Antiwar.com’s Week in Review for May 22th, 2026

Keith Preston

3 weeks ago

May 22nd, 2026 | Weekly Issue

House Republicans Block Vote on Iran War Powers Resolution That Was Expected To Pass

The effort to pass an Iran War Powers Resolution is gaining momentum in both the House and Senate

House Republicans on Thursday canceled a vote on a War Powers Resolution to end President Trump’s war against Iran as it became clear they didn’t have the votes to defeat the measure. The delay means that the House won’t take up the bill until after lawmakers return from their Memorial Day recess.

“Republicans just prevented the House from voting on a War Powers Resolution because they knew it would pass,” Rep. Greg Casar (D-TX) wrote on X.

“Republicans can run from Trump’s disastrous war, but they can’t hide. Thousands are dead and gas and grocery prices are up, and progressives will not stop demanding votes on War Powers Resolution until the war is actually ended,” Casar added.

The last vote in the House on an Iran War Powers resolution was narrowly defeated in a 212-212 tie, as momentum to pass the bill continues to grow in both chambers of Congress. On Tuesday, the Senate advanced an Iran War Powers resolution in a 50-47 procedural vote, though the legislation still needs a final vote before the Senate version would be sent to the House.

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Report: Iran Reconstituting Its Military Much Faster Than the US Expected

Dave DeCamp | May 21th

According to CNN, US intelligence assessments say Iran has restarted drone production

Iran is reconstituting its military capabilities that were degraded by the US-Israeli bombing campaign much faster than expected and is already producing new drones, CNN reported on Thursday, citing sources familiar with US intelligence.

One US official told the outlet that some US intelligence estimates indicate Iran could fully rebuild its drone capabilities within six months. “The Iranians have exceeded all timelines the IC had for reconstitution,” the official said.

The other work Iran has done includes replacing missile sites, launchers, and production capacity for other weapons systems. Other US media reports have said that the US believes Iran has access to 70% of its missile launchers and maintains about 70% of its pre-war missile stockpile.

A US official told The Washington Post earlier this month that evidence indicates Iran has also been able to repair some damaged missiles and assemble some new missiles that were nearly complete when the US and Israel launched the war.

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US Aircraft Carrier Strike Group Arrives in the Caribbean Amid Threats of War Against Cuba

Dave DeCamp | May 20th

US Southern Command said on Wednesday that the US aircraft carrier USS Nimitz and its accompanying warships have arrived in the Caribbean amid US threats of a potential attack on Cuba.

“Welcome to the Caribbean, Nimitz Carrier Strike Group!” SOUTHCOM said on X, adding that the Nimitz is joined by the destroyer USS Gridley and the oiler USNS Patuxent.

The command said that the warships are the “epitome of readiness and presence, unmatched reach and lethality, and strategic advantage.”

The US appears to be following the Venezuela playbook with its buildup against Cuba as the US Department of Justice on Wednesday indicted former President Raul Castro, setting up a pretext for an attack similar to the one launched against Caracas on January 3 to abduct Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.

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Israel’s Ben Gvir Sparks Outrage With Gaza Flotilla Activist Abuse Video

Dave DeCamp | May 20th

Several nations said they were summoning Israeli ambassadors in response

Israeli Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir on Wednesday sparked global outrage by posting a video showing the mockery and abuse of activists who were abducted by Israeli forces while attempting to bring aid to the besieged Gaza Strip via boat as part of the Global Sumud Flotilla.

The video, posted on X, shows Ben Gvir taunting the activists as they’re detained with their hands tied behind their backs and on their knees facing the floor. At one point in the video, the Israeli national anthem can be heard playing while activists are detained face down on what appears to be an Israeli vessel.

Several nations responded by summoning Israeli ambassadors to their capitals, including Italy, France, the Netherlands, and Canada, Al Jazeera reported.

“The images of the Israeli minister Ben Gvir are unacceptable. It is inadmissible that these demonstrators, including many Italian citizens, are subjected to this treatment that violates human dignity,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said in a post on X.

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Israeli Strikes Kill Seven in Lebanon, Overall War Toll Passes 3,000 Killed

Jason Ditz | May 18th

Latest attacks include assassination of PIJ leader in refugee camp

Israeli airstrikes have continued again today, killing at least seven people across Lebanon, including the leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), who was assassinated, along with his teenage daughter. They were killed in an attack on a refugee camp near Baalbek.

The attack have brought the Lebanese Health Ministry’s total war death toll over 3,000 for the first time this week, with 3,020 people having been killed in Israeli attacks, and 9,273 others wounded since the invasion began on March.

The slain from those attacks include at least 292 women and 211 children. Well over 100 paramedics are among the slain as well in a war that has displaced roughly a quarter of the entire Lebanese population.

Israel carried out in excess of 30 strikes against southern Lebanon on Monday as well, claiming all the attacks targeted sites that belong to Hezbollah, though offering no evidence to support those allegations. Israel similarly claimed that multiple people slain were Hezbollah operatives plotting attacks, though no evidence was offered to that effect either.

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All The Time In The World… NOT!

David Stockman | May 18th

If the Donald does not wish to bring down upon himself the ignominy of being the first US president to be impeached, convicted and removed from the White House by the US Marshals, he damn well better start reading the Iranian settlement proposals.

Even if he doesn’t like the first sentence, as he boasted.

I looked at it, and I don’t like the first sentence. I just throw it away.

That’s because he doesn’t have — all the time in the world — to find an off-ramp from his Iranian War disaster, as he claims. In fact, the dual blockade he has triggered in the Persian Gulf is fast draining the world’s working stockpiles of a broad array of commodities. About 30 million BOE/day (barrels of oil equivalent) is ordinarily generated inside the Persian Gulf and exported to the global economy, including petroleum in all its product variants, LNG, LPGs, sulfur, helium, aluminum and more.

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