By Gary L. Bauer
One of the most illogical positions held by President Obama is his insistence on not conditioning the Iranian nuclear negotiations on changes in the regime's behavior. Recognizing Israel's right to exist, for example, ought to be the starting point for any talks with Iran.
Does anyone lose sleep at night over the fact that France and Great Britain have nuclear weapons? Of course not. Those nations are stable, peaceful democracies.
But past behavior is often the best predictor of future behavior. And there is nothing in Iran's behavior to suggest that the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism can be trusted with the world's most destructive weapons. Iran is fomenting chaos throughout the Middle East, and it is moving aggressively to surround Israel.
The Wall Street Journal reported this week that Iran was "rekindling its relationship with Hamas." At first glance, that might seem unlikely given the Shiite (Iran) / Sunni (Hamas) Muslim divide.
But Western intelligence reports indicate that in recent months tens of millions of dollars have been transferred from Iran to Hamas "on the direct orders of Qasem Soleimani, the commander of the Revolutionary Guards' elite Quds Force." Hamas is using the money not for schools, hospitals or job training programs, but to rebuild its terror-tunnel network.
What is this all about? Consider this excerpt from the Journal's report:
"The Revolutionary Guards are eager to revive their relationship with Hamas because it gives them access to Israel's southern border, in addition to the northern border with Lebanon, where Iran funds Hezbollah militants. Tehran is also willing to set aside its sectarian differences with Hamas because its Palestinian militants share the same long-term objectives as the ayatollahs: the complete destruction of the state of Israel."
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