Budget Pork, Soros UK Meddling, US Train Wrecks, and a Foolish Iranian Decision to Attack Israel

THE REAL NEWS TODAY IS BUDGET PORK, SOROS MEDDLING, TRAIN WRECKS, AND ISRAELI GUTS. • I keep reminding myself of all the good things President Trump is doing and keep asking myself who but Trump could possibly have accomplished what he has -- in one year or four years. But, here are some Swampy post-signature budget facts. • • • THE BUDGET GUARANTEES A STRONG MILITARY. President Donald Trump immediately signed the congressional two-year spending deal on Friday, just hours after it passed the House of Representatives in an early morning vote. His reasoning has not changed : “Our Military will now be stronger than ever before.” The President is right that the big boost to military spending is a win for Republicans and America. He tweeted : “We love and need our Military and gave them everything -- and more. First time this has happened in a long time. Also means JOBS, JOBS, JOBS!” The budget gives $165 billion to the military spending, $131 billion to domestic spending, and $90 billion in hurricane relief for Texas, Florida, and Puerto Rico. Trump acknowledged that the bill was expensive, but appeared to accept it as part of the dealmaking process. He urged Americans to vote for more Republicans in 2018. Perhaps this tweet shows that President Trump is conscious of his having been partly "cornered" by the lack of a 60-strong GOP majority in the Senate that would have made the ProgDem demands irrelevant : “Without more Republicans in Congress, we were forced to increase spending on things we do not like or want in order to finally, after many years of depletion, take care of our Military. Sadly, we needed some Dem votes for passage. Must elect more Republicans in 2018 Election!” • We all agree on that conclusion -- more Republicans who are conservative and want to help President Trump Make America Great Again. President Trump also criticized Democrats for “waste” in the bill : “Costs on non-military lines will never come down if we do not elect more Republicans in the 2018 Election. This Bill is a BIG VICTORY for our Military, but much waste in order to get Dem votes.” Trump also added : “Fortunately, DACA not included in this Bill, negotiations to start now!” • BUT, THE BUDGET IS PACKED WITH PORK -- pork for districts of either congressional leaders or to garner the votes of those not readsy to vote for the budget's profligacy. • TheHill published a list of these special tax breaks that total $17.4 billion over the next 4 years, most of it, $13.3 billion, coming in fiscal year 2018 It was compiled by Alexander Bolton -- (1) Two of the tax breaks help the constituents of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky), who negotiated the deal with Democrat Leader Charles Schumer (D-NY). One provision limits the excise tax on investment income at private colleges and universities to schools with at least 500 tuition-paying students, shielding smaller institutions and costing the government an estimated $2 million a year in revenue over the next decade. It’s a win for small schools such as Berea College, which is based in Kentucky. Senate Republicans tried to exempt small colleges such as Berea in the tax-reform bill that passed in December, but the provision was removed after the parliamentarian said it violated procedural rules. Another provision in the deal extends the three-year tax depreciation for racehorses, allowing owners to depreciate the value of their investment over the most productive span of their racing careers instead of the old seven-year schedule. That provision was a top priority of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association, which also happens to be based in McConnell’s home state. (2) It also extends special expensing rules for film and television productions, giving a boost to Hollywood, a Democratic fundraising hub, and to live theater productions, a boon to Schumer’s home state of New York. Schumer has argued that live theater productions should reap the same tax benefits as film and television and warned in the past that without tax incentives, production companies would move away from costly New York City. That provision will cost the government $1.3 billion in fiscal year 2018. (3) NASCAR track owners will get to share in $37 million in tax benefits thanks to an extension of the seven-year recovery period for motorsports entertainment complexes. That tax break has been supported by Senator Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), one of Schumer’s closest allies. Her state is home to major automobile manufacturers and the Michigan International Speedway. Senator Dean Heller (R-Nev), who represents the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, Senator Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), who has the Kansas Speedway, and Senator Richard Burr (R), whose home state of North Carolina is a NASCAR hotbed, also support the provision. (4) Senators Johnny Isakson (R-Ga.), Tim Scott (R-SC) and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) scored with the inclusion of an energy tax credit for advanced nuclear power facilities, which will cost $12.2 billion in 2018. (5) Senator Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa), a champion of whistleblowers, will be happy about a provision unifying the tax treatment of awards to people who uncover corruption. That and language clarifying whistleblower awards will cost $187 million over 10 years. (6) Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif) won with $594 million in tax relief for people affected by the devastating California wildfires, including an employee retention tax credit for employers who suffered losses such as wineries in North California. Feinstein, who faces a primary challenge this year, and other members of the California delegation, had pushed for wildfire victims to get the same treatment as hurricane victims. Businesses affected by hurricanes Harvey and Irma will also benefit from an employee-retention tax credit. (7) Another provision extends tax relief for the plug-in electric motorcycles, which will help manufacturers such as Zero Motorcycles, based outside of Santa Cruz, Calif. Richard Walker, the CEO of the company, has touted the tax break as helping to create jobs and invest in clean technology. (8) The deal also extends for one year the alternative motor vehicle credit for qualified fuel cell vehicles, at a cost of $4 million. It’s just one of many environmentally friendly tax credits, including breaks for biodiesel, energy-efficient home construction and modifications, non-wind renewable power facilities, and second-generation biofuel plants. • When we consider that saving the Republic form future fiscal collapse is less important in the minds of congressional leaders that biofuels or motorcycles, the depth of the sellout by the GOP to the ProgDems becomes glaring. • • • SOROS PUMPS MONEY INTO ANTI-BREXIT FIGHT. Fox News reported on Thursday that : "Left-wing billionaire George Soros is pumping hundreds of thousands of dollars into a campaign looking to sabotage British voters’ 2016 decision to leave the European Union. The UK Daily Telegraph first reported late Wednesday that Soros has delivered £400,000 ($560,000) to the anti-Brexit "Best for Britain" campaign via his Open Society Foundations. He also hosted big-money donors at his London home as part of the group’s goal to raise support to nix the implementation of the Brexit referendum. Best for Britain is currently led by Lord Mark Malloch-Brown -- a fomer diplomat and UN deputy secretary-general -- and is reportedly planning a massive ad campaign to push for a second referendum to make voters rethink the decision to leave the EU." • Malloch-Brown told Reuters : “George Soros’ foundations have, along with a number of other major donors, also made significant contributions to our work," while also confirming that the £400,000 number was accurate. • Open Society Foundations said that the funding for Best for Britain was one of a number of Brexit-related grants the organization had made, including a £182,000 grant to European Movement UK. The president of the Open Society Foundations, Patrick Gaspard who is a former Obama White House political affairs director, released a statement that said : "Human rights protections, hard-won civil and labor rights, safeguards on key issues such as clean air or food standards are at stake here for British citizens. It is essential that they are informed and empowered to make decisions about the future relationship between the UK and the EU. The Open Society Foundations support British groups striving to ensure that this crucial debate is not shut down. A fundamental principle of open societies is that people get to decide how they are governed, knowing exactly what they stand to gain and what they stand to lose.” • The UK Telegraph reports that Best for Britain is planning mass rallies, concerts, “guerilla marketing tactics” and efforts to pressure MPs into voting against a Brexit deal once negotiations are complete so as to trigger either a second referendum or a general election to oust Prime Minister Theresa May’s Conservative government in favor of one led by hard-left Labor leader Jeremy Corbyn. Prime Minister May is under pressure over her handling of Brexit, and the Soros influx of money will serve to fuel fears from pro-Brexit Britons that there is an international campaign of elites from Brussels to London looking to overturn the 2016 referendum result. Nick Timothy, a former May chief of staff, said the news was a “wake-up call” to Brexiteers : “Elitist Remainers are plotting to bring down the government." Former UK Independence Party leader Nigel Farage made a similar call, saying he was glad Britain was finally talking about the influence of Soros, tweeting: “Glad we are finally talking about the influence of George Soros. Time to wake up." • • • TAKING BACK BRITAIN FOR THE BRITISH WILL NOT BE EASY. The Telegraph reports that : "Unease has been growing among the Brexit camp after the euphoria of the summer of 2016 has died down. The government’s negotiations with Brussels have become increasingly rocky, with the EU taking a hard line as negotiations heat up ahead of Britain’s departure from the bloc in 2019. EU officials have likely been buoyed by increasingly vocal pro-Remain sentiment among Britain's political and media elites. Former Prime Minister Tony Blair, who has been unapologetic in his calls for Britain to stay in the bloc, has been among the many high-profile voices calling for a potential second referendum, describing it not as an exercise in frustrating the will of the voters, but a chance for voters to 'think again'....'Once we know the alternative, we should be entitled to think again, either through Parliament or an election or through a fresh referendum, which will, of course, not be a rerun of the first because it will involve this time a choice based on knowledge of the alternative to existing EU membership.” • But while some polls have suggested that the British may be open to thinking again, others say the opposite. Leaders on both sides of the fight seem to acknowledge that the mood in the UK is that the government should see through the referendum. According to the Telegraph's polling : “[P]ublic opinion remains consistent. There has been no sudden movement against Brexit, despite an ongoing campaign against it and criticism of the government’s negotiating position." Even pro-Remain leaader Malloch-Brown says : “I think people are changing their minds, but they haven’t changed it as dramatically as I would like to see.” • Just as a reminder for Americans -- Soros has used his financial clout for years to push left-wing causes across the globe. In Davos, Switzerland, last month, Soros said his Open Society Foundations is funding more institutions in the US to ensure a Democrat Party victory in November. • • • TRAIN WRECKS IN THE US. Fox Halftime Report asked on January 31 "What do you do when the train really wrecks?" The reports said : "Successful people know that life is more about how you deal with the train crash than how you bask in the bright lights for the big speech. Republican members of Congress were jolted from their post-State of the Union reverie when the special train Amtrak was running for them to their annual retreat smashed into a dump truck full of garbage stuck at a railroad crossing. While none of the members or the train’s crew seemed to have been seriously hurt, one of the occupants of the truck was killed and another person was badly injured. One moment, the Republicans were riding in comfort in their very own locomotive, the next they found themselves tossed about, with the members who are doctors rushing out to help the wounded." The conclusion? : "If ever there was a metaphor for the human condition, this was it. Republicans have since arrived to their original destination, The Greenbrier, but traveled by bus. They are at one of America’s grandest resort hotels nestled in one of the most beautiful patches of God’s green earth you will ever see. But we can be sure that they feel very differently now about everything that came before their trip and about their purpose now having arrived....If it truly is that the challenge of our lives is to act like we are going to live forever but truly understand that every day could be our last, we are all short of the mark. Politics, though, particularly invites us to overstate our successes and defeats, encouraging people neither to build for the unseen future nor seize each day as a precious gift....People in Washington talk often about 'train wrecks.' A campaign or a new hire or an event might all earn that epithet. But it is only too easy to forget about the real thing, just as it is only too easy to forget about real life." • But, well before the GOP group got a jolt during their train trip, ABC News wrote "Terror threat to US rail puts law enforcement on alert." That was on November 26, 2017. ABC said : "With terrorist groups renewing calls for would-be attackers to target American rail lines, at least one local law enforcement agency in the US is using drones to help guard against such a threat. The police chief for the Philadelphia-area's mass-transit system said he has known for some time that more than 140,000 miles of rail lines crisscrossing America are 'porous' and had thought for a while of using drones to monitor the agency's tracks. He initiated the drone program after an article in the latest issue of al-Qaida's English-language publication gave step-by-step instructions for fashioning a 'homemade derail tool' and claimed that railroads are among America's 'easiest targets.' 'It is time that we instill fear and make them impose strict security measures to trains as they did with their air transportation,' the publication said. The al-Qaida article prompted the federal Transportation Security Administration to send a security notice to law enforcement across the nation, ABC News has learned. Amid this threat, Thomas Nestel, police chief for the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority, told ABC News' David Kerley, that drones are 'a great way for us to patrol a track without walking on the track, putting officers in jeopardy safety-wise. Using the drone can cover a whole lot of area in a much faster span of time. This was bouncing around in my head for a little while and then when that...article came out, I pulled the trigger, I said, 'Let's do it.' " • Nestel's action has led to the transit-agency's drone, equipped with a high-resolution camera, to help officers detect intruders or anomalies on the tracks and provide information that could lead authorities to stop trains before they reach a problem area." • John Cohen, a former counterterrorism coordinator for the Department of Homeland Security and an ABC News contributor said : "Al-Qaida and ISIS are very interested and are urging their followers to conduct attacks against our nation's rail infrastructure. Securing the rail infrastructure is an incredible challenge. There are literally thousands of miles of tracks. There are rail stations that are open to the public. It's a very difficult job." • Terrorists targeting trains is not new -- Madrid, London, Brussels -- hundreds have been killed in attacks against commuter trains in Europe. AND, ABC said that threats of rail attacks have hit even closer to home, reporting about a journal recovered by US Navy SEAL teams during the operation that killed Osama bin Laden, the al-Qaida leader. The journal outlined a potential plot against the US rail system to occur on the 10th anniversary of the September 11, 2001, terror attacks -- fortunately, the attack never happened. But, according to ABC : "In 2009, the FBI arrested a 25-year-old Afghani national living in Colorado for his role in an alleged conspiracy to bomb the subway system in Manhattan. And in 2012, an undercover US agent foiled an alleged plot to derail a New York-bound passenger train in Canada." John Cohen said that when TSA sends out a warning to law enforcement that says, "We are concerned about this threat; we need you to be concerned about this threat as well," it is time to pay attention. Cohen added : "It's nice that they [al-Qaida] put out a magazine and let us know what suggestions they provide to their followers. Because we're already thinking about how to defeat attacks." • • • ANOTHER DRONE ATTACK WAS VERY ILL-AIMED -- TOWARD ISRAEL. Israel Today gave a detailed report about the Israeli launch of a "Devastating Aerial Assault on Syria After F-16 Shot Down Over Galilee." Israel Today reported : "The Israel Air Force hadn't lost a fighter jet to enemy fire in 34 years, until Saturday, when Iranian and Syrian forces downed an Israeli F-16 over the Galilee. The plane in question was part of a strike force on a retaliatory mission into Syria after an Iranian drone entered Israeli airspace during the early morning hours. The drone was promptly shot down, and then a squadron of Israeli fighters entered Syria to destroy the command center from which the infiltrator had been remotely piloted." What happened, writes Israel Today, is that the Israeli planes faced overwhelming anti-aircraft fire, and the downed F-16 was hit either directly by an Iranian-supplied Syrian missile, or by shrapnel resulting from an explosive anti-aircraft shell. Either way, the injured pilots managed to return to Israeli airspace before crashing near a kibbutz in the Jezreel Valley. • Israel responded quickly and with overwhelming power in "a full day of devastating Israeli aerial assaults on Iranian and Syrian military installations. According to IDF officials, four Iranian and eight Syrian bases were hit, including Syria's main command and control bunker." • Air Force commander Brigadier General Tomer Bar told reporters that Saturday's bombings constituted "the biggest and most significant attack the air force has conducted against Syrian air defenses since Operation Peace for the Galilee" -- Israel's 1982 invasion of Lebanon to halt incessant PLO terrorist attacks. • The fact that many of the installations attacked by Israel on Saturday were covert in nature must have had a demoralizing effect -- destroying "secret bases" -- and Israel also reportedly did significant damage to Syria's air defenses. Israeli Intelligence Minister Yisrael Katz told Army Radio : "They, and we, know what we hit and it will take them some time to digest, understand, and ask how Israel knew how to hit those sites. These were concealed sites and we have intelligence agencies and the ability to know everything that is going on there and yesterday we proved that." • Saturday's aerial assault on Syria were supported by the Trump Administration in Washington. A statement released by President Trump said : "Israel is a staunch ally of the United States, and we support its right to defend itself from the Iranian-backed Syrian and militia forces in southern Syria. We call on Iran and its allies to cease provocative actions and work toward regional peace." • On February 5, the Washington Free Beacon puiblished an article by Adam Kredo titled "Iran ‘Mass Producing’ Drones Strapped with Smart Bombs." Adam Kredo, a senior writer for the Washington Free Beacon and an award-winning political reporter for the Washington Jewish Week, where he frequently broke national news, stated in his article that : "Iran announced on Monday that it has begun mass-producing a new weaponized drone that carries smart bombs capable of precision strikes, according to the Islamic Republic's military leaders. Iran, which has engaged in a massive military buildup since receiving billions of dollars in cash windfalls as a result of the landmark nuclear deal, says that these advanced new drones will be delivered to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps, or IRGC, which has been coordinating war efforts across the Middle East, including most controversially in Syria, where Iranian-backed forces have attacked US troops. The new drones, dubbed the Mohajer 6, are 'equipped with the smart Qa'em precision-striking bombs and different electro-optical explorers and different warheads, [and] can trace, intercept and destroy the target,' Iranian Defense Minister and Brigadier General Amir Hatami said on Monday during a speech celebrating the new weaponry. IRGC leaders also were present at the unveiling, according to Iran's state-controlled media apparatus. Iranian military leaders claim the new drones 'can destroy different fixed and mobile targets in day and [during night] missions, and can infiltrate various types of installations and facilities.' Iran also will use the weaponized drones to conduct reconnaissance missions and other patrols in far off areas, according to the reports. The new weapons will likely be deployed to hotspots such as Syria, where other Iranian-built drones have tracked US soldiers and even launched strikes on them." • • • HAS THE ISRAEL-IRAN WAR BEGUN? We have no way of knowing if the Israeli strikes on Saturday hit Mohajer 6 drome sites in Syria -- we don't even know if Mohajer 6's are already deployed in Syria, and reports are that the drone that was shot down over Israel was an Iranian copy of an American drone shot down in the Middle East. However, IAF chief of air staff Brigadier General Tomer Bar, the second in command of Israel's Air Force, said the drone was an advanced model with a low signature that Israel had never intercepted before. It is currently being studied by the IDF. • But, we do know that Israel will not tolerate Iran's IRGC and its proxies on Israel's doorstep, either in Syria or in Lebanon. • The Jerusalem Post reported on Sunday the comments of Israel's Education Minister and security cabinet member Naftali Bennett : "Israel is already in an ongoing and successful military campaign against Iran’s presence in Syria. Right now [the Iranian] presence in Syria is small. What we did in recent days is to peel the layers of Syrian anti-aircraft defense around Damascus, we exposed [Syrian President Bashar] Assad so that he is naked and vulnerable, and that is just a sample of what we are able to do. We will act methodically and ensure quiet in the long term. Israel is fighting an Iranian octopus sending its tentacles to squeeze us in Lebanon, Syria, Gaza, while the head of the octopus is immune. This has been happening for a long time.” • The JP quoted Bennett sqying he supports a strategy of “a persistent, consistent campaign that is diplomatic, economic, preventative, involving intelligence and more against the Al-Kuds forces and Iran, otherwise, you’re fighting the tentacles of the octopus, when you could have neutralized them by neutralizing the octopus’ head.” Asked if that means he wants war with Iran, Bennett, said no, he wants to create an international coalition against Iran : “Khaminei is very generous with the lives of Lebanese, of the Iranian militias from Pakistan and Afghanistan. He’s also very generous in sacrificing the lives of Gazans, but at the moment Iranians pay with their lives, he runs away with his tail between his legs, like in Syria. We need to create an equation so he will pay a price.” Bennett said : “The fact is, [Iran] doesn’t have any divisions, brigades or even battalions in Syria, in the relevant areas. They don’t have airports or sea ports, and therefore, I think with all the unpleasantness of yesterday’s event, the broader picture is that Israel’s policy is correct, and we will continue it.” • The JP said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took a vaguer tack Sunday morning, saying at a Likud ministers’ meeting : “We set clear redlines. We acted and will continue to act according to them.” Bennett also warned against exaggerating the significance of Saturday’s events, saying it’s “unpleasant, but nothing more than that,” and that Israel still has freedom of action wherever it needs to go to defend itself, “long before they come close to us.” Bennett explained to the JP that Israel “knows how to stop [Iran] from far away, and we’ve only used the tip of our capabilities. We won’t let them in, and we won’t wait until they come to the [border] fences." • BUT, the Jerusalem Post also published an article on Sunday titled "The Open War with Iran Has Begun." The JP wrote : "This was long in the making. Years ago, the Iranians came to the rescue of Bashar Assad in Syria and, together with Russia, ensured his survival. The problem is that they haven’t left. On the contrary -- even though Assad is today in control of the majority of Syria, Iran is staying put and trying to establish an even greater presence within the country. On Saturday, we saw how determined it is to do just that." The JP says it is : "too early to tell what lesson Iran has learned from the clash on Saturday. On the one hand, it succeeded in infiltrating a drone into Israel, even though it was ultimately intercepted. Its ally Syria succeeded in shooting down an Israeli fighter jet. On the other hand, Israel carried out its most widespread bombings in Syria since it destroyed almost all of Syria’s air defenses in 1982. Israel’s retaliation was important for two reasons -- it needed to neutralize the Syrian batteries that were used to down the F-16, but also to exact a price from Iran by bombing the control center used to operate the drone as well as other Iranian targets in Syria -- the nature of which we will likely learn over the coming days....While the downing of a fighter jet is a heavy blow to Israeli morale, it was not totally unexpected and needs to be viewed through the wider context of what has been going on for the last five years. Israel has carried out more than 100 strikes in Syria, and in war there are always wins and losses. The fact that a plane hasn’t been shot down until now is the real story and speaks volumes of the IAF’s superior capabilities." The JP asks what Iran will decide ot do next -- "keep on building its presence in Syria?...attempt another violation of Israel’s sovereignty down the road?" Finally, the JP says that Israel needs to be concerned by Russia’s response to the events on Saturday. In Moscow, the Foreign Ministry issued a statement calling for restraint and for all sides to “respect the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Syria.” On the surface, says the JP : "it seems like Russia is taking Iran and Syria’s side and not Israel’s, despite Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s best efforts to win over Vladimir Putin and his countless meetings with the Russian president. Beyond the ministry statement’s rhetorical significance, it could have practical consequences if Russia decides to deny Israel operational freedom over Syria in the future. Israel will have to tread carefully and will not have a lot of choice but to accept Moscow’s directives. While Russia has allowed Iran to establish a presence in Syria it has -- until now -- prevented it from setting up large bases or a presence right along the border with Israel on the Golan Heights. That could all still happen -- and will depend on what Russia’s interests will be when it comes to the future of Syria and the wider Middle East." • • • DEAR READERS, whatever the future holds between Israel and Iran, the fact is that Israel is not waiting to be invaded or bombarded into submission. The Jerusalem Post also reported on Sunday that : "Israel has boosted its air defense in the northern part of the country following a significant confrontation between the Jewish State, Syria and Iran which led to the loss of an F-16 fighter jet. While the Israeli army refused to comment on the reports, witnesses reported seeing a convoy of missile defense batteries heading north near the Israeli-Arab city of Baqa el-Garbiyeh. Other witnesses posted photos of several trucks carrying the batteries on central highways in northern Israel." • As we know, Israel’s air defenses currently include the Iron Dome to shoot down short-range rockets, the Arrow system to intercept ballistic missiles outside the Earth’s atmosphere, and the David’s Sling missile defense system to intercept tactical ballistic missiles, medium-to-long-range rockets and cruise missiles fired at ranges between 40 to 300 km. Not bad. The JP says Israel also "has Patriot missile batteries stationed in the north of the country and has used them to intercept drones infiltrating into Israeli airspace from Syria. In September, an Iranian-built unmanned aerial vehicle breached the 'Bravo line' that marks the Syrian demilitarized zone and was intercepted by an Israeli Patriot anti-ballistic missile launched from a station near the northern city of Safed. The first use of Arrow occurred in April, when the system was launched to intercept three surface-to-air missiles Syrian regime air defense fired toward IAF jets. On Saturday, an Iranian drone, which took off from Syria’s T4 airbase in northern Homs province, flew through Jordanian territory before it infiltrated into Israel. It flew for about a minute and a half in the northern Jordan Valley before it was shot down by a helicopter flown by Lieutenant Colonel "L", commander of the 113 squadron." L said : "The squadron was sent to protect the country's skies. We identified the aircraft as an Iranian drone, and when it crossed the border, we shot it down into Israeli territory. The squadron is ready and prepared for any task it is given." • When eight Israeli jets took off to strike the drone’s launch site in retaliation, Syrian regime forces fired 20 anti-aircraft missiles at Israeli jets. The pilots of one of the planes ejected themselves when they recognized that one of the missiles had locked onto their jet. According to the IDF, Iran and the Quds Force of the Revolutionary Guards have been operating at the T4 base “for a long time, backed by Syrian army forces and with the approval of the Syrian regime. Iran has been using the base in recent months for the purpose of transferring weaponry to be used against Israel,” according to a statement by the IDF Spokesperson’s Unit. "These actions by Iran at the base are ostensibly carried out under the guise of supporting the fighting against the global Islamic jihad forces, but the actions carried out in the past 24 hours prove that its real concern is direct violent action against Israel. In the Iranian action, all the Israeli warnings against Iranian consolidation in Syria were realized. The attack was initiated and Israel was forced to respond first to the threat in its territory and then to the hostile elements operating from the Syrian territory opposite it." • It all makes me wonder which anti-Israel anti-American bureaucrat wrote this statement for UN Secretary General António Guterres : “The latest events come as the Syrian people suffer through one of the most violent periods in nearly seven years of conflict. Over 1,000 civilian casualties from air strikes were reported in the first week of February alone. The secretary-general stresses once again that all concerned in Syria and the region have a responsibility and must abide by international law and relevant Security Council resolutions. He calls on all to work for an immediate and unconditional de-escalation of violence and exercise restraint.”