Mark Vallen

This true son of liberty stands with the Iranian people. I create realist paintings and drawings. Support me by purchasing a print —

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

"Deer Tail Headdress."
Mark Vallen. Watercolor on paper. 2020.

I encountered this indigenous man at an all tribes Pow Wow in San Manuel, California. I painted him wearing his deer tail headdress. https://t.co/XtLtZIhf0J

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

Team Melli—the national soccer team of the Islamic Republic of Iran, will play two 2026 FIFA World Cup matches at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles. This pseudo-religious video was produced by the Islamic Republic News Agency to celebrate Melli playing. Wow, quite a team of zealots!

FIFA, or Fédération Internationale de Football Association, is the world governing body of association football (soccer). FIFA was founded in Paris in 1904, and today it includes more than 200 soccer associations. I don't say the following lightly, or with any sense of malice, but I think the 2026 FIFA World Cup eerily reflects the 1936 Summer Olympics in Germany.

The Nazi regime of '36 Germany took advantage of the Olympiad as a huge opportunity for propaganda—it's hard to forget filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl filming the games for her documentary film Olympia. The production of her film was overseen by the "Reich Ministry of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda," which was headed by Joseph Goebbels.

The Nazis (National Socialist German Workers' Party), undoubtably used the '36 Olympics to showcase the "superiority" of their regime, while the rest of the world pretended the jackbooted fascists posed no threat to the world community.

There's no comparing the genocide committed by the Nazis, to the depredations the Islamic Republic has inflicted upon the people of Iran. But the atrocities of these criminal regimes cannot be weighed only by the numbers of people they killed. There's an ancient Jewish teaching that says:

"Whoever destroys a single soul, destroys an entire world; whoever saves a single soul, saves an entire world."

The Islamic Republic of Iran is soaked in blood, and its pursuit of nuclear weapons makes it a threat to the world community. There's no denying the 2026 FIFA World Cup games gives the Islamist regime a smokescreen to hide behind. International leaders, nations, and peoples, should not pretend the Islamic Republic poses no threat to the world community.

For many Iranian soccer fans Team Melli is seen as an extension of Iran's regime. It's regarded as the "Islamic Republic's team," but not a team representing the people of Iran. The truth is, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has 15 of its commanders in the "Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran" (FFIRI), the governing body for soccer in Iran. The president of FFIRI, Mehdi Taj, is a former IRGC commander.

The United States, Canada, Australia, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Paraguay, Ecuador, and all 27 member states of the European Union, have officially designated Iran's IRGC as a terrorist organization.

For the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches, the US specifically denied visas to high-ranking Iranian sports officials based on their connections to the terrorist IRGC. They include National Team Executive Director, Mehdi Kharati. Vice President of the FFIRI and Team Supervisor, Mehdi Mohammad Nabi. And the President of the Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran, Mehdi Taj.

Aside from the big muckety-mucks listed above, 11 other team administrators linked to the IRGC, who are responsible for the day-to-day operations of Team Melli, were also denied visas. However, the US State Department has approved all visas for the active players, coaches, and athletic support staff of Team Melli.

US secretary of state Marco Rubio made it clear Iran's players are welcome at the 2026 tournament, but anyone with links to the IRGC will not gain entry to the USA. Rubio said he wouldn't let individuals "abuse this system to sneak terrorists into the United States under false pretenses" or "embed themselves in the country's delegation."

It should be noted the IRGC and the regime's state intelligence bodies, have placed a gag order on Iran's media outlets. It forbids the publication or broadcasting of any negative criticism of Team Melli players or their staff.

During the 2026 FIFA World Cup matches, Team Melli was originally going to set up their base camp in Tucson, Arizona, but the US government banned their IRGC affiliated members. Washington refused to have IRGC terrorist cadre walking the streets of the USA.

FIFA intervened and asked the government of Mexico to provide a "safe haven" for Team Melli and their IRGC linked entourage. The socialist President, Claudia Sheinbaum, eagerly agreed to assist. She allowed Team Melli to set up their base-camp in Tijuana, Mexico. A flight from Tijuana to Los Angeles takes around 55 minutes.

President Sheinbaum is not bothered by IRGC terrorist cadre walking the streets of Mexico. No surprise there. She supplies a "safe haven" for Team Melli while the people of Tijuana have no safety.

Sheinbaum willingly inherited from her predecessor, Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO), the policy of "Abrazos, no balazos" (Hugs, not bullets). It's an appeasement policy. Rather than militarily vanquishing the heavily armed cartel armies of Mexico, they are coaxed to disarm with offers of "job opportunities." An utterly ridiculous strategy.

The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, released its 2025 "World Drug Report," stipulating the cartels generated some $12.1 billion annually from trafficking fentanyl, methamphetamine, and heroin into the USA.

Tijuana is a center for drug trafficking carried out by armed cartel armies that rule Tijuana from the shadows. Presently, the Sinaloa Cartel, the Jalisco New Generation Cartel, and factions of the splintered Tijuana Cartel, battle each other for control of the border city. The war is evident in the assassinations, decapitations, dismemberments, rapes, and other forms of violence perpetrated by "narco" gunmen.

An estimated 20,000 Mexicanos living in Tijuana have been murdered in cartel violence over the past decade. Cartel gunmen kill an estimated 2,000 people each month in the city. Many of the victims are journalists, human rights investigators, local police, and bystanders caught in the crossfire of warring cartel gunmen. But Sheinbaum provides a "safe haven" for Iran's national soccer team. What a joke.

By letting the IRGC tainted Team Melli into Mexico, Sheinbaum must think she's simply giving President Trump the one finger salute, but the gesture is at the expense of everyday Mexicanos. 

The dates for the two games Team Melli will play in Los Angeles are: June 15, 2026 (Iran vs. New Zealand), and June 21, 2026 (Iran vs. Belgium). Both events will be held at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, but the venue will be known as "Los Angeles Stadium" during the tournament.

Needless to say, I'll be rooting for New Zealand and Belgium. Even if the entire world becomes our enemy. To the approximately 86,430 people of Persian ancestry living in Los Angeles County... don't forget to bring your Lion and Sun flags and t-shirts to the games!

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

March 10, 2026: Two terrorists in a car fired shots from a handgun at the US Consulate in Toronto, Canada—they escaped. A policeman in Toronto was killed on June 11, 2026, in a raid on the home of the terrorist gunmen. Some think the terrorists are linked to Iran's government.

On June 11, 2026, members of the Toronto Police Emergency Task Force arrived at the fourth floor apartment where the terrorist duo lived. The police were armed with search warrants, but were greeted by gunfire from Nicholas Bennett (19) and Zara Jabbi (19). Bennett shot and killed Officer Marc Pinizzotto (43) who had been on the police force for 18 years.

Bennett took multiple rounds fired by police, he was captured, then hospitalized with life-threatening wounds. He faces charges of first-degree murder.

Zara Jabbi managed to escape the SWAT-like tactical raid, he remains at large. Police are conducting an active manhunt for him. They say Jabbi is armed and dangerous and the public shouldn't approach him if spotted—instead they should call 911 with info on his whereabouts. The police have not identified Jabbi's nationality, but have published his photo to assist tracking him down.

Zara Jabbi hasn't been charged for the June 11th shoot-out where officer Pinizzotto was killed. However, he faces several charges regarding a March 10, 2026 assault on the US Consulate in Toronto—this is key to the story.

When the US and Israel bombed the Islamic Republic of Iran on Feb 28, 2026, terrorists attacked the US consulate in Toronto as retribution. Police identified Nicholas Bennett and Zara Jabbi as the culprits in that act of terror. Their attacking the consulate, followed a Toronto-area synagogue being hit by gunfire, which is also a key fact in this tale of terror.

Police say Jabbi stole the white Honda CR-V used in the consulate attack, he fired the shots at the building, and he didn't legally own the handgun used. The charges also state that he committed "a violent attack on the official premises of an internationally protected person, namely Consul General Baxter Hunt, that was likely to endanger the life or liberty of such a person."

This story is outrageous... but it gets worse.

The US Department of Justice and the FBI linked the gunfire attacks on the US Consulate in Toronto, and the nearby synagogue, to Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood al-Saadi, a commander of "Kata'ib Hizballah" (Battalions of the Party of God), a proxy Shia terrorist organization based in Iraq that is controlled, armed, and financed by the Islamic Republic of Iran.

In early May 2026, Turkish authorities detained al-Saadi while he was traveling through Turkey. They handed him over to the FBI on May 14, 2026. On May 15, 2026, a federal criminal complaint was unsealed in the Southern District of New York that attributed the US consulate attack to Al-Saadi (https://t.co/vwn8B2GaxS).

The criminal complaint notes the FBI wiretapped a call where al-Saadi, ten days after the attack on the US Consulate, told a confidant the consulate and synagogue attacks were carried out by "our people." Al-Saadi referred to the synagogue as "the Knesset" (Israeli Parliament).

The US Department of Justice detailed al-Saadi's "involvement in nearly 20 attacks and attempted attacks throughout Europe and the United States," where he "directed and urged others to attack US and Israeli interests and to kill Americans and Jews in the US and abroad, and in doing so advance the terrorist goals of Kata’ib Hizballah and Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps."

US federal prosecutors linked al-Saadi to the April 29, 2026 knife attack that seriously injured two Jewish men in London's Jewish neighborhood of Golders Green. The feds accused al-Saadi of orchestrating and financing the terror network responsible for the stabbings. Somali-born British citizen Essa Suleiman was recruited to carry out the bloody assault. I wrote about the attack on May 1, 2026 (https://t.co/jOYijyb3YE).

The Canadians authorities have not yet commented on whether or not the killing of officer Marc Pinizzotto had anything to do with the terrorist network initiated by al-Saadi. That being said, since Nicholas Bennett and Zara Jabbi attacked the US Consulate in Toronto, and Al-Saadi took credit for organizing the attack... it's a sure bet the two stooges were expendable patsies of the Islamic Republic of Iran.
~ ~ ~ ~
Photos: Officer Marc Pinizzotto with his family in happier times. The photo of terrorist Zara Jabbi was issued by the Toronto Police.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

The Islamic Republic of Iran finally caught up with the International Red Left! Iran's "Fars News Agency" reported Iran's regime considers "all interests related to economic holdings managed by @elonmusk in West Asia" as MILITARY TARGETS.... including Starlink ground stations!

Will the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps now join their leftwing allies in the US, UK, and Canada in organizing "Tesla Takedowns"?  Will the IRGC target Tesla cars, dealerships, and charging stations in order to defeat the Great Satan?

There are no Starlink ground stations within the Islamic Republic of Iran because the theocratic dictatorship outlawed them! However, Musk's SpaceX regional ground infrastructure operates in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Oman, Jordan, and Israel. Terminals inside Iran can still communicate with these ground stations, so that's good.

But, while Starlink maintains gateways in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Qatar, Oman, Jordan, and Israel, those counties have been continually blasted by ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and exploding drones launched by the Islamic Republic of Iran during the current war.

Iran banned Starlink on June 24, 2025, and introduced severe penalties to stop its use or possession. Having a Starlink terminal is punishable by two years in prison. The death penalty is given to those who import Starlink devices or using them to "work against the state." Opponents of the regime have been executed for that very reason. A successful business man named Hesam Alaeddin was the latest to be killed by the regime for using Starlink to access the internet.

The Islamic Republic announcing "economic holdings managed by Elon Musk" are MILITARY TARGETS is alarming enough, but the Islamist regime has proclaimed to the world that it's ready to blow-up its Arab neighbors for having Starlink.

As of June 11, 2026, Iran had launched during the war, over 2,800 missiles and drones at the UAE. Most were intercepted and destroyed, many crashed into the sea or in remote areas. Falling debris and a few direct hits have caused death and destruction. So far Iran has clobbered the UAE with 551 ballistic missiles, 29 cruise missiles, and 2,265 exploding drones. Casualties included 13 killed, 230 wounded.

The Islamic Republic of Iran isn't a government... it's a bloody curse.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

In March of 2026, I posted about the Pentagon using drone speedboats—a new thing at the time, in the war against Iran. Turns out on June 8, Iran's regime brought down a US AH-64 Army Apache helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz. The pilots were rescued by a US Navy drone boat!

The crash of the Apache helicopter was a "God in charge" moment. The Apache has patrolling the Gulf of Oman when it was struck by an explosive-laden Shahed drone launched by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Believe it or not, the Shahed wedged itself right between the two pilots inside the cockpit and burst into flames. It was a miracle the drone failed to detonate as intended!

Unbelievably, with the flaming drone generating intense heat inside the cockpit, the pilot and gunner made a rapid controlled water landing. While it was a life saving landing, there was severe impact, and the Apache sank into the ocean. That was just the first part of the adventure. Uninjured, the pilot and gunner spent the next two hours bobbing up and down on the surface of the Gulf of Oman. Until the Corsair arrived.

The Corsair is a 24-foot, speedboat style, "autonomous maritime drone" manufactured by the defense firm Saronic Technologies in Austin, Texas. It's built for surveillance, intelligence, and recon purposes. In this instance the vessel was on a search-and-rescue (SAR) mission for the two aviators.

Corsair boats utilize a "hybrid control" system, meaning they can be operated by autonomous software and artificial intelligence, or they can be operated by humans using remote control commands.

The Corsair used in the rescue operation relied heavily on AI driven radar, cameras, and onboard computing to locate the pilots in dark waters. Though the craft navigated and conducted the intercept autonomously, the human operators of Task Force 59, the US Navy's AI integration unit in the Middle East, monitored the operation remotely.

Since a Corsair's deck includes integrated handles, steps, and tie-down points, the two pilots clambered aboard and secured themselves to the ship, which transported them to a safe area where a military helicopter flew them to shore.

The fully autonomous Corsair vessels will no doubt play a big roll in the future. The craft can handle electronic warfare (jamming) and anti-submarine monitoring.

A Corsair can also carry 1,000 pounds and travel 1,000+ nautical miles. It can deploy "loitering munitions," meaning it's capable of launching unmanned aerial vehicles that loiter until target acquisition, then execute a self-destruct attack using high explosives. Best of all, a Corsair can rescue people stranded at sea.

The Corsair rescue mission was one for the history books. It was the first time in military history that an uncrewed drone ship would rescue personnel at sea during active combat.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

GARC! Today the Pentagon said "Global Autonomous Reconnaissance Craft" (GARC) are being used in patrols against the Islamic Republic of Iran during Operation Epic Fury. The unmanned drone speedboats are used for surveillance or kamikaze strikes—it is GARC's 1st time in combat.

The Pentagon did not disclose exactly where the drone fast-boats are being deployed, or what their specific operations were. GARC is designed to locate and surveil, or intercept and destroy, hostile surface craft. It can reach speeds up to 40 knots (46 mph) and a range of 680 nautical miles (759 miles).

The 16-foot GARC can carry remote-controlled machine guns that are gyro-stabilized when the speedboat is moving, and it can carry high-explosives if its mission is a one-way strike.

It utilizes "Mine Countermeasures" to detect and destroy underwater mines and utilizes sonar for anti-submarine warfare. GARC can extend its surveillance equipment to 500 ft above the water to widen and expand its targeting range. The craft can carry up to 1,000 lbs. (450 kg).

What's truly remarkable about GARC is that it's designed for hybrid control, meaning it can be controlled by a human, or by way of software. A remote operator can use a handheld, video-game style "joystick" to control the craft, or operation can be switched to autonomous, where pre-planned software suites allow for following pre-determined routes, returning to base, avoiding collisions, and other basic tasks.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

Well, how appropriate. Today is the final day of President Trump's 60 day ceasefire deadline with the Islamic Republic of Iran.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

Monday June 8, 2026, the Islamic Republic of Iran shot down a US Apache helicopter over the Strait of Hormuz. The US rescued the 2 pilots. Today, June 9th, Pres. Trump launched retaliatory strikes, hitting the Islamic regime's military and naval bases on Iran's southern coast.

At approximately 5:00 p.m., US Central Command responded to the downing of the AH-64 Apache helicopter. By order of the Commander in Chief, CENTCOM destroyed missile batteries, air defense systems, radar facilities, naval bases, and military installations manned by the terrorists of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. This occurred all along the southern coast of Iran.

The targets included; air defense systems and radar sites of the major southern port city pf Bandar Abbas; the naval bases and military installations at Sirik were hit in waves of jet attacks; the naval facilities and coastal military bases of Jask were destroyed; the missile batteries and air defense infrastructure located along the strategic Strait of Hormuz near Qeshm Island were hit.

The video illustrating this post shows the first wave of US strikes on Qeshm Island.

President Trump and CENTCOM characterized the military operation as a "proportional response to unjustified Iranian aggression." A senior US official told Reuters the US airstrikes hit nearly 20 military targets inside Iran overnight.

Trump is still pursuing a negotiated treaty with the Islamic regime that will forbid Iran obtaining nuclear weapons, prevent Iran "owning" the Strait of Hormuz, halt Iran's ballistic missile program, and thwart Iran's ability to arm their terrorist proxies in Lebanon, Yemen, Gaza, and Iraq.

I can't imagine the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps NOT escalating military operations again the US, Israel, and the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, and Jordan.

The only interest Iran's tyrants have in "negotiating" with Trump is to buy time in the hope political pressure from within America will force Trump to withdraw from the region. That will allow the theocratic dictatorship to rebuild itself, continue spreading its "Islamic Revolution" all across the Arab world and beyond, and finalize its mission of destroying Israel and the USA.

So... consider the war reinitiated.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

The Islamic Republic of Iran & its Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps are filthy liars. The video shown is NOT Israel being hit by Fattah-1 ballistic missiles from the Decepticons of Iran. The video shows the Aug 4, 2020 explosion of a cargo ship at the Port of Beirut, Lebanon!

The Port of Beirut blast (https://t.co/Fg5iY0SILy) killed 218 people, wounded 7,000, displaced 300,000 individuals, and caused an estimated $15 billion in damages. The blast was comparable to 1.1 kilotons of TNT, it was caused by 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate stored on the cargo ship, MV Rhosus. The ironic thing about this report from the pathetic "IRGC NEWS," is the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corp being accused of causing the 2020 blast in the Port of Beirut!

Reports indicate that since 2011, an Iranian shipping company (Liner Transport Kish), was managed by Behnam Shahriyari (a senior official of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps). Shahriyari handled clandestine arms transfers for the IRGC Quds Force, he was delivering huge amounts of ammonium nitrate to Hezbollah in Lebanon.

A shipment of the high explosives was attempted in Aug 2013, when 2,750 tons of ammonium nitrate were loaded onboard the MV Rhosus. However, the ship was seized by authorities, and it, along with its deadly cargo, was place in storage at the Port of Beirut. Apparently, the tons of ammonium nitrate were offloaded and stored in a port warehouse. On Aug 4, 2020 a small fire broke out in the warehouse, and the ammonium went off like a nuclear explosion.

It's not surprising that Behnam Shahriyari, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and Hezbollah, were never convicted in a court of law for the Beirut port explosion. The Lebanese government faced lawsuits and political roadblocks by major political factions in Lebanon, including Hezbollah supporters, who consistently blocked and rejected the authority of the courts, calling them "politically biased."

While the Lebanese government completed its investigation and submitted its case file to persecutors in March 2026... there have been no trials or convictions.

The arms smuggler for the IRGC's Quds Force, Behnam Shahriyari, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in June 2025. Groups like Human Rights Watch and the Washington Institute for Near East Policy—have noted Hezbollah had de facto control over operations, security, and smuggling at the Beirut port, and so shared responsibility for the blast.

Ultimately, official justice remains totally unfulfilled, with the blast seen as a failure of governance and systemic negligence by weak Lebanese authorities. Meanwhile, Hezbollah terrorists continue to run much of Lebanon.

Sources:
https://t.co/Az4VXqlEl6
https://t.co/3Pkbbmmj21

[IRGC NEWS @IRGC_IRAN_News]

🚨BIG BREAKING:

Confirm by America 🇺🇸

⚠️According to emerging reports, Tel Aviv has come under attack by Iran’s Fattah-1 ballistic missile.

The strike is said to have caused heavy damage in several areas, with Israel reportedly suffering significant losses as the situation continues to escalate.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

What does Iran have to do with USA? Jamshid Ghomi—dual US-Iranian citizen & tech executive living in a $35 million home in Orange County, CA, was arrested by the FBI for supplying high-end computer tech to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps for Iran's nuclear infrastructure!

63-year-old Ghomi has been charged by Federal prosecutors with violating US sanctions against the Islamic Republic by routing sensitive US networking and encryption computer technology to the regime's nuclear establishment. If he's convicted under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, he faces a maximum of 20 years in federal prison.

Acting Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said the Feds have started proceedings to seize Ghomi's luxury mansion. Gee... how do you think Ghomi made all that money to purchase such a fancy chateau. Yeah, the Feds say the property was bought with illegal proceeds.

First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli said: "Ghomi is accused of aiding our declared enemies by selling US-origin computer networking parts to Iran and earning millions of dollars in violation of US sanction laws. Our nation's laws prohibiting doing business with one of the world's largest state sponsors of terrorism must be enforced and obeyed. We will hold him accountable by seeking an appropriate prison sentence and by seizing his assets, including his $35 million Newport Beach mansion."

The Orange County Register reports the Feds believe Ghomi smuggled more than 250 metric TONS of networking equipment to the theocratic dictatorship in Iran. Ghomi is the founder, owner, and CEO of the Tehran based "Faraz Pardaz Rayaneh Co.," which deals with computer-networking. The Feds say Ghomi's annual sales topped $10 million a year with his Iran scheme.

The IRS Criminal Investigation's Los Angeles Field Office, released the following statement: "As alleged, Mr. Ghomi spent years exploiting United States' financial systems and procurement channels to move controlled equipment to Iran while hiding his activities behind front companies and falsified documentation."

Ghomi's wife Simin Hermizi was not named as a co-defendant, she hasn't been charged or arrested. However, she's listed as a co-owner of the mansion being confiscated, so she will be heavily impacted by the federal seizure.

This is a BIG story... and it's only going to get bigger. And you thought the war was over.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) has banned Iran's Lion and Sun flag in soccer stadiums this summer! FIFA World Cup matches will be held in Los Angeles June 12 to July 10, 2026—LA has the largest Iranian population on earth outside of Iran, 700,000!

In the FIFA World Cup in LA, the team representing the Islamic Republic of Iran will play two games at the SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, near Los Angeles. On June 15, 2026 the Islamic Republic of Iran will play against the team from New Zealand, and on June 21, 2026 the Islamic Republic of Iran will play against the team representing Belgium.

There are so many Iranian expatriots living in Los Angeles the city is sometimes referred to as "Tehran-geles." Most, if not all of these expats, are democratically minded and loathe the fundamentalist Islamists that currently hold their beloved homeland of Iran hostage. One must not equate the Iranian people with the wretched government in Tehran, they're NOT the same.

In Iran, sport federations for judo, wrestling, and soccer are controlled by the Islamist regime. All national soccer teams are run by the "Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran" (FFIRI). The president of the federation is Mehdi Taj, a former commander in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the same military force that shot-down and massacred some 40,000 Iranians protesting for democracy in Jan 2026.

The Football Federation Islamic Republic of Iran demanded that FIFA accept 10 conditions for the Iranian team to assure their participation in the June 2026 games. They want guarantees that all players, coaches, and officials with the team will get visas—including those with connections to the IRGC. The Iranian Football Federation also demands "respect for the Iranian flag and national anthem."

Obviously FIFA submitted to demands over the Iranian flag, but visas are another matter. On April 8, 2019, the US government designated the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Iranian soccer players are welcome at the tournament, but Iranians linked to the IRGC might face restrictions on entering the US. Remember, on April 28, 2026 Mehdi Taj was barred entry to Canada to attend a pre-World Cup FIFA Congress because he's connected to the IRGC, and Canada has designated the IRGC as a Terrorist Organization.

FIFA released a statement that listed prohibited items at the LA FIFA World Cup: "Any materials, including but not limited to banners, flags, fliers, apparel and other paraphernalia, that are of a political, offensive and/or discriminatory nature, containing wording, symbols or any other attributes aimed at discrimination of any kind against a country, private person or group" are strictly forbidden.

Before the "Islamic Revolution" seized power in 1979 in a coup d’état, the Lion and Sun flag was Iran's official state banner for 72 years! It became the nation's official flag in Oct of 1907. The use of the Lion and Sun emblem goes back to ancient Persia of the 12th Century. It was used on coins, ceramics, metal works, and architectural flourishes like glazed tiles.

When the Islamists took power in '79, Ayatollah Khomeini outlawed the Lion and Sun flag, calling it the symbol of the "oppressive Westernizing monarchy," even though it was used by Iran's 12th Century Safavid Dynasty Shia Islam rulers. Khomeini ordered the Lion and Sun symbol be removed from all government and public buildings, and demanded the Lion and Sun symbol be obliterated from national life.

In 1979 Khomeini held a national competition to design a new emblem to replace the Lion and Sun found on the national flag. Iranian architect Hamid Nadimi won the competition, and in 1980 his design was approved by Khomeini. It became the flag of the theocratic dictatorship known as the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The flag's text is written in Arabic using the ancient calligraphic "Kufic" script. The central emblem spells "Allah" and the border script reads "Allahu Akbar" (God is Great).

Today many Iranians regard the Lion and Sun flag—not as an insignia of monarchy, but of Persian identity. It's a standard of opposition to the undemocratic Islamic Republic of Iran. They view the flag of the Islamic Republic as the erasure of their heritage, the blotting out of treasured Persian symbols that are substituted by Islamic fundamentalist iconography.

Dissident Iranians who dream of secular democracy, refer to the banner of the Islamic Republic as the "Crab flag." They see the red central emblem of the Islamist flag, with it's four curving crescents and central line, as the pincers, legs, and body of a crab. Once you see it, it's hard to forget. It was a glorious moment in history when on Jan 10, 2026, Elon Musk and his X product team, took down the Crab flag of the Islamists, and replaced it with the Lion and Sun banner! 🇮🇷

In banning the Lion and Sun flag, FIFA gives validation and support to the Islamic Republic of Iran. FIFA should be reminded of the crimes committed beneath the flag of the Islamic Republic of Iran...

... the violent suppression of free speech and dissent; the use of brutal "morality police" to force women to wear hijab—those who don't comply are beaten, are heavily fined, and sometimes killed; the blinding of hundreds of peaceful protesters by government troops who fire shotgun pellets into the faces and eyes of demonstrators; the public hangings of thousands of dissidents over the years charged with "waging war against God"; the persecution of non-Shia religious communities; the criminalization of Gay and Lesbian people—a community often punished with death; the recruitment and arming of children who are then deployed in war... this and so much more.

It all reminds me of the 1936 Summer Olympics held in Berlin, Germany. The National Socialist German Workers' Party temporarily removed all of their anti-Jewish propaganda from the streets and buildings. They charmed thousands of foreign visitors with the image of a peaceful and tolerant Deutschland. Forty-nine nations, including the USA, sent teams of athletes to participate in the Olympiad.

For two weeks in August 1936, the world community pretended that all was well.

You know what happened next.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

Another anti-Trump protest in Los Angeles! A leftist carries a poster of a vampire-like President Trump with text that reads: "Donald Trump. Epstein's Devil." Oh, er... wait a minute, my mistake. The photo is from an anti-American demonstration in the Islamic Republic of Iran!

What a country. The Islamist regime's "news" media reports the "Epstein Class" bombed Iran, while at the same time Iran's law says 9-year-old girls are the legal age for marriage!

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

And the Democrats call President Trump a "fascist." This is an Instagram post from Progressive Democrat Maureen Galindo, now running for Congress in San Antonio Texas. From "Woke Reich" rightists to keffiyeh wearing pro-Hamas leftists... eliminationist antisemitism is rising!

Johnny Garcia is an "old-school" Democrat and veteran law enforcement officer from Bexar County, Texas. He's also Maureen Galindo's opponent in the current Democratic primary runoff for the redrawn 35th Congressional District of Texas.

Like a good "left-wing" activist, Galindo attacks Garcia for his supporting ICE (United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement). The "progressive" Galindo condemns Garcia's backing of ICE as support for the "prison industries." She uses leftwing tropes to rebuke Garcia and other Latino Democrats, saying they have a "colonized mindset" or a "colonizer mentality."

But Galindo's seemingly "leftwing" rooted hatred of ICE and law enforcement is enmeshed with the most vicious antisemitism. She claims her opponent is part of a "human trafficking conspiracy created by wealthy Zionist Jews" and says Garcia takes "money from Israel to get into Congress."

Last year "socialist firebrands" Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez held "Fight Oligarchy" rallies across the USA. They wanted to organize Americans to "take on the Oligarchs and corporate interests who have so much power and influence in this country." The only correction Maureen Galindo would make to the political views of Sanders and AOC would be an insistence that the word "Oligarch" is always combined with "Zionist."

I lost faith in the Democratic Party long ago. But I hope the last sane people in that party, would, before they walk away from that forsaken institution... LOUDLY denounce Maureen Galindo as the perfect example of a malevolent anti-American.

The runoff election will take place on May 26th.
May God have mercy on America 🇺🇸

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

... and then, on May 16, 2026,
as countless numbers of British people
joined the Unite the Kingdom march and rally
in London, suddenly the multitudes began to chant

... "Kier Starmer is a Wanker!"

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi was apprehended in Turkey by Turkish authorities & handed over to FBI officials. He is commander of Iraq's Iran-backed Kata'ib Hizballah (Battalions of the Party of God) & responsible for nearly 20 terrorist attacks against Jews & Americans.

The US Department of Justice federal complaint against Al-Saadi (https://t.co/9LHI30grr0), states that he planned, financed, and directed some 18 terrorist attacks in Europe, 2 attacks in Canada, and several unsuccessful attempts in the USA. He used encrypted software to recruit radicalized sympathizers and criminals that would target Jewish and Western targets.

The US Justice Department believes Al-Saad planned, coordinated, and recruited the operative that carried out the April 29, 2026 double stabbing knife attack that targeted two Jewish men in London's Golders Green neighborhood. Al-Saad apparently worked with the pro-Iran underground terror group HAYI ("Harakat Ashab al-Yamin al-Islamia," or in English, "Islamic Movement of the Companions of the Righteous"). I wrote about the terrorist attack when it happened! https://t.co/YL01ZDZkaM

The US Justice Department also holds Al-Saad responsible for the March 13, 2026 arson attack on a Synagogue in Rotterdam, Netherlands. I also wrote about this attack when it occurred (https://t.co/aCh2VCOtad), in fact I wrote: "There's a high probability HAYI is a front for terror operations conducted by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps or an Iranian sleeper cell. Time will tell."

Indeed, time has exposed Al-Saadi, but it has also revealed the hand of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. However, it's the hand of the Islamic Republic of Iran that really matters here. While the US conducts genuine, transparent peace talks with Iran's government, at the same time Iran's terrorist operatives sow chaos and trying to murder Americans and Jews across Europe, Canada, and America.

Al-Saadi is a Shia militant from Iraq and Kata'ib Hizballah is a heavily armed Shia paramilitary that's fiercely loyal to the Islamic Republic of Iran and its Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Kata'ib Hizballah is under the direct command of Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, which funds, arms, and trains Iran's so-called "Axis of Resistance" proxy troops; Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza, the Houthis in Yemen, and multiple Shia terror groups in Syria and Iraq.

The Quds Force is tasked by the Islamic Republic of Iran, with coordinating and conducting "operations" in Europe, Canada, and the Americas.

The arrest of Mohammad Baqer Saad Dawood Al-Saadi is a HUGE story that has revealed much, but keep your eyes on this story... it will eventually uncloak some earthshaking facts.

The photo illustrating this post came from the cell phone of the captured Al-Saadi. It depicts Al-Saadi with the former head of the Quds Force, Qassem Soleimani. President Trump ordered the assassination of Soleimani, which took place in Iraq during a January 2020 US drone strike.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

Iran International reports there's a bill under review in the parliament of the Islamic Republic of Iran, requiring the gov. to pay €50 million (over 58 million US dollars), to any person or entity that kills Pres. Trump. Parliamentarian Ebrahim Azizi said "This is our right."

Azizi also said: "We believe the vile president of the United States, the ominous and disgraceful Zionist prime minister, and the CENTCOM commander must be targeted and subjected to reciprocal action. Just as our Imam was martyred, the president of the United States must be dealt with by any Muslim or free person."

A former commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Azizi serves as the Chairman of the National Security and Foreign Policy Committee in the Iranian Parliament. He says the Islamic Republic of Iran will NEVER cede control of the international shipping lane of the Strait of Hormuz.  "It's our inalienable right, Iran will decide the right of passage, including permissions for vessels to pass through the Strait."

Azizi and his Islamic Republic pals are the very definition of Maritime thieves; pirates that operate outside the law on the high seas, plunderers that steal cargo and supplies from merchant ships, kill crew members and set ships ablaze. If their demands for gold are not met they scuttle the ship, sending it to the bottom of the sea.

Aye, that be true. Pirates, ye be warned!

There are vile and disgraceful Americans who agree with Azizi, maniacs like Cole Tomas Allen. He attempted to assassinate President Trump and members of his administration during the April 25, 2026, White House Correspondents' Dinner.

Imagine the lunatics of Iran's Islamic Republic behind the likes of Cole. Even worse, what about those American's that heroized Cole for his effort.
~ ~ ~ ~
Iran International:
https://t.co/c7rQrzE8m9

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

This is 55-year-old Mohammad Abbasi. He & daughter Fatemeh were arrested in Iran's Dec 2026 democracy protests. A "revolutionary" court charged them with "waging war against God." Mohammad got the death sentence—Fatemeh 35, with a 13-year-old daughter... got 25 years in prison!

On May 13, 2026, the Islamic Republic of Iran executed Mohammad Abbasi, hanging him by the neck until dead. The corrupt media of the regime announced his execution on May 14th. Abbasi was the 14th prisoner to be executed by the Islamic regime after being arrested during the recent pro-democracy protests.

Before Abbasi was executed, his family was ordered to come to Qezel Hesar prison where he was being held. They were to say their last goodbyes.

When they arrived for their final visit, prison authorities refused them entry and sent them home. Once back home they got a phone call from the prison informing them the execution had already occurred. This wasn't incompetence, it was vindictive cruelty designed to break the spirit.

During Abbasi's "trial" the Islamic regime presented only one piece of shabby evidence, blurred CCTV footage, which did not indicate Abbasi or his daughter were at the scene of the crime; the regime alleged Abbasi was guilty of stabbing a policeman to death.

In the kangaroo court trail Abbasi was not even allowed to have a lawyer. The prosecution never clearly stated what Fatemeh's role was in the crime, but she received 25 years in prison nevertheless.

The Hengaw Organization for Human Rights in Norway notes the family of Mohammad Abbasi said he was physically tortured, and to get a forced confession out of him, he was told his daughter would be threatened with sexual violence if he didn't confess.

Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, director of Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO), said: "the result of grossly unfair trials in which due process was not observed and forced confessions extracted under torture were relied upon instead of credible evidence."

Iran International said both prisoners suffered severe psychological and physical torture when interrogated by Islamic Republic security officers. Both father and daughter were denied legal representation at all stages of the judicial process, from beginning to end.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

This is Chinese-American Eileen Wang, the Democrat Mayor of Arcadia, California. Well, she WAS the mayor. On May 11, 2026 she was charged in federal court for acting as an agent of the communist People's Republic of China. She immediately resigned from the mayorship.

Faced with the evidence compiled against her, Wang (58) agreed to plead guilty to "one count of acting in the United States as an illegal agent of a foreign government." She also agreed to plead guilty to the felony count,  which brings a maximum sentence of 10 years in federal prison.

The US Department of Justice says Wang was charged with operating a website called "US News Center." She purported the site was a "news source" for Chinese-Americans. However, the Dept. of Justice found Wang had "received and executed directives" from Chinese Communist Party (CCP ) officials.

Wang communicated directly with CCP authorities via encrypted messages on "WeChat," the social media service of China totally controlled and monitored by the CCP.

According to the Feds, Wang published CCP articles on her website that presented pro-People's Republic of China content. She was asked to publish pre-written articles authored by communist officials that denied Red China was abusing the human and civil rights of the Uyghur Muslim population in Xinjiang, the northwestern region of China.

Federal prosecutors say these activities took place between 2020 and 2022, and Wang worked with her former fiancé, Yaoning "Mike" Sun, in managing the "US News Center."

On Feb. 9, 2026, 65-year-old Sun was sentenced to four years in federal prison for acting as an illegal agent of the People's Republic of China, all while serving as the "campaign advisor" for a candidate who was elected to the city council of a Southern California city. Now we know that candidate was Democrat Eileen Wang, and the city was Arcadia, California!

After the CCP helped Wang win a seat on the Arcadia city council... she won the mayorship! Actually, the five-member Arcadia City Council rotates its members into the position of mayorship, so each council member gets to be mayor! Heck, who needs elections, especially when you get directives from the Red Mandarins! 🇨🇳😡

FBI Director Kash Patel declared: "Mayor Wang admitted to acting as a foreign agent from at least 2020 through 2022 - promoting People's Republic of China propaganda in the US and acting at PRC's direction to promote their interests. FBI and our federal partners continue to move aggressively to root out this kind of influence in American institutions all over the country."

First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli said of the case: "This plea agreement is the latest success in our determination to defend the homeland against China's efforts to corrupt our institutions. Individuals in our country who covertly do the bidding of foreign governments undermine our democracy."

I'm wondering when liberals and Democrats will begin wailing that Eileen Wang's arrest by the Department of Justice, is yet another example of the President's "racism," and more proof that "King Trump" unjustly persecutes his opponents in the Democrat Party.

~ ~ ~ ~
More info: May 11, 2026 Press Release, Attorney's Office, Central District of California.
"Arcadia Mayor Federally Charged with Acting as Illegal Agent of the People’s Republic of China." https://t.co/E3r1ZVgiSO

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

This is 29-year-old aerospace engineering student Erfan Shakourzadeh. Iran's Islamic Republic arrested him in Feb 2025 & found him guilty of spying for the CIA & Mossad. This morning, May 11, 2026, without notice to his family.... the regime hung Efran by the neck until dead.

The Norwegian group "Hengaw Organization for Human Rights" said the Islamist regime held Efran at the notorious Evin Prison for around eight months, where he was subjected to solitary confinement, physical and psychological torture, then pressured to make forced confessions that were used against him at his so-called trail.

At the last minute he was transferred to Ghezel Hesar Prison in Karaj, Iran, where he was executed. Efran wrote a brief note before he was murdered by the Islamists, it read:

"I am Erfan Shakourzadeh, 29 years old, one of the few so-called elites who chose not to emigrate. A few months before the 12-day war, I was arrested by the IRGC Intelligence Organization on baseless charges of espionage and collaboration with hostile countries. During eight and a half months of torture and solitary confinement, I was forced into making false confessions. Do not let another innocent life be taken in silence and without public awareness."

Erfan Shakourzadeh was a brilliant top-level master's student in satellite technology at the Iran University of Science and Technology. He had an electrical engineering degree from the University of Tabriz. Erfan could have contributed much to improving the quality of life for the people of Iran, but the fundamentalist mullahs that control the Islamic Republic only care about their theocratic dictatorship.

Someday soon, Iranians like Erfan Shakourzadeh will be praised and championed, while the primitive mullahs, so buried in the past, will be denounced, scorned... and forgotten.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez wrongly says "the American Revolution was against the billionaires of their time." 1776 was NOT a class war, colonials did NOT seize land & property from the rich. Some of the wealthiest colonials backed & financed the revolution—men like Haym Salomon!

Haym Salomon was a Sephardic Jewish immigrant from Poland that became an eminent merchant and financier in Philadelphia. Saloman bankrolled the American Revolution to the tune of $650,000, which in today's money would be around $20 billion!

Saloman didn't fight "against the billionaires" of his time... he was a billionaire! Saloman joined the illustrious patriotic "Sons of Liberty." Haym Salomon died a PATRIOT in 1785 at the age of 44.

Haym Salomon worked with Robert Morris, the "Financier of the Revolution." Morris was a British-born American merchant and one of the Founding Fathers. In 1775 Morris was the richest man in America, but he used his entire fortune to support the American Revolutionary War.

Morris raised $1.4 million on his own credit to supply the Continental Army under General George Washington, which in 1781 resulted in the victory of the Battle of Yorktown, the last major battle between the American revolutionaries and the British Army.

Of course George Washington, John Hancock, and Benjamin Franklin are well known as the Founding Fathers, but they were also wealthy men. Franklin used the riches he gained from his printing empire to purchase weapons for the defense of Philadelphia from the Lobsterbacks.

There were many wealthy men from the colonial upper class who not only financed the revolution, but fought in it. These capitalists risked their financial empires, not for personally gain, but to create a free nation.

Laborers and ordinary farmers joined with the rich to defeat the British Crown. Unlike the French Revolution Jacobins, who put everyone to the guillotine, including revolutionaries, the American revolution promised liberty and equality across on social classes.

@AOC, you obviously failed US History class in high school. Please, take some time off from Congress and enroll in a high-quality, early US history course.

Find one that focuses on the development of the colonies, and the social, economic, and political forces that lead to the American Revolution. Reading a paperback version of "A People's History of the United States" by self-identified "anarchist-socialist" Howard Zinn doesn't qualify.

If you want to represent the American people... it's the least you can do.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

Today May 7, 2026, the crazies of the Islamic Republic of Iran launched missiles, drones and fast boat attacks aimed at three American Destroyers in the Strait of Hormuz—the USS Truxtun, USS Rafael Peralta, and the USS Mason. @CENTCOM reports no US vessels were hit or damaged.

US forces responded with "self-defense strikes" slamming Iranian military positions on Qeshm Island and in Bandar Abbas. Targets included missile and drone launch sites, along with surveillance, reconnaissance, and command and control locations. President Trump said "numerous small boats" were totally destroyed in the retaliatory strikes.

In his message announcing the confrontation, President Trump mentioned the destruction of the Iranian drones, writing they were "incinerated while in the air." Going full Samurai war poetry, the Commander in Chief wrote... "They dropped ever so beautifully down to the Ocean, very much like a butterfly dropping to its grave!"

Interestingly enough, on May 4th the Islamic Republican Guard Corps fired a barrage of killer drones and missiles at merchant ships using the Strait of Hormuz. A South Korean cargo ship was hit and damaged, as was a Chinese-owned oil product tanker, the JV Innovation. The Chinese ship was struck near the coast of the United Arab Emirates, causing a fire to break-out onboard.

The Chinese-owned ship was Marshall Islands-flagged. The point is, the Islamic Republic does NOT own the internationally used Strait of Hormuz; it has absolutely no right to attack merchant ships in the world's vital shipping lane.

For the Islamic Republic to fire missiles at a ship owned by the Chinese Communist Party is a sign of the regime's desperation. China has long given economic, political, and military support to the Islamic regime.

Talk about biting the hand that feeds you.

[Mark Vallen @mark_vallen]

Illustrated street banners appearing in the Islamic Republic of Iran are warning that Starlink internet equipment is banned for being supplied by "American and Zionist enemies." I wonder if @elonmusk knows this. At left is an original banner... at right an English translation.

Keep in mind that today marks the 64th day of the internet blackout instituted by the Islamic Republic. The Islamist tyrants have created a "tiered internet." The digital clampdown has completely denied the general population access to the internet, while regime members and their lackey media have full access.

The Islamist regime has found a way to jam the internet, bringing general connectivity down to 1% of normal, too weak to upload massive video files. Now the dictatorship is using banners to tell the Iranian people they better not use Starlink to transmit "photos, videos, content, or location data to hostile media," or they will be subject to "the most severe punishments."

The despotic rulers of Iran have already murdered 40-year-old Hesam Alaeddin for his having used Starlink. There's no doubt other freedom loving individuals will be subjected to "the most severe punishments."

~ ~ ~ ~

Thanks to @siaxares for the banner image, and @shayega97684181 for the translation.