“Tidbits From TNT” Thursday 3-19-2026

TNT:

Tishwash: US Central Command: We will not hesitate to defend our forces and personnel in Iraq.

 The US Central Command on Thursday (March 19, 2026) accused Iraqi armed factions of attacking US forces and citizens in Iraq.

In press statements, the US leadership stressed that "the United States will not hesitate to defend its forces and American personnel in Iraq," indicating that defensive and deterrence operations are continuing to counter current threats.

In a related context, security sources told Reuters that a US diplomatic facility located near Baghdad International Airport was targeted by Katyusha rockets.

She noted that the attack triggered alarms inside the facility and surrounding areas, without providing immediate details on the extent of human or material losses.  link

The war is hitting the economy hard: high prices and closed shops in Tehran's Grand Bazaar. 

The war, which has been raging for nearly three weeks, has affected the usually bustling alleys and lanes of Tehran’s Grand Bazaar, with many shops closed and prices soaring for Iranians already struggling under years of sanctions that have strangled the economy.

Tehran’s Grand Bazaar shopping area is usually packed in the days leading up to the Persian New Year and Eid al-Fitr with merchants seeking to sell goods and close deals, and families shopping for gifts, but despite the presence of shoppers, the number on Wednesday was lower than usual.

"How can we afford to buy them?" said Nasreen, 40, as she searched the few shops that were open for new jeans for her two children.

Thanks to her salary of about $130 a month from her job at a dental clinic, Nasrin was able to buy some new clothes for the family as well as food and other necessities despite the economic problems that Iran is experiencing, including high inflation rates.

With the intense Israeli and American bombing campaign that killed the country’s supreme leader and many other prominent figures, the government has not released any new economic statistics since the start of the offensive on February 28.

But while many businesses and government offices remain open, both traders and shoppers in the market area say the war is having a strong economic impact, and they spoke of prices rising to well above the 36 percent inflation rate that persisted through most of 2025.

The “Grand Bazaar of Tehran” stretches across the center of the capital, a city within a city, filled with wholesalers and retailers, with wide streets covered by towering arches of brick or galvanized steel, whose darkness is pierced by the bright rays of the sun.

The bazaar is divided into different sections for clothing, food, spices, carpets, electronics, metal goods, and a wide range of other categories. It has long been an economic pillar of Tehran and its merchants, who form an important political voting bloc.

The war not only damaged businesses, but some buildings also suffered material damage as a result of air raids.

A shop owner was shouting "Danger, danger" as people walked by, pointing to debris falling from part of the roof.

Boria Rahbar-Yektashinais, who has owned a clothing store for nearly 14 years, said his business had just begun to recover from a long economic downturn before the war began.

But he added, "Everything collapsed," explaining that he had to close his shop again for two weeks, fearing that the market would be a target for raids, and only recently reopened his shop.

"The situation is clear now," he said, pointing to a number of closed shops in the neighborhood and surrounding alleys that were almost devoid of customers.  link

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Tishwash:  Agreement to postpone government formation: "cautious waiting" and a temporary government until the war ends

 Well-informed political sources revealed on Tuesday (March 17, 2026) that there is what they described as a "near agreement" among major political forces to postpone the completion of procedures for forming the new Iraqi government until the course and repercussions of the ongoing military conflict between Iran, the United States, and Israel become clear, amid growing fears of the repercussions of regional escalation on the Iraqi interior.

Sources told Baghdad Today that “unannounced consultations took place during the past few days between the leaders of prominent political blocs, which concluded that it is necessary to adopt a policy of cautious waiting, in order to avoid forming a government that may face complex security and economic challenges in the event of an expansion of the scope of military confrontation in the region.”

She explained that “a number of political parties believe that the current stage requires a transitional government with limited powers or a continuation of temporary caretaker government until the regional scene stabilizes, especially with the possibility of Iraq being directly affected by military developments due to its geographical location and the entanglement of its political and economic interests with the parties to the conflict.”

The sources added that "internal disputes have not been fully resolved yet, but the regional factor has become an additional pressure that has prompted some forces to reassess their political priorities and focus on maintaining security stability and avoiding political division during the period of tension."

While the region is ablaze with cross-border conflicts and escalating regional tensions, the Iraqi scene seems to be moving at a different pace, governed less by the results of the war than by deep internal disputes that extend from the Coordination Framework to the Kurdish forces, hindering the identification of both the Prime Minister and the President of the Republic.

With no real signs of resolution, fears are growing that the political waiting will become a permanent state, making the formation of the next government a task postponed indefinitely. Political sources confirm that there is no specific timeframe for forming the next government, indicating that the disputes between the Coordination Framework and the Kurdish forces remain unresolved, while emphasizing that the delay in forming the government is related to internal problems and not to the results of the ongoing war in the region.  link

Mot: Take a Break -- Close Ur Eyes and Listen to -- Unchained Melody !!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejm3Q5ZKr28&list=RDejm3Q5ZKr28&start_radio=1