{"id":669,"date":"2008-11-01T14:55:25","date_gmt":"2008-11-01T14:55:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/republicancommunist.org\/blog\/?p=669"},"modified":"2021-03-03T19:04:45","modified_gmt":"2021-03-03T19:04:45","slug":"no-attack-on-iran","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/republicancommunist.org\/blog\/2008\/11\/01\/no-attack-on-iran\/","title":{"rendered":"No Attack on Iran"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>The stark warning by David Owen in his article, <cite>Signs of an Israeli strike on Iran<\/cite>,<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_1');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_1');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_1\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[1]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_1\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><cite>The Sunday Times<\/cite> October 12.<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_1').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_1', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script> is just one of hundreds of references to the <q>window of opportunity for a <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym>-backed\/tolerated Israeli strike on Iran<\/q> between November 2008 and mid-January 2009, when the outgoing <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> president might feel inclined to give a \u2018nod and a wink\u2019 to Israel.<\/p>\n<p>Over the last few weeks French president Nicolas Sarkozy has publicly suggested on at least three occasions that an Israeli attack might be imminent &#8211; and acceptable &#8211; unless Iran quits enriching uranium, and implied that in such an event the international community should turn a blind eye. In early October French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner said Israel was expected to launch a military strike on Iran before Tehran acquires a nuclear bomb.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_2');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_2');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_2\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[2]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_2\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><cite>The Sunday Telegraph<\/cite> October 5.<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_2').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_2', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script><\/p>\n<p>If we are to believe an unnamed <q>European head of government<\/q>, in May 2008 Israel considered attacking Iran\u2019s nuclear facilities, but was told by George Bush that he would not support it. According to this source, the <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> was anxious that <q>Israel would not succeed in disabling Iran\u2019s nuclear facilities in a single assault even with the use of dozens of aircraft. It could not mount a series of attacks over several days without risking full-scale war.<\/q><span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_3');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_3');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_3\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[3]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_3\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><cite>The Guardian<\/cite> September 25.<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_3').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_3', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Of course, in the meantime the <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> has sold bunker-buster bombs &#8211; 28,000 M72A7 66mm <acronym title=\"Light Antitank Assault Weapon\">LAAW<\/acronym> systems, as well as 60,000 M72AS 21mm sub-calibre training rockets &#8211; to Israel. The Pentagon was also preparing to sell the <acronym title=\"Guided Bomb Unit\">GBU<\/acronym>-39 Small Diameter Bomb to Israel<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_4');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_4');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_4\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[4]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_4\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><cite>World Tribune<\/cite> September 15.<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_4').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_4', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script> and some analysts believe this does change the scenario compared to May 2008. In addition the next Israeli prime minister, whether Tzipi Livni or Binyamin Netanyahu, will be more hawkish than current premier Ehud Olmert.<\/p>\n<p>No doubt Bush and the neo-conservatives will not be too concerned about leaving Barack Obama or John McCain with another messy war in the Middle East. In the short-term an Israeli attack and the expected Iranian retaliation might divert attention from the economic crisis and even create a temporary economic boom.<\/p>\n<p>However, it is not just the <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> presidential elections that present this<q>window of opportunity<\/q> for an Israeli-<acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> attack. The next Iranian president will be elected in June 2009 and, given the current slump in Mahmoud Ahmadinejad\u2019s popular ratings, a number of \u2018reformist\u2019 candidates have indicated their candidature (as in the case of former speaker Mehdi Kahroubi) or are negotiating terms under which they may stand (as in the case of ex-president Mohammad Khatami). If Iran elects a \u2018reformist\u2019 president, little will change internally. However, it would be difficult to convince the outside world that seyyed khandan (the smiling mullah) is as much of a threat as the <q>lunatic<\/q> Ahmadinejad.<\/p>\n<p>Most Israeli leaders agree with comments made by former Mossad chief Ephraim Halevy that <q>Ahmadinejad is our greatest gift \u2026We couldn\u2019t carry out a better operation at the Mossad than to put a guy like Ahmadinejad in power in Iran<\/q>.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_5');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_5');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_5\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[5]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_5\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><cite>Ha\u2019aretz<\/cite> August 20<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_5').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_5', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script> No doubt some Israeli politicians calculate that in 2009 the current president\u2019s loss of popular support might lead to the election of a \u2018reformist\u2019 candidate and in that case their best excuse for attacking Iran would be removed.<\/p>\n<p>Contrary to the hysteria presented by pro-Zionist forces in the <acronym title=\"United Kingdom\">UK<\/acronym>, including some on the \u2018left\u2019, Israel is not concerned about an Iranian attack. In the same interview Halevy added that <q>an Iranian attack on Israel would probably have little impact, because Iranian missiles would largely be intercepted by Israel\u2019s advanced anti-missile defence system<\/q>. Another former senior Mossad official, who served under Olmert, told the American magazine Time that <q>Iran\u2019s achievement is creating an image of itself as a scary superpower when it\u2019s really a paper tiger<\/q>.<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_6');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_6');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_6\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[6]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_6\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\">Ibid.<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_6').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_6', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script> However, both Israel and the United States have been hoping to impose \u2018regime change\u2019 on Iran and a change of government might deprive Tel Aviv and Washington of the \u201cgift\u201d of Ahmadinejad.<\/p>\n<p>Irrespective of what happens during this <q>window of opportunity<\/q>, Iran\u2019s future seems bleak. Economic conditions are worsening and the sudden drop in the price of crude oil &#8211; and the effect of sanctions &#8211; have made a terrible situation worse. There is also the threat of new sanctions, irrespective of whether Obama or McCain wins next month. The Iranian regime had delusions that an Obama victory would reduce the pressure on it, but it is quite clear that Obama\u2019s proposed petrol sanctions against Iran will be much more effective than McCain\u2019s half-baked ideas.<\/p>\n<p>Plans for a \u2018coalition of the willing\u2019 led by the <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym>, Germany, France and the <acronym title=\"United Kingdom\">UK<\/acronym> are being finalised, and discussions are taking place regarding targeting the export of engineering products for Iranian refineries, as well as refined oil itself<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_7');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_7');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_7\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[7]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_7\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ynetnews.com\/articles\/0,7340,L-3608736,00.html\">Article<\/a><\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_7').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_7', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script>. Given Tehran\u2019s limited refining capacity, it is quite clear that this form of sanctions will have a devastating effect on the working class and the poor in Iran, where during the harsh winters the consumption of refined oil and gas shoots up, especially in the northern provinces.<\/p>\n<h3>Iranian exile groups<\/h3>\n<p>There is no doubt that war and the threat of war sharpen differences across the political spectrum, and the Iranian opposition in exile is no exception to this. As sanctions begin to bite and the threat of military attack increases, one can detect three irreconcilable divisions.<\/p>\n<p>First we have ex-leftists and feminists, mainly in the United States, who, faced with the threat of war, have moved more and more towards a defencist position regarding the Islamic republic. A horrible example of this was displayed during Ahmadinejad\u2019s recent visit to New York, when a number of Iranian \u2018lefts\u2019 tried to prove their \u2018anti-imperialist\u2019 credentials by dining with him and were duly photographed (the ex-feminists wearing headscarves).<\/p>\n<p>The second group consists of open or secret advocates of \u2018regime change from above\u2019, together with those who have benefited directly or indirectly from the billions of dollars allocated by the <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> and Israeli governments for this purpose. Even if they do not admit it, these groups hope that an Israeli-<acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> attack during the <q>window of opportunity<\/q> or, if that fails, oil sanctions this winter will overthrow the Islamic republic and that they will have a role to play under the subsequent \u2018regime change\u2019 administration.<\/p>\n<p>In such a scenario, where both the Iranian working class and Iranian people as a whole are absent, the current repressive-religious capitalist regime would at best be replaced by a repressive-secular capitalist regime. But this is being championed by an unholy alliance of right-wing royalists, republicans and the small pro-<acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym>, pro-Israeli section of the Iranian exiled \u2018left\u2019 &#8211; reformist ex-trade unionists, who see nothing wrong in joining forces with the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions and the <acronym title=\"Central Intelligence Agency\">CIA<\/acronym>-sponsored Radio Free Iran in imperialist-inspired campaigns for \u2018workers\u2019 rights\u2019. Members of some so-called workers\u2019 parties and organisations in exile seem to have no problem tailing bourgeois secularism and bourgeois feminism.<\/p>\n<p>Former activists of the International Alliance in Support of Workers in Iran (<acronym title=\"International Alliance in Support of Workers in Iran\">IASWI<\/acronym>) had gradually moved to the right under the influence of the International Transport Workers Federation (<acronym title=\"International Transport Workers Federation\">ITF<\/acronym>) and the International Trade Union Confederation (<acronym title=\"International Trade Union Confederation\">ITUC<\/acronym>) &#8211; international labour organisations that are deeply compromised politically. They have been more or less silent on the\u00a0role of\u00a0imperialism in the Middle East and have acted as junior partners in implementing the reactionary agenda of the <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> and its allies<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_8');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_8');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_8\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[8]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_8\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><a href=\"http:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20130518063355\/http:\/\/www.hopoi.org\/6march.html\">Article<\/a><\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_8').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_8', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script>.<\/p>\n<p>So it was no surprise to see exiled Iranian <acronym title=\"International Alliance in Support of Workers in Iran\">IASWI<\/acronym> activists issuing a leaflet in Farsi last year claiming that imperialism and war were not important to the issue of defending Iranian workers. It is ironic that inside Iran these forces encourage trade unionists not to challenge either capitalism or the regime. This statement led to major debates within the Iranian left both inside and outside Iran. Comrade Torab Saleth was one of the first to attack this unprincipled position in a number of articles and talks and later Iraj Azarin (a founder-member of the Worker-communist Party of Iran, who left it in the mid-1990s) and Reza Moghadam wrote a series of articles<span class=\"footnote_referrer\"><a role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" onclick=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_9');\" onkeypress=\"footnote_moveToReference_669_1('footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_9');\" ><sup id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_9\" class=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text\">[9]<\/sup><\/a><span id=\"footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_9\" class=\"footnote_tooltip\"><a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125222254\/http:\/\/www.wsu-iran.org\/\">Workers Socialist Unity Iran site<\/a> (In Arabic)<\/span><\/span><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> jQuery('#footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_9').tooltip({ tip: '#footnote_plugin_tooltip_text_669_1_9', tipClass: 'footnote_tooltip', effect: 'fade', predelay: 0, fadeInSpeed: 200, delay: 400, fadeOutSpeed: 200, position: 'top center', relative: true, offset: [-7, 0], });<\/script> attacking those who seek right-wing support for Iranian workers, condemning those who deny the role of imperialism and capitalism and denouncing campaigns that deal with Iran\u2019s lack of \u2018democracy\u2019 as if an imperialist attack would not affect Iranian workers.<\/p>\n<p>In the category of those soft on imperialism one should also place groups and parties that have accepted funding from, to say the least, dubious sources, enabling them to run, for example, 24-hour satellite TV stations. In exchange they agree to compromise basic principles in the following ways:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>1. They do not mention the invasion and occupation of Iraq and Afghanistan, or the threat of war and the effects of sanctions against Iran.<\/li>\n<li>2. They do not identify their TV stations as \u2018socialist\u2019 or \u2018communist\u2019 &#8211; instead they hide behind \u2018Kurdish\u2019, \u2018secular\u2019 or \u2018feminist\u2019 names. It seems that the <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym>-Israeli agencies funding such stations are also under the illusion that they are supporting right-wing national minority or secular groups.<\/li>\n<li>3. They avoid any criticism of Iraqi occupation president Jalal Talebani.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>There might be other conditions we are not aware of. It is, however, ironic that most of these \u201824-hour\u2019 TV stations only broadcast programmes for one or two hours a day, showing scenery and playing kitsch Persian or Kurdish music for the other 22 hours. At around half a million dollars a year per station, the <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> and Israel are clearly not getting value for money.<\/p>\n<p>Inside Iran, radical students and young workers are horrified by the antics of these so-called \u2018socialists\u2019. One left-wing student at Tehran University told us recently: <\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Clearly some of our exiled \u2018comrades\u2019 have lost their marbles if they think you can defend the social movements in Iran without mentioning the threat of war and the effects of the current sanctions. Have they learnt nothing from regime change <acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym>-style in Iraq and Afghanistan?<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Young workers in Iran, many of whom follow internal and international events with intense interest, are also rejecting the reformist line of ex-labour activists in exile who argue that the \u2018support\u2019 given by right-wing, pro-<acronym title=\"United States\">US<\/acronym> trade unions to Iranian workers is some kind of \u2018international solidarity\u2019. An article in Farsi published on many Iranian websites, including those of Rahe Kargar and Roshangari, denounces the position of sections of the British left, such as the Alliance for Workers\u2019 Liberty &#8211; whose leadership has excused in advance an Israeli attack on Iran, while at the same time has delusions about building solidarity with Iranian students. One Iran Khodro car worker told me last week: <q>We really don\u2019t want this kind of support. It would be the kiss of death for us.<\/q><\/p>\n<p>Fortunately, however, in addition to the Tehran apologists and those compromised by imperialism, there is a third group of Iranian exiles that has taken up a consistently principled position &#8211; one that firmly opposes imperialist war, while calling for the overthrow of the Islamic regime by a revolutionary movement led by workers. Inside Iran, this is by far the largest of the three. Those groups that fall into the first two categories should be well aware that history will judge them as harshly as it has judged the treachery of the Fedayeen Majority, Tudeh and many international Stalinist and Trotskyist groups which supported the repressive policies of the Islamic regime in 1979 and the early 1980s.<\/p>\n<p>The same applies to British groups &#8211; on the one hand, the defenders of the Islamic regime such as the Socialist Workers Party, George Galloway and his followers (they are to the right of the Tudeh and Fedayeen Majority Stalinists!); on the other hand, those like the <acronym title=\"Alliance for Workers Liberty\">AWL<\/acronym> leadership who are prepared to excuse and justify a possible Zionist military intervention against Iran. Let us hope these people will learn from history.<\/p>\n<h3>Notes<\/h3>\n<div class=\"speaker-mute footnotes_reference_container\"> <div class=\"footnote_container_prepare\"><h3><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_label pointer\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_669_1();\">References<\/span><span role=\"button\" tabindex=\"0\" class=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button\" style=\"display: none;\" onclick=\"footnote_expand_collapse_reference_container_669_1();\">[<a id=\"footnote_reference_container_collapse_button_669_1\">+<\/a>]<\/span><\/h3><\/div> <div id=\"footnote_references_container_669_1\" style=\"\"><table class=\"footnotes_table footnote-reference-container\"><caption class=\"accessibility\">References<\/caption> <tbody> \r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_669_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_1');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_1\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>1<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><cite>The Sunday Times<\/cite> October 12.<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_669_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_2');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_2\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>2<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><cite>The Sunday Telegraph<\/cite> October 5.<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_669_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_3');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_3\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>3<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><cite>The Guardian<\/cite> September 25.<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_669_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_4');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_4\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>4<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><cite>World Tribune<\/cite> September 15.<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_669_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_5');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_5\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>5<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><cite>Ha\u2019aretz<\/cite> August 20<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_669_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_6');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_6\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>6<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\">Ibid.<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_669_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_7');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_7\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>7<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.ynetnews.com\/articles\/0,7340,L-3608736,00.html\">Article<\/a><\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_669_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_8');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_8\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>8<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><a href=\"http:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20130518063355\/http:\/\/www.hopoi.org\/6march.html\">Article<\/a><\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n<tr class=\"footnotes_plugin_reference_row\"> <th scope=\"row\" class=\"footnote_plugin_index_combi pointer\"  onclick=\"footnote_moveToAnchor_669_1('footnote_plugin_tooltip_669_1_9');\"><a id=\"footnote_plugin_reference_669_1_9\" class=\"footnote_backlink\"><span class=\"footnote_index_arrow\">&#8593;<\/span>9<\/a><\/th> <td class=\"footnote_plugin_text\"><a href=\"https:\/\/web.archive.org\/web\/20210125222254\/http:\/\/www.wsu-iran.org\/\">Workers Socialist Unity Iran site<\/a> (In Arabic)<\/td><\/tr>\r\n\r\n <\/tbody> <\/table> <\/div><\/div><script type=\"text\/javascript\"> function footnote_expand_reference_container_669_1() { jQuery('#footnote_references_container_669_1').show(); 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