In a chilling historic first, Iran directly attacked Israel with a barrage of drones and missiles. What led to this, what it means, and where do we go from here?
I am convinced that Russia is behind all the action in the Middle East. They are whisppering into Iran's ears. And give them material aid. Iran in turn provided Hamas with the necessary tools to attack Isreal last October. In the meanwhile they also supply the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah with weapons. The world turns their attention away from Ukraine to the Middle East at a pivitol time. Voters in the US are critical of Biden's support of Israel's brutal war in the Gaza Strip which could lead to Trump winning the election. Putin is sitting back and enjoys the mess he created. It is a win/win situation for him. It gives him an opening to finish his business in Ukraine. It is so obvious why are seasoned politicians falling for this? We can't abandon Ukraine over Israel if we want to save Europe. Putin will not stop with Ukraine. Has nobody learned anything from WWII?
"At ex-president Trump’s urging, and under pressure from the Putin wing of the party, Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to bring the aid bill up for a vote despite the Senate having already passed it by a huge margin."
Despite the Senate Having Already Passed it by a HUGE Margin. Are you listening, American voters?
And why is there even a Putin Wing controlling an American Institution?? (rhetorical.)
How did we end up with a quadi-government at Mar- A-Largo, FL? Dictators visiting, Congressman meeting, elected officials doing a former president's bidding, kneeling to Moscow? Well, from Nixon to Reagan to today, that's what's become of what was once a grand old party.
I'm glad to see Biden said we wouldn't participate in any retaliation. Iran is definitely a bad actor; but it's still a sovereign nation with the right to respond to attacks. Hopefully Netanyahu will let this go. But, either way, Israel really needs to get rid of Netanyahu. His need to keep the country at war is undermining the ability to continue seeing Israel as being the 'good guys' in the conflict.
Netanyahu seems like a smart version of Trump. As you say in the post: "Add to this the fact that Netanyahu is battling to save his political career."
So, he violates international law by bombing an embassy. Article 22 of the Geneva Convention is clear on this: "The premises of the mission [embassy or consulate] shall be inviolable."
What Biden really ought to do, which neither he nor any other American president would ever do (especially Trump), is invite Netanyahu to the Oval Office for a chat, then send him in a cargo plane to the Hague for war crimes and violating international law. But the US didn't even condemn the embassy attack in the UN.
My vote for Biden is not conditioned on doing everything I demand, but I'm tired of the U.S. coddling and enabling Netanyahu. This comment in no way is an endorsement of the actions of Hamas, Hezbollah, or the Iranian government.
But some deft diplomacy is needed here. The Iranian *people* are on the verge of rebellion against the backward Ayatollahs. The hijab protests are for real. Attacks against Iran only serve to help Iran's government, which is just as bad as the Likud government in Israel, stay in power. It diverts attention away from the dissension in Iran, which is deep, towards enemies. A classic diversion.
The Ayatollahs' military spending at the cost of its citizens' economic well being is not lost on its people. They're not stupid. The U.S. should do everything in its power to discourage Netanyahu from attacking Iran. This isn't accomplished by looking the other way when Netanyahu attacks an embassy in violation of the Geneva Convention or bombing the crap out of children in Gaza, which also stokes animosity in Muslim countries.
At the end of the day, both Netanyahu and the Ayatollahs are using conflict to stay in power. Let's not help them.
Thank you for the timeline. When the shit hits the fan, it’s important to know how we got there. Do you think we will, as the human race, ever get past allowing these displays of penis measuring by a few that kill so many? The carnage is just appalling!
Mike Johnson is not a man, he's a worm. Just wanted to uselessly vent about that craven accusation that this is all Biden's fault, just after Mikie made his pilgrimage to Mar a Lago to grovel at the feet of the man of 91 indictments.
Israel attacked an *Embassy*. Not sure people understand how incendiary that is--even worse than an incursion of a disputed border. Worse than attacking your enemy's military, because civilians are certain to be killed, and it signals negotiations are a joke when you kill diplomats. More diplomats have died than spies through the years, far more. This was just one step less offensive than striking a working hospital--no matter who is sheltering there.
This was Bibi raising his middle finger to rest of the world. He brought this on Israel, deliberately. He certainly did not have to attack an embassy in order to protect Israel. There were so many other perfectly legitimate targets he could have chosen.
"...99 percent of the projectiles were intercepted, through a combination of defensive actions undertaken by Israel, the U.S. and the U.K." Everything else aside, the fact that they did this, AT NIGHT, I think is pretty amazing and hopefully will serve as a detriment to future attempts.
Do not doubt that Netanyahu, like Trump, will happily sacrifice anything and anyone to save his own bacon....the Iranian attack was multi-puropse- retributive, for sure, but also a litmus of the alignments that we will see play out within the next while....what unfolds will help shape global actions, reactions, offensives, defensives....
Exactly what was Iran expected to do as Israel continues to assassinate key figures in the government? Scientists, generals, diplomats, no ranking Iranian is safe from potential murder by Israel, the record is clear on that. But this "retaliation" by Iran earlier today was, as a NYT writer suggested, "performative" - advertised days in advance, targets set inside Israel where Iron Dome interception was virtually guaranteed, and where quantity of munitions used well exceeded quality, where the overwhelming bulk of airborne weaponry shot down before reaching their targets, and the entire operation is highly suggestive of face-saving for the regime, with NO intention of a severity of attack to cause retaliation upon Iranian territory by a joint US-Israel operation.
So what now? Well, back to *status quo ante*, with all matter of behind-the-scenes assurances that both sides made their points, and let's settle down, boys. Israel goes back to reducing Gaza to uninhabitable rubble, settlers and Palestinians go back to killing one another in the West Bank, and Biden keeps delivering weapons and munitions to its client state. Business as usual in the ME, nothing to see here, folks, keep moving along.
I keep hoping that some Republicans either step up or step out and let hakeem jeffries take the helm.
My gut wrenches everytime I see news of ukraine twisting in the wind while our own on the GOP betray us while putin laughs. ( picture him salvating and rubbing his hands together waiting for ukraine to fall)
Jay these people would have been fired by any fast food joint in the first week.
The entire GOP is traitorous. And who TF does that orange bastard think he ? He is undermining our leadership from his shitty motel?
“These considerations make it very difficult to parse whether Israel is acting legitimately in its own defense or whether Netanyahu is deliberately provoking a broader conflict in order to sow chaos, which serves him politically.”
Odd you say the parsing is difficult just after you note how unpopular Netanyahu is and the complications for Israel his attack on the embassy are causing. It’s VERY clear Netanyahu is not acting in the interests of Israel but to save himself.
You write your fear is that Bibi wants to drag us into war.
I often fear Trump is dragging us into insanity.
I watch your journey trying to drag others into consciousness.
I am convinced that Russia is behind all the action in the Middle East. They are whisppering into Iran's ears. And give them material aid. Iran in turn provided Hamas with the necessary tools to attack Isreal last October. In the meanwhile they also supply the Houthis in Yemen and Hezbollah with weapons. The world turns their attention away from Ukraine to the Middle East at a pivitol time. Voters in the US are critical of Biden's support of Israel's brutal war in the Gaza Strip which could lead to Trump winning the election. Putin is sitting back and enjoys the mess he created. It is a win/win situation for him. It gives him an opening to finish his business in Ukraine. It is so obvious why are seasoned politicians falling for this? We can't abandon Ukraine over Israel if we want to save Europe. Putin will not stop with Ukraine. Has nobody learned anything from WWII?
"At ex-president Trump’s urging, and under pressure from the Putin wing of the party, Speaker Mike Johnson has refused to bring the aid bill up for a vote despite the Senate having already passed it by a huge margin."
Despite the Senate Having Already Passed it by a HUGE Margin. Are you listening, American voters?
And why is there even a Putin Wing controlling an American Institution?? (rhetorical.)
How did we end up with a quadi-government at Mar- A-Largo, FL? Dictators visiting, Congressman meeting, elected officials doing a former president's bidding, kneeling to Moscow? Well, from Nixon to Reagan to today, that's what's become of what was once a grand old party.
I'm glad to see Biden said we wouldn't participate in any retaliation. Iran is definitely a bad actor; but it's still a sovereign nation with the right to respond to attacks. Hopefully Netanyahu will let this go. But, either way, Israel really needs to get rid of Netanyahu. His need to keep the country at war is undermining the ability to continue seeing Israel as being the 'good guys' in the conflict.
Netanyahu seems like a smart version of Trump. As you say in the post: "Add to this the fact that Netanyahu is battling to save his political career."
So, he violates international law by bombing an embassy. Article 22 of the Geneva Convention is clear on this: "The premises of the mission [embassy or consulate] shall be inviolable."
What Biden really ought to do, which neither he nor any other American president would ever do (especially Trump), is invite Netanyahu to the Oval Office for a chat, then send him in a cargo plane to the Hague for war crimes and violating international law. But the US didn't even condemn the embassy attack in the UN.
My vote for Biden is not conditioned on doing everything I demand, but I'm tired of the U.S. coddling and enabling Netanyahu. This comment in no way is an endorsement of the actions of Hamas, Hezbollah, or the Iranian government.
But some deft diplomacy is needed here. The Iranian *people* are on the verge of rebellion against the backward Ayatollahs. The hijab protests are for real. Attacks against Iran only serve to help Iran's government, which is just as bad as the Likud government in Israel, stay in power. It diverts attention away from the dissension in Iran, which is deep, towards enemies. A classic diversion.
The Ayatollahs' military spending at the cost of its citizens' economic well being is not lost on its people. They're not stupid. The U.S. should do everything in its power to discourage Netanyahu from attacking Iran. This isn't accomplished by looking the other way when Netanyahu attacks an embassy in violation of the Geneva Convention or bombing the crap out of children in Gaza, which also stokes animosity in Muslim countries.
At the end of the day, both Netanyahu and the Ayatollahs are using conflict to stay in power. Let's not help them.
Thank you for the timeline. When the shit hits the fan, it’s important to know how we got there. Do you think we will, as the human race, ever get past allowing these displays of penis measuring by a few that kill so many? The carnage is just appalling!
Mike Johnson is not a man, he's a worm. Just wanted to uselessly vent about that craven accusation that this is all Biden's fault, just after Mikie made his pilgrimage to Mar a Lago to grovel at the feet of the man of 91 indictments.
Israel attacked an *Embassy*. Not sure people understand how incendiary that is--even worse than an incursion of a disputed border. Worse than attacking your enemy's military, because civilians are certain to be killed, and it signals negotiations are a joke when you kill diplomats. More diplomats have died than spies through the years, far more. This was just one step less offensive than striking a working hospital--no matter who is sheltering there.
This was Bibi raising his middle finger to rest of the world. He brought this on Israel, deliberately. He certainly did not have to attack an embassy in order to protect Israel. There were so many other perfectly legitimate targets he could have chosen.
And don't forget the cyber-attacks through the years, the classic one made by Israel on Iran (with our assistance) was this one: https://www.9news.com.au/world/how-stuxnet-cyberattack-took-out-natanz-nuclear-facility-in-iran/37694f90-c2e1-454c-9597-e7de8f54e495.
"...99 percent of the projectiles were intercepted, through a combination of defensive actions undertaken by Israel, the U.S. and the U.K." Everything else aside, the fact that they did this, AT NIGHT, I think is pretty amazing and hopefully will serve as a detriment to future attempts.
Do not doubt that Netanyahu, like Trump, will happily sacrifice anything and anyone to save his own bacon....the Iranian attack was multi-puropse- retributive, for sure, but also a litmus of the alignments that we will see play out within the next while....what unfolds will help shape global actions, reactions, offensives, defensives....
Thanks, Jay, for your excellent explanation of what's going on over there.
The war on disinformation continues. Carry on, soldier. Well done.
Exactly what was Iran expected to do as Israel continues to assassinate key figures in the government? Scientists, generals, diplomats, no ranking Iranian is safe from potential murder by Israel, the record is clear on that. But this "retaliation" by Iran earlier today was, as a NYT writer suggested, "performative" - advertised days in advance, targets set inside Israel where Iron Dome interception was virtually guaranteed, and where quantity of munitions used well exceeded quality, where the overwhelming bulk of airborne weaponry shot down before reaching their targets, and the entire operation is highly suggestive of face-saving for the regime, with NO intention of a severity of attack to cause retaliation upon Iranian territory by a joint US-Israel operation.
So what now? Well, back to *status quo ante*, with all matter of behind-the-scenes assurances that both sides made their points, and let's settle down, boys. Israel goes back to reducing Gaza to uninhabitable rubble, settlers and Palestinians go back to killing one another in the West Bank, and Biden keeps delivering weapons and munitions to its client state. Business as usual in the ME, nothing to see here, folks, keep moving along.
I keep hoping that some Republicans either step up or step out and let hakeem jeffries take the helm.
My gut wrenches everytime I see news of ukraine twisting in the wind while our own on the GOP betray us while putin laughs. ( picture him salvating and rubbing his hands together waiting for ukraine to fall)
Jay these people would have been fired by any fast food joint in the first week.
The entire GOP is traitorous. And who TF does that orange bastard think he ? He is undermining our leadership from his shitty motel?
We must win we must
“These considerations make it very difficult to parse whether Israel is acting legitimately in its own defense or whether Netanyahu is deliberately provoking a broader conflict in order to sow chaos, which serves him politically.”
Odd you say the parsing is difficult just after you note how unpopular Netanyahu is and the complications for Israel his attack on the embassy are causing. It’s VERY clear Netanyahu is not acting in the interests of Israel but to save himself.