Samia k.

[Peter Girnus 🦅 @gothburz]

I am a diplomatic aide in the Sultanate of Oman's Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

My job is logistics. When two countries that cannot speak to each other need to speak to each other, I book the rooms. I prepare the briefing materials. I make sure the water glasses are the right distance apart. You would be surprised how much of diplomacy is water glasses. Too close and it feels informal. Too far and it feels like a tribunal. I have a chart.

We had a very good month.

Since January, Oman has been mediating indirect talks between the United States and Iran on Iran's nuclear program. The talks were held in Muscat and in Geneva. The Americans would sit in one room. The Iranians would sit in another room. I would walk between them. My Fitbit says I averaged fourteen thousand steps on negotiation days. The hallway between the two rooms at the Royal Opera House conference center is forty-seven meters. I walked it two hundred and twelve times in February. This is good for my cardiovascular health. It was less good for my knees. Both are in the service of peace.

By mid-February, we had something.

Iran agreed to zero stockpiling of enriched uranium. Not reduced stockpiling. Zero. They agreed to down-blend existing stockpiles to the lowest possible level. They agreed to convert them into irreversible fuel. They agreed to full IAEA verification with potential US inspector access. They agreed, in the Foreign Minister's phrase, to "never, ever" possess nuclear material for a bomb. I have worked in diplomacy for seven years. I have never seen a country agree to this many things this quickly. I made a spreadsheet of the concessions. It had fourteen rows. I color-coded it. Green for confirmed. Yellow for pending. By February 21 the spreadsheet was entirely green. I printed it. It is on my desk in Muscat. It is still green.

That phrase took eleven days. "Never, ever." The Iranians initially offered "not seek to." The Americans wanted "will not under any circumstances." We landed on "never, ever" at 2:14 AM on a Tuesday in Muscat. I typed the final version myself. I used Times New Roman because Geneva prefers it. The document was fourteen pages. I was proud of every comma.

Here is what they said, in the order they said it.

February 24: "We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity." — The Foreign Minister, private briefing to Gulf Cooperation Council ambassadors. I prepared the slide deck. Slide 14 was the implementation timeline. Slide 15 was the signing ceremony logistics. I had reserved the Palais des Nations in Geneva, Room XX. It seats four hundred. We discussed pen brands for the signing. The Iranians preferred Montblanc. The Americans had no preference. I ordered twelve Montblanc Meisterstucks at six hundred and thirty dollars each. They arrive on Tuesday.

February 27, 8:30 AM EST: "The deal is within our reach." — The Foreign Minister, CBS Face the Nation. He sat across from Margaret Brennan. He said broad political terms could be agreed "tomorrow" with ninety days for technical implementation in Vienna. He said, and I wrote this line for the briefing card he carried in his breast pocket: "If we just allow diplomacy the space it needs." He praised the American envoys by name. Steve Witkoff. Jared Kushner. He said both had been constructive.

I watched from the Four Seasons Georgetown. The minibar had cashews. I ate the cashews. They were nineteen dollars. The most expensive cashew I have ever eaten. But it was a good morning and we were within our reach.

February 27, 2:00 PM EST: Meeting with Vice President Vance, Washington. The Foreign Minister presented our progress. Zero stockpiling. Full verification. Irreversible conversion. "Never, ever." The Vice President used the word "encouraging." His aide took notes on an iPad. The aide did not make eye contact for the last nine minutes of the meeting. I noticed this. Noticing things is the only part of my job that is not water glasses.

February 27, 4:00 PM EST: "Not happy with the pace." — President Trump, to reporters.

Not happy with the pace.

We had achieved zero stockpiling. Full IAEA verification. Irreversible fuel conversion. Inspector access. And the phrase "never, ever," which took eleven days and cost me two hundred and twelve trips down a forty-seven-meter hallway.

Every American president since Carter has failed to get Iran to agree to this. Forty-five years.

Not happy with the pace.

February 27, 9:47 PM EST: The Foreign Minister's flight departs Dulles for Muscat. I am in the seat behind him. He is reviewing Slide 14 on his laptop. The implementation timeline. Vienna technical sessions. The signing ceremony. The pens.

I fall asleep over the Atlantic. I dream about water glasses.

February 28, 6:00 AM GST: I wake up to push notifications.

February 28: "The United States has begun major combat operations in Iran." — President Trump.

Operation Epic Fury. Coordinated airstrikes. The United States and Israel. Tehran. Isfahan. Qom. Karaj. Kermanshah. Nuclear facilities. IRGC bases. Sites near the Supreme Leader's office. Israel called their half Operation Roaring Lion. Someone in both governments spent time choosing these names. Epic Fury. Roaring Lion. I spent eleven days on "never, ever." They spent it on branding. The President said Iran had "rejected American calls to halt its nuclear weapons production."

Rejected.

Iran had agreed to zero stockpiling. Iran had agreed to full verification. Iran had agreed to "never, ever." Iran had agreed to everything in a fourteen-page document that I typed in Times New Roman.

The President said they rejected it.

I do not know which document the President was reading. I know which one I typed.

February 28, 18:45 UTC: Iran internet connectivity: four percent. — NetBlocks, confirmed by Cloudflare. Ninety-six percent of a country went dark. You cannot negotiate with a country at four percent connectivity. You cannot negotiate with a country that is being struck. You cannot negotiate. This is not a political opinion. This is a logistics assessment.

February 28: The governor of Minab reported forty girls killed at an elementary school.

I do not have logistics for that. There is no slide for that. The water glass chart does not cover that.

February 28: Lockheed Martin: up. Northrop Grumman: up. RTX: up. Dow futures: down six hundred and twenty-two points. Gold: five thousand two hundred and ninety-six dollars. An analyst at AInvest published a note titled "Iran Strikes: Tactical Plays." The note recommended positions in oil, defense stocks, and gold.

The most expensive cashew I have ever eaten was nineteen dollars. The most expensive pen I have ever ordered was six hundred and thirty dollars. The math suggests I have been working in the wrong industry. Defense stocks do not require water glasses. Defense stocks do not require eleven days. Defense stocks require one morning.

February 28: Israel closed its airspace and its schools. Iran launched retaliatory missiles toward US bases in the Gulf. The Supreme Leader promised a "crushing response." Israel's defense minister declared a permanent state of emergency. Everyone is using words I recognize in an order I do not. I recognize "permanent." I recognize "emergency." I do not recognize them next to each other. In diplomacy, nothing is permanent and everything is an emergency. In war it is the reverse.

February 28: The Foreign Minister has not made a public statement.

The briefing card is still in his breast pocket. It still says "within our reach."

[Douglas Macgregor @DougAMacgregor]

In the last 72 hours, Israel launched a preemptive strike against Iran when negotiations between Washington and Tehran were still ongoing.

Iran was caught off-guard. But Iran recovered more quickly from its Pearl Harbor moment than Israel expected.

In less than 18 hours after Israel’s surprise attack, Iran responded firing hundreds of ballistic missiles including hypersonic missiles into central Tel Aviv and across Israel.

Meanwhile, Israel's Iron Dome failed. Israeli intelligence failed. Now Netanyahu is pleading with Washington to intervene with American Military Power to rescue Israel from certain defeat; a defeat Netanyahu crafted with encouragement from Washington.

At the same time, Russia, China, Pakistan and most of the Muslim World are rallying to Iran’s defense.

Supplies, equipment and technical assistance are pouring into Iran.  

It’s time for a reality check:

Washington burned through $12 trillion in the Middle East since 2003. Result? 7,000 dead Americans. 50,000 wounded, open borders and 100,000 Americans dying yearly from Fentanyl poisoning.

Today, the United States is $37 trillion in debt, a sum that does not include so-called “agency debt.”   77 million Americans voted for President Trump because he promised to end the overseas conflicts and halt the march to WW3.

Trump’s mandate is unchanged: Secure America’s borders, ports and coastal waters. Deport illegal aliens, crush the criminals r-ping and murdering Americans. Restore the rule of law. But not one more drop of American blood for foreign wars.  

One Israeli strike on Kharg Island—where 90% of Iran's oil exports flow—or Bandar Abbas terminals, and Iran closes the Strait of Hormuz. That's 20% of global oil supply.

That means disrupted supply chains and runaway inflation. Gas hits $7/gallon overnight. Every working family crushed. Truckers can't deliver food. Economy crashes. For what? So Israel that started this insane war can drag Americans into a wider regional conflict with the potential for nuclear war?  

We have 40,000 troops in UAE, Qatar, across the Persian Gulf. They are sitting ducks. Iranian Shahed-136 Drones cost $20,000 each. American Patriot Missiles cost $4 million per interceptor.

Do the math. We will run through our inventory of missiles and go broke while Americans come home in boxes.  

The Middle East is on the brink. Here's what Washington must do to defuse conflict:  

1. Ask for an Emergency UN Security Council meeting. Ask for an Immediate ceasefire making it clear that Washington opposes the destruction of Iran, Israel and any other state in the Middle East.  

2. Demand that Israel stop the killing of Palestinians in Gaza and withdraw its forces from Gaza and the West Bank.

3. Suspend all military aid to Israel until Israel agrees to remove its troops from Gaza and permit humanitarian assistance to reach the people of Gaza.

4. Propose the commitment of Armed Forces from non-aligned nations to police Gaza and the West Bank. 5. Propose that the United States, Russia, China, India and Brazil convene a peace conference to arbitrate the dispute between Israel, Iran and Israel’s neighbors.  

I led American Soldiers under fire into action. I've seen plenty of flag-draped coffins. I don’t want to see any more. Washington’s warmongers had 22 years. They failed. They lied.

They profited while America bled. Time's up.  

America First means AMERICA FIRST. Not Israel first. Not Ukraine first. Not NATO first. AMERICA FIRST.

[Danny Wolf @dannysmanifesto]

If they’re offering a nobody like me $500, do you really think the big accounts aren’t paid shills for Palantir and AIPAC?

[Suppressed News. @SuppressedNws]

They said exactly what they were going to do—their genocidal intent was loud and clear, yet the world continues to watch.

[Samia k. @notyourconcern0]

@ABK90JaiHind @MFDpk @IndiaToday @narendramodi Indian foreign policy in one image: cry loudly, get a lollipop from the West, smile for the camera …Shhh. Stop crying now.

[Samia k. @notyourconcern0]

@ThakerVed @Deedavar @PiersUncensored @piersmorgan @BeerBicepsGuy @BDUTT Quoting Balochistan while ignoring Kashmir’s mass graves, Manipur’s silence, and Gujarat 2002? Custodial deaths, bulldozed homes, jailed journalists. India leads by stats. Before lecturing Pakistan, fix the fire raging in your own backyard. Receipts are public.

[Samia k. @notyourconcern0]

@rakesh_varma11 @NJLahori You think thats true because you believe your media/government. Pakistanis celebrate their victory downing Rafales because they believe their government. You talk as if you were personally there to observe what damage was done or not done to Pakistan😂. Also its ‘dumB’ not ‘dump’

[Samia k. @notyourconcern0]

@RotiKholDeyo 😂

[Mohamad Safa @mhdksafa]

245 calories.

Children in Gaza have only 245 calories per day! Forced starvation is an act of genocide.

[Jonathan Tod @JonathanTod_me]

I hope you find this as shocking as I do. This is the current National Security Minister, a prominent member of the Israeli government leading a mob to beat up Palestinians. All ongoing but with added bullets and bombs.

[Muhammad Smiry 🇵🇸 @MuhammadSmiry]

I think,

lsrael is going to DESTROY

the entire camp of Nuseirat

in the centre GAZA STRIP.

Meanwhile, the world is busy with “Iran-lsrael” play.

[sarah @sahouraxo]

“More children have been killed by Israel in Gaza than have been killed in all armed conflicts globally, every year, over the past four years.”

—Save the Children President and CEO, Janti Soeripto

Read that again.

[Omar Hamad | عُـمَـرْ 𓂆 @OmarHamadD]

Within a week, my father, mother, eldest brother, middle brother, my wife, my daughter, and my only son were martyred. Only Sa'faa remained, embracing me, kissing my cheek, saying, 'Daddy, I will compensate for you, but don't be sad.' This morning, Sa'faa was martyred...

[Jackson Hinkle 🇺🇸 @jacksonhinkle]

🇮🇷 IRAN BOMBS a military base - KILLED 0 ISRAELIS
😡 *Western Leaders OUTRAGED*

🇮🇱 ISRAEL BOMBS 30,000 PALESTINIAN civilians
😁 *Western Leaders SILENT*

[Mehdi Hasan @mehdirhasan]

“What else do we call this other than the deliberate dehumanization of the Palestinian people?”

I called out media bias and racism, on Gaza, and brought receipts!, in the opening monologue of my new show #MehdiUnfiltered today.

Watch/share/subscribe:
https://t.co/20UUcW06TK

[Pelham @Resist_05]

BREAKING🚨 The IDF just targeted a PLAYGROUND with a drone strike, killing 11 Palestinian children…🇵🇸💔

[Mohamad Safa @mhdksafa]

Israel just bombed 11 children to death in a playground in Gaza…