Biblical countries, in the news.

[Shammu]

The Fate of Hezbollah between Syrian Interests and Iranian Bargaining
Raghida Dergham     Al-Hayat     - 04/08/06//

New York - The Security Council will not agree to cease all hostilities for a period of time during which negotiations would be conducted to reach a framework for a political solution that would lead to a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. And Israel will not stop the war, whether in the form of a truce or ceasefire or even an end to hostilities, as long as Hezbollah does not disarm and hand over its weapons to the Lebanese State. An additional condition is the deployment of international forces to help the Lebanese State impose its sovereignty over all Lebanese territory.

Hezbollah may know more than any of the other factions what the continuation of this war means, in terms of the endless destruction of Lebanon and the killing and displacement of its people. Hezbollah's knowledge derives from the fact that it is aware of Israel's extensive military capabilities and its own ability to resist such an army with a sophisticated arsenal. The war is ultimately raging on Lebanese, not Israeli territory. No matter how great Israeli losses are, the greater loss will always be Lebanon's, even if Hezbollah feels it is somehow 'victorious' in this stage of the conflict because it has denied Israel a lightning victory. The balance and the diplomatic efforts have reached a critical stage after certain concerned parties turned a blind eye because they garner benefits from prolonging the war. There are regional factions that have an interest in this, even though they claim they want a ceasefire.

The Security Council began to take up the Lebanese portfolio this week, prompted by the Qana massacre committed by the Israeli army whose hands are stained by the blood of the children of Qana. Last Sunday, the Security Council convened for an open session. It issued an official communiqué on the killing of the UN observers by Israeli fire. The UN Secretary General even said that this act was "apparently deliberate". The Qana massacre speeded up the diplomatic process, which had busied itself with general issues, by taking it to the level of the Security Council.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice talked openly of a decision that would soon be reached for a 'ceasefire' within days. This announcement is noteworthy in itself, all the more so, given that it came at the same time that the Israelis announced that the military operation could take 'weeks'. Questions were thus raised about what exactly Rice has in mind and what she has up her sleeve.

American diplomacy claims that the difference between it and French diplomacy is this: Paris merely wants to end hostilities and to calm the situation, while Washington wants a deep-rooted solution that will prevent the situation from returning to the way it was. Specifically, the situation was that Hezbollah took from the Lebanese government the authority to declare war whenever it feels like it. This in turn means that Hezbollah must be disarmed, by hook or by crook.

France prefers the means of persuasion so that Hezbollah will reach the logical conclusion that it has no option but to give up its weapons, and willingly and wholeheartedly support the Lebanese State and its sovereignty over the whole country.

Therefore, France sees an end to hostilities as an entry point to a comprehensive political solution that encompasses the Shebaa Farms, removing the very pretext for resistance. This approach also relies on effective international forces aiding the Lebanese State in imposing its authority over the whole of the South. In this way, the international force will avoid controversial tasks, such as disarming Hezbollah by force. The US administration does not oppose this approach of persuasion, provided it does not seem as though Hezbollah is being rewarded. Its idea is built around the principle that an international force should be set up, capable of forcefully disarming Hezbollah, and thus implementing Resolution 1559 in the process. The only other alternative is to leave the Israeli army to decide the issue through its military operations, and to let it do what it must in the context of the military balance of power that dictates how wars are waged. And this regardless of how much Israel may lose in terms of public support and human lives.

Therefore, the proposal Washington has tabled to the Security Council is an attempt to convince Israel that an end to hostilities means the deployment of an international force that has the strength to forcefully disarm Hezbollah if it does not choose to willingly disarm.

Washington in general, and Rice in particular, are working for a comprehensive political solution and are prepared, according to indications, to pressure Israel to withdraw from the Shebaa Farms and hand it over to international supervision, with international forces to boot, in order to remove the pretext of the Resistance.

Such a formula would avoid any semblance of rewarding Hezbollah, or Syria for that matter, which has declared that the Shebaa Farms fall under the remit of Resolutions 242 and 338 that cover the Syrian-Israeli dispute. In other words, Damascus has now suddenly decided, for its own convenience, that the Shebaa Farms are Syrian after all, after having originally claimed - at least verbally - that it was Lebanese to justify Hezbollah's resistance. That original move also excused Syria from resisting Israel in its own occupied territories. Israel and Syria have a solid relationship, it seems, when it comes to keeping resistance off occupied territory.

With the return to negotiations between the members of the Security Council over what will be declared, there is talk of either one resolution in two phases or two resolutions that would do the same job separately. One is for a cessation of hostilities, and the other is for a ceasefire, with a political framework for a comprehensive solution linking the two phases. Talk concerning the international force revolves around ensuring stability, and sending these forces to Lebanon also involves a two-phase solution, where the vanguard is sent over first to be followed by the main body. This demands two kinds of forces and two different schedules to send them.

France has made its draft proposal, and the Lebanese government has forwarded its seven-point plan to the Security Council under the official title of Prime Minister Fouad Siniora's plan. It was delivered, point by point, by the acting Foreign Minister, Tarek Mitri, during Lebanon's turn at the open session mentioned above.

This plan was agreed to by the cabinet, and calls for the Security Council to commit itself to placing the Shebaa Farms and Kfar Shuba heights under UN jurisdiction, until final borders are drawn up between Lebanon and Syria. The plan also involves the Lebanese government exercising full control over its territories via its armed forces, so that there remains no armed body other except that of the Lebanese State. It does not concern the international community in the least that Lebanese President Emile Lahoud denies there is any consensus on the Siniora plan. The denial will not annul the official records of the Security Council, which registered the official position of Lebanon, endorsed by the majority of the cabinet as being Lebanon's path to salvation.

If Lahoud is wary of the implementation of this step, then he need not worry because the Security Council honestly could not care less, and is only concerned with keeping official records. The Siniora plan has been presented to the Security Council, whether President Lahoud likes it or not, and the SC members are trying to make the best of it for any subsequent approach they may take.

cont'd next post

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Many of the council member States are well aware that there are many plans for toppling the Siniora government and any initiative tied to his name. More than this, they are diligently keeping an eye on the preparations being made against Siniora, not only against his government. There is also the conviction among the member States that whoever dares will pay a very heavy price with interest.

Russia and China most definitely support the Siniora administration and will not allow for any such move. Their position as regards to the developments in Lebanon would indicate that they all for the sovereignty of the State, not for Hezbollah and its arrogation of this sovereignty, no matter what the pretext. For strategic reasons, Russia and China may revel in any blow to American prestige and any hardship facing US foreign policy, but they do not want Israel's military might blunted by a Hezbollah supported by Syria and Iran. This would go against other considerations and bilateral interests they have. Russia and China simply look at the equation of defeat and victory from a different perspective than Iran's.

When the Iranian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Manuchehr Motaki, boldly declares from Beirut a proposal that Tehran finds suitable, he is in effect declaring to all that he is the godfather of Hezbollah's war and is in charge of negotiating on its behalf. He will decide under what conditions the war that Iran is fighting through Hezbollah can be ended. Motaki speaks the language of the victor and is outlining impossible conditions that he knows full well will prolong the war. He is a capable and experienced man and he knows that if Iran were in Israel's position it would categorically refuse a ceasefire and a cessation of hostilities at such a delicate stage in the military operations where the other side can use these to claim victory. Every Iranian official knows and understands that Israel will not stop the offensive except on its military terms, including the disarming of Hezbollah.

Therefore, the question poses itself: What does Tehran have in mind? Is it confident that Hezbollah in the long-run will achieve a real and permanent victory against Israel? Or is Tehran bargaining with the major powers in the Security Council to find a way out for Hezbollah before temporary victory turns into a permanent defeat? Or is Tehran widening the remit of its bargaining to include the nuclear portfolio, especially after the latest Security Council decision - with Russian and Chinese support - giving Iran an ultimatum to the effect that it should take the Security Council's threats seriously if it refuses to comply?

The Lebanese theatre is wide open to Iranian haggling and outbidding. Iran knows what diction to use to rescue Hezbollah or sacrifice it, for that matter, if it smells the whiff of military defeat. Tehran is also expert at pushing matters to the edge, as long as it feels secure in the knowledge of how US forces are sinking increasingly into the Iraqi quagmire a stone's throw away from Iran.

As long as Iran is confident that its near cooling off with Israel will not be transformed into confrontation, it shows brazen confidence, and with it the ability to impose conditions, complicate matters diplomatically, and force a military decision. Nonetheless, there are indications that the Iranians' customary acumen is warning them of the slippery slope ahead when one continues to depend on wild dreams and effervescent populist emotions.

Syria is a completely different matter because it is merely a spectator, geopolitically revolving around Iran. Its status is summed up by its negative role in Palestine, Iraq and Lebanon. This is the way Syria ultimately sees itself, and the way the world sees it.

The Syrian government wants to prolong the war in Lebanon and sees that Israel's massacres will turn world public opinion against it. Gradually, and with perseverance, Damascus has regained the initiative and its self-confidence, forgetting that what Hezbollah was able to achieve in three short weeks, Syria failed to accomplish in all its years of war with Israel. Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallim's words about the danger of Lebanon becoming 'another Iraq' and 'al-Qaeda infiltration' came more as a warning than a piece of advice. These words might have a negative impact on Israel and the US more than Damascus bargained for.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has not made his mind up about Damascus, even if he appears to be concentrating exclusively on the Hezbollah and Palestinian fronts. He obviously does not want a third front, but transforming Lebanon into a 'new Iraq' bordering Israel involves other, unconventional considerations that make AIPAC cling to the idea that the Syrian regime is a safety valve and should not be overthrown. Unless, that is, Syria actually threatens to turn Lebanon into 'another Iraq' and allow 'al-Qaeda to infiltrate'. In this case, this effective organization may change its mind about Syria, and we have all been forewarned about that.

In addition, we do not know Olmert very well, nor do we know what decisions he has made about Syria. What we do know for certain is that the US administration is adamant about two things: Syria should not be rewarded for what it is doing in Lebanon so that its armed forces could return there; and that Syria must be kept away from any regional arrangement because the international investigation into the assassination of Rafik al-Harirri, among other assassinations, is still ongoing.

Therefore, the Golan Heights are currently out of the equation and will remains so because Syria must be isolated as a price it should pay for its policies toward Lebanon and Palestine, which it uses for resistance by proxy.

The words of a Syrian woman in New York made this clear. She was responding to another woman who supported Syria's backing and encouragement of the resistance in Lebanon and Palestine. However, they suddenly disagreed when the other woman extended this logic to the Syrian front, leading the Syrian woman to say: 'No, we don't want that. Let the Lebanese resist.' These words have tremendous implications, because this is what most Syrians, the Arabs and others beyond the Arab World think.

The Lebanese, most of them anyway, do not want to fight on Syria's behalf. Lebanon has had enough of paying the price of Arab impotence, whether at the popular or official levels. Meanwhile, crocodile tears are being shed for Lebanon. There should be no partial resistance in Lebanon and no resistance by proxy. This is Lebanon's promise from now on. The important thing is that, this time, the Security Council agrees with a wounded Lebanon, and Lebanon will do something effective in reply.

The Fate of Hezbollah between Syrian Interests and Iranian Bargaining

[Shammu]

Iran should avoid adventure
By Khurshida Haque
Fri, 4 Aug 2006, 09:12:00

None of the big powers wants a Muslim country (Pakistan escaped the eyes in view of US-Soviet hectic cold war at that time) to acquire nuclear technology for ideological ground. Resolution adopted in the UN Security Council bears the testimony thereof. Although the resolution has not incorporated words sanctioning military force against the country if Teheran continues its plan of going ahead with nuclear research for peaceful use, military strike by the USA led western powers cannot be ruled out because neither China nor Russia has the courage to counter US move.

In this backdrop, we request Iran to be practical to avoid casualties. The people of Lebanon are paying heavily the price of Hizbullah's senseless action of kidnapping the Israeli troops (there was no necessity of committing it). None but the USA can stop the Israel's air and ground attack on Lebanon. The Muslim nations have now learnt that China and Russia shall not come in their help, not to speak of rescue because they themselves seek US assistance in overcoming domestic crises.

OIC cannot do anything in this critical juncture other than condemning and taking a resolution of calling immediate cease fire on Lebanon-Israel border. Again, we ask the Teheran government not to proceed on with their nuclear programme. At the same time, we request the Bush Administration to arrange immediate cease-fire between Israel and Hizbullah, and withdrawal of the Tel Aviv troops from the occupied areas.

Iran should avoid adventure

[Shammu]

The past 24 hours................

04:19     Humanitarian groups claim IDF keeping supplies from reaching Lebanon (Israel Radio)
04:13    IDF says it struck missile launch site near Tyre used to hit Hadera (Israel Radio)
03:34    U.S. Asst. Secretary of State David Welch to meet Siniora on Wednesday (Reuters)
02:54    Hezbollah official praises Chavez for pulling Venezuelan ambassador to Israel (AP)
02:16    Victims of Gaza air strike identified as brother and sister, not mother and son (AP)
01:58    Israeli envoy to U.S.: We will agree to cease-fire if captive soldiers released (Reuters)
01:13    Sirens sound in Ramot Naftali area in Galilee panhandle (Israel Radio)
00:43    Palestinian medics: 2 killed in IAF strike in S. Gaza (AP)
00:33    Total of 191 rockets launched from Lebanon to Israel on Friday (AP)
00:18    Bush conducts 15 minute phone conversation with UN`s Annan (Reuters)
23:31    U.S. Jews meet Annan, voice displeasure at UN`s stance on Lebanon crisis (Haaretz)
23:29    IDF says air force struck missile launcher thought to have fired at Hadera (Haaretz)
23:03    U.S. sanctions seven foreign companies for conducting business with Iran (AP)
23:02    Israeli Arab male, 27, dies in auto accident near Golani junction in north (Haaretz)
22:37    Hezbollah: We fired `Khaibar 1` missiles at Hadera, same type fired at Afula (Ch. 10)
22:22    Two people treated for shock following missile strike in Hadera region (Haaretz)
22:18    Arab League foreign ministers to hold emergency meeting in Beirut on Monday (AP)
22:09    U.S. says `very close` to deal on final UN draft for Lebanon ceasefire proposal (AP)
21:34    Three missiles land in an open field in Hadera; no injuries reported (Ch. 10)
21:27    Missiles reported to have landed in Hadera (Channel 10)
21:27    Venezuela`s Chavez compares Israel`s operations in Lebanon to Nazi regime (Reuters)
21:19    Hezbollah rockets slam into Jezreel Valley region (Haaretz)
21:18    Sirens sound in Haifa and Hadera (Channel 10)
20:46    Balad MK Bishara: Slain Jewish, Arab civilians are victims of the same policy (Haaretz)
20:43    MK Barakeh: Everyone with a conscience must scream for insanity to stop (Haaretz)
20:42    Hadash MK Dov Hanin calls for widening protest campaign against the gov`t (Haaretz)
20:22    Palestinian gunmen fire at IDF troops near security fence in Gaza; no casualties (Itim)
19:59    Sources: 57 people buried under rubble of homes in 2 villages struck by IAF (Haaretz)
19:45    1 person moderately hurt, 2 lightly hurt in Migdal Ha`emek rocket attack (Haaretz)
19:28    Iranian official admits Tehran has supplied Zelzal missiles to Hezbollah (Haaretz)
19:26    Hezbollah rockets slam into Migdal Ha`emek region in north (Haaretz)
19:05    IDF officer killed in operation in south Lebanon town of Markaba (Haaretz)
19:03    U.S., French officials say obstacles remain to deal on UN ceasefire resolution (AP)
18:41    Balad party MKs, activists gather in Tira to protest IDF campaign in Lebanon (Haaretz)
18:37    Haniyeh: IDF campaigns in Gaza, Lebanon are part of Israel`s `war on Islam` (Reuters)
18:23    Woman killed by rocket attack in Maghar to be laid to rest at 7:00 P.M. (Haaretz)
18:19    Woman killed by rocket attack in Maghar identified as Manal Azzam, 27 (Haaretz)
18:17    Hundreds of thousands of Shi`ites in Baghdad rally in support of Hezbollah (AP)
18:12    Police say unable to reach wounded in Carmiel due to crowding of people (Haaretz)
18:08    Katyusha lands in town of Quneitra on Syrian side of Golan Heights (Haaretz)
18:03    At least 2 people killed in rocket strike on Majdal Krum restaurant (Haaretz)
17:50    Sirens are heard in Carmiel, Shfaram, Acre, Ibalin, and Sakhnin (Israel Radio)
17:46    Death toll in IAF strike near Lebanon-Syria border rises to 28 (AP)
17:25    Police say 2,500 rockets have been fired into Israel since start of fighting (Haaretz)
17:07    Qassam rocket lands in kibbutz in western Negev; residents treated for shock (Haaretz)
16:45    Five armed men in military fatigues storm PA jail in Jericho, kill 6 prisoners (Haaretz)
16:28    Hezbollah fired 135 rockets at northern Israel towns since Friday morning (Ch. 10)
16:26    Palestinians dressed in police uniforms kill 6 inmates at Jericho prison (Reuters)
16:23    TA police arrest suspects in stabbing death of 28-year-old migrant worker (Haaretz)
16:19    IDF soldier killed in Lebanon named as Omri Haim Almakeis-Yakobovitch, 20 (Haaretz)
16:13    IDF soldier killed in Lebanon identified as Staff Sergeant Daniel Shiran, 20 (Itim)
16:04    Authorities locate rocket landing site near Tiberias (Haaretz)
16:02    Five hurt, one moderately, as rocket strikes village of Majdal Krum (Haaretz)
15:38    Iranians hurl stones at U.K. embassy in Tehran to protest IDF`s Lebanon raid (Reuters)
15:23    UN: Aid supply may be cut off because of overnight IAF strike in north Lebanon (AP)
15:20    Sirens sound in Safed and Hatzor (Channel 10)
15:13    Medics: 25 Lebanese civilians hurt in IAF strike near Lebanon-Syria border (Reuters)
15:10    Some 80 rockets slam into north in latest Hezbollah attacks (Haaretz)
15:02    Sirens that sounded in Zichron Ya`akov, Pardes Hannah were false alarms (Haaretz)
14:59    Sirens sound in Nahariya and Shlomi (Israel Radio)
14:50    Two IDF soldiers killed in clashes in south Lebanon (Haaretz)
14:48    Police: 45 Hezbollah rockets fell on northern Israel within half an hour (AP)
14:42    One person seriously hurt, 2 moderately hurt in Kiryat Shmona rocket strike (Haaretz)
14:34    Person wounded in rocket strike near Tiberias dies of wounds (Haaretz)
14:23    Blair postpones summer vacation to work on UN resolution on Mideast crisis (AP)
14:19    Four rockets hit Nahariya, four land in Golan Heights, three land in Carmiel (Haaretz)
14:17    One person lightly wounded in rocket strike near Safed (Haaretz)
14:16    One person seriously injured in rocket strike near Tiberias (Haaretz)
14:14    Representative dollar exchange rate set at $1 / NIS 4.4050 (Haaretz)
14:11    Six rockets land near Safed, five land near Kiryat Shmona; no injuries (Haaretz)
14:08    Siren sounds in Golan Heights (Israel Radio)
14:08    Katyusha rocket lands in open area near Tiberias; no injuries (Haaretz)
14:02    Sirens sound Acre, Carmiel, Zichron Ya`akov, Yokne`am (Israel Radio)
13:55    Lebanese president: Israel is waging `war of starvation` on our civilians (AP)
13:25    MK Zahalka: Umm al-Fahm searches without warrants violate civil rights (Haaretz)
13:19    Two rockets hit open areas in Safed; no injuries (Haaretz)
13:04    Nahariya residents instructed to find shelter (Israel Radio)
13:03    IDF soldier seriously hurt, another lightly wounded in Taibeh, South Lebanon (Haaretz)
13:03    80 Israelis in northern hospitals due to rocket fire, combat (Israel Radio)
13:01    UN to help Lebanon immunize refugee children against measles outbreak (AP)
12:45    1,000 Muslims in Bangladeshi capital protest Israel`s bombing of Lebanon (AP)
12:41    Safed resident arrested on charges of assaulting soldier distributing food (Haaretz)
12:41    Three rockets hit open areas near Kiryat Shmona; no injuries (Haaretz)
12:37    Pedestrian seriously hurt after bus runs her over in central Tel Aviv (Itim)
12:11    Border Police officers search Umm al-Fahm homes without warrants (Haaretz)
12:02    Three rockets hit western Galilee; no injuries (Israel Radio)
11:48    Air-raid sirens sound in Carmiel, Ma`alot-Tarhisha, Peki`in, Kfar Vradim (Israel Radio)
11:37    Lebanese Red Cross: 4 civilians killed, 10 hurt in IAF strikes north of Beirut (AP)
11:32    Israel restricting entry to Friday prayers at Temple Mount (Israel Radio)
11:28    Palestinians: Hamas gunman killed in IAF strike in Rafah (Reuters)
11:07    Police: Or Akiva man, 49, murdered in drunken brawl (Itim)
11:02    Yehonatan Sharabi, a soldier killed Thurs., is to be buried at 2:30 P.M. (Israel Radio)
10:38    Olmert: I hope peacekeeping force in Lebanon will be German (Reuters)
10:32    Man killed, woman lightly hurt in car accident on Jerusalem-Dead Sea highway (Itim)
10:10    Malaysia pledges to send 1,000 troops to Lebanon if cease-fire is declared (AP)
09:48    Israel seeks dialogue with Indonesia, Malaysia to work on problems in Mideast (AP)
08:44    200 Islamic militants said sent on missions to bomb `Israel`s vital interests` (Reuters)
08:20    Three of four soldiers killed in Lebanon on Thurs. to be buried Friday (Israel Radio)
07:32    One soldier moderately hurt, one lightly hurt in clashes with Hezbollah (Ch. 10)
07:31    Two Katyushas hit open area near Kiryat Shmona; no injuries (Ch. 10)
07:04    IDF, Hezbollah fighters engage in heavy combat in southern Lebanon (Channel 10)
06:59    Witnesses: IDF gunfire kills two Palestinians in southern Gaza (Reuters)
05:58    U.S. envoy Bolton: U.S., France have come a long way in Mideast cease-fire talks (AP)
05:34    Australia investigating reported terrorist threats against Jewish targets (Reuters)

News Alerts

[Shammu]

 42 Victims in Last Wave of Rocket Fire
18:33 Aug 04, '06 / 10 Av 5766

(IsraelNN.com) Magen David Adom emergency medical service officials report 42 people were injured in the last wave of rocket attacks in Majdel Crom and Carmiel.

One victim, in serious condition, is being flown to Haifa’s Rambam Medical Center trauma unit. One victim is listed in moderate condition, 10 people are listed in light condition with shrapnel injuries and some 30 are being treated for hysteria.

42 Victims in Last Wave of Rocket Fire

[Shammu]

NA condemns Israel supporters



By Raja Asghar


ISLAMABAD, Aug 4: The National Assembly on Friday took a rare swipe at Israel’s Western “supporters” without naming them, condemning them along with the Jewish state for “naked aggression” against the Lebanese and Palestinian civilians.

But a lone member of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League (PML), who sought condemnation of Lebanon’s Hezbollah militant movement as well, denied unanimity to a multi-partisan resolution, which also asked the Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) members to provide “all possible material, moral, diplomatic and political support” to Lebanon and the Palestinians.

“The National Assembly of Pakistan condemns in the strongest terms the cruel bombing, shelling, naked aggression and invasion on unarmed civilians of Lebanon and Palestine by Israel and its supporters...,” said the resolution sponsored by all parliamentary groups in the house.

It came two days after a unanimously passed Senate resolution on the present Middle East crisis said that Israel was “raining death and destruction with full backing of its allies”.

But the Assembly resolution went further to condemn and blame Israel’s “supporters” for the invasion.

It refrained from naming these supporters, but several opposition speakers particularly condemned the United States for supporting Israel, some even asking the Pakistani government to review its foreign policy as a key ally to the American-led so- called war on terrorism.

In most previous joint resolutions in the present parliament, the government had succeeded in avoiding even an indirect condemnation of the United States.

But PML president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain told the house the government had not much changed an opposition draft in the interest of a united stand on the situation.

In a brief sentimental speech, he regretted that the United Nations had done little to stop the Israeli actions and that not many heads of government turned up at an OIC executive committee meeting on the issue that ended in Malaysia on Thursday.

“If this remains the situation then God help the Islamic world,” he said and added: “If the Islamic countries unite, they will not remain dependent on the United Nations. We will have to do something now and come out of the present situation.”

The resolution said the UN Security Council had endangered its own credibility by failing to take steps for an immediate ceasefire, adding that it feared the UN was itself moving towards the fate of its liquidated predecessor, the League of Nations.

The house expressed its surprise that the international community was watching “this human tragedy as a silent spectator and cannot agree even on an appeal for a ceasefire”.

It asked the 57-nation OIC to fulfil

its duties under its Makkah Declaration to protect Lebanon’s territorial integrity.

Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) president Qazi Hussain Ahmed, who opened the debate after the house suspended other business on the agenda, said the United Nations had failed to take any action because it had become a US hostage.

He said Hezbollah chief Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah had emerged as a Muslim leader while “dictators and kings” of Muslim countries had abandoned the cause of resistance.

Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi of the People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPP) said assembly members of the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy would donate their one months’ salaries while the alliance would also collect more funds to help the victims of the Israeli attacks.

Religious Affairs Minister Mohammad Ijazul Haq proposed sending a joint parliamentary delegation to the conflict area, but MMA’s Hafiz Hussain Ahmed said it would be better to take a joint stand than sending a delegation there.

PML member M.P. Bhandara said the house should pass a balanced resolution to condemn Israel for its occupation of the West Bank and not agreeing to a prisoner exchange and the Hezbollah for “becoming a state within a state”.

He was the only member to say “no” when Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain put the resolution to vote, before adjourning the house until 5pm on Monday, and was greeted with a cry of “shame” from opposition benches.

NA condemns Israel supporters

[Shammu]

Iranian envoy meets Ghafoor


KARACHI, Aug 4: Iranian Consul General in Karachi Agha Moosa Hussaini has criticised the world community and United Nations for failing to stop Israeli aggression, and accused US, Britain and certain other countries of patronising the onslaught aimed at eliminating innocent Lebanese and Palestinian people.

He was talking to Naib Amir of Jamaat-i-Islami Prof Ghafoor Ahmed during his visit to the party’s office, Idara Noor-i-Haq.

Agha Hussaini, accompanied by the consulate’s Press Attache Mohammad Raza Sehrai, discussed with the JI leader at length the deteriorating Middle East situation owing to the ongoing Israeli blitz on Lebanon.

The issue of UN Security Council’s resolution against Iran also came under discussion.

Iranian envoy meets Ghafoor

[Shammu]

  Israel Military:Hezbollah Rockets Miss N Israel,Hit Syria

JERUSALEM (AP)--Rockets fired by Hezbollah from Lebanon overshot their targets in northern Israel and landed in Syrian territory, the Israeli military said Friday.

An army spokesman said some rockets landed in the Golan Heights, captured by Israel from Syria in the 1967 Mideast war and annexed in 1981, and others landed in Syrian territory around the town of Kuneitra. There were no casualties on the Israeli-controlled side, he said.

Israel Military:Hezbollah Rockets Miss N Israel,Hit Syria 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What odds do you lay, Israel will get blamed for those missles missing Israel.

[Shammu]

Syrian communists urge Arab leaders to follow Venezuela
Web posted at: 8/5/2006 2:43:28
Source ::: AFP

DAMASCUS • The Syrian communist party yesterday urged Arab governments to copy Venezuela, which has denounced US support for Israel’s military campaign in Lebanon and withdrawn its ambassador from Tel Aviv.

Ammar Bagdash, a member of parliament and of the party’s politburo, said at a demonstration attended by several hundred Syrians and foreign students:

“We call on Arab leaders to follow the example of Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez”, who recalled his ambassador from Israel on Thursday while accusing the United States of blocking UN Security Council action to stop the conflict. Egypt and Jordan are the only Arab states which have diplomatic relations with Israel.

The communist party is part of Syria’s National Progressive Front, dominated by the governing Baath party.

Meanwhile, the United States issued a new rebuke to Iran and Syria, accusing them of directing Hezbollah, as it said agreement on a UN resolution on the conflict in Lebanon was moving ever closer. Top State Department official Nicholas Burns fired off the latest shot in a war of words between Tehran and Washington over the fighting, sparked on July 12 when Hezbollah captured two Israeli soldiers.

"What is important is all of us understand what is happening here," Burns, under secretary of state for political affairs said in a CNN interview. "Iran created Hezbollah in 1982. Iran has funded Hezbollah and Iran has provided the long-range rockets that are raining down on the northern part of Israel right now."

Syrian communists urge Arab leaders to follow Venezuela

[Shammu]

Syria's Foreign Minister Receives Two Phone calls

Friday, August 04, 2006 - 07:05 PM
      

DAMASCUS,  (SANA)- Syria's Foreign Minister Wleed al-Moallem received Friday a phone call from Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul on the deteriorated situation in Lebanon in light of the constant Israeli brutal onslaught on Lebanon and the deliberate targeting of civilians and infrastructures.

The conversation also dealt with the necessity of collaborating the international community's  efforts for reaching an immediate cease-fire and pull out of the Israeli troops to beyond the blue line.

" It had become unacceptable to keep silent regarding the Israeli crimes," al-Moallem told Gul, stressing the need to pressure Israel to immediately halt its savage aggression on Lebanon.

Another telephone call was made between al-Moallem and Italy's Foreign Minister Masimo D'Alema during which al-Moallem and D'Alema  stressed that " priority is for a ceasefire in Lebanon and withdrawal of the Israeli troops to  beyond  the blue line as well as for refusal of any political solution that doesn’t get all Lebanese consensus."

Al-Moallem praised Italy's stance D'Alema has expressed in his statements yesterday in which he demanded the international community to seriously work to tackle roots of the problem in the Middle East through the establishment of the just and comprehensive peace in the region.

Syria's Foreign Minister Receives Two Phone calls

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Attack on Israel hid truth

By Bob Fields
The Daily News    

Published August 4, 2006
A more lopsided, nonsensical description of the Israeli-Arabic conflict cannot be found outside of Charley Reese’s column on the subject.

“Israel and its war crimes are a liability” (The Daily News, July 25) is more of his usual pap. He starts by saying Hezbollah “struck across the Israeli border with Lebanon, kidnapped two ... Israeli soldiers and killed eight and now Israel is inflicting collective punishment on Lebanon.”

Only a fraction of the truth is here. Missing is the fact that Hezbollah had begun raining down rockets on Israeli cities, roughly 500 or so, in the previous week. Missing also is the fact that Hezbollah, based in southern Lebanon, has been behind terrorist attacks in Israel for the past couple of decades or more.

Next, he says, “Israel’s over-the-top attacks on Gaza have nothing to do with trying to free one soldier.” It’s “a dress rehearsal for Israel’s long-term plan to drive the Palestinians out of Palestine.”

If Israel were planning to drive Palestinians out of Palestine, wouldn’t it defy logic for them to withdraw from Gaza in the first place, and to be planing to withdraw from most of the West Bank in the near future?

The reason for Israel’s recent attack in Gaza is the same as all their other counterattacks against the Arabs for the past 50 years: No matter what Israel does, she is attacked again and again by enemies that surround her. So she strikes back. Hard.

Israel withdrew from Gaza hoping the Palestinians would take it as a peaceful gesture and begin to build a prosperous government and society.

Instead, they elect Hamas, a terrorist organization, to govern, turn Gaza into an open terrorist center, launch constant terrorist attacks against Israel and kidnap an Israeli soldier to boot.

Israel responds to these unprovoked attacks and Reese, along with most of the Arabic world, calls it the aggressor. Astounding.

Reese’s final nonsense is: “If we cut Israel’s apron string, some more sensible Israelis, who realize they cannot ... exist indefinitely surrounded by hostile neighbors, could come to power. That is Israel’s only hope for long-term survival.”

In other words, just give up, Israel, and then you can survive. He is simply insane.

Since its birth, Israel has endured the wrath of all the Arab nations around it, determined to survive despite four wars launched by Arabs and countless terrorist attacks in between.

How does “realizing it cannot exist” surrounded by enemies contribute to its long-term survival?

It’s more an Arabic solution to the problem: Stop resisting all Arabic attacks, Israel. Just die, everyone else will be happy and there will be peace at last.

All of Arabia (and apparently all of Reese) is consumed with hatred of Israel. There can never be peace in the Middle East while it’s the driving force there.

Attack on Israel hid truth

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France decries Iran Pres.'s remark over Israel

Saturday, August 05, 2006
 
French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy condemned Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's remarks that Israel's "elimination" was necessary to end the conflict in Lebanon, AFP reported.

LONDON, August 5 (IranMania) - French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy condemned Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's remarks that Israel's "elimination" was necessary to end the conflict in Lebanon, AFP reported.

"I totally condemn these remarks which are unacceptable," Douste-Blazy said in comments broadcast by Radio France Internationale.

"I have been the first western foreign minister to condemn the remarks of Mr Ahmadinejad," he added.

On Thursday Ahmadinejad was quoted as saying of the violence in Lebanon that "the real cure for the conflict is elimination of the Zionist regime, but there should be first an immediate ceasefire."

Ahmadinejad also said Israel was engaged in a "war against humanity" in its air and ground offensive against its northern neighbour, now in its fourth week, aimed at rooting out Hezbollah gotcha2e militants in Lebanon.

Douste-Blazy reaffirmed however France's position in favour of Iranian involvement in settling the conflict between Israel and the Hezbollah fighters, whom Iran is accused of funding and arming.

"Iran plays a clearly important role in the (Middle East) region and particularly in this Israeli-Lebanese conflict," the French minister said.

On an earlier visit to Beirut, he had said Iran had a role to play in the "stabilisation" of the region.

The Islamic state's hardline president has in the past said Israel should be "wiped off the map" and has several times called for the Jewish state to be moved somewhere else on the planet.

[url=http://France decries Iran Pres.'s remark over Israel][/url]

[Shammu]

Top Iran cleric urges financial aid for Hezbollah

Saturday, August 05, 2006
 
Archived Picture - One of Iran's most senior clerics urged his countrymen to financially help Lebanon's Hezbollah, marking a break with Iran's usual position of emphasizing "moral support" only for the movement, AFP reported. "It is a religious duty to help them politically and financially," Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati said of Hezbollah in a Friday sermon broadcast on state radio.

LONDON, August 5 (IranMania) - One of Iran's most senior clerics urged his countrymen to financially help Lebanon's Hezbollah, marking a break with Iran's usual position of emphasizing "moral support" only for the movement, AFP reported.

"It is a religious duty to help them politically and financially," Ayatollah Ahmad Jannati said of Hezbollah in a Friday sermon broadcast on state radio.

"If we were there we would have helped them with our lives, but since we are not there and cannot do it, then we should aid them financially," said Jannati.

His remarks were greeted by chants of "Death to America" and "Death to Israel."

Jannati also asked the Iranian media to support Hezbollah with constant publicity.

Earlier this week, Jannati called on Muslim countries to give weapons to Hezbollah.

"Muslim countries are expected not to deny Hezbollah and the Lebanese any kind of help, especially weapons, medicine and food," said Jannati.

The comments mark a break with Shiite-dominated Iran's stated position, which emphasizes "moral support" only for the Shiite movement.

Iran is one of the main backers of Hezbollah, which captured two Israeli soldiers on July 12 to try to secure the release of Lebanese held by Israel, and triggered the massive Israeli onslaught on Lebanon.

Tehran regularly denies Israeli and Western allegations that it finances and arms the movement.

Appointed by Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Jannati heads the Guardians Council, which vets all legislation and candidates running for office.

Iran does not recognize Israel, and hardline President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on Thursday said the answer to the conflict in south Lebanon was the "elimination of the Zionist regime."

Top Iran cleric urges financial aid for Hezbollah

[Shammu]

'Iran's surface-to-air missiles to back Hezbollah'

Saturday, August 05, 2006
 
Archived Picture - Iran will supply Hezbollah with surface-to-air missile systems in the coming months, boosting the guerrillas' defences against Israeli aircraft, according to a report by specialist magazine Jane's Defence Weekly, citing unnamed Western diplomatic sources.

LONDON, August 5 (IranMania) - Iran will supply Hezbollah with surface-to-air missile systems in the coming months, boosting the guerrillas' defences against Israeli aircraft, according to a report by specialist magazine Jane's Defence Weekly, citing unnamed Western diplomatic sources.

In a meeting, held late last month, the Lebanese Shiite Muslim militia called on Tehran to "accelerate and extend the scope of weapon shipments from Iran to the Islamic Resistance, particularly advanced missiles against ground and air targets."

Hezbollah's representatives pressed for "an array of more advanced weaponry, including more advanced SAM (surface-to-air missile) systems," Jane's said.

"Iranian authorities conveyed a message to the Hezbollah leadership that their forces would continue to receive a steady supply of weapons systems,"it added.

"The details coming from the meeting reveal that they are about ensuring a constant supply of weapons to support Islamic Resistance operations against Israel," said Robin Hughes, the magazine's Middle East Editor.

"We are told the latest meeting was attended by senior representatives of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps' Qods force which is responsible for training and logistic support for Iranian-backed insurgent groups."

According to Jane's Defence Weekly, Iranian authorities have supplied the militia with Iranian-made Noor radar-guided anti-ship cruise missiles and Chinese QW-1 (Vanguard) shoulder-launched SAMs.

Russian-made SAMs will reportedly be supplied at a later date.

Hezbollah has been locked in a more than three-week long deadly conflict against Israel since it kidnapped two Israeli soldiers and killed eight others on July 12, AFP added.

Israel has carried out a widespread bombing campaign of southern Lebanon, where Hezbollah is based, and Hezbollah has fired rockets into northern Israel.

A Hezbollah anti-ship missile also damaged an Israeli corvette off the Lebanese coast in the early days of the conflict, killing four sailors. Israel said the missile was Iranian-built but Tehran denied involvement.

'Iran's surface-to-air missiles to back Hezbollah'

[Shammu]

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: The Iranian People Is the Owner of Nuclear Technology. Talking to Iran in Language of Threats Is a Bitter Mistake.

Following are excerpts from an interview with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad , which aired on the Iranian News Channel (IRINN) on August 1, 2006.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: Look, they are destroying homes with the people inside. They are burning fields. Neither children nor adults are safe from them. With laser-guided bombs, they attack shelters of defenseless women and children leaving them in a pool of their blood.

Crowd: Death to Israel.

Death to Israel.

Death to Israel.

Death to Israel.

Death to Israel.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: They have no boundaries, limits, or taboos when it comes to killing human beings. Who are they? Where did they come from? Are they human beings? "They are like cattle, nay, more misguided." A bunch of bloodthirsty barbarians. Next to them, all the criminals in the world seem righteous.

[...]

They are a bunch of Zionists. Where have they come from? As you know, the rule of hegemony and the web of colonialism strived to establish a base in the heart of the Middle East. A hundred years ago, they began to devise conspiracies on the basis of a diabolical plan. Bit by bit they arrived, and backed by the devious, deceiving Britain, they sneaked people in, and placed them in control over the people of Palestine. Sixty years ago, by means of a highly complex plan, involving psychology, politics, and propaganda, and by means of weapons, they managed to establish a false regime in the heart of the Middle East. At first they claimed: "Since some of those [Jews] lost their families in World War II, and were killed by the German government, we must give them a land." They established a regime, and placed them here. Afterwards, we saw that they did not make do with [the Jews] who presumably were harmed in the war. They gathered people from all over the world, brought them here, and turned them into the landlords. They expelled more than five million Palestinians from their homes with weapons and with oppression. They gathered people from all over the world, and imposed them here. Our question was: "If these people were harmed in Europe, why do you wish to compensate them out of the pockets of the people of Palestine, and with their honor and their land?" Then they claimed that these are people whose forefathers had lived in this land 2,500 years ago, and that they should therefore be the rulers of this land. We say to them that if we were to accept this principle, and were to apply it throughout the world, all the political borders in today's world would change.

We ask you: Who lived on the land of America 250 or 300 years ago? Don't the rulers of America today rule because of the massacre of the native Americans? If we accept the principle that anybody whose forefathers ever lived on any land 2,000 or 3,000 years ago should rule today, then America should be ruled by the native Americans who are there today. There is proof that they existed. There are films, photos, documents, maps, and their descendants.

Crowd: Death to America

Death to America

Death to America

Death to America

Death to America

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: They established a regime, aimed at threatening, trespassing, murdering, and pillaging. They established this regime so that the peoples of the region would never be tranquil. They threaten everybody. Even if a country wants to made scientific progress, they have the nerve to prevent its scientific progress under the pretext that the safety of the regime that occupied Jerusalem would be threatened by this scientific progress.

[...]

They established that regime so that it would constitute a constant threat, and would prepare the ground for the control of the rule of hegemony, and so that they would be able to impose agreements on the people. As you know, some of the countries in our region made armament deals worth more than 150 billion dollars with America and England, under the pretext of the regime that occupied Jerusalem. Since they are under America's control, they never used these weapons against the regime that occupied Jerusalem.

[...]

It is totally obvious from what is going on that this plan was made a long time ago. The Americans failed to implement their Greater Middle East policy. They thought that by attacking and occupying Lebanon, they would be able to revive the dead plan to establish a Greater Middle East. That is why they attacked. As you can see, their crimes know no limits.

I hereby declare: The world must know that America and England are accomplices to each and every one of the crimes of the regime that has occupied Jerusalem. They must be held accountable.

[...]

Look at the international organizations. We used to say that these organizations are a tool in the hands of some of the great powers, and we were told we were being pessimistic. Look at the Security Council. It was established to bring about security. But as you can see, whenever the proposal for a cease-fire is raised, the Security Council - which is responsible for security, and which should welcome the cease-fire proposal - is, unfortunately, opposed to the cease-fire proposal and to preventing the killing of women and children. I hereby declare: This behavior of the Security Council is a mark of eternal shame on the forehead of the U.N. and those who control it.

[...]

Everybody knows that this regime [Israel] can do nothing without the orders and backing of America and its intimate friend, England. That's why we have declared these two regimes are responsible for all the crimes of the insubordinate Zionist regime.

[...]

It is inconceivable that they allow themselves to make decisions to attack and totally destroy a certain country, and then, on the basis of a few agreements, they bring groups from the countries supporting this corrupt regime [Israel], and deploy them along the borders, in order to oppress the people of the region even more. They must know that those days are over. The peoples have awoken.

The Lebanese scene is like a mirror. It displays the criminal essence of the rule of hegemony and the false claims of the great powers to support human rights, freedom, and democracy. At the same time, it exhibits the oppression of the Lebanese people.

Today, the Hizbullah in Lebanon is the standard-bearer of the resistance of all the monotheistic peoples, of the seekers of justice, and of the free people. Hassan Nasrallah is shouting the loud cry of the vigilant human consciences. Today, Hizbullah stands tall as the representative of all the peoples, all the vigilant consciences, all the monotheistic people, all the seekers of justice, and all free people of the world, against the rule of hegemony. Until now, with the help of Allah, [Hizbullah] is winning, and, Allah willing, it will reach the ultimate victory in the near future.

[...]

I hereby demand that all the peoples declare their position regarding these crimes. It is inconceivable for people to play a double game in the Middle East and Lebanon. On the one hand, they maintain cooperation and economic and political ties with the Zionist criminals, and on the other hand, they wish to appear as supporters of human rights, of the oppressed, and of peace. They all must declare their position. I call upon all the governments to remove the restrictions upon their peoples. The peoples have become vigilant today, and are studying the scene with precision and awareness. The peoples are keeping record of the behavior of all the governments, the officials, and the groups. All these crimes are engraved on the hearts of the peoples. Soon, the people will begin to move, and, Allah willing, they will drag these criminals to the defendant's bench.

[...]

I declare, before all the dear people of Bojnourd, that in light of America and England's behavior, it has become clear that they don't have what it takes to participate in international forums. They don't have what it takes to sit in the Security Council, and to have a right of veto. They themselves are guilty and criminal, and they must be placed on trial.

[...]

When I see the behavior of America, England, and their other accomplices in recent days, I get the impression that they are preparing even greater crimes. I warn them: Know that the fire of the wrath of the peoples is about to erupt and overflow. If you do not put an end to your crimes, know that the ocean of the peoples will soon rage. When the peoples begin to move, they will drag everybody to the defendant's bench, and will remove them from the throne of power.

[...]

Today, the Iranian people is the owner of nuclear technology. Those who want to talk with our people should know what people they are talking to. If some believe they can keep talking to the Iranian people in the language of threats and aggressiveness, they should know that they are making a bitter mistake. If they have not realized this by now, they soon will, but then it will be too late. Then they will realize that they are facing a vigilant, proud people.

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: The Iranian People Is the Owner of Nuclear Technology. Talking to Iran in Language of Threats Is a Bitter Mistake.