Official War With Iran Thread
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AP sources: Iran threatens US Army post and top general
Iran threatened to attack US Army base, kill top general, intelligence officials say
By JAMES LAPORTA
Associated Press |
Mar 21, 2021 at 3:01 PM
Iran has made threats against Fort McNair, an Army post in the U.S. capital, and against the Army’s vice chief of staff, two senior U.S. intelligence officials said.
They said communications intercepted by the National Security Agency in January showed that Iran’s Revolutionary Guard discussed mounting “USS Cole-style attacks” against the Army post, referring to the October 2000 suicide attack in which a small boat pulled up alongside the Navy destroyer in the Yemeni port of Aden and exploded, killing 17 sailors.
The intelligence also revealed threats to kill Gen. Joseph M. Martin and plans to infiltrate and surveil the installation, according to the officials, who were not authorized to publicly discuss national security matters and spoke on condition of anonymity. The Army post, one of the oldest in the country, is Martin’s official residence.
The threats are one reason the Army has been pushing for more security around Fort McNair, which sits alongside Washington’s bustling newly developed Waterfront District.
City leaders have been fighting the Army’s plan to add a buffer zone of about 250 feet to 500 feet from the shore of the Washington Channel, which would limit access to as much as half the width of the busy waterway running parallel to the Potomac River.
The Pentagon, National Security Council and NSA either did not reply or declined to comment when contacted by The Associated Press.
As District of Columbia officials have fought the enhanced security along the channel, the Army has offered only vague information about threats to the installation.
A man exercises across a waterway from Fort McNair, with Washington's Wharf neighborhood in the background, in Washington on March 19, 2021. (Jacquelyn Martin)
At a virtual meeting in January to discuss the proposed restrictions, Army Maj. Gen. Omar Jones, commander of the Military District of Washington, cited “credible and specific” threats against military leaders who live on the Army post. The only specific security threat he offered was about a swimmer who ended up on the installation and was arrested.
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, the district’s sole representative in Congress, was skeptical. “When it comes to swimmers, I’m sure that must be rare. Did he know where he was? Maybe he was just swimming and found his way to your shore?” she said.
Jones conceded that the swimmer was “not a great example there, but our most recent example” of a security breach.
He said the Army has increased patrols along the shoreline, erected more restricted area signs and placed cameras to monitor the Washington Channel.
Puzzled city officials and frustrated residents said the Army’s request for the buffer zone was a government overreach of public waterways.
Discussions about the Fort McNair proposal began two years ago, but the recent intelligence gathered by the NSA has prompted Army officials to renew their request for the restrictions.
The intercepted chatter was among members of the elite Quds Force of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and centered on potential military options to avenge the U.S. killing of the former Quds leader, Gen. Qassem Soleimani, in Baghdad in January 2020, the two intelligence officials said.
They said Tehran’s military commanders are unsatisfied with their counterattacks so far, specifically the results of the ballistic missile attack on Ain al-Asad airbase in Iraq in the days after Soleimani’s killing. No U.S. service members were killed in that strike but dozens suffered concussions.
Norton told the AP that in the two months since the January meeting, the Pentagon has not provided her any additional information that would justify the restrictions around Fort McNair.
“I have asked the Department of Defense to withdraw the rule because I’ve seen no evidence of a credible threat that would support the proposed restriction,” Norton said. “They have been trying to get their way, but their proposal is more restrictive than necessary.”
She added: “I have a security clearance. And they have yet to show me any classified evidence” that would justify the proposal. Norton pointed out that the Washington Navy Yard and Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, which also have access to district waters, do not have restricted zones along their shorelines and have not requested them.
The proposed changes, outlined in a Federal Register notice, would prohibit both people and watercraft from “anchoring, mooring or loitering” within the restricted area without permission.
The notice specifies the need for security around the Marine Helicopter Squadron, which transports American presidents, and the general and staff officers’ quarters located at the water’s edge. The southern tip of Fort McNair is home to the National War College, where midlevel and senior officers gunning for admiral or general study national security strategy.
The Washington Channel is the site of one of the city’s major urban renewal efforts, with new restaurants, luxury housing and concert venues. The waterway flows from the point where the city’s two major rivers, the Potomac and Anacostia, meet.
It’s home to three marinas and hundreds of boat slips. About 300 people live aboard their boats in the channel, according to Patrick Revord, who is the director of technology, marketing and community engagement for the Wharf Community Association.
The channel also bustles with water taxis, which serve 300,000 people each year, river cruises that host 400,000 people a year and about 7,000 kayakers and paddleboarders annually, Revord said during the meeting.
Residents and city officials say the restrictions would create unsafe conditions by narrowing the channel for larger vessels traversing the waterway alongside smaller motorboats and kayakers.
Guy Shields, a retired Army infantry colonel and member of the Capitol Yacht Club who opposes the restrictions around Fort McNair, said during the meeting that waterway restrictions wouldn’t boost security.
“Those buoys aren’t going to do anything to enhance security. It will increase congestion in an already congested area,” Shields said. “And I’ll say, signs do not stop people with bad intentions.”
It’s unclear whether the new intelligence will change the city’s opposition to the Army’s security plan. Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment Sunday. Iranian state media did not immediately acknowledge the AP report.
LaPorta reported from Boca Raton, Florida. Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai contributed to this report.
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AP sources: Iran threatens US Army post and top general
Iran threatened to attack US Army base, kill top general, intelligence officials say
By JAMES LAPORTA
Associated Press |
Mar 21, 2021 at 3:01 PM
Iran has made threats against Fort McNair, an Army post in the U.S. capital, and against the Army’s vice chief of staff, two senior U.S. intelligence officials said.
They said communications intercepted by the National Security Agency in January showed that Iran’s Revolutionary Guard discussed mounting “USS Cole-style attacks” against the Army post, referring to the October 2000 suicide attack in which a small boat pulled up alongside the Navy destroyer in the Yemeni port of Aden and exploded, killing 17 sailors.
The intelligence also revealed threats to kill Gen. Joseph M. Martin and plans to infiltrate and surveil the installation, according to the officials, who were not authorized to publicly discuss national security matters and spoke on condition of anonymity. The Army post, one of the oldest in the country, is Martin’s official residence.
The threats are one reason the Army has been pushing for more security around Fort McNair, which sits alongside Washington’s bustling newly developed Waterfront District.
City leaders have been fighting the Army’s plan to add a buffer zone of about 250 feet to 500 feet from the shore of the Washington Channel, which would limit access to as much as half the width of the busy waterway running parallel to the Potomac River.
The Pentagon, National Security Council and NSA either did not reply or declined to comment when contacted by The Associated Press.
As District of Columbia officials have fought the enhanced security along the channel, the Army has offered only vague information about threats to the installation.
A man exercises across a waterway from Fort McNair, with Washington's Wharf neighborhood in the background, in Washington on March 19, 2021. (Jacquelyn Martin)
At a virtual meeting in January to discuss the proposed restrictions, Army Maj. Gen. Omar Jones, commander of the Military District of Washington, cited “credible and specific” threats against military leaders who live on the Army post. The only specific security threat he offered was about a swimmer who ended up on the installation and was arrested.
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton, the district’s sole representative in Congress, was skeptical. “When it comes to swimmers, I’m sure that must be rare. Did he know where he was? Maybe he was just swimming and found his way to your shore?” she said.
Jones conceded that the swimmer was “not a great example there, but our most recent example” of a security breach.
He said the Army has increased patrols along the shoreline, erected more restricted area signs and placed cameras to monitor the Washington Channel.
Puzzled city officials and frustrated residents said the Army’s request for the buffer zone was a government overreach of public waterways.
Discussions about the Fort McNair proposal began two years ago, but the recent intelligence gathered by the NSA has prompted Army officials to renew their request for the restrictions.
The intercepted chatter was among members of the elite Quds Force of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard and centered on potential military options to avenge the U.S. killing of the former Quds leader, Gen. Qassem Soleimani, in Baghdad in January 2020, the two intelligence officials said.
They said Tehran’s military commanders are unsatisfied with their counterattacks so far, specifically the results of the ballistic missile attack on Ain al-Asad airbase in Iraq in the days after Soleimani’s killing. No U.S. service members were killed in that strike but dozens suffered concussions.
Norton told the AP that in the two months since the January meeting, the Pentagon has not provided her any additional information that would justify the restrictions around Fort McNair.
“I have asked the Department of Defense to withdraw the rule because I’ve seen no evidence of a credible threat that would support the proposed restriction,” Norton said. “They have been trying to get their way, but their proposal is more restrictive than necessary.”
She added: “I have a security clearance. And they have yet to show me any classified evidence” that would justify the proposal. Norton pointed out that the Washington Navy Yard and Joint Base Anacostia-Bolling, which also have access to district waters, do not have restricted zones along their shorelines and have not requested them.
The proposed changes, outlined in a Federal Register notice, would prohibit both people and watercraft from “anchoring, mooring or loitering” within the restricted area without permission.
The notice specifies the need for security around the Marine Helicopter Squadron, which transports American presidents, and the general and staff officers’ quarters located at the water’s edge. The southern tip of Fort McNair is home to the National War College, where midlevel and senior officers gunning for admiral or general study national security strategy.
The Washington Channel is the site of one of the city’s major urban renewal efforts, with new restaurants, luxury housing and concert venues. The waterway flows from the point where the city’s two major rivers, the Potomac and Anacostia, meet.
It’s home to three marinas and hundreds of boat slips. About 300 people live aboard their boats in the channel, according to Patrick Revord, who is the director of technology, marketing and community engagement for the Wharf Community Association.
The channel also bustles with water taxis, which serve 300,000 people each year, river cruises that host 400,000 people a year and about 7,000 kayakers and paddleboarders annually, Revord said during the meeting.
Residents and city officials say the restrictions would create unsafe conditions by narrowing the channel for larger vessels traversing the waterway alongside smaller motorboats and kayakers.
Guy Shields, a retired Army infantry colonel and member of the Capitol Yacht Club who opposes the restrictions around Fort McNair, said during the meeting that waterway restrictions wouldn’t boost security.
“Those buoys aren’t going to do anything to enhance security. It will increase congestion in an already congested area,” Shields said. “And I’ll say, signs do not stop people with bad intentions.”
It’s unclear whether the new intelligence will change the city’s opposition to the Army’s security plan. Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not immediately respond to a request for comment Sunday. Iranian state media did not immediately acknowledge the AP report.
LaPorta reported from Boca Raton, Florida. Associated Press writer Jon Gambrell in Dubai contributed to this report.
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Json
Superstar
So what is Iran getting out of this deal?
China isn’t going to hold onto oil if the West moves away from it.
China isn’t going to hold onto oil if the West moves away from it.
Iran keeps playing with fire here 
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Iran constantly taking a war footing
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Iran Nuclear-Fuel Production Plummets After Natanz Explosion
Iran Nuclear-Fuel Production Plummets After Natanz Explosion
New report gives first concrete insight into impact of alleged sabotage in April at nation’s main nuclear facility
By
Updated May 31, 2021 5:16 pm ET
A satellite image of Iran's Natanz nuclear facility in early 2020.
Photo: Satellite image ©2021 Maxar Technologies/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Listen to this article 6 minutes
This article is in your queue.
Iran’s production of nuclear fuel plunged in recent weeks, the United Nations atomic agency reported on Monday, following alleged sabotage of its main nuclear facility in April that Tehran has blamed on Israel.
The drop in production, detailed in the International Atomic Energy Agency’s confidential report circulated Monday, gives the first substantive insight into the impact of the incident, which took out the power supply at Natanz and destroyed potentially hundreds of centrifuges, machines that enrich uranium.
Israel has declined to comment on the incident, one of several at Iran’s nuclear facilities over the last 18 months. Tehran accused Israel at the time of orchestrating the attack to undermine the start of talks in Vienna involving Iran and the U.S. aimed at restoring the 2015 nuclear deal. Former President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the deal in 2018.
Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium increased by an estimated 273 kilograms in the three months ending May 22, the IAEA said, just over half the 525 kg stockpile increase in the previous quarter. The Natanz incident happened April 11, halfway through the reporting period.
The agency also reported that on May 24, there were 20 cascades of centrifuges working at the fuel enrichment plant at Natanz, a sharp decrease from before the April incident.
Iran’s total stockpile is now estimated to be around 3,241 kilograms, about 16 times higher than the permitted stockpile in the 2015 agreement. Experts say that amount is likely enough nuclear material, if purified to weapons-grade level, for up to three nuclear weapons.
Iran responded to the Natanz incident by starting to produce uranium enriched to 60% for the first time, a level close to weapons grade, and by saying it would install more advanced centrifuges at the site.
Related Video
Iran’s Nuclear Program: What We Know About Tehran’s Key Sites
0:00 / 7:42
Iran’s Nuclear Program: What We Know About Tehran’s Key Sites
While Iran says it isn’t trying to build nuclear weapons, a look at its key facilities suggests it could develop the technology to make them. WSJ breaks down Tehran’s capabilities as it hits new milestones in uranium enrichment and limits access to inspectors. Photo illustration: George Downs
In its report, the IAEA said Iran had only produced 2.4 kilograms of 60% enriched uranium. Its stockpile of 20% enriched uranium reached 63 kilograms. The rest is low-enriched material.
At the time of the Natanz incident, Iran played down the damage done. Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran’s atomic agency, said the country’s enriched- uranium production was progressing vigorously. Iran also introduced more advanced centrifuges, which would increase its production speed.
Some Israeli and Western officials have said, however, that the incident may have made a serious dent in Iran’s medium-term production, potentially keeping Iran’s enrichment capabilities at lower levels through much of this year. There are doubts about the efficiency of the machines Iran is using to replace the damaged centrifuges.
Last week, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi called Iran’s broadening nuclear program “very concerning,” saying only countries producing nuclear weapons were enriching uranium to 60% levels.
Biden administration officials have said Iran’s advancing nuclear program underscores the need to restore the 2015 deal, which placed strict but temporary restrictions on Iran’s nuclear activities.
Iran lifted its uranium stockpile above the 2015 deal’s permitted levels in July 2019, responding belatedly to the Trump administration’s decision to quit the agreement and impose economic sanctions on Tehran.
News Alert
Major world and business news, including political events, takeovers.
Western officials say Iran’s nuclear buildup has been designed to pressure the Biden administration into lifting sanctions and restoring the 2015 deal on Iran’s terms. President Biden has set a return to the agreement as a foreign- policy goal.
Talks started in April on a path for the U.S. and Iran to return to the agreement. The discussions have dragged on past the mid-May target deadline with no agreement yet on which sanctions the U.S. would keep in place and what steps Tehran would take to strip back its nuclear program.
On Monday, Iran’s chief negotiator at the talks, Abbas Araghchi, said the parties, which include the U.S., Iran, Russia, Britain, France and Germany, could take a break from talks soon to consult in capitals, a view echoed by senior Western diplomats.
Concerns are growing that with less than three weeks to go before Iran’s presidential elections, the talks could soon go on hold.
In a separate report issued Monday, the IAEA criticized Iran’s lack of cooperation in explaining the agency’s discovery of undeclared nuclear material at several locations in Iran since the fall of 2019.
The issue could lead to fresh tensions between Iran and the agency even if the nuclear deal is restored. Critics of the deal say the undeclared material is part of a range of evidence suggesting Iran didn’t close off its nuclear-weapons options and has maintained material, documents and equipment generated from past work.
The agency said Iran had failed to produce any real answers backed up by documents to answer any of the questions in its probe.
Iran’s ambassador to the IAEA said Monday evening on Twitter that Iran had “done its utmost” to cooperate with the agency and hoped the probe could be concluded as soon as possible.
“The lack of progress in clarifying the Agency’s questions…seriously affects the ability of the Agency to provide assurance of the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program,” the agency said in its report.
Write to Laurence Norman at laurence.norman@wsj.com
Iran Nuclear-Fuel Production Plummets After Natanz Explosion
New report gives first concrete insight into impact of alleged sabotage in April at nation’s main nuclear facility
By
Updated May 31, 2021 5:16 pm ET
A satellite image of Iran's Natanz nuclear facility in early 2020.
Photo: Satellite image ©2021 Maxar Technologies/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Listen to this article 6 minutes
This article is in your queue.
Iran’s production of nuclear fuel plunged in recent weeks, the United Nations atomic agency reported on Monday, following alleged sabotage of its main nuclear facility in April that Tehran has blamed on Israel.
The drop in production, detailed in the International Atomic Energy Agency’s confidential report circulated Monday, gives the first substantive insight into the impact of the incident, which took out the power supply at Natanz and destroyed potentially hundreds of centrifuges, machines that enrich uranium.
Israel has declined to comment on the incident, one of several at Iran’s nuclear facilities over the last 18 months. Tehran accused Israel at the time of orchestrating the attack to undermine the start of talks in Vienna involving Iran and the U.S. aimed at restoring the 2015 nuclear deal. Former President Donald Trump withdrew the U.S. from the deal in 2018.
Iran’s stockpile of enriched uranium increased by an estimated 273 kilograms in the three months ending May 22, the IAEA said, just over half the 525 kg stockpile increase in the previous quarter. The Natanz incident happened April 11, halfway through the reporting period.
The agency also reported that on May 24, there were 20 cascades of centrifuges working at the fuel enrichment plant at Natanz, a sharp decrease from before the April incident.
Iran’s total stockpile is now estimated to be around 3,241 kilograms, about 16 times higher than the permitted stockpile in the 2015 agreement. Experts say that amount is likely enough nuclear material, if purified to weapons-grade level, for up to three nuclear weapons.
Iran responded to the Natanz incident by starting to produce uranium enriched to 60% for the first time, a level close to weapons grade, and by saying it would install more advanced centrifuges at the site.
Related Video
Iran’s Nuclear Program: What We Know About Tehran’s Key Sites
0:00 / 7:42
Iran’s Nuclear Program: What We Know About Tehran’s Key Sites
While Iran says it isn’t trying to build nuclear weapons, a look at its key facilities suggests it could develop the technology to make them. WSJ breaks down Tehran’s capabilities as it hits new milestones in uranium enrichment and limits access to inspectors. Photo illustration: George Downs
In its report, the IAEA said Iran had only produced 2.4 kilograms of 60% enriched uranium. Its stockpile of 20% enriched uranium reached 63 kilograms. The rest is low-enriched material.
At the time of the Natanz incident, Iran played down the damage done. Ali Akbar Salehi, the head of Iran’s atomic agency, said the country’s enriched- uranium production was progressing vigorously. Iran also introduced more advanced centrifuges, which would increase its production speed.
Some Israeli and Western officials have said, however, that the incident may have made a serious dent in Iran’s medium-term production, potentially keeping Iran’s enrichment capabilities at lower levels through much of this year. There are doubts about the efficiency of the machines Iran is using to replace the damaged centrifuges.
Last week, IAEA Director General Rafael Grossi called Iran’s broadening nuclear program “very concerning,” saying only countries producing nuclear weapons were enriching uranium to 60% levels.
Biden administration officials have said Iran’s advancing nuclear program underscores the need to restore the 2015 deal, which placed strict but temporary restrictions on Iran’s nuclear activities.
Iran lifted its uranium stockpile above the 2015 deal’s permitted levels in July 2019, responding belatedly to the Trump administration’s decision to quit the agreement and impose economic sanctions on Tehran.
News Alert
Major world and business news, including political events, takeovers.
Western officials say Iran’s nuclear buildup has been designed to pressure the Biden administration into lifting sanctions and restoring the 2015 deal on Iran’s terms. President Biden has set a return to the agreement as a foreign- policy goal.
Talks started in April on a path for the U.S. and Iran to return to the agreement. The discussions have dragged on past the mid-May target deadline with no agreement yet on which sanctions the U.S. would keep in place and what steps Tehran would take to strip back its nuclear program.
On Monday, Iran’s chief negotiator at the talks, Abbas Araghchi, said the parties, which include the U.S., Iran, Russia, Britain, France and Germany, could take a break from talks soon to consult in capitals, a view echoed by senior Western diplomats.
Concerns are growing that with less than three weeks to go before Iran’s presidential elections, the talks could soon go on hold.
In a separate report issued Monday, the IAEA criticized Iran’s lack of cooperation in explaining the agency’s discovery of undeclared nuclear material at several locations in Iran since the fall of 2019.
The issue could lead to fresh tensions between Iran and the agency even if the nuclear deal is restored. Critics of the deal say the undeclared material is part of a range of evidence suggesting Iran didn’t close off its nuclear-weapons options and has maintained material, documents and equipment generated from past work.
The agency said Iran had failed to produce any real answers backed up by documents to answer any of the questions in its probe.
Iran’s ambassador to the IAEA said Monday evening on Twitter that Iran had “done its utmost” to cooperate with the agency and hoped the probe could be concluded as soon as possible.
“The lack of progress in clarifying the Agency’s questions…seriously affects the ability of the Agency to provide assurance of the peaceful nature of Iran’s nuclear program,” the agency said in its report.
Write to Laurence Norman at laurence.norman@wsj.com
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