Ana Kasparian Confronts IDF Spox: “Is There a Problem With the War You Ordered?”
Ana Kasparian, executive producer and host of “The Young Turks,” engaged in a heated debate with Lt. Col. Avital Leibovich, the IDF spokesperson, on Al Arabiya English, discussing the ongoing conflict involving Iran.
Kasparian expressed strong criticism of Iran’s actions, stating, “They knew eventually the Israelis were going to attack with the help of the United States.” She added, “Now, even if the U.S. wants to pull out, Iran wants to keep going. Congratulations. And the relationship between younger Americans and the Israelis is never going to be repaired after this. Just remember that. A huge liability to our country.”
She continued, questioning Leibovich: “I’m sorry, is there a problem with the war you ordered? You don’t get to play the victim card right now. This is a war Israel wanted. This is a war that you’re cheerleading right now.”
Leibovich responded by outlining the Israeli objectives, stating, “That’s why the question is always what you want to achieve, because at the end of the day there are four objectives here.”
Kasparian countered, “That’s interesting because the Israelis have a different objective from Trump. The Israelis have their own objective.” Leibovich clarified, “OK, so I’m describing the Israeli objective.”
Kasparian criticized the situation further, saying, “They’re bumbling and fumbling. They started a war. Seven of our soldiers are dead. One hundred fifty of our soldiers are already wounded. We get no benefit from this war whatsoever. Iran did not have a nuclear arsenal.”
She emphasized, “This war was never about a nuclear arsenal for the Israelis. This was always about toppling a regime, and that regime is not going to be toppled.”
Kasparian also pointed out, “And by the way, one other thing – George was talking about the key to ending this war. You know there’s one key that you’re forgetting about, George, which is the fact that the Iranians have signaled now multiple times that they’re not interested in a ceasefire.”
Leibovich acknowledged, “You are right, Avital – they have been preparing for this war for a very long time. They knew about the aggression that gets carried out by the Israelis in that region of the world. They knew eventually the Israelis were going to attack with the help of the United States.”
Leibovich then asked, “What kind of aggression are you talking about? Iran is two thousand kilometers away from Israel – what kind of aggression?”
Kasparian replied, “And now, even if the U.S. wants to pull out, Iran wants to keep going. Congratulations. Congratulations.”
She reiterated her point, “And the relationship between younger Americans and the Israelis is never going to be repaired after this. Just remember that. A huge liability to our country.”
Leibovich responded, “A country which for 47 consecutive years chants ‘Death to Israel, death to America, death to the U.K.’ and educates generations and generations of kids to hate.”
Kasparian countered, “I don’t know exactly what Israel has -”
Leibovich interjected, “We’ve heard from a lot of young Israelis. They don’t seem very loving when it comes to their Arab neighbors.”
Leibovich then mentioned, “Israel only for the first time attacked Iran a year and a half ago, and by the way -”
Kasparian challenged, “What are you talking about? Israel on a regular basis attacks Iran.”
Leibovich explained, “In the past 12 days, 14 Israeli civilians have been killed by Iranian ballistic missiles and 2,000 Israelis were wounded. Why?”
Kasparian questioned, “I’m sorry, is there a problem with the war you ordered?”
Leibovich stated, “Because Iran has directed the war toward residential areas like my city – my city, which has no military bases or assets.”
Kasparian insisted, “You don’t get to play the victim card right now. This is a war Israel wanted. This is a war that you’re cheerleading right now. You don’t get to play victims, sorry.”
Leibovich concluded, “The world will be a better place without this regime in Iran.”
You can see the full panel here, also featuring George Papadopoulos:
Watch this video on YouTube
