iran

The Pic of the Day: Crisis Response Marines

A U.S. Marine assigned to the Special Purpose Marine-Air Ground Task Force – Crisis Response – Central Command 20.2, coaches shooters during combat marksmanship sustainment training in Kuwait, June 20, 2020. The combat marksmanship program is designed to improve the Marines accuracy and lethality with their service weapons. The SPMAGTF-CR-CC is a crisis response force, […]

The Iranian commando who became an American Green Beret

The first time Changiz Lahidji joined a Special Forces unit, his loyalty was to Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran. But he found himself guarding lavish parties in the middle of the desert, protecting the opulent ruler of Imperial Iran and his guests. It wasn’t exactly the life of adventure that John Wayne movies led […]

Iran to execute man accused of spying for the US and Israel

Iranian Judiciary spokesman, Gholamhossein Esmaili, announced that Iran will soon execute an informant who allegedly gave the United States and Israeli forces information on General Qassem Soleimani. According to Iran, the information led to the airstrike that killed Soleimani in January. Esmaili said, “Mahmoud Mousavi-Majd, one of the spies for [the Central Intelligence Agency] and […]

Assad fires prime minister as Syria edges closer to becoming a failed state

With Syria’s economy on the verge of collapse, the country’s currency is plunging to record lows. Although Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad has thus far survived the decade-long civil war, his hold on the country now seems more tenuous than ever. Assad, on Thursday, fired prime minister Imad Khamis, state media reported. They did not give […]

Unknown drones whack Iranian militia base in Syria

An Iranian proxy militias’ base, in the eastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor, was hit by airstrikes. The attack killed at least 12 militias, who were reportedly from Iraq and Afghanistan. This attack comes just a few days after an Iranian base in Misyaf was similarly wracked by airstrikes. The U.K.-based Syrian Observatory for Human […]

Israeli Air Force targets Iranian troops and arms depots in Syria

Syrian state media outlet SANA reported on Thursday that Israeli jets flying over Lebanese airspace hit military targets in northwestern Hama province. This is the latest airstrike against Iranian troops and their installations. Earlier Syrian state media reported that Syrian army air defenses thwarted a missile attack on Misyaf city in northwestern Hama province. However, […]

Former U.S. Navy Sailor is released by Iran in prisoner swap

After two years of being incarcerated in Iran, former Navy Sailor Michael White was released on Thursday after the United States deported Sirous Asgari, an Iranian scientist who was acquitted last year on charges of trying to steal trade secrets. Asgari was being held in an ICE facility.  The U.S. also terminated a case in […]

Israel continues to pound Iranian targets within Syria

On Sunday, five Iran-backed fighters were killed in an airstrike in eastern Syria near the border with Iraq the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a U.K.-based war monitor reported. The head of SOHR, Rami Abdul Rahman said that the airstrike targeted three military vehicles belonging to Iran-backed paramilitary fighters near the Iraqi border town […]

Why the US will never fully back an independent Kurdistan

The ongoing ethnic and religious strife in Iraq creates an opportunity for Kurdish nationalists to realize their aspirations and declare independence. Although the Kurds are a nation with a common culture, a shared identity, and have civic organizations that pursue nationalistic-type goals, they still do not have an internationally recognized state. And as we shall […]

Iranian tanker defies US sanctions and reaches Venezuela

An Iranian tanker defied U.S. sanctions and reached Venezuela. The Iranian vessel is the first in a fleet of five tankers that have been sent to help the regime of Nicholas Maduro. The oil ferried by the tankers will provide a much-needed injection in the Venezuelan economy, which has been crippled by U.S. sanctions. On […]

Iranians strike their own ship in a friendly-fire incident, 19 dead

An Iranian warship was “accidentally hit by a missile” fired by another Iranian ship during an exercise in the Gulf of Oman. The accident killed 19 Iranian sailors and wounded 15 more.  The stricken support ship Konarak was hit by a new anti-ship missile being tested by the frigate Jamaran during an exercise on Sunday. […]

Continuous Israeli pounding makes Iran rethink its footprint in Syria

Since the 2011 Civil War in Syria began, the Iranians have seen a huge window of opportunity to not only increase their influence throughout the region, but to get their troops and, more importantly, their missiles on the border of their most hated enemy — Israel.   The combination of Iranian and Russian intervention has […]