Iran has announced free passage for all vessels other than Israel and the US, which amounts to unconditional surrender with bluster to pretend it is not unconditional surrender.
For this means Iran has agreed to endure any punishment that the US dishes out, and not do anything effective to hurt the US back.
Details of what is needed for the US to stop punishing to be furtively filled in later. Unconditional surrender on the installment plan.
I thought that Trump lacked information about Iranian will, and so was just shooting in the dark. But he would not be a great deal maker if he could not sniff out his opponent. I badly underestimated him. His deal making ability remains as great as when he was young.
The leadership class of Iran is cynical and corrupt. They do not really take their state religion all that seriously. So when Trump demonstrated will and ability to take out the top line leadership, the second line leadership chickened out. Which I should have predicted, and Trump actually did predict.
If they had not chickened out, then things would have been really bad for Trump, for Maga, and for America. Trump and Maga promised no wars. OK, we lost six men, one very expensive radar station, and spent a whole lot of missiles, but six men plus quick victory is close enough to no wars to pass.
Allegedly, Iran was attempting mine the straits, which would have blocked passage to all ships, including their own, but every ship and every port facility involved in the mining operation was allegedly instantly destroyed and every person involved in the operation was allegedly instantly killed. Which would not necessarily have prevented them from blocking the straits but foreshadowed the blocking operation being difficult, expensive, dangerous, and uncertain.
Im not sure its true yet but if true yes he won.
I predicted that they would not have any chance of successfully mining the straits BTW mining requires your minelayers being undetected and this isn’t WW2 clearly they could see any strange boats entering the straits and then boom…
You could, potentially, deliver mines by missile, drone, surface drone, or subsurface drone.
But they might not have that capability. Or elements with that capability might think that using it could be a very bad idea.
That announcement is dated March 6, 2026.
I have read of attacks after that date, e.g. Thailand-flagged ship Mayuree Naree on March 11, 2026.
You can lookup other sources (Jim’s link seems to have changed from when he 1st posted it) it was announced again today. Tankers in that region never have US or Israeli flags (apparently most common flags are Panama, Marshall Islands and Liberia) and virtually never go directly to the US anyway (almost always Asia or Europe, sometimes India).
There will be a time lag for the details and insurance situation to get sorted out if this is true but IF it is true the war is effectively over.
There appears to be a lack of unity of command, but someone in command wants to surrender.
On the other hand, someone else in command does not want to surrender.
Iran’s ambassador to the UN, Ali Bahreini, claimed on March 12 that Tehran “does not have any intention to block the Strait of Hormuz,”
Iran’s new Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, has publicly vowed to keep the strait closed,
Tell me all again how Trump is winning next week and the week after, rinse repeat. This is an old post or an ignorant one. We have lost 7 killed in direct fire, another 6 to a mid-air collision and hundreds hospitalized. Iran has attacked 20 ships in Hormuz and not much is moving. Here is what he left out. Israel is being pummeled and no amount of censorship can keep that news quiet. Israel and the US are running out of interceptor missiles and Iran keeps shooting. Netanyahu has not been seen in public since an Iranian missile strike on his house. The Israeli govt. used an Ai fake in a news release. Itmar Ben Gavir is dead, Bibi’s brother is dead. and possibly more of his cabinet. Iran was attacked by Israel and the US while still holding negotiations. We killed civilians to include young girls and then laughed about it. Iran will not give up, just like my father’s generation never gave up when attacked by Japan in 1941.
I am content that two of our problems are solving each other.
I care, and Trump voters care, about the price of gas. About Israelis getting rocketed, not so much. If the price of gas remains high, the war is lost. If it comes down, won.
We are not running out of interceptors, because we can now fly bombers into Iranian airspace, and intercept missiles before they are launched using old fashioned gravity bombs.
You are, of course, on moderation, and if you hope for further comments to get through, take the shill test described in the moderation policy.
Iran’s openness to China and Russia certainly shows a realization not to upset their allies, but on a long enough timeline all stationary bandits will behave in their own self interest. Perhaps this is a sign of the beginning of the end.
In war, there is always the propaganda campaign. Not knowing Iran’s production capacity is a salient point. The war will end when those profiting from it are satisfied.
I don’t get this read at all. What ever trump’s war goals were, opening the straight couldn’t have been one of them, because the straight was open until he started the war. I don’t think this is going trump’s way at all. The Iranian government probably isn’t having a great time either.
If he gets to blow up Iranian leaders without them closing the straits — which has not been accomplished, but obviously some in the Iranian regime want to accomplish it — then whatever Trump’s war goals are, he is going to get them.