Streets of Tehran aflame

Day turned into night as a cloud of toxic smoke hovered over Tehran, whose streets were like a scene from hell, aflame with streams of burning fuel. All this was courtesy of Israel’s having bombed an oil storage facility there. That crime came shortly after the US bombed a girls school, killing over 100 girls.

Even the NY Times news reports cannot totally ignore the devastation. They quote Tehran resident Aryan, who says he had had some hope when Trump first started attacking Iran. But then “the shock of those scenes left him wondering if his hopes for the U.S.-Israeli campaign were ‘just my own illusion (he said). They’ve hit everywhere. The night turned into morning, and morning into night,’” following the latest round of bombings. Peyman, another Tehran resident says that “Iran is gradually turning into ruins.”

We are seeing the Gazafication of Iran. And what is the attitude of the world’s capitalist class?

The NY Times editors initially posted an editorial opposing “Operation Epic Fury for being “reckless” and having “ill defined” pruposes. Not because from the very start it was and is a war crime. Not because of the tremendous suffering. That is irrelevant to them. It is a reminder of what, Louis Antoine, Duke Enghien said: “It’s worse than a crime. It’s a mistake.”

The Wall St. Journal editors praised “Epic Fury” to the skies while they warned Trump not to end it too quickly. And now, after crime after crime – what is their response? The NY Times editorial board is silent. As for the Wall St. Journal, their their editorial board today writes that “the war is going better than expected.” Better than expected! The editors continue: “the Pentagon says U.S. dominance of the air is… complete.” Then they go to an equally important subject for US capitalism: “As for the markets, the surprise so far is how relatively mild the disruption has been.” Further: “All of this looks like progress toward achieving the war aims that President Trump laid out on Saturday.” A few little problems remain: “Yes, regime elements remain in control…. A worse outcome is also possible, such as a long civil war that creates refugees that destabilize some neighbors…. But now that the war is underway, and our troops are in harm’s way, our perhaps old-fashioned view is that we ought to hope for American success, both military and strategic.”

The death and destruction being rained down on the people of Iran doesn’t merit a mention by the editors of either the NY Times or the Wall St. Journal.

Bernie Sanders
Trump and Hegseth strut around, boasting about the power of the US death machine, while the Democrats whine about the legality of the war. Bernie Sanders complains that “Trump is gambling with American lives and treasure… It is the Congress that declares war, not a president acting unilaterally….. Further, this attack against Iran is a clear violation of international law and will create increased instability in an already dangerous world…. The people of our country, no matter what their political persuasion, do not want endless war. They want decent-paying jobs, and health care and housing that they can afford. They want their kids to have an excellent education.” Note that there is not a word about the human suffering of the Iranian people and the destruction of their society.

Tucker Carlson
Nor should anybody have any illusions in the Christian white nationalist Tucker Carlson, who opposes the war. His opposition has nothing to do with concern for the Iranian people. It’s just more Christian white nationalism.

Israel
As for Israel, their ambassador to the UN, Danny Danon, said on CNN this morning ““We are moving forward…. We are heading in the right direction.” Nor did CNN’s most porminent presenter, Wolf Blitzer, ask Danon a single question about the horrific results of Israel’s having bombed that oil storage facility.

Nor are the rest of the capitalist world’s leaders any better.

Mark Carney
Canadian prime minister Mark Carney caused a flurry of attention at the Davos conference when he strongly criticized Trump. Now, according to BBC, he initially expressed strong support for Trump’s “Epic Fury” despite the fact that it “appeared inconsistent with international law”. BBC also reports that Britain’s Keir Starmer will allow Trump to use British air bases to unleash “epic fury” on the Iranian people. It’s no better in the Arab world, where according to the Washington Post Saudi Arabia’s Muhammed bin Salman held a series of phone calls with Trump urging him to unleash his epic fury on the Iranian people. That position is apparently so unpopular inside Saudi Arabia that bin Salman had to subsequently deny having taken that position.

union leaders and “socialist”
As for the union leaders in the US – they are carrying out their role as the “labor lieutenants of capital” (as Daniel de Leon called them) by being silent as a churchmouse.

As for the “socialist” opposition to the war, they blithely closed their eyes to the Woman Life Freedom movement back in 2022 when they were being slaughtered in the streets and again just a couple of months ago. Now, those “socialists” are out protesting “epic fury”, but how seriously can they be taken.

US public opinion
So it is that an incredible 44% of those polled in the US support this massive war crime. “Who cares about suffering of others? We’re powerful and we’re going to assert that power.” From every corner of the capitalist network, including the union leadership, that is the message. Is it any wonder that a CNN reporter was called a “fucking American” and was chased away from an anti-war protest in Beirut. At this rate that will be the attitude towards people from the US all around the world. And little wonder.

Trump war criminal
The fact of the matter is that there is one international recognition that Trump deserves: “war criminal”, alongside his two closest allies, Netanyahu and Putin.

Oaklandsocialist apologizes for the bitter tone of this article. We usually try to raise a glimmer of hope, but for now it is hidden in the smoke permeating the atmosphere around Tehran.

Coming soon
An article comparing the situation of the Kurdish people with that of Europe’s Jews of the 1920s, prior to the rise of Zionism. There are huge differences but also an important similarity. Nobody else that we know of is even considering this comparison. Get a free subscription to Oaklandsocialist to be sure not to miss this and other articles.

Streets of Tehran aflame