Iran ; explosions across Tehran following Israeli and US strikes, 28 February 2026

[MassGuy]

War? I thought this was a military operation. Some strikes to get them in line and a regime change?

That sounds dangerous if the directives of the President and the Secretary of War are not followed.

Trump and Hegseth they are the ones giving the directives.

All Department of War components will adhere to the guidance and direction enclosed.

https://media.defense.gov/2026/Jan/23/2003864773/-1/-1/0/2026-NATIONAL-DEFENSE-STRATEGY.PDF

all imo

That is a guidance document that defines the administration's worldview, prioritizes threats, and sets broad goals for force posture. It is NOT an operational plan, that assigns missions, targets, or who is in charge of what.

It's overall policy, it does not change the decision tree or change anything in regard to operational control and decision making.

 

[NoSpoonFeeding]

Says from NBC news...

Based on NBC News reporting and related coverage, Trump is relying on a small, tight circle of advisors regarding Iran, focusing on direct military action while sidelining others.
View attachment 649615NBC News +3

Interesting to leave out the date. Let's at least tell all the opinions given in the story, instead of just your interpretation. Sounds like in June 2025, this course of intelligence and information gathering was productive and it is quite standard. If you don't have the background or education to understand how military decisions are made, perhaps it's not possible to see the how the process works. MOO

From the article:
"At the same time, another senior administration official said, Trump has been crowdsourcigwith an array of allies outside the White House and in his administration about whether they think he should greenlight strikes in Iran — a question that has divided his core supporters.

Despite routinely asking a broader group of people what they think he should do, Trump tends to make many decisions with just a handful of administration officials, including Vice President JD Vance, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who is also the interim national security adviser, the senior administration official said. Trump also leans on his Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, when he weighs decisions that fall under his portfolio, the official said.

As he decides whether to directly involve the United States in a war with Iran, Trump has expanded his circle in some ways while shrinking it in others.

 

[MassGuy]

Are there women still in US combat roles? I thought that was DEI and eliminated.

Yes. Including this absolute badass.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2028577039293272315

 

[PrairieWind]

Are there women still in US combat roles? I thought that was DEI and eliminated.

There are plenty of women in combat positions in the US military.

 

[Magic8Ball]

We can see the success with our own eyes, and through media reports. It is not in dispute that dozens of leaders are dead, countless missile stockpiles have been destroyed, dozens of launchers have been taken out, and the Iranian Navy has been decimated.

As for aground invasion, it is not feasible. Analysts say it would require 1.6 million troops, which is 30-40 times what is currently there. It would take many months to assemble something like that, and there is zero political will for it.

Any ground troops would almost certainly be special forces, demolishing facilities that cannot be taken out by air.

This is 100% speculation and opinion only, but I think any boots on the ground will be Israeli, not US forces.

It just makes the most sense. They're clearly already well-embedded in Iran.

Mossad is in charge of the IR's counterintelligence unit to ferret out Mossad operations.

I mean. Really.

 

[Sundog]

Oil prices about to America First

https://www.economist.com/finance-and-economics/2026/03/01/war-in-iran-could-cause-the-biggest-oil-shock-in-years

Another reason to move forward with making the U.S. energy independent. In the meantime, this will likely be a short-term problem for a long-term gain which is a safer world and the freedom of the Iranian people.

 

[Seni]

MOO, this makes me so very sad. Where are these displaced people supposed to go? MOO

OT. I returned to Lebanon in 94 to do an evaluation (environment projects for EU). The drive from the airport to Beirut was eery, so many partially destroyed buildings, no walls, with families living on different floors. Then past several Armenian and Palestinian refugee camps. Stalls along the roadside selling items, beautiful handcrafts, especially those made by the Armenians.

Centre of Beirut very elegant, altho much damage. Still quite a lot of tourism, mix of languages and people.

Going north, the famous Cedar forest was a sorry sight, not as a result of conflict but because of the extent of grazing by mountain goats and total lack of maintenance.

Already at this time, Lebanon was under the control of the Syrian army. Many roadblocks, check points.

I did manage to visit Byblos and the temple in Baalbeek. Miraculously unaffected by bombing at that time and magical places.

Hopital St Joseph in Hasmieh where I was born took some hits but I think has been restored.

That was a long time ago. I often wonder how on earth the population is coping after so many years of more or less constant bombardment.

 

[otto]

Is the US-Israel war against Iran revenge, imminent threat, prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, regime change? No one seems to know the answer, not even the US government.

"The tone of Hegseth's press conference was harsh; at times he seemed very irritated by media questions. He was unwilling, or unable, to answer simple questions. This was especially true regarding ground troops, but he didn't rule it out.

The duration of the operation remained uncertain. It wouldn't last 20 years, nor would it be a never-ending war. But it wouldn't be over overnight either, was Hegseth's message.
...

The arguments for launching a war against Iran now have also been barely clarified. Hegseth calls it revenge, retaliation for decades of aggression and terrorism by the Iranian regime. According to Trump, there was an imminent threat, thus sufficient reason to take action now.

VS vaag over hoe ver het wil gaan in oorlog tegen Iran, maar 'dit is geen Irak'

President Trump heeft eerder wel gezegd dat de aanvallen van de VS en Israël gericht zijn op het verjagen van het regime. Volgens Hegseth is dat regime met de dood van Khamenei al veranderd, maar is 'regime change' niet het einddoel.

nos.nl

 

[Lebowski]

Is the US-Israel war against Iran revenge, imminent threat, prevent Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons, regime change? No one seems to know the answer, not even the US government.

"The tone of Hegseth's press conference was harsh; at times he seemed very irritated by media questions. He was unwilling, or unable, to answer simple questions. This was especially true regarding ground troops, but he didn't rule it out.

The duration of the operation remained uncertain. It wouldn't last 20 years, nor would it be a never-ending war. But it wouldn't be over overnight either, was Hegseth's message.
...

The arguments for launching a war against Iran now have also been barely clarified. Hegseth calls it revenge, retaliation for decades of aggression and terrorism by the Iranian regime. According to Trump, there was an imminent threat, thus sufficient reason to take action now.

VS vaag over hoe ver het wil gaan in oorlog tegen Iran, maar 'dit is geen Irak'

President Trump heeft eerder wel gezegd dat de aanvallen van de VS en Israël gericht zijn op het verjagen van het regime. Volgens Hegseth is dat regime met de dood van Khamenei al veranderd, maar is 'regime change' niet het einddoel.

nos.nl

bbm

"what is the purpose?" and "will we send ground troops?" are questions a secretary of defense should have no problem with. almost as if the O-4 reservist turned foxnews weekend guy was not prepared for this job.

 

[Magic8Ball]

Are there women still in US combat roles? I thought that was DEI and eliminated.

Yes, women are in combat roles.
They've just made the fitness standards gender-neutral.
Women need to be able to hump the same pack as men.

Marines moving to gender-neutral Physical Fitness Test for combat jobs

Combat roles in the Marines have had gender-neutral requirements since 2015. A new policy extends that rule to fitness test scores.

taskandpurpose.com

Snipped from article:
“Since 2015, Marines seeking a combat arms MOS have conducted sex-neutral occupational fitness testing, which is assessed using MOS-specific physical standards (MSPS) evaluations,” Infante said. “The evaluated events and standards are based on physical tasks required by the job and ensure all combat arms Marines meet the same sex-neutral, occupation-specific, and operationally relevant physical standards.”

The Army announced earlier this year that it would require male and female soldiers in combat arms jobs to meet “sex-neutral” fitness standards.

In September, Hegseth told a large crowd of generals and admirals that all troops in combat arms jobs would be held to “the highest male standard only.”

“When it comes to any job that requires physical power to perform in combat, those physical standards must be high and gender neutral,” Hegseth said. “If women can make it, excellent. If not, it is what it is. If that means no women qualify for some combat jobs, so be it. That is not the intent. But it could be the result. So be it.”


So female American pilots like the one who got shot down in Kuwait are being held to the same standard as the male pilots.

JMO.

 

[MassGuy]

March 2, 2026, 4:47 p.m. ET7 minutes ago
Farnaz Fassihi

Iran reporter
Israel’s military issued an immediate evacuation order for Iranians who reside in the area of Tehran’s notorious Evin prison, saying in Farsi on social media that it planned to carry out strikes there against government infrastructure. The prison is located in a leafy residential neighborhood on the slopes of the mountains. “Your presence in this area will endanger your life,” IDF statement said. Shortly afterward, Tehran residents reported thunderous explosions shaking the city.

Live Updates: Trump Promises More Strikes on Iran as U.S. Adds to Forces in Mideast

Iran and allied militias, including Hezbollah, attacked Israel and U.S. targets, and Israel struck in Lebanon. Top U.S. officials talked of new attacks and an extended campaign.

www.nytimes.com

 

[PrairieWind]

Good for Spain. I wish Keir Starmer had a backbone.

Why would Starmer side with Spain/Iran over the US/EU?

 

[PrairieWind]

bbm

"what is the purpose?" and "will we send ground troops?" are questions a secretary of defense should have no problem with. almost as if the O-4 reservist turned foxnews weekend guy was not prepared for this job.

He answered those questions. I don't understand the confusion. The media rather embarrassed themselves at that press conference. Do they not listen to the other questions and responses before them?

 

[imstilla.grandma]

“I’m not going to give away the details of our tactical efforts, but the hardest hits are yet to come from the U.S. military,” Rubio told reporters on Capitol Hill.

“The next phase will be even more punishing on Iran than it is right now,” he said.

The remark echoes Trump, who told CNN earlier Monday, “The big wave hasn’t even happened. The big one is coming soon.”

Rubio, like Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, also said it was unclear how long the warfare in Iran is expected to last.

“I don’t know how long it will take ... We have objectives. We will do this as long as it takes to achieve those objectives. And we will achieve those objectives, the world will be a safer place when we’re done with this operation,” Rubio said

Iran live updates: Six U.S. service members killed in action, Centcom says

Follow the latest news after the U.S. and Israel launched a massive attack on Iran that killed Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

www.cnbc.com

 

[Magic8Ball]

Yes. Including this absolute badass.

https://twitter.com/x/status/2028577039293272315

Israel is using a ton of female pilots in this campaign:

https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/idf-says-30-female-pilots-and-navigators-have-taken-part-in-the-strikes-on-iran/

 

[leehull]

Why would Starmer side with Spain/Iran over the US/EU?

Spain is part of the EU, many people in the UK and the EU no longer view the USA as a reliable ally

Also Spain is not ‘siding’ with Iran

IMO

 

[Summerliz03]

He answered those questions. I don't understand the confusion. The media rather embarrassed themselves at that press conference. Do they not listen to the other questions and responses before them?

I think the issue is that several things Hegseth said directly contradicted things Trump has said about this war, so it’s hard to get a straight direct answer from anyone in the administration IMO. I watched the entire press conference Hegseth gave and honestly, he couldn’t answer those questions directly. He said it’s not a regime changing mission while saying the regime has been changed. But has it? Not IMO, there’s many layers to the regime in Iran and we don’t even know who will take over after all of this.

I understand keeping classified information private and not laying out war plans to anyone, especially the press, but the messaging coming out of this administration about the reasons they decided to bomb Iran right now and if they do or do not have nuclear weapons have been terrible and clear as mud. All MOO.

 

[otto]

bbm

"what is the purpose?" and "will we send ground troops?" are questions a secretary of defense should have no problem with. almost as if the O-4 reservist turned foxnews weekend guy was not prepared for this job.

They are questions that should have clearly defined answers. News in the UK and the EU both report that there are no clear answers from the US government for why the US and Israel launched war in Iran at this time, what the goals are, whether there will be ground troops, and the planned duration and scope of the war.

"The arguments for launching a war against Iran now have also been barely clarified. Hegseth calls it revenge, retaliation for decades of aggression and terrorism by the Iranian regime. According to Trump, there was an imminent threat, thus sufficient reason to take action now."​

VS vaag over hoe ver het wil gaan in oorlog tegen Iran, maar 'dit is geen Irak'

President Trump heeft eerder wel gezegd dat de aanvallen van de VS en Israël gericht zijn op het verjagen van het regime. Volgens Hegseth is dat regime met de dood van Khamenei al veranderd, maar is 'regime change' niet het einddoel.

nos.nl

"Three days into the US strikes on Iran, President Donald Trump's war aims and vision for the future of the country remain opaque.

Trump and senior administration officials have offered a wide range of views about what they hope to achieve in the largest American military operation in the Middle East in two decades - and whether or not the US supports regime change in Tehran. The administration initially said its goal was to destroy Iran's nuclear programme."​

Trump's Iran endgame unclear after mixed messaging on war aims

The US president laid out some of his objectives on Monday, but made no mention of what Iran's future might look like after the war.

www.bbc.com

 

[Lebowski]

Why would Starmer side with Spain/Iran over the US/EU?

spain's not siding with iran. this is more of the "with us or against us" false dichotomy.

 

[Ruminations]

Thank you!! I wish we could just stop with the questioning and challenging. It's insulting to those that serve and to those making the decisions. There will be a time to question or change how things are done in the future based on the results of the past, however now is not the time. This is a 3 day old conflict and things are fluid and decisions are being made as needed based on current activities and discovery. Let's all just come together and be grateful that a tyrant has left this earth and this may be a real opportunity for a new Iran. Pray for everyone involved and in area! Adding JMO.

This regime change BS is like Groundhog Day.

Of course it is time to discuss it or keep doing the same, useless, dangerous stuff again and again.

MOO