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On the 12 Oct 23 in the Tehran Times the Iranian Foreign Minister, Hossein Amir Abdollahian, stated, that nobody seeks Iran’s “permission to open a new front” against Israel, saying everything is “dependent” on the Zionist regime’s moves. Iran constantly refers to the Israelis as Zionists. He went on to say, “Officials of certain countries in contact with us ask about a possible opening of new (war) fronts in the region. We tell them that our clear-cut response about future possibilities is that everything is dependent on the moves of the Zionist regime in Gaza,” Iran’s foreign minister remarked. There is a speculation that the powerful Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement, resistance forces in Iraq known as Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), and Ansarallah forces in Yemen may enter the war against Israel if the Tel Aviv continues to massacre the Palestinian people indiscriminately in the Gaza Strip.
Israels bombardment on Hamas has come under strict scrutiny. The Israeli government have given Palestinians opportunities to leave the north of the Gaza Strip and move south out of harms way. “The Palestinian civilians in Gaza are not our enemies,” an Israeli military spokesman, John Conricus, said. “We don’t assess them as such, and we don’t target them as such. We are trying to do the right thing.” This comment stresses that Israel is there to fight Hamas not the Palestinians. Hamas had other ideas and urged ordinary Palestinians to stay in their homes. Hamas needs human shields. As a ruling body inside the Gaza Strip, they have done little to help the population living there. Rather than spend funds on improving the life of the Palestinians they have spent it on cement. Shoring up tunnels to be used to attack Israel takes money. A British newspaper wrote the underground network in Gaza now branches dozens of miles through the Gaza Strip reaching the towns of Khan Younis, Jabalia, and the Shati refugee camp. They also stretch into Israel. Hamas whose terrorist ideology is to destroy Israel does not take into account the population. The news outlet continued, the tunnels, which are believed to have cost between $30 million (£21.3 million) and $90 million (£63.9 million) to build, are extremely difficult to detect from the air. Some of the three dozen tunnels built since the end of the 2014 Israel-Gaza conflict are estimated to have cost $3 million (£2.13 million). The tunnels are reinforced with concrete to protect them from airstrikes and from caving in. The vicious cycle of attacking Israel through tunnels, having them destroyed and rebuilding them does not come from what Gaza exports, its believed that Iran funds Hamas with $100 million each year. The money comes from funds that are to improve life for the Palestinians. Human shields would be used in order to stop Israel from retaliating. Another method would be when the ground war starts the deaths of those who chose not to go south would be used to apply pressure on the international community to decry Israels ground war. The pressure would be used to make Israel halt its campaign of putting a stop to Hamas once and for all. Hamas are using its own population to carry through its ideology of destroying Israel. Nothing more. While Israel’s response will tragically include the loss of innocent Palestinian lives, this will be the result of Hamas using their homes and hospitals as launching pads, while not providing bomb shelters or other means of protection. Stated the Jerusalem Post. German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock said, “Hamas is now barricading itself behind more innocent people and is using them as a shield in Gaza.” She continued, “Hamas has taken the entire population of Gaza hostage,” also adding, “Their tunnels, their weapons depots and command centres are deliberately located in residential buildings, supermarkets and universities. Maybe even in hospitals.” The Palestinian envoy to the United Nations described Israels use of munitions in the Gaza Strip as “nothing less than genocidal.” Iran calls the siege a war crime and urged the United Nations to stop what they deem as ‘atrocities’ and it was their responsibly “to end the Zionist regime’s heinous crimes and acts of aggression against Palestinian people.” Iran has not denounced the indiscriminate attack on Israel nor the taking of hostages instead they refer to the attack as “self-defence” by the Palestinians. Iran decries war crimes and those conducting the crimes against the ‘Palestinian people’ stating they will be brought to account. It is in the wording. Iran does not use the term Hamas but Palestinian. Likewise, it does not refer to them as terrorists or freedom fighters. They refer to such groups such as Hamas. Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Hezbollah and others as ‘resistance fighters’ or the ‘axis of resistance.’ Iran funds them all. Possible ‘New Front’ In September 2021 Al Arabiya published a report that originated in Iran whereby they boasted of having six armies. “A prominent Iranian military commander said that his country has “six armies outside its borders that work for it.” Gholam Ali Rashid, the commander of what is known as “the headquarters of Khatam al-Anbiya”, said in statements carried by the Iranian Mehr Agency, that Qassem Soleimani, the former commander of the Quds Force, announced, three months before his death, that he had organized six armies outside Iranian territory. He added that Soleimani was supported by the leadership of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards and the General Staff of the Army. He added that these armies have ideological tendencies, live outside Iran, and their mission is to defend Tehran against any attack, according to his claim. In his statements, he also said that these armies include the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Hamas and Jihad movements, the regime forces in Syria, the Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces, and the Houthi militia in Yemen, stressing that these forces represent a deterrent force for Iran. “Although the report states ‘for the protection of Iran’ it does not say that they could be used in a different modus operandi. Hadi Al-Amiri on the 10 Oct 23, a powerful Iraqi politician close to Iran and a key figure in the cross-party alliance backing Iraq’s government, has threatened to target US interests if Washington intervenes to support Israel in its conflict with Hamas in Gaza. Amiri leads the Badr Organization, a Shi’ite political group supported by Iran that makes up a big part of Iraq’s Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), the state paramilitary organization that contains many Iran-backed factions. “If they intervene, we would intervene...if the Americans intervened openly in this conflict...we will consider all American targets legitimate … and we will not hesitate to target it,” On the same day that Hadi Al-Amiri made his statement senior Iraqi and Yemeni leaders aligned with Iran and in charge of heavily armed groups have threatened to target US interests if Washington intervenes to support Israel in its conflict with Hamas in Gaza. Hezbollah has not as yet dedicated itself to joining in the fight against Israel. The Lebanese government is weak and is separate to Hezbollah who control the south of Lebanon. But on the 9 Oct 23 Al-Arabiya reported that Iran was ‘urging’ Hezbollah to prepare for conflict. Hezbollah has been cautiously firing mortars and rockets into Israel but nothing on a large scale. This could be for two reasons. Firstly, to show support for Hamas, secondly to test the Israeli reactions. Israel would have to deploy troops and assets in that area should Hezbollah escalate its intentions and to counter these attacks. Its possible that should the attacks become more severe the Americans would offer assistance to israel. Hezbollah deputy chief Naim Qassem stated on the 13 Oct 23 “that the group would not be swayed by calls for it to stay on the sidelines of the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, saying the party was “fully ready” to contribute to the fighting.” “The behind-the-scenes calls with us by great powers, Arab countries, envoys of the United Nations, directly and indirectly telling us not to interfere will have no effect,” he told supporters gathered in the southern Beirut suburb. Tasmin News (semi-official news agency in Iran associated with the IRGC) on the 14 Oct 23 reported that “Secretary General of the Lebanese Hezbollah resistance movement Seyed Hassan Nasrallah conveyed to Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian the robust state of the resistance and its preparedness for any scenarios regarding recent developments in Palestine.” “Hezbollah knows its duties perfectly well. We are prepared and ready, fully ready, and we are following developments moment by moment,” Qassem said. Iran and other proxies that they use have been warned by the United States not to become involved. The United States and other countries in the Region do not want to the conflict to escalate. Iran has other ideas and its proxies also appear to have other thoughts. Iran warned on the 14 Oct 23 that if Israel’s “war crimes and genocide” are not halted immediately, “the situation could spiral out of control & ricochet far-reaching consequences,” Tehran’s mission to the United Nations in New York posted on X. The Tehran Times reported that Amir Abdollahian also met with some senior Hamas and Islamic Jihad officials in Beirut as he continued his visit to Lebanon recently. They discussed the latest developments in Palestine. The Palestinian officials noted that Operation Al-Aqsa Storm was a natural reaction of the Palestinian nation’s resistance to the daily and continuous crimes of the Zionist regime, specifically the extremist cabinet of Netanyahu against Palestinians and the regime’s frequent desecration of the Al-Aqsa Mosque. They also said despite the war crimes by the usurping Zionist regime against the oppressed people of Gaza, resistance groups have stood up strongly against the regime’s aggression, with their morale, motivation and capability being high as they press ahead down the path of resistance. Amir Abdollahian, for his part, said the Palestinian people have an inalienable right to resistance against occupation. He added that just as some Western officials have admitted the Al-Aqsa Storm proved that Palestine is alive and despite some claims the Palestinian issue will not slip into oblivion due to normalization deals between some countries and the Zionist regime. Clear reference to the Abrahams Accord and the talks between Israel and Saudi Arabia. United States President Joe Biden said on the 7 Oct 23 the United States was ready to offer “all appropriate means of support” to Israel after an attack from Hamas and warned “any other party hostile to Israel” not to seek advantage. The following day in a televised speech, Biden issued a blunt warning. “Israel has a right to defend itself and its people — full stop,” he said. “Let me say this as clearly as I can. This is not a moment for any party hostile to Israel to exploit these attacks to seek advantage. The world is watching.” Now we have a chicken and egg syndrome. Which will come first. Should Hezbollah, or any other Iranian proxy decide that when Israel commences its ground war and Hamas become the losers will Hezbollah decide to strike therefore opening up a second front? Or through intelligence gained that an Iranian proxy decides to attack Israel and the United States stops the attack will others then use that as an excuse to join the conflict? Is there a pre-arranged event that will spark a regional war? Indications are that there is a real time possibility of a second front opening. Iran possibly thinks it is in a position to be the grand master of manipulation. It has numerous proxies at hand to move as chess pieces across the Middle East chess board and strong allies in Russia and China. Iran will be clever. There will be no paper or communication trial as every order will have been carried out by word of mouth or through a courier. Osama Bin Laden used couriers to relay his directions and not by modern communication methods as he feared being caught by the United States using tracking methods to find where he was hidden. During the attacks on Saudi Arabia by the Iranian backed Houthi’s, Iran would constantly deny that they were behind the attacks. Just before diplomatic relations were restored between the two countries the missiles and drones launched into Saudi Arabia stopped. Nikki Halley the United States ambassador at the time to the United Nations gave proof that the aerial bombardment against the Saudi’s were carried out by Iranian supplied and manufactured drones. The Iranians denied that they belonged to them and that anyone can put markings on a drone in Farsi and claim they came from Iran. The war in Ukraine instigated by Russia has seen numerous drones used in the conflict. There is a track record of Russia using drones supplied by Iran. Iran denies that they are their weapons. Iran learnt from the accusations aimed at them by the Americans regarding how easy it was to supply evidence that Iran can and do supply drones to its allies. This time they requested proof by demanding the Ukraine, America and other nations accusing them of supplying the drones for documentation when they were supplied to Russia. Iran knows that they will not find any such transactions. The point is they learnt from a past mistake. The current conflict between Hamas and Israel may well turn this into a Middle East nightmare. Reports of attempting to stop it overflowing into other countries by the United States and its Arab allies are constantly ongoing. In the case of Hamas where Iran denies any involvement meetings would have taken place but no paper trail by way of communications would be used. A total comms blackout. Everything done by way of word of mouth from one party to another or the use of couriers. This attack would have been too big to chance anything getting out prematurely. Iran’s main news outlets continuously talk about others getting involved. The Iranian foreign minister said any action by Hezbollah would amount to an earthquake for the Zionist regime and “the responsibility for any expansion of war in the region lies with the Zionist regime.” No matter how the conflict between Hamas and Israel ends, Iran will walk away claiming that they had nothing to do with the attack. One of their favourite sayings is 'baseless'. Any claims made that Iran was behind the 7 Oct 23 attack will be as they say, "baseless." What they have not thought about is that although Osama Bin laden used couriers, he still got caught. The planning of Hamas’s invasion of Israel was probably in the pipe line for some time, what it needed was an intention and motive to initiate the attack. Some have wondered for some time how Iran could derail the talks between Israel and Saudi Arabia which had been showing signs of progress. With reports that an agreement was close Iran needed a diversion in order to derail the process. The planning of the attack and the launch would need the go ahead from someone, not Hamas, but a master. An Iranian master, someone with a higher authority possibly the Supreme Leader or head of the IRGC-QF.
The Islamic Republic of Iran does not have a policy whereby it confronts its foes; it allows others to do this for them. The Supreme Leader, It is worth remembering that a lot of Sunni Islam countries are on the side of the Palestinian cause. This attack may also be an attempt to break the Abrahams Accord which Iran also opposes. If the Saudis and Israel sign an agreement it would isolate Iran from one of its common goals and that is to destroy Israel. Saudi Arabia so far has kept a tight lid on the conflict and its views, the only statement so far is by the Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Bin Farhan who has said that his country, “condemns targeting of civilians in Israeli-Palestinian conflict.” The whole tactic has been a clever well thought out plan, coordinated and operated with an aim of destroying Israel as per the prophecies in the Iranian press for over six months and the Iranian boast of a new world order. On numerous occasions, high profile figures in the Iranian military have stated that the fall o Iran was imminent. The attack on Israel by Hamas may seem extreme but Iran does not concern itself with these details as it suits its revolutionary founder, Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini revolutionary ideology requirements which is to destroy Israel. Hamas on its own could never came up with a plan as strong as this as well as all the logistics that would have to be in place in order to conduct an assault on Israel on the scale it has shown. In the past they have been content to allow the PIJ to fire rockets and shoot at Israel in its attempt to fight against Israel. There is more at stake here than just the Palestinian cause. A senior US official in a conference call has said that ‘they currently do not see any hands of Iran being involved and will look into it’. It appears by the comment that they have their suspicions. The United States President has also warned those who are outside not to think about getting involved, it was a strong and stern warning. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said part of the motivation for Hamas’ latest attack on Israel may have been disrupting a potential normalizing of Israel-Saudi Arabia ties All Iran has done is gloat, party and claim that Israel is about to fall because of its treatment of the Palestinians and the current infighting which also may have given “now, the time is right” attitude. Like everything, timing is everything. Iran does not want to lose its new found friend Saudi Arabia as Iran has been making plans on both their behalf for the future of the region. That cannot be derailed at any cost. Iran is also using this opportunity and attempt to gain support by claiming Israel is responsible for regional instability. This accusation is not new, but this is an ideal opportunity to bring to the fore and point it out and challenge in order to gain more support against Israel. The Iranian propaganda machines. On the 9 Oct 23 the Wall Street Journal wrote that Iran had assisted in the planning of the attack since Aug 23, an accusation Iran denies. Fars News Agency on the Denial, blame moved elsewhere then divert back to Israel. There is also the UN part of the article heading to grasp the attention of the reader and to give it credibility. A common Iranian tactic especially when it comes to denying events. In order to discredit Israel and turn the Muslim world against Israel they had to include an Islamic facture hence why the name was picked as operation “Al-Aqsa Storm.” Hamas, along with others have accused Israel of desecrating the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound even creating incidents to draw the IDF in and claim propaganda. It brings in the Muslim world as it’s an Islamic holy name and site. Iran has and does attempt to amalgamate the Islamic world (Sunni and Shia) against Israel. What better way than to have Israel retaliate to a major incursion and by enabling them to use extreme force. Iran and Hamas are close partners. Where did Hamas get the money, logistics, weapons and ammunition in such large quantities? Turkey managed to find 16 tons of logistics early in the year. You don’t put that type of quantity in the boot of a car to smuggle through a checkpoint. The other question to ask regarding this point is how much had been smuggled in before and after that and not been found? There has to be a smuggling network in place that Iran can smuggle everything that is required for a large-scale attack. Hamas which is a designated terrorist organisation is limited as to where it obtains its financial aid. However, some of the ways Hamas receives its funding is by; state sponsors, charitable organisations, fundraising, extortion and taxes, tunnel trade, criminal activities, local and external donors. Its exports are few but rely on agriculture and fishing, small scale manufacturing and very little else. Certainly not sufficient to finance a major conflict. Specifics of financial aid provided by Iran to Hamas in Gaza are often not disclosed publicly, as these transactions typically occur covertly. However, it has been alleged by various sources that Iran has provided financial support to Hamas over the years. This support may include: direct funding, financial assistance to families of fighters and funding social services. There have been allegations that Iran provides various forms of military support to Hamas, this support is thought to include: Training and technical assistance, weapons and ammunition and political support. A smuggling route sometimes starts in Iran, Yemen and the Sudan into the Gaza Strip Should other terrorist groups such as Hezbollah become involved then this will escalate the conflict from outside of Israel and Hamas. Hezbollah has fired several rockets at the Israeli Shebaa Farm, Israel retaliated and nothing more occurred, although Hezbollah stated that this was to show Hamas it stood with them. If Hezbollah were to join then it would be a free for all as there would be no command-and-control structure between the two factions and would be easily defeated without some form of hierarchal leadership. According to Al-Arabiya News who ran a report stating, “Iran is urging Lebanon’s Hezbollah to prepare for potential conflict with Israel, the Times of Israel cited a senior Israeli government source as saying. he source also said that Israel has gathered intelligence suggesting Iran influenced Hamas in carrying out its recent attack on Israel. However, should Hezbollah become involved the Americans may become drawn in as the IDF would be fighting on two fronts. This would also mean that the conflict would not stay in one area of the Middle East but escalate into other countries. This attack may well back fire on Iran, if it is responsible. Israel will be more than ever wanting a peace settlement with the Saudi’s which will go against everything Iran has strived for by sanctioning Hamas to attack Israel. Iran is the puppet master; the puppets are the proxies. The Iranian President, Seyed Ebrahim Raisi, has been holding phone calls with leaders of what Iran calls Resistance Movements over the Palestinians’ military operation. The most difficult stage in all of this will be the release of those who have been captured and held hostage, not all are Israeli’s, some are different nationalities and Americans. The Biden Administration has recently recovered from the release of five Americans from Iran without having to negotiate for hostages held by an Iran-backed terrorist group. In October 2011 it was announced that a prisoner swap had been agreed between Israel and Palestinian militants who had kidnapped an Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit after tunnelling into Israel from Gaza. The price for the release of one soldier was freedom for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners, including, Hamas said, more than 300 serving life terms for violent attacks. The serving Prime Minister at the time was Benjamin Netanyahu. Hamas with the assistance of Iran who are past masters as hostage negotiations will make this very difficult for Israel and other nations. It’s no secret that Iran blames Israel as one of the perpetrators for its woes at home. Israel gets the blame for many things. One was the demonstrations that ran after the death of Mahsa Amini the Kurdish female murdered by the Iranian morality police thugs. Iran has many problems at the moment with above 50% inflation and the population finding it difficult to put the staple food on the table. Different employment factions wanting a pay rise and better conditions as sanctions against Iran bite. The attack on Israel will be seen as a way in which the theocratic government of Iran attempts unite the country in the hope that the financial spotlight will be taken away from the Tehran government and placed on the Palestinian fight against the Israelis. In Conclusion Although there is no current direct evidence that the Islamic Republic of Iran is involved with the Palestinian attack on Israel, but there is circumstantial evidence present that Iran does have an involvement. It’s not the Palestinians that will gain from any of this but their masters who are miles away in Iran. Those Palestinians who die in the fighting leave behind families of loved ones who will not be coming home or able to earn a wage to place food on the table or play with their children. The Israeli’s who will have died fighting will also face a similar fate in that aspect. The winners will be the Iranians. Sat in West Asia away from the conflict. No one currently knows regarding the thoughts of Saudi Arabia on the conflict, nor how they will react after the struggle has finished. Saudi Arabia wants to assist the Palestinians by being in talks with Israel to bring a better life and closure to a long problem. There will be a lot of fallout from this war. Hostage negotiations, Israel’s security apparatus and leadership. Relations with Iran should the finger of blame be proven. Although Iran is extremely clever when it comes to hiding away from the facts but the truth is, they are not as smart as they think they are and somewhere there will be a direct link. Iran may have had the idea of attempting to make the prospects better for Gaza and its inhabitants but in reality, they will have made it worse. Iran accuses Israel of being the major problem in the Middle East whereas in truth there’s only one problem in the Middle East and that is from a country that is situated in West Asia and interfering in the affairs of the Middle Eastern countries claiming it’s the saviour of the Muslim faith. Remove Iran from the Region will not solve every problem in that part of the world but it will certainly go a long way in bringing peace and stability without outside interference. The world needs to wake up and realise that the Islamic Republic of Iran is not a friend, a benign neighbour, but a deadly, corrupt regime whose sole purpose is to ensure the world follows its ideology no matter how long it takes or what it has to do to achieve it. https://www.arabnews.com/node/2358701/middle-east
There is a “for sale” sign up by the Tehran government for political hostages held illegally in Iran. Who is winning the political hostage battle? It could have started with Anousheh Ashouri Nazanin and Zaghari-Ratcliffe, dual British/Iranian nationals, both had been arrested, detained and jailed on false accusations. In Mar 22 the two UK political hostages were purchased back by the United Kingdom government for £400 million, a debt owed to the Shah of Iran before the theocrats took over. Saeed Khatibzadeh Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman said there has been no link between Britain’s payback of its debt to the Islamic Republic and the freedom of two dual British-Iranian nationals. Then there is the prisoner swap between Iran and Belgium. Belgium passed a prisoner exchange law in order to bring home a wrongfully arrested and charged Olivier Vandecasteele. He had been arrested because of Assadollah Assadi who was an Iranian serving as a diplomat in Austria and was caught out of bounds and involved in a proven terrorist charge against the NCRI in Paris. In May 23 France managed to exchange three prisoners with Iran without concessions. Next, we have the Aug 23 purchasing of US/Iranian political hostages by the United States. On the 10 Aug 23 Arabic websites announced a deal had been struck between Iran and the United States Democratic Administration of Joe Biden. The deal was that Iran would ‘sell’ back five Iranian/American dual national hostages for the release of $7 billion from South Korea where it had been held since sanctions were imposed in 2018 along with the exchange of five Iranian prisoners. The funds would only be accessible for food and medicine and no sanctions relief. Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement that “The Islamic Republic will decide how to use the released funds, and these funds will be appropriated for the various needs of the country by the appropriate authorities.” It is up to "the Islamic Republic and competent Iranian authorities" to determine the manner of application of the unfrozen funds, the statement said. In 2015 the Democrat Obama administration in order to secure the nuclear agreement with Iran paid the Iranians $1.7 billion which secured the release of four American political hostages held in Iran. Obama also exchanged 14 Iranians for whom it was assessed that extradition requests were unlikely to be successful and freed another seven. But the real bargaining started in 1979 when the Democrat administration of Jimmy Carter bought back the 52 American hostages of 1979. A total of $9.5 billion was paid to Iran. The question is, is the taking of political prisoners by Iran a lucrative business? Certainly, the next question that has to be asked is, “who else is holding Iranian funds and will more political hostages be kidnapped and held to ransom?” Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the founder of the Islamic Republic of Iran, was a strong supporter of the Palestinian cause and believed in the importance of supporting the Palestinian people in their struggle against Israel. He viewed the Palestinian issue as a key priority for the Islamic world and called for the liberation of Palestine from Israeli occupation. The Islamic Republic of Iran has expressed support for the people of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, which are Palestinian territories. Iran views the Palestinian cause as an important issue in the Muslim world and has long been a vocal supporter of Palestinian rights. Iran has provided financial and military assistance to Palestinian groups, such as Hamas and Islamic Jihad, which are based in the Gaza Strip. Iran has also expressed support for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with Jerusalem as its capital. Assisting Iranian proxies with financial aid (estimates are thought to be about $100 million per year) it also supplies military aid such as weapons and training along with long-range rockets, anti-tank missiles and other weapons. The majority of Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip are Sunni Muslims, estimated to be around 85-90% of the population. However, there is also a small minority of Palestinian Shia Muslims, estimated to be around 1-2% of the population. It is worth noting that the Palestinian-Israeli conflict is primarily a political struggle between the Israeli government and the Palestinian people, rather than a religious clash between different sects of Islam even though Iran uses religion as a tool to stoke the fire. Israel will defend itself. Iranian backed Gazan Palestinians will lose. The clear winner will be Iran for its propaganda outlets and the encouragement for its proxies, revolutionary followers or sub-contractors to do more in an attempt to keep fighting the Israeli's. These past few days the Theocratic government of Iran has been reporting in the Iranian propaganda outlets that the fall of Israel was imminent in the hope that other pro-Iranian groups would surge up against Israel. Iran is attempting to have the Palestinian, Lebanese and Syrian proxies make a charge at Israel by supporting the Islamic Jihad group fighting Israel from the Gaza Strip. The IRGC-Qods Force Commander Esmayeel Qaani said on the 13 May 23 that Iran will continue to provide unwavering support for young Palestinian resistance forces and their “strong heroic front” to the greatest extent possible, both verbally and in practice. It’s not the Islamic Republic of Iran who lose women, children, fathers and husbands. But by providing logistics, money and training Iran will not want to be seen getting its hands dirty but leave it to others in order to fulfil Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini dream.
The Iranian industry minister was sacked on the 30 Apr 23, he was responsible for overseeing the development and regulation of Iran's industrial sector. This includes promoting the growth of domestic industries, encouraging foreign investment, and creating policies that support innovation, technological advancement, and job creation in the industrial sector. Developing and implementing competitiveness in Iran’s industrial sector; encouraging and facilitating foreign investment along with fostering collaboration between Iranian industrial enterprises and their international counterparts.
According to recent Iranian propaganda outlets: Tasnimne, Iran-Pakistan trade $2 billion; Iran-Turkey trade value exceeds $1.37 billion in 3 months; Tehran Times, Iran ranks as 6th in the world in terms of car manufacturing 2022; Tasnimne, India’s import of Iranian goods almost doubled in the first two months of 2023 ($134 million), Iran-Qatar bilateral trade to reach $3 billion by 2025; Value of Iran-EAEU trade to reach $10 billion; Iran-EU trade value hits 761 million Euros in two months and Iran links MoU’s with 30 countries, there is also the trade that Iran boasts of with Saudi Arabia (Iranian estimates at $1 Billion) after the 10 Mar 22 signing of a new relationship between the two countries. All this announced in the last couple of days and under the umbrella of the current industry minister with many more millions and billions of dollars’ worth of trade. There will be no mention of the billion-dollar deals between Iran, Russia, China and Venezuela. Tasnimne boasted that Iran’s Foreign Debt Shrinks 25% at the end of Feb 22. It appears to the outside that he was doing a good job. A quote from the news outlet Iran International: Lawmaker for Tabriz, Ahmad Alirezabeigi who had initially charged the former minister with giving 75 SUVs to parliamentarians to avert a previous impeachment motion, said after Fatemi-Amin's dismissal that he has given 147 cars to the lawmakers. Alirezabeigi told Didban Iran website that he has presented evidence supporting his claim to the Public Prosecutor's Office. He said a document signed by the executive deputy to the speaker of the parliament indicates that he had designated at least 57 lawmakers to receive the cars at a discounted price several times lower than market value. He said the profit for the lawmakers was huge due to the vast difference between the price set by the importing company and the sale price in the market. Ironically, although Fatemi Amin has been impeached and replaced from his post partly because of the deal about the cars, none of those who have received the cars have been reportedly questioned, indicted or even publicly named. The Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, who has the final say in major policies, criticized the high prices and low quality of home-made products including cars. Cars now that’s an interesting topic. According to the Tehran Times on the 28 May 22 Iran has been ranked the world’s 19th biggest automaker in 2021. Again, the Tehran Times claimed that Iran ranks 6th worldwide in terms of car manufacturing growth in 2022. An immense leap from 19th the year before to the 6th position. The Iranian cars are known as “death wagons” due to their inferior design and make. There is a long list of imported cars that if you pay for one upfront there is no guarantee that you will receive the vehicle or that you will get your money back if you don’t. The whole industry is riddled with government corruption. The elephant in the room here is sanctions which are hurting Iran with the government not admitting to it, sadly the ordinary people who claim that the minimum wage only lasts for nine days are the ones who are suffering. There are not many who believe the sacking on the minister will make any improvements as those who generally replace the ones who are sacked are weaker. Its not just the industry minister who needs to go it’s the whole rotten regime. Without directly attacking Iran for its revolutionary actions the west has no other option than to use sanctions against the Islamic Republic for its integrity, terrorist activity, funding and supporting its proxies, human rights, justice system, "peaceful" nuclear activity, missile program, drone support in the illegal Ukraine conflict by its Russian ally, kidnapping and assassinating exiles abroad. To name but a few reasons why sanctions are imposed on the Tehran regime. Iran blames those who impose sanctions as being unjustly on the Iranian population and calls for all Iranians to "resist". Resistance is the crucial word for all Iranians. The key words from a recent Tasnimne news report by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran were “glorious resistance" in the face of the anti-human crimes committed under the comprehensive sanction’s regime, pledging to fully protect the national interests of the country. Some examples of resisting: Iranian teachers (29 Mar 23) recently protested in several different cities around the country over wages and poor living standards as unrest over social and economic issues that has plagued Iran for almost a year continues. This is just one group who have either protested or are protesting and are ‘resisting’. Ali Shamkhani, the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council son was recently seen wearing a watch estimated at more than an average soldier made in four years. Shamkhani was said to respond that his office had found the children of many commanders spending some 10 billion rials per month (about $20,000 at the open market rate), well above what their fathers’ salaries alone would permit. Shamkhani has also faced corruption allegations, including some related to his wife’s real estate holdings, his sons’ shipping business, his nephew’s potential connection to a building collapse, and his son-in-law’s home construction. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf Iran’s parliament speaker whose family had a shopping spree in Turkey during Apr 22 then returned with ‘many pieces’ of excess luggage. When questioned he could not explain how his family could afford such a trip on his salary, when the fall in the value of the national currency has made monthly wages less than $200 for most Iranians. These are just two examples higher authority resisting. The whole scenario is a reminder of George Orwell’s classic book of ‘Animal Farm’. Those that overran the farmer in order to have their own way of operating the farm who later became like those they ousted. “Four Legs Good, Two Legs Bad” was the motto. The animals were later seen walking on two legs. In Iran those in authority can afford meat and have no problem putting staple food on the table and say ‘Resist’. One of the reasons the Shah was overthrown was because of corruption. Revolution before population again? Who is resisting the most?
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AuthorPaul Ashley served for over 28 years in the British armed forces carrying out a number of roles. After leaving the forces Paul has worked in the security industry on contracts in Iraq, Nigeria, Afghanistan and Kuwait. In Iraq and Afghanistan Paul was responsible for compiling up-to-date Security reports for various companies operating in high risk areas. Paul is the author of "The Complete Encyclopedia of Terrorist Organizations" with published outlets in the United Kingdom, United States and Australia." Archives
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