Tag Archive for: Iran

Is the White House Playing Political Games with Israel’s Soldiers and Hostages?

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After having lived in Israel for more than 10 years?” until 2017?” I suppose my emotional reaction to worrisome news from the Jewish State is a little more intense than some other Americans’ might be. My first response to reports of violence and death ?” wars and rumors of wars ?” is to immediately contact some half a dozen very well-informed Israeli friends to find out what’s really going on. Of course, what I primarily want to know is how serious are the reports? And what’s happening to them and their neighborhoods? Are their families alright?

But another question is always, “So … what are you hearing?”

My visit to Israel in August 2023 gave me a chance to happily celebrate life with my friends and their loved ones, and to catch up and enjoy face-to-face conversations. As always, there were the inevitable political questions, but mostly updates on our sons, daughters, grandchildren, and mutual friends. Concerns about potential conflicts are always relevant, but during those warm summer get-togethers, there was little talk of that.

However, just weeks after my return to the U.S., October 7, 2023 happened.

Early news broadcasts on that terrible morning were heart-stopping: some 1,300 Israeli women, men, children, and infants had been savagely tortured, gang-raped, mutilated, burned alive, and otherwise slaughtered by Hamas terrorists. The published accounts were physically sickening, and increasingly detailed subsequent news reports were horrifying. Videos of vicious abuses briefly appeared online, confirming the worst, most violent acts. Meanwhile, 253 hostages had been kidnapped. This assault included an attack on the Nova music festival in the same area adjacent to the Israeli-Gaza border. There Hamas terrorists killed more than 360 people and took as many as 40 hostages, many ?” if not most of whom ?” were viciously subjected to sexual violence.

In the days that followed, there was silence from my friends, nor did I comment on what I was learning from international reports. Rather than typical “bad news,” it felt like a terrible sickness had struck us all speechless. There were no words.

After the deadly offensive, the current chairman of Hamas’s “political bureau” and senior political leader of Hamas, had plenty to say. Ismail Haniyeh declared, “Today, the enemy has had a political, military, intelligence, security and moral defeat inflicted upon it, and we shall crown it, with the grace of God, with a crushing defeat that will expel it from our lands, our holy city of al Quds, our al Aqsa Mosque, and the release of our prisoners from the jails of the Zionist occupation.”

Of course, the next thing we knew was that Israel had declared all-out war against the Hamas terror group. A price had to be paid for the terrorists’ diabolical attacks, and rescues had to be attempted to return the remaining hundreds of captured innocents ?” many of whom have still not been freed. The Israeli response has been unsurprisingly fierce and violent.

Meanwhile, October, November, December, January, February passed. Now, in March of 2024, some of the hostages have been released, but another 130 are still held captive, and there are reports that around 30 victims are likely dead.

Shortly after October 7, Israel declared war on Hamas, and the world continues to watch the IDF’s determined efforts to decimate Hamas’s murderers and to destroy the terror group’s military infrastructure. These efforts also target Hamas’s maze of tunnels, along with caches of weaponry and stashes of cash in international currencies, hidden away in kindergartens, schools, hospitals, and family homes.

When Israel’s military launched its response to Hamas’s October 7 violence, the Biden administration was appropriately agreeable. President Joe Biden and his team expressed sympathy to the shattered survivors and the Israeli public’s horrified state of mind. It was, after all, the most violent attack on the country since the founding of Israel in 1948.

Today, however, that initially warm response has chilled. The more Israel’s military response succeeds in destroying the Hamas infrastructure in Gaza and its thousands of fighters ?” most of whom have been intentionally situated in residential areas, hospitals, schools, and mosques ?” the higher the human death toll has risen, including women and children. At the same time, of course, there is the agonizingly slow process of moving through the maze of tunnels that hide, not only remaining hostages, but also Hamas terrorist leaders and their minions.

Despite Joe Biden’s initial empathy for Israel, along with my Israeli friends, I am increasingly shocked by the ever-increasing arrogance of America’s leadership. Most amazing is their outrageous attempts to use this conflict to manipulate U.S. voters in the upcoming presidential election. There are two dangerous battles going on in Israel simultaneously ?” one against Hamas, but also continuous attacks by Hezbollah are striking Israel’s northern border. These parallel onslaughts are both funded and advised by Iran’s “Death to Israel” regime.

Yet today, in the midst of this significant international conflict, it seems that President Biden and his political allies, including Senator Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), are making efforts to overthrow the elected prime minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, by calling for new elections. This is happening during the most violent war that has taken place in Israel since its founding. Are these activities an attempt to influence Muslim voters in key states during America’s upcoming election? Sadly, that seems to be true.

Such political manipulation reflects shocking disrespect and disregard for Israel’s security and autonomy as a nation. It also insults the intelligence of those of us that recognize very well ?” in fact, more clearly than ever ?” those who wholeheartedly support the best interests of both the United States and Israel and those who do not. Painful as the Gaza conflict continues to be, alongside rumors of impending war at the Lebanon border, these betrayals of trust by the Biden administration will become increasing exposed as the U.S. approaches the presidential election on November 5.

Our responsibility as Christian believers is also becoming clearer now than ever: In the coming months, some actions are essential for those of us who love America and also support the State of Israel. We need to vigilantly watch, fervently pray, speak the truth, and stand with our allies and friends in Israel. They, their elected leaders, and their military men and women need our support today and every day ?” perhaps more than ever before.

AUTHOR

Lela Gilbert

Lela Gilbert is Senior Fellow for International Religious Freedom at Family Research Council and Fellow at Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom. She lived in Israel for over ten years, and is the author of “Saturday People, Sunday People: Israel through the Eyes of a Christian Sojourner.”

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EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2024 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

Biden Regime Poised To Give Iran $10 Billion

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“Fight against those do not believe in Allah or the last day, and do not forbid what Allah and his messenger have forbidden, and do not follow the religion of truth, even if they are among the people of the book, until they pay the jizya with willing submission and feel themselves subdued.”  — Qur’an 9:29

Paying the jizya.

Iran funds and trains Hamas. Iran is Hezb’allah. Iran backs the Houthis.

Ask yourself, what the hell is going on here?

Biden Admin Poised To Grant Iran Billions in Sanctions Relief, Lawmakers Warn

Sanctions waiver unlocks upward of $10 billion for Tehran

By: Adam Kredo, Washington Free Beacon, March 12, 2024

The Biden administration is poised to issue a fresh sanctions waiver for Iran that will grant the country access to upward of $10 billion in frozen assets, providing Tehran with “a financial lifeline” as it foments terrorism across the Middle East, according to a group of GOP lawmakers.

In November, shortly after Hamas’s attack on Israel, the State Department signed off on a sanctions waiver that permits Iraq to transfer multibillion-dollar electricity payments to Iran. The waiver, which grants Tehran access to around $10 billion in frozen funds, is set to expire this month unless the Biden administration renews it.

A group of Republican lawmakers is concerned that the sanctions waiver will be approved, according to a letter sent late Monday to the Treasury and State Departments and obtained by the Washington Free Beacon. The lawmakers ask the Biden administration to provide information on how much cash Iran has been able to access in the months since sanctions were lifted.

The sanctions waiver decision comes as Iran and its regional terror proxies—which include Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Houthi rebels in Yemen—foment chaos across the Middle East, including a series of missile attacks that killed 3 American military members and wounded more than 40. Critics of the sanctions waiver say it will enable Iran to continue funding its terrorist allies amid the worst spate of violence in the Middle East in years.

“Given the Biden Administration’s posture on the last waiver we presume that the Biden Administration will renew the waiver again to continue to allow for the transfer of funds from Iraq to Oman,” four Republican lawmakers, led by Rep. Bill Huizenga (Mich.), wrote in the letter. “By waiving the application of sanctions, the Administration is maintaining a financial lifeline for the Iranian regime, even as it continues to support terrorist organizations around the world.”

The waiver allows Iraq to transfer payments for electricity imports from Iran into accounts outside the country that can be used by Tehran. The State Department maintains these funds can only be used for humanitarian purposes, such as food and medicine, but critics note that money is fungible and that Tehran can allocate resources into its terrorism enterprise if granted access to aid dollars.

Continue reading.

AUTHOR

Pamela Geller

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EDITORS NOTE: This Geller Report is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

What if Iran gives Hezbollah the bomb and they bring it here?

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An Iran watchdog group says the country has enough weapons-grade uranium to build a nuclear weapon in just one week. Multiple sources indicate that Iran already did the engineering work to build a weapon and may have already done a cold test of a weapon.

In effect, Iran already has the bomb. The game is over. We cannot stop them.

“We possess every aspect of nuclear weapons technology.”

Ali Akbar Salehi, Iran’s ex-nuclear chief

“Iran does not need to do a nuclear test to build a nuclear weapon… They designed a program where they could test the components, the subcomponents, and then test the whole assembled device minus the weapons-grade uranium and have a way to know that if that test was successful, which we call a cold test, then the nuclear explosion would actually take place if it was detonated,”

David Albright, physicist and weapons expert

Sources also point out that Hezbollah, an Iranian-sponsored group, has cells inside the United States and may be able to carry out attacks here on no notice.

Why do we treat these two threats as separate and distinct? Why do we worry about Iran delivering a nuclear weapon via a missile or a bomb dropped by a plane? Why don’t we consider the possibility the bomb will explode here inside the United States and Hezbollah will be the delivery vehicle?

A modern atomic bomb is not that big. Assuming the Iranians have already built weapons, we do not know the exact dimensions. We do know, though, that an American nuclear weapon with ten times the power of the weapons we dropped on Japan measures roughly three feet long and eighteen inches in diameter.

There is no southern border. Millions of people are crossing it without interference. Enough fentanyl comes in every year to kill 100,000 Americans. Are we really supposed to sleep well at night believing something the size of a large suitcase cannot be smuggled in?

“Once the Iranian regime gets access to nuclear weapons, it will most likely provide some of them to its proxies, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen. The threat of a nuclear-armed Iran must not be underestimated. Iran’s regime has frequently threatened to wipe a whole country — Israel — off the map, and is also increasing military cooperation with Venezuela and Cuba to threaten the US. Europe, too, remains a rich target for nuclear blackmail. Iran would not even have to use its nuclear bombs; the threat would be enough.”

Dr. Majid Rafizadeh, President of the International American Council on the Middle East.

Hezbollah is not some rag-tag outfit. It operates a military bigger than that of many nation-states. It also has a highly efficient arm called Unit 910 that is specifically designed to operate abroad and plan complex attacks years in advance. In support of such operations Unit 910 caches weapons and explosives, cases targets, and waits for direction from its headquarters.

We do not suspect they are here in the United States. We know they are, and we know they have been here for years.

Originally published by AND Magazine

AUTHOR

Sam Faddis

Charles “Sam” Faddis is a veteran, retired CIA operations officer, Senior Partner with Artemis, LLC and published author. With degrees from The Johns Hopkins University and the University of Maryland Law School, he is a contributor to ANDmagazine.com, Newsmax, and The Hill among others. He regularly appears on many networks and radio programs as a national security and counter-terrorism expert.  Sam is the author of “Beyond Repair: The Decline And Fall Of The CIA” and “Willful Neglect: The Dangerous Illusion Of Homeland Security.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Center for Security Policy column is republished with permission. All rights reserved.

IDF warning: Iran arming Venezuela with weapons ‘very capable of hitting U.S.’

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This IDF revelation should come as no surprise. In 2022, Venezuela provided Iran with 1,000,000 hectares of  alleged “farmland for cultivation.” One hectare is the size of two and a half football fields, so what could Iran possibly have had in mind?

That same year, an independent Israeli intelligence analyst stated that a Venezuelan cargo plane was linked to Iran’s attempts to attack Israelis.

Venezuela has also hosted Hizballah and Fatah cells involved in money laundering, drug dealing, and jihad activity.

As America continues to sink under Joe Biden, America’s enemies are steadily gaining strength, with disastrous consequences now quite possible for American citizens.

IDF Warns Biden: Iran Arming Venezuela with Weapons ‘Very Well Capable’ of Hitting U.S.

by Frances Martel, Breitbart, March 7, 2024:

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) warned in a video published on Tuesday that Iran has successfully expanded its influence in Venezuela to such a degree that it has planted military assets there that pose a threat to American cities within attack distance, such as Miami, Florida.

The video is part of a series by the IDF called “Iran’s Axis of Terror,” explaining how Tehran uses alliances around the world to undermine global security and enable jihadist terrorism that poses a threat far beyond Israel.

Iran’s Islamist “revolutionary” regime and the socialist gang led by dictator Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela conspicuously flaunt their alliance. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi most recently visited Venezuela – and fellow leftist allies Nicaragua and Cuba – in June, inking deals in Caracas to develop a “technology office” and significant expansions of the presence of Iranian mining, education, agriculture, and other industries in the impoverished socialist country…..

Continue reading.

AUTHOR

CHRISTINE DOUGLASS-WILLIAMS

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EDITORS NOTE: This Jihad Watch column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

FBI launches urgent manhunt for Iranian agent accused of plotting to murder Trump era officials

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The jihad is multi-layered and global, involving the Islamic Republic of Iran’s state actors and expansive proxies, as well as other jihadist groups and lone wolf jihadists.

“Farahani is wanted for questioning in connection with the recruitment of individuals for various operations in the United States…” 

With Biden’s open borders, a free flow of  jihadists are enabled and welcomed into America, and Farahani has a plethora of people to choose from.

More threats and more violence will come, as the way of life for Americans changes and its freedoms decline.

Antisemitism will also continue to rise.

FBI launches urgent manhunt for Iranian secret agent, 42, accused of plotting to assassinate Trump-era officials including Mike Pompeo in revenge for killing of Qasem Soleimani

by Germania Rodriguez Poleo, Daily Mail, March 5, 2025:

The FBI has launched an urgent manhunt for an Iranian secret intelligence official accused of plotting to assassinate Trump-era officials.

Federal agents say Majid Dastjani Farahani has been trying to recruit allies to murder current and former US government officials as revenge for the US assassination of Iranian general Qasem Soleimani.

In an urgent notice on Friday, the FBI office in Miami asked for information on Farahani, who is said to speak Spanish and frequently move between Iran and Venezuela, where the ruling regime is friendly with Iran.

‘Farahani is wanted for questioning in connection with the recruitment of individuals for various operations in the United States, to include lethal targeting of current and former United States Government officials as revenge for the killing of IRGC-QF Commander Qasem Soleimani,’ the FBI said….

Continue reading.

AUTHOR

CHRISTINE DOUGLASS-WILLIAMS

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EDITORS NOTE: This Jihad Watch column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Israeli Defense Minister: Iran, Hizballah, and Hamas are planning ‘October 7, part two’ for Ramadan

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Before October 7, violence on the Temple Mount was routine and intense at times, and now Israel is gearing up for what the Jerusalem Post has called “October 7-Part 2,” which could be planned for this year’s upcoming Ramadan, a month dedicated to jihad and further inflamed by Palestinian dignitaries.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant’s worse case scenario warning is realistic, and his warning is prudent given the current climate and the fact that Islamic zeal is off the charts since October 7.

Consider some points :

  1. the emboldening of jihadis after October 7;
  2. the fact that Ramadan is the month of jihad;
  3. widespread Palestinian rage over the war against Hamas, fueled by Islamic religious zeal;
  4. prodding by the Iranian regime as it escalates the activities of its proxies, and now claims that its Afghan proxy battalions are ready to support Gaza;
  5. the wavering of the Biden administration’s support for Israel;
  6. pressure from the United Nations for a ceasefire, which would enable Hamas to survive and regroup;
  7. the unity of the ummah globally in standing for Hamas.

Ramadan is certainly a period that Iran, Hamas and Hizballah will take advantage of one way or another. Some may regard Gallant’s warning as an exaggeration, but it is a better to be prepared. Preparedness, however, isn’t always straightforward. Gallant is “strongly against National Security Minister Itamar Ben- Gvir’s push to reduce access to the Temple Mount for certain Israeli-Arabs or Palestinians during Ramadan.” Palestinians call it the Al-Aqsa compound. One can only imagine the reaction to such an order as Palestinians ready themselves for “martyrdom” in an explosive atmosphere.

‘October 7, part two:’ Iran plans for terror during Ramadan, Israel charges

by Yonah Jeremy Bob, Jerusalem Post, February 27, 2024:

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Tuesday warned that Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas are trying to use Ramadan to inflame the region so as to achieve another October 7 disaster against Israel.

According to Gallant, their hope is to provoke Palestinians in the West Bank, Hezbollah, and Arabs and Muslims across the region to attack and turn their rage on Israel, using the Temple Mount and tensions in the West Bank as an excuse.

The defense minister has been a leading voice for smashing Hamas and earlier in the war, tried to persuade the war cabinet to launch a preemptive strike on Hezbollah.

Gallant calls for reducing tensions

However, at this point, he believes that fighting the war without hesitation must go hand in hand with reducing tensions in areas where there is no reason for there to be tensions.

This means Gallant is strongly against National Security Minister Itamar Ben- Gvir’s push to reduce access to the Temple Mount for certain Israeli-Arabs or Palestinians during Ramadan….

AUTHOR

CHRISTINE DOUGLASS-WILLIAMS

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EDITORS NOTE: This Jihad Watch column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Islamic Republic of Iran: State-backed Security Officials Raped 16-year-old Protester before Murdering Her

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The security officials were proceeding on the basis of clear Islamic principles.

The hijab is required for women so that men don’t get tempted. If men are tempted nonetheless, it is the fault of the woman.

This is why rape victims are sometimes imprisoned in Pakistan and other Muslim countries.

And proceeding from those assumptions, the imprisoned protesters in Iran are raped, so as to humiliate them and to ensure that they will be in hell after they die, for even then they will face punishment for allowing men to be tempted.

Document Shows Iranian Protester Raped Before Murder

Iran International, February 21, 2024:

A recently unveiled document has revealed that 16-year-old Nika Shakarami was raped by state-backed security during the Women, Life, Freedom protests.

The document, circulating on social media and seemingly discovered among a trove of files accessed after a hacktivist group breached the servers of the Iranian judiciary on Tuesday, contains evidence confirming that Shakarami had been subjected to rape amid a state sanctioned campaign of sexual violence as documented by rights groups.

The trove of documents obtained by the hacktivist group Edalat-e Ali covers a wide range of sensitive topics, spanning from internal discussions within the National Security Council following Mahsa Amini’s death to efforts aimed at curbing unauthorized VPN vendors, protests against the 2020 employment examination, and cases related to economic corruption.

Abbas Masjedi Arani, head of the Forensic Medicine Organization has sent the “very confidential” letter to the Supreme National Security Council, explicitly stating, “In the genital examination, signs indicating assault or rough sexual intercourse were evident.”

Nika Shakarami, a 16-year-old, was abducted and murdered by security forces during the anti-regime protests which swept Iran in 2022 following the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody….

Read full article.

AUTHOR

ROBERT SPENCER

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EDITORS NOTE: This Jihad Watch column is republished with permission. All rights reserved.

U.S. indicts Japanese Yakuza Leader over Selling Nuclear Materials to Iran

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The United States has indicted a Japanese leader of the Yakuza transnational organized crime syndicate over his attempts to traffic nuclear materials to Iran. 

Takeshi Ebisawa is accused of conspiring to transfer uranium and weapons-grade plutonium from Myanmar to Iran for use in Iran’s nuclear program, the US Justice Department reported on Wednesday.

According to the report, Ebisawa approached an undercover agent working for the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) in early 2020 in Thailand, informing him that he had a large quantity of uranium and plutonium and asked him to find a customer for the materials.

The Yakuza leader then sent the DEA undercover agent “a series of photographs depicting rocky substances with Geiger counters measuring radiation, as well as pages of what Ebisawa represented to be lab analyses indicating the presence of thorium and uranium in the depicted substances,” the report added.

Following the DEA’s investigation, the undercover agent told Ebisawa that he could connect him to an associate, who was posing as an Iranian general. The Japanese side then suggested that plutonium would be more “powerful” than uranium for the production of nuclear weapons, offering to supply the material to the “Iranian general.”

The samples provided by Ebisawa were confiscated by Thai authorities and transferred to the US. According to the analysis by a US nuclear forensic laboratory, the samples were proved to include uranium and weapons-grade plutonium.

“It is impossible to overstate the seriousness of the conduct alleged in today’s indictment” against the Japanese Yakuza leader, said Damian Williams, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York, adding that he conspired to traffic nuclear uranium and platinum fully aware “the material was going to be used in the development of a nuclear weapons program.”

EDITORS NOTE: This Newsrael News Desk column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

China Continues Funding Iran, Russia as Regime Sends Nationals through Southern Border

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As the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) continues buying Iranian oil and helping Russia fund its war with Ukraine, Xi Jinping’s regime appears to be sending nationals into the United States through the porous southern border via at least one secretive camp deep in the Panamanian jungle.

During the February 2 episode of “The Tucker Carlson Podcast,” libertarian podcaster and author Bret Weinstein described a recent trip he took to the Darién Gap, a dense, rugged, mountainous jungle without roads in southern Panama in which migrants from South America hoping to make it to the U.S. must pass through. While touring some of the “transit camps” where migrants ready themselves for the trip north, Weinstein noted that “people are coming from the Middle East. We met Afghans, we met people from the Caribbean, Haitians, people from Yemen, Iran. It’s shocking, really. This looks superficially like the migration of Central Americans … but that’s not the whole story.”

Weinstein went on to describe a transit camp at San Vicente, which was “almost entirely Chinese.” He noted that unlike at other camps that he visited, he was not allowed to enter the San Vicente camp and interact with people. However, he was able to interact with a few of the Chinese nationals outside the camp. “They are the opposite of forthcoming,” he explained. “They have no interest in talking to outsiders. … It is not a friendly migration. These Chinese folks [were] overwhelmingly male, military age. … There were few if any children in the Chinese migration. [Children] were everywhere in the other places we visited.”

“The sense of … hostility that I felt from the Chinese was particularly unsettling given that I know where they’re headed. … They’re headed to the U.S.,” Weinstein underscored. “… I believe their government has some reason to facilitate [this].”

Meanwhile, Radio Free Europe published a report in January detailing how China clandestinely buys oil from Iran. It describes how a “dark fleet” of oil tankers off the shores of Singapore exchange cargo. “The fleet has grown steadily over the past five years, delivering Iranian crude to China as the countries work in concert to circumvent international sanctions that target Tehran’s lucrative oil exports,” the report describes.

As has been firmly established, the Islamist regime of Iran is the “foremost state sponsor” of a host of international terrorist organizations, including Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and more.

Recently, Senator Kevin Cramer (R-S.D.) joined “Washington Watch with Tony Perkins” to describe how China is helping to bankroll America’s adversaries, even as the Biden administration continues to make friendly overtures with the communist regime.

“[T]hey’re able to sell Iranian oil to China … on the black market,” he noted. “[T]hey sell to these ‘teapot refineries,’ which are sort of off the grid, but not really off the grid, and we look the other way. This is all part of playing nice, but we’re playing nice with two enemies when we should be sanctioning that oil like Donald Trump did. We should be protecting that oil from even getting to China.”

Cramer continued, “We need to be much more assertive about our economic sanctions, oil sanctions, the trade between these enemy countries and make it darn hard on them to collaborate with one another and to fund their terror. And at the same time, places like North Dakota and Texas and Oklahoma and a whole bunch of other places [like] Alaska have plenty of clean oil that is produced by good, free people [who are] happy to sell around the world and not fund terrorism with it.”

Perkins pointed out that “many U.S. companies are investing in Chinese technology, and they’re aiding the CCP.”

“[T]he fact that we haven’t learned this lesson yet is shame on us,” Cramer concurred. “[D]ecades ago, when we let China into [the World Trade Organization] and gave them favored nation status, that happened with the hope that they’d become more like us. Well, all they’ve done is exploited us with our own weakness. But the fact that Wall Street and our own corporate citizens are still drawn to that incredible market because they love the cash more than anything, or the fact that we still import cheap stuff from China that is made with slave labor in some cases — certainly unfair labor, certainly unfair conditions, certainly much more polluting factories. … The fact that we still allow it at all is mind-numbing to me, and we’ve got to do a lot more.”

In December, Cramer joined Senator Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.) and six other senators in introducing the Iran China Accountability Act, which “would block any taxpayer dollars from being used to advance an Iran nuclear agreement until they terminate cash ties with China and terminate ties to terrorist groups such as Hamas.”

AUTHOR

Dan Hart

Dan Hart is senior editor at The Washington Stand.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Washington Stand column is republished with permission. All rights reserved. ©2024 Family Research Council.

The Washington Stand is Family Research Council’s outlet for news and commentary from a biblical worldview. The Washington Stand is based in Washington, D.C. and is published by FRC, whose mission is to advance faith, family, and freedom in public policy and the culture from a biblical worldview. We invite you to stand with us by partnering with FRC.

Biden Delays Retaliatory Airstrikes Announcing to Enemy Our Plans — Moronic

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Biden delayed retaliatory airstrikes on Iranian backed terrorists while announcing U.S. military intentions to the enemy ahead of the attacks so they can be prepared to kill more Americans — a totally moronic thing to do!

Three American service members were killed and dozens were injured in an unmanned aerial drone attack on a base in Jordan on Sunday, January 28th, 2024.

Biden blamed Iran-backed militias for the first U.S. fatalities after months of strikes by the groups against American forces across the Middle East amid the Israel-Hamas war.

Former Iranian Cultural Attaché to Lebanon Mohammad Mehdi Shariatmadar stated that, “Every bullet, rocket, UAV fired against Israel anywhere are made in Iran or the product of Iranian training”

This would include the UAV used to kill our American soldiers in Jordan.

WATCH:

Michael Makovsky, PhD, a former Pentagon official, is president and CEO of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America (JINSA). JINSA has tracked more than 90 attacks by Iran and proxies against American soldiers in Iraq and Syria under Biden — and the United States has retaliated only four times.

Additionally, Mike co-authored this op-ed with JINSA VP Blaise Misztal for the New York Post on 10/10 — just 3 days after 10/7: After barbaric Israel attack, Biden must stop appeasing Iran.

Their key points:

  • JINSA has tracked more than 90 attacks by Iran and proxies against American soldiers in Iraq and Syria under Biden — and the United States has retaliated only four times.
  • Since the White House is clearly averse to a military confrontation with Iran, the best would be Biden supplying Israel weapons it needs to conduct, if necessary, a military campaign to attack Iranian nuclear facilities.
  • 10/7 should prompt a reorientation of US policy in the Middle East — especially away from accommodating Iran, which heavily funds Hamas and helped plot the onslaught.
  • It’s debatable whether Biden’s recent unfreezing of $6 billion in Iranian assets, in return for five Americans hostages, helped fund the Hamas attack, as some Republicans claim. The attack took time to plan and the money may not have been spent yet, but Tehran could budget based on it.Yet the administration’s extremely lax enforcement of existing sanctions has undeniably enabled Iran to reap tens of billions of dollars.
  • In 2020, under President Donald Trump’s maximum-pressure policy, Iranian oil-export revenue was an estimated $8 billion. Under Biden, it was as much as $37 billion in 2021 and $54 billion in 2022 and is expected to be $46 billion in 2023.
  • In three years, Iran arguably will have earned some $30 billion more than if the Trump enforcement had continued. Its accessible foreign-exchange reserves have soared accordingly, from around $6 billion at the end of 2020 to a projected $43 billion in 2023. This economic windfall might have enabled Tehran before 10/7 to boost its funding of Hamas as well as Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah, all of which have ratcheted up their attacks on Israel this year.
  • If Iran was able to funnel $100 million to Hamas in 2020, in 2023, when its oil revenue has increased many fold, that sum could be far higher.
  • Further, the Biden administration has emboldened Iranian aggression by avoiding confrontation. The administration needs to reverse course from this extreme accommodation of Iran and initiate a far more confrontational approach.
  • Most important in the near term, Biden should sternly and unequivocally convey to Iranian leaders it holds them responsible for the confirmed death of 14 Americans in Israel and 100-plus hostages, reportedly including Americans, its proxy has taken. We could further deter Iran by concluding a mutual-defense pact with Israel, as JINSA recently discussed.

©2024. Royal A. Brown III. All rights reserved.

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The IEI and Ariane Tabatabai’s Controversy

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Exploring the IEI’s Global Influence and the Enigma Surrounding Tabatabai’s Role.

In the world of international diplomacy, secrets have a way of unraveling. Leaked emails and reports have recently unveiled a clandestine Iranian operation known as the Iran Experts Initiative (IEI). This covert endeavor, designed to cultivate support for Iran’s nuclear program, has sent shockwaves through the corridors of power. But that’s just the beginning.

Within this revelation, another thread has emerged — the involvement of key figures from the Biden administration with the IEI. This revelation raises profound questions about foreign influence and its implications on U.S. policy.

The IEI, previously shrouded in secrecy, has now been exposed for what it is – a covert Iranian operation. Its primary objective? To garner international support for Iran’s nuclear ambitions. This revelation adds a new layer of complexity to the ongoing global discussions about Iran’s nuclear program.

The involvement of Biden administration aides with the IEI is a central theme. These individuals, working within the highest echelons of the U.S. government, had ties to the IEI. The nature of these links and their implications on U.S. policy decisions remain under scrutiny.

The IEI was not limited to a single sphere of influence. It infiltrated academia, leveraging the credibility of scholars to propagate its agenda. Meanwhile, sympathetic journalists played their part, shaping public perception subtly. Think tanks, known for their role in policymaking, were strategically targeted. Case studies vividly illustrate the IEI’s success in influencing policy decisions. And it didn’t stop there; former government officials transitioning into advocacy roles created conflicts and ethical dilemmas that continue to raise eyebrows.

The Biden administration’s approach to Iran stands in stark contrast to previous administrations. It is marked by a commitment to re-engage with the Islamic Republic of Iran, a notable departure from the aggressive stance of the past. This shift in policy has not only raised eyebrows. Still, it has caused genuine concern among policymakers and the public, who worry about potential risks and the implications of this new direction, making it a central point of debate in the broader context of U.S. foreign policy.

Amidst these revelations, the potential for undue influence on U.S. policy looms large. The need to mitigate foreign impact is paramount, echoing concerns about the integrity of policymaking. It’s a complex issue with no easy answers.

Ariane Tabatabai’s Controversy

As this international intrigue unfolds, Ariane Tabatabai, a former Georgetown University security studies professor and current senior adviser to the U.S. Department of Defense, finds herself at the center of a heated controversy. Genuine concern has arisen regarding her purported ties to Iranian regime influence networks and her security clearance.

The acquisition of her security clearance remains a shadowy enigma, with scant details emerging. Yet, one report suggests that her connections to the Islamic Republic networks managed to evade detection during the clearance process.

The security clearance saga erupted in April 2021 when a group of U.S. lawmakers demanded the revocation of Tabatabai’s clearance, citing her involvement in an “Iranian influence network” that they believed endangered national security.

Fast forward to September 2023, and Republican lawmakers intensify the call. They demand an investigation into Islamic Republic-backed influence operations on U.S. soil, advocating the suspension of clearances for officials, including Tabatabai, potentially swayed by these networks.

In response, Tabatabai can only refute these allegations. She tries to label them “baseless and unfounded,” portraying them as part of a “smear campaign” orchestrated by lawmakers seeking to undermine the Biden administration’s diplomacy with Iran’s regime, yet providing no clear explanations for the accusations.

And yet, despite the ongoing furor, Tabatabai’s security clearance endures as of September 2023, and surprisingly, she remains a senior adviser within the U.S. Department of Defense.

It’s not just her alleged ties to Iran’s regime influence networks that have been scrutinized. The accusations against her are part of a broader discourse surrounding U.S. policy towards the Islamic Republic of Iran. Some U.S. officials and lawmakers contend that the Biden administration’s stance is overly lenient, failing to adequately support the Iranian people’s battle for democracy and human rights. Conversely, others advocate for diplomatic engagement and peaceful resolution in the U.S.-Iran relationship.

This exposure of the Iran Experts Initiative raises critical questions about foreign influence on U.S. policy. Whether through academia, media, think tanks, or former officials, vigilance is imperative to maintain the integrity of U.S. policymaking in a complex and interconnected world.

As for Ariane Tabatabai’s security clearance acquisition remains opaque, while her ties to the Islamic Republic of Iran influence networks kindle a political storm. Lawmakers’ calls for revocation have yet to bear fruit, and she continues her work at the U.S. Department of Defense. This controversy also mirrors broader debates on U.S. policy towards Iran, illustrating today’s complexity of international diplomacy.

©2024. Amil Imani. All rights reserved.

While Iran Tries to Kill U.S. Soldiers, Biden Regime Provides Iran With Intel

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“The U.S. government provided Iran with a private warning that there was a terrorist threat within Iranian borders”

Iran controls and finances multiple Islamic terror groups, but being a Shiite state, there are Sunni Islamist terror groups that target it. Some of these are aligned with ISIS. Others have nationalistic reasons linked to the Baloch movement. And some have both.

Recently, an ISIS bombing attack at a commemoration ceremony for IRGC terror leader Soleimani, who was responsible for the deaths of many Americans, made headlines.

The Biden administration is now announcing that it tried to help Iran head off the bombing.

The U.S. secretly warned Iran that Islamic State was preparing to carry out the terrorist attack early this month that killed more than 80 Iranians in a pair of coordinated suicide bombings, U.S. officials said.

The confidential alert came after the U.S. acquired intelligence that Islamic State’s affiliate in Afghanistan, ISIS-Khorasan, known as ISIS-K, was plotting to attack Iran, they said.

American officials said the information passed to Iran was specific enough about the location and sufficiently timely that it might have proved useful to Tehran in thwarting the attack on Jan. 3 or at least mitigating the casualty toll.

And, out of gratitude, Iran went on trying to kill American soldiers and chanting, “Death to America”..

The obvious question is why do this?

Do we generally intervene when terrorist groups fight each other? Why are we helping Iran, which is actively trying to kill American soldiers in Iraq?

During the Trump admin, we kept hearing that even mentioning that we had certain kinds of intel would potentially expose sources and endanger them. So why are those sources being exposed to help one of our worst enemies.

“Prior to ISIS’s terrorist attack on January 3, 2024, in Kerman, Iran, the U.S. government provided Iran with a private warning that there was a terrorist threat within Iranian borders,” a U.S. official said, using an acronym for Islamic State. “The U.S. government followed a longstanding ‘duty to warn’  policy that has been implemented across administrations to warn governments against potential lethal threats. We provide these warnings in part because we do not want to see innocent lives lost in terror attacks.”

The target was a memorial ceremony for Qassem Soleimani: a terrorist leader. There were as many “innocent people” there as at a memorial for Osama bin Laden, Adolf Hitler or Joseph Stalin.

Maybe the Biden admin didn’t know the target? But the previous high-profile ISIS attacks in Iran targeted the Iranian parliament and the told of Khomeini.

ISIS tends to hit sites associated with Iran’s Islamist regime. Attack warnings protect the Iranian regime, not the oppressed people protesting in the streets.

This is another unfortunate example of our government’s collaboration with our worst enemies.

There is no reason for us to intervene in a fight between two Islamic terror groups. Yet the Biden admin chose to do that in Syria and now Obama is doing it in Iran.

AUTHOR

DANIEL GREENFIELD

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EDITORS NOTE: This Jihad Watch column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

REUTERS: Iranian and Hezbollah Commanders Help Direct Houthi Attacks in Yemen

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NEWSRAEL: It is time that the West – and first of all the USA stops treating Iran proxies as if Iran has nothing to do with them. There are no attacks without Iranian hands funding, training and ordering them!

DUBAI, Jan 20 (Reuters) – Commanders from Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and Lebanon’s Hezbollah group are on the ground in Yemen helping to direct and oversee Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping, four regional and two Iranian sources told Reuters.

Iran – which has armed, trained and funded the Houthis – stepped up its weapons supplies to the militia in the wake of the war in Gaza, which erupted after Iranian-backed militants Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, the four regional sources said.

Tehran has provided advanced drones, anti-ship cruise missiles, precision-strike ballistic missiles and medium-range missiles to the Houthis, who started targeting commercial vessels in November in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza, the sources said.

IRGC commanders and advisers are also providing know-how, data and intelligence support to determine which of the dozens of vessels traveling through the Red Sea each day are destined for Israel and constitute Houthi targets, all the sources said.

Washington said last month that Iran was deeply involved in planning operations against shipping in the Red Sea and that its intelligence was critical to enable the Houthis to target ships.

In response to a request for comment for this story, the White House pointed to its previous public comments about how Iran has been supporting the Houthis.

In his weekly news conferences, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kanaani has repeatedly denied Tehran is involved in the Red Sea attacks by the Houthis. The IRGC public relations office did not respond to request for comment.

NEWSRAEL: FACT: There is only ONE nation that does not play “Blind Man’s Bluff” with Iran — Israel!

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EDITORS NOTE: This NEWSRAEL column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

Hot Mic Catches Journalists Joking About Trump Assassination

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Many a truth is said in jest. The media is the enemy of the people.

Journalists watched Hamas lynchings, kidnappings, rapings and urged civilians to join the slaughter. So is this surprising?

Bernard Kerik: “[N]o one should be surprised.”

Venezuela, Iran, Russia, China, Cuba, and many others. That’s the way it’s done.

Oppose politically, impeach, use state media to destroy, use your criminal justice system, military, and when all else fails.

Hot Mic Catches Journos Laughing and Joking About Trump Being Assassinated At Appeals Court

By: Tommy Christopher, Mediaite, Jan 9th, 2024:

A hot mic caught journalists joking about former President Donald Trump being assassinated as they awaited his appearance at the federal courthouse where his criminal immunity appeal will be held.

The DC Circuit Court of Appeals is set to hear oral arguments on Tuesday, January 9, on the issue of presidential immunity after Judge Tanya Chutkan denied two motions to dismiss based on First Amendment and presidential immunity claims.

The appeal will be heard by a three-judge panel consisting of Judge J. Michelle Childs, who was nominated by President Joe Biden in January 2022 and confirmed in July 2022; Judge Florence Pan, nominated by Biden in May 2022 and confirmed in September 2022; and Judge Karen LeCraft Henderson, who was appointed by then-President George H.W. Bush in 1990.

On Tuesday morning, news cameras were set up at locations between the Trump National Golf Club in Virginia and the E. Barrett Prettyman U.S. Courthouse in anticipation of Trump’s arrival for the proceedings.

One such live feed caught some banter between journalists grousing about the difficulty of getting a good shot of Trump from their vantage point — banter which veered into gallows humor with some references to the late President John F. Kennedy and a convertible:

JOURNO 1: You know what the worst part is? Even if he has his window open and he’s hanging out of it, he will be on the other side of the street.
JOURNO 2: I mean, if he’s driving, we’ve got a good shot!
JOURNO 1: Yeah, if he’s driving with the front window open?
JOURNO 2: Yeah, or if it’s a convertible?
JOURNO 1: Yeah. I wasn’t thinking about that.
JOURNO 2: Yeah. Like if he just pulls up–
JOURNO 1: Like JFK?
JOURNO 2: (laughs)
JOURNO 1: Maybe someone, just like they told JFK. You know what you should do? You should take a convertible! It’s so nice out!

Watch above via AP [Journalists’ comments are at the 53:00 minute mark].

AUTHOR

Pamela Geller

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U.S. Navy Shoots Down 24 Houthi Drones And Missiles In Biggest Attack So Far

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U.S. destroyers shot down 24 drones and missiles fired by the Iran-backed Houthi rebels, constituting the largest attack on commercial shipping in the Red Sea since tensions escalated in October, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) confirmed Tuesday.

The Department of Defense is operating a panoply of naval assets in the region as part of Operation Prosperity Guardian, a U.S.-led coalition to defend critical waterways from repeated threats by the Houthis. Three guided-missile destroyers, the USS Mason, USS Gravely and USS Laboon, and F/A-18 Super Hornet fighter jets from the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower aircraft carrier engaged the mix of drones and missiles fired Tuesday, CENTCOM said in a statement.

 An initial assessment showed no damage or injuries to either the U.S. warships engaged in the firefight or any of the dozens of commercial vessels in the vicinity, according to CENTCOM.

The U.S. intercepted 18 Iranian-made one-way attack drones, two anti-ship cruise missiles and one anti-ship ballistic missile in a combined effort at around 9:15 p.m. local time, the statement added.

CENTCOM reiterated a Jan. 3 warning from the U.S. and partners against the Houthis launching further attacks. “The Houthis will bear the responsibility for the consequences should they continue to threaten lives, the global economy, or the free flow of commerce in the region’s critical waterways,” the statement said.

Over the weekend, the Laboon shot down a single explosive-laden drone in “self-defense,” CENTCOM said. It was the first time the military had characterized an engagement as taking place in self- defense, although it has said that previous one-way attack drones were inbound before the warships neutralized them.

Prior to Tuesday, the largest single onslaught took place on Dec. 16, when the USS Carney shot down 14 attack drones that came at the destroyer in a wave without any sign of commercial vessels nearby.

U.S. military assets in the Red Sea now include 130 aircraft and the vessels assigned to the USS Dwight D. Eisenhower Carrier Strike Group, carrying about 4,000 sailors and Marines, White House national security spokesperson John Kirby said at a briefing Wednesday.

“As the president has made clear, the United States does not seek conflict with any nation or actor in the Middle East, nor do we want to see the war between Israel and Hamas widen in the region,” Kirby said. “But neither will we shrink from the task of defending ourselves, our interests, our partners, or the free flow of international commerce.”

Members of Congress have raised concerns in recent days over Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin’s unannounced hospitalization, during which top national security leaders and the president were unaware he had been hospitalized for at least three days. While Austin’s deputy performed some routine operational duties, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle worried the apparent breakdown in chain of command could hinder the U.S.’ ability to respond to global tensions.

AUTHOR

MICAELA BURROW

Investigative reporter, defense.

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EDITORS NOTE: This Daily Caller column is republished with permission. ©All rights reserved.

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