The Obama Administration is said to be “increasingly anxious” about Israel’s constant public threats to attack Iran. While officials aren’t positive that such an attack will take place they do see it as likely.
The US, for its part, issues fairly regular threats against Iran, but those threats have been coming since the Reagan Administration and have never been particularly credible. Israel has been threatening to attack Iran “within a matter of months” for decades themselves, but officials say that this time they really mean it.
Officials familiar with the situation say that the odds are “better than 50-50” that Israel will actually launch an attack this time, and more than one official was quoted as saying there was a 70% chance of it happening.
Much has been made of the potential timing of such an attack, and Israeli officials, notably Defense Minister Ehud Barak, have been insisting that time is of the essence and an attack must occur soon. Some Israeli analysts, however, warn that attacking Iran’s civilian nuclear program won’t necessarily do much to slow it without a protracted bombing campaign.
An Israeli attack would start a major war, and would almost inevitably draw the US in. The Supreme Leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned that an attack by the US would “harm America” and US officials have said as much several times, a fact that never seems to occur to the many hawkish officials who have long been pushing this war.
Israel will not attack Iran. It is not a part of their plan. Their plan is to push Iran into a corner where iran would HAVE to respond. Like these sanctions. These sanctions will force iran to retaliate at some capacity. No question about it. Israel attacking iran unprovoked is counterproductive to their overall strategy. I think the Iranians will attack the US and Israel before this spring "deadline". That is what the US is counting on.
Well the sailors of the USS LIberty waved hello to the pilots who turned and then machine gunned the guys who were getting some sun tan. The air craft with the markings painted over flew so close that they could see the pilots and the Israel pilots could look the US Sailors as they turned to murder them. It does not matter what the US is counting on because our Congress and Senators are paid prostitutes. To get elected they need the money of AIPAC who then demands total prostitution of those elected officials. Sanctions have never worked and it is just a prewar activity.
Here is the plan as I see it. Iran is goaded into doing a nuclear test. 15 minutes later Israel hits Iran with 100 nuclear warheads. This is the permanent end of Iran. To me, this is the only plan that makes sense. Israel is not willing to use nukes against a country that has not demonstrated possession of nuclear weapons. The Jews are simply too hand-wringing and moralistic to do that. But stopping Iran from achieving the power it seeks requires massive use of nuclear weapons. Only way to break the logical impasse is to get Iran to beat its chest and do a nuclear test.
It is amazing that Israel would turn to nuclear weapons to prevent someone from possessing nuclear weapons. It is totally easy to believe. It is a good reason to take nuclear weapons out of the middle east. Why not demand Israel give up the nuclear weapons then insure Iran does not get them. Israel having the ability to attack with nuclear weapons is the major reason why Iran wants them. The same situation is happened in South American as the former British empire is moving a nuclear submarine to the Faulken Islands. Argentine clearly remember the British stating they would only attack in one area and then sinking a Argentine cruiser killing 339 sailors outside of that zone. Having nuclear weapons give you a extra edge and I am sure Argentine now wants them to stop the British from holding land clearly too far from England to be british. England killed off all its soldiers. It is only able to play empire because the USA supports the shell of a military aka british empire military. England is another nation which makes its people suffer to keep a bloated military.
Englands bloated military is getting leaner. They have been laying off soldiers, put their only air craft carrier in mothballs and cancelled the proposed new nuclear subs l
Let put it into prospective: Israel is a product of EU and USA, for Israel is to act as US and EU long arm in Middle East, doing whatever and whenever helping US and EU dominating their economic and political interests in the region. In return US and EU been helping Israel to grow by letting them steal Palestinians land, disrespect and ignoring the Palestinians right in terms of social political and economic rights of existence, regarding them as a illegitimate citizen of their land Palestine, bombarding their homes or confiscating them by force and building illegal houses and Etc. in another word US and EU first have created a monster and then unleashed the monster in Middle East where they have all kind of problem with as we speak.
The history of peoples democratic uprising and even a democratic elected governments from Lebanon to Iran to Afghanistan and Pakistan and Etc. is as long as 150 years, yet US and England by the way of Coup d Etta been able to stop the peoples demand for democratic changes in their country where the prospect of democracy would have been a total victory for the people by now. US and England for last 60 years been supporting regime change all over the world, where a change from a brutal to a militarism regime or a religious dictatorial been the outcome of EU and US in their general foreign policy and Israel is no different. Here, Israel been called the “only democracy” in Middle East, yet the question is: by EU and US conducting all these Coup d Etta’s and wanting to change a legitimate regimes in Middle East or beyond been US and EU illegal policy in not letting democracy to grow in any other part of Middle East; therefore, for one thing there is no such thing as democracy ever existed and if it did its foreign policy been as falsified as the one at home, for two the US and EU policy always been based on supporting tyranny, therefore and for them the only democracy is Israel.
This matter brings us to the point that these newly created ideas in fact are nothing but the old ones replacing the one that is brutal with yet another but not doing anything toward Israel which is the center of all this Middle East problems. If US and England has supported the Iranian democracy the people of Iran would have been free.
EU and US are in the mode of buying time by creating these little wars here and there for Israel to be happy while they get paid by billions of dollars, meanwhile countries government from Sweden to England and to USA predicting that “eventually” all these little wars and changes will face democracy later in time. One of the things that is wrong with this newly formed idea is the fact that its separates people by religious and ethnicity, or tribal differences, like in Libya and Syria, those elements whom are paid and fooled by EU – USA, Saudis and United Arab Emirates (UAE) tyrants making sure that is better for Israel and them for people to kill each other then being united against the international cartel of vulture capitalism and Tyrants. This new policy is nothing but the old one, is a change all right and is just that. The Iranian people are the one whom should and need to be united and defend their country, it is up to the Iranian people to decide their government, it is their legal and international right to have and use energy of all sort for its peoples feature and countries development. Not in the US constitution nor there is any wording in EU or the UN governing body or any other international charters mentioning that it is US or Russia or China who are responsible or to decide a countries future, its destiny or its progress, it is up to the people of that country and noon eels to decide.
It is simple an attack on Iran is going to have direct effects on the US, Firstly the Price of Oil isnt just going to spike it is going to skyrocket.. Dont just think that Middle East oil will not flow there is a HUGE possibility that Venezuelan oil will not flow either! That WILL affect the US both in supply AND Prices. Do the fools in Washington not also see that an attack is going to Kill Iranians and there are tens of thousands of Iranians that will be pissed off.
Then there is the fact that IF Iran is attacked they have NOTHING left to lose missile attacks on the biggest Naval targets that the US has in the region are a Given, Iran has the ability AND the weaponry to have Multiple attacks on a Carrier, Ballistic missiles with steerable warheads, Hypersonic Missiles, 200 Knot Torpedoes all at the same time, Is the US looking at playing Splash one Carrier. It will be a given that Iran will also send missiles to Israel but it should also be a given that Hezbollah and the Gazans will also let fly, inundating the Israeli defences. Russia has also made it patently clear not to kill any of their citizens OR SUFFER THE CONSEQUENCES, their citizens run the Operational Nuclear Plant and it should be noted that the bombing of a Nuclear Plant is a blatant war crime and under IAEA guidelines LAWFULLY allows an IAEA signatory state to imediatelly render Assistance, that means Russia can retaliate legally,
throw in the possibility that the Russians will give Iran the S-300 defensive anti-aircraft missiles thay ordered and paid for. That should slow down the saber rattling and all the Kabuki theater from the Israelis.
I will say this again
What has Russia Wanted for hundreds of years, A seawater port in the Indian Ocean!
America SHOULD fret an attack on Iran, it has the MOST to lose, an attack on Iran will do what WWI and WWII did to Britain totally bankrupt it. Gritain had trouble after WWI but was devistated after WWII, and has NEVER really been able to recoup its Political Power or its economic power since, the slightest hiccough has put Britiain back in its box since WWII, A war with Iran will do the SAME to the US, Iraq and Afhganistan have nearly bankrupted the US now, who are they going to Borrow the Money to run this war from, Its likely they will be fighting the Chinese and Russians, their current money lenders!
Time to impeach the War Mongers, for High treason!
The United States military is probably just as capable of physically preventing or counterattacking such an Israeli airstrike as it was in Persian Gulf War I, when George Herbert Walker Bush acting through Richard Cheney would not release friend-or-foe codes to the Israelis. Perhaps they're planning to do it with their version of ICBMs, and nuclear ICBMs, at that. That might be a problem. But a conventional
airstrike is entirely counterable and would be obviated by the US Navy, and the remaining loyal elements of the US Air Force.
Exactly. The US would act to prevent a criminal illegal act of murderous aggression by the Israelis….
On the other hand they may sit back and let the Japs bomb Pearl Harbor. Though now we basically look on Pearl Harbor as a brilliant military maneuver and emulate it ourselves now. Ideally you shoot unarmed men in the back and say that's what war is all about. Though that never seems to be how they play it up in the movies where our brave boys are cowardly attacked by evil little sub-humans that they then wipe out.
just think if Iran was actually making public threats against israel……..
the US media and congress would be shrieking from mount everst…nuke'em now they'd be yodollng…
but when israel does/says this….it is thier right to …
I once read that the Ottoman empire would not let any of the tribe into positions of power…it stood for 1200 years…until I think the tribe manipulated Europe into war…which eventually took down the Otts…paving the way for israel…
the US has been around for 240 years and is basically on the verge of economic collapse…thanks to you know who…
This is all a game. The USA rushed bunker buster bombs to Israel. Does anyone think that if the give the IDF a weapon that they will not kill someone with it? The USA wants to be in a position to state they were against it and Israel will always cry victim. Only the chosen has master the victim role while being the aggressor. The Iran attack is a given. The only question is if they use nukes first. It is amazing how they will sell it as defending Israel from nuclear weapons while murdering millions with nuclear weapons. It was a very sad day for humanity when Israel stole the nuclear bomb secrets.
Stole? Isreal was given nuclear bomb secrets by traitors inside the US government.
Tom,
As far as I recall it was the French who were primarily responsible for giving nuclear technology to Israel in the 1950's
Like all imperialists, the French have caused a great deal of grief wherever they were, and they're still acting today as though they are a great power, refer to Libya last year and their threats against Iran today. My view is that Sarkozy wants to be re-elected this year, and what better way than conducting wars against the usual suspects.
You can bet that the heavy lifting will be done by the American war machine. B2s carrying thirty thousand pound bunker buster bombs will be involved from the get go. The fog of war will allow IDF the opportunity to invade Lebanon and put down an insurrection in Gaza.
Obama will be hiding out, vacationing in Hawaii and unavailable for comment.
There is little question that the USA can destroy Iran. The question is can Iran economically destroy the USA at the same time. When the scam of the federal reserve ends then printing federal reserve notes will not carry the USA economy. China, India now will basically drop the USA $ as the reserve currency. When enough nations drop the USA $ reserve status then the USA faces a depression. The USA pays $1,000,000 per killed military personnel. Think if Iran can sink one or two air craft carriers with 3,000 plus sailors. The insanity of going to war by massively nuclear power nations to keep a small nation from getting a nuclear bomb is amazing. Iran wants the nuclear bomb because they are being attacked by those that have them.
"…when Israel stole the nuclear bomb secrets." I would not be surprised if they didn't steal the secrets but that the nuke plans were given to them by some "well meaning" American official (politician/military/scientist – or general functionary). There is a cancer on the American government in the form of many, many "well meaning" people who owe allegiance to more than one government.
They owe their allegiance to one government and it ain't to the US of A.
The same sort of treasonous disloyal Americans who seem to think they are "dual citizens" gave them the nuclear material to make the bomb as well.
There is only one thing considered treason in the Constitution and that is supporting those in a war against America. By their continuing actions the Israeli governments have warred on the US for decades and anyone with a "dual citizenship" is potentially committing treason. It's not specific if it has to be a declared war though shooting at a US ship in international waters and killing sailors seemed to be a declaration of war on their part.
“We can have no “50-50″ allegiance in this country. Either a man is an American and nothing else, or he is not an American at all.” Theodore Roosevelt (American 26th US President (1901-09), 1858-1919)
It IMHO has it all.
The US should tell Israel we will shoot down any aircraft that are heading to Iran to commit aggression, or are aggression and offensive wars OK now, if committed by Israel?
A strong President would. Obama is a weak little man surrounded by weak little men. Hilary Clinton has bigger balls than all of them.
Ben,
Thanks for that, but your description of Hilary is something I'd rather not think about, she's bad enough otherwise.
The USA does not have to shot down any aircraft. Israel needs permission and refueling to pull off the attack. The Israel planes need to be refueled on the way back. If Israel lands anyplace that nation would have to provide fuel and then become a target of Iran. In Losing Iran can destroy the USA economy. A couple years ago 4.25$ gasoline brought on the near depression of 2008. What do you thing $7 plus gasoline will do? The USA can only lose in starting another war for Israel. Can you name any war started for Israel that helped the USA?
Israel is the true threat to the world, not Iran.
Well…that was said in jest before today's UN veto by China and Russia, a first but hopefully not a last. Finally, the ties are turning. This was decisive blow to the Empire and a signal that their days in the sun are ovah!
No war for Israel.