IRGC Navy warns any vessel approaching Strait of Hormuz will face 'decisive action' Wednesday, 10 June 2026 11:48 PM [ Last Update: Wednesday, 10 June 2026 11:48 PM] https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2026/06/1 ... aggression
[x] IRGC Navy personnel patrolling the Strait of Hormuz. (File)
Shortly after the US military launched a fresh act of aggression against Iran early on Thursday, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy warned that any vessel approaching the strategic waterway would face decisive action.
It also confirmed the "immediate and complete" closure of the chokepoint as announced by Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, the country's top military command center.
The IRGC Navy further warned all oil tankers and commercial vessels currently operating in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman not to leave their anchorages. Approaching the Strait, it said, "will be considered cooperation with the enemy."
Citing "repeated violations of ceasefire conditions by the American enemy," the IRGC Navy said the closure would remain in effect until further notice. Commercial vessels were strictly advised to avoid transiting the strait for their own safety.
Citing "recent acts of aggression" by the American military, referring to the attacks in the past few days, the IRGC Navy described US forces in the region as a "terrorist army" and noted that increased insecurity in the region had prompted the measure.
"Effective immediately, the Strait of Hormuz is completely closed," the statement read. "Any vessel traffic in the Strait will be dealt with decisively."
The Strait of Hormuz is one of the world's most strategic chokepoints, through which roughly one-fifth of global petroleum consumption passes.
Press TV @PressTV
Iran’s top military command orders closure of Strait of Hormuz to all vessels after fresh US aggression https://t.co/p3LzD5El13
presstv.ir Iran’s top military command orders closure of Strait of Hormuz to all vessels after fresh US... Iran 5:27 PM · Jun 10, 2026
In the wee hours of Thursday morning, fresh explosions were reported across parts of Iran's Hormozgan province and other southern regions of the country, as the US military confirmed launching a new wave of unprovoked aggression against the Islamic Republic.
According to reports, explosions were heard in the counties of Sirik and Qeshm in Hormozgan, while air defense systems became active on Qeshm Island.
The attack followed the aggression carried out two days ago in the same region, which targeted, among other sites, two civilian water reservoirs in the coastal province.
Following the latest aggression on Thursday, Iran's top command unit ordered the closure of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
"From this moment, due to insecurity in the region, the Strait of Hormuz is declared closed to the passage of all vessels, including oil tankers and commercial ships, and any traffic will be targeted," the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters said in a statement.
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has firmly denied the claim made by US President Donald Trump regarding Iran contacting him directly to end the bombing.
In a statement early on Thursday, the IRGC’s public relations office said the US president’s claim is “a cover to escape war."
Earlier, some local news agencies had also rejected the claim, citing security sources.
A report in Tasnim News Agency called the claim an “absolute lie” and said Iran will give a “crushing response” to the latest act of US military aggression against Iran.
Trump told a Fox News correspondent that Iran had called him and asked him to stop bombing, adding that the bombing “will stop shortly."
In the wee hours of Thursday morning, fresh explosions were reported across parts of Iran's Hormozgan province and other southern regions of the country, as the US military confirmed launching a new wave of unprovoked aggression against the Islamic Republic.
IRGC Navy warns any vessel approaching Strait of Hormuz will face 'decisive action' Shortly after the US military launched a fresh act of aggression against Iran early on Thursday, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy warned that any vessel approaching the strategic... 5:55 PM · Jun 10, 2026
According to reports, explosions were heard in the counties of Sirik and Qeshm in Hormozgan, while air defense systems became active on Qeshm Island.
The attack followed the aggression carried out two days ago in the same region, which targeted, among other sites, two civilian water reservoirs in the coastal province.
Shortly after the US military launched a fresh act of aggression against Iran early on Thursday, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy warned that any vessel approaching the strategic waterway would face decisive action.
IRGC strikes 18 US military targets in two missile waves; Fifth Fleet in Bahrain hit by Army drones Thursday, 11 June 2026 12:59 AM [ Last Update: Thursday, 11 June 2026 1:01 AM ] https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2026/06/1 ... it-Bahrain
[x] File photo of Iranian missiles
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian Army have announced a series of coordinated retaliatory military operations targeting US military installations across the region, including assets in Bahrain.
The statements, issued in early Thursday, described the operations as a response to American aggression targeting various regions in southern Iran.
Press TV @PressTV Live coverage of recent developments in the US–Israeli war against Iran
The IRGC said its Aerospace Force and Navy conducted a retaliatory operation in two separate waves in reprisal for attacks on the Corps' coastal outposts and service units, law enforcement posts, and the Bandar Abbas airport area.
"Eighteen key targets belonging to the criminal US military" were struck and destroyed at the Ali al-Salem and Ahmad al-Jaber airbases in Kuwait, as well as the Sheikh Isa airbase in Bahrain.
Drone strikes against US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain
Separately, the Army's Public Relations Office reported a drone operation targeting the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.
"In response to a ceasefire violation and attacks on parts of southern Iran, the Islamic Republic of Iran's Army used various explosive-laden drones to strike the US Fifth Fleet," the office noted.
It added that communication antennas and radar systems associated with the fleet’s Patriot air defense system were targeted in the counterstrikes.
The Army said its forces remained fully prepared for further confrontation and would continue operations until the "punishment of the aggressor" was completed.
Meanwhile, the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, Iran's highest operational command unit, also issued a statement, attributing the halt brought about to the latest round of the aggression to "powerful and decisive response" by the armed forces.
Also on Thursday, US President Donald Trump said US bombing in Iran would stop shortly, claiming that senior Iranian officials had called to ask him to halt the latest attack.
The IRGC, however, categorically rejected the claim, calling it "a cover to escape war."
Press TV @PressTV https://t.co/qDklwvk2Cy Trump's claim of direct talks with Iran false and a 'cover to escape war': IRGC presstv.ir Trump's claim of direct talks with Iran false and a 'cover to escape war': IRGC The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) has firmly denied the claim made by US President Donald Trump regarding Iran contacting him directly to end the bombing. 6:55 PM · Jun 10, 2026
The headquarters further stated that the Iranian military response to US atrocities would continue, without specifying timing or scope.
The coordinated retaliation came after fresh explosions were reported across parts of Hormozgan and other southern regions of the Islamic Republic, as the US military confirmed launching a new wave of unprovoked assaults against the country.
Press TV @PressTV https://t.co/cneJyYTJnn US continues its unwarranted aggression against Iran with fresh strikes in south presstv.ir 4:16 PM · Jun 10, 2026
In response to the latest aggression, the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters has also ordered closure of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
"From this moment, due to insecurity in the region, the Strait of Hormuz is declared closed to the passage of all vessels, including oil tankers and commercial ships, and any traffic will be targeted," the command unit said in a statement.
IRGC aerospace commander: We will turn region into hell for those making Strait of Hormuz insecure Thursday, 11 June 2026 1:12 AM [ Last Update: Thursday, 11 June 2026 1:12 AM ] https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2026/06/1 ... uzinsecure
[x] Brigadier General Sayed Majid Mousavi, the commander of the IRGC aerospace division. (File)
The commander of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) aerospace force has issued a strongly worded warning to the United States, vowing to turn the region into "hell" if Washington continues to threaten the security of the Strait of Hormuz.
"Are you trying to make the holy Strait of Hormuz insecure?" Brigadier General Sayed Majid Mousavi said in a social media post in the early hours of Thursday.
"We will turn the region into hell for you from across all of Iran. This is Iran's response to the Americans' audacity in the region, God willing."
His warning came hours after the US military carried out a fresh act of aggression against the Islamic Republic, targeting multiple cities in southern Iran.
In response, Iran's top military command announced the complete closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a vital chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of global petroleum passes.
In a separate statement, the IRGC Navy warned that any vessel approaching the strategic waterway would face decisive action.
Press TV @PressTV https://t.co/rFezsyWsE9 IRGC Navy warns any vessel approaching Strait of Hormuz will face 'decisive action' presstv.ir IRGC Navy warns any vessel approaching Strait of Hormuz will face 'decisive action' Shortly after the US military launched a fresh act of aggression against Iran early on Thursday, the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy warned that any vessel approaching the strategic... 5:55 PM · Jun 10, 2026
It further warned all oil tankers and commercial vessels currently operating in the Persian Gulf and the Sea of Oman not to leave their anchorages.
Meanwhile, in response to the latest aggression, IRGC aerospace and naval divisions carried out coordinated attacks on 18 American military targets across the region.
Iran had previously warned the US and its allies against resorting to military adventurism, a warning issued amid a stalemate over negotiations to end the third imposed war.
The third war of aggression against Iran was launched by the US-Israeli coalition on February 28, prompting Iran to respond forcefully by targeting US bases across the region.
June 10: Iran strikes US bases across region in response to attacks on water reservoirs by Press TV Website Staff Thursday, 11 June 2026 1:32 AM [ Last Update: Thursday, 11 June 2026 1:32 AM ] https://www.presstv.ir/Detail/2026/06/1 ... reservoirs
Several locations in Iran’s southern province of Hormozgan came under fresh US attack, prompting retaliatory operations by Iran’s armed forces against American military bases and assets in Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait.
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) also shot down a US MQ-9 drone near the Strait of Hormuz, while Iranian officials vowed a decisive response to continued US aggression and reaffirmed the country’s determination to defend its rights, infrastructure and national sovereignty.
Iran also rejected a new 'flawed" IAEA Board of Governors resolution, describing it and related UN actions as politically motivated measures lacking a legal basis.
Key developments on day 103 of the war, the 63rd day of the ceasefire:
• Several locations in the southern Iranian province of Hormozgan were hit by US projectiles early on Wednesday, in yet another act of unprovoked and illegal military aggression. • Iran's armed forces launched retaliatory operations against US military targets in Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait in response to fresh American military aggression against the country. • The IRGC shot down an American MQ-9 drone near the Strait of Hormuz amid intensifying military clashes triggered by US aggression and repeated violations of a ceasefire. • Iran's armed forces dealt a heavy blow to US bases and assets in the region that were the origin of American aggression against Iran, foreign ministry said. • Iran’s mission to the United Nations and other international organizations in Vienna said the Islamic Republic will protect its rights in response to a “flawed” resolution passed by the UN nuclear agency’s Board of Governors. • Iran's mission to the United Nations dismissed a Security Council meeting convened on the country's nuclear program as "another display of hypocrisy," stressing that there is no legal basis for invoking an expired resolution to target Tehran with sanctions. • President Masoud Pezeshkian reaffirmed that the Islamic Republic will never bow to threats, pressure, or military aggression. • President Pezeshkian dismissed US threats to attack Iran’s power plants, bridges and water networks as a sign of “desperation” rather than power, saying the Islamic Republic will stand firm against any pressure through national unity and homegrown expertise. • Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said any act of aggression against the Islamic Republic will be met with an immediate and decisive response, as the country’s scientific and defensive progress remains unstoppable despite the martyrdom of its commanders and scientists. • Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned the United States that its most recent spate of attacks on southern Iranian areas "will not go unanswered." • The spokesman for Iran’s armed forces, Brigadier General Abolfazl Shekarchi, vowed a “harsher, stronger and more crushing” response to any US threat, amid escalating rhetoric from US President Donald Trump. • Iran said the US is undermining diplomatic efforts by sending contradictory messages, repeatedly changing its demands, and violating the ceasefire. • Abdolhamid Hamzehpour, the managing director of the Hormozgan Water and Wastewater Company, said pre-dawn US strikes completely destroyed critical water infrastructure in the eastern part of the province, leaving more than 20,000 residents without access to drinking water in the hot summer. • Major General Ali Abdollahi, the commander of the Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters, thanked Iranians for 100 consecutive nights of nationwide street rallies, describing the unprecedented mass gatherings as a manifestation of a "new resurrection" of the nation. • Ebrahim Rezaei, a member and spokesman of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee, censured the United States for exercising double standards when it comes to treating incidents that have occurred during the US-Israeli war of aggression on Iran. • Iran called on Shanghai Cooperation Organization member states to take joint action to safeguard the country's scientific infrastructure after research centers, laboratories and strategic technology facilities were damaged in recent US-Israeli strikes. • Satellite images revealed apparent damage at the Israeli military's Ramat David Airbase in northern Israeli-occupied territories following an Iranian ballistic missile attack launched in retaliation for Israeli strikes on Beirut's southern suburbs. • Ihab Hamadeh, a Lebanese legislator from Hezbollah’s political wing, warned that there would be no security for Israeli settlers anywhere in the occupied territories as long as calm and security have not been fully restored to Lebanon.
[x] Screengrab from footage released by the IRGC on June 11, 2026, shows moments after the launch of missiles against US targets in response to earlier American aggression on Iranian soil.
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) says it fired 12 ballistic missiles at the US-operated al-Azraq air base in Jordan in response to the missile attacks by Washington against the Islamic Republic.
In a statement on Thursday, the IRGC said that its Aerospace Force hit American F-35, F-15, and F-16 fighter jets and important facilities of the “terrorist US army” located at the airbase and a command-and-control center.
The missile attack destroyed the base’s facilities and a large number of the fighter jets, it added.
Press TV @PressTV IRGC:
12 ballistic missiles targeted facilities housing US F-35, F-15, and F-16 fighter jets, as well as key military installations at Al-Azraq air base and its control center, with reports of significant damage and destruction of aircraft and infrastructure. https://twitter.com/i/status/2064908556982235182 9:12 PM · Jun 10, 2026
The IRGC warned that operations would continue as long as the enemy’s mischief persists.
Meanwhile, Iran’s Khatam al-Anbiya Central Headquarters announced in a statement on Thursday that the Armed Forces would continue to respond to the acts of aggression and mischief of the United States.
“The cessation of the US attacks on areas in southern Iran, as announced by the president of that country, is due to the powerful and crushing response of the Islamic Republic of Iran's Armed Forces, through which another defeat has been inflicted upon that country's military,” it said.
Iran’s highest operational command unit also reiterated the Armed Forces’ firm determination to respond to the US aggression and mischief.
PressTV Extra Jun 10, 2026 @PresstvExtra
Live coverage of recent developments in the US–Israeli war against Iran Check the thread
In statements issued early Thursday, the IRGC and the Iranian Army announced a series of coordinated retaliatory military operations targeting US military installations across the region, including assets in Bahrain.
The IRGC said its Aerospace Force and Navy conducted a retaliatory operation in two separate waves in reprisal for attacks on the Corps' coastal outposts and service units, law enforcement posts, and the Bandar Abbas airport area.
Separately, the Army's Public Relations Office reported a drone operation targeting the headquarters of the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain.
IRGC strikes 18 US military targets in two missile waves; Fifth Fleet in Bahrain hit by Army drones The IRGC and the Iranian Army announce a series of coordinated retaliatory military operations targeting US military installations across the region.
Iran’s response came after the US President Donald Trump ordered a fresh round of aggression against Iran last night in a clear breach of a ceasefire that took effect on April 8. He later told Fox News that American forces had launched 49 Tomahawk missiles in the latest attacks.
Israel Must Be Stopped’: Erdogan Vows To Stop Netanyahu In Fiery Parliament Speech | Iran | Lebanon Hook Global Jun 10, 2026
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan delivers one of his strongest attacks yet on Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, warning that growing regional tensions could have far-reaching consequences. In a fiery address to parliament, Erdogan accuses Israel of destabilizing the Middle East and calls for urgent international action. His remarks come amid escalating concerns over Iran, Lebanon, Syria, and security across the region.
Transcript
Chapter 1: Erdogan Condemns Israel In Fiery Speech
Since Israel's inception, it has continuously served a function that threatens peace, tranquility, prosperity, and security in our region. The occupation of Palestine, and the genocide against Palestinians, continues systematically. Look, 73,000 innocent people have been slaughtered in Gaza before the eyes of the whole world. This genocide continues both in terms of its massacre scale, and its inhumane isolation. Israel, which has carried out the bloodiest genocide in human history, has simultaneously attacked Iran, and not content with that, has begun to occupy Lebanon.
Despite the reactions of regional countries, primarily Turkey, Israel refuses to withdraw from Lebanon, and continues its bloody operations there. Since the 2nd of March, the number of those murdered in Lebanon has reached 3,700, and the number of wounded has reached 11,400. Israel has also engaged in a sinister effort to destabilize African countries in the Mediterranean.
Simultaneously, the Zionist administration is truly a troublemaker, a factory of discord, constantly generating unrest across a vast geography. Unfortunately, the world is failing to show the necessary reaction to Israel's lawless, rulebreaking policies that recognize no principles, values, or borders.
Chapter 2: Israel Has Become A Threat To Humanity Under the current government, Israel has become increasingly emboldened, turning into a threat not only to the region, but to all of humanity. The attacks by Netanyahu and his network of murderers against Syria and Lebanon have reached a point that threatens Turkey as much as these two brotherly countries. I want everyone to know this once and for all.
Chapter 3: Turkey's Security & Regional Red Lines Syria and Lebanon are two separate independent states. However, these two states, meaning Syria and Lebanon, are also two states that are located within Turkeykey's geography of love and brotherhood. Damascus and Beirut are two sister cities of Istanbul. Turkeykey's security does not just start from Hatai. It starts from Aleppo. It starts from Damascus. Turkeykey's security starts from Beirut. We will not tolerate any fat accomplish in the countries of our brothers. We will not turn a blind eye to any attack against our brothers. Now they and their hitmen are coming forward. They are making socalled threats here and there targeting Turkey. There is no need for you to say this at all. We already know your intentions, your purpose, and your goal very well. We see clearly what you are chasing after. We are well aware of what the ultimate goal of the promised land delusion is. With God's permission, we will never allow this. Chapter 4: New Warning Over Mediterranean Tensions We now see that a fire of discord is being ignited in the Mediterranean, especially on the island of Cyprus. And we are following these developments very closely. Some smallcale entities whose ambitions far exceed their stature have boarded Israel's boat of discord and taken on the role of subcontractors for Zionism. They are supposedly chasing some idol dreams in the Eastern Mediterranean. I am stating this very clearly. Let no one chase after adventures. No one should tag along with the Zionist massacre network. If the rights and laws of Turkey and the Turkish criates in the Eastern Mediterranean are targeted, I want it to be known that our response will be very clear and very harsh. Chapter 5: Comparing Today's Crisis To History's Lessons My dear friends, Israel emboldened by the silence of the international community is acting extremely recklessly preventing our region from achieving total peace, stability, and security. Bringing Israel back within the bounds of the law has now become a common cause for all of humanity, not just for certain countries. The attacks on Iran and Lebanon have created a negative impact not only on the countries in the region but also on a global scale. Therefore, Israel's aggressive stance is a threat to humanity along with our region. 85 years ago, the silence and inaction in the face of Hitler led to the loss of 80 million lives worldwide. All of humanity paid the price for the madness of a bloodthirsty maniac. Today, the same mistake is being repeated. The genocides committed by the butcher of Gaza Netanyahu and his cabinet are being watched with the same great silence and inaction as was done with Hitler. Let no one forget that when a fire grows, it does not just burn the region, its sparks fall all over the world. Just as the whole world is paying the price for the impass in Homus today, if Israeli banditry is not stopped, all of humanity along with the region will suffer the consequences. It is a historical responsibility for other countries to show the same courage and common sense that Spain has shown in Europe. Today, the blood of the ongoing genocide in Gaza has stained the hands and faces of those who remain indifferent to it. Those who remain indifferent will also be held responsible for the consequences of this aggression which began in Iran and Lebanon and now threatened Syria, the Mediterranean, and Africa. Chapter 6: Erdogan's Call To Stop Israel's Actions Israel must be stopped. This is the duty of humanity and the front of humanity. History must not be allowed to repeat itself. Despite all of Israel's sabotage, Turkey will do its utmost to establish peace and stability in its region.
Trump Begins ALL-OUT WAR, Iran SLAMS F-16s on US Bases | Larry Johnson & Col. Lawrence Wilkerson Danny Haiphong Streamed live 115 minutes ago #iranwar #iran #trump
Former CIA analyst Larry Johnson & Retired Army Col. Lawrence Wilkerson join the show to review the US's latest round of strikes that led to full-scale confrontation in the Strait of Hormuz and a massive retaliation from Iran. The war has escalated in a huge way and two of the top analysts of geopolitics join to break it all down.
Transcript
Welcome everyone. Welcome back to the show. It's Danny Hiong. As you can see, I am joined by former CIA analyst Larry Johnson and former chief of staff for uh Colon Powell and retired Army Colonel Lawrence Wilkerson. Gentlemen, good to see you again. Hello. Hello. Good to be with you. And Danny, let me say I just saw a couple of shots of Larry when he was younger. He's he's a dashing looking dude. I I don't doubt it one bit. Uh, all right. Well, how about we get started with the uh busy times in and around Iran, the straight of Hormuz, the clash that occurred overnight. The United States, Donald Trump essentially has been declaring uh strikes each and every day for the last couple days. And last night and into today, he is talking more and more about what sounds like allout war, whether that is even possible or not. But let's review uh a little bit of what happened and uh Larry, you can help ummarize and analyze exactly what you believe uh happened last night. This is what uh Sentcom said. Very brief report that they completed their latest strikes on against Iran. Uh they launched strikes on Iran's military surveillance capabilities, communication systems, and air defense sites across Iran uh using precision munitions on Iranian targets that pose a threat to US forces and international commercial ships transiting regional waters. The strikes are in response to Iran's unwarranted and continued aggression. US forces remain vigilant, lethal, and ready. So, Keshum Island, uh, Sarak, uh, very similar targets to the night before the United States once again hit. And then I'll just go a little bit over what Iran did. This is what they announced that they targeted five military bases in retaliation to all of this. Jordan, Kuwait, and Bahrain. Uh the Moh Mo al- Saladi air B alsi air base and then a bunch of air bases in Bahrain and Kuwait. Uh uh one of these the Jordanian base uh were these strikes included 12 ballistic missiles that targeted F-35s, F-15s, and F-16 jets in military facilities located at the Mapak Salty Air Base. uh uh and they're claiming that they destroyed a lot of those aircraft which has been confirmed generally uh when they uh announced this some days and weeks later. Uh but Larry, help us understand uh what happened. Maybe you can go over a bit. There was also clashes in the straight of Hormuz. Iran says it's completely closed now. US warships did come under fire. There were clashes between the US Navy and Iran as well. So, uh, what's going on? Uh, help us understand the events of the last evening. 3 minutesI don't understand it. It doesn't make any sense. You know, so Trump um Trump was had a deal in hand that had been negotiated with the intervention of Pakistan since uh May 30th. Uh and uh we noticed you go back and watch Trump's public comments from May 30th until uh June uh 8th, Monday, uh Trump's voicing and talking about Iran was somewhat consiliatory. He's talking about maybe get together, hanging out with the Ayatollah, you know, this, you know, he's a good guy, he said, you know, that kind of nonsense. And then um over the weekend when you had this you had a sort of a an an off let's call it an insider offensive to try to push forward getting this deal done. You had the leak to the New York Times about Israel spying on America. You know I I thought that was a dog bite man bites man column. You know hello. Uh they they've been doing that for years. But this was particularly focused that the Israelis were trying to derail the peace process because they were they didn't know what the United States was really negotiating with Pakistan. And then came the Israel's strike in southern Beirut which elicited a retaliation by Iran who had said, "Hey, if you hit Beirut, we're going to hit you." And Iran did. So then that set off this initial round of exchange of fire and and Trump instead of coming out immediately saying, you know, condemning Iran and backing Israel, he stayed neutral. Oh my god. You could hear the neoconservative and Zionist heads in Washington exploding. You know, it was like there were the city was under attack. They went crazy. And so Trump Trump uh spent about um getting savaged and uh lo and behold then on Tuesday we get this I'll call it it's a staged incident. this um crass of the Apache. Um the what what's most likely that happened here is the the this Apache was out on armed reconnaissance doing Napa the Earth flying except you're flying over water which is a whole different um animal I'm told than flying over uh land. And you know the pilot air boom the the the cra the the the copter goes into the water but it doesn't kill the pilots. they're able to get out uh and then then they're picked up. But that is translated into oh Iran attacked us now because these negotiations they were progressing. Remember you had the UN uh Iran's UN ambassador say on Monday that yeah you know we got a lot of details worked out. There's still some things but you know it's through the good offices of Pakistan and the Pakistani sources that uh Pepe Escobar and I are have been in touch with they were confirming oh yeah this is great we're going forward and then yesterday Trump blew it up he's he went back to instead of the consiliatory language uh he said in one of his true socials and I'm quoting we're going to bomb the [ __ ] out of them. Yeah, that's very presidential that that uh that's that's a good way to get them to come over to your side. Um so, um the what happened yesterday when Trump says we're going to hit them hard, they tried to hit us, but I I think the the Iranian retaliation has inflicted some significant damage on on US air assets at the Moaf Salt air base. uh YouTube channel Borikman uh reporting that both IRGC and Russian sources are saying that that initial strike took out 12 or damaged 12 F-35s. So hey, the war started again. That's that is that simple. Yeah. Colonel Wilkerson, uh what's your uh reaction to to these developments? I played a video that demonstrated those interceptors going up missing. It was hard to see the missiles. I tried to zoom in on them. I think we could see them, but they uh more than a few of them hit their uh targets and and that's where, as Larry said, these fighter jets are located. But you're you're and I looked it up later because I'm not an expert at what's in each of these military bases. And indeed, the US actually does like to station almost all of the fighter jets that they have deployed there at this particular one. But your your thoughts uh about what's going on and what happened? Well, that's true. and they're running out of uh apron space in Israel. And Israel has let it be known that they don't appreciate the fact that the the IAF can't find any space to park its planes because there's so many damn US fighters there. Um you know, I I take Larry's point there. I hadn't hadn't heard that explanation but about the Apache but I I take that point to heart because I had to fly over water a lot when I was flying between Vonga and Vietnam and maybe 100 kilometers out at times to various naval vessels to do shipments and transfers and things like that. And it's it's really difficult to fly with the ocean if you're flying low and that's the only way we would fly. uh you can lose it really quickly. You stick your skid in the water or whatever. So, wouldn't that be something if that's the way the Apache went down? And I don't doubt for a minute that that is probably the highest possibility that he just took his eye off the ball, so to speak. Water all looks the same. The waves all look the same. So, you're flying low and you crash your aircraft. As to the other matters, um I was looking at uh Mousavian in Middle East this morning and the title of his article which goes into much more detail than this was Iran will no longer or the leadin to it Iran will no longer accept endless talks is creating deterrence on its own terms. I think that's probably true and I think uh we are giving it every excuse possible to be successful in creating that deterrence on its own terms. Um and I don't understand it. Just like Larry, I'm I'm lost as to where this president and his secretary of defense wore and if the secretary of state's even to be heard from other than getting embarrassed in front of the Congress over the last few days. Um I don't know where he's headed. All I can see is delaying tactics. All I can see is a president who doesn't know how to get out of what he started, 10 minutesdoesn't have a clue how to end it on a successful political basis for him and is trying everything he possibly can to obiscate to make it look like he's doing something when he's in effect not doing very much at all except exacerbating the conflict. I I can't make any other determination than that. There's no clear and I don't know why we're doing this business of uh covering up as it were casualties whether it be equipment or people. I suspect it's both. Um it's not a good t tactic. It really isn't. Uh you you pay for it ultimately. I don't know why we're doing it. Yeah. And uh it's maybe Trump's put out an edict to Hex that uh there will be no damage reports because they help the enemy. Let me just add one other thing with respect to the helicopter. Now again I'm told uh one one of my friends uh who retired out of JC. He says that normally on these kinds of even reconnaissance mission they fly tandem. In other words, there was another Apache most likely on scene which explains the they see their their their partner go down. they're able to then call in the coordinates immediately to get that, you know, drone boat there to rescue him. Uh, and so that that begins to make sense. But, u Trump Trump's a complete confabulation, you know, where he's saying things that he believes are true that are simply absolutely not true. And you know I I've been trying to reconstruct and uh good colonel will understand I think where I'm going with this. What is the operational mission? In other words, these these military forces that are there, they're they are operating under uh under rules of engagement and they are operating under um uh they have a specific defined mission. So I'm trying to think okay what what what is their mission? because they're not just taking off every day. So, let's fly around, see if there's anything to shoot. So, I I suspect that what they finally came up with is okay, to open the straight of Hormuz, we're going to have to identify the firing positions the Iranians have along Kempsh Island and along the coast, uh we want to we'll need to identify the communication nodes, how they're giving orders, how those orders get issued. Um and then we we need to look at the radar systems, etc. So, uh, and that's what they're and and they're using some bait tactics because this has been going on now for at least three weeks where the other night what what set it off last Wednesday was they sent four ships uh, you know, a week ago, Wednesday, uh, four ships tried to go through the straight. Iran detected them uh, fired at uh, fired at them. 13 minutesThey retreated. Then the United States attacked the Iranians and uh and then in response to that Iran then launched attacks in Bahrain and Kuwait at that time. Um so you know it appears that this is designed to smoke them out. But now this the bombings have extended going they're going uh trying to go inland. The most the most notable thing that happened though yesterday was we got early reports that the air defense Iranian air defense shot down five tomahawk missiles and engaged an F uh I think it was an F-16 that started to enter Iranian territory and then ran off. So clearly clearly the Iranians it looks like the Iranians have had a significant upgrade their air defense systems. Right. Yeah. And uh I'm hearing constantly seeing people reshare information about the uh uh air defense systems that are detecting like thermal energy like heat um uh like heat seeeking almost rather than uh the F-35s which have they're supposed to be invisible and have that uh that that capacity not be detected by radars. But it seems like whatever Iran's using, they might not need uh uh any complex radar system if they're simply seeking heat from a from an engine. Um, this is this is a good point that Larry's made too about tactics and that that's all this is we're discussing is tactics. Of course, it's supposed to be attached to some sort of operational concept and some sort of strategy above that, which I I detect none of. Um, but one, using Apaches in the way that Larry just described is ridiculous. Two, you got other assets that are far more capable in that regard than eyes on the target, if you will, out of an Apache, the worst aircraft to try to get eyes on the target with. That's the reason you have Kyo is accompany them and provide the observation that the Apache then uses to shoot. So, they're operating completely out of any environment. probably I would I would put a 99% on this that the army has ever operated in. They've never operated overwater extensively and they've never operated in an environment like this which is lamb water, lamb water, lamb water. Um and very different kinds of climatic conditions and very different kinds of visibility. Believe me, that can make a hell of a lot of difference in a helicopter. Um, and so I don't understand how they're even using tactics. I It's crazy to me. These guys are not the people that go out and fly over open ocean and do reconnaissance. Now, not that they can't, but it's stupid to use that really expensive asset to do that when you have much cheaper assets to do that with. Even if you're using rotary wing, they're much cheaper. Uh guys, uh and Larry, you can start. Uh can you help me understand exactly what kind of damage the US is inflicting on Iran militarily? Because two straight days now we've seen the United States essentially target what they say are the same targets that they hit the day before. Uh they're saying they're hitting all these military targets. There's absolutely no real proof of any of this. Uh we just get what, three, four sentences from Sentcom. Uh, and then Donald Trump tells Fox News this. It seems like uh Donald Trump uh has a pretty big mouth and he likes to uh be very hubrisfilled in his descriptions of things. He claims that Iran called him and asked him to stop the bombing. So here is that report. But at one point when I first spoke with the president, he had to go briefly because he was getting an incoming phone call from Iranian officials in Thran. When the president called back, he described what that call was like. He said they asked him to stop the bombing because at that point there were fighter jets over the skies of their country and they lacked the ability to actually defend their own territory and ultimately the president was very clear they'll stop bombing if they sign the agreement. It's a very clear equation. But uh Larry, Colonel Wilkerson, I mean there's absolutely no evidence that that occurred. But this is the story that was being promoted as these strikes started to Wayne actually and of course Iran has denied all of this. But Larry, what exactly do you what exactly do you believe the US is doing when they're conducting these strikes? Are they having any significant material effect? No, they're having no significant material effect. It's it's just it's you know just tactical strikes that you know damage equipment kill destroy some systems and that are replaceable that look Trump's Trump's lies about communicating with Iran are just you know I I I I view it as another symptom of mental illness. We've had, you know, we go back more than a I Trump has not had a direct conversation with any Iranian official of the Iranian government since taking office or before taking office. Um you would notice during uh prior to uh you know last June and in the ensuing negotiations whenever the United States delegation would get together with the Iranians they weren't sitting in the same room talking to each other and we'd talk to the Omanis the Omanis would talk to the is Iranians and the Iranians would talk to the Omanis and Omanis and Yeah. So there's always somebody in the middle and over the last 104 days that that team in the middle has been Pakistan. So everything that the United States says to Iran is not said to Iran directly and vice versa. So you know he's lying about that. the um the there there was in that incident I described uh that took place last week or like a week ago Monday um when Iran struck in Bahrain uh I am told they hit a a system um is described as some sort of uh communications coordination system that was classified. You know, they said it was a top secret. So, nobody knew what it was. All they knew was that the senior commanders on the joint sta the joint staff were going crazy over losing this. And they they concluded the only way they could have lost it was that the Russians or Chinese had provided the Iranians with intelligence. So, um, the Iranians are actually in a better position to damage the US if if the US thinks that they can take out all of these firing points there and and it's about 100 miles long. Let's understand that. So, even what as the news reports come out and make it sounds like it's very intense and widespread, it's not. It's it's very localized. um you've still got all of these uh drone and short-range ballistic missile systems in land that are still capable of firing on ships there. So again, this is this appears to have no other purpose than to provoke Iran into responding militarily so the United States can then justify what it continues to do. And it it's going to turn into I think it's going to turn into a disaster for us. Yeah, Colonel Wilkerson, same question to you. Uh, with your own particular expertise, like what are these strikes actually doing? I don't I think Larry's right. I don't think they're doing a whole lot. Maybe making the ground rubble a little bit more and maybe killing some people, usually innocent civilians, taking out water facilities and other things that are not necessarily other than war crimes. Um and and Larry's point about the vastness or the lack of vastness, whichever way you want to look at it, was brought home to me uh in a very dynamic way by Amadina. And I went home and got maps and got some people to ascertain for me because I know from my own fishing experience in lakes in this country where you have a a 100 mile coastline for example, the coastline is really about 500 miles because no coastline goes straight. You got bays and fields and all kinds of things. So when Almad told me there were 1800 I think he said 1875 kilometers of Iranian coastline on Persian Gulf I said whoa boy that sounds like a lot but when we did the analysis he was very close to being right when you take in account the the cissitudes in the coastline that's a lot of territory to had a lot of weaponry and to have impact all through the Gulf depending on the range of the weaponry um and you got to take all that out or at least a good part of it if are going to operate in the Gulf with impunity. So I mean this is and I agree with Larry with regard to I think they had it before. I think they hit that radar that seinal radar in Bahrain in the first volley you recall back there when they actually started this thing on from their perspective. I think they hit that with Russian help or or Chinese help. Maybe both because it was just pinpoint. It was absolutely missile gone. What was that, Larry? A $400,000 radar or something like that.
No billion.
400 million. Yeah.
[Danny] Yeah. One's 400 million, one is a billion plus. Yeah. Okay. So, it was the eyes and ears of Fifth Fleet, and others that used it, and it was gone. But the interceptors are just growing on trees, and they're intercepting everything.
[Col. Wilkersonn] That's what the United States is saying. Every time Iran retaliates, nothing gets through. I can understand operational security, and I can understand keeping the enemy's impact on you a secret. If it's devastating in particular, I can see you keeping it a secret. But I think that backfires on you eventually. I mean, because people start talking to people. I know we're small, less than 1% serves in the military, and it takes a while for this word to get around and to get back to the states, and to get disseminated, but it's dangerous to hide everything completely. And I think that's pretty much what we're doing. I think, Hegseth has put the edict out to Bradley Cooper and others involved -- maybe Trump put it out to him -- "I don't want the American people to know anything about our casualties, material, or people." And I think that if you're going to wage a long war, and this is already a lot longer than Trump said it would be, and has every promise of being much longer, then you're going to get caught eventually.
Yeah. Well, how about we get into the next phase of all of this, which is that despite everything that you two both said about what's going on and how it's actually going, the Trump administration, Donald Trump, appears poised, if we can use that word, to uh keep at it, to keep this ball rolling. He's made many statements, and the State Department shared this truth social. I mean it's just absolutely ridiculous that the State Department is mostly a spy agency now, a war agency, when it's supposed to be the diplomatic arm of the United States. But they shared this truth social post.
[Trump] The United States will be hitting Iran, whose navy, radar, anti-aircraft, all other forms of defense together, most of its offensive capability are gone, very hard tonight. At some point in the not too distant future, we will be taking Kharg Island and other oil infrastructure points, and assume total control of their oil and gas markets much like we have with Venezuela, which is working out brilliantly for both Venezuela and the US of America. Thank you for your attention to this matter.
And then he went on reiterating these points. But Larry, your reaction to this?
It seems that we've gone away from negotiations, and the blockade's doing more damage than strikes ever could now. It seems like daily kinetic war on Iran, and now talking about Kharg Island again, and destroying oil infrastructure, seems like deja vu. But what's your thoughts about why this is happening now?
Yeah, it looks like Trump has got a Babe Ruth complex. You know, Babe Ruth came to bat at one game and pointed his bat to center field where he was going to hit the ball, and then he hit the ball out there. So, telegraphing your moves, that could be fun in baseball. This ain't baseball. This is where people can get killed. So, you got to step back and say, "What in the world is he doing telling the Iranians, "We're coming, we're going to attack you tonight, and we're going to hit your oil infrastructure," and start telegraphing what you're going to do. Why do you do that? Now, in Trump's mind, I guess he thinks that it's a clever negotiating tactic, that it's going to put pressure on the Iranians. All they're going to do is line up to ambush.
Now, we we saw another sort of demonstration of this yesterday with him talking about this covert program that smuggled out a hundred million dollar barrels of oil. Woo. And excuse my language, but our stupid fucking press didn't have the common sense just to go back and say, "Whoa, whoa, wait a sec, Mr. President. So, you're saying you got this top secret program that you've been running. Why are you announcing it now? You're saying it's successful, but in announcing it now, you're exposing it. So, it may not be successful. And beyond that, 100 million barrels, that represents only five days of consumption in the United States. And it also represents only 5 days of exports out of the Persian Gulf in normal times. In other words, it's a nothing-burger. And he said he's been doing it for 30 days. But the average tanker size is about a million barrels. The very, very large ones can carry two. And there's some monsters that can carry more than that. But let's just assume what you're talking about is 80 ships in 30 days transiting the straight of Hormuz without the knowledge of of the Iranians. That's crazy. That just doesn't make sense. And yet he says this, and and the press is like a bunch of bobblehead dolls, you know, going along with it. So these are designed as public relations tactics designed to fool the American people into supporting a war that should have zero support, and to not ask questions, and just accept everything the government's telling you.
Yeah. Colonel Wilkerson to you, you know not only unearthing a so-called secret operation, but touting such success with absolutely zero to show for it, except for 4.2% inflation over the last month, not really what a lot of people like to digest when they are are thinking about how the US's foreign policy affects them. But what are your thoughts about all of this?
[Col. Wilkerson] Well when he does something like that, the first thought that comes to my mind is it's all made up, it's all propaganda. Maybe something sailed here, or something sailed there, and he got the idea about it, but it's really not happening. But Larry's right. It's a minuscule drop in the bucket. And if you look at what he said about Venezuela, look at that. I'm told by very competent authority in the oil business that no one would touch Venezuela amongst the majors except Chevron, and that Chevron is now involved in, shall we say, to and froing that might drive them out.
So where is the beauty in Venezuela, and in some ways I could support in a national security interest manner, and say okay, we need the oil that Venezuela produces, and we don't want others to have it, particularly China, and so we are going to do what we did, and we're going to ensure that whoever comes in to beef that oil structure up because it was falling apar,t and it was being bled dry, what it did produce in the way of profits by people around Maduro, and not necessarily Maduro himself, and they're still there by the way, and the vice president was one of them, and she's still there of course. And so what are you talking about Donald? How is Venezuela a positive aspect of your strategic approach to the region and the world? There is nothing happening there that looks like it is ultimately going to be favorable to the United States, and quite a lot happening that looks like it's going to make what you did a farce.
Are you doing the same thing right now with regard to Iran and in particular with regard to the oil situation in the world? Because we're looking at potentially Iran going to a second tier of targets, which I've said many times before, and I can't overemphasize it, that would do irreparable damage to our ability to deal with this, and all the way through the fall probably, and through the midterm elections for sure, and be very injurious to the Republican party in a political sense in this country. So, I don't know what he's doing, and I don't know why he's doing it, other than one, he doesn't know what to do, so he's delaying in the only way he knows how, pontificating and propagandizing; two, his people beneath him don't know what to do, and don't have the courage and the guts to tell him that whatever it is they're supposed to be doing, I'd love to see a copy of the strategy statement. And it gets stopped, if it is said by Hegseth, or adulterated by him; and then three, what the future is, where are we going from here?, because it's been proven, I think, as Mousavian is saying, that Iran is resolute, and you aren't breaking their resolution. It takes me back to that Haaretz headline that said all Iran has to do to win is not lose, and all we have to do, and Bibi, is achieve a spectacular victory. And oh, by the way, what's Bibi doing right now? Bibi in the meantime is taking on the principal reason for this situation existing in the first place. He's killing Palestinians again, 30 to 40 a day. He's doing it with bullets, bombs, and he's also doing it with humanitarian assistance that's corrupt as hell. And he's doing the same thing in Lebanon in defiance of the president apparently, and causing the situation in Israel politically perhaps to be a little better for him, but causing the situation with Iran to be probably worse, because they now see that, clearly they now see that as another theater, and it's a theater of -- I'm waiting for them to make the Palestinian situation writ large another part of the theater in which they respond. Which would be right along the lines of expanding their own strategy. So, we're going to make this wider, deeper, and worse.
[Larry] Well, and let's not forget Netanyahu also pissing off Turkey, picking a fight with Turkey. This is insane. I mean, Turkey actually can cut off oil to Israel and Israel would be in desperate straits. And yet, you know, here's Netanyahu insulting and verbally attacking Erdogan. And, you know, Erdogan's as big a narcissist as Donald Trump. So, you know, he doesn't take that well either.
So, you got to step back and say, "Is anybody thinking about any kind of endgame where they can come out intact and alive?" I don't see it.
[Erdogan] Since Israel's inception, it has continuously served a function that threatens peace, tranquility, prosperity, and security in our region. The occupation of Palestine, and the genocide against Palestinians, continues systematically. Look, 73,000 innocent people have been slaughtered in Gaza before the eyes of the whole world. This genocide continues both in terms of its massacre scale, and its inhumane isolation. Israel, which has carried out the bloodiest genocide in human history, has simultaneously attacked Iran, and not content with that, has begun to occupy Lebanon.
Despite the reactions of regional countries, primarily Turkey, Israel refuses to withdraw from Lebanon, and continues its bloody operations there. Since the 2nd of March, the number of those murdered in Lebanon has reached 3,700, and the number of wounded has reached 11,400. Israel has also engaged in a sinister effort to destabilize African countries in the Mediterranean.
Simultaneously, the Zionist administration is truly a troublemaker, a factory of discord, constantly generating unrest across a vast geography. Unfortunately, the world is failing to show the necessary reaction to Israel's lawless, rulebreaking policies that recognize no principles, values, or borders.
[Col. Lawrence Wilkerson] And along those lines, Danny, yesterday they were talking about inside Israel, they were talking about the number of Jewish Israelis now that would be classified probably as sympathetic with Smotrich, Ben Gvir, and others of that ilk, wanting Netanyahu to step down.
[Danny] Not surprising, you know, at this point, not surprising given the way things are going. There are those reports that since the theater in Lebanon, the so-called war against Hezbollah, which has killed far more civilians than anything else, but supposedly 1300 Israelis have been injured over that time, and with Israel's penchant for hiding, with the US taking the Israeli playbook and hiding actual casualties and deaths, it's probably a lot higher. So things aren't going too well for Israel on that front or anything else.
And speaking of Iran's resoluteness, maybe Larry can comment on this. You know, Fars news agency is commenting on how during these retaliatory strikes, there was actually a pretty sophisticated intelligence operation underway, where Iran carried this out overnight, they said:
"The sources of the attacks inflicted significant damage on expensive military equipment. Iranian forces reportedly tracked the flight paths and deployment locations of two large P8 aircraft the moment they took off. One of the aircraft had taken off from Diego Garcia based in the Indian Ocean, while the other flew from a US base stationed in Western Europe, heading toward the southern Gulf region. They add that the locations of the two aircraft were stationed at Shikisa air base in Bahrain, and Ali Salam in Kuwait, and they were targeted with precision weapons after this. And then they also monitored the deployment of three US F-35 jets inside a hanger at the Salti air base in Jordan until before the missile launches." So the exact location of the hanger was then targeted."
So this is very sophisticated stuff. I mean, we're talking about Iran not just targeting the bases because they know they're there; they're targeting exactly when these aircraft are landing to be stationed there. I mean, that's impressive stuff. But what are your thoughts on this, and how this all happens?
[Larry Johnson] Yeah, Iran's not sophisticated enough to do that. They're doing that because of Chinese and/or Russian assistance. Chinese and Russians have the strategic assets, satellite assets and such. They can do all of that. And Iran's happily taking credit for doing it. I don't blame them. But that's what's making this phase of the war, I'll call it the start of the ceasefire war, because you go back to April 15th and really the United States has been violating the ceasefire as has Israel. So as these attacks back and forth continue, Iran is getting intelligence now that it did not get back in the 12-day war last year. And so it's ability to respond and to target was somewhat limited. I mean they still have a capability, but it's not as robust as what's going on now. And just like I referenced that one system that was destroyed recently in Bahrain that the joint staff's basic message was Russia or China did this to us. This is beyond Iran's capabilities. But tracking those kinds of assets and destroying them is going to be a critical part of Iran's attrition strategy for defeating the United States. because the reality is the United States doesn't have unlimited capabilities. And I'm not saying Iran does, but Iran's backed up by Russia and China who do. The United States is not backed up by anybody. I did look into the materials required to produce a tomahawk missile yesterday: 18 rare earth minerals to make one of those. And who controls those? China. And gallium in particular is a critical component. China's not exporting that. So, here's the United States who reportedly used up 39 tomahawks just yesterday, in one day, and right now their monthly production is around 40. So basically, in one day you used up all weapons you could produce and replace in one day. It's not a good picture for the United States.
So Iran has adopted this war of attrition with the full backing of Russia and China. And I don't I don't see how the United States can sustain it.
[Danny] Yeah, Colonel Wilkersonson, your thoughts about this intel operation, and anything else you want to comment on there?
[Col. Wilkerson] Yeah, I think Larry's right. And I hearken back to several briefings that we had, and I have to be careful here as Larry has to do sometimes, but we were trying to develop a capability, and we were very fearful that both the Chinese and the Russians were working on the same thing, and even in one case might have already achieved it, and the best way to explain it in layman's terms is the satellite actually has, it's not a lingering capability so much as it is a surveillance capability that lasts for a lot of its orbit. And that surveillance capability is augmented by the fact they can download almost instantaneously, almost like you're looking through a camera, at the target, with a lot more resolution than you would with any camera and normal moving satellite technology. And so what you get is you get a downstream that is almost real time, and that can be passed to the targeting people. And so you can surveil an F-35 taxiing into a hangar, or you can surveil whatever is going into that hangar, or onto that airfield, or into hiding, or whatever. And not only that, you get coordinates that are passed so fast, and if your targeting is good, and your munitions coming in are good, and the Iranians have proved they have some that are, you can hit that. And the only way you can hit that is with that overhead capability.
So there's no question in my mind, as Larry said, that they are in this big time now, China and Russia, the former in particular. And that's what we're contending with. And it's really interesting to see, and dangerous in my view to see, that we're not aware of that, and not capable of dealing with it in some way because we've been thinking about it and understanding how you defend against it. But apparently we haven't. Maybe it's simply because we didn't anticipate this level of cooperation, but that was stupid too if we did that.
[Danny] Well, let's now talk about here's how Donald Trump now is speaking, not just on Truth Social, but how he's speaking about the next phase of this thing, and where this is all going. So, here is Fox News saying what Donald Trump said about Kharg Island. It seems like there's an obsession with Kharg Island again, and here is what he said about that.
[Trump] Excuse me. They're finished. But the papers, the media, refuses to write it. They're finished. We can walk in there tomorrow. We could take soldiers. I don't want to have boots on the ground, but if I wanted to, we could put a small group of soldiers and take over the whole place.
And then this is what he hopes Iran will do, and believes they should do. It's very offensive. I mean this is akin to if there were any talks between the US and Iran before this, I can't imagine that this won't completely eradicate them.
[Trump] It could be the greatest deal in history. They could wave the white flag of surrender. They could say, "We surrender. We surrender. We're finished. We've had it. The United States is the greatest power. Praise be to Allah." And they could do all of this. They could say it loud and clear, and the fake news would say, "It was a great victory for Iran." I mean it's the craziest thing.
So, these are Donald Trump's thoughts and he did promise that tonight there would be more strikes. Your thoughts Larry, and then Colonel Wilkerson, about this posture. It does seem like we are back to where we were far before the April so-called ceasefire that wasn't.
[Larry Johnson] Well, I defer to Robert Barnes who has actually had interactions with Trump. He was his attorney at one point. And you know, let's say four or five years ago when you dealt with Donald Trump, he's not a stupid person. He would ask lots of questions, and he would seek lots of different opinions. He wasn't just listening to one person. And he would get contrasting opinions. So he work through those options. That's not him today. He is a 180 degrees opposite from that. He's become brittle, mentally brittle, and gets locked into these things that he believes, even though they're not true, which is called confabulation. And so that's what makes this so dangerous. This notion that we could waltz into Kharg Island, not understanding that now summer has hit. Temperatures at Kharg Island are, you know, 105 degrees. First of all, you got to figure out how are you going to get let's say a battalion of soldiers on there, say 82nd Airborne, and to do what? I mean, what's the mission? And once they're on that island, how do you keep them resupplied, because in this kind of heat where these soldiers are going to be wearing body armor, and they're carrying heavy ammunition loads, so a lot of weight, they're very quickly going to burn through the water. And then if they're dehydrated in that kind of environment, you die, or you you pass out, and you're incapacitated. So again, they haven't thought this through. And just assuming you can get them on board the island, let's say the battalion is 800 guys, so 90 of those can go on one JC 130J with a full combat load. So, do the math. You know, 90 times. So, you're going to need close to 10 aircraft to get them all there. And our total contingent of C130s in the entirety of the force is 33. And they're going to be flying in against air defense systems, even though hopefully they're suppressed. And then what, are they going to jump out? Are they going to try to land? And then once they're there, how do you resupply them? Because they'll burn through supplies quick, if they are contested, and they're fighting back against armed people on the ground.
But also the other thing is the Iranians mined Kharg Island now. So you have to go in with a de-mining team, which is great if you're in a non-hostile environment, but they'll be in a hostile environment. So he's not thinking through any of this. I'm not saying those are insolvable problems, but you got to put in resources, and have a plan in place to solve them. And Trump's not doing it. He's just throwing the jello at the wall and see what sticks.
[Danny] Yeah, Colonel Wilkerson, same to you.
[Col. Wilkerson] Well, I think Larry's right. I I have to go back to Trump and say, "Okay, you're saying all these things which Larry has, I think, described quite well the impossibilities of, or the dangers of, or the impracticalities of at best, and I'm wondering to myself, what is the military saying when he says these things? I mean, has he given them this mission? And has this mission been articulated down to the troops that are going to have to carry it out? Do the commanders in this chain know what they're doing? Do they know how they're going to do it? Are they contemplating right now some of the things that Larry just suggested? And there are other things that I would suggest too that are almost impossibilities. And if it is going on like that like, which it should be, where are the people who are saying back to the people above them, "I got a better plan, or a bettter alternative, or whatever. I don't want to do this; I'm not going to do this, because it's impossible." Or are they just saying. "That's the President talking." And Bradley Cooper's not interpreting it, if you will, down through the chain. I don't know! I'm trying to put myself in the place and say, "What if I got this warning order, and what if I started planning, and then the word came down to do what Larry just said, however you do it, with Ospreys, or CJ130s, or whatever. I would not want that mission, and I'd make some complaints up the chain! Is this happening, or are we just hearing bullshit from a demented mind, searching for any way to make himself seem successful? I don't know. I don't know what the answer is. And that in itself is a dilemma, I think.
[Danny] Well, speaking of demented minds, here is what Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had to say in the face of Iran's retaliation, saying that Iran "will lose this zero sum game that it is playing; that any damage it inflicts on allies in the Gulf will be paid for with funds from Iranian accounts, any tolls paid to the Persian Strait Authority, will be offset by funds extracted from these accounts. Every attack Iran launches will only deepen the economic and financial consequences it faces." Mind you Larry, yesterday, or you know in the face of these strikes I know they occurred both yesterday and technically today, they've announced that the strait of hormuz is closed. And then Centcom says, "Nope it's open. It's open." But Iran is firing at tankers, they're stopping tankers; they've just warned, I believe, anyone fishing in the area to not be fishing in the area. So it looks like it's closed completely. The oil markets are not even reacting to this. It's a very strange moment. I want to know your reaction to these comments, especially the consequences of the war on the economic front. I've been saying there's been a lot of whistling past the graveyard and manipulation as we have all talked about on this show, but what's your thoughts on this?
[Col. Wilkerson] Danny, let me just say one thing before you go to that.
[Danny] Sure.
[Col. Wilkerson] I would have put at the bottom of that, if I were Scott Bessent, "When we win." How do you do any of that if you haven't won at least partially, if not completely?
[Larry Johnson] Yeah, you know, everything you learned, those of you who went to college, and had to take an economics course, you were taught that we got this thing called a free market, that they respond to pressures, supply and demand, very simplistic. But now we're out in the real world and we find out, no, it's like a a casino run by the mafia. So the house is always going to win. Sometimes though, the house loses control. Like if the casino itself catches on fire, that makes it a little tough to cheat. But yeah, they're clearly cheating here artificially suppressing the price of oil, and doing that in part by draining strategic reserves around the planet. The United States is going to be basically close to zero within another three weeks. Then it's going to be interesting, because there actually will be a demonstrable shortage of oil, both for refining for gasoline and aviation fuel, as well as the heavy crude for diesel fuel. These threats that they're going to destroy Iran's oil infrastructure. And then you got to go back and say, "Okay, Bessent, then why in the first week of this war, in the first week of March, did you lift sanctions on Iranian oil? Why did you do that?" Well, the reason they did it is they absolutely needed that oil out on the market. Otherwise, they feared there was going to be a big crisis. And now they're claiming that they can take it off and it's going to be inconsequential? No, this is an administration that's completely under control of emotions. There's no thinking. There's no strategy. It's simple reaction. And is the president angry or not? And what's he angry at, and therefore we're going to punish those who made him angry.
So this is Iran's move now to shut down the strait of hormuz. I believe what they say. And it has been largely open for any ship, whether it's a tanker or container ship that paid the fee, and was not involved with supporting Israel or the United States. They were passing, you know, about 20-30 ships a day. But those were under the control of Iran. And Bessent keeps thinking that Iran's going to have to hold all of its money in dollars. Not at all. Iran is shifting its money to yuan, getting it in Chinese banks, outside the reach of the United States. They've learned their lesson. Don't hold petro dollars. And other countries are following suit because they say, "If the United States can do that to Iran, they can do it to me."
[Danny] Yeah. Colonel Wilkerson, your reaction?
[Col. Wilkerson] Well, everything that Larry just said, plus this, a chapo. An article written in the Jerusalem Post, as I recall, bringing Mckinder back into the argument, and his heartland theory, only expanding the heartland, as it were, all the way down through Central Asia and down to Iran now, and saying that what you have, and we don't recognize, we don't seem to be able to deal with it if we recognize it, what you have is a heartland now that consists of some of the biggest countries in the world in terms of land mass. That's what the heartland theory is all about, in opposition to say the maritime theory. And they consist of Russia, Central Asia, China of course, and Iran, and possibly, remember, there's an "I" in BRICS, India eventually. And what this means is that world commerce, and you can just look at the pipelines pumping, pipelines under construction, world commerce with the pipelines and the railroads, is going to switch from what it has been now for a long long time, ever since the British Empire sort of made it this way, maritime enterprise, to land enterprise. This has happened before in history. When that happens, the maritime powers, such as they might be, the Portuguese in the past and others, kind of dry up and kind of don't get it, and wind up on the short end of the stick.
And in this case, you have, as this guy was pointing out in his article, a vast accumulation of land power, accounting for about 62% of the world's population, and roughly the same percentage of its GDP, and with hugely successful countries at its core in many respects. Putin perhaps based on petroleum primarily, but other things too now like defense industrial-based capability, and you also have China of course, now in all manner of indicators and factors the number one power in the world economically speaking. And now you've thrown Iran into it, and you've thrown the connectivity amongst all that into land-based connectivity. So you negate the need for the high seas in many respects. And you put the land powers in ascendancy, and the sea powers in descent. And that's what's happening; that is actually what's happening. All you have to do is look at the railroads, and the pipelines, and such of what I've said, and that's to the de detriment of us if we don't recognize that pretty soon, and try to accommodate and deal with it. And I don't mean accommodate and deal with it by military force or sanctions, we've got to get in there and we've got to become in essence a part of it, and a part of it that protects our own bonafides and our own interests as best as we can. And on top of all of that, we've got this potential now, I think it was Sergey Caraganov, pretty much stating it categorically, that Putin ought to take on NATO outside of Ukraine. And the ultimate thing was teach them a lesson, and if the lesson doesn't stick, teach them a lesson with small yield nuclear weapons. And then you got Bibi down there talking about the Samson option and so forth in various and sundry ways. This is a very dangerous thing we're doing. A very dangerous thing at the very highest level of geopolitical thought, if you will. It's a very dangerous thing. And we don't seem to even recognize what we're doing.
[Danny] Well, in the interest of the last minute or so, Larry, you can have final words on this.
[Larry Johnson] And my thoughts are is if the United States could, you know I think what's so interesting with why I've never seen anything like this where US presidents, the military, the neocons, all of them have a lot of hubris to them. It's exceptionalism. They think they can dominate the world forever and ever and ever. That's not a surprise. But I've never seen a time where the United States declares that they've won, that they've won, that they've beaten Iran, that Iran is obliterated, annihilated, and yet things keep going the way that they're going. There's no resolution. There's no, "Okay, we won, and so this is what's going to happen now." No, it's, 'We won, but we're fighting a war." The United States, Centcom, the Trump administration is fighting the war like it's still very much in play. Even people who do not follow geopolitics, who don't follow world politics, they can understand that there's a big gap between the words there, and the reality. But any final thoughts from you two. Larry first, and then Colonel Wilkerson.
[Larry Johnson] Yeah I'm I'm waiting till we'll see the report perhaps tonight it'll say uh the Iranian air defense system radar that we destroyed, tracked our inbound aircraft, and then shot it down with the air defense missiles that we destroyed. And you're going the absurdity of it. Good. If if people weren't dying, Yeah. and and this involved destruction, this would be a hilarious money python skit because it is just that absurd. you know, the in instead of the department of silly walks, u we we've got the department of um make make uh outrageous claims that can't be backed up. So I mean if Iran truly was defeated then they wouldn't be firing back but they they aren't and they are firing back and the to the growing consternation and frustration of Donald 1 minuteTrump and which again with his mental state uh he becomes so emotionally enraged he he's making one foolish mistake and decision after another and there's no adult there in the room to pull him back and say no General Kaine Yeah, Kane reportedly told him, "No, we're not going to use nukes." And he was musing about that. In fact, Sai Hirs came out with a story yesterday saying that that had been on the table. So, you know, I uh I wasn't just making that up, but uh it's, you know, it's going to get more dangerous with each passing day because Trump's going to feel compelled to commit more assets. And the more assets he can he commits, the greater the risk of those assets being killed, captured or destroyed. Yeah, Colonel works. Any final words? I do. Um, and I go along with everything Larry just said, and I would add this. One of the things that at the Eisenhower Media Network and elsewhere, the All Volunteer Force Forum and other places like that, we've been talking about all along is the dangers of the all volunteer force. the dangers of having less than 1% of America serve. The dangers of having a reserve component that is almost completely broken now. Had conversations at George Washington University with one of the significant significantly placed representatives of that reserve component and god the horror stories he was telling me yesterday. Um and yet America doesn't sense it. America has no feel for what's happening to this less than 1% of its population, man and woman. And we're using them. We're just using them as tools of this. Now, I would have given Trump credit long ago, maybe even all the way up to the first couple of months of his second administration for at least going after a couple of things that were made sense like with Moscow, for example, which now he seems to have just thrown over the over the heap along with Ukraine. But now it's dangerous. It's extremely dangerous. But nowhere is the danger more poignant, and unfortunately Americans don't feel this way, is for these young men and women who are having to live at the pointy spear of this demented individual right now. Um, that's my aching point. Yeah. No, I think it's a good one. I think it's a good one. The, you know, fuel to cannon to the fodder. It seems like that's how uh people cannon to the death cannon to the right of them, cannon to the left of them, and yet they rode into the valley of death. Yeah. Yep. That's that's what war generally is. Uh so, uh everybody, this was a great show. So, uh show your support by hitting the like button. That helps boost the show after we all head out of here. Uh you can find Larry Johnson's blog in the video description below. So, be sure to check that out. all the play support this channel are there too. Uh also tomorrow uh June 12th 10 a.m. Eastern time we'll have a mutual friend of ours Alistister Krook on. So we will review the events overnight as it seems like there will be more uh war you know uh flaring up from US aggression. So we will talk about all of this and more. All right everybody see you then tomorrow June 12th 10 a.m. Eastern time with Alistair Crook. Uh, thank Larry and Colonel Wilson with a like. All right, take care. Bye-bye.
