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Don't blame Chabad DAVID ELIEZRIE, THE JERUSALEM POST Jul. 11, 2005 There is no question that the Chabad movement is strongly opposed to the disengagement policy. Strangely, it was Omri Sharon who explained it best. When his father, the prime minister, came to visit close family friends in Kfar Chabad sometime ago a few of the local residents engaged in a spontaneous, peaceful demonstration outside the house. Omri explained to a reporter that "their demonstration against my father's policy is motivated by their love for their fellow Jews." Concern for Jewish life and security stands at the center of Chabad's...

Once again, a 'secret' memo has been leaked by the Brits, this one pertains to the decrease in troops in Iraq. As suspected, the liberal media is all over this, portraying the pullout plans as 'another Vietnam' and suggesting that Bush is willing to cut and run to save his political rear end. I don't understand how so many people can be against the war in Iraq, but somehow are offended when there is talk about us leaving the country. These are the same folks who said that we were 'colonizing' Iraq just to get oil, but when we decide...

GAZA CITY (AFP) - The radical Islamist movement Hamas was at loggerheads with the Palestinian Authority after shunning an offer to join a unity government, and vowed to resist any bid to disarm its members. Khaled Meshaal, the Damascus-based overall leader of Hamas, told the leader of the dominant Fatah faction that he expected legislative elections to be organized swiftly, as he confirmed a decision not to join the government. "We will not participate in this government for it is not the right mechanism," Meshaal told reporters in the Syrian capital after meeting Faruq Qaddumi. "We must rapidly rebuild the...

Government votes down proposal to delay disengagement by 18-3 margin. Earlier, Sharon urges ministers to speak out against far right violence. Meanwhile, Mofaz says IDF to man voluntarily evacuated northern West Bank homes in a bid to prevent radicals from taking over JERUSALEM - Government ministers voted Sunday to reject a proposal by minister Yisrael Katz to delay the disengagement plan by 3 months. The proposal was rejected by 18 ministers who voted against the bill, while 3 voted in favor: Katz, Health Minister Danny Naveh, and Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Earlier, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon slammed government ministers over...

JERUSALEM -- A New Jersey-born Israeli soldier who became the first to refuse to take part in Israel's evacuation of the Gaza Strip was motivated by his love for the land "given to the Jews by God," his father said Monday. Cpl. Avi Bieber, 19, was pulled away Sunday after he shouted support for settlers who were interfering with an army operation to destroy abandoned buildings in the Gaza Strip. His actions, and his father's comments Monday, underlined the ideological and religious chasm between camps of opposing Israelis over the August pullout. While many soldiers have said they will disobey...

Prime minister Sharon tells Knesset Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee that Egypt will control buffer zone on Egypt-Gaza border and repeats promise that Gaza withdrawal won't take place under fire By Ilan Marciano JERUSALEM – Egyptian forces would deploy along the Egypt-Gaza border after the upcoming pullout from the Gaza Strip this summer, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Monday. Speaking to the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, he reiterated that Israel would ensure its pullout from Gaza would take place without attacks by Palestinian terrorists. Sharon said Egypt would control the Philadelphi route, a buffer zone on the Egypt-Gaza...

Many adults in the United States believe their government should begin to implement an exit strategy in Iraq, according to a poll by Gallup released by CNN and USA Today. 59 per cent of respondents believe the U.S. should withdraw some or all troops from Iraq, a 10 per cent increase since February. The coalition effort against Saddam Hussein’s regime was launched in March 2003. At least 1,700 American soldiers have died during the military operation, and more than 12,800 troops have been injured. 56 per cent of respondents believe the war was not worth it. Iraqi voters elected a...

Religious (IAF) F-16 pilot slated to head one of settlement evacuation teams talks to Ynet about the preparations, misgivings, and fears ahead of what is shaping up as one of the most controversial moments in Israel’s history TEL AVIV – First Lieutenant A. knows this is not the mission he had in mind when he joined the Air Force. The 22-year-old religious F-16 pilot, whose name cannot be disclosed due to security considerations, will head one of the teams slated to execute the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank pullout this summer. He says he enlisted in the army to...

Thursday June 9, 4:41 PM U.S. defense official secretly visited S. Korea, reportedly threatened to pull U.S. troops A U.S. defense official paid a secret visit to Seoul this week and told his South Korean counterparts that Washington might withdraw its troops if the two sides continue to disagree on various bilateral issues, local media reported Thursday. South Korea's Foreign Ministry acknowledged the visit by U.S. Deputy Undersecretary of Defense Richard Lawless, but refused to disclose what was discussed during his meetings Monday and Tuesday. Local newspapers reported that Lawless said Washington might have to withdraw its troops if Seoul...

JERUSALEM -- Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said yesterday he is unsure the government will survive long past its pullout from the Gaza Strip and northern West Bank this August -- a development that would cloud efforts to restart the stalled peace process. In an interview with The Washington Times, Mr. Olmert said the momentum for Israeli-Palestinian negotiations depends to a large extent on whether Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas can rein in militants and stop attacks on Israel following the withdrawal. But even if the Palestinians can quiet the militants, the next move in the peace process is uncertain...

US hoping to start its withdrawal from Iraq in December By Oliver Poole in Baghdad(Filed: 02/05/2005)The American military has set a target of December for handing over responsibility for security to Iraqi army and police units, says a classified document being circulated among senior officers.It is the first time that a date has been put forward for the phasing back of US involvement in controlling the insurgency that has raged for more than two years. Iraqi police at the scene of a car bombing in Baghdad yesterday. 98 police were killed in March The proposal envisages that after the planned...

The Palestinian terror onslaught offensive is expected to resume in September, prompting the IDF's re-capture of cities in Judea and Samaria in the fall, and a re-entry to Gaza by early next year. The IDF has given the code-name "Rainy Day" to the period following the disengagement/expulsion, which is scheduled to begin July 20 and end sometime in August. This name was chosen "not only because of the autumn winds soon to blow," writes military correspondent Haggai Huberman in HaTzofeh, "but also because of the military scenario foreseen by the army. "The army is calling it a 'security escalation' -...

Syria vows full Lebanon pullout A final withdrawal timetable is to be set before Saturday Syria has confirmed it will pull all its troops out of Lebanon before Lebanese elections due in May.Foreign Minister Farouq al-Shara made the pledge in a letter to the UN. Syria has already begun the withdrawal, following an outcry over the assassination last month of former Lebanese Prime Minister, Rafik Hariri. The Lebanese opposition accused Syria of being behind the killing, and street protests led to the downfall of the pro-Syrian administration in Beirut. Prime Minister Omar Karami stood down two weeks after the...

U.S. prepares for “day after” Assad French President Chirac: Assad gov't won't survive pullout, Pentagon and White House officials meet to discuss assistance for Syria if it happens By Yitzhak Benhorin French president says he won't last. AssadPhoto: ReutersWASHINGTON - The U.S. government is preparing for the possibility that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s government will fall as a result of the Syrian pullout from Lebanon. Senior Pentagon and White House officials participated in a special meeting Thursday at the State Department to discuss preparations for the possible collapse of the Baath party in Syria. Representatives of Syrian opposition groups were...

KIEV, Ukraine (AP) President Viktor Yushchenko has signed the order to withdraw Ukraine's troops from Iraq, cementing a pledge by the new leadership to bring back its 1,650-strong force, the head of the country's security council said Tuesday. The end date for the pullout will be ''fixed after consultations with the other coalition members,'' and the entire Ukrainian contingent is likely to leave Iraq in November or December, Petro Poroshenko said.

Italy is to begin withdrawing its troops from Iraq in September 2005, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has said. He told Rai state television the pullout would take place "in agreement with our allies". Italy has 3,000 troops in Iraq - the fourth largest foreign contingent. Domestic opposition to Italy's involvement in Iraq intensified after the killing of an Italian agent by US troops in Baghdad earlier this month. The announcement comes weeks after the Italian Senate voted to extend the country's military presence in Iraq beyond June. Mr Berlusconi has been one of US President George W Bush's staunchest...

Italy will start withdrawing its troops from Iraq in September, Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has said. More to follow...

BEIRUT: More than 800,000 people surged into central Beirut yesterday, demanding an end to Syria's near-three decade military domination of Lebanon. Ahead of the largest demonstration in the country's history, thousands of Lebanese travelled from all over to Martyrs Square and the grave of former prime minister Rafiq Hariri, assassinated exactly one month ago in a bomb blast. Beirut city official Mounib Nassereddine said yesterday's gathering was "at least two-and-a-half times" larger than last Tuesday's turnout called by pro-Syrian Lebanese parties, notably the Hizbollah. Martyrs Square was a vast expanse of red, the dominant colour in the Lebanese flag, which...

The Union flag is flying over a new stretch of Iraq. British troops have moved west of Basra to assume responsibility for the neighbouring province and in the process have more than doubled the area under direct British military control.Behind the move lies the erosion of President George W Bush's "coalition of the willing". The Dutch started pulling their troops out after the Jan 30 Iraqi election on the basis that the advent of democracy meant that their mission was accomplished. Last month the Queen's Dragoon Guards moved in to Muthanna province, 30,000 square miles of scrub and desert stretching...

Syrian troop move 'encourages' US Syria's pledge to pull its troops from Lebanon has been cautiously welcomed in Washington, amid continuing mass rallies in support of its presence. US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said it was a "positive development" but she and other top officials called for the withdrawal to be speeded up. Damascus has promised to give the UN a timetable for pulling out its 14,000 troops and its intelligence agents. Sunday saw a new mass pro-Syrian rally, this time in the town of Nabatiyeh. Tens of thousands of people voiced support for the Syrian military presence and...