{"id":7627,"date":"2025-06-21T15:54:09","date_gmt":"2025-06-21T20:54:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.acu.edu\/coatesn\/?p=7627"},"modified":"2025-06-23T10:04:04","modified_gmt":"2025-06-23T15:04:04","slug":"7627","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.acu.edu\/coatesn\/2025\/06\/21\/7627\/","title":{"rendered":""},"content":{"rendered":"

It looks like we will have some entries here criticizing the Supreme Leader.\u00a0 First, his hiding in a bunker without communication hamstrung his administration and its response to the war and to possible diplomatic communications, including through Pres. Erdogan’s office in Turkey.\u00a0 He was incommunicado for many hours, perhaps a day?\u00a0 See \u201cScoop: Trump’s backchannel to Iran failed after supreme leader went dark,\u201d<\/a> Axios, 6-21-25.<\/p>\n

\u201cSheltering in a Bunker, Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader Names Potential Successors,\u201d<\/a> NYT, 6-21-25.\u00a0\u00a0As already outlined in this blog on June 13, Art. 111 of the Iranian Constitution spells out that the president, the chief justice, and a member of the Guardian Council take the place of the Ayatollah immediately after death, until the formal selection of a new leader by the Assembly of Experts.\u00a0 But the NYT and the expert they interview do not point this out, or the unconstitutional action by the Supreme Leader.\u00a0 Instead, the NYT reports Ayatollah Khamenei has \u201cnamed three senior clerics as candidates to succeed him should he be killed.\u201d\u00a0 The person would be chosen by the Assembly \u201cfrom the three names he has provided.\u201d\u00a0 Not only is this not in the constitution, it\u00a0 creates a situation of \u201crules from the dead\u201d and prevents the Assembly from having a clean slate to consider.\u00a0 Maybe we should ask the Ayatollah who is on the list\u2026.\u00a0 It does not matter that Khamenei is the Vali Faqih, the senior guardian of Shia.\u00a0 Nowhere does he have power to rule after death, or to select the names.\u00a0 The first Ayatollah did not do this.\u00a0 Interestingly, the NYT says \u201cAyatollah Khamenei\u2019s son Mojtaba, also a cleric and close to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, who was rumored to be a front-runner, is not among the candidates, the officials said.\u201d\u00a0 I believe the Ayatollah is trying to protect his family.\u00a0 BTW, the Times does report that non-judicial executions begin tomorrow in Iran for anyone suspected of working with the enemy.<\/p>\n

The newest Hezbollah chief refused to obey the Supreme Leader.\u00a0 \u201cIsraeli security sources to i24NEWS: Hezbollah chief rebuffed Khamenei’s demand to join war,\u201d<\/a> i24, 6-21-25.\u00a0 He didn’t want to die.\u00a0 And he wanted Hezbollah to fight another day.<\/p>\n

\u201cBritish man arrested in Cyprus suspected of spying and terror offences,\u201d<\/a> BBC, 6-21-25.<\/p>\n

Here it is, the last and most important news of the day.\u00a0 \u201cU.S. launches major strike on Iranian nuclear sites, Trump declares \u2018complete success\u2019,\u201d<\/a> i24, 6-21-25.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cU.S. President Donald Trump announced Saturday evening that the United States had carried out a large-scale military strike on three Iranian nuclear facilities, declaring the operation \u201ca complete success.\u201d\u00a0 The targets included the Fordow, Natanz, and Isfahan sites\u2014critical elements of Iran\u2019s nuclear infrastructure.\u00a0 Fordow Facility: Considered the highest-priority target, it was reportedly hit with six 15-ton bunker-buster bombs dropped by B-2 stealth bombers.\u00a0 Natanz and Isfahan Sites: Each was struck by multiple Tomahawk missiles launched from U.S. Navy submarines.\u00a0 \u201cAll aircraft are now out of Iranian airspace,\u201d Trump confirmed during a press statement. \u201cA full payload of bombs was dropped on Fordow. We have completed a highly successful attack on all three nuclear sites.\u201d\u00a0 \u2026\u00a0 Israeli sources told i24NEWS that the U.S. and Israel had coordinated a public show of disagreement in recent days to mislead Tehran and maintain the element of surprise.\u00a0 \u2026\u00a0 Iranian authorities acknowledged the strikes. A spokesperson for the Qom Crisis Management Center told state media that “part of the Fordow nuclear site area was attacked by enemy air forces.” The deputy governor of Isfahan also confirmed “intrusions near nuclear facilities,” without elaborating on the extent of the damage.\u00a0 \u2026 Sources cited by CNN say the administration views the strike as a strategic move to revive diplomatic efforts and is not currently planning additional military action. \u2026 The strike represents a major escalation in efforts to counter Iran\u2019s nuclear ambitions and sends a clear message about the willingness of the U.S. and its allies to act militarily if diplomacy fails.\u201d<\/p>\n

I believe this is the first communication from Iran after the U.S. bombings.\u00a0 A tacit acknowledgment of the events.\u00a0 \u201cIran says strikes did not cause nuclear contamination,\u201d<\/a> Politico, 6-21-25.\u00a0 But it will be veryyyyy interesting to see what the Supreme Leader says in the video his office will release.<\/p>\n

\u201cIsrael says it killed Iran’s military coordinator with Hamas,\u201d<\/a> BBC, 6-21-25.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cForeign Minister Abbas Araghchi \u2026 told European envoys in Geneva on Friday that Iran would not resume talks over its nuclear programme until Israel’s strikes stopped.\u201d\u00a0 Uh oh, don’t tell Pres. Trump.\u00a0 Well, I’m posting this story more than 24 hours after it happened, because I can’t post until something shows up in open sources so we know about it.\u00a0 But this news, of the FM (speaking for the Leader) refusing talks during the maximum two week window was probably one of the keys to the U.S. knowing that Iran would not negotiate.\u00a0 And the President heard this on Friday.<\/p>\n

\u201cTargeting of Quds Force shows growing breach in Iranian intelligence security,\u201d<\/a> BBC, 6-21-25.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou Fund Terror, Then Ask for Sympathy?\u201d<\/a>, Statement by Israel Ambassador Danny Danon,” UNSC, You Tube, 6-21-25, 14.23 min.\u00a0\u00a0\u201cAt the UN Security Council, Israeli Ambassador Danny Danon unleashed a devastating response to Iran\u2019s hypocrisy and the world\u2019s indifference. Speaking just days after Iran launched ballistic missiles at Soroka Hospital in Israel, Danon laid out the facts: Iran is actively targeting civilians, building nuclear weapons, and exporting terror across five continents.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It looks like we will have some entries here criticizing the Supreme Leader.\u00a0 First, his hiding in a bunker without communication hamstrung his administration and its response to the war and to possible diplomatic communications, including through Pres. Erdogan’s office in Turkey.\u00a0 He was incommunicado for many hours, perhaps a day?\u00a0 See \u201cScoop: Trump’s backchannel … <\/p>\n

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