Latest news with #terrorism
Japan Times
4 hours ago
- Politics
- Japan Times
How Trump, a self-proclaimed 'peacemaker,' embraced Israel's campaign against Iran
Roughly one month ago, from the stage at an investment forum in Saudi Arabia, U.S. President Donald Trump issued a warning to Iran that would prove prophetic. "We'll never allow America and its allies to be threatened with terrorism or nuclear attack," Trump told the crowd, sending a message to the leadership in Tehran. "The time is right now for them to choose. Right now. We don't have a lot of time to wait. Things are happening at a very fast pace." That May 13 ultimatum received little attention at the time. But behind the scenes, the president already knew an attack on Iran could be imminent — and that there might be little he could do to stop it, according to two U.S. officials. By mid-May, the Pentagon had begun drawing up detailed contingency plans to aid Israel if it followed through on its long-held ambition to strike Iran's nuclear program, the officials said. And the U.S. had already diverted thousands of defensive weapons away from war-torn Ukraine toward the Middle East in preparation for potential conflict, according to a Western source familiar with the matter and a Ukrainian source. The Pentagon declined to comment for this story. This account of the weeks and days leading up to Trump's decision to throw his support behind Israel's bombing campaign is based on interviews with over a dozen administration officials, foreign diplomats and Trump confidantes, most of whom spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private deliberations. The picture that emerges is that of a long, secretive preparation process and a president who for weeks found himself torn between diplomacy and supporting military action — and was ultimately persuaded in part by an ally whose actions he did not fully control. While Trump has long described himself as a peacemaker — dispatching Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff to the region several times to try to seal a diplomatic accord — he had several trusted political allies pushing him to back an Israeli attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. And U.S. intelligence had indicated a unilateral Israeli strike was possible, even likely, even if Trump wanted to wait, according to two U.S. officials. Smoke rises following an Israeli attack in Tehran on Wednesday | West Asia News Agency / via REUTERS While it is unclear if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu or Trump's more hawkish allies ever got him to a "yes" to Israel's plans, by the days leading up the strike he was at least not a "no," according to two senior U.S. officials and a senior Israeli source. That stance, people familiar with the dynamics said, helped tip Israel into action. Seven days into the Israel-Iran conflict, Trump is left with a dilemma, said Aaron David Miller, a veteran diplomat who has advised six secretaries of state on Middle East policy. He can try again to pursue a diplomatic resolution with Iran, allow Iran and Israel "to fight it out," or he can enter the war with U.S. airstrikes on the deeply buried Fordow enrichment plant, a step that would have unknown consequences for the region. Trump "let it (the Israeli attack) happen," said Miller, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace policy institute. "He got on the tiger, and he's riding it." The White House on Thursday said that Trump will make a decision on whether the U.S. will get involved in the conflict in the next two weeks. The White House, the Israeli prime minister's office and Iran's delegation to the United Nations did not respond to a request for comment. Tehran has consistently said its nuclear program is designed for peaceful purposes only, a conclusion Washington has rejected. The coming storm One of the first hints that Trump might sign off on an Israeli bombing campaign came in April. During a closed-door meeting on April 17, Saudi Arabia's defense minister delivered a blunt message to Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian: Take Trump's offer to negotiate an agreement seriously because it presents a way to avoid the risk of war with Israel. Reuters could not determine whether the message was sent at Washington's behest, nor whether Iran's leaders took that message seriously. With hindsight, they should have. The Israel Defense Forces and the head of U.S. Central Command, General Michael "Erik" Kurilla, were discussing detailed intelligence about Iran's missile buildup and nuclear program and steps that could be required to defend U.S. troops and Israel, itself, in any conflict with Iran, according to a U.S. official and senior Israeli official. Meanwhile, the U.S. was funneling weapons to Israel that would be useful for an air war with Iran. In one instance in early May, a large shipment of defensive missiles originally meant for Ukraine was diverted to Israel, instead, according to the Western source and the Ukrainian source. Protesters rally during a "No War on Iran" demonstration in Los Angeles on Wednesday. | AFP-Jiji The diverted shipment caused consternation in Kyiv and sparked continued fears that additional weapons needed to defend against Moscow will, instead, be used to defend U.S. interests elsewhere, the Ukrainian source said. In the opening months of Trump's term, Israel had already proposed to Washington a series of options to attack Iran's facilities, according to sources. While Trump had rebuffed those ideas, saying he preferred diplomacy for the time being, several people close to him said he was never dead-set against using military force against Iran. He had done so before. In 2020, despite a foreign policy during his first term that was otherwise marked by restraint, Trump ordered a drone strike that killed major general Qassem Soleimani, the head of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards' division responsible for its international operations. The Iranian government has since sought to murder Trump in revenge, U.S. prosecutors have said, an allegation Tehran denies. Behind the scenes, Trump had been pulled in multiple directions on the Iran issue since before he even took office. On one side, many supporters — including conservative media personality Tucker Carlson — and administration officials saw Trump's Make America Great Again movement as an antidote to decades of foreign wars that cost thousands of American lives without significantly advancing American interests. On the other, several close Trump allies — from conservative commentator Mark Levin to Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham — were portraying a nuclear Iran as an existential threat that must be removed at any cost. Trump, himself, took pride in being a broker of peace. "My proudest legacy," he said during his inauguration address, "will be that of a peacemaker and unifier." 'It's a tango' Ultimately, no U.S. official, Trump confidante or diplomat reporters talked to identified an epiphany that tipped the scales for the president. One senior administration official said that after months of sitting on the fence a lack of diplomatic progress, a push from the Israelis and appeals by hawkish allies likely wore him down. Trump aides and allies have noted that Israel's attack unfolded just after the expiry of a 60-day deadline the Trump administration had set for a diplomatic breakthrough with Iran. The senior U.S. official said another dynamic was at play: As U.S. intelligence consistently showed Israel might go ahead with an attack with or without U.S. support, the administration could look caught off guard if they did not get behind it. Worse, it could appear that the U.S. was opposing a longtime ally. Although Trump had appeared to some to snub Netanyahu as he pushed for a peaceful solution to the crisis, privately, Israel understood that Washington would stand by it, said a separate official. By the time Trump talked to Netanyahu on June 9 — one of many phone calls in recent days — his stance was one of tacit, if not explicit approval, according to one U.S. and one Israeli official. The Wall Street Journal reported that Trump had said he would like more time to see diplomacy play out. But the U.S. official said that he did not explicitly veto Israel's plans. By June 11, it was clear to Washington that Israel's plans were a go. That day, Reuters reported that the U.S. was preparing a partial evacuation of its Iraqi embassy amid fears of reprisals from Iran following an imminent attack. The next day, June 12, Washington sent a formal diplomatic note to several regional allies, warning them that an attack was imminent. That evening, Israel launched its overnight barrage, an attack that almost immediately escalated into an air war. Trump and some key cabinet members watched the events live from the wood-paneled "JFK room," part of the White House Situation Room. Other officials watched the events nearby. On the menu, per one official: stone crabs from a local restaurant. The initial attack appeared to be a success, with several close advisers to Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei killed and key nuclear sites seriously damaged. Over the weekend, the Israelis considered killing Khamenei, himself, but were waved off by Trump, according to two U.S. officials. Almost immediately, a political civil war erupted in Trump's Republican Party, with several high-profile conservatives, including members of Congress, accusing his administration of fanning the flames of war. Seven days on, the U.S. intelligence community believes the strikes have set Iran's nuclear ambitions back by only months, according to a source familiar with U.S. intelligence reports, confirming a CNN report. A significant blow to Iran's nuclear ambitions, most analysts say, will require dropping bunker-busting bombs on the Fordow Fuel Enrichment Plant, the crown jewel of Iran's nuclear program. Only the U.S. has that capability. Trump has said he is considering such a strike, which would represent a major escalation for the United States. As of Thursday, his intentions were still unclear.
Telegraph
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Loophole that lets terrorists enter UK to be closed
Suspected terrorists will no longer be able to exploit a loophole that allows them to enter Britain despite being stripped of citizenship. Ministers are to pass legislation that will ensure citizenship is not automatically reinstated if terrorists successfully appeal against a decision to strip them of it. The loophole, identified by the Supreme Court, would mean that they could return to the UK while the Government sought to overturn the successful appeal. The terror suspects could then renounce any other citizenship that they had, which would mean that Britain would have no option but to allow them to stay in the UK and could not deport them. Under international law, governments cannot render a person stateless by stripping them of their citizenship if they are not citizens of another country. 'An essential tool' Official data suggests more than 1,000 Britons were deprived of their citizenship between 2010 and 2023, including Shamima Begum, one of three east London schoolgirls who travelled to Syria in 2015 to support the IS group. She fought a series of high-profile legal battles to return to the UK after being stripped of her citizenship in 2019, but has remained unsuccessful. It mirrors the case of two Pakistani members of one of the most notorious grooming gangs in Rotherham, whom the Government stripped of their British citizenship. Qari Abdul Rauf, a 55-year-old father of five and Adil Khan, 54, were jailed for their part in sexually assaulting 47 girls. They subsequently renounced their Pakistani citizenship, effectively declaring themselves stateless. Pakistan is refusing to take them back on the basis that they have renounced their citizenship and are regarded as dangerous criminals. Dan Jarvis, the security minister, said: 'Protecting our national security and keeping the British public safe is the first duty of this government and the foundation of our Plan for Change. The power to deprive someone of their British citizenship is an essential tool, and helps protect us from some of the most dangerous people. 'We must close this gap in the law and prevent British citizenship being reinstated to individuals until all appeals have been determined. This is the right thing to do if we believe someone is a threat to our national security, and it will make Britain safer.' For the public good The Home Office said deprivation decisions on 'conducive to the public good' grounds were taken only in the most serious cases by the Home Secretary, where it is in the public interest to do so because of the individual's conduct or the threat they pose to the UK. About 222 of the those deprived of citizenship between 2010-2023 were for the public good. In 2018, the number of appeals reached a record high of 88 as the UK sought to counter the threat from Islamic state fighters returning home. That was up from just five in 2011. The change in the law follows the similar approach taken in asylum and human rights appeals cases, where asylum is not granted to a person appealing a rejection until all further appeals, up to the Court of Appeal, have been determined. Home Office officials said the narrowly focused Bill, consisting of two clauses, made no change to a person's existing right to appeal any decision to remove their British citizenship, and did not widen the reasons for which a person could be deprived of their citizenship.
Daily Mail
8 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Cornered Iran could unleash sinister attacks on US soil as it runs out of options against Israel, insiders say
Desperate Iranian mullahs could lash out at America ordering deadly cyber attacks on our dams and electricity grids – or even terror attacks from 'sleeper cells', security experts are warning. spoke to former top diplomats, cybersecurity and national security experts who said that although the Iranian regime is on the back foot and reeling from Israeli bombardment, it still has the ability to wreak havoc on US soil. A former senior diplomat who had extensive Top Secret security briefings on Iran told that the new 'hot war' between Iran and Israel, and Ayatollah Khameini's increasingly desperate position, has ratcheted up the risk of the regime taking drastic action in the US. 'I can't imagine, seeing how this war is going, that Iran is going to hold back,' said the top ex-US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity. 'They're running out of options, and this is one of the areas in which they've unfortunately been quite effective. 'You can't manufacture new missiles or centrifuges overnight. But you can empower whatever proxies are remaining to act with even more deadly results. 'Assassination attempts, terror attacks, they will of course still try to do those things. It's no secret they have made assassination attempts on US soil, in Washington DC. 'Their capabilities for doing so are becoming less both because of their degrading situation, and also because we're on much higher alert here in DC. Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his fellow Ayatollah, an honorific title for high-ranking Shia clergy, have become increasingly desperate, which has ratcheted up the risk of the regime taking drastic action in the US 'But If they employ hacking capabilities on mass infrastructure, our energy grid, our nuclear facilities, major dams, these are all things that are vulnerable.' The former top State Department official said Iran had been pouring money for years into political opposition to US Iran hawks and promoting critiques of its enemies such as Israel on university campuses. But a hail-Mary strategy for the regime action could see Iranian government-backed online activity turn to more dangerous hacking. 'It's not just about stoking up anti-American fervor on campus. It's also about finding the weakest parts of the systems that keep us all safe,' the ex-official said. 'You don't need to bomb trains. You could just have the signals mixed up due to a digital hack and have them run into each other.' Rex Booth, who worked as the chief of cyber threat analysis at the government's Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency, gave a stark warning that Iran's hackers have already infiltrated critical US infrastructure. 'They have a demonstrated ability of infiltrating infrastructure and remaining there undetected for extended periods of time,' he told Booth pointed to a 2013 hack of the control center of the Bowman Avenue Dam in Westchester County, New York by hackers working for Iran's Revolutionary Guard Corps. The former top State Department official who chose to remain anonymous said Iran had already been pouring money for years into political opposition to the US and promoting critiques of its enemies, such as Israel on university campuses Former Chief of Cyber Threat Analysis at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Agency, Rex Booth, said even though their 2013 plan failed, Iran's hackers have the potential to produce 'catastrophic consequences' (PICTURED: The seven Iranian hackers) Disaster was averted by luck, as the dam's sluice gate was offline for maintenance at the time. But it was a chilling example of exposed infrastructure. 'The idea is that they can open dams, release water when they're not supposed to, and potentially cause, depending on how the dam is situated, catastrophic consequences downstream,' Booth said. 'We learned, based on observations that the private sector makes as well as government has made, that there is substantial intrusion into our national critical infrastructure by a variety of nation-state actors. 'And our visibility into that intrusion, we know is limited. We know it's happening, we see a portion of it, but we suspect that's a pretty small percentage. 'So when we go to engage adversarial nations in conflict, we have to do so with the knowledge that we don't have full visibility into the extent of the infiltration of these nations into our systems that we depend on day in, day out. And with that comes real risk.' Oregon Senator Ron Wyden has railed against outdated and vulnerable security systems for private dams in his state, stating in a congressional hearing last year: 'I don't want to wake up to a news report about a small town in the Pacific Northwest getting wiped out because of a cyberattack against a private dam upriver.' In 2024, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) had just four full-time employees tasked with overseeing 2,500 dams across the US and had not updated its cybersecurity requirements for commercial dam operators since 2016. FERC proposed new cybersecurity standards in September but has not yet implemented them. One insider, EJ Kimball, said Israel has been so effective in its assassination of Iranian and Hezbollah military leaders that terrorists may be confused as to who to take orders from Kimball, who works as Director of Christian Outreach and Engagement for the nonprofit Combat Antisemitism Movement and is a national security consultant, said the FBI has testified in Congress for years that Iranian support networks operate inside the US National security consultant EJ Kimball told there is 'certainly a risk that the Iranians may escalate things regarding the US.' 'The FBI has reported in congressional testimony over the years about Iranian support networks operating inside the US,' added Kimball, who works as Director of Christian Outreach and Engagement for the nonprofit Combat Antisemitism Movement. 'It's certainly a big risk that those networks could be activated to carry out terrorist attacks here. 'We know that Hezbollah has been operating in the US for over 25 years, probably over 30 years at this point. Hezbollah is controlled by Iran.' But Kimball added that Israel had been so effective in its lightning assassinations of Iranian and Hezbollah military leaders that potential terrorists may not know who to take orders from anymore. 'Obviously a desperate regime will lead to desperate measures being taken. But those can only be taken if someone is there to give the orders,' he said. 'If you're one of those sleeper cells in the United States that's been here, you would have to be a die hard to actually move forward with it, because there is essentially no path to victory for the Iranian cause. 'The quicker that this war with Iran ends, the less likelihood that those agents would actually activate.' 'There's a lot of bluster. The question is, what is their actual capability? We have to plan for the worst, but expect the best,' Kimball said.
Al Jazeera
9 hours ago
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Two jailed for 30 years over 2019 Kenya hotel attack
A Kenyan court has sentenced two men to 30 years in prison for aiding al-Shabab fighters who were behind a deadly attack in Nairobi that left 21 people dead in 2019. On Thursday, Judge Diana Kavedza Mochache ruled that Hussein Mohammed Abdile and Mohamed Abdi Ali played a critical role by helping two of the attackers escape from a refugee camp using fake identity cards. The pair also provided financial assistance to the group. 'Without financiers, facilitators and sympathisers, terrorists cannot actualise their activities,' the judge said during sentencing, stressing that their support made the attack possible. 'The convicts may not have physically wielded the weapons that caused harm to the victims, but their facilitation directly enabled attackers who were heavily armed with guns, grenades and suicide vests,' Kavedza said. 'This was not a crime with isolated harm; 21 lives were lost,' she added, acknowledging statements from survivors about their ongoing psychological struggles. 'The emotional scars of the attack run deep,' she said. Abdile and Ali were convicted last month for facilitating and conspiring to commit a 'terrorist' act. Both men denied the charges and now have 14 days to appeal. The assault on the upmarket DusitD2 complex in the Kenyan capital began on January 15, 2019, when gunmen stormed the compound and opened fire. Security forces launched an operation that lasted more than 12 hours. The government later announced that all the attackers had been killed. Al-Shabab, an armed group linked to al-Qaeda, claimed responsibility, saying the assault was in retaliation for then-United States President Donald Trump's decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israel's capital. The siege was the first major attack in Nairobi since the 2013 Westgate mall massacre, which killed 67. In 2015, al-Shabab also attacked Garissa University, killing 148 people. Since Westgate, high-end venues in the capital have ramped up security, including vehicle and pedestrian checks. The DusitD2 complex, like Westgate, catered to wealthy Kenyans and foreign nationals, groups often targeted by al-Shabab. The Somalia-based group has repeatedly struck inside Kenya, aiming to force the withdrawal of Kenyan troops from Somalia, where they are part of a regional force battling the rebellion.
The Sun
10 hours ago
- Health
- The Sun
Iran launched DELIBERATE missile blitz on Israeli hospital but patients were moved at the last minute, president reveals
BABIES were among hundreds of hospital patients who cheated death when an Iranian missile blitzed an Israeli hospital, the nation's president told The Sun. Isaac Herzog revealed that the chiefs decided to move critical care units into a basement bunker just hours before the terrorist regime 'deliberately targeted' the hospital. 14 14 14 14 14 And in an exclusive interview with The Sun, the embattled Israeli leader branded his fanatic enemy 'disgusting and horrendous' as the Middle East conflict raged on. Appalled Mr Herzog, 64, vented his outrage at the presidential palace in Jerusalem after visiting shocked patients and staff at Soroka Hospital in the southern city of Beersheba. A huge explosion early today sent a mushroom cloud over the complex and set the roof on fire as terrified patients cowered in makeshift basement wards. They had been moved there just hours earlier by hospital chiefs as Iran's Islamist regime fired a barrage of 30 ballistic missiles from more than 1,000 miles away. Mr Herzog told The Sun: 'I was there this morning following the destruction by an Iranian missile - straight on the hospital where people were in treatment. 'The director general of the hospital decided only last night to remove all the units above ground to underground. 'They would have been killed for sure, because you see the building was totally demolished.' Mr Herzog said Soroka tends to two million patients every year, treating Israelis, Palestinians and sick and injured people from nearby Gaza. He paid tribute to the resilience of medics yesterday while revealing his shock at the scale of the damage. Mr Herzog said: 'Glass was strewn all over the place - windows and doors - total devastation, but I went underground and the hospital functions beautifully. Trump 'has APPROVED Iran attack plans & is ready to give orders' as Israel 'strikes reactor' & Tehran hits hospital 'Professor Mahmoud Abu Shakra, a great Israeli Muslim, was leading the emergency care unit underground. 'That's Israel for you. We have immense resilience. And we will recover, we will rebuild, and we will move on. 'It shows how cruel the Iranians are - the emergency care units full of babies were there, and this missile was aimed directly at the hospital. 'It was deliberate - we know it because we have intelligence. 'We know that they are carrying out crimes against humanity and war crimes all the time. 'They decided to harass us. They want to drive us crazy, so they send those missiles, but they get us wrong because we are a very strong nation, and we know how exposed they are. 'They are making a huge mistake.' 14 14 14 14 14 Mr Herzog rejected comparisons to Israeli attacks on hospitals in Gaza and insisted medical sites in the besieged enclave were targeted because terror bases were hidden beneath them. He said: 'All the aid that went into Gaza from Western countries, from us, by the way, too - all that money went to build a terror infrastructure of the worst kind. 'That was deployed on October 7th - and it's all in tunnels out there, which are full of ammunition and our hostages.' Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz raged that evil Iranian kingpin Ayatollah Ali Khamenei must die after the missile struck the hospital. He said: "Khamenei openly declares that he wants Israel destroyed – he personally gives the order to fire on hospitals. 'He considers the destruction of the state of Israel to be a goal, 'Such a man can no longer be allowed to exist.' 14 14 14 Katz's threat was echoed by Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, who said Israel was ready to "remove" the nuclear threat from Iran. Asked during a visit to bombed Soroka Hospital if Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei was a potential target, Netanyahu said: "No one is immune.' "By the end of this operation, there will be no nuclear threat to Israel, nor will there be a ballistic missile threat.' It comes as Iran warned the US will be sparking an "all-out war" in the Middle East if they join Israel in dropping bombs on Iranian nuclear sites. The US president is yet to say if he will directly launch an attack, but is reportedly considering striking Iran's key underground nuclear site in the coming days. Trump has become heavily involved in the conflict over the last 72 hours. When asked about US bombing Iran, he said: "I may do it, I may not do it." It is believed that the US may choose to back Israeli strikes on Iran's Fordow nuclear development area. Will Trump strike Iran? By Sayan Bose, Foreign News Reporter DONALD Trump is all but poised to join Israel's campaign of bombing Iran as they both seek to obliterate Tehran's nuclear program. The White House said on Thursday that Trump will decide on whether the US will get involved in the Israel-Iran conflict in the next two weeks. It comes as Tel Aviv has been carrying out air strikes targeting various nuclear and military facilities in Tehran and other parts of Iran. The goal, as they say, is to thwart the Iranian regime's efforts to produce nuclear weapons. The Trump administration previously said it had no plans to join the conflict. However, winds in Washington began blowing the other way after Trump cut short his G7 visit in Canada and said he needed to focus on the Middle East. And has repeatedly insisted it was not to pursue peace talks with Iran "in any way, shape or form" - a stark shift in his previous policy of striking up a nuclear deal. Don also went on to share a slew of posts on Truth Social suggesting he may be considering strikes against Iran. He wrote: "Our patience is wearing thin," before calling out Tehran for an unconditional surrender. Trump also called for an emergency situation room meeting yesterday with his top Washington aides, though details of those meetings have not yet been revealed. But Trump's statements, coupled with America's military movements, suggest the US forces may soon strike Iran. As Trump rushed back to meet his National Security Council, he vowed he was chasing something "better than a ceasefire", which would force Iran into a "complete give up". He refused to specify the endgame, but ominously warned: "You're going to find out over the next few days." A spokesman for the Iranian foreign ministry said that a US intervention in the Middle East would be "a recipe for all-out war in the region. This would likely be done by a fearsome 15-ton mega bomb known as a Massive Ordnance Penetrator (MOP) bomb that can penetrate deep inside the ground before blowing up. Speaking to reporters from the Oval Office Trump did say the US is the only nation capable of blitzing the key nuke site. But he added: "That doesn't mean I'm going to do it - at all." Trump also gave a two-word warning to Iran's Supreme Leader after he revealed Tehran was trying to run back to the negotiating table since the conflict broke out. When a White House reporter asked Trump about Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's declaration that he will "never surrender", Trump simply responded: "Good luck." Trump even stepped up his rhetoric towards Khamenei as he said the US knows where he is hiding but will not kill him 'for now'. Khamenei responded to the constant threats by saying: "The battle begins." He warned that the US will face hell if it enters the war and drops a single bomb on Tehran. 'This nation will never surrender,' Khamenei said in a speech read on state television. 'America should know that any military intervention will undoubtedly result in irreparable damage.'
