CIA Operating Inside Libya, U.S. Agents are Helping Guide Air Strikes and Determining the Allegiances of Rebel Forces, Egypt Supplies Libyan Insurgents With Weapons at Washington’s Instigation, Egyptian Special Forces Secretly Pouring into Libya to Back the Rebellion, Cairo Keen to Cozy up to Iran and Hezbollah, Stalls Reopening of Natural Gas Pipeline to Israel, Iran and Saudi Arabia Cold War Entering a New Era, Saudi Arabia Virtually Annexes Bahrain, Willing to Swap Gesture Favoring Coalition Operation in Libya for Recognition of its Takeover of Bahrain, Will Build a Missile-Naval Base Opposite Iran, Israeli and Saudi Leaders in a Discreet Meeting in Moscow, Israel Holding Secret Talks With Russia in Bid to Thwart Recognition of Palestinian State, Facebook Drops Palestinian Uprising Page after Israel Protest, Israel’s Military Intelligence Monitoring Foreign Left-Wing Organizations “Aiming to Delegitimize Israel”, Saudi Foreign Minister in Ankara, Visit Linked to Bahrain Events, Bahrain Foreign Minister in Turkey to Discuss Turmoil, Turkey Seizes Rifles on Grounded Iranian Plane, Turkey to UN: We Seized illegal Iran Arms Shipment en Route to Syria, Turkey to Dispatch a Naval Force to Libyan Waters, Will Assume Control of Benghazi Airport, Turkish Prime Minister Cancels Brussels Trip, Visits Iraq and Kurdish Autonomous Region, Turkey Hosts Joint “Urban Warfare” Exercises With Troops from Afghanistan and Pakistan, Trust in Turkey’s Ruling Party Diminishing among European Circles, Unprecedented Wave of Popular Protest Hits Syria, Damascus Deploys Troops, Accuses “Armed Groups” of Seeking to Incite Sectarian Strife, Israeli Army: Syria May Provoke Israel to Distract from Domestic Unrest, Bomb Rocks Jerusalem Bus Stop, Seven Estonian Tourists Kidnapped Hours after Entering Lebanon through Syria, Church Blast in the Same Lebanese Region, Israel Discloses Map Detailing Hezbollah Tunnel Network in Lebanon, Syria Releases Egyptian-American Accused of Espionage
CIA Operating Inside Libya
U.S. agents are helping guide air strikes and determining the allegiances of rebel forces
Since the conflict in Libya began, Barack Obama has promised not to put U.S. “boots on the ground” in the country. CIA agents presumably sport some other kind of footwear, then, because there are dozens of U.S. spies already in Libya, working with rebel forces and attempting to learn more about them, with the ultimate aim of determining whether the U.S. should arm the rebellion. Weeks ago, Obama signed a secret “presidential finding” that authorized the Central Intelligence Agency to provide weapons to the anti-Gadhafi forces, but so far no weapons have been shipped, and officials in Washington continue to weigh the consequences of such a move. British Special Forces and agents with the MI6 intelligence agency are also operating inside Libya.
The Mark News | March 31, 2011
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Egypt Supplies Libyan Insurgents With Weapons, Reports American Newspaper
Egypt has began, at Washington’s instigation, sending arms shipments to insurgents fighting against Gaddafi’s forces in Libya, said on Friday the Wall Street Journal.
This information was obtained from a member of the National Transitional Council which represents the insurgents and US officials, indicated the American newspaper.
The newspaper further noted that this is the first time a confirmation is obtained on sending arms including light rifles and ammunition from a foreign country to Libyan revolutionaries who have recently been defeated by government forces, much better equipped.
The US had expressed its disappointment at the unavailability of Arab countries to solve regional problems and critics against Western countries engaged to help settle these issues.
According to a US official quoted by the Wall Street Journal, the dispatch of Egyptian arms shipments started a few days ago. However, he stressed that Washington has not put in place a clear official policy on this score, even if it knows.
The official considered that the quantity of weapons as too small and too late to have influenced the balance of power in favor of the insurgents.
Afrique Avenir | March 19, 2011
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Egyptian Special Forces Secretly Storm Libya
Crack special forces troops have been secretly pouring into Libya to back the rebellion against Colonel Gaddafi.
The elite troops moved in as the defiant tyrant vowed to “fight to the last man and woman” – and warned that “thousands will die” if the West intervenes.
[...] Intelligence sources have told us that post-Mubarak Egyptian troops have been allowed into Libya by Tunisian soldiers – showing increasing Arab-backing for the anti-Gaddafi revolt.
Continue Reading >> The Daily Mirror | March 3, 2011
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Egypt Keen to Cozy up to Iran, Hizballah
[...] Egypt’s new foreign minister, Nabil al-Arabi, told reporters in Cairo on Tuesday that he intends to reestablish ties with the regime of Iranian strongman Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and his Islamic overseers.
“We will turn over a new leaf with all states, including Iran,” said al-Arabi.
The minister said he was not yet sure if Egypt would be opening an embassy in Tehran anytime soon, but was keen to begin promoting friendly relations with the Islamic Republic.
Asked about Lebanon’s Hizballah terrorist militia, which more or less runs that country, al-Arabi indicated he had no problem with the group, and would not oppose official ties between Hizballah and Egypt.
“Hezbollah is part of Lebanon’s composition, and we see this as an internal matter,” he said. “If any party wishes to have ties with Egypt there will be nothing preventing us from talking.”
Continue Reading >> Israel Today | March 30, 2011
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Egypt Stalls Reopening of Natural Gas Pipeline to Israel, Once again
Egyptian company Eastern Mediterranean Gas hints closure is political, asks U.S. government for help
Egyptian authorities refused to allow the reopening of the natural gas pipeline to Israel yesterday, which was closed a month ago after a terrorist bomb damaged part of the pipeline. Sources at the Egyptian company Eastern Mediterranean Gas, which supplies Israel with the Egyptian gas, hinted the issue is not actually technical − but political.
Some of the owners of EMG, which sells gas to Israel, asked the American and Thai governments to push the Egyptian government to resume the flow of gas to Israel. The reopening was scheduled for today, after three previous postponements.
Continue Reading >> Haaretz | March 4, 2011
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Iran and Saudi Arabia Cold War Has Entered a New Era
Saudi Arabia fears Iranian influence – its Bahrain intervention has echoes of the Soviet reaction to the 1956 Hungary uprising.
Democracy is arriving in the Middle East, albeit slowly. But what is making progress at a much faster pace is the cold war between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Some described the fall of the Mubarak government, preceded by the fall of the Ben Ali regime in Tunisia, as the Middle East’s Berlin Wall moment. The parallels with the cold war in Europe do not end there. There are also similarities between the entry of Soviet forces into Budapest in November 1956 to put down a popular uprising and the Saudi decision to send forces into Bahrain on 14 March this year.
The Soviets were worried that communist Hungary might fall into the hands of their western cold war adversaries, and thus felt it necessary to send their forces to put down any such initiative. The new Saudi strategy is based on similar calculations. They sent their forces into Bahrain because they felt that if the Shia uprising succeeded, it could turn the country from a Saudi friend into an ally of Iran.
The Saudi decision to risk the lives of its own soldiers in Bahrain is a sign of how seriously they view the situation. It is a departure from the old strategy, where the Saudis paid others to do their fighting for them – as with the Saudi financing of Saddam Hussein’s war against Iran between 1980 and 1988.
As far as the Saudis are concerned, the gloves are off and this means that the Middle East’s version of the cold war is intensifying.
The Iranian government is furious as well. Publications such as the pro-Ahmadinejad Raja News have accused the Saudis of creating a “bloodbath” in Bahrain. Others, such as the Tehran-based Asr Iran, have called for the creation of a Hezbollah movement in Bahrain. Meanwhile, the Association of Independent Student Unions in Iran has declared its readiness to go to Bahrain in order to confront government and Saudi forces there.
This fury is now turning into warnings. President Ahmadinejad has already cautioned the Saudi royal family that they should “learn from Saddam’s fate”.
The Saudis should now start preparing themselves for Iran’s response, because the Iranian government is not going to let this pass quietly.
Continue Reading >> The Guardian | March 24, 2011
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Saudi Arabia Virtually Annexes Bahrain, Will Build a Missile-Naval Base Opposite Iran
Saudi Arabia ranges defenses against Iran, is willing to swap gesture favoring coalition operation in Libya for recognition of its takeover of Bahrain.
Continue Reading >> DEBKAfile | April 1, 2011
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Israeli and Saudi Leaders in Moscow as Palestinians Ramp up Missile Strikes
[...] In Moscow, DEBKAfile’s exclusive sources report that Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin was working to set up a discreet meeting between two visitors – Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal, failing which he will try and bring the Saudi Intelligence chief Prince Muqrin bin Abdulaziz, who arrived with the foreign minister, together with the Israeli leader.
Muqrin has met Israeli leaders in secret before, including the former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.
[...] DEBKAfile’s Jerusalem and Moscow sources note that this is the point at which Israel’s declining security situation becomes relevant to a possible Israeli-Saudi dialogue.
Neither Jerusalem nor Riyadh is at ease with the US role in favor of the popular uprisings against veteran Arab regimes – and most particularly the US-UK-French military intervention in Libya. Both find this policy detrimental to the national and security interests of America’s foremost Middle East allies.
They also share resentment for the benefits accrued from this wave of unrest by Tehran and the effect it has had to turn world attention away from its progress toward manufacturing a nuclear bomb.
The Saudi king and Israeli prime minster are apprehensive, on the strength of their intelligence input, that Iran will eventually seize control of the popular uprisings in Arab lands, especially Egypt.
Riyadh alone took a substantial precautionary step against this menace by sending military units into the Bahrain on Feb. 14 to pre-empt the Iranian-backed Shiite threat to King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa and the tiny kingdom’s financial and oil assets at the back door of the rich eastern Saudi oil center.
Continue Reading >> DEBKAfile | April 1, 2011
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Israel Holds Secret Talks With Russia in Bid to Thwart Recognition of Palestinian State
Isaac Molho, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s senior adviser and top negotiator on the Palestinian channel, made a secret trip to Moscow on Wednesday and met with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The purpose of the visit was to dissuade Russia from supporting the European Union’s intention to present in two weeks’ time a plan for the establishment of a Palestinian state within the 1967 borders.
Continue Reading >> Haaretz | April 1, 2011
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Facebook Drops Uprising Page after Israel Protest
Facebook on Tuesday removed a page calling on Palestinians to take up arms against Israel, following a high-profile Israeli appeal to the popular social-networking site.
The page, titled “Third Palestinian Intifada,” had more than 350,000 fans before it was taken down. It called on Palestinians to take to the streets after Friday prayers on May 15 and begin an uprising. “Judgment Day will be brought upon us only once the Muslims have killed all of the Jews,” a quote from the page reads.
Facebook said the page began as a call for peaceful protest, even though it used the term “intifada,” which has been associated with violence in the past.
“However, after the publicity of the page, more comments deteriorated to direct calls for violence,” said Andrew Noyes, Facebook’s public policy communications manager. He said the creators of the page eventually made calls for violence as well.
“We monitor pages that are reported to us and when they degrade to direct calls for violence or expressions of hate — as occurred in this case — we have and will continue to take them down.”
In a letter last week to Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg, Israeli Cabinet Minister Yuli Edelstein said the page included “wild incitement.” Edelstein applauded Facebook for removing the page, saying he hoped the action would be an example to others and deter similar postings in the future.
Continue Reading >> The Associated Press | March 28, 2011
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Military Intelligence Monitoring Foreign Left-Wing Organizations
Military Intelligence is collecting information about left-wing organizations abroad that the army sees as aiming to delegitimize Israel, according to senior Israeli officials and Israel Defense Forces officers.
Continue Reading >> Haaretz | March 21, 2011
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Saudi Foreign Minister to Visit Turkey
Foreign Minister of Saudi Arabia, Prince Saud al-Faisal on Thursday will arrive in Ankara, reported the website of CNN Turk TV channel, which links the visit to Bahrain events.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan will meet al-Faisal after returning from Russia. According to the report, the foreign minister of Turkey, Ahmet Davutoglu will also attend the meeting.
On Wednesday, Davutoglu spoke with foreign ministers of Iran, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain by phone, Anadolu Agency reported.
Officials said that Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi called Davutoglu, stating that Davutoglu and Salehi discussed “developments in the region”.
Davutoglu called foreign ministers of Saudi Arabia and Bahrain and phone conversations mainly focused on developments in Bahrain, officials said.
Anti-government protests began in Manama, Bahrain in February. Demonstrators have been demanding the ouster of King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa as well as constitutional reforms, with hundreds camping out peacefully in the capital’s Pearl Square since February 14th.
Bahraini forces imposed a curfew and started to intervene in the protesting group on Wednesday. At least six people were reported to have been killed in Manama during attacks by Bahraini forces against the anti-government protesters in the capital. In response to this, Iran recalled its ambassador from Bahrain.
Troops from Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) member states were dispatched to Bahrain at the country’s government’s request to help quell the uprising by majority Shiite Muslims against the Sunni leadership.
Trend News Agency | March 17, 2011
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Bahrain FM to Visit Turkey to Discuss Turmoil
Bahraini Foreign Minister Sheikh Khaled bin Ahmad Al-Khalifa will visit Turkey on Tuesday to discuss unrest in his country sparked by a Shiite-led opposition movement, Turkey’s foreign minister said, AFP reports.
Turmoil in the Gulf kingdom “could produce a potential to create an international conflict… and spread Shiite-Sunni tensions across the region,” Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu said in an interview with CNN Turk television Monday.
Turkey is in contact also with Saudi Arabia and Iran to ease tensions, he said.
“On the one side, we are advising Bahrain to put in practice democratisation reforms as soon as possible, and on the other side we are advising Iran, Saudi Arabia and the other related parties to show restraint,” he added.
Tension has escalated between Gulf states and Iran as Tehran condemned the deployment of Saudi-led Gulf troops in Bahrain last week, followed by a bloody crackdown on pro-democracy protests in the Shiite-majority country.
Focus Information Agency | March 22, 2011
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Turkey Seizes Rifles on Grounded Iranian Plane
The Turkish authorities have seized rifles on a Syria-bound Iranian plane, grounded since the weekend, and questioned its seven-man crew, police and judicial sources said Tuesday.
The cargo plane, a civilian Ilyushin, was ordered to land in Diyarbakir, in Turkey’s mainly Kurdish southeast, on Saturday night on suspicion that it had military or illicit cargo on board.
The plane had declared a cargo of spare car parts, but the inspection resulted also in the discovery of a box containing automatic rifles, a police source told AFP, without providing further details on the guns.
The crew was taken to a police station for questioning and argued that the weapons were on board as part of routine security measures, declining to give additional information.
Continue Reading >> AFP | March 22, 2011
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Turkey to UN: We Seized illegal Iran Arms Shipment en Route to Syria
Turkey has informed a UN Security Council panel that it seized a cache of weapons Iran was attempting to export in breach of a UN arms embargo, according to a document obtained by Reuters on Thursday.
Security Council diplomats said the report of the seizure from an Iranian cargo plane reflected positively on Turkey, which some U.S. and European officials say has taken a lax approach to implementing international sanctions against Iranian financial institutions.
The report to the council’s Iran sanctions committee, which oversees compliance with the four rounds of punitive steps the 15-nation body has imposed on Iran over its nuclear program, said a March 21 inspection turned up the weapons, which were listed as “auto spare parts” on the plane’s documents.
The plane was bound for Aleppo, Syria, and was given permission to pass through Turkish airspace provided it made a “technical stop” at Diyarbakir airport.
Continue Reading >> Haaretz | March 31, 2011
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Turkey to Take Over Benghazi Airport
Turkey has said it will help with distributing humanitarian aid to Libya and has suggested it could play a part in mediating between rebels and the government of Muammar Gaddafi.
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the country’s prime minister, said Turkey would take over the running of Benghazi airport to take responsibility for distributing humanitarian aid from the rebel-held eastern city.
The AFP news agency also quoted an official as saying Turkey was responding to a request from fighters in Libya, saying civilian and technical personnel would be sent out.
Ankara has already sent a ferry carrying a medical team, two ambulances and two tonnes of medical supplies to Libya in an attempt to help treat wounded people.
Cemil Cicek, the deputy prime minister, said Turkey was planning to take around 450 injured people from the rebel-held port of Misurata to Turkey for treatment.
Last week, the Turkish parliament also approved the dispatch of a naval force to Libyan waters as the government moved reluctantly to join the military campaign in the north African country.
Continue Reading >> AlJazeera | March 28, 2011
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Turkish PM Cancels Brussels Trip amid Criticisms Over Press Freedom
The Turkish prime minister has canceled his April 1 trip to Brussels to avoid criticisms from EU officials over the deterioration of press freedom, the Hürriyet Daily News & Economic Review has learned from diplomatic sources.
[...] Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was scheduled to meet with top EU officials, including Herman van Rompuy, president of the EU Council, and Jose Manuel Barroso, president of the European Commission. A joint press conference was also expected during the Brussels talks.
Continue Reading >> Hurriyet Daily News | March 28, 2011
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Turkey’s Erdogan in First Visit to Iraq Kurd Region
Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan was welcomed on Tuesday as the first Turkish leader to visit Iraq’s Kurdish region, on a trip laden with significance born of Turkey’s own history of conflict with its Kurdish minority.
Continue Reading >> Reuters | March 29, 2011
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Turkey Hosts Military Exercise with Pakistani, Afghan Troops
Turkey has hosted joint “urban warfare” exercises with troops from Afghanistan and Pakistan, comprising sniper and anti-tank units from the three countries.
The number of troops was small — apparently 128 — but the meaning of the exercise was more political than operational. Turkey has long been NATO’s point of contact for relations with Pakistan, and Washington and Brussels have been trying to get Turkey to help build relations between the militaries of Afghanistan and Pakistan. So this exercise — agreed upon at a summit between the three countries in December — is a step in that direction.
Continue Reading >> Eurasianet | March 30, 2011
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Signs of an Axis Shift in EU’s Trust in Turkey’s Ruling Party
Trust in Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party, or AKP, appears to be diminishing among European circles due to growing concerns about fundamental freedoms.
[...] The views of EU institutions vis-a-vis Turkey have seen a clear shift, according to Demir Murat Seyrek, a senior policy adviser for the European Foundation for Democracy.
Continue Reading >> Hurriyet Daily News | March 31, 2011
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Unprecedented Wave of Popular Protest Hits Syria
After Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and Yemen, a wave of unprecedented anti-regime protests has now hit Syria, a country known for its iron grip on security matters.
[...] Daraa, a southern town that is home to large tribal families, has been the focal point of the rallies, the latest in a string of uprisings against long-running autocratic regimes across the Arab world.
Continue Reading >> Ahram Online | March 23, 2011
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Syria Deploys Troops after Clashes
Syria has deployed security forces to the northern city of Latakia after violent protests left at least 12 people dead and more than 150 injured amid calls for reform.
[...] Syrian authorities have accused “armed groups” of seeking to incite sectarian strife in the city, which has seen violent clashes between pro-reform protesters, security forces and government supporters.
Continue Reading >> AlJazeera | March 28, 2011
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IDF: Syria May Provoke Israel to Distract from Domestic Unrest
[...] The IDF is also preparing for the possibility that Damascus might use Hezbollah or other militant organizations in Lebanon to heat up that front to divert attention from events in Syria.
Continue Reading >> Haaretz | March 23, 2011
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Bomb Rocks Jerusalem Bus Stop
A bomb struck a crowded bus stop in central Jerusalem Wednesday, killing one woman and wounding more than 20 other people in what authorities said was the first major Palestinian militant attack in the city in several years.
The bombing brought back memories of the second Palestinian uprising last decade, a period in which hundreds of Israelis were killed by suicide bombings in Jerusalem and other major cities.
The Denver Post | March 23, 2011
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Lebanon: Estonian Tourists Kidnapped in Bekaa Valley
Seven Estonian tourists have been kidnapped while cycling in the Bekaa Valley in eastern Lebanon.
The army has now begun searching for the group, who had entered Lebanon legally from Syria earlier in the day.
They were in the town of Zahle when they were seized by men in a car and two vans.
It is not clear whether the kidnapping is politically motivated. The Bekaa Valley is a stronghold of the Islamist Hezbollah movement.
During Lebanon’s civil war, at least 88 foreigners were taken hostage between 1984 and 1990, including the journalist John McCarthy and peace envoy Terry Waite.
The Bekaa Valley is known for lawlessness, drug trafficking and feuds between the powerful clans which control the region’s hashish plantations.
The tourists’ abandoned bicycles were found near the industrial complex in Zahle where they were abducted.
BBC News | March 23, 2011
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Bomb Explodes at Zahle Church, None Hurt
A bomb exploded Sunday at a church in the eastern town of Zahle, causing severe damage but injuring no one, in an act denounced by politicians and religious leaders as an attack on Lebanon’s stability.
A security source told The Daily Star that a device containing 2 kilograms of TNT exploded inside Saidat al-Najat church at 4.15 a.m. Sunday morning, in a detonation performed via cellphone.
“This is the first time this kind of bomb has been used [in Lebanon], whereby the individual can detonate the bomb from anywhere,” the source said.
Continue Reading >> The Daily Star | March 28, 2011
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Israel Releases Map of Hezbollah Bunkers in Lebanon
Washington Post obtains map detailing bunkers, arms caches, surveillance sites in south Lebanon. IDF official: We want to show world that Shiite group has turned villages into fighting zones.
Continue Reading >> Ynetnews | March 30, 2011
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Syria Releases Egyptian-American Accused of Espionage
Syrian authorities have released an Egyptian-American man one week after detaining him on espionage concerns and showing him in what was billed as a televised confession on state TV.
Muhammad Radwan was released to the Egyptian Embassy in Damascus on Friday.
Continue Reading >> CNN | April 1, 2011
Uruguay Joins South American Nations in Recognizing Palestinian Statehood, French Foreign Minister : European Union Should Consider Recognizing Palestinian State, Mossad Ex-Chief : Israelis and Palestinians Won’t Agree Anytime Soon on Clear Borders for a New State, Israel Seizes Boat “Carrying Weapons from Turkey to Gaza”, “Arms Came from Iran Via Turkey, Syria, and Egypt”, Iran on Arms Seizure : “Zionist Regime is Full of Lies”, “Turkey Stops Iranian Cargo Plane en Route to Syria”, Turkish Government Denies, Egypt Uncovers Israeli Spy Network Reporting on “Developments in the Country” and Collecting Detailed Information About the Size of Armed Forces Stationed on the Streets Government Officials and Natural Gas Lines in Sinai Peninsula, Egyptian Military Delegation in Damascus to Restore Relations, Saudi Troops Deployed in Bahrain, Iran Warns Against Foreign Military Intervention Recalls Ambassador from Bahrain Cancels Jordanian Monarch’s Trip, Saudi Envoy Delivering Message from King Abdullah to Syria’s President Situation in Bahrain Discussed, Syrian Foreign Minister on a One Day Visit to Tehran “to Confer on the Latest Developments in the Region”, China Paying $6 Billion to Develop Iran Oil Fields, Warship Deal With Russia Losing Support in France “Because of Concerns Among Russia’s Neighbors”, Turkish Prime Minister in Moscow, Russia to Build Turkey’s First Nuclear Power Station, Final Step in Visa-Free Regime
Uruguay Joins South American Nations in Recognizing Palestinian Statehood
Uruguay has joined a string of South American nations in recognizing an independent Palestinian state.
A Foreign Ministry statement says Uruguay has communicated its decision to the Palestinian Authority.
However the statement does not explicitly say whether the country recognizes
Palestine’s borders predating the Six-Day War of 1967, when Israel captured the West Bank and Gaza.
Foreign Ministry officials declined Tuesday to clarify the matter.
More than a half-dozen countries in South America have recognized Palestine recently, though in different ways.
Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador and Paraguay recognized the pre-1967 borders.
Chile and Peru said the issue must be worked out between Israelis and Palestinians.
Haaretz | March 16, 2011
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French FM : EU Should Consider Recognizing Palestinian State
French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe said Tuesday that the European Union should consider the option of recognizing a Palestinian state if no peace agreement with Israel is reached.
“Recognizing the Palestinian state alone is useless,” he said, explaining that the measure should be taken in collaboration with other countries within the EU. Juppe made the statement during a hearing at the Committee on Foreign Affairs of National Assembly in the lower house of the French Parliament. “We’re not there yet, but personally I think it is an option that one must have in mind,” he added.
YnetNews | March 15, 2011
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Mossad Ex-Chief Halevy Says Mideast Talks Won’t Settle Borders
Israelis and Palestinians probably won’t agree anytime soon on clear borders for a new state, leaving them to maintain current political arrangements for another generation, former Mossad Director Efraim Halevy said.
Even if Palestinians declare a state later this year and garner significant support at the United Nations, the move will have little practical significance and will probably perpetuate Israeli’s occupation of the West Bank.
Continue Reading >> Bloomberg | March 10, 2011
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IDF Seizes Boat Carrying Weapons from Turkey to Gaza
The Israeli navy seized a ship on Tuesday that was apparently smuggling weapons destined for Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
The Israel Defense Forces Spokesman Unit said that the ship “Victoria” originated from the Lattakia port in Syria and sailed to Mersin, Turkey. It was seized while on its way from Turkey destined for the El-Arish port in Egypt.
Continue Reading >> Haaretz | March 15, 2011
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Netanyahu : Arms on Seized Ship Came from Iran Via Syria
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that weapons seized by the Israel Navy from a ship bound for Egypt earlier in the day had come from Iran, via Syria, and were intended for militants in Gaza.
“We are currently collecting information and the one thing that is certain is that the weapons are from Iran with a relay station in Syria”.
Continue Reading >> Haaretz | March 15, 2011
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Iran on Arms Seizure : “Zionist Regime is Full of Lies”
Iranian Army Commander-General denies sending weapons to Gaza on “Victoria” ship; Hamas also claims weapons weren’t for them.
Continue Reading >> The Jerusalem Post | March 16, 2011
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“Turkey Stops Iranian Cargo Plane en Route to Syria”
Turkish government denies earlier reports that plane was stopped because it carried weapons meant for Syria, says it is “standard procedure” for planes to be checked.
The Turkish government on Wednesday denied reports that Turkish military jets forced an Iranian cargo plane to land at Biyarbakir airport Tuesday night in order to check it for Iranian arms meant for Syria, reported AP.
The government confirmed that the Iranian plane landed in Turkey, but that it is standard procedure for cargo planes to request permission to fly over Turkey and that sometimes they are required to make unscheduled landings to be searched.
Continue Reading >> The Jerusalem Post | March 16, 2011
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Egypt Uncovers Israeli Spy Network
Egyptian authorities have uncovered a spy network that has been working for Israel, said an official report on Wednesday. The discovery is the first of its kind since the ouster of former president Hosni Mubarak last month.
Official reports circulated by state newspapers said state security prosecutors were interrogating one of the suspects involved in the cell, and he will remain in custody pending investigations. Initial reports said the suspect is Egyptian and that the network includes another foreigner and two Israelis who fled the country before the uncovering of the network.
State-owned al-Ahram newspaper reported on Wednesday that the foreigner admitted he came to Egypt after the 25 January revolution to report on developments in the country. It is believed he is a Syrian national who entered Egypt under the guise of being a businessman.
The suspect said he was working for Mossad, Israeli intelligence, according to al-Ahram.
Bikya Masr | March 17, 2011
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Israeli spy Ring Aimed at Conducting Espionage against Egyptian Army
Mossad agents were arrested in Egypt 5 days ago, and the mission was sent to collect detailed information about the size of the Egyptian armed forces stationed on the streets; its places, prominent Egyptian government officials and natural gas lines in Sinai”, Israeli online edition said.
“The cell received its first assignment after the January 25 revolution on the purpose of gathering key strategic and political information about the situation in Egypt,” The Hebrew-language news site Inyan Merkazi said.
The Higher State Security Prosecution ordered the imprisonment of the first suspect in custody for 15 days while investigations take place. The suspect is a 34-year-old Jordanian who arrived in Cairo during the demonstrations and allegedly sent information concerning recordings of phone calls made by Egyptian officials and important locations in Cairo to Israel. He was charged with spying for Israel and harming Egypt’s national interests by the Public Prosecutor.
IkhwanWeb | March 18, 2011
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Egypt’s New Rulers Friendly with Assad
Egypt’s temporary military rulers sent a delegation to Syria on Thursday to meet with President Bashar al-Assad. Egyptian General Murad Mohammed Muafi and Assad agreed to boost cooperation between the two countries, according to Syria’s SANA news agency.
The meeting follows long-term tension between Egypt and Syria. Former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak refrained from developing warm ties with Assad due to disagreement over Syria’s role in Lebanon.
Continue Reading >> Israel National News | March 18, 2011
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Saudi Troops Have Entered Bahrain : Saudi Official
More than 1,000 Saudi troops, part of the Gulf countries’ Peninsula Shield Force, have entered Bahrain where anti-regime protests have raged for a month, a Saudi official said Monday.
The troops entered the strategic Gulf kingdom on Sunday, the official told AFP, requesting anonymity.
The intervention came “after repeated calls by the (Bahraini) government for dialogue, which went unanswered” by the opposition, the official said.
According to the regulations of the Gulf Cooperation Council, “any Gulf force entering a member state becomes under the command of the government,” the official added.
The Bahraini government has not confirmed the presence of Saudi troops in the archipelago, which is home to the US Fifth Fleet.
Continue Reading >> AFP | March 14, 2011
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Iran Warns Against Military Intervention in Bahrain, Recalls Ambassador
Iran warned against the consequences of military interventions of foreigners in Bahrain and recalled its ambassador from Manama due to the relevant disputes, local media reported on Thursday.
In telephone conversations with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem, Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari and Kuwaiti Deputy Prime Minister Muhammad al-Sabah on Wednesday over the recent developments in Bahrain, Iranian Foreign Minister Ali-Akbar Salehi talked about the military meddling in Bahrain.
Iranian foreign minister called for the continued consultations between regional countries to prevent a humanitarian crisis in the Gulf kingdom.
Iranian Parliament (Majlis) Speaker Ali Larijani also warned against foreign military intervention in Bahrain, saying the ” tragic occurrence, would exacerbate the situation in the country.”
“The entering of foreign forces into Bahrain will complicate the situation in the region and make it difficult to find a solution to the ongoing crisis in the country,” Larijani was quoted as saying by satellite Press TV.
Larijani described the move as “detrimental” to the region and added “Foreign troops are committing a bigger crime as they are involved in the crackdown against Bahraini people.”
Continue Reading >> Xinhua News Agency | March 17, 2011
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Jordanian Monarch’s Trip to Iran Cancelled
Iranian MP, Hamid Resai has announced that the King of Jordan’s visit to Iran has been cancelled. “In view of the current critical situation,” he said, “the Jordanian Abdullah’s trip to Tehran did not meet the approval of senior Islamic Republic officials.”
Continue Reading >> Payvand Iran News | March 15, 2011
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Message from Saudi King to President al-Assad on Bilateral Relations, Developments in Arab Arena
President Bashar al-Assad on Wednesday received a message from Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz of Saudi Arabia highlighting the special relations between their brotherly countries.
The message was delivered during President al-Assad’s meeting with Advisor to the Saudi King, Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah.
The latest developments in the Arab arena, including the situation in the brotherly Kingdom of Bahrain, were discussed in the message.
Continue Reading >> SANA | March 17, 2011
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Syrian FM Due in Tehran Today
Syrian Foreign Minister Valid Muallem is due to visit Tehran on Thursday to confer with the Iranian officials on the bilateral relations between the two countries and the latest developments in the region.
Muallem is also scheduled to meet a number of high ranking Iranian officials in addition to his counterpart Ali Akbar Salehi during his one day visit.
Muallem and Salehi’s latest meeting was on January 29 in Damascus.
Iran and Syria have forged an alliance ever since the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the two countries’ officials exchange visits on a regular basis.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was last in Tehran at the head of a high-ranking politico-economic delegation in October 2010.
The two countries enjoy strategic relations in a wide variety of fields.
Fars News Agency | March 17, 2011
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China Paying $6 Billion to Develop Iran Oil Fields
An Iranian official said Beijing has contracted Iran’s Azadegan oil fields for projects estimated at more than $6 billion. The contractor was identified as the state-owned China National Petroleum Corp. assigned to cooperate with the National Iranian Oil Co, Middle East Newsline reported.
Continue Reading >> World Tribune | March 14, 2011
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Warship Deal With Russia Losing Support in France – Paper
The agreement to sell advanced warships to Russia is losing support in France because of Moscow’s wish to get hold of sensitive military technology and concerns among Russia’s neighbors, Le Figaro daily said on Wednesday.
[...] A number of Russia’s neighbors have expressed concern over the upcoming deal, in particular Georgia, Lithuania, and Japan, especially after a Russian Defense Ministry source said in early February the ships would be inducted with the Pacific Fleet to protect the South Kuril Islands claimed by Japan.
Continue Reading >> RIA Novosti | March 16, 2011
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Russia, Turkey to Take final Step in Visa-Free Regime
The final official step in the process of introducing a visa-free regime between Black Sea neighbors Russia and Turkey will be taken during Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s three-day visit to Russia.
Continue Reading >> Today’s Zaman | March 15, 2011
Dmitry Medvedev Reaffirms Soviet Recognition of Palestinian State, Moscow Airport Bombed, Coordinated Campaign Against the Ruling Elite in Russsia, Austrian Soldier on Trial in Germany on Charges of Spying for Russia, Moscow Says Foreign Power May Have Caused Spy Satellite Loss, French Police Seize Fugitive Tycoon’s Yachts on Russia’s Behest, U.S. Vetoes UN Resolution on Israeli Settlements
Russian President Bypasses Israel, Reaffirms Soviet Recognition of Palestinian State
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Austrian on Trial in Germany on Charges of Spying for Russia
An Austrian soldier went on trial in Germany on Monday, accused of spying for the Russian secret service and passing on sensitive information about European helicopter prototypes.
Prosecutors at the Munich court allege that the 54-year-old Austrian army mechanic, spied for Russia’s foreign intelligence service (SVR) from 1997 to 2002.
Continue Reading >> Monsters and Critics | February 14, 2011
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Russia Says Foreign Power May Have Caused Spy Satellite Loss
The Russian space agency suggested Monday that a foreign power may have been behind the space accident that disabled one of the country’s most modern military satellites earlier this month.
Russia on February 1 launched a high-tech Geo-IK-2 craft to help the military draw a three-dimensional map of the Earth and locate the precise positions of various targets.
News reports said the satellite was a vital part of Russia’s effort to match the United States and NATO’s ability to target its missiles from space.
But the craft briefly went missing after its launch only to re-emerge in a wrong orbit that left the craft unable to complete its assigned task.
[...] The official did not identify the country he suspected of trying to derail the Russian military mission. But Moscow frequently accuses Washington of attempting to “militarise” space.
The space official conceded that there may have been other reasons for the launch failure. These included the wrong operations being programmed into the guidance system and other software mistakes.
But the Russian source stressed that the accident occurred between the first and second burns of the Briz-KM upper-stage booster rocket — an area in which the craft makes no contact with ground control.
The official suggested that the electromagnetic pulse may have been aimed at the Russian craft “from a land, sea, air or space vehicle.”
Continue Reading >> AFP | February 15, 2011
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French Police Seize Berezovsky’s Yachts on Russia’s Behest
The Russian Prosecutor General’s Office has confirmed that two yachts and other valuable possessions belonging to the fugitive Russian tycoon have been seized in southern France.
“Our French colleagues have managed to seize [Berezovsky's] yachts in the Juan Bay in southern France, not far from Berezovsky’s estate on Cape Antibes, which was earlier arrested at the request of the Russian Prosecutor General’s Office,” Marina Gridneva, spokeswoman for the Prosecutor General’s Office told Interfax.
[...] French police seized other Berezovsky-owned valuables, including paintings, in the presence of a Russian investigator, the spokeswoman said.
The French judiciary made the decision to confiscate Berezovsky’s property following an official request issued by the Office of the Prosecutor General in Moscow, Itar-Tass reported.
[...] Boris Berezovsky, who has been sentenced to prison in absentia in Russia on charges of embezzlement, fraud and money laundering, has been living in self-imposed exile in the United Kingdom since 2001.
Despite arrest warrants being issued to Interpol by Russian and Brazilian authorities, repeated extradition requests from Russia to UK authorities have produced no results.
Continue Reading >> Russia Today | February 18, 2011
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U.S. Blocks U.N. Resolution Calling Israeli Settlements “Illegal”
The U.S. today vetoed a U.N. Security Council resolution that would have condemned Israeli settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem as “illegal” and ordered all construction operations there to stop.
The U.S. was the sole no vote on the 15-member Security Council, which had broadly supported the Palestinian-sponsored resolution.
Continue Reading >> ABC News | February 18, 2011
The History of Military Rule in Egypt
Gilbert Achcar: Military rule in Egypt began with Nasser’s overthrow of King Farouk and increasing independence from the U.S.
The Real News | February 13, 2011
Palestine Papers Leaked, Palestinian Authority Undermined, Israel “Must Be Prepared to Reoccupy Gaza” Two-State Solution Unlikely, “Crisis of Authority” in Jordan, Tribes Threaten Revolution, Jordanian Citizenship Granted for Senior Palestinian Officials, Substitute Palestinian Homeland Doctrine Tacitly Implied
What “sceptics” have said all along since the onset of the peace process two decades ago has now an abundance of evidence to support it: Palestinian-Israeli negotiations since Oslo in 1993 have seen nothing but escalating Palestinian concessions and the expansion of the Israeli occupation. There is no “two state solution” in sight.
[...] By releasing a selection of 1,600 secret documents and minutes of Palestinian-Israeli peace talks from 2003 to 2010 on Sunday, Al-Jazeera mainly exposed the weakness of the Palestinian Authority (PA), and its concessions to and collaboration with the occupier Israel against its own people. The release has stripped it of any remaining legitimacy; one can say that Al-Jazeera morally assassinated the PA.
[...] The documents show that the PA made unprecedented compromises on Haram Al-Sharif (the compound that contains Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock, one outer wall of which —known as the Wailing Wall —is of significance to Jews); ceded the right of six million Palestinian refugees to return home (agreeing to the return of a limited quota of 10,000); offered to Israel the annexation of all settlements in East Jerusalem except Har Homa; agreed to land swaps that gave up precious Palestinian territory to Israel; supported Israel’s self-identification as a “Jewish state”; cooperated with Israel against the Palestinian resistance, especially Hamas; made efforts to help the Iranian opposition (the minutes revealed that PA chairman Abbas convinced a Palestinian businessman to give Iranian opposition leader Hussein Mousavi $50m to fund his radio station); and pursued negotiations for the sake of its political survival.
Continue Reading >> Al-Ahram Online | January 27, 2011
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Israel Braces for a New Egypt
Israelis are bracing for a more adversarial regime in Egypt, one they expect could lead their country to expand its army, fortify the two countries’ desert frontier and possibly re-invade the Palestinian-ruled Gaza Strip.
[...] Several former military and intelligence officials are arguing publicly that Israel must be prepared to reoccupy Gaza, or at least a wide swath of the enclave along its eight-mile border with Egypt. Other experts counsel caution, warning that such an operation would plunge Israel into years of fighting.
“There’s no reason for us to make any decisions in the next few weeks or even more than that,” said Giora Eiland, a former Israeli national security adviser. “We have to observe, and if the situation changes in a bad way, we will have time to shift whatever has to be shifted.”
Continue Reading >> The Wall Street Journal | February 10, 2011
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Jordan Tribesmen Warn King to Reform or Risk Revolt
[...] It was a rare rebuke to King Abdullah from Jordan’s tribesmen, who are the main domestic allies of the ruling Hashemite monarchy. The king already has faced weeks of public protests organized by Islamists and other opposition groups angered by growing poverty and a lack of political freedoms.
Continue Reading >> VOA News | February 8, 2011
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Jordan Tribes Threaten Revolution Over Country’s Palestinian Queen Rania
Jordanian tribal figures have issued a petition urging King Abdullah to end his Palestinian wife’s role in politics, in a new challenge to the monarch grappling with fallout from uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt.
Evoking comparisons with the wives of Tunisia’s former strongman Zine al Abidine Ben Ali and Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak, the signatories attacked Queen Rania’s Palestinian origin and accused her of using state funds to promote her image abroad without concern for the hardship of ordinary Jordanians.
The 36 figures are drawn from conservative East Bank tribes who form the backbone of the Hashemite monarchy’s support — as opposed to Jordanians of Palestinian, or West Bank, origin who are the majority of the country’s 7 million population.
Continue Reading >> Hareetz | February 8, 2011
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Jordan Strips Palestinians’ Citizenship
A US-based human rights group criticized Jordan Monday for stripping the citizenship of nearly 3,000 Jordanians of Palestinian origin in recent years.
Nearly half the kingdom’s 6 million people are of Palestinian origin and Jordan fears that if Palestinians become the majority, it will disrupt the delicate demographic balance.
Concerned about increasing numbers of Palestinians in the country, Jordan in 2004 began revoking citizenship from Palestinians who do not have the Israeli permits that are necessary to reside in the West Bank.
Continue Reading >> The Jerusalem Post | February 1, 2011
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Abbas Receives Jordanian Citizenship
Jordanian citizenship has been given to senior Palestinian Authority officials, including President Mahmoud Abbas and his sons, a Jordanian politician said.
[...] A significant number of senior Palestinian officials are registered as full Jordanian citizens, the London based al-Quds al-Arabi newspaper.
It noted that Abbas and his entire family have Jordanian citizenship as well as other senior Palestinian officials such as Fatah official Mohammed Dahlan and Abbas’s spokesman Nabil Abu Rudeineh.
Continue Reading >> UPI | February 9, 2011
Chief Palestinian Negotiator : Former CIA, MI6 Agents Source Of Palestine Leaks
Speaking on the Al Jazeera program “Without Borders,” chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat named Al Jazeera reporter–and alleged former CIA agent–Clayton Swisher and former MI6 agent Alistair Crooke as the source of the Palestine Papers.
Al Jazeera’s leak of nearly 2000 documents from 20 years of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations has embarrassed the Palestinian Authority (PA), in particular Erekat and President Mahmoud Abbas, over their apparent willingness to compromise on sensitive points of contention such as Jerusalem and refugees.
Swisher, whose LinkedIn profile notes he has worked for Al Jazeera since November 2007, was labeled by Erekat a “CIA spy.” That accusation has not been confirmed, but the Israeli online newspaper Ha’aretz reported on Wednesday that Swisher used to work as a bodyguard in the Clinton Administration’s State Department.
According to Erekat, the other suspected leaker, Alistair Crooke, was a prominent agent in the British intelligence service MI6 and a close adviser to several high-ranking EU officials. Ha’aretz reported he is “considered close to officials in Hamas,” the Islamic group ruling Gaza that has benefited considerably from the damage to the PA caused by the Palestine Papers.
Palestine News Network | January 27, 2011
More Countries Recognize Palestinian State, Secret Negotiations Documents Leaked, Palestinian Authority Under Fire
Shin Bet predicts that several European countries will recognise Palestinian state
Russian president recognizing Palestine
Ireland upgrades PA mission
Peru recognises Palestinian state
Palestine to open embassy in Brazil
Chile Offers Recognition for a State of Palestine
Guyana, the seventh Latin American state to recognize an independent Palestinian state
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Over the last several months, Al Jazeera has been given the largest-ever leak of confidential documents related to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. There are nearly 1,700 files, thousands of pages of diplomatic correspondence detailing the inner workings of the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. These documents – memos, e-mails, maps, minutes from private meetings, accounts of high level exchanges, strategy papers and even power point presentations – date from 1999 to 2010.
Palestinian Authority under fire as Al-Jazeera leaks details of peace negotiations
Leaks show Palestinian Authority is selling out its people
Leaks Reveal Deeper Palestinian-Israeli Security Ties
Al Jazeera Transparency | January 23, 2011
Webster Tarpley On The Moscow Airport Bombing
Recent causes of US-UK animus towards Russia include the Khodorkhovsky verdict (the US position being that a finance oligarch that rich should of course be above the law), the inability of NATO to foment a gas crisis this winter, President Medvedev’s endorsement of a Palestinian state (re-affirming the 1988 decision by the USSR), and Afghan President Karzai’s visit to Moscow, where he created the premises for a long-term post-NATO strategic relationship with Russia including the Salang tunnel, hydroelectric plants, and a Turkmenistan-India gas pipeline the US has been seeking to block. Also worth noting is that, in a recent Wikileaks document dump, the impotent gaggle of marginal Russia opposition figures assembled by Obama’s lightweight NSC Russia director Michael McFaul demonstrated a special desire to oust Chechen President Razman Kadyrov, a Putin ally. Are their alleged human rights concerns only a cover story for their fear that Kadyrov is actually suppressing NATO-backed terrorism in Chechnya?
Tarpley | January 25, 2011
British MI6 Proposed “Direct Lines” to Israeli Intelligence For Crackdown On Iran-Backed Hamas in The Gaza Strip
British intelligence helped draw up a secret plan for a wide-ranging crackdown on the Islamist movement Hamas which became a security blueprint for the Palestinian Authority, leaked documents reveal. The plan asked for the internment of leaders and activists, the closure of radio stations and the replacement of imams in mosques.
The disclosure of the British plan, drawn up by the intelligence service in conjunction with Whitehall officials in 2004, and passed by a Jerusalem-based MI6 officer to the senior PA security official at the time, Jibril Rajoub, is contained in the cache of confidential documents obtained by al-Jazeera TV and shared with the Guardian. The documents also highlight the intimate level of military and security cooperation between Palestinian and Israeli forces.
The Guardian | January 25, 2011
Russian President Bypasses Israel, Reaffirms Soviet Recognition of Palestinian State
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said on Tuesday Moscow had recognized an independent Palestinian state in 1988 and was not changing that position adopted by the former Soviet Union in his first visit to the Israeli-occupied West Bank as Russian head of state.
The remark comes after in the past two months a string of recognitions by Latin American states including Brazil and Argentina as Palestinians demand full United Nations membership.
World Bulletin | January 18, 2011
Egypt Hits Back at Moscow-Jerusalem-South Sudan Ties with Spy Charges against Israel
A secret meeting in Tel Aviv last Thursday, Dec. 16 between the high-ranking Russian emissary Mikhail Margelov and representatives of the South Sudanese semi-autonomous government so infuriated Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak that he ordered his intelligence minister Gen. Omar Suleiman to hit back by accusing Israel of recruiting Egyptian agents to spy on Lebanon and Syria.
According to DEBKAfile’s intelligence sources, Cairo has only just begun settling the score with Jerusalem for bringing Russia into its quiet support for oil-rich South Sudan, whose President Silva Kiir Mayardit plans to lead his Christian-dominated province to independence of the Muslim North in a referendum on Jan. 9.
The Egyptians suspect that the recent delivery of Russian arms to South Sudan, mainly combat helicopters, is part of a joint Russian-Israeli armament program.
Sudan is not expected to take its breakup lying down, especially when a separate referendum on the same day may lead a second province Abyei to secede, a double blow to Khartoum’s oil industry: 85 percent of its oil is pumped in the South and most of its exports are piped through Abyei to Port Sudan on the Red Sea.
Margelov, who is Chairman of the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, as well as the Chairman of the European Democrat group of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, had previously opposed South Sudan’s secession, voicing fears of “a new Somalia” emerging. However, after appreciating its inevitability after decades of bloody war, the Kremlin changed its tune.
Margelov’s get-together with South Sudanese officials last Thursday – first revealed by the Israel-Russian IZRus website and believed to have been set up by Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman – was noted in the several world capitals which are keeping an eagle eye on the January 9 plebiscites.
Four days later, Cairo announced Egyptian Tareq Abd Al Rezak Hassan had been arrested and charged with working for the Israeli Mossad. Not a day has gone by since without lurid revelations about his clandestine activities.
The Sudan question was pressing enough to bring Hosni Mubarak and the Libyan ruler Muammar Qaddafi on a visit to Khartoum On Dec. 21 for talks with President Omar Bashir. They arrived together to try and persuade him to postpone the referendum fearing they would lead to more bloodshed. But their agendas were essentially quite different: Qaddafi abhors the very notion of a new oil power rising next door to Libya – and especially under Christian rule. Mubarak fears the momentous changes overtaking Sudan will upset the colonial treaties which grant Egypt 85 percent of Nile waters. Most of it comes from the river’s main tributary, the Blue Nile, which flows in from Ethiopia; less from the White Nile which rises in Uganda. The two tributaries merge near Khartoum and flow north as a single river which has been Egypt’s lifeline for millennia.
Egypt feels threatened not only by the Sudan upheavals to come, but by a new initiative launched by Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi which challenges Egypt’s monopoly over Nile Waters and demands equitable shares for the river’s seven upstream nations, most of them extremely poor.
The Mubarak government regards its control of the Nile an existential issue and will if need be fight for it. Zenawi remarked recently: “I am not worried that the Egyptians will suddenly invade Ethiopia. Nobody who has tried that has lived to tell the story.”
Both Cairo and Addis Ababa are therefore sharpening their teeth over the Nile.
And that is the point at which Israel has entered the picture, DEBKAfile’s intelligence and military sources report.
President Kiir maintains a covert office in Tel Aviv, the hub through which his diplomatic, military and intelligence relations with Israel are funneled. Egypt and western military sources believe Israel has been steadily arming South Sudan through a third party, thereby backing its drive for independence.
Ethiopia, too, is a friend of Israel and maintains strong military and intelligence ties with the Jewish state. This month, Cairo was dismayed to discover that Israel had developed connections and influence in East African countries south of Egypt powerful enough to override the Mubarak government’s dominant role on the Palestinian issue.
For Mubarak, the covert meeting between Russian and South Sudanese officials in Tel Aviv, of all places, was the last straw. He saw it as the culmination of an Israeli gambit to enlist Russian support for the new ventures Jerusalem had launched as a disconnect from Washington’s falling prestige in the Middle East and a means of circumventing the Iranian-fueled radicalization of its neighbors.
Cairo thereupon put its foot down on Israel’s Sudan venture, making the Mossad the object of its ire.
Tareq Abd Al Rezak Hassan is now charged with conducting contacts with Israel harmful to state security and hostile activities against Syria. Indictments have also been filed against “Eddy and Moshe Joseph Dimor,” described as Hassan’s handlers,
Cairo has taken care not to go all the way and charge Israel with spying against Egypt – only other Arab states. But it has made the affair public as a warning to Israel to back off from its diplomatic forays in East Africa or face more embarrassments.
DEBKAfile | December 25, 2010
Turkey Upset Over Israel-Cyprus Maritime Border Demarcation Deal
An agreement meant to prevent disputes over oil and gas fields may stir diplomatic crisis in Mediterranean: Turkish sources said Sunday that Foreign Ministry officials had summoned Israel’s Ambassador to Turkey Gabby Levy and expressed discontent over an agreement signed between Israel and Cyprus, which demarcates the exclusive economic zone within the territorial waters of the two countries and divides their rights to search for oil and gas reservoirs in the Mediterranean Sea.
According to a report published by a Turkish website, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan firmly opposes any maritime agreement between Cyprus and countries in the eastern Mediterranean, because it undermines the status of Turkish Cyprus and its stake of the territorial waters.
During the meeting with Levy, officials at the Turkish Foreign Ministry stressed that “Turkey opposes the agreement until a just and inclusive solution is reached in the Cyprus conflict.”
Turkey is the only country in the world that recognizes Turkish Cyprus.
The report also stated that Turkey would not hesitate sending its naval forces to the area, in order to thwart any oil field exploration.
According to the report, Turkey sees any such maritime agreement futile as long as there is no comprehensive peace agreement between Israel, Lebanon, Syria and the Palestinians.
Ynet News | December 19, 2010
Israeli Intelligence Infiltrated Throughout Lebanese Government
Israel Penetrating Lebanese Institutions
WMR has learned from its Lebanese intelligence sources that the Lebanese government is coming to realize that Israeli intelligence penetration of all political groups in the country is worse than originally believed.
Israel’s Mossad, once content on penetrating the Christian and Druze parties in the country, has now thoroughly infiltrated the top echelons of Sunni and Shi’a parties, as well. Recently, Lebanon charged retired General Fayez Karam, a senior member of retired General Michel Aoun’s Free Patriotic Movement, which is allied with Hezbollah, with spying for Mossad.
Among the political parties penetrated by Israeli intelligence is the Future Movement of Prime Minister Saad Hariri, the son of the former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri, who was assassinated by a car bomb in Beirut in 2005. The UN Special Tribunal for Lebanon (STL) is expected very soon to charge Lebanon’s Hezbollah with the assassination. However, Hezbollah leader Hasan Nasrallah recently announced the group had video evidence from Israeli drones that showed the Israeli Defense Force was tracking Hariri before his assassination.
The STL’s chief prosecutor, Daniel Bellemare of Canada, requested the evidence from Hezbollah. However, WMR has learned that Bellemare is suspected by Lebanese intelligence of having close previous contacts with agents of both the CIA and Mossad. WMR previously reported that Bellemare is suspected to have allowed and introduced into evidence against Hezbollah in the Hariri assassination, doctored cell phone intercepts pointing the “smoking gun” at Hezbollah. It is feared that Bellemare might give Hezbollah’s evidence to Mossad for the Israelis to determine the source of the leak of classified videos.
Mossad is also reported to be grooming a successor to the Lebanese Shi’a political leader Nabih Berri, currently the speaker of the Lebanese parliament. The Mossad operation is being actively supported behind the scenes by Saudi Arabia, a country that is fast becoming one of Israel’s most “open secret” allies in the Middle East.
According to WMR’s sources in Lebanon, one network that Israel and the United States can rely on to support the UN after the expected indictment of Hezbollah for Hariri’s assassination is a Sunni network in the Bekaa Valley of Lebanon. It includes a member of the same family as Ziad al-Jarrah, one of the alleged United flight 93 hijackers on September 11, 2001.
Lebanese intelligence has linked the Ziad al-Jarrah, who hailed from the Bekaa Valley, to a Saudi-supported Salafist network that includes “Al-Qaeda” associates that will be used to target Shi’as throughout Lebanon in the wake of the Bellemare charges against Hezbollah. Lebanese intelligence discovered that members of this same Mossad-supported Salafist/Al Qaeda network also targeted top Shi’a leaders in Iraq. WMR has learned that Ziad al-Jarrah was used by the Mossad, the CIA, and Saudi intelligence as a “patsy” in the 9/11 conspiracy, just as similar “patsies” are being used in Iraq and elsewhere to help keep the myth of “Al Qaeda” and Osama bin Laden alive.
The same Salafist/Al Qaeda network in Lebanon, while still in an embryonic stage, was used by Mossad and the CIA to spy on Palestinian groups in Lebanon during the 1980s and 90s, as well as on Syria during its occupation of Lebanon.
The Israeli espionage network also extends to Syria. Lebanese sources report that former Syrian Vice President Abdel Halim Khaddam, who accused Syrian President Bashar al Assad of ordering Rafik Hariri’s assassination, is tactically backed by Israel and the United States. Khaddam, who heads the exiled National Salvation Front (NSF), is seeking to overthrow Assad. The NSF not only receives support from Israeli and U.S. intelligence but also from the French and German intelligence. The NSF maintains offices in Brussels, Berlin, Paris, and Washington, DC and it is suspected of working behind the scenes with Bellemare to bring charges against Hezbollah for the Hariri assassination. However, previous attempts to have Assad and pro-Syrian Lebanese generals indicted for the assassination fell through due to lack of any credible evidence.
Wayne Madsen is a Washington, DC-based investigative journalist, author and syndicated columnist. He has written for several renowned papers and blogs.
Opinion Maker | August 23, 2010
The Geopolitical Significance of Recent Security Incidents in The Middle East
Russia is set to launch Iran’s nuclear power plant in Bushehr next week. The US and Israel remain in strong opposition to the nuclear plant. Will this spark a military strike on Iran? Former CIA analyst Ray McGovern and RT contributor Wayne Madsen both say no. McGovern does believe an attack by Israel is possible sooner than later, but this shift will only be a small factor in the bigger picture. Madsen argues that US opposition sends the wrong message, both on US-Russia relations and Middle East affairs.
Russia Today America | August 13, 2010
The Decade Ahead : Changing Dynamics in the Middle East
George Friedman discusses the rise of a new regional power and the implications for other parts of the Middle East – one of many changes the world will experience by 2020.
Stratfor | January 20, 2010
China may push the US out of Asia
On this episode of Conversations with History, author and University of Chicago professor John J. Mearsheimer joins UC Berkeley’s Harry Kreisler to discuss the Realist theory of international relations and its implications for understanding the U.S. role in the world, future relations with China, and our response to the terrorist threat. Series: “Conversations with History” [11/2002] [Public Affairs] [Humanities] [Show ID: 6808]
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One of the US’s leading strategic thinkers has warned Australia that over the next 30 years, China would seek to dominate Asia.
The warning came from John Mearsheimer of the University of Chicago, who said China’s rise would not be peaceful.
At the same time, Professor Mearsheimer said the US faced defeat on its four main challenges in the wider Middle East – he predicted it would fail in Afghanistan and Iraq, that Iran would acquire nuclear weapons and there would be no “two-state” solution for Israel and the Palestinians.
“If China grows in the next 30 years as it has over the last 30 years, it will seek to dominate Asia the way America dominates the western hemisphere,” the professor said at Sydney University.
“If China turns into a greater Hong Kong, it will try to push the United States out of Asia and develop its own Monroe Doctrine” – a reference to US hegemonic assertion in the Americas.
“I think that China cannot rise peacefully and that this is largely pre-determined.”
A foreign policy realist, Professor Mearsheimer opposed the Iraq war, is a fierce critic of the Israeli lobby in the US and a sceptic about American decline. He will deliver the annual Michael Hintze Lecture at Sydney University tomorrow. His host, Sydney University’s Alan Dupont, described Professor Mearsheimer as “America’s boldest and perhaps most controversial thinker in the field of international relations”.
Professor Mearsheimer believes the US and its Asian allies, including Australia, will follow a strategy of “containment” and of “balancing” China in Asia. He says there is no difference between these concepts – thus dismissing the formula that underpins Australia’s policy towards China.
Professor Mearsheimer says that containment of China “is desirable from an American point of view”. On Australia’s potential conflict as a US ally and China’s economic partner, he predicted we would develop closer economic ties with China but support the US to contain China’s power.
The presence of nuclear weapons, he argued, meant there would be “no shooting war” between the US and China.
“I think in Afghanistan and Iraq, America will be seen to lose both wars,” he said. It was inevitable that American withdrawal “would leave a mess behind” in both countries. In the northern autumn last year, “it was clear Afghanistan was not a winnable war yet President (Barack) Obama upped the ante”.
Professor Mearsheimer said there was “no sign” of a two-state solution in the Middle East. The alternative of a Greater Israel, Benjamin Netanyahu’s real policy, risked the future of Israel as a state: “Most Americans and most American Jews do not appreciate how much trouble Israel is in.
“I am in favour of a much more prudent US,” he said. “I think it important that the US retain its primacy.” That meant grasping the limits to military power, avoiding invasions of Arab and Islamic nations and moving to balance the rise of China.
The Australian | July 30, 2010
Egyptian Succession and Strategic Importance
Growing rumors of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak’s declining health lead analyst Kamran Bokhari to discuss Egypt’s regional importance.
Stratfor | July 12, 2010
Saudi Arabia gives Israel clear skies to attack Iran
Saudi Arabia has conducted tests to stand down its air defences to enable Israeli jets to make a bombing raid on Iran’s nuclear facilities, The Times can reveal.
In the week that the UN Security Council imposed a new round of sanctions on Tehran, defence sources in the Gulf say that Riyadh has agreed to allow Israel to use a narrow corridor of its airspace in the north of the country to shorten the distance for a bombing run on Iran.
To ensure the Israeli bombers pass unmolested, Riyadh has carried out tests to make certain its own jets are not scrambled and missile defence systems not activated. Once the Israelis are through, the kingdom’s air defences will return to full alert.
“The Saudis have given their permission for the Israelis to pass over and they will look the other way,” said a US defence source in the area. “They have already done tests to make sure their own jets aren’t scrambled and no one gets shot down. This has all been done with the agreement of the [US] State Department.”
Sources in Saudi Arabia say it is common knowledge within defence circles in the kingdom that an arrangement is in place if Israel decides to launch the raid. Despite the tension between the two governments, they share a mutual loathing of the regime in Tehran and a common fear of Iran’s nuclear ambitions. “We all know this. We will let them [the Israelis] through and see nothing,” said one.
The four main targets for any raid on Iran would be the uranium enrichment facilities at Natanz and Qom, the gas storage development at Isfahan and the heavy-water reactor at Arak. Secondary targets include the lightwater reactor at Bushehr, which could produce weapons-grade plutonium when complete.
The targets lie as far as 1,400 miles (2,250km) from Israel; the outer limits of their bombers’ range, even with aerial refuelling. An open corridor across northern Saudi Arabia would significantly shorten the distance. An airstrike would involve multiple waves of bombers, possibly crossing Jordan, northern Saudi Arabia and Iraq. Aircraft attacking Bushehr, on the Gulf coast, could swing beneath Kuwait to strike from the southwest.
Passing over Iraq would require at least tacit agreement to the raid from Washington. So far, the Obama Administration has refused to give its approval as it pursues a diplomatic solution to curbing Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Military analysts say Israel has held back only because of this failure to secure consensus from America and Arab states. Military analysts doubt that an airstrike alone would be sufficient to knock out the key nuclear facilities, which are heavily fortified and deep underground or within mountains. However, if the latest sanctions prove ineffective the pressure from the Israelis on Washington to approve military action will intensify. Iran vowed to continue enriching uranium after the UN Security Council imposed its toughest sanctions yet in an effort to halt the Islamic Republic’s nuclear programme, which Tehran claims is intended for civil energy purposes only. President Ahmadinejad has described the UN resolution as “a used handkerchief, which should be thrown in the dustbin”.
Israeli officials refused to comment yesterday on details for a raid on Iran, which the Prime Minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, has refused to rule out. Questioned on the option of a Saudi flight path for Israeli bombers, Aharaon Zeevi Farkash, who headed military intelligence until 2006 and has been involved in war games simulating a strike on Iran, said: “I know that Saudi Arabia is even more afraid than Israel of an Iranian nuclear capacity.”
In 2007 Israel was reported to have used Turkish air space to attack a suspected nuclear reactor being built by Iran’s main regional ally, Syria. Although Turkey publicly protested against the “violation” of its air space, it is thought to have turned a blind eye in what many saw as a dry run for a strike on Iran’s far more substantial — and better-defended — nuclear sites.
Israeli intelligence experts say that Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Jordan are at least as worried as themselves and the West about an Iranian nuclear arsenal.Israel has sent missile-class warships and at least one submarine capable of launching a nuclear warhead through the Suez Canal for deployment in the Red Sea within the past year, as both a warning to Iran and in anticipation of a possible strike. Israeli newspapers reported last year that high-ranking officials, including the former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, have met their Saudi Arabian counterparts to discuss the Iranian issue. It was also reported that Meir Dagan, the head of Mossad, met Saudi intelligence officials last year to gain assurances that Riyadh would turn a blind eye to Israeli jets violating Saudi airspace during the bombing run. Both governments have denied the reports.
The Times | June 12, 2010
Iran Seeking to Exploit Turkish-Israeli Rift
Analyst Kamran Bokhari examines Iran’s strategy on using the Turkish-Israeli flotilla incident to its advantage.
Stratfor | June 07, 2010
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