Israel and Syria - Several news items that look towards Isaiah 17

[Shammu]

Mohamed ElBaradei accuses Jewish state of 'taking the law into its own hands', says 'if countries have information that another country is working on a nuclear-related program, they should come to us'

Why should Israel come to y'all?? Have y'all done anything beside talk??

Wait till y'all see my next post.

[Shammu]

Syrian reactor built in 2001

Experts examining new satellite images from 2003 estimate construction of Syrian complex bombed by Israel began six years ago

Ynet
Published: 10.27.07, 22:02
Israel News

The New York Times reported on Saturday that independent analysts have determined that construction of the alleged nuclear reactor on Syrian soil which was bombed last month by Israel may have begun as early as 2001.

After and Before pictures
http://www.ynetnews.com/PicServer2/04062007/1270294/WASV99_o&91;1&93;_wa.jpg

The analysts cited satellite images of the complex taken by a private commercial company in 2003 as evidence. The new images depict large-scale construction works at the site in question.

Syria accused Israel of conducting a raid in its territory in early September but denied the target was a nuclear reactor. American analysts who have studied the newly released images asserted that the complex posed a credible nuclear threat.

The experts' determination that construction on the site had begun in 2001 may support the claim that North Korea began aiding Syria in the late 1990's.

The paper also quoted an unnamed US security official who said that American intelligence had been aware of the site and had been keeping tabs on the evolving project for years.

Earlier in the week new satellite footage of the region showed the structure had been completely razed after the Israeli raid in an apparent attempt by the Syrians to hide any incriminating evidence.

Analysts said the cleanup will hinder a proposed investigation by international nuclear inspectors. ''It (Syria) took down this facility so quickly it looks like they are trying to hide something,'' said David

Albright, president of the Institute for Science and International Security, which analyzed the images.

Syria is signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty and has allowed agency experts to inspect its only known nuclear facility - a small, 27-kilowatt reactor, according to diplomats linked to the IAEA.

Syrian reactor built in 2001

[nChrist]

Whatever the circumstances, it does have to be Israel's fault - RIGHT?

    I wonder if Israel was covertly building that nuclear facility in Syria just to embarrass Syria.   NOPE!

[HisDaughter]

Since I was curious as to just who this character was, I thought others might be also:

Mohamed ElBaradei (Arabic: محمد البرادعي, transliteration: Muḥammad al-Barādaʿī) (born June 17, 1942) is an Egyptian diplomat and the Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), an inter-governmental organization under the auspices of the United Nations. ElBaradei and the IAEA were jointly awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005.

ElBaradei earned a Bachelor's degree in law from the University of Cairo in 1962, followed by a Ph.D in International Law at the New York University School of Law in 1974. His diplomatic career began in 1964 in the Egyptian Ministry of External affairs, where he served in the Permanent Missions of Egypt to the United Nations in New York and in Geneva, in charge of political, legal, and arms control issues. From 1974 to 1978 he was a special assistant to the Egyptian Foreign Minister. In 1980, he became a senior fellow in charge of the international law program at the United Nations Institute for Training and Research. From 1981 to 1987 he was also an Adjunct Professor of International Law at New York University School of Law.

In 1984, ElBaradei became a senior staff member of the IAEA Secretariat, serving as the agency's legal adviser (1984 to 1993) and Assistant Director General for External Relations (1993 to 1997).

ElBaradei is also a member of the International Law Association and the American Society of International Law. He is married to Aida Elkachef, a kindergarten teacher at Vienna International School, and has two children, Laila and Mostafa.

December 1, 1997, and is now well into his third 4-year term. However, a good deal of controversy surrounded his election to a third term, which was opposed primarily by the United States. The stated reason for the U.S. opposition was that it supported a limit of two terms for all heads of international organizations; however, it was reported that the U.S. opposition may have been motivated by other factors. ElBaradei had strongly questioned the U.S. rationale for the 2003 invasion of Iraq from the time of the 2002 Iraq disarmament crisis, when he, along with Hans Blix, led a team of UN weapons inspectors in Iraq, seeking evidence that Saddam Hussein had revived his efforts to develop weapons of mass destruction. ElBaradei and his team of inspectors could not determine the ultimate purpose of Saddam Hussein's regime's purchase of aluminum tubes which some claimed could be used for uranium centrifuges. After the Iraq War, the Iraq Survey Group determined that the best explanation for the tubes use was to produce conventional 81-mm rockets; no evidence was found of a program to design or develop an 81-mm aluminum rotor uranium centrifuge.[1]

ElBaradei had also revealed to the UN Security Council that sales of uranium from Niger to Iraq, which had been touted by numerous intelligence agencies as a key piece of evidence of Iraq's nuclear weapons ambitions may have been based on uncertified documents. The U.S. used several diplomatic channels in an attempt to remove ElBaradei from his position as IAEA director, but however despite months of extensive behind-the-scenes diplomatic efforts, the U.S. was not able to identify a sufficient number of other countries willing to support ElBaradei's ouster. In addition, no rival candidate could be found willing to compete against ElBaradei for Director General, although the U.S. tried to convince Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer to run for the job (he declined).

ElBaradei has also been accused by the US of having a lenient approach in dealing with Iran's nuclear program [5] in light of revelations that Iran had covered up substantial aspects of its nuclear program for nearly two decades, and Iran's insistence on continuing to develop uranium enrichment capability. ElBaradei and the IAEA have also been criticized for failing to detect the “nuclear supermarket” run by the Pakistani scientist A. Q. Khan.

This is just some of what I found.
Yvette

[Soldier4Christ]

Like most offices in the UN it is being taken over by muslims. The office of the IAEA is no different. ElBaradei has mysteriously kept his position long beyond the given terms. Under his direction the IAEA could not find WMD's in Iraq. The Iraqee government somehow knew each and every place the IAEA was going to investigate ahead of time and the IAEA would arive at an empty site each time. ElBaradei has been supporting Iran in their quest for nuclear power.

[HisDaughter]

Thanks Pastor Roger.  I figured something like that.

[nChrist]

Brothers and Sisters,

It's interesting to think about things like this, but it's also very complicated because these might involve issues that usher in the last days of this Age of Grace. Is it possible that ElBaradei is in exactly the right position for GOD'S Purposes? YES - but only GOD knows.

We do know that no power or government can slow or hasten GOD'S Appointed time for the unfolding of Bible Prophecy. Are nuclear weapons part of Bible Prophecy? Maybe - only GOD knows. There are portions of Scripture that indicate this possibility, but it still boils down to "only GOD knows".

GOD tells us that evil will grow worse, and the time will come when the "Great Restrainer" (HOLY SPIRIT) will not restrict the actions of the devil and the powers of darkness. It's quite obvious that evil is growing worse and stronger by the minute, but the "Great Restrainer" is still here and restricting the actions of the devil. When will the devil be given full reign? Only GOD knows. It will be horrible beyond human imagination.

The devil's reign will be ended by the SECOND COMING OF CHRIST. JESUS CHRIST came the first time to Sacrifice HIMSELF and provide a means of rescue and Salvation for evil mankind. HIS SECOND COMING will be in GREAT, RIGHTEOUS WRATH, and HE will pour out HIS HOLY WRATH on evil. Evil mankind and the powers of darkness richly deserve HIS WRATH. ALL will know that HE is the LORD of LORDS and KING of KINGS, but it will be too late.

Love In Christ,
Tom

Ezekiel 7:14-20 NASB
'They have blown the trumpet and made everything ready, but no one is going to the battle, for My wrath is against all their multitude. 'The sword is outside and the plague and the famine are within. He who is in the field will die by the sword; famine and the plague will also consume those in the city. 'Even when their survivors escape, they will be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them mourning, each over his own iniquity. 'All hands will hang limp and all knees will become like water. 'They will gird themselves with sackcloth and shuddering will overwhelm them; and shame will be on all faces and baldness on all their heads. 'They will fling their silver into the streets and their gold will become an abhorrent thing; their silver and their gold will not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of the LORD. They cannot satisfy their appetite nor can they fill their stomachs, for their iniquity has become an occasion of stumbling. 'They transformed the beauty of His ornaments into pride, and they made the images of their abominations and their detestable things with it; therefore I will make it an abhorrent thing to them.

[Shammu]

Syrian gov't secrecy left nuclear facility undefended by army
By Haaretz Service


The veil of secrecy in Damascus surrounding Syria's alleged nuclear facility left it vulnerable to aerial attack, Aviation Week magazine on Saturday quoted an Israeli official as saying.

According to foreign media reports, the facility was the target of an Israel Air Force strike deep inside Syrian territory in early September.

"The target was so highly classified in Damascus that the military wasn't briefed and, therefore, air defenses were unprepared," Aviation Week reported, attributing the information to an Israeli official.

The U.S. publication said Israel used an array of sophisticated technological tools ranging from satellites to anti-electronic warfare to plan and carry out the alleged bombing of the complex in northern Syria, said to be built with the aid of North Korea.

A previous report by ABC claimed Israel had obtained detailed pictures of the Syrian complex from an apparent mole.

ABC, citing a senior U.S. official, said the person had provided several pictures of the complex from the ground, and Israel showed the images to the CIA. The U.S. spy agency helped pinpoint "drop points" to assist in potential targeting, ABC said.

Israel urged the United States to destroy the complex, but Washington hesitated because no fissionable material was found that would prove the site was nuclear, ABC said.

Syrian gov't secrecy left nuclear facility undefended by army

[Shammu]

New missiles threaten Tel Aviv airport
Security officials say Syria, Iran rearming Hezbollah terror group
Posted: November 5, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2007 WorldNetDaily.com

TEL AVIV – The Lebanese Hezbollah militia, aided by Iran and Syria, has acquired a small number of missiles capable of targeting Tel Aviv's international airport, according to security sources.

The sources said recent speeches in which Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah repeatedly warned Israel of a "colossal surprise" were references to his group's purported new capability of striking Israel's main airport.

"If you the Zionists are thinking of attacking Lebanon ... I promise great surprises that could alter the fate of the war and the region, G-d willing," said Nasrallah in a September speech.

In a speech two months prior, Nasrallah claimed his group would release a "colossal surprise" that would target Israel by land similar to a surprise attack his group launched during confrontations in the summer of 2006 when Hezbollah successfully used Chinese-made C-802 missiles to strike Israel's navy. The Jewish state had failed to calibrate its sea vessels' anti-missile systems, reportedly unaware Hezbollah possessed the Chinese missiles.

Security officials, who spoke to WND on condition of anonymity, didn't specify the exact missile they said Hezbollah acquired that can target Tel Aviv's airport. They said the missiles were passed to Hezbollah by Iran through the Syria-Lebanese border.

The Lebanese Army and a contingent of several thousand international troops were deployed in South Lebanon to specifically ensure against Hezbollah's rearming, but Israel says neither the international forces nor the Lebanese army are taking concrete measures to stop Hezbollah from rearming. Additionally, no troops have deployed along the Syria-Lebanese border, where most of Hezbollah's rearming reportedly takes place.

A United Nations cease-fire imposed after the 34-days of confrontations in July and August of 2006 banned weapons transfers and called on Hezbollah to disarm.

Israel is not alone in pointing out Hezbollah's rearmament. Last week, the U.N. released a report quoting Israeli officials stating Hezbollah acquired new long-range rockets capable of hitting Tel Aviv and tripled their arsenal of land-to-sea missiles since last summer's war.

The U.N. report did not state Hezbollah acquired missiles that can target Tel Aviv's airport, only rockets, which cannot be calibrated to target a specific area.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon called Hezbollah's purported rearming a cause for great concern.

"Israel has stated that the nature and number of weapons in Hezbollah's control constitutes a strategic threat to its security and the safety of its citizens," he said.

The U.N. report said Hezbollah's long-range rocket force is stationed in areas north of the Litani River, above the area at which international forces are deployed, and that most of the new rockets, including hundreds of Zilzal and Fajr rockets, have a range of 155 miles, "enabling them to reach Tel Aviv and points further south," the report said.

"Israel also claims that Hezbollah has tripled its shore-to-sea C-802 missiles and have established an air-defense unit armed with ground-to-air missiles," Ban said.

While Israel did not provided the U.N. with specific intelligence due to the sensitivity of the sources, Ban said last week several speeches by Nasrallah the past few months "seem to confirm these Israeli claims."

[Shammu]

Arab envoys to Damascus meeting call for tightening boycott of Israel

Published: 11.08.07, 17:26
Israel News

Arab delegates meeting in a Syria-based office for boycotting Israel wrapped up four days of talks Thursday with demands for a tightening of the anti-Israel ban among Arab nations.

The meeting blacklisted six companies, mostly European, that do business with Israel and lifted a ban on four other companies, deemed to have abided by the boycott rules, a statement from the anti-Israeli group said. The names of the companies involved were not disclosed.

Arab envoys to Damascus meeting call for tightening boycott of Israel

[Shammu]

US warns Syria ahead of Lebanese elections

Associated Press
THE JERUSALEM POST
Nov. 9, 2007

A senior State Department official told Congress on Thursday that Syria or its supporters might use violence to interfere in neighboring Lebanon's coming presidential elections.

"Interference or intimidation in the electoral process is unacceptable to the United States and to the international community," the diplomat, C. David Welch, said at a hearing of the Senate Middle East subcommittee.

Syria cannot hope to improve relations with the United States or play an influential role in the region unless it heeds that warning, Welch said in a statement and in testimony at the hearing.

Careful about what he was willing to disclose openly, Welch said, "My sense is that there is a high risk of something to signal the parliament" of Syria's interest in the outcome of parliament's election a president, a post held by pro-Syrian president Emile Lahoud. His term expires Nov. 24.

As parliament prepares to choose a successor to pro-Syrian President Emile Lahoud by Monday, several legislators who say they fear for their lives are housed in a Beirut hotel protected by security guards.

The Bush administration has been expanding its diplomatic contact cautiously with Syria, including meetings between Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem last Spring and again at a conference on Iraq Nov. 3 in Turkey.

At the meeting in Istanbul, Rice said she had made "quite clear" that she expected Syria not to interfere in Lebanon's constitutional process.

Syria has pulled its troops from Lebanon under UN pressure but maintains a strong interest in the country through pro-Syrian politicians and, according to US officials, intermittent shipment of Iranian weapons to Hezbollah, which the State Department designates as a terrorist organization.

"This is a government that strives to undermine Lebanon's sovereignty and security through pro-Syrian proxies and partners, a government that continues to harbor and support terrorists and terrorist organizations," Welch said.

"It is time," he said, "for the Syrian government to show it is willing to be a responsible member in the community of nations."

Speaking about Lebanon's projected elections, Welch said: "We are very concerned that in the next few weeks Syria or its supporters will attempt to manipulate the outcome through violence, intimidation or an obstinate refusal to participate in the electoral process. These concerns are not unfounded."

On several occasions, Welch said, Syrian officials promised to act against the flow of foreign fighters into Iraq, to end their interference in Lebanon, to expel from Damascus Palestinian terrorist leaders and to end Syrian state sponsorship of terrorism."

Unfortunately, he said, "the Syrian regime has yet to demonstrate the necessary willingness to reorient its behavior back toward international norms."

In a statement, meanwhile, Republican Sen. Dick Lugar recommended "meaningful and regular discussions" between the United States and Syria.

Continued refusal to do so, he said, "freezes in place a dangerous status quo."

US warns Syria ahead of Lebanese elections

[Shammu]

Syria displays new security measures in rare organized tour along Iraqi border

The Associated Press
Saturday, November 10, 2007

TANAF, Syria: Syria showed off new security measures on its long and porous border with Iraq during an organized tour for foreign diplomats, military attaches and journalists on Saturday.

Twenty-nine diplomats, including the U.S. military attache, were allowed on the rare inspection of Syria's side of the Tanaf border crossing, about 300 kilometers (187 miles) northeast of the capital, Damascus. They were then driven for some 200 kilometers (miles) along the border marked by police outposts and tall sand barriers.

Authorities have increased the number of outposts to one every 400 meters in some zones along the 570 kilometer (354 miles) border, a Syrian officer said, stating each outpost was staffed with half-dozen soldiers.

"There is no infiltration (into Iraq) here," the officer said, speaking on conditions of anonymity along with Syrian military regulations. However, several Iraqis have been caught smuggling ammunition and tobacco into Syria, he said.

The United States and some Iraqi officials accuse Syria of not doing enough to stop foreign fighters from crossing into Iraq. Syria says it has taken all necessary measures but that it is impossible to fully control the sprawling desert along the border.

Syrian authorities have also complained in the past that their border guards lack sufficient equipment and intelligence. They say Britain has turned down their request for night-vision binoculars.

But the Syrian officer at Tanaf said the situation has improved since guards were provided with "reconnaissance vehicles and developed communication systems." He did not elaborate.

Most diplomats declined to talk to reporters during the trip, but Bahrain's ambassador, Wahid al-Sayar, said it appeared that "Syria is serious in controlling its border with Iraq."

Al-Sayar added that security measures taken by Iraqi border guards were not visible during the tour, and called for "cooperation on both sides" for more effective border patrolling.

The Tanaf border crossing was a major gateway for Iraqis fleeing violence in their country following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion and the ousting of Saddam Hussein.

Over 1,5 million Iraqi refugees have fled to Syria, but the numbers seem to have decreased drastically since Damascus began imposing visa restrictions on Iraqis last month.

Mohammed Awad, who heads the immigration department at Tanaf, said only 400 to 500 Iraqis are entering Syria daily, down from almost 15,000 before restrictions were imposed.

And the number of those returning to Iraq have recently increased fivefold to about 2,500 a day, he said. The Iraqi government also says large numbers of refugees are returning to Iraq, encouraged by declining violence in their country.

The U.S. State Department said this week that Syria has agreed to allow U.S. interviewers into the country to screen Iraqi refugees for admission to the United States, clearing a major obstacle to the Bush administration's resettlement program.

Syria had for months refused to issue visas to the interviewers amid deepening tensions between Washington and Damascus.

Syria displays new security measures

[Shammu]

Preparing for an emergency

30 American physicians prepare for 'whatever Israel needs' in next emergency
Ynetnews

Over 30 top physicians arrived in Israel Sunday for a grueling, 5-day state-of-the-art course in Israeli emergency and trauma medicine. Their goal is to come back on immediate notice in case of war or other national emergency to take the place of Israeli doctors called to the front as part of their IDF reserve duties.

The Ministry of Health, in cooperation with the IDF Medical Corps and the American Physicians Fellowship (APF) are organizing the "Medical Emergency & Disaster Preparedness" course, the 10th bi-annual mission brought to Israel for this unique training.

"Israel has earned global respect for its incomparable emergency medical care," said APF Vice President, Dr. Mike Frogel, leader of the delegation, "this has come at a dear price, which APF physicians deeply honor. If we can help alleviate the strains of war-time health needs through this remarkable partnership with our Israeli colleagues, then we stand to both help the people of Israel in a critically important way and also draw immense satisfaction from our personal commitment.

The invaluable experience and lessons learned will also be applicable to Emergency Preparedness planning back home in the US and Canada."

The 30 Jewish and non-Jewish doctors come from 10 US states, and Canada.

Preparing for an emergency

[Shammu]

Israel on alert for Syria airstrike
November 11, 2007
Uzi Mahnaimi, Tel Aviv

THE defensive missile shield around Israel’s Dimona nuclear reactor was placed on red alert 30 times last week amid fears of an airstrike by Syria.

A battery of American-made Patriot antiaircraft missiles has been moved to Dimona in the Negev desert following intelligence that a strike may be launched in retaliation for Israel’s bombing of a suspected nuclear site in Syria two months ago.

In a highly unusual move, the officers in charge of the missiles were permitted to talk to Israeli state television about their preparations. “We’re ready to launch the missiles in seconds, once we’re on full alert,” said First Lieutenant Adi, a young female officer who is the deputy commander of the battery.

Tension with Damascus has heightened since September 6 when Israeli fighters destroyed the suspected nuclear installation in northern Syria.

“The fact that the Syrians didn’t launch an immediate strike against Israel doesn’t mean that they won’t retaliate in due course,” said an Israeli defence source. “Dimona is on the top of their list.”

Tension is mounting in Israel. “Every civilian aircraft en route from Cairo to Amman, or from Jeddah to Cairo and vice versa, which deviates even slightly from its route, sets off an alarm and risks a missile being fired,” said the female commander of the Patriot battery.

The unit is authorised to shoot down any aircraft which approaches, civilian or combat.

An Israeli Mirage jet that approached Dimona by mistake was shot down during the Six-Day War in 1967, while a Libyan Boeing 727 which lost its way in a storm in 1973 and approached Dimona was also downed. All 113 on board were killed.

Israel on alert for Syria airstrike

[Shammu]

Israel on Alert: Secret Nuclear Plant in the Crosshairs
 
by Hana Levi Julian

(IsraelNN.com) The missile defense system at Israel's Dimona nuclear reactor is on high alert due to concerns that Syria might target it in an attack. Israeli officials say the Dimona facility is "on the top of [Syria's] list."

According to a report published in the British Sunday Times, the Dimona nuclear reactor was placed on red alert 30 times last week.

Israel's Air Force tracks all aircraft in neighboring Arab states, said the unnamed Israeli sources quoted in the British Sunday Times, and is ready to launch a defensive strike within seconds if an unidentified or enemy aircraft attempts to approach Dimona.

Foreign media first reported the September 6th Israeli attack on Syrian soil hours after Syria filed an official complaint that Israeli aircraft had violated its air space and dropped bombs in an uninhabited area.

It was later reported that Israel had attacked a nuclear facility that showed signs of having been built by North Korean scientists, and that an unnamed U.S. official had said "Israelis obtained many detailed pictures of the facility from the ground."

A report in the New York Times in October claimed the facility was without doubt a nuclear reactor and was at least four years old. The paper published a satellite photo dated from 2003 that clearly showed a structure on the site Israel allegedly bombed that had been taken prior to the attack.

On October 2, the Israel Defense Forces confirmed that the Israeli Air Force attacked at least one target deep inside Syrian territory. Information regarding what was hit, exactly when and how remains classified.

Despite a flurry of foreign reports about the affair, Public Security Minister Avi Dichter insisted last week that Syrian leaders are ready to negotiate an agreement with Israel. Foreign media were the first to report that a Syrian nuclear reactor had indeed existed and that Syria eventually admitted the reactor's existence in its complaint about Israel's alleged attack – albeit later retracted. They also emphasized, as did Israeli media by then, Israel's closemouthed response to reports that the Air Force had destroyed the facility.

In a speech at the Saban Forum in Jerusalem, Dichter questioned whether Israel or the United States were as "mentally prepared" for peace as Syria.

Dichter was heavily criticized earlier in the year for suggesting that Israel give up the strategic Golan Heights in exchange for Syrian promises of peace.

Israel on Alert: Secret Nuclear Plant in the Crosshairs