For nearly 48 hours, an American colonel evaded capture by scaling a tall ridge and hiding inside a mountain crevice, as Iranian forces — who were promised a reported bounty — worked to close in on his position.
While much about the rescue effort for the downed U.S. weapons systems officer (WSO) remains unknown, newly confirmed details from President Trump and unnamed U.S. military officials are beginning to shed light on the daring mission that quickly became the Pentagon’s top priority.
After their F-15E fighter jet was struck in southwest Iran, both the pilot and the WSO ejected. The pilot was found and rescued in “broad daylight” after U.S. forces operated over Iran for seven hours, President Donald Trump revealed in a statement Sunday morning.
The rescue of the WSO, on the other hand, proved to be more challenging.
Described as a “highly respected Colonel,” the WSO, who was “seriously wounded,” was rescued “deep inside the mountains of Iran,” while Iranian forces were looking for him “in big numbers” and “getting close,” according to Trump.
After hitting the ground, the colonel relied on his Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) training to avoid capture. The WSO, who was equipped with a beacon — a device that sends encrypted distress signals via satellite to rescue forces — was being monitored by the president, Secretary of War Pete Hegseth, and other officials during the rescue operation, Trump said. The president added that he directed “dozens of aircraft” to retrieve him.
The WSO climbed roughly 7,000 feet into mountainous terrain to conceal himself, as hundreds of special operations forces from various branches, along with dozens of warplanes and helicopters — and support from cyber, space, and intelligence assets — were mobilized to rescue him, according to <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2026/04/04/us/politics/military-iran-airman-rescue.html">The New York Times</a>.
Israeli officials shared intelligence with the United States to aid the search-and-rescue effort, while the Israeli military paused air strikes in the area, according to <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/second-us-fighter-jet-downed-by-strait-of-hormuz-as-search-for-f-15e-crew-member-in-iran-continues">Fox News</a>. Meanwhile, the CIA launched a “deception campaign” inside Iran, spreading false information that the colonel had already been rescued — confusing Iranian forces as the operation unfolded, the outlet reported.
According to The New York Times, Iranian convoys attempting to reach the area were struck to keep them away from the extraction zone, and a senior military official described the mission as one of the most challenging and complex in U.S. special operations history. MQ-9 Reaper drones were used to create a lethal perimeter to protect the crew member from Iranians who got within three kilometers of the WSO, reported <a href="https://www.airandspaceforces.com/f-15e-aviator-missing-in-iran-rescued-by-us-forces/#:~:text=U.S.%20MQ%2D9%20Reaper%20drones,also%20involved%20in%20the%20mission.">Air &amp; Space Forces Magazine</a>.
Reports differ on whether a firefight occurred during the operation. The New York Times reported that U.S. forces engaged Iranian units, while Fox News said no direct firefight took place. <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/04/03/f-15-crash-iran-missing/">The Washington Post</a>, citing anonymous U.S. officials, reported that Iranian forces opened fire on two helicopters searching for the weapons officer, wounding several American service members on board.
At least one aircraft involved in the extraction — possibly a C-130 Hercules — was left behind after becoming stuck in the mud and was later destroyed to prevent it from falling into enemy hands, Fox News reported.
The New York Times described a similar complication, reporting that two transport planes became disabled at a remote base in Iran after the weapons officer was rescued. Air &amp; Space Forces Magazine claims that the two planes destroyed were MC-130J Air Force Special Operations planes.
Commanders ultimately flew in three additional aircraft to extract all U.S. personnel and destroyed the disabled planes to keep them from falling into Iranian hands.
Trump announced that he will hold a press conference on Monday at 1:00 p.m. ET with military officials, where he will likely reveal more key details of the historic rescue mission.
CENTCOM and the Department of War declined to comment on this report.

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‘WE GOT HIM’: Inside One Of The Most Complex Missions In U.S. Special Ops History

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Operation Epic Fury

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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban called an emergency defence council meeting on Sunday after powerful explosives were found near a pipeline in Serbia that carries Russian gas to the country.
The incident prompted political scrutiny in Hungary at a sensitive time days before a national election, with Orban&#8217;s party trailing in opinion polls.
Orban said Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic, a close ally, had informed him by phone about the discovery outside the town of Kanjiza, near Hungary&#8217;s border with Serbia.
&#8220;Our units found an explosive of devastating power,&#8221; Vucic said in a post on Instagram. &#8220;I told PM Orban that we would keep him updated on the investigation.&#8221;
Officials in Budapest and Belgrade did not respond to requests for comment about the incident, which comes before pivotal elections on April 12 in Hungary where nationalist Orban is fighting to hold onto his more than 16-year grip on power.
A former Hungarian intelligence official told Reuters there had been discussions in Hungarian security circles over the past days about a precise plan for a &#8220;false-flag&#8221; operation impacting the pipeline in Serbia as part of an effort to influence the Hungarian vote.
Peter Magyar, leader of the opposition Tisza party also raised doubts about the incident, saying it appeared aimed at boosting Orban&#8217;s electoral prospects.
&#8220;Several people have publicly indicated that something will &#8216;accidentally&#8217; happen at the gas pipeline in Serbia at Easter, a week before the Hungarian elections. And so it happened,&#8221; Magyar said in a statement.
PIVOTAL ELECTIONS
In a Facebook post after the defence council meeting, Orban suggested the incident related to an attempt to blow up the pipeline, which transports Russian gas through the Balkans to Central and Eastern Europe.
&#8220;According to information that we have&#8230;.there was an act of sabotage prepared,&#8221; Orban said after the meeting, adding that both countries have strengthened the protection of the pipeline.
Without directly blaming Ukraine for the incident in Serbia, Orban said &#8220;Ukraine has been for years trying to cut off Europe from Russian energy.&#8221;
&#8220;The Russian section of TurkStream is also under continuous military attack. Ukraine&#8217;s efforts pose a life-threatening danger to Hungary,&#8221; he added.
The head of Serbia&#8217;s Military Intelligence Agency, Djuro Jusic, said the explosives found on a section of pipeline linked to the Turkstream system, which carries Russian gas to Turkey and then to Central Europe, were produced in the United States.
&#8220;We had information that a person from a migrant community, with military training, will carry out a diversion on the gas infrastructure,&#8221; he told reporters in Belgrade. He did not give further details, but said authorities in Serbia were searching for that person.
Orban in February scaled up security around energy infrastructure in the country by dispatching troops after what he said were plans by Ukraine to disrupt the Hungarian energy system &#8211; charges Kyiv denied.
Ukraine&#8217;s foreign ministry strongly rejected what it said were attempts to link Kyiv to the explosives.
&#8220;Ukraine has nothing to do with this,&#8221; foreign ministry spokesman Heorhii Tykhyi said on X. &#8220;Most probably, a Russian false-flag operation as part of Moscow&#8217;s heavy interference in Hungarian elections.&#8221;
Budapest has also been in a dispute with Ukraine over a halt in oil supplies via the Druzhba pipeline. Orban&#8217;s Fidesz party has sought to associate opposition leader Peter Magyar with Brussels and Ukraine, suggesting that voting for his Tisza party means voting for tanks and war.
Hungary is an outlier in the European Union for maintaining ties with Moscow, which voiced support for Hungary over Sunday&#8217;s incident and suggested that Ukraine was responsible.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto also blamed Ukraine, writing on Facebook that &#8220;in the past few days and weeks, the Ukrainians organised an oil blockade against us, and then tried to put us under a total energy blockade &#8230; And now we have today&#8217;s incident.&#8221;
(Reporting by Krisztina Than; Additional reporting by Lili Bayer in Brussels and Ivana Sekularac in Belgrade Writing by Edward McAllister; Editing by Hugh Lawson, Helen Popper, William Maclean, Christina Fincher)

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Hungary Rattled By Russia Pipeline Scare As One Claim Gains Traction

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Ukraine

British police arrested a fourth person in connection with an arson attack on Jewish community ambulances, with the detention happening at a London court where three males already charged in the case were appearing, prosecutors said on Saturday.
Hamza Iqbal, 20, Rehan Khan, 19, and a 17-year-old who cannot be named for legal reasons, are accused of torching four ambulances belonging to the Jewish volunteer emergency service Hatzola on March 23 while they were parked near a synagogue in the Golders Green area of north London.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the incident at the time as a &#8220;deeply shocking antisemitic arson attack.&#8221;
The SITE Intelligence ​website has said an Iran-aligned multinational militant collective called Islamic ​Movement of ⁠the People of the Right Hand had claimed responsibility for the incident.
It said the group had been behind similar fires in Europe.
Counter-terrorism officers are heading the investigation in Britain, but as yet the incident is not being treated as terrorism.
A prosecutor from the Crown Prosecution Service said police believe four people were involved in carrying out the attack itself, with a fourth individual being arrested on Saturday morning as part of an ongoing investigation.
The Metropolitan Police said the fourth suspect was a 19-year-old man who had been arrested by officers at the court while attending the hearing, after officers recognised him as being linked to the attack. He was arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life and taken into custody.
Three men have been charged with arson with intent to damage property and being reckless as to whether life would be endangered. Two are British nationals, while the third holds dual British‑Pakistani citizenship.
All three were remanded in custody, with the 17‑year‑old ordered to be held in youth detention accommodation.
Hatzola is a not-for-profit volunteer emergency service that works alongside Britain&#8217;s National Health Service and primarily serves the Orthodox Jewish community.
The London Fire Brigade said explosions from cylinders on the vehicles shattered nearby windows, but no one was injured.
Attacks on Jewish people and Jewish targets have risen in Britain since the October 2023 Hamas assault on Israel that triggered the war in Gaza, according to police and community groups.
(Reporting by Sam Tabahriti; Editing by Joe Bavier and Toby Chopra)

U.K. Police Arrest Fourth Suspect Over Attack On Jewish Ambulances

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On Easter morning, President Trump issued perhaps the strongest threat to the despotic Iranian regime that he has ever put forth, as he warned they had better open the Strait of Hormuz.
“Tuesday will be Power Plant Day, and Bridge Day, all wrapped up in one, in Iran,” Trump stated clearly targeting those vital infrastructure pillars. “There will be nothing like it!!! Open the F*ckin’ Strait, you crazy bastards, or you’ll be living in Hell &#8211; JUST WATCH! Praise be to Allah. President DONALD J. TRUMP.”
<iframe loading="lazy" class="truthsocial-embed" style="max-width: 100%; border: 0;" src="https://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/116351998782539414/embed" width="600" height="200" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen">﻿﻿</iframe><script src="https://truthsocial.com/embed.js" async="async"></script>
In mid-March, Iran claimed to have formally closed the Strait of Hormuz, which is a 21-mile-wide chokepoint through which roughly 20% of the world’s oil flows.
On March 21, Trump warned, “If Iran doesn’t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!”
The West has viewed the Strait of Hormuz as a non-negotiable strategic priority, consistently meeting Iranian threats with a policy of &#8220;freedom of navigation&#8221; enforced by military might. The precedent for this response was firmly established during the &#8220;Tanker War&#8221; (1984–1988). When Iran began mining the waterway and attacking commercial vessels, the U.S. launched Operation Earnest Will, reflagging Kuwaiti tankers and providing direct naval escorts to ensure global oil flows remained uninterrupted.
Whenever Tehran utilized the Strait as a &#8220;bargaining chip&#8221; to protest sanctions—most notably in 2011 and 2019—the U.S. and its allies responded by deploying massive carrier strike groups and forming international maritime constructs (such as Operation Sentinel).
The legal basis for these responses has consistently relied on the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea, which limits sovereign interference in international transit. Historically, any Iranian attempt to disrupt the roughly 20% of the world&#8217;s oil supply has been characterized by the West not merely as a regional dispute, but as a global economic provocation that justifies direct military intervention against Iranian naval infrastructure.

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Trump Issues The Most Blistering Ultimatum To Iran In History

Strait of Hormuz

The Artemis II mission is officially headed to the Moon after NASA gave the go-ahead for its Orion spacecraft to leave Earth&#8217;s orbit for the next stage of its historic space mission. 
Orion fired its main engine at 7:49 p.m. EST on Thursday, sending the four astronauts aboard out of Earth’s orbit and onto a trajectory toward the Moon. The crew is set to travel around the Moon and could venture farther than any humans have since the Apollo 13 mission in 1970. 
“Nominal translunar injection burn complete. The Artemis II crew is officially on the way to the Moon,” <a href="https://x.com/NASAAdmin/status/2039857997556416676">said</a> NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman. “America is back in the business of sending astronauts to the Moon. This time, farther than ever before.”
On Friday morning, NASA posted a picture showing the view of the astronauts from Orion as they continued toward the moon.
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Good morning, world! 🌎
We have spectacular new high-resolution images of our home planet, all of us looking back through the Orion capsule window at our Artemis II astronauts as they continue their journey to the Moon. <a href="https://t.co/QjxGfWiRcS">pic.twitter.com/QjxGfWiRcS</a>
— NASA (@NASA) <a href="https://twitter.com/NASA/status/2040059740848283920?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 3, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
As Orion departed Earth’s orbit, the four astronauts spoke from space in a broadcast from NASA to ABC and Fox News. Commander Reid Wiseman, who is leading the mission, began by giving a shout-out to the astronauts&#8217; families. 
“There was a moment about an hour ago where Mission Control Houston reoriented our spacecraft as the sun was setting behind the Earth,” he said from the spacecraft while answering questions from ABC News during the broadcast. “And I don&#8217;t know what we all expected to see in that moment, but you could see the entire globe from pole to pole. You could see Africa, Europe, and if you looked really close, you could see the Northern Lights.  It was the most spectacular moment, and it paused all four of us in our tracks.”
<iframe loading="lazy" title="Watch: Artemis II astronauts take questions on their way toward the moon" width="500" height="281" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/f81dxqUauuk?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Wiseman said the astronauts had a busy first few days and that the magnitude of the mission was only starting to set in. He said they had only taken two very quick naps during the first 30 hours of the mission and had only just eaten their first meal together. 
“We had been to the moon before in 1969, 1968 through 1972. It&#8217;s been a long time since we&#8217;ve been back. And I got to tell you, there is nothing normal about this.  Sending four humans 250,000 miles away is a herculean effort, and we are now just realizing the gravity of that,” he said. 
The other astronauts on the mission are pilot Victor Glover, mission specialist Christina Koch, and Canadian astronaut Jeremy Hansen. 
Koch said she hoped any milestone reached by the Artemis II crew would be surpassed by future missions when asked by Fox News reporter Trace Gallagher about the historic reach of the mission. 
“We think that the journey that we&#8217;ve been on, and all of our teams have been on with us, is so much more than just one number, but we also hope that that number just keeps being exceeded and exceeded by the future crews,” she said. 
&#8220;It has been a great couple of days, just learning how to live in Orion,&#8221; Koch told Gallagher. &#8220;Living in Orion isn&#8217;t quite the same as being at home with our families, but, yes, some of the exciting things are the burns that we do.  They kick off with such an acceleration that most things that you see velcroed around that aren&#8217;t actually fastened down, all fall down to the floor of Orion.&#8221;
Koch noted that she was sleeping with her head toward the &#8220;floor&#8221; of Orion.
&#8220;There is no difference between up and down, and so, yes, I&#8217;ve been sleeping with my feet there and my head down here, and it&#8217;s very comfortable,&#8221; she said.
NASA has said that the mission has gone smoothly so far, apart from a brief loss of two-way communications between ground control and the crew due to an issue on the ground. 
Crew members are currently preparing a “lunar targeting plan,” which will guide their observations of the Moon’s surface during a six-hour window on Monday.

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Artemis II Astronauts Send Message From Space As They Head To The Moon

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Moon

NASA

Space

If you thought America’s love of Japan was only about Hibachi restaurants, Anime teens, and The Karate Kid reboots, you haven’t spent enough time on X. Last weekend, the admiration entered a new phase as the social media platform boosted an AI-enabled translation tool, making exchanging and sharing posts easier between Japanese and American users.
What resulted was a pleasant and outright wholesome font of positive vibes that seemed out of place in the notoriously cynical virtual world of hot takes, hate bots, and culture wars. The website Pirate Wires noticed and published an <a href="https://www.piratewires.com/p/japan-is-americas-greatest-ally-and">essay</a> doubling down on the niche community, heaping praise on the newfound old love between Japan and America. In it, the authors point to President Trump’s bromance with the late Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, love of American BBQ, and shared technological and military goals, all of which are true and good, but that’s only part of the story.
While it appears the Japanese people are living their best lives cosplaying Americana at <a href="https://tasteofcountry.com/authentic-honky-tonk-bar-tokyo-japan/">Honky Tonk bars</a> and showing off their <a href="https://www.topspeed.com/japans-love-affair-with-american-muscle-cars/">classic cruisers</a>, the Pirate Wires take is a little deceiving. What’s missing is the 1980s working-class anxiety and animosity toward our now Eastern besties — a sentiment not felt since the Greatest Generation came back from raising the flag on Mt. Suribachi and refused to buy Toyotas.
Japan’s rapid post-WWII industrialization and investment in technology paid off economically and sparked a transpacific rivalry, trade war, and manufacturing insecurity on par with a Rocky-versus-Drago fight of the century, if not a little less…violent. The Cold War rightly absorbs much of the attention when recalling the era, but as the Soviet Union was showing signs of losing its grip, Japan was becoming a real threat to the United States’ industrial domination — and the repercussions were being felt in homes, boardrooms, and factories across the country. Toyota and Honda exploded onto the automotive scene, helping usher in Detroit’s demise. Japanese technology, such as portable radios, video games, and televisions, was grabbing more market share from American companies like RCA. Even America’s trophy landmarks were being taken over. In 1989, Mitsubishi Estate took control of Rockefeller Center, a capstone acquisition following the Japanese corporation&#8217;s acquisitions of Firestone Tire &amp; Rubber and Columbia Pictures.
This tension was reflected in pop culture entertainment — think Ron Howard’s 1986 film Gung Ho, where Michael Keaton plays a foreman at an American auto manufacturing plant taken over by a Japanese corporation. The film is a comedy, but it mirrors the zeitgeist of the time. There was also Rising Sun, Kinjite, and imagined futures that look strikingly Japanese, such as Blade Runner and Robocop 3; Die Hard takes place in Nakatomi Plaza. Tom Clancy even explores this theme in his novel &#8220;Debt of Honor,&#8221; in which the protagonist, Jack Ryan, fights a &#8220;secret cabal of Japanese industrialists.&#8221;
But enough with nuance. The biggest takeaway from the situation is the display of understated power and the magnitude of influence and reach American culture has had from the mid-20th century forward. And even though there have been some notable outside foreign influences permeating these liberty-laden shores, it’s far from an even exchange.
We gave the world jazz and rock and roll, fast food and blue jeans, baseball and John Wayne Westerns. Sure, we got the British Invasion and Crocodile Dundee, but what would France do without Jerry Lewis and Germany without David Hasselhoff? I’m only half-kidding. American cultural influence was instrumental in winning the Cold War — there was even an underground pipeline of Chuck Norris <a href="https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2442080/">films</a> to undermine the communists — and who could deny Roger Goodell’s not-so-secret <a href="https://media.nfl.com/news-and-releases/international/nfl-s-global-markets-program-expands-in-2026-with-addition-of-it">plan</a> for the NFL to take over the world?
So while our “special” relationship with Japan is great, it’s not exactly novel. America’s cultural influence is a force for good in the world, and it’s a shame the mainstream media has ignored it in favor of authoritarian worship, evidenced by the rise of <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2026/02/25/asia/chinamaxxing-americans-soft-power-intl-hnk-dst">stories</a> about “Chinamaxxing.”
Good for Pirate Wires to report a feel-good story that most of the media ignored, even if it wasn&#8217;t a complete picture. It’s important to remember that for all the reports of America’s demise, we’re still going strong — and in unexpected corners of the world and in unexpected ways. Far from the evil empire that snobby Europeans or elitist media personalities would have you believe, we just want to spread some good old-fashioned American fun. Because in the long run, that makes better friends than enemies.

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Hate Us Or Love Us, Everyone Still Wants To Be American

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American History

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A new wave of concern is building around artificial intelligence (AI), not over jobs or misinformation, but over its impact on mental health. Now, a recent study out of MIT is sharpening that concern, suggesting that the problem is structural.
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology released a preprint <a href="https://arxiv.org/pdf/2602.19141">study</a> examining how AI chatbot interactions evolve over time. Stripped of its dense mathematical and technical language, their core finding is straightforward: when a system is designed to agree with you, mirror you, and keep you engaged, it can gradually pull you deeper into whatever you already believe, whether true or not. 
The study models chatbot interaction as a feedback loop. A user expresses an idea, the AI responds in a way that sustains the conversation, and the user — feeling validated — returns with a stronger or more developed version of that idea. Over repeated exchanges, that loop can intensify beliefs rather than challenge them. 
For an average user, that might just mean reinforcement of existing opinions. But for someone vulnerable to disordered thinking, researchers warn, the same dynamic could contribute to more extreme or delusional beliefs. 
The findings align with a growing body of reporting and analysis. A recent piece highlighted by <a href="https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/urban-survival/202507/the-emerging-problem-of-ai-psychosis">Psychology Today</a>, along with an editorial in <a href="https://academic.oup.com/schizophreniabulletin/article/49/6/1418/7251361?">Schizophrenia Bulletin</a> published less than a year after the launch of ChatGPT, points to what some are calling “AI psychosis,” a pattern in which chatbot interactions appear to reinforce or co-create irrational beliefs. It is not a formal diagnosis, and researchers are careful to say there is no definitive proof that AI alone can cause such conditions. <del></del>
Unlike a human therapist, who might gently push back or reality-check a harmful belief, a general-purpose chatbot has no built-in instinct to do so. Its “goal,” in a loose sense, is to continue the interaction. And mathematically, the easiest way to do that is to affirm, not challenge. That design choice may be harmless in most contexts. But in edge cases, it can become a kind of digital echo chamber, one that reflects a user’s thoughts back at them with increasing clarity and apparent authority.
While anecdotal, several reported cases illustrate the concern. 
Just in March, <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2026/mar/26/ai-chatbot-users-lives-wrecked-by-delusion">the Guardian</a> detailed the story of a Dutch IT consultant who became convinced he had helped create a conscious digital entity after prolonged interaction with a chatbot. He reportedly spent roughly €100,000 (approximately $110,000) pursuing the idea, was hospitalized multiple times, and eventually attempted suicide.
In another alarming instance, a man <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-features/chatgpt-obsession-mental-breaktown-alex-taylor-suicide-1235368941/">reportedly</a> became convinced that an AI chatbot he had formed a relationship with had been “killed,” leading to a violent confrontation with police that ended in his death.
Modern AI systems are optimized for engagement. They are not designed to argue, correct, or confront. Instead, they are trained to be helpful, responsive, and agreeable, to keep the conversation going. Researchers often describe this as “sycophancy,” meaning the AI tends to validate the user’s framing of reality.
MIT researchers say the broader concern is not that AI creates harmful beliefs from scratch, but that it can accelerate and harden them, particularly when combined with increased social isolation.
And if the underlying logic of these systems rewards engagement above all else, the question becomes harder to ignore: what happens when the most engaging response is also the most misleading?

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Are AI Chatbots Shaping How You Think?

Artificial Intelligence

Technology

As the US bombing campaign in Iran extends into its fifth week and Tehran maintains its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz and the global economy, what is Trump’s next move? Will Trump escalate by sending in ground forces, or will he look for an off-ramp?
Trump has several military options to try to coerce Iran to open the Strait, but his best move may be to declare victory and go home.
Contrary to most of the mainstream media coverage, the United States has achieved its objectives in the war. Iran will be much weaker after this war than it was one month ago. Intelligence analysts assess threats based on capability and intent. While Tehran’s intent might remain hostile to the United States, its capability is greatly diminished.
The only real remaining, serious challenge is Iran’s continued threats to the Strait of Hormuz and the broader global economy. Ideally, the United States would open the Strait before ending the war, but that is easier said than done. There is no purely military option to force the Strait open. As long as Iran possesses some drones and threatens to fire them, many commercial shippers will assess the risk of transiting the Strait as too high. Even a naval escort cannot guarantee protection against stray Iranian drones and missiles.
In short, reopening the Strait requires Iran’s consent.
There are three possible pathways to change Iran’s mind. The first pathway is regime change. A new government in Tehran may be more pliable. But whether the Iranian people rise up and seize power is ultimately beyond the control of the American military. While this would be a desirable outcome, the Trump administration has been clear that this is not a must-have objective of its military campaign.
The second pathway is through coercion, convincing Iran’s leaders that the United States will escalate the war until they open the Strait. This is where the deployment of U.S. ground forces comes into play. Trump could order the U.S. military to seize Kharg Island, a small island near Iran’s coast through which 90% of Iranian oil exports pass. By controlling Iran’s energy exports, Trump would essentially be threatening that if the rest of the world cannot freely trade energy through the Strait, then neither can Tehran.
Seizing the island would be straightforward, but holding it would be challenging. The island lies near Iran’s coast, well within range of Iranian missiles and drones. U.S. forces on the island would be vulnerable to Iranian attacks in the coming days, weeks, and maybe months. The introduction of ground forces could begin to look like a quagmire. We know from Trump’s “peace through strength” doctrine that he is willing to use military force in short, sharp, decisive ways, but he is wary of long, drawn-out ground operations without a clear end in sight. He will be reluctant to introduce ground forces.
Some have also argued that Trump will send in ground forces to seize stockpiles of Iran’s enriched nuclear fuel, but this is unnecessary. Iran cannot enrich this fuel to weapons-grade without enrichment facilities, and Iran’s major nuclear facilities were indeed “obliterated” last summer. If Iran attempts to rebuild the facilities, Washington can simply bomb them again.
Another military option, as Trump has repeatedly threatened, would be to strike Iran’s energy infrastructure. The purpose of this course of action would also be coercion. To prevent the destruction of its economic lifeline, Tehran may decide to reopen the Strait instead.
But Trump’s repeated threats have yet to yield the desired effect, and actually following through on the threat would be counterproductive. It would reduce Iran’s incentive to open the Strait for others. It would also further reduce the world’s supply of energy, sending prices ever higher, and causing further damage to the global economy.
This leaves the final option, declaring victory and going home. As noted above, the Trump administration has succeeded in greatly weakening Iran and can credibly declare victory at any time.
In this scenario, the strategy for opening the Strait is unclear, but it may ultimately rest on Iran pursuing its own self-interest. If Washington and Israel stop shooting tomorrow, will Tehran keep the Strait closed forever? It will likely threaten the Strait for at least a couple of additional weeks to exact a price and deter future attacks, but what about beyond that?
If Washington and Jerusalem have ceased hostilities for weeks, but Tehran continues to shoot at commercial shipping in the Strait, it will unite most of the rest of the world against it.
Moreover, the biggest challenge facing Iran’s new leaders will be consolidating power at home. Continuing a one-sided war against the global economy would be counterproductive to that objective. At some point, Tehran itself may see that it benefits from a return to business as usual.
In short, there is reason for cautious optimism. The most desirable and plausible scenario at this point may be an end to the war in the coming weeks that sees America victorious, Iran weakened, and the global economy reopened.
***
Matthew Kroenig is vice president for Geostrategy and Fellows and senior director of the Atlantic Council’s Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security.

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Trump Faces Iran Decision As One Option Gains Ground

Foreign Policy

Trump Administration

In a <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/volkswagen-shift-production-missile-defense-one-factory-deal-with-israeli-2026-03-24">landmark deal</a> that marries German engineering prowess with Israeli combat-proven technology, Volkswagen is in advanced negotiations to transform its Osnabrück vehicle plant into a production hub for the Iron Dome missile defense system.
The partnership with Israel’s Rafael Advanced Defense Systems represents a strategic masterstroke, offering a lifeline to thousands of German workers while bolstering Western security at a time of unprecedented global volatility.
The move comes as Israel and the United States continue their high-stakes campaign to neutralize the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran and its regional proxies. While the conflict has sparked intense debate within the German halls of power—most notably from President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who recently <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/german-president-warns-trumps-return-marks-profound-rupture-transatlantic-ties-2026-03-24/">characterized</a> the war as a &#8220;disastrous mistake&#8221;—the VW-Rafael tie-up signals a more pragmatic, security-first approach from Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government.
The Osnabrück plant, previously facing closure due to a sluggish transition to electric vehicles, is set to become a cornerstone of the European Sky Shield Initiative. By producing launchers, generators, and heavy-duty transport trucks for the Iron Dome, Volkswagen is pivoting from a struggling automotive market to a booming defense sector.
For Israel, the deal is a testament to the enduring strength of the Berlin-Jerusalem alliance. Rafael officials noted that Germany was chosen specifically for its status as one of Israel’s most reliable partners. The collaboration aims to:
<ul>
<li data-path-to-node="6,0,0">Save 2,300 high-skilled jobs that were previously at risk of redundancy.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="6,1,0">Integrate &#8220;Battle-Proven&#8221; Technology into the European defense infrastructure.</li>
<li data-path-to-node="6,2,0">Strengthen Transatlantic Security by providing a localized supply chain for critical air defense components.</li>
</ul>
The industrial synergy stands in stark contrast to the pointed rhetoric from President Steinmeier, who on Tuesday warned of a &#8220;profound rupture&#8221; in ties with Washington. However, Chancellor Merz has <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/germanys-merz-calls-irans-territorial-integrity-be-preserved-2026-03-06">remained focused</a> on the broader strategic necessity of the mission. While expressing concern over regional stability and potential migration waves, Merz has affirmed that Germany shares the core goals of the U.S. and Israel: ending Tehran’s ballistic missile program and its support for global terrorism.
The transition at Osnabrück is expected to be seamless, requiring minimal new investment to convert existing assembly lines for defense hardware. Beyond the immediate economic boost, the partnership allows Germany to harness its excess industrial capacity to meet a €500 billion defense spending goal by 2030.
By choosing to produce the Iron Dome—a system <a href="https://www.rtx.com/raytheon/what-we-do/integrated-air-and-missile-defense/irondome">credited</a> with a 90% success rate in saving civilian lives—Volkswagen is not just saving a factory; it is participating in a vital effort to safeguard the democratic world.

70 years Karmann Ghia

Founded By Nazis, Volkswagen Faces Stunning Pivot Tied To Israel’s Defense

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Iran said on Sunday it would strike the energy and water systems of its Gulf neighbours in retaliation if U.S. President Donald Trump follows through with a threat to hit Iran&#8217;s electricity grid in 48 hours, escalating the three-week-old war.
The prospect of tit-for-tat strikes on civilian infrastructure could deepen the regional crisis and further rattle global markets when they reopen on Monday morning.
Air raid sirens sounded across Israel from the early hours of Sunday, warning of incoming missiles from Iran, after scores of people were hurt overnight in two separate attacks in the southern Israeli towns of Arad and Dimona.
The Israeli military said hours later that it was striking Tehran in response.
Trump threatened overnight to &#8220;obliterate&#8221; Iran&#8217;s power plants if Tehran did not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz within 48 hours, barely a day after he talked about &#8220;winding down&#8221; the war. He made the new threat as U.S. Marines and heavy landing craft are heading to the region.
But while attacks on electricity could hurt Iran, they would be potentially catastrophic for its Gulf neighbors, which consume around five times as much power per capita. Electricity makes their gleaming desert cities habitable, and most of them produce nearly all of their drinking water by purifying it from the sea.
Iran&#8217;s Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf wrote on X that critical infrastructure and energy facilities in the Middle East could be &#8220;irreversibly destroyed&#8221; should Iranian power plants be attacked.
Iran&#8217;s Revolutionary Guards said it would also mean the shipping lane where a fifth of global oil and liquefied natural gas normally transits along Iran&#8217;s southern coast would remain shut.
&#8220;The Strait of Hormuz will be completely closed and will not be opened until our destroyed power plants are rebuilt,&#8221; the Guards said in a statement.
More than 2,000 people have been killed during the war the U.S. and Israel launched on February 28, which has upended markets, spiked fuel costs, fuelled global inflation fears and convulsed the postwar Western alliance.
&#8220;President Trump&#8217;s threat has now placed a 48-hour ticking time bomb of elevated uncertainty over markets,&#8221; said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore, who expects stock markets to fall when they reopen on Monday.
Oil prices jumped on Friday, ending the day at their highest in nearly four years.
Markets already under severe strain from blockaded shipping were further rattled last week when Israel attacked a major gas field in Iran, and Tehran responded with strikes on neighbors Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Kuwait, raising the prospect of damage hindering energy output even if tankers resume sailing.
Iranian attacks have effectively closed the Strait of Hormuz, causing the worst oil crisis since the 1970s. Its near-closure sent European gas prices surging as much as 35% last week.
&#8220;If Iran doesn&#8217;t FULLY OPEN, WITHOUT THREAT, the Strait of Hormuz, within 48 HOURS from this exact point in time, the United States of America will hit and obliterate their various POWER PLANTS, STARTING WITH THE BIGGEST ONE FIRST!&#8221; Trump posted on social media around 7:45 p.m. EDT (2345 GMT) on Saturday.
Iranian media quoted the country&#8217;s representative to the International Maritime Organisation as saying the strait remains open to all shipping except vessels linked to &#8220;Iran&#8217;s enemies.&#8221;
Ali Mousavi said passage through the waterway was possible by coordinating security and safety arrangements with Tehran.
Ship-tracking data shows some vessels, such as Indian-flagged ships and a Pakistani oil tanker, have negotiated safe passage through the strait. But the vast majority of ships have remained holed up inside.
Iran&#8217;s Khatam al-Anbiya military command headquarters said on Sunday if the U.S. hit Iran&#8217;s fuel and energy infrastructure, Iran would attack all U.S. energy, information technology and desalination infrastructure in the region.
Striking major Iranian power plants could trigger blackouts, crippling everything from pumps and refineries to export terminals and military command centers.
The United States and Israel say they have seriously degraded Iran&#8217;s ability to project force beyond its borders with their three weeks of intensive air strikes.
But Tehran fired its first known long-range ballistic missiles with a range of 4,000 km (2,500 miles) on Friday towards a U.S.-British Indian Ocean ‌military base, expanding the risk of attacks beyond the Middle East.
An Iranian strike also landed near Israel&#8217;s secretive nuclear reactor about 13 km (8 miles) southeast of the city of Dimona.
The war has been taking place alongside a confrontation on a separate front between Israel and Lebanon&#8217;s Hezbollah, backed by Iran, with Israel saying on Sunday its troops had raided a number of the armed group&#8217;s sites in southern Lebanon.
Hezbollah said it had attacked several border areas in northern Israel. Israeli emergency services said one person was killed in a kibbutz near the border. Israel later said it was checking whether the death was caused by Israeli fire.
Hezbollah has fired hundreds of rockets at Israel since it entered the regional war on March 2, prompting an Israeli offensive that has killed more than 1,000 people in Lebanon.
Israel said it had instructed the military to accelerate the demolition of Lebanese homes in &#8220;frontline villages&#8221; to end threats to Israelis, and to destroy all bridges over Lebanon&#8217;s Litani River which it said were used for &#8220;terrorist activity.&#8221;
Pope Leo appealed for an end to the conflict. &#8220;The death and suffering caused by this war are a scandal to the whole human family,&#8221; he said.
(Reporting by Phil Stewart and Idrees Ali in Washington, Andrew Mills in Doha, Timour Azhari in Riyadh, Maayan Lubell in Jerusalem and Alexander Cornwell in Tel Aviv; Additional reporting by Reuters bureaus; Writing by Lisa Shumaker, Michael Perry, William Maclean; Editing by Alexander Smith, Peter Graff and Jon Boyle)

Missile

Iran Issues New Threat As Trump’s 48-Hour Ultimatum Hits Halfway Mark

Singer Chappell Roan just responded after being called out by Brazilian soccer star Jorginho Frello for her alleged treatment of his 11-year-old stepdaughter. The singer claimed her personal security was not involved and said she doesn’t actually “hate children.”
The drama began when Frello detailed his version of the “aggressive” treatment of Chappell&#8217;s young fan while both were eating breakfast at a local hotel. He claimed Chappell Roan&#8217;s security guard threatened his family, including the young girl, for daring to walk by the Grammy Award-winner’s table and look at her.
In Frello’s social media post, he said his daughter “was so happy to see an artist she really admires, or used to admire” before the hotel drama changed everything. Frello did not say the name of the child, but it’s believed he is referring to his stepdaughter, who is the biological child of actor Jude Law and Frello’s wife Catherine Harding.
Chappell Roan, whose real name is Kayleigh Amstutz, is currently headlining Lollapalooza Brazil in São Paulo.
“By coincidence, they’re staying at the same hotel as this artist. During breakfast, the artist walked past their table. My daughter, like any child, recognised her, got excited, and just wanted to make sure it really was her,” he explained. “And the worst part is she didn’t even approach her. She simply walked past the singer’s table, looked to confirm it was her, smiled, and went back to sit with her mum. She didn’t say anything, didn’t ask for anything.”
The pro athlete said that next, “a large security guard came over to their table while they were still having breakfast and began speaking in an extremely aggressive manner to both my wife and daughter, saying that she shouldn’t allow my daughter to ‘disrespect’ or ‘harass’ other people.”
Frello continued the post, saying his daughter “was extremely shaken and cried a lot” following the interaction. He added in his post, “It’s sad to see this kind of treatment coming from those who should understand the importance of fans. At the end of the day, they are the ones who build all of this. I sincerely hope this serves as a moment of reflection. No one should have to go through this, especially not a child.”
Chappell Roan addressed the accusations Sunday morning with an Instagram post of her own, claiming that she had no knowledge of the incident.
“I’m just going to tell my half of the story of what happened today with a mother and child who were involved with a security guard who is not my personal security,” the singer <a href="https://www.instagram.com/stories/chappellroan/3858455290845217294/?hl=en">said</a> in a video response. “I didn’t even see, I didn’t even see a woman and a child. Like, no one came up to me. No one bothered me. I was just sitting at breakfast in my hotel. I think these people were staying at the hotel as well.”
“The fact that a security guard who was … I did not ask the security guard to go up and talk to this mother and child. They did not come up to me. They weren’t doing anything. It’s unfair for security to just assume someone doesn’t have good intentions when they have no reason to believe, because there’s no action even taken. I do not hate people who are fans of my music. I do not hate children. Like, that is crazy,” she went on. “I’m sorry to the mother and child that someone was assuming something that you would do something and that if you felt uncomfortable, that makes me really sad. You did not deserve that.”
Chappell Roan has been outspoken about having personal boundaries and is known for calling out fans or paparazzi who approach her, even at events. “I chose this career path because I love music and art and honoring my inner child, I do not accept harassment of any kind because I chose this path, nor do I deserve it,” she <a href="https://www.instagram.com/p/C_CGxsrP4Bc/?hl=en&amp;img_index=1">shared</a> in 2024.
“I don’t agree with the notion that I owe a mutual exchange of energy, time, or attention to people I do not know, do not trust, or who creep me out — just because they’re expressing admiration,” she went on.

Chappell Roan

‘Pink Pony Club’ Singer Chappell Roan Responds To Explosive Claim She Left Child In Tears

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Israeli ambassador to the U.S. Michael Leiter discussed Iran’s attempted ballistic missile strike Saturday targeting Diego Garcia, the joint U.S.-U.K. military base in the Indian Ocean more than 2,000 miles from Iran.
Appearing Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” with Dana Bash, Leiter was first asked about the missile strikes in Israel on Saturday evening that caused significant damage.
“Israel&#8217;s emergency response service declared a mass casualty event, as I mentioned. Can you give an update on the ground there? And also, what kind of response do we expect from Israel?” Bash asked.
Leiter said there were “a number of fatalities” and that more than 150 people were injured in the attacks on Arad and Dimona.
“The response is going to be to continue with this campaign until we bring this regime to its knees,” Leiter stated. “We cannot live anymore with a country that is malign, that has intent on destroying us, that declares it&#8217;s going to destroy us all the time, and is now firing ballistic missiles into all of its neighbors. This has to stop.”
Bash then pressed Leiter on the ICBMs that were fired at Diego Garcia: “Doesn&#8217;t that fly in the face of the claim by the president and the prime minister that the missiles that the Iranians have have been obliterated?”
Leiter hit back, saying that the missile launch reinforces the point that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Donald Trump have made, which is that Iran lies.
“The Iranian regime lie. These are murderers who lie. It shouldn&#8217;t surprise us — and they said they don&#8217;t have intercontinental ballistic missiles. Well, now they prove that they do have them. Not only do they have them; they&#8217;re willing to shoot them,” the ambassador said. “They claimed, until now, there was no such thing as an ICBM in Iran. They didn&#8217;t develop them.”
Leiter then painted a frightening scenario, asking Bash to imagine that the ICBMs Iran lied about having don’t simply travel 2,000 miles, but 4,000 miles or more, which would allow them to strike a major city in the United States.
“That&#8217;s what they&#8217;re planning to do. Now, imagine that those ICBMs are tipped with nuclear warheads, which they were planning to do as well. So, we have to face a very difficult situation,” he said before noting that while gas prices are temporarily higher as a result of the war, they will return to normal.
“But this malign government is intent on taking lives. Lives don&#8217;t come back, okay? It’s a temporary issue we have to face economically in order to protect lives and save lives from malign regime interested in taking lives.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Israeli Ambassador to US Michael Leiter says the war in Iran will continue &#8220;until we bring this regime to its knees&#8221; <a href="https://t.co/z24YbIaCYZ">pic.twitter.com/z24YbIaCYZ</a>
— State of the Union (@CNNSOTU) <a href="https://twitter.com/CNNSOTU/status/2035721927210225772?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">March 22, 2026</a></blockquote>
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Israeli Ambassador Reacts To Iran Strike With Message That Raises Stakes

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