Iran

[TurboTR]

WARS AND RUMORS OF WARS
Gingrich sees Iran threat to U.S. like Nazi Germany
Ex-speaker latest official to raise alarm on threat of nuclear EMP attack by Tehran

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Posted: November 20, 2005
10:50 p.m. Eastern


By Joseph Farah
© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com

WASHINGTON – The threat posed to the national security of the United States by Iran was likened only to the one posed by Nazi Germany in the 1930s, by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who suggested Tehran could be planning for a pre-emptive nuclear electromagnetic pulse attack on America that would turn a third or more of the country "back to a 19th century level of development."

Gingrich made the stunning statements, which echo warning of other congressional leaders and national security experts, in testimony before a subcommittee of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee last week.

He said the "extraordinary challenge that the current regime in Iran poses to the safety of the United States" requires "extraordinary measures to meet it."

"Not since the failure of the League of Nations in the 1930s to confront the aggression of the dictatorships in Japan, Italy and Germany have we seen the willful avoidance of reality which is now underway with regard to Iran," said Gingrich. "There are lessons to be learned from the 1930s and those lessons apply directly to the current government of Iran."

Gingrich pointed with alarm at a report first published in G2 Bulletin that Iran had tested the firing of ballistic missiles from a merchant ship in which warheads were detonated in midair over the Caspian Sea rather than at a land or sea target. National security experts and scientists commissioned by Congress to study the threat of electromagnetic pulse attacks on the U.S. concluded that Iran was preparing for just such a scenario. So does Gingrich.

"In short, a country with a track record of carrying out its murderous ideology may soon have the capability to deliver on its publicly declared and unambiguously stated intentions to inflict mortal harm on the United States on a massive scale," warned Gingrich last Tuesday at the hearing of the Federal Financial Management, Government Information and International Security Subcommittee chaired by Sen. Tom Coburn, R-Okla. "A nuclear tipped intermediate-range Iranian missile launched from a merchant ship off the coast of the United States could do just that. That, or Iran could simply supply its terrorist handmaidens with a small scale nuclear device to use against U.S. targets here at home or abroad."

The threat is compounded by recent disclosures by the International Atomic Energy Agency that Iran is in "non-compliance" with its treaty obligations against developing nuclear weapons.

Gingrich concluded that:

Iran is the most dangerous regime in the world and the "single most urgent threat to American national security."

The threat can only be understood in the context of "The Long War Against the Irreconcilable Wing of Islam, which is a worldwide war in which the United States and its allies are unavoidably engaged, and in which the U.S. has active campaigns in Iraq and Afghanistan."

The U.S. cannot be held hostage or rendered impotent by delays of international bureaucracies in dealing with the threat posed by Iran.

One key to preventing or degrading the Iranian nuclear threat is persuading Russia to stop helping Tehran.

The U.S. has no option but to seek regime change in Iran.
Gingrich said there are reasons to believe Iran "is testing the capability to launch a surprise attack on the United States from a merchant ship of our coasts."

"An attack by a single Iranian nuclear missile could have a catastrophic impact on the United States by causing an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) over a portion of the country," he said. "Such an attack could quickly turn a third or more of the United States back to a 19th century level of development. Electrical transformers and switching stations would fall. Without electricity, hospitals would fails, water and sewage services would fail, gas stations would be unable to provide petroleum, trucks would not be able to distribute food supplies, and essential services would rapidly disintegrate."

Gingrich said "this is not idle speculation, but taken from the consensus findings of nine distinguished scientists who authored the Report of the Commission to Assess the Threat to the United States from Electromagnetic Pulse (EMP) Attack, which was delivered to the Congress on June 22, 2004, the same day the 9-11 commission report was published."

Gingrich pointed out that such a sneak attack – especially if launched from a merchant ship at sea – could have the added benefit of deniability by Iran.

"Contemplating an EMP threat makes more troubling reports that certain Iranian missile tests resulted in missiles that have detonated in flight at or near apogee, which the Iranian press has reported as successful events," explained Gingrich. "Normally, it would be expected that the ability to target specific locations would be the standard for success for ballistic tests. However, if the ability to launch an EMP attack was being tested, detonation at apogee would be the measure of testing success. As noted by the EMP commission, a country with limited nuclear capabilities and few choices as to delivery platforms has only a few options to deliver a deadly blow. An EMP attack would be on such strategy."

Today, Iranian lawmakers approved a bill requiring the government to block inspections of atomic facilities if the International Atomic Energy Agency refers Iran to the U.N. Security Council for possible sanctions.

When the bill becomes law, it will strengthen the government's hand in resisting international pressure to permanently abandon uranium enrichment, a process that can produce fuel for either nuclear reactors or nuclear bombs.

Iran resumed uranium-reprocessing activities a step before enrichment at its Isfahan Uranium Conversion Facility in August.

Last week, WND and G2 Bulletin reported most of the U.S. civilian population, military bases and nuclear-weapons assembly plants are within range of missile attacks by terrorists or rogue nations using merchant ships as launching platforms – an increasing concern by counter-terrorism and national security experts.

G2 Bulletin and WND first reported the shocking findings of the U.S. EMP commission that rogue nations, such as Iran and North Korea, have the capability of launching an undetected, catastrophic EMP attack on the U.S. – and are actively developing plans.

"These electromagnetic pulses propagate from the burst point of the nuclear weapon to the line of sight on the Earth's horizon, potentially covering a vast geographic region in doing so simultaneously, moreover, at the speed of light," said Dr. Lowell Wood, acting chairman of the commission appointed by Congress to study the threat. "For example, a nuclear weapon detonated at an altitude of 400 kilometers over the central United States would cover, with its primary electromagnetic pulse, the entire continent of the United States and parts of Canada and Mexico."

The commission, in its work over a period of several years, found that EMP is one of a small number of threats that has the potential to hold American society seriously at risk and that might also result in the defeat of U.S. military forces.

"The electromagnetic field pulses produced by weapons designed and deployed with the intent to produce EMP have a high likelihood of damaging electrical power systems, electronics and information systems upon which any reasonably advanced society, most specifically including our own, depend vitally," Wood said. "Their effects on systems and infrastructures dependent on electricity and electronics could be sufficiently ruinous as to qualify as catastrophic to the American nation."

The commission concluded in its report to Congress earlier this year: "EMP is one of a small number of threats that may hold at risk the continued existence of today's U.S. civil society.''

[bruce]

Originally Posted by TurboTR

WARS AND RUMORS OF WARS
Gingrich sees Iran threat to U.S. like Nazi Germany
Ex-speaker latest official to raise alarm on threat of nuclear EMP attack by Tehran

Three B-2s, with a load of HE would cure the problem. Trouble is the spineless in DC will wait until it's at our doorstep before they react. It seems the shortsightedness in DC isn't to be underestimated.

[Red Regal T]

Originally Posted by bruce

Three B-2s, with a load of HE would cure the problem. Trouble is the spineless in DC will wait until it's at our doorstep before they react. It seems the shortsightedness in DC isn't to be underestimated.

It's just a shame that the US Government leadership is filled with politically correct wooses and appeasers. We have to sit by, and wait for the annihilation of millions of Americans before these asswipes get their act together. Is not Iran a significant partner in the axis of evil. If Iran does this, and denies it, then what will we do? Maybe we can get the DIMocrats to convince them........"WE MEAN YOU NO HARM"...... and then, they'll be our pals.

[jshilli1]

Originally Posted by Red Regal T

It's just a shame that the US Government leadership is filled with politically correct wooses and appeasers. We have to sit by, and wait for the annihilation of millions of Americans before these asswipes get their act together. Is not Iran a significant partner in the axis of evil. If Iran does this, and denies it, then what will we do? Maybe we can get the DIMocrats to convince them........"WE MEAN YOU NO HARM"...... and then, they'll be our pals.

Iran was a good target. Its a shame a bunch of idiots put the word of 'Curveball' above our own intelligence agencies, and we're not in a position to deal with real threats like this as strongly as we would otherwise be. We attacked the keystone cops of the Axis of Evil, and left the two large threats to be dealt with by Europe (Iran) and Asia (N Korea). As Homer would say- DOH!

[Pronto]

Israel will take out any nuclear threat that Iran poses. They would be the first target anyway.

[Red Regal T]

Originally Posted by jshilli1

As Homer would say- DOH!

Homer? That would be you. Do you think we need 150,000 troops to keep control in Iraq? Did you ever hear of the US Air Force? How about US Navy and Marines Aviation? Didn't think so.

[jshilli1]

Originally Posted by Pronto

Israel will take out any nuclear threat that Iran poses. They would be the first target anyway.

Very true.

[jshilli1]

Originally Posted by Red Regal T

Homer? That would be you. Do you think we need 150,000 troops to keep control in Iraq? Did you ever hear of the US Air Force? How about US Navy and Marines Aviation? Didn't think so.

Yes I've heard of those, I'm pretty sure they're common knowledge. That little rant have a point?

So if we don't need 150,000 troops in Iraq, what's wrong with pulling some of them home in an orderly fashion. Let them rest, relax, and go through additional training to improve their readiness. Oh that would be 'cutting and running' right?

[Drew L]

Iran was a good target


was?.............explain

[jshilli1]

Originally Posted by Drew L

Iran was a good target


was?.............explain

Still is... in contrast to Iraq, that was in a sandbox with inspections yada yada yada.

Admittedly has WMD, supported by more than Curveball and carefully selected intelligence. Does not have inspectors running around looking at everything. etc... yawn,

[Drew L]

does Iran pay terrorists to blow themselfs up?

[Red Regal T]

Originally Posted by jshilli1

Yes I've heard of those, I'm pretty sure they're common knowledge. That little rant have a point?

So if we don't need 150,000 troops in Iraq, what's wrong with pulling some of them home in an orderly fashion. Let them rest, relax, and go through additional training to improve their readiness. Oh that would be 'cutting and running' right?

Yes, it would be. The Iraqis aren't ready to keep the peace on their own.

Another thing is, I don't claim to know what the war plans concerning an attack on Iran would be but I do know if ground forces would be needed, I don't think the other countries who border Iran would allow the US to stage ground forces, or allow us to use their air strips for US planes. Some people just can't see all the good of having a friendly Iraq. Oh that's right, what's that got to do with the main directive......... getting back in power.

[bruce]

Originally Posted by jshilli1

Iran was a good target. Its a shame a bunch of idiots put the word of 'Curveball' above our own intelligence agencies, and we're not in a position to deal with real threats like this as strongly as we would otherwise be. We attacked the keystone cops of the Axis of Evil, and left the two large threats to be dealt with by Europe (Iran) and Asia (N Korea). As Homer would say- DOH!

Iran still is a target, they've done nothing to get off the radar screen.
Keystone Cops?, obviously you weren't at risk, or doing anything more dangerous then typing at the keyboard.
We've been to Korea, you might check break out a History book, and do some reading. The US has never, and not in the likely future figure out how to out manuever the orientials, and that should be more of a concern, then it is. It's not just the NK with Nukes, the Japanese and Chinese, with the economic policies are a far more serious, and immediate threat.

[TurboTR]

If you think about it, some interesting parallels IMO to the Christian anti-christ...


"Our revolution's main mission is to pave the way for the reappearance of the 12th Imam, the Mahdi"

Ahmadinejad gives a clear indication of the apocalyptic, mystical terms in which he views Iran's nuclear and political ambitions. No doubt the State Department will rush to discount such talk and formulate proposals for appeasing him and buying him off. "Iran president paves the way for arabs' imam return," from Reuters, with thanks to Rick:

His call for the destruction of Israel may have grabbed headlines abroad, but it is President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's devotion to a mystical religious figure that is arousing greater interest inside Iran.

In a keynote speech on Wednesday to senior clerics, Ahmadinejad spoke of his strong belief in the second coming of Shi'ite Muslims' "hidden" 12th Imam.

According to Shi'ite Muslim teaching, Abul-Qassem Mohammad, the 12th leader whom Shi'ites consider descended from the Prophet Mohammed, disappeared in 941 but will return at the end of time to lead an era of Islamic justice.

"Our revolution's main mission is to pave the way for the reappearance of the 12th Imam, the Mahdi," Ahmadinejad said in the speech to Friday Prayers leaders from across the country.

"Therefore, Iran should become a powerful, developed and model Islamic society."

"Today, we should define our economic, cultural and political policies based on the policy of Imam Mahdi's return. We should avoid copying the West's policies and systems," he added, newspapers and local news agencies reported.

Ahmadinejad refers to the return of the 12th Imam, also known as the Mahdi, in almost all his major speeches since he took office in August.

A September address to the U.N. General Assembly contained long passages on the Mahdi which confused Western diplomats and irked those from Sunni Muslim countries who believe in a different line of succession from Mohammed.

This fascination has prompted wild stories to circulate.

Presidential aides have denied a popular rumor that he ordered his cabinet to write a letter to the 12th Imam and throw it down a well near the holy city of Qom where thousands of pilgrims come each week to pray and drop messages to the Imam.

But what really has tongues wagging is the possibility that Ahmadinejad's belief in the 12th Imam's return may be linked to the supposed growing influence of a secretive society devoted to the Mahdi which was banned in the early 1980s.

Founded in 1953 and used by the Shah of Iran to try to eradicate followers of the Bahai faith, the Hojjatieh Society is governed by the conviction that the 12th Imam's return will be hastened by the creation of chaos on earth.

Ahmadinejad, who is only the second non-cleric to become president since the revolution, has made clear his immense respect for Ayatollah Mohammad Taghi Mesbah-Yazdi, a deeply conservative cleric with close ties to the Hojjatieh-founded Haqqani theological school in Qom.

[TurboTR]

Taheri: Ahmadinejad faces character assassination
Amir Taheri says that the Thug-In-Chief is getting some heat for his religious visions at the UN. From GulfNews, with thanks to XRDC:

Did the "Hidden Imam" send a flash signal to Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad while he was addressing the United Nations last September? Is the new president assisted by an army of djins and angels?

These and similar questions are now all the rage in Tehran. Designed as part of a campaign of character assassination against Ahmadinejad, they do not come from secularists or atheists who do not believe in the "Hidden Imam" or dijns and angels.

The architects of this campaign are mullahs in the Rafsanjani-Khatami faction that Ahmadinejad defeated in last summer's election.

Aimed at portraying the new president as a mentally imbalanced individual suffering from visions and hallucinations, the campaign replaces an earlier one in which Ahmadinejad was presented as a "terrorist and hostage-taker".

The main theme of the campaign is that Iran is now led by a man who believes in "fables like the Hidden Imam" and eschatological and millenarian "superstitions".

"We need a rational approach to politics," says Hashemi Rafsanjani, the businessman-mullah defeated by Ahmadinejad. The implication is that Ahmadinejad, who has asked his ministers to sign pledges to the "Hidden Imam", is acting irrationally.

"We must be guided by logic," adds former president Mohammad Khatami, another mullah and a protégé of Rafsanjani. Again, the implication is that Ahmadinejad is off his rockers.

Taheri goes on to say that the anti-Ahmadinejad mullahs are being hypocritical, and he's right. Read it all.

[TurboTR]

Israel readies forces for strike on nuclear Iran

Submitted By:Jack
Click for Source Article

ISRAEL’S armed forces have been ordered by Ariel Sharon, the prime minister, to be ready by the end of March for possible strikes on secret uranium enrichment sites in Iran, military sources have revealed.

The order came after Israeli intelligence warned the government that Iran was operating enrichment facilities, believed to be small and concealed in civilian locations.

Iran’s stand-off with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) over nuclear inspections and aggressive rhetoric from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, who said last week that Israel should be moved to Europe, are causing mounting concern.

The crisis is set to come to a head in early March, when Mohamed El-Baradei, the head of the IAEA, will present his next report on Iran. El-Baradei, who received the Nobel peace prize yesterday, warned that the world was “losing patience” with Iran.

A senior White House source said the threat of a nuclear Iran was moving to the top of the international agenda and the issue now was: “What next?” That question would have to be answered in the next few months, he said.

Defense sources in Israel believe the end of March to be the “point of no return” after which Iran will have the technical expertise to enrich uranium in sufficient quantities to build a nuclear warhead in two to four years.

“Israel — and not only Israel — cannot accept a nuclear Iran,” Sharon warned recently. “We have the ability to deal with this and we’re making all the necessary preparations to be ready for such a situation.”

The order to prepare for a possible attack went through the Israeli defence ministry to the chief of staff. Sources inside special forces command confirmed that “G” readiness — the highest stage — for an operation was announced last week.

Gholamreza Aghazadeah, head of the Atomic Organisation of Iran, warned yesterday that his country would produce nuclear fuel. “There is no doubt that we have to carry out uranium enrichment,” he said.

He promised it would not be done during forthcoming talks with European negotiators. But although Iran insists it wants only nuclear energy, Israeli intelligence has concluded it is deceiving the world and has no intention of giving up what it believes is its right to develop nuclear weapons.

A “massive” Israeli intelligence operation has been underway since Iran was designated the “top priority for 2005”, according to security sources.

Cross-border operations and signal intelligence from a base established by the Israelis in northern Iraq are said to have identified a number of Iranian uranium enrichment sites unknown to the the IAEA.

Since Israel destroyed the Osirak nuclear reactor in Iraq in 1981, “it has been understood that the lesson is, don’t have one site, have 50 sites”, a White House source said.

If a military operation is approved, Israel will use air and ground forces against several nuclear targets in the hope of stalling Tehran’s nuclear programme for years, according to Israeli military sources.

It is believed Israel would call on its top special forces brigade, Unit 262 — the equivalent of the SAS — and the F-15I strategic 69 Squadron, which can strike Iran and return to Israel without refuelling.

“If we opt for the military strike,” said a source, “it must be not less than 100% successful. It will resemble the destruction of the Egyptian air force in three hours in June 1967.”

Aharon Zeevi Farkash, the Israeli military intelligence chief, stepped up the pressure on Iran this month when he warned Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, that “if by the end of March the international community is unable to refer the Iranian issue to the United Nations security council, then we can say the international effort has run its course”.

The March deadline set for military readiness also stems from fears that Iran is improving its own intelligence-gathering capability. In October it launched its first satellite, the Sinah-1, which was carried by a Russian space launcher.

“The Iranians’ space programme is a matter of deep concern to us,” said an Israeli defence source. “If and when we launch an attack on several Iranian targets, the last thing we need is Iranian early warning received by satellite.”

Russia last week signed an estimated $1 billion contract — its largest since 2000 — to sell Iran advanced Tor-M1 systems capable of destroying guided missiles and laser-guided bombs from aircraft.

“Once the Iranians get the Tor-M1, it will make our life much more difficult,” said an Israeli air force source. “The installation of this system can be relatively quick and we can’t waste time on this one.”

The date set for possible Israeli strikes on Iran also coincides with Israel’s general election on March 28, prompting speculation that Sharon may be sabre-rattling for votes.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the frontrunner to lead Likud into the elections, said that if Sharon did not act against Iran, “then when I form the new Israeli government, we’ll do what we did in the past against Saddam’s reactor, which gave us 20 years of tranquillity”.

[bruce]

Originally Posted by TurboTR

ISRAEL’S armed forces have been ordered by Ariel Sharon, the prime minister, to be ready by the end of March for possible strikes on secret uranium enrichment sites in Iran, military sources have revealed.

That would sure make the cowards stateside breath a little easier. And, it is nice seeing someone else take the lead for a while.