TRUMP REJECTS LATEST PROPOSAL, IRAN SAYS WAR IS "LIKELY"

Iran handed a new proposal to Pakistani mediators Thursday night 18ABC Iran offers new proposal to end war with United States. Trump's response the same day: "At this moment I'm not satisfied with what they're offering" 19APW Live updates: Trump administration says war in Iran has been 'terminated' before 60-day deadline. Then on Saturday, senior Iranian commander Mohammad Jafar Asadi told Fars news agency that renewed conflict is "likely" 5TOI Senior Iranian officer warns war with US ‘likely’ after Trump rebuffs latest proposal, and Iran's foreign ministry added that Tehran is "prepared for both paths." That is not boilerplate. That is a government setting expectations with its own population. The War Powers Resolution 60-day deadline also passed this week, with Trump sending Congress a letter declaring hostilities "terminated" while the naval blockade continues and he publicly described the US Navy as operating "like pirates" in what he called "a very profitable business" 10CRD US threatens sanctions on ships paying for Hormuz passage as Trump celebrates high-seas piracy.

Israeli military chief Eyal Zamir held "intensive contacts" with CENTCOM chief Brad Cooper on potential new strikes against Iran, per Channel 12 3AAM Israeli army chief, US CENTCOM head hold talks on possible action against Iran: Report. The reported target list covers energy networks, steel plants, and oil and gas reserves, a coercive rather than disarming logic. The US is separately weighing a limited strike to push Iran toward a nuclear deal, with no timing or final decision announced 3AAM Israeli army chief, US CENTCOM head hold talks on possible action against Iran: Report. The ceasefire was supposed to make this conversation unnecessary. That it is happening at all tells you where both militaries think this is heading.

Beijing's Ministry of Commerce formally blocked US sanctions on five Chinese petrochemical firms buying Iranian oil, invoking its Anti-Foreign Sanctions Law and 2021 Blocking Rules with immediate effect 16GLT MOFCOM issues a ban, requesting not to recognize, enforce and comply with US sanctions on five Chinese firms. Chinese entities were explicitly instructed not to recognize or comply with the US designations. This is not a diplomatic protest, it is a legal counter-measure that directly shields Iranian oil revenue from US pressure. Washington and Beijing are now building competing legal frameworks around the same oil supply chain, and the blockade's economic reach is being systematically hollowed out within Chinese jurisdiction.

A CNN investigation using satellite imagery and interviews found Iran struck 16 US military bases across 8 countries, leaving many "virtually unusable" 6AAM Iran strikes damaged 16 US military sites in Middle East, report claims 12CRD Iranian strikes heavily damage majority of US military bases in West Asia. Confirmed losses include an E-3 Sentry surveillance aircraft at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia and radar systems at Muwaffaq Salti in Jordan 12CRD Iranian strikes heavily damage majority of US military bases in West Asia. The actual cost is reportedly $40-50 billion, nearly double the $25 billion figure Pentagon gave Congress 6AAM Iran strikes damaged 16 US military sites in Middle East, report claims. The framing that sticks: a Gulf official told CNN that US bases, once a regional deterrent, are now seen as "sitting targets."

Spirit Airlines ceased all operations Saturday, the first US carrier of its size to liquidate in two decades 11TOI US’s Spirit Airlines goes bankrupt amid Iran war price fuel surge. Jet fuel has roughly doubled to around $4.51 a gallon against the carrier's business plan assumption of $2.24, and no creditor would absorb the gap 14AJE Spirit Airlines begins ‘wind-down’, cancels all flights over fuel crisis. Around 810,000 bookings through May 15 are cancelled. A Trump-backed $500 million bailout attempt failed. JetBlue and Frontier rose on the news, which tells you who benefits from the route vacuum. Spirit will not be the last: Lufthansa has already cut 20,000 flights, and European carriers are following.