Headlines for 12-11-07

Major powers fail to agree on Iran sanctions: U.S.


Bush demands Iran explain nuke program


Bombed If You Do, Bombed If You Don't by Rep. Ron Paul ** The latest National Intelligence Estimate has been greeted by a mixture of relief and alarm. As I have been saying all along, Iran indeed poses no quantifiable imminent nuclear threat to us or her neighbors. It is with much alarm, however, that we see the administration continue to ratchet up the war rhetoric as if nothing has changed.


Neocons Strike Back on Iran by Philip Giraldi ** Far from being relieved to learn that the United States is not seriously threatened and would not be fighting a second war in the Middle East, the neoconservatives who have been calling for an assault on Tehran lashed out, indicating that for many, agenda driven ideology trumps reality every time. The pundits who wanted a war last week still want one this week, NIE be damned.


Iran, Syria tighten borders Iran and Syria tightened border and airport controls to help stop Iraqi militants and arms from passing through, Iraq's national security adviser said.


Dissidents dispute Iran nuke report An Iranian dissident group is disputing U.S. intelligence that Iran shelved its nuclear weapons program in 2003. Mmm k.



Softening tone, Ahmadinejad calls U.S. intelligence report 'step forward'


Remarks by President Bush and President of Italy Giorgio Napolitano in Photo Opportunity finally, I'm -- have expressed and will continue to dialogue with the President about my deep concern about Iran. Iran is dangerous. Iran -- we believe Iran had a secret military weapons program. And Iran must explain to the world why they had a program. Iran has an obligation to explain to the IAEA why they hid this program from them. Iran is dangerous, and they'll be even more dangerous if they learn how to enrich uranium.


US sees Iran threat despite warm words President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said Tuesday a key US intelligence report on Iran's nuclear programme could help end decades of enmity with the United States, but Washington shot back stating that the Islamic state remains a danger.


Iran's ex-president attacks Ahmadinejad in student speech


Iraq rejects permanent U.S. bases: adviser Iraq will never allow the United States to have permanent military bases on its soil, the government's national security adviser said, calling the issue a "red line" that cannot be crossed.


Assad pledges Syrian support for Iraq reconciliation


Pakistan warns of strong response to nukes grab Pakistan's military vowed a strong response to any international attempt to seize its atomic arsenal as the army successfully test-fired a nuclear-capable cruise missile on Tuesday.


Will Liberty Succumb to Federalist Society Ideology? The US Supreme Court has taken up the issue whether the executive branch can detain people indefinitely merely by declaring them to be suspected terrorists or illegal enemy combatants. The case is a habeas corpus issue and, therefore, of the utmost importance. Without the protection of habeas corpus, government can lock away anyone on the basis of unsubstantiated charges as the Guantanamo detainees have been for nearly six years.


Olmert says Iran still dangerous Israeli PM Ehud Olmert has insisted Iran's nuclear programme remains dangerous, and called on world powers to prevent it acquiring atomic weapons 'wolf! WOLF!!'


White House Fought NIE Over an Old Charge ** By November 2006, the Central Intelligence Agency had already circulated an assessment within the intelligence community that rejected the covert weapons program thesis, as Hersh reported in late November. However, Vice President Dick Cheney and his aides were trying to exclude the CIA's assessment from the NIE, a senior intelligence official told Hersh. .......Another tactic used by Cheney was to cite a new claim by Israeli intelligence that its spies inside Iran had learned that Iran had developed and tested a trigger device for a nuclear bomb......The CIA did not regard the report as reliable, especially in the absence of details that would allow verification. But Cheney asked for the original raw Israeli intelligence report, according to Hersh ? the same thing Cheney and top Pentagon officials had done in constructing their case for the invasion of Iraq in 2002.


Bush pardons do not include Scooter Libby A pardon amounts to federal forgiveness for one's crime, while a commutation cuts short an existing prison term.


U.S. report on Iran forces Israel to alter strategy ** The Israeli dilemma is how to prove Iran is cheating without being accused of trying to push the United States into war. That is why the official strategy is to work quietly behind the scenes......The new Israeli strategy is based on four main elements:
· actively pushing for stiffer international sanctions on Iran, despite the U.S. report; · working quietly behind the scenes to convince others through Israel?s own intelligence material that Iran is intent on producing nuclear weapons; · refraining from arguing with the U.S. assessment in public, lest Israel be seen to be trying to push the United States into military action against Iran; · and Israel keeping open its own military options.......the scenario that would have had the United States "take care" of Iran in return for Israeli concessions to the Palestinians has been blown out of the water.



Israel keeps up pressure on Iran ** Israel and the US seem to be working off the same intelligence sources.
The Israeli view, therefore, represents a different assessment of the same data. "Only time will tell who is right," Mr Barak said.
Well we know who was WRONG about Iraq. That's why the NIE took a different view this time (rightly so), geniuses.


Victim: Gang-Rape Cover-Up by U.S., Halliburton/KBR Legal experts say Jones' alleged assailants will likely never face a judge and jury, due to an enormous loophole that has effectively left contractors in Iraq beyond the reach of United States law.


53 die in Turkey shipwreck Seven of the 85 people on board have been rescued and 25 were reported missing, officials said. Most passengers were of Palestinian, Somalian and Iraqi origin.


A Failure of Intelligence I believe we have the opposite problem -- namely, intelligence successes. By that I mean successful disinformation operations, black propaganda operations that have promoted falsehoods for decades in an extraordinarily successful series of attempts to mislead the American people and shape U.S. foreign policy to serve neo-conservative ideological ends.



Lebanese Hezbollah supporters protest electricity outage The protestors were chanting slogans denouncing the western-backed government of Premier Fouad Seniora and some figures from the anti- Syrian majority and called for electricity to their areas to be restored.


Syria sees long way to go before reclaiming Golan


Germany frees Iranian 'bargaining chips' Germany released two jailed Iranian agents whom Israel had wanted swapped for missing airman Ron Arad.


Sarkozy and Netanyahu Met on Monday French President Nicholas Sarkozy assured opposition leader Binyamin Netanyahu on Monday that he would continue to do everything possible to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons.


Critics of Israel lobby draw fire


Palestinian refugees demonstrate in northern Lebanon Palestinians went on strike in northern Lebanon Tuesday to protest the delay in efforts to reconstruct the devasated Nahr al-Bared camp,


Arab group: Israel committed war crimes during Lebanon war Arab Association for Human Rights says Israel violated international humanitarian law during Second Lebanon War by 'positioning temporary and permanent military outposts in close proximity to Arab communities'. IDF: decision on where to position these installations was based solely on operational considerations


Second Committee approves text calling on Member States, United Nations system to step up promotion of agricultural technology for development Noting that Israel had recently announced the building of 307 settlement housing units on Palestinian agricultural land in East Jerusalem, he said those units would add to the settlements already established on agricultural lands in the occupied Syrian Golan and Lebanon's Shab'aa Farms, which remained under continuing Israeli occupation. The Arab Group was convinced that Israel was neither interested in agriculture nor the peace process. It pretended to be concerned about agricultural technology and development everywhere but the occupied Arab lands where it continued to adopt policies that undermined all forms of agriculture.


US Public Diplomacy Chief Departs Amid Praise, Criticism Hughes quickly embarked on a tour of the Middle East. "I came home from my very first trip and asked to see the president," she said. She says she told Mr. Bush that making progress on the creation of a Palestinian state would be the single most important thing he could do for public diplomacy among Muslims worldwide.


Frank talk about the Israel lobby


Israel PM warns Iran can develop nuclear bomb by 2010 The NIE report last week said US allegations about Iran's atomic goals had been overblown for at least two years, but that Tehran could have the capability to make a nuclear weapon by 2015.


'Kite Runner' defies film stereotypes of Muslims