Iran had to retaliate for the Israeli attack on the consulate… and of course, the Israelis and Washington knew they would. When it comes to measured retaliation, the timing, I can see several reasons:
Firstly, of course, Israel’s failure in Gaza. It turned out that the Israeli army is not that strong. If they cannot finish off the so-called Hamas terrorists and genocide, the population in Gaza in six months.
Secondly, Russia’s successes have changed the nature of the conflict in Ukraine—and not to the favor of those who started in the first place.
Thirdly, despite Israel’s failure to destroy Hamas, they do have a proven track record in conventional war against larger militaries in the open field, a very different thing to their anti-guerilla operations in Gaza, which have degenerated into a mass murder of civilians.
I suspect they are hoping that a wider conventional war in the region will distract attention from the genocide they are carrying out against the Palestinians.
“Iran waited for world consensus in condemning the strike on their embassy in Syria before they retaliated … even America had condemned the terrorist attack!”
With Russia defending itself from the EU and the US, they knew that the EU and the USA are not as strong as they turned out to be—and the time was right to call their bluff. Thirdly, of course, China stands behind Russia and Iran.
China understands that if Russia loses in Ukraine, it will become the next target for the United States. Finally, now Iran has a good chance, since the EU and the US are drawn into a conflict in Ukraine, and it will be difficult for them to help Israel. It is not as it was not expected, and even planned, and by Israel itself, here is a good question, other than simply revenge: Why did Iran choose at this moment to attack Israel?
So, what is the BIGGER game?
War with Iran blocks everything from the Belt and Road and all Asia to Western detente… it becomes a soup sandwich. There needs to be a good distraction, especially when Russia is defending against the EU and the US, and all of NATO.
This retaliation clearly shows that the EU and the USA are not as strong as they claimed to be. Most of their arsenals have been squandered in a hopeless attempt to eke out a Ukrainian victory. What is left may well now be wasted in support of Israel. One can almost hear the Chinese saying “Tick-tock, Mr. Wick, tick-tock” as they prepare for the US to expend the vital stockpile of weapons that would otherwise be used to defend Taiwan.
Iran and Israel Left with no real options
So what are the options for these blood enemies going forward? Soon we may be seeing a BIG false flag in Middle America, perhaps, Michigan, a hotbed of radical Palestinians, as Americans will be brainwashed to believe, in its wake.
Naturally, Israel left itself no other choice, as part of the plan to provoke Iran into responding to an article of war over the bombing of the Iranian Consulate in Syria, they must have considered, or more correctly hoped, that Iran would escalate to full-scale war. Now, when watching news sources, according to Western observers, Israel is doing as “every country would”, ignoring the fact that this can also, and far more reasonably, also be said of Iran.
The IDF has, of course, been preparing for that as well, [most likely] by striking military targets inside Iran and other countries from which any missiles or drones are launched.
It is all so well-planned, at least on the part of Israel, a false flag in the open. It will involve the usual suspects, the next victims: Syria, Lebanon, and of course, Hezbollah, and no response can be justified without invoking the fear of this entity. With a little imagination, even Turkey, Egypt and Jordan could be pulled into the fray. Most definitely, the response will bring all stakeholders to the brink of a world war, and that is just what Biden and Netanyahu wanted, and so desperately needed.
Iran is acting as the adult in the room, at least in terms of the fact that the attack has been calibrated to get the point across without actually threatening the survival of the State of Israel, as the last thing it needs is an “all-out” regional war.
I wonder what the response would have been if the shoe was on the other foot, with Iran attacking an Israeli embassy in a foreign capital, Damascus, killing at least 16 people including high ranking military officers.
Meanwhile, Biden and his minions are following the party line, “We are devoted to the defense of Israel, We will support Israel, We will help defend Israel and Iran will not succeed.” It is like starting a fire as an unrepentant arsonist and then crying fire to see the fire engines run.
Again, it is worth nothing that: “Iran waited for world consensus in condemning the strike on their embassy in Syria before they retaliated … even America had condemned the terrorist attack.”
Let’s see what US does next?
The next question will be what the US will do in living up to its promises, deflecting from other ongoing debacles, and running from the mud that is being slung over Biden and Son, Ukraine, and business as usual in the US.
But I am sure the collective powers, i.e., the influencers collective mindset wants what is happening in the region, something just short of WW3. However, they will want it hot enough to where it will provide for political mileage and feed the rhetoric machine and military industrial complex, and thereby all the kickbacks to the “honorable” members of the House and Senate.
And they knew that all from the outset, exactly what would happen, and have even predicted the payback, and the benefits from what may become a tit for tat game of retaliation. Hopefully they don’t want World War 3, but “only” to destroy Iran. Probably they want to destroy Israel too! Within this stream of reasoning, with its myriad potential actions and reactions, not only in terms of Iran but in Lebanon and Syria, hold a deeper significance beyond first impressions.
They serve as a veil to hide internal weaknesses among the warmongering entity. By instigating conflict and pulling the US into a larger war, this octopus seeks to deflect attention from its own shortcomings and a multitude of past strategic blunders.
Moreover, it seeks to rally partners towards a broader conflict, potentially involving NATO. Notably, both the US and Germany offer unwavering support for Israel, driven not just by collective guilt but by the need to survive politically, especially in light of previous setbacks, such as those witnessed in Ukraine.
However, these actions are now rebounding, causing unforeseen consequences of a particularly inconvenient time—basically, their actions are coming back to bite them in the ass—and the timing could not be worse. But why should we be worried when reading such headlines, “Israel shoots down ‘99 per cent’ of Iranian missiles and drones?”
All the while, Iran says the attack on Israel ‘achieved all its objectives’ –
The Iranian army has said its drone and missile attack on Israel, in retaliation for a deadly strike on Iran’s Damascus consulate, has “achieved all its objectives”. “Operation Honest Promise… was completed successfully from last night to this morning and achieved all its objectives”, Mohammad Bagheri, the Iranian armed forces’ chief of staff, told state TV.
Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholtz has called the attack that Iran launched as unjustifiable and highly irresponsible. Iran risks a further escalation in the region. Germany stands by Israel, and we will discuss the situation with our allies.
Finally, Joe Biden is claiming that “We will defend Israel but won’t attack Iran” and purportedly having reportedly warned Benjamin Netanyahu that the US will not participate in any attack by Israel on Iran in response to Saturday’s air strike.
So it seems they, especially the US and its allies, want it all ways, BUT the “bang for the buck” will mostly be heard among political circles. The Iranian strike may even be the end of it, as nobody really is so crazy to want a full-fledged, “knock-down-and-drag-out” regional war that could jump-start WW3.
However, they may have severely miscalculated because Israel, as it is characteristic, most likely, will do something ten times worse and more heinous. Then, the entire Middle East will become a bloodbath, it will literally catch on fire!
It will spread …. the only thing that could stop it, is if the US fails to do Israel’s bidding. However, that is not going to happen, as AIPAC owns the politicians, from Biden down to the bottom of the food chain.
It has been decades coming. With 0.1 percent of the population of the world, telling everyone to fuck off.
I feel bad, especially being Jewish myself, for the Jewish people around the world. At the end of this is a holocaust that will be complete.
Seth Ferris, investigative journalist and political scientist, expert on Middle Eastern affairs, exclusively for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”.