{"id":82802,"date":"2020-12-19T17:05:14","date_gmt":"2020-12-19T15:05:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=82802"},"modified":"2020-12-18T18:46:07","modified_gmt":"2020-12-18T16:46:07","slug":"25-05-53","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.reunion68.se\/?p=82802","title":{"rendered":"John Brennan disputes Israel\u2019s right to defend itself. There\u2019s a word for that."},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>John Brennan disputes Israel\u2019s right to defend itself. There\u2019s a word for that.<\/a><\/strong><\/span><\/h5>\n

Dr. Martin Sherman<\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n

\n

The former CIA director who drew up the US ‘kill list’ criticizing the assassination of Iran’s Fakhridazeh? You’ve got to be kidding.<\/em><\/h4>\n

Former CIA Director John Brennan testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington, May 23, 2017, before the House Intelligence Committee Russia Investigation Task Force (AP Photo\/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

It has been over a week since the lynchpin of the Iranian nuclear project, Mohsen Fakhridazeh, was killed in what appears to be an immaculately planned and flawlessly executed strike by elusive and yet to be identified assailants. Nonetheless, analysis of what took place and speculation of what might take place as a result, are still at the focus of considerable media attention.<\/span><\/p>\n

The prime suspect?<\/span><\/p>\n

While no state or organization has claimed responsibility\/credit for the action, and despite the fact that a good number of interested parties had reason to approve of his sudden demise, suspicion fell chiefly on the secret intelligence service of Israel, the Mossad.<\/span><\/p>\n

Depressingly, but not unexpectedly, international condemnation was both swift and widespread.<\/span><\/p>\n

Thus, the EU\u2019s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, issued a disapproving statement, calling the killing \u201ca criminal act [that] runs counter to the principle of respect for human rights the EU stands for.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

In similar critical vein, Britain\u2019s Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab expressed concern over \u201cthe situation in Iran and the wider region [where] we do want to see de-escalation of tensions.\u201d Although he admitted that \u201cWe\u2019re still waiting to see the full facts\u2026of what\u2019s happened in Iran,\u201d he nevertheless stressed the need to \u201cstick to the rule of international humanitarian law which is very clear against targeting civilians.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Significantly, as Ron Jontof-Hutter deftly points out, both Borrell and Raab seem either woefully misinformed or willfully misleading in describing Fakhrizadeh as a \u201ccivilian\/official.\u201d After all, it is widely known that he was a brigadier general in the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, not only an elite and highly privileged arm of Iran\u2019s military, but also designated a terrorist organization by the US in April 2019.<\/span><\/p>\n

Hostile & hypocritical?<\/strong><\/h4>\n

But perhaps the most alarming and annoying reaction came from John Brennan, who served as the Director of the CIA under the Obama administration (2013-17). In a series of tweets immediately after the attack, Brennan decried the killing of Fakhrizadeh in the strongest of terms.<\/span><\/p>\n

Although professing not to know the identity of the assailants or whether \u201ca foreign government\u201d was behind the murder of Fakhrizadeh, he nevertheless began by deeming the attack an \u201cact of state-sponsored terrorism\u201d and \u201ca flagrant violation of international law,\u201d which was likely to \u201cencourage more governments to carry out lethal attacks against foreign officials.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

I do not know whether a foreign government authorized or carried out the the murder of Fakhrizadeh. Such an act of state-sponsored terrorism would be a flagrant violation of international law & encourage more governments to carry out lethal attacks against foreign officials.<\/p>\n

\u2014 John O. Brennan (@JohnBrennan) November 27, 2020<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n