President Trump has asked all Americans to call Sen. John Thune's office and ask - RESPECTFULLY - that he gets the SAVE America Act passed. The "respectfully" part was a little hard for me, but I did it.
Now itโs your turn: (202) 224-2321
//The Wire//2100Z July 22, 2026//
//ROUTINE//
//BLUF: IRANIAN TARGETING OF AMERICAN BASES REMAINS SIGNIFICANT. MISSILE THREAT ISSUED FOR LA GUARDIA LAST NIGHT, REPORT QUICKLY DEEMED NOT CREDIBLE.//
-----BEGIN TEARLINE-----
-International Events-
Kuwait: Strikes on American positions continue to degrade American capabilities. The logistical hub at Camp Doha in Kuwait City was struck overnight, along with possible strikes at the remote HIMARS launch sites in near the Iraqi border. Iran also claimed to have struck the AN/FPS-117 Early Warning radar array at Ahmed al-Jaber Airbase.
Analyst Comment: Unlike all of the other strikes, this site cannot be independently verified or geolocated using current satellite imagery, so it might be a newly constructed site or the Iranians got the names of bases mixed up.
Saudi Arabia: Iranian missile strikes were reported throughout the morning, with unknown success. The oil terminals at Yanbu as well as American positions at Prince Sultan Airbase were targeted, with unknown effect.
Jordan: American positions continue to be struck at Muwaffaq al Salti Airbase, in the vicinity of the strike that killed 3x service members last week. In central Jordan, King Faisal Airbase was targeted as well, with satellite imagery confirming that as of this morning, one of the structures targeted was still on fire. Down south, the American positions at King Hussein International Airport were targeted, as the Iranians attempted to strike the American refueling aircraft that have been parked on the apron for several days. Israeli citizens across the border observed smoke over the mountain ridge in the vicinity of this airport.
Analyst Comment: Now that the Iranians know that their targeting is effective at Muwaffaq, they will continue targeting the same location over and over again. Same with Tower 22, the far-flung base in Jordan's northeastern quadrant, where extensive damage has been noted. Also, the Iranians claim to have unveiled a comparatively new missile system during this wave of attacks; Iran used many of their low-grade missiles during the early days of the war, and now they are occasionally pulling out the newer missiles which have more advanced maneuverability during the terminal phases of the warhead's flight. This might be a contributing factor for why missile interceptions are completely non-existent during some attack waves.
-HomeFront-
New York: Last night, a security incident was reported at La Guardia after a MANPAD alert was issued for the airport. Port Authority Police alerted the tower regarding a threat they had received regarding the potential use of a shoulder-fired Surface-to-Air missile launcher being used to target a civilian airliner. The report was deemed to be not credible almost immediately afterwards, but the alert was still sent out over the radio to all aircraft in the vicinity.
-----END TEARLINE-----
Analyst Comments: Sometimes, a few seconds of radio traffic is very illuminating. Listening to the very brief radio exchange between the tower and a Delta flight explaining the issue in New York, perhaps the most telling and concerning detail is that La Guardia possibly has a "MANPAD alert" procedure now. From a counterterrorism perspective this is a good thing, but it's also very disconcerting that this contingency is something that is not only actively being planned for...but already has a procedure drawn up for it. Granted, there's not a whole lot that a commercial airline pilot can do with that information while trying to land, and the rather nonchalant affirmation that no issues have been reported "yet" is only slightly reassuring. But this does go to show that threats within the homeland don't take a break just because eastern Europe and the Middle East are on fire, and the threats to commercial aviation are always on the menu even if most of the concerns are not credible. However, it only takes one credible threat for a very bad day to occur, and this target vector is the epitome of the old counterterrorism saying: We have to be successful in defending ourselves every single time, but the terrorist has to succeed only once.
Analyst: S2A1
Research: https://t.co/S3KtgaxFCO
NomadNet: 5fa68c88be727a0e1a250a75e5e79269
Disclaimer: No LLMs were used in the writing of this report.
//END REPORT//
//The Wire//2300Z July 21, 2026//
//ROUTINE//
//BLUF: HOUTHIS ANNOUNCE EMBARGO OF SAUDI OIL TANKERS. LARGE SCALE BOMBINGS OF IRAN CONTINUE. ANDY BURNHAM ASSUMES OFFICE AS BRITISH PRIME MINISTER. STABBING REPORTED AT CHURCH IN IRELAND.//
-----BEGIN TEARLINE-----
-International Events-
Middle East : The war continues as before with a new series of attacks taking place overnight, with CENTCOM conducting their 7th wave of airstrikes within Iran since the break of the ceasefire. In Jordan, the Tower 22 Base was struck again, with Iranian ballistic missiles targeting an aircraft hangar as well as a warehouse.
Bahrain: Significant Iranian targeting continued with the Iranians striking the electrical substation powering an Amazon data center. The data center itself was not hit, but the center remains offline due to the power source being cut.
Black Sea: The targeting of oil tankers by both Ukraine and Russia has continued, with concerns growing regarding the wider threats to petroleum infrastructure. Yesterday, Kazakhstan halted all shipments of oil through their pipelines that eventually arrive at the Russian oil terminals on the Black Sea, due to the threats presented by Ukrainian drones.
Ireland: This morning a stabbing attack was reported at Holy Cross Church in Tramore, Wateford. One woman was stabbed at the altar shortly before Mass began, with the assailant fleeing the scene before being detained a short distance from the church. The victim remains hospitalized with serious wounds following the attack.
United Kingdom: Yesterday Andy Burnham formally transitioned into the role of Prime Minister. This afternoon, he authorized the use of British bases by the United States to conduct strikes in Iran, marking a more public foreign policy departure from Starmer's government.
-----END TEARLINE-----
Analyst Comments: In the Red Sea, things are not going so well. Last night, the Houthis claimed to have partially closed the Bab el Mandeb Strait, threatening another major global maritime chokepoint. This announcement has been implemented as a blockade of Saudi ports, with the Houthi's claiming that all ships bound for Saudi Arabia will be attacked. The status of other ships just passing through the area remains unclear.
As a reminder, the US already fought the Houthis, specifically over their closure of the Bab el Mandeb Strait last year. That conflict resulted in a de facto Houthi victory after the US ceased the bombing campaign without securing the defeat of the Houthis, and many shipping companies have, to this day, continued to avoid the Red Sea route altogether. So far, the Houthi's have not struck any vessels however reports suggest they may have turned a couple of tankers around without missiles being fired.
The Houthis are perhaps an even more substantial threat to the region than most realize, simply due to the weapons available to them. Unlike Iran, which has the capability of hitting individual ships in the comparatively cramped Strait of Hormuz, the Houthis have historically had to rely on the sledgehammer approach. It is true that the Houthis will strike vessels in their backyard with relative ease, but their main target is the Saudi port of Yanbu, far to the north on the east coast of the Red Sea. From that distance, the Houthis can't hit individual ships...they will be hitting the oil terminal itself. That's comparatively worse than striking just one ship; the Houthi targeting efforts are a much more blunt instrument than observed with Iran, and as a result they are more likely to cause damage that lasts a long time. This was already demonstrated by their previous targeting efforts during the short-lived war last year. The Houthis can also hurt the United States more directly too...Camp Lemonnier in Djbouti is just 70 miles away from Yemen, on the other side of the Strait. This has historically been a non-combat post, but this can change in an instant, if the belligerents choose to escalate this war to include two continents.
Analyst: S2A1
Research: https://t.co/S3Ktgax7Ng
NomadNet: 5fa68c88be727a0e1a250a75e5e79269
Disclaimer: No LLMs were used in the writing of this report.
//END REPORT//
//The Wire//2300Z July 20, 2026//
//ROUTINE//
//BLUF: CENTCOM CONFIRMS FOUR AMERICAN CASUALTIES FOLLOWING IRANIAN STRIKES IN MIDDLE EAST. ARSON ATTACK REPORTED AT FEDERAL BUILDING IN NYC.//
-----BEGIN TEARLINE-----
-International Events-
Jordan: Over the weekend CENTCOM confirmed the deaths of three US service members, who were killed as a result of the strikes on a barracks building at Muwaffaq al Salti Airbase. Two of the casualties have been identified as 1LT Tyler James Feehan, and Private Isabella Gonzales. The third casualty officially remains classified as Missing in Action as the remains will require DNA analysis to confirm identity, and has not yet been officially identified. A fourth casualty was also reported somewhere in Iraq, which was the result of an Iranian drone strike.
Middle East: Following Iranian targeting of the al-Subiya Power Station, Kuwait has begun to rely on portable substations and generators to provide electricity while repairs are made. The scale of the power outages is not known, but Iranian forces have struck several logistical hubs and electrical power plants over the past few days. In Bahrain, Iranian targeting has remained heavy over the weekend, with several ballistic missile strikes reported at American installations around the country.
Strait of Hormuz: Several more merchant vessels were struck over the past few days, most of which were tankers attempting to use the southern Omani route instead of the Iranian route. At least one of these vessels resulted in the crew abandoning ship before being rescued.
Iran: After these collective strikes over the weekend, American targeting efforts intensified with the latest bombing campaign focusing on the targeting of bridges and civilian roadway tunnels around Bandar Abbas. Many of the roads that lead to the port city are now cut off, with only a few major roadways allowing access to the city. Several bridges have also already been repaired, and the status of others remains unclear until better satellite imagery is available.
-HomeFront-
New York: This morning an arson attack was reported at the Federal building in downtown Manhattan. One assailant approached the building with a bucket of gasoline, dumping the bucket at the northeast side of the structure. The suspect immediately ignited the pool of gas, which also contained a mix of commercial grade fireworks. The suspect was immediately detained by the plethora of police already on scene, as the accelerant burned on the sidewalk.
Analyst Comment: No motive has yet been conveyed regarding this attack, however some of the paraphernalia scattered throughout the scene of the attack appears to be political in nature, opposing ICE.
Washington D.C. - This morning, the latest numbers for Strategic Petroleum Reserve levels were released indicating that over the past week, the US has drained the SPR by an additional 5.1 million barrels, to it's lowest level since the Tanker War in 1983.
Analyst Comment: Many might have assumed that the US might have re-stocked the SPR during the two-week ceasefire in the Middle East, however very little oil actually made it out of the region during that time, which amounted to only a tiny fraction of US daily usage. Since the war began five months ago, only a very small percentage of oil has exited the region, and the US has been draining the SPR at breakneck pace in order to keep the country going.
-----END TEARLINE-----
Analyst Comments: Concerning the American casualties sustained over the weekend, it is extremely important to note that the deaths of 1LT Feehan and PVT Gonzales are officially classified under Operation INHERENT RESOLVE (OIR)...not under Operation EPIC FURY (OEFU). Inherent Resolve is the long-standing mission to combat ISIS in Syria, and not in any way linked to the current war in Iran. As a result, the true number of casualties sustained warrants further investigation. This classification could have been an administrative error, but this would also be a way of camouflaging casualty figures. The Defense Casualty Analysis System (DCAS) is the main database for logging all American casualties, which are defined by military operation. In this case, these deaths are not cataloged under either operation yet, adding to the more broad (but also growing) concerns that the database has been concealing the true number of casualties, specifically the numbers of personnel wounded.
In fact, while admonishing these concerns as "baseless and malicious accusations" Assistant Secretary of War Sean Parnell directly contradicted the numbers his own department was producing. He stated in an interview with CBS News that roughly 100 personnel had been wounded throughout the war over the past month....while his own database states that a grand total of zero personnel had been wounded for the month of July, and three in June. If this testimony is accurate, this confirms beyond all doubt that the Pentagon is lying about the number of troops wounded during this campaign. Considering that the Pentagon has disclosed a total of 413x soldiers wounded during this entire campaign, ~100x WIA being reported within a month (which also included a two-week ceasefire) is alarming to say the least.
The cause of the fatalities reported over the weekend is also important to note as these deaths were very likely preventable. In the days leading up to the ballistic missile striking the housing at this base, the Iranians successfully struck the Patriot battery in Erbil, Iraq. This missile defense site would have been one of the sites providing protection for missiles launched into Jordan. With this battery offline or at least degraded in some way, it is possible that a clear air corridor existed that allowed Iranian ballistic missiles to fly unchallenged through a gap in air defense coverage. If the Erbil strike also damaged the radar array, it is also very possible that the warning time for an incoming ballistic missile would have been reduced, so any defenses at the target base would have been less effective. Obviously, the true scale of the damage to this air defense site would be classified, so in the public eye we have to guess as to how bad it was based on blurry satellite imagery. However the military commanders who knew the systems and did NOT have to guess, were also the same commanders who had the authority to either issue warnings or orders to disperse from the unprotected Containerized Housing Units (CHUs) that were struck by Iran. The failure of command to disperse their soldiers is what led to these fatalities.
The very minute that the Patriot battery was struck in Erbil was a major clue that the Iranians were conducting shaping fires of their own...they were striking the air defense sites so as to open up a gap in air defense coverage, and reach out to American positions with their larger ballistic missiles.
Though it is usually in poor taste to reflect on failures in the immediate aftermath of the death of troops, in the interest of expediency sometimes uncomfortable conversations must be had in order to prevent further loss of life. If a gap in air defense coverage is what allowed this strike to happen, it is almost certain that this gap still exists and that the danger to American service members is still not mitigated. For ALL American troops in the Middle East, this observation must be noted: If the Iranians are striking air defense sites, the next assumption must be that the Iranians are planning to strike something that would have been protected by that site. In retrospect this is common sense, but even at this very moment, the continued strikes on American positions (and the nearly total lack of fortification efforts at these bases, even to this day) continues to indicate that the Iranian targeting efforts are not being taken seriously by senior American decision makers. Five months into this war, CENTCOM leadership has still not figured out that the Iranians can strike their bases at will, and as demonstrated by the strikes in Kuwait and Jordan, the US is still not digging in, and also not dispersing enough to avoid troops getting killed. No underground fortification efforts have been undertaken at any base in the Middle East, and satellite imagery indicates that no substantial fortifications have been undertaken either. Granting as much leeway to the Pentagon's decision making process as possible, it is possible that no hardening of defenses would have mattered considering the missiles Iran is launching. Drone defense is one thing, but it would take years to build a bunker that would withstand the impact of an Iranian Fattah or Ghadr missile. Nevertheless, when it comes to defending American positions, doing something is better than doing nothing, and concrete does not take half a year to dry.
Even if large-scale construction projects are off the menu, ALL military publications, textbooks, and training scenarios dictate and demand what has been obvious since World War One...Dispersion is the name of the game. This is what kept casualties to a minimum in Bahrain, but different theater commanders have different personal initiatives. Some are more proactive with their defense, and others have done nothing at all, besides making sure that all of the vehicles in the motorpool are lined up neatly.
Where this goes from here is anyone's guess, but unless radical and immediate changes are made, the United States will continue to suffer casualties. And as long as the bombing continues which is motivating Iran to target our bases, this indirectly highlights the deficiencies with American air defense technologies, not just for this war, but for the wars to come.
Analyst: S2A1
Research: https://t.co/S3Ktgax7Ng
NomadNet: 5fa68c88be727a0e1a250a75e5e79269
Disclaimer: No LLMs were used in the writing of this report.
//END REPORT//
//The Wire//2300Z July 15, 2026//
//ROUTINE//
//BLUF: STRIKES CONTINUE TO ESCALATE IN THE MIDDLE EAST AS WAR REMAINS HOT. PARASITIC INFECTION CONTINUES TO SPREAD IN USA. POLICE OFFICERS AROUND THE NATION INVESTIGATED FOR ILLEGALLY SPYING ON AMERICANS.//
-----BEGIN TEARLINE-----
-International Events-
Middle East: Mutual targeting continued overnight throughout the region, with Iranian forces striking many American-aligned military bases in several Gulf states. Isa Air Base in Qatar was hit hard overnight, and several storage warehouses were hit in Kuwait. Iran claims to have also struck the parking apron at Muwaffaq Al-Salti Air Base in Jordan, targeting the fighter aircraft which have been staged at the base for weeks. On the American side, the US has conducted several waves of attacks, with constant bombings continuing in many major port facilities. The ports of Bandar Abbas, Jask, and Chabarhar have been targeted regularly for several days, in addition to the Gulf Islands which have served as communications nodes for ships transiting the Strait.
Throughout the morning, the Strait remained somewhat navigable via the Iranian route. Several ships were observed making the crossing using only the northern Iranian traffic scheme. After the targeting of several merchant vessels over the past few days in the southern route, no ship has taken the Omani route, all ships are diverting north.
Analyst Comment: In terms of how much oil is getting out, it's not much. No American tankers were observed transiting overnight via either route, and the severity of the oil crisis remains a major concern for impacts to the homeland. This afternoon CENTCOM struck a merchant vessel themselves, highlighting that the American blockade of the Strait is still in effect.
-HomeFront-
USA: Around the nation, an outbreak of Cyclosporiasis has continued to sweep through the country, with roughly 7,000 cases of parasitic infection being reported. Most of the cases are clustered in Michigan, but the food-borne illness has been reported in many other states. Health authorities are working to narrow down the point of origin for the parasite, which appears to be linked to contaminated lettuce or unclean food preparation practices at fast food chains.
Georgia: This morning, five police officers with the Albany Police Department were fired after an internal investigation revealed that they were using their access to the Flock camera/sensor database to stalk and illegally surveil citizens.
South Carolina: This morning, two police officers in the city of Greer were fired after an internal investigation revealed that they were using their access to the Flock camera/sensor database to stalk and illegally surveil citizens.
Texas: Yesterday, one police officer with the Pasadena Police Department resigned after an investigation was launched into his misuse of the Flock camera/sensor network. Sgt. Michael Palitz is currently under investigation for allegedly using the intelligence network to stalk a female police officer. No further details on this incident have been provided as the investigation is still ongoing.
-----END TEARLINE-----
Analyst Comments: Though it is purely anecdotal at the moment, locals on the ground in many Middle Eastern countries are reporting that this time, the fighting is different as fewer successful interceptions are being reported. As always, if interceptions of drones and missiles are successful, these munitions are usually destroyed out over the waters of the Gulf, out of view of the civilian populace. However, a lot of people have been rather dismayed that the fighting has resumed, and from their perspective it looks like their country is not intercepting anything because they are out of interceptor missiles. The stockpiles of interceptors running low for Gulf states has been a common theory for a while, after the war drew to a lull two months ago. After the ceasefire went into effect, it was generally assumed that the United States would sell more interceptor missiles to the Gulf countries (in addition to resupplying our own missile defense sites), but now that the fighting has resumed and locals are observing slow-flying drones very clearly not being intercepted in many cases, the concerns of missile stockpiles have come to the front page once again.
Analyst: S2A1
Research: https://t.co/S3Ktgax7Ng
NomadNet: 5fa68c88be727a0e1a250a75e5e79269
Disclaimer: No LLMs were used in the writing of this report.
//END REPORT//
The NEW Rapala Stryda 180 is a must add to your arsenal because..๐
- Comes with screw in weights to sink faster
- Buy additional weight sizes to sink moreย
- Super stable glide bait
- Great chopping action
Happy birthday to @MercuryMarine pro Alton Jones! If 2026 really is the last ride, itโs sure been fun watching him catch fish all these years. Hereโs to a great birthday, a fulfilling retirement and a bunch of luck at Stage 7 next month, Alton! ๐๐
#fishing#bassfishing#HBD #happybirthday