Iraqi leaders condemn detention of Iranian in Northern Iraq
September 24, 2007

An Iranian man, who was invited to Iraq on official business, has been detained by the US military. According to reports, US officials say he is a member of the "elite Quds force of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards" that are supposedly smuggling weapons into Iraq.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki condemned the Iranian's arrest and said "The government of Iraq is an elected one and sovereign. When it gives a visa, it is responsible for the visa.... We consider the arrest ... of this individual who holds an Iraqi visa and a (valid) passport to be unacceptable.". The Iranian's release was also demanded by the President of Iraq, Jalal Talabani.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, in an interview with CBS' "60 Minutes", denied that Iran was involved in smuggling weapons into Iraq and said "We don't need to do that. We are very much opposed to war and insecurity.... The insecurity in Iraq is detrimental to our interests."

Apart from defending itself in a war started by Iraq some years ago (in which the US supported Iraq), Iran has shown no intentions of wanting a military conflict with its neighbors (or anyone else), except for a few angry words from its leader occasionally. However, you would think, from the propaganda being pumped out by the Bush administration, that Iran was behind every terrorist attack on the planet (including 9/11 probably).

Ignoring the protests of the Iraqi government, over the detention of the Iranian, is yet another indication that they are nothing but puppets for the US and have no real power at all. Most of us knew that already, but how long will Iraq be prepared to accept this role?

Meanwhile, conditions continue to worsen in Iraq as cholera begins to spread, with a total of 1,652 cases confirmed. Cholera is not unusual in Iraq, which has about 30 cases registered every year, but clearly the conditions created as a result of the US led invasion have not helped. Add to this the reports of DU (depleted uranium) being used and the killing of untold thousands of civilians, and you have a country that must surely seem more like hell than the liberated and happy country it was supposed to become.

George Bush says we should give it more time, for what? To torture the people even more, and sacrifice more troops in the process? As each day passes, Saddam Hussein will appear less "evil" to the world, and certainly to the Iraqi people, but they have killed him as well, so there is no way back.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad almost certainly sees the same fate for his country, if the Bush administration gets a chance, which is why he has no reason to smuggle weapons and give Bush the excuse he needs. Iran is definitely a target and they must defend themselves in the best way they can. One thing is certain, they will not go down without a fight and any attack will be very costly indeed!