Seventy-five retired U.S. generals and admirals signed a Jewish Institute for National Security of America letter supporting the U.S. and Israeli strikes against the Iranian regime over the weekend.
“They wanted to both express what they see as the need for these operations, the need to address the Iranian threat, their confidence in that partnership and communicate that to the American people through this letter,” Blaise Misztal, vice president for policy at JINSA, told JNS.
In the letter, the retired military leaders state that the Iranian regime, whose slogan is “death to America, death to Israel,” has “committed to endangering the lives of U.S. troops, diplomats and civilians across the Middle East and here at home.”
“Hundreds of Americans have lost their lives at the hands of the Islamic Republic and its terrorist proxies,” according to the letter. “Leaders in Tehran openly state their ambitions to spill American blood, evict the United States from the Middle East, eliminate Israel and dominate a region that remains vital to global stability.”
The largest state sponsor of terrorism, Iran has also worked with American enemies, like Russia and China. Despite being offered “every offramp possible,” the Islamic Republic has continued to seek nuclear weapons.
“The regime’s brutal crackdown on protestors showed the entire world just what it is willing to do to keep its people, and the region, under its thumb,” the retired military leaders write.
Misztal told JNS that JINSA, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, has run an annual program for more than four decades that brings retired U.S. generals and admirals to Israel. JINSA has developed “long-lasting relationships” with participants who are aware of the uniqueness of the U.S.-Israeli alliance, according to Misztal.
Many of those retired officers have served in the Middle East in the past 20 years and seen Iran kill Americans, including 600 U.S. service members in the Iraq War and continuing attacks on U.S. military bases throughout the region, according to Misztal.
The retired military leaders write in the letter that it’s up to the Iranian people to bring the regime down in the end, which, to Misztal, reflects how this conflict differs from the “war on terror” in which the officers fought.
“It’s not a regime-change war, where the United States is the one that was going to topple this regime,” he said. “It’s not a nation-building war, where the United States is going to be committed for decades to keeping troops in Iran and propping up whatever comes next.”
“It’s a recognition that we’re there to eliminate a threat and that we’re hopeful that the Iranian people, who have shown both their bravery in standing up to this regime but also their love of freedom and desire for something better to replace it, will seize the opportunity,” he added. “ Understanding that that’s not necessarily going to be our role to give them that opportunity going forward.”
