Iran Threatens Half The Middle East, Israel and the USA

General Mohammad Ali Jafari

Once again Iran is threatening serious retaliation if Israel carries out its threat to bomb nuclear installations in Iran. This time, a direct threat against not only Israel, but also US bases in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates has been made by General Mohammad Ali Jafari, who is head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard. He also said that attacks would be carried out in the Straits of Hormuz through which ships carry a third of the world’s oil supplies.

This is a serious threat and one that should not be taken lightly, for it can be assumed that should the attacks on American bases in the sovereign states mentioned take place, these countries would be obligated to join the fight and we could end up with full scale war in the Middle East, for I do not believe these countries could ignore such an attack. All are afraid, with justification, of  Iran becoming a nuclear weapon state.

As for Israel, Jafari promises that it would suffer an overwhelming assault with missiles, and “nothing of Israel will be left, considering its size”. Bold words, but ones that cannot be ignored.

General Hossein Salami

Gen. Hossein Salami, the deputy chief commander of the Revolutionary Guard boasted in a recent televised interview that, “The Revolutionary Guard has more than 1,000 ballistic missiles capable of reaching all U.S. bases in the region, all of Israel and some capitals in Europe”. Naturally, it may all be bluff, but I am sure the American Defence Staff are capable of finding out what is true, and what not with their ‘eyes in the sky’.

It is also interesting to note that he is reported to have said, ‘in collaboration with China and North Korea, they are also working on intercontinental ballistic missiles’. If this is true, it could put the whole of Europe and the continental United States within their reach, and what price world peace then? It also raises the question; Why would China help a rogue state like Iran get intercontinental missiles? What does it have to gain?

However, there is one thing we in the West should not forget, while Iran may not yet have intercontinental capability, it doesn’t need it. There is no point in considering yourself safe on the streets of New, York, London, Paris or Berlin, for their are enough terror groups like al Quada who would love to get their hands on a nuclear device. So you see, you wouldn’t be safe anywhere, for I am sure Tehran would be more than capable of passing on a few ‘under the table’ so to speak. There can be little doubt that Iran’s nuclear ambitions are a serious threat to world peace, and time is running out for the West and its Allies to ‘nip it in the bud’.

With this new threat, and the massive build-up of Iran’s defence capabilities, the size of any military strike required to shut down the Iranian nuclear capability is growing by the day, and if the decision for action is left too long, the only way will be a full-scale invasion of the country. This will be extremely costly in lives and the political ramifications far-reaching. Naturally, if everyone waits until Iran has actually achieved its ambition of becoming a nuclear armed nation the cost in human lives will be terrible, and more to the point, spread across the globe.

Shahab Missile Test

I have had critics of my stance on this question in previous posts on the subject, for some people seem to think that Iran is completely innocent and not trying to get a nuclear weapon of its own. Well, these innocents I direct to the countless reports by the UN nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), which by the way is not a puppet of the American government, which state quite unequivocally that there is evidence enough proving Iran is working towards a nuclear weapon. Iran itself has refused access to many sites by IAEA inspectors during each of their visits to the country, and this has been going on for twenty years. They are stalling until they have what they want, but in the last two years the world’s patience is running out.

Another worrisome fact is the high levels of hatred for America in many Arabic countries which flare up every time the Muslims perceive an insult to their religion through stupid, idiotic mistakes, like the burning of the Koran by US soldiers some time ago, and the current anti-Islam video saga. Knowing how touchy and neurotic the Muslims are about their religion, one would imagine the American military and government would avoid such stupid mistakes like the plague, but still they go on month after month.

Tankers in The Straits Of Hormuz

But this all brings another dimension to the Iran saga. If America does either back Israel in a pre-emptive strike, or mount one of its own. what will be the reaction of the rank and file in all the other Middle East countries? True, other Arab states deplore the idea of a nuclear Iran, and they may secretly agree with the attack, but if this raises such hatred for Israel and in particular the United States among the people, the governments may well be forced into action against Israel and the USA and we could end up with a war between Islam and us, the rest.

Israel Jericho Missile Test

There can be little doubt this is a very thorny issue, and I am just glad I am not the one who has to make the decisions. There is the potential to start a full-blown war in the Middle East which would put at risk a huge percentage of the world’s oil supplies. There is also the risk of world condemnation for an aggressive act, although once again I would expect most countries to agree with it in private, except perhaps Russia and China who love to sit on the fence. And then there is the possibility that Iran may well join the ‘nuclear club’. The ramifications of that cannot be estimated at this time, but you can bet Iran would then start throwing its weight around in the Middle East in true human fashion, and it’s more than likely that Israel  would disappear in a nuclear cloud if Iran had its way.

Like you. I await the outcome with bated breath.

Roy.