Israel Matzav

Iranian warships don't pass through are in the Northern Red Sea waiting to pass through Suez

Those two Iranian warships that were supposed to pass through the Suez Canal on Wednesday night never made it. There are several different versions of the story, which basically fall into two categories. Either the Egyptians denied them passage or the Iranians decided not to come. One version even suggests that the ships are still in Jeddah, in which case the question is why anyone thought that they were in range of the canal in the first place. During the day on Thursday, the Iranians took the trouble to deny reports that they had withdrawn their application for passage.

But late Thursday night, Israel Radio is reporting that Iranian sources claim that the ships are in the Northern Red Sea waiting to pass through the canal. And while Egyptian sources are not confirming that report, they are saying that they have received an application for the ships to pass through (which they had not received earlier) and that the application had been referred to Egypt's defense ministry. Generally, if countries are not at war with Egypt, according to the Egyptian sources, their ships are allowed to pass through the canal. The statement notes that Egypt says it is not at war with Iran.

So much for those UN sanctions.

But what's perhaps most astounding about this story is the clueless manner in which the Obama administration has reacted.

Following on the theme that the Muslim Brotherhood is a secular organization and that U.S. intelligence gets its breaking information from CNN, we have this remarkable statement in the State Department briefing by Assistant Secretary of State Philip Crowley:

"I believe there are two Iranian warships or, I mean, I don't know what kind of ships they are. There are two ships in the Red Sea. What their intention is, what their destination is, I don’t – I can’t say. Look, there are reports that there are a couple of ships in the Red Sea. What they do, where they go, we’ll follow this with some curiosity."

Curiosity indeed! Here's what appeared on my blog four days before this press briefing:

...

"Not only is this a strategic alarm bell for the United States and Israel but also for the Saudis themselves. Bereft now of their last significant Arab ally and feeling unable to depend on the United States, the Saudis are facing their worst strategic situation since the 1950s at a time when Iran is spreading its influence and racing toward nuclear weapons."

Read the whole thing.

What could go wrong?

Labels: Iranian warships, Saudi Arabia, Suez Canal, Syria

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 11:49 PM