OMNI
IRAN ANTHOLOGY #34
January 17, 2026
Compiled by Dick Bennett for a Culture of Peace,
Justice, and Ecology
What’s at Stake: Behrooz
Ghamari. THE LONG WAR ON IRAN. “This new book
explores the US–Iran standoff, revealing how missteps, misunderstandings,
and clashing ambitions have fueled decades of tension and why American policies
keep failing to grasp Iran’s evolving role in the Middle East.”
CONTENTS IRAN #34 (17
articles and 2 reviews)
Ghamari. The Long War on Iran.
Johnstone. “You Know They’re Lying About
Iran.”
Bloomenthal and Reed. “Western
Media Whitewashes Deadly Riots in Iran.” The Grayzone via Consortium News.
Prager. “US Public Opposes Trump Military Intervention.” Common Dreams.
Johnson. “Son of Last Shah Asks
Trump to Back Military Coup. . . .”
Common Dreams.
Wilkins. “Trump Again Threatens to
Bomb Iran….” Common Dreams.
Win Without War. “Trump Weighs
Strikes on Iran.”
Stephen
Prager. “’We’ll Hit Them Very Hard’:
Trump Threatens Iran Again….” Common
Dreams.
John
Bellamy Foster. “The Trump Doctrine and the
New M.A.G.A. Imperialism.” ICSS
Marxist.
Hobson. “…Trump Bungled an
Excellent Agreement.”
“CIA
says No Evidence Iran has decided to build a nuclear weapon.” Defend Democracy.
Layne
Mullett, “We Need Diplomacy and De-escalation with
Iran.” AFSC.
Scott Ritter. . “The Missiles of
April.”
George Paulson. Biden, War, Congressional Approval.
M. K. Bhadrakumar. “Decoding
Iran’s Missile and Drone Strikes.” Consortium News.
Pakistan
Officially Restores All Ties With Iran After Short-Lived Spat” by News Desk, The Cradle.
Alan MacLeod. “United
Against Nuclear Iran: The shadowy, Intelligence-linked group driving the U.S.
towards war with Iran. “ MintPress News.
Craig
Unger. Den of Spies: Reagan,
Carter, and the Secret History of the Treason That Stole the White House By Craig Unger.
TEXTS IRAN #34
Behrooz Ghamari. THE LONG WAR ON IRAN: New
Events, Old Questions. OR Books, 2025.
BEHROOZ GHAMARI
Written
by a sophisticated and knowledgeable commentator, this
new book explores the US–Iran standoff, revealing how missteps,
misunderstandings, and clashing ambitions have fueled decades of tension and
why American policies keep failing to grasp Iran’s evolving role in the Middle
East.
“Brimming
with insight, this book expertly demystifies Iran.” —Vali Nasr
"Ghamari parts the dark veil surrounding Iran,
allowing us to finally see through the fog of mystification and misdirection
that has warped our perception of one of the world’s most dangerously
misunderstood societies." —Jeffrey
St. Clair
The United
States and Iran have been locked in a decades-long standoff, driven by
missteps, misunderstandings, and conflicting ambitions. This book, from a
prominent Iranian authority, delves into the complex dynamics behind this
ongoing conflict. It sheds light on why American policies have repeatedly
failed to understand the true nature of Iran’s transformations and its role in
the Middle East.
Drawing
on two decades of political analysis, Ghamari explores the history of US
intervention in the region, focusing on the enduring sanctions imposed on Iran
and the persistent perception of the Islamic Republic as a major obstacle to
American power. Despite the repressive policies of the state, Iran has remained
a vibrant society with active intellectual, cultural, and social justice
movements. The book examines these internal changes and shifts in Iranian
politics.
By
challenging the conventional image of Iran as a totalitarian regime, Ghamari
urges readers to appreciate the country’s diverse society and complex political
landscape. He calls for a re-evaluation of how the US engages with Iran,
advocating for a more informed, nuanced approach to Middle East diplomacy. At a
critical moment when US policy is being reshaped, The
Long War on Iran is a timely reminder that, if the US fails to
acknowledge Iran’s transformations, both nations will continue to face new
events―and the same old questions.
Also
read (previously reviewed): Inside Iran: The Real History and
Politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran by MEDEA
BENJAMIN.
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Caitlin Johnstone. “ You Know They're
Lying About Iran.”
Caitlin Johnstone from Caitlin’s Newsletter
<caitlinjohnstone@substack.com> 1-14-26. Reading by Tim Foley:
You’ve
seen this all before. They run the same script over and over again. You know
all the beats. The formula never changes.
“Oh no, the people in the targeted nation are being oppressed! They need
freedom and democracy!” “Hey, I bet we
could use our powerful military to help them get the freedom and democracy!
Wouldn’t that be swell?” “Oh gosh,
there are some people who don’t think we should use our powerful military to
help the people in the targeted nation get freedom and democracy! They must
have some sinister, suspicious loyalty to the Evil Regime which rules the
targeted nation!” “Look, I get that
sometimes in the past we have used our powerful military in ways that were mean
and unhelpful, but you need to understand that the Evil Regime is also very,
very bad. Two things can be true at the same time, you know!” “Oh no, now the Evil Regime is committing
atrocities! You know it’s true because it’s in the news, and the news isn’t
allowed to lie! We’ve got to DO something! We can’t just DO NOTHING!”
This is the most
hysterical propaganda drive for war I've encountered in my life.
Don’t
fall for it. Don’t fall for the
propaganda. Don’t fall for the imperial
concern trolling about human rights. Don’t
fall for the nuance policing and both-sidesing of the empire’s operatives and
useful idiots. Don’t let the empire
apologists shout you down and shut you up.
Stand your ground. This is exactly what it looks like. You are right,
and they are wrong. They’re not doing
anything new. They’re using the same old script. Hell, they’re even using a lot
of the same actors. This is the same bullshit as always.
Heshmat Alavi's
Trenchcoat @UrOrientalist I've never seen this
level of media warfare against Iran. Definitely a watershed moment. . . . .
Caitlin’s Newsletter is a reader-supported publication. To
receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid
subscriber. Upgrade
to paid
The
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list
“Western Media Whitewashes Deadly Riots in Iran.” Consortium News (1-14-26). By Max Blumenthal and Wyatt Reed. The Grayzone.
As protesters burn Iranian cities, Western media ignores
the shocking wave of violence [by some of the public], relying on U.S.-funded
NGOs for data. The one-sided portrayal has helped push Trump to the brink of
renewed U.S. attacks. Read here...
Western media has ignored a growing trove of video evidence showing
terrorist tactics deployed across Iran by protesters described by Amnesty
International and Human Rights Watch as “largely peaceful.”
Recent videos published
both by Iranian state media and anti-government forces reveal public lynchings
of unarmed guards, the torching of mosques, arson attacks on municipal
buildings, marketplaces and fire stations and mobs of armed gunmen opening fire
in the heart of Iranian cities.
Instead, Western media has
focused almost exclusively on violence attributed to the Iranian government. In
doing so, they have primarily relied on death counts compiled by Iranian
diaspora groups funded by the National Endowment for Democracy (NED),
the regime change arm of the U.S. government, and whose boards of directors are
filled with committed neoconservatives. . . .
Stephen Prager. “Amid Fears of ‘Imminent’ Strike on Iran,
Poll Shows US Public Opposes Trump Military Interventions.” Common Dreams (1-14-26). Stephen Prager
Just 8% of Americans want Trump to go further in using the
military abroad. But they seem to be who he’s listening to.
Jake
Johnson. “Son of Last Iranian Shah Asks Trump to Back Military
Coup as Protests Rage. “ https://www.commondreams.org/news/reza-pahlavi-iran-protest
Brett
Wilkins. “Trump Again Threatens to Bomb Iran as Protest Deaths
Near 600.” https://www.commondreams.org/news/trump-attack-iran-tariffs
To justify its bombings and threatening regime change, the US pretends
to care about the Iranian people.
“Trump
Weighs Strikes on Iran.” Win Without
War.
Crisis Watch @ Win Without War <info@winwithoutwar.org> 1-14-2
“The
United States must stand with the Iranian people, not over them.”
- Senator Bernie Sanders, January 13, 2026.[1]
. . .
clear: The Iranian people should determine their
future, not Trump and war hawks in Washington.
There’s been no indication that Iranian protestors want a
foreign intervention in their country. The troubling reality is that U.S.
intervention in Iran is likely to feature violence that kills soldiers and
civilians alike, further immiserates millions of people in Iran, and does
nothing to help the brave protesters achieve their goals.
It’s time for us to do what we do best by turning up the
pressure to stop a war and telling Congress that people in Iran deserve
solidarity, not bombing.
We know that Trump’s intervention promises are not in
solidarity with the protesters. Instead, he’s offered yet another round of
destructive warmongering from an administration that has long courted all-out
war with Iran. Our government has ignored the voices of human rights defenders
in Iran for decades, prioritizing sanctions and warmongering over peaceful
diplomacy. . . .
We refuse to believe that Trump suddenly cares about civil
rights in Iran when his own masked ICE thugs are assaulting and shooting
activists in Minneapolis. As we witness Trump’s slapdash
attempt to turn Venezuela into a U.S.-run oil colony, we should all be highly
suspicious that any U.S. military intervention would result in
the more democratic and peaceful future that the Iranian people deserve.
When we say Iranians and Venezuelans should make decisions
about who runs their countries, we mean it.
We've learned our lessons from Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen,
and endless war across the globe. We will not be driven by lies into yet
another war of choice. And we won’t stop pushing the U.S. government to build a
more just and peaceful future for people everywhere — but we need you with us,
Dick.
As Trump turns to acts of war, we, the people, will stay
focused on demands for peace.
|
Thank you for working for peace,
The Win Without War team |
Stephen Prager. “We’ll Hit Them Very Hard’: Trump
Threatens Iran Again as Protest Death Toll Rises.” Common Dreams (1-8-26).
Critics pointed out that
Trump has often endorsed violence against protesters when they opposed him.
2024-2025 IRAN
AND NUCLEAR WEAPONS
John Bellamy Foster. “The
Trump Doctrine and the New M.A.G.A. Imperialism.” — John Bellamy Foster — ICSS
20250629. Mronline.org (7-7-25).
The dramatic shift in the Trump led U.S. foreign policies,
as seen recently in the bombing in Iran, has created enormous confusion and
consternation within establishment centers of power.
Originally published: ICSS Marxist on June 29, 2025 (more
by ICSS Marxist)
Empire, Fascism, Imperialism, InequalityAmericas, United StatesCommentary, InterviewCitizensOfThePlanet One, D Miles, Eugene Ruyle, Featured, Hobie Hukill, Judith Osterman, MAGA, Mehmet Bayram, Mike H, President Donald Trump, Raj Sahai, Richard Wright, Sharon Rose, Steve, The Trump Doctrine and the
New M.A.G.A. Imperialism
The Nuclear Weapons
Art Hobson. “Does Iran already have fuel
for a few bombs? Trump bungled an
excellent agreement.” NWADG 15 July
2025.
Civilization faces far too many existential
threats. Thermonuclear war leads the pack, followed by global
warming, other environmental concerns, and myriad ongoing "conventional"
(note the irony of this term) wars.
Homo sapiens evolved from chimpanzee-like creatures. These two
are the only species that go to war. I wish we had evolved from
bonobos, a peaceful species ruled by females.
To appreciate the nuclear weapons threat, please read Annie Jacobsen's
Nuclear War: A Scenario. It's a shocking
eye-opening page turner and well informed by scientists working on the inside
of the weapons establishment.
We can reduce this threat: America must lead the world toward
the abolition of nuclear weapons.
Unfortunately, the nine nuclear weapons nations could soon become ten,
depending on the fate of Iran's nuclear weapons program following the air
attacks on their uranium enrichment facilities at the Fordo and Natanz
centrifuge plants and the submarine-launched Tomahawk cruise missile attack on
the Isfahan nuclear research facility.
The centrifuges at Natanz and Fordo are long hollow tubes filled
containing molecules of uranium-hexafluoride gas. Their purpose is
to separate the "fissionable" (bomb-usable) atoms of U-235 from the
far more numerous U-238 atoms found in uranium
ore. When these tubes
spin around their long axis, the heavier U-238-bearing molecules are forced
toward the outer wall of each tube, leaving the lighter U-235-bearing molecules
on the inside. It's like a lightweight and a heavyweight car trying
to make a tight curve: The heavier car is more likely to slide
toward the outside of the curve. The lighter-weight gas, now
slightly "enriched" in U-235-bearing molecules, is then removed from
the central regions of the tube and re-inserted into another centrifuge that
repeats the spin process.
99.3 percent of all natural uranium atoms (from uranium ore) are of the
U-238 variety, and only 0.7 percent are of the U-235
variety. "Enrichment" is any process that results in a
higher percentage of U-235 atoms.
Each spinning tube enriches uranium only by a specific
percentage. For instance, a tube might be designed to increase the
enrichment level from 1 percent to 1.5 percent. A gallon of the
output gas then contains 50% more U-235 than a gallon of the input
gas. Another tube might be designed to increase the enrichment level
from 60 percent to 90 percent. The output gas again contains 50% more U-235
than the input gas. This transformation requires no more
"spinning time" than the step from 1 percent to 1.5 percent!
Unfortunately, these scientific facts imply that President Trump,
during his first term in office, made an Earth-shattering mistake (literally)
when he withdrew from the Iranian nuclear deal that had been negotiated by
Barrack Obama's administration. The nuclear deal allowed Iran to
enrich uranium only to 3.67 percent. This is suitable for nuclear
power but far from the level needed for nuclear bombs.
Following Trump's withdrawal and Trump's re-imposition of sanctions
against Iran, Iran was free to further enrich uranium above 3.67
percent. By 2020, it had enriched part of its stockpile to 20
percent, still far from the 90 percent thought to be required for nuclear
weapons.
Following a sabotage incident at the Natanz plant, Iran began enriching
to 67 percent. As we have seen, this is just "one step"
away from nuclear-bomb-grade uranium! As of the end of May 2025,
Iran possessed 900 pounds of 67 percent enriched uranium. A single
centrifuge step would now take this of uranium to 90 percent enrichment,
sufficient for ten nuclear weapons.
Worse yet, an article by nuclear weapons expert Edwin Lymin published in
the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists on July 2, 2025 claims that 67 percent
enrichment is already sufficient for a nuclear weapon and that
"only diplomacy will stop it." Thus, Iran already possesses
sufficient U-235 to build nuclear weapons! The article suggests that
Iran's present 67-percent-enriched uranium could fuel 6 Nagasaki-type "fat
man" implosion devices. Alternatively, Iran could build perhaps
3 "gun-type" Hiroshima nuclear bombs. These would be far
easier to construct than an implosion weapon. In a
"gun-type" bomb, two "sub-critical" lumps of U-235 are
smashed together at high speed to create a "critical mass" that
"fissions" (splits) most of its uranium atoms, releasing their
energy.
If we assume that Iran preserved its 900 pounds of enriched uranium, then
a race is currently on to find and destroy this material during the weeks or
months it could take Iran to construct a few Hiroshima-type
weapons. A few nuclear weapons could turn Iran into the next North
Korea. Stay tuned.
“CIA says no evidence Iran has decided to build a nuclear
weapon.”
Editor. mronline.org (10-13-24).
The comments from
CIA Director William Burns come amid calls for Israel to strike Iran’s nuclear
facilities.
Why Iran Deal won’t lead to nuclear proliferation.
Originally published: Defend Democracy on October 8, 2024 by Defend Democracy Press Staff (more by Defend Democracy) | (Posted Oct
12, 2024)
Imperialism, Inequality, Movements, StrategyAmericas, Iran, Middle East, United StatesNewswireCIA (Central Intelligence Agency), CIA Director William Burn, nuclear weapon
CIA Director William Burns said Monday that there’s no evidence Iran has decided to build
nuclear weapons, comments that come amid calls in the U.S. and Israel for
strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.
“No, we do not see evidence today that the supreme leader
has reversed the decision that he took at the end of 2003 to suspend the
weaponization program,” Burns told the Cipher Brief security conference, according to NBC News. . .
.
2024 REGIONAL
MISSILE WARFARE
Layne Mullett. “We need Diplomacy and De-escalation
with Iran.” AFSC (APR 15, 2024).
215-241-7085 news@afsc.org Visit our newsroom
Carl
Roose / AFSC
On April 13, Iran launched drones and
missiles towards Israel. The attack came in retaliation for Israel’s killing of
Iranian military officials when they bombed the Iranian embassy in Syria
earlier this month. These actions have significantly increased fears of a
regional war, one that could involve many international actors, including the
United States. Such an escalation would threaten the safety and lives of people
in the region and around the globe.
At the same time, U.S. officials have said that a famine is
underway in northern Gaza as a result of Israel’s ongoing assault there. A
broadening conflict will worsen an already dire situation.
These interconnected situations show the need for
de-escalation and diplomacy, not further killing. The U.S. and other members of the international community
must do everything within their power to calm tensions in the region —
including refusing to supply military weapons and support to any party in the
conflict. Further escalation will only result in destruction and loss of life. De-escalation
and diplomacy — along with humanitarian aid for those in Gaza — is the only
pathway towards peace.
Scott
Ritter. “The Missiles of April” (4-15-24).
The “Missiles of April” represent a sea-change moment in
Middle Eastern geopolitics — the establishment of Iranian deterrence that
impacts both Israel and the United States. Read
here...
George
Paulson. 2-2-24. Biden, War with
Iran, Congressional Approval.
So, as
we head into the weekend, the big question remains: will the Biden
administration attack Iran, ostensibly in retaliation for the attack on a US
military base that killed 3 service personnel and injured dozens. It
seems like deja vu all over again, as someone once said. Remember just a
few years ago when President Trump nearly blundered us into a war with Iran
following the assassination of one of Iran’s top generals? And,
interestingly enough, one of the people telling us at the time that Trump
did not have the authority to unliaterally take the US to war without
congressional approval was none other than … Joe Biden!
In a tweet from January 6, 2020, Biden said: “Let’s be
clear: Donald Trump does not have the authority to take us into war with Iran
without Congressional approval. A president should never take this nation to
war without the informed consent of the American people.”
There’s more, and it gets better. Here’s Senator Joe
Biden in 2007 threatening to impeach President George W. Bush if he,
W, took America to war with Iran without congressional
approval.
“I
made it clear to the president that if he takes this nation to war in Iran
without congressional approval, I will make it my business to impeach
him.”
Hmmmm
….
Perhaps
Joe Biden, as a young schoolboy, read, or was at least exposed
to, Herodotus’s ‘History’, in particular, the story of King Croesus of
Lydia who is told by the Delphic Oracle that if he attacks Iran (Persia), he
will destroy a great empire. Note: he did! His own!
Let’s hope that our commander in chief remembers his
Herodotus. The fact is that the neocons—including some
of Biden’s closest advisers--have had Iran in their crosshairs for decades.
Meanwhile,
at least someone up on Capitol Hill is taking the prospect of yet another
undeclared war in the greater Middle East seriously. Representative
Thomas Massie, Republican of Kentucky, is hinting that he might consider
impeaching Biden should he get us into a war with Iran.
Have a
nice weekend! Peace, George Paulson
Decoding
Iran’s Missile and Drone Strikes By M. K.
Bhadrakumar, Consortium News. Popular
Resistance.org (1-21-24). After
stunning missile and drone strikes on three countries — Syria, Iraq and
Pakistan — over a period of 24 hours, Tehran then took the extraordinary step
of claiming responsibility for the attacks. This conveyed a very big message to
Washington that its stratagem of creating a coalition of terror groups in the
region surrounding Iran will be resolutely countered. That the U.S. strategy
against Iran was taking new forms began emerging after the Oct. 7 attack on
Israel and the consequent erosion of its standing as the regional supremo. The
China-Brokered Iran-Saudi Rapprochement And The Induction Of Iran... -more-
Pakistan
Officially Restores All Ties With Iran After Short-Lived Spat By News Desk, The Cradle. Popular Resistance.org
(1-21-24). Pakistan officially moved to
restore all diplomatic ties with Iran on 19 January after a brief diplomatic
row as both sides fired missiles into each other's lands. “The apex security
committee has decided to restore full diplomatic ties with Tehran, including
sending back the ambassador, as both sides agreed to de-escalate the situation
after retaliatory strikes,” local media reported. Iranian Foreign Minister
Hossein Amir-Abdollahian also spoke over the phone with his Pakistani
counterpart, Jalil Abbas Jilani, telling him that “Pakistan is of high
importance in Iran’s foreign policy." -more-
Alan MacLeod. “United Against Nuclear Iran: The
shadowy, Intelligence-linked group driving the U.S. towards war with Iran.”
Mronline.org (1o-17-24).
Originally published: MintPress News on January 12, 2024 (more by MintPress News). Inequality, Movements, State Repression, StrategyAmericas, Gaza, Iran, Israel, Middle East, Palestine, United StatesNewswire
In the wake of Hamas’ October 7 assault,
arch-neoconservative official John Bolton was invited on CNN, where he
claimed that what we witnessed was really an “Iranian attack on Israel using
Hamas as a surrogate” and that the U.S. must immediately respond.
Den
of Spies: Reagan,
Carter, and the Secret History of the Treason That Stole the White House By Craig Unger. Harper/Collins, 2025.
“Unger
has pursued the story of the October surprise for more than 30 years,
often to his own cost. …peppered with amazing details… Den of Spies comes
out in a world where dark machinations to win power no longer seem so
unthinkable as in the days of Carter, Reagan and Bush."—The Guardian
The
explosive inside story of the October Surprise conspiracy, a stunning
act of treason that changed American history. New York Times bestselling
author Craig Unger reveals his thirty-year investigation into the secret
collusion between Ronald Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign and Iran,
raising urgent questions about what happens when foreign meddling in our
elections goes unpunished and what gets remembered when the political price for
treason is victory.
It was
a tinderbox of an accusation. In April 1991, the New York Times ran
an op-ed alleging that Ronald Reagan’s 1980 presidential campaign had conspired
with the Iranian government to delay the release of 52 American hostages until
after the 1980 election. The Iranian hostage crisis was President Jimmy
Carter’s largest political vulnerability, and his lack of success freeing
them ultimately sealed his fate at the ballot box. In return for keeping
Americans in captivity until Reagan assumed the oath of office, the Republicans
had secretly funneled arms to Iran. Treasonous and illegal, the
operation—planned and executed by Reagan’s campaign manager Bill Casey—amounted
to a shadow foreign policy run by private citizens that ensured Reagan’s
victory.
Investigative
journalist Craig Unger was one of the first reporters covering the October
Surprise—initially for Esquire and then Newsweek—and
while attempting to unravel the mystery, he was fired, sued, and ostracized by
the Washington press corps, as a counter narrative took hold: The October
Surprise was a hoax. Though Unger later recovered his name and became a
bestselling author on Republican abuses of power, the October Surprise
remained his white whale, the project he—as well as legendary investigative
journalist, the late Robert Parry—worked on late at night and between
assignments.
In Den of Spies, Unger reveals the definitive
story of the October Surprise, going inside his
three-decade reporting odyssey, along with Parry’s never-before-seen
archives, and sharing startling truths about what really happened in 1980.
The result is a real-life political thriller filled with double agents, CIA
operatives, slippery politicians, KGB documents, wealthy Republicans, and
dogged journalists. A timely and provocative history that presages our
Trump-era political scandals, Den of Spies demonstrates the
stakes of allowing the politics of the moment to obscure the writing of our
history.
END IRAN #34
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