Middle East on fire

I'm curious to find out what this "new development" was between the Syrians and Israeli's.

Hezbollah's fresh battle plans

Hezbollah has prepared fresh battle plans of its own amid an unprecedented rearming, recruiting and training drive since 2006. It reportedly has 40,000 rockets now, more than double the figure prior to 2006. [csmonitor.com]

Looks like Hezbollah is well prepared to inflict heavy damages against the Israeli's.

[edit on 4-2-2010 by Black_Talon]

It says in the bible that just before the End times Damascus would be wiped off the face of the earth. Possible attack by Israel?

Syria is in an awkward position. No real allies. They chose to sleep with Iran and no one is sympathetic.

Becoming a willing client state makes you look like a whore. The Saudis will not lift a finger to rescue Assad, nor will anyone else.

Unusual when history comes down to one man. Whatever move he makes it's an admission of defeat.

The Iranians will replace him when they feel the need.

He'll spend the rest of his days in an apartment in Paris. A forgotten footnote of history.

We'll see what rhetoric he comes up with to evade the fact that he's painted himself into a corner.

More news... big ones...

11:08 Washington urges Israel and Syria to calm tensions (Army Radio)

So it's not me seeing the big tensions that could lead to war...

13:12 Report: Ex-Soviet scientist helped Iran on nuclear development (DPA)

Oh boy.

13:15 Iran FM to attend Munich meeting, putting nuclear row center stage (Reuters)

At least they still are in debate...

1:06pm Sfeir: The possibilities of war are on as long as Hizbullah wants to play the role of the state.

...they are part of the state you dumbass. And as the people of Lebanon says, the government is not reliable and corrupt as hell, the people prefer Hezbollah because at least they defend the country.

And the economy is going down the drain again! A good war to start it all again...

Iran: Moscow gave missile reassurance

"Our Russian colleagues have assured us they'll meet their obligations," says Iranian envoy. (about the S-300)

Finally if Iran gets the S-300, maybe they'll think twice before going in... or that news will just accelerate their attack.

Israel's foreign minister raised tensions with Syria yesterday by telling Damascus to abandon its claim to the Golan Heights
Of course Lieberman was bashed by many of the opposition... then Netanyahu said he wanted negociations without preconditions... but still, Syria won't negociate without the Golan Heights.

Taiwan will sign a $111 million deal in the next few days to buy up to 20 choppers from Eurocopter, the Defense News reported. Eurocopter is a subsidiary under German-based EADS

And the EU is selling weapons to Taiwan now... way to go! Way to stop any cooperation by China on any important matter.

Now the german medias have all their panties in a bunch saying Iran have the bomb...

In german...

Basically :

- A newspaper has reported it
- The IAEA now CONFIRMS it
- A Russian Scientist helped them build it between 2000 ~ 2002
- The article states that they have 'successfully' undergone testing on multiple / synchronized (EBW's)
[Exploding Bridgewires] for their Schahab-3 intermediate-range ballistic missile

A rough translation..

The help of ex-Soviet scientists Iran to possess nuclear warhead
According to a newspaper report that Iran should have an advanced nuclear warhead, which was developed with the help of a former Soviet nuclear scientist. Experts from the International Atomic Energy Agency estimate that Iran is in a position to build a bomb for his medium-range missiles.

According to a newspaper report, Iran has developed with the help of a scientist from a former Soviet nuclear weapons lab the blueprints for an advanced nuclear warhead. Relevant information from a paper summarizing the state of knowledge of the International Atomic Energy Agency in Vienna was confirmed by Western intelligence agencies and diplomats, reports the Süddeutsche Zeitung. According to the IAEA inspectors would work the warhead.

Last conciliatory tone of President Ahmadinejad could be heard - he was willing to compromise in the nuclear dispute.
(Photo: AP)

When the weapon is, the report says is a two-point implosion system. Unlike older models that needed only two special warhead fuse, called Exploding Bridgewires (EBWs). This would reduce the diameter of the extent that it would be small enough to be shot down with the Iranian medium-range missile Shahab-3. Iran has admitted to the IAEA, of having made experiments for the synchronous firing of several EBWs.

Iran would be without the help of the man, whose identity the paper according to the report is known, probably not been estimated by the IAEA inspectors to that total was in the situation. He should have worked from the mid-nineties until 2000, possibly until 2002 for Iran.
Sophisticated weapons

The IAEA experts judge that Iran has enough information for the assistance of the man has to develop a workable nuclear explosive device after the Implosion and build, based on highly enriched uranium.

The IAEA had shown two years ago and documents that prove that Iran has worked until the beginning of the decade of nuclear weapons. At that time, the Vienna agency had set out plans for construction of a warhead and explanations of how this could be built on a rocket. Since 2003, Iran officially but works together with the IAEA.

What a bunch of bull.

[edit on 5-2-2010 by Vitchilo]

reply to post by Vitchilo


( , Won't Get Fooled Again... background music)

Seems like I heard this before

Indeed

More news...

The March to War: Israel Prepares for War against Lebanon and Syria

Iranian missile airlift stiffens Syrian war talk, tops up Hizballah, Hamas

debkafile Iranian and military sources report the war threats from Damascus this week were backed by massive Iranian airlifts for boosting Syria's missile arsenal. Fresh supplies also reached the Lebanese Hizballah and Hamas in Gaza. Wednesday, Feb. 3, Syrian president Bashar Assad accused Israel of seeking war, while his foreign minister Walid Moallem boasted: "You know that war at this time will come to your cities." They spoke after taking delivery of 100 new medium-range surface-to-surface missiles from Iran in January.

How dare they defend themselves!

15:06 Russia FM: UN Security Council may have to debate Iran nuclear issue (Reuters)

What does that means... They want to change China's opinion?

Good article :

Will you shut up already?

Israel’s babbling government ministers pushing region to brink of war

Uri Misgav
Published: 02.05.10, 14:42 / Israel Opinion

When the Netanyahu government was formed – the most overly inflated government in Israel’s history – we heard much criticism about its outrageous number of ministers. Most charges had to do with the wasting of public funds, setting a bad example, indifference, and the stench of political corruption.

Yet now it turns out that a much graver danger was lurking in the shadows. All these ministers and deputy ministers simply cannot shut up for a moment. They sit there in a government devoid of vision or momentum - some of them hold ridiculous posts, while others don’t hold any post at all – and in the absence of an objective or work, they try to justify their existences via endless chatter.

So we see Yossi Peled being interviewed during a cultural event in Beersheba and predicting another round of fighting in the north this year. Meanwhile, Daniel Hershkowitz boasts of the Mossad’s fine performance during a government session. Ehud Barak tells senior officers that diplomatic impasse will prompt war with Syria. Benjamin Netanyahu boasts at the Caesarea Conference that talks with the Palestinians are expected to renew within weeks, and at the same time also slams Damascus. Finally, Avigdor Lieberman warns Assad that Israel will be toppling his regime.

Reckless abandon
Within the space of one week, this government of chatterboxes, who do too little and talk too much, managed to bring the Mideast to the boiling point. We’ve never seen anything like that before; this is reckless abandon, pure and simple.

As far as I know, there is no other government in the world where each member feels free to make statements on diplomatic and security issues. Only in Israel, every deputy minister of nothing is a potential strategic expert. It’s as though an arrogant bunch took its place at the heart of the world’s most volatile region, and now its members are competing with each other on who would dare to hold a burning match as close as possible to the powder keg’s fuse.

They deal with the most sensitive issues of life and death, war and peace, yet show no sense of responsibility or sound judgment. They’re only good at talking. Had our neighbors realized how empty of all substance these words are, perhaps they would have refused to get overly excited. Regrettably, they insist on taking seriously the statements of the people who make pretenses of talking on behalf of Israel’s government.

It appears there is no point in quoting the timeless advice of Theodore Roosevelt to these glory hounds: “speak softly and carry a big stick.”

Indeed...

UPDATE 2 : Expert: Israel-Syria Tension will Fade
Hopefully.

[edit on 5-2-2010 by Vitchilo]

Hamas Fears Israeli Attack

Hamas terrorists are on high alert because they fear Israel will attack them in the coming days. According to a report in a Kuwaiti newspaper Thursday, the Hamas Al-Kassam Brigades has information that Israel will strike out against the terror group after January 25, when the current Palestinian Authority Assembly's term of office is up – and Hamas, according to Israel, loses its legitimacy to rule Gaza. Hamas terror cells have been placed in numerous parts of Gaza, on guard for the expected Israeli attack, the report says.

On Wednesday, Al-Kassam Brigade terrorists reported on the death of a top Hamas terrorist. Mahmoud Abed al-Mahuch, 50 years old, died of unspecified "medical problems," the group said. He was a major architect of several terror attacks and attempts to kidnap IDF soldiers.

And so it may begin.

More news...

22:49 Iran`s foreign minister demands changes to IAEA nuclear plan (DPA)
16:26 Iran FM says had `very good meeting` with IAEA chief in Munich Saturday (Reuters)

But...

18:09 IAEA Chief: I didn`t receive Iranian counter proposal on nuclear fuel swap (Reuters)

Fail...

Now the anti-iran propaganda for today :

07:20 Secretary of State Hillary Clinton: Iran clearly has nuclear ambitions (Ch. 10)
12:52 U.S. Defense Secretary plays down chances of nuclear deal with Iran (Reuters)

And now on the Syria-Lebanon-Israel front... the heat increase...again.

10:41 Iran officially starts production of two new missiles (Reuters)

Those missiles are : Qaem... ground-air missile against helicos and the Toufan, an anti-tank missile.

11:40 Syria: We could go in the path of peace, but also of war (Israel Radio)

Well thanks for that clarification...

12:36 Bar-On: Kadima won`t join gov`t because Netanyahu thinks like Lieberman (Army Radio)

That is a DANGEROUS COMMENT... it means that Netanyahu, the PM, thinks like Lieberman, the guy who threatenned Syria and said that Syria could go to hell about the Golan Heights. Meaning to Syria : Israel don't want peace and at the next opportunity, your regime will be deposed.

13:28 MK Tibi to Al-Jazeera: Lieberman`s comments are the real face of the gov`t (Haaretz)

Again... This is getting dangerous.

14:46 Report: Hezbollah readies its armed forces in Lebanon for possible attack (Ch. 10)

Hezbollah now thinks that Netanyahu may be as crazy as Lieberman...

18:29 Russia: New Iran sanctions should target nuclear proliferation, not economy (Reuters)

Finally some common sense...

There's rumors that says that the UNIFIL could be downsized... just when the region is on the brink of war... of course they are denying it...
International Review of UNIFIL Structure Amid Denial to Downsize it

The French daily Le Figaro had reported that there were plans to decrease the number of peacekeepers stationed in south Lebanon.

Either they want to get out of the way for Israel...or they won't downsize it...

Maybe if they did their job and shot at Israeli planes violating the border?

But I'm not blaming them... if this had any chance to work, they needed to put troops on the Israeli-Lebanon border and the Syrian-Lebanon border... then kill anything that violated the resolution, that means shooting down Israeli airplanes and killing any Hezbollah guy trying to smuggle weapons.

Gilad: Israel's Anti-Missile System to Remain on Lebanon's Front

Amos Gilad, Director of Policy and Political-Military Affairs at the Israeli Defense Ministry, said Friday that Israel's new anti-missile system will not be deployed on the front with Gaza as expected, but rather kept on the front with Lebanon to counter Hizbullah's attacks in case of conflict with its regional sponsor Iran.

They sure are ready for war...thing is, when and if a war starts, Hamas will shoot rockets too, and Syria too, and maybe even Iran too.

U.S. Concern over Alleged Arms Smuggling, Repetition of 2006 Scenario

A U.S. official has expressed concern over the presence of arms outside the control of the Lebanese state saying such a fact paves way for war similar to the Israel-Hizbullah conflict in 2006.

Utter BS. Hezbollah would not start a war, they are not powerful enough. Or maybe I'm wrong and Hezbollah has turned the entire Lebanon into Kursk-like defense outpost...

Hizbullah Cadres on Alert

Informed Lebanese sources have said that Hizbullah cadres have been on alert in all Lebanese regions and the party's officials have been advised to take precautions against any possible Israeli attack.
The sources told the Saudi Okaz daily in remarks published Saturday that "the party is preparing for all military possibilities."

"It is betting on containing the first strike of any Israeli aggression," the sources said, adding that "containing the attack would bridge half of the victory path."

Indeed. Israel has a difficulty fighting long wars.

Qassem Rules Out War but Says Hizbullah Should be Ready

Deputy Hizbullah leader Sheikh Naim Qassem said the party hasn't received any indications of Israeli readiness to launch war on Hizbullah or in the region.

Jumblat Concerned over New Israeli War, Describes Situation as Madness

Progressive Socialist Party leader Walid Jumblat has expressed concern over a new Israeli war on Lebanon amid "failure of peace efforts and of U.S. policies" in the region.
Jumblat described as madness the current situation in the Middle East and told pan-Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat that "Israel at times threatens Lebanon and at other times threatens Syria and then Iran.

He said "the entire region was in a state of chaos."

"In the presence of such chaos, the Israelis could launch a new war," the Druze leader added.

We'll see...

[edit on 6-2-2010 by Vitchilo]

Of course what's really going on and what regional leaders are thinking and planning is virtually the opposite of what they say to the press.

Everyone is painfully aware their opposite side intelligences monitor the press day and night for hints of plans. It became painfully evident when Saddam Hussein had to watch CNN to find out how his war was going.

Now everybody has learned and plays to the audience of their potential enemies.

A lot of this is about getting Syria to come in form the Dark Side. Assad cannot gain anything as Iran's proxy. He is seeing how he's been played as disposable. Iran wants Lebanon and Syria as a power pack.

We'll see how this plays out.

It's not rhetoric but someone's silence that tells us something is up. The real players are of course the Saudis and Turkey who have a lot at stake. So have said nothing significant to the media. That means they are pulling strings in the background.



[edit on 6-2-2010 by mmiichael]

This was written in 2005, sure sound's vaguely familiar to current time's, hope this does not come to pass, but, if it did, wow.....game on for sure
Sorry about the link, it is availible on page 2 of the other thread on this subject...





www.trumpetsounds.com...

[edit on 6-2-2010 by freetree64]

This is quite interesting....hmmm wondering what they need two new production facilities for...???



Iran opens two new missile plants
(AFP) – 10 hours ago

TEHRAN — Defence Minister Ahmad Vahidi opened two new missile production plants on Saturday, just three days after Iran fired a rocket carrying live animals into space, state television reported.

The plants will produce a ground-to-air missile dubbed the Qaem (Rising) and a surface-to-surface missile dubbed Toofan 5 (Storm), the broadcaster said.

The Qaem is designed to target helicopters at low and medium altitudes, it added.

"Toofan 5 is one of the most advanced missiles. It has two warheads which can destroy tanks and other armoured vehicles," Vahidi was quoted as saying by Fars news agency.

He said the Qaem was a "missile which can destroy targets in the air travelling at low speed and at low altitude, especially assault helicopters."

Iran unveiled the new plants as part of its celebrations for the 31st anniversary of the Islamic revolution later this month.

On Wednesday, it launched a capsule carrying turtles, rats and worms aboard a Kavoshgar 3 (Explorer) rocket in its first experiment in sending living creatures into space.

Iran's missile and space programmes have sparked mounting alarm in the West amid fears that a command of advanced ballistics technologies combined with the nuclear know-how acquired from its declared civilian programme may enable it to produce an atomic weapon.

Iran has also regularly boasted of having missiles that can target arch-foe Israel.

In December it tested the Sejil 2 (Lethal Stone) missile, describing it as a faster version of a medium-range missile that could allow it to strike arch-foe Israel.

The United States and its regional ally Israel have not ruled out a military option to stop Tehran's controversial nuclear drive.

Tehran has in the past threatened to target US bases in the region and to block the strategic Gulf Strait of Hormuz waterway for oil tankers if its nuclear sites are attacked.

Iran is under three sets of UN sanctions for refusing to suspend uranium enrichment.

Copyright © 2010 AFP. All rights reser

Care to buy a new globe??? Very unique item, especially these day's from article written today......interesting


Where Israel Is Wiped Off The Map
2010 February 6
tags: antisemitism, Israel, Palestineby Nancy Morgan
.

If you happen to shop for your children’s school supplies at the neighborhood Target store, you can’t blame them if they have no idea what or where Israel is. That’s because Israel has effectively been wiped off this cute little globe.

That’s right. Israel is no-where to be found. In its place is the word ‘Palestine.’

The Israel free globe has been on sale at 1744 Target stores in 49 states for the last few weeks. It wasn’t until last Sunday that Target finally responded to numerous complaints and finally yanked the revisionist world globe.
Target’s customer relations spokesperson Amy Reilly originally stated that the error was due to the fact that there wasn’t enough space on the item for the word ‘Isreal.’ Which begs the question: How could ‘Palestine’ be entered into a space that was too small for the word ‘Isreal.’

This question will go unanswered. As will many other questions regarding anything to do with the anti-Israeli policy that has been in the norm since Obama took office.

Devrian Global Industries imported “tens of thousands” of these globes from China. When informed of Israel’s banishment, chief merchandising officer Larry Fine apologized.

“Obviously, it was a mistake. We obviously offended some people. Now we’re pulling them off the shelves.”

Not to worry. I’m sure Devrian Global Industries will be able to resell all the Israel-free globes. In Iran, for instance, where Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has vowed to wipe Israel off the map.

Now Lieberman, but this time the US senator, says it's either economic sanctions (which China and Russia don't want) or it's war.

"We have a choice here: to go to tough economic sanctions to make diplomacy work or we will face the prospect of military action against Iran," Lieberman told the annual Munich Security Conference.

Top U.S. commanders are already working out how such a strike should be conducted, and although "no-one wants this to happen ... unless we together act strongly and do more than talk that is exactly what will happen," Lieberman said.

Here

The plans are already made... time for another US war for Israel! Time for a draft.

[edit on 6-2-2010 by Vitchilo]

It may be about to begin!

Arab media: 2 Israeli Navy ships passed through Suez Canal

Two Israeli missile boats pass through Egypt's Suez Canal en route to Red Sea, according to Arab media reports; Cairo adopts strict security measures to ensure ships' safety. Egyptian sources estimate vessels headed to Persian Gulf

And so it begins... or not since it's just little littoral attack boats.

[edit on 6-2-2010 by Vitchilo]

Sound's like someone isn't even concerned who's going to win this one....




www.imemc.org...

More news...

02:15 Report: Hezbollah preparing for IDF attack, raises alert level in Lebanon (Haaretz)
08:19 Human Rights Watch: Israel failing to conduct impartial Gaza probe (AP)
09:42 Iran state TV: Ahmadinejad orders work to begin on 20 percent nuclear fuel (Reuters)
12:20 Qassam rocket fired from Gaza lands in western Negev desert, none hurt (Haaretz)
12:46 U.S. Defense Sec. Gates: Iran response on nuclear deal `very disappointing` (Reuters)
13:00 Gates urges int. community to stand together to bring pressure on Iran (Reuters)
13:13 Senior Hamas official: Reconciliation with Fatah imminent (Ma`an)

Commander: Iranian Air Force to Surprise Enemies

Syrian slips Hizballah Fateh-110 missiles able to destroy Israeli cities

The secret transfer of the mobile surface-to-surface Syrian-made Fateh-110 (range 250km) missile to Hizballah sparked the prediction Friday, Feb. 5 from an unnamed US official that cross-border arms smuggling from Syria into Lebanon outside state control was "very dangerous" and "paved the way to war similar to Israel-Hizballah conflict of 2006. debkafile's military sources report hat Israel warned Syria through at least two diplomatic channels against Hizballah using this lethal weapon, which is capable of reaching almost every Israel city.
Our sources disclose: Syria pulled the wool of Israel's eyes for the transfer by openly training Hizballah in the use of SA-2 and SA-6 surface-to-surface missiles. Israel had warned it would deem their passage into Lebanon Syrian casus belli by Syria.

The Fateh-110 is still more lethal, accurate and dangerous than the SA-2 and SA-3. it confronts Israel now with a Hizballah armed with a solid-fuel propellant, road-mobile, single-stage, short-range ballistic system weighing three tons with a half-ton warhead and a range of 250 kilometers. It is not deployed in surface batteries but fired from mobile launchers, which the solid propellant renders capable of firing at speed with little advance preparation, before returning to the fortified underground silos Hizballah has sunk in mountain areas across Lebanon.
These features make the Fateh-110 a very tough target for Israeli bombers to strike.
According to our intelligence sources, Israel posted warnings against Hizballah using the weapon through US Middle East envoy George missile who called on president Bashar Assad in Damascus on January 20 and ,even more emphatically, through Spanish foreign minister Miguel Moratinos who arrived in Syria on Feb. 3 after talks in Jerusalem. The message he carried was that if Hizballah ventured to fire the Fateh-110, Israel was determined to hit back at strategic and military targets inside Syria.
This warning instantly prompted the war rhetoric which emanated from Assad and his foreign minister Walid Moallem. Israeli foreign minister Avigdor Lieberman, known for his undiplomatic, blunt style, responded by warning Syria that it stood to lose the next war and the Assad family would lose its grip on power in Damascus.
Prime minister Binyamin Netanyahu and defense minister Ehud Barak are presumed to have endorsed the first part of Lieberman's comment as representing their own view. But the minister added the personal threat on Syria's leaders on his own initiative.

Interesting but it's debka after all...

Doom cancelled for a time at least... and for Lebanon only.

European Official: Lebanon is Safe from Israeli Attacks during Next 3 Months

"Lebanon is safe from Israeli attacks during the next three months," The daily Ad-Diyar quoted a European official as saying.
Ad-Diyar also quoted the Turkish tourism minister as saying that Ankara is in "contact with Israel almost daily in an effort to discourage it from carrying out any aggression against Lebanon."

More news...

13:54 Germany: Iran must realize `patience at an end` over nuclear dispute (Reuters)
18:01 Syria ready to respond to Israeli `aggression,` minister warns (DPA)
18:20 Report: Iran successfully tests radar-evading aircraft (Reuters)

Syria would back Lebanon if Israel attacks: Assad

“Syria will stand alongside the government and people of Lebanon against any possible Israeli aggression launched on Lebanon,”

Iran's plan to enrich uranium would break five U.N. Security Council Resolutions, the British government says - Reuters

[edit on 7-2-2010 by Vitchilo]

At last some good news...

Israel seeks to lower tensions with Syria

JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that Israel wants peace with Syria and the Palestinians, following a fierce exchange of words with Damascus that raised tensions in the region.

"Israel wants peace with all its neighbours. We made peace with Egypt and Jordan and we seek peace with Syria and the Palestinians," Netanyahu said at the start of a weekly cabinet meeting.

The hawkish premier said the renewal of negotiations on both tracks should have no preconditions and that any peace agreement must guarantee Israel's "security interests."

"I hope that we will soon renew the talks with the Palestinians and we are open for the renewal of negotiations with Syria," Netanyahu said.

Let's hope it's not only words.