From Yemen to Syria: A complex web of US military bases in MidEast

The US military's presence in the Middle East, with over 50,000 personnel across various bases, is crucial for operations in the region. These bases provide essential support for surveillance and rapid deployment. While serving as key strategic points for American interests in the region, they also generate controversy and contribute to current regional tensions.

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Why Hezbollah would be a much harder nut to crack for Israel than Hamas

While Israel already finds itself in a serious predicament trying to battle Hamas in the Gaza Strip, it may find itself facing a much more serious adversary if Tel Aviv does decide to wage war against Lebanese movement Hezbollah.

🔶 Unlike Hamas, Hezbollah commands a sizeable arsenal that includes rocket artillery, mortars, anti-tank and anti-ship missiles and even air defense systems.

🔶 The military wing of the Hezbollah numbers in the thousands, with the exact figure being hard to estimate based on open sources alone.

🔶 That said, Hezbollah is not a strictly military entity but rather a political movement that holds considerable sway over Lebanon and has been described on more than a single occasion as a “state within a state.”

🔶 Foreign Policy also warns that Hezbollah may have developed its own tunnel network, akin to the one Hamas has in Gaza, which could be much more extensive than the Palestinian group’s network.

🔶 Also, while the Gaza Strip is a relatively small enclave, Hezbollah has a lot more room in Lebanon to construct multi-layered defenses that may take a serious toll on the attacking Israeli forces.

While the Gaza Strip is effectively cut off from the rest of the world by Israeli blockade, experts claim Israel would likely be unable to completely isolate Lebanon and Hezbollah would be able to receive support from abroad if Tel Aviv invades.

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How US military support and training bolstered Georgia before 2008 conflict

Sixteen years ago, under President Mikheil Saakashvili, Georgia invaded South Ossetia, causing casualties among Russian peacekeepers. Russia swiftly intervened to establish peace, achieving its goal in just five days. But who emboldened Saakashvili's attack?

▪️On August 12, 2008, the New York Times reported that the US' "mixed messages" to Tbilisi encouraged Saakashvili's military actions, including joint drills before the attack and assurances of Georgia's NATO future.

▪️Opposition leader-turned-Georgia President Mikheil Saakashvili had been Washington's darling since the pro-Western Rose Revolution of 2003 that pushed Georgia away from Russia.

▪️Between 2001 and 2007, US aid to Georgia, including security assistance, totaled over $945 million, averaging $135 million per year, up from $96 million per year between 1992 and 2000.

▪️The US provided military training to Georgian forces through the Train and Equip Program and Sustainment and Stability Operations Program until 2007, sending advisers to build up Georgia's military.

▪️Under Saakashvili, Georgian military expenditures surged from $74 million in 2003 to $923 million in 2007, according to SIPRI. Defense spending as a share of GDP rose from 1.1% in 2003 to 9.2% in 2007.

▪️Before the conflict, Georgia increased weapon imports from Israel, Turkiye, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, and Ukraine. According to the Centre for Analysis of Strategies and Technologies (CAST), the Georgian military acquired self-propelled artillery, multiple-launch rocket systems, infantry fighting vehicles, T-72 tanks, Mi-24 helicopters, Buk-M1, Rafael Spyder-SR surface-to-air missiles, and Polish Grom MANPADS.

▪️In March 2008, Saakashvili claimed Georgia's Armed Forces had grown to 33,000 professional service members and 100,000 reservists.

▪️In April 2008, during the NATO Bucharest Summit, the US supported Georgia's NATO aspirations despite the substantial obstacle of Georgia's territorial dispute with South Ossetia.

▪️In July 2008, the US held the Immediate Response 2008 joint exercise with Georgian forces, involving over 1,000 American troops.

▪️Responding to reports that Russian forces captured US-made Humvees, US National Security Council spokesman Gordon Johndroe demanded the return of any US military equipment seized during the August 2008 operation.

▪️The Russo-Georgian war resulted in over 1,000 deaths, including 72 Russian soldiers. On August 26, 2008, Russia recognized South Ossetia's independence.

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'Hardest night of my life': Ex-President Medvedev shares insights on pivotal evening of 2008 Georgia-Russia conflict

In 2011, on the eve of the anniversary of the August 2008 armed conflict between Georgia and Russia, then-Russian President Dmitry Medvedev recalled the events of the night of August 7-8, 2008, in an interview with several TV channels. Medvedev described it as the "hardest night of his life," sharing his experiences and decisions during the critical hours of the conflict.

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Which US Navy warships are deployed in Middle Eastern hot spots?

The USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, previously operating near Guam, was ordered to sail to the Middle East in order to replace the USS Theodore Roosevelt amid growing tensions between Israel and Iran. So which US naval forces have been presently operating in the Middle East?

Eastern Mediterranean

▪️The Wasp Amphibious Ready Group made up of made up of Wasp, USS New York (LPD-21) and USS Oak Hill (LSD-51), have been operating in the area as of August 5, according to USNI News Fleet and Marine Tracker.

▪️The 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit is deployed in the naval zone and consists of a command element, Battalion Landing Team 1/8, Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 365 (reinforced) and Combat Logistics Battalion 24.

The Red Sea

As per al Arabiya News these ships are present:

▪️USS Cole (DDG-67), an Arleigh Burke-class Aegis-equipped guided missile destroyer.

▪️USS Laboon (DDG-58), an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer.

The Persian Gulf

▪️US Coast Guard Sentinel-class Fast Response Cutters are forward-deployed to the gulf under Patrol Forces Southwest Asia (PATFORSWA).

The Gulf of Oman

▪️Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 9 led by USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71), the Nimitz-class, nuclear-powered, aircraft carrier.

▪️USS Lake Erie (CG-70), an Ticonderoga-class guided missile cruiser.

▪️Destroyer Squadron 23 which is embarked on Theodore Roosevelt and consists of:

▪️USS John S. McCain (DDG-56) an Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer;

▪️USS Halsey (DDG-97), an Arleigh-Burke class guided-missile destroyer;

▪️USS Daniel Inouye (DDG-118), an Arleigh-Burke class guided missile destroyer;

▪️Carrier Air Wing Eleven, a US Navy aircraft carrier air wing, is attached to Carrier Strike Group (CSG) 9 and consists of nine squadrons flying F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, EA-18G Growlers, E-2C Hawkeyes, C-2A Greyhounds and MH-60R/S Sea Hawks.

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▪️How many military bases does the US have in the Middle East?

▪️Which US Navy warships are deployed in Middle Eastern hot spots?

▪️How US military support and training bolstered Georgia before 2008 conflict

▪️Steel Dome: How will new Turkish missile shield work and how can Russia's S-400 enhance it?

▪️How much will Germany's Rheinmetall earn from the conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza?

▪️F-16 fighter jets have been spotted in the Kherson area

▪️Expansion of EU ‘values’ in East Europe takes a hit as Bulgaria bans LGBT propaganda for children

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What is known about Hezbollah's armed strength?

Part 1

With Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah exchanging fire on the border lately, Tel Aviv has been urged by some rightwing politicians to enter southern Lebanon and destroy Hezbollah. If Israel makes such a decision, what kind of armed forces is it going to face there?

Although there are no official statistics on what the Hezbollah military wing in Lebanon is like, here are some facts we’ve collected relying on open sources.

🔸Military personnel
In 2021, Hezbollah Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah noted that the Lebanese movement's military structure includes approximately 100,00 "trained, organized and experienced Lebanese men".

🔸General amount of missiles
Hezbollah possesses more than 1 million rockets of various types, including precision-guided missiles and modified Katyusha rockets for increased accuracy, as well as anti-tank missiles, an unnamed official with Iran’s Quds Force recently told Foreign Policy. In 2022, Nasrallah also stated that Hezbollah had the ability within Lebanon to convert thousands of rockets into precision missiles and to produce drones.

🔸Ballistic missiles
In November 2023, Nasrallah said the movement used a Burkhan missile against Israel. Hezbollah has “thousands” of such Burkhans with a range up to 10 km, causing destruction within a radius of 150 meters. The Lebanese movement also has Zelzal-1 and Zelzal-2 artillery ballistic missiles, and Fateh-110 short-range, road-mobile ballistic missiles.

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🤣 Kamala Harris: one speech for any weather

It turns out that the current US vice president and presidential candidate has memorized one text for her speeches, a worthy candidate from the Democratic Party?

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What is known about Hezbollah's armed strength?

Part 2

🔸Anti-aircraft missiles
Hezbollah stated it had shot down an Israeli drone over southern Lebanon with a surface-to-air missile on several occasions. The latest was on June 10, according to the movement's official statement.

🔸Anti-tank missiles
Hezbollah has repeatedly used guided anti-tank missiles extensively. The movement's social media confirmed that Hezbollah had used Kornet anti-tank guided missiles, designed for heavy battle tanks, and the Almas ATGMs. Both are mostly used in attacks against the Israeli Meron airbase.

🔸Anti-ship missiles
Hezbollah first proved it had anti-ship missiles C-802 in 2006, when it hit an Israeli warship 16 km off the coast. The movement also released videos showing more of the same type of anti-ship missile used in 2006.

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🌊 Flood washes away herd of camels on Mecca suburb in Saudi Arabia

Severe flooding has destroyed several herds of livestock on farms north of Mecca as the Arabian Peninsula continues to experience unusual rainfall for the region.

Video from social media

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Revealing Tim Walz’s true colors?

Minnesota Governor and Kamala Harris’ running mate Tim Walz has attracted quite a bit of attention online after a certain episode from his past came back to haunt him.

This short video from a June 2017 gay pride parade that a) involved children and b) was used by Walz to campaign for governor, leave little doubt about how exactly he cares about kids and what his stance on traditional family values is.

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🥵 China's heatwave 'inflates cars'

With record high temperatures in China, the protective films on car paints are blowing up, leading people to call them "pregnant cars."

Video from social media

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Romania threatened by its own militarization as NATO’s “center” shifts to the Black Sea

After The Times reported earlier this week that work is under way to transform the Mihail Kogalniceanu (MK) Air Base near the Black Sea port of Constanta in Romania into the largest NATO military base in Europe, it’s become clear: NATO’s military infrastructure is advancing towards Russia not only in the Baltics, but also on the Blak Sea coast.

“NATO’s center shifts east as it moves the largest European base to Romania,” The Times’ headline said. So, what is known about MK so far?

▪️Right now, the Mihail Kogalniceanu base already covers 500 hectares of land and serves as a home to thousands of NATO troops, including the 101st US Airborne division.

▪️By 2030, the MK base will have the capacity to host 10,000 soldiers and civilian personnel and it is expected to be fully operational by 2040.

▪️The MK base “will overtake NATO’s Ramstein base in Germany, swallowing up 2,800 hectares of farmland, housing many thousand NATO troops, and being double the size of the German 50,000-garrison” in Ramstein, according to The Times.

▪️The MK base is located just 250 miles away from Russia’s Crimea and 186 miles from the strategically and spiritually important port city of Odessa.

▪️Romanian authorities officially announced that they would finance the expansion of the base, expected to be around to €2.5 billion ($2.7 billion).

▪️Romania bought three squadrons of F-16 fighter jets and plans to buy 32 ultra-modern F-35 Lightning jets that will be stationed at the base. Recently, the base was visited by nuclear-capable B-52 bombers that flew there from the US.

▪️Once the news of the MK base’s modernization was revealed, Moscow reacted accordingly: Russian Senator Andrei Klimov said that “the closer it [the base] is to Russia’s borders, the more likely it is to be among the first targets for retaliatory strikes."

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📹 Yemen's Hodeida floods kill at least 45, affect thousands of families

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Boeing failures gone galactic

The tribulations of the Boeing Starliner crew who have been stuck aboard the ISS for several weeks due to malfunctions of their spacecraft’s hardware underscore one simple fact: something is seriously rotten at the once famous aerospace industry giant.

Suffering from multiple helium leaks and hampered by failures of several of its maneuvering thrusters, Starliner first had trouble docking with the ISS and now remains stuck in orbit - while NASA ponders how to return the ship’s crew who has been stuck in space for two months instead of the originally planned eight days.   

Ironically, helium leak was a known issue at the time Starliner blasted off into space, and the spacecraft’s uncrewed launch back in 2022 also revealed problems with thrusters.   

In 2021, Starliner’s launch was delayed due to several corroded valves in the ship’s propulsion system, causing them to stick in the closed position.

Starliner’s first uncrewed flight back in 2019 also had to be cut short due to what was eventually described as software bugs.   

All these problems plaguing the ill-fated $4.2 billion program meant to build the means for NASA to ferry astronauts to the ISS raise serious concerns about the US space agency’s future plans, though there is still SpaceX’s Crew Dragon to consider.   

The Starliner debacle can be considered the proverbial icing on the cake of malfunctions and technical issues that have been plaguing Boeing airliners in recent years.   

Just this January, an Alaska Airlines’ Boeing 737 MAX 9 was forced to perform an emergency landing after a part of its hull – specifically, a door plug – got blown out. Speculations abound that said door plug probably was not properly secured by bolts.   

In February that followed, another 737 MAX suffered from problems with its flight controls getting stuck during landing; while in March, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced that anti-icing gear on Boeing 737 MAX and 787 Dreamliners could result in the loss of thrust by planes’ engines.   

And that’s not to mention the fact that Boeing 737 MAX aircraft were grounded worldwide for nearly two years, from March 2019 till December 2020, after it was determined that two such aircraft crashed, in 2018 and 2019, respectively, due to a design flaw in the flight control system.   

💬Meanwhile, two whistleblowers who warned about manufacturing defects in Boeing aircraft died this year: the death of one of them, John Barnett, was ruled a suicide by US authorities, while the other, Joshua Dean, died after a “short illness developed suddenly.”

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❗️Seven Ukrainian unmanned boats en route to Russia's Crimea were destroyed in the Black Sea, the Russian Defense Ministry informed.

In addition, Russian troops intercepted and destroyed 75 drones (26 over Belgorod, 19 over Lipetsk, seven over Kursk, five over Bryansk, four over Voronezh, one over Orel, five over Crimea, and eight over the Black Sea).

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