Date: Tuesday, December 10, 2019
To: Friends & Supporters
From: Gary L. Bauer, Director

Who's To Blame?

In recent weeks, several bases in Iraq housing U.S. and coalition troops have come under attack from rocket fire. According to CNN, there have been nine such rocket attacks in the past five weeks that appear to be targeting U.S. troops. Increasingly, U.S. officials believe Iran is responsible for these attacks.

David Schenker, a senior State Department official, warned last week that "Iranian-backed militias are now shelling Iraqi bases with American and anti-ISIS Coalition forces on them. . . We're waiting for full evidence. If past is prologue, I'd say there's a good chance it was Iran that's behind it."

Pentagon spokesman Cdr. Sean Robertson told CNN:

"We take these incidents seriously as do our Iraqi Security Forces partners, who are investigating these events. We have made clear that attacks on U.S. and Coalition personnel and facilities will not be tolerated and we retain the right to defend ourselves."

Last week, we reported on growing concerns that Iran was moving missiles into Iraq, potentially threatening U.S. forces and Israel. So far, no U.S. troops have been killed. But the attacks do represent a serious escalation in Iranian aggression.

Meanwhile, the Trump Administration recently imposed sanctions against three Iraqi militia leaders, funded by Tehran, for their role in the brutal attacks against protestors demanding accountability and transparency in Baghdad.

More than 400 Iraqis have been killed and more than 19,000 have been wounded since anti-government, anti-Iranian protests erupted in October. The unrest, as well as the ruthless response to it, forced the resignation of Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi on December 1st.

Once again, we are seeing how Iran is responsible for the chaos in the Middle East. Israel is not the source of strife in the Middle East. The ayatollah's regime in Tehran, which is dedicated to exporting Islamic revolution, is the root cause of chaos in Iraq, in Syria, in Yemen, in Lebanon and in Gaza.