First step to make Gaza a US military base

A maritime corridor is expected to commence operations early May. Construction began in the Mediterranean Sea Thursday off the coast of Gaza to assemble the pier.

Once assembled, the pier will facilitate 90 trucks loaded with humanitarian aid a day into Gaza, with up to 150 when fully operational.

A senior US military official said around 1,000 US Army and Navy soldiers and sailors will work on the mission and live out of a British ship called the Cardigan Bay.

The mission will not involve US boots on the ground, and the military is coordinating closely with Israel to ensure safety and security.

"We believe we have developed a comprehensive integrated security plan with the Israeli Defense Forces to address force protection of American troops," the official said.

Another US administration official said the pier comes amid a deepening humanitarian crisis.

"This is a humanitarian initiative with a humanitarian purpose," the official said.

Aid will be coming in off pallets from the island of Cyprus through the transport of commercial ships, and arrive at a large floating dock miles from Gaza.

Small Army boats will transport trucks with cargo to a pier anchored to Gaza's shore and drive into the strip and a secure area.

The United Nations has warned of a coming famine in northern Gaza unless the humanitarian crisis is addressed.

President Biden first announced the pier in March and initial estimates were slated to be completed by the end of April or early May.

 

United States crucifying right to protest and freedom of expression

The United States sermons other countries about the right to protest and freedom of speech but it is suppressing dissenting voices on college campuses throughout the country.

The police are cracking down on students in universities who are protesting Washington’s financial, political, and arms support for Israel, which has been committing unthinkable crimes in the Gaza Strip since October last year.

Stifling peaceful protests and freedom of speech in American universities has put into serious question the values that the US has been claiming it stands for.

President Joe Biden, like many other Congress members and pro-Israel bigots, has accused the students protesting Israel’s crimes of anti-Semitism.

When asked on Monday what is his message to the protesters at college campuses, Biden said, “I condemn the anti-Semitic protests.”

The statement by the president is absurd and a sheer lie. The students, some of them Jews, are clearly noticing that Israel is committing genocide in the Gaza Strip. In fact, organizations such as Jewish Voice for Peace have played a leading role in the protests.

Possibly, Biden and hawks in Congress are using the anti-Semitic slander to justify financial, military, political, and diplomatic support for the bloodthirsty regime of Benyamin Netanyahu.

Those people around the world who had been cherishing the United States for its self-proclaimed defense of democracy, freedom of opinion, and right to peaceful protests now feel disappointed and realize that they were badly mistaken.

Crackdown on students on campuses brings to mind the Kent State massacre of May 4, 1970, in which four Ohio college students were killed by the Ohio National Guard during a protest against the Vietnam War.

House representative Marjorie Taylor Green and senators Tom Cotton and Josh Hawley, and other leading Senate Republicans, including Lindsey Graham and Charles Grassley, are demanding that Biden go even further. The senators signed a letter on Tuesday calling on the administration to carry out criminal prosecutions and deportations for participants in the demonstrations.

The content of their letter is shameful as it declares that there is an outbreak of anti-Semitic, pro-terrorist mobs on college campuses, led by pro-Hamas rioters. 

On Sunday, Columbia Law School faculty condemned mass arrests and suspensions of students, saying such moves cast serious doubt on the university’s respect for the rule-of-law values that we teach.

“While we as a faculty disagree about the relevant political issues and express no opinion on the merits of the protest, we are writing to urge respect for basic rule-of-law values that ought to govern our University,” 54 law professors wrote, The Intercept reported.

A country that claims it is the leader of the free world but its police are storming the universities to arrest peaceful students is a serious cause of concern. Surely, it would embolden despots and dogmatic parliament members, like Tom Cotton and Taylor Green, in certain other countries.

The Biden administration is providing highly sophisticated lethal arms to Israel and vetoes UN Security Council resolutions against the regime. Congress is also ratifying billions of dollars in military aid for Israel, yet they expect nobody to protest either Israel’s horrible crimes or their complicity in these acts.

According to the Washington Post, one of the demands of the students is for universities to separate themselves from any companies that are empowering Israel's military efforts in Gaza. 

Washington’s support for Israel’s war on Gaza has gone to the extreme. Decision makers in the US are refusing to look into the mirror to find out that their support for Israel has been causing anger and disappointment in the US and around the world.

It is for such illogical and immoral support for hawks in Israel that prominent literary group PEN America has canceled its annual award ceremony after dozens of nominated writers withdrew in protest of the Israeli war in Gaza. The group, which is dedicated to free expression, announced that it was canceling the April 29 event.

A series of open letters signed by PEN nominees in recent weeks have criticized the group for choosing sides against Gaza in the war.

In a letter signed last month, several famous writers including Michelle Alexander, Naomi Klein and Zaina Arafat said the group was acting as a "cultural front for American exceptionalism" and was complicit in "normalizing genocide".

The U. has sent freedom of expression and the right to peaceful protests to the slaughterhouse through its unlawful and immoral support for butchers in Israel.

It is not just the administration, Congress or pro-Israel lobbyists who are coming hard on universities, movements and organizations that are calling for an end to the carnage in Gaza.

Most media outlets in Israel have also resorted to censorship in the Gaza war. For example, according to the Intercept, the New York Times has instructed journalists covering Israel’s war on Gaza to restrict the use of the terms “genocide” and “ethnic cleansing” and to “avoid” using the phrase “occupied territory” when describing Palestinian land.

 

 

Excerpts from the speech of Abu Obeida

Abu Obeida, the military spokesman for the Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Resistance movement Hamas, gave a speech on the 200th day of war, to illustrate the achievements of the Resistance and the failures of the criminal Israeli army.

We call on the masses of our nation to escalate their movement in support of the resistance. The criminal enemy is trying to restore its image 200 days after the Battle of Al-Aqsa Flood

 “The criminal enemy continues to try to salvage its image, only to further receive shame and disgrace.

200 days have passed and the Zionist army is still trapped in the quagmire of Gaza, exploiting its predicament on the ground for more killing and destruction.

 The occupation army failed against our resistance and our people after its image was shattered in front of the world.

We say to Netanyahu, Your death, the end of your occupation, and your downfall are inevitable, and your lamentations before the world will not change your image.

We in Al-Qassam Brigades have documented only a fraction of our heroes’ strikes against the enemy.

Our strikes and resistance will continue as long as the aggression of the occupation or its presence persists on any inch of our land.

The world witnessed the might of our fighters and their painful strikes not only in repelling enemy attacks but also during its withdrawal.

Among the lies of the enemy government is attempting to deceive the world into believing that it has eliminated the Al-Qassam Brigades and only the Rafah Brigade remains.

The occupation forces are trying to deceive the world into believing that they have eliminated all factions of the resistance, and this is a big lie.

In 200 days, the enemy could only achieve mass killings, destruction, and murder.

The defeat suffered by the occupation army in 60 minutes couldn’t defeat us in 200 days. They search for an imaginary victory everywhere, but wherever they look for it, they find us there shedding their soldiers’ blood.

Our strikes against the enemy will continue, adopting renewed tactics as long as they remain present on every inch of our land.

The occupation’s claims of linking victory to entering Rafah and destroying what remains of the brigades there are merely attempts to feel a false sense of triumph.

The army that focuses on killing children and women, destroying graves, seeking revenge against the martyrs’ bodies, targeting innocent civilians, bombing aid trucks, and assassinating members of international and local humanitarian aid organizations is the mark of an army feeling significant defeat and disappointment, not one confident in its alleged achievements.

We will not relinquish the fundamental rights of our people, foremost among them withdrawal, lifting the siege, and the return of the displaced to their homes.

The occupation is trying to evade all its promises in negotiations and wants to gain more time.

The scenario of Ron Arad may perhaps be the most likely scenario to be repeated with the enemy’s prisoners in Gaza. The ball is in the court of those concerned, namely the occupation’s public, but time is short, and opportunities are few to release the prisoners.

The so-called military pressure will only push us to stand firm on our positions and preserve the rights of our people without compromise.

To the families of the Israeli prisoners, We are more truthful than your government.

The blood toll paid by our people will only be met with the snatching of our natural rights and the rights of our resistance.

One of the goals of Al-Aqsa Flood is to unify our peoples and arenas after attempts by the occupation to isolate the Palestinian cause.

We appreciate every military and popular effort that joins Al-Aqsa Flood, and we salute the fronts of fighting in Lebanon, Yemen, and Iraq.

The hysterical reaction of the Zionists towards resistance actions from various fronts indicates the importance of resistance action.

The foremost front of resistance is the West Bank front, and we salute every inch of our steadfast free bank.

Jordan is from us and we are from it; it is one of the most important Arab arenas in terms of popular and public engagement and it occupies the enemy’s mind significantly.

Iran’s response in its size and nature, setting new rules and disrupting the calculations of the occupation, and we call on the masses of our nation to escalate their supportive movement for the resistance.

Abu Obeida concluded the speech by calling on the masses of our nation to escalate their supportive movement for the resistance.

Courtesy: Information Clearing House

Resilience of Russian Economy, beyond doubt

Bloomberg reports that Russian government has touted robust domestic demand in boosting its 2024 growth forecast on Tuesday. While some might be tempted to dismiss the move as geopolitical bravado in the face of the US stepping up Ukraine aid, Russian economic strength is real.

In fact, Moscow’s new 2.8% GDP projection weighs in under the IMF’s latest ‑ also upgraded forecast, of 3.2%, released last week.

It might be tempting to put this resilience down to a massive defense build-up. But the Washington-based IMF had much the same assessment as President Vladimir Putin’s team: a strong job market and swift wage rises are helping to power consumer spending. The fund even cautioned “there are some signs of overheating,” with unemployment at a record low.

What about all the Western sanctions, the mass emigration of Russian talent and the departure of a number of global corporate giants? Alexander Isakov at Bloomberg Economics offers some insight.

The sanctions on Russian energy aren’t as tight as they were for, say, Venezuela and Iran, thanks in large part to the West not wanting to worsen its own cost-of-living shock with a further surge in oil prices.

Some financial sanctions had already been imposed in 2014 after the Crimea invasion, and Russia had already amortized that cost.

Russian households remain confident thanks to a tight labor market, with the jobless rate at 2.8%. A largely voluntary military recruitment model, using monetary incentives, has let consumers keep calm and carry on.

Since some large multinationals have stayed in place, will Russia’s economy just keep on ticking?

Isakov notes that part of job market’s tightness is indeed a side effect of fiscal outlays tied to the war, funded in part by energy exports. Moscow needs crude prices to stay around the current US$90 a barrel levels to keep the budget balanced — a slump to, say, US$60 could make things difficult.

The IMF sees growth slowing to 1.8% next year, and cautioned that Russia’s potential growth rate has dropped to around 1.25% from 1.7% before the war.

This would mean that Russia’s income per capita may no longer converge toward Western European levels in the medium to long term, but for now, Russia’s chugging right along

 

US warns Pakistan of potential risk of sanctions

The United States warned on Wednesday countries doing business with Iran faced the “potential risk of sanctions,” as President Ebrahim Raisi concluded a three-day visit to Pakistan where his government signed eight memoranda of understanding (MoUs) for cooperation in different fields and to boost trade to US$10 billion.

The Iranian president arrived in Islamabad on Monday as the two Muslim neighbors sought to mend ties after unprecedented tit-for-tat military strikes earlier this year. The visit also took place as tensions continued to remain high in the Middle East after Iran launched airstrikes on Israel a week ago and Israel retaliated with its own attack on Friday.

During his stay in Pakistan, Raisi held several official meetings in Islamabad, Lahore and Karachi to discuss issues related to trade, connectivity, energy and people-to-people contacts.

Asked about his engagements in Pakistan and signing of MoUs, US State Department Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel cautioned against possible sanctions in a brief response.

“Just let me say broadly, we advise anyone considering business deals with Iran to be aware of the potential risk of sanctions,” he said. “But ultimately, the Government of Pakistan can speak to their own foreign policy pursuits.”

He was also asked about the US administration’s decision to announce sanctions against three Chinese and one Belarus-based entity supplying missile components to Pakistan last week.

“The sanctions were made because these were entities that were proliferators of weapons of mass destruction and the means of their delivery,” Patel said. “These were entities based in the PRC (Peoples Republic of China), in Belarus, and that we have witnessed to have supplied equipment and other applicable items to Pakistan’s ballistic missile program.”

“We’re going to continue to disrupt and take actions against proliferation networks and concerning weapons of mass destruction procurement activities wherever they may occur,” he added.

 

US Senate passes Ukraine and Israel funding

The Senate on Tuesday passed a US$95 billion emergency foreign aid package, ending months of bitter fighting over US$61 billion for the war in Ukraine that had deeply divided the Republican Party. The measure passed by a vote of 79 to 18 and now goes to President Joe Biden for his signature.

The package also includes US$15 billion in military aid for Israel and US$9 billion in humanitarian aid for Gaza and other war-torn areas, which became another flashpoint among conservative Republicans who argued it didn’t have adequate safeguards to keep it from going to Hamas.

It provides US$8 billion in security assistance to deter Chinese aggression in the Indo-Pacific.

It includes language to force the Chinese owner of TikTok to divest from the popular app, which is used by more than 140 million Americans, or otherwise face a ban within the United States.

The centerpiece of the package is US$47.7 billion that would flow through the Defense Department to provide training, equipment, weapons, logistics support and supplies to help Ukraine’s military, as well as US$13.4 billion to replenish US equipment sent to Ukraine and US$20.5 billion for US Armed Forces support in Europe.

It also includes US$9.5 billion in economic aid to Ukraine structured as a forgivable loan, an idea that former President Trump gave life to when the Senate passed a previous version of the US$95 billion assistance package in February.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell, who worked for months to get Ukraine aid passed, hailed the vote as a landmark moment.

“Today the Senate sends a unified message to the entire world. America will always defend democracy in its hour of need. We tell our allies we will stand with you. We tell our adversaries don’t mess with us,” Schumer declared on the Senate floor.

McConnell took to the floor to hail the prosperity the United States has enjoyed because it’s a global leader but told colleagues that that leadership comes with responsibilities to allies who help maintain peace and order throughout much of the world.

And he chastised colleagues who dragged out the debate over helping Ukraine based on what he called the “sheer fiction” that supporting the war is not a vital national security interest.

Evaluating Iran’s calibrated response

This is not the first time that Iran and Israel have faced each other. One of the reasons for not expanding the level of tension between these two actors is the agreed level of action and reaction by both the countries.

After October 07, it seems that the Zionist regime is no longer a rational actor due to the shocking blow it received, along with the preference of Netanyahu's personal and party interests over other issues.

The number of killings and civilian casualties, the targeting of hospitals, and the shutting off of water, electricity, and food have made even the regime's traditional allies criticize its irrational behavior.

This irrational behavior emanated from the lack of accurate calculation of Iran's behavior in response to changing the red line drawn in the parties' actions. However, it is also possible that due to the understanding of Tehran's intention not to expand the war and engage in a conflict with economic problems and sanctions, there was hope for continued strategic patience from Iran.

Iran, whose security is based on deterrence, considered the attack on the embassy a serious violation of its existential interest.

In a situation where targeting Iran's nuclear infrastructure has been among the goals of Israel and America for years, the main factor that caused such a decision was Iran's significant deterrence. 

However, after this attack on the embassy, what could be the perception about Iran's deterrence? Iran's determination to respond was inevitable; the question of its ability and design was raised.

Iran wanted to give a clear response to Israel in a situation where the Zionist regime was under pressure in the field of public opinion due to numerous violations of human rights, its widening gap with the West and the United States regarding the handling of operations, and future of Gaza.

All these elements indicate that Iran did not seek to expand the conflict with Israel and other actors to open a new front and disrupt this situation.

Therefore, the puzzle of the response to the attack on the consulate had two apparently contradictory and paradoxical variables.

First, the answer must be given in such a way that the damaged deterrence is revived and causes a change in the enemy's perception of this type of strike.

Second, the conflict should not spread, neither in the geographical field nor in the increasing of actors involved.

According to Iran's previous experiences reviving its deterrence, solving this problem and paradox have been two conceivable tools and leverages: 1) Designing a type of military operation that demonstrates its capability (at the tactical and design level) but not at the level of forcing the target to respond and 2) Through political tools. The uncertainty in the minds of the regional and global states regarding their goals should be reduced. 

Now, if we examine the True Promise operation with this statement, these things are evident. According to previous experiences, Iran and the Axis of Resistance have a specific knowledge and understanding of the weak points of the Zionist regime.

One of the most obvious of these weaknesses is the lack of strategic depth and a clear vulnerability regarding the number of strikes and the number of fronts. Also, using the principle of surprise usually increases the success rate.

However, Iran, knowing these cases, presented a designed response in which it did not involve all the actors of the resistance axis who were active during the past months; at the same time, it responded with minimal quantity and quality (according to the Israeli regime's statistics, Hamas in Al-Aqsa Storm operation had used about 3,500 projectiles) and of course, the start of the attack was already known hours ago.

At the same time, during the days before the operation, Tehran had expressed to the regional and extra-regional countries its intention to carry out this "calibrated response."

This operation has shown Iran's maturity in design and implementation. In general, it should be kept in mind that the main audience of deterrence is not public opinion but decision-makers.

Security officials must know the type of target selection, weapons, and tactics used better than anyone else. Until now, it seems that Western officials and experts have received this calibrated response.