maggio 2007
A CounterPunch Exclusive
Democrats Okay Funds for Covert Ops
Secret Bush "Finding" Widens War on Iran
By ANDREW COCKBURN
Six weeks ago, President Bush signed a secret finding authorizing a
covert offensive against the Iranian regime that, according to those
familiar with its contents, "unprecedented in its scope."
Bush's secret directive covers actions across a huge geographic area -
from Lebanon to Afghanistan - but is also far more sweeping in the type
of actions permitted under its guidelines - up to and including the
assassination of targeted officials. This widened scope clears
the way, for example, for full support for the military arm of
Mujahedin-e Khalq, the cultish Iranian opposition group, despite its
enduring position on the State Department's list of terrorist groups.
Similarly, covert funds can now flow without restriction to Jundullah,
or "army of god," the militant Sunni group in Iranian Baluchistan -
just across the Afghan border -- whose leader was featured not long ago
on Dan Rather Reports cutting his brother in law's throat.
Other elements that will benefit from U.S. largesse and advice include
Iranian Kurdish nationalists, as well the Ahwazi arabs of south west
Iran. Further afield, operations against Iran's Hezbollah allies
in Lebanon will be stepped up, along with efforts to destabilize the
Syrian regime.
All this costs money, which in turn must be authorized by Congress, or
at least a by few witting members of the intelligence committees.
That has not proved a problem. An initial outlay of $300 million
to finance implementation of the finding has been swiftly approved with
bipartisan support, apparently regardless of the unpopularity of the
current war and the perilous condition of the U.S. economy.
Until recently, the administration faced a serious obstacle to action
against Iran in the form of Centcom commander Admiral William Fallon,
who made no secret of his contempt for official determination to take
us to war. In a widely publicized incident last January, Iranian
patrol boats approached a U.S. ship in what the Pentagon described as a
"taunting" manner. According to Centcom staff officers, the American
commander on the spot was about to open fire. At that point, the U.S.
was close to war. He desisted only when Fallon personally
and explicitly ordered him not to shoot. The White House,
according to the staff officers, was "absolutely furious" with Fallon
for defusing the incident.
Fallon has since departed. His abrupt resignation in early March
followed the publication of his unvarnished views on our policy of
confrontation with Iran, something that is unlikely to happen to his
replacement, George Bush's favorite general, David Petraeus.
Though Petraeus is not due to take formal command at Centcom until late
summer, there are abundant signs that something may happen before
then. A Marine amphibious force, originally due to leave San
Diego for the Persian Gulf in mid June, has had its sailing date
abruptly moved up to May 4. A scheduled meeting in Europe between
French diplomats acting as intermediaries for the U.S. and Iranian
representatives has been abruptly cancelled in the last two
weeks. Petraeus is said to be at work on a master briefing for
congress to demonstrate conclusively that the Iranians are the source
of our current troubles in Iraq, thanks to their support for the Shia
militia currently under attack by U.S. forces in Baghdad.
Interestingly, despite the bellicose complaints, Petraeus has made
little effort to seal the Iran-Iraq border, and in any case two thirds
of U.S. casualties still come from Sunni insurgents. "The Shia
account for less than one third," a recently returned member of the
command staff in Baghdad familiar with the relevant intelligence
told me, "but if you want a war you have to sell it."
Even without the covert initiatives described above, the huge and
growing armada currently on station in the Gulf is an impressive symbol
of American power.
Armed Might of US Marred By Begging Bowl to Arabs
Sometime in the next two weeks, fleet radar operator may notice a blip
on their screens that represents something rather more profound:
America's growing financial weakness. The blip will be former Treasury
Secretary Robert Rubin's plane commencing its descent into Abu
Dhabi. Rubin's responsibility these days is to help keep
Citigroup afloat despite a balance sheet still waterlogged, despite
frantic bail out efforts by the Federal Reserve and others, by
staggering losses in mortgage bonds. The Abu Dhabi Sovereign
Wealth Fund injected $7.5 billion last November (albeit at a sub-prime
interest rate of eleven percent,) but the bank's urgent need for fresh
capital persists, and Abu Dhabi is where the money is.
Even if those radar operators pay no attention to Mr. Rubin's flight,
and the ironic contrast it illustrates between American military power
and financial weakness, others will, and not just in Tehran.
There's not much a finding can do about that.
Andrew Cockburn is a regular CounterPunch contributor. He lives in
Washington DC. His most recent book is Rumsfeld: His Rise, Fall
and Catastrophic Legacy.