Gaza & Hamas
- Une roquette Qassam tombe dans le Conseil régional du Sha'ar HaNeguev (Guysen)
http://www.guysen.com/news_-Une-roquette-Qassam-tombe-dans-le-Conseil-regional-du-Sha-ar-HaNeguev-_324926.html
"Une roquette Qassam est tombée ce soir dans le Conseil régional du Sha'ar HaNeguev, sans faire de blessés."
- Une seconde roquette tombe dans le Sha'ar HaNeguev (Guysen)
http://www.guysen.com/news_-Une-seconde-roquette-tombe-dans-le-Sha-ar-HaNeguev-_324927.html
"Une seconde roquette Qassam est tombée ce soir dans le Conseil régional du Sha'ar HaNeguev, sans faire de victimes."
- Despite ceasefire: Rockets hits western Negev, Ilana Curiel (Ynet) - "It's important that decision makers realize that a ceasefire refers only to urban centers, and not to the communities in the fence vicinity."
http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-4114315,00.html
"Two Qassam rockets were fired Friday evening from the Gaza Strip toward Israel. The rockets exploded in open areas near Sha'ar HaNegev Regional Council. The Color Red rocket alert system sounded beforehand. No injuries or damage were reported. The rockets, which exploded shortly after 10pm, were the first to be launched from Gaza in seven hours. Earlier on Friday, a Grad rocket exploded near Ashkelon. No injuries were reported.
Sha'ar Hanegev Regional Council head Alon Shuster said following the barrage that "there was never more than a week or two without rocket fire. "The area next to the fence is a permanent battle field with ceaseless skirmishes. The residents here aren't delusional, and realize that this is the reality," he said. "It's important that decision makers realize that a ceasefire refers only to urban centers, and not to the communities in the fence vicinity," Shuster lamented. [...]"
- Le Front Populaire de Libération de la Palestine revendique le tir de deux roquettes sur Ashkelon (Guysen)
http://www.guysen.com/news_Le-Front-Populaire-de-Liberation-de-la-Palestine-revendique-le-tir-de-deux-roque_324946.html
"La branche armée du Front Populaire de Libération de la Palestine (FPLP) a revendiqué samedi matin le tir de deux roquettes sur Ashkelon."
- Report: Egypt thwarts Israeli assassination of Hamas PM, Roee Nahmias (Ynet)
http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-4114381,00.html
"Egypt has forced Israel to abort a mission aiming to assasinate Hamas prime minister in Gaza Ismail Haniyeh, the Egyptian newspaper Al-Ahram reported, citing Palestinian sources. According to the report, Egypt acted swiftly to pressure Israel to back out of the planned operation, which was decided upon following the recent multiple terror attacks near Eilat. Egypt also contacted the Islamic Jihad and swayed it to declare a ceasefire, while negotiating a ceasefire with Hamas and other factions in Gaza, most notably the Popular Resistance Committees. According to the report, the Palestinian Authority joined the efforts to convince the terror groups to stop the rocket attacks on Israel, informing the factions in Gaza that it is only a matter of time before Israel carries out the threat on Haniyeh's life. [...]"
- On verge of Gaza war, Alex Fishman (Ynet) - "The Shin Bet supported a military operation, despite all the diplomatic considerations, and promised to deliver the targets. However, some military officials noted that Hamas did not fire during the Gaza escalation".
http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-4114255,00.html
"When Defense Minister Ehud Barak arrived at the Defense Ministry Headquarters’ meeting room last Saturday, a thick war book titled “Operation South” was already awaiting his approval on his desk. In those hours, Israel was on the verge of embarking on war in the Gaza Strip. The book did not pertain to a limited operation. The selected targets would have certainly prompted a major flare-up, including difficult regional implications. Just like in Operation Cast Lead, the political leadership granted immunity to no one in the Strip, regardless of his position or stature. The detailed plans – the targets, scope, power and timing – would have left Hamas no breathing space and time to debate its response. It would have gone for the jackpot, right away. Indeed, Israel’s war plan included preparations for massive rocket fire from Gaza, including long-range missiles aimed at central Israel in general, and at Tel Aviv in particular.
Last weekend, the General Staff Headquarters looked like on the eve of war. Officials were working around the clock and sleeping in their offices. While formulating the plans, top officials recalled the curse of arrogance of the Second Lebanon War. Back then, the decision to launch a war was taken without sufficient preparation. The military and political leadership decided to deliver a blow, immediately, without taking into account the implications, the enemy’s response, the home front’s condition and the ability to counter rocket barrages. This time around, a full, detailed plan was drafted; it also included the IDF Home Front Command’s deployment. Only then was the scheme presented to the political echelon.
Another lesson learned from the miserable confrontation vis-à-vis Hezbollah is to start such assaults with great fire power, in order to minimize as much as is possible the home front’s suffering. This lesson was already implemented in Operation Cast Lead; in other words, the power utilized during Cast Lead was to constitute the starting point of the next operation.
Most of Israel’s regular army was to be enlisted, at one point or another, for the operation. Hence, last Saturday all regular army units were placed on alert. Air Force squadrons undertook their final preparations. The time given to the army for preparations also gave international parties – namely the United States and Egypt – time to examine alternatives to the war. Thursday afternoon, a few hours after the terror offensive on the road leading to Eilat, officials started to formulate the operational doctrine. At that point, the targets were only Islamic Jihad and the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC.) Hamas was not yet a clear target, with the exception of several symbolic hits meant to signal to the group that it holds the responsibility to prevent attacks from the Strip.
A short while after the PRC’s top brass was eliminated by the IDF in a surgical strike, Hamas’ entire leadership, both military and political, disappeared to various hideouts. They quickly realized where Israel’s response was headed to; hence, junior spokesmen were sent to address the cameras.
The next phase of Israel’s operation included the extension of the assault to Hamas as well. The assumption was that Hamas’ chiefs must have been aware of the PRC terror cell that headed to the Sinai to carry out attacks from there. A week before the Eilat offensive, PRC terrorists fired Grad Missiles at Kiryat Gat, and Hamas proceeded to detain the shooters, further demonstrating that it is deeply familiar with what goes on among “rogue groups” in Gaza. In retrospect it turned out that not everything works by the book: To the great amazement of Israel’s experts, Hamas was truly surprised by the Eilat-area attacks.
Zero hour for the large, comprehensive facet of the operation was set. The countdown began. The manpower numbers at some units were complemented with reservists. Less than 24 hours remained before a war broke out. Yet then, Saturday night, a diplomatic opportunity to end the escalation emerged. Hamas initiated a ceasefire. Officials quickly discovered that Hamas was embarrassed and confused by the fact that someone in the organization assumed responsibility for ending the lull and firing rockets at Ofakim and Beersheba that caused casualties. As it turned out, Hamas did not fire the rockets, and even sent police officers in an attempt to curb the shooters. Hamas heads directly approached the Americans and Egyptians and sought a ceasefire. Israel was aware of these inquiries virtually in real time.
Hamas chiefs did not plan or want this confrontation; not now. They were concerned about being blamed that they are pulling the rug from under Mahmoud Abbas ahead of the September independence bid. Moreover, the economic situation in Gaza is worsening. The government is having trouble paying salaries, with the amount of money pouring into the Strip at this time being a fraction of past fund transfers. At this time, officials in the Strip need calm and support from Cairo in the contacts on the Gilad Shalit swap. Hamas also fears that Egypt would close the Rafah Crossing. Furthermore, Hamas leaders in Gaza realized that what Israel characterized as a “disproportional response” to the rocket fire was merely the groundwork for a large-scale operation.
Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh dared leave his hideout only on Tuesday, some 24 hours after the ceasefire. Top Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaders are still huddled in bomb shelters, for good reason apparently. On Wednesday, an Islamic Jihad member was killed. Another one was assassinated early Thursday. This pattern will continue. The message in the wake of the Eilat-area offensive is unequivocal: Pinpoint eliminations are back, even if the price of each surgical strike is a night of mortar shells and Grad rockets aimed at southern Israel.
Saturday night, the Egyptians and Americans asked Israel to adhere to the ceasefire and refrain from launching a military campaign. Simultaneously, Egypt’s supreme military council made efforts to curb the anti-Israel wave sweeping the streets. If you act aggressively, the Egyptians told Israel, we would not be able to mediate vis-à-vis Hamas and we may not be able to contain the masses who seek to target Israeli symbols in Cairo.
During last weekend’s discussions, Israel’s forum of top eight government ministers did not only address the fears of collapsed ties with Egypt. They also spoke of the concern that a military operation would bring Israel into September in an inferior position, with states currently sitting on the fence opting to support the Palestinians. Officials also spoke of the shaky state of the Jordanian regime, which may be further destabilized as result of great shocks in Gaza. They also discussed further deterioration in our relationship with Turkey, which has become Gaza’ patron.
There was no consensus among participants in the meeting. The Shin Bet, for example, supported a military operation, despite all the diplomatic considerations, and promised to deliver the targets. However, some military officials noted that Hamas did not fire during the Gaza escalation. This was the first time the group’s facilities were hit, its people were killed, yet it held its fire. Several officers said this constituted clear proof that our deterrence is still stable.
And so, by midweek the army lowered its alert level, although it was immediately raised again; one warning elapsed but others emerged. Wednesday morning, inspectors cleared the Ashdod beach. Warnings about planned suicide attacks remerged. Meanwhile, The Shin Bet detained some 150 Hamas members, including political activists and parliamentarians, in the Hebron region early last week. This was characterized as the biggest arrest operation, in one night, since the peak of the second Intifada in 2002.
As September approaches, the IDF is being stretched beyond its means, and there will apparently be no escaping the need to call up reservists. Our leadership is navigating through a minefield. Just like we were on the verge of war Saturday night, with most of the public being completely oblivious to the unfolding drama, it can happen again tomorrow morning. The war book is ready."
- The biggest loss of all, Anshel Pfeffer (Haaretz) - "Southern Command Maj. Gen. Tal Russo wanted to keep his promise to the heads of local authorities surrounding Gaza and respond forcefully to every rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, but he accepted the politicians' decision to exercise restraint".
http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/the-biggest-loss-of-all-1.380811
"The terror attack near Eilat last Thursday and the fighting in Gaza suddenly transformed Sinai from the security establishment's drowsy backyard into the hottest front. Despite the turmoil over the eight Israelis killed in the attack, and the person killed in a Grad attack on Be'er Sheva, the main concern these days is for Israel's ties with Egypt - specifically, its ties with the country's temporary military regime.
If anything is threatening the Israel Defense Force's new five-year budgetary plan, it isn't the Finance Ministry or the social protest, but rather the risk of losing the strategic relationship with Egypt, which will mean a reactivation of army units and headquarters in the south. Home Front Defense Minister Matan Vilnai, a former GOC Southern Command, said this week that we must not "lose a strategic asset because of one terror attack." Defense Minister Ehud Barak said that if Egypt asks to send thousands more soldiers into eastern Sinai in order to end the anarchy there - which enables advanced weaponry to be brought into the Gaza Strip - he would support such a move. He stated in no uncertain terms that supporting such a move would be "a clear Israel interest."
On the one hand, IDF generals and top Defense Ministry officials have had many meetings and telephone conversations with their counterparts in Cairo in recent weeks. On the other hand, as one senior security source says, "the Egyptian army's maneuvers are being aimed at 'a small country in the Middle East.' Why do they have 1,000 American M-1 tanks? Returning their military presence to eastern Sinai is Egypt's strategic interest."
For his part, GOC Southern Command Maj. Gen. Tal Russo wanted to keep his promise to the heads of local authorities surrounding Gaza and respond forcefully to every rocket fired from the Gaza Strip, but he accepted the politicians' decision to exercise restraint. He also did not respond when the media criticized him after he admitted that he had erred by allowing Highway 12 to open just hours before the terrorist cell crossed the border last Thursday morning.
Russo stands out for his experience in operations and special forces. He commanded an air force commandos company, was deputy commander of the Sayeret Matkal special operations force, and commanded the Maglan special ops unit. He came to the Southern Command after heading the Operations Directorate for four years. The operational failures exposed by Thursday's terror attack did not "fit" his super-operational image. Still, Russo has never been responsible for a large civilian population, as commander of a regional brigade or division.
Be'er Sheva Mayor Ruvik Danilovich came to Russo's defense this week: "We had excellent relations with his predecessor, Yoav Galant, but Russo is trying harder than Galant did to share with us, to keep us briefed, to be involved." Despite the media's sniping, in this case, Russo has the complete backing of Barak and Chief of Staff Benny Gantz, who, even before the completion of the operational inquiries, has made it clear he has no intention of firing officers over judgment errors.
"We are no longer fighting, just sitting around in bunkers during bombardments," said a veteran Golani soldier this week. After three days under fire at the Gaza perimeter fence, he had left for a few hours of urgent medical treatment. "On patrols, too, we just go around in armored personnel carriers or armored Humvees and we hide. We certainly aren't getting out and firing." The fighting in Gaza last weekend was carried out solely by the air force and intelligence units. For the rest of the IDF, defense was the order of the day.
Last December, with Hamas acquiring more advanced anti-tank weapons, the IDF stationed around Gaza an armored battalion of Merkava-4 tanks equipped with the Windbreaker protective system. The system had its first success in March, when it intercepted a rocket-propelled grenade fired at a tank, in mid-flight. Meanwhile, after spending decades as air force tagalongs, the anti-aircraft units are starting to get accustomed to their new star status as operators of the Iron Dome missile-defense system. On Monday, Ashdod Mayor Yechiel Lasry declared, "By the end of September an Iron Dome system will be permanently positioned in Ashdod." A top defense official has promised him this, he added.
But a senior air force officer said, "Even the air force's commander doesn't know where the third battery will be positioned. These are General Staff decisions, authorized by the government. This is a mobile system that is still in the pre-operational phase and it moves around in accordance with operational, technical and training needs." A highly placed Defense Ministry source commented, "No one has promised Lasry anything."
The British and French leaders who pushed for NATO to help the Libyan rebels five months ago took pride this week that they had toppled Muammar Gadhafi without sending in ground soldiers - their aerial bombardments were enough. However, during the first months, the NATO bombardments sometimes claimed casualties among civilians and even rebel fighters due to mistaken intelligence. The situation changed over the past month, as the warplanes destroyed units loyal to Gadhafi that were blocking the rebels. What made the difference here were spotters, who moved ahead of the forces and sent the bombers precise coordinates for targets in real time. The spotters were English-speaking rebels who were secretly trained and equipped, and British and Canadian special forces personnel. Needless to say, there were "ground troops" involved - but they were Libyan rebel fighters, not NATO soldiers. Apparently Gadhafi could not be defeated only by aerial bombardments.
The same is bound to be the case for Israel in the next war, as it faces the threat of ground-to-ground missiles. Hamas and Hezbollah have carefully studied what happened during Operation Specific Gravity, the first night of the Second Lebanon War in 2006, when in 35 minutes the air force destroyed more than 40 medium-range missile launchers hidden in Hezbollah activists' homes. As the militants re-equip with more accurate, longer-range missiles, they still hide them in civilian homes. However, now they are hiding them underground, in concrete-reinforced silos and shelters. Taking them out by aerial attack will necessitate very powerful bombs that could cause grave harm to civilians.
Last Thursday Brig. Gen. Moshe Sheli completed 27 years of service in the IDF. His last four were as chief combat engineering officer. "In order to address the challenge posed by the conflict states and the terror organizations with steep trajectory weapons, we cannot rely on aerial attacks," he explains. "We will need to be on the ground much more than in previous wars." Sheli warns: "Everywhere a military infrastructure is deployed and they fire at Israel, there will be damage and casualties - and if there are civilians there, they will be in danger."
In Operation Cast Lead, the Israeli and international media emphasized the possibly excessive firepower used against Gaza, and the killing and destruction there, yet, says Sheli, "The army could not use the artillery or the air force to soften resistance everywhere. We were very sensitive to loss of civilian lives. The IDF did not use its full strength because the urban battlefield requires deplying force differently. The story is how much force was used, and we did not use force freely. We deployed in a very limited way. We did not use artillery to achieve 100 percent cover. We did not use armored forces extensively."
By way of explanation, Sheli notes, "in Gaza, more engineering platforms than tanks were used. We had 80 bulldozers, 75 Pumas (dedicated Engineering Corps armored vehicles ) and other special platforms like bridging tanks." The relatively small number of IDF casualties in that campaign can largely be credited to engineering fighters, who defused bombs. They also protected soldiers by quickly building tunnels and dirt barriers to protect them from snipers and missiles, says Sheli. In most cases where the IDF wanted to demolish buildings, Engineering Corps fighters went in with explosives, exposed to enemy fire.
Sheli still thinks the IDF's response was measured. "The orders were quite clear. We hit houses containing arms or that served as Hamas infrastructure. We tried to keep explosions from damaging homes. In places with civilian infrastructures, we tried to work with bulldozers, but we could not always endanger the bulldozer crews, because Hamas was deployed among civilians. You can't prevent harm to civilians. I don't know why the media focuses on this, and not Hamas' intentional damage within Israel. Every other democratic country whose civilians were targeted like this would have nipped it in the bud"."
"Processus de paix" -
Shaath : les factions palestiniennes d'accord pour reporter le gouvernement d'union (Guysen) http://www.guysen.com/news_Shaath-les-factions-palestiniennes-d-accord-pour-reporter-le-gouvernement-d-unio_324958.html "Nabil Shaath, conseiller du président palestinien Mahmoud Abbas, a déclaré ce samedi que les factions palestiniennes étaient d'accord pour reporter l'établissement d'un gouvernement d'union."
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PO: Washington met l'AP en garde contre la tentative d'adhésion à l'Onu (RIA Novosti) http://fr.rian.ru/world/20110827/190729324.html "Washington a officiellement averti l'Autorité palestinienne de son intention de bloquer l'adhésion de l'Etat de Palestine à l'Onu en imposant son veto au Conseil de sécurité, rapporte samedi le journal arabophone londonien
Alquds Alarabi. Selon le journal, cette position a été annoncée au cours des entretiens entre le consul général des Etats-Unis à Jérusalem, Daniel Rubinstein, et le haut responsable palestinien, Saeb Erakat. D'après le diplomate américain, Washington reste favorable à la reprise des pourparlers directs israélo-palestiniens et à une solution pacifique de la crise au Proche-Orient. Le Congrès américain a par ailleurs menacé les Palestiniens de couper certaines aides américaines s'ils sollicitent une reconnaissance de leur Etat à l'ONU. [...]"
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Abbas : Les Palestiniens ne reconnaîtront pas Israël en tant qu’Etat juif (Guysen) http://www.guysen.com/news_Les-Palestiniens-ne-reconnaitront-pas-Israel-en-tant-qu-Etat-juif-Abbas-_324975.html "Le président palestinien Mahmoud Abbas a soutenu ce samedi que son peuple ne reconnaîtra pas Israël en tant qu’Etat juif.
"Ne nous ordonnez pas de reconnaître un Etat juif. Nous ne le ferons pas", a-t-il affirmé."
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Lieberman: Palestinians want to take over Israel from within, Barak Ravid (Haaretz) http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/lieberman-palestinians-want-to-take-over-israel-from-within-1.381011 "Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Saturday that a statement made by Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas statement earlier in the day that the Palestinians would not agree to recognize a Jewish state revealed the true nature of the Palestinian move for recognition of statehood in September.
"The real intention of the Palestinians is not to establish a state that will live in peace alongside Israel but rather the establishment of a state free of Jews in [the West Bank] and the hostile takeover of Israel from within," Lieberman said.
"This is also the reason that Abbas and his colleagues are not interested in negotiating with Israel but rather are taking unilateral steps to complete this move," Lieberman continued.
"The world must make it clear to Abbas that the only way the Palestinians can receive a state is when they stop trying to eliminate the world's only Jewish state"."
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Who will endorse Palestine?, Ronen Medzini (Ynet) -
"at this time it appears that Europe's votes will be split" ; "Ireland, the first EU country to upgrade the Palestinian delegation to the rank of embassy, is one of the main advocates of a Palestinian state, joined by Belgium and the Scandinavian countries - except for Denmark which is still undecided". http://www.ynet.co.il/english/articles/0,7340,L-4114432,00.html "On September 20th, the Palestinian Authority will submit its statehood bid at the United Nations General Assembly; the process will culminate with the UN's 193 member states voting on recognizing a Palestinian state. What can we expect at the vote?
Officials in Jerusalem presume that should a vote indeed take place, the Palestinians will win an automatic majority thanks to the guaranteed support of the 116 "non aligned" states," which tend to vote as a bloc and promote join interests. Hence, Foreign Ministry officials are focusing their efforts at what they refer to as the "moral majority," that is, large, influential states – this list includes the 27 members of the European Union, global powers, and several other key states.
The failure of such states to endorse a unilateral Palestinian move would make the UN decision illegitimate, Israeli officials believe. For the time being, mostly because the Palestinians have not yet publicized their draft bid, European states have largely refrained from openly voicing their positions. Officials in Brussels are aiming to create a united front of EU states that would abstain in the vote, yet at this time it appears that Europe's votes will be split.
The general debate on the Palestinian bid will take place at the UN General Assembly between September 21st and the 30th, and will constitute the final stretch of Israel's and the Palestinians' persuasion efforts. The speakers expected to deliver speeches at the UN include US President Barack Obama, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas and an Israeli representative whose identity has yet to be determined.
While in Israel the notion of "September" is seen as one of the most significant diplomatic issues of recent years, in Europe and elsewhere this is a rather marginal item on the diplomatic agenda. With EU economies on the verge of collapse, the US contending with its lowered credit rating, and NATO preparing for dramatic changes in the wake of Gaddafi's fall, most "moral majority" states have other priorities at this time.
Foreign Ministry officials estimate that domestic affairs are pushing aside foreign policy issues, a trend that may boost the influence of world powers, with an emphasis on Germany - which is seen as the stabilizing factor in face of the economic crisis. Notably, Berlin already announced that it will object to unilateral steps.
Meanwhile, President Obama already urged the Palestinians to avoid unilateral moves; indeed, America will not be endorsing Palestine, it appears. On the other hand, Russia is expected to endorse any Palestinian bid. In Asia, both China and India are expected to endorse Palestine, while Japan is still debating. Israeli officials are hopeful that Japanese democracy and Tokyo's close ties with the US will tilt the balance in Jerusalem's favor; the Foreign Ministry is also counting on Israel's assistance to Japan in the wake of the tsunami disaster.
Aside from Germany, the major players in Europe are France, Britain, Spain and Italy – which will have a great effect on the position of other countries. Israeli officials do not have high expectations of Spain, which they assume will support the Palestinian bid unless EU countries agree on a unified front. However, Italian Prime Minster Silvio Berlusconi announced he plans to reject any unilateral moves. Holland, the Czech Republic, the Baltic States and most of the eastern European countries have conveyed similar messages behind closed doors.
Meanwhile, Britain and France are a different story; both declared they will make up their mind only after carefully reviewing the final Palestinian draft.
"Britain's policy is quite clear: It embraces Israel within the 1967 borders, but condemns it outside those borders," a Jerusalem official said. As for France - which only recently urged Israel and the PA to renew the peace talks - it has hinted that it will endorse Palestine if the diplomatic freeze continues. However, at this time Paris' vote at the end of the day is still up in the air.
Ireland, the first EU country to upgrade the Palestinian delegation to the rank of embassy, is one of the main advocates of a Palestinian state, joined by Belgium and the Scandinavian countries - except for Denmark which is still undecided. Greece and Cyprus, which have warmed up to Israel recently, are still on the fence as well. This is mostly due to the fact that both had previously endorsed a Palestinian state - after former Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat declared independence in 1998 – making it hard for them to recant.
At this time, the Foreign Ministry is undertaking its final efforts before the UN vote. Israel's diplomats and missions have been trying to mobilize their best connections and activate their 'diplomatic target banks.'
"We have leverage vis-à-vis every country: Our friends in the parliaments, the Jewish community, public opinion leaders, the media, NGOs, the church, donors. It's time to play the cards we accumulated," an Israeli diplomat said.
In addition, a work plan has been formulated for each and every country and designated messages have been drafted as well. For example, the following message was tailored for Norway, a country associated with the Oslo peace process and most likely to vote in favor of the PA statehood bid:
"In Oslo we agreed on an outline for a permanent agreement, and the peace process is named after you. If you support the Palestinians and ditch the outline, it may indicate that Norway has lost it's special status in the peace process"."
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For Yasser Arafat, crime certainly paid, Amir Oren (Haaretz) -
"The Khartoum operation was an intoxicating success for Arafat. It drew the Nixon administration to launch secret negotiations with him" ; "Nixon and Kissinger wanted to moderate Arafat's policies and prevent further terror attacks (against Americans; the others didn't count)" ; "The Palestinian state-building began "on the backs" of the Khartoum attack's victims". http://www.haaretz.com/weekend/week-s-end/for-yasser-arafat-crime-certainly-paid-1.380812 "
"Crime doesn't pay" is a nice saying. When it comes to diplomacy, however, it nearly always does pay. Without murderous terrorism, Yasser Arafat would not have led the Palestinian national movement to many of its achievements, including his successor Mahmoud Abbas' plan to ask the United Nations General Assembly to recognize Palestine as an independent state next month. Abbas has secured a majority in support of this, although not for UN membership, which must be authorized by the UN Security Council.
Since Arafat first appeared on that platform, in 1974, his gun holster hanging from his belt, the Palestinians have advanced from being an organization (the Palestine Liberation Organization ) to an "authority" created by the Oslo Accords, and from there to being an embryonic state. Arafat leveraged Palestinian terror crudely - and directly. The terror attacks he masterminded eventually drove the Americans to offer him diplomatic recognition at the expense of its two veteran partners, Israel and Jordan.
On the eve of UN recognition of Palestine, 18 years after the Oslo Accords carried Arafat to the White House and from there to the Nobel Peace Prize, and seven years after his death, the U.S. government now confirms that Arafat was responsible for the 1973 murder of its ambassador and his deputy in Khartoum, Sudan. The two were taken hostage and killed
"with the full knowledge and by the personal authorization" of Arafat, according to a study released last month by the U.S. State Department's Office of the Historian, entitled
"Foreign Relations of the United States, 1969-1976, Volume XXV, Arab-Israeli Crisis and War, 1973." The incident began on March 1, 1973, when eight members of Black September stormed the Saudi Arabian Embassy in Khartoum during a reception, and captured the Saudi ambassador and four of his guests: American ambassador Cleo Noel, U.S. deputy chief of mission George Curtis Moore, and the Belgian and Jordanian charge d'affaires in Sudan. Black September was a transparent front for Fatah, and Arafat was the commander of both, as well as head of the PLO. When the kidnappers understood that Jordan, Israel and the United States would not be releasing prisoners in exchange for the captives, Fatah headquarters in Beirut ordered them to shoot the two Americans and the Belgian, Guy Eid.
Two months later - and one month after the so-called Spring of Youth raid on Beirut by an elite Israel Defense Forces unit, paratroopers and the Mossad, which killed three senior Palestinian leaders - Foreign Minister Abba Eban visited U.S. President Richard Nixon's National Security Adviser Henry Kissinger.
"During the Khartoum incident, someone suggested we ask you for help," Kissinger said, according to the newly released report.
"You would have blown up Beirut." Eban replied:
"You know that it was from Beirut that the phone call went to finish them off." Kissinger concurred:
"We know that." [...]
"The Khartoum operation was planned and carried out with the full knowledge and personal approval of Yasser Arafat," aided by representatives of Fatah in Khartoum, who transported the terrorists in their car, which enjoyed diplomatic immunity, the NSA report states. It makes no mention of U.S. governmental bodies, and it was included in a digitized collection of documents about Africa, published by the State Department's Office of the Historian, without an opinion as to its reliability.
Meanwhile, last month, the U.S. State Department published the above-mentioned study of Israeli-Arab relations. It contains that quote blaming Arafat. Now that the information has been declassified, this means the U.S. government's official position is that the attack was planned and carried out with Arafat's full knowledge and personal approval.
The Clinton and the first Bush administrations considered Arafat a partner for diplomatic dialogue and he was a high-ranking guest at the White House. From now on it will be hard for official American visitors to the future Palestinian state to lay a wreath on the grave of the person who orchestrated the Khartoum murders, according to the usual protocol.
The Khartoum operation was an intoxicating success for Arafat. It drew the Nixon administration to launch secret negotiations with him, through an intermediary, Richard Helms, ambassador to Iran and CIA head through 1973. The contacts were conducted with Ali Hassan Salameh,
"Arafat's right-hand man," as Helms put it, and Black September's operations officer. Nixon and Kissinger wanted to moderate Arafat's policies and prevent further terror attacks (against Americans; the others didn't count). For his part, the Palestinian leader leveraged the attacks to conduct diplomatic negotiations, unbeknownst to Israel and Jordan.
In a meeting at the White House with Noel and Moore's widows on May 17, 1973, Nixon said he envied the
"ruthlessness" of the Soviet and Israeli responses to terror, adding that
"damned terrorism" was tearing other countries, like Lebanon, apart.
"It's poisoning the whole Middle East," Nixon said.
"It gets down to the Arab-Israeli problem. Until that is solved, it will go on. I have talked to Mrs. [Golda] Meir as strongly as possible. Egypt is tough; Jordan is reasonable. The best way to get at terrorism is to get at the Arab-Israeli dispute. We are talking to the Russians. Dr. Kissinger is talking to the Israelis (off the record but they leak)." [...]
The Palestinian state-building began "on the backs" of the Khartoum attack's victims, Noel and Moore. At the same time, while the government in Khartoum exhibited admiration for the PLO and quickly freed the murderers, Israel strengthened its ties with Sudanese rebels. [...]"
Iran -
Le régime iranien fustige Israël à l'occasion de la Journée al-Qods (Reportage Euronews, Vidéo 1mn) http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xkqk22_le-regime-iranien-fustige-israel-a-l-occasion-de-la_news "C'est traditionnel chaque dernier vendredi du ramadan en Iran. Le régime organise la "Journée de Jérusalem" afin de soutenir la cause palestinienne. L'occasion de déverser toute sa haine sur Israël."
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L'Iran sanctionné pour avoir aidé la Syrie, Armin Arefi (Le Point) -
"l'Iran est aujourd'hui en perte de vitesse dans l'opinion publique arabe en raison de son soutien indéfectible à la Syrie". http://www.lepoint.fr/monde/l-iran-sanctionne-pour-avoir-aide-la-syrie-26-08-2011-1366948_24.php "La République islamique d'Iran est la nouvelle cible de sanctions européennes prises au sujet de la Syrie. L'accusant d'avoir
"fourni aux services de sécurité syriens une assistance technique, du matériel et un soutien pour réprimer les mouvements de contestation civils", l'UE a décidé de s'en prendre à l'unité d'élite iranienne al-Qods. Concrètement, une partie de ses membres est désormais visée par un gel de ses avoirs en Europe, ainsi que par une interdiction de déplacement. Ces forces spéciales appartiennent au corps des Gardiens de la révolution, l'armée idéologique de la République islamique, et sont employées dans toutes les interventions extérieures de l'Iran.
Elles sont notamment présentes en Irak, où elles soutiennent les mouvances chiites, contribuant à accentuer l'enlisement des forces américaines sur le terrain. Mercredi encore, l'unité d'élite iranienne a été impliquée dans la mort de 40 à 50 rebelles kurdes, membres du Parti pour une vie libre du Kurdistan (PJAK), lors d'une offensive menée à la frontière entre l'Iran et l'Irak. Rien n'indique cependant leur présence sur le terrain en Syrie, ce que confirme Rami Abdul Rahmane, de l'Observatoire syrien des droits de l'homme, l'un des rares à disposer d'un vaste réseau fiable d'informateurs dans le pays.
"Il est certain que les Iraniens apportent une aide logistique à la Syrie", avoue le militant.
"Téhéran, qui a l'expérience de l'étouffement d'une révolte populaire en 2009, indique à Damas que la meilleure façon de réprimer est d'arrêter un maximum de manifestants, plutôt que de les tuer. Personne ne sait exactement combien de prisonniers compte la Syrie aujourd'hui." Pour sa part, Mohammad-Reza Djalili explique qu'
"une intervention iranienne au sol serait contre-productive, autant pour Téhéran que pour Damas. Surtout quand on sait qu'ils pourraient intervenir en Syrie par l'intermédiaire du Hezbollah." Ce professeur émérite à l'Institut de hautes études internationales et du développement à Genève, et auteur avec Thierry Kellner de
"L'histoire contemporaine de l'Iran" (La Découverte), ajoute que
"les Iraniens disposent d'un système de contrôle des communications encore plus poussé que les Syriens". Tandis que la Turquie et l'Arabie saoudite ont officiellement appelé à la fin des violences en Syrie, l'Iran a toujours fait preuve d'un soutien indéfectible à l'égard de son allié stratégique.
"Le devoir de tous les musulmans est de contribuer à la stabilisation de la Syrie contre les complots destructeurs de l'Amérique et d'Israël", a encore annoncé le 15 août le grand ayatollah ultraconservateur Nasser Makarem Chirazi. Mercredi, la présidente de la commission parlementaire iranienne pour les droits de l'homme est même allée jusqu'à convoquer l'ambassadeur de Turquie en Iran, pour lui signifier que son pays avait tort d'affaiblir Bachar el-Assad car il faisait barrage contre Israël.
L'État hébreu et la République islamique auraient pourtant tout à gagner à ce que le président syrien perdure.
"Côté iranien, explique Mohammad-Reza Djalili,
la chute du régime d'Assad signerait l'effondrement de l'investissement d'une trentaine d'années visant à développer l'axe Téhéran-Damas, artère vitale de la politique levantine de l'Iran. Côté israélien, Assad a finalement été un très bon soutien à Israël, car depuis 1967, lui et son père garantissent une stabilité sur la frontière syro-israélienne. En cas de chute de Bachar el-Assad, tout autre régime, islamique ou non, devrait dès lors se montrer beaucoup plus entreprenant vis-à-vis du Golan." La décision de l'UE n'est pas une première. En juin, trois responsables iraniens des Gardiens de la révolution avaient déjà été visés par des sanctions pour avoir aidé à mater les contestataires. Or ceux-ci étaient déjà sous le coup de restrictions similaires en raison du programme nucléaire iranien, ce qui pourrait témoigner d'un but politique de ces nouvelles sanctions.
"Les Européens veulent contribuer à ternir davantage l'image de l'Iran auprès de la rue arabe, qui était encore au zénith il y a deux ans, lorsque Ahmadinejad paraissait être le seul leader musulman à critiquer ouvertement Israël", estime Mohammad-Reza Djalili.
"D'ailleurs, les sondages montrent bien que l'Iran est aujourd'hui en perte de vitesse dans l'opinion publique arabe en raison de son soutien indéfectible à la Syrie"."