US Stands Ready For Further Action In Response To Iran-Linked Attacks
US President Joe Biden says Washington is prepared to take additional measures following a series of attacks by Iran-linked groups targeting US forces in Iraq and Syria.
US President Joe Biden says Washington is prepared to take additional measures following a series of attacks by Iran-linked groups targeting US forces in Iraq and Syria.
Early on Friday, US fighter jets carried out airstrikes in eastern Syria, targeting locations associated with Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps. The strikes were a response to a barrage of drone and missile attacks against US bases and personnel in the region that began the previous week.
In a letter addressed to the new House Speaker Mike Johnson, Biden made it clear that the recent strikes were executed with the aim of establishing deterrence.
“The strikes were intended to establish deterrence and were conducted in a manner to limit the risk of escalation and avoid civilian casualties. I directed the strikes in order to protect and defend our personnel, to degrade and disrupt the ongoing series of attacks against the United States and our partners, and to deter Iran and Iran-backed militia groups from conducting or supporting further attacks on United States personnel and facilities,” read his letter.
US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin, in a statement, described the precise self-defense strikes as a response to a prolonged series of mostly unsuccessful attacks on US personnel in Iraq and Syria by Iranian-backed militia groups, commencing on October 17.
Meanwhile, on Friday, the IRGC-affiliated news agency, Tasnim, reported that gunmen in eastern Syria fired ten rockets at a base housing American troops in retaliation for the US airstrikes. A US official confirmed the rocket attack, noting that there were no reported casualties.
Online registration for the upcoming parliamentary elections, scheduled for March 1, 2024, was conducted discreetly. The registration website is not accessible to the public, leaving candidates' identities concealed.
Several prominent figures, including former Presidents Mohammad Khatami, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, and Hassan Rouhani, as well as former Majles Speakers Ali Akbar Nateq Nouri, Gholam Ali Haddad Adel, and Ali Larijani, have announced their decision not to run in the election.
While Rouhani, Ahmadinejad, and Larijani plan to support like-minded candidates, Khatami seems disinterested in the election, possibly stemming from previous frustrations with reformist candidates being disqualified by the regime in past elections. Some even interpret his lack of interest as a sign of boycotting the election altogether.
Some reformists, most notably women's rights activist Faezeh Hashemi has openly boycotted the election and several other reformists have said they might consider a boycott if the situation of vetting and approval of candidates remains as biased and restrictive as before. Some political figures such as the former mayor of Tehran Gholamhossein Karbaschi have called on reformists not to be shy or intimidated and to officially declare their boycott.
Centrist politician Mohammad Namazi says the upcoming election will offer no surprise as he cannot see any sign of a competitive plebiscite ahead. According to Nameh News, political activity concerning the upcoming election appears to be at a minimum.
Namazi, armed with insider knowledge, emphasized that while approximately 40,000 individuals have submitted their candidacies, there is a noticeable absence of prominent political figures among them. Furthermore, he highlighted the persistence of rigorous restrictions and filters imposed on candidates through the vetting process, which is overseen by the Guardian Council under Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's control. Despite the active involvement of certain conservative factions, Namazi noted a lack of enthusiasm among other politicians and the general public, especially in major urban centers. He found it peculiar that there is no discernible government-driven momentum or excitement surrounding the forthcoming elections.
Most political parties seem to lack a well-defined strategy for the upcoming elections. Hossein Marashi, a senior member of the centrist Executives of Construction, was reported as stating that his party intends to withhold its decision until the Guardian Council releases the list of approved candidates. Only then will they consider endorsing a select number of candidates.
Marashi has also suggested that the government holds the key to whether the upcoming elections will be competitive. If the government chooses to extend the registration period and permits broader participation, competitive elections could become a possibility. In such a scenario, political parties may take the opportunity to present their platforms and agendas to persuade the public to participate.
Meanwhile, conservative politician and Islamic Coalition Party member Hamid Reza Taraqqi admitted in an interview that a large number of Iranians did not know that this is an election year in Iran. However, he suggested that lack of public interest is an indication that Iranians are overwhelmed by the news of the war in Gaza. It seems he overlooked the possibility that voters' reluctance and indifference might be a consequence of the government's apathy toward the demands expressed by the people in various nationwide protests since 2018.
The only part of the Iranian political spectrum which is happy about the people's indifference is the ultraconservative Paydari Party which has the upper hand in the current Majles with scores of young but otherwise inexperienced lawmakers who now have a proven record of inefficiency and lack of interest in the people's demands. They know that like the previous election, they can easily win the parliament in a low-turnout election.
Rumor has it that Paydari has registered the candidacy of a couple of its heavyweights such as Party Leader Sadeq Mahsouli and former nuclear negotiator Saeed Jalili. If this is true, it shows that Paydari is planning to further strengthen its foothold in the parliament and Iran's next government which is to be elected two years after the Majles election.
According to unofficial reports on candidate registrations, around 40 percent of candidates are between 30 and 40 years old, 36 percent are aged 40 to 50, while the remaining candidates fall in the 50 to 75 age range. This trend reflects the ongoing shift toward a younger generation of politicians in the Majles, many of whom may lack a deep understanding of the clerical regime’s founding promises regarding the welfare, freedom, and independence of Iran.
The Israeli military said air and ground forces have widened their attacks and the Palestinian militant group said its fighters were clashing with Israeli troops in areas near the border with Israel.
"In the last hours, we intensified the attacks in Gaza," Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, spokesman for Israel's military, told a televised news briefing after dark on Friday. Israel's air force was conducting extensive strikes on tunnels and other infrastructure, he said.
"In addition to the attacks carried out in the last few days, ground forces are expanding their operations tonight," he said, raising the question of whether a long-anticipated ground invasion of Gaza may be beginning.
The military wing of the Islamist militant group – designated as terrorist by the US and several other countries – said their forces were clashing with Israeli troops in Gaza's northeastern town of Beit Hanoun and in the central area of Al-Bureij.
The United Nations General Assembly backed a resolution drafted by Arab states calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all civilians, the protection of civilians and international institutions, and ensuring the safe passage of humanitarian aid into the Strip.
The resolution is completely symbolic and not binding but reflects the global mood about Israel’s retaliatory offensive against Hamas, one of Iran’s proxy militias that killed 1,400 Israelis and took over 220 hostages on October 7, the largest attack on the Jewish state since the Yom Kippur War, a three-week armed conflict fought in October 1973 between Israel and a coalition of Arab states led by Egypt and Syria. The resolution passed to a round of applause with 120 votes in favor, while 45 abstained and 14 -- including Israel and the United States -- voted no.
Canada sought to have an amendment added to the resolution to include a condemnation of Hamas, and a majority of members backed the proposal, but it fell short of the two-thirds majority needed to be adopted.
Immediately after the multi-thronged operation that Hamas calls al-Aqsa Flood, proclaiming its goal of flooding Israelis out of al-Aqsa, Iran and several other countries as well as world bodies started urging an end to the conflict. According to Palestinian authorities Israel’s retaliatory fire has killed over 7,000 Palestinians.
