The US are gearing up for war with Iran. The killing of Iranian General Suleimani by the Trump administration was a clear provocation. Iran retaliated last night by launching air strikes on US missile bases in Iraq, edging the conflict closer to all out war.
The Irish State is utterly complicit in this aggression. Peace activists report the following aircraft landing at Shannon Airport or flying in Irish airspace since the killing of General Suleimani on January 3rd.
- A US spy craft likely to have played a role in recent attacks in Iraq and Syria flew through Irish airspace on January 4th.
- A civilian aircraft likely to be carrying armed soldiers from Fort Briggs in El Paso, Texas landed at Shannon Airport on January 4th.
- A military aircraft refueled at Shannon Airport on January 4th.
- Two civilian aircraft with registration numbers assigned to the US military were refueled at Shannon Airport on January 5th. Both these aircraft had been at Guantanamo Bay in the previous week.
- A US military aircraft flew over Irish air space on January 5th.
- A Saudi Arabian air force aircraft landed at Shannon Airport on January 5th. Saudi Arabia is an ally of the US and is currently engaged in a brutal war of aggression against Yemen.
Any notion that Ireland is a neutral country is laughable when the Irish State aids and abets the US in pursuing its imperialist wars. The US continues to destroy the lives of people in the Middle East and the Irish government helps them do it.
It is no wonder Fine Gael were so keen to commemorate the RIC when they so eagerly do the bidding of the world’s biggest modern imperialist power. Moreover, the use of Shannon Airport makes Ireland a target for any retaliation.
US aggression towards Iran goes back decade. . The US overthrew the democratically elected government there back in 1953. In the 1980s, they supported Iraq’s attacks on Iran. Now, after years of sanctions, the US threatens all out war.
Moreover, the Iraqi government has voted to expel US troops from Iraq, a move that US President Trump has greeted with more bombastic rhetoric and threats. Far from “returning democracy” to the country they have destroyed over the last two decades, it is clear the US war machine has no intention of leaving people to try to rebuild their lives in peace.
It is time for the US to get out of the Middle East an it is time for the US military to get out out of Shannon Airport.
Public Meeting: No War On Iran – US Out of Shannon
Wynne’s Hotel, Middle Abbey Street, Tuesday January 14, 7:30pm.
