Isfahan.

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Coverage the Iranian press the Israeli counter-strike Iranian targets! 

"Explosion heard near Isfahan due to activation of air defenses"

From https://www.presstv.ir | 19 April 2024.

"Explosions have been heard near the central Iranian city of Isfahan due to the activation of air defenses, informed sources say."

See the graphic as posted by Colonel Macgregor. Multiple targets hit Iran. Click on image on see an enlarged view.

"Initial reports say important facilities in the Isfahan province, especially nuclear facilities, are completely safe and no accidents have been reported.

"Following the activation of air defenses in some parts of the country to deal with possible targets, no large-scale hit and explosion caused by any air threat has been reported."

That biggest worry of all will be if Iranian atomic sites and facilities attacked

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Retaliatory.

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Continuing the Israeli retaliation for events of 13 April.

From the Israeli press. See all links for continuing updates.

 1. "Israel-Hamas War Day 195 | Reports Say Israel Attacked Site in Iran, Explosions Heard in Isfahan"

2. "Israel said to launch ‘limited’ strike on Iran as response to weekend attack"

https://www.timesofisrael.com | By TOI STAFF.

"Iran state media reports flights suspended over Isfahan, Shiraz and Tehran * Israel, US remain at odds after holding another virtual meeting on planned IDF offensive in Rafah"

The Israeli have a multiplicity of targets to engage and a multiplicity of means to do so. Soup to nuts type stuff all-inclusive if necessary.

Tit-for-tat retaliation will begat further retaliation. An endless cycle!

"tit for tat: noun phrase - an equivalent given in return (as for an injury) : retaliation in kind"

"We have only just begun." - Karen Carpenter. Indeed!

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Menacing.

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What has been feared has now come to pass.

Direct military conflict between Israel and Iran in retaliation for the events of 13 April.

Danger of escalation a great concern.

This of course a developing story. See all links for Live Updates! 

1. "Israel has attacked Iran, US official tells CNN"

https://www.cnn.com | Kathleen Magramo, Sana Noor Haq, Christian Edwards, Aditi Sangal, Elise Hammond, Amir Vera, Tori B. Powell and Maureen Chowdhury, CNN | April 18, 2024.

"Israel has carried out a strike inside Iran, a US official tells CNN, in a move that threatens to push the region deeper into conflict."

2. "Alleged Israeli strikes reported in Iran"

From www.jpost.com | By TZVI JOFFRE | APRIL 19, 2024.

"Syrian reports indicated airstrikes targeted sites belonging to the Syrian Army in the As-Suwayda and Daraa Governorates of southern Syria."

"An Israeli missile strike targeted a site in Iran early Friday morning, according to ABC News. The report came shortly after local sources reported explosions in Isfahan in central Iran, in the As-Suwayda Governorate of southern Syria, and in the Baghdad area and Babil Governorate of Iraq early Friday" morning."

More to follow of a dire and potentially apocalyptic nature I am sure.

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Lavender II.

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More the Israeli AI system, selecting targets without a whole lot of human intervention. See my previous blog entry in this regard.

1. "A Brief History of Kill Lists, from Langley to Lavender"

From https://original.antiwar.com | by Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies | April 17, 2024.

"The Israeli online magazine +972 has published a detailed report on Israel’s use of an artificial intelligence (AI) system called 'Lavender' to target thousands of Palestinian men in its bombing campaign in Gaza. When Israel attacked Gaza after October 7, the Lavender system had a database of 37,000 Palestinian men with suspected links to Hamas or Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ)."

A quick and dirty history [at least from the era if the Second World War] of "kill lists" as referred to. A data base more properly and correctly termed as a Disposition Matrix.

ELIMINATE YOUR ADVERSARY!

Medea Benjamin it should noted a gadfly protestor very fond of causing disruption actions that appear often to be of a clownish variety, counter-productive.

2."‘Lavender’: The AI machine directing Israel’s bombing spree in Gaza"

From https://www.972mag.com | By Yuval Abraham | April 3, 2024.

"The Israeli army has marked tens of thousands of Gazans as suspects for assassination, using an AI targeting system with little human oversight and a permissive policy for casualties, +972 and Local Call reveal."

All devoted readers to the blog are strongly encouraged without reservation or qualification to read the entire 972mag article.

Devoted readers to the blog pay particular close attention to the six steps of the AI protocol/algorithm/formulary/equation involved in the targeting process!

This 972mag article having Israeli sources normally very security aware? Almost seems such details as revealed way too good! A degree of suspicion is warranted!

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Forlorn.

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“They cleverly and with a high level of professionalism execute their duties not only at sea, with the protection of the marine borders of the Motherland, but also voluntarily change their place of duty and with weapons in their hands stand up against Ukrainian neo-nazis on the frontline in the special military operation,” 

Not since the final effort of German submariners in April 1945 has there been such a thing!

"Submariners from Russia's Northern Fleet fight and fall in Ukraine"

"A significant number of sailors from the naval base towns in the Kola Peninsula are killed in Russia's war of aggression."

From https://thebarentsobserver.com | ByAtle Staalesen | April 10, 2024.

Devoted readers to the blog strongly encouraged to read the entire article for themselves.

Naval personnel to include submariners. Highly trained/skilled/experienced sailors of the best possible talent volunteering to fight as INFANTRY - THE Ukraine conflict.

Submariners too I might think having secret knowledge of Russian submarines and missions of same! Normally these naval men given the amount of training/skill/experience their loss or even capture too great a risk to take.

Even it can suggested the deployment of such military men seen as a DESPERATION measure?

German submariners without mission at the very end of World War Two formed into tank-busting units. Engaging Russian and allied tanks at close range with pea-shooter panzerfaust anti-tank round.

German anti-tank units as commanded by the famous German U-boat commander Ali Cremer:

"Korvkpt. Cremer left U-2519 in February 1945 to become field commander of the Marine - (Naval Tank Destroying Battalion) which was pitted against British tanks attempting to occupy the city of Hamburg."

"(A naval tank destroying unit under command of Korvettenkapitän Cremer, including volunteers from a U-boat base, destroyed 24 tanks during the last few days.)"

Desperate times calls for desperate measures and all that?

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Dinars.

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Bad idea. Very bad idea!

Collectibles of war? Even when disarmed still dangerous! 

"Jordanians try to sell downed Iranian rockets on the internet"

"‘Used Iranian ballistic missile in good condition’: Online ads in the kingdom — some of them satirical — offer ballistic missiles, or pieces of them, for sale"

From https://www.timesofisrael.com | By GIANLUCA PACCHIANI | 16 April 2024.

"Some Jordanians have been trying to sell remnants of rockets intercepted over their territory during Iran’s dramatic assault against Israel Saturday night, in which hundreds of deadly projectiles were fired from Iran, Iraq, Syria and Yemen."

[. . . .]

"The listed prices varied considerably, ranging from 50 Jordanian dinars ($70) for a piece of a rocket that fell outside Amman, to 120,000 dinars ($170,000) for a full missile."

Satirical to an extent possibly so. But believe me there will be parties interested in purchasing trophies of war of whatever nature.

My biggest concern would be the carcinogen [cancer causing] agents undoubtedly present in some [if not all] the "projectiles". Purchase at your own risk and if you are sorry years later do not complain.

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Burke DDG-51.

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31-knot Burke still alive after all this many decades? 

Mission ballistic missile intercept and destruction. Mission accomplished!

"American Sailors, Airmen Helped Thwart Iranian Missile Attack on Israel"

From https://www.breitbart.com  KRISTINA WONG | 15 Apr 2024..

"While Israeli air defense systems took out most of the 300 missiles and one-way drones fired by Iran during an unprecedented attack on Israel on Saturday, American sailors and airmen in the region helped to shoot down a number of them."

"U.S. sailors on the USS Arleigh Burke and USS Carney, stationed in the Mediterranean Sea, destroyed between four to six Iranian ballistic missiles, according to a senior military official briefing reporters on Sunday."

American radar Site 512 the Negev desert I imagine very active during the Iranian multi-faceted attack on Israel. In particular Site 512 the purpose of which to detect the launch of Iranian BALLISTIC missiles the Middle-East theater. Providing net-centric intercept information to all firing batteries onshore or at-sea.

And job well done! A real world test of all systems with success!

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