Free Republic

The U.S. military, which has been responding to Iran’s loitering drone attacks, has finally adopted Ukraine’s air defense technology. As low-cost drones continued to damage high-value military assets, it is interpreted that the U.S. has deployed Ukraine’s combat-proven response system at key Middle Eastern bases. On the 22nd, Reuters reported, citing multiple sources, that the U.S. has deployed Ukraine’s command and control platform at Prince Sultan Airbase in Saudi Arabia, a key military asset in the Middle East, to defend against Iranian drones.… Ukrainian military officers are reported to have visited the base over recent weeks to train U.S. forces...

According to the report, air defense activity, including sounds of explosions and anti-aircraft fire, was heard in several districts of the city. Iranian media described the response as intercepting incoming threats. Iran’s state-run Mehr News Agency reported Thursday evening that Iranian air defense systems were actively engaging what it described as “hostile targets” in parts of the capital, Tehran. What We Know So Far Mehr News and other semi-official outlets (including Nour News) confirmed the activation of air defenses. Eyewitness videos circulating on social media show flashes in the night sky, plumes of smoke, and what appears to be ground-based...

President Trump has told confidants that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is "begging" for a job in Trump's administration — including attorney general — Axios has learned. •DeSantis also has expressed interest in being secretary of defense and even a spot on the U.S. Supreme Court, according to six sources briefed on the discussions.

Donald Trump's naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz is unraveling after dozens of Iranian vessels secretly slipped past US surveillance, even as the regime tightened its grip on the critical oil passageway by attacking three tankers. Approximately 34 Iranian oil tankers have slipped through the blockade, with 19 vessels exiting the Persian Gulf past Trump's navy and another 15 ships entering from the Arabian Sea toward Iran, according to the Financial Times. Six of those tankers were smuggling Iranian crude oil totaling 10.7 million barrels, estimated to be worth approximately $910 million in revenue for the regime. The report...

Concern about the status of U.S. munitions inventories has intensified as reports emerge about high expenditures of Tomahawks, Patriots, and other missiles in the Iran war. As Operation Epic Fury remains paused in a shaky ceasefire, there is an opportunity to assess whether the U.S. military nears the point of going “Winchester”—or running out of ammunition. Analysis of seven key munitions shows that the United States has enough missiles to continue fighting this war under any plausible scenario. The risk—which will persist for many years—lies in future wars. In the 39 days of the air and missile campaign before the...

Iran’s parliamentary speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf sent a direct warning to President Donald Trump Monday on X, saying that Iran will not accept negotiations with the U.S. while under threat. "Trump, by imposing a blockade and violating the ceasefire, seeks, in his view, to turn the negotiating table into a table of surrender or to justify renewed warmongering," he said. "We do not accept negotiations under the shadow of threat, and over the past two weeks, we have prepared to reveal new cards on the battlefield," Ghalibaf added. Ghalibaf led the Iranian delegation in talks with Vice President J.D. Vance...

This map provides yet more evidence there was no long-game strategy behind Trump's decision to launch the catastrophic 28 Feb sneak attack on Iran. The entire world may crash into a great depression, and even famine, but island nations will suffer the most. And island nations are many of our most important allies.The INSTC cuts shipping time from Russia to India in normal times, and during the shutdown of the Strait of Hormuz, it still connects Iran to all of Asia.The North-South route also means Russia is less dependent on sending ships through the Baltic, North Sea, North Atlantic and...

According to retired CIA analyst Larry Johnson: During an emergency meeting On Saturday Trump tried to “use the nuclear codes” on Iran and he was stopped by General Dan Caine. According to Johnson “there is seriously something wrong with Trump.”

US intelligence assessments have suggested that Iran likely still has access to around 70 percent of its pre-war ballistic missile stockpiles, and around 60 percent of its missile launchers, The New York Times reports. It also still retains around 40% of its drone arsenal, the report says, citing US intelligence and military officials. According to the Times, when a two-week ceasefire came into effect between Iran and the US on April 8, Tehran had access to around half of its ballistic missile launchers. Since then, the report says it has managed to dig out another 100 launchers from under the...

The Speaker of Iran's Parliament has declared the opening of the Strait of Hormuz null and void. In a tweet posted on X, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf accused President Trump of violating the deal opening the Strait of Hormuz and said the Strait is now closed."With the continuation of the blockade, the Strait of Hormuz will not remain open."Meanwhile, CENTCOM said today they will continue the blockade until Trump tells them not to. https://t.co/1zFz6q3MVt— Natasha Bertrand (@NatashaBertrand) April 17, 2026"With the continuation of the blockade, the Strait of Hormuz will not remain open."Meanwhile, CENTCOM said today they will continue the blockade...

Two images of the rationed meals served to crews deployed to the Middle East have gone viral online, sparking concern about the conditions aboard U.S. warships and reports of dwindling food supplies.In the images, taken anonymously and provided by families to USA Today on Thursday, one tray contains little more than shredded meat and a single tortilla, and another depicts what relatives described as an unidentifiable “grey” processed slab alongside vegetables.

Iranian Parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf on Thursday took credit for the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon, which officially went into effect at midnight. In a post on social media, Ghalibaf claimed that “the ceasefire was nothing but a result of Hezbollah's steadfastness and the unity of the Axis of Resistance." He further wrote that “we will deal with this ceasefire with caution, and we will remain together until the full realization of victory." The comments come a day after Ghalibaf insisted that no ceasefire in Iran would be possible without the inclusion of Lebanon. “The completion and consolidation of...

President Donald Trump has slipped underwater with one of the most important blocs in his political coalition, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS, which found his net approval among white working-class voters turned negative for the first time in his second term. The survey, conducted March 26 to March 30 among 1,201 adults, showed Trump at 49% approval and 50% disapproval with white non-college voters, a narrow but politically notable reversal for a group that helped drive his return to the White House. The shift matters because white working-class voters have long been central to Trump's electoral...

... Vance's popularity has dropped by 21% since the start of the term in 2025. Compared to other Vice Presidents in recent history, he holds the worst rating at this stage of a term, with a score of -18.

Donald Trump's dramatic climbdown from his chilling threat to wipe out Iran's civilization has exposed the limits - and the rising risks - of the U.S. president's typically unpredictable negotiating style. His decision on Tuesday to back down and agree to a two-week ceasefire – which critics mockingly called another example ​of “TACO,” or “Trump always chickens out” – marked the biggest step so far toward de-escalating a 40-day-old war that has shaken the Middle East and disrupted global energy markets. But Trump’s claims of victory over Iran overlooked questions about ‌the effectiveness of mixing maximalist demands, erratic rhetoric and...

At a secret Feb. 11 Situation Room meeting, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu presented a four-part pitch for regime change, including a video montage of potential replacement leaders such as Reza Pahlavi. JD Vance was absent, stuck in Azerbaijan. Appearing alongside Mossad chief David Barnea and military officials, Netanyahu argued: Iran’s ballistic missile program could be destroyed in weeks. The regime would be too weak to close the Strait of Hormuz. Street protests — fomented with Mossad help — could trigger an uprising. Kurdish fighters from Iraq could open a ground front in the northwest. Trump’s response: “Sounds good to...

"#BREAKING: Iran has closed all diplomatic and indirect channels of communication with the United States, the state-run Tehran Times reported on Tuesday. "Any and all message exchanges have also been suspended."

Iran boasted Saturday that a new air defense system — credited with shooting down two US planes — will allow it to “definitely achieve full control” over its airspace as American and Israel forces continued to hammer the country. Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya joint military command made the bold claim on state media, Reuters reported. The besieged Islamic Republic could have used a Third Khordad missile system, a mobile medium-range surface-to-air defense system, to shoot down the F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet, The New York Times reported. Other experts suspect that Iran used passive infrared detection systems to track and target...

With Passover poised to begin Wednesday at sundown, a new poll shows a majority of American Jews oppose the joint U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, even as 90% of them say they oppose the Iranian regime. The poll, commissioned by J Street, the liberal Zionist advocacy and lobby group, found that 60% of U.S. Jews oppose the war and 77% do not believe “President Trump has a clear plan and mission for the war.” Another poll of U.S. Jews, by the Jewish Electorate Institute, released Monday, showed similar results, with 55% of American Jews opposing military action against Iran. The two...

“Brothers and sisters, this is our God: Jesus, King of Peace, who rejects war, whom no one can use to justify war,” the first American pope, citing a Bible passage, told congregants in St. Peter’s Square, according to The Associated Press. “He does not listen to the prayers of those who wage war, but rejects them,” he added.