Iran's navy launches country's first military drill since 12-day war with Israel
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Al Arabiya
5 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Where did Iran's Arab supporters disappear?
A deathly silence looms over the Arab street, unmoved by the wave of dramatic events in the region. We have not seen demonstrations, protests, or sit-ins in the Arab countries, and in my view, this is the first time in seven decades or more that such displays have vanished! What has befallen Iran is no small matter; its military losses and nuclear facilities are immense, facilities that cost billions of dollars and much blood and sweat to build. To its ballistic and nuclear losses, we can add the loss of the popular current it had cultivated across the region, from Iraq to Morocco. When the Lebanese government took its bold decision to confiscate Hezbollah's weapons, the response was limited to just a few dozen motorcycles roaming Beirut's streets in protest! So what happened to the human waves, the millions who once flooded the streets at a mere gesture from the party's leader or from Tehran? The collapse of Iranian influence is clear within Arab regions, like the collapse of Nasserism after its defeat in the 1967 war. It lost the ability to mobilize the street and resorted to relying on its socialist party members and labor unions to attend events after the masses, who once filled the squares with passion and spontaneity in response to radio appeals that dominated people's awareness and emotions for nearly two decades, dwindled. In the wake of that defeat, a sense of shock and betrayal spread across the region, which had been waiting for the liberation of Palestine. Iran, too, once enjoyed dominance and popular support in the region, defying attempts to block its ideas and curb its activities. It managed to raise generations of Arabs on its ideas. Tehran opened its doors and arms to extremist Sunnis, including leaders of al-Qaeda, overlooking their anti-Shia ideology, and supported most Sunni opposition groups and movements against their governments. It built an organic, deeply coordinated relationship with the Muslim Brotherhood. It organized nearly annual conferences and seminars for Arab nationalists and communists. It spent heavily to woo Arab politicians and intellectuals; books were published and odes of praise were written in support of the Imam's regime and in its defense. Tehran gathered Shias, Sunnis, and Arab Christians alike – thinkers from the Gulf, Egypt, the Levant, the Maghreb, Sudan, Yemen, and Arab diaspora communities. It climbed onto many Arab media outlets to promote Khamenei's line. At times, we could hardly understand how it managed to reconcile all these contradictions! In Tripoli, Lebanon – a city with tensions against the Shias of Beirut – there were Sunni groups that, since the 1980s, continued to pledge allegiance to Tehran. In Jordan, among the Muslim Brotherhood, some openly declared their affection for Tehran's leaders. Numerous works emerged in its defense: in Egypt, for example, Iran and Political Islam; in Kuwait, Iran and the West: Conflict of Interests; in the Gulf, conferences were held under the banner of 'rapprochement' between sects, celebrating the history of Abbasid Caliph al-Nasir li-Din Allah. All these activities might have been laudable, were it not for the fact that the intentions behind them were not purely for the sake of God Almighty, nor out of love for ending or easing sectarian strife, but rather as part of a political project of domination. Tehran was managing elite and grassroots movements in dozens of Arab cities; protests against novels, films, negotiations, and regimes. But in the recent wars, following the October 2023 attacks, the kind of mobilization we were used to in every confrontation faded. The first reason: people do not admire the defeated. The second: the apparatuses that used to orchestrate these gatherings have lost their connections and their resources have dried up. The Arab street venerates the victorious hero until he falls, then replaces him with another hero. Its believers have been shaken by successive defeats, just as Nasserists were shattered by the setbacks of the 1960s. The remaining challenge is to hold on to its supporters within its Shiite popular base; they are the ones most harmed and who still live the trauma of shock. With time, the Shias of Lebanon will come to realize the truth: that they are victims of Hezbollah and Iran, that it is a burden on them rather than a support. For four decades they have borne the confrontation with Israel and the consequences of ties with Iran: economic and personal sanctions, the destruction of their areas and neighborhoods, the targeting of their remittances from Africa and the Americas, and more.
Leaders
6 hours ago
- Leaders
Iran Holds First Military Drills after War with Israel
Iran on Thursday launched its first military drills since the 12-day war with Israel, which erupted in June 2025, reported the Associated Press (AP) citing Iranian state media. The drills, dubbed 'Sustainable Power 1404,' comes as Iranian leadership attempts to project power after Israel bombed Iran's air defense systems, nuclear facilities and other key sites. The exercise involved Iran's Navy, which did not take part in the Iran-Israel conflict, firing missiles and drones at open water targets in the Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean. 'These drills take place around a month after the Iran-Russia drill under the name Casarex 2025 which took place in Iran's northern waters (Caspian Sea). The Sustainable Power drills…are in Iran's southern waters,' Iranian state TV said. Since the end of the war with Israel, Iran has repeatedly stated that it is prepared to counter any future attacks. On Wednesday, the Iranian Defense Minister, Aziz Nasirzadeh, said that Tehran has equipped its troops with new missiles to respond to any attacks. 'In response to any potential enemy adventurism, our forces are prepared to use these new missiles effectively,' he said, as quoted by the state-run IRNA news agency. Similarly, the Defense Ministry threatened a harsh response to any potential Israeli attacks. 'Any new adventure by the enemy will be faced with a strong slap,' it said in a statement on Thursday, according to Reuters. Iran has suspended cooperation with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) amid rising tensions over its uranium enrichment levels. Tehran has also suspended negotiations with Washington over its nuclear program after Israel's war on the country, which the US briefly joined by striking three key nuclear sites. Short link : Post Views: 1
Al Arabiya
7 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
US issues fresh sanctions against Iran's ‘shadow fleet'
The Trump administration on Thursday issued a fresh round of Iran-related sanctions targeting 13 entities based in Hong Kong, China, the United Arab Emirates and the Marshall Islands, as well as eight vessels, the US Treasury Department said. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said the sanctions would disrupt Iran's oil exports. 'Today's action… degrades Tehran's ability to fund its advanced weapons programs, support terrorist groups, and threaten the safety of our troops and our allies,' Bessent said. 'Under the leadership of President Trump, Treasury remains determined to hold accountable all those who seek to aid the Iranian regime and threaten global security,' he added. Meanwhile, the State Department said it was imposing sanctions on two China-based crude oil and petroleum products terminal and storage operators that it accused of facilitating the import of millions of barrels of illicit Iranian oil onboard multiple US-designated tankers. The State Department said this was department's fourth round of sanctions targeting China-based terminal operators, 'which play a vital role in the trade network for Iranian crude oil that funds Iran's terrorism abroad and destabilizes the region.'
