Iran Declares War

The New York Sun VIA Little Green Footballs.com ^ | 5-11-06 | editorail

[blasater1960]

New York Sun Editorial May 11, 2006

President Ahmadinejad's letter to President Bush, widely interpreted as a peaceful overture, is in fact a declaration of war. The key sentence in the letter is the closing salutation. In an eight-page text of the letter being circulated by the Council on Foreign Relations, it is left untranslated and rendered as "Vasalam Ala Man Ataba'al hoda." What this means is "Peace only unto those who follow the true path."

It is a phrase with historical significance in Islam, for, according to Islamic tradition, in year six of the Hejira - the late 620s - the prophet Mohammad sent letters to the Byzantine emperor and the Sassanid emperor telling them to convert to the true faith of Islam or be conquered. The letters included the same phrase that President Ahmadinejad used to conclude his letter to Mr. Bush. For Mohammad, the letters were a prelude to a Muslim offensive, a war launched for the purpose of imposing Islamic rule over infidels.

[MHGinTN]

Spot on ... don't you feel the Iranian 'revolution' is failing and this is also a portion of MaMooed's calculsu to invigorate the masses in Iran?

[SauronOfMordor]

I think this letter is just intended to be some psychological warfare against us in retaliation, just to "get even." Iran is not going to attack us until the day they actually have nuclear weapons (if we allow them to build nukes). If they attack us now, they have no chance of defeating the US military, and they know they would surely lose.

He gave us the "call to Islam", which is supposed to precede an attack. He's telling the whole Muslim world he's going to attack the US. If he doesn't attack, and attack fairly soon, he loses face. Muslims hate losing face (look up "honor killing")

[The Westerner]

See this article:

"It is Time to Declare War"
http://www.FreeRepublic.com/forum/a3baa59e4026f.htm

[SuziQ]

LOL!! I can just see those Martian heads a poppin! When I saw this for the first time, I cried, I was laughing so hard! Good thing it was on DVD and not in the theater, cause I couldn't stop for about 5 minutes!

[festus]

Time for operation flaming turban to begin.

[SauronOfMordor]

There was no such warning prior to 9/11/2001. None before the USS Cole was bombed. None before our embassies in Africa were bombed. None before the Khobar Towers were bombed.

Text of Osama's 1998 Fatwah Urging Jihad Against Americans

We -- with God's help -- call on every Muslim who believes in God and wishes to be rewarded to comply with God's order to kill the Americans and plunder their money wherever and whenever they find it. We also call on Muslim ulema, leaders, youths, and soldiers to launch the raid on Satan's U.S. troops and the devil's supporters allying with them, and to displace those who are behind them so that they may learn a lesson.

[Marine_Uncle]

Good points S. I would also add, that Ahmadinajah may see where he is slowly loosing in the game of power plays with some of the top mullahs. I used and example while communicating with Enchante earlier in this post that he has been denied twice on to demands concerning how to handle the Iranian central bank money. And for all we know a lot of the mullahs and more sane intel/secret police/military may be wondering what the hell is this guy trying to prove. They realize we could totally cream them without much loss on our side. He behaves exactly like the eraser head. North Korea is in ruins and Kim Jong II acts like he is able to destroy the US with a few nuclear weapons.
I see so many parallels between them. The Iranian madman loves the power he now has. He is not a very well educated man by the looks of it. He may just push to the point where the mullahs decide he must meet with an unfortunate accident. And we do not see clearly as to happens within the mullah hierachy. Are sides forming on issues that represent their well being and how they hold unto their personal wealth.
Dictator types whether secular or in this case cultic always seem to operate the same way. Their goal is always ultimate power. As in Saddams case this guy may really be of the same makeup. He is a criminal, youth full of rage and single minded goals etc..
I think he is a mirror of Kim Jong II and say Chavez. Little people that made it to the top. Both full of hate for the US.
In the case of Iran. The mullahs picked him to keep the people under the yoke of Islam, instead of gravitating more toward western ideas and democracy in a purer form.
But he may reach a point where they become to scared to keep him around. There economy contines to get worse, un-employment increases. He challanges a power that could take them out within a days time. Strategically strip them of anything the US no longer would permit them to have.
And a lot of Iranians understand the reality of things.
So as he throws one bluff after another, he may be making more people in Iran very nervouse. And many of them may be in positions to have him removed. That is another take on why we (collectively) may be over reacting a bit.
Sure they are making small amounts of U235 at supposedly a 5% enrichment yield and some day if they can construct and operate over long periods before mean time failure, run large cascade centrifuge systems, obtain enough U235 to make a few low yield atomic bombs. But every day they must live under the pressure of wondering if the strikes against them will start.
I look at it like a two edge sword. The Six Fleet surface and subs are sitting in the gulf. And madman may for some reason not understand their ass is grassed, if we let lose on them, but surely plenty others in high positions know quite well they will lose big time.
And for all we know, the Shah of Iran's son may not be to off based in what he has been saying is planned to effect regiem change. In which case, the whole puzzle gets dumped into the trash bin, and a new one is layed out on the table.

[PghBaldy]

I'm "aiding the enemy?" You've got to be kidding.

[hinckley buzzard]

This coded letter coupled with the new wipe out Israel comment today SHOULD have the CIA scrambling....

We're Sorry...all agents are currently busy trying to figure a way to screw over the President one more time. Please hang up and try again later.

[defenderSD]

Perhaps he would lose face by not attacking, but if he attacks us now he's playing right into our hands (and right into intersecting fields of fire from US air and ground forces.) If he tries a terror attack here inside the US, he'll only strengthen our resolve to implement a regime change in Iran.

[Wiseghy]

Strike us how? The biggest favor he could do us is to provoke a serious, unified response from the US or the world community.

[maine-iac7]

thankfully he is starting to make the right moves on (finally) in tightening the borders.

He's been straightening the patrols, the arrests, holding rather than releasing, beefed up detection with more effective equipment etc - the media just keeps it very quiet

[PghBaldy]

There's always warnings. Osama had a tape in June 2001. They keep releasing tapes, they keep attacking. I guess you haven't paid any attention the last 5+ years. Osama declared war on us originally in the nineties. It WAS covered in the press at the time...

[maine-iac7]

confirmed this and said to watch for them to repeat this declaration during Friday Prayers....If they do that, they are about to bring it on...

That sent a chill down my spine...

How can we keep track of this?

[danamco]

Who in his/her right mind would see this as "a peaceful overture". Has no one paid attention to this guy's former outbursts?




Just check the liberalism as "peace-makers.!
Nuf' said!!

[JimSEA]

They didn't warn before 9/11/2001, nor before the USS Cole bombing, nor before the Khobar Towers bombings, etc.

I beg your pardon but as Published in Al-Quds al-'Arabi on Febuary 23, 1998: Sheikh Usamah Bin-Muhammad Bin-Ladin: The ruling to kill the Americans and their allies--civilians and military--is an individual duty for every Muslim who can do it in any country in which it is possible to do it, in order to liberate the al-Aqsa Mosque and the holy mosque from their grip, and in order for their armies to move out of all the lands of Islam, defeated and unable to threaten any Muslim. This is in accordance with the words of Almighty God, "and fight the pagans all together as they fight you all together," and "fight them until there is no more tumult or oppression, and there prevail justice and faith in God."

We -- with God's help -- call on every Muslim who believes in God and wishes to be rewarded to comply with God's order to kill the Americans and plunder their money wherever and whenever they find it. We also call on Muslim ulema, leaders, youths, and soldiers to launch the raid on Satan's U.S. troops and the devil's supporters allying with them, and to displace those who are behind them so that they may learn a lesson.?

Granted that it was after the Khobar Towers but certainly the Iranian Mullahs voiced enough warning that we could have (and to a large extent did) expect to be attacked. We had plenty of warnings. Now Iran is no more explicit as to when or where an attack might come in this letter to Bush but it seems clear that they intend to strike.

[PghBaldy]

PDFStatements & audio & videotapes of Al Qaeda 1994-2001 http://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/terror/RL32759.pdf

[PghBaldy]

Memri.org translates & posts audio & video of sermons from the ME.

[maine-iac7]

thank you!

[blasater1960]

I have been watching www.iranfocus.com and of course following threads here and elsewhere. One of our guys "over there" said to watch the Kurdish news, see previous posts.