Cable Forum - Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

Ladies and Gentlemen it's TACO day

Trump announces 'Project Freedom' in Strait of Hormuz to be paused

Donald Trump says the US effort to guide stranded vessels out of the Strait of Hormuz is paused while America aims to finalise a deal with Iran. It comes after a cargo ship was reported to have been hit in the key waterway.

https://news.sky.com/story/iran-war-...banon-13509565

https://news.sky.com/video/trump-pau...ormuz-13540571

Hugh	06-05-2026 08:06

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

So, Operation Epic Fury is concluded, Operation Freedom is on pause, does that leave us with Operation No One Can Find Their Aerse With A Map, Mirror, And Detailed Directions?

And why is this happening?

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/h...ng-of-iran-war

Quote:

In divisions of the State Department that typically would handle the Iran response, numerous veteran diplomats with decades of collective experience were fired, retired or were reassigned — replaced by more junior officials or political appointees. The administration cut more than 80 staffers in Near Eastern Affairs, according to numbers compiled by a State Department employee who was terminated last year based on surveys of colleagues.

Quote:

For instance, the administration appears to have been caught off guard by what would happen once the U.S. struck Iran — something Trump himself acknowledged this week when he expressed surprise that Tehran retaliated with strikes on American allies in the region. "Nobody expected that. We were shocked. They fought back," Trump told reporters this week.

Pigott said staffing reductions "are not having any negative impact on our ability to respond to this operation, our ability to plan, and our ability to execute in service to Americans." He added that the department "rejects the premise that key decisions were made without meaningful input from experienced professionals."

But Iranian retaliation on U.S. allies was predictable, according to former officials, as well as previous wargames and conflict models run by both the U.S. military and private organizations. The National Security Council, which Trump has pared, typically would have presented the president with analysis from experts within the bureaucracy.

Instead, decisions are made by a small group of officials close to the president without the planning or coordination of the larger machinery of government, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who also serves as the president's national security adviser.

How to be "smartest person in the room"? Fire the really smart, experienced people who know what they’re talking about…

Hugh	10-05-2026 21:43

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

https://wapo.st/4wl2BI3

Something, something, "holding all the cards", something, something. "so much winning"…

Quote:

President Donald Trump on Sunday called Iran’s response to the latest U.S. proposal to end the war “totally unacceptable.”

Trump’s comments came hours after Tehran said, according to state media, that it sent a response to the peace plan through Pakistani mediators — after an exchange of hostilities around the Strait of Hormuz in recent days highlighted the fragility of a ceasefire the two sides reached more than a month ago.

“I have just read the response from Iran’s so-called ‘Representatives.’ I don’t like it — TOTALLY UNACCEPTABLE! Thank you for your attention to this matter,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social, without providing details.

Also from that article

Quote:

Asked about the Strait of Hormuz’s continued closure, Mike Waltz said: “That’s why we’re pushing now another U.N. resolution that says Iran cannot do this. No country can do what Iran is doing in international waterways.”

Meanwhile, in international waterways in the Caribbean and the Pacific…

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/...astern-pacific

Quote:

The US military on Friday said it struck a vessel in the eastern Pacific, killing two people and leaving one survivor in the latest attack on boats suspected of transporting narcotics. This brings the death toll from strikes on such vessels in the Caribbean and Pacific to more than 190 people since September...

… The military has attacked multiple alleged drug-running boats in the eastern Pacific in recent weeks, including a strike on Tuesday that killed three people. According to a tally by the Intercept, there have now been 58 such boat strikes since September amounting to a death toll of 193 people with four survivors.

The legality of these boat strikes is under scrutiny, with legal experts saying the attacks amount to unlawful extrajudicial killings by the Pentagon with a complete lack of accountability. Human rights groups, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, have condemned the strikes.

The Pentagon has framed its operations in the region as a campaign against “narco-terrorism”, but has provided scant evidence of coordinated drug-smuggling rings.

papa smurf

19-05-2026 06:06

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

once again it's TACO time

President Trump says he's called off a 'very big' attack on Iran
Donald Trump says he's postponed 'very big' attack on Iran as mediators believe a deal to end the conflict is close.

blah blah bigly attack blah bigliest ever seen blah blah......

https://news.sky.com/video/president...-iran-13545720

Hugh	19-05-2026 08:27

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

But, but, but…

If, as Trump (frequently) states, the US military have completely destroyed the Iranian’s military capabilities, and annihilated their nuclear reprocessing facilities, what is there to bomb?

papa smurf

19-05-2026 08:45

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hugh (Post 36215752)

children,that seems to be popular :(

1andrew1

19-05-2026 15:28

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

Quote:

Originally Posted by papa smurf (Post 36215753)

children,that seems to be popular :(

Sadly true, when it comes to US bombings, it does seem to be women and children first.

Quote:

Right at the start of America's war with Iran, something went very, very wrong.

We can say that with even more clarity as the first news team from outside Iran to reach where it happened....

It was by any measure an abomination and almost certainly the work of the US military.

The missiles fired at the school on the first day of the war were US Tomahawks. Only America had been targeting numerous sites in the area that day.

Disgracefully, President Trump's first reaction to the atrocity at Minab was an obvious falsehood. It was Iran's fault, he said. They also use Tomahawks. But they don't.

A preliminary US investigation is reported to have concluded this was an American mistake. But that has not been confirmed publicly. Officially, all the Trump administration has said for almost three months now is that it's "under investigation".

Past incidents of mass civilian casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan produced a public admission of responsibility from the Americans within days, at most, a few weeks.

Whatever else the US military was targeting in the area that day, this was a primary school that had been, for more than 10 years, marked clearly on maps.

If it was deliberately targeted, that would be a war crime. If it was misidentified, that potentially is also a breach of the rules of war.

America's reputation is at stake, but so are the lives of more innocent civilians in future. So far, the Pentagon appears to be foot-dragging...

https://news.sky.com/story/utter-hor...wrong-13545757

TheDaddy

19-05-2026 16:13

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

Quote:

Originally Posted by 1andrew1 (Post 36215774)

Sadly true, when it comes to US bombings, it does seem to be women and children first.

And not surprising when you consider they shut the Civilian Protection centre because that drunk hegseth wants to prioritise lethality over protecting the innocent and avoid accountability

Hugh	23-05-2026 21:03

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

Here’s hoping…

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/crmp121z3z8o

Quote:

US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that an agreement with Iran had been "largely negotiated" and details would be announced soon.

The deal would include the opening of the Strait of Hormuz, he said, without giving further details.

Both sides, however, have been cautious, and Iran's foreign ministry spokesperson earlier said the key issue of nuclear weapons would not be part of initial proposals.

On social media, Trump said he had a "very good call" with the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and others about a "Memorandum of Understanding pertaining to PEACE".

"An agreement has been largely negotiated, subject to finalization between the United States of America, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and the various other Countries, as listed," Trump said.

"Final aspects and details of the deal are currently being discussed, and will be announced shortly," he said.

He also said he had a call on Saturday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which "went very well".

Chris

23-05-2026 22:14

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

It would be nice, but the basis of this story is just another brain fart by Trump on his personal social media platform. Iran is saying something rather different. Best case, Trump’s just due his next dose of meds. Worst case, one of his pals has just had yet another price-sensitive tip off and is about to buy or sell their way to their next $billion.

Hugh	23-05-2026 22:18

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

Yeh, just seen the FARS response - you’re right…

ianmcc

23-05-2026 23:35

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

<removed>

.

Paul	24-05-2026 02:37

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

If you joined just to post nonsense like that, dont bother, this isnt twitter.

Dude111

24-05-2026 13:15

I heard they threatend Donnys family.

.

Hugh	29-05-2026 15:05

Re: Israel, Hamas, Hezbollah, Iran … War

https://wapo.st/4dOzhBs

Quote:

The United States and Iran have reached a tentative agreement to end their months-long war in the Middle East, senior officials on both sides said Thursday, but it comes with the major caveat that President Donald Trump and his counterparts in Tehran are reviewing it.

Senior U.S. officials acknowledged the framework deal following a night in which U.S. and Iranian forces exchanged drone and missile fire in the region, highlighting the shaky nature of the ceasefire that was declared in April.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told reporters at the White House that the tentative agreement is “multifaceted” and awaiting Trump’s potential approval.

This time he deserves the Nobel Peace Prize - what other world leader has ended the same war six or seven times (sorry, I've lost count with all the ceasefires, end of wars, temporary cessation of hostilities, etc.) - it's been announced it's ending at least twice in the last week...

I found this quote from the above article to be an interesting interpretation of ”ceasefire"...

Quote:

A U.S. official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss military operations, described the U.S. actions as “measured, purely defensive, and intended to maintain the ceasefire.”

ceasefire

Quote:

A ceasefire is an arrangement in which countries at war agree to stop fighting for a time.

All times are GMT. The time now is 13:39.

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