Right Truth

Obama Meets Ahmadinejad by Proxy

From Anti-Mullah:

Not waiting to be elected, Obama started secret, unconditional talks with the islamic regime of Mullah iran behind America's back. By proxy.

And has reached an agreement with them!

Which partly explains why his advisor Tony Lake made his rather strange and very public statement to C-SPAN that his boss Obama wanted to go on record (again?) that the first order of priority when he was in the White House would be to start immediate - unconditional - talks with islamic iran.

We reported Tony Lake's remark but the news behind it has only just reached us in usable form. Actual names of those involved will be divulged later.

Reportedly, through Obama VP candidate Joe Biden's long standing friendship with the islamic regime's established representative in the USA, Houshang AmirAhmadi, the Obama camp set up a meeting in the USA with an official delegate of the Mullahs.

Last week, three Iranian men and one Iranian woman, ostensibly Democrat activists but reportedly paid Mullah agents in the USA met at a restaurant with an fully authorized Obama senior representative and a man sent from Tehran by the islamic regime.

The Tehran man, dressed unusually in a suit and tie to avoid showing his Mullah regime status and membership in the islamic regime's nuclear program, brought a slew of documentation with him, trying to prove the regime wanted peaceful use of their nuclear efforts.

The four Iranian locals were mostly window dressing.

He insisted that Tehran had about four hours of power blackouts a day and was desperately in need of nuclear powered electricity generation.

Nobody bothered to comment to the Obama representative that it would be completely in line with the Mullah regime to create artificial blackouts to irritate the populace into "demanding" a nuclear solution, which could be spoon fed to the West and as an explicit justification for the pursuit of additional uranium centrifuges.

The Mullah delegate offered a quid pro quo deal whereby if Obama supported the Mullah nuclear program when he got to the White House, islamic iran would guarantee that Israel would never be attacked by islamic iran.

The Israeli aspect being offered so Obama could backdoor this assurance to the Israelis and win their support for his election bid.

Again, nobody bothered to inform the Obama representative that islamic iran's power structure is splintering on an almost daily basis and already consists of half a dozen power centers with about 15 key players vying with each other in a kaleidoscope of ever changing alliances - none of which can guarantee anything. Not even being there a few months from now.

Nor addressed the fact that one of the key players, former president and rival to both Ahmadi-Nejad and Supreme ruler Khamenei, "ayatollah" Hashemi-Rafsanjani stated in a recent Friday Prayer meeting over which he presided that the destruction of Israel was one of his highest priorities and it would not exist for much longer.

As a billionaire with a following inside the country he is a force with which to reckon and can sabotage any deal that the Mullah delegate makes with Obama.

The Mullah delegate also added the Mullahs would ramp up the efforts to promote Obama in this final stretch with money and Moslem shoe leather.

Sad to say, Obama, who refused to fly a single American flag in Denver at his Democratic convention is once again proving he will go to bed with the devil himself to win the race and has no apparent misgivings of placing America in danger from islamic iranian terrorism.

And, incidentally, who (other than the ambitious Obama) can ever believe or trust the Mullahs and their promises, so Obama's selfish pact with the Mullah devil speaks volumes of how easily he can intentionally or by inexperience put us all in danger.

In closing, much to your surprise, perhaps, the Mullahs, because of their close ties to China and Russia, have established ever closer ties with Iranian Marxists and Communists around the world to achieve alliances to further their cause.

Obama fits exactly into that slot as a great Marxist-Islamist.

Other reading:

Exclusive: Will Israel Strike Iran without U.S. Assistance?

British Ignore Jihad and Islamic Supremacism to Their Peril: (Part One of Two)

Men Taking Photos Of 2010 G8 Summit Location Raise Suspicions

RNC Protesters Attack Delegates Getting Off Bus At Convention

Man Carrying 10,000 Rounds of Ammunition Arrested After Shooting Traffic Light

Drone Missile Strike In Pakistan Kills Six

A New Strategy for the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

McCain vetter defends Palin review

Accusations that Sarah Palin Was a Member of the Alaska Independence Party Are False, stop the aclu

Vets For Freedom:  Watch Our New Television Advertisement

Pending Attack On Iran - Updated

Another report that the United States is planning to attack Iranian nuclear sites and military installations within a few weeks.  Source De Telegraaf (Dutch), Google translation here.

One agent, who under the supervision of the Dutch intelligence agency AIVD managed to infiltrate into the Iranian industry, has recently been recalled, because in the U.S. the decision has been taken to attack Iran within a few weeks with unmanned aircraft.  (ATS)

One of the agents, who under the supervision of the AIVD managed to infiltrate into the Iranian industry, has recently recalled in the U.S. because the decision would be taken within a few weeks with unmanned aircraft to attack Iran.  Among the potential targets are allegedly not only nuclear plants, military installations but also partly caused by the AIVD have been identified.   Information from the AIVD-operation in recent years shared with the American intelligence agency CIA, according to sources.

 It also could be sabotaged various supplies and stopped.  It involved parts for missiles and launching vehicles.   Iran is three times since 2006 hit by UN sanctions because of the controversial nuclear program.   Western intelligence agencies fear that the land of the ayatollahs in 2010 about nuclear weapons at its disposal.  The Iranian President Ahmadinejad threatens Israel regularly on the map sweep.  (Google translation here)

Anything to this or just another false report?  Time will tell.

UPDATE:  VIA NEWSMAX, a better translation:

The paper indicated Holland's military intelligence service (Algemene Inlichtingen-en Veiligheidsdienst, or AIVD), has pulled back from its operations inside Iran helping the U.S. to identify targets.

De Telegraaf reports that the decision has already been made by the U.S. to attack Iran using unmanned aircraft, hence the Netherlands' decision to remove its agents.

Excerpts from De Telegraaf follow:

"Good sources have declared to the Telegraaf that the AIVD Algemene Inlichtingen- en Veiligheidsdienst has been operating in Iran for the last few years with the purpose of the infiltration and sabotage of the weapons industry of the Iranian republic.

"The operations are said to have been 'very successful' but have recently been put to a halt because of American plans for an air attack. Information regarding the AIVD operation has been shared with the CIA in recent years, according to the sources.

"Iran is believed to be working towards an atomic bomb and refuses to comply to Western demands to stop enriching uranium. In June Israeli vice president Shaul Mofaz made the statement that an Israeli attack is inevitable if Iran continues its quest for atomic weapons."

Al-Qaeda, Israel, Jill Carroll and Margaret Hassan

Experts are mionitoring al Qaeda chatter from inside Israel.  (National Terror Alert)  We don't generally think of al-Qaeda being active inside Israel, but as the saying goes "they're everywhere...".  Also new "The U.S. military has announced the arrest of an Al Qaeda figure who allegedly planned the 2006 kidnapping of American journalist Jill Carroll, the Christian Science Monitor reporter seized Jan. 7, 2006 and freed three months later" 

A statement Sunday says Salim Abdullah Ashur al-Shujayri was captured during an Aug. 11 operation. It adds he is also known as Abu Othman.

The military says al-Shujayri is believed to be “the planner behind the kidnapping” of Carroll. She was a Christian Science Monitor reporter seized Jan. 7, 2006 and freed three months later.

The statement also says al-Shujayri’s associates were involved in the high-profile kidnappings of Christian peace activists and British aid worker Margaret Hassan.

Hassan was abducted in Baghdad in October 2004 and later killed, although her body was never found. (Fox News)

Al-Qaeda, long crowded out of the Palestinian territories by more localised armed groups, may be establishing a creeping presence inside Israel itself among its large Arab minority, experts say.

Over the past year the Shin Beth internal security agency has announced the arrest of four cells inspired by the ideology of Osama bin Laden’s global terror network on jihadist websites and suspected of planning attacks.

The most high-profile case was that of a Jerusalem student who allegedly sought advice on an Al-Qaeda Internet forum on how to shoot down George W. Bush’s helicopter during the US president’s visit to Israel in January.

An indictment filed last month alleges that Mohammed Najem, 24, from the town of Nazareth, frequently visited the Ekhlass website messageboard using the alias Mohammed of Sham, a Koranic name for Syria, Lebanon and Palestine.

The US-based SITE Intelligence Group, which specialises in penetrating and monitoring protected jihadist websites, intercepted his alleged postings.

“My brothers in Allah… How can a plane be shot down, and how can that be done? The planes of the dying Bush land and take off over a period of two days in an area close to my residence,” read a January 10 message in Arabic.  (Continue reading at Khaleej Times)

We should not worry about world events, terrorists, or war ... When Obama is elected all will be peace and harmony!

From New Media Alliance:

  ...  Senator Obama campaigned on the promise to meet with any foreign leader, friend or foe, for discussions without preconditions. Such an essay has only one pillar to lean upon: Senator Obama’s presumed superhuman ability to calm foreign aggression with honeyed words from his lips.  (read the entire article here)

Interesting quote by  Governor Ed Rendell, thanks to Yid With Lid:

Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell made a very off-message but very truthful declaration today at a Panel Discussion with the three Sunday Show moderators.

"Ladies and gentleman, the coverage of Barack Obama was embarrassing," said Rendell, in the ballroom at Denver's Brown Palace Hotel. "It was embarrassing....MSNBC was the official network of the Obama campaign,"

Goodwill gets innocent Israelis killed

The facts prove that Israel's 'goodwill gestures' have resulted in hundreds of dead innocent Israelis and thousands of injured Israelis.  What's worse, the Israelis are going to do it again ... another show of goodwill will release 199 terrorists.  How many of them will return to their evil ways and kill more Israelis?  At least 50%.

According to an informal estimate by Israeli security bodies, about 50
percent of the terrorists freed for any reason whatsoever returned to the
path of terror, either as perpetrator, planner, or accomplice. In the terror
acts committed by these freed terrorists, hundreds of Israelis were
murdered, and thousands were wounded.

Israel freed 400 Palestinian prisoners and five other prisoners in return
for Elhanan Tannenbaum, who was held captive by Hizbullah, and for the
bodies of three soldiers kidnapped on Mount Dov. According to Knesset
Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairman Tzahi Hanegbi, from the date
of the deal on January 29, 2004, until April 17, 2007, those freed in the
deal had murdered 35 Israelis.

An investigation by the Almagor Terror Victims Association in Israel
revealed that at least 30 of the terrorist attacks perpetrated since 2000
were committed by terrorists freed in deals with terror organizations. Many
were freed in the framework of goodwill gestures because they were defined
by Israel as "without blood on their hands." The bloody swath cut by these
terrorists claimed the life of 177 persons, with many others wounded and
made invalids. 

(taken from Jerusalem Issue Brief Institute for Contemporary Affairs, founded jointly with the Wechsler Family Foundation, Vol. 8, No. 8 24 August 2008, "Releasing Terrorists: New Victims Pay the Price", by Nadav Shragai, via Yoni the Blogger)

You can read the entire report at Yoni the Blogger.  The question must be asked:  "Why does Israel continue to make these one-sided prisoner swaps, knowing what the result will be?"  and;  "Why not try and execute these prisoners?"  and; "Does the U.S. encourage this or discourage this action?"

In my personal opinion (and no, I am certainly not an expert in the area), this behavior on Israel's part only reinforces the actions of the terrorists.  It causes the terrorists to continue in their kidnapping of innocent Israelis, with the obvious intent to use them in future prisoner swaps.  A very bad precedent set by Israel.

How Much Israeli Goodwill is Expected?

Israel will release 199 Palestinian prisoners in the West Bank at 9:30 A.M. on Monday, as a gesture of goodwill to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, hoping that the deal "creates pressure on Hamas and is likely to accelerate the negotiations over Gilad Shalit."    So I ask, how much goodwill is expected from Israel???

The cabinet voted last week in favor of the release, which includes two prisoners convicted of murdering Israelis - both of whom have already spent nearly 30 years in jail - plus 197 convicted of lesser offenses, including attempted murder.

The prisoners will be released on the same day U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrives in the region for talks on the peace process.  (Harretz)

YNET is reporting that due to a shortage of clothes, some 548,000 pupils in the West Bank and 250,000 children in the Gaza Strip, will return to school without uniforms and more than 65,000 teachers and staff members are also beginning the new school year.  Why the lack of clothing considering all the billions of dollars dumped into the region?   Economic distress and the shortage of clothes are a result of the siege imposed on the Gaza Strip, so the article says.

The Saudi finance minister told the Palestinian Authority that a  decision has been made to transfer $100 million from Saudi Arabia to the Palestinian Authority.

Earlier in the week, the European Union said it would inject 40 million euros ($59 million) of funds on top of the 256 million euros in budget support disbursed so far this year by the European Union.

At the Paris conference, donors pledges $7.7 billion in aid to the Palestinians over three years.

But only a fraction of that has materialised and most of it is earmarked for projects and not general spending. Fayyad wants more allocations to budget support.  (Harretz)

 The lack of school uniforms is the least of their worries:

The Palestinian teachers' organization claims that the Hamas government fired teachers and workers affiliated with Fatah and Hamas' rival factions.

 The Hamas education ministry warned in response that "harsh disciplinary measures will be taken against those who disrupt the opening of the school year."

I've got an idea to help the Palestinians ... quit supporting terror, quit spending your money of weapons and giving them to terrorists.  Start using your money for social services, roads, housing, jobs, education...

A Splendid Diversion, by Michael Travis

We are happy to publish the following article by friend of Right Truth, Michael Travis, originally posted at The Gerard Group:

A Splendid Diversion

While the World Watches the Olympics

By Michael Travis

Overshadowed by the dazzling spectacle of the Olympic games in Beijing, the aftermath of the all out war between Russia and Georgia has received scant coverage and analysis in the North American media. America's enemies however, have forsaken the broadcasts of table-tennis, sprinters in hijabs, and competitive line-dancing, to give their undivided attention to what they view as far better sport; the defeat of "Team America" at the hand of the undisputed champion of international discord, Russia.
Georgia Map

According to the Red Cross, Georgian and Ossetian civilians are seeking safe haven in Turkey, a move that has caused the Turkish government to reassess its stalled bid for NATO membership.

In a week that has seen General David Petraeus pledging more military equipment and specialized training for the Hizballah-dominated Lebanese government, U.S. State Dept. negotiations with the Iranian leadership in Geneva, and Presidential kow-towing to the Communist regime in China, you can bet the bank that Japan, Taiwan, Israel, and Eastern Europe's new NATO members, are becoming very nervous indeed.

Nonetheless, the United States and Poland has signed an agreement to deploy a U.S. missile defence system on their territory, to which Vladimir Putin has responded with threats of military retaliation.PutinGeorgia

Under advisement from the U.S. State Department, and U.S. military advisors on the ground in Tbilisi, the Georgian government has signed a French-U.S. brokered ceasefire agreement.  Russia's response has been to move deeper into Georgian territory, establishing encampments and checkpoints throughout the vanquished nation.

While Russia perceives the United States to be a paper tiger, averse to defending its friends and allies, the Russian bear remains a power without equal, able to impose its will upon any and all foes. The Political Correctness, and subservience to the agenda of a Globalist "International Community" that is the cornerstone of U.S. Foreign policy, has provided fresh stimulus for Russia's quest to reclaim its position as a world power to be accommodated and feared.

Lasha Zhvania, head of the Georgian Parliament's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, has likened the Russian war against Georgia to "Tisha B'Av," the historic destruction of the first and second Jewish Temples, and "the saddest day in Jewish history." Tisha B'Av set the stage for almost 2,000 years of expulsions, persecution and genocide against the Jewish people. In an era that sees an ambitious Russian government once again aligned with some of history's most bloodthirsty regimes and Islamic movements, Zhvania's observation should be taken very seriously.

As Jews fasted on this last 9th day of Av (Sunday, 9 August 2008) and the American President joined the "Global Village" in watching a volleyball game, the brutal forces of tyranny and violence consolidated their hold on humanity.

In the Philippines, Islamic fighters with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front are fighting pitched battles within Christian villages in the autonomous North Cotabato province.MILF As blood flows across Mindanao, 130,000 Christians have fled their homes, and the MILF are demanding their own, sovereign, Islamic Republic.

At the Olympics, sports fans cheered on their swim teams as American tourists were murdered in the streets of Beijing.  Despite a brutal campaign of repression waged outside the Olympic venues, the "International Community" has managed to bow ever more deeply to the Communist regime in China.

Beirut The de facto Hizballah government in Lebanon can hardly contain their excitement as they await the delivery of more U.S. Military equipment to add to its already burgeoning arsenal of Iranian and Russian weaponry. With surface to surface, surface to air, and anti-ship missile emplacements in operation, Iran's proxy army is prepared to launch devastating attacks against Israeli population centers. The new American weapons can be considered frosting on the Lebanese terrorist's cake.

Iran of course is in the final stages of preparation for a nuclear attack against Israel, and quite likely, the United States as well.

Georgia? It's in flames. And the world stands at the precipice of global conflagration. But, hey! The U.S. Team won over 90 medals as of today!Olympics

At this point in time, the United States lacks clearly stated foreign policy, backed by a determined military command.  Political Correctness and public relations considerations have revealed an Administration in disarray, with undefined priorities. Without a convincing display of solidarity with our allies, America's reputation will be tarnished beyond repair.

With the demise of our perceived credibility and the loss of our traditional sphere of influence, attacks against U.S. interests abroad, and terror operations on American soil seem inevitable. Negotiating with terrorists and enabling despotic regimes under the dubious banner of "Democratization" has put American lives in peril and set the stage for more regional conflicts.

Remember, Russia, Iran and Lebanon are all "vibrant democracies," yet they represent America's deadliest enemies.

Michael Travis is Research/Analyst with Gerard Group.

I share, you decide ...

From Michael:

American crews will control US FBX-band radar granted Israel

DEBKA file Exclusive Report

August 19, 2008, 12:43 PM (GMT+02:00)

In granting Israel the powerful FBX-T radar system to enhance its early warning resources against incoming missiles, Washington laid down a strict hands-off proviso. The system will be installed at a US base in the southern Israeli Negev. It will be off-limits to Israelis and managed exclusively by American personnel.

This discovery, revealed here for the first time by DEBKAfile's military sources, has aroused astonished rancor in senior Israel army circles. They questioned the judgment of prime minister Ehud Olmert, defense minister Ehud Barak, foreign minister Tzipi Livni, Shaul Mofaz, who leads the Israeli side of the twice-annual strategic dialogue with the US, and chief of staff Lt. Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi in accepting this proviso.

Even Poland, one officer commented, looked after its sovereignty and only signed its defense pact with the United States for the installation of missile interceptors on its Baltic coast after the Americans agreed to instruct Polish crews in their future operation.

Yet none of the Israeli officials involved in the radar transaction saw fit to carry this point. The FBX-T was requested to allow Israel's Arrow missile defense system to engage a Shehab-3 missile about halfway through its 11-minute flight from Iran, several times sooner than the Arrow's Green Pines radar is capable of doing.

The FBX-T can track objects in space such as a missile tipped with a chemical, germ or nuclear warhead.

When they swung the deal in Washington last month, Barak and Ashkenazi said the Israeli Defense Forces would acquire a major resource and Israel a valuable shield against enemy missiles.

But they erred badly in failing to demand its integration in Israel's national interceptor system for four reasons:

1. Israel will have no denied direct access to the data gathered by the system and can only hope the American operators will pass on the information as and when Israel needs it for self-defense rather than when it suits US interests.

2. The FBX-T will not only be able to track Iranian and Syrian missiles and aircraft but also keep watch on Israeli operations, giving the Washington a handle for stalling them. DEBKAfile's military sources point out that the Americans are suddenly in a hurry to have the system deployed in the Negev as soon as September. They will then be in position to forestall a possible Israeli pre-emptive attack on Iran's nuclear installations should one be decided in Jerusalem.

3. US experts say the FBX-T radar will lengthen the Israeli Arrow anti-missile system's range for detecting incoming Iranian missiles several times over. This is technically accurate, but in practice this enhanced capability is entirely contingent on a Pentagon order to the American crews in the Negev to activate a link between them.

4. Barak and Ashkenazi said on their return from Washington that they had procured US consent to links between Israel's early warning and missile interceptor systems, the X-band radar (which can pick up a missile 2,000 km from target) and also the American JTAGS satellites (which detects a missile launch).

This is not the case.

Any links between the IDF's radar and interceptors and the JATG satellites must be channeled through the X-band radar base in the Negev and are not direct. The data passed to Israel will be subject to pre-selection by American decision-makers.

Several billion dollars of US and Israeli funds have been sunk into developing the Arrow, which Israeli officials until recently claimed was a match for Iran's Shehab-3 ballistic missiles. It turns out now that the Arrow and its Green Pine radar pick up incoming missiles only when they are 800 km short of their target. Israel applied for the FBX-T radar to extend that range to 2,000 km from its territory. But as long as the system is operated exclusively by American personnel, its usefulness for shielding Israel against enemy missiles will circumscribed.

Housekeeping...

A little housekeeping here at Right Truth.  Changes to the blogroll, link corrections, articles you may have missed, clearing out the In-Box: 

China confiscates Bibles from American;Christians, Peace and Freedom '08

BEIJING - A group of American Christians who had more than 300 Bibles confiscated by Chinese officials when they arrived in China is refusing to leave the airport until they get the books back, their leader said Monday. 

Messianic Obama: “I Will Win!”; Pelosi: “God Has Blessed us With Him….”  (Politico.com)

A confident Barack Obama raised an extraordinary $7.8 million Sunday at three California fundraisers, most if it in large checks to a Democratic Party committee.

“I will win. Don’t worry about that,” he said to the crowd of about 1,300 at his third event of the evening, according to the pool report.

He was warmly received by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who called him “a leader that God has blessed us with at this time.”

Obama echoed some of the themes he discussed when he described Pennsylvanians as “bitter” and stoked controversy three months ago, but did so much more adroitly.

Georgia Bombed by Russian Jets, images and more, at Georgia.inf.ge .

Georgia: Terror Fears Over Whereabouts Of Region’s Nuclear Material, Telegraph UK

When the breakaway region of Abkhazia split from Georgia in 1993, the world’s only known case of enriched uranium going missing was reported after up to 2kg of the potentially devastating material was stolen from a laboratory.

There are now fears that the organized criminal gangs that are rife in the region could exploit the confusion of the current conflict to loot other stocks.

Security services are worried that terrorist organizations such as al-Qa’eda could purchase weapons grade uranium and mix it with a detonator as basic as fertilizer to make a deadly device. While an estimated 15kg of uranium is needed to make a nuclear bomb just a small amount is needed for an unconventional device.

“There is no fear of a nuclear bomb coming out of this region but the bigger danger is that a small amount of uranium combined with conventional explosive terrorists could make a dirty bomb that would make an area the size of the City’s Square Mile unusable for 30 or 40 years,” said a security source. “The economic impact would be catastrophic.”

Malaysia bans books on Islam,YNET

Malaysia's state censors banned two books on Islam saying they gave a misleading view of the religion – a move slammed Friday by a group of Muslim women activists who published one of them.

The Home Ministry of Muslim-majority Malaysia banned the books because they might undermine people's faith, national news agency Bernama reported Friday.

The books were identified as the English-language "Muslim Women and the Challenge of Islamic Extremism" and the Malay-language "Strange but True in Prayers."

RUSSIA AND IRAN: AN UNHOLY ALLIANCE, The Midnight Sun

The eyes and ears of all who are reading the writing on the wall must now be trained in the direction of Iran and Russia. It is this unholy alliance which has the potential to draw half the planet into a massive clash which could send rivers of blood and tongues of fire on a biblical scale through the streets of whole regions of the world. Forget the hapless Medvedev. Putin is the one whose grand vision of Russia as a world superpower will brook no opposition. America and her traitorous allies in the region are standing in the way: ...

Who’s Planning Our Next War?, Muslim Media Network

Ehud Olmert came home from a June meeting with Bush to tell Israelis: “We reached agreement on the need to take care of the Iranian threat. … I left with a lot less question marks regarding the means, the timetable restrictions and American resoluteness. …

Islamic Coke Cans?, thanks to Bob McCarty Writes:

Will Cross Adorn Coca-Cola Cans This Christmas?

The crescent moon and star — yes, the same symbol featured on the flags of so many Muslim countries — is an internationally-recognized symbol of the Islamic faith in much the same way as the cross represents Christianity and the star of David Judaism.  When I learned the symbol of the Islamic faith will appear on Coca-Cola packaging during Ramadan 2008, I found myself wondering whether or not the Atlanta-based soft drink maker will soon include the Christian cross and Jewish star of David in future holiday packaging designs targeting people of those faiths.

The firm selected by Coca-Cola to help interpret its brand across a number of events is ATTIK, according according to Brand Republic.  Notable among those events are Ramadan, a Muslim religious observance that runs from Sept. 1-30, and Christmas 2008. [Note: I've found no evidence that the company plans to focus any efforts on Hannukah or any other Jewish holiday.]  (continue reading)

Salute to the “Great Journalists” In Dark Corners of the Globe, Peace and Freedom '08

Good journalists watch, see, write, report, and comment.

Great journalists go where they are totally unwanted and do those things exceptionally well.

I consider Muhammad Khurshid a great journalist.  He went home to Pakistan’s tribal areas, an area of the world crawling with any number of al Qaeda and Taliban militants that could have killed him at any time, and he brilliantly kept many in the West informed of the situation.

Drug Subs Pose Terror Threat To U.S., National Terror Alert

Internet Radio Network
now has a new address:  http://www.the-irn.com/ .  Be sure to change your link and go check it out if you are not already familiar with this site.  Steve suggests the following Investors Business Daily articles:

Russia's Big Lie 

The New Warsaw Pact 

Palin's Gas Pipeline Isn't Hot Air

New to the blogroll is Ted Pibil.com
  Go check out his brand new site and leave some words of encouragement. 

Dumbo (Disney 1941), is the latest post at Edge's

[snip]  As we all know too well, some individuals look to the government for "help" way too much these days. And when they don't receive that "help", they almost instantly blame the society that surrounds them.

Now don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that that our government shouldn't provide assistance to Americans in need, but you know every once in a while a person will break out of a dark and hopeless situation and find their true potential without Uncle Sam's so called "help! "... (continue reading, you won't be sorry)

i hate typepad.  I hate typePad.  I hate TypePad.  When I posted this first, I lost all formatting, I lost all links,, I HATE IT.

AAJLJ EXPLORES LEGAL OPTIONS TO AHMADINEJAD

AAJLJ EXPLORES LEGAL OPTIONS TO AHMADINEJAD

 

BY: FERN SIDMAN

 

The offices of the prestigious and internationally renowned law firm, Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher and Flom, LLP in midtown Manhattan was the setting for a special session convened by the American Association of Jewish Lawyers and Jurists on Sunday, August 10th. The session, billed as several lectures on "Preventing Genocide; "Legal Responses to Ahmadinejad" drew about 30 Jewish lawyers and jurists from all over the country and explored the "jurisdictional, procedural and substantial legal issues involved in bringing Ahmadinejad to account and to justice" and warned that as "Iran moves closer to acquiring nuclear weapons it is vital that every means, including legal actions, be used to deal with the threat of genocide."

 

The featured speaker was constitutional legal expert, the Honorable Irwin Cotler, Esq., member of the Canadian Parliament, former Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada. Mr. Cotler is also a leading international human rights lawyer and advocate and is a professor of law (on leave) at McGill University in Montreal. 

 

Accusing Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad of engaging in "state sanctioned incitement to genocide", Mr. Cotler asserted that even in such constitutional democracies as the United States and Canada, the free speech rights of Ahmadinejad would not be protected because "there is no such thing as absolute freedom of speech". Citing articles from the the United Nations ratified "Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide" he said that even heads of state are not "immune to prosecution" and suggested that Ahmadinejad be brought before the International Criminal Court. 

 

He called upon those assembled to galvanize the legal community to seek legal remedial redress for Ahmadinejad's incitement under the Genocide Convention and to attempt to take legal measures to prevent Ahmadinejad from entering the US and Canada. He said that there were a "panoply of remedies" readily available in the text of the Genocide Convention and in the charter of the International Criminal Court. Saying that despite the fact that the United Nations General Assembly has the right to invite Ahmadinejad to address the world body, because the Iranian president uses the international stage to incite genocide, the United States has the right to override the UN obligation to host him. He stated that in his native country he was involved in preparing "a criminal indictment against Ahmadinejad if he steps foot in Canada."

 

No stranger to legally challenging governments who perpetrate genocide, Mr. Cotler mentioned the recent horrific massacres in the Balkans, Rwanda, and Darfur and stated that, "the enduring lesson of these tragedies is that they occurred not simply because of the machinery of death, but because of the state-sanctioned incitement to hatred. This teaching of contempt – this demonizing of the other – this is where it all begins." He also pointed to the findings of the Supreme Court of Canada that said, "The Holocaust did not begin in the gas chambers; it began with words."

 

Mr. Cotler intoned that "for quite some time" the world has been witnessing a state sanctioned incitement to genocide whose epicenter is Ahmadinejad's Iran and qualified his remarks by saying that the incendiary rhetoric that is being spewed forth on a regular basis from the Iranian regime is a "toxic convergence of the advocacy of the most horrific of crimes, namely genocide, embedded in the most virulent of hatreds, namely anti-Semitism. It is dramatized by the parading in the streets of Tehran of a Shihab-3 missile draped in the words "Wipe Israel off the map". He also stated that the utilization of such chilling epidemiological metaphors reminiscent of Nazi incitement such as Ahmadinejad's characterization of Israel as "filthy bacteria," “a stinking corpse” and "a cancerous tumor that needs to be excised," while referring to Jews as "evil incarnate," “blood-thirsty barbarians” and the "defilers of Islam" is the prologue to, and justification for, a Mid-East genocide, while at the same time denying the Nazi one.

 

Citing the fact that Iranian proxies such as Hamas and Hezbollah also engage in state sanctioned terror, he reminded the audience that during the Lebanon war of 2006, Hanan Nasrallah of Hezbollah launched into a tirade against the Jews to provide ideological justification for launching a military attack on Israel. He also stated that non-Israeli Jews were not immune to Iranian terrorism and cited evidence that the heads of state in Iran were also responsible for the 1994 bombing of a Jewish Community Center in Buenos Aires, Argentina in which 85 Jews were murdered and over 300 were seriously wounded.  He told this reporter that the "Argentinian government has asked for arrest warrants for those in Iran who are responsible for the 1994 bombing of the JCC, yet no governments have come forth to show support for such a venture."

 

He concluded his address by urging an "indifferent world" to extricate themselves from their self-imposed morass of political myopia and to work assiduously for the tightening of legal sanctions against Iran for their continuation of their uranium enrichment programs. "The time to act is now" Mr. Cotler declared. "We must stop international genocide by bringing Ahmadinejad to account".

 

Following Mr. Cotler was Gil Limon, an adviser to the Israeli Mission to the United Nations who said that Article I of the Genocide Convention required that the International Court of Justice bear the responsibility for preventing genocide. Despite the fact that such UN Security Council member nations as "China, Libya and South Africa" don't feel that the Iranian nuclear program presents any real danger, he cited UN Security Council resolution 713 that called for an arms embargo against Serbia while genocidal tactics were being employed there. He also chided the UN for maintaining a double standard on the application of the Genocide Convention, but stated emphatically that the International Criminal Court could bring a solid legal case against Ahmadinejad to the International Court of Justice for the crime of incitement to genocide. He urged the International Association of Jewish lawyers and Jurists to prepare a model application and model indictment to bring before the ICC and urged the circulation of such drafts of this indictment to international NGOs of the United Nations.

 

 

Turkey's Relations With Iran

We have been posting financial and other connections between Iran and other nations here at Right Truth.  I think it is important to look at the relationship between Israel and the United States too.  "The American administration has rejected an Israeli request for military equipment and support that would improve Israel's ability to attack Iran's nuclear facilities.  As compensation for the requests it rejected, Washington offered to improve Israel's defenses against surface-to-surface missiles.
Israel responded by saying it reserves the right to take whatever action it deems necessary if diplomatic efforts to halt Iran's nuclearization fail."  (Via article b_{y Aluf Benn, Haaretz Correspondent)}

A report published last week by the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security (ISIS) states that military strikes are unlikely to destroy Iran's centrifuge program for enriching uranium.

The Americans viewed the request, which was transmitted (and rejected) at the highest level, as a sign that Israel is in the advanced stages of preparations to attack Iran. They therefore warned Israel against attacking, saying such a strike would undermine American interests. They also demanded that Israel give them prior notice if it nevertheless decided to strike Iran.

Personally I think this decision by the United States is shameful.  However, we do not know what's going on behind the scenes and we do not know what support the US might offer when push comes to shove. 

Now, to Turkey's Relations With Iran:

Thanks to Insights Into Today's Middle East:

Turkey and Iran are the region’s most populous nations, with 64 million and 70 million people, respectively. While Turkey and Iran are historical and in some ways contemporary rivals the two countries have growing trade relations and are currently negotiating expanded energy cooperation.

On August 14 2008, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will visit Turkey to discuss his country’s nuclear programme and growing bilateral ties with his counterpart President Abdullah Gul. Turkey has offered to help resolve a dispute between Iran and the West over Tehran’s nuclear programme. Turkey’s secularist establishment views Ahmadinejad with suspicion; previous Turkish President Ahmet Necdet had refused to invite Ahmadinejad at all during his presidency. Radical newspaper reported that Turkish authorities had been forced to move Ahmadinejad’s visit to Istanbul and make it a working trip rather than an official visit because he did not plan to visit Mustafa Kemal Ataturk’s burial place, modern Turkey’s revered secularist founder.

[1]

Military and Economic Dimensions

As a historical adversary of Iran, Turkey has managed to steer a remarkable course in foreign policy in recent years, maintaining cordial relations with Tehran even as it remains a key U.S. ally and the only Muslim country with high-profile military cooperation with Iran’s arch-rival, Israel. [2] Now, the European Union’s move to negotiate Turkey’s membership means Europe could soon share a border with Iran. [3]

Turkey, however, faces a host of new challenges to continuing its balancing role in the region. Iran’s push for nuclear weapons—which analysts fear could prompt such regional powers as Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Turkey itself to develop a nuclear deterrent—is a case in point.

As a Muslim (albeit secular), non-Arab nation, Turkey can advise Tehran with a credibility that the EU-3 (Britain, France, and Germany) could not match when they tried unsuccessfully to convince Tehran to drop its nuclear program. But if diplomatic efforts over Iran’s nuclear program continue to falter, Turkey is the only country in Iran’s vicinity on which the United States has pre-positioned tactical nuclear weapons (an estimated 90) that it could deploy against Iranian facilities. [4]

• Ankara and Tehran have signed $1.5 billion in agreements providing for the joint construction of three 2,000-megawatt thermal power plants -- two in Iran and one in Turkey, and several hydroelectric plants in Iran with a total 10,000-megawatt capability. Under terms of the agreement, Ankara will import 3 billion to 6 billion kilowatt hours of electrical energy annually. At present, Iran exports electricity to Turkey through two transmission lines totaling 250 megawatts. [5]

• During a joint news conference in Istanbul in November 2007 with Iranian Energy Minister Parviz Fattah, Turkish Energy Hilmi Guler said, "The signing (of agreements) will continue. Our efforts are continuing." [6]

The reality for Turkey is that it currently imports 90 percent of its energy needs at a time of record-high oil prices. In addressing this economic reality, Turkish Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan on September 20, 2007, said Turkey relied on imports from Iran and Russia and it would be "out of the question to stop imports from either country." [7]

Early cooperation between Iran and Turkey was rooted in the Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) - an intergovernmental regional organization established in 1985 by Iran, Pakistan and Turkey for the purpose of promoting economic, technical and cultural cooperation among the member states. It was the successor organization of what was the Regional Cooperation for Development (RCD), founded in 1962, which ended its activities in 1979 with the advent of Khomeini in Iran. [8]

The current level of economic cooperation between Tehran and Ankara is unprecedented in the history of the two countries’ relations, Mottaki stated in his meeting with the Turkish Parliament Foreign Affairs Committee chairman. The top diplomat added the extended cooperation in oil and gas industry can serve as a model for expansion of relations in other fields. [9]

• Iran's Foreign Minister Mottaki said during a meeting with a Turkish delegation in December 2007: "A powerful and modern Turkey is in Iran's interest. The current level of economic cooperation between Tehran and Ankara is unprecedented in the history of the two countries' relations. The extended cooperation in oil and gas industry can serve as a model for expansion of relations in other fields as well." Iran-Turkey relations have significantly improved during the AKP rule. [10]

Turkey will not want to jeopardize its trade relations with Iran. Bilateral trade jumped to an estimated $4 billion in 2005, up from $1 billion in 2000, and new deals between the two nations will further cement their economic ties:

• In August 2007 Turkey’s Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent his energy minister, Hilmi Guler, to Iran to conclude a raft of deals. They include the creation of a joint company to carry up to 35 billion cubic metres of Iran’s natural gas via Turkey to Europe and the building of three thermal power plants by Turkish companies in Iran.

• In June 2007 Turkey and Iran signed a memorandum of understanding under which Turkish Petroleum Corporation (TPAO), Turkey’s state-run company, will operate in Iran and exploit three natural gas areas in the South Pars region. The company plans to invest $3.5 billion to operate these fields. Moreover, the two countries will build a 2000-km pipeline between them to transport Iranian gas to Europe. [11]

Turkey insists that it has the right to pursue its economic interests. And Iran is delighted: “Nobody can come between Iran and Turkey,” Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad said recently. [12]

Nevertheless, these economic ties have not quelled Ankara’s anxiety over a nuclear-armed Iran. Until recently, Turkish officials publicly supported Iran’s quest for nuclear energy while privately expressing their fears.

Then in 2006 Turkey’s ambassador to the United States, Faruk Logoglu, changed course. Speaking publicly at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, he said Iran’s nuclear weapons would be a serious threat to security in the Middle East. [13]

The Nabucco Pipeline

To cement their mutuality of interests in this project, Iran and Turkey countries signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on July 14, 2007 related to gas and oil transit and joint energy investments. The pipeline is designed to be 3,500 kilometers (2,200 miles) long, to transport up to 40 billion cubic meters (1.4 trillion cubic feet) of gas annually. The estimated cost of construction is €5 billion, to be borne in equal shares by a consortium of five countries -Austria's OMV AG, Hungary's MOL, Romania's Transgas, Bulgaria's Bulgargaz and Turkey's BOTAS (Turkey's petroleum pipeline corporation). Turkey is pivotal because the pipeline must traverse its territory. Turkey will be a beneficiary in four ways: First, it will secure a supply of natural gas; second, it will collect transit fees; third, it will bargain for preferential prices for the Iranian gas; and fourth, as a leading conduit of gas to Europe, it will enhance its eventual integration into the European Union by earning points for diversifying routes and supplies away from Russia. [14]

In July 2008, Iranian Oil Minister Gholam-Hossein Nozari announced that Ankara and Tehran are negotiating on an increase in natural gas exports to Turkey and on supplying the country with more gas during the winter. [15] Ahmadinejad’s visit to Turkey at this time sends a clear message that energy cooperation is an important aspect of the two nation’s bilateral ties.

Historical and Cultural Dimensions

Today’s Turkish-Iranian relations are shaped by the historic rivalry between the Ottoman and Persian empires of yore. The Ottoman Empire, from which modern Turkey evolved, controlled all the Central Asian Republics. The mistrust towards Iran among Arabs, Turks and other Muslim nations of the greater Middle East has always been there. During the Ottoman era, Iran and Ottoman Empire couldn’t be allies, and couldn’t ensure any serious economic or political co-operation. To this day Turkey resents Iran’s meddling in the affairs of these nations. [16]

Long-standing cultural and religious differences shape the relationship as well. The Turks are mostly Sunni Muslims, but Turkey includes a Shia minority that is widely viewed as “second class.”

Iran’s state religion is Shiite Islam and most of its people are ethnically Persian, but minorities of various ethnic, religious, and linguistic backgrounds number in the millions, including ethnic Kurds, Baluchis, and the largest ethnic minority, the Azeris. [17] Azeris, comprising a quarter of Iran’s population, are ethnically Turkish and their language is a Turkish dialect. Iran and Turkey share a common problem with their Kurdish minorities, although this constitutes more of a problem for Turkey than for Iran. Turkey’s stand points are being completely opposite to revolutionary Iran in almost all fields. Turkey has been emerging as a new role model for many Iranians. [18]

While both countries are Muslim, Turkey has had a long tradition of a secular and democratic political system. The changes that took place in Turkey in recent years under the AKP government have not affected its economic policies, which remained free market oriented. By contrast, Iran is a theocratic state with aspirations of regional hegemony and an active supporter of terrorism. [19]  
________________________________________________________________________

References:

[1] Elci, Zerin: "Ahmadinejad to visit Turkey for nuclear talks," Reuters, August 4, 2008,
http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUKL433438920080804?sp=true

[2] Athanasiadis, Iason: "Turkey Feels Iran Chill," Asia Times Online, January 24, 2006,
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/HA24Ak02.html

[3] Ottolenghi, Emanuele: "Europe: See No Evil," The Transatlantic Institute, November 3, 2004,
http://www.transatlanticinstitute.org/html/pu_articles.html?id=104

[4] Ibid.

[5] Daly, John C.K.: "Analysis: Turkey-Iran energy ties," United Press International, November 30, 2007,
http://www.upi.com/International_Security/Energy/Analysis/2007/11/30/
 analysis_turkey-iran_energy_ties/2595/

[6] Ibid.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Raphaeli, Nimrod: "The growing economic relations between Iran and Turkey," MEMRI, January 6, 2008,
http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=subjects&Area=economic&ID=IA41408

[9] "Iran, Turkey play key role in regional security: Turkish MP," Tehran Times, December 26, 2007,
http://www.tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=159983

[10] "Iran, Turkey Most Significant Regional Powers," Fars News Agency, December 27, 2007,
http://english.farsnews.com/newstext.php?nn=8610060226  

[11] Ozertem Hasan Selim: "Pipeline Politics and Turkey," The Journal of Turkish Weekly, July 31, 2007,
http://www.turkishweekly.net/comments.php?id=2683

[12] "Too Energetic a Friendship," The Economist, August 23, 2007,
http://www.economist.com/world/europe/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9687845

[13] Athanasiadis, Iason: "Turkey feels Iran chill," Asia Times Online, January 24th, 2006,
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/HA24Ak02.html

[14] Raphaeli, Nimrod: "The growing economic relations between Iran and Turkey," MEMRI, January 6, 2008,
http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=subjects&Area=economic&ID=IA41408

[15] "New Iran-Turkey gas pipeline in the works," PressTV, July 5, 2008,
http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=62634§ionid=351020103  

[16] Laciner, Sedat: "Mistrust Problem in Turkey-Iran relations," The Journal of Turkish Weekly, February 21, 2008,
http://www.turkishweekly.net/comments.php?id=2839

[17] Beehner, Lionel: "Iran´s Ethnic Groups," Council on Foreign Relations — Backgrounder, November 29, 2006, http://www.cfr.org/publication/12118/

[18] Ibid.

[19] Raphaeli, Nimrod: "The growing economic relations between Iran and Turkey," MEMRI, January 6, 2008,
http://memri.org/bin/articles.cgi?Page=subjects&Area=economic&ID=IA41408

                             

Whistle Dixie 'till the Mahdi Comes Home

Iran continues to stall for time until the Mahdi comes.    " At the same time, aware of the serious possibilities of a mass uprising by a population already hit badly economically, in case of further sanctions decided by the United Nations Security Council and respected by the international community, the regime tries, by taking one step forward and two backward, to protract as much time as possible the negotiations with the five permanent members of the Security Council and Germany concerning its controversial nuclear activities."  (Safa Haeri,  Iran Press Service)

“The problem with Mr. Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is that not only he himself do not understand anything about modern economy, but because of his firm belief that Mahdi, the Muslim Shi’a’s twelfth imam would soon reappear and arrange everything to the liking of the Iranians, he has no confidence in economic experts and listen to no one, except yes men”, explains a source close to him, speaking on condition of anonymity.

According to Shia’s, Imam Mahdi went into hiding in a well about eight hundreds years ago, at the age of eight, to re-emerge when the world is “saturated with sin, corruption, mismanagement and disillusion”.

  One of the reasons Tehran arrogantly and in a provocative manner refuses to cooperate with the international community on nuclear issue is the hope that the hidden Imam will come to the rescue of Iran and until then, one has to gain time.

          “At the same time, with a yes and no policy, the ruling ayatollahs also hope that the six, or at least four of them, meaning minus Russia and China, would get serious in implementing the sanctions, thus providing Iranian officials the tools to portray the Islamic Republic as a victim of the imperialists and justify more sacrifices from the Iranian people, including accepting more repressions, more censorship of the press and expressions, more restrictions on the already badly limited social and cultural freedoms”, the source added.  (continue reading)

Iran wants the world to know that it 'really loves Israel'.  (bawahahaha) Iranian Vice President Esfandiar Rahim Mashal said, "We are friends of all of humanity. There is no difference at all between the Iranians and Americans, and the Israelis are also our friends,...  "The Iranians believe in peace and love between people."  I don't think the Israelis are buying it.  (Israel Today)

"Iran has set up two marine offices on a Persian Gulf island, Abu Mu also claimed by the United Arab Emirates."  One office is a 'rescue center' and the other is a 'registration office for ships and sailors', so says Iran.  (P-R Inside)

Iran supposedly has a brand new weapon, all Iranian made (brag brag)  “The design and production technology used in this weapon is completely Iranian and has never been employed by any other country,” Maj. Gen. Jafari.  (Tehran Times)

"Iran’s government has ordered the state oil company to deposit oil revenues only in selected banks in a bid to dodge toughening sanctions over its nuclear drive, local media reported on Saturday."  (Iran-Va-Jahan)

Iran says it will not back down on it's nuclear stance, no matter what  -- "this stance would not change through any sanction or threat."

Sanctions are hurting Ira in many areas, such as pharmaceuticals.   More than 96 percent of the ‎country’s necessary medicines are prepared and manufactured domestically, ...  the same report indicates that the raw materials for 99 percent of ‎manufactured medicines is imported.  (ROOZ)  I don't think these reports influence Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.

Writer Yusef Azizi is a member of Iran's ethnic Arab minority and has written novels as well as non-fiction books, and has now been sentenced to five years in prison for "supporting unrest" during two days of protests in 2005.  (Hindustan Times)

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mohammadi  predicted the downfall of Arab monarchies in the Gulf and a senior Gulf official on Thursday slammed an Iranian deputy minister for questioning the legitimacy of pro-Western Arab monarchies in the region, saying such remarks can only fuel tensions. (AFP)

"Such suspicious comments do not at all help build trust... among states of the region. They can only stoke conflicts and drag the region into a cycle of dangerous crises," Gulf Cooperation Council Secretary General Abdurrahman al-Attiyah said in a statement received by AFP.

Kuwait "urged Iran on Saturday to resolve tensions with the West over its nuclear program, saying the dispute undermined the interests of Gulf states with which it shares a vital oil export route."  (Reuters)

Regional ties with Iraq, Iran's neighbor, are beginning to grow (Reuters).  In some instances that's good, not so much in others:

 BAHRAIN - In June, Bahrain said it would set up a new embassy in Baghdad and was selecting an ambassador.

EGYPT - Egypt plans to send a team to Iraq to assess the security situation "within months" with a view to possibly returning an ambassador. Egypt's last envoy was kidnapped and killed shortly after arriving in 2005.

IRAN - Non-Arab Shi'ite Iran has strong ties with Iraq at many levels. Iran has a fully functioning embassy in Baghdad and President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made a high-profile trip to Baghdad in March. Iran has links to key Shi'ite parties and politicians in Iraq. Many prominent Iraqi Shi'ites lived in exile in Iran during Saddam Hussein's rule.

JORDAN - Jordan's King Abdullah visited Baghdad on Monday and met Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki to discuss improving security conditions in Iraq. Jordan recently named an ambassador to Baghdad, though it is unclear when he will take up the post. A truck bomb killed 17 people outside Jordan's embassy in Baghdad in August 2003.

KUWAIT - Many Kuwaitis remain bitter about Saddam's 1990 invasion of their country. The state news agency last month named Ali al-Mumin as the new ambassador to Iraq without saying when he would take up his post. Kuwait hosted a regional meeting on stabilising Iraq in April, a sign of improving ties.

SAUDI ARABIA - Oil powerhouse Saudi Arabia said last year it would open an embassy in Iraq but it has not yet upgraded ties or named an ambassador.

SYRIA - The governments of Iraq and Syria have a history of animosity since rival factions of the Baath Party took power in the two countries in the 1960s. Their embassies were shut and reopened only last year after Syria sent its foreign minister to Iraq. No ambassadors have been named and ties remain tense over accusations Syria does not do enough to stop militants crossing into Iraq.

TURKEY - Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan visited Iraq in July, which could signal Ankara will upgrade its political ties. Relations have often been dominated by the presence of PKK Kurdish rebels in northern Iraq who launch attacks on Turkey.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES - The UAE last month appointed Abdullah Ibrahim al-Shehhi, its envoy to India, as ambassador to Iraq. The UAE withdrew its top envoy in 2006 after a diplomat was kidnapped and held for nearly two weeks by militants.

Looking at Syria, Iran Press Service says this:

aWould the Islamic Republic hear the voice of the logic and change course, as Libya did, as North Korea is doing and Syria might soon join the rank of the West?

          “Syria of President Bashar Assad, which, contrary to his Iranian counterpart, does not seek the annihilation of Israel, would certainly leave the camp of the region’s radicals led by Iran and join the west if and when it can trust Washington and Tel Aviv. The day Damascus recovers the Golan Heights; it would establish full relations with Israel”, wrote Mr. Ahmad Zeydabai, an influential pro-reform Iranian journalist, adding:

          “Bashar is preparing himself for this historic moment, a move that would certainly change the face of the Middle East. This is what very probably Assad informed the Iranians during his last visit to Tehran last week and very probably, he also told Iranians that it is time for them to change to the region’s new realities”.

          But as things stands in Tehran, most people doubt.

On another note, The Pakistani AP reports, "Chief Minister NWFP Ameer Haider Khan Hoti has said that there was no room for terrorism in Islam, saying all the religions were meant for promoting love, harmony and to put the humanity on right path."  Robert Spencer says, "Glad we got that settled."  ha

Top Syrian general assassinated, why?

Mohammed Sleiman, said to be "Syria's liaison officer with Lebanon's Hezbollah movement",  the head of security at the presidential palace in Damascus and President Bashar al-Assad's "right-hand man.", --  was killed [assassinated] by a sniper in the northwest Syrian town of Tartus.  (AFP)  hat tip Michael

What is REALLY interesting is that "Israeli media said Suleiman was a key figure in an alleged nuclear program that the United States accused Syria of pursuing after Israel raided a site in eastern Syria last year."  Of course, Syria denied it was building an illegal nuclear facility.  (Reuters)

DEBKAfile's intelligence sources report that Gen. Muhammad Suleiman, whom a sniper shot dead in the Syrian port town of Tartus early Saturday, Aug. 2, was a shadowy figure who acted for Bashar Assad in the regime's four most sensitive and confidential spheres:

1. He was the president's liaison man with the North Korean government. On his frequent trips to Pyongyang, Gen. Suleiman organized the consignment of components for the plutonium reactor in northern Syria, which Israeli demolished last September, and the security of the North Korean scientists and technicians who accompanied them.

A Syrian opposition Web site said Suleiman, a confidant of President Bashar al-Assad, had beenshot in the head in his seaside villa. Another site said the shots had been fired by a sniper from a boat. 

...  Suleiman was also involved in efforts to upgrade Syria's military readiness  (Reuters)

Other terror news:

Al-Qaeda Terror Cell Targets Prince Harry, National Terror Alert

Spanish Authorities On Alert For Significant Terror Attack, National Terror Alert

Global norms more important than sovereign nations???

The 2008 Presidential election may seem like it all about Barack Obama; however, he can't seem to close the deal.  With all his followers, with all his soring speeches, with all the hoopla surrounding his world trip -- he still can't break away from McCain.  Why?  Maybe it's because people are finally seeing him for who he really is -- just a politician.  Actually, he's a new politician, an inexperienced politician -- and it shows.

Barack Hussein Obama is "... the candidate of a transnational progressivism -- in which global norms are more important than sovereign nations.":

In Berlin, Obama called himself, unironically, a "citizen of the world." The world, however, issues no passports, nor does it have citizens. The world in the way Citizen Obama imagines it -- as a global community to which we all belong -- doesn't exist. Only backpacking hippies, devotees of the Davos World Economic Forum and U.N. bureaucrats speak this way.  (Rich Lowery, TownHall.com)

I don't think Americans are ready for transnational progressivism and they are certainly not ready for a global government, global leader, in lieu of a sovereign nation -- The Uni