Iran Snapshot: Tehran Offers Basij Militia to Britain as "Peacekeeping Force"

In recent days, we have noted the interest in Iranian leaders and media in the situation in England, from the declaration that the Supreme Leader predicted the unrest as the next phase of the "Islamic Awakening" to President Ahmadinejad's suggesting of referring the matter of "savage" British policing to the United Nations Security Council to the suggestion that Iran could send human rights inspectors to London.

This, however, may be the most generous expression of assistance --- Mohammad Reza Naqdi, has offered the services of the Basij militia as a "peacekeeping force". 

In case, you haven't heard of this peacekeeping force, here is a photograph of members of the "people's militia", established in 1979 by Ayatollah Khomeini:

And here are Basij militia keeping the peace on 20 June 2009, eight days after Iran's disputed Presidential election, by firing into crowds of protesters:

I'm not quite sure of Naqdi's logic --- is he sending the Basij militia to work with the "savage" and "racist" British police? Or is he sending the militia to work with "oppressed people" in a peaceful assault on buildings, shops, and security forces?

No matter --- I am certain that the commander is making his offer with the very best of intentions....

The Latest from Iran (10 August): Lawyers in Prison, Lawyers in Exile

Abdolfattah Soltani (see 0545 GMT)1930 GMT: Currency Watch. Aftab reports that the price of gold coins continues to rise --- now from 474,000 to 482,000 tomans (about $450 to $460) as Iranians put their faith in them amidst economic tensions. Meanwhile, the differential between the "free" and official rates for the US dollar continues to widen --- the Central Bank has set the rate at 1055 tomans to the dollar but the exchange rate on the street is 1200:1.

1735 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. More on the arrest of Parvin Mokhtare, the mother of journalist Kouhyar Goudarzi, as her son was being put in prison again --- while she was having a bath, the house was raided by security agents who climbed over walls to get into the property.

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Britain Update: The Unrest in London Tonight (BBC)

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The BBC offers latest news (1930 GMT):

Riot police have again been deployed to the streets of London as violence broke out for a third day running.

Cars were set on fire in Lewisham and a bus and shop were set ablaze in Peckham.

In Hackney, police have sealed off part of Mare Street after youths smashed police car windows.

The trouble flared after a man was stopped in Hackney and searched by police but nothing was found.

There were also fears trouble may spread further afield as police in riot gear were deployed in Birmingham city centre after scores of youths rampaged through the shopping area, smashing windows.

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US and Britain: Scott Lucas on BBC "Does London Need America?"

More chat with Sky TV and with several British radio stations today, as President Obama continued his visit --- the concern here, at least in these discussions, was "Does Britain Need America?" Two examples:

BBC Radio Wales: the item starts at the 1:07.18 mark.

BBC Radio Hereford and Worcester: the audio starts around the 38.00 mark.

See also Obama and Britain: Scott Lucas on the BBC

Video & Transcript: Obama Speech to British Parliament "If We Fail to Meet Our Responsibility, Who Would Take Our Place?"

An extract from President Obama's speech today to the British Parliament, followed by the transcript --- we'll post further video when it is available:

Because we have always believed that the future of our children and grandchildren will be better if other people's children and grandchildren are more prosperous and free --- from the beaches of Normandy, to the Balkans to Benghazi. That is our interest and our ideal. And if we fail to meet that responsibility, who would take our place?

Our action --- our leadership --- is essential to the cause of human dignity. And so we must act --- and lead --- with confidence in our ideals, and an abiding faith in the character of our people, who sent us here today.

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Iraq Flashback: Britain's Plans to Overthrow Saddam...for "New Security to Oil Supplies" (Wright)

Among the revelations are the following:

* Oil was a key motivating factor behind the efforts to remove Saddam. "The removal of Saddam remains a prize because it could give new security to oil supplies," the officer writes.

* MI6 did not believe that Saddam or Iraq were supporting al-Qa'ida. "There is no convincing intelligence (or common-sense) case that Iraq supports Sunni extremism," it says. But in January 2004, Prime Minister Tony Blair told the Commons: "We do know of links between al-Qa'ida and Iraq. We cannot be sure of the exact extent of those links."

* Britain believed America was planning military action to remove Saddam long before it was officially acknowledged.

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Terrorism and Marriage: Don't Like the Wife Now? Put Her on a No-Fly List

Ms EA points --- presumably because of her interest in terrorism and not for any other reason --- to this article from Justin Penrose, writing for the Sunday Mirror in Britain:

An immigration officer put his own wife on a terrorist watch list – ­so she could not get home from a trip to Pakistan.

The officer was so sick of his partner that when she was visiting family overseas he added her name to the register of people banned from flights into the UK.

When she went to the airport to get her return flight back, officials told her she could not board the plane and did not ­explain why.

She called her husband, who ­promised to look into it – but left her stuck in Pakistan for THREE YEARS. He was sacked after bosses found out about his antics.

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Terrorism Weekly (British Special): Smart Politics, Stupid Counter-Terrorism

On Saturday British Prime Minister David Cameron gave a speech at a security conference in Munich. The address was well-trailed by 10 Downing Street, as newspapers gave advance notice of the speech and then picked over the contents the following day.

Why link multiculturalism, Islam, and terrorism when the evidence is inconclusive? Because Cameron’s speech was about politics and not about security. The Conservatives have seen their standing in opinion polls decline as massive cuts on social services begin to sink in. The diversionary rhetoric from Saturday plays well with the right-wing media and with the Conservative base; it is smart politics.

But what is smart politics does not necessarily make for wise counter-terrorism.

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Terrorism Weekly: How Britain's Police Infiltrated the Environmental Movement (and Why It Will Continue)

In Britain this week the story of an eco-warrior and professional mountain climber was front-page news. We learned of Mark Stone was a keen supporter of environmental causes and active in a variety of protest movements. Even better, he owned a van allowing him to transport his comrades to various gatherings.

So far, a tale of a dedicated activist. But Stone actually had a different job and a different name. Mark Kennedy was a policeman who had grown his hair long, left behind his wife and children, and gone deep undercover for seven years, travelling to 22 different countries, to infiltrate the environmental movement and solve the problem of domestic extremism". He had spied on all those who thought he was a keen protector of the environment, leaving behind a profound sense of betrayal when the truth of his identity emerged.

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Terrorism Weekly: A Plot for Christmas

“Yes, Virginia, there is a terrorism threat.”

Whether on the "left" or "right", the British media love a good terrorism plot. The timing of this one, in the notoriously slow period just before Christmas made it even more enthralling --- the same way that the Pakistani student bomb plot during the Easter break of 2009 similarly grabbed the headlines before turning out, for various reasons, to be a damp squib.

So for the last few days we have been treated to repeated stories about the arrest of 12 men for an alleged bomb plot. Note the word “alleged” in the previous sentence, for it is one that does not often appear in the assured British media when it comes to reporting terrorism. In the current example, the news has gone beyond noting g the arrests of the men to listing their alleged targets: from Big Ben to Westminster Abbey to the London Stock Exchange to the American Embassy, from celebrities to pubs and restaurants.

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