2026 Israeli–United States strikes on Iran

JMartJr said:
These days, I'd add:

Fake AI videos of spectacular, unrealistically huge explosions.
Recycled video of impressive explosions in earlier wars claimed as from the current war.
Click-bait false stories of major destruction of various well known locations on social media.
Use of real footage of missiles and anti-missile weapons, bombers, etc. from the current conflict, claimed to be UFOs.
Click to expand...
Yes.
External Quote:

Minutes after Donald Trump announced that the US and Israeli governments had launched a "major combat operation" against Iran in the early hours of Saturday morning, disinformation about the attack and Tehran's response flooded X. WIRED has reviewed hundreds of posts on X, some of which have racked up millions of views, that promote misleading claims about the locations and scale of the attack.

Elon Musk's social media platform is a verifiable mess: In some cases, alleged video footage of the attack shared in posts on X are actually months or years old. In several posts, video footage of apparent attacks have been attributed to incorrect locations. A number of images shared on X appear to be altered or generated with AI. Other posts attempt to pass off video game footage as scenes from the conflict.
https://www.wired.com/story/x-is-drowning-in-disinformation-following-us-and-israels-attack-on-iran/
 
Mendel said:
View attachment 88797
Click to expand...
Apparently he is dead.
External Quote:

Iranian law requires new leader "must be determined as soon as possible," according to a spokesperson for the country's powerful Guardian Council, which includes theologians selected by the country's now deceased Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

"Given the wartime conditions, this will take place at the earliest opportunity," Hadi Tahan Nazif told Iranian state media outlet IRIB News today.

"The constitution has provisions for the current circumstances, and until a leader is appointed, the leadership council will assume responsibility," he added.
https://www.nbcnews.com/world/iran/...l-trump-khamenei-dead-live-updates-rcna261172
 
Mick West said:
Conspiracy-theory related? I'm sure there will be lots.
Click to expand...
We're in a weird place where it's no longer fringe to think there's a conspiracy of shadowy elites making decisions based solely on their own desire to stay at the top. Consider how un-fringey the argument is that this military campaign is not a beneficent gesture towards the Iranian people and is more about consolidating power in the US for a deeply corrupt administration. If this results in retaliatory attacks within the Homeland, it'll be yet another excuse to invoke a national emergency and disrupt or cancel the midterms.
 
Fake garbage appearing on FaceBook reals already, likely AI but could also be video game graphics or old footage:

(Presumably Iranian) fighter jet attacks US battleship from WWII era.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1470808427733599


Another battleship attacked

Source: https://www.facebook.com/reel/2366578217120066


Not sure if AI or just old footage of sky divers with pyrotechnics -- I doubt there are many people out for a boat ride during the air strikes.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/reel/2169541627209445
 
JMartJr said:
Fake garbage appearing on FaceBook reals already, likely AI but could also be video game graphics or old footage:

(Presumably Iranian) fighter jet attacks US battleship from WWII era.
Click to expand...

Yep, definitely garbage. Those aren't modern ships.

The attacking aircraft in the first clip has canards (the small wings ahead of the main wings) and a tail boom, it's probably meant to be a Sukhoi Su-30 or Su-33, possibly a related Chinese type, Shenyang J-11 or J-15. All developed from the Su-27 Flanker.
The Su-30 has been widely exported but not to Iran; Su-33 is only in service with the Russian Navy, the Shenyangs are only used by China.

aa.jpg


The Iranian air force doesn't operate any aircraft with canards AFAIK.

See "List of aircraft of the Iranian Air Force", Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aircraft_of_the_Iranian_Air_Force, hover cursor over aircraft names for a photo of each type.
 
I promise not to keep posting these ad infinitum, but wanted to drop a few more that I have seen this morning:

Missile attack in Sharjah, UAE with an explosion that very neatly fits in the narrow space between buildings.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/reel/947656194354136


Something that looks a lot like the Burj Khalifa attacked

Source: https://www.facebook.com/reel/1243236270586101


Carrier group at the beach in Dubai.

Source: https://www.facebook.com/reel/2443045349480363

Edit to add: Might as well mention that I don't think the place this "video" is supposedly shot from even exists. Judging by the position of the Burj al Arab (the famous "sail boat looking" hotel) this location should be adjacent to the Jumeirah Kite Beach, there is no high rise building there and the circular boat basin in the foreground does not exist -- though there are other marinas in the general area, they are not laid out like that.

delme.jpg
 
Last edited:
Rubio today gave a nice clear overview of the Operation Mission and why the attack started when it did. about 10 minutes.

(Basically the mission is to wipe out all short range ballistic missiles and drones. and destroy the Iranian Navy as the Navy was messing with "global shipping" and our naval assets. Iran making [estimated] 100 missiles a month, and the fear is that within a year they would have so many that noone could challenge them without them doing a ton of damage to surrounding countries.

the "why now" is that we knew israel was going to strike (he doesn't say why they were) and we determined when that happened Iran would immediately attack us..so if we attack first there would be less casualties to our servicemen.)

sounds like once we wipe out their missiles and their Navy then Mission accomplished and we're done.

0:25
AN OPERATION TO ELIMINATE THE
THREAT OF IRAN'S SHORT RANGE
BALLISTIC MISSILES AND THE
THREAT POSED BY THEIR NAVY
PARTICULARLY TO NAVAL ASSETS.


Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgOPsuXW9SY
 
Yeah, that's not going to work. It will just be endless terrorism and some sort of nuclear device going off in Israel, eventually.
Rubio said we had to act preemptively, because Israel was going to attack Iran, and we would be hit too. Hmmm…. A lot of folks in Russia are angry about it, too.
 
Obviously, few would be gullible enough to take Marco Rubio's "clear" words at face value.

Or try to compel him to explain why all the other reasons that Trump has given, are wrong.
A) "Freedom" for the people of Iran
B) "...long range missiles could soon reach the American homeland..." (Pentagon made clear that was untrue: Iran years away)
C) A neat, tidy coup, "like Venezuela" (though Iran is nothing like Venezuela)
D) Re-obliterating (?) a nuclear program, though Trump claimed it was "completely and totally obliterated" just 8 months ago
E) Protecting demonstrators (to be clear, Trump claims to be the protector of Iranian demonstrators (don't ask about American ones)
F)...there's more...point made

I don't blame Rubio for trying to wrangle all the contradictory reasons into something plausible & compact, dishonest as it is.
(His complaint that it would be hard to inform 535 members of Congress, when we all know it's just the "Gang of 8" is an absurd straw man.)
Unfortunately for Rubio, his boss is undisciplined and will not be able to pretend for long that Rubio's re-framing is the real truth.
He will probably repeat the numerous & internally contradictory reasons given so far, and quite likely invent some new ones.

Crippling Iran, and then admitting that you have no plan to to see it put back together in a safe, reasonable way, creates a vacuum
that just invites a repeat of Republican George Bush's regime change in Iraq...the best thing that ever happened to Al-Qaeda in Iraq.

https://www.politifact.com/article/2026/feb/28/United-States-Israel-Iran-attack-nuclear-missiles/
 
An advocacy group called Military Religious Freedom Foundation is claiming that they have received reports of commanders preaching that this war is meant to bring Armageddon.
External Quote:

A combat-unit commander told non-commissioned officers at a briefing Monday that the Iran war is part of God's plan and that Pres. Donald Trump was "anointed by Jesus to light the signal fire in Iran to cause Armageddon and mark his return to Earth," according to a complaint by a non-commissioned officer.

From Saturday morning through Monday night, more than 110 similar complaints about commanders in every branch of the military had been logged by the Military Religious Freedom Foundation (MRFF).

The complaints came from more than 40 different units spread across at least 30 military installations, the MRFF told me Monday night.
https://jonathanlarsen.substack.com/p/us-troops-were-told-iran-war-is-for

The MRFF site links to this substack's author here, but nothing about this specific story on their site yet.

So that's fun.
 
Harabeck said:
An advocacy group called Military Religious Freedom Foundation is claiming that they have received reports of commanders preaching that this war is meant to bring Armageddon.
Click to expand...
Under normal circumstances that could be utterly dismissed as BS. Unfortunately the circumstances are anything but normal.
 
Harabeck said:
An advocacy group called Military Religious Freedom Foundation is claiming that they have received reports of commanders preaching that this war is meant to bring Armageddon.
Click to expand...
Considering last week's comments by our ambassador to Israel (Huckabee, claiming that god gave that whole region to the Jews, not just Israel) I don't find that surprising. Hegseth is another devout believer. Trump is not, which makes me think that the evangelical commanders (and other civilian pastors) merely see an opportunity to push their religion, not that their beliefs played a part in the attack. But religion might have motivated advisors, the ones that whisper in Trump's ear behind the scenes.

For religious fanatics to go to war against a country full of religious fanatics is the height of foolishness.
 
deirdre said:
you should give people a link so everybody doesnt have to look it up themselves Google Map link to "sailboat" Hotel
Click to expand...
Yeah, I probably should have. I'd assumed it was more well known than it perhaps is, and that it would be analogous to needing to include a link to what the White House is (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_House) or Big Ben in London (https://www.parliament.uk/bigben/)

Upon reflection, the Bur al Arab is probly sufficiently less well known that a quick link or picture would not have hurt:
delme.jpg
 
Matt33 said:
Under normal circumstances that could be utterly dismissed as BS. Unfortunately the circumstances are anything but normal.
Click to expand...
Which part and why? Demographically, military personnel report in higher rates of religious identification and regular religious practice than the general population.
 
NoParty said:
Obviously, few would be gullible enough to take Marco Rubio's "clear" words at face value.

Or try to compel him to explain why all the other reasons that Trump has given, are wrong.
Click to expand...

there is no contradiction between trumps ACTUAL words and Rubio's words. You just WANT there to be. (or you didnt listen to the actual speeches and get your information from clipped quotes in articles). But thanks for proving my point, yet again, about political threads on MB.

regarding the nuclear part:
Article:
.
5:00
And we will ensure that Iran
does not obtain a nuclear weapon. It's a
very simple message. They will never
have a nuclear weapon.
...
5:53
But we're doing this not for now. We're doing this
for the future.
And it is a noble
mission.
We pray for every service
member as they selflessly risk their
lives to ensure that Americans and our
children will never be threatened by a
nuclear armed Iran.


Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i03vW40EDI8
 
I don't think you could insure that they will never have a nuclear weapon unless you occupy the country and as we've seen that never works, and Iran is a very large country. Nukes are portable and dirty bombs could be used. There are also other kinds of weapons that can cause mass death and hurt; some of those things could already be in place.
 
Todd Feinman said:
I don't think you could insure that they will never have a nuclear weapon unless you occupy the country and as we've seen that never works, and Iran is a very large country. Nukes are portable and dirty bombs could be used. There are also other kinds of weapons that can cause mass death and hurt; some of those things could already be in place.
Click to expand...

Yes. Nuclear weapons are 1940's level technology. Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles are 1960's level technology. Neither can be permanently prevented from being developed in a country you don't physically control.
 
deirdre said:
its not what it is. it's WHERE it is... so we can easily look for ourselves and see the aerial view.
Click to expand...
Which, conveniently, the image I've now posted does pretty well, as it relates to the point that there are no high rise buildings in the area where the video would have to have been taken along the beaches at Jumeirah.

I might also have gone into more detail as to why a fleet of naval vessels including multiple aircraft carriers was unlikely to be puttering along that close to the shore. So here we go:

External Quote:

Draft
  • Maximum navigational: 37 ft (11.3 m)
  • Limit: 41 ft (12.5 m)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nimitz-class_aircraft_carrier


Whereas a depth chart of the area shows water running around 10-13 meters (32-42 feet):
delme2.jpg

(Red line added to show approximate path if the AI fleet.)
https://www.mdpi.com/2306-5338/11/12/202

Carriers steaming through that area would be in very real danger of running aground.

There are channels for boats running in to the Southwest of the Palm Jumeirah island complex, and to the Northeast of the area where the fake carrier fleet is shown, at the uncompleted Palm Deira islands:

delme3.jpg

https://fishing-app.gpsnauticalcharts.com/i-boating-fishing-web-app/fishing-marine-charts-navigation.html?title=United+Arab+Emirates+Mina'+Jabal+'Ali+(Jebel+Ali)+and+Approaches+boating+app#11.1/25.2970/55.2226/0.7

There is a large channel suitable for very large cargo ships even further to the Southwest at the Jebl Ali port.

delme4.jpg

https://fishing-app.gpsnauticalcharts.com/i-boating-fishing-web-app/fishing-marine-charts-navigation.html?title=United+Arab+Emirates+Mina'+Jabal+'Ali+(Jebel+Ali)+and+Approaches+boating+app#10.83/25.0463/55.0190/18.1
(That is a different set of palm islands, the uncompleted Palm Jebl Ali.)

To sum up, there is no way a carrier fleet is steaming along the beach at Jumeirah. In the unlikely event a carrier would need to come close to the shore of Dubai, it would use the ship channel at Jebl Ali, IF that is even possible given the width of the channel, the available berths in the harbor, etc. I have not ascertained that last bit of info as it is not really relevant, whatever the situation at the port no carriers would traverse the area shown in the fake AI video.
 
JMartJr said:
Which, conveniently, the image I've now posted does pretty well, as it relates to the point that there are no high rise buildings in the area where the video would have to have been taken along the beaches at Jumeirah.
Click to expand...
oh my god. just post the link if you provide a google map screen shot.
 
Todd Feinman said:
So far deterrence and deals have worked, but in the desperation of war, bad things can happen. Was this war inevitable?
I fear this was also partially done to keep Trump in power. Evangelicals also want their beliefs to play out.
Click to expand...
Actually I would suspect it was done now because Israel expects Trump to be neutered after the Novermber elections.
Do it now before his power is reduced.
They said they were going to attack, and used the consequences of that attack and whever blackmail they have from Epstein, to force Trump to go along for the ride. This is not something he would have initiated if there was some way to procrastinate, and he seems very good at changing his mind when it allows him to not carry through with something he promised to do.

Edit, and yes the Evangelicals were also pushing for this.
 
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