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[Soldier4Christ]

Russia underlines opposition to UN Iran sanctions


Russia on Friday maintained its opposition to United Nations sanctions against Iran over the country’s nuclear programme unless proof emerged of a diversion into weapons.

“One can speak of sanctions only after the appearance of concrete facts proving Iran is not engaged exclusively in peaceful nuclear activities,” Mikhail Kamynin, the foreign ministry spokesman, said.

The RIA-Novosti news agency quoted Nikolai Spassky, deputy head of the Kremlin Security Council, saying: “There is no such issue (of sanctions) for us - we are not discussing it.”

A 30-day deadline from the UN security council for Iran to suspend all nuclear activities expires on April 28, but the council’s permanent members failed this week in Moscow to reach agreement on what action to take.

Both Russia and China – who are among the council’s veto-wielding permanent members– oppose calls from the US, Britain and France for punitive action.

On Thursday Moscow also rejected a US call to end co-operation in constructing Iran’s first nuclear power plant at Bushehr in southern Iran, and Russian media reports have said the defence ministry will go ahead with selling Tor-M1 air-defence missile systems to Tehran.

Russia does continue to argue, however, that Iran should improve its co-operation with the International Atomic Energy Agency, whose head, Mohamed ElBaradei, is due to present in the coming days his latest report focused on unanswered questions over Iran’s nuclear activities.

Iran’s representative to the IAEA, Ali-Asghar Soltanieh, on Friday repeated that Iran considers itself to be in full co-operation with the agency, despite last month’s UN security council resolution condemning its lack of open-ness.

“We are ready to eliminate all the ambiguities with regard to our nuclear file,” Mr Soltanieh said.

With little apparent chance of a harder security council line, Iran seems set to resist the UN’s call to suspend uranium enrichment, which it has resumed after restarting a research programme in January.

At Friday prayers in Tehran, Ayatollah Mohammad Emami-Kashani stressed Iran had no intention of backing down.

“For [the sake of our] independence, economy, dignity and credibility, the Iranian nation will in no way retreat, not even one step,” he told worshippers.

President Mahmoud Ahmadi-Nejad said on Friday the current high level of crude oil prices was “very good”, reflecting some satisfaction in Iran’s ruling circles at the drift of events. Iran, Opec’s second biggest exporter, saw its oil income rise to over $45bn in the Iranian year to March 2006.

[Shammu]

U.S. Backs Israel's Defense, Urges Caution

By BARRY SCHWEID, AP Diplomatic Writer Wed Apr 19, 7:11 AM ET

WASHINGTON - Israel has a right to defend itself but should consider the effect on peace prospects as it weighs a response to a deadly suicide bombing in Tel Aviv, the State Department said Tuesday.

The mixed message, which is virtually identical to past statements by the Bush administration after terror attacks on Israel, was expressed by department spokesman Sean McCormack.

It reflects a long-standing position by President Bush that the Israeli government is entitled to use retaliatory force in defense of the Israeli people.

Past administrations have put an emphasis on appealing for restraint on all sides.

The bombing Monday in a restaurant killed nine people and the bomber. It was the deadliest attack on Israel in 20 months. Islamic Jihad, classified by the department as a terror organization, claimed responsibility.

The attack was called legitimate by the Hamas-led Palestinian government, which the United States, the
European Union and Canada are boycotting.

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice telephoned condolences to Foriegn Minister Tzipi Livni and her wishes for a speedy recovery to the injured, McCormack said.

Asked whether the administration had urged Israel to be restrained in any retaliatory strike, the spokesman replied: "Our position is that the Israeli government has the right to defend the Israeli people."

McCormack added: "We, as always, ask them to consider the effect of their actions upon the future prospects for peace. That position is long-standing and unchanged."

U.S. Backs Israel's Defense, Urges Caution

[Soldier4Christ]

 Russia defies U.S. call to shun Iran
Moscow: Iranian nuclear standoff must be tackled diplomatically

Russian officials Friday reiterated Moscow's resistance to U.S. calls to isolate Iran in response to its nuclear activity, as the United States leaned on Russia to halt missile sales to Tehran.

Iran's ambassador to the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, meanwhile, told reporters in Moscow that Iran had no need for nuclear weapons and said the country planned to build two nuclear power stations in coming years.

With just a week remaining before a widely anticipated report by the head of the U.N.'s International Atomic Energy Agency and a U.N. Security Council deadline, Russian officials appeared at pains to emphasize their continued differences with Washington on how to handle the standoff.

Nikolai Spassky, deputy head of the Kremlin Security Council, bluntly rejected talk by the United States and Britain of pushing the Security Council to impose sanctions. And Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Kislyak and other officials said diplomacy was the only route.

"Our position is that the instrument for resolving this problem, as before, must remain the IAEA, as we don't have another international agency that has such authority and competence in the nonproliferation area," Kislyak told a Moscow security conference.

Kislyak said Russia was advising Iran to work with the IAEA and to continue developing its nuclear energy program, and he said Russia was ready to provide further assistance.

"One can speak of sanctions only after the appearance of concrete facts proving that Iran is not engaged exclusively in peaceful nuclear activities," Foreign Ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin was quoted as saying by the ITAR-Tass news agency.

The U.S. is pushing strongly for sanctions because of Iran's refusal to suspend its uranium enrichment program, which Washington believes is tied to a secret weapons program.

In Washington, meanwhile, U.S. Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns said the United States wants other countries that worry about Iran's nuclear intentions to use their individual leverage, be it through cutoffs of trade ties or, in Russia's case, cancellation of a planned sale of sophisticated air defense missile systems. Washington has also called on Moscow to end cooperation in constructing the $800 million (€648 million) Bushehr nuclear power plant.

Spassky rejected those calls. "There are no circumstances that would obstruct fulfillment of our obligations in military-technical cooperation with Iran," he said, according to ITAR-Tass.

Ali Asghar Soltanieh, Iran's envoy to the IAEA said that Tehran was prepared to cooperate with the international community, but, he said, "Iran will have nuclear technology for peaceful purposes and Iran will never give up."

"We don't need nuclear weapons, not for sustaining the Islamic Republic, because to sustain it, we need only the people's support," he said. "We are capable of defending ourselves."

Soltanieh also said Tehran planned to build two nuclear power plants, and warned that an attack on Iranian nuclear facilities would contaminate wide territories in the Middle East.

"The Chernobyl nuclear accident taught us a lesson that radioactive material has no boundaries and an attack of a nuclear object could lead to major complications," he said, speaking through a translator.

Other countries were unmoved. The French Foreign Ministry said that during talks with European diplomats in Moscow this week, Iran repeated its intention to enrich uranium.

"No new element appeared that allows one to think that Iran intends soon to conform with the demands" from the international community, French ministry spokesman Jean-Baptiste Mattei said Friday.

Russian officials have said they were waiting for the IAEA report, expected to be delivered next Friday, before deciding Moscow's position on further steps.

The United States and Britain say if Iran does not comply with an April 28 Security Council deadline to stop enrichment, they will seek to make the demand compulsory.

[Soldier4Christ]

Update 3: Israel Preparing to Retake Gaza Strip

In a growing barrage of Israeli pressure against Hamas, a senior military commander said Israel is actively preparing to reoccupy the Gaza Strip and a powerful lawmaker said the entire Palestinian Cabinet could be targeted for assassination after the appointment of a wanted militant to head a new security force.

Officials said there were no immediate plans to strike at the Hamas-led government. But the comments reflected rising Israeli impatience with the Islamic militant group, which has refused to renounce violence, defended a suicide bombing in Tel Aviv this week and failed to halt militant rocket fire from the Gaza Strip.

"If the price we have to pay becomes unreasonable as a result of increased attacks, then we shall have to take all steps, including occupying the Gaza Strip," Maj. Gen. Yoav Galant, head of Israel's southern command, told the Maariv daily.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas told Turkey's state-run news agency Friday that reoccupation of the Gaza Strip would be a "deadly mistake."

Israel withdrew from Gaza last summer, ending 38 years of military occupation. Since the pullout, militants have fired rockets into southern Israel on a nearly daily basis.

Tensions were further heightened on Thursday when Hamas said it was forming a new security force commanded by Jamal Abu Samhadana, who heads a group responsible for many of the rocket attacks and is a suspect in a deadly attack on an American convoy.

Israeli lawmaker Danny Yatom, a retired head of the Mossad spy agency, said that not only Samhadana but the entire Hamas Cabinet is now a legitimate target for assassination.

"I understand that our sights are also trained on Hamas ministers, not only on the police chief," Yatom told Israel Radio. "Nobody who deals with terror can have immunity by any means, even if he holds a ministerial portfolio in the Hamas government."

Yatom, a member of the center-left Labor Party, did not name any particular minister as a potential target.

During five years of fighting, Israel has killed dozens of militants in "targeted killings." Samhadana is high on Israel's wanted list and has been the target of at least one attempted Israeli assassination.

"We have old scores to settle with this murderer," Israeli Cabinet minister Zeev Boim told Israel Radio. "He has no immunity and we will have to settle this score sooner or later."

Samhadana's group, the Popular Resistance Committees, has launched dozens of homemade rockets at Israel in recent weeks. It also is suspected of involvement in the October 2003 bombing in Gaza of a U.S. Embassy convoy, which killed three American security guards.

U.S. State Department spokesman Sean McCormack said the formation of the new Palestinian police force showed "the true nature and the true tactics of this particular Hamas-led government." The United States will still hold the Palestinian Authority responsible for stopping terror attacks, he said.

Hamas, which is sworn to Israel's destruction, has largely observed a cease-fire with Israel since February 2005. But since taking office last month, the Hamas leadership has said attacks carried out by other groups, including Monday's suicide bombing that killed nine, are justified.

Israel says it holds Hamas responsible for all the violence, though defense officials are still weighing whether to begin attacking Hamas targets directly.

Galant, the Israeli commander, said patience is wearing thin with Hamas. He said the army is preparing for a range of responses to the rocket fire.

"It could be anything from a partial occupation of the Gaza Strip to a full occupation," he told Maariv, adding that the plans have been approved by senior officials, including Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz.

Israel has responded to the rocket attacks with airstrikes and artillery fire on suspected launch sites. Israeli security officials concede it is very difficult to halt the primitive weapons, which are airborne for just 15 to 20 seconds and are hard to detect.

Israel already has made two brief incursions into Gaza in recent days to search for explosives. But defense officials said the odds of a large-scale operation or full occupation are slim because of financial and political constraints.

"I wouldn't want to reach that situation, but if it's forced upon us we have a plan to occupy the strip," Galant said. "We are in advanced stages of preparing forces for readiness. There is a practical plan and there are forces which are designated for specific operations and are training for them."

Israel is reluctant to go back into Gaza after spending hundreds of millions of dollars to withdraw and overcoming staunch internal political opposition. In addition, Israel is pleased with the international pressure on Hamas and fears military action could jeopardize that.

Galant's threat of a reoccupation could in part be aimed at an Israeli public outraged over the rocket fire. It could also be meant to put pressure on Hamas to halt the attacks.

Hamas defeated the long-dominant Fatah Party in January legislative elections, and its new Cabinet was sworn into office late last month.

The appointment of Samhadana was the latest step in a growing power struggle between Hamas and Abbas, a moderate who leads the Fatah party.

Soon after the new Cabinet was sworn in last month, Abbas appointed a longtime ally to head three security services that were supposed to fall under Hamas command. Abbas controls several other security services directly.

[Shammu]

Only religion can mobilize Arab world
Brussels, April 21, IRNA

EU-Arab World
For mass movements the only mobilizing ideology in the Arab world today is a religious one, Rachid El Houdaigui, of the University of Tangiers, told a meeting on the EU- Arab world relations, held in the European Parliament in Thursday evening.

Houdaigui spoke of "the myth of a unified Arab world," and argued that each Arab country's geopolitical fragility sprung precisely from its tense relations with its often Arab neighbors.

Houdaigui said that these geopolitical uncertainties were tools which Arab governments "used to stifle internal political debate." The meeting organized by the EP's Foreign Affairs Committee involved academics and experts from Europe and Arab countries from the southern Mediterranean.

They addressed four central questions: the idea of a coherent Arab community of nations, the role of the pan-Arab Al Jazeera television network, the Barcelona process establishing cooperation between the EU and the Southern Mediterranean, and the thorny question of democracy promotion.

French member of the EP, Michel Rocard asked whether it is useful to "treat the Arab world as a coherent unit" or whether bilateral ties should be cultivated instead.

Donatella Della Ratta, a journalist specialized in Arab media, said Al Jazeera TV has played a large role in "creating a pan-Arab public sphere."
She urged the EU to cooperate with Arabic media, and not to fall into the American trap of ignoring the existence of a newly developed media culture in the Arab world.

Czech MEP, Jana Hyb, said Al Jazeera was "very dangerous" for the spread of Western values in the Arab world.

She expressed her concern at plans for Al Jazeera to start broadcasting in English to countries with large non-Arab Islamic populations such as Pakistan and Indonesia.

Only religion can mobilize Arab world

[Shammu]

 Belarussian president calls for promoting bilateral ties with Iran
Moscow, April 21, IRNA

Belarus-Iran-Cooperation
Belarussian president in a meeting with Iran's Commerce Minister Masoud Mirkazemi on Friday called for promoting bilateral relations in all fields.

Alyaksandr R. Lukashenko said, the current level of trade exchanges between the two countries are not corresponding to existing potentials and keeping the current level is not acceptable.

The current level of trade exchange between Iran and Belarus is around 40 million dollars.

Referring to Iran as one of the main exporters of oil and the existing of advanced oil and petrochemical industries in Belarus, the president said the two countries have potentials for more trade between each other.

He told the Iranian minister to convey his message to the Iranian president that the Belarussian side is ready to implement all existing agreements.

Mir-Kazemi, for his part, said the Iranian president considers relations with Belarus "Important" and follows the cooperation development trend carefully.

He also submitted President Ahmadinejad's written message to the President Lukashenko.

The commerce minister told reporters President Ahmadinejad, in his message, emphasized the importance of consolidating bilateral ties and to common approaches of both countries, not only in political field, but in economic, scientific and technological areas, too.

The 7th joint economic cooperation commission of Iran-Belarus was convened in Minsk Thursday and Mir-Kazemi from Iran and Anatol Rosteskoy, Industry minister of Belarus, co-chaired the meeting.

Belarussian president calls for promoting bilateral ties with Iran

[Shammu]

Han Myung-Sook, a Christian woman now prime minister
by Pino Cazzaniga
Ms Han is the first woman to occupy such a high leadership post in a traditionally male-dominated society. Parliament voted 182 to 77 in her favour.

Seoul (AsiaNews) – On April 19, Ms Han Myung-Sook became the first woman prime minister in the history of South Korea, a traditionally male-dominated society.  President Roh Moo-hyung nominated her as the best person for the post. Parliament agreed by a wide margin voting 182- to 77 in her favour, thus marking an historic step forward in the country’s process of democratic development. This, for Grand National Party MP Jin Soo-hee, means that the “age has passed when women were of little value only because of their gender.”

Ms Han, 62, is a devout Christian. Her involvement in social issues and politics flows from her faith. Born in 1944 in Pyongyang, now the capital of North Korea, she escaped to the south as a refugee after the Communists started the Korean War in 1950.

Dreaming of being an author, she entered Ewha Womans University in Seoul as a French literature major in 1963. But her life changed after she met husband-to-be, Park Sung-jun, a pro-democracy activist during the Park Chung-hee government in the 1960s and 1970s. Both were members of a Christian students' club involved in social activities in favour of the poor.

Her husband was jailed for 13 years for his pro-democracy activities only six months after the two married in 1968. Han later followed in her husband's steps and their correspondence became her political and social training.

Han greatly contributed to improving the status of women so much so that she was nicknamed the ‘god-mother’ of the feminist movement, wrote the daily Joongang in its editorial page.

As a member of the Christian Academy, an institute run by activists and religious leaders to bring educational programs to urban labourers and women, she was arrested, brutally tortured and sentenced to two years in jail. In parliament she said she held no grudge over that experience. Once released, she played a key role in setting up the Korea Women's Associations United.

In the latte 1990s when democracy was well-established in South Korea, she joined the Millennium Party, founded by Kim Dae-jung, a Catholic.

In 2001 when Kim was president, she became the minister for gender equality and the family; in 2003, she was appointed environment minister under the current president.

In her acceptance speech, Ms Han said: “I will make a voyage of harmony on a ship named Korea, with the governing and opposition parties and the public on board.”  These words already indicate what will be her two priorities: party cooperation and reducing the gap between haves and have-nots.

Although South Korea is a presidential republic, the post of prime minister is far from being ceremonial. President Roh Moo-hyun will leave his prime minister in charge of pushing through his domestic agenda.

“A prime minister,” she said in her maiden speech as PM, “must make an effort to humbly listen to the voice of the people more than give directives and orders. He or she must put on the shoes of ordinary people to know their difficulties.”

Han Myung-Sook, a Christian woman now prime minister

[Shammu]

Evangelical Christians against “Da Vinci Code”

Korea’s Christian Council called on the court authorities to ban the release of the film in cinemas. For Catholics, “guidelines explaining how to tackle the themes raised in the film” would suffice.

Seoul (AsiaNews/CI) – Korea’s Christian Council has called on the Seoul district court to prevent Sony Pictures from screening the film, “The Da Vinci Code” in cinemas – it is scheduled for release in May.

In a press conference, a Council spokesman said: "We cannot help but have deep concern that the film may disparage and insult the divinity of Jesus Christ and the truths told in the Bible. The movie will severely infringe on individual's religious beliefs and will be an obstacle to Christian missionary work.”

Apart from concern that film offends the faith, the council “is wary of the content expressed:  the film is based on a conspiracy that the church attempted to hide the fact that Jesus Christ's children are alive, and did not hesitate to kill people to protect their disclosure. This could incite serious conflict between Christians and non-Christians, who may believe that a theory is historical fact.”

Catholics have taken a different stand. Although the Korean Church has not yet stated its official position on the matter, a survey conducted by the Catholic Times revealed that 72% of readers “simply want to have guidelines from the Church on how to tackle the themes in the film and the book”. Only 9% of those interviewed said the film should be banned, and 3% said “Christians should be discouraged from going to watch it”.

Evangelical Christians against “Da Vinci Code”

[Soldier4Christ]

Extremists may target private US planes: TSA

The Transportation Security Administration has warned aircraft owners and airport managers that Muslim extremists may be targeting private American jets and urged them to boost security.

"On April 13, 2006, a message posted in Arabic on an Internet forum explained how to identify private American jets and urged Muslims to destroy all such aircraft," the TSA said in an advisory issued on Thursday and obtained by Reuters on Friday.

The TSA quoted the Arabic message as saying: "We call upon all Muslims to follow and identify private civilian American aircrafts in all airports of the world."

"It is the duty of Muslims to destroy all types of private American aircraft that are of the types Gulfstream and Lear Jet and all small aircraft usually used by distinguished (people) and businessmen," it quoted the message as saying.

It said the message explained how to identify private U.S. jets and also provided the tail number of a private plane believed to be used by the CIA.

The TSA and other law enforcement organizations regularly issue advisories when they have information of a potential threat though there have been no major incidents since the September 2001 hijacked plane attacks on New York and Washington in which about 3,000 people were killed.

The TSA urged airplane owners and operators to boost security measures and secure unattended aircraft and verify identification of crew and passengers.

"Be alert/aware of and report persons masquerading as pilots, security personnel, emergency medical technicians or other personnel using uniforms and/or vehicles as methods to gain access to aviation facilities or aircraft," the TSA advised.

It said the theft of any private airplane should immediately be reported to law enforcement and TSA.

[Soldier4Christ]

 FBI: Two U.S. citizens met with Islamic extremists to plan terror strikes


ATLANTA — A 21-year-old Georgia Tech student and another man traveled to Canada to meet with Islamic extremists to discuss "strategic locations in the United States suitable for a terrorist strike," according to an affidavit made public Friday.

Syed Haris Ahmed and Ehsanul Islam Sadequee, both U.S. citizens who grew up in the Atlanta area, met with at least three other targets of ongoing FBI terrorism investigations during a trip to Canada in March 2005, the FBI agent's affidavit said.

The affidavit said the men discussed attacks against oil refineries and military bases and planned to travel to Pakistan to get military training at a terrorist camp, which authorities said Ahmed then tried to do.

Ahmed, who was indicted on suspicion of giving material support of terrorism, was being held at an undisclosed location. The indictment was returned under seal on March 23 and unsealed by the court Thursday.

Ahmed's court-appointed attorney, Jack Martin, did not return messages left seeking comment.

Sadequee, 19, who is accused of making materially false statements in connection with an ongoing federal terrorism investigation, was arrested in Bangladesh and was en route to New York City to be arraigned.

"There is no imminent threat," said FBI Special Agent Richard Kolko, a spokesman in Washington.

Authorities said the two men spent several days in Canada, where they met with others being investigated by the terrorism task force.

Ehsanul Islam Sadequee is accused of lying about the trip when he was interviewed at John F. Kennedy International Airport in August as he was about to leave for Bangladesh. The affidavit said Sadequee had said he had traveled alone in January to visit an aunt.

One day later, federal agents interviewed Ahmed, who was coming back from a monthlong trip to Pakistan, at Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. He said he had gone to Toronto with Sadequee, according to the affidavit.

[Soldier4Christ]

Israeli troops trained for Gaza occupation
Critics had warned withdrawal would prompt re-entry


JERUSALEM – Eight months after the Jewish state evacuated its forces and communities from the Gaza Strip, Israeli troops the past few weeks quietly have been trained for a large-scale incursion and occupation of Gaza in the event it is called for, WND has learned.

Critics of the Gaza evacuation long had warned the retreat would prompt an onslaught of terrorism requiring the Israeli Defense Forces to re-enter the territory.

While military leaders have said the IDF could occupy Gaza if the new Hamas-led Palestinian government does not halt the almost daily rocket fire coming from the area, top members of Prime Minster Ehud Olmert's office call the incursion option unlikely, claiming Israel is "scoring points" for its restraint.

In an interview yesterday with Israel's Maariv daily, IDF Southern Command Maj.-Gen. Yoav Galant, who leads the unit responsible for the Gaza area, said the army could employ "more aggressive military activity."

"If the price we have to pay becomes unreasonable as a result of increased [Palestinian] attacks, then we shall have to take all steps, including occupying the Gaza Strip," he said.

Galant said the IDF could enforce a full or partial Gaza occupation and stated his plans had been approved by senior officials, including Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz.

"I wouldn't want to reach that situation, but if it's forced upon us, then we have a plan to occupy the Strip," Galant warned. "We are in advanced stages of preparing forces for readiness. There is a practical plan and there are forces which are designated for specific operations and are training for them."

Since Israel withdrew from Gaza in August, Jewish communities near the territory have come under repeated fire by Palestinian rockets. Three Qassam rockets yesterday hit near Ashkelon, site of the country's major power supply and several important oil pipelines. An average of 10 rockets per week have been fired by Palestinian groups for at least the last three months.

Israel has retaliated with artillery fire against rocket launch sites and targeted aerial strikes against suspected rocket factories, but the current retaliation policy has failed to stop or even slow the number of rockets being launched from Gaza.

A senior IDF official told WND, "The only way Israel can stop the rockets is by occupying Gaza. It is elementary. The leadership knows it."

The official said the IDF in recent weeks has completed training ground forces to enter Gaza. The soldiers have been told to be prepared within one week from receiving an order for a large-scale operation or within several hours to three days for a smaller operation.

As WND reported earlier this month, Israeli troops briefly entered Gaza for the first time since the August withdrawal. A small force inside an armored tank crossed a dividing fence in the central part of the Gaza Strip near an Israeli military base to sweep for possible bombs after the army received information terrorists may have planted explosives in the area.

An IDF spokeswoman at the time said the small Gaza incursion was isolated and was based on specific information. She said Israel briefly would reenter Gaza again if it had information regarding an immediate pending attack against the border area.

But government sources say Olmert would not approve the occupation of Gaza while he is trying to push through an Israeli withdrawal from most of the West Bank, which is within rocket firing range of Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and the country's international airport. The sources said said a Gaza operation would label Israel's evacuation last summer as a failure, and that could damage the prospects for the planned West Bank withdrawal.

The sources also said Olmert feels Israel is "making headway" with the international community for restraint following a suicide bombing earlier this week in Tel Aviv that killed nine and injured more than 60. It was the largest suicide bombing in Israel since 2003 and the first such attack since Hamas officially took over the Palestinian Authority. The attacks occurred several hours before Israel's new parliament was due to be inducted.

For many, the reports of troops being prepared for a possible Gaza offensive actualize warnings repeatedly voiced by opponents of the withdrawal plan prior to its implementation.

Knesset Member Benny Elon told WND prior to the withdrawal, "As soon as Israel gets out [from Gaza], the attacks will escalate and Israel will have two choices, either let the terrorists kill Israelis or send troops back into Gaza."

Knesset Member Ayoob Kara, a member of the Likud Party, told WND in August: "Only Israel can guarantee the security of its citizens. The terrorists will see Israel's withdrawal as a victory for terror. They will increase attacks, and it's possible troops may have to go back in to stop the attacks."

Knesset Member Effie Eitam, also speaking before the Gaza withdrawal, told WND: "Israel's withdrawal will be a strategic and military disaster. Afterwards, Israel won't be inside Gaza to stop attacks and they may be forced with the decision of having to go back in."

The same leaders have been blasting Olmert's West Bank withdrawal plan.

About 200,000 Jews live in the West Bank. A separation barrier, still under construction in certain areas, cordons off nearly 95 percent of the territory from Israel's pre-1967 borders. More than half the West Bank's Jewish residents reside on the side of the fence closest to Israel. About 80,000 more Jews live on the other side of the barrier. Olmert officials have stated the past few weeks the new prime minister plans to enforce a withdrawal from all 68 Jewish towns that fall outside the barrier.

In a widely circulated WND article, leaders of every major Palestinian terror organization warned they will soon launch a massive violent campaign against Israel focused mainly on West Bank Jewish communities.

One senior terrorist said now that Olmert announced a West Bank withdrawal, terrorism against Israel must be stepped up "to prove we are chasing out the Israelis like we did in Gaza."

[Soldier4Christ]

Missile exports to Iran alarm US

Washington has asked Moscow to reconsider selling Iran anti-aircraft missiles as the crisis over its nuclear programme continues.

Russia plans to sell Tehran 29 TOR M1 mobile surface-to-air missile defence systems in a deal said to be worth about US $700 million (£392m).

"This is not time for business as usual with the Iranian government," a top US state department official said.

The US also urged other states like China to review defence sales to Iran.

'Wrong time'

"There are a lot of countries that allow the export of dual-use technologies, and the position of the United States is that should be prohibited," said Undersecretary of State Nicholas Burns.

"All countries should refrain from military sales and arm sales."

Speaking about the Russian missiles, he said:

"We hope and we trust that that deal will not go forward because this is not time for business as usual with the Iranian government."

Russia and China are both strongly resisting attempts to impose United Nations sanctions on Iran, which the US and other Western states believes is pursuing nuclear weapons.

The US arms appeal is a sign of increasing concern in Washington at the speed with which Iran is pursuing its programme, the BBC's Jonathan Beale reports from Washington.

New report

Russia says it has to see concrete proof that Iran's nuclear programme - which it is supplying with technology - is not peaceful.

The UN's position is that so far no proof has emerged that Iran is seeking nuclear weapons but nor has Iran proved that it is not.

The UN Security Council is awaiting a report from Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), next week.

Tehran has defied UN calls to stop nuclear activity, saying last week it had successfully enriched uranium.

However it denies any nuclear weapons plans, saying it wants nuclear power only for energy purposes.

Iran's ambassador to the IAEA said on Friday Tehran would "continue its full co-operation" with the body.

But the IAEA says Iran has not co-operated fully, and one of its senior inspectors has called off a visit to the country that was supposed to have taken place on Friday.

______________________________

Russia says it has to see concrete proof that Iran's nuclear programme - which it is supplying with technology - is not peaceful.

I guess that Russia doesn't beleive the very words of the Iranian president.

[Soldier4Christ]

Wave of Violent Crime Sweeps Venezuela

 CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) -- Victims reach the emergency room soaked in blood and dazed - wheeled in on stretchers, carried in people's arms, some still walking with the last of their strength. An elderly man shot in a robbery, a young man sprayed with gunfire, a woman who took a stray bullet in the head while on her way to church.

Venezuela is among the most violent places in Latin America, and critics of President Hugo Chavez are increasingly accusing him of failing to make crime a priority.

The government says it is making progress on the problem, but a series of particularly heinous murders sparked protests earlier this month by people demanding safer streets, and more rallies are planned for Saturday. While crime has long bedeviled Venezuelans, particularly the poor, some protesters say there's a new element to the danger now - class tensions incited by Chavez himself.

"There has always been crime, but not like this. Now they open fire and that's it," said Freddy Dos Santos, standing beside his father, who lay wounded on a gurney at a public hospital.
   
   

Relatives of 89-year-old Rodolfo Dos Santos, who was breathing through an oxygen mask, said he was shot while driving to a construction site to pay his workers. He had just braked at a hilltop when a teenager approached and shouted: "Stop!"

Dos Santos yelled for help. The teenager fired, wounding him in the chest, and then fled.

Dos Santos' son accused Chavez of virtually ignoring crime while also inciting the poor: "The president is always saying it's OK to steal in order to eat."

Chavez has not used those exact words, but he regularly launches into tirades against wealthy Venezuelans. "The rich are condemned to hell. Christ himself condemned them," Chavez said in a speech Tuesday. "I say it from the heart: to be rich is evil."

Class tension has long been a part of life in the South American country, where armed robberies, carjackings and kidnappings are frequent.

There were 9,402 homicides reported in 2005, down slightly from 2004, according to government statistics. Some experts argue the real figure is higher.

Venezuela's murder rate ranked third in Latin America in a recent report by the Pan American Health Organization, behind Colombia and El Salvador. The ranking used 2001-2003 figures and showed Venezuela just ahead of Brazil.

An underlying cause of the violence is the stark gap between rich and poor, which remains despite Chavez's talk of bringing equality, said Jonathan Jakubowicz, director of the acclaimed film "Secuestro Express," or "Express Kidnapping," which is set in Caracas.

"Chavez didn't invent the class tension; he just gave it a flag and made it a political movement," said the 28-year-old Venezuelan filmmaker. "I just hope at some point in the next few decades he is forced to control the violence, for the sake of all of us."

The film has come under fire from Vice President Jose Vicente Rangel, who called it a "miserable" movie that aggravates class hatred. Jakubowicz said it actually is meant to help heal societal divisions.

Angry protests broke out in Caracas earlier this month after kidnappers executed three young brothers - ages 17, 13 and 12. The protesters also cited the killings of a prominent businessman and a newspaper photographer who was shot just as he arrived at one of the protests.

With unusual speed, police have arrested suspects in all three cases. The accused include police officers - confirming public distrust of security forces widely seen as corrupt, ineffective and at times complicit in crime.

The government has pledged sweeping police reforms and also put up $4.6 million for a gun buyback program that will offer people money to hand in revolvers and pistols.

Chavez said the latest killings show symptoms of a "sick society" warped by capitalist ambitions. "It made me want to take to the streets, too," he said, accusing his enemies of trying to manipulate the issue for political gain.

Reflecting political divisions, two separate anti-crime demonstrations are planned this Saturday: one by Chavez opponents and another by students who share his view that the issue shouldn't be politicized.

Experts disagree on how much blame Chavez bears. Criminologist Fermin Marmol Leon, a former justice minister, says Chavez has failed to define a clear anti-crime strategy. Sociologist Luis Damiani argues Chavez is making progress through gradual reforms and programs aimed at reducing poverty.

In the meantime, nurses at Domingo Luciani Hospital sometimes have to treat the wounded on the floor due to a shortage of beds.

The elderly gun shot victim, Dos Santos, opened his eyes while his wife, Rosa Porras, stroked his silver hair. "You can't even go out nowadays because you're afraid of everything," she said.

Later, police burst in carrying a man with bullet wounds in his head and torso. His pulse had stopped. Two nurses made the sign of the cross over him, and one pulled a sheet over his head.

"The saddest thing is that people seem to be getting used to it," Dr. Carlos Rodriguez said. "No one is doing anything about it."

[Soldier4Christ]

Groups question U.S. plan to detain sick travelers

WASHINGTON, April 21 (Reuters) - Infectious disease experts and the American Civil Liberties Union raised concerns on Friday about an agreement that would allow U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and customs agents to detain anyone who looked sick with bird flu.

The memorandum of understanding, a copy of which was provided to Reuters, also provides for Customs and Border Protection agents to give personal details of airline passengers to the CDC.

It was signed in October by Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt and Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff. HHS spokeswoman Christina Pearson denied it was secret or sinister.

"We have had this agreement in place and it's to help CDC when there is a report of communicable diseases on an airplane," Pearson said.

"It helps them quickly and efficiently to be able to locate passengers and to inform them that they may have been exposed to some kind of communicable disease, to reassure them and tell them how to get right channels to treatment."

The memorandum mentions H5N1 avian influenza, which experts fear could cause a worldwide pandemic at any time, and also makes provision for other diseases.

There have been no outbreaks of disease that would be covered by the agreement since it was signed.

"CDC is authorized to isolate and/or quarantine arriving persons reasonably believed to be infected with or exposed to specified quarantinable diseases and to detain carriers and cargo infected with a communicable disease," it reads.

It also provides for Customs or Border Patrol agents to forcibly detain, if necessary, anyone coming in who appears to be sick while the CDC is contacted.

The CDC says this is necessary in case of a pandemic. Viruses such as flu can easily be carried by airline passengers. But Dr. Donald Henderson, an expert on influenza, smallpox and other infectious diseases who has advised the administration of President George W. Bush on such issues, calls it "silly."

ASTONISHED BY THE PROPOSAL

"I was absolutely astonished when I saw that proposed federal regulation," Henderson said in an interview.

"It's so silly," added Henderson, who now works at the Baltimore-based Center for Biosecurity at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center.

Henderson noted that people can be infectious with influenza and other diseases long before they begin to feel sick or show any symptoms.

"You are spending huge amounts of money and have we got any evidence that this is going to do anything? Is it worth all the energy we are going to be putting into it?" he said.

The ACLU believes that protecting the public is not the motivation.

"The tracking of data on airline passengers, which can amount to building lifetime dossiers on Americans, has been a hotly debated issue for many years -- and now we find out that two government agencies may have agreed, behind the public's back, to share data," said Barry Steinhardt, director of the ACLU's Technology and Liberty Project.

ACLU legislative counsel Tim Sparapani said: "Once again, we are seeing that DHS cannot be trusted to exhibit restraint in the handling of personal information.

"They collect information, say they'll use it for one purpose, and then they turn around and use it for another."

The Center for Biosecurity's Penny Hitchcock, a former National Institutes of Health infectious disease specialist, said the CDC risks losing the public's trust.

"The information that will be collected by CDC/HHS is part of this quarantine effort -- sharing information collected for disease prevention could be harmful," she said.

"The harm being that it will create suspicion and encourage people to regard the public health service as 'disease cops.' Why would people want to cooperate under those circumstances?"

[Shammu]

Iran says has "basic" enrichment deal with Russia
Sat Apr 22, 2006 9:35am ET12

By Alireza Ronaghi

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's ambassador to the U.N. nuclear watchdog said on Saturday that Iran had a basic deal to enrich uranium in a joint venture in Russia but said details were still being worked out, Iranian state radio reported.

Russia has offered to enrich uranium for Iran to allay concerns that Tehran could use domestically-produced enriched uranium to make nuclear bombs.

But progress on the deal has been hindered by Iran's refusal to bow to international demands that it halt all home-grown enrichment work. A "basic agreement" on enrichment with Russia was previously announced by Iran in February but talks subsequently appeared to stall.

Ali-Asghar Soltanieh, Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said a full agreement was now close in reach.

"He ... announced the basic agreement on a joint uranium enrichment firm on Russian soil and said that there are only some issues regarding technical, legal and financial matters that need more assessment or exchange of ideas," radio quoted Soltanieh as saying from Russia.

Western nations, who are threatening to press for U.N. sanctions, accuse Iran of seeking to develop nuclear weapons and insist Iran stops enrichment, which has military and civilian uses. Iran says it only wants to produce electricity.

Moscow, while joining Washington and European powers in calling on Iran to end enrichment, has made it clear it would not at this stage back imposing sanctions on the Islamic state.

NEW REACTORS PLANNED

Iran announced earlier this month that it had produced its first batch of enriched uranium and was pressing ahead with plans to produce nuclear fuel on an industrial scale.

Ali Hoseinitash, a deputy secretary on Iran's Supreme National Security Council, rejected any suspension of Iran's nuclear work, which Iran considers a national right, state television reported earlier on Saturday.

"We are seeking to choose the right paths and to solve the problems (in Iran's nuclear case) by some sort of negotiation and understanding. However if reaching those paths comes on the condition of handing over our rights, it will not take place in the current situation," television quoted Hoseinitash as saying.

Soltanieh was also quoted by the radio announcer as saying Iran would issue tenders next month for two nuclear power stations, in addition to one being built with Russian help near the southern port city of Bushehr.

"All countries can take part (in the tender)," he was quoted as saying.

It was not immediately clear if Soltanieh meant the tender would be announced in May or in the next Iranian month which starts on May 22.

Moscow on Thursday rejected a request from the United States for its engineers to halt work on the Bushehr nuclear power station, Iran's first, which is due to be completed later this year.

Iran says has "basic" enrichment deal with Russia