Iran’s Strange and Puzzling Attack on Israel
I can’t put my finger on it, but something about the Iranian attack on Israel doesn’t pass the sniff test.
As tensions between the two countries escalated, on April 1st, Israel bombed the Iranian “embassy” in Syria, killing seven military advisors, including Revolutionary Guard Commander Mohammad Reza Zahedi. Israel is typically tight-lipped about its military operations but had been complaining about weapons smuggled from Iran into the West Bank.
At the time, Iran’s ambassador to Syria said Tehran’s response would be “harsh.”
The promised retaliation was unleashed on Saturday when Iran launched over 300 drones, cruise missiles and ballistic missiles at Israel. Let’s not understate the significance of that kind of ordnance. Iran reportedly has nine different ballistic missiles capable of reaching Jerusalem, along with a variety of cruise missiles and domestically produced drones. It is estimated that the most advanced ballistic missile in Iran’s arsenal, the Ghaem-100, can travel 2500 miles carrying a 2000-pound warhead.
So, upon hearing the breaking news of the massive attack with relatively sophisticated weapons, I’m certain we were all expecting the worst: significant casualties and an immediate and massive retaliatory strike by Israel.
However, as of Sunday morning, there was only one reported casualty, a 7-year-old Arab girl, who was hit in the head by falling shrapnel.
That’s it? 300 ballistic missiles, cruise missiles and drones, and only one person dies?
What about military compounds, power plants or other important facilities?
Nope.
Hmmmm….
U.S. Made Defense Systems to the Rescue
Apparently, according to reports, the reason why the Iranian attack produced such embarrassingly meager results was the combined defense networks of Israel, the U.S. and Jordan. Israel released a statement claiming its air defenses stopped 99% of the incoming missiles and drones. Additionally, a U.S. led coalition of aircraft and naval assets assisted in the intercept. Even Jordan got in on the act and shot down “dozens” of Iranian drones that violated its airspace.
The capacity to organize such a coordinated response in such a short period is absolutely astounding, unless… Could Iran have telegraphed its intentions ahead of time so Israel and the U.S. could prepare? In hindsight, it seems odd that senile Joe Biden, never one to hold his cards close to his chest, ominously warned that an Iranian attack on Israel was going to happen “sooner rather than later” in a Friday press briefing.
Either we’ve underestimated Slow Joe, and the intelligence community has a mole in the highest echelons of Iran’s military, or Iran somehow provided a blueprint of the attack before it was launched.
Strangely, Israel’s response to the strike has been unusually tepid. Their military did not retaliate immediately, and instead, they convened a war cabinet that is still considering a response, but no final decisions have been made. An Israeli official familiar with the matter said, “It is clear Israel will respond. The question is when and at what scale.” The official added that war planners and government officials were considering whether they needed to retaliate immediately or if they could afford to wait.
Meanwhile, disorientated Joe Biden apparently told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the U.S. would not support a counter attack.
“I told Prime Minister Netanyahu that Israel demonstrated a remarkable capacity to defend against and defeat even unprecedented attacks — sending a clear message to its foes that they cannot effectively threaten the security of Israel.”
Even Iran went out of its way to proclaim that the matter was concluded in a statement issued by their mission to the U.N.
“Iran’s military action was in response to the Zionist regime’s aggression against our diplomatic premises in Damascus. The matter can be deemed concluded. However, should the Israeli regime make another mistake, Iran’s response will be considerably more severe.”
The Next Phase of the Conflict
So, who would benefit from a scripted event of this nature?
Remember the $14 billion Hamas war aid for Israel that has been languishing in Congress because of Republican opposition to the $60 billion Biden wants for the money pit in Ukraine?
Rest assured that Monday morning, that aid package will be front and center in the House of Representatives. The chain of events will likely go like this: The House will pass the Israel portion of the package by an overwhelming margin and send it to the Senate, where it will languish. Meanwhile, the Senate will send back their original version of the bill that includes the $60 billion in Ukraine aid.
The pressure on the House to pass the entire bill so Israel gets its money will be enormous. I predict the Senate version will pass in its entirety, and before the end of the week, Biden will sign it.
…Because, Ukraine is losing the war with Russia, although I bet you can’t remember the last time you read about it. Biden knows it, hell, everyone knows it, but leftists are keenly aware of the disastrous consequences if Ukraine loses the war before the 2024 election. That’s why it’s critical to secure funding for more weapons to allow the beleaguered Ukrainian military to hold out a few more months.
A Win, Win… Win?
So, there you have it. Israel loses one life, suffers no damage to infrastructure, and gets the $14 billion it needs to finish eliminating Hamas. Joe Biden gets the $60 billion he needs to keep Ukraine from going under before the election.
And Iran?
Yeah, that one is a head scratcher. What does Iran get from launching an attack on Israel that resulted in one casualty? One might argue that the failure to kill anyone, or even destroy a few buildings for that matter, would diminish Iran’s military prestige in the eyes of the world.
Then again, we shouldn’t forget that Slow Joe Biden inexplicably gave $6 billion to Iran, ostensibly in exchange for five American hostages. More importantly, Biden’s insistence on relaxing Trump’s extreme pressure campaign has resulted in additional revenue for Iran in the neighborhood of $70 billion.
A toothless attack that produces no damage or casualties? Maybe Slow Joe was calling in a marker?
Let’s watch how the Ukraine aid package vote goes this week. Then decide.
