Operation Epic Fury (March 11-15): Joint U.S. & Israel Operation Against Iran
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US Launches Air Campaign to Stop Iranian Plan to Close Strait of Hormuz
March 11: Red State by Steiff
According to various reports, Iran has started laying mines in the Gulf of Hormuz. Reports from U.S. officials and multiple news outlets state that Iran has begun laying a limited number of naval mines in the Strait, using small vessels capable of deploying two to three mines at a time. Iran’s stockpile is estimated at 2,000 to 6,000. So far, estimates indicate that about a dozen mines have been laid.
President Trump has promised dire consequences if Iran mines Hormuz; see Trump Promises Swift and Violent Response If Iran Deploys Mines in the Strait of Hormuz – RedState.
Iran’s threat to mine Hormuz has roiled the oil markets, sending the price per barrel to about $115 on Monday, up from the usual price of about $60. About 20 percent of the world’s oil passes through there. Traffic through Hormuz has dropped by about 97 percent since Iran threatened a blockade. Some ships were willing to risk attack and run the gauntlet by turning off the Automatic Identification System (AIS), a maritime version of the transponder, until out of danger.
FBI Quietly Warns California Police of Iranian Plans for Retaliatory Attack
March 11: Western Journal by Nick Givas
The Federal Bureau of Investigation recently warned California law enforcement agencies regarding a potential retaliatory drone attack from Iran related to Operation Epic Fury. The warning came right as President Donald Trump and his administration launched attacks against Iran in a joint military operation with Israel.
This news also comes just days after the federal government sent out a similar alert to law enforcement agencies regarding the potential activation of Iranian sleeper cells, after discovering encrypted communications that reportedly originated in Iran.
North Korea Elbows into Iran Conflict, Pledging Support For ‘Supreme Leader’
March 11: Breitbart by John Hayward
North Korea on Wednesday announced its support for Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, and denounced what it called “illegal” attacks on Iran by the United States and Israel.
North Korea’s state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) quoted a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who said Pyongyang “respected” the appointment of Khamenei to succeed his father, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at the beginning of Operation Epic Fury last week.
The North Korean spokesperson said the U.S. and Israeli effort to destroy the “political system and territorial integrity of a country” should be “condemned and rejected by the entire world.”
Oil Prices Surge Above $100 Per Barrel as Seven Ships Attacked in Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz
March 12: California Post by Samuel Chamberlain
Oil prices briefly spiked above $100 per barrel early Thursday as seven tankers were attacked by Iran in a two-day period across the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz.
The two most damaging attacks, apparently carried out by explosive-laden boats, hit the tankers Safesea Vishnu and Zefyros in Iraqi waters, killing at least one crew member and setting the vessels ablaze.
Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) claimed responsibility for the attacks, releasing a video of the burning Safesea Vishnu in which a man can be heard shouting: “Allah is the greatest! The destruction of an American tanker in the northern district of the Persian Gulf! I obey you Khamenei! Hail be the Islamic Republic of Iran! Soldiers of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy!”
The attacks followed projectile strikes on four ships in the Strait of Hormuz since Wednesday and caused Brent crude futures to jump past the century mark before falling back to around $96.50 per barrel.
Mace Leads American Rescue Effort in Israel Amid Iran War
March 12: Daily Signal by Pedro Rodriguez
South Carolina Rep. Nancy Mace led a rescue flight for Americans stranded in Israel on Wednesday in the midst of the escalating tensions in Iran. Mace, a Republican, announced on social media that she traveled to Israel after having learned that a South Carolina family was “stranded in a war zone getting hit with missiles and rockets.”
The congresswoman announced the family returned home “safely,” but she warned that “hundreds more” families are still stranded in the country, which included “families with infants and students.”Mace’s coordination with the State Department and the American embassies in Jordan, Israel, and Greece allowed the nonprofit organization Grey Bull Rescue (a Tampa-based crisis response team led by military veterans), which works to rescue “Americans and allies anytime, anywhere,” to use one of the department’s planes and evacuate 155 more Americans out of Israel (they have rescued 591 since the conflict began).
All Six Aircrew of Stratotanker Lost Over Iraq Are Deceased, Confirms Central Command
March 13: Breitbart by Oliver JJ Lane
Six airmen have been killed after an incident in the skies over Western Iraq which led to the loss of an in-flight refuelling tanker, the U.S. military has confirmed. The death toll of an in-flight “incident” while on a combat mission has increased from four airmen to six, the complete complement of the lost Boeing KC-135 Stratotanker that went down yesterday evening over Iraq. U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) launched a rescue mission which ran overnight but has now confirmed there were no survivors from the lost refuelling aircraft.
A second aircraft was involved in the incident. While nothing has officially been stated about this second plane other than it was able to land, as earlier reported it appears the incident was a collision between two Stratotankers, with the surviving plane losing the top third of its vertical tail.
U.S. Secretary of State for War Pete Hegseth offered prayers for the lost airmen and their families on Friday. He said at a press conference: “…war is hell, war is chaos, and as we saw yesterday with the tragic crash of our KC-135 tanker, bad things can happen. American heroes, all of them… their sacrifice will only recommit us to the resolve of this mission…But war in this context and in pursuit of peace is necessary, which is why each day on bended knee we continue to appeal to heaven, to almighty God’s providence to watch over and give special skill and confidence to our leaders and to our warriors.”
The aircraft were flying in support of Operation Epic Fury, the two-week-old U.S. mission to degrade Iran’s nuclear, missile, and maritime capability. The tanker is the fourth known U.S. aircraft destroyed during the course of the operation, after a major friendly-fire incident in the skies over Kuwait saw three F-15E Strike Eagles downed by a single Kuwaiti Air Force fighter. In that case, all six aircrew were able to eject safely.
Boeing-made KC-135 Stratotankers carry large amounts of aviation fuel and are equipped with a probe or drogue that allows it to pump fuel directly into the tanks of other aircraft. The operation required a high degree of skill and carries some risk, but it allows assets to remain airborne for considerably extended periods of time.
The KC-135 fleet is a venerable one, the airframe having first flown in the 1950s and some aircraft in service now being over 60 years old. It is one of the longest continually serving military aircraft in the world. Dozens of KC-135s have been lost in service over that very long timeframe, but public records show that beyond a handful of high-profile incidents losses from mid-air collisions have been rare, with crashes at take-off or landing claiming the lions share.
Air refuelling proved particularly important in the early stages of Operation Epic Fury as the United States launched airstrikes on Iranian positions from bases in the United States, necessitating return flights of over 30 hours to deliver payloads to target before returning home.
Iranian Official Defies Purported Message from Cardboard Khamenei, Says Strait of Hormuz Open
March 13: Breitbart by Frances Martel
Iran’s top diplomat at the United Nations declared on Thursday, “We are not going to close the Strait of Hormuz,” apparently contradicting a message purportedly from the new “supreme leader” of the country, Mojtaba Khamenei.
Asked by the Kurdish news organization Rudaw if Iran was allowing commercial ships safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz, Amir Saeid Iravani, the top Iranian official at the United Nations, emphatically stated, “We are not going to close the Strait of Hormuz.”
Beijing has repeatedly demanded that Iran not interfere in traffic in the Strait of Hormuz and for all parties involved to “stop military operations at once, avoid further escalation, keep the shipping routes in the Strait of Hormuz safe, and prevent further impact on the global economy.”
The IRGC modified its first threat to set any ship near the Strait of Hormuz on fire following Chinese complaints, suggesting that friends of the Islamist regime would be allowed to transit safely through the waterway.
On Wednesday, dramatic footage of explosions emerged from the Strait, targeting three vessels. One was identified as a Thai-flagged ship and another as bearing the flag of the Marshall Islands, two nations with no relevance to the current conflict in Iran.
Trump: ‘Many Countries’ Will Send Warships to Patrol the Strait of Hormuz
March 14: Breitbart by Lowell Caufiell
President Donald Trump announced on Saturday that “many countries” will be dispatching warships to patrol the Strait of Hormuz amid the ongoing conflict with Iran, suggesting that it is “still easy” for its military to inflict damage on vessels there “no matter how badly defeated they are.”
Writing on Truth Social, Trump stated: “Many Countries, especially those who are affected by Iran’s attempted closure of the Hormuz Strait, will be sending War Ships, in conjunction with the United States of America, to keep the Strait open and safe. We have already destroyed 100% of Iran’s Military capability, but it’s easy for them to send a drone or two, drop a mine, or deliver a close range missile somewhere along, or in, this Waterway, no matter how badly defeated they are.”
The president continued, “Hopefully China, France, Japan, South Korea, the UK, and others, that are affected by this artificial constraint, will send Ships to the area so that the Hormuz Strait will no longer be a threat by a Nation that has been totally decapitated.”
“In the meantime,” he added, “the United States will be bombing the hell out of the shoreline, and continually shooting Iranian Boats and Ships out of the water,” Trump continued. “One way or the other, we will soon get the Hormuz Strait OPEN, SAFE, and FREE!”
‘CODE RED’ Author Tells ‘Daily Mail:’ AI ‘Data Vacuums’ Like TikTok and DeepSeek Are Chinese Espionage Tools
March 15: Breitbart by Lucas Nolan
CODE RED author Wynton Hall tells the Daily Mail in an interview published Sunday that China has disguised its “data vacuum” AI espionage tools as popular apps like TikTok and DeepSeek. According to Hall, users of these “Trojan Horse” apps are “effectively surrendering their privacy and security to the Chinese regime.”
The Daily Mail has published an interview with Breitbart News social media director Wynton Hall about, Code Red: The Left, the Right, China, and the Race to Control AI, which will be published on Tuesday, March 17.
The interview focuses on China’s intentions to take over the world with AI, a topic covered extensively in CODE RED. As Hall explains, China has spent years expanding its espionage capabilities through AI-powered apps like TikTok and DeepSeek.
As documented in Code Red, Chinese officials gloat about the power of TikTok to not only poison the minds of young westerners using its sinister algorithm, but also to suck up vast amounts of data to use for intelligence purposes which is where the power of AI comes in — only its being used against America.
The challenges CODE RED will help you address include:
- Why AI is wired for woke indoctrination—and how to resist it.
- How elites plan to weaponize AI job losses to push dependency.
- How America can beat China without becoming China.
- How to prepare your kids for the blinding speed of AI disruption.
- The new national security threats AI unleashes—and how we defend against them.
- Why “AI girlfriends” are luring millions—and what it will take to preserve authentic human connection.
- How AI will test faith and meaning.
NBC Kristen Welker Confronts Sen. Adam Schiff in Live TV For Keeping DHS Shut Down Despite the Threat of Terror Attacks
March 15: Gateway Pundit by Jim Hoft
NBC Kristen Welker surprisingly confronted Democrat Senator Adam Schiff (D-CA) on live television over Democrats’ role in keeping the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) partially shut down for nearly a month despite rising fears of terrorist attacks inside the United States.
Just this week, the FBI confirmed two horrifying terror attacks: a targeted car-ramming assault on Temple Israel synagogue in West Bloomfield, Michigan, and a shooting rampage at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia, that killed one and wounded others.
At the same time, the CEOs of the nation’s major airlines and cargo carriers issued a letter to Congress urging lawmakers to immediately resolve the shutdown, warning that national security and aviation safety could be impacted if DHS remains unfunded.
During the interview, Welker asked the tough question that every sane American has been screaming for weeks: “Is it responsible for Democrats to hold up DHS funding with the threat of terror attacks looming? The answer from Schiff? The same tired, disgusting lie we’ve heard from every Democrat hack since the shutdown began, ‘It’s the Republicans’ fault!’
Iran FM’s Interview with Liberal Media Does Not Go Well
March 15: Red State by Nick Arama
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Aragchi did an interview with “Face the Nation” via Zoom, supposedly from Tehran. Aragchi insisted they had not closed the Strait of Hormuz. As we reported, he had previously said that it was open except to the U.S, Israel, and their allies.
Host Margaret Brennan asked Aragchi why he had access to the internet to talk to CBS, yet the people didn’t have internet access. “Well, I’m the voice- because I’m the voice of Iranians, and I have to defend their right,” he claimed. “So this is why I have access to the internet to just, you know, have our voice being heard by the international community,” He claimed the internet was closed for “security reasons, because we are under attack.”
Araghci also lied about just hitting “America targets” when Iran has hit non-military, non-American targets in the Gulf States, as Brennan said. “But your drones are going into civilian areas and hitting plants and hotels and civilians,” Brennan said. Aragchi insisted this wasn’t true, “No, no-no, no, no, no, this is not the fact. We are only targeting American assets, American installations, American military bases.”
Mike Hernandez is co-founder of the Citizens Journal–Ventura County’s online news service and writes for CitizensJournal.net and MountainTopMedia.com. He is a former Southern California daily newspaper journalist and religion and news editor, writer of “Prayer Over News Daily” and edits the weekly “Stories Speak Volumes” and other columns. Mr. Hernandez mentors citizen journalists with trainings held every other month (on Saturdays at Shasta Bible College and online) and can be contacted at MikeHernandezMedia.com.