Iran’s Exiled Prince Meets Former Israeli Defense Minister
Iran’s exiled prince Reza Pahlavi has met with former Israeli defense minister Benny Gantz on the sidelines of the annual Jerusalem Post conference in New York.
Iran’s exiled prince Reza Pahlavi has met with former Israeli defense minister Benny Gantz on the sidelines of the annual Jerusalem Post conference in New York.
“We discussed the rich history between our peoples and the opportunities for future collaboration not only between Israel and a secular, democratic Iran but across the Middle East,” Pahlavi tweeted on Monday. “Together, let’s bring in a new era,” he said.
No further details have been released from the meeting between the two.
As Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ramped up threats to attack Iranian nuclear facilities, the Iranian opposition figure, Pahlavi, seems to be a uniting point between the people of Iran and Israel.
Gantz who was in the previous Israeli government is also a strong opponent of the Iranian regime, its nuclear program and interventions in the region.
In April, Pahlavi toured Israel as part of his efforts to unite international support against the Islamic Republic and in support of the uprising in Iran.
During a press conference in Tel Aviv, Pahlavi said that Iranians are the extreme opposite of the country’s current rulers, and that the regime does not represent the Iranian nation. “They have no antagonism to any nation or any faith. I know that Iranians and Israelis see how important it would be for our future to be strategic partners, to work together, to address many issues. I come here to convey this message to Israeli citizens,” he said.
According to a confidential letter leaked by the hacktivist group ‘Uprising till Overthrow,' the deputy of the General Staff of the Armed Forces for cultural and propaganda affairs, Abolfazl Shekarchi, presented a list of measures to take to quell possible protests and strikes by teachers and workers.
In the letter dated April 30, it is apparent that the regime is rattled by protests and strikes and is trying to find ways to portray them as different from the widespread antiregime rallies. The document said rallies on teacher’s day and worker’s day are an opportunity for anti-regime demonstrations.
It also referred to the poisoning of schoolgirls, saying that Persian media abroad seek to portray the country as stricken by crises and in a state of emergency.
The recurring theme in the letter is that the regime wants to make the best use of the differences among different opposition camps and discredit the foreign-based media.
The letter also indicates that a large part of differences among opposition forces are accentuated by the supporters of the regime, known in social media as the cyber army.
One of the suggestions directly points to exaggerating the failure of the Mahsa Charterand the George Town alliance of opposition figures. A group of prominent Iranian dissident figures, which calls itself the Alliance for Democracy and Freedom in Iran, issued a Charter of Solidarity and Alliance for Freedom after announcing its existence in a February event at Georgetown University's Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) -- titled ‘The Future of Iran’s Democracy Movement.'
The alliance fell apart following the resignation of Canada-based activist Hamed Esmaeilion and the ensuing arguments between monarchists and supporters of other forms of governments.
The leaked letter called on several regime organizations to try to highlight the differences among the different opposition forces and portray them as dependent on foreign “hostile” governments.
The document also called for delegitimizing teacher and worker activists by finding pro-regime experts among them and highlighting their views in state media outlets.
The hacktivist group ‘Uprising till Overthrow' claimed on May 29 that it breached 120 servers at the presidential office, getting access to internal communications, meetings minutes, President Ebrahims Raisi’s online conference platforms and about 1,300 computers inside the office.
In the new cyberattack, the group is said to have gained access to “tens of thousands confidential documents” but is releasing them in daily batches.
Earlier in May, the group, affiliated with the Albania-based opposition Mojahedin-e-Khalq (MEK) group -- People's Mojahedin Organization of Iran, hacked into the Islamic Republic’s foreign ministry servers, disabling 210 sites and online services and leaking another large batch of documents.
The vessel sent a distress call on June 4 while transiting the straits, a relatively narrow waterway controlled in the north by Iran but considered international waters for commercial and naval traffic.
Iran has hundreds of fast attack boats that for years not only have harassed civilian vessels but, on many occasions, have come dangerously close to US and other warships in a show of force.
“The internationally flagged merchant vessel made a radio distress call at 4:56 p.m. local time while transiting the narrow strait. The civilian crew reported three fast-attack craft with armed personnel approached and followed the merchant vessel at close distance. The fast-attack craft were assessed to be from the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy,” a US navy statement said.
US Navy guided-missile destroyer USS McFaul and UK Royal Navy frigate HMS Lancaster both received the distress call, and Lancaster launched a helicopter to provide surveillance. US 5th Fleet also directed a P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft to monitor the scene, the Navy said.
“The situation deescalated approximately an hour later when the merchant vessel confirmed the fast-attack craft departed the scene. The merchant ship continued transiting the Strait of Hormuz without further incident.”
It must be noted, however, that allied navies did not confront the Iranian forces, but simply "monitored" the situation. If fighter jets or attack helicopters had been dispatched, it would have sent a more forceful signal to the IRGC.
The incident followed Iran’s seizure of two commercial vessels in the Persian Gulf waters in May and an announcement by the US to send more naval forces to the region.
“[The] United States will not allow foreign or regional powers to jeopardize freedom of navigation through the Middle East waterways, including the Strait of Hormuz,” National Security Council Coordinator for Strategic Communications John Kirby told reporters on May 12, adding that there is “simply no justification” for Iranian actions to interfere, harass or attack merchant ships.
The Sunday incident also followed an announcement by the United Arab Emirates last week that it has pulled out of a US-led maritime coalition to provide security, which was later denied by the United States. However, Iran was quick to claim victory and announce that a new naval coalition is being formed with regional powers. The US also denied that claim, saying the Iranian statement “defies reason” as the Islamic Republic itself is the greatest threat to maritime security.
Sunday’s action, although not a direct naval confrontation, will reassure littoral countries that have relied on the West, and primarily on the United States, for security in the Persian Gulf.
The region contains some of the world's most important shipping routes where, in 2019, suspected Iranian attacks began against oil tankers amid tensions with the United States as the Trump administration imposed oil export sanctions on Tehran.
But Iran had long been harassing even US Navy vessels with its fast attack boat. The Obama, Trump and Biden administrations chose not to retaliate against Iranian naval provocations over the years or show a convincing military deterrent response.
As Saudi Arabia, the largest Arab power in the region shows signs of adopting a new policy of détente with Iran and close ties with China, the Biden administration feels it has to show that US security guarantees are important for the oil-rich Arab allies.
“US 5th Fleet remains vigilant and is bolstering defense around the key strait with partners to enhance regional maritime security and stability,” the US Navy said in its statement about the Sunday incident.
