Category: Israel

I Find this Hard to Believe

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Haaretz is reporting that the US rejected an Israeli request for military equipmment to aid with a strike on Iran, and I don’t buy it.

The reason that I don’t buy it is because Bush and His Evil Minions™ want to strike Iran, but if it’s an American strike, the political backlash is simply too uncertain.

The Bush administration would love an Israeli strike.

This is leaked information, coming either from the Bush administration, or the Olmert adminiatration.

If it’s the former, it’s a way to ratchet up pressure on Iran, if it’s the latter, it’s a leak designed to boost Kadima’s chances in the election.

Talk About Rebelling Against Your Parents

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Yes, I know that the source is Wing Nut daily, but this story is just too amusing to pass up.

According to WND, Masab Yousuf, son of West Bank Hamas leader Sheik Hassan Yousef, has converted to Christianity, and has become a supporter of Israel:

“I know that I’m endangering my life and am even liable to lose my father, but I hope that he’ll understand this and that God will give him and my family patience and willingness to open their eyes to Jesus and to Christianity. Maybe one day I’ll be able to return to Palestine and to Ramallah with Jesus, in the Kingdom of God,” Masab said.

Masab said he previously aided his father with Hamas activities, but he now has affection for Israel and laments Hamas.

Well, I guess that’s how you rebel against your parents, if your parent is a rebel.

Stupid

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Israel and Hesbollah are trading a live terrorist for the body of two dead Israeli soldiers.

Sorry, but this is just a stupid swap on the Israeli’s part, and all it will lead to is more bodies being held for ransom.

If there were something else involved in the deal, it might make sense, but this is just political cowardice on the part of the Israeli cabinet, and perhaps desperation on the part of Olmert, who is facing serious corruption charges.

Israel and Iran and an Air Strike

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Not gonna happen, because, as Tony Karon says, if they were seriously considering a strike at this time, they would not be telegraphing preparations.

Of course, he gets to quote an interview he did with Christopher Wallace, aka Biggie Smalls/the Notorious B.I.G, “On the streets, when someone is telling anyone who’ll listen that they’re going to kill you, you don’t have to lose any sleep over it. You’re not going to hear about beforehand when the real killer comes.”

I’m jealous.

Ron Arad as Olmert’s Political Tool

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Well, it looks like the deal to swap swap child murderer Samir Kantar for the remains of two Israeli soldiers has hit a snag, Olmert is insisting that there can be no deal without the return of Ron Arad.

The first thing that I will say is that I think that these deals for hostages are counter productive, even moreso when the hostages are dead. Releasing Samir Kantar, who killed a 4 year old girl, for some bones is indefensibly stupid.

Bring Ron Arad into the question however, creates an entirely new dynamic.

Arad has been Israel’s Judge Crater, Amelia Earhart, etc., and his status, and there is some evidence is that he is still alive, has been a focus of public concerns for over two decades now.

If he stands tough and there is no deal, Olmert wins politically, because of the public interest in the Arad manner. If he stands tough and gets back bones, he wins politically for the same reason. If Arad comes back alive, Olmert wins the next election even if he is in prison.

It is a masterful political move.

Lousy statecraft, but very good politics.

New Israeli Anti-Kassam Missile System

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The system is called David’s Sling (paid subscription required), and it makes no sense at all.

The system’s features:

  • A “Stunner” interceptor missile, with two stages and a 3 pulse motor for the interceptor.
  • David’s sling has it’s own radar.
  • Stunner has two seekers, a radar and an infrared seeker for terminal homing (see funky nose profile below)
  • Potential integration with Rafael’s Spyder air defense system.
  • A maximum range from 180 to 300 km.
  • A blast-fragmentation warhead.
  • Detection to intercept of 38 seconds.

So, you’ve got a missile that weighs somewhere north of 500 pounds (bottom pic for scale), and will probably cost something well north of $¼ million a piece, and they will use it to intercept Kassams and Katyushas that cost something less than $100 and $1000 each respectively.

That’s sounds like a really good trade….not.

An Interesting Sidebar to the Israeli Bombing in Syria

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First, Israel is alleging that Syria had a deal with Iran to send some of the spent fuel back to them for Plutonium processing, and second, the raid may have been what led to the current talks.

First, it appears that the fact that Bashir Assad remained in power following the bombing gave the Israelis confidence that he was actually in control, and second, it appears that the bombing reminded the Syrians that the “gang that can’t shoot straight” show that occurred in the Lebanon war is the exception, not the rule.

Together, both articles paint an interesting picture.

Gaza, Like This is a Surprise

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I get it. Israel agrees no offensive action against Hamas in Gaza if Hamas stops firing missiles into Israel.

So then Hamas lets Islamic Jihad (and yes, Hamas has a lid on the place, this does not go down without their making the decision to be inactive) fire rockets into Israel because of a in the West Bank, Nablus specifically, against militants who were not members of either Hamas or Islamic Jihad.

I give the truce another 3-4 weeks before a complete collapse.

Former German FM Posits Israeli Attack on Iran

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Joschka Fischer, former German Foreign Minister, is writing that he expects an Israeli military strike on Iran.

It was linked to on Nouriel Roubini’s blog, and he goes into the potential economic/political implications:

  • Oil Spiking to well over $200/bbl.
  • Iran setting their dogs loose in Iraq.
  • Hesbollah going postal in Lebanon.
  • Hamas going postal in Gaza.
  • Difficulties in transiting the Persian Gulf, which might further increase oil prices.

While I agree that these consequences are likely, I disagree with Roubini on one point though, thinks that such an attack would guarantee a McCain victory, because he believes that, “Such October surprise by Israel would also certainly lead to the election of McCain and defeat of Obama as a national security crisis of such an extent would doom the chances of Democrats to win the White House.”

There are two problems, the first is that if the Israelis act after the conventions, it will be explicitly seen as meddling in US partisan politics, and the blow back later will be too intense, and the Israelis understand the ebb and flow of party politics, and the second is that $200/bbl oil would do immediate damage at the gas pump.

Further, I think that Republicans no longer have the confidence of the American people on anything including national security.

Then again, maybe I am an optimist.

Nope, No Bribery Here…..

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So we now have $150,000 in cash going to olmert:

A Long Island fund-raiser and businessman testifying in a corruption investigation told an Israeli court on Tuesday that he gave $150,000, mostly in cash, to the Israeli prime minister, Ehud Olmert. Skip to next paragraph Enlarge This Image Pool photo by Uriel Sinai Morris Talansky, an American businessman, before testifying on Tuesday in Jerusalem.

It is no surprise therefore that Israeli defense minister, Ehud Barak, is calling for Ehud Olmerd to step down.

Kapo*

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So, Joe Lieberman has decided to headline Pastor John Hagee’s next “Christians United For Israel” summit on July 22.

He is gladly sharing the stage with a man (Hagee) who in addition to calling Catholicism as being “the Great Whore” said that Hitler, and the Holocaust, were heaven sent, and Joe Lieberman has called him a man of God and compares him to Moses (see video below).

Joe Lieberman is so wrapped up in his twisted vision of his own sanctimony and his own revenge fantasies against those who he thinks have wronged (most recently the Democrats for not nominating him for President or renominating him for Senate.)

There appears to be nothing beyond Joseph Lieberman’s (yimach shmo) small and petty goal of self-aggrandizement.

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*Kapo, not to be confused with Capo†. They were Jewish trustees in the prison camp, and did the Nazi’s dirty work there, frequently with a level of brutality and sadism that stunned even their Nazi warders.
†Capo is short for Caporegime, which, to quote the Wiki means , “The head of a branch of an organized crime syndicate who commands a crew of soldiers and reports directly to a boss or an underboss.”