Tag: Trump Iran crisis

Defenders of History Take Aim at Trump’s Threat to Strike Iran’s Cultural Sites

New York Times logoMilitary attacks against cultural sites are against international law, and the United States has condemned the Islamic State and Taliban for similar destruction.

WASHINGTON — More than 2,300 years ago, the Persian capital of Persepolis was burned by a foreign warrior in a fatal blow to the empire and its rich heritage. The ruins of the ancient city, in modern-day southwest Iran, could now be on President Trump’s target list of 52 sites he has threatened to attack as tensions escalated between Washington and Tehran.

Mr. Trump did not identify which places the United States might strike, as he warned on Twitter that he would order — 52 in all, one for each American who was held hostage for the duration of the Iranian Revolution takeover of the American Embassy in Tehran in 1979.

But he said on Saturday that some of the sites were “very high level & important to Iran & the Iranian culture.” Continue reading.

Former Trump envoy: Threat to attack Iranian cultural sites is ‘not only unacceptable,’ but also ‘unAmerican’

AlterNet logoOne of the international rules governing military actions is that cultural sites are off limits when it comes to attacks and airstrikes. President Donald Trump, however, has threatened to attack Iranian cultural sites, and foreign affairs expert Brett McGurk is calling him out for it.

McGurk, a lecturer at Stanford University and a former Trump envoy to the Coalition to Defeat ISIS, tweeted, “Trump’s comments tonight regarding Iran and Iraq are not only unacceptable, they’re unAmerican.” McGurk went on to explain, “American military forces adhere to international law. They don’t attack cultural sites. And they’re not mercenaries.”

Saturday on Twitter, Trump threatened, “Let this serve as a WARNING that if Iran strikes any Americans, or American assets, we have… targeted 52 Iranian sites (representing the 52 American hostages taken by Iran many years ago), some at a very high level & important to Iran & the Iranian culture, and those targets, and Iran itself, WILL BE HIT VERY FAST AND VERY HARD. The USA wants no more threats!” Continue reading.

Trump faces dueling crises upon return to DC

The Hill logoPresident Trump returned to Washington on Sunday facing dueling crises that could define his presidency and shape the course of his reelection bid.

The president spent more than two weeks at his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida, where he visited his nearby golf club on a near daily basis, met with top advisers and allies, and on Thursday night — in one of the most consequential decisions of his time in office — approved a military operation that resulted in the death of a top Iranian official.

But impeachment was never far from Trump’s mind. Continue reading.

NOTE:  Our question is if President Trump has repeated his behavior when faced with a crises by created an even bigger crises to change the focus of the media.

Trump faces Iran crisis with fewer experienced advisers and strained relations with traditional allies

Washington Post logoPresidents on the brink of war tend to rely on an array of Oval Office assets: teams of experienced advisers, trusted sources of intelligence, strong ties with U.S. allies and credibility with the broad American public.

For President Trump those assets may be in short supply as he faces the prospect of an escalating conflict with Iran.

Trump’s decision to approve an airstrike that killed Qasem Soleimani, the leader of Iran’s paramilitary Quds Force, came at a moment in his presidency when his national security team has been depleted by waves of departures and distracted by months of impeachment hearings before Congress. Continue reading.