If we close our eyes, we can say nothing happened (Pt. I)

This is the first of three parts detailing Iran's growing influence in various regions. From Latin America to Africa to Europe, Iran has undeniably risen from the shadows largely due to its mouthy president who emerged in 2005 and its proxies' expansion. In such a short period of time, the growth of the Khomenist state has extended to nearly every hemisphere, facing little resistance by the West and its allies. As the standoff with Iran continues, it is important to understand the reality of the religious state that many say is now the key to Middle East policy.


As a new administration begins to take office and will undoubtedly adopt some policy against Iran that has not been working for over a decade, let's talk about the real threats posed by Iran. For too long, U.S. policymakers have closed their eyes to the growing Iranian influence that is allowing it to take such a hold on the international scale. From Latin America, to Europe, to Africa, Iran quickly began to develop allies in virtually every region of the world while the U.S. did nothing.

In case you haven't noticed, U.S. policy should have changed in 2005, but the U.S. had no plan to confront a changing Iran. Now don't get me wrong, the U.S. did do something, but according to former Treasury Dept. official Matt Levitt, it has been the same thing that it did throughout the 1990s - more sanctions. Levitt says:

"In dealing with Iran sanctions have a large role but this is only one piece of the process. Sanctions are meant to levy diplomatic leverage. Like sanctions, neither diplomacy nor military force will work alone. A coherent combination of these strategies must be applied. We cannot simply engage Iran for the sake of engaging."

As Ahmadinejad won the presidency, the Iran that once lurked in the shadows of the almighty Ayatollah suddenly began - surprise - the process of globalization. The process that the West had pioneered and championed came back to bite it, and Ahmadinejad became a household name within days for championing ludicrous statements about Jews and Israel.

One has to wonder why some Marxist like Hugo Chavez in Venezuela would partner with the religiously motivated Ahmadinejad of Iran. However, Ahmadinejad extended his hand and then gained more influence in the Latin American region than his country had a decade prior to his taking office. Iran soon had ties to Chavez allies in Ecuador, Nicaragua, Bolivia, and most recently an embassy being established in U.S. friendly Colombia.

The Iranian-Latin American cooperation has surged since its establishment under Ahmadinejad. The partnership of Ahmadinejad and Chavez has been one of the strongest alliances to develop over a short period of time, with the sole basis of "anti-Imperialism" as its cornerstone.

In a region where Hizbullah has operated for decades, primarily for fundraising but still having been involved in attacks on Jewish targets during the 1990s, the group found a government willing to turn a blind eye to its activities thanks to Ahmadinejad.

Conveniently, one of the steps that was taken in May by the two co-conspirators was to partner in a joint banking venture between Tehran and Caracas. Hizbullah and Tehran, both impacted by Western sanctions repeatedly, now had the ability to move and launder money throughout the world without having any system of reporting. Furthermore, how much money was being moved would remain a mystery without having to use any expansive network of banks. But this move was not the first one made that would clearly benefit the Iranian terror network.

In March 2007, the two countries took a huge step. IranAir began weekly flights from Caracas to Tehran, with a stop conveniently in Damascus. In this year's State Department Assessment for Global Terrorism, it was noted that Venezuelan border officials frequently failed to record the information of arriving passengers from Iran and neglected to stamp their passports. It's been reported that the issue has now been corrected.

However, why would you not record who is entering your country at all? It's probably not VIPs traveling into the region through Venezuela, but rather Hizbullah and Iranian terror operatives.

Sure enough, the warning was issued by Shin Bet and Mossad to Israeli citizens internationally a couple weeks ago, advising them to return to Israel if possible. The agencies apparently became increasingly concerned of what they viewed as an active kidnapping threat by Hizbullah cells globally to Israeli businesspeople, specifically over the group's increased claims for spectacular operations in response to the February assassination of its security chief, Imad Mughniyeh. The threat specifically noted Latin America as a primary hot zone for such action.

Intelligence officials have stated that Hizbullah operatives, in coordination with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, created a specific group designed for such action in the Latin American region. The aim to kidnap the individuals and then quickly send them off to Hizbullah's fortress in Lebanon. A difficult maneuver for most terror groups, moving a group of hostages across the world, but one that is undeniably easier when you have your own direct airline.

It was reported that Venezuelan airport employees had been recruited to conduct surveillance on Jewish targets travels. It should be noted that in May, it was discovered that the head of security at Beirut's Rafic Hariri Intl. Airport was a Hizbullah informant and had allowed the group to place cameras throughout the airport, conducting surveillance on Syrian opposition leaders travels. The group has a history of making sure that its operatives can remain distant from the operation until it actually occurs, so such a report is not farstretched. Especially since it is well-documented that Venezuelan military and airport officials are profiting already from the cocaine trade.

Your own airline and your own bank? If terror groups had wish lists, those two items would most assuredly be at the top. But in the realm of state-sponsored terror, Iran can fulfill any fantasy that its Shi'a partners desire.

On a final note of the growing Iranian proxies continued growth throughout the Latin American region, the amount of Colombian cocaine moving through heavy regions of Hizbullah support is on the rise. Doug Farah, who has followed the region for decades, cautions that group's like Colombia's FARC rebels - who, after 40 years, are finally suffering greatly- may begin to form an alliance with Hizbullah. Such an action would create an unprecedented and very dangerous link between the most prolific narco-terrorists and the most expansive Islamic terrorist organization. However as evidenced by the Latin America-Iran connection, two worlds can come together pretty easily.