“The Zionists are doing what Hitler did during World War II, when they attacked innocents in a barbaric manner.”
It is hardly surprising that a leading Iranian politician would utter such a brazen statement. But what about this quote: “We ask Arab countries and all Muslims to cancel their diplomatic relations and stop all contacts—private and public—with this murderous regime, which continues its painful aggression against peaceful, unarmed civilians.”
Such a demand would not be surprising if, for example, it had come from the Jew-hating radical despot Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. But it did not. Instead, it came from the democratically elected, supposedly peace-loving, American-friendly Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki.
Here’s another call to arms from Maliki: “The responsibility of Islamic and other countries of the world is not merely aiding Palestinians, but they also must prepare the ground to put the criminal [Israel] in his place.”
This “moderate” leader actually call for Muslim nations to attack Israel.
While most of the rest of the Arabic world silently supported Israel in the Gaza conflict, Iraq sided with Iran.
Iraq’s “Most Important Partner”
It is not just Maliki who is speaking out. The spiritual leader of Shiite Muslims in Iraq, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, declared this fatwa against Israel: “Mere verbal expressions of condemnation and disapproval of what is being done to our Palestinian brethren in Gaza, and of solidarity with them, mean nothing before the immensity of this horrific tragedy to which they are being subjected. The Arab and Muslim worlds are called upon, more than at any past time, to take practical steps in order to stop this continual aggression and to break this cruel blockade that has been imposed on that proud people.”
Shia make up 60 percent of Iraq’s population. The Associated Press has called Sistani “perhaps the most influential figure in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion” (Dec. 29, 2006). And this man is calling for Muslims to “take practical steps” against Israel.
Maliki visited Iran for the fourth time in January, where he met with Ahmadinejad and other top leaders. “We believe Iran is Iraq’s great neighbor and also its best and most important partner in all fields of cooperation,” he said on his trip (emphasis mine throughout). Not America—Iran.
Ahmadinejad agreed: “Our Islamic and humanitarian duty requires us to be incessantly by the side of Iraqi people.” He said that “the two countries of Iran and Iraq can enhance their commercial ties in diverse areas at high speed.”
Maliki promised on Iranian state television that Baghdad “will not let Iraq be a launching ground to threaten any country.” Abdul Hadi Husseini, a parliament member with Maliki’s Islamic Dawa Party, said the visit was intended in part to “make Iran more comfortable and to remove any fear that Iraq could be used as a base” by Western military forces.
So, if it came to a war between the United States and Iran, Iraq is saying it would be on Iran’s side.
All this came just days after American troops pulled out of the Green Zone in Baghdad. From now on, January 1—the date of the pullout—will be “Sovereignty Day,” a national holiday in Iraq.
“More and More Like a Superpower”
Robert Baer, a former cia officer in the Middle East, detailed just how Iran is already the most powerful influence in Iraq. “Those who think we have won Iraq are fooled,” he wrote. “The United States can do nothing to contain Iranian proxies in Iraq short of a full and permanent occupation” (National Interest Online, Oct. 30, 2008).
America’s activities in the Middle East have actually served to benefit one of its worst enemies. “The consensus in the Middle East,” wrote Baer, “is that Iran has turned the Iraqi and Afghan wars into major strategic victories.”
The result? A deadly powerful Iran. As Baer put it, “Holding sway over a third of the Middle East and blackmailing 55 percent of the world’s oil reserves, Iran is looking more and more like a superpower.”
Who could have foreseen Iraq siding with Iran against the U.S. and Israel so soon after being liberated by America?
Actually, someone did.
“The most powerful [Muslim] country in the Middle East is Iran,” wrote Trumpet editor in chief Gerald Flurry in an article titled “Is Iraq About to Fall to Iran?” “Can you imagine the power they would have if they gained control of Iraq, the second-largest oil-producing country in the world?”
In this article, Mr. Flurry stated that Iraq could easily fall to Iran. This was all the way back in December 1994. Why did he say this? Because of Bible prophecy!
Many today ridicule and mock the Bible. Certainly few would rely on it to forecast geopolitics. Over in Iraq, however, your Bible is being proven true!
The scriptural explanation for this forecast, as well as many other prophecies about the future of the Middle East, can be found in Mr. Flurry’s free booklet The King of the South.