They Aren’t “Pilgrims:” Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld says there is evidence that members of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard move from Iran to Iraq, but there is no evidence of direct involvement by the Iranian government. Speaking at a Pentagon press briefing on March 14, Rumsfeld said he would not “make assumptions” about the Iranian government’s involvement, but said that the Revolutionary Guard in Iraq “are not freelancing and they’re not pilgrims.”
Air Force senior statesmen explained the reasons they jointly sent a letter to Congress urging restoration of the E-7 Wedgetail and more F-35s to the fiscal 2026 defense budget.