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Palestinian Media Watch Bulletin December 22, 2004 PALESTINIAN MEDIA WATCH phone: 972- 2- 625-4140 fax: 972-2- 624-2803 material may be quoted, citing PMW as the source subscribe free to PMW reports, details below International Herald Tribune, Dec. 22, 2004: The Palestinian schoolbooks:Planting seeds of the next war By Itamar Marcus One of the most meaningful gauges of the integrity of a peace process and its likelihood for success is the degree to which the "peace partners" educate towards peace. It is for this reason that the entire Palestinian Authority (PA) education apparatus, both formal and informal, has been such a...

The contretemps with the United States over the sale of Israeli-made Harpy assault drones to China is threatening to turn into a crisis with China as well. Washington is demanding that Israel not send back to China some of the drones sent here for upgrading. The drones are already Chinese property. The Israelis who heard the demand were astonished, considering there is no American technology in the drones. However, American sources say Israel will have no choice but to comply with the U.S. demand. The powerful pro-Taiwan lobby is warning that advanced Israeli weapons technologies could be used against U.S....

Top News Story Iran - A New Approach The Committee on the Present Danger Policy Paper Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei of Iran presents a fundamental threat to peace, for all signs point to his determination to develop nuclear weapons. Iran’s people, on the other hand, are our allies. They want to free themselves from Khamenei’s oppression and they want Iran to join the community of prosperous, peaceful democracies. The recent agreement Iran made with France, Germany and Britain to temporarily halt uranium enrichment, while it may slow down its overall program, will do so only briefly. What is needed...

Blair on surprise Baghdad visit UK Prime Minister Tony Blair is in Baghdad for his first visit to the violence-hit capital for talks with Iraqi leaders.

In the 1970's and '80's the issue du jour among human rights groups was apartheid, the hateful South African caste system. The anger certainly was justified, but there was also a degree of hypocrisy associated with the movement. Human rights groups were conspicuously silent about the murders in the Sudan, slavery in parts of Africa, the plight of the "boat people," and other issues. One might get the impression that if a human rights matter embarrasses the United States, it is worthy of concern. If not, the issue doesn't see the light of day among activists. Now, at the beginning...

BANGKOK: Thai premier Thaksin Shinawatra vowed to continue arresting ringleaders of separatist attacks as a volunteer rescue worker became the latest victim of violence that has claimed more than 560 lives this year. Part-time rescue volunteer Phanom Promsa-ard, 46, was killed instantly when gunmen shot him four times as he rode to work in southern Pattani province, said police. Police said the killing was carried out by a gunman riding a motorbike, which they described as a "trade-mark" style of attack for southern insurgents. The slaying came as Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra warned that police would shortly issue a further...

The U.S. military counterattacked in Mosul Wednesday, deploying armored vehicles and infantry to sweep the northern Iraqi city a day after a terrorist attack on an army mess tent killed 22 people and injured 50 more. Hundreds of troops fanned out across several neighborhoods backed up by Bradley fighting vehicles and armored Humvees, reports the Associated Press. Helicopter gunships were observed flying overhead, Military jets buzzed the city at a higher altitude. Some U.S. troops were deployed to blocked Mosul's five bridges over the Tigris River that link the western and eastern sectors of the city, while others conducting sweeps...

WASHINGTON (AP) - 1221bush-mosul Iraqi insurgents have attacked several U.S. military dining hall tents in recent months and the Pentagon was finishing a hardened bunker to replace the dining tent at the base near Mosul attacked Tuesday, military officials said. Days before the hardened dining hall was scheduled to be completed, a 122mm rocket slammed into the tent at Forward Operating Base Marez near Mosul where hundreds of troops were sitting down to lunch. Accounts of the number killed varied, but Pentagon officials said Tuesday night that 22 were killed, including 20 Americans. The toll included 15 military servicemembers and...

Fake SEAL accuses soldiers of torture 21 DEC 2004 VeriSEAL TAMPA, Florida - A former California National Guard soldier who accused others in his unit of torturing Iraqi prisoners may have military justice problems of his own. Frank "Greg" Ford claims to have witnessed members of his National Guard battalion torturing Iraqi prisoners while his unit was stationed in Samarra in 2003, according to David DeBatto, a former National Guard Tactical HUMINT Team (THT) member and author of a story titled "Whitewashing Torture" published on a far left web site in early December. DeBatto says that Ford reported the alleged...

For nearly three years, the public has been bombarded with media images of bombs exploding and people fighting. Hardly any television newscast goes by without an image of a destroyed Iraq, littered with rubble and crumbling buildings. What the public doesn’t see, however, is the rebuilding of Iraq. What the public doesn’t hear is the good news of what is being done in Iraq. But for one local soldier, the rebuilding of Iraq is something he sees everyday. United States Navy Petty Officer Scott Ogdahl and his unit work for the Multinational Security Transitional Command — Iraq (MNSTC-I) in Baghdad....

It now appears that the premise of the question that caused an uproar around Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld was off base. In Kuwait two weeks ago, Army Specialist Thomas Wilson (search) told Rumsfeld, "our vehicles are not armored ... We do not have proper armament vehicles to carry with us north [into Iraq]." But, according to senior Army officers, about 800 of the 830 vehicles in Wilson's army regiment — the 278th Cavalry — had already been up-armored when he asked the question. What's more, 20 vehicles remaining to be modified were in the process of being up-armored — and...

On Wednesday of last week, New York's City Council approved legislation that will increase the amount of matching funds from 5:1 to 6:1 when candidates face so-called “well-financed candidates,” who are candidates that spend a significant amount of their own money when running for office. Steve Shaw recently discussed his opposition to this legislation. "I am fully opposed to the 6:1 portion of this legislation," said Shaw, who, under Campaign Finance Board rules, is limited to contributing about $15,000 of his own money to his campaign. "New York City already has one of the most generous campaign finance matching programs...

Top News Story Iran Atomic Work Breaks Spirit of Accord - Diplomats By REUTERSPublished: December 21, 2004Filed at 5:37 p.m. ETVIENNA (Reuters) - Iran's decision to keep preparing raw uranium for enrichment, a step on the way to making nuclear weapons, breaks the spirit though not the letter of its pledge to freeze all such activity, diplomats said on Tuesday.Under a deal Iran reached with three EU nations to freeze all enrichment activity as of Nov. 22, preparing ``yellowcake'' uranium for enrichment is strictly prohibited. But the accord allowed Iran to finish some limited uranium conversion work that it...

Top News Story Iranians Start Questioning Role Of Religion In Politics December 20, 2004 Kuwait Times Cyrus Khaki Throughout history, it has been a frequent occurrence for countries to switch political systems, from feudal states to kingdoms and back again. It has been equally common for a country to change from a republic-based hierarchy, to the equally disputed democratic system. What is much more rare is for a nation to alter is approach to religion. The history of the Middle East is in large part a patchwork quilt of religious conflicts, shifting dogmas and fracturing of religious systems. But...

[E]lsewhere in Europe, the reaction has been less positive. Supporters of the populist Northern League Party in Italy took to the streets to protest at the decision. According to media reports, they unfurled banners saying, "yes to Christian roots". Austrian Chancellor Wolfgang Schussel announced that his country would join France in holding a referendum on Turkey’s accession, adding another potential obstacle in Ankara’s path... Nicolas Sarkozy, former Finance Minister and rising star of French politics, renewed his call for a "privileged partnership" with Turkey, rather than full membership... Cyprus warned over the weekend that it could still block Turkey’s membership...

Sentio Norstat’s December poll published today (20 December) by Norwegian daily Nationen shows an almost even split, with 45.8 percent supporting membership and 43.8 percent opposed... A year ago the yes camp had a clear majority of 12 percent. An average Norwegian no-voter is still female, low educated and living in the countryside, according to the Sentio Norstat poll. Norway voted No to joining the EU in referendums in 1972 and 1994. Pro-EU political parties are hoping for a third EU referendum after the next general elections in September 2005.

President Bush says he will submit a budget that cuts the deficit in half and mantains strict spending discipline. "We will provide every tool and resource for our military, we will protect the homeland," Bush said. He said he would "maintain strict discipline in spending tax dollars." In the 17th news conference of his presidency, Bush was pushing his second-term agenda. As for Iraq, Bush accused insurgents there of trying to "disrupt the democratic process" but he cautioned that next month's elections were just the first step of a long process in creating a stable, democratic country. "The elections in...

The Iranian judiciary is using threats of lengthy prison sentences and coerced televised statements in an attempt to cover up its arbitrary detention and torture of internet journalists and civil society activists, Human Rights Watch said today. Since September, more than 20 internet journalists and civil society activists have been arrested and held in a secret detention center in Tehran. Most have since been released on bail. In a public letter to President Mohammed Khatami on December 10, the father of one of those detained, Ali Mazroi-who is also president of the Association of Iranian Journalists and a former...

The reports said that 90 CIA officials and GREY FOX helicopters are taking part in the operation. (taken from google cache)

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa (AP) -- A woman pleaded guilty Monday to two counts of threatening President Bush. A grand jury indicted Catherine M. Guertin, 24, in August and she was arrested the next month. Her guilty plea was entered as part of an agreement with federal prosecutors, according to court documents. The threats were made in May while Guertin was living in Independence, the indictment says. The woman allegedly threatened Bush by saying, "I want him gone" and "If I ever have a gun, I will shoot him between the eyes."

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) - A vehicle carrying a group of suspected Taliban fighters attacked a military checkpoint in southern Afghanistan, sparking a firefight that left six dead and at least four wounded, police said Monday. Kandahar police chief Khan Mohammed said the attack occurred at 6 p.m. Sunday in Maivand district, 90 miles west of Kandahar city. The exchange of gunfire killed four soldiers and a civilian, and the attackers left behind the body of one fighter as they drove away, police said. Security forces were pursuing them. In a separate incident, two American soldiers were wounded Saturday when their...

December 20, 2004 Release Number: 04-12-38 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE IRAQI CITIZENS LEAD SOLDIERS TO POSSIBLE MASS GRAVETIKRIT, IRAQ -- Iraqi citizens stopped a Task Force Danger combat patrol and lead them to a possible mass grave site near Kirkuk on Dec. 20 at about 2:15 p.m. The Soldiers were able to confirm the presence of human remains at the location. The Soldiers secured the site and notified Iraqi Security Forces and a local hospital. -30-

REYKJAVIK, Iceland - In a country without an army, where even the police officers carry no weapons, the news of an attack in Kabul, Afghanistan, in late October reverberated with the force of a sudden gunshot. It was not just that three Icelandic peacekeepers had been wounded in a suicide bombing in an area known as being dangerous to foreigners. What was almost more disturbing were the television images beamed back from the scene, showing the peacekeepers armed and dressed in full military gear, apparently in contradiction of their strictly civilian status. Advertisement The incident touched off an unusual round...

BIG BUY: Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez (l.) met his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Moscow last month. Chávez plans to purchase a large amount of Russian arms. SERGEI KARPUKHIN/REUTERS CARACAS, VENEZUELA – Record world oil prices have filled Venezuela's treasury and helped President Hugo Chávez and his "Bolivarian Revolution for the poor" win two elections in recent months. Now, freed from worries about domestic political opposition, Mr. Chávez is using his new wealth to extend his influence beyond his nation's borders - and perhaps escalate his long-running confrontation with Washington, say observers. In recent months, Chávez has expanded Venezuela's policy...

Mr. President, please don't be sweet-talked into abandoning your friends. True, Arafat is gone, but his hate-filled legacy lives on. The two Abus now running the show still insist that Israel commit national suicide by absorbing millions of real and fudged refugees. They repeatedly state that they will accept no less. The first Abu, Mahmoud Abbas, stated this yet again clearly in his early December 2004 visit to Lebanon. Bombing buses brings bad press, so it's better to destroy Israel "democratically". That's why he and the second Abu, Ahmed Qurei', and others refuse to acknowledge Israel as a Jewish State....

Police arrested six suspected militants on Monday, including the Pakistani aide of a Libyan Al-Qaeda operative accused of masterminding two assassination attempts a year ago against President Pervez Musharraf, an official said. Malik Tehsin, 31, was nabbed in the eastern city of Lahore as he travelled in a car with three other Pakistanis, and information from Tehsin led to the arrests of two other Pakistani men at a house in the city later Monday. Shafqaat Ahmed, a senior police superintendent, told a news conference that Tehsin had arranged accommodation, transportation and other facilities for Abu Faraj al-Libbi, a Libyan terror...

BERLIN - Germany is to stop offering unlimited immigration to Jews from Russia and eastern Europe from Jan. 1, 2006, ending a policy it launched with the collapse of the Soviet bloc, German newspapers reported on Saturday. Germany began offering Jews from the former Soviet bloc the right to settle in the country in 1991 to help rebuild its own Jewish communities, devastated by the country's Nazi regime. Some 190,000 Jews had taken up the offer by the end of 2003. But the fact the number of ex-Soviet Jews coming to Germany has in recent years been higher than the...

US President George Bush's top strategist on the Middle East conflict has told private gatherings of scholars and Jewish leaders that Jewish settlements outside Israel's controversial barrier through the West Bank will have to be dismantled. The comments by Elliot Abrams, a senior director at the National Security Council, exceed previous Bush Administration statements and have sent a signal to tens of thousands of settlers that they are on untenable ground. But by specifying that these settlements must be abandoned, Mr Abrams indicated that Israel would be able to hold on to its most populous settlements and continue building the...

"The first point is that you'll recollect that one of the questions was the status of the 278 ACR; in other words, the date that we had the visit by the secretary of Defense, we had a question about their up-armoring status.  When the question was asked, 20 vehicles remained to be up-armored at that point.  We completed those 20 vehicles in the next day.  And so over 800 vehicles from the 278 ACR were up-armored, and they are a part now of their total force that is operating up in Iraq."

Republican state rep `strongly considering' run for governor LANSING, Mich. A one-term Republican state representative says he's "strongly considering" running against Governor Granholm in 2006. Representative Jack Hoogendyk (HOHG'-in-dyk) says Granholm isn't taking care of a number of problems facing the state. The 49-year-old Kalamazoo resident says the governor doesn't seem willing or able to address the issues of economic development. Michigan's unemployment rate improved slightly in October. But the state still has one of the worst jobless rates in the nation. Since he got elected to the state House in 2002, Hoogendyk has become known as a conservative on...

BAGHDAD - Iraqi security forces have captured rockets smuggled by rebels from a nearby nation with the aim of attacking polling stations and elections centers during the run-up to general elections, interim prime minister Ayad Allawi said. Allawi did not specify the type of missiles involved nor did he name the country from which the rockets were allegedly smuggled into Iraq. But he said Sunday that several government ministries are preparing a security plan to prevent attacks during the electoral campaign for a new legislature. “We captured (the rockets) at the beginning of this week. They were supposed to be...

<p>To subscribe to DEBKA-Net-Weekly click HERE .</p> <p>Iranian foreign ministry spokesman announced Sunday December 19 that intelligence minister Ali Younessi would “soon” report to the government on an eight-member spy ring that gathered information for Israel. No further information was offered about the identities of the “spies,” the nature of the “information” they had gathered or when.</p>

BAGHDAD-Sunni insurgents backing Abu Mussib Al Zarqawi have expressed alarm at the prospect of a defeat by the U.S.-led coalition in Iraq. An audio tape said to be from Al Zarqawi charged Muslim clerics with letting down the insurgency "because of your silence."

Meanwhile, three Iraqi election workers gunned down in Baghdad BAGHDAD, Iraq - Car bombs rocked Iraq's two holiest Shiite cities Sunday, killing at least 60 people and wounding more than 120, while in downtown Baghdad dozens of gunmen carried out a brazen ambush on car, killing three employees of the organization running next month's elections. The bombings came just over an hour apart -- first a suicide blast that ripped through minibuses at the entrance of the main bus station in the city of Karbala, then a car bomb in a central square of Najaf crowded with people watching a...

At least 63 people were killed and dozens were wounded Sunday, in two bombings in the Shi'ite cities of Najaf and Karbala and a shooting attack in Baghdad. Iraqi Shi'ite leaders called on their people to show restraint saying the Sunday attacks were intended to disrupt the coming elections. Shi'ite leaders accuse Sunni Muslim militants of carrying out the attacks. The Shi'ites suspect militants known as Salafists or Wahabis, and former ruling Baath Party members, of seeking to draw Shi'ites into a violence cycle that would spark a civil war and prevent the coming elections from taking place. Wahabis are...

Suicide Bombers Hit Holy Iraqi Cities, 62 Dead NAJAF, Iraq (Reuters) - Suicide car bombers struck Iraq's two main Shi'ite holy cities of Najaf and Kerbala on Sunday, killing at least 62 people and wounding nearly 130, in coordinated attacks six weeks before a historic election. It was the highest bombing death toll in Iraq since July and by far the bloodiest attack since last month's U.S. assault on the Sunni city of Falluja, which aimed to quell the insurgency. Both bombs, which went off about two hours apart, exploded near crowded bus stations in an apparently coordinated attempt to...

Why the nuclear weapons? Why is [Iran] involved in Iraq? Why does it support Hizbullah? Why is it adopting the Palestinian cause? Why is this Iran's business? Does Iran want to adopt the Palestinian cause, or does it want to support the Shiites in the region? No, it wants, it supports Hamas and Hizbullah, and does not accept the logic of two states, a Palestinian state alongside an Israeli state. It does not want this... [W]e want it to support the roadmap, the peace efforts that are now underway, and the negotiations. Iran supports Hizbullah. Iran's logic is Hizbullah's logic......

     #429 - Libyan Leader Mu'ammar Qaddafi: 50% of the American Elections Were Determined by the "Libyan Card" Abu Dhabi TV - 12/18/2004 - 00:00:29    #428 - Egyptian Intellectual Mahmoud Ahmad Shoq Presents: The Nano, the Kantaka, the Macdana, the Paspasa, and the Cowkala Iqra TV (Saudi Arabia) - 12/2/2004 - 00:01:15    #427 - Saudi Royal Family Sword Dance Al-Ekhbariya TV (Saudi Arabia) - 12/16/2004 - 00:01:21    #426 - Former Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council Abdallah Bishara: Iranian Nuclear Weapons Threaten the Countries of the Region Dubai TV - 12/12/2004 - 00:02:34

Albanian police have arrested four people smuggling in surface-to-air missiles allegedly destined for Albanian separatists in Macedonia. By Neil Barnett in Tirana (BCR No 533, 16-Dec-04) The seizure in Albania of three shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles allegedly destined for Albanian separatists in Macedonia has sparked fears of a brewing security threat in the region. The SA-7B Strela missiles were intercepted on December 13. They are believed to have originated in Bosnia or Serbia and may have been destined for Macedonia, where ethnic-Albanian insurgents fought a brief war against the authorities in 2001. Albanian police arrested four people – Sokol Mujaj, Ilim...

Peres’ ultimatum effectively delays any possible Likud-Labor coalition for at least a week as time ticks off for Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to form a new government. No sooner had he arranged the coalition deal with the Likud Party, Peres found two obstacles on his step to effectively replacing Sharon when the prime minister is out of the country or otherwise cannot function. Ehud Olmert of Likud serves as Deputy Prime Minister, and Sharon suggested Peres be given the title of “Deputy Prime Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office” as a way of getting around Olmert’s refusal to step down....

THAI Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra has linked militants responsible for violence in Thailand's south with Indonesian and Malaysian Islamic extremists, fuelling fears the domestic insurgency has connections to global terrorism. In comments that prompted an angry reaction from Malaysian Prime Minister Abdullah Badawi, Mr Thaksin said the militants were trained in the jungles of the northern Malaysian state of Kelantan. "They had recruited prospective youths and trained them in the jungles of Kelantan," Mr Thaksin said in his regular weekend radio address. But he also said the violence was influenced by "extremists in Indonesia", although he gave no details about...

MOSCOW -- Russian President Vladimir Putin reaffirmed his commitment to a stronger government and said Sunday that religious and ethnic extremist groups pose a threat and must be stopped. Putin has responded to September's school seizure and other recent terror attacks that killed more than 440 people with tougher anti-terror laws and by giving more power to the federal government. He has introduced legislation that abolished direct elections of provincial governors and given the president the right to nominate them. Critics have accused Putin of strengthening authoritarian controls and backtracking on Russia's post-Soviet democratic reforms, but he has dismissed the...

When President Lyndon B. Johnson ordered the Joint Chiefs of Staff, under Gen. Earle Wheeler, to do a study in June of 1967 on what was needed by Israel to survive as a nation, without American needing to come to her rescue, the following was concluded: Israel needed its current furthest borders at key positions to be able to withstand the frequent assaults by the Arab nations. Not only did the study advise Israel how to survive, but it was also self-serving for the US, which did not want to be called in to fight the Arab armies in order...

BAGHDAD, Iraq (AP) - A brazen daylight attack in the heart of Baghdad with rebels executing election workers in cold blood served as a chilling reminder Sunday of the deteriorating security situation in the Iraqi capital with just more than a month before crucial parliamentary elections. A series of pictures taken by an AP photographer show three pistol-wielding gunmen, who had earlier stopped a car carrying the election officials and dragged them into the middle of Haifa Street in the midst of morning traffic. The busy, traffic-clogged street has been the scene of almost daily gunfights between the insurgents and...

WASHINGTON, Dec. 16, 2004 – Car bombs and other attacks are creating an illusion that the insurgency his forces are fighting is powerful, the general in charge of coalition forces in Iraq said at a Pentagon news conference today. Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr., commander of Multinational Force Iraq, said the enemy "is not 10 feet tall." "They don't have to do much," he said. "A car bomb a day in Baghdad or on the airport road sends a symbol that the insurgency is very powerful, when in actuality I don't believe that they are. It's a classic technique...

Do we need any more evidence of how far Europe has fallen? In 1521 at the Diet of Worms, Martin Luther defied the pope with these words: "Hier stehe Ich. Ich kann nicht Anders. Gott hilf Mier. Amen." In English, that would be: "Here I stand. I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen." Today the poor man would have to say: "Here I sit." He could not do otherwise. The "sitzpinkler" movement, which started in Sweden a few years ago, has moved to Australia and Germany. I won't go into detail. You can figure it out for yourself. "Sitzpinkler"...

A French court jailed 10 Islamic militants on Thursday for their role in a failed plot to bomb a popular Christmas market in Strasbourg, sentencing two of the ringleaders to 10 years in prison each. Public prosecutor Christophe Teissier said the decision to carry out the attack had been taken in Afghanistan, where the conspirators had all undergone military training. Abou Zoubeida, a right-hand man of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, is believed to have helped plan the Strasbourg attack, which was foiled when German police carried out raids in Frankfurt on December 25, 2000, following a tip-off from French...

Red Alert to all Dino Rossi supporters!!!Rally for Dino this Sunday the 19th in Bellevue at 2:30 PM!!!330 112th Ave. NE, at the corner of 112th Ave. NE & NE 4th St.Christine Gregoire's allies in the Democratic Party are planning a protest in front of Rossi headquarters in Bellevue tomorrow, Sunday, Dec. 19. Please help us send the message that we must only count legal votes, and that the rules can't be changed midway through the recount! The Gregoire people are showing up to protest at 3 PM, so please be at Rossi HQ by 2:30 PM. Feel free to...

It's the laziest cliché in the travel-writing book to describe a place as a country of contrasts. Usually this means that - hold the front page! - a country's got both a beach and a city. And sometimes these weak words become weasel words, as when used about Brazil, the country with the largest gap between richest and poorest in the world. In this case, 'a country of contrasts' comes down to the fact that some people pick their teeth with golden gewgaws while round the corner, families literally live on, and from, rubbish heaps. So I hope that you'll...

A wedding is being held at the newly built Sheraton hotel in Irbil. The Kurdish bride and groom sit blinking into a video camera, their family clustered around. In the background, American contractors are drinking Turkish beer. This place of smiles and shining marble is the Iraq that was meant to be after the fall of Saddam Hussein. It existed for a brief moment after the invasion when American soldiers were at first greeted as liberators. Now the only place still deeply grateful for getting rid of the dictator is in the north of the country, in Kurdistan, a sanctuary...