LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN

LCCC ENGLISH DAILY NEWS BULLETIN
ِJune 06/2010

Bible Of the Day
Luke 5/27-32: " After these things he went out, and saw a tax collector named Levi sitting at the tax office, and said to him, �Follow me!�5:28 He left everything, and rose up and followed him. 5:29 Levi made a great feast for him in his house. There was a great crowd of tax collectors and others who were reclining with them. 5:30 Their scribes and the Pharisees murmured against his disciples, saying, �Why do you eat and drink with the tax collectors and sinners?� 5:31 Jesus answered them, �Those who are healthy have no need for a physician, but those who are sick do. 5:32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.�

Free Opinions, Releases, letters, Interviews & Special Reports
Did we betray Samir Kassir?/By: Hanin Ghaddar/June 05/10
Gaza Flotilla's Leader Explains: It was a Jihadist Attack not a "Humanitarian Operation/By: Barry Rubin/June 05/10
A Brief History of the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict/By: Nancy Salvato/Canada Free Press/June 05/10
slamist Extremists Hit Israeli Soldiers with Iron Bars, West Surrenders?/By Barry Rubin/June 05/10

Latest News Reports From Miscellaneous Sources for June 05/10
Pope in Divided Cyprus on First Pilgrimage to Orthodox Land/Naharnet
Pope calls for 'harmony' in divided Cyprus/AFP
Medvedev Hopes 'Irresponsible' Iran Listening/Naharnet
Lebanon Accident Kills French Peacekeeper, Injures Two/Naharnet
Lebanese MP, Sakr: Erdogan�s remark insulting to Arabs/Now Lebanon
Hariri meets with US congressmen in Beirut/Now Lebanon
Williams: Report on Resolution 1701 will be Released at the End of June/Naharnet
Salam: We are in Constant Contact with Turkey and Brazil, Have No Final Draft Law for Iran Sanctions/Naharnet
Turkish man says he had 'revelation' before killing bishop/AFP
'Paralyzing sanctions' purged from Iran draft/AFP
Khamenei raps opposition before anniversary of polls/Daily Star
Obama to Name Ex-General Clapper as New Spy Chief/Naharnet
Nobel laureate on aid ship: We won't resist Israeli forces/Daily Star
US couple arrested for giving money to Hizbullah/Daily Star
Geagea: Jumblat Said it is Futile to Deploy Army in South to Combat Israel as Long as Hizbullah Refuses/Naharnet
Nasrallah Calls for Sending More and More Freedom Fleets to Break Gaza Siege/Naharnet
Israel a 'cancerous tumor,' Iran says/UPI.com
Lebanese leader heads to Washington/UPI.com
Turkey's premier flays Israel as ties hang by thread/Daily Star
Nasrallah: Raid shows Israelis will attack even their allies/Daily Star
Geagea: Halting peace talks would benefit Israel/Daily Star
Lebanon accident kills French peacekeeper/AFP
Former MP Samir Aoun Dies after Struggle with Illness/Naharnet
Suleiman Holds Talks with 2 US Congressmen and Discusses 2010 Budget with Minister Ogassapian/Naharnet

Pope in Divided Cyprus on First Pilgrimage to Orthodox Land
/Naharnet/Pope Benedict XVI arrived in Cyprus on Friday on a three-day "pilgrimage," hoping for harmony between the rival Greek and Turkish Cypriot communities on the divided eastern Mediterranean island. The pontiff, on his first trip to a mainly Orthodox country and the first ever papal visit to Cyprus, said the island was blessed by a "resilient Christian heritage" and saluted the head of its Orthodox Church, Archbishop Chrysostomos II, as his "brother in that faith."
The pope also told reporters traveling with him that he hoped the desire for Middle East peace would not be diminished after a deadly Israeli raid on a Gaza aid flotilla in international waters east of the island. Benedict was greeted in the southwestern resort of Paphos by Chrysostomos and by President Demetris Christofias, who said "Cyprus is in need of your words of peace, given the difficult situation the island is facing." "Allow me to say that Cyprus is in need of your prayers and your contribution in order to quickly regain its unity and freedom," said Christofias, who heads the island's majority Greek Cypriot community.
Turkish troops have been stationed in the breakaway north of the island since a 1974 invasion in reaction to a Greek Cypriot coup seeking to unite the island with Greece.
The 83-year-old pontiff made an oblique reference to the division, which continues after decades of fruitless UN-sponsored talks.
"May the love of your families and the desire to live in harmony with your neighbors" under God's protection "inspire you patiently to resolve the remaining concerns that you share -- with the international community -- for the future of your island," he said.
The Turkish Cypriot religious leader, Mufti Yusuf Suicmez, said he asked for an audience with the pope, inviting him to the Turkish-held sector of Nicosia, or to meet in a reception at the Vatican consulate.
Asked about a possible meeting, Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi said without elaborating: "There is a concrete possibility that they will meet."
Citing Vatican sources, the religious news agency I.media reported later that the meeting would take place on Saturday afternoon.
On his first stop after leaving the airport, Benedict met Chrysostomos at the nearby ancient church of Agia Kyriaki Chrysopolitissa, where they shared what was billed as "ecumenical celebration."
Speaking to him, Chrysostomos said that "since 1974, Cyprus and its church have been experiencing the most difficult times in their history."
"In this struggle of ours... we would greatly appreciate your active support," he said.
The visit by Benedict, who said he was following in the footsteps of the apostles Paul and Barnabas, has raised eyebrows among Cyprus' more traditional churchmen who view him as a heretic and have threatened to boycott him. Touching on the division of Roman Catholicism and Orthodoxy dating back to 1045, Benedict hailed the Cypriot church for its contributions to reconciliation. He said that while achieving unity "will certainly not be without its difficulties," both churches "are committed to advancing in the way of dialogue and fraternal cooperation."
Benedict will meet and pray with the Catholic faithful, but the numbers in Cyprus will be much lower than usual because the community represents only a tiny minority of the population, boosted by Asian migrant workers. He also has an official mission to hand over to Catholic prelates who have come to Cyprus from the Middle East a working document for a synod on regional issues to be held in October. Referring to the latest troubles in the Middle East, the pope told reporters aboard his flight: "In all of these episodes we have been living through, there has always been the danger that people lose patience and say: 'I no longer want to seek peace.' "You always have to begin again afresh in the certainty that you can go forward and achieve peace." On Saturday, the pope will meet with Christofias and have lunch with Chrysostomos. In between, he will visit a school belonging to the Maronites, a community with Middle Eastern roots, a centuries-long presence in Cyprus, and communion with Rome. In the afternoon, he will celebrate mass at Nicosia's Franciscan church of the Holy Cross in the UN buffer zone between northern and southern Cyprus. The Cypriot authorities have deployed about 1,000 police officers after unconfirmed reports that there might be demonstrations against the pope's visit to the island.(AFP) Beirut, 05 Jun 10, 12:41

Medvedev Hopes 'Irresponsible' Iran Listening
Naharnet/Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said
Saturday he hoped an "irresponsible" Iran was listening to the international community after the U.N. Security Council agreed on a new draft resolution.
"The situation is this: an agreement on sanctions exists," the president said in Germany after talks with Chancellor Angela Merkel. "We hope that the voice of the international community is heard by Iranian leadership.""Such expressions of irresponsible behavior cannot be continued. What is said internationally needs to be listened to. Only this way can the most complex tasks be solved," he said. The comments came after the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council -- the United States, Russia, China, Britain and France -- agreed on a draft new resolution that includes fresh sanctions against Iran over the Islamic republic's sensitive nuclear work. Both Russia and China have been more reticent than the others on sanctions, but Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Friday that "paralyzing sanctions" had been purged from a new draft resolution to take into account "the economic interests" of Moscow and Beijing.The White House said Thursday it was confident the U.N. Security Council would back toughened sanctions on Iran in the next week.
Senior U.S. officials said last week they were forging ahead with a resolution without Brazil and Turkey, two non-permanent Security Council members that brokered a nuclear fuel swap deal with Iran aimed at forestalling sanctions. Under the deal reached last month Iran committed to deposit 1,200 kilograms (2,640 pounds) of low-enriched uranium in Turkey in return for reactor fuel. But the accord drew a cool reaction from world powers led by the United States.(AFP) Beirut, 05 Jun 10, 14:41

Navy Boards Aid Ship Peacefully, Escorts it to Israel
Naharnet/Israeli forces on Saturday boarded the Rachel Corrie after it ignored orders not to head for Gaza, but there was no repetition of the bloody violence when commandos stormed an aid boat earlier this week. The military said its troops had boarded the ship "with the full compliance" of the crew and passengers in a peaceful operation in which there was no use of violence by either side. "Our forces boarded the boat and took control without meeting any resistance from the crew or the passengers. Everything took place without violence," a spokeswoman told AFP, saying no shots had been fired. The ship and the 15 people on board, most of them Irish or Malaysian activists, was being escorted into the southern Israeli port of Ashdod from where the aid would be transferred to Gaza through land crossings, the military said. Speaking to an AFP reporter in Ashdod, army spokeswoman Avital Leibovitz said the operation had been conducted peacefully. "They didn't storm the ship -- they boarded it with the agreement" of the people on board, she said. "They are on the way here and it will probably take a few hours." The decision to commandeer the Rachel Corrie came after the vessel refused to respond to four requests to head for Ashdod, instead staying its course for Gaza Strip and risking a potentially explosive confrontation with the navy. Israel promptly warned the 1,200-ton cargo ship that it would be boarded by naval forces if it did not change course.
"Our soldiers will board you if you refuse to change course... We are ready to use force to defend ourselves," Leibovitz told the BBC, quoting the message relayed to the vessel.
Israeli forces intercepted the ship in international waters shortly after dawn but only contacted the Rachel Corrie several hours later when it was 28 nautical miles from the coast but did not specify exactly where. International waters begin some 20 nautical miles off the shoreline.
Shortly after the navy took over the ship, an Israeli warship was seen heading out of Ashdod port and turning south, indicating the boat was somewhere to the south of the city which lies some 30 kilometers (20 miles) north of the Gaza border. Activists on board the ship had made clear they would not heed Israeli calls to change course, but had also said they would not put up any resistance to Israeli forces should they board the vessel. They said they would allow their 1,000 tons of cargo to be inspected, preferably by an international force.
In a last communiqu� issued at around 5:38 am (0238 GMT), activist Jenny Graham, who is on board the Rachel Corrie, told organizers the vessel was being approached by two Israeli warships. Graham said equipment on board had been "jammed by the Israeli navy, and that they expected their satellite phone to be jammed soon as well."
Meanwhile, as news of the standoff on the high seas reached Gaza City, people began streaming towards the port in anticipation of the ship's arrival, with officials hailing what they saw as the imminent end of the Israeli blockade which has been in place for nearly four years. "We are in the last 15 minutes of the siege," said Ahmed Youssef, deputy foreign minister in the Hamas-run government, describing Israel's attempts to block the ship's passage as "a major violation of naval laws" and a "crime against the international community".
Youssef, who also head of the government's committee for breaking the siege, predicted there would be a flood of attempts by international activists to break Israel's naval blockade on the territory. "There will be a lot of ships sent to Gaza by international solidarity organizations in the next few weeks in the name of justice and human rights," he said.
Israel had warned it would stop the Rachel Corrie, which had been due to join the flotilla of ships which attempted to run the blockade earlier this week but was held up for technical reasons. Israeli naval commandos raided the flotilla before dawn on Monday in a bungled operation which left nine foreign activists dead, most of them Turkish, and scores wounded, among them seven Israeli soldiers, and sparked an international outcry.(AFP) Beirut, 05 Jun 10, 14:31

Geagea: Jumblat Said it is Futile to Deploy Army in South to Combat Israel as Long as Hizbullah Refuses
Naharnet/Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea criticized on Friday some sides that have demanded the withdrawal of the Arab Peace Initiative and an end to indirect Palestinian-Israeli negotiations. He said: "These demands are the greatest favor to the Israeli government" seeing as it is not eager to resume the negotiations, and it instead wants the withdrawal of the initiative and an end to the talks, both direct and indirect. "It is in our best interest that indirect Palestinian-Israeli negotiations be speeded up in order to reach a peace deal in the best possible time for the Arabs and the worst possible one for the Israelis," he stated. Furthermore, he noted that Israel did not withdraw from southern Lebanon in 2000 by force, nor did it withdraw from Gaza by force. Geagea said: "There can be no real solutions in the region except through working with the international community and pressuring it to form a free and independent Palestinian state in Palestine." "If Iran wanted to use force against Israel, then the whole world will side with Israel against Iran," he stressed.
Addressing the dispute between House Speaker Nabih Berri and former Prime Minister Fouad Saniora over the state budget, he said: "If anyone is annoyed with Saniora's political stands, then they should criticize him on that basis and not resort to technical matters that target the entire Lebanese system." Turning to Berri's recent stance towards the U.S.-ISF security agreement in which he labeled it as illegal and demanded that the government reconsider it, Geagea said: "I disagree with him about this, but support his proposal over the need for cabinet to discuss it again." He stressed that the agreement is not a security one, but only one of equipping and training the army, adding: "We will continue on supporting it as long as it falls in Lebanon's favor, and we will take the necessary measures once it is proven otherwise." As for MP Walid Jumblat's refusal to send the Lebanese army to southern Lebanon without proper equipment, Geagea said: "Jumblat did not disagree with me, but he made another proposal." He added: "My theory calls for deploying army units in the South to combat Israel, keeping in mind that their armament would be similar to Hizbullah's knowing that the latter � fights Israel with light weapons and others that are available to the army." "The essence of what Jumblat told me was the futility of this proposal as long as Hizbullah does not accept it," added Geagea. The LF leader also held separate talks with a delegation from the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs and British Ambassador to Lebanon Frances Guy. Beirut, 04 Jun 10, 17:10

Williams: Report on Resolution 1701 will be Released at the End of June
Naharnet/U.N. Special Coordinator for Lebanon Michael Williams revealed Friday that a new report on the implementation of U.N. resolution 1701 will be released at the end of June.
He stressed after holding talks with Defense Minister Elias al-Murr the need "for more progress by all sides over the resolution, which is important to Lebanon and the region."
He also condemned Israel's attack of the Freedom Fleet, saying that U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon condemns this act, and attributes it to the siege imposed on Gaza.
Williams had also held talks with President Michel Suleiman on cooperation between the Lebanese army and U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) on ways to maintain the stability in the South according to resolution 1701. Beirut, 05 Jun 10, 13:00

Nasrallah Calls for Sending More and More Freedom Fleets to Break Gaza Siege
Naharnet/Hizbullah Secretary-General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah on Friday noted that "there is an excellent chance at the moment to break Gaza's siege," adding that more and more "Freedom Flotillas" need to sail toward the impoverished seaside strip in order to break its 3-year-old blockade. "I thank you for meeting the invitation to honor the strugglers and martyrs," Nasrallah addressed a mass rally gathered at the Raya Stadium in Beirut's Southern Suburbs, a Hizbullah stronghold, to show solidarity with the Freedom Flotilla and to commemorate its Turkish victims. On Thursday, Nasrallah urged "all Lebanese, Palestinians and Arabs and Muslims in Lebanon" to take part in the rally to mark their "solidarity and support for the besieged people of Gaza, for the heroes of the Freedom Flotilla who returned home alive and especially for the martyrs of the fleet."
"I salute all the participants in the Freedom Flotilla, especially the Lebanese delegation because they were the messengers of the Lebanese Resistance -- in all its groups and parties," Hizbullah number one added. "I extend my congratulations to the families of the Turkish martyrs for obtaining this medal and honor, accompanied by my condolences on the loss of the beloved ones. "The Freedom Flotilla was attacked in the international waters in evident and blatant piracy," Nasrallah stressed, adding that the attack provides new evidence "on the state terror practiced by Israel." "Israel was created through state terror and it has always ridiculed international and diplomatic norms, and everything is permitted for the sake of Israel," he added. Nasrallah noted that the incident proves that the U.S. administration is still committed to helping Israel in escaping punishment.
"What happened unveils the deceptiveness of some governments in the world -- which call for democracy and human rights � and which have only voiced condemnations," Nasrallah added.
He stressed that the activists were released in "record time" because they are not Arabs. "Had they been Arabs, they would've remained in custody until this moment," Nasrallah added.
Paying tribute to four Lebanese "Freedom Flotilla" activists present at the rally and who were repatriated this week, Nasrallah said: "Just as Israel takes into account the red flag of Turkey, so it takes into account the yellow flag" of Hizbullah. Nasrallah called on the people of Lebanon, including Christians and Muslims, to participate en masse in "Freedom Flotilla II".
"Any Lebanese who is on that flotilla will come home safe and sound."
On the other hand, Hizbullah's leader said that it would be "an earthquake for Israel" in case Turkey decided to sever bilateral ties. "The diplomacy which is based on strength can be effective and it can reach achievements. "I tell everyone who participated in the Freedom Flotilla that their acts did not go in vain. This incident has put back the Gaza blockade on the front burner after years of global negligence. This incident made the U.N. secretary-general (Ban Ki-moon) demand an immediate end to Gaza's blockade and made Egypt, commendably, open the Rafah border crossing." Nasrallah quoted Israel's Mossad intelligence agency as saying that Israel has started to turn from an aid to the U.S. into a burden on the U.S.
He lauded Turkey's stance which has become "different than before." "This is a major and important advancement and Israel has started to lose Turkey," Nasrallah noted.
He also lauded Kuwait's stance and its decision to withdraw from the Arab Peace Initiative "which offers Israel a lot of concessions."
"What Israel committed embarrasses those who call for peace and normalization with Israel as well as the Arab moderation axis," Nasrallah said, obviously addressing Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea who on Friday criticized "some sides that have demanded the withdrawal of the Arab Peace Initiative and an end to indirect Palestinian-Israeli negotiations."
"These demands are the greatest favor to the Israeli government," Geagea said. Turning to the opening of the Rafah border crossing in the wake of the Israeli raid on the Gaza-bound aid fleet, Nasrallah said: "We -- in the Arab and Islamic worlds, the Arab League and the Organization of the Islamic Conference � are ready to stand by Egypt in case it was being subjected to pressures to close the Rafah border crossing."Nasrallah concluded that "we must work on preserving the friendship with Turkey and Iran, and must work on being strong and to acquire strength because the world only respects the powerful." Beirut, 05 Jun 10, 00:26

Sakr: Erdogan�s remark insulting to Arabs
June 5, 2010 /Lebanon First bloc MP Okab Sakr told the Voice of Lebanon (VOL) radio station on Saturday that Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan �insulted us as Arabs when he said [in a recent statement] that Israel must know that Turkey is not like other countries� and added that Turkey is not a tribe.� Erdogan made the remarks after Israel raided an aid flotilla headed for Gaza on Monday. The attack left nine Turkish nationals dead. �What [Erdogan] is saying is that he is not an Arab, but Turkish,� Sakr said. Sakr said that countries and groups are now trying to make political gains off the flotilla raid incident, including �Turkey, Iran and the resisting forces.� He also criticized Telecommunications Minister Charbel Nahhas, who according to reports suggested during Friday�s cabinet session to include additional figures, such as independent funds and loans, in the state�s budget plan. Finance Minister Rayya al-Hassan told Nahhas the proposal is being reviewed, reports said. Prime Minister Saad Hariri and Speaker Nabih Berri have a good relationship, according to Sakr. With regard to Berri�s request earlier in the week to account for $11 billion in past government spending, Sakr said the issue must be followed up on.-NOW Lebanon

Did we betray Samir Kassir?
Hanin Ghaddar, June 5, 2010
Now Lebanon/
A reproduction of a caricature displayed at an exhibition in the Samir Kassir Cultural Centre in Beirut on March 17, 2009 (AFP photo).
This week marks the fifth anniversary of the brutal murder of Samir Kassir, journalist, writer and political activist. One question remains: Have we betrayed Kassir and the values he died for by allowing fear to creep back into our lives?
The author of �The Dream of Change� was killed on June 2, 2005 by a bomb planted in his car that exploded as he left for work. He left behind a legacy of ideas and principles that symbolize the 2005 Independence Intifada, or Cedar Revolution, which erupted in the wake of the murder of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. But since those heady days that saw Syria withdraw its troops and intelligence appartus from Lebanon, a wave of disillusionment has swept away his dreams of change.
He did not live to see his ally, Druze leader Walid Jumblatt, visit Syrian President Bashar al-Assaad and defend Hezbollah and its weapons. He was killed before the hope for real democracy and Lebanese independence was itself assassinated during the 2008 May civil violence, by the Doha Accord and by the current so-called national-unity government.
Samir Kassir�s heart stopped beating while it was still full of hope and anticipation. He left us hoping that we would watch over the �Beirut Spring� and the ideals of democracy, secularism and sovereignty it hinted at.
We failed him, left the streets and turned his dreams into vague clich�s that we only use during speeches or for election goals. Kassir wouldn�t have settled for what we settled for. He would have kept the fight for freedom alive and held his allies more accountable than his enemies if they forgot the pledge they made to the Lebanese in 2005. He wouldn�t have given up hope.
Samir Kassir, a Lebanese rebel with a Palestinian father and a Syrian mother, who wanted the 2005 Beirut Spring to open the doors of democracy and enlightenment in all Arab states, would have been the first to march for secularism at last month�s Laique Pride rally. He would have called for and supported Lebanese women�s fight to pass on their nationality to their children.
He believed that there could be no real democracy in Lebanon without a democracy in Syria, and that Lebanon would never be free unless Palestine was freed. He wrote: �the Arab spring, when it blossoms in Beirut, it declares the time of roses in Damascus.�
Kassir tried to reconcile intellect with politics, and believed that intellectuals and politicians should be freed from tribal and sectarian loyalties. How far are we now from his dream?
Kassir was aware that 2005 was just a moment, and that a real political project for reform and change needed time to be built. He knew that most of the people who gathered at Martyr�s Square then did not have a unified agenda for change. Their one and only common goal was to get the Syrian troops to withdraw and to topple the pro-Syrian government.
That was achieved, but nothing was built on those historic foundations. Instead, political bickering and personal gain overcame the need for change. It is easier to blame one�s opponents for setbacks, for few leaders, if any, admitted to or apologized for their shortcomings.
Before he was assassinated, he criticized how everyone fell back on the 1960 electoral law and refused real reform. He witnessed the beginnings of compromise over real change and saw human dignity turn back to sectarian politics and the status quo. He asked March 14 politicians not to renew the speaker of the house�s mandate for another four years �as if the days of Syrian hegemony did not end, and as if Beirut streets did not fill with more than a million demonstrators on March 14, 2005, as if nothing happened.�
But they did, not once, but twice.
He believed in the people and wrote in an article in mid-April 2005 entitled �Despair is not our Fate� that everyone can �hear the people complain... they who created the new independence, and refuse that their aspirations be shattered. They do not like to see their demands to achieve the incomplete dream be let down.�
Kassir knew that the politicians might fail the people. Although he did not see them go one after another to Damascus, he supected that they might forget. He only believed in the Lebanese, who today feel disheartened by seeing Jumblatt�s defection and Lebanese Forces leader Samir Geagea under attack because he has refused to compromise.
Two months before he was mudered he wrote, �Comrades in opposition [March 14] new or old, go to the streets, you will hear the people�s concerns, and you will hear an urgent call for another kind of revolution, a revolution against the self, that would open the end of the Baath regime�s hegemony in Lebanon to the horizons of modern state, a state for citizens, not a state for followers.�
Samir Kassir left us with a dream we must realize. His killer is still free and it is our duty to seek justice. It is also our duty to hold onto Kassir�s values, avoid clich�s and work with whatever tools available to achieve the remaining goals, such as fullfilling UN Security Council resolutuions 1559, 1595 and 1701, which do justice to his values.
He said once, �Go back to the streets, comrades and you go back to clarity.� He knew that real change is a long road that requires sacrifice and persistence. Kassir neither betrayed Beirut nor its streets.
Let�s not betray Samir Kassir , let�s not kill him twice!
**Hanin Ghaddar is managing editor of NOW Lebanon

Lebanon Accident Kills French Peacekeeper, Injures Two
Naharnet/One French U.N. peacekeeper was killed and two others injured in a road accident in southern Lebanon on Saturday, a spokesman said. "One UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) peacekeeper died and two other soldiers were injured in a road traffic accident involving an armored personnel carrier on a routine patrol this morning," said UNIFIL spokesman Naresh Bhatt. He said that the accident occurred in the vicinity of Qalaway, a village east of the southern port city of Tyre, and that no other vehicle was involved.
The injured were immediately evacuated for medical treatment and their condition was "stable," Bhatt added. He refused to give the nationalities of the injured and said that the circumstances of the accident were under investigation. A Lebanese security official said that the men were from UNIFIL's French contingent, and that their vehicle had overturned.
UNIFIL has some 13,000 troops from various countries stationed in southern Lebanon. France has the second largest contingent after Italy. The force, which was set up in 1978 to monitor the border between Israel and southern Lebanon, was considerably beefed up in the wake of the devastating 2006 war between Hizbullah and Israel.The 1,500-strong French battalion serving with UNIFIL is based in the village of Tiri, some eight kilometers (five miles) from the Israeli border.(AFP) Beirut, 05 Jun 10, 13:41

Salam: We are in Constant Contact with Turkey and Brazil, Have No Final Draft Law for Iran Sanctions
Naharnet/Lebanon's Special Envoy to the U.N., Nawaf Salam, stressed Saturday that Lebanon's position towards sanctions against Iran is no longer an obstacle in adopting them.
He told As Safir that the Turkish and Brazilian stances are now the new obstacles seeing as they have not yet reached a decision on the matter. In addition, he revealed: "A draft law has not yet been finalized � and the stances of countries towards it have not yet been taken." Salam added: "Lebanon's stand is clear and it is unchanged" noting that a "diplomatic chance" has emerged after the signing of the tripartite agreement between Iran, Turkey, and Brazil. He stressed: "Lebanon calls on all the members of the Security Council to deal with the agreement positively." He also denied that Lebanon is being pressured to take a stand over the sanctions. Salam noted: "Lebanon has not started uncovering the direction the votes in the Security Council is heading, but we as a delegation are in constant contact with Turkey and Brazil." Beirut, 05 Jun 10, 13:27

Former MP Samir Aoun Dies after Struggle with Illness
Naharnet/Former MP Samir Aoun passed away Saturday after a struggle with illness.
He was appointed as an MP in 1991 and was later elected to parliament in 1992 and 1996 as part of the MP Walid Jumblat's Progressive Socialist Party bloc.
Born in Damour, the late MP was the son of MP Aziz Aoun who was a member of the National Struggle Front of late leader Kamal Jumblat. Beirut, 05 Jun 10, 13:11

ICEJ Press Statement & Video on Gaza Flotilla: Duped Again
The World's Shameful Response to the Mavi Mamara
The willful disregard of facts in the rush to condemn Israeli self-defense
Friday, 4 June 2010
The international condemnation of Israel this week over the interception of the Turkish ship the Mavi Marmara is clearly a case of �don�t confuse me with facts because my mind is already made up.�
Any fair-minded person, after viewing the IDF�s video footage of the incident, will concede that Israeli commandoes were definitely not boarding a ship full of peaceful activists intent on bringing love and aid to the citizens of Gaza. On the contrary, there were embedded among the passengers a large number of well-armed militants motivated by a twisted desire to inflict bodily harm on any Israeli soldiers they encountered on the voyage to Gaza or to die while trying.
It has emerged that many of these so-called activists were in fact radical Islamic jihadists fully prepared to sacrifice their lives for this misguided adventure. They, in fact, left statements to this effect with their families and friends and then, as they saw it, went off to wage war against Israel in the real expectation of dying and ascending immediately to paradise!
Israel�s interception of the ship in question, and indeed of the whole flotilla, was imminently legal given that several such ships have been used over recent years to attempt to ferry arms to Hamas and Hizbullah. The Hamas regime ruling Gaza has been officially listed as a terrorist organization by numerous states and the on-going arms blockade of Gaza is, in fact, a cooperative effort supported by Egypt and the United States.
Once again the radical Left, mainly in Europe, and Muslims extremists have linked hands in order to recklessly stage a publicity stunt that had little to do with delivering aid to Gaza. Not only did this misguided venture cost lives, but it has exposed the anti-Semitic agenda of those who gave themselves to it. The rush of states like Turkey and the wider world, including the United Nations, to judge and condemn Israel before the real facts emerged was little short of pathetic. Once again, blind arrogance and hatred triumphed over reason and truth.
Israel did what was right and, indeed, what every self-respecting democracy would do in defense of its civilians and sovereignty. The failure then of the Western democracies to stand up in defense of a more measured approach based on all the facts is evidence of the degree to which they have given in to the radical voices of hatred in their countries. Appeasement of these voices is a highway to disaster and it is slowly but surely eroding the freedoms that were won, especially in Europe, some sixty years ago by the spilling of much blood. The winds of change are indeed blowing, but if the West is not careful it will reap the whirlwind!
The Prime Minister of Israel was thus right when he accused the international community of double standards and of losing its way in terms of understanding the difference between good and evil. This hypocrisy is no more evident than in the recent attack by North Korea against a South Korean frigate which resulted in the death of forty-five South Korean sailors. Where was the condemnation, protests and outrage at this clear act of unprovoked aggression? No, all of this has been reserved for Israel, who is locked in a life-and-death struggle with an opponent in Gaza who � with the full backing of Tehran and Damascus � unashamedly calls for and works towards her total destruction. An opponent that, without shame, has launched some 10,000 rockets at the Israeli civilian population over the past decade.
It has become popular to bash Israel and �play games� with totalitarian regimes in the Middle East, including the rulers of Gaza, but in the end the truth of what really happened on the Mavi Marmara will and is being revealed for all to see. That is, to those who are not blinded by hate and whose minds are not already made up!
And by the way, in case you were wondering, an average of nearly 150 trucks pass from Israel into Gaza every day, bringing much needed help to the people living there.
Malcolm Hedding
Executive Director
ICEJ News - is a free email service providing news and comment on Middle East affairs compiled by journalists at the International Christian Embassy Jerusalem and supported by donations from subscribers. Photographic content subject to copyright, do not use without permission of copyright holder.
SCRIPT for ICEJ News Video Report on Gaza Flotilla [please read to the end of bulletin...more info]
This is the latest Free Gaza flotilla setting sail from Istanbul on its way to Gaza last week. The organizers said they were peace activists on a humanitarian mission to delivery badly needed aid to suffering Palestinians. To do so, however, they would have to break through the naval blockade which Israel has imposed around Gaza to prevent Hamas from smuggling in weapons. Israel sends tons of humanitarian aid into Gaza every day; but these good people were determined to open a sea lane and end the Gaza siege.
Everyone waited to see what would happen when the two sides met on the high seas, but then something went horribly wrong. Early Monday morning, here�s how Al-Jazzera reported the encounter from on board the flagship Mavi Marmara�
Instantly, the world rushed to judgment and began condemning Israel for attacking innocent civilians on a humanitarian aid convoy. It was a �slaughter at sea,� claimed Palestinian leaders. Turkey�s Prime Minister Recep Erdogan insisted it was �inhumane state terrorism� and recalled his ambassador to Israel. Western leaders also joined the chorus of criticism and � as could be expected � the UN Security Council held an emergency session to condemn Israel and demand an international inquest.
But it turns out that the world was duped once again by media serving a propaganda cause rather than serving the truth.
Several hours later, the IDF began releasing video footage of what really happened. Here we see Israeli troops � armed with paintball guns � lowering themselves down by rope onto the deck of the Mavi Marmara and immediately being beaten with clubs and pipes and iron chains. Some of these so-called peace activists also had knives and stun grenades and fire bombs ready. It turns out these were radical Muslim jihadists whose motivation was not concern for the downtrodden in Gaza but a twisted dream of engaging in hand-to-hand combat with Israeli soldiers. For some 15 minutes, the Israeli troops fought for their lives against the swarming militants. Only after the attackers stole two hand guns and began firing were the Israeli forces allowed to resort to live fire to defend themselves.
The whole violent episode was senseless and unnecessary. Israel had repeatedly offered to send the aid shipments through land crossings into Gaza and urged the ships to go with them to the port of Ashdod. But the flotilla refused.
It was a tragic mistake which led to the deaths of nine people. Yet even then, most of those killed or wounded were out to slaughter Jews or die as a shahid while trying.
Footage taken while they were sailing to Gaza shows them chanting a well-worn Muslim battle cry against Jews� and wishing for martyrdom.
So next time, will world leaders be duped again by the lies? Will you also drink with them from the poison trough of Jew hatred?
On another note and to help keep us afloat in this sea of misinformation:
Let's hear from Capt. Stabbing & The Flotilla Choir

Promised land, Balfour Declaration, Palestine, Palestinian refugees
A Brief History of the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict
By Nancy Salvato Thursday, June 3, 2010
It was around 1400 B.C., when Moses led the Hebrew slaves out of Egypt into Palestine, the �promised land�. After the Romans destroyed Jerusalem in 70 A.D., the Jewish state came to an end and the Hebrew (Jewish) people were dispersed. In the 1890�s, Jews driven by Zionism to establish a modern Jewish nation-state and flocking back to their ancient biblical homeland in British controlled Palestine, eventually became embroiled in a modern day conflict between themselves and Palestinian Arabs.
During WWI, British Foreign Secretary Lord Balfour issued the Balfour Declaration; Britain would view establishing a national home for the Jewish people in Palestine, favorably. Thus, Palestine was carved into �Emirate of Transjordan� (later simply �Jordan�); the area east of the Jordan River, where Britain installed a Saudi Arabian Bedouin tribal chieftain, Abdullah ibn Hussein, to rule over Bedouin and Palestinian Arabs, and the western half; between the Mediterranean Sea and Jordan River, where Palestinian Arabs and Zionist Jews wrestled for control.
Britain handed responsibility over the western half of Palestine to the United Nations; which partitioned it into two states, one for the Jews; which would consist of the Negev Desert, the coastal plain between Tel Aviv and Haifa, and parts of the northern Galilee, and the other for the Palestinian Arabs; which would consist primarily of the West Bank of Jordan, the Gaza District, Jaffa, and the Arab sectors of the Galilee. Jerusalem would stay under UN control. Led by David Ben-Gurion, Zionists accepted this partition plan while Palestinian Arabs and surrounding Arab states rejected the proposal.
On May 15, l948, Palestinians, aided by Jordan, Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq, launched a war to prevent Jewish independence and to secure control of Western Palestine. This resulted in Zionists seizing part of the land designated for Palestinians, Jordan annexing the West Bank and Egypt controlling Gaza. Arabs and Jews both battled for Jerusalem and Israeli forces gained control over West Jerusalem, which became the capital of Israel. 725,000 Arabs fled to neighboring Arab countries, becoming known as the Palestinian refugees.
Palestinians weren�t allowed to form independent governments in areas annexed by Jordan or Egypt. However, Arab states allowed Palestinian resistance groups, organized in l964 by the Arab League into the Palestine Liberation Organization (the PLO), to use their territory to launch raids against Israel. The stated goal of the PLO was to use armed struggle to establish an independent Palestinian state. Miserable living conditions and treatment as second class citizens led many Palestinians in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria, to become guerrillas.
Because of continuous guerrilla attacks launched from Egypt against Israeli settlements, Israel and Egypt fought a brief war in the Suez Canal area in l956. Israel invaded the Sinai Peninsula and the Gaza strip. The UN set up an Emergency force to patrol the border.
In l967, Egypt�s President Nasser moved large numbers of troops and tanks into the Sinai Peninsula and demanded that the UNEF peacekeeping force leave Egyptian territory. Israel launched a preemptive strike, resulting in the Six Day War. Israel now occupied Egypt�s Sinai Peninsula, Syria�s Golan Heights, and Jordan�s West Bank. The Israel government annexed East Jerusalem. Following the Arab defeat, radical underground Palestinian guerrilla organizations (fedayeen) took control of the PLO under the direction of Yasir Arafat.
Receiving their funding from the Arab states, the PLO was charged with carrying on the fight against Israel. The organization was based first in Jordan, and later, Lebanon. This is because, in l970, King Hussein feared losing control over his country and kicked the PLO out of Jordan after a war between them and his government.
It was discovered in Munich, during the 1972 Olympic Games, that terrorists could not be dissuaded from carrying out heinous acts of cold blood against innocents when motivated by ethnic hatred or religious fanaticism. It also became apparent that the rest of the world could and would carry on as though the fedayeen�s (men of sacrifice) acts of barbarism were of no particular cause for concern. To emphasize this, The Olympic Games continued with full media coverage after the murder of 11 members of the Israeli team by PLO affiliates referred to as �Black September�.
During the incident, Israel was portrayed as unyielding but the reality was that they determined no Israeli anywhere in the world would be safe if they were to negotiate with the terrorists. Yet, instead of focusing on the unreasonable demands of these terrorists who in that particular instance demanded the release of 234 jailed Palestinians in Israel, Israel was condemned by the UN Security Counsel for retaliating against PLO bases in Syria and Lebanon. To rub salt in the wound, Germany negotiated the release of three of the hostage takers that survived.
In l973, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the Jewish year, Israelis were caught off guard when Egypt attacked Israeli troops, stationed in the Sinai Peninsula and Syria attacked Israeli forces in the Golan Heights. After heavy casualties, the Israeli army eventually began to win the war. The Soviet Union and United States pressured Israel to accept a U.N. cease-fire. Henry Kissinger brokered agreements with Israel and Syria and between Israel�s Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egypt�s President Anwar Sadat.
In 1979, Egypt became the first Arab nation to sign a peace treaty with Israel and granted Israel full diplomatic recognition. Consequently, most Arab states broke off diplomatic relations with Egypt. In 1981, Sadat was assassinated. PLO official, Nabil Ramlawi, responded to the news, �We were expecting this end of President Sadat because we are sure he was against the interests of his people, the Arab nations and the Palestinian people.�1
Welcomed by Muslim and Druse factions in Lebanon, Arafat�s PLO demanded Maronite Christians restructure the political system; to give Muslims, now a majority of the population, more power. Civil war between religious sects resulted in a partition of Lebanese territory. In effect, South Lebanon and the Muslim western half of Beirut became the power base of the PLO. In l982, Israel teamed up with Bashir Gemayel and his Maronite Phalangist Militia to fight the PLO. Prime Minister Begin and his Minister of Defense, Ariel Sharon, assumed if they could get rid of the PLO, they would get rid of the Palestine Problem.
After the Israeli army bombarded West Beirut, Sunni Muslims asked Arafat and the PLO to leave. Shortly afterwards, Bashir Gemayel was assassinated by a bomb, set off by Habib Tanious Shartouni, a member of the pro-Damascus national Syrian Socialist Party; whose mandate was to merge Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine. Israeli leadership then permitted Israeli troops to pilfer the PLO archives, and turned their heads while Phalangist militiamen avenged Bashir�s death, as well as, past tribal killings of their own people by Palestinian guerrillas. Allowed entrance to the neighborhoods of Sabra and Shatila, Phalangists massacred most of whom they encountered.
Begin resigned as Israeli Prime Minister in August, l983. That same year, Israeli military began to unilaterally withdraw from Lebanon. Shiites, who initially welcomed Israelis as liberators from the PLO, grew to resent them for staying in South Lebanon in order to protect the northern Israeli border. Because of their insensitivity to Shiite religious customs, what began as a Palestinian threat turned into an Israeli Shiite conflict. All of this had the effect of ingratiating Arafat to the Palestinians.
In fact, Arafat became the symbol of the Palestinian refusal to disappear. Palestinians adopted a policy of la� am, a combination of the Arabic words for yes and no. The PLO would reject peace initiatives, but not out of hand; Palestinians living in occupied Israel would not formally recognize Israel, yet continue holding out for liberation. This was easiest for all concerned, for as much as Israeli�s expected Arabs to negotiate land for piece, few Israelis wanted to give West Bank and Gaza back. Palestinians, seemingly resigned to their second class status, benefited from improved housing, health care, electricity, jobs and economic opportunities. However, as more and more Jews built settlements in the occupied territories, the Israeli government gave both Jews and Palestinians the impression that the West Bank would never be returned.
Beginning in 1987, Palestinians living in the Israeli occupied areas, instituted an Intifada; uprising, against the Jewish settlers of the West Bank and Gaza Strip. In addition, terrorist groups, such as Hamas emerged in the occupied territories; preaching violence, inciting Palestinians to attack Israelis and Israeli targets, and calling for an Islamic state in both Israel and the West Bank and Gaza. This resulted in Israel restricting Palestinians� entry to Israel. Continued acts of terror by Arabs, led to increased restrictions. The Israel Defense Force presence increased after each new wave of violence. Expanding defensive measures were in a sense self-inflicted by the Palestinians. The Israeli occupation became more and more difficult for the Palestinians and the Israelis.
Hamas was established for the sole purpose of destroying Israel. The Muslim religion requires total submission to God�s will, regimentation of life under Islamic law, and death to infidels.
After Kuwait, which supported the PLO and the Palestinian cause, was invaded by Iraq, the PLO threw their support behind Saddam Hussein, who promised to destroy Israel and create an independent Palestinian state. Upon Hussein�s defeat, many Palestinians ended up fleeing Kuwait and those who remained lost their jobs and many social services, such as free medical care and education. Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the Persian Gulf States won�t allow Palestinians left behind in Kuwait to immigrate into their countries.
Instead of learning from Israel�s experience with terrorism, each new act of violence since then has been rationalized by pacifists as deserved retaliation for some catalyst or another. Instead of determining to beat them at their own game, guerillas are given more and more recognition; legitimized if you will. They have been given roles in the United Nations, representation at the Olympics, and invitations to meet with world leaders who hope to appease their unmitigated demands. Arafat was awarded a Nobel Peace Prize for for a plan to bring peace to the region, negotiated with assassinated President Anwar Saddat and President Jimmy Carter.
Ironically, only six years ago, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat rejected an offer of a Palestinian state in the areas of Israeli withdrawal (brokered by the Clinton administration) and proposed by Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak. A second intifada against Israel erupted, and there have been no substantive negotiations since then. Arafat�s recent demise offered hope that his successor, Mahmoud Abbas, would be a real negotiating partner for Israel. But he has been unable to control Palestinian militants, and now his party has lost control of the Palestinian parliament to the radical, militant, terrorism-supporting Hamas in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Palestinians believe the recent Israeli decision to withdraw from Gaza and surrender control of the area over to the Palestinians resulted from the Intifada. Officially, Israel was offering a concession to the Palestinians to help bring peace to Israel. The most likely scenario is that Sharon was trying to secure Israel�s boundaries, while providing the Palestinians the opportunity to create a state of their own. Regardless of his reasoning, the pullout was made in good faith, in the hope that Palestinian militants would cease their acts of terror against the Jewish citizens and further negotiations toward a Palestinian state could resume.
Unsurprisingly, Israel�s recent appeasement did not mollify the Palestinians; it encouraged greater aggression towards Israel. Upon the withdrawal from Gaza, Hamas claimed that their attacks drove the Zionists away. Recruiting more Arabs into their organization, Hamas declared their intention to expand their war against Israel. To that end, Hamas has smuggled weapons into Gaza from Egypt through the Rafah border crossing which was placed under Palestinian control and European supervision, as part of a U.S.-brokered deal with Israel. Forced to shut down the crossing several times, during attacks by gunmen, Israel finds itself threatening to close it, if the breach is not repaired. Meanwhile, fugitive terrorists, along with Iranian terrorism and missile technology specialists, have crossed into Gaza. They have already begun launching rockets from Gaza into Israel. Ultimately, appeasement helped Hamas to victory in the elections and gave it the power and support to launch a third Intifada.
Sharon led his party to this course of action despite evidence indicating the policy would fail. Much infighting took place within the Likud party over the Gaza pullout. Benjamin Netanyahu actually resigned fearing that Gaza would become a �base of Islamic terror. Natan Sharansky also resigned; his reason being that any concessions made by Israel must be conditioned on Palestinian democratic reform. Sharon himself was compelled to leave the Likud and started a new party, with a more moderate stance toward the Palestinians.
Given their violent history, it should surprise no one that Palestinian militants continue to fire rockets at what it considers to be occupied land. Hamas opposes the existence of the Jewish state and has carried out dozens of suicide bombing attacks against Israelis. They reject a two state solution. Becoming the first Palestinian prime minister from the Islamist group Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh recently took the oath of office in front of President Mahmoud Abbas in Gaza. Hamas, whose �democratically elected� Palestinian Authority Cabinet was sworn in the day after Israel�s parliamentary elections, wants to talk to Israel about daily-life issues while ignoring fundamental political differences. Israel, on the other hand, wants Hamas to recognize the Jewish state, renounce violence, and respect previous peace agreements or face international isolation.
If Hamas does not change, leaders of the Kadima party say the government would either implement a unilateral solution or negotiate directly with the Palestinian Authority, formerly the Palestine Liberation Organization, an umbrella group headed by the relatively weak Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas. Prime Minister of Israel, Ehud Olmert, is planning to forge ahead with further withdrawals and concessions, applying Sharon�s policy of disengagement to the West Bank.
Wanting Hamas to recognize Israel and honor all previously signed peace agreements, the Bush administration is refusing to negotiate with any member of the new Hamas-led Palestinian government. The US-sponsored ��road map� to peace, calls on Palestinians to crack down on militant groups and calls on Israelis to stop expanding settlements as first steps toward reopening negotiations. In response, Ismail Haniyeh maintains that he is waiting for Israel to recognize a Palestinian state along the 1967 borders, release Palestinian prisoners and recognize the rights of Palestinian refugees to return to Israel. Hamas speaks of a ��long-term truce� if Israel pulls back to the pre-1967 lines, while Kadima speaks of pulling out of most of the West Bank and swapping Israeli land for some of the larger Jewish settlements there. Because Hamas is Muslim, and those who practice Islam believe that there are only two groups of people in the world, followers of Mohammed and infidels, how long can a truce actually last?
Related Reading:
Cambanis, Thanassis and Anne Barnard. �Hamas, Israel vow new focus�
Friedman, Thomas. From Beirut to Jerusalem. New York: Doubleday, 1989
Jamal Dajani ��Dialogue of the Deaf��Hamas, Israel Won�t Talk; Arab-Isrealis Aren�tHeard.� Arabic Media Interest Network April 9, 2006.
�One Day in September�
Rolef , Susan Hattis. �Menahem Begin (1913-1992)� Political Dictionary of the State ofIsrael April 9, 2006
Rosenfeld, Erwin, and Harriet Geller. Global Studies I. New York: Barron�s EducationalSeries, Inc., 1979.
Salvato, Nancy. �Terrorism Allows No Room for Negotiation� Opinion Editorials April 9, 2006
The road ahead Newsday.com April 9, 2006
The Roots of the Hamas Victory The Undercurrent
1981: Egypt�s President Sadat assassinated On This Day 6 October April 9, 2006
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Nancy Salvato Bio
Nancy Salvato Most recent columns
Nancy Salvato is the President of Basics Project, a non-profit, non-partisan 501 (C) (3) research and educational project whose mission is to promote the education of the American public on the basic elements of relevant political, legal and social issues important to our country. She is the Education Editor for The New Media Journal and a staff writer, for the New Media Alliance, Inc.
She can be reached at: nancy.salvato@att.net
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IIslamist Extremists Hit Israeli Soldiers with Iron Bars, West Surrenders?
By Barry Rubin*
June 4, 2010
http://www.gloria-center.org/gloria/2010/06/islamist-extremists-hit-israeli-soldiers-with-iron-bars
We depend on your contributions. To make a tax-deductible donation through PayPal or credit card, click the Donate button in the upper-right hand corner of this page. To donate via check, make it out to "American Friends of IDC," with "for GLORIA Center" in the memo line. Mail to: American Friends of IDC, 116 East 16th Street, 11th Floor, New York, NY 10003.
"I have not yet begun to fight!" --Captain John Paul Jones 1779
"Don't Give up the ship!" -- Captain James Lawrence, 1813
"Damn the torpedoes! Full steam ahead!" --Admiral David Farragut, 1862
"You may fire when ready, Gridley!" --Commodore George Dewey, 1898
"Oh no! Israel stopped a ship near Gaza, the militants attacked the troops, and nine were killed. Our policy is untenable and we better give in." --President Barack Obama, 2010?
I hope the above turns out to be an exaggeration. Some minor changes--letting private groups send in goods over the border after Israeli inspection--would not damage the effort to isolate and defeat Hamas. But things may go far beyond such cosmetic alterations.
For some reason the Obama Administration may be deciding that its policy toward Hamas is no longer working and it's time to begin to raise its arms in surrender, give up the ship, put on the brakes, and make room for Hamas. But it should be remembered that a policy is not wrong or untenable because some--even a lot of people--don't like it or because it doesn't work real fast. The question is whether the policy fits the resources available and goals that are vital ones.
And here, regarding the Gaza Strip issue, there are major strategic issues that should not be forgotten:
--Is the United States and others ready to accept a new Islamist state, equivalent to the Taliban regime of Afghanistan, in the heart of the Middle East?
--Are they willing to have an Iranian client state in such a strategic position, spreading revolutionary Islamism to Egypt and other countries?
--Leaving aside the proven fantasy of a Fatah-Hamas moderate cooperative regime, are they ready to accept such a huge blockage of any hope for the peace process?
--In the name of humanitarianism do they want to take responsibility for preserving a regime that intends to turn its society into a mechanism for mass production of terrorists and suicide bombers, with a policy dedicated to permanent war?
These are all very real questions that are getting lost in the scramble to deal with this latest incident and the battle-weariness of countries that bear no burden in keeping up the pressure on the Hamas regime.
Incidentally, we have already seen that approach in Lebanon, where promises made to Israel in 2006 by the UN to keep Hizballah out of the south and stop arms smuggling have been completely broken. This is not a good precedent for the Gaza case.
The proper policy would be to overthrow that government in Gaza which, after all, violates the Oslo accords, came to power by a bloody coup (though it had earlier won elections, it overthrew the results), and helps block peace. The fact that the previous sentence is considered to be unthinkable and even bizarre in the contemporary debate shows just how irrational that discussion has become.
But since nobody will move toward such a goal-and won't let Israel do it-the next best thing is to keep Hamas as weak as possible, stop it from consolidating power, and undermine its popularity by economic pressure.
Now, however, there are increasing voices in the West wanting to hand Hamas a victory even though it has in no way moderated its positions and intends to return to violence as soon as possible. Why? What is the compelling reason for surrender to a terrorist, antisemitic, repressive, misogynist, anti-American group that would give another extension of power to revolutionary Islamists and a soon-to-be-nuclear Iran?
Well, it is claimed by U.S. officials that the blockade is not sustainable, "The Gaza policy is bankrupt and needs to be changed."
In other words, Hamas has not surrendered yet. It would be interesting to see the results of this position being applied more widely. For if the extremists and terrorists don't give up after a little while, then surely the democratic world must. Really? Like this?:
Hey, we've been fighting against Germany and Japan for several years and they haven't given up and their people are suffering. Obviously, unconditional surrender is an unsustainable policy.
Or perhaps the policy is bankrupt because it hasn't brought down Hamas yet and thus a tougher policy is needed? That option isn't even considered.
According to a New York Times article:
"The world powers have grown increasingly disillusioned with the blockade, saying that it has created far too much suffering in Gaza and serves as a symbol not only of Israel's treatment of Palestinians but of how the West is seen in relation to the Palestinians."
Naturally, if Hamas entrenches itself and creates another Taliban regime, there won't be any suffering in Gaza. Who cares if women are suppressed and everyone is repressed and children are brought up to be suicide bombers? What's important is that they have more material goods.
A senior American official says:
"Gaza has become the symbol in the Arab world of the Israeli treatment of Palestinians, and we have to change that..We need to remove the impulse for the flotillas. The Israelis also realize this is not sustainable."
This is a textbook case of appeasement: fearful your enemy will hurt you, quickly give them so much that they will hopefully leave you alone. Tell me, do you think the Palestinians, Arabs, and Islamists will find a new symbol? Might they come up with more demands?
Precisely the same approach motivated the Oslo accords and the turning over of most of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank to Palestinian rule, Israel's withdrawal from south Lebanon, and Israel's pull out from the Gaza Strip. And we all know how well that defusing of symbols and removal of excuses worked out.
Britain's new Prime Minister David Cameron calls for ending the blockade and the latestevents, the American officials say, "have given Hamas a dangerous lift."
Right, and no doubt ending the blockade will send them crashing down. No, it will give Hamas a far, far bigger lift.
Don't these people have any clue of how Middle East politics works? Hamas would be seen as the victor over Israel and the West. The dismantling of the blockade will be taken as proof that their methods work and that the Palestinian Authority gets nothing done. Similarly, it will be one more proof-soon to be followed by nuclear weapons-that Iran is the patron to have, not America.
Yet these arguments aren't even part of the current debate. Of course, an underlying problem is that battling Hamas is seen as a purely Israeli interest. Only when the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip became a base for subverting Egypt and other Arabic-speaking countries and when the region is flocking behind Iran's banners might these great geniuses discover what they've done. Hopefully, they won't get a chance to find out and are saved from the consequences of their own stupidity by those they revile and slander at present.

Gaza Flotilla's Leader Explains: It was a Jihadist Attack not a "Humanitarian Operation"
By Barry Rubin *
June 4, 2010
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B�lent Yildirim, the main organizer of the Gaza Flotilla, explained at a Hamas rally in Gaza that the operation was no humanitarian effort but part of a global Jihad to overthrow governments and install Islamist dictatorships. He made no secret of that fact, as shown in the MEMRI translation and video.
Keep in mind as you read this that his group originated the project and was the main funder, that his followers controlled the biggest ship, and that they were most of those who attacked the Israeli soldiers. Thus, more than any other individual, Yildirim represents the thinking behind the operation, its direction, and the organization of a militarized group that started the violence in order to achieve the intended result. Notice, too, that he--and thus the organizers of the operation and those who created the violence--are totally indifferent to the loss of life they cause.
"My brothers," he begins, "I have brought you the blessings of Saladin and Sultan Abd Al-Hamid. There are 70 million Sultan Abd Al-Hamids in Turkey, and they all support you. We congratulate you on your victory."
Saladin, of course, defeated the Crusaders and destroyed their kingdoms, an analogy often drawn about Israel by Jihadists. Sultan Abd al-Hamid was the last of the Ottoman Empire's Islamic-oriented rulers. He thus represents what Yildirim sees as an Islamist Turkish state. He was also a caliph, that is, the leader of the Muslim world as successor to Muhammad. Many Islamists want to reestablish the caliphate, a single Muslim ruler over the whole Muslim-majority world (or even the whole world period). The Turkish Islamists hate Kemal Ataturk for establishing a republic and ending the caliphate (along with the Young Turk secularists).
Their goal is not to succor the people of Gaza but to wipe out Israel and kill the Jews as "rightful" (his words, not mine) successors to Muhammad in continuing this task:
"Three to four years ago, some claimed that Hamas was a terrorist organization. When the Jews would kill our women and children, they would say: 'Muhammad died and left only daughters.' We are here, in Turkey, in Egypt, Syria, and everywhere, and our daughters and our boys can also defeat you."
From this point it is interesting how the Arabic translator misstates what Yildirim actually says:
Arabic Translator: "We are here, in Egypt, in Sudan, in Syria, in Turkey, and everywhere. Our women, our children, and our men support you."
Remember, Yildirim is explicitly talking only about Turks (though he does mean all Muslims also) but the translator turns it into a more Arab-oriented statement by mentioning three specific Arab countries. It's a subtle sign of how even Arab Islamists don't quite feel comfortable with the non-Arab Turks.
B�lent Yildirim: "Allah Akbar. Allah be praised. Allah Akbar. Allah be praised. Allah Akbar. Allah be praised. They have bombs, nuclear weapons, chemical weapons, but we have our hearts, we have our courage, and we are not afraid of anyone but Allah."
This is the typical Islamist trope: they are stronger but we court martyrdom and we have the deity on our side. Of course, it is always better if the other side is never allowed to use its weapons in self-defense because that is deemed illegitimate and your Jihad is interpreted as a peaceful humanitarian effort by those who don't listen to what you are actually saying.
Arabic Translator: "They have used their nuclear and chemical weapons, and all their weapons, but all we have, after Allah, are our courageous hearts and our men."
Note the difference. Yildrim only says they have the weapons, but Hamas-in its decidedly non-moderate way-says these weapons have been used. I hesitate to say it but it is by no means impossible that in many places there will soon be claims that the Israeli soldiers used chemical weapons on the ship. Oh, yes, that claim has already surfaced in non-Muslim Portugal.
B�lent Yildirim: "Let me tell you that if it were not for the ceasefire, Istanbul, Ankara, Diyarbakir, and all of Turkey would be in Gaza."
The ceasefire is that between Hamas and Israel. In other words, if the fighting renews, all Turks would go and fight for Hamas. This is not realistic, of course, but is a sign that Yildirim views the issue as a war of extermination against Israel. And, by the way, if he is advocating war this shows he puts Jihad and battle over the humanitarian well-being of Gazans. How many Gazans would be killed in that war? And what would those casualties be in terms of suffering compared to the delivery of outdated medicines and various other goods in the ships?
Yildirim continues by saying that if Allah so wills there will be no more embargo. This would mean, of course, that Hamas could get all the arms and military equipment it wants. Notice he doesn't call for an easing of the embargo just to let in humanitarian needs and consumer goods. But wait! If Hamas spends the money on arms then that will reduce the living standards of Gazans!
So Yildirim, like Hamas, tells the people of Gaza: Don't moderate! Don't make peace with your neighbors! Fight the Jihad and be a martyr! Raise your children to be suicide bombers! And if the embargo is reduced and Western countries cozy up to Hamas there is good news and bad news.
The good news is that Gazans may get more consumer goods.
The bad news is that for the rest of their lives they will be forced to fight an endless war, suffer huge casualties, undergo material deprivations, lose their children to either mindless extremism or death, and live under an oppressive regime that will repress any freedom and turn women into chattel.
How humanitarian is that?
Then Yildirim threatens to overthrow any government that doesn't support Hamas. Think of how the Egyptians, Saudis, and other governments feel about that:
B�lent Yildirim: "From here, I call upon all the leaders of the Islamic world, and upon all the peoples... Anyone who does not stand alongside Palestine - his throne will be toppled."
Yildirim does not see the Western outpouring of criticism against Israel as increasing humanitarian sentiments but as a step toward Islamist revolution and the takeover of more countries:
B�lent Yildirim: "Last night, everything in the world has changed, and everything is progressing towards Islam. All the peoples of the Islamic world would want a leader like Recep Tayyip Erdo��?an."
Here is a direct pledge of allegiance to Turkey's prime minister, the man behind the operation. So if Yildirim is a revolutionary Islamist who wants to destroy Israel, favors Jihad, and threatens moderate Arab regimes does that mean Erdogan, that model of a "moderate" Muslim "democrat" agree? Would he dissociate himself from Yildrim's remarks?
Of course not.
B�lent Yildirim: "In conclusion, let me tell you, oh my Palestinian brothers, who are guarded by Allah and the angels - I wish we could take you away from here to Istanbul, and bring Istanbul here to be hit by the bombs instead of you."
I wonder how the people of Istanbul generally feel about that wish? But if Erdogan continues with his adventurist, pro-Jihadist policies of alliance with Iran and Syria, who knows how much violence, instability, and suffering it will bring to the Turkish people? And that's not a threat, it is a genuine fear for the well-being of a Turkish nation in the grip of such mad men and their patrons.
And if you have any doubt left about the nature of these "peace activists" and "humanitarians" just watch this in which the ship tells Israelis to go back to Auschwitz, remember September 11, and the operation's goal is to hurt the United States.
* Barry Rubin is director of the Global Research in International Affairs (GLORIA) Center and editor of the Middle East Review of International Affairs (MERIA) Journal. His latest books are Lebanon: Liberation, Conflict, and Crisis (Palgrave Macmillan), Conflict and Insurgency in the Contemporary Middle East (Routledge), The Israel-Arab Reader (seventh edition) (Viking-Penguin), the paperback edition of The Truth About Syria (Palgrave-Macmillan), A Chronological History of Terrorism (Sharpe), and The Long War for Freedom: The Arab Struggle for Democracy in the Middle East (Wiley).