The World That Was-Afghanistan, Iran, Israel, Turkey, USA

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Adrian Olivier,

Sunday 11 August – Sunday 18 August:

On Sunday, two days after they began, Iran’s official news agency announced military drills held by the Revolutionary Guards Corps in the western parts of the country. The drills continued until Tuesday in the western province of Kermanshah close to the border with Iraq to “enhance combat readiness and vigilance,” an armed forces official told IRNA. The drills are taking place as Iran has vowed to retaliate against Israel after the killing of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh on July 31 in Tehran. Cited by Iranian media, Revolutionary Guards deputy commander Ali Fadavi said Friday that the Iranian supreme leader’s orders regarding the harsh punishment of Israel and revenge for Haniyeh are clear and will be implemented in the “best possible way.”

On Sunday, U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin told Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant by phone that he had ordered the USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group, which is equipped with F-35C jet fighters, to move more quickly to the Middle East, where it would add to the capabilities of the USS Theodore Roosevelt Carrier Strike Group already in the region. In early August, the Defense Department said the Lincoln would replace the Roosevelt, which is currently near the Gulf of Oman and has been at sea since the beginning of the year, defence officials said. The Lincoln is moving quickly toward the region because U.S. officials would like the two carrier strike groups to overlap before the Roosevelt leaves, defence officials said. It is unclear how long the U.S. would keep two carriers in the region. The Lincoln is currently near the South China Sea and will take roughly two weeks to reach the Middle East, the officials said. The Lincoln and the Roosevelt are nuclear-powered and can carry dozens of aircraft. The guided-missile submarine ordered to the region, the USS Georgia, can carry more than 150 Tomahawk missiles, according to the Navy.

On Monday, Israel put its military on high alert and the Pentagon said it was sending a guided-missile submarine to the region and speeding up the arrival of a second aircraft carrier. This came amid heightened concerns about a possible Iranian and Hezbollah response to the killing of terrorist leaders in Tehran and Beirut. Israel set the high-alert level for its military for the first time this month after observing preparations by Iran and Hezbollah to carry out attacks, a person familiar with the matter said. Israel doesn’t know whether attacks are imminent and is proceeding cautiously, the person said. The Israeli military’s chief of staff, Herzi Halevi, approved plans on Monday and said offensive and defensive preparations were underway, according to the Israeli military. “We are in the days of vigilance and readiness,” said Yoav Gallant, Israel’s defence minister. “The threats from Tehran and Beirut may materialize and it is important to explain to everyone that readiness, preparedness and vigilance are not synonyms for fear and panic,” he said. The U.S. and four European allies have called on Iran to stand down from its threats of a military attack, according to a joint statement with the U.K., Germany, France and Italy released by the White House. The U.S. warned Iran directly and through intermediaries that it could suffer a devastating blow were it to mount a major attack against Israel, The Wall Street Journal reported last week. Iran’s forces “are waiting for the supreme leader’s order, whether for patience and endurance or for response,” said Brig. Gen Asghar Abbas-Gholizadeh, a commander of a provincial branch of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, according to a report by the state-run Iranian Students News Agency. “On the surface, it is too late to respond and take revenge, but the enemy is enduring a lot of pressure by waiting,” he said, according to the report.

On Monday, SpaceX in a press release announced the “first human spaceflight mission to explore Earth from a polar orbit” will launch later this year. “As early as this year, Falcon 9 will launch Dragon’s sixth commercial astronaut mission, Fram2, which will be the first human spaceflight mission to explore Earth from a polar orbit and fly over the Earth’s polar regions for the first time,” SpaceX wrote in a press release. SpaceX said the Fram2 mission will be commanded by Chun Wang, an entrepreneur and adventurer from Malta. Joining Wang will be Jannicke Mikkelsen from Norway, who will serve as vehicle commander; Eric Philips of Australia, the vehicle pilot; and Germany’s Rabea Rogge, mission specialist. Elon Musk’s space company said, “This will be the first spaceflight for each of the crewmembers.” “Throughout the 3-to-5-day mission, the crew plans to observe Earth’s polar regions through Dragon’s cupola at an altitude of 425-450 km [249 to 264 miles], leveraging insight from space physicists and citizen scientists to study unusual light emissions resembling auroras,” SpaceX noted. The company added, “The crew will study green fragments and mauve ribbons of continuous emissions comparable to the phenomenon known as STEVE (Strong Thermal Emission Velocity Enhancement), which has been measured at an altitude of approximately 400-500 km [249 to 311 miles] above Earth’s atmosphere.” Fram2 crew will also study how spaceflight affects the human body; this study includes capturing the first-ever X-ray image of a human in space.

On Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported China’s Huawei Technologies is close to introducing a new chip for artificial intelligence use. Chinese internet companies and telecommunications operators have been testing Huawei’s latest processor, called Ascend 910C, in recent weeks, according to people familiar with the matter. Huawei told potential clients that the new chip is comparable to Nvidia’s H100, which was introduced last year and isn’t directly available in China, the people said. Huawei’s ability to keep advancing in chips is the latest sign of how the company has managed to break through U.S.-erected obstacles and develop Chinese alternatives to products made by the U.S. and its allies. Aided by billions of dollars in state support, it has become a national champion in areas including AI and a key part of Beijing’s endeavour to “delete” American technologies. However, Huawei has run into production delays in its current chips, according to the people. It faces the prospect of further U.S. restrictions that could deprive it of machine components and the latest memory chips used in AI hardware. Initial negotiations between Huawei and potential customers indicate that orders are likely to surpass 70,000 chips, with a total value of around $2 billion, they said. Huawei aims to start shipping as soon as October, the people said. They cautioned that final purchases may differ from initial plans and the delivery schedule may change.

On Tuesday, the Wall Street Journal reported the Biden administration will send Saudi Arabia shipments of bombs worth more than $750 million in the coming months, according to officials from both nations. The deliveries will include 3,000 Small Diameter Bombs and 7,500 Paveway IV bombs, which have been on hold since President Biden halted the shipments in 2021 over Saudi Arabia’s punishing war in Yemen. The $290 million shipment of Small Diameter Bombs, also known as GBU-39s, provides Riyadh with a 250-pound munition that can be launched from a distance to carry out precise attacks, including in urban settings. The $468 million in Paveway IV bombs provides a munition that uses lasers or satellites to locate its target. Administration officials briefed lawmakers and congressional staff on the decision last week, telling them that the deliveries wouldn’t jeopardize the cease-fire in Yemen. U.S. officials said the deliveries will likely start in several months. No additional weapons shipments have been announced by the U.S., beyond the two deliveries of bombs, administration officials and congressional aides said.

On Tuesday, Lockheed Martin and General Dynamics announced their plan to build their own rocket motors to tackle a supply shortage. The companies said General Dynamics will start production next year at its facility in Camden, Arkansas that would initially produce thousands of solid rocket motors a year, exclusively for Lockheed Martin. The plant is located near Lockheed Martin’s GMLRS assembly plant. Rocket and missile motors have been one of the biggest chokepoints in the defence supply chain, alongside computer chips and metal forgings and castings. The shortfalls have limited the industry’s ability to respond to surging demand in Europe, the Middle East and Asia, according to company executives and Pentagon officials. Lockheed Martin and RTX are the biggest makers of rockets and missiles such as the GMLRS used by the Himars launchers widely deployed in Ukraine and the more advanced SM-3 and SM-6 systems. Both companies have criticized the dominant rocket-motor suppliers, Northrop Grumman and the Aerojet Rocketdyne arm of L3Harris Technologies, over production delays. The suppliers have said they are improving output. “It’s clear that we need another major supplier,” said Tim Cahill, head of Lockheed’s missile business, in an interview. Antitrust officials in 2022 blocked Lockheed’s agreed $4.4 billion deal to buy Aerojet, prompting the company to seek alternatives. Cahill said Lockheed looked at deals with domestic and international partners before settling on exclusive talks with General Dynamics around eight months ago. General Dynamics, best known for its Abrams tanks, nuclear submarines and Gulfstream private jets, has been looking to enter the missile motor business for five years, said Firat Gezen, head of its ordnance and tactical systems unit. Gezen said that while motors for GMLRS were the initial focus, it would look at other missile systems and could in the future expand into so-called merchant supplying for companies other than Lockheed. Aerojet and Northrop supply many missile makers. Camden’s defence cluster has become a focus for the surge in production of a variety of missiles. Gezen said that using advanced production systems such as those at its new artillery shell plant in Mesquite, Texas, would limit the drain on local employment and supplier resources. Lockheed has boosted annual GMLRS production to around 10,000 missiles and plans to lift it to 14,000 missiles by the end of the year. Cahill said there was room for more engine suppliers given current demand, though he didn’t rule out the joint venture with General Dynamics becoming the future sole supplier for some systems.

On Wednesday, the Taliban celebrated the third anniversary of their return to power with a parade at a former U.S. air base in Afghanistan, called Bagram. During the American occupation, Bagram was once the centre of America’s war against the Taliban and Al-Qaida. The Bagram parade was an opportunity to showcase some of the military hardware abandoned by U.S. and NATO-led forces after decades of war, including helicopters, Humvees and tanks.

On Thursday, a Russian long-range strategic bomber crashed over the Siberian region of Irkutsk in what was described as a routine flight. Russian state media first reported and confirmed the crash, citing military officials. “The crew ejected. Their lives are not in danger,” the defence ministry said. All four crew members managed to deploy their parachutes ejecting from the plane. “The plane crashed in an uninhabited area. There is no damage on the ground,” the military said. Identified as a nuclear-capable Tu-22M3 bomber, military officials say that the crash was due to technical malfunction. Widely circulating videos reveal that the plane caught fire while in mid-air during either a nighttime or early morning hours flight. The Tu-22M3, which has the NATO codename “Backfire,” is a “long-range supersonic missile carrier bomber,” according to its manufacturer Tupolev’s website. The Soviet-era plane, made from alloys of aluminum, titanium, and magnesium, as well as “high-strength and heat-resistant steels,” made its maiden flight in 1977, with the most up-to-date version entering service in 2018. It is designed to take out sea- and ground-based targets using guided missiles and aerial bombs.

On Friday, a debate in the Turkish parliament over restoring the parliamentary mandate of jailed opposition member Can Atalay devolved into a melee, leaving at least two lawmakers injured. Atalay is a lawyer, rights activist and one of the “Gezi Seven” accused of trying to overthrow the government by orchestrating nationwide protests in 2013. He was sentenced to 18 years in jail in 2022. While in prison, he was elected as a member of parliament with the leftist Workers’ Party of Turkey in 2023 but was subsequently stripped of his mandate. On Friday the opposition moved to reverse the decision — a proposal which members of the ruling Justice and Development party (AKP) of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan vocally (and physically) disagreed with. The punch-up began while Workers’ Party MP Ahmet Şık addressed his colleagues to ask for the release of Atalay from prison. During his speech, he called AKP lawmakers “the biggest terrorists of this country.” At that point, AKP member Alpay Özalan launched into Şık and shoved him to the ground. Other AKP lawmakers joined in to punch him while he was on the floor. The attack quickly turned into a full-fledged brawl that lasted 30 minutes and led to the suspension of the hearing. When the session eventually resumed three hours later, MPs voted to uphold Atalay’s suspension. The parliament also reprimanded Şık for his statements against the AKP and Özalan for the assault that kicked off the fight. Özgür Özel, leader of the main opposition party CHP, said he was ashamed to have witnessed the violence. “Lawmakers punched other lawmakers, even women. This is unacceptable,” he said in comments reported by Reuters.

On Saturday, Vice President Harris announced on Saturday plans to spend $370 million in digital and television ads for her presidential campaign between Labor Day and Election Day. The campaign plans to spend $170 million in TV reservations and $200 million digitally.

On Sunday, Secretary of State Antony J. Blinken headed to Israel to try to clinch a deal that could end the war in Gaza. The visit is part of an intensive diplomatic campaign led by the Biden administration and comes days after Israel’s negotiating team held talks in Qatar with senior American officials, as well as Qatari and Egyptian representatives who are mediating between Israel and Hamas. Those talks ended without a major breakthrough, but the White House said in a statement on Friday that the United States had put forward a “bridging proposal,” with Egyptian and Qatari support, intended to close remaining gaps between the sides. It said that teams would continue to hash out details for carrying out the deal and that senior negotiators hoped to reconvene in Cairo before the end of this week to finalize an agreement. In a statement issued on Saturday night, after the Sabbath, the office of Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said the Israeli negotiating team had expressed “cautious optimism” over the possibility of advancing toward a deal based on the bridging proposal. It did not offer further details and portrayed Hamas as the obstacle to reaching an agreement. Mr. Blinken is scheduled to meet on Monday with Mr. Netanyahu. The potential deal would be carried out in three phases and is based on principles that were laid out by President Biden on May 31 and subsequently endorsed by the United Nations Security Council. It would usher in a cease-fire in Gaza and involve the release of the hostages being held captive in the enclave in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and detainees held in Israel.

source:https://africaunauthorised.com/the-world-that-was-65/

Natalie