If it weren’t for the fact most of it is coming from people (and bots) who hate the U.S. and/or are active supporters of the mad mullah’s terrorist regime, I would be surprised at all the accounts on X holding forth that it is wrong to engage in surprise attacks on your enemies, and that sinking the Iranian warship was a violation of international law. The fact that most of the latter couldn’t tell you the difference between the Hague and Geneva Conventions, or which Geneva convention is applicable, pretty much sums it up. Let me expand a bit on what I posted in response to a odious bit of drivel.
First, we are in a de facto war as Congress has not formally declared a state of war. Then again, Congress has not formally declared a state of war since WWII. It has approved actions under the War Powers Act, and under UN obligations (Korea) but the old forms of formal declarations hasn’t be used or honored in decades and is not likely to be any time soon. That’s a topic for another day, but most modern conflicts are likely to start with a surprise and end only when one party (if just two parties) isn’t standing.
Second, one can argue that Iran has been in a state of de jure war with us since 1979. They’ve been quite open about it, sacked our embassy, killed a thousand or so troops and civilians (some of whom were kidnapped), etc., etc., etc., as Yul used to say. They have funded quite a few terrorist organizations around the world as well, including some in our own hemisphere. Good odds they have sleeper cells in the U.S. right now as previously discussed here. There de jure state of war also applies to Israel.
Now, the U.S. and Israel looked at the board, saw Iran was not going to stop working to get nuclear weapons, was ramping up funding and supplies to various terrorist groups, and building up huge stockpiles of conventional drones and ballistic missiles, and were a major threat and not just a PITA. They constituted an existential threat to both countries, to Western Civilization and its concepts, and thus to the world. Game on as in a year or less they would be in a position to start the version of Armageddon that would bring out the hidden imam and delight their savage little hearts even if it didn’t bring him back. So, game on.
Iran chose to receive in this game of FAFO, and they have not enjoyed the FO. Their military, IRGC, and basij (sorry, not sorry, not capitalizing those jerks) and general leadership are in the process of being hunted and eliminated. While regime change may not be the formal goal, it will be an end result provided no one chicken’s out. Lot of people who’s rice bowls are being upset, and/or who just hate the U.S. including far too many American politicians, are pushing openly and covertly for the latter. Check out Data Republican on X for a LOT of good intel.
Somehow, both in the attack on Iran and the sinking of the cruiser, a number of useful idiots are out there screaming about how surprise isn’t fair. Personal take: if you are in a fair fight, your tactics sucketh more than a 10 to the -16th tor vacuum and so do you. Hate to break it to the defeatist chorus (who I suspect know very good and well and are just lying to foment problems) but from individual to squad, squad to senior leadership, achieving surprise is taught as a good thing to do, because the people doing the teaching are not idiots. Want a good primer on surprise at the strategic level? Read David Weber’s Honor Harrington series as it is discussed in detail (it is David after all) in a number of the books. Seriously, good reads anyway but a lot there for leadership.
Now, I can’t truly wrap my head around some of the arguments about the sinking of the Iranian military vessel. So, let’s have some fun.
It was a surprise attack! No Excrement! (My Godmother reads and has not been happy when I cuss). That’s classic submarine warfare be it against military vessels (a very good idea as they can and often do shoot back) or civilian merchant vessels of those with whom you are at war. Both are valid and fair targets per the laws and customs of war. You don’t give warning so you can be sure to sink them and not have them get away.
They were in international waters! Ah, take a look at where the majority of military and civilian ships sunk were sunk in previous wars. Go ahead, I’ll wait. <eye roll> In case you are wondering, I’m aware of no treaty and am prepared to say there is no treaty which we have ratified forbidding such.
The sub didn’t render aid to/pick-up survivors! They pretty much never have in the history of submarine warfare. Subs have a very limited space, limited supplies, no spare space, and a relatively small crew. As such, while it may be that a single person or a couple of people have been picked up by a sub, no sub is going to try to pick up a group of survivors that can easily outnumber its crew and for which they have no room to put them. Rescue has always been on surface ships and during WWII there were even ships designated for such in some convoys. Surface ships have larger crews, some free (if not very comfortable) space for housing survivors, etc. Even when subs picked up downed pilots in the Pacific in WWII, they were transferred to surface ships or land bases ASAP. Again, also, no treaty of which I am aware or to which we are a signatory obligates submarines to do so.
They were sailing from India/an exercise! So flipping what? They were an enemy combatant from a Navy that we had said from the start we were going to destroy in toto. They were sailing for a combat zone, even if it was home, with no signal of intent of non-belligerence. The captain could have initiated communications with neutral parties or the U.S. to say if he was just trying to get his crew home and would not attempt to take part in combat. He could have sought neutral port (see Graf Spee for limited example) for a time or allowed his crew and ship to be interned for the duration. He had options, did not take them, and as such was fair game by the laws and customs of war both.
They didn’t pose a threat! By who’s standards? They were a warship, and equipped with both anti-submarine sensor and weapons. They had surface capabilities as well. Even if every weapon was unloaded and every magazine empty or locked up tight, they were a threat as they could become armed at any time, including after returning home. Again, by the laws and customs of war, a fair and valid target.
I could go on, but that hits the high points. The defeatist chorus is extremely opposed to: winning any war where any credit can go to Trump; winning any war against a terrorist regime they’ve protected since 1979; winning any war that helps the survival of Israel; and, winning any war that saves or advances the tenets of Western Civilization which they hate almost as much as they hate themselves. That a lot of them are the so-called ‘credentialed elites’ that have been screwing things up by the numbers for several decades now should be a surprise to no one.
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