Israel & Palestinian

[Shammu]

The days draw darker for Israel until she calls on the Lord. Israel needs to do something about the terrorists, the situation is not getting better.

[Shammu]

Carter says Hamas willing to be Israel's neighbor

By KARIN LAUB, Associated Press Writer Mon Apr 21, 5:54 PM ET

JERUSALEM - Former President Carter said Monday that the Islamic group Hamas was willing to accept the Jewish state as a "neighbor next door," but the militants did not match their upbeat words with concrete steps to halt violence.

Hamas, which advocates Israel's destruction, instead recycled previous offers, including a 10-year truce if Israel takes the unlikely step of withdrawing from the West Bank and Jerusalem first.

Hamas has repeatedly confounded observers with its conflicting messages. Actions on the ground — seven rockets were fired on Israel from Hamas-ruled Gaza Monday, including one that wounded a 4-year-old boy — contradicted the Islamic militant group's positive words about coexistence and a truce.

And a leader of the Hamas military wing, which carried out a twin suicide bombing on the Gaza border Saturday, said his group would step up attacks against Israel in coming days.

The salvo of rockets came despite a last-minute phone call from Carter, urging a one-month halt to attacks on Israel, to gain some international goodwill and defuse tensions.

"I did the best I could," Carter said of his conversation with Hamas supreme leader, Khaled Mashaal, pressing him to declare a one-month truce. "They turned me down, and I think they're wrong."

Carter, who delivered a speech in Jerusalem Monday summing up his visit, said top Hamas leaders told him during seven hours of talks in Damascus over the weekend that they are willing to live next to Israel.

Hours later, however, Mashaal sent mixed messages. He stressed that while the militants would accept a state in the 1967 borders, meaning alongside Israel, the group would never outright recognize the Jewish state.

The Bush administration and Israel, which shun Hamas as a terrorist group, have criticized the Carter mission as misguided. In Washington, a State Department official said Monday that it does not appear Hamas has changed its positions.

In Jerusalem, Carter defended his trip, saying peace in the region will be possible only if Israel and the U.S. start talking to Hamas and Syria, which supports several militant groups. He also called on the Bush administration to push harder to renew Israeli-Syrian peace talks.

"The present strategy of excluding Hamas and excluding Syria is just not working," said Carter, who brokered a historic 1979 peace treaty between Israel and Egypt.

Analysts said Hamas apparently decided to send Carter off largely empty-handed, despite the possibility he might have paved an opening to a hostile West, because it prefers doing business with leaders in the region who can deliver concrete achievements. Egypt has been shuttling between Israel and Hamas for nearly two years trying to broker a cease-fire, a prisoner swap and an opening of Gaza's border crossings.

Over the weekend, Carter met twice with Hamas' five-member politburo, headed by Mashaal. Carter said he won a written pledge from Hamas to accept any peace deal with Israel, even if Hamas disagrees with some of the terms, as long as it's approved in a Palestinian referendum.

Carter said Hamas leaders told him they're also ready to accept the Jewish state's right to "live as a neighbor next door in peace" one day. Since its founding 21 years ago, Hamas has carried out scores of suicide attacks in Israel and has fired hundreds of rockets from Gaza at Israeli border towns.

The pledge did not reflect a new Hamas position, though it's significant that it was made in writing. Hamas leaders have said in the past they would establish "peace in stages" if Israel were to withdraw to the borders it held before the 1967 Mideast War. Hamas has been evasive about how it sees the final borders of a Palestinian state, and has not abandoned its official call for Israel's destruction.

The Hamas promise does not say who would participate in a peace referendum. Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza would be far more likely to approve a deal than exiles in camps in Lebanon and Syria, especially if a treaty does not affirm the "right of return" of refugees to homes in what is now Israel.

A vast majority of Israelis see the repatriation of millions of Palestinians as a threat to the Jewish state's survival, because Jews eventually could be outnumbered.

Mashaal praised Carter for ignoring the broad international boycott of Hamas, which is viewed by Israel and the West as a terrorist organization. "That doesn't mean we agree on all things," the Hamas leader said of Carter. "But we appreciate this brave voice, coming from the West, and coming from America."

Despite the warm words, Hamas rejected Carter's appeal to halt rocket fire on Israel for a month and to speed up the release of a captured Israeli soldier, as a show of good faith.

Mashaal wouldn't budge on the rockets, even during the last-minute phone call by Carter Monday morning.

Carter said that in that call, Mashaal insisted on a reciprocal cease-fire.

"I told them (Hamas), 'Don't wait for reciprocation, just do it unilaterally," Carter said. "'This would bring a lot of credit to you around the world, doing a humane thing.'"

Seven rockets hit Israel on Monday, but other militant groups claimed responsibility not Hamas. In one strike, a 4-year-old boy was hurt in the shoulder in the town of Sderot on Gaza's border.

Also, a leader of the Hamas military wing said attacks on Israel would intensify.

The leader, identified as Abu Jandal, told the Hamas-linked newspaper Al Risala that a suicide bombing at an Israeli position on the Gaza border on Saturday was just a warmup. In the attack, Hamas militants blew up two jeeps carrying hundreds of kilograms (pounds) of explosives, wounding 13 soldiers.

"The previous attacks were just a walk in the park," he told the newspaper.

Concerning a prisoner swap, Carter said the current indirect talks between Israel and Hamas, via Egypt, were making only very slow progress. He said Israel is willing, in principle, to free 1,000 prisoners for Cpl. Gilad Shalit, captured by Hamas-allied militants in 2006. However, so far Israel has only approved 71 names from a list of 450 prisoners suggested by Hamas.

At this pace, Carter said, the negotiations could drag on for years.

He proposed that Hamas agree to a release of women, minors and Hamas legislators in the first phase, in order to speed up the swap, but was turned down.

Mouin Rabbani, an independent analyst, said Hamas used Carter to convey the message that, under certain conditions, it is willing to accept a two-state solution. "Where he demanded specific actions, they didn't respond because he wasn't in a position to deliver anything in return," Rabbani said.

In Washington, the State Department said there is no indication that Hamas wants peace with Israel. "It is pretty clear to us that there is no acceptance on the part of Hamas of any kind of negotiated settlement," said deputy spokesman Tom Casey.

Casey said there had been contradictory statements from Hamas officials over whether they would accept the result of a referendum on a peace deal. Earlier Monday, a senior Hamas official in Gaza, Sami Abu Zuhri, said Hamas would not necessarily accept the outcome of a referendum.

Casey also refuted Carter's insistence that no one in the State Department had advised him against meeting with Hamas officials, saying that Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs David Welch had specifically done so in a telephone conversation in late March.

Still, the State Department is open to hearing from Carter about the talks, Casey said.

Carter said he would write a report on his trip and send it to the Bush administration.

Carter says Hamas willing to be Israel's neighbor

[Shammu]

Hamas vows 'harsh' attacks on Israel, says previous assaults were 'practice'
By Amos Harel, Barak Ravid, Yuval Azoulay and Fadi Eyadat, Haaretz Correspondents, and The Associated Press
21/04/2008

A Hamas spokesman on Monday said that the Palestinian militant group will carry out harsher attacks on Israel-Gaza border crossings - worse than recent ones that killed five Israelis.

The spokesman, Abu Jandal, also said that previous attacks on crossings between the coastal strip and Israel were just practice. Jandal made the comments speaking to a newspaper linked to the group.

Two Israeli civilians and three soldiers have been killed in recent attacks.

Israel Defense Forces responses in Gaza have killed more than 20 Palestinians.

Abu Jandal described the recent attacks as a walk in the park and said upcoming attacks would be harsher.

The Hamas threats came as former U.S. President Jimmy Carter said Hamas would be prepared to live next to Israel in peace in the framework of a Palestinian state. Carter's comments were echoed by Hamas political leader Khaled Meshal.

Meanwhile, Israel is planning to tighten controls even further over goods allowed into the Gaza Strip, as a result of the Hamas attacks. Some of the crossings will remain shut today, and may remain so for several days.

On Saturday morning, the IDF foiled a Hamas attempt to carry out a combined "hit and grab" attack against the Kerem Shalom crossing in the southern Gaza Strip, aimed at killing and capturing soldiers. Three Hamas gunmen were killed, and 13 IDF soldiers were injured, none seriously.

The Kerem Shalom crossing, which is used to transfer humanitarian cargo into the Gaza Strip, is likely to remain closed today for an evaluation of the security arrangements.

Saturday night, there was still no decision on whether to open the Sufa crossing.

As for the crossing at Nahal Oz, where fuel is transferred to the Strip, last Thursday Palestinians fired at a fuel truck. Security sources told Haaretz last night that Dor Alon, the company operating the terminal, has let the army know that it intends to reevaluate its role in transfering fuel to the Palestinians in light of the dangers to its staff. Two weeks ago, two Israelis were murdered in a Palestinian attack at the terminal.

Dor Alon refused to confirm the information provided by the security sources.

Israeli political sources said Sunday that "Hamas is harming the civilians of the Gaza Strip." The same sources added that via Kerem Shalom about 200 truckloads of food and medicines per week are transfered to the Strip, in an effort to avoid a humanitarian crisis there.

"Once more Hamas has proved that it does not care about the civilians in the Strip and has targeted the crossing where humanitarian assistance to the Palestinians is delivered."

Despite the attack Major General Yoav Galant, GOC Southern Command, said that Israel does not intend to embark on a large ground operation in the Strip in the coming weeks.

Such an operation, Galant said, would mar the planned celebrations for the 60th anniversary of the state. However, senior IDF officers warned that "in spite the excellent work of the ground forces, we are in a very unstable situation. We are expecting more attacks, but it would be difficult to counter them for long without suffering casualties."

The same senior officers added that the latest attempt was "a very clear declaration on the part of Hamas. This was not a 'slip.' This [attack] had been planned for months."

In spite of the attack, assessments in Israel are that Hamas would like to reach a lull in the fighting in the near future.

Hamas vows 'harsh' attacks on Israel, says previous assaults were 'practice'

[Soldier4Christ]

 Adolph Hitler of Nazi Germany is a Hero on Palestinian Radio

A Palestinian Authority radio contest featured a biography of Adolph Hitler, complete with his military victories and his heroism during World War I & War World II and the broadcast never mentioned the Holocaust and the death of six million Jews.

This Palestinian Authority radio contest is consistent with Palestinian education in general which erases the Holocaust from history, according to a recent report from the Palestinian Media Watch, which revealed that the new 12th grade Palestinian Authority history school books showed that many pages were dedicated to the history of World War II and even to Nazi racism, but neither the Jews nor the Holocaust is ever mentioned.

The fascination with Adolph Hitler among Palestinians and the Palestinian Authority radio broadcast that characterizes Hitler as a hero, and never mentions the Holocaust, is a precursor to a dreadful end time scenario that can be found in Bible prophecy.

During the days of the Holocaust in Nazi Germany, the Palestinian leader, the Haj Amin al Husseini was used by Hitler to rally the Moslem world to join his final solution for the Jews, death in the ovens and gas chambers. From the times of the Holocaust, during World War II, there has been an unholy fascination of Hitler by the Palestinian people, evidenced by the fact that they have named their children, Hitler.

These developments are preparing the world for a coming Holocaust of the Jews that will be more horrific than the Holocaust of Hitler. The ancient Jewish prophet, Zechariah, revealed that two out of every three Jews will be killed during the coming Holocaust in the seven year Tribulation Period, Zechariah 13:8. Daniel, another Jewish prophet, wrote in chapter 12 verse 1 of his prophecy that this time would be the worst time the Jews have ever faced in all of their history. Revelation 12:13-17 says that Satan and his evil forces will endeavor to eliminate the Jews from the earth.

The Palestinian Authority radio broadcast honoring Hitler is indeed a precursor to the End Times scenario of Bible prophecy. Bible prophecy that will be fulfilled.

[Shammu]

Hamas negotiates truce, 'peace partner' attacks Israel

Rockets, mortars hit Jewish population centers outside Gaza Strip
Posted: April 28, 2008
11:20 am Eastern

By Aaron Klein
© 2008 WorldNetDaily

JERUSALEM – As the Hamas terrorist organization negotiates a possible truce with Israel, terrorists from Palestinian Authority President Maumoud Abbas' Fatah party today launched a series of rocket attacks that hit Jewish population centers near the Gaza Strip.

At least seven Qassam rockets and nine mortar shells were fired from Gaza-based terrorists today, landing in the Israeli cities of Sderot and Ashkelon.

Of the rockets that slammed into Sderot – a city of about 25,000 people nearly three miles from the Gaza border – one scored a direct hit on a house and another landed near an elementary school. Damage and injuries were still being assessed.

At least two rockets were fired at Ashkelon, a city of 120,000 residents about 12 miles from Gaza that is home to Israel's main electric supply station and critical gas and oil pipelines.

Hamas claimed responsibility for two of the rockets, while the rest were launched by Fatah's Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades in conjunction with the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization, according to Brigades sources speaking to WND.

The Brigades, listed by the U.S. State Department as a terror group, took responsibility along with the Islamic Jihad terrorist organization for every suicide bombing in Israel since 2005 and for hundreds of shootings and rocket attacks against Jewish civilian population centers.

Fatah's Brigades the past few days has carried out more attacks than Hamas both from the Gaza Strip and from the West Bank. The Brigades launched rockets and mortars, engaged in clashes with Israel Defense Force troops near the Gaza town of Khan Yunis and carried out a shooting attack against Jewish motorists in the northern West Bank.

In a statement to WND, the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades said they would not be party to any cease-fire with Israel

"We refuse any cease-fire with the Zionist occupation. It is our right to keep fighting and implementing resistance against the enemy" said Abu Ahmed, leader of the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades in the northern West Bank.

Hamas reportedly has been talking with Egyptian mediators about a truce agreement with Israel. Still, Hamas has perpetuated scores of attacks, including a massive Israeli border raid and bombing last week that was described by Israeli officials as the most sophisticated Hamas operation since Israel evacuated the Gaza Strip in 2005.

Israeli security officials say Hamas' interest in a cease-fire largely stems from fear the Jewish state will launch a large-scale ground operation in the Gaza Strip following next month's visit to the region by President Bush to take part in Israel's 60th anniversary celebrations. Until Bush's visit, Israel is loathe to start a major flare-up in Gaza.

The Israeli security officials told WND Fatah has made a strategic decision to continue terror attacks in an attempt to scuttle the possibility of a cease-fire for fear of the political consequences of a Hamas-brokered truce.

"If Hamas is the one to broker a cease-fire, and it takes effect in the West Bank as well as in Gaza, this would demonstrate Hamas are the deal makers and major players in the West Bank, which is supposed to be controlled by Fatah," said a security official. "Fatah doesn't want that, so they are attacking Israel."

Some of today's rocket attacks from Gaza came after seven Palestinians reportedly were killed during an IDF anti-rocket operation in the northern Gaza Strip. Media accounts stated Israel shelled a house, killing Palestinian civilians, including four young siblings and their mother.

But the IDF denied the media accounts, which quoted Gaza-based medics and Hamas officials. An IDF source told Israel's Army Radio the explosion at the house was caused after Hamas terrorists carrying an ammunitions bag were hit by IDF fire.

Following the strike, Defense Minister Ehud Barak placed blame for the incident on the ruling Hamas faction.

"We see Hamas as responsible for everything that happens there, for all injuries. ... The army is acting, and will continue to act, against Hamas, including inside the Gaza Strip. Hamas is also responsible, by way of its activity within the civilian population, for part of the casualties among uninvolved civilians," Barak said.

[Shammu]

Terror groups planning Independence Day attack

Major-General Amos Yadlin briefs cabinet on situation in Gaza Strip, warns Palestinian terror organizations may try to carry out mass-casualty attack during Israel's 60th anniversary celebrations

Roni Sofer
Published: 04.29.08, 15:50
Israel News

Military Intelligence Chief Major-General Amos Yadlin warned the cabinet Tuesday of terror organizations seeking to carry out a major terror attack during Independence Day.

The Israel Defense Forces, he said, "has intelligence indicating terrorists might try to mimic the Passover attack, including the possible abductions of IDF soldiers."

On the eve of the holiday, a Palestinian terror cell detonated a car bomb near the Kerem Shalom crossing, in a failed infiltration attempt. Thirteen IDF soldiers were wounded in the attack.

Yadlin briefed the cabinet on the situation in the Gaza Strip at the request of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. Hamas, he told the ministers "wants to break the blockade on Gaza and since Egypt is determined to stop that from happening on its side, Hamas will try to carry out another attack similar to the one on Kerem Shalom."

The terror groups, he stressed, are likely to target the Gaza crossings: "It's an operational opportunity for them to hurt both soldiers and civilians… They'll target everything they can along the Hubers Route, including digging tunnels, laying explosives and carrying out shooting attacks.

The Hubers Route runs along Israel's security fence with the Gaza Strip, from the Mediterranean to the Philadelphi Route; and includes Israel's four major crossings with the Strip – the Erez crossing in its north, the Sufa and Karni crossings in its central and Kerem Shalom in its south.

Yadlin went on to say that "Hamas is not interested in any kind of truce. As far as they are concerned a hudna last five to 10 years, but they are asking much more for it than the moderate Palestinians are asking for a peace treaty."

Hamas is lacking dominant leadership, he added, and while "the political wing leads and the military wing does as it's told, the leadership per se is weak…

"(Hamas politburo chief) Khaled Mashaal said so himself – 'We need the time to regroup' – and even if Egypt and Hamas come to some sort of an understanding, they still need the approval of the Palestinian factions in Cairo."

Terror groups planning Independence Day attack

[Soldier4Christ]

Secret documents detail post-WWII debacle

A messianic Jewish ministry leader says recent documents released by the British government have confirmed a long-held belief.

 

Jan Markell has long believed that God judged Britain for its treatment of the Jews. She notes that 400 pages of formerly secret documents -- recently made public by the British National Archives -- reveal how the British government tried to send thousands of Holy Land-bound Jewish Holocaust survivors back to post-war Germany without inflaming world opinion.
 
But despite the best efforts of early spin-doctors to portray the move in a most sympathetic light, the decision to turn away more than 4,500 Jewish refugees on board the Exodus refugee ship turned into a humanitarian and public relations debacle for Great Britain.
 
Markell, founder and director of Olive Tree Ministries, believes Britain has paid a steep price for betraying the Jews in 1947. "At one time [Britain] had so many nations and colonies that the sun never set on [the British Empire]," she recalls. "Today [Britain] is a broken and fractured empire, and I believe it is partly because of the way that she dealt with the Jews ... during the Holocaust and post-Holocaust," says Markell.
 
And the pro-Israel advocate warns this story ought to serve as reminder to supporters of Israel today. "It should remind us that the world to this day continues to hate the Jewish people," she continues, "because they still are God's chosen people no matter what the Muslim world wants to do to annihilate them. [The Jews] will not go away."
 
Markell argues the United States should take special heed to this story, considering its continual efforts to force the Jewish people to turn over their covenant land in order to create a Palestinian "state."

[nChrist]

Brothers and Sisters,

As Christians, we must FIRST FIRMLY believe the Promises that GOD made to Israel will be fulfilled. The Tribulation Period, the Second Coming of CHRIST, and the Rule and Reign of CHRIST from the Throne of David in Jerusalem ARE GOING TO HAPPEN. Consider it SURE to be done because these things are Promises from GOD. Israel will be RESTORED! It's a crying shame that many Christians either haven't studied this or they don't believe it. The same is TRUE for the Theory of Evolution. GOD told us about Creation, and what HE told us is the only truth. That's really the end of the story. GOD SAID IT AND THAT FINISHES IT. - THE SAME IS TRUE FOR ISRAEL! The HOLY BIBLE isn't a novel or a book of fairy tales, RATHER IT'S THE WORD OF GOD. GOD told us what will happen in the future, and that's exactly what will happen. More and more, it appears that this EVIL world we live in is just about ripe for the RIGHTEOUS WRATH OF ALMIGHTY GOD! GOD warned mankind about this thousands of years ago, but most of this EVIL world wants nothing to do with GOD. BLUNTLY, they will face HIS HOLY, RIGHTEOUS WRATH.

Love In Christ,
Tom

 

[Shammu]

Hamas chief threatens to capture more Israelis

Fri May 9, 3:49 PM ET

DAMASCUS (AFP) - Exiled Hamas chief Khaled Meshaal on Friday threatened that his Islamist movement would capture Israeli citizens if the Jewish state does not release tens of thousands of Palestinian prisoners.

"If our enemies don't set free our prisoners held in the Israeli jails, Gilad Shalit will not be the last" to be captured, he said of the Israeli soldier kidnapped by Palestinian militants in 2006.

There are "11,600 Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails," Meshaal said in a speech at a Palestinian refugee camp near Damascus to mark the "Naqba" or catastrophe of Israel's creation 60 years ago.

Shalit was captured almost two years ago by militant groups including Hamas in a cross-border raid from the Gaza Strip on June 15, 2006.

Meshaal has repeatedly said that Shalit will not be released unless Israel frees Palestinian prisoners. (Israel has released over 600 PA prisoners. DW)

Last month former US president Jimmy Carter said after controversial talks with Meshaal in Damascus that Hamas had agreed to allow Shalit to write a letter to his parents.

Carter angered Israel and the United States by meeting Meshaal as both countries consider the radical Hamas movement to be a terror group despite its victory in 2006 Palestinian elections.

If Israel agreed to a list of prisoners to be exchanged, and the first group was released, Shalit would be sent to Egypt pending the final releases, Carter said in an opinion piece for The New York Times after his talks with Meshaal.

Hamas chief threatens to capture more Israelis

[Soldier4Christ]

Fearing Olmert collapse, Palestinians rush for deal
Asking U.S. to guarantee independent state if prime minister forced from office

Fearing the collapse of Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government, the Palestinian Authority asked the U.S. government for backing to rush a deal regarding the establishment of a Palestinian state, WND has learned.

According to a top PA negotiator, the Palestinians expect Olmert will be forced from office before the end of the year. They fear some of the negotiations led by Olmert's government will be fruitless unless an understanding is reached before the Israeli leader vacates office.

"What we are seeking is to quickly reach certain understandings, put those understandings on paper and have them guaranteed by the U.S. so the understandings can be used as a starting point in negotiations with the next Israeli prime minister," the top PA negotiator told WND.

Olmert's government has been conducting intense negotiations with the PA started at last November's U.S.-backed Annapolis summit, which sought to create a Palestinian state before Bush leaves office in January. Israel is highly expected to offer the Palestinians most of the West Bank and sections of Jerusalem.

Olmert faces a bribery and corruption investigation that has been described by police officials here as "very serious." The Israeli leader has said he would resign if he is indicted.

Earlier this week, Morris Talansky, a U.S. businessman, testified in court he provided about $150,000 in cash to Olmert over the years and that he didn't know exactly what the Israeli leader did with the money.

According to sources close to the investigation, the charges against Olmert extend far beyond possible cash transfers by Talansky and involve other foreign businessmen allegedly passing on money in exchange for political and business favors.

In a major blow to Olmert's future leadership, his defense minister and senior coalition partner, Ehud Barak, yesterday called on him to step down.

"I do not think the prime minister can simultaneously run the government and deal with his own personal affair," Barak said at a nationally televised news conference after conferring with other members of his Labor party.

Barak maintained his position today, telling the Knesset that early elections appear inevitable in light of the corruption probe.

Olmert, though, continues to insist he will not resign unless he is indicted. He told the Knesset he was certain that once his side of the story is aired, no charges would be brought against him.

"I have been done an injustice, and it is illogical that a prime minister should be brought down because of something like this," Olmert said.

"Some people think that every investigation requires a resignation. I do not agree, and I do not intend to resign," Olmert said.

The prime minister has faced five previous investigations into accusations of corruption or accepting bribes.

Immediately after Barak's statements yesterday, three members of his party, which is in a governing coalition with Olmert's Kadima party, submitted motions to the Knesset to dissolve the Olmert government. By Israeli law, if the majority of the Knesset votes for the downfall of the prime minister, new elections must be held within 90 days.

Barak has made no secret of his desire to become prime minister. But his calls for Olmert to step down were also echoed across the political spectrum.

Legally, Olmert can remain in office until 2010 unless he is either convicted or the Knesset votes for new elections.

If he resigns, Olmert could appoint a member of his Kadima party as prime minister to avoid early elections and ensure his party remains in power. He could also take a 90-day leave of absence during which time his deputy prime minister, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, would temporarily govern.

Olmert, though, is said to oppose placing Livni is power. According to top political sources in Jerusalem, Olmert is attempting to coordinate the future leadership of Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz, a former defense minister and close Olmert confidant.

[HisDaughter]

Israel will need to strike soon or reconcile itself to a nuclear Iran 

http://news.scotsman.com/politics/Israel-39would-consider-strike39-amid.4118482.jp


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As Israel pursues peace talks with Syria, speculation is growing that the Jewish state will seriously consider unilateral military action against Iran within the next year. Israeli intelligence is now estimating that Iran will master centrifuge technology and be able to begin enriching uranium by the end of this year, 12 months ahead of schedule.

As a result, Israeli military officials believe the Islamic republic could have a nuclear weapon by the middle of 2009.

"Within a year, the Israeli government will have to decide between two options: either not do anything and reconcile itself to the fact that Iran is now nuclear, or take unilateral military action," Giora Eiland, Israel's former national security adviser, told Scotland on Sunday.

According to the Jerusalem Post, Israel is also worried that Tehran is developing a cruise missile that can evade interception by the Arrow, Israel's anti-ballistic missile defences.

Iran is suspected of using smuggled Ukrainian X-55 cruise missiles as a model for its own project. A cruise missile, which flies low to dodge radar and interception, could be used to carry a nuclear warhead.

With US President George Bush nearing the end of his term, the likelihood of US military action appears to be fading. The strong chance of Democrat Barack Obama winning the presidential race means Israel will have to consider going it alone. "It's certainly not an option to be taken lightly, but at the end of the day, we may decide it is the only option we have," an Israeli official told the Scotland on Sunday.

The White House last week denied Israeli media reports that President Bush intends to attack Iran. It said that while the military option remained open, the administration preferred to resolve concerns about Iran's push for a nuclear weapon "through peaceful diplomatic means".

Meanwhile, Eiland dismissed the notion that, with Israel now talking to Syria, it was paving the path for military action against Iran. "These are two entirely separate issues that are not at all connected. Syria wants the Golan Heights back and Israel, in return, wants a sort of a diplomatic relationship with its neighbour."

The onus is now on Israeli intelligence to follow up on its reports that the Iranians are ahead of schedule.

"If in the end, a decision is taken to pursue unilateral military action, I think the Israeli public would be willing to accept the repercussions," said Dr Shmuel Bar from the Institute for Policy and Strategy at Israel's Herzliya Interdisciplinary Centre. "The most worrying thing in the last six months is what was found in Syria, which means nuclear proliferation, thanks to North Korean help, is happening at much greater levels than people realised."

Bar also pointed to a paper to be published next month by the Washington Institute for Near East Strategy. Its authors, Patrick Clawson and Michael Eisenstadt, argue that it should not be assumed an attack on Iran would result in a doomsday-type scenario.

In an interview with Haaretz last week, Clawson said the outcome would depend on several factors: whether nuclear or conventional weapons would be used; if an attack came from the US or Israel; and if nuclear sites only would be targeted. "If the attack completely destroys Iran's nuclear programme that is one thing, but if it does not, that is a different story. Then Iran will be able to continue to develop its nuclear programme, and the world will no longer care about that." When asked about possible Iranian responses to an Israeli attack, Clawson threw doubt on the accuracy of Iran's Shihab missiles, describing them as unreliable and inaccurate. He also questioned the conventional wisdom that in the wake of an Israeli attack, the Iranian-backed Hezbollah movement would also respond.

"There is no guarantee that Hezbollah will react automatically. Hezbollah are very aware of Israel's strength, and of the harsh reaction that may result if they attack."

[Soldier4Christ]

Temple Mount
'100% Islamic'
Warning: 'Any action that offends holy site
will be answered by 1.5 billion Muslims'

Jerusalem and the Temple Mount belong to the Muslims and any Israeli action that "offends" the Mount will be answered by 1.5 billion Muslims, declared the chief of staff for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
 
"Jerusalem is Muslim. The blessed Al Aqsa mosque and Harem Al Sharif (Temple Mount) is 100 percent Muslim. The Israelis are playing with fire when they threaten Al Aqsa with digging that is taking place," said Abbas' chief of staff Rafiq Al Husseini.

The Temple Mount is Judaism's holiest site.
 
Husseini was referring to Israeli plans to construct a new bridge from the Western Wall area to the Temple Mount.
 
The old bridge was damaged two years ago. When Israeli workers tried to repair it, Palestinian leaders claimed the work was threatening the Al Aqsa Mosque, even though the mosque is located hundreds of feet away, the work did not tunnel under any Mount foundation or touch any structure connected to the mosque, and the repair work – which had been pre-approved by Jordan and the Mount's Muslim custodians – was conducted under the scrutiny of an accessible 24/7 webcam.
 
"Any hurting of Jerusalem will explode the whole negotiations between us and the Israelis ... we must work to strengthen Palestinian ties to Jerusalem," al-Husseini said.
 
Israel has been negotiating with Abbas in line with talks started at last November's U.S.-backed Annapolis Summit, which seeks to create a Palestinian state before the end of the year. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is widely expected to offer the Palestinians most of the West Bank and eastern sections of Jerusalem. The Temple Mount is located in eastern Jerusalem.
 
Mainstream Palestinian leaders claim the Temple Mount is Muslim in spite of overwhelming archaeological evidence documenting the first and second Jewish temples.
 
In a WND exclusive interview last year, Taysir Tamimi, chief Palestinian Justice and one of the most influential Muslim leaders in Israel, argued the Jewish Temples never existed, the Western Wall really was a tying post for Muhammad's horse, the Al Aqsa Mosque was built by angels, and Abraham, Moses and Jesus were prophets for Islam.

Tamimi is considered the second most important Palestinian cleric after Muhammad Hussein, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem.
 
"Israel started since 1967 making archeological digs to show Jewish signs to prove the relationship between Judaism and the city and they found nothing. There is no Jewish connection to Israel before the Jews invaded in the 1880s," said Tamimi.
"About these so-called two Temples, they never existed, certainly not at the [Temple Mount]," Tamimi said during a sit-down interview in his eastern Jerusalem office.

The Palestinian cleric denied the validity of dozens of digs verified by experts worldwide revealing Jewish artifacts from the First and Second Temples throughout Jerusalem, including on the Temple Mount itself; excavations revealing Jewish homes and a synagogue in a site in Jerusalem called the City of David; or even the recent discovery of a Second Temple Jewish city in the vicinity of Jerusalem.

Tamimi said descriptions of the Jewish Temples in the Hebrew Tanach, in the Talmud and in Byzantine and Roman writings from the Temple periods were forged, and that the Torah was falsified to claim biblical patriarchs and matriarchs were Jewish when indeed they were prophets for Islam.

"All this is not real. We don't believe in all your versions. Your Torah was falsified. The text as given to the Muslim prophet Moses never mentions Jerusalem. Maybe Jerusalem was mentioned in the rest of the Torah, which was falsified by the Jews," said Tamimi.

He said Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Moses and Jesus were "prophets for the Israelites sent by Allah as to usher in Islam."

Asked about the Western Wall, Tamimi said the structure was a tying post for Muhammad's horse and that it is part of the Al Aqsa Mosque, even though the Wall predates the mosque by over 1,000 years.

"The Western wall is the western wall of the Al Aqsa Mosque. It's where Prophet Muhammad tied his animal which took him from Mecca to Jerusalem to receive the revelations of Allah."

The Kotel, or Western Wall, is an outer retaining wall of the Temple Mount that survived the destruction of the Second Temple and still stands today in Jerusalem.

Tamimi went on to claim to WND the Al Aqsa Mosque , which has sprung multiple leaks and has had to be repainted several times, was built by angels.

"Al Aqsa was build by the angels forty years after the building of Al-Haram in Mecca. This we have no doubt is true," he said.

The First Temple was built by King Solomon in the 10th century B.C. It was destroyed by the Babylonians in 586 B.C. The Second Temple was rebuilt in 515 B.C. after Jerusalem was freed from Babylonian captivity. That temple was destroyed by the Roman Empire in A.D. 70. Each temple stood for a period of about four centuries.

The Temple was the center of religious worship for ancient Israelites. It housed the Holy of Holies, which contained the Ark of the Covenant and was said to be the area upon which God's presence dwelt. All biblical holidays centered on worship at the Temple. The Temples served as the primary location for the offering of sacrifices and was the main gathering place for Israelites.

According to the Talmud, the world was created from the foundation stone of the Temple Mount. It's believed to be the biblical Mount Moriah, the location where Abraham fulfilled God's test to see if he would be willing to sacrifice his son Isaac.

The Temple Mount has remained a focal point for Jewish services for thousands of years. Prayers for a return to Jerusalem and the rebuilding of the Temple have been uttered by Jews since the Second Temple was destroyed, according to Jewish tradition.

The Al Aqsa Mosque was constructed in about 709 to serve as a shrine near another shrine, the Dome of the Rock, which was built by an Islamic caliph. Al Aqsa was meant to mark what Muslims came to believe was the place at which Muhammad, the founder of Islam, ascended to heaven to receive revelations from Allah.

Jerusalem is not mentioned in the Quran. It is mentioned in the Hebrew Bible 656 times. Muslims worldwide pray with their backs away from the Temple Mount and toward Mecca.

Islamic tradition states Muhammad took a journey in a single night on a horse from "a sacred mosque" – believed to be in Mecca in southern Saudi Arabia – to "the farthest mosque" and from a rock there ascended to heaven. The farthest mosque became associated with Jerusalem about 120 years ago.

According to research by Israeli Author Shmuel Berkovits, Islam historically disregarded Jerusalem.  Berkovits points out in his new book, "How dreadful is this place!" that Muhammad was said to loathe Jerusalem and what it stood for.  He wrote Muhammad made a point of eliminating pagan sites of worship, and sanctifying only one place – the Kaaba in Mecca – to signify the unity of God.

As late as the 14th century, Islamic scholar Taqi al-Din Ibn Taymiyya, whose writings influenced the Wahhabi movement in Arabia, ruled that sacred Islamic sites are to be found only in the Arabian Peninsula, and that "in Jerusalem, there is not a place one calls sacred, and the same holds true for the tombs of Hebron."

It wasn't until the late nineteenth century – incidentally when Jews started immigrating to Palestine – that some Muslim scholars began claiming Muhammad tied his horse to the Western Wall and associated Muhammad's purported night journey with the Temple Mount.

[Soldier4Christ]

Are you listening to this Obama, Pelosi, Reid and followers or do you still have your ears and eyes shut? (I am sure that will be the case.) The PA is really willing to negotiate. 

[nChrist]

Are you listening to this Obama, Pelosi, Reid and followers or do you still have your ears and eyes shut? (I am sure that will be the case.) The PA is really willing to negotiate. 

          ROFL!

Obama, Pelosi, and Reid could call themselves the Satanic Trinity, and I'm sure that the PA would welcome them with open arms.

[Soldier4Christ]

         ROFL!

Obama, Pelosi, and Reid could call themselves the Satanic Trinity, and I'm sure that the PA would welcome them with open arms.

Yep and with a very sharp knife in one hand.