Date: Friday, November 1, 2019
To: Friends & Supporters
From: Gary L. Bauer, Director

Imperial Iran

As we have repeatedly documented in these reports, Iran is the cause of chaos and instability in the Middle East. Some had hoped that the 2015 nuclear deal would incentivize Iran to behave and start acting like a normal country. Critics of the deal warned it would only fuel the regime's ambitions. And that's exactly what happened.

Here's the latest evidence. Brian Hook, the State Department's special representative for Iran, told reporters this week that the Islamic Republic has spent $16 billion financing militias in Iraq and Syria. In other words, Iran is using its wealth for empire building and colonizing neighboring countries of the Middle East.

That money is not improving the lives of the Iranian people. It is not building new schools, hospitals, roads or providing economic opportunities for the people of Iran. It is destabilizing the region – subjugating Iraq, propping up the Assad regime and turning Syria into a base for attacks against Israel.

U.S. Withholds Lebanon Aid

In related news, the Trump Administration informed Congress yesterday that it is withholding more than $100 million in aid from Lebanon. The move comes amid growing protests against Hezbollah and the resignation of Prime Minister Saad al-Hariri.

According to Reuters, there is increasing alarm about "the growing role in the Beirut government of Hezbollah, the armed Shiite group backed by Iran and listed as a terrorist organization by the United States."

The move also comes amid pleas from Jerusalem that Western nations use their aid to pressure Lebanon to confront Hezbollah. As we have reported, Israel is increasingly concerned about the terrorist proxy's efforts to develop precision guided missiles with the assistance of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

As you may recall, Israel struck targets in Beirut at the end of August. The targets were key components for the development of sophisticated missiles, and had come from Iran.