Two Important Articles from Dr. Andrew Bostom

Few, if any, Americans have a more sober and complete understanding of Islamic doctrine, particularly Shariah and Jihad, than Dr. Andrew Bostom.

Two days ago, he penned two very important and educational articles on the threat from the Islamic Republic of Iran and the willful blindness and denial Westerners and Americans in particular have when it comes to that threat. It is just this willful blindness and denial that has allowed us to sit back and watch for 20+ years as Iran builds nuclear infrastructure and ballistic missiles, all while sponsoring Jihadist terrorism directed at us…

Everyone should read these two articles…

http://www.andrewbostom.org/blog/2014/03/15/iran-denial-left-and-right-illustrated-simply-and-clearly/

http://pjmedia.com/blog/educating-conservatives-about-modern-shiite-quietists/?singlepage=true

 

 

 

Iran and Hezbollah: An Analysis of the Threat by Clare Lopez

Retired CIA officer Clare Lopez has published an excellent, detailed analysis of the threat from Hezbollah as an arm of Iran’s arsenal.

Here is a brief excerpt and link to her report, entitled Hizballah: Iran’s Other Looming Threat to the West

The single most important fact to understand about Hizballah is that its chain of command goes directly to the Iranian Supreme Leader, the Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, by way of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Qods Force. That Iranian connection, as well as Hizballah’s close and long-standing relationship with al-Qa’eda, the global reach of this Shi’ite jihadist group, and above all, its extensive presence and criminal activities in the Western Hemisphere, including inside the United States, all merit a closer look. With U.S. national security directly in Hizballah’s cross-hairs, it’s more important than ever to understand what this group is, who leads it, what has motivated them along a bloody 30-year trail of terrorism, and what damage this group is capable of inflicting on American interests.

For even as Hizballah is an Islamic terror organization, an Iranian proxy for power projection, a Transnational Criminal Organization, and a Lebanese military, political, and social domestic entity, it is above all a direct threat to U.S. national security. After all, and despite a complete media blackout on the topic that prevails to this day, on Iranian orders and working together with al-Qa’eda, Hizballah participated in the worst strike ever against the American homeland: the attacks of 9/11. There is no threshold, ideological or otherwise, that Hizballah has not already crossed or would not cross again, given a direct order from Tehran. 

Word out of London in late 2013 is that the U.S. is engaged in secret, indirect negotiations with Hizballah, with British diplomats acting as intermediaries. Those talks followed closely on the U.S. capitulation to Iran over its nuclear weapons program during November 2013 discussions in Geneva and reflect a White House policy of seeking to normalize relations with the regime designated by the Department of State as the number one global state sponsor of terror. Hizballah remains a designated terror organization on the Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) list. And while the story about the U.S.-Hizballah talks in London made the Israeli and U.K. media, not one major U.S. media outlet thought it significant to report that the U.S. administration is reaching out to mend relations with what many describe as the most dangerous Islamic terror organization in the world.

http://www.familysecuritymatters.org/publications/detail/hizballah-irans-other-looming-threat-to-the-west?f=must_reads#ixzz2ohv16rm3

 

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The Coming Bonanza for Jihad from the Obama/Kerry-Ayatollah Nuclear Bargain

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Lost in the discussion about the disastrous P5+1 agreement on nuclear technology forced on the world by Barack Obama, John Kerry and the Ayatollahs in Tehran are the profound implications for Jihadist terrorism.

No where in the agreement is the issue of Iran’s sponsorship of terrorism even addressed. For all we know, John Kerry didn’t even raise it as an issue in his talks with the Iranians.

It’s not like the Obama administration can deny Iran’s role in the sponsorship of terrorism. The State Department has for years called Iran the world’s most active state sponsor of terrorism. We have chronicled that in the past:

https://iranbulletin.me/2010/08/06/irans-sponsorship-of-terror-detailed-in-new-state-department-report/

Note that in the State Department report we cited in our 2010 post on Iran’s sponsorship of terrorism, the Obama State Department acknowledged not only Iran’s sponsorship of Shia Hezbollah, but also Sunni terrorist organizations, such as HAMAS and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. In addition, Iran was cited for providing safe haven for Al Qaeda and for providing arms and training to the Taliban, who were fighting US forces in Afghanistan.

Iran’s complicated, on-again, off-again relationship with Al Qaeda was the subject of an article I wrote for National Review way back in 2008 as well:

http://www.nationalreview.com/articles/223992/iranian-entanglements/christopher-w-holton

Meanwhile, TerrorTrendsBulletin detailed Iran’s ongoing support for the Taliban as long ago as 2009:

http://terrortrendsbulletin.com/2009/06/08/taliban-continue-to-get-heavy-weapons-from-iran/

How does all this fit in with the nuclear agreement?

The point is, it takes money to arm, train, supply and provide safe haven for Hezbollah, HAMAS, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Al Qaeda and the Taliban. Money is the lifeblood of Jihad and no one supports Jihad more than Iran does. That money has to come from somewhere. For the most part Iran gets money from oil and natural gas. Divestment and sanctions policies in the US and the West over the past 8-10 years have been geared toward reducing Iran’s oil revenue.

Now, with the stroke of a pen, Obama and Kerry have provided a renewed stream of revenue to the Ayatollahs by easing sanctions that were designed to pressure the Iranians into changing their behavior. This was done with the hope that the Iranians would not build nuclear weapons, a fool’s errand most likely. But even so, the deal was done in a vacuum of consideration for Iran’s sponsorship of Jihadist terrorism. So, whether the Iranians build an atomic bomb next week, next month or next year, Obama and Kerry obviously don’t care that Iran is the world’s foremost sponsor of Jihadist terrorism.

How much of a financial bonanza will the Iranians enjoy as a result of Obama and Kerry’s handiwork?

Well, one estimate forecasts that the Iranians will see an increase in their oil exports of as much as 50%. Given that Iran exports 1 million barrels of oil per day, that figure could rise to 1.5 million barrels of oil per day. Assuming a price of oil of $100 per barrel, that comes to an increase of $50 million each and every day over and above what the Iranians bring in now. Multiply that times 365 days per year and you get a figure of $18,250,000,000.

http://freebeacon.com/analysts-iran-oil-experts-could-increase-50-percent/

In other words, over the next year, the Iranians will earn an extra $18 billion thanks to Barack Obama and John Kerry.

How much of that ends up in the form of weaponry and training for Hezbollah, HAMAS, Islamic Jihad, Al Qaeda and the Taliban is anyone’s guess. Surely a portion of it will also go to Iran’s ballistic missile development program as well…which is yet another nefarious Iranian activity that Obama and Kerry actively ignored in putting together this unprecedentedly horrible deal.