Iran’s attack on UAE intensifies Strait of Hormuz crisis
Iran claims it has attacked the UAE’s Fujairah region with drones and missiles, injuring Indian nationals and escalating tensions over the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. defense officials on Tuesday downplayed reports that Iran had deployed so-called “kamikaze dolphins” but did not say whether the U.S. uses marine mammals in military operations.
Asked directly at a Pentagon briefing, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said he could neither confirm nor deny the United States’ ability to work with dolphins, but stressed there was no evidence that Iran employs dolphins. The moment comes amid heightened naval tensions and a renewed focus on maintaining safe passage of commercial ships through the Strait of Hormuz.
Minutes before Hegseth took the microphone, Air Force Gen. Dan Cain said he had never heard of “kamikaze dolphins.”
It’s like a shark that shoots laser beams, right? Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Kaine joked.
Watch as Hegseth responds to rumors about “kamikaze dolphins.”
See section. Mr. Hegseth addresses rumors about ‘kamikaze dolphins’
“I can’t confirm or deny.” Pete Hegseth asked about reports of “kamikaze dolphins” in Iran.
“And I can’t confirm or deny whether we have ‘kamikaze dolphins,'” Hegseth said. “But I can confirm that this is not the case.”
The use of marine mammals, particularly bottlenose dolphins, in military operations dates back to the late 1950s.
The Navy’s Marine Mammal Program trains dolphins to “detect, locate, tag, and retrieve objects in ports, coastal areas, and at depth in the open ocean,” according to the Pacific Naval Information Warfare Center.
Confirmation was not immediately available whether or when the Navy used dolphins as a “kamikaze” force.
“Ultimately, if a landmine is identified, the ensuing effort will be something that some of our forces can tackle or the whole world can tackle. But for now, we know there is a safe passage for commercial vessels to pass through,” Hegseth added.
USA TODAY has reached out to NIWC Pacific for additional information.
