From NBC News:
Deadly attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists are being carried out by an Iranian dissident group that is financed, trained and armed by Israel’s secret service, U.S. officials tell NBC News, confirming charges leveled by Iran’s leaders.
The group, the People’s Mujahedin of Iran, has long been designated as a terrorist group by the United States, accused of killing American servicemen and contractors in the 1970s and supporting the takeover of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran before breaking with the Iranian mullahs in 1980.
The attacks, which have killed five Iranian nuclear scientists since 2007 and may have destroyed a missile research and development site, have been carried out in dramatic fashion, with motorcycle-borne assailants often attaching small magnetic bombs to the exterior of the victims’ cars.
U.S. officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Obama administration is aware of the assassination campaign but has no direct involvement.
An editorial in the NY Post (h/t reader John) notes:
The allegations are nothing new.
What is new is that “senior US officials” are said to have confirmed the gory details.
One must wonder why.
We understand that the Obama administration’s ties with Israel are strained — at best — and that the State Department has a particular allergy to the Jewish state.
But Iran’s nuclear program is about much more than Israel alone.
A nuclear-armed Iran would pose a near-existential threat to US allies in the region — meaning a nuclear-arms race among its Arab neighbors would be inevitable.
And, of course, the lion’s share of the world’s oil passes through the Persian Gulf.
So who cares whether the MeK is a designated terror group? (Britain and the European Union already removed it from their lists, and there is pressure on America to do the same.)
And isn’t Iran itself the leading exporter of terrorism in the world?
Let’s be frank: Were the MeK to play the critical role in derailing an Iranian bomb, it would be far more deserving of a Nobel Peace Prize than a certain president of the United States we could mention.
So why is the administration making such details public?
So why?
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If anyone in this administration had a conscience, that would leave a mark.
Why is the Obama administration leaking this information?
Two possibilities cross my mind:
1. The outing is being done as a “gesture of good faith” to Iran during secret negotiations.
2. The administration is getting cocky because its reelection prospects are looking up. We see a precursor of things to come if Obama is reelected. (I really really hope that, at worst, the Stupid Party retains control of at least one house of Congress.)
At least a third possibility/probability…
there are highly placed people in State, intel, and Defense who actively work against American interests, driven by their ideology.
Often, leaks like this are very much against the administration’s policy. In this case, they are more likely approved.
There is every indication and substantial evidence that this third possibility is what is true.
In every case, Obama has funded, facilitated, praised, etc. every Islamist movement, encroachment. He ignored the pre-Khoumeini Iranian protestors in favor of Islamist protestors.
Who knows but what the drones over Pakistan were targeting US-friendly groups and not terrorist groups?
Who knows whether the caskets shown by the Pakistanis alleging the US targeted their camp contained any bodies or were full of US-friendly (sane, even Christians and not Islam-rabid fighters)?
Who know what really happened in ‘Bin Laden’s ‘compound’ and why? Was Bin Laden already terminally ill and given the chance to be a martyr?
Obama, by his actions, words and deeds is a socialist/marxist/fascist/Islamist. This is the religion of his childhood and youth. It is the evident religion of his presidency.
Obama could not have been more destructive to the US economy and security or corrupt if he had been intentional in his actions.
Obama is not compatible with the US Constitution, Bill of Rights, or US security, culture, tradition, prosperity and freedom.
While I agree with everything you say I must take objection to the use of your word “if” in this sentence—–>
“Obama could not have been more destructive to the US economy and security or corrupt if he had been intentional in his actions.”
I believe that this is called “battlefield prep”.
They are trying to get Iran to start fighting internally by fostering mistrust … some thing that this administration is quite good at by the way.
There is another possible factor as well. This administration has known about this for some time, why release it now? The timing is no accident, and absolutely must be taken into consideration. I say it has to do with news cycles and attention spans.
I see a directed focus on Iran over the next few days deflecting away from what is actually happening in Syria. It takes attention away, even for a single news cycle, from a situation that reflects very poorly on this administration. It alleviates pressure in one embarrassing part of the region by shifting pressure to another (not as immediately) embarrassing part of the region while deftly making Israel the most guilty party of the moment. This administration, and their water carriers in the media are counting on the fact that we only have the attention span to deal with one bad story at any given time in any given region. At this moment in time, it’s far better for that story to be about Iran rather than Syria, and even better if that story is about Israel’s bad, past (and continuing) actions rather than our bad, past (and continuing) inactions.
Remember, it was not too long that “we” were calling Bashar al-Assad a great “reformer.” When we were vacillating between absolutely not doing anything, and then doing as little as possible, and then doing whatever it took to get results (as long as there was no political cost) in Libya, everyone who knows anything about the region was asking, “Okay, if this is the standard, how are we going to apply it across the board/region? What are we going to do about Syria? How can we justify deposing one murderous dictator, but not the other?”
This administration gambled that they would be able to compartmentalize their new doctrine into “this but not that,” or, “here but not there.” They lost. They hoped Bashar would behave reasonably and not be too heavy handed in the manner he put down his dissidents. They were wrong. They thought this Syrian uprising would go away quietly like the last Iranian uprising did. It didn’t.
Our President is trying very hard to style himself as a savvy “foreign policy” executive. This administration is trying very hard to avoid scandal so they can cash that check during the general election but Libya (who is in charge?), Egypt (hostages anyone?), Syria (what bloodbath?), Iraq (how’s that new embassy working out for ya?), Iran (got nukes?), and Afghanistan (why don’t we declare defeat next year, rather than the year after?) are making that very hard for them. Never before has smart power looked so stupid. By outing this story, this administration is hoping to cover Obama’s confirmed Idiocy by outing Israel’s alleged Evil.
Why did Obama align with Chavez and Castro in Zelaya’s attempt to break the Honduran constitution and extend his term?
Why does Obama block oil from Canada, that might now be sent to China?
Why does Obama obstruct drilling in the US, but advocate and financially support drilling in Brazil (at deeper depths), and promise to be their best customer?
We can count on our commander in chief to move away from our allies, and move toward our enemies.
Don’t forget his refusal to SAY anything in support of the Green Revolution in Iran.
That little vignette was very instructive.
right, very good point.
And I forget the details, but giving up our missile defense in Poland and the Czech Republic and getting nothing from Russia.
Or Miranda rights for terrorists on foreign soil. Shipping guns to the cartels … aligning with Mexico against Arizona.
Obama and Hillary are both faithful students of Alinsky. Hillary did her research thesis on him, as I recall. Obama taught his tactics. Why should we be surprised? But we aren’t really … it is just the masses that have to wake up. Alinsky used his tactics to get out of the ghetto … Obama wants to fundamentally change our country. Manufactured crisis seems to be a favorite means.
To provoke Iran into a physical act of aggression against Israel while standing on the sidelines wringing their hands and crying crocodile tears?
It seems to be part and parcel of the demonization of the State of Israel.
I’ve run across more than one Iranian blogger (Iranians now living in the West, that is) who are adamant that these assassinations are all a dog-and-pony show. It’s the regime bumping off Iranians (in at least one case, an individual involved with the Green Movement), creating bogeymen to validate its own continued malevolence.
These attacks are carried out in a manner very unlike how Israel has been known to operate, and very much in a manner widespread in the Islamic world. Nor are these necessarily the “key scientists” the Western media is reporting them as. The one individual who could be described as such, and who appeared to be targeted, survived with all limbs accounted for, while the dissident-associated individual who was traveling with him was killed. And this happened in an area completely under the control the regime’s security forces.
To add to gs’ thought, I suspect that it is also an unsophisticated attempt by the Obama administration to gain leverage over Israel. While this is a naive ploy at best, Obama has shown a rather petulant and punitive attitude in negotiations (particularly with Israel) , rather than credible, long-term strategic thinking.
Because an Israel that is on the verge of extinction is exactly the Israel that the Dear Leader wants.
Obama must be trying hard not to pat himself on the back again.
How does he do it? What a guy! (if he should say, himself!)
Good answer.
By the way, somebody hacked your account and removed the perfectly lovely photo of a perfectly lovely individual and replaced it with a different photo. Myself, I lack both the confidence and technical skills necessary to post a photo of anybody.
You can do this….it’s easy 🙂
http://en.gravatar.com/
A nuclear-armed Iran would pose a near-existential threat to US allies in the region — meaning a nuclear-arms race among its Arab neighbors would be inevitable.
To Obama, this is a feature, not a bug.
To Obama, America and its ally Israel are the two most insidious forces for evil in the world. The two things that most empower their ability to do evil is their economic strength and their nuclear arsenal.
The answer therefore is twofold. First, the American economy must be neutered. Run up the debt which will in turn require cuts in military spending (a la Europe). Since weakening the economy might take a while, the second part of the answer is to establish more nuclear-armed regimes in the Middle East. A nuclear Iran will lead to a nuclear Saudi Arabia, and PRESTO, you have a counterbalance to American and Israeli influence in the region. And, if Irsrael has to be wiped off the map as part of the process, well, they had it coming.
Sounds sinister, but one test of a theory is its power to explain observed reality.
Two reasons: 1. Obama is sympatico to Ahmadinejad and wants to prove to Iran that he can be trusted to support them. He’s getting tired of being struck with Iran’s clenched fist after repeatedly extending his open hand. He’s attempted to demonstrate his bona fides by his inaction on the drone, his refusal to condemn Iran for its genocidal rhetoric and plans concerning Israel, his many letters to the mad mullahs and Ahmadinejad telling them he’s a good boy.
2. Obama began his presidency by giving away national security information to Islamic terrorists, and he’s used the Old Gray Whore to do so. He didn’t leak anything. He gave it away wholesale. That seemed to be policy in the early days, and Obama is very consistent in taking actions that will harm the USA and her interests.
3. Obama hates Israel with a passion, you don’t sit listening to Jeremiah Wright for 20 years and like either Jews or Israel. He’s condemned Israel for taking steps to safeguard herself against any form of Islamic aggression much less the prospect of genocide at the hands of Israel’s old enemy Persia. In keeping with his view of himself as a little ground god, Obama is sending Israel a modern day version of ‘mene, mene, tekel, upharsin’. Anything that his administration knows about any Israeli counter to prospective genocide of all Jews, Obama will broadcast. In his view, Israel has no right to self-defense
I don’t count too well.
All the above commentary is waaaaay too close to the truth in explaining the anti-Israel tilt of the aberrant (mis)administration of Ozymandias-on-the-Potomac. In many aspects, it’s not nearly as incoherent as it seems, rather quite coherent with an Alinskyite/Jeremiah-Wright/Socialist worldview.
Barry Sotero’s Junior-Socialist-Community-Organizer strident ideology would easily view Iran’s shutting down the Strait of Hormuz as a feature, not an accident, thereby “necessarily” causing our energy prices (and the price of everything else) to skyrocket in pursuit of grabbing more Government control over our economy. If Israel has to be sacrificed as a smoldering, radioactive hole in the ground for our Presidunce to achieve such noble, world-citizen-conscious goals (look at what “I” did!), then that’s “acceptable collateral damage” in preparing the American Socialist omelet.
It’s “anonymous”, again. We need to dump the environmentalists and the “green” industry interests for whom they are advocates. Dispel the myth “fossil” fuels and educate our citizens about nuclear processes. Then resume domestic resource recovery and development. Only then will we be capable of describing a foreign policy with American objectives.
As for Obama, he, and his supporters, are manufacturing a constitutional, economic, and foreign crisis. This “revelation” from “anonymous” is a distraction from the games his administration is playing with American citizens, allies, and regional neighbors.
You would think that the gift of several dozen SEALs, an experimental stealth helicopter, and an advanced drone, would have tempered the resentment in that part of the world.
[…] Obama administration is leaking information about a possible Israeli connection to the deadly attacks on Iranian nuclear scientists. I guess […]
Ratting on Israel is such a bad idea in so many ways. If a capable person is being bullied by those who are protected, it behooves the victim to take out the protector when taking out the perpetrator. The guy holding your arms behind your back is an accomplice, and is just as guilty, as the the guy punching you. Those Israelis strike me as being really competent. I imagine they’ll strike me that way when they strike us. We will know why.
This President is leading us to disaster. Our enemies don’t play.
No one in this administration seems to have a clue about any aspect of the executives duties and screws up either by doing nothing or if it takes any action, it is more than a little wrong. The right thing to say about any covert operation is nothing at all. Seal team six never should have been identified, we should denied getting bin laden. The paks could not admit he was there after years of denying it and the downed copter could have been claimed to have navigation equipment problems. The only reason they announced getting him was to obama a poll boost that quickly dropped. After biden shot his mouth off, they set a trap for seal team six and killed a bunch of men that were worth more to our country than all the people in this administration.
Position Of Mahdi being advertised as open by one Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, salary and benefits open: therefore
Hello Adolph; I have some news for you. Allies landing in Normandy, Cotentin peninsula area. 0630, 6,6,1944
Because “senior officials” actually are working against the best interests of America. It’s that simple.