By Capt Joseph R. John on March 2nd, 2026

The Islamic Republic of Iran, for 47 years, has attempted to build a quasi-empire from Afghanistan to Lebanon.  Iran has been the world’s leading “State Sponsor of Terrorism” for generations, has abused and massacred its own people, has killed Americans through its proxies, and has covertly attempted to build nuclear weapons and develop an international ballistic missile that could strike the United States.  From Lebanon to Yemen and Syria to Iraq, the regime has armed, trained, and funded terrorist militias that have soaked the earth with the blood of Americans. 

Since Iran’s secret nuclear program became public in 2002, every American president has vowed that Iran wouldn’t be allowed to possess a nuclear weapon. Presidents Bush, Obama, Trump, and Biden tried using every available option from polite requests to painstaking negotiations to cyberattacks to surprise airstrikes to terminate Iran’s nuclear weapons program, all to no avail.  Iran rejected the 9-month attempt by the US to try to convince the Ayatollah to stop reconstituting the development of Iran’s nuclear weapons program and to terminate their international ballistic missile development program, designed to have the capability to strike the United States.  A combined joint operation of the US and Israeli commands developed an attack plan to finally put an end to Iran’s 47-year plan to kill Americans and to end Iran’s external aggression in the Middle East and elsewhere.   

When it was revealed by intelligence sources that there was going to be an early morning meeting of Iran’s government leaders on February 27, 2026, the US initiated an early surprise attack by a combined joint operation of the US and Israeli Military commands, Operation Epic Fury, that was initiated at 8:15 AM; it’s goal was to affect regime change.  The tactical surprise strike was designed to take out Iranian Government and Military Leaders. Operation Epic Fury carried out 900 strikes in the first 12 hours.  Americans are living through and witnessed one of the most important moments in world history, and one of America’s finest hours.

The Combined Joint Operation hit Iran’s government agencies, the Defense Ministry, Iran’s Parliament, Iranian Naval Bases, the Air Defense Headquarters, Command and Control Centers, Iran’s top Intelligence Agency, Missile Launch Sites, the Missile Industry, Revolutionary Guard Facilities, Iran’s Naval Headquarters where 9 Iranian Naval ships were sunk, the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s Compound, and many other targets.   The Ayatollah, members of his family, the IRGC Commander, the Defense Minister, and 48 of Iran’s senior leaders (according to President Trump) were killed.  30 Israeli missiles hit the Ayatollah’s compound in the opening round of Operation Epic Fury (targeting intelligence for the Ayatollah’s compound was provided to Israel by the CIA). 

Operation Epic Fury was supported by the largest US Naval Armada in the Middle East in a decade, which includes the USS Gerald Ford (CVN-78) and USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) Carrier Strike Groups with nearly 200 F-35, F-22, and F-16 US Navy and US Marine Corps fighter jets, hundreds of unmanned drones, the support of 15 massive capable US Navy vessels, as well as with the support of hundreds of US Air Force’s advanced jet aircraft whose 900 strikes hit at least 500 targets.  In the open salvos of the attack on Iran in the Eastern Mediterranean, the USS Gerald R. Ford CVN-78) Carrier Strike Group with US Navy units consisting of the USS Winston S. Churchill (DDG-81), USS Bainbridge (DDG-96), USS Mahan (DDG-72), USS Mitscher (DDG-57), USS Roosevelt (DDG-80), USS Buckley (DE-51), and the USS Georgia (SSGN-729), a guided missile US Nuclear Submarine, launched aircraft and missiles. Those units were closer to Iran than the ships in the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72) Carrier Strike Group.

Two US Navy ships in the Persian Gulf were in support of the US 5th Fleet Headquarters in Bahrain which included the USS Michael Murphy (DDG-112) and the USS Canberra (LCS-33).  In the Northern Arabian Sea the USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN- 72) Carrier Strike Group consisted of the  USS McFaul (DDG-74),), USS Spruance (DDG-111), USS John Finn (DDG-113), USS Frank E Peterson, Jr. (DDG-121), USS Mitscher (DDG-57),  USS Pickney (DDG-91), USS Delbert D. Black (DDG-119), USS Tulsa (LCS-16), USS Santa Barbara (LCS-32), and a number of unidentified US Nuclear Submarines.

By seizing Venezuela’s crude oil operation, production capacity, and shipping facilities, the US eliminated Venezuela’s financial ability to extract, produce, and sell crude oil to Communist China.  The United States does not need Venezuela’s crude oil.  The US crude oil reserve rivals Saudi Arabia’s crude oil reserves and is self-sustaining.  However, Communist China does need Venezuela’s crude oil and it has been buying 90% of Venezuela’s crude oil production at substantially reduced prices (so the CCP’s Venezuela’s crude oil supply is now available at much higher prices).

Communist China also needs to purchase all of Iran’s crude oil production at substantially reduced prices.  Because of the popular uprising in Iran, and the US Joint Military operation to effect regime change, CCP’s Iranian’s supply of crude will be available only at substantial prices.  

The CCP is also buying a massive amount of Russia’s crude oil exports, however, because of Russia’s refusal to negotiate an end to the Ukraine conflict, the US cautioned the world that any country purchasing Russian crude will be hit with massive increased tariffs (CCP’s Russian supply of crude oil is now available at much higher prices).  India has ceased purchasing Russian Crude, so it won’t be hit with new massive US tariffs.  Without the supply of low-priced crude oil from Venezuela, Iran, and Russia, the cost of Communist China crude to sustain an invasion of Taiwan would substantially increase the cost of its Navy’s invasion of Taiwan.

Power does not come from the ownership of crude oil; a successful energy strategy comes from “dominance;” power comes from who actually controls access to crude oil.  The nation that controls energy will largely control the world as Communist China, Russia and Iran well know.

Copyright by Capt Joseph R. John.  All Rights Reserved.  The material can only be posted on another Website or distributed on the Internet by giving full credit to the author.  It may not be published, broadcast, or rewritten without the permission from the author.