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Is starting a war with Iran still on the Pentagon's drawing board?

Stephen Lendman
Global Research
Thu, 14 Jan 2016 00:00 UTC
Iran frees 10 US military personnel

Iran frees 10 US military personnel who were detained after "accidentally" straying into sensitive waters

The region already is cauldron of endless violence and chaos. Is Washington planning a scenario of military escalation.

Iranian naval commander Rear Admiral Ali Fadavi accused Washington of reckless moves, risking war with the Islamic Republic.

His remarks followed seizure of two small US vessels illegally operating in Iranian waters, briefly detaining their crew members.

Before their release, "the US navy and a US aircraft-carrier showed unprofessional behavior for about 40 minutes and made some moves in the air and the sea in the region," said Fadavi - provocations risking direct confrontation.

America's regional presence, including in Persian Gulf waters, is hugely destabilizing. No clashes occurred this time. Longstanding US hostility toward Iran suggests next time may be different.

Comment: By hook or by crook the US will find a way to escalate tensions and start a greater regional war in the middle east while the cooler heads of Iran, Syria, Russia and Iraq are doing their level best to avoid it - in a seemingly ceaseless effort to maintain their sovereignty.

See also: 'We have the last word here': Iranian Commander says missiles were readied to fire on US warship

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War Whore

'Mush for brains' McCain hysterical over Iran's detention of US sailors


Sputnik
Fri, 15 Jan 2016 03:25 UTC
McCain
© AP Photo/ Matt York
In what could have spiraled into a diplomatic nightmare, US sailors captured by Iran's Revolutionary Guard on Tuesday were returned peacefully. While most are applauding diplomats on both sides, one US senator is stoking the fires, maintaining that the US Navy was within its full rights to enter Iranian waters.

On Tuesday, two small US Navy patrol boats lost contact with their command and drifted into Iranian waters in the Persian Gulf. Running aground on Farsi Island, the 10 crew members onboard the two boats were taken into custody by the Revolutionary Guard, and their boats were seized.

Many expressed concern that the incident could become a protracted diplomatic battle, but all crewmembers and equipment were released the following day after discussions between US Secretary of State John Kerry and his Iranian counterpart Mohammad Javad Zarif.

Comment: More hysterical hogwash from McCain. In all, it seems like a lame attempt to isolate Iran as sanctions against them come to an end.

Also see:

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Document

Doing it right: German paper Bild's interview with Putin

Alexander Mercouris
Russia Insider
Wed, 13 Jan 2016 03:07 UTC
putin bild
Putin used Russia's Christmas break to give an interview for the German tabloid Bild-Zeitung (see here and here).

Unusually for the Western media, the German interviewers proved to be both well-informed and intelligent and avoided cliches, giving Putin a good opportunity to explain himself concisely on a wide range of topics.

The fact the interviewers from Bild-Zeitung conducted the interview so intelligently incidentally shows that the true causes of the present tensions in international relations are well understood in Germany - including by the media there - even if they are not openly articulated.
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Document

Iran expects EU to lift sanctions following implementation of nuclear deal over next few days


Fars New Agency
Thu, 14 Jan 2016 03:27 UTC
iran deal flag
Tehran expects the European Union to remove anti-Iran sanctions immediately after the nuclear deal implementation day, Iranian ambassador to Russia Mehdi Sanaei said on Thursday. On Wednesday, Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said the full implementation of the nuclear deal with six world powers would take place no later than the weekend.
"We are at the stage of lifting the sanctions from Iran, it is expected that just in the next few days, tomorrow or early next week, it will be officially announced of the implementation of the agreement, which was signed by Iran and the 'six.' At the end of this week or at the beginning of the next, EU may declare the realization of the sanctions lifting," Sanaei told the Gaidar Forum in Moscow.
In July, Iran and the six world powers, namely Russia, China, the United States, France the United Kingdom and Germany, signed a historic deal on Tehran's nuclear program. The deal guarantees the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear activities in exchange for removal of sanctions.
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Eye 2

Poroshenko admits to directing fascists groups maintaining Crimea food and energy blockade


RT
Thu, 14 Jan 2016 03:03 UTC
porochennko crimea blockade
© Gleb Garanich / Reuters
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko
Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko admitted that he coordinates actions aimed against the Crimean Peninsula, including the ongoing "energy blockade," which have been carried out by an unrecognized Crimean Tatar nationalist organization called Mejlis.

"I regularly meet with the representatives of the Crimean Tatar people, with Mustafa Dzhemilev [a Ukrainian parliament MP and a long-time leader of the so-called Mejlis] and Refat Chubarov [the current leader of Mejlis] as well as other activists in order not only to support, but also to coordinate their actions," Poroshenko said during a press-conference on Thursday, Ukrainian media report.

The Ukrainian leader also called for intensifying efforts aimed at returning Crimea to Ukraine, although he refused to "assume any irresponsible responsibilities concerning specific dates."

On January 13, the Legislative Assembly of the Crimean Republic addressed the Russian Prosecutor General and Investigative Committee asking them to launch a probe into the suspected genocide of Crimean people in view of the ongoing energy blockade, which was set up with the participation of the members of Crimean Tatar nationalist organizations and the far-right Ukrainian Right Sector movement.

"The blockade of the Crimean Republic launched under the leadership of Ukrainian MPs Mustafa Djemilev and Refat Chubarov as well as groups of persons who are de facto controlled by the Ukrainian authorities has been going on for over four months now. This is a very visual example of a blatant violation of Human Rights, of a crime motivated by hatred and of an attempt at genocide that hurts civilian residents of Crimea," the address reads.

Comment: Poroshenko appears to have well and truly lost his grip on reality.

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Boat

Israel being sued in Washington by victims of Gaza-bound ship attack

Charlotte Silver
The Electric Intifada
Tue, 12 Jan 2016 00:00 UTC
flotilla attack
© www.washingtonpost.com
Israeli forces approach one of six ships bound for Gaza, May, 31, 2010.
In what lawyers are calling a groundbreaking case, four individuals are suing Israel in US federal court over its lethal raid on a humanitarian flotilla almost six years ago.

The plaintiffs, three of them US citizens, were aboard the US-flagged Challenger I when it was intercepted and violently raided by the Israeli army on 31 May 2010. Challenger I was one of six vessels in the Gaza Freedom Flotilla.

While all six ships were attacked, the incident is most widely known for the Israeli commando raid on the Turkish-owned vessel Mavi Marmara, which resulted in the killing of nine civilian passengers. A tenth victim died from his injuries in May 2014.


Comment: The Mavi Marmara was in international waters and heading away from the Israeli coast when it was attacked.


The civil suit, filed in Washington, DC, late Monday, seeks compensatory and punitive damages. It accuses Israel and several of its ministries of committing war crimes, including torture and cruel and inhumane treatment. The complaint also alleges that soldiers confiscated and never returned passengers' personal property, money and all the medical supplies on board. The US ship was never returned by Israel.

Test case

Several legal actions have been been lodged on behalf of the victims' families, including in the United States and Turkey and in the International Criminal Court. However, all previous attempts to hold Israel accountable have targeted specific officials in the Israeli military and government for their roles in planning and executing the attack.

This is the first time that a civil suit in the US in respect to the incident has named the State of Israel as the defendant. "This case is filed against the State of Israel itself for the attack on a US flagged vessel, Challenger I, during which US citizens were injured and harmed, which brings it within the reach of US law," lawyer Rodney Dixon told The Electronic Intifada.

Comment: It is about time Israel faced consequences for illegal and deadly actions against innocent civilians, the mainstay of its "feeding" mechanism. Had US Marines in Iranian waters been given the same assault, imagine the US response!

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War Whore

Supporting Nazis: Pentagon funding bill opens the door to aid Kiev's neo-Nazi battalion


RT
Fri, 15 Jan 2016 01:35 UTC
Azov battalion, neo-nazis
© Gleb Garanich / Reuters
New volunteers for the Ukrainian interior ministry's "Azov" battalion
Despite the unanimous support of US lawmakers for amendments banning aid to the openly neo-Nazi paramilitaries operating in Ukraine, the provisions were removed from the final versions of the Pentagon funding bill and the 2016 omnibus budget.

After the $1.8 trillion budget deal was struck between President Barack Obama and the Republican majority in Congress, the White House praised the removal of numerous "ideological riders," while Speaker of the House Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) trumpeted the $64 million aid for European countries "facing Russian aggression."

It now appears that one of those riders was the amendment passed unanimously by the House of Representatives last June that would have banned US aid to the notorious neo-Nazi 'Azov' battalion. The controversial unit is just one of many employed by the Kiev government against the residents of two eastern regions that have refused to accept the legitimacy of the government installed in the US-backed, February 2014 coup.

Comment: Nothing new here, the Empire has never had any qualms about using Nazis and other terrorists to further its aims.

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Stormtrooper

The Empire's prerogative: Navy uses US citizens as pawns in domestic war games

Dahr Jamail
Truthout
Mon, 11 Jan 2016 02:19 UTC
navy war games washington state
© Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class William S. Parker / US Navy
Navy SEALs conduct a capabilities exercise at Joint Expeditionary Base Little Creek-Fort Story on Virginia Beach, Virginia, July 21, 2012. Beginning in mid-January, Navy SEALs will be conducting war games across Washington State's coastal areas, including through public and private property.
These exclusive Navy documents outline plans for combat training exercises along vast areas of Washington State coastline. Each shows the areas the Navy is prepared to utilize.

Beginning in mid-January, Navy SEALs will be practicing unannounced and clandestine combat beach landings across Washington State's Puget Sound and many other coastal areas of that state.

The simulated combat exercises, which will include the use of mini-submarines and other landing craft, will deposit Navy SEALs carrying "simulated weapons" on 68 beach and state park areas in Puget Sound, the Strait of Juan de Fuca and Washington's west coast, unbeknownst to most of the relevant government agencies tasked with overseeing these areas.

Internal Navy emails, two slide shows (which can be viewed in full here and here) and other documents obtained exclusively by Truthout reveal the vast extent of the operations. They also reveal the fact that the Navy labeled the relevant files as "For Official Use Only" and emails as "Attorney-Client privilege," a move that exempts such documents from the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).
navy war games washington state
© Document obtained by Dahr Jamail
The Navy has planned exercises that could take place, according to their own maps, along the entirety of Washington State's coastlines.
In the new scenario, which the military calls "realistic military training," Navy SEALs carrying "simulated" weapons may also travel across public and private property within city limits, and may swim through public and private marinas occupied by people living on boats. They could conduct war game patrols on roads through residential communities. In addition to tribal, state, federal and county lands, there are many properties on the Navy's list of training sites marked as private.

Comment: So the training is for "conducting operations in urban environments"? The creeping militarization of US society is becoming ever more blatant.

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Eye 1

FBI believed posing as militia in Oregon, Fire Marshal resigns in protest

John Vibes
Free Thought Project
Fri, 15 Jan 2016 01:20 UTC
Fire Chief Chris Briels
© Thomas Boyd Oregon Live
Fire Chief Chris Briels says he resigned because he's lost faith in county government
This week, Harney County Fire Marshall Chris Briels resigned after discovering undercover FBI agents posing as militia members near the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge, which has been the site of a standoff for weeks now. According to Briels, he found FBI agents who were impersonating militia members lurking around the town's armory. When he inquired about the undercover operation with county Judge Steve Grasty he was told to back off.

Just before this discovery was made, there were reports of people who looked like militia harassing locals, which is uncharacteristic of the protesters who initially assembled at the refuge. It turns out that these militia members suspected of harassing locals were actually undercover FBI agents.

During an impromtu press conference, Briels explained how he was so disrespected in his encounter with Grasty and was so disgusted with the situation in general, that he no longer wants to work for a government that he does not believe in. Briels added that he would still be helping people in the community with fire prevention and other issues that he has helped with in the past, but he will just no longer be doing it as a government employee. Briels went on to describe how he exposed undercover FBI agents who had come to town and were creating problems amongst the locals

Comment: Also see

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Piggy Bank

Pig headed: Cameron insists British-terrorist relations based on 'best intelligence estimate'


Fars News Agency
Fri, 15 Jan 2016 01:33 UTC
Cameron
Mark Twain once said, "If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything." And remembering all the terrible things he has done to Syria is what British Prime Minister David Cameron has been busy doing these days.

Together with the United States and its regional "allies," Cameron used the claim of 70,000 "moderate" Syrian rebels ready to ally with the "coalition" as the centrepiece of his argument to expand the illegal war on Syria under the pretext of fighting ISIL - their own spawn. Now after more than four years of destruction and chaos, Cameron admits his claim was "false" - although he still has the guts to insist "it was the best estimate."

Clear enough, Cameron has finally admitted the figure was false, that many of those mythical rebels were narrow minded zealots and hard-core jihadists that joined the ISIL and Al-Qaeda ranks the moment they got their hands on American-British weapons, and that there are not "enough moderates" to decapitate the regime in Damascus in the way Britain wished.

Most of Cameron's comments also appear centred on shifting blame, saying it "wasn't a figure I invented" but came from intelligence agencies as a "best estimate." He does, however, refuse to name the agencies that the figure came from. Well, it is better to offer no excuse than a bad one. Cameron's rhetorical charade notwithstanding, what this darkly implies is that he is not upset that he made de facto alliance with ISIL and then lied to the world; he is upset that from now on no one will ever believe him. He couldn't be more accurate.

Comment: According to mush-for-brains Cameron, it's not so bad that the UK was supporting actual terrorists because they lied to everyone about how many there were in the first place. Makes sense, right?

See also: SOTT Exclusive: Al-Nusra and Al-Cameron agree! Those moderates ain't moderate

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