Ratcheting Up Middle East Tensions - by Stephen Lendman
Obama plans permanent war. Expect 2012 to be grim.
Post-9/11, Washington's aggression created a Middle East cauldron. As a result, it's been on the boil. Things ahead look worse. Obama and key NATO allies threaten the entire region. In 2012, expect continued destructive violence.
Israel's partnered in this enterprise. On December 20, Jerusalem Post writer Yaakov Katz headlined, "US commander visits Israel to finalize missile drill," saying:
This spring, Washington and Israel will "hold the(ir) largest-ever missile defense exercise....amid Iranian efforts to obtain nuclear weapons."Unprecedented in size, it'll include establishing "US command posts in Israel and IDF command posts at EUCOM headquarters (America's European Command) - with the ultimate goal of establishing joint task forces in the event of a large-scale conflict in the Middle East."
In fact, greater conflict's coming because Washington and Israel plan it. Alleged threats are fabricated. Claiming an Iranian nuclear weapons program is bogus. At issue is creating instability, chaos and violence to achieve longstanding US/Israeli geopolitical objectives. They involve redrawing the region for total dominance to Russia and China's borders.
Netanyahu Wants War, not Peace
Recent Haaretz editorials leveled stinging accusations against him. A mid-December one said his "main consideration is not improving the quality of life....but rather giving in to cronyism and vested interests (to) remain in power."
Another highlighted his anti-democratic agenda, targeting human rights and peace organizations. A June 2011 one worried that he's "dooming Israel to live eternally by the sword," saying:
He leaves "no opening for reconciliation and understanding with the Palestinians and the Arabs of the Muslim world....There is no surer recipe for turning his claim" about an insoluble conflict "into a self-fulfilling prophecy." As a result, he's heading the region for more chaos.
On Iran , Haaretz said:
"(B)ombing (its) nuclear facilities is effectively equivalent to starting a war. The implications of such a decision are liable to be dramatic and painful for the entire Israeli public."
Yet Netanyahu and extremists around seem hell bent for it. So do hardline generals, including IDF chief of staff Benny Gantz. On December 30, he called Iran's nuclear program a regional and Israeli threat.
He stopping short of saying what many fear - preemptively attacking and destroying it. He did say, "through appropriate international and Israeli preparations, which I will not specify here, this challenge can be met."
