2013 Briefing Book - Print Version - Aipac

IRAN
A History of Targeting Americans
Iranian-sponsored terrorists have a long history of targeting Americans and U.S. interests
around the world. From the 1983 bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut (killing 241
American servicemen) to the 1996 bombing of the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia (killing 19
American servicemen), Iran’s terrorist proxies have killed more Americans than any group other
than al-Qaeda. Hamas suicide bombers and other terrorists backed by Iran have killed dozens
of Americans in Israel. During the past decade, Iran has targeted American forces in Iraq and
Afghanistan, providing weapons, financing and training to Iraqi insurgents and the Taliban.
Iranian-produced improvised explosive devices have been directly responsible for the deaths of
American soldiers in both conflicts. Most recently, U.S. authorities uncovered an Iranian plot to
assassinate Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to the United States while he ate at a popular Washington,
D.C., restaurant, an attack that would potentially have killed not only him but also numerous
bystanders. The United States also accused Iran of planning to bomb the Israeli embassy in
Washington and the Saudi and Israeli embassies in Argentina.
The attack on the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut in 1983 by the Iranian-backed Hizballah killed
241 American servicemen.
Iran Bankrolls Hizballah Terrorist Activities
Iranian support for Hizballah—whose supporters regularly chant “Death to America, Death to Israel”
at rallies—is one of the clearest examples of Tehran’s support for terrorist activity. Iran is the primary
supplier of Hizballah’s arsenal of 60,000 rockets and missiles. In November 2009, Israeli naval forces
seized a single cargo ship carrying 320 tons of Iranian weapons intended for Hizballah. By providing
sophisticated weapons to the Islamist group, Iran blatantly violates numerous U.N. Security Council
resolutions, including Resolution 1747, which forbids Iran from exporting any weapons.
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