Author Trita Parsi, founder and former president of the National Iranian American Council, believes that President Donald Trump’s recent warnings to Iran are signs of a disturbing plan to thwart President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration.
“Make no mistake: Trump has already moved B52s, submarines, and other military assets to the Persian Gulf,” he tweeted .
“He is planning to start a war with Iran on bogus charges in order to prevent Biden from taking office. Iran is not the real target. American democracy is.”
The comments come in the wake of Trump’s threats following a rocket attack on the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, Iraq, earlier in the week, The Hill reported. The strike — which the United States suggested is linked to the Western Asia country — damaged the compound and killed at least one Iraqi civilian.
“Some friendly health advice to Iran: If one American is killed, I will hold Iran responsible. Think it over,” Trump tweeted.
U.S. Central Command head Gen. Frank McKenzie claimed that it’s still unclear “the degree to which Iran is complicit.” The attack included missiles believed to be supplied by the Middle East country, although no evidence reveals if it was planned by a Tehran or an Iran-linked group.
As reported by Reuters , Iran Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif dismissed Trump’s allegations that Tehran was behind the rocket attack. Zarif suggested that Trump’s claims were an attempt to “divert attention” from his “catastrophic failures” as president of the United States. Zarif pointed to the 2003 U.S.-led invasion of Iraq that was driven by false claims and noted the many casualties and trillions of dollars spent on the engagement.
Parsi’s claim was not supported by everyone. Political scientist Ian Bremmer suggested there was no clear way to prevent Biden’s inauguration with military action against Iran. Elsewhere, Shervan Fashandi, board member of Iranian Americans for Liberty, highlighted the author’s many previous warnings about war with the Middle East nation that never came true.
“Hey look, #TritaTheTraitor has been warning us about the ‘imminent’ war with Iran for almost 20 years, particularly over the last 4 years with Trump in power,” he tweeted .
As reported by Vox , Trump made comments about Barack Obama’s potential war with Iran that echo Parsi’s warnings. In November 2011, Trump accused Obama of planning to start a war with Persia to get re-elected. He claimed that the former head of state lacked the “ability to negotiate” and called him “weak” and “ineffective.” According to the real estate mogul, Obama knew the only way for him to get re-elected was through military action against the Western Asia country.