In addition to increasing the level of enriched uranium to near nuclear-weapons grade; helping to fund and plan a genocidal war against Israel; attacking US troops in Syria and Iraq with its militias more than 100 times in just the last two months to try to force the US out of the region, and incontinently bogus-trialing, torturing (even children) and executing its own citizens, the Iranian regime has also been orchestrating the assassinations of individuals, particularly those considered opponents to the ruling mullahs' clerical establishment.
Authorities in Cyprus recently thwarted an Iranian plot to assassinate Israeli businessmen in the country. Cypriot police apprehended two Iranian asylum-seekers who were in communication with another Iranian linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Crops, as disclosed by a Cypriot official on December 19, 2023. The official conveyed that the arrest of the suspects resulted from a collaborative operation with Israel's Mossad security service. A statement released by the Israeli Prime Minister's office on behalf of the Mossad, said that Iran's utilization of Turkish-occupied northern Cyprus for "terrorist purposes" and as an "area of activity and transit to attack Israeli and Jewish targets" is a matter of great concern.
This is not the first time the Iranian regime has plotted to kill Israelis in Cyprus. The attempt marks the third reported instance of an Iranian plot to target Israelis and Jews in Cyprus within the span of roughly a year. In July 2023, Cypriot authorities foiled a terrorist plot involving an Iranian-backed assassination squad targeting Israelis and other members of the Cypriot Jewish community.
The Iranian regime is also increasingly attempting to assassinate Iranian dissidents abroad. Iranian dissidents have been pointing out that they are encountering intimidation, abductions, and assassination attempts by the Iranian regime across the globe.
Iranian operatives recently offered a human trafficker $200,000 to carry out the assassination of two news anchors, referred to as "the bride and the groom," outside their London studio.
The intent behind this terror plot was most likely to demonstrate to critics of the Iranian regime that it can harm or kill anyone at any given moment. The Iranian operatives had also reportedly devised plans to car-bomb the studios of the Persian-language news channel Iran International, located in a business park in West London. An investigation by ITV News exposed the plotter; thanks to video recordings and text messages obtained as part of the investigation, their detailed plans were unveiled.
Since the Biden administration came to office in January 2021, the Iranian regime has also been attempting to carry out terrorist and assassinations plots on US soil. On August 11, 2022, Shahram Poursafi (aka Mehdi Rezayi) was charged with attempting to hire an individual in the United States, offering $300,000 to carry out the murder of former National Security Advisor John Bolton. The second target was allegedly former US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, with an offer of $1 million for his assassination. On top of those, a man carrying an AK-47 assault rifle appeared at the Brooklyn, NY home of Iranian-American human rights activist Masih Alinejad.
By attempting to assassinate US citizens on American soil, Iran is deliberately infringing upon US sovereignty. The directives for these extraterritorial assassinations likely originate from the highest levels of political leadership within the Islamic Republic.
The Washington Post highlighted that Iran's attempted abduction of Alinejad serves as a significant warning to the Biden administration:
"The message for the Biden administration, which has frequently proclaimed its intention to defend pro-democracy dissidents, is that Iran and other foreign dictatorships won't shrink from launching attacks inside the United States unless deterred...".
It is really high-time to stop giving billions of dollars to the Iranian regime, which is enlisting individuals globally to intimidate, abduct and assassinate persons perceived as enemies of the regime. Bribing Iran sets a catastrophic precedent. As Sen. Joni Ernst, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee stated:
"President Biden's strategy of appeasement continues to risk the lives of Americans at home and abroad. Iran cannot be allowed to continue to attempt to kill U.S. citizens and Iranian dissidents with impunity. The world's number-one state sponsor of terrorism is not to be trusted. I'm holding President Biden accountable by preventing his administration from providing Tehran with another cent of sanctions relief. My PUNISH Act will put an end to this failed appeasement strategy and ensure Iran feels the maximum consequences of their actions from the United States."
With Iran's nuclear weapons now well on the their way, how much more harm does the Iranian regime have to do to finally be stopped?
Dr. Majid Rafizadeh is a business strategist and advisor, Harvard-educated scholar, political scientist, board member of Harvard International Review, and president of the International American Council on the Middle East. He has authored several books on Islam and US Foreign Policy. He can be reached at Dr.Rafizadeh@Post.Harvard.Edu
Edward C. Stengel