New images showing damage at U.S. military positions across the Middle East are raising questions about how Iranian missiles and drones were able to reach American bases despite the United States’ extensive air-defense capabilities.
The photos, obtained exclusively by CBS News from active-duty service members, show damage at U.S. positions including Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia, Camp Buehring in Kuwait, and Camp Arifjan in Kuwait. One image shows the tail of a Boeing E-3 Sentry aircraft severed from its charred fuselage at Prince Sultan. Other images show damaged buildings, vehicles, and trailers at U.S. installations.
Jonathan Schanzer, executive director of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told The Daily Wire that the images illustrate several vulnerabilities the U.S. military now faces, including the locations of American bases, the volume of Iranian attacks, and the availability of defensive munitions.
“The bases are getting hammered. And, in my view, a lot of that actually stems from proximity to the Islamic Republic,” Schanzer said. “It’s really hard to defend against incoming missiles and rockets when you only have a few minutes to respond.”
Bases in Qatar, Bahrain, and Kuwait are close enough to Iran that American forces can have only minutes to respond to incoming attacks. That raises a broader strategic question for the Pentagon about whether some U.S. positions should be moved farther from Iran’s weapons systems, Schanzer said. 
“I think one thing that the Pentagon has to now wrestle with is this question of, do we move? Do we start taking bases and place them further afield so that they are not in the target range of the Islamic Republic?” Schanzer said. “I think specifically about the Qatari base, Al Udeid. I think that&#8217;s a big one. I think there are questions about Bahrain, and Kuwait, and others as well, maybe even UAE.”
But moving bases would not eliminate the threat entirely.
Schanzer pointed to attacks farther away, including against bases in Jordan, as evidence that geography is only part of the problem. The U.S. military has also had to contend with the sheer number of missiles, rockets and drones being fired at American and allied positions.
“It’s an inability to defend the volume of incoming,” Schanzer said. “And we have to, at some point, start to make decisions about what we allow through and what we don’t.”
The other major vulnerability involves the weapons being used to defend U.S. forces.
The challenge extends beyond the number of weapons being fired. Schanzer said the U.S. has also burned through significant quantities of expensive “standoff” weapons and missile-defense interceptors during the conflict. Replenishing some of those systems could take two to three years.
“That needs to be addressed,” Schanzer said, pointing to the need for the Pentagon, White House, and Congress to increase funding and communicate urgency around expanding production.
Schanzer said the defense industry is prepared to increase output, but manufacturers need contracts and funding to do so.
“We need someone to open the spigots for us so that we can build the weapons that the country needs,” he said.
The U.S. has deployed missile-defense systems including Patriot and THAAD during the conflict and has also conducted strikes against Iranian air-defense sites, radar systems, and other military infrastructure.
Asked whether the U.S. could have done more to reduce Iran’s ability to launch attacks, Schanzer said the U.S. “went pretty hard.” But he said the campaign also exposed the difficulty of using expensive weapons against lower-cost Iranian targets.
“We started spending exquisite munitions that cost millions of dollars on targets that cost $100,000,” Schanzer said. 
That dynamic, Schanzer said, eventually created diminishing returns for the U.S. campaign, which he believes may have led the Trump administration to halt attacks.
Schanzer said the conflict demonstrates how a militarily weaker country can still impose costs on a far more powerful adversary.
“Weaker states can hold out, they can exploit the situation, and hurt American interests, even when they&#8217;ve been defeated on the battlefield,” Schanzer said.
But he cautioned against viewing Iran’s ability to strike U.S. positions as evidence that Tehran is winning the war.
“Iran is not winning this war,” Schanzer said. “They are getting hammered, day in and day out, and economically as well as militarily.” 
Instead, he said, the attacks illustrate the challenges of asymmetric warfare, in which a weaker adversary can keep targeting American interests even after suffering significant losses.
Schanzer said the U.S. therefore needs more cost-effective ways to defend against drones and rockets that can be used in large numbers.
One potential solution is directed-energy technology, including lasers. Schanzer said the U.S. and Israel have been working toward using lasers to counter drones and rockets, though the technology is not yet fully ready.
Schanzer said Israeli forces have used Iron Dome interceptors in ways that have allowed them to engage ballistic missiles during their descent. He contrasted the cost of an Iron Dome interceptor, which he estimated at roughly $100,000 to $150,000, with the estimated $3 million to $5 million cost of an Arrow 3 interceptor.
For Schanzer, the broader lesson is clear: the United States needs to adapt both its defenses and its defense-industrial base.
“If there was ever a moment where we needed to understand that we need to get our act together and to begin to address the defense industrial base challenges that we have to meet the moment, this is it,” Schanzer said.
The images from U.S. bases, he said, should therefore be viewed not simply as evidence of individual strikes, but as a warning about the challenges posed by a new era of relatively inexpensive weapons being used against some of the world&#8217;s most sophisticated militaries.
The Trump administration did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication.

US Bases attacked by Iran

What New Images Reveal About How Iran Was Able To Attack U.S. Bases

iran

jonathan schanzer

middle east

military

missile defense

world

Drone activity has dropped roughly 75% along the U.S.-Mexico border in Texas&#8217; Rio Grande Valley following the deployment of a new laser weapons system, military officials told CBS News.
While illegal immigration has dropped to record lows, Mexico&#8217;s cartels have found new ways to threaten the United States using drones.
Army Col. Robert Felicio, commander of the 130th Maneuver Enhancement Brigade deployed to the border, said the laser technology has had a &#8220;significant&#8221; impact on drone activity.
The U.S. military took out three drones on August 25 and 26, when it first began using the weapon, CBS News reported.
Since the start of the year, American troops have stopped 300 drones believed to be linked to Mexican cartels, according to the outlet. The laser took down 11 of those drones over a 10-day period.
In addition to the use of lasers, the drop in drone incursions may also be attributed to cartels using new routes, according to CBS.
During the lasers&#8217; initial deployment, the U.S. military accidentally shot down a Customs and Border Protection (CBP) drone near El Paso, Texas, prompting the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to close the airspace. Two weeks earlier, all air traffic over El Paso was shut down after federal authorities failed to coordinate with the FAA.
Since the earlier incidents, the military has ensured better coordination with the FAA regarding its use of the anti-drone technology, according to CBS.
Before using the laser technology, the U.S. military jammed drones and sent them back into Mexico. The new anti-drone weapon allows troops to take them down altogether.
&#8220;When you just send it back and then it comes back up or is defeated temporarily, but the game changer is ensuring that that tool can&#8217;t be used again against you,&#8221; Felicio told CBS.
The lasers are mounted on top of military vehicles and are controlled by soldiers using Xbox controllers while watching camera footage on a tablet, the outlet reported. Soldiers who grew up playing video games have found the Xbox controllers to be easy tools, Army Lt. Owen Farquer, an operator of the laser weapons system, said.
When the laser is activated, a brief flash of light is seen before the drone falls to the ground, according to CBS.
Within Mexico, drug cartels have sent drones to conduct assassinations. Between 2021 and 2025, there have been 221 such attacks, resulting in 77 fatalities, <a href="https://digitalcommons.unomaha.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1149&amp;context=ncitereportsresearch" target="_blank" rel="noopener">according</a> to a report from the National Counterterrorism Innovation, Technology, and Education Center (NCITE).
The laser technology has greatly strained the cartels&#8217; operations and has had a massive impact on their finances, Army Lt. Col. Ray Richards, the head of the 211th Military Police Battalion from the Massachusetts National Guard that is deployed to the border, told CBS.
&#8220;When you think of 75% reduction of that capability and how that spreads based on X amount of dollars are tied to that — I think when you talk about disruption to the cartels, that is a huge part of that story,&#8221; Richards told CBS.
The Army awarded the first-of-its-kind contract for high-energy lasers to AeroVironment for $465 million, according to CBS.

US-MEXICO-BORDER-SECURITY

How The U.S. Is Using A Laser Weapon To Take Out The Latest Cartel Threat

border security

cartel

laser weapon

mexico

The American military denied claims that a deadly fight broke out between sailors on the USS Abraham Lincoln amid its lengthy deployment to the Middle East as the war with Iran carries on. 
U.S. Central Command said Thursday that claims about a rise in suicidal ideations on the aircraft carrier and a supposed fight among American sailors that killed seven were false. The statement came after <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/uss-george-washington-to-replace-uss-abraham-lincoln-as-concerns-grow-about-mental-health-of-crew">reports</a> that two sailors had attempted to jump overboard during the deployment and reports of poor conditions on the USS Abraham Lincoln.
“Over the past 48 hours, multiple media outlets have reported several false claims related to USS Abraham Lincoln&#8217;s (CVN 72) deployment to the Middle East,” Central Command said. “One report alleged seven Sailors died in a brawl aboard the aircraft carrier and others have recently suggested a spike in suicidal ideations. These reports are FALSE.”
The claim about American soldiers killing each other originated with Iranian news outlets and was repeated across Asian media outlets. 
Central Command also pushed back on reports of low morale, saying that the vessel crew reenlistment rate of over 84%, the highest in the Navy. 
“The Sailors and Marines of the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group remain resilient and resolved after more than 260 days at sea, 10,000 aircraft flights, and 1.5 million pounds of ordnance expended,” Central Command said. “No service members aboard the aircraft carrier have died, and the one Sailor who fell overboard Aug. 3 was quickly and safely recovered. The rampant misreporting on Abraham Lincoln&#8217;s historic deployment is a disservice to our men and women in uniform and their loved ones.”
The statement from Central Command came after the Military Times <a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2026/08/11/multiple-uss-abraham-lincoln-sailors-have-tried-to-go-overboard-amid-extended-deployment-families-say/">reported</a> earlier this week that two sailors attempted to jump overboard. Annabelle Loma said her husband was placed on a medical hold after he attempted to jump off the aircraft carrier. 
“He’s scared. He thinks he’ll get a dishonorable discharge, and just because he was burnt out, his 13-year career is ruined, just like that. That’s not fair, that’s not right. That’s not what he should be worrying about right now,” she said.
Other reports from the carrier have pointed to plumbing issues, moldy showers, water, contamination, and food shortages.
The aircraft carrier USS George Washington is on its way to replace the USS Abraham Lincoln, which has been deployed for over 250 days. Secretary of War Pete Hegseth said Thursday that some of the reporting concerning the conditions on Lincoln had been “completely misrepresented,” but said he understood it was difficult to be deployed so long. 
“Americans don’t understand what it’s like to do that,” he said. “As someone who’s — not been on a ship like that — but been on long deployments, I feel it. I want them home as soon as everybody else. I want folks rotated as quickly as possible … to that crew and to all those crews, we’re going to do everything we can for you and we are so grateful for their dedication.”

U.S. Conducts Blockade Operations Near Strait Of Hormuz

U.S. Military Responds To Disturbing Claims Coming From American Warship

pete hegseth

us central command

uss abraham lincoln

The U.S. military is weighing new restrictions on cellphone use for some American troops serving in the Middle East amid concerns that Iran is using publicly available social media posts to evaluate the effectiveness of its missile and drone strikes.
Some U.S. service members deployed in Jordan have been told they could be <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/iran-mines-us-troops-social-media-military-considers-seizing-cellphones">required</a> to surrender their phones in the coming days.
<a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/us-commander-warns-troops-their-videos-help-iran-sources-say-2026-07-29/">Reuters</a> reported that two sources familiar with the matter said some troops had been told their phones would be confiscated, while a third source said military officials are also considering broader cellphone restrictions across the region because of operational security concerns. Those wider restrictions have not been confirmed.
The discussions emerged as fighting between the United States and Iran has escalated. On Wednesday, President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/iran-mines-us-troops-social-media-military-considers-seizing-cellphones">vowed</a> an intentional response after Iran launched strikes targeting U.S. troops in Jordan, saying the United States would &#8220;beat the f*cking sh*t out of&#8221; Iran.
U.S. Central Command confirmed that CENTCOM Commander Adm. Brad Cooper recently sent an internal message to service members emphasizing operational security. CENTCOM declined to release the message publicly.
&#8220;The message is a general reminder to our service members on the importance of maintaining operational security,&#8221; CENTCOM spokesman Capt. Tim Hawkins stated. &#8220;This is one of many opportunities Admiral Cooper has used to convey operational priorities.&#8221;
A Defense Department official also declined to comment to Fox News whether troops had been ordered to surrender their phones or whether additional restrictions were under consideration, saying CENTCOM does not discuss force protection tactics or techniques for operational security reasons.
Cooper warned that publicly available information, including social media posts, news reports,, and audio/ video footage, can help Iran determine where its missiles and drones landed.
&#8220;The direct, unavoidable cost of this open-source intelligence could be measured in the lives of American service members,&#8221; Cooper reportedly wrote.
Cooper reportedly cited footage uploaded online after Iran&#8217;s July 17 attack on Muwaffaq Salti Air Base in Jordan. The attack killed Pvt. Isabella Gonzales and fatally wounded 1st Lt. Tyler Feehan. Sgt. Angel Rampersad is also believed to have been killed.
One video, recorded through a service member&#8217;s Meta smart glasses, showed troops rushing to shelter and documented the route the individual took while evacuating. According to Fox News, Cooper warned that publicly available footage can help reveal whether Iranian strikes hit populated facilities, struck empty areas, or missed altogether.
Rules mitigating personal cellphone usage already differ across the military. Personal devices are prohibited during sensitive missions and inside classified facilities, while many service members stationed at established overseas bases are still permitted to keep and use their phones.
Cooper&#8217;s warning is separate from concerns brought in June about commercially available cellular location data. CENTCOM previously told lawmakers it had received &#8220;multiple threat reports concerning adversary exploitation of commercial location data to target or surveil U.S. personnel in theater.&#8221;
A bipartisan group led by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Rep. Pat Harrigan (R-NC), later urged the Pentagon to strengthen protections against that threat, warning that commercially available location data could be used to identify military installations, monitor troop movements, or track individual service members.

Iran-Tehran-Explosions-March

Iran’s Latest Weapon? U.S. Troops’ Social Media Posts

centcom

jordan

operational security

The United States Army has reportedly been testing a new electronic warfare system that could potentially change the face of modern warfare.
The Hammer of the Gods, as it is known, works by scrambling the navigation systems of targeted weapons — and doing so without detection — so that they cannot strike their intended targets from a distance without revealing themselves. As Fox News Digital <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/us/army-conducts-first-overseas-test-hammer-gods-weapon-disrupting-system">reported</a> on Wednesday, similar systems have been tested on land in recent months.
The most recent test, which occurred during the <a href="https://www.army.mil/article/294121/project_convergence_capstone_6_experiments_with_hammer_of_the_gods">Project Convergence Capstone 6</a> (PC-C6) experiment in mid-July, marked the first time such a system had been tested at sea.
&#8220;Joint experimentation is how we prepare for future fights,&#8221; Lt. Col. Darrin Hall, chief of Modeling, Simulation, and Integration (S7/8), U.S. Space Forces Pacific, said of the experiment. &#8220;By integrating space, cyber, and conventional forces into realistic scenarios, we strengthen our ability to operate as one joint team in contested environments.&#8221;
The system uses a portable signal disruptor that emits radio signals capable of jamming multiple Positioning, Navigation, and Timing (PNT) signals. Those signal disruptions cause weapons systems that rely on that information to miss their intended targets — and cause critical mission delays.
The downside of such systems has always been that, because they jam radio signals used by enemy forces, they could also jam friendly signals and leave allies blind. But according to Fox, the Hammer of the Gods circumvents that problem by simultaneously establishing a communications system that allows continued contact between friendly forces even after the disruptor has been deployed.
&#8220;This experiment proved that counter-PNT capabilities can be deployed, controlled, and recovered in real-world maritime operations while extending operational reach through resilient mesh networking. It demonstrates the value of joint collaboration in advancing operational readiness,&#8221; Hall added. &#8220;Positioning, Navigation, and Timing is the foundation of modern military operations. Understanding how to protect and operate through PNT disruption ensures our forces can continue to shoot, move and communicate effectively.&#8221;
Experiments undertaken during operations such as PC-C6 allow the military to field-test equipment in settings that better reflect typical operational conditions.

Defence Minister Kosiniak-Kamysz Leads Land Forces Day Celebrations In Krakow

The Army’s New ‘Hammer Of The Gods’ Could Change Modern Warfare

The Army's New 'Hammer Of The Gods' Could Change Modern Warfare

Military Weapons

technology

U.S. Military

Consider scenario one: American assets overseas are under attack and must quickly mobilize a response, but the necessary aircraft carriers cannot deploy until crew members obtain key parts needed for the mission. A mission that should have begun immediately is delayed indefinitely.
Now consider scenario two: immediately following an initial attack, the American response is launched. Aircraft carriers deploy on a moment’s notice because they have the capability to build new parts on the way to their destination.
General George S. Patton always said, “A good plan, violently executed now, is better than a perfect plan next week.” Even when his men were figuring things out as they went — and things occasionally got a bit messy — there was always a clear advantage to moving forward quickly.
Solving the above problem was recently a key subject at RIMPAC, the largest international military maritime training exercise in the world. A biennial naval exercise, RIMPAC sees some 30 ships and 30,000 service members — in coordination with more than two dozen countries — stress test new technology in the context it would operate under in the real world.
One of those technologies is 3-D printers. They aren&#8217;t new to the world, but ones capable of manufacturing everything from water filtration systems to helicopter parts are new to aircraft carriers.
Morgan Bower, hub director for FLEETWERX, the &#8220;innovation hub&#8221; working to bring this new tech to the U.S. military, said it&#8217;s all about connecting small business innovators with an often slow-moving Pentagon bureaucracy.
“We try to make it a little easier for technology and money to flow in both directions, to help small businesses and government work together to make development work for everyone,&#8221; Bower told The Daily Wire.
“FLEETWERX,” according to its website, “Is an innovation hub established in 2023 through a Partnership Intermediary Agreement between DEFENSEWERX (DWX) 501(c)(3) and the Naval Postgraduate School (NPS). FLEETWERX cultivates a dynamic environment designed to create purposeful collisions between innovators through ecosystem building and neutral facilitation. By uniting Government, Industry, and Academia, we bring together people to advance solutions for critical issues facing the operator.”
<div id="attachment_1145595" style="width: 932px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1145595" class="wp-image-1145595 size-large" src="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Hybrid-x-Print-in-progress-922x576.jpg" alt="Civilian contractor Rogelio Jacobo Martinez operates the ADDITEC Hyper X 3D printer in the hangar bay of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN 71) in the Pacific Ocean enroute to participate in Exercise Rim of the Pacific 2026, June 17, 2026. Thirty nations, over 30 surface ships, five submarines, 15 national land forces, more than 206 aircraft and 30,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC in and around the Hawaiian Islands, June 24 to July 31. The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans. RIMPAC 2026 is the 30th exercise in the series that began in 1971. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Tyler Harstad)" width="922" height="576" srcset="https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Hybrid-x-Print-in-progress-922x576.jpg 922w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Hybrid-x-Print-in-progress-300x188.jpg 300w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Hybrid-x-Print-in-progress-768x480.jpg 768w, https://www.dailywire.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/07/Hybrid-x-Print-in-progress-1536x960.jpg 1536w" sizes=" (max-width: 922px) 100vw, 922px" />Photo courtesy of FLEETWERX</div>
“When you engage in these exercises, you’re always learning things — taking things out of the lab and putting them in the field,” Bower explained. “We are always looking for what goes right, obviously, but sometimes things go wrong, and the things that go wrong can be the bigger lesson and more important than what goes right. It’s great to identify that problem when it’s a matter of tens of thousands of dollars rather than millions — and early in the process.”
He cited an example from RIMPAC in which planes landing on the deck of the aircraft carrier created vibrations that caused lasers in the metal printers to misalign just slightly — something that never could have been tested in the lab — and the designers were able to recalculate and adjust for the additional vibrations.
And in one case in which something went right, a part from the carrier’s water filtration system broke — and the onboard 3-D printers were able to manufacture a new one without waiting for a traditional resupply.
Another area that was tested at RIMPAC was the use of unmanned surface vessels for supply runs.
<div id="attachment_1145599" style="width: 864px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-1145599" class="wp-image-1145599 size-large" src="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Typhoon-bringing-parts-to-CVN-854x576.jpg" alt="A digitally crewed surface vessel heads out to sea from Sand Island near Honolulu, Hawaii, to deliver parts for a 3D printer aboard Wasp-class amphibious assault ship USS Essex (LHD-2) during Exercise Rim of the Pacific 2026, July 7, 2026. Unmanned and remotely operated vessels extend the capability of interconnected manned platform sensors to enhance capacity across the multinational force. Thirty nations, over 30 surface ships, five submarines, 15 national land forces, more than 206 aircraft and 30,000 personnel are participating in RIMPAC in and around the Hawaiian Islands, June 24 to July 31. The world's largest international maritime exercise, RIMPAC provides a unique training opportunity while fostering and sustaining cooperative relationships among participants critical to ensuring the safety of sea lanes and security on the world's oceans. RIMPAC 2026 is the 30th exercise in the series that began in 1971. (Navy photo by Mass Communications Specialist 3rd Class Charles Harbour)" width="854" height="576" srcset="https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Typhoon-bringing-parts-to-CVN-854x576.jpg 854w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Typhoon-bringing-parts-to-CVN-300x202.jpg 300w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Typhoon-bringing-parts-to-CVN-768x518.jpg 768w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Typhoon-bringing-parts-to-CVN-1536x1036.jpg 1536w, https://dw-wp-production.imgix.net/2026/07/Typhoon-bringing-parts-to-CVN-2048x1381.jpg 2048w" sizes=" (max-width: 854px) 100vw, 854px" />Photo courtesy of FLEETWERX</div>
Using unmanned vessels — particularly in rough maritime conditions or through dangerous areas — limits the number of personnel at risk when undertaking any given mission. The success of test runs like these could ultimately lead to unmanned vessels taking on the role of “escort” vehicles in particularly dangerous areas such as the Strait of Hormuz.
The main goal is to streamline the development process so that the maritime military services have access to the best possible technology — and while the Naval Postgraduate School is broadly considered to be the “research” wing of the joint forces, they don’t always have a good bead on where the best innovators are and what they might be building. FLEETWERX is making that connection.

Digitally crewed surface vessel returns to Sand Island during RIMPAC 2026

3-D Printed Helicopters And Self-Repairing Carriers? America’s Navy Tests Wild New Technology

pentagon

U.S. Navy

Satellite imagery obtained by Israeli and Western officials <a href="https://www.wsj.com/world/middle-east/satellite-images-show-iran-is-rebuilding-fast-199978f7?mod=middle-east_news_article_pos1">shows</a> that Iran has quickly repaired and rebuilt infrastructure damaged by the joint U.S. and Israeli air campaign. The work covers missile bases inside mountains, bridges, ports, and production facilities.
Near Kangavar in Western Iran, Planet Labs satellite images from March showed two tunnel entrances and an access road damaged by airstrikes meant to block access to a missile base. Within weeks, Airbus imagery showed a paved road leading to freshly excavated entrances.
North of Kermanshah, Planet Labs images from the start of the war documented heavy damage to another missile base. By the first week of June, Airbus images showed crews repairing roads as trucks cleared dirt and reopened collapsed tunnel entrances.
A missile base in Dezful was struck by Israel in June of 2025 and again in early March, burying its entrances. Three months later, Airbus images showed Iran digging out multiple tunnel entrances. One Israeli military official said Iran repaired a bridge — which Israel had hit with three bombs — within days.
Planet Labs imagery from early July showed partial reconstruction at a shipyard in Bandar Anzali on the Caspian Sea, linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Israel said it hit dozens of targets there in March, including warships, the port, a command center, and the shipyard used to repair and maintain vessels.
Near Tehran, Planet Labs images show partial reconstruction in recent weeks at Raja Shimi Industries, a plant assessed to be involved in missile component production. Several new structures appear to have been rebuilt.
Ran Kochav, former commander of Israel’s air and missile defense forces, said the recovery matches Iran’s record after the 12 day Israel-Iran war last June. “They refilled their stockpiles,” he said. “They have very impressive industrialization and reconstruction capabilities.”
Israeli military officials said strikes often collapsed entry points to mountain bases rather than destroying them. Weapons inside remained intact, meaning that Iran has only to dig them out. One official said: “Iran is rebuilding everything.” A second said Iran retains the know-how to rebuild almost everything, including missile and weapons systems.
Jim Lamson, a visiting research fellow at King’s College London and former CIA analyst, said facilities for advanced components such as carbon fiber could take months or years to restore. Iran may have stockpiled those components at underground sites, however, meaning that they could still potentially assemble dozens or hundreds of new missiles and drones in the short term.
Israeli intelligence services assess that Iran may have transferred thousands of centrifuges into tunnels inside <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/what-is-pickaxe-mountain-and-why-is-trump-talking-about-it">Pickaxe Mountain</a>.
The early U.S. and Israeli campaign involved more than 20,000 strikes. President Trump said last month that Iran’s military is “a complete and total mess” and that much of its navy and air force “doesn’t even exist anymore.” Netanyahu said Iran’s missile production machine was smashed and that the arsenal was emptying without new production — but that appears to have changed.
White House spokeswoman Anna Kelly said the operation destroyed Iran’s missile arsenal and production, sank its navy, weakened its militia allies, and ensured it will not possess a nuclear weapon. “This operation was a resounding victory by any objective measure,” she said.
Iran has continued to target ships and U.S. regional allies with missile and drone attacks — including Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan, where an Iranian attack killed three U.S. soldiers over the weekend.
Tal Inbar, senior analyst at the Missile Defense Advocacy Alliance, said: “It turns out that the rumors about the end or the significant dwindling of the missiles were wrong.”
Iran’s leaders have not signaled any halt. “It is a matter of will, time, and money,” Inbar said.

Satellite imagery of Iran

Satellite Images Show Iran Rapidly Rebuilding Missile Bases And Infrastructure

Global Politics

Infrastructure

Iran war

A senior official in the Office of the Secretary of the Navy has been placed on administrative leave after<a href="https://x.com/JamesOKeefeIII/status/2080012196784808193"> James O’Keefe released a video</a> showing him criticizing President Donald Trump and stating his intention to reverse administration policies once the opportunity arose.
The footage, recorded with a hidden camera, captures Brandon Newsom speaking during what O’Keefe described as a “gay” date. In the video, Newsom <a href="https://www.newsweek.com/senior-pentagon-official-suspended-bashing-trump-on-hidden-camera-brandon-newsom-12232247">said</a> he wanted to “stay and stick it out” at the Pentagon “so that way, when the time comes, I can undo whatever’s been done.” He referenced “a lot of times” when working at the Pentagon “challenges my morals,” specifically mentioning that he would not have “one specific prayer service” and would undo an employee “schedule policy.”
Newsom also called Trump “a textbook narcissist” and described the Iran war as “completely stupid” and “driven by one man’s ego.” O’Keefe’s accompanying post included additional lines from the conversation: “I’ve seen some things. In true D.C. nature, you don’t always reveal everything in D.C.” and “I have the influence &#8230; I can undo whatever’s been done.” Newsom further remarked, “I mean, you could be a news reporter.”
Acting Secretary of the Navy Hung Cao responded the same day. “<a href="https://x.com/SECNAV/status/2080080031947084190">The Department of the Navy</a> takes the conduct shown in this video extremely seriously,” Cao wrote. “Such statements and apparent intent to leverage a position to undermine the policies and direction set by our elected leaders are inappropriate and incompatible with the standards expected of Department personnel. Effective immediately, this individual has been placed on administrative leave while we determine next steps to ensure accountability and protect the integrity of our mission.”
The Daily Wire asked O’Keefe for comment on the implications of the footage and whether or not resistance inside the Pentagon would create real risk to the coherence of U.S. strategy and any potential deals with Iran and its proxies.
O’Keefe&#8217;s reply was simple: “Any official who spills internal government secrets or shows dissent toward the current administration they work for can possibly cause problems for the government entity they work for. It’s not a good idea to spill information to a stranger 15 minutes into the first date who so happens to be James O’Keefe.”
O’Keefe said Newsom did not directly connect his plans to reverse Pentagon policies with the Iran campaign. Instead, he said, Newsom “just gave his opinion on the war and called the war ‘stupid’ and blamed Trump for being a ‘narcissist.’”
As to the deeper question — what it reveals when a senior official says on camera that he intends to undo the administration’s work and whether officials like this pose a bigger threat to national security — O’Keefe answered: “Yes, officials like Brandon Newsom can pose a threat to national security. Based on one date with myself, James O’Keefe, Newsom spilled a lot of information. Newsom was lucky it wasn’t an Iranian spy he was watching the World Cup with. Can you imagine if Newsom went on three dates with a gay Iranian spy?&#8221;
O&#8217;Keefe also argued that the footage reflects a broader pattern he has seen in previous national security investigations.
&#8220;The deep state is real, per one of our other subjects, Byron Cohen, who worked in the early days of the Trump White House,&#8221; O&#8217;Keefe said. &#8220;America is at war with Iran, and the officials inside the Pentagon need to be very careful because our Newsom piece shows a glimpse of how careless these officials can be. Again, Newsom was lucky he wasn&#8217;t talking to an Iranian spy or a Chinese spy.&#8221;
Newsom&#8217;s suspension comes against a backdrop of personnel changes at the Pentagon since Trump’s return to the White House and the start of the Iran war in late February. Lt. Gen. Jeffrey Kruse, the former head of the Defense Intelligence Agency, was fired in August 2025 after his agency produced an initial assessment finding that U.S. strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities were less effective than Trump had claimed. In April, three Pentagon officials — Dan Caldwell, a senior adviser to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth; Darin Selnick, the Pentagon’s deputy chief of staff; and Colin Carroll, chief of staff to Deputy Defense Secretary Stephen Feinberg — were put on administrative leave pursuant to leak investigations.
In a joint statement, they wrote they were “incredibly disappointed by the manner in which our service at the Department of Defense ended” and that “unnamed Pentagon officials have slandered our character with baseless attacks on our way out the door.” They said they were never told what the leak investigations were about.
Before those cases, the Department of Defense fired the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the top admiral in the Navy, the head of U.S. Cyber Command, and the top U.S. military lawyers. These moves have been framed as part of a wider reshuffle under Hegseth, who has sought to refocus the department on warfighting.
Hegseth has also introduced monthly voluntary Christian worship services at the Pentagon, all of them presided over by evangelicals. Newsom referred to these in the video as the “prayer service” he would eliminate.
Newsom remains on administrative leave while the Department of the Navy determines its next steps.

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Senior Pentagon Official Placed On Leave After Saying He Would ‘Undo’ Trump Policies

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President Donald Trump may be looking at potential strikes on another growing Islamic terrorist hotbed in the coming weeks — this time in the West African nation of Mali.
The Trump administration has reportedly been considering strikes against Jama’at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM), an Al Qaeda-linked militant group operating in the Sahel region that has attacked both local militias and international forces and has endeavored to enforce strict Islamic law throughout its areas of control.
The Washington Post <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national-security/2026/07/22/trump-administration-weighs-military-options-mali-officials-say/">reported</a> on Wednesday that the Trump administration is divided on military action — and said that one of those in favor of such is the current National Security Council’s senior director for counterterrorism, Sebastian Gorka.
One official did tell the outlet that, despite that division, the United States had been encouraging other nations in the region &#8220;to purchase U.S. equipment and services to support their war efforts against the terrorists.&#8221;
The entire region has been in a state of upheaval in recent years as a series of Russia-backed coups upended democratically elected governments in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger — and the three nations have increasingly rejected ties with Western nations, instead joining together as The Alliance of Sahel States.
As The Daily Wire <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/they-kicked-america-out-now-theyre-being-hunted-by-jihadists">previously reported</a>, Niger overtly rejected the United States when President Joe Biden&#8217;s administration delivered an ultimatum just as the West African nation was inking a deal to provide Iran with Uranium. The Biden administration demanded that Niger cut ties with Russia and Iran, but the military junta running things at the time was disinclined to acquiesce. Instead, in addition to refusing Biden&#8217;s ultimatum, Niger ousted all remaining American military assets from the country — including a drone base that was used to target terrorists in the region.
Zineb Riboua, a research fellow at the Hudson Institute’s Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East, told The Daily Wire that the Biden administration&#8217;s presentation may have been the crux of the problem: &#8220;Instead of presenting it as an ultimatum, they could have presented an alternative. Instead of doing a uranium deal with Iran, why don’t you do one with the United States, and you get a school program or something in Niger, something they don’t have.&#8221;
But once the United States was gone, it was soon quickly apparent that the Russian security forces with whom they&#8217;d cast their lots were more of a liability than an asset. As previously reported, &#8220;The Russians were killing untold numbers of civilians and still somehow managing to cede ground to the jihadists. In fact, in Burkina Faso and Mali, the Russians and government forces actually killed more civilians last year than the jihadists.&#8221;
The situation has only deteriorated in the years since, leading to the current consideration of possible military action.
&#8220;We urge regional partners and NATO allies to support the Alliance of Sahel States in their war against JNIM and ISIS,&#8221; the Trump administration official told The Washington Post, noting that partnership with Russia had clearly only allowed the terrorist factions to fester and grow. &#8220;We hope that other African nations take note of Russia’s terrible performance in combating terrorism.&#8221;
When asked, Secretary of State Marco Rubio did not say whether he supported military action. Instead, the State Department said that the United States &#8220;unequivocally condemns the terrorist activity in Mali.&#8221;

Trump Says Israel And Lebanon To Extend Ceasefire By Three Weeks

Trump May Have His Eye On New Jihadi Hot Spot To Bomb

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The Pentagon’s office responsible for <a href="https://defensescoop.com/2026/07/21/pentagon-investigating-ufo-uap-event-near-virginia-coast/">investigating</a> unexplained phenomena is looking into a Navy report describing roughly 100 airborne objects and two likely uncrewed surface vessels operating near the Virginia coastline.
Details were included in the latest annual report, which was released this week, from the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office. <a href="https://www.aaro.mil/Portals/136/PDFs/FY25%20UAP%20Annual%20Report/AARO_FY2025_Consolidated_Annual_Report_on_UAP.pdf">The Fiscal Year 2025</a> Consolidated Annual Report on Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP) covers new reports received between June 2, 2024, and May 30, 2025, along with some earlier incidents that had not been included in prior updates.
During that period, the office received a total of 319 reports. Of those, 284 involved events from the current reporting window, while 25 dated back to between 2010 and 2024. Analysts resolved 114 of the 319 cases, linking them to ordinary explanations such as balloons, birds, satellites, aircraft, small drones, a single rocket launch, and one manned jet pack. By the end of May 2025, the office’s full caseload had reached 1,870 reports.
The vast majority of the new sightings occurred in the air domain, with 274 cases, followed by 44 in the space domain and just one in the maritime domain. The lone maritime case came from Navy assets operating off the coast of Virginia. According to the report, the case described &#8220;approximately 100 airborne UAP and two, likely uncrewed, surface systems.” The office added that they are actively investigating the event.
The report notes that such events continue to surface near military installations, training ranges, nuclear power plants, and other sensitive sites. Officials wrote that “AARO received and analyzed several reports describing UAP in or near national security sites or critical infrastructure. Some narrative reports were suggestive of phenomena whose performance characteristics exceed the known state-of-the-art within a given domain. No technical data accompanied these reports.”
They further noted that “If validated, the attendant phenomena underlying these reports may represent a currently unmitigated threat vector.” Two cases from the year involved reported electronic or avionic interference near operational aircraft, but investigators have not yet determined whether the objects caused those effects.
Officials acknowledged ongoing challenges, writing, “A lack of timely and actionable sensor data continues to constrain AARO’s ability to resolve cases.” To improve the situation, the office launched several initiatives focused on multi-domain sensors and algorithms. The report states that the office is “implementing a multi-year investment strategy to improve awareness across the space, air, and maritime domains.” They also added a new capability for advanced three-dimensional modeling and simulation, which helped resolve 238 reports of satellite flaring — a familiar phenomenon in which sunlight reflects off satellite surfaces at certain angles.
The office was established in 2022 under the Biden administration to carry out a requirement in that year’s National Defense Authorization Act. Its mission is to examine objects across air, land, sea, and space domains that could threaten national security or interfere with military operations, and to determine their origins and intent. Congress later directed the production of annual unclassified reports, with classified annexes, for a period of four years.
In the report, as in previous ones, the office stated that none of the resolved cases indicate “advanced foreign adversarial capabilities or breakthrough technologies in any domain.” Officials also revealed they are developing a formal process for handling any physical materials related to these phenomena, should such items ever come into government possession.
A Pentagon spokesperson did not immediately respond to DefenseScoop’s request for more information on the Virginia incident.

USS Tripoli

Massive Swarm Of Mysterious Objects Off U.S. Coast Sparks Pentagon Investigation

More satellite images have been captured showing China’s scheme to bomb American ships, planes, and potential bases by testing weaponry on exact replicas of them.
In June 2026, images taken the month prior were released to the United States, showing a <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/news/china-builds-replica-u-s-destroyer-to-test-missiles-on?author=Gus+Wilson&amp;category=News&amp;elementPosition=30&amp;row=0&amp;rowType=Vertical+List&amp;title=China+Builds+Replica+U.S.+Destroyer+To+Test+Missiles+On">replica</a> of a U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer in the Taklamakan Desert that was surrounded by debris from previous missile testing. The Telegraph revealed additional <a href="https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/07/15/revealed-chinas-plan-to-bomb-us-warships/">photos</a> of the same site in a Wednesday report. 
Chinese President Xi Jinping has stated that he wants to “reunify” Taiwan and China — a plan which has broadly been interpreted as more of an annexation than a reunification — causing extreme tensions between the two. 
In preparation for the United States potentially sending naval support, China has been building and destroying replicas of American warships for years. Hidden behind mountains in a remote stretch of the desert, the site holds debris from tests dating back to 2021, along with replicas ready to serve as targets
A 23-mile railway was made to recreate how ships move across the ocean. The copies of the U.S. warships are placed onto railcars and moved across the tracks for training purposes to simulate a moving target for guns and missiles. Currently, the destroyed target on the tracks is the same one that has been publicly known for five years.
Surrounding the tracks are multiple other mock-ups of American warships, including at least two replicas of the USS Gerald R. Ford and the U.S. Navy Arleigh Burke-class destroyer that was revealed to the public last month.
In the same region of the desert, U.S. aircraft and runways were built for simulated attacks on other types of American weaponry. Craters surrounded the testing grounds. The runway has 20 planes split into two separate groups. 
The first group features two rows of F-22 model jets, four of which have already been destroyed. The second group is made up of four F-16 planes and six F-35s — the most advanced stealth aircraft in the world and currently in use by the U.S. Air Force. While the U.S. has yet to sell any of those specific models to Taiwan, it seems Xi still wants testing done on the plane.
Satellite images also uncovered a recreation of Yokosuka Naval Base, the largest American naval base, that would likely be involved in a potential conflict between Taiwan and China. The naval base, located on the eastern coast of Japan, is home to ten of the Arleigh Burke ships.
In addition to the Chinese replicating numerous targets that resemble an array of American maritime assets, they have also created Taiwanese bases and political buildings to practice tactics ahead of a potential invasion.

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Inside China’s Secret Plans To Bomb U.S. Warships

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More than two decades after the United States invaded Iraq, American forces are set to complete their withdrawal from the country by September 30, Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi announced Tuesday during an Oval Office meeting with President Donald Trump.
“On the 30th of September, the U.S. forces will be out of Iraq while these [U.S.] companies will be inside Iraq,” al-Zaidi said through an interpreter. “The social relations is about the economy, not about military relations.”
The announcement marks the end of a military presence that began with the U.S.-led invasion in 2003 and evolved through years of insurgency, sectarian violence, counterterrorism operations, and the fight against ISIS. More than 4,400 U.S. service members died in Iraq during the war and its aftermath.
Trump welcomed the new relationship, arguing that Iraq no longer requires a significant U.S. military presence and that the future between the two countries should instead focus on economic cooperation.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-media-max-width="560">
Trump says U.S. troops are no longer needed in Iraq.
U.S. troop levels in Iraq peaked at about 170,000 during the Iraq War. Most forces left in 2011, though several thousand returned in 2014 to help fight ISIS.
Roughly 2,000 troops remain today. <a href="https://t.co/yDa0uMYpwf">pic.twitter.com/yDa0uMYpwf</a>
— Kassy Akiva (@KassyAkiva) <a href="https://x.com/KassyAkiva/status/2077116927277699123?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 14, 2026</a></blockquote>
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“We don&#8217;t think we need the military there anymore,” Trump said. “We&#8217;re there to help them. We&#8217;re there to protect them if need be. But we don&#8217;t think that&#8217;s going to be necessary.”
The withdrawal follows a 2024 agreement that began winding down the United States-led military mission in Iraq. While most troops departed beginning in September 2025, U.S. forces remained in advisory roles and continued supporting operations against ISIS. Many of those personnel were stationed in Iraq&#8217;s semi-autonomous Kurdistan region.
U.S. troop levels in Iraq peaked at roughly 170,000 in 2007. Most U.S. forces left in 2011 before approximately 5,000 troops returned in 2014 to combat ISIS. Prior to the latest drawdown, about 2,500 U.S. troops remained in the country.
Trump suggested the changing security environment in the Middle East also made a continued U.S. military presence less necessary, arguing that Iran — long viewed as a major destabilizing force in the region — has been significantly weakened by recent U.S. and Israeli military operations.
Instead, Trump emphasized the opportunities Iraq’s oil sector presents for U.S. businesses and investments. 
“Iraq has tremendous potential because of their oil and because of other things, but because of their oil, and we&#8217;re going to be doing a lot of deals,” he added. “We&#8217;re going to create a lot of jobs for both countries, and we&#8217;re going to be taking out a lot of oil. A lot of oil is coming out.”
According to <a href="https://apnews.com/article/donald-trump-alzaidi-iraq-iran-770f66fdda96ebfa7f45f32165e2b009">The Associated Press</a>, Iraq is expected to sign an agreement with Chevron, TI Capital, and Qatar&#8217;s UCC to construct a major oil pipeline connecting Basra in southern Iraq to Haditha in western Iraq and onward to Turkey&#8217;s Ceyhan port and Syria&#8217;s Baniyas port. The pipeline is projected to transport roughly 2 million barrels of oil per day.
Al-Zaidi, a 41-year-old banker and businessman from Baghdad, took office earlier this year after receiving backing from Trump, who favored him over former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, a longtime Iraqi political figure accused by critics of maintaining close ties to Iran.
The visit marked al-Zaidi&#8217;s first trip to the United States. Opening the meeting, he conveyed greetings from “the oldest civilization in the world” and stressed that Iraqi security forces would be capable of defending the country after the U.S. withdrawal.
Trump repeatedly praised the Iraqi leader throughout the meeting and their “tremendous chemistry.”
“Mark my words, I knew what I was doing,” Trump said. “This man is going to be a great leader in the Middle East, beyond Iraq. His influence is going to spread all throughout the Middle East.”
In his first speech before parliament, al-Zaidi pledged to disarm militia groups operating outside Iraqi state control. 
On June 15, he and U.S. Special Envoy for Iraq Tom Barrack issued a joint statement outlining plans for the “complete disarmament and disbandment of all armed groups and formations operating outside the authority and control of the Iraqi state,” later giving them until the end of September to comply.
The issue remains politically sensitive in Iraq, where some powerful factions maintain close ties to Tehran. Earlier this month, the body of Iran&#8217;s late supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, was brought into Iraq during a multi-day funeral procession — a reminder of Iran&#8217;s continuing influence among segments of the Iraqi population.
At one point during the meeting, Trump referenced the 2020 U.S. strike in Baghdad that killed Iranian General Qassem Soleimani. Al-Zaidi declined to revisit the controversy.
“At that time, I wasn&#8217;t involved in politics,” he said. “Let&#8217;s talk about the future.”

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Trump Announces U.S. Forces To Withdraw From Iraq After 23 Years

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