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Should We Intervene in Iran?
#182908
01/12/2026 06:55 PM
01/12/2026 06:55 PM
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By all accounts, Trump is seriously weighing the options. Nioh Berg and others on the ground say yes. I'm skeptical of any involvement in the affairs of other nations, we should not be the world's policeman. But the theocracy in Iran is so vile, so evil, that if we can get rid of it, it would be worth the cost. From the Starlink messages I have gotten, the people inside Iran have reached a point of acceptance.
Meaning, they know what the stakes are, and they have lost their fear of death. This will not simply die down like the regime expects. There's no going back anymore.
Iranians also fight with a level of expectation that outside help will arrive, and they understand the need to keep up the pressure no matter how impossible the odds. But the longer this takes, the bloodier it gets. If no intervention happens, or if the intervention is too weak, a regime inflicted bloodbath will follow.
If Donald J Trump wants to be a President of Peace, aiding in decapitating this rotten barbarian dictatorship fast will prevent far more bloodshed than having unarmed Iranians fight their way out of a slaughterhouse for who knows how long.
I repeat: The bloodshed which happens by allowing Khamenei to limp on will FAR outweigh the alternative.
This is the time. No more negotiating. No more deals. No more talks. No more Araghchi and Witkoff meetings.
The time is now. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182909
01/12/2026 07:18 PM
01/12/2026 07:18 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/12/2026 07:33 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182910
01/12/2026 07:37 PM
01/12/2026 07:37 PM
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More from Nioh Berg: Really disturbing Starlink message:
"I have news from someone in Dezful - the city is under siege by Hashd ash-Shaabi (Iraqi terrorist militia).
They are beastly mercenaries with covered faces who can’t understand Persian and only speak Arabic.
The whole city is on curfew and there's an atmosphere of terror and dread everywhere.
Snipers are positioned on taller buildings in the last few days, head shotting people at random.
They have no mercy and don’t discriminate between children, teenagers or the elderly.
Anyone leaving the house risks be shot by snipers or killed by mercenaries on the ground.
It’s very likely that the situation is similar in other cities in Khuzestan Province.
They are getting massacred in total silence (no news coverage) and isolation.
Please speak up for Dezful and other smaller cities." Onward and upward, airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/12/2026 09:14 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182911
01/13/2026 11:23 AM
01/13/2026 11:23 AM
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Perhaps. But not one single American's foot on the ground.
Emergency Medicine - saving the world from themselves, one at a time. "Thou shalt not be a victim, thou shalt not be a perpetrator, but, above all, thou shalt not be a bystander." I make the ADL soil themselves. And that makes me very happy 
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182915
01/13/2026 07:01 PM
01/13/2026 07:01 PM
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I was listening to a retired U.S. Army officer's interview on the radio, and I wish I could have recorded it and shared it here.
In response to the question of what day and time we can expect this attack to occur, he said that this operation could be the most complex military operation in the history of the United States, in no way comparable to the previous attack on nuclear facilities or operations on Venezuelan soil, and that numerous factors must be carefully calculated and examined.
My takeaway was this:
1. The U.S. is certainly aware of Khamenei's exact location, but very likely, contrary to expectations, he has hidden in a place where a large population of the Iranian people serves as his human shield.
2. This operation must proceed in such a way that no harm comes to the lives or property of ordinary people.
3. It is not a ground operation but an air one, and this makes the situation far more complex.
All of us Iranians, this time alongside many people around the world, including Americans themselves! are waiting for the moment when the attack on the regime is announced, but friends, believe me, lashing out at the Trump team's accounts really doesn't move anything forward.
Americans on Twitter and elsewhere are saying to pray for the American soldiers in the upcoming operation, so that they return successfully and safely. It's better if we join them, thank them for standing with the freedom-loving people of Iran, and make them even more aware of the extent of Khamenei's crimes and the danger that the regime's continued existence poses—and has posed—to the global community. Onward and upward, airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/13/2026 07:04 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182920
01/14/2026 04:50 PM
01/14/2026 04:50 PM
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Well, if true, this is a promising development. Maybe the mullahs have finally realized their time is almost up.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/14/2026 04:50 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182921
01/14/2026 04:57 PM
01/14/2026 04:57 PM
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Last I heard they claimed they were going to assassinate Trump. Supposidly, the bombers are ready to strike in a matter of hours. Who knows what's really happening.
"The time for war has not yet come, but it will come and that soon, and when it does come, my advice is to draw the sword and throw away the scabbard." Gen. T.J. Jackson, March 1861
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182922
01/14/2026 05:13 PM
01/14/2026 05:13 PM
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Yes, there's so much conflicting info coming out of Iran. It's hard to figure out what's really happening. Elon Musk and Starlink helps, but even that has limits.
Case in point:
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/14/2026 05:23 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182925
01/14/2026 07:30 PM
01/14/2026 07:30 PM
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Ordinarily I don't post something here without confirmation, but I'm seeing a TON of reports like this. Something seems to be going on.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/14/2026 08:12 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182926
01/15/2026 11:30 AM
01/15/2026 11:30 AM
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The USS Theodore Roosevelt (CGN-71) is named for Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th President of the US.
The USS Roosevelt (DDG-80), an Raleigh Burke class destroyer, is named for President and Mrs. Franklin Roosevelt, the 32nd President of the US. I guess naming a ship for a successful wartime President is OK, but his wife?
Emergency Medicine - saving the world from themselves, one at a time. "Thou shalt not be a victim, thou shalt not be a perpetrator, but, above all, thou shalt not be a bystander." I make the ADL soil themselves. And that makes me very happy
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182929
01/15/2026 03:41 PM
01/15/2026 03:41 PM
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Why hasn't Trump gone into Iran yet? I'm thinking he realizes he doesn't have to - Iran seems to be imploding all by itself (with a little help from sanctions, to be fair).But a lot of people disagree with my assessment of the situation:
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/15/2026 04:14 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182937
01/17/2026 05:21 PM
01/17/2026 05:21 PM
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How much of this is verifiable? With the internet shut down and only spotty Starlink, pretty much none of it. I have more reports from Tehran as well as Southern Iran.
• People are trapped in their homes almost all day.
• They're allowed a small window to go outside to buy essential household items. Groups of foreign terrorists escort them to shops.
• These terrorists observe their every movement and listen to their every word. If anyone steps out of line or says something "wrong", they get shot.
• Each shop also has a heavy regime presence. They are everywhere.
• The regime is blasting loud Arabic, Shia islamic chants throughout neighbourhoods.
• Patrols make sure people don't even look out of their own windows at nighttime.
• If you are giving birth, you can't go to any hospital. You must arrange for someone to visit your home instead to give birth in your home.
• The closest comparison is now Handmaid's Tale, but real life and not fictional.
• It's a state of actual foreign occupation. There are more Afghan and Arab mercenaries than there are local IRGC forces. The mullahs imported thousands of non-Iranian islamic terrorists because they would have lost control otherwise.
• There is an actual genocide happening, not in the fake Gaza sense but literal mass murder in the darkness, on a scale and speed barely ever seen since WW2.
• The death toll reports I'm getting are over 50,000 so far. In a country of 90 million, everyone knows at least one or more loved ones who've been murdered. This number is rising rapidly, and will probably skyrocket again when the internet returns
• Iran is now a concentration camp containing 90 million hostages. Onward and upward, airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/17/2026 05:25 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182938
01/18/2026 01:38 AM
01/18/2026 01:38 AM
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We should've taken out the trash 45 years ago.
"The time for war has not yet come, but it will come and that soon, and when it does come, my advice is to draw the sword and throw away the scabbard." Gen. T.J. Jackson, March 1861
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#182940
01/18/2026 05:20 PM
01/18/2026 05:20 PM
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There. I said it.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/18/2026 05:52 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183016
01/31/2026 05:11 PM
01/31/2026 05:11 PM
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Onward aned upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 01/31/2026 05:36 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183019
01/31/2026 06:45 PM
01/31/2026 06:45 PM
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I don't believe Mossad was involved in the Bandar Abbas bombing.
Mossad bombings are precise and target single apartments/rooms. This one is more messy and did widespread damage. There are also no gas pipes which could explain what happened as any kind of accident.
This is likely an IRGC building used to host regime thugs. All furniture and even the curtains are identical. There's barbed wire and security outside. This was no residential building. Only the enemy lives here.
Further, we have "Long Live the Shah" written outside around the time of the bombing.
I strongly believe an Iranian monarchist militia is taking revenge for the massacres. Not only that - they have gotten access to explosives and morr advances weaponry.
Combine this with mass doxxing of basijis and IRGC terrorists, and you're looking at a real insurgency.
Javid Shah. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183022
01/31/2026 09:01 PM
01/31/2026 09:01 PM
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Here is the translation: This mercenary named Ali_Rostami_Elmoti is one of Khamenei's hitmen who actively participated in the Dey Massacre in Qazvin.
His cover job is taxi driver, working the Qazvin to Najafabad village route, and he himself resides in that village.
One of the kids took a photo of his taxi's license plate for identification and to say hello Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183053
02/04/2026 08:19 PM
02/04/2026 08:19 PM
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Reza Pahlavi
@PahlaviReza
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3h
Translated from Persian
To my brave compatriots in Iran,
Our magnificent national revolution, the Lion and Sun Revolution, is an unparalleled epic of unity, empathy, and national solidarity. Despite the Islamic Republic and its allies’ efforts to sow division and distraction, you have remained vigilant and patriotic, raising one unified voice across every corner of Iran, declaring that we are one great and united nation under one flag. You have shown that regardless of which city or province of Iran we come from, what dialect or language we speak, what religion or belief we hold or do not hold—we are all Iranians, and we are determined to reclaim our beloved homeland.
You have courageously stood in the streets across all of Iran—I emphasize: all of Iran—under a hail of bullets, declaring what you do not want and shouting what you do want.
Your bravery has shaken the foundations of this occupying regime. Your voice has awakened the world. Your sacrifice and selflessness will not be in vain. Iran will be free.
And to all those who wish to join us on this path, I say: Hear the voice of the great and united nation of Iran. The embrace of the Lion and Sun Revolution is open to those who accept these four principles:
- Preservation of Iran’s territorial integrity
- Individual freedoms and equality of all citizens before the law
- Secular democracy based on the separation of religion and state
- The right of the people to freely choose the form of government
Once again, I honor with deep respect, sorrow, and profound anger the eternal memory of our brave fallen—women and men who gave their lives for the homeland. Their families and loved ones should rest assured that the trial and punishment of those who ordered and carried out these massacres, and the delivery of justice, is certain and inevitable.
Today, as we stand more united than ever before and closer to freedom and democracy, I promise you with all my being that I will protect your trust and unity. Together, we will take Iran back and rebuild it once more.
Long live Iran,
Reza Pahlavi Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183061
02/06/2026 05:48 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 02/06/2026 08:59 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183107
02/19/2026 01:45 PM
02/19/2026 01:45 PM
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[url=https://reason.com/2026/02/19/war-with-iran-2/]War is looking closer and closer.[/urll] The storm clouds of war are growing increasingly thick over the Middle East, as the U.S. military masses a huge amount of planes and ships for what looks like an increasingly likely attack on Iran. Both The New York Times and CNN reported yesterday that the U.S. would be ready to hit Iran by the weekend, but President Donald Trump hasn't made a final decision on whether to go through with a strike or not. Dozens of refueling tankers have been deployed to the region, as have 50 fighter jets and two aircraft carrier strike groups, reports the Times. During the first Trump administration, the U.S. periodically deployed additional forces to the region as a show of force against Iran without ever attacking the country. Military analysts report that this time appears different. Defense news site The War Zone notes that most of the U.S.' few battle-ready E-3 Airborne Warning and Control System (AWACS) planes, which are used to control airspace in combat situations, are either staging in Europe or already in the Middle East. Not good, Bob. A situation to monitor or nothing happens? For the time being, the White House is still talking like it wants to keep talking. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner met with Iranians in Switzerland, Reason's Matthew Petti noted yesterday. Iranian officials were quick to say those talks went well. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also said that "the president has always been very clear, though, with respect to Iran or any country around the world, diplomacy is always his first option, and Iran would be very wise to make a deal." Nevertheless, Petti notes that Secretary of State Marco Rubio dismissed the idea that diplomacy was feasible with the Iranian regime in his remarks at the Munich Security Conference on Monday. Similar to the recent intervention in Venezuela that led to the capture of dictator Nicolás Maduro, the White House isn't even bothering to consult Congress about a war with Iran or even to make a propagandistic case to the American people that a new Middle Eastern conflict is a good idea. Doing that would be a little too small-r Republican for this administration. More worrisome still is the fact that Trump administration officials are increasingly talking like pre-Iraq War Bush administration officials. Petti again: Two officials told Reuters that they are planning for weeks of large-scale warfare. Trump told reporters last week that regime change in Iran "would be the best thing that could happen." Kushner believes that the Middle East "is a liquid and the ability to reshape is unlimited," as he wrote in September 2024.
That rhetoric is exactly how the Bush administration and its supporters sounded on the eve of the Iraq War. Not to worry, though. The Trump administration knows that it's better than the last people who got struck down for their hubris.
"I empathize with Americans who are exhausted after 25 years of foreign entanglements in the Middle East," Vance told NBC News in his June 2025 interview. "I understand the concern, but the difference is that back then we had dumb presidents and now we have a president who actually knows how to accomplish America's national security objectives." Who knows. Maybe this time, everything will work out just fine. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183127
02/21/2026 01:21 AM
02/21/2026 01:21 AM
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I'm watching all the noise. It always gets loud before it goes hot.
"The time for war has not yet come, but it will come and that soon, and when it does come, my advice is to draw the sword and throw away the scabbard." Gen. T.J. Jackson, March 1861
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183150
02/26/2026 01:02 PM
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Anonymous quote floating around the internet. I don't know where it originated. "There's thinking in and around the administration that the politics are a lot better if the Israelis go first and alone and the Iranians retaliate against us, and give us more reason to take action." Meanwhile, there's a War Powers Resolution in Congress, but Democrats won't vote on it. I'll leave you to wonder why. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183152
02/27/2026 04:27 PM
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At 10:24 this morning, Friday February 27, the United States Ambassador to Israel emailed his own staff and told them to leave the country today. Not next week. Not when convenient. Today. Mike Huckabee, the man Donald Trump personally appointed to represent America in Israel, sent an email to every embassy employee in Jerusalem telling them that anyone wishing to depart should book “any available flight” and leave Israeli soil before the day ends. The embassy has shifted to “authorized departure” status, meaning the US government will pay for nonessential personnel and their families to evacuate. The New York Times obtained the email. The timestamp is 10:24 AM local time. The language says “no need to panic.” The action says panic. When an ambassador tells his own people to leave the country he is assigned to, he is not managing risk. He is clearing the blast radius. Authorized departure is the second-to-last step on the State Department’s crisis escalation ladder. The only step above it is ordered departure, which is mandatory evacuation. The United States has not reached ordered departure. But at 10:24 this morning it reached the step directly below it, and the ambassador personally urged speed. Now hold this against what happened in the last 72 hours. Wednesday, Geneva. Six and a half hours of talks. Araghchi called it the most serious session yet. The Wall Street Journal reported the US and Iran remain far apart on every core issue. Iran refused permanent zero enrichment. America refused anything less. Thursday, 37 advanced combat aircraft landed at RAF Lakenheath in a single day. 12 F-35As. 14 F-15E Strike Eagles. Additional F-22s. The staging base that funneled the first wave of Raptors to Israel is now reloading with strike aircraft carrying 23,000 pounds of ordnance each. Friday morning, the ambassador tells his people to leave. Wednesday you negotiate. Thursday you reload. Friday you evacuate your own embassy. That is not a sequence of unrelated events. That is a countdown visible to anyone reading the timestamps. Huckabee’s email went out five hours ago. Tomorrow, Saturday February 28, Oman’s Foreign Minister meets Vice President Vance in Washington carrying Tehran’s response to Geneva. Technical talks are nominally scheduled for Vienna next week. But you do not tell your embassy staff to leave today if you believe next week’s talks will happen in a world that looks like this one. The email says “make plans sooner rather than later.” Ambassadors are trained to communicate in precise diplomatic language where every word is calibrated. “Sooner rather than later” from a political appointee who does not speak in euphemism means the window for safe commercial departure is closing and he knows approximately when it closes. India told its citizens to leave Iran. Germany told citizens in Israel to prepare for airspace closures. Beirut’s US embassy began evacuating. And now America’s own ambassador in Jerusalem is telling his own staff to get out of the country he represents. Everyone with classified briefing access is moving in the same direction. Toward the exit. Today. Not Monday. Not after Vienna. Today, Friday February 27. The people who know what is coming are not waiting to find out. They are already on planes. The only people still debating whether this is real are the ones without the clearance to read what Huckabee read before he typed that email at 10:24 am this morning. https://open.substack.com/pub/shanakaans Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183154
02/28/2026 12:40 AM
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Over the last couple of hours, at least 11 C-17A Globemaster llls and a C-5M Super Galaxy have departed bases in the Middle East returning to Europe, with, for the first time in several weeks, no military cargo flights currently bound for the Middle East from airbases in Europe. This follows a message seen earlier today over ACARS (Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System) from the U.S. Air Force’s Tanker Airlift Control Center (TACC) located at Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, directed at several C-17s heading to King Abdullah II Air Base in Jordan and other locations in the Middle East, which stated “PLEASE MINIMIZE GND TIME. I CANNOT PASS ANYMORE INFO AT THIS TIME.” Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183156
02/28/2026 01:10 PM
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Boy, this would sure be a damn shame, wouldn't it? Israeli Channel 12 is reporting, citing unnamed intelligence sources, growing indications that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in this morning’s strikes.
Not injured. Not relocated. Killed.
The assessment is not based on satellite imagery. It is based on human intelligence sources inside the Iranian regime. The same sources that told Israel when the leadership gathering would happen. The same sources that provided the timing for an 8:15 a.m. daylight strike that broke every pattern of every Israeli operation against Iran in history. Israel did not bomb a building and hope. Israel struck a specific room at a specific time because someone inside that room’s security perimeter told them exactly when to strike.
Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi responded with five words: “still alive as far as I know.” That is not a denial. That is a man who does not have contact with his own Supreme Leader and is hedging in real time on live television. A foreign minister with confirmed communication to his head of state says “he is alive.” A foreign minister who has lost contact says “as far as I know.”
Israel has also announced that a promised Khamenei speech to the nation, if it airs at all, will have been prerecorded. Think about what that means. Israeli intelligence is confident enough in the assessment to publicly predict that any proof of life will be fabricated. They are not waiting for confirmation. They are preemptively discrediting the denial.
No Iranian state media outlet has shown Khamenei. No IRGC commander has issued a statement confirming contact with the Supreme Leader. No proof-of-life video has surfaced. Iran launched retaliatory missiles at six countries within hours of the strikes. That requires no supreme leader. That requires standing orders and panicked generals. What requires a supreme leader is what comes next: the decision to escalate to total war, activate Hormuz, or negotiate. That decision has no visible author tonight.
Khamenei has ruled Iran for 35 years. He succeeded Khomeini. He built the nuclear program. He funded Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis, and the Iraqi militias. He outlasted eight American presidents. The entire architecture of the Islamic Republic, its theology, its military doctrine, its succession protocols, flows through one 86-year-old man who has not been seen or heard from since 8:15 this morning.
If he is alive, one video ends this speculation in seconds.
The silence is the story. Maybe he should have hopped on that flight to Moscow when he had a chance. Oh well. Onward and upward, airforce
Last edited by airforce; 02/28/2026 01:11 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183157
02/28/2026 01:14 PM
02/28/2026 01:14 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 02/28/2026 01:17 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183158
02/28/2026 01:23 PM
02/28/2026 01:23 PM
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Israel didn't bomb Iran. They bombed Iran's leaders. They did not bomb Iran. They waited for Iran’s entire leadership to sit down in the same room and then they bombed Iran.
Months of intelligence. Thousands of hours of surveillance and signal intercepts. One variable: the moment the Supreme Leader, the President, and senior military command gathered in a single location at the same time.
That moment was 8:15 this morning. Daylight. Every previous Israeli strike on Iran came at night. June 2025 launched in darkness. October 2024 after midnight. Iran’s entire air defense doctrine is built around the assumption that Israel attacks in the dark. Israel attacked in broad daylight because the target was not infrastructure. The target was a meeting.
Reuters confirms strikes targeted Khamenei and Pezeshkian. CNN confirms months of joint US-Israeli planning. Israeli officials confirmed the strike hit the location where Iran’s top officials were gathered. Whether Khamenei was moved before the strike or extracted after is the most consequential unknown on the planet right now. If before, someone inside Tehran’s inner circle told Jerusalem when and where the meeting would happen. If after, the strikes hit the room and he survived. Both scenarios are catastrophic for the regime.
Because Iran’s leadership now knows three things. Israel knew where they were meeting. Israel knew when they were meeting. Israel knew who would be in the room. And everything we watched over the past month, the F-22s at Ovda, the tankers at Ben Gurion, Al Udeid emptied to zero, 270 transport flights, all of it was the delivery architecture for one precision strike on one gathering.
Every future meeting of Iran’s senior leadership now carries one question: does Israel know about this one too.
This is not a military operation. This is the destruction of institutional trust inside a regime. Every general who sits with Khamenei tomorrow will wonder who told Jerusalem about today. Every IRGC commander who receives a meeting summons will calculate whether attendance is duty or a death sentence. Every secure facility in Tehran has been proven insecure.
In June 2025 Israel killed 30 generals in the opening minutes. That was brute force across dispersed targets. This was a scalpel. One meeting. One moment. Months of patience.
Iran fired missiles at six countries in retaliation. Most intercepted. One civilian dead from debris in Abu Dhabi. Saudi Arabia responded by pledging all its capabilities against Iran. The Gulf coalition that did not exist yesterday exists today because Tehran built it by attacking everyone simultaneously.
Israel traded one morning of precision strikes for the permanent destruction of Iran’s command cohesion.
That is not a battle. That is checkmate disguised as a first move. Onward and upward, airforce.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183160
02/28/2026 04:09 PM
02/28/2026 04:09 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 02/28/2026 04:19 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183161
02/28/2026 05:18 PM
02/28/2026 05:18 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 02/28/2026 06:12 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183163
02/28/2026 06:46 PM
02/28/2026 06:46 PM
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And sometimes, rarely, it does.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 02/28/2026 07:40 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183164
02/28/2026 07:57 PM
02/28/2026 07:57 PM
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Is he dead, or isn't he?
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 02/28/2026 08:33 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183170
03/01/2026 03:26 PM
03/01/2026 03:26 PM
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This was worth a chuckle.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/01/2026 04:43 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183175
03/02/2026 12:03 AM
03/02/2026 12:03 AM
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Onward and upward,
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Last edited by airforce; 03/02/2026 12:35 AM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183176
03/02/2026 12:37 AM
03/02/2026 12:37 AM
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From someone inside Tehran: Translation: After hours of outage, I’ve barely managed to connect to the internet, and it’ll probably cut out again; Tehran is under the most intense bombardment in history, and they’ve struck all the repression centers—even the police stations. The process of weakening the regime’s killer military forces has been extremely rapid, and in all Tehran neighborhoods, there’s practically no significant force left.
According to local reports, many Basij and IRGC forces have fled out of fear of being killed, and only the extreme religious kids and regime-loyal board members are wailing in mosques and Husseiniyahs for Khamenei’s death, as if they’re determined to resist until the very moment of collapse.
"Labeik ya Mahdi" cars are abundantly visible at the doors of Husseiniyahs and mosques in the neighborhoods, and each one is an obvious target for the people.
Once again, our emphasis from Tehran is to tell the people: only come to the streets after the order is issued by His Majesty Reza Shah II.
Do not leave the city and prepare even more for the day of revenge.
The day of Iran’s freedom is near.
Long live Iran
#JavidShah Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183181
03/03/2026 12:27 AM
03/03/2026 12:27 AM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/03/2026 12:58 AM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183183
03/03/2026 01:10 PM
03/03/2026 01:10 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/03/2026 01:20 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183192
03/04/2026 02:55 PM
03/04/2026 02:55 PM
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Speaking of fanatics...
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/04/2026 02:56 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183193
03/04/2026 04:57 PM
03/04/2026 04:57 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/05/2026 12:14 AM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183194
03/05/2026 12:17 AM
03/05/2026 12:17 AM
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KURDISH FRONT OPERATIONAL REPORT
Iran Western Theater | March 4, 2026
A new axis may be opening in the war against the Islamic Republic.
While most attention remains on the air war between the United States, Israel, and Iran, Kurdish fighters may now be moving on the ground inside western Iran.
Several reports today claim Kurdish groups have launched cross-border attacks from Iraq into Iranian Kurdistan, with some outlets describing the beginning of a broader offensive. If accurate, this would represent the first meaningful ground front inside Iran since the current conflict began.
➡️What Is Being Reported
Multiple outlets today describe a rapidly evolving situation along the Iran–Iraq border.
Key elements reported:
• Kurdish fighters may have crossed from Iraqi Kurdistan into Iran.
• Kurdish groups say they are preparing or already conducting operations inside Iranian territory.
• Some claims suggest the city of Marivan may already be contested or abandoned by regime forces.
At the same time, reporting from several sources indicates Kurdish opposition militias have consulted with the United States about potential operations against Iranian security forces and requested intelligence, weapons, and training support.
Separate reporting claims U.S. intelligence agencies are exploring plans to arm Kurdish opposition forces to trigger an uprising against the regime.
None of these claims are fully confirmed yet. But the pattern is becoming difficult to ignore.
➡️➡️Why the Kurdish Front Matters
The Kurdish regions of western Iran are one of the regime’s most persistent internal pressure points. Several million Kurds live in Iran, concentrated in provinces along the Iraqi border. These areas have historically seen repeated cycles of protest and insurgency.
During the recent protests triggered by Mahsa Amini’s death, Kurdish cities were among the first places where demonstrations erupted and spread nationwide.
For Tehran, Kurdish unrest has always represented a dual threat: Internal instability among populations hostile to the regime, and Cross-border infiltration by armed Kurdish groups based in Iraq
If Kurdish fighters begin operating inside Iran in significant numbers, Tehran faces a serious operational problem.
➡️The Kurdish Forces Involved
The fighters being discussed are primarily Iranian Kurdish opposition groups operating from Iraq’s Kurdistan Region.
These groups include factions such as:
• Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran (PDKI)
• Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK)
• PJAK and other Kurdish militant organizations
Many of these groups recently formed a political and military coalition designed to coordinate opposition to the Islamic Republic.
In recent statements, the coalition has urged Iranian soldiers stationed in Kurdish regions to defect from the regime and align with opposition forces.
That messaging suggests they are preparing for a broader confrontation if the regime weakens.
➡️Tehran’s Immediate Problem
If Kurdish fighters establish even limited footholds inside Iran’s western provinces, the regime faces several serious challenges.
First, it must divert IRGC and internal security units to contain the insurgency.
Second, Kurdish activity could encourage local unrest or protests, especially in areas already hostile to the regime.
Third, the geography strongly favors insurgents.
The Zagros Mountains along the Iran–Iraq border have historically been extremely difficult terrain for centralized control. That environment is ideal for guerrilla warfare.
➡️Between the Lines
There is a strategic logic emerging behind these developments. The air campaign weakens the regime’s military infrastructure. But internal insurgency pressures something else entirely.
If Kurdish regions begin slipping out of regime control while external strikes continue, Tehran’s problem stops being military losses and becomes regime stability. This is why the Kurdish angle matters. A regime under attack from the air can still survive. A regime facing simultaneous external pressure and internal rebellion becomes far more fragile.
➡️What To Watch Next
If this Kurdish front is real and not simply information warfare, several indicators should appear quickly:
• Sustained attacks on Iranian checkpoints and IRGC facilities
• Kurdish forces establishing positions inside Iranian territory
• Iranian missile or drone strikes against Kurdish bases in Iraq
• Calls for mass mobilization inside Iranian Kurdish cities
If these indicators appear together, it would signal that a genuine insurgent front has opened inside Iran.
➡️Bottom Line
Right now, the Kurdish situation remains fluid and partly unconfirmed. But the reporting emerging today suggests something potentially significant.
The air war may be the most visible part of the conflict.
But if Kurdish fighters are indeed moving across the border into Iran, then the Islamic Republic could suddenly find itself fighting two wars at once.
One in the skies. And one inside its own borders. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183207
03/06/2026 04:41 PM
03/06/2026 04:41 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/06/2026 04:45 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183218
03/07/2026 05:36 PM
03/07/2026 05:36 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/07/2026 05:37 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183238
03/09/2026 08:06 PM
03/09/2026 08:06 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/09/2026 08:15 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183241
03/10/2026 11:23 AM
03/10/2026 11:23 AM
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Iran's richest oil region demands end to Islamic regime.Khuzestan is Iran's most oil-rich and ethnically diverse province — and the Arabs there have finally had it up to here with the theocrats who run things in Tehran. Whoever they are today, that is. In a daring new statement, the Khuzestan Arab Tribes Assembly this week calling for "a free, democratic, and federal Iran," and that they "firmly believe that the Islamic Republic's system has violated the rights of the people of Iran." ... While Khuzestan borders Iraq and is roughly one-third Arab, the assembly called the province the "beating heart of Iran" and emphasized "the protection of Iran's territorial integrity and reject any separatist or divisive project that harms the homeland of Iran." "We see ourselves in the transitional phase from the current repressive regime toward a free, democratic, and federal Iran. We can play a constructive role alongside other compatriots in building a prosperous and united Iran." Khuzestan is Iran's most oil-rich and ethnically diverse province — and the Arabs there have finally had it up to here with the theocrats who run things in Tehran. Whoever they are today, that is. In a daring new statement, the Khuzestan Arab Tribes Assembly this week calling for "a free, democratic, and federal Iran," and that they "firmly believe that the Islamic Republic's system has violated the rights of the people of Iran." While Khuzestan borders Iraq and is roughly one-third Arab, the assembly called the province the "beating heart of Iran" and emphasized "the protection of Iran's territorial integrity and reject any separatist or divisive project that harms the homeland of Iran." "We see ourselves in the transitional phase from the current repressive regime toward a free, democratic, and federal Iran. We can play a constructive role alongside other compatriots in building a prosperous and united Iran." ... Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183243
03/10/2026 05:06 PM
03/10/2026 05:06 PM
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Great moments in Iranian propaganda, part 474,213.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/10/2026 07:14 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183250
03/11/2026 04:17 PM
03/11/2026 04:17 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/11/2026 09:09 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183252
03/11/2026 11:20 PM
03/11/2026 11:20 PM
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Quick war update from Tehran:
The IRGC held a meeting in a command center.
Israeli fighter jets RSVP’d.
Within seconds of identifying regime operatives inside the facility, the jets struck the building and eliminated everyone in it.
Problem solved.
Meanwhile dozens of Israeli aircraft conducted additional strike waves across Tehran and western Iran, hitting:
• IRGC Air Force command centers and situation rooms
• A command compound inside the IRGC’s Imam Hussein military university
• Ballistic missile storage and production facilities
• Sites used to target Israeli aircraft operating over Tehran
At the same time, Israel hit Internal Security and Basij bases along with a command center of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence, the same organization responsible for spying on Iranian citizens and helping violently crush protests.
In other words:
The regime’s missile infrastructure, command network, and repression apparatus all took hits in the same round.
The campaign continues.
Tehran is learning that running a terror empire becomes difficult when your command centers keep disappearing.
Roar. 🦁 Onward and upward, airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/11/2026 11:25 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183255
03/12/2026 11:04 AM
03/12/2026 11:04 AM
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Hmmm...
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/12/2026 03:51 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183268
03/14/2026 05:30 PM
03/14/2026 05:30 PM
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Want to make an easy $10 million? The State Department just wants a little information... The State Department is offering a reward of up to $10 million for information that leads to locating 10 key regime leaders, including Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei.
Khamenei’s deputy chief of staff, Ali Asghar Hejazi, Iranian national security official Ali Larijani and Interior Minister Eskandar Momeni are also on the list.
"Got information on these Iranian terrorist leaders? Send us a tip. It could make you eligible for a reward and relocation," read the post on social media about the bounty. On second thought, $10 million seems a little chintzy to me. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183277
03/15/2026 01:41 PM
03/15/2026 01:41 PM
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What if those Marines take Kharg Island?U.S. Marines taking control of Kargh Island, from which Iran exports 90% of the oil products that dominate its economy, might not end the war altogether—there will still be outliers; Iran is a big place—but it would go a long way towards doing so.
It would virtually put the already-wobbling mullahs out of business and have myriad ramifications, from quickly lowering oil prices and inflation with it for the world, not to mention making Donald Trump a hero as we head into the November elections, thus driving the Democrats crazy.
No wonder many of them want Iran to win, covertly or overtly. For others, the self-described “liberals,” it must be more than a little disconcerting for them not to engage in full-throated condemnation of a regime led by sadistic misogynists who murder wounded protestors in their hospital beds. Supporting freedom was always their self-image.
Be that as it may, at this moment it looks as if it is full steam ahead, figuratively and literally, for the invasion of Kargh. The U.. S. force, featuring the USS Tripoli, left Japan March 14 and should reach the island by late March, just before President Trump is scheduled to meet with President Xi in Beijing. A squadron of F-35B Lightning IIs that are capable of vertical takeoffs will doubtless be in the vicinity sooner.
Having already been softened up by what was apparently a formidable bombing attack on their Kargh military defenses, it will be difficult for the Iranians, specifically the Revolutionary Guard Corps, which now seems fully in charge, to repel the Americans. This will be even more true in two weeks as the U. S> and Israel appear to have total air superiority.
In the meantime, be prepared for all kinds of carping from the media and Democratic politicians, complaints that Trump is running an ad hoc war (is there any other kind?) or that he doesn’t have an endgame.
Oh, really? It would seem that taking over Iranian oil from the mullahs would be one helluva endgame because they would have no money to build nukes or much of anything else. Their own people might even rise up against them, although Mr. Trump seems to be a little skeptical about that, and with reason. Too many of the bravest of the brave, those willing to risk their lives to overthrow the sadistic theocracy, could have been shot, maimed, or have fled the country years ago. I met many of these people twenty years ago while running PJ Media in Los Angeles.
Still, there’s hope. Stay optimistic. Stay positive. Never quit. Never give up. We’re on God’s team.... Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183288
03/15/2026 07:09 PM
03/15/2026 07:09 PM
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I'm seeing more and more reports of defections from the regime's military, even from the IRGC. But it's impossible to verify, there are many propaganda posts on all sides. IRGC Defection Wave Grows
Reports of desertions within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Iranian police are mounting. A source close to the IRGC told senior Iran analyst Dror Balazada @DBalazada
that the trend is expanding beyond isolated cases.
According to the source, defections are now being recorded in larger numbers in Isfahan and Tabriz, and not only among lower ranks.
Why the surge in exits?
Field units report a breakdown in communication with command centers in Tehran.
Many personnel feel they are being used as human shields while senior commanders remain sheltered underground.
Severe economic hardship: a cash shortage in Iran is leaving security members struggling to pay bills or even buy food.
The source warns that the growing unrest inside the security apparatus could signal deeper cracks within the Iranian regime. 🔥
Via: @c14israel Onward and upward, airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/15/2026 07:25 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183291
03/16/2026 01:27 PM
03/16/2026 01:27 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/16/2026 09:12 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183294
03/16/2026 11:13 PM
03/16/2026 11:13 PM
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I hope the protesters have a lot more weapons by then.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/16/2026 11:26 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183298
03/17/2026 07:02 PM
03/17/2026 07:02 PM
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Did the Iranian embassy in Copenhagen just defect?
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/17/2026 07:21 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183301
03/18/2026 11:46 AM
03/18/2026 11:46 AM
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Some of those Mossad agents should get a raise. Perhaps the most famous quote from General Curtis LeMay: "If you kill enough of them, they stop fighting." Onward and upward, airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/18/2026 11:54 AM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183302
03/18/2026 04:24 PM
03/18/2026 04:24 PM
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Hands up, don't shoot! Translation: Pezeshkian disavows any responsibilities and says he is "without authority, completely cut off from the leadership structures, and there is no justification for targeting him."
Gulf State - Exclusive Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183304
03/19/2026 12:18 PM
03/19/2026 12:18 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/19/2026 12:32 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183310
03/20/2026 11:33 AM
03/20/2026 11:33 AM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/21/2026 12:03 AM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183322
03/22/2026 11:51 PM
03/22/2026 11:51 PM
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Onward and upward,
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Last edited by airforce; 03/23/2026 04:28 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183334
03/25/2026 01:08 PM
03/25/2026 01:08 PM
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It looks an awful lot like the regime is cracking.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/25/2026 03:37 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183335
03/26/2026 05:40 PM
03/26/2026 05:40 PM
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Iran is doing so well in this war they're letting 12 year old children join the IRGC.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/26/2026 05:46 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183336
03/26/2026 07:17 PM
03/26/2026 07:17 PM
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Then only way to defeat Iraq is to destroy their command structure and to bomb every missile and drone that they have and bomb all missile and drone production facilities they have until they surrender. Invading Iraq would be a big mistake. Putting US warships in the Gulf of Hormuz would be a big mistake as US warships could be destroyed with Chi-Com or Russian missiles.
www.TexasMilitia.Info Seek out and join a lawful Militia or form one in your area. If you wish to remain Free you will have to fight for it...because the traitors will give us no choice in the matter--William Cooper
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183339
03/26/2026 11:36 PM
03/26/2026 11:36 PM
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Translation: Hassan Karami's paternal home, the deputy operations commander of the Law Enforcement Command who was in charge of special units for nearly ten years, was targeted in Urmia just an hour ago.
If the assassination was successful, one of the biggest main officials responsible for suppressing the 2019 protests up until tonight has been killed. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183346
03/27/2026 05:32 PM
03/27/2026 05:32 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 03/27/2026 05:55 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183352
03/30/2026 02:06 PM
03/30/2026 02:06 PM
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Another iranian war crime. Alireza Jafari, an 11-year-old boy, has been identified as a child soldier killed while serving at an IRGC checkpoint in Tehran.
According to Hengaw, a Norway-based human rights organization, he is the first reported Iranian child soldier to be killed since the escalation of the war in the Middle East.
He was initially reported as a civilian casualty, but the “Teachers’ Basij” organization later confirmed that he died “while on duty.” According to his mother, he was at the checkpoint with his father due to a shortage of personnel.
Earlier, Al Arabiya reported that the Islamic regime in Iran had lowered the conscription age and resumed recruiting minors into the armed forces. Teenagers have reportedly been assigned to checkpoints and patrol duties in Tehran.
The use of child soldiers is not new for the Islamic regime.
Similar practices were used during the Iran-Iraq War, when children aged 9–12 were sent en masse to clear minefields, with the full approval of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini.
Schools were heavily used for propaganda, where dying for the Islamic revolution was glorified. Many children went to the front voluntarily under its influence.
Children were given so-called “golden keys” to wear around their necks. Propaganda claimed these keys would open the gates of heaven if they died as martyrs.
They were sent ahead, detonating mines to clear the way for trained units. Some were even tied together with ropes to prevent them from fleeing.
Estimates suggest that around 95,000–100,000 Iranian child soldiers were killed during the Iran-Iraq War. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183358
03/31/2026 11:37 AM
03/31/2026 11:37 AM
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Channel 14 says it obtained an exchange among Iranian leaders:
President Pezeshkian: “I want to be involved in the negotiations with the U.S. Without a quick deal, our entire economy will collapse in 3 weeks.”
IRGC chief Vahidi: “That’s exactly why you can’t be involved. You’ll give up everything for a deal.”
After the call ended, the report says the Iranian president told his companions he feels like a ‘hostage’, “I’m unable to resign, I cannot make my own decisions, all I can do is read from a script I’m given”
Channel 14 concludes its report by saying that the IRGC is effectively running the country now. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183368
04/03/2026 12:01 AM
04/03/2026 12:01 AM
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To those speaking of iran's infrastructure being destroyed as a consequence of this war:
Let’s talk about your staggering hypocrisy.
When they set the Rasht market ablaze with our people trapped inside, your heart didn't bleed. You felt absolutely nothing for the innocent lives burning to ash. But now that a bridge in Karaj gets blown to pieces, suddenly you want to weep over "Iranian infrastructure"?
Let me tell you exactly what kind of bridge this was.
It was never meant for us. Not a single civilian has ever set foot on it. It wasn't even open to the public. It was a phantom structure, built for one reason and one reason only: to connect two IRGC military bases and serve as a direct, covert artery to an underground missile city. It was carved right behind the Azimiyeh mountains, stretching west toward Radar Mountain. God only knows what dark, malignant operations these terrorists are hiding in the tunnels beneath that rock.
In short: it was a pure military asset for an occupying terror syndicate.
So yes, when I saw the sky light up with that explosion, I cheered. I watched their concrete shatter, and I smiled. Because it meant only one thing: another massive, crippling blow to the terror machine of the Islamic Republic that holds my country hostage.
You can mourn the rubble of their military bases all you want. When this occupation is finally eradicated, we will build our own bridges. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183374
04/04/2026 08:08 PM
04/04/2026 08:08 PM
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I'm seeing multiple reports of this, but it's not yet confirmed by CENTCOM.
Still not confirmed, but this fellow is pretty reliable too.
Still no official confirmation, possibly due to ongoing battles in the area or to protect Iranians who were helping him (there are many different reports). For what it's worth, Grok (Musk's AI) is also saying he's been rescued.
UPDATE: Fox News is now reporting the WSO has been rescued, after a massive firefight with IRGC forces. HAPPY EASTER!
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 04/04/2026 11:55 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183375
04/05/2026 01:01 PM
04/05/2026 01:01 PM
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Translation: What happened in the rescue operation for the American pilots whose plane crashed inside Iranian territory is a military scandal by all measures, a military humiliation for the arrogant mullah regime, and it actually reveals the accuracy of Prince Turki Al-Faisal's description years ago that Iran is a paper tiger, a stuttering media speech, and propagandistic bluster from politically and militarily deranged leaderships psychologically shaken by the shock. Twice in a row in less than a week, an enemy military landing operation takes place on your soil and among your people, right in the face of your forces that have only succeeded in oppressing their poor people. American forces comb through Iranian land, killing any Iranian soldier who approaches the injured pilot's landing zones, scattering the bodies of your officers and soldiers by the dozens over the mountaintops, then securing their pilots, then safely transporting them out of Iran, and the rescue forces returning without a single injury among them—this is called military humiliation. This is a farce, by God. Onward and upward, airforce
Last edited by airforce; 04/05/2026 01:04 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183391
04/07/2026 11:30 PM
04/07/2026 11:30 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 04/07/2026 11:34 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183411
04/13/2026 12:09 PM
04/13/2026 12:09 PM
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I apologize for the profanity here.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 04/13/2026 12:20 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183426
04/17/2026 02:43 PM
04/17/2026 02:43 PM
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UPDATE:
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 04/17/2026 04:49 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183428
04/17/2026 05:55 PM
04/17/2026 05:55 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 04/17/2026 08:55 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183430
04/19/2026 05:12 PM
04/19/2026 05:12 PM
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We now have video of the Navy firing on the Iranian vessel:
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 04/19/2026 11:14 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183431
04/19/2026 11:25 PM
04/19/2026 11:25 PM
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Ahman Vahidi and the IRGC appears to have control of the Iranian government, at least for now. And for the X-less: 𝐈𝐑𝐆𝐂 𝐂𝐎𝐌𝐌𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐑 𝐀𝐇𝐌𝐀𝐃 𝐕𝐀𝐇𝐈𝐃𝐈 𝐇𝐀𝐒 𝐒𝐄𝐈𝐙𝐄𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐋 𝐎𝐅 𝐈𝐑𝐀𝐍’𝐒 𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐘 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐏𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐈𝐂𝐀𝐋 𝐃𝐄𝐂𝐈𝐒𝐈𝐎𝐍-𝐌𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆
The Institute for the Study of War reports that IRGC Commander Major General Ahmad Vahidi and his inner circle have 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥 over not only Iran’s military response but its 𝐩𝐨𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐥 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧-𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 as well.
This confirms what the world watched in real time: Foreign Minister Araghchi announced the Strait was open, and 𝐕𝐚𝐡𝐢𝐝𝐢’𝐬 𝐈𝐑𝐆𝐂 𝐬𝐥𝐚𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐬𝐡𝐮𝐭, fired on oil tankers, and called Araghchi an “idiot” on state media.
The diplomats have been sidelined. The IRGC is running the show. And 𝐕𝐚𝐡𝐢𝐝𝐢—𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐍 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟏𝟗𝟗𝟒 𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐀 𝐛𝐨𝐦𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐀𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐚—is now the one making calls on war and peace.
𝐈𝐫𝐚𝐧’𝐬 “𝐜𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐚𝐧” 𝐠𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐚 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐤. 𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐬𝐤 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐟𝐟—𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐰𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐮𝐧𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐲. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183523
05/10/2026 01:15 PM
05/10/2026 01:15 PM
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And for the X-less (and really, why aren't you guys on X yet?): The United States executed a brilliant military gambit that forced the Islamic Republic to expose parts of its hidden naval and missile network in the Persian Gulf.
As Sun Tzu wrote: “Offer the enemy a bait to lure him; feign disorder and strike him.”
That is exactly what appears to have happened in the Strait of Hormuz.
The three U.S. Arleigh Burke-class destroyers involved in the May 7 confrontation, USS Truxtun, USS Rafael Peralta, and USS Mason, were not simply transiting the Strait of Hormuz.
They were positioned as highly visible targets designed to provoke an Iranian response.
Iran’s IRGC took the bait.
Its so-called “mosquito fleet” doctrine relies on swarms of fast attack boats, drones, coastal missile launches, and asymmetric harassment tactics launched from concealed positions along the Persian Gulf coastline and nearby islands.
The destroyers looked vulnerable. They were not.
The moment the attack began, U.S. ISR assets, including radar aircraft, drones, satellites, and naval systems, traced launch signatures and identified attack vectors in real time.
That allowed the U.S. military to rapidly expose and target parts of Iran’s hidden launch infrastructure connected to the assault.
Reported targets included:
⚪️ IRGC-linked positions on Qeshm Island, Bandar Abbas, Bandar Khamir, and Sirik
⚪️ Coastal missile launch infrastructure
⚪️ Drone and fast attack boat staging sites
⚪️ Mine-laying vessels
⚪️ Weapons storage and logistics facilities
No U.S. destroyers were hit.
The broader significance is that Iran’s asymmetric naval doctrine was temporarily turned against itself.
For years, the Islamic Republic relied on concealment, deniability, underground infrastructure, dispersed launch systems, and swarm tactics designed to complicate retaliation and avoid direct conventional confrontation.
Instead, the attack exposed elements of that network in real time and allowed the U.S. to rapidly strike supporting infrastructure behind it without a prolonged escalation cycle.
This is modern military strategy at its most effective: force the enemy to reveal hidden systems through aggression, map operational networks instantly, and destroy critical nodes before they can reposition or disappear.
The Strait of Hormuz remains one of the world’s most strategically important maritime chokepoints, with roughly 20% of global oil flows moving through it.
By forcing Iran to expose key components of its coastal strike network, the U.S. not only defended its vessels but also dealt a significant blow to one of the Islamic Republic’s core asymmetric warfare capabilities in the Gulf. Onward and upward, airforce
Last edited by airforce; 05/10/2026 01:15 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183526
05/10/2026 06:14 PM
05/10/2026 06:14 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 05/10/2026 06:19 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183570
05/22/2026 09:11 PM
05/22/2026 09:11 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 05/22/2026 09:22 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183571
05/22/2026 09:24 PM
05/22/2026 09:24 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 05/22/2026 09:28 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183572
05/23/2026 05:55 PM
05/23/2026 05:55 PM
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Not everyone agrees it's a good deal.
Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 05/23/2026 06:14 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183573
05/23/2026 06:18 PM
05/23/2026 06:18 PM
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Onward and upward,
airforce
Last edited by airforce; 05/23/2026 08:51 PM.
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183574
05/23/2026 11:39 PM
05/23/2026 11:39 PM
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Here's another take on the "deal." There is a lot of noise surrounding the potential US/Iran deal.
Here’s what the rumors are so far:
- Iran has agreed to give up its stockpile of highly enriched uranium. Iran currently has 400 kg of highly enriched uranium. Enough for 11 nuclear bombs.
- The US would begin a phased unfreezing of Iran’s $6b to $30b in cash.
- The Strait of Hormuz will open up.
- Iran won’t charge a penny for ships to pass through. No $2m toll fee.
- The US agrees to relieve some of the sanctions.
- War ENDS on all fronts with Lebanon.
- US forces near Iran to withdraw.
- 30 to 60 days to finalize the nuclear deal.
If true, that’s a massive victory for the President.
Here are the winners and losers.
Winners:
1. American people. Oil prices will likely fall. Shipping insurance costs drop. Inflation pressure eases.
2. The President
3. Global markets.
4. Stock market.
5. Gulf states. Temporary tension eliminated. I have them as both winners and losers.
6. IRGC gains legitimacy. They’re not Venezuela. Whether anyone likes it or not. Including myself.
7. China is a major winner. The Strait of Hormuz hurt them the most. They can spin this to their people that the deal got done after the President left China.
8. Russia relies on Iran being a bit more stable.
9. NATO nations were starting to worry. They were pansies shivering about having to help the US. (They’re also big losers in my eyes)
Losers:
1. Iranian people. No one knows what the IRGC will do after this deal to their own people. Their media outlets will say they beat America. That message will 100% be pushed. The Iranian people will be under even more scrutiny by the IRGC.
2. Obama’s administration. This sounds like a much stronger deal than Obama’s administration made.
3. Netanyahu. He wanted regime change or collapse for his legacy, but Trump wasn’t on the same page at the end.
4. NATO was exposed. They showed they don’t have America’s back if shit were to hit the fan. Terrible moment for them.
5. Reza Pahlavi. Another year of not being able to help his people become free. This point will lead to more memes by the RP loyalists but it’s the truth.
6. Gulf states. The IRGC still controls a neighbor capable of firing rockets at surrounding Gulf nations.
7. Iranian proxies and non state actors. Hezbollah, Houthis, and Shia militias will not receive the same funding flow if sanctions are removed under limitations tied to the agreement.
8. Defense contractors and war hawks. They wanted this thing to continue so they could land massive contracts. I’m sure they’re not happy.
9. Oil producers benefiting from high prices.
10. Political extremists on both sides. Those who wanted to see the President lose (woke right) and those pushing for nuclear war.
11. Democrats. They desperately needed this to continue heading into the midterms. They will HATE this deal. Don’t worry, they’ll still find a way to blame Trump. But independents won’t fall for the BS. Democrats and the woke right will follow suit, but not reasonable independents who can see through the nonsense.
I predicted this would be done before June 14th. Lots of people pushed back. Obviously, it’s not done yet, and anything can happen, especially when dealing with Iran, but if the President pulls this off, the news outlets, pundits, and influencers will move on to the next issue after they’re done crying nonstop.
The greatest 60 days of positive distractions are around the corner.
President Trump’s birthday: June 14th
US 250 year anniversary: July 4th
World Cup: June 11th to July 19th
The world will move on, and the President can focus on driving results toward the midterms, Cuba, affordability and other issues.
Love him or hate him, he continues to show how fluid his mind is and that he can change his approach depending on whether things do or don’t go his way.
Future Looks Bright. I'm not sure I agree with everything he says, but it's worth looking at. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183752
07/18/2026 08:37 PM
07/18/2026 08:37 PM
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COULD LETTING THE ARABS TAKE KHARG ISLAND WHILE AMERICA OWNS THE SKY BE THE MOVE THAT BREAKS IRAN?!
Here is the play almost nobody is talking about.
Kharg Island is the jugular. Nearly all of Iran's oil flows through that one 20 mile patch of rock, close to 90 percent of exports and roughly 78 billion dollars a year that funds the regime and its Revolutionary Guard.
Cut it off, and the money that pays for missiles and terror dries up.
The problem is simple. Americans are not ready to send our sons and daughters onto that island, and no one should pretend otherwise.
So here is the answer. Let the nations Iran has actually been bombing do the walking.
Saudi Arabia fields around 250,000 troops and an air force stronger than Iran's. The UAE is a lean 65,000 strong force the Pentagon calls Little Sparta. These are not weak partners.
Give the Saudis, the Emiratis, and the Jordanians the ground assignment, flush the IRGC out into the open, and let overwhelming American and allied airpower do what it does best.
Make no mistake, an island assault is a hard and dangerous mission, not a weekend raid. But this is the rare fight where the countries with the grievance and the manpower carry the ground, and America carries the sky.
Iran built its empire on that one island. It is time somebody took it away. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183760
07/21/2026 09:33 PM
07/21/2026 09:33 PM
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Air defenses are firing across ALL of Tehran, west, east, and northeast, per Iran's own state broadcaster.
-IRIB reports "air defense activity was heard in the west, east, and northeast of Tehran," expanding the earlier Fars reports from one district to the whole capital
-No strikes on Tehran itself are confirmed, and CENTCOM's official night-eleven statement named no capital-area targets
-The guns firing city-wide without confirmed impacts fits a specific playbook: U.S. drones flown over the capital to force the air defenses to switch on and REVEAL their positions
-That tactic, flushing out radars for targeting in a later strike, is exactly how air campaigns prepare to enter defended airspace, and Washington has said the Tehran-area restraint "could change if full-scale operations resume"
If the drone-flush read is right, tonight's tracer fire over the capital is reconnaissance, not the attack itself: every battery that lights up gets mapped, and every mapped battery dies first when the real package comes.
Tehran's gunners face the trap built into the tactic, stay dark and leave the sky open, or fire and hand over their coordinates.
Source: CIG on TG, Al Jazeera / Writer: Daniel Does that old trick really still work? Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183770
07/24/2026 11:40 AM
07/24/2026 11:40 AM
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Matthew Bracken knows what he's talking about. But we don't have to invade iran alone, and certainly we don't have to hit their strongpoints. I'd give odds we're already in contact with resistance groups in iran, and most likely arming and training them - That's what green Berets do. Same thing with the Kurds in northwestern Iran.
I've already heard reports, certainly unconfirmed, about Kurds attacking Iranian checkpoints,and of Iranians in Tehran and elsewhere attacking Basij forces. I suspect these operations are continuing, very quietly with no one talking about them. If conventional American troops are used, it should be only for specific, limited targets. We're never going to occupy all of Iran.
The mullahs and the IRGC are literally fighting for their lives. No other country is going to welcome them, and they are under no illusions about what the Iranian people will do to them if they lose power.
The trick will be to turn the Iranian Army against the IRGC, and I think we're probably closer to that happening than most people think. Once we make it clear the bombing won't stop until the job is finished, I think the Iranians themselves will finish it.
Onward and upward,
airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183845
08/24/2026 06:31 PM
08/24/2026 06:31 PM
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An "economic D-Day" for Iran.Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said Sunday that the U.S. is "entering the endgame" against Iran, as his department prepared a set of sanctions against the Islamic Republic of Iran that he compared to Allied preparations for D-Day during World War II.
"As Roosevelt and Churchill weighed a campaign that would culminate in the Normandy landings, they asked themselves what could be done ‘to bring the greatest pressure to bear on the enemy,'" Bessent said, claiming that "History has returned that question to Tehran."
"The U.S. Treasury is preparing to expand secondary sanctions on countries and companies doing business with Iran, forcing trading partners to choose between Tehran and access to the dollar-based financial system," Unusual Whales posted Monday, summarizing a paywalled Financial Times report.
Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, warned other nations in the region not to join in the administration's "economic war" against Iran, saying the country would "retaliate in a seismic manner."
Unrelated to today's new sanctions package but still noteworthy, the United Arab Emirates announced on Sunday that on Wednesday of last week it had halted all trade with Iran “until further notice,” due to the Islamic Republic's ballistic missile attacks on that country. The U.A.E. announcement is kind of a big deal, because the Emirates has long served as the Islamic Republic's export and financial hub.
Bessent also noted that Iran's currency, the rial, "has never been weaker and inflation has rarely been higher."
While it's impossible to say for sure whether sanctions can collapse the 47-year-old terrorist theocracy, that last part is true enough. The Hudson Institute's Michael Doran reminded X users Sunday: "On the day Trump was elected to his second term, the rial was a little over 700,000. Trump has sent it into a free fall. It's lost about sixty-five percent of its value" in less than two years.
"A little history," Doran also said, "In 1978, the rial was a little over 70 rials to the dollar, meaning that over the years it has lost 99.996% of its value."
President Donald Trump added Monday morning that he believes Iran is already "collapsing" under existing sanctions and the U.S. naval blockade of Iran's ports.
Open Source Intel prepared a list of the countries "most exposed" to the new sanctions, and number one on the list was — of course — China: "China buys discounted Iranian oil through intermediary networks. The key question is whether Treasury moves beyond small refiners and targets major Chinese banks."
Targeting those banks might be more of an economic Hiroshima than an economic D-Day, but we'll see.
"At 2 PM EST, we’ll see how far Bessent is willing to go," OSI added. "Whether he targets banks that help move Iranian money, or maybe imposes the 25% tariff on countries that trade with Iran."
I can't put it much better than X user Toni Johnson did: "Remember when Scott worked for the evil Soros and crashed the British pound? Don't underestimate Bessent."
Stay tuned. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183849
08/27/2026 04:06 PM
08/27/2026 04:06 PM
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A maritime prize court for capturing Iranian oil? Let's bring back the Letters of Marque and Reprisal! The Justice Department is preparing to activate a long-dormant maritime war court to streamline military capture of Iranian oil tankers as US prizes, according to three people familiar with the plans.
Reviving prize courts, which is expected to face legal challenges, is intended to strengthen the blockade of Iran and offset the cost of the conflict.
Aaron Reitz, the Houston-based US attorney whose office is partnering with department headquarters on the initiative, confirmed DOJ is “now reviving” prize courts, which he described as an “ancient body of maritime law.”
The unfinalized plans, if adopted, would offer a faster path for federal prosecutors to claim oil and other cargo taken from enemy or neutral vessels as US property. The seized goods would then be sold with proceeds transferred to the treasury.
The anticipated revival is the second time this year the administration has turned to an obscure court system to carry out its agenda, after bringing the first-ever case before the Alien Terrorist Removal Court in July.
“Our national security interests may require the United States military to seize vessels or cargo supporting the enemy during military conflict,” Reitz said in a statement. “If that happens, our federal courts must be ready to adjudicate the disposition of these captured vessels and cargo.”
Ship owners and Iranian terrorism victims are among the potential litigants expected to challenge the prize court’s use, maritime lawyers and former prosecutors said. DOJ, the US Navy, and the judiciary would also face operational hurdles carrying out a court process with which they have zero experience.
“This really is a historical area of law that is not tested in modern times,” said Allison Luzwick, a Holland & Knight attorney specializing in the maritime industry. “Great strides have been made in international law and the law of war since the late 1800s, and all of that is going to come into play when we’re actually looking at proceedings involving a vessel that is potentially seized under Prize Act authority.”
Once a regular feature of 18th and 19th century naval combat, prize courts have gone largely unused since the Spanish-American War of 1898 and lain entirely dormant since World War II. In recent decades, the US has shifted to relying on civil forfeiture law as the mechanism for seizing ships and obtaining their assets to enforce sanctions violations.
DOJ’s planning, which has been coordinated with the Pentagon, comes as US forces have intercepted and seized multiple Iranian-owned or linked ships since imposing a blockade in April.
Legal experts see civil forfeiture as an imperfect model for US interests in choking the economy of Iran and other adversaries.
In one ongoing case, the seizure of a Venezuelan supertanker that supported Iran led to DOJ filing a civil complaint seeking to liquidate the ship and cargo as US proceeds.
Multiple third parties, including the shipping company and families of Iranian terrorism victims holding judgments for payouts under a different statute, have intervened, bogging down that process.
Prize authority, while coming with its own legal risks, would entail a less complicated transfer of proceeds, allowing the US to mitigate the risk of outside claimants slowing down the sale, said Luzwick and other lawyers.
White House and Navy spokespeople didn’t respond to requests for comment.
Houston Port
DOJ has focused on the Southern District of Texas federal trial court as the venue, said two of the people, who like others spoke anonymously about sensitive deliberations.
The Houston-based district is home to the nation’s largest petrochemical complex, located off Houston’s 50-mile port, which can store large volumes of crude.
Prize courts can function out of any US district court that has jurisdiction over the port in which the captured ship is taken. Once the district court adopts a set of rules for the proceedings, it could then adjudicate a prize claim filed by the US attorney.
Outside parties, including ship owners, could still enter an appearance and object to the capture, but their arguments would be limited compared to forfeiture cases, said Luzwick and her firm’s maritime litigation partner Michael Frevola.
In Southern Texas, the responsibility for filing claims would fall on Reitz, who was appointed in July and maintains close ties to department officials in Washington from his brief stint last year as head of DOJ’s Office of Legal Policy.
Pros and Cons
Supporters describe prize law’s benefits of expediting the process of transferring the proceeds from oil tanker cargo into the US treasury. The move may also send a global signal of President Donald Trump’s intent to add a legal enforcement mechanism to bolster the US blockade.
“It helps offset the price of the war,” said Eugene Kontorovich, an international law professor at George Mason’s Antonin Scalia School of Law. “It also shows Iran that America is really treating this as a serious international blockade and is willing to use all the tools at its disposal.”
If established, however, the approach would invite legal challenges as to whether the US is engaged in hostilities that give rise to the Prize Act and whether the lack of congressional authorization of the conflict renders captures unlawful.
Jill Goldenziel, a law professor who trains US military leaders at the National Defense University, warned of potential blowback in an April Forbes column.
Although it would “send a strong message to non-sanctioned, neutral merchant ships bound for Iranian ports not to violate the U.S. blockade,” Goldenziel wrote, it “could also open the door for China to apply prize law against the United States — a dangerous proposition for U.S. and neutral merchants in any war with China.” Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183850
08/28/2026 04:17 PM
08/28/2026 04:17 PM
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Iran mined the Strait of Hormuz - with trash bags?Disclosure" My father served on a minesweeper at the battle of Iwo Jima and Okinawa in WWII. "If Iran mined the Strait of Hormuz, how come we haven't seen any ships sunk or damaged by mines?"
Good question. The answer seems to be less that ships veered away from mines and more that Tehran was largely bluffing with the mine threat, but the details — once again — veer straight into absurdity.
Before we talk about questionable deployments and the bit about the trash bags (really!), a few words on mine warfare. Actually, I can start with just two words: It sucks.
Mines are easy to deploy, and difficult and dangerous to get rid of. They're the ultimate waterway nuisance weapon, because just the threat of them can slow down or even halt shipping, and tie up valuable resources.
And we never, ever have enough minesweepers. Back during the Cold War, we let our NATO allies deal with much of the Soviet mining threat, while our Navy focused more on ship and submarine threats to the sea lanes to Europe across the Atlantic. But then we won the Cold War, and our NATO allies let their minesweeping capabilities atrophy. If you're wondering whether we stepped up our minesweeping game in response…
…yeah, no.
But I digress, if only slightly.
And Another Thing: During World War II against Japan in the Pacific, we launched a naval and mine warfare campaign to cut off Japan's maritime trade in an effort to starve the Empire into submission. It was called Operation Starvation, and it was frighteningly effective. It's the kind of thing our military can do when our idiot politicians remember to let them off the leash.
Tehran well knows that we don't have enough minesweepers — and so does the rest of the world. The guys who own and captain multibillion-dollar tankers are perhaps painfully aware, which is one yuge reason why shipping through Hormuz slowed to a trickle after Tehran announced it was mining the strait back in March.
“They’re firing on commercial ships, and they’ve mined large segments of Hormuz — international waters,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Senate Foreign Relations Committee on June 2.
“What they’re doing is unlawful and illegal,” Rubio said.
I'm a Rubio guy, but I don't put much stock in statements like that last one. What's "lawful and legal" is usually determined by the winner after the fact.
What's maybe the more pertinent question is what, exactly, did Tehran actually do to the Strait of Hormuz?
Iran Watcher reported Friday that the "Hormuz minefield was largely a bluff built on decoys, while even the real mines were reportedly poorly deployed."
"According to reporting cited by CNBC's Brian Sullivan, shipowners said many suspected mines were decoys, including inflated trash bags," the IW post continued. "Separate reporting citing U.S. officials said more than 200 mine-like objects were cleared from the main shipping lane, but only around 11 were actual mines."
What was I just saying about how tricky — or is that tricksy? — mine warfare is?
"A small number of real mines mixed with decoys frightened shipowners, drove up war-risk insurance, and helped choke commercial traffic."
But that's changing.
Traffic through Hormuz reportedly was up something like 400% over just two weeks — and that data is a week old. I wonder how much of that is due to the heroic efforts of our armed forces, and how much is due to shippers realizing that the mine threat turned out to be all bark and no boom.
It also makes you wonder about Tehran's recent boast of having doubled or even tripled drone production. Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183856
09/02/2026 11:29 AM
09/02/2026 11:29 AM
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What?! No sanctions against Iran's bloodthirsty state broadcaster, the IRIB? That seems... odd.The State Department quietly waived mandatory sanctions on Iran's radical state broadcaster at two pivotal junctures this year, enabling the broadcaster to air the forced confessions of anti-regime protesters in January and, just this month, encourage and support assassination plots against President Donald Trump, his cabinet members, and his 20-year-old son Barron, according to nonpublic notifications transmitted to Congress and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) is the hardline regime's chief propaganda organ, responsible for blasting Tehran's virulent brand of radicalism to a domestic audience and supporters across the globe, including inside the United States. The IRIB has become instrumental to the regime's survival in the past year, since nationwide protests inside Iran threatened the mullahs' hold on power in the lead-up to the U.S.-led war. In recent weeks, the IRIB—which oversees a wide network of media including newspapers, websites, and social media channels—has been responsible for publishing a series of disturbing death threats against Trump, his wife Melania, and their son Barron. This includes an Aug. 23 video, since taken down, purporting to document both Melania and Barron's movements as part of an assassination scheme that the Secret Service says it is actively monitoring.
But during this time, the State Department waived longstanding sanctions on the IRIB, permitting it to freely operate and access satellite services that are pivotal to its existence, the Free Beacon has learned. Crippling financial sanctions and taking steps to block the IRIB's technical operations would make it hard for the regime mouthpiece to broadcast outside Iran, and would undermine its internal broadcasting and publishing operations as well.
In 1999 and 2003, the United States and its allies bombed state television in Belgrade and Baghdad, effectively shutting down state media for a time. The United States is not believed to have targeted Iranian state broadcasting in its current campaign.
The White House and State Department would not comment on the reasons for the waivers. Sources familiar with the situation suggested the waivers may be a naive effort—dating back to the Obama administration—to coax Iran towards a lasting agreement. The U.S. intelligence services, which rely heavily on the Israelis for intelligence about Iran, may also appreciate the ability to gauge the regime's thinking by following state media.
The most recent iteration of the IRIB waiver was signed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio on July 2 and transmitted privately to Congress a week later, according to a copy of the notification reviewed by the Free Beacon. An almost identical version was approved by Rubio on January 6 and transmitted to Congress shortly thereafter. Both documents maintain that it is "vital to the national security of the United States" to waive sanctions on the IRIB and allow it to conduct financial transactions for the provision of "ground connectivity" and telecommunications services. Without these waivers, the IRIB's capabilities would be crippled by sanctions.
The July waiver was approved just over two months before the Trump administration unveiled Operation Economic Outcast, a vast and multi-pronged campaign to crush Iran's financial networks through sanctions on the regime and its international enablers. That effort, however, could be undermined by an active IRIB waiver that continues to relieve pressure on one of the regime’s most powerful state organs.
While versions of the IRIB waivers issued throughout this year have been approved multiple times since 2013 across successive U.S. administrations, both Republican and Democrat, the timing of the two most recent iterations is fuelling calls for the Trump administration to carefully reassess whether the policy actually remains "vital to U.S. national security interests"—particularly at a time when the IRIB is airing credible death threats against the president and his family.
"This is basically an autopilot waiver unless someone intervenes," a former U.S. official with knowledge of IRIB sanctions told the Free Beacon, speaking only on background about the sensitive matter. "Once upon a time, someone told someone this was important to keep going. Has anyone asked whether that's still true today?"
The IRIB controls radio, television, and news outlets across Iran and is the chief distributor of the regime's radical anti-America, antisemitic, and pro-terror agitprop. The waiver essentially allows the IRIB to engage in financial transactions that, by and large, would otherwise be prohibited by America's heavy sanctions regime, which specifically include the state broadcaster.
The waivers excuse the broadcaster from an array of American sanctions it's been subjected to since 2013. These include mandatory congressional sanctions and executive orders linked to the IRIB's role as a regime propaganda outlet. Congress determined that the IRIB had contributed to human-rights abuses by broadcasting forced confessions and sham trials, and in 2013, the Treasury Department sanctioned the IRIB under an executive order, finding that it restricted the free flow of information, censored media, and jammed foreign broadcasts.
Sanctions waivers for the IRIB have long been controversial. They stem from a secret 2013 deal between the Obama administration and the Iranian regime, which the Free Beacon['/i] reported on when it became public. The first Trump administration also came under scrutiny from its GOP allies, as well as Iranian dissidents, for approving the IRIB waiver in 2018, when Iranian protesters were again being violently suppressed by the regime. The Biden administration, too, landed in hot water for bypassing sanctions on the IRIB in 2024, at a time when Tehran's press was celebrating Hamas's Oct. 7 terror spree.
Still, the most recent approval of this policy by the State Department remains somewhat of a mystery amid the military conflict with Iran. The IRIB and its radical networks have helped sustain the hardline regime's morale throughout the war, and they continue to foment terror across the globe. Earlier this year, at the height of Iran's anti-regime protest movement, the IRIB televised nearly 100 coerced confessions from dissidents who were often tortured beforehand.
Both the White House and State Department have repeatedly expressed concerns over the IRIB's death threats against Trump's family and his senior officials, and vowed harsh reprisals for any assassination attempts. In March, the Justice Department successfully convicted an Iranian operative who traveled to the United States as part of a murder-for-hire plot against Trump.
The State Department would not provide a response to multiple [i]Free Beacon inquiries about the IRIB waiver, the reason for granting it, or what will happen next time it comes up for renewal in the coming months. The White House also did not respond to similar questions, with both declining to provide a policy rationale for approving the waiver in both January and July. It is possible, however, that the July version was issued as a potential olive branch to Tehran as the Trump administration was working to enact a ceasefire that is now in tatters.
The IRIB's now-viral Aug. 23 video publicized locations associated with Barron Trump and offered a $10 million bounty on his head. The Secret Service confirmed earlier in the week that it is aware of the threat. Barron is no longer physically attending classes on New York University's Greenwich Village campus and is believed to be pursuing his undergraduate studies in Washington, under greater security.
"The U.S. Secret Service is aware of the video and investigates anything that can be perceived as a threat toward our protectees," Secret Service spokesman Nate Herring said in a statement. "Out of concern for operational security, we do not discuss matters of protective intelligence."
Other recent IRIB videos, including several published in the wake of the late Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei's death, purported to document Trump's own movements and urged jihadist sympathizers outside Iran to exact retribution for Khamenei's killing.
Given the expanding—and credible—threats posed by the IRIB's radical networks, regional observers are recommending the Trump administration finally penalize the state broadcaster for attempting to recruit and reward would-be assassins.
"The U.S. should rescind the sanctions waiver that allows satellite broadcast service for IRIB. IRIB is not just a state news network. It is an arm of Iran's security and intelligence services, which weaponize IRIB against the Iranian people and the U.S. and its allies," said Jason Brodsky, policy director at the advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran. "The broadcasting of bounty videos calling for the killings of President Trump and his family counts as incitement."
Tehran, Brodsky added, "may be trying to recruit radicalized individuals who have access to the United States to carry out these kinds of terror plots. The Iranian regime followed this playbook in 2022 when the author Salman Rushdie was almost stabbed to death in New York by an individual motivated by Islamic Republic fatwas and bounties." Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183861
09/07/2026 12:05 PM
09/07/2026 12:05 PM
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Broken feet, ripped out hair, and now a death sentence. That is the fate of twin sisters in an Iranian jail. A regime capable of these atrocities needs to go. The twins were 19 and still in high school when they were taken from their beds in the dead of night by masked men later identified as being sent by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.
After four months of desperately seeking news from hospitals and state institutions, their mother, Marzieh Nourmohammadi, finally learned their fate. Taraneh and Romina Rahimi had been seized over their decision to join millions on the streets of Iranian cities during the January protests against the regime. The twins were unrecognisable by the time of their mother’s prison visit in May.
The women’s scalps were patchy from being dragged around by their hair, and their faces were bruised, according to their US-based cousin. It is claimed that Taraneh, who dreams of running her own horse stable one day, had been told the prison guards would rape Romina in front of her unless a confession was signed.
The visit by their mother to Dowlatabad prison, in Isfahan, the main city in central Iran, was five months ago. It has now emerged from the Iranian courts that Taraneh has been sentenced to death for her participation in the January protests, and that Romina has been given a 25-year prison sentence. Neither of the women have been seen by their family since the sentencing.
The difference in the sentences remains a mystery, but the twins’ cousin, Masoud Nourmohammadi, who lives in the US state of Utah, said he struggled to understand anything done by the regime.
“They do not follow their own law,” said Nourmohammadi. “There is an 18-day period that lawyers can go and appeal but in a lot of [execution] cases recently that has not happened. They just sentence and take the kids and execute them and hang them. So I mean, nothing, nothing really makes sense.”
Nourmohammadi, 43, said he believed Taraneh was sentenced to death by hanging because of her obvious innocence. “You can see her eyes and you know right away that she is a kind person,” he said. “My sense is like they’re looking to put fear within the people, to say: ‘Look, no matter how fine you are, no matter how innocent you are, we can get you, and don’t come to the streets any more.’”
Despite the logistical difficulties presented by the war with the US and Israel that began in February, Iran has executed more than 500 people this year, including at least 29 people in connection with the anti-government protests in January.
At least 16 women have been among those executed. Hundreds more protesters have either been sentenced to death or are facing charges which could carry the death penalty, including more than 70 in Isfahan.
Last month, the UK and 30 other countries signed a joint statement condemning the executions of the January protesters and describing them as an attempt to silence dissent.
Nourmohammadi, a healthcare IT specialist who arrived in the US from Iran 22 years ago, is speaking out despite receiving death threats via text messages and social media from people who say they know his home address. His cousins’ case, he said, should instil a determination to end the Islamic regime.
The two women joined the protests on 8 and 9 January in Istafan, along with 18 million others. The men who came for them a month later dragged them out with bags over their heads and offered no explanation. “The family didn’t know where they were,” Nourmohammadi said. “They had no idea. They were searching for them everywhere, different courts, hospitals. Then my aunt received a call saying: ‘We have your girls, come to see them at the prison.’”
Seeing her daughters was heartbreaking for his aunt, Nourmohammadi said. “She did not recognise her own children: they were beaten up, badly swollen faces, bruises all over their body, broken elbows, knuckles, feet, and they basically had no hair because they would pull their hair and drag them from one cell to another cell. She found out that they had been in solitary confinement.”
Marzieh Nourmohammadi, who raised her daughters, now 20, on her own, was not allowed to attend their trial. Their lawyers said Taraneh told the court that any admissions had been secured through torture. No evidence of the sisters’ involvement in violence was provided, it is claimed. They had never been involved in protests before.
“My mum lives with me,” he said. “There’s not a single second that I pass her and she’s not crying.” Onward and upward, airforce
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Re: Should We Intervene in Iran?
[Re: airforce]
#183875
09/17/2026 04:26 PM
09/17/2026 04:26 PM
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Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 26,422
Tulsa
airforce
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OP
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Joined: Jan 2002
Posts: 26,422
Tulsa
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Iran, the midterms, and October surprises. From Victor Davis Hanson. Many narratives swirl around the U.S. war with Iran as the November 3 midterm elections loom.
The Left is giddy with confidence that Democrats may take control of Congress. It is therefore planning a circus of impeachments, lawfare, and investigations to neuter the last two years of the Trump administration.
High gas prices and the current unpopularity of the Iran conflict, coupled with the historical reality that the president’s party has lost seats in Congress in 39 of the last 41 midterm elections, have convinced Democrats that they could win enough seats to cut off funds for the war.
Yet the elections are still seven weeks away, and the sheer number of known unknowns ensures an uncertain outcome.
Every side is now gaming the midterms.
The Democrats believe the unpopular war can at last halt Trump’s momentum and are already declaring it all but lost.
The Iranian theocracy agrees.
It will do its best to ratchet up tensions with a series of October surprises in hopes that Trump loses control of Congress and the United States reverts to familiar Democratic policies of ending sanctions and downplaying Iran’s race toward nuclear weapons.
Its leaders also remember Barack Obama’s “hands-off” policy when a million Iranians took to the streets during the Green Revolution of 2009. Then-President Obama remained silent as thousands of protesters were jailed and killed.
As for Trump, he remains enigmatic and says only that the war will likely end shortly after the midterms.
Trump could simply mean that Iran is on the ropes and the regime cannot survive much more than two months.
Or Trump may be hinting that after the midterms, regardless of who controls Congress, he will be free of electoral pressures and able to resume military operations to accelerate the theocracy’s ongoing economic ruin.
But it is often forgotten that two other groups may also be gaming the midterms with October surprises of their own—and in quite different ways.
If Iranian dissidents—35,000 of whom were killed by their own government in January—believe that a Democratic takeover of Congress would benefit the murderous regime they hate, then they may face very different deadlines and renewed incentives to resist.
The embattled opposition, suffering existential food and energy shortages, might conclude that if the regime is tottering in October, this may be its last chance to overthrow it before Democrats restrain Trump and spare the hated mullahs.
The same mindset might be embraced by some 10–15 million restive Iranian Kurds, who periodically resist the theocracy in Tehran.
If they, too, believe that ascendant post-midterm Democrats might defund the current American strikes against the theocracy, or that Trump will eventually be pressured into ending American involvement, then they may see overthrowing the hated regime as a now-or-never proposition.
The point is not what might actually happen if the Democratic opposition controls Congress or otherwise pressures Trump this fall to end the conflict.
The key, instead, is the perception that it would.
There are still more known unknowns.
This remains a strange conflict in which almost no news emerges from Iran. The United States has used no ground troops. There are no embedded correspondents. Western media are largely barred from Iran unless they regurgitate theocratic propaganda.
Thus, no one knows the true extent of the damage to Iran’s nuclear, industrial, and military complexes.
Nor do Westerners know precisely how much the new sanctions, secondary boycotts, strangulating blockades, and frozen foreign assets have further weakened an already crippled regime—and driven a starving, fuel-starved, and furious populace to desperate measures.
It is understandable why the bloody popular uprisings of early 2026 failed against an oil-rich Iran whose half-century-old, half-trillion-dollar military-industrial complex was still largely intact.
Not now.
The theocracy is now vastly diminished after months of Israeli and American bombing and crushing new sanctions. Moreover, the desperate regime has continued to murder dissidents in the months since the failed uprising of January 2026.
In sum, the Iranian conflict is one of the strangest wars of the modern age.
The Iranian regime has suffered terrible material and financial damage.
Its nuclear program is likely in ruins, and its original command-and-control leadership has been destroyed.
The people detest it. The Kurdish minority loathes it. Conditions on the ground are dire, with terrible shortages of food, medicine, and fuel.
The resistance may sense that the Trump administration would double down on kinetic force to finish off the wounded regime if a mass popular uprising emerged and needed support from the air.
Taken together, these possible October surprises before the November midterms could make the next 50 days the most volatile in modern memory. Onward and upward, airforce
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