The folly of the Iraq Study Group

The Iraq Study Group counseled the President that he should open a dialogue with the Iranians to bring peace to Iraq. Now the New York Sun tells us that the Iranians are supplying both sides of the sectarian violence there.

An American intelligence official said the new material, which has been authenticated within the intelligence community, confirms “that Iran is working closely with both the Shiite militias and Sunni Jihadist groups.” The source was careful to stress that the Iranian plans do not extend to cooperation with Baathist groups fighting the government in Baghdad, and said the documents rather show how the Quds Force — the arm of Iran’s revolutionary guard that supports Shiite Hezbollah, Sunni Hamas, and Shiite death squads — is working with individuals affiliated with Al Qaeda in Iraq and Ansar al-Sunna.

Another American official who has seen the summaries of the reporting affiliated with the arrests said it comprised a “smoking gun.” “We found plans for attacks, phone numbers affiliated with Sunni bad guys, a lot of things that filled in the blanks on what these guys are up to,” the official said.

And why would the Iranians support both sides? Because failure of democracy in Iraq is failure of the United States to have a positive influence in the region. Iran’s only foreign policy is the complete and utter destruction of the United States and all of the people who live here, regardless of their political persuasion. Failure in Iraq would be one more step towards that end.

Category: Politics