Draft resolution presented at the U.N.

[Shammu]

Yep  .....  Stand still and do nothing while we kill you all off.   

I hope in the return letter, Israel tells them how they really feel. I am starting to get real angry with Kofi, siding with terrorist.

[Soldier4Christ]

I hope in the return letter, Israel tells them how they really feel. I am starting to get real angry with Kofi, siding with terrorist.

Siding with terrorists?? In my opinion he is one of them but just hasn't shown all his colors yet.

[Shammu]

Siding with terrorists?? In my opinion he is one of them but just hasn't shown all his colors yet.

I was talking about the Knesset.

[Soldier4Christ]

I was talking about the Knesset.

   

I hope in the return letter, Israel tells them how they really feel. I am starting to get real angry with Kofi, siding with terrorist.

I was responding to this about Kofi.

[Shammu]

I was responding to this about Kofi.

I though you were talking about Olbert/Knesset.  The leadership of Israel.

Kofi is a terrorist, in his own right.

[Soldier4Christ]

I though you were talking about Olbert/Knesset.  The leadership of Israel.

Kofi is a terrorist, in his own right.

That's ok brother .....  you'll be alright.   

[Shammu]

That's ok brother .....  you'll be alright.   

 

[Shammu]

IDF Begins Pullout from Lebanon, UNIFIL Arrival Expected
08:45 Aug 15, '06 / 21 Av 5766

(IsraelNN.com) Israel Defense Force soldiers began pulling out of southern Lebanon early Monday morning despite the fact that the United Nations International Force in Lebanon had yet to arrive. Paratroopers withdrew from the central sector and returned to Israeli territory at 6:00 a.m.

IDF officials estimated that the international peacekeeping force mandated by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 will begin its stint in southern Lebanon within the next 24 to 38 hours.

Lebanese army regulars will follow the beefed-up UNIFIL soldiers into the region, said IDF sources. Official contacts between Israel and Lebanon regarding the transfer of control over the region have yet to take place.

The fragile ceasefire between Hizbullah terrorists and IDF troops has so far been maintained, despite several isolated clashes in which terror operatives in southern Lebanon fired on Israeli soldiers. Seven terrorists were killed and five IDF soldiers were wounded in four separate incidents on the first day of the ceasefire.

IDF Begins Pullout from Lebanon, UNIFIL Arrival Expected

[Shammu]

The United Nicomdingbats Shield of Terror 

Israel is faced on its northern and southern borders with two Islamic-fascist terrorist organizations determined to wipe it from the face of the earth.  These organizations have operated with impunity as the effective governments in the territories used to launch attacks against Israel while UN observers have stood by and done nothing.  Yet the United Nations literally and figuratively shields the Hamas and Hezbollah terrorist organizations while trying to immobilize Israel when Israel finally decides to strike back.

For example, the UN has facilitated resumption of the financial aid gravy train to Hamas without obtaining a single concession in return.   Asked for an update on the financial situation of the Palestinian Authority, a spokesman for Secretary General Kofi Annan noted in a press briefing on August 7th that “a funding mechanism is up and running for the funding of the Authority”. All Kofi Annan ever cared about was to keep the Palestinian government afloat at Western taxpayers’ expense.

The Palestine Authority today is in the grip of the Hamas terrorist organization.  It does not matter to the UN that Hamas still refuses to pursue negotiations with Israel over a secure two state solution, much less recognize Israel’s right to exist.  It does not matter to the UN that the Palestinian Authority was already sitting on more than a billion dollars of investments recovered from Arafat that it has failed to tap first to help the Palestinian people before asking for hand-outs.  Every dollar that the UN and its cohorts channel to the Palestinian Authority aid program gives Hamas the ability to hoard the money it already has for its war against Israel.  In the UN’s world, terrorists are rewarded with more money.

Beyond financial rewards, the United Nations confers legitimacy upon terrorist organizations by giving them a platform for their “issues” and a shield for their terror operations.  Denying all sense of reality, the United Nations refuses to acknowledge that Hamas or Hezbollah are part of a dangerous global terrorist network whose common denominator is Islamic fascism.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Here is a revealing exchange with Kofi Annan’s press spokesperson at a daily press briefing back in January 2006 regarding Hamas:

Question: Does the Secretary-General consider Hamas to be a terrorist organization?

Spokesman: The Secretary-General has denounced in clear terms every time any organization has done a terrorist act, including when those acts were claimed by Hamas.

Question: But that doesn’t answer my question.

Spokesman: There is no United Nations label that I know of, of a terrorist organization.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Nothing has changed.  In an interview recently with the Financial Times, UN Deputy Secretary General Mark Malloch Brown declared that “it’s not helpful to couch this war between Israel and Hezbollah in the language of international terrorism”.  They deserve a “settlement which addresses the political issues of their cause as well as the military ones.”  He fails to mention that the common cause of all Islamic-fascist terrorists. Hezbollah and Hamas included is to bring as much of the world as possible under Islamic rule and to destroy Western secular democracies in the process.  Instead, in an effort to make us feel better, Malloch Brown assured us that Hezbollah’s “roots historically are completely separate and different from Al Qaeda.”   That is sort of like saying that imperial Japan and Nazi Germany had such different histories that we should never have lumped them together as part of a global fascist axis during World War II. 

For good measure, Malloch Brown portrayed Hezbollah’s biggest funder and weapons supplier.  Iran as some sort of Rodney Dangerfield character who yearns for nothing more than “respect.”  Malloch Brown opined that Iran’s support of Hezbollah and its nuclear enrichment program were all part of a grand strategy to achieve its most precious wish, “a normalization of its relationships and to be brought back into the international community.”  The fact that Iran’s president has repeatedly called for the annihilation of a UN member state and is building a nuclear arsenal to do just that in defiance of the international community does not seem to enter into the UN Deputy Secretary General’s calculation of what it takes for a UN member state to truly earn respect.

Malloch Brown, by the way, was the same individual who publicly lambasted Middle America several weeks ago for being so ignorant about the UN’s valuable role in the world.  Every time Malloch Brown opens his mouth, he demonstrates why so many people in America are right to question the UN’s value and the moral compass of its leaders. 

Indeed, Kofi Annan has the blood of civilians and UN observers on his own hands, because he failed to take action when he had the chance to save lives.  For example, he personally rebuffed an advance warning to the UN from the Israeli Defense Force that the United Nicomdingbats should help remove innocent civilians from certain villages where fighting was expected to ensue.   Here is what this self-righteous ‘humanitarian’ said in response to a question at a press briefing on July 30th: “It's not the time to undertake to evacuate villages. And besides, as I said, such requests would normally come from a government.”

Kofi Annan would rather stand on ceremony and wait for a request to help evacuate civilians come through normal diplomatic channels than act immediately to save lives and avert a humanitarian crisis.   This is reminiscent Annan’s choice to ignore repeated reports coming from UN personnel on the ground near the Lebanese Israeli border regarding the dangers they were facing as Hezbollah rockets were being fired from the vicinity of their posts and the IDF bombarded suspected Hezbollah positions in response.  Kofi  refused to remove them from harm’s way until tragedy struck and four UN observers were killed.   He blamed Israel, giving Hezbollah a moral victory of sorts by portraying their enemy as the international pariah while also absolving himself of any personal responsibility for what happened.   

UN leaders have done everything possible to shield Hezbollah by trying to put Israel into a box.   The United Nations Humanitarian Coordinator in Lebanon, David Shearer, has just called on the IDF to end its attacks on civilian infrastructure and to cease all actions hindering the supply of humanitarian relief supplies to the hundreds of thousands of displaced people across the country.  According to a statement issued by Shearer, bombardments by the IDF have seriously curtailed vital supply routes between the north and south of Lebanon.  Meanwhile Hezbollah’s use of the same infrastructure and the same supply routes to re-arm itself, and to conduct its terrorist rocket attacks on Israeli civilians, is simply ignored.   By this way of thinking, Hezbollah can mix with the civilian population, hiding among them as shields to launch their rockets against Israeli civilians, and then have their buddies at the UN claim a violation of international law when Israel responds and Hezbollah’s shields are inevitably caught in the cross-fire. 

Immediate “cessation of hostilities” is the mantra being circulated in the halls of the United Nations as efforts to put together a Security Council resolution acceptable to all sides continue.   The United States and France have proposed a two-step approach, starting with a resolution that would leave Israeli forces in place temporarily but require them to cease any “offensive” operations while Hezbollah also ceases its hostilities.  Given Hezbollah’s track record, cessation of hostilities will mean Israel must stop in its tracks while Hezbollah will use any pause in fighting to rearm and reposition itself for the next attack.  The same UN peacekeepers, who stood by for six years and did nothing to prevent the current crisis, will be expected to monitor this first phase.  In any case, Lebanon has already rejected the French American proposal.  Its government mouthed Hezbollah’s unconditional demand for immediate withdrawal of all Israeli troops and offered six years too late to send 15,000 of its own troops to southern Lebanon instead.   How anyone could seriously believe that these untrained troops would take any actions against the highly trained and armed Hezbollah is beyond belief.

If the French American proposal should somehow move forward and the first resolution is passed, the second step would involve Security Council authorization of the deployment of an international force to southern Lebanon to enforce the terms of an overall settlement of the conflict.  At that time, Israeli troops would leave Lebanon altogether to be replaced by the international force, the Lebanese army would receive training and Hezbollah would be disarmed.   At least, that is the theory.  But it ignores the power brokers who have armed and financed Hezbollah all these years and have no incentive today to change course.   Unless Iran and Syria are themselves brought under the Article VII enforcement provisions of the UN Charter and immediately subject to tough UN sanctions if they continue to support Hezbollah, the second resolution would solve nothing.

Based on the UN’s track record to date as a useful shield for Hezbollah, Hamas and their state sponsors, the terrorists will have little to worry about as long as the United Nations remains involved.

[Shammu]

Annan details Mideast cease-fire terms

By EDITH M. LEDERER, Associated Press Writer Mon Aug 14, 10:39 PM ET

UNITED NATIONS - Secretary-General Kofi Annan has warned Israel and Lebanon against occupying additional territory and told them to refrain from responding to any attacks "except where clearly required in immediate self-defense."

A copy of a letter that Annan sent to Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert was obtained Monday by The Associated Press. It set out the U.N.'s expectations of how both sides will fulfill their obligations under the Security Council resolution adopted Friday.

A similar letter was sent to Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said.

The resolution called for an end to the war between Israel and Hezbollah militants, and authorized up to 15,000 U.N. peacekeepers to help 15,000 Lebanese troops take control of south Lebanon, which was under Hezbollah's control, as Israel withdraws. The cessation of hostilities took effect early Monday, the 34th day of fighting that claimed more than 900 lives.

Annan told Israel and Lebanon in the letters sent Sunday that once the cessation of hostilities took effect there must be no firing from the ground, sea or air into the other side's territory or at its forces.

Lebanon and Israel must immediately inform the United Nations if they have been fired on, with as much detail as possible, "refraining from responding except where clearly required in immediate self-defense," Annan said.

Neither side can occupy — or seek to occupy — any additional territory from the other side, he said.

Under the U.N. resolution, Hezbollah is required to immediately stop all attacks but Israel is only required to immediately stop "all offensive military operations."

In the case of any firing, Annan said that "the U.N. undertakes to bring, in an impartial manner, such incidents to the attention of the Security Council as quickly as possible."

Annan also said each side must refrain "from any changes in the strength, composition or disposition of its forces ... unless it notified the U.N. in advance and the U.N. in turn is able to inform the other side."

He asked the two leaders to designate a general who would be accessible to the commander of the U.N. force, known as UNIFIL, French Maj. Gen. Alain Pellegrini. The three generals met Monday morning — just hours after the cessation of hostilities began — at the U.N. position on the border crossing on the Mediterranean coast at Ras Naqoura.

Annan details Mideast cease-fire terms
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Some one starts shooting at me, I'm shooting back.  Permission or no permission.

[Shammu]

Livni: Must return kidnapped troops

 

Livni leaving Tuesday night for meeting with Kofi Annan. On the agenda: Implementation of UNSCR 1701 and a return of kidnapped Israeli soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev. Says to Ynet: 'As long as soldiers are not returned, the operation is not complete'
Ronny Sofer

 

Foreign Minister, Tzipi Livni, will leave for New York Tuesday night for a meeting with UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan. A primary topic on the agenda will be the return of kidnapped soldiers, Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser.

 
In an interview with Ynet, Livni emphasized that "an end of the fighting does not mean an end of the process…The process of returning our kidnapped soldiers will continue. As long as the soldiers are not returned, the operation is not complete. It is the duty of the Israeli government to bring these soldiers home and it will do so."

 

Livni spoke with Ynet during her tour of northern communities: Nahariya, Kiryat Shmona, Carmiel and Tiberias. In response to claims that military operations should have continued, Livni said: "Military operations, regardless of duration, could not have produced outcomes. It was necessary to move on and focus on the political phase, which was in motion from the onset of the conflict. I believe that the results of the ceasefire agreement, if implemented, are enough. We will only be able to evaluate this in the long-term, not now."

 

Resolution must be properly implemented

 
According to Livni, "Hizbullah is currently crippled. It will not risk clashing with Lebanese armed forces. We must understand that there is a chance that this process can change everything that is happening in Lebanon. I'm referring to a multinational force, an embargo on Syria and Iran, distancing Hizbullah from the border. The true test of the military operation and the political process will take place over time. We need to see, over time, if the clauses of the resolution are implemented."

 
Regarding her imminent meeting with Annan, Livni states: "I'm going to meet with the UN Secretary-General in order to ensure that the Security Council resolution is properly implemented. I'm not using this word in order exert pressure, rather I want to confirm that procedures are taking place in accordance with Israel's understanding of the resolution.

 

"I want to emphasize that the future is not only in the hands of the Israeli government, but also in the hands of the Lebanese government. UNSCR 1701 must be implemented in its entirety and any Hizbullah fire in Lebanon will constitute a violation of the resolution. Hizbullah was called to stop its assaults immediately, not only against Israel, but also against IDF soldiers remaining in Lebanon and I call for a full realization of this ceasefire," she added.

 

Effects must be examined over time

 
In response to a Ynet question regarding plans to create an inquiry committee to examine government failures in handling the conflict, Livni answered "I think the government is responsible for everything it does. I think it is right to censure things if required, but we need time in order to examine the effects and in order to see if the government behaved correctly."

 
Livni also addressed the issue of Iranian and Syrian involvement in Lebanon, saying: "UNSCR 1701 is intended to loosen these countries' grip on Lebanon. The resolution is contrary to Iranian interests. They desire a front with Israel via Hizbullah. The resolution prevents this and distances Hizbullah."

 
"Regarding Syria, it will need to decide where it stands. Lebanon is supposed to take off in a different direction, without it. The Syrians cannot influence Lebanon without Hizbullah," she added.

 
Additionally, Livni discussed the homefront, during meetings with northern mayors: "I visited during the battles, the day after. I think that the Israel government is responsible for dealing with any problem that you bring up. The government intends to do this. Many of these issues will already be discussed in the upcoming cabinet meeting, Sunday."

Livni: Must return kidnapped troops

[Shammu]

France considers only symbolic force for UN
Thu Aug 17, 2006 12:45 PM BST170
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By Crispian Balmer

PARIS (Reuters) - France is considering providing only a symbolic force for the United Nations contingent in Lebanon, and not the thousands of troops UN officials had hoped, Le Monde newspaper said on Thursday.

If true, such a move could seriously delay the UN mission, seen as vital to securing peace between Israel and Hizbollah guerrillas, or even scupper the whole operation.

Quoting U.N. and diplomatic sources, Le Monde said France might send just a dozen officers and around 200 personnel from an engineering division for the beefed-up UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL).

President Jacques Chirac's office said the military options "were still under review".

A French diplomatic source said France had always highlighted the dangers of such a mission and said the conditions for the operation had to be clarified.

The source added there was no turnaround in the French position and no misunderstanding with the United Nations.

French Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said on Wednesday that France was willing to lead the UN force until at least February, so long as it was given a clear mandate.

However, she declined to say how many troops France would commit to UNIFIL, which is eventually expected to consist of 15,000 soldiers, up from 2,000 at present.

The United Nations hopes France will lead advance contingents of up to 3,500 troops to south Lebanon which the world body wants to field within two weeks.

PEACEKEEPING NIGHTMARES

France was at the forefront of diplomatic efforts in the United Nations to bring about the ceasefire between Israel and Hizbollah which came into effect earlier this week.

But the French military has strong reservations about the U.N. mission following disastrous peacekeeping missions over the past three decades -- notably in Lebanon and Bosnia.

Other potential troop-contributing nations are due to meet U.N. peacekeeping officials on Thursday to discuss the operation ground rules. Many have not firmly committed any soldiers to UNIFIL before they see what France will do.

Le Monde said France was ready to offer the United Nations the use of a rapid reaction force, but would not place the troops under UN control.

The influential daily quoted UN sources as saying the French position "threatened the entire process" because it could lead other countries to believe that Paris did not believe in the validity of the United Nations mission.

A military source told the paper the French hesitation was caused by the "traumatism of Bosnia" and "fears of reprisals from Syria or Iran".

Some 84 French troops died during a UN peacekeeping mission to Bosnia in the early 1990s, and other soldiers were taken hostage by Bosnian Serbs.

During an earlier mission to Beirut in 1983, bomb attacks blamed on Muslim guerrillas killed 58 French paratroopers.

French officials said earlier this week that Paris was particularly anxious to get reassurances about who will disarm Hizbollah, and when.

The guerrilla movement is backed by Syria and Iran, two countries locked in an increasingly bitter diplomatic battle with France. Paris is worried French troops in Lebanon could unwittingly find themselves caught up in the row.

France considers only symbolic force for UN

Why am I not suprised??

[Shammu]

Emergency meeting to decide on force

Ewen MacAskill
Thursday August 17, 2006
The Guardian

The UN is to hold an emergency meeting today of 45 countries that have offered troops for a 13,000-strong Lebanon peacekeeping mission, to confirm contributions and speed up deployment.

Amid confusion over deployment, the Israeli army is threatening to stall the withdrawal of its forces from southern Lebanon until the UN force is in place. Dan Halutz, Israel's chief of staff, said yesterday his troops would stop withdrawing unless the Lebanese army began to deploy within days, and his troops could remain in southern Lebanon until a multinational force was deployed. He said on Tuesday, as Israeli troops began to withdraw, that they could be out in 10 days.

There have been conflicting opinions among potential contributors about the speed of the UN deployment, ranging from days to months. Hedi Annabi, assistant UN secretary general for peacekeeping, said yesterday the UN hoped an initial contingent of 3,500 could be deployed in 10-15 days.

As yet no country has made a firm offer. Philippe Douste-Blazy, foreign minister of France, which is expected to lead the force, said during a visit to Beirut yesterday that his country would commit troops but did not specify how many.

France, along with others, is delaying deployment until the UN mandate is clarified. Israel says it expects the UN force to disarm Hizbullah but France does not see that as its role.

The deployment is also complicated by the lack of rules of engagement and Israeli objections to troops from Muslim countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia which do not recognise Israel.

The ceasefire plan, agreed by the security council on Friday, envisages a phased withdrawal of the Israeli army. It will be replaced by a Lebanese army contingent of 15,000, backed by a 13,000-strong UN force that will absorb Unifil, the current UN force on the Israel-Lebanon border.

A European diplomat said yesterday: "Everyone is aware of the need to get there quickly. There is hope that the first people will start arriving within a couple of weeks."

Emergency meeting (UN) to decide on force

[Shammu]

Germany won't send troops to Lebanon

Thu Aug 17, 4:04 PM ET

BERLIN - Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday that Germany would not send combat troops to an international peacekeeping force in Lebanon, but was contemplating offering help securing the country's coast.

After meeting with parliamentary leaders, Merkel said Germany was looking at "naval security" as part of its effort to support the force.

Parliament must approve any deployment, and the German government has warned it can't make a concrete offer until the rules of engagement are clarified.

Germany won't send troops to Lebanon

[Shammu]

U.N. resolution already pointless
By Boston Herald editorial staff
Saturday, August 19, 2006

Once again the United Nations stands revealed as a fraud.

     The Security Council resolution that ended the fighting between Israel and the Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon called for the area up to now controlled by Hezbollah to be “free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons” except those of the planned U.N. peacekeeping force and the Lebanese government.

The ink is not dry and already the Lebanese government, Hezbollah and France, which was expected to lead the peacekeepers, have said, in effect, “What, me worry?”

    The United States appears ready to kick the can down the road again. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice says it’s up to the Lebanese government, not the forthcoming U.N. force, to make Hezbollah to give up its missiles and other weapons.

    The Lebanese Army began deploying into the south, but under a deal that permits Hezbollah to keep its arms depots. The government says that only the army will be allowed to carry weapons. Nothing was said about weapons storage. Lebanon’s president said it was “disgraceful” to demand disarmament of Hezbollah. Hezbollah said it would have “no visible military presence.”

    Israel is urging the United Nations to disarm Hezbollah and block resupply. It’s getting the brush-off. U.N. officials have been largely mum.

    Hezbollah has turned its fighters into relief workers, swarming everywhere with forms for owners of damaged houses to claim rebuilding help. This is a political move of genius, designed to portray the government as incompetent.

    Hezbollah has been banged about militarily, and has many fewer rockets than it did before the fighting. However, it has not been seen to be defeated, essential for any progress toward peace. Neither Iran, arms supplier to Hezbollah, nor Syria, Iran’s ally and essential supply route for Hezbollah, has suffered the slightest inconvenience for their hostile roles.

     Dennis Ross, U.S. Mideast negotiator for the first President Bush and for President Clinton, has written that Syria might be ready to deal, and disown Hezbollah if France promises sanctions in response to any future threat to French troops from arms that come through Syria. But President Bashir Assad has never shown any interest in deals.

    What goes around comes around. The survival of an armed Hezbollah means even bloodier, more desperate fighting down the road.

U.N. resolution already pointless