Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Naval Commander of The IRGC:"We'll Turn Gulf Countries to Hell"

Al Hayat: The media in the Gulf and in the rest of the Arab world have not covered the recent Iranian threats that were voiced by the naval commander of the Revolutionary Guard in which he warned that in the event of an American invasion, Iran would respond by turning the Gulf countries into "hell." They merely posted the news story without subjecting its content to any political, military, security or strategic analysis. I think that some of those media are just weary of an aggressive Iranian response; the accusation that they are promoting conflicts, spreading the venoms of political instability in a region already plagued by an environment of civil wars that many are trying to ignore.

A simple but tough question has to be asked: What dark mask is Iran putting on and trying to impose on its so-called allies who follow its lead at the expense of their Arab identity? What role does Iran want to play in the Gulf and other countries? Where exactly does it want to draw the line for its regional influence?

Instead, these statements are often made within Iranian political circles before they are voiced by the military leaders who are planning to carry out these threats in the event of a military attack on their country. The Gulf governments, moreover, should be aware that the first step in the Iranian military response will be the launching of simultaneous missile strikes (if possible) against Al-Udeid Air Base and Sayliyah Base in Qatar.

Strikes against Gulf oil fields will also be launched before, after, or while attacking those two targets. In fact, Iran may as well drop leaflets saying that since things are going down anyway, then let it be down all the way. In that case, the entire region from the Gulf coast to the Atlantic coast will plunge into a state of chaos that lingers for many years. I hope that those few Arabs who are drowning in Iranian "dollars" will not go too far in glorifying and defending Nejad's policies. Rather, we would all be better off if we resorted to common sense, put Arab interests ahead of personal considerations, and put an end to desperately defending Iran's agenda and its nuclear project. I know that many Arabs believe that the Iranian nuclear project will be for the good of our international causes.

However, they ignore the fact that the opposite is true, and that like Zionism before it, the Iranian nuclear program will be nothing more than a sword that imposes a cruel yoke upon our necks without ever threatening or reaching the Jewish state. Let us analyze smartly and put an end to stupidity. Let us identify those who are defending and touting the aggressive Iranian policies in return for selfish and immediate benefits at the expense of Arab national interests. Official Arab news agencies did not report the Iranian threats exactly as they were broadcast by the official Fars News Agency which quoted Razmjoo as he said, "With the power the Revolutionary Guard has obtained now, if the enemies want to start a military confrontation, the Gulf will become a hell for them." He added, "By using modern systems, no activities and threats by the enemies in the Persian Gulf would be hidden from us." Does such a statement not constitute a good reason to worry and to read farther into its objectives and intentions? What give reason for more concern are the expectations of Iranian dissident Mohsen Sazegara, a Harvard researcher who is close to American politicians, anticipating American intentions to inflict a painful blow to the Iranian regime, warning about the threats of escalation and retaliation in Iraq, Afghanistan and Iran. I find Iran's 'continuous' intervention in Iraq and Lebanon interesting, with Syria following its lead while some Arab and non-Arab states ignore these interventions and underestimate their impact on the demographics and stability of the region.

Iran's objectives go far beyond establishing a few settlements or cleansing the Arab identity of a few southern Iraqi provinces by violating and murdering their inhabitants and turning them into homeless refugees. Even more interesting is that some Arabs have become self-proclaimed lines of defense for Iran, adopting the aggressive but fake Iranian discourse. Strangely while some of these Arabs claim to have nationalist beliefs and to be defending the Arab identity, they refuse to stand up to the aggressive Iranian attitude that can no longer be accepted or ignored. In fact, they want the Gulf countries to express positive reactions toward the Iranian position instead of asking the Iranian regime to stop intervening in Iraqi, Lebanese and Gulf affairs or to return the islands that belong to the UAE and which Iran occupied in 1971 without ever agreeing to negotiate their fate. I have no clue how the defendants of Iran's policies will respond if Iran pointed its missiles to the Gulf countries and the oil fields. Isn't this an innocent question that merits an answer?


I only hope that the Gulf governments are not going to wear 'plastic' hats to protect their heads from the burning sun, especially that the Iranian threats specifically target them and no other. Perhaps the Gulf governments are hoping that the threats expressed by a Revolutionary Guards Naval Commander Ali Razmjoo are nothing but casual talk or nothing more than empty but intimidating threats that aim at nothing more than putting the US military appetite in check and to push the Gulf countries to reconsider their relationships with Washington. I believe that the six Gulf nations should take these Iranian statements very seriously as they represent the naked truth that Iranian politicians do not usually express publicly.

2 comments:

blank said...

Same old arrogance and bully tactics. Yet, the Bush Administration continues to be unable to grasp the large picture.

Twoshorties said...

Serendip Jan,

The Regime is anxious to put the whole region through Hell. That's their promise.

What do we do, is the question that remains unanswered?!