"What does a guy have to do to start a war around here?"
Posted on 03/23/2007 8:30:31 PM PDT by jdm
While the world wonders about the attack on and abduction of 15 British sailors by Iranian forces earlier this month, US News & World Report published the details of an attack by Iranian forces on Iraqi and American troops last September:
As the British government demanded the immediate release of 15 of its sailors whose boats were seized by Iranian naval vessels in the Persian Gulf on Friday, U.S. News has learned that this is not the first showdown that coalition forces have had with the Iranian military.
According to a U.S. Army report out of Iraq obtained by U.S. News, American troops, acting as advisers for Iraqi border guards, were recently surrounded and attacked by a larger unit of Iranian soldiers, well within the border of Iraq.
The report highlights the details: A platoon of Iranian soldiers on the Iraqi side of the border fired rocket-propelled grenades and used small arms against a joint patrol of U.S. and Iraqi soldiers east of Balad Ruz. Four Iraqi Army soldiers, one interpreter, and one Iraqi border policeman remain unaccounted for after the September incident in eastern Diyala, 75 miles east of Baghdad.
The Coalition forces saw three Iranian soldiers in Iraqi territory. As they approached, two of them ran back across the border, but one remained in Iraq. The joint force started interrogating the Iranian, and that's when the attack commenced. A stronger contingent of Iranians materialized and threatened to attack the US/Iraqi patrol if they tried to leave. While the Iranian captain told them this, his forces started firing on the patrol with small arms and RPGs.
The Iraqis and Americans returned fire at that point, and they took no casualties. However, the forces were unable to account for a half-dozen Iraqis after the incident. The report does not say whether the missing men were ever found or released by the Iranians, assuming they were captured.
This isn't the first time Iran has captured British sailors, either. In June 2004, they seized three British patrol boats and detained eight sailors. Teheran released them shortly afterwards, but analysts believed that they wanted to shift attention from the recently-released IAEA report that accused them of dishonesty in violating the non-proliferation agreement. They also may have wanted to push oil prices higher in order to make Bush's re-election more difficult.
Iran should take care. The British still have diplomatic relations, and so far have acted as a brake on American action against the mullahcracy. London may decide that the Iranians aren't worth the effort.
It's strikingly odd that Iran is baiting the UK/U.S. to attack while wartime leaders Blair and Bush are still in Office.
Clearly the smart play by Iran would be to wait out Bush/Blair, wait until they have nukes in hand, and to *then* puff out their chests.
It makes no sense that Iran is being so provocative prior to having a nuke, much less while Bush/Blair have less than 2 years remaining in Office.
Very odd.
It's a effing disgrace that we refuse to do anything about Iran.
The Brits need to destroy every Iranian naval base by morning.
Not so odd if they want oil prices up NOW.
It is. Blair needs to step up. Give'em 24 hours to release the sailors. If they do not, then drop the hammer. No more diplomacy.
I don't understand why they haven't already taken out a couple of Iranian naval vessels. I also don't understand how a frigate captain let two of his small boats get surrounded and captured by a group of Iranina patrol boats. It's crazy.
Yeah, the oil-price angle is interesting, but the "war premium" on oil is historically short-lived, whereas actual oil sales are frequently done in advance via futures contracts...making a lot of shenanigans superfluous.
As soon as we get the 15 lads back, it's time to go in.
I'm absolutely livid about this. It's time we showed these Iranians what we're made of. US/UK standing together, to rid the world of this f*cking cancer.
I'm not so sure about them not having a nuke. The quandry is that rationality and islam are mutually exclusive.
Speaking of which:
Oil prices hit 2007 peaks after Iran seizes sailors
Also, remember that Ahmadinejad has an inflated ego, just like Chavez.
Those guys must get a better "high" messing with Bush/Cheney/Blair than some future administration(s).
That was when the Royal Navy didn't have to wait for political gesturing. My dad served in Beirut and the Falklands, always ready for attack. Sadly, I wonder whether the government are.
Me either. But if they had nuke and understood nuke technology why would they need the russians to build them the facilities and supply them with fuel ?
"The Brits need to destroy every Iranian naval base by morning."
The British had a helo monitoring the whole incident. So, they could have called for help.
The American Navy now has two carriers in the area. If the British had of called for help, I'm certain we could have had overwhelming air power in the area in minutes.
Whatever, the Brits should tell the Iranians to release their personnel within 12 hours or risk loosing every Iranian naval asset in the area. Are President should then back their play with our Navy. We could aniliate their "boats" and take out their shore missile batteries.
I'm old enough to remember the USS Pueblo incident of 1968 with North Korea. I would hate to see this happen again, even to the Brits.
"What does a guy have to do to start a war around here?"
...the incident appeared to be the result of a “misunderstanding” which could be quickly resolved.
Something tells me this won't result in an all-out war.
it wouldn't shock me to see $100 barrel an oil this summer
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