The National Security Council is currently meeting with Vice President Joe Biden present to consider taking dramatic steps against Iran following the discovery that Quds, the covert operations arm of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, was attempting to assassinate the Saudi Ambassador in the U.S. Biden is on record as saying that “all options” are on the table.

This much is known and has been confirmed: the FBI ran a successful “sting” operation against an American of Iranian nationality who was recruited by his cousin, a senior Quds official. The principal, Manssor Arbabsiar, believed he was organizing a terrorist operation against the Saudi and Israeli Embassies in Washington and the assassination of the Saudi Ambassador. He informed his Quds cousin that he was using the Zetas Mexican drug gang to carry out the bombing and had Iran transfer to the purported Zetas contact $100,000 dollars for the assassination after Tehran approved the operation and its use of a drug cartel.

Originally the agent approached the U.S. government informant in Texas believing him to be a member of the Mexican drug cartel.  The informant was in fact a formerly charged member of the drug cartel who was serving as a DEA informant in return for having his criminal charges dropped. “Operation Red Coalition,” as the FBI case was named, was traced back to the direction of the Quds Force, the special operations section of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard that answers directly to the supreme Ayatollah Khamenei and not President Ahmadinejad, but the U.S. government suspects that neither leader was aware of the operation.  The plot had not advanced past the transfer of funds to the FBI undercover bank account.

U.S. retaliation currently includes additional financial sanctions against members of the Quds force and efforts to expand United Nations sanctions through the Security Council.  The Saudi government is seeking U.S. support and has vowed retaliation against Iran. The Saudis have had conflicts with Iran in Syria and has been aware of recent Iranian covert  operations stirring up Shi’ite opposition in the Kingdom’s eastern province.

And if the Persian/Arab Gulf problems erupting aren’t enough to worry about, the Israelis had previously developed plans for an attack on Iran.  However, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta carried a U.S. message to Tel Aviv last week that President Barack Obama would not support a military strike. Israeli plans for an attack had alarmed the National Security Council and the Senate foreign affairs committee when briefed on Tel Aviv’s proposal.  However, the Iranian terrorist operation just revealed could lend support to long-time American hard liners as well as Israel’s supporters for bombing Iran.  The Israeli position will be strengthened by the Saudis telling President Barack Obama that they will strongly support a military option directed against Iran. The Saudis are believed to be in direct contact with the Israelis, telling them that King Abd’allah is in favor of a strike on Iran, and proposing that the two countries coordinate their activities to get Washington fully on board.