06 novembre 2009
Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon has said that Israel is not bluffing in its threats to take military action against Iran
Deputy Foreign Minister Danny Ayalon has said that Israel is not bluffing in its threats to take military action against Iran's contentious nuclear program, in remarks broadcast Friday on Sky News.
"The one who's bluffing is Iran, which is trying to play with cards they don't have," Ayalon told the British station. "All the bravado that we see and the testing and the very dangerous and harsh rhetoric is hiding a lot of weaknesses."
The minister's remarks came just a week after the international community proposed a draft nuclear deal that would have seen much of Iran's uranium shipped abroad for enrichment. Iran has demanded changes to the draft but has not yet given its final response.
Ayalon called Iran's tactics in dealing with international power a method of stalling. "If Iranian behavior and conduct continues as they have exhibited so far, it is obvious that their intentions are only to buy time and procrastinate," he said.
Also on Friday, the Guardian reported that the United Nations nuclear watchdog has asked Iran to explain evidence suggesting the Islamic Republic's scientists have experimented with an advanced nuclear warhead design.
The newspaper, citing what it describes as "previously unpublished documentation" from an International Atomic Energy Agency compiled dossier, said Iranian scientists may have tested high-explosive components of a "two-point implosion" device.(22,13)
Arab League, Spain, urge Abbas to reconsider decision not to run in elections
Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas announced Thursday he does not wish to run for reelection in January. Speaking in Ramallah, Abbas voiced disappointment at the US for favoring Israel in arguments over relaunching the peace talks. Abbas said his decision was not the negotiating tactic some had expected of him. But his phrasing did appear to leave some room for a change of heart. Palestinian officials to whom he had announced his move earlier in the day said they insisted he must stand as they had no one else. The Palestinian president slammed Israel for failing to agree to a settlement freze. He praised US President Barack Obama's administration for promoting peace but added that he was surprised by the favoring of the Israeli position. Abbas said he still believed it was possible to reach a solution in which a Palestian state would arise alongside Israel....but he added that the two-state solution currently faced many dangers. The Palestinian leader called on Hamas to review what he called its destructive practices against the national project. In explaining the move, Abbas aide Nabil Abu Rdainah said the peace process is heading towards a dead-end and the American administration failed to make Israel abide by international demands. Abbas last month called the January 24th presidential and parliamentary elections after failing to conclude an Egyptian-brokered deal to end the deep political rift with Hamas. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said she looked forward to working with Abbas in any new capacity, adding she had discussed his political future at a meeting with him last weekend. She did not give any details. Defense Minister Ehud Barak said he hoped the announcement would not damage efforts to launch negotiations and achieve a peace accord. (10,38)
Israel lodges complaint over Iranian arms smuggling
Israel's UN ambassador Gabriella Shalev has lodged a complaint to the UN about an Iranian attempt to skirt the arms embargo and supply weapons to Hezbollah. In a letter to the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki Moon, the ambassador said that these grave violations contsitute a threat to peace and security as well as non-compliance with international legal obligations. She also sent the letter to the Austrian president of the Security Council, so that the 15-nation forum can take up the issue. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said this week that Iran's goal was to kill as many civilians as possible by giving weapons to Hezbollah. Netanyahu said the shipment of hundreds of tons of weapons on a ship seized by Israel was a war crime that should be investigated by the UN Secuerity Council. He said the shipment violates UN Security Council decision. Instead, the prime minister said the UN General Assembly has been meeting to condemn the Israel Defense Forces and Israel in an attempt to undermine the country's legitimate right to self defense. Naval commandoes intercepted the ship on Wednesday in waters off Cyprus. Hundreds of crates of rockets, missiles, mortars, anti tank weapons and munitions were discovered in the ship's hold. Iran and Hezbollah have denied any link to the ship. Iranian foreign minister Manouchehr Mottaki dismissed the allegations on the cargo's destination and route. Hezbollah denied the weapons were for them. Israelis security forces released the ship carrying the weapons after seizing the cargo. The ship was due to continue on to Turkey and then to Egypt. The ship was allowed to sail after Israel completed unloading the cargo and after determining that the crew manning the vessel had no connection to the weapons found on board. The Francop was captured by navy missile boats and naval commandoes before dawn on Wednesday in an operation dubbed Four Species. The arms shipment began its journey about 10 days ago abroad an Iranian ship that sailed from the port of Bandar Abbas to the Mediterranean port of Damietta in Egypt. The cargo, which according to a ship manifest, was destined for Syria, was unloaded in Egypt and then loaded three days later onto the Francop. The navy located the ship shortly after it left DAmietta on Tuesday on its way to Limassol, Cyprus.(10,36)
05 novembre 2009
Hezbollah denies connection to weapons ship, accuses Israel of piracy
Hezbollah denies any link to the ship sailing under the flag of Antigua, seized by Israel off the coast of Cyprus on Wednesday and found to be carrying some 300 tons of weapons. Israel intercepted the ship Francop and Navy officials said the vessel was carrying weapons from Iran for the Hezbollah in Lebanon. The boat had left Egypt and was on its way to Syria when it was seized off the coast of Cyprus. Hezbollah released a statement in which it strongly denied any connection to the weapons and accused Israel of piracy. The ship, which was brought to Ashdod port, was released Wednesday night and its crew of 12 resumed their voyage to the original destination, a port in Turkey, and from there back to Egypt. A security source told Kol Yisrael, that the Polish captain of the ship was shocked when the arsenal was discovered next to a cargo of oil, putting the crew members at risk. The Navy confiscated some 36 containers of explosives and weapons and returned the rest of the cargo to the ship. (16,52)
PLO officials: Fatah does not have a realistic candidate
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas has told the members of the Fatah Central Committee that he does not intend to run for another term in the next Palestinian elections, Israel Radio reported Thursday morning, quoting Reuters. An official from the PLO executive committee told the Reuters news agency, "The president insists on not running in the upcoming election." A top Fatah official who was present at the meeting was quoted as saying that Abbas was disappointed with the position of the United States regarding its failure to insist on a freeze in Israeli settlement construction. Another Fatah source said that Abbas was "broken," but clarified that, as of now, Fatah does not have a realistic candidate to replace him. Officials close to Abbas said Wednesday that there was no diplomatic horizon at this point. They warned that if the two-state solution were not pushed forward, the Palestinians would work for a solution based on a bi-national state. One PLO official said Abbas would give a speech later on Thursday explaining his decision not to run.(16,43)
Israel releases arms ship said meant for Hezbollah
Israeli security forces late Wednesday released on its originally planned route a ship believed to have been carrying tons of weapons from Iran to Hezbollah, which it seized earlier this week in Mediterranean waters. The ship was set to continue to Turkey and then to Egypt.Israel completed unloading the cargo on Thursday morning and decided that the crew of the vessel had no connection to the weapons found on board. The Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant group on Thursday denied any connection to the 500 tons of weapons seized by Israeli commandos during a raid on the ship. "Hezbollah denies any link to the weapons that the Zionist enemy claims it removed from the vessel Francop," the group said in a statement. "At the same time it condemns Israeli piracy in international waters." The Hezbollah response came after Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said reports of the seizure were fabricated. Israel's Foreign Ministry, meanwhile, invited foreign ambassadors to the Ashdod port to view the tons of seized weapons. The Foreign Ministry also issued a document to Israeli embassies and consulates around the world on Wednesday, instructing employees to utilize Israel's seizure of the ship, believed to have been shipped by Iran and meant for Hezbollah, to direct international pressure toward Iran. Israeli diplomats were instructed to stress Iran's violation of United Nations Security Council resolutions forbidding it from supplying weapons to Syria or Hezbollah. The Francop was captured in the Mediterranean Sea by Israel Navy missile boats and naval commandos late Tuesday night in an operation dubbed Operation Four Species. The arms shipment began its journey about 10 days ago aboard an Iranian ship that sailed from the port of Bandar Abbas to the Mediterranean port of Damietta (Dumyat) in Egypt. The cargo - which, according to a ship manifest, was destined for Syria - was unloaded in Egypt, and then loaded three days later onto the Francop, a German-owned ship operated by a Cypriot company. The ship's crew reportedly did not know what the containers really held. The navy, which tracks suspicious activity at sea along known smuggling routes in the Mediterranean and the Red Sea, located the Francop shortly after it left Damietta on Tuesday on its way to Limassol, Cyprus, and thence to Syria. Toward evening, an Israeli navy missile boat made contact with the Francop and asked to conduct a routine inspection of its cargo. Israeli naval commandos boarded at around midnight on Tuesday, in rough seas, and met with no resistance from the ship's crew of 11. The Israeli naval personnel checked the ship's manifest, which showed that the cargo was going to the Syrian port of Latakia, and began opening the containers. They found sacks of polyethylene near the opening and along the walls of the containers, but behind the sacks, they discovered numerous crates of ammunition and artillery shells. At that point, they ordered the crew to sail to Ashdod. Upon the ship's arrival at the Israeli port, the lengthy process of unloading the cargo began. It was expected to be completed on Thursday morning. The cargo included thousands of medium-range 107- and 122-millimeter rockets, armor-piercing artillery, hand grenades and ammunition for Kalashnikov rifles. Even with all the cargo not yet unloaded, the navy estimated that the haul included more than 3,000 rockets and a total of 300 tons of weaponry. This compares to only 40 tons seized in 2002 on the Karine A, whose weapons were destined for the Palestinians. The rockets and artillery shells on the Francop were mostly manufactured over the past two years, and though they had English-language markings, intelligence officials believe that most were manufactured in Iran ¬ other than the 122-millimeter rockets, which are apparently of Russian manufacture. Because of the manner in which the crates were hidden, the army is convinced that the weapons were destined for Hezbollah in Lebanon. Such a shipment would be a clear violation of UN Resolution 1701, which ended the Second Lebanon War in 2006. The cargo did not include rocket launchers or advanced weaponry that would alter the balance of power with Israel. Nonetheless, the army said, the rockets that were seized are the equivalent of about 10 percent of Hezbollah's existing stock, and could have been used for weeks of intensive shelling of northern Israel. The Foreign Ministry in Jerusalem instructed diplomats to emphasize in interviews and conferences the fact that the ship that was seized en route to Syria, with a planned stop in Beirut. The diplomats were further asked to explain that the Israeli navy's actions, including diverting the ship to Ashdod, were all executed with the crew's cooperation. Israel will use this event to put Iran in the limelight. The Foreign Ministry argues that this arms shipment is a blatant violation of UNSC resolution 1747 which forbids Iran from exporting weapons and ammunition. "Since these weapons are meant for the northern terror front, this is also a blatant violation of UN resolution 1701," the memo read. The Foreign Ministry also asked embassies and consulates to issue a statement saying "Iran is continuing to smuggle weapons to terror organizations under the guise of legitimate international trade, and thus turns the Mediterranean Sea into a base for illegal activity." It was further emphasized that "Iran is challenging the UN Security Council and poses a strategic threat to the stability and peace of the world." Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that anyone who was still skeptical over Iran's continuous supply of weapons to terror organizations, was given conclusive proof when the Francop's cargo was exposed. "Iran is shipping weapons to terror organizations in order to attack Israeli cities and kill its citizens. It is time that the international community applied real pressure on Iran to stop these criminal actions, and support Israel in its battle against terrorists and their patrons," Netanyahu said. (16,40)
Iran warns Germany: Don't let 'Zionists' harm your interests
Tehran on Thursday accused German Chancellor Angela Merkel of being influenced by "Zionist circles" in a reference to Israel after her remarks that a nuclear bomb in Iran's hands would not be acceptable, state media reported. Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Ramin Mehmanparast said Merkel's remarks were against the national interests of Germany. Merkel said Tuesday in Washington that "zero tolerance needs to be shown when there is a risk of weapons of mass destruction falling, for example, into the hands of Iran." The German chancellor stressed that security for Israel was non-negotiable for her. "Whoever threatens Israel also threatens us," she said, speaking before the U.S.Congress. Iran has said its nuclear program is solely for peaceful purposes, but the West suspects Iran could use its nuclear know-how for producing nuclear weapons and use them against its archfoe Israel. Former Iranian minister Ayatollah Dr. Mehdi Haeri Khorshidi, who fled to Germany in 1986 and remained there until 2003, told a Haifa conference last year that Germany has stepped up its commerce with Iran, in blatant disregard of its nuclear program. The German government has meanwhile increased pressure on companies to curb business with Iran. German exports to Iran rose 10 percent in 2008, prompting Israel's ambassador to Berlin to say the German authorities are "not doing enough" to keep Tehran isolated until it abandons its alleged efforts to develop nuclear arms. Germany's Federal Statistical Office released data showing the increase occured over the first three quarters of 2008. Germany's exports to Iran were expected to total 4 million euros this year, close to the record it set in 2004 and 2005. During the first seven months of 2008, the German government approved 1,926 transactions with Iran, a 63 percent increase from the year before. This has further cemented Germany's position as Iran's largest trade partner. When asked about the increase in exports, the German treasury replied that it is due to increased metal prices, and noted that steel is up 17 percent in Europe. However, export data show that metals make up only a small part of the increase. Another explanation offered by the German government is that the sanctions on Iran prohibit it from launching large new projects, which means the Iranians are more dependent on spare parts to maintain existing infrastructure. "As a result of the tightening sanctions on Iran, our office expects the volume of our exports to Iran to decrease in the future," a spokesman for the treasury said. (16,39)
FM: States fighting terror need support
While the first day of a UN General Assembly debate on a resolution endorsing the Goldstone Commission Report and calling for it to be referred to the Security Council ended without a vote on Wednesday, Israel urged the world to remember that Israel was not the only state fighting against terror organizations. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman discussed Goldstone report with his European counterparts on Wednesday night, stressing that the battle against terror was not only an Israeli problem. "We must work together to build a fortified wall, democratic states trying to protect themselves [from terror groups] must receive support," Lieberman told European diplomats, according to Army Radio. At the UNGA session in New York, Israel's Ambassador to the UN Gabriela Shalev slammed the General Assembly, declaring that "the report before you was conceived in hate and executed in sin. From its inception in a one-sided mandate, the Gaza fact-finding mission was a politicized body with predetermined conclusions." With debate on the non-binding resolution set to continue Thursday and possibly even Friday, the vote could be delayed to as late as next week, as the European Union continues to try to soften the text. "Most European countries have expressed dissatisfaction with quite a few clauses in the Arabs' text that is being debated now," including its language endorsing the report and referring the matter to the Security Council, an Israeli official explained. While many Arab and Muslim countries backed the report's accusations of Israeli war crimes over its conduct during its war with Hamas in Gaza this winter, the European Union presented a more measured assessment in its own speech from the floor. Swedish Ambassador to the UN Anders Liden, speaking on behalf of 27 countries as the president of the EU, did not mention the issue of the General Assembly endorsing the report or the Security Council playing a role. Turkey, which has frequently positioned itself at odds with Israel in recent weeks, also endorsed the EU position. Liden did, though, urge an independent investigation by both sides, a step Israel has resisted, pointing to ongoing IDF reviews of several incidents during the war. "The EU urges the parties to lead appropriate, credible and independent investigations into possible violations of international human rights law, international humanitarian law in accordance with international standards," he said. "In this regard the EU believes that appropriate follow-up will be necessary." Still, Israel welcomed the comments by the EU. "The EU is a moderate force, a moral compass for so many. The EU does not, like so many others at the General Assembly, have an anti-Israel [line]," Israel's Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN Daniel Carmon told The Jerusalem Post. "We are always pleased to hear the EU" in such circumstances, he said. Shalev, however, was scathing in her floor speech when it came to those who wanted to endorse the Goldstone Report. "Rather than confronting terrorism, the General Assembly chose again to detach itself from reality," she charged. "Today's debate is anything but genuine and candid. Rather than discuss how to better stop terrorist groups who deliberately target civilians, this body launches yet another campaign against the victims of terrorism, the people of Israel." Riyad Mansour, the Palestinian Authority UN observer, urged the General Assembly to support a resolution and insisted Israel's "aggressions and crimes" cannot be equated "with actions committed in response by the Palestinian side." Stressing that "peace cannot be achieved without justice," Mansour said that the Palestinians "are determined to follow up this report and its recommendations in all relevant international forums, including the Security Council and the International Criminal Court, until the realization of justice." Mansour predicted the resolution will "absolutely" be approved. US Ambassador to the UN Susan Rice boycotted the debate, Army Radio reported. Her deputy was in the hall only during Shalev's and Liden's addresses. Meanwhile, former Israeli ambassador to the UN Dan Gillerman left Israel for New York Wednesday evening at the behest of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman. Gillerman will assist with Israel's public relations campaign concerning the Goldstone Commission's report. Gillerman told Israel Radio that he agreed to the prime minister's request after being convinced that every effort must be done to ensure that Israel does not suffer adverse consequences should the report be passed on to the UN Security Council or to the International Court of Justice in the Hague. (08,41)
04 novembre 2009
Netanyahu: Ship proves Iran's support for terror organizations
A day after the IDF operation in which an Iranian arms shipment headed for Syria and allegedly intended for Hizbullah was captured some 100 nautical miles west of Israel, Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu addressed the international community concerning Iran's material support for terrorist organizations. "The time has come for the international community to apply real pressure on Iran to cease these criminal operations and give backing to Israel when it defends itself against the terrorists and their sponsors," he said in a statement Wednesday evening. Regarding those who may doubt Iran's continual support for terrorist organizations, the prime minister said, "Whoever still needed decisive proof that Iran continues to send weapons to terrorist organizations, received it today in a very clear and unequivocal way." President Shimon Peres said that the capture of the Iranian weapons shipment was an important achievement for the IDF and the State of Israel. "The ship, probably hailing from Iran, was destined to reach Syria and Hizbullah. All sides involved deny [any connection] but the world is aware of the gap between what Syria and Iran say and how they actually act," Peres added. Defense Minister Ehud Barak commended IDF Chief of General Staff Lt.-Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi and Navy Commander Vice-Admiral Eliezer Marom for the operation. "This is another success in the incessant battle against the smuggling of arms and the military buildup by terrorist organizations who threaten Israel's security," he said. The defense minister was speaking during a Yitzhak Rabin memorial service held by the 'Mahane' organization at Jerusalem's Mount Herzl cemetery. There will be other such smuggling attempts in the future, he said, and Israel will have to "make every effort to thwart them." Three Iranian weapons shipments were recently intercepted at sea. According to Channel 10, Wednesady's naval operation "will neither help nor hinder," but may deter Iran from delivering large amounts of weapons by sea because of the huge losses incurred by seized shipments. Opposition leader Tzipi Livni also hailed the Navy's seizure. "We all today praise the Navy and IDF over the seizure of the ship - it's not a controversial matter. There are issues over which there are no coalition and opposition," she said at a convention in the Knesset regarding the drought levy. "We are all partners in the people of Israel's war on terror - whether it's Hamas, Hizbullah or other supporters [of terror]. Well done." Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem on Wednesday afternoon denied that the cargo ship was carrying weapons from Iran, and implicitly called the Israeli naval forces "pirates." "Unfortunately there are official pirates disrupting the movement of goods between Iran and Syria," he told reporters on a visit to Teheran. "I stress, the ship was not carrying Iranian arms bound for Syria, nor was it carrying material for manufacturing weapons in Syria. It was carrying [commercial] goods from Syria to Iran." Lebanese MP Michel Aoun, who in 2006 became aligned with Hizbullah, remarked later on Wednesday that Lebanon would get its arms from China if not from Iran, adding that such weapons would be better suited to the "liberation of Palestine" than to the interior Lebanese conflict. Also commenting on the issue was a US State Department official, who said that the US was concerned over "Hizbullah's efforts to rearm in direct violation of various UN Security Council resolutions," adding that the terrorist organization remained "a significant threat to peace and security in Lebanon and the region." (00,09)
Defense officials say weapons were bound for Syria, Hizbullah
Hundreds of tons of weaponry, ten times the size of the Karine A shipment of 2002, were seized in an overnight raid Tuesday by the Israeli navy, some 100 nautical miles west of Israel, officials said. The ship seized was sailing under an Antiguan flag.
The transfer of such large amounts of weapons, "is done in order to create a balance of terror with Israel," said Brigadier General Rani Ben-Yehuda, deputy commander of the Israeli navy, at a press conference.
Defense officials said the 140-meter long Francop,, captured near Cyprus, was carrying arms sent by Iran and destined for Syria and Hizbullah.
After several days of the Israeli military monitoring the ship, Navy Seals boarded it in the middle of the night. Suspicions were raised after the Seals uncovered certificates within containers that documented Iran as the point of origin for some containers, with Syria as the intended destination.
Upon receiving permission from relevant authorities, including the political establishment, the seals commandeered the ship and brought it to Israel. Once on its way to Israeli shores, Israel apprised the government of Antigua and the company that owns the ship of the situation, said the officials.
After leaving the Bandar-Abbas Port in Iran, the cargo was shipped through the Suez Canal, unloaded at the Mediterranean Port of Damietta in Egypt and then loaded onto the ship that was captured by the navy. The intended destination was the port Latakia in Syria, with the contents of the shipment to be sent to Hizbullah, they said.
The ships' crew was unaware of the weapons on board, as the armaments were disguised as humanitarian aid.
"This is the third time this year that Iran is disregarding international law and United Nations National Security resolutions that forbid it to transfer weaponry," Ben-Yehuda said. He went on to say that the Navy regularly conducts operations hundreds of miles from Israel's shores to inspect ships suspected of carrying illegal weapons from Iran being sent to terror proxies like Hizbullah and Hamas.
Israel Radio reported that advanced anti-aircraft platforms never before found in the region were also on board.
The Francop is currently docked in the Ashdod port, and being unloaded for further inspection.
Ben-Yehuda said that there was regular intelligence indicating that Iran was continuing to support terror groups with large amounts of weapons aimed at being used against Israel. Furthermore, it was likely that additional shipments from Iran would be shipped, he said.
The containers were owned by the Islamic Republic of Iran Shipping Lines Group, or IRISL, the military said, adding that aach container contained sacks, filled with 25 kilos of silicon, made by the Natural Petrol Company in Iran.
Upon opening the containers used for smuggling the weapons, only the sacks were visible, but behind the sacks lay weapons.
The weapons included 107-millimeter rockets, 60-millimeter mortars, 7.62-rifle Kalashnikov-ammunition, F-1 grenades and 122-millimeter Katyusha rockets. On the side of some of the cases inside the containers the words "parts of bulldozers" was written.
Ben-Yehuda called the shipment "very advanced weaponry". He added that even though the Iranian containers were loaded at port of Damietta in Egypt, the Egyptians were totally unaware of the ship's contents.
A month ago, Der Spiegel reported that the US Navy had boarded a German cargo ship near the Suez Canal that was carrying ammunition from Iran to Syria or Hizbullah.
In the past year, the Navy intercepted several vessels suspected of illicitly carrying munitions intended for Israel's enemies.Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Moallem on Wednesday afternoon denied that a cargo ship seized by Israel the previous night was carrying weapons from Iran, and implicitly called the Israeli naval forces "pirates."
"Unfortunately there are official pirates disrupting the movement of goods between Iran and Syria," he told reporters on a visit to Teheran. "I stress, the ship was not carrying Iranian arms bound for Syria, nor was it carrying material for manufacturing weapons in Syria. It was carrying goods from Syria to Iran."
Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu praised the action of the Navy and said the weapons on the ship were meant to be used against Israeli cities.
President Shimon Peres said that the capture of the Iranian weapons' ship was an important achievement for the IDF and the State of Israel.
(17,53)