Scivillage.com Casual Discussion Science Forum

Reports are saying that a special operations team of IRGC forces crossed into Kuwait's Bubiyan island. Their objective appears to have been to either capture or kill a small group of US military forces located on the island. The Iranians were confronted by Kuwaiti military forces, a small battle ensued, and the IRGC was forced to withdraw. It appears that the Kuwaitis captured several (4?) of the Iranian infiltrators.

Kuwait says, “the State of Kuwait reserves its full and inherent right to self-defense in accordance with Article (51) of the United Nations Charter, and to take such measures as it deems appropriate to defend its sovereignty and protect its people and residents on its territories, in accordance with international law.”



The UAE says

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Before he left for his state visit to China this morning, President Trump posted these not-so-subtle messages directed at Iran:

I grew bored of the Daily Trump Show on all TV networks and haven't been paying attention for weeks now. Did he ever win his taxpayer-funded war? lol

(May 17, 2026 09:18 PM)Magical Realist Wrote: [ -> ]I grew bored of the Daily Trump Show on all TV networks and haven't been paying attention for weeks now. Did he ever win his taxpayer-funded war? lol

(May 16, 2026 05:22 AM)Magical Realist Wrote: [ -> ]We will never free ourselves from the Machine until we quit thinking in the binary terms of functionality vs uselessness. This is not the world we evolved in, when we roamed the sunny plains of the vast Serengeti. There was no time nor motivation to defer the value of whatever was happening now into a projected future of fulfillment that never comes. ...Everything was fleeting, and so we lived life in the immediacy and sufficiency of what simply is.

Yep, that tracks.

President Trump just posted this:

A few hours ago, President Trump posted this:

wow..the Iran war is going to end again? What is this, the 5th time Trump has been promising this? I think he's just trying to appease all the travelers this weekend who are paying high prices for gas. Gotta make himself look good for the midterms..

There has been an ongoing ceasefire since the first time Trump announced cessation of hostilities.
Whether a deal can be made with Iran is up to the regime, that has repeatedly lied.

Britain’s navy prepares to clear mines in the Strait of Hormuz while waiting for a peace deal
https://apnews.com/article/iran-us-brita...3f64b45bca

EXCERPTS: U.S. President Donald Trump has lashed out at allies for not doing more to support the United States’ war effort in Iran, whose chokehold on the strait has crippled international shipping and sent energy prices soaring. In March, Trump told NATO allies to “go get your own oil” and secure the strait themselves.

On the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, in the British Overseas Territory of Gibraltar, the U.K.’s Royal Navy is preparing to do that — but only once a peace agreement is reached. Trump said Saturday that a deal with Iran has been “largely negotiated” after calls with Israel and other allies in the region, but it still needs finalizing.

Britain’s Armed Forces Minister Al Carns took a small group of reporters to visit the RFA Lyme Bay as it prepares for a possible international operation, led by the U.K. and France, to secure the strait. As Carns spoke, the amphibious landing vessel, docked at the gateway to the Mediterranean, was being loaded with ammunition and mine-hunting sea drones equipped with sonar.

[...] Iran could have a “huge” variety of mines throughout strait, said Cmdr. Gemma Britton, who is in charge of the Royal Navy’s Mine and Threat Exploitation Group. Mines could be rocket-propelled, cabled or sit on the seabed and be triggered by sound, movement or light.

[...] It’s still not clear if any mines are in the strait — or if the U.K. and its allies will be deploying to remove them.

A U.S. official speaking on condition on anonymity to discuss sensitive military matters told the AP that the U.S. has not found or destroyed any mines in the strait, nor have any ships been damaged. Commercial traffic has quietly continued to flow, though at a much lower volume than before the conflict.

When asked by the AP if the British effort was partly for show, to curry favor with the U.S., Carns said he was sure some mines had been blown up or floated away but that assurance is not good enough for commercial insurance companies. He said those companies need “absolute certainty” to get vessels traveling through the strait again.

“That’s what this capability will provide,” he said. The international effort to secure the strait would happen only once hostilities are over.

“Final aspects and details of the Deal are currently being discussed, and will be announced shortly,” Trump said Saturday on social media, with no details on timing. This is not the first time in recent weeks that a deal has been described as close... (MORE - missing details)

(May 24, 2026 07:55 PM)C C Wrote: [ -> ]Britain’s navy prepares to clear mines in the Strait of Hormuz ... but only once a peace agreement is reached.

9_9 Typical.