No Distinction Between Terrorists, Those Who Support Them, Bush Says

American Forces Press Service ^ | Oct 25, 2005 | Sgt. Sara Wood, USA

[SandRat]

WASHINGTON, Oct. 25, 2005 – The U.S. is determined to deny radical groups the support and sanctuary of outlaw regimes like Syria and Iran, President Bush said here today.

Speaking to the Joint Armed Forces Officers' Wives Luncheon at Bolling Air Force Base, Bush said that these governments have a long history of collaboration with terrorists and deserve no patience from the victims of terror.

"Any government that chooses to be an ally of terror has chosen to be an enemy of civilization," Bush said. "The civilized world must hold those regimes to account."

The U.N. Security Council will hear a new report this week from an independent commission that points to Syrian involvement in the terrorist bombing that killed former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafic Hariri and 22 others in February, Bush said.

"Syria is destabilizing Lebanon, permitting terrorists to use its territory to reach Iraq, and giving safe harbor to Palestinian terrorist groups," he said. "Now the United Nations must act, and Syria and its leaders must be held accountable for their continuing support for terrorism, including any involvement in the murder of Prime Minister Hariri."

The U.S. is also working to deny the terrorists control of any nation for use as a home base or launching pad, Bush said. Troops are working to defeat the Taliban and remnants of al Qaeda in Afghanistan and to isolate terrorists in Pakistan, he said. The terrorists' ultimate goal is to destabilize the Middle East and attack America and other free nations with increasing violence, but the U.S. has a clear strategy to prevent that from happening, he said.

"Our goal is to defeat the terrorists and their allies at the heart of their power," he said. "And so, we will defeat the enemy in Iraq."

American and Iraqi troops have conducted several major assaults in recent weeks to rid western Iraq of enemy fighters and to shut down terrorist entry routes from Syria, Bush said. The Iraqi troops have been using their local expertise to ensure the success of these operations and are often staying behind to maintain security after U.S. forces move on, he said.

The Iraqi military has been gaining new capabilities and the country has made steady progress toward democracy, Bush said. "Progress isn't easy, but it is steady," he said. "No fair-minded person should ignore, deny or dismiss the achievements of the Iraqi people."

Bush dismissed recent speculation that arguments among the different religious factions point to an unstable democracy in Iraq, saying that debate is the essence of democracy. A democratic government is, in fact, the best solution for Iraq, because it will respect the rights and beliefs of all religious groups and give all citizens a stake in their country's future, he said.

"As Americans, we believe that people everywhere prefer freedom to slavery and that liberty, once chosen, improves the lives of all," he said. "And so we're confident, as our coalition and the Iraqi people each do their part, Iraqi democracy will succeed."

[SandRat]

North Korea Syria Iran Chechnia Sudan CAIR HAMMAS HEZBOLLA FAR LEFT UNIVERSITY Professors DNC

Be afraid, be very afraid, very very afraid.

[FairOpinion]

"FAR LEFT UNIVERSITY Professors DNC "


===

BINGO. When are we going to hold them to accoung?

[SandRat]

Supporters of terrorists and terrorists we're coming for you. You won't know when, or where, or how, but we are coming for you.

[ZULU]

Delenda est Syria, atque Persia.

(Delendae sunt Syria, atque Persia?)

[bybybill]

Don`t mean to make you sick, but just think about what the war on terrorism would look like with President Gore, Kerry, Or Hillary. Thank GOD for GWB

[USMMA_83]

Pakistan must be shaking in its boots. Or maybe not...they are waiting for their US supplied 80 F16s to use against the dreaded Taliban. Thier current stock of 36 F16s have not been able to do the job, but I'm sure these new 80 jets will keep the Taliban at bay.

[CarrotAndStick]

http://www.ict.org.il/articles/articledet.cfm?articleid=99

In the history of the Indian civil aviation, there have been 13 hijackings (including the latest to Kandahar), all involving the Indian Airlines (IA) aircraft. Seven of these were carried out by groups with known links to Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) and the other six by groups or individuals with no such links.

Of the seven ISI-linked groups, six were indigenous (Sikh and Kashmiri terrorists) and the seventh (the latest) is a Pakistan-based Islamic Jihadi terrorist group, which has been active in the Philippines, Myanmar, India, the Central Asian Republics, the Xinjiang province of China and Chechnya and Dagestan in Russia, and which claims to have trained a small group of Afro-American citizens of the US in the past.

The fact that ISI-linked groups generally hijack only IA and not Air India flights is due to the fact that during their training in Pakistan, they are instructed by the ISI to avoid Air India flights, which are likely to contain a large number of foreigners. This could create problems for Pakistan with Western Governments and their intelligence agencies might focus their investigation on the Pakistani involvement.

On January 30,1971, brothers Hashim and Ashraf Quereshi of the Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front, armed with a pistol and a hand grenade, hijacked Ganga, a Fokker Friendship aircraft of the Indian Airlines (IA), after it had taken off from Srinagar for Jammu and forced the pilot to take it to Lahore.

After the aircraft had landed, Zuklfiquar Ali Bhutto, then Foreign Minister under Yahya Khan, rushed to Lahore, fraternised with the hijackers and helped them get maximum international publicity for their cause. On February 1, he persuaded them to release the crew and passengers who were sent by road to Amritsar.

The Government of India sought the permission of the Pakistani authorities to send a replacement crew to fly the aircraft back to India. The ISI handed over to the hijackers explosives with which they blew up the aircraft the next day.

On February 4, in retaliation, Indira Gandhi, the then Prime Minister, banned all Pakistani civil and military overflights through Indian airspace, which remained in force till the normalisation of relations after the Shimla Agreement. The consequent aggravation of the logistic difficulties of the Pakistan army in the then East Pakistan partly contributed to its debacle in its war with India in December 1971.

The Dal Khalsa, a Sikh extremist group that came into being in the late 1970s, took to hijacking as a weapon of intimidation in 1981. Between September 29,1981, and August 24, 1984, it hijacked four IA aircraft and took them to Lahore. The hijackers of September 29,1981, were overpowered by Pakistani commandos and the released passengers, crew and aircraft returned to India.

The Zia-ul-Haq regime turned down the request of the Govt. of India to hand over the hijackers to India for trial and said they would be tried before a Pakistani court. Instead of doing so, it allowed the hijackers to live in the Nankana Sahib gurudwara at Lahore, from where they were directing the terrorist activities of the Dal Khalsa in Punjab. The Govt. of India repeatedly brought this to the notice of the US, but Washington was reluctant to act against the Zia regime, which had started playing an important role for the US in Afghanistan.

However, in 1982, the Zia regime refused permission to two hijacked planes to land in Lahore and forced them back to Amritsar, where the hijacking was terminated by the Indian authorities.

Dr.Jagjit Singh Chauhan of the so-called Khalistan movement based in London, and Ganga Singh Dhillon of the Washington-based Nankana Sahib Foundation, who was a close personal friend of Zia, strongly protested to Zia over the refusal of permission.

When a fourth IA plane was hijacked by the Sikh terrorists to Lahore on August 24,1984, Zia, therefore, ordered the ISI to permit it to land, help the hijackers to meet the media and then persuade them to go away to Dubai. The ISI found that the hijackers had intimidated the pilot only with a toy pistol. They, therefore, gave them a German pistol with ammunition.

After terminating the hijacking at Dubai, the local authorities handed over to the Indian officials the hijackers and the pistol given to them at Lahore.The Govt. of India referred the pistol to the West German authorities, who replied in writing that the pistol, manufactured in Germany, was part of a consignment sold to the Pakistan Government by the German manufacturers.

The Govt. of India brought this German report to the notice of Washington and sought action against the Zia regime. Under US pressure, Zia ordered the removal of the Dal Khalsa hijackers from the Nankana Sahib to the Lahore jail. They were tried and sentenced to imprisonment, on completion of which expelled from Pakistan. Thereafter, there was no ISI-inspired hijacking till Gen.Pervez Musharraf seized power on October 12,1999.

In 1992, the Narasimha Rao Government shared with Washington a wealth of evidence gathered by the Indian agencies regarding Pakistani State sponsorship of terrorism in India and urged that Pakistan should be declared a State sponsor of terrorism under the US laws and economic sanctions imposed against it.

Washington expressed its inability to act on the basis of Indian evidence on the ground that most of it was circumstantial and not direct and that much of it was based on interrogation reports, which, in the eyes of the US law, are suspect unless independently corroborated by documentary or technical evidence.

After the Mumbai blasts of March, 1993, the Narasimha Rao Govt. decided to invite the counter-terrorism experts of the US and other Western countries to visit the spot immediately after the blasts and make their own examination of the scene of the crime. The idea was that if their experts concluded that Pakistan was behind the blasts, even if they did not share this with their Indian counterparts, they would, at least, go back and tell their political leadership about it.

An Austrian expert, who came to India, gave in writing that the hand grenades used by the terrorists in Mumbai while escaping after the blasts had been manufactured in an ordnance factory of the Pakistan Government with technology and machine tools supplied by the Austrian company.

The US experts told their Indian counterparts that a timer found with an unexploded explosive device looked suspiciously American and wanted to take it to the US for examination. They were allowed to do so. Later, they sent to New Delhi an unsigned written report (a non paper) that their examination had established that the timer was of US-origin and was part of a consignment of timers supplied by the US army to Pakistan's.

The Govt. of India pointed out that this was the clinching corroborative evidence, which they had always wanted, and that, therefore, they should not have any further difficulty in declaring Pakistan a State-sponsor of terrorism.

US officials expressed their inability to do so on the ground that there was considerable leakage of arms and ammunition and explosives from the Pakistan army stocks to smugglers and that the recovery of this timer in Mumbai did not necessarily mean that it was given to the terrorists by an official agency of Pakistan. According to them, to declare a country as a State sponsor of terrorism, conclusive evidence of the complicity of an official agency and knowledge, if not approval, of such complicity by the political leadership was essential.

After rejecting the Indian plea, Washington made its own assessment of ISI involvement in terrorism in India and forced Mr.Nawaz Sharif, the then Prime Minister, to remove from the ISI its then Director-General, Lt.Gen.Javed Nasir, and a number of his senior officers who, Washington believed, had a role in promoting terrorism.

While this action was good in so far as it went, it did not help the Government of India since their successors continued to organise terrorist acts in Indian territory. The US action against the ISI officers, however, resulted in an important change in the ISI's modus operandi (MO).

Previously, the ISI used to interact directly with the Sikh, Kashmiri and other terrorist groups from India and run the training camps for them with the help of serving officers. Since then, it has been increasingly using private Islamic terrorist organisations for supplying money and equipment to the terrorists in India and for running the training camps in Afghan territory, instead of in Pakistani territory.

Among such organisations used by the ISI are the Harkat-ul-Mujahideen (HUM), previously known as the Harkat-ul-Ansar, which was declared by the US as an international terrorist organisation in October, 1997, the Lashkar-e-Toiba, the Al Badr and Osama bin Laden's Al Qaeda. All these organisations are members of bin Laden's International Islamic Front (also called the International Islamic Salvation Front) for Jihad Against the US and Israel.

There is the following strong evidence of the HUM's involvement in the Kandahar hijacking: the only phone call claiming responsibility came from an Islamic Salvation Front; there were identical names in the lists of prisoners whose release was demanded by the phone-caller and by the hijackers; the prisoners, whose release was demanded, were Pakistani nationals or of Pakistani origin and belonged to the HUM.

The involvement of the ISI and the Pakistan army with these organisations and particularly the HUM, would be evident from the following:

These organisations function openly in Pakistan and their annual conventions are attended by serving officers of the army and political leaders. They and their leaders address press conferences, give interviews and issue statements giving details of their terrorist activities in India and other countries. The Army has not taken any action against them--not even against the HUM, which has been declared an international terrorist organisation by the US.
The investigastion and trial in 1995 by the Benazir Bhutto regime of a group of army officers headed by Major-Gen.Zaheer-ul-Islam Abbasi arrested on a charge of planning a coup brought out that all the arrested officers had close links with the HUM. Mr.M.H.Askari , the well-known Pakistani columnist, wrote in the "Dawn" (October 18,1995) as follows: " It is said that the plotters had close links with the Hizbul Mujahideen and the Harkat-ul-Ansar, which are known for their involvement in international terrorism. It is also said that the arrested officers wanted Pakistan to become militarily involved in the Kashmir freedom struggle." It was said that during their interrogation the arrested officers also implicated Gen. Pervez Musharraf, then a Lt.Gen. and Director-General of Military Operations, but no action was taken against him for want of evidence.
The Govt. of India should once again take up with the US the question of declaring Pakistan a State-sponsor of Terrorism and with the International Civil Aviation Organisation the question of advising member-countries to suspend the Pakistan International Airways flights till Pakistan arrests and hands over the hijackers and stops such acts of terrorism.
US officials have been repeatedly rejecting Indian evidence of Pakistani sponsorship of terrorism as circumstantial and not direct, but in the New York World Trade Centre and Oklahoma bombing cases, US courts have ruled that in terrorism-related cases conviction could be based purely on circumstantial evidence, if it was strong enough and provided a continuous chain of events.

---

The writer is Additional Secretary (retd), Cabinet Secretariat, Govt. of India,and, presently, Director, Institute for Topical Studies, Chennai.
E-Mail:corde@vsnl.com

ICT ISRAEL - Countering Terrorism’s Global Reach

In today’s global village, regional conflicts extend beyond national borders. The International Policy Institute seeks international cooperation in the global struggle against terrorism, paving the way for multilateral action against terrorist networks, benefactors, and states sponsoring terrorism.

ICT is a research institute and think tank dedicated to developing innovative public policy solutions to international terrorism. The Policy Institute applies an integrated, solutions-oriented approach built on a foundation of real world and practical experience.

The Institute sets its sights on the big picture: to win the war against terrorism and not merely the individual battles. Although ICT provides situational recommendations to the private sector, this is a peripheral activity. The Institute aims to affect policy at the highest levels, in joint cooperation with the world community.

http://ict.org.il/

[Triggerhippie]

Cindy Sheehan just had an involuntary BM upon hearing this news...

[mirkwood]

Who should be afraid? I can walk back and forth between Mexico and the U.S. These people that want to hurt us are a lot smarter than the wetbacks. My president is letting me down. He is allowing the terrorists to gain entry into my country, and he doesn't seem to care. Congress approved money for 2200? new border patrol agents. The Pres payed for 200. Tell me how he is protecting the United States Of America. Does he WANT another 9/11?

[highlander_UW]

No Distinction Between Terrorists, Those Who Support Them, Bush Says

Is Bush really going to prosecute the radical liberals in the US?! The DUmmies must be shaking in their boots.

[anti-infidel]

Bush Administration= "Islam is peaceful", All talk no action!!!!!

[Just Lori]

If you haven't seen this yet, very interesting. What did France have to do with Niger yellowcake?

http://www.americanthinker.com/comments.php?comments_id=3479

[NaughtiusMaximus]

Domestic traitors are a far, far greater threat to this country than all the foreign terrorists ever spawned.

(Make a vow to insult or demoralize a liberal daily.)

[DTogo]

4 years after 9-11 and who knows how many of our brave soldiers have died because of Syria and/or Iran's meddling in Iraq, yet still all we get from Bush is lip service.

[E.G.C.]

BTTT

[RoadTest]

Give him the power of the War Powers Act of WWII. (It was removed at the end of WWII)

[SeriousSassy]

Chicken George won't carry out what he threatens. Iraq is becoming Vietnam with safe havens and resupply for the enemy in Syria and Iran, and the #1 funder and religious justifer of terrorism is Saudi Arabia. Want to bet the President will actually crack down on them?

[SandRat]

Dang it! That thought scared me so bad now I have to go and change my clothes.

[Calpernia]

The U.S. is determined to deny radical groups the support and sanctuary of outlaw regimes like Syria and Iran, President Bush said here today.

"Any government that chooses to be an ally of terror has chosen to be an enemy of civilization," Bush said. "The civilized world must hold those regimes to account."

hmmm. Is it me or is this getting VERY close to labeling domestic support groups as terrorists?

President Bush! BTTT!

[Calpernia]

Speaking to the Joint Armed Forces Officers' Wives Luncheon at Bolling Air Force Base, Bush said that these governments have a long history of collaboration with terrorists and deserve no patience from the victims of terror.

"Any government that chooses to be an ally of terror has chosen to be an enemy of civilization," Bush said. "The civilized world must hold those regimes to account."

[Eagle Eye]

Iraq is NOT becoming Viet Nam or like Viet Nam in any way, shape or form.

As far as calling Bush "Chicken George", he's done more than you and your DU friends.

You are just another justification for a 90 day waiting period for newbies posting.

[conservativecorner]

One word, and please excuse my french but BULLSHIT. The Iranian President called for the destruction of Israel once again this AM, and he said more homicide bombings are planned. At the same time we have Sec. Rice running around blaming Israel for the debacle they call the "road map". The only road map the arabs need for Israel is the one that points directly to the Mediterranean Sea which is where they would march all the Jews if they could. BULLSHIT Mr. President!

[conservativecorner]

AMEN BUMP! Where's the beef George?

[conservativecorner]

Not everyone who questions the President's remarks are DU Dummies. We simply look at the world and know that we really haven't cracked down on Sponsor States for terrorists. Iran, N. Korea, the PA, Syria and Saudi Arabia are all doing what they were doing 4 years ago. Russia and China are supplying some of these states with technology that will be used to hurt us or our allies. And he's still calling for UN action when we all know how corrupt the organization is. If we wait on the UN on the Syrian question, we will be waiting until Hell freezes over. Russia will come to Syria's rescue, and nothing will come from all this bluster.

[conservativecorner]

This is exactly what we are discussing. How does this fir into the President's remarks?

Israel worried about possible new Russia-Syria arms deals
haaretz.com ^ | Last update - 02:43 26/10/2005 | By Aluf Benn, Haaretz Correspondent

Israel has expressed concern over Russia's intention to sign new arms deals with Syria, following the already completed deal to provide Syria with SA-18 anti-aircraft missiles. Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom, who is scheduled to meet Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Wednesday, will tell him of Israel's objection to the sale of more weapons to Syria, a political source in Jerusalem said Tuesday.

The source said Syria was undermining the stability in the area. "Any cooperation with [Syria], especially when it comes to sensitive issues such as the supply of weapons, will cause more instability," the source added.

The source said Syria was still providing arms to Hezbollah and Ahmed Jibril's Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine organization in Lebanon.

"Weapons sold to the Syrians could reach the terror organizations in Lebanon," the source said.

The Israeli cabinet has yet to discuss the report released by UN investigator Detlef Mehlis about the assassination of Lebanese leader Rafik Hariri and the debate in the UN Security Council on Tuesday. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon advocates keeping a low profile and not intervening in the crisis. The source said Israel supports imposing sanctions on Syria and Iran.

"We believe sanctions should be imposed on any state that supports terror," he said.

Israel welcomes pressure on Syria, which may change its conduct and even lead to the closure of Hamas and Islamic Jihad headquarters in Damascus.

However, Israel's leadership is at odds over whether Syrian President Bashar Assad's continued rule would serve Israel's interest or whether Israel should strive to topple his regime.

Sharon is expected to tell the Russian foreign minister on Thursday that Israel also supports imposing sanctions on Iran due to its nuclear plan. He will warn Lavrov of the grave threat that an Iranian nuclear bomb would pose.

Russia objects to sanctions on Syria and Iran, fear that such a move will disrupt regional stability.

[conservativecorner]

Please explain this in regards to the President's statements, and please remember that these devices are killing Americans.

Bigger, Stronger Homemade Bombs Now to Blame for Half of US Deaths (Iran aids Zarqawi)
WP ^ | October 26 2005 | John Ward Anderson





BAGHDAD, Oct. 25 -- After 31 months of fighting in Iraq, more than half of all American fatalities are now being caused by powerful roadside bombs that blast fiery, lethal shrapnel into the cabins of armored vehicles, confronting every patrol with an unseen, menacing adversary that is accelerating the U.S. death toll.

It took about 18 months from the start of the March 2003 invasion of Iraq to reach 1,000 U.S. deaths; it took less than 13 months to reach 1,000 more. A major reason for the surge, statistics show, is the insurgency's embrace of IEDs, together with the military's inability to detect them.

"It's the dreaded IED that's killing our soldiers," said Michael White, the creator of http://icasualties.org , a Web site that tracks U.S. military casualties. "I read in the paper that we have some new device to detect them, or we're taking extra care to make sure we don't get hit, and death after death keeps coming in, and it's IEDs."

According to a former Iraqi army officer who lives in the insurgent stronghold of Ramadi and is now a member of al Qaeda in Iraq, the group headed by Abu Musab Zarqawi, insurgents have advanced beyond the crude bombs they once used, such as dynamite or gunpowder mixed with nails and buried beside a road. Now, he said in an interview, militants have access to TNT from Iran that he said was about seven times stronger than the TNT available in Iraq. He said they were also using old Austrian missiles from the former Iraqi army and detonating them with electric wires, cell phones and other remote-control devices.


(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...

[Eagle Eye]

Did you ever learn to read with comprehension?

Do you expect me to believe that 'real' C/conservatives call the president "Chicken George"? Why are you sticking up for someone using that name? Is that YOUR feelings as well.

It isn't a matter of questioning the President's remarks, heck, I didn't even vote for him the first time around so if you are questioning him you're just another johnny-come-lately.

And just because there are terrorists coming from Iran and Syria (and I'll bet you a dollar to a donut that I have more firsthand info on that than you do) does not allow a valid comparison to Viet Nam.

So, are you a knee jerk or just a jerk?

[Eagle Eye]

please remember that these devices are killing Americans

You have to be a moron of the nth degree to feel the need to explain that to me.

[DarthVader]

"Is Bush really going to prosecute the radical liberals in the US?! The DUmmies must be shaking in their boots."



I'll join his posse. Give me a badge,gun and a big stick.

[conservativecorner]

You decided to simply not answer my questions. I'm not talking about Vietnam, and if you read my posts, you would know this. Your last statement was insulting, but we'll let that pass. Some decorum and a back and forth concerning each of our thoughts would be nice.

[Alamo-Girl]

Thanks for the ping!

[Calpernia]

We would ALL be currently living in a police state with UN enforcement.

Groups of us would be hiding in the Colorado Mountains with limited supplies and arms.

[Calpernia]

>>>Pakistan must be shaking in its boots

Could this be why Pakistan issued that press release about Osama being killed 4 months ago?

[Calpernia]

>>>>Who should be afraid? I can walk back and forth between Mexico and the U.S.

It would be awesome if you would bring a Camcorder and demonstrate this for us.

[conservativecorner]

Statics show he's right. We capture them, deport them and then they are back again. If the borders weren't so porous, this would never happen. Also, on our border to the north, we have marijuana smuggling like you can't believe. What's to stop a terrorist from using the same practices as the illegals/smugglers to get into this country? It's a fair question that deserves an answer.

[conservativecorner]

Statics = statistics. Sorry for the sloppy spelling.

[Calpernia]

>>>>Statics show he's right.

Meaning what?

[conservativecorner]

I corrected my self prior to your post. Go back One (1) post, and you will see it. Further clarification if ya need it. Do you?

[conservativecorner]

I'm sure Iran/PA/Syria are quaking in their boots right now. END SARCASM!

At Least Four Killed, 30 Hurt in Israel Explosion
Fox News ^ | 10/26/2005 | Associated Press, Fox News


JERUSALEM — A homicide bomber struck the crowded entrance of a falafel stand at an open-air market Wednesday in the northern Israeli town of Hadera (search), killing four people and wounding at least 30, police and rescuers said.


Islamic Jihad (search) claimed responsibility for the bombing, saying it was in retaliation for the killing of a top militant leader by Israeli troops earlier this week.


(Excerpt) Read more at foxnews.com ...

[Calpernia]

I can care less about typos. I'm queen of all typos.

The question was WHAT did you mean by your statement that I clipped?

[conservativecorner]

I'm figuring our allies will go to the mat and triple dog dare them to do it. How could we be any tougher?

Ahmadinejad: Wipe Israel off map
Aljazeera ^ | 10/26/2005 | aljazeera



Ahmadinejad: Wipe Israel off map by Wednesday 26 October 2005 11:52 AM GMT

Ahmadinejad addressed students at a conference

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has openly called for Israel to be wiped off the map.

"The establishment of the Zionist regime was a move by the world oppressor against the Islamic world," the president told a conference in Tehran on Wednesday, entitled The World without Zionism.

"The skirmishes in the occupied land are part of a war of destiny. The outcome of hundreds of years of war will be defined in Palestinian land," he said.

"As the Imam said, Israel must be wiped off the map," said Ahmadinejad, referring to Iran's revolutionary leader Ayat Allah Khomeini.

His comments were the first time in years that such a high-ranking Iranian official has called for Israel's eradication, even though such slogans are still regularly used at government rallies.

Call for unity

Addressing about 4000 students gathered in an Interior Ministry conference hall, Ahmadinejad also called for Palestinian unity, resistance and a point "where the annihilation of the Zionist regime will come".

Khatami was in favour of 'dialogue among civilisations'

"The Islamic umma (community) will not allow its historic enemy to live in its heartland," he said in the fiery speech that centred on a "historic war between the oppressor and the world of Islam".

The term "oppressor" is used by the clerical government to refer to the United States.

"We should not settle for a piece of land," he said of Israel's pullout from the Gaza Strip.

"Anyone who signs a treaty which recognises the entity of Israel means he has signed the surrender of the Muslim world," Ahmadinejad said.

"Any leaders in the Islamic umma who recognise Israel face the wrath of their own people."

Change from Khatami

"The skirmishes in the occupied land are part of a war of destiny. The outcome of hundreds of years of war will be defined in Palestinian land"

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad President of Iran

Ahmadinejad, a veteran of Iran's hardline Revolutionary Guards, took office in August after scoring a landslide win in a June presidential election.

His tone represents a major change from that of former president Mohammad Khatami, whose favoured topic was "dialogue among civilisations" and who led an effort to improve Iran's relations with the West.

But Ahmadinejad instead spoke of a "historic war".

"It dates backs hundreds of years. Sometimes Islam has advanced. Sometimes nobody was winning. Unfortunately over the past 300 years, the world of Islam has been in retreat," he lamented.

"One hundred years ago the last trench of Islam fell, when the oppressors went towards the creation the Zionist regime. It is using it as a fort to spread its aims in the heart of the Islamic world."

AFP By

You can find this article at: http://english.aljazeera.net/NR/exeres/15E6BF77-6F91-46EE-A4B5-A3CE0E9957EA.htm

[taxed2death]

.....with the one notable exception of Saudia Arabia.

[highlander_UW]

Bush Administration= "Islam is peaceful", All talk no action!!!!!

I wouldn't say no action...we have fought in Afghanistan and Iraq...but I cringe every time I hear him repeat the false claim that Islam is peaceful. I can only hope he knows this isn't true and is only attempting to split Islam and taken on the most radical portions first...but Islam is evil to it's very roots. We can be thankful that some muslims don't follow true Islam.

[Little Ray]

Suuuuuure we are.

[safisoft]

"Any government that chooses to be an ally of terror has chosen to be an enemy of civilization," Bush said. "The civilized world must hold those regimes to account."

Mr. President, you have lost all credibility on this. When your Secretary of State blames Israel for violence because "it needs to do more" and you personally host the Munich Massacre bag-man (Mahmoud Abbas) in the White House; it has become clear that the only terrorists you recognize are ones that are convenient to you.

[conservativecorner]

You don't think we can produce facts regarding our porous borders? By the way, did you happen to read that we are starting back with the open door policy regarding Saudi Arabian students coming to America just like prior to 9/11?

My, We're A Welcoming People [They Are Letting The Saudis In Again Alert]
Captains Quarters ^ | Oct. 23, 2005 | Edward Morrissey


Posted on 10/23/2005 7:19:08 PM PDT by conservativecorner


After 9/11, we asked ourselves how nineteen Islamofascist terrorists could have made their way into the United States and infiltrated our society. We found out that our visa system had so many holes in it that we could not begin to guess how many more may have set up residence in America, just waiting to attack us from within. Sixteen of these terrorists came from Saudi Arabia, the last three of which didn't even need to go to an American facility to get their visas; instead they received the key documents from their travel agents under the Visa Express system.



After 9/11, we demanded an end to such programs, especially with Saudi Arabia, which supplies an inordinate amount of the Islamist radicals to the al-Qaeda cause. This supposedly has been the American policy since the attacks, and as far as any public statements, that policy has never been reversed.



Or has it?



According to London-based Asharq Al-Awsat, the Saudis expect to send over 10,000 new students to the US in the coming year and 21,000 over the next four as part of a program based on the relaxation of visa requirements with the US (h/t: CQ reader Michael):



More than 10,000 Saudi students will travel to the US to attend university as part of a government-sponsored program following the adoption of new measures by the Ministry of Higher Education aimed at facilitating travel procedures for Saudis. In total, 21,000 Saudis are expected to take part in the program in the next four years.


Prospective students can submit their applications to the Ministry of Higher Education through a Ministry special office or its website for nine different specializations and will be able to benefit from assistance with their visa applications at the US embassy and its diplomatic missions throughout the country. ...



Half of the prospective students will be sponsored by Saudi businesses to further their knowledge in a given field making use of bilateral treaties offering Saudis a number of opportunities in U.S. universities across the country.



Well, well. It appears that the Saudis have received a bit more flexibility -- and we will be hosting more of them in our communities as students. Perhaps if they pass strict scrutiny and maintain registry and security requirements, that may help reduce the radicalism of the Saudi youth. Unfortunately, that's what we used to think before 9/11, too.



Has something changed? The Saudis have taken terrorism more seriously since the May 2003 bombing attack in Riyadh by al-Qaeda, of course. However, the royal family still supports the Wahhabist strain of Islam that gave birth to the Islamofascist movement AQ represents and Osama bin Laden leads. It's hard to imagine that the Saudis will promote the overseas education of young people who seriously dissent from its Wahhabist teachings or the oppressive government that enforces it as law in Saudi Arabia.



I think we need to ask the State Department if we've relaxed entry requirements into the US, especially with our Saudi "friends", and if so, who decided to do that.

[Calpernia]

>>>>You don't think we can produce facts regarding our porous borders?

Copy and pass this statement I made pointing to that or have it removed.

You have a VERY BAD habit of twisting people's words on this forum and then starting arguements based on your own implications.

I will hit abuse on you from this point on if you do not produce the copy and past of my statement you are implying.

Enough is enough.

[conservativecorner]

relaxation of visa requirements

[Sabramerican]

I wonder what they will build where the State Dept used to be?

[ground_fog]

Can the DNC now go ahead and change their name to the 'TNC'(Terrorists National Committee) since they support the terrorists?