Peace, By All Means Peace

"The rebels, as a result of religious intolerance, are killing people. They cut the hands, arms and the legs, everything, the women, the youths and so on."
Yayi Boni, African Union chairman

Oh, quite impossible, claims the Canadian Peace Alliance, outraged that Canada has lent itself, however feebly, to the French military's routing of the Islamist 'rebels' from northern Mali. They quote an authority on the subject, none other than the Zimbabwean criminal strongman, Robert Mugabe, who has stated that France has taken itself on a "colonialist venture".

Canada's contribution to the French onslaught against the alliance of Tuareg mercenaries-from-Libya-returned-home-with-weapons, their al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb cronies, along with the Movement for Unity and Jihad in West Africa, and Insar Dine, famously the "Defenders of the Faith", is supremely modest.

$13-million pledged to aid the civilian population of Mali, and the airlift capacity of a CF C-17 Transport plane.

The residents of Timbuktu and their rescuers are attempting to assess the sweep of destruction that the invaders launched on their ancient heritage. Aside from those precious documents, manuscripts and objects they were able to conceal, buried in the desert sands. They are immensely relieved, after a dreadful year of occupation by the Islamists, to be freed from oppression and misery.

Grateful that France responded to the plea of the Malian government to come in with its warplanes and strafe and bomb the invading terrorist forces. Grateful for the 2,000-strong force of French soldiers, and the smaller contingent of British troops, along with American airlift capacity and that of Canada's offering.

The United Nations delegated the African Union to take charge of the situation, in aiding the Malian military in protecting the country and its vast desert stretches.  Where the routed Islamists have taken themselves into hiding with their equipment and their arms, preparing to wait out the situation until they deem the time is right to return and re-occupy their base in Timbuktu, Gao, Kidal and other desert towns.

The African Union, responding to the UN resolution, has gathered as many as 8,000 soldiers, finally, from the 16-member-strong Economic Community of West African States. As the French withdraw, the AU assembled military will co-operate with the Malian military to keep the Islamists at bay. They will have to pledge to go further; to hunt down and destroy their intent to return.

This is the reality of Africa today. Somewhat at odds with the charge from the Canadian Peace Alliance that insists the Government of Canada has allowed itself to be used as "a junior partner to a NATO aggression in Africa".  Rumours of Islamist terror groups presenting as a threat to African stability must be named for what it is: "Islamophobia".

 The Topography of Terror

"The rise of the Nazis was made possible because the elite of German society worked with them, but also, above all else, because most in Germany at least tolerated this rise.
"Human rights do not assert themselves on their own, freedom does not emerge on its own and democracy does not succeed on its own. No, a dynamic society ... needs people who have regard and respect for one another, who take responsibility for themselves and others, where people take courageous and open decisions and who are prepared to accept criticism and opposition."
German Chancellor Angela Merkel

With frank deliberation, Germany's 21st-Century chancellor has unflinchingly countered what her immediate post-war successor, Konrad Adenauer could not admit. He claimed on behalf of his defeated, war-weary and odiously conflicted and complicit countrymen that most Germans had opposed the crimes of the Nazis, particularly the horrors of the Holocaust. He insisted that many Germans had aided Jews to escape their dreadful fate prescribed for them by Hitler's fascist Final Solution.

"If only that had been the truth", said Inge Deutschkron, 90, a Jewish survivor of the unspeakable. Who remembered well how Germans had celebrated Hitler's rise to ultimate power. She had been invited to address Germany's parliament during a ceremony held as a special session in tribute to those who had perished during the shame of Germany's tryst with a Third Reich.  Yesterday represented the 80th anniversary of fascist Germany's rise on the world scene. She recalled paramilitary black-shirt SA thugs roaming the streets.

"Often, I couldn't get to sleep in the evenings and listened for footsteps in the staircase. If they were boots, I became afraid they could be SA men coming to arrest my father."  She spoke, before German lawmakers in the Bundestag, of recognizing the indifference of most ordinary Germans to the fate of their fellow citizens who happened to be Jewish. Citizens who were forced to wear an outer demonstration of their presumed inferiority as human beings.

"The majority of Germans I met in the streets looked away when they saw this star on me -- or looked straight through me", she recalled. Germans, she understood from what she witnessed in Bonn after the war "had simply erased from their memory the crimes for which the German state had set up its own machinery of murder."

To help elderly Germans recall those years, and to aid the younger generation to fully understand the cauldron of poisonous terror that brewed in Nazi Germany when it set out to conquer the world and to dominate it, while destroying world Jewry, gypsies, political foes, Christians, the elderly and the ill, and those who suffered mental illness, a new exhibition was launched at the Topography of Terror memorial, documenting Hitler's ascension to power.

Chancellor Merkel made especial note of the fact that the German academics of the time and students - German intellectuals in other words - were happy to join the Nazis. And to give proof of their faith in the Nazi ideology, burned all those books deemed to be of a subversive nature.  When Hitler was named chancellor on January 30, 1933, he set Germany on its path to world war and genocide.

"This path ended in Auschwitz", said Andrea Nachama, the director of the Topography of Terror.

 Canada's RCMP In Saudi Arabia

"Cruel, inhuman and degrading punishments, particularly flogging, continued to be imposed and carried out. Women and girls faced severe discrimination in law and practice, as well as violence" is the way that Amnesty International's 2012 report on Saudi Arabia reads, along with remarks about demonstrations against state authority that were "ruthlessly suppressed", protesters arrested, prosecuted on security-related and political charges.


Doesn't much sound like a national entity that Canada or any of its agencies would or should be interested in promoting trade with. Saudi Arabia has earned its reputation. With its oil money it has funded madrases which it has established from Pakistan to Canada whose sole purpose is to promote the severely fanatic Wahhabist reflection of Islam. And out of that Wahhabi version of Islam has come Sunni-dominated violent jihad.

Which gave birth to religious-ideological movements for global change like al-Qaeda which has itself inspired a platoon of wish-alikes and act-alikes, from the African Maghreb to the United Kingdom and well beyond. While Muslim countries conduct their own battles against the terrorism of Islamist jihad which targets all those deemed to be heretic in following versions of Islam like the Esmaili or Ahmadiya or simply insufficiently pious to match the ferocious Islamism of jihad, the West remains on constant alert.

Yet Saudi Arabia poses, like its sister oil-rich countries of the Middle East as bastions of respectability and responsible government heeding the human rights obligations of rulers in respect of the humanity of their populations. The manner in which their populations are respected is seen in the froth of bloodshed in the roiling upheavals of tribal and sectarian butchery in Iraq, Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Syria, Libya, Egypt, Mali, Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan and beyond.

And it has been revealed by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute that Canada has sold billions of dollars' worth of military equipment, including armoured vehicles (munitions not specified) to Saudi Arabia over the last several years. Why does Canada sell any military equipment at all to such a volatile part of the world, to begin with? Yes, Canada is eager to expand its trade opportunities to enrich is GDP but Canada also has scruples. Where are they?

Are they present in the new plans for the country's federal police force, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, to collaborate with the Saudi police to teach them modern and ethical police procedures? On the face of it, it seems a laudable enough initiative; aiding Saudi security authorities to understand best Western-style, human-rights-observing police methods; they could use some tutelage in this area.

To provide them with investigative technique training in law enforcement. RCMP Deputy Commissioner Mike Cabana is reported to have indicated that discussions revolving around providing the Saudis with training in evidence collection and software tools for major case management is in the works; there are requests coming forward from the Middle East for the provision of such training.

"The Saudis are the biggest spenders in the region", explained Toby Jones, Rutgers University professor of Middle East history. "Unless they're going in to revolutionize Saudi police, it's hard to imagine they'll do anything good." Nor does it make Canadians feel particularly proud should this come to fruition to hear that "Providing police services and coordinating training with the Saudis is likely just one part of a broader initiative to maintain as much of a foothold as possible in this lucrative security market."

Considering that "all of this comes at quite a cost, considering the Saudis have a terrible record on human rights and police brutality". Canadian prison and security experts also went in to Afghanistan to help re-design prison facilities, and to teach prison authorities and workers there how better to deal with prisoners, eschewing torture for promoting security and justice in a humane manner. Only to discover that torture remains an integral part of the prison culture in that country.

Consider the reverse: a Middle East country that has a co-ordinated law enforcement teaching program with the United States; in counterpart to Canada and Saudi Arabia, the State of Israel and the United States are taking part in a counter-terrorism training program. For Israel, dealing with terrorism on a daily basis is a reality; transferring their knowledge of best practices in meeting terrorism head on, to a Western country makes sense.

A delegation of law enforcement executives from Connecticut, Maine, New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts and Pennsylvania is currently in the process of meeting with commanders of the Israel National Police, security experts and intelligence analysts in an effort to transfer knowledge and experience from one to the other source; the goal - to learn how Israel prevents and responds to terror attacks.

"Since its founding Israel has been under the constant threat of terror attacks, making it the most experienced country when it comes to preparedness and response strategies. This program allows American law enforcement to interact with and learn directly from the experiences of their Israeli counterparts", explained Robert Trestan, ADL Eastern States Civil Rights Counsel, leader of the American mission.

A logical justification for a useful alliance. Can Canada possibly posit a similar argument for co-operation with Saudi Arabia, other than the trade quotient?

Egypt Detains Black Bloc Member Over 'Israeli Sabotage Plan'

Egyptian authorities detained a member of the Black Bloc militant group suspected of planning to carry out an Israeli-directed sabotage plan

By Rachel Hirshfeld - Arutz Shev 7

First Publish: 1/31/2013, 10:44 PM

A member of the Black Bloc is seen during the protest in Tahrir Square

Reuters

 

Egyptian authorities on Thursday detained a member of the Black Bloc militant group suspected of planning to carry out an Israeli-directed sabotage plan, the official MENA news agency reported.

One person "belonging to the Black Bloc organization was arrested inside a building overlooking Tahrir Square carrying Israeli plans to target petrol companies and vital installations, maps of these places and instructions on setting fire to some places," according to MENA.

Israel firmly rejected the notion of its involvement in any such plot.

Egypt's state security prosecution is currently questioning the suspect, who is accused of "belonging to an illegal organization and planning to sabotage private and public property," AFP quoted the news agency as saying.

According to MENA, the suspect admitted to belonging to the Black Bloc, a group of masked militants who have appeared among protesters in recent clashes with police.

The suspect was spotted by a security guard in a residential building off Tahrir Square and handed over to police, according to the report.

Israeli foreign ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said he had no idea whether or not the Black Bloc member intended to carry out a plan of sabotage, but the claim of Israeli involvement was "utter nonsense."

Elsewhere, another suspected Black Bloc member was arrested after placing an order with a clothing factory in the city of Mahalla, north of Cairo, for black masks and outfits for the group, the prosecution said in the report, as reported by AFP.

The arrests come on the eve of planned protests against President Mohamed Morsi as deadly unrest continues to sweep through the country.

Tags: Egypt ,Israel

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• Will Oxford Endorse Fraudulent Identity of Israel Detractor?
• Two People Killed as Egypt Clashes Continue for Fifth Day

Rape squads of Tahrir Square: Marauding 'state-backed gangs' are still terrorising female protesters two years after revolution

• Reports of 19 group sexual assaults logged on Friday in Tahrir Square
• Claims that attacks are state-backed to deter women from protesting
• Egypt's head of army warns the country is facing collapse

By Sean O'hare
PUBLISHED: 18:40 GMT, 29 January 2013 | UPDATED: 18:55 GMT, 29 January 2013
Sex attacks on female protesters in Egypt's Tahrir Square are premeditated and state-backed, claims an organisation that rescues sexually assaulted female activists.
Last Friday marked the second anniversary of the Egyptian revolution and the highest number of sexual crimes against women in Tahrir Square to date.

Operation Anti-Sexual Harassment/Assault (OpAntiSh), set up to rescue victims from the Square received 19 reports of group sexual assaults, six of which resulted in hospitalisation, while the worst case involved the mutilation of a woman's genitalia with a knife.

Demonstrators against Egypt's President Mohamed Mursi help a female protester. 19 separate sexual assaults were recorded last Friday in Tahir Square

OpAntiSh is convinced that the attacks are orchestrated by the state in an attempt to deter women from protesting against perceived failures by the Muslim Brotherhood to deliver on its revolutionary promises. 

'We have no concrete evidence, only testimonies from victims, but we know it is a tactic. 

'They are an attempt to ruin the image of Tahrir square and demonstrators in general.'

'They happen most of the time in the same places and at the same times, using the same methods.

 

'It is a disease in this country and encouraged and played on by the state to exclude women from public life and punish them for participating in political activism and demonstrations.

'We also recognise that any organised attack depends on the widespread and chronic harassment of women that exists on Egyptian streets, a problem which deserves equal attention and treatment.'

The spokesman added the testimonies recorded were similar to the accounts of attacks on female activists in 2005, believed to be instigated by the secret police and referred to as 'Black Wednesday.'

It comes as Egypt's army chief today warned that political strife was pushing the country to the brink of collapse.

The state is accused of encouraging sexual assaults on women in a bid to stop them from protesting in Tahir Square (pictured) 

It's a stark warning from the institution that ran the country until last year as Cairo's first freely elected leader President Mohamed Mursi  struggles to contain bloody street violence.

Since Thursday of last week hundreds of thousands of protesters have taken to the streets in protest against the President, the Muslim Brotherhood and the failure to deliver on pre-revolutionary promises.

'Nothing has changed since the revolution,' a spokesperson for OpAntiSh said.
'We protest for a reform of the Ministry of Interior and the prosecution of those responsible for the deaths of demonstrators. 

'The reality is that Interior ministers still hold the same positions, in fact many have been promoted and had their salaries improved.'

OpAntiSh was set up in November 2012, the same month a woman was raped near to Tahir Square.

The organisation is made up of approximately 100 men and women who distribute flyers within Tahir Square, alerting people to their existence as an emergency rescue service for victims of sexual assault.

A female protester opposing Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi holds a stone during clashes, along Qasr Al Nil bridge, which leads to Tahrir Square in Cairo

Whenever their hotline number is called they descend on the Square and, with the help of the ambulance service, do their best to intervene and pull women from the middle of attacks that range in size from 15 men up to 500.

The privately-financed group takes victims to hospital and can provide legal aid, safe houses and psychological help if necessary.

The group, which has a Facebook page, also aims to prevent attacks by actively monitoring the square and intervening quickly in the early stages of mob formation.
'Our work is an integral part of this revolution and we want to force change,' said the spokesperson.

'Part of this revolution is about forcing changes for women, to ensure they are no longer looked upon as second-class citizens.'

Operation Anti-Sexual Harassment/Assault's Facebook page that has 2,500 followers. Its volunteers respond to calls to its hotline number and descend on Tahir Square to rescue assault victims

Drawing parallels with the December gang-rape attack on a 23-year-old student in Delhi, India, the spokesperson said: 'At least in India the country has reacted to the attack with outrage and protest. Here people are too afraid to discuss such things, as if it is the woman's shame.'

The outbreak of widespread protests highlight the mounting sense of crisis facing the Islamist head of state who is struggling to fix a teetering economy and needs to prepare Egypt for a parliamentary election in a few months that is meant to cement the new democracy.

Egyptian army chief Abdel-Fattah al-Sissi said political strife was pushing state to brink of collapse

Protesters have spurned a call by Mursi for talks to try to end the violence. Instead, protesters have rallied in Cairo and Alexandria, and in the three Suez Canal cities - Port Said, Ismailia and Suez - where Mursi imposed emergency rule.

Today, thousands were again on the streets of Port Said to mourn the deaths of two people in the latest clashes there, taking the total toll in Mediterranean port alone to 42 people. Most were killed by gunshots in a city where weapons are rife.

General Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, appointed last year to head the military, added in a statement on Tuesday that one of the primary goals of deploying troops in cities on the Suez Canal was to protect the waterway that is vital for Egypt's economy and world trade.

Since the 2011 revolt, Islamists who Mubarak spent his 30-year rule suppressing have won two referendums, two parliamentary elections and a presidential vote. 
But that legitimacy has been challenged by an opposition that accuses Mursi of imposing a new form of authoritarianism. Mursi's supporters says protesters want to overthrow Egypt's first ever democratically elected leader by undemocratic means.

The instability has provoked unease in Western capitals, where officials worry about the direction of a powerful regional player that has a peace deal with Israel. The United States condemned the bloodshed and called on Egyptian leaders to make clear violence was not acceptable.

Egyptian protesters defied the curfew in restive towns along the Suez Canal, attacking police stations and ignoring emergency rule imposed by Islamist President Mohamed Mursi to end days of clashes that have killed at least 52 people

'THEY RAPED ME WITH THEIR HANDS': REPORTER LARA LOGAN AFTER HER MOB SEX ATTACK IN TAHIR SQUARE WHILE COVERING THE ARAB SPRING

CBS News correspondent Lara Logan in Tahrir Square shortly before she was assaulted

The 39-year-old CBS foreign correspondent said she was convinced she was going to die when the frenzied mob tore her away from her film crew and bodyguard in Cairo's Tahrir Square in February 2011.

A group of at least 200 men beat her, pinched her and tore at her clothes in a 40-minute attack that only ended when a group of women came to her aid.

She told the New York Times: 'For an extended period of time, they raped me with their hands...What really struck me was how merciless they were. 

'They really enjoyed my pain and suffering. It incited them to more violence.'
She was attacked on February 11, on her first day back in the city - and the day Hosni Mubarak's government finally fell.

‘Accident waiting to happen’: Derelict Russian cruise ship drifts dangerously close to Newfoundland oil platforms

Canadian Press | Jan 30, 2013 8:59 PM ET
More from Canadian Press

Hugo Miller/Bloomberg News   The Lyubov Orlova is anchored in Pangnirtung Fjord, Nunavut in 2007. There are growing safety and environmental concerns as the empty former cruise ship drifts toward the open sea off Newfoundland.

 

A derelict, rat-infested Russian cruise ship continued to keep Newfoundland oil platforms on edge Wednesday as it bobbed perilously around the storm-battered Atlantic — and questions mounted about why a rundown tugboat was allowed to haul it out of St. John’s harbour in the middle of winter.

The Lyubov Orlova, a 237-passenger vessel about 100 metres in length, has been adrift since its tow line snapped in rough weather last week as it was being taken to the Dominican Republic for scrap.
Transport Canada says it ordered the tugboat Charlene Hunt back to St. John’s over safety concerns and was inspecting it.

Department spokesman Steve Bone said Transport Canada, the Canadian Coast Guard, the Natural Resources Department and the Canada-Newfoundland & Labrador Offshore Petroleum Board were working together on the Lyubov Orlova.

Paul Daly / The Canadian Press   The tugboat Charlene Hunt is docked in St. John's harbour on Tuesday.

 

As of Wednesday night, the vessel was reported to be 170 nautical miles east of St. John’s and was being tracked by a coast guard satellite beacon.

Offshore oil operators about 315 kilometres east of St. John’s were keeping watch as the derelict vessel floated within about 40 km of the Hibernia oilfield.

Margot Bruce-O’Connell, a spokeswoman for Hibernia Management & Development Co., says they are continuing to monitor the vessel but it’s not expected to get too close.

In an email, Mr. Bone said operators of offshore oil rigs in the area have implemented contingency plans to deal with potential collisions from floating objects, such as icebergs and vessels that have lost power. He did not elaborate on what actions those plans include.

The Lyubov Orlova was named for a beloved Russian actress best known for the 1934 comedy Jolly Fellows.

It was a popular Arctic cruise ship before Canadian authorities seized it in St. John’s in September 2010 as part of a lawsuit by Cruise North Expeditions against its Russian owners. The company was trying to recoup the cost of a trip that was cancelled because of technical problems.

It’ll be interesting to know whose responsibility it is to clean it up

The ship’s mostly Russian crew members, who hadn’t been paid for months, were stranded in the city for six weeks. Residents offered everything from food to cigarettes to Internet access before the Russian government eventually helped fly most of them home.

The increasingly derelict, listing ship sat in the harbour for more than two years. It was bought last year by Iranian scrap merchant Hussein Humayuni for $275,000 in a federal court process in Montreal.

St. John’s Port Authority confirmed Mr. Humayuni hired the Charlene Hunt to tow his ship to a scrapyard in the Dominican Republic. He was in the capital Santo Domingo Tuesday but could not be reached.

The long journey started last Wednesday, but was halted the next day when the tug cable snapped. After efforts to reattach it failed, Transport Canada ordered the Charlene Hunt back to St. John’s Sunday.

It is not clear if it will return to try again.

Mac Mackay, a longtime ship watcher and marine blogger in Halifax, questions why the Charlene Hunt was given the job of pulling the Lyubov Orlova, especially in January’s turbulent seas.
He cites another major incident 17 months ago off Nova Scotia.

Nova Scotia government / The Canadian PressThe MV Miner ran aground off Scatarie Island, a provincially designated wilderness management area, on Sept. 20., 2011.

 

The MV Miner ran aground on Scaterie Island, near Cape Breton, on Sept. 20, 2011, while being towed to a scrapyard in Turkey. Federal and provincial officials continue to squabble over who should pay for the cleanup.

“If the Lyubov Orlova does pile up on the shore, it’ll be interesting to know whose responsibility it is to clean it up,” Mr. Mackay said.

“If it sinks in the ocean … there’s bound to be some pollution. It really is a drifting accident waiting to happen.”

Jacqueline Savitz, deputy vice-president of U.S. campaigns for Oceana, called for quick action by Canada if the ship’s owner won’t step up.

Besides the risk of collision if the vessel drifts into shipping lanes, there’s significant environmental risk if it sinks, she said.

“This ship probably still contains lots of toxic chemicals, electronics, oil probably,” said Ms. Savit, whose organization is billed as the largest international group focused solely on ocean conservation.
“Those are all things we want to keep out of the ocean.”

Russia slams Israeli attack on Syria. US forces in Jordan on alert

DEBKAfile Special Report January 31, 2013, 9:51 AM (GMT+02:00)

Tags:  Israeli Air Force   Syria   Russia   Middle East war buildup   US 

Israeli Air Force F-15 Eagle takes off

 

The Syrian announcement of an Israeli air strike on a military site near Damascus Wednesday, Jan. 30, drew strong condemnation from Moscow the next day: “Such action if confirmed would amount to unacceptable military interference in the war-ravaged country,” said the statement issued by the Russian Foreign Ministry Thursday. “If this information is confirmed, then we are dealing with unprovoked attacks on targets on the territory of a sovereign country, which blatantly violate the UN Charter and is unacceptable, no matter the motives to justify it.”

Israel has made no comment on the Damascus statement which described in detail an Israeli air strike against a “military research institute” near the capital. Witnesses say it was a plant for manufacturing “unconventional weapons.” The facility was destroyed and two staff members killed.

Lebanese sources later reported a Russian Mig-31 fighter had crossed over Sinai Wednesday in the direction of Israel. It veered west over the Mediterranean after encountering an Israeli warning not to intrude into its air space and continued flying over Lebanon.

debkafile’s military sources say that the only external military force in the eastern Mediterranean region is a fleet of 18 Russian warships, which includes landing-craft – among the largest in the Russian Navy – with 2,000 marines aboard.

According to various Middle East sources, the Syrian report of an Israeli air strike has touched off high military alerts across the region. Syria has put its Golan forces on the Israel border on combat readiness and the Lebanese and Jordanian armies are on alert. So too are the Russian fleet opposite Syria and the Lebanese army.

Our military sources report that Turkish units on the Syrian border are on high preparedness although Ankara played down the reports of the Israeli air strike in Syria, uncomfortable over the fact that the Israeli Air Force was the first external power to intervene directly in the Syrian conflict.

So too are the US air force units stationed at the Turkish Incerlik air base, the US special forces deployed at the Jordanian Mafraq air facility and the American, German and Dutch Patriot missile interceptors deployed in Turkey opposite Syria. Israel has been on high alert since last week.

The prevailing estimate in military and intelligence circles in Washington and NATO capitals is that the Israeli air attack on the Syrian military site near Damascus was but the opening shot for the coming round of military blows they expect to be exchanged in the near future between Israel, Syria and Hizballah, with Iran possibly waiting in the wings for a chance to pitch in.

Syria, Iran Threaten Retaliation Against Israel

After reported strike on chemical site, Syrian ambassador in Lebanon says ‘‘has the option and the capacity to surprise in retaliation.’’

By Gil Ronen and Rachel Hirshfeld - Arutz Sheva 7

First Publish: 1/31/2013, 4:37 PM

F-15 חקא

Israel news photo: Flash 90

 

Syria and Iran issued threats to retaliate against Israel for its alleged strike on a chemical weapons facility near Damascus Tuesday night.

In Iran, the government-run PressTV quoted Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir Abdollahian Thursday as saying the raid on Syria will have significant implications for Israel.

He called upon United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon to take operative steps against Israel following the attack, and suggested to the Israeli leadership "not to place too much trust on the Patriot batteries that are stationed in the area."

Syria is issuing even more explicit threats. Syria's Ambassador in Lebanon, Ali Abdul-Karim Ali, told Hizbullah's al-Ahd news website that Damascus ‘‘has the option and the capacity to surprise in retaliation.’’

He said that he cannot predict when the response will occur, and said that the authorized elements will take care of preparations for it.

U.S. officials confirmed that Israel launched a rare airstrike inside Syria on Wednesday.

Hizbullah condemned the attack as ‘‘barbaric aggression’’ and Syrian ally Russia said it appeared to be an unprovoked attack on a sovereign nation.

Hizbullah said it ‘‘expresses full solidarity with Syria’s command, army and people.’’ There have been reports that the target was a convoy believed to be carrying anti-aircraft weapons bound for Hizbullah, but Hizbullah did not mention any convoy in the statement. It said the strike aimed to prevent Arab and Muslim forces from developing their military capabilities.

The Syrian military denied the existence of any weapons shipment and said the target was a scientific research facility in the area of Jamraya, northwest of Damascus and about 15 kilometers from the Lebanese border.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi condemned the airstrike on state television, calling it a clear violation of Syria’s sovereignty.

Russia said Moscow is taking ‘‘urgent measures to clarify the situation in all its details.’’

‘‘If this information is confirmed, we have a case of unprovoked attacks on targets in the territory of a sovereign state, which grossly violates the U.N. Charter and is unacceptable,’’ Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement. ‘‘Whatever the motives, this is not justified.’’

Iran's foreign minister on Thursday condemned what he termed Israel's "brutal aggression" against Syria.

"There is no doubt that this aggression is part of a Western and Zionist strategy to push aside the success of the Syrian people and government to return to stability and security," Ali Akbar Salehi said in a statement, as quoted by AFP.

It underscores the "alignment of terrorist groups with the Zionists' objectives," he added, using the Syrian regime's stock word for describing rebels fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad.

On Wednesday, the Syrian army accused Israel of launching a strike on a military research center at Jamraya, near Damascus. Syrian rebels disputed the claim, taking responsibility for the attack
Iran is Syria's principal ally, along with Russia and China, and accuses Western states and certain Arab countries of arming the rebels.

Israeli officials and the military refused on Thursday to confirm or deny any involvement in the alleged attack and had no comment on reports that it had struck a weapons convoy along the Syria-Lebanon border.

The convoy reportedly held weapons destined for Hizbullah. There have been speculations that the strike came as a warning to Damascus not to arm the Lebanese terror group.

According to a report in The New York Times late on Wednesday, Israel had informed the United States of its plans to attack the target prior to launching the airstrike.

One official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Times that the convoy was transporting SA-17 antiaircraft weapons that could obstruct Israel's ability to fly reconnaissance flights over Lebanon.

Tags: Iran ,Syria ,chemical warfare

Egypt politicians condemn violence in Al-Azhar meeting

BBC News online - 31 January 2013

The Muslim Brotherhood's Saad al-Katatni (centre) and opposition figures pledged to distinguish between a "political act and sabotage"

Leaders from prominent Egyptian political factions have met in the country's highest seat of Islamic learning to sign an agreement condemning violence.

The meeting at the al-Azhar mosque was attended by President Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood and by opposition figures.

Opposition politician Mohamed ElBaradei said after the meeting that he was "optimistic".
Nearly 60 people have been killed in Egypt in unrest in the past week.

The politicians, along with activist groups and leaders from Egypt's Coptic Christian Church, were invited to the talks by Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayyib, grand imam of al-Azhar.

The past week has seen the worst violence since President Mohammed Morsi won the presidency in June. The unrest began in Cairo on the eve of last Friday's second anniversary of the 2011 revolution and has spread to several cities.

The worst of the violence has been in the Suez Canal city of Port Said, in protests sparked by death sentences handed down to 21 local people accused of participating in football riots.

A curfew Mr Morsi imposed in Port Said and the cities of Suez and Ismailiya was widely ignored, with tens of thousands of residents taking to the streets. The curfew was relaxed on Wednesday.

Egypt's revolution

• 25 January 2011: Campaign of mass protests against Hosni Mubarak launched
• 11 February 2011: Mubarak steps down as president, handing over to the military
• November 2011-January 2012: Parliamentary elections held; Islamists emerge as winners
• 2 June 2012: Mubarak convicted over killing of protesters and given life sentence
• 17 June 2012: Muslim Brotherhood's Mohammed Morsi narrowly wins presidential election
• 15 December 2012: Constitution drafted by Islamist-led body approved in referendum
• 13 January 2013: Appeals court orders Mubarak retrial

On Tuesday, Egyptian army chief Gen Abdul Fattah al-Sisi warned that the political crisis could lead to the collapse of the state.

The meeting is a significant move and it is not the first time that Al-Azhar, a highly-respected Sunni Muslim institution, has intervened to help solve a political crisis, the BBC's Yolande Knell reports from Cairo.

The document signed by the leaders refers to the "sanctity of [citizens'] blood and of public and private property", according to a text published by the Egyptian al-Ahram newspaper.
It says those signing "condemn the inciting of violence, its justification... and its exploitation in any form".

It also reminds state security forces of their "duty to protect citizens' safety and uphold their rights and constitutional freedoms".

"Whatever our differences are, they should be solved peacefully," Mr ElBaradei said in a press conference after the al-Azhar meeting on Thursday.

"There is an agreement, but definite steps should be implemented."

Saad al-Katatni, leader of the Muslim Brotherhood's Freedom and Justice Party, described the meeting as "historic" and stressed the need for continued dialogue.

Earlier this week, the National Salvation Front, formed by Mr ElBaradei, leftist Hamdeen Sabahi and former Foreign Minister Amr Moussa, turned down an invitation to talks with Mr Morsi.

They said they first wanted him to commit to the idea of a national unity government and a body to look at amendments to the new Egyptian constitution.

However, opposition groups are continuing to call for a mass protest in Cairo's Tahrir Square for what they are calling the Friday of Salvation, to oppose the president and the Muslim Brotherhood, our correspondent reports.

The opposition accuses Mr Morsi of betraying the revolution which overthrew President Hosni Mubarak after three decades in power.

They say Mr Morsi has failed to hold former officials accountable for alleged crimes and has consolidated power in the hands of his own Muslim Brotherhood, accusations the president denies.

More on This Story

Egypt changing

Features and Analysis

• Q&A: Riots and political crisis

  Egypt's main opposition alliance rejects President Mohammed Morsi's call for "national dialogue" as empty of content, after four days of violence.
  

  ---

• President tested

• Mubarak legacy

• Black Bloc anarchists emerge

• Who holds power?

• Mohammed Morsi

• Political pulse

• No easy way out

• Old and draft charters compared

• Profile: National Salvation Fr

Iran 'plans to upgrade enrichment equipment' 

BBC News online - 31 January 2013

Iran is planning new facilities at Natanz

Iran has told the UN nuclear agency it plans to upgrade uranium enrichment centrifuges at its Natanz plant, reports citing diplomats say.

The move would allow the country to refine uranium at a faster rate, increasing fears among western states about Iran's intentions.

Iran insists its nuclear programme is peaceful in purpose. The US and its allies fear it seeks nuclear weapons.

The plan was set out in a letter to the IAEA dated 23 January, reports said.

The letter is said to mention a model of centrifuge, called IR2m, which can enrich two or three times faster than the present equipment being used by Tehran, according to the Associated Press.

The International Atomic Energy Agency sent a letter to member states saying Iran had informed the agency of its plans to use the improved machines at its fuel enrichment plant in Natanz, according to a document seen by Reuters.

"The Secretariat of the Agency received a letter from the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran (AEOI) dated 23 January 2013 informing the Agency that 'centrifuge machines type IR2m will be used in Unit A-22' at the Fuel Enrichment Plant (FEP) at Natanz," the IAEA communication is reported to say.

The Natanz facility, in central Iran, is at the heart of the country's dispute with the United Nations Security Council.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, the European Union's top foreign policy official said she believed that negotiations on the country's nuclear programme would resume shortly.

Catherine Ashton said she was "confident" that there would be a meeting soon.

More on This Story

Iran nuclear crisis

• Far apart

  Failure to achieve a breakthrough in latest round of nuclear talks exposes the wide gaps remaining between Iran and world powers, James Reynolds reports.
  

  ---

• Western 'sabotage'

• Ongoing stand-off

• UK mulls options

• Q&A: Nuclear issue

• Key nuclear sites

• 'Last chance'

• Breakthrough or breakdown?

• Iran attack response

• Israel strike options

• Mixed press on US-Israeli talks

• Oil embargo impact

• Q&A: Sanctions

• Fears of Dubai Iranians

• Is maritime clash inevitable?

Syria complains to UN over Israel 'attack'

BBC News online - 31 January 2013

Israel has not commented on reports of an attack on Wednesday

Syria has formally complained to the United Nations over a reported Israeli attack within its borders.

Syria's army said Israeli jets had targeted a military research centre north-west of Damascus on Wednesday.

It denied claims by the US and others that lorries carrying weapons bound for Lebanon were hit.
Syria has said it reserves the right to defend itself, while its allies Russia and Iran have strongly denounced the attack.

Possible targets

• Jamraya Centre: Reported scientific research centre responsible for developing chemical weapons
• Weapons convoy: Lorries carrying Russian-made SA-17 anti-aircraft missiles to Hezbollah bases in Lebanon

The Syrian army statement about the incident, carried on state media, said Israeli fighter jets had carried out a direct strike on a scientific research centre in Jamraya, killing two people and wounding five.

But a US official told the BBC the target was a convoy carrying SA-17 surface-to-air missiles. Some rebel groups have said they targeted the Jamraya centre.
Israel has declined to comment.

The latest developments have struck a country in turmoil. Syrian President Bashar al-Assad continues to cling to power despite a 22-month conflict that has killed more than 60,000 people.

Analysis

Jim Muir BBC News, Beirut

Amid a welter of contradictory reports and rumours, it seems to be established that Israel did mount a lightning air strike inside Syria, despite complete silence from Israeli officials.
That is their normal practice on such occasions. Additionally, they know that intervening in the complex Syrian internal conflict carries big political risks, not least being accused of teaming up with the rebels.
That is exactly what has happened, with Syria and its allies Iran and Hezbollah saying the attack exposed complicity between Israel, the West, and the Syrian opposition.
Israel knows that intervening in such a way would be likely to embarrass the rebels and strengthen President Assad politically. Whatever prompted it to act must have been compelling enough to override that consideration.
Israel has made it clear that arms transfers from Syria to Hezbollah would constitute a red line.
Most Western accounts believe such an arms convoy was the target. If the Jamraya complex was instead - or also - hit, as Damascus insists, the Israelis must have suspected that something seriously dangerous was going on there.

Syria's foreign ministry summoned the UN commander in the Golan to deliver its formal protest, saying Israel's action violated the 1974 disengagement agreement between the two sides, who remain technically at war.

A UN observer force has been in place in the Golan since 1974, with the task of providing "an area of separation and for two equal zones of limited forces and armaments on both sides of the area".

"Syria holds Israel and those who are protecting it at the Security Council responsible for the results of the attack and confirms its right to defend its land and sovereignty," Syria said in a letter to the UN, reported by state media.

But Syria itself is hardly in a position to do much, says the BBC's Jim Muir in Beirut.
Both Hezbollah and Iran are also under pressure at the moment, and Israel's calculation must be that none of those hostile parties has an interest in triggering a regional conflagration right now, our correspondent says.

Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi condemned the alleged air strike as an "overt assault based on the West's policy" to undermine stability in Syria.

His deputy minister was quoted as saying the raid would have "grave consequences for [the major Israeli city of] Tel Aviv".

There were strong words from Russia, a stalwart defender of Syria on the international diplomatic scene despite its warming trade and economic ties with Israel.

The Russian foreign ministry said: "If this information is confirmed, then we are dealing with unprovoked attacks on targets on the territory of a sovereign country, which blatantly violates the UN Charter and is unacceptable, no matter the motives to justify it."

Earlier Syria's ambassador to Lebanon warned Damascus could take a "surprise" decision to retaliate.
Weapons facility
 
The Syrian army statement said the Jamraya centre - which was focused on "raising our level of resistance and self-defence" - was damaged in the attack, and specifically denied reports that an arms convoy had been hit.

Israeli media reaction

"Israel is closer today to confrontation on the northern front more than it has been at any point since the Second Lebanon War." Alex Fishman, Yedioth Ahronoth

"It could be seen as a hint to other countries, like Turkey and the US, that a military attack on Syria to topple the regime may be an option." Zvi Barel, Ha'aretz

"There have been many signs in recent days that winds of war are blowing in the north. But… an attack, which did or did not take place, will not lead to an immediate round of combat in the north." Amir Rapaport, Ma'ariv

"If Israel acted, as foreign publications say, the ball is in Assad's court. The problem is that in the current situation, he has no court and does not have much to lose. A wounded lion is a dangerous lion." Boaz Bismuth,Yisrael Hayom

It said "armed terrorist gangs" - a term the government uses to describe rebel groups - had tried and failed repeatedly to capture the same facility in recent months.

Some reports suggest the facility could be Syria's Scientific Studies and Research Centre, known by its French acronym CERS, believed to be the state organisation responsible for developing biological and chemical weapons.

Lebanese military and internal security forces say there has been increased activity by Israeli warplanes over Lebanon in the past week, and particularly on Tuesday and the early hours of Wednesday morning.

Correspondents say Israel is also concerned that Hezbollah could obtain anti-tank and anti-aircraft missiles, thus strengthening its ability to respond to Israeli air strikes.

Israel believes Syria received a battery of SA-17s from Russia after an alleged Israeli air strike in 2007 that destroyed a Syrian nuclear reactor near Deir Ezzor in eastern Syria, analysts say.

Wednesday's reported attack came days after Israel moved its Iron Dome defence system to the north of the country.

Sad Truths

"Magda killed her six children in the Fuehurerbunker. Our father loved his half-siblings very much. And when, like me, you have something like this in your family history, you think: It can't be any worse".
Gabriele Quandt
"It's  a sad truth that forced labourers died in Quandt companies".
Stefan Quandt

Six dead children. In the dying days of fascist Germany, Hitler's underground bunker was crowded with his wife, their dog, six children, their mother and step-father, a doctor and perhaps others. It was the children's misfortune that their mother Magda Quandt, in her second marriage gave them Joseph Goebbels as a step-father, though he was a good father to them. Their mother, to prevent her children falling into the hands of the advancing Soviet army, killed them with cyanide.

"My dear son!" she wrote to her son Harold Quandt, then a 23-year-old officer in the German Luftwaffe ... "By now we've been in the Fuehrerbunker for six days already. Daddy, your six little siblings and I, to give our national socialist lives the only possible honorable ending. Harold, dear son, I want to give you what I learned in life: Be loyal! Loyal to yourself, loyal to the people and loyal to your country!"

In 1914, paterfamilias Guenther Quandt, first husband of Magda, invested in wartime profits at the onset of war with his textile factories producing a quadrupled weekly uniform production for the German army. He graduated to producing batteries, sewing machines and silverware. "The Quandts business grew in the Kaiserreich, it grew during the Weimar Republic, it grew during the Second World War and it grew strongly after the war", according to Rudiger Jungluth, author of Die Quandts.

Guenther Quandt took as his second wife Magda Ritschel and their son Harold was born in late 1921. Their marriage lasted until 1929, when they divorced, and two years later Magda married Goebbels and Hitler was best man at their wedding. Guenther Quandt joined the Nazi party when they took power in 1933, and Goebbels became propaganda minister.

The Quandt factories became vital suppliers for the German war effort. They made batteries for U-Boat subs and V-2 rocket launchers and Mauser firearms, ammunition and anti-aircraft missiles. "He was one of the leading industrialists in the Third Reich and the Second World War", explained Professor Joachim Scholtyseck, a Bonn-based professor of history.

Guenther Quandt appropriated assets from Jewish company owners. His son Herbert planned a factory that would make use of slave labour. After his death Guenther's sons took ownership of his business empire. They increased the business stake in Daimler, and saved BMW from collapse as its largest shareholder.

Today the daughters of Harald Quandt ages 61, 60, 58 and 50 have a net worth of $1.2-billion each. Quite the family history; a business empire that grew on war munitions production, that stole Jewish assets, that grew rich on slave labour. A family that lives uneasily with their history of family collaboration with Adolf Hitler and by that connection, the loss of scores of millions of lives, not the least that of 6-million Jews.

German history will always rankle with memory of the Holocaust. This family's connections, and its wealth positively reek with the stench of ill-gotten gains. If there was morality and remorse those riches would be surrendered to charitable enterprises that would attempt to make amends and restore hope in the hearts of the downtrodden, the oppressed, the world's poor.

An investment in medical research, in education. Anything would be better than sitting on that odious wealth.

From Impotence to Defiance

The United Nations, despite all its faults and its failures, its over-bureaucratization, and its hypocrisy, is still held in some level of esteem by its member countries who consider it a hallowed hall of human rights empowerment and equality. And it should be, and this was what was meant to be when it was established out of the initial attempt, with the League of Nations.

Human nature being what it is, the concepts of equality and of rights and empowerment are what each bloc deems them to be.

For there are blocs within the United Nations, and they are powerful, and they have a tendency and ability to circumvent and subvert the best-laid plans and intentions of honourable men and women. Absolutes may be qualified to suit the times and temperaments, values and priorities of those who are able to surround themselves with the mutual support required to bully their way to the top of the pack.

The democratic countries of the world, the wealthy, the technologically advanced, those who not only espouse equality and justice but practise it, find themselves swamped in the tide of those countries still and inevitably harbouring gross resentment against them on the justifiable, yet hoary memories of colonialism and exploitation.

But in the corridors of this place of universal brotherhood and affirmations of peace foremost and always and justice to prevail, mass murderers, bloody tyrants, and nation-wasting dictators stride the halls with respect and impunity. While those whose recognition of and reliance upon justice and human rights sometimes stand accused of tyranny and injustice by those who practise it with relish.

For one country among the 193 member states, patience and forbearance has worn to a threadbare state. It no longer wishes to oblige the majority by standing forlorn and abandoned while being cynically chastised over its human rights abuses raised as issues by those who have become skilled at slander, blame and laying charges that reason cannot seem to challenge with the success of exoneration.

There are too many complicit and engaged with the need to hold Israel captive to allegations and contestations of abuse and injustice. And usually by the very claque that pride themselves on their clever violations of rights and their penchant for injustice in oppressing those over whom they govern to their own benefit.

Israel's mission to the United Nations in Geneva notified the Human Rights Council informally that it wished to delay its participation in the annual Universal Periodic Review process. A process whose purpose is to confront a nation's UN delegation with charges of instances where injustice has prevailed.

There are ample instances where this exercise has value, and one single country where this exercise has been overworked to exhaustion.

Over half the resolutions passed by the UN's Human Rights Council target Israel. The focus is unvaryingly on Israel's treatment of Palestinians. The State of Israel has the dubious distinction of representing the sole country of the UN's 193 member states to be regularly subjected to censure, the only country whose name remains a standing item on the council's agenda.

Council members now express their concern that Israel's decision to remain absent from the usual hearing in defiance of the unwritten 'law' that all countries must submit to this annual assessment of their human rights record, may set an unwanted, unwarranted example for other countries expected to routinely appear, and whose true record actually is one of grave concern. A risible ruse.

Non-cooperation with the UN's Human Rights Council represents a UN heresy, unheard of, unpalatable and unacceptable. But of course no other country on the roster of the UN has ever been on the receiving end of those ubiquitous and viciously acerbic accusations emanating from the council.

One might almost feel that Israel is being unaccountably censored, bullied, harassed, ill-judged. Surely not?

With malice clearly aforethought.

 Shock ... Dismay ...?

The corruption enquiry in Quebec has graduated finally from witness implications of municipal mayors, and members of the municipal bureaucracy along with local political parties financing their operations and personal bank accounts with 'contributions' from corrupt business practices to, finally, looking at the provincial level. And expectations haven't been disappointed. Michel Lalonde, president of an engineering firm that did plenty of business in Quebec has detailed his firm's willingness to support political parties.

"I always contributed to all political parties. I never considered not paying", he said.  So his firm, Genius Conseil, saw nothing amiss in contributing to Vision Montreal, the main opposition party in Montreal politics. And did likewise for the political campaigns ongoing in boroughs around Montreal, jockying to elect their mayors.  Of course the payoffs - 'contributions', were not confined to the municipal level.

Evidently in his company's efforts to secure public contracts, contributions were generously allotted wherever it was estimated they might do some good. And it did, the company received their share of contracts that went out to all professional groups that had the good sense to grease the palms that would make it happen. Beyond bid-rigging at the municipal level, Mr. Lalonde testified that gifts were given to a member of a Transport Department selection committee.

After all, Mr. Lalonde was president of Genius Conseil and it was his concern to increase his company's business opportunities, to ensure that future contracts would go their way.  And, in contributing to all political parties, he boasted, he was aiding democracy. In his company's zeal to be more democratic than the law permits, about $240,000 ended up in the accounts of Quebec's three political parties.

Quebec's chief returning officer tabled documents showing that between 1996 and 2011, the Parti Quebecois - which had been adamant and righteous that the former Liberal government of Jean Charest pursue the matter of corruption and launch a committee to investigate corruption in the building trades - received the lion's share, $117,445. The provincial Liberals were next with $93,640, while the now-defunct (merged) l'Action democratique du Quebec got $28,700.

Contributions, explained Mr. Lalonde, were made by many of Genius employees, even their spouses; and reimbursed through expense accounts and bonuses, the better to launder the illegal 'contributions' so as not to enrage the law banning corporate political donations and individual donation limits. Just doing his very best on behalf of democracy, despite the inconvenience of having to resort to such ploys to circumvent nuisance laws.

The public will no doubt continue to be further entertained by revelations that have lost their element of shock and disappointment.

Serving Time

"The conviction of murder and ultimate sentence does not come with a 'get out of jail free' clause. This is the consequence when a person takes the life of another human being ... the concepts of guilt, remorse, responsibility and accountability should not be significantly set aside at the discretion of a Parole Board"
Sharon Rosenfeldt, spokeswoman, Victims of Violence

At the age of 21 in 2002, Alvin Starblanket who grew up at the Sturgeon Lake First Nation - hard by the front gates of Saskatchewan Penitentiary - had been released from imprisonment for two weeks when he met a pastor at St.George Ukrainian Catholic Parish in Prince Alberta, Saskatchewan. Pastor John Kratko, 61, was found in a riverside park, unconscious. He had been savagely beaten by Alvin Starblanket, and died two weeks later. Mr. Starblanket testified at his trial that the priest had made a sexual advance.

Before that 2002 release, he had distinguished himself in prison by setting fires, threatening staff, and stabbing another inmate. And then, in June, 2002, he became eligible for mandatory release. He had served two years of his then-sentence. At that time, though his case management team urged he be placed in a halfway house, the Parole Board saw fit to freely discharge him with a warning to maintain a distance from gang members.

After killing Pastor Kratko, he further demonstrated his contempt for human life when a year into his prison term for manslaughter he stabbed a fellow inmate at the Saskatchewan Penitentiary no fewer than 187 times with the aid of a thin metal rod. In the following years he has further brought attention to himself by a variety of disciplinary charges in prison. Nine in the last two years. But the National Parole Board has viewed him with compassion, judging that the now-31-year-old should be given a day leave under tough conditions to visit a relative dying in hospital.

"Your involvement in the compassionate [leave] may positively impact this dimension of your life and contribute to future pro-social behaviour", the parole board in their wisdom adjudged. They were of the opinion that this move would assist in repairing the sundered "level of connectivity" with his extended family. As a maximum security inmate, Mr. Starblanket's temporary day-release would be accompanied by two types of restraints and he would be accompanied with armed uniformed escorts.

Understandably the congregation of St.George Church is in "shock" at this turn of events. Mr. Starblanket was imprisoned to serve time for a manslaughter conviction in the death of Mr. Kratko, as well as a second-degree murder charge for the killing of Aime Simard while in prison. He will be eligible for full parole in 2021. Still a relatively young man. And presumably retaining his violently aggressive streak.

2021 is soon enough.

Syria: IAF Struck Military Research Center Near Damascus

Syrian TV says "research base" at Jamraya was hit and damaged. Denies that an arms convoy was stuck.

By Gil Ronen - Arutz Sheva 7

First Publish: 1/30/2013, 10:48 PM

Israeli F-15

Israel news photo: Flash 90

 

Syria accused Israel of staging an air raid on a military research center on Wednesday.

The Syrian army accused Israel of launching a dawn strike targeting a military research centre in Jamraya, near Damascus, in a statement carried by state news agency SANA and quoted by AFP.

"Israeli fighter jets violated our airspace at dawn today and carried out a direct strike on a scientific research center in charge of raising our level of resistance and self-defense," the general command said.

The warplanes entered Syria's airspace via Mount Hermon, Jabal el-Sheikh in Arabic, at low altitude and under the radar, the army said, adding that two site workers were killed.

"They... carried out an act of aggression, bombarding the site, causing large-scale material damage and destroying the building," state television quoted the military as saying.

The army denied reports Israeli forces had launched a strike overnight on a weapons convoy from Syria near the border with Lebanon.

The United States declined to comment on the reported strike by Israel, whose military intelligence chief Aviv Kochavi is currently in Washington for talks with top US general Martin Dempsey.

"I'd refer you to the government of Israel for questions about deliberations or actions that they may or may not have taken," White House spokesman Jay Carney said.

Earlier reports said that Israel had struck a convoy carrying Russian-made antiaircraft missiles. It is not clear at this point which report is the more accurate one, and what actually happened last night.

Tags: Syrian Army ,IAF strike

More on this topic

• IAF Chief: 'Huge Weapons Arsenal' in Syria
• Report: Convoy Israel Struck Carried SA-17 Rockets
• FIFA to Rebuild Stadium Used for Rocket Fire
• Commanders Prepare Troops for Ground Invasion
• Overnight IDF Strikes bring Target Total to 500
• IAF Targets Three Gaza Terror Sites
• IDF Targets Terror Targets in Gaza
• Three Syrian Tanks Enter DMZ on Israeli Border
• Hizbullah Fights in Syria Against Rebels for Assad
• Grad Missile Hits Be'er Sheva; IAF kills Hamas Terrorist

IAF Chief: 'Huge Weapons Arsenal' in Syria

Speaking just before the strike against an arms convoy, Maj. Gen. Eshel explained what the IDF is up against.

By Gil Ronen - Arutz Sheva 7

First Publish: 1/30/2013, 8:46 PM

Maj. Gen. Amir Eshel, Commander of the IAF, described the chaotic threat facing Israel from its neighbors Tuesday, just hours before jet fighters under his command reportedly hit a major weapons convoy between Syria and Lebanon.

"The example in the north, in Syria, is the most glaring one, of a state that is in a process of disintegration, about which none of us has a clue as to what will be there on the day after," Eshel said.

"Add to that a huge weapons arsenal, some of which is state-of-the-art, some of it unconventional, and all of this is happening – I can't call it our back yard, but on our borders. So we have challenges here ranging from the limited ones to the very large ones.

"What do we see in terms of military challenges? We need to deal with a wide range of enemies and rivals, from states to semi-states to organizations, terror etc. We are dealing with the range between sub-conventional to unconventional. From the knife to the nuclear bomb. We are dealing with very short ranges as well as very long ranges. The size of our sphere of interest and action has grown exponentially compared to 10, 15, 20 years ago.

"We are dealing with weapons of every variety and we may have to deal with an even wider arsenal, with advanced western weapons, eastern weapons, and locally made weapons. There are local manufacturers who are active. Some copy and some invent. It's all out there.

"Whereas we used to deal with threats and challenges on our borders – the situation today is completely different. The direct challenges that we need to prepare for can come from the front lines or from the distant depth, to the front line and to Israel's own depth, to the extent that we have such depth."

Tags: Amir Eshel ,IAF strike ,convoy

More on this topic

• Syria: IAF Struck Military Research Center Near Damascus
• Report: Convoy Israel Struck Carried SA-17 Rockets
• IAF Chief Concerned over Hizbullah's UAVs
• FIFA to Rebuild Stadium Used for Rocket Fire
• Netanyahu to Pilots: If the Quiet is Violated, You'll Hit Back
• Commanders Prepare Troops for Ground Invasion
• Overnight IDF Strikes bring Target Total to 500
• IAF Targets Three Gaza Terror Sites
• IDF Targets Terror Targets in Gaza