RAMIN MAZAHERI—Non-Iranians need to realize that any foreign invasion of Iran implies the mass, grassroots involvement of the Basij. Certainly not all of them, as only a small percentage of this volunteer group are involved daily in security operations (contrary to popular belief), but very certainly invasion would involve a lot of them. I think that if people learned about the solidity of this group – whether one condones or condemns them, and I remain 100% objectively neutral in my examination and refuse to either condone or condemn them on my part – one must simply accept that they are a huge force to be reckoned with in any war.
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FARHANG JAHANPOUR—This obsession with the past and a deliberate decision to bring about a regime change in Iran will have incalculable costs. Let’s not forget that prior to Iraq war, Paul Wolfowitz, one of the authors of that war, predicted that it would be a “cake walk”, that it “would pay for itself”, and that “US forces would be welcomed with roses”. Fifteen years after that disastrous war, American forces are still operating in that country, and the war which has cost trillions of dollars to US taxpayers has killed and wounded millions of innocent Iraqi people, shattered that country and has given rise to a number of vicious terrorist movements.
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CAITLIN JOHNSTONE—It really couldn’t be more fitting that the US now has an actual, literal torturer as the head of the CIA. It also couldn’t be more fitting that it has a reality TV star billionaire President, an Iraq-raping Bush-era neoconservative psychopath as National Security Advisor, a former defense industry director as Secretary of Defense, a former Goldman Sachs executive as Secretary Treasurer, and a former Rothschild, Inc. executive as Secretary of Commerce. These positions have always facilitated torture, oppression, war profiteering and Wall Street greed; the only thing that has changed is that they now have a more honest face on them.
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STEPHEN LENDMAN—According to Palestinian media, Monday Palestinian casualties include about 800 shot with live rounds (including internally exploding dum dum bullets), around 90 seriously wounded – 65 of them shot in the head and/or neck, about 50 in the chest or back, most others in the legs. Journalists, medical personnel and an ambulance were targeted. Gaza’s Health Ministry called on Egypt to send urgently needed surgeons, intensive care physicians, anesthesiologists, other medical personnel and supplies to deal with the overwhelming casualty toll Gaza can’t handle on its own.
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STEPHEN LENDMAN—The Kremlin should warn Washington, other NATO countries and Israel that it won’t tolerate escalated attacks on Syrian military positions launched to weaken its ability to combat ISIS and other terrorists – ultimately aiming for regime change. Syria is the world’s most dangerous hotspot, a flashpoint for potential direct East/West confrontation – no matter how hard Russia tries to avoid it.
