Pete Hegseth addresses rumors Iran has 'kamikaze dolphins’ as secret weapon
We've heard about how high-tech some of the US military equipment is, with everything from sci-fi lazers to stealth bombers and even AI powered drones. But trained kamikaze dolphins?
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth isn't denying it.
Hegseth tried to put to bed rumors that Iran is blocking the Strait of Hormuz with 'trained dolphins armed with explosives'.
He said: "It’s still pretty low-level kinetics at this point in time, and I can’t confirm or deny whether we have kamikaze dolphins - but I can confirm they don’t."
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General Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said: "I haven't heard about kamikaze dolphins, it's like sharks with laser beams right?", referencing 1997 film Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery, which saw supervillain Dr. Evil moaning that he couldn't have 'sharks with frickin' laser beams on their heads'.
Due to budget constraints, the character has to settle for ill-tempered mutated sea bass instead.
Did the Soviets train killer dolphins?
The bizarre line of questioning came after a report from the Wall Street Journal seemed to suggest that Iran was considering reviving Soviet-era programs that trained dolphins for Military use.
If you're wondering how this may work, it is basically strapping mines to dolphins and getting them to carry them through the Straight of Hormuz, hitting warships on the way.
It was also suggested that the dolphins could carry and fire harpoons.
In a story originally reported by the BBC, it was claimed that the Russians trained these dolphins to attack warships and 'enemy frogmen'.
Their chief trainer, both in military and civilian life, was Boris Zhurid, who began his career as a submariner before graduating from a medical academy.
He eventually had to sell on the dolphins as he couldn't afford to feed them.
Project Freedom
During the press conference, Hegseth announced 'Project Freedom', a new US operation to protect commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz.
He was quick to make clear this was different to the ongoing war against Iran, and was defensive.
Despite this, he said the ceasefire between the US and Iran is not over, but warned the Iranians against taking any action against any traffic using the Strait of Hormuz, international or from the US.
He told reporters: "Right now the ceasefire certainly holds, but we're going to be watching very, very closely."
He added the new measures would 'restart the free flow of commerce through the Strait of Hormuz'.
And it would be great timing, as the blockade is still causing gas prices to skyrocket across the world.
He continued: "To be clear, this operation is separate and distinct from Operation Epic Fury.
"Project Freedom is defensive in nature, focused in scope and temporary in duration, with one mission, protecting innocent commercial shipping from Iranian aggression."
Thomas Bamford