ERIC:  FOR THE THIRD TIME IN
ERIC:  FOR THE THIRD TIME IN
THREE WEEKS, THERE WAS A MAJOR
EXPLOSION OF WHAT’S SUSPECTED
THE BE A SENSITIVE MILITARY SITE
IN IRAN.
THE LATEST OCCURRED YESTERDAY
MORNING IN WESTERN TEHRAN,
CAUSED WIDESPREAD POWER OUTAGES.
IT’S UNCLEAR WHO OR WHAT IS
BEHIND THE STRING OF EXPLOSIONS,
INCLUDING ONE OF A MILITARY
SITE, ANOTHER WHERE THEY MAKE
CENTRIFUGES FOR THE NUCLEAR
PROGRAM.
JOINING US NEWS IS RETIRED
GENERAL, JACK KEANE, FOX NEWS
MILITARY STRATEGIC ANALYST.
GENERAL KEANE, WE HAD THAT
COMPUTER VIRUS THAT SABOTAGED
COMPUTERS.
WHAT DO YOU THINKS IS BEHIND THE
MYSTERIOUS EXPLOSIONS?
>> IN THE LAST SEVERAL MONTHS
THERE’S DOZENS OF SO-CALLED
ACCIDENTS THAT THE IRANIANS
CLAIM HAVE BEEN TAKING PLACE AND
LARGELY THEY’RE EXPLOSIONS OR
FIRES.
THAT IS NO LONGER A CREDIBLE
CLAIM, GIVEN THE SHEER NUMBERS
OF THEM AND AS YOU NOTED, JUST
IN THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS,
WE’VE HAD A MISSILE PRODUCTION
PLANT THAT EXPLODED, WE HAD
THEIR ADVANCED CENTRIFUGE PLANT
WHICH EXPLODED WITH AN
INCREDIBLE FIRE, LITERALLY
DESTROYED THE PLACE AND SET THE
NUCLEAR PROGRAM BACK AT LEAST A
YEAR, POSSIBLY TWO.
THIS WEEK THERE’S BEEN TWO OTHER
POWER PLANTS THAT HAVE HAD
EXPLOSIONS AND A CHEMICAL GAS
LEAK IN ANOTHER PLANT.
I MEAN, IT’S PRETTY OBVIOUS
THERE’S TWO COUNTRIES THAT HAVE
THE CAPABILITY TO DO THIS, ONE
IS THE UNITED STATES, THE OTHER
IS RAIL.
YOU MENTIONED THE -- ISRAEL, YOU
MENTIONED THE CYBER ATTACK THAT
TOOK PLACE A DECADE AGO.
THE UNITED STATES WAS INVOLVED
WITH THAT WITH THE ISRAELIS,
MATTER OF PUBLIC NOW.
THE ISRAELI’S CONDUCTED AN
ASSASSINATION CAMPAIGN AGAINST
SCIENTISTS WHICH YOU MENTIONED.
IN 2018, THE ISRAELIS PENETRATED
INTO TEHRAN, THE CAPITAL OF
IRAN, AND TOOK OUT OF A SECURE
WAREHOUSE A HALF A TON OF
CLASSIFIED INFORMATION WHICH
THEY TURNED OVER TO THE UN
INSPECTORS AND THEY DOCUMENTED
THE FACT THAT IRAN WAS
DEVELOPING A NUCLEAR WEAPON.
WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE?
THIS IS A COVERT ESPIONAGE
CAMPAIGN, LIKELY BEING CONDUCTED
BY THE ISRAELIS, AND BEING
ASSISTED BY INFORMANTS INSIDE
IRAN AND OTHERS WHO ARE PART OF
THE RESISTANCE MOVEMENT IN IRAN.
ERIC:  THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF
RESISTANCE OF IRAN, HUGE GROUP
THAT HAVE A LOT OF PEOPLE OUT
THERE ON THE GROUND, POTENTIALLY
HELPING OUT IN THIS?
>> YEAH, I DON’T THINK MASSAD
WHO IS LIKELY EXECUTING THIS
COULD DO IT WITHOUT ASSISTANCE.
THE MOST SECRET SITES THAT IRAN
HAD WERE DISCLOSED TO US A
NUMBER OF YEARS AGO AND THAT
CAME AS A RESULT OF INFORMANTS
WHO KNEW WHERE THOSE SITES WERE.
SO I THINK THERE’S LOGICALLY
SOME COOPERATION.
I BELIEVE IT’S A SMART STRATEGY.
IF YOU ACCEPT THE OBJECTIVE THAT
WE DON’T WANT IRAN TO HAVE
NUCLEAR WEAPONS WITH MISSILES
THAT CAN DELIVER THEM AND I’M
ONE OF THOSE WHO SUPPORTS THAT.
THEN THE STRATEGY THAT THE
ISRAELIS ARE DOING, LIKELY WITH
SUPPORT FROM THE UNITED STATES,
AT LEAST IN TERMS OF MORAL
SUPPORT, ANY INTELLIGENCE THEY
COULD GIVE WOULD ASSIST THEM,
IT’S FAIRLY SAVVY.
HERE’S WHY.
BECAUSE IT GIVES THE ISRAELI’S
DENYABLEITY.
WHAT WE’RE NOT DEALING WITH IS
AIR STRIKES THAT ARE GOING INTO
THE MISSILE SITES AND NUCLEAR
SITES, OBVIOUSLY IT WOULD BE
KNOWN THAT THE ISRAELIS ARE
DELIVERING THAT AND THAT WOULD
FORCE THE IRANIANS TO DO WHAT?
TO ESCALATE UP.
AND THIS GIVES THEM THE
CAPABILITY OF DENYING IT AND
MAKING THEM MUCH MORE PATIENT
AND LESS LIKELY TO HAVE THIS
CYBER ESPIONAGE AND ALSO KINETIC
ESPIONAGE WHICH WE’RE SEEING
LEAD TO WAR.
IRANIANS DON’T WANT THAT.
AND THE ISRAELIS I THINK ARE
EXECUTING THEIR STRATEGY WHICH
RIGHT NOW ALREADY HAS SLOWED THE
PROGRAM DOWN A YEAR OR TWO AND
THEY MAY NOT BE FINISHED YET.
ERIC:  QUICKLY, 30 SECONDS, DO
YOU THINK WE HAVE OTHER ALLEGED
-- WE ALLEGEDLY HAVE OTHER
TRICKS UP OUR SLEEVES TO TRY TO
SET THE NUCLEAR PROGRAM BACK?
>> OH, YES.
AND CERTAINLY CYBER ACTIVITY IS
ONE OF OUR OF STRONGEST SUITS
AND ALSO ONE OF THE ISRAELI’S
SUITS AS WELL.
NO, THEY’RE NOT FINISHED AND --
BUT I DO THINK -- I DON’T
BELIEVE THE IRANIANS ARE GOING
TO RESPOND VERY STRONGLY BECAUSE
I BELIEVE THEY’RE WAITING FOR
THE NOVEMBER EVIDENCE EXES IN
THE -- NOVEMBER ELECTIONS IN THE
UNITED STATES TO SEE WHO WINS
THE ELECTION TO DETERMINE WHO
THEY SHOULD NEGOTIATE WITH.
ERIC:  ALL RIGHT.
AND IF FORMER VICE PRESIDENT
BIDEN IS ELECTED, HOW DO YOU
THINK THAT WILL IMPACT THEIR
THINKING?
>> WELL, I CAN’T PREDICT WHAT
VICE PRESIDENT BIDEN WOULD DO AS
PRESIDENT.
BUT I CAN SAY HE WAS PART OF THE
TEAM THAT CONSTRUED THE NUCLEAR
DEAL WHICH BROUGHT US TO THIS
DEBACLE THAT WE’RE DEALING WITH,
WHICH PERMITS IRAN ACTUALLY TO
ACQUIRE A NUCLEAR WEAPON WHEN
YOU WOULD THINK THE PURPOSE OF
THE NUCLEAR DEAL WOULD OF BE TO
PREVENT THEM FROM HAVING ONE.
SO CERTAINLY HE COULD BE
SERIOUSLY ALONG THOSE LINES
AGAIN BUT HOPEFULLY NOT.
ERIC:  YEAH.
NO SUNSET CLAUSE ON THAT.
