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TEHRAN \u2013 In his third and latest video message to the Iranian people in 15 months, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed a desire for \u201cpeace\u201d, but said the Iranian government is obstructing it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He alleged that Iran’s leaders aim to \u201cconquer other nations\u201d while Israel is seeking only to \u201cdefend our state\u201d.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Netanyahu’s previous address to the Iranian people preceded the October 26th Israeli airstrikes on military installations inside Iran, which resulted in the martyrdom of four Iranian Army personnel and one civilian. Analysts believe the strikes fell short of their intended destructive capacity due to Iran’s effective air defenses, preventing Israeli fighter jets from entering Iranian airspace and precluding the execution of subsequent planned phases of the attack.<\/p>\n
The Israeli prime minister made no mention of the October assault in his Thursday address but said Israel has managed to crush Iran\u2019s allied forces in Syria, Gaza, and Lebanon. \u201cAll this came as President Trump pointed out this week, because of Israel and its fighting success.\u201d<\/p>\n
It’s hard to label Israel’s deadly campaigns in Gaza and Lebanon as successful. The stated goal \u2013 the “eradication” of Hamas and Hezbollah \u2013 remains a distant dream. Hamas continues to inflict casualties on Israeli forces from the ruins of Gaza, and Hezbollah’s attacks against Israeli positions in the occupied territories continued until moments before the November 27th ceasefire. Israel’s only potential victory, the fall of Assad in Syria, is far from a guaranteed win, its contribution debatable and its long-term consequences potentially disastrous for both Israel and the U.S. and their partner in crime, Turkey.\u00a0<\/p>\n
“Netanyahu’s latest pronouncements should be viewed within a broader context. These statements are a piece in a bigger puzzle,” explains West Asia expert Abbas Aslani. “A recent Wall Street Journal report on alleged planned U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities, and an orchestrated media frenzy about the European Troika’s May threat of snapping back international sanctions against Iran, are other pieces of that puzzle.\u201d<\/p>\n
In his latest video message, Netanyahu claimed the Iranian government \u201chas stolen billions of dollars\u201d from the Iranian population to support its allies in the region. He then chanted an infamous slogan rioters used during the 2022 fall unrest inside Iran and said \u201cone day Iran will be free\u201d.<\/p>\n
“Netanyahu’s strategy is to reignite unrest within Iran. The Wall Street Journal article and the manufactured controversy over the potential \u2018snapback\u2019 of UN sanctions are designed to instill fear and weaken the morale of Iranians,\u201d Aslani elaborated. \u201cWhile Netanyahu likely hopes this will create an opening for Western military intervention, the West’s ultimate aim is to pressure Iran into concessions on its regional influence and nuclear program during potential future negotiations.”<\/p>\n
Netanyahu also talked of his alleged willingness to pursue peace with regional countries in the video published right after the fall of Assad\u2019s government last week: \u201cWe [are] reaching out a hand to whoever wants to live with us in peace, and we will cut off the hand or whoever tries to hurt us.\u201d<\/p>\n
Reports show that since Assad\u2019s downfall, Israel has attacked over 1800 positions on Syrian soil, destroyed 80% of Syria\u2019s military infrastructure, and occupied new regions in the country. Based on the Israeli prime minister\u2019s proclamations of peace, none of that was supposed to happen as the regime\u2019s enemy \u2013 Assad \u2013 was no longer in the picture.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Putting Israel\u2019s latest move in Syria next to the regime\u2019s killing of over 50,000 civilians in Gaza and Lebanon, it is unlikely that Netanyahu\u2019s lame show would sway Iranians.<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t believe attempts to instill fear in Iran would give the West what they want either,\u201d Aslani said, citing Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei\u2019s Wednesday statement that the Resistance’s reach will expand throughout the region.<\/p>\n
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