#iran plane crash

[mapsontheweb]

Where the Iranian President Raisi died

[zabaloon]

Report of the tragic plane crash in Iran

This is one of the most searched and accessed topics on zabaloon.

[latestnews69]

Israel plans to expand Golan settlements after fall of Assad

Read more click here

[ricisidro]

There's a "very high probability" that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was killed in a plane crash as it was a mystery why the plane took a surprise U turn and disappeared off the map according to data from the Flightradar website, Reuters report.

The Fall of Damascus marks a turning point for Syria, shattered by 13 years of civil war which has turned cities to rubble, killed hundreds of thousands of people, and forced millions abroad as refugees.

It's a massive blow to allies Russia and Iran raising fears of a new wave of regional instability in the Middle East.

[hayarthun]

The Iranians claim that the Turks were not the first to find the wreckage of their president's helicopter. In Tehran they say that the Turkish Akıncı UAV did NOT detect anything, but was found by the Iranian Air Force itself. Iranians say Turkey sent its drones for political PR for Erdogan and Turkish weapons produced by his son-in-law Seljuk Bayraktar.

Иранцы утверждают, что турки не находили первыми обломки вертолета их президента. В Тегеране говорят, что турецкий БПЛА «Акынджи» НЕ обнаружил чего-либо, а нашли ВВС самого Ирана.

Тепловая сигнатура, обнаруженная «Акынджи», находилась на координатах 38°47'09N 46°42'57E, а обломки вертолета были обнаружены на координатах 38°43'08 N 46°39'16E, недалеко от Сунгуна, на расстоянии более 9 км.

Иранцы говорят, что Турция направила свои дроны ради политического пиара Эрдогана и турецкого оружия, которое производит его зять Сельджук Байрактар.

[topniks]

Tragedy in Iran: President and Foreign Minister killed in plane crash

[tamamita]

Moral mustve been seriously low in the SAA for this to have happened they kept retreating left and right without trying to dig in and put up a fight. Was it desertions? Officers acting autonomously breaking the chain of command? Why did assad's plane take off fly towards homs and then turn back around before crashing? Was it shot down? Was he even on board? Its crazy how rapid the whole thing went down. What do you anticipate happening next?

the FSA and other Syrian opposition groups are suffering from factionalist infighting, with ideologies ranging from Salafist fundamentalism to Secular democratic movements. With Assad gone, there will be a power vacuum left in which various factions of the Syrian opposition will strive to control. It either boils down to compromise between the more conservative elements and the more liberal secularists or a full take-over of Salafi takfirism, which is of no benefit to religious or secular minorities.

The Turkish-backed rebels, or the Syrian National Army, is a coalition of several anti-assad militias, all of whom share their respective ideologies and being concentrated in the northern part of Syria, while you have have Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), formerly known as Al-Nusra and Al-Qaeda in Syria, to the north-west of Syria. The SNA aims to consolidate a safe area for the Syrian Turkmen in the northern part of Syria and establish Turkish control in that region, while HTS aims to establish an Islamic state in Syria. If no compromise is reached between these factions, then there will be a continuation of the Civil War, leading to another decade of warfare. At the South, we have the US-backed al-Tanf refugees comprising of former ISIS-members. (lol)

The Syrian Democratic Force (SDF), mostly comprising of Kurdish militias in Rojava, will most likely try to reach a compromise in order to prevent any form of escalation between the Turkish-backed rebels and various Kurdish militias. However, there is no doubt that the Kurds will be forced to make concessions to the Turkish-backed rebels or face displacement from various territories it obtained during the 2014 offensive, such as the city of Manbij, unless the US backs them, which is less than likely since Trump will assume office soon. With Trump having no interest in helping the Kurds in Rojava, they'll be at the mercy of the Turks and their puppets.

Hezbollah and other members of the Axis of resistance are severly weakened and the main supply route between Iran and these groups have been cut, substantially weakening these groups and their power in SWANA, much to the benefit of the Settler state and revisionist Zionists. Hamas will most likely fight to the bitter end, while Hezbollah will have to remain in the defense. Iran's image is severely weakened and will most likely go on the retreat for now.

[thebrightestwitchofherage]

Let me get this Israel killed Raisi theory straight

In case you don't know, Iran's president died yesterday in a plane crash along with the plane's crew and his higher-ups ( ministers, an Imam, etc). While on a flight through foggy mountains.

A year ago, when it was trendy, everybody was talking about how Iran is an awful extremist& misogynistic regime that kills its own people (extreme understatement but bear with me).

Everyone immediately decided that Israel was to blame. Multiple official Israeli sources have said that Israel has nothing to do with it. IDK maybe don't fly a risky flight when all of the important people are on board together???

The violence against the Iranian people doesn't end when it's no longer trending on Western social media.

HE'S LITERALLY CALLED THE BUTCHER OF TEHERAN. A DICTATOR. He's responsible for so many innocent lives ending: Hamas praised Mr Raisi's support of the Palestinian group, while the Tehran-backed Hezbollah movement in Lebanon said it was mourning the death of its protector. (BBC)

Iranians are celebrating* as I write this. *as much as they can

---

Anyways, it's time to listen to this bop

[eretzyisrael]

by Chris Nesi

he New York Times faced widespread criticism and mockery after it published an article that critics said tried to soften the image of slain Hezbollah founder Hassan Nasrallah — claiming the terror leader who advocated for the annihilation of Israel was a champion of “equality” for all religious groups in the region.

The article, titled “Protesters Mourn Nasrallah’s Death Around the World” — published Saturday without a byline — heaps praise on Nasrallah as a “gifted orator” who “maintained that there should be one Palestine with equality for Muslims, Jews and Christians.”

Nasrallah fervently believed in the destruction of the Jewish state — and his organization carried out numerous horrific attacks on Jews around the world.

Nasrallah, 64, was killed in a massive aerial bombardment by Israeli forces in Beirut on Friday. He co-founded Hezbollah in 1982, becoming the terror group’s sole leader by 1992.

The Iran-backed Islamist militant group has been accused of perpetrating numerous deadly terror attacks targeting Jewish people over the last 40 years, including bombing a Jewish center in Buenos Aires in 1994, killing 85 people, and causing a plane crash the next day that killed 21 people, many of them Jewish.

[usafphantom2]

On This Day In 1970 The Grumman F-14 Tomcat Made Its First Flight

December 21, 2019 Military Aviation

the first Full Scale Development (FSD) Grumman F-14A Tomcat (BuNo 157980) during its first flight in 1970. (Image credit: Grumman)

It’s the anniversary of Turkey’s first flight.

On Dec. 21, 1970, the first Full Scale Development (FSD) Grumman F-14A Tomcat (BuNo 157980) took off for its maiden flight from Grumman’s flight test centre at Calverton, on Long Island.

The poor weather conditions forced the two test pilots flying the first ��Turkey” (as the aircraft would be later nicknamed), Grumman chief test pilot Robert K. Smyth and project test pilot William Miller, to cut the maiden flight, carried out a month ahead of the contracted data, short. However, in spite of the short duration of the flight (consisting in a few visual patterns with wing swept forward), the F-14 had taken to the air for the first time: the first of many flights in the U.S. until the last one conducted in 2006.

An F-14 with bomb markings earned during Operation Desert Fox in 1999, aboard USS Enterprise. The aircraft’s role evolved during the years and the F-14 also carried out the bomber mission in a variant also referred to as “Bombcat”. (Image credit: Author).

The F-14 BuNo 157980 took off for the second test flight on Dec. 30 with the two test pilots swapping their seats: Miller sat in the front cockpit and Smyth in the back. The second flight is quite famous in the story of the Tomcat, as the aircraft crashed due to hydraulic failure: a mishap that was caught on camera by a chase plane.

Ezoic

Here’s how we described that second sortie in a previous article we published here at The Aviationist:

It was during this flight that a chase plane noted that the Tomcat was leaving a trail of smoke: shortly thereafter the F-14 experienced a primary hydraulic system failure forcing Miller to head immediately back to base.

While they were preparing to land, the secondary hydraulic system also failed, due to the use of the emergency nitrogen bottle to lower the landing gear: once it failed, the crew tried to rely on the Combat Survival System which had to supply the power to the rudders and tailerons only.

However this last limited control system showed signs of failing as well, the pilot lost control all over the aircraft and the crew was forced to eject.

The breakdown was caused by a fatigue failure of both titanium main hydraulic lines due to a coincidence of pump resonance and a loose connector: ironically, the F-14’s hydraulic system was fixed by changing from titanium to stainless steel hydraulic lines only.

As you can see from footage (around 03:20 min), the crew ejected only few meters above the trees but, luckily, they suffered only minor injuries.

Sadly, Miller died on 30 June 1972 when its Tomcat crashed into Chesapeake Bay during preparation for an air display with the tenth FSD F-14 (BuNo 157989), while Smyth passed away this year.

Both Smyth and Miller contributed in bringing the last in a long tradition of Grumman Cats to life.

The F-14 is still flying in Iran.

About David Cenciotti

David Cenciotti is a journalist based in Rome, Italy. He is the Founder and Editor of “The Aviationist”, one of the world’s most famous and read military aviation blogs. Since 1996, he has written for major worldwide magazines, including Air Forces Monthly, Combat Aircraft, and many others, covering aviation, defense, war, industry, intelligence, crime and cyberwar. He has reported from the U.S., Europe, Australia and Syria, and flown several combat planes with different air forces. He is a former 2nd Lt. of the Italian Air Force, a private pilot and a graduate in Computer Engineering. He has written five books and contributed to many more ones.

@theaviationist via X

[girlactionfigure]

⚠️THAI WARNING, KILLED BY ROCKETS - Real time from Israel  

ISRAEL REALTIME - Connecting to Israel in Realtime

⚠️The Nat. Sec. HQ calls on the Israeli public staying in Thailand to increase vigilance :

1. Avoid going to events with many participants that are identified with Israel, with an emphasis on those that are announced in advance or places of entertainment and gatherings that are identified with Israel.

2. Inform the local security forces if you are exposed to hostile activity targeted against Israelis/Jews.

3. Don’t publicly wear Israeli/Jewish symbols.

4. Avoid updating location details and travel plans on social networks.

These guidelines are valid for the entire country of Thailand.

▪️DEF. MIN. SAYS.. “There will be no ceasefire in Lebanon. We will continue striking Hezbollah until they are disarmed beyond the Litani River and the safety of northern residents (of Israel) is ensured.”

▪️MORE CREDIT CARD - CYBER ATTACK PROBLEMS.. Difficulties in credit payments with some providers due to a cyber attack on international Bezeq servers this afternoon.

▪️REGARDING THE NETANYAHU TRIAL.. The prosecutor's office OPPOSES Netanyahu's request to postpone his testimony due to lack of time to prepare BECAUSE OF WAR.

🔪TERROR - ATTEMPTED STABBING - near Dayr Sharaf.. terrorist shot, no injuries to IDF troops.

🔪TERROR - WELL POISONING.. Arab rioters from the village of Deir Davan today poisoned another water well in the pastures of Givat Or Meir, which is used for watering the hill's flock of sheep in Samaria, many goats poisoned.  No arrests.

💩IRAN SAYS.. spox of the Iranian govt Fatma Mahajrani: "Donald Trump must avoid any wrong choices that could violate the rights of the Iranian people."

♦️LEBANON - after warnings, IDF airstrikes on Beirut mid day.

♦️IDF - “we have destroyed 20 years of Hezbollah weapons production sites and warehouses in the heart of the Da'ahiya district, including a complex under five residential buildings containing about 50 families and located about 85 meters from a school.”

♦️LEBANON - A wave of Israeli attacks in southern Lebanon and reports of many terrorist being killed, per enemy reports.

♦️IRAN SHOT DOWN.. their own: Last week there was a news item about an Iranian fighter plane of the Phantom type that "crashed".  It did not crash, it was shot down by Iranian air defense in an area about 20 km from one of Iran's strategic facilities in Kermanasha. Oopsie.

❌ROCKET HIT - NAHARIYA market - from HEZBOLLAH - 2 killed.

⭕ROCKET HIT - KABARI - from HEZBOLLAH - 2 injured, shrapnel.

⭕ONGOING ROCKET and SUICIDE DRONE alerts across the north from HEZBOLLAH, with particular volumes across Nahariya, Acre, the Krayot, and Haifa, as well as Safed and the Golan and Upper Galilee towns.

⭕LONG RANGE ROCKETS at the Tel Aviv and wide surrounding areas from HEZBOLLAH, intercepted.

⭕HOUTHIS CLAIM.. “carried out two high-quality military operations, attacked two American destroyers in the Red Sea with ballistic missiles and drones, and attacked the American aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln with drones.”

[tomorrowusa]

Pardon me for not shedding tears over the death of the misogynistic theocratic thug Ebrahim Raisi.

As a strong supporter of Ukraine, I note that Iran under Raisi has supplied Russia with Shahed drones which have murdered or maimed thousands of Ukrainians.

Of course Raisi, first and foremost, has repressed and killed countless Iranians over the span of his brutal career.

Iran’s hardline President Ebrahim Raisi — once seen as a potential successor to 85-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei — died after his helicopter crashed into trees in a mountainous northwestern region of the Islamic Republic on Sunday.  The Iranian branch of the Red Crescent humanitarian network said on Monday its search and rescue teams had reached the crash site and “found no signs of the helicopter’s occupants being alive.” The discovery of the burned-out wreckage of Raisi’s helicopter among blackened trees — with seemingly only the tail surviving the crash — followed hours of searches in the fog-bound mountain valleys of Dizmar forest near the border with Azerbaijan.  [ ... ] Raisi, 63, was a conservative cleric and former judiciary chief who was responsible for decades of vicious crackdowns against his own people’s aspirations for greater personal freedoms and democracy, arresting, torturing and executing tens of thousands of the Islamist regime’s opponents.  Educated in the seminary city of Qom and dubbed “the butcher,” he was alleged to have been involved in the execution of thousands of political prisoners in the late 1980s, according to Iran’s opposition. As judiciary chief, he was also directly responsible for the wave of arrests and executions that followed massive anti-regime protests in 2019-2020.  As president, he oversaw the iron-fisted repression of the “Women, Life, Freedom” movement that followed the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini. Tens of thousands were arrested, and the death toll is estimated at more than 500. 

Raisi was a way bad person – even by the standards of the ruling theocratic mafia in Iran.

As for the helicopter crash that killed Raisi, look to Iran's terrible air safety record.

Iran's poor aviation safety record

The cause of the helicopter crash is not yet known - but Iran has a poor air transport safety record. This is at least partly the result of decades of US sanctions, which have severely weakened its aerial fleet. President Raisi was on board a Bell 212 helicopter, state news agencies said. The model was made in the US and could not have been sold to Iran since the 1979 revolution. Previous ministers of defence and transport, as well as commanders of Iran’s ground and air armed forces, have died in plane or helicopter crashes. When reformers led Iran's government, they aimed to modernise the country's fleet of aircraft by negotiating a deal with the West that would see sanctions lifted in return for limiting Iran's sensitive nuclear activities and allowing in international inspectors However, these efforts stalled when President Donald Trump withdrew from the deal and reimposed sanctions. Reformers were subsequently opposed and mocked by hardliners, who insisted that Iran could rely on its domestic industries and foreign allies to improve aviation safety.

Iran has been devoting more attention to building killer drones than to maintaining its own aircraft. The helicopter crash is poetic justice of sorts.

[dertaglichedan]

Reports from the Middle East indicate that the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad has fallen, with the dictator fleeing the country as rebel forces entered the capital city of Damascus.

Unconfirmed social media reports also suggest that Assad’s plane crashed.

The sudden collapse of the Assad regime, dating back over half a century to the rule of Hafez al-Assad, Bashar’s father, has rocked the Middle East and could mean the Iranian regime, a Syrian ally, is in danger.

Assad was one of the most notorious tyrants in the world, one who used chemical weapons against his own people. His regime nearly fell in the civil war that erupted during the Arab Spring in 2011, but he was shored up by Russian and Iranian forces.

President Vladimir Putin used Syria to restore Russia’s presence in the Middle East for the first time since the Cold War, while Iran used Syria as a conduit to Hezbollah in Lebanon, sending weapons and advisers.

Assad had bombed rebel-held cities with no regard for civilian life, and torturing suspected rebels and dissidents. President Barack Obama drew a “red line” in 2012 when he said the U.S. would intervene militarily if Assad used chemical weapons, but then failed to act.

President Donald Trump launched airstrikes against the regime in 2017 after a chemical weapons attack, firing nearly 60 cruise missiles at Syrian air bases, which had the intended effect.

Trump reduced the U.S. troop presence in Syria, though small forces remained to counter threats from the so-called “Islamic State,” or ISIS, which still operated in the country. Turkey also had an interest in Syria, targeting Kurdish militias operating in Syrian territory.

But Assad remained in power, thanks to Russia and Iran. Iran used Hezbollah forces from Lebanon to defend the regime, and they were accused of carrying out atrocities against Sunni regions.

The Syrian rebels — including radical Islamist forces affiliated with Al Qaeda — remained relatively weak. But the Third Lebanon War, which Hezbollah started by firing at Israeli cities after the Hamas terror attack of October 7, 2023, saw Hezbollah weakened and its supply lines disrupted.

In the wake of the ceasefire in Lebanon, the Syrian rebels, emboldened by Hezbollah’s apparent defeat, began making rapid advances, meeting with little resistance.

Russia, tied down by the war in Ukraine, was apparently unable (or unwilling) to intervene. Iran reportedly sent new military advisers, but also evacuated Iranian militias and personnel from the country

[darkmaga-returns]

Deadliest Year For Aviation Since 2018. Russia will abandon missile moratorium. Alawite tensions rise in Syria. Iran may face upheaval like Syria. U.S. Treasury Department Allegedly Hacked

Lioness of Judah Ministry

Recent Rash Of Crashes Turns 2024 Into Deadliest Year For Aviation Since 2018

"There have been 4 different plane crashes worldwide in the last week..."

The commercial aviation industry faced a turbulent week with four plane crashes, making this one of the deadliest years since 2018. The most shocking mid-air aviation disaster occurred on Sunday when a Jeju Air 737-800 jet crashed at Muan International Airport in South Korea. December 25: Azerbaijan Airlines Crash December 28: KLM Airlines Plane Skids Off Runway In Norway December 28: PAL Airlines Dash 8-400 Catches Fire in Canada December 29: 179 Dead In South Korea's Worst-Ever Aviation Disaster

Commercial airline plane nearly crashes into sports team jet

A Delta Air Lines plane almost crashed into a charter jet carrying a men’s basketball team in a close call on a runway.

An Embraer E135 jet with the Gonzaga University Men’s Basketball team board touched down at Los Angeles International Airport and was taxiing to a gate when it appeared to continue toward a runway. ‘Stop, stop, stop!’ an air traffic controller could be heard shouting at the charter plane in video footage of the incident shared online. The Embraer came to a halt as Delta Flight 471 lifted off from the runway and over the smaller aircraft.

Airliner or Flying Health Hazard? Unsavory Facts About Boeing's 737-800

Aircraft giant Boeing made headlines last week when three incidents involving its 737-800 planes, one of the Boeing 737 Next Generation (737NG) variants, occurred in 24 hours in various corners of the globe.

While the terrible Jeju Air 737-800 crash in South Korea killed 179, a few hours earlier another KLM 737-800 skidded off a runway in Norway after suffering a hydraulic failure, while an Air Canada 737-800 suffered an apparent landing gear failure upon arrival in Halifax. Though much of Boeing’s infamy stems from the disasters involving its 737 MAX airliners, the 737-800 has a dark history of its own, with this type of planes suffering over 20 incidents since the early 2000s and causing over 1,000 deaths.

Russia will abandon its unilateral missile moratorium, Lavrov says

MOSCOW, Dec 29 (Reuters) - Russia will scrap a moratorium on the deployment of intermediate and shorter range nuclear-capable missiles because the United States has deployed such weapons in various regions around the world, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Sunday.

Russia's move, long signalled, will kill off all that remains from one of the most significant arms control treaties of the Cold War, amid fears that the world's two biggest nuclear powers could be entering a new arms race together with China. Russia and the United States, who both admit their relations are worse than at any time since the depths of the Cold War, have both expressed regret about the disintegration of the tangle of arms control treaties which sought to slow the arms race and reduce the risk of nuclear war.

Russian government flight to US sparks mystery and speculation

On December 26th, one of the Special Flight Squadron "Russia" aircraft flew to New York and Washington, D.C., and remained in the United States for two days.

It is unknown who was on board the Ilyushin Il-96-300, which is used by Russia's highest officials, including heads of special services. When asked about this matter, Maria Zakharova, spokesperson for the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated, " Another diplomatic rotation." The independent Russian channel BAZA on Telegram was the first to report on the mysterious flight of the Russian government plane, questioning who traveled to the USA and for what purpose. According to FlightRadar data, on December 25th, one of the Special Flight Squadron "Rossiya" planes took off from Moscow and flew to St. Petersburg. On December 26th, it flew from St. Petersburg to New York and, after a short break, proceeded to Washington, D.C.

[stele3]

https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/iran-deliver-hundreds-ballistic-missiles-russia-soon-intel-sources-say-2024-08-09/

[mightyflamethrower]

The theocracy of Iran has been the world’s arch-embassy attacker over the last half century.

So it has zero credibility in crying foul over Israel’s April 1 attacks on its “consulate” in Damascus and the killing of Iran’s kingpin terrorists of the Revolutionary Guard Corps there.

Remember, the world was first introduced to the Iranian ayatollahs by their violent takeover of the U.S. embassy in Tehran in 1980.

Iranian surrogates next bombed the American embassy in Beirut and the Marine barracks in 1983.

In fact, Iran has attacked US and Israeli diplomatic posts off-and-on for decades, most recently in 2023, when Iran helped plan an attack on the US embassy in Baghdad.

For this reason and several others, Iran’s justification for sending 170 drones, 30 cruise missiles, and 120 ballistic missiles into Israel on the grounds that Israel had bombed an Iranian diplomatic post is completely ridiculous.

One, Iran has never honored diplomatic immunity.

Instead, it habitually attacks and kills embassy personnel and blows up diplomatic facilities across the world.

Two, on April 1, the Israelis attacked a pseudo-“consulate” in Damascus which was hosting grandees of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps as they planned terrorist attacks on Israel.

Without Iran, the Middle East might have had a chance to use its enormous oil and natural gas wealth to lift its 500 million people out of poverty rather than to be mired in constant tribal and religious anti-Israeli, anti-American, and anti-Western terrorism.

During the Iraq War, Iran’s Shiite terrorists and its massive supplies of deadly shaped-charge explosive devices killed hundreds of Americans. It routinely hijacks container ships in the Straits of Hormuz and stages near collisions with American ships and planes.

How does Iran get away with nonstop anti-Western terrorism, its constant harassment of Persian Gulf maritime traffic, its efforts to subvert Sunni moderate regimes, and its serial hostage-taking?

The theocrats operate on three general principles.

One, Iran is careful never to attack a major power directly.

Until this week, it had never sent missiles and drones into Israel. Its economy is one-dimensionally dependent on oil exports. And its paranoid government distrusts its own people, who have no access to free elections.

So Iranian strategy over the last few decades has relied on surrogates—especially expendable Arab Shia terrorists in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, along with the Sunni Arabs of Hamas—to do its dirty work of killing Israelis and Americans.

It loudly egged all of them on and then cowardly denied responsibility once it feared Israeli or American retaliation.

Two, it has fooled Western governments and especially left-wing American administrations by posing as a persecuted victim. Iran claims it is the champion of aggrieved Shiite Arab and Persian minorities, unfairly exploited by Israel, moderate Arab regimes, and rich Sunni Gulf monarchies.

Three, Iran hopes its pseudo-diplomatic outreach to left-wing Western governments, coupled with its lunatic existential threats and unleashing terrorist attacks on its enemies, can coax or bully the West into granting it concessions—especially time to acquire a dozen or so nuclear weapons.

Yet for all its loud, creepy threats, Iran is incredibly weak and vulnerable.

Israel and its allies shot down almost all its recent nocturnal missile and drone barrages. Lots of other missiles reportedly blew up on liftoff in Iran or crashed in transit.

Before the Biden appeasement of Iran, the Trump administration had isolated and nearly bankrupted Tehran and its proxies. Its Revolutionary Guard terrorist planners proved to be easy targets once they operated outside Iran.

Iran’s only hope is to get a bomb and, with it, nuclear deterrence to prevent retaliation when it increases its terrorist surrogate attacks on Israel, the West, and international commerce.

Yet now Iran may have jumped the shark by attacking the Israeli homeland for the first time. It is learning that it has almost no sympathetic allies.

Does even the Lebanese Hezbollah really want to take revenge against Israel on behalf of Persian Iran, only to see its Shia neighborhoods in Lebanon reduced to rubble?

Do all the pro-Hamas protestors on American campuses and in the streets really want to show Americans they celebrate Iranian attacks and a potential Iranian war against the United States?

Does Iran really believe 99 percent of any future Israel barrage against Iranian targets would fail to hit targets in the fashion that its own recent launches failed?

Does Iran really believe that its sheer incompetence in attacking Israel warrants them a pardon—as if they should be excused for trying, but not succeeding, to kill thousands of Jews?

In sum, by unleashing a terrorist war in the Middle East and targeting the Israeli homeland, Iran may wake up soon and learn Israel, or America, or both might retaliate for a half-century of its terrorist aggression—and mostly to the indifference or even the delight of most of the world.