Tag: iran

House Passes Resolution That Suggests Using Force Against Iran

The House on Wednesday passed a resolution that suggested the US would use force against Iran in the future in the name of preventing the country from acquiring nuclear weapons.

The resolution says a nuclear-armed Iran is “unacceptable” and declares that it’s the policy of the US to “use all means necessary to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.”

A US intelligence report recently affirmed that Iran is not pursuing nuclear weapons, but reality doesn’t stop Iran hawks in the US and Israel from constantly hyping up the threat of a non-existent Iranian nuclear weapons program. The same officials do not officially recognize that Israel possesses a nuclear arsenal.

The resolution passed in a vote of 354-53, with 50 Democrats and three Republicans voting against the measure. Explaining his opposition, Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) because it seemed like a call for war.

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Israel warns Hezbollah – beware what happened to Hamas: Minister says Israel does NOT want a war in the north but if the Iran-backed militia force one ‘it will pay a very heavy price’ after rocket fired from Lebanon kills Israeli

Israel has warned Hezbollah it would pay a ‘very heavy price’ if the Iranian-backed movement enters the ongoing conflict.

The Israeli government said today it was willing to fight a war on two or more fronts as it issued a stark warning to its northern neighbour to stay out of the clashes taking place between it and Hamas.

The country’s defence minister, Yoav Gallant, said the Jewish state did not want a war with Lebanon and was prepared to show restraint despite shooting from both sides taking place at the border which has claimed the life of at least one Israeli so far.

It comes Israel continues its bombardment of Gaza following last week’s raids by Hamas which are confirmed to have killed hundreds of Israeli civilians and soldiers. It has confirmed that at least 155 people have also been taken hostage by the terrorist organisation.

Military leaders had warned the people of Gaza City, which is close to the border with Israel, that they should evacuate ahead of a planned ground offensive into the Palestinian territory. Officials have said at least 600,000 have done so so far. 

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Iran Issues Dire Warning to Israel If Attacks in Gaza Continue: ‘Huge Earthquake’

On Saturday, Iran’s foreign minister called on Israel to halt attacks on Gaza, warning that the war may expand to other parts of the Middle East if Hezbollah joins the battle, saying that Israel would suffer “a huge earthquake.”

While speaking with reporters in Beirut, Hossein Amirabdollahian said that Lebanon’s Hezbollah group has taken all the scenarios of a war into consideration and Israel should stop its attacks on Gaza as soon as possible.

Hezbollah is considered by Israel to be its most serious immediate threat, with estimates suggesting that they may have nearly 150,000 rockets and missiles, including precision-guided missiles that can hit anywhere in Israel.

The group consists of thousands of fighters, many of whom were veterans of Syria’s 12-year conflict, as well as various types of military drones. Since last week’s attack by the militant Palestinian group Hamas, which left hundreds of Israeli civilians and soldiers dead, Hezbollah fighters have been on alert along Lebanon’s borders with Israel. 

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Israel war: Leaders of Iran and Saudi Arabia hold first-ever phone call, pledging united support for Palestinians

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi talked on the phone for the first time ever, pledging united support for the Palestinian cause.

The conversation lasted for roughly 45 minutes, according to SAMAA, and it focused on the war in Gaza. Iranian state media reported that the two affirmed the “need to end war crimes against Palestine,” according to Reuters. The Saudi Press Agency reported that Salman affirmed his support for the Palestinian cause and urged against the targeting of civilians.

“He also stressed – may God protect him – the Kingdom’s firm position towards supporting the Palestinian cause and supporting efforts aimed at achieving a comprehensive and just peace that guarantees the Palestinian people’s access to their legitimate rights,” the Saudi Press Agency said in a statement.

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Hamas Confirms It Received Support From Iran for Terror Attacks on Israel

According to reports, Hamas, the Palestinian Islamic terrorist organization behind the surprise attacks on Israel, confirmed that it received support for the attacks from the Islamic Republic of Iran, the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.

A spokesperson for the terror group told the BBC that it received funding from Iran and others, not naming any others who provided support. 

After the attacks, Iranians across their nation flocked into the streets to celebrate the attacks, which led to the deaths of hundreds of Israelis and wounded thousands more. Revelers shot off fireworks, waved flags, and cheered according to numerous images and videos posted online.

Additionally, several Iranian officials have celebrated the attacks, such as Iranian foreign ministry spokesperson Nasser Kanani, who said, “What took place today is in line with the continuation of victories for the anti-Zionist resistance in different fields, including Syria, Lebanon and occupied lands.”

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A CIA-backed 1953 coup in Iran haunts the country with people still trying to make sense of it

Seventy years after a CIA-orchestrated coup toppled Iran’s prime minister, its legacy remains both contentious and complicated for the Islamic Republic as tensions stay high with the United States.

While highlighted as a symbol of Western imperialism by Iran’s theocracy, the coup unseating Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadegh — over America’s fears about a possible tilt toward the Soviet Union and the loss of Iranian crude oil — appeared backed at the time by the country’s leading Shiite clergy.

But nowadays, hard-line Iranian state television airs repeated segments describing the coup as showing how America can’t be trusted, while authorities bar the public from visiting Mossadegh’s grave in a village outside of Tehran.

Such conflicts are common in Iran, where “Death to America” can still be heard at Friday prayers in Tehran while many on its streets say they’d welcome a better relationship with the U.S. But as memories of the coup further fade away along with those alive during it, controlling which allegory Iranians see in it has grown more important for both the country’s government and its people.

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Iran 1953: MI6 Plots with Islamists to Overthrow Democracy

In many accounts the C.I.A. is regarded as the prime mover behind the 1953 coup in Iran, yet Britain was in fact the initial instigator and provided considerable resources to the plot, which U.K. planners named “Operation Boot.”

In the early 1950s, the Anglo–Iranian Oil Company (AIOC), or BP as it is now known, was run from London and owned jointly by the British government and private citizens. It controlled Iran’s main source of income and oil, and by 1951 had become, according to one British official, “in effect an imperium in imperio [an empire within an empire] in Persia.”

Iranian nationalists objected to the fact that the AIOC’s revenues from oil were greater than the Iranian government’s. 

Britain’s ambassador in Tehran, Sir Francis Shepherd, had a typically colonialist take on the situation. The declassified files show his writing: “It is so important to prevent the Persians from destroying their main source of revenue…by trying to run it themselves.”

He added: “The need for Persia is not to run the oil industry for herself (which she cannot do) but to profit from the technical ability of the West.”

Of course, Iran was perfectly capable of running its own oil industry. In March 1951 the Iranian Parliament voted to nationalise oil operations, take control of the Anglo–Iranian Oil Company and expropriate its assets. 

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US Will Boost Military Presence in the Middle East

Washington announced a plan to deploy additional fighter jets to the Middle East to prevent Iran from seizing ships in the Persian Gulf. The Pentagon is additionally evaluating proposals to send more military equipment into the region to address Russian aircraft operating in Syrian skies. 

According to the AP, a defense official told reporters that the US would deploy F-16s to the Middle East to stop Iran from hijacking ships. The official, who spoke to the reporters on the condition of anonymity, said the aircraft would provide cover to vessels traveling in the region. 

The US seized a ship carrying Iranian oil to China in April, kicking off a new tanker war. Iran retaliated, in the Persian Gulf,  by seizing two ships. In response, the US said it increased the number of patrols its personnel were conducting in the region but stopped short of sending additional military equipment to the Middle East. 

The lack of new military deployments angered Washington’s allies in the region, including the UAE. Abu Dhabi halted its involvement with a Washington-led coalition aimed at preventing Iranian ship seizures in May. 

Last week, Washington claimed it prevented Iranian forces from seizing two ships with the presence of a guided missile destroyer. The F-16s sent to the Middle East will support A-10s in conducting patrols over the sea. 

The official additionally told reporters that the Department of Defense is looking to confront the Russian air force in Syria. Over the past several months, the White House and the Kremlin have accused each other of conducting provocative sorties in the skies above Syria. The official claimed that Moscow, Tehran and Damascus were working to drive US forces from Syria. 

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“Morality Police” Return to Streets of Iran in New Campaign to Force Islamic Dress on Women

On Sunday, Iranian officials announced a new campaign to force women to wear the Islamic headscarf.

Regime thugs had pulled back from crackdowns following nationwide protests after the murder of 22-year-old Iranian woman Mahsa Amini while in police custody.

Amini died from injuries sustained at the hands of police after her arrest for the “improper” wearing of a hijab.

Iranian men and women protested against the regime’s brutality and paid the price for daring to speak up.  Protestors faced  being fired on with an AK-47 , the indiscriminately firing on protesters in the street from moving vehicles, the murder of Hadis Najafi , a powerful symbol of the uprisings, the kidnapping, torture, rape and murder of Nika Shakarimi,  and a woman being dragged by police and sexually assaulted by a gang of Islamic Republic oppressive forces.

Iranian celebrity chef Mehrshad Shahidi was beaten to death by security forces during anti-hijab protests, reportedly killed by multiple violent baton blows at the hands of security forces just shy of his 20th birthday.

Over a thousand students were allegedly poisoned ahead of a mass protest.

More than 500 protesters were killed and almost 20,000 more were detained.

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Mossad agent who died in Italy was on mission working against Iran – report

The Mossad and Italian intelligence personnel that were on the boat that capsized earlier this week at Lake Maggiore in northern Italy were working together to prevent Tehran from obtaining advanced weapons, according to a Friday report by the Italian newspaper La Repubblica.

The operation was exposed when the boat sunk, killing four people, including one retired Mossad agent, the report said. Others that drowned include two that worked for Italian intelligence as well as the wife of the ship’s captain.

The collaboration of the two espionage organizations reportedly began following Italian media reports which claimed that Russian oligarchs were operating in the area and taking part in transferring Iranian-manufactured UAVs to Moscow.

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