Updated: U.S. Troops Used to Compel Iran to Give Up its Nuclear Program - "Dimplomacy"
Fri Jan 26, 2007 at 08:20:00 AM PDT
Bush has now taken our military into a new mission that he was never given authorization for. Issues with Iran's nuclear program are being handled through sanctions and diplomacy, or so we've been told.
Is this yet another justification for the Iraq war? Ridding Iraq of WMDs and bringing freedom and democracy just isn't cutting it anymore, I suppose. So now Bush and Cheney believe they can morph the Iraq war into a method of stopping Iran's nuclear program?
This is insanity. But do we have any doubt as to whether Bush intends to go forward and wage war with Iran?
From the CNN article:
President Bush has authorized the U.S. military to kill or capture Iranian agents active inside Iraq, The Washington Post reported on Friday, citing government and counterterrorism officials with direct knowledge of the plan.
The move, approved last fall, is aimed at weakening Iran's influence in the region and forcing Tehran to abandon its nuclear program that the West believes is for nuclear weapons and not energy, the newspaper said, citing the unidentified officials.
Report: Bush authorizes targeting Iranians in Iraq
Note that it says this move was approved last fall.
From the Washington Post article:
The Bush administration has authorized the U.S. military to kill or capture Iranian operatives inside Iraq as part of an aggressive new strategy to weaken Tehran's influence across the Middle East and compel it to give up its nuclear program, according to government and counterterrorism officials with direct knowledge of the effort.
...
Last summer, however, senior administration officials decided that a more confrontational approach was necessary, as Iran's regional influence grew and U.S. efforts to isolate Tehran appeared to be failing. The country's nuclear work was advancing, U.S. allies were resisting robust sanctions against the Tehran government, and Iran was aggravating sectarian violence in Iraq.
Troops Authorized to Kill Iranian Operatives in Iraq
Note the stronger language, and the same message as the other articles.
But here's the thing I've been waiting for:
Three officials said that about 150 Iranian intelligence officers, plus members of Iran's Revolutionary Guard Command, are believed to be active inside Iraq at any given time. There is no evidence the Iranians have directly attacked U.S. troops in Iraq, intelligence officials said.
But, for three years, the Iranians have operated an embedding program there, offering operational training, intelligence and weaponry to several Shiite militias connected to the Iraqi government, to the insurgency and to the violence against Sunni factions. Gen. Michael V. Hayden, the director of the CIA, told the Senate recently that the amount of Iranian-supplied materiel used against U.S. troops in Iraq "has been quite striking."
Troops Authorized to Kill Iranian Operatives in Iraq
Yes, I know, this isn't exactly new, but it's much more direct now. Here's the justification for war with Iran. It's a completely different reason than the one given earlier in the article for aggression. It's the more predictable reason and the one I have been expecting the Bush administration to use to bring on the conflict with Iran.
We've got two different threads going now: one that says our military is being used for the policy of stopping Iran's nuclear program, and another that implies that Iran is attacking our troops by proxy.
MSNBC just put this video up on their site with the strongest headline of all:
U.S. troops urged to kill Iranian agents
Jan. 26: Washington Post reporter Dafna Linzer discusses the Bush administration's program encouraging U.S. troops in Iraq to use lethal force against Iranian operatives found on the battlefield.
MSNBC home page
Urged to kill?
There are more headlines appearing as we speak. Updates coming.
[UPDATE 1]
Friday news dump is starting early. Articles about Iran are all over.
More headlines and stories:
From chron.com
U.N. says Iran plans nuclear development
He did not elaborate. But U.N. officials, who demanded anonymity because the information was confidential, emphasized that Iran had not officially said it would embark on the assembly of what will initially be 3,000 centrifuges at Natanz. But they said senior officials have informally told the International Atomic Energy Agency the work would begin next month.
Iran ultimately plans to expand its enrichment program to 54,000 centrifuges, which spin uranium gas into enriched material to produce nuclear fuel. That would give it the capacity to produce dozens of nuclear warheads a year, if it chose to develop weapons.
Diplomats briefed on the IAEA's latest findings said earlier this month the Iranians recently finished all pre-assembly work at their Natanz facility, which is underground as protection against attack. And senior Iranian officials have repeatedly said recently that large-scale installation work at Natanz would begin soon.
From JTA:
Russia says Iran missile deal is kosher
Foreign ministry officials said Friday that Iran had accepted delivery of 29 Tor-M1 missiles in December, before U.N. Security Council approved sanctions against Iran on Dec. 23.
The missiles, part of a 2005 deal, will be used to protect Iranian military installations, including nuclear plants, Russian news agencies said.
From the Jerusalem Post:
Herzliya Conference: In a word: Iran
f this year's Herzliya Conference is any indication, the Israeli establishment, though reeling from one political scandal to another, has only one thing on its mind: Iran.
Panel after panel declaimed, ad nauseum, the "existential threat" emanating from the "messianic totalitarian" government in Teheran. Cabinet ministers, IDF representatives, the usual cadre of former generals, policy analysts and even the handful of ex-Mossad officials discussed both openly and privately the nuclear threat, its geo-strategic and psychological implications and methods for its removal.
[UPDATE2 - more headlines]
chron.com: U.N. says Iran plans nuclear development
JTA: Russia says Iran missile deal is kosher
Jerusalem Post: Herzliya Conference: In a word: Iran
CBS News: U.S. Will Confront Iran In Iraq, Bush Says
France24: Iran former president warns against US threats
KARE (NBC MN): Bush authorizes troops to take any action necessary to stop Iran in Iraq
[UPDATE3]Bush gives a different story to reporters.
Note the typo in the headline "Dimplomacy". Ha. They'll probably fix it soon so I'll grab a screen capture.
Dimplomacy can work with Iran: Bush
WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) -- President Bush said he is not seeking to expand the Iraq war "beyond the borders" to confront Iran.
"We believe we can solve our problems with Iran diplomatically and are working to do so," Bush said in a brief question-and-answer session with reporters in the Oval Office.
MarketWatch
