Tag: iran

Did You See This Clip of Obama’s CIA Director Talking About Iran?

It’s beyond parody that a former CIA director could be so out of touch, simply because he disliked an election outcome. This was a gathering of the so-called ‘morons’ on MS Now—true, that’s often the case, but this time, it was a particular brand of idiocy. They had John Brennan, Obama’s former spy chief, who arguably went rogue during the Russia investigation, claiming he would trust Iran, the world’s largest state sponsor of terrorism, over Donald Trump. 

John, are we experiencing dementia, or are you just getting your shots in before your probable indictment for giving false testimony about the Russiagate hoax, especially regarding the Steele dossier? 

Trump launched Operation Epic Fury almost a month ago, where we’ve destroyed Iran’s navy, its nuclear weapons ambitions, and the core of its political and military leadership. The cream of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps is gone. The Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, is dead, and his son is pretty much half dead. Its ballistic missile capability has been severely degraded; its infrastructure and manufacturing base are being dismantled. This regime will collapse. But there’s been a pause as talks reportedly resumed on a new deal between the US and Iran. 

“Well, I tend to believe Iran more than I do Donald Trump, because he could not acknowledge the truth even when it—he’s slapped in the face with it repeatedly,” said Brennan on MS Now.  

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Silicon battlefields: Why Big Tech is a target in the US-Israeli war on Iran

In traditional wars, armies directed their firepower toward visible strategic assets – military bases, weapons factories, airfields – where supply lines could be mapped and battle plans drawn with relative certainty. Combat effectiveness depended on numbers, firepower, and tactical maneuver. 

Today, however, the logic of war has shifted beyond the physical battlefield. Over the past two decades, the digital revolution has built a second layer of strategic infrastructure behind the front lines, quietly transforming how power is projected and how wars are fought.

Digital infrastructure has moved from the periphery of war to its operational core. Intelligence gathering, drone coordination, and battlefield decision-making increasingly depend on cloud systems and artificial intelligence (AI) platforms. The architecture of contemporary conflict is therefore built as much on corporate-run networks as on conventional military hardware.

This evolving reality shapes Iran’s strategic outlook as the war with Washington and Tel Aviv deepens. In Tehran’s assessment, the technological backbone sustaining western-aligned military operations in West Asia cannot be viewed as politically neutral. It constitutes an extension of the battlespace itself – a domain where economic assets, corporate platforms, and national security objectives intersect.

Corporate networks as instruments of war

In recent years, advanced militaries have woven digital platforms into every stage of warfare. Satellite surveillance systems feed data into cloud networks. Armed drones transmit high-definition video streams requiring immediate analysis. 

Signals interception capabilities generate vast intelligence flows that must be converted into rapid operational decisions. Military power, increasingly, is measured not simply by missile stockpiles or air superiority, but by the capacity to process information faster than an adversary.

Major technology firms now sit at the center of this process. Companies such as Amazon, Microsoft, and Google provide the infrastructure enabling governments and militaries to store, analyze, and deploy critical data. Their cloud platforms underpin intelligence assessments, battlefield logistics, and command-and-control coordination across multiple theaters.

This convergence of corporate technology and state power has reshaped how conflict is understood. Digital networks have become as vital as aircraft carriers or missile defense systems. In the context of the US-Israeli war on Iran, Tehran increasingly interprets this reality as evidence that global technology companies form an integral part of hostile operational environments.

That perception gained public visibility when Iranian media circulated a list of nearly 30 sites across West Asia, and especially the UAE, linked to major tech firms. 

They included regional headquarters, engineering offices, and large-scale data centers operated by firms such as Amazon, Microsoft, Google, Oracle, NVIDIA, IBM, and Palantir Technologies. In Tehran’s reading of the conflict, these facilities represent strategic nodes embedded within the operational ecosystem that sustains adversaries’ military capabilities.

Stretching from Tel Aviv to Persian Gulf cities such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Manama, these facilities host cloud services used by state institutions, intelligence agencies, and defense contractors. Some contribute directly to artificial intelligence development for surveillance and battlefield analysis. Others support regional digital economies whose stability indirectly underwrites military spending and technological innovation.

In an era where data flows shape combat outcomes, the infrastructures managing those flows may be viewed as legitimate strategic targets.

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Rising number of US troops oppose Iran war, refuse to ‘die for Israel’: Report

More and more US troops deployed to West Asia are expressing doubts about fighting in the war against Iran, including having to “die for Israel,” the Huffington Post reported on 23 March.

A veteran and reservist who mentors younger officers told HuffPost that troops she speaks with are expressing a loss of faith after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu helped push US President Donald Trump to go to war against Iran.

“I’m hearing out of service members’ mouths the words, ’We do not want to die for Israel – we don’t want to be political pawns,” she said.

“I’ve shared conscientious objector information six times in the past two weeks, and I’ve been in the military almost 20 years – I’ve never had people reach out this way,” the first reservist continued.

Interviews with active-duty soldiers, reservists, and advocacy groups conducted by HuffPost found that many US troops expressed feeling vulnerable, overwhelming stress, frustration, and disillusionment to the extent that they wished to leave the military.

Interviews further revealed that troops are worried about inadequate protection from Iranian ballistic missiles and drones targeting US bases in the Gulf region.

“Getting random indirect fire is not the same as watching the entire gym and coffee shop and some dorms get blown up from a door less than 50 meters away,” said one service member.

Thirteen troops have been killed in the war so far, and at least 232 have been wounded.

White House officials are now speaking of launching a limited ground invasion to seize Kharg Island in the Persian Gulf.

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Trump Officials Flee Into the Bunker

In the last few days, drones have reportedly been spotted over Fort Lesley J. McNair, in Washington, DC, where Marco Rubio and Pete Hegseth live. Officials are worried, and so am I, though for different reasons. 

Did you know our secretary of state and secretary of defense live on an army base? 

And they’re not the only ones.

Pam Bondi, Stephen Miller, and other senior Trump officials have moved into military housing. Tulsi Gabbard and Russell Vought are browsing the available housing, but have not moved yet. One more senior official, unidentified, has been advised to move by security officials.

The official excuse is that they face threats from a range of purported foes, including, we are told, cartels, foreign adversaries, and protesters. 

But I can’t help feeling we’re not getting the real story. And, frankly, what that might be chills me. 

Why does a king (and his courtiers) go into his castle and pull up the drawbridge? 

Because they see themselves as besieged — or are planning to do something they know will cause them to be besieged.   

Harvard professor Steven Levitsky — an expert on threats to democracies — made this sobering observation:

It is something you never see in a democracy. Government officials live on military bases or other sort of fortified zones [only] in authoritarian regimes.

In authoritarian regimes.

Coming at a time when fair elections are openly threatened and our constitutionally guaranteed freedoms challenged at every turn, when we see this group withdraw to a hardened inner sanctum, we’d better be paying close attention. 

But thus far little attention has been paid to this matter, and what it may mean. 

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Huh? Who On Earth Is Trump Talking To?

President Donald Trump says he has paused strikes on Iran, claiming to have had significant direct communications with Iranian figures amid the ongoing military escalation, describing the exchanges as productive, yet Israel appears to be continuing airstrikes at the same time.

Trump framed the talks as a potential path to de-escalation through verifiable compliance rather than prolonged conflict, and characterized the negotiations positively during recent comments.

“We have had very, very strong talks,” he said. “We’ll see where they lead. We have major points of agreement… They went, I would say perfectly.”

He specified the involvement of U.S. representatives. “Mr. Witkoff and Mr. Kushner had them.”

Addressing Iranian denials broadcast on Iranian state television, Trump responded, “Well, they’re going to have to get themselves better public relations people!”

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The Donald Gets a Double-Whammy

It sure looks like the Donald is on the receiving end of a double-whammy. His victory declaration in Iran looks to rank right up there with George Dubya Bush’s “mission accomplished” pratfall on the deck of a US aircraft carrier in 2003; and that also means that his SOTU boasting about defeating “Joe Biden’s” inflation and getting the gas pump price under $2 per gallon is out the window, too.

What’s back in play front and center, therefore, is the AFFORDABILITY issue come November. The Dems have no clue about how to fix it, of course, but they sure as hell will be brutally pounding the GOP candidates and the Donald with the latter’s own bogus hot air on the matter.

For want of doubt, consider the conflagration in the global oil markets at this very moment. At ground zero in the Persian Gulf, the major crude oil from the region have already shot the moon.

Thus, Oman crude prices are up to $154/barrel, crossing $150 for the first time ever. At the same time, Dubai crude is up to $130/barrel, while Brent is trading at $110.

This means, in turn, that the gap between Oman and world prices is off-the-charts wide, and now stands at 30% or $44 per barrel. By comparison, before the Iran War, the difference between all benchmarks was just $5 per barrel during January and February.

In very short-run, of course, Brent and WTI are priced based on US and European supply conditions, while the actual disruption is concentrated in the Middle East, meaning they do not fully capture the severity of the physical shortage. YET.

On the other hand, global crude oil markets everywhere and always eventually get arbitraged, causing the major marker grades to fully reflect worldwide supply, demand and inventory conditions. So unless the Gulf is re-opened within a matter of days, the marker grades will soon rise toward these Gulf prices as global inventories continue to be liquidated.

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Pakistan says talks imminent: Trump’s vice president to meet Iranian officials as Israel fears concessions

A Pakistani source said Tuesday that U.S. Vice President JD Vance, along with envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, are expected to meet Iranian officials in Islamabad as early as this week, according to Reuters.

The source said the summit would follow a call between President Donald Trump and Pakistan’s army chief, Gen. Asim Munir.

Earlier, the Financial Times reported that Pakistan is seeking to position itself as a central mediator to help end the war. Pakistani officials have also passed messages between Tehran and both Witkoff and Kushner, the newspaper said.

The report noted that Pakistan — which does not host U.S. military bases — is one of the few U.S. allies in the region that was not targeted by Iran during the war. Three sources told the Financial Times that this helped Islamabad present itself as a neutral intermediary between the sides.

Israeli concerns over US stance

Israeli officials are increasingly concerned that Trump may not insist on Washington’s stated red lines in talks with Iran and could accept any outcome that allows him to declare victory.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke earlier Tuesday with Vance and was briefed on the contacts between Washington and Tehran. The U.S. message to Israel, according to Israeli officials, is that Washington intends to uphold red lines largely aligned with Israel’s: removal of enriched uranium from Iran, halting its nuclear program, restoring intrusive inspections by the International Atomic Energy Agency, limiting Iran’s ballistic missile program — with a U.S. demand for a five-year freeze — and ending support for militant groups.

Trump is also insisting on reopening the Strait of Hormuz and having a role in overseeing it.

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Lindsey Graham on Iran’s Kharg Island: ‘We Did Iwo Jima. We Can Do This.’

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) on Sunday called for the US to capture Iran’s Kharg Island, where most of the country’s oil exports pass, comparing the potential operation to the Battle of Iwo Jima in World War II.

“Here’s what I’d tell President Trump: Keep it up for a few more weeks, take Kharg Island … control that island. Let this regime die on the vine,” Graham said in an appearance on Fox News.

When pressed on the fact that US troops involved in the operation would face significant missile and drone attacks, Graham said, “I’m sort of tired of all this armchair quarterbacking. This has been an amazing military operation — God bless the fallen.”

The South Carolina senator said that he “trusted the Marines” and noted that two Marine Expeditionary Units are heading to the region. “We did Iwo Jima. We can do this,” Graham said. “My money is always on the Marines. I don’t know if you take the island or you blockade the island, but I know this: the day we control that island, this regime, this terrorist regime, will die on the vine.”

The Battle of Iwo Jima is known as one of the most brutal battles in World War II, involving US troops, and resulted in about 26,000 US casualties, including more than 6,000 deaths. On the Japanese side, more than 18,000 defenders of the island were killed.

Graham’s comments come after NBC News reported that President Trump is considering whether to send thousands of troops into Iran for potential operations aimed at opening up the Strait of Hormuz. The report said ground operations could involve attempts to seize control of Iranian ports, small islands, or oil infrastructure.

Another option being considered is launching a raid to capture Iran’s stockpile of uranium that’s enriched at the 60% level, though it’s believed to be buried under rubble following the June 2025 US airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

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Did Iran launch missiles at US-UK base on Diego Garcia? Here’s what to know

The United Kingdom has slammed “reckless Iranian threats” after missiles targeted a joint United States-UK military base located on the Indian Ocean island of Diego Garcia.

However, Iran’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Monday denied the allegations that it was behind the launch of what US media reports said were two ballistic missiles.

The US has not commented officially on the firing of the missiles at Diego Garcia, which is approximately 4,000km (2,500 miles) from Iran.

The incident over the weekend came three weeks into the war launched by the US and Israel against Iran on February 28. One of the goals of the war, they have said, is to degrade Iran’s nuclear and missile programmes.

Tehran has maintained its nuclear programme is for civilian purposes. The United Nations nuclear watchdog and US intelligence chief Tulsi Gabbard have said Iran was not on the verge of making nuclear bombs. Contrary assertions were invoked to launch the current war.

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Iran threatens to ‘completely’ close Strait of Hormuz and hit power plants after Trump ultimatum

 The United States and Iran threatened to target critical infrastructure Sunday as the war in the Middle East, now in its fourth week, puts lives and livelihoods at risk throughout the region.

Iran said the Strait of Hormuz, crucial to oil and other exports, would be “completely closed” immediately if the U.S. follows up on President Donald Trump’s threat to attack its power plants. Trump late Saturday set a 48-hour deadline to open the strait.

Israeli leaders visited one of two southern communities near a secretive nuclear research site struck by Iranian missiles late Saturday, with scores of people wounded. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was a “miracle” no one was killed.

Netanyahu claimed Israel and the U.S. were well on their way to achieving their war goals. The aims have ranged from weakening Iran’s nuclear program, missile program and support for armed proxies to enabling the Iranian people to overthrow the theocracy.

There has been no sign of an uprising, nor of an end to the fighting that has shaken the global economy, sent oil prices surging and endangered some of the world’s busiest air corridors. The war, which the U.S. and Israel launched Feb. 28, has killed over 2,000 people.

The Iranian-backed Hezbollah claimed responsibility for an airstrike that killed a man in northern Israel, while Lebanese President Joseph Aoun called Israel’s new targeting of bridges in the south “a prelude to a ground invasion.”

“More weeks of fighting against Iran and Hezbollah are expected for us,” said Israeli military spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin.

Meanwhile, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates said early Monday their air defenses were dealing with missile and drone attacks as air raid sirens sounded in Bahrain.

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