James Stout

It's also quite possible what the Iranian state is saying is not true.

We can confirm that there were strikes there using all kinds of information, satellite imagery, open source flight tracking, etc.

The flight strikes definitely happened.

Strikes this week by the IDF also killed Ali Larijani and Basij Unit Commander Holamreza Soleimani.

Shortly after these claims first surfaced, a note was published in Larijani's handwriting

But it is fairly certain now that he is dead.

Larigiani's assassination, I guess, or killing, whatever you want to call it, by the IDF is notable because he's one of the people who would have had the sway in the regime to negotiate with the United States.

You could make a case that the IDF killing him is a way for negotiated peace to be even harder, for this conflict to continue even more.

He is also a person who is responsible for massive crimes against the citizens of Iran, including the violent, murderous clampdown on protests that we saw in January of this year.

The United States is also deploying the 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit to the Middle East as part of an amphibious response group that includes the USS Tripoli.

In fact, it's approximately 2,500 Marines who will be deployed.

This is the closest we've seen to any official communication of United States boots on the ground in the region.

There's a number of things that a Marine Expeditionary Unit could do.

One of them is to do search and rescue or provide evacuations for people on vessels in the Strait of Hormuz that are struck.

Another of them is to assault or take islands where Iran may have based its military infrastructure.

So to do things that are either not possible or not easy with airstrikes.

Another one is to add more air power that's closer to the region.

The Tripoli can carry their F-35 Lightnings.

So it could be that.

Another one is for these 2,500 Marines to invade Iran, right, and to begin a land war to attempt to invade.