INTERNATIONAL PULSE Period: April 2006 6666666 End-Time Church / Pluralism Global Politics Israel

ISRAEL YESHUA IS MESSIAH AND WHAT CHRISTIANS NEED TO BE AWARE OF We need to expose the works of darkness in the Church, a foundation of understanding the source of these Satanic doctrines: Freemasonry. For an introduction go to this website: http://www.yeshuaismessiah.org/occult.htm ----- TERRORIST ATTACK IN TEL AVIV CARRIED OUT ON PASSOVER Statement by FM Tzipi Livni on Tel Aviv terrorist attack (Communicated by the Foreign Minister's Bureau) 17 April 2006 Today's terrorist attack in Tel Aviv was carried out with the express purpose of killing Israeli citizens in midst of their Passover holiday. The Foreign Minister calls upon the world's leaders to take a clear and uncompromising stand against Palestinian terrorism - for terrorism is terrorism. Only a clear and unequivocal voice and a determined stance on the part of the international community can bring about a future in which the Palestinian leadership will renounce and confront terrorism, and will recognize the right of the State of Israel to exist as a Jewish state, and the right of its citizens to life. Only thus will the path to a solution be found. Link: www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/About+the+Ministry/MFA+Spokesman/2006/Statement+by +FM+Livni+on+Tel+Aviv+terrorist+attack+17-Apr-2006.htm ----- PRESIDENT ABBAS: WE CONDEMN TEL AVIV OPERATION RAMALLAH, April 17, 2006 (WAFA - PLO news agency) - President Mahmoud Abbas condemned Monday today's operation against Israeli civilians in Tel Aviv. http://english.wafa.ps/body.asp?id=6026 ----- OFFICE OF THE WHITE HOUSE PRESS SECRETARY April 17, 2006 Press Briefing by Scott McClellan James S. Brady Briefing Room BOTTOMLINE We reiterate that the United States will have no contact with such a government, and we call upon all states to demand that it abandon its support for terror. www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/04/20060417-3.html ----- IRAN, RUSSIA BAIL OUT FINANCIALLY-BESIEGED PA Palestinian Government Al-Zahhar to Arabs: If You Don't Help Us, Who Will? 17/04/2006 Palestine Media Center - PMC [Official arm of the PA] Iran and Russia have bailed out the Palestinian government, cash-stripped by an Israeli, US and EU financial siege, while the Palestinian Foreign Minister Mahmoud Al-Zahhar was touring Arab countries in on a fund-raising mission. Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki said in Tehran on Sunday that Iran allocated $100 million to help the Palestinian people. Mottaki made the announcement while addressing the closing ceremony of the "Third International Conference on Qods and Support for the Rights of Palestinian People." However, Mottaki did not say how or when the Iranian "gift" would reach the Palestinians. Iranian supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei told Muslim countries on Friday that they had a duty to support Palestinians. "The Islamic world cannot remain indifferent and silent to tyranny," the all-powerful cleric said at the start of the conference in Tehran. Addressing the Palestinians he said: "Your martyrs are our martyrs. Your pain is our pain. Islamic nations have the duty to help you in every possible way, and help you along this blessed path." Separately the Syrian First Vice-President Farouk al-Shara said in Tehran on the same day that the Syrian government is to open several banking accounts to collect material aid for the Palestinian government and people. The Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has ordered opening of several banking accounts for the Palestinians in order to prevent a human catastrophe in the Israeli-occupied lands, al-Shara said. Earlier last week Russia also said Moscow will grant the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) urgent financial aid. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made the pledge to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in a telephone call. A Russian foreign ministry statement said: "Mahmoud Abbas stated his high appreciation of Russia's intent, confirmed by Sergei Lavrov, to grant the Palestinian Authority an urgent financial aid in the nearest future." Lavrov said on Tuesday that withholding aid to the Palestinians was a mistake. However, "Hamas should... recognize Israel and sit down at the negotiating table. But for that it's necessary to work with them," Lavrov added. Earlier Russian President Vladimir Putin said after receiving the credentials of a new Palestinian ambassador in Moscow: "Russia is ready to further render assistance to the leadership of Palestine, Palestinian Government and Palestinian administration headed by Mahmoud Abbas." Meanwhile Palestinian Foreign Minister Al-Zahhar on Saturday urged Arab states to honor and immediately carry out their financial pledges to the Palestinian government. Al-Zahhar was expected in Saudi Arabia from Egypt on Monday, on the second leg of a fund-raising Arab tour that will take him to Jordan on Wednesday. "We are not only looking to follow up on Arab aid, we would like to increase it because the Israeli occupation bans us from accessing the 60 million dollars per month," he told 22 representatives of Arab states at the Arab League's Cairo headquarters. Al-Zahhar held talks in Cairo on Saturday with Arab League Secretary-General Amr Mousa. He told the Arab representatives: "If you don't help us, who will help?" Arab leaders meeting in the Sudanese capital Khartoum in late March pledged to pay more than 50 million US dollars to the PNA per month. However, only Algeria, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia have so far paid their contributions. IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis - www.imra.org.il ----- SYRIA PLEDGES TO RESTORE THE OCCUPIED GOLAN QUNEITRA Southwest, April 17 (SANA- Syrian News Agency)- Syria undertook today to restore the occupied Golan saying the independence, which was made by our people due to sacrifices and heroism, is now unaccomplished and our happiness is not complete. "This will never be realized while the occupied Golan is under the occupation and since his folks want to go back to their houses and home as well as to their ancestors land . It is a legitimate right that should be made real by all available means," Assistant Regional Secretary of the Baath Fateh Condemns Tel Aviv Operation http://english.wafa.ps/body.asp?id=6025 ----- RAMALLAH, April 17, 2006 (WAFA - PLO news agency) - Fateh Central Committee condemned Monday the today's operation in Tel Aviv, denying any responsibility for the attack. www.sana.org/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&newlang=eng&sid=29579&mode=thread&order=0&thold=0 ----- THE FRIGHTENING TRUTH OF WHY IRAN WANTS A BOMB By Amir Taheri The Sunday Telegraph (UK) (Filed: 16/04/2006) www.telegraph.co.uk/opinion/main.jhtml?xml=/opinion/2006/04/16/do1609.xml&sSheet=/portal/2006/04/16/ixportal.html Last Monday, just before he announced that Iran had gatecrashed "the nuclear club", President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad disappeared for several hours. He was having a khalvat (tête-à-tête) with the Hidden Imam, the 12th and last of the imams of Shiism who went into "grand occultation" in 941. According to Shia lore, the Imam is a messianic figure who, although in hiding, remains the true Sovereign of the World. In every generation, the Imam chooses 36 men, (and, for obvious reasons, no women) naming them the owtad or "nails", whose presence, hammered into mankind's existence, prevents the universe from "falling off". Although the "nails" are not known to common mortals, it is, at times, possible to identify one thanks to his deeds. It is on that basis that some of Ahmad-inejad's more passionate admirers insist that he is a "nail", a claim he has not discouraged. For example, he has claimed that last September, as he addressed the United Nations' General Assembly in New York, the "Hidden Imam drenched the place in a sweet light". Last year, it was after another khalvat that Ahmadinejad announced his intention to stand for president. Now, he boasts that the Imam gave him the presidency for a single task: provoking a "clash of civilisations" in which the Muslim world, led by Iran, takes on the "infidel" West, led by the United States, and defeats it in a slow but prolonged contest that, in military jargon, sounds like a low intensity, asymmetrical war. In Ahmadinejad's analysis, the rising Islamic "superpower" has decisive advantages over the infidel. Islam has four times as many young men of fighting age as the West, with its ageing populations. Hundreds of millions of Muslim "ghazis" (holy raiders) are keen to become martyrs while the infidel youths, loving life and fearing death, hate to fight. Islam also has four-fifths of the world's oil reserves, and so controls the lifeblood of the infidel. More importantly, the US, the only infidel power still capable of fighting, is hated by most other nations. According to this analysis, spelled out in commentaries by Ahmadinejad's strategic guru, Hassan Abassi, known as the "Dr Kissinger of Islam", President George W Bush is an aberration, an exception to a rule under which all American presidents since Truman, when faced with serious setbacks abroad, have "run away". Iran's current strategy, therefore, is to wait Bush out. And that, by "divine coincidence", corresponds to the time Iran needs to develop its nuclear arsenal, thus matching the only advantage that the infidel enjoys. Moments after Ahmadinejad announced "the atomic miracle", the head of the Iranian nuclear project, Ghulamreza Aghazadeh, unveiled plans for manufacturing 54,000 centrifuges, to enrich enough uranium for hundreds of nuclear warheads. "We are going into mass production," he boasted. The Iranian plan is simple: playing the diplomatic game for another two years until Bush becomes a "lame-duck", unable to take military action against the mullahs, while continuing to develop nuclear weapons. Thus do not be surprised if, by the end of the 12 days still left of the United Nations' Security Council "deadline", Ahmadinejad announces a "temporary suspension" of uranium enrichment as a "confidence building measure". Also, don't be surprised if some time in June he agrees to ask the Majlis (the Islamic parliament) to consider signing the additional protocols of the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT). Such manoeuvres would allow the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director, Muhammad El-Baradei, and Britain's Foreign Secretary, Jack Straw, to congratulate Iran for its "positive gestures" and denounce talk of sanctions, let alone military action. The confidence building measures would never amount to anything, but their announcement would be enough to prevent the G8 summit, hosted by Russia in July, from moving against Iran. While waiting Bush out, the Islamic Republic is intent on doing all it can to consolidate its gains in the region. Regime changes in Kabul and Baghdad have altered the status quo in the Middle East. While Bush is determined to create a Middle East that is democratic and pro-Western, Ahmadinejad is equally determined that the region should remain Islamic but pro-Iranian. Iran is now the strongest presence in Afghanistan and Iraq, after the US. It has turned Syria and Lebanon into its outer defences, which means that, for the first time since the 7th century, Iran is militarily present on the coast of the Mediterranean. In a massive political jamboree in Teheran last week, Ahmadinejad also assumed control of the "Jerusalem Cause", which includes annihilating Israel "in one storm", while launching a take-over bid for the cash-starved Hamas government in the West Bank and Gaza. Ahmadinejad has also reactivated Iran's network of Shia organisations in Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and Yemen, while resuming contact with Sunni fundamentalist groups in Turkey, Egypt, Algeria and Morocco. From childhood, Shia boys are told to cultivate two qualities. The first is entezar, the capacity patiently to wait for the Imam to return. The second is taajil, the actions needed to hasten the return. For the Imam's return will coincide with an apocalyptic battle between the forces of evil and righteousness, with evil ultimately routed. If the infidel loses its nuclear advantage, it could be worn down in a long, low-intensity war at the end of which surrender to Islam would appear the least bad of options. And that could be a signal for the Imam to reappear. At the same time, not to forget the task of hastening the Mahdi's second coming, Ahamdinejad will pursue his provocations. On Monday, he was as candid as ever: "To those who are angry with us, we have one thing to say: be angry until you die of anger!" His adviser, Hassan Abassi, is rather more eloquent. "The Americans are impatient," he says, "at the first sight of a setback, they run away. We, however, know how to be patient. We have been weaving carpets for thousands of years." Amir Taheri is a former Executive Editor of Kayhan, Iran's largest daily newspaper, but now lives in Europe - IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis Website: www.imra.org.il ----- IRANIANS REGISTER VOLUNTEERS FOR SUICIDE RAIDS JORDAN TIMES -17 April '06: "Iranian officials ... Iran had 40,000 trained suicide bombers." TEHRAN (Reuters) - Some 200 Iranians have volunteered in the past few days to carry out "martyrdom missions" against US and British interests if Iran is attacked over its nuclear programme, a hardline group said on Sunday. ... Washington says it wants a diplomatic solution, but has not ruled out a military option. ... spokesman for the Committee for the Commemoration of Martyrs of the Global Islamic Campaign, said fresh fears over a possible US attack on Iran's nuclear sites helped attract volunteers during its latest recruitment drive. ----- HOW TO LOSE A JOB AT A SAUDI NEWSPAPER By Fawaz Turki - The Washington Post Saturday, April 15, 2006; "... the three cardinal sins an Arab journalist must avoid when working for the Arab press: I criticized the government. The other two? Bringing up Islam as an issue and criticizing, by name, political leaders in the Arab or Islamic world for their brazen excesses, dismal failures and blatant abuses. ----- THE JEWISH THREAT - ISRAELIS SHOULD BE VERY CONCERNED ABOUT RELATIONS TO US AT ELECTION THE JERUSALEM POST Mar. 23, 2006 By Caroline Glick - On the eve of Israel's elections, Israelis should be deeply concerned about the state of our relations with the United States. Last week the London Review of Books published a long article under the heading "The Israel Lobby." The article was authored by two prominent American international relations and political science professors: Stephen Walt, the academic dean at Harvard's Kennedy School of Government and John Mearsheimer from the University of Chicago. ...Walt and Mearsheimer argue that the reason that the US acts in opposition to its national interests is because for the past four decades US Middle East policy has been dictated by the "Israel Lobby." The distinguished professors define the Israel lobby, or in their conspiratorial shorthand, "the Lobby," as "the loose coalition of individuals and organizations who actively work to steer US foreign policy in a pro-Israel direction." Members of "the Lobby" include most US media outlets; Jewish American organizations generally and AIPAC and the Conference of Presidents of Major Jewish American Organizations in particular; pro-Israel evangelical Christians; Jewish and "gentile neo-conservative" newspaper columnists; Washington think tanks - both Jewish and "gentile neo-conservative"; Jewish government officials and politicians; and "gentile neo-conservative" government officials and politicians. ...The two celebrated professors declare that the reports of anti-Semitism in Europe are either incorrect or wildly exaggerated and work to advance the interests of "the Lobby" and Israel. As well, they accuse "the Lobby" of silencing criticism of Israel by labeling everyone who dares to criticize the Jewish state as an anti-Semite. www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1139395665010&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull -----   OLMERT WON THE ELECTION Voters in Israel have cast their ballots (at least some did). But the one poll that matters most is a matter of fact rather than opinion. I could go through a whole explanation as to what could and might happen in the days and months that lie ahead. Many were hoping that Netanyahu would win but he had been ousted before and Israelis decided not to repeat. He was against dividing the land.   2006 KNESSET ELECTIONS - numerical results - including all parties Source: The Jerusalem Post www.jpost.com/ 690,095 Kadima 472,746 Labor 282,070 Likud 299,130 Shas 281,850 Israel Beiteinu 223,830 National Union/NRP 185,790 Gil - Pensioners 146,958 United Torah Judaism 118,356 Meretz 094,460 United Arab List 085,830 Hadash 072,013 Balad Minimum number of votes required for representation in the 17th Knesset : 62,760. 24,609 votes is worth one mandate. The following parties failed to get the minimum votes. 047,634 Greens 040,419 Green Leaf 025,935 Hazit few more AN & JEREMY TURN TO THE GOD OF ISRAEL MAALE MIKHMAS, West Bank, March 30 Otniel Schneller, an affable man who helped establish this Jewish settlement on a West Bank hilltop 25 years ago, this week became its first resident elected to Israel's Parliament. The New York Times - Eliana Aponte/Reuters - Otniel Schneller, a new lawmaker. Maale Mikhmas, east of the separation barrier, may be dismantled. Yet his campaign message could hardly be less popular here; this settlement, and dozens more like it, may have to be dismantled in the next few years, he says. Mr. Schneller won a legislative seat with the Kadima Party of the acting prime minister, Ehud Olmert, which triumphed in the election on Tuesday on a platform that envisions evacuating dozens of West Bank settlements. No list exists of which ones might be removed, but Maale Mikhmas is well beyond Israel's West Bank separation barrier, and therefore a likely candidate. "I support Mr. Olmert's plan 100 percent," said Mr. Schneller, 54, who, like most settlers, is religiously observant and had long supported and been active in right-wing political parties that backed the settlement movement. "We came to Maale Mikhmas because the government decided to build it," he said. "If the government decides that we will not be allowed to stay, we will be very sad. But we will take our children and grandchildren who now live here, and we will continue our lives in another place. We will respect the decision." As the left takes control of The Holy Land and prepare to divide it in blatant disregard of our Biblical covenant, Ari & Jeremy turn to the G-d of Israel and remind us who is truly in control. A visionary of modern times, Chaim Silverstein, founder of The Jerusalem Capital Development Fund, gives us a behind the scenes understanding of his divine mission of appropriation of Jewish Lands from our perfidious Ishmaelite cousins. Listern now to Radio Israel Listen Now -or- Download ----- FROM JERICHO FAR FROM THE POLLS By Barry Chamish - Olmert attacks Jericho and the Israeli Right is so proud of him. The CFR-owned Right-wing weekly rag Makor Rishon just kvells its approval of the army. The army killed two PLO guards and then two Israelis were murdered within a day near Ariel. Thirty-four Arabs were wounded defending the prison in Jericho where the "murderers" of former Tourism Minister were recaptured by the IDF. And the Right was so darn happy with the operation, it gave Kadima two more seats in the Knesset. www.barrychamish.com The full article: http://www.cephas-library.com/israel/israel_the_election.html ----- OLMERT TO CALL FOR GLOBAL SUPPORT OF ISRAEL'S WEST BANK PULLOUT PLAN By KARBY LEGGETT The Wall Street Journal April 12, 2006; Page A6 http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB114478799929023245-z5h3vpz27D62V5Bixr5ElOyqfFQ_20060512.html?mod=tff_main_tff_top JERUSALEM -- Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert says he intends to finalize plans for a large pullout from parts of the occupied West Bank within the next 18 months, and that he will travel to the U.S. next month to try to secure Washington's support as he sketches the plan's contours. In an interview yesterday at his Jerusalem office, Mr. Olmert said his planned meeting with President Bush in Washington will mark the onset of efforts to secure international support for the pullout, including financial assistance. Under his plan, Mr. Olmert intends to evacuate as many as 70,000 Jewish settlers from their homes -- a move that some rough estimates say could cost more than $10 billion -- while annexing large chunks of disputed Palestinian territory. The goal, Mr. Olmert said, is to establish permanent, internationally recognized borders that will ensure Israel retains its Jewish majority for decades to come. Though he expects to carry out the plan without Palestinian input, he believes it will help create conditions that could lead to the establishment of a Palestinian state and a negotiated peace settlement someday. "The State of Israel will change the face of the region," Mr. Olmert said of his plan. "I will not miss this opportunity." Mr. Olmert, 60 years old, led the Kadima party to victory last month, winning 29 of 120 seats in parliament and giving him authority to form the next coalition government. He became acting prime minister in January after former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a stroke. He also took over as head of Kadima, which Mr. Sharon formed just weeks before he was incapacitated. Mr. Olmert was Mr. Sharon's senior deputy and most important ally in pushing through last year's evacuation of Gaza Strip settlements. Mr. Olmert said he plans to wrap up coalition negotiations within two weeks or so and that detailed planning for the West Bank evacuation will begin shortly after that. Among the first steps he plans is to appoint a team of experts that will provide military, political and economic advice. Though some 250,000 Jewish Israeli citizens live in more than 100 West Bank settlements, only one-third or so will face evacuation. Many may be offered relocation to the large settlement blocs Israel plans to retain. Perhaps the most sensitive issue will be the question of Jerusalem. Israel took full control of the city during the 1967 war with neighboring Arab states. Palestinians, however, claim the city as their future capital and say that must be reflected in any resolution to the Mideast's core conflict. The U.S. has generally supported the Palestinian position during previous peace negotiations. In the interview, Mr. Olmert ruled out sharing political control of Jerusalem and its main holy sites with a future Palestinian state, though he left open the possibility that some surrounding Arab neighborhoods could eventually fall under Palestinian sovereignty. "Dividing Jerusalem will not bring peace, only more fighting," he said. Mr. Olmert's position on Jerusalem underscores the deep controversy the pullout plan will face in the months to come -- among Israelis, Palestinians, Arab populations in the region and even U.S. officials. Many settlers plan to fight to stay, and the specter of internal Israeli violence will remain a concern. Anger also could rise in the West Bank and Gaza, where many Palestinians see the pullout as an attempt by Israel to avoid negotiations and impose its will. Already, senior leaders of the militant Islamist organization Hamas -- recently voted into power by Palestinians -- have called Mr. Olmert's plan a "declaration of war." The Bush administration also might find itself in a bind. So far, Mr. Bush has voiced support for a West Bank pullout, but his administration will face tough decisions as the plan takes shape. Mr. Olmert, for instance, said Israel will need U.S. financial assistance to implement the evacuation. Yet if it finances the pullout, the U.S. will likely be seen throughout the Middle East as assisting Israel's bid to take permanent control of large settlement blocs and Jerusalem. The fear is that this would add to regional anger toward the U.S., complicating efforts to stabilize Iraq and promote democracy in other countries... www.imra.org.il ----- "ISRAEL SHOULD NOT BE IN THE FOREFRONT OF A WAR AGAINST IRAN" In an exclusive interview with TIME, Ehud Olmert, the Israeli prime minister warns about the threat from Iran, praises President Bush and vows to press ahead with West Bank withdrawals By ROMESH RATNESAR - TIME Magazine: Is Ehud Olmert Feeling Lucky? Posted Sunday, Apr. 09, 2006 Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert met with TIME World Editor Romesh Ratnesar for a two-hour interview at Olmert's home in Jerusalem. Here are excerpts from their discussion. TIME: Would Israel take military action to stop Iran's nuclear program? Olmert: As the one who has to take the decision, I can tell you that I genuinely don't think Israel should be on the forefront of this war. I don't know why people think this is first and foremost a war for Israel. It's a problem for every civilized country. Iran is a major threat to the well-being of Europe and America just as much as it is for the state of Israel. I don't think America can tolerate the idea of a leader of nation of 30 million people who can openly speak of the liquidation of another country. And therefore it is incumbent upon America and Europeans to form a strategy and implement it to remove this danger of unconventional weapons in Iran. To assume that Israel would be the first to go into a military confrontation with Iran represents a misunderstanding of this issue. TIME:How often do you speak to President Bush? Olmert: I've spoken to him maybe three times since I became Prime Minister. There is a very strong emotional bond between the two of us, every time we speak we both feel it deeply. I know how he feels and he (knows) how I feel. I think it grew out of his first trip to Israel, when I hosted him in Jerusalem. He knows that I like him. I very much depend on the understanding and cooperation of President Bush. The reason I think (disengagement) can be done is because of the trust and understanding we have for each other. In my opinion President Bush will emerge in history as the person who had more courage to change the Middle East than any person before him. I know the war in Iraq is controversial in the States, but for us in the Middle East it has made a great and significant impact. The decision of the President made an enormous impact on the lives of Israelis, Palestinians, Jordanians-every country who was the potential target of the aggression of Iraq and Saddam Hussein. The sense of mission that Bush feels about war on terror is of enormous significant. When I think from the perspective of an Israeli and who is the partner, the natural partner who I speak with about fighting terror, it's President Bush TIME:You've said that you intend to begin a unilateral withdrawal from some settlements in the West Bank, which goes further than even what Sharon said he would do. Why are you pushing to do this now? Olmert: I'm not certain that all those who are trying to be the authentic interpreters of Sharon's legacy can say with great accuracy what he would have done. When Arik collapsed, Hamas was not in power and the prospect of possible negotiations between Israel and the Palestinian Authority was entirely different. This has changed as a result of Hamas coming to power. To continue the same old rhetoric only because I have to think what would Sharon have done is a mistake. I have to think about what is best to do under present circumstances-what can be done, what ought to be done. If there's one thing Sharon represented it's not so much the old thing than the desire not to sit and do nothing. I'm sure that he would also have changed the way he thinks if he witnessed these developments. TIME: There's a lot of opposition to the plan from the settler community and their supporters. Are you worried that your plan will split Israel? Olmert:I believe that inside the population of settlers there is a significant group that understand that the time has come for us to redraw the lines. If we handle it with sufficient sensitivity, I believe that we can avoid unnecessary eruptions of emotional reactions. And the plan is not just about dismantling settlements-it's also aimed at focusing and moving forward to augment the three major blocs of settlements in the West Bank. TIME: Will the lines in place at the end of it be the political borders of Israel? Olmert: At least for a period of time. They will be very very close to what may be the final borderlines. The idea is that we will be separated from the overwhelming majority of Palestinians. The whole idea is to separate Israelis from the Palestinians and to allow territorial contiguity for the Palestinians from which they can take the necessary steps to build and develop and independent Palestinian state alongside the state of Israel. I guess if at some point afterward there will be negotiations to finalize everything and in order to reach a comprehensive peace then maybe some adjustments. But the lines I want to draw are very close to the lines that I believe will become the political borders. TIME: Would you consider going back to negotiations rather than continue with the unilateral strategy? Do you see any prospect for negotiations with Hamas if they moderate their rhetoric? Olmert: They can't just change their rhetoric They need to change their entire way of life, they need to change entirely their state of mind about Israel's existence. It's so much deeper than rhetoric. To just believe that if Ismail Haniyeh tomorrow starts using different words, that will make the difference? No way. This is a typical fundamentalist, extremist religious movement that does not think in political terms the way we're accustomed to. Therefore I'm not very optimistic they can change overnight. They can change their rhetoric but they can't change substance. Their inability to accept the existence of two states and their total dedication to an Islamic religious fundamentalist state all across the Middle East to Africa to Asia is still their most dominant driving force. Don't get it wrong, some of them are very sophisticated, well educated people. But they have a different concept of life. TIME: Hamas says that if the international community-including the U.S. and Israel-continues to restrict aid, there is a real possibility of a humanitarian crisis in the territories. Doesn't Israel have an interest in preventing a collapse of Palestinian society? Olmert: We're not going to wait for a collapse. We're going to prevent it from the outset without any hesitation. I'm concerned about it independently of the issue of whether it would harm Israeli interests or not. It's enough that it should do something bad for innocent human beings that I will want to prevent it. That doesn't mean I have to cooperate with the Palestinian government. We have to find a way how to help the people without helping a government that can easily use these funds that will be transferred to them for different purposes altogether without any sense of regret or responsibility for the human needs of the population. We promise we will do everything we can to help meet the humanitarian needs of the Palestinian people without any hesitation whatsoever. TIME: How? Olmert: There are many non-governmental organizations that can be of assistance, and money can be transferred directly to them. It doesn't always have to go across the administration of the PA in order to become meaningful. We're thinking about it. I'm having a discussion with my top advisers to see what we can do. TIME: Will you release the $50 million in tax duties that you've withheld from the Palestinians? Olmert: Don't expect us to release the money to the Palestinian government. This is a terrorist government and there's no way I can be sure that the money I release will go to the needs you want them for. They might go for financing terror-to Bin Laden, to Hezbollah-I have no idea. If we release the money it will not go through the Palestinian administration. TIME: Do you visit Sharon in the hospital? Olmert: Not at all. I have not been. I can't talk to him. He's unconscious. I talk to his doctors twice a week, so I know exactly what his situation is and I talk to his sons. For me Arik Sharon-I remember his courage and inspiration. I want to remember him the way he really was-not as an aging 80 year old man living in bed helpless and unconscious. The last meeting I had with him was on the day of his collapse. He was to have an operation the next day. I was supposed to be acting Prime Minister for three hours while he had the operation. He asked me to meet with him. I remember joking with him and saying, "I'm not going to make any decision tomorrow except changing all your staff." At the end of the meeting I stood up and said "Arik, this country needs you. Stay well. Come back. I am looking forward to hearing your voice on the phone tomorrow saying 'Ehud I relieve you of your responsibilities. I'm back in town.'" Then I hugged him and he hugged me, and I said goodbye. I want to remember that. TIME: Do you feel lucky to have been handed the opportunity? Olmert: I've been working 33 years to reach this minute. I've been doing what I thought was right for the state of Israel. I was never hiding my opinions. I always was at the forefront in all the political battles over the last three decades. I am where I'm supposed to be. I don't believe it was the only possible development that I would be Prime Minister. But I was among the 5 or 6 people in the room who everyone with political understanding would think could get the job. So what happened was a natural outcome of a process of which I was a major part. There are things that can prepare you for doing this job-your wisdom or lack of it, your experience or lack of it, your personality, your frame of mind. But nothing totally prepares you for it because you've never been there before-you've never been in the place where as President Truman said, "The buck stops here." It's your decision that will count. I hope that I'm as ready as I can get. I hope that I'm as capable as I think I am to assume responsibility. But I'm not afraid, I'm not intimidated by anything. All my life I did everything to be ready now. TIME: Do people treat you differently now that you're Prime Minister? Olmert: It takes getting used to. I received one of my friends at home the other day. I was in shorts and a T-shirt, which was fine. Then he had to leave, I saw him out the main door, and when I was outside, he said go back in the house. I said why, I thought he was worried about security, because the security doesn't let me go outside. He said, '"Look how you're dressed! You're the Prime Minister!'" I thought, What the heck? This is how I dress. But life has changed, that's for sure. I can't go to the soccer game anymore, or I can't go to the market. You have to measure the joy it gives you against the inconvenience to the average person. TIME: Still, you became Prime Minister in pretty extraordinary circumstances, after Ariel Sharon's stroke. Did you feel prepared for the job? Olmert: A friend of mine who's known me for 25 years told me, that perhaps the most striking effect for him was the fact I look so well-prepared for the job that's unbelievable, as if I've prepared all my life. In a way he's right. I know the professional experts of Israeli politics had other forecasts. But I knew one day I would be PM. I've felt for a long time that I knew what needs to be done and that I knew inside me that I had the emotional powers to be able to carry the burden that comes with it. It's not something that was guiding me in everything I did every morning,. I'm not that kind of person, it's just that I knew that one day I had to be ready to assume responsibility a the highest level, and that I had to think in this manner. There's nothing that's happened to me in the last few months that struck me as entirely different than anything else that I ever did in my entire life. IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis www.imra.org.il ----- US $5 BILLION DEVELOPMENT PROJECT TO KICK OFF IN AQABA A US $5 billlion development project to kick off in Aqaba. Aqaba, April 8 (Petra-Jordan News Agency) -- Under the patronage of His Majesty King Abdullah II, a memorandum of understanding was signed between Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority (ASEZA) and Horizon Holding company for Development to launch a five-billion dollar project in Aqaba, deemed to be one of the biggest developmental project in the region. www.petra.gov.jo/nepras/2006/Apr/08/58.htm ----- RABAT: NATO HAS ACCEPTED A PROPOSAL He has accepted a proposal that Algeria, Israel and Morocco take part in an alliance maritime operation, a senior official said Friday in Rabat. "NATO has given its agreement in principle that the three countries should take part" in an operation to monitor merchant shipping in the area of the Strait of Gibraltar, NATO deputy general secretary Alessandro Minuto www.imra.org.il ----- PMO DIRECTOR GENERAL COHEN CONVENES General Forum On Bird Flu (Communicated by the Prime Minister's Media Adviser) Prime Minister's Office (PMO) Director-General Ilan Cohen this morning (Monday), 3.4.06, convened the Directors-General forum on dealing with bird flu ( http://tinyurl.com/gpmz7 ; see also http://tinyurl.com/po8yq for detailed Health Ministry information in Hebrew) . Agriculture and Rural Development Ministry Director-General Yossi Yishai, Health Ministry Director-General Prof. Avi Yisraeli, Veterinary Services and Finance Ministry representatives, regional council chairmen, and poultry farmers' representatives attended the meeting. Participants were briefed by representatives of all relevant bodies on - inter alia - work procedures of, and lessons gained from, the campaign against bird flu in order to be better prepared for possible future outbreaks. To this end, the Directors-General agreed on formulating detailed work procedures: Advance stage - A work procedure has been formulated on the equipping of government bodies, including communications with contractors and suppliers and intra-governmental coordination. Identification and immediate action stage - Work procedures have been defined for immediate action upon the identification of the disease. PMO Dir.-Gen. Cohen instructed that action timetables be quickened and that emphasis be placed on quarantines and sterilization methods to prevent the disease from spreading. www.imra.org.il ----- WEAKER ISRAEL ELECTION MARKS SHIFT IN COUNTERTERROR ALLIANCE WITH U.S. www.geostrategy-direct.com, April 5, 2006 ... The United States has harbored mixed feelings for Olmert and his predecessor, Sharon. President Bush has been pleased with Israel's willingness to cooperate with the U ited States on virtually every major issue, including Iraq, the Palestinians and arms exports. At the same time, Bush and some of his aides have been quietly concerned over the image of Israel as a country ready to withdraw in the face of terrorism. Privately, le ding aides and strategists believe that Israel's hesitancy to fight Hamas, Hizbullah and other terrorist groups could encourage Al Qaida and those sworn to defeat the United States. They also see Israel's failure to defeat Palestinian insurgents as encouraging Iran's belligerency. www.imra.org.il ----- WHO WILL WORRY ABOUT EMPLOYING THOUSANDS EVACUEES FROM JUDEA AND SAMARIA? Where will they find jobs? Many of them will simply become a burden on the public purse. In conclusion: The economic cost of Ehud Olmert's proposed "convergence" plan is NIS 120 billion. That's USD 25 billion, folks. The Americans' refusal to give financial aid for the Gaza move, a pullout President Bush and Congress praised, teaches us that we'd better not count on foreign funding for future unilateral pullouts. We'll pay [www.imra.org.il] ----- PRAYER VIGIL & PROTEST AT THE PLO MISSION Sunday, April 2, 2005 PLO Mission to the UN: 115 East 65th Street New York In response to the terrible murder of four Jews in Israel this past week, AMCHA: The Coalition for Jewish Concerns will be holding a prayer vigil and protest in front of the PLO Msission to the United Nations, this Sunday at 10:30AM.. "We will not allow this horrific slaughter of innocent civilians without a response of moral outrage and condemnation," stated Rabbi Avi Weiss, National President of AMCHA: Coalition for Jewish Concerns. People of all faiths are encouraged to attend. [ www.imra.org.il ] ----- STATEMENT BY MIDDLE EAST QUARTET Secretary-General SG/2110 PAL/2043 - Department of Public Information . News and Media Division . New York 30 March 2006 - The following statement was issued today by the Middle East Quartet (United Nations, European Union, Russian Federation, United States): The Quartet recalled its statement of 30 January and its call for the new Palestinian Government to commit to the principles of non-violence, recognition of Israel, and acceptance of previous agreements and obligations, including the "Road Map". The Quartet welcomed President Abbas' call for the new Palestinian Government to commit to a platform of peace and, having carefully assessed the programme of the new Government approved on 28 March, noted with grave concern that the new Government has not committed to the principles spelled out on 30 January. The Quartet recalled its view that future assistance to any new Government would be reviewed by donors against that Government's commitment to the principles outlined above. The Quartet concurred that there inevitably will be an effect on direct assistance to that Government and its ministries. The Quartet encouraged continued humanitarian assistance to meet the basic needs of the Palestinian people. The Quartet noted in that context the importance of improved movement and access. The Quartet reiterated its commitment to the principles outlined in the Road Map and previous statements, and reaffirmed its commitment to a negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict leading to two democratic States living side by side in peace and security. www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2006/sg2110.doc.htm [ www.imra.org.il ] IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis: www.imra.org.il ----- IDF SPOKESPERSON ANNOUNCEMENT April 1st, 2006 - IDF Targets Structure Used For Terror Activity in the Northern Gaza Strip Following continuous Palestinian terror activity directed at Israeli targets, including the firing of projectile rockets from the Gaza Strip at Israeli communities, which have caused repeated injuries and damage to civilians and civilian infrastructure, the IDF carried out an aerial attack early this morning, April 1st, 2006, against a structure in the Northern Gaza Strip used as a base for terrorists firing projectile rockets into Israel. The IDF will continue to employ all means at its disposal to combat terrorists and their supporters in order to defend the citizens of the state of Israel. IMRA - www.imra.org.il ----- ATTRIBUTED TO "SECURITY SOURCES" IDF INCREASES ACTIVITY IN GAZA STRIP March 31st, 2006 [distributed by IDF Spokesperson] Following intensified rocket attacks, IDF increases activity in Gaza Strip. The past week has brought about an escalation in the use of rocket attacks against Israel, as well as the introduction of a new type of weaponry in the Gaza Strip: on Tuesday two Israeli Beduins were killed by a previously launched projectile rocket shell which exploded when they came in contact with it; also on Tuesday a Katyusha rocket was launched against Israel from the Gaza Strip for the first time; on Thursday a Qassam rocket hit the Israeli community of Karmia. Life for Israeli citizens living around the Gaza Strip is unbearable, and the constant barrage of rockets on innocent civilians can not and will not be tolerated by the State of Israel [ www.imra.org.il ] ----- SAUDI ARABIA YESTERDAY DENIED A GERMAN REPORT JEDDAH, 1 April 2006 - Saudi Arabia yesterday denied a German magazine report that it was working on a secret nuclear program with the help of Pakistani experts. ... . Pakistan also rejected the report. "It is a fabricated story and motivated by vicious intentions," Foreign Office spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam said. Citing Western security sources, German magazine Cicero said in its latest edition that during the Haj seasons in 2003 through 2005, Pakistani scientists posing as pilgrims came to Saudi Arabia in aircraft sponsored by the Kingdom. [ www.imra.org.il ] ----- EGYPT HAS TAKEN CONTROL OF THE PALESTINIAN AUTHORITY. GAZA CITY [MENL] -- 3/30/2006 PA sources said that over the last few months, Egypt has dominated several key areas of Palestinian government, particularly in the Gaza Strip. They said Egypt approves PA decisions regarding the deployment and training of Palestinian security forces, security operations and policy, development projects and senior appointments. "They are in every facet of the [Palestinian] Authority in Gaza," a PA source said. "It is correct to say that major decisions are not taken without Egypt's approval." [ www.imra.org.il ] ----- EU-LEBANON ASSOCIATION AGREEMENT MUST BE BASED ON RESPECT OF HUMAN RIGHTS Press Release - 29.03.2006 The Implementation of the EU-Lebanon Association Agreement Must Be Based on Respect for Human Rights. On the occasion of the entry into force of the Association Agreement between Lebanon and the European Union on 1st April 2006, the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Network, the International Federation of Human Rights, the World Organisation against Torture call upon the parties to honour the commitments made in the context of the Association Agreement signed on 17 June 2002, in particular its Article 2, which states that human rights, as an "essential element", are legally binding. [ www.imra.org.il ] ----- B'NAI BRITH CANADA APPLAUDS GOVERNMENT FOR STANDING FIRM ON HAMAS TORONTO, March 29, 2006 - B'nai Brith Canada has applauded the Government for standing firm in its decision to refuse to recognize the Palestinian Authority, which is now governed by the terrorist Hamas organization. "Canada has stood true to its principles by refusing to do business with a terrorist entity whose avowed aim continues to be the destruction of the Jewish State," said Frank Dimant, B'nai Brith Canada's Executive Vice President. "The Government has announced that it will 'suspend assistance' to the Palestinian Authority, while at the same time continuing to 'support' the humanitarian needs of the Palestinian people. We look to the Government to put in place the necessary safeguards for ensuring that its humanitarian funding to the Palestinians through UNRWA or through NGO partners on the ground will be used for intended purposes and not diverted for terrorist ends. [ www.imra.org.il ] ----- ISRAEL'S KADIMA GOVERNMENT INSISTS THAT THE PROBLEM DOES NOT EXIST The fact that academic works criticizing Israel are held to a lower standard than works on any other subject should elicit some response from Israel. But to date, Israel's Kadima government not only has not dealt with this state of affairs, it has insisted that the problem does not exist. Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and his friends in Kadima mindlessly repeat the hollow mantra that our relations with the US have never been better. They maintain that handing Judea and Samaria over to Hamas will strengthen the goodwill of the international community that Israel supposedly has enjoyed since the withdrawal from Gaza eight months ago. If it does nothing else, Walt and Mearsheimer's screed proves the absolute stupidity of the claim that Israeli land giveaways and expulsions of Israelis from their homes increase international sympathy and support for Israel. Their article not only gives Israel no credit for coming to the brink of civil war this summer when it ethnically cleansed Gaza of Jews in the hopes of appeasing international opinion, it claims that Israel intended to bring about Hamas's electoral victory in January in order to force the US to continue to support it. For their part, the Bush administration and the Europeans today continue to hold Israel responsible for the wellbeing of Gazans and demand that Israel feed them, and provide them with everything from electricity to emergency medical care. To earn their "goodwill," the Israeli government agreed this week to endanger Israel's national security by continuing to finance the Hamas-led Palestinian Authority and by operating the Karni cargo terminal at the Gaza border as if Israel had never withdrawn. Here is the place to mention that in 1999 I studied under Walt at the Kennedy School. It was clear to me back then, through Walt's passive-aggressive non-sequiturs about American Jews and the Israel lobby, that he suffered from an unhealthy obsession with the Jewish state. But back then, when the Likud that he so despises was in power and the government conditioned all Israeli concessions to the Palestinians on reciprocal, measurable Palestinian concessions to Israel, Walt did not give his hostility towards Israel and its supporters such direct and crass expression either in his classroom lectures or in his publications. Rather, he does so now, when Israel is ruled by a party whose only clearly stated policy is its intention to destroy Israeli communities in Judea and Samaria and transfer the areas to Hamas without receiving anything in return. The growing crisis in Israel's relations with American and other Western societies as manifested by Mearsheimer and Walt's decision to publish their essay leads to two conclusions. First, Israeli weakness harms Israel's international standing and Israeli strength enhances it. Ironically, this conclusion arises from the realist worldview that Walt and Mearsheimer champion on every issue except for Israel. If states seek to increase their strength through their international policies, it makes more sense for them to attack a weak state which will respond to expressions of hostility by seeking to appease the aggressors, than to attack a strong state that will exact a price for such aggression. Israeli demonstrations of international, political, military or cultural weakness open it up to ever escalating demands and expressions of animosity. Finally, Walt and Mearsheimer's decision to publish their essay points to Israel's desperate need for a leader who understands international politics generally and American politics specifically. In World War II, the preponderance of Walt and Mearsheimer's view - that the Jews forced America to enter the war - caused the Roosevelt administration to refuse to lift a finger to save European Jewry. If, with the assistance of a weak and incompetent Israeli government, their view again becomes prominent, Israel will find itself in existential peril. Today there is only one Israeli leader capable of rebuilding Israel's standing in the international community generally and in American society particularly. We have only one leader who is capable of bringing about a renewed delegitimization of views like those expressed in Walt and Mearsheimer's essay. His name is Binyamin Netanyahu. IMRA - Independent Media Review and Analysis Website: [ www.imra.org.il ] -----  NEWSLETTERS  NEWS INDEX  MAIN INDEX