WASHINGTON — Military planning for a possible Pentagon-led operation in Cuba is quietly ramping up, in case President Donald Trump gives an order to intervene there, USA TODAY has learned.

Two sources familiar with the order spoke to USA TODAY on condition of anonymity because they're not authorized to speak to media.

The directives appear to be an escalation of recent tensions between the U.S. and Cuba that began in January when the Trump administration curbed oil shipments to Cuba as part of a broader campaign to force sweeping political changes on the communist-run island.

U.S. Vice President JD Vance said on April 14 that he is proud of Washington cutting off funding to Ukraine amid Russian aggression, listing it among the Trump administration's top achievements.

Speaking at a Turning Point USA event in Athens, Georgia, Vance recalled being confronted by a Ukrainian-American over his calls to halt funding for Ukraine.

"And this person got really agitated at me because I was saying we should stop funding the Ukraine war," Vance said.

The soldiers, operating under the military's 98th Division, identified terrorists who opened fire at IDF soldiers from hospital windows. The military killed an unspecified number of the terrorists operating within the hospital, as well as approximately 20 additional terrorists operating in the vicinity, the military stated.

The soldiers found a Hezbollah weapons cache located within the hospital after raiding the building following a firefight.

"Hezbollah systemically and continuously used the hospital complex and its immediate surroundings for the terror organization's military needs, in severe violation of international law," the military said.

President Trump on Wednesday said he is considering the formation of a “joint venture” with Iran to set up tolls in the Strait of Hormuz after the Trump administration and Tehran agreed to a two-week ceasefire deal.

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The president also suggested Monday that the U.S. could impose its own tolls on vessels trying to transit through the channel. Leaders in Tehran signaled last week it would install a “toll booth” system to exert a price on ships seeking safe passage through the strait.

U.S. President Donald Trump appears to have set his eyes on Greenland again while venting frustration at NATO, as the diplomatic fallout from Iran war exposes rifts in Washington’s ties with the security alliance.

In a Truth Social post Wednesday evening stateside, Trump said that “NATO WASN’T THERE WHEN WE NEEDED THEM, AND THEY WON’T BE THERE IF WE NEED THEM AGAIN. REMEMBER GREENLAND, THAT BIG, POORLY RUN, PIECE OF ICE!!!”

[...]

Trump has taken aim at NATO and Greenland in recent days. “It all began with, if you want to know the truth, Greenland,” Trump told reporters at a White House press conference Monday. “We want Greenland. They don’t want to give it to us. And I said, ‘bye, bye.’”

"In the meantime our great Military is Loading Up and Resting, looking forward, actually, to its next Conquest," Trump added. He ended the post, which was published near midnight, with a declaration: "AMERICA IS BACK!" [Are we the baddies?]

Hungary's foreign minister offered to send his Russian counterpart a document about Ukraine's European Union accession, leaked recordings ​purported to show on Wednesday, in the latest indication of Budapest's warm relations with Moscow.

The audio clips ‌released by a consortium of investigative news outlets including VSquare.org were the latest in a series of leaked conversations that purport to show how Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government has worked to serve Russian interests and undermine EU efforts to aid Ukraine.

Context: Why Did Trump Say ‘Praise To Allah’ In Vulgar Easter Message Threatening Iran?

On Tuesday, Bloomberg News said it had obtained a Hungarian government transcript of a call that took place between Orbán and Putin on 17 October, in which Orbán reportedly compared the relationship to that of a “mouse” standing ready to help the Russian “lion” as needed.

“Yesterday our friendship rose to such a high level that I can help in any way,” Orbán reportedly told Putin in the call. “In any matter where I can be of assistance, I am at your service.”

In an attempt to emphasise his point, Orbán was said to have made reference to one of Aesop’s fables in which a mouse who was earlier shown mercy by a lion goes on to free the same lion when it is netted by hunters. The remark drew a laugh from Putin, the transcript suggested.

Last month, Trump said Orbán had his "complete and total support" in a video message to the Hungarian Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) in Budapest.

On Sunday Orbán faces Péter Magyar, a former insider in the prime minister's Fidesz party, who broke with him two years ago to found the centre-right Tisza party.

Tisza leads Fidesz by between 10% and 20% in most polls. Only the strongly pro-government Nézőpont agency puts Fidesz narrowly ahead.

Lawyers and activists have raised questions over the nature of the deals with countries in Africa and elsewhere. Several of the African nations that have signed such deals have notoriously repressive governments and poor human rights records — including Eswatini, South Sudan and Equatorial Guinea.

A key bone of contention in many such agreements is that they involve many migrants with protection orders from a U.S. immigration judge not to be returned to their home countries over major safety concerns.

Trump on Sunday told Iran to “open the F***in’ Strait” or face “living in hell” in an extraordinary outburst on Truth Social, but continued to insist that negotiations with Tehran were ongoing.

Trump’s 10-day deadline to Iran was set to expire on Monday, before he appeared to present a new deadline of 8pm ET on Tuesday (1am Wednesday BST) in another post on social media.

A source close to ongoing diplomatic efforts told Reuters that both Iran and the US have now received a ‘two-tier proposal’ to end the war, which includes a ceasefire and a more permanent plan to end hostilities.

The framework to end hostilities was apparently put together by Pakistan and exchanged with Iran and the US overnight.

"All elements need to be agreed today," the source said, adding the initial understanding would be structured as a memorandum of understanding finalised through Pakistan, the sole communication channel in the talks.