' confidence as they prepare to face two Arab teams – Jordan and Bahrain – who are of similar strength in Group E in the Asian Cup. [FYI, South Korea is the fourth team].

Against Syria, Malaysia took the lead through Arif Aiman Hanapi (39) but the Qasioun Eagles hit back with a brace in the 70th and 74th minutes. Brazilian-born midfielder Paulo Josue ensured Malaysia would troop off the field on level terms with Syria by netting the equaliser in the 78th minute.

It was the second time Syria were held to a deadlock by the Malaysians. 

Previously, the Arab side, coached by La Liga legend Hector Cuper, were held 2-2 by Pan Gon's men in a friendly in Chengdu, China, last September. 

Pan Gon (right) said the result and performance against Syria augur well for their Asian Cup Group E opener against No. 87 Jordan on January 15.

After the Jordan match, Malaysia will take on No. 86 Bahrain on January 20 and No. 23 South Korea on January 25. 

Only the champions and runners-up of each group, along with the four best third-placed teams, will qualify for the last 16.

Bolivia Severs Ties with Israel; Colombia, Chile and Jordan Recall Envoys

Bolivia “decided to break diplomatic relations with the Israeli state in repudiation and condemnation of the aggressive and disproportionate Israeli military offensive taking place in the Gaza Strip”, Deputy Foreign Minister Freddy Mamani said on Tuesday, as quoted by the Associated Press.

 

And Minister of the Presidency Maria Nela Prada (right) accused Israel of “committing crimes against humanity” in Gaza, calling on the Israeli government to “cease attacks in the Gaza Strip that have already resulted in thousands of civilian casualties and the forced displacement of Palestinians”.

 

Bolivia previously cut diplomatic ties with Israel in 2009, also in protest against Israel’s actions in Gaza. Relations were only restored in 2020. 

 

In the meantime, Colombia and Chile recalled their ambassadors for consultations condemning the deaths of civilians in Gaza and calling for a ceasefire.

 

Yesterday, Al Jazeera reported Jordan announcing it is “immediately” recalling its ambassador to Israel and accusing the latter of creating an “unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe”. The country's foreign ministry said their envoy would only return if Israel ceased its war on the besieged territory. They also told Israel to recall its ambassador to the kingdom amid the crisis.

 

What about the other Arab countries that have normalised their relations with Tel Aviv?

 

On Wednesday, Scottish Premiership league leaders Celtic came from behind to beat a spirited St Mirren 2-1. 

 

The latter scored on seven minutes but David Turnbull's fine finish from the edge of the box eleven minutes later leveled the score. And then two subs combined to give Celtic the winner. Odin Thiago Holm played a delightful pass into the path of Oh Hyeon-gyu and he finished emphatically to clinch a vital three points with just seven minutes left of the game.

 

Celtic travel to Dingwall on Saturday to meet Ross County.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the same day, Liverpool overcame AFC Bournemouth 2-1 to reach the quarter-finals of the EFL Cup.

 

In the thirty-first minute, Cody Gakpo put the Reds in front when he pounced to poke home from close range after Harvey Elliott's volley was parried into his path. But the Cherries leveled in the 64th minute. 

 

Then, substitute Darwin Nunez scored a stunner when he cut in from the left and picked his spot perfectly for the 70th-minute finish, curling the ball with plenty of pace into the top right corner.

 

Liverpool will take on Premier League rivals West Ham, who beat Arsenal 3-1 in the fourth round, in the quarter-finals at Anfield.

UNGA Vote For Palestine

The United Nations General Assembly voted overwhelmingly in favor of a resolution calling for an immediate humanitarian truce between Israel and the Palestinian armed group Hamas. 

 

The 193-member body passed the resolution, drafted by a group of 22 Arab countries, by a margin of 120 to 14, with 45 countries abstaining. 

 

Obviously, the United States and Israel voted no as well as twelve other countries: Austria, Croatia, Czechia, Fiji, Guatemala, Hungary, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay and Tonga.

 

Speaking before the vote, Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said that voting against the resolution “means approving this senseless war, this senseless killing”. Israel denounced the vote as “infamy”. Needless to say, the US is firmly in cahoots with the Israelis and so, they too oppose peace.

 

Russian soft drinks brand Dobry overtook Coca-Cola in sales on the domestic market in January-August 2023, news website RBK reported on Thursday, citing a study by NielsenIQ. 

 

The Dobry Cola brand is produced at factories that belonged to Coca-Cola HBC Russia, the bottler of the original drink. 

 

According to the report, Dobry came in second in the ranking of the 50 most popular FMCG (Fast Moving Consumer Goods) brands. Based on the results of the first eight months, the brand’s share in total sales on the FMCG market is 1.2%, the study showed. 

 

The original Coca-Cola did not even make it into the top 50 brands in Russia, despite finding its way into the sanctioned country through parallel imports.

McDonald’s Franchises on Opposing Sides

Pulitzer Prize-winning commentator Thomas Friedman in the late 1990s famously claimed that two countries with McDonald’s outlets had never gone to war. 

 

But as fighting rages between Israel and Hamas, the iconic American fast food chain are at war with themselves.

 

McDonald’s franchises in the Middle East have weighed in on opposing sides of the conflict, with branches in Muslim countries disavowing a decision by McDonald’s Israel to provide free meals to the Israeli military. 

 

Franchises in Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Türkiye and United Arab Emirates have distanced themselves from their Israeli counterparts and collectively pledged more than $3 million to support Palestinians under bombardment in Gaza. 

 

“Let us all combine our efforts and support the community in Gaza with everything we can”, McDonald’s Oman, which pledged $100,000 towards humanitarian relief efforts in Gaza, posted on X (formerly Twitter) last Sunday. “We ask God Almighty to protect our beloved country and all Arab and Muslim countries from all the evil and hate”.

 

Since announcing their support for the Israeli army, McDonald’s Israel have changed their Instagram account to “private” following a backlash from consumers in Arab and Muslim countries.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

While McDonald’s rank among the most iconic American brands, most of their restaurants worldwide are locally owned and operated. The case of McDonald’s highlights the tricky geopolitical dynamics that globe-spanning brands must navigate in an era where businesses are often expected to weigh in on hot-button social and political issues.

 

Having different franchises of McDonald’s end up on different (rhetorical) sides is an example of how politics permeates everything.

It is a known fact the United States is driven by a lust for wars!

 

 

The Al Aqsa Teens @ WSD 2021 World Children's Day

A chance meet-up in October 2021 – and I got to know Ghada Abdalrahman (right). 

She kindly introduced me to students of Al Aqsa Integrated School in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – where she is a tutor. Long story short, she managed to get six of them to register for WSD 2021 World Children’s Day. 

The teens come from six different countries, i.e. India, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Nigeria, Egypt and Jordan:

And if I may add, all of them spoke well and their topics were interesting too. 

Thank you, Ghada!

Indeed, we would love to have them and others participate in World Speech Day events in 2022.

#unexpectedvoices #worldspeechday #sabahbolehbah