Nuclear Iran

[em2nought]

Originally Posted by Ostfriese

Both Iranian President Raisi and Iranian Foreign Minister Abdollahian together with seven other people aboard the helicopter died in the crash Dargo mentioned in the previous posting.


Both had a lot of influence in Iran, and Raisi was often mentioned as the most likely successor to Ayatollah Khameni, Iran's supreme leader. Even though Raisi and Abdollahian had less power than their western counterparts their deaths result a substantial power vacuum in Iran.

Well, that's a good start!

[Shadowblade]

Originally Posted by Ostfriese

Both Iranian President Raisi and Iranian Foreign Minister Abdollahian together with seven other people aboard the helicopter died in the crash Dargo mentioned in the previous posting.


Both had a lot of influence in Iran, and Raisi was often mentioned as the most likely successor to Ayatollah Khameni, Iran's supreme leader. Even though Raisi and Abdollahian had less power than their western counterparts their deaths result a substantial power vacuum in Iran.

just sending a nice song for that ride:

[Skybird]

This man has waded knee-deep in the blood of his people, probably hundreds of death sentences on his record, torture and support for international terrorism not even counted... Burn in hell, mister. Not a single tear from me. And I don't understand why the press has only had this story as its main headline since yesterday.

[Von Due]

https://www.theonion.com/iranian-pre...ain-1851488487

[em2nought]

Originally Posted by Von Due

https://www.theonion.com/iranian-pre...ain-1851488487

[ET2SN]

Originally Posted by Von Due

https://www.theonion.com/iranian-pre...ain-1851488487

Sky, it only happened yesterday. If they reported it a week before the crash, that would have stunk.

[Shadowblade]

I was reading about recording where Raisi was asking for permission to execute another 200 people - really evil bastard.

[Aktungbby]

...They've declared him "a martyr to Islam" presumably so can get his 72 virgins in Paradise? Lets hope he can "Raisi to the occasion"??! a few missing headscarves notwithstanding!

 

Thank god for an Amerian-made Bell helicoptor with no(sanctions) spare parts!

[em2nought]

You can't always get what you want...

[Shadowblade]

[Skybird]

Originally Posted by ET2SN

Sky, it only happened yesterday. If they reported it a week before the crash, that would have stunk.

[Shadowblade]

Originally Posted by Aktungbby

...They've declared him "a martyr to Islam" presumably so can get his 72 virgins in Paradise?

yeah, that is crazy - he did nothing to become a martyr, he just died in helicopter crash....

[Jimbuna]

Britain and American forces strike Houthi targets after spike in attacks on shipping

British and US forces have struck Houthi targets in Yemen in the fifth combined operation since January.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) confirmed the strikes took place on Thursday as part of a response to Houthi attacks on international shipping in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.

The MoD said intelligence confirmed two locations near Hudaydah were involved in the anti-shipping attacks, with buildings identified as housing drone ground control facilities and storage for long range drones.

Surface-to-air weapons were also believed to be on-site.

A set of Houthi facilities at Ghulayfiqah, further south on the Yemeni coast, were also identified as being involved in the command and control of the group's anti-shipping campaign.

According to the officials, American and British fighter jets and US ships hit a wide range of targets.

RAF Typhoon FGR4s conducted strikes on the target buildings at the three locations, using Paveway IV guided bombs.

The US F/A-18 fighter jets launched from the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier in the Red Sea, officials said.

Other US warships in the region also participated.

A total of 13 Houthi targets were struck.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said the UK "will not hesitate" to protect British interests.

He said last night's strikes were conducted "to further degrade the military capabilities of the Houthis and to prevent further attacks on international shipping".

"The strikes were taken in self-defence in the face of an ongoing threat that the Houthis pose," he said.

Asked whether this new round of strikes risked escalation with Iran, who back the Houthis, Mr Sunak said: "We have always said that we will not hesitate to protect British interests abroad and at home.

"There is an ongoing threat that the Houthis pose, 197 attacks since November, all our intelligence indicates that previous sets of strikes have been successful in degrading military capabilities of the Houthis: targeting supply, command and control launch sites for missiles and there is also a risk in inaction that would damage the global economy and further risk our international security."

The Houthi-run Al Masirah TV reported at least two deaths and 10 injuries from strikes against a radio building in Hodeidah's Al-Hawk district.

"As ever, the utmost care was taken in planning the strikes to minimise any risk to civilians or non-military infrastructure," the MoD said in a statement.

"Conducting the strikes in the hours of darkness should also have mitigated yet further any such risks."

The Houthis have launched more than 50 attacks on shipping, seized one vessel and sunk another since November, according to the US Maritime Administration.

The strikes came a day after a US MQ-9 Reaper drone went down in Yemen, and the Houthis released footage they said showed the aircraft being targeted with a surface-to-air missile in a desert region of the central Marib province.

It marked the third such downing this month alone.

Also earlier this week, missile attacks twice damaged a Marshall Islands-flagged, Greek-owned ship in the Red Sea off the coast of Yemen, with a private security firm saying radio traffic suggested the vessel took on water after being struck.

While no group claimed responsibility, suspicion fell on the Houthis.

The US has also been carrying out almost daily strikes to take out Houthi targets, including incoming missiles and drones aimed at ships, as well as weapons that were prepared to launch.
https://news.sky.com/story/britain-a...pping-13145855

[Otto Harkaman]

What is the latest news on the USS Eisenhower?

The USS Dwight D. Eisenhower (CVN-69) has been in the news recently due to its extended deployment in the Red Sea. The carrier, along with its strike group, has been active in intercepting and targeting Houthi munitions and drones in response to attacks on commercial shipping lanes around Yemen. This deployment, which began in October 2023, has now been extended for an additional month due to ongoing threats from the Houthis​ (USNI News)​​ (Task & Purpose)​.

The Eisenhower carrier strike group includes the destroyers USS Gravely and USS Mason, as well as the cruiser USS Philippine Sea. It comprises approximately 6,000 sailors. The strike group has been conducting flight operations and defensive measures to ensure maritime security in the region​ (Task & Purpose)​.

Additionally, the USS Eisenhower moved north through the Red Sea towards Israel as a show of deterrence against potential threats from Iran, highlighting its strategic importance in maintaining stability and security in the region​ (The Times of Israel)​.


What other naval forces are in the Red Sea currently?

Currently, the Red Sea hosts a significant presence of naval forces from multiple countries due to ongoing regional tensions and the need to secure maritime routes. The United States leads a multinational task force known as Operation Prosperity Guardian, which aims to protect merchant ships from threats such as drones and missiles launched by Houthi rebels in Yemen. This operation includes contributions from the United Kingdom, Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, and Spain​ (Breaking Defense)​​ (Defense News)​.

The US-led Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) also operate in the region, specifically through Commander Task Force 153 (CTF-153), which focuses on maritime security in the Red Sea, Bab al-Mandeb Strait, and the Gulf of Aden​ (Seapower)​. This task force comprises ships from various member nations and aims to counter activities like human trafficking and smuggling, as well as threats from Houthi missile attacks.

Additionally, the European Union has launched its own mission, EUNAVFOR Operation Aspides, to safeguard maritime security and ensure freedom of navigation in the Red Sea​ (Breaking Defense)​.
Other notable naval forces in the Red Sea include the Israeli Navy, which has conducted submarine exercises in the area​ (The Times of Israel)​, and contributions from countries such as Italy and France, which have deployed multimission frigates to support these international security efforts​ (Defense News)​.

[Jimbuna]

Yemen's Houthi rebels detain at least 9 UN staffers and others in sudden crackdown, officials say

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — At least nine Yemeni employees of United Nations agencies have been detained by Yemen's Houthi rebels under unclear circumstances, authorities said Friday, as the rebels face increasing financial pressure and airstrikes from a U.S.-led coalition. Others working for aid groups also likely have been taken.

The detentions come as the Houthis, who seized Yemen's capital nearly a decade ago and have been fighting a Saudi-led coalition since shortly after, have been targeting shipping throughout the Red Sea corridor over the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip.

But while gaining more attention internationally, the secretive group has cracked down at dissent at home, including recently sentencing 44 people to death.
Regional officials, speaking to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because they weren't authorized to brief journalists, confirmed the U.N. detentions. Those held include staff from the U.N. human rights agency, its development program, the World Food Program and one working for the office of its special envoy, the officials said. The wife of one of those held is also detained.

The U.N. declined to immediately comment.

The Mayyun Organization for Human Rights, which similarly identified the U.N. staffers held, named other aid groups whose employees were detained by the Houthis across four provinces that the Houthis hold — Amran, Hodeida, Saada and Saana.

“We condemn in the strongest terms this dangerous escalation, which constitutes a violation of the privileges and immunities of United Nations employees granted to them under international law, and we consider it to be oppressive, totalitarian, blackmailing practices to obtain political and economic gains,” the organization said in a statement.

Many of the groups mentioned didn't immediately acknowledge the detentions.

One that did, Save the Children, told the AP that it was “concerned of the whereabouts of one of our staff members in Yemen and doing everything we can to ensure his safety and well-being.” The group declined to elaborate.

Activists, lawyers and others also began an open online letter, calling on the Houthis to immediately release those detained, because if they don't, it “helps isolate the country from the world.”

Yemen's Houthi rebels and their affiliated media organizations didn't acknowledge the detentions. However, the Iranian-backed rebels did report new U.S.-led airstrikes Friday hitting around the Red Sea port city of Hodeida. Several hit Hodeida's airport, the Houthi-controlled SABA news agency said, where the rebels are believed to have launched attacks previously targeting shipping in the region.

It's unclear what exactly sparked the detentions. However, it comes as the Houthis have faced issues with having enough currency to support the economy in areas they hold — something signaled by their move to introduce a new coin into the Yemeni currency, the riyal. Yemen’s exiled government in Aden and other nations criticized the move, saying the Houthis are turning to counterfeiting.

Aden authorities also have demanded all banks move their headquarters there as a means to stop the worst slide ever in the riyal's value and re-exert their control over the economy.

“Internal tensions and conflicts could spiral out of control and lead Yemen into complete economic collapse,” warned Yemeni journalist Mohammed Ali Thamer in an analysis published by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

Bloomberg separately reported Thursday that the U.S. planned to further increase economic pressure on the Houthis by blocking their revenue sources, including a planned $1.5 billion Saudi payment to cover salaries for government employees in rebel-held territory.

The war in Yemen has killed more than 150,000 people, including fighters and civilians, and created one of the world’s worst humanitarian disasters, killing tens of thousands more. The Houthis' attacks on shipping have helped deflect attention from their problems at home and the stalemated war. But they've faced increasing casualties and damage from U.S.-led airstrikes targeting the group for months now.

Thousands have been imprisoned by the Houthis during the war. An AP investigation found some detainees were scorched with acid, forced to hang from their wrists for weeks at a time or were beaten with batons. Meanwhile, the Houthis have employed child soldiers and indiscriminately laid mines in the conflict.

The Houthis previously have detained four other U.N. staffers — two in 2021 and another two in 2023 who still remain held by the militia group. The U.N.’s human rights agency in 2023 called those detentions a “profoundly alarming situation as it reveals a complete disregard for the rule of law.”

The Houthis are members of Islam’s minority Shiite Zaydi sect, which ruled northern Yemen for 1,000 years until 1962.
https://www.msn.com/en-gb/news/world...3f5b9c87&ei=18