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The precarious ceasefire between Iran, Israel, and the United States nearly broke down last night, as Iran launched a ballistic missile attack against Israel in response to Israeli strikes in Lebanon.

Israel replied with its own strikes against an Iranian petrochemical plant at Mahshahr, along with associated military targets. The Houthis joined the fray by launching their own missile strike against Israel.

Four B-1B Lancers assigned to the 9th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Dyess Air Force Base, Texas, arrive Feb. 6, 2017, at Andersen AFB, Guam. The 9th EBS is taking over U.

Iran has halted its direct missile and drone attacks against Israel—but Israel has made clear that it does not intend to halt military operations against Hezbollah in Lebanon. Accordingly, the war’s center of gravity is shifting, with concerns over a direct Israel-Iran escalation fading; now the biggest question is whether the Israel-Lebanon conflict will prompt Iran to re-engage.

Tenuous Ceasefire

Merkava Tank Israel. Image Credit: Creative Commons.

The US-brokered ceasefire was built around Israel and the Lebanese government, but excluded Hezbollah.

A recent report from the UK Public Accounts Committee has criticised the UK Government’s handling of its defence investment strategy.

Last night, Iran carried out its first ballistic missile attacks against Israel for the first time since the ceasefire was enacted in April earlier this year. Israel did respond and counterattack. Interestingly, the IRGC has stated that it intends to cease additional attacks against Israel as long as Israel does not launch any further attacks against Lebanon. Now, the U.S. is once again rushing in order to broker a lasting peace in the region.

The burden is now on Israel and Hezbollah to come to an agreement to stop the fighting from escalating even further.

Army investigators are looking into the theft of tens of thousands of dollars worth of gear from a soldier’s rental vehicle in Portland, Oregon. The missing Army gear includes flight helmets, supplies and survival radios.
Three soldiers checked into a Portland hotel while on an assignment to return a helicopter to Oregon. They locked $33,000 worth of gear in their rental vehicle that was parked in the hotel’s lot, according to reporting from KGW, an Oregon-based news outlet.

The Iran-Israel Strikes May Have Just Ended – What Now?: Late on June 7 and into the early hours of June 8, Iran launched nearly 30 ballistic missiles towards Israel. It was the first direct exchange of fire between the two countries since the April 8 ceasefire agreement, and according to the Israeli military, the missiles targeted several military facilities. Among them were air bases in central and northern Israel.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard took credit for the strikes and stated that they were a retaliation for recent Israeli strikes on Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Iran’s Strategic Victory: The Week the War’s Outcome Became Clear – With the resumption of hostilities in the War for the Greater Middle East, it’s time to understand what’s happening, because it’s quite an incredible story. Indeed, if you’ll forgive the phrasing, future historians will write astounding histories of how the War for the Greater Middle East ended in an Iranian strategic victory, with its turning point occurring this week.

They’ll also write about how a superpower went to die in the geopolitical quicksand of the Middle East.

The U.S.

Airbus Helicopters has revealed plans to introduce the U145, an uncrewed version of its existing H145 helicopter.

Iran’s top military command, Khatam al-Anbiya central headquarters, has declared an end to its military operations against Israel, after the two sides exchanged a wave of attacks that threatened to bring the conflict back into all-out war. Israel has not responded to Tehran’s announcement.

President Trump told Iran and Israel to stop “shooting” and said the two countries were “looking to do an immediate ceasefire.

The Strait of Hormuz Standoff Is A Game of Economic Chicken. Neither Iran Nor The West Can Win: Iran held its fire on Monday, declining to answer Israel’s overnight strikes with another missile barrage, and the immediate relief is real. But the missile-by-missile drama has been obscuring the more important contest, the one that will actually decide how and when this ends. It is an economic staring match over the Strait of Hormuz, and the longer it runs, the more both sides lose.