Middle East conflict

[onetrack]

The news about the U.S. bases damage, is largely correct. The U.S. military themselves have admitted damage has been incurred at 13 U.S. bases in the Middle East, with DoW damage estimations of around US$800M.

There are other reports saying the number of bases seriously damaged is actually 17, and the total repair bill for all the Iranian damage is likely to exceed US$3B - and more importantly, take years to rebuild, simply because of the complexity of the equipment in the bases, and the requirement for a lot of electronic replacements, that are still in short supply from COVID-era restrictions. 

 

Even many car manufacturers are taking shortcuts in vehicle manufacturing, and leaving out optional equipment that is electronics-heavy, due to the ongoing chip shortage.

 

What our dopey Tangerine Toddler doesn't understand, is that Taiwan may now even make overtures to China to form an alliance, to prevent a Taiwan-China war. This is because Taiwan is starting to realise that their major ally is no longer a reliable ally - and is likely incapable of protecting/supporting Taiwan in the event of a Chinese aggressive military move on them.

If that alliance happens, China will then control the majority of the worlds cutting-edge chip manufacturing, and give Trump and his sycophants another dose of heartburn, because America still hasn't got any local chip manufacturing sorted yet.

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cddq7j48p35o

 

https://defencesecurityasia.com/en/us-bases-uninhabitable-iran-missile-strikes-centcom-force-posture-2026-war/

[nomadpete]

[red750]

The Strait of Tears (Bab el-Mandab) is currently under severe threat and effectively at risk of closure, though it has not been fully blocked as of late March 2026.  The Houthi rebels, who control parts of Yemen and are part of Iran's "Axis of Resistance," have vowed to close the strait as a strategic option to escalate the ongoing conflict, following the effective closure of the nearby Strait of Hormuz by Iran. 

 

[nomadpete]

16 hours ago, red750 said:

The Strait of Tears (Bab el-Mandab) is currently under severe threat and effectively at risk of closure, though it has not been fully blocked as of late March 2026.

That post is relevent to the EV thread. If they close both pinch points, I'll be buying an EV.

[rgmwa]

Nicely done:

 

[Marty_d]

At least someone has some balls.

Good on you, Spain.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cwy368j1e3lo

[nomadpete]

The bestest goldest world leader has got it covered.

 

Already, the *resident of the United States  now states that the reason for this war (which isn't a WAR) is to destroy the nuclear weapons program that he claims to have already destroyed last year, while simultaneously claiming that the objective of the war is to open the strait of Hormuz that was already open before he started the war, but he is not going to open it. He doesn't need anyone's help to win the war. He already won the war on the first day anyway, and is currently winning the war, but demands help to win the war, and needs no help to win the war.

 

I hope this clears up any confusion, which was all caused by corrupt Democrat fake news outlets.

[rgmwa]

That was yesterday. He's moved on since then.

[old man emu]

He's given England and France a big serve for not letting him use their facilities to move military supplies. Good on them! Both countries are under constant threat of jihadist attacks from wothin their own populations. Why stir the possum?

[old man emu]

So much for the United Nations. I haven't heard a peep out of it condemning Trump's actions.