1. Iran harasses US Navy

2. Seven Iranian fast-attack boats were involved in an unsafe encounter with the USS Firebolt over the weekend, with one Iranian craft coming to a stop in front of the American ship. The maneuver, which on Sunday brought the Iranian boat within 100 yards of the Firebolt, a coastal patrol boat that carries a crew of about 30, was assessed by the US to be unsafe and unprofessional and could have led to a collision. There have been 31 unsafe America encounters with Iranian vessels in the Persian Gulf so far this year. It is believed that the "unsafe, unprofessional" behavior is an attempt by Iran to "exert their influence and authority in the region."

3. In Other News
The United States sees the volatile new president of the Philippines, Rodrigo Duterte, troubling. While some difficulty is not yet likely to damage the enduring relationship between the United States and the Philippines, and the countries' strengthening military cooperation in the shadow of China's rise, there is reason for Washington to be concerned. Normally one of our allies, Duterte's anti-Americanism and haphazard diplomacy is worrying Washington's allies in the region. In an area of the world that we need to worry about (particularly China), there has been a lot of concern primarily because it is difficult to predict what the Philippine President is going to do. Not only has Duterte offered to hold individual talks with China without the United States but since he took office, more than 1,900 people have died, including at least 700 in police operations due to his war on drugs. Most of these killings have been without a trial.
Joe Hosteen Kellwood, one of the Navajo code talkers during World War II, has died at age 95. Military authorities chose Navajo as a code language because its syntax and tonal qualities were almost impossible for a non-Navajo to learn, and it had no written form. The ranks of the Navajo code talkers swelled to more than 300 by the end of the war in The Navajo code baffled the Japanese, who had successfully deciphered codes used by the US Army. After the war, the Japanese chief of intelligence, Lt. Gen. Seizo Arisue, admitted they were never able to crack the Navajo code used by the Marines and Navy. The code talkers were forbidden from telling anyone about it until their work was declassified in 1968.
Chevy Chase has checked into rehab. The "National Lampoon" star has entered Hazelden Addiction Treatment Center in Minnesota to deal with an alcohol-related issue.