Hamas Builds Arsenal, Prepares for War
Nisan 6, 5769, 31 March 09 10:00
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz(IsraelNN.com) Hamas has been preparing for war through upgrading its strategy, its tactical capabilities and by smuggling weapons. Meanwhile, the jihadist organization issued threats to take more Israelis captive.
A leader of Hamas, which controls the Gaza half of the Palestinian Authority, warned Saturday that "if Israel does not accept the demands to free 1,450 prisoners for captive Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, [Hamas'] al-Qassam [Brigades] would kidnap more soldiers," according to the Gaza-based Palestine Today.
"The Hamas movement is not intending to make any concessions concerning its demands to finalize the prisoners exchange deal, and if this soldier (Shalit) is not enough, we will kidnap more," said Ra'ed al-Attar, a senior leader in Hamas' al-Qassam Brigades.
The prestigious Jane's Defense Weekly reported last week that Hamas has been updating its capabilities ever since the end of Israel's Operation Cast Lead in Gaza. A senior Hamas official is quoted by the defense journal as explaining that the jihadists are applying lessons learned during the conflict, in which they lost hundreds of fighters. An internal Hamas investigation has shown that the group's fighters displayed "weakness and fear [when confronted] by a real war," Jane's reports.
Plans for improvement include the adoption of new techniques and training, according to the Hamas source. Specifically cited in Jane's are intentions to focus on improved anti-armor capabilities and to remove 50 commanders who performed poorly during the battles with the IDF. According to the weekly, Hamas also has "plans for new logistical supply lines and a modern satellite communications network." %ad%
The head of the Israel Security Agency (ISA; Shin Bet), Yuval Diskin, confirmed on Sunday that Hamas is continuing to smuggle weapons into the Palestinian Authority by way of the Sinai tunnels. According to Diskin, the organization has been successful in bringing in large quantities of weapons, ammunition and explosives.
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PrintArab States: Ultimatum to Israel
Nisan 5, 5769, 30 March 09 01:41
by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz(IsraelNN.com) The Arab League is formulating an ultimatum to be issued Monday warning Israel that it must accept the League's terms for an Arab-Israel agreement. If Israel refuses, the Arab League statement indicates, the offer will be off the table. Meanwhile, the Arab League is hosting a leader charged with racist massacres of non-Arabs in his own country.
If approved by the Arab leaders attending the Arab League meeting in Qatar on Monday, the statement will declare that the proposed agreement, credited to Saudi Arabia, will soon be rescinded if Israel fails to accept it. The draft was composed by Arab foreign ministers meeting ahead of the summit.
The 2002 Saudi Initiative, as it has come to be known, calls for: 1) full Israeli withdrawal from all lands under Jewish sovereignty since 1967, including Jerusalem, the Golan Heights and all of Judea and Samaria; 2) Israeli agreement to accept Arab war refugees; 3) Israeli acceptance of a Palestinian Arab state in Judea, Samaria and Gaza, with Jerusalem as its capital. In exchange, the Arab states would agree to enter into a peace agreement with Israel, and "consider the Arab-Israeli conflict ended."
Knesset Member Ahmed Tibi, head of the Arab Renewal Movement faction, will be attending some Arab League meetings. According to the Hebrew-language Ha'aretz newspaper, Tibi is pushing for the Arab League to call on the international community to force Israel to accept the creation of a Palestinian state.
Aside from the ultimatum, the Arab leaders will be discussing a roster of 26 items. Of these, a separate agenda item is devoted to Syria's claims on the Golan Heights. The League will also hold sessions on the incoming Israeli government and the situation in southern Lebanon, as well as the issue of Hamas-Fatah clashes in the Palestinian Authority. Other topics include the international financial crisis, the situation in Iraq and Somalia, as well as the International Criminal Court's arrest warrant for Sudan's leader Omar al-Bashir - who will be at the Qatar meeting despite the warrant. Bashir is charged with facilitating the mass killings of Sudanese non-Arabs in Darfur. %ad%
A key Arab leader, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, will not be attending the Arab League Summit, according to the Arabic media, because of what he sees as Qatar's interference in negotiations over the return of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit. In addition, Egypt is incensed at Qatar's intention to host Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad at the Arab League Summit, as well as what Mubarak sees as ongoing criticism of Egypt on the Al-Jazeera network, hosted in Qatar.
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PrintGaza Terrorists Greet Netanyahu’s Government with Rocket Fire
Nisan 6, 5769, 31 March 09 04:40
by Avraham Zuroff(IsraelNN.com) Terrorists fired a Kassam rocket, which exploded in an open field near a kibbutz (agricultural settlement) within the Shaar HaNegev region shortly after 3:30 p.m. Tuesday. No injuries or damage were reported in the attack.
It was the fourth rocket fired at the western Negev during the day. One of the other rockets came down in another part of the Sha'ar Hanegev region. Two others exploded in unpopulated areas of Sdot Hanegev. No injuries or damage from the rockets were reported. However, a 55-year-old woman who was alarmed by the Color Red early warning alert system that sounded in Sderot fell and broke her hip. In addition, a girl suffered emotional trauma from the alert. The two were evacuated for treatment.
The attack followed Israel's elimination of two terrorists and the wounding of three others along the Gaza security fence near Kissufim earlier Tuesday after they tried to plant an explosive device there. Two heavily armed terrorists were eliminated and three more wounded when a Golani patrol unit spotted them trying to plant the explosives. The patrol summoned a helicopter, which fired on the terrorists. An Israeli soldier suffered light to moderate wounds in the ensuing clash. The soldier, who was hit by shrapnel, was airlifted to Soroka Medical Center in Be'er Sheva.
Responding to a question about this morning's elimination of the two terrorists, Defense Minister Ehud Barak said that it was good the IDF stood prepared and alert to defend the border.
The Hamas terrorist organization that rules Gaza did not claim responsibility for the terrorist cell; however, the group did claim that its operatives had fired 18 mortar shells at the IDF unit during the confrontation.
In the past seven days, there have been at least two days in which there were rocket attacks launched from Gaza on communities in southern Israel. There were no reports of physical injuries or damage in any of the attacks.
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EU: Summit with Israel unlikely soon
Mar. 31, 2009
JPost.com Staff , THE JERUSALEM POST
JPost.com Staff , THE JERUSALEM POST
The EU has said it is unlikely to hold a summit with Israel in the near future as planned due to its dissatisfaction with Israeli construction in east Jerusalem and the continued blockade on the Gaza Strip, , Reuters reported Tuesday.
Czech Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg, whose nation currently holds the rotating EU presidency, told his country's Lidove Noviny newspaper that the union was "not happy with some of the steps of the Israeli government, namely construction works close to Jerusalem but also access to Gaza, which is today very limited."
"The new Israeli government has not raised much excitement either," he added.
The EU's foreign ministers in December approved a significant upgrade in the union's diplomatic relationship with Israel, despite Palestinian opposition and some calls in Europe that this should be linked to developments on the ground.
The decision called for ad hoc summit meetings between Israel's prime minister and all EU heads of government, something that has never taken place before. It also called for Israel's foreign minister to meet with all 27 EU foreign ministers three times a year. It called for a strategic dialogue to discuss issues such as Iran, the diplomatic process and Syria. It also called for the inclusion of Israel in EU peacekeeping forces, and for an EU commitment to help Israel better integrate into UN agencies.
Meanwhile in Prague, President Shimon Peres met with Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek Tuesday and warned him that "it would be a mistake on the EU's part to give Israel the cold shoulder" and delay the planned upgrade of EU-Israel relations "due to our war on terror."
"Israel is at the forefront of the war on terror," he said. "This is a war that we fight not only for our people, but for the entire world. Today terror is in Israel and tomorrow terror will be in Europe."
In response, Topolanek said the Czech Republic would "continue to take a friendly and supportive stance with Israel."
"During my visit to Israel with European leaders at the end of [Operation Cast Lead], we maintained a strong and resolute stance against Hamas and terrorism, and I plan to continue leading this position," he said.
Herb Keinon contributed to this report.
Aaron Klein, WorldNetDaily's Jerusalem bureau chief, is known for his regular interviews with Mideast terror leaders and his popular segments on America's top radio programs. His newly released book is "Schmoozing with Terrorists: From Hollywood to the Holy Land, Jihadists Reveal their Global Plans – to a Jew!"
This article can also be read at http://www.jpost.com /servlet/Satellite?cid=1238423650349&pagename=JPArticle%2FShowFull
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OBAMA WATCH CENTRAL
Obama courts West-haters
Plans to attend conference seeking Islamic interests
Obama courts West-haters
Plans to attend conference seeking Islamic interests
Posted: March 31, 2009
1:00 am Eastern
1:00 am Eastern
By Aaron Klein
© 2009 WorldNetDaily
© 2009 WorldNetDaily
 President Obama |
JERUSALEM – Concern has been mounting over President Obama's scheduled participation in the U.N.'s Alliance of Civilizations summit in Turkey next month, with some critics painting the organization as anti-Western and advocating Iranian interests.
"The Alliance might more appropriately be called a U.N.-approved Slush Fund for Advancing Iranian and Other Islamic Interests," wrote Claudia Rosett, a Forbes contributor and journalist-in-residence with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies.
A separate report by the Heritage Foundation labeled the Alliance forum "well-intentioned" but with little prospect for success due to "bias and objectionable proposals to freedom of expression." The report was titled "Why President Obama should not attend the Alliance of Civilizations forum."
Obama is reportedly due at the Alliance April 7. The organization was formed in 2005 as an offshoot of the Dialogue of Civilizations, an earlier U.N. project founded by former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami, who is still a member of the Alliance.
Other Alliance member states or participating organizations include China; the Organization of the Islamic Conference; the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization; the Arab League; Turkey; and the Arab League Educational, Cultural and Scientific Organization. Not on the list is Israel.
In 2006, the Alliance released a 63-page official report largely laying blame on the West for negative perceptions of Muslims and Islam. The report only mentioned Islamic terrorism once – in its recommendations section where it suggested the Western media should not use the term terrorism.
The Western media should refrain from using certain terms in reporting on Muslims and Islam, the report recommended, "including the use of terms such as 'Islamic terrorism' and 'Islamic fascism' – [which] have contributed to an alarming increase in Islamophobia which further exacerbates Muslim fears of the West."
Jorge Sampaio, U.N. High Representative for the Alliance, declared at a press conference in Iran last year that freedom of speech should be balanced with respect for religion.
"There is a balance to be found between freedom of expression and respect for religion and for religious feelings and principles," he said.
According to Iranian state-run television, Sampaio also told Supreme Islamic Revolution Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei that Iran "has an important role to play within the Alliance of Civilizations because of its unique cultural and religious makeup."
Iran's Khatami, meanwhile, has reportedly been actively involved with shaping the Alliance agenda. Also, as Rosett pointed out, Khatami entered the U.S. in 2006 for an Alliance meeting and used his U.N.-sponsored trip to stay in the country for another two weeks, During that time he embarked on a speaking tour that saw him denounce America and keynote a Washington fundraising dinner for the controversial Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR.
Wrote Rosett: "From U.S. soil, thanks to an Alliance entry ticket, Khatami served broadly as a prominent spokesman for Iran's interests – just as Iran was thumbing its nose at U.S. efforts, via the U.N. Security Council, to put a stop to Tehran's pursuit of nuclear bomb fuel."
Alliance hails 'anti-Israel' Arab plan
The Alliance's 2006 report, reviewed by WND, seemed to focus disproportionately on Israel. It painted a picture that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is largely to blame for much of the violence in the Middle East.
The report recognizes the importance of a so-called "Arab Peace Initiative," which defenders of Israel warn would leave the Jewish state with truncated, difficult-to-defend borders and could threaten Israel's Jewish character by compelling it to accept millions of foreign Arabs.
Following scores of denials he would trumpet the plan, Obama in January hailed the Arab initiative, which offers normalization of ties with the Jewish state in exchange for extreme Israeli concessions. In an interview with an Arab television network – his first formal interview as president – Obama stated:
"Well, here's what I think is important. Look at the proposal that was put forth by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. ... I might not agree with every aspect of the proposal, but it took great courage to put forward something that is as significant as that. I think that there are ideas across the region of how we might pursue peace. I do think that it is impossible for us to think only in terms of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and not think in terms of what's happening with Syria or Iran or Lebanon or Afghanistan and Pakistan."
The Arab Initiative, originally proposed by King Abdullah in 2002 and later adopted by the Arab League, states that Israel would receive "normal relations" with the Arab world in exchange for a full withdrawal from the entire Gaza Strip, West Bank, Golan Heights and eastern Jerusalem, which includes the Temple Mount.
The West Bank contains important Jewish biblical sites and borders central Israeli population centers, while the Golan Heights looks down on Israeli civilian zones and was twice used by Syria to mount ground invasions into the Jewish state.
The Arab plan also demands the imposition of a non-binding U.N. resolution that calls for so-called Palestinian refugees who wish to move inside Israel to be permitted to do so at the "earliest practicable date."
Palestinians have long demanded the "right of return" for millions of "refugees," a formula Israeli officials across the political spectrum warn is code for Israel's destruction by flooding the Jewish state with millions of Arabs, thereby changing its demographics.
When Arab countries attacked the Jewish state after its creation in 1948, some 725,000 Arabs living within Israel's borders fled or were expelled from the area that became Israel. Also at that time, about 820,000 Jews were expelled from Arab countries or fled following rampant persecution.
While most Jewish refugees were absorbed by Israel and other countries, the majority of Palestinian Arabs have been maintained in 59 U.N.-run camps that do not seek to settle the Arabs elsewhere. There are currently about 4 million Arabs who claim Palestinian refugee status with the U.N., including children and grandchildren of the original fleeing Arabs, Arabs living full-time in Jordan, and Arabs who long ago emigrated throughout the Middle East and to the West.
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Aaron Klein, WorldNetDaily's Jerusalem bureau chief, is known for his regular interviews with Mideast terror leaders and his popular segments on America's top radio programs. His newly released book is "Schmoozing with Terrorists: From Hollywood to the Holy Land, Jihadists Reveal their Global Plans – to a Jew!"
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