On Monday, Bryan Lieb who serves as the Executive Director of the organization ‘Iranian Americans for Liberty’ said on Newsmax’s The Chris Salcedo Show that he believes Israel will go at it alone against Iran in an effort to thwart their strengthening nuclear program.
In a segment that covered the administration of Joe Biden’s foreign policy when it comes to countries that are threatening global instability, Lieb said that “President Biden needs to project strength onto the world, and when he doesn’t project strength onto the world, coupled with the fact that there really is no actual foreign policy agenda from the Biden Administration, we should not be surprised that bad actors like Beijing, Moscow, and Tehran are going to take advantage.”
The comments lead to a discussion about the incoming Prime Minister of Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu, and what his coalition’s role would be when it comes to Iran.
Despite sanctions and a growing protest movement in Iran, the Islamic Republic continues to enrich uranium to levels that go far beyond what was agreed to with the administration of US President Barak Obama in 2015. Some have suspected that despite this reality, the Biden Administration has been turning a blind eye to Iran's activities and even giving tacit approval to it.
Iranian Majlis National Security C'tee Member Karimi-Ghodousi Claims There's An Agreement In Principle With #US, IAEA To 'Close [Iran's] PMD Dossier' & Guarantee The [Foreign] Investments In #Iran'; The Americans 'Told Us Not To Announce This Officially' https://t.co/TzjyoDivTn pic.twitter.com/fE9mMnZYmd
— MEMRI (@MEMRIReports) December 27, 2022
This past weekend, Iran boasted that its ability of it to enrich uranium has increased to record levels. This claim came just one day before inspectors from the United Nations nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) visited the country.
Iran also released a video last week that threatened a massive attack on Tel Aviv should Israel initiate a strike on Iran’s nuclear program. The segment was a rebuke of the recent joint training exercises by the United States and Israel that simulated an attack on Iran’s nuclear infrastructure.
The clip, narrated by an official from Iranian state broadcaster IRIB showed a barrage of Iranian missiles being launched while the narrator posited that if “Israeli jets manage to reach the Natanz nuclear site in one piece, The question is whether there would be any base for them to land at.” The segment continued with the threat to “raze Tel Aviv” as well as destroy Israel’s Dimona nuclear reactor.
Asked by the host, John Tabacco, who was filling in for Salcedo, if the ascension of the new Netanyahu government would embolden Iran to scale up their nuclear activity, Lieb replied: “Well, Iran has been ramping up their nuclear program for the last 24 months under the current administration here in D.C. and they’re going to continue doing it.”
Lieb stated that he believes “[t]he Iranian regime is going to do whatever they can to get a nuclear weapon and they are going to use that nuclear weapon to take out Israel; take out other Arab allies; and eventually start taking out US army bases around the world.”
.@netanyahu has a long track record of being strong in both words and actions with #Tehran. I expect him to fulfill his campaign promises to weaken the @khamenei_ir regime accountable. G-dspeed, Bibi and #Israel.
— Bryan E. Leib (@BryanLeibFL) December 27, 2022
My latest on @NEWSMAX ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/5TVokIq8KZ
As to whether Israel would take the bold step of initiating an attack to thwart Iran’s nuclear ambitions, Lieb recalled the recent Israeli election campaign and said: “Netanyahu campaigned very strongly on being a very strong and unwavering deterrent when it comes to Iran getting a nuclear bomb.” The outspoken leader of the organization that advocates for a strong US policy towards Iran with the goal of bringing democracy, human rights accountability, and freedom of speech to Iranians living in the Islamic State, reminded Tabacco that most of Israel’s efforts to neuter Iran’s offensive capabilities have been carried out under Netanyahu’s leadership.
“I expect Bibi Netanyahu to come out of the gate pretty strong,” Lieb said. “And I never in a million years, John, thought that I would say to you and the Newsmax audience that I thought it would be Israel that would be leading an attack against Iran.”
To that end, Israel’s Army Chief of the General Staff, Aviv Kochavi, said yesterday that the army’s preparedness to launch strikes against Iranian nuclear sites has improved.
"The level of preparedness for an operation in Iran has dramatically improved," Kochavi said in a speech for the Israeli Institute for National Security Studies.
If the army is ordered to act against the Iranian nuclear program, he said, "it will fulfill the mission that is given." Kochavi said Iran seeks to deploy hundreds of missiles in Syria along with deploying "thousands of Shia militiamen."
"The level of preparedness for military action against Iran has increased. The IDF will be ready on the day the order is issued."
— Tuvia Gering 陶文亚 (@GeringTuvia) December 27, 2022
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With regard to the ongoing efforts of the Israel Defense Forces against the threat on Israel’s Northern Border, the army chief said Israel managed to disrupt the Iranian vision in Syria "to establish a second Hezbollah in Syria."
As a rule, Israel does not comment on clandestine attacks. But its leaders often make statements confirming that they are working to "reduce" the Iranian presence in Syria.
