by Milo Clark
(Swans - April 9, 2007) Seymour Hersh, writing primarily in The New Yorker, serially bedevils the Bush administration. In the March 5th, 2007, edition, Hersh says that the Bush administration strategy has shifted. Focus on Iraq, pretty much a lost cause and sexless now, has dropped to be succeeded by going after Iran and taking up Sunni cudgels against the Shia.
In the December 4th edition of Swans I wrote: "Overriding American strategic designs for commodity control are Sunni Islam's historic denial of Shia existence. The Sunni states headed by Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, will not allow a Shia dominated Iraq government to emerge. Frustrating Shia Iran's emergent and strengthening roles in the region, including links to a Shia Iraq and Hezbollah Lebanon, take priority...
"A weakening U.S. emboldens the Saudi and Pakistan governments to be more overt in their actions and intentions. We now see Saudi Arabia making nice to Israel as are Turkey and Jordan. They will support or ignore Israel in attacking or subverting Shia Iran and frustrating an emergent Shia Iraq...
"Sunni Islam will not relent in doing everything in its power to frustrate Shia dominance in Iraq."
In his March 7th piece, Hersh says: "A by-product of these activities has been the bolstering of Sunni extremist groups that espouse a militant version of Islam and are hostile to America and sympathetic to Al Queda."
So the folks really killing Americans in Iraq are now administration favorites. Bizarre.
Now, I can go the one step further implied in my December Swans piece: When and if Iran is attacked, whether by US forces or the surrogate Israelis, it won't be primarily to stop nuclear development. It will be to do Saudi dirty work in smashing Shia.
Nasrallah, Hezbollah chief, tells Hersh he believes overall American/Saudi/Israeli strategy is to break up Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Iran into splinter states organized along sectarian lines. These splinter states will be no threat to Israel and rather easily dominated by Israel. Fits what is apparently going on better than Fox's clear and balanced propaganda.
To these ends, Hersh notes the myriad covert actions against Iran and limitless funds supplied through US and Saudi sources.
Cambodia and Iran-Contra redux, anyone?
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