Posted on 03/21/2020 6:01:44 AM PDT by Kaslin
Irans regime has launched a massive new campaign claiming its failure to handle the coronavirus crisis is due to sanctions imposed by the United States. Theres not an iota of truth to this claim, and its by no means a widely held view. Still, several U.S. lawmakers are backing up similar talking points by the regimes Foreign Minister Javad Zarif.
Zarif on Tuesday claimed unlawful US sanctions are draining Iran's economic resources, impairing his regimes ability to fight COVID-19.
The next day Sen. Bernie Sanders tweeted: As a caring nation, we must lift any sanctions hurting Irans ability to address this crisis, including financial sanctions.
Meanwhile, Rep. Ilhan Omar last week tweeted: We need to suspend these sanctions before more lives are lost.
And on Wednesday, President Barack Obamas former Deputy National Security Advisor Ben Rhodes claimed it is a moral abomination that the U.S. is continuing to enforce sanctions on Iran while its people die because of a virus that threatens all humanity.
In reality, the coronavirus outbreak in Iran has nothing to do with U.S. sanctions and everything to do with the regimes own actions.
Heres a partial list of the ways in which the regime has helped the virus spread across Iran, and from there to other countries:
Fact: Ever since the outbreak in Iran, Mahan Air, affiliated to the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC), has continued flights to and from China, the geographical source of COVID-19.
Fact: When COVID-19 first reached Iran, authorities covered up its existence since they needed people to take part in the Parliamentary election sham in February to give their regime a veneer of legitimacy.
Fact: President Hassan Rouhani has explicitly ruled out quarantining any cities.
Fact: When COVID-19 first reached Iran, authorities covered up its existence since they needed people to take part in the Parliamentary election sham in February to give their regime a veneer of legitimacy.
Fact: President Hassan Rouhani has explicitly ruled out quarantining any cities.
Fact: In January, the regimes Supreme Leader authorized 200 million for the terrorist IRGC Qods Force money that could instead be used in the fight against the pandemic.
Fact: Iran's regime just spent $67 million redecorating the Zeynab Shrine in Syria with money that could have gone to fighting the coronavirus.
Fact: Despite the hostilities, the U.S. has publicly offered to help Iran during the public health crisis via the Swiss Humanitarian Trade Arrangement (SHTA). Secretary of State Mike Pompeo even pointed out that the donation of medicine to Iran is exempt from U.S. sanctions. But the U.S. offer was outright rejected by the regime in Tehran.
U.S. sanctions have not hampered the work of the World Health Organization (WHO) which has sent Iran diagnostic kits and protective equipment for healthcare workers, including 7.5 tons of medical supplies. The United Arab Emirates also sent two planeloads of hygienic items to Iran while Kuwait pledged to help Iran with $10 million without any restriction.
For the sake of argument, lets say President Trump today lifts all sanctions on the regime; that wouldn't stop IRGC flights to China, or its hoarding of medical items, or lessen the amount of funds allocated for IRGC terror abroad. The problem lies not in the sanctions, but in the regime itself.
Now lets look at whats driving those who parrot Zarifs talking points and thus effectively side with the regime. Theres a little-known Iranian lobby group guiding their positions.
The National Iranian American Council (NIAC) is effectively an arm of the Iranian regimes Intelligence Ministry in the US. Earlier this year, RealClearInvestigations reported the group has been exerting influence in Congress.
On January 7, after Irans regime fired missiles at U.S. military bases in Iraq, NIAC issued a statement saying, Donald Trump owns this 100%.
The next day, NIAC co-hosted a No War With Iran Strategy Call that featured a number of pro-regime U.S. lawmakers.
It gets worse. In recent years, NIAC has managed to place a number of interns in the offices of members of Congress. Among them is Mahyar Sorour, who mounted an unsuccessful run last year for an NIAC Action board seat, and who is also Rep. IIhan Omars senior legislative assistant. Other lawmakers who have legislative assistants or interns that stem from NIAC include Rep. Barbara Lee and Rep. Rashida Tlaib.
In January, three Republican senators sent a letter to the Attorney General urging the Department of Justice to investigate the National Iranian American Council (NIAC) and its sister organization, NIAC Action, for potential violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act.
NIAC previously tried to sue its opponents for accusing it of lobbying for Tehran. It lost. U.S. District Court Judge John Bates said NIAC couldnt prove it wasnt acting at the behest of Iran. He added that NIAC founder Trita Parsi's work was not inconsistent with the idea that he was first and foremost an advocate for the regime.
Parsi and Zarif have had a close working relationship. Parsi routinely consulted with the Obama administration, meeting officials no less than 33 times, according to White House visitor logs. This included private, one-on-one meetings with Ben Rhodes, who led the Obama White Houses Echo Chamber in support of the 2015 nuclear deal with Irans regime. Rhodes also delivered the keynote speech at the 2016 NIAC leadership conference. In recent years, the regimes US lobby has continued to endorse NIAC and take part in their fundraising schemes.
It seems, therefore, when it comes to calls for an end to sanctions, U.S. apologists for Irans regime arent just speaking for themselves. Theyre speaking for the mullahs as well.
Anyone genuinely concerned over the spread of the coronavirus in Iran should be pressing the regime to stop hoarding medicine, tell the truth to its people, take up the U.S. offer of assistance, stop funding terrorist groups outside Iran and dissolve the IRGC, using its funds to care for its people instead of spreading terror at home and abroad.
Pompeo addressed this yesterday
Medicines and medical equipment are not under sanctions
Meanwhile Tehran is still directing its iraqi militia to kill American troops
Still....as in about 15 years now.
Those scumbags.
Should have given them one warning that we would smash them to hell if they kept making incursions into Iraq to kill our men after the war..
Because whether one was for or against the war and occupation, they were killing American GIs.
Sure.
Feeding a monster in the hopes that it will eat you LAST is always a solid strategy...
F@ck Iran
Same with China and North Korea
The US is short of ventilators. Trumps fault.
Iran is short of ventilators. Trumps fault.
The CDC/NIH perpetuated the pandemic plans developed after the 2009 near miss. Trumps fault.
The US didn’t self isolate soon enough. Trumps fault.
The US put too much emphasis on isolation and not enough on testing. Trumps fault.
The risch and famous got priority in testing in WA, CA, NY, MA. Trumps fault.
The message is creating panic. Trumps fault.
The message does not show enough concern and immediacy. Trumps fault.
Got it?
Wouldnt it be nice if we had the $150B that Obama and Biden gave to Iran right about now?
Awww, INSTEX not working out the way the mullahs wanted...
Western leftists automatically parrot whatever a communist or an Islamic regime says - they don’t stop a second to think. Whatever some dictatorship says, they eagerly repeat.
Not only no lifting of sanctions, but also severe retaliation for attacks on U.S. forces. Then they may (or may not, depending on the severity of their survival impulse) catch onto that “cause and effect” deal.
If there ever was a human emblem of a "feckless moron" it would be this lying craptastic idiot, Ben Rhodes. [Feckless: (adj) "a feckless lot of layabouts: useless, worthless, incompetent, inefficient, inept, good-for-nothing, ne'er-do-well; lazy, idle, slothful, indolent, shiftless, spiritless, apathetic, aimless, unambitious, unenterprising; informal no-good, no-account, lousy."]
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.