Pakistan's advice to Iran: 'Hit Israel'

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/cst-nws-iside13.html ^

[Srirangan]

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Pakistan's former army chief says Iranian officials came to him for advice on heading off an attack on their nuclear facilities, and he in effect advised them to take a hostage -- Israel.

Retired Gen. Mirza Aslam Beg said he suggested their government ''make it clear that if anything happens to Iran, if anyone attacks it -- it doesn't matter who it is or how it is attacked -- that Iran's answer will be to hit Israel; the only target will be Israel.''

Since Beg spoke in an interview with the Associated Press, echoes of his thinking have been heard in Iran, although whether they result directly from his advice isn't known.

Mohammad Ebrahim Dehghani, an Iranian Revolutionary Guards commander, was quoted last week as saying that if ''America does make any mischief, the first place we target will be Israel.'' The threat was disavowed the next day by Brig. Gen. Alireza Afshar, deputy to the chief of Iran's military staff.

AP

[FatherofFive]

Hit Israel, Blame Bush

[pissant]

Typical, misleading headline by the traitorous media.

[Luigi Vasellini]

This is exactly why we should take out Iran and unfortunately we have to wage war against the entire islamic world

[Beth528]

My advice to Israel is to hit Iran first.. I just wonder if the power that be in Israel today knows what a threat Iran is to them and the whole world..

These jokers need to have a rocket shot down their throat to show them we mean business..threatening our best friend Israel isn't going to cut it..

[Tracy V.]

An absolutely misleading headline. This is not an official Pakistani government proclamation, but rather a slur from an ex-military agent.

[pissant]

It matters not to the AP.

[Tracy V.]

It matters not to the AP.

And perhaps not to others here as well.

[pissant]

Well, most freepers don't trust the MSM. Though, I imagine there will be those who skip reading the article and curse Musharif and Pakistan. That's why the MSM titles things the way they do. To fool the fools.

[GeorgefromGeorgia]

Such advise is fraught with peril. If Iran bombs Israel, Iran may not exist as we know it.

[Tracy V.]

No doubt. But I had seen this information posted yesterday and it was not titled this way.

[marron]

Great idea. Worked for Saddam.

[HitmanLV]

Such advise is fraught with peril. If Iran bombs Israel, Iran may not exist as we know it.

I really don't think the USA would use the kind of overwhelming force that would cause Iran to not exist. As for Israel, they have a good rap but I think they have become an empty suit in the 21st century. You have to go pretty far back to find much evidence of a ballsy Israel. Just reporting it as I see it.

There is a remarkable lack of clarity in Freepdom when it comes to how the USA will retaliate, or how violent Israel will get AFTER they have been flattened by a WMD.

[finnman69]

Gee, that worked so well for Iraq.

[GeorgefromGeorgia]

I don't think the USA would nuke Iran, but if Iran attacks Israel with WMD, I would expect Israel to respond with overwhelming force.
I certainly don't want to see countries nuking/gassing each other, but Iran's President seems determined to press his luck.

[HitmanLV]

Israel has been tough in the past, but not lately. I think if they were severely damaged, their instinct would not be to lash out violently. This isn't your father's Israel, you know. A lot of time has passed, and a lot has changed.

[edpc]

They were on the verge of opening up on Iraq in '91. They were clear in saying their patience would not last and not be there in the future.

[HitmanLV]

15 years ago. It's not the 1991 Israel, pal.

[tessalu]

Pakistan has figured out a way to get itself wiped off of the map. Let them try it.

[txrangerette]

It wasn't the government of Pakistan. But why split hairs? Let's nuke 'em for something one guy said. (This last is sarcasm, folks, aimed at the poster, not Pakistan.)

[cdbull23]

Sadly, I think the only way Israel would become the power it once was would be to suffer the equivalent of 9/11 to stir up the people's emotions.

[HitmanLV]

I don't understand the Freeper fixation with imagining the Israel of 2006 is the Israel of 1970. It clearly isn't. They have been running off luck and reputation for over a decade now, at least.

[cdbull23]

Exactly. Any action taken by Israel in such a conflict will ONLY be reactionary, not pre-emptive. That's my guess, anyways.

[HitmanLV]

I'm a strong supporter of Israel. But I have to call it like I see it. It's not the ballsy, arse kicking Israel that a lot of people imagine still exists.

[Junior_G]

I think PC has trumped national survival for most Western countries.

[Former Proud Canadian]

You wrote: This is exactly why we should take out Iran and unfortunately we have to wage war against the entire islamic world

I would say that, unfortunately, the entire islamic world has been waging war against the US and other western interests for over 25 years. I think it's time the west became engaged in the fight.

[robowombat]

A sample of Gen Beg's lucabrations:

9/11 to 7/7 - Journey of Pain, Fear and Anger

General Mirza Aslam Beg

The tragic incident which killed innocent people in the 7/7 bombings in London, is condemnable as the journey of pain and fear continuous. 9/11 terrorist attack led to war on Afghanistan and Iraq, waged with super power ferocity, killing mostly innocent people, yet, neither Osama Bin Laden was brought to justice, nor the weapons of mass destruction were found. Except for the 19 suicide bombers, who struck the twin towers, ‘the large support network of these bombers in USA itself and outside’, remains untraced and remains a mystery till today. The war on terror therefore has failed, forcing a change in the “two war strategy”.

The 7/7 bombings in London, so close to the venue of the G-8 summit, invites world reaction and anger. It is yet to be seen in which direction this reaction and anger flows. Who will be the next target; how many more innocent lives will be lost and how much more destruction will be caused? Searching for the perpetrators of the crime the “spin masters” may find the lead to Al-qaeda or the unknown terrorists, hiding in Iran, Syria or Pakistan? What will be the ferocity of action of “shock and awe” and towards whom it will be directed? The world is waiting to witness the fireworks, in great suspense and fear.

Such acts of terror to be conducted in such a synchronized manner in a short period of few minutes, demand high degree of expertise and a fool proof network of ‘ground support base’, within London and around, with tentacles, spreading beyond. Regretfully, the search for the ground support base in New York and beyond was not carried out in case of 9/11, with the result that wrong targets were engaged ‘bringing the war on terror to a naught’. The same mistake must not be repeated, now. The British intelligence therefore is rightly “searching for a small cell of foreign nationals …. And the gang of white mercenary terrorists, while taking extra security measures at British border.”

Taking advantage of the presence of G-8 leadership in Scotland, their collective wisdom and efforts must be harnessed to study and analyse the various dimensions of the incident leading to very deliberate actions, in order to achieve the objectives. Jumping to conclusion and acting in haste, will be counter productive because the suspected terrorists are so elusive and unidentifiable, with doubtful reference to a place or a country.

The so called terrorists, are in fact the splinter groups of the on-going freedom movements in Chechnya, Palestine, Iraq, Afghanistan and Kashmir or perhaps Ireland. They have a distinct identity of their own and have different objectives from the forces engaged in the wars of liberation. They kill innocent people to terrorise as the demonstration of their frustration and feelings of revenge. Sagacity therefore demands that the collective wisdom of the G-8 leadership in particular, must device the strategy to appropriately and correctly deal with the threat of terrorism and avoid chasing shadows by debasing the wars of liberation. The option of application of force to deal with the terror menace has failed so far. It will fail again. Therefore, the present situation, which is the legacy of the past mistakes, demands an entirely new approach.

Freedom, democracy and social justice were the catchwords for post 9/11 actions, but unfortunately the meaning of freedom became synonymous with occupation thus increasing the intensity of resistance against such occupation. Democracy became a matter of preference and choice, debasing the very notion and its quintessential meaning. Therefore, the need for a very dispassionate look at promotion of democracy and regime change as a tool for eliminating terrorism, cannot be over emphasised.

The 9/11 and now 7/7 incidents, have had a far reaching impact globally. In a way, 9/11 has retarded the movement towards globalization and actualization of the new world order, which is going to be very different from the bipolar world order of the past, and will not be as brutal as the unipolar world order of today. The distinctive features of the new world order will be, socio-economic harmony between the contending geo-economic world powers, seeking global prosperity and well-being through economic cooperation and not through use of military means. In this context, the recent Indo-US defense pact, therefore doesn’t fit into the present day geo-political realities. It is anachronistic.

The weaker forces of resistance have put a limit to the most powerful in the world and their military means. One therefore contends with the observation: “The danger now is that the west’s current response to the terrorist threat compounds that original error. So long as the struggle against terrorism is conceived as a war that can be won by military means, it is doomed to fail. The more the west emphasizes confrontation, the more it silences moderate voices in the Muslim world who want to speak up for cooperation. Success will only come from isolating the terrorists.” Robin Cook, The Guardian

The colossal tragedy the world is experiencing requires creative and synergistic solutions. Ambitions of global hegemony and domination must give way to a new paradigm of cooperation and inter-existence.

[Thunder90]

Screw Pakistan....

[Thunder90]

What I ment was that Pakistan is not a realible ally.

[FatherofFive]

Pakistan has figured out a way to get itself wiped off of the map. Let them try it

I've been trying to keep an open mind about Islam and the future of civilization. I am beginning to think that and civilization Islam cannot co-exist. This means WWIII

I am so disappointed that the people of Iraq did not welcome liberation and freedom with open arms and hearts. I remember the day when that brawny Iraqi was pounding at the base of the statue of Sadam with a sledgehammer. I was so proud to be an American, watching our brave troops bring freedom and liberty to an opressed people. Instead I now believe they are on a path towards civil war. Because of their stupid religion.

Christianity has been a liberating force for all people and especially women, yet so many liberals reject Christanity because of abortion. Yet they believe in Islam as "the religion of peace'

I am so proud of our President for taking the war on terror to their doorstep. We are in a fight for survival.

I remember the line in "Independence Day", when the president is faced by the alien. he asks the alien what he wants us to do. The alien replies, "Die" I fear that is what the followers of islam want us to do. We will not go silently into the night.

[GeorgefromGeorgia]

I lived in Saudi Arabia for five years (with Army Corps of Engineers), and studied Arab culture and the Muslim religion. The Muslims as a whole are normal people, not inclined to terrorism or extremism. Islam is not AS peaceful a religion as others in the world, since its doctrine calls for expansion. Most Muslims don't care about expanding Islam, but of the world's 1.2 billion Muslims, if 5% seek expansion to the detriment of the west, that means 60 million ARE our enemies. Some of these people are in remote regions of the third world and are trying to kill us. State sponsored terrorists from Iran, Somalia, Syria, and people from the Muslim world are a threat like no other.

The other complicating fact is that Islam is so embedded in the life of Muslim countries, even relatively secular ones like Indonesia, Turkey and Morocco, that religion is frequently the driving force in many elements of living. Our country thrives on separation of Church and State. Not so in the Muslim world.


Bernard Lewis has written several great books on this subject. He opines that the Muslim world has never gone through the Enlightenment. In essence, they are still 3-400 years behind western civilization. The clash is that this is a small world (after-all!) as western culture and civilization has been influencing their world for many years. They are not fools, they can see that their world is standing still, while even former third world countries like Korea, Taiwan, China, India, have passed them in terms of economic development. Also, they resent our support for Israel (they will accept Israel as Egypt and Jordan has eventually).

As for a civil war in Iraq, it appears that it didn't happen, unless you want to call this a low grade civil war. In my opinion, a civil war is armies fighting each other, not roadside bombs killing people.