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In terms of weaponry, strategic and political positioning, and its ever-expanding international reach; Hezbollah is “five times more capable today,” than it was at the beginning of the July 2006 war with Israel: A fact, according to experts, that prompted Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak to tell his troops during a Tuesday morning tour of positions along the Golan Heights, “It’s not for nothing that we’re training here.”

In the past decade, global defense spending has grown 45 percent, to over $1.3 trillion. That's about 2.5 percent of global GDP. After the Cold War ended in 1991, defense spending declined for a few years, to under a trillion dollars a year. But by the end of the 1990s, it was on the rise again. The region with the greatest growth has been the Middle East, where spending has increased 62 percent in the last decade. The region with the lowest growth (six percent) was Western Europe. About a third of global defense spending is in weapons and major...

JERUSALEM, Israel (AP) -- The United States said Tuesday that reaching a Mideast peace agreement within the next eight months "might be improbable but it's not impossible," cautioning that no major breakthroughs are expected when President Bush arrives in Israel on Wednesday. Bush will attend ceremonies in Jerusalem marking the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Jewish state. He also will go to Saudi Arabia where he promises to press King Abdullah to increase oil production to ease soaring costs on consumers. Bush made a similar plea in January but it was ignored. The president's final stop will be...

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Monday that Mideast peace talks are "moving in the right direction" although she warned Israel that it should stop new settlement activities that could upset progress. Rice's comments came after she held talks with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas at the end of a three-day Mideast mission with the goal of achieving an agreement before President Bush leaves office next January. Earlier Monday, Rice met separately with both the Israeli and Palestinian negotiators in Israel and said that she was impressed by the seriousness of their work. "I think it's all moving in the right...

Like pensions and insurance, defence is one of those subjects to which too many people only pay attention when things go wrong. You might think, in the light of the past decade, that this would have changed. But you would be sadly mistaken. Even today, even after Iraq, few mainstream MPs without an immediate personal or constituency interest in the subject turn up in the Commons for defence debates. Many politicians who are thoughtful about a range of domestic issues still pass by on the other side when the conversation gravitates to the military. In this they reflect the British...

JERUSALEM (Reuters) - Vice President Dick Cheney, starting a visit on Saturday to try to push forward Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, said Washington would never pressure Israel to take steps that threaten its security. Palestinians accuse Israel of undermining the U.S.-sponsored peace talks by expanding Jewish settlements, refusing to remove West Bank roadblocks and mounting offensives against militants in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip who fire cross-border rockets into the Jewish state. "America's commitment to Israel's security is enduring and unshakable, as is Israel's right to protect itself always against terrorism, rocket attacks and other attacks from forces dedicated to Israel's destruction,"...

A few months ago, a day before one of the occasional marches the Capital sees demanding an end to the Iraq War, I began the descent into the Metro stop near my office, looked up, and saw a number of representatives of Code Pink standing at the railing overlooking the escalator. Or rather, I heard them first. They were screaming at the parade of commuters, at the top of their lungs and in a tone somewhere between simple frustration and righteous anger, "End the war!!!" Well, I thought, that ought to take care of things. Good work, hippies! I kid...

BOSTON (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate John McCain says he will emphasize national security issues from Afghanistan to global climate change on a visit to Europe and the Middle East next week. McCain, who will be his party's presidential nominee to face the Democrats' choice in the November election, will visit Israel, Britain and France as part of a congressional delegation. He will be joined by two of his closest Senate allies, Democrat-turned-Independent Joe Lieberman of Connecticut and South Carolina Republican Lindsey Graham. McCain told reporters on his campaign bus on Wednesday that while many in Europe might want to...

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WASHINGTON - Borrowing a theme from the presidential contest, Vice President Dick Cheney said Tuesday that the possibility of a 3 a.m. emergency call to the White House is all the more reason for the next commander in chief to follow through on President Bush's plans for a national missile defense. "It's plain to see that the world around us gives ample reason to continue working on missile defense," Cheney told the conservative Heritage Foundation at a dinner recognizing the 25th anniversary of President Reagan's Strategic Defense Initiative, a proposed network of rockets capable of shooting down incoming intercontinental ballistic...

Was Iowa Republican Rep. Steve King on the mark last week when he asserted Islamic terrorists would rejoice if Sen. Barack Obama becomes the next U.S. president? As a journalist and author who has conducted dozens of on-the-record interviews with Muslim terrorists, including with some of the most notorious Palestinian terror leaders, and who has documented many of those interviews in a recently released, 210-page book, "Schmoozing with Terrorists," I can answer the above question with a resounding "yes." Terrorists worldwide would indeed be emboldened by an Obama election victory not so much because of the senator's middle name –...

Today I am announcing my candidacy for president of the United States. It's a little late in the game, but frankly, I got fed up with all those specious claims that this has been a historically diverse election. Sure, we've had a Mormon, a Baptist minister, a Catholic, and various other Christians running for president, including one who, according to some reports, has attended a Muslim madrasa. We've also had a woman candidate, candidates with poufy, pretty hair, candidates with thinning hair, candidates who were once so poor they lived in their cars (or claimed to) and candidates so rich...

WEED - Comments made by College of the Siskiyous Trustee Doris Wood at last month’s board meeting were the subject at Tuesday’s board meeting of several faculty, board and student statements and a campus community resolution calling for her censure and resignation. Wood’s comments were made in regard to the two new course proposals, Beginning Arabic I and History of the Middle East, on the board’s January consent agenda. She asked to have the new class proposals removed from the consent agenda, which commonly contains several items which are approved together with one vote, and either discussed on their own...

ORLANDO, FL -- A small Florida company has turned one of the world's most popular high tech gadgets into a tool for American troops that can help save lives. "They speak with their hands -- a lot," US Army Sergeant Darren Williams said, remembering the times he worked to communicate with the local people during his year as a soldier in Iraq. "If you grab something, or if you say, 'Hold it.' Or, 'Pick it up. Pick it up.' You use that a lot, too," the Jacksonville-based Army recruiter said, waving his hands through a series of gestures. For Williams,...

I have just had the privilege of returning to Iraq and more specifically to Al Anbar Province for my third tour. I say privilege for a number of different reasons, not the least of which is the opportunity to again serve with young Americans ---- the best of their generation ---- in combat. A second reason is there is no greater honor for any man or woman than to protect one's country in time of grave danger while wearing the nation's cloth. Finally, I do not think there can be anything more gratifying on this earth for an American than...

Internet services have been disrupted in parts of the Middle East following damage to an undersea cable in the Mediterranean, according to reports. There was disruption to 70% of the nationwide network in Egypt, a government official told Reuters. There was also disruption in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, reported the Associated Press. India also suffered up to 60% disruption, a national industry body told Reuters news agency. Egypt's Telecommunications Ministry said it would probably take several days for internet services to return to normal following the disruption on Wednesday. In Dubai, one of the two...

During his recent trip to Israel, President Bush visited several places that re-affirmed his faith, including Bethlehem and the Sea of Galilee. Then exhibiting far greater faith than believing Jesus could walk on water, he asserted that "peace" could be had between Israel, the Palestinians and her Arab neighbors. One exhibition of faith has some historic roots and witnesses; the other is rooted in fantasy. As the president's visit neared, one might have expected the Palestinians, were they interested in peace, to at least tone down anti-Israel_rants. According to Palestinian Media Watch, the government-controlled_television station instead "intensified its rhetoric calling...

Today was the final day of President Bush’s Middle East tour. He ended his tour in an upbeat mood, saying he was optimistic an Israeli-Palestinian peace deal can be reached despite failing to win full Arab backing for his efforts. On this final day of his tour, President Bush met with President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt at the Royal Suite Garden, Four Seasons Resort, Sharm el Sheikh, Egypt. Enjoy your visit to Sanity Island

IIn the movie “Die Hard 2,” a terrorist is laying out his nefarious plans to the air-traffic control chief — played by one Sen. Fred Thompson — at Dulles International Airport. “Dammit, you can't do this!” an aghast Thompson tells the terrorist character. “I am doing this!” snarls the terrorist. With similar melodramatic aplomb, the Iranians played a potentially deadly game of chicken just as all eyes were fixated on Thompson and the rest of the New Hampshire hopefuls. As Iranian speedboats confronted U.S. warships in the Persian Gulf, a radio transmission intoned in the speaker's best Darth Vader English,...

CAIRO, Egypt - It's been a chilly welcome for America's president: The Mideast, known for blazing sun and scorching winds, has been hit with an uncharacteristic wave of heavy rain, frigid gales — and even a smattering of snow. If President Bush thought he would escape Washington's winter weather when he jetted to this region for eight days, he should have stayed home. It was nearly the same temperature in Washington, where it briefly snowed on Tuesday, as it was in Saudi Arabia — about 40 degrees. The weather affected Bush's trip from the get-go. During his first stop in...

Enjoy your visit to Sanity Island The President continues his travels to Israel, the West Bank, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt from January 8-16, 2008. Please .. especially 'til he and his party are safely home .. Pray for President Bush ~~ Day 2676 PHOTO OF THE DAY Jan. 12, 2008 ~ President George W. Bush reaches out to greet members of the military in Camp Arifjan, Kuwait. QUOTE(s) OF THE DAY President's Radio Address ~ January 12, 2008 Good morning. I'm speaking to you from the Middle East, where I have been meeting...

US President George W. Bush and Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas (R) make their way to the stage for a joint press conference following their meeting today at the Muqataa, the Palestinian Authority Presidential Compound, in the West Bank city of Ramallah.Mandel Ngan/AFP/GettyUS President George W. Bush and Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas (R) make their way to the stage for a joint press conference following their meeting today at the Muqataa, the Palestinian Authority ... RAMALLAH, West Bank -- President George W. Bush called for an end to Israel's occupation of the West Bank in Jerusalem on Thursday after telling Palestinians...

JERUSALEM - The Israeli and Palestinian leaders agreed Tuesday to begin tackling the core issues of a peace agreement in a push to revive stalled negotiations ahead of the arrival of President Bush. The renewed peace talks, formally launched at a conference in November in Annapolis, Md., are a centerpiece of Bush's agenda in his last year of office. But negotiations have made little headway, marred by Israeli construction plans in disputed territory and Palestinian militant attacks in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. "We think the visit is an opportunity to energize the momentum of the post Annapolis dialogue...

LONDON (AFP) - Britain is planning a "diplomatic surge" in the Middle East and south Asia to help counter extremism and nuclear proliferation, Foreign Secretary David Miliband said in an article published Sunday. Writing in The Sunday Times, Miliband said 2008 would "show in word and deed" what Prime Minister Gordon Brown meant when he described his government's approach to world affairs as one of "hard-headed internationalism". "We plan a diplomatic surge in the Middle East and south Asia by raising the number of staff by 30 percent," he said. "That means we can deepen our engagement with Pakistan to...

The new National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) on Iran’s Nuclear Intentions and Capabilities doesn’t change my view of that we need to restrain Iran. The NIE confirms that as recently as the fall of 2003, Iran was covertly working to develop nuclear weapons. Perhaps they have since halted their covert nuclear weapons work, but meanwhile they continue to aggressively pursue a uranium enrichment capability, despite the fact that it makes no economic sense as a civilian program. This program was begun secretly as part of their larger nuclear weapons program and could be converted to bomb-making in short order. The knowledge...

(IsraelNN.com) A research paper that won a Hebrew University teachers' committee prize finds that the lack of IDF rapes of Palestinian women is designed to serve a political purpose. The abstract of the paper, authored by doctoral candidate Tal Nitzan, notes that the paper shows that "the lack of organized military rape is an alternate way of realizing [particular] political goals." The next sentence delineates the particular goals that are realized in this manner: "In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, it can be seen that the lack of military rape merely strengthens the ethnic boundaries and clarifies the inter-ethnic differences - just...

History does not progress in a straight line for people from whichever point they set forth to their desired end. This illusion is served by retrospective view, and then deviations explained as results of people's ignorance or the caprice or duplicity of leaders as those today on the liberal-left -- those on the right in their time displayed the same tendency -- mindlessly repeat the silly phrase "Bush lies and people die." The politics of the Arab Mideast show how improbable is the idea of history's linear progress in the region. More than 500 years of Turkish rule of this...

"Water, water every where, And all the boards did shrink; Water, water every where, Nor a drop to drink." --Samuel Taylor Coleridge, The Rime of the Ancient Mariner ----------------------------------------------------- Iran isn’t an energy-independent country. I’m well aware that Iran produces more than 4 million barrels of oil per day, the fourth-highest production in the world. And with the near-constant reporting about Iranian crude reserves during the past six months, I find it difficult to believe that anyone could be unaware that Iran has 132 billion barrels in proven reserves--or, at least, they claim to. But what’s often ignored is that...

The Annapolis summit: More of the same Tuesday, November 27, 2007 So, world leaders today in Annapolis, Md., take another stab at "lasting peace" in the Mideast. Pardon our cynicism but wake us up when this latest effort fails. Now, to be fair, the goal of the session is not to sign some grand accord that will solve what appears to be the region's intractable problems. Rather it's billed as one of those set-the-stage sessions for future "meaningful peace negotiations" between Israel and the Palestinian Authority.

This past summer during one of the last episodes of HBO's mega-hit "The Sopranos," A.J., the whiny suicidal son of the show's mafia boss anti-hero, was heard to worry about what he saw as the certain bombing of Iran by President Bush. "You don't know that," his mafia princess sister responded. Though this stray snippet, which was widely noted in reviews of the show, did not offer any clues as to the fate of the fictional leaders of the North Jersey mafia, it may have heralded the beginning of a new twist on what it means to be "anti-war" in...

American foreign policy has been nothing like as interventionist as its critics like to think. Critics of George W. Bush's Middle East policy are hoping for a change in direction once America's 43rd President has left the White House. The foreign offices of Europe all hope for more multilateralism. More realpolitik. Less sabre-rattling. The critics have a problem, however. In reality, Team Bush has largely been following European approaches to foreign policy for most of the world's troublespot nations. Take Pakistan. The “realist school” couldn't honestly disapprove of any aspect of Bush's dealings with Islamabad. American taxpayers have financed a...

The U.N.'s nuclear watchdog admitted Thursday it was no longer in touch with how Iran's nuclear program was developing, even as Tehran continues its enrichment activities in defiance of sanctions. A report from International Atomic Energy Agency chief Mohamed ElBaradei, said that while Iran has cooperated in several areas -- by providing access to declared nuclear material, documents and facilities -- it is withholding in others.

ANKARA (AFP) - Israeli President Shimon Peres pledged Monday that his country would work for a tangible result at an upcoming US-sponsored Middle East peace conference, saying that the Jewish state is ready to make peace with the Palestinians. "Israel has decided to make Annapolis a success, to bring an end to the conflict, to finally make peace between the Palestinians and ourselves," Peres told a news conference here after talks with his Turkish counterpart Abdullah Gul. "It takes time to make peace... but I believe we can make peace now with the Palestinians," he said. The United States is...

Iran's demographic catastrophe in the making, I have long argued, impels Tehran to stake its claim for regional empire quickly, while it still has the manpower to do so. ------- Population decline eventually leads to stability, but not necessarily by a direct path. Some years ago a Danish politician proposed to replace the Defense Ministry with a telephone answering machine with the message: "We surrender."

WASHINGTON, Oct. 9 — A sharp debate is under way in the Bush administration about the significance of the Israeli intelligence that led to last month’s Israeli strike inside Syria, according to current and former American government officials. A familiar administration divide: Vice President Dick Cheney says Israeli intelligence was credible, while Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice questions whether there was a real threat. At issue is whether intelligence that Israel presented months ago to the White House — to support claims that Syria had begun early work on what could become a nuclear weapons program with help from North...

French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner says the world should prepare for war over Iran's nuclear programme. "We have to prepare for the worst, and the worst is war," Mr Kouchner said in an interview on French TV and radio.

An alleged secret Iranian war plan outlines aggressive military operations in coordination with the Turkish army to capture Kurdish land in northern Iraq to create a buffer zone, Kurdish sources close to the PKK says. The primary objective is to sabotage a possible blitz by American ground troops into Iran. The information was disclosed by a dissident Iranian military official. The Iranian pretext for the offensive into southern Kurdistan will be to root out and destroy PKK forces along the border with eastern [Iranian] Kurdistan. Iran has since last year tested the territorial integrity of Iraq and the KRG with...

The tempting thought that it is now safe to begin withdrawing from Iraq is being dangled in front of the American people this summer. Maybe if the United States and our allies pull out, or pull over, or pull to the side, the Shiite and Sunni moderates — facing destruction — will summon the ability to defeat al-Qaida and Iran's Shiite surrogates and go on to construct a solid peace. It is more likely, however, that bloodshed of historic proportions will flow. Not hundreds of deaths a week, as now, but hundreds of thousands in a few months, and the...

If one could be bold enough to assert that our enemies do not include our own president, George W. Bush, we can make progress toward identifying them. Below are a few foes and some of our own policy and opinion makers. Take the test and see how good you are at identifying those that would destroy us and those in and out of power that play the politics of terrorism to our detriment. Answers are below. Those that cheat get no fruit cup!!!! Good luck! Who said? “…and the herds of Crusaders have begun to split up and their sole...

WASHINGTON - President Bush on Monday announced an an international conference this fall to include Israel, the Palestinian authority and some of their Arab neighbors to help restart Mideast peace talks and review progress in building democratic institutions. He said that Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice would preside over the session. Bush said the conference would include representatives from Israel, the Palestinians "and their neighbors in the region" and said participants would include just those governments that support creation of a Palestinian state. Bush also pledged increased U.S. aid to the Palestinian government of President Mahmoud Abbas and called for...

"Mess," "fiasco," "disaster," "blunder," and "catastrophe." Fill in the blanks with almost any stock noun of gloom these days when speaking about Iraq. For finger-in-the-wind politicians, writing off Iraq is mere throat-clearing before moving on to any discussion of immigration reform or taxes. For ahead-of-the-curve pundits, starting out with “The failure in Iraq” is like opening their browser before daily pontificating. No need of explanation or empiricism, one just gets things out of the way at the very beginning with our new postmodern ritual. Usually the more vehemently one used to clamor for the idea of removing Saddam Hussein —...

June 21, 2007, 0:00 a.m. Mideast MadnessWhy the region remains unhinged. By Victor Davis Hanson “The Palestinian people will never forgive the Hamas gangs for looting the home of the Palestinian people’s great leader, Yasser Arafat.� So Palestinian Authority spokesman Abdel Rahman recently exclaimed. “This crime will remain a stain of disgrace on the forehead of Hamas and its despicable gangs.�Looting? Crime? Despicable gangs?Excuse me. For years, Palestinian Authority-sanctioned gangs shot and tortured dissidents, glorified suicide bombing against Israel, and in general thwarted any hopes of various “peace processes.�Of course, this kind of behavior isn’t limited to the Palestinian...

NEW YORK — The World Council of Churches (WCC) international peace conference in Jordan opened on a “hopeful� note, even in the face of the current crisis in the Gaza Strip, according to David Weaver, Church World Service (CWS) Director of Mission Relationships and Witness. The meeting, focused on long-term strategies for a church involvement in attempts to bring a just and lasting peace to the troubled region, is taking place against a backdrop of intense political fighting in occupied Palestine.  The conflict, which has caused chaos, death, and dislocation for thousands of Palestinians, also has effectively Palestine in two,...

Enraged Fatah leaders on Saturday accused Hamas militiamen of looting the home of former Palestinian Authority chairman Yasser Arafat in Gaza City. "They stole almost everything inside the house, including Arafat's Nobel Peace Prize medal," said Ramallah-based Fatah spokesman Ahmed Abdel Rahman. "Hamas militiamen and gangsters blew up the main entrance to the house before storming it. They stole many of Arafat's documents and files, gifts he had received from world leaders and even his military outfits." ...

Fourteen people have been killed in a day of heavy fighting between the Lebanese army and Islamic militants in northern Lebanon, reports say. The Lebanese army is trying to dislodge Fatah al-Islam militants who have been besieged in the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp for 13 days. Aid agencies say they are worried for the safety of civilians as artillery fire has been pounding the camp. Up to 100 people have died in the fighting so far, including civilians. Two of the 14 people killed on Friday are reported to be soldiers. It is unclear if the remaining twelve are...

Thousands of Palestinian refugees are still trapped inside the camp Several transport planes carrying military aid for the Lebanese army from the US and its Arab allies have arrived at Beirut airport.The move follows an appeal for such aid by the Lebanese government. Its forces are battling Islamist militants who have taken over the Nahr al-Bared Palestinian refugee camp in northern Lebanon. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has reiterated Washington's support for the Lebanese government. She said gunmen in Nahr al-Bared were trying to destabilise a democratic government. A Red Cross food convoy from the Jordanian capital, Amman,...

Will Tony Blair's legacy be positive for the Middle East? A. Yes 25.6% B. No 74.4%

SUNNI insurgency, Sunni-Shia sectarian violence, al Qaeda terror - Iraq doesn't need more problems. But it has one that too often gets overlooked: It's quickly becoming the latest battlefield in the proxy war between the Middle East's rising powers, Saudi Arabia and Iran. The Saudis are mostly Sunni Arabs, while the Iranians are largely Shiite Persians - and each seeks to dominate the Middle East and lead the Muslim world. Their growing rivalry is a major factor not just in Iraq but also in Lebanon, the Palestinian territories and even Sudan. * In Lebanon, Saudi Arabia backs the government of...

Boats joined the rally alongside Izmir's seafront The mass protests At least one million Turks have rallied in the city of Izmir to protest against any government plans to undermine Turkish secularism.The major demonstration was the fourth since the ruling AK Party nominated Foreign Minister Abdullah Gul as its candidate for the country's presidency. Many Turks suspect Mr Gul of having an Islamic agenda, something he denied before withdrawing his candidacy. Parliamentary elections scheduled for November are now to be held in July. The AK Party - which has roots its in political Islam - argues that a general...

Iran envoy Mottaki denies Iran's Holocaust denial while visiting Europe. Back home, I suspect he'll have to deny that very denial of the original denial. The article: "Iran's foreign minister was in Oslo on Tuesday, and he denied that his country's leaders doubt whether the Holocaust occurred. Nor would Manouchehr Mottaki claim that Israel has no right to exist. Iranian critics have often pointed to last year's seminar in Teheran for Holocaust skeptics, and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's suggestions that Israel should cease to exist. But Mottaki, after holding meetings with Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, claimed that Iran...