MARK ALMOND: The lesson from history to everyone hoping to topple Iran's mullahs: Be careful what you wish for!

For the first time since the Islamic Revolution of 1979, which swept the mullahs to power, the collapse of Iran 's tyrannical regime is a realistic prospect.
Israel 's dazzling mix of air strikes, sabotage and assassination by agents on the ground has already dealt a succession of heavy blows to the Islamic Republic and its geriatric leadership.

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Telegraph

38 minutes ago

• Telegraph

Let us not forget the plight of Syria's endangered Christians

On Sunday, the blast from a suicide attack exploded in the Mar Elias Church in the Dweila district of Damascus. Twenty-two people have been killed, according to authorities. This was an Islamic State (ISIS) attack, acknowledged officially by the terror group. The attack is a very serious event; it's something ISIS has been trying to do for seven months, ever since the new Syrian government took office. ISIS believes fundamentally in attacking Christians and other religious minorities. It believes they can never live at peace with its version of Islam. This replicates a strategy ISIS and its predecessor organisations had in Iraq for years, of attacking non-Sunni religious groups at all costs to stir up religious violence. This bombing is not unprecedented. ISIS has tried to attack Christians inside Syria for as long as it has been in the country. In recent months, ISIS has been prevented by the new government, whose leadership believes close ties with the country's Christians are necessary to keep the country at peace and to prove to foreigners that Syria is governed well. Attacks on Christians are one way ISIS tries to overthrow the transitional government. Ever since the war against ISIS largely fought in the last decade, ISIS has not disappeared. Its leaders have been killed, its local commanders kidnapped by special forces, but it has seethed in the Syrian desert and planned and plotted. When the regime of Bashar al-Assad fell in Damascus, the American Central Command (CENTCOM) launched a series of strikes on dozens of ISIS targets which were previously hiding in Assad regime territory, where American air power was reluctant to go. But a group like ISIS mutates and survives to fight again. The new authorities in Syria, led by interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa, have hedged their credibility on internal security. Syria's new government dissolved a sprawling network of warring intelligence agencies and security services, the majority of them used for internal turf wars and locking up dissenters. From this morass, it has had to build a new security system. Al-Sharaa and his ministers have said for months that ISIS remains the new government's greatest challenge. The head of the new Syrian General Security Service claims that have been many ISIS attempts at violent terrorism, some of them publicly acknowledged, that have been foiled in recent months by a combination of the new transitional authorities and their partners, local and foreign. The new government has worked closely with the United States as part of America's counter-ISIS mission. This includes coordinating strikes on ISIS targets, and American special forces joining with a favoured Syrian group, the Syrian Free Army, to launch raids on suspected ISIS commanders.

BreakingNews.ie

an hour ago

• BreakingNews.ie

Iran launches missiles and drones at Israel in the wake of US strikes

Iran has fired a salvo of missiles and drones at Israel while warning the United States that its military has been given a 'free hand' to attack American targets in the wake of the Trump administration's massive strikes on Iranian nuclear sites. Israel said its defence systems were operating to intercept the threat, which apparently targeted north and central areas, and told people to head to shelters. Advertisement Iran described the attack a new wave of its Operation 'True Promise 3', saying it was targeting the Israeli cities of Haifa and Tel Aviv, according to Iranian state television. There were no immediate reports of damage. The move came after the US bombed Iranian nuclear sites (Iranian Army Press Service via AP) The attack came the day after the United States inserted itself into Israel's war by attacking Iranian nuclear sites, prompting fears of a wider regional conflict. Iran said the US had crossed 'a very big red line' with its risky gambit to strike the three sites with missiles and 30,000-pound bunker-buster bombs. Advertisement On Monday, Iranian Gen Abdolrahim Mousavi, the chief of joint staff of armed forces, warned Washington its strikes had given Iranian forces a 'free hand ' to 'act against US interests and its army'. Gen Mousavi described the American attack as violating Iran's sovereignty and being tantamount to invading the country, the state-run IRNA news agency reported. In the wake of the American attacks on Iran, calls came from across the globe for de-escalation and the return to diplomacy to try and resolve the conflict. On Monday, the European Union's top diplomat said the bloc remained 'very much focused on the diplomatic solution'. Advertisement 'The concerns of retaliation and this war escalating are huge,' Kaja Kallas said at the start of a foreign ministers' meeting in Brussels where Iran has jumped to the top of the agenda. 'Especially closing of the Strait of Hormuz by Iran is something that would be extremely dangerous and not good for anybody,' Ms Kallas said, referring to a maritime route crucial for oil transport. After Sunday's attacks, Iranian officials repeated their longstanding threats of possibly closing the key shipping lane. Iranian foreign minister Abbas Araghchi is meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin, one of Iran's key allies, in Moscow. Advertisement

Daily Mail​

an hour ago

• Daily Mail​

Supertankers U-turn in Strait of Hormuz as fear grips shipping industry after Iran threatens to shut down major route in wake of US airstrikes, pushing up oil prices

Two huge supertankers U-turned in the Strait of Hormuz yesterday amid fears Iran could disrupt the global oil trade by closing the passage in response to U.S. strikes. The Coswisdom Lake and South Loyalty, each capable of transporting about two million barrels of crude, entered the passage on Sunday before abruptly changing course and leaving, according to Bloomberg. It was unclear what caused the two empty ships to head south, away from the mouth of the Persian Gulf. Analysts have been closely monitoring the strait since the U.S. bombed three nuclear facilities in Iran earlier on Sunday. Iran's parliament was reported to have backed a move to close the strait late on Sunday, threatening around a fifth of all global oil movements. Iranian state television reported that the legislature had come to an agreement, but Supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei would have to make the final decision, it said. The closure of the strait, a chokepoint between Iran and Oman, would threaten petroleum shipments from Persian Gulf countries, likely spiking prices. Oil prices jumped more than four percent early Monday, and Dutch and British wholesale gas prices rose today as markets braced for Iran's response. Analysts have warned that a decision to close the Strait would meaningfully impact global oil flows and be tantamount to a declaration of war. 'A move to close Hormuz would be an effective declaration of war against the Gulf states and the U.S.,' Eurasia senior analyst Gregory Brew told Axios. But whether Iran has the resource and will to suffocate its adversaries is unclear. 'Iran in its weakened state is unlikely to seek escalation of that kind at this time,' he added. Chris Weston at Pepperstone said Iran would be able to inflict economic damage on the world without taking the 'extreme route' of trying to close the Strait of Hormuz. 'By planting enough belief that they could disrupt this key logistical channel, maritime costs could rise to the point that it would have a significant impact on the supply of crude and gas,' he wrote. At the same time, 'while Trump's primary focus will be on the Middle East, headlines on trade negotiations could soon start to roll in and market anxieties could feasibly build'. Iran's armed forces nonetheless threatened on Monday to inflict 'serious, unpredictable consequences' on the U.S. in retaliation for its strikes on nuclear sites. 'This hostile act... will widen the scope of legitimate targets of the armed forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran and pave the way for the extension of war in the region,' said armed forces spokesman Ebrahim Zolfaghari on state television. Ali Akbar Velayati, an adviser to Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said bases used by US forces 'in the region or elsewhere' could be attacked. The US State Department issued a 'worldwide caution' for Americans on Sunday. China today warned against 'the spillover of war', urging the international community to do more to prevent the fighting from impacting the world's economy, noting the global importance of the Gulf maritime trade routes off the Iranian coast. The leaders of Britain, France and Germany have called on Iran 'not to take any further action that could destabilise the region'. At a UN Security Council emergency meeting Sunday, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warned against 'descending into a rathole of retaliation after retaliation'. Asian markets traded lower today amid concerns of disruption to energy markets after the US air strikes 'obliterated' Iran's nuclear facilities on Saturday night. The dollar strengthened as traders assessed the weekend's events, with Iran threatening US bases in the Middle East as fears grow of an escalating conflict in the volatile region. Iran is the world's ninth-biggest oil-producing country, with output of about 3.3million barrels per day. It exports just under half of that amount and keeps the rest for domestic consumption. If Tehran decides to retaliate, observers say one of its options would be to close the strategic Strait of Hormuz - which carries 20 per cent of global oil output. Brent crude futures were up $1.52 or 1.97 per cent to $78.53 a barrel as of 6am UK time. US West Texas Intermediate crude advanced $1.51 or 2.04 per cent to $75.35. Both contracts jumped by more than 3 per cent earlier in the session to $81.40 and $78.40, respectively, touching five-month highs before giving up some gains. Economists at MUFG warned of 'high uncertainty of the outcomes and duration of this war', publishing a 'scenario analysis' of an oil price increase of $10 per barrel. 'An oil price shock would create a real negative impact on most Asian economies' as many are big net energy importers, they wrote, reflecting the market's downbeat mood. Tokyo's key Nikkei index was down 0.6 per cent at the break, with Hong Kong losing 0.4 per cent and Shanghai flat. Seoul fell 0.7 per cent and Sydney was 0.8 per cent lower. The dollar's value rose against other currencies but analysts questioned to what extent this would hold out. 'If the increase proves to be just a knee-jerk reaction to what is perceived as short-lived US involvement in the Middle-East conflict, the dollar's downward path is likely to resume,' said Sebastian Boyd, markets live blog strategist at Bloomberg. US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said on Sunday that the strikes had 'devastated the Iranian nuclear programme', though some officials cautioned that the extent of the damage was unclear.