gimmesometruth27 said:

Trump properties could become Iranian targets

https://www.yahoo.com/finance/news/trump-properties-could-become-iranian-targets-190912364.html

There’s a unique set of targets Iran is likely eyeing as it contemplates retaliation for the U.S. killing of a top Iranian general in Iraq on Jan. 2: Trump Organization properties in 11 countries outside the United States.

President Trump’s real-estate company owns or manages buildings bearing the Trump name in Canada, Dubai, India, Indonesia, Ireland, the Philippines, Scotland, South Korea, St. Martin, Turkey and Uruguay. Those properties are all listed on the company’s website.

“[Iran] will look for the most opportune chance to strike back in a way that hurts President Trump personally,” Iran scholar Suzanne Maloney of the Brookings Institution said on a recent Lawfare podcast. “I will assume security around any Trump property is enhanced.”

On Jan. 5, an Iranian official who advises the country’s president hinted that Iran is, in fact, tracking Trump properties. Hesameddin Ashena, who runs the Iranian president’s research outfit, posted a tweet, without comment, linking to a Forbes web page on Trump’s personal wealth that lists 19 Trump properties, mostly in the United States. The Trump Organization owns those properties. Most of the firm’s international properties are owned by others, with the Trump Organization branding and managing them.

“We have ZERO problems with the American people,” Ashena wrote, in English, in a separate tweet. “Our sole problem is Trump. In the event of war, it is he who will bear full responsibility.”

The Trump Organization did not respond to Yahoo Finance questions about security enhancements at properties it owns or manages.

Watching for retaliation

An Iranian attack on a Trump property in the United States would be an overt act of terrorism likely to trigger an aggressive U.S. military response that could be devastating for Iran. It might also generate domestic support for Trump and help him get reelected if it occurred before the November election. If Iran denied responsibility for such an attack, suspicion would fall on them anyway and it might not matter.

An attack on a Trump property outside the United States might be different, since the United States wouldn’t automatically be able to characterize it as a violation of U.S. sovereignty. Foreign investigators might bungle the investigation into who did it. The United States could retaliate militarily against Iran as an ally, but that would be odd if it were in association with a country like Indonesia or the Philippines that isn’t a normal military partner and might not even want U.S. assistance.

Security experts point out that in addition to conventional military assets such as missiles, mines and submarines, Iran has cyberwarfare capabilities and could cause digital disruption. Cyber attacks could narrowly target individual organizations or aim to cause havoc by disabling power grids or other essential infrastructure.

Iranian-backed militias are known mainly for the trouble they cause in other parts of the Middle East, such as Yemen, Lebanon and Syria. But Iran has gone much further from home in the past to avenge perceived grievances. The Iranian proxy group Hezbollah planned and carried out two attacks on Jewish and Israeli sites in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1992 and 1994 that killed more than 100 and injured hundreds more. The trigger for those attacks was Argentina’s suspension of cooperation on nuclear technology with Iran.

The theocratic nation faces tough choices in weighing how to respond to the U.S. airstrike that killed Iranian general Qassem Soleimani and five others as they were leaving the Baghdad airport on Jan. 2. Trump has threatened devastating retaliation for any attack that harms Americans and can be traced to Iran. And Iran would be the immediate suspect in a covert attack. “There will be a carefully calibrated response over the long term,” says Maloney of the Brookings Institution. “With an eye to what serves their interests best.”

mickeyrat said:

  BBC News - Esmail Qaani: The new man leading Iran's elite Quds Force
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-51008996

Gern Blansten said:

Hi! said:

Fuck...
What happens after we bomb those 52 sites? It’s happening. Iran is gonna retaliate, Trump already said 52 sites. Will it be all 52 at once?
“Cultural Sites”? 

This 52 reference blows me away....so 40 years ago there were 52 hostages and now we are going to identify 52 sites to represent them?

Let's hope the Iranians forget about that passenger plane that we blew out of the sky killing 290 people

brianlux said:

I've signed up to go to our local rally to oppose war with Iran.  Others here might consider doing the same, especially if you want to make your voice heard in beyond this forum, FB, Twitter, etc.:

https://act.moveon.org/event/no-war-with-iran/search/?logo

We will not be forced into another war. On Thursday, January 9, at 5 p.m. local time, the anti-war majority in this country will get visible to oppose Trump's war and say #NoWarWithIran.

Trump's reckless action has needlessly endangered countless lives of U.S. troops, Iraqis, Iranians, and countless other civilians. The devastation that a war with Iran could bring upon the earth and humanity cannot be overstated—millions of lives hang in the balance. None of us will win, except politicians and corporations. Even more resources that our communities desperately need will be wasted on unnecessary violence. People in the United States and across the globe are tired of war—from the military families who have seen multiple generations serve in the same conflict, to the Iranian, Iraqi, and Afghan families in the United States who worry for their loved ones back home.

We've learned our lessons from Iraq, Afghanistan, Yemen, and global endless war. We will not be driven by lies into another war. We will not allow our Iranian-American and Muslim neighbors to be targeted by law enforcement. We will not be divided.

When Trump acts with ignorance, fear, and ego, we will act with diplomacy and prioritize what is best for humanity. We are the majority. We stand united. And we oppose Trump's war with Iran.

Gern Blansten said:

oftenreading said:

Gern Blansten said:

Hi! said:

Fuck...
What happens after we bomb those 52 sites? It’s happening. Iran is gonna retaliate, Trump already said 52 sites. Will it be all 52 at once?
“Cultural Sites”? 

This 52 reference blows me away....so 40 years ago there were 52 hostages and now we are going to identify 52 sites to represent them?

Let's hope the Iranians forget about that passenger plane that we blew out of the sky killing 290 people

They remember 

https://www.google.ca/amp/s/nationalpost.com/news/world/rouhani-warns-trump-not-to-threaten-the-iranian-nation-tweets-about-airliner-downed-in-1988/amp

Crazy....and once again tRump is outfoxed by an "enemy"

CM189191 said:

I saw Iran put an 80 million bounty on Trump's head

how do you suppose that works?

Is it like NPR where I can make a donation to help match?

Is there a fund I can contribute to?

benjs said:

mcgruff10 said:

CM189191 said:

I saw Iran put an 80 million bounty on Trump's head

how do you suppose that works?

Is it like NPR where I can make a donation to help match?

Is there a fund I can contribute to?

As much as you dislike trump this is definitely crossing the line.  As an American You can’t wish a foreign country to harm our president. 

It's not complicated calculus to see where Trump is arguably a net negative for the country - and is actively harming it. He exposes the nation to great risk to exert power (small man syndrome - ironic, as he's quite tall), he is impulsive, he actively jeopardizes global alliances by treating relationships as purely transaction. Within the nation, he has exploited rifts that are un-Uniting the States, and doubled down on them for his own gain. He has demonstrated a perpetual apathy and mockery of those who get in his way. I'm not calling for someone's death, however I do believe the country would be far better if a number of politicians dropped dead (Trump included). In Trump's case, truly, I would only mourn that it didn't happen before the catastrophic damage he has left behind as a legacy. 

Kat said:

Let's not go there. We're better than that. Thank you.