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News Of Interest For The Year 2008

11-11-2008 Has Hamas Secret Ties With President Elect Obama Been Uncovered?

Hamas: Secret Ties with Obama?
by Hana Levi Julian

Hamas is claiming close and ongoing ties with America's upcoming Obama Administration, according to a report published Tuesday in the Arabic-language newspaper Al-Hayat. The relationship was kept under wraps until after the U.S. elections so as not to harm Obama’s election prospects. The U.S. has classified Hamas a terrorist organization.

The London-based publication interviewed Gaza-based political chief Ahmad Yousuf, advisor to Ismail Haniyeh, the head of the Hamas regime in Gaza, which seized power in a bloody coup d’etat in 2007. Yousuf declared that Hamas has been in regular contact with President-elect Barack Obama’s advisers for months.

"We were in contact with a number of Obama's aides through the internet, and later met with some of them in Gaza," the Hamas official was quoted as saying, "but they advised us not to come out with any statements, as that may have had a negative effect on his election campaign and be used by Republican candidate John McCain."

After the U.S. elections, President-elect Obama has appointed Robert Malley as a senior foreign policy adviser.  Malley, who served as an “informal adviser” to the Obama campaign, was reportedly forced to sever his ties with the campaign six months ago, when The Times of London reported that he was meeting with Hamas representatives on a regular basis.  During the campaign Obama claimed he opposed contacts with the Hamas.

At the time, campaign spokesman Ben LaBolt stated that "Rob Malley has, like hundreds of other experts, provided informal advice to the campaign in the past.  He has no formal role in the campaign.  He will not play any role in the future."

FrontPage Magazine reported Tuesday that Obama has already dispatched Malley to meet with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Syrian President Bashar Assad. The report cites an unnamed aide of Malley’s as stating that Malley's job is to explain 'that the Obama administration will take Egyptian and Syrian interests more into account' than did the outgoing Bush administration. 

Source: Arutz Sheva (news@israelnationalnews.com) 11/11/2008

10-22-2008 Obama Receives Backing From Hamas Terrorist Organization:

Obama this week received backing from the Hamas terrorist organization, which earlier in the year was cool to him because of his statement that Jerusalem should be the undivided capital of Israel. He immediately backtracked from his statement following fierce Arab objections. 

Hamas spokesman and advisor Ahmed Yousef told WABC's John Batchelor this week that an Obama administration would be "more fair and impartial" than the Bush government. He referred to Democratic vice presidential candidate Sen. Joe Biden as "a great man." Yousef added, "We do count on him also as a good partner with Mr. Obama to put the right policy regarding how to handle the problems in the region."

Source:Arutz Sheva (news@israelnationalnews.com) 10-22-2008 By Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu.

10-22-2008 Iranian Dirty Bomb Was Hijacked:

Web blogs all over the Internet are continuing to buzz about an Iranian ship that was hijacked last August by Somali pirates and which Russian sources warned contained a dirty bomb intended for Israel.  

The hijacking passed largely unnoticed in the mainstream media, save a brief mention in the news on August 22 that reported that three vessels – Iranian, Japanese and German – and their 57 crew members were hijacked by pirates in the Gulf of Aden near Somalia. Several pirates died after they forced open part of the cargo. 

The waterway connects the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Somalia, host to the longest coastline in Africa (1,880 miles), is an international piracy and terrorist hotspot. Foreign vessels are often seized by pirates in the area, who hold the ships and their crews for ransom.

According to its manifest, the MV Iran Devant had departed Nanjing, China on July 28 and was headed to Rotterdam to deliver 42,500 tons of iron ore and "industrial products" to an unidentified "German client." 

But the Iranian bulk carrier with 29 crew members, owned and operated by the U.S.-sanctioned Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines (IRISL), was apparently transporting cargo considerably more significant than the average contraband.  

The 40 pirates, armed with AK-47s and rocket-propelled grenades (RPGs) brought the ship to Eyl, a fishing village in northeastern Somalia, according to numerous bloggers. There a larger contingent of pirates took control of the vessel – 50 on board and 50 patrolling on the beach. 

Initial attempts to inspect the ship's seven cargo containers failed. The pirates could not break into the holds and the crew swore they did not have access codes to the locks. 

The captain and engineer of the vessel evaded answering questions about the contents of the holds, despite threats by the pirates to blow up the ship. They first said the containers held crude oil, but then changed the story to say there were "minerals" in the holds. 

When at last the pirates succeeded in opening one of the containers, they discovered packets of what they later reported to be "a powdery fine sandy soil."  

The pirates who had any exposure to the powder were struck down by illness and within days began to exhibit strange symptoms, including skin burns and hair loss. Sixteen of them died. Andrew Mwangura, director of the East African Seafarers' Assistance Program, bluntly told the South Africa Sunday Times in a September 28 interview, "There is something very wrong about that ship."  

The ship was released by the pirates on October 10, announced the IRISL public relations office, "after seven weeks of negotiations with Somali pirates." All 29 members of the crew were reported safe. Iran criticized world powers for its indifference toward the lack of security in international waters. IRISL, which is run by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard, added in its statement that the vessel was sailing towards international waters. It is not clear where the ship is presently located.

Russian Intelligence: Ship Was a Dirty Bomb Sent to Israel

U.S. and Israeli intelligence officials maintained a tight-lipped silence on the incident. However, Russian intelligence sources said the ship was "an enormous floating dirty bomb, intending to detonate after exiting the Suez Canal at the eastern end of the Mediterranean and in proximity to the coastal cities of Israel.  

"The entire cargo of radioactive sand," said the Russian sources, " [was] obtained by Iran from China (the latter buys desperately needed oil from the former) and sealed in containers which, when the charges on the ship are set off after the crew took to the boats, will be blasted high into the air where prevailing winds will push the highly dangerous and radioactive cloud ashore."  

Several military web blogs have noted that had the ship's crew succeeded in reaching Israel's coastal waters with their deadly cargo, it would have been quite easy to escape the vessel in small boats and then detonate explosives on the vessel. The radioactive powder, which would have been blown into the air, would have been carried by the wind straight to Israel.

Source: Arutz Sheva (news@israelnationalnews.com) 10-22-2008.

(9-28-2008) U.S. Sends Israel Missile Radar:

Last Sunday (September 21) Israel received a new missile defense system from the U.S., complete with a team of American support personnel that will become the first group of U.S. troops to be stationed permanently in the country. The FBX-T system is based on the latest x-band radar technology, and is designed to provide early detection and warning of incoming missiles such as the Shahab-3 rockets that Iran claims can reach and destroy targets in Israel. 

On September 21, more than a dozen aircraft deployed by the United States European Command (EUCOM) arrived at the Nevatim Air Base southeast of Be’er Sheva, carrying the AN/TPY-2 Transportable Radar Surveillance/Forward Based X-band Transportable (FBX-T) system, as well as some 120 American personnel. The team of technicians and advisers, including at least one from the Pentagon’s Missile Defense Agency (M.D.A) will remain in Israel as the support crew for the new system. They represent the first time in Israel’s history that the U.S. military will have a permanent presence in Israel.

According to the latest assessment from the Israeli government, Iran is "galloping toward a nuclear bomb."

Source: Arutz Sheva (News@israelnationalnews.com) 9-28-2008.

7-16-2008 Eldad Regev And Ehud Goldwasser Bodies Returned To Israel:

Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser were soldiers doing their national duty guarding the border when they were ambushed, kidnapped and murdered by Hizbullah terrorists. Conversely, the terrorist that were returned, were criminals and murderers who intentionally killed innocent men, women and children and had been tried and convicted of that in a court of law.  

While they were kidnapping and killing innocent Israeli soldiers, the Israelis were treating the imprisoned Hizbullah terrorists in a human fashion. The contrast here could not be starker. 

What was most disturbing however, was the fact that whilst Israel was mourning, the terrorist in Lebanon and elsewhere celebrated. This is where my theory of finding common ground really disintegrated. One would have thought that if Israel was mourning the death of two fallen soldiers the terrorists would have mourned 100 times more for the death of the 200 dead bodies that were returned to them. But all we saw was celebration. There seemed to be no mourning at all on the Arab side.

Source:  Rabbi Levi Brackman: Published on 7-20-2008 (Israel Jewish Scene)

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3569972,00.html

7-8-2008 Future Temple Jewish Priests Get Fitted For Holy Garments:

As the Jewish People continue their national return to their ancestral homeland, tailors at the Temple Institute in Jerusalem’s Old City began taking measurements of Kohanim (the priestly tribe designated to run the Temple services) earlier this month in anticipation of an even bigger event -- the dedication of the Third Temple.

Yehuda Glick, director of the Temple Institute, presided over the first-ever fitting of Kohanim for their priestly garments. “Today, in this room, Kohanim are being measured for the first time in 2,000 years for the type of garments they will be wearing in the rebuilt Temple," announced Glick to an audience of rabbis, reporters and cameramen on hand to witness the historic event. 

The garments of the Kohanim are described in great detail in the Torah. While scale models of the future Temple can be seen in shop windows and the clothes of the Priesthood can be seen hanging on mannequins, the event marked the first time since the destruction of the Second Temple that real-life Kohanim have been measured for the clothing of their holy work in the Temple.

Source: Arutz Sheva (news@israelnationalnews.com) by Ze'ev Ben-Yechiel.

6/29/2008 Iran Aims Shahab-3B Missiles At Dimona:

Iran has aimed its Shahab-3B ballistic missiles at the State of Israel, according to a report published Sunday in a British newspaper.

The Times of London reports that the missiles were moved on to launch pads and are reportedly focused on several targets in the Jewish State, among them the nuclear reactor in the Negev city of Dimona.

Source: by Hana Levi Julian Arutz Sheva (news@israelnationalnews.com)

6/25/2008 Gay March To Close City Streets Of Jerusalem On Thursday:

Thursday's road-closings will be less festive, though possibly no less disruptive. The police plan to close downtown streets including Agron, King David, and Emek Refaim, from 4-7 PM, to make way for the controversial gay parade. The marchers will gather near Independence Park at 4 PM, will begin parading at 5 PM towards Liberty Bell Park, and will hold a rally there at 6 PM.

Late last week, Jerusalem Mayor Uri Lupoliansky filed a petition in the Supreme Court against the parade, calling it a provocation. The Court refused to cancel the parade, and Supreme Court Justice Ayalah Procaccia even said that it was important that parades such as this "become a normal part of the routine and not arouse storms of protest each year." 

Source:Arutz Sheva (news@israelnationalnews.com) Wed 6/25/08.

2-19-2008 Iran: Israel Will Be Destroyed By the Hands of Hizbullah:

Major-General Mohammad Ali Jafari, the commander of Iran's Revolutionary Guards said on Monday that Israel would soon be destroyed by the "hands of Hizbullah." "In the near future, we will witness the destruction of the cancerous existence of Israel by the powerful and competent hands of the Hizbullah combatants," Jafari's note said.

Source: Arutz Sheva (news@israelnationalnews.com) by Nissan Ratzlav-Katz 2-19-2008.

1-27-2008 Recent Research Shows Jerusalem Belongs To The Jews:

Jacques Gauthier, a non-Jewish Canadian lawyer who spent 20 years researching the legal status of Jerusalem, has concluded: "Jerusalem belongs to the Jews, by international law." For more precise information on the research check out Recent Jerusalem Research.

1-13-2008 Report: Olmert Agrees to Allow in 50,000 Arab 'Refugees' (by Hillel Fendel:

Reports are that Prime Minister Olmert has now agreed to allow 50,000 Arabs who left Israel in 1948 - or are descendants of those who did - to enter and live in Israel.

Israel liberated Judea and Samaria during the Six Day War in 1967, capturing it, essentially, from no one. No country in the world, other than Great Britain and Pakistan, recognized Jordan's control over Judea and Samaria between 1948 and 1967.

Oft-forgotten is the fact that the refugee problem was not caused by Israel, but by the Arab states.  "The Arab States encouraged the Palestine Arabs to leave their homes temporarily in order to be out of the way of the Arab invasion armies," according to the Jordanian newspaper Filastin (February 19, 1949). 

Joan Peters, in her classic work "From Time Immemorial," quotes (on page 13) an Arab-sponsored Institute for Palestine Studies finding that "the majority" of the Arab refugees in 1948 were not expelled, and that 68% left without seeing an Israeli soldier.

On April 27, 1950, the Arab National Committee of Haifa informed the Arab States: "The removal of the Arab inhabitants... was voluntary and was carried out at our request... The Arab delegation proudly asked for the evacuation of the Arabs and their removal to the neighboring Arab countries."

Channel Ten reported Thursday night that in a private meeting between Olmert and Palestinian Authority Chairman Abu Mazen, the two agreed that in the final-status agreement, Israel would withdraw from 92% of Judea and Samaria, including all the non-Jewish neighborhoods in eastern Jerusalem.  It was also agreed that 50,000 "refugees from 1948" would enter and live in the State of Israel. 

Zuheir Muhsein, the late Military Department head of the PLO and member of its Executive Council, told the Dutch daily Trouw, March 1977, "The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity... Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people... to oppose Zionism."

Source: Arutz 7 News (1-13-08) news@israelnationalnews.com. By Hana Levi Julian.

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