So, everything’s hunky-dory in our hot and heavy relationship with Iran.
Or so says the Obama administration after the Iranian Revolutionary Guard captured two American Navy boats yesterday, then held 10 American soldiers overnight during President Obama’s State of the Union address. In the process, the IRG humiliated our sailors, forced an American female sailor into a hijab, and released photos of Americans with their hands up to the rest of the world.
And the Obama administration played the entire situation as a beautiful case of international diplomacy and Iranian helpfulness. Essentially, the White House said, two American boats simultaneously broke down and floated into Iranian waters, at which point the IRG generously towed them to Farsi Island, provided the crew shelter, and then returned them. “Ten US Navy Sailors safely returned to US custody today, after departing Iran,” reported the US Naval Forces Central Command Public Affairs Office. “There are no indications that the Sailors were harmed during their brief detention…The Navy will investigate the circumstances that led to the Sailors’ presence in Iran.”
Secretary of State John Kerry then added his praise for the Iranians:
I’m very pleased that our Sailors have been safely returned to US hands. As a former Sailor myself, I know the importance of naval presence around the world and the critical work being done by our Navy in the Gulf region. I’m proud of our young men and women in uniform and know how seriously they take their responsibilities to one another and to other mariners in distress.
Secretary of Defense Ash Carter then added his voice to the chorus of love for Iran:
I am pleased that ten US Navy sailors have departed Iran and are now back in US hands. I want to personally thank Secretary of State John Kerry for his diplomatic engagement with Iran to secure our sailors’ swift return. Around the world, the US Navy routinely provides assistance to foreign sailors in distress, and we appreciate the timely way in which this situation was resolved.
Vice President Joe Biden was even more glowing:
No, there was no apology, there was [nothing] to apologize for. When you have a problem with a boat, do you apologize the boat had a problem? No, and there was no looking for any apology. This was just standard nautical practice…The Iranians picked up both boats, as we have picked up Iranian boats that needed to be rescued [and then] released them like, you know, ordinary nations would do. That’s the way nations should deal with one another. That’s why it’s important to have channels open.
Standard nautical practice. Rescue, along the lines of “ordinary nations.”
The IRG told a different story. They said that the Americans were “snooping,” and Iran’s army chief said that the seizure of the boats was a rebuke to Congress. “This incident in the Persian Gulf, which probably will not be the American forces’ last mistake in the region, should be a lesson to troublemakers in the US Congress,” said Major General Hassan Firouzabadi. And according to Reuters, Biden was fibbing – the Iranians did in fact ask for an apology, with Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif leading the way.
They then released these photos:
Does this look more like your local Helpful Honda People™ or does this look like a hostile takeover of American military vessels? Why is our female soldier in a hijab? Did she enter Iranian waters wearing it? Why are our sailors not wearing their boots – does it have something to do with the Islamic custom of removing your shoes on Islamic property? Why are they on their damn knees with their hands on their heads like criminals?
This was a calculated effort by the Iranian government to humiliate the Americans ahead of the Americans releasing $100 billion in Iranian assets to a terrorist government hell-bent on regional domination and destruction of the Jews. And it worked. It’s not the first time they’ve tried this – in 2007, Iran captured 15 British sailors in an attempt to humiliate them, and forced them to apologize for intruding into Iranian waters after allowing Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to personally view them. The West stood down.
And the West stands down again. But this time is worse. At least then, the British maintained that they had never entered Iranian waters. Now, the Obama administration is so desperate to defend its perverse Iran deal that it will defend Iranian aggression against Americans, suggesting that the Iranian Navy is part of an international Triple A. Of course, the last time my car broke down, I remember Triple A slapping my wife in a hijab and forcing me to put my hands on my head. Good times.
In his State of the Union address, Obama ignored the whole incident, naturally – even as he promised that he would see the Iranian deal through to the end. And he will, even if he has to become Iran’s PR machine to do it, at the expense of our own military men and women.