By Kenneth J. Theisen
Giuliani Talks Tough about Iran
On September 19, 2007 Republican presidential candidate Rudy
Giuliani, while in Britain,
threatened to take any action necessary to keep Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. He stated, “We will use any options we
believe is in (he even talks like Bush) our best interest to stop them becoming
a nuclear power. With the absolute assurance that if they get to the point that
they are going to become a nuclear power, we will prevent that or set them back
five or 10 years. That is not said as a threat. That should be said as a
promise.” He left out “make my day”
in his threat.
While in England,
Giuliani also met with former British imperialist leader, Margaret
Thatcher. Recently, the candidate also
slammed George W. Bush when he said the U.S. was lacking “strong,
aggressive, bold leadership like we had with Ronald Reagan.” I guess he
does not think Bush is aggressive enough, having only invaded 2 countries
during his term so far.
Senate Refuses to Grant Habeas Corpus Rights to Detainees
In a 56-43 vote, which was short of the 60 votes required to
stop a filibuster, the Senate rejected a bill that would have given detainees
the right to challenge their detention in federal court. The 2006 Military Commissions Act (MCA)
suspended habeas corpus petitions by most detainees held by the U.S. in prisons outside the U.S. This denial of rights has resulted in the
indefinite detention of individuals wrongfully suspected of terrorism. The Bush regime has consistently denied due
process to those it kidnaps and captures in the so-called “war on terror.”
The Supreme Court has agreed to consider whether the MCA ban
on habeas corpus petitions is constitutional.
So far no argument date has been set by the court which starts its new
term in October. The Bush regime has set
back legal rights eight centuries, as the right to habeas was first established
in 1215 with the signing of the Magna Carta by King John of England.
Bush says Screw Children’s Health Care
On September 20, 2007 President Bush showed his hypocrisy
about providing health care to children when he accused Congress of
“putting health care coverage for poor children at risk” by expanding
funding for children’s health care. The
State Children’s Health Insurance Program (SCHIP) is set to expire September 30
unless Congress extends it. It provides
health care insurance for millions of children.
SCHIP is a state-federal partnership program that provides health
coverage to families with incomes too high to qualify for Medicaid, but too low
to afford private insurance. Some 6
million children are enrolled in the program and would be denied further health
care if SCHIP is not extended.
Congressional Democrats are seeking a $35 billion spending
increase for the program and Bush has repeatedly threatened to veto the bill.
Because Bush says he will not sign a bill with an increase in funding, he is
blaming Congress for his possible veto. Bush has repeatedly said this program “is
a step toward federalization of health care,” as if health care for all
would be a bad thing.
Alleged Iranian Officer Arrested in Iraq for Supposedly Smuggling Bombs into Iraq
On September 20, 2007, a possible Iranian officer allegedly
in the Quds force (a unit of Iran’s
Revolutionary Guards) was accused of smuggling powerful roadside bombs into Iraq and was arrested in a U.S. raid at the Sulaimaniyah Palace Hotel in Iraq. The U.S. also claims that intelligence
reports indicate the officer was involved in the infiltration and training of
foreign fighters. U.S. officials for the last year or so have been
accusing Iran of training
“terrorists” and insurgents in Iraq,
as well as furnishing them with sophisticated weapons used against U.S. forces.
In Washington,
Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman stated, “It’s a further reflection that
they’ve [the Iranians] not ceased those activities that we find troublesome.” Bush regime officials claim that the U.S. will soon
list the Quds force as a terrorist organization. This arrest, as well as the designation of
the Quds force as a terrorist organization, will undoubtedly raise the tensions
between the U.S. and Iran and is meant to give the U.S. another excuse to launch future war against
Iran.
Since January the U.S.
has arrested several Iranians in Iraq. In August eight Iranians were arrested in a Baghdad hotel. In January five Iranians were apprehended in
a U.S. raid in Irbil, Iraq.
The eight were later released, but the U.S.
continues to hold the five arrested in Irbil. U.S.
forces claim these are members of the Quds force, while Iran says they
are Iranian diplomats accredited by the Iraqi government.
Tensions between the U.S.
and Iran
Rise as the Two Countries” Officials Mouth Off
On September 19, 2007, the deputy commander of the Iranian
Air Force General Mohammad Alavi stated in an interview that, “We have
drawn up a plan to strike back at Israel with our bombers if this regime [Israel]
makes a silly mistake,” referring to a possible Israeli attack on Iran. He
went on to say, “The whole territory of this regime is within the range of
our missiles. Moreover, we can attack their territory with our fighter bombers
as a response to any attack.” These
statements inflamed tensions in the Middle East
which are already high.
Currently the U.S.
is seeking new sanctions against Iran
over its nuclear program and recently Israel
invaded Syrian airspace or even attacked Syria, an Iranian ally. The airspace violation may have even been a
test run of using Syrian airspace to launch an attack against Iran. On September 16, 2007, French Foreign
Minister Bernard Kouchner threatened war against Iran if it obtains nuclear weapons.
Other Iranian officials also upped the ante in the region. On
September 19, 2007, Defense Minister Mostafa Mohammed Najjar told the IRNA news
agency that “we keep various options open to respond to threats. … We
will make use of them if required.” Iran’s
ambassador to Kuwait Ali Jannati said in a recent media interview that U.S. bases in
the Gulf would be targeted if the country was attacked. He said, “Iran won’t immediately strike U.S. bases in
the region if it comes under a military strike. It will hit the base from which
the strike against it came.”
Earlier this week, a Revolutionary Guards commander, General Mohammed
Hasan Kousehchi said, “Today, the United
States is within Iran’s sight and all around our
country, but it doesn’t mean we have been encircled. They are encircled
themselves and are within our range.”
The recent Iranian statements are in response to fears that Israel could
launch attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities.
Israel did so two
decades ago against Iraq
nuclear facilities. Also various Bush regime officials from the President on
down have been threatening possible military action against Iran. While the
U.S. has recently been using
diplomacy against Iran,
the threat of military attack is quite real.
On September 19, 2007, Undersecretary of State Nicholas
Burns called for a third round of U.N. sanctions against Iran. Burns
claimed the U.S. was
“pursuing peaceful diplomacy,” and said the “responsibility lies
with Iran to choose
negotiations”We are going ahead to try to sanction Iran
again, and we hope very much to have the support of Russia
and China
and the other countries in the council for that. We have very strong support of
France and Britain in this respect”All countries should do
their best…to sanction Iran
on their own according to their laws. The whole trend is away from commercial
engagement and toward sanctions whether that’s Security Council sanctions or
individual sanctions.”
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice stated “it can’t be
business as usual” with a country whose president has threatened Israel. In a
visit to Israel, in
referring to using diplomacy to resolve the Iranian nuclear issue she said, “it
has to have both a way for Iran
to pursue a peaceful resolution of this issue and it has to have teeth, and the
U.N. Security Council and other measures are providing teeth.”
Rice Tells IAEA Chief to Butt Out
On September 18, 2007, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice
warned International Atomic Energy Agency Chief Mohamed ElBaradei to keep his
mouth shut. She stated “It is not up to anybody to diminish or to begin to
cut back on the obligations that the Iranians have been ordered to take,”
by the U.N. Security Council.
Even though she did not mention him by name the quote was
widely viewed as an attack on ElBaradei and his attempt to stop the escalation
of tensions with Iran. ElBaradei has recently accused the U.S. and others of hyping military options
against Iran.
The IAEA has also brokered an agreement with Iran on its nuclear program that
may resolve technical questions about the origin, scope and purpose of its
once-secret nuclear research by the end of the year. But the U.S.
does not wish to end the tensions caused by Iran’s
nuclear program and the agreement makes it harder for the U.S. to strengthen sanctions against Iran. Rice
referred to the brokered agreement and stated, “this wouldn’t be the first
time that the Iranians made an agreement only to break it.”
In attacking ElBaradei Rice said, “The IAEA is not in
the business of diplomacy. The IAEA is a technical agency” whose role is
to inspect nuclear facilities and report on and enforce nuclear agreements. She went on to say, “There are a lot of
elements that the IAEA needs to be concerned with, and the one that they need
to be concerned with Iran is … whether and when and if they are living up to
the agreements that they have signed.”
In her remarks to the media, Rice declined comment on the remarks
made by French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner threatening possible war
against Iran.
But given all the similar threats made by the Bush regime how could she say
anything? Kouchner is scheduled to meet
with Rice in Washington
on September 21, 2007. Will they discuss
diplomacy as a prelude to war?