oints of view
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Essay
Editorial
Overarching
Hamas' Delusion
Is Undermining
Anguished Gazans
In sizing up Iran, ayatollahs matter.
T
ensions over the contours
powers (America, Russian, Britain,
of a framework interna-
France, China plus Germany)
tional agreement, which
present proposed final parameters
would provide sanctions relief in
come the June 30 agreement dead-
exchange for limits intended to
line. He's on record demanding all
keep Iran from developing a nucle- sanctions be lifted the instant of
ar weapon, are obscuring a key
any signed agreement rather than
dimension of negotia-
U.S. President Barack
tions: that Iran's ruling
Obama's position that
I
clerics, the ayatollahs,
1 they be gradually relaxed
despise Israel and the
71111 in concert with Iran
West so aren't likely
adhering to its nuclear
to step back in the
obligations.
short term unless they
believe they'll win out
Past Passions
over the long haul.
It's hard to imagine
Tehran's top leader-
the ayatollahs as a group
ship, the guys who
or Khamenei in par-
Robert
manipulate the levers
ticular changing their
Contrib
of power, has shouted
historical stripes. Such
Edit
"Death to Israel" ever
stripes mark an Islamic
since Iran's 1979 revo-
Republic committed to
lution. That mantra has regularly
religious martyrdom via terrorism
manifested itself through state
and wanton domestic repression as
sponsorship of terrorist attacks
well as to teaching hate through its
that have killed hundreds of
textbooks and subverting all Arab
Israelis.
regimes that are pro-U.S.
The ayatollah-driven revolution
By extension, Persian Iran
promotes the U.S. as "the Great
exerts influence, if not control, in
Satan" in Iranian schools, mosques
four Arab capitals: Baghdad, Iraq;
and news reports. It positions
Beirut, Lebanon; Damascus, Syria;
America as the infidel oppressor
and Sanaa, Yemen. Iranian ter-
even as young Iranians who want
rorist proxies include Hamas, the
change embrace Western culture.
Gaza Strip-based Sunni Islamist
Israel's Yoram Ettinger, a
organization, and Hezbollah, the
respected conservative political
Lebanon-based Shiite Islamist orga-
analyst, pondered the role of the
nization. Via money and arms, Iran
ayatollahs in an April 9 blog via
enables both groups to maintain a
his "Second
terrorist infrastructure, the P5+1
Thought: A U.S.-
negotiations notwithstanding.
Israel Initiative
Was President Obama naive to
think Iran could negotiate "in a
and it got me
thinking.
serious way"? Time will tell, but
the fundamentalism of the ayatol-
Ayatollahs are
Shiite Muslim
lahs seems way too inbred.
religious lead-
Peace-driven the ayatollahs are
Yoram
ers held in high
not.
Ettinger
regard. In their
It's the ayatollahs that built
contorted view,
nuclear alliances with rogue
infidels include Jews, Christians,
nuclear power North Korea and
Hindus and Buddhists — anyone
major nuclear power Russia. It's
not a Muslim adherent, including
the ayatollahs that find support,
inclusive-minded Muslims.
as Ettinger notes, in taqiyyah, an
Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah
Islamic doctrine that essentially
Ali Khamenei, has a supporting
allows the ayatollahs to conceal
cast, but make no mistake: He
and deceive when it comes to
dominates the spotlight. He's no
nuclear interests.
friend of Israel or the West, but
Hard Truth
will have ultimate say over Iran's
future nuclear direction. It's not
As talks intensify between Tehran
in his DNA to be objective or
and P5+1 negotiators, the West
clearheaded when the P5+1 world
must not forget what the ayatollahs
R
11111111r—
46
April 23 • 2015
JI
NI
%
Ayatollah Khamenei
Ayatollah Khamenei
is no friend of Israel
or the West, but will
have ultimate say
over Iran's future
nuclear direction.
stand for.
Ettinger, former congres-
sional affairs minister at Israel's
Washington Embassy, put it well in
his blog post:
"Short-term political conve-
nience and assessments must be
subordinated to long-term assess-
ments of the imperialistic goals
and rogue foreign and national
security policies of the ayatol-
lahs. An agreement with a rogue
regime cannot be effective unless
preconditioned upon the dramatic
transformation of the nature of the
regime.
Ettinger posits that the aya-
tollahs cling to an apocalyptic
perspective long on aggression,
including nuclear, in hopes of real-
izing the 12th, or hidden, imam
— the Mandi, Muhammad's suc-
cessor.
Against this haunting, incit-
ing backdrop, Supreme Leader
Khamenei will rule on the param-
eters of any prospective final deal.
Chances of him buying into any-
thing the West is selling unfortu-
nately seem nil.
❑
econstruction of the Gaza Strip has inched
ahead eight months after Hamas' self-pro-
voked war with Israel and despite postwar
availability of cement and other construction mate-
rial. Hamas, the terrorist group ruling ravaged Gaza,
has diverted would-be rebuilding materials, intended
for its war-weary citizens, to tunnel redevelopment
to regain an edge in future attacks on Israel.
As aboveground reconstruction lags, small bull-
dozers are at work below-grade to restore Hamas'
arsenal of tunnels to smuggle weapons and move
terrorists. Hamas also is trying to produce a cache
of short-range rockets to minimize interception by
Israel's Iron Dome defense system, Steve Emerson's
Washington-based Investigative Project on Terrorism
reports. Negotiations with world powers seeking to
limit Tehran's nuclear capabilities haven't stopped
Iran from drenching Hamas with support to reload.
As Hamas focuses on re-establishing an under-
ground launching pad, tens of thousands of Gazans
remain confined to living out of tents, schools and
other forms of makeshift housing, according to the
Times of Israel.
Further complicating matters and leaving ordinary
Gazans in a lurch is the standoff between Hamas and
its supposed unity agreement partner Fatah, which
governs Palestinian-controlled areas of the West
Bank.
While that agreement seems on ice, Hamas is
devoting plenty of energy – and machinery, tools
and materials – to reconstituting its attack tunnels
in hopes of resurrecting its subterranean assault on
Israel and its people.
Imagine how many of the upwards of 17,000
homes destroyed in Operation Protective Edge, dur-
ing which Israel defended itself, could have been
rebuilt already had Hamas devoted tunnel construc-
tion materials toward new homes?
Rather than threatening Hamas' power, Gaza's
humanitarian crisis has given United Nations stature
to the terrorist group by invoking international con-
cern for the poor fate of Gazans, a plight somehow
blamed on Israel.
Meanwhile, Hamas is doing itself no favors in the
court of international standing by inciting through
Facebook. An April 10 post by Hamas' Interior
Ministry showed a little boy in fighting fatigues and
toting an automatic rifle. The accompanying text
declares that kids under Hamas will grow up learn-
ing "the love of jihad," of religious war for Islam, and
will aspire to die as "martyrs for Allah," Israel-based
Palestinian Media Watch reports.
With terrorist tunnels foremost on the minds of
Hamas leaders in Gaza City, life has worsened for
the 1.8 million people under their ironclad rule since
2007. That's despite Hamas clearly having the con-
struction resources to not just fix partially damaged
apartments, but also to begin rebuilding destroyed
homes, thanks to Israel somewhat easing border
restrictions on incoming supplies, according to news
reports.
❑