(OPINION) U.S. lawmakers are calling for military strikes inside Iran in the aftermath of a horrific terror attack that left three U.S. service members dead and dozens wounded.
So if the U.S. does hit targets inside Iranian territory, how will the Iranians respond? It is theoretically possible that they could back down, but I doubt it.
All of the airstrikes that we have conducted so far against Iranian-backed terror groups in Iraq and Syria have not caused them to back down. And the airstrikes that we have hit the Houthis in Yemen with have not caused them to back down either.
The truth is that the U.S. is already at war in the Middle East, and it appears that it could soon take an apocalyptic turn.
U.S. forces in the Middle East have been attacked time after time over the past couple of months, but Sunday’s attack was the first one that actually killed members of the U.S. military.
Three U.S. service members were killed and dozens may be wounded after an unmanned aerial drone attack on U.S. forces stationed in northeastern Jordan near the Syrian border, President Joe Biden and U.S. officials said on Sunday.
Biden blamed Iran-backed groups for the attack, the first deadly strike against U.S. forces since the Israel-Hamas war erupted in October and sent shock waves throughout the Middle East.
Overall, U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria have been attacked more than 150 times since October 17th:
Iranian-backed militias have mounted more that 150 attacks since Oct. 17 on bases occupied by U.S. troops in Iraq and Syria, according to the Pentagon. The majority of the attacks have been with rockets and one-way attack drones, most of which have been intercepted.
When someone attacks your forces more than 150 times, you are at war with them.
Anyone that thinks otherwise is just being delusional.
“While we are still gathering the facts of this attack, we know it was carried out by radical Iran-backed militant groups operating in Syria and Iraq,” Biden said in a statement.
“Have no doubt – we will hold all those responsible to account at a time and in a manner of our choosing,” he said.
Mitch McConnell: Senate Minority Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) called for “serious, crippling costs” to Iran, “not only on front-line terrorist proxies, but on their Iranian sponsors who wear American blood as a badge of honor.”
Imagine that Biden does what they want.
Would the Iranians respond by launching missiles at U.S. targets in the region?
And how would we respond if the Iranians made such a move?
Iran is now a “legitimate target” for Israeli missile strikes, one of the country’s most senior ministers has told the Telegraph, raising the prospect of an all-out war with Tehran.
In a wide-ranging interview, Nir Barkat, Israel’s economy minister, also said Palestinians from the West Bank would never be allowed to work in the country again and would be replaced by more than a quarter of a million imported foreign workers.
Those that are urging military strikes against targets inside Iran are assuming that the Iranians only possess conventional weapons.
But what if this isn’t true?
In fact, for a long time there have been many that have tried to warn us that this isn’t true.
The Iranians are not showing us all their cards, and they have been preparing for this showdown for decades.
Interestingly, the Iranians just launched three new satellites into space:
Iran says it has successfully launched three indigenous satellites into orbit using the Simorgh carrier rocket, marking the first time the country has simultaneously sent three satellites into space.
We are so close to the unthinkable. Once missiles start flying all over the region, the Middle East will never be the same again.
Meanwhile, the Chinese continue to probe Taiwan’s defenses:
Taiwan’s defense ministry announced on Saturday that over 30 Chinese warplanes were headed toward its country, in addition to navy ships.
An apocalyptic conflict in the Middle East would give China the perfect opportunity to try to “reunite” with Taiwan by force.
So let’s keep a close eye on the Chinese.
And let us not forget about the Russians. Over the weekend, they took even more territory from the Ukrainians.
This is a time of “wars and rumors of wars”, and those that are familiar with my work will not be surprised to hear that I believe that things will greatly escalate later this year.
We should hope for peace, but we should also prepare for war.
