The Threat is Very Real
Originally Published at http://wammtoday.wordpress.com By Margaret Sarfehjooy
We are in very dangerous times, and we have to do everything we can to prevent another war—this time against Iran. Almost every day we hear about new sanctions, new threats, new promises that “all options are on the table.” It seems like the general public is complacent about this and do not understand the severe consequences –possibly World War III.
Before the war on Iraq, there was a huge outcry from the general public. After Obama got elected, the voices of protest have mostly been silent. Is it because people don’t want to criticize Obama? Did Obama’s election victory divide the progressive community? The war on Iraq was looked on as a Bush/Republican effort. Those in power today are continuing Bush’s war plans stronger than ever. Where is the outcry? Iran IS threatened, and the U.S. continues to push the screws even tighter. U.S. policy toward Iran for the last three decades has primarily taken the form of economic sanctions, threats and isolationism. The U.S. is involved in a covert and proxy war.
The covert dimensions of the war are being fought by Intelligence assets, cyber attacks, computer viruses, secretive military units, spies, assassins, agent provocateurs, and saboteurs. The kidnapping and assassination of Iranian scientists and military commanders, which started several years ago, is a part of this covert war.
The U.S. has been at war with Iran through its proxies for years, including the Kurdish militant nationalist group PJAK─blamed for numerous attacks in Iran─and the Al-Qaeda affiliated Sunni group Jundullah that carries out suicide bombings and other destabilization attacks in Iran.
There is another group, MEK, an Iranian exile group who fought with Saddam Hussein and against Iran during the Iran/Iraq war (when the U.S. provided arms to Iraq). MEK─ Mujahadeen-e-Khalq─is officially listed by the State Department as a “terrorist organization,” but politicians have been pushing to “de-list” them so MEK can be armed, trained, and sent into Iran, with open, rather than covert American support. Former U.S. officials taking part in MEK-linked events told the Christian Science Monitor that they received substantial fees, with contracts ranging up to 100,000.00. Rudy Guliani, Howard Dean, Tom Ridge, Wesley Clark, Gen. Peter Pace have all been paid for endorsing MEK.
This all smacks of hypocrisy, as our local activists had their homes raided, personal belongings confiscated, were served subpoenas to a Grand Jury, and are being investigated for “material support of terrorism” even though their real “crime” is exposing U.S.-sponsored atrocities in the Middle East and other parts of the world.
Iran has a wide spectrum of reformist and democratic groups that are all against U.S. intervention in Iran’s internal affairs. The Obama administration is having a hard time finding any Iran-based political groups to work with, so it is working with groups in exile, like MEK or Iranian monarchists, who are very unpopular with the people in Iran.
continue reading: http://wammtoday.wordpress.com/2012/02/05/margaret-sarfehjooy-iran-the-threat-is-very-real/