UK Telegraph: US plots Iran Blitz

[CJCRANE]

"Strategists at the Pentagon are drawing up plans for devastating bombing raids backed by submarine-launched ballistic missile attacks against Iran's nuclear sites as a "last resort" to block Teheran's efforts to develop an atomic bomb.

Central Command and Strategic Command planners are identifying targets, assessing weapon-loads and working on logistics for an operation, the Sunday Telegraph has learnt.

<snip>

Sen John McCain, the Republican front-runner to succeed Mr Bush in 2008, has advocated military strikes as a last resort. He said recently: "There is only only one thing worse than the United States exercising a military option and that is a nuclear-armed Iran."

Senator Joe Lieberman, a Democrat, has made the same case and Mr Bush is expected to be faced by the decision within two years."

Article: http://tinyurl.com/donvs

On edit: Title is taken from link title on Telegraph homepage

[keta11]

1. Not gonna happen. I dont believe even the dumbest president in

history would be foolish enough to engage in another war after the debacle he has caused in Mess-opotamia

[MrModerate]

5. What? No nice, surgical strike from hundreds of miles away . . .

That doesn't kill real people or anything, just takes out those nasty ol' nukes?

An whatever the world may say about it doesn't really matter, cuz they're not 'Murricans?

Yeah, he's fooish enough.

[MrModerate]

2. They may be refining their plans right now . . .

But they've had 'em knocking around the Petagon for years.

[Vincardog]

3. BullShit. Iran is at least 5 YEARS AWAY from having a BOMB. Let's wait

until at least 2009 before we decide weather we "HAVE" to do anything. We have seen how letting the NeoConvicts rush us into shit worked in Iraq.

[wakeme2008]

4. less than 6 months

IMHO,, Bush will use this for the 2006 elections. IMHO it will not work but still....

[glitch]

7. Perhaps the riots it generates will provide the rationale for martial law

and cancelling elections.

From the bushco standpoint, it's all good.

[ewagner]

6. Still don't believe it

It's hard to believe because it would be so incredibly stupid..

Here's the dilema:

If Bush decided to take out the nuke sites with airpower, he may, in fact, destroy the nuke sites but the GOVERNMENT would/will still be in place. That government would retaliate on a couple of front:

Oil embargo
Trade Oil in Euros instead of Dollars
Send troops into southern Iraq

you can probably think of others.

So Georgie could only make matters WORSE unless he has a full-scale invasion of Iran and replaces the government currently in power. Obvi ously we don't have the troops or resources for that so.......

[Greeby]

8. Interesting that this is coming from the Torygraph

Maybe a hint to President Tony that the establishment is read to boot him if he goes along with this? :shrug:

[Briar]

10. The torygraph

has good connections with the neocons.

[seafan]

9. More important information:

"This is more than just the standard military contingency assessment," said a senior Pentagon adviser. "This has taken on much greater urgency in recent months."

The prospect of military action could put Washington at odds with Britain which fears that an attack would spark violence across the Middle East, reprisals in the West and may not cripple Teheran's nuclear programme. //snip ...The most likely strategy would involve aerial bombardment by long-distance B2 bombers, each armed with up to 40,000lb of precision weapons, including the latest bunker-busting devices. They would fly from bases in Missouri with mid-air refuelling.

The Bush administration has recently announced plans to add conventional ballistic missiles to the armoury of its nuclear Trident submarines within the next two years. If ready in time, they would also form part of the plan of attack.

Teheran has dispersed its nuclear plants, burying some deep underground, and has recently increased its air defences, but Pentagon planners believe that the raids could seriously set back Iran's nuclear programme.

Iran was last weekend reported to the United Nations Security Council by the International Atomic Energy Agency for its banned nuclear activities. Teheran reacted by announcing that it would resume full-scale uranium enrichment - producing material that could arm nuclear devices.

The White House says that it wants a diplomatic solution to the stand-off, but President George W Bush has refused to rule out military action and reaffirmed last weekend that Iran's nuclear ambitions "will not be tolerated".

snip


Same as the run-up to *'s Iraq invasion. Who here already has cold chills?

IMHO, this is the neocons' last hurrah in their global plan. The rest of the planet will stop Bush, even if we cannot.

World, we beg your forgiveness.

[rooboy]

11. If this happens, Americans travelling abroad...

would be well advised to stay away from McDonald's and other American fast food restaurants. They're a great place for extremists to "super size" innocent bystanders.