The war with Iran: Iran as terrorism central

Article here sets out the case of Iran as the international center of terrorism.

Since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and the establishment of a conservative theocratic government, terrorism has been a key part of Iranian attempts to foster revolution within the Muslim world. 'For Iran, revolutionary terrorism has been the business of the state since 1979,' Dr. Christopher Harmon, Marine Corps University, said.

The Iranian promotion of terrorism incorporates a range of strategies. The cultivation of close-bilateral relations with other dubious states has been of central importance.

During the 1990s, Tehran deepened its political and military involvement in Sudan. The country has served as a convenient bridgehead for the transportation of Iranian fundamentalism into Africa. According to James Phillips, Research Fellow for Middle Eastern Affairs at the Heritage Foundation, Sudan 'became a new Lebanon where Iranian Revolutionary Guards trained Sunni revolutionaries in acts of violence.'

More recently, Iran has increased its links with the isolated North Korean regime, a fellow member of President Bush`s `axis of evil`. Pyongyang has sold Tehran ballistic missile technology which could be used to deliver weapons of mass destruction.

In addition, Iran is also directly funding militant Islamic groups. Tehran has long allied itself with the militant Palestinian group, Hamas. Indeed, in a viewpoint displayed on his official website, Ayatollah Khamenei states, 'the Palestinian problem is the problem of the Muslim world. Whether we know it or not, the fate of Palestine is the fate of us all.'

Not much of a surprise, but we're a little slow in recognizing the war being waged by Iran.