The Phantom Ceasefire is simply Trump’s off ramp. He announces a ceasefire and bows out, having been advised that regime change would only be achievable with extreme military commitment and massive cost in lives and treasure.
You can never trust the Israelis – or indeed the Americans – with either a ceasefire or a negotiation. Reuters reported that a senior Iranian official had confirmed the ceasefire had been agreed. Israel then repeated precisely what I had seen in Beirut – massive carpet bombing of the city just before the 3.30am deadline for the Israel/Iran ceasefire.
That picture is Beirut literally minutes before the ceasefire came into effect. Israel then proceeded to violate the ceasefire anyway, and has done so virtually every single day in the past months of ceasefire, often several times a day, racking up over 1,000 violations.
The Iranians very sensibly responded to last night’s carpet bombing with a missile salvo. Israel has claimed a violation of the ceasefire (as ever the aggressor is the “victim”) and fighting has resumed.
I believe this may be for the best. Although it does benefit Netanyahu – who for domestic reasons is desperate to avoid peace – the Israelis would never have observed a ceasefire and would have used it to replenish their exhausted missile defence systems, with help from the USA, UK and the other genocide participants.
The Iranian “attack” on the US airbase in Qatar was purely performative. They used old, expendable, low-level missiles certain to be shot down and warned that they were coming. It was part of the structure of Trump’s off ramp.
So the question now is whether Netanyahu can drag Trump back into the war. I am hopeful he will not. Trump will be able to say that he has, with his strikes on Iran, redeemed the hundreds of millions of Zionist dollars that got him elected. I guess we will discover in the next week or two whether that money really is all that was motivating him, or whether Musk was right about Trump’s appearance in the Epstein files. For what it is worth, I think that Trump’s street cunning and independent access to East European models were probably enough to keep him out of that trap. But we will see,
Without the USA, Netanyahu has opened a war that will not remain popular very long. Keeping Israel’s settler colonists – who are hilariously cowardly when faced with anybody who can actually fight back – locked in as human shields is going to have interesting social consequences for the terrorist entity.
Meanwhile the shooting of Palestinians in the Gaza food queues and the dispossessions and killings in the West Bank continue apace.
The UK government is sending planes to bring back dual UK/Israeli nationals. That includes active IDF participants in genocide.
FCDO official guidance reads:
Lammy has made a decision to airlift back those Israeli passport-carrying colonists who are also British nationals. This directly contradicts British government longstanding policy of not assisting dual nationals in their country of second nationality. This policy is normally rigorously enforced, even (and perhaps especially) in times of war. There is a huge contrast between the red carpet for Israeli war criminals returning to the UK and the appalling treatment of thousands of British Sudanese families in the 2023 evacuation from Khartoum.
The Iranians have already done a great service to humanity by puncturing the facade of Israeli invincibility. They have also laid bare the appalling Zionism of Arab ruling elites and their sectarian propagandists, in a way which they believe the Arab populations understand. The ramifications of the last two weeks following Israel’s attack on Iran will play out over years. But this is part of the process of the disintegration of the colonial settler state.
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“…Israel’s settler colonists – who are hilariously cowardly when faced with anybody who can actually fight back.”
As a self-professed historian, I assume you meant that Israeli cowardice developed after the 1948 War, the Six Day War, War of Attrition and Yom Kippur?
“War of Attrition”.
I see, you’re a very well educated commenter. Yes, like in meatloaf, all these ingredients must be combined (and shaken, not stirred, like in a good Martini)…
A “self-professed historian”? IMHO this does not do Ambassador Craig Murray justice. I would have said “a person with a passion for History, who made himself expert at University by voracious reading, graduated with the highest honours, and later became an independent research scholar and author of books on History in his own right, on Africa, and on an adventurer in the British Indian empire”.
I haven’t begun to talk about his sky-high career as a diplomat, or his impressively many-sided activism afterwards, including an autobiography adapted for stage and television and still in print, and a well-known blog. I’ll leave that to others. 😊
Craig doesn’t seem to share your admiration for the great RAF airlift of genocidal IDF rapists and baby killers.
My admiration is for the airlift, not war crimes. I hope the torturers and murderers of Sde Teiman, or other war criminals, have Justice catch up with them.
Anybody who uses the meme “war of attrition” is just an illiterate joker.
Besides, not many historians are former AMBASSADORS. So obviously, the owner of this blog knows very little competition.
Jetlag is something. Ask the American B-2 pilots who flew over 30 hours to Iran and back. But even in business class, a New York to London trip can be extremely exhausting. In any case, we’re so glad that new posts now come almost daily!
‘War of Attrition’ was the series of conflicts, mainly between Israel and Egypt, between 1967 and 1970.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_Attrition
Never believe Wikipedia. This site is sponsored by Intelligence Services, and edited by ignorant morons.
Whenever my daughter who teaches at college level finds anything from Wikipedia in her students’ essays, she gives them a D grade. Same with AI production…
He’s talking about the Genocide in Gaza, snipering toddlers, wrecking ICU units, posing with the toys of babies they’ve murdered, wearing dresses of women they’ve raped and murdered. Yet found incredibly wanting as men when confronted with Hamas or Hezbollah.
As an admirer of settler colonialism, I’m guessing the U stands for Unionist. I’m sure Craig gives “Northern Ireland” an even shorter remaining timespan than the imperialists’ loyal little Jewish Ulster in West Asia.
Well said Cowards agaiast Real Warriors
No – the settlers’ cowardice was not only developed after those wars but it was evident during them too.
Unless you think school shooters are brave.
Thanks, Craig (and especially for your previous article illustrating how zionists and their stooges have infiltrated most of the key institutions in the UK). You may know her, but I do recommend Avigail Abarbanel’s articles on Substack.
https://avigail.substack.com
Avigail was born in Israel, which she subsequently abandoned and renounced, but has kept up a flow of insightful articles based on her knowledge of Hebrew and her analysis of the sociopathic mindset of the Israeli public sphere. She formerly wrote some standout pieces for Mondoweiss, which is where I first came across her work. She is now based in Scotland which may be of interest to you.
Her piece on the deteriorating economic and social climate inside Israel, never reported or acknowledged in the West, is particularly interesting :
https://avigail.substack.com/p/whats-going-on-inside-israel-right
Thanks for the links, the article “What’s Going On Inside Israel Right Now?” is a real eye-opener.
Ian, thank you for introducing me to Avigail’s work. Looks like I will be reading her articles regularly from now on.
“But this is part of the process of the disintegration of the colonial settler state.”
One sincerely hopes that is the case. The Zionists control the global banking system – and own the Federal Reserve in the USA. Hence the subservience of politicians everywhere. It is also their weakest and most vulnerable pillar. It wouldn’t be difficult to bring the entire edifice down.
I suspect that if there are any ‘violations’ of the ceasefire from Iran, it will be rogue Mossad agents firing missiles from just inside the Iranian border.
I don’t believe Israel would ever agree to a ceasefire if they had not completely won the battle.
This is just an excuse for them to continue “defending themselves”, and they believe the West is so gullible they will fall for it. Presumably the BBC and the Guardian will.
Musk Trump Epstein – we know Trump is in the flight logs – that was not a secret.
So Epsteing revealed nothing, just his bad temper.
So the pressure is already on Trump to enter potentially WW3 to help Israel again.
He will do it – He has no real option but to do so (other than being a real hero).
Michael, a slave cannot refuse the commands of his owner, and Trump is a bought and paid for catamite of the Zionist gang.
Trump was certainly under no pressure to cease fire from the other wing of US oligarchy’s bird of prey.
People with long memories will recall that the entire Democratic Party/Kamala Harris presidential campaign was based on calling Trump a maniacal fascist and racist, and equating him to Hitler.
But over the last week the Democrats displayed zero interest in limiting Hitler’s war powers, because the party’s senior leadership is just as loyal to AIPAC and supports what Trump did.
re: Iran and women
Since Craig touched the topic a few days ago I pasted a couple of posts from Twitter on this subject which I ran across yesterday in the new Iran thread in the Forum here:
https://www.craigmurray.org.uk/forums/topic/the-propaganda-war-with-iran/#post-104461
I love this blog, but can you please spare us the constant vision of BBC News screen grabs, or other MSM horror shows. Those who can stomach such disturbing spectacles can do it on their own. Please.
No matter what some the dross in here says about this article, it’s an excellent one in my eyes, and several others eyes as well.
The Zionists and Yanks can’t be trusted – the Zionists are committing genocide and have attacked Lebanon and Syria in recent times – they think because they have an American attack dog in the form of the, USA that thy can bomb, murder and commit genocide with impunity.
Iran can’t let its guard down for a second .
We all know, from the evidence of Gaza, Lebanon and Syria, that a ‘ceasefire’ means that the side Israel has attacked must stop retaliating and defending itself (since no other state has the ‘right’ to defend itself according to them). And that they will take the advantage of such a ‘ceasefire’ to continue to shoot, kill and destroy the opposing party and their infrastructure, particularly hospitals, schools and homes. They, after, have ‘god-given’ right to destroy others, and do it with the looting of the American taxbase. Such paragons of virtue, such an example to demagogues, fascists and authoritarians everywhere. Especially when you have your agents and lobbies inside every Western institution, and threaten the jobs and livelihoods of anyone who merely voices an opinion, or evidence, that they don’t want the population to hear.
Here is a classic example of the paranoid cult-like victimhood that operates at senior levels of management and public institutions. A NHS doctor has been censured for the ‘crime’ of having a picture in the background with a watermelon in it. Really. Supposedly the red and green of the melon signify Palestinian support. Which in itself is, of course, not a crime – yet, although clearly these institutions wish to make it so. In fact why would he have to hide this alleged support, if it is not a crime to say that he supports Palestinians in their appalling suffering under genocide? The fact that these zionist stooges and accomplices believe people creep around making secret signs to one another merely confirms that they already think and act as if open and honest Palestinian support is proscribed, and therefore it must be disguised. The very epitome of paranoid victimhood and the cult of zionist thinking, not to mention its arrogant assumption that people who do so, without any suggestion of supporting violence or terrorism, should be silence and sacked.
It is a monstrous exercise in thought policing, suppression of legitimate discussion and debate, all taken by a foreign state which, whatever Starmer and Lammy claim, is in no way an ‘ally’ of the British people – how could they be when they assume the right to grossly interfere in the internal politics of this country?
You can support these doctors here, a very worthwhile cause in my opinion, as they seek to take their management to court – although the legal system in this country is also compromised, we can hope that the law is observed for once. It is an important principle:
https://www.crowdjustice.com/case/bhs4p/
Lots of heartening comments by people who have donated.
You know what. Herbie Hancock was stopped at border control several times
https://youtu.be/Qt8agHeK1as?si=6jjFjX-K2NMqbR1w
Soon, the NHS will be taken over, thanks to the trade deal the Donald has gently granted to the UNITED KINGDOM.
And another case of unbridled zionist aggression against British people and their rights:
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/jun/22/israel-palestine-action-uk-government-terrorism-sally-rooney
As the headline says: “Israel kills innocent Palestinians. Activists spray-paint a plane. Guess which the UK government calls terrorism”
the Irish do not have a problem with calling out the abusive outrages of the zionist agenda and its craven accomplices.
I’ve signed up as a supporter of Palestine Action. It’s frre. let’s see what happens when that organisation is procribed
I suggest you leave the organisation swiftly, before it is proscribed. Otherwise you could be in serious trouble.
I don’t mean that you shouldn’t continue opposing Israel’s apartheid and genocide (as defined by Amnesty International), of course.
The British government sends military jets to Cyprus and Egypt – to evacuate Brits.
https://www.glasgowlive.co.uk/news/world-news/uk-sends-teams-cyprus-egypt-31923226?int_source=nba
These words from Mark Rutte, NATO secretary general, are so repulsive as not to require comment. His message, addressed to Donald Trump, reads:
“Congratulations and thank you for your decisive action in Iran, that was truly extraordinary, and something no one else dared to do. It makes us all safer. You are flying into another big success in The Hague this evening. You will achieve something NO American president in decades could get done. Europe is going to pay in a BIG way, as they should, and it will be your win.“