American politician and attorney, CIA Director since 2025
US forces have conducted a complex rescue operation in Iran, retrieving two downed F-15E pilots after their aircraft was shot down. The rescue involved dozens of aircraft, deception tactics, and took place amid ongoing tensions with Iran. Both pilots are reported to be safe.
Iran has acquired a Chinese-built TEE-01B satellite in late 2024, which its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has used to monitor US military bases in the Middle East during ongoing conflict. The satellite captured images before and after Iranian drone and missile strikes on US sites in Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain, and Iraq. China denies involvement, while the US is monitoring the situation.
CIA Director John Ratcliffe has met Cuban officials in Havana to discuss intelligence, economic stability and security. U.S. prosecutors have been expected to unseal an indictment against 94-year-old Raúl Castro in Miami on May 20 over the 1996 shootdown of exile planes, according to U.S. and Cuban sources.
Cuban president Miguel Díaz‑Canel has said Cuba "poses no threat" after US reports — citing classified intelligence — that Havana has obtained more than 300 military drones from Russia and Iran and discussed strikes on US assets including Guantánamo Bay. Cuba has denied the claims and warned a US attack would "trigger a bloodbath."
The U.S. Justice Department has charged former Cuban leader Raúl Castro in connection with the 1996 shooting down of two Brothers to the Rescue planes. The indictment alleges he authorized deadly force after the exile group dropped leaflets over Havana, killing four U.S. nationals. The case adds to rising tensions between the U.S. and Cuba amid ongoing economic hardship on the island.
Since mid‑May the U.S. has unsealed an indictment charging former Cuban leader Raúl Castro over the 1996 downing of civilian planes, tightened sanctions including broad measures against GAESA, deployed the USS Nimitz to the Caribbean, and imposed an oil blockade that has triggered blackouts and economic strain in Cuba.
Federal authorities have seized more than 300 gold bars, about $2 million in cash and dozens of luxury watches from a former CIA official amid an embezzlement probe. Investigators say the suspect claimed work-related expenses and alleged Navy Reserve service, with charges including theft of public funds.
The United States has expanded sanctions and enforced an energy blockade that has cut fuel supplies to Cuba, targeted President Miguel Díaz‑Canel, members of the Castro family and military institutions, and has indicted former president Raúl Castro; the measures have deepened power outages, food and medicine shortages and drawn condemnation from the UN human rights commissioner.
The CIA-investigated case centers on David Rush, a former CIA officer, who has been arrested after investigators found 303 gold bars, $2 million in cash, and dozens of luxury watches in his Virginia home. He has allegedly used a fake special access program and falsified credentials to obtain funds for work-related expenses between November 2025 and March 2026. The FBI and CIA are pursuing the case, with detention ordered as flight risk is cited.