Pierre Don

The @abcnews is out this morning with a disturbing story: The IRGC is actively making use of detailed satellite imagery and analysis published by MizarVision, a Chinese geospatial analytics company — and has used this data to target American, Australian, and allied forces in the Middle East. This is a fluid and fast-moving situation and I want to be clear about what we know so far. 1️⃣ It's clear U.S. forces in the Gulf are operating in an environment that is very different from any other they have encountered previously. Commercial satellite imagery collected by foreign companies is now available at a quality and frequency that is good enough to put U.S. combat forces in harm's way. This is ultimately why U.S. collection platforms like @vantortech and @planet chose this weekend to suspend their coverage over the Middle East. Unfortunately, predictably, foreign competitors like MizarVision see no reason to censor their own product offerings. 2️⃣ The implications are grim: ostensibly private Chinese AI companies are directly helping the Iranian regime target U.S. and allied forces in the region. The ABC has information that the IRGC is striking U.S. facilities "within hours" of MizarVision publishing them. I told @henryzwartz that this would effectively amount to Iranian forces outsourcing targeting data to a Chinese company: It is "the greatest degree of support we have seen China provide to a proxy force against the United States" — there is really no other way to read it. 3️⃣ If the Chinese government wanted to rein in the actions of MizarVision and other imagery providers, it could. And it should. Spokespersons from @MFA_China have so far attempted to downplay the significance of this development. I'm willing to buy that Chinese officials haven't been aware of the importance of this particular imagery or the extent of its use by the IRGC — but China should recognize this is an extremely serious development. We're talking about Chinese enterprises directly supplying actionable intelligence to wartime enemies of the United States. MizarVision has spent weeks zeroing in on U.S. forces and bases in the region and publishing their activities on its Weibo account. It hasn't done the same to Iran. It's very clear what is going on here — and it is unacceptable. This doesn't have to be a story about China. It's clear the United States is also learning about the battlefield potential of commercial sat imagery in real-time. Beijing should understand that U.S. concerns at this moment are deadly serious. I expect the U.S. government will do everything in its power to defend its personnel. China should mirror the U.S. suspension of commercial satellite imagery collection over the Middle East. abc.net.au/news/2026-04-0…

BREAKING: Incredible videos recorded by Timonsnyc, a plane spotter in Larissa, show RQ-180, one of the United States’ most secretive spy drones operating from Greece. The drone is reportedly being used not only to monitor Russian forces in the Baltic Sea region, but also to support operations in Iran. This is the RQ-180 spy drone, which appears visually similar to the B-2A Spirit bomber, though much smaller in size and scale. #OperationEpicFury #OperationLionsRoar

This supposedly 'definitive' account of the F-15E rescue needs some serious fact-checking! "unclipped his safety harness and raised himself gingerly out of the battered ejector seat"❓ There's plenty more... so better to simply say it is 'imagined'?

🇮🇷🇺🇸 The AH-6 Little Birds used in the operation to rescue an F-15 pilot from Iran are 27 feet wide and fit inside a C-130. They also carry miniguns, Hellfire missiles, and rocket pods. Top speed 175 mph. Painted black. Flown by the Night Stalkers, inches off the ground, through streets where Black Hawks can't fit. Been doing this for 40 years. Earned the nickname "Killer Egg" in the 1980s. Still unmatched. Source: GO160THSoar YT

Get Ready.. Prepare yourself to witness history unfold right before your eyes! 🚀 For the first time ever, the entire Orientale Basin, a massive and mysterious region on the Moon’s surface, has been fully captured thanks to the efforts of NASA’s Artemis II crew. This remarkable achievement marks a huge step forward in space exploration, revealing a breathtaking new view of our celestial neighbor. The clarity and detail in this historic image are absolutely stunning! 🌕🛰️ As we move further into space, it reminds us of the endless wonders still waiting to be discovered.

Some may be wondering why the US flew 2 x MC-130 into a landing zone in Iran rather than use other types available. The clue is in the use of the Night Stalker AH-6 Little Bird Helicopters, which were also destroyed at the forward landing site. 🧵1/8 twz.com/air/night-stal…

The Nirvana guitarist who became a Green Beret. Jason Everman grew up in a difficult childhood, learning guitar as an escape. In 1989, he joined Nirvana as their second guitarist but rarely got to play. After disputes with the band, he moved to Soundgarden as their bassist for five years. In 1994, Everman was studying Renaissance philosophy and came across Benvenuto Cellini's advice: "A complete man should be an artist, a warrior, and a philosopher". Everman had already mastered the first. So he enlisted in the US Army to pursue the second. He crushed Ranger selection, then went even further and made it through Special Forces selection. As a Green Beret, he deployed multiple times to Iraq and Afghanistan, serving 12 years in the military. After leaving the service, he traveled to Tibet, earned a Bachelor of Arts degree, and continued pursuing the third pillar: philosophy. When asked about his motivation in life, Everman's answer was simple: "I want to make as much as I can out of my limited time on earth."

@PimV Het NOS-Journaal bakte er helemaal niks van.

@PierreDon61 Speculyse

Interesting 🧵🤔

The unit that extracted our Colonel from Iran

🇺🇸🇮🇷 BIG | A senior Trump administration official told Axios that before locating the F-15 Weapons Systems Officer (WSO) and launching the rescue operation, the Central Intelligence Agency initiated a deception campaign inside Iran. As part of this effort, information was spread suggesting that U.S. forces had already found him and were moving him on the ground for extraction out of the country. ➡️ The official stated that the Central Intelligence Agency used its unique capabilities to search for and locate the operator. “This was like finding a needle in a haystack, except in this case it was a brave American hiding in a mountain crevice, practically invisible without the CIA’s capabilities,” the official said. According to the official, the Central Intelligence Agency immediately shared the pilot’s exact location with the Pentagon and the White House. The U.S. President then ordered an immediate rescue operation, which the Pentagon carried out, while the Central Intelligence Agency continued to support the mission with real-time intelligence. See the latest updates with us: @visionergeo

Tonight, people around Dehdasht provided an important help to the American pilot. By showing up in large numbers on the roads, they effectively blocked the ONLY POSSIBLE ground route for the Islamic regime’s forces to reach to the area the pilot had ejected on. I am so proud of these noble people❤️. With empty hands and their lives in their hands isolated with NO INTERNET FOR 36 days now, they are doing everything they can to support this military strike as it is the ONLY opening they can have to GET RID of this terrorist regime, which they can never get rid of unarmed AS THEY ARE. #FreeIran‌ #IranRevolution2026‌ #LongLiveIran_JavidShah

‼️🇺🇲🇮🇷 BIG | According to Fox News, the safety of the American pilot who crashed in the mountains of Iran was protected by the US Air Force around the clock. Moreover, as part of the protective operation, the positions of the Iranians near the American pilot were struck with the full range of weapons, from tactical aviation to B-1 type strategic bombers. It is also revealed that an MQ-9 Reaper drone neutralized with a precise strike an Iranian soldier who approached the location of the American pilot within 3 km. See the latest updates with us: @visionergeo

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❗❗ 🇷🇺🇮🇷 Russian and Iranian propaganda outlets are claiming the U.S. concealed additional losses, including possible casualties aboard helicopters not initially reported. 🟥 However, MH-6 Little Bird helicopters are commonly transported aboard MC-130J Commando II aircraft in U.S. special operations, and several technical factors explain their destruction on site: ▪️ MH-6 helicopters are designed to be compact; for transport inside a C-130, their main and tail rotors are removed, along with external mounts if needed. ▪️ A single MC-130 can carry two such helicopters, which can be reassembled and made operational within 15–20 minutes by trained crews. ▪️ If extraction fails, equipment is destroyed due to: 1.Time constraints — reloading and securing helicopters takes too long during active combat conditions 2.Aircraft incapacity — if the MC-130 is damaged, stuck, or unable to take off 3.“Zero-Zero” protocol — forces destroy all equipment to prevent enemy use or propaganda exploitation ▪️ Helicopters are typically destroyed using thermite charges, which melt engines and critical electronics. See the latest updates with us: @NSTRIKE1231

BREAKING: In addition to the destruction of at least one HC-130J Combat King II of the U.S. Air Force inside Iran, at least a pair of MH-6M Little Bird helicopters of the 160th SOAR, used by U.S. Army Special Forces (Delta Force) during last night’s operation to rescue second F-15E crew, were also destroyed by U.S. forces. The remains of these helicopters can be seen at the FARP site, which was subsequently struck to deny access to equipment and systems. These are not signs of success—these are signs of failure. #OperationEpicFury #OperationLionsRoar

🚨 BREAKING : Two Israeli commando units — Sayeret Matkal and Unit 5101 “Shaldag” — participated in the rescue of the American pilot near Isfahan, according to the latest reports. •Sayeret Matkal is the IDF’s elite general‑purpose commando unit with deep‑penetration and hostage‑rescue capabilities.  •Shaldag is an Israeli Air Force special forces unit trained for clandestine operations, reconnaissance, and combat search‑and‑rescue missions behind enemy lines.

🇺🇸🇮🇷 HOW DOWNED U.S PILOTS IN IRAN STAYED HIDDEN AND CONNECTED When the U.S. F-15E crew ejected over Iran, they weren't cut off, they simply switched to a device called CSEL. Built by Boeing, it’s a small, rugged unit attached to the pilot’s vest that survives ejection and immediately starts working. Instead of talking over radio, it sends short encrypted bursts: location, status, and messages like “injured” or “enemy nearby” using frequency-hopping signals that look like background noise to enemy systems. That’s the key: no voice, no easy signal to track, no triangulation. It links to military satellites, feeding real-time data to rescue teams while letting the pilot stay silent and hidden. Only when extraction is close does it switch modes, allowing helicopters or aircraft to lock onto the exact position. In other words, even behind enemy lines, the pilot isn’t alone; they’re digitally tethered to the entire rescue network without giving away their position. Source: Ynet

Vrolijke paaskleuren én ‘verstopte’ paaseitjes op de open dag in glasblazerij de Oude Horn.

@PimV Zeg dat wel. Hadden geen tijd meer om nog wat chocolade paaseitjes achter te laten… 😉

@PierreDon61 lekker gewerkt door de pathfinders

Wat een puinhoop 🫢