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To: All

India Heightens Security Amid Al Qaeda Terror Attack Warnings




India intensified security at airports and other public places
across the country Saturday, a day after the U.S. Embassy warned
that foreign militants, possibly Al Qaeda terrorists, could be
planning bomb attacks.




Fox News http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,208038,00.html


651 posted on 08/13/2006 6:55:28 AM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

SUSPECT: I'LL KILL THEM ALL

A PLANE bomb suspect was dubbed the Bucks Bin Laden by neighbours
- and allegedly boasted he wanted to kill all non-Muslims.




Sunday Mail

http://www.sundaymail.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=17553715&method=full&siteid=64736&headline=suspect--i-ll-kill-them-all--name_page.html


675 posted on 08/13/2006 12:16:05 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

BABY BOMB




A HUSBAND and wife terror team planned to sacrifice their baby as
part of a plot to blast transatlantic jets out of the sky,
detectives fear.




Sunday Mirror

http://www.sundaymirror.co.uk/news/tm_objectid=17553549%26method=full%26siteid=62484%26headline=exclusive%2d%2dbaby%2dbomb-name_page.html


676 posted on 08/13/2006 12:17:29 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

Iran says disarming Lebanese Hizbollah "illogical"




Iran welcomed on Sunday a planned ceasefire to halt the
month-long war between Lebanon's Hizbollah and Israel but
described the U.N. Security Council's call for disarming the
Iranian-backed group as "illogical."




Reuters

http://go.reuters.com/newsArticle.jhtml?type=topNews&storyID=13175494&src=rss/topNews


677 posted on 08/13/2006 12:22:36 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

Cuban newspaper releases first post-surgery pictures of Castro




The Cuban newspaper Juventud Rebelde has released the first
pictures of Cuban leader Fidel Castro taken after his
gastrointestinal surgery, with Castro quoted as saying, "I feel
very happy."




AFP
http://www.afp.com/english/news/stories/060813113122.32oui0ty.html


678 posted on 08/13/2006 12:24:07 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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Britain reveals new terror threats as air bomb probe rumbles on




Britain said it had thwarted "at least" four major terror attacks
since the July 7 bombings last year, while up to 24 separate
threats were under investigation, as police probed the foiled bid
to explode aircraft en route to the United States.




AFP
http://www.afp.com/english/news/stories/060813114208.jln0jgrx.html


679 posted on 08/13/2006 12:25:17 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

China puts Canadian activist on trial after extradition from Uzbekistan(Updated 05:28 p.m.)

2006/8/10
BEIJING (AP)


A Canadian Muslim activist who was extradited from Uzbekistan to his native China in March has gone on trial on terrorism charges, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said Thursday.

Huseyincal Celil's family was told last week that if convicted, he could face execution as early as Thursday, the Washington, D.C.-based Uyghur Human Rights Project reported on Tuesday.

Jennie Chen, a Canadian Embassy spokeswoman, said Thursday, however, that her government had received assurances from China that it will not seek the death penalty for Celil.

Celil "is a Chinese citizen suspected of being involved in East Turkestan terrorist activities," said a man on duty at the Foreign Ministry's press affairs office who refused to give his name. "This case is being tried and no verdict has yet been reached."

Celil was wanted in China for his involvement in a campaign for the rights of the country's minority Muslim Uighurs. He was arrested in China and tortured, but escaped from prison in 2000 and fled to Uzbekistan and Turkey before reaching Canada, where he was given citizenship.

China's government says the East Turkestan Islamic Movement, based in the western region of Xinjiang, is waging a violent separatist campaign. Beijing also says the group has links to al-Qaida and has received arms and training from the terror network.

Diplomats and foreign experts are skeptical and say bombings and other violence linked to the group by China actually stem from personal disputes.

Celil was detained in the Uzbek capital, Tashkent, in March, while visiting his wife's relatives. He was traveling on a Canadian passport when he was detained, Chen said.

The Canadian government had earlier called on Uzbekistan not to extradite Celil.

Copyright © 2005 The China Post.
All rights reserved.

http://www.chinapost.com.tw/p_latestdetail.asp?id=40262


681 posted on 08/13/2006 12:29:38 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

Health Minister: 7 Iraqi Guards Arrested




Iraq's health minister, who is aligned to a powerful Shiite
militia, claimed Sunday that U.S. forces arrested seven of his
personal guards in a surprise pre-dawn raid on his office. The
reason for the alleged arrests was unclear.




Guardian Unlimited
http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,,-6012595,00.html


682 posted on 08/13/2006 12:32:55 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

Google Alert - RDX


Cops seize luggage of suspected LeT terrorists
Hindustan Times - India
... of luggage of the two suspected Lashka-e-Taiba terrorists,
including
a Pakistani, who were arrested in Delhi last week with two kg of RDX
and
detonators ...

http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1768026,0006.htm
See all stories on this topic:
http://news.google.com/news?ie=utf8&oe=utf8&persist=1&hl=en&client=google&ncl=http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1768026,0006.htm


683 posted on 08/13/2006 12:36:51 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

Google Alert - support jihad


Mideast Expert Martin Kramer on Tehran's Role in Middle East ...
FOX News - USA
... Ali Khamenei ordered Muslims across the world this week to support
Hezbollah in its ongoing battle against Israel. He praised the group's
jihad against the ...
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,208167,00.html

Pakistan: heart of darkness
Daily Telegraph - Sydney,New South Wales,Australia
... detailed planning, suggests "homegrown" groups may now be receiving
significant support, if not ... are militants from the West who want to
join the global jihad. ...

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/opinion/story/0,22049,20114041-5001031,00.html
See all stories on this topic:
http://news.google.com/news?ie=utf8&oe=utf8&persist=1&hl=en&client=google&ncl=http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/opinion/story/0,22049,20114041-5001031,00.html


684 posted on 08/13/2006 12:38:47 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

Hezbollah Fires 250 Rockets Into Israel




Hezbollah fired more than 250 rockets into Israel on Sunday, the
fiercest attack against northern Israel since the fighting began
more than a month ago, the Israeli army reported. One Israeli man
was killed.




TBO (AP)

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/L/LEBANON_ISRAEL?SITE=FLTAM&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT


685 posted on 08/13/2006 12:40:02 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All; milford421; Velveeta

http://search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?fr=yalerts-keyword&c=&p=plane+crash&ei=utf-8

1. Skeletons found near Athens Helios plane crash site Open this result in new window
Reuters via Yahoo! News - Aug 11 2:43 AM
Greek investigators said on Friday they found three skeletons at the site of last year's Cypriot passenger plane crash east of Athens and that they could be the remains of three people missing from the flight.
Save to My Web

2. Small plane crash in Branch County leaves 1 dead Open this result in new window
WOOD TV 8 - Aug 12 7:13 PM
BATAVIA TOWNSHIP, Mich. A small plane crashed and burst into flame near Branch County Memorial Airport -- killing one person on board and seriously injuring the...
Save to My Web

3. Deadly Plane Crash in Branch County Open this result in new window
WOOD TV 8 - Aug 12 11:58 AM
BRANCH COUNTY -- A plane crashed in Southwest Michigan Saturday morning, killing one man and seriously injuring another.
Save to My Web

4. Condition of crash survivors improves Open this result in new window
Saipan Tribune - Aug 13 3:19 AM
The plane crash survivor who was earlier reported in critical condition is now in better shape, with his condition downgraded to serious, while the six others are now considered stable, according to the Department of Public Health yesterday.
Save to My Web

5. Plane crash victim a flight innovator Open this result in new window
The Pueblo Chieftain - Aug 11 5:20 AM
SALIDA - The occupants of a single-engine plane that crashed Monday near North Fork Reservoir have been identified. The pilot was identified as Geoffrey G. Peck, 51, of San Jose, Calif. He died of head injuries as a result of the crash, according to Chaffee County Coroner Randy Amettis. The passenger in the plane was identified as Brandon Costa, 19, of San Benito, Calif. He suffered a
Save to My Web

6. Plane crash investigation under way Open this result in new window
ABC via Yahoo!7 News - Aug 10 2:36 PM
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) is investigating Wednesday night's plane crash near the Mt Baw Baw ski resort in Victoria.
Save to My Web

7. Plane crash investigation under way Open this result in new window
Australian Broadcasting Corporation - Aug 10 3:17 PM
The Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) is investigating Wednesday night's plane crash near the Mt Baw Baw ski resort in Victoria. Three men and a Melbourne pilot were on their way from Merimbula to Melbourne in a hired Cessna, when they were forced to land in bad weather.
Save to My Web

8. Kin remember victims of JAL plane disaster Open this result in new window
Daily Yomiuri Online - Aug 12 11:41 AM
The families of victims of a 1985 plane crash climbed Mt. Osutaka in Gunma Prefecture, where 520 passengers and crew of a Japan Airlines jumbo jet lost their lives, to mark the 21st anniversary of the disaster Saturday.
Save to My Web

9. Probe Cites Problem Equipment in Wal-Mart Heir's Plane Crash Open this result in new window
Fox News - Aug 12 2:41 PM
The home-built aircraft in which Wal-Mart heir John Walton was killed had a loose flight control component and was heavily modified, according to a government report.
Save to My Web

10. 7 hurt in Saipan plane crash Open this result in new window
Pacific Daily News - Aug 11 10:08 AM
A 29-year-old man, a Japanese national, was in critical condition last night after he and six others aboard a Piper Cherokee aircraft were injured when the small plane crashed a minute after take-off from Saipan International Airport early yesterday morning.
Save to My Web


686 posted on 08/13/2006 12:44:45 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

http://search.news.yahoo.com/search/news/?fr=yalerts-keyword&c=&p=%22FBI%22&ei=utf-8

4. Man wanted in U.S. by the FBI arrested, in custody in Kelowna, B.C. Open this result in new window
CNews - 15 minutes ago
KELOWNA, B.C. (CP) - A man wanted in the United States by the FBI is in custody in Kelowna. Luke Sommers was wanted in connection with an armed robbery that took place in Tacoma, Wash., last week.
Save to My Web

5. Deceased Polygamist's Daughter Wanted By FBI Open this result in new window
Local6.com Central Florida - Aug 13 7:27 AM
The daughter of a deceased Utah polygamist is the newest fugitive on the FBI's "most wanted" list.
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6. FBI terror unit seizes case evidence involving Richardson man Open this result in new window
Dallas Morning News - Aug 13 12:42 AM
The FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force was involved in searches of the home of a Richardson man facing charges related to creating false defensive driving certificates and has since seized evidence related to the investigation from the Dallas police.
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7. Man wanted in U.S. by the FBI arrested, in custody in Kelowna, B.C. Open this result in new window
CP via Yahoo! Canada News - 35 minutes ago
KELOWNA, B.C. (CP) - A man wanted in the United States by the FBI is in custody in Kelowna.
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8. Post-9/11 FBI shifts its focus to terror Open this result in new window
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette - Aug 12 9:17 PM
On Sept. 12, 2001, FBI Director Robert S. Mueller gathered the troops.
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9. Polygamist’s Daughter Sought By Houston FBI Open this result in new window
KUTV2 Salt Lake City - Aug 12 5:38 PM
SALT LAKE CITY The Houston office of the FBI has placed the fugitive daughter of a deceased Utah polygamist on its “most wanted” list after getting new information about the woman from a relative in prison.
Save to My Web

10. FBI hunt on for terror connections Open this result in new window
The Hindu - Aug 12 1:57 PM
LOS ANGELES: The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is looking into possible connections between the men arrested in London and people in the U.S. In a round of television interviews, the White House Homeland Security adviser Frances ...
Save to My Web


687 posted on 08/13/2006 12:49:28 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

unknown url............s

Iranian president lambasts US on new blog

Reuters

Sunday, August 13, 2006

Iran's president has launched a Web log, using his first entry to
recount his poor upbringing and ask visitors to the site if they think the
United States and Israel want to start a new world war.

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, whose speeches are riddled with anti-U.S.
rhetoric, also described how he was angered by American meddling in Iran even
when he was at elementary school.

Ahmadinejad swept to a surprise victory in last year's presidential
race by promising the country's poor a fairer share of Iran's oil wealth
and emphasizing his own humble origins that led many to vote for him as
an "outsider" to Iran's ruling elite.

"During the era that ... living in a city was perfection, I was born in
a poor family in a remote village," he wrote in a blog dated Friday,
after opening with Islamic greetings.

His origins as the son of "a hard-bitten toiler blacksmith" may have
been humble, but he says he excelled at school where he said he came
132nd out of 400,000 in exams to enter university.

As well as promising a better life to the poor, Ahmadinejad has sought
to bolster support by refusing to bow to what he says is Western
pressure to stop Iran's civilian nuclear program. The West says Iran is
building an atomic bomb.

His defiance in the stand-off with the West has often played well in
the Muslim world, where many are angered by U.S. foreign policy in the
Middle East.

Analyst Saeed Laylaz said the site -- available in Persian, Arabic,
English and French at www.ahmadinejad.ir -- may be seeking to win support
from abroad.

"Do you think that the U.S. and Israeli intention and goal by attacking
Lebanon is pulling the trigger for another world war?" the president
asks visitors to the site, offering them the choice to vote 'yes' or
'no'.

Ahmadinejad describes how in the first grade at school -- for those
aged about seven -- he read newspapers with the help of adults about how
the then shah of Iran gave Americans living in Iran immunity from
prosecution under Iranian laws.

"I realized that Mohammad Reza (Shah) attempted to add another page to
the vicious case history which was the humiliation and indignity of the
Iranian people versus Americans," he said.

He describes listening ardently to the speeches of Ayatollah Ruhollah
Khomeini, the shah's vociferous critic and later leader of the 1979
Islamic revolution that overthrew the monarchy.

He also discusses Iran's bloody 1980-1988 war with Iraq, in which
Ahmadinejad fought as a Revolutionary Guard.

But he admitted his opening blog, which runs to more than 2,300 words
in the English version, was too long. "From now onwards, I will try to
make it simpler and shorter," he wrote.

Copyright © 2006 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.


688 posted on 08/13/2006 12:57:18 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

Sunday 13 August 2006 Aljazeera
Palestinians see Nasrallah as new hero
By Rachel Shabi in Ramallah

http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/FBC40D12-E086-48E8-BC1D-AB7C671C869F.htm

It's impossible to speak with Waleeed Ayyoub without constant
interruptions. The 33-year-old artist in Ramallah is busy dealing with
requests for the fastest selling portrait in the West Bank - that of
Hasan Nasrallah.

"Nasrallah is a hero, I want to hang his picture in my salon," says
Mohammad Taha, 27, who has come from Jerusalem to buy one of these
ubiquitous posters from Ayyoub.

Portrait posters of the Hezbollah leader are hanging everywhere in
Ramallah, covering the walls and shop fronts and plastered across
T-shirts and demonstration banners.

Before the Israel-Lebanon war broke out, Ayyoub was selling from his
stock of hero portraits, such as Che Guevara, Yasser Arafat, Fidel
Castro, Egypt's late leader Abdel Gamal Nasser and Jesus.

On the day of one of many Ramallah demonstrations against the Lebanon
war last week, Ayyoub says he sold around 1,000 posters of the
Hezbollah
leader.

Hit song

Meanwhile, Ramallah's hit song of the summer, blaring out of shops and
streets stalls on a loop, is "The eagle of Lebanon," in praise of
Nasrallah.

One music store reports receiving scores of requests for the CD each
day
and there are numerous stalls selling the disc along Ramallah's main
streets.

All over the city, secularists, Christians and Muslims alike refer to
the Hezbollah leader as Palestine's newest and truest hero.

"I am secular in principle," says Zakariya Muhammad, a Ramallah-based
writer. "But Nasrallah's war is a resistance war against Israel and
against the US attempts to reshape the Middle East in their interests."

Sufian Adawi, a money-changer in the city centre, was one of the first
to put a photo of Nasrallah in his shop window when the war broke out.

"He is the symbol of victory, a leader of the Arab resistance," he
says.
"This is the first time that the Arabs are fighting properly and are
strong against Israel."

'Superhero'

Many voices in Ramallah echo this sentiment, agreeing that Hezbollah's
26-day resistance to the Israeli army elevates Nasrallah to the league
of superhero.

"He is different to other heroes because he stands up to Israel, he
isn't scared and he doesn't stay quiet - he takes action," says Nadia
al-Khatib, 16.

The West Bank city currently holds daily demonstrations against the war
and has unofficially renamed one of its main streets Bint Jbeil, in
solidarity with the Lebanese village that has seen fierce clashes
between the Israeli army and Hezbollah fighters.

Some Israeli newspapers have argued that support for Hezbollah could
manifest in a greater motivation for attacks on Israel from the West
Bank.

One Israeli newspaper last week reported the Israeli police in a high
state of alert and the West Bank in full closure because of warnings
related to "suicide bombings, high trajectory weapons attack, and
kidnapping attacks."

Increased attacks

A spokesman for the Israel army says: "Over the last couple of weeks we
have seen an increase in terror activity emanating from the West Bank
and we think that this is linked not just to support for Hezbollah but
also to Hezbollah encouraging this type of activity."

The spokesman adds: "We believe that Hezbollah are interested in a
third
front being opened [in the West Bank] and are supporting - we even
think
financially - terror activities."

According to the Israeli army, six suicide bombers were intercepted in
the last two weeks, three of them on Israeli territory.

But Fatah leaders in Ramallah think it unlikely that political
alliances
would be formed on the back of popular support for Hezbollah.

"The Palestinian people would support any side or any party that stands
in the face of the Israeli occupation," says Mohammad al-Hourani, Fatah
member of the Palestinian parliament.

He adds: "People may side with Hezbollah because of solidarity and
sympathy. But that doesn't mean that people want to be a part of
Hezbollah."

Wide appeal

Back at Manara square in Ramallah, Waleed Ayyoub is still selling the
Nasrallah images to "all people of all ages - even little children."

He is especially proud of a sale made to an Arab-Israeli woman from
Haifa, fleeing the Katyusha attacks on her city.

The artist intends to donate profits from poster sales to charities
helping Gaza and Lebanon.

Explaining why Nasrallah has such appeal in the West Bank, he says:

"We are always looking for someone to help us, to save us, to free us.
In Palestine, we can't find a hero like Nasrallah."


689 posted on 08/13/2006 1:03:31 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

[unknown url]

Israel approves truce, continues barrage

Associated Press

Sunday, August 13, 2006

By RAMIT PLUSHNICK-MASTI, Associated Press Writer

After a stormy debate Sunday, Israel's Cabinet approved a Mideast
cease-fire, agreeing to silence the army's guns in less than 24 hours. The
Israeli military embarked on a last-minute push to devastate Hezbollah
guerrillas, rocketing south Beirut with at least 20 missiles.

The 24-0 vote, with one abstention, came a day after the Lebanese
government approved the agreement and Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah gave
his grudging consent. The truce was to take effect Monday morning.

But questions as to the truce's durability quickly arose Sunday, when
the Lebanese Cabinet canceled a critical meeting that was supposed to
discuss the deployment of 15,000 troops to southern Lebanon, a key part
of the cease-fire deal. Published reports said the Cabinet had been
sharply divided over demands that Hezbollah surrender its weapons.

A heated debate erupted during Israel's Cabinet session, with minister
Ofir Pines-Paz criticizing the government's decision to order an
expanded ground offensive in the days before the cease-fire is to take
effect.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said the cease-fire agreement would ensure
that "Hezbollah won't continue to exist as a state within a state."

"The Lebanese government is our address for every problem or violation
of the agreement," Army Radio quoted him as saying.

The Israeli Cabinet session came as some 30,000 Israeli troops fought
heavy battles with Hezbollah a day after 24 soldiers were killed in the
highest Israeli toll of the monthlong war.

As the vote took place, Israeli shells slammed into the hard-hit
Dahiyeh suburb, a Hezbollah stronghold just south of Beirut. Lebanese
television reports said the strike destroyed a complex of eight residential
buildings where at least six families lived. TV footage panned across
massive damage that appeared to stretch for several hundred yards in all
directions.

An Associated Press photographer who reached the scene saw the body of
one child being removed from the wreckage. He said Israeli jets were
still in the air overhead.

The explosions reverberated across the Lebanese capital, and there were
reports of other strikes south of the city on the Christian town of
Damour and a nearby village, dl-Naameh. Those reports could not be
independently verified.

Earlier Sunday, Israeli warplanes fired missiles into gasoline stations
in the southern port city of Tyre, killing at least 12 people in those
and other attacks.

The cease-fire was to go into effect at 8 a.m Monday. After a halt in
fighting, some 15,000 Lebanese troops and an equal number of U.N. forces
were to be deployed in south Lebanon and create a Hezbollah-free zone,
from the Israel-Lebanon border to Lebanon's Litani River, 18 miles
away.

Israel said it hopes Lebanese troops will start deploying quickly,
within a week or two.

"When the Lebanese and multinational force enters, Israel will withdraw
and not before," Israeli Cabinet minister Yaacov Edri said after the
Cabinet vote.

Former Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz abstained in the vote, said a
senior government official who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The Lebanese government approved the deal Saturday, and Nasrallah
signaled grudging acceptance, but also warned that "the war has not ended."
On Sunday, Hezbollah fired more than 150 rockets at northern Israel,
killing an Israeli man.

In the Cabinet meeting, Olmert praised the cease-fire agreement
approved by the U.N. Security Council, saying it will prevent a return to the
status quo in which Hezbollah ran a state-within-a-state in south
Lebanon, participants said.

The deal was seen at best as a draw with Hezbollah, and some felt
Israel - unable to subdue a guerrillas force - had lost.

Neither the Lebanese army nor U.N. forces can be counted on to
challenge Hezbollah and prevent the Iran-supplied guerrillas from rearming,
military experts and commentators said.

The deal buys a period of calm, at best, and sets the region up for the
next war with Tehran's proxy army, critics said. The truce will be "a
time-out until the next confrontation, and maybe not even this,"
commentator Nahum Barnea wrote in Israel's Yediot Ahronot daily.

The Cabinet session was overshadowed by rising Israeli casualties.
Twenty-four soldiers were killed Saturday and at least 73 wounded.

Hezbollah appeared to be fighting as fiercely as ever. The guerrillas
shot down an Israeli helicopter, a first in the war, and killed five
crew members. Other troops were killed by Hezbollah anti-tank missiles.
The army said it killed more than 50 Hezbollah fighters.

The violence has claimed more than 900 lives: at least 763 in Lebanon -
mostly civilians_ and 147 Israelis, including 109 soldiers. On
Saturday, 19 Lebanese civilians were killed in Israeli air raids, one of which
blasted a highway near the last open border crossing to Syria.

Lebanon's Cabinet said Israel's military push presented a "flagrant
challenge" to the international community after the U.N. resolution was
issued.

President Bush had an 8-minute phone call Saturday with Lebanese Prime
Minister Fuad Saniora to discuss the truce. The White House said it is
determined to vanquish the hold of Hezbollah - and that of its Syrian
and Iranian benefactors - on the south.

"These steps are designed to stop Hezbollah from acting as a state
within a state, and put an end to Iran and Syria's efforts to hold the
Lebanese people hostage to their own extremist agenda," Bush said.

____

AP writers Lauren Frayer and Sam Ghattas contributed to this report
from Beirut.

Copyright © 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.


690 posted on 08/13/2006 1:06:59 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

Google Alert - radioactive material


Carr says nuclear terror attack threat is real
The Age - Melbourne,Victoria,Australia
... could wrap radiological waste from a hospital around conventional
explosive
compounds to make a "dirty bomb", which would widely scatter
radioactive
material.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/carr-says-nuclear-terror-attack-threat-is-real/2006/08/13/1155407670361.html


691 posted on 08/13/2006 1:10:13 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All; Founding Father

**Two television interviews with FM Livni - August 12, 2006



Information Department, Israel Foreign Ministry - Jerusalem
Website: http://www.mfa.gov.il

Jerusalem, 13 August 2006
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Government/Speeches+by+Israeli+leaders/2006/FM
+Livni+interviewed+on+Israel+television+12-Aug-2006.htm

The following interviews were broadcast on Israel television channels 1
and 2 on Saturday evening, 12 August (translated from Hebrew)

1. Interview with FM Tzipi Livni - Channel 1 - August 12, 2006

Yaakov Ahimeir: We welcome Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign
Affairs Tzipi Livni to our studio. Good evening. And in our studio in
Tel Aviv, our political correspondent, Ayala Hasson

FM Livni: Yesterday was a very dramatic day. We started it in an
uncomfortable situation. We had reached a situation in which we had to
announce that we would not accept the resolution. But in the course of
the day, there were changes that enabled us to support it. And today it
reflects the interests of the State of Israel.

Yaakov Ahimeir: Ms. Livni, do you believe that the military campaign
could have been completed in two days, or a few days after it began?
That perhaps there was no need for further military advance and that
political negotiations could have started earlier?

FM Livni: The campaign has not been completed yet, and, therefore I
don't want to answer theoretical questions. The campaign did not end
after three days, and this is where we stand today. As far as I'm
concerned, and I explained this during the operation, I thought that it
would have been appropriate to begin the political process immediately
when the battle started, for a simple reason: It was clear that the
objectives we wanted to achieve could not be achieved through military
action, no matter how successful. Therefore, I felt it was important to
initiate the political process as early as possible. It is true that
the
climate at first was a kind of "You give us time and we will do the
job." I thought otherwise and therefore, at the same time, started
working.

Ayala Hasson: During the cabinet meeting, you complained to
representatives of the army that, in fact, early announcements of the
operation tied your hands politically and did not leave you any other
choice but to vote in favor, because had you voted against it, it would
have been construed as damaging Israel's power of deterrence. Can you
clarify this for us?

FM Livni: Usually, I don't talk about cabinet meetings - to me, the
discussions are confidential. I will only say one thing about the power
of deterrence. Part of the campaign and our decision to engage in
military action, which was indeed the correct decision on the night of
the kidnapping, was because it was time to show Hizbullah that we will
not take their activities quietly: their invasion into Israeli
territory, kidnapping and killing soldiers, the Katyusha attacks.
Israel's power of deterrence experienced ups and downs, over time. At
first, it was successful; then, later, as the fighting developed, we
found ourselves in less convenient positions. And this perhaps relates
also the point of withdrawal, which in my opinion should have been when
our power of deterrence was at its peak. It is true that when one wakes
and reads the headlines, when it seemed that the army wanted to do
something specific and our actions were being watched by the outside
world, not only by the citizens of Israel, who are extremely important
to me, but by the entire world - including Syria, Iran, Hamas and the
Palestinians - at that point in time, to say that the government does
not provide the army with the freedom it needs would have been
construed
as political weakness. And I didn't want to go there.

Yaakov Ahimeir: You yourself say, Ms. Livni, that everybody is looking
at us: Syria, Iran, other countries. And when these countries look at
us
and at our performance, or at the IDF's performance, perhaps even our
political performance, what conclusion should they draw?

FM Livni: First of all, it is clear that the original decision to
launch
the operation, was not only the right decision, but from their point of
view, clearly changed the rules of the game.

Yaakov Ahimeir: I'm asking about performance, from the decision
onwards.

FM Livni: I really don't want to get into how the forces should attack
or from which direction, or how it looks from the outside. I know what
the results are today. And the results today depend on the process. If
what will happen is what is written in the Security Council's
resolution, we are then at the beginning of a new order in Lebanon,
with
a very strong international involvement, with an international
understanding that it is impossible to place decisions on the shelf and
not implement them. That is why I am optimistic, assuming that the
resolution will be implemented. At the end of the day, the question is
whether today we are in a better position. We are in a better position,
but at the moment it is only at the declaratory level. It will be some
time before we know for sure whether we have changed the rules of the
game in Lebanon.

Ayala Hasson: Minister Livni, there is criticism about the performance
of the political echelon. Some criticize the Prime Minister, others the
Minister of Defense, and there are those that criticize you. I'd like
you to comment on each of those who are being criticized. What do you
say about the criticism of the Prime Minister, the Ministry of Defense
and of yourself?

FM Livni: I imagine that the criticism varies and comes from different
people. I only want to say one thing: We all have to remember, that one
way or the other I am part of this government, and therefore we all
have
a joint responsibility. If there is something we shouldn't be doing now
is to start pointing fingers at those sitting next to us. At the end of
the day, the responsibility is the collective responsibility of the
government, even if at this time each one of us thought differently
during one decision or another.

Yaakov Ahimeir: Ms. Livni, are you pleased with your own performance as
Minister of Foreign Affairs during the war?

FM Livni: The public should be the judge of that.

Yaakov Ahimeir: Do you feel that you have managed to make an impression
during this crucial time for the State of Israel?

FM Livni: The public should be the judge of that. I know that I acted
based on my convictions. To be effective and make decisions, you don't
always do that with interviews - on the contrary. If I will sit here in
the studio and say that I support certain thing, I would lose my
ability
to exert influence on them. The result is that today there is a
decision
that in my opinion serves the interests of the State of Israel. It is
the result of very hard work, not only mine, but also of other people
in
the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the result is good for Israel.
Beyond that, we are judged every day by the public.

Yaakov Ahimeir: Thank you very much, Vice Prime Minister and Minister
of
Foreign Affairs, Tzipi Livni.

2. Interview with FM Tzipi Livni - Channel 2 - August 12, 2006

Yonit Levy: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Tzipi Livni, good evening.
There
is an agreement, Israel approved it. Why do we keep advancing into
Lebanon?

FM Livni: First, there is a UN resolution that Israel intends to comply
with based on the government's decision. The army requested it, and we
insisted on it during the decision making process, that there be no
vacuum, that there be no situation whereby the IDF would withdraw and
Hizbullah would return before the Lebanese army and the international
forces would be deployed. That is why the army asked to improve its
position in the area and create better conditions, for both the
Lebanese
army and the international forces.

Gadi Sukenik: The government confirmed that it is ready for a
cease-fire. What is it instructing the IDF to do?

FM Livni: I understand the confusion and I'll try to explain. Part of
our efforts in the process of adopting the UN resolution was that there
would be no immediate cease-fire, that the moment there is a UN
resolution everybody would stop - the IDF would return home and there
would be a vacuum. There was a very complex debate about that and the
decision was that the IDF will remain in its positions, and start to
leave Lebanon only when the Lebanese army and the international forces
arrive. By the way, since we knew that Nasrallah would claim that in
that case he is allowed to continue to attack IDF forces, the decision
states that Hizbullah should immediately cease all attacks, not only on
Israel and on civilians, but all attack.

Gadi Sukenik: What will actually happen now? Tomorrow at midday the
government will decide on a cease-fire. Will the IDF be told to hold
fire?

FM Livni: The army asked for a few hours, we agreed. It is clear that
we
will not be caught in a violation. This was conveyed in conversations I
had yesterday with both Condoleezza Rice and Kofi Annan, so that we can
provide the army with the time it needs, which I believe is until
Monday, to deploy in areas where the soldiers will not be under attack
by Hizbullah. That was the only request by the army, and we provided
them with a window of time to reorganize.

Yonit Levy: Do you mean to say that you needed a month of battle, 125
Israelis killed, a month during which people remained in the shelters
so
that, eventually, an agreement would be reached according to which
there
is no commitment to return the kidnapped soldiers, which does not
provide a mechanism for disarming Hizbullah? For that you fought for a
month?

FM Livni: First, I do not concern myself with the question of what are
the points in time at which it was possible to achieve an objective -
that's something that can be done later. What I do know is that at this
point in time this UN resolution is a good decision for Israel, and I
will explain why in principle. We have to compare with our situation a
day before this began. It is true that there was a UN resolution that
all of us cited in TV studios, Resolution 1599, which stipulated that
the government of Lebanon had to enforce its sovereignty over the
entire
Lebanese territory and disarm the militias; that decision was shelved.
The Prime Minister of Lebanon engaged in a sort half embrace-half
discussion with the Hizbullah. Today, the resolution is coming off the
shelf and is being translated into action, including new things that it
did not contain before, like an embargo on arms to Hizbullah, an
embargo
on any country that provides them with arms. This is something that is
very difficult for the UN to accomplish vis-à-vis Iran. Look how long
it
is taking the UN with the issue of atomic weapons. In effect, what we
have today is an enforceable and applicable resolution.

Yonit Levy: Based on a request by the Lebanese government.

FM Livni: The embargo has nothing to do with the request. The embargo
is
permanent, as well as the decision to deploy the Lebanese army. For
years Israel wanted the Lebanese government to deploy its army, but
nothing happened. As for the international forces, we have to see who
they will be.

Yonit Levy: The Prime Minister promised to change the face of the
Middle
East and promised to return the kidnapped solders. That didn't happen.
Minister Tzipi Livni, thank you.


692 posted on 08/13/2006 1:13:40 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All; Founding Father

Ynetnews
Aug. 13, 2006

No victory

Had he known the results ahead of time, Nasrallah would still have
chosen this war. The Israeli government would have hemmed and hawed

by Nahum Barnea
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3290336,00.html

Israel moves towards the ceasefire beaten, in conflict, and worried.
Both sides are indicating it promises to be a "Lebanese cease fire":
Temporary quiet until the next round.

Maybe not even that. The UN may consider the war over, but up north it
continues unabated. It is exacting, and will continue to exact, a heavy
toll.

The war is not over, but the ceasefire resolution allows the infighting
to begin in Israel. This time, it appears this battle will be all-out
war: The government against the IDF brass, Ehud Olmert against Amir
Peretz, generals against generals, Knesset members against government
ministers, the current government against the previous one.

Every one feels they have been poorly treated, everyone feels they've
been betrayed, everyone is waiting for the moment Nasrallah gives them
the opportunity to get it all out.

Political victory? on paper

The Security Council decision is a significant political achievement
for
the United States and Israel. It is infinitely better than the draft
Olmert rejected at 3:00 Friday morning. Olmert and Foreign Minister
Tzipi Livni believe the resolution is even better than the
American-French proposal put on the table a week earlier.

On paper, it's a good agreement. In theory, it promises both the
disarming of Hizbullah and its removal from the north, in addition to
the release of the two kidnapped soldiers, a strong, multi-national
force to deploy in Lebanon , authorized to enforce its will, and it
suggests international authority over entry to Lebanon.

One would have to be an eternal optimist to believe the agreement will
be enforced as written.

Show of force

The IDF demanded 60 additional hours of full activity in Lebanon before
the ceasefire agreement came into effect. It got 60 additional hours.

The goal was to capture strategic points in south Lebanon, up to the
Litani River, as well as to cleanse the area of Hizbullah holdouts.

Chief of Staff Dan Halutz said that aside from the Security Concil
resolution, the IDF's massive show of force would leave a lasting
impression on Lebanon. He convinced Olmert, as well as President Bush
and Kofi Annan.

Unfortunately, massive shows of force also mean losses. When weighing
up
the costs and benefits of this war, it is highly questionably whether
this last-minute exercise will pay off. Soldiers are supposed to remain
in the area two-to-three weeks, until the multi-national force arrives
to bolster UNIFIL.

Hizbullah will try to attack them, as they did before Israel withdrew
from the area in May, 2000. It is painful to Israel playing right into
Hizbullah's hands.

Significant losses

The question about what happened to Israel during this war must be
thoroughly discussed. It was a war in which Israel was hit and Lebanon
was hit and Hizbullah was hit.

It is natural for Israelis to focus on our losses. These are not
insignificant: Civilian life has been silenced; hundreds of thousands
of
Israelis have become refugees.

Perhaps worst of all: The revelation that the IDF is incapable of
living
up to the aura surrounding it. It is not only incapable of beating a
small guerilla organization like Hizbullah; it is incapable of
providing
food and water to its soldiers.

Crisis of faith

The sharp crisis of faith that has developed between the IDF and the
political echelon is reminiscent of the Yom Kippur War.

When the Arabs are in trouble, they start to lie. This is true, even
for
a seasoned politician like Nasrallah. When Israelis are in trouble,
they
speak the truth. This is one of the secrets of our advantage over the
other side.

The truth must be told: We did not win this war. This can be proven by
the following hypothetical question I heard yesterday from one former
Israeli leader: If Nasrallah would have been asked a month ago if he
would have started this war knowing it would end with his organization
in the state it currently is, he would likely have answered "yes."

And what if Israeli government ministers had been asked a month ago if
they would have approved this operation, knowing the war would have led
to the current state of affairs? They would have hemmed and hawed and
looked to move on to the next question.

(08.13.06, 11:51)


693 posted on 08/13/2006 1:16:19 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All; Founding Father

Ynetnews
Aug. 13, 2006

Hizbullah: Countdown has begun to end of Zionist entity


Senior Hizbullah official: If a mere organization succeeded in
defeating
Israel, why would Arab nations not succeed in doing so?
by Roee Nahmias
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3290303,00.html

Preliminary implications: As the war reaches an end, more and more
worrisome voices are heard from Arab nations, asking loudly and boldly
if the 'triumph' against Israel in Lebanon will advance 'the day in
which Israel will disappear'.

Ahmed Barakat, a member of Hizbullah's central council, said in an
interview to Qatari newspaper al-Watan that "Today Arab and Muslim
society is reasonably certain that the defeat of Israel is possible and
that countdown to the disappearance of the Zionist entity in the region
has begun."

According to Barakat, "This is the reason that Shimon Peres said it was
a life or death battle and this is why the triumph of the resistance is
the beginning of the death of the Israeli enemy. For, if a mere
organization succeeded in defeating Israel , why would Arab nations not
succeed in doing so if they allied? Many Arabs and Muslims viewed
Israel
in a fictional way and the resistance has succeeded in changing this."

When asked how the resistance (aka Nasrallah) succeeded in achieving
this victory, he answered: "Our fighters emerged from the Islamic
traditions they read about. Moshe Dayan said 'I know that Arabs don't
read' but they read very well."

"As Nasrallah likes to say: Regarding the Israeli issue, forgive me,
but
I don't think anyone knows about it more than us...and therefore, in
terms of a deep understanding of Israeli culture, society, economy,
psychology, military and media, the resistance has vast experience.
This
is in addition to the Islamic tradition that our fighters rely on, and
which they strive towards: a general ambition - a triumph for the Ummah
(Islamic nation), and a personal ambition - to be shahids," he
elaborated.

Barakat further stated that none of the Hizbullah leadership was hurt
and that the organization retains plenty of rockets and other
'surprises' for use the day after victory. He declared that the
inventory would allow the organization to operate from afar and doesn't
require proximity to the Israeli border.

First Published: 08.13.06, 08:22
Latest Update: 08.13.06, 10:24


694 posted on 08/13/2006 1:20:13 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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To: All

How the White House Tracked the Terror Plot




Inside the Bush Administration's decision-making on how to
respond to the airline bomb threat




Time
http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1226066,00.html


695 posted on 08/13/2006 1:26:28 PM PDT by nw_arizona_granny (It is time to call on God, pray and ask for his help, if this world is to survive. Keep praying.)
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