Through the good services of Hezbollah Iran tried out its hand-held missile based response to armoured and airborne platforms (with considerable success I might add). These modernized versions of the Sagger-based AT tactics adopted by the Egyptians in the 1973 war in Sinai would be quite as effective against American and British Armour and attack helicopters in Iraq as they were in South Lebanon. Then too, the Iranian's were able to test the effectiveness of their bunkers and other underground installations against artillery and aerial bombardment, the utility of their long range statistical-weapons (less impressive, about 100 rockets to a kill), and their communications systems under conditions of extreme threat.
Undoubtedly, this was a preliminary to a more extensive campaign in which the Iranians are no less active participants than are the Americans, the Israelis and everyone else who has a vested interest in controlling the Eastern Mediterranean (and beyond). Iraq, the Gulf states, Kuwait, or Oman could easily become the next theatre of Iranian expansionism.
Victor Friedlander-Rakocz victor at kfar-hanassi.org.il ----- Original Message ----- From: "Colin Brace" <cb at lim.nl> To: <lbo-talk at lbo-talk.org> Sent: Sunday, August 13, 2006 23:49 Subject: [lbo-talk] Hersh's latest: Lebanon, warmup for Iran
[...]
"The big question for our Air Force was how to hit a series of hard targets in Iran successfully," the former senior intelligence official said. "Who is the closest ally of the U.S. Air Force in its planning? It's not Congo—it's Israel. Everybody knows that Iranian engineers have been advising Hezbollah on tunnels and underground gun emplacements. And so the Air Force went to the Israelis with some new tactics and said to them, 'Let's concentrate on the bombing and share what we have on Iran and what you have on Lebanon.' " The discussions reached the Joint Chiefs of Staff and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, he said.
"The Israelis told us it would be a cheap war with many benefits," a U.S. government consultant with close ties to Israel said. "Why oppose it? We'll be able to hunt down and bomb missiles, tunnels, and bunkers from the air. It would be a demo for Iran."
[...]
full: http://www.newyorker.com/printables/fact/060821fa_fact
--
Colin Brace
Amsterdam
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