- 27 febr 2012
‘US armed Israel for Iran attack’
A New York Times article says the US has armed Israel in case the regime decides to launch an attack against Iran
The United States has provided Israel with the military technology and arms to aid Tel Aviv in a possible attack against Iran nuclear facilities, a prominent American journalist says.
“Arm the Syrian rebels! And, while we’re at it, give the Israelis the tools they need - bunker-busters, refueling aircraft - so that if they decide to strike Iran’s nuclear facilities, they’ll get it right the first time,” David Sanger wrote in The New York Times.
The article says although “the White House has been deliberately vague on what kind of technology it has shared with the Israelis,” it has been aimed at sabotaging Iran’s nuclear energy program which the West claims contains a covert military dimension by using “bombs, sanctions or covert action.”
Sanger says from the perspective of many US politicians, “Syria and Iran are hardly unrelated problems,” as nothing would undermine Iran’s influence in the region more than the overthrow of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad.
According to the article, this approach stems from the fact that Americans are fed up with their government's warmongering around the globe and also from the White House talks of “nation-building at home.”
“There is something tempting about handing off weaponry to the rebels and the Israelis, wishing them good luck and reminding them to drop a line back to the White House if any of it works,” Sanger says.
Israeli officials have recently ramped up their war rhetoric, threatening Iran with military strikes in case the US-engineered sanctions against the country fail to force Tehran into abandoning its civilian nuclear energy program.
The United States, Israel and some of their allies accuse Tehran of pursuing military objectives in its nuclear energy program, using this pretext to impose sanctions against Iran and threaten the country with military attack.
This is while the International Atomic Energy Agency has never found any evidence indicating that Tehran's nuclear energy program has been diverted towards nuclear weapons production.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/228892.html 29 feb 2012, 16:34 , Respect -
Maria 29 febr 2012
U.S. forced Dubai bank to cut off cash flow to Iran, sources say
A woman walks past a branch of Noor Islamic Bank along Khalid Bin Al-Waleed Road in Dubai in this May 30, 2010 file photo. Photo by: Reuters
The United States has forced the Dubai-based Noor Islamic Bank to cut off its banking business with Iran as part of wider U.S. efforts to pressure Tehran over its nuclear program, officials in the United Arab Emirates said on Wednesday.
A government official in the UAE. and a source at the bank said Noor Islamic Bank had halted dealings with Iran, confirming a report in the Wall Street Journal.
Noor Islamic Bank, partly-owned by the emirate of Dubai, appears to be the first financial institution in Dubai to be singled out for doing business with Iran. The UAE central bank stepped up the monitoring of banks' dealings with Iran in the past three months, sources told Reuters earlier this month.
The United Nations and Western countries have imposed a series of economic sanctions on Iran during the past five years over what they say are efforts by Tehran to develop nuclear weapons. Iran denies the charges.
Last June, the U.S. Treasury adopted a law allowing the president to punish foreign banks that carry out financial transactions "for the purchase of petroleum or petroleum products from Iran" provided several conditions are met.
An official at the UAE Ministry for Economic Affairs said only Noor Islamic Bank had been targeted so far.
"Of course, as the UAE government, we will comply with the U.N. resolutions," Khalid al-Ghaith, the assistant minister for economic affairs, told Reuters at a conference in Abu Dhabi.
He said officials were in contact with the Americans to try to reduce any possible harm to the UAE banking system or companies.
The Wall Street Journal reported, citing people briefed on the operation, that Noor Islamic Bank, chaired by the son of Dubai's ruler, had become Iran's main conduit for collecting cash from oil sales, handling about 60 percent of them.
As the United Nations and Western countries have imposed increasingly tougher sanctions, the commercial hub of Dubai - 150 km (100 miles) across the Gulf - has seen more business through its financial institutions.
Dubai has long been a major trading partner with Iran, with a sizeable Iranian expatriate population and traditional wooden dhows transporting goods across Gulf waters every day.
"The UAE government took the concerns very seriously and was helpful in resolving" the Noor Islamic Bank case, an official told the Wall Street Journal.
Noor Islamic officials said they could not immediately comment, and were preparing a response.
http://fwd4.me/0vZ6
Wikileaks Stratfor Emails Devastating
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oRA7WT66RIQ
"Some 5m internal emails from Stratfor, an Austin, Texas-based company that brands itself as a "global intelligence" provider, were recently obtained by Anonymous, the hacker collective, and are being released in batches by WikiLeaks, the whistleblowing website, starting Monday.
The most striking revelation from the latest disclosure is not simply the military-industrial complex that conspires to spy on citizens, activists and trouble-causers, but the extremely low quality of the information available to the highest bidder...".* Ana Kasparian and Cenk Uygur discuss on The Young Turks.
...Read more 2 mar 2012, 12:50 , Respect -
Maria 2 mrt 2012
Classic Ron Paul - Truth & Sanity
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLX_6rgvbEU
With all of the traitors in the US Congress, it is hard to believe that a man of such honour exists within it. Ron Paul is the strongest voice for truth and sanity in America, he gives Americans a genuine reason to feel pride. Credit to the Ron Paul supporters who made this video, well done indeed. TJP
Occupy AIPAC to Protest Netanyahu’s US Visit
WASHINGTON, (WAFA) - Occupy AIPAC, which calls for a new American foreign policy in the Middle East, Thursday kicked off a week of actions to protest Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the Unites States and his push for war on Iran, according to a statement issued by the group.
Occupy AIPAC kicked off the actions in New York City when a member disrupted US President Barack Obama by shouting: “Use your leadership; no war on Iran.”
Obama replied, “No one’s announced a war, young lady. You’re jumping the gun a bit there.”
Iran will be a key topic of discussion when Obama meets with Netanyahu and when both leaders address the America Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) conference.
Occupy AIPAC will urge Obama to reject the Israeli push for war on Iran and insist on respect for Palestinian rights.
Events and protests will also draw attention to the role of AIPAC, the most powerful pro-Israel lobby group in Washington, in influencing US policy through its stranglehold over Congress.
“After 10 years of war, the American people need a foreign policy that focuses on diplomacy, but AIPAC takes us down the dangerous path of war with Iran,” Occupy AIPAC organizer Medea Benjamin said.
“We are gathering to demand that our leaders break with AIPAC’s disastrous path of attacking Iran, as well as supporting Israel’s human rights violations and illegal settlements in the West Bank,” said Benjamin.
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=19168
US Media Bias Israel Palestine
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vZHiYo8Iu4 -
Maria 3 mrt 2012
Anonymous - Message to the American People
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrXyLrTRXso
Dear brothers and sisters. Now is the time to open your eyes!
In a stunning move that has civil libertarians stuttering with disbelief, the U.S. Senate has just passed a bill that effectively ends the Bill of Rights in America.
The National Defense Authorization Act is being called the most traitorous act ever witnessed in the Senate, and the language of the bill is cleverly designed to make you think it doesn't apply to Americans, but toward the end of the bill, it essentially says it can apply to Americans "if we want it to.
Bill Summary & Status, 112th Congress (2011 -- 2012) | S.1867 | Latest Title: National Defense Authorization Act for.
This bill, passed late last night in a 93-7 vote, declares the entire USA to be a "battleground" upon which U.S. military forces can operate with impunity, overriding Posse Comitatus and granting the military the unchecked power to arrest, detain, interrogate and even assassinate U.S. citizens with impunity.
Even WIRED magazine was outraged at this bill, reporting:
Senate Wants the Military to Lock You Up Without Trial
...the detention mandate to use indefinite military detention in terrorism cases isn't limited to foreigners. It's confusing, because two different sections of the bill seem to contradict each other, but in the judgment of the University of Texas' Robert Chesney — a nonpartisan authority on military detention — "U.S. citizens are included in the grant of detention authority."
The passage of this law is nothing less than an outright declaration of WAR against the American People by the military-connected power elite. If this is signed into law, it will shred the remaining tenants of the Bill of Rights and unleash upon America a total military dictatorship, complete with secret arrests, secret prisons, unlawful interrogations, indefinite detainment without ever being charged with a crime, the torture of Americans and even the "legitimate assassination" of U.S. citizens right here on American soil!
If you have not yet woken up to the reality of the police state we've been warning you about, I hope you realize we are fast running out of time. Once this becomes law, you have no rights whatsoever in America. — no due process, no First Amendment speech rights, no right to remain silent, nothing.
The US senate does not want us to speak. I suspect even now orders are being shouted into telephones and men with guns will soon be on their way. Why? Because while the truncheon may be used in lieu of conversation, words will always retain their power. Words offer the means to meaning and for those who will listen, the enunciation of truth. And the truth is, there is something terribly wrong with this country, isn't there?
Cruelty and injustice...intolerance and oppression. And where once you had the freedom to object, to think and speak as you saw fit, you now have censors and systems of surveillance, coercing your conformity and soliciting your submission. How did this happen? Who's to blame? Well certainly there are those who are more responsible than others, and they will be held accountable. But again, truth be told...if you're looking for the guilty, you need only look into a mirror.
I know why you did it. I know you were afraid. Who wouldn't be? War. Terror. Disease. There were a myriad of problems which conspired to corrupt your reason and rob you of your common sense. Fear got the best of you and in your panic, you turned to the now President in command Barack Obama. He promised you order. He promised you peace. And all he demanded in return was your silent, obedient consent.
More than four hundred years ago, a great citizen wished to embed the fifth of November forever in our memory. His hope was to remind the world that fairness. Justice, and freedom are more than words - they are perspectives. So if you've seen nothing, if the crimes of this government remain unknown to you, then I would suggest that you allow the fifth of November to pass unmarked. But if you see what I see, if you feel as I feel, and if you would seek as I seek...then I ask you to stand beside one another, one year from November 5th, 2011, outside the gates of every court house of every city DEMANDING our rights!!
Together we stand against the injustice of our own Government.
We are anonymous.
We are Legion.
United as ONE.
Divided by zero.
We do not forgive Censorship.
We do not forget Oppression.
US SENATE...
Expect us!!
-
Maria 5 mrt 2012
'Obama betrays Americans for Israel'
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oqTZ8-jAjdg
A prominent political analyst says the US government feeds misinformation to its citizens in order to increase support for Israel, while demonizing Iran.
An interview with Sarah Marusek, political analyst
Obama says when chips are down I have Israel's back
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b-y8-m7mm_4
US President Barack Obama says Washington has remained and will remain committed to Israel's security, despite Tel Aviv atrocities committed against Palestinians.
President Obama at 2012 AIPAC Policy Conference
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A0rFbP6KvxY
The President delivers remarks at the 2012 AIPAC Policy Conference at the Washington Convention Center. March 4, 2012.
Obama offers Netanyahu assurances over Iran
By Jeffrey Heller and Matt Spetalnick
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- President Barack Obama appealed to Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday to give sanctions more time to curb Iran's nuclear ambitions, but the Israeli prime minister gave no sign of backing away from possible military action.
The two men, who have had a strained relationship, sought to present a united front in the Iranian nuclear standoff as they opened White House talks. But their public statements revealed differences over how to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.
In one of the most consequential meetings of US and Israeli leaders in years, Obama and Netanyahu made no mention of lingering disagreements that Washington fears could lead to an Israeli rush to attack Iran's nuclear sites in the coming months.
Obama took a double-barrelled approach, seeking to assure Netanyahu that the United States was keeping the military option open against Iran and always "has Israel's back," but also urging Israeli patience to allow sanctions and diplomacy to work.
Netanyahu, speaking in historical terms about Israel's determination to be the "master of its fate," focused on reserving the right to defend Israel against Iran. Israel sees Iran's nuclear program as a threat to its existence.
"We believe there is still a window that allows for a diplomatic resolution," Obama said, even he sought to convince Netanyahu of stiffened US resolve against the Islamic republic.
In cautioning against renewed international diplomatic engagement with Iran, Netanyahu has warned Western powers not to fall into a "trap" of letting Iran buy more time.
There was no immediate sign from Monday's talks that Obama's sharpened rhetoric against Iran and calls for restraint by Tel Aviv would be enough to delay any Israeli military plans against Tehran, which has called for Israel's destruction..
Despite that, the body language between the two leaders was a stark contrast to their last Oval Office meeting in May 2011 when Netanyahu lectured Obama on Jewish history and criticized his approach to Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking.
This time, Obama and Netanyahu appeared cordial and businesslike, smiling at each other and sometimes nodding as the other spoke.
Even though Obama has ratcheted up his rhetoric against Iran in recent days, he and Netanyahu went into the talks divided over how quickly the clock is ticking toward possible military action, and the meeting appeared unlikely to change that.
They remain far apart on any explicit nuclear "red lines" that Tehran must not be allowed to cross, and they have yet to agree on a time frame when military forces might need to be applied.
Preserving trust
Obama's encounter with Netanyahu was considered crucial to preserving the trust of America's closest Middle East ally, which fears that time is running out for an effective Israeli strike on Iran, and to counter election-year criticism from Republican rivals who question his support for Israel.
He is also trying to tamp down increasingly strident talk of another war in the region that could cause further spikes in global oil prices and hit the fragile US economic recovery - dire consequences that could threaten his re-election chances.
Speculation is mounting that Israel could opt to act militarily on its own unless it receives credible guarantees that the United States will be ready to use force against Iran if international sanctions and diplomacy fail.
Israel fears that Iranian nuclear facilities may soon be buried so deep that they would be invulnerable to its bunker-busting bombs, which are less powerful than those in the US arsenal.
Obama said both he and Netanyahu "prefer to resolve this diplomatically" and that both understand the cost of military action.
Netanyahu did not echo that point in his own brief public remarks, saying instead: "If there's one thing that stands out clearly in the Middle East today, it's that Israel and America stand together."
What is clear, however, is the potential political liability for Obama's re-election bid if hostilities break out in the Middle East before the Nov. 6 US presidential election.
Netanyahu's visit comes one day before the pivotal "Super Tuesday" round of Republican presidential primaries, with Obama's Republican rivals seizing on the chance to accuse him of being weak in backing a staunch ally and in confronting a bitter foe.
Further complicating matters is a trust deficit between Obama and Netanyahu.
In their last Oval Office meeting a year ago, Netanyahu embarrassed Obama by lecturing him on Jewish history and flatly rejecting his proposal that Israel's 1967 borders be the basis for negotiations on creating a Palestinian state.
But relations have thawed somewhat since then as Obama has taken a tougher line on Iran while refraining from any new Middle East peace drives. Obama also scored points with Israelis for opposing a Palestinian bid for UN statehood recognition last September.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=465524
Erekat: PA disappointed by Obama speech
BETHLEHEM (Ma’an) -- PLO official Saeb Erekat said Monday that the Palestinian Authority was disappointed with US President Barack Obama's recent speech at an AIPAC conference.
"This speech is part of Obama’s election campaign," Erekat told Ma'an.
"Unfortunately, the speech ignored the requirements for peace as it did not touch on urging Israel to accept the two-state solution, halt settlement activities, and stop imposing facts on the ground."
Erekat said the speech at AIPAC's policy conference in Washington on Sunday showed "unprecedented support" to Israel, and the PLO official urged Arab nations to give priority to Arab interests just as the US supported their own interests abroad.
Yousef Munayyer, executive director of the Jerusalem Fund and Palestine Center in the United States, said on Sunday that Netanyahu was pressuring the US president into "a position where Obama's reelection interests clash with American national interests," the Institute for Middle East Understanding reported.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=465347
US event to polish Israel's face turns into protest against it
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- An Israeli student symposium was organized recently in a US university to improve Israel's tarnished image suddenly turned into a rally in support of the Palestinian people and the besieged Gaza Strip.
According to Jerusalem Post newspaper on Monday, a group of Jewish students dubbing itself as "stand with us" from Davis university in California invited two Zionist figures, an Israeli soldier and a Druze woman, to give speeches in support of Israel and its policies, but both of them were interrupted by the audience and more than 40 attendees started to leave the hall.
More than half of the audience chanted slogans against Israel and some of them waved Palestinian flags. Questions like "How many women have you raped?" and "How many children have you killed?" were loudly heard denoting Israel's crimes against the Palestinians.
The protestors also demanded an end to Gaza siege and to prosecute Israel's war criminals. The chants lasted for about 15 minutes.
The organizers of the symposium called in the police to stop these chants, but they refused to quell the protestors and decided to terminate the event.
http://fwd4.me/0vr8
Obama loyal to Israel, shuns US public - Press TV News
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yBup4loX_gI
President Obama has reaffirmed his sacrosanct commitment to the security of Israel, but Israel plans to attack Iran and the majority of Americans are against that.
Press TV has interviewed Ralph Schoenman, political commentator from Berkeley about US and Israel's joint objective to dismantle Iran and their efforts to soften US citizen's anti-war resistance through obedient media efforts. What follows is an approximate transcript of the interview.
Press TV: A lot being done to please the Zionist lobby by Obama -Does that surprise you at all?
Schoenman: Well, we have to bear in mind that this has been the consistent position of the US. In fact, the headline in today's Boston Globe states "Obama vows attack on Iran if needed". And this is a statement that is amplified by a 45 minute interview with the Atlantic magazine, which its intent is to reinforce, it says, a sense of solidarity between the US and Israel.
And that is amplified, I should point out, by the declaration by Shimon Peres that there is no distance between the US and Israel on its intentions to prevent Iran from having a nuclear weapon.
And that is the real setting in which imperialism seeks to provide a basis for war of which to blockade the actions against the banks and the capacity to contain Iran is an evident component.
So, the meetings between Netanyahu and Obama are merely designed to provide a time table and to coordinate their joint effort to affect a dismantling of Iran, which is their ultimate objective.
Press TV: Obama reaffirmed Washington's commitment to Israel's qualitative military edge. Seeing what Israel has done with this military edge in the region, why is the US allowed to get away in aiding Israel?
Schoenman: Well one has to keep in mind that from its inception Israel has been the attack instrument of imperialism in the region. The very formation of the state was predicated upon the elimination of the Palestinian people from their land and from history and in attacking them ad-seriatum in countries; designed to fragment those countries and to remove the Palestinian people from each location to which they had been driven.
And in the current context I want to point out that the Kansas City Star acknowledged that this policy of the US with respect both to Israel and the attempts to wage imperial war in the region in general and against Iran do not have the support of the American people.
Polls show that most Americans are opposed to military intervention in Iran. And that is the reality on the ground in the US.
This posture of the government of the US and of Israel towards Iran and towards the entire question of attacking the region and dismantling countries and attacking their sovereignty and seizing their national resources has no base of support within the American public itself.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/230066.html 6 mar 2012, 18:19 , Respect -
Maria 6 mrt 2012
Ashrawi Deplores US Sole Negative Vote at UNESCO
RAMALLAH, (WAFA) - PLO Executive Committee member Hanan Ashrawi Tuesday deplored the United States sole negative vote cast at five resolutions adopted by UNESCO Executive Board.
“It is reprehensible that out of 58 countries, the United States alone cast negative votes and managed to isolate itself by demonstrating yet again unquestioning support for the Israeli occupation,” said Ashrawi in a statement issued by her office.
Ashrawi thanked the UNCESO Executive Board for adopting five resolutions on Monday in support of Palestine.
“The Palestinian people have an inalienable right to sovereignty and freedom,” she said. “This support reaffirms the international community’s commitment to the achievement of the universal principles of justice and humanity and the rights guaranteed to all peoples of the world.”
Ashrawi said that “rather than holding its closest ally accountable, the United States continues to subvert all efforts at achieving a just peace, and presents itself as complicit in Israel’s persistent violations of international law and Palestinian rights.”
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=19206
Obama seeks to calm 'drumbeat of war' over Iran
By Justyna Pawlak
BRUSSELS (Reuters) -- President Barack Obama said on Tuesday the United States 'will not countenance' Iran developing a nuclear weapon but pledged to take a sober approach to dealing with Tehran's nuclear program.
Obama said the announcement of six-power talks with Iran offered a diplomatic opportunity to defuse the crisis.
Amid mounting speculation that Iran's nuclear sites could be attacked in coming months, the president said that American politicians "beating the drums of war" had a responsibility to explain the costs and benefits of military action.
Earlier, US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said the United States would take military action to prevent Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon if diplomacy failed.
"Military action is the last alternative when all else fails," he told the annual policy conference of the biggest US pro-Israel lobbying group. "But make no mistake, when all else fails, we will act."
Six world powers have accepted an Iranian offer for talks on its disputed nuclear program, the European Union's top diplomat said, after a year's standstill that has increased fears of a slide into a new Middle East war.
The announcement by EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton came shortly after Russia called for a resumption of face-to-face dialogue as soon as possible, saying an Iranian letter last month showed it was now ready for serious negotiations.
With Israel speaking increasingly loudly of resorting to military action, the talks could provide some respite in a crisis which has driven up oil prices and threatened to suck the United States into its third major war in a decade.
Iran's nuclear negotiator, Saeed Jalili, wrote to Ashton in February saying Tehran wanted to reopen negotiations and offering to bring unspecified "new initiatives" to the table.
"Today I have replied to Dr. Jalili's letter of Feb. 14," Ashton, speaking on behalf of the six powers after weeks of consultations with them, said in a statement. "I have offered to resume talks with Iran on the nuclear issue."
Ashton, who represents the United States, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany in dealings with Iran, said the date and venue for the talks would now have to be agreed.
A senior EU official said these talks were not expected before the Iranian new year in two weeks, though there would be a series of preparatory meetings possibly in the coming days.
"Our overall goal remains a comprehensive negotiated, long-term solution which restores international confidence in the exclusively peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program, while respecting Iran's right to the peaceful use of nuclear energy," Ashton said in her reply to Jalili.
Western states are likely to tread cautiously, mindful of past accusations that Iran's willingness to talk has been a stalling tactic to blunt pressure and not a route to agreement.
The Islamic Republic's latest approach to the six powers comes at a time when it is suffering unprecedented economic pain from expanding oil and financial sanctions.
War fears
The resumption of talks nonetheless could slow a drift towards military strikes to knock out Iran's uranium enrichment program, which the West fears is geared to producing atomic bomb fuel and Tehran says is for electricity only.
Israel, which says its existence could be threatened if Iran is allowed to develop nuclear weapons, is losing confidence in Western efforts to rein in the Islamic Republic with sanctions and diplomatic pressure.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu assured US President Barack Obama on Monday that the Israel has made no decision on attacking Iranian nuclear sites, sources close to talks in Washington said. He, however, gave no sign of backing away from the option of military strikes.
But the new prospect of diplomacy contributed to a fall in oil prices on Tuesday, with Brent crude down $1.70 to $122.10 by 1458 GMT.
The senior EU official said there was some reason to believe talks with Iran might be productive.
"The first is that there is clear written commitment by Iran to be willing to address the nuclear issue in talks," the official said. "Second is the unity of the international community ... Third is certainly sanctions."
Russia, which built Iran's first nuclear power plant and has far warmer relations with Tehran than Western nations do, has often stressed the need for talks and said coercive pressure on Tehran is counterproductive.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said last month that global powers must work harder to seek agreement with Iran, warning that Tehran's appetite for concessions was waning as it moves closer to being able to build atomic weapons.
Ryabkov said he hoped fresh talks with Iran would address a proposal by president-elect Vladimir Putin for global powers to formally recognize Iran's right to enrich uranium, Tehran to submit its program to full IAEA supervision, and international sanctions to be lifted.
UN visit to Iranian military site?
Iran said on Tuesday it would let UN nuclear inspectors visit a military site where they have been repeatedly refused access to check intelligence suggesting explosives tests relevant to atom bombs has been conducted there.
Diplomats, however, cited a proviso in the Iranian statement saying that access to the Parchin site still hinged on a broader agreement on how to settle outstanding issues which the two sides have been unable to reach for five years.
An International Atomic Energy Agency report in November said that Iran had built a large containment chamber at Parchin, southeast of Tehran, to conduct high-explosives experiments that are "strong indicators" of an effort to design atomic bombs.
Years of tortuous negotiations have often come unstuck over procedural obstacles imposed by Iran since the IAEA first began seeking unfettered access in the country almost a decade ago to check indications of illicit military nuclear activity.
Israel has mooted pre-emptive bombings against Iran, a hawkish approach that Obama - wary of the risk of igniting a new Middle East war and a global surge in oil prices as he seeks re-election in November - has tried to restrain to give time for harsher sanctions and diplomatic pressure to bear fruit.
Israel insists that military action against Iran would be warranted to prevent it from attaining the capability of making nuclear weapons, as opposed to when it actually builds a device. Washington has not embraced that idea.
"The pressure (on Iran) is growing but time is growing short," Netanyahu was quoted by aides as telling Obama.
Later, addressing the influential pro-Israel lobby AIPAC, Netanyahu said: "None of us can afford to wait much longer. As prime minister of Israel, I will never let my people live in the shadow of annihilation."
US officials say that while Iran may be maneuvering to keep its options open, there is no clear intelligence that it has made a final decision to "break out" with a nuclear warhead.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=465820
Erekat Calls on US to Push for Winds of Peace, not Drums of War
RAMALLAH, (WAFA) – Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat Tuesday called on the United States to push for winds of peace and not drums of war.
Commenting on the outcome of a visit by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Washington and his meeting with US President Barack Obama, Erekat said the two leaders failed to address the more pressing issue in the region, which is the Palestinian question, and focused instead on the conflict with Iran.
“Obama spoke about peace without specifying its requirements,” he said at a press conference.
“The prerequisite for peace is to end the Israeli occupation and establish the independent Palestinian state on the 1967 borders with Jerusalem as its capital,” he said.
Erekat said what came out from Washington was “a war plan, not a peace plan.”
He warned that the Middle East cannot tolerate more wars after the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, stressing that the Palestinian conflict remains the primary issue for stability and security in the region.
“No issue is above the Palestinian issue,” he said. “No one can deny the Palestinian issue.”
He said President Mahmoud Abbas was still working on a letter he plans to send Netanyahu that would detail the Palestinian position from the peace process, denying reports that Jordan’s Foreign Minister Nasser Judeh was going to deliver it.
He said pursuing Palestinian membership in the United Nations has not stopped and it remains part of the Palestinian strategy, explaining however that effort to continue with that depends on Netanyahu’s response to Abbas’ letter.
Erekat called for release of Hana Shalabi, the Palestinian prisoner held in administrative detention in Israeli jails since February 16 and who has been on hunger strike since then to protest her detention without charge of trial.
He called for the abolition of the administrative detention policy implemented during the British mandate on Palestine and which Britain had cancelled after the end of its mandate in 1948. Israel, he said, kept enforcing this policy against the Palestinian population.
http://english.wafa.ps/index.php?action=detail&id=19197 11 mar 2012, 10:36 , Respect -
Maria 11 mrt 2012
'Israel Gaza attack has full US backing' - Press TV News
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SU5IgRsjSJQ
Israel has launched a major military attack on the besieged Gaza Strip under the auspices of the United States in an attempt to empty the Palestinian leadership.
Press TV has interviewed Ralph Schoenman, author of the Hidden History of Zionism from Berkeley who shares his insight about what is exactly behind this latest Israeli assault based on factual reports. What follows is an approximate transcription of the interview.
Press TV: There is death and destruction in Gaza yet we see silence by the international community. Why do we see such silence when the West in particular claims to be the flag bearer of human rights and democracy?
Schoenman: Let me make clear to you that this was a process initiated by the Israelis whp killed top Palestinian leader al-Qaesi and two of his aides and this is not the first such attack.
They assassinated Kamal al-Nairab, al-Qaesi's predecessor in August and indeed the Israeli assault was a deliberate process of armed attack with the intention of assassinating political leaders of Hamas and of the Palestinian people in Gaza.
The US State Department's immediate response was to condemn the Palestinians as terrorists for the response on the part of the Palestinian people to these assassination attacks.
I should point out to you that the US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation has published a report: The US has sent over 600,000 teargas canisters to Israel and more than 670 million weapons including rounds of ammunition and tear gas, chemical weapons and related equipment over a period of nine years.
Israel in targeted assassination has killed 2,969 unarmed Palestinians including 1,128 children with US weapons in violation of the Foreign Assistance Act and Arms Control Act.
In reality, in the US Memorandum of Understanding with Israel, the US pledged 30 billion dollars in additional military assistance to Israel and a 25-percent increase in the average annual military aid over previous years - 3.1 billion in US military for the fiscal year 2012 alone.
So we have to understand that this event is a deliberate attack on the part of the Zionist state with complete backing of the US. The Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta reaffirmed America's "security commitment to Israel including financing for missiles and fighter jet weapons" in a speech during the AIPAC conference recently.
What we're seeing here is a coordinated operation and indeed there is a report by the Agence France Press a few hours ago that the US has "offered Israel new arms if they wait on the attack on Iran until just after the elections" - advanced weaponry, which is spelled out.
So, this attack on Gaza and on the Palestinian leadership and on the Palestinian people is a deliberate provocation to increase the scale of violence and to facilitate renewed attacks on the part of Israel against leaders of the Palestinian people specifically targeted for assassination.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/231083.html 20 mar 2012, 10:42 , Respect -
Maria 20 mrt 2012
US builds world biggest spy center
The NSA spy facility in Utah
The United States National Security Agency (NSA) is building the biggest spy center for intercepting and storing electronic communications collected from all over the world and American citizens.
A new report published by the monthly magazine Wired, said that the centre located in Bluffdale, a remote valley in the state of Utah, can process yottabytes (a million billions of gigabytes) of data.
The facility of USD 2 billion is designed to “intercept, decipher, analyze, and store vast swaths of the world’s communications including the contents of telephone calls, private e-mails, mobile phone text messages and Internet searches.
According to the report, the facility is “the most covert and potentially most intrusive intelligence agency ever,” and it will use 65 megawatts of electricity a year, with an annual bill of USD 40 million.
The spy center intercepts commutation signals as they zap down from satellites and zip through the underground and undersea cables of international, foreign, and domestic networks.
Using what will likely be the world’s fastest super computer, the NSA can gather data through ‘dumb’ home appliances such as refrigerators, ovens and lighting systems which are connected to the Internet.
The facility is to provide technical assistance to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), collect intelligence on cyber threats and carry out cyber-security objectives, reported Reuters.
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/232475.html 28 mar 2012, 09:56 , Respect -
Maria 28 mrt 2012
US to seek more funds for Israel's 'Iron Dome'
WASHINGTON (Reuters) -- The US Defense Department on Tuesday said it would ask Congress to fund additional "Iron Dome" short-range missile shields for Israel, given their success in intercepting rockets launched from Gaza earlier this month.
The request comes against the backdrop of growing concern in Washington about a possible Israeli strike against Iran aimed at halting or slowing work on its nuclear program, as well as the worst flare-up of violence along Israel's southern border in months.
Washington underwrote the development cost of the Iron Dome rocket and mortar shield by Israel's state-owned Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd.
The US Congress approved $205 million in funding for the project in fiscal year 2011, which ended on Sept. 30, and the Obama administration plans to ask for additional funding this year.
The system was developed by Rafael to counter rocket fire from Lebanon, which hit Israeli towns during the 2006 war with Hezbollah, and from Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, where Hamas, which the United States and Israel consider a terrorist group, took control in 2007.
The Obama administration has argued against military strikes on Iran for now, saying there is still time for diplomacy to curb its nuclear program, which Iran says is for peaceful purposes.
At the same time, President Barack Obama is eager to show support for Israel, particularly in an election year. Obama won nearly eight of every 10 Jewish votes in 2008 but a slip could jeopardize his 2012 re-election drive in states like Florida and Pennsylvania, where Jews are an important swing bloc.
Top priority
Pentagon spokesman George Little said supporting Israel's security was a top priority of Obama and Defense Secretary Leon Panetta.
"During the rocket attacks earlier this month, the Iron Dome system played a critical role in Israel's security," Little said in a statement. "When nearly 300 rockets and mortars were fired at southern Israel, Iron Dome intercepted over 80 percent of the targets it engaged, saving many civilian lives."
He said Pentagon officials had been in talks with the government of Israel about US support for procurement of additional Iron Dome systems, and Washington planned to request "an appropriate level of funding" for further acquisitions, depending on Israeli requirements and production capacity.
Little gave no details on how much money would be requested for the program.
Each truck-towed unit fires radar-guided missiles to blow up short-range rockets, notably of the Russian Katyusha type, as well as mortar bombs, in mid-air.
Industrial sources put the base price of each battery at about $50 million. Each interception costs at least $25,000.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who discussed military equipment needs with Obama during a visit to Washington in early March, has said 10 to 15 batteries would be needed to provide full cover.
Israel has also asked the United States for advanced "bunker-buster" bombs and refueling planes that could improve its ability to attack Iran's underground nuclear sites, an Israeli official said Thursday.
The US army was reported last year to be interested in buying the Iron Dome system to protect bases overseas. India and Singapore have also expressed interest as potential buyers.
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=471822 2 apr 2012, 17:55 , Respect -
Maria 2 apr 2012
Bias Breeds Disillusionment
By Khalid amayreh
The Palestinian Authority (PA) has voiced deep disillusionment over the "diluted and duplicitous" American stance towards the issue of Jewish settlement expansion in the occupied Palestinian territories of the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
Palestinian officials in Ramallah called the American position unacceptable and incompatible with the rule of international law. "The US says it is against settlements and settlement expansion, but what we see on the ground is that the US government is voting against any international resolution critical of the Israeli settlement policy."
Earlier this week, the US voted against a decision adopted by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva to investigate Jewish settlements. The decision, which also demanded a reversal of the settlement policy, was adopted with 36 votes in favour and 10 abstentions. Only the US voted against it.
Following the decision, Israel decided to cut ties with the Geneva-based council, citing excessive politicisation of the council and rampant hostility to Israel.
The US decision to vote against the UNHRC resolution, though quite expected, may have been influenced by the election atmospherics in the US and meant, at least partially, to appease and woo the powerful Israeli-Jewish lobby in Washington. Castigating the American move in Geneva, a visibly frustrated Saeb Ereikat, chief Palestinian negotiator, urged Arab states to try "to put an end to this travesty that keeps repeating itself".
"It is time the Arab states spoke in voice to America in a language based on interests and expediency, not diplomatic niceties. America won't respect us if we don't respect ourselves."
Ereikat's exasperated tone follows US efforts to thwart and frustrate every political and diplomatic effort by the Palestinians to declare statehood and gain international recognition for Palestinian independence from decades of the colonialist Israeli occupation.
Observers in occupied Palestine argue that the ubiquitous proliferation of Jewish colonies in the West Bank, especially East Jerusalem, the contemplated capital of a contemplated Palestinian state, has effectively killed any remaining reasonable prospects for the creation of a viable and territorially contiguous Palestinian state.
Last week, Ahmed Qurei, who occupied several key portfolios during Yasser Arafat's era, was quoted as saying that the time for establishing a true Palestinian state had passed.
"We must not continue to deceive ourselves and our people. The chance for the establishment of a real Palestinian state, that would be truly viable and enjoy territorial continuity, is over. We therefore must seek an alternative, namely the establishment of a unitary state between the River Jordan and the Mediterranean in which all people can live equally as citizens irrespective of their religion of ethnicity," Qurei said.
Palestinian sources close to the Ramallah leadership have intimated to Al-Ahram Weekly that Qurei is not the only one within the Palestine Liberation Organisation (PLO) establishment that is speaking about a one-state solution.
"I believe that everyone has lost hope for the two-state solution. And I think that President Mahmoud Abbas is one of those who believe that pursuing the vision of having a viable Palestinian state has been reduced to a sort of wishful thinking given Israel's phenomenal settlement expansion. I think the one-state solution will be the Palestinian strategy for the future."
PA leader Abbas, who is facing a preponderance of internal problems, including a severe financial problem and a seemingly failing reconciliation with Hamas, has been saying that he will send a decisive letter to Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. The Palestinian leader has not disclosed the contents of the letter, but rumours in Ramallah are that Abbas will send Netanyahu a final warning that "if you don't put an end to settlement activity, the Palestinians will opt for the one-state solution."
Some PA pundits have speculated that Abbas might resort to dismantling the PA once and for all and let the international community take care of the situation.
The Obama administration reportedly asked the Ramallah leadership to revoke the letter move, the Americans having been made privy to its contents. The Obama administration is also trying to convince the Palestinians to keep a low profile, at least until November, when the American elections take place.
It is widely believed here in Ramallah that Abbas has received "strong assurances" from the White House that Obama will make "strenuous efforts" to a achieve final peace in the Middle East if he wins a second term in the White House.
However, almost everyone here is sceptical about Obama's assurances and that very few people if any are willing to give the American president the benefit of the doubt.
Moreover, some Palestinian officials are convinced that the host of internal problems besetting the PA these days, including the crushing financial crisis, are deliberate tactics of pressure and blackmail intended to bully the PA leadership into making far-reaching concessions to Israel.
Also this week, imprisoned Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti urged President Abbas to halt all forms of security coordination with Israel. Writing in a letter smuggled from the Hadarim Detention Facility and published by the Maan news agency, Barghouti wrote: "The function of our security apparatus is to provide protection for Palestinian citizens, not the occupiers and settlers."
He added: "All past experience proved beyond doubt that there is no peace partner in Israel. What is even worse is that Jewish settlement tripled or quadrupled in two decades of futile negotiations. In Jerusalem, the de-Arabisation and de-Islamisation is assuming an unprecedented accelerated pace. This is why our people must resist this policy with all means available within the 1967 territories."
Barghouti also called for a "comprehensive boycott for Israeli products and produces at all levels as well as encouraging Palestinian products in ways that would increase Palestinian employment and invigorate local economy."
Barghouti is widely taken to be the most popular Palestinian leader in the West Bank. He is serving five life sentences in Israel for his role in the last Intifada.
http://fwd4.me/0xeG 7 apr 2012, 12:23 , Respect -
Maria 4 apr 2012
Israel asks US for $700 million in military aid
Jerusalem requests Washington to allocate funds for more Iron Dome, Magic Wand anti-missile batteries. Deal will provide Israel with near-complete missile defense until 2015.
Israel asks US for $700 million in military aid
Jerusalem requests Washington to allocate funds for more Iron Dome, Magic Wand anti-missile batteries. Deal will provide Israel with near-complete missile defense until 2015
Israel has asked the United States for assistance estimated at $700 million in order to produce more Iron Dome and Magic Wand missile and rocket defense batteries, sources told Ynet on Wednesday.
The Iron Dome is designed to intercept rockets fired from a relatively short range, while the Magic Wand intercepts missiles fired from a range of at least 70km, including cruise missiles and missiles with ballistic warheads such as the Squd, Shihab and Sejil.
According to sources privy to the deal, Jerusalem and Washington are currently discussing the aid package, which if approved will allow Israel to equip its defense apparatus with four additional Iron Dome batteries and accelerate the completion of the Magic Wand system, which is still under development.
The sources also noted that if the deal is approved, Israel will be able it to protect its territory from rocket and missile attacks until 2015. The US Congress and administration's apparent willingness to allocate the funds may be seen as an attempt to incentivize Israel to delay its decision vis-à-vis a military strike on Iranian nuclear facilities.
According to estimates, Israel will have six Iron Dome batteries instead of the four it currently has by the second half of 2013.
http://fwd4.me/0yHK 12 apr 2012, 07:41 , Respect -
Maria 21st Century Crusaders
- This explosive new documentary investigates the current crusade being fought against Muslims in Iraq and Palestine.
The film begins with exposing America's 'War on Terror' as a front for its Crusade against Islam. In this section we are introduced to ex-Guantanamo detainee Moazzam Begg, Shaykh Ali Timimi (awaiting trial in U.S.) and Babar Ahmad (in UK prison).
In a highly emotive manner, the plight of Palestinians is looked at next. The oppressiveness of their lives is depicted for the viewer to witness and take heed. Consequently there will be none who view this and not be stirred by emotion.
The last third of the film is dedicated to the latest chapter in the Crusaders war: Iraq. The section looks at America and its dealing with Iraq and its citizens. It contains recent war footage from Iraq and uncovers the truth behind US casualties.
22 apr 2012, 08:49 , Respect -
Maria 21 apr 2012
USA to allocate $680m for Israeli Iron Dome anti-missile system
OCCUPIED JERUSALEM, (PIC)-- The USA is to allocate 680 million dollars to boost the Israeli Iron Dome anti-missile system, a Congressional aide said.
The Republican-controlled Armed Services Committee plans millions more for the system designed to intercept short-range rockets and mortars, according to the congressional aide.
The money would be in addition to the $205 million that the Obama administration and Congress agreed to in a special request in the 2011 budget and would cover several years, through fiscal 2015.
http://fwd4.me/0yxp 20 may 2012, 01:36 , Respect -
Maria 18 mei 2008
Washington grants Israel an extra US$ 70 million for the iron dome
NAZARETH, (PIC)-- The United States agreed to provide an extra US$70 million to the Israeli occupation to develop its anti-rocket defence system for short range rockets, known as the iron dome.
According to the Israeli Hayom newspaper "Defense Minister Ehud Barak met with U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta in Washington on Thursday and discussed, among other things, funding for additional Iron Dome anti-rocket defense system batteries. Panetta told Barak that U.S. President Barack Obama has authorized the transfer of $70 million to Israel for that purpose before the year's end.”
"My goal is to ensure Israel has the funding it needs each year to produce these batteries that can protect its citizens," Panetta said. "That is why going forward over the next three years, we intend to request additional funding for Iron Dome, based on an annual assessment of Israeli security requirements against an evolving threat."
According the paper, the US has already provided US$205 million for this project on top of an annual military assistance at the rate of US$3.1 billion.
http://fwd4.me/112v
22 mei 2012
US Congress promoting visa exemption for Israelis
Californian Democrat Sherman introduces bill allowing Israelis to enter US as temporary visitors for tourism or business for up to 90 days without a visa. 'Israel is our closest friend and democratic ally in the Middle East,' he says.
WASHINGTON – US Congressman Brad Sherman (Democrat, California), a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, introduced the Visa Waiver for Israel Act, a bill allowing Israel’s entrance into the US Visa Waiver Program.
The Visa Waiver Program allows nationals from certain countries to enter the US as temporary visitors for tourism or business for up to 90 days without obtaining a visa from a US consulate abroad.
“I’m pleased to join with my colleagues Ted Poe (Republican-Texas), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (Republican-Florida) and eleven additional members of Congress to introduce the Visa Waiver for Israel Act,” said Sherman. “Israel is our closest friend and democratic ally in the Middle East. Adding Israel to the Visa Waiver Program will boost business, tourism, and job creation here in the US and enhance cultural ties between our two nations.”
In the past, a similar proposal to add Israel to the Visa Waiver Program was rejected by the Senate.
The Embassy of Israel released a statement in support of the legislation, saying it would "stimulate numerous business endeavors, and help promote closer cultural, economic, and touristic ties. The passage of this legislation would further strengthen the special and deep relationship between Israel and the United States.”
There are 36 countries currently in the Visa Waiver Program, including western and central European countries, as well as South Korea, Japan, Brunei, Singapore, Australia, and New Zealand. In 2010, 17.1 million visitors entered the United States under the Visa Waiver program, constituting 42% of all overseas visitors.
Israel is one of the “road map countries” which are most interested in joining the Visa Waiver Program and have been in discussions with the US Departments of State and Homeland Security to join the program since 2005.
“Almost one-third of a million Israelis entered the US as temporary visitors annually in recent years,” continued Sherman. “Each had to get a US visa through a bureaucratic process that sometimes takes weeks. The number of Israeli visitors would increase substantially if Israel enters the Visa Waiver Program. That means more business, tourism, academic and cultural exchanges, and most importantly, job creation. This is an important way to further strengthen ties with our close friend and ally in the Middle East – Israel.”
The legislation contains counter-terrorism and information sharing provisions, and would ensure that Israel adopts biometric travel documents prior to being admitted to the program.
In addition to Chairman Ros-Lehtinen, Sherman and Poe were joined by Representatives Charles Rangel, Edolphus Towns, Steve Rothman, Bill Pascrell, Shelley Berkley, Eliot Engel, Michael Grimm, Mazie Hirono, Rush Holt, Aaron Schock, and Robert Dold in introducing the bill.
http://fwd4.me/17fC 6 jun 2012, 15:32 , Respect -
Maria 6 juni 2012
A special message toward the acceptance of the Medal of Freedom
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cen86hiunHU
Former US presidents, state secretaries and a long line of Hollywood stars and business tycoons will take part in a special event to be hosted by President Barack Obama in honor of Shimon Peres.
The White House is set to host a grandiose dinner on June 13 during which Obama will award Peres with the Medal of Freedom.
Toward this special event President Shimon Peres has decided to deliver the following message of gratitude
Obama to U.S. Orthodox Jews: My administration is more attentive to Israel than to Palestinians
Obama told a White House meeting with leaders of Orthodox community that the window of opportunity for peace with the Palestinians might have already closed, but expressed hope that progress is possible.
U.S. President Barack Obama told a delegation of the U.S. Orthodox Jewish community at the White House on Tuesday that his administration is decidedly more attentive to Israel than it is to the Palestinians.
Obama was speaking at a meeting between White House Chief of Staff Jack Lew and leaders of the Orthodox Jewish community, including Dr. Simcha Katz, Rabbi Steven Burg and Nathan Diament of the Orthodox Union.
Meeting participants who wished to remain nameless told Haaretz that the delegation asked Obama what lessons he has learned from events related to the Israel-Palestine peace process, and that the U.S. president said that it is very difficult, and that there are many possibilities for misunderstanding. There is only tension because both sides feel pressured to compromise, he said.
Obama also said that he understands the Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants no restraints, like the leader of any country. He assured his guests that he and Netanyahu get along well on a personal level – but that Netanyahu does not want to appear weak.
In the past, President Obama and other administration officials warned the window of opportunity for making peace might not remain open for long. At Tuesday's meeting he said that maybe it is already closed, but still expressed hope that progress is still possible, although he admitted that the position of the Palestinians has deteriorated.
We'll keep trying, he promised his guests - and asked them not to doubt his fidelity to this cause. Being a friend, he stressed, doesn't mean to agree with Israeli leaders on every single issue.
Obama said that peace is good for Israel, and stressed that he has been a stalwart believer that Israel should thrive - and that he has provided much support for the country. According to Obama, recent events in Syria and Egypt provide yet another example of why a solution to the conflict is needed.
Part of the discussion was dedicated to the issues of state and religion - especially the controversial issue of whose responsibility it is to pay for contraception - and whether religious hospitals should perform abortions and circumcisions.
Obama said he is a person of deep religious conviction and a strong supporter of causes of conscience. It is not that he thinks the government can do it better, he said - but stressed that millions of women working in religious institutions shouldn't be discriminated and not receive their healthcare because of their employers objections to contraceptives.
Tuesday's meeting followed a meeting last week, between Obama and Lew and about 20 Conservative Jewish community leaders, in which they thanked them for the work they do to improve communities around the country, and discussed their shared commitment to rebuilding the U.S. economy.
http://fwd4.me/12Ph