Transcript:
The Inside Story: Mideast Tensions
Episode 140 - April 18, 2024
Show Open:
Unidentified Narrator:
This week on the Inside Story...
The Israel Hamas conflict expands its scope as Iran missiles and drones are intercepted, and the Israeli Cabinet debates its response.
In Nigeria, ten years after hundreds of girls were kidnapped by Boko Haram extremists the fate of 82 remains unknown, and kidnappings continue.
And history is made in New York City as former President Donald Trump sits for the first of four criminal trials scheduled to begin during his campaign for the US Presidency.
Now... On the Inside Story: Mideast Tensions.
The Inside Story:
CARLA BABB, VOA Correspondent:
Welcome to The Inside Story. I’m Carla Babb.
World leaders are calling for restraint after Iran and its proxies launched more than 300 missiles and drones toward Israel on April 13 and 14. Western officials say the attack was an Iranian failure as it failed to cause significant injuries or damage.
The attack came less than two weeks after an Israeli strike in Syria killed 13 people, including at least three senior Iranian commanders. VOA’s Arash Arabasadi has more.
ARASH ARABASADI, VOA Correspondent:
A barrage of objects streaks across the night sky from Bethlehem in the West Bank amid drone and missile attacks from Iran toward Israel.
The Israeli military says the Islamic Republic launched more than 300 such projectiles but said it, with help from the U.S. and partners shot down 99-percent of them.
Iran has warned it would hit Israel in retaliation after a suspected Israeli airstrike earlier this month destroyed the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria, killing 12 including two top Iranian generals.
U.S. President Joe Biden issued a statement on X, formerly Twitter, confirming U.S. involvement in the operation and reaffirming what he calls “America’s ironclad commitment to the security of Israel.”
His presumptive opponent for the 2024 presidential election, former President Donald Trump, took to his social media platform to say without evidence the attack would never have happened if he were president.
By all accounts, the damage inside Israel was minimal. Something Iranian Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian describes as deliberate.
At a recent news conference in Tehran, he said Iran communicated the attack to the White House and regional neighbors in what he called a “legitimate defense and punishment of the Israeli regime.”
But by Sunday morning, Biden administration officials took a victory lap for the coordinated defense against Iran’s barrage.
John Kirby, White House National Security Spokesman:
Truly a successful night due to a lot of skill (and) a lot of professionalism and a lot of coordination across the board. Israel succeeded in defending itself, and the United States certainly made good on our commitment to help them do that.
ARASH ARABASADI:
U.S. lawmakers supporting Israel’s self-defense rejected the idea of a broadening regional conflict that would include American soldiers.
Rep. Mike Turner, Republican:
I don’t think at this point that the United States should be involved in military action directly at Iran, but I do believe if this administration fails to step up to the plate and understand that we have an escalating conflict and make it clear to Iran that there are red lines. And that the United States will defend Israel and will not allow Iran to become a weapon state and that we will be in a broader conflict, and we will have less options.
ARASH ARABASADI:
Video from Iran after the attack shows people celebrating in Tehran, waving both Iranian and Palestinian flags as their country’s leadership vows ongoing solidarity with Palestinians amid the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
Arash Arabasadi, VOA News.
CARLA BABB:
Here’s how officials say the attack unfolded.
Between April 13 and April 14 Iran and its proxies launched more than 150 drones and about 150 missiles from Iran, Iraq, Syria and Yemen toward Israel over the span of several hours.
Israel’s Iron Dome air defense system staved off missile attacks. Jordanian aircraft shot down drones coming through its skies as U.S. forces shot down more than 80 of those drones and 6 missiles. The U.K. and France also shot down an unspecified number of aerial threats. Saudi Arabia and the UAE provided intel to the coalition.
Officials say none of the drones survived this defense and only about 5 missiles made it through, causing little damage, so little damage that there is some pressure from inside and outside Israel suggesting no response to the attack is necessary and could prolong attempts to get Israeli hostages home.
But many Israelis say something must be done to preserve the idea that Israel always responds.
Linda Gradstein reports.
LINDA GRADSTEIN, VOA Correspondent:
Iran’s attack, with hundreds of missiles fired simultaneously, was unprecedented.
So was the international cooperation to intercept them, with the U.S., Jordan, and Britain working together.
As the international community urges restraint, some in Israel say the Jewish state must respond.
Yossi Kuperwasser, Former Military Intelligence Official:
I think we cannot leave this open file without some retaliation, but the kind of retaliation is going to be measured in the sense that Israel doesn’t want to lead to a regional war.
LINDA GRADSTEIN:
Israeli media reports say two former chiefs of staff in the war cabinet, Benny Gantz and Gadi Eisenkot, wanted to strike back at Iran while the Iranian attack was under way, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said no.
Other Israeli intelligence analysts say the damage was limited and Israel can choose not to respond further.
Sima Shine, Analyst on Iran:
I’m sure Israel will be able in the future to retaliate in Iran in a different way. We have a lot of capabilities and I think it will be more devastating for the Iranians if Israel succeeded, and Israel has to contribute to that in order that it will work, change the architecture of the Middle East, in a way that it will be understood that Iran is with its proxies, but all the others are actually cooperating against Iran and its proxies.
LINDA GRADSTEIN:
Iran’s attack came as Israel is under growing international criticism for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza that has left hundreds of thousands of Palestinians facing famine.
The U.S. has been pushing Israel to accept a cease-fire that would lead to freedom for the remaining 133 Israeli hostages that Hamas militants took hostage in October, although it’s not clear how many are still alive.
There is concern in Israel that retaliating against Iran could lead to even more pressure on Israel to withdraw from Gaza before it has reached its goals.
Linda Gradstein, VOA News, Jerusalem.
CARLA BABB:
Amidst the Iranian Israeli back and forth, the Iraqi Prime Minister was in the US this week for talks with US President Biden.
The country, so long a focus of US policy in the Middle East now finds itself stuck in the middle, both geographically and diplomatically in the long-running conflict between Iran and Israel.
Anita Powell reports.
ANITA POWELL, VOA White House Correspondent:
Iraq’s leader already had lots of ground to cover with President Joe Biden before this weekend’s stunning Iranian attack on Israel raised fears of a wider regional war.
Even though the U.S. is describing the aerial assault as a failure, Iraq’s leader acknowledged that the conflict between Israel and Hamas is of major concern in the region.
Mohammed Shia al-Sudani, Prime Minister of Iraq:
We are actually very eager about stopping this war, which claimed the lives of thousands of civilians, women and children. And we encourage all the efforts about stopping the expansion of the area of conflict.
ANITA POWELL:
The two nations have a delicate relationship after decades of U.S. military involvement in Iraq. U.S. anti-aircraft assets in northern Iraq were used to shoot down some of the Iranian missiles.
Biden said Iraq – a longtime adversary of Iran – has a role to play in maintaining peace.
President Joe Biden:
Simply put, our partnership is pivotal for our nations, for the Middle East, and I believe, for the world.
ANITA POWELL:
Earlier Monday, al-Sudani’s deputy met with U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, and both hailed the regional cooperation that thwarted the attack and urged de-escalation.
Antony Blinken, US Secretary of State:
I think what this weekend demonstrated is that Israel did not have to and does not have to defend itself alone when it is the victim of an aggression, the victim of an attack. In the 36 hours since, we have been coordinating a diplomatic response to seek to prevent escalation. Strength and wisdom need to be sent to the same sides, the different sides of the same coin.
Muhammad Ali Tamim, Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister:
We call on all parties for self-restraint and respect the rules and also international norms that we set.
ANITA POWELL:
Monday’s high-profile Washington meetings come right after this stunning attack, so no major bilateral moves were announced – but analysts say there are things Iraqi leadership can do.
Daniel Byman, Center for Strategic and International Studies:
Iraq needs to make its preference for reduced escalation clear. And that's both talking to the Iranians, but also talking to other Arab states and talking to the United States that this is negative from Iraq's point of view, and that it wants all the powers to take responsible action to try to reduce escalation.
ANITA POWELL:
As Israel mulls its response, regional actors are not sitting still. On Monday, Iraq’s president met with the king of Jordan. According to Jordan’s royal court, they spoke about the dangers of this conflict escalating further.
Anita Powell, VOA News, the White House.
CARLA BABB:
The United Nations Security Council held an emergency meeting on that attack, where UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres condemned the aerial assault and called for a de-escalation of the conflict.
Antonio Guterres, United Nations Secretary General:
The Middle East is on the brink. The people of the region are confronting a real danger of a devastating full-scale conflict. Now is the time to defuse and de-escalate. Now is the time for maximum restraint. I strongly condemn the serious escalation represented by the largescale attack launched on Israel by the Islamic Republic of Iran this evening. I call for an immediate cessation of these hostilities.
We have a shared responsibility to secure an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in Gaza, the unconditional release of all hostages, and the unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid. We have a shared responsibility to stop violence in the occupied West Bank, deescalate the situation along the Blue Line, and re-establish safe navigation in the Red Sea. We have a shared responsibility to work for peace. Regional – and indeed global -- peace and security are being undermined by the hour. Neither the region nor the world can afford more war.
CARLA BABB:
U.S. presidential candidates Joe Biden and Donald Trump are both supporting Israel in the war in Gaza and in its hostilities with Iran. VOA correspondent Scott Stearns reports on how events in the Middle East are shaping U.S. politics.
SCOTT STEARNS, VOA correspondent:
Iran’s attack on Israel and America’s role in the Middle East as issues in this U.S. presidential campaign are a contest over which candidate backs Israel most.
As incumbent, President Joe Biden oversaw the U.S. response to the attack and reaffirmed U.S. support for Israel in a meeting with the Iraqi prime minister.
President Joe Biden:
The United States is committed to Israel's security. We're committed to a cease-fire that will bring the hostages home and prevent the conflict from spreading beyond what it already has. We're also committed to the security of our personnel and partners in the region, including Iraq.
SCOTT STEARNS:
Politically, Biden is facing competing calls to do more to help secure the release of hostages held by Hamas and to get tougher with Israel over its attacks in Gaza.
His opponent, Donald Trump, says none of the violence in the Middle East would have happened if he were still president.
Donald Trump:
I want to say, God bless the people of Israel. They're under attack right now. That's, that's because we show great weakness. This would not happen. The weakness that we've shown is unbelievable. And it would not have happened if we were in office. You know that they know that. Everybody knows that.
SCOTT STEARNS:
The Trump campaign is working to portray Biden as weak on Israel on Trump’s social media platform and through Republican lawmakers, including House Speaker Mike Johnson.
Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House:
Joe Biden has transformed into an anti-Israel president. There's really no other way to characterize it. He's more concerned, seemingly, with placating the antisemitism in his base than standing with our historic and vitally important ally.
SCOTT STEARNS:
In the Midwestern state of Michigan, voter Carol Plisner says Biden needs to keep up his support for Israel.
Carol Plisner, Michigan Voter:
I think initially, President Biden's response to the situation was helpful, and it was supportive. I think as time has gone on, that has become more questionable. And I think that the United States needs to have a stance that is deeply protective of democracy across the world, and that means deeply respective, deeply respectful, respectful of Israel.
SCOTT STEARNS:
Biden’s support for Israel in Gaza is reason to oppose him, says Michigan voter Mohamed Mawri.
Mohamed Mawri, Michigan Voter:
He's complicit in a catastrophe that's happening thousands of miles away. People think that it's not hurting us, but it is. We're aiding it with our money.
SCOTT STEARNS:
Polling by Pew Research last month showed deep divides on the issue, with about 20 percent of U.S. voters saying Biden is striking the right balance, another 20 percent saying he is favoring Israel, and 16 percent saying he is favoring Palestinians. The largest group in that poll was not sure how well Biden is handling the issue.
Scott Stearns, VOA News.
CARLA BABB:
We head now to Africa, where ten years ago, the Islamist terror group Boko Haram abducted hundreds of schoolgirls were abducted. Many escaped or gained freedom through negotiations, but the fate of 82 girls hangs on the hope of reviving a once-vibrant advocacy group. The “Bring Back Our Girls,” or BBOG group, dominated global headlines after the 2014 abduction. In the decade since the raid, mass abductions have become frequent, and activists have grown weary. Timothy Obiezu reports from Abuja.
TIMOTHY OBIEZU, VOA Correspondent:
This public park was once a symbol of hope and resilience, but now it holds memories of a struggle to save 82 schoolgirls still in captivity from the 276 kidnapped by Boko haram on April 14, 2014, from Chibok secondary school.
One of them is Nkeki Mutah’s niece.
Nkeki Mutah, Relative of Chibok Girl:
Every day in the morning, in the afternoon, we feel pain because of the absence of our niece. We heard that some of them are dead and that is what we're advocating for. If the government can be kind enough to tell us or release the names of those that are dead so we can forget about it.
TIMOTHY OBIEZU:
Days following the kidnappings, activists coalesced and started the Bring Back Our Girls or BBOG movement, demanding their rescue.
Back then, the group met here daily, and their campaign sparked global outrage. But not anymore.
Allen Manasseh, Chibok Community Spokesperson:
There is fatigue in the struggle. When the bring back our girls started... was gaining traction globally, there were lots of responses from even foreign governments ready to support Nigeria.
TIMOTHY OBIEZU:
So far, 194 girls have returned, either by escaping or they were freed through government negotiations.
But the threat of mass kidnapping remains. Amnesty International says Nigeria has recorded 17 cases in which at least 1,700 children were seized from school since Chibok.
Recent attacks have been perpetrated by armed gangs known as bandits. The gangs often demand huge ransoms to free their captives.
Nigerian authorities say they have not forgotten those in captivity.
Gen. Christopher Musa, Nigeria Defense Chief:
If we were using the conventional methods of fighting, we would’ve entered all the communities and flattened everything to start all over, but we can’t do that because we know there are non-state actors holding other people against their will, we have to be very deliberate. There are instances when we’ve gone for attack but because civilians were there... we call off the strike.
TIMOTHY OBIEZU:
Families and BBOG activists disagree. They say authorities have not shown the political will to address the problem.
On Sunday, they remembered the girls on the 10th year anniversary of their abduction.
Florence Ozor, BBOG Leader:
Unfortunately, the Chibok girls’ abduction was the beginning of countless abductions that has led to a thriving abduction industry in our nation since the government has refused to bring the abductors of our Chibok girls to justice.
Allen Manasseh, Chibok Community Spokesperson:
“Sadly, you could see people that are supposed to take the necessary action especially the security agencies providing excuses that the children have been taken to a difficult terrain to be [able to] access. If the terrorists can access a difficult terrain. why cannot our security forces?
TIMOTHY OBIEZU:
Until the girls are freed, many like Mutah will be waiting for some sense of closure.
Timothy Obiezu, VOA news Abuja, Nigeria.
CARLA BABB:
A private high school in California is providing scholarships to three refugee students from Ukraine and Afghanistan. VOA’s Genia Dulot has the story of an American educator who has opened her home to two of them as they complete their studies.
GENIA DULOT, VOA Correspondent:
High school student Yeva Cherkasova-Shekera was studying in Kiev when Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022.
Yeva Cherkasova-Shekera, Ukrainian Student:
I would never think that I would really experience war, all these bombs, which I really witnessed.
GENIA DULOT:
When the women in her family fled to Poland, she reached out to High Bluff Academy here in San Diego, California, and got a full scholarship.
Yeva Cherkasova-Shekera, Ukrainian Student:
After all these inhumane things, coming here and seeing that people here want to embrace me with their hearts, and all the kindness they give me, I think this is the biggest thing to always remember - there always should be faith for better.
GENIA DULOT:
School founder Jill Duoto sent the teen airline tickets and is paying for her education here.
Jill Duoto, High Bluff Academy Founder:
I’ve always wanted to help. There are so many people in need — where do you start? I’ve always donated money to charity, but you don’t get the same sense of satisfaction just writing a check to an organization, and you never see where it goes. You never interact with the people that you’re helping. And so this has been really rewarding experience for me.
GENIA DULOT:
About one-third of the students here are international. Mohammad and Aqila Mohammadi are siblings who escaped to Pakistan with their family following the 2021 Taliban takeover of Afghanistan. Duoto helped the students get visas and brought them to Southern California.
Aqila Mohammadi, Afghan Student:
For me, Jill is just, I feel like more than a mother. She did a really amazing thing for us, and she is doing really amazing things for us. Without her, we were lost. If she wasn’t here with us, we wouldn’t be here sitting here right now.
GENIA DULOT:
When Duoto couldn’t find host families for the brother and sister, she took them into her home herself. She also helped guide studies that will have all three of the students graduating from high school this year. For college, Aqila Mohammadi wants to major in biology. Cherkasova-Shekera plans to study marketing. Mohammad Mohammadi says he wants to be an electrical engineer.
Mohammad Mohammadi, Afghan Student:
I do want to major in computer science and engineering. I really want to fill the gaps in my education from Afghanistan, especially in mathematics, and improve my English.
GENIA DULOT:
Duoto is also collaborating with a learning center in Afghanistan to help Afghan girls complete their studies online and receive high school diplomas from High Bluff Academy so they can apply to universities abroad.
Genia Dulot, VOA News, San Diego, California.
CARLA BABB:
Now our weekly look at the US Presidential election. We head to a New York City courtroom for a historic first... a criminal trial of a former US President finally got underway this week. The trial is the first of four different criminal trials scheduled during the ramp up to the November elections. Aron Ranen has more.
ARON RANEN, VOA Correspondent:
Donald Trump is forced to leave the presidential campaign trail and take a seat in the courtroom yet again. The former president faces criminal charges related to a $130,000 payment from his attorney Michael Cohen to a former porn star Stormy Daniels shortly before the 2016 election.
The prosecutors argue the payment was made to silence her about an alleged sexual encounter with Trump, who was married at the time. He is accused of falsely categorizing these payments as legal expenses in his financial reports.
Alvin Bragg, New York City District Attorney:
Under New York State law it is a felony to falsify business records with intent to defraud, and an intent to conceal another crime. That is exactly what this case is about – 34 false statements made to cover up other crimes. These are felony crimes in New York State. No matter who you are.
ARON RANEN:
Trump has pleaded not guilty to all charges and claims this is a politically motivated case.
Donald Trump, Republican Presidential Candidate:
It's a shame. It's a shame what's happening to our country. This is election interference. They are doing things that have never been done in this country before.
ARON RANEN:
Trump's return to the courtroom has stirred fresh debate among New Yorkers, with opinions sharply divided on the upcoming trial.
Shaina Jones Magrone, New York City Resident:
President Trump is a citizen just like everyone else, or a resident, just like everyone else in the United States he's subject to the same laws and responsibilities as we all are.
Ruben Borukhov, New York City Resident:
Actually, nobody else would have been charged. It's only Trump that's getting charged for something that never happened.
ARON RANEN
Former New York City prosecutor Bernarda Villalona says Trump faces 34 counts of falsifying business records.
Bernarda Villalona, Former Prosecutor:
He faces a maximum of four years in jail per count. But also, there's no mandatory minimums. Will he go to jail here in New York State? I highly doubt it, that even with going to trial that a judge would sentence him to jail.
ARON RANEN:
New York University law professor Richard Pildes says this trial is historic.
Richard Pildes, New York University:
It's certainly unprecedented in American history for a former president to be criminally prosecuted. There have been prosecutions, successful criminal prosecutions in some countries of former prime ministers. So, it's not unprecedented in a kind of a global perspective. But certainly in the United States, we've never been in a situation like this before.
ARON RANEN:
As the former President mounts his defense against these charges, observers watch and await the outcome.
Aron Ranen, VOA News, New York City.
CARLA BABB:
Thank you for joining us on The Inside Story.
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For all of those behind the scenes who brought you today’s show, I’m Carla Babb.
We’ll see you next week for The Inside Story.
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