Iran's Retaliatory Strike on Israel Was Largely a Mummer's Farce Carefully Agreed Upon, Coordinated, Stage Managed & Calibrated with the US to Allow Iran to Save Face & Avoid Direct War with the US

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Iran's Retaliatory Strike on Israel Was Largely a Mummer's Farce Carefully Agreed Upon, Coordinated, Stage Managed & Calibrated with the US to Allow Iran to Save Face & Avoid Direct War with the US

Radio Interview on Political Misfits 15/04/24

Apr 16, 2024

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Welcome back to Political Misfits on Radio Sputnik, where we bring you news, politics and culture - without the red and blue treatment. I am John Kiriakou here with Michelle Witte.

Welcome back to Political Misfits on Radio Sputnik, where we bring you news, politics and culture - without the red and blue treatment. I’m John Kiriakou here with Michelle Witte.

Iran over the weekend launched more than 400 suicide drones and missiles against Israel, almost all of which were intercepted by American patriot missiles and Israel’s Iron Dome missile defense system. The attack came in retaliation for an Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus last week that killed seven Iran Revolutionary Guard Corps members, including two generals. The Iranian strike resulted in one minor injury and no property damage. With that said, there is more here than meets the eye. First, as we have noted for months, the Iranians have shown great restraint in their response to repeated Israeli attempts to draw them into the Gaza conflict. Second, the Iranians aren’t stupid. They knew that the missiles and drones would be intercepted. They likely decided on this tactic as retaliation for the very reason that it appears to be bold, but does not deepen the conflict. Third, without Israeli casualties, a harsh Israeli response would be seen as overkill and as unnecessary. Indeed, President Biden yesterday urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to “take the win and move on.” That may not be so easy for Netanyahu. He has repeatedly tried to draw the Iranians into the war, hoping that that, in turn, would draw the United States into it. But in the US, the Republican Party is split. Evangelicals, historically strong supporters of Israel, are demanding an Israel aid package be sent to the floor of the House for a vote. But at a Trump campaign rally over the weekend, the chants of “Genocide Joe,” a popular pro-Palestinian slogan, were deafening. In the meantime, French President Emmanuel Macron and Greek Prime Minister Constantine Mitsotakis are both calling for an Olympic ceasefire. That’s a fine idea. But it’s one that comes up every four years and is routinely ignored.

We’re joined by foreign affairs and security analyst Mark Sleboda.

Questions:

Thanks for joining us, Mark. We appreciate you helping us to sort through these issues. Pundits all over the world were speculating last week as to what the Iranian response would be to Israel’s bombing of the Iranian consulate in Damascus and the murder of seven IRCG officers. The speculation was that it would be anything from an overt act of terrorism to the use of cutouts to attack Israeli interests to a frontal attack on Israel. What is your analysis of the Iranian response? Did the Iranians accomplish what they needed to? And is the Iranian response completed?
The Iranians are not amateurs in this area. They certainly had to know that the Israelis and Americans would intercept most, if not all, of their missiles and drones. Was that figured in to the Iranian calculation?
The Iranians could have carried out an attack far, far worse than what we saw this weekend. They could have targeted an Israeli embassy, for example. They could have attacked non-governmental Israelis interests around the world. But they didn’t do that. Why do you think that is?
Many on the American political right today are calling on Israel to retaliate against Iran, ignoring the fact that the Iranian attack was retaliation for an unprovoked Israeli attack. Joe Biden, meanwhile, told Netanyahu to “take the win and move on.” Where do you see US policy going on this?
The Republicans, at least on the House side, appear to be in something of a pickle on Israel aid. On the one hand, evangelicals are demanding an immediate vote on an Israel aid package, which is likely. On the other hand, chants of “Genocide Joe” were heard at Trump rallies in Pennsylvania all week. Is this a divisive issue for Republicans? The Democrats are going to remain staunchly pro-Israel. Where do the Republicans come down?
Mark, the Israeli War Cabinet met twice over the weekend, and Defense Minister Benny Gantz said that Israel would retaliate “at a time and place that suits us.” But John Kirby, the National Security Council spokesman, said that the US would not participate in any Israeli response. What should we make of that? Is Gantz’s statement for public consumption? Or do you expect Israel to hit Iran again in the context of the Gaza war?
I also wanted to note that the major countries that made public statements in support of Israel over the weekend were the US, UK, France, Germany, and Jordan. There wasn’t a word from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Egypt, or any of the other Arab countries that have generally poor relations with Iran. Why do you think this is?
Along these same lines, Saudi Arabia issued a statement calling for “the highest level of self-restraint.” Egypt declared a state of emergency and called for “maximum self-control.” The UAE cautioned against “instability.” Jordan condemned Iran for violating its airspace. And even the Yemeni response was very muted, with the Houthis issuing a statement saying, “We congratulate Iran for responding to the attack and support Iran’s legitimate right to defend itself.” These statements do not point to a deepening of the crisis. What do you make of them?
CNN is speculating today that China may have a role as a mediator between Israel and Iran, both of which it has diplomatic relations with. The US, UK, France, Germany, and others are biased in favor of Israel and don’t even have diplomatic relations with Iran. Is there a role for China? Would the Chinese even be interested in doing something like this?
Here in the United States, Mark, the progressive left is pushing Joe Biden to do something for Palestinians. The populist conservative right is coming down on the side of Palestinians. But all the voters in between, which is a huge majority of American electorate, is staunchly pro-Israel. How much of any impact will the war in Gaza have on the US election? Is there any real difference between the positions of Joe Biden and Donald Trump?

Iran signals ‘calibrated’ retaliation to Israeli strike (ft.com)

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MoA - The Resistance Axis Penetrated The Zionist Security Screen (moonofalabama.org)