Report Iran

Iran Nuclear: An interview that Amano missed to read before publishing the latest IAEA's report

2011-11-10T01:56:00.000Z

ReportIran
10 November 2011
Though rather old but the interview can shed light to many questions raised recently in the report published by IAEA on Tuesday 8th November 2011.

Interviewed by: Oliver Meier
Conducted on 27 September 2011

Representing Iran at the IAEA: Ambassador Ali Asghar Soltanieh Speaks with Arms Control Today

(Washington, D.C.) -- In the midst of proposals for renewing international talks with Iran over the nuclear issue and ahead of the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) quarterly board meeting in which Iran's cooperation with the agency would again come under fire, Arms Control Today (ACT) interviewed Ali Asghar Soltanieh, Iran's representative to the IAEA, about the current impasse.

As Iran's IAEA envoy, Ambassador Soltanieh deals directly with the Iran nuclear controversy and with an agency whose relations with Tehran appear to be increasingly tense. During the IAEA's Sept. 12-16 board meeting, IAEA Director-General Yukiya Amano said he planned to detail suspicions that Iran has been engaged in work to develop a nuclear warhead, potentially bringing the issue to a head at the next board meeting in November.

Ambassador Soltanieh defends his government's cooperation with the IAEA, stressing Iran's greater openness during a recent IAEA inspection, while objecting to the notion of increasing transparency under the threat of sanctions.

He also touches on recent diplomatic initiatives, including an Iranian offer of "full supervision" over its nuclear program by the IAEA for five years if sanctions were lifted, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's claim that Iran can continue to enrich uranium in the future after addressing international concerns.

Finally, the Ambassador provides some additional details on Iran's future nuclear plans, including the decision not to construct more enrichment facilities for the time being, and the rationale behind ramping up the production of 20%-enriched uranium at the new Fordow plant.

The full interview is @ Arms Control Association website

Iran provides basic answers to the questions about its nuclear program

2011-11-10T00:17:00.000Z

10 November 2011
Tehran Times

Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Ali-Asghar Soltanieh has offered the (Non-Aligned Movement) NAM critical information about Iran's nuclear program amid a publicity hype following the publication of the report by the IAEA on 9th Novemebr on Iran's nuclear activities.

In a session of the NAM, held upon Iran's request on Tuesday, Ali-Asghar Soltanieh responded to 20 critical questions about Tehran's nuclear program and a host of related issues.

IAEA Director General Yukiya Amano's latest report on Iran's nuclear activities was circulated among 35 members of the Board of Governors of the agency on Tuesday evening, almost 10 days ahead of the seasonal meeting of the board, due to take place in Vienna on November 17 and 18.

This is a report that you normally do not see in the mainstream media such as BBC and CNN.
See the full report @ Tehran Times

US Ambassador privately admits Iran's nuclear ambition is not for weapon

2011-01-27T00:48:00.002Z

Wikileaks and The Guardian

26 January 2011

In a classified cable dated 29 April 2009, Ambassador Gregory L. Schulte confirms that Iran had no weapon programme in her nuclear activities. In his cable he says, "Recalling the U.S. Intelligence Community's assessment in the 2007 NIE that Iran halted its nuclear weapons work in 2003, France asked about information in DDG Safeguards Olli Heinonen's February 2008 technical briefing which indicated some activities had taken place in 2004. The U.S. responded that the information in Heinonen's February 2008 briefing was consistent with the 2003 weaponization halt assessment, since some activities were wrapping up in 2004."

Experts from the UK, US, France, Russia, China and Germany debate how much progress Iran is making. Most of the talk is about uranium enrichment, the problems Iran is having in getting the centrifuges at the Natanz enrichment plant to work properly.

to see the full cable go @ here

Toward a Negotiated Solution – Solving the Iranian Nuclear Puzzle

2011-01-27T00:26:00.000Z

by Charles D. Ferguson
Jan 26, 2011

Last week, I spoke at a meeting of the Arms Control Association on the Multilateral “P-5+1” talks with Iran over its nuclear program. How we can improve IAEA monitoring and verification so that we can have sufficient confidence that Iran’s nuclear fuel-cycle activities are not used for weapons purpose?

The panelists included Barry Blechman, co-founder of the Henry L. Stimson Center and chair of the Stimson-U.S. Institute of Peace joint study group on Engagement, Coercion, and Iran’s Nuclear Challenge; Greg Thielmann, ACA Senior Fellow and former professional staffer of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and official with the State Department’s Bureau of Intelligence and Research; and Daryl G. Kimball, ACA Executive Director will moderate.

To see the full transcript click @ here

Flynt Leverett and Hillary Mann Leverett on Iran

2010-04-04T11:27:00.005Z

Flynt Leverett and Hillary Mann Leverett on Iran in Charlie Rose show

Interviewer and broadcast journalist Charlie Rose put the former CIA analyst on the roundtable to discuss about latest Iran's situation right after the Iranian New Year Nurooz. The two guests strongly support Ahmadinejad. They also indicate that have recently (two weeks earlier) visited Iran and met many people including some Iranian revolutionary Guard officials.

However, Scott Lucas reacted to this programme very harshly and wrote in the comment section:

Sadly, I found little of value in this platform for the Leveretts, and indeed in almost all of their commentary in recent months. For me, this is polemic posing as analysis, distinguished by unsupported speculation, misrepresentations, and frequent distortions.

The Leverett offer little support for their assertions about Iran’s internal politics, some of which are wildly off the mark. Unfortunately, in contrast to the normal excellent of this programme, I found Mr Rose and his researchers ill-prepared to confront the Leveretts' misleading claims.

see the full interview @ Charlie Rose Show

Mebane: Signs of Fraud on Iran Presidential Election

2009-06-27T20:11:00.000Z

A report by the Michigan Professor

Walter R. Mebane Jr, the election forensics expert who continues to wade through the official vote count from the Iranian elections has his starkest conclusion yet: that there was "extensive ballot box stuﬃng on Ahmadinejad's behalf."

The title of report is "Note on the presidential election in Iran" and you can find it in 27 pages here.

Mebane, a professor of political science and statistics in the University of Michigan, then goes further, suggesting that "[w]ithout the ballot-box stuﬃng fraud ... the election outcome should have been at least a runoﬀ between Ahmadinejad and Mousavi." In his latest update on a report on the Iranian election Mebane added"There are suspicious elements here, but there's no solid evidence of fraud."

Mebane concludes that, "Tests such as those considered in this paper can in general only identify places where there may be problems with the votes. In some places the suggestions may be extremely strong (e.g., for recent Russian elections, see Mebane and Kalinin 2009). In general the tests’ best use is for screening election results, not confirming or refuting claims of fraud. A significant finding should prompt investigations using administrative records, witness testimony and other facts to try to determine what happened."

Mebane most striking conclusion is: "The problem with the 2009 Iranian election is that the serious questions that have been raised are unlikely to receive satisfactory answers. Transparency is utterly lacking in this case. There is little reason to believe the official results announced in that election accurately reflect the intentions of the voters who went to the polls."

Find the original report@University of Michigan

Survey of official Iran results casts serious doubt on victory claims

2009-06-22T00:13:00.000Z

a report by Chatham House
21 June 2009
Authors:
Ali Ansari, Daniel Berman and Thomas Rintoul,

A survey of Iran's election results, published today by Chatham House and the University of St Andrews, raises serious questions about the plausibility of the claimed victory and demonstrates irregularities in the official results.

According to this report:
Even the official statistics - obtained from the Ministry of the Interior - indicate that:

*
votes cast exceeded the number of eligible voters in two provinces
*
claims that Ahmadinejad swept the board in rural provinces flies in the face of previous results

The plausibility of Mr Ahmadinejad's claimed victory is called into question by figures that show that in several provinces he would have had to attract the votes of all new voters, all the votes of his former centrist opponent, and up to 44% of those who voted for reformist candidates in 2005.

Irregularities are found in conservative Mazandaran and Yazd provinces where votes cast exceeded the number of eligible voters.

Professor Ali Ansari said: 'The analysis shows that the scale of the swing to Ahmadinejad would have had to have been extraordinary to achieve the stated result'.

Thomas Rintoul said: 'The claimed results in minority provinces are particularity extreme, the numbers from Ilam, Lorestan and Hormozegan almost defy belief".

Read paper @ Chatham House

Download the report here

CSIS report: An Israeli strike against Iran would lack any success

2009-05-30T23:49:00.004Z

A report by CSIS in Washington

During the last several months, the Burke Chair has carried out a detailed examination of Iran’s programs involving missile and weapons of mass destruction. The key drafts involved are available on the CSIS web site at:
http://www.csis.org/burke/reports/
A final comprehensive report will be published this summer as CSIS book by the Praeger Press.

In this detailed, 114-page assessment of how Israel could attack Iran’s nuclear infrastructure, conducted by Abdullah Toukan and Anthony Cordesman at the U.S.-based Center for Strategic and International Studies. Cordesman is a military analyst and a former national security adviser to Republican Senator John McCain of Arizona.

Haaretz recently dissects this report but according to Haaretz:

“One of the conclusions from Toukan and Cordesman’s study is that it is questionable whether Israel has the military capability to destroy Iran’s nuclear program, or even to delay it for several years. Therefore, if the diplomatic contacts the Obama administration is initiating with Iran prove useless, and if in the wake of their expected failure the American president does not decide to attack Iran, it is likely that Iran will possess nuclear weapons in a relatively short time. It seems, therefore, that policy makers in Jerusalem should begin preparing, mentally and operationally, for a situation in which Iran is a nuclear power with a strike capability against Israel.

This is the place to emphasize Israel’s mistake in hyping the Iranian threat. The regime in Tehran is certainly a bitter and inflexible rival, but from there it’s a long way to presenting it as a truly existential threat to Israel. Iran’s involvement in terror in our region is troubling, but a distinction must be made between a willingness to bankroll terrorists, and an intention to launch nuclear missiles against Israel. Even if Iran gets nuclear weapons, Israel’s power of deterrence will suffice to dissuade any Iranian ruler from even contemplating launching nuclear weapons against it.”

Find the report @ CSIS

main report in PDF @ CSIS

In Search of female prisoner 650 in the US custody

2009-04-03T14:14:00.002Z

Press release:
Press TV Exclusive: First TV interview with Binyam Mohammed on The Agenda show, Thursday 2 April.

Torture victim, Binyam Mohammed has given his very first TV interview since his release from Guantanamo in February. In the interview with Press TV he makes sensational claims about the plight of female detainees caught up in the war on terror.

His dramatic eyewitness account was aired this week on The Agenda, a lively political discussion show hosted by journalist, Yvonne Ridley.

When President Obama took office in January he promised his administration would be the most transparent in US history.

Yet, the British resident and former detainee reveals he is "one hundred per cent" convinced that a female detainee he saw during his captivity in Bagram prison is the elusive Dr Aafiya Siddiqui.

This contradicts the official position forwarded by the US Government that she and her children were not in US custody prior to July 2008.

Press TV’s robust investigations have eventually secured a major retraction from both The Pentagon and the Bagram media centre, after they were originally not so forthcoming.

Mohammed made the comment during a private screening of a Press TV documentary - In Search of Prisoner 650 - which premieres on Sunday, April 5, charting the investigation into the intriguing case of Aafiya Siddiqui.

The Agenda was broadcast on Thursday 2nd April at 9:06 GMT; and repeated on Friday 3rd April at 1:06 GMT and 2:33 GMT.
The footage is available on The Agenda website

The first part of the documentary film In Search of Prisoner 650 will be broadcast on Sunday April 5 at 1:33 GMT, and then repeated at 6:33 GMT, 12:33 GMT and 17:33 GMT. The second part going out on Monday, April 6 at 12:33 GMT, then repeated at 5:33 GMT, 11:33 GMT and 16:33 GMT.

Press TV is on Sky channel 515 or live stream online at www.presstv.co.uk. Agenda info desk: +44 20 8728 6461 and email at theagenda@presstv.com or the agenda@presstv.co.uk

British Jewish MP denounces Israelis war criminals

2009-01-18T23:26:00.004Z

Sir Gerald Kaufmann, a Jewish MP, denounces Israeli leaders as war criminals

On his speech at the British parliament recently he said: "Israel was born out of Jewish Terrorism" Tzipi Livnis Father was a Terrorist" Astonishing claims in the Hous of Parliamnet. SIR Gerald Kaufman, the veteran Labour MP, yesterday compared the actions of Israeli troops in Gaza to the Nazis who forced his family to flee Poland.

During a Commons debate on the fighting in Gaza, on Thursday 15th January he urged the UK government to impose an arms embargo on Israel.

Sir Gerald, who was brought up as an orthodox Jew and Zionist, said: "My grandmother was ill in bed when the Nazis came to her home town a German soldier shot her dead in her bed.

"My grandmother did not die to provide cover for Israeli soldiers murdering Palestinian grandmothers in Gaza. The present Israeli government ruthlessly and cynically exploits the continuing guilt from gentiles over the slaughter of Jews in the Holocaust as justification for their murder of Palestinians."

He said the claim that many of the Palestinian victims were militants "was the reply of the Nazi" and added: "I suppose the Jews fighting for their lives in the Warsaw ghetto could have been dismissed as militants."

He accused the Israeli government of seeking "conquest" and added: "

They are not simply war criminals, they are fools."

more @ setfree68

Majority of Gazans are refugees of Israel occupation

2009-01-12T00:39:00.002Z

Majority of the 1.5 million Gazans are refugees of Israel occupation

Rashid Khalidi
New York Times
7 January 2009,

NEARLY everything you’ve been led to believe about Gaza is wrong. Below are a few essential points that seem to be missing from the conversation, much of which has taken place in the press, about Israel’s attack on the Gaza Strip.

Most of the people living in Gaza are not there by choice. The majority of the 1.5 million people crammed into the roughly 140 square miles of the Gaza Strip belong to families that came from towns and villages outside Gaza like Ashkelon and Beersheba. They were driven to Gaza by the Israeli Army in 1948.

THE OCCUPATION The Gazans have lived under Israeli occupation since the Six-Day War in 1967. Israel is still widely considered to be an occupying power, even though it removed its troops and settlers from the strip in 2005. Israel still controls access to the area, imports and exports, and the movement of people in and out. Israel has control over Gaza’s air space and sea coast, and its forces enter the area at will. As the occupying power, Israel has the responsibility under the Fourth Geneva Convention to see to the welfare of the civilian population of the Gaza Strip.

THE BLOCKADE Israel’s blockade of the strip, with the support of the United States and the European Union, has grown increasingly stringent since Hamas won the Palestinian Legislative Council elections in January 2006. Fuel, electricity, imports, exports and the movement of people in and out of the Strip have been slowly choked off, leading to life-threatening problems of sanitation, health, water supply and transportation.

The blockade has subjected many to unemployment, penury and malnutrition. This amounts to the collective punishment — with the tacit support of the United States — of a civilian population for exercising its democratic rights.

THE CEASE-FIRE Lifting the blockade, along with a cessation of rocket fire, was one of the key terms of the June cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. This accord led to a reduction in rockets fired from Gaza from hundreds in May and June to a total of less than 20 in the subsequent four months (according to Israeli government figures). The cease-fire broke down when Israeli forces launched major air and ground attacks in early November; six Hamas operatives were reported killed.

WAR CRIMES The targeting of civilians, whether by Hamas or by Israel, is potentially a war crime. Every human life is precious. But the numbers speak for themselves: Nearly 700 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed since the conflict broke out at the end of last year. In contrast, there have been around a dozen Israelis killed, many of them soldiers. Negotiation is a much more effective way to deal with rockets and other forms of violence. This might have been able to happen had Israel fulfilled the terms of the June cease-fire and lifted its blockade of the Gaza Strip.

This war on the people of Gaza isn’t really about rockets. Nor is it about “restoring Israel’s deterrence,” as the Israeli press might have you believe. Far more revealing are the words of Moshe Yaalon, then the Israeli Defense Forces chief of staff, in 2002: “The Palestinians must be made to understand in the deepest recesses of their consciousness that they are a defeated people.”

Rashid Khalidi, a professor of Arab studies at Columbia, is the author of the forthcoming “Sowing Crisis: The Cold War and American Dominance in the Middle East."

main article @ NY Times

US should normalise low-level diplomatic relations with Iran

2008-12-21T17:41:00.002Z

CFR Experts argued
20 Decemebr 08

As the Obama administration prepares to confront the challenges presented by Iran’s nuclear program, a new report co-authored by Council on Foreign Relations scholar Ray Takeyh and Brookings’ Suzanne Maloney advocates setting a new course for U.S.-Iranian relations. The report, titled “A New U.S. Policy toward Iran,” argues:

“The Obama administration may be tempted to take the easy way out by offering merely new rhetoric and modest refinements to the carrot-and-stick approach that has failed its five predecessors. This would be a mistake. Today, to deal effectively with a rising Iran, the United States must embark on a far deeper reevaluation of its strategy and launch a comprehensive diplomatic initiative to attempt to engage its most enduring Middle Eastern foe.”

The authors recommend “normalizing low-level diplomatic relations so that the U.S. government can gain familiarity with Iranian officials and achieve a better understanding of Iranian political dynamics. American officials are currently forbidden from direct contact with their Iranian counterparts, a stipulation that further degrades the already limited capacity of the U.S. government to interpret Iran.”

This report is part of the recently-published Saban Center at Brookings and Council on Foreign Relations book titled Restoring the Balance: A Middle East Strategy for the Next President. More information about the book can be found here: www.cfr.org/restoring_the_balance.

view the full text @ CFR

US used Nuclear bomb in Iraq, veteran accused

2008-10-25T22:04:00.001Z

Rai24 Italy TV
7 October 2008
di Maurizio Torrealta

THE THIRD NUCLEAR BOMB, THE VETERAN'S ACCUSATION
In the investigative report an American veteran who participated in “Desert Storm” accuses the Us Administration of having used a small nuclear penetration bomb with an energy of 5 kilotons between the Iraqi town of Basra and the border with Iran.

See the documentary here
Download video here

Also in the website:
- Notes on Jim Brown
- The text of the report in English
- The video in English
- Data on the health situation in Basra [The file contains some photoes, crude and realistic, produced by Dr. Jawad al Ali, oncologist of the Basra's hospital] (PowerPoint file - 1,33 MB)
- Data on seismic events in the area registered in February 1991 as reported on the ISC website.
- The 4.2 magnitude datum that we have found during Desert Storm operations
- Comparison table between kilotons and the Richter scale [ZIP file - 10 KB]
- Seismical data traced in NORSAR seismic monitoring network during March 1, 2 and 3 in 2002 in Afghanistan.
- The text of the 2 letters from the American Defense Department

More @ Rai24

Galloway squeezed Channel Four for Undercover Mosque: the Return

2008-09-14T01:02:00.002Z

In a televised programme broadcast at Press TV George Galloway, a British member of parliament, clashes with Hardcash producer over Channel 4's Undercover Mosque program

British Muslims have reacted with dismay and disgust to Channel 4's Undercover Mosque program, which claimed to expose extremism in British mosques.
Muslims have complained that the film was deeply irresponsible and will only increase Islamophobia and racial hatred in this country.

The film has been denounced for focusing on a minority of extreme statements and blowing them out of all proportion, thus demonizing the entire Muslim community. It has also been condemned for its insinuation that British Muslims are being radicalized by Saudi Islam, when all the evidence points to the fact that they're being radicalized by British foreign policy.
In a heated exchange on Press TV's the Real Deal program, David Henshaw, the producer who made Undercover Mosque, was challenged by host George Galloway MP.
Galloway accused Henshaw of having a problem with Islam and Muslims and insulting them on the first day of Ramadan, as well as inciting non-Muslims against them.
Henshaw said his film was just conveying the feelings of so-called moderate Muslims who believe their religion has been hijacked.
The 11-minute exchange involved much finger-pointing and accusatory language and ended up with Galloway calling Henshaw a "hooligan".
You can watch the heated debate on Press TV's website (www.presstv.com) under the "Programs" section:
Full programme @ The Real Deal

The beginning of smashing the medieval israeli-led siege

2008-08-28T18:39:00.000Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 26 (day 27)

By Yvonne Ridley
Thursday 28 August,

I hope you have enjoyed reading my Gaza blog as much as I have writing it and sharing with you the amazing experience of me and my fellow passengers who took part in the historic free Gaza Movement.
However, this is not the end but just a beginning of smashing the medieval israeli-led siege which has enveloped the good people of Gaza.
When our two boats The Liberty and Free Gaza sail from this tiny Palestinian port in a few hours time we plan to keep the channel between Gaza and Cyprus open.
I am told that leaving Gaza may prove to be slightly more tricky than arriving ... the psychological warfare between us and Israel has begun already and last night the Zionist State's naval gun boats sailed into our view off the Gazan coast.
We are told there will be missile testing.
When will Israel realise this peace mission is NOT about them and never was!
I have made many friends in Gaza and I intend to return soon.
As I reflect over the last amazing week there are highlights which will remain with me forever like the moment we sailed into the harbour to be given a euphoric greeting by the beseiged Palestinians.
And, just a couple of days ago I had the privilege of meeting Ismael Haniyeh, the Prime Minister, who handed me a gold medal marking our historic voyage ... eat your heart out Bejiing!
He really made me feel like an Olympian but of course the real heroes in all of this are not the 'boat people' from the Free gaza Movement.
The real heroes are the people of Gaza who rise to the challenge of surviving the brutal siege which intrudes on their lives daily. For them, every day is an act of resistance and defiance.
Despite this blockade and collective punishment the morale of the Palestinians in incredibly high and i have to say hamas has managed to turn gaza into one of the safest cities in the world.
Crime is down by 80 per cent since Hamas took control. Perhaps the mayors of New York and london should invite their gazan coutnerpart over to ask him the secret.
I walked around Gaza freely, spoke openly, had brutally frank political dioscussions with Gazans in rallies, on the beach, in the soul ... i can't enjoy that sort of freedom of speech in any other Arab country.
Ramadahn is approaching soon and to the people of Gaza may I say an early Ramadahn Mabrook ... you will forever be in my prayers and in my heart.
See you soon, insh'allah.
May be it is about time we re-opened Gaza airport and smashed the Israeli air blockade as well ... now there's an idea!

* Yvonne Ridley and film-maker Aki Nawaz are making an exclusive documentary for press TV about the journey to Gaza in which 44 peace activists from 17 countries astonished the world by breaking the siege of Gaza on two Greek fishing boats.

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

Gaza boats: Mr Hosni Mubarak - time to rip down the borders

2008-08-28T18:28:00.000Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 21 (day 24)

By Yvonne Ridley
Monday 25 August,

I still can not believe I am writing to you from Gaza. Since the Free Gaza Movement sailed its two boats into Palestinian waters the celebrations have not stopped and our groups have been very busy.
Today I joined some women whose husbands, fathers and brothers of the Israeli-held detainees in a protest rally as a sign of solidarity in the hope that the Zionist State might show a little bit of humanity and release these political prisoners.
And yes, many - if not all - of them are political prisoners. This was reinforced today at the Gazan legislative council where we were told how 40 democratically elected MPs from Gaza are being held in Israeli jails having being kidnapped by the Zionist State for nothing more than being chosen to represent their people.
It is unbelievable - no wonder the israelis like to shut out Western journalists from Gaza ... they really do not want the world to know what is happening here.
While I was doing this some of the other international peace activists were up at 4am to go fishing. The SS Free Gaza, with six Palestinian fishermen’s boats, is currently 8-miles off the coast of Gaza as I write. I hear that they are being circled by three Israeli Dabur naval vessels. No shots have been fired and the fishing boats are continuing to exercise their right to fish and have not turned round.
The Oslo Accords allow Palestinian Gazans a 20-mile limit off the coast of the Gaza Strip. Currently the Navy is enforcing a 6 mile limit, so the Free Gaza Movement has broken that naval blockade, too.
And tomorrow we all intend to go to the Rafah crossing to demand the Egyptians open the border so we can get sick Palestinians out to receive urgent medical aid and make sure humanitarian aid on the other side can get in.
Egypt you have been put on notice - we are a determined group of peace activists who will stop at nothing ... especially brutal man-made barriers, blockades, walls and borders.
It is about time you and the rest of the Arab world started to show some solidarity with your Palestinian brothers and sisters. Do you really need to take lessons from a bunch of westerners in solidarity?
Mr Hosni Mubarak - time to rip down the borders.
You have been warned!

* Yvonne Ridley and film-maker Aki nawaz are making a documentary on the historic breaking of the siege of Gaza for Press TV

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

Israel could NOT STOP the boats even if it tried

2008-08-28T18:23:00.000Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 20 (day 23)

By Yvonne Ridley
Sunday 24 August,

Well, you would have to be deaf, dumb and blind not to know that I am writing to you today from Gaza.
I really was too overwhelmed yesterday to put pen to paper after the magnificent welcome I and my fellow peace activists from SS Liberty and SS Free Gaza received as we entered the port of Gaza ... the first ships to sail in since 1967.
But I really want to make one thing very clear to you here and now.
Israel did not give us permission to enter Gaza - the reality is they could NOT STOP us even if they tried.
And believe me some of the tactics to scupper our historic voyage were unbelievable.
Some of us, our family and friends have received death threats by telephone, text and emails while the whole Free Gaza Movement was targetted by Zionists lawyers who tried to sink our mission beofre it even began.
We were accused of being a front for a Hamas operarted gun-running venture and even iran was accused of being party by supplying weapons.
Then Israel Foreign Minister Zvipi Livni made a snide comment a few days ago saying she hoped we could all swim while the Naval Commander announced he was running military exercises off the coast of Gaza and had thrown a 35-mile wide exclusion zone around.
As you know we set off from Larnaca, determined but a little nervous on Friday and, in the dead of night, all of our communications when down ... satellite phones, radar etc. There we were sailing in rough seas, in the pitch black without any form of communication to the outside world.
It was psychological warfare but the Zionist scare tactics failed and driven by nothing more than people power and a couple of seaworthy engines the SS Free Gaza and the SS Liberty sailed into a tumultus welcome in Gaza.
It was one of those defining moments in history - a bit like the first brick of the Berlin Wall being dislodged by ordinary citizens sick of the injustices imposed in a world run by political bullies.
All I could hear ringing in my ears was "Free, Free, Free Gaza and Allahu Akbar".
The emotion was unbelievable and the joy swept us all along on the crest of a gigantic Palestinian wave of delight and disbelief.
We have now smashed the medieval siege imposed by Israel but we will not stop.
Now we need to tear down the checkpoint and crossing at Rafah where so much humanitarian aid has arrived only to be refused entry.
The Egyptian Government should hang its head in shame that a bunch of largely white, non-Muslim westerners smashed the brutal siege by sea to reach the Palestinians and now they must do the same.
There were a few weasel words from Abu Mazen on the day we arrived ... why did the Palestinian leader take so long to send us a goodwill message? Was he waiting for the greenlight by his political masters in washington and Tel Aviv? 'Fraid it was too little too late from a man who is doing his best to ignore the people of Gaza ... shame, shame, shame on you!
And as for the words of goodwill from the Arab League - back them up with hard cash to make this whole Free Gaza Movement permanent so we can open a ferry between Larnaca and Gaza which will run regularly.
Finally, a big thank you to all of you out there who have given us unstinting solidarity, support and encouragement.
It is time for the politicians to move aside and let the people take over - the people united will never be defeated.
Must dash - I'm about to get my passport stamped with Gaza, Gaza City.

* Yvonne Ridley was on board the SS LIberty with film-maker Aki Nawaz producing a documentary for Press TV which will be shown later this year.

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

We will all be held to account over the biggest crime against humanity in Gaza

2008-08-28T18:15:00.000Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 19 (day 20)

By Yvonne Ridley
Thursday 21 August,

WHEN I was captured by the Taliban just after the horrific events of 9/11 my mother captivated the world's media for the entire 10 days I was held in Afghanistan.
She did better than any international diplomat as she briefed the press morning, noon and night and virtually became Britain's best known mum overnight.
Several days into my detention, the then Foreign Secretary Jack Straw called her to advise that her headline-grabbing over-the-garden-gate press conferences could jeopardise my life and so she should stop. Undeterred, she told the government minister to: "Get lost".
And when her local MP dropped by carrying the same message from Blair's government, he was given a nice cup of tea before she showed him the door as well.
So today, when one of the Free Gaza Movement organisers asked me if there was anyone who could act as a family spokesperson in the event of my arrest (or worse) I knew there was only one person I could turn to who would speak without fear or favour - my mum, the redoubtable Joyce Ridley.
And so, just a few hours ago, I made possibly one of the most difficult calls I've had to make to my mum. She already knew I was on the Free Gaza Movement peace mission thanks to a front page story in the Newcastle Journal, which was published before I had a chance to tell her.
In truth, she's not happy I am on board one of the two ships sailing to Gaza but this is what I said to her: "When the Holocaust was happening a lot of people around the world knew that atrocity against the Jewish people was taking place and yet they did nothing to stop the genocide. I was not around then, but even today there are those who still feel guilty because they sat back and did nothing.
"Well I am damned if I am going to sit back and do nothing as the slow genocide of Palestinians takes place in the world's largest open air concentration camp known as Gaza.
"I do not wield the power or influence of Tony Blair or any of the Quartet leaders. I do not have the power to order the Israeli soldiers to carry out the jack-boot policies of the Zionist State they serve without question.
"But I do have a voice and with every breath I will shout out loud about the injustices against the Palestinians and in particular the people of Gaza. One day we will all be held to account over the biggest crime against humanity of the 21st century.
"My only defence will be "I did what I could'.
I hope I am not arrested by the Zionist State because I don't want to have to put my 81-year-old mother through anymore stress again. I know she went through hell when I was arrested by the Taliban nearly seven years ago.
But, if things do go a wee bit pear-shaped I know Joyce Ridley will be a more effective international ambassador or envoy than that feckless, gutless, self-serving, deceiver Tony Blair or his cabal of Zionist cronies.

* Yvonne Ridley and Indy film-maker Aki Nawaz are making a documentary about the Free Gaza Movement's peace mission to break the Israeli siege of Gaza for Press TV.

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

Yvonne: we are determined to smash the medieval siege of Gaza

2008-08-28T18:04:00.001Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 18 (day 19)

By Yvonne Ridley
Wednesday 20 August,

IT IS NOT every day a boat gets an official escort into port but the Free Gaza and the SS liberty were given the VIP treatment by the Cypriot Coast Guard during the early hours of this morning as we headed towards Larnaca.
By 8.30am we pulled into the commercial port and there we were finally re-united with the rest of the Free Gaza Movement activists.
But the moment for me was tinged with sadness as I gazed around looking for Hedy Epstein, the Jewish, Octogenarian Holocaust survivor who is one of the main personalities in our team.
The bad news is that Hedy fainted yesterday in the searing heat of Nicosia and was taken to hospital. The good news is that she signed herself out and is taking things easy for the moment.
I am still hopeful she will join us on board our mission to smash the siege of Gaza, but she apparently has left that decision to the rest of us ... that, in itself, is a true act of selflessness and solidarity: qualities which I have evidenced several times since joining the FGM group.
So keep your fingers crossed - I hope Hedy still joins us, but I understand there could be a few more surprise guests coming on board which will make it impossible for the Israeli authorities to deploy their usual style of jack-boot management should they wish to stop us.
I know my column is read closely everyday by assistants to politicians in the Knesset to try and gauge the mood of those on board our two boats.
Well, for their benefit, I can tell you we are determined more than ever to smash the medieval siege of Gaza which is denying basic humantiarian aid, food and medicines to the Palestinians in what can only be described as collective punishment.
This is our mood despite the personal threats to our safety, that of our families, friends and supporters. I can't go into too many specifics but the dirty tricks that have been deployed to subvert and undermine this mission have been numerous and without result.
Why is the Zionist State so determined to stop a group of peace activists sailing into Gaza? it is a bunring question and one which the Zionist State does not want to answer.
You see they do not want Press TV cameras, or anyonme else's media organisations going in to the world's largest open air prison to reveal the true horrors being endured by the Palestinians.
Israel is overseeing the slow genocide of a people who have never wronged the Jewish people but are being made to pay for the sins of Europeans who did.
If we can get our boats through the Israeli blockade safely to show our support to the Gazans, then everyone's a winner.
The latest tactic being used is that we peace activists are at risk of being shot at by Palestinian terrorists if we enter Gaza so, for our own safety, we can not go.
Look. if we are prepared to face down the Israeli gun boats then we are prepared for anything. We are all sensible, responsible adults who are prepared to do whatever it takes to get to Gaza.
I would have more to fear wandeirng into any one of the illegal Israeli settlements - we know from recent events, these settlements shield violent and dangerous thugs.
Should, however, the Zionist State use force against a peaceful mission it will reveal its true, ugly nature to the watching world - and believe me the world will be watching through live streaming on board.
I've no doubt we will be talking tactics tonight, but in the meantime we are so happy to be finally united as one group.
Paul Larudee, one of the leaders of the FGM, said: "We've been waiting a long time to unify our group, which has been split between Cyprus and Crete. We are excited to combine both groups who have worked so hard on this project and are so enthusiastic about setting out for Gaza.
"On the way in today, we had the Cypriot authorities escorting us. Now, it's time for the world to escort us to Gaza.".
After a thorough inspection of both boats, the port authority let the 20 passengers from Cyprus on board to make final preparations, including a memorial service for the more than 5000 Palestinians who have lost their lives since September 2000 as well as the 34 sailors aboard the USS Liberty who were assassinated by Israel in 1967.
They, like the Palestinians, will not be forgotten. That service should be on Thursday, August 21 just before the boats begin their final journey to Gaza.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if everyone in the region with a boat joined our flotilla of peace and descended into Gazan waters?
Just imagine, if the Israeli Navy does get stroppy which boat will they try and stop?
Please allow me to remind you of Pastor Martin Neimoller's poem, it is so relevant to what is happening in Gaza today:
When the Nazis came for the communists,
I remained silent;
I was not a communist.

When they locked up the social democrats,
I remained silent;
I was not a social democrat.

When they came for the trade unionists,
I did not speak out;
I was not a trade unionist.

When they came for the Jews,
I remained silent;
I wasn't a Jew.

When they came for me,
there was no one left to speak out.

Please, remain silent no longer. Shout out your support to the Free Gaza Movement, shout out your support for the Palestinians and help us in any way you can ... trust me we will hear you and be encouraged.

* Yvonne Ridley is onboard the Free Gaza boat with Indy film-maker Aki Nawaz to make a documentary for Press TV.

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

our mission: to smash the medieval siege of Gaza with boats

2008-08-23T15:36:00.001Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 16 (day 18)

By Yvonne Ridley
Tuesday 19 August,

I have been at sea now for more than 24 hours since the Free Gaza sailed from the last of the Greek island ports en route for Cyprus.
Life on board is beginning to test us all now but morale is still very high and our bonds as a team are growing stronger.
We probably all pong since there are no shower or bathing facilitities on board and I haven’t had a good scrub for three days at least.
There are a couple of toilets, but I’m feeling slightly queasy at the moment so we’ll skip those details.
Living conditions as you’ve probably gathered are very basic and below decks is so hot and humid that most of us prefer to sleep on deck.
It is amazing how the body can adapt to a hard deck and the roll of the sea, but when you are so tired sleeping comes easy.
Meals are communal affairs, standing around the midship talking about a variety of subjects although Gaza is never very far away.
Lauren Booth, sister-in-law of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, has assumed the role of ship’s chef and I step in as her able assistant … eat your heart out ‘Kitchen goddess’ Nigella Lawson!
Most of the food suits the dietary needs of the vegan and vegetarians on board, all very simple and healthy, but I have to admit I am craving for some halal steak or lamb chops and film-maker Aki Nawaz says he’s dreaming of chicken!
Today we had a tactical meeting covering a variety of “what if” scenarios with a veteran campaigner of the International Solidarity Movement which was founded in 2001 to act in support of Palestinian non-violent resistance.
There’s a few ISM people on board from across Europe as well a retired American film producer and executive. And there’s myself and Aki Nawaz who are capturing all the excitement as well as the mundane to make a documentary of the mission for Press TV.
Just to remind you, our mission is to smash the medieval siege of Gaza using two boats called the SS Liberty and the Free Gaza.
By tomorrow morning (Wednesday) we should have reached Cyprus to pick up the rest of the international activists including Holocaust survivor Hedy Epstein and co-organiser Greta Berlin who make up the Free Gaza Movement.
I can’t wait for when we are all reunited and finally put to sea for Palestinian waters.
I told you yesterday how Israel’s Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has acknowledged that our mission is peaceful but has said we should handover any humanitarian aid for Israel to distribute.
Well Ms Livni, I don’t think we can trust you dear.
News has just reached me that the Scottish delegation which had a lorry load of aid for Gaza has been forced to turn back … after being detained at the Rafah Border for more than a month.
Quite frankly Ms Livni, speaking for myself now, you disgust me. Tell me why you and your government refused to let in medical aid bought by the good people of Scotland?
Your weasel words reveal you to be a liar of the worst kind – one without heart or compassion for the children of Gaza. You are a woman of straw and can not be trusted.
I thought your type had been dealt with at Nuremberg after the Second World War.
And yet today, to the eternal shame of the rest of the world, Ms Livni and her Zionist colleagues are overseeing the slow genocide of the Palestinians.
Probably just as well you did not accept the Free Gaza invitation to join our peace mission – I couldn’t have stood the smell of burning sulphur!

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

Can Israel tolerate peaceful campaigners heading Gaza?

2008-08-18T23:51:00.000Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 15 (day 17)

By Yvonne Ridley
Monday 18 August,

Israel’s Foreign minister Tzipi Livni has warned the Free Gaza Movement that she will not tolerate plans by the international peace campaigners to sail in to Palestine.
In a long message sent to the peace activists yesterday, the foreign minister’s department was responding to an open invitation to Ms Livni to come on board either the SS Liberty or Free Gaza.
As you know, I am on board the Free Gaza which is presently heading for Cyprus where around 20 other international peace activists are waiting to join the floating peace mission.
Organizers are now confident of reaching Gaza, the world’s largest open air prison, by the weekend and were last night undeterred by the warning signals coming out of Livni’s office.
According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, Zionist militar officials say they will forcefully block our two boats if we try to break the medieval siege.
I can say with growing confidence, that the mood on board is defiant, but peaceful, and we will use the tacics adopted by Ghandi to repel any violence or aggression shown towards us.
I mentioned this to an old friend of mine, intelligence expert and acclaimed author of Gideon’s Spies, Gordon Thomas. After making a few calls himself he told me that Israel is in “no mood to put up with a group of peace activists who are tyring to embarrass them.
“I am afraid Yvonne, if you and your friends do not comply then they will get tough. If you don’t turn back into international waters they will board your boats and tow you into Haifa.
“They are aware that Press TV, an Iranian broadcaster is on board, and you will not be treated like the BBC.”
According to the Foreign Ministry, Israel is within its rights to use force against us.
Well, all I can say is: “Bring it on”! We are not sailing into Israeli waters and therefore do not need or seek the permission of the Zionist State to enter Gaza.
Our boats will be checked by the relevant authorities before we sail and they will confirm we are armed with nothing more than goodwill and humanitarian aid for our Palestinian friends.
This is not a political mission and therefore we are not supporting any political groups.
However, I can tell you that the whole world will be watching the behaviour the Zionist State and how it treats peaceful people.
And we will have a web cam on board so you will be able to see for yourself what happens.
Watch this space…

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

Was neuroscientist Dr. Aafia Siddiqui raped and tortured at US Bagram prison?

2008-08-17T13:21:00.003Z

The mysterious case of Dr. Aafia Siddiqui

Was neuroscientist raped and tortured at US Bagram prison in Afghanistan during a period of five years?

Ernesto Cienfuegos
La Voz de Aztlan

Alta California - August 14, 2008 - (ACN) It appear that the Bush Administration may have another "Abu Ghraib Prison" type torture scandal in its hands that it is desperately attempting to cover up. The disturbing human rights case involves a Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Brandeis University educated Pakistani national that mysteriously disappeared, along with her three children, in Afghanistan in 2003. This past week the seriously injured, frail, traumatized and confused Dr. Siddiqui re-appeared in a wheel chair in a New York federal court accused of terrorism and to face charges that she attempted to kill FBI and US soldiers in Afghanistan.

No one would have known about what some Pakistanis are calling "one of the most deplorable crimes against womanhood" if it had not been for human rights organizations speaking out against the rape and torture of "Prisoner 650" that was being held at the US Bagram Theater Internment Facility, a miserable prison that was previously utilized as air base hangers by the Russians during their occupation of Afghanistan. The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) just recently picked up the story and the Bush Administration seems to be acting quickly to cover up what many consider to be a war crime.

On Tuesday, they chose their front man, Brian Ross of ABC News, to begin propagandizing against Dr. Aafia Siddiqui in order to justify to the American people the gruesome treatment of the Pakistani neuroscientist at the hands of US authorities in Afghanistan and their lackey Pervez Musharraf in Pakistan. Many of you may remember that Brian Ross was also the Neocon front man in the national news concerning the Anthrax Terrorist Attacks in 2001. He was reporting that the anthrax sent to U.S. political and media figures was linked to Saddam Hussein's biological weapons program. That was a lie. No tests ever revealed any such thing. Like Colin Powell, he was attempting to create the perception in the public's mind that Iraq was behind the anthrax attacks and that it possessed weapons of mass destruction.

Ther is no information about what may have occurred to Dr. Aafia Siddiqui's three children. Dr. Siddiqui is scheduled to appear again before a well known anti-Muslim United States Magistrate Judge of the Southern District of New York on September 3, 2008.

Read in full @ Aztlan

Israel might target Gaza boats which present absolutely no threat to Telaviv

2008-08-17T02:55:00.000Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 14 (day 15)
By Yvonne Ridley
Saturday 16 August,

As we sail from one secret location in the Greek islands to another I must say I am a wee bit concerned about the colour of my lifejacket.
Now I know you would think my mind might be more focused on other burning issues ... like are we ever going to get to Cyprus to pick up the rest of our group?
Or will we ever get to see Gaza's coastline and if we do, will we make it to the beaches?
But the reason for today's particular focus is that news has just reached me on yet another shameful excuse the Israeli military has used for firing upon a news team.
First of all, let me remind you about the death of a Reuters cameraman. Israeli military officials who investigated his death have now decided to take no further action against the tank crew that killed Fadel Shana and wounded his soundman Wafa Abu Mizyed in Gaza in April 2008.
Arab Media Watch, the International Federation of Journalists, the Committee to Protect Journalists and other media watchdogs are calling for a full, independent inquiry.
But what is really sad, is that most of the Western media has failed to report this latest shocking development. As AMW says, this is surprising given its life-threatening implications for all journalists reporting from the occupied Palestinian territories.
I certainly hope it does not deter the media from joining our venture to report our progress in breaking the siege of Gaza.
Anyway, if I can return to the colour of my lifejacket - it is navy blue and the reason I am slightly concerned is that the Israeli military claim that the tank crew which attacked the Reuters news team, was justified in its actions because the blue flack jackets worn by Shana and Abu Mizyed were "common to Palestinian terrorists."
So I am today giving fair warning to the Israeli Navy, the peace activists on board the Free Gaza and the SS Liberty will all be wearing navy-coloured lifejackets.
Fire on us and you are firing on a peace-loving group of activists who are not armed, or dangerous and present absolutely no threat to the fourth largest military in the world.
Should we be unlucky enough to end in the sea our blue jackets will then inflate to reveal a bright orange colour. Each jacket has a whistle which by anyone's standards is not a weapon.
I just want to write this down for the record because it seems that Israel can silence the media with bombs and bullets and then come out with the most ridiculous defence for its disgusting actions.
And for those more interested in the progress of our trip, I can say it has now taken on a new momentum since we left Chania in Crete. For my landlubber friends waiting so patiently in Larnaca I can say with confidence that we are only days away from being reunited.
And then, dear readers, we will be Gaza bound to smash the medieval blockade.
By the way, to those of you who have responded so generously to my calls for funds to continue the Free Gaza project, thank you very much. And to those of you who want to support us further please check out the www.freegraza.org website.

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

ISRAEL will stop at nothing to thwart the Free Gaza Movement

2008-08-17T02:39:00.000Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 13 (day 14)
By Yvonne Ridley
Friday 15 August,

ISRAEL will stop at nothing to thwart the Free Gaza Movement.
And as our two-boat mission continues to head towards Cyprus there have been several attempts to undermine the heroic campaign to smash the siege of Gaza.
For instance, earlier this week someone fired a rocket at Israel from Gaza in defiance of the Hamas-brokered truce.
I can also tell you that whoever did fire the rocket into the Zionist State was also working for the Zionist State.
Yes, sadly, there are collaborators inside Gaza and the rocket firing was not only an attempt to wreck the cease-fire, it was a deliberate ploy to scupper the Free Gaza Movement which is gathering world attention and support.
As someone who has written about and studied the activities of intelligence agencies across the world for more than two decades, I can tell you that since the demise of the East German Stasi, there is no other spy agency as skilled at the art of black propaganda as Israel's Mossad.
And I see my conclusion is also shared by a senior leader in Hamas, Dr Mahmud Zahar, who has criticised the rocket attack from Gaza in violation of a seven-week-old calm.
He said: "I think those who are responsible are those who collaborate with Israel because there is a consensus by all Palestinian groups to respect the truce."

The rocket fired from the Gaza Strip landed in an empty field outside the southern Israeli city of Sderot, causing no casualty or damage on Monday evening.

Speaking to Gaza radio station, Dr Zahar said whoever launched the rocket was "linked to Israel as they provide a pretext to exercise pressure on the Palestinian people."
And, of course, for every action there is a reaction by the Zionist State which uses such attacks to justify its vile actions. The following day Israel squeezed the immense pressure already exerted on the people of Gaza by closing the Nahal Oz crossing to Gaza Strip that is used to ferry in fuel and the Sufa passage for food deliveries to the impoverished and blockaded territory.
On his part, MP Jamal Al-Khudari, the head of the popular committee against the siege, strongly denounced the Israeli decision to close the crossings, statng that the Gaza commercial crossings are already paralyzed despite the calm.
In a press statement, Khudari underlined that the Gaza crossings especially Al-Mintar (Karni) crossing must remain open around the clock for more than a year in order to end the effects of the Israeli siege imposed on the Strip two years ago. The lawmaker also pointed out that Gaza needs more than 400 trucks laden with raw materials necessary for various industrial sectors.

Of course all this has given israel yet another excuse to tighten its merciless grip on the world's largest open air prison, and firing the rocket has given the israeli Navy a good excuse to try and stop our seaborne mission to smash the siege of Gaza using two boats - the SS Free Gaza and the SS Liberty.
Their efforts will, of course, be in vain because as regular readers of this blog know, the Free gaza Movement activists are determined to let nothing stop them in their peaceful mission to reach the people of Gaza by sea.
We are not asking permission to enter Israel. We pose absolutely no threat to Israel. We just want to reach the beach on the Gaza Strip with messages of peace, goodwill and some hearing aids for all those Palestinian children with hearing problems caused by Israeli bombs.
Of course the collaborators who fired the rocket into Israel earlier this week have not helped our cause, but I wonder just what pressure the Zionist State put on them to do this destructive action.
I only say this because of a report released just a few days ago which revealed Irael's secret police are pressuring Palestinians in Gaza to spy on their community in exchange for urgent medical treatment.
The report was released by an Israeli human rights organisation. Physicians for Human Rights says the Shin Bet began interrogating Palestinian patients seeking permission to travel from Gaza to Israel for crucial medical help after Israel blockaded and then declared the tiny territory an enemy entity more than a year ago.
Typically, patients are taken to a small, windowless room, underground, beneath the security terminal at Erez, the only passenger crossing that remains open between Gaza and Israel, where they are questioned by Shin Bet agents for hours, the report says.
Refusal to cooperate often results in the denial of medical treatment. Based on the testimonies of more than 30 Palestinians - 11 of which are published - the report says the Shin Bet is using coercion and extortion to force patients to collaborate.

So you see, israel's intelligence services are capable of anything and believe me, i could write much more on what they've tried to do to stop us but that can wait until another day.
In the meantime our focus is Gaza and getting there, insh'Allah.

* Yvonne Ridley and film-maker Aki Nawaz are on board the Free Gaza and the SS Liberty making a documentary for Press TV about the journey from the Greek islands to Cyprus and then on to Gaza.

More info @ The FreeGaza Movement

Now:breaking the siege of Gaza, Then: giving the US navy a demonstration in Persian Gulf

2008-08-17T02:25:00.000Z

Diary 12 (day 13)
By Yvonne Ridley
Thursday 14 August,

The first leg of our seaborne journey was completed early this morning after a night sailing in stormy waters which really tested the endurance of the Free Gaza and SS Liberty following our departure from the port of Chania in Crete.
We are now docked in another secret location in the Greek islands - sorry but there are genuine concerns for the security of our two boats so I can say no more about our location.
We have already been delayed by a few days but am happy to say we are all as determined as ever to smash the brutal Israel blockade strangling the good people of Gaza.
News reports are scarce out at sea but I've just heard that America, Britain and France, fresh from their recent war games in the Atlantic Ocean are now preparing for a naval blockade of Iran giving rise to speculation in the region of war in the Persian Gulf area.
Well I know for sure that Iran is not Gaza. It is armed and has a capable navy ready to repel such nonsense on its own doorstep.
But, as I write I am told that the Western armada steaming towards Iran includes a US Navy supercarrier battle group, an US Navy
expeditionary carrier battle group, a Royal Navy carrier battle group, a French nuclear hunter-killer submarine plus a large number of US Navy
cruisers, destroyers and frigates playing the "enemy force".
I suppose it makes our little two-boat armada of the SS Free Gaza and the SS Liberty seem incredibly tiny, but I can tell you when it comes to determination, sheer guts and a total conviction of what we're doing is right then we totally out gun the bullying super powers.
You see all those sailors heading towards the Persian Gulf will have grave doubts about their mission and where it will end ... there's already talk of a Third World War erupting. US servicemen are increasingly going absent without leave and the suicide rate among the young military is increasingly high because of the Vietnam-style quagmire they've already got themselves into in Iraq and Afghanistan.
However, the crews of the Free Gaza campaign have no such doubts about our mission and why it must succeed. And, despite the enormous challenges we're still
together.
And who knows, after we break the siege of Gaza may be we should then head towards the Persian Gulf and give the US navy a demonstration of the power of peaceful resistance.
Well perhaps I am getting ahead of myself now.
The one thing I do envy though is the enormous military aid thrown at the Persian Gulf-bound armada - i don't suppose you'll ever see the US Navy trying to raise funds at a bring and buy sale.
Well I don;t mind admitting that our Free Gaza campaign was launched on a shoestring budget and floats thanks to cash gifts from our global supporters - but if you do fancy giving us some more help then go on to our website www.freegaza.com and buy a gallon or so of fuel or sponsor a leg of our journey.
And once we smash the Israeli blockade we really want to keep the shipping lanes open between Gaza and the rest of the world so intend to run a regular route to and grom Cyprus and other ports in the region. So please donate and help keep our boats afloat.

* Yvonne Ridley and film-maker Aki Nawaz are making a documentary about the Free Gaza campaign for Press TV.

More info @ The FreeGaza Movement

Israelis threaten peaceful activists heading Gaza

2008-08-17T01:54:00.001Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 11 (day 12)
By Yvonne Ridley
Wednesday 13 August,

By the time you read this our two boats, the Free Gaza and SS Liberty should be sailing from Chania's old port in Crete despite a gloomy forecast of storms ahead.
Our captains have decided it's time to quit our dock for security reasons and so we are heading along the Crete coastline on our way to pick up the rest of our passengers who have been waiting patiently in Cyprus.
We could be in for a rough ride, but without going into too much detail, we probably are more at risk by not moving.
Israel has a history of using Mossad and Kidon to sabotage and destroy peaceful operations designed to help or show solidarity towards Palestinians.
From Crete we will head towards larnaca, Cyprus to pick up the rest of our group and then we are bound for Gaza to break the medieval siege imposed by Israel.
Media interest is once again gathering momentum and there are those who want to join us on board while others are considering hiring their own boats ... the more the merrier. Wouldn't it be great if we had a huge flotilla?
However, there are concerns from the media because Israel has a history of shooting, killing, arresting journalists who try to report the truth about the brutal occupation of Palestine.
I was reminded of this only this morning a I read a released a few minutes ago from Reporters Without Borders. The human rights20group were condemning today's announcement by the Israeli Occupation Forces (IOF) to detain Ibrahim Hamad, a soundman employed by the Palestinian news agency Ramattan, for six months without bringing charges and without taking him before any court.
Hamad was arrested by Israeli soldiers at his home in Qalandiyah, near the West Bank city of Ramallah, on July 15.“The Israeli military may not under any circumstances arrest journalists or media assistants without giving a reason,” Reporters Without Borders said. “If they think a journalist has done something wrong, they must say what it is and they must explain why they are arresting him. We call for Hamad’s immediate release.”
When reached by Reporters Without Borders, the management of Ramattan firmly condemned his arrest and called for his release.

They also called on the Israeli authorities to explain why they are holding him. “This is not the first time that one of our employees has been arrested by the Israeli military,” the agency said.
Israeli boasts it is a democracy ... these are not the actions of a democratic state. These are the actions of a brutal state which tries to crush those dedicated to telling the truth about the full 20 horrors of the Zionist regime and its determination to see through its deliberate and slow genocide of the Palestinian people.
We will be able to see in a few days time exactly how the Israelis react to a group of peaceful activists who want to sail into Gaza armed with nothing more than love and support for their Palestinian brothers and sisters.
If israel is really a free and open democracy then its Navy will let us past, Mossad will stop trying to sabotage our journey and all of the journalists on board, including myself, will be able to report the truth about what is happening in the world's largest open air prison called Gaza.
In the meantime I would urge the IOF to release our brother Ibrahim Hamad and allow him to continue his media work.

* Yvonne Ridley and film-maker Aki Nawaz are on board the Free Gaza where they are making a documentary for Press TV about the siege-breaking, water-borne venture to Palestine.

More info @ The FreeGaza Movement

American captain Ken leads the boats to free Gaza

2008-08-17T01:29:00.002Z

Diaries from Free Gaza Movement boats
Diary 10 (day 11)
By Yvonne Ridley
Tuesday 12 August,

Apologies to all, I was just too depressed to relay my latest news about the Free Gaza campaign ... our seaborne mission to smash the Israeli siege has been delayed yet again, by bad weather.
Ken O'Keefe, one of the several captains to skipper the SS liberty and SS Free Gaza, reckons that conditions in the Mediterranean would prove too risky to set sail from Crete for Cyprus until later in the week.
"Safety comes first," he said in his coffee smooth, American accent.
The irony was not lost on several of us who fully expect to be facing down Israeli gunships very soon.
I was absolutely crestfallen and being told to swab the decks, clean the heads (toilets) and empty the rubbish bags did nothing to lift my spirits this morning.

After carrying out my chores along with everyone else, I decided to have a word with Captain Ken and he turned out to be just as amazing as many of the passengers.
He is a striking man with an amazing array of politically inspired tattoos. He also insists he is an Irishman with a passport from the Emerald Isle to prove it.
However, I can reveal he was actually born a US citizen and periodically burns his American passport to symbolically disown his country of origin.
The good captain describes himself as a citizen of the world and has no time for such a war-mongering, imperialistic entity as the United States, hence the change of nationality - lucky man has an Irish granny.
The funny thing is it seems the US does not want to let go of a potential tax payer and so his passport is renewed as a reminder of his fiscal obligations. Uncle Sam refuses to let him go.
We talked in the old harbour of Chania, Crete yesterday about the tactics he may have to employ when we sail into the waters off Gaza.
I won't go in to detail, but suffice to say he is as committed to this project as everyone else on board, and it seems putting his life on the line for humanity is nothing new.
Ken was one of nearly 100 human shields who went to Baghdad before shock and awe was unleashed during rthe illegal invasion of Iraq, and although he was deported just before the war started, he was prepared to pay the ultimate sacrifice.
"I don't want to die, but there comes a time when you have to take responsibility as a citizen of the world. I am not a violent man but I can not stand by and watch the sufferings of others and do nothing," he told me.
And, of course, like all of us out here in Crete and Cyprus, he doesn't want to die. In fact Captain Ken has a great deal to live for - his Palestinian wife is five months pregnant.
Well I might have blisters on my hands, housemaid's knee and bleach stains on my clothes, but talking to the captain of our ship yesterday really cheered me up.
That and the news hundreds of people turned out to a press conference in Gaza earlier this week to discuss the arrival of the Free Gaza boats which will, insh'allah, smash the Israeli blockade to break into the world's largest open air prison.
We're not going to let high winds get us down too much - so please keep the faith and see you all soon in Gaza.

* Yvonne Ridley and film-maker Aki Nawaz are onboard the Free Gaza boats making a documentary of the historic journey for Press TV.

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

'SS Liberty' Sails to Gaza to Challenge Israel

2008-08-11T01:11:00.001Z

July 30, 2008
Military.com
by Bryant Jordan

Forty-one years after the American surveillance ship USS Liberty was napalmed, torpedoed and strafed by Israeli naval and air forces during the Six-Day War, another "Liberty" will be setting out from a Cyprus port in August to try to break through the Israeli blockade of the Gaza Strip.

The "SS Liberty" is one of two ships -- along with "SS Free Gaza" -- that will be carrying an international group opposed to Israel's blockade of Gaza. Israel imposed the blockade just over a year ago.

Karin Pally, a spokeswoman in Los Angeles for the group Free Gaza Movement, said the ship was named in honor of 34 Sailors and Marines killed in the attack and to help bring the Gaza issue home to Americans.

Jim Ennes, an officer aboard the original Liberty and author of the book Assault on the Liberty said he was invited to take part in the protest sailing to Gaza but was not able to make it.

Until contacted by Military.com for comment, Ennes was unaware that organizers had named one of the ships after the Liberty, but he said he is "absolutely" pleased with the move and wishes he could be there.

Israel attacked the Liberty on June 8, 1967, later saying they thought it was an Egyptian vessel -- though survivors and others have long said the Israeli pilots and sailors knew exactly who they targeted.

The U.S. Navy began telling families of the American dead that the attack was accidental even before it convened an official board of inquiry, which about 10 days later delivered that same finding, according to Navy documents.

Six years ago the legal affairs adviser to the board, retired Capt. Ward Boston, broke his silence to say the investigation was a sham, and that the final version was altered to exonerate the Israelis. Boston died in June.

Pally said the two ships will include about 40 passengers from 16 countries, including Israel and the United States.

"Everyone is committed to non-violence," she said of the participants. "The Free Gaza Movement has arranged with a third party security expert to completely secure and search the boats before they leave Cyprus to make sure there are no weapons or anything dangerous aboard."

The larger of the two ships, the SS Free Gaza, will be equipped with a Web cam and will be posting streaming video to their Web site -- www.freegaza.org -- during the voyage, Pally said.

More info @ Military.com

This slow genocide of the people of Gaza is a shame to all of us.

2008-08-11T00:55:00.002Z

By Yvonne Ridley
Day 9 diary
Free Gaza Movement Boats
August 10

I STARTED becoming politically aware as a child when I heard mention of the name Nelson Mandela and, depending on your viewpoint, he was either a heroic freedom fighter or a terrorist.
As I began entering my teens the whole grotesque business of Apartheid South Africa became more and more apparent and even more abhorrent in my eyes.
Why should someone be discriminated against on the colour of their skin ... well that's like picking on someone because they're of a different faith, I thought.

Public awareness, boycott campaigns, political pressure, ordinary folk mobilising and putting their lives at risk to highlight the struggle of black South Africans made headlines.
Of course we know how the brutality of that Apartheid regime came crashing down and today no one speaks about Nelson Mandela other than in glowing terms.
Parallels are now being drawn with the Anti-Apartheid struggle in South Africa and the demand for justice for Palestinians.

Israel is no longer seen as a victim but a jack-booted thug, bully and oppressor.
International outrage and cries for justice are growing ever louder and I can see public opinion turning away from the Zionist State on a daily basis – gone are the days of 'plucky little Israel' fighting for its very existence.
No one believes anymore that it will be driven into the seas. (Personally I believe it will implode. It is a failed state which can only thrive on the misery and injustice of others).
Judging by the positive media our Free Gaza Movement is receiving it is quite obvious the tide of public opinion is turning just as it did against the oppressive regime in South Africa.
But in the meantime it has to be said that Mahmoud Abbas is no Mandela. he sits, almost in silence as the atrocities against his own people are continuing which makes me realise how vital is the success of our peaceful mission.
Despite a few minor hiccups delaying our launch, we will be sailing from Crete for Cyprus and then on to Palestine to smash the siege of Gaza using two boats crewed by an international brigade of peace activists from across the world.
We have been told to expect thousands of Palestinians taking to the beaches in Gaza to give us a welcome when our two boats SS Free Gaza and SS Liberty arrive.
Sadly, one face not among the crowds will be that of 12-year-old Mohamed Bahloul who is lying in a shabby, hospital ward in Gaza.
He is suffering from kidney failure and is hooked up to a dilapidated dialysis machine which barely operates.
Sadly Mohamed's case is all too common.
Welcome to the reality of life in Gaza - despite the ceasefire between the Hamas government in Gaza and Israel that ensured that homemade rockets are no longer fired at southern Israeli towns. Despite this ceasefire there is no respite from poverty and the medieval siege in Gaza. And what's more the situation is getting worse by the day.
Hospitals are lacking equipment and medicine, and neither Israel nor Egypt allows Palestinians fro m Gaza suffering from life threatening illnesses to travel freely, and on a regular basis. Now even water in Gaza is polluted beyond foreseeable remedy.
"If there is a stronger word than catastrophe, I would use that word," said Nader Al-Khateeb, the Palestinian director of Friends of the Earth Middle East. The catastrophe is a "result of Gaza's dilapidated water and sewage infrastructure undermined by [Israeli] attacks and fuel blockades."
This slow genocide of the people of Gaza is a shame to all of us.
And if, in any tiny way, our little peace mission to smash the Israeli blockade of Gaza, can relieve some of the suffering then we will have achieved a minor victory.
Because what I do know is that the Arab leaders in the region are doing nothing to help the plight of their brothers and sisters in Palestine.

And Western politicians may dismiss our efforts as amateurish, but at least we are doing something positive.
Their achievements have amounted to very little after 60 years of diplomacy.
Some of the most disgusting behaviour has come from neighbouring Egypt as I mentioned yesterday when I attacked Hosni Mubarak a man who dances to the tunes played by the US and Israeli pipers.
In the meantime, Hamas is regularly derided for human rights violations reported in Gaza, which are now being used retrospectively to justify the brutal Israeli siege. At the same time Mahmoud Abbas's party hardly receives any reprimand for its brutality towards its own people.
In truth, Abbas is a US controlled puppet who sits over an extremely corrupt regime bank-rolled by America and other donors.
According to some western media reports you might be forgiven for thinking that the conflict is entirely the fault of rival Palestinians, with the Zionist State being nothing more than an innocent observer which has to put up with its noisy neighbours.
However, let me remind you of the words of UN Special rapporteur on human rights, John Dugard who wrote last year: "The question whether Gaza remains an occupied territory is now of academic interest only. In the course of the cynically named "Operation Summer Rains" that commenced on 25 June, the IDF has not only asserted its control in Gaza by means of heavy shelling, but has also done so by means of a military presence."
Make no mistake, Israel is presiding over a slow genocide of the people who exist in the Gaza Strip.
Meanwhile, I'm told to watch out for new tactics from the Zionist military as they attempt to stop our boats from sailing into Gaza in a few days time.
Reports have just reached me that a couple of days ago as Palestinians, internationals and Israeli activists demonstrated against the Israeli Apartheid wall in Bi’lin. soldiers began to spray an unknown substance over the demonstrators from a truck.
The liquid was discoloured and foul smelling and a number of demonstrators vomited and many had to leave the area as the stench was so unbearable. As demonstrators withdrew, soldiers also fired tear gas canisters at them.
This, apparently is a new low in the tactics deployed by the fourth largest army in the world ... a cowardly army which uses live rounds to kill and maim women and children. Activists are awaiting results from analysis of the liquid samples that were collected during the demonstration and naturally, I have a personal interest in knowing their contents.
But all of this behaviour from these silly men in uniforms only makes me more determined than ever to step on to the beach of Gaza.
And once I get there the first person I'm going to ask about is our little brother who is hooked up to a dialysis machine.
Hang in there, Mohamed.
Yvonne Ridley

PS: Apologies to the wonderful Uri Davies who I interviewed the first day I arrived in Cyprus to join the Free Gaza Movement. I referred to him as an Israeli Jew.
He says he is neither – he is in fact a Palestinian-Hebrew (citizen of the apartheid State of Israel and of the allegedly democratic monarchy of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland - NOT an "Israeli").
Glad that's sorted!

* Yvonne Ridley a broadcaster and presenter for Press TV will be giving daily updates on the progress of the Free Gaza Movement as it heads for Gaza to challenge the Israeli siege.

More info @ The FreeGaza Movement

Ceremony for all killed by the Israelis on board the Liberty ship in 1967

2008-08-11T00:42:00.001Z

By Yvonne Ridley
Day 8 diary
Free Gaza Movement Boats
August 9

HOORAH! The hour has arrived ... by the time you read this I should be onboard one of the two boats bound for Gaza to break the Israeli-enforced siege.
At around 9pm on Saturday evening the SS Free Gaza and the SS Liberty sailed in to the idyllic port of Chania on the Greek island of Crete, where film-maker Aki Nawaz and myself have been marooned for the past few days.
Actually we can't complain too much - this is an amazing location ... and completely free of the drunken British drongos who usually engulf the mediterranean at this time of year.
We linked up in Chania with fellow passengers journalist Lauren Booth (aka Tony Blair's sister-in-law), Palestinian-American Huwaisa Arraf who lives in Ramallah and the remarkable Jeff Halper, an Israeli Jew nominated for the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for opposing demolitions of Palestinian homes.
It's a very exciting day for Aki Nawaz and myself - not only do we finally get to find our sea legs, but it is the first time that the two boats have been publically displayed.
On board already to greet us was co-organiser of the Free Gaza Movement, Paul Larudee and a group of other activists.
The plan now is to sail to Larnaca in Cyprus where we will pick up the bulk of the other Free Gaza campaigners who number nearly 40 and represent 15 different nationalities - our country's flags will be hoisted up the masts.
But before we head to Gaza from Cyprus there's another more poignant ceremony to do.
As you know, one of our boats is called the Liberty in memory of the USS Liberty which was bombed, napalmed and torpedoed by Israel during the Seven Day War.
I wrote about the incident in a previous blog about how 34 US naval men were killed and 172 injured. Well it turns out that some of the survivors have heard about our plans to smash the siege of Gaza and they've made a request.
One wrote: “What is the possibility of you and the crew of the SS Liberty throwing 34 long stemmed roses into the sea as a memorial to the 34 Americans killed aboard the USS Liberty?
"The survivors of the Liberty and their families would be eternally grateful to you and your ship mates for this gesture as no one has ever done anything like this before.” Another wrote: “I am one of the survivors of the USS Liberty. A very tired man, who woke up somewhat when I heard of the SS Liberty. I was the petty officer in charge of the body recovery and identification, and I remember it almost like it was yesterday. May God Be With You.”
So, when we leave Cyprus early next week, we hope to have a ceremony for all of those killed by the Israelis on board the ship in 1967.
Co-organiser Greta Berlin says the names of the dead will also be read out.
Jim Ennes, an officer aboard the original Liberty and author of the book Assault on the Liberty was invited to take part in Free Gaza campaign to smash Israel's siege by peaceful means.
Until our project was launched he was unaware that organizers had named one of the ships after the Liberty, but he is said to be "absolutely" pleased with the move and wishes he could be there.

Just to fill you in a little more on the background of the USS Liberty - this is one massacre the White House never commemorates because there has been, and continues to be, a huge cover-up.
While the Bush Administration loves to make a big deal about the terrorist bombing of the USS Cole on October 12 2000 while it was berthed in Aden, Yemen, in which 17 American sailors were killed, nothing is ever mentioned about the deliberate attack on the Liberty.
You tell me what is the difference between an act of state sponsored terrorism or terrorism carried out by individuals - innocents die in both and the death of innocents is to be condemned at all times.
The fact is Israel deliberately attacked the Liberty on June 8, 1967, later saying they thought it was an Egyptian vessel - though survivors and others have long said the Israeli pilots and sailors knew exactly who they targeted.
The US Navy began telling families of the American dead that the attack was accidental even before it convened an official board of inquiry, which about 10 days later delivered that same finding, according to Navy documents.
Only six years ago the legal affairs adviser to the board, retired Capt. Ward Boston, broke his silence to say the investigation was a sham, and that the final version was altered to exonerate the Israelis. Boston died in June.
Personally, I think we should also drop a rose into the water for him for finally having the courage to tell the truth.

A lot of deceit and lies have floated to the surface since the Free Gaza Movement launched its campaign two years ago.
Now, at last, the dream and vision of the organisers has become a reality - we are on our way to Gaza armed with nothing more than a vision of peace and a desire to expose the truth.
And, as we are beginning to find out, telling the truth in these treacherous times is becoming an act of resistance in itself.
* For more information: www.freegaza.org – live video streaming will soon be available. And since funds are now running low, if you can donate towards this amazing project then please do so. This breaking the siege og Gaza is not a one off - the aim of the campaign is to raise awareness as well as open a direct sailing route between the people of Gaza and Cyprus.

More info @ Press TV

Insh'Allah we'll all meet in Gaza, Says Yvonne Ridley

2008-08-11T00:30:00.001Z

By Yvonne Ridley
Seventh diary
August 8

This Sunday, around the time our peace flotilla will be attempting to smash the siege of Gaza by sea, a group of Scottish activists will be launching their own protest on land.
A Tartan army is gathering at 2pm in Mound Precinct on Princes Street to show support for another group of blockade breakers who are desperately trying to get urgent medical aid through to Palestinians.
And the rally is also being held to show their outrage as well towards the Zionist State which can no longer shake off its reptillian image to ordinary people across the world.

Israel says it pulled out of Gaza two years ago and there is NO siege. Poppycock!
The Zionist State is lying and with the help of Egypt's despicable President Hosni Mubarak, they are exerting more pressure on the weakest members of the Gaza community.
Mubarak, who makes some of the most brutal, oppressive Pharonic dynasties look like a bunch of Tupperware Agents, is a disgrace to humanity.
Great leaders are respected for their courage and wisdom - Mubarak, a man who bellydances and contorts himself to please his Zionist masters in Tel Aviv, has neither of these qualities.
Of course his real masters are in Washington and it's their dollars that have turned him into the Chief Pimp of Arab politics.

The latest example of Mubarak's craven behaviour surfaced when humanitarians Linda Willis and Khalil al Niss were kept waiting at the Rafah-Gaza border to deliver medical supplies to a hospital in Gaza.
They spent 10 days driving across Europe with 1.5 tonnes of medical supplies donated by kind-hearted Scots but for the past two weeks their van has been held up by officials.
Mubarak's men are refusing them entry saying they do not have the correct paperwork.
I feel ashamed that only yesterday I was writing to you all, complaining that some high winds had delayed our own peace mission by a couple of days - I really do salute the stamina of Linda and Khalil.
Sadly Linda, 51, a nurse has now been forced to return to Edinburgh leaving Khalil, 49, who is from Jerusalem, to wait, and wait and wait.
One of the hospitals is just five minutes from the border where these jumped up soldiers of Mubarak are refusing to let him pass.

The venture is supported by the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign and they have now enlisted heavyweight political leader Alex Salmond.

The van is packed with medical supplies including medication for heart conditions and diabetes, as well as syringes, bandages, swabs, antibiotics, blood bottles for taking samples, and more advanced equipment such as endotracheal tubes for use in surgery.

As I said before, this aid mission is stuck at the Rafah crossing, the only Egypt-Gaza gateway which has been continuously closed since June 2007, with brief openings for extreme cases. They were initially made to wait more than 24 hours at the border town of Nuweiba, where Egyptian authorities sent them to six departments to fill out forms.

The couple have been interviewed by numerous officials from the Egyptian border, Egyptian intelligence, and the weak and feckless Palestinian Authority, but still lack the permission to deliver the medical supplies.

The two recently submitted to Egypt's Intelligence Chief Omar Suleiman a letter with the signatures of six Scottish MPs supporting their mission. Although the letter was requested by the Egyptian authorities handling the case, no reply has been forthcoming.

They have also faced down threats to impound their van.
Well I will be making dua for my brother Khalil's patience and I hope he succeeds in his mission, just as we are determined to suceed in ours.

Insh'Allah we'll all meet in Gaza to exchange stories and tales about over-coming the pettiness of the Zionists and their feckless supporters.
The parallels being drawn between israel and Apartheid South Africa are growing stronger by the day.
This is not the way to win over the international community and the more Israel stamps its jackboots and refuses peace missions and initiatives the more damaged is its reputation.
Might is not right. But our determination to succeed smashing the siege by land and sea is far more powerful than any red tape, petty politics or artillery.
Well done to everyone who turns up to protest in Edinburgh on Sunday - please continue to protest, shout and highlight the brutality of the Zionist State.

And as for you Khalil - well, we'll see you in Gaza soon, insh'Allah.

More info @ The FreeGaza Movement

The aim: breaking Israel’s illegal siege of Gaza

2008-08-11T00:10:00.001Z

Boats towards Gaza
Day six diary
By Yvonne Ridley

ONE of the Free Gaza campaigners is an extremely feisty journalist and friend of mine called Lauren Booth who also happens to be the sister-in-law of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair.
Lauren and I first met through the heroic charity InterPal which raises awareness, funds and aid for Palestinian kids and their communities.
We've been out to the refugee camps in Lebanon and Jordan, though not together.
In fact I ended up going to the Jordan refugee camps after the Israelis refused to let me in through the Jordan River Crossing entry point where I was going to cover the elections which swept Hamas to power.
They strip searched me, interrogated me for 10 hours and then called me a terrorist and refused me entry. it was a bizarre experience but this treatment is meted out to anyone who shows interest, kindness or curiosity towards Palestine.
83-year-old Hedy Epstein had the same treatment a couple of years ago, but not only did her questioners strip search her they also snapped on the rubber gloves and internally checked her as well ... what a disgusting way to treat a Holocaust survivor! Hedy's in trusive treatment was at the hands of Israeli security in the Ben Gurion airport.

Sorry, I digressed. Let's get back to Lairen Booth.
Well, we've talked in the past about doing a project together for Palestine and now it seems the Free Gaza Movement has provided the platform we need.
Apart from the fact she's feisty and in the same profession, I'm a big admirer of Lauren because she does something too few journalists are prepared to do these days ... she tells the truth, which is almost an act of resistance in itself.
It would have been very easy for her to jump on the Blair Bandwaggon for a free ride, but instead she stood shoulder to shoulder with the rest of us in the anti-war movement and called her infamous brother-in-law a liar over his ridiculous claims of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Iraq.

Shooting from the lip is not that easy where family is concerned, but Lauren - who writes for the Mail on Sunday - did exactly that through Blair's Downing Street years.
And she's got Tony in her sights again, highlighting his inadequacies in his present role at the Quartet's Middle East envoy. He has yet to step in Gaza and was warned off by the Israelis recently because of so-called security threats.
Well Lauren has issued a challenge to Blair. She's told him to: "Show some guts!" and come and join us. And he does have a choice if he doesn't want our company there are two boats The Free Gaza or The Liberty.
Blair has the backbone of an amoeba so I don't expect him to come on board with the likes of Holocaust survivor Hedy Epstein, or the Christian peace activists, or the 70+ years Roman Catholic nun because then he would have to do something he is not used to - he would have to face the uncomfortable truth of the suffering of the people of Gaza.
The nearest Blair has been to Gaza is looking out of his air-conditioned room in the King David Hotel in Jerusalem.
And while I think the good citizens of Gaza have already suffered enough without having to endure his Cheshire Cat-like grin and weasel words, it would do the impotent peace envoy the world of good to have a reality check.
He might not want to share a boat with Lauren or myself - but we have two boats. In fact he could bring his own as long as he agrees to abide by our rules ... no weapons, no violence, no armed body guards - just peaceful activism.

And there's plenty of time, bad weather has blighted the start of the voyage but we should be able to sail from Larnaca, Cyprus once we pick up the 36 activists there in the next couple of days.

Our aim is to break Israel’s illegal siege of the gaza Strip and establish a permanent sea-link from there.

As yet Israel's Navy has not said openly how it will try and stop us, but they do have previous for bombing, attacking and shooting at anyone who floats a boat in those waters.
In the meantime the government of the Zionist State is trying to bully and cajole the Cypriot Government into stopping us from sailing.
Film-maker Aki Nawaz and myself will be joining the crew of the boats as they come sailing past our own secret location in the Greek islands, and I've just heard that the captains of the 21-metre Free Gaza and the 18-metre Liberty, are both Irish.
Don't you just love the Irish? If anyone knows anything about resistance and standing up to a bullying, imperialistic state it's the Irish.
And I note there is a great deal of solidarity between the Irish people and the Palestinians - go for a stroll down the Falls and you will see Palestinian flags on wall murals and hanging from some windows.
Members of the 32 County Sovereignty Committee often send messages of solidarity with their brothers and sisters in Palestine.
Well, I am really cheered - you must have all heard of the "Luck of the Irish".

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

Endorsers of Free Gaza Movement on breaking the siege

2008-08-11T00:01:00.000Z

Break the Siege of Gaza Convoy

“Please accept my support for your forthcoming peace boat journey to break the Siege of Gaza. You carry with you the hopes and wishes of many people around the world.”

Mairead Maquire, Nobel Peace Laureate

Who are the endursers of this massive movement?

Palestine/Israel

Alternative Information Center, www.alternativenews.org
Bishop Munib Younan (Jerusalem), www.elcjhl.org
Gaza 3ala Bali (Gaza on My Mind),from Ramalla area
Gaza Community Mental Health Programme (GCMHP), www.gcmhp.net
Israeli Committee against House Demolitions (ICAHD), www.icahd.org
Palestinian Centre For Human Rights (PCHR), www.pchrgaza.org
Palestine Medical Relief Society, www.pmrs.ps
Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS), www.palestinercs.org
Palestinian Youth Network
Popular Committee Against the Siege, Jamal El-Khoudary
The One Democratic State Group, Gaza, www.odsg.org

Africa

§ Archbishop Desmond Tutu

§ Salahuddeen – The Voice of Palestine (South Africa)

Europe

Abrahams Tochter9D), www.abrahams-toechter.org
A Different Jewish Voice (Een Ander Joods Geluid) – Amsterdam, NL, www.eajg.nl
Antonine Friendship Link, UK
“Aristera” (“Left”) Greece, www.Koel.gr
Banias, Yannis, Member of Parliament in Greece – Syriza Partie
Blincoe, Nicholas, author (UK), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_Blincoe
Corrigan-Maquire, Mairead, Wikipedia
Friends of Al-Aqsa, UK, www.aqsa..org.uk
Gallaway, George (UK) RESPECT MP for Bethnal Green and Bow
Halpin, Dr. David, co-ordinator Dove and Dolphin aid voyage to Gaza
Halifax Friends of Palestine, Yorkshire (UK), http://halifaxfriendsofpalestine.org.uk
Intersindical Alternativa de Catalunya (IAC), www.pangea.org/iac
Intifada Solidarity Association of the Palestinian People – Greece, www.intifada.gr
ISM France, www.ism-france.org
ISM Switzerland, www.ism-suisse.org
ISM Italy
ISM Spain, www.internacionalesporpalestina.org
ISM London UK, www.ism-london.org.uk
Jeremy Hardy, star of “Jeremy Hardy versus the Israeli Army,” and comedian, UK, Wikipedia
Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in Middle East – EJJP Germany, www.juedische-stimme.de
Jews for Justice for Palestinians (UK), www.jfjfp.org
Loach, Ken (FILMMAKER UK)
Lucas, Dr. Caroline, Green Party MEP South East England, www.carolinelucasmep.org.uk
Mahon, Alice, retired UK Labour Party MP, Wikipedia
Meulenbelt, Anja Kifaia Foundation, Amsterdam
Meyer, Dr. Hajo G. (Netherlands), Holocaust survivor, author of “The End of Judaism”
Morgantini, Luisa MEP, Vice President of the European Parliament
Nabulsi, Dr. Karma, Oxford University, commentisfree.guardian.co.uk/karma_nabulsi/profile.html
Nazir, Ahmed Baron Ahmed, member of the House of Lords (UK)
NOVA – Social Innovation Centre (Catalonia/Spain) www.nova.cat
Olive Cooperative, UK
Palestine Solidarity Campaign, UK, www.palestinecampaign.org
Pau Ara Madrid
Pau Ara Valencia
Paz Ahora, www.pazahora.org
The Ramadhan Foundation (UK), www.ramadanfoundation.com
Sansour, Leila, film director, founder of Open Bethlehem (UK), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Leila_Sansour
www.openbethlehem.org
Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign www.scottishpsc.org.uk
Tromso, Norway
Union Juive Francaise pour la paix (France), www.ujfp.org
Unison (UK), www.unison.org/international/pages_view.asp?did=7382
Women in Black, Edinburgh, Scotland, www.wibs.org.uk
Women in Black, Netherlands, www.vrouweninhetzwart.nl
Women in Black, Vienna, Austria, www.fraueninschwarz.at
Xarxa de Solidaritat amb Palestina del Pais Valencia
Zaytoun, UK, www.zaytoun.org

USA/Canada

§ 14 Friends of Palestine, www.14friendsofpalestine.org

§ Adams, Miriam and Steve, New Mexico, (USA)

§ American-Iranian Friendship Committee (AIFC) www.progressiveportals.com/aifc

§ Arab-Jewish Partnership for Peace and Justice in the Middle East (Chicago), www.arabjewishpartnership.org

§ Americans For A Just Peace In The Middle East, www.ajpme.org

§ Americans For A Palestinian State, CA, http://americansforapalestinianstate.org

§ American Muslims for Palestine, www.ampalestine.org

§ Americans United for Palestinian Human Rights (Oregon, USA)

§ Bay Area Peace Navy, www.docspopuli.org

§ Center for Theology and Social Analysis (Missouri, USA)

§ Chomsky, Noam, www.chomsky.info

§ Citizens for Justice in the Middle East (Kansas, USA)

§ Code Pink, www.codepink4peace.org

§ Committee for a Just Peace in Israel and Palestine CJPIP (USA), www.cjpip.org

§ Conscience International (USA), www.conscienceinternational.org

§ Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), www.cair.com

§ DePaul Academic Freedom Committee (Chicago), www.academicfreedomchicago.org

§ Global Exchange, San Francisco, CA, www.globalexchange.org

§ International Action Center, San Diego, CA

§ International Solidarity Movement Northern California, www.norcalism.org

§ International Solidarity Movement Chicago chapter

§ ISM, Michigan

§ I-Witness Palestine, Southern California, www.iwitnesspalestine.org

§ Jewish Voice for Peace, www.jewishvoiceforpeace.org

§ Justice for Palestinians, San Jose, CA, U.S.A., website

§ LA Jews for Peace, www.LAJewsforPeace.org

§ Middle East Crisis Response, Woodstock, NY, http://mideastcrisis.org

§ Middle East Study Group (California, USA)

§ MidEast:JustPeace, Michigan, www.mideastjustpeace.org

§ Nonviolent Action Community of Cascadia, http://seanacc.org

§ Olympia/Rafah Sister City Project – Olympia, WA/Rafah, Gaza, www.orscp.org

§ Palestine Solidarity Committee – Seattle, www.palestineinformation.org

§ Pax Christi Metro New York, www.nypaxchristi.org

§ Rachel Corrie Foundation (Washington, USA), www.rachelcorriefoundation.org

§ Resource Center for Nonviolence, Santa Cruz, CA, www.rcnv.org

§ Rivero, Michael (USA), http//whatreallyhappened.com

§ Sheehan, Cindy, anti-war campaigner, Congressional candidate (US), http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cindy Sheehan

§ Stand Up Seattle, Seattle, WA, www.standupseattle.org

§ SUSTAIN:Stop US Tax Aid to Israel Now

§ http://sustainphilly.blogspot.com

§ US Academics For Peace (USA)

§ “We Refuse to Be Enemies, Jews, Muslims and Christians in Coalition for Peace,” Connecticut

§ The Western New York Peace Center, www.wnypeace.org

§ Women in Black – Amherst, Massachusetts

§ Women in Black – Green Valley, Arizona

§ Women in Black – Los Angeles, www.wib-la.net

§ Women in Black – St. Louis, MO

§ Women in Black – Victoria BC, Canada

§ Women of a Certain Age (WCA), New York, NY

§ The Working Group on the Middle East, Metropolitan Chicago Synod-ELCA

Asia, Australia, India

Australians for Justice and Peace in Palestine, www.ajpp.canberra.net.au
Australians for Palestine, www.australiansforpalestine.com
Palestine Relief Fund, Sydney Australia, www.palestiniansunited.org/palrelief
Women in Black-Armidale, Australia
Women in Black, India

More info @ Free Gaza Movement

Jeff Halper an Israeli jew against Gaza siege

2008-08-10T23:45:00.000Z

A statement by Jeff Halper
Free Gaza Movement Boats

In another few days, I will sail on one of the Free Gaza movement boats from Cyprus to Gaza. The mission is to break the Israeli siege, an absolutely illegal siege which has plunged a million and a half Palestinians into wretched conditions: imprisoned in their own homes, exposed to extreme military violence, deprived of the basic necessities of life, stripped of their most fundamental human rights and dignity. The siege violates the most fundamental principle of international law: the inadmissibility of harming civilian populations. Our voyage also exposes Israel’s attempt to absolve itself of responsibility for what is happening in Gaza. Israel’s claim that there is no Occupation, or that the Occupation ended with “disengagement,” is patently false. Occupation is defined in international law as having effective control over a territory. If Israel intercepts our boats, it is clear that it is the Occupying Power exercising effective control over Gaza. Nor has the siege anything to do with “security.” Like other elements of the Occupation in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, where Israel has also besieged cities, towns, villages and whole regions, the siege on Gaza is fundamentally political. It is intended to isolate the democratically-elected government of Palestine and break its power to resist Israeli attempts to impose an apartheid regime over the entire country.

This is why I, an Israeli Jew, felt compelled to join this voyage to break the siege. As a person who seeks a just peace with the Palestinians, who understands (despite what our politicians tell us) that they are not our enemies but rather people seeking precisely what we sought and fought for – national self-determination -- I cannot stand idly aside. I can no more passively witness my government’s destruction of another people than I can watch the Occupation destroy the moral fabric of my own country. To do so would violate my commitment to human rights, the very essence of prophetic Jewish religion, culture and morals, without which Israel is no longer Jewish but an empty, if powerful, Sparta.

Israel has, of course, legitimate security concerns, and Palestinian attacks against civilian populations in Sderot and other Israeli communities bordering on Gaza cannot be condoned. Under the Fourth Geneva Convention, Israel, as an Occupying Power, has the right to monitor the movement of arms to Gaza as a matter of “immediate military necessity.” As activists committed to resisting the siege non-violently, I have no objection to the Israeli navy boarding our boats and searching for weapons. But only that. Because Israel has no right to besiege a civilian population, it has no legal right to prevent us, private persons sailing solely in international and Palestinian waters, from reaching Gaza – particularly since Israel has declared that it no longer occupies it. Once the Israeli navy is convinced we pose no security threat, then we thoroughly expect it to permit us to continue our peaceful and lawful journey into Gaza port.

Ordinary people have often played key roles in history, particularly in situations like this where governments shirk their responsibilities. My voyage to Gaza is a statement of solidarity with the Palestinian people in their time of suffering, but it also conveys a message to my fellow citizens.

First, despite what our political leaders say, there is a political solution to the conflict, there are partners for peace. The very fact that I, an Israeli Jew, will be welcomed by Palestinian Gazans makes that very point. My presence in Gaza also affirms that any resolution of the conflict must include all the peoples of the country, Palestinian and Israeli alike. I am therefore using whatever credibility my actions lend me to call on my government to renew genuine peace negotiations based on the Prisoners’ Document accepted by all Palestinian factions, including Hamas. The release of all political prisoners held by Israel, including Hamas government ministers and parliamentary members, in return for the repatriation of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, would dramatically transform the political landscape by providing the trust and good-will essential to any peace process.

Second, the Palestinians are not our enemies. In fact, I urge my fellow Israeli Jews to disassociate from the dead-end politics of our failed political leaders by declaring, in concert with Israeli and Palestinian peace-makers: We refuse to be enemies. Only that assertion of popular will can signal our government that we are fed up with being manipulated by those profiting from the Occupation.

And third, as the infinitely stronger party in the conflict and the only Occupying Power, we Israelis must accept responsibility for our failed and oppressive policies. Only we can end the conflict.

In the Israeli conceptions, Zionism was intended to return to the Jews control over their own destiny. Do not let us be held hostage by politicians who endanger the future of our society. Join with us to end the siege of Gaza, and with it the Occupation in its entirety. Let us, the Israeli and Palestinian peoples, declare to our leaders: we demand a just and lasting peace in this tortured Holy Land.
(Jeff Halper, the head of the Israeli Committee Against House Demolitions, was a nominee for the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize. He can be reached at jeff@icahd.org.)

More info about the boats @ The FreeGaza Movement

Growing Int. interest to free Gaza, the world's largest open air prison

2008-08-10T12:37:00.000Z

3rd diary from the boat campaign
By Yvonne Ridley
4 August 2008

INTERNATIONAL interest is growing over daring plans by the Free Gaza campaigners to break the Israeli siege judging by yesterday's press conference in Cyprus.
The two-boat peace mission to sail into the waters off Gaza, the world's largest open air prison where 1.4 million Palestinians are fighting for survival against the medieval, Zionist blockade has really captured the imagination of others.
And now we are hopeful that a flotilla of ships will join us in our mission to highlight the Israeli-imposed injustices on the innocent people of Gaza.
The excitement has even spread to the Gaza Strip where we are told tens of thousands of people are expected on the beaches to greet the historic blockade-busting peace activists.
The only blot on the horizon is speculation over exactly what the Israeli military will do to scupper the historic, waterborne mission.
You see we, as in the peace activists, are bracing ourselves for the worst ... Israel has a history of using immense force to crush anyone offering the slightest goodwill gesture and hope to the Palestinians who are now the victims of a slow genocide.
The brutality of the Israeli military was recalled yesterday when organiser Greta Berlin revealed to the media the names of our two peace boats - Free Gaza and SS Liberty.
The latter is in memory of a war crime which happened on the fourth day of the 1967 Arab Israeli War when the intelligence ship 'USS Liberty' was steaming slowly in international waters, 14 miles off the Sinai Peninsula.
The Second World War freighter had been converted into an intelligence vessel by the top-secret US National Security Agency, and packed with the latest signals and electronic interception equipment.
At 1400 hrs, 8 June, 1967, a squadron of low-flying Israeli Mystere and Mirage-III fighter-bombers repeatedly attacked the American vessel with rockets, napalm, and cannon. The bombing lasted 20 minutes, concentrating on the ship's electronic antennas and dishes. The 'Liberty' was left afire, listing sharply. Eight of her crew lay dead, a hundred seriously wounded, including the captain, Commander William McGonagle.
At 1424 hrs, three Israeli torpedo boats attacked, raking the burning 'Liberty' with 20mm and 40mm shells. At 1431hrs an Israeli torpedo hit the 'Liberty' midship, precisely where the signals intelligence systems were located. Twenty-five more Americans died.
Israeli gunboats circled the wounded 'Liberty,' firing at crewmen trying to fight the fires. At 1515, the crew were ordered to abandon ship. The Israeli warships closed and poured machine gun fire into the crowded life rafts, sinking two. As American sailors were being massacred in cold blood, a rescue mission by US Sixth Fleet carrier aircraft was mysteriously aborted on orders from the White House.
The Israeli attacks killed 34 US seamen and wounded 171 out of a crew of 297, the worst loss of American naval personnel from hostile action since World War II.
Less than an hour after the attack, Israel told Washington its forces had committed a 'tragic error.'

So, it is with good reason that the Free Gaza Campaign organisers were reluctant to tell the media exactly when we are setting sail from Larnaca in Cyprus on a journey of 241 nautical miles.
We are still keeping the exact location of the boats a secret, but I can tell you that they are now on course for Larnaca.
And I can also tell you that myself and film-maker Aki Nawaz flew out of Cyprus last night for a secret destination to rendezvous with the two boats so our Press TV documentary will capture every moment for our viewers.
We should be re-united with our fellow passengers some time this week to break the siege of Gaza and raise international awareness.
So, if you have a boat in the region set your course for Larnaca and let's have a Dunkirk-style flotilla steaming for Gaza.
We can no longer rely on the weasel words and actions of Western politicians to rein in Israel from continuing its brutal policies towards the Palestinians.
Let's take on the Zionist State using nothing more than people power to show how much we really do care. The most powerful weapon to combat the violence of the Zionists will be the non-violent actions of peace activists.

We have spent the last week training in non-violent resistance techniques and while I will freely admit a few of us have fears and concerns, every one of us is determined not to be intimidated or bullied by Israel.

I've previously mentioned the amazing Holocaust-survivor Hedy Epstein, who could celebrate her 84th birthday at sea. She actually learnt to swim to qualify for this trip.

Once we reach Gaza, the plan is to return to Cyprus with Palestinian passengers and establish a ferry service, giving priority for people seeking medical treatment and students prevented by Israel from studying abroad.

If you, like us, believe might is not right then pray for us, support us and - if you have a boat - come sail with us.
See you on the beaches in Gaza ... insh'Allah.

More info @ The FreeGaza Movement

A message from Free Gaza boat: Let's create a flotilla of peace!

2008-08-10T12:09:00.000Z

The fifth diary from Free Gaza boats campaign
By Yvonne Ridley
Wednesday 6 August

THERE'S an idiom which says 'it's an ill wind that blows nobody any good'.
Frankly, I've never really understood it and so I checked out its origins this morning and to my surprise it is something people say which means most bad things that happen have a good result for someone.
Well, as you can guess, if I am using myday looking up the origins of old sayings then I must have a lot of time on my hands.
It's true. I am still a land lubber and a very frustrated one at that.
Basically the reason for my dry dock situation is that strong winds have scuppered the current schedule of the Free Gaza Campaign which plans to sail two boats into Gaza thus breaking Israel's medieval siege.
I'm stuck on an extremely picturesque Greek island with film-maker Aki Nawaz waiting for one of our boats to come in, and now we are becoming increasingly frustrated.
By joining the boat ahead of Cyprus we felt it would add to the content of the documentary we are hoping to shoot for Press TV.
Having written out our Next-Of-Kin forms, spent days training for all the "What If" scenarios in Cyprus then making a dash, at breakneck speed to the airport for our secret destination, I feel a bit deflated.
I can only imagine how my fellow travellers must feel in their steaming hot bunker in Cyprus which has all the charm of a cement factory.
Actually they had a break out yesterday and you can see from the attached pictures that Holocaust survivor Hedy Epstein proved that she can swim as good as the rest of us at the grand old age of 83.
Meanwhile I am assured that the two boats Free Gaza and Liberty are in the water, making their way first to pick up Aki and myself and then full steam ahead to Cyprus.
From there we are going to be full throttle for Gaza, insh'Allah as we Muslims say.
So it seems we are behind schedule by a couple of days because of high winds - hence the ill wind idiom.
Actually, on reflection, I should be ashamed of myself for huffing and puffing about the delay ... after all, this is part and parcel of the daily lives of the good people of Gaza. Palestinians on the Strip as well as the West Bank have learned to be patient when it comes to going out and about doing things we often take for granted.

Holocaust-survivor Hedy Epstein among few other campaignersto the Free Gaza Movement boat

For instance, did you know that scores of Palestinian babies are born at Israeli checkpoints as those charmless individuals dressed in the Zionist Army uniform hold ambulances back in spite of sirens and flashing lights.
I know. I actually witnessed such an incident at a checkpoint near Nablus. I even tried to reason with a schmuck with the gun - an Argentinian (what the hell was he doing in an IDF uniform?) - who stood there totally oblivious to the fact a woman was about to give birth. What a heartless, nasty little piece of work he was.
I'm sure had his mother known what he was doing she would have given him a good slap ... he looked barely old enough to be out of nappies himself.
That checkpoint in the West Bank I remember very well because our delegation was kept waiting for more than two hours even though we had two British Lords and several MPs on board as well as a consular official from the British Embassy standing by.
As we eventually were allowed to continue our journey I noted the ambulance, lights still flashing, remained in a lay by and I often wondered what happened to mother and baby. Did they survive?
And then there's the Palestinian children - their school run is nothing like the one for our children in the free world. These kids are often held up at checkpoints all day and when they do move they run like hell because they have been used for target practice by the thugs who represent the fourth largest army in the world - an army which openly uses live rounds when firing upon women and children.
Shopping, going to work, socialising, visiting relatives - they are all simple acts taken for granted by those of us whose lands aren't occupied, but for Palestinians each day is a challenge.
So I am going to quit moaning and try and adopt the same patience that our brothers and sisters in Palestine have learned to live with every day of their lives.
Our peace boats were intended to sail on the 5th but they are still on their way.
Please keep monitoring this website which is carrying my daily blog - and there's also a Face Book group on the Free Gaza Campaign as well as a website.
Meanwhile I'm told the Zionist State is also cranking up its campaign to stop our boats sailing in to Gaza. They do not want it to happen at all which is why, if you have a boat in the region, jump in it now and head for Larnaca.
We can meet up in the next day or so and ALL sail in to Gaza ... the more the merrier. Let's create a flotilla of peace because if there's anything Israel can't handle it is PEACE.
God grant me the patience of a Palestinian.

More info @ The FreeGaza Movement

Israel put pressure on Cyprus to block Gaza Boat Campaign

2008-08-05T12:12:00.000Z

A diary By Yvonne Ridley
05 August 2008

THE enormity of what the Save Gaza Campaign is about to do is now beginning to hit home, and home is a place which has been on my mind the last 24 hours.
Home is where my husband wants me to be "right now" as he said last night. Home is also another place, it's the family home where my mother lives and where she wants me to be "right now".
Home obviously means somewhere which is safe and secure and in the arms of your loved ones.
Well that's what it means to me and millions of others around the world. But just what does home mean if you live in the Gaza Strip?
Many of us are wearing Arabic t-short at the moment bearing the words: "Gaza on my mind" and Gaza is very much on my mind these days.
It is the place where I want to be. It is the place where I want the international headlines to be focussed for all the right reasons.
It is the place where I want us all to be in the next few days - in fact, I want us all to unite and be Gazans for the day.
Gaza is home to 1.4 million Palestinians and the sad thing is they don't feel safe. They are under siege, at the mercy of a brutal, hostile military from another land.
They are shot at, their homes demolished on a Zionist whim, and no mercy or respect is shown for age - if you have an olive skin, are a babe in arms or a pensioner you are "untermenschun" as far as the Israeli regime is concerned.
Yes, it is the Nazi word which was reserved for the Jews during the rise of Hitler - and now we have a classic case of the abused becoming the abuser.
Israel has the power to turn off their tap water - and often does. Israel has the power to switch off their lights, stop food and medical aid reaching them and often does.
The only thing Israel can not do is steal the oxygen of Gaza which fills the lungs of the old and young so they can wail, and cry and scream. Sadly no one hears because these people have been cut off from the rest of the world.
They live in the 360 square kilometres of the Gaza Strip, making it one of the most crowded places on earth. In 1948, just 80,000 people lived in the same area. Now, according to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), 993,818 of the residents of the strip are refugees and 75 per cent of them live in eight camps, where the population density can reach over 75,000 people per square kilometre.
Despite all of the power which Israel wields over this tiny piece of land, the government is still not happy. Now there are moves to try and stop our peace boats from sailing in to Gaza with some hearing aids for the children.
the Zionists are trying to put pressure on the Government of Cyprus to block our attempts to smash the siege of Gaza - but what they forget is that Cyprus knows only too well the cost of occupation.
Cyprus has been occupied for more than three decades following the Turkish invasion of the 70s.
There is only one way the Cypriot Government will fall - and that will be on the side of right and not might.
Come hell or high water, our boats The Liberty and Free Gaza will set sail any day now - we are doing it not for ourselves, but for humanity.
And when we land on the beaches, that is the day we will all become Gazans - armed with nothing more than messages of love and peace.
Is the Israeli war machine fuelled with so much hate there's not room for one ounce of humanity?
One of my fellow passengers Donna Wallach, a jewish lady who has lived in Israel and now resides in America, told me how, despite the hardships suffered under Israel, she is always greeted with love and affection from palestinian children when she visits the occupied lands.
"You know Yvonne, Palestinians don't bring their children up to hate Jews. Sadly the same can not be said in Israel where the children are indoctrinated against Palestinians. It is a tragedy."
Donna Wallach has so much love to give that I know she can't wait to be a Gazan for the day, and I also know that despite her nationality she will be loved just as much by those who she wants to support.
Because, at the end of the day, we are one big family - and families help each other out.

More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

Why the Free Gaza Campaigners don't want to sail in to an Israeli Port?

2008-08-03T18:18:00.001Z

2nd day diary on boat trip to Gaza
03 August 2008 By Yvonne Ridley

I hate filling out forms at the best of times but the one I was given today really concentrated my mind about all the "what if" scenarios we have been trying to address during the intensive training sessions in our land-locked HQ in Cyprus.
The 'we' in question is an assortment of peace activists aged between 22 and 83 years drawn from nearly 15 countries across the world representing people of all faith and no faith ... although as I was once told: "There are no atheists aboard a sinking ship!" (Insh'Allah, there will be no need to verify of corroborate that statement at a later date).
In the next few days no less than TWO ships currently berthed in a top secret location, will come sailing in to the holiday resort of Larnaca to take us on our peace mission.
It is obvious from checking the Zionist websites and chatrooms, there are those who do not want to see our boats float, and the plan to sail a coupe of them in to Gaza, breaking the Israeli siege, has caused outrage among some hardliners in the Zionist State.
The obvious question to ask is: "Why?" After all, the Free Gaza Campaigners don't want to sail in to an Israeli Port. The mission is bound for Gaza which is in Palestinian waters according to any map of the region.
How can delivering a goodwill message and some hearing aids for kids deafened by bombs threaten Israel and the fourth largest army in the world?
But of course logic does not apply and even ordinary Israeli citizens are becoming embarrassed by the hysteria of some Zionists who continue to promote the ill-conceived and medieval siege of the Gaza Strip.
According to a recent poll the Jewish public there does not believe Israel's policy in Gaza is achieving its goals, and that most of the public even believe this policy is harming their interests.
In fact the survey revealed that 83 per cent felt the siege had made Hamas stronger than ever.
Now if the politicians do decide to pay attention to the people who voted them into power they should tell the Defence Minister to instruct the Navy to give us a wide berth and let our boats pass through so we can get on with our humanitarian mission.
Sadly commonsense does not prevail in the Knesset, and in fact some pretty nasty decisions have been taken by brutal, uncaring, emotionally damaged people who care not one jot for their fellow man. And it will be this mentality which will be the eventual undoing of the Zionist State.
Fellow traveller Mary Hughes reinforced this view as we sat and drank a strong cup of english tea in our communal kitchen today. You see Mary has witnessed firsthand the brutality of those who say the land of Palestine is theirs.
Mary, who is flying the flag for Canada, although she was born in Bolton, Lancashire, went on an olive-picking adventure Itamar near Nablus in october 2002 to try and persuade under-fire Palestinian farmers to remain on their land.
She and other peace activists headed to the village after they were told that a bunch of particularly nasty, violent settlers were trying to drive the Palestinians from the lands they and their ancestors had farmed for thousands of years.
And for those of you not familiar with the term settlers - it refers to a group of people who are illegally occupying Palestinian lands. Settlers are thieving, land grabbers and all of them without exception refuse to recognise the 1967 borders issued under international law.
Mary believed that if she helped the farmers pick their olives then no one would stop them. She was wrong. She was jumped on by eight young Israeli settlers who then kicked and punched her to the ground before robbing her. She received injuries that needed hospital treatment.
Mary was traumatised. Some of her fellow activists were also beaten up by the same gang and received broken ribs and fractured bones.
Did I tell you Mary was 67 years old when these thugs attacked her?
Well she's now older and wiser and 73 and undeterred by the proven brutality of some Israelis (not all, we have many supporters from Jewish peace groups within the Zionist state). She will be part of our peace mission and I, for one, salute her courage and bravery.
I hope the cowards from the illegal settlements near Nablus who kicked and punched Mary read this and hang their heads in shame. I doubt they will, but listening to people like Mary makes me more determined than ever to be proud of taking part in this amazing humanitarian project.
And one day, when my grandchildren ask me what I did to stop the genocide of the Palestinians I will be able to say I took part in the Free Gaza Campaign with some of the bravest people I have ever met.
Suddenly I feel a whole lot braver - now pass me that NOK form.
Tomorrow: Why Israel thinks the Free Gaza Campaigners are taking a liberty over the name of one of the boats.
More info @ The Free Gaza Movement

US and the Iranian terrorist MEK (MKO): Blurring friends and enemies

2008-08-03T12:22:00.000Z

Fri, 01 Aug 2008

By Nina Hamedani, Press TV

The United States of America has consistently and historically championed itself as a preeminent nation in the world. However, since recent international and domestic events left the US in a more precarious position, they are desperately making friends with unlikely groups.

Post 9/11 US Befriending the MEK or MKO

President George W. Bush, his administration, and the mass media have carried the banner of an age-old mantra post-September 11, 2001: “The enemy of my enemy is my friend.” Along with this mantra, the aforementioned have also propagated a polarizing theory with public statements declaring, “You're either with us, or against us.” However, political situations are not always so black and white - but neither are friends and enemies.

The relationship between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the US has remained strained since the 1953 British and US Central Intelligence Agency's (CIA) orchestrated coup d'état of Prime Minister Mohammed Mosaddeq, who had aims of nationalizing Iran's oil. Along with the following 1979 Islamic Revolution and ensuing 444-day student takeover of the US embassy in Tehran, Iran and the US continued to grow apart and remain isolated from one another.

US-Iranian political atmosphere and dominant American philosophies have encouraged the US government to forge a friendship with an Iranian opposition group that is living in exile, the Mujahedin-e Khalq (MEK, MKO or PMOI for the People's Mujahedin of Iran).

BBC's Newsnight on January 17, 2007 uncovered an offer that Tehran sent to Washington in 2003, stating Iran would abandon supporting Hamas and Hezbollah if the Western countries would ensure the MEK be disbanded. Many officials in the US government saw an enormous potential of working with Iran, but the offer was stopped in its tracks by Vice President Dick Cheney - and remained unsigned.

Instead of attempting to bridge the gaps between Iran and the US, the American government has been funding the MEK under a guise of 'democracy promotion' in Iran. Reported amounts of money differ, but consider the following:

See the rest of the article @ Press TV

ISRAELI LAWYERS ATTEMPT TO SCUPPER GAZA PEACE BOAT

2008-08-02T16:29:00.000Z

By Yvonne Ridley

ORGANISERS who plan to break the siege of Gaza using a boat sailing from Cyprus are facing accusations their seaborne peace mission could be used as a front for a gun-running operation.
The astonishing claims were made yesterday by Israeli lawyers to the Attorney General of California where funding for the project originally began. It is clear from the letter the Zionist group is determined to stop the boat from sailing into Gaza with medical aid for Palestinian children.
Nitsana Darshan-Leitner, director of Shurat HaDin Israel Law Center also accuses the International Solidarity Movement (ISM), and others, of violating Israeli sovereignty and the U.S. Neutrality Act.
Darshan-Leitner wrote that based on prior experience there were "serious concerns that the boats will be carrying weapons, explosives and contraband".
She cited that the Zionist State had imposed a series of sanctions on the Gaza Strip including a coastal blockade to prevent "previous attempts by the Iranian Government to transfer weapons to Palestinian militants at sea."
Last night from their base in Cyprus, organisers of the Free Gaza project said they were bemused by the accusations adding: "Not bad for a group of peaceniks who want to deliver hearing aids for Palestinian kids."
The seaborne venture which sets sail in a few days time has been endorsed by politicians and humanitarians across the globe including Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and Nobel Peace prize winner Mairead Maquire.
This latest development seems to have had little impact on the internationals representing more than 12 different countries including America, Canada, Pakistan, Britain, Palestine and Israel.
They were joined yesterday by journalist Lauren Booth, sister-in-law of the former British Prime Minister Tony Blair who ironically was forced to cancel his trip to Gaza a few weeks ago because of security concerns.
Last night the head of the Free Gaza campaign, Californian Greta Berlin said: "It is utter nonsense to sggest we carry anything except hearing aids. the only boats in that area of the Mediterranen that are carrying guns, munitions and rockets belong to israel.
"This is a human rights mission and one which we intend to run throughout the summer months and early Fall. This is not a one time operation. Our intent is to break the Israeli Siege of Gaza."

* Press TV will be following the progress of the peace activists and journalist Yvonne Ridley, who will be on board with Indy film-maker Aki Nawaz, will be sending a regular blog to Press TV's website.

See updates on boat campaign @ Press TV

New diplomatic moves between Iran and US for talks

2008-07-19T11:04:00.000Z

19 July 2008
World Week Watch (WWW)
Press TV

Oscar Reyes

Negotiators from Iran, the United States, and five other countries will meet in Geneva later today on July the 19th for international talks over Iran’s nuclear programme.

The high level talks see the United States reverse its previous position, with Undersecretary of State William burns attending negotiations with Iran’s chief nuclear negotiatior Saed Jalili.

Jalili will discuss Iran’s response to a proposal that was delivered to Tehran in mid-June by EU Foreign Policy Chief Javier Solana, who is negotiating on behalf of the UN Security Council plus Germany.

The US and its allies accuse Iran of seeking nuclear weapons, but Iran insists that its nuclear programme is for peaceful purposes.

The US State Department's third-ranking diplomat, William Burns, will join talks with Iranian negotiator Saeed Jalili in Geneva this Saturday.
The meeting is the highest level contact between the two nations since the 1979 Iranian revolution – and marks a break with George Bush’s previous policy.
Burns will hear the Iranian response to a multinational proposal offering economic and technical cooperation in return for a suspension of Iran's uranium enrichment programme.
The six party talks – which involve Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia and the United States - are being conducted by the European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana:

"I am going to meet with Iranian leaders on Saturday. I hope very much we will get a constructive positive answer to the documents which I presented to them in the middle of month of June. That means we are getting active in the short periods of time. Last time I met them it was in Iran on June 14. Before a month is gone we will meet again. Again, I hope the response will allow us to engage in constructive negotiations. I cannot guarantee success but can only say I will be accompanied by important people from six countries including the US."

Solana led a negotiating team to Iran last month to present a package of incentives, including help in establishing a civilian nuclear industry, in return for a suspension of nuclear enrichment and reprocessing.
Iran's adherence to the Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) entitles the country to use nuclear technology for peaceful purposes.
Under the terms of the so-called ‘freeze for freeze’ proposal, Iran would not increase the level of its uranium enrichment efforts while negotiations continued, in return for a freeze in any moves towards further sanctions against Iran.

As part of this latest round of negotiations, European governments have been pushing for Washington to participate directly in preliminary talks with Iran.
US President George Bush had repeatedly ruled out such talks until Iran suspended its uranium enrichment process. But this demand now appears to have been dropped, as US diplomats look for a way out of the crisis that they have promoted.

The talks come against a backdrop of Israeli and Iranian missile tests, and repeated US threats. In a related development, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad hinted on Tuesday that a request for installing a US diplomatic base in Iran could be reviewed.

The installation of a diplomatic outpost would mark a dramatic official US return to the country almost 30 years absence.

Iran already has its own interests section in Washington. If the US reciprocates, its interest section, a de facto embassy, would be run from the Swiss Embassy in Tehran.

to watch the programme go @ PressTV.com

US Training Jondollah and MKO terrorists for Bombing Iran

2008-07-09T10:50:00.000Z

8 July 2008

CASMII reports

interview with Seymour Hersh

In an interview with NPR on his latest New Yorker Article, titled 'Preparing the battlefield', the renowned investigative journalist Seymour Hersh reveals more striking details of his findings on the aim of the $400 million budgeted US covert operations inside Iran. He provides valuable information on US military preparations to strike the country, on the total expansion of the Bush Administration's executive power, about the US recognition of Iran's overall positive role in Iraq and on the US support for the anti-Iran terrorist organisations Jondollah, PJAK and MEK.

Hersh explains that the aim of the US covert operations inside Iran is to create a pretext for attack with the goal of regime change. "The strategic thinking behind this covert operation is to provoke enough trouble and chaos so that the Iranian government makes the mistake of taking aggressive action which will give the impression of a country in acute turmoil", he said. "Then you have what the White House calls the 'casus belli', a reason to attack the country. That is the thinking and it is very crazy."

On Iran's role in Iraq, Hersh points out: "There is absolutely no clear evidence known to the American government that the Iranian leadership has any interest in provoking trouble with the United States in Iraq by sending in people to cause mayhem or kill Americans. There is just no evidence for it." He continues further on: "Frankly, the guys I know in the inside-- in the Special Forces, high up in DoD, high up in the intelligence community--if you push them hard enough, they tell you that Iran has been more of a force for stability in Iraq than negative".

Hersh comments that the decision to launch these covert operations was prompted by the 2007 National Intelligence Estimate's verdict that Iran does not have a nuclear weapons programme and that the approval by the US Congress leadership of the $400 million budget for the operations "is totally an expansion" of the executive powers of the Bush Administration.

He explains how the Bush Administration's policy of "my enemy's enemy is my friend" has led the US to support the Baluchi organisation Jondollah and the MEK (Mujahideen-e-Khalq a.k.a PMOI), both of which have clear track records of terrorist activities including against the US. He reiterates that the US has been giving arms and cash to the terrorists in the MEK for years and reveals that "most of the [MEK] leaders have been taking our money and cashing it in an awful lot of bank accounts in London." He also reveals for the first time that the US has trained MEK teams in the state of Nevada and that "they do a lot of crazy stuff inside Iran".

Hersh warns that "we have been moving cruise missiles there for a few months now", and that the US military is ready. "Our submarines are there, our destroyers are there with cruise missiles aboard, our aircrafts are there, our soldiers are there" to attack Iran within "10 to 12 hours" of the go-ahead order by President Bush, he says, stressing that troops have to go on the ground in Iran in order to destroy Iran's defensive systems.

He finally points out that Bush "is going to be a very active president, I am afraid, until 11:59:59 seconds on January 20, 2009" and raises the alarm about an "October surprise", a military attack on Iran, in particular if Obama continues to have a lead in the polls.

Listen to the whole interview @ here.

The article provided by CASMII. For more information or to contact CASMII please visit http://www.campaigniran.org

Israeli MP thanked France for nuclear weapons

2008-06-24T16:19:00.000Z

Shraga Elam
Zurich/Switzerland
23 June 2008

No real media attention was given to a stunning declaration made yesterday by Dalia Itzik, the Knesset Speaker. Greeting the French president Nicola Sarkozy she said among other things:

„… we remember the beautiful days of political and mainly security cooperation [between our countries – s.e.] and will be forever thankful to you, the French, for giving us the main source of power and deterrence that was and will be in our possession.“

(Source: Knesset website in Hebrew /http://www.knesset.gov.il/vip/speaker/heb/SpSpeech230608.htm). The statement was quoted partially in the Hebrew Ha‘aretz edition, which added: „… as is known the nuclear plant in Dimona was erected with a French aid.” (http://www.haaretz.co.il/hasite/spages/995439.html ) .

This official statement in the Knesset signals a real change in Israel's policy of nuclear opacity; i.e., Israel has refused to admit till now possessing nuclear weapons. This obvious lie was accepted by the US governments as the most convenient solution for the problem posed by the Israeli nukes. A talkbackist called Hass wrote correctly: „US law requires(d) the US to limit scientific/technical interactions with non-NPT nuclear armed states, and the “opacity” in question was specifically intended to allow Israel to circumvent these restrictions by agreeing to pretend that Israeli nukes don’t exist.“ ( http://www.armscontrolwonk.com/1321/israel-and-nuclear-opacity ).

The most plausible explanation for Itzik’s surprising statement is that Israel is preparing the ground for accepting Iranian nukes and institutionalizing a policy of „balance of terror“. The „balance of terror“ requires that both sides will possess weapons of mass destruction and the possession should be made known in order to deter the enemy from attacking.

Hebrew short version:
http://cafe.themarker.com/view.php?t=495545

IAEA on Iran's Nuclear Program: Reality vs. US media myth

2008-06-08T10:23:00.002Z

Jeremy R. Hammond
June 5, 2008

This is a good investigative report that can rarely been found in US media. Jeremy starts his report with the following:

When the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) sent its follow-up report on the implementation of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) Safeguards Agreement in Iran to the United Nations Security Council on May 26, the response from the U.S. media was pretty much along predictable lines.

The next day, The New York Times, under a headline that read "Atomic Monitor Signals Concern Over Iran's Work," called it an "unusually blunt and detailed report" and quoted the report as saying that Iran's alleged pursuit of a nuclear weapon remained "a matter of serious concern." The report "accused the Iranians of a willful lack of cooperation, particularly in answering allegations that its nuclear program may be intended more for military use than for energy generation." The case that Iran may be seeking a weapon consists in part on 18 documents indicating that "the Iranians have ventured into explosives, uranium processing and a missile warhead design."

Jeremy concludes in his investigative report:

Thus, out of the five remaining outstanding issues at the time of the February report, three were deemed then to be no longer outstanding. A fourth, regarding the "uranium metal document" was awaiting further corroboration from Pakistan of Iran's explanation for its possession of the document, which the IAEA has since received. The last remaining outstanding issue is with regard to the "alleged studies" purportedly shown in documents provided by other nations that Iran claims are forgeries. While these documents are indeed a "serious concern" when considering allegations of Iran's "cat-and-mouse" game with the IAEA, it must also be considered that Iran hasn't even been presented with some of these documents cited as evidence of its intention to build a bomb. The follow-up May report doesn't reiterate issues deemed no longer outstanding from the February report, giving cause for that context to be conveniently forgotten in US media reports.

The fact is that the IAEA has noted substantial progress in resolving outstanding issues that remain in the process of verifying the peaceful nature of Iran's nuclear program. Iran's right to research and develop nuclear technology for energy is guaranteed under the nuclear non-proliferation treaty. Iran has allowed the IAEA access and oversight under the terms of its Safeguards Agreement, and the Agency has continued to successfully monitor Iran's program, detecting no proscribed activities indicating a parallel weapons program.

As the IAEA Secretary General Mohammed El Baradei noted at the World Economic Forum the week before the delivery of the May report to the UN, "We haven't seen indications or any concrete evidence that Iran is building a nuclear weapon and I've been saying that consistently for the last five years."[13]

One must be forgiven if one had arrived at a different conclusion based on contrary impressions delivered to the public by the US media.

the full report @ OpEdNews
more on: http://www.yirmeyahureview.com

Is the world running out of oil?

2008-05-24T10:43:00.001Z

Press TV
World Week Watch (WWW) programme
Saturday 24 May 08

Oscar Reyes

This week, oil prices hit record highs of 135 dollars per barrel – which, even taking inflation into account, is higher than at the peak of the 1970s oil crisis.

Is the world running out of oil? Or are oil traders cashing in on temporary price hikes – creating a temporary bubble that will soon burst?

Let’s take a look at some of the factors behind this week’s record prices.

With oil prices reaching record highs, there is no shortage of explanations for the current boom.

The latest surge came after the US government reported that its supplies of crude oil and petrol fell unexpectedly in the last week.

Financial speculation was rife, with a $5 dollar price hike in a single day’s trading on Wednesday bearing all the hallmarks of a speculative bubble.

The weak US currency was also a factor, as it makes it cheaper for holders of other currencies to buy oil - which is traditionally priced in dollars.

In addition, many investors see commodities such as oil as a hedge against inflation and the falling dollar.

But while some analysts consider that, in the short term, this bubble could burst, the fundamentals of oil supply and global politics make it more likely that the price of a barrel of crude will continue its upward trend.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) last year reported that oil demand is likely to outpace rises in oil supply until at least 2012, generating significant shortfalls.

The economic and consumer boom in the world's largest developing countries, particularly China and India, are one key factor.
But this is accompanied by a pronounced slowdown in the expansion of global supply, due mainly to a dearth of new discoveries, which many analysts take a sign that the world is approaching peak oil - the moment in our history where supplies start to dwindle
This trend has been exacerbated by the unwillingness – and, to some extent, inability - of the oil cartel Opec to pump significantly more crude.

Recurrent political disorder in key oil fields already in production – including Iraq and Nigeria – is a further factor.
US aggression towards key oil producers, including Iraq, Venezuela and Iran – has made the markets nervous too, with the resulting spike in oil prices having a significant ‘blowback’ effect on the US economy itself.
But with US officials keen to pin the blame on OPEC, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez – whose country is a member of the organization – said on Thursday that the true culprit was America’s addiction to oil.

6. Hugo Chavez, President of Venezuela:"They say we are to blame for the price of oil. They are the ones to blame in the first place, for their wastefulness, their consumption, the aggression against countries such as Iraq, a great oil-producing country, their threats to Iran and Venezuela, and many other factors. It's not OPEC. They want to demonise OPEC before the world. They want to pin the world against OPEC. Yesterday we were discussing this, how to stop the empire from succeeding with its great media machine from inverting reality, because sometimes they are successful."

So what is the effect of all this?
The environmental impact is ambiguous. A cut in flights, and a decline in sales of gas guzzling 4x4 vehicles in the United States is good news for the planet. But price alone will not change the oil addition of Western consumers. And while oil-dependent companies are reporting losses, oil companies themselves are doing well – with the high price making it viable to invest in new “unconventional” oil sources, such as tar sands and deep-offshore fields.

The impact on the US economy is more telling, however.
With oil prices now over twice what they were a year ago, they are fueling US inflation by making it more expensive to transport goods such as food.

This, in turn, is helping to weaken the value of the dollar on international currency markets – which then inflates the price of oil itself in international trading.

More fundamentally, though, the high oil price is weakening the US economy in the longer term by generating a huge balance-of-payments deficit.

As the United States continues to feed its oil addiction, wealth is being transferred at a rapid rate to the economies of oil-producing nations.

Your comments to this programme should be sent to: www@presstv.co.uk

View this show @ here

watch WWW @ PressTV.com

Rep. Ron Paul Stands Alone in Senate against Powerfull Israel Lobby

2008-03-08T13:10:00.001Z

CNI reports

Rep. Ron Paul Stands Alone (defying AIPAC) in Voting Against Gaza Bill (see the latest CNI send about Dr. Paul's courage below):

On Wednesday, March 5, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 951, which condemns the ongoing Palestinian rocket attacks on Israeli civilians, holding both Iran and Syria responsible for "sponsoring terror attacks." Additionally, the resolution claims that "those responsible for launching rocket attacks against Israel routinely embed their production facilities and launch sites amongst the Palestinian civilian population, utilizing them as human shields …". For the full text of House Resolution 951, please click here.

This resolution problematically includes a strong defense of the recent Israeli incursions in Gaza. The following is one such exert: "Whereas the inadvertent inflicting of civilian casualties as a result of defensive military operations aimed at military targets, while deeply regrettable, is not at all morally equivalent to the deliberate targeting of civilian populations as practiced by Hamas and other Gaza-based terrorist groups…"
The resolution passed the House with an unequivocal majority of 404 to 1 with four representatives voting present and nineteen abstaining. Who was the lone Member of Congress to stand up to the Israel Lobby? Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX) not only voted against HR 951, but also made a very strong statement explaining why he opposed such a biased pro-Israel statement.

Below is Rep. Paul's statement he gave to the House before the vote:

Mr. Speaker I rise in opposition to H. Res. 951, a resolution to condemn Palestinian rocket attacks on Israeli civilians. As one who is consistently against war and violence, I obviously do not support the firing of rockets indiscriminately into civilian populations. I believe it is appalling that Palestinians are firing rockets that harm innocent Israelis, just as I believe it is appalling that Israel fires missiles into Palestinian areas where children and other non-combatants are killed and injured.

Unfortunately, legislation such as this is more likely to perpetuate violence in the Middle East than contribute to its abatement. It is our continued involvement and intervention - particularly when it appears to be one-sided - that reduces the incentive for opposing sides to reach a lasting peace agreement.

Additionally, this bill will continue the march toward war with Iran and Syria, as it contains provocative language targeting these countries. The legislation oversimplifies the Israel/Palestine conflict and the larger unrest in the Middle East by simply pointing the finger at Iran and Syria. This is another piece in a steady series of legislation passed in the House that intensifies enmity between the United States and Iran and Syria. My colleagues will recall that we saw a similar steady stream of provocative legislation against Iraq in the years before the US attack on that country.

I strongly believe that we must cease making proclamations involving conflicts that have nothing to do with the United States. We incur the wrath of those who feel slighted while doing very little to slow or stop the violence.

The Council for the National Interest denounces H.R. 951 and encourages our members to call their Representative to let them know that this approval of Israeli aggression and flagrant human rights abuses is unacceptable. To find out how your Representative voted, please click here.

In addition, please thank Rep. Paul for his brave actions on Wednesday. Contact his office today and express your gratitude by calling (202) 225-2831.

Reported by CNI@ Council for the National Interest Foundation

Were the Archbishop's Comments on Sharia Law Justifiable?

2008-03-01T15:29:00.002Z

A debate at Press TV london

Broadcast on 26 February 2008.

Watch @ PresTV, Forum

The Forum - Sharia controversy: justified fear or media circus?

Host: Phil Rees

Panelists:
The Reverend Stephen Coles, is a member of the General Synod of the Church of England and Vicar of St Thomas', Finsbury Park, London

Dr Daud Abdullah is deputy secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain

Alex Deane, member of Church of England. He is the author of 'The Great Abdication: Why Britain's Decline of the Middle Class' and is former Chief of Staff to leader of the Conservative Party David Cameron MP.

Mohammad Saeed Bahmanpour, raised in Iran, studied at Queen Mary College London, the London School of Economics and the Allameh Tabatabai University in Tehran and most recently a lecturer at the Islamic College for Advanced Studies in London. His latest book, Muslim Identity in the 21st Century, was published in London in 2001.

Preview:
This week Forum was discussing sharia law in the UK. A lecture to lawyers by the chief religious leader of the Church of England, Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams, earlier this month, has sparked off serious attacks against him in the media with headlines including 'Bash the Bishop.' Commentators from both from the political right and left both criticised him, some calling for his resignation, whilst colleagues in his Church have questioned his judgement. The subject at the centre of the row is sharia law in the UK, with Williams questioning whether British law should legally recognise aspects of religious law.

Political leaders Gordon Brown, David Cameron and Nick Clegg all disagree fearing the universal value of equality before the law in the UK would be undermined by the introduction of parallel foreign laws. Fears also of the fragmenting of society have been stoked up by the recycling of an ICM poll in 2006 claiming 40% of Muslims would favour the introduction of sharia laws in the pre-dominantly Muslim areas. But few have asked exactly what is sharia and what parts of the legal system would be affected.

Can sharia like elements of other religious laws be formally practiced in the UK? Those sympathetic to sharia claim sharia courts have been operating in England for a number of years and Muslims are only seeking equality in the law with the likes of the Jewish and other communities.

Should we be more concerned with sharia or with the reporting behind it? And does this tell us about wider underlying attitudes towards Muslims behind the issue of the sharia law?

Watch @ PresTV, Forum

US Nuclear Hypocrisy and Iran

2007-03-06T02:07:00.000Z

FRIDA BERRIGAN

The Bush administration is very focused these days on Iran's nuclear program.

The new round of hand-wringing and saber-rattling about Iran's nascent but worrisome nuclear program comes just a few weeks after the Bush administration announced its new budget, which included billions for nuclear weapons development. The Department of Energy's "weapons activities" budget request totals $6.4 billion, a drop in the bucket compared to the Pentagon's $481.4 billion proposed budget. But the budget for new nukes is large and growing -- even in comparison to Cold War figures.

Key to revitalizing nuclear weapons is Complex 2030, the NNSA'a "infrastructure planning scenario for a nuclear weapons complex able to meet the threats of the 21st century." It is a costly, illegal, and dangerous program aimed at rebuilding the 50-year-old nuclear facilities where the weapons are both assembled and disassembled...
See full article @ Counterpunch

Ghosts of Abu Ghraib

2007-03-06T00:39:00.000Z

ICH
"Ghosts of Abu Ghraib," a new HBO documentary produced and directed by Rory Kennedy, daringly approaches a scandal that hardly anyone wants to see reexamined -- least of all, one can safely assume, the Bush administration and the Pentagon.

The reason is not just that what happened at Abu Ghraib is, to understate in the extreme, unpleasant. The documentary says it's also because this breakdown was not so much nervous as inevitable -- and not so spontaneous, having been sanctioned by the top brass, including former defense secretary Donald Rumsfeld.
too see videos go @ ICH

Military strikes against Iran will simply not work

2007-03-05T01:07:00.000Z

Military strikes could speed Iran's development of nuclear weapons, warns new report.

Military strikes, instead of setting back Iran's nuclear program, could actually speed up their production of a nuclear weapon, according to a new report written by one of the UK's leading nuclear scientists published today (Monday).

The report shows that following an armed attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, Iran could change the nature of its program to assemble a small number of devices relatively quickly.

The report is written by Dr. Frank Barnaby, who worked as a weapons scientist at the headquarters of the UK's Atomic Weapons Establishment (Aldermaston) during the development of Britain's own nuclear weapons, and is published by Oxford Research Group, one of the UK's leading global security think tanks.

"If Iran is moving towards a nuclear weapons capacity it is doing so relatively slowly, most estimates put it at least five years away. However attacking Iran - far from setting back their progress towards a bomb - would almost certainly lead to a fast-track program to develop a small number of nuclear devices as quickly as possible. It would be a bit like deciding to build a car from spare parts instead of building the entire car factory. Put simply, military attacks could speed Iran's progress to a nuclear bomb," said the report's author Dr Barnaby.

Commenting on the launch of the report, Dr. John Sloboda, Executive Director of Oxford Research Group, said: "This report doesn't get into the rights and wrongs of military strikes on Iran - it asks whether they will achieve their objectives of destroying or setting back Iran's nuclear program. The conclusions should be food for thought for even the most hawkish: military strikes against Iran will simply not work. Indeed they could even bring a nuclear-armed Iran closer."

See the full report@ Oxford Research Group

Iran: a Chronology of Disinformation

2007-02-17T23:18:00.000Z

By GARY LEUPP

The disinformation campaign eschews logic, gambling that fear alone will produce popular support. It anticipates the eventual discovery of its lies and charades, but calculates that the attainment of its heroic ends will make any embarrassment worth the effort. So what if following the nuking of Iran, after the rubble's cleared, we discover that Iran had no military nuclear program? Maybe there will be no evidence of anything at all left anyway. Maybe that's the radiant beauty of the plan.

Don't expect the neocons urging the Iran attack to apologize after the event, not matter how catastrophic the consequences. Consider Douglas Feith's response to the report by the Pentagon's inspector general that his Office of Special Plans peddled allegations about Iraq "not supported by the available intelligence" in order to get the U.S. into a bloody war.
"All of that was wrong, wasn't it?" Feith was recently asked by Chris Wallace in the most neocon-friendly environment imaginable, Fox News studio.
"No, not at all," Feith responded. "There was substantial intelligence. . . . There was a lot of information out there."
A lot of information indeed. Lots of stuff to believe and fear. That's how it works, again and again, in the history of U.S. imperialism. From the imaginary Spanish sinking of the USS Maine to the Gulf of Tonkin Incident to Saddam Hussein's WMD to Iran's plans for genocide. Disinformation has a long proud history of working well when deployed by amoral, unscrupulous, maybe insane men holding state power. Will it work once more?

Full report @ Counterpunch

Neocons attack on Iran is a Six-Year Project

2007-02-17T23:06:00.000Z

Larisa Alexandrovna
Raw Story

The escalation of war rhetoric against Iran from the Bush White House and the neocons is just the latest installment of a long-term plan for another preemptive war.

The escalation of US military planning on Iran is only the latest chess move in a six-year push within the Bush Administration to attack that country. While Iran was named a part of President George W. Bush's "axis of evil" in 2002, efforts to ignite a confrontation with Iran date back long before the post-9/11 war on terror.

Presently, the Administration is trumpeting claims that Iran is closer to a nuclear weapon than the CIA's own analysis shows and positing Iranian influence in Iraq's insurgency, but efforts to destabilize Iran have been conducted covertly for years, often using members of Congress or non-government actors in a way reminiscent of the 1980s Iran-Contra scandal.
For the full report go @ AlterNet

Attack on Iran would have disastrous consequences, warn 15 groups

2007-02-06T11:43:00.000Z

A coalition of fifteen British groups urges new diplomatic push to avoid crisis in the Middle East.

Military action against Iran could have disastrous global consequences according to a new
report published Monday 5 February by a diverse group of organisations including Oxfam, the Foreign
Policy Centre, faith groups and others.

On the one year anniversary of Iran's referral to the Security Council, a new joint report by 15
organisations - including think tanks, aid agencies, religious groups and Trade Unions - warns
that, despite the seriousness of the situation, there is still 'time to talk'. This must be used to
avoid an escalation with potentially disastrous consequences.

According to the report, military action against Iran could:

-- Further jeopardise the prospects of peace taking root in the Middle East - Long standing
Iranian links to Hamas in Gaza and the West Bank, Hezbollah in Lebanon and Shia
groups in Iraq, along with the presence of significant minority Shia populations in Saudi
Arabia, could lead to severe destabilisation throughout the Middle East.

-- Severely undermine hopes for stability in Iraq - Iran has several thousand intelligence
agents operating in the Shia region of Iraq and has been accused of arming Shia
insurgents. A decision to activate insurgent units could lead to a massive escalation in
violence.

-- Bolster the position of hard-liners and set back chances of reform within Iran - Recent
municipal elections suggest that the bellicose rhetoric of Ahmadinejad is beginning to
lose appeal. Over the winter there have been fuel shortages and inflation continues to
rise. Ahmadinejad's popularity is waning. Military strikes would unify Iranians, ignite
greater nationalist feeling and undermine the growing prospects of an internal shift in
power.

-- Cause significant civilian casualties

-- Push developing countries into greater poverty - If military action led to an increase in
oil prices. For example, a $10 increase in oil price could drop the GDPs of Sub-Saharan
African states by an average of 3% with serious implications for those already living in
poverty.

-- Damage UK, US and European economies - if oil prices rose to $100 per barrel this
could increase the risk of recession.

-- Threaten serious environmental contamination - Bombing could result in radioactive
contamination, oil slicks and oil well fires that could take years to deal with.

-- Increase the terror threat to the UK by fuelling resentment and bolstering extremists.
The Coalition includes: Amicus, Amos Trust, British Muslim Forum, Christian Solidarity
Worldwide, Foreign Policy Centre, GMB, International Physicians for the Prevention of
Nuclear War, Medact, Muslim Council of Britain, Muslim Parliament, Ockenden
International, Oxfam, Oxford Research Group, Pax Christi, PCS, People and Planet, Unison.

Read full report @ Crirsis Iran

Iran self-sufficient in producing centrifuges

2007-01-31T19:18:00.000Z

RI
International Institute of Strategic Studies (IISS) in London in its latest world military assessment concluded that Iran is self-sufficient in producing centrifuges, the heart of the uranium enrichment fuel cycle.

Iran so far has been accused of obtaining the centrifuges from A. Q. Khan black market network but the reality of producing over 3000 centrifuges forced the Think Tank close to American circles admits that Tehran is capable of producing them domestically.

However, IISS, in its latest annual report entitled "The Military Balance 2007"wrote: "It obtained at least 500 disassembled centrifuges from Pakistan through the A.Q. Khan black market network plus the blueprints to produce its own."

IISS estimated that, "Iran is probably on track to meet its goal of producing 3,000 centrifuges by the end of March or shortly thereafter."

Read the press release for the report @ IISS

Bush Is About To Attack Iran-Why Can't Americans See it?

2007-01-28T09:57:00.000Z

By Paul Craig Roberts

The Bush Regime has made it clear that it is convinced that Bush already has the authority to attack Iran. The Regime argues that the authority is part of Bush's commander-in-chief powers. Congress has authorized the war in Iraq, and Bush's recent public statements have shifted the responsibility for the Iraqi insurgency from al-Qaeda to Iran. Iran, Bush has declared, is killing US troops in Iraq. Thus, Iran is covered under the authorization for the war in Iraq.

Everything is in place for an attack on Iran. Two aircraft carrier attack forces are deployed to the Persian Gulf, US attack aircraft have been moved to Turkey and other countries on Iran's borders, Patriot anti-missile defense systems are being moved to the Middle East to protect oil facilities and US bases from retaliation from Iranian missiles, and growing reams of disinformation alleging Iran's responsibility for the insurgency in Iraq are being fed to the gullible US Media.

General Ivashov and everyone in the Middle East and at the Davos globalization conference in Europe understands the Bush Regime's agenda.

Why cannot Americans understand?

Why hasn't Congress told Bush and Cheney that they will both be instantly impeached if they initiate a wider war?

Full article @ vdare.com

BBC: US seeks MKO terrorist organisation to reach out Iraqi Sunni insurgents

2007-01-19T12:08:00.000Z

In a rare report BBC Newsnight revealed that some elements of Bush administration are seeking to use MKO (or MEK), a proscribed terrorist organisation on both sides of the Atlantic, to reach out the Sunni insurgents in Iraq.

The programme, broadcast Wednesday night on 17 January, contains shocking revelations on how the Americans were thinking of using a group which even their own government has openly recognised as a terrorist organisation.

Tim Whewell in this report said that in April 2003 Iran offered to withdraw military backing for Hezbollah and Hamas. In return, Tehran wanted help to disband a fanatical group called the People's Mujahadeen (MKO) - but was rejected.

Watch the video @ BBC Newsnight

Greater Middle East War, the consequence of American policy against Iran

2007-01-17T18:27:00.000Z

Retired Colonel Sam Gardiner
The White House could be telling the truth. Maybe there are no plans to take Iran to the next level. The fuel for a fire is in place, however. All we need is a spark. The danger is that we have created conditions that could lead to a Greater Middle East War.

It is possible the White House strategy is just implementing a strategy to put pressure on Iran on a number of fronts, and this will never amount to anything. On the other hand, if the White House is on a path to strike Iran, we'll see a few more steps unfold.

First, we know there is a National Security Council staff-led group whose mission is to create outrage in the world against Iran. Just like before Gulf II, this media group will begin to release stories to sell a strike against Iran. Watch for the outrage stuff. The Patriot missiles going to the GCC states are only part of the missile defense assets. I would expect to see the deployment of some of the European-based missile defense assets to Israel, just as they were before Gulf II...
Cntinued @ Counterpunch

2007: Decisive Year for the Israeli-Neocon Attack Iran Plan

2007-01-03T17:45:00.000Z

Another Day In Empire,
Kurt Nimmo

As if to kick off the New Year, and usher in the required political mindset, the Israelis are switching the attack Iran mantra into hyperdrive.

"As an American strike in Iran is essential for our existence, we must help him pave the way by lobbying the Democratic Party (which is conducting itself foolishly) and US newspaper editors," declares Israeli Brigadier General Oded Tira. "We need to do this in order to turn the Iranian issue to a bipartisan one and unrelated to the Iraq failure."

It is refreshing, in a sadistic sort of way, so little translation is required here. First, Tira, a former IDF chief artillery officer, has cut to the chase, not belaboring us with the sort of platitudes uttered by a Binyamin Netanyahu or Ehud Olmert. In order for Israel to exist, so the reasoning goes, it is required for the United States to attack Iran and kick off world war three, or as the neocons call it, world war four. Of course, by "existence" the former IDF officer means Israel must continue the illegal occupation of Palestinian land, continue killing and torturing the Palestinian people, and mucking around in the domestic affairs of its Arab neighbors.
Continue @ ADI

Iranians See Tougher Times Ahead

2007-01-03T16:28:00.000Z

IPS
Kimia Sanati

As 2006 closed Iranians witnessed two events that will impinge on their lives in the new year. The hardline government of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad came a cropper in two key elections and the United Nations Security Council unanimously voted to put the country under sanctions for its defiant nuclear enrichment programme.

Iran has lived under sanctions for many years now and hardliners say they are prepared to face sanctions, however dire. In an editorial released after the Security Council resolution, the Keyhan newspaper's editor demanded that Iran exit the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) of which the country is a signatory.

The hardliners and conservatives who dominate Iranian parliament responded to the sanctions, adopted on Dec. 23, by approving outlines of a bill which binds the government to reconsider its relations with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Continue @ Inter Press Service News Agency

Johns Hopkins University: Iran needs nuclear power

2006-12-27T13:49:00.000Z

According to a new Study by Johns Hopkins University in Maryland, Iran could run out of oil to export in eight years without significant investment in infrastructure.

The report, published by the US National Academy of Sciences, suggests that Iran's nuclear programme could be a "genuine" opportunity for investors as oil production has failed to bridge oil field losses and domestic demand growth.

Roger Stern of Johns Hopkins University in Maryland said: "I'm not saying that Iran will have no oil in eight years. I'm saying that they will be using all of it for themselves."

The data published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences said Tehran could become "politically vulnerable" from the decline in exports as these account for about 70 per cent of government revenue.

The U.S. case against Iran is based on Iran's deceptions regarding nuclear weapons development. This case is buttressed by assertions that a state so petroleum-rich cannot need nuclear power to preserve exports, as Iran claims. The U.S. infers, therefore, that Iran's entire nuclear technology program must pertain to weapons development.

However, some industry analysts project an Irani oil export decline [e.g., Clark JR (2005) Oil Gas J 103(18):34-39]. If such a decline is occurring, Iran's claim to need nuclear power could be genuine. Because Iran's government relies on monopoly proceeds from oil exports for most revenue, it could become politically vulnerable if exports decline.

In the study the researchers survey the political economy of Irani petroleum for evidence of this decline. They define Iran's export decline rate (edr) as its summed rates of depletion and domestic demand growth, which they find equals 10-12%.

To read the full report in PDF go @ PNAS

Think counter-intuitively about Iran, than simply upping the rhetoric

2006-12-20T12:36:00.000Z

RI
In response to today's Tony Blair new round of attacks against Iran, Foreign Policy Centre in England in a statement suggested to the British PM to "think counter-intuitively about Iran, rather than simply upping the rhetoric."

The statement reads, "The Iranians want to engage with the West on a wide range of issues, including regional peace and security. The proposal by Tehran of a regional security organisation should be taken seriously by the US and the EU."

Despite the fact that Iran being one of the exceptions in the Middle East in terms of having a more advanced democratic system, Mr Blair today accused Tehran of being the most undemocratic nation in the Middle East and suggested, "We have to wake up. These forces of extremism based on a warped and wrong-headed interpretation of Islam aren't fighting a conventional war, but they are fighting one against us."

Blair, who is due to step down as prime minister next year, said: "And 'us' is not just the West, still less simply America and its allies. 'Us' is all those who believe in tolerance, respect for others and liberty."

He went on saying, "We must mobilise our alliance of moderation in this region and outside it to defeat the extremists."

As one of the critics to Blair's speech said, looking at the UK and US alliances in the region one can figure out that what kind of regimes Mr Blair is referring to as the moderate ones.

ALEX BIGHAM, Iran Analyst of the Foreign Policy Centre today said: "Iran does have legitimate security concerns, when they are surrounded regionally by nuclear powers and US troops. Persuading the Iranians not to start a regional nuclear arms race and to stop meddling in Iraq and Lebanon can only be achieved if we offer them major incentives in return - the status of a leading role in regional security could unlock the current crisis."

The centre which has close link to Tony Blair's wing in the ruling Labour party added, "Blair's speech today had the right mood music - he is correct to focus on Iran as a problem affecting the wider Middle East. However, neither the US and UK seem to be able to answer the fundamental question - How do you deal with a problem like Iran?"

The centre added, "Blair's alliance of moderation should not be exclusively focused on the moderate Gulf states, or he risks pitting Sunni government against Iran's Shi'a theocracy. With the reformist forces gaining support after their election victories over the weekend, the 'alliance of moderation' must extend to moderates in Iran. There will only be support for long term change in Iran if there is a positive offer on the table, more than the rather piecemeal offer of aircraft spare parts in return for Iran ending its nuclear ambitions."

to see Blair's speech go @ BBC

Embarrassing document revealed Blair's lies on Iraq war

2006-12-18T13:26:00.000Z

RI
The Government's case for going to war in Iraq has been torn apart by the publication of previously classified evidence that Tony Blair lied over Saddam Hussein's weapons of mass destruction.

A devastating attack on Mr Blair's justification for military action by Carne Ross, Britain's key negotiator at the UN, has been kept under wraps until now because he was threatened with being charged with breaching the Official Secrets Act.

In the testimony revealed by the publication of the document on the UK parliament Commons foreign affairs committee website, as the evidence presented by 40 year old Mr Ross, he, who helped negotiate several UN security resolutions on Iraq, makes it clear that Mr Blair must have known Saddam Hussein possessed no weapons of mass destruction. He said that during his posting to the UN, "at no time did British government assess that Iraq's WMD (or any other capability) posed a threat to the UK or its interests."

Damning repudiation of the government's public claims in the run-up to the war is contained in secret evidence to Lord Butler's committee on the abuse of intelligence over Iraq by Carne Ross, who at the time was a diplomat at Britain's UN mission in New York.

Mr Ross revealed it was a commonly held view among British officials dealing with Iraq that any threat by Saddam Hussein had been "effectively contained."

Ross was a member of the FCO from 1989 to 2004, when he resigned after giving evidence to the Butler review. As a member of the so-called "fast stream" of the Diplomatic Service, he served, as head of the Middle East Peace Process section (1995-97), speechwriter to the Foreign Secretary (1997-98), and First Secretary (Political) at the UK Mission to the UN, New York, where he was responsible for the Middle East, and in particular Iraq (1998-2002). He served briefly in Afghanistan after the US/UK invasion and was seconded to the UN mission in Kosovo in 2003-04. By the time he resigned, he had joined the Senior Management Structure of the FCO.

Mr Ross told Lord Butler he read UK and US human and signals intelligence on Iraq every working day during the four years he spent in New York up to 2002, and spoke at length to UN weapons inspectors.

During the Commons Foreign Relations Committee session on 8 November 2006 the communications between the chair of the committee (a labour MP) and Mr Ross is interesting in that it is clear that the chairman is not happy of the revelations and was encouraging Ross to not publish his testimony to Lord Butler.

Chairman: Mr Ross, Black Rod is now approaching to end the proceedings, and that might be a good point at which to conclude our discussions. I say personally that I think that you should take advice before you hand over anything that might get you into problems, despite Mr Mackinlay's protestations.
Andrew Mackinlay: As long as it is on the record
Chairman: Yes, it is on the record.
Andrew Mackinlay: I am surprised. As Chairman, you should be coaxing and encouraging witnesses to give full disclosure, and I hoped that you would do that in discussions with the Clerk.
Chairman: I am trying to ensure that witnesses do not make a decision on the spur of the moment that might have wider consequences without thinking through those consequences.
Andrew Mackinlay: I absolutely agree. It has to stand up in Parliament.
Chairman: It is up to Mr Ross what he chooses to do, but I think that he should give it considered thought rather than give way to being pressured. It is his decision, but I am just saying that as we conclude the proceedings today.
Mr Ross: Mr Chairman, I have given it years of thought. This has been on my conscience for a very long time, and I was waiting for an opportunity under privilege to share my evidence to the Butler inquiry. I would be happy to share it at this point with the Committee.
Chairman: That is fine. That is your decision. Thank you, Mr Ross.

T0 access the full details of testimony and the new revealed document go @ Parliament

British artists revive the call for Israel Cultural boycott

2006-12-15T18:37:00.000Z

RI
Following the statement issued by Ken Lochthe on August 2006 for cultural boycotting of Israel a group of acclaimed British artists in a letter published in the Guardian on Friday 15 December called on British writers and artists to undertake a "cultural boycott" of Israel.

Loch, the the British director and winner of year 2006 Palme d'Or at Cannes Film Festival, an artist who is known for his politically and socially engaged films, has declared in a personal statement his support of "the call by Palestinian film-makers, artists and others to boycott state sponsored Israeli cultural institutions and urges others to join their campaign".

In his statement he said:

"I support the call by Palestinian film-makers, artists and others to boycott state sponsored Israeli cultural institutions and urge others to join their campaign.

Palestinians are driven to call for this boycott after forty years of the occupation of their land, destruction of their homes and the kidnapping and murder of their civilians.

They have no immediate hope that this oppression will end.

As British citizens we have to acknowledge our own responsibility. We must condemn the British and US governments for supporting and arming Israel. We must also oppose the terrorist activities of the British and US governments in pursuing their illegal wars and occupations.

However, it is impossible to ignore the appeals of Palestinian comrades. Consequently, I would decline any invitation to the Haifa Film Festival or other such occasions."

The celebrated novelist, critic and artist John Berger on his letter to the Guardian co-signed by, among the 95 signatories, the artist Cornelia Parker, the musician Brian Eno, and writers Arundhati Roy and Ahdaf Soueif, Berger calls for support for the boycott.

He said of the boycott: "Of course its effects will not be gigantic but it is a way of not staying silent. It is a very personal call ... a way of encouraging the very courageous Israelis who oppose their government and an encouragement to Palestinians to somehow go on surviving." ...

to see the letter go @The Guardian
to see the Ken Loch statement go@ the Electronic

Washington steers up war between Sunnis and Shiites in Iraq

2006-12-15T11:22:00.000Z

Gareth Porter in his latest analysis indicated that U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad negotiated with Sunni armed groups for several weeks earlier this year on an agreement that would have supported Sunni forces in attacking pro-Iranian Shiite militias, according to accounts given by commanders of armed Sunni resistance organisations.

The new accounts make it clear for the first time that the main objective of the talks was to explore possible U.S. support for building a Sunni military force directed primarily against Shiites in Iraq.

In the talks, the Sunnis assured the ambassador that the Sunni insurgents had sufficient manpower and knowledge to deal successfully with the problem of Shiite militias in Baghdad, which Khalilzad had begun to recognise as a serious policy problem for the Bush administration. "If he would just provide us with the weapons, we would clean up the city and regain control of Baghdad in 30 days," one insurgent leader was quoted as saying.

The negotiations between Khalilzad and Sunni insurgents were said by the Sunni leaders to have been brokered by former interim Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, at Khalilzad's request. Allawi apparently convinced Sunni resistance leaders that they could find common ground with the United States over Iranian influence in the country, which was exercised through Shiite political parties and militias. ...

Continued@IPS

Ellsberg: prevent Iran attack by leaking Pentagon papers

2006-12-08T17:40:00.000Z

RI
Daniel Ellsberg, who leaked secret Pentagon documents during the Vietnam war called on current Washington insiders to release any classified documents that could sway public opinion against an attack against Iran.

In a press conference on wednesday 6 of December in Stockholm, as reported by Associated Press, Ellsberg, who is one of four recipients of this year's Right Livelihood Award - often dubbed the "Alternative Nobels" - also urged U.S. allies to threaten to withdraw from the NATO alliance if nuclear weapons are used against Iran.

He warned that he believed the U.S. would attack Iran before 2008 and urged Washington insiders to make new disclosures to prevent a new war.

Daniel Ellsberg (born April 7, 1931) is a former American military analyst employed by the RAND Corporation who precipitated a national uproar in 1971 when he released the Pentagon Papers, the US military's account of activities during the Vietnam War, to The New York Times. The release awakened the American people to how much they had been deceived by their own government about the war.

"It is more likely than not, in the next two years, that President Bush and Vice President Cheney will direct an attack on Iran," Ellsberg said at the news conference for the Right Livelihood laureates. "Such an attack ... might escalate too, to the use of nuclear weapons against underground installations in Iran, with incalculable consequences."

But, the former U.S. State Department official added: "Of the various disastrous policies of their administration, this one is the most susceptible to being changed and averted by public pressure."

"Don't do what I did, don't wait until the war has started before you tell the truth with documents," said Ellsberg.
End/..

a good link to a video for another press conference by Ellsberg on 26 November 2006 on Iran attack @ afterDowningStreet.org

US: a Liberal or Police state? The case of Iranian student at UCLA

2006-11-19T13:44:00.000Z

RI
looking at the footage from the brutal act by the Los Angeles Police against an Iranian-American student at the university campus, one can legitimately question whether the United States is a liberal country any more, as her leaders constantly advocate, or a police state, as the video showing the student stunned four to five times with a Taser at the University library clearly represents?

The footage, taken by another student using mobile phone, thanks to YouTube is currently available in the internet and since the incident on Tuesday night on 14 November it has become one of the most viewed videos in the site.

Mostafa Tabatabainejad, a 23 years old student of UCLA, who was born in America from an Iranian descent parents, was repeatedly stunned with a Taser and then taken into custody brutally by the police from CLICC Lab in Powell Library. The reason: Because he did not show his Bruin Card (the student ID) during a random check at around 11:30 p.m.!!

The six-minute video shows Tabatabainejad audibly screaming in pain as he was stunned with a Taser, each time for three to five seconds. He was told repeatedly to stand up and stop fighting, and was told that if he did not do so he would "get Tased again" whereas, he was paralysed initially due to the hostile use of the tasers.

The police department claimed that the student was not responding to the officers' request when they asked him to leave the library, however, the footage shows clearly that while Tabatabainejad was being dragged through the room by two officers repeated in a strained scream, "I'm not fighting you" and "I said I would leave."

Attorney Stephen Yagman said he plans to file a federal civil rights lawsuit on behalf of the U.S.-born student, Mostafa Tabatabainejad. Yagman said his client declined to show his school ID because he thought he was being targeted for his appearance.

Several civil rights organizations, including Amnesty International and the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), have called for an independent review.
CAIR urged "state and national authorities, including the FBI" to investigate the incident involving Mostafa.

The American-Islamic relations group says an outside probe's needed to make sure the case's "civil rights aspects" are taken seriously.

The Tabatabainejad footage was the third videotape of an arrest to surface in the last week in Los Angeles.

One video showed a Los Angeles Police Department officer dousing a handcuffed suspect in the face with pepper spray as the suspect sat in a patrol car.

That video came to light Monday, just days after the LAPD and the FBI launched investigations into another videotape showing a police officer hitting a suspect in the face several times after a foot chase in Hollywood.

See Mostafa footage @ YouTube
To see the UCLA TV University report go @ Daily Bruin

When the Israeli war criminal compares Iran to Germany in 1938!

2006-11-15T15:36:00.000Z

RI

The war criminal Binyamin Netanyahu in his new campaign on threatening Iranians encouraged Americans for a full attack against Iran through every possible way.

In a speech at the United Jewish Communities' General Assembly (UJC-GA) at the Los Angeles Convention Centre on Monday 13 November 2006 he said, "Iran is Germany," and then added, "that is arming itself with atomic bombs and declaring it will destroy the Jewish State."
Likud party Chairman, repeated the Israelis media propaganda that Iran is developing nuclear weapon and then openly asked Americans to attack Iran before this country being able to get the bomb.

Based on his argument the world does not need to find evidence of wrong doing by Iranians and they have to trust Israelis in this case and go for the next phase even before the first stage (the proof of Iran's working on nuclear arsenal) being pursued.

The war criminal who is responsible for many attacks to Palestinian homes during his tenure as the prime minister of Israel also openly threatened Hamas, the elected government of Palestine and said Israelis can defeat Hizbollah and Hamas easily "if the right policy is used", - Say if Israel commits more atrocities against Palestinian and Lebanese civilians .

Netanyahu listed a number of options at Israel's disposal as a means of combating the Iranian nuclear threat and said "We must do everything to ensure that Bush holds to his promises to prevent a nuclear armed Iran."

Netanyahu claimed the international community was taking Iran's threats too lightly. He asked the American to act immediately to prevent Iran from developing her nuclear arsenal. Contrary to other Israeli leaders that normally are very careful in not openly make controversial propositions that should be said instead through their powerful media machine around the world, but this time Netanyahu has given the gaffe and openly threatened Iran and Palestinian people.

The video link below shows his speech. The site belongs to an Israeli journal and possibly when they find that its distribution would not serve to the regime's interest they will take it out of the site. So hurry it will not last long there:

To see the speech go @ jerusalemonline

Millions to raise voices against imperialist US and Britain over Iran, says Pilger

2006-11-04T14:19:00.000Z

RI
The veteran journalist and documentary maker, John Pilger, once again is giving his account on the dangers that people are facing today as the new imperialist states, United States and Britain, are working hard on manipulating media around the globe to hide their real intentions for advocating wars and occupation.

On his recent article entitled Blood and Money in New Statesman to be published on Monday 07 November 2006, he says, "The promoters of an extreme form of capitalism known as neo liberalism, the supercult responsible for the greatest inequalities in history, are described as 'reformers' and 'revolutionaries'.

He continues, "The noble words 'freedom' and 'liberty' now refer to the divine right of this extremism to 'prevail', the jargon for dominate and control. This vocabulary, which contaminates the news and the pronouncements of the state and its bureaucracy, is from the same lexicon as Arbeit macht frei - 'Work makes you free' - the words over the gates at Auschwitz."

In another section he writes: British state terrorism in Iraq has cost more than £7bn. The real cost of Trident may be $76bn. Now it is more urgent than ever to raise our voices against Blair's mutant liberalism.

Pilger gives a heavy weight on the public morality and adds that, "Those who have peeled back the facades of the Blair and Bush gangs ought not to be des pondent."

He argues that, "the inspiring demonstration on 15 February 2003 may not have stopped an invasion, but the same universal power of public morality has, I believe, stalled attacks on Iran and North Korea, probably with 'tactical' nuclear weapons."

He adds that this moral force is undoubtedly stirring again all over the world, including the United States, and is feared by those who would contrive an "endless war".

Pilger concludes that, if he has learned nothing else from witnessing numerous bloody contrivances, it is never to underestimate the stamina of rampant, rapacious empire and the dishonesty of its "humanitarian interventions" and emphasises that, "Millions of us, who are the majority, need to raise our voices again, more urgently now than ever."

>>> Continued@ New Statesman

Honorary degree to Khatami, a sign of failed media war on demonising Iran

2006-11-02T14:58:00.000Z

ReportIran

Offering a distinguished honorary doctorate degree to Mohammad Khatami, the former Iranian president by a British University is a fortunate sign of failed Neo-Conservatives and Israeli lobby media manipulation on demonising Iran and prominent Islamic figures, said Majid Khabazan, an Iranian journalist living in Britain.

In a speech at the Foreign Press Association (FPA) Tuesday evening 31 October in London, Khabazan said, "this clearly shows that millions of dollars investments especially by the US congress and Bush administration on media aiming to distort the facts in favour of what the warmongers are advocating has not been successful among the European elites."
FPA invited a panel on Tuesday to open up a discussion about the honoured degree and Khatami's record on human rights.

Apart from Khabazan, Hamid Sabi an Iranian Jew and a lawyer and campaigner against Islamic Republic of Iran and Peter Tatchell from Outrage, a hardline campaigner on human right issues were in the panel.

Despite the criticism from some well known anti-Iran political figures in the UK and huge media publicity against Mr Khatami, who also heads International Centre of Dialogue Among Cultures and Civilizations (ICDACC), St Andrews university has defended itself on honouring Khatami for the Law degree.

The degree was honoured in a special ceremony on Tuesday after university principal and vice-chancellor Dr Brian Lang read a message the university had received from the Vatican in connection with Mr Khatami's visit saying - "Inter-cultural dialogue and inter-religious dialogue are the vital necessities of our time. What better place than a university to carry forward this discussion?"

Referring to the huge investments that Israeli lobbies are making on major media publications in the UK and even new media such as internet and weblogs, Khabazan admired those who despite the massive media attacks against Muslims in general, or Islamic countries like Iran and specially in the last few weeks against a prominent Islamic figure such as Khatami, were brave enough to stand firm on their decision to honour the degree.

Khabazan called the media tycoons who tend to control and manipulate the news stories, "the real tyrants of the modern age" and added, "Thanks God independent figures in the UK proved that the tyrants hegemony over the media has not been successful in achieving their goals."
"The university is honouring a man not a system or the government of Iran and criticising Khatami and seek to put all the responsibilities of the Iranian governments on his shoulder is unfair and unjust," he emphasised.

Speaking to the journalists, human right campaigners and analysts on Iranian issues at the gathering Khabazan argued that in fact the Neo-Cons have never been happy of the presidency of a reformist figure such as Khatami as they, in essence, are against any democratic and reformist movement in Iran and indeed in the Middle East as a whole.

"Speaking about promoting democracy in the Middle East by the US is a gesture to posture the main goal which is the control over the natural resources of the region," said Khabazan adding that, " whereas the background of coup d'etats against the democratic governments such as Dr Mohammad Mossadeq in 1953 shows the opposite."
On a recent media campaign against Khatami a weekly in the UK printed a loose legal claim filed by the Iranian lawyer calling it a major attempt for arresting Khatami when he travels to the UK.

The Sunday Times wrote last Sunday,"The Metropolitan police have confirmed that they are investigating complaints lodged by two Iranian exiles who claim they were falsely imprisoned and brutally tortured while Khatami was in office."

The right wing weekly did not name the source at the Metropolitan police despite the fact that the authorities had very soon rejected the claim for "insufficient grounds."
Mr Hamid Sabi, who filed the complaint, on answering to a question from the audience at FPA was forced to admit that his act was politically motivated and he knew that he does not have enough evidence for the lawsuit.

But he did not answer that how the unfounded claims against Khatami could strongly appear in one of the major publications in the UK.

***

Iran: the pangs of power

2006-10-29T14:26:00.000Z

a visit by Dr. R. Sudarshana to Iran
Travelmag

The account by which Sudarrshan describes the visit to Iran in this article is very interesting. The following passage is from the essay when he met an ordinary Iranian lady and had a short conversation with her:

‘Do you know of the atomic energy problems of your country?’, I asked.
‘Of course’ she said. ‘Look at the way we are living in utter poverty. It is like begging in a gold mine because although you dig, you are not allowed to use it’.
‘Pardon me! What has that got to do with atomic energy? You don’t sell that to make money in this country’. I clarified.
She looked at me with puzzled eyes and jerked her head down with a loosely hung lower lip. ‘I know that, sir’ she said, ‘All I said is that we can use the atomic energy for electricity so that we can sell the oil instead of using it all ourselves.’
I was shocked at her high level of common sense and at my dumbness that I couldn’t figure it out myself.
‘See my family’ she continued. ‘Everyone is like this in Iran except for those who can be dishonest. We lost everything in the revolution 30 years ago. You know, we had a good life and I remember my parents being so happy. Then after that, we lost everything in that bloody endless war with Iraq. Now the Americans want to bomb us. What do we have? We have a little oil in the country and we use it all. Now I gather that they don’t want to allow us to use atomic energy’.
She looked honest and innocent. I popped in a provocative question.
‘Don’t you think your country may also be doing something wrong?’
This time Bougardi retorted.
‘It all depends on how you make up your mind while looking at us, sir. If you look at us through your jaundice eye, we are culprits and we are hiding. If you look at us from the God’s eye, you will know how innocent we are. After all, what is there to hide in this country? We are exposed and naked. Poor people have nothing to hide’.

>>> continued @ Travelmag

US - UK responsible for collapse of Iraq health Services

2006-10-18T12:40:00.000Z

David Wilson on his study on the collapse of the Iraq's health care services and after demonstrating the degree of damage caused as a rdirect result of invation concludes that it is time for the occupation to end and for those responsible for the invasion and all that has taken place in Iraq as a direct result of military action and civil negligence to be brought to account.

In the report, which is prepared for the London-based Stop the War Coalition, it quotes from the latest Lancet report as,"Iraq is an unequivocal humanitarian emergency. Civilians are being harmed by our presence in Iraq, not helped. We need a new set of principles to govern our diplomacy and military strategy--principles that are based on the idea of human security and not national security, health and wellbeing and not economic self-interest and territorial ambition."

Where Have All the Doctors Gone?
The Collapse of Iraq's Health Care Services
By DAVID WILSON

The Fourth Geneva Convention (1949) contains specific provisions pertaining to the delivery of healthcare services in occupied territories. Article 55 states: To the fullest extent of the means available to it, the Occupying Power has the duty of ensuring the food and medical supplies of the population; it should, in particular, bring in the necessary foodstuffs, medical stores and other articles if the resources of the occupied territories are inadequate.

Article 56 states: To the fullest extent of the means available to it, the Occupying Power has the duty of ensuring and maintaining, with the cooperation of national and local authorities, the medical and hospital establishment and services, public health and hygiene in the occupied territory with particular reference to the adoption and application of the prophylactic and preventive measures necessary to combat the spread of contagious diseases and epidemics. Medical personnel of all categories shall be allowed to carry out their duties.

As occupying powers, the 'Coalition' forces in Iraq are in breach of Articles 55 and 56 of the Geneva Conventions. There has been an abject failure to carry out even minimal humanitarian duties. Indeed the healthcare system in Iraq has massively deteriorated since the start of the war. From a public health point of view, an end to occupation is vital for the life-chances and good health of the population of this country. Until this takes place Iraq will remain a place of 'social breakdown', a country of the dead, the dying and the despairing. ...

>>> continue @ Counterpunch

Iran is not a dictatorship, says Scott Ritter

2006-10-17T06:13:00.000Z

After visiting Iran on September, Scott Ritter, the former UN weapons inspector in Iraq in the United Nations Special Commission (UNSCOM), said in a radio interview that contrary to what American and western media are advocating Iran is not a dictatorship but a very modern and pro-Western nation.

Ritter told Democracy Now radio in the US on Monday 16 October that he has been to dictatorships in the Middle East, he has been to nations that have a high security profile but Iran is not one of these nations.

"I'm a former intelligence officer who has stated some pretty strong positions on Iran, and yet I had full freedom of movement in Iran with no interference whatsoever," he added.
Ritter was able to do his agenda in Iran and interview senior government officials, senior military officials, senior intelligence officials, and to visit sites that were deemed sensitive.
He concluded from this visit that, "the American media has gotten it wrong on Iran. It's a very modern, westernized, pro-Western, and surprisingly pro-American country that does not constitute a threat to the United States whatsoever."

In this interview he gave a full account of his argument that what the Bush administration is thinking of about Iran is a regime change only and nothing else. He argued that "The path that the United States is currently embarked on regarding Iran is a path that will inevitably lead to war. Such a course of action will make even the historical mistake we made in Iraq pale by comparison."...

For listening to the 17 minute interview or reading the transcript:
>>> continue @ Democracy Now

Declining US Empire cannot tolerate Iran

2006-10-15T07:02:00.000Z

The following is a very good piece of analysis by Michael T. Klare on the mentality of the people at the Bush administration circle whom Kate refer to as members of the declining empire who are not ready to accept the reality. "How dare they stand up to us in that way?" Michael says that White House officials must be saying to one another in private today. And: "We'll teach them a thing or two! - Just you watch!"

Beware Empires in Decline
Michael T. Klare | October 13, 2006

Foreign Policy In Focus

I believe that the common wisdom in Washington regarding military action against Iran is wrong. Just because American forces are bogged down in Iraq, and Condoleezza Rice appears to enjoy a bit more authority these days, does not mean that "realism" will prevail at the White House. "

The common wisdom circulating in Washington these days is that the United States is too bogged down in Iraq to consider risky military action against Iran or - God forbid - North Korea. Policy analysts describe the U.S. military as "over-burdened" or "stretched to the limit." The presumption is that the Pentagon is telling President Bush that it can't really undertake another major military contingency.

Added to these pessimistic assessments of U.S. military capacity is the widespread claim that a "new realism" has taken over in the administration's upper reaches, that cautious "realists" like Condoleezza Rice have gained the upper hand over fire-breathing neoconservatives. Ergo: No military strike against Iran or North Korea.

But Kale is not buying any of this. ...

>>> Continued @ Foreign Policy In Focus

Michael T. Klare is a professor of peace and world-security studies at Hampshire College, a Foreign Policy In Focus columnist, and the author of Blood and Oil: The Dangers and Consequences of America's Growing Dependence on Imported Petroleum (Metropolitan Books, 2004).

Israeli filmmaker uses BBC on war against Iran

2006-10-13T08:16:00.000Z

On this revealing article, Jonathan Cook exposes the identity of the filmmaker behind the recent BBC documentary entitled "Will Israel bomb Iran?"

He says, the Israeli government's fingerprints are all over this BBC "documentary". And that is hardly surprising because the man behind this "independent" production is Israel's leading film-maker: Noam Shalev.

He adds, At this potentially cataclysmic moment in global politics, it is good to see that one of the world's leading broadcasters, the BBC, decided this week that it should air this documentary.
The good news ends there, however. Because the programme addresses none of the important issues raised by Israel's increasingly belligerent posture towards Tehran.

It does not explain that, without a United Nations resolution, a military strike on Iran to destroy its nuclear research programme would be a gross violation of international law.

It does not clarify that Israel's own large nuclear arsenal was secretly developed and is entirely unmonitored by the International Atomic Energy Agency, or that it is perceived as a threat by its neighbours and may be fuelling a Middle East arms race.

Nor does the programme detail the consequences of an Israeli strike on instability and violence across the Middle East, including in Iraq, where British and American troops are stationed as an occupying force.

And there is no consideration of how in the longer term unilateral action by Israel, with implicit sanction by the international community, is certain to provoke a steep rise in global jihad against the West.

So why did the BBC buy this blatant piece of propaganda? ...

>>> Continued @ CounterPunch

Jonathan Cook is a writer and journalist based in Nazareth, Israel. His book, Blood and Religion: The Unmasking of the Jewish and Democratic State, is published by Pluto Press. His website is www.jkcook.net

655000 death in Iraq since the invasion in 2003

2006-10-13T06:45:00.000Z

A Lancet report

Gilbert Burnham, Riyadh Lafta,

Shannon Doocy, Les Roberts

Mortality after the 2003 invasion of Iraq: a cross-sectional cluster sample survey

An estimated 655 000 more Iraqis have died as a consequence of the March 2003 military invasion of Iraq than would have been expected in a non-conflict situation, according to an Article.

Background: An excess mortality of nearly 100 000 deaths was reported in Iraq for the period March, 2003 September, 2004, attributed to the invasion of Iraq. Our aim was to update this estimate.

Methods: Between May and July, 2006, we did a national cross-sectional cluster sample survey of mortality in Iraq.

50 clusters were randomly selected from 16 Governorates, with every cluster consisting of 40 households. Information on deaths from these households was gathered.

Findings: Three misattributed clusters were excluded from the final analysis; data from 1849 households that contained 12 801 individuals in 47 clusters was gathered. 1474 births and 629 deaths were reported during the observation period. Pre-invasion mortality rates were 5.5 per 1000 people per year (95% CI 4.3-7.1), compared with 13.3 per 1000 people per year (10.9-16.1) in the 40 months post-invasion. We estimate that as of July, 2006, there have been 654 965 (392 979-942 636) excess Iraqi deaths as a consequence of the war, which corresponds to 2.5% of the population in the study area. Of post-invasion deaths, 601 027 (426 369-793 663) were due to violence, the most common cause being gunfire.

Interpretation: The number of people dying in Iraq has continued to escalate. The proportion of deaths ascribed to coalition forces has diminished in 2006, although the actual numbers have increased every year. Gunfire remains the most common cause of death, although deaths from car bombing have increased.

>>> Continue @ Lancet

UK Government: the human rights situation in Iran deteriorated

2006-10-12T19:26:00.000Z

Launch of the 2006 Annual Report on Human Rights

Published by Foreign and Commonwealth Office

12 October 2006

FCO published its new annual human rights report in 358 pages today and in pages 63 to 66 described the situation in Iran for the past year. However, there are other references to human right situation in Iran in other pages of the report such as the box on page 195 about the juvenile execution in Iran.

Its overview reads:
The past 12 months have seen a continued deterioration in the human rights situation in Iran. There have been repeated serious violations of freedom of expression and association.

Officials who were implicated in internal repression in the 1980s and 1990s have been appointed as government ministers. While sporadic efforts have been made by some authorities in Iran to improve the administration of justice, we continue to be concerned at the lack of effective action to

reform laws, institutions and official practices. The future does not look positive. There appears to be a real reluctance on the part of the Iranian government to

undertake the necessary human rights reforms. Talk of respect for human rights needs to be matched by a demonstrable commitment to improving the human rights situation. ...

>>> Continued @ full report

Bush's Nuclear Apocalypse

2006-10-10T07:28:00.000Z

Chris Hedges
10/09/06
TruthDig

The aircraft carrier Eisenhower, accompanied by the guided-missile cruiser USS Anzio, guided-missile destroyer USS Ramage, guided-missile destroyer USS Mason and the fast-attack submarine USS Newport News, is, as I write, making its way to the Straits of Hormuz off Iran. The ships will be in place to strike Iran by the end of the month. It may be a bluff. It may be a feint. It may be a simple show of American power. But I doubt it.

War with Iran a war that would unleash an apocalyptic scenario in the Middle East is probable by the end of the Bush administration. It could begin in as little as three weeks. This administration, claiming to be anointed by a Christian God to reshape the world, and especially the Middle East, defined three states at the start of its reign as the Axis of Evil. They were Iraq, now occupied; North Korea, which, because it has nuclear weapons, is untouchable; and Iran. Those who do not take this apocalyptic rhetoric seriously have ignored the twisted pathology of men like Elliott Abrams, who helped orchestrate the disastrous and illegal contra war in Nicaragua, and who now handles the Middle East for the National Security Council. He knew nothing about Central America. He knows nothing about the Middle East. He sees the world through the childish, binary lens of good and evil, us and them, the forces of darkness and the forces of light. And it is this strange, twilight mentality that now grips most of the civilian planners who are barreling us towards a crisis of epic proportions.

Chris Hedges is former Middle East bureau chief for The New York Times and author of the bestseller "War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning" reports on Bush's plan for Iran, and how a callous war, conceived by zealots, will lead to a disaster of biblical proportions.

>>> Continue @ TruthDig

Meet the "Whack Iran" Lobby

2006-10-07T14:07:00.000Z

News: Exiles peddling shaky intelligence, advocacy groups pressing for regime change, neocons bent on remaking the Middle East. Sound familiar?

By Daniel Schulman
October 6, 2006

Exiles peddling back-channel intelligence, upstart advocacy groups pressing for regime change, administration hawks intent on remaking the Middle East - the scene in Washington is looking eerily familiar as the Iran standoff grows more tense. Instead of Ahmad Chalabi, we have the likes of Iran-Contra arms-dealer Manucher Ghorbanifar. A new Iran directorate inside the Pentagon features some of the same people who brought you the Iraq intel-cherrypicking operation at the Office of Special Plans. Whether calling for outright regime change or pushing "democracy promotion" initiatives to undermine the Iranian government, an expanding cast of characters has emerged to promote confrontation between the U.S. and Iran. What follows is an abridged list of the individuals and organizations agitating to bring down the mullahs.

>>> Continued @ Mother Jones

The March to War: Naval build-up in the Persian Gulf

2006-10-05T07:10:00.000Z

A report by Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya

October 1, 2006

GlobalResearch.ca

The March to War: Naval build-up in the Persian Gulf and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Editor's note

We bring to the attention of our readers, this carefully documented review of the ongoing naval build-up and deployment of coalition forces in the Middle East.

The article examines the geopolitics behind this military deployment and its relationship to "the Battle for Oil".

The structure of military alliances is crucial to an understanding of these war preparations.

The naval deployment is taking place in two distinct theaters: the Persian Gulf and the Eastern Mediterranean.

Both Israel and NATO are slated to play a major role in the US-led war.

The militarization of the Eastern Mediterranean is broadly under the jurisdiction of NATO in liaison with Israel. Directed against Syria, it is conducted under the façade of a UN peace-keeping mission pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 1701. In this context, the war on Lebanon must be viewed as a stage of a the broader US sponsored military road-map.

The naval armada in the Persian Gulf is largely under US command, with the participation of Canada.

The naval buildup is coordinated with the planned air attacks. The planning of the aerial bombings of Iran started in mid-2004, pursuant to the formulation of CONPLAN 8022 in early 2004. In May 2004, National Security Presidential Directive NSPD 35 entitled Nuclear Weapons Deployment Authorization was issued. While its contents remains classified, the presumption is that NSPD 35 pertains to the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in the Middle East war theater in compliance with CONPLAN 8022.

These war plans must be taken very seriously.

The World is at the crossroads of the most serious crisis in modern history. The US has embarked on a military adventure, "a long war", which threatens the future of humanity.

In the weeks ahead, it is essential that citizens' movements around the world act consistently to confront their respective governments and reverse and dismantle this military agenda.

What is needed is to break the conspiracy of silence, expose the media lies and distortions, confront the criminal nature of the US Administration and of those governments which support it, its war agenda as well as its so-called "Homeland Security agenda" which has already defined the contours of a police State.

It is essential to bring the US war project to the forefront of political debate, particularly in North America and Western Europe. Political and military leaders who are opposed to the war must take a firm stance, from within their respective institutions. Citizens must take a stance individually and collectively against war.

Michel Chossudovsky, Global Research, 1 October 2006

>>> Main report @ GRC

US Moving Forward on Plans for Bombing Attacks in Iran

2006-10-02T09:39:00.000Z

18 September 2006
A new report

In a new report for The Century Foundation, Retired Air Force Colonel Sam Gardiner warns that some in the Bush administration are making the case for air strikes aimed not only at setting back Iran's nuclear program, but also at toppling the country's government. He says that these officials are undeterred by the concerns of military leaders about whether such attacks would be effective.

"If this uncertainty does not appear to worry the proponents of air strikes in Iran it is in no small part because the real U.S. policy objective is not merely to eliminate the nuclear program, but to overthrow the regime,"he writes. 'It is hard to believe, after the misguided talk prior to Iraq of how American troops would be greeted with flowers and welcomed as liberators, but those inside and close to the administration who are arguing for an air strike against Iran actually sound as if they believe the regime in Tehran can be eliminated by air attacks.
"In The End of the Summer of Diplomacy: Assessing U.S. Military Options on Iran," Gardiner explains that the policymakers' plan is to use targeted air strikes to kill the leadership and enable the people of Iran to take over their government. The assumption is that more reasonable, U.S. friendly, leadership will emerge. But, Gardiner says, the plan is dangerously flawed and would more likely yield very different results.
"No serious expert on Iran believes the argument about enabling a regime change," he reveals. "On the contrary, whereas the presumed goal is to weaken or disable the leadership and then replace it with others who would improve relations between Iran and the United States, it is far more likely that such strikes would strengthen the clerical leadership and turn the United States into Iran's permanent enemy."

Gardiner also argues that the administration's frequent efforts to link Iran and al Qaeda may represent an effort by the Oval Office to authorize air strikes on Iran without first consulting Congress. "This linkage of Iran and al Qaeda fits neatly into the broader effort to sell a strike to the American people," he wrote. "But more importantly, it opens the way for an argument that a strike on Iran was part of the global war on terrorism already authorized by the Congress. In other words, approval by Congress does not necessarily have to be part of the calculation of when an attack could take place."

Gardiner identifies what he considers to be some high probability immediate consequences of air strikes on Iran. These include an Iranian strike against Israel, the targeting of U.S. forces in Iraq, and Iran's channeling more weapons to hard-line Shiite militias in Iraq. Longer-term consequences could include a spike in oil prices and a backlash among other Arab states in the region against the United States.

According to Gardiner's report, the administration is not seriously seeking diplomatic solutions to the Iran nuclear issue. "From diplomacy to sanctions, the administration is not making good-faith efforts to avert a war so much as going through the motions, eliminating other possible strategies of engagement, until the only option left on the table is the military one," he writes.
Sam Gardiner is a retired Air Force colonel who has taught strategy and military operations at the National War College, Air War College, and Naval War College. He was recently a visiting scholar at the Swedish Defense College.
>>> get the main report@ The Century Foundation

Threats of War in Iran, U.S.-Driven Violence Surges in the Region

2006-09-27T06:06:00.000Z

By Phyllis Bennis
Institute for Policy Studies
September 22, 2006

Threats of a U.S. attack on Iran continue, although the nature of a possible attack may be different than what was earlier anticipated.

The Bush administration seems to be shifting away from its effort to coerce the UN Security Council to endorse harsh sanctions or even military force against Iran, but the threat of unilateral action remains.

New diplomatic possibilities are opening and the U.S. is increasingly isolated.
Seven weeks before U.S. elections and following Bush's series of rally-the-troops speeches, violence is rising across the Middle East; public opinion is strongly against the war but the Democrats still refuse to embrace that position, and many are afraid of the charge of "cut and run."

Post-Lebanon war, Israel-Palestine is back on the global agenda; new dangers are rising from renewed U.S. pressure on the Palestinians to accept continued U.S. control of the diplomacy, even as new international initiatives appear as possibilities.

Renewed U.S. interest in solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict may have less to do with ending Israel's occupation than with consolidating Arab governments' acquiescence to new escalations against Iran.
>>> Continued@ Institute for Policy Studies

Threats of War in Iran, U.S.-Driven Violence Surges in the Region

2006-09-27T06:03:00.000Z

By Phyllis Bennis
Institute for Policy Studies
September 22, 2006

Threats of a U.S. attack on Iran continue, although the nature of a possible attack may be different than what was earlier anticipated.

The Bush administration seems to be shifting away from its effort to coerce the UN Security Council to endorse harsh sanctions or even military force against Iran, but the threat of unilateral action remains.

New diplomatic possibilities are opening and the U.S. is increasingly isolated.
Seven weeks before U.S. elections and following Bushï¿½s series of rally-the-troops speeches, violence is rising across the Middle East; public opinion is strongly against the war but the Democrats still refuse to embrace that position, and many are afraid of the charge of ï¿½cut and run.ï¿½

Post-Lebanon war, Israel-Palestine is back on the global agenda; new dangers are rising from renewed U.S. pressure on the Palestinians to accept continued U.S. control of the diplomacy, even as new international initiatives appear as possibilities.

Renewed U.S. interest in solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict may have less to do with ending Israelï¿½s occupation than with consolidating Arab governmentsï¿½ acquiescence to new escalations against Iran.
>>> Continued@ Institute for Policy Studies

The March to War: Iran Preparing for US Air Attacks

2006-09-23T10:03:00.000Z

Friday, September 22nd, 2006
Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya
Centre for Research on Globalization

Iran is bracing itself for an expected American-led air campaign. The latter is in the advanced stages of military planning.
If there were to be war between the United States and Iran, the aerial campaign would unleash fierce combat. It would be fully interactive on multiple fronts. It would be a difficult battle involving active movement in the air from both sides.
If war were to occur, the estimates of casualties envisaged by American and British war planners would be high.
The expected wave of aerial attacks would resemble the tactics of the Israeli air-war against Lebanon and would follow the same template, but on a larger scale of execution.
The U.S. government and the Pentagon had an active role in graphing, both militarily and politically, the template of confrontation in Lebanon. The Israeli siege against Lebanon is in many regards a dress rehearsal for a planned attack on Iran.1
A war against Iran is one that could also include military operations against Syria. Multiple theatres would engulf many of the neighbors of Iran and Syria, including Iraq and Israel/Palestine.
It must also be noted that an attack on Iran would be of a scale which would dwarf the events in Afghanistan, Iraq, and the Levant. A full blown war on Iran would not only swallow up and incorporate these other conflicts. It would engulf the entire Middle East and Central Asian region into an extensive confrontation.
An American-led air campaign against Iran, if it were to be implemented, would be both similar and contrasting in its outline and intensity when compared to earlier Anglo-American sponsored confrontations.
>>>Continued @ Centre for Research on Globalization

Iran's Response to the EU: Confused but Sporadically Hopeful

2006-09-13T16:31:00.000Z

By David Albright and Jacqueline Shire
September 11, 2006
The Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS)

ISIS recently obtained a copy of Iran's response to the EU package; this is the document that Ali Larijani, Iran's senior nuclear negotiator, delivered on August 22 in Tehran to diplomatic representatives of Britain, France, Germany, Russia, China and the United States.

Iran is an adroit, skilled practitioner of diplomacy. If the purpose of this response was to muddy the water, buy additional time for its delayed pilot-scale uranium enrichment program at Natanz, while giving China and Russia some ammunition for delaying discussion of sanctions at the Security Council, Iran may have succeeded. The document in some ways recalls a Rorschach test from which any country can find and take what it seeks, if it tries hard enough.However, EU diplomats would be wise to interpret the document in a favorable manner and not reject it out-of-hand, while insisting on a full suspension of Iran's uranium enrichment program, even if for a limited time as a condition for launching formal negotiations. At this time, offers to allow Iran to continue with its uranium enrichment activities during the formal negotiations remain counter-productive. Despite the difficulties, the EU and United States have an obligation to try to find a successful strategy to re-establish negotiations with Iran and re-institute robust IAEA inspections in Iran. The Iranian document, while not particularly helpful, does not preclude achieving both of these goals in the short term. ...

>>> Continued @ ISIS

Voices From Iran

2006-09-13T08:24:00.000Z

A report written by:
Alex Bigham
September 2006
Foreign Policy Centre - UK

This report, Voices from Iran, seeks to flesh out the spectrum of opinion amongst Iranians. In a recent trip to the Islamic Republic, we conducted interviews with people both inside and outside government. We believe, and we felt throughout our trip, that, whatever the style of debate, and however tense the discussions may be, engagement is the only means to avert a military conflict, and an informed dialogue will avoid such a crisis.

The potential crisis that could occur if Iran were attacked has been hideously illustrated by the conflict between Israel and Lebanon. Some have seen a conspiracy in the timing of that crisis. The leaked memo by the Foreign Office's Political Director John Sawers, argued that there was an opportunity to send a united message to the Iranians at the G8 meeting in St Petersburg.

"the obvious occasion to do so would be in the margins of the G8 Foreign Ministers' meeting. The period running up to the G8 Summit will be when our influence on Russia will be at its maximum, and we need to plan accordingly."

However, the kidnapping of Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah, and the subsequent air assault on Lebanon put paid to any kind of substantive discussions on Iran while the G8 leaders thrashed out a muted compromise statement on the Lebanese conflict. Both sides have produced their own theories of the timing behind the attacks. From the Israeli perspective, the Iranians gave the green light to Hezbollah to launch Katusha rockets into Northern Israel, many of which have "made in Iran" stamped on their sides.

This was a deliberate attempt to distract the attention of world leaders from Iran's ongoing nuclear research and development.

>>> Download the report @ Foreign Policy Centre

Iran, Its Neighbours And The Regional Crises

2006-09-07T09:14:00.000Z

A Middle East Programme report at Chatham House
Edited by Robert Lowe and Claire Spencer

Iran's regional position is key to its strength

published Wednesday 23 August 2006
Key messages:

The 'war on terror' removed the Taliban and Saddam Hussein, Iran's two greatest regional rivals, and strengthened Iran's regional leverage in doing so;
Israel's failure to defeat Hizbullah has reinforced Iran's position as the region's focal point against US-led policy;
If seriously threatened, Iran has the potential to inflame the region yet further;
A US-sponsored military strike would be devastating for Iran, the Persian Gulf region and beyond

Iran's influence in Iraq has superseded that of the US, and it is increasingly rivalling the US as the main actor at the crossroads between the Middle East and Asia. Its role within other war- torn areas such as Afghanistan and southern Lebanon has now increased hugely. This is compounded by the failure of the US and its allies to appreciate the extent of Iran's regional relationships and standing - a dynamic which is the key to understanding Iran's newly found confidence and belligerence towards the West.

As a result, the US-driven agenda for confronting Iran is severely compromised by the confident ease with which Iran sits in its region. This is the key finding of Iran, its Neighbours and the Regional Crises, a major new report published by Chatham House.The report also looks into the ideology of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and unpicks Iran's complicated power structure. It claims that despite his popularity, Ahmadinejad neither holds an insurmountable position within Iran nor commands universal support for his outspoken foreign policy positions. The paper outlines the friction between Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Khamenei and Ahmadinejad, with the former increasingly trying to wrest control of foreign policy away from the extreme positions of Ahmadinejad and his hardline supporters.On hostility with the US, the report argues that while the US may have the upper hand in "hard"power projection, Iran has proved far more effective through its use of "soft" power.

According to the report, the Bush administration has shown little ability to use politics and culture to pursue its strategic interests while Iran's knowledge of the region, its fluency in the languages and culture, strong historical ties and administrative skills have given it a strong advantage over the West. The report also holds a cautious view of the Iran-Israel relationship. It outlines four future scenarios for the relationship between the two states, one of which is the creation of a "cold-war"style nuclear stand-off should Iran achieve nuclear capability.

Dr Claire Spencer, Head, Middle East Programme said 'Iran's intricate relationships with other states in the region, as well as a number of sub-state actors within these countries, have put it in a remarkably flexible position from which to defend its interests'

Dr Ali Ansari, Associate Fellow, Middle East Programme, said: 'Western policy towards the Middle East shows a complete lack of imagination. There is a world of opportunities between neglect and military action which has yet to be fully explored.'

Nadim Shehadi, Associate Fellow, Middle East Programme, said: 'While the US has been playing poker in the region, Iran has been playing chess. Iran is playing a longer, more clever game and has been far more successful at winning hearts and minds.'
>>> Download the main report in 52 pages @ Chatham House

Backing Israel attack by the US is empowering Iran

2006-08-01T11:31:00.000Z

Empowering Iran
by Ivan Eland

Despite growing world outrage, the Bush administration's continued backing of Israel's over-the-top military action in Lebanon can only help Hezbollah and its patron Iran. The administration's foreign policy could not be more pro-Iranian if the White House had become infested with Iranian agents.

Even after the carnage in the Lebanese town of Qana, the administration continues its nonsensical rhetoric about seeking a "sustainable cease-fire" in Lebanon as Israeli military action continues. Most casual observers employing any logic would conclude that it would be difficult to determine the sustainability of any cease-fire unless it was first attempted. Obviously, the administration's rhetoric is designed to give Israel more time to damage Hezbollah. Of course, Israel's original and implausible goal was to eradicate Hezbollah without invading Lebanon and becoming bogged down in another quagmire there. Israel has found, however, much like the Bush administration has in Iraq, that guerrilla organizations, especially ones as competent as Hezbollah, are not that easily eliminated. Israel has found Hezbollah's infrastructure and combat skills to be much more formidable than anticipated.

The bombing of Qana has united the previously divided Lebanese and much of the rest of the world against Israel's veiled terrorism. Israel will have even less time to degrade Hezbollah, which is also committing terrorist acts against Israeli towns. Soon world opprobrium will force the U.S. to stop Israeli military action. And the thimbleful of aid the U.S. is offering Lebanon will not win back any hearts for the cause. The paltry $30 million in U.S. aid being offered to that war-ravaged country is like an armed gang busting up someone's business and then leaving them $5 for repairs. ...
>>> Continued @ Antiwar

Ivan Eland is Senior Fellow and Director of the Center on Peace & Liberty at The Independent Institute and Assistant Editor of The Independent Review.

Tony Benn: Blair is a party to the war in Lebanon.

2006-08-01T07:53:00.000Z

Interview by Majid Khabazan
Monday 31 July 2006

London - Tony Benn a former minister in the labour governments in Britain said that not only Tony Blair ,the British prime minister, did not criticise Israel for the killings in Lebanon but in fact he is a party to this war.

"This is more than being silent", he said, "Britain is fully supporting Israel and London allowing American bombs to go through British airports and they are supplying arms and sale them to Israel," he added in an interview in London here on Monday. The labour left wing activist said, "Bush and Blair say they do not want ceasefire meaning that they want the killing to go on" so there seems to be a complete agreement between the pair.

Referring to the messages given by Bush and Blair for the casualties in Lebanon Benn angrily added, "you can weep over the deaths but it is not the same as demanding the end of fighting as Kofi Annan the Secretary General of the UN and Rowan Williams the Archbishop of Canterbury have asked for." Served in the Wilson and Callaghan governments from 1964 to 1979 as secretary of state for both industry and energy ministries, Benn described the situation as outrageous and said people are angry and are going to make a big demonstration on Saturday 5 August in Hyde Park London.

"We have organised three demonstrations in the UK so far: one was yesterday in Trafalgar square and also we presented an open letter to Downing Street two days ago," Benn said.
Asked about why Blair is supporting Israel to the price of isolating his country from the rest of the world Benn said, "I believe Blair is a Neo-Conservative and he wants American power to extend in the Middle East) and for that he agrees with Bush in every aspect.
Benn said he is worried that the invasion in Lebanon might really be a way by Americans of getting Syria and Iran to the conflict rather than doing it through the argument over nuclear power. "Because Israel might be authorised to bomb Syria or even Iran, even if it is foolish to do so but they might do that," he added.

Asked about some analyses which suggest the ultimate aim of attacking Hezbollah was to involve Iran Benn said, "I think one scenario might be that as Bush has not made progress on nuclear question so he might think that if the war extended then without invasion he might try to justify bombing or something of that kind against Iran." The activist said the ceasefire will only occur when Israel feels it is enough for it and as they said they need 10 to 14 more days.
"However, when Israel stops then presumably Bush and Blair will bring NATO army in the Lebanon to destroy Hezbollah themselves," Benn emphasised.

He argued that if they are going to have any military forces in the area they have to send these forces to occupied territories of Palestine too.

Should Iran attack Israel or vice versa?

2006-07-30T12:58:00.000Z

TWO SIDES TO EVERY STORY : Should Israel take out Iranian nuclear weapons sites in retaliation for Iran's supplying Hezbollah?

By John B. Quigley

The answer is NO
COLUMBUS, Ohio - One of the more persistent rumors in the Middle East is that Israel may bomb Iran's nuclear power facility. And that the United States would give Israel a wink and a nod.

Israel's invasion of Lebanon has moved the rumors from the back burner to the front. One theory of Israel's motive in Lebanon is that it wants to provoke Iran into action that would provide a pretext for going after Iran's nuclear facility. Whereas President Bush points his finger at Syria for Hezbollah's capture of two Israeli soldiers, Israel points its finger at Iran.
For the United States, Iran is perceived as even more of a threat than previously because of our own invasion of Iraq and the consequent rise to power of the Shities in Iraq. That development has given Shites' Iran new stature in the region.

One awkward aspect for Israel is that it itself has nuclear weaponry at its Dimona facility and refuses to acknowledge it to the international community. Israel has not signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, so it is not under the inspection obligations that it accuses Iran of violating. Of any country, Israel has the shakiest grounds for criticizing Iran.

Iran would have more grounds to take out Dimona than would Israel to take out Iran's facility. Not that that would be lawful, either. But the rationale would be more plausible. ...
>>> Continued@ Grand Forks Herald

Empire: war and propaganda

2006-07-28T10:01:00.000Z

John Pilger
July 2006

The US role in supporting Israeli's military assault on Lebanon falls into a pattern of imperial tyranny, where history is rewritten to suit Americaï¿½s needs while Europe stands cravenly by. John Pilger provides a personal assessment from Washington.

The words "invasion" and "controversial" make only fleeting appearances; there is no hint that the "great mission" has overseen, since 1945, the attempted overthrow of 50 governments, many of them democracies, along with the crushing of popular movements struggling against tyranny and the bombing of 30 countries, causing the loss of countless lives. In central America, in the 1980s, Ronald Reagan's arming and training of gangster-armies saw off 300,000 people; in Guatemala, this was described by the UN as genocide. No word of this is uttered in the Grotto. Indeed, thanks to such displays, Americans can venerate war, comforted by the crimes of others and knowing nothing about their own. ...
>>> Continued @ New Statesman

Mideast Conflict Boosts Chances of Iran-US Showdown

2006-07-20T07:41:00.000Z

Analysis by Jim Lobe
WASHINGTON, Jul 19 (IPS)

The week-old Israeli-Hezbollah conflict is likely to boost the chances of U.S. military action against Iran, according to a number of regional experts who see a broad consensus among the U.S. political elite that the ongoing hostilities are part of a broader offensive being waged by Tehran against Washington across the region.

While Israel-centred neo-conservatives have been the most aggressive in arguing that Hezbollah's Jul. 12 cross-border attack could only have been carried out with Iran's approval, if not encouragement, that view has been largely accepted and echoed by the mainstream media, as well as other key political factions, including liberal internationalists identified with the Democratic Party.

As was the case with Iraq, the only dissenters among the policy elite are the foreign policy "realists", who argue that this administration, in particular, has made a series of disastrous policy errors in the Middle East -- especially by providing virtually unconditional support for Israel and invading Iraq. They also include regional specialists like Norton, who maintain that the depiction of Hezbollah, for example, as a mere proxy for Iran -- let alone the notion that Tehran was behind the Jul. 12 attack -- is a dangerous misreading of a much more complex reality. These forces have been arguing for some time that Washington should engage Iran directly on the full range of issues -- from Tehran's nuclear programme to regional security -- that divide. But the current crisis, and Israel's and the neo-conservatives' success in blaming Iran for it, is likely to make this argument a more difficult sell. ï¿½

>>> Continued @ IPS

US hawks smell blood

2006-07-20T07:24:00.000Z

By Jim Lobe

07/19/06 "IPS" -- -- WASHINGTON

- Seeing a major opportunity to regain influence lost as a result of setbacks in Iraq, prominent neo-conservatives are calling for unconditional US support for Israel's military offensives in Gaza and Lebanon and "regime change" in Syria and Iran, as well as possible US attacks on Tehran's nuclear facilities in retaliation for its support of Hezbollah.

In a Weekly Standard column titled "Our war", editor William Kristol called Iran "the prime mover behind the terrorist groups who have started this war", which, he argued, should be considered part of "the global struggle against radical Islamism". He complained that Washington recently had done a "poor job of standing up and weakening Syria and Iran" and called on President George W Bush to fly directly from the "silly [Group of Eight] summit in St Petersburg ... to Jerusalem, the capital of a nation that stands with us, and is willing to fight with us, against our common enemies". "This is our war, too," said Kristol, who was also a founder and co-chairman of the recently lapsed Project for the New American Century (PNAC).

Echoed Larry Kudlow, a neo-conservative commentator, at the Standard's right-wing competitor, the National Review: "All of us in the free world owe Israel an enormous thank-you for defending freedom, democracy and security against the Iranian cat's-paw wholly owned terrorist subsidiaries Hezbollah and Hamas. ...

>>> Continued @ IPS

Jim Lobe is the Washington bureau chief for Inter Press Service.