Israel and Turkey resume talks to end diplomatic crisis
Senior Israeli officials say Netanyahu’s envoy, Yosef Chiechanover, met with Turkish envoy Feridun Sinirlioglu to discuss reconciliation after the crisis that broke out following the 2010 Gaza flotilla.
By Barak Ravid | 20:13 23.11.12 | 40
Israel and Turkey have resumed talks on ending the crisis in relations between the two countries, two senior Israeli officials said on Friday.
via Israel and Turkey resume talks to end diplomatic crisis – Israel News | Haaretz Daily Newspaper.
Israel discuss plans to assassinate Syrian president : Report
Nov 10, 2012
A Lebanese newspaper has disclosed that Qatar and Israel have held a secret meeting to review plans to assassinate Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Arabic-language Ad-Diyar newspaper said the meeting which was held in the occupied lands included Qatar’s Prime Minister Sheikh Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al-Thani, Qatari intelligence chief Ahmed Nasser bin Jassim al-Thani, head of Israeli spy agency the Mossad Tamir Pardo and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The report added that Mossad chief also offered several proposals for assassination of the Syrian president.
The Qatari premier also said that his country is ready to supply Israel with free natural gas and very low-priced gasoline for two years after the assassination is carried out.
Netanyahu also asked the Qatari officials whether the [Persian] Gulf Cooperation Council ([P]GCC) is ready to recognize Israel after the collapse of Bashar al-Assad.
Syria accuses Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey as well as some Western countries of fanning the flames of violence that have erupted in the country since mid-March 2011.
Saudi Arabia and Qatar also publicity announced that they are supporting and arming the insurgents in Syria.
For years, the paranoid Israelis have been screaming bloody murder that the President of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, said that “Israel should be wiped from the map.” Of course, the man said no such thing, it was a deliberate mis-translation meant to serve their purposes: to demonize Ahmadinejad and Iran and to justify an unprovoked attack against the Islamic Republic of Iran.
So what did Ahmadinejad actually say? To quote his exact words in Farsi:
“Imam ghoft een rezhim-e ishghalgar-e qods bayad az safheh-ye ruzgar mahv shavad.”
The full quote translated directly to English:
“The Imam said this regime occupying Jerusalem must vanish from the page of time.”
Word by word translation:
Imam (Khomeini) ghoft (said) een (this) rezhim-e (regime) ishghalgar-e (occupying) qods (Jerusalem) bayad (must) az safheh-ye ruzgar (from page of time) mahv shavad (vanish from).
So that should settle the disinformation campaign being waged in order to set the stage for an aggressive attack against Iran and their paranoid delusions that Iran is building a nuclear weapon in order to “wipe them off the map.”
If they are nothing, they are constantly hysterical, while collecting billions annually in American taxpayer money to feed the hysteria and the lust for war and to take out those governments they don’t like, preferably by proxy in the form of NATO or the US Armed Forces.
But it’s ironic. There was no fuss or screaming when Netanyahu actually told an interviewer that when Israel is done with them, there will be NO Lebanon on the new world map.
At a news conference in Switzerland, on the occasion of the building an Israeli railway there, the German newspaper Die Zeit interviewed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu:
“Congratulations Mr. Netanyahu, my first question is that does the beginning of the large train line’s construction confirm the announcement of the dissident Syrian Intelligence Office that you will strike Lebanon?”
In reply, Netanyahu stated:
“Yes, and it is not a secret that it will happen with U.S.-Gulf support and that is why they have been warned, but before you ask, you have a look at the new map of the world and see that there is no nation with this name.”
Given that the UN Security Council has listed 388 Israeli airspace violations by Israel against Lebanon, there is no doubt what Israel is planning regarding Lebanon.
President Michel Suleiman condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent statements on Lebanon, saying that its existence will not be affected by his remarks. Odd that no one else, no big mouth, big talking, big stick western nations voiced the slightest concern that this nuclear armed, racist apartheid state, that has used weapons of mass destruction against Lebanon in the past, committing a genocide against the Lebanese people, was threatening them yet again.
He added in a statement: “Lebanon is the only country to have defeated Israel militarily and the Jewish state is still recovering from it.”
Indeed, the only thing that stopped Israel in 2006 from wiping Lebanon off the map was the defense against them provided by Hezbollah, who sent them crying with their tails between their legs.
“Lebanon’s diversity is the complete opposite of Israel’s racist system, which has no place in the world,” stressed the president.
Odd, isn’t it, that all of the countries attacked by the west, enemies of Israel, can all say the same thing. That they were the models of tolerance, brotherhood, prosperity and human rights, unlike the western allies of Saudi Arabia, Qatar. etc. that are horrid feudal examples of barbaric practices and backwardness.
“Lebanon is one of the founders of the United Nations and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and Netanyahu’s statements reflect his contempt for humans,” Suleiman added.
Syria and Hezbollah in Lebanon are on high alert in anticipation of an Israeli attack on Lebanon, the London-based A-Sharq al-Awsat daily reported recently. According to the report, Hezbollah has been monitoring with caution the reinforcement of IDF troops along the Lebanon border.
It is also interesting to note that the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani, admitted that the Israeli train line is funded by Qatar, UAE, and Saudi Arabia. Asked if he was not afraid of his people, he affirmed the close friendly relations between the two countries. Qatar, the one that has had a vested interest in formenting terrorism and and ‘regime change” in Libya, Syria and elsewhere.
Isn’t it odd that Israel is allowed to wave the stick at anybody it feels like with impunity, while they maintain a monopoly on nuclear weapons in the Middle East? The same country that has threatened all the capitals of Europe?
NICOSIA – Perhaps the most striking element of the press conference Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu held here Thursday with Cypriot President Demetris Christofias was that Netanyahu did not mention Turkey once.
Though the meeting that preceded the press conference was between the Israeli and Cypriot leaders, Turkey was the massive absent presence – the shadow that hovered unmistakenly above the room.
Related:
PM in Cyprus: Sanctions on Iran not working
PM, Cyprus president pledge energy cooperation
Christofias felt this presence – how could he miss it? Ankara warned him Thursday against exploring for gas off Cyprus’ shores, and scheduled, but did not carry out, a live-fire naval maneuver near the site of where the country is searching for gas.
During the press conference the Cypriot leader slammed Turkey, first calling on the international community and the EU to send a message to Ankara to stop violating international law, and then saying “it is not Cyprus that threatens Turkey, but Turkey that is threatening Cyprus. We will continue to cooperate [with Israel], and the true trouble-maker is Turkey, not the Israel-Cyprus relationship.”
Netanyahu had ample opportunity to slam Turkey; Christofias gave him many openings, perhaps even wanted him to say something. But Netanyahu – unlike Turkish leaders who seldom miss an opportunity to lob rhetorical broadsides at Israel – chose to ignore it.
Netanyahu’s overall message was that the burgeoning love affair between Israel and Cyprus – a country that just five years ago was considered one of the most hostile to Israel in Europe – has to do with Israel and Cyprus, not Turkey. There are enough common interests that bring the two countries together, he intimated, without having to bring in a common foe.
Which, obviously, paints only half the picture.
Granted, the discovery of massive gas reserves in the eastern Mediterranean shared by the two countries played a large part in bringing Jerusalem and Nicosia together – shared economic interests is a powerful catalyst in forging alliances. But so too are common enemies.
While the way Christofias spoke about Turkey left no question that he indeed views Turkey, which has occupied part of the island since 1974, as an enemy, Netanyahu diplomatically chose not to mention Ankara – keeping the door ajar for the hope of some eventual reconciliation.
With Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan not healthy, and senior Cypriot officials saying he is on his way to the US to undergo medical treatment, Turkey could very well be on the cusp of major internal changes. With that a possible scenario, Israel has no interest in slamming the door in Turkey’s face.
Yet, things have changed dramatically since Erdogan berated President Shimon Peres in Davos in January 2009 for Operation Cast Lead, and the Turks sent the Mavi Marmara on its ill-fated blockade-bashing mission to Gaza in 2010. And one thing Netanyahu’s visit showed was the rapidity with which Israel was able to look at the new situation and adjust accordingly.
Rather than cowering before Turkey’s bellicose behavior and bemoaning an important relationship lost, Israel looked for creative ways to counterbalance Turkey. And Jerusalem found it in Turkey’s historic adversaries: Greece and Cyprus, as well as Romania, Bulgaria and – increasingly – Croatia.
Everyone realizes that Israel lost a huge strategic asset with Turkey, a strategic asset that neither Cyprus, Greece or the Balkan countries can replace. Still, if – borrowing an American football metaphor – Israel lost 10 years in losing Turkey, it has picked up five or six yards with the the new regional alliance growing in the eastern Mediterranean and the Balkans.
Does it get Israel back to the line of scrimmage? No. But it is a whole lot better than a total loss.
Netanyahu did not have to mention Turkey in his remarks.
His very visit to Cyprus – the first ever by an Israeli prime minister – did it for him.
Turkey, through its threats and planned naval maneuver on Thursday, sent a message to Israel and Cyprus that Ankara is a major actor in the eastern Mediterranean that can’t be ignored.
And Netanyahu, just by being in Nicosia, sent a message back: We hear you, but Israel will do what it feels it must to promote its strategic and economic interests – despite what Turkey might think.
via Israel and Cyprus: Dancing with T… JPost – Diplomacy & Politics.
JERUSALEM, Israel — Turkey expressed its deep dissatisfaction over warming ties between Israel and Cyprus, one day before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s historic visit to the island Thursday.
Turkey’s Foreign Ministry warned Wednesday it would “take all necessary measures to protect its rights and interests” of recently discovered natural gas deposits off the coast of Cyprus, dismissing any Israeli-Cypriot deal demarking the maritime borders, The Associated Press reported.
The one-day trip, which aimed to “further strengthen bilateral relations between the two nations,” marked the first-ever visit to the island by an Israeli prime minister.
Netanyahu was accompanied by his wife, Sara, and a delegation of senior officials, including Energy and Water Minister Uzi Landau.
Turkey’s threats did not deter Netanyahu from pursuing what he calls “natural ties” between the two countries.
“I came here to develop our bilateral ties, our economic ties and ties in the field of energy,” Netanyahu said after meeting with Cypriot President Demetris Christofias.
“We’re interested in developing peaceful relations for the benefit of our two countries and the region as a whole,” he said. He added that Israel had no “hidden or ulterior motives.”
Topping the agenda was the development of the island’s extensive off-shore natural gas deposits, including the possibility of a joint pipeline to export gas to Europe and Asia.
That discussion prompted a sharp rebuke by Turkey, which has occupied the northern part of the island since 1974.
In September, when the Houston-based company, Noble Energy Inc., began exploratory drilling off the coast of Cyprus, Turkey dispatched three warships to the area to underscore its intentions to drill there too.
Three months later, President Christofias welcomed the discovery of a large natural gas deposit, as much as 8 trillion cubic feet, off its coast.
“The gas discovery in the exclusive economic zone of our country creates great prospects for Cyprus and its people,” Christofias told reporters in late December.
“Cyprus is coming into Europe’s energy map with prospects of substantially contributing to the E.U.’s energy security,” he added.
Last June, Nobel Energy Inc. discovered an immense natural gas deposit off the coast of Israel’s northern port city of Haifa. Lebanon, like Turkey, is claiming that parts of the Israeli gas fields lie in its waters.
via Turkey Unhappy with Netanyahu Visit to Cyprus – Inside Israel – CBN News – Christian News 24-7 – CBN.com.
Op-ed in Atlanta Jewish Times says the slaying of the president may be an effective way to thwart Iran’s nuclear program.
By Chemi Shalev
NEW YORK – The owner and publisher of the Atlanta Jewish Times, Andrew Adler, has suggested that Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu consider ordering a Mossad hit team to assassinate U.S. President Barack Obama so that his successor will defend Israel against Iran.
Adler, who has since apologized for his article, listed three options for Israel to counter Iran’s nuclear weapons in an article published in his newspaper last Friday. The first is to launch a pre-emptive strike against Hamas and Hezbollah, the second is to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities and the third is to “give the go-ahead for U.S.-based Mossad agents to take out a president deemed unfriendly to Israel in order for the current vice president to take his place and forcefully dictate that the United States’ policy includes its helping the Jewish state obliterate its enemies.”
U.S. President Barack Obama taking the stage to speak at the 71st General Assembly of the Union for Reform Judaism. Photo by: Reuters
Adler goes on to write: “Yes, you read “three correctly.” Order a hit on a president in order to preserve Israel’s existence.Think about it. If have thought of this Tom-Clancy-type scenario, don’t you think that this almost unfathomable idea has been discussed in Israel’s most inner circles?”
Adler apologized yesterday for the article, saying “I very much regret it; I wish I hadn’t made reference to it at all,” Adler told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. And in an interview with Gawker.com, Adler denied that he was advocating an assassination of Obama.
The op-ed in Atlanta Jewish Times.
The American Jewish Committee in Atlanta last night issued a harsh condemnation of Adler’s article, saying that his proposals are “shocking beyond belief.”
“While we acknowledge Mr. Adler’s apology, we are flabbergasted that he could ever say such a thing in the first place. How could he even conceive of such a twisted idea?” said Dov Wilker, director of AJC Atlanta. “Mr. Adler surely owes immediate apologies to President Obama, as well as to the State of Israel and his readership, the Atlanta Jewish community.”
Abraham Foxman, National Director of the Anti-Defamation League, also blasted Adler on Friday, saying “There is absolutely no excuse, no justification, no rationalization for this kind of rhetoric. It doesn’t even belong in fiction. These are irresponsible and extremist words. It is outrageous and beyond the pale. An apology cannot possibly repair the damage. Irresponsible rhetoric metastasizes into more dangerous rhetoric. The ideas expressed in Mr. Adler’s column reflect some of the extremist rhetoric that unfortunately exists — even in some segments of our community — that maliciously labels President Obama as an ‘enemy of the Jewish people.’ Mr. Adler’s lack of judgment as a publisher, editor and columnist raises serious questions as to whether he’s fit to run a newspaper.”
