By Ray Hanania

The terrorist regime in Tehran, Iran is providing weapons to support Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Iran is the same nation that supports terrorist militias that have targeted American soldiers who are fighting to eradicate the ISIS terrorists in Iraq and Syria.

Iran is partnering with Syria to block relief from getting to Syrian and Turkish victims of the recent earthquake. The earthquake struck a region of Syria controlled by anti-Assad forces.

Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad, who is in Damascus, wants to regain control of the region and hopes the earthquake has devastated the opposition.

It hasn’t.

Instead of standing up to confront Russian war crimes in Ukraine, many Republican leaders have been silent or critical of the mission there.

Republicans were critical of Vice President Kamala Harris when she spoke out against Russian atrocities directly targeting Ukraine civilians in its so-far-failed “three day war” that hits one year Feb. 24.

Never mind that Harris is not a great leader and hopefully will never be president. Republicans are using the Ukraine War and President Biden’s support of Ukraine against the Russian tyranny there to score political points against Biden.

Regardless of whether you support Biden, who has failed to achieve many of his promises including bringing the country together himself, the bigger threat is Russia and its terrorist leader, Vladimir Putin.

Putin is a tyrant who undermined elections and killed challengers with radiation. Nothing happens in Russia without Putin’s knowledge and clearly he is behind cyber attacks. He makes it possible for anti-American terrorist groups like Iran, Hezbollah and Syria to target American interests, soldiers and assets around the world.

Republicans assert America should spend the billions it is giving to Ukraine to help all Americans instead of just a political few.

The tax burden on Americans is excessive, especially on seniors. The problem isn’t just Republicans. It is Democrats, too.

Biden was supposed to bring the two parties together but he has instead used the White House as a bully pulpit, but the Republicans are doing the same thing.

Last week, even Gov. JB Pritzker, the political megalomaniac who is fueled by the drive to control, issued a political attack against Republican Speaker of the House Kevin McCarthy for visiting Illinois.

Despite Pritzker’s well-financed PR spins, people in Illinois are suffering economically. Retail costs are skyrocketing. Seniors and the poor are impacted the most. Nicor, as I noted last week, has doubled costs. Other heating fuel companies are following suit, with no real oversight or restraint.

We can’t allow domestic challenges to distract from Russian and Iranian threats. Supporting Ukraine is the most important foreign affairs stand we can take.

MORE INJUSTICE IN COOK COUNTY: It was disheartening to see Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx charge Oak Lawn Police Officer Patrick O’Connell in the July 27 incident when a teenager, Hadi Abuatelah, armed with a loaded weapon, refused police orders and tried to escape during a routine traffic stop.

O’Connell is charged with using excessive force to stop Abuatelah, who grabbed the weapon when he exited the vehicle. Oak Lawn police did nothing to the other youth who stepped out and listened and did what he was told. Clearly, the intent was not to punish these teenagers, who happen to be Arab.

Some in the community want to turn this into a George Floyd incident to boost their ineffective, failed leadership. Foxx, who is soft on criminals and doesn’t care about protecting law-abiding citizens, should prosecute Abuatelah for having the weapon and not obeying police.

All Abuatelah had to do was get out of the car, like his friend, and allow police to frisk him. But he didn’t, probably knowing they would find the illegal weapon.

That’s on Abuatelah and his parents, who should be held accountable for their teenager carrying a weapon. Why was Abuatelah carrying a weapon? Fortunately, he was stopped before anyone could find out. Patrick O’Connell is a hero, guilty only of being excessive in his restraint.

POWER OVER PEOPLE: Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau is unhinged and is twisting and distorting info on his referendum to eliminate the village manager position so he can consolidate power.

Pekau says he will keep a “village manager position” if the referendum passes to eliminate the current position. But he will take more control, which means the only real purpose for the referendum to eliminate the village manager position is to give Pekau more power and open the door for him to get more money, too.

Pekau says he supports term limits but no one believes he won’t run for a third term, now that his congressional candidacy embarrassingly flopped on its face.

Vote “Yes” to keep the village manager system.

Check out Ray Hanania’s columns and political podcasts at hanania.com.