Middle East and Terrorism: 2026-03-01

Monday, March 2, 2026

Marco Rubio and America Alone - Stephen Soukup

by Stephen Soukup

America alone carries the torch of Western civilization, tasked with defending the principles that Europe has long abandoned.

In the two-plus weeks since Marco Rubio delivered his address to the Munich Security Conference, the Trump administration’s jack of all trades has been widely praised by conservatives and independents. This is rightly so. Rubio was compelling, knowledgeable, vigorous, and reconciliatory, all at the same time. He provided one of the most cogent and comprehensible accounts of the West and its global leadership by an American diplomat in a long, long time. The praise is well deserved.

All of that notwithstanding, Rubio did make one very serious but very common mistake in his address, a mistake that blurs the distinctions among factions in the West and that, in large part, explains why the fate of our civilization rests on the actions and attitudes of America alone. He put it this way:

That is what we are defending—a great civilization that has every reason to be proud of its history, confident of its future, and aims to always be the master of its own economic and political destiny.

It was here, in Europe, where the ideas that planted the seeds of liberty that changed the world were born. It was here, in Europe. . . which gave the world the rule of law, the universities, and the scientific revolution.

The primary error here is treating the West and its intellectual awakening—i.e., the Enlightenment—as a monolith. In truth, the Enlightenment can be divided into four segments: the English Enlightenment, led by men like Thomas Hobbes, John Locke, and Isaac Newton; the French Enlightenment, which featured Voltaire, Diderot, and Rousseau; the Scottish Enlightenment, highlighting Francis Hutcheson, David Hume, and Dugald Stewart; and the German Enlightenment, the irresistible force of which was Immanuel Kant.

All segments of the Enlightenment shared certain characteristics—a break (of varying extremities) from the moral foundations of civilizational history up to that point, a preoccupation with reason as a guiding moral and intellectual force, and a belief in the authority of carefully ordered empiricism. Beyond this, however, the respective national/ethnic Enlightenments were very different. The English and the Scottish Enlightenments focused on reform, gradualism, and the advancement of existing institutions. The French Enlightenment and the Kantian-led German Enlightenment, by contrast, were radical, focused on universalism, and on the destruction rather than the reform of institutions. In many important ways, the various Enlightenments were far more different from one another than they were the same.

This is relevant, both in micro- and macro-analyses of Rubio’s address. In the micro sense, Rubio was additionally mistaken about Europe being the site where “the ideas that planted the seeds of liberty that changed the world were born.” Those ideas were, in fact, born thousands of years previously, not in Europe, but in ancient Israel. The English and the Scottish Enlightenments, which influenced many aspects of the American Revolution and its founding documents, did not break entirely from these historical influences. They updated them and modified their language, adding additional flair, but they nevertheless maintained the moral and political ideas that had animated the West for millennia. For example, one can draw a fairly straight line from Jeremiah 1:5—“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you”—through Sophocles’s Antigone to Cicero’s De Legibus; through Augustine’s De Trinitate to Aquinas’s Summa; through Locke’s Two Treatises of Government to Jefferson’s declaration that it is self-evident “that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.”

The seeds of liberty that changed the world, in short, were not planted in Europe. They were planted in the ancient Middle East, cultivated in the Mediterranean, harvested in Britain, and shipped to the nascent United States. This sequence of moral and intellectual stewardship matters immeasurably.

Meanwhile, in “Europe” proper—which is to say, on the Continent—that stewardship was lost, and the idea-seeds planted there reflect this loss.

The principal philosophical and political influence on the continental branch of Western civilization was and is inarguably Jean-Jacques Rousseau, the intellectual godfather of “the Left” and, in my estimation, the designer of the “modern world.” It goes without saying, I suppose, that all of this is far more nuanced and complicated than I can convey here, and far smarter people have done so elsewhere, but in brief: Rousseau offered “the West” a social contract that was almost entirely opposite to that synthesized by Locke and favored by the American Founders. Rousseau’s Social Contract rests on the idea that the state exists to guarantee the liberty of the individual, and that this liberty can only be expressed and understood within the context of something called the “general will” of the people. He put it this way:

As long as several men in assembly regard themselves as a single body, they have only a single will, which is concerned with their common preservation and general well-being. In this case, all the springs of the State are vigorous and simple, and its rules clear and luminous; there are no embroilments or conflicts of interests; the common good is everywhere clearly apparent, and only good sense is needed to perceive it.

As preposterous as this sounds, it has been the guiding belief of leftist leaders for the last quarter-millennium, from the Jacobins onward. It empowers small and radical factions to govern as if they represent the will of the entire people, as if the “general will” and nothing more guides their actions. Additionally—and, perhaps, more importantly—it allows them to do whatever they want in defense of this general will, as Rousseau himself recommended:

There is, therefore, a purely civil profession of faith of which the Sovereign should fix the articles, not exactly as religious dogmas, but as social sentiments without which a man cannot be a good citizen or a faithful subject. While it can compel no one to believe them, it can banish from the State whoever does not believe them—it can banish him, not for impiety, but as an anti-social being, incapable of truly loving the laws and justice and of sacrificing, at need, his life to his duty. If anyone, after publicly recognizing these dogmas, behaves as if he does not believe them, let him be punished by death: he has committed the worst of all crimes, that of lying before the law.

When French president Emmanuel Macron declares that “free speech is pure bullsh*t,” he is articulating, in his own puerile way, the Rousseauian influence on the continental understanding of freedom. Similarly, German law mandates Sozialpflichtigkeit (that property ownership be tempered by a social obligation), which is Rousseau’s “general will” and disdain for private property, filtered through Hegel and historicist economists like Gustav von Schmoller. And most tragically, when Keir Starmer’s government arrests grannies for tweeting unacceptable memes, it is demonstrating Britain’s loss of faith in its intellectual traditions and its acceptance of continental influences in their stead.

To put it bluntly, on the matters to which Marco Rubio was referring in his Munich speech, historical unity between Europe and the United States is tenuous at best, while a contemporary common vision is almost entirely nonexistent. While reconciliation with Europe is a laudable goal, it must be on America’s terms, not Europe’s. We are not the same, despite considerable common cultural characteristics. Indeed, in the race to preserve what remains of the foundational principles of “Western civilization,” America stands alone.

Stephen Soukup is the Director of The Political Forum Institute and the author of The Dictatorship of Woke Capital (Encounter, 2021, 2023)

Source: https://amgreatness.com/2026/03/02/marco-rubio-and-america-alone/

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Lebanon PM: ‘Only state decides war and peace,’ army to disarm Hezbollah - David Isaac

by David Isaac

The Shi’ite terrorist group’s attacks on Israel violate “the will of the majority of the Lebanese people,” Nawaf Salam said.

Lebanon’s Prime Minister Nawaf Salam speaks to foreign reporters at the Government Palace in Beirut on Dec. 3, 2025. Photo by Joseph Eid/AFP via Getty Images.

Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam said on Monday that the country rejects any military action launched from Lebanese territory not taken by legitimate state institutions.

He spoke at the conclusion of an emergency session of the Cabinet.

“The decision of war and peace is exclusively in the hands of the state, which requires limiting Hezbollah’s activities and obliging it to surrender its weapons,” Salam said, according to Beirut-based An-Nahar daily.

“What Hezbollah has done constitutes a departure from the decisions of the Council of Ministers,” he said. The council had decided not to involve Lebanon in the current war. He called Hezbollah’s actions “a violation of the will of the majority of the Lebanese people.”

On March 2, Hezbollah began firing missiles at Israel in retaliation for the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei. Khamanei was slain in an Israeli airstrike at his Tehran compound in the first hours of the war on Feb. 28.

IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Eyal Zamir said on Sunday, “Hezbollah opened a campaign against Israel overnight and is fully responsible for any escalation. IDF troops have prepared for such a scenario as part of standard combat preparations for ‘Operation Roaring Lion.’ Any enemy that threatens our security will pay a heavy price.”

Zamir added that the IDF was “now going on the offensive” against Hezbollah, and “we must prepare for many prolonged days of combat.”

The Israel Defense Forces has since carried out numerous strikes against the terrorist group. Most recently, on Monday afternoon, it announced that it had eliminated Hussein Makled, head of Hezbollah’s intelligence headquarters, in an overnight strike.

The IDF had previously announced the elimination of the head of Hezbollah’s parliamentary faction, Mohammad Raad.

On Monday afternoon, the IDF’s Arabic spokesperson warned Lebanese citizens to evacuate buildings near infrastructure belonging to the Al-Qard Al-Hassan Association, a financial entity linked to Hezbollah. The IDF provided an accompanying map of those locations throughout Lebanon.

It is a worst-case scenario for Lebanon’s government, which hoped to avoid being dragged into the regional conflict.

In an effort to de-escalate tensions, Salam requested on Monday that the Lebanese Armed Forces “immediately and firmly implement” a Feb. 16 plan to impose arms control north of the Litani River, “using all means that would ensure the implementation of the plan.”

On Feb. 16, the army had presented to the Cabinet a plan to disarm non-government forces from the Litani River north to the Awali River. Hezbollah Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem immediately rejected that decision, saying that the Lebanese government, by focusing on disarmament, served “the goals of Israeli aggression.”

Hezbollah terrorists raise the group’s flag during a funeral in Chehabiyeh in Southern Lebanon, April 17, 2024. Photo by AFP via Getty Images.

On Nov. 27, 2024, a ceasefire agreement was signed between Israel and Lebanon requiring Hezbollah to move its forces north of the Litani and to disarm in keeping with UN Security Council Resolution 1701, signed on Aug. 11, 2006, following the Second Lebanon War.

However, Israel warned repeatedly that Hezbollah was rebuilding its forces since suffering a heavy defeat at the hands of Israel in October 2024, “in blatant violation of the ceasefire agreement.”

Hezbollah still has 11,000-12,000 rockets in its arsenal, of which 5,000-6,000 are considered within range of reaching Israel, two Israeli intelligence officials told Fox News on Tuesday.

David Isaac

Source: https://www.jns.org/lebanon-pm-only-state-decides-war-and-peace-army-to-disarm-hezbollah/

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Palestinians: Still Committed to Aligning with Enemies of the West - Khaled Abu Toameh

by Khaled Abu Toameh

Unfortunately, the Palestinians have not learned from the self-defeating decisions they made in the past, when they chose to align themselves with the enemies of Israel and the US.

These Palestinian statements should be viewed as a direct threat not only against Israel, but also against the US.
Unfortunately, the Palestinians have not learned from the self-defeating decisions they made in the past, when they chose to align themselves with the enemies of Israel and the US.
Removing Iran's mullahs from power is not enough. The Israeli-US military operation should be expanded to include the Iranian regime's proxies.

Palestinian statements of support for the Iranian regime should be viewed as a direct threat not only against Israel, but also against the US. Pictured: Iran's late Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei (R) meets with the late Ismail Haniyeh (C), head of the political bureau of Hamas, and Ziyad al-Nakhalah, Secretary General of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, on July 30, 2024. (Photo by the Iranian Supreme Leader's Press Office via Getty Images)

Shortly after airstrikes on Iran began on February 28, several Palestinian groups, including Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), issued strong condemnations of Israel and the US and voiced support for the Iranian regime. They also called on Arabs and Muslims to stand united against Israel and the US.

Palestinian support for the Iranian regime did not come as a surprise. For decades, the Iranian regime had provided significant financial and military support to both Hamas and PIJ. This backing is a cornerstone of Iran's "Axis of Resistance" strategy, which aims to project regional influence to counter Israeli and US interests in the Middle East.

In the past, the Palestinians supported Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein's 1990 invasion of Kuwait.

In 2003, the Palestinians took to the streets to voice support for Saddam Hussein against the US invasion. Some of them chanted, "Dear Saddam, bomb Tel Aviv." Many Palestinians have also sided with the Iran-backed Hezbollah terror group in previous rounds of fighting with Israel.

Consequently, the Palestinians lost the backing of several Arab countries, including those that used to provide them with financial aid, especially Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

Since then, according to various reports, Iran has been providing up to $100 million annually to Palestinian terror groups, with the majority going to Hamas. Documents captured by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in 2024 revealed that Iran transferred about $154 million to Hamas's military wing between 2014 and 2020 alone. The Iranian regime, in addition, has provided technical expertise for Hamas to manufacture its own missiles locally in Gaza. Members of Hamas's military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, have also received specialized training in Iran on operating UAVs and sabotaging military targets.

Without Iran's backing, Hamas would not have been able to carry out its October 7, 2023 invasion of Israel and murder, torture, mutilate, rape and kidnap hundreds of Israelis and foreign nationals.

PIJ is also heavily dependent on Iran, receiving approximately $70 million annually, alongside weapons, technical training, and logistical support from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

By aligning themselves with the Iranian regime, the Palestinian terror groups have brought death and destruction on their people in the Gaza Strip, especially in the aftermath of the 2023 invasion of Israel. These groups, however, do not care about the well-being and safety of their people and are prepared to sacrifice thousands of Palestinians as part of the Jihad (holy war) to destroy Israel.

Iran's late Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, for his part, never hid his thoughts about Israel and the US. Just last year he called Israel a "cancerous tumor" and branded the US a partner in its crimes. Like his Palestinian proxies, Khamenei was always prepared to sacrifice as many Palestinians as possible as part of the Jihad against Israel and the US. A year earlier, Khamenei told then Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh:

"The divine promise to eliminate the Zionist entity [Israel] will be fulfilled and we will see the day when Palestine will rise from the river to the sea."

Within hours of the start of the current Israeli-US offensive against Iran, Hamas said in a statement:

"The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) condemns in the strongest terms the American-Zionist aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran, and we affirm that this American-Zionist aggression constitutes a direct targeting of the entire region, and an assault on its security, stability, and sovereignty.

"While we affirm our solidarity with the Islamic Republic of Iran in confronting the aggression, we call upon the Arab and Islamic nation to unite and stand in solidarity to thwart this aggression and its objectives..."

Senior Hamas official Bassem Naim, who leads a comfortable life in Qatar, claimed that the attack on Iran was "driven solely by alignment with the strategic objectives and expansionist agenda of the Zionist entity, led by [Israeli Prime Minister] Benjamin Netanyahu."

According to PIJ:

"The blatant American-Israeli aggression launched by the administration of President Donald Trump and the government of war criminal Benjamin Netanyahu against the Islamic Republic of Iran is a dangerous escalation threatening our region and the peoples of our Arab and Islamic nation. It is a continuation of the aggressive approach aimed at redrawing the region's maps in favor of the Zionist entity, liquidating the Palestinian cause, and breaking the will of free peoples. The courageous Iranian people have the right to defend themselves. The peoples of our Arab and Islamic nation and the sons of our Palestinian people are called upon to close ranks and unify their positions to confront this aggressive scheme that targets everyone."

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a faction of the PLO (which is headed by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas), called on "liberation forces and freedom-loving people worldwide to declare solidarity with Iran and escalate popular protests in various arenas."

A Palestinian group called "the Fatah Movement of the Intifada" stated:

"We declare our full solidarity with the Islamic Republic of Iran, represented by its wise leadership, army, resistance, and brotherly people. The Islamic Republic has the right to respond and defend itself. The American administration is the greatest enemy of the progress of the peoples of our region and our nation."

These Palestinian statements should be viewed as a direct threat not only against Israel, but also against the US.

Unfortunately, the Palestinians have not learned from the self-defeating decisions they made in the past, when they chose to align themselves with the enemies of Israel and the US.

The Palestinian terror groups that continue to control the Gaza Strip, led by Hamas, seem determined to pursue their Jihad against Israel, notwithstanding the death and destruction they inflict on the Palestinians.

US President Donald Trump's "Board of Peace" will never be able to bring security and stability to the Middle East so long as these groups continue to maintain a civilian and military presence in the Gaza Strip. The Palestinians have again shown that they do not hesitate to side with the enemies of Israel and the US.

Removing Iran's mullahs from power is not enough. The Israeli-US military operation should be expanded to include the Iranian regime's proxies.

Follow Khaled Abu Toameh on X (formerly Twitter)

Khaled Abu Toameh is an award-winning journalist based in Jerusalem.

Source: https://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/22315/palestinians-aligning-with-enemies-of-west

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Oil prices jump to over $70 amid Iran war, Strait of Hormuz shipping fears - Natalia Mittelstadt

by Natalia Mittelstadt

Brent crude prices increased by 8.6% at $79.11 per barrel

Oil prices spiked Monday to nearly $80 a barrel amid the United States' war with Iran, as shippers are being cautious about entering the Strait of Hormuz – a major shipping channel.

International standard Brent crude prices reached a new 52-week high on Monday, increasing by 8.6% at $79.11 per barrel, while U.S. oil traded 7.6% higher at $72.12 per barrel, The Associated Press reported. Meanwhile, natural gas futures in Europe increased more than 40% after Qatar halted production due to the war.

U.S. West Texas Intermediate prices also jumped to more than 7.4% to $72.01 at 6:00 a.m. ET, according to CNBC.

Meanwhile, global oil majors traded higher, with ExxonMobil up 4.1% in pre-market trading, Chevron up 3.9%, France’s Totalenergies last seen 3.6% higher, London-listed Shell increasing 2.2%, and BP gained 1.8%.

The U.S. and Israel launched strikes against Iran over the weekend, which has retaliated by attacking military and infrastructure targets across several countries in the region. Israel launched new strikes against both Iran and Hezbollah targets in Lebanon on Sunday.

Founder and director of research at Energy Aspects, Amrita Sen, told CNBC on Monday that she expects oil prices to likely hold at around the $80 level for some time.

As three oil tankers were hit over the weekend, shippers are being cautious about going through the Strait of Hormuz, Sen said.

She said Oman and certain United Arab Emirates grids can bypass the Strait, and Saudi Arabia has contingency plans to move its oil through the East-West pipeline via the Red Sea.

“But even if you are able to move 5 million out through other methods, about 10 is still stuck,” Sen added.

She also noted that, if energy infrastructure is hit, the price of oil could reach $100.

Natalia Mittelstadt

Source: https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/energy/oil-prices-jump-over-70-amid-iran-war-strait-hormuz-shipping-fears

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PA silently applauds attack on Iran, condemns Iran’s strikes on Arab states but not on Israel - Nan Jacques Zilberdik

by Nan Jacques Zilberdik

"Iran, out of stupidity and malice, attacked its [Arab] neighbors who opposed the war. It weakened itself by directly involving its neighbors. This will open the possibility of ground military activity from the territories of its neighbors and with their participation" - former spokesman of the PA Security Forces Adnan Al-Damiri

"The State of Palestine strongly condemned the Iranian attacks on several Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Iraq, stressing its full rejection of any violation of their sovereignty or aggression against them by any party"
The PA "described the [Iranian] attacks [on Arab states] as a blatant violation of the UN Charter and principles of international law"
Despite its decades long policy of supporting terrorism against Israel, the PA "reaffirmed its consistent position against resorting to violence and war, calling for dialogue as the means to resolve disputes"
PA Chairman Abbas called for "emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers" and for "a session of the UN Security Council to address the serious challenges facing the region, its countries, and their sovereignty"
"Iran, out of stupidity and malice, attacked its [Arab] neighbors who opposed the war. It weakened itself by directly involving its neighbors. This will open the possibility of ground military activity from the territories of its neighbors and with their participation" - former spokesman of the PA Security Forces Adnan Al-Damiri
PFLP mourned "the great leader, the Supreme Leader of the Iranian revolution Mr. Ali Hosseini Khamenei
The Martyr on the path to Jerusalem and Palestine, who departed on Saturday... following a cowardly assassination operation committed by the Zionist and American treachery"

Other than a few informative reports, the Palestinian Authority is almost silent about the Israeli-American war with Iran.

So far, the PA has limited itself to condemning Iran's attacks on other Arab states and requesting "an emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers and for a session of the UN Security Council." The PA has neither condemned the Israeli-American attack on Iran, nor has it said anything positive about the Iranian missiles launched against Israel:

"The State of Palestine strongly condemned the Iranian attacks on several Arab countries, including Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Iraq, stressing its full rejection of any violation of their sovereignty or aggression against them by any party.
It described the attacks as a blatant violation of the UN Charter and principles of international law...
It also reaffirmed its consistent position against resorting to violence and war, calling for dialogue as the means to resolve disputes... and for adherence to international law to strengthen regional and international peace and security.
President Mahmoud Abbas called for an emergency meeting of Arab foreign ministers and for a session of the UN Security Council to address the serious challenges facing the region, its countries, and their sovereignty."
[WAFA, official PA news agency, English edition, Feb. 28, 2026]

"Vice President of the State of Palestine, Hussein Al-Sheikh, announced on Saturday evening that a request has been submitted to the Arab League to convene an emergency ministerial meeting as soon as possible to discuss the Iranian attacks on several Arab countries."
[WAFA, official PA news agency, English edition, Feb. 28, 2026]

"Vice President of the State of Palestine Hussein Al-Sheikh on Saturday reaffirmed Palestine's rejection and condemnation of the Iranian attacks on several Arab sister states... and conveyed Palestine's solidarity with the Arab states and support for any measures they deem appropriate in response.
Al-Sheikh stressed that the State of Palestine and its leadership firmly reject any violation of the sovereignty of Arab states or aggression against them by any party, describing the attacks as a blatant violation of the UN Charter and the principles of international law."
[WAFA, official PA news agency, English edition, Feb. 28, 2026]

Although the PA has not openly applauded the joint US and Israeli attack on Iran, there is reason to believe they silently appreciate the development. Palestinian Media Watch has exposed that the PA blamed Iran for making Hamas launch the devastating Oct. 7 war to "serve its Iranian masters" and accused Iran of supporting Hamas to "destroy the Palestinian national project," thereby enabling it to replace the PLO as "the sole representative of the Palestinian people":

PLO National Council member Muwaffaq Matar: "There is no clearer proof [than Iranian leader Khamenei's speech] of Hamas' subordination to this Iranian regime. In this speech there is nothing new for us, because we have already understood how much this regime controls Hamas, has given it its blessing, supported it, and aided it to destroy the Palestinian national project completely, so that it [Hamas] and also its partners who follow Iran will be the artificial alternative to the PLO."
[Fatah Commission of Information and Culture, Facebook page, June 3, 2024]

This claim was reiterated recently by PLO Central Council member and regular columnist for official PA daily Omar Hilmi Al-Ghoul:

"[Hamas] began to move according to the direction of the wind, based on the Muslim Brotherhood's principle of taqiyya (i.e., a Muslim concept of using deceit to advance one's interests). Nothing is constant for [Hamas] except to continue serving as a paid pawn in the hands of the enemies, in order to sabotage the national project, dissolve it, incite against the legitimate leadership."
[Official PA daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida, Feb. 18, 2026]

Following the Israeli-American attack, former spokesman of the PA Security Forces Adnan Al-Damiri even mocked both Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu and Iran. Al-Damiri prophesized that the Iranian people won't reach for their freedom made possible by Netanyahu (and Trump) but will continue to "support the regime." Iran's attack on several neighboring Arab states, many of which host US military bases, was ridiculed by Al-Damiri as "stupidity and malice":

Posted text: "The Iranian people are not a plaything to accede to [Israeli Prime Minister] Netanyahu, even if it is against the regime (refers to Operation Roaring Lion; see note below -Ed.). Netanyahu's appeal to the Iranian people will fail, and the people will set out to support the regime. The war will last a long time to complete the mission of toppling the [Iranian] fundamentalist regime...
Iran, out of stupidity and malice, attacked its [Arab] neighbors who opposed the war. It weakened itself by directly involving its neighbors.
This will open the possibility of ground military activity from the territories of its neighbors and with their participation. The war will last weeks, perhaps months."
[Former Official Spokesman of the PA Security Forces Adnan Al-Damiri, Facebook page, Feb. 28, 2026]

So far, only the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) has openly mourned the death of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei with this poster and text calling the Israeli-American attack "a cowardly assassination operation committed by the Zionist and American treachery":

The image shows former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei at the top, and armed terrorists wearing keffiyehs (Arab headdresses) marching in two rows at the bottom. In the upper left corner is the PFLP logo.

Text on image: "The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP)
mourns the great leader, the Supreme Leader of the Iranian revolution
Mr. Ali Hosseini Khamenei
The Martyr on the path to Jerusalem and Palestine, who departed on Saturday, Feb. 28, 2026, following a cowardly assassination operation committed by the Zionist and American treachery in the Iranian capital, Tehran."
[Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, Telegram channel,
March 1, 2026]

On June 3, 2024, then Iranian leader Khamenei gave a speech in which he praised Hamas' terror attack on Israel on Oct. 7, stating that:

"An army that claimed to be one of the strongest armies in the world has been defeated inside its own land. Who has defeated it? Was it a powerful government? No, it was defeated by Resistance groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. It was defeated by these [groups]. This is what Al-Aqsa Flood did."

He neither mentioned the PA nor the PLO at all but only the "Resistance" and the "Palestinian people." [Khamenei.ir]

Nan Jacques Zilberdik

Source: https://palwatch.org/page/41957

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‘50% of Iranian missile launchers destroyed’ - Yaakov Lappin

by Yaakov Lappin

"Operation Roaring Lion" decapitates Iranian leadership, systematically dismantles missile infrastructure, setting it back by years, says military official.

An Israeli Air Force fighter pilot during "Operation Roaring Lion" against the Islamic Republic, Feb. 28, 2026. Credit: Israel Defense Forces.

The joint Israeli-American military campaign against Iran, now in its third day, has systematically decapitated the Iranian regime’s leadership from Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei down, while causing extensive damage to its ballistic missile program.

A military official speaking on Sunday provided a detailed assessment of the severe damage inflicted upon the Iranian weapons industry and missile program during the ongoing operation. According to the official, hundreds of Iranian terror regime missiles were successfully destroyed, and the production of at least 1,500 additional ballistic missiles was entirely prevented in the past two days.

The strikes dismantled approximately 200 ballistic missile launchers and rendered dozens more completely inoperable. The official noted that this meant that 50 percent of the regime’s ballistic missile launchers active at the time were destroyed.

The IDF confirmed that it had seen, before the current conflict, a sharp acceleration in Iranian efforts to rebuild missiles following the June 2025 war, and that the Islamic Republic was aiming to build around 8,000 missiles by 2027.

“These missiles constitute a real, direct, and existential threat to the State of Israel and to the Middle East,” said the military.

On the eve of “Operation Rising Lion” in June 2025, Iran had an estimated 3,000 missiles, a stockpile that was degraded down to 1,500 missiles by the end of the June conflict. Yet on the eve of the current operation, “Roaring Lion,” Iran’s arsenal shot back up to 2,500 missiles, and was moving up by dozens of missiles per month, according to Israeli assessments.

“The possession of missiles by a regime that openly declares its intent to destroy the State of Israel constitutes an existential threat. The IDF will not allow the Iranian terrorist regime to restore its military capabilities and will continue to act to neutralize any emerging threat against the citizens of the State of Israel, anywhere and at any time,” the military stated.

The Israeli military official detailed the destruction caused in just two days to Iran’s central explosives production site. This targeted facility, which was not named, produced the explosive material required for ballistic missile warheads, as well as for other types of weapons, including rockets, unmanned aerial vehicles, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles.

In addition to this central site, four key mixing facilities utilized specifically for producing ballistic missile engines were struck.

“Alongside the damage to ballistic missiles production capabilities, the IDF struck additional core aspects of Iran’s weapons industries,” the official said, adding that this achieved “significant results that reduced threats posed to Israel and to the broader region by the Iranian axis.”

He added, “This included factories that produced advanced anti-tank systems intended for Hezbollah and other terrorist organizations. Unique research infrastructures were also struck. This is expected to delay weapons research and development processes by years.”

The official explained that in recent months, the Iranian terror regime invested significant efforts to restore its missile production capabilities, with the main effort focused on rebuilding the mechanisms and knowledge centers that were previously dismantled. The Iranian missile production stood at dozens per month and intelligence identified that the production rate was actively accelerating.

Likewise, Iran was working to procure numerous systems and components from various countries in order to rehabilitate and strengthen its surface-to-surface missile array before the preemptive strikes commenced, according to the source.

IDF International Spokesperson Lt. Col. Nadav Shoshani provided operational updates on Sunday, confirming that the operation began with the biggest opening salvo in Israeli history, utilizing 200 fighter jets to carry out the most extensive aerial operation ever conducted by the Israeli Air Force.

Guided by high-quality, real-time intelligence, the aircraft struck over 500 targets in a range of locations across Iran, operating a thousand miles from home in a narrow, time-sensitive window.

During this initial phase, 500 munitions were deployed in a coordinated wave designed to dismantle key components of the regime’s missile and air defense capabilities, and target senior military officials, said Shoshani.

One central strike targeted a missile launch site in Tabriz, from which the Iranian regime had planned to fire dozens of missiles toward Israeli civilians. That launch capability has now been severely degraded. Additionally, aircraft struck a strategic SA-65 aerial defense system in the Kermanshah area, degrading systems to expand operational freedom and aerial superiority in Iranian airspace.

Shoshani explained the methodical chronological order of the operation, noting that the element of surprise was essential. The first step was an opening strike that eliminated 40 senior commanders in one minute across two different locations over a thousand miles away in broad daylight, he stated.

The second step involved a wave of strikes dismantling key elements of Iran’s aerial defense systems to ensure operational freedom. The third step targeted and dismantled missile launchers and Iranian firepower arrays that were loaded and ready to be fired towards Israeli civilians and other countries in the region.

He confirmed that this opening wave fractured the regime’s chain of command at its highest tier. The strikes also successfully eliminated Ali Shamkhani, adviser to Khamenei on defense issues and secretary of the Iranian Security Council; Mohammad Pakpour, commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC); Mohammad Shirazi, head of the military bureau of the Iranian Supreme Leader for nearly four decades; Saleh Asadi, senior intelligence officer of the Supreme Command; and Aziz Nasirzadeh, Iran’s defense minister.

The culmination of this decapitation strategy was the successful targeting of the Supreme Leader himself in the heart of Tehran.

“Khamenei was the mastermind of the axis of evil as we know it today,” Shoshani explained. “He was responsible not only for the repression of his own people, but also for a global network that spread across the world.”

Shoshani noted that Khamenei made it his life’s mission to annihilate the State of Israel, generating weapons and supporting his proxies in Syria, Iraq, Lebanon and Yemen.

“Today we can confirm he is done,” Shoshani declared. “The State of Israel stands stronger, and the world is a safer place.”

Alongside Khamenei, the military eliminated Abdolrahim Mousavi, who served as the chief of staff of the Iranian Armed Forces. Shoshani reminded reporters on a conference call on Sunday that in June 2025, during “Operation Rising Lion,” the military eliminated the head of the IRGC and his replacement, and has now eliminated the “replacement of the replacement, and the same is true regarding the chief of staff for the armed forces of Iran.”

Following the opening salvos, overnight strikes in coordination with United States partners targeted central and western Iran, striking over 30 targets aimed at degrading the regime’s ballistic missile capabilities.

In response to the allied strikes, Iran fired multiple missile attacks toward Israel, launching hundreds of missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles throughout the Middle East, including dozens directed toward Israeli civilians.

Shoshani reported that the regime focused on the center of the civilian population, resulting in single-digit impact sites, noting the attack in Tel Aviv. He spoke before the deadly attack on Bet Shemesh on Sunday.

“This operation, a joint coordinated operation with the U.S. armed forces, [to a degree] that we haven’t seen before. This level of intimacy and coordination. Fighting shoulder to shoulder in an unmatched historic manner. This is an unshakable security partnership,” said Shoshani.

Regarding the elimination of the regime’s leadership, the IDF confirmed that 40 senior commanders were killed in the opening strike, made possible due to precise intelligence. The Israeli Air Force struck and eliminated seven members of the top Iranian security leadership who had gathered at several locations in Tehran, including the chief of staff of the Iranian armed forces, Abdolrahim Mousavi.

The IDF also confirmed it has dismantled the majority of the aerial defense systems in western and central Iran, effectively paving the way towards establishing full aerial superiority over the skies of Tehran.

“Aerial supremacy is a process,” said Shoshani, adding, “We’re moving forward in a very positive way … We have a lot of freedom of operation. We can say we have aerial supremacy in specific parts.”

Yaakov Lappin is an Israel-based military affairs correspondent and analyst. He is the in-house analyst at the Miryam Institute; a research associate at the Alma Research and Education Center; and a research associate at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies at Bar-Ilan University. He is a frequent guest commentator on international television news networks, including Sky News and i24 News. Lappin is the author of Virtual Caliphate: Exposing the Islamist State on the Internet. Follow him at: www.patreon.com/yaakovlappin.

Source: https://www.jns.org/50-of-iranian-missile-launchers-destroyed/

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Qatar shoots down two Iranian Su-24 fighter jets over airspace as Gulf states suffer Iran strikes - Reuters, Jerusalem Post Staff

by Reuters, Jerusalem Post Staff

Arab states in the Gulf, all close US allies, have come under Iranian drone and missile attack since the United States and Israel launched airstrikes on Saturday.

A Sukhoi Su-24M Fencer D aircraft lands on the runway during an Islamic Republic of Iran Air Force military drill at the Shahid Lashkari Tactical Air Base (TAB-1) in Tehran, Iran, on April 16, 2009

(photo credit: Ali Rafiei/Middle East Images/AFP via Getty Images)

Qatar shot down two Su-24 fighter jets coming from Iran, the Qatari defense ministry said on Monday.

It did not provide further details on the incident.

Arab states in the Gulf, all close US allies, have come under Iranian drone and missile attack since the United States and Israel launched airstrikes on Saturday.

Prior to the war, Iranian spokespeople stated that all US military bases in the region would be targeted. US embassies across the region have issued security alerts to American citizens, urging caution amid heightened tensions.

Motorists drive past a plume of smoke rising from a reported Iranian strike in the industrial district of Doha on March 1, 2026. (credit: MAHMUD HAMS/AFP via Getty Images)

Gulf states suffer as Iran continues strikes

The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported an incident on Monday at the port of Bahrain, where a vessel was struck by two unknown projectiles, sparking a fire. According to UKMTO, the fire was quickly extinguished, and the crew was safely evacuated. The vessel remained at the port following the attack.

In a related development, the US embassy in Bahrain issued a warning, stating that terrorist groups and those inspired by such organizations are targeting US citizens abroad. The embassy’s statement followed an incident at Salman Industrial City in Bahrain, where a missile interception resulted in debris falling onto a ship, causing a fire.

The incident left one person dead and two seriously injured. Bahrain’s Ministry of Interior confirmed that the fire was brought under control and extinguished.

Meanwhile, in Iraq, three armed drones were shot down over Erbil Airport in northern Iraq, where US forces are stationed. Security sources reported the incident but did not elaborate further on the drone's origin or purpose.

In Dubai, DP World announced that operations at the Jebel Ali port had resumed after a disruption, as reported by Reuters. This followed the recent regional tension and security concerns in the Gulf.

The US embassy in Jordan issued a security alert on Sunday, urging American citizens in the country to shelter in place after reports of missiles, drones, or air-to-air missiles being detected in Jordanian airspace. The embassy reassured citizens that it was monitoring the situation and would provide updates on security measures. It also urged Americans to stay alert for unusual activity and disruptions in air traffic.

On Monday, Qatar confirmed the interception of Iranian attacks targeting civilian infrastructure, including Doha International Airport. A Qatari foreign ministry spokesperson told CNN that the country could not allow such attacks to go unanswered, further clarifying that Qatar was not engaging with Iran at this time.

In response to the mounting tensions in the region, the governments of the United States, Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates issued a joint statement condemning the Iranian regime's missile and drone attacks against sovereign territories.

The statement called the attacks unjustified, describing them as a dangerous escalation that violated the sovereignty of multiple countries and threatened regional stability. The countries reaffirmed their right to self-defense and commended the effective air and missile defense cooperation that has prevented greater loss of life and destruction.

The statement concluded by emphasizing the unity of the Gulf nations in defending their citizens, sovereignty, and territories against these reckless and destabilizing actions.

Reuters, Jerusalem Post Staff

Source: https://www.jpost.com/middle-east/article-888568

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At least 22 dead, more than 120 injured after rioters storm US consulate, UN offices in Pakistan - Natalia Mittelstadt

by Natalia Mittelstadt

“Pakistan stands with the Iranian nation in this moment of grief and shares in their loss,” Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari said

At least 22 are dead and over 120 injured after pro-Iran rioters stormed the U.S. consulate and the United Nations' offices in Pakistan.

The violent clashes between rioters and security forces came after the U.S. and Israel launched strikes Saturday on Iran, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to the Associated Press.

Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari expressed his “profound sorrow over the martyrdom” of Khamenei, conveying his condolences to Iran, according to his office.

“Pakistan stands with the Iranian nation in this moment of grief and shares in their loss,” Zardari said.

A police surgeon at the city’s main government hospital, Summaiya Syed Tariq, confirmed six dead and multiple injured people were brought to the facility. She said the death toll increased to 10 after four critically wounded people died.

Another 12 people were killed and more than 80 wounded in clashes with police in the northern Gilgit-Baltistan region when thousands of rioters attacked the offices of the U.N. Military Observer Group and the U.N. Development Programme, according to local police official Asghar Ali.

A government spokesman, Shabir Mir, said all staff working for those organizations were safe, and that protesters repeatedly clashed with police at various places in the region, damaged the offices of a local charity, and set fire to police offices. He added that authorities had deployed troops and brought the situation under control.

In Karachi, senior police official Irfan Baloch said that protesters briefly attacked the perimeter of the U.S. Consulate, but the riot was later broken up.

Pakistani Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi appealed for calm amidst the clashes.

“Following the martyrdom of Ayatollah Khamenei, every citizen of Pakistan shares in the grief of the people of Iran,” Naqvi said in a statement, urging people not to take the law into their own hands and to express their protests peacefully. The provincial government of Sindh also told citizens to peacefully express their views and warned against engaging in violence.

Police fired tear gas and swung batons in Islamabad as hundreds of protesters tried to march toward the U.S. Embassy. The clashes occurred outside the city’s diplomatic enclave, where the embassy is, and additional police were deployed.

In the northwestern city of Peshawar, authorities used tear gas and batons to disperse thousands of demonstrators attempting to approach the U.S. Consulate to hold a rally and to denounce the killing of Khamenei, police said.

Protesters also repeatedly clashed with police near the U.S. Consulate in Lahore, according to authorities. Police said that the government has stepped up security around the U.S. Embassy in the city and consulates across Pakistan to avoid any further violence.

Natalia Mittelstadt

Source: https://justthenews.com/world/asia/least-22-dead-more-120-injured-after-rioters-storm-us-consulate-un-offices-pakistan

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Israel prepares to reopen airspace next week, transport Minister says - i24news

by i24news

Thousands of Israelis have already returned via land crossings, and the Israel Airports Authority is coordinating with airlines to ensure readiness for the resumption of flights

A Lufthansa plane takes off from Ben Gurion International Airport, near Tel Aviv, on August 14, 2025. Yossi Aloni/Flash90

Israel’s Minister of Transport, Miri Regev, announced on Monday that preparations are underway to gradually reopen the country’s airspace, potentially as early as next week, depending on security developments.

Regev emphasized that an “organized plan” has been developed to ensure the safe and orderly return of Israeli citizens currently abroad.

Speaking in a statement, the minister noted that Israel is maintaining continuous contact with neighboring countries to coordinate the movement of travelers. “Thousands of Israelis have already returned to the country via land crossings,” Regev said, highlighting the ongoing efforts to manage the influx of returning citizens efficiently.

She also stressed that, despite various reports in the media, the guidelines for Israel’s airspace remain unchanged in light of the current security situation.

Regev further revealed that she has instructed the director of the Israel Airports Authority to meet with domestic airlines to ensure that they are fully prepared for the reopening. The coordination will focus on implementing the necessary security protocols, adjusting flight schedules, and managing airport operations to accommodate the gradual resumption of commercial flights.

The transport minister said that while the exact timeline will depend on developments on the ground, authorities are working to enable Israelis to return home safely and to restore normal air travel as swiftly as possible. She described the plan as comprehensive, noting that it balances operational readiness with security considerations to prevent potential threats to passengers and infrastructure.

i24news

Source: https://www.i24news.tv/en/news/israel/society/artc-israel-prepares-to-reopen-airspace-next-week-transport-minister-says

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Democrat super lawyer behind Russia collusion dossier now sees Iran interference intel as ‘big lie’ - Jerry Dunleavy

by Jerry Dunleavy

Marc Elias and other Democrats pushed baseless Trump-Russia collusion claims in 2016. Now they are denying that Iran sought to meddle in the 2020 and 2024 elections to hurt Trump.

The Clinton campaign lawyer who helped fund British ex-spy Christopher Steele’s discredited dossier pushing baseless claims of Trump-Russia collusion in 2016 joined other Democrats in denying confirmed Iranian election influence efforts in 2020 and 2024 aimed at denigrating President Donald Trump, calling it a “Big Lie.”

Just the News published a story titled “Iran tried to interfere in 2020, 2024 elections to stop Trump, and now faces renewed war with U.S.” late Friday night. In the early morning hours of Saturday, Trump shared the Just the News article and its full headline on Truth Social shortly after releasing his video announcing strikes against Iran.

A cadre of Democrats — led by former Hillary Clinton campaign general counsel Marc Elias — and other Trump opponents soon sought to deny that Iran had meddled in the U.S. presidential elections of 2020 and 2024 in an effort to undermine Trump’s candidacies, despite even the Biden Administration intelligence community and Justice Department saying that is what the Iranian regime had done.

Elias on Saturday shared a screenshot of Trump’s Truth Social post about Iranian election influence efforts in 2020 and 2024 and dismissed these facts as “the next Big Lie.”

“The next Big Lie is to taking [sic] shape right in front of us,” Elias said. “Donald Trump will try to use this to assert illegal and unconstitutional powers over the 2026 elections.”

Elias has a long history of peddling baseless anti-Trump material

Elias played a key role in the genesis of the Steele Dossier and in pushing baseless Trump-Russia collusion claims in 2016, despite dismissing Iranian election influence efforts as a “Big Lie.”

Trump had also issued a March 2025 executive order on “Preventing Abuses of the Legal System and the Federal Court” — where he singled out Elias.

“Lawyers and law firms that engage in actions that violate the laws of the United States or rules governing attorney conduct must be efficiently and effectively held accountable,” Trump wrote, adding, “Recent examples of grossly unethical misconduct are far too common. For instance, in 2016, Marc Elias, founder and chair of Elias Law Group LLP, was deeply involved in the creation of a false ‘dossier’ by a foreign national designed to provide a fraudulent basis for Federal law enforcement to investigate a Presidential candidate in order to alter the outcome of the Presidential election. Elias also intentionally sought to conceal the role of his client — failed Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton — in the dossier.”

A federal district court judge blocked the executive order.

Special Counsel Durham’s report concluded that “the FBI ignored the fact that at no time before, during, or after Crossfire Hurricane were investigators able to corroborate a single substantive allegation in the Steele dossier reporting.”

Durham’s special counsel inquiry further undercut the dossier’s credibility and resulted in indictments against Steele’s primary source, Igor Danchenko, as well as against Elias’s former Perkins Coie law partner, Michael Sussmann, with whom Elias worked closely in 2016. Both Danchenko and Sussmann were found not guilty.

The Steele dossier was used by the FBI in FISA warrants targeting Carter Page and underpinned a key judgment in the 2016 ICA on Russian meddling, but Steele and Fusion also pushed dossier claims to the media during the 2016 election.

When Elias was asked whether he knew that Fusion sent Steele to talk to media outlets during 2016, Elias testified to Congress in 2017 that he was “aware that he [Steele] talked to media outlets in that time period” and admitted that he knew about the meetings before they happened.

Clinton campaign manager Robby Mook said in 2017 that he had authorized Elias to hire a firm to dig up dirt on Trump’s connections with Russia and said Elias periodically briefed the Clinton campaign about the dirt that Fusion (and therefore Steele) had allegedly dug up.

Perkins Coie was paid more than $12 million between 2016 and 2017 for its work representing Clinton and the DNC. According to Fusion co-founder Glenn Simpson, Fusion was paid $50,000 per month from Perkins Coie. Elias testified it was $60,000 each month. Fusion claimed that it paid Steele $168,000 for his work. Perkins Coie claimed Fusion approached them in March 2016 while knowing that Perkins Coie represented Clinton’s campaign.

Fusion co-founders Simpson and Peter Fritsch wrote in their 2019 book that they met with Elias in April 2016 and that Elias wanted “deep research on Trump.”

Fritsch said he told Elias, “We think you guys will really want to pay attention to the Russia angle.” The authors wrote that “it was obvious from Elias’s reaction that the Russia element was new to him” and that “this angle was all new to Elias, and he loved it.”

The Senate Intelligence Committee’s August 2020 report said that “Elias told Fusion GPS to report only to him, so Fusion GPS’s communications could be solely with a lawyer and thus covered by attorney-client privilege.”

The Federal Election Commission ruled in 2022 there was “probable cause” to believe Hillary for America and the DNC violated federal laws by “misreporting the purpose of certain disbursements” and fined them.

The FEC said the DNC paid $849,407 and the Clinton campaign paid $175,000 to Perkins Coie for what was alleged in a complaint to be “opposition research done by Fusion.” The Clinton campaign falsely reported the purpose of all those payments as “legal services” while the DNC reported the purpose of most of those payments as “legal and compliance consulting.”

DOJ inspector general Michael Horowitz’s 2019 report noted that “with Fusion GPS’s authorization” in late September 2016, Steele traveled to D.C. and met with “numerous persons outside the FBI to discuss the intelligence he had obtained.” These included meetings with Elias at his D.C. office, DOJ official Bruce Ohr, and others. Steele later met with State Department officials such as Kathleen Kavalec and Jonathan Winer.

Steele has said in legal filings that he met with numerous reporters in 2016 “at Fusion’s instruction.”

Elias told Congress in 2017 that he had seen “some” of the dossier “but not all of it” during the 2016 campaign. He said he started getting briefing on Steele’s findings, either in hard copy, orally, or in person, in late June 2016 or early July 2016, and he likely first heard Steele’s name in early July 2016 from one of Fusion’s founders.

When discussing what sort of information from Steele and Fusion he passed along to the Clinton campaign, Elias said, “If I received information and it was useful and it was verifiable and it was information that I felt comfortable with, then it went in one bucket. If it was information that wasn’t, it wasn’t.”

Elias testified in the Sussmann case in 2022 that “I provided Fusion direction on the research and information I thought would help me perform my job. … On some occasions, Fusion’s work was distilled and incorporated into my judgments about legal issues, while in other instances, I shared the results of Fusion’s work with my clients.”

Jake Sullivan told the House Intelligence Committee in 2017 that he was in meetings where Elias briefed the campaign on opposition research, claiming, “Marc wears a tremendous number of hats, so I wasn’t sure who he was representing. … I sort of thought he was, you know, just talking to us as, you know, a fellow traveler … in the campaign effort.”

Mook told the Senate Intelligence Committee that “counsel [Elias] starting in the summer [of 2016] had briefed him” along with Sullivan, Tony Podesta, Jennifer Palmieri, and others on “pieces of the reporting” in the dossier.

Palmieri spoke to the Senate about the Elias briefings, saying, “He had reports. … Some of the things that I have read are in the dossier I had heard about from Marc, including the famous encounter at the hotel.”

Mook testified that he, Sullivan, Palmieri, and Podesta all approved pushing baseless Alfa Bank claims to the media after Mook was alerted to the claims by Elias. Mook said Clinton then personally approved pushing the false Trump-Russia claims to the press.

Durham said members of the Clinton campaign, Fusion GPS, and Perkins Coie all played a coordinated role in pushing collusion claims and that Elias was part of the “joint venture” in 2016. Sussmann and Elias worked for Perkins at the time, and Fusion pushed Alfa Bank claims, too.

The Clinton campaign dropped its last-minute “October Surprise” on Halloween 2016 — a story about Trump and Alfa Bank.

An investigation by special counsel Robert Mueller ultimately “did not establish” any criminal Trump-Russia collusion. DOJ watchdog Horowitz found huge flaws with the FBI’s investigation, criticizing the “central and essential” role of the dossier in the FBI’s politicized surveillance of former Trump campaign associate Carter Page.

Elias' history of alleged campaign law violations

Elias, who helped Clinton’s 2016 presidential campaign fund Steele’s debunked anti-Trump dossier and helped spread baseless collusion claims, had hired the opposition research firm Fusion GPS, which in turn had hired Steele in 2016.

The Federal Election Commission levied a fine of more than $100,000 against the Democratic National Committee and Hillary Clinton’s 2016 campaign over an investigation into alleged misreporting of spending related to the now-infamous Steele dossier. Politico reported that "In a letter addressing one of the complaints, the commission said it dismissed allegations against Marc Elias — who was then an attorney at Perkins Coie and is now the namesake of his own firm — and the law firm itself, Fusion GPS and Christopher Steele himself, and other allegations against the DNC over impermissible contributions from foreign nationals."

The Iranian regime sought to undermine Trump’s reelection bid in 2020, with Joe Biden emerging victorious, then Iran doubled down in 2024 through a host of election meddling efforts and even assassination attempts in 2024.

Trump won the latter election. Israel and the U.S. soon struck at the heart of Iran’s nuclear weapons program last summer, and the U.S. and the Israelis launched a joint attack early Saturday morning against Tehran, killing Iranian leader Ayatollah Ali Hosseini Khamenei.

Elias did not respond to a request for comment sent to him through his Elias Law Group.

Trump foes deny that Iran meddled in 2020 and 2024 electons

Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., also responded to Trump's sharing the Just the News article by claiming on X that “Trump sending our sons and daughters to war because he still can’t accept that he lost 2020 election!” Neither the article nor the post by Trump claimed that the U.S. was going to war with Iran because of Iranian election meddling.

George Conway — an anti-Trump commentator, the former husband of Trump ally Kellyanne Conway, and a Democratic primary candidate for a NYC-based congressional seat — said of Trump’s post about Iran’s election influence efforts that “this is psychotic.”

Timothy Snyder, a historian and strident Trump critic, said on X that “in 2020 Iran did try to interfere with the presidential election” but, without noting that the next part of his assessment contradicted conclusions by U.S. intelligence, also argued that “the Iranian operation in 2020 was designed to help Donald Trump get elected.”

Leftwing online influencer Brian Tyler Cohen also referred to Iran’s election influence efforts from 2020 and 2024 as being Trump’s “insane conspiracy theories about how Iran meddled in the election.”

Leftist Tiktok influencer Aaron Parnas shared a screenshot of Trump’s Truth Social post in an effort to cast doubt on Iranian election meddling, tweeting that “following the strikes in Iran, the American President posted an article suggesting unverified claims that Iran meddled in the American election in 2020 to stop him.”

Parnas also said on Instagram that “Donald Trump amplified articles suggesting that Iran interfered with the 2020 and 2024 presidential elections to hurt Donald Trump. Those claims are unverified.”

Conspiracy theories abound on the left

Former Rep. Denver Riggleman, an ex-Republican who was a staffer on the Capitol Jan. 6 riot committee, also sought to cast doubt on Iranian election meddling. Riggleman, who tried to help Hunter Biden’s legal team in its efforts to cast doubt on the laptop belonging to Joe Biden’s son, tweeted that Trump remarking on the Iranian election influence efforts was an example of “fabricating foreign interference to follow the 2020-2021 conspiracy theory playbook.”

The Daily Beast published an article about Trump’s post on Iranian election meddling titled “Trump Pushes Crackpot Election Theory as Bonkers War Excuse.” The article did not attempt to back up the article’s claim that Iranian election meddling was a “crackpot election theory” and the story itself admitted that “Iran has a long history of attempted election interference, and charges were brought against Iranians for efforts in both 2020 and 2024.”

Wired also claimed that Trump had “posted misinformation about Iran interfering with U.S. elections in 2020 and 2024.”

The Intercept contended that Trump was “amplifying without evidence unsubstantiated claims that Iran interfered in the 2020 election.”

Popular leftwing video clipper Aaron Rupar’s Substack, Public Notice, referred to Iranian election meddling in 2020 and 2024 as among Trump’s “conspiracy theories” and referred to the Iranian efforts as “fictional aid to Joe Biden.”

A story published on the far-left Daily Kos claimed that Trump was "adding Iran to the cabal of conspirators who, in his pathological paranoia, he thinks were plotting against him."

The far-left Occupy Democrats group also said on Facebook that Iranian election influence efforts in 2020 and 2024 were actually nothing but Trump’s “longstanding, baseless election interference fantasy.”

Leftwing blogger Marcy Wheeler — who goes by “Empty Wheel” on X — also sought to cast doubt on the idea that Iranian election meddling efforts in 2020 were designed to undermine Trump’s candidacy by tweeting, “Fact check: The Iranian intervention in 2020 was actually targeted at suppressing voters of color (but it cleverly shielded itself behind fake Proud Boy avatars).”

Karen Piper, a leftwing author, tweeted that Iran’s election interference efforts were just “election conspiracies.” Bill Madden, a leftwing activist and songwriter, tweeted about the supposedly “BULLSHIT claims of Iran interfering with the 2020 and 2024 elections.” Eva Golinger — a lawyer, leftwing activist, and a defender of former Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez — also sought to cast doubt on Iranian election meddling, tweeting, “First Venezuela, now Iran. Next they will be saying it was Cuba.”

George Szamuely, the host of a leftwing show called The Gaggle, also claimed on X that Trump’s highlighting of Iranian election interference efforts was “fact-free nonsense.”

Iran used "Proud Boys" hoax and other efforts to undermine Trump in 2020

Iranian intelligence sought to undermine Trump’s reelection bid in 2020 through a variety of election influence efforts. Microsoft assessed in September 2020 that a cyber actor dubbed “Phosphorus, operating from Iran, has continued to attack the personal accounts of people associated with the Donald J. Trump for President campaign.”

Then-Director of National Intelligence John Ratcliffe and then-FBI Director Christopher Wray held an October 2020 press conference where they warned that Iran had gained access to U.S. voter registration information, with Ratcliffe warning Iran was trying to harm Trump’s candidacy.

Ratcliffe explained: “We have already seen Iran sending spoofed emails designed to intimidate voters, incite social unrest, and damage President Trump.”

A senior U.S. intelligence officer told The Washington Examiner in October 2020 that “the Iranians follow U.S. politics closely and saw the last debate where the Proud Boys were an issue and saw an opportunity here to manufacture blowback on Trump by creating a narrative that violent Trump supporters are sending out threatening emails.”

A senior government official also told Reuters at the time, “Either they made a dumb mistake or wanted to get caught. We are not concerned about this activity being some kind of false flag due to other supporting evidence. This was Iran.”

The Miami Herald reported in October 2020 that intimidating emails claiming to be from the right-wing Proud Boys group, but actually sent by the Iranians instead, had been sent to hundreds of voters in numerous counties in Florida, seemingly targeting Democrats with a bit of reverse psychology. The emails said, in part, that “you will vote for Trump on Election Day, or we will come after you.” The ODNI’s office said at the time that it would brief the Republican and Democratic lawmakers representing the Florida counties most targeted.

ODNI’s National Intelligence Council later assessed in 2024 that, during the 2020 election, “Iranian cyber actors used data on more than 100,000 voters for its operation impersonating the Proud Boys.”

The Department of State and Department of the Treasury sanctioned IRGC-linked groups and other Iranian regime elements in late October 2020 over Iran’s election influence efforts.

After Trump lost that November, Biden's ODNI’s report in March 2021 concluded: “We assess with high confidence that Iran carried out an influence campaign during the 2020 U.S. election season intended to undercut the reelection prospects of former President Trump.”

The ODNI added: “Tehran’s efforts were aimed at denigrating former President Trump [...] Iran’s efforts in 2020 — especially its emails to individual U.S. voters and efforts to spread allegations of voter fraud — were more aggressive than in past election cycles [...] In a highly targeted operation, Iranian cyber actors sent threatening, spoofed emails purporting to be from the Proud Boys group to Democratic voters in multiple U.S. states.”

The Justice Department then charged alleged Iranian hackers for their roles in the scheme in November 2021, saying the Iranians had carried out “a cyber-enabled campaign to intimidate and influence American voters, and otherwise undermine voter confidence and sow discord, in connection with the 2020 U.S. presidential election.”

The FBI says that “the defendants allegedly obtained United States voter information from at least one state election website, sent threatening voter email messages to intimidate voters, crafted and disseminated disinformation pertaining to the election and election security, and accessed, and attempted to access, without authorization, the computer systems of several online United States media entities and states.”

The Treasury Department in November 2021 also “designated six Iranian individuals and one Iranian entity … for attempting to influence the 2020 U.S. presidential election.”

Democrats have denied Iran’s 2020 election meddling efforts before

Multiple Democrats sought to cast doubt on the idea that Iran was trying to undermine Trump’s presidential campaign in 2020, and stuck to the baseless narrative that Russia was the true disinformation culprit. “Russia is the villain here, from what we have seen in the public domain,” then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., said in October 2020. “Iran is a bad actor but in no way equivalent. And they always try to find some equivalence to protect their friend, Russia.”

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., also sought to cast doubt on the Iranians seeking to harm Trump.

“I did receive a classified briefing this afternoon on this, and so I can’t discuss the details, but I can tell you one thing: It was clear to me, that the intent of Iran in this case, and Russia in many more cases, is to […] basically undermine confidence in our elections,” Schumer said on MSNBC in October 2020. “This action I do not believe was aimed […] at discrediting President Trump […] It was much rather to undermine confidence in elections and not aimed at any particular figure.”

Iran sought to stop Trump’s reelection in 2024 through hack-and-leak operations

The Iranian regime stepped up its election influence efforts in 2024, hoping that Trump would yet again be defeated in the rematch against Biden, which turned into a campaign against Biden’s replacement candidate, Vice President Kamala Harris.

The FBI, ODNI, and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) released a joint statement in August 2024 saying that they had “observed increasingly aggressive Iranian activity this election cycle, specifically influence operations targeting the American public and cyber operations targeting presidential campaigns. This includes the recently reported activities to compromise former President Trump’s campaign, which the IC attributes to Iran.”

The Microsoft Threat Analysis Center also released a report that month assessing that “Iranian actors have recently laid the groundwork for influence operations aimed at U.S. audiences and potentially seeking to impact the 2024 U.S. presidential election.” The report pointed to “Iran-run covert news sites,” at least one of which “caters to liberal audiences and includes sarcastic, long-winded articles insulting Trump.”

Even The New York Times admitted in September 2024 that “Iran Emerges as a Top Disinfo Threat in U.S. Presidential Race” and that “with a flurry of hacks & fake websites, Iran has intensified its efforts to discredit American democracy and possibly tip the race against Trump.”

ODNI said that month that it “assesses Iran is making a greater effort than in the past to influence this year’s elections” and that Iranian government elements had “denigrated the former President [Trump]” and had engaged in a “hack and leak” operation against his campaign.

An ODNI official also said that “Iran is also conducting covert social media operations using fake personas, and is using AI to help publish inauthentic news articles.”

The FBI, ODNI, and CISA made it clear that month that Iranian hackers had sent Biden’s campaign emails in June and July which “contained an excerpt taken from stolen, non-public material from former President Trump’s campaign as text in the emails” and that “Iranian malicious cyber actors have continued their efforts since June to send stolen, non-public material associated with former President Trump’s campaign to U.S. media organizations.”

The Justice Department in September 2024 announced charges against Seyyed Ali Aghamiri and Yaser Balaghi — alleged IRGC operatives — for hacking the Trump campaign. The Treasury Department in September 2024 said that, since at least May 2024, “Iran-based hackers have increased their malicious cyber-enabled targeting of the 2024 U.S. presidential election.”

The department said that “Masoud Jalili and other Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps members compromised several accounts of officials and advisors to a 2024 presidential campaign and leaked stolen data to members of the media and other persons for the purpose of influencing the 2024 U.S. presidential election.”

Aghamiri, Balaghi, and Jalili remain wanted by the FBI.

Intelligence agencies find Iran's cyber-influence campaign

The National Intelligence Council released an October 2024 report titled “Post-Election Day Information Operations Highly Likely” which stated that “Iranian cyber actors may try to publish content denigrating former President Trump.” The same report said that, in February 2024, IRGC-linked “cyber actors had accessed a network domain associated with a U.S. state government's division of elections and probably obtained data on voter registration and on whether or not some of the registered individuals voted.”

ODNI said again in early November 2024, just before the election, that “we have assessed that Iran has conducted malicious cyber activities to compromise former President Trump’s campaign.”

The Treasury Department in December 2024 — shortly after Trump’s win over Harris — announced it was “designating a subordinate organization of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps” after it had “aimed to stoke socio-political tensions and influence the U.S. electorate during the 2024 U.S. election.”

The department said that the Cognitive Design Production Center — described as a “subsidiary” of the IRGC — had “planned influence operations designed to incite socio-political tensions among the U.S. electorate in the lead up to the 2024 U.S. elections on behalf of the IRGC” and that it had done so “since at least 2023.”

Iran sought to murder Trump in 2024

The Iranian efforts to keep Trump from returning to office weren’t limited to hack-and-leak and cyber operations, according to federal law enforcement officials who alleged the Iranian regime was also trying to assassinate Trump ahead of the November election.

The Justice Department filed charges against Pakistani national Asif Merchant and against Afghan national Farhad Shakeri for their alleged roles in Iranian-backed assassination plots in 2024. The former defendant’s murky plot seemingly targeted Trump, while the latter defendant’s apparently more sophisticated plot was also aimed at the president.

Shakeri remains at large in Iran. Merchant has pleaded not guilty, and Just the News reported that the trial against him began a few days ago. ODNI has categorized both Iranian-backed assassination plots against Trump from 2024 as examples of “Notable Attack Planning” by the Iranian regime’s IRGC.

Jerry Dunleavy

Source: https://justthenews.com/politics-policy/elections/steele-dossier-pusher-marc-elias-claims-irans-anti-trump-efforts-2020-and

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