Heavily-Armed Iranian Gunboats Attempt to Seize U.S. Tanker

Iranian gunboats attempted to seize a U.S.-flagged oil tanker in the Strait of Hormuz on Tuesday amid escalating tensions between Tehran and Washington.

The tanker, identified as the Stena Imperative, was transiting international waters around the Strait of Hormuz when it was approached by armed vessels linked to Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) announced. The heavily-armed gunboats threatened to board and seize the ship, but the tanker maintained its course and is now under escort by the guided-missile destroyer USS McFaul and defensive air support from the U.S. Air Force.

“CENTCOM forces are operating at the highest levels of professionalism and ensuring the safety of U.S. personnel, ships, and aircraft in the Middle East,” said CENTCOM spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins. “Continued Iranian harassment and threats in international waters and airspace will not be tolerated. Iran’s unnecessary aggression near U.S. forces, regional partners and commercial vessels increases risks of collision, miscalculation, and regional destabilization.”

The U.K. Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO), which is affiliated with the British Royal Navy, also reported the encounter earlier Tuesday. UKMTO said the vessel had been hailed by multiple small armed boats. Authorities are investigating the incident, according to the statement, while warning ships transiting the area to exercise caution and report suspicious activity.

Iran’s state-linked Fars News Agency later claimed the tanker had entered Iranian territorial waters without authorization and was intercepted as a result, according to CBS News.

The confrontation comes as the Trump administration weighs potential military action against the Iranian regime following its violent crackdown on protests earlier this year. President Donald Trump has repeatedly warned that the U.S. could launch strikes if Tehran refuses to negotiate a new nuclear agreement or executes protesters.

The U.S. has also been deploying additional aircraft and naval assets to the region, citing the need to promote “regional security and stability.” The USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier strike group arrived in the area in late January, along with F-35 fighter jets and missile defense systems.

The president on January 28 warned that the “massive Armada” is “ready, willing, and able to rapidly fulfill its mission, with speed and violence, if necessary.”

While regional leaders are pushing for a diplomatic solution, Iranian officials have reportedly threatened to pull out of scheduled talks with U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, set for Friday in Turkey, people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei also warned Sunday that any U.S. military action against the country would result in a wider “regional war.”

The Department of War did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.

https://thelibertydaily.com/heavily-armed-iranian-gunboats-attempt-seize-u-s/

Trump: India Agrees to Stop Buying Russian Oil, Enter Trade Deal with U.S.

President Donald Trump announced Monday that the United States and India have reached a trade agreement and that India has committed to stop buying Russian oil.

Trump revealed the developments in a Truth Social post on Monday and called Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi one of his “greatest friends” after speaking with him in the morning.

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“We spoke about many things, including Trade, and ending the War with Russia and Ukraine. He agreed to stop buying Russian Oil, and to buy much more from the United States and, potentially, Venezuela,” Trump wrote.

“This will help END THE WAR in Ukraine, which is taking place right now, with thousands of people dying each and every week!” he added.

The president also provided details of a trade agreement between the United States and India:

Out of friendship and respect for Prime Minister Modi and, as per his request, effective immediately, we agreed to a Trade Deal between the United States and India, whereby the United States will charge a reduced Reciprocal Tariff, lowering it from 25 percent to 18 percent. They will likewise move forward to reduce their Tariffs and Non Tariff Barriers against the United States, to ZERO. The Prime Minister also committed to “BUY AMERICAN,” at a much higher level, in addition to over $500 BILLION DOLLARS of U.S. Energy, Technology, Agricultural, Coal, and many other products. Our amazing relationship with India will be even stronger going forward. Prime Minister Modi and I are two people that GET THINGS DONE, something that cannot be said for most. Thank you for your attention to this matter!

Modi took to X after the conversation with Trump, thanking the president on behalf of India’s 1.4 billion people.

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“When two large economies and the world’s largest democracies work together, it benefits our people and unlocks immense opportunities for mutually beneficial cooperation,” he wrote.

“President Trump’s leadership is vital for global peace, stability, and prosperity. India fully supports his efforts for peace,” Modi continued. “I look forward to working closely with him to take our partnership to unprecedented heights.”

https://www.breitbart.com/politics/2026/02/02/trump-india-agrees-to-stop-buying-russian-oil-enter-trade-deal-with-u-s/

Google Engineer Convicted Of ESPIONAGE

I wonder if Democrats can still say “diversity is our greatest strength” after reading this.

A former Google engineer has been convicted of espionage charges.

According to a Department of Justice press release, a Chinese engineer who was working for Google was found guilty of treason and theft of confidential technology after he sold Google trade secrets to Chinese firms.

Axios provided more details on the crime:

A former Google engineer was found guilty of economic espionage and theft of confidential AI technology for the benefit of China’s government, the FBI said Monday.

Intelligence and defense officials have long warned of increased efforts by Beijing and others to obtain U.S. intellectual property and use AI against American interests.

A federal jury in San Francisco convicted Linwei Ding, also known as Leon Ding, 38, of seven counts of economic espionage and seven counts of theft of trade secrets, per an FBI post on X Monday.

Ding was accused of stealing thousands of pages of confidential information containing Google’s trade secrets related to artificial intelligence technology and sharing them with two Chinese tech firms.

He was originally indicted in March 2024 before a superseding indictment was returned last year on the charges Ding was convicted of.

The jury found him guilty of stealing more than two thousand pages of confidential information containing Google’s AI trade secrets from Google’s network and uploading them to his personal Google Cloud account while working for the company from May 2022 and April 2023.

Here’s a photo of Ding before he was convicted:

The DOJ provided more in-depth details of Ding’s crime:

Ding was originally indicted in March 2024. A superseding indictment returned in February 2025 described seven categories of trade secrets stolen by Ding and charged Ding with seven counts of economic espionage and seven counts of theft of trade secrets.

According to the evidence presented at trial, between approximately May 2022 and April 2023, while a Google employee, Ding stole more than two thousand pages of confidential information containing Google’s AI trade secrets from Google’s network and uploaded them to his personal Google Cloud account.

Ding also secretly affiliated himself with two PRC-based technology companies while he was employed by Google: around June 2022, Ding was in discussions to be the Chief Technology Officer for an early-stage technology company based in the PRC; by early 2023, Ding was in the process of founding his own technology company in the PRC focused on AI and machine learning and was acting as the company’s CEO. In multiple statements to potential investors, Ding claimed that he could build an AI supercomputer by copying and modifying Google’s technology. In December 2023, less than two weeks before he resigned from Google, Ding downloaded the stolen Google trade secrets to his own personal computer.

The jury found that Ding stole trade secrets relating to the hardware infrastructure and software platforms that allow Google’s supercomputing data center to train and serve large AI models. The trade secrets contained detailed information about the architecture and functionality of Google’s custom Tensor Processing Unit chips and systems and Google’s Graphics Processing Unit systems, the software that allows the chips to communicate and execute tasks, and the software that orchestrates thousands of chips into a supercomputer capable of training and executing cutting-edge AI workloads. The trade secrets also pertained to Google’s custom-designed SmartNIC, a type of network interface card used to facilitate high speed communication within Google’s AI supercomputers and cloud networking products.

In presentations to investors, Ding called out the PRC’s national policies prioritizing AI development and innovation in the PRC, and in late 2023 Ding applied for a government sponsored “talent plan” in Shanghai, PRC. The jury heard evidence pertaining to the PRC government’s establishment of talent plans to encourage individuals to come to China to contribute to the PRC’s economic and technological growth. Ding’s application for this talent plan stated that he planned to “help China to have computing power infrastructure capabilities that are on par with the international level.” The evidence at trial also showed that Ding intended to benefit two entities controlled by the government of China by assisting with the development of an AI supercomputer and collaborating on the research and development of custom machine learning chips.

Is it time to stop Chinese nationals from getting H-1B visas?

https://100percentfedup.com/google-engineer-convicted-espionage/

JUST IN: Bill & Hillary Clinton CAVE, Agree to Testify Before Congress on Epstein

 Facing contempt of Congress, Bill and Hillary Clinton have finally given in.

Just days before a House vote to hold them in criminal contempt for ignoring subpoenas, both of the Clintons have agreed to appear before the House to testify on Jeffrey Epstein.

Check it out:

This is a huge turnaround from the past several months, in which Bill and Hillary have refused to comply with the ongoing investigation into Epstein.

The New York Times was the first to report:

For months, the Clintons had been adamant that they would not comply with subpoenas from Representative James R. Comer of Kentucky, the panel’s Republican chairman, that they have described as invalid and legally unenforceable. They accused Mr. Comer of being part of a plot to target them as President Trump’s political adversaries and promised to fight him on the issue for as long as it took.

But after some Democrats on the panel joined Republicans in a vote to recommend charging them with criminal contempt, an extraordinary first step in referring them to the Justice Department for prosecution, the Clintons ultimately waved the white flag and agreed to fully comply with Mr. Comer’s demands.

In an email sent to Mr. Comer on Monday evening, attorneys for the Clintons said their clients would “appear for depositions on mutually agreeable dates” and asked that the House not move forward with a contempt vote, which had been slated for Wednesday.

“They negotiated in good faith. You did not,” spokesmen for the Clintons said in a statement. “They told under oath what they know, but you did not care. But the former president and former secretary of state will be there.”

So far, a date has not been scheduled for the Clintons’ testimony.

Fox News has more details:

The committee is examining what the Clintons may have known about Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell, including scrutiny of Hillary Clinton’s role overseeing U.S. efforts to combat international sex trafficking while serving as Secretary of State.

A source familiar sent Fox News Digital text of the email the Clintons’ attorneys sent to the House Oversight Committee confirming they would testify on terms set by Chairman James Comer, R-Ky.

“Please be advised, and please advise the Chairman, that my clients accept the terms of your letter and will appear for depositions on mutually agreeable dates,” the text read. “As has been the Committee’s practice, please confirm the House will not move forward with contempt proceedings, as the Chairman stated in his letter this morning.”

Hopefully, this marks a significant step towards accountability…

It’s going to be interesting to hear what the Clintons have to say for themselves.

Calls are growing for the hearing to be made public:

https://100percentfedup.com/just-bill-hillary-clintonve-agree-testify-before/

ICE Arrests Illegal Alien New Orleans Police Department Recruit Who Was Illegally Given a Gun

ICE agents arrested an illegal alien, a New Orleans Police Department recruit, who was illegally given a gun.

Larry Temah, the 46-year-old illegal alien from Cameroon, was just one week away from graduating from the police academy.

The DHS said in a comment to Fox News: “This illegal alien from Cameroon, Larry Temah, is not only breaking the law with every step he takes in this country illegally, but the New Orleans Police Department hired him and issued him a firearm – what kind of law enforcement department gives criminal illegal aliens guns and badges? It’s a FELONY for illegal aliens to even possess a firearm. Sanctuary cities like New Orleans ignore ICE detainers and are protecting illegal aliens at the expense of American citizens.”

Per Fox News reporter Bill Melugin:

ICE confirms to Fox News that they’ve arrested a New Orleans Police Department recruit who they say is an illegal alien from Cameroon with an active deportation order & no work authorization, & they say he was illegally given a gun by New Orleans PD.

ICE says 46-year-old Larry Temah was one week away from graduating the New Orleans PD academy when they arrested him.

They say Temah first entered the US legally in 2015 on a visitor’s visa and was granted conditional residency after marrying a US citizen in 2016. However, in 2022, his application for permanent residency was denied to due to fraud.

ICE says Temah was ordered to appear in immigration court three times, but never did, disregarding US laws, which resulted in an immigration judge ordering him deported in absentia, resulting in his active deportation order.

This is not the first time an illegal alien has been a police department recruit and given an illegal gun.

In October, ICE agents arrested an alleged illegal alien from Montenegro who was a sworn police officer in Hanover Park, Illinois.

Hanover Police later announced they rehired Bojovic.

Bojovic is now an armed police officer after an immigration judge granted him a $2,500 immigration bond two weeks after he was detained.

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2026/02/ice-arrests-illegal-alien-new-orleans-police-department/