United States and Israel are bombing Iran

[Monty]

Iran’s mining the Strait of Hormuz, so llet’s move minesweepers away from the region.

The U.S. Navy Independence class Littoral Combat Ships (LCS) USS Tulsa and USS Santa Barbara , which are configured for minesweeping duties, have appeared in port in Malaysia. Both of these ships were last known to be forward-deployed in the Middle East, having arrived in Bahrain in the past year or so to take the place of a group of now-decommissioned Avenger class mine hunters. Now, as Iranian attacks on commercial ships have caused a virtual halt to maritime traffic through the highly strategic Strait of Hormuz, these ships have emerged thousands of miles away. The extent to which Iran has seeded naval mines in the Strait already is unclear, but this remains a huge threat to the future security of the waterway and will have to be taken into account in any future effort to reopen this critical waterway.

In response to Trump’s statement the Iranian government wants to talk, said government said nuh-unh.

(Bloomberg) – President Donald Trump said Iran is ready to make a deal to end the war but the US wants better terms, signaling no letup in a conflict that’s brought shipping in the strategic Strait of Hormuz to a near standstill and upended energy markets.

Separately, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the Islamic Republic hasn’t asked for talks or a ceasefire. “We don’t see any reason why we should talk with Americans, because we were talking with them when they decided to attack us, and that was for the second time,” he said in an interview aired Sunday on CBS’s .

He added that Iran will continue to defend itself until Trump accepts that he’s waging an “illegal war” with no chance of victory.

The Pope weighs in.

ROME (AP) — Pope Leo XIV demanded a ceasefire in the Middle East on Sunday in his strongest comments to date, directly addressing the leaders who launched the war in Iran.

“On behalf of the Christians of the Middle East and all women and men of good will, I appeal to those responsible for this conflict,” Leo said. “Cease fire so that avenues for dialogue may be reopened. Violence can never lead to the justice, stability, and peace that the people are waiting for.”

Leo didn’t cite the United States or Israel by name in his comments at the end of his Sunday noon blessing. But history’s first U.S. pope mentioned the attacks that targeted a school, an apparent reference to the missile strike on an elementary school in Iran in the opening days of the war that killed over 165 people, many of them children.

Iran is only blocking US and Israel from the Strait of Hormuz.

Other ships are free to pass, although many prefer not to due to “security concerns,” which Araghchi claimed have nothing to do with Iran.

The Strait of Hormuz is only closed to US and Israeli ships, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said in an interview with MS NOW on Saturday.

Other ships are free to pass, although many prefer not to due to “security concerns,” which Araghchi claimed have nothing to do with Iran. He added that currently there are “many tankers and ships that are passing through the Strait of Hormuz.”

UAE oil facility on fire.

The conflict between Iran and the U.S. and Israel is continuing to escalate with Iran threatening UAE oil ports and a drone attack soon following.

President Donald Trump announced on Friday strikes on Kharg Island, a hub where a majority of Iran’s oil goes through. He said military targets on the island were “obliterated.”

“Moments ago, at my direction, the United States Central Command executed one of the most powerful bombing raids in the History of the Middle East, and totally obliterated every MILITARY target in Iran’s crown jewel, Kharg Island,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Iran responded by threatening United Arab Emirates (UAE), specifically vowing to target “ports, docks and hideouts within” cities.

Reuters reported not long after those public threats that some oil-loading operations were suspended in the United Arab Emirates’ Fujairah emirate, citing sources. CNN and others later aired video showing the oil hub on fire.

US Embassy in Iraq struck by missiles.

Just after midnight in the U.S., Reuters reported on a missile attack in Baghdad:

March 14 (Reuters) – The U.S. ​Embassy in ‌the Iraqi capital Baghdad ​was ​hit in a ⁠missiles ​attack, Iraqi ​security sources told Reuters on ​Saturday.
The ​attack caused smoke ‌to ⁠rise from the embassy’s ​building, ​the ⁠sources said, without ​providing ​details ⁠on the damage.

According to The Associated Press, missiles hit a helipad inside the embassy no claim of credit has been made, but noted Iranian proxies have targeted the complex before:

No one immediately claimed responsibility for the strike on the embassy’s helipad. The embassy complex, one of the largest U.S. diplomatic facilities in the world, has been repeatedly targeted by rockets and drones fired by Iran-aligned militias.

There was no immediate comment from the embassy. On Friday, it renewed its Level 4 security alert for Iraq, warning that Iran and Iran-aligned militia groups have previously carried out attacks against U.S. citizens, interests and infrastructure and “may continue to target them.”

[iiandyiiii]

U.S. is allowing Iranian oil tankers through Strait of Hormuz, says Bessent

We’re letting Iranian tankers through the Strait.

Iran is winning this war. All they have to do is threaten shipping and not lose their regime. At this point, there doesn’t appear to be any new threat to either.

This is what happens when idiots start a war with no mission and no plan. What a fucking joke. The greatest military in human history and these clowns are making it into a joke.

[Alessan]

It seems as though Yeats was wrong - the worst lack all conviction, too.

[iiandyiiii]

What did you expect?

[dtilque]

@Alessan

It seems as though Yeats was wrong - the worst lack all conviction, too.

If we could get them in front of a jury, I’m sure that would change.

[What_Exit]

Moderating:

And this thread is not about something Yeats said. Drop it please.

[RickJay]

Summary

@Monty

Correct me if I’m wrong, but isn’t killing people just for fun a crime?

The guy’s a pedophile. Crime is his thing.

[What_Exit]

Moderating:

This thread is not about Trump. Please stop posting like @RickJay’s now hidden post.

Check the tags for an appropriate thread.
trump
iran-strikes-2026

[scudsucker]

@Der_Trihs

As demonstrated by his demand for an unconditional surrender where he gets to appoint a new leadership of his choice

At the risk of ignoring modnotes, this worked once: Japan under McArthur.

It has never worked again.

[Pardel-Lux]

This could just as well go into the Clusterfuck thread, but it fits better here, I think:

Germany’s government rejected U.S. President Donald Trump’s demand that NATO allies help secure the Strait of Hormuz, declaring that the alliance had no place in the war.

“This war has nothing to do with NATO. It’s not NATO’s war,” Stefan Kornelius, a spokesperson for German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, told reporters in Berlin on Monday. “NATO is a defensive alliance, an alliance for the defense of its territory,” he added.

Trump had warned NATO allies on Sunday they face a “very bad future” if they refuse to help secure the Strait of Hormuz

[…]

“I would also like to remind you that the U.S. and Israel did not consult us before the war, and that Washington explicitly stated at the start of the war that European assistance was neither necessary nor desired,” Kornelius said. [Kornelius is Chancellor Merz’ spokesperson]

Germany to Trump: We won’t help you reopen the Strait of Hormuz

[Ferris]

I was on Flight Radar yesterday and spotted no fewer than seven US Stratotankers leaving Tel Aviv. A bit of ChatGTP suggests that’s supporting a similar number of bombers so the aerial campaign looks like it’s pretty intense.

[Velocity]

As on-topic as I can write this so that I don’t get a mod-note, the true leverage to get the (unnamed head of state of the USA) to stop the war won’t be casualties or cost, but rather, convincing data that shows him that this will bode badly for the upcoming elections. Iran’s best strategy would be to find some way to convince the (unnamed head of state of the USA) that the electoral price will get worse and worse to pay the longer this war drags on. The Strait of Hormuz must be more convincingly tied into election results in a more visible, understandable way for him to understand.

And yes, all NATO allies had better stay out, so that the Strait can remained closed longer and the economic effects cannot be denied.

[aurora_maire]

@Ferris

I was on Flight Radar yesterday and spotted no fewer than seven US Stratotankers leaving Tel Aviv.

I keep an eye on Flightradar24. Right now there are eight south of Kuwait and one headed that direction. I’ve seen up to a dozen on some occasions, usually around Tel Aviv. But the last two days, they’ve mostly been around the Persian Gulf. I’ve noticed a NATO plane over Turkey most days. And Britain’s Royal Air Force is keeping a close eye on Cypress every day. I find it very interesting to watch.

[Pardel-Lux]

I think it is competly bonkers that the USA shows in real time where their refuelling planes are. Any competent military strategist can deduce a lot from those flights, specially when they depart from the usual patterns.
If I was someone with autority in the USA chain of command I would spoof those data. Anything else would be too incompetent even for the current government.

[Dinsdale]

@Pardel-Lux

I think it is competly bonkers that the USA shows in real time where their refuelling planes are.

Well, they do that to keep them from running into each other, of course! Wait a minute…

[Horatius]

@scudsucker

At the risk of ignoring modnotes, this worked once: Japan under McArthur.

It has never worked again.

And even there, they fudged it by allowing the Emperor to stay on the throne. He didn’t have much actual power, but the symbolism to the Japanese was quite powerful, and made it a lot easier for them to accept defeat.