Latest news with #USMilitary
Fox News
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Fox News
Former MLB manager Buck Showalter recalls security screening experience at US airport amid Iran tensions
President Donald Trump has said the Iran nuclear program sites targeted by American B-2 stealth bombers were "obliterated." The tense situation in Iran unfolded the same day former MLB manager Buck Showalter was traveling through New York City. Showalter, named the majors' Manager of the Year four times during his lengthy managerial career, recalled his experience during a recent appearance on OutKick's "Don't @ Me with Dan Dakich." "Let me tell you what, note to yourself, try not to travel in or out New York City on the day your country bombed Iran. Holy moly, full alert," the former New York Mets skipper said when asked by Dakich whether he had traveled as tensions in Iran reached its latest heights. Showalter added he is a proponent of tight security measures at airports throughout the U.S. "The airport was a lot of fun, Dan, let's put it that way. You know what the people at the security … I want them to check everybody. "Be diligent about it. Take your time, I will stand in line a few more minutes, get it right. Go head run that bag back through again. Make him go through it again. Everybody complaining about security. At what? What do you want them to do. Ah, it's OK. Today is a free day. Just go right ahead." While Showalter's most recent managerial stint was with the Mets, he started his coaching career in the Bronx with the New York Yankees. He was eventually promoted and named the team's manager. Showalter also managed the Arizona Diamondbacks, Texas Rangers and Baltimore Orioles. Although U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Iranian sites were "destroyed," U.S. intelligence agencies continue to assess the damage. The U.S. Defense Intelligence Agency's preliminary report, obtained by The Associated Press, said the strikes caused significant damage to the Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan sites. However, the report also noted the sites were not believed to be destroyed. Israel claimed it has set back Iran's nuclear program by "many years," the AP reported. The latest satellite imagery from Maxar Technologies showed considerable damage to the three nuclear sites. Follow Fox News Digital's sports coverage on X, and subscribe to the Fox News Sports Huddle newsletter.
Asharq Al-Awsat
7 hours ago
- Politics
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Danish General Says He Is Not Losing Sleep over US Plans for Greenland
The head of Denmark's Arctic command said the prospect of a US takeover of Greenland was not keeping him up at night after talks with a senior US general last week but that more must be done to deter any Russian attack on the Arctic island. US President Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested the United States might acquire Greenland, a vast semi-autonomous Danish territory on the shortest route between North America and Europe vital for the US ballistic missile warning system. Trump has not ruled out taking the territory by force and, at a congressional hearing this month, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth did not deny that such contingency plans exist. Such a scenario "is absolutely not on my mind," Soren Andersen, head of Denmark's Joint Arctic Command, told Reuters in an interview, days after what he said was his first meeting with the general overseeing US defense of the area. "I sleep perfectly well at night," Anderson said. "Militarily, we work together, as we always have." US General Gregory Guillot visited the US Pituffik Space Base in Greenland on June 19-20 for the first time since the US moved Greenland oversight to the Northern command from its European command, the Northern Command said on Tuesday. Andersen's interview with Reuters on Wednesday were his first detailed comments to media since his talks with Guillot, which coincided with Danish military exercises on Greenland involving one of its largest military presences since the Cold War. Russian and Chinese state vessels have appeared unexpectedly around Greenland in the past and the Trump administration has accused Denmark of failing to keep it safe from potential incursions. Both countries have denied any such plans. Andersen said the threat level to Greenland had not increased this year. "We don't see Russian or Chinese state ships up here," he said. DOG SLED PATROLS Denmark's permanent presence consists of four ageing inspection vessels, a small surveillance plane, and dog sled patrols tasked with monitoring an area four times the size of France. Previously focused on demonstrating its presence and civilian tasks like search and rescue, and fishing inspection, the Joint Arctic Command is now shifting more towards territorial defense, Andersen said. "In reality, Greenland is not that difficult to defend," he said. "Relatively few points need defending, and of course, we have a plan for that. NATO has a plan for that." As part of the military exercises this month, Denmark has deployed a frigate, F-16s, special forces and extra troops, and increased surveillance around critical infrastructure. They would leave next week when the exercises end, Andersen said, adding that he would like to repeat them in the coming months. "To keep this area conflict-free, we have to do more, we need to have a credible deterrent," he said. "If Russia starts to change its behavior around Greenland, I have to be able to act on it." In January, Denmark pledged over $2 billion to strengthen its Arctic defense, including new Arctic navy vessels, long-range drones, and satellite coverage. France offered to deploy troops to Greenland and EU's top military official said it made sense to station troops from EU countries there. Around 20,000 people live in the capital Nuuk, with the rest of Greenland's 57,000 population spread across 71 towns, mostly on the west coast. The lack of infrastructure elsewhere is a deterrent in itself, Andersen said. "If, for example, there were to be a Russian naval landing on the east coast, I think it wouldn't be long before such a military operation would turn into a rescue mission," he said.
Al Jazeera
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Trump lambasts Khamenei, says he'd bomb Iran if nuclear activities restart
President Donald Trump has hit out at Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's claim that Iran won its recent 12-day war with Israel, also saying the United States will 'absolutely' bomb the country again if it pursues nuclear weapons. The US president launched a torrent of abuse at Iran's Supreme Leader on his Truth Social platform on Friday, claiming he had saved Khamenei from 'A VERY UGLY AND IGNOMINIOUS DEATH' and accusing him of 'blatantly and foolishly' lying when he claimed 'victory' in the war the previous day. In his first sortie since the Israel-Iran war ended with a ceasefire earlier this week, Khamenei had also said Iran 'slapped America in the face' by launching missiles at a major US base in Qatar following US attacks on Iranian nuclear sites at Fordow, Isfahan and Natanz. In Friday's post, Trump said he had demanded Israel pull back from 'the final knockout'. 'His Country was decimated, his three evil Nuclear Sites were OBLITERATED, and I knew EXACTLY where he was sheltered, and would not let Israel, or the U.S. Armed Forces, by far the Greatest and Most Powerful in the World, terminate his life,' he said. The question of whether US attacks destroyed Iran's nuclear capabilities is moot – a leaked intelligence report contradicted Trump's account of events, suggesting the military's strikes had set the country back by mere months. The US president said that Khamenei's comments, which he described as 'a statement of anger, hatred, and disgust', had led him to drop work on 'the possible removal of sanctions, and other things, which would have given a much better chance to Iran at a full, fast, and complete recovery'. Future of nuclear programme Trump's rant against Khamenei came on the back of bellicose comments earlier that day at a White House news conference. Asked whether he would consider new air strikes if the recent attacks had not succeeded in ending Iran's nuclear weapons programme, Trump said, 'Sure, without question, absolutely.' He said he would like inspectors from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) or another respected source to be able to inspect Iran's nuclear sites. But Iran has approved a bill to suspend cooperation with the IAEA, a move widely seen as a direct response to the strikes. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi indicated on Friday that Tehran may reject any request by the agency for visits to Iranian nuclear sites. '[IAEA Director General] Grossi's insistence on visiting the bombed sites under the pretext of safeguards is meaningless and possibly even malign in intent,' Araghchi said on X. 'Iran reserves the right to take any steps in defence of its interests, its people and its sovereignty.' Grossi said on Wednesday that ensuring the resumption of IAEA inspections was his top priority, as none had taken place since Israel began bombing on June 13. Meanwhile, Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz indicated on Friday that his country might still be on a war footing with Iran, saying he had instructed the military to prepare an enforcement plan against the country. The plan 'includes maintaining Israel's air superiority, preventing nuclear advancement and missile production, and responses to Iran for supporting terrorist activities against Israel', Katz said. Katz said on Thursday that Israel had wanted to 'eliminate' Khamenei and would not have required US permission to do so.
Times
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Times
By Ali Khamenei's logic, he did beat the US — by surviving
As American and British troops tore through Iraq in 2003, Saddam Hussein's information minister briefly became a celebrity for his loyal, if increasingly unhinged, optimism. 'Baghdad Bob', as Muhammad Saeed Al-Sahhaf was nicknamed by the press corps, was still vividly describing the overwhelming defeats Iraqi troops were inflicting on the enemy even as American tanks rolled into the city. It is easy to see statements like that on Thursday of Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in a similar light. • Iran intel leak: who is the 'low-level loser' who exposed Trump? In his first public appearance since the strikes, he claimed victory, despite the undoubted destruction of at least large parts of his nuclear programme. 'The Islamic Republic won, and in retaliation dealt a severe slap to the face of America,' he said. The 'retaliation' was a volley of missiles fired at America's Al-Udeid air base in Qatar, none of which hit their target thanks to the United States' Patriot interceptors. His declared refusal to 'surrender' to Trump also looks unwise. Israel destroyed all Iran's own aerial defence systems last year, leaving it unable to protect itself should attacks resume one day. However, the US invasion of Iraq, initially so successful, turned into a much longer and grimmer 'asymmetric' war. It was Khamenei's lieutenants who funded and organised many of the Iraqi militias that wreaked such devastating harm on US and British troops with their roadside bombs and ambushes over the coming years. • 'If the bombing failed, people died for nothing' So there is also an asymmetric aspect to Khamenei's propaganda. Of course, there is no doubt that he hoped that Iran's own defence forces, and those of the Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon last year, would have put up more severe resistance to Israel than they did. However, Khamenei and Hezbollah are still there, just as Hamas is still operational in Gaza, despite the much longer, bloodier and more intense war that Israel has waged there. The victory Khamenei really seeks is the survival of his regime and its ideology of 'resistance' against Israel. Whether or not he or his successors actually one day give the order to build a nuclear weapon, the nuclear programme was always a symbol of that resistance. But it was not the only one. If he now agrees to give it up for the sake of his long-suffering people and their desire for a revived economy, he will certainly no longer be able to claim to have won the war. But neither the US nor Israel has carried out their threats to kill him, while on Thursday his defence minister was consulting his Russian and Chinese counterparts on his next steps, and he clearly feels there is still fight in his 86-year-old body. That, for him, may be victory enough.
Associated Press
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Associated Press
COUNCIL FOR SECURE AMERICA RELEASES NEW POLL REVEALING STRONG BIPARTISAN CONSENSUS ON STRENGTHENING U.S.-ISRAEL TIES, COUNTERING IRAN, AND ADVANCING DOMESTIC ENERGY INDEPENDENCE
WASHINGTON, June 27, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- The Council for a Secure America (CSA) today released new polling data conducted by Morning Consult showing that a clear majority of Americans believe that Iran's proxies in the Middle East such as Houthis, Hezbollah, and Hamas pose a threat to US national security particularly in response to Iranian aggression, place high strategic value on U.S. domestic energy production, and the importance of the U.S.-Israel alliance. The poll surveyed 2,206 American adults nationwide between June 21–23, 2025, capturing public opinion just before and immediately after President Trump's announcement of U.S. military strikes on Iranian targets. The results underscore a growing bipartisan consensus in favor of American strength, strategic partnerships, and self-reliance in energy. 'The survey confirms what many policymakers have heard from their constituents: Americans were unified in the face of escalating threats from Iran and its terror proxies,' said Jennifer Sutton, Executive Director of CSA. 'Americans want to see resolve, not retreat. The public is overwhelmingly aligned behind U.S. leadership that defends our allies, confronts our enemies, and secures our energy future.' Key Findings from the CSA Poll Include: Morning Consult conducted the online survey using a representative sample of U.S. adults, weighted for gender, age, race, education, and region. The margin of error is +/- 2.0%. The poll also included targeted surveys in nine key states: Iowa, Indiana, Montana, North Dakota, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming, where energy policy and national security are top-tier concerns. Importantly, a subset analysis of 1,326 respondents surveyed prior to the President's announcement and 880 afterward found no measurable change in public sentiment, underscoring the resilience of American support for the administration's posture toward Iran. 'The durability of these views, even after high-profile military action, speaks volumes,' Sutton added. 'This isn't a momentary reaction. Americans understood the stakes. They support principled leadership, reliable alliances like the one with Israel, and a national energy policy that protects our sovereignty and strength.' The survey builds on previous CSA-commissioned polls conducted by Morning Consult in March 2025 and September 2024, using the same methodology and focus areas. Over time, CSA has tracked consistent public support for American energy independence, strategic alliances, and confronting hostile regimes through strength, not appeasement. View the full polling results here. The Council for a Secure America is a non-partisan, non-profit, 501(c)3 organization focused on educating on the critical importance of the US-Israel relationship, energy security, and the role that the Abraham Accords play in bolstering America's national security. mutual national security interests. CSA regularly conducts briefings, educational symposia, and research on the benefits of energy security and the reasons it is in the United States' best interest to maintain a strong alliance with Israel. Since October 7th, CSA has compiled and released a constantly updated, open-source, and hyperlinked report on the Israel-Hamas war, the only report of its kind. Following Israel's preemptive attack on Iranian nuclear sites, CSA released a special One-Week Israel-Iran War Primer, document the lead up to the US strike. For more information about membership, events, research products or interview requests at the Council for a Secure America please contact us at [email protected]. View original content to download multimedia: SOURCE Council for a Secure America
