SG Talk

(13-12-2023, 10:43 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Houthis say they hit Norwegian tanker group says STRINDA was carrying crude to Israel. Owner says ship was headed to Italy with biofuel feedstock...DUBAI/OSLO Dec 12 (Reuters) - Yemen's Houthis said on Tuesday they hit a Norwegian commercial tanker with a missile in their latest protest against Israel's bombardment of Gaza, underlining the risks of a conflict that has shaken the Middle East.

The Iran-aligned group attacked the tanker, the STRINDA, because it was delivering crude oil to an Israeli terminal and after its crew ignored all warnings, Houthi military spokesperson Yehia Sarea said in a statement.

STRINDA was carrying crude to Israel...Owner says ship was headed to Italy.
https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-eas...023-12-12/

(13-12-2023, 10:19 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Israel Begins Pumping Seawater Into Hamas’s Tunnels, one of several techniques aimed at destroying network underground Hamas’s terrorists operations by pumping into Hamas’s vast build complex of tunnels in Gaza.

The operations to flood the tunnels with water from Mediterranean is to win an early stage, is one of several techniques Israel is using to try to clear and destroy the tunnels and not to kill terrorist,
as 10 service members is ambush overnight, including a high-ranking officer, and nine troops died in a single ambush incident.

CAIRO/GAZA/JERUSALEM: Israel announced its worst combat losses in more than a month on Wednesday (Dec 13) after an ambush in the ruins of Gaza, and faced growing diplomatic isolation as civilian deaths mounted and a humanitarian catastrophe worsened in the Palestinian territory.

Intense fighting was under way both north and south Gaza, day after UN demanded immediate humanitarian ceasefire. US Joe Biden said the "indiscriminate" bombing of civilians is costing international support. The Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu said military would fight on despite international pressure for a ceasefire.

"We're continuing until the end, until victory, until Hamas is annihilated."
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/is...ws-3987451

(16-10-2023, 08:25 AM)Gstalk Wrote: [ -> ]Now it is ready for action. 

US may support Israel’s attack on Iran’s nuclear plants if Iran keep on supporting Hamas.

This is the final warning from Assmerica. Iran and Hamas better hide under the carpet

Ukraine’s 200 Fighter Jet Demand Could Lead To Nuclear Catastrophe; Russia Could End The War By Nuking Kyiv: OPED

Russia-Ukraine conflict is in its 22nd month. On February 24, 2024, unwanted, highly undesirable Russia-Ukraine war will be two years old. 

Putin’s declaration of suspending START signed in 2010 (due to expire in 2026) by Obama and Medvedev heightens the risk of a nuclear war.

The most pertinent question is, ‘Whose war is it anyway’? Few military strategists believe that there is no specific answer. Few believe that it is due to Russia’s hostile attitude towards Ukraine.
https://www.eurasiantimes.com/ukraines-n...th-russia/

(14-12-2023, 10:15 AM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]CAIRO/GAZA/JERUSALEM: Israel announced its worst combat losses in more than a month on Wednesday (Dec 13) after an ambush in the ruins of Gaza, and faced growing diplomatic isolation as civilian deaths mounted and a humanitarian catastrophe worsened in the Palestinian territory.

Intense fighting was under way both north and south Gaza, day after UN demanded immediate humanitarian ceasefire. US Joe Biden said the "indiscriminate" bombing of civilians is costing international support. The Prime Minister, Mr Benjamin Netanyahu said military would fight on despite international pressure for a ceasefire.

"We're continuing until the end, until victory, until Hamas is annihilated."
https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/is...ws-3987451

UNRWA. Chief UN’s Palestinian refugee Philippe Lazzarini, says people in Gaza are so hungry they are stopping aid trucks, taking the food and eating it right away.

“This is how desperate and hungry they are,” the UNRWA chief told reporters. “I witnessed this first hand. We meet more and more people who haven’t eaten for one, two or three days.” He said this was his third visit to Gaza since 7 October, and the situation there is declining rapidly.

Rafah has quadrupled its numbers of people overnight. It lacks infrastructure and all the basics. It is not a place to hold more than one million people. One warehouse is home to 30,000 people. Families live in tiny spaces only separated by blankets and plastic sheeting.”

He said that his agency has almost no access to the north of Gaza anymore and the operating environment in Gaza is becoming “more and more impossible”

At least 18,787 Palestinians have been killed and 50,897 wounded in Israeli strikes on Gaza since 7 October, the Gaza health spokesman said in a statement on Thursday.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2...-palestine

House Passes Defense Bill, Clearing It for Biden
Republicans and Democrats banded together to push through the legislation over the objections of right-wing lawmakers. This year’s defense bill authorizes a 5.2 percent pay increase for service members and civilian employees of Pentagon.

Thursday overwhelmingly passed an $886 billion defense bill, clearing the measure for President Biden after pushing past a revolt from the far right over the exclusion of restrictions they had sought to abortion access, transgender care, and racial diversity and inclusion policies at the Pentagon.

The 310-to-118 vote reflected the bipartisan nature of the bill, which earned the support of a majority of Democrats and Republicans despite the vocal opposition of hard-liners, who staged a last-ditch rebellion on the House floor to try to block its passage. Mr. Biden is expected to sign the measure into law, maintaining Washington’s six-decade streak of approving military policy legislation on an annual basis.
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/12/14/us/po...gress.html

(02-11-2023, 05:02 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]U.S. positions 12,000 sailors off Israel with second carrier with 10 American ships from 2 strike groups are intended to deter a wider conflict, in the Mediterranean Sea. It world's largest aircraft carrier, refuels in the eastern on Oct.
https://asia.nikkei.com/Politics/Israel-...nd-carrier

USS Ford Moves Closer to Israel - Next-Gen Carrier Power in Mediterranean. Ordered by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, this rapid redeployment highlights the U.S. goal of global readiness for swift military action.

The Ford-class carriers represent a groundbreaking advancement in naval warfare technology. These carriers, roughly 100,000 tons, are notably larger than their Nimitz-class forerunners but need 500 to 900 fewer crew members due to enhanced automation, thereby cutting maintenance demands by 30%. Crafted for superior efficiency and combat effectiveness, they boast an impressive sortie rate of 160 per day, which can escalate to 220 in critical times, and come equipped with sophisticated weaponry. Notably, they can carry up to 90 aircraft, including cutting-edge F-35 Joint Strike Fighters and F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, significantly boosting U.S. air capabilities in the region. The F-35s augment the strike group's air-to-air and ground-attack mission capabilities, offering a notable tactical edge.
https://warriormaven.com/sea/uss-ford-mo...iterranean

U.S. urges Israel to end large-scale ground war
A divide is emerging between U.S. and Israel, with a senior Israeli diplomat saying country “absolutely” would not accept a two-state solution. two U.S. officials familiar with the discussions told NBC News.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed back on criticism of Israel’s war in Gaza, pledging to continue. “Nothing will stop us. We are going on to the end, until tunnels, nothing less,” he says his comments on Wednesday came amid international condemnation of his govt, including from leader of his country’s closest ally, Biden.
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/live-...rcna129682

(09-12-2023, 04:15 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]According to Gaza flooding coming soon...
https://youtu.be/cob3fctCbgs?si=bV4oGHwYdl0M5b11
Israeli Defence Forces finished assembling at least five pumps just north of the Al-Shati refugee camp last month that could each "move thousands of cubic metres of water per hour" from the Mediterranean Sea into the tunnels, the Daily Mail reported.

Already testing images released by the IDF yesterday "appear to show scores of Israeli soldiers setting up a series of black pipes" on Gaza's beaches. Seven weeks into Israel’s ground operation in Gaza, one of the key challenges facing Israeli military is the labyrinth of Hamas tunnels that it says spans the entirety of the Strip.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/16/middleeas...index.html

(16-12-2023, 03:04 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Already testing images released by the IDF yesterday "appear to show scores of Israeli soldiers setting up a series of black pipes" on Gaza's beaches. Seven weeks into Israel’s ground operation in Gaza, one of the key challenges facing Israeli military is the labyrinth of Hamas tunnels that it says spans the entirety of the Strip.
https://www.cnn.com/2023/12/16/middleeas...index.html

Leaked audio recordings of a meeting between freed hostages and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu this month revealed anger at the prospect of flooding the tunnels.

A freed female abductee whose husband remains in captivity is heard on one recording as saying: “You are about washing the tunnels with sea water? You are shelling the route of tunnels in the exact area where they are,” referring to heavy bombardment above the tunnels.

People gather with signs for a demonstration calling upon International Committee of Red Cross (ICRC) to take action for release of hostages abducted by Palestinian militants on October 7 and currently held in the Gaza Strip, outside the ICRC offices in Tel Aviv on November 9, 2023 amid the ongoing fighting between Israel and the Hamas terrorists group.

Leaked audio of heated meeting reveals hostages’ You put politics above the return of the kidnapped, by Hamas terrorists” woman adds. Israel believes there are 132 hostages still in Gaza – of whom 112 are thought to be alive, while 20 are believed to be dead, the prime minister’s office told CNN Friday.

Some of the hostages released by Hamas in October spoke about tunnel system, describing the structure as a spiderweb. Adina Moshe, who was dragged from her safe room in Israel and taken to Gaza on October 7th, was forced into tunnels five stories underground, according to her nephew Eyal Nouri.

“Bottom line is Hamas terrorists tremendous time and money in this infrastructure is not for the benefit of the people in the Gaza Strip,” Levitt said, from Israel’s perspective, it remains one of the most important military-critical infrastructure to be targets and destory. “by one means or another, one is can certainly expect Israelis are going to be looking to disable Hamas tunnel system.”

Israeli military mistakenly kills three hostages in Gaza. The Israeli military said on Dec 15, 2023, it mistakenly killed hostages Yotam Haim, Samer Talalka and Alon Shamriz (left to right) after soldiers wrongly identified them as a threat during combat in Gaza.

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/world/is...nt-3992701

Every other interest and concern, no matter how poignant, compassionate, or pressing, must remain subordinate to the overarching master goal of destroying Hamas....

(17-12-2023, 04:51 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]https://www.straitstimes.com/world/netan...age-deaths

(This is a more important to do, right ) .

No However. "He confirmed he had given instructions to the negotiating team."

(15-12-2023, 03:43 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]USS Ford Moves Closer to Israel - Next-Gen Carrier Power in Mediterranean. Ordered by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, this rapid redeployment highlights the U.S. goal of global readiness for swift military action.

The Ford-class carriers represent a groundbreaking advancement in naval warfare technology. These carriers, roughly 100,000 tons, are notably larger than their Nimitz-class forerunners but need 500 to 900 fewer crew members due to enhanced automation, thereby cutting maintenance demands by 30%. Crafted for superior efficiency and combat effectiveness, they boast an impressive sortie rate of 160 per day, which can escalate to 220 in critical times, and come equipped with sophisticated weaponry. Notably, they can carry up to 90 aircraft, including cutting-edge F-35 Joint Strike Fighters and F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, significantly boosting U.S. air capabilities in the region. The F-35s augment the strike group's air-to-air and ground-attack mission capabilities, offering a notable tactical edge.
https://warriormaven.com/sea/uss-ford-mo...iterranean

Top Biden administration officials are very scary to actively, they are weighing options to strike back at Houthis in Yemen after Iran-backed  launched new attacks on naval and commercial ships in the Red Sea on Saturday,.
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/12/16...a-00132160

(17-12-2023, 07:45 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Top Biden administration officials are very scary to actively, they are weighing options to strike back at Houthis in Yemen after Iran-backed  launched new attacks on naval and commercial ships in the Red Sea on Saturday,.
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/12/16...a-00132160

Top Biden administration officials are very scary to actively, they are weighing options to strike back at Houthis, but for at the movement US, UK say they shot down 15 drones from Yemen’s Houthis over Red Sea. As threat to trade grown in the region with container ships and oil tankers have been attacked or drawn missile fire...

(16-12-2023, 03:40 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]PM Netanyahu this month revealed a leaked hostages describing structure spiderweb. Adina Moshe,was dragged from safe room in Israel and taken to Gaza on October 7th, was forced into tunnels five stories underground, her nephew Eyal Nouri.

“Bottom line is Hamas terrorists tremendous time and money in this infrastructure is not for benefit of the people in Gaza Strip,” from Israel’s perspective, it remains most important military-critical infrastructure to be targets and destory. “by one means or another, one is certainly expect Israelis are going to be looking to disable Hamas tunnel system.”

Biggest Hamas Tunnel," 4-Km Long Network Found Under Gaza, Says Israel, honeycomb of passageways features drainage, electricity, systems, ventilation, sewage & a communication network as well as rails. 

Sunday it uncovered the biggest Hamas tunnel in Gaza Strip so far, such was its size small vehicles would be able to travel within the tunnel,
just few hundred metres from key border. The underground passage formed part of a wider branching network that stretched for over four kilometres and came within 400 metres (1,300 feet) of the Erez border crossing, army said in a statement to AFP.
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/biggest-...el-4692191

(18-12-2023, 01:24 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Biggest Hamas Tunnel," 4-Km Long Network Found Under Gaza, Says Israel, honeycomb of passageways features drainage, electricity, systems, ventilation, sewage & a communication network as well as rails. 

Sunday it uncovered the biggest Hamas tunnel in Gaza Strip so far, such was its size small vehicles would be able to travel within the tunnel,
just few hundred metres from key border. The underground passage formed part of a wider branching network that stretched for over four kilometres and came within 400 metres (1,300 feet) of the Erez border crossing, army said in a statement to AFP.
https://www.ndtv.com/world-news/biggest-...el-4692191

Sunday it uncovered the biggest Hamas tunnel in Gaza Strip so far, such was size small vehicles would be able to travel within tunnel.
https://twitter.com/IDF/status/1736407306311475360

(15-12-2023, 03:43 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]USS Ford Moves Closer to Israel - Next-Gen Carrier Power in Mediterranean. Ordered by Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, this rapid redeployment highlights the U.S. goal of global readiness for swift military action.

The Ford-class carriers represent a groundbreaking advancement in naval warfare technology. These carriers, roughly 100,000 tons, are notably larger than their Nimitz-class forerunners but need 500 to 900 fewer crew members due to enhanced automation, thereby cutting maintenance demands by 30%. Crafted for superior efficiency and combat effectiveness, they boast an impressive sortie rate of 160 per day, which can escalate to 220 in critical times, and come equipped with sophisticated weaponry. Notably, they can carry up to 90 aircraft, including cutting-edge F-35 Joint Strike Fighters and F/A-18E/F Super Hornets, significantly boosting U.S. air capabilities in the region. The F-35s augment the strike group's air-to-air and ground-attack mission capabilities, offering a notable tactical edge.
https://warriormaven.com/sea/uss-ford-mo...iterranean

In 1980s, U.S. Army 1st first fielded its new tactical missile, call ATACMS, the biggest, longest-range missile in Army’s inventory, allowing to attack targets deep behind enemy lines. (A single ATACMS missile can deliver a cluster munition or a 500-pound high-explosive warhead up to 186 miles within 30 feet target), a powerful capability that rivals the effects of air power. A M270 MLRS tracked carrier can launch two ATACMS missile on missile truck system made famous in Ukraine can launch one. in 1991 Gulf War, 2003 on Iraq, & most recently in Russo-Ukraine War. In spectacular eg, ATACMS attack Russian airfield resulted in destruction of 14 helicopters, including 11% on Russiz 
advanced Ka-52 “Alligator” attack helos.

PrSM is noe all-new missile that is a major improvement over ATACMS, with a range of 310 miles. As Defense explained in 2020, the multi-mode allows the missile to listen for the radio broadcasts of target radars and communications systems, home in on them, then use imaging infrared to identify target on ground and destroy it. 

The seeker also allows PrSM to track and engage moving targets, including ground vehicles and even ships at sea, something ATACMS couldn’t do...for.
https://www.popularmechanics.com/militar...e-missile/

(17-12-2023, 07:45 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Top Biden administration officials are very scary to actively, they are weighing options to strike back at Houthis in Yemen after Iran-backed  launched new attacks on naval and commercial ships in the Red Sea on Saturday,.
https://www.politico.com/news/2023/12/16...a-00132160

Top Biden administration officials are very scary to actively. 

They are weighing options to strike back at Houthis...as more ship is been attacked

(18-12-2023, 05:19 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Top Biden administration officials are very scary to actively. 

They are weighing options to strike back at Houthis...as more ship is been attacked

Houthis claim they're only targeting Israel-linked ships

Mohammed Abdul-Salam, the head of a Houthi delegation in peace talks with Saudi Arabia, claimed on Sunday that the Houthis were only targeting Israeli ships and vessels headed to Israeli ports.

Houthis news....from aljazeera.com
https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/houthis/

(18-12-2023, 05:29 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Houthis news....from aljazeera.com
https://www.aljazeera.com/tag/houthis/

Top Biden admin officials are very scary

They are weighing options to strike back at Houthis...as more ship is been attacked

Thay are wait for me (US) but US is waiting arhh.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announces the formation of a coalition – including Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the Seychelles, Spain and the UK.....

.....to patrol the Red Sea?? in response to Houthi attacks.

(19-12-2023, 10:56 AM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Top Biden admin officials are very scary. They are weighing options to strike back at Houthis...as more ship is been attacked

Thay are wait for me (US) but US is waiting arhh.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announces the formation of a coalition – including Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the Seychelles, Spain and the UK.....

.....to patrol the Red Sea?? in response to Houthi attacks.

This time on...SHIPPING /  SHIP DEFENSE  and on PIRACY (Photo of the MV Ruen courtesy EUNAVFO...Hijacked Bulk Carrier Arrives Off Somalia - Reuters on facebook...
(Photo of the MV Ruen courtesy EUNAVFOR)

Hijacked Bulk Carrier Arrives Off Somalia

LONDON, Dec 18 (Reuters) – A commercial vessel hijacked by unknown assailants remains off the coast of Somalia raising fears of further instability for global shipping as attacks escalate in the Red Sea, maritime security sources said on Monday.

A Spanish navy ship was dispatched at full speed on Friday towards the Maltese-flagged Ruen vessel, which sources said had been hijacked.

British maritime security company Ambrey said vessel had reached 9-miles offshore of Bander Murcaayo in Puntland, Somalia on Dec. 17.

“This was assessed likely to be the first hijacking of a merchant vessel by Somali pirates since the ARIS 13 in 2017. Ambrey assessed the event was likely partly a consequence of political instability in Puntland,” Ambrey said.
https://gcaptain.com/hijacked-bulk-carri...f-somalia/

(19-12-2023, 04:05 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]This time on...SHIPPING /  SHIP DEFENSE  and on PIRACY (Photo of the MV Ruen courtesy EUNAVFO...Hijacked Bulk Carrier Arrives Off Somalia - Reuters on facebook...
(Photo of the MV Ruen courtesy EUNAVFOR)

Hijacked Bulk Carrier Arrives Off Somalia

LONDON, Dec 18 (Reuters) – A commercial vessel hijacked by unknown assailants remains off the coast of Somalia raising fears of further instability for global shipping as attacks escalate in the Red Sea, maritime security sources said on Monday.

A Spanish navy ship was dispatched at full speed on Friday towards the Maltese-flagged Ruen vessel, which sources said had been hijacked.

British maritime security company Ambrey said vessel had reached 9-miles offshore of Bander Murcaayo in Puntland, Somalia on Dec. 17.

“This was assessed likely to be the first hijacking of a merchant vessel by Somali pirates since the ARIS 13 in 2017. Ambrey assessed the event was likely partly a consequence of political instability in Puntland,” Ambrey said.
https://gcaptain.com/hijacked-bulk-carri...f-somalia/

Commercial ship still hijacked off Somali coast - sources
https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/com...023-12-18/

(19-12-2023, 04:13 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Commercial ship still hijacked off Somali coast - sources
https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/com...023-12-18/

(19-12-2023, 04:13 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Commercial ship still hijacked off Somali coast - sources
https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/com...023-12-18/

News / India News / Injured sailor from hijacked ship moved to Indian stealth warship for treatment. The Injured sailor from hijacked ship moved to Indian stealth warship for treatment

Dec 19, 2023 12:43  --- Indian warship INS Kochi with marine commandos on board was tailing the Maltese-flagged merchant vessel since soon after it was seized....😁

(19-12-2023, 04:22 PM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]News / India News / Injured sailor from hijacked ship moved to Indian stealth warship for treatment. The Injured sailor from hijacked ship moved to Indian stealth warship for treatment

Dec 19, 2023 12:43  --- Indian warship INS Kochi with marine commandos on board was tailing the Maltese-flagged merchant vessel since soon after it was seized....😁

Live news....

NEW DELHI: One of the 18 sailors on board the hijacked merchant vessel Ruen was on Monday transferred to Indian stealth destroyer INS Kochi for medical assistance after he was injured was treated on board and is now being taken to a shore-based medical facility for further evaluation, they added.

Updates LIVE --- “The pirates allowed the sailor to be evacuated from Ruen after he was injured. He needed urgent medical attention. He is being taken to a shore-based hospital,” said one of the officials, who asked not to be named. Details of how the sailor, a Bulgarian, was injured were not immediately available.

The Indian warship with marine commandos on board was tailing the Maltese-flagged merchant vessel that was seized by unknown attackers in the Arabian Sea on December 14. Ruen was first located by an Indian Navy P-8I maritime patrol aircraft on December 15, while the warship intercepted it a day later....

(19-12-2023, 10:56 AM)Tee tiong huat Wrote: [ -> ]Top Biden admin officials are very scary

They are weighing options to strike back at Houthis...as more ship is been attacked

Thay are wait for me (US) but US is waiting arhh.

US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin announces the formation of a coalition – including Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, the Seychelles, Spain and the UK.....

.....to patrol the Red Sea?? in response to Houthi attacks.

US announces 10-nation force to counter Houthi attacks in Red Sea. US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin says coalition will include Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, UK and other countries.

austin

U.S. has announced launch of a multinational force to protect trade in the Red Sea after attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels forced at least a dozen shipping lines to suspend operations.

Bahrain, Canada, France, Italy, the Seychelles and the United Kingdom would be among the countries joining the 10-nation “multinational security initiative”.

Analysis: Can the US and Israel stop the Houthis from seizing more ships?

What’s the impact of the Houthis hijacking a ship in the Red Sea?

Analysis: Is the Houthi threat to world order worse than the war on Gaza?
end of list

“Countries that seek to uphold the foundational principle of freedom of navigation must come together to tackle the challenge posed by this non-state actor,” Austin said in a statement, describing the attacks as an issue that “demands collective action”. Announcement comes after US and UK navies said over the weekend that their destroyers had shot down a total of 15 drones in the waterway.

INTERACTIVE_Israel-Palestine_Red Sea Patrol Force _19DEC2023

The Iran-aligned Houthis have ramped up drone and missile attacks on vessels in key shipping lanes since start of war in Gaza,.The rebel group said on Monday it had attacked Norwegian owned Swan Atlantic & MSC Clara using naval drones to show solidarity to Hamas in Gaza.

Swan Atlantic’s owner, Norway’s Inventor Chemical Tankers, said in a statement vessel had no link to Israel and was managed by a Singaporean firm. There were no injuries reported by either vessel.

Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, a senior Houthi says coalition might also include Egypt and Jordan as additional Arab nations to Bahrain, as they have a vested interest in ensuring the safe passage of ships, said Al Jazeera’s Sara Khairat, reporting from occupied East Jerusalem.

“It still not clear whether they will join later?. Egypt and Jordan & some of the GCC [Gulf Cooperation Council] countries, including Saudi Arabia, are part of the Combined Maritime Forces, which coalition will be under the umbrella of,”“Reading between lines, it’s a very difficult situation for some of Middle Eastern countries. Eg: Saudi Arabia, which is close to signing deal with Houthi rebels in Yemen."

“You have Egypt, which doesn’t want to be seen as going against the Houthis’ message on Gaza – which is for Israel to stop the war on the enclave.”

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken held a call with Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud on Monday on the issue, discussing the ways to avoid further conflict.

(15-10-2023, 02:13 PM)red3 Wrote: [ -> ]How many US aircraft carriers in total out there?

See MEMRI Special Dispatches Nos. 8752, Iranian Regime: The Entire Persian Gulf Is Our Sea – 'Mare Nostrum' – And Has Belonged To Iran For Centuries; U.S. Forces Must Leave It, May 19, 2020, and 8210, Following Iran's Seizure Of British Oil Tanker, Senior Iranian Officials Again Declare: The Persian Gulf Is Iranian Territory; Iran's Armed Forces Are Responsible For Security In It, In Strait Of Hormuz, Gulf Of Oman, August 2, 2019.

[2] Tasnim News Agency (Iran), December 11, 2023.

The commanders of the Iranian Navy and the IRGC Navy both spoke out about the November 27, 2023 arrival of the USS Eisenhower aircraft carrier in the Persian Gulf. Its arrival was aimed at deterring Iran from taking action against Western forces in the region in light of the Israel-Hamas war.

For years, the Iranian regime has been calling for the expulsion of Western, and particularly American, forces from the Persian Gulf region, because it feels that they threaten its existence. The regime maintains that the Gulf is Iranian sovereign territory and that Iran is in charge of shipping security in it. However, this view is in direct opposition to international law, according to which international waterways, such as the Strait of Hormuz and Bab-el-Mandeb – the Red Sea's outlet to the Indian Ocean – must be free accessible to all.[1]

In statements, both of these Iranian naval commanders have expressed the Iranian nationalist stance, that is, that the entire region is under Iranian sovereignty and that all ships sailing through the area must show compliance with signs of this sovereignty. This includes answering to Iranian naval personnel in Farsi, and compliance with Iranian sailing directives. One naval commander have threatened the Americans with expulsion of the American presence from the Gulf, and the other threatened missile attacks on U.S. Navy vessels.
https://www.memri.org/reports/irgc-navy-...sights-our

(15-10-2023, 02:25 PM)cityhantam Wrote: [ -> ]Total = 11

But most are queuing up for major service and maintenance.

10 out of 11 US Navy aircraft carriers now “active”

All of the US Navy’s remaining carriers are either at their homeports, at sea conducting qualifications ahead of deployments or else on deployments. Eisenhower, Ford, and Vinson CSGs are on their respective deployments, while the Lincoln and Washington have been conducting flight deck certifications and Carrier Air Wing (CVW) qualifications.

The Nimitz returned home following its Pacific deployment earlier this year, while Reagan recently completed its summer deployment and returned to Yokosuka. Lastly, Bush returned to Norfolk from its deployment in April of this year. 

The Navy’s newest carrier, the USS John F. Kennedy, is currently moored at Newport News’ Shipyard in Norfolk awaiting the completion of its final outfitting....