Posted on 04/30/2008 6:32:37 AM PDT by nuconvert
Rice: Hamas Serving as Iran's 'Proxy Warriors'
April 30, 2008
AFP
Palestinian Hamas militants are serving as the "proxy warriors" for an Iran bent on destroying Israel and destabilizing the Middle East, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said here. In a speech Tuesday to the American Jewish Committee in Washington that underscored growing US concerns about Tehran, Rice mentioned Iran as not just a threat in the Palestinian territories, but also in Lebanon, Iraq and even in Afghanistan.
Israel's Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz said after talks with Rice on Monday that an Iran-led radical front in the Middle East is becoming more powerful and weaknesses in it need to be found.
Rice vowed to pursue US efforts to isolate Hamas which she said refused to renounce violence, recognize Israel's right to exist and respect all previous Palestinian agreements with Israel.
"But perhaps of deepest concern, the leaders of Hamas are increasingly serving as the proxy warriors of an Iranian regime that is destabilizing the region, seeking a nuclear capability and proclaiming its desire to destroy Israel," Rice told the group's annual meeting.
She did not elaborate.
Iran is one of the most vocal backers of the Islamic Resistance Movement and pledged millions of dollars in 2006 to help a Hamas government through a funding drought caused by Western aid cuts.
But Tehran has always insisted its support for Palestinian militant groups is moral in nature and does not extend to arming or training fighters.
Hamas seized power in the Gaza Strip in June last year after ousting forces loyal to Palestinian Authority president Mahmud Abbas's Fatah faction, which remains in power in the West Bank.
Fatah and Hamas had served in a national unity government after Hamas won elections in 2006.
The United States backs the Palestinian Authority in new peace negotiations with Israel that were launched last November, and denounces Hamas as a terrorist organization.
Rice called for international support for the Palestinian Authority, which she said had "the will to fight terrorism" and "the desire to govern effectively" but did not yet have the means.
She echoed remarks by President George W. Bush who said Tuesday he was still hopeful of a Middle East peace deal before he left office in January but warned that Hamas could "undermine" the effort.
Rice also vowed that Washington would continue to tighten controls on Iran's alleged misuse of the international financial system for terrorism and weapons proliferation.
The US Treasury last October slapped sanctions on Iran's elite Quds Force, accused by the US of being a supporter of terrorism, as well as the country's Revolutionary Guards, said to be a proliferator of weapons of mass destruction.
"We made designations for instance of the Quds Force, we made designations of the Revolutionary Guard," Rice recalled. "You can believe that we're going to continue to make designations."
In her speech, Rice spoke of a new "belt of extremism" that ranges from Hamas, to the Lebanese Shiite Muslim movement Hezbollah in Lebanon to radicals in Iraq and "radicals even increasingly in places like Afghanistan."
It is "supported overwhelmingly by Iran and to a certain extent Syria, but particularly Iran, gives this conflict a regional dimension it has not had before," Rice said.
Critics say the US-led invasion of Iraq that overthrew Saddam Hussein, a Sunni Arab, has emboldened non-Arab Iran and its Shiite Muslim allies throughout the region.
And this is new news because.....?
SO that makes Jimmy what?
Yes, unfortunately that is about it. Those Iranian proxies have been designated but good.
Ratcheting up the lingo and the muscle!!
It's coming.
On the one hand, we need to kick Iran's ass for feeding the terrorist thugs in Iraq.
On the other hand, the law of unintended consequences that would be unleashed by an attack on Iraq could rear its ugly head.
Think $10.00 gas and an expanded Middle East war.
Unlike pre-war Iraq, Iran has a military and missiles it likely will use, not to mention a bunch of terror cells in Mexico awaiting their orders.
Not saying don't do it. Just saying it could get VERY messy.
No one in the Middle East cares about the Palestinians. They are using them to promote their agendas. The world needs to shut the, so called, “Palestinians” down and get this problem over with.
OR better yet.............walk away from the area and let the middle east do what they want with the area. Let Israel do what they will.
> Rice mentioned Iran as not just a threat in the Palestinian territories, but also in Lebanon, Iraq and even in Afghanistan...
You could substitute “Jimmy Carter” for “Iran” and get the same answer.
>...Rice vowed to pursue US efforts to isolate Hamas which she said refused to renounce violence, recognize Israel’s right to exist and respect all previous Palestinian agreements with Israel.
Yackity-yackity-yack, Ms Rice. Empty words. With Carter poncing around the Middle East with impunity, making a mockery of US Foreign Policy — your ambit, Ms Rice: your turf — these words fall shallow and hollow and meaningless.
Ms Rice, if you don’t like what Iran is doing, the answer is simple: MOVE ZIG. FOR GREAT JUSTICE. Do what you can to get the tanks rolling tommorrow morning — nobody of any consequence will mind, and some of us will even applaud it. The sooner the Mad Mullahs are hanging from construction cranes, the better.
As to Hamas, ask Israel to MOVE ZIG. And you can always arrest Hamas’ good buddy Jimmy Carter for violation of the Logan Act.
There you go: it’s simple. And I won’t even charge you a consultancy fee.
He says Hamas won the election, fair and square. Well, so did Castro and Saddam, many times.
What means nothing to us means everything to the Prince of Peanuts.
ML/NJ
Good question.
Because the brilliant Dr. Rice finally noticed that she's no longer being given a pass on her unending stream of bad policies, failed "negotiations", and the throwing of good US taxpayer money after bad.
Pity. Lots of non-liberals had high hopes for her, given her predecessor's subterfuge.
Okay, so that's one down and 99 to go on Top 100 Reasons Why We Need to Kick Iran's Ass,
Gee Rice, is it time for another nasty letter in all caps?
“And this is new news because.....?”
Maybe not so much news as repeating the Administration’s message to Americans and the rest of the world...”Iran as not just a threat in the Palestinian territories, but also in Lebanon, Iraq and even in Afghanistan.”
...in preparation for what may be coming.
Condi’s up from her nap.
bingo
Some previous posters may be having fun, but this is big news to me. Perhaps Sec. Rice is a little more aware than I _ever_ would have guessed.
Same thing he’s always been — a moron. And someone who cavorts with known terrorists. For which he should have his visa permanently revoked.
bttt
Iraq had it's missiles too, but we destroyed most of them during Desert Storm. It still managed to fire several at Israel, with minimal effect, although firing Patriots at them, and hitting some, did provide a nice light show over the region.
Iraq also fired missiles at Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Killed a bunch of US Army reservists in a warehouse being used as a barracks, IIRC, pretty much right at the end of the war.
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