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It’s been around two months since the United States kicked off its ongoing war with Iran, and the two sides are currently engaged in a tenuous ceasefire as the conflict continues to simmer. On Tuesday, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff fielded some questions from the press about the current state of affairs, and he dropped a fairly unexpected Austin Powers reference in response to a query about reports of “kamikaze dolphins.”
Americans who’ve filled their tank at a gas station in recent weeks are very aware that the United States has not ironed out its issues with Iran since sparking the war that began when the latter was targeted by a flurry of missile strikes at the end of February.
It’s now been close to a month since the two sides agreed to a ceasefire that has seemingly been threatened by attacks on American ships that have been tasked with escorting other vessels through the Strait of Hormuz, the key supply route that’s emerged as one of the primary battlegrounds for the conflict.
On Tuesday, Secretary of War Pete Hesgeth joined Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman General Dan Caine at the Pentagon to provide some updates on the situation during a press conference that took an interesting turn when a military tactic involving aquatic mammals was raised.
A question about “kamikmaze dolphins” led to a general referencing Austin Powers during a press conference at the Pentagon
Last week, The Wall Street Journal published an article concerning the strategies Iran’s government is reportedly weighing to push back against America’s blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, which included the deployment of “mine-carrying dolphins” that would be sent on a suicide mission in an attempt to break the grip.
It seemed like that claim could be traced back to a report from the BBC that was published more than 25 years ago concerning “kamikaze dolphins” that had been trained by the Soviet government before being sold to Iran.
The man who oversaw the program told the outlet they were “trained to attack enemy frogmen with harpoons” and could “undertake kamikaze strikes against enemy shipping carrying mines that would explode a ship on contact with its hull.”
When you consider dolphins kept in captivity typically have a lifespan of less than 30 years, it seems a bit hard to imagine the so-called “kamikaze dolphins” are still alive, and it doesn’t sound like they’re a threat based on the information that was relayed on Tuesday.
A reporter from The Daily Wire asked about the dolphins at a press conference where Caine, an Air Force general who’s served as the head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff since 2025, said it was the first he was hearing about them while comparing them to “sharks with laser beams.”
Daily Wire: Can you clarify these reports of kamikaze dolphins that we’ve heard about?
Caine: Like sharks with laser beams.
Hegseth: I can’t confirm or deny whether we have kamikaze dolphins, but I can confirm they don’t. pic.twitter.com/SUTFglHOyr
— Acyn (@Acyn) May 5, 2026
That was seemingly a nod to the sharks with frickin’ laser beams attached to their heads that Dr. Evil requested in the first Austin Powers movies before being forced to settle for ill-tempered sea bass (although his wish finally came true in Goldmember).
Hesgeth was a bit more knowledgeable, as he said there was no reason to believe Iran has kamikaze dolphins at its disposal while noting he could not confirm nor deny if the same can be said for the United States.