Explosions hit two large oil tankers in Sea of Oman [Archive]

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Richard S.

13th June 2019, 10:45

Breaking news:

https://www.presstv.com/Detail/2019/06/13/598390/Oil-tankers-Sea-of-Oman

Hervé

13th June 2019, 11:56

Re-posting from (here) (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?p=1296826#post1296826):

‘Suspicious doesn’t begin to describe what happened’: Iran’s FM on tanker ‘attacks’ in Gulf of Oman (https://www.rt.com/news/461758-zarif-tanker-attack-suspicious/)

RT
Published time: 13 Jun, 2019 10:41
Edited time: 13 Jun, 2019 11:33
Get short URL (https://on.rt.com/9wam)

https://cdni.rt.com/files/2019.06/article/5d022919dda4c884348b456a.jpg
Image reportedly showing smoke coming from one of the tankers said to have been attacked, May 13, 2019 © AFP PHOTO / HO / IRIB

Iran’s foreign minister has labeled the reported attack on two “Japan-related” oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman as “suspicious,” occurring just as Japanese Prime Minister Abe came to Tehran for major talks.

Expressing his misgivings on Twitter, Javad Zarif noted that the incidents on the two vessels on Thursday, one of which had been reportedly struck by a torpedo, had occurred as Abe sat down for “extensive and friendly” discussions with Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei.

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/919044790129479680/ynB-VNL-_normal.jpg (https://twitter.com/JZarif) Javad Zarif ✔ @JZarif
(https://twitter.com/JZarif)
Reported attacks on Japan-related tankers occurred while PM @AbeShinzo (https://twitter.com/AbeShinzo) was meeting with Ayatollah @khamenei_ir (https://twitter.com/khamenei_ir) for extensive and friendly talks.

Suspicious doesn't begin to describe what likely transpired this morning.

Iran's proposed Regional Dialogue Forum is imperative.

765 (https://twitter.com/intent/like?tweet_id=1139108730996477952)
11:54 AM - Jun 13, 2019 (https://twitter.com/JZarif/status/1139108730996477952)
"Suspicious doesn’t begin to describe what likely transpired this morning"
He added that it is “imperative” that regional talks proposed by Tehran and aimed at de-escalating tensions in the Gulf go ahead.

Earlier in the day, Iran said it rescued 44 sailors from two tankers named as Front Altair and Kokuka Courageous. One of them was reportedly hit with a torpedo, but there is no official confirmation of the claim.

In May, four oil tankers were targeted off the coast of the UAE, with exact details of the incident still shrouded in secrecy. Bolton has laid the blame (https://www.rt.com/news/460512-bolton-iran-ships-uae/) for the assault on Iran, yet Washington, to date, has failed to provide any evidence of complicity.

DETAILS TO FOLLOW

Related:
Iran says it rescued 44 sailors after 2 tankers were ‘reportedly attacked’ in Gulf of Oman (https://www.rt.com/news/461745-oil-tanker-torpedo-uae/)[/QUOTE]

Bubu

13th June 2019, 13:07

the rogue government acts of desperation. each time they are pushing allies away till no one is left. we can already see where this is headed.

Hervé

13th June 2019, 13:57

PHOTOS show massive fire on ‘attacked’ oil tanker in Gulf of Oman

RT
Published time: 13 Jun, 2019 13:13
Edited time: 13 Jun, 2019 13:20
Get short URL (https://on.rt.com/9wb2)

https://cdni.rt.com/files/2019.06/article/5d024821dda4c883348b45a1.jpg
© Reuters / Handout / ISNA

New photos have emerged showing the inferno that erupted after an oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman allegedly came under attack.

Two oil tankers, the Marshall Islands-flagged Front Altair and the Panama-flagged Kokuka Courageous, have been evacuated following the suspected attacks in the Gulf of Oman on Thursday.

https://cdni.rt.com/files/2019.06/original/5d024a8afc7e93fd468b45b6.JPG

© Reuters / ISNA

Images posted by Tasnim News Agency show an extensive fire on the starboard side of the Front Altair. A large plume of smoke is seen coming from the hold of the ship, where it appears the fire originated.

https://cdni.rt.com/files/2019.06/xxs/5d024ac7dda4c885348b4595.jpg
© Reuters / ISNA

https://cdni.rt.com/files/2019.06/original/5d024d6bdda4c8dd348b45b3.JPG
© Reuters / ISNA

Other photos, apparently taken from on board the oil tanker, provide a close-up of the raging inferno.

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D87-Pw2XkAEtEB4?format=jpg&name=360x360 (https://twitter.com/BabakTaghvaee/status/1139127426892668928/photo/1) https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D87-RQ2WwAApROA?format=jpg&name=360x360 (https://twitter.com/BabakTaghvaee/status/1139127426892668928/photo/1)

https://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/978567525830135808/FmQO3iSu_normal.jpg (https://twitter.com/BabakTaghvaee) Babak Taghvaee @BabakTaghvaee
(https://twitter.com/BabakTaghvaee)
Replying to @BabakTaghvaee (https://twitter.com/_/status/1139104786266148865)
#BREAKING (https://twitter.com/hashtag/BREAKING?src=hash): First images showing the fire in the Front Altair carrying Ethanol from #Qatar (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Qatar?src=hash) to #Taiwan (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Taiwan?src=hash) which was torpedoed by #IRGC (https://twitter.com/hashtag/IRGC?src=hash) Navy in #Oman (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Oman?src=hash) Sea following to the order of Supreme Leader of #Iran (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Iran?src=hash)'s Islamic Regime, #Khamenei (https://twitter.com/hashtag/Khamenei?src=hash) this morning.

123 (https://twitter.com/intent/like?tweet_id=1139127426892668928)
1:08 PM - Jun 13, 2019 (https://twitter.com/BabakTaghvaee/status/1139127426892668928)
It’s not yet known what caused the fire. The other ship, the Kokuka Courageous, was reportedly attacked by “some sort of shell” and caught fire briefly, before the blaze was extinguished.

The Iranian Navy rescued all 44 crew members from the tankers, ferrying them to the Iranian port city of Jask.

Hervé

13th June 2019, 20:48

Persian Gulf tanker attacks: Israel has silent underwater nuclear submarines (https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/israel-underwater-nuclear-power-thanks-german-submarines-57517)

Sebastien Roblin The National Interest (https://nationalinterest.org/blog/buzz/israel-underwater-nuclear-power-thanks-german-submarines-57517)
Tue, 14 May 2019 18:20 UTC

The 2,400 ton Dolphin 2 model is based on the state-of-the-art Type 212 submarine (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/why-germanys-new-super-stealth-submarines-could-take-any-21021), which features Air-Independent Propulsion technology (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/did-sweden-make-americas-nuclear-submarines-obsolete-18908) and swim faster at twenty-five knots. While diesel submarines rely on noisy air-consuming diesel generators which require the submarine to regularly surface or snorkel, AIP-powered submarines can swim underwater very quietly at low speeds for weeks at a time.

(This article first appeared last year.)
https://www.sott.net/image/s26/526073/large/israel_dolphin_submarine_nucle.jpg (https://www.sott.net/image/s26/526073/full/israel_dolphin_submarine_nucle.jpg)
One of Israel's Dolphin-class nuclear submarines © Reuters

Israel has never officially admitted to possessing nuclear weapons.

Unofficially, Tel Aviv wants everyone to know it has them, and doesn't hesitate to make thinly-veiled references to its willingness to use them if confronted by an existential threat. Estimates on the size of Tel Aviv's nuclear stockpile range from 80 to 300 nuclear weapons, the latter number exceeding China's arsenal.

Originally, Israel's nuclear forces relied on air-dropped nuclear bombs and Jericho ballistic missiles. For example, when Egyptian and Syrian armies attacked Israel during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, a squadron of eight Israeli F-4 Phantom jets loaded with nuclear bombs was placed on alert by Prime Minister Golda Meir, ready to unleash nuclear bombs on Cairo and Damascus should the Arab armies break through.

Though Israel is the only nuclear-armed state in the Middle East, Tel Aviv is preoccupied by the fear that an adversary might one day attempt a first strike to destroy its nuclear missiles and strike planes on the ground before they can retaliate. Currently, the only hostile states likely to acquire such a capability are Iran or Syria.

To forestall such a strategy, Israeli has aggressively targeted missile and nuclear technology programs in Iraq, Syria and Iran with air raids, sabotage and assassination campaigns (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/how-israel-tried-destroy-irans-nuclear-program-assassinate-26085). However, it also has developed a second-strike capability - that is, a survivable weapon which promises certain nuclear retaliation no matter how effective an enemy's first strike.

Most nuclear powers operate nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/why-russia-china-fear-americas-ohio-class-submarines-19120) which can spend months quietly submerged deep underwater and at any moment unleash ocean-spanning ballistic missiles to rain apocalyptic destruction on an adversary's major centers. Because there's little chance of finding all of these subs before they fire, they serve as one hell of a disincentive to even think about a first strike.

But nuclear-powered submarines and SLBMs are prohibitively expensive for a country with the population of New Jersey - so Israeli found a more affordable alternative.

Berlin's Unconventional Apology
During the 1991 Gulf War, it emerged that German scientists and firms had played a role in dispersing ballistic missile and chemical weapons technology to various Arab governments-technology which aided Saddam Hussein in bombarding Israel with Scud missiles (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/what-the-great-scud-hunt-tells-about-war-north-korea-22637). This in fact was a long-running sore point: in the early 1960s, Israeli agents even carried out assassination attempts, kidnappings and bombings targeting German weapons scientists working on behalf of Arab governments.

Chancellor Helmut Kohl hatched a plan to simultaneously compensate Israel for the damages, while generating business for German shipbuilders suffering a downturn due to post-Cold War defense cuts. Starting in the 1970s, German shipbuilder HDW began churning Type 209 diesel electric submarines for export, with nearly 60 still operational around the globe. One Type 209, the San Luis, managed to ambush (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/how-the-falklands-war-thanks-stealthy-submarine-could-have-18495) Royal Navy vessels twice during the Falkland War, though it failed to sink any ship due to the defective torpedoes.

Kohl offered to fully-subsidize the construction of two enlarged Type 209s, designated the Dolphin-class, as well as cover 50 percent of the cost of a third boat in 1994. The Dolphins displaced 1,900-tons while submerged, measured 57-meters long and are manned by a crew of 35-though they can accommodate up to ten special forces personnel. These entered service 1999-2000 as the INS Dolphin, Leviathan and Tekumah ("Revival").

Each Dolphin came equipped with six regular tubes for firing 533-millimeter DM2A4 heavyweight fiber-optic guided torpedoes and Harpoon anti-ship missiles-as well as four 650-millimeter mega-sized tubes, which are rare in modern submarines. These tubes can be used to deploy naval commandos for reconnaissance and sabotage missions, which have played a major role in Israeli submarine operations.

However, the plus-size torpedo tubes have a useful additional function: they can accommodate especially large submarine-launched cruise missiles (SLCM) - missiles large enough to carry a nuclear warhead. While a ballistic missile arcs into space traveling at many times the speed of sound, cruise missiles fly much slower and skim low over the earth's surface.

In the 1990s the United States declined to provide Israel with submarine-launched Tomahawk cruise missiles due to the rules of the Missile Technology Control Regime prohibiting transfer of cruise missile with a range exceeding 300 miles.

Instead, Tel Aviv went ahead and developed their own. In 2000, U.S. Navy radars detected test launches of Israeli SLCMs in the Indian Ocean that struck a target 930 miles away. The weapon is generally believed to be the Popeye Turbo - an adaptation of a subsonic air-launched cruise missile that can allegedly carry a 200-kiloton nuclear warhead. However, the SLCM's characteristics are veiled in secrecy and some sources suggest a different missile type entirely is used. An Israeli Dolphin submarine may have struck the Syrian port of Latakia with a conventional cruise missile (https://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4404541,00.html) in 2013 due to reports of a shipment of Russian P-800 anti-ship missiles.

Israeli Prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu then purchased three more German submarines, arousing considerable controversy as many felt additional boats were unnecessary (http://nationalinterest.org/feature/donald-trump-should-halt-israels-new-submarine-program-18471). In 2012, Der Spiegel published an expose (http://www.spiegel.de/international/world/israel-deploys-nuclear-weapons-on-german-built-submarines-a-836784.html) detailing how German engineers were well-aware of the Dolphin 2's intended role as nuclear-weapon delivery system, arousing some controversy with the public, as Chancellor Merkel supposedly agreed to the sale in exchange for unrealized promises from Netanyahu to adopt a more conciliatory policy towards the Palestinians. Israel has nonetheless received two of the Dolphin 2s, the Rahav ('Neptune') and Tanin ('Crocodile') with the Dakar expected in 2018 or 2019.

The 2,400 ton Dolphin 2 model is based on the state-of-the-art Type 212 submarine (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/why-germanys-new-super-stealth-submarines-could-take-any-21021), which features Air-Independent Propulsion technology (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/did-sweden-make-americas-nuclear-submarines-obsolete-18908) and swim faster at twenty-five knots. While diesel submarines rely on noisy air-consuming diesel generators which require the submarine to regularly surface or snorkel, AIP-powered submarines can swim underwater very quietly at low speeds for weeks at a time.

This not only means they are stealthier sea-control platforms, but makes them more viable for lengthy nuclear deterrence patrols. Currently, the Chinese AIP-powered Type 32 Qing-class (http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/china-has-built-the-biggest-baddest-conventional-submarine-18629) is the only AIP-powered submarine in service armed with ballistic missiles.

However, as fellow TNI writer Robert Farley points out (http://nationalinterest.org/feature/nukes-the-high-seas-israels-underwater-atomic-arsenal-11434/page/0/1), there are geographic obstacles that diminish the practicality of Israel's sea-based nuclear deterrence. For now, there is only one intended target: Iran, a country which lies hundreds of miles away from Israel. While Tehran lies barely within the supposed 930-mile range of an Israeli submarine deployed from their base in Haifa into the Mediterranean Sea, the missiles would have to spend over an hour overflying Syria and Iraq, posing navigational and survivability challenges.

A closer avenue for attack would lie in the Persian Gulf, but this would involve transiting the submarines through the Suez Canal (controlled by Egypt), around Africa (impractically far for the Dolphin-class), or stationing some at the naval base at Eilat, which faces the Gulf of Aqaba on the southern tip of Israel and is surrounded by Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia. In short, deploying Israeli submarines to Iran's southern flank would require some degree of cooperation and logistical support from other Middle Eastern states that might not be forthcoming in a crisis scenario.

Farley is probably correct in arguing that the Israel's nuclear-tipped SLCMs are less practical than Tel Aviv's other nuclear-delivery platforms. For that matter, Israel doesn't currently face any adversaries with nuclear capabilities to deter against. However, like the idea of second-strike capability in general, the threat of sea-launched nukes may be more intended political weapon than one strictly intended for its military effectiveness.
About the author:
Sébastien Roblin holds a master's degree in conflict resolution from Georgetown University and served as a university instructor for the Peace Corps in China. He has also worked in education, editing, and refugee resettlement in France and the United States. He currently writes on security and military history for War Is Boring (https://warisboring.com/).

Related: One month after 4 merchant ships are "sabotaged"...

Another false-flag: Two more oil tankers attacked in Gulf of Oman, possibly with torpedoes (https://www.sott.net/article/414906-Another-false-flag-Two-more-oil-tankers-attacked-in-Gulf-of-Oman-possibly-with-torpedoes)

ThePythonicCow

13th June 2019, 23:39

Gregory Mannarino predicts "Now... Expect Imminent US Military Strike On Iran." His forecasting record, especially regarding the Federal Reserve and the New York stock markets, but also related matters, is better than most of us.
dR1F_WvSSJU
Damn, just damn.

(I also posted this at Ukraine, Crimea, Syria, Israel, Iran, Putin, and World War III -- Post #2042 (http://projectavalon.net/forum4/showthread.php?69621-Ukraine-Crimea-Syria-Israel-Iran-Putin-and-World-War-III&p=1296951&viewfull=1#post1296951).)

ThePythonicCow

14th June 2019, 00:34

Joseph P. Farrell also considers these latest events in the middle east, the sabotage of two oil tankers. He concludes that it is a "very bad situation", and by process of elimination suspects the attacks were initiated by Israel and/or Saudi Arabia.

Vvyp3T81eGY

PurpleLama

14th June 2019, 01:22

Ron Mauer Sr

14th June 2019, 03:28

The mine (if it was a mine) exploded in the middle of the ship. That seems strange. I would have expected a mine hit at the bow.

Iloveyou

14th June 2019, 06:23

My favorite local MSM (100% MSM) newspaper which I appreciate mainly because of the user comments promotes the False Flag version. Their language is cautious but explicit. They say so do 98% of the user comments in the NYTimes. Is that true?

The fight between the various sections of the power blocks is getting worse (or better, that depends . . . )

Did You See Them

14th June 2019, 08:06

Sky news is running an article this morning showing "Iranians" removing a "limpet" (?) mine from the side of one of the ships.
It also shows a still off the ship with a "likely mine" pointed out.

https://e3.365dm.com/19/06/1600x900/skynews-limpet-mine-kokuka-courageous_4694143.jpg?bypass-service-worker&20190614072802

In the footage of them removing the "mine" the markings around that area does not seem to match the markings in the still photo !

Anyone else think that ?

something just doesn't look right - can't quite put my finger on it !

Please compare the photo to what the video shows.

https://news.sky.com/story/oil-tanker-attacks-us-claims-video-shows-irans-involvement-11741489

Dick

14th June 2019, 08:42

seems like the depth marks are gone also, in the picture above, you can see tem in the video, right side from the "mine"

Jayke

14th June 2019, 08:47

Reports that China is sharing technology with Iran, technology that is ‘beyond American capabilities’ “that can take out the entire American fleet with just one missile”. If that’s true this new false flag will fizzle out into a stalemate once again.

rIRhNo3Df7o
Also, a lot of people on gab dissecting the Iranian tanker fire video calling it a deep fake, noticing that if an oil tanker had really been torpedoed or mine blasted, you’d expect a lot more oil to be polluting those waters as a hole is blown in the hull.

Another lame attempt by the military-industrial complex to provoke world war 3.

Did You See Them

14th June 2019, 10:43

Most oil tankers I believe are double hull fitted due to environmental concerns and are much sturdier than your average cruise liner etc - mine might take out outside hull but leave inner hull intact and still holding cargo.

PurpleLama

14th June 2019, 12:11

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D8-jOaGXUAMVN6m?format=jpg&name=900x900

Tintin

14th June 2019, 12:39

Echoing my sentiments entirely, in lieu of viewing the above shared video commentaries, the one and only Craig Murray

——————————————

The Gulf of Credibility
14 Jun, 2019 by Craig Murray (https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2019/06/the-gulf-of-credibility/)

I really cannot begin to fathom how stupid you would have to be to believe that Iran would attack a Japanese oil tanker at the very moment that the Japanese Prime Minister was sitting down to friendly, US-disapproved talks in Tehran on economic cooperation that can help Iran survive the effects of US economic sanctions.

The Japanese-owned Kokuka Courageous was holed above the water line (https://in.reuters.com/article/mideast-tanker-evacuation/bernhard-shulte-says-its-tanker-kokuka-courageous-damaged-after-suspected-attack-idINKCN1TE0UY). That rules out a torpedo attack, which is the explanation being touted by the neo-cons.

The second vessel, the Front Altair, is Norwegian owned and 50% Russian crewed (the others being Filipinos). It is owned by Frontline, a massive tanker leasing company that also has a specific record (https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052748703691804575254554231664686) of being helpful to Iran in continuing to ship oil despite sanctions.

It was Iran that rescued the crews and helped bring the damaged vessels under control.

That Iran would target a Japanese ship and a friendly Russian crewed ship is a ludicrous allegation. They are however very much the targets that the USA allies in the region – the Saudis, their Gulf Cooperation Council colleagues, and Israel – would target for a false flag. It is worth noting that John Bolton was meeting with United Arab Emirates ministers two weeks ago – both ships had just left the UAE.

The USA and their UK stooges have both immediately leapt in to blame Iran. The media is amplifying this with almost none of the scepticism which is required. I cannot think of a single reason why anybody would believe this particular false flag. It is notable that neither Norway nor Japan has joined in with this ridiculous assertion.

——————————————

Wind

14th June 2019, 19:41

Appears it was a flying object, i.e. a missile.

Japanese Tanker Owner Says U.S. Is Wrong About Gulf Attack (https://www.thedailybeast.com/japanese-oil-tanker-owner-says-us-is-wrong-about-gulf-attack)

Jayke

14th June 2019, 21:07

Even Nancy Pelosi admits there’s no evidence Iran was responsible, and that neither the American public or President Trump have any appetite for war (speaking in the Council of Foreign Relations yesterday).

https://www.cfr.org/event/conversation-house-speaker-nancy-pelosi?utm_campaign=event&utm_source=tw&utm_content=061419&utm_term=conversation-house-speaker-nancy-pelosi&utm_medium=social_owned

PELOSI: Well, I certainly hope not. But for people of a certain age, and students of history, Straits of Hormuz gives you chills. When I—oh my goodness. But I do think that the secretary has not offered any proof of this. He’s just said what he’s said. And it’s not unbelievable that a country might exercise its leverage. And here, the Prime Minister of Japan is in—if he’s not still there, he was there yesterday, Abe, in Iran. And so we’ll see what that is, but we have absolutely no appetite for going to war to be provocative to create situations that might evoke responses where mistakes could be made. You know, it’s one—countries exercise their leverage, they threaten, they this or that. But there could be mistakes made. And that’s a very dangerous thing.

Here, we were up almost all night with our appropriations bill, but at the same time the, during the night, the defense—the Armed Services Committee was writing the defense bill. And in the defense bill, which they ended at 7:00 this morning, they put in there nothing in the bill would be considered an authorization of use of military force against Iran, that the administration would try to use some authorities that are, frankly, nonexistent. But we have to—the American people have no appetite for a war with Iran. I don’t think the president does. The president wasn’t for the war in Iraq, as you know. And so I think—I think this is—

How long before Bolton gets the chop? Rumour is Trumps already looking for a replacement. Could this oil tanker fire be Bolton’s last chance of provoking a war for his Neocon cronies before he’s removed from his seat of influence?

=====

https://consortiumnews.com/2019/06/12/john-boltons-long-goodbye/

Iran is a country of 80 million people. It has an active and well-trained global intelligence service. It has a robust navy with highly-specialized “swift boats” that are active in the Persian Gulf. And it controls the vital Strait of Hormuz, through which 20 percent of the world’s oil and 33 percent of its liquified natural gas flows.

Trump said just a week ago that he was willing to begin talks with the Iranians “with no preconditions.” This was a major softening of U.S. policy toward Iran and it immediately drew Bolton’s ire. Indeed, The New York Times pointed out that the policy directly “overruled a longtime goal of (Trump’s) national security advisor.”

All of this has made Trump angry. He’s constantly being one-upped by one of the Washington swamp monsters he promised to rid the city of. He finally seems to have come to realize that even establishment Republicans dislike and distrust John Bolton. And now he understands why.

Mick Mulvaney, Trump’s chief of staff, has very quietly and discreetly begun informal meetings with a list of a half-dozen possible replacements for Bolton. Let’s hope he finds one that he and Trump both like sooner, rather than later.

Gracy

14th June 2019, 21:50

Jayke

14th June 2019, 22:46

Trump said just a week ago that he was willing to begin talks with the Iranians “with no preconditions.” This was a major softening of U.S. policy toward Iran and it immediately drew Bolton’s ire.

How, politically speaking, can Irans leader be seen talking to the same man who insultingly ripped up the nuclear deal that was being lived up to in good faith, and is now deep into the process of destroying his country with devastating sanctions, not to mention the now ever looming threat of war through these gulf of tonkin type false flags we are looking at? It would be seen as going back to the negotiating table on bent knee after doing absolutely nothing wrong.

No leader can afford to be seen like that. He can't talk now even if he wanted to.

The Iranian news outlets I’ve been following are surprisingly mature in their political outlook. They seem to understand the pragmatics of political theatre and act according to their own wits regardless of whatever propoganda campaign is being levelled against them. No doubt the Iranian leaders are just as sophisticated in their understanding of the political atmosphere.

=====

More on Bolton’s paymasters...potential candidate for instigators of the oil tanker fires?

https://iranian.com/2019/06/05/the-trump-administrations-iran-fiasco/

The Trump Administration’s Iran Fiasco

...But one cannot accuse National Security Adviser John Bolton of having no goal with Iran. His goal is clear: the downfall of the Islamic Republic, by war if necessary, and its replacement by his paymasters, the bizarre cultists of the Mujahedin-e-Khalq organization, or MEK.

The group, whose logo features a red star, a Quranic verse, and a rifle, began in the 1960s as so-called “Islamic-Marxists.” With a militant, anti-American reinterpretation of Shia Islam, they fought alongside Ayatollah Khomeini against the Iranian monarchy. Two years after the revolution, the Islamists in Khomeini’s coalition turned on the group and crushed it after bloody street battles and assassinations.

Following those defeats, the MEK transformed itself into a bizarre cult, with an ideology combining the practices of Jonestown and the Khmer Rouge. Today it would be only a historical curiosity with a few aging followers if it had not invested so much and so wisely in Bolton. Despite the MEK’s dubious past, including terrorism against Americans and support for the 1979–1981 occupation of the U.S. Embassy in Tehran, it has an even more dubious present, with welfare fraud, forced divorces, self-criticism sessions, and a range of other cult practices. As odious as it is, its paid shill now occupies one of our country’s highest national-security positions.

The MEK pays its speakers generously. Figures range from $25,000 to 50,000 and sometimes more. Since Bolton, by his own admission, has been speaking for the group for at least ten years, he has made serious money—around $180,000 by one estimate. His most recent financial disclosure includes a $40,000 payment for a 2017 speech he delivered at an MEK rally in Paris.

The group’s success—despite its aberrant beliefs—is testimony to the power of money spread generously. The MEK has bought support from bipartisan quarters. Its paid American cheerleaders include a former House Speaker (Newt Gingrich), a former cabinet secretary (Bill Richardson), retired generals (Jim Jones, Peter Pace), a former mayor of our largest city (Rudy Giuliani), and a former governor of one of our most progressive states (Howard Dean). They have spoken both at rallies in Europe and at events in Washington.

The MEK has made no secret of its goals: to provoke a war between the U.S. and Iran. In the aftermath, it calculates it would move into the wreckage and pick up the pieces.
====

Jayke

15th June 2019, 09:10

If the MEK was behind the attack, why choose now to instigate a pretext for war?

=====

https://www.voltairenet.org/article206707.html

Secret tripartite summit in Jerusalem
by Thierry Meyssan posted 11 JUNE 2019

A summit of the national security advisors from the USA, Israël and Russia has been announced in Jerusalem. The aim of this conference is to untangle the imbroglio around the Axis of Resistance, guarantee the security of all the States in the Middle East, and establish a shared suzerainty of the United States and Russia over all the actors, including Israël.

ummit of the three national security advisors from the United States, Israël and Russia will be held in June 2019 in Jerusalem. This unique event has already given rise to numerous « revelations » and « denials » about the subjects which will be discussed. Almost all commentators are spreading erroneous ideas which are then copied in unison. We have to rectify this situation before evaluating what is at stake in the summit.

The game of the major Powers in the region

During the Cold War, the US strategy of containment managed to counter Soviet influence in the Middle East. After the collapse of the USSR, Russia withdrew from the region, and only returned during the Western war against Syria.

Russia has been present in the Levant (except for the period 1991-2011) since Tsarina Catherine II, who, at the request of the inhabitants of the region, sent its Navy to defend Beïrut. Its policy was aimed primarily at protecting the the foundation of Russian culture, the cradle of Christianity (which is in Damascus, not Jerusalem). By doing so, Russia extended its influence in the Eastern Mediterranean and entered into the warm waters of the Indian Ocean.

In 2011, Russia was the only state which distinguished the colour revolutions in the Maghreb (the « Arab Springs ») from the wars against Libya and Syria. The Western powers, who have their own explanation of these events, still have not made the effort to understand their interpretation by Russia. The point here is not to determine who is right and who is wrong – that is another subject [1] – but to admit that there are two totally different readings of the facts. We should note that the Western powers agree that Moscow has not accepted the way in which they violated the resolution intended to protect the civil populations in Libya. They therefore recognise that it was not the Russians, but Western imperialism which created the problem we are facing today.

On the basis of its own analysis, Russia began to oppose its veto to the Western resolutions concerning Syria at the Security Council. Simultaneously, at the request of Syria, it began negotiations with Damascus with a view to deploying peace-keeping troops from the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) in Syria. Finally, Washington and Moscow met in Geneva, in presence of the Western powers but the absence of the Middle Eastern actors, to formalise a shared suzerainty over the Middle East. That was in June 2012. The honeymoon lasted no more than a few days. It was destroyed by France, acting on behalf of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

Seven years later, Moscow demanded its due. Indeed, it was Russia - not the CSTO – which had deployed its military in Syria and, together with the Syrian Arab Army and Hezbollah, had defeated the jihadists – and absolutely not Washington and its allies who, on the contrary, had armed them [2]. Russia claimed its part from Jerusalem, because a million Russian- speakers are Israëli citizens, and because one of them, Avigdor Lieberman, has recently caused the fall of Netanyahu’s government - twice [3].

This evolution is difficult to admit for those who are still thinking in terms of the US/Israëli alliance which characterised the Bush Jr. era. Nonetheless, since the defeat of Daesh, the Israëli authorities have visited Moscow much more frequently than Washington.

The game of the regional powers facing Israël

It is accepted as self-evident that the forces of the « Axis of Resistance » (Palestine-Lebanon-Syria-Iraq-Iran) are determined to annihilate the Israëlis just as the Nazis were committed to destroying the Jews. This is a grotesque mash-up of copy and paste.

In reality, Hezbollah was originally a network of Chiite Resistance to the Israëli occupation of Lebanon. It was at first armed by Syria, then, after the withdrawal of the Syrian peace force from Lebanon, by Iran. Its objective was never to « push the Jews into the sea », but on the contrary, it has never ceased to affirm its intention of establishing equality for all according to the Law. The Israëli occupation of Lebanon was a reality that massively surpassed the intentions of the Israëli government, which was overtaken by General Ariel Sharon’s initiative to seize Beïrut. It was also due to the Collaboration between the Christian militias and the Lebanese Druzes, including those of Samir Geagea and Walid Joumblatt.

In the same way, Syria reacted to Israëli expansionism first of all by defending itself, then by moving to support the Palestinian populations. This was perfectly legitimate, given that what are now Palestine and Syria formed a single political entity before the First World [4]. No-one, not even the United States, denies that for seventy years, Israël has been stealing land from its neighbours, and continues to do so.

From the beginning of the Cold War, the United States, busy with their policy of containment of the Soviets, were perfectly aware of this Israëli expansionism which upset the stability of the region. They armed Syria so that it could resist Israël – not attack it - and also armed other forces, including Iraq [5] . It was Secretary of State John Foster Dulles, and no-one else, who created the « Axis of Resistance ». In this way, he guaranteed that Syria and Iraq would not turn to the USSR in order to defend themselves and to obtain its military assistance.

The Dwight Eisenhower administration knew that Israël was the fruit of the wishes of Woodrow Wilson and David Lloyd George [6], but he considered it to be a crazy horse which had to be both protected and controlled.

Washington therefore allied itself with the British ideas: the Military Assistance Programme between Damascus and Teheran, then, in 1958, the Baghdad Pact which enabled the creation of CenTO (the regional equivalent of NATO). The context has changed, the actors have changed, but the motives remain the same.

The case of Iran is the main problem today. Indeed, the majority of its leaders do not approach this question from a political point of view, but from a religious standpoint. A Chiite prophecy assures that the Jews will reform a state in Palestine, but that it will quickly be destroyed. The Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, holds this text to be canon law. He follows the countdown, and has affirmed that Israël will have disappeared within six years (in 2025).

The growing tension of positions, in Iran concerning this prophecy, and in Israël concerning the « Basic Law: Israel as the Nation-State of the Jewish People » (2018), is the source of the continuation of this conflict, which could be unblocked with a minimum of intelligence. This is what Donald Trump and Jared Kushner tried to do, and it is here that they failed: while economic development might do away with the question of reparations, no progress could be possible without the evolution of the world visions professed by the Jews, the Arabs and the Persians.

What is the « Axis of Resistance »?

The religious leaders of Iran often use the expression « Axis of Resistance » to designate the alliance against Israël. Yet there exists no treaty formalising this axis. The leaders have never held a summit to discuss it.

Since the US invasion of Iraq, in 2003, the forces of this Axis have slowly split apart so that today, their internal conflicts have become more important than their exterior combat.

In 2003, the chief Iraqi Chiite leader, Mohammad Sadeq al-Sadr, was assassinated. Rightly or wrongly, his followers believed that the Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani was responsible. al-Sistani is an Iranian living in Iraq, from whence he directs Chiite seminars. Progressively, the Iraqi Chiite community has become divided between al-Sistani’s pro-Iranians and the pro-Arabs of the dead man’s son, Moqtada al-Sadr, who successively broke with Damascus, then with Teheran in 2017, and then went to Riyadh to side with Prince Mohamed ben Salmane.

In 2006, profiting from its victory during the legislative elections in the Palestinian Territories, Hamas carried off a coup d’état against the Fatah, and proclaimed that it was autonomous in the Gaza Strip [7]. In 2012, its political directors, who were living in exile in Damascus, suddenly moved to Doha, while Qatar was financing the jihadists against Syria. Hamas declared itself to be the « Palestinian Branch of the Muslim Brotherhood », a political party which is forbidden in Syria. Its men and agents of the Israëli Mossad entered the Syrian city of Yarmouk in order to assassinate their Marxist rivals of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine – General Command. The Syrian army encircled the town, and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas assured them of his support.

It is absurd for the Western powers to seek to destroy the « Axis of Resistance », which they wanted and created, if only because they have lost control of it. All they need to do is wait, it will collapse on its own.

The Iranians are faithful friends, but they have a cultural tendency to drag their friends into their own affairs. The Syrians have never expelled the Iranians, who protect them from Israëli expansionism, and to whom they owe their resistance at the start of the war (2011-14). But if the Iranians were truly the friends of the Syrians, they would operate a military withdrawal from the country, leaving it to Russia, so that the United States could recognise the legitimacy of Bachar el-Assad’s government. Instead of which, they are using the presence of their troops to provoke Israël and fire rockets from Syria on Israëli territory.

The three national Security advisors

John Bolton (USA), Meir Ben-Shabbat (Israël) and Nikolaï Patrouchev (Russia), the three national Security advisors, have the same functions, but not the same experience.

Bolton is persuaded of the ontological superiority of his country over all others. He acquired his experience of international relations during the disarmament negotiations, and above all, while he was the ambassador to the Security Council (2005-06). Although he can sometimes adopt flamboyant initiatives, he is quite capable of stepping back when he thinks he is wrong. It is in fact because he has this capacity of assuming personal responsibility for the errors of his side that President Trump has maintained him in this function.

Meir Ben-Shabbat is a man of faith, persuaded, in his case, that he belongs to a chosen but cursed people. He is not a diplomat, but an expert in counter-espionage. However, when he directed the Shin Bet, he showed genuine finesse in fighting Hamas, manipulating it, and finally negotiating with it. His excellent knowledge of the multiple forces in the Middle East enables him to understand instantly what can last and what will fade away.

Finally, Nikolaï Patrouchev is a lord of the superior Russian public civil service. Of the three advisors, he is without doubt the man who has the clearest view of the world chess-board. When he succeeded Vladimir Putin at the head of the FSB, he had to face up to attempts by the United States and Israël to steal his directors. In the end, though, after years of turbulence, he was able to regain control over the FSB machine. He then had to handle the destabilisation of Ukraine by the United States and the European Union, which was finally terminated by the adhesion of Crimea to the Russian Federation. He will not be negotiating one dossier against another, but on the contrary, will take care that all the decisions taken will be coherent.

These three strategies will have to define the boundaries of a new deal which will thereafter be negotiated by diplomats. Their role is to imagine a viable long-term agreement, while the role of the diplomats will be to compensate the losses of the vanquished in order to make this agreement acceptable for them.

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In light of the tripartite summit, the oil tanker attack seems like a similar roll out of the tactic used by deep state actors in the Kerch strait seas several months ago (https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-46340283), which intended to escalate tensions and prevent the Trump-Putin meeting that was due to take place back then.

Richard S.

15th June 2019, 10:39

Lest we forget...

Seven Reasons To Be Highly Skeptical Of The Gulf Of Oman Incident
https://www.davidicke.com/article/541771/seven-reasons-highly-skeptical-gulf-oman-incident

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These people are truly sick!

Star Tsar

15th June 2019, 11:02

A ExoPolitcal angle to this story perhaps?

JapanToday.com

Operator of Tanker Says Sailors Saw 'Flying Objects' Just Before Attack

Published 14th June 2019

https://japantoday-asset.scdn3.secure.raxcdn.com/img/store/53/7e/628a120607960071036bcc2b8fd9ebf1f777/kadoka/_w850.jpg

The Japanese operator ship operator of one of two oil tankers attacked near the Strait of Hormuz on Thursday said that sailors on board its vessel, the Kokuka Courageous, saw "flying objects" just before the attack, suggesting the tanker wasn't damaged by mines.

read all about it here: https://japantoday.com/category/national/Ship-operator-says-sailors-saw-'flying-objects'-just-before-attack

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Star Tsar

18th June 2019, 00:48

Project Camelot

https://projectcamelotportal.com/wp-content/uploads/BannerTop.png

Tony Gosling | Tankers Wars, Drone Wars

Published 17th June 2019

Kerry talks with ex BBC reporter Tony Gosling about the attacks on the tankers in the Gulf of Oman & where this is all leading.

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