COMPLIMENTARY COPY
Winter Paradise on the Island of Kauai
‘The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up’Workshop Hosted at Arcadia Library
Page 14
Page 4
Go to DuarteDispatch.com for Duarte Specific News THURSDAY, JANUARY 9 - JANUARY 15, 2020
Local. Relevant. Trusted.
Since 1996
VOL. 9, NO. 2
BEGINNING OF THE NEW DECADE STRAINS WORLD STABILITY
Tensions escalate between U.S. and Iran as 3,500 troops head to Middle East post drone attack in Baghdad Terry MILLER tmiller@beaconmedianews.com
W
e’re but a few days into 2020 and already the fifes and drums are beating for history to repeat itself; imminent presidential impeachment may be looming hard and heavy; plus a brave new world order to help fight the enemies of the United States may be, just around the corner. Fear of the unknown is indeed taking its toll on people the world over. One can only speculate where this international baked potato will land and what form it will take. Last week it was announced that Iran Revolutionary Guard’s top general, Oasem Soleimani, was killed by a drone air strike at Baghdad airport Friday in a move ordered by U.S. President Donald Trump. The incident has deeply strained the paperthin relationship between Iran and U.S. beyond measure. Asked in the Oval Office, Tuesday Jan. 7, whether there were any signs of imminent retaliation by Iran, Trump said, “Well don’t forget, in our case, it was retaliation, because they were there first. … just in the very short period of time, two people dead, people badly injured, and then before that there were other attacks. And look at what he was planning.” Trump added that what Soleimani was planning to do to the U.S., which remains classified, would be discussed Wednesday morning with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the joint chiefs of staff. Trump asserted that the U.S. is prepared for an attack
When duty calls, Marines rely on their intensive training to win our nation’s battles by air, land, and sea. – Courtesy photo by Sgt. Amaia Unanue
by Iran. The decision to kill Soleimani has touched off a fresh crisis between the U.S. and Iran. In an interview with CNN's Frederik Pleitgen on Tuesday, Iran Foreign Minister Javad Zarif called the drone strike an act of "state terrorism." The 62-year-old Soleimani spearheaded Iran Middle East operations as head of the elite Quds Force. Trump has claimed he killed or wounded thousands of Americans during his reign. His funeral this past weekend was attended by thousands of Iranians pledging “Death to America.” Since the attack at
Baghdad Airport, the rhetoric on both sides has been fear-provoking to say the least. Perhaps the most devastating act of an undeclared war — according to numerous sources — this will no doubt provoke far more repercussions than Iran’s promise of “severe revenge” and continue to promote disdain for America and all its values. U.S.-Iran relations have been tenuous at best since the overthrow of Mossaddeq, the CIA-orchestrated overthrow of Iran's prime minister in 1953, to tension and confrontation under President Trump, a look back over more than 65
years of tricky relations between Iran and the U.S. Here’s a brief chronological overview: • In 1979 the Iranian Revolution ultimately resulted in the Embassy hostage crisis. The U.S. embassy in Tehran is seized by protesters in November 1979 and American hostages are held inside for 444 days. The final 52 hostages are freed in January 1981, the day of Ronald Reagan's inauguration. • And, then of course we had Iran Contra in 1985-86. The U.S. secretly ships weapons to Iran, allegedly in exchange for Tehran's help in freeing U.S. hostages held by Hezbollah militants
in Lebanon. The profits are illegally channeled to rebels in Nicaragua, creating a political crisis for Reagan. • A few years later an Iranian passenger plane was shot down by the U.S. claiming the vessel was a fighter jet. Iran said almost 300 Iranian pilgrims died in that air disaster. • In 2002 President Bush claimed Iran was the “Axis of Evil.” • In July 2015, under the Obama administration, Iran agreed to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of action, commonly known as the Iran nuclear deal. The agreement offered Tehran billions in sanctions relief in exchange for curbing the
country’s nuclear program. Tehran agreed to a 10-year restriction on nuclear production, agreed to close thousands of centrifuges and exported much of its bomb-making material. The country also agreed that it would not “seek, develop or acquire any nuclear weapons.” • In May 2018, U.S. President Donald Trump abandons the nuclear deal, before reinstating sanctions against Iran and countries that trade with it. Read More on our website under News