by Peter Symonds An 80-page study written by two British security analysts and released on August 28 makes a chilling estimation of the overwhelming force that the US would use in the event of any attack on Iran. “The US has made military preparations to destroy Iran’s WMD, nuclear energy, regime, armed forces, state apparatus and economic infrastructure within days, if not hours, of President George W. Bush giving the
By Philip Sherwell in New York and Tim Shipman in Washington Senior American intelligence and defence officials believe that President George W Bush and his inner circle are taking steps to place America on the path to war with Iran, The Sunday Telegraph has learnt. Pentagon planners have developed a list of up to 2,000 bombing targets in Iran, amid growing fears among serving officers that diplomatic efforts to slow
US strikes on Iran predicted as tension rises over arms smuggling and nuclear fears by Julian Borger and Ian Black for the Guardian The growing US focus on confronting Iran in a proxy war inside Iraq risks triggering a direct conflict in the next few months, regional analysts are warning. US-Iranian tensions have mounted significantly in the past few days, with heightened rhetoric on both sides and the US decision
By Shirl McArthur Global Research, September 15, 2007 Washington Report on Middle East Affairs (WRMEA) Because of the uncertainties and ambiguities associated with U.S. aid to Israel, arriving at a precise figure for total direct U.S. aid to Israel probably is not possible. Parts of it are buried in the budgets of other government agencies—mostly the Defense Department (DOD)—or in a form not easily quantifiable—such as the early disbursement of
by Patrick Cockburn Ten days after President George Bush clasped his hand as a symbol of America’s hopes in Iraq, the man who led the US-supported revolt of Sunni sheikhs against al-Qa’ida in Iraq was assassinated. Abdul-Sattar Abu Risha and two of his bodyguards were killed either by a roadside bomb or by explosives placed in his car by a guard, near to his home in Ramadi, the capital of
By Webster G. Tarpley ‘Solid Curtain’ And ‘Citadel Shield 2007’ Military Drills Raise Spectre Of Imminent False Flag Provocation And Attack On Iran WASHINGTON, DC — US military bases in the continental United States (CONUS) will go on special lockdown between September 17 and September 21 under the auspices of Solid Curtain-Citadel Shield ’07, a reliable source reported today. Under these exercises, US installations will institute enhanced anti-terror force protection
TEHRAN, — US President George W. Bush failed and defeated in his Middle East plan and would one day stand trial for “atrocities” in Iraq, Iran’s Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei said Friday. Ayatollah Khamenei made the remark in his second sermon to this week’s Friday prayers at Tehran University on the second day of the fasting month of Ramadhan. “Today the Americans are condemned by the public opinion of
According to the Jerusalem Post, Germany’s unwillingness to impose further sanctions on Iran has pushed the United States closer towards a decision on a military strike, FOX News reported on Wednesday. According to the report, Germany’s decision has spurred senior US army officials to try and convince US Foreign Secretary Condoleezza Rice to abandon once and for all the diplomatic route of preventing a nuclear Iran. The report further stated
By Michael E. Salla, M.A., Ph.D. “The Canadian” – Critically exploring whether or not there was a covert attempt to instigate a catastrophic nuclear war against Iran is illuminated through an introduction using the recent B-52 Incident. On August 30, a B-52 bomber armed with five nuclear-tipped Advanced Cruise missiles travelled from Minot Air Force base, North Dakota, to Barksdale Air Force base, Louisiana, in the United States. Each missile
By Gareth Porter “Huffington Post” — – — If the Bush administration launches an attack on Iran, the reason won’t be that Iran was about to obtain a nuclear weapon. The real reason will be that United States, as the world’s only superpower, wants to establish clearly that it — not Iran — is the dominant power in the Middle East. That would make us all less secure, but the
By Nouriel Roubin The utterly ugly employment figures for August (a fall in jobs for the first time in four years, downward revisions to previous months’ data, a fall in the labor participation rate, and an even weaker employment picture based on the household survey compared to the establishments survey) confirm what few of us have been predicting since the beginning of 2007: the U.S. is headed towards a hard
According to The Telegraph, Iran has established a sophisticated spying operation at the head of the Arabian Gulf in a move which has significantly heightened tensions in its standoff with the United States. The operation, masterminded by the country’s elite Revolutionary Guard, includes the construction of a high-tech spying post close to the point where Iranian forces kidnapped 15 British naval personnel in March. The move has forced British and
By Paul Craig Roberts The US economy continues its slow death before our eyes, but economists, policymakers, and most of the public are blind to the tottering fabled land of opportunity. In August jobs in goods-producing industries declined by 64,000. The US economy lost 4,000 jobs overall. The private sector created a mere 24,000 jobs, all of which could be attributed to the 24,100 new jobs for waitresses and bartenders.
(For your information: This is a full transcript of the video address of Osama Bin Laden to the American people (there might be a second video posted after Sept. 11). I cannot vouch for this translation since I do not speak Arabic. Original post here. VS) “All praise is due to Allah, who built the heavens and earth in justice, and created man as a favor and grace from Him.
DEBKAfile’s military sources report that from the third week of July, the only American strike force- carrier in the Persian Gulf-Arabian Sea region was the USS Enterprise. By the end of September, it will be joined by the USS Nimitz and the USS Truman Strike Groups. Our sources note that with their arrival, three American naval, air and marine forces will again confront Iranian shores at a time of crisis
by Alexander Cockburn “They’re about taking out the entire Iranian military.” This particular spine-chiller comes from Alexis Debat, excitingly identified as “director of terrorism and national security” at the Nixon Center. According to Debat, the big takeout is what the U.S. Air Force has in store, as opposed to mere “pinprick strikes” against the infamous nuclear facilities. Predicting imminent war on Iran has been one of the top two items
When Wishful Thinking Replaces Resistance By Jean Bricmont Many people in the antiwar movement try to reassure themselves: Bush cannot possibly attack Iran. He does not have the means to do so, or, perhaps, even he is not foolish enough to engage in such an enterprise. Various particular reasons are put forward, such as: If he attacks, the Shiites in Iraq will cut the US supply lines. If he attacks,
by Chris Hedges The most effective diplomats, like the most effective intelligence officers and foreign correspondents, possess empathy. They have the intellectual, cultural and linguistic literacy to get inside the heads of those they must analyze or cover. They know the vast array of historical, religious, economic and cultural antecedents that go into making up decisions and reactions. And because of this—endowed with the ability to communicate and more able
Iran’s Press TV reports that Iran’s former IRGC Commander says 200,000 US troops are in weak positions in the Middle East and Iran has identified all their locations. Senior Advisor to the Leader for Military Affairs, Major General Yahya Rahim Safavi, made the remark Monday in a meeting with Imam Hussein University faculty in Tehran. Safavi said recent incidents have turned the region into the hub of political and security
By Robert Fisk “The Independent” — – Stories that just don’t seem to make it into print. Did you know that the Hizbollah “Party of God” has installed its own private communications network in the south of Lebanon, stretching from the village of Zawter Sharqiya all the way to Beirut? And why, I wonder, would it be doing that? Well, to safeguard its phones in the event that the Israelis
