There
is Nothing to Fear from Iran
Dilip Hiro, an Indian playwright and
scholar, wrote The Longest War: The Iran – Iraq Military Conflict. The book was published in 1989, after the war
was over, but before Iraq invaded Kuwait.
Consequently, it provides a great snapshot of the Iran-Iraq War. It also shows how much was covered up in the
western media about Iraq’s behavior during that conflict.
It is
abundantly clear from this book that the United States and Iraq’s supporters knew
Saddam Hussein possessed and was using chemical weapons against Iranian
troops. Iraq repeatedly used chemical
weapons, mustard gas and cyanide, on Iranian troops and its own people
during the war.
Iran
also possessed chemical weapons capability, but declined to respond in
kind. “But chemical arms could not be
deployed until and unless Ayatollah Khomeini, the commander-in-chief, gave
permission. When he was approached on the
subject by top officials, he reportedly reiterated his earlier refusal based on
the argument that Islam prohibits its fighters from polluting the atmosphere
even in the course of a jihad, holy war.” p. 201
The
United States overthrew Mossadegh’s government in
1953 and installed the Shah who was a dictator with an American trained secret
police force that killed and tortured people.
The United States intervened militarily in the Iran – Iraq war to ensure
that Iran would not win. Yet, Iran
declined to use chemical weapons whereas Iraq, which was being supported by the
United States, France and Britain, did.
So, Iran
already has a doctrinal basis against the use of weapons of mass destruction,
something that can not be said of the United States and Israel. However, Iran does support Hizbollah and Hamas.
It is this threat from Iran that the United States and Israel would like
to stop. The nuclear weapons argument is
just eyewash.
Furthermore,
according to Retired General Ricardo Sanchez’s memoir Wiser In Battle, there was a modus Vivendi
between the United States and Iran during the Iraq war. Iran agreed not to fire on American rescue
aircraft if an American plane crashed in Iran and the pilot needed to be
rescued. President Obama’s
position of talking to Iran is just telling the public what is already
happening. It is the Israelis who want
war with Iran, because Israel has no intention of a peaceful settlement with
the Palestinians. Former Vice-President
and warmonger-in-chief Dick Cheney said as much in his most recent interview when assessing the prospects for
Israeli-Palestinian peace.
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