Iran in the crosshairs

By Ted Belman

Energy and Capital reports Iran surrounded by US troops in ten countries, Israeli nuke subs to be deployed in Persian Gulf

DEBKA reported

    The rise of the Turkish-Iranian alliance has not only thrust America and Israel to the wings the Middle East stage, but is deeply alarming Cairo, Riyadh, the Gulf emirate and even Syria. They suddenly see Prime minister Recep Erdogan and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad dictating the region’s agenda with no one there to stop them.
    Within days, the balance of power in the region has been reshuffled to extend way beyond Tehran’s hand on Hizballah’s levers in Beirut and the Palestinian Hamas in Gaza. Iran has acquired an important member of NATO as a proactive ally.


The Gulf Daily News reports ISRAEL ‘PLOTS TEHRAN RAID’

    MANAMA: Israel is massing warplanes in the Caucasus for an attack on Iran, it was revealed yesterday.

    Preparations are underway to launch the military attack from Azerbaijan and Georgia, reports our sister paper Akhbar Al Khaleej, quoting military sources.

    Israel was, in fact, training pilots in Turkey to launch the strike and was smuggling planes into Georgia using Turkish airspace, they said.

    However, Turkey was unaware of Israel’s intention of transferring the planes to Georgia, the sources said.

    The unexpected crisis between Israel and Turkey following an Israeli commando raid on an aid flotilla bound for Gaza Strip hit Israeli calculations.

    Azerbaijan-based intelligence units, working under the cover of technicians, trainers and consultants, have helped with the preparations, the sources said.

    Military equipment, mostly supplied by the US, was transported to a Georgian port via the Black Sea.

    Georgian coastguard and Israeli controllers are co-operating to hide the operations from Russian vessels, said the sources.

    They point out that according to Israel, it will not be in a position to launch a strike on Iran without using bases in Georgia and Azerbaijan due to the limited capabilities of its nuclear submarines stationed near the Iranian coast.

    Meanwhile, Iran’s Press TV reported that a very large contingent of US ground forces had massed in Azerbaijan, near the Iranian border. The independent Azerbaijani news website Trend confirmed the report.

Samson Blinded reported that Israel opened the door for Russia to participate in the peace process in exchange for Russia’s go ahead on attacking Iran.

June 30, 2010 | 11 Comments »

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11 Comments / 11 Comments

  1. yamit: solved my casting problem: the Circassians can be the Elves.
    The Kurds have good image. Which is why EU countries ignore Turkey’s PKK hysteria, which is now beyond hysteria. Turkey is going to build Turkish drones – no more Herons 🙂

  2. Clint Eastwood was once mayor of Carmel, California, but decided to focus on making some great films since then.

    He made a wise choice and we are all enriched by his decision to leave public office.

    Casting Israel as Hobbits kinda fits. I will always think of you before casting my next epic.NUKES SHMUKES “Nuclear incineration can be fun.”

    This is a job for CONAN THE BARBARIAN played by me.

    Actually the clamp down on the Kurds might seal our relations with the Kurds, they don’t have many friends standing by their side.

    There was a new Pew poll released that cited the overwhelming support for a military strike to stop Iran from going nuclear Iran by Americans (as long as we do not try to occupy)

    No need to occupy !!

  3. Clint Eastwood was once mayor of Carmel, California, but decided to focus on making some great films since then.

    As to Iran? Keep your eye on the Kurds. The Kurds are like Aragorn’s armies of the West distracting the Eye of Sauron in “Lord of the Rings” while Frodo and Sam destroy the Ring. (ok, I still have not cast the Elves in this metaphor, and NO insult to Israel for being like Hobbits.) From Turkey’s state Anatolian News Agency: “In a sign of growing cooperation with Turkey, Syrian forces launched operations in Damascus and four other cities in a crackdown on PKK members suspected of “being members of a terror organization, forcefully collecting money, attempting to divide Syrian land in efforts to form a separate state, inciting ethnic and religious separation among Kurds”
    400 Kurds were arrested by Assad in this “crackdown”.

    There was a new Pew poll released that cited the overwhelming support for a military strike to stop Iran from going nuclear Iran by Americans (as long as we do not try to occupy)

  4. yamit: is that not the technology David Moon describes in “The anatomy of an attack on Iran”?

    I can’t say but what are capabilities are are not public knowledge/ I don’t think even America is privy to all our capabilities. I hope not!

    I read you even when I do not comment. I’m blushing.

    Mullen, Panetta, they are all keeping Iran guessing. We positioned the USS Nassau Marine Expeditionary Force in the Gulf of Aden (3 ships peeled off from the Truman).

    They are still in the area.

    Marines rappelling from those helicopters onto a ship will NOT be carrying paintball guns…

    They better not. That’s an Israeli patent!

    Do you not realize that Iran declared war on the United States when they seized our embassy in 1979?

    American foreign policy can be described at a minimum as fickle.

    Clint Eastwood is the spirit of America (Make My Day), though he is unfortunately not our Commander in Chief.

    I like Eastwood, smart guy, too!!He was mayor I think of Burbank? I hear he was big on traffic ticket enforcement and jaywalking. LOL.

    Most Americans support Israel NOT because of religion, but because we see a nation of immigrants under constant attack by terrorists who hate.

    Even were I to accept your belief, I can’t see how this sentiment is translatable into any positive action to help Israel. Most Americans are indifferent to anything not relating to America and their economic well-being.

  5. We have jammers even the Americans can’t counter.

    yamit: is that not the technology David Moon describes in “The anatomy of an attack on Iran”?

    I read you even when I do not comment.

    Mullen, Panetta, they are all keeping Iran guessing. We positioned the USS Nassau Marine Expeditionary Force in the Gulf of Aden (3 ships peeled off from the Truman). Marines rappelling from those helicopters onto a ship will NOT be carrying paintball guns…

    Do you not realize that Iran declared war on the United States when they seized our embassy in 1979?
    Clint Eastwood is the spirit of America (Make My Day), though he is unfortunately not our Commander in Chief.

    Most Americans support Israel NOT because of religion, but because we see a nation of immigrants under constant attack by terrorists who hate.

  6. Two faces of Admiral Mullen

    Speaking in Israel, Mullen emphasized his understanding of our worries about the Iranian nuclear program. He said that sanctions won’t stop Iran from acquiring nukes, and all but confirmed the impending strike.

    Speaking in Colorado, Mullen said that Israelis recognize how problematic an attack on Iran would be, and implied that such an attack would not be coming.

  7. Bird missed you these last day!s! 😉

    but, Yamit, the US ‘client’ is Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the other Gulf States.

    In actual fact sure, you’re right but we will be perceived as a paper tiger by all of our enemies and our deterrence will fall below the line of war prevention. It will have a demoralizing effect on the IDF as well.

    I say we fly the shortest distance between targets and Israel. I still say Israel will have to use tactical nukes. We have jammers even the Americans can’t counter. It’s as good or better than stealth technology. Our latest satellites can jam any American Sat. Everyone except Israel will be blind.

    All of our aircraft are expendable in such a mission. They can be replaced. Israel can’t.

  8. a case of the United States doing its client’s bidding

    but, Yamit, the US ‘client’ is Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and the other Gulf States. Gulf Daily News is in Bahrain, also home port for the US Fifth Fleet. Iran has been claiming Shi’a Bahrain for some time. Is Bahrain trying to distract Iran to Azerbaijan, also Shi’a but more like Turkey’s Alevis (which Iran does recognize as Shi’a)?

    As to that Saudi air corridor? “The anatomy of an attack on Iran” By David Moon Jul 1, 2010
    http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/LG01Ak01.html details “…how might the Israeli Air Force (IAF) strike Iran undetected on approach and at the very least unacknowledged on return…?” which does NOT use Azerbaijan.

    It was NOT a good weekend for Erdogan, after he spent his time at the G20 trying to enlist NATO in Turkey’s war against the PKK and handing out the autopsy reports from the Marmara.

    You guys should be reading Burak Bekdil at Hurriyet. especially June 29: “When Ankara says ‘peace’ turn around and run away!”

  9. Seems that an attack on Iran is not far off, if it does indeed materialize at all. Could still be a lot of posturing in order to apply pressure sanctions don’t. That said, unless Israel is the sole attacker, will be the first time since 1956 that Israel has failed to solve her problems on her own. This will not be Israel’s victory, but a case of the United States doing its client’s bidding. Israel’s regional position will continue to deteriorate.

    If America succeeds in destroying Irans Nuke development program, they will outsource it’s components to N. Korea and still get their bomb sooner or later.

  10. Samson Blinded reported that Israel opened the door for Russia to participate in the peace process in exchange for Russia’s go ahead on attacking Iran.

    Russians step up meddling in Israeli affairs; Visiting Russian FM met a whole roster of Israeli officials, including the prime minister, though an Israeli FM would not have been allowed an audience with Russian president.
    The Russian then proceeded to meet the Fatah chieftain. It seems that Netanyahu accepted Russia’s involvement in Israeli-Palestinian affairs as a price for Russian go-ahead to Israeli attack on Iran. For years, Russians have sought a bigger role in the peace process but were rebuffed by even the left-wing Israeli prime ministers.

Iran in the crosshairs

Peter Brooks reports that the Senate got an earful from Negroponte about the Persian Peril.

Essentially he told them what readers of Israpundit fully understand, namely

The regime is encouraged by the demise of such enemies as the Taliban in Afghanistan and Saddam in Iraq, and buoyed by vast increases in oil/gas revenues from elevated global demand and prices in recent years.

Also pumping up Persian power and morale, said the DNI, were Hamas’ electoral victory last January and Hezbollah’s showing in its conflict with Israel this past summer. (Tehran must be giddy about Hezbollah keeping Lebanon on the rocks, too.) The intelligence community concludes Iran sees its ability to conduct terrorism abroad as key to its national security strategy, helping to: 1) deter U.S. and Israeli intervention in Iran, 2) intimidate its neighbors and 3) drive the U.S. from the region.

It appears that Bush is making the case for action against Iran both economic and military. This is the real change in policy. The surge is nothing in comparison.

January 15, 2007 | Comments Off on Iran in the crosshairs