Prophecy and End Time Series. - Israel

[Soldier4Christ]

 PA Hopes For Arab Majority in Land of Israel by 2010
11:11 Nov 15, '05 / 13 Cheshvan 5766

(IsraelNN.com) According to the Palestinian Authority's Bureau of Statistics, there are 4.7 Arabs in the Land of Israel (between the Jordan River and the Medditeranean).

The PA envisions that by 2010 there will be an Arab majority in the region. "At that point we will tell the Israelis that we are offering them an Israeli State," read a statement from the Bureau.

The PA hopes to speed the demographic growth through importing Arabs from throughout the Middle East to Gaza in order to threaten Israel with the demand for a binational state between the river and the sea that would be an Arab one.

Recent demographic studies have undercut many of the methods used by the PA Statistics Bureau however.

[Soldier4Christ]

Iran admits satellite can spy on Israel

November 17, 2005

BY ALI AKBAR DAREINI

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iran said the satellite would be purely scientific. But a month after its launch -- and only weeks after the president said Israel should be wiped off the map -- the head of Tehran's space program now says the Sina-1 is capable of spying on the Jewish state.

The launch of the Russian-made satellite into orbit aboard a Russian rocket last month marked the beginning of Iran's space program. Officials say a second satellite -- this one Iranian-built -- will be launched in about two months, heightening Israeli concerns.

The Sina-1's stated purpose is to take pictures of Iran and to monitor natural disasters in the earthquake-prone nation. But as it orbits the Earth, with controllers able to point its cameras as they wish, Sina-1 gives Iran a limited space reconnaissance capability over the entire Middle East.

''Sina-1 is a research satellite. It's not possible to use it for military purposes,'' said Deputy Telecom Minister Ahmad Talebzadeh, who heads the space program.

But he agreed it could spy on Israel.

''Technically speaking, yes. It can monitor Israel,'' he said. ''But we don't need to do it. You can buy satellite photos of Israeli streets from the market.''

Iran also has said its nuclear program is peaceful, aimed at producing electricity -- though the United States believes the program secretly aims to produce nuclear weapons.



(My Notes: This is not entirely true. It is capable of low level Military useage such as reconnaissance and UHF and VHF communications. Something else to note here is that it has a shelf life of three years.)

[Soldier4Christ]

 Rabbi: Disengage from State

In new book, Rabbi Shalom Dov Wolpe says Israel should be replaced with ‘true Kingdom of David,’ calls on followers to refrain from praying for Jewish state’s wellbeing. ‘We are now in exile,’ he says
Efrat Weiss

A prominent Jewish messianist has called for religious Jews to disengage from the State of Israel due to the evacuation of Jewish communities in the Gaza Strip last summer.

 
In a new book entitled "Between Light and Darkness," Rabbi Shalom Dov Wolpe, a leader of the Chabad Chassidic sect that believes its chief rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson is the messiah, says religious Jews should view the secular government as an "administrative body, like the British government who controlled Israel before the country’s establishment.

 
Wolpe also says, "The religious Zionist public should prove that the State is unholy, and cannot serve as a means for achieving salvation. It must not pray for the country's wellbeing. We are now in exile and are waiting for the kingdom of the house of David."

 
Wolpe's call represents a sharp change from traditional Chabad-Lubavich thinking and match similar calls by some segments of the national-religious community to disengage from the State in reaction to the Gaza disengagement. While Chabad, like most ultra-orthodox groups, has always been reticent about secular Zionism, group members serve in the army and have rejected insular approach of other orthodox groups in favor of engaging the secular world in order to encourage Jews to observe the mitzvoth, or commandments

 

Sharon a 'false Messiah'

 
The cover of "Between Light and Darkness" carries a picture of the lit Temple's Menorah, and underneath it a darkened picture of the Knesset's building.

 
In the book itself, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is referred to as a "false Messiah" and as Haman, the historic nemesis of the Jewish people.

 
The bulk of the book is dedicated to the disengagement plan and to the uncertainties it spurred within the religious Zionist public.

 
"So many prayers were said from the bottom of the heart in the last year, in a bid to prevent the eviction and destruction," Wolpe writes. "The heart must wonder, why did God do this to this land? How is it possible that such a wicked man like the prime minister was able to jump over so many political hurdles, until he achieved his goal, the crime of the withdrawal" he asks, and answers:

 
"It is we that gave him the power. We determined that him, his state and his government are the beginning of our salvation. We blessed him before an open bible every Saturday. With such powers, it is no wonder that the false messiah storms forward without stopping, while taking his devotees and the rest of the Israeli people down to the abyss with him."

 
‘Replace Israel with true Kingdom of David’

 
According to Wolpe, the pullout was a sign from God that there is no relation between the existence of the democratic state and salvation, and that the religious public should therefore cease to believe in the holiness of the State and its institutions.

 
Referring to the religious Zionist teens who forcefully attempted to prevent the disengagement, Wolpe writes that "the Orange youth prays only for one thing: That the current rule, which is called 'the State of Israel' is abolished and replaced with the true Kingdom of David."

 
In the post-pullout period, Wolpe's ideas are not a rare sight among the rightist public. In a conference held in Jerusalem a few days ago, the participants wholeheartedly supported the principles expressed in the book, and thousands danced to the words of the song, "we do not believe in the rule of the heretics, and disregard their laws."

 

[Soldier4Christ]

Russia’s Foreign Minister Confirms Arms Deal with Iran

Russia has struck a deal to sell short-range, surface-to-air missiles to Iran, the defense minister said Monday, confirming reports that have raised concern in the United States and Israel, AP reported.

Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov didn’t give details. But Russian media have said that Moscow agreed in November to sell $1 billion worth of weapons to Iran, including up to 30 Tor-M1 missile systems over the next two years.

“A contract for the delivery of air defense Tor missiles to Iran has indeed been signed,” Ivanov was quoted as saying by the Interfax news agency.

“This unequivocally does not change the balance of forces in the region,” Ivanov added. Tor M1 missiles are short-range, surface-to-air missiles already used by several other armed forces, including China.

The reports last week prompted expressions of concern from the U.S administration and Israel, which considers Iran to be its biggest threat.

Israeli concerns recently were heightened after Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad urged that Israel be “wiped off the map.”
Interfax said the Tor-M1 system could identify up to 48 targets and fire at two targets simultaneously at a height of up to 20,000 feet.

On Saturday, an influential Iranian official played down the deal, telling the official Islamic Republic News Agency that Tehran has been trading arms with many countries and would continue to do so.

The Russian Foreign Ministry, without commenting on the reported missile sale, also said Saturday that all Russian weaponry supplied to Iran is purely for defensive purposes.

However, a senior Bush administration official, who declined to be named because he was not authorized to speak publicly on the subject, said last week that any arms sale to Iran is a source of concern. The official would not say whether Russia had advised the United States of any negotiations with Iran.

[Soldier4Christ]

Iran threatens counter-strike

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman says recent Israeli statements on Iran's nuclear project show Israeli government is frustrated from failure to bring international community to pressure Iran: 'Zionist authorities are well aware that if they make a foolish mistake against Iran, Iran's harsh response will be destructive and determined'
Roee Nahmias

An Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, Hamid Riza Asaffi, speaking with journalists in Teheran, said that recent Israeli statements on Iran's nuclear project showed that the Israeli government is frustrated from a failure to bring pressure from the international community to on Iran.

 
He claimed that a "serious crisis" within the "Zionist authorities" was the main factor behind what he described as Israeli threats. His comments were reported by the Islamic Republic News Agency.

"The Zionist authorities are well aware that if they make a foolish mistake against Iran, Iran's harsh response will be destructive and determined," said the spokesman. "Their approach comes from their anger over the fact that they can't realize their plans," he added.

 

Earlier, Benjamin Netanyahu told the Voice of Israel national radio network that "Israel must take every necessary step to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons. Iran must be prevented from developing this threat to the State of Israel. If, by the elections, the current government works to achieve this, I will give it my full support – and if it does not, I intend on establishing the next government, and then we'll act."

 
Meretz-Yahad faction head Yossi Beilin said that narrow considerations based on elections will drag Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Netanyahu to harsh comments that will be perceived as support for military action against Iran. Beilin said Israel must work for diplomatic activity to be led by the United States without endangering Israel in a confrontation with Iran with potentially disastrous consequences.

 

Also on Sunday the head of Tehran's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission Alaeddin Boroujerdi was quoted saying by Tehran's official news agency IRNA that Iran's Atomic Energy Organization has been given license to set up another 20 nuclear plants, two of them by March 2006.

 

Iran's first nuclear plant is being built by Russia for USD 1 billion and is scheduled to begin operating by March 2006.

 

'Diplomatic pressure won't work'

 

According to Boroujerdi, the new power plants will be able to generate 20,000 megawatts of electricity. However, international and Israeli intelligence sources claim the program may be a front to build an atomic bomb, an allegation Iran's vigorously denies.

 
Last week Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said “Israel and other countries cannot accept a situation where Iran has nuclear arms.

 
“The issue is clear to us and we are making all the necessary preparations to handle a situation of this kind,” Sharon told journalists in Tel Aviv.

 
Israel needs not lead the campaign, yet we are in close contact with countries that are dealing with the issue,” the prime minister said.

 

Sharon said he agrees with U.S. President George W. Bush that dealing with Iran’s push for nuclear armament is a top priority, adding that he hoped the “large danger will be dealt with” by referring Iran to the United Nations Security Council.

 

“Israel is not hopeless and is taking all the necessary measures,” Sharon said.

 

IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz told foreign reporters Sunday he is skeptical that diplomatic pressure will put a halt to Iran's nuclear ambitions.

 

"The fact that the Iranians are successful time after time in getting away from international pressure...encourages them to continue their nuclear project," he said.

 

"I believe that the political means used by the Europeans and the U.S. to convince the Iranians to stop the project will not succeed," Halutz added.

 

[Shammu]

In wake of Netanya suicide bombing that kills five, wounds 95: IDF to intensify response to attacks
By Ze'ev Schiff

In the wake of the Netanya suicide bombing and the constant barrage of Qassam rockets on communities in the south of the country, Israel has decided to adopt a harsher response to the rocket fire. Israeli artillery fire against the Qassam launchers that had been aimed, for the most part, only at open areas will now be directed also at built-up areas from where the rockets are being fired.

Ahead of the artillery fire at the built-up areas, the Israel Defense Forces will employ loudspeakers to ask the Palestinian residents to clear the area.

Yesterday's bombing, which left five people dead and dozens wounded, marked the fourth time Islamic Jihad has carried out a terror attack inside Israel since the Palestinian organization declared a period of "calm." Most of the recent Qassam rocket fire from the Gaza Strip is also being carried out by Islamic Jihad.

Because the Palestinian Authority has thus far failed to take any action against Islamic Jihad, Israel has decided to adopt a harsher response in the Gaza Strip, which is under full PA control. Israel will also focus attention on the Islamic Jihad network in the West Bank.

The decisions follow consultations last night between Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz.

Israel will also intensify its political pressure on the PA, in an effort to get Chairman Mahmoud Abbas to take action against Islamic Jihad.

In the West Bank, the IDF's operations against the Islamic Jihad infrastructure in Jenin will be expanded to include Tul Karm and Nablus. In the wake of the disengagement from the Gaza Strip, however, the situation is more complex. There, the PA has thousands of armed personnel, but is allowing a state of anarchy to prevail.

Israel charges that Islamic Jihad is a relatively small organization that is supported by Syria and Iran, and is undermining the period of "calm." Islamic Jihad has not signed the agreement among the Palestinian organizations, but Israeli officials say it is causing serious damage to any possible political process.

Unlike Hamas, Islamic Jihad has no intention of participating in the elections to the Palestinian Legislative Council in January.

Until now, the IDF has made some 1,200 arrests in its operations against Islamic Jihad in the West Bank. The detainees, for the most part, are Jihad activists and supporters.

Military officials had originally believed that the IDF's operations in the West Bank had dealt a harsh blow to the Jihad network in the area, with an intelligence official commenting recently that the army's operations had disrupted some two-thirds of this network.

How did he get in?

Nevertheless, it appears that in order to carry out a suicide attack inside Israel, Islamic Jihad is able to do so with what remains of its infrastructure in the West Bank.

The Shin Bet security service had general information on advanced preparations for a suicide attack, but apparently the intelligence was not sufficiently specific.

The Shin Bet must also try to locate the individual who drove the suicide bomber to his target; and it remains unclear whether the terrorist crossed into Israel in the area of the so-called Jerusalem envelope, and was then driven to Netanya, or managed to get through one of the checkpoints, possibly with the help of forged Israeli documents.

At last night's meeting, Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz also decided to impose a full closure on the territories, commenting during the discussions that it would not be fitting for Palestinian workers to be allowed to enter Israel on the day of the funerals of the bombing victims.

The Karni crossing between Israel and the Gaza Strip, however, will remain open for the passage of goods.

Mofaz has also asked Attorney General Menachem Mazuz to reinstate the practice of demolishing the homes of the families of suicide bombers. These house demolitions were suspended a few months ago in the wake of a recommendation by a military committee that found they were of no benefit.

Mofaz accepted the recommendation, but believes now that in light of the repeated attempts by Islamic Jihad to carry out suicide attacks in Israel, the house demolitions should be reinstated as a deterrent.

Mofaz told Sharon of his informing the attorney general and received the prime minister's full backing for the move.

Israel also put the diplomatic wheel in motion in an effort to apply pressure to the PA, with Sharon aide Dov Weissglas discussing the matter with U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice as well as European and Egyptian officials. There is no justification for the PA's failure to take action against Islamic Jihad, Weissglas and senior defense establishment officials said in their talks with their foreign counterparts.

[Shammu]

U.S. Army report: Israel can't stop Iran nukes

SPECIAL TO WORLD TRIBUNE.COM
Monday, December 5, 2005

WASHINGTON — Geopolitical limitations render Israel's air force militarily incapable of halting Iran's nuclear weapons program according to a new report published the by U.S. Army War College.

The report asserts Israel lacks the military capability to locate and destroy Iranian nuclear assets. The report said the Israel Air Force cannot operate at such long distances from its bases.

"The Israeli Air Force has formidable capabilities and enjoys unchallenged supremacy vis-à-vis the other Middle East air powers, but Israel has no aircraft carriers and it cannot use airbases in other Middle East states," the report entitled "Getting Ready for a Nuclear-Ready Iran," said. "Therefore its operational capabilities are reduced when the targets are located far from its territory."

[On Sunday, Israeli Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Dan Halutz warned that diplomatic pressure would not stop Iran's nuclear weapons program, Middle East Newsline reported. Halutz was one of three senior Israeli officials who warned that Iran would soon be able to turn into a nuclear power.]

In an article authored by Shlomo Brom, former head of air force strategic planning, the report said Israel's deep-strike air capability was based on the F-15I and F-16C/D aircraft. At a range of more than 600 kilometers, Brom said, Israel could not sustain an air campaign. Iran is about 1,000 kilometers from Israel.

"It is possible to determine that at long ranges — more then 600 kilometers — the IAF is capable of a few surgical strikes, but it is not capable of a sustained air campaign against a full array of targets," the report said.

An Israeli air attack on Iran must also include such support aircraft as air refueling, electronic countermeasures, support, communication, and rescue, the report said. The mission would also require precision intelligence.

Brom said Israel's intelligence and military community was divided over the Iranian threat. He said military intelligence regards Iran as determined to destroy Israel. The Mossad and National Security Council see Teheran as preoccupied with national defense and regime survival.

"While the first school assumes no political pressure can force Iran to stop its military nuclear program, the other school believes that political pressure can be effective in at least delaying the nuclear program significantly," the report said. "The second school believes that a nuclear Iran with a different regime will not pose a high risk to Israel and can be easily deterred."

The report said the Bushehr nuclear power plant was vulnerable to attacks but does not constitute a key element of the military nuclear program. As a result, the destruction of Bushehr would not have a significant effect on Iran's military program.

Brom said Iranian nuclear assets are located between 1,500 and 1,700 kilometers from Israel. The report expressed doubts whether such Israeli allies as India and Turkey would allow Israel to launch a military strike from their territory.

"This means that the Israeli attack aircraft would have to take off from air bases in Israel, fly 1,500-1,700 kilometers to the targets, destroy them, and then fly back 1,500-1,700 kilometers," the report said.

The Israel Air Force has 25 F-15I and 137 F-16C/D fighter-bombers. The air force has already received more than 20 F-16Is, with longer range on the F-15I, but the report said the F-15I aircraft contains greater capabilities at long ranges.

The report said the F-15I has an operational radius of 1,270 kilometers. The F-16I has an operational radius of 2,100 kilometers while that of the F-16C/D is 925 kilometers.

But the report said the real operational radius was shorter because the planes would have to fly at low altitude to avoid radar detection. Brom said the Israeli aircraft could avoid Iranian air defense but would be detected.

"In any case, any Israeli attack on an Iranian nuclear target would be a very complex operation in which a relatively large number of attack aircraft and support aircraft — interceptors, ECM [electronic counter-measures] aircraft, refuelers, and rescue aircraft — would participate," the report said. "The conclusion is that Israel could attack only a few Iranian targets and not as part of a sustainable operation over time, but as a one time surprise operation."

[Soldier4Christ]

The United Nations held a "Day of Solidarity with the Palestinian People" last week. A large map of “Palestine,” with Israel literally wiped off the map, featured prominently in the festivities.




The ceremony was held at the UN headquarters in New York and was attended by Secretary General Kofi Annan and the Presidents of the UN Security Council and the General Assembly.



During the festivities, a map labeled a "map of Palestine” was displayed prominently between UN and PLO flags. The map, with “Palestine” written in Arabic atop it, does not include Israel, a member of the UN for 56 years. The map does not even demarcate the partition lines of November 29, 1947, marking a Jewish state alongside an Arab state. The partition was dictated by the UN General Assembly itself.



With the map hanging behind him, Secretary-General Annan addressed the public meeting at UN Headquarters.



Click  here to view a video clip of the ceremony with the map in the background.

At the start of the ceremony, the dignitaries present asked attendees to observe a moment of silence. “I invite everyone present to rise and observe a minute of silence in memory of all those who have given their lives for the cause of the Palestinian people,” the master of ceremonies said, “and the return of peace between Israel and Palestine.“



Anne Bayefsky, who reported on the event for the Eye on the UN organization, said that the ceremony's wording was aimed at giving honor to the worst of Palestinian terrorists. "It was a moment ... crafted to include the commemoration of suicide-bombers,” she wrote.


Click here to view a video of the moment of silence.


In response to the event, Bayefsky and her organization have once again asked the U.S. to withhold funding from the UN.

(Photos and Videos: EyeOnTheUN.org)

[Soldier4Christ]

Iran's president questions Holocaust
Thu Dec 8, 2005 12:12 PM ET

By Paul Hughes

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Thursday expressed doubt that the Holocaust occurred and suggested Israel be moved to Europe.

His comments, reported by Iran's official IRNA news agency from a news conference he gave in the Saudi Arabian city of Mecca, follow his call in October for Israel to be "wiped off the map", which sparked widespread international condemnation.

"Some European countries insist on saying that Hitler killed millions of innocent Jews in furnaces and they insist on it to the extent that if anyone proves something contrary to that they condemn that person and throw them in jail," IRNA quoted Ahmadinejad as saying.

"Although we don't accept this claim, if we suppose it is true, our question for the Europeans is: is the killing of innocent Jewish people by Hitler the reason for their support to the occupiers of Jerusalem?" he said.

"If the Europeans are honest they should give some of their provinces in Europe -- like in Germany, Austria or other countries -- to the Zionists and the Zionists can establish their state in Europe. You offer part of Europe and we will support it."

Historians say six million Jews were killed in the Nazi Holocaust. Ahmadinejad's remarks drew swift rebukes from Israel and Washington.

Raanan Gissin, a spokesman for Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, said in Tel Aviv that Ahmadinejad was voicing "the consensus that exists in many circles in the Arab world that the Jewish people ... do not have the right to establish a Jewish, democratic state in their ancestral homeland".

"Just to remind Mr. Ahmadinejad, we've been here long before his ancestors were here," Gissin said. "Therefore, we have a birthright to be here in the land of our forefathers and to live here. Thank God we have the capability to deter and to prevent such a statement from becoming a reality."

White House spokesman Scott McClellan said: "It just further underscores our concerns about the regime in Iran and it's all the more reason why it's so important that the regime not have the ability to develop nuclear weapons."

ONCE ALLIES

Religious hardliners in Iran do not publicly deny the Holocaust occurred but say its scale has been exaggerated to justify the creation of Israel and continued Western support for it.

Close allies when Iran was ruled by the U.S.-backed Shah, Iran and Israel have become implacable foes since Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution.

Israel accuses Iran of giving arms and funding to militant Palestinian groups such as Islamic Jihad and of building nuclear weapons. Iran denies the charges.

Tehran calls Israel a "terrorist state" and has developed missiles which can reach it. It says it would use them if Israel, itself believed to be nuclear-armed, tried to bomb Iranian nuclear facilities.

Earlier in his remarks, the Iranian president, a former Revolutionary Guardsman who won a surprise election victory in June, said:

"The question is, where do those who rule in Palestine as occupiers come from? Where were they born? Where did their fathers live? They have no roots in Palestine but they have taken the fate of Palestine in their hands.

"Isn't the right to national self-determination one of the principles of the United Nations charter? Why do they deprive Palestinians of this right?"

Jews trace their roots in Israel back to Biblical times.

Ahmadinejad concluded his remarks by reiterating Iran's proposal that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict be resolved via a referendum of all the inhabitants of Israel, Gaza and the West Bank as well as Palestinian refugees in neighboring countries.

"Whatever they decide will be accepted by all humanity. This is a clear democratic solution which is based on international principles," he said.

[nChrist]

Pastor Roger,

I heard a couple of news spots about the last two posts, and all I can say is WOW! I think it is far past time to bid farewell to the UN. Just my two cents worth.

[Shammu]

Iran's president questions Holocaust

Pastor Roger, I will simply say I have been busy in my WW2 forum. Proving that the Holocaust, did happen. The posts, there were by a muslim poster, in Saudi Arabia. I have 3 posters from there, and one of them now believes, in God.

The simply fact is, there is to much evidence to prove the Holocaust happened. When you have man mussing with the facts, distorting facts. You can still prove the Holocaust happened. I don't know what, Iran's president hope to accomplish, but it will be for nought.

[Soldier4Christ]

Brother,

He is doing just what the ACLU, atheists etc are trying to do here. They are trying to destroy us by destroying our history and trying to gain more followers by proving us all wrong.

You are right though, the evidence that they are wrong is overwhelming if people will just open their eyes and see the truth. Unfortunately there will be those that will be willing to believe them and refuse to see even facts.

Even one more believer of the truth is one less lost soul.

Praise God for that one.

[Shammu]

Israel readies forces for strike on nuclear Iran
Uzi Mahnaimi, Tel Aviv, and Sarah Baxter, Washington
ISRAEL’S armed forces have been ordered by Ariel Sharon, the prime minister, to be ready by the end of March for possible strikes on secret uranium enrichment sites in Iran, military sources have revealed.

The order came after Israeli intelligence warned the government that Iran was operating enrichment facilities, believed to be small and concealed in civilian locations.

Iran’s stand-off with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) over nuclear inspections and aggressive rhetoric from Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the Iranian president, who said last week that Israel should be moved to Europe, are causing mounting concern.

The crisis is set to come to a head in early March, when Mohamed El-Baradei, the head of the IAEA, will present his next report on Iran. El-Baradei, who received the Nobel peace prize yesterday, warned that the world was “losing patience” with Iran.

A senior White House source said the threat of a nuclear Iran was moving to the top of the international agenda and the issue now was: “What next?” That question would have to be answered in the next few months, he said.

Defence sources in Israel believe the end of March to be the “point of no return” after which Iran will have the technical expertise to enrich uranium in sufficient quantities to build a nuclear warhead in two to four years.

“Israel — and not only Israel — cannot accept a nuclear Iran,” Sharon warned recently. “We have the ability to deal with this and we’re making all the necessary preparations to be ready for such a situation.”

The order to prepare for a possible attack went through the Israeli defence ministry to the chief of staff. Sources inside special forces command confirmed that “G” readiness — the highest stage — for an operation was announced last week.

Gholamreza Aghazadeah, head of the Atomic Organisation of Iran, warned yesterday that his country would produce nuclear fuel. “There is no doubt that we have to carry out uranium enrichment,” he said.

He promised it would not be done during forthcoming talks with European negotiators. But although Iran insists it wants only nuclear energy, Israeli intelligence has concluded it is deceiving the world and has no intention of giving up what it believes is its right to develop nuclear weapons.

A “massive” Israeli intelligence operation has been underway since Iran was designated the “top priority for 2005”, according to security sources.

Cross-border operations and signal intelligence from a base established by the Israelis in northern Iraq are said to have identified a number of Iranian uranium enrichment sites unknown to the the IAEA.

Since Israel destroyed the Osirak nuclear reactor in Iraq in 1981, “it has been understood that the lesson is, don’t have one site, have 50 sites”, a White House source said.

If a military operation is approved, Israel will use air and ground forces against several nuclear targets in the hope of stalling Tehran’s nuclear programme for years, according to Israeli military sources.

It is believed Israel would call on its top special forces brigade, Unit 262 — the equivalent of the SAS — and the F-15I strategic 69 Squadron, which can strike Iran and return to Israel without refuelling.

“If we opt for the military strike,” said a source, “it must be not less than 100% successful. It will resemble the destruction of the Egyptian air force in three hours in June 1967.”

Aharon Zeevi Farkash, the Israeli military intelligence chief, stepped up the pressure on Iran this month when he warned Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, that “if by the end of March the international community is unable to refer the Iranian issue to the United Nations security council, then we can say the international effort has run its course”.

The March deadline set for military readiness also stems from fears that Iran is improving its own intelligence-gathering capability. In October it launched its first satellite, the Sinah-1, which was carried by a Russian space launcher.

“The Iranians’ space programme is a matter of deep concern to us,” said an Israeli defence source. “If and when we launch an attack on several Iranian targets, the last thing we need is Iranian early warning received by satellite.”

Russia last week signed an estimated $1 billion contract — its largest since 2000 — to sell Iran advanced Tor-M1 systems capable of destroying guided missiles and laser-guided bombs from aircraft.

“Once the Iranians get the Tor-M1, it will make our life much more difficult,” said an Israeli air force source. “The installation of this system can be relatively quick and we can’t waste time on this one.”

The date set for possible Israeli strikes on Iran also coincides with Israel’s general election on March 28, prompting speculation that Sharon may be sabre-rattling for votes.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the frontrunner to lead Likud into the elections, said that if Sharon did not act against Iran, “then when I form the new Israeli government, we’ll do what we did in the past against Saddam’s reactor, which gave us 20 years of tranquillity”.

TEHRAN MINISTER MET MILITANTS BEFORE NEW OFFENSIVE

Iran’s foreign minister met leading figures from three Islamic militant groups to co-ordinate a united front against Israel days before a recent escalation of attacks against Israeli targets shattered fragile ceasefires with Lebanon and the Palestinians, writes Hugh Macleod in Damascus.

The minister, Manouchehr Mottaki, held talks with leaders of Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Hezbollah in Damascus on November 15.

Among those who attended the meeting were Khaled Meshaal, the Hamas leader, and a deputy leader of Islamic Jihad, which claimed responsibility for last Monday’s suicide bombing of a shopping mall in Netanya that killed five Israeli citizens.

Ahmed Jibril, leader of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine- General Command, was also present. “We all confirmed that what is going on in occupied Palestine is organically connected to what is going on in Iraq, Syria, Iran and Lebanon,” said Jibril.

Seven days after the talks, Hezbollah fired a volley of rockets and mortars at Israeli targets, sparking the fiercest fighting between the two sides since Israel’s withdrawal from south Lebanon five years ago.

Israel readies strike

[Shammu]

Halutz: Nuclear Iran in 3 months

IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz says, 'Within three months Iran will reach a point of no return in terms of its capability to manufacture nuclear bomb; adds that threat to Israel not immediate
Ilan Marciano

Within three months Iran will reach a point of no return in terms of its technological capacity to manufacture a nuclear bomb, IDF Chief of Staff Dan Halutz told the Knesset's Security and Foreign Affairs Committee on Tuesday.

"This fact does not represent a threat to Israel just yet, because Iran will have to overcome a few obstacles before it can put the weapons to use," he added.

Western intelligence agencies have been trying to figure out how close Iran is to the bomb for a number of years. In Washington, a change of position has occurred of late, and a "critical decade" is the latest estimate – but views there are also divided.

Last week, Israel's stance was strengthened by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Muhammad Elbaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), who said that the minute Iran completes work on its Natanz core, three months would separate the Islamic Republic from acquiring nuclear weapons.

The timing mentioned by Halutz – March 2006 – is especially interesting. At the start of the week, the London Sunday Times published an article saying that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon instructed the IDF to prepare for a military strike at the end of March, in light of Israeli estimations that uranium is being enriched in Iranian civilian sites at this very moment.

According to the report, which was denied by Jerusalem, the level of preparedness of the Air Force has been moved up to the highest level for the same reason.

The committee also discussed the issue of Palestinian convoys and passages. Halutz told Knesset Members that for the time being, the army has frozen agreements over crossings from Gaza to the West Bank via Israel, due to the "lack of effort by the Palestinians to deal with weapons smuggling and Qassam rocket attacks."

'Security matters not open to negotiations'

The deal over the crossings, which was mediated by U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and meetings around the issue, are continuing thanks to efforts by David Welch, assistant U.S. Secretary of State.

Deputy Minister Zeev Boim said: "As long as Qassam rockets and terror attacks by the Islamic Jihad continue, and the Palestinian Authority is not taking real steps (to counter these), movement of Palestinian convoys will not be possible.

“It must be understood that security matters are not open to negotiations, and if the Palestinians don't provide security on their side – they won't receive the carrying out of the agreement on our side."

Nuclear Iran in 3 Months

[Shammu]

Palestinians: Jews come from pigs, monkeys

Anti-Israel radio, audiocassettes abound in Gaza, Judea, Samaria
Posted: December 14, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com

JERUSALEM – Jews plan to take over the world by killing their opponents, Israelis are the descendents of pigs and monkeys, and Allah will soon dish out "the harshest punishments" to the followers of the "corrupt and racist Torah," according to radio broadcasts and audiocassettes recently distributed in the Palestinian territories.

"The dissemination of anti-Israeli, anti-Semitic hate propaganda continues throughout the Palestinian Authority-administered territories" in spite of multiple pledges to reform the Palestinian media, according to the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center at Israel's Center for Special Studies, which released a study that includes translations of radio broadcasts from last month.

On Nov. 17, Al-Huriyyah, a Palestinian radio station in Hebron run by the Fatah-Tzanim militia, broadcast a program called "The Struggle" in which the announcer repeatedly claimed Jews intend to take over the world by gaining control of global economic resources and financial institutions of various countries by "killing their opponents."

That same day, the Information Center's study stated, Al-Huriyyah played songs calling for jihad against Israel with lyrics that included, "Do not fall asleep, jihad warrior, because justice never sleeps. Take your bullets with you and bring death."

The Center also released the translation of a lecture by a Hamas operative entitled, "The end of the Israelites," that was reportedly distributed by a Palestinian charity en-mass on audiocassette in Gaza, Judea and Samaria.

"Because of their corruption, the Jews will receive Allah's harshest punishment," says Hamas leader Dr. Bassam Nihad Ibrahim Jarrar in the taped lecture.

Jarrar claims a Jew is "not someone whose mother was Jewish, but someone who has accepted the racist and corrupt principles which appear in the Talmud and the version of the Torah distorted by the Jews."

The Center says the Jarrar cassette is still being distributed.

In another audiocassette reportedly imported from Saudi Arabia and distributed in the Palestinian territories, a popular Saudi lecturer presents Jews as "the sons of monkeys and pigs" who "make practices of deception."

"Allah will punish the infidels and the conspirators," concludes the Saudi sheik at the end of the taped lecture.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and other Israeli leaders recently have credited PA President Mahmoud Abbas with working to lower official incitement against Israel in the Palestinian media.

The Center for Special Studies said some of the recent incitement has come from media outlets independent of the PA.

"The Palestinian terrorist organizations have found alternative methods for distributing … propaganda and inculcating incitement to hatred and violence amongst Palestinians," stated the Center's study. "The PA has limited the diffusion of such messages by its official media, but does not take effective steps to stop it as part of its policy of not confronting the Palestinian terrorist organizations."

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