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Recent Appearances... Rantburg

Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Witkoff: Iran must dismantle uranium enrichment facilities, ship material ‘far away’
2025-05-10
Prediction: Whatever Iran might agree to, in the real world they will never give up their nuclear weapon program. The DoD needs to refill their logistics alongside upgrading their war fighting ethos in preparation.
[IsraelTimes] US special envoy says Tehran can expand civilian nuclear activities but must get hate rid of all centrifuges, as talks set to resume in Oman on Sunday

US special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff, who is set to resume nuclear talks with Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
on Sunday, has said the Islamic Theocratic Republic’s uranium enrichment facilities "have to be dismantled" for Washington to take it at its word that it does not want nuclear arms.

"They cannot have centrifuges. They have to downblend all of their fuel that they have there and send it to a far-away place," Witkoff said in an interview with right-wing US news outlet Breitbart on Thursday. "An enrichment program can never exist in the state of Iran ever again. That’s our red line."

"I just believe they have no choice" but to accept the position of US President Donald Trump
...Oh, noze! Not him!...
against enrichment, said Witkoff. "Obviously, they can say no, and they can test President Trump, but I think that would be an unwise thing to do."

The comments came after Witkoff last month said the US would seek only to cap Iran’s uranium enrichment, but not end it altogether, contrary to the position of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Witkoff quickly backtracked, saying any nuclear deal with Iran "must stop and eliminate its nuclear enrichment and weaponization program."

Speaking to Breitbart, Witkoff said Iran would have to dismantle its three known enrichment facilities in Natanz, Fordow and Isfahan. On the other hand, he said, the Iranians could hold onto their nuclear reactor in Bushehr, where "they have no ability to enrich, they have no ability to have centrifuges there, they can only use that facility for civilian purposes — making of electricity and things of that sort of civilian purposes.

"If that is what they choose to do, if they believe in that program, they ought to expand it if they want to," said Witkoff, adding that his goal in the nuclear talks was to get Tehran to "voluntarily shift away from an enrichment program."

"If we can get them to voluntarily do that, that is the most permanent way to make sure that they never get a weapon," he said.

Iran, whose leaders are sworn to destroy Israel, says it opposes nuclear weapons. However,
those who apply themselves too closely to little things often become incapable of great things...
the Islamic Theocratic Republic is enriching uranium to 60% — far higher than necessary for civilian uses, and a short step away from weapons-grade.

Iran also funds a regional network of anti-Israel proxies, including Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
’s Hamas
..a contraction of the Arabic words for "frothing at the mouth",...
, Leb
...The Lebs have the curious habit of periodically murdering their heads of state or prime ministers...
’s Hezbollah and Yemen
...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of...
’s Iran's Houthi sock puppets
...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The legitimate Yemeni government has accused the them of having ties to the Iranian government. Honest they did. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews They like shooting off... ummm... missiles that they would have us believe they make at home in their basements. On the plus side, they did murder Ali Abdullah Saleh, which was the only way the country was ever going to be rid of him...
s. Getting Iran to stop arming those groups is a "secondary discussion," Witkoff told Breitbart.

"We don’t want to confuse the nuclear discussion because that to us is the existential issue," said Witkoff. "That’s the issue that needs to be solved today and quickly."

Witkoff is set to travel to Oman on Sunday for the fourth round of Omani-mediated talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, a source familiar with the matter said, as Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news cited an Iranian negotiator as saying Tehran had agreed to resume talks.

The fourth round of negotiations, initially scheduled for May 3 in Rome, was postponed, with mediator Oman citing "logistical reasons."

Witkoff told Breitbart that the fourth round had been delayed because "we didn’t think that the talks last week were going to be productive, because we needed to get to certain understandings with them, and hopefully this Sunday they will be productive."

Witkoff was reportedly engaged over the past week in talks with Omani and Houthi officials that resulted in a US ceasefire in Yemen, announced by Trump on Tuesday. Sources cited by CNN
...formerly the Cable News Network, now who know what it might stand for...
said the US-Houthi truce talks aimed to provide momentum for the Iran nuclear talks.

The truce did not include a commitment by the Yemeni rebels to stop attacking Israel, and apparently caught Jerusalem by surprise — much like Trump’s announcement of the Iran nuclear talks last month.

Trump in his first term scrapped the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, dubbed the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which had promised Iran sanctions relief in exchange for greater oversight over its nuclear program. Netanyahu had railed against that deal, arguing that it kept in place Iran’s capacity to produce nuclear arms.

Witkoff told Breitbart that "we’re never doing a JCPOA deal," saying the agreement had a "mismatched procedure."

"We believe that they cannot have enrichment, they cannot have centrifuges, they cannot have anything that allows them to build a weapon. We believe in all of that. That was not JCPOA," said Witkoff.

"JCPOA had sunset provisions that burned off the obligations and burned off the sanctions relief at inappropriate times. It’s never going to happen in this deal," he said.

Witkoff stressed that Trump, who is expected to visit the Middle East next week, prefers a diplomatic rather than military solution to the Iranian nuclear threat.

Witkoff said critics of his diplomacy included a "neocon element" that "believes war is the only way to solve things."

"Neocon," or neo-conservative, refers in US political parlance to politicians who support intervention in foreign conflicts. The term is often used derisively by Trump’s isolationist supporters.

Witkoff’s comment came after Trump last week fired US National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, in part, reportedly, over the latter’s hawkish views on Iran and intense coordination with Netanyahu on a potential military strike there.

Witkoff said his neo-conservative critics "give no consideration whatsoever on what the consequences are" for military action, and are certain that Iran will manipulate Witkoff if it is not handled with force.

"They may attempt to manipulate me. I don’t think they’re going to be able to manipulate me," said Witkoff. "If the Iranians make the mistake of thinking they can procrastinate at the table, then they won’t see that much of me.

"The alternative, as the president says, will be a bad alternative for them," he said. Trump "believes that his force of personality... can bend people to do things in a better way in the interests of the United States government," said Witkoff, adding: "I believe in that too."

ARAGHCHI TO CONSULT WITH SAUDI COUNTERPARTS
Araghchi, Witkoff’s interlocutor in the nuclear talks, is set to visit Saudi Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula, largely made up of sand and oil rigs. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual haj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Formerly dictatorial and steeped in Olde Tyme Religion, deferring to Salafist holy men on all issues, it has now done a 180 and is making a serious effort to modernize, so as not to be left in the sand by its Gulf Arab neighbors. The holy men have been shoved to the background and the nation is now still dictatorial but somewhat rational. That doesn't make them trustworthy, but it's a start...
and Qatar
...an emirate on the east coast of the Arabian Peninsula. It sits on some really productive gas and oil deposits, which produces the highest per capita income in the world. They piss it all away on religion, financing the Moslem Brotherhood and several al-Qaeda affiliates. Home of nutbag holy manYusuf al-Qaradawi...
on Saturday, a day before the fourth round of negotiations and days before Trump is expected to visit those countries, Iran’s foreign ministry said in a statement Friday.

Araghchi is due to hold talks with senior Saudi officials in Riyadh before heading to Doha for a conference on Arab-Iranian dialogue, the ministry said. The Iranian top diplomat later said meetings in Saudi Arabia would cover the latest on the nuclear talks with Washington.

In a video carried by Iranian media, Araghchi said Tehran believes "the sustainability of any possible agreement depends to a large extent on taking into account the considerations and concerns of the countries of the region in the nuclear field," and those countries’ common interests with Iran.

Trump is scheduled to visit Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates from May 13 to 16 on his first major Middle East trip of his second term. The president is not expected to visit Israel on the trip.

Trump provoked Araghchi’s ire earlier this week by indicating that the US would decide how to call the Persian Gulf, following reports that Washington could officially rename it the Gulf of Arabia. Araghchi condemned the decision as showing "hostile intent toward Iran and its people."

Ahead of the trip, Trump had predicted that Saudi-Israel normalization would happen "very quickly." However,
those who apply themselves too closely to little things often become incapable of great things...
sources cited by Rooters this week said Trump had dropped the demand that Saudi Arabia normalize relations with Israel as a condition for progress on a civil nuclear program.
Related:
Steve Witkoff 05/07/2025 Trump says US will stop bombing Houthis after agreement struck
Steve Witkoff 05/07/2025 Ukrainian Perspective: Invasion of Ukraine: May 6, 2025
Steve Witkoff 05/02/2025 100 Days Off-Plan: Why Trump Fired National Security Advisor

Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Iran hangs 'high-ranking spy' for Israel
2025-05-01
[GEO.TV] Iran on Wednesday executed a man convicted of espionage for Israel's Mossad spy agency and involvement in the 2022 assassination of a Revolutionary Guards colonel, the judiciary said.

Mohsen Langarneshin, described as "a high-ranking spy" who supported Mossad operations inside Iran, was hanged in the morning, the judiciary's Mizan Online news website reported.
The Times of Israel adds:
Mohsen Langarneshin convicted of link to death of Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps officer in 2022, providing support for attack on defense ministry site in Isfahan

An Iranian man convicted of espionage and intelligence cooperation with Israel was executed on Wednesday, Iranian state media reported, at a time of high-stakes nuclear negotiations between Washington and Tehran.

Entangled in a decades-long shadow war with Israel, Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
has put to death many individuals it accuses of having links with Israel’s Mosssd
...sees all, knows all, gets 'em all in the end...
intelligence service and facilitating the latter’s operations in the country, notably liquidations or acts of sabotage meant to undermine its nuclear program.

According to Iran’s judiciary media outlet Mizan, the defendant identified as Mohsen Langarneshin was accused of involvement in several cases, including the death of a Revolutionary Guards colonel in 2022.

"During his two years as a spy... he was responsible for important actions, including supporting terrorist operations and being present at the scene of the liquidation of Sayad Khodai," state media said. It said the defendant also provided operational support for an attack on an industrial center in Isfahan, affiliated with the Iranian Defense Ministry.

The state media reports said Langarneshin had confessed to the charges. Rooters was not able to reach a representative for comment.

Earlier this week, Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused Israel of seeking to derail Iran-US nuclear talks, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejecting the idea of a deal merely limiting Tehran’s uranium enrichment and pushing for the full dismantlement of its nuclear infrastructure.

Iran does not recognize Israel and is sworn to its destruction. Tehran supports anti-Israeli terror groups across the region, such as Hezbollah and Hamas
..the well-beloved offspring of the Moslem Brotherhood,...
. It denies seeking a nuclear weapon, saying that its uranium enrichment program is for peaceful purposes.
Related:
Mossad: 2025-04-21 Real identity of Boko Haram Commander in Kwara, Mahmouda revealed
Mossad: 2025-04-21 Houthis release new footage of their special forces, claiming they're 'ready to fight.'
Mossad: 2025-04-17 UK sanctions Iran-linked Swedish gang for violence against Jewish, Israeli targets

Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Report: One dead, two injured in explosion at gunpowder warehouse in central Iran
2025-04-30
An attack, inshallah, or careless handling again?
[IsraelTimes] At least one person is dead and two others are injured as a result of an explosion in a warehouse in Isfahan, central Iran, local media reports.

The explosion is said to have occurred at a warehouse of the fireworks and gunpowder manufacturer Avanar Parsian Chemical Industries Complex.

Iran International reports, however, that Avanar Parsian may also have ties to the Iranian military, as it holds licenses that allow it to produce and trade commercial, industrial, and chemical explosives.

The warehouse blast comes on the heels of a deadly explosion and fire at a port in southern Iran earlier this week, in which more than 70 people were killed and over 1,000 were injured.
Related:
Isfahan: 2025-04-04 Top US general in Israel for talks amid massive American military buildup in region
Isfahan: 2025-03-31 Iran's water crisis at tipping point in threat to Islamic regime's stability
Isfahan: 2025-03-11 Israel strikes former Assad regime bases in southern Syria
Link


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Top US general in Israel for talks amid massive American military buildup in region
2025-04-04
[IsraelTimes] CENTCOM chief US Gen. Michael Kurilla meets with IDF chief Zamir for talks that IDF says focused on ‘strategic security issues across the region’

United States Gen. Michael Erik Kurilla, head of the US Central Command (CENTCOM), who arrived in Israel earlier this week for an official visit, held an assessment with IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir, the Israeli military said Thursday.

The IDF says the meeting focused on "strategic security issues across the region."

The visit takes place against the backdrop of recent US military Arclight airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s on the Iran-backed Iran's Houthi sock puppets
...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The legitimate Yemeni government has accused the them of having ties to the Iranian government. Honest they did. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews They like shooting off... ummm... missiles that they would have us believe they make at home in their basements. On the plus side, they did murder Ali Abdullah Saleh, which was the only way the country was ever going to be rid of him...
s in Yemen
...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of...
, along with the US’s bolstering of military forces in the region.

Suspected US airstrikes pounded rebel-held areas of Yemen into Wednesday, with the Houthis claiming that one strike near the Red Sea port city of Hodeida killed at least four people.

Meanwhile,
...back at the Hubba Hubba Club, Nunzio had his hands full of angry bleached blonde...
satellite images indicated at least six stealth B-2 Spirit bombers now stationed at Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean — a highly unusual deployment amid the Yemen campaign and tensions with Iran.

Furthermore, the Pentagon announced on Wednesday that the US is increasing its naval presence in the Middle East by deploying a second aircraft carrier. One carrier already stationed there, the Harry S. Truman, will remain, while another, Carl Vinson, is being redirected from the Indo-Pacific.

US President Donald Trump
...The tack in the backside of the Democratic Party...
has given Iran
...a theocratic Shiite state divided among the Medes, the Persians, and the (Arab) Elamites. Formerly a fairly civilized nation ruled by a Shah, it became a victim of Islamic revolution in 1979. The nation is today noted for spontaneously taking over other countries' embassies, maintaining whorehouses run by clergymen, involvement in international drug trafficking, and financing sock puppet militias to extend the regime's influence. The word Iran is a cognate form of Aryan. The abbreviation IRGC is the same idea as Stürmabteilung (or SA). The term Supreme Guide is a the modern version form of either Duce or Führer or maybe both. They hate Jews Zionists Jews. Their economy is based on the production of oil and vitriol...
an ultimatum to reach a deal to curb its nuclear program or face military action.

La Belle France’s foreign minister warned on Wednesday that if world powers were unable to quickly reach a new agreement with Iran over its contested nuclear program, then a military confrontation seemed "almost inevitable."

Kurilla’s visit underscores the strengthening military cooperation between the IDF and the US armed forces, particularly following Israel’s transition under CENTCOM’s area of responsibility in 2021. This shift has allowed for deeper coordination between Israel and its regional partners under the US security umbrella through the improvement of direct communications.

Kurilla last visited Israel in January and held an assessment with then-chief of staff Herzi Halevi.

Kurilla also visited Israel on October 5, 2024, to meet with Israeli defense and military officials, amid preparations in the IDF for a response to Iran’s ballistic missile attack on October 1.

The Iranian attack consisted of some 181 missiles, sending nearly 10 million people in Israel into bomb shelters.

With US support, Israel responded to the attack in a series of airstrikes on Iranian territory later that month, targeting strategic military sites across Iran — specifically drone and ballistic missile manufacturing and launch sites, as well as air defense batteries — with explosions reported in the areas of Tehran, Karaj, Isfahan and Shiraz.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Iran's water crisis at tipping point in threat to Islamic regime's stability
2025-03-31
[Jpost] Iran expert Dr. Sharona Mazalian Levi says prolonged water outages, empty reservoirs, and crop failures may be a recipe for social unrest.

"Iran is drying up," Dr. Sharona Mazalian Levi from The Alliance Center for Iranian Studies at Tel Aviv University affirmed, painting a grim picture of what she described as one of the most pressing environmental challenges facing the Islamic Republic today.

"Iran is facing an unprecedented water crisis that threatens the nation’s stability," Mazalian Levi said. She explained that multiple factors have converged to create this critical situation, with several major provinces now reaching what she deemed "a tipping point."

According to Mazalian Levi, the Iranian Energy Ministry declared last week that the provinces of Tehran, Isfahan, Razavi Khorasan, and Yazd are facing a severe water crisis. She highlighted the alarming state of the Karaj Dam, which supplies water to millions in Tehran and the surrounding areas.

"The Karaj Dam is now at only 6% of its capacity," she noted, referencing reports from Tasnim news agency that 94% of the reservoir is empty. "This isn’t just an environmental issue; it’s a potential catalyst for civil unrest and disorder that could lead to national instability."

Two of the main catalysts for the crisis are what Mazalian Levi named "poor management of the water sector," as well as a population growth of more than 250% in only 50 years. "This includes over-extraction from natural water sources and aquifers to the point of depletion," she added.

However, Mazalian Levi traced the origins of the crisis further back in history. According to the researcher, following the 1979 revolution, Iran found itself internationally isolated and was forced to develop an autarkic economic system. Religious leaders, including then-supreme leader Ruhollah Khomeini, encouraged citizens to embrace farming and agriculture as a way of life, drawing from texts regarding the Prophet Muhammad himself.

"This agricultural push significantly increased water usage at a time when the country was still relying on outdated and inefficient irrigation technologies," she explained. "Simultaneously, Iran experienced tremendous population growth, from approximately 37 million on the eve of the revolution to around 90 million today."

Mazalian Levi also pointed out that the influx of millions of undocumented Afghani migrants has further strained resources, creating an exponential rise in demand for water. Urban migration has compounded the problem, with rural residents moving to major cities like Tehran, Mashhad, and Karaj, placing even greater pressure on urban water supplies.

"The most important river in Afghanistan, the Helmand, flows into Iran," Mazalian Levi explained.

"According to a 1973 agreement, the Afghans pledged to transfer around 820 million cubic meters of water to neighboring Iran yearly (with an option to lower the quantities in case of water scarcity). However, recently, the Afghan government violated the agreement and blocked the flow to the Islamic Republic, which intensified the already tense relations between the Shi’ite and Sunni neighbors," the Iran expert added.
No doubt the Talibs considered that agreement a kind of hudna, or else it was something the previous government agreed to, to which the Talibs could not possibly consider themselves bound… at any rate, as the clearly superior variety of the Master Religion, they necessarily do whatever they think to get away with.
...The consequences of these developments are being felt across Iranian society. Mazalian Levi described a dire situation where authorities deliberately cut off water supply lines, often for extended periods and without prior notice.

"People are left with murky water and even mud coming out of their taps," she said, citing video evidence from the city of Ahvaz. "Water tankers are being dispatched across the country, medical teams find themselves preparing for surgery without water, and household activities are disrupted without warning."

...The agricultural sector has been hit particularly hard. Farmers are being forced to abandon water-intensive crops like wheat and rice in favor of varieties more suited to drought conditions. Many are giving up farming altogether and migrating to cities in search of alternative employment.

"Crop variety is shrinking, and the country’s food security is being undermined," Mazalian Levi warned. "There are real shortages of fruits, vegetables, legumes, grains, and oils, leading to rising food prices and increased dependence on imported food."

This dependence is especially problematic given the hyperinflation Iran has experienced in recent years, making imported food prices increasingly volatile and unaffordable for many Iranians.
In short. Iran's rulers are desperate - which makes them very dangerous.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Israel strikes former Assad regime bases in southern Syria
2025-03-11
[IsraelTimes] Syrian security sources say Israeli jets struck two former bases in country’s Daraa province, as Jerusalem ministers sharpen rhetoric against transitional government

Israeli jets conducted several strikes on former Syrian army barracks and outposts in the southern Daraa province Monday, in the latest string of strikes targeting the country’s military infrastructure following the collapse of the Assad regime, according to two Syrian security sources.

The sources told Rooters that at least six strikes hit a base in the town of Jbab, while at least another eight hit a former army base in the city of Izraa. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The strikes were reported at military sites belonging to the former Syrian regime.

"The Israeli occupation aircraft carried out several strikes on the surroundings of the towns of Jbab and Izraa in the north of Daraa," the state news agency SANA said.

Israeli officials have vowed to demilitarize the southern Syria area close to Israel’s border following the fall of Bashir Pencilneck al-Assad
Terror of Aleppo ...
Syrian government control is weak in the region, and Israel has threatened to target interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa’s forces if they deploy there.

Upon the Assad regime’s collapse, Israel sent troops into a UN-patrolled buffer zone separating Israeli and Syrian forces on the strategic Golan Heights, where it maintains a military presence.

Last week Defense Minister Israel Katz called Sharaa "a jihadist terrorist of the al-Qaeda school who is committing horrifying acts against a civilian population."

Earlier Monday, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar called the transitional regime "pure evil,"

Syria’s Islamist-led government on Monday said it had completed a military operation against a nascent insurgency. The violence had been centred around coastal provinces where most of Syria’s Alawite minority live.

Assad is an Alawite, an offshoot of Shi’ite Islam, whose family for decades ruled over the Sunni Moslem majority.

British-based war monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights has said that 973 non-combatants were killed by government forces and allied fighters in reprisal killings. More than 250 Alawite fighters were killed and more than 230 members of government security forces were also killed, the group said.

Sharaa dismissed the Israeli comments as "nonsense."

"They are the last ones who can talk," he said, noting the high corpse count in Israel’s 17 months of war against Hamas
..not a terrorist organization, even though it kidnaps people, holds hostages, and tries to negotiate by executing them,...
in Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about oppression and disproportionate response...
.
Related:
Daraa province: 2025-03-07 Clashes left 15 dead in southern Syria Tuesday (a)
Daraa province: 2025-03-04 Good Morning
Daraa province: 2025-01-11 Disintegration or Integration: How Syria's New Authorities Are Trying to Save the Country
Related:
Jbab: 2023-07-09 Man bites dog
Jbab: 2022-08-07 Daraa: Syrian army reinforcements flow in, someone is shooting troops and civilians in Daraa
Jbab: 2022-02-20 Republicans Should Ask Winsome Sears To Respond To The State Of The Union
Related:
Izraa: 2024-04-19 Several drones were shot down over Iranian Isfahan, media reports — IAF airstruck ‘em good
Izraa: 2023-08-11 Sednaya Prison stories: 2 reported tortured to death at hands of the Syrian gov’t
Izraa: 2022-12-05 In a bid to quell protests, Syrian gov’t forces deploy mass troops to Suwayda after 2 killed in protests
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Iran arrests 13 more Baha’is, accusing them of proselytizing in recent crackdown on banned faith
2025-01-27
[IsraelTimes] Iran says it arrested 13 adherents of the banned Baha’i faith, accusing them of proselytizing to children and adolescents, local media reported, drawing condemnation from an international organization representing Baha’is.

A statement yesterday by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ intelligence unit, carried by state media, says the arrests were made in the central city of Isfahan.

It says the 13 arrested “were acting illegally and were indirectly promoting their ideological deviation by exploiting children and adolescents.” It does not elaborate.

The Baha’i International Community, which represents the faith worldwide, says in a statement that the arrested women “were facilitating simple children’s classes – arresting them is the equivalent of arresting people for teaching Sunday school.”

Simin Fahandej, representative of the Baha’i International Community to the UN in Geneva, describes the arrests as a senseless act against innocent women.

Last month a group of UN special rapporteurs expressed serious concern at what they described as a rise in systematic targeting of Baha’i women in Iran, including through arrests, interrogation and enforced disappearances. The Iranian government said in response that Baha’i women faced no restrictions.

The Islamic Republic considers the Baha’i faith a heretical offshoot of Islam.

Its faithful see Baha’i as an independent religion and its more than five million followers are spread across more than 190 countries.

Exiled Baha’i leaders say hundreds of followers have been jailed and executed since the establishment of the Islamic Republic in 1979.

Israel is home to around 12,000 members of the Baha’i faith, and the spiritual and administrative center of the religion is located in the northern Israel cities of Haifa and Acre.
Related:
Baha’i 01/23/2025 Iran reportedly arrests 10 Bahai women in ‘shocking’ raids
Baha’i 01/19/2025 Gunman shoots dead 2 judges in Iran’s capital tied to 1988 mass executions
Baha’i 07/25/2024 Israel may face a dilemma: to be destroyed or win at a terrible cost

Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Iran holds large-scale air defence training as US-Zionist threat intensifies
2025-01-09
[HODHODYEMENNEWS.NET] Iran's armed forces began a large-scale joint air defense exercise near the Natanz uranium enrichment facility in central Isfahan province on Tuesday, state television
... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
reported.

The ''Eqtedar'' (Power) 1403 exercise was launched on the orders of Khatam al-Anbia Air Defense Base Commander Qader Rahimzadeh, IRIB TV said.

The first phase involves Aerospace Force units of the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) conducting ''all-out point defense of the nuclear site against numerous aerial threats under tough electronic warfare conditions,'' according to IRIB.

IRGC front man Ali-Mohammad Naeini said on Monday that the annual drills aim to maintain and improve military preparedness, counter potential military threats and acts of sabotage, and boost national morale.

The exercise comes after American news website Axios reported last week that U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan presented US President Joe The Big Guy Biden
...46th president of the U.S. Too old and senile to be prosecuted, not too old and senile to set national policy...
with options for a potential U.S. attack on Iranian nuclear facilities ''should the Iranians move towards a nuclear weapon before Jan. 20, 2025.''

Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Report: IDF’s October strikes drastically reduced Iran’s ability to produce ballistic missiles
2024-12-16
[IsraelTimes] An unnamed Israeli military source tells The Washington Post that the Israel Defense Forces strikes on Iran in October meant that while prior to the strikes Tehran had been able to produce fuel for two new ballistic missiles a day, it was now probably limited to one per week.
!!!!!
The source tells the newspaper that it was assumed the shortfall would continue for a year.
!!!!!!!!!!
Additionally, former defense minister Yoav Gallant tells the outlet that the aim of the October 26 strikes — which also targeted air defenses and, reportedly, an active nuclear weapons research facility — was to ensure “Iran is weaker and Israel is stronger,” with Tehran unable to respond to future strikes.
No !!! — that one we already knew.
“There is no strategic defense around Tehran,” he says.

Gallant also says that the strikes, which were in retaliation for a massive Iranian ballistic missile barrage on Israel on October 1, created “a window to act against Iran” before it manufactures a nuclear weapon.

The former minister additionally confirms that Israel was behind the strike in April on a radar system for an air defense battery in Iran’s central city of Isfahan. That strike was in response to Tehran’s massive drone-and-missile attack against Israel on April 13.

“We hit them precisely, but it wasn’t enough to deter them,” he says.
Related:
Yoav Gallant 12/09/2024 Saudi royal says Israel ‘genocidal,’ hopes Netanyahu will be brought before ICC
Yoav Gallant 12/06/2024 IDF said to warn dozens of soldiers against travel abroad over war crimes claims
Yoav Gallant 12/06/2024 Isolated Hamas faces collapsing negotiating stance after drastic Trump threat

Related:
Isfahan: 2024-11-13 Is Israel ready to hit Iran's nuclear sites?
Isfahan: 2024-11-04 IDF reveals commandos captured man in Syria gathering intel on border for Iran
Isfahan: 2024-10-31 Iran claims to have killed member of separatist group with ties to Israel
Link


Israel-Palestine-Jordan
Is Israel ready to hit Iran's nuclear sites?
2024-11-13
Useful for the list and descriptions. A basic map and a few photos can be seen at the link.
[DW] Newly appointed Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has said the time is right for launching military strikes against Iran's nuclear facilities.

Israel's new defense minister said on Monday that Iran was "more exposed than ever to strikes on its nuclear facilities."

"We have the opportunity to achieve our most important goal — to thwart and eliminate the existential threat to the State of Israel," Defense Minister Israel Katz wrote on X.

Tensions between Israel and Iran are running high after both sides traded tit-for-tat missiles strikes, sparking fears of a wider Middle East war.

Israel has for years accused Iran of seeking to build nuclear weapons.

According to recent reports by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), Iran is rapidly advancing its atomic program, enriching uranium up to 60%, just 30% below the grade needed for atomic weapons.

Iran has repeatedly denied the claims that it is seeking to acquire nuclear weapons.

Katz replaced Yoav Gallant as Israel's defense minister last week after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fired Gallant, citing disagreements over domestic political issues as well as the military campaign in Gaza.

Iran has spread its nuclear facilities over a number of sites and built some in underground bunkers, making it more difficult to destroy them completely.

Here's an overview of Iran's nuclear facilities.

NATANZ
Located around 300 kilometers (180 miles) south of Tehran in the province of Isfahan, Natanz is the main center for uranium enrichment in Iran. It's here that the nuclear program operates centrifuges that enrich uranium for civilian and, potentially, military purposes.

The facility is housed in underground bunkers to protect it from airstrikes. Natanz has been the target of several acts of sabotage attributed to Israel, including the use of the Stuxnet virus, explosions and power outages. The facility's air defense system was reportedly disabled in April.

ISFAHAN
The Nuclear Technology Center in the city of Isfahan is a uranium processing plant that prepares the radioactive material for enrichment. Here, uranium oxide, also known as yellowcake, is converted into uranium tetrafluoride (UF4) and uranium hexafluoride (UF6). This chemical compound is used in centrifuges for uranium enrichment.

SAGHAND
This uranium mine is located in the desert region of Yazd province, around 200 kilometers northeast of the city of Yazd. The mine is one of the few known uranium mining sites in Iran and supplies the raw uranium that is used for the country's nuclear program.

BUSHEHR
Iran's first civilian nuclear power plant is located on the coast of the Persian Gulf in southern Iran,and is used to generate electricity. It is not used for military purposes.

TEHRAN
The Tehran Research Reactor is a research facility in Tehran, mainly used for the production of medical radioisotopes which are used in cancer treatment and nuclear medicine diagnostics.

The Tehran Research Reactor played a central role during the negotiations on the 2015 nuclear agreement, as it could be used not only for medical purposes but also potentially for military applications if highly enriched uranium were used.

PARCHIN
This facility, about 30 kilometers southeast of Tehran, officially serves as a test site for conventional weapons and missiles. However, there are reports suggesting that activities related to the development of nuclear weapons may also be taking place in Parchin.

KARAJ
A research center for nuclear technologies in the fields of agriculture and medicine is located near the city of Karaj, about 40 kilometers west of Tehran. According to reports, this facility could also be used for the production and development of centrifuges for uranium enrichment.

In June 2021, the facility was the target of a sabotage attempt, which, according to Iranian sources, was unsuccessful.

QOM
The Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant is located around 160 kilometers south of Tehran, near the city of Qom. It's housed in a mountain to protect it from air attacks. This site produces highly enriched uranium.

ARAK
A heavy water reactor in the city of Arak, around 240 kilometers west of Tehran, has the potential to produce plutonium suitable for the construction of nuclear weapons.

However, following the 2015 nuclear agreement, the reactor was modified to rule out this possibility.
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
IDF reveals commandos captured man in Syria gathering intel on border for Iran
2024-11-04
[IsraelTime] Elite forces entered Syrian territory in July and snatched Ali Suleiman al-Asi, who told interrogators he was told to monitor troop movements along border, says military

Israeli commandos carried out a raid in southern Syria where they captured a Syrian man who was allegedly carrying out surveillance operations on the border on behalf of Iran, the IDF revealed Sunday in a rare acknowledgment of a ground operation in its northeastern neighbor.

According to the Israel Defense Forces, the raid in Syria was carried out in recent months by the Egoz commando unit, along with field interrogators of the Intelligence Directorate’s Unit 504. Local Syrian media reported that the incident took place on July 19.

The commandos captured Ali Suleiman al-Asi, a Syrian man who lived in the village of Saida, in the Daraa Governorate.

The IDF said that al-Asi worked on behalf of Iran, and was involved in collecting intelligence on the Israeli military’s operations along the Syrian border "for future terror activity."

The military was "closely monitoring" al-Asi before he was captured and taken to Israel for questioning.

His arrest has "prevented and disrupted a future attack and led to the exposure of the modus operandi of Iranian entities on the Golan Heights front," the IDF said.

The IDF released footage of the mission and also from al-Asi’s interrogation, during which he said that he was approached by a man who told him: "Your area is good, strategic, we can get something from this." al-Asi said that the man was "linked to Iran."

The detained Syrian man told Israeli interrogators that he was instructed by the Iranian-linked source to "just observe the borders," while under the guise of Syria’s military intelligence, and pass on information on Israeli patrols.

He told interrogators that, among other things, he passed on information about troop and tank movements on the Israeli side of the border.

Israel has been carrying out Arclight airstrike
...KABOOM!...
s inside Syria since the outbreak of that country’s civil war in 2011, mainly targeting attempts to transfer weapons to the Iran-backed Lebanese Hezbollah terror group or to keep Iranian fighters themselves from gaining a foothold near Israel’s border.

In July, Israeli special forces allegedly carried out a raid on an Iranian weapons facility in the Masyaf area in Syria, which has long been associated with the manufacture of chemical weapons

...have not been used since WWI except for in Iraq, by the late, unlamented Saddam Hussein and in Syria, but really, honest, not by the Syrian government. And in Germany in WWII, but that was against civilians. Lots of them, just one of many reasons Hitler's also late and unlamented...
and precision missiles by the Syrian regime and Iranian forces.

The raid was said to have been carried out alongside Israeli air strikes on military facilities in the area that reportedly killed at least 14 people and maimed 43.

Local Syrian media reported at the time that the strikes hit the area surrounding the Scientific Studies and Research Center, known as CERS or SSRC, which according to Israel is used by Iranian forces to manufacture precision surface-to-surface missiles.

Various reports in foreign media claimed that Israeli troops operated on the ground during the action at Masyaf, which lies about 200 kilometers (124 miles) north of Israel, though only about 30 kilometers (18 miles) from Syria’s western coastline.

The reports said that commandos of the Israeli Air Force’s Shaldag Unit rappelled down from helicopters and raided CERS. Israeli troops removed equipment and documents and then laid explosives to destroy the facility.

The IDF has not publicly confirmed the details of the operation.
Related:
Unit 504: 2024-10-30 Hezbollah commander surrenders to IDF troops in his underwear: video
Unit 504: 2024-10-15 IDF says Hamas beating civilians, blocking them from evacuating to humanitarian zones
Unit 504: 2024-10-10 Two killed in Kiryat Shmona, several hurt in Haifa as Hezbollah rockets batter north
Related:
Saida: 2024-10-29 Israeli occupation aircraft continue to conduct airstrikes on southern Lebanon, Tyre, and Baalbek while Hezbollah shot 150 rockets at Israel
Saida: 2024-10-28 Five IDF reservists killed, 14 wounded in battle with Hezbollah in south Lebanon, 21 Lebanese airstruck
Saida: 2024-09-29 Hezbollah chief's death brings ground operation in Lebanon closer
Related:
Daraa Governorate: 2024-04-19 Several drones were shot down over Iranian Isfahan, media reports — IAF airstruck ‘em good
Daraa Governorate: 2023-12-19 Air strikes targeted the outskirts of the town of Al-Mataaiya, east of Daraa
Daraa Governorate: 2023-10-13 Israeli airstrikes target Damascus, Aleppo international airports
Related:
Masyaf: 2024-10-20 Expert: To truly behead Hezbollah, Israel must destroy Iranian weapons labs in Syria
Masyaf: 2024-10-17 Israel launches attack on Syria's Latakia
Masyaf: 2024-10-09 Israeli strike in Syria said to target top Hezbollah official in arms smuggling unit
Related:
Scientific Studies and Research Center: 2024-10-20 Expert: To truly behead Hezbollah, Israel must destroy Iranian weapons labs in Syria
Scientific Studies and Research Center: 2024-09-13 IDF visits Syria for a Day Trip… raided IRGC weapons facility, taking equipment and documents
Scientific Studies and Research Center: 2024-03-29 Strikes in Syria near Aleppo kill 38, injure dozens, say security sources
Link


Syria-Lebanon-Iran
Iran claims to have killed member of separatist group with ties to Israel
2024-10-31
[IsraelTimes] State media outlets reports two other people arrested after infiltrating from Iraqi Kurdistan with plan to cause ‘riots, terror and insecurity’

Iranian state media on Wednesday said intelligence services killed a member of a separatist group, which it accuses of links to Israel, and arrested two others in the country’s northwest.

"Intelligence service agents killed one of the main members of this terrorist group, and two others were arrested," state television
... and if you can't believe state television who can you believe?
reported, adding that their weapons had been seized.

It said they were detected trying to enter Iran’s West Azerbaijan province from northern Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region, where several exiled Iranian Kurdish groups are based, "with the aim of causing riots, terror and insecurity."

It did not specify what group the members belonged to, only claiming that it was a "group affiliated with the Zionist regime."

Iran
regularly accuses Kurdish groups in Iraq of staging cross-border attacks and, since 2022, of fueling the protests sparked by the death in jug of Iranian Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini.

The reported execution comes days after Israel carried out targeted strikes on Iranian military assets on Saturday, in retaliation for the massive ballistic missile attack launched by Tehran on October 1.

Tehran frequently claims to foil Mossad operations in the country, although the veracity of such claims is unclear.

Iran in January claimed it carried out strikes on what it said was the "headquarters of the Zionist regime’s spies" in northern Iraq, referring to the Mossad.

In the same month, it said that it had executed four men for collaborating with Israel on a plan to bomb an Iranian Defense Ministry center in Isfahan, central Iran.
Link



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