Inside The Strike That Changed The War With Iran

One of the most strategically valuable targets in the conflict…

PAUL’S DEFENSE BRIEF (PDB) – President Trump announced perhaps the most aggressive U.S. action against Iran to date, attacking military targets on Kharg Island, Iran’s strategic oil distribution chokepoint.

After Kharg, what to know about Iran’s offshore islands.

Meanwhile, Israel and U.S. indicate war could go on for another three weeks. Trump says he’s not yet prepared to make a deal with Tehran while Israeli officials say there are still “thousands of targets” to be hit.

And President Trump ratchets up pressure on European allies to help protect Strait of Hormuz from Iranian attacks, warning that NATO faces “very bad” future if its members fail to come to Washington’s aid.

There is also this: Trump administration offering $10 million reward for information on Iranian leaders amid U.S. strikes on the regime and military.

FOR YOUR EYES ONLY – Here’s a roundup of today’s other top defense news from conservative national security expert PAUL CRESPO.

THE PDB – Not the President’s Daily Briefing, but almost as good – PAUL’S DEFENSE BRIEF:    

HOMELAND SECURITY

Army lieutenant colonel who instructed Old Dominion University’s Army Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC) cadets was killed when ISIS-inspired terrorist opened fire in his classroom before being subdued and killed by an unarmed cadet.

DEFENSE POLITICS

Republicans resist calls for Iran war hearings, creating new standoff with Democrats. War with Iran entering third week, but Congress has yet to publicly test Trump administration’s case for the conflict.

Justice Department to dismiss charges against Army veteran who burned an American flag near White House last year to protest President Trump’s executive order on flag burning.

IRAN CAMPAIGN

Pentagon has identified all six service members killed when Air Force KC-135 refueling aircraft crashed (possibly in mid-air collision while refueling another KC-135!) over Iraq during combat operations against Iran.

Pentagon says KC-135 crash, cause was “not the result of hostile or friendly fire.”

War Secretary Pete Hegseth said Iran’s newly appointed “Supreme Leader,” Mojtaba Khamenei, had been “wounded and likely disfigured” in recent U.S.-Israeli attacks.

REGIONAL/GLOBAL IMPACT

Are Iran’s retaliatory strikes across Gulf region affecting U.S. war strategy? So far, Iran has launched strikes across nine countries in the region. Most have been intercepted but at least 19 people have been killed. Gulf states are bearing brunt of Iran’s retaliation.

Iran conflict: Global airlines under strain. Thousands of passenger jets are having to navigate a sliver of airspace between Russia and Iran due to ongoing wars – triggering congestion, longer travel times, greater fuel use and higher ticket costs.

Hegseth on Iranian threats in Strait of Hormuz: “Don’t need to worry about it.” Pentagon says there’s “no clear evidence” of Iran laying mines in the narrow shipping lane.

Strait of Hormuz crisis drives demand for commercial geospatial intelligence. Analysts are relying on tools that fuse satellite imagery, ship data and open-source reporting into real-time insight.

ISRAEL AND LEBANON

Israel pounds Beirut. Since Hezbollah violated its promise not to attack, Israel is fighting second front in southern Lebanon, against the terror group, alongside the air campaign with U.S. against Iran.

Lebanese government tries to avoid internal strife amid Israeli bombardment. Following Hezbollah’s barrage of missiles launched at northern Israel, just days after U.S. and Israel started strikes against Iran, Lebanon’s cabinet banned any military activities by Iran-backed Hezbollah, requiring armed terror group to hand over its weapons to Lebanese state.

CHINA THREAT

After unexplained break of almost two weeks with few or no Chinese warplanes, Taiwan reports large-scale Chinese military aircraft presence near island. 26 Chinese military aircraft were detected around the island Saturday.

Mexico Still Has a China Problem. Time to pick a side, U.S. or China. Strategic ambiguity no longer works in an era of geoeconomic pressure.

RUSSIA THREAT/UKRAINE WAR

Ukraine recovering from Russian strike, concerned Putin is benefiting from Iran war, which has shifted global attention.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he was ready for next round of trilateral peace talks to end Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but it was up to Washington and Moscow to agree on where and when to meet.

Ukraine giving international partners and allied defense companies access to its vast trove of combat data to train AI models for autonomous drone systems — “first initiative of its kind in the world.”

First field test of defense giant Leonardo’s ‘Michelangelo’ “security dome” architecture will take place in Ukraine by end of 2026. The ‘dome’ is an integrated, multi-domain structure spanning air, land, maritime and space.

EUROPEAN DEFENSES

Polish President will veto bill to implement EU’s Security Action For Europe (SAFE) scheme which foresees around $50.3 billion in low-cost loans for Poland’s military. Too many strings attached?

ARCTIC THREATS

Following their success in Ukraine, Arctic nations assessing whether first person-view (FPV) drones could be deployed on Arctic battlefields. Cold weather wreaks havoc on drones and their batteries.

VIDEO: Italian military flexes muscles in NATO’s largest Arctic warfare exercise.

SPACE THREATS

Amid calls to double size of the service in coming years, Space Force Components building up units to ‘surge’ forward.

US MILITARY

Military culture of fitness: It’s not about the test. In era of high-tech weapons, super-fast computers, armed drones, and layers of satellites, it’s easy to overlook still-crucial element of military capability: a physically fit Active-Duty, Guard, and Reserve force.

VA launching new plan to initiate legal guardianship proceedings for hundreds of “most vulnerable” veterans in country.

END of PDB

FOR MORE DETAILED, UNCENSORED, INTELLIGENCE, AND ANALYSIS FROM PAUL CRESPO, SUBSCRIBE TO HIS SUBSTACK.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the positions of American Liberty News.

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