Iran Super Thread- Merged

[Humphrey Bogart]

The best Arab army soldiers are usually contractors...

Foreign Contract Soldiers in the Gulf

Despite flagging oil revenues and the introduction of conscription in the Gulf, the use of foreign contract soldiers, sometimes called mercenaries, is here to stay.

Not surprisingly, the highest proportion of foreign contract soldiers serve in the Gulf’s three richest states, Qatar, the UAE, and Kuwait, where few young men have a strong economic incentive to sign up. Although these three countries instituted mandatory military service for male citizens between 2013 and 2017, the role of contract soldiers has changed little.

Foreign Contract Soldiers in the Gulf

Despite flagging oil revenues and the introduction of conscription in the Gulf, the use of foreign contract soldiers, sometimes called mercenaries, is here to stay.

carnegieendowment.org

The UAE loves Colombians ... oh and Ex Commonwealth chaps to be Officers...

Mike Hindmarsh - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

 

[Mills Bomb]

Sounds like the Iranians and the US have opened up a comms channel again and according to the US, Iran wants to deal.

When you wipe the upper deck a few times, attitudes can change.

Can you provide a source for that?

So far, the only person to claim they want to make a deal is Trump.

Iran says they won't negotiate.

When they were last negotiating, this surprise attack happened.

I would be curious to see your sources and what backs that claim up - is there some breaking news story we're missing?

 

[Humphrey Bogart]

Can you provide a source for that?

So far, the only person to claim they want to make a deal is Trump.

Iran says they won't negotiate.

When they were last negotiating, this surprise attack happened.

I would be curious to see your sources and what backs that claim up - is there some breaking news story we're missing?

Let me introduce you to Google...

https://www.axios.com/2026/03/16/iran-war-us-communication-witkoff-araghchi

 

[Mills Bomb]

I've seen in this thread several people claim the "success" of the Venezuela mission.

Yes, they got Maduro. From a technical perspective, it's fair to saw that mission was a success, they got in, they got out, and they got the target.

But has enough time really passed to call the mission a "success" and with any sort of certainty, can we really know at this point how that plays out long term?

Finding reliable open source information on what's actually happening inside Venezuela has proven fairly difficult. It seems the place is fairly locked down.

It seems like Maria Corina Machado was essentially played by Trump, as well as her supporters. I don't think anyone is holding their breath for her to free Venezuela, it seems more and more like a pipe dream every day.

Maybe this is the wrong thread, but saying that mission was a "success" even in relation to this one, I think we need to see how it really plays out.

 

[Mills Bomb]

Let me introduce you to Google...

https://www.axios.com/2026/03/16/iran-war-us-communication-witkoff-araghchi

"Sources say"

Which sources? Are we talking about sources in the Trump administration?

I'm skeptical, but let's see how it plays out.

 

[Humphrey Bogart]

I've seen in this thread several people claim the "success" of the Venezuela mission.

Yes, they got Maduro. From a technical perspective, it's fair to saw that mission was a success, they got in, they got out, and they got the target.

But has enough time really passed to call the mission a "success" and with any sort of certainty, can we really know at this point how that plays out long term?

Finding reliable open source information on what's actually happening inside Venezuela has proven fairly difficult. It seems the place is fairly locked down.

It seems like Maria Corina Machado was essentially played by Trump, as well as her supporters. I don't think anyone is holding their breath for her to free Venezuela, it seems more and more like a pipe dream every day.

Maybe this is the wrong thread, but saying that mission was a "success" even in relation to this one, I think we need to see how it really plays out.

Enough of a success that the US Embassy opened back up in Caracas 2 days ago for the first time in 7 years.

US embassy in Venezuela reopens as Trump pushes for access to resources

Trump administration has pressed the interim Venezuelan government for concessions on issues such as oil access.

www.aljazeera.com

"Sources say"

Which sources? Are we talking about sources in the Trump administration?

I'm skeptical, but let's see how it plays out.

You asked for a source, you were provided one.