Tag: war

Winning

Another piece of evidence concerning the current state of the Israeli-Iranian war:

Foreign photographers will no longer be allowed to film at the scenes of missile strikes in Israel without prior written approval from military censors, under new directives issued by National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir and Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi.

The move, which targets major international outlets such as Al Jazeera, CNN, and The New York Times, empowers the Israel Police, the Government Press Office (GPO), and the military censor to enforce stricter controls on foreign reporting of war-related damage inside Israel. According to the directive, enforcement will apply regardless of the media outlet for which the footage is being filmed.

There’s nothing inherently wrong with wartime censorship. But it’s not exactly consistent with the claims of air supremacy over Tehran, the ineffectiveness of Iranian missile strikes, or confidence in the situation either.

One hopes this is a sign that the Israeli government has given up its hopes of starting a war that the USA would finish, but it’s far too soon to tell anything at all. Personally, I continue to be skeptical that any conclusive result can be even potentially obtained by either side, given that it is geographically limited to being an airpower war.

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US Democracy Isn’t Real

Isn’t it remarkable how, dating back to 1914 at the very latest, Americans keep voting for peace and yet somehow find themselves repeatedly enmeshed in funding and fighting foreign wars?

Rachel Blevins: The American people, we keep voting for the guy who is telling us “hey no new wars, we’re going to end the endless wars” right? We’re going to put an end to what has essentially been US foreign policy as we know it, and then not only do they never do it, but we have this growing multipolar world…

COL Macgregor: Americans have to come to the realization that this dichotomy, Democrats and Republicans, is meaningless. We’re really dealing with a uni-party. We’re dealing with an entirely corrupted, dysfunctional system. This thing that we call democracy in the United States is a scam, it’s not real, it’s just not real. When Louis the 16th was crowned King of France, people in the streets in Paris and other cities said “Long live the 16th… as long as the price of bread doesn’t rise.” And in 1789 there was a revolution because the French people in Paris could not afford to buy bread. It spread like wildfire across France. Now pick a commodity, whatever you want in the United States. Pick any place in the United States, and you’ve got a very similar situation right now.

He’s right. I pointed this out back in 2004, and probably even earlier, when I wrote about the bifactional ruling party. I didn’t realize that it was simply the elected face of AIPAC back then, but it was entirely obvious that a) it was a single party with common goals and b) those common goals were antithetical to both American interests and the expressed will of the American people.

So, however painful it might be, in the long run it would probably benefit the American people if the Trump adminstration were to do the will of AIPAC and Prime Minister Netanyahu and embark upon its now-expected Iranian Expedition. Because the nation isn’t going to be freed until the empire falls.

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No Victory Without Nukes

The latest mainstream Narrative is that neither Israel nor the USA can destroy Iranian nuclear program without using nukes:

Donald Trump told defence officials it would only make sense for the U.S. to join Israel in striking Iran if its ‘bunker buster’ bombs are guaranteed to be able to destroy the key enrichment site at Fordow, according to people familiar with the discussions.

Officials were said to have been told that the U.S. would have to soften the ground with conventional bombs before dropping a tactical nuclear weapon from a B2 Bomber to completely destroy the site, believed to be some 90 metres underground.

But Trump is said to have ruled out nuking Iran, insiders told the Guardian. The possibility was said not to have been raised by defence secretary Pete Hegseth or chairman of the joint chiefs of staff General Dan Caine during recent meetings in the Situation Room.

Trump said late on Thursday that he will now decide in the next two weeks whether to join in military action against Iran, before British and European diplomats were to meet with Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi in Geneva on Friday.

So they just figured this out now? That seems… unlikely, especially since a number of people, including Col. Macgregor, have been saying that the Iranian program couldn’t be destroyed by conventional means since before the current conflict began.

And now we’re suddenly seeing reports of 30,000 Israelis fleeing to Cyprus and stringent new laws banning the filming of missile strikes. Which, nearly one week in, would appear to suggest that the decapitation strike was no more successful for Israel than it was for Russia back in 2022. But while the attritional math favored Russia in that conflict, it would appear to favor Iran in this one.

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So Tiresome

Iran hit an Israeli hospital and in an astonishing demonstration of zero self-awareness, the Israelis are calling it a war crime.

Israel’s deputy foreign minister Sharren Haskel called Iran’s strike on an Israeli hospital on Thursday ‘deliberate’ and ‘criminal’, after the Islamic republic fired its latest salvo of missiles at the country.

Sharren Haskel wrote on X:

Iran just hit Soroka Hospital in Be’er Sheva with a ballistic missile. Not a military base. A hospital. This is the main medical center for Israel’s entire Negev region. Deliberate. Criminal. Civilian target. The world must speak out.

The accusation would perhaps be more meaningful if the IDF hadn’t been recently, and systematically, bombing hospitals and churches in Gaza.

Meanwhile, the Israelis have bombed the Arak nuclear facility in Iran. Which means, of course, that the Iranians will probably hit the Israeli equivalent, if they haven’t already, thereby risking a Chernobyl-style situation in both countries.

I’ve never understood the reliable failure of governments to grasp the basic concept of tit-for-tat, especially in wartime. And if the USA gets directly involved on Israel’s behalf, can we we really be surprised if Russia, or China, elects to do the same for their Iranian ally?

Sources are saying the British, with Zelensky, intend to use an old soviet missile to sink an American ship to blame Russia and instigate Article 5. I am hearing similar rumors about this in the Middle East by the Neocons to claim Iran attacked the US.

One guess as to which ship…

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Why the USA is Under Pressure

If the talking heads are to be believed, Iran is on the brink of surrender and Israel is all but unscathed. But the world press is skeptical and not even the Wall Street Journal is convinced.

Despite claiming major successes against Iran’s military infrastructure, Israel is rapidly depleting its supply of long-range missile interceptors, raising alarm over the sustainability of its defence systems, the Wall Street Journal reported, citing a US official familiar with allied intelligence assessments.

The report came amid relentless missile exchanges between Israel and Iran. Since Israel launched Operation Rising Lion last Friday, Iranian forces have fired roughly 400 ballistic missiles — part of an estimated arsenal of 2,000 capable of reaching Israeli territory. Israeli defences, particularly the Arrow system designed to intercept high-altitude ballistic missiles, have managed to neutralise most incoming projectiles, but not without significant strain.

Officials in Tel Aviv told WSJ that one-third of Iran’s missile launchers have been destroyed and claim to have achieved air superiority over Iranian skies. Still, intelligence sources warned that over half of Iran’s missile inventory remains intact, with a portion likely concealed in underground facilities.

The cost of maintaining Israel’s layered missile defence — comprising the Iron Dome, David’s Sling, the Arrow system, and US-supplied Patriots and THAAD batteries — is becoming a critical concern. Israeli financial daily The Marker estimated that nightly missile defence operations are costing up to 1 billion shekels ($285 million). The Arrow system alone fires interceptors priced at $3 million each.

With Iranian missile barrages continuing almost daily, Israeli air defence stockpiles are now under severe pressure. Without rapid resupply from the United States or direct intervention, Israel can maintain its missile defence for 10 or 12 more days if Iran maintains a steady tempo of attacks, a source briefed on US and Israeli intelligence told WSJ. “The system is already overwhelmed. Soon, they may have to choose which missiles to intercept,” the source said.

That strain is beginning to show. On Friday night, Iranian missiles evaded Israel’s defences and struck near the IDF headquarters in Tel Aviv. On Sunday, a direct hit forced the shutdown of a major oil refinery near Haifa. And on Tuesday morning, verified social media videos captured multiple Iranian missile impacts close to Israel’s intelligence compound north of Tel Aviv.

The truth is being obscured by both sides, which is why it’s foolish to try to make any determinations on the basis of the very censored information that is being released by the various military PR agencies. Given that the Israeli/US strategy is based on a combination of airpower and special ops, a combination that has never been particularly successful and has proven all but useless on the modern battlefield in Ukraine, I’m skeptical that it can be successful even if the USA does go in heavily as anticipated.

Also, Steve Bannon is wrong. MAGA will never get behind Trump’s Israel First policy.

Steve Bannon dramatically predicted that Donald Trump’s supporters will rally behind the president if he decides to blow up Iran’s mountain nuclear base.

It’s a massive flip from Trump’s former chief strategist who has in the past been adamantly opposed to strikes against Iran. Bannon said that the MAGA movement will stand by Trump – even if they might not be fully on board with the idea of the U.S. backing Israel ‘s attacks on Iran.

‘If President Trump decides there’s not a diplomatic alternative… because he’s been consistent, no nuclear weapon,’ Bannon said during a Christian Science Monitor event on Wednesday.

He continued: ‘The vast majority of the MAGA movement will say, ‘look, we trust your judgment, you walked us through this… Maybe we hate it but, you know, we’ll get on board.”

No foreign wars, period. We’re rapidly approaching what looks like the USA’s late imperial Sicilian Expedition.

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The War Drums Get Louder

The mainstream media is entirely convinced that President Trump is going to break his promises to the American people and go to war for the benefit of what would appear to be his Israeli masters:

U.S. officials have indicated that Iran has 24 to 48 hours to surrender and save itself from an American military onslaught as President Trump considers joining Israel’s war. White House officials said the next two days will be critical in determining whether Washington and Tehran can find a diplomatic solution to the burgeoning crisis in the Middle East.

Earlier yesterday Trump posted on Truth Social that he knew where Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Hosseini Khamenei is hiding but would not launch a strike ‘yet’. He then added ‘UNCONDITIONAL SURRENDER’!. Israeli officials have also cryptically promised a ‘surprise’ on Thursday night similar to its pager attack on Hezbollah leadership.

As Trump met with advisors in the White House Situation Room on Tuesday, insiders told ABC News that the President has grown frustrated by Iran’s manner of response since Israel began bombing on Friday.

The President will also not want the situation to develop to a point where it appears Iran has called his bluff, the outlet reports.

Why would Iran surrender unconditionally after a few days of light bombing when the Kiev regime hasn’t done so after three straight years of relentless defeat and destruction?

And why is the USA so blustering while Russia and China are almost entirely silent. Something doesn’t add up here.

For example, what if Russia adopts Israel’s strategy of war via assassination and applies it to the member states of the European Union? It could enact similar regime change in Germany, France, Poland, and the UK overnight.

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There is No “We”, Kemosabe

A lot of talk. We’ll see how much of it is real and how much of it is of the “Russia is out of ammunition and Putin died of cancer two weeks ago while the Ghost of Kiev was shooting down the entire Russian air force” soon enough.

It does seem strange that all that good ol’ American stuff would work so much better in the Middle East than it does in Eastern Europe or on the subcontinent.

Donald Trump was elected to put America first and keep the USA out of neocon wars. It doesn’t matter what he says or how he postures, no actual American is going to support war in the Middle East, Ukraine, or the South China Sea.

UPDATE: Clown World is really pulling out all the stops to get their world war.

Iran’s former President, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, along with his wife and two sons, were assassinated by masked gunmen in central Tehran earlier today.

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Iran Has Nukes

Let me get this straight. Atomic/Nuclear weaponry has supposedly been around since 1945. It’s very old, very basic technology that has been acquired by countries as underdeveloped as India, Pakistan, South Africa, and Israel.

Hypersonic missiles are so technologically advanced and difficult to manufacture that only four countries in the world have deployed them: China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran. The USA hasn’t successfully developed one yet, neither have Japan, France, or the UK.

And yet, we’re supposed to believe that Iran doesn’t already possess nuclear warheads to install on those hypersonic delivery systems?

I don’t buy it. If nuclear weaponry actually exists – and there is very good reason to doubt that it does – then Iran has it. If Iran doesn’t have it, then no one does because it doesn’t actually exist. The fact that nuclear weapons have been held over humanity’s collective heads for generations and used to justify globalist organizations for decades is sufficient reason for them to have been among the foremost myths perpetrated by Clown World.

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Remember Who Owns the Media

It’s important to keep in mind that the US media is relentlessly pro-Israel when you’re reading about how Israel has total air supremacy over Tehran and only two cats and an abandoned hut were destroyed by what few Iranian missiles managed to get through the impenetrable Iron Dome air defense system. I’m not saying that Israel is any more likely to wave the white flag than Iran is, only pointing out that while the recent exchanges have been more serious than the last round, in military terms, we’re still talking about what is little more than handbags at twenty paces.

Israel’s initial euphoria over its Friday morning strikes on Iranian targets is fading as Israeli inhabitants get a taste of their own medicine. Israel’s much touted Iron Dome is a total bust. I have posted a couple of videos below that show the Iranian missiles arriving unimpeded. In his latest video, BORZZIKMAN reports that the Iranian strike yesterday on the IDF version of the Pentagon destroyed a THAAD air defense system that was deployed to “protect” the building.

Pepe Escobar was interviewed earlier today by Nima and provided some important news from his impeccable Russian sources. Israel, with help from the West, hit Iran with a cyberattack early Friday morning Tehran time that disabled Iran’s air-defense system. Israel and the West anticipated this would disable Iran’s ability to track and attack inbound missiles for several days. According to Pepe, Iranian technicians got the system up and running in 10 hours.

The Potemkin Village propaganda generated by Israel and spread by Western media is coming apart at the seams. While many in the West still believe that Israel has struck a fatal blow on Iran and that Iran is just days away from a collapse, the Iranian missile force is alive and well and bombing the shit out of Israel. I suspect that Iran is employing Houthi tactics with their ballistic missiles that are fired from mobile launchers — i.e., instead of relying on fixed sites, Iran is deploying its missiles around the country on mobile launchers, which are virtually impossible to detect and destroy in a timely manner. As I write this, Iran reportedly has launched an eighth-wave of missiles. Iran is going to engage Israel in a tit-for-tat battle until Israel ceases its attacks on Iran.

That little tidbit about the cyberattack disabling Iran’s air defense makes sense, as I was wondering what Netanyahu meant when he was initially talking about the attacks going on for days. His statements make more sense in light of the expectation that Iran wouldn’t have any air defenses active for an extended period of time, and also explain how the initial attacks worked better than expected before petering out. It also explains why the Israelis have run so quickly to the US government in asking to be bailed out of a situation that pretty much every neutral analyst anticipated they would find themselves.

The whole concept of “inflict a few casualties and use them as a lever to effect regime change” is just prodigiously stupid. It’s the same strategy every single time, and while it used to work occasionally, it’s simply not a smart basis for going to war with a more powerful country. 200 fatalities is less than nothing to the Iranians, who lost more than one million dead in winning their war with Saddam Hussein’s Iraq.

If this is genuinely the best the IDF can do, and I find it difficult to believe it is, then Israel is in more desperate straits than I’d imagined.

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A Reality Check

Col. Macgregor doesn’t buy into Netanyahu’s chest-thumping about the massive victory of the Battle of Tehran, and points out that if things were going as well as the Israelis have been proclaiming, they wouldn’t be crying about Tel Aviv coming in for a taste of the same medicine or pressuring everyone from Germany to the US military to get involved on their behalf.

In the last 72 hours, Israel launched a preemptive strike against Iran when negotiations between Washington and Tehran were still ongoing. Iran was caught off-guard. But Iran recovered more quickly from its Pearl Harbor moment than Israel expected. In less than 18 hours after Israel’s surprise attack, Iran responded firing hundreds of ballistic missiles including hypersonic missiles into central Tel Aviv and across Israel.

Meanwhile, Israel’s Iron Dome failed. Israeli intelligence failed. Now Netanyahu is pleading with Washington to intervene with American Military Power to rescue Israel from certain defeat; a defeat Netanyahu crafted with encouragement from Washington.

At the same time, Russia, China, Pakistan and most of the Muslim World are rallying to Iran’s defense. Supplies, equipment and technical assistance are pouring into Iran.  

It’s time for a reality check:

Washington burned through $12 trillion in the Middle East since 2003. Result? 7,000 dead Americans. 50,000 wounded, open borders and 100,000 Americans dying yearly from Fentanyl poisoning. Today, the United States is $37 trillion in debt, a sum that does not include so-called “agency debt.”   77 million Americans voted for President Trump because he promised to end the overseas conflicts and halt the march to WW3.

The Middle East is on the brink. Here’s what Washington must do to defuse conflict:  

1. Ask for an Emergency UN Security Council meeting. Ask for an Immediate ceasefire making it clear that Washington opposes the destruction of Iran, Israel and any other state in the Middle East.  

2. Demand that Israel stop the killing of Palestinians in Gaza and withdraw its forces from Gaza and the West Bank.

3. Suspend all military aid to Israel until Israel agrees to remove its troops from Gaza and permit humanitarian assistance to reach the people of Gaza.

4. Propose the commitment of Armed Forces from non-aligned nations to police Gaza and the West Bank.

5. Propose that the United States, Russia, China, India and Brazil convene a peace conference to arbitrate the dispute between Israel, Iran and Israel’s neighbors.

Aside from not getting further involved in the Iran-Israel war, I totally disagree with Col. Macgregor’s recommendations and I don’t see what can be usefully expected from the UN or attempting to reason with the Israelis over Gaza. At best, this is belatedly attempting to put a Band-aid on a gushing artery.

The best thing President Trump can do for the Middle East is to stop all military aid to everyone, then tell both the Israelis and the Iranians to go ahead and fight it out amongst themselves if that’s what they want. If that means a few glass parking lots in the Middle East, so what? Both Hiroshima and Nagasaki are thriving cities now.

The optimal results are never achieved by putting off the inevitable. And if the USA is too weak to impose its will on the various parties now, things aren’t going to become any easier going forward. The one and only thing that absolutely must be avoided is going to war with Iran on Israel’s behalf, for as even the most ardent Christian Zionist must be able to understand, a collapsed USA can be of zero assistance to anyone.

Indeed, I suspect seeing the US military enmesh itself in a war with Iran is the one course of action that would absolutely delight the long-term thinkers in the Chinese strategy rooms. Because there is obviously a lot going on behind the scenes that isn’t being intentionally advertised.

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