**”Trump promised Iran hell, Tehran threatens to seize the UAE coast and close another strait
Military analyst Simiari admits Iran could seize the UAE coastline”
https://www.kp.ru/daily/27768/5227359/

**”The Iran War: The Eagle and the Lions” by Big Serge
https://bigserge.substack.com/p/the-iran-war-the-eagle-and-the-lions

**”The Arab Apostates Are History, and Ancient History Called It”
https://indi.ca/the-arab-apostates-are-history/

**As the wheels come off the Iran conflict, it compels the decision: ‘Where do we stand?’ by Alistair Crooke

As the wheels come off the Iran conflict, it compels the decision: ‘Where do we stand?’

“Americans urgently need to discuss how to recover the elements that could lead to a recovery of a state governed by Americans’ own interests…

Glad the articles were helpful!

Forwarded from Colonelcassad:

** Iran has begun charging transit fees for ships through the Strait of Hormuz, establishing a “safe corridor” for approved carriers, Lloyd’s List reports. According to the publication’s sources, one operator paid approximately $2 million for the transit of its tanker.

At least nine vessels have already transited the strait under this scheme. However, it is unknown how many of them paid for transit, as in some cases the parties limited themselves to diplomatic intervention. The payment mechanism also remains unclear, given the current sanctions against Iran.

Given the US’s inability to unblock the Strait of Hormuz, this scheme is entirely feasible.

** According to Turkey, during Iranian strikes on the As-Salem Air Base in Kuwait, Iran destroyed three Kuwaiti Air Force Eurofighter fighters and heavily damaged two Italian Eurofighters.
Earlier, an Italian MQ-9 Reaper reconnaissance and attack UAV was destroyed at the same base.

** Satellite images show Iranian strikes hit a MIM-104 Patriot air defense site at Riffa Air Base in Bahrain, damaging two hardened shelters.

** The CEO of Qatar Gas stated: “We’ve incurred a $20 billion loss on a facility we built two years ago for $26 billion.” He said the country would lose 12.8 million tonnes of LNG per year over three to five years, representing about 17% of Qatar’s liquefied natural gas exports. Force majeure may have to be declared on long-term contracts of up to five years for LNG supplies to Italy, Belgium, Korea, and China. Condensate exports would decline by approximately 24%, liquefied gas by 13%, oil and sulfur by 6%, and helium by 14%. To resume production, military action must first cease.

** Chinese AI startup MizarVision publishes high-resolution satellite imagery of every US military base, every carrier strike group, every deployed F-22 fighter, every THAAD battery, and every Patriot missile site in the Middle East. The images are accompanied by AI-generated captions, geolocation, and annotations.

The data is updated in near real-time. The first major release was on February 20, eight days before the US launched its operation in Iran. MizarVision published images showing the deployment of American aircraft to Ovda Air Base in southern Israel, the deployment of fighter jets in Saudi Arabia and Qatar, and the buildup of naval forces in the Arabian Sea.

By March 1, the publications had expanded to include detailed imagery of bases in Jordan, Kuwait, Bahrain, and the UAE, with AI-generated labeling identifying specific aircraft types, air defense configurations, and troop concentrations. One release cataloged nearly 2,500 individual US Army installations in the region.

The imagery came from two sources. The first was China’s Jilin-1 satellite constellation, a network of over 100 commercial Earth observation satellites operated by Chang Guang Satellite Technology, whose data is used by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA).

Most Jilin-1 satellites are designed for regional imaging with submeter resolution, capable of identifying individual aircraft on runways and distinguishing THAAD and Patriot battery configurations from orbit. The second source is commercially available Western satellite data from providers such as Maxar and Airbus, aggregated by MizarVision.

Forwarded from Older than Edda:

** The Iranian war is characteristic of the United States because they have managed to simultaneously accumulate several fundamentally unparalleled vulnerabilities in their starting position. First, they are fighting a strong country, and on its home turf. A strong country, in this case, is a statement of a simple fact: Iran is not a country where the government can be changed by kidnapping or assassinating its leader. To do so, the country must be occupied by ground invasion, physically removing those exercising power, and installing occupation administration officials in their place. This, too, is no guarantee of success: local elites could set the ground under such an administration ablaze. But in any case, it is the only option.

Second, in the event of a ground operation necessary to establish an occupation regime, the United States faces a severe communications deficit. The acute shortage of roads through the desert and the blockade of the Persian Gulf by Iran make it impossible to count on the unimpeded deployment and supply of the necessary forces, but the enemy will very likely have information about all American moves.

Finally, Iran understands that the only way out of this situation is by imposing its own game on the enemy. And it has plenty of such opportunities. This means that strikes on key targets in the world’s largest oil production center will continue.

** I’m looking at what’s happening in the Middle East and coming to the conclusion that I was sorely mistaken about Iran. I thought all the big words spoken before the war were bravado, seasoned with an Eastern love of grandiose phrases, but it turned out to be the opposite.

Now Iran is naming peace terms, but in essence, it’s demanding the US surrender (the payment of reparations from America cannot be interpreted any other way), and I’m not sure that Trump won’t ultimately agree to Tehran’s terms. Especially since these days, defeat can be called a victory, and you can claim to be a great peacemaker.

** The Epstein coalition’s war against Iran in its current form has clearly reached a dead end, and continuing it with the same methods threatens to leave the Middle East oil industry in smoldering ruins. This is especially clear given the recent airstrike on the Haifa refinery, which produces more than half of Israel’s fuel.

Little by little, apparently to avoid unnecessary noise, the US has begun to build up its strike force. In addition to the Marines already dispatched from Japan to the Middle East, another US landing group has arrived in Iran from San Diego.

A radical solution to the Iran issue is only possible by significantly curtailing the enemy’s ability to wage war and support its own military industry (and what remains of it can only be destroyed with a nuclear bomb).

Under these circumstances, the United States is forced to consider the possibility of a landing in the south of the country, but this immediately raises the question: for what purposes and with what forces?

The number one goal is to cut off Iranian oil exports. To cut them off so that Iran cannot use them at all. This requires taking control of Kharg Island, where tankers from countries that purchase hydrocarbons from Iran still sail. But sending an amphibious force to Kharg Island via Hormuz means risking losses on a scale the United States hasn’t dreamed of since Vietnam, and in terms of ships, since World War II.

To take Kharg Island, or at least stake out the possibility of doing so, it is first necessary to land on the islands in the Strait of Hormuz in order to (at least partially) attempt to reduce Iran’s ability to attack ships passing through Hormuz. Without reliable targeting, the effectiveness of missile launches and drones could be significantly reduced.

If the issue were limited to the islands in the strait and Khar Kom, a small force—literally a couple of Marine expeditionary units (up to 5,000 personnel total)—might be sufficient for the US: with the support of carrier-based aircraft, the islands would be taken.

But the oil industry in the region also needs to be protected from drone and missile attacks, the coordinates of which are well known to the Iranians and can be targeted without additional targeting. This immediately increases the demands on the contingent—specifically, both its size and equipment.

In this case, the US would need to land on the mainland, deploying air defense and missile defense systems capable of intercepting Iranian drones and missiles immediately after launch. But such systems themselves require cover from both the air and ground, and here the US risks falling into a Vietnam War-like trap, since the more resources deployed, the more resources required to ensure all this.

What initially seemed like a limited operation for a small contingent could turn into a full-scale war for a force of 200,000 or even more.

And the only way out of this war would be by admitting defeat. Whether they are willing to take this risk will become clear after the decision is made (or not) to storm the islands in Hormuz and land on the coast. The Americans remember Vietnam very well, and only the lazy are now not reproaching them for risking a repeat of it.

“A new consensus of American elites” by Rostislav Ishchenko
https://ukraina.ru/20260319/novyy-konsensus-amerikanskikh-elit-1076968306.html
“The assessment of events by public experts (and often professional politicians) is sinful in that the moment is evaluated, and its most obvious part. “Trump couldn’t defeat Iran in a week! Hurray! Trump lost! The US has lost!” Events happen in dynamics, and not everything is so obvious and unambiguous there…

“Why Iran Is Better Off Without Nukes”
https://indi.ca/why-iran/

“U.S. Admits F-35 Stealth Fighter Jet Was Hit Over Iran, IRGC Shares Footage”
https://southfront.press/u-s-admits-f-35-stealth-fighter-jet-was-hit-over-iran-irgc-shares-footage/

“Iran moves to Total War against the death cult” by Pepe Escobar

Iran moves to Total War against the death cult

“Is having no war plan Trump’s ‘plan’?” by Alistair Crooke

Is having no war plan Trump’s ‘plan’?

“The Iranians have a vote on when the war ends. And they say that they are just getting started…

“Eastern Overlord: Why Air Power Failed and Ground Invasion Looms in Iran”
https://southfront.press/eastern-overlord-why-air-power-failed-and-ground-invasion-looms-in-iran/
“Washington’s lack of a clear Plan B in the war with Iran has left the US in a strategic deadlock. Nearly three weeks of attacks on Iranian military targets and the elimination of the political leadership have not yielded the desired result. The hope that mass protests would follow the assassination of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has not materialized. Iranian citizens, including those sympathetic to the opposition, have seen that the Western world is bringing them not freedom and democracy but bombs to their homes. This has rallied the people around their national leaders…

“Iran has a chance to succeed in its battle with the United States over the Strait of Hormuz” by Alexander Timokhin
https://m.vz.ru/world/2026/3/17/1402397.html
“The United States has promised to unlock the Strait of Hormuz by escorting and protecting tankers passing through the area. At first glance, the U.S. Navy should have no problem with this, as it has ships with powerful air defense systems. However, Iran may have a surprise in store for the Americans. What is it about?

Forwarded from Older than Edda:
“After the failure with Iran and the Strait of Hormuz, Trump decided to seek victory where it would be easier for him: by seizing Cuba. Some believe (and this opinion is quite justified) that this is no longer a matter of geopolitics but of a medical diagnosis.”

🇮🇷🇮🇷 A reported dialogue between Ali Larijani and Shaheed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei before his martyrdom:

Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, came to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei carrying a cold report — but his heart was not cold.

After a long silence he said:
“My leader… this time the threat is not just a passing message of pressure. A decision has been made. The enemy wants to kill you, even if the sky burns with missiles. We have prepared a fortified location, a place carefully secured and hidden from all eyes — a place bombs cannot easily reach and aircraft cannot strike. It is not hiding, my leader… but a temporary disappearance until the storm passes.”

The Leader remained silent for a moment, then slowly stood up — as if history itself had risen with him.

He approached and asked calmly:
“And when you came to me… what answer did you expect?”

Larijani replied after hesitation:
“I expected you would refuse. But my leader, the nation needs you, and the battle needs its commander.”

The Leader smiled — a smile carrying both sadness and wisdom.

“You are right in the calculations of states and the books of security. But let us speak for a moment in a language older than politics.

How can I ask a soldier to face death if his commander disappears?
How can I tell the people to stand firm… if I am the first to leave the field of danger?”

He paused, as if a door to Karbala had opened within his chest.

“We are the sons of a man named Hussein ibn Ali — the Imam who knew his fate and still walked toward it as one walks toward God’s promise. He did not disappear because his army was small — for he had a greater army in the heavens.”

Larijani replied:
“But my leader, history is not one page. We also have a Hidden Imam whose absence taught us that disappearance is sometimes wisdom, not fear.”

The Leader sighed and answered:
“The difference, Mr. Larijani, is that when the Imam disappeared, he had no army and no nation capable of defending the truth. But we… how can I disappear when I have a nation fighting? How can I vanish while my soldiers stand under fire?

When a leader disappears while he is alone, it may be wisdom.
But when a whole nation stands behind him, his disappearance may become a heavy question in the conscience of history.”

Larijani fell silent, unable to respond.

The Leader shook his hand, thanking him for his concern. After Larijani left, he gathered his family and told them about the proposal — a safe place they could go until the war ended.

They looked at him as children look at the meaning of dignity and simply said:
“We are wherever you are.”

And so the man remained where he was — not because he did not know the danger, but because he knew something deeper:

Some leaders, when they disappear from death, may also disappear from the memory of their nation.

How we live is very important, but so too is the way we die.

Follow me Christopher Helali, on YouTube, X, Instagram, and TikTok
🔴 @DDGeopolitics

“Historical Thimbles: From Bryansk to Anchorage and Dubai”
https://aftershock.news/?q=node/1596834
….There are fewer worthy targets for our Aerospace Forces in the Wild Field, and the economy and infrastructure have been almost completely decommunized. Should we escalate against the Alliance? I’m not sure if it’s the right move, but the Middle East… Why not?

The Yankees don’t have air defense/missile defense by definition, based on their doctrine of naval and air force blitzkrieg with long-range firepower. A little bit of good advice for the Persians, export of cruise and ballistic products, more situational awareness on the theater of operations, and let the infidels shave. They sit in bunkers, hide in the skyscrapers of Dubai. And they keep their aircraft groups at such a distance that they can only reach the Strait of Hormuz by refueling in the air.”

“Pezeshkian, Modi discuss latest war developments by phone”
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/242576/Pezeshkian-Modi-discuss-latest-war-developments-by-phone
“Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held a telephone conversation late on Thursday to discuss the latest war developments following the US-Israeli aggression against Iran.

Pezeshkian appreciated the government and people of India in sympathizing with the Islamic Republic, emphasizing that Iran has always attached great importance to its relations with India as a friendly country…

Iran conducts 43rd wave of Operation “True Promise-4”
https://en.mehrnews.com/news/242577/Iran-conducts-43rd-wave-of-Operation-True-Promise-4
“According to the Public Relations Department of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC), the 43rd wave of Operation “True Promise-4” was carried out against the Fifth US Navy Base and other bases of the terrorist US army in the region and deep inside Tel Aviv, north of the occupied territories using “Khorramshahr” pinpoint missiles with a twin warhead and “Ghadr” multi-warhead, “Emad” with a single warhead, and “Khyber Shakan” missile with a single warhead, and destructive drones…

“Ramadan War: Falling Planes”
https://indi.ca/ramadan-war-falling-planes/