Israeli Prime Minister Olmert and Foreign Minister Tzippi Livni have delivered themselves of the now
pro forma warnings against Iranian nuclear weapons. When they speak of Iran, the United States officials and presidential candidates are likewise all focused on the nuclear weapons issue, as if that is the only threat posed by Iran and the most urgent one. The ultimate option for dealing with that threat which is debated most heatedly is an air strike against nuclear weapons facilities.
Of course, the prospect of nuclear weapons in the hands of Iranian Mullahs is frightening. But why is it frightening? The United States, Russia, Britain, the USSR, India, Israel and Pakistan all have nuclear weapons, and North Korea probably does as well. So what? The prospect of Iranian nuclear weapons is frightening because of what the Iranian government - the Islamic Republic of Iran - stands for, and because of the goals that it announces day and night, and its apparent readiness to achieve them
by all means possible: a world without Zionism and America, an international Islamic caliphate, a Middle East dominated by Iranian radical Shi'ism.
Iran after an air strike that destroys all of its nuclear facilities, would still be Iran ruled by religious fanatics with the same program. Iran would still have its IRGC, its
Hezbollah, its
Hamas and its
Islamic Jihad.. Iran would also have a very much bigger chip on its shoulder, and it would have earned sympathy in the Middle East among the anti-American crowd as a victim of the United States. No Arab regime, and no Muslim regime, regardless of its real opinions, could openly support an attack on another Muslim country by outsiders.
But Iran is not just, or primarily, dangerous because it might develop nuclear weapons. Iran is dangerous because it is trying to undermine the United States and the west, and allies of the United States, including but not limited to
Israel. The nature of the Iranian program was dramatically illustrated only a few weeks ago in the
Hezbollah takeover of Lebanon, quietly blessed by the Doha agreement. While most of the Arab world and the west looked on with benign unconcern, some
Arab clerics voiced their deep concerns. Iran's supreme leader has again
insisted that Iran is not seeking to make nuclear weapons, and that just might well be true. So what? Imad Moughnieh and Hassan Nassrallah and their activities represent the real danger from Iran.
The nature of the Iranian ideology and the threat it poses is described in a recent book by Ronen Bergman - "Point of no Return" (in Hebrew) - the English version is "The Secret War with Iran" - the 30 year struggle with the west. Bergman emphasizes that many analysts believe Israeli and American emphasis on the Iranian nuclear program is misplaced. The threat posed by Iranian terror activities and propaganda is underestimated. The nuclear program is only a means to an end, the end being domination of the
Middle East. In a sense, destruction of Israel and propaganda against Israel is also only a means to an end, since it is intended to position Iran as the champion of Muslim and Arab rights, allowing it to occupy the seat of leadership once occupied by Nasser's Egypt. Since the Khomeini revolution in 1979, and especially after it emerged from the Iraq-Iran war, Iran has pursued its goals of combating the West, Israel and moderate Islam with singular persistence, by ingenious and effective means, most of which do not involve spectacular hi-tech weaponry. The situation is analogous to the misreading of terrorist groups before 9-11, when the US was obsessed with the idea that terrorists were seeking nuclear, chemical and biological weapons. Huge resources were directed at this issue. In the end, Osama Bin Laden's devastating attack was carried out with inexpensive knives and simple primitive techniques. Hezbollah did not need any atom bombs to take over Beirut - only relatively primitive AK-47 assault rifles. This is the real life threat that is in place now. The preaching of Hassan Nassrallah and the suicide bombings and rocket attacks used to back it up are real and present dangers, whereas the nuclear threat is only an emerging one.
And what if Iran "only" attains the nuclear fuel cycle and renounces nuclear weapons? What if they strike a deal with the west - no nuclear weapons, in return for economic support? Will Iran become a benign country? Picture Iran with no nuclear weapons, but as rich as Germany or France, and still committed to overthrowing the influence of moderate Islam, the west and Israel. Picture a world in which Iran controls the price of oil and decides who gets it, and installs radical Shi'a regimes in Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and other countries. Yet they haven't dropped a single atom bomb on anybody and they do not have any bombs. That scenario is far more realistic and probable than a nuclear attack on Israel, and it represents a devastating threat. Iran already controls Syria and Lebanon, and they bid fair to control the Palestinian authority. Who is next?
I do not offer solutions here. The first step in solving the problem is to understand the real danger. By offering to "trade" other concessions for a pledge not to develop nuclear weapons, and by focusing only on this issue, the west is playing into the hands of Iran.
Ami Isseroff
Original content is Copyright by the author 2008. Posted at ZioNation-Zionism and Israel Web Log, http://www.zionism-israel.com/log/archives/00000561.html where your intelligent and constructive comments are welcome. Disributed by ZNN list. Subscribe by sending a message to ZNN-subscribe@yahoogroups.com. Please forward by e-mail with this notice, cite this article and link to it. Other uses by permission only.
Replies: 3 Comments
In general, the comments had no relation whatever to the article that was written. Two people saw "Israel Iran Nuclear" and did not bother to read the content.
Britain and France also have nuclear weapons, but they haven't declared themselves enemies of the United States, never kidnapped US diplomats and their leaders never said that they want a world without America. As I wrote the problem is not the nuclear weapons, but the program of the Iranian government, which neither of your posts addressed.
How can Iran wipe Israel off the map? Ridiculous. How could a hand full of primitive Mujahidin in Afghanistan bring down the Soviet Union. They believe that they did it, and Iranians believe that they did it.
Ami Isseroff, Monday, June 9th
Your fears about Iran somehow wiping Israel off of the map are ridiculous. Just how would Iran (with or without nuclear weapons) accomplish such a thing? Israel is the strongest military power by several factors in the Middle East. No country could possibly even consider any action against you. And as to terrorism, I can certainly appreciate the problems you have with suicide bombers and rocket attacks from Gaza. While these things inflict a tragic loss of life and property, have you and the leaders of Israel ever considered that your actions are contributing to the localized terrorist attacks?
Checkpoints, seperate road systems, illegal settlements, bulldozing suspected terrorist sites all contribute to the climate of Arab hatred towards your country. And it certainly doesn't do your national image much good when you treat the entire Gaza area like one large prison.
Most of all, the Israeli racism towards your Arab brothers is the biggest problem. Treating Arabs who live inside of Israel like second class citizens, and harboring the attitudes that the majority of Israelis have towards Arabs explains why Israel is in so much trouble. Are you going to continue on this course until you recreate the bad old South Africa? It certainly looks like you are a long way down the road.
And when you urge any kind of attack against Iran, you are talking about creating the largest military and economic chaos anyone has experienced in a lifetime for the world. Look in the mirror and think before advocate any kind of violence. For the most part, you only have your attitudes to blame for your problems.
Karl Eysenbach, Monday, June 9th
"I do not offer solutions here."
You got that right.
Neither did you address the practical realities that have to be resolved before focusing our military wrath on Iran, such as:
Iran has not issued any specific military threat to Israel.
Israel is the only Middle-Eastern country in possession of nuclear weapons.
How is an additional unnecessary war going to be funded when the U.S.'s balance sheet is already deeply in the red? (Or is Israel going to field this attack on its own?)
Yes, of course, you didn't call for a war. You didn't say anything, really. But the intended conclusion is undeniable. It's also a fool's errand.
There are certainly wiser ways to maneuver nations into peaceful conduct. The Islamic nations had the same hatread for non-Islamics over the centuries, but their lack of economic or political power kept them in a relatively harmless stance.
Times have changed and the U.S. cannot be another country's military bulldog everytime they declare an inability to make peace with their neighbors.
Ray Jefferson, Saturday, June 7th
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