Unprovoked attack on Syria: Israel commits egregious international crime

By: Tony Cartalucci

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/05/05/301903/israels-unprovoked-attack-on-syria/

The US feigns disassociation with Hitlerian acts of Israeli aggression - as was planned since 2007.

Unprovoked, Israel has attacked Syria numerous times over the past 2 days, including attacks on the Syrian capital of Damascus, in what appears to be a series of intentional provocations designed to drag the region into a wider conflict its US sponsors can then enter militarily. Neither attacked directly by Syria, nor able to cite credible evidence in regards to perceived threats Israel claims to be reacting to, the assault on Syria represents a Chapter VII breach of the United Nations Charter.

What’s more is that while the US feigns disassociation with Israel’s breach of international peace, after jointly fueling a genocidal sectarian conflict within Syria’s borders for the past two years, it is documented fact that the US and Saudi Arabia planned to use Israel to conduct military attacks against Iran and Syria, they themselves could not justify politically, legally, or strategically.

What is now hoped is that Syria and Iran retaliate militarily, allowing the “other shoe to drop,” and for the US, UK, France, and their regional axis to directly intervene in Syria.

Insidious ploy engineered and documented in 2007-2009

As early as 2007, it was reported that a US-Saudi-Israeli conspiracy to overthrow the governments of Iran and Syria by arming sectarian terrorists, many linked directly to Al Qaeda, was already set in motion. Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh in his 2007 New Yorker article “The Redirection” stated:

“To undermine Iran, which is predominantly Shiite, the Bush Administration has decided, in effect, to reconfigure its priorities in the Middle East. In Lebanon, the Administration has cooperated with Saudi Arabia’s government, which is Sunni, in clandestine operations that are intended to weaken Hezbollah, the Shiite organization that is backed by Iran. The U.S. has also taken part in clandestine operations aimed at Iran and its ally Syria. A by-product of these activities has been the bolstering of Sunni extremist groups that espouse a militant vision of Islam and are hostile to America and sympathetic to Al Qaeda.”

Of Israel and Saudi Arabia’s partnership it specifically stated:

“The policy shift has brought Saudi Arabia and Israel into a new strategic embrace, largely because both countries see Iran as an existential threat. They have been involved in direct talks, and the Saudis, who believe that greater stability in Israel and Palestine will give Iran less leverage in the region, have become more involved in Arab-Israeli negotiations.”

Additionally, Saudi Arabian officials mentioned the careful balancing act their nation must play in order to conceal its role in supporting US-Israeli ambitions across the region. It was stated even then that using Israel to publicly carry out attacks on Iran would be preferable to the US, which would ultimately implicate the Saudis. It was stated:

“The Saudi said that, in his country’s view, it was taking a political risk by joining the U.S. in challenging Iran: Bandar is already seen in the Arab world as being too close to the Bush Administration. ‘We have two nightmares,’ the former diplomat told me. ‘For Iran to acquire the bomb and for the United States to attack Iran. I’d rather the Israelis bomb the Iranians, so we can blame them. If America does it, we will be blamed.’”

This ploy was further developed in 2009 by the Fortune 500-funded (page 19) Brookings Institution in their document, “Which Path to Persia?” in regards to Iran, and now clearly being utilized against Syria, the gambit was described as follows:

“…it would be far more preferable if the United States could cite an Iranian provocation as justification for the airstrikes before launching them. Clearly, the more outrageous, the more deadly, and the more unprovoked the Iranian action, the better off the United States would be. Of course, it would be very difficult for the United States to goad Iran into such a provocation without the rest of the world recognizing this game, which would then undermine it. (One method that would have some possibility of success would be to ratchet up covert regime change efforts in the hope that Tehran would retaliate overtly, or even semi-overtly, which could then be portrayed as an unprovoked act of Iranian aggression.)” - page 84-85, Which Path to Persia?, Brookings Institution.

And:

“Israel appears to have done extensive planning and practice for such a strike already, and its aircraft are probably already based as close to Iran as possible. As such, Israel might be able to launch the strike in a matter of weeks or even days, depending on what weather and intelligence conditions it felt it needed. Moreover, since Israel would have much less of a need (or even interest) in securing regional support for the operation, Jerusalem probably would feel less motivated to wait for an Iranian provocation before attacking. In short, Israel could move very fast to implement this option if both Israeli and American leaders wanted it to happen.

However, as noted in the previous chapter, the airstrikes themselves are really just the start of this policy. Again, the Iranians would doubtless rebuild their nuclear sites. They would probably retaliate against Israel, and they might retaliate against the United States, too (which might create a pretext for American airstrikes or even an invasion).” - page 91, Which Path to Persia?, Brookings Institution.

And Israel not waiting for a plausible justification to attack Syria is exactly what has just happened. It should also be noted in particular, the last paragraph which gives insight into what the US-led axis plans to do after this egregious international crime - that is - to incrementally engulf the region into a conflict it finally can justify its own entry into open military aggression.

What should Syria and its allies do?

Syria, Iran, Russia and other nations that support the besieged nation most certainly were aware of the Brookings document Which Path to Persia? and familiar with this strategy. It would be hoped that anything of value that the Israelis would seek to attack in order to provoke a much desired retaliation and subsequent war, would have been provided additional protection, or moved entirely out of range of potential Israeli attacks.

A media campaign to illustrate the hypocritical and very revealing convergence between Al Qaeda (the so-called Free Syrian Army or FSA) and Israeli interests would undermine whatever remaining support the battered and failing Western-backed terror campaign inside Syria may still have.

Additionally, Israel’s selection by the US to carry out this attack was done specifically because Israel has long ago exhausted its international legitimacy. What it is doing in Syria is a blatant international crime, in direct violation of international law. Currently, Syria and its allies hold the moral high ground against an enemy who is no longer fooling the world. If it is calculated that Syria can survive Israel’s unprovoked brutality, it would be best to do little or nothing, and incur internationally the same outrage that accompanies Israel’s brutality against the Palestinians.

In light of the US using Israel as its proxy against Syria, should Syria and its allies retaliate, it would be best to do so through any proxies they themselves have at their disposal. Just as Hezbollah and the Palestinians now routinely defeat Israel both strategically and politically, Syria now faces an opportunity to do so again, only on a much bigger scale.

The outrageous actions of Israel, the despicable double-game the US attempts to play by feigning disassociation with its regional beachhead in Tel Aviv, and the silent complicity of the UN, has people around the world desperately seeking retaliation from Syria, or Iran, or both. In reality, this is precisely what the West hopes to achieve - a wider conventional war in which they hold the advantage. By refusing to retaliate directly, Syria cripples the West politically, highlighting the unprovoked nature of their attacks on a nation they claim is a threat, yet fails to strike back even when its capital is under bombardment. By responding through its own plausibly deniable proxies, tactical and political pressure can be put on Israel to end its aggression.

It appears that the Western-backed terrorist front in Syria has been dealt a fatal blow and is in the process of complete collapse. The attack by Israel is a sign of desperation, seeking to expand a conflict that is about to end. Syria and its allies face difficult decisions and dangerous desperation in the coming days and weeks - with an axis of rogue states committing increasingly heinous atrocities in search of a response .

--------------

About: Tony Cartalucci

Tony Cartalucci is a Bangkok-based geopolitical researcher and writer. He has been published on many alternative media websites, including Alternative Thai News Network and LocalOrg. His writings deal with world events from a Southeast Asian perspective as well as promoting self-sufficiency as one of the keys to true freedom. His website is Land Destroyer Report - http://landdestroyer.blogspot.ca/

 

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Israeli Attack: Desperate Bid to Save Failed Syrian Campaign

 

An Israeli fighter jet (file photo)

By: Tony Cartalucci

Source Link: Land Destroyer Blog

http://landdestroyer.blogspot.ca/2013/01/israeli-attack-desperate-bid-to-save.html#more

Israel has conducted airstrikes in Syria based on "suspicions" of chemical weapon transfers, in a flagrant violation of the UN Charter, international law, and in direct violation of Syria's sovereignty. The Guardian in its report titled, "Israel carries out air strike on Syria," claims:

"Israeli warplanes have attacked a target close to the Syrian-Lebanese border following several days of heightened warnings from government officials over Syria's stockpiles of weapons."

It also stated:

"Israel has publicly warned that it would take military action to prevent the Syrian regime's chemical weapons falling into the hands of Hezbollah in Lebanon or "global jihadists" fighting inside Syria. Israeli military intelligence is said to be monitoring the area round the clock via satellite for possible convoys carrying weapons."

In reality, these "global jihaidists" are in fact armed and funded by the US, Saudi Arabia, and Israel since at least as early as 2007. They are also in fact the direct beneficiaries of Israel's recent aggression. The Israeli "suspicions" of "weapon transfers" of course, remain unconfirmed, because the purpose of the attack was not to prevent the transfer of "chemical weapons" to Hezbollah in Lebanon, but to provoke a wider conflict aimed not at Israel's defense, but at salvaging the West's floundering proxy terrorist forces inside Syria attempting to subvert and overthrow the Syrian nation.

The silence from the United Nations is deafening. While Turkey openly harbors foreign terrorists, arming and funding them with Western, Saudi, and Qatari cash as they conduct raids on neighboring Syria, any Syrian attack on Turkish territory would immediately result in the United Nations mobilizing. Conversely, Turkey is allowed, for years, to conduct air strikes and even partial ground invasions of neighboring Iraq to attack Kurdish groups accused of undermining Turkish security. It is clear the same double standard has long applied to Israel.

Israel, along with the US & Saudi Arabia, are Al Qaeda's chief sponsors.

It must be remembered that as far back as 2007, it was admitted by US, Saudi and Lebanese officials that the US, Israel, and Saudi Arabia were intentionally arming, funding, and organizing these "global jihadists" with direct ties to Al Qaeda for the explicit purpose of overthrowing the governments of Syria and Iran.

Reported by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Seymour Hersh in his New Yorker article, "The Redirection," it was stated (emphasis added):

"To undermine Iran, which is predominantly Shiite, the Bush Administration has decided, in effect, to reconfigure its priorities in the Middle East. In Lebanon, the Administration has coöperated with Saudi Arabia’s government, which is Sunni, in clandestine operations that are intended to weaken Hezbollah, the Shiite organization that is backed by Iran. The U.S. has also taken part in clandestine operations aimed at Iran and its ally Syria. A by-product of these activities has been the bolstering of Sunni extremist groups that espouse a militant vision of Islam and are hostile to America and sympathetic to Al Qaeda."

Of Israel it specifically stated:

"The policy shift has brought Saudi Arabia and Israel into a new strategic embrace, largely because both countries see Iran as an existential threat. They have been involved in direct talks, and the Saudis, who believe that greater stability in Israel and Palestine will give Iran less leverage in the region, have become more involved in Arab-Israeli negotiations."

Additionally, Saudi Arabian officials mentioned the careful balancing act their nation must play in order to conceal its role in supporting US-Israeli ambitions across the region:

"The Saudi said that, in his country’s view, it was taking a political risk by joining the U.S. in challenging Iran: Bandar is already seen in the Arab world as being too close to the Bush Administration. “We have two nightmares,” the former diplomat told me. “For Iran to acquire the bomb and for the United States to attack Iran. I’d rather the Israelis bomb the Iranians, so we can blame them. If America does it, we will be blamed.”"

It may interest readers to know that while France invades and occupies large swaths of Mali in Africa, accusing the Qataris of funding and arming Al Qaeda-linked terrorist groups in the region, France, the US, and Israel are working in tandem with the Qataris to fund and arm these very same groups in Syria.

In fact, the US-based think-tank, the Brookings Institution literally has a "Doha Center" based in Qatar while US-Israeli citizen Haim Saban's Brookings "Saban Center" conducts meetings and has many of its board of directors based likewise in Doha, Qatar. Doha also served as the venue for the creation of the West's most recent "Syrian Coalition," headed by an unabashed supporter of Al Qaeda, Moaz al-Khatib.

These are part of the brick and mortar manifestation of the conspiracy documented by Seymour Hersh in 2007.

The Wall Street Journal, also in 2007, reported on the US Bush Administration's plans of creating a partnership with Syria's Muslim Brotherhood, noting the group is the ideological inspiration for linked terror organizations including Al Qaeda itself. In the article titled, ""To Check Syria, U.S. Explores Bond With Muslim Brothers," it states:

"On a humid afternoon in late May, about 100 supporters of Syria's largest exile opposition group, the National Salvation Front, gathered outside Damascus's embassy here to protest Syrian President Bashar Assad's rule. The participants shouted anti-Assad slogans and raised banners proclaiming: "Change the Regime Now."

The NSF unites liberal democrats, Kurds, Marxists and former Syrian officials in an effort to transform President Assad's despotic regime. But the Washington protest also connected a pair of more unlikely players -- the U.S. government and the Muslim Brotherhood."

The article would also report:

"U.S. diplomats and politicians have also met with legislators from parties connected to the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan, Egypt and Iraq in recent months to hear their views on democratic reforms in the Middle East, U.S. officials say. Last month, the State Department's intelligence unit organized a conference of Middle East experts to examine the merits of engagement with the Brotherhood, particularly in Egypt and Syria."

It describes the ideological and operational links between the Brotherhood and Al Qaeda:

"Today, the Brotherhood's relationship to Islamist militancy, and al Qaeda in particular, is the source of much debate. Osama bin Laden and other al Qaeda leaders cite the works of the Brotherhood's late intellectual, Sayyid Qutb, as an inspiration for their crusade against the West and Arab dictators. Members of Egyptian and Syrian Brotherhood arms have also gone on to take senior roles in Mr. bin Laden's movement."

Yet despite all of this, the US, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, along with Israel and Turkey are openly conspiring with them, and have now for years been arming and funding these very sectarian extremist, terrorist groups across the Arab World, from Libya to Egypt, and now in and around Syria.

Israel's fears of these terrorists acquiring "chemical weapons" is absurd. They have already acquired them with US, NATO, British, Saudi, Qatari and even Israeli help in Libya in 2011. In fact, these very Libyan terrorists are spearheading the foreign militant groups flooding into Syria through the Turkish-Syrian border.

What Israel's strike may really mean.

Indeed, Israel's explanation as to why it struck neighboring Syria is tenuous at best considering its long, documented relationship with actually funding and arming the very "global jihaidists" it fears weapons may fall into the hands of. Its fears of Hezbollah are likewise unfounded - Hezbollah, had it, the Syrians, or the Iranians been interested in placing chemical weapons in Lebanon, would have done so already, and most certainly would do so with means other than conspicuous convoys simply "crossing the border." Hezbollah has already proven itself capable of defeating Israeli aggression with conventional arms, as demonstrated during the summer of 2006.

In reality, the pressure placed on Syria's borders by both Israel and its partner, Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's Turkey in the north, is part of a documented plan to relieve pressure on the Western, Israeli, Saudi-Qatari armed and funded militants operating inside Syria.

The above mentioned, Fortune 500-funded (page 19), US foreign-policy think-tank, Brookings Institution - which has blueprinted designs for regime change in Libya as well as both Syria and Iran- stated this specifically in their report titled, "Assessing Options for Regime Change.

 

Image: The Brookings Institution, Middle East Memo #21 "Assessing Options for Regime Change (.pdf)," makes no secret that the humanitarian "responsibility to protect" is but a pretext for long-planned regime change.

....

Brookings describes how Israeli efforts in the south of Syria, combined with Turkey's aligning of vast amounts of weapons and troops along its border to the north, could help effect violent regime change in Syria:

"In addition, Israel’s intelligence services have a strong knowledge of Syria, as well as assets within the Syrian regime that could be used to subvert the regime’s power base and press for Asad’s removal. Israel could posture forces on or near the Golan Heights and, in so doing, might divert regime forces from suppressing the opposition. This posture may conjure fears in the Asad regime of a multi-front war, particularly if Turkey is willing to do the same on its border and if the Syrian opposition is being fed a steady diet of arms and training. Such a mobilization could perhaps persuade Syria’s military leadership to oust Asad in order to preserve itself. Advocates argue this additional pressure could tip the balance against Asad inside Syria, if other forces were aligned properly." -page 6, Assessing Options for Regime Change, Brookings Institution.

Of course, airstrikes inside Syria go beyond "posturing," and indicate perhaps a level of desperation in the West who appear to have elected their chief villain, Israel, to incrementally "intervene" just as they had planned in regards to attacking Iran - also documented by Brookings in a report titled, "Which Path to Persia?"

In regards to Iran, in Brookings' "Which Path to Persia?" report, it states specifically (emphasis added):

"Israel appears to have done extensive planning and practice for such a strike already, and its aircraft are probably already based as close to Iran as possible. as such, Israel might be able to launch the strike in a matter of weeks or even days, depending on what weather and intelligence conditions it felt it needed. Moreover, since Israel would have much less of a need (or even interest) in securing regional support for the operation, Jerusalem probably would feel less motivated to wait for an Iranian provocation before attacking. In short, Israel could move very fast to implement this option if both Israeli and American leaders wanted it to happen.

However, as noted in the previous chapter, the airstrikes themselves are really just the start of this policy. Again, the Iranians would doubtless rebuild their nuclear sites. They would probably retaliate against Israel, and they might retaliate against the United States, too (which might create a pretext for American airstrikes or even an invasion)." -page 91, Which Path to Perisa?, Brookings Institution.

And in this statement we can gather insight behind both Israel's otherwise irrational belligerent posture throughout its brief history, as well as its most recent act of unprovoked aggression against Syria. Israel's role is to play the "bad guy." As a regional beachhead for Western corporate-financier interests, it provides a "foot in the door" to any of the West's many desired conflicts. By bombing Syria, it hopes to provoke a wider conflict - an intervention the West has desired and planned for since it tipped off Syria's violent conflict in 2011.

For Syria and its allies - the goal now must be to deter further Israeli aggression and avoid wider conflict at all costs. If NATO's proxy terrorist forces are as weak as they appear - incapable of tactical or strategic gains, and tapering off into desperate terrorist attacks, it is only a matter of time before NATO's campaign grinds to a halt. As mentioned before, such a failure on NATO's part will be the beginning of the end for it, and the Western interests that have been using it as a tool to achieve geopolitical hegemony.

Israel should be expected to commit to increasingly desperate acts to provoke Syria and Iran - as its leadership represent directly corporate-financier interests abroad, not the Israeli people, or their best interests (including peace and even survival). For the people of Israel, they must realize that their leadership indeed does not represent them or their best interests and is able, willing, and even eager to spend their lives and fortunes in the service of foreign, corporate-financier interests and global hegemony.

 

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Israeli warplanes bombed research center near Damascus - Syrian military

An Israeli F-15 fighter jet (AFP Photo/Jack Guez)

Source: Russia Today

http://rt.com/news/israeli-warplanes-bomb-damascus-114/

Israeli fighter jets targeted a military research center near Damascus early on Wednesday morning, Syrian state news agency SANA said citing army officials.

The Syrian army’s general command has issued a statement, saying an air strike was launched by the IAF targeting a military research center in Jamraya, rural Damascus.­

“Israeli fighter jets violated our air space at dawn today and carried out a direct strike on a scientific research center in charge of raising our level of resistance and self-defence,” the army statement said as cited by SANA.

The strike caused material damage to the center and a nearby building, killing two workers and wounding five others, the statement added.

The Israeli military has neither confirmed nor denied the reports of attacks on Syrian territory, an IDF spokeswoman said they “do not comment on reports of this kind.”

Earlier there were reports in the media of an attack by Israeli jets on Wednesday morning striking a target on the Syrian-Lebanese border amid repeated violations of Lebanese airspace. A US government official has confirmed reports that Israeli warplanes targeted a convoy headed from Syria to Lebanon, the Associated Press says.

The Syrian military however has denied this, saying there was no Israeli strike on a convoy of trucks on its border. It called the strike a “blatant act of aggression” against Syria and accused Israel of supporting terrorist activity in the country.

It is unclear whether this is the same air raid the Syrian military is now referring to or if there were two separate assaults.

­Although it has not yet been confirmed whether an air strike indeed targeted a military site near Damascus, experts believe that after months of constant rebel attacks on Syrian air defence systems an air strike would make sense.

“It finally makes sense because the rebels or as they like to call themselves the revolutionaries, they have been attacking air defence bases near Damascus for the past seven months,” Dr Ali Mohamad, editor in chief of the Syria Tribune news website told RT. “They’ve managed to attack the S-200 base and over four SM-2 and SM-3 bases. Now this followed by an air strike from Israel. So it all adds up, it makes sense. It only shows that Israel has a great interest in the instability in Syria and that it is being helped by groups of armed rebels in Syria."

 

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Recent Israeli war on Gaza pre-planned: Israel diplomat

 

People carry the body of a Palestinian in the West Bank city of Ramallah, November 20, 2012.

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/11/21/273680/gaza-war-preplanned-israeli-diplomat/

An Israeli diplomat says the Tel Aviv regime’s ongoing aggression against the besieged Gaza Strip was pre-planned.

In an interview with France 24 TV channel on Tuesday, Freddy Eytan said the Israeli regime had long been preparing for the attack on Gaza, but was waiting for an opportunity to enforce the plan.

Assassinating the senior commanders of the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas was also part of the Israeli mission, the diplomat stated.

Eytan also said that a ground operation against the Gaza Strip would be possible if the desired goals of the Israeli regime were not achieved.

Tel Aviv has intensified its deadly attacks on Gaza despite Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi’s expression of hope for a ceasefire.

On Wednesday, Israeli Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Benny Gantz said Tel Aviv will continue its attacks on Gaza despite ongoing truce talks.

Meanwhile, Gilad Sharon, son of former Israel Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, has said that the regime should “flatten Gaza” in the same manner as the United States ruined Hiroshima in its nuclear bombing of the Japanese city in 1945.

“We need to flatten entire neighborhoods in Gaza. Flatten all of Gaza. The Americans didn’t stop with Hiroshima - the Japanese weren’t surrendering fast enough, so they hit Nagasaki, too.”

Over 135 Gazans, including women and children, have been killed and more than 1,100 others have been injured in over 1,450 Israeli attacks on the besieged Palestinian territory since November 14.

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Israel should flatten Gaza like Hiroshima says Ariel Sharon’s son

Left - Gilad Sharon, the son of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon -

Right - A Palestinian man carries the dead body of a child out from rubble after an Israeli missile struck a house killing at least seven members of the same family in Gaza City, November 18, 2012.

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/11/21/273663/israel-must-flatten-gaza-sharons-son/

The son of former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says the Tel Aviv regime should “flatten Gaza” in the same manner as the United States ruined Hiroshima in its nuclear bombing of the Japanese city in 1945.

In an article for the Israeli newspaper Jerusalem Post, Gilad Sharon said that the Israeli military should annihilate or re-occupy the besieged Gaza Strip.

“There should be no electricity in Gaza, no gasoline or moving vehicles, nothing. Then they’d really call for a ceasefire,” wrote Sharon.

“We need to flatten entire neighborhoods in Gaza. Flatten all of Gaza. The Americans didn’t stop with Hiroshima - the Japanese weren’t surrendering fast enough, so they hit Nagasaki, too.”

He also said that the Palestinians living in the besieged territory “are not innocent” and that the true innocents are Israelis living in occupied territories.

Sharon then called on Tel Aviv to step up its aggressive tactics against the Palestinians in the coastal territory, “Otherwise there will be no decisive victory. And we’re running out of time.”

Over 135 Gazans, including women and children, have been killed and more than 1,100 others have been injured in over 1,450 Israeli attacks on the besieged Palestinian territory since November 14.

 

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AFP Gaza office hit by Israeli strike 3 Palestinian reporters killed in other attacks

AFP Gaza office hit by Israeli strike, 3 Palestinian reporters killed in other attacks

Source: Russia Today

http://rt.com/news/gaza-israel-attacks-journalists-killed-196/

Israel struck media offices in Gaza twice on Tuesday and killed three Palestinian journalists. The IDF claimed the buildings, which included an AFP bureau, were being used by Hamas to direct military operations, and were legitimate targets.

Two Israeli strikes have left three Palestinian journalists dead, with media buildings targeted by the IDF two days in a row. The AFP building was hit in another attack later on, with no casualties reported.

Mahmoud al-Koumi and Husam Salameh, cameramen for the local al-Aqsa TV station, were killed in a car marked with a press sign near the al-Wihda towers in Gaza.

Both journalists were 30 years old and fathers of four children. Two other al-Aqsa employees were wounded in the first strike.

The second attack killed the director of al-Quds Educational Radio, Muhammad Abu Aisha, in his car.

Then, the AFP building in Gaza was hit, with no casualties reported so far.

A series of massive explosions, followed by a massive blackout, were also reported near the Al Shorook building in Gaza, which houses several media outlets.

Later on, airstrikes targeted two hotels in Gaza where reporters covering the Israeli assault were staying. There were no reports of deaths, but Press TV correspondent Akram al-Sattari was injured. Hugh Naylor of The National newspaper told Ma'an news agency said the blasts blew out windows in the Deira and Beach hotels.

Meanwhile, the IDF posted on its Twitter that its air forces “surgically targeted a Hamas operations center on the 7th floor of a media building in Gaza”, with a “direct hit confirmed.” The IDF also tweeted a warning to all journalists to stay away from Hamas facilities within Gaza territory, claiming that the group will use them as human shields.

The al-Qassam Brigades have responded with a “Warning to Israelis: Stay away from Israeli #IDF = #IOF, We just targeting Israeli soldiers, fighter jets, tanks and bases."

 

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USA blocks UN Security Council statement that calls for Gaza ceasefire labeling it Unbalanced

 

Source: Russia Today

http://rt.com/news/us-blocks-gaza-un-185/

The United States has blocked a Moroccan-brokered UN Security Council call for a ceasefire in the Israeli-Gaza conflict, labeling it "unbalanced."

­“The draft press statement failed to address the root cause of the current escalation – the continuing barrage of rocket attacks from Gaza against Israel,'' the spokeswoman for the US Mission to the UN, Erin Pelton, said in a statement.

He added that the “counter-productive” statement failed to support “the ongoing diplomacy toward de-escalation of violence and a durable outcome that ends the rocket attacks on Israeli cities and towns and restores a broader calm.”

­Morocco proposed the statement last Thursday, and it would have been adopted automatically if no UN Security Council member spoke against it before 14:00 GMT. Security Council press statements require unanimous approval.

Russia said it is ready to propose the full resolutionto halt the violence between Israel and Gaza.

Russia's UN envoy Vitaly Churkin said that document will focus on putting an end to the violence by a negotiated a ceasefire, support for international and regional efforts to settle the crisis peacefully and a call for the resumption of talks between Palestinians and Israelis on a wider range of problems.

Churkin sharply criticized the way the Moroccan statement was handled by the Council, accusing Western governments of “filibustering”it. He argued that three days was ample time to provide written comments, while Council members only commented orally.

Some say the Russian resolution has little chance of being adopted as it also does not claim that Hamas rocket attacks are the cause of the current conflict.

 

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Israeli attacks kill 7 more people in Gaza

 

Palestinians youths search through the rubble of destroyed buildings following Israeli air strikes on the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah on November 18, 2012

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/11/20/273596/7-more-palestinians-killed-in-gaza/

At least seven more people, including three journalists, have been killed as Israeli warplanes conduct a fresh round of air raids on the besieged Gaza Strip.

The Tuesday deaths included two al-Aqsa cameramen and the al-Quds radio chief.

"Two cameramen from Al-Aqsa TV have been killed: Mahmud Komi and Hossam Salama," said health ministry spokesman Ashraf al-Qudra, adding the strike hit a car in Gaza City's Nasser area that was clearly marked as a press vehicle.

Two Palestinians were killed in an Israeli strike that targeted a car in the central part of Gaza, and another one lost his life in the southern city of Rafah, close to the enclave's border with Egypt.

In retaliation, Palestinian resistance fighters poured rockets and missiles onto the southern Israeli areas, killing 2 Israelis, including a soldier, and injuring 15 others in Eshkol Regional council.

At least five Israelis have reportedly been killed in Palestinian rocket attacks since the fatal offensive on the coastal enclave started on November 14.

Five Israelis were also injured in Palestinian rocket attacks on Israel's fourth-largest city of Rishon LeZion, following a similar attack that critically wounded an Israeli in the southern city of Ashkelon.

According to reports, another Israeli has seriously been hurt in another rocket attack on Gush Etzion outside al-Quds (Jerusalem).

 

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Israel fires warning shots at Syria over Golan Heights mortar strike

 

An Israeli Merkava tank crew sit on the Israeli annexed Golan Heights overlooking the Syrian village of Breqa on November, 06, 2012. (AFP Photo / Menahem Kahana)

Source: Russia Today

http://rt.com/news/syria-israel-warning-fire-455/

Israel has fired warning shots into Syria after mortars launched from Syrian territory hit an Israeli base in the Golan Heights. It is the first time Israel has fired within Syrian territory since the 1973 war.

The Israeli Defense Force (IDF) said the missile was fired as a warning short after the errant mortal fired from Syria hit the military post.

"In the midst of Syrian infighting, a mortar shell fired by the Syrian army struck near an outpost at Tel Hazeka," The Jerusalem post cites IDF spokesman Brig.-Gen. Yoav Mordechai as saying.

"In light of the policy instituted by IDF Chief of Staff, Lt.-Gen. Benny Gantz, a warning round was fired back into Syria. We don't believe it caused injuries or damages," he continued.

The IDF fired a single Tamuz anti-tank missile, a weapon known for its high degree of accuracy, military sources told AFP.

Just hours before the strike, Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned Syria that Israel would “respond” if stray shells landed inside the Golan Heights.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had also said Israel was “closely monitoring what is happening on our border with Syria and there too we are ready for any development."

Israel worries the Syrian insurgency could engulf the Golan, turning the region into an ideal base for Islamic militants to launch attacks, as they do from Egypt’s Sinai desert.

Israeli officials fear the fall of President Bashar Assad’s government could further lead to an Islamist power grab in Syria, fueling sectarian war and destabilizing the region.

There are also concerns that the security breakdown in Syria might lead the Lebanese movement Hezbollah – which is allied to Damascus and staunchly opposed to Israel– to acquire control of chemical weapons stockpiles.

Several mortar shells have struck the Golan Heights since the Syrian civil war erupted 19 months ago. Israel has recognized the fire as unintentional, but still holds Damascus responsible.

On Thursday a mortar launched from within Syrian territory hit an Israeli settlement on the territory but did not explode.

 

Israeli Merkava tanks maneuver on the Israeli annexed Golan Heights overlooking the Syrian village of Breqa on November, 06, 2012. (AFP Photo / Menahem Kahana)

Israel recently filed a complaint with the United Nations Security Council after Syrian three tanks entered the demilitarized zone in the Golan Heights earlier this month. The IDF also filed a complaint with UN peacekeeping forces operating in the area.

The tanks were reportedly engaged in a battle with Syrian rebels in the village of Beer Ajam, which is located in the Syrian controlled portion of the Golan Heights.

Israel captured the Golan Heights from Syria during the 1967 war, though they agreed to return the land to Syria in return for a peace agreement which was rejected by the Arab world.

During the 1973 Yom Kippur War, Syrian forces crossed the ceasefire line into the Golan Heights to retake the territory. The Syrian troops were ultimately ejected by Israel forces.

Israel annexed the Golan in 1981, though they returned about five percent of the territory to Syrian control. The land was merged into a demilitarized zone that is currently patrolled by UN peacekeeping forces.

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Pro-Democracy groups behind Myanmar Refugee Attacks

 

Supporters of Aung San Suu Kyi, leaders of the "Saffron Revolution," leading ethnic cleansing of Myanmar refugees

By: Tony Cartalucci

Source: Alternative Thai News

http://altthainews.blogspot.ca/2012/10/pro-democracy-groups-behind-myanmar.html

People don't just come out into the streets and begin murdering each other. There are always instigators on one side, perhaps both, leading the anger and violence. In the case of targeted Muslim Rohingya refugees in Myanmar's Rakhine state, those leading the the violence against them, which most recently involved 26 killed and 2,000 Rohingya homes destroyed, have been identified.

While the Associated Press (AP) features grainy photos of monks outside the city hall in Yangon, Myanmar, claiming that it is a rally "against violence," the signs themselves tell a different tale. One enumerates, in English, the demands of the "monks." The sign includes:

1. Protect Rakhine People from the Dangers of Islamic Extremism.
2. Army Must stop Shooting the Ethnic People.
3. We Arakanese Don't Want to Live With Extreme Bengalis Anymore.
4. Mr. President Should be Decisive on the Issue of Arakan.
5. Drive all illegal Bengalis out of the Land of Myanmar.
6. All Ethnic People of Myanmar Should be United.

The sign continues, but is obstructed in all the shots provided by AP. All of the news stories featuring the picture do not mention any of the enumerated points on the sign, and instead claim, "Myanmar Buddhist monks offer prayers Thursday during a rally of more than 100 people protesting recent violence."

By "Army Must stop Shooting the Ethnic People," the protesters mean the army should stop firing on their vigilantes for attempting to eradicate the refugees, as the points on the sign enumerate clearly they are the united ethnic people of Myanmar, and the refugees are "illegal Bengalis."

 

Image: Praying for genocide. While Associated Press claims these protesters are demonstrating against ethnic violence, the sign they carry clearly states that they seek the expulsion of the refugees from Myanmar, and are merely protesting against the Myanmar Army's use of force to protect them from attacks that have left scores dead and thousands of refugee homes destroyed.

In the summer and early fall of 2012 when this wave of violence had again erupted, AFP reported in their article, "Monks stage anti-Rohingya march in Myanmar," that the marching "monks" supported President Thein Sein's plan to expel the Rohingya, before paradoxically admitting that Thein Sein has accused the marchers of "kindling hatred toward the Rohingya."

AFP, in a grave lapse of professional journalism, refers to the leader of this movement as merely "a monk named Wirathu."

However, this isn't merely "a monk named Wirathu," but "Sayadaw" (venerable teacher) Wirathu who has led many of "democratic champion" Aung San Suu Kyi's political street campaigns and is often referred to by the Western media as an "activist monk."

In March of this year, Wirathu had led a rally calling for the release of so-called "political prisoners," so designated by US State Department funded faux-NGOs. Wirathu himself was in prison, according to AFP, for inciting hatred against Muslims, until recently released as part of an amnesty, an amnesty US State Department-funded (page 15, .pdf) Democratic Voice of Burma claims concerned only "political prisoners."

Image: Real monks don't do politics. The "venerable" Wirathu (front, left) leads a rally for "political prisoners" loyal to Aung San Suu Kyi's "pro-democracy" movement in March, 2012. Wirathu himself has been often portrayed as an "activist monk" and a "political prisoner" who spent years in prison. In reality, he was arrested for his role in violent sectarian clashes in 2003, while Suu Kyi's "pro-democracy" front is actually US-funded sedition. Wirathua has picked up right where he left off in 2003, and is now leading anti-Rohingya rallies across the country.

Human Rights Watch itself, in its attempt to memorialize the struggle of "Buddhism and activism in Burma" (.pdf), admits that Wirathu was arrested in 2003 and sentenced to 25 years in prison along with other "monks" for their role in violent clashes between "Buddhists and Muslims" (page 67, .pdf). This would make Wirathu and his companions violent criminals, not "political prisoners."

While Western news agencies have attempted to spin the recent violence as a new phenomenon implicating Aung San Suu Kyi's political foot soldiers as genocidal bigots, in reality, the sectarian nature of her support base has been back page news for years. AFP's recent but uncharacteristically honest portrayal of Wirathu, with an attempt to conceal his identity and role in Aung San Suu Kyi's "Saffron" political machine, illustrates the quandary now faced by Western propagandists as the violence flares up again, this time in front of a better informed public.

 

Image: An alleged monk, carries an umbrella with Aung San Suu Kyi's image on it. These so-called monks have played a central role in building Suu Kyi's political machine, as well as maintaining over a decade of genocidal, sectarian violence aimed at Myanmar's ethnic minorities. Another example of US "democracy promotion" and tax dollars at work.

During 2007's "Saffron Revolution," these same so-called "monks" took to the streets in a series of bloody anti-government protests, in support of Aung San Suu Kyi and her Western-contrived political movement. HRW would specifically enumerate support provided to Aung San Suu Kyi's movement by these organizations, including the Young Monks Union (Association), now leading violence and calls for ethnic cleansing across Myanmar.

The UK Independent in their article, "Burma's monks call for Muslim community to be shunned," mentions the Young Monks Association by name as involved in distributing flyers recently, demanding people not to associate with ethnic Rohingya, and attempting to block humanitarian aid from reaching Rohingya camps.

The Independent also notes calls for ethnic cleansing made by leaders of the 88 Generation Students group (BBC profile here) - who also played a pivotal role in the pro-Suu Kyi 2007 protests. "Ashin" Htawara, another "monk activist" who considers Aung San Suu Kyi, his "special leader" and greeted her with flowers for her Oslo Noble Peace Prize address earlier this year, stated at an event in London that the Rohingya should be sent "back to their native land."

The equivalent of Ku Klux Klan racists demanding that America's black population be shipped back to Africa, the US State Department's "pro-democratic" protesters in Myanmar have been revealed as habitual, violent bigots with genocidal tendencies and enumerated designs. Their recent violence also casts doubts on Western narratives portraying the 2007 "Saffron Revolution's" death toll as exclusively the work of government security operations.

Like their US-funded (and armed) counterparts in Syria, many fighting openly under the flag of sectarian extremism held aloft by international terrorist organization Al Qaeda, we see the absolute moral bankruptcy of Myanmar's "pro-democracy" movement that has, up until now, been skillfully covered up by endless torrents of Western propaganda - Aung San Suu Kyi's Nobel Peace Prize and a recent showering of Western bestowed awards, all being part of the illusion.

Sectarian Violence, Destabilization: What's in it for the West?

In "Myanmar (Burma) "Pro-Democracy" Movement a Creation of Wall Street & London," it was documented that Suu Kyi and organizations supporting her, including local propaganda fronts like the New Era Journal, the Irrawaddy, and the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) radio, have received millions of dollars a year from the Neo-Conservative chaired National Endowment for Democracy, convicted criminal and Wall Street speculator George Soros' Open Society Institute, and the US State Department itself, citing Britain's own "Burma Campaign UK (.pdf)."

 

Image: The Myitsone Dam, on its way to being the 15th largest in the world until construction was halted in September by a campaign led by Wall Street-puppet Aung San Suu Kyi, a stable of US-funded NGOs, and a terrorist campaign executed by armed groups operating in Kachin State, Myanmar.

And not only does the US State Department in tandem with Western corporate media provide Aung San Suu Kyi extensive political, financial, and rhetorical backing, they provide operational capabilities as well, allowing her opposition movement to achieve Western objectives throughout Myanmar. The latest achievement of this operational capability successfully blocked the development of Myanmar's infrastructure by halting a joint China-Mynamar dam project that would have provided thousands of jobs, electricity, state-revenue, flood control, and enhanced river navigation for millions. Suu Kyi and her supporting network of NGOs, as well as armed militants in Myanmar's northern provinces conducted a coordinated campaign exploiting both "environmental" and "human rights" concerns that in reality resulted in Myanmar's continual economic and social stagnation.

The ultimate goal of course is to effect regime change not only in Myanmar, but to create a united Southeast Asian front against China in pursuit of long-documented plans to encircle and contain the emerging superpower.

As reported in June, 2011's "Collapsing China," as far back as 1997 there was talk about developing an effective containment strategy coupled with the baited hook of luring China into its place amongst the "international order." Just as in these 1997 talking-points where author and notorious Neo-Con policy maker Robert Kagan described the necessity of using America's Asian "allies" as part of this containment strategy, Clinton goes through a list of regional relationships the US is trying to cultivate to maintain "American leadership" in Asia.

Image: (Top) The "Lilliputians" though small in stature were collectively able to tie down the larger Gulliver from the literary classic "Gulliver's Travels." In the same manner, the US wants to use smaller Southeast Asian nations to "tie down" the larger China.

The US Army's Strategic Studies Institute 2006 publication, "String of pearls: Meeting the Challenge of China's Rising Power Across the Asian Littoral" details US geopolitical awareness of China's growing influence throughout Asia and enumerates a plan of action to balk it while maintaining American preeminence. While Kagan's paper details a broader geopolitical strategy, the SSI report specifically mentions where China is expanding its influence.

In defining China's "String of Pearls" it states:

Each “pearl” in the “String of Pearls” is a nexus of Chinese geopolitical influence or military
presence. 4 Hainan Island, with recently upgraded military facilities, is a “pearl.” An upgraded airstrip on Woody Island, located in the Paracel archipelago 300 nautical miles east of Vietnam, is a “pearl.” A container shipping facility in Chittagong, Bangladesh, is a “pearl.” Construction of a deep water port in Sittwe, Myanmar, is a “pearl,” as is the construction of a navy base in Gwadar, Pakistan. 5 Port and airfield construction projects, diplomatic ties, and force modernization form the essence of China’s “String of Pearls.” The “pearls” extend from the coast of mainland China through the littorals of the South China Sea, the Strait of Malacca, across the Indian Ocean, and on to the littorals of the Arabian Sea and Persian Gulf. China is building strategic relationships and developing a capability to establish a forward presence along the sea lines of communication (SLOCs) that connect China to the Middle East (see Figure 1).

 

Image: Figure 1. From SSI's 2006 "String of Pearls" report detailing a strategy of containment for China. While "democracy," "freedom," and "human rights" will mask the ascension of Aung San Suu Kyi and others into power, it is part of a region-wide campaign to overthrow nationalist elements and install client regimes in order to encircle and contain China. Violence in areas like Sittwe, Rakhine Myanmar, or Gwadar Baluchistan Pakistan, are not coincidences and documented evidence indicates immense Western backing for armed opposition groups.

The report was written in 2006 - and clearly the West has gone through great lengths since then to destabilize, neutralize, or isolate from China's influence each and every one of these "pearls." Indeed, the state of Rakhine in southwest Myanmar is being developed by China as stated in the SSI report. The city of Sittwe is the site of a Chinese-built port, and Kyaukpyu is the future site for the terminal of a trans-Myanmar oil pipeline linking Chinese oil tankers incoming from the Middle East directly with China's Yunnan province, negating the lengthy trip around the Strait of Malacca and across the South China Sea.

By destabilizing Rakhine state, either through this current violence, or by "radicalizing" groups within the Rohingya and expanding the violence further still, the West can ensure that progress is slow, or all together brought to a halt, just as it has with Chinese projects up country, or even abroad in nations like war-torn Libya or Pakistan's now destabilized Baluchistan province. The SSI report also mentions Chittagong, Bangladesh, which also, coincidentally, has been dragged into neighboring Myanmar's violence.

A library of policy papers detailing the US' strategy vis-a-vis China's emergence is available for the public to read. However, these papers are written in academic English and require demanding prerequisites across a variety of disciplines to understand. It also requires effort greatly exceeding that needed to merely consider and accept base arguments made by prominent and prolific Western media services. There is always more to a story than mere superficial religious or ethnic differences - and if a news story fails to address this, it has failed to report the truth

For more News and Opinion by Tony Cartalucci:

Land Destroyer

http://landdestroyer.blogspot.ca/

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Israel threatens to escalate attacks against Palestinians in Gaza

 

A column of Israeli tanks take up position near the Gaza border. (File photo)

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/10/24/268590/israel-threatens-to-step-up-gaza-attacks/

Israel has threatened to escalate its deadly attacks against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, which has been under Israeli siege for many years.

Israeli Minister for Military Affairs Ehud Barak said on Wednesday that more Gazans are going to suffer because of the rockets fired from the territory into Israel.

"Hamas will receive its punishment for what has happened here," said Barak, referring to the Palestinian resistance movement which governs Gaza.

"If they cannot be calmed, and the rockets continue,” the Israeli military will respond, Barak said.

Since Tuesday night, at least four Palestinians have been killed and several others injured in the Israeli attacks on Gaza.

Palestinian resistance groups have been firing the rockets in retaliation for Tel Aviv’s deadly raids on the coastal enclave.

He also said no “element responsible for causing damage in Israel or to Israelis will be spared."

Gaza has been blockaded since June 2007, a situation that has caused a decline in the standard of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty.

The apartheid regime of Israel denies about 1.7 million people in Gaza their basic rights, such as freedom of movement, jobs that pay proper wages, and adequate healthcare and education.

Israel’s US-funded Iron Dome system has failed to intercept many of the projectiles fired from the Gaza Strip.

On July 27, US President Barack Obama signed a piece of legislation ratified by Congress that had Israel another $70 million in military assistance, on top of the $3 billion the United States had already pledged to provide to the Israeli military this year.

Obama signed the United States-Israel Enhanced Security Cooperation Act of 2012, which provides more US taxpayer dollars to help Israel expand its Iron Dome short-range missile system.

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3 killed, six injured in Israeli onslaught on Gaza

Israeli tanks fire at targets in the Gaza Strip. (file photo)

Source: Press TV

http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2012/10/24/268406/3-killed-in-israeli-onslaught-on-gaza/

At least three Palestinians have been killed and six others injured in attacks on the Gaza Strip by Israeli aircraft and tanks, as the wave of aggression on the besieged territory continues unabated, Press TV reports.

Two Palestinians were killed and four others injured when Israeli tank fire struck the northern Gaza Strip on Tuesday evening.

And one Palestinian was killed and two others injured in Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip on the same day.

The attacks came hours after an Israeli army officer was wounded by a bomb on the Gaza Strip's northern border.

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestinian claimed responsibility for the bombing.

Hamas security officials said the bomb attack was carried out as Israeli troops were mounting an incursion into Gaza.

Four rockets were also fired from Gaza into southern Israel, but they caused no casualties or significant damage.

The Israeli military frequently carries out airstrikes and other attacks on the Gaza Strip, saying the actions are being conducted for defensive purposes. However, disproportionate force is always used, in violation of international law, and civilians are often killed or injured.

Gaza has been blockaded since 2007, a situation that has caused a decline in the standard of living, unprecedented levels of unemployment, and unrelenting poverty.

The apartheid regime of Israel denies about 1.7 million people in Gaza their basic rights, such as freedom of movement, jobs that pay proper wages, and adequate healthcare and education.

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