Desperately seeking casus belli

The Bush-Cheney war regime and the Pentagon use various journalists as conduits for propaganda they want to get to the public. They used Judy Miller and recently Michael Gordon of the NY Times. They use Tim Russert of NBC. They use David Martin at CBS. They have used ABC journalists too. Here the Pentagon uses a CNN journaist to probe for casus belli with Iran. Analysts have suggested that the U.S. is angling for a naval incident with Iran similar to The Gulf of Tonkin incident which was used as pretext for escalating the U.S. war in Vietnam.

Officials: Iranian patrol boats probe Iraqi waters

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POSTED: 1836 GMT (0236 HKT), February 19, 2007

STORY HIGHLIGHTS
• Officials: Iranian patrol boats recently entered Iraqi waters near oil terminals
• U.S. Navy officer says Iran trying to see what response its actions get
• Iran's actions the subject of recent U.S. military briefings, officials say
• U.S. assessment is Iran trying to raise its military presence in Persian Gulf

From Barbara Starr
CNN Pentagon Correspondent

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Iranian patrol boats have increased attempts in the last week to assess defenses near Iraqi offshore oil terminals, U.S. military officials said Monday.

The Iranian actions at the northern end of the Persian Gulf have been a subject of operational briefings for U.S. military personnel in recent days, the officials said.

The officials -- who said they were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter -- said that the United States does not see the Iranian moves as aggressive or provocative. The assessment is that the probes are part of an Iranian effort to raise its military presence in the gulf.

Officials said that for several months they have seen Iranian flagged vessels attempt to approach oil terminals in the area, but activity rose last week.

On at least two days, Iranian patrol boats crossed into Iraqi waters at the northern end of the Persian Gulf, the officials said.

The boats stayed inside Iraqi waters for several minutes before Iraqi security forces told them to leave. The Iranian boats did not approach the oil terminals.

Iraqi security forces recently took over the main responsibility for guarding the terminals, although U.S. naval forces remain nearby.

A senior U.S. Navy officer said he thinks Iran is trying to see what response its actions get from Iraqi and U.S. naval forces. The Navy officer said that in the last several months Iranian naval forces have expanded their area of operations inside the gulf, often increasing activity in offshore areas for training and exercises.

The U.S. Navy has encountered Iranian ships and small fishing vessels in several cases, but there have been no hostilities, the officer said.

The intelligence assessment is that in many cases the Iranians are watching the U.S. Navy to see how it operates. The officer confirmed to CNN that the Navy has increased its security precautions when dealing with Iranian entities on the water to ensure there are no miscommunications or miscalculations.

U.S. ships will continue to render assistance to stranded mariners, including Iranians, the officer said, but will be cautious in approaching any Iranian boats seeking U.S. naval assistance.

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Faire l'amour, pas la guerre
Make love not war