On Saturday, April 13, Iran fired hundreds of drones and missiles at Israel in retaliation for Israel's deadly attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria, on April 1.
Most of the projectiles were intercepted by Israeli air defense systems, assisted by the ever-helpful American military, and damage was kept to a minimum. After retaliating, Iran has now declared that the issue can be “considered closed,” but Israel is not normally one to leave the final decision to others.
Meanwhile, the barrage of criticism of Tehran's “aggression” continues unabated in Western countries.
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak condemned “in the strongest terms the Iranian regime's reckless attack on Israel”, saying it showed once again that Iran “seeks to sow chaos in its own backyard”. The Czech Foreign Ministry lamented that “Iran's long-term aggressive actions are hindering a life of peace and security in the Middle East.''
Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau whined about Iran's “disregard for regional peace and stability” and revisited the old, tired slogan about “Israel's right to self-defense.” German Ambassador to Israel Steffen Seibert declared Germany's solidarity with “all Israelis tonight whom Iran is terrorizing with this unprecedented and ruthless attack” on social media.
Finally, US President Joe Biden, who was forced to cut short his beach weekend due to developments, said: “Our commitment to Israel's security against the threat from Iran and its proxies is steadfast.” Announced.
As a reminder, the Iranian attack comes a little more than six months after Israel's continued crushing of the Gaza Strip, which has killed about 34,000 Palestinians, including about 13,800 children. But even this dire figure is a serious underestimate, given the thousands of missing people estimated to be buried under the rubble.
Israeli forces were busy leveling the entire surrounding area and blowing up schools, hospitals, and other basic infrastructure, all the while driving the territory's population to starvation and starvation, leaving more than 76,000 people injured.
Let's talk about “acts of terrorism.”
Indeed, in the words of the Czech Ministry of Foreign Affairs, genocide is nothing more than a “prolonged offensive act.” If the whole enterprise were not so unprecedented and heinous, it would be almost laughable to claim that Iran “intends to sow chaos” and disregards “regional peace and stability.” It will be.
But Israel's enormous role as America's valued partner in crime gives it the right to completely overturn logic, making the genocide the victim and making unmitigated Israeli aggression a “legitimate defense.” . Never mind the Israeli attack on the Iranian consulate in Damascus on April 1st. It was just pre-emptive retaliation, right?
But given the continued carnage in the Gaza Strip, the Western response to Iranian missile and drone interception is disgustingly cynical. Sunak's pitiful claim that “no one wants to see more bloodshed” does not explain the reality that as long as it is Palestinian blood, there is nothing wrong with it.
Unfortunately, the Iranian spectacle may provide the Biden administration with just what it needs to shift its focus from Gaza, and specifically from US complicity in the genocide. After all, it would be a sad day for the arms industry if the United States had to stop sending so many weapons to such aggressive customers.
According to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, from 2019, when the full-scale massacre began, to 2023, the United States fully paid for 69% of Israeli military arms imports.
So much for “peace and stability.”
But we must never underestimate the imperialistic use of the good old Iranian threat in justifying U.S. policies that need to be justified. Recall that Tehran was included in the original list of possible Axis of Evil candidates, courtesy of former US President George W. Bush. Former President Bush, in his 2002 State of the Union address, accused Iran of “aggressively” pursuing weapons of mass destruction and “exports.”[ing] terrorism”.
Armed with this “Axis,” the United States will commit nothing but acts of mass destruction and terrorism in the Middle East and beyond.
Fast forward 22 years later to the current era of destruction, and the Iranian bogeyman is as handy as ever. In the wake of this weekend's attacks, the phrase on everyone's lips is probably repeated: “But do you blame Hamas?” You can update it with “But do you blame Iran?”
Truly reprehensible matters continue to include the genocide in Gaza, not to mention the West's brazenly hypocritical insistence on Israel's “right of self-defense,” which ultimately leads to an apology for the genocide.
And as leaders continue to stumble in expressing solidarity with Israel after this “unprecedented attack,” we all remember that we reap what we sow, and that Iran It's good to remember that you are not the aggressor here.
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial stance of Al Jazeera.
