3 Takeaways From The U.S. Bombing Of Iran’s Nuclear Sites
The bombings are a powerful deterrent to the 'CRINK' alliance; talk of America’s decline is merely wishful thinking; and leadership matters.The bombings are a powerful deterrent to the 'CRINK' alliance; talk of America’s decline is merely wishful thinking; and leadership matters.'Blown to bits': Suicide bomber targets Christian church in jihadist-controlled Syria
Multitudes of Syrian Christians gathered for mass Sunday evening inside the Greek Orthodox Church of the Prophet Elias in Damascus — and dozens of them never returned home.
Their prayers were interrupted by a jihadist who opened fire on the faithful, then detonated an explosive vest, killing at least 25 Christians and wounding 63 others. The explosion reportedly caused extensive damage to the structure of the church.
This terrorist attack — yet another reminder of the unrelenting persecution of Christians worldwide — was supposedly executed by a member of ISIS.
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa — the Islamic terrorist also known as Abu Mohammad al-Julani, who rose through the ranks of the Islamic State of Iraq before founding an Al-Qaeda affiliate in Syria, Jabhat al-Nusra — condemned the attack and expressed condolences, reported the state-owned network Alikhbaria Syria.
Al-Sharaa called the attack a "heinous crime" that serves as a reminder of the importance of solidarity and unity of the regime and people in the face of security threats.
Christian persecution watchdogs have warned in recent months that the al-Sharaa regime cannot be trusted. After all, the regime is largely composed of and led by elements of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham, an Al-Qaeda spinoff terrorist organization linked in its formative years to the late leader of ISIS, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, and whose current leader was until recently a specially designated global terrorist who fought against American forces in Iraq.
Jeff King of International Christian Concern, for instance, noted after the reported massacre of Syrian Christians by regime-aligned jihadists in March that the government is "Al-Qaeda and ISIS in a new guise."
Despite his personal history with ISIS and Al-Qaeda, it is nevertheless in al-Sharaa's interest to respond forcefully to the attack, not only to remain on good terms with President Donald Trump — who vowed to "protect persecuted Christians" ahead of the 2024 election and whose administration lifted U.S. sanctions last month — but to counter the internal threat to his rule. After all, ISIS now regards the Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham-led regime as illegitimate.
RELATED: Progressives' Middle East meddling keeps costing innocent lives
Al Jazeera reported that ISIS has repeatedly attacked government forces in recent months, labeling the government an "apostate regime."
Mazhar al-Wais, the Syrian minister of justice, called the bombing a "cowardly crime targeting the unity of Syrians," suggesting that al-Sharaa's regime would not tolerate terrorism.
A senior U.S. official told Blaze News, "This is just another reminder that global jihadists see innocent unarmed Christians as legitimate targets."
"The new government in Damascus will be measured in large part by its willingness to protect minorities and neutralize groups like ISIS," added the official.
Ever distrustful of the regime, the Syrian Network for Human Rights insisted Sunday that "protecting the crime scene at Mar Elias Church is a necessary first step toward establishing the truth and achieving accountability."
'People were praying safely under the eyes of God.'
The watchdog group suggested that extra to securing the site's perimeter and preventing unauthorized entry and tampering with evidence, it is essential that Syrian authorities "regulate the movement of personnel and media to ensure that only authorized forensic teams are allowed to work on site" and to "implement accurate documentation procedures."
The Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch said in the immediate wake of the attack, "The treacherous hand of evil struck this evening claiming our lives, along with the lives of our loved ones who fell today as martyrs during the evening Divine Liturgy at the Church of the Prophet Elias in Dweilaa, Damascus."
Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople Bartholomew I asked Patriarch John X, the primate of the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch and All the East, to convey his heartfelt condolences and support to the families of the victims, and prayed to "the All-Good God to rest the souls of the innocent victims of the attack."
RELATED: Why are Islamists targeting Catholic priests?
Witnesses indicated that when the suicide bomber entered the church and began firing, parishioners heroically charged him, reported the Associated Press. Once confronted, the masked terrorist detonated his vest.
"People were praying safely under the eyes of God," said Fr. Fadi Ghattas, who was present when at least 20 Christians were killed by the explosion. "There were 350 people praying at the church."
Issam Nasr, a witness who was praying inside the church, said he observed some victims get "blown to bits."
"We have never held a knife in our lives," said Nasr, underscoring the defenseless nature of the Christians targeted in Damascus. "All we ever carried were our prayers."
According to International Christian Concern, parish priest Fr. Youhanna Shehata assisted in carrying the remains of over 20 victims out of the church in the wake of the attack.
Blaze News reached out to the White House for comment but did not immediately receive a response.
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DHS warns of attacks stateside after Iran bombings, years of open borders
The Department of Homeland Security issued a national terrorism advisory bulletin on Sunday warning that Iran-linked extremists might seek to execute retaliatory attacks on American soil in the wake of the U.S. B-2 bombings of Iranian nuclear sites.
The previous U.S. administration's failure to secure the southern border, its cover-up of the rise in terrorism-linked migrants, and its release of hundreds of Iranian nationals into the homeland altogether appear to have helped create the environment in which such threats are viable.
Masoud Pezeshkian, the president of Iran, told French President Emmanuel Macron in a call on Sunday, "The U.S. has attacked us; what would you do in such a situation? Naturally, they must receive a response to their aggression."
RELATED: DOD reveals stunning new details following Trump's attack on Iran
The Iranian regime apparently intends to respond to the American bombings of the nuclear facilities at Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan in part by closing the Strait of Hormuz, which would disrupt global oil and gas supplies. According to Iranian state media, the Shiite nation's parliament agreed on Sunday to take this consequential step, but the final decision rests with Iran's national security council.
The Trump administration indicated that the decision to close down the shipping lane, which roughly 20% of the world's oil and gas transits, would be a "suicidal move."
The Iranian regime, designated by the U.S. as a state sponsor of terrorism 40 years ago, might entertain other suicidal forms of retaliation.
The DHS suggested that Iran may rely upon diasporic radicals to follow through on its promised revenge, noting that "low-level cyber attacks" against American networks by pro-Iranian hacktivists and by Tehran-backed actors are likely.
In terms of kinetic attacks, the terrorism advisory noted that "the likelihood of violent extremists in the Homeland independently mobilizing to violence in response to the conflict would likely increase if Iranian leadership issued a religious ruling calling for retaliatory violence against targets in the Homeland."
"The ongoing Iran conflict is causing a heightened threat environment in the United States," added the DHS bulletin. "Iran also has a long-standing commitment to target U.S. government officials it views as responsible for the death of an Iranian military commander killed in January 2020."
It wouldn't be the first time in recent years Iran hatched violent plots targeting individuals on American soil.
For example, a Pakistani radical traveled from Iran to the U.S. in 2024 to allegedly avenge the death of Qasem Soleimani, the Iranian terrorist and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps commander who was snuffed out by an American airstrike at Iraq's Baghdad airport on Jan. 2, 2020. Asif Raza Merchant was arrested on July 12 for allegedly plotting to assassinate Trump and other public officials.
Years earlier, Iranian intelligence officials and assets targeted a New York-based critic of the regime. One of the men involved in the plot was Niloufar Bahadorifar, an American citizen living in California.
'We have zero information?'
"Since the start of the conflict, we have seen media releases by foreign terrorist organizations (FTOs) — including Hamas, Lebanese Hizballah, the Houthis, and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, among others — some of which have called for violence against U.S. assets and personnel in the Middle East because of Israel’s attack," said the DHS bulletin. "The conflict could also motivate violent extremists and hate crime perpetrators seeking to attack targets perceived to be Jewish, pro-Israel, or linked to the U.S. government or military in the homeland."
RELATED: Why the right turned anti-war — and should stay that way
Retired San Diego Border Patrol Chief Patrol Agent Aaron Heitke told members of the House Homeland Security Committee in September that the Biden-Harris administration concealed from the American public information about illegal aliens with terrorism ties as part of its effort to "quiet the border-wide crisis."
Heitke delivered the following bombshell:
In San Diego, we had an exponential increase in [Special] Interest Aliens (SIAs). These are aliens with significant ties to terrorism. Prior to this administration, the San Diego sector averaged 10-15 SIAs per year. Once word was out that the border was far easier to cross, San Diego went to over 100 SIAs in 2022, way over 100 SIAs in 2023, and more than that this year. These are only the ones we caught. At the time, I was told I could not release any information on this increase in SIAs or mention any of the arrests. The administration was trying to convince the public that there was no threat at the border.
Former Republican Rep. Anthony D'Esposito (N.Y.) asked Heitke what was known about the gotaways who had entered the U.S.
When Heitke responded, "None," D'Esposito said, "Zero information of millions of people — some of which have been found to be on the terror watch list — we have zero information?"
"Correct," said Heitke.
Citing data recently provided by a Border Patrol agent, the Center Square reported that over 700 Iranian nationals who illegally stole into the U.S. were ultimately released into the homeland by the Biden administration.
Late last year, Texas Department of Public Safety troopers reportedly apprehended seven Iranian SIAs in Maverick County as well as military-aged men from Afghanistan, Egypt, and Turkey.
"It is our duty to keep the nation safe and informed, especially during times of conflict," Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement to Blaze News. "The ongoing Israel-Iran conflict brings the possibility of increased threat to the homeland in the form of possible cyberattacks, acts of violence, and anti-Semitic hate crimes."
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Iran is not the next Iraq War — unless we make the same mistake twice
Is Donald Trump a warmonger? It’s a simple question, and yet an increasingly popular accusation from corners of the political class and commentariat that once saw him as the clearest alternative to globalist foreign adventurism. But such an accusation also defies the record. Whatever else one might say about Trump, he has been — consistently and vocally — against needless foreign entanglements.
To suggest that he has suddenly pivoted toward militarism is to misunderstand either the man himself or the moment we are in. Trump is not easily swayed from his core convictions. Trade protectionism and anti-interventionism have always been part of his political DNA. On tariffs, he is unbending. And when it comes to war, he has long argued that America must stop serving as the world’s policeman.
Is Iran another Iraq, or is it more like Poland in 1980?
So when people today accuse Trump of abandoning his anti-interventionist principles, we must ask: What evidence do we have that he has changed? And if he has, does that mean he was misleading us all along — or is something else happening?
If you’ve lost your trust in him, fine. Fair enough. But then the question becomes: Who do you trust? Who else has stood on stage, risked his life, and remained — at least in conviction — largely unchanged?
I’m not arguing for blind trust. In fact, I strongly advise against it. Reagan had it right when he quoted a Russian proverb during nuclear disarmament talks with the Soviet Union: “Trust, but verify.” Trust must be earned daily — and verified constantly. But trust, or the absence of it, is central to what we’re facing.
Beyond pro- and antiwar
The West is being pulled in two directions: one toward chaos, the other toward renewal. Trust is essential to renewal. Chaos thrives when people lose confidence — in leaders, in systems, in one another.
We are in a moment when clarity is difficult but necessary. And clarity requires asking harder questions than whether someone is “for or against war.”
Too many Americans today fall into four broad categories when it comes to foreign conflict.
First are the trolls — those who aren’t arguing in good faith, but revel in provocation, division, and distrust. Their goal isn’t clarity. It’s chaos.
Second are those who, understandably, want to avoid war but won’t acknowledge the dangers posed by radical Islamist ideology. Out of fear or fatigue, they have chosen willful blindness. This has been a costly mistake in the past.
Third are those who, like me, do not want war but understand that certain ideologies — particularly those of Iran’s theocratic rulers — cannot be ignored or wished away. We study history. We remember 1979. We understand what the “Twelvers” believe.
Twelversare a sect of Shia Islam whose clerics believe the return of the 12th Imam, their messianic figure, can only be ushered in by global conflict and bloodshed. Iran is the only nation in the world to make Twelver Shia its official state religion. The 12th Imam is not a metaphor. It’s doctrine, and it matters.
Finally, there are the hawks. They cheer for conflict. They seek to project American power, often reflexively. And they carry the swagger of certainty, even as history offers them little vindication.
The last few decades have offered sobering lessons. Regime change in Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, Syria — none produced flourishing democracies or stable allies. While America is capable of toppling regimes, we’re not so good at manufacturing civil societies. Real liberty requires real leadership on the ground. It requires heroes — people willing to suffer and die not for power, but for principle.
That’s what was missing in Kabul, Baghdad, and Tripoli. We never saw a Washington or a Jefferson emerge. Brave individuals assisted us, but no figures rose to power with whom nations could coalesce.
Is Iran 1980s Poland?
That is why I ask whether Iran is simply the next chapter in a tired and tragic book — or something altogether different.
Is Iran another Iraq? Or is it more like Poland in 1980? It’s not an easy question, but it’s one we must ask.
During the Cold War, we saw what it looked like when people yearned for freedom. In Poland, Hungary, and Czechoslovakia, dissidents risked everything for a chance to escape tyranny. There was a moral clarity. You could hear it in their music, see it in their marches, feel it in the energy that eventually tore down the Berlin Wall.
Is that spirit alive in Iran?
RELATED: Mark Levin sounds alarm: Stop Iran’s nuclear ambitions before it’s too late
We know that millions of Iranians have protested. We know many have disappeared for it. The Persian people are among the best educated in the region. They are culturally rich, historically sophisticated, and far more inclined toward Western ideals than the mullahs who rule them.
But we know Iran’s mullahs are not rational actors.
So again, we must ask: If the people of Iran are capable of throwing off their theocratic oppressors, should the United States support them? If so, how — and what would it cost us?
Ask tougher questions
I am not calling for war. I do not support U.S. military intervention in Iran. But I do support asking better questions. Is it in our national interest to act? Is there a moral imperative we cannot ignore? And do we trust the institutions advising us?
I no longer trust the intelligence agencies. I no longer trust the think tanks that sold us the Iraq War. I certainly don’t trust the foreign policy establishment in Washington that has consistently failed upward.
But I do trust the American people to engage these questions honestly — if they’re willing to think.
I believe we may be entering the first chapter of a final, spiritual conflict — what Scripture calls the last battle. It may take decades to unfold, but the ideological lines are being drawn.
And whether you are for Trump or against him, whether you see Iran as a threat or a distraction, whether you want peace or fear it’s no longer possible — ask the tougher questions.
Because what comes next won’t be determined by slogans. It will be determined by what we truly believe.
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FBI arrests alleged accomplice in Palm Springs fertility clinic bombing — and he shares suspected terrorist's hatred
Guy Edward Bartkus, the 25-year-old suspected terrorist killed in the May 17 bombing of a fertility clinic in Palm Springs, California, allegedly left behind a nihilistic manifesto acknowledged by the FBI that equated human life to a disease gripping the planet, condemned religion, championed Satan over God, and called for a "war against pro-lifers."
"Basically, I'm anti-life," Bartkus allegedly said in a 30-minute audio recording explaining why he apparently decided to bomb a fertility clinic. "And IVF is like kind of the epitome of pro-life ideology."
The suspect appears to have been neither alone in his hatred for life nor alone in his plot to bomb the American Reproductive Centers in Palm Springs.
The FBI arrested Daniel Jongyon Park on Tuesday night at the John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York in connection with the bombing.
Park, a 32-year-old from Washington state, fled the country two days after the bombing. He was arrested by Polish authorities on May 30, despite an alleged attempt to "harm himself." Attorney General Pam Bondi reportedly helped ensure that he was deported to the United States on June 2, where he was charged with providing and attempting to provide material support to terrorists.
RELATED: Why a fatherless man bombed a fertility clinic — and the dark truth it exposes
"This defendant is charged with facilitating the horrific attack on a fertility center in California," Bondi said in a statement. "Bringing chaos and violence to a facility that exists to help women and mothers is a particularly cruel, disgusting crime that strikes at the very heart of our shared humanity."
Bondi expressed gratitude to America's "partners in Poland who helped get this man back to America."
According to the Department of Justice, Park allegedly provided the suspected terrorist with the explosive precursor materials ultimately used in the attack, approximately 270 pounds of ammonium nitrate — 90 pounds of which he allegedly shipped just days before the Palm Springs bombing, which destroyed the clinic, damaged surrounding buildings, injured numerous people, and flung the bomber's remains as far as the rooftop of a hotel a block away.
The suspect, who the FBI indicated filmed the attack and the events leading up to it, appears to have assembled the bomb at his home in Twentynine Palms, where federal agents reportedly found massive quantities of explosive materials, including pentaerythritol tetranitrate — a chemical compound used in commercial detonators.
'Would you press the button to end their suffering and speed up the process of extinction of life on Earth?'
After allegedly sending Bartkus the first shipment, Park — who allegedly made six separate online purchases totaling 275 pounds of ammonium nitrate between October 2022 and May 2025 — stayed at the suspected terrorist's house from Jan. 25 to Feb 8., during which time he told people his name was "Steve."
Citing records from an AI chat application, the DOJ indicated that Bartkus researched how to make powerful explosions using ammonium nitrate and fuel three days before Park came to visit him.
The criminal complaint against Park indicates that federal agents discovered "explosive precursor chemicals and multiple recipes for explosives, including recipes for explosive mixtures containing ammonium nitrate and fuel" at his house. One of the recipes apparently corresponded with the explosive mixture used in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
RELATED: New evidence could blow open the Oklahoma City bombing case
Bartkus' family members allegedly told investigators that he and Park were "running experiments" in the suspected bomber's detached garage, where FBI agents later discovered chemical precursors and laboratory equipment as well as packages listing Park's home address.
The duo apparently bonded over their anti-natalism and their "pro-mortalism" — the belief that non-existence is always preferable to life.
'Those who aid terrorists can expect to feel the cold wrath of justice.'
The criminal complaint indicates that Park made numerous social media posts expressing such views, allegedly writing, for instance, in 2016 in response to the question, "What have you actually done to not have children?" that "a better question is what did you do to make other people not have children."
In April 2025, Park allegedly wrote "yes" in response to the question, "If you had the technology to wipe out a tribe of people on an isolated island and no one would know about it after the tribe's life was gone, would you press the button to end their suffering and speed up the process of extinction of life on Earth?"
U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli for the Central District of California said of Park's arrest, "Domestic terrorism is evil and unacceptable. Those who aid terrorists can expect to feel the cold wrath of justice."
Park could face up to 15 years in federal prison if convicted.
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Islamic radical convicted for planting fake bombs in Christian churches while working on real one
An ISIS-inspired radical who planted fake bombs at multiple Christian churches while also developing the means for a real church bombing was convicted Friday of a federal hate crime.
"This Department of Justice has no tolerance for anyone who targets religious Americans for their faith," said Attorney General Pam Bondi. "The perpetrator of this abhorrent hate crime against Christians will face severe punishment."
Zimnako Salah, 45, traveled to four Christian churches across three states — Arizona, California, and Colorado — in the fall of 2023 wearing black backpacks. Salah was able to plant these backpacks at two of the churches: one in the sanctuary of a church in Scottsdale, Arizona, and the other in the restroom of a Roseville, California, church.
These props helped the radical sell his corresponding bomb threats, which Sid Patel, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Sacramento field office, indicated were "intended to terrorize people of faith and disrupt the peace of our communities."
The discovery of the backpack latched to a toilet inside the non-denominational church in Roseville prompted an evacuation.
Security confronted Salah before he was able to fulfill his mission on two other occasions.
The Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office in Colorado indicated that a week after Salah placed a backpack in the Roseville church, the radical attempted a repeat performance in Greenwood Village, Colorado, on Nov. 19, 2023. Salah was, however, confronted by Kevin Heaton, then an off-duty, uniformed sheriff's deputy.
'Planting a hoax bomb at the Roseville church was not an isolated incident or a prank.'
Heaton, now a captain with the sheriff's office, greeted Salah, then followed him into the church, reported KCNC-TV. When Salah made his way for the washrooms, Heaton followed. The unwanted attention prompted the radical to leave the premises with the backpack still on his person.
According the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of California, in between fake bomb installations, Salah was building a real improvised explosive device capable of fitting in a backpack.
During a search of the radical's storage unit, an FBI bomb technician retrieved items that a bomb expert later identified in court as components of an improvised explosive device. There were apparently multiple propane canisters, including one with wiring jutting out from the neck as well as nails duct-taped to the side.
Salah's online social media records and search history revealed an interest in jihadist propaganda. Salah, who reportedly told investigators that he was a Sunni Muslim from Northern Iraq, apparently searched for videos of "infidels dying" and repeatedly watched ISIS execution videos.
"Planting a hoax bomb at the Roseville church was not an isolated incident or a prank for this defendant," said acting U.S. Attorney Michele Beckwith. "His actions were designed to threaten and intimidate the congregation because he disagreed with their religious beliefs."
Biden-appointed U.S. District Judge Dena Coggins will sentence the anti-Christian radical on July 18. Salah faces a maximum statutory penalty of six years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
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German lawmaker wants Ukraine to pay for Nord Stream bombing following report that Zelenskyy approved attack
A German lawmaker is asking for reparations in the wake of yet another report indicating that Ukraine was behind the undersea bombings of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines.
Alice Weidel, co-chair of the Alternative for Germany, tweeted Friday, "The economic damage to our country caused by the demolition of #Nordstream presumably ordered by @Selenskyj — and not #Putin as we were led to believe — should be 'billed' to #Ukraine."
Weidel added, "Any 'aid payments' that burden the German taxpayer should be stopped."
Germany's ruling coalition has already indicated it will be putting an end to new military aid to Ukraine. This planned cessation of funding has, however, not been attributed to the bombing but rather to the need to fulfill other spending priorities.
Extra to seeking possible recompense, there appears to be a sustained desire in Berlin to find and lock up the perpetrators.
The German Federal Court of Justice issued an arrest warrant earlier this summer for a Ukrainian citizen and diving instructor, Volodymyr Z., in connection to the Nord Stream bombing.
The Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper revealed that the suspect was living in Warsaw, Poland, before going on the run. On the basis of witness statements and speed camera photos, investigators determined that he drove the suspected saboteurs to the 50-foot Bavaria Cruiser used in the attack, then aided them in its execution.
The Wall Street Journal report that appears to have captured Weidel's attention last week indicated that the Sept. 26, 2022, bombings, which NATO appeared ready at the outset to register as an Article 5-triggering attack, were initiated by "a handful of senior Ukrainian military officers and businessmen."
'I am president and I give orders accordingly.'
According to one officer involved in the attack, "The whole thing was born out of a night of heavy boozing and the iron determination of a handful of people who had the guts to risk their lives for their country."
The alleged Ukrainian bombing plot apparently cost $300,000; involved a rental yacht and a six-member crew, including civilian divers; and was verbally approved by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, reported the Journal.
Zelenskyy has long denied Ukraine's involvement in the attacks.
"I am president and I give orders accordingly," Zelenskyy told Axel Springer in June 2023. "Nothing of the sort has been done by Ukraine. I would never act that way."
"I didn't know anything, 100 percent," added Zelensky. "I said, 'Show us proof. If our military is supposed to have done this, show us proof.'"
Zelenskyy adviser Mykhailo Podolyak similarly denied Ukrainian involvement last year, stating, "Although I enjoy collecting amusing conspiracy theories about [Ukrainian] government, I have to say: [Ukraine] has nothing to do with the Baltic Sea mishap and has no information about 'pro-[Ukraine] sabotage groups.' What happened to the Nord Stream pipelines? 'They sank,' as they say in RF itself ..."
At the time of the pipeline bombings, Podolyak joined Poland in suggesting the damage was instead the doing of the Russians, reported the BBC.
"Gas leak from NS-1 [Nord Stream 1] is nothing more than a terrorist attack planned by Russia and an act of aggression towards the EU. Russia wants to destabilise the economic situation in Europe and cause pre-winter panic," said Zelenskyy's adviser.
In the wake of the attack, Podolyak stressed that the "best response and security investment are tanks for Ukraine. Especially German ones."
Three people familiar with the bombing plot as well as one of the officers directly involved told the Journal that the CIA learned of the scheme and told Zelenskyy to call it off.
Although Zelenskyy supposedly obliged the American spy agency, his commander in chief running the operation, Valeriy Zaluzhniy — now Ukraine's ambassador to London — reportedly went ahead with the bombing plot utilizing Ukrainian special-operations officers, including Col. Roman Chervinsky.
Following a joint investigation, the Washington Post and Der Spiegel reported last year that Chervinsky was the "coordinator" of the operation, "managing logistics and support for a six-person team that rented a sailboat under false identities and used deep-sea diving equipment to place explosive charges on the gas pipelines."
The joint report indicated further that Chervinsky ultimately reported to Zaluzhniy, although he contended in a statement, "All speculations about my involvement in the attack on Nord Stream are being spread by Russian propaganda without any basis."
The Journal indicated that a Polish travel agency set up by Ukrainian intelligence years ago to disguise financial transactions was used to rent a yacht called the Andromeda in the German town of Rostock. Masquerading as a group on a pleasure cruise, Chervinsky's crew allegedly set off three explosions using an explosive called HMX, wired to timed-control detonators.
The explosions caused leaks on both the Nord Stream 1 and 2 natural gas pipelines, which both run a distance of over 740 miles from Russia to Lubmin, Germany, under the Baltic Sea, bypassing Ukraine and Poland. The pipelines were not in operation at the time of the leaks, although they nevertheless contained gas under pressure.
'There was no practical sense in such actions for Ukraine.'
According to Carnegie Politika, initial estimates indicated the explosions released 500 million cubic meters of gas, or the equivalent of 1/5000 of annual global CO2 emissions, into the sea.
Extra to causing possible environmental damage, the explosions caused energy prices to surge and Germany to nationalize energy companies. The fallout of the attacks continues to cost Germany, which the Journal indicated pays roughly $1 million daily just to lease floating terminals for liquefied natural gas to partially replace gas flows alternatively carried by the Nord Stream.
The Journal noted that the "four senior Ukrainian defense and security officials who either participated in or had direct knowledge of the plot" who spoke on the record all confirmed that the pipelines were considered to be a legitimate target for Ukraine.
Despite the admissions from these officials, Zaluzhniy and other officials in Kiev continue to downplay and deny their active involvement.
"Ukraine's involvement in the Nord Stream explosions is absolute nonsense. There was no practical sense in such actions for Ukraine," Podolyak told the AFP Thursday.
While Germany is continuing to investigate the bombings, sources familiar with the investigation told the Journal that it may prove an exercise in futility given that those responsible, cognizant they are wanted, will avoid traveling outside Ukraine — a nation that will not extradite its own citizens.
Even if successful in bringing those responsible to justice, Germany may suffer further embarrassment. It would mean that Germany was attacked by a nation it has materially supported for years.
"An attack of this scale is a sufficient reason to trigger the collective defense clause of NATO, but our critical infrastructure was blown up by a country that we support with massive weapons shipments and billions in cash," a senior German official told the Journal.
Moscow suspects that Germany will ultimately close its investigation without naming those believed to be responsible, reported Reuters.
"We have raised the issue of Germany and other affected countries fulfilling their obligations under the U.N. anti-terrorist conventions," said Oleg Tyapkin, the head of the European department at the Russian foreign ministry. "We have officially made corresponding claims on this matter bilaterally, including to Berlin."
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Knife-wielding maniac knocks out San Francisco churchgoer, then leads cops on a chase punctuated by explosions: Police
A felon with a history of blowing things up attacked a churchgoer and led police on an explosive chase through San Francisco Sunday night, according to the San Francisco Police Department. When captured, the suspect allegedly asked his arresting officer how many points he had racked up on Grand Theft Auto.
The SFPD indicated that officers responded just before 6 p.m. on Sunday to a report of a man brandishing a knife and assaulting a parishioner at Saints Peter and Paul Church across from Washington Square Park in the North Beach neighborhood.
KPIX-TV reported that the suspect waltzed into the church and demanded money from a parishioner whom he did not know.
"The parishioner continued to pray and ignored him, at which point the suspect then violently assaulted this parishioner, punching him in the head," said SFPD Assistant Chief David Lazar. "We believe the parishioner went unconscious temporarily."
Other parishioners rushed to the victim's rescue and called 911 while the suspect continued demanding money with a folding knife in hand.
Officers arrived on the scene within minutes of the incident and spotted the suspect stealing into a vehicle and preparing to flee the scene. They called for medical aid for the victim, then gave chase.
The SFPD noted that the suspect, who has been identified as 42-year-old Concord resident Daniel Garcia, failed to yield to pursuing officers. Instead, police said Garcia threw two improvised explosive devices at pursuing officers.
The first went off in the 1500 block of Jones Street.
"The officers described not only seeing the flames of the device that hit the ground, but when the bomb detonated, they could feel the blowback of that in their vehicles," said Lazar. "They believe the suspect intentionally tried to seriously injure or kill them."
Garcia threw the second IED at police near 8th and Mission, according to Lazar.
The San Francisco Standard noted that a police officer can be heard on scanner audio recordings reporting, "He threw another bomb. ... It blew up on Mission," at 6:04 p.m..
One of the IEDs was reportedly a pipe bomb, and the other was a Molotov cocktail.
— (@)
Garcia allegedly attempted to lose police on the freeway, taking I-80 eastbound, where California Highway Patrol joined the chase.
It appears that Garcia gave up on allegedly attempting to murder police officers while on the freeway, as a CHP spokesman told KGO-TV, "No incendiaries were thrown during our portion of the pursuit, however, items were located in the vehicle at the termination point."
Roughly 30 minutes later, he wrecked his vehicle in Martinez and was captured by police.
Garcia was booked into the San Francisco County Jail and charged with second-degree robbery; assault with a deadly weapon; threatening an officer; three counts of attempted murder; three counts of possession of an explosive; evading an officer with willful disregard; two counts of explosion of destructive device with intent to murder; two counts of explosion of destructive device with intent to injure; three counts of carrying an explosive in a passenger vehicle for hire; resisting, obstructing, and/or delaying of a peace officer or EMT; and various traffic infractions.
Supervisor Aaron Peskin of North Beach indicated that upon his arrest, Garcia asked an officer "how many points he got in his Grand Theft Auto game" — a video game series featuring a star system corresponding to the level of attention the player's murder and mayhem has warranted from the in-game police.
"In 23 years of doing this stuff, this is probably the most bizarre," said Peskin.
On Monday, heavily armed police and a bomb disposal robot checked out Garcia's property. Officers reportedly left the residence with loaded brown paper bags and a box of what appeared to be glass bottles.
His neighbor, Stephen Salbato, said, "He's someone who never smiled."
This is not Garcia's first run-in with the law.
Garcia was convicted and sentenced in 2012 to 35 years in a federal prison for "malicious use of explosives, possession of a destructive device in relation to a crime of violence, and two counts of possession of unregistered destructive devices."
He planted a bomb underneath an SUV belonging to his former tenant beside an apartment building in Fairfield. The bomb went off, sending shrapnel into both the vehicle and the neighboring building, where children and others were sleeping.
Garcia had apparently targeted the former tenant because he had left behind trash when moving out.
The U.S. attorney at the time said, "The defendant’s attempt to resolve a minor private dispute by detonating a bomb endangered the lives of all those who were sleeping in the apartment building in Fairfield that night. While it is fortunate that no one was harmed, the defendant’s actions, together with his possession of a second bomb in the residential neighborhood where he lived, merit a long prison sentence."
Evidently, Garcia did not serve the entirety of his prison sentence.
The Standard reported that the bomber was released in February 2019 after he successfully challenged his conviction on one of his charges.
Garcia was also arrested in May on domestic violence charges and for illegally owning a firearm. KPIX indicated he was scheduled to appear in a Contra Costa courtroom to face those charges on Tuesday.
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