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1. Israel's 'Peace Partner' Says It 'Aims to Destroy Humanity'
by Chana Ya'ar
The official Palestinian Authority daily newspaper Al-Hayat Al-Jadida
this month claimed that Israel’s aim is the “destruction and ruin of
humanity” in an article on the selection of Qatar to host the 2022 World
Cup competition.
The PA, according to Israel's leadership and that of the US and Europe, is Israel's "peace partner."
The latest publication continued the Ramallah-based PA government’s
policy of violating the Oslo Accords and the U.S. Roadmap plan, which
both call for a cessation of provocations and incitement to terrorism
against Israel.
In its December 8 edition, the Arabic-language newspaper, which serves
as a mouthpiece for the PA government, wrote an article on Qatar's
selection as World Cup host for 2022. In the article, it mentioned the
wildfire that destroyed 50,000 dunams of forested land in the Carmel
mountain area around Haifa. The article was translated by the media
watchdog organization, Palestinian Media Watch.
The publication, which referred to the devastated area as the “occupied
Palestinian Carmel Mountains,” claimed that Israel, “whose preparations
for destruction and war we hear about daily, is now unable to protect
nature, which belongs to [all] mankind. This is a natural outcome for a
country whose aim is destruction and ruin of humanity."
“That is the difference between a country (like Qatar) that strives for
progress and for human development, and a country (Israel) which
disseminates destruction, ruin and weapons in the world,” the newspaper
claimed. The piece continued with its comparison of Qatar to Israel,
claiming to show the difference “between a country which acts to build a
human generation, and a country which acts to kill nations, to threaten
them and to occupy their land; between a country which acts to
disseminate the culture of love and peace, and a country which acts to
disseminate the culture of hatred and racism among human beings.”
The article was published in the sports section of the PA newspaper.
Less than two dozen firefighters were sent by PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas
to assist Israel in its battle against the blaze. They, along with
hundreds of other firefighters sent from countries around the world,
helped bring the fire under control in less than week, and were honored by the PA government and by Israel for their efforts.
However, the PA firefighters were not directly involved in fighting the
Carmel fire – they were reportedly sent to replace Israeli firefighters
who had been deployed to the village of Barta’a, half of which is
located within the PA boundaries. The PA firefighters were sent to free
up the Israeli firefighters so they could be deployed on the front line
to directly battle the blaze. Due to a lack of coordination between
security agencies, nine of the firefighters were stopped on their way to
an award ceremony in Israel's north. The cause of the miscommunication
was unclear, although MK Ahmed Tibi, an Israeli Arab lawmaker who has
been frequently involved in circumstances that skirt incitement against
the state, instantly jumped on the opportunity to create a diplomatic disturbance between the government he purports to represent, and the PA.
Nevertheless, a slim majority of Arabs polled by the Ma’an news agency later said it was “disgraceful” for the PA to send firefighters to help Israel with the fire, which took 43 lives and injured many others.
2. Ya'alon: Iran’s Nuke Program Set Back Three Years
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Iran now is at least three years away from being able to produce a
nuclear bomb because of technical problems and sanctions, Strategic
Affairs Minister Moshe Ya'alon told Voice of Israel government radio
Wednesday.
Yaalon, a former IDF Chief of Staff and considered a leading “hawk” on
Iran, said that “we are talking in terms of three years” before the
Islamic Republic can achieve its presumed aim of producing a nuclear
weapon. Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has said several times
that Israel should be destroyed but has insisted that Iran’s nuclear
program is intended for peaceful purposes.
Iran’s uranium enrichment facilities recently suffered severe damage from the Stuxnet virus. Israel has been widely mentioned as being behind the infection of Iran’s computers with the virus.
Despite the new time frame, Yaalon said that the United States
eventually will have to take actions beyond sanctions to stop Iran,
which he said “must choose between continuing to seek nuclear capability
and surviving.”
The Obama administration has been hoping that local unrest in Iran will
engineer an overthrow of the regime currently headed by Muslim clerics
and Ahmadinejad, whose re-election last year was largely viewed as
fraudulent, sparking widespread unrest until riot police and Iran’s
Revolutionary Guards brutally subdued the protests.
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3. Dahlan Booted from Fatah Leadership, Under Investigation
by Chana Ya'ar
Former Fatah strongman Muhammad Dahlan has been banned from the faction’s meetings and is facing an internal investigation.
Scores of Dahlan’s followers have been arrested by Palestinian
Authority security forces in Judea Samaria, and government institutions
have been instructed not to cooperate with him, according to
international Arab news reporter Khaled Abu Toameh.
Last month PA security forces were ordered to stop guarding Dahlan’s private residence in Ramallah.
Dahlan, who after the signing of the Oslo Accords founded and for years
served as head of the PA’s Preventive Security Service in Gaza, was
once considered a potential successor to PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.
The 49-year-old Fatah leader was elected to the faction’s Central
Committee during its August 2009 conference after having bounced back
following the humiliating defeat of his forces in Gaza militia's civil
war with rival Hamas terrorists in June 2007. He is now being
investigated by a commission of inquiry, over suspicion that Dahlan is
trying to topple the PA leadership, starting with Abbas. In addition,
the probe is focusing on the source of Dahlan’s personal wealth.
According to a statement released to the WAFA news agency, the Fatah
Central Committee decided “unanimously to suspend Mohammed Dahlan from
its meetings until the Commission of Inquiry completes its work.” The
Committee also removed Dahlan from the faction’s Information and Culture
Commission.
Nabil Abu Rudaineh, top aide to Abbas and his primary spokesman, was appointed to become Fatah’s chief spokesman as well.
The AFP news service quoted an unnamed committee member who said Dahlan
was accused of “subversion against… [Palestinian Authority Chairman
Mahmoud] Abbas and members of the committee” and of having called them
“incompetent.”
The committee member said Dahlan had been notified of the charges, and the committee heard his testimony.
Dahlan’s office in Ramallah declined to comment, according to AFP,
which reported that he is abroad, as he has often been in the past
several months.
Dahlan has been in the crosshairs of the PA leadership for months after
having spoken against Abbas’s sons, Tareq and Yasser, themselves
wealthy businessmen. In addition, he had criticized Abbas, at one point
allegedly calling for his replacement.
Last month Israel downgraded Dahlan’s diplomatic status,
removing the permit that allowed him to drive his car to Jordan through
the Allenby Crossing. Dahlan was not the only one who lost his
privileges, however: former PA chief negotiator and Prime Minister Ahmed
Qureia also was downgraded after criticizing Israel’s policies in the
PA territories and threatening violence if talks collapsed.
4. Economic Woes May Spur Ahmadinejad’s Downfall
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Removal of heavy subsidies has sparked colossal hikes in the price of
oil and utilities in Iran, possibly throwing its troubled economy into
chaos and spurring renewed street protests. Police already have arrested
one economist for opposing the removal of subsidies.
The price of gasoline jumped by 600 percent and more within days after
last week’s announcement by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad that
state subsidies are being overhauled in order to prevent spiraling
inflation.
However, the removal of subsidies has had the opposite effect, and the
Washington Post reported that some truck drivers have protested by a
work stoppage.
Although Ahmadinejad has cut subsidies, he has retained price controls,
meaning that while the cost of bread has tripled, sandwich sellers
cannot raise prices. Despite the sharp rise in gasoline prices, the
government allowed only an 8 percent hike in taxi fares.
He has ordered the feared police militia to make sure merchants do not charge beyond the allowed prices.
Price hikes in the 1990s spurred riots that were quelled with the use
of helicopter gunners. The government already has warned that opponents
of the new economic policy will be treated as rebels.
Iranian police arrested economist Fariborz Raeis Dana after he told
the BBC that the subsidy cuts are a "hallucination" because they will
worsen poverty and unemployment.
The removal of the subsidies means that “at least one major part of the
Islamist Revolution is begining to fall apart, CBS Marketwatch reported
Tuesday.
Ahmadinejad for years has been a champion of “tax the rich and help the
poor,” but the drastic move of removing most of the subsidies will
drastically hurt merchants in all sectors of society. Some factories
have stopped operating, causing more unemployment, which is estimated at
between 12 and 22 percent, coupled with inflation of approximately 20
percent.
Coupled with crippling sanctions imposed by most of the international
community, a continuing adverse effect on the economy by Ahmadinejad’s
latest policies could spur the anti-government turmoil that the United
States has been hoping for, Fox News reported Monday.
The Obama administration is turning up the pressure on Iran, announcing
last week new sanctions on banks that are linked with the Iranian
Revolutionary Guards, a major owner of the country’s factories and oil
facilities.
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5. Navy Monitoring Syrian Ship with Activists and Aid for Gaza
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
The Navy is monitoring movements of activists on a Syrian ship
scheduled to carry activists and aid to Gaza via an overland route from
an Egyptian port, the Irish Times reported Wednesday.
The IDF has not commented, but previous reports on the land-sea caravan
indicated that Israel has been behind technical problems on the "Asia
One" ship, docked at the Latikia port and set to sail for El-Arish,
Egypt. The ship's departure also has been delayed by Egyptian
authorities, who have not given the activists a landing permit to dock
at El-Arish.
Several of the activists have been given permission to enter Egypt but not to cross into Gaza.
Free Gaza coordinator Feroze Mithiborwala told Al Ahram online that he
hopes negotiations with Egypt will allow the ship to sail this week. He
was quoted as saying that one option is for the activists fly to Egypt
and leave the ship, which would sail for Gaza. Such a scenario would
almost certainly prompt intervention by the Israeli navy.
Unlike the IHH-sponsored flotilla last May, the “Asia One” boat’s
stated itinerary is to dock at El-Arish without trying to land in Gaza.
The Times quoted one unnamed activist as saying that if the Israeli navy
approaches the boat, the activists will “face it with non-violence.
We’ll face it with a prayer in our hearts.”
Israel has placed a maritime blockade on Gaza to prevent entry of
terrorists and weapons. Activists have said they are not carrying
weapons and want to bring with them medicine, foodstuffs, toys, four
buses and 10 power generators for Gaza hospitals.
Despite media reports of a “blockade” on Gaza, the government has
lifted all restrictions on almost all incoming materials except for
those that can be directly used for terrorist activities.
The activists have embarked on the first Asian sea and land caravan,
having left India earlier this month and passed through Pakistan, Iran
and Turkey before docking at Syria. The ship's passengers are from 15
countries and include pro-Hamas activists who are members of the
Christian, Buddhist and Islamic faiths. They have also met with
Damascus-based Khaled Mashaal, the general director of the Hamas
terrorist organization.
6. Abbas to Lay Cornerstone for Palestinian Embassy in Brazil
by Elad Benari
Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas will lay the cornerstone
for an embassy in Brazil this week, PA representative Ibrahim al-Zeben
told AFP on Tuesday.
According to al-Zeben, Abbas will head the stone-laying ceremony on
Friday. On Saturday he is expected to attend the inauguration ceremony
for Brazil's new president, Dilma Rousseff.
Brazil’s recognition earlier this month of a Palestinian state was met with criticism
by both Israel and the United States. The Israeli government expressed
its “regret and disappointment” with the decision and pointed out that
“recognition of a Palestinian state is a violation of the Interim
Agreement signed between Israel and the PA in 1995,” a reference to the
amended Oslo Accords.
Democratic U.S. Representative Eliot Engel called the decision
“severely misguided” and added that Brazil “wants to establish itself as
a voice in the world but is making the wrong choices as it tries to do
so.”
Argentina and Uruguay followed Brazil with a similar announcement several days later,
with Argentina announcing that it recognizes a Palestinian state due
its frustration at the slow progress of peace talks between Israel and
the Palestinian Authority.
Argentine Foreign Minister Hector Timerman added, however, that
Argentina “ratifies its irrevocable position in favor of the right of
Israel to be recognized by everyone and to live in peace and security
within its borders. Argentina's decision to recognize the Palestine
state is based in the desire of its authorities to favor the process of
negotiation aimed at ending the conflict.”
The recognition of a Palestinian state seems to have become a trend in
South America, with Bolivia also having done so over the last few weeks.
Earlier this week, PA officials claimed that Paraguay is also set to support a unilateral declaration of a Palestinian state.
A statement released by the PA’s Foreign Ministry which was quoted in
the PA-based Ma’an News Agency, said that Paraguay's Foreign Minister
Hector Lacognata gave a spring 2011 deadline for the country's
recognition of a Palestinian state on the so-called 1967 borders, lands
which were occupied by Jordan between 1948 and 1967. Lacognata made the
announcement to the Palestinian Authority’s ambassador to Paraguay.
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7. Iran Hangs One of Seven Suspected Spies for Israel
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Iran has hanged one of seven suspected spies for supplying Israel with
secrets on Iran’s missile programs, and the regime’s courts have
sentenced a second man to death for “counter-revolutionary activities.”
The regime of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad arrested seven
people in October on charges of spying for Israel's Mossad intelligence
agency. “These spies supplied the enemy with information on Iran's
judiciary, military and space agencies, among other things, prior to
their arrest,” trumpeted Iran's semi-official Fars News Agency.
Ali Akbar Siadat was hanged in a Tehran prison after being convicted of
receiving $60,000 dollars “to give classified information to the
Zionist regime.” He was reportedly arrested two years ago when he and
his wife were trying to leave the country with nearly 30 pages of
classified information.
Tehran's Prosecutor Abbas Jaffari Dolatabadi said more cases are under
investigation. An Iranian minister warned two months ago that
"...enemies are trying to change the Islamic atmosphere of the
universities into their own favorite atmosphere of liberal-democracy and
to give a new definition for Islamic values based on their own views."
“Enemies are active in this regard because they have realized the importance of universities."
Iranian universities have served as a large base for opposition to the
Islamic Republic regime, but Iranian Revolutionary Guards and riot
police won the upper hand in massive demonstrations more than a year ago
after the disputed re-election of Ahmadinejad. Hundreds of
demonstrators were tortured or disappeared, and dozens were killed.
Siadat reportedly confessed to handing over to the enemy information
regarding "military bases, fighter jets, the number of training flights,
airplane accidents and air systems of the Revolutionary Guards,” which
controls Iran’s missile program.
Siadat had met Israeli contacts in Turkey, Thailand and the Netherlands, Iranian media reported.
The spy charges followed several mysterious deaths of Iranian
scientists as well as elimination of a top nuclear scientist last month.
Iran has accused the Mossad of being behind the bombing attacks on the
scientists, one of whom was killed. The other was seriously injured.
The hanging of Siadat, along with that of another
“counter-revolutionary” this week, brings to 171 the number of people
executed in Iran this year, according to a summary compiled by the
French news agency AFP. In addition to spying, crimes of drug dealings,
adultery, murder and rape are grounds for death sentences in Iran.
8. London Terror Cell Targeted Rabbis
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Britain revealed Tuesday that it arrested nine terrorists last week,
five days before a planned “Christmas bomb blitz” that would
have targeted two rabbis, among others. The names of the rabbis were not
released, and authorities did not reveal several details of the planned
attack.
All nine terrorists were either born in Britain or grew up there. Some
of them are of Bangladeshi origin, according to the London Daily Mail.
Besides two rabbis, whose addresses were written on a list, other
targets included a London tourist attraction, the London Stock Exchange,
Mayor Boris Johnson, the dean of a cathedral and the American embassy.
The terrorist gang also had visited Big Ben, a McDonald's restaurant and other sites where large crowds gather.
They already had tested explosives in preparation for the bomb blitz,
according to evidence presented in court. All of the men are under the
age of 29 and were arrested in a series of dawn raids after London
intelligence officers conducted a surveillance operation and recorded
the cell’s conversation.
Publication of the arrests and charges against the terrorists coincided with charges by the Israeli Defense Ministry that the “Palestinian Return Center” is operating in London as the organizational arm of Hamas.
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