US military deaths in Iraq war at 4,115

As of Tuesday, July 8, 2008, at least 4,115 members of the U.S. military have died in the Iraq war since it began in March 2003, according to an Associated Press count.

The figure includes eight military civilians killed in action. At least 3,353 died as a result of hostile action, according to the military’s numbers.

The AP count is two fewer than the Defense Department’s tally, last updated Tuesday at 10 a.m. EDT.

The British military has reported 176 deaths; Italy, 33; Ukraine, 18; Poland, 21; Bulgaria, 13; Spain, 11; Denmark, seven; El Salvador, five; Slovakia, four; Latvia and Georgia, three each; Estonia, Netherlands, Thailand, Romania, two each; and Australia, Hungary, Kazakhstan, South Korea, one death each.

Since the start of U.S. military operations in Iraq, 30,349 U.S. service members have been wounded in hostile action, according to the Defense Department’s weekly tally.

The latest deaths reported by the military:

A soldier died Tuesday of injuries from a roadside bomb in Amiriyah, a neighborhood in western Baghdad.

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‘Israel, US daren’t attack Iran’

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says the United States and the Israeli regime will not dare launch any attack against the Islamic Republic.

“Neither the US, nor Israel nor hundreds of others will ever dare launch any attack on Iran. They know full well that they are unable to attack the Islamic Republic,” IRNA quoted Ahmadinejad as telling Malaysian reporters on Monday.

Ahmadinejad is currently in Kuala Lumpur to attend the 6th Summit of Group of Eight Developing Islamic Countries (D-8).

“The US President George Bush harbors evil and inhuman wishes, including confrontation with the Iranian nation but he could fulfill none of them. They (the US) know that they cannot speak to the Iranian nation with a bullying and threatening language. They should submit to the will of the Iranian nation,” he said.

The enemies have used the nuclear issue to put Iran under pressure, the Iranian president said, adding they have no concern about nuclear bombs because there are countries which possess atomic bombs and are not members of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

“Our enemies oppose the ideals, views, culture and development of the Iranian nation. We support dialogue on common issues in a fair atmosphere because talks in unfair and unequal conditions would bear no fruit.”

Ahmadinejad characterized the current threats of the US and the Israeli regime as psychological warfare and added that the Iranian people would stand up to the enemies.

He stated that the US used to be the largest producer of oil in the world. There are also other countries that possess the world’s largest gas and energy reserves, but the fact has not prevented them from using nuclear energy as a clean energy.

He went on to say that using nuclear energy would spare countries such crises as pollution, global warming, drought and the resulting food shortages currently gripping large parts of the world.

SF/GM/BGH

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Aggressors to be buried in PG

A top Iranian commander says those who dare attack the Islamic Republic will be digging their graves in the depths of the Persian Gulf.

“Iran’s naval fleet is equipped with state-of-the-art missile defense systems which are well capable of sending any aggressor to the bottom of the Persian Gulf,” the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps Commander Mohammad Ali Jafari said on Saturday.

He added that any potential aggressor should not underestimate the nation’s military strength and should know that their naval warfare equipment have no chance against the Iranian navy’s tactical defense systems.

Iran’s army chief, Major General Hassan Firouzabadi, warned that in case of an attack against Iran the country would not hesitate to take all necessary measures, including shutting down the Strait of Hormuz, to secure its national interests.

The Strait of Hormuz, between Iran and Oman, is considered the world’s most vital conduit for energy supplies. As much as 40 percent of the world’s crude oil passes through the Persian Gulf waterway.

SBB/HAR

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Iran warns US against new adventurism

A senior Iranian presidential advisor has warned the US against introducing a new threat to the world by attacking a sovereign state.

“The forces of any government that would attack Iran will no longer have any security in our region or anywhere else,” special advisor to Iran’s president, Mojtaba Samareh Hashemi said in an interview with the Washington Post.

The harsh rhetoric of Washington against Tehran has raised fears that an attack on Iran is becoming increasingly likely before President George W. Bush leaves office.

Bush and the chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Mike Mullen on Wednesday reaffirmed that the use of military force against Iran, either directly by the US or following air strikes by Israel, remained an option.

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US: Oil blockade constitutes an act of war

The commander of US naval forces in the Persian Gulf says any attempt by Iran to shut down the Strait of Hormuz will be an ‘act of war’.

Vice Admiral Kevin Cosgriff, the commander of the Fifth Fleet – responsible for naval operations in the Persian Gulf -, said Monday that the White House will not allow the strategic Persian Gulf oil passage to be sealed off.

Cosgriff made the remarks after Iran warned that it would not hesitate in taking all necessary measures to safeguard its national interests in case of an enemy offensive.

“When a country comes under attack, it naturally uses all its capacities to confront the enemy,” said Major General Mohammad-Ali Jafari on Saturday in reference to the country’s ability to cut oil supplies by closing the Strait of Hormuz.

The commander of US Naval Forces Central Command, however, warned that such comments by high-ranking Iranian officials are ‘not helpful’.

Cosgriff suggested that a blockade ‘will not be an action against the United States but against the international community’.

While the Bush administration continues to beat the drums of war against Tehran, Tel Aviv has fueled speculation about the possibility of an attack on Iran. Recent reports indicate that the Israeli regime may have staged military maneuvers to prepare for air strikes on Iranian nuclear sites.

The Islamic Republic, however, affirms that it is fully prepared to counter any act of aggression on its soil.

MD/AA

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Iran: Attacking our N-sites means war

The top Islamic Revolution Guards Corps commander warns that any attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities would lead to the outbreak of war.

“Any action against Iran will be interpreted as the start of a war,” Major General Mohammad-Ali Jafari told reporters Thursday.

He made the remarks when asked about increasing rumors of a potential US or Israeli attack on Iran, IRNA reported.

The IRGC commander warned that Iran’s response to any act of aggression would make the invaders ‘regret’ their decision.

Washington has never ruled out the possibility of resorting to the use of force against Iran over its nuclear program and reports suggest that the Israeli regime is preparing for a unilateral strike on Iran’s nuclear sites.

This is while Washington and Tel Aviv, which accuse Tehran of seeking a military nuclear program, claim they favor a diplomatic solution to the standoff.

Refusing to give up its nuclear drive, Iran insists as a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) the country is entitled to a civilian nuclear program.

In its most recent report, the UN nuclear watchdog conceded that there is no link between the use of nuclear material and the ‘alleged studies’ of weaponization in Iran’s nuclear facilities.

MD/HGH

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Israeli spymaster: Be ‘prepared’ to attack

Former Mossad chief Shabtai Shavit says Israel should be ready to attack if sanctions fail to sway Iran to renounce its nuclear program.

“As an intelligence officer working with the worst case scenario, I can tell you we should be prepared, we should do whatever necessary on the defensive side, on the offensive side, on the public opinion side for the West, in case sanctions don’t work,” Shabtai Shavit told the Sunday Telegraph.

“What’s left is a military action,” he continued.

Israel has stepped up its rhetoric against Iran and is said to be preparing its public for a war against the oil-rich Islamic Republic.

The New York Times quoted Pentagon officials last week as saying that over 100 Israeli F-16 and F-15 fighter jets staged a maneuver over the eastern Mediterranean and Greece between May 28 and June 12.

As part of the maneuver, Israeli jets flew over 900 miles, roughly the distance from their airfields to a nuclear enrichment facility in the central Iranian city of Natanz.

On June 6, Israeli deputy prime minister Shaoul Mofaz told the Yediot Aharonot that Tel Aviv would attack Iran if the country did not halt its nuclear activities.

In his comments to the Sunday Telegraph, the former Mossad chief also warned that American approval was not a necessary pre-requisite for Israel to carry out an air strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

“When it comes to decisions that have to do with our national security and our own survival, at best we may update the Americans that we are intending or planning or going to do something,” Shavit said.

MT/MR/GM

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Mottaki: Israel in no position to attack

Iran’s Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki says the Israeli regime is not in a position to embark on another ‘adventure’ in the region.

“We do not see the Israeli regime in a position to commit a new act of adventurism by attacking Iran, considering that it is still suffering from the consequences of its heavy defeat during its 33-day aggression against Lebanon two years ago. Another defeat of the Israeli regime will be further proof of its illegitimacy,” Mottaki told reporters in a joint press conference with his Pakistani counterpart Syed Naveed Qamar after the opening ceremony of the 17th session of the Joint Iran-Pakistan Economic Commission in Tehran Sunday.

“Iran’s mission to the UN will file documents and statements by the Zionist regime’s authorities because their speeches at various times are a clear admission of the regime’s aggressive attitude, its moves against international regulations and its possession of nuclear weapons,” he said.

He pointed to the package of incentives prepared by the six main powers on Iran’s nuclear case, saying, “Iran is studying the 5+1Group’s proposed package carefully and in a constructive spirit. The respectful attitude of the group’s representatives prepared the ground for Iran’s decision to study the package.”

On June 14, the EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana presented a package of incentives to the Iranian Foreign Minister. The package was drawn up by the five permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany (5+1 Group) and requires Iran to renounce its right to uranium enrichment in exchange for a set of political, economic and security incentives.

Iranian officials insist that as a member of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and a signatory to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), the Islamic Republic is entitled to acquire nuclear technology for electricity generation and peaceful applications in such important areas as medicine, agriculture and manufacturing.

Iran’s top diplomatic official added that the G5+1 had taken a constructive view of Tehran’s proposed package, which was submitted to a number of countries and international organizations. The package is aimed at tackling a range of issues the world is facing in connection with terrorism, nuclear proliferation, drug trafficking and other criminal activities that threaten peace and security across the world.

He recommended the Group of Eight industrialized countries should take a constructive stance on Iran based on the new circumstances and avoid politically-motivated measures. “This will be beneficial to all.”

In a statement issued on Friday, the Group of Eight urged Iran to accept the West’s new incentive package and suspend its uranium enrichment program.

SF/GM

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Maliki condemns US raid in Karbala

Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maiki has condemned the recent US raid in Karbala Province, saying the incident infringed Iraq’s sovereignty.

On Friday, American soldiers killed an unarmed Iraqi civilian and arrested four others in an early-morning military raid in Ganaga district, which is the birthplace of the Iraqi premier.

Maliki described the operation as a clear example of ‘breaking the law and infringing Iraq’s sovereignty’.

The control of security of the province has been handed over to Iraqi authorities.

According to Iraqi officials in Karbala province, before the operation US military airplanes deployed dozens of American troops to the area without informing them.

Earlier, outraged Iraqi officials had ordered an investigation into the lethal incident which drew the ire of Iraqi people.

They said that the US military operation violated the terms of the agreement on the handover of Karbala province to Iraqi troops.

“We denounce the operation and demand an explanation from US forces, as security forces in Karbala did not know about it,” said Oqeil al-Khazaali governor of Karbala city on Friday.

The civilians, who were killed and detained in the operation in the Ganaga district, were not outlaws nor did they belong to any armed group, he added.

DT/DT

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IRGC: Shock and awe awaits invaders

A senior Iranian commander says the armed forces are prepared to deliver an ‘awe-inspiring’ response to any attack against the country.

During a Tuesday speech at the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps headquarters, Major General Mohammad-Ali Jafari said no ’strategic mistake’ by Israel or the US would be overlooked by Iran.

Washington and Tel Aviv’s inability to face Iran’s defensive capabilities has caused them to resort to psychological warfare, the IRGC commander suggested.

“The enemy knows that the IRGC is prepared to defend the country and the Islamic Revolution. This is why no one is able to launch any attack against Iran,” he added.

Maj. Gen. Jafari made the remarks following a New York Times report quoted Pentagon officials as saying that Israel recently carried out a large-scale military maneuver, which appeared to be a rehearsal for an attack on Iran.

According to the report, over 100 Israeli F-16s and F-15s flew more than 900 miles off the southern Mediterranean island of Crete, roughly the distance from Israeli airfields to Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities.

Israel accuses Iran of ‘producing bomb-grade uranium’ and has repeatedly threatened to wage war on the country if Tehran continues with its nuclear plans.

Iran, which according to the most recent UN nuclear watchdog report has conducted a civilian program, insists nuclear weapons have no place in its defensive doctrine.

MD/HGH/DT

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