Shavuah tov, May this new week bring blessings of good health, prosperity, peace, and love to us all.
Despite President Donald Trump’s assurances that Iran has no military power left, the New York Times reported that American intelligence and military officials estimate that Iran has about 40% of its drone arsenal and about 60% of its missile launchers remaining. And the Telegram channel attributed to Iran’s Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, published a statement declaring that “Iran’s Navy is ready to inflict new and bitter defeats on enemies.”
It seems as if we are continuing to watch two screens of the same movie, and those two screens are antithetical to each other. On both Friday afternoon and Saturday, President Trump said that Iran had agreed to give over all of its enriched uranium; that no longer would they enrich uranium; and that the Strait of Hormuz would be open. At the same time, Iranian officials said that they are not giving over any enriched uranium that they have to the U.S., that they will continue to enrich uranium in the future, and that they are closing the Strait of Hormuz.
Trump specifically said that Iran agreed to suspend its nuclear program indefinitely, would not receive frozen U.S. funds, and had agreed to stop supporting groups such as Hezbollah and Hamas. He also said U.S. and Iranian negotiators would probably meet soon and that any final deal would “make Israel safe” and that “Israel is going to come out great” at the end of the war.
Iranian officials publicly rejected these claims. The Iranian Foreign Ministry said there is no plan to transfer 60% enriched uranium to the U.S., and Iranian officials said Tehran is not ready for a new round of talks, arguing that Washington has maintained excessive demands and has not abandoned its hardline stance.
Iranian officials also warned that if the blockade continues, it will be considered a violation of the ceasefire and Iran will respond. The Iranian National Security Council said Tehran is still studying new American proposals and has not yet issued a response, while also warning that the Strait would be closed from Saturday evening until the blockade is lifted and warned that vessels approaching the area would be considered cooperating with the enemy and could be targeted. An Iranian official also said Iran would continue restricting ship traffic during the ceasefire and impose tolls, with vessels required to coordinate with the IRGC.
Trump: “Iran has agreed never to close the Strait of Hormuz again. They will never use it again as a weapon against the world!” IRGC Spokesman: “the strait will be closed until the U.S. naval blockade is lifted,” and threatened: “We warn all types of vessels against making any movement from their anchorage points in the (Persian) Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.” As of Saturday night, Reuters is reporting that at least two tankers have been fired upon by IRGC boats, and the Wall Street Journal is reporting that at least 20 other vessels were forced to turn around by the IRGC.
Trump: Reuters reported that Trump said that enriched uranium will be removed from Iran and transferred to U.S. custody, saying, “We’ll take it out at a leisurely pace.” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmail Baghaei: “The option to transfer Iran’s enriched uranium abroad is rejected. Compensation for the losses and damages caused to Iran is a decisive issue in the negotiations.”
While there is no way during this fog of war to know which statements are accurate and which are inaccurate, the truth is probably somewhere in the middle. Israel is aware that Iran still has many weapons, and satellite imagery has shown that they’re unearthing many missiles and launchers that were buried in recent weeks’ attacks. Trump has a history of exaggerating, and the Iranians have a history of rattling sabers that they don’t really have, so there really is no way of knowing with any certainty what is actually happening. The IRGC is claiming preparedness for more war, and the USS Gerald Ford aircraft carrier is returning to the Red Sea, accompanied by two destroyers, so it seems that nothing is “certain.”
What is certain is that this is not Israel’s war, but a war for the survival of Western civilization, and Israel is the first line of defense, while the United States is the last line of defense. We need to keep this in mind at all times. There is no doubt that if Iran had nuclear capabilities, God forbid, the world would be an exponentially more dangerous place. There is also no doubt that Israel’s importance is not just for Jews and Christians of faith, but is of paramount importance for the survival of Western Civilization. It is not only the only democracy in the region, but it is also the only country that is not a theocracy committed to Islam.
(To understand the dangers of a nuclear Iran, God forbid, we simply need to look at North Korea, which launched multiple ballistic missiles into the sea on Sunday as part of its latest weapons testing activity.)
Nonetheless, Trump’s opponents are attempting to portray him as a puppet to Netanyahu (which, if only based upon Trump’s personality, is an absurdity), and trying to portray this to the American public as if it is an Israeli war that America should not be involved in. Antisemitic influencers like Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens have been preaching this for months, and that bandwagon has been jumped on by more and more politicians attempting to gain favor with the far-left, antisemitic wing of the Democratic Party. On Saturday, Kamala Harris showed her political intentions of courting the anti-Semitic progressives of the DNC by stating that Trump “was dragged into it by Bibi Netanyahu,” and claimed that the strike on Iran is “his pathetic attempt to divert attention from the Epstein documents.”
On an entirely different front that is not war-related, on Saturday, Trump spoke at a TPU.S.A event in Phoenix and said that he had instructed Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth to “release classified documents about UFOs.” He addressed the audience and added, ‘Soon you will all know if they exist.’
This is a more interesting statement than many people may at first recognize. For many decades, especially since the incident at Roswell, many sociologists have posited that the only thing that will stop war on this planet is a recognition of the presence and the possibilities of life from other planets. The theory is that suddenly, if something like this happens, all humans have more in common with each other than they do with extraterrestrials, and will put aside their differences. I’m not sure that is accurate, nor am I clear what Trump will not be revealing, but in the midst of this war for Western Civilization from attacks by Iranian theocracies, it seems an interesting time for Trump to make this statement, especially since there was no direct question about UFOs.
Whether through war, negotiations, UFOs, or the Messiah, let us all pray that the Holy One, blessed be He, and His presence, bless us, Israel, the United States, and the world with a long-lasting peace that brings together humanity under the loving Presence of God.
Chazak u’Baruch
Rabbi Michael Barclay
April 18, 2026
2nd of Iyyar, 5786
17th day of the Omer
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