The London Arabic-language daily Al-Sharq Al-Awsat
reported that "an Iranian intelligence unit has established a center
called The Brigades of the Shahids of the Global Islamic Awakening to
replace the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' Department of Liberation and
Revolutionary Movements, which had been in charge of helping and training
revolutionary forces across the world."
[1] The article went on to report a speech given by an
official of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, threatening the U.S. with
suicide and missile attacks at already-selected sensitive targets, and
threatening to "take over" Britain. The following is the report:
[2]
Iran Stands Ready to Attack the West
"A source close to [Revolutionary Guards]
intelligence confirmed that P.R. has been appointed secretary-general of a
new office that has begun registering the names of suicide volunteers to be
sent to Iraq, Palestine, and Lebanon.
"[The newspaper reported that it had obtained] a
tape with a speech by H.A., a [Revolutionary] Guards intelligence
theoretician, who teaches at the Revolutionary Guards' Al-Hussein
University. [In the tape, H.A.] spoke of Tehran's secret strategy aimed
at taking over the Arab and Muslim countries by means of helping
revolutionary forces and organizations. H.A. is regarded as one of the
advisors of a branch in the organization, and has published a number of
works on exporting the [Islamic] revolution and the method of the struggle
against the world arrogance [i.e., the U.S.].
"In his speech at a secret conference attended by
students who are members of the Ansar Hizbullah movement at Al-Hussein
University, [H.A. said]: 'Iraqi oil constitutes 11% of the world oil
reserves, and it has fallen into the hands of the U.S. and Britain. The
value of the intelligence documents that the U.S. obtained because of its
takeover of Iraqi intelligence is greater than $1000 billion. Whereas our
[Iran's] Foreign Ministry was expressing willingness to reconstruct the
statue of the Buddha [destroyed by the Taliban in 2001] in Afghanistan –
that is, to build an idol, which is an act that is against the principles of
Islam – the U.S. managed to force its rule on Afghanistan.
"'(President Muhammad) Khatami speaks of
the dialogue between civilizations, and I have grave doubts about this. It
is a dubious idea. We do not want to take over the British Embassy, since
they (the British) have already cleared the embassy of documents; we must
take over Britain [itself].'
"After [H.A.] harshly attacked Khatami and the
reformists, he said in his speech: 'The West sees us as terrorists, and
depicts our strategy as terrorism and repression. Had our youth agreed to
Khatami's teachings and interpretations, it would never have fought the
arrogance, and would never have defended the holy places – because Khatami
speaks always of being conciliatory, of patience, and of rejecting
terrorism, while we defend [the line of] toughness and war against the
enemies of revolutionary Islam. I take pride in my actions that cause
anxiety and fear to the Americans.
"'Haven't the Jews and the Christians achieved
their progress by means of toughness and repression? We have a strategy
drawn up for the destruction of Anglo-Saxon civilizationand for the
uprooting of the Americans and the English.
"'Our missiles are now ready to strike at their
civilization, and as soon as the instructions arrive from Leader ['Ali
Khamenei], we will launch our missiles at their cities and
installations. Our motto during the war (in Iraq) was: Karbala, we are
coming, Jerusalem, we are coming. And because of Khatami's policies and
dialogue between the civilizations, we have been compelled to freeze our
plan to liberate the Islamic cities. And now we are [again] about to carry
out the program.'
"In his speech, he added: 'The global infidel
front is a front against Allah and the Muslims, and we must make use of
everything we have at hand to strike at this front, by means of our suicide
operations or by means of our missiles. There are 29 sensitive sites in the
U.S. and in the West. We have already spied on these sites and we know how
we are going to attack them.'
"In another part of his speech, he emphasized,
'If Israel dares attack the [nuclear] installations at Bushehr, our losses
will be very low, because [only] one structure will be destroyed – while
we [i.e., Iran] have means of attacking Israel's nuclear facilities and
arsenals such that no trace of Israel will remain.'"
Other Reports: ' Many Young Muslims are Willing to
Carry Out Martyrdom Operations Against the American Crusaders'
The previous day, Iranian sources had statements on
the same issue. At a ceremony marking the four-year anniversary of Israel's
withdrawal from southern Lebanon, reformist MP and Secretary-General of
the International Committee for the Support of the Palestinian Intifada Ali
Akbar Makhatashemi-Pour called on Muslim countries to open their borders
with Iraq to troops of Muslim martyrdom bombers. "We, the Muslim
countries, must create a storm front against the U.S. and Israel. The
half-million member organization that was created in Beirut [i.e., Hizbullah]
is not sufficient. Many young Muslims are willing to carry out martyrdom
operations against the American Crusaders."
[3]
The Iranian reformist paper Sharq reported
that the Persian-language Ruydad website stated that Hizbullah-Iran
activist Forouz Rajaii-Far said that "martyrdom operations are the
only option to expel the Americans and British from Iraq," and that a
Basij activist from Elm Vasonaat University in Iran acknowledged that a
group calling itself the "To Karbala Battalion" was sent on May
27, 2004 to Karbala to fight the coalition forces.
[4]
[1] Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London),
May 28, 2004.
[2] Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London),
May 28, 2004.
[3] Sharq (Iran), May 27,
2004. http://www.sharghnewspaper.com/830307/gover.htm
[4] Sharq (Iran), May 27,
2004. http://www.sharghnewspaper.com/830307/gover.htm.
The Basij is an Iranian paramilitary youth volunteer organization involved
in anti-reformist operations.
