The Wire - September 7, 2026

//The Wire//2300Z September 7, 2026// //ROUTINE// //BLUF: UNITED STATES ANNOUNCES EYE-FOR-AN-EYE TARGETING STRATEGY OF MERCHANT SHIPPING IN THE MIDDLE EAST. UKRAINE CONTINUES TARGETING OF MERCHANT SHIPPING IN MEDITERRANEAN SEA. PLANE CRASH OBSERVED AT MIAMI AIRPORT, MULTIPLE FATALITIES REPORTED.// -----BEGIN TEARLINE----- -International Events- Middle East: Over the weekend, the general situation remained as before. This morning, Iranian forces reportedly launched two cruise missiles toward a merchant vessel in the Strait of Hormuz, with unknown success. Otherwise, CENTCOM announced that the M/T KYLO has sunk at undisclosed coordinates in the Gulf of Oman. In Saudi Arabia, Houthi attacks from this morning targeted the Jazan Refinery once again, with locals observing large smoke plumes in the vicinity of the facility. Analyst Comment: Jazan had just come back online after making repairs due to the latest round of Houthi strikes. Less than a week after the refinery was due to come back online, the Houthis hit it again. Lebanon: Israeli attacks have intensified with a new series of attacks being reported over the weekend. Significant bombing runs were reported throughout Nabatiyeh, mostly focusing on striking residential structures in the town of Kfar Rumman. Mediterranean: Overnight Ukrainian forces targeted a Russian cargo ship off the coast of Crete. The M/V LADY MARIIA was struck by Ukrainian drones while reportedly carrying a cargo of Iranian weapons, which Iran was allegedly attempting to export to Russia. -HomeFront- Florida: Yesterday evening a plane crash was reported at Miami International Airport, after a cargo aircraft overran the runway. Prime Air Flight 7598 (an Amazon cargo plane) made a rough landing on Runway 30, touching down farther down the runway than usual. The aircraft also possibly had issues with their left landing gear, as indicated by video evidence of the landing. The aircraft failed to stop in the allotted distance, and either overran or missed the Engineered Materials Arresting System (EMAS). Once off the runway, the aircraft skidded across NW 67th Avenue, striking multiple vehicles that were on the road. A total of 5x fatalities were reported, and several others wounded. -----END TEARLINE Analyst Comments: Following the intensification of airstrikes on commercial shipping over the weekend, the United States has altered the Commander's Intent with regards to the American targeting of commercial shipping. Per Secretary of War Hegseth, the United States will target Iranian noncombatant civilian ships for every attempt by Iran to strike an American warship. In terms of targeting doctrine, conducting kinetic strikes on civilian ships can be interpreted in several ways. Kinetically targeting a ship so as to disable it's movement due to noncompliance with boarding procedures in one's own territorial waters is normally considered acceptable under current international maritime norms. However, verbally stating that random noncombatants will be sunk for no other purpose than for revenge, is generally not in keeping with the Department of Defense Law of War Manual, which states on page 200 that "Combatants may make military objectives the object of attack, but may not direct attacks against civilians, civilian objects, or other protected persons and objects." The deliberate targeting of random civilian ships purely for reasons of revenge/reprisal and NOT for reasons of self-defense or due to Hostile Intent or Hostile Action, is a new milestone, and the public statements by Admiral Brad Cooper and SECWAR Hegseth don't leave much room for interpretation. Regardless of how anyone spins it, in every wartime publication that has been written thus far, this conflict has now transitioned into a state of Unrestricted Warfare, and the follow-on effects of this will probably result in very bad things happening in the very near future, as it becomes common to blur the lines between civilians and military targets.