Originally posted by
[email protected] 1 2005, 07:40 PM
Ok, Iran has a Shia majority, right? And al Qaeda and bin Laden are Wahhabi/Sunni extremists, correct? I ask this because of claims that 9/11 was a joint al Qaeda-Iran attack. Now I realize that hypocrisy runs rampant, but don't Wahhabi followers see Shiites as blasphemous (sp?)? The claim just sounds like another crap statement to justify attacking Iran.
Yes. Though bin Laden/al-Qaeda in their statements have said they are for all Muslims uniting and putting aside their disagreements. Zarqawi had to pay some lip service to this before he got bin Laden's endorsement...but of course he's still blowing up Iraqi Shi'a.
Also, bin Laden was closely tied to the Taliban and their war against the Northern Alliance and pogroms against Afghan Shi'a (the Hazara). Iran was the main sponsor of the Northern Alliance before September 2001 (and a sponsor afterwards), and at one point came very close to war with the Taliban over the killing of some Iranian diplomats. So on that basis pre-9/11 cooperation between Teheran and al-Qaeda seems unlikely.
The claims of Iranian ties to Shia groups like Hezbollah make more sense, but are those claims true?
Yes. Iran definitely aids Hezbollah with weapons, etc. The usual lie there is the claim that Hezbollah is a terrorist group. That Marine barracks was a legitimate military target, as were the Israeli troops in Lebanon.
Anyways, are the religious differences between Iran and al Qaeda irreconcilable?
Not necessarily, though the bombing campaign against Iraqi Shi'a by "al-Qaeda in Iraq" can't help. I can't see any interest that Teheran could serve by aiding al-Qaeda - it would only bring down U.S. attacks on Iran more quickly.
It's periodically claimed that Iran is harboring some al-Qaeda figures, but I've never seen any serious evidence to that effect. Iran has reportedly has handed some al-Qaeda people over as prisoners to the government of their home countries, various Gulf kingdoms mostly.