Free Republic

President Trump's announcement on Wednesday that he was launching an "Economic D-Day" on Iran has been met with a combination of bluster and panic in Tehran. The IRGC is huffing and puffing as usual, claiming they will cut undersea cables and isolate the Arab Gulf states from the Internet, shutting down the banking system in the region. One wag even suggested that brave Revolutionary Guards soldiers, whose claim to battlefield glory is to slaughter innocent children in the streets of Iranian cities, would invade Kuwait to seize U.S. bases there. I know a few former specops guys who are licking...

The U.S. Navy’s effort to establish a new route through the Strait of Hormuz and to shuttle tankers through it under cover of darkness appears to be a success so far. A lot of preparation went into this, involving both the destruction of Iranian surveillance and naval assets as well as clearing mines the Iranians had already emplaced in the straits. The U.S. naval presence likely prevented the Iranians from mass mine-laying using dedicated ships. Instead, they turned to small boats that could carry a single mine and would simply drop it at random. As a result, Iran has no...

U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee has warned militant Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank not to steal property owned by Palestinian ​Americans, describing such behavior as "a violation of God's law". Huckabee, a Baptist minister and longtime supporter of Israel's settlements, told Reuters in an interview ‌that settlers found to have taken part in a siege of homes in the West Bank village of Qusra, including one belonging to Palestinian American Loui Ridi, could be punished with U.S. sanctions. Israeli settlers began encircling homes in Qusra on August 9, in what rights groups said was an attempt to...

ActBlue co-founder Matt DeBergalis invoked his Fifth Amendment rights Thursday during a congressional deposition examining whether the Democratic fundraising platform’s fraud safeguards allowed illegal foreign donations to enter U.S. elections. DeBergalis appeared behind closed doors before investigators from the House Administration, Oversight and Judiciary committees. The deposition lasted less than 30 minutes, according to Fox News Digital. The three Republican-led committees are jointly investigating ActBlue, a major fundraising platform that has processed billions of dollars for Democratic candidates and liberal organizations. Invoking the Fifth Amendment is a constitutional right and does not establish wrongdoing. ActBlue has repeatedly denied violating campaign...

Earlier Friday, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said in public remarks that he believes it would be 'better to end the war today while we are in a position of strength and dignity.' Pezeshkian claimed that Tehran made zero 'concessions' to the US when it signed a memorandum of understanding with Trump in June. However, Iranians are dealing with a worsening cost of living crisis due to the country's inability to export oil, The Financial Times reported. Trump warned Thursday he will launch a campaign to crush Iran's economy and threatened 'tremendous' punishment on any country that does business with Tehran....

AI-powered cyberattacks are already here. Quantum computing could soon break the encryption underpinning the modern economy.

Sen. Darline Graham (R-SC) may have been crazy like a fox when she delivered what looked like an epic debate flub when she admitted “national security is not my thing,” said one state expert who has been watching the fallout. The comment had shades of a Joe Biden-style collapse when she uttered it Wednesday night in response to a question about Taiwan and the South China Sea during the only debate in the Senate Republican runoff race. But some political pros say it was a designed ploy to separate herself from her opponent Rep. Ralph Norman (R-S.C.). At a minimum,...

As I wrote at the time, Pres. Trump made a good deal in June, got the oil flowing, and left the Iranians with no leverage and few benefits. So the IRGC reneged on it in a few weeks and started shooting. Now we learn the U.S. Navy has set up a stealth convoy system for Hormuz that is taking 9-15 million barrels a day out of the Gulf, according to Energy Sec. Chris Wright. When you combine that with the 7-8 million barrels from the Hormuz bypass pipes, we are getting back to the pre-war normal of 20 million barrels...

A retired Russian spy general who ran a company supplying secure communications to Vladimir Putin’s Defence and Interior ministries has been found dead in Moscow. Major-General Igor Laptev’s body was discovered in his study at his apartment on Verkhnyaya Krasnoselskaya Street on August 20. The 83-year-old had a gunshot wound to the head, according to reports in Russia. As reported by pro-Kremlin newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets, it was claimed that the decorated former KGB and FSB officer had taken his own life. A possible motive has not been disclosed, nor is it clear whether a note was left. Details are also...

During a visit to Mayotte on Friday, France’s former Prime Minister Edouard Philippe vowed to crack down on immigration to the French overseas territory if he’s elected to the presidency next year. Mayotte is a popular destination for migrants from the African continent and the nearby Comoros islands seeking a better life. "That is why I have proposed taking back control by shutting off all the valves that can fuel immigration to the territory of Mayotte," Philippe, the founder and candidate of the centre-right Horizons party. "This means halting, for the duration of the next five-year term, all asylum applications...

China said on Friday (Aug 21) that United States "sanctions and pressure" would not resolve the Middle East conflict, after Washington urged governments including Beijing to join efforts to isolate the Iranian economy. The US has vowed it would "collapse" the Iranian regime with its threatened campaign, which Tehran has branded as "economic terrorism" doomed to fail, nearly six months since their war began. Asked about US President Donald Trump's threats, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lin Jian told reporters on Friday that "sanctions and pressure will not help resolve the issue". "China calls on all relevant parties to take responsible...

The US Navy is working to rename an aircraft carrier under construction that was set to honor a Black sailor hailed for his heroic actions during the attack on Pearl Harbor, three sources familiar with internal discussions told CNN.During President Donald Trump's first term, the Navy announced that the Ford-class carrier would be called the USS Doris Miller, recognizing an enlisted sailor who helped defend US forces from Japan's attack.It's unclear what the Navy is seeking to change the name of the carrier to, though two of the sources said there have been internal conversations about renaming it to honor...

At a conference I attended recently in DC, I had the chance to show a lot of my colleagues around the downtown monuments. For them, many from other countries, seeing the Lincoln, the Washington, the Capitol, was once in a lifetime – for me, it was Tuesday. At one point, a German in the group – fatigue in his voice – asked me, “Tell me… How can Americans keep voting for Trump?” The term Trump was shorthand for Americans’ embracing nationalism and rejecting globalism, which seems oh-so backwards to our European cousins. I think he expected me to dance around...

Residents of Kyiv are sleeping once again in overcrowded metro stations or in cars in underground garages. Above, the air war is turning into a turkey-shoot. Russia is bombarding the city with ever more ballistic and hypersonic missiles. Ukraine, which had previously thwarted most such attacks with Patriot anti-missile batteries, is “going Winchester”—military jargon for running out of ammunition. Ukraine’s plight is the most acute sign of the West’s shortage of interceptors. America’s depleted arsenal also helps explain why President Donald Trump has repeatedly retreated from threats to return to war with Iran. America’s allies are alarmed. Switzerland expects its...

I don’t know how familiar readers are with the term ‘accelerationism’. It is generally used to describe a tendency on the left, though is increasingly heard on the right too. The basic idea of accelerationism is that there are certain flaws in the societal structure which if pushed could bring things to their inevitable conclusion more quickly. It is why there are so many people on the left of politics who say that sustainable government spending should be discouraged. It is not just because they are economically illiterate. What they really hope is that a speeded-up financial disaster will expose...

North Korean IT workers are systematically infiltrating hundreds of global corporations, including multiple Fortune 500 companies and a U.S. government agency, by posing as remote tech freelancers. Fox News reports that federal law enforcement is warning that North Korean operatives posing as IT workers are applying for remote jobs at U.S. companies, and many are getting hired. SNIP>>> The scheme relies on advanced technical deception and physical coordination to maintain the illusion of being domestic remote workers, according to Skadden. The Federal News Network reports operatives are purchasing stolen American identities from the dark web and using artificial intelligence to...

You’re going to see this clip and wonder what the heck a civic agent is. It’s a bit hard to explain to an American, because we don’t really have anything like this, except for maybe a “mall cop.” In Spain, it’s a public-order officer who patrols Barcelona’s streets and public spaces, dealing with nuisance behavior and calling police when things get too serious. And according to local reports out of Barcelona and a clip shared by the UK’s Tommy Robinson, an unruly migrant was confronted by these “mall cops” and things got crazy pretty quickly. One of the civic agents...

Earthquakes are frequent in Peru which is part of the Pacific “Ring of Fire,” an area of frequent seismic activity.The USGS said the quake occurred at 1 p.m. local time (18:00 GMT) and was centered 38 kilometers (24 miles) northwest of the city of Upahuacho, in the Parinacochas province of the Ayacucho region. It had a depth of 66 kilometers (41 miles). The earthquake was felt in several regions of southern Peru, including Ica and Arequipa. Luis Vásquez, head of Civil Defense, told local radio station RPP that “no damage of any kind has been reported so far.” Yony Reyes,...

Key Takeaways « For 67 years, the Cuban regime has brutalized its own people to preserve its grip on power—imprisoning dissidents, suppressing fundamental freedoms, crushing free speech, destroying economic opportunity, separating families, driving millions into exile, exporting revolution and repression abroad, and relying on foreign patrons to sustain one of the world's longest-lasting communist dictatorships. « From Russia and China to Venezuela and Iran, Havana has repeatedly chosen to align with anti-American regimes and extra-hemispheric adversaries working to undermine U.S. interests, expand authoritarian influence in the Western Hemisphere, and threaten American national security. « Just 90 miles from Florida, the...

Videos on social media have shown angry drivers in Russia in bitter fights over gasoline as shortages caused by Ukraine’s strikes against oil facilities present an increasing headache for the Kremlin.Kremlin-backed media are reporting the extent of growing queues at the pump, including the newspaper Izvestia, which said gasoline was available at only 28 percent of gas stations, compared with 41 percent a week earlier. Reuters reported August 17 that fuel sales were restricted in at least 10 regions of Russia, that "Rosneft" set a limit of 30 liters per vehicle, "Tatneft" set a limit of 50 liters, and "Gazprom...