A report by a British army officer serving in Basra details how he discovered from multiple informants that Iran was funding the Jaish al-Mahdi - better known as the Mahdi army - to pay unemployed Shi'a men up to $300 each to kill British soldiers.
This is yet another indicator that Iran is fighting a proxy war against the West in Iraq and elsewhere.
Iran is seeking to become the leader of global Islam, despite being a predominantly Shi'a country. Her influence now extends from Afghanistan in the East to the Mediterranean region in the West:
- Iran has interfered both politically and militarily in Afghanistan for the last 25 years. One recent example of its attempt to extend its power base in Afghanistan is the madrassa (Islamic theological school) that it began building in southern Kabul a few years ago. Despite the Shi'a being a relatively small minority in Afghanistan, this enormous building is set to become the largest madrassa in Afghanistan.
- In the southern Mediterranean region, Iran now finances the radical Sunni Islamist group Hamas who are dedicated to the annihilation of the state of Israel and now control the Gaza strip.
- In the northern Mediterranean region, Hezbollah, founded and funded by Iran, has just militarily bullied its way into gaining a veto over the affairs of the Lebanese government.
It is only a question of time before Iran decides it is an 'opportune' time to to allow Hezbollah to launch the sort of attack against Israel that will lead to a significant Israeli military response.
Last time that happened, David Milliband, now foreign secretary, argued strongly in cabinet for Britain to call for an immediate ceasefire, effectively preventing Israel from dealing with Hezbollah. As I have argued before on Centre Right that decision will almost inevitably lead to another war between Hezbollah and Israel with even more loss of life. When that happens, Milliband, whether as foreign secretary or as leader of the Labour Party needs to take a much longer term and more realistic view of foreign affairs, particularly in relation to Iran and its proxies Hezbollah and Hamas.
In the war against terror, whether in the form of a cold war with Iran or home grown suicide bombers, Britain needs a Churchill as its leader, not a Chamberlain.
Appeasement, whether of Hezbollah or its overlord Iran will only lead to even greater loss of life and more suffering by innocent people in the future.
