Free Republic

Since 1979 the Islamic Republic of Iran has been at war with the United States. Generally a very one-sided war with only the Iranian fanatics in Tehran inflicting any casualties. The United States has been reluctant to really engage Iran, partly out of fear of things escalating into a larger regional conflict. And partly out of some misguided belief that one can negotiate with religious fanatics and expect them to abide by any treaty or agreement they enter into. In 1979 the Iranian regime took and held American diplomats hostage for four hundred forty four days, only releasing them when...

Iran Is Weak Suleimani's killing was long overdue. The last time Iran was chastened on the world stage was when the U.S. sank half of the Iranian navy in 1988. The first thing to say about the U.S. airstrike on Thursday night that killed Qassem Suleimani, the longtime leader of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps’ Quds Force, is that President Trump made the right decision.Taking out Suleimani, who was killed as he traveled in a convoy near the Baghdad airport, was long overdue. In a statement, the Pentagon said Suleimani “was actively developing plans to attack American diplomats and service...

The U.S. military carried out airstrikes in Iraq and Syria on Sunday — days after a U.S. defense contractor was killed at a military compound in a rocket attack. Military jet fighters conducted "precision defensive strikes" on five sites of Kataeb Hezbollah, an Iran-backed Iraqi militia, Jonathan Hoffman, a spokesperson for the Pentagon told Fox News. Two defense officials added that Air Force F-15 jet fighters carried out the strikes. U.S. officials have blamed the militia for a rocket barrage Friday that killed a U.S. defense contractor, wounded four U.S. troops and two members of the Iraqi Security Forces (ISF)...

US special operations forces who are believed to have killed ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi issued an airstrike on his compound to prevent the location from becoming a shrine, according to Newsweek. Soldiers from the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment, or Delta Force, conducted a raid against what they believed to be Baghdadi at the northern province of Idlib, Syria, on Saturday, unnamed US officials said in numerous news reports. Baghdadi, who fetched a $25 million bounty in the US, is believed to have been killed in the raid. Military officials were still awaiting forensics verification, according to Newsweek, who...

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced Wednesday the beginning of a military operation in northeastern Syria, days after President Donald Trump pulled U.S. troops out of the region. "The Turkish Armed Forces, together with the Syrian National Army, just launched #OperationPeaceSpring," Erdogan wrote Wednesday in a tweet. "Our mission is to prevent the creation of a terror corridor across our southern border, and to bring peace to the area." Mustafa Bali, a spokesman for the U.S.-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces, said Turkish warplanes started carrying out airstrikes on civilian targets Wednesday. "There is a huge panic among people of the...

Turkish warplanes have bombed parts of north-eastern Syria at the start of an offensive which could lead to conflict with Kurdish-led allies of the US. Turkey's President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said the operation was to create a "safe zone" cleared of Kurdish militias which will also house Syrian refugees. The strikes have killed at least two civilians, Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) said. The group vowed to resist any Turkish advance across the border. It asked the US and the coalition against the jihadist group Islamic State (IS) to establish a no-fly zone in the area to stop "attacks on...

The president disputed Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s (D-Calif.) assertion that he would need congressional approval for any “hostilities” against Iran. "I disagree," he said. "Most people seem to disagree." "They have ideas. They’re intelligent people. They'll come up with some thoughts," Trump said, referring to lawmakers. "I actually learned a couple of things the other day when we had our meeting with Congress."

Non-interventionist Trump allies are cheering President Trump's Thursday night decision to buck his most senior advisers and abandon an airstrike on Iran, saying the decision could help him win reelection while preventing a major regional war. Trump canceled the bombing of Iran after authorizing it, saying via Twitter he learned 150 Iranians might die, and that it would not be proportional to the loss of one U.S. drone. National security adviser John Bolton and Secretary of State Mike Pompeo reportedly favored the attack, after issuing aggressive recent statements on Iran. “He doesn’t trust them. He felt that they were cornering...

For some, you could hear the sound of war drums. It was coming. Iran had shot down a surveillance drone in international waters. President Trump did not mince words, saying Iran made a huge mistake, though was cagey about military action. He told the press “you’ll find out” when asked. President Trump has taken action before, firing cruise missiles at an airfield in Syria in 2017 after a horrible chemical weapons attack struck the town of Khan Shaykhun. The airfield was the staging ground. Reports trickled in last night that air strikes were ordered against Iran but were halted by...

The Israeli army attacked Thursday overnight targets in Gaza Strip, hours after two rockets were fired at Tel Aviv from Gaza, a first since Israel's 2014 campaign in Gaza. According to the Israeli military, the Iron Dome missile defense system was activated. It is assumed that the rockets landed in open areas due to the fact that no damage or injuries were reported as of yet. The last time rocket alerts were activated in Tel Aviv was two years ago, in what turned out to be a false alarm. The flare-up comes three weeks before Israel holds its general election.

The Venezuelan Navy illegally entered the waters of Guyana this weekend and forced a ship contracted by Exxon Mobil to conduct oil research in the area to vacate, The incident, which Guyanese authorities angrily denounced and vowed to bring to the attention of the United Nations, reignites a feud Venezuelan socialist dictator Nicolás Maduro began with the neighboring country in 2015, claiming as much as two-thirds of Guyana itself belonged to Venezuela. Guyana has repeatedly noted that Venezuela signed an agreement in 1899 on the territory in question and no disputes remain as to who owns that land. Exxon Mobil...

Saudi-led coalition airstrikes killed 30 people, including 22 children, in a rebel-held area in northwestern Yemen on Thursday, according to the Houthi-controlled Health Ministry. Four families were evacuating their homes in a vehicle when the airstrikes hit, according to Houthi-owned media. Earlier coalition airstrikes on Wednesday killed four people and injured two, according to two surviving family members who preferred to remain anonymous for security reasons. "Four people were killed in the strike before, that's why they fled. They wanted to save their lives, their children's lives. Is nowhere safe for us?" one survivor said. Both sources did not want...

The Syrian government and its closest military ally - Russia - have intensified their bombing campaign Thursday in the southern province of Deraa, after ceasefire deal between rebels and Russians broke down. Al Jazeera’s Zeina Khodr, reporting from Beirut, said that had airstrikes intensified on Thursday as government troops advanced steadily to recapture lost territory. “The relative lull in the fighting has now been shattered following the collapse of peace talks. Syrian government and Russian planes have been targeting a number of rebel-held towns in the province,” Khodr said. “Dozens of airstrikes were reported by activists, mainly targeting the towns...

According to a report in a leading Arabic website, Moscow has given its consent to Israeli military strikes deep in Syrian territory. Al-Sharq al-Awsat reported Friday that Moscow and Jerusalem held talks Thursday concerning Syria and agreed to “limit” the Iranian presence in the south of the country. Israeli counterpart Avigdor Liberman met met in Moscow with his Russian counterpart, Sergei Shoigu, while Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and President Vladimir Putin spoke about Syria over the phone. The two sides agreed to “limit” Iran, keep its forces away from the south, and to allow the IDF to target "menacing...

Following the alleged Israeli airstrikes in Syria last night, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said his country is more committed than ever to eradicating terrorists from his country. Meanwhile, an official in an alliance that includes Syria and its regional allies told the New York Times that Iran will likely attack Israel after the Lebanese parliamentary election in May.

The target was reportedly an underground missile production facility and depot for surface-to-surface missiles. The explosions following the strike registered as a 2.6 magnitude earthquake, but the weapons used did not cause the quake. Over 18 people were killed and another 60 were wounded. The targets were Syrian army bases being used by Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps and Shi'ite militias with troops from Lebanon, Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan. Missiles also struck targets in the Al-Malikiyah area, north of the Aleppo’s airport. The underground missile production facility and depot for surface-to-surface missile is funded by Iran and built with the help...

The shadow war between Israel and Iran in Syria escalated sharply on Monday after suspected Israeli strikes killed 26 Iranian and Assad regime fighters, according to monitors. One strike tore through a military base dug into a mountain near the central city of Hama on Sunday night, causing an explosion so large it registered as a 2.6 magnitude earthquake. A second strike targeted an airbase near the northern city of Aleppo. There was no claim of responsibility for the attack but suspicion immediately fell on Israel, which has carried out a number of strikes as it tries to prevent Iran...

Sen. Mike Lee issued a statement Monday criticizing the Trump administration for not seeking congressional authority before launching airstrikes in Syria. “No President of the United States, no matter party or political ideology, has the authority to unilaterally start a war. While the president has the authority under the War Powers Act to respond when the U.S. is under attack or in imminent danger, such circumstances did not exist with regard to Syria,” Mr. Lee, Utah Republican, tweeted.

When President Donald Trump threatened to send missiles at Syria — despite Russia's promises to counter-attack— all eyes turned towards the US Navy's sole destroyer in the region. But that may have been a trick. Pundits openly scoffed at Trump's announcement of the strike days in advance, especially considering his criticism of Barack Obama for similar talk, but the actual strike appeared to go down well. In April 2017, two US Navy destroyers in the eastern Mediterranean steamed into the region, let off 59 cruise missiles in response to suspected gas attacks by the Syrian government, and left unpunished and...

Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan welcomed U.S., British and French forces’ airstrikes on Syria, saying that the operation sent a message to Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad. “With the joint operation by U.S., U.K. and France on Saturday, the Syrian regime received the message that its massacres wouldn’t be left unanswered,” Erdogan told his ruling AK Party supporters in an Istanbul meeting. “The innocent Syrian people should have been defended long ago,” Erdogan added.