He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster.
April 19, 2026, 06:49 PM
old rugged cross
They hide them on shoreline in caves. Be pretty difficult to take them out if you only had minutes to find and target.
"Practice like you want to play in the game"
April 19, 2026, 07:05 PM
Expert308
quote:
Originally posted by sigfreund: I know of no reason why we should believe that the average Iranian is going to be our friend—and especially not Israel’s friend—after the war is more or less over. The effects of forty years of propaganda and religious indoctrination don’t disappear overnight, especially when that length of time probably represents the entire adult life of most of the people there.
Despite how bad things may be, many people never get over believing what they were told for decades. That was often remarked about people in Russia after the fall of the Soviet Union, and I personally heard an older German mutter “Jawohl, mein Führer,”* under her breath nearly 40 years after the end of the war. She also had an old photograph of a young man in German army uniform in her home, and I strongly suspect it was a loved one who was killed during the conflict. Germans suffered greatly during the war, but that did not necessarily change their minds about their loyalty to the regime or the rightness of its actions.
I saw a documentary a few days ago about a group of German nurses that were taken prisoner by the Canadians just before the end of the war. They were relocated to Alberta and wound up staying there for a couple of years before they were repatriated. Before and during the war they had been constantly fed the German propaganda that the Allies were animals and would torture, rape and kill them. But during their stay in Canada they were treated fairly and respectfully, even offered the opportunity to work in a local hospital alongside the Canadian staff. Some of them saw the truth during their time working in hospitals and other places. Others never did get past the propaganda and still held loyalty to the Reich decades later, some for the rest of their lives.
By Ronny Reyes Published April 19, 2026 | Updated April 19, 2026, 11:32 a.m. ET
A glamorous Iranian businesswoman with a US green card was arrested at the Los Angeles International Airport for allegedly trafficking arms on behalf of Tehran.
Shamim Mafi, 44, of Woodland Hills, was taken into custody on Saturday night and charged with brokering deals for Iranian drones, bombs, and millions of rounds of ammunition bound for Sudan, according to the office of the US Attorney for the Central District of California.
Mafi had allegedly conducted the arms deals while in close contact with Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security, which provided instruction and funds for her to open a business in the US to operate out of, according to court records.
“She is charged with a violation of 50 U.S.C. § 1705 for brokering the sale of drones, bombs, bomb fuses, and millions of rounds of ammunition manufactured by Iran and sold to Sudan,” First Assistant US Attorney Bill Essayli said Sunday, announcing the arrest.
Mafi posted glam pics of herself traveling the world — including posing in a $100,000 Mercedes-Benz roadster.
Mafi, who left Iran in 2013 and became a permanent resident of the US in 2016 under the Obama administration, allegedly used an Oman-registered company, Atlas International Business, to broker weapons deals as recently as 2025, according to court records.
Among the sales was a contract for more than $70 million for Iranian-made Mohajer-6 armed drones from Iran’s Ministry of Defense and Armed Forces Logistics.
The drones, along with 55,000 bomb fuses, were transferred in deals with the Sudanese Ministry of Defense, which has been fighting in a bloody civil war since 2023.
Iran has been repeatedly accused of violating a United Nations arms embargo amid the Sudanese civil war, with its drones spotted in use by the government forces.
The civil war has claimed between 61,000 to hundreds of thousands of lives as it enters its fourth year, with the UN’s fact-finding mission identifying the recent mass deaths in Darfur as having the “hallmarks of genocide.”
The conflict has also displaced nearly nine million people, making it one of the worst displacement crises on the planet.
Phone records indicate that Mafi had direct contact with Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) between December 2022 and June 2025.
Prosecutors say Mafi had no legal requisites to oversee such dangerous sales.
Mafi and her company were also accused of purposefully going through channels in Turkey and the United Arab Emirates to conduct the sales so as to skirt US detection.
Mafi’s social media accounts show her living the lap of luxury in California and showing off her business trips in Turkey.
Mafi told investigators that she has never been tasked by the MOIS to conduct any activities for Tehran in the US.
A probe into Mafi’s past showed that Tehran had seized properties that she inherited from her father in 2020, with MOIS then directing her to open a business in the US to buy the properties back from the Iranian government, according to the court records.
MOIS had offered to buy for the start-up costs, officials noted.
Mafi had allegedly said that she is “more useful” to MOIS in Iran than in the United States.
The businesswoman was scheduled to fly to Istanbul on Saturday when she was met by law enforcement officers who took her into custody.
Mafi is ultimately accused of violating the Conspiracy to Violate the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, which if convicted of, would lead to a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
The suspect is scheduled to appear at the US District Court in downtown LA on Monday, prosecutors said.
A representative for Mafi could not be immediately reached for comment.
That's the best news I've heard since Iran's bullshit agreements to the terms of the temporary ceasefire. I'm guessing the gig is up now, any words from anyone in Iran will be worthless to Trump, unless he wishes to use them for more 4D chess. Iran's level of Hubris is so outrageous it's maddening comical in the worst possible sense.
Lover of the US Constitution Wile E. Coyote School of DIY Disaster
April 19, 2026, 11:49 PM
Southern Rebel
(Showing my age) I remember the line from the movie "Hombre", where the bad guy comes up the stairway to the shack where Paul Newman is protecting the lives of the stagecoach riders:
When the bad guy gets through with his "negotiations" offer, Newman looks at him and says, "I have a question - how are you gonna get back down that hill?"
I suspect maybe that is what Trump is thinking about the future of the Iranian "negotiators".
April 20, 2026, 03:40 AM
downtownv
Trump Says US Seized an Iranian-Flagged Cargo Ship, Blew Hole in Engine The ship, called the Touska, attempted to get past a U.S. military blockade that has been in effect since April 13, the president said.
President Donald Trump on Sunday said the U.S. military forcibly seized an Iranian-flagged cargo ship that attempted to bypass a naval blockade earlier in the day.
In an announcement posted on Truth Social, Trump said the ship, called the Touska, attempted to get past the U.S. military blockade that has been in effect since April 13.
“It did not go well for them,” he wrote.
According to Iranian state media, military officials described the U.S. action as “maritime piracy” and said that “Iran will respond soon.”
The capture of the vessel was made as the Trump administration is working to secure a peace deal with the Iranian regime before a two-week-long ceasefire ends on April 21.
The naval blockade, which is being enforced by U.S. Central Command, targets ships that are entering or exiting Iranian ports and will not impede on the freedom of navigation for ships transiting the Strait of Hormuz, a waterway that links the Persian Gulf with the broader ocean.
Trump said that U.S. negotiators will arrive in Pakistan on Monday evening for another set of talks with Iran. Several hours later, Iran had not confirmed it would attend.
The president also threatened to destroy civilian infrastructure in the country if it doesn’t take the deal that the administration is offering. Tehran has said it is preparing its military during the ceasefire.
Iran’s foreign ministry spokesman, Esmail Baghaei, said Sunday that the U.S. blockade of Iran’s ports and coastline is an act of aggression that violates the shaky Pakistani-mediated ceasefire between the two countries.
By “deliberately inflicting collective punishment on the Iranian population, it amounts to war crime and crimes against humanity,” Baghaei claimed on social media. His comments were made after the Iranian regime’s renewed military actions directed toward shipping, in response to the U.S. blockade, fully reclosed the strategic Strait of Hormuz.
An Iranian general, Seyed Majid Mousavi, commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corp’s Aerospace Force, said in comments carried by semi-official state media, that Iran’s armed forces are replenishing drone and missile stockpiles during the ceasefire.
“During the ceasefire period, our speed in updating and refilling missile and drone launch platforms is even greater than before the war,” he claimed.
Before the ceasefire was announced, the United States and Israel repeatedly struck Iranian military targets, including defense production facilities that make missiles and drones, and killed dozens of the country’s top leaders. In response, Iran fired rockets and drones at neighboring Gulf Arab states and Israel while it attacked ships in the region and threatened shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
Since the start of the conflict, the price for a barrel of Brent crude oil reached above $100, although it dropped to $90 during the most recent trading period. West Texas Intermediate crude, meanwhile, has dropped to below $84 per barrel. The American Automotive Association reported Sunday that the average price for a gallon of regular gasoline dropped slightly to $4.04 from $4.05 a day before.
A key difference between President Trump and the Iranian regime is that President Trump can back up the shit he talks.
April 20, 2026, 01:14 PM
trapper189
Can and will. I have no doubt the bombings will resume if an agreement is not reached in the next day and a half. The Iranians calling their country's shots might be slow learners though.
April 20, 2026, 04:34 PM
Rawny
quote:
Originally posted by tatortodd: Dept of War added some new to me details such as gave them 6 hours of warnings before firing the 5" gun.
Were the two shots shown on the video the ones that disabled their propulsion?
From that distance? With just a 5" gun?
April 20, 2026, 05:09 PM
limblessbiff
quote:
Originally posted by Rawny:
quote:
Originally posted by tatortodd: Dept of War added some new to me details such as gave them 6 hours of warnings before firing the 5" gun.
Were the two shots shown on the video the ones that disabled their propulsion?
From that distance? With just a 5" gun?
Sounds just like my .357 marlin smacking steel at 100 yards
April 20, 2026, 06:22 PM
wrightd
It's hard to figure which one is more fun. Spanking steel with a Marlin is great fun, but I imagine shooting at a super tanker takes the cake. I bet guys working and firing that system were having a helluva good time. Prob afterward though, you gotta concentrate shooting a 5 inch shells.
Lover of the US Constitution Wile E. Coyote School of DIY Disaster
April 20, 2026, 06:36 PM
tatortodd
quote:
Originally posted by limblessbiff:
quote:
Originally posted by Rawny:
quote:
Originally posted by tatortodd: Dept of War added some new to me details such as gave them 6 hours of warnings before firing the 5" gun.
Were the two shots shown on the video the ones that disabled their propulsion?
From that distance? With just a 5" gun?
Sounds just like my .357 marlin smacking steel at 100 yards
13 nautical mile effective range lobbing 64 to 70 lb shells.
If you recall, Operation Praying Mantis the IRGC's converted oil platforms got to chew some 5" gun too and USN sunk their platforms. This was after Iran decided to mine the strait of Hormuz and as a result lost half their navy in 8 hours.
Ego is the anesthesia that deadens the pain of stupidity
DISCLAIMER: These are the author's own personal views and do not represent the views of the author's employer.
April 20, 2026, 07:45 PM
wrightd
Those are basically big ass bullets, is that correct ? Prob penetrators with explosive charge, or maybe a shape charge ? Good freaking lord.
Lover of the US Constitution Wile E. Coyote School of DIY Disaster
April 20, 2026, 08:19 PM
Ranger41
The Mk45 5"/62 gun can fire 16-20 rounds per minute. Probably the projectile used against the Iranian ship was the Mark 80 HE-PD round. It weighs 67.6 lbs. has a 7.75 pound explosive charge, and a muzzle velocity of 2,725 fps.
"The world is too dangerous to live in-not because of the people who do evil, but because of the people who sit and let it happen." (Albert Einstein)
April 20, 2026, 10:05 PM
corsair
Some deck-gun porn
April 20, 2026, 10:18 PM
tatortodd
quote:
Originally posted by Ranger41: The Mk45 5"/62 gun can fire 16-20 rounds per minute. Probably the projectile used against the Iranian ship was the Mark 80 HE-PD round. It weighs 67.6 lbs. has a 7.75 pound explosive charge, and a muzzle velocity of 2,725 fps.
473,200 grain projectile with 7,800,899 ft lbs muzzle energy
quote:
Originally posted by corsair: Some deck-gun porn
Great video
Ego is the anesthesia that deadens the pain of stupidity
DISCLAIMER: These are the author's own personal views and do not represent the views of the author's employer.
