There's an old saying about someone's "mouth writing checks his butt can't cash." It's usually taken to mean someone is making threats they can't back up.
It's a warning that Iran's current leadership should take to heart; instead, following President Trump's warning that the United States is concerned about theocracy cracking down on the ongoing protests, the leaders of Iran's armed forces are... threatening the United States.
Yeah, Iran, let us know how that works out for you.
As nationwide protests continued to spread across Iran on Friday, the regime’s hardline Parliament speaker warned the U.S. that American forces and bases in the region would be considered "legitimate targets" if Washington intervenes in the country’s ongoing political unrest.
Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf made the comments after President Donald Trump said earlier Friday that the U.S. would take action if Iran uses force against demonstrators. It comes as protests entered a sixth day and appear to be spreading, with Iranian opposition groups claiming at least eight deaths.
"The disrespectful President of America should also know that with this official admission, all American centers and forces across the entire region will be legitimate targets for us in response to any potential adventurism," Qalibaf wrote in Persian on X.
OK, I have a question for the Iranian Parliament Speaker: You're going to target American forces and installations with, what, exactly? Iran has, at last known count, had 65 F-4 Phantoms, 40 F-14 Tomcats, 35 F-5 Tigersharks, 20-some MiG-29s, 20 Su-24 Fencers, and a few other old, Cold-War era fighters; it's not clear how many of them are even operational. Any dust-up between the United States and Iran would be an air war; there's just no portion in us getting involved in boots on the ground in Iran, which would be a slog of WW2 proportions. And even with our admittedly low numbers of F-22 and F-35 fighters, backed up by the new F-15 EX air-superiority fighters, we could wipe away Iran's air defense capability like brushing dust off a windshield.
Iran does have a significant counter-air capability in missiles and even guns, but those would only be a problem for us hitting targets in Iran; and the recent Operation Midnight Hammer, in which the United States Air Force reduced Iran's nuclear program to glowing, radioactive rubble, demonstrated very clearly that we can hit targets in Iran without the Iranians even knowing our aircraft were around until things started exploding.
Whatever else happens, Iran doesn't want to take on the USA. Not directly. Their Hamas/Hezbollah/ISIS proxies, though? That's a different story.
Roughly 40,000 active-duty U.S. troops and War Department civilians are deployed across the Middle East, according to Military Times, citing Pentagon officials. Forces are stationed in countries including Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq and Syria, according to Reuters.
Trump said earlier Friday that the United States is "locked and loaded and ready to go" if Iranian authorities violently suppress demonstrators.
"If Iran shoots and ‘violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue,’" Trump wrote on Truth Social.
It's not entirely clear what the Trump administration and the War Department could do to affect events in Tehran, but we certainly could establish air superiority in the region in a few days, at most. That would give American forces some interesting options with drones and precision munitions. Personally, I'd rather not see the United States get militarily involved; better to let the Iranian people overthrow the mullahs themselves than to see any possible new government (cross your fingers) tainted by accusations of American interference, because that's the first line any opposition to such a new government would trot out.
And, yeah, it sure looks like something is cooking.
Read More: Watch: Protests in Iran Are Spreading, As More Bravely Stand Up to the Regime
President Trump Vows US Intervention If Iran Kills Peaceful Demonstrators: ‘Locked and Loaded’
That doesn't mean the United States can't help the uprising by providing financial and logistical support, along with promising to remove sanctions when a new government is seated. We've already seen President Trump do this in Syria, whose government is still shaky and questionable - but it's better than the old one. Iran is likely to end up just like that; not great, but better. And that's OK; better is, well, better.
We might note that the 2009 Green Revolution may well have overturned the mullahs then, 16 years ago, if then-President Obama had tossed them some support. Instead, he gave the Green Revolution the cold shoulder, so here we are, today, with the Iranian people taking another shot at it. They've certainly suffered long enough.
As for Iran's threats over American interference, yeah. Let them try it.
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