Free Republic

President Donald Trump said Wednesday that the U.S. military has secretly helped 200 commercial ships and more than 100 million barrels of oil through the Strait of Hormuz. "This wildly successful effort is because the UNITED STATES of AMERICA CONTROLS the Strait of Hormuz — NOT Iran," Trump said in a Truth Social post. "Their military is defeated, and their economy is lost." Trump disclosed the operation earlier Wednesday during remarks to reporters in the Oval Office. He credited the clandestine exports with keeping oil prices around $90 per barrel instead of surging above $200. But ship traffic through Hormuz...

JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel’s latest strikes on Lebanon and Iran have made clear that U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who started the war in lockstep, want different things.Trump had publicly warned Israel not to strike Beirut in its war with Iran-backed Hezbollah militants. When it did, on Sunday, Iran responded by firing ballistic missiles at Israel for the first time since the April ceasefire. Israel then struck Iran, with which Trump has been engaged in weeks of high-stakes negotiations.The fighting has since died down, but the differences between the two leaders are likely to persist.That’s...

President Trump on Friday suggested that the War Powers Act, which requires presidents to seek congressional authorizations for foreign conflicts, is unconstitutional, as the Iran war hit 60 days, a key milestone under the Vietnam War-era law. The U.S. and Israel launched attacks against Iran on Feb. 28, but Trump formally notified Congress on March 2 about U.S. military operations against the country — 60 days ago Friday. Ahead of his departure for a weekend in Florida, Trump was asked whether he would now seek approval from lawmakers. “It’s never been sought before, there’s been numerous, many, many times and...

“Mojtaba Khamenei, 56, succeeded his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, following his assassination on February 28, but a string of reports have said he has been in a coma following an airstrike with some observers, including President Donald Trump, suggesting he is dead. Khamenei is apparently unaware both that there is a war on and that he is the country's new leader. His injuries have required him to be flown to Russia for an operation 'personally offered by Putin', according to news outlet Al-Jarida.”

Mojtaba Khamenei — the expected next supreme leader — was reportedly wounded in an Israeli air strike. The son of Iran’s slain Ayatollah Ali Khamenei survived an assassination attempt made by Israel during the devastating launch of Lion’s Roar military operation Feb. 28, which occurred in tandem with the US’s Operation Epic Fury, Times of Israel reported on Saturday. Other strikes in the joint military attack killed his father and roughly 40 other high-ranking Islamic Republic leaders. Also killed was Mojtaba’s wife, Zahra Haddad Adel, who came from a family long associated with the country’s theocracy. It’s not clear if...

President Trump announces attacks on Iran. Says Revolutionary Guard will have immunity if they throw down their arms. Certain death if they do not.

After Saturday's highly successful Israeli and U.S.-led decapitation strike on Iran's Islamist regime, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth issued a statement letting the remaining mullahs know that we're not done.Hegseth started by briefly laying out the regime's offenses and pointing out that President Trump is finally doing what others before him would not."Overnight, on President Trump’s orders, the Department of War commenced OPERATION EPIC FURY — the most lethal, most complex, and most-precision aerial operation in history."The Iranian regime had their chance, yet refused to make a deal — and now they are suffering the consequences. For almost fifty years,...

***Operation: Roaring Lion / Epic Fury*** In the joint military operations launched on 28 February 2026 (codenamed "Operation Epic Fury" by the US and "Roaring Lion" by Israel), the two nations focused on distinct but overlapping target sets to dismantle Iran's security apparatus and nuclear capabilities. The United States Targets: The US military focused on strategic infrastructure and high-level military capabilities: Nuclear Facilities: Primary targets included major sites like the Fordow Uranium Enrichment Plant, Natanz, and the Isfahan Nuclear Technology Center. Ballistic Missile Infrastructure: Broad strikes were aimed at missile production, storage, and launch sites to prevent counterattacks against US...