PAL COULD GO TO UN OVER SETTLEMENTS

US lawmaker lifts hold on Lebanon military aid
– Fri Nov 12, 7:28 pm ET

WASHINGTON (AFP) – A key US lawmaker lifted his hold Friday on 100 million dollars in US military aid to Lebanon, saying he was reassured Lebanese troops would try to prevent flare-ups along the border with Israel.House Foreign Affairs Committee chairman Howard Berman said he was satisfied with a thorough inter-agency review by President Barack Obama's administration of its military assistance program to Lebanon, initiated after his hold in August.As a result, I am convinced that implementation of the spending plan will now have greater focus, and I am re-assured as to the nature and purposes of the proposed package, Berman said, noting he had been fully briefed about the review.But he cited ongoing unrest in Lebanon amid simmering tensions with its Jewish neighbor in the wake of a 2006 war between Israel and Lebanon's Shiite movement Hezbollah that killed 1,200 Lebanese, mainly civilians, and 160 Israelis, mostly soldiers.Lebanese Sunni Prime Minister Saad Hariri is also in a standoff with Hezbollah over a UN-backed probe into the assassination of his father, former premier Rafiq Hariri.I continue to be concerned about developments in Lebanon, and I will continue my ongoing discussions with State (Department) regarding the optimal contours of future military assistance for Lebanon,Berman said.The California Democratic representative said he had received reassurances that US assistance to the Lebanese armed force has not fallen into the hands of Hezbollah, and Lebanese and US authorities were working to ensure that would not happen.

He noted that the Lebanese military has taken important steps to prevent recurrence of dangerous and provocative actions.In an interview with Lebanese newspaper An-Nahar, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said the Lebanese people deserve lasting peace and an end to political violence once and for all.The United States is committed to that goal, and we will continue supporting the Lebanese Armed Forces to ensure they have the capacity to protect Lebanon?s security from threats both internal and external, she added.We also work hard to avoid actions or statements that would raise temperatures higher or inflame tensions further.She also expressed disappointment with actions taken by neighboring Syria, saying it pursues policies outside established international norms and vowing to hold the country accountable for its behavior.The United States has accused Syria of illicitly arming Hezbollah and other militias and showing flagrant disregard for the country's independence, charges Damascus has rejected.

Palestinians could go to UN over settlements: negotiator
– Fri Nov 12, 1:24 pm ET

TANGIERS, Morocco (AFP) – Negotiator Saeb Erakat said Friday the Palestinians would be forced to demand that the United States recognise their 1967 borders if it fails to persuade Israel to end Jewish settlements.If the United States does not manage to impose on Israel an end to the settlements this month, the next step for us would be to demand from the United States recognition of the state of Palestine according to the 1967 borders, he said.The Palestinians view the presence of half a million Israelis in more than 120 settlements scattered across the occupied West Bank and annexed east Jerusalem as a threat to the establishment of their future state.The international community, including Israel's closest ally the United States, considers the settlements illegal, but they have expanded under every Israeli government since the occupation began in June 1967.If the United States fails to bring about an end to settlements, we, holding United Nations observer status, will go to the Security Council to lodge an application to join (the UN) as the Palestinian state with its 1967 borders, Erakat said.He was speaking on the sidelines of a debate in Tangiers organised by the Amadeus Institute, a Moroccan think-tank.His comments came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu headed home late Thursday after lengthy talks with US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton that failed to unblock the stalled Middle East peace process.Direct talks broke down shortly after their launch in September when a moratorium on new settlement construction in the West Bank expired, and the Palestinians are refusing to come back to the table until it is reimposed.

Erakat blamed Israel for causing the breakdown of the talks by announcing new settlements in East Jerusalem.I demand that the US government makes the party which smashes confidence by taking measures that destroy the peace process take responsibility, he added.And he warned Netanyahu that he faced two choices, peace or settlements.On the Islamist Hamas movement which controls Gaza, he said the Palestinian Authority was deploying every possible effort to reunify the Palestinians. We are going to pursue dialogue,he added.There is nothing more important than putting an end to the division. We are a people living under occupation (and) if we do not help ourselves, no-one will help us,he said.

Activists mark year of protests at east Jerusalem flashpoint
– Fri Nov 12, 1:20 pm ET

JERUSALEM (AFP) – Some 300 demonstrators gathered in the east Jerusalem neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah on Friday to mark a year of protests against the eviction of Palestinians and against Israeli settler activity here.Israelis, Palestinians and international activists beat drums and waved signs reading Free Sheikh Jarrah and Stop Stealing Our Land, in what has become a weekly ritual sign of opposition to settlement activity in the area.The demonstrations target a group of Israelis who moved into the area with help from the international Nahalat Shimon settler group.The group secured a Israeli Supreme Court ruling last year ordering the eviction of several Palestinian families to make way for settlers who say they have title deeds for properties in the neighbourhood, despite UN and Palestinian denials.Opponents say the titles are fake documents for homes that Palestinians obtained in a deal struck between Jordan and the UN agency for refugees in 1956, when Jordan had jurisdiction over the area.Israeli authorities have also given permission for the construction of about 20 homes in Sheikh Jarrah, which is one of the tensest areas in the city and lies alongside the so-called Green Line separating east and west Jerusalem.On Friday, a few Orthodox Jews could be seen going in and out of homes in the neighbourhood.Protestors jeered them, but there was no violence and a small deployment of Israeli forces made no arrests.Israel captured east Jerusalem in the 1967 Six-Day War and later annexed it in a move not recognised by the international community.It sees all of Jerusalem as its eternal, undivided capital and does not consider construction in east Jerusalem to be settlement activity.The Palestinians want to make the east -- home to some 200,000 Jewish Israelis and 268,000 Palestinians -- the capital of their future state.

Clinton offers Netanyahu security pledge on peace talks
By Jeffrey Heller – Thu Nov 11, 6:42 pm ET

NEW YORK (Reuters) – Secretary of State Hillary Clinton assured Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday that Israel's security requirements would be fully taken into account in any peace deal with the Palestinians.In a move that could allow Netanyahu to persuade his governing coalition to back a new freeze on Israeli settlement construction, Clinton and the visiting Israeli leader ended a marathon round of talks in New York with a strong declaration of Washington's unshakable commitment to Israel's security and to peace in the region.The prime minister and the secretary agreed on the importance of continuing direct negotiations to achieve our goals, the two sides said in a joint statement, which did not mention the settlement issue directly.But Clinton repeated that the peace talks -- which have hit an impasse over the settlement issue -- could yet yield an independent Palestine living next to Israel with secure and recognized borders that reflect subsequent developments and meet Israeli security requirements.Those requirements will be fully taken into account in any future peace agreement, the joint statement said.It added that any future Palestinian state should be based on its 1967 borders with agreed swaps of territory, holding out the prospect that Israel might retain some of the occupied West Bank in exchange for giving the Palestinians other Israeli territory.Israeli officials said Netanyahu, who faces a tough political sell within his own coalition on the settlement issue, has pushed Clinton for broad new U.S.-Israel understandings on Israel's security needs in any eventual peace agreement.The chances of reaching a peace agreement will be improved significantly by achieving comprehensive security understandings between Israel and the United States, Netanyahu said before Thursday's talks began.Israel wants a long-term military presence in the Jordan Valley along the eastern border of a future Palestinian state as well as financial help to pay for security arrangements that would be necessary if a peace deal is achieved.U.S. officials said Clinton and Netanyahu met over a seven-hour period in New York, including one-on-one meetings and broader discussions which involved other U.S. officials including Middle East peace envoy George Mitchell and National Security Council Middle East specialist Dan Shapiro.

A WAY FORWARD

Thursday's talks marked the Obama administration's latest attempt to restart the direct peace talks that began in Washington on September 2 but were suspended by the Palestinians three weeks later when Netanyahu refused to extend a 10-month limited building freeze in West Bank settlements.The deadlock over settlements appeared to deepen this week when Israel announced it was going to proceed with a new housing project in part of the West Bank that it annexed to Jerusalem 43 years ago, underscoring Palestinian fears that Netanyahu's government will push ahead with settlements regardless of the impact on the peace process.Clinton, who on Wednesday said the Israeli decision on settlement building was counterproductive, said she still believed that Netanyahu and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas were serious about the talks.The prime minister and President Abbas are both very committed to a two-state solution. And we are going to find a way forward,she said before the meeting with Netanyahu.Netanyahu, whose governing coalition is dominated by pro-settler parties, has thus far resisted calls for a freeze on settlement construction.

Political analysts have suggested that new U.S. security commitments could help him persuade his coalition to reinstate the temporary moratorium on construction, which would allow the talks to resume.With the peace process in limbo, the Palestinians have stepped up calls for the international community to recognize Palestinian statehood now -- a move the United States fears could further complicate the situation.Abbas said on Thursday the Palestinians would have to consider alternatives to the peace process given the expansion of settlements on land that the Palestinians hope will eventually become their state.They (the Israelis) are undertaking unilateral actions every day,Abbas said in the West Bank city of Ramallah.(Writing by Andrew Quinn; Editing by Xavier Briand)

Gaza aid shipment off course after row with captain By Ali Shuaib and Mohammed Abbas – Thu Nov 11, 4:21 pm ET

TRIPOLI/LONDON (Reuters) – Workers trying to take aid by sea from Libya to Gaza are being held by the ship's captain against their will along with Libyan police officers, and heading for Greece, their charity and the Libyan coast guard said.In an apparent row over money, the captain of the Greek-managed ship Strofades IV set off from the Libyan port of Derna while the vessel was still tied up, snapping mooring ropes and bumping into the harbor wall.The Road to Hope charity organizing the cargo said the Maltese-registered boat was now sailing toward Greece with 10 aid workers -- seven Britons, two Irish and an Algerian -- on board as well as several Libyan police officers and a senior port official.A Libyan coastguard official said there had been an argument over money between the aid workers and the captain.The scene was crazy, said Saeb Shaath, an aid worker who was at the port helping the charity to dispatch the aid consignment and witnessed the incident.He (the captain) broke anchor without permission to leave, Shaath told Reuters by telephone from Libya.He broke the ropes tying the ship ... and nearly capsized the ship when when it hit the wall. There were a lot of people on that ship.Libyan authorities pursued the ship with Zodiac speedboats and aircraft, but the captain refused to stop. "He won't listen,said Shaath.

MONEY DISPUTE

There was no immediate comment from the ship's captain or its owner.The official with the Libyan coastguard told Reuters the Libyan police officers had gone on board at the port to help settle the dispute when the ship set off. The vessel was now outside Libya's territorial waters and heading toward Greece, said the official, who did not want to be identified.The Road to Hope charity said in a statement: We think the ship is several miles out to sea in the Mediterranean now. They've been making slow but steady headway. I have no idea what that Greek ship owner is up to.The charity says it is an international collective of activists contributing to efforts to end Israel's blockade of Gaza, which is controlled by the Islamist group Hamas.In May, nine pro-Palestinian Turks were killed in clashes with Israeli forces who had boarded a converted cruise liner that was trying to lead an aid flotilla to Gaza.The Greek captain ... was reported to be saying he wanted to proceed to Greek islands and drop off the conveyers (aid workers) and Libyans, so that the Greek people could deal with them as illegal immigrants,the Road to Hope statement said.Britain's foreign ministry said it was aware of the incident.Our Embassy in Athens has spoken to the shipping company and is also in close contact with the Greek authorities. Our priority remains that there be a safe resolution to this incident, it said in a statement.(Additional reporting by Christian Lowe in Algiers and Chris Scicluna; in Valetta; Writing by Christian Lowe and Mohammed Abbas; Editing by David Stamp)

Israel's Lieberman says peace with Syria unrealistic: report
– Thu Nov 11, 12:43 pm ET

JERUSALEM (AFP) – Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Thursday the Syrian government was absolutely not interested in making peace with Israel, media reports said.Everyone is asking: is Syria a partner for peace? the ultra-nationalist minister said in comments reported by the Haaretz and Ynet news websites.The depth of ties between Damascus and Iran and North Korea, and its transformation into a centre of world terror, are facts which are hard to ignore, he said.Only a political hypochondriac could think that Syria, under its current leadership, could be a partner for peace.The hawkish minister's remarks were made as he toured the Golan, which Israel seized from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war and annexed in 1981 in a move never recognised by the international community.Israel and Syria remain technically in a state of war, and Israeli officials have frequently voiced concerns about the ties and military cooperation between Damascus and the Jewish state's arch-foe, Iran.Both Israel and the United States, along with many Western nations, accuse Iran of using its controversial nuclear programme to produce an atomic bomb, a charge Tehran vehemently denies.Earlier this year, Lieberman accused North Korea of supplying weapons technology to Syria and Iran, and creating an axis of evil with the two countries.His remarks, made during a trip to Japan in May, drew a curt response from Pyongyang which denied his claims, calling him an imbecile in diplomacy.

THIS IS HOW HYPOCRITICAL THE ARABS ARE.THEY WANT ISRAEL TO HIRE THEM TO BUILD HOUSES IN ISRAEL.THEN AFTER THE HOUSES ARE DONE,THE ARABS CRY ISRAEL IS BUILDING SETTLEMENTS AND THE ARABS WANT IT STOPPED.HOW STUPID (BRAINLESS,BRAINWASED) ARE THESE ARABS AND THE U.N ANYWAY.

Despite ban, Palestinians build the settlements By Ben Hubbard, Associated Press – Wed Nov 10, 5:03 pm ET

ARIEL, West Bank – It's a startling fact: The workers building Israel's West Bank settlements have generally been Palestinians — even though Palestinians widely consider these communities a toxic threat to their dream of an independent state.Now comes a twist: earlier this year, the Palestinian government passed a law forbidding work in the settlements — and its determination to stamp out the phenomenon is being sorely tested in recent weeks, as a settlement building boomlet has emerged in the West Bank.With the Palestinian economy facing double-digit unemployment, the issue has sparked some soul-searching and debate.It is immoral for us — totally immoral for us — to work in settlements, said Economics Minister Hassan Abu Libdeh, an enthusiastic supporter of the law which passed in April and bans Palestinians from such work.Abu Libdeh said the ban — which imposes fines of up to $14,000 and jail time of up to five years for violators — will eventually be enforced. But for now, he said, the government is holding off while it searches for ways to help workers switch jobs.About 21,000 Palestinians currently work in settlements, either in construction, agriculture or industry. Their ability to return to the settlements in recent years — after a period of violence from 2000-2005 which saw the two peoples separated almost completely — has been key to the mini-revival of the Palestinian economy.But it is also helping the settlements prosper and expand.Some 300,000 Israelis live in more than 120 settlements across the West Bank — almost a threefold increase over two decades of peace negotiations. Another 180,000 live in east Jerusalem, which the Palestinians hope to make their capital.In the settlement of Ariel on Wednesday, Palestinian laborers readily admitted they were torn between politics and paychecks.Dozens of them mixed cement, laid bricks and arranged red tiles on the roofs of 48 new apartments at a dusty construction site in what is already a town boasting 19,000 residents.

Most work eight-hour shifts five days a week and earn between $35 and $55 per day — which is somewhat less than what Israeli workers would cost, but more than what is generally available to Palestinians in the West Bank. There, similar jobs usually pay $25 per day in the Palestinian cities and $15 in rural areas.Sitting inside a yellow tractor, Abed Abdel-Karim, 41, said he'd been working in settlements for 15 years. He said they threaten the future Palestinian state but said he has no other way to earn a living.He acknowledged it was a problem, but it's not my job to fix it ... I'm married and have kids. I don't want to be a millionaire. I just want to pay my bills.Palestinians have opposed the settlements since Israel captured east Jerusalem, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip from Jordan in the 1967 Mideast war. Supported by most of the world community, they consider the West Bank occupied territory and say moving Israeli civilians there violates international law. Israel calls it disputed territory and says it can build there until a peace deal is reached.The settlements emerged as a hugely contentious issue in the U.S.-led peace talks launched in September. It was Israel's decision to end a 10-month moratorium on new construction that caused the talks to grind to a halt just weeks later.Now there are hundreds of new units in various stages of construction — and Palestinians, just as before, are at the heart of the enterprise, despite the ban.

Palestinian Labor Minister Ahmed Majdalani said that one way the government is trying to combat the phenomenon is the creation of an investment fund aimed at supporting large-scale construction projects and other Palestinian employers.The fund, announced in May, is hoping to tap international donors, but so far the only moneys have come from the Palestinian Authority itself — $5 million, or a tenth of the $50 million target. Even if the fund takes off, Palestinian companies will likely continue to pay less than Israeli ones. But Majdalani said he's counting on national pride and fear of punishment to entice workers away from settlements. We don't consider the difference in pay a justification for anyone to go work in the settlements — not nationalistically, politically or morally,he said.Another possible solution for the Palestinian workers is the planned city of Rawabi, which will be built from the ground up for 40,000 residents; but this massive project remains on hold because Israel has not given builders permission for a key access road.At the construction site in Ariel, 32-year-old Abdel-Jaber Bouzia was doubtful any of these schemes would work. He did not fear the legal ban on working in the settlements and could hardly imagine their removal.Maybe after a million years, he said, shoveling sand into a rumbling cement mixer. Or on Judgment Day.

What do the settlers say?

Settler spokeswoman Aliza Herbst noted that some settlements themselves ban Arab labor, sometimes due to security concerns, but it remains attractively cheap and abundant.She said she supports the Palestinian government's efforts because she would prefer employers were freed of the financial temptation and hired Jews instead.I hope they succeed,she said.

Muslims say Obama failing to keep Cairo promises By Alexander Dziadosz and Sarah Mikhail – Wed Nov 10, 7:55 am ET

CAIRO (Reuters) – President Barack Obama's pledge on Wednesday to strive for better relations with the Muslim world drew skepticism in Cairo, where last year he called for a new beginning in the Middle East after years of mistrust.In a visit to Indonesia, the world's most populous Muslim-majority country, Obama acknowledged more needed to be done to repair ties with the Muslim world.As soon as Obama took over, he said he would do this and that -- a lot of things. But he still hasn't met a single goal,said Saad Zaki Khalil, 56, who was selling cigarette lighters in central Cairo.Seventeen months after Obama's Cairo University speech, al Qaeda is still threatening the West, peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians remain stalled over the issue of West Bank settlements and U.S. troops remain in Iraq and Afghanistan.Many in the Middle East believe that Washington's tight alliance with Israel makes it impossible to end the suffering of the Palestinians, breeding cynicism among Arab Muslims toward U.S. intentions in the region.It's all speeches -- in the end the same American politics, and Jewish politics, continues, said Cairo retiree Mohamed Abdel. This is why nothing since Obama's Cairo speech has translated into action with Arab nations.Obama quoted from the Koran in his June 2009 speech in the Arab world's most populous city as he strove to show that Western ideas and Islam shared common principles and that nurturing differences plays into the hands of Islamist radicals.

In Jakarta on Wednesday, he repeated that America was not at war with Islam, was determined to bring security to Afghanistan and would spare no effort to achieve peace between Israel and the Palestinians.I personally had higher expectations for change" after the 2009 speech, said Cairo lawyer Hatem Khalil. It's ignorant to believe Obama will solve the Palestinian case... I also agree that if the U.S. takes out all its military from Iraq in one phase the country will collapse -- but I think that with Egypt, more needs to be done.Obama's Jakarta speech emphasized democracy and Indonesia's progress in bridging racial and religious divides, but Cairo University politics professor Hassan Nafaa said Arab states had moved away from democratic reform since the Bush administration.Nafaa said Obama did not mention the recent record of Arab governments on political reform though his upbeat remarks about Indonesia's vibrant democracy were seen as a veiled reference to autocratic Muslim countries to emulate the Asian country.In Egypt, a decades-old state of emergency remains in force and opposition groups say they are muzzled and their activities curtailed. President Hosni Mubarak, 82, has not yet said if he will seek a sixth six-year term in office next year.We knew a while ago that Obama does not want to pressure the Middle East states that are friends with the United States, Nafaa said.And this is because he fully realizes he has economic and political interests with those states and pressuring them will not lead to any outcome, as previous pressure from former President George Bush failed to bring any change.
(Additional reporting by Yasmine Saleh; Writing by Tom Pfeiffer; Editing by Samia Nakhoul)

Palestinians say it's time to recognize their state
By Douglas Hamilton – Tue Nov 9, 3:38 pm ET

JERUSALEM (Reuters) – Israel's plan to build new homes on occupied land should be countered by international recognition of a Palestinian state, the chief Palestinian negotiator said Tuesday.Raising the stakes in deadlocked U.S.-sponsored peace talks, Saeb Erekat said it was clear from the latest announcement of building plans that Israel wants settlements, not peace.Israeli unilateralism is a call for immediate international recognition of the Palestinian state, he said in a statement.The United States swiftly repeated its opposition to any unilateral moves to recognize Palestinian statehood.Both sides have to avoid unilateral actions that really poison the atmosphere and prevent progress toward negotiations, State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said.The world paid little attention when the late Yasser Arafat declared a Palestinian state in 1988. But political winds have shifted and Israel today is seriously concerned that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas might win recognition.Abbas has floated the idea of going to the United Nations to declare statehood as one option if peace negotiations collapse, but only after first seeking support from Washington.Israel Monday announced plans to build 1,300 new homes on occupied West Bank land it has annexed to Jerusalem, and on Tuesday news reports said a further 800 units were planned in the big settlement of Ariel in the northern West Bank.The building plans were made public as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was in the United States to discuss ways to revive peacemaking that stalled over the settlements.This kind of activity is never helpful when it comes to peace negotiations, U.S. President Barack Obama said during a visit to Indonesia.

And I'm concerned that we're not seeing each side make the extra effort involved to get a breakthrough that could finally create a framework for a secure Israel living side by side in peace with a sovereign Palestine.Netanyahu countered censure of the latest Israeli project by noting that Jewish homes had gone up in Arab East Jerusalem during previous rounds of peace talks, without blocking them.Jerusalem is not a settlement. Jerusalem is the capital of the State of Israel, Netanyahu's office said in a statement.Israel sees no connection between the peace process and planning and building policy in Jerusalem ... The disputes with the United States on the matter of Jerusalem are known ... We hope to overcome them and keep diplomatic talks moving ahead.

TIMING

Israel captured East Jerusalem, along with the West Bank, in 1967 and regards all of Jerusalem as its capital, including the two neighborhoods where new housing has been approved. World powers do not accept Israel's claim on East Jerusalem, which Palestinians want for the capital of their future state.Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was expected to raise the issue in a meeting with Netanyahu in New York Thursday.State Department spokesman Crowley said the statement from Netanyahu's office was unhelpful, and rejected its suggestion there was no link between settlement activity and the peace process. There clearly is a link in the sense that it is incumbent on both parties, as we've insisted all along, that they are responsible for creating conditions for a successful negotiation, Crowley said.To suggest that this kind of announcement would not have an impact on the Palestinian side I think is incorrect.U.S. misgivings were echoed by Russia, Britain and European Union foreign affairs chief Catherine Ashton, who said Israel's plan contradicts the efforts by the international community to resume direct negotiations and the decision should be reversed.Ashton added: Settlements are illegal under international law, constitute an obstacle to peace and threaten to make a two-state solution impossible.Direct peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians broke down in September almost as soon as they had begun, after Netanyahu rebuffed Palestinian demands to extend a partial freeze on West Bank settlement building.

Noting that the controversial housing announcement was made while Netanyahu was in the U.S., Crowley said: It could very well be that somebody in Israel has made this known in order to embarrass the prime minister and to undermine the process.Washington was outraged in March when settlement housing plans were announced with what looked like defiant timing as U.S. Vice President Joe Biden was visiting Jerusalem.(Additional reporting by Jeffrey Heller in New York and Patricia Zengerle in Jakarta; Editing by Michael Roddy)

Bush book sheds light on Israeli strike on Syria By JOSEF FEDERMAN, Associated Press – Tue Nov 9, 2:25 pm ET

JERUSALEM – Former President George W. Bush confirms in his memoir that the target of a 2007 Israeli airstrike was a Syrian nuclear reactor and suggests he quietly approved — a revelation with special relevance at a time when Israel is calling for a military option against Iran's nuclear program.Offering insight into how high-stakes diplomacy can play out very differently in private, Bush says the raid showed the Jewish state would go it alone and made up for the confidence I had lost in the Israelis because of the indecisive war in Lebanon a year before. In public, by contrast, the United States certainly did not offer praise.He also revealed that Israel first asked the U.S. to bomb the site, but the Bush administration refused.The section on Syria is just a small part of a memoir that is generating buzz around the world with its surprising candor.The former president, who has largely kept a low profile since leaving office nearly two years ago, describes tensions with Vice President Dick Cheney and acknowledges mistakes in his handling of key events from the war in Iraq to Hurricane Katrina to the downturn in the American economy.Bush's defense of harsh tactics used against terrorist suspects, such as waterboarding, has created an uproar in some corners of the globe, especially in Europe.Israel, one of the few places where Bush remained popular until his last day in office, has been far kinder. Israeli media have focused on Bush's warm praise for ex-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, his support for Israel's tough crackdown on Palestinian militants in the last decade and his animosity toward the late Palestinian leader, Yasser Arafat.

The Sept. 6, 2007, airstrike in Syria remains one of Israel's deepest secrets of recent times. Syria announced at the time that its airspace had been invaded but gave no details. Israel has never commented on the operation.But in Decision Points, published this week, Bush provides the strongest confirmation yet of reports that citing experts and unidentified U.S. intelligence officials that Israel hit a nuclear reactor being built with North Korean assistance.Bush writes that in spring 2007 U.S. officials strongly suspected that Syria, a bitter enemy of Israel, had been caught red-handed trying to develop a nuclear weapons capability with North Korean help.This was based on photos obtained by a foreign intelligence partner of a suspicious building in eastern Syria.Olmert asked the president to bomb the compound,Bush writes. The U.S. refused, saying it had only low confidence Syria was developing nuclear weapons. Bush wrote that Olmert was disappointed.The Israeli strike occurred about a year after Israel's inconclusive war against Hezbollah, in which Lebanese guerrillas battled Israel's powerful army to a stalemate. The poor performance raised questions about Israel's deterrent capabilities.Prime Minister Olmert's execution of the strike made up for the confidence I had lost in the Israelis during the Lebanon war, Bush wrote, adding that the Israeli leader rejected a suggestion to go public with the operation.Olmert told me he wanted total secrecy. He wanted to avoid anything that might back Syria into a corner and force (Syrian President Bashar) Assad to retaliate. This was his operation, and I felt an obligation to respect his wishes, Bush wrote.

In comments that could have implications for Iran, Bush noted that the Syrian operation was conducted without coordination with the Americans.The bombing demonstrated Israel's willingness to act alone. Prime Minister Olmert hadn't asked for a green light, and I hadn't given one, Bush wrote.He had done what he believed was necessary to protect Israel.Through a spokesman, Olmert declined comment, as did the Israeli military and Syrian officials. Syria denies it has any nuclear ambitions and claims the site was an unused military installation.Israel has a long history of acting unilaterally in the nuclear arena, believing atomic weapons in the hands of its enemies would constitute an existential threat. Israel is widely considered to be the only Mideast nation to posses nuclear weapons. But it refuses to confirm it possesses a nuclear arsenal, following a long-standing policy of nuclear ambiguity.In 1981, Israeli warplanes destroyed a nuclear reactor being built in Iraq, and Israeli leaders have warned that all options are on the table with Iran.

Israel, like much of the West, believes that Iran is developing nuclear weapons — a claim that Iran disputes. Israel's current prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, raised the ante this week when, signaling impatience with international sanctions against Iran, he called for a credible military threat.The comment drew an angry reaction from U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates, who said the sanctions are working. American officials have repeatedly urged Israel against taking unilateral action against Iran. Bush's account does not necessarily mean that Israel is preparing to strike Iran, especially as Bush and Olmert are both out of office.
Nonetheless, Eldad Pardo, an analyst at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, said the Syrian reactor bombing is an interesting model that could provide lessons on Iran.
Pardo said there is a strong cultural code in Israel to protect itself from existential threats as a last resort — a fear that is rooted in the experience of the Holocaust.Israel will try as hard as possible not to act alone, he said. But when matters of nuclear (threats) and possible genocide are concerned, Israel will act alone as a last resort. In such cases, Israel wouldn't tell the U.S. ahead of time because you don't embarrass your allies.But Ephraim Kam, a strategist at Tel Aviv University, noted that attacking Iran would be far more complicated than neighboring Syria — and would have deeper implications, given Iran's influence and military capabilities. And under the more dovish President Barack Obama, the U.S. has warned Israel against any surprises, he added.

In Europe the focus Tuesday was on waterboarding. Bush's claim that the practice had prevented attacks in London's Heathrow Airport and Canary Wharf business district led TV news bulletins in Britain. Prime Minister David Cameron's office restated the British government's belief that waterboarding is illegal. And Kim Howells, a former lawmaker who chaired the House of Commons' intelligence and security committee, expressed doubts about Bush's claim.The Times newspaper said waterboarding is unacceptable no matter what the claimed benefits.And the memoirs also were covered widely in France, where Le Monde focused on Bush's defense of waterboarding, noting his absence of regret.

Syria's Assad gets Bulgarian backing for closer EU ties
– Tue Nov 9, 12:43 pm ET

SOFIA (AFP) – Bulgaria on Tuesday backed Syria's attempts to develop closer ties with the EU as well as its position on the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, on the first visit by a Syrian head of state in 24 years.Bulgarian President Georgy Parvanov said after talks here with his Syrian counterpart Bashar al-Assad that he backed Damascus' efforts to recover the Golan.I have already expressed my support for Syria's stance on the Golan Heights, Parvanov said, without elaborating.The rocky plateau in south-western Syria, seized by Israel in 1967, is still a major bone of contention between the Middle Eastern neighbours.During a visit to Cyprus last week, Assad had praised Nicosia as an important ally within the European Union in Damascus' efforts to recover the territory.Cyprus has long supported the return of the Golan Heights to Syria and backs the creation of a viable Palestinian state.

Assad meanwhile urged Sofia on Tuesday to play its role, both in its bilateral relations with Israel and within the EU, to urge Israel (to continue) the peace process.Parvanov said the two leaders had discussed a long dormant Association Agreement between the EU and Syria.They had spoken at length on the idea of restarting work on the EU-Syria Association Agreement, as there has been some delay there and some questions remain unsolved and require additional discussions, Parvanov said.I assure you that in future talks on EU-Syrian ties, Bulgaria will be one of the active factors in forming the (EU) position on Syria, he added.An Association Agreement between the European Union and Syria was initialled in 2004 but never signed.Assad's trip to Bulgaria was the first by a Syrian head of state since his late father and former president Hafez al-Assad visited communist Bulgaria 24 years ago.The two countries, close allies and trade partners during communism, hailed on Tuesday the resumption of political ties and expressed hopes of further economic cooperation.Assad was to travel on to Romania on Wednesday.

NOW WE KNOW WHY THE ARAB-MUSLIMS MURDER AND BEHEAD INNOCENT PEOPLE.THEIR SO FULL OF DRUGS AND DECIEVED INTO BELIEVING LIES.SATAN USES THEM AS HIS PUPPETS TO MURDER INNOCENT ISRAELIS AND CHRISTIANS.BUT THESE REASONS TO ARE A COPOUT FOR TAKING RESPONSIBILITIES FOR THEIR MURDEROUS ACTIONS.THEIR JUST COMPLETE HATE-MURDER FOR SEX FOREVER MONGERS.PURE AND SIMPLE.

Stressed out Gazans need therapists, pop pills
By Nidal al-Mughrabi – Mon Nov 8, 4:07 pm ET

JABALYA, Gaza Strip (Reuters) – If ever there was a little corner of the world where trauma therapists hanging out their shingle should do a boom business, it has to be Gaza.Take, for example, Samira, a 43-year-old schoolteacher and mother of five who lived too close to a Hamas security complex bombed repeatedly during Israel's December 2008-January 2009 cross-border offensive.I could not sleep for months -- no, for a year. I used to have dreams and even while awake I used to hear the sound of explosions when there was really nothing happening, said the woman, who did not want to be named.One of my children also wet his bed for several months, she added.

A trauma therapist should have been on the case -- and in this instance, was. But in Gaza, despite decades of Israeli incursions, economic blockades, deadly internal infighting among Palestinians and grinding poverty, dealing with trauma is something brand new -- and not a total success, either.Experts estimate that up to 15 percent of Gazans suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), but Western-style psychotherapy is a relatively recent arrival.Gazans, for whom therapy comes after scraping a living, also are culturally wary of seeking outside help with emotional and mental problems. The Israeli blockade ensures the enclave remains dirt poor, and not in a position to pay for new health services.We need specialists to deal with children, others to deal with adults, and specialists who can deal with specific and complicated psychological disorders, psychologist Hassan Zeyada, of the Gaza Mental Health Program, said.Gaza lacks qualified psychiatrists who meet regional criteria for the profession, he said. Experts say many of those practicing in Gaza at the moment were self-taught.

PSYCHO DRUGS ABUSED

On top of that, the minute psychotropic drugs were introduced to help deal with stress, drug abuse cropped up.During its 2008-2009 offensive, Israel attacked Gaza to shut down the firing of short-range rockets fired at southern Israel. About 1,400 Palestinians were killed and over 4,000 injured.In the aftermath, with psychotherapy a relatively unknown option, Gazans began taking the opiate Tramadol, self-medicating to calm jangled nerves and recurring panic attacks.Gaza's drug craze is gradually coming under control. Tramadol is now officially available by prescription only, but its use as a recreational drug remains a serious problem.I've stopped ordering it, even for legal uses, one local pharmacist said. I know the devastating effect that abuse of this drug can have on youngsters.For sufferers of post-traumatic stress disorder, depression and other psychological ailments, more promising therapies are now on offer.

NOT A STIGMA

Dyaa Saymah, a mental health officer with the World Health Organization in Gaza, said the WHO was trying to include psychological services in primary health care clinics and we have so far trained 300 doctors and nurses in 56 clinics. Many people still view seeing a psychiatrist as a stigma,he said. But people do go to primary health clinics and there a trained doctor can see what they really need.Gaza also needed a Code of Practice to regulate a profession in which many practitioners are self-taught, experts said. Zeyada said there was no official figure for the incidence of PTSD in Gaza, but he endorsed a recent study by a colleague who estimated it at 10-to-14 percent among the 1.5 million people living in a 40-km by 12-km (25-mile by 8-mile) enclave smaller than an Australian sheep ranch.We are talking about people who fit the full criteria of psychological disorder. We are not talking about the many people who suffer reactions because of certain pressure in their daily lives and certain difficulties and problems,Zeyada said.Deputy Minister of Health Hassan Khalaf said Gaza's incidence of PTSD was not above 15 percent, and maintained it was not the most prevalent psychological problem.Our most pressing (mental health) problem is depression, and the causes are several, including the ongoing blockade, last year's war and its continued consequences, the bad economic situation and the lack of vision for the future,he said.Gaza's problems are compounded by a climate of suspicion rooted in the intractable dispute between Hamas and Fatah, the dominant Palestinian movement which favors negotiation with Israel and was driven out of Gaza in 2007.Gaza's patients with psychological problems therefore are not referred to Israel. And while Palestinians today are more ready to accept psychotherapy than in the past, there is a reluctance to discuss mental or emotional problems, doctors say.Awareness is higher but still limited, and many people still regard the topic as taboo,Zeyada said. As long as Hamas holds control and remains hostile, there is little chance of Israel lifting its quarantine, but at least some of the new services, including help lines and advice over the Internet, are beginning to take hold -- and have an impact, even if violence is never far away.

It is was hard for me to see a doctor, but a friend of mine convinced me it was not a stigma to see one. So I finally visited a doctor with my boy, the schoolteacher and mother-of-five said.After several weeks I began to feel better and my son stopped wetting his bed. I think I have recovered and I hope the violence is over. But maybe it's not.