Overview
- At a Pentagon briefing on Tuesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he could not confirm or deny U.S. capabilities but stated there is no evidence Iran uses so‑called kamikaze dolphins.
- The Pentagon declined to detail any American use of marine mammals, though the Navy has long trained dolphins and sea lions to find mines and divers rather than act as weapons.
- The surge of interest followed a Wall Street Journal report that Iranian officials discussed mine‑carrying dolphins and revived references to a 2000 BBC account that Iran bought Soviet‑trained animals, with no verified sign of an active program now.
- U.S. officials said a protected lane for commercial ships is operating in the Strait of Hormuz under Project Freedom, aiming to move stranded crews and cargo through the chokepoint safely.
- Experts explain that military dolphins use echolocation to detect and mark underwater explosives so human teams can neutralize them, which differs from the unproven idea of explosive‑laden animal attacks.