Crossfire War – RAPID FIRE NEWS=TEHRAN – ISLAMABAD – ANKARA WATCH – Eurasia Theatre: Iran Remains Defiant on Nuclear Weapons Program – Deadline on Saturday to Be Ignored; Hezbollah – UNIFIL Complain of Repeated IAF Violations of Lebanese Airspace; Pakistani Troops Open Fire on Indian Post in Jammu-Kashmir – Action Ongoing
Night Watch: TEHRAN – As expected Iran has remained defiant over its nuclear weapons-warhead production and still maintains the lie its uranium enrichment is for peaceful purposes. The two week ultimatum given by the EU-U.S. after the July 19 Geneva negotiations expires on Saturday, August 2 and the naval maneuvers being conducted by the U.S.-UK-France off the U.S. Atlantic coast are due to end tomorrow, July 31. The exercises, “Operation Brimstome” are to practice the enforcing of a blockade of Iran, especially preventing Iran receiving materials needed for oil refining.
Statements Wednesday by Iran Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, reported by Xinhua, “If Iran takes one step back, the arrogant powers in the world would take one step forward. It is totally wrong and baseless to think that any retreat from our righteous positions would change the policies of the arrogant powers.” As part of Tehran’s preparations for (f)allout war, Iran had one of its ballistic missile experts disappear into Turkey in Feb. 2007. Iran’s Shahab-3 missile is a mobile system and can be launched from Turkey at the military bases and capitals of what the Ayatollah calls the “arrogant powers” and the Shahab-3’s range is actually longer than its 1,250 miles. Though Ankara maintains a diplomatic front of working with the West and NATO in reality, behind the scenes, the Turkish government is eager to see the West defeated. Ankara wants to see the potential of Islamic military cooperation. [XINHUA]
Beirut – “The Zionist enemy has repeatedly violated Lebanese airspace and carried out incursions into the country’s land and waters. This is an unacceptable act of provocation that makes it urgent for relevant Lebanese and UN authorities to intervene. A single violation of Lebanese airspace constitutes an act against the country’s sovereignty. How is it that the international forces and their warships stand by and watch? Israel infringes upon Lebanon’s sovereignty is from the north and south on a weekly basis. Israel’s warplanes, helicopters and spy planes carry out maneuvers over the coastal areas of southern Lebanon.” [PRESSTV]
That was the concerned statement by Hezbollah, reported by PressTV, as Israel remains well informed on the latest preparations by Hezbollah, with the direct participation of Syrian-Iranian officers, for the expanded regional war this year. A war that could erupt at any moment by Israel conducting more than just a pre-emptive attack as it did last September on Syria’s nuclear installation. I suspect the series of Israeli military-government officials that have been in Washington for the past two weeks were to inform the U.S. Israel will begin a preventive war on its Northern Front against Hezbollah-Syria to prevent Hezbollah from becoming any stronger.
On Friday the Lebanese army stated Israeli warplanes had violated the airspace of Sidon, Beirut, its suburbs and the south and east towns of Rmeish and Hermel. Later on that same day the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) emerged out of its hole to file a lawsuit against Israel’s surveillance flights. The 13,000 European units with UNIFIL have consistently ignored Hezbollah’s massive rearmament campaign. Probably because Israel has no ballistic missiles pointed at Europe. Hezbollah is an extension of Iran’s military.
Nowgam Sector – The Action Plan of Pakistan President-General Pervez Musharraf continued on Wednesday as WebIndia123 is reporting Pakistani troops fired 82 mm mortars on an Indian army position in Nowgam sector of Jammu-Kashmir. This action has taken place the day after both countries held a flag meeting due to the twelve hours of fighting that took place in the same area Monday. President-General Musharraf was the one who led the Kargil Probe in 1999, a limited invasion which nearly set off the fourth war between the two countries since 1947. A Deutsche Bank study a few months later mentioned India did not respond adequately due to the neglect of its conventional forces for the sake of its nuclear-ballistic missile programs. [WEBINDIA123]
Tehran-Islamabad also noted the unprepared ness of India’s response and now Iran is ready to enter the conflict. In February 2007 Musharraf presented Tehran his Action Plan. The fighting and infiltration attempts increased in May this year at the same time Iran’s most powerful decision making body, the Council of Guardians, was visiting Pakistan. Since the weather is a major factor in the war in this region the most likely time for (f)allout fighting to begin will be September wheh the dry seasnon begins at the end of the monsoon. The dry season lasts from September-April but it is quite possible Delhi could activate its Hot Pursuit policy at any moment and attack Islamic bases inside Pakistan’s part of Kashmir. Or Delhi could have Indian units along the Line of Control respond more heavily to the next ceasefire violations. So far there was no retaliatory fire by Indian units today.
Washington – PressTV is now reporting the U.S. government has just decided to suspend its upgrading of F-16s in the Pakistan Air Force. I suspect this is due to the deteriorating relations between Washington/Islamabad over Islamic militant activity on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border and now of course these constant ceasefire violations. [
