The war casualty report and Iran’s reckoning

The ceasefire in the war that began with the US-Israeli strikes against Iran continues under its own unique conditions. From the moment the ceasefire was declared, Israel’s unprecedented attacks on Lebanon showed that this ceasefire would not hold in any meaningful way. To be honest, Israel was turning the ceasefire into an opportunity for aggressive domination, just as it did in Gaza. The purpose of the ceasefire was for the other side to halt its fire; once that was achieved with the help and mediation of the international community, Israel was able to attack even more freely. Iran’s very successful use of the Hormuz card in response put enough pressure on the US—which had suffered heavy losses—to force it to rein in Israel, thereby stopping the attacks on Lebanon. Thus, the ceasefire came about not through an agreement but through necessity.

Trump says that closing the Strait of Hormuz did not directly harm the US. Of course, he is not telling the truth on this point. Perhaps it didn’t cause direct harm, but the negative impact of the closed Strait on America’s allies has led to serious questioning of US leadership. The Gulf countries, which pay the US tons of money under the pretext of securing their safety, the European countries that are still official US allies despite everything, and many other nations have suffered major losses because of Israel’s irresponsible behavior. The pressure from all of them is bearing down directly on the United States.

The truth is, these pressures are now in a position to determine the future course of the war. That course is trending toward the war gradually coming to an end. The US and Israel have definitely emerged as losers from this war. They caused great destruction in Iran, but they gained none of the benefits they had hoped for. They nearly brought the Iranian regime to the point of collapse, but by offering it an almost historic opportunity, they actually caused it to become even more consolidated. They saw the final limit—perhaps just short of nuclear—of what all their weapons technology could achieve. Any future order they might try to establish with their remaining threats has lost all seriousness and deterrent power.

Moreover, not only have they led to the formation of a very serious global public opinion in Iran’s favor, but Israel has also taken another step toward becoming the world’s accursed country and people—after Gaza. So much so that even within the US, support for Israel has dropped to its lowest level in history, including in the House of Representatives and Congress. We may soon see decisions being made against Israel even in the US Congress.

All these developments are related to the growing global consensus about the injustice of the war the US and Israel are waging in the region. There is no reasonable person who can be found to support the war against Iran.

WHEN WE SAID “THIS IS REALLY NOT THE TIME”…

This brings us to an important point. We have also said that we are at a moment when everyone should support Iran’s stance against this aggression. Especially as Iran is undeniably part of the Islamic world and is being subjected to this aggression, we said that this is no time to bring up sectarian arguments. We said—and we say again—that now is the time to condemn US-Israeli aggression without any “buts” or discussions of past records.

However, saying this does not mean we should forget the crimes the Iranian regime has committed against its own people and grant it unquestioning forgiveness. Nor does it mean we should whitewash the Shiitization policies it has pursued in Sunni countries, which have led to the deaths, loss of property, displacement, and destruction of homes of millions of Muslims. That record of the Iranian regime remains there like an indelible stain. The aggression it is suffering today, or its struggle against Zionism, does not in any way erase that record. Even if we, out of a sense of responsibility that prioritizes the unity of the Ummah, remain silent, we cannot advise the people of Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Lebanon—who have directly suffered that oppression, whose children and women have been subjected to Shabbiha and Hashd al-Shaabi rapes and massacres—to forget.

THE PROBLEM OF THOSE WHO ARE MORE IRANIAN THAN IRAN

The reason we are raising this issue today, even though we said “this is not the time,” is not so much about Iran itself, but about the irresponsible and voracious aggression that certain people—known for their pro-Iranianism—are displaying against all Muslims in the name of defending Iran. Using the fact that Iran is currently under US-Israeli attack, they not only try to exonerate it, but also present it as the one unquestionable, unwavering, and infallible representative of truth and righteousness from the very beginning. And anyone who does not accept this, they immediately register as part of the American-Zionist camp.

When we say that this is no time to start sectarian arguments while Iran is fighting the real enemy, Zionist Israel, we see these notorious pro-Iranian figures opening up sectarian arguments with even greater appetite, reopening all the files concerning the Companions of the Prophet in favor of Shiism. Reopening these accounts with cherry-picked narratives about events that happened 1,400 years ago is nothing but sowing fitna. While we are trying mainly to calm the Sunni side by saying “this is not the time,” unfortunately these accounts—more Iranian than Iran—are spewing delusions that are more Shiite than Shiism. What are they trying to achieve by this? Are they really giving support to Iran against the US and Israel? Are they serving the cause of total Islamic unity, which is our only solution against Zionist-Crusader aggression?

The greatest support that could have been given to Iran would have been to criticize it when it was making obvious mistakes, when it was shedding Muslim blood, even when it was acting despotically against its own people. In that sense, we genuinely wanted what was best for Iran. The fact that Iran stands alone today against the US and Israel is not only because the enemy is very powerful, but also because Iran’s actual hostility toward the Sunni world predates its current enemies. Moreover, it is not something anyone has forgotten that Iran did not hesitate to cooperate with the US in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Syria during the Arab Spring to gain power against Sunni Muslims. If Iran had wanted to, and had followed a different policy, it would today have the unquestionable support of the entire Islamic world.

Nevertheless, we say today: this is not the time. Despite Iran’s record, when even in the Sunni world a new page is being opened with Iran, we also need special protection against the whisperings of those who are more Iranian than Iran and who have no nature other than sowing fitna.