AMERICAN BRAINWASH

M.K. BHADRAKUMAR—The bottom line is that the Gulf states’ core position toward Iran has not fundamentally changed — maintaining dialogue while strengthening deterrence — but the conditions under which it operates are shifting rapidly. Clearly, the Gulf region’s serious collective action problem needs to be overcome first before making a quantum leap toward developing a ‘NATO-like force’ as an alternative deterrent to the US security umbrella, which the war exposed to be to no purpose. 

The significance of Pakistan’s participation remains unclear and lends itself to interpretation as the nascent thinking apropos a formal military alliance  riveted on ‘Islamic partnership’ that takes strategic coordination beyond the Gulf region to contain Iran. Suffice it to say, Israel’s focus on energy and infrastructure as a new template of the war was anything but  incidental. 

PHIL. GIRALDI—And finally, for a bit of what just might turn out to be good news! The reports of the misfortunes of the world’s largest warship, the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R Ford, have been circulating for the past couple of weeks, starting with malfunction of the ship’s toilets, requiring repairs and maintenance. According to one report, it may have been due to deliberate clogging of the ship’s plumbing by crew members flushing and otherwise jamming clothing and other “indigestible” items into the pipes. There has also been a large 30-hour fire reported in the ship laundry room which has required returning to Crete for major repairs. The Ford has now left the operational area linked to Iran.

RACHEL BLEVINS—Reports say President Trump is considering deploying thousands of U.S. Troops to the Middle East, with air and naval forces to target the Strait of Hormuz, and ground forces to attempt to seize Iran’s Kharg Island. This, as the Trump Admin requests $200 BILLION in funding for the war they just launched. Brian Berletic, a geopolitical analyst and Host of The New Atlas, noted that the war in Iran has been decades in the making and was never meant to just be a four-day operation. He pointed out that the U.S. has its eye on its biggest competition: China.

JM—Iran also damaged an oil refinery in Haifa. Israel has only two and Haifa is its largest. You might think that this benefits the US LNG industry. Maybe yes. Also less than you think.

For example, Japan is hugely dependent on LNG. If it can’t get it from the ME, it must get it elsewhere . It already gets some from Russia. And has contracts with the US, but it has shifted its focus to Canada.

The LNG Canada Project in British Columbia in Kitimat, is partially funded by Mitsubishi Corporation (15% stake) shipping 2.1 million metric tons of LNG annually to Japan since 2025. The project aims to add 14 million tons of capacity annually, expanding over time. And there are other projects under construction. Japan and other Asian countries prefer Canadian LNG because it offers a shorter transit time (approx. 10 days) compared to Middle Eastern or US Gulf routes. This makes its economically competitive, despite higher production costs than, say, Qatar or even the US.

EI—Mar 19, 2026 #TheElectronicIntifada #TheElectronicIntifadaPodcast

Ali Abunimah, executive director, provides his analysis of what comes next after Israel bombed Iran’s South Pars gas field, one of the world’s largest, marking a serious escalation, as well as Iran’s response.