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JERUSALEM - Israel has rebuffed Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' request to free Palestinian prisoners ahead of a major Muslim holiday, insisting that Palestinian militants first agree to release a captured Israeli soldier. The decision was at odds with recent overtures by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to bolster the moderate Abbas in the eyes of the Palestinian people, who voted the militantly anti-Israel Hamas group into power nearly one year ago. Separately, the Yediot Ahronot newspaper reported that Olmert was prepared to hold back-channel talks on a blueprint for a final peace deal, as Abbas has proposed. Olmert spokeswoman Miri Eisin...

Many in Israel and abroad were surprised when the flags of the State of Israel and the Palestinian Authority flew side-by-side for the first time, at the official Prime Minister’s Residence. For the first time in the history of the State of Israel, the red, black, green and white flag of the Palestinian Authority stood next to the official state flag of Israel bearing the blue Jewish Star flanked by two stripes on its field of white, last Saturday Night. It was the first of several surprises. The meeting between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas came...

Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said on Wednesday that kidnapped soldier Cpl. Gilad Shalit is alive. ''We are working to release him and we know that he's alive,'' Aboul Gheit told a news conference. (AP)

TEL AVIV -- Hamas and other Palestinian terror groups have been using a cease-fire agreed to last month to smuggle weapons into the Gaza Strip and build Hezbollah-like guerilla armies to confront the Jewish state, according to the Israeli Defense Forces. "In another few months, in the Gaza Strip we will have to deal with military capabilities of the terror organizations that we haven't been familiar with until now," said Sami Turjeman, head of the IDF's operations department. Yossi Beidetz, head of research for the IDF's military intelligence unit, warned Hamas has been using the cease-fire, which went into effect...

The Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for the Kassam attack on Sderot that wounded two 14-year-old boys on Tuesday evening. The rocket was the seventh to have been fired at Sderot since Tuesday morning. One boy was reported in critical condition, while the second was listed in moderate to serious condition, both with shrapnel wounds. A number of other people were reported in shock. Earlier in the afternoon, Palestinians fired a Kassam from the northern Gaza Strip that landed in an open area of the Sha'ar Hanegev region. No one was wounded, and no damage was caused. The Islamic Jihad took...

The Bush administration has blocked arms and technology transfers to Israel. Israeli and U.S. sources said the State Department has blocked the transfer of weapons and technology to the Jewish state over the last three months. The sources said the halt reflected deteriorating relations between the two countries since the end of the war in Lebanon in August 2006.

Prime Minister Olmert says during weekly cabinet meeting 'it's time to show flexibility, generosity' on issue of prisoners ahead of Eid el-Adha holiday this weekend Ronny Sofer Published: 12.24.06, 16:40 A day following his meeting with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, Prime Minister Ehud Olmert tried Sunday to see whether his ministers would be willing to consider the release of Palestinian prisoners in the near future. "It's time to show flexibility and generosity on this issue," Olmert said during a cabinet meeting, "this view may differ from the ones expressed in previous cabinet meetings, but this is my opinion." Olmert reported...

Two leaders expected to discuss possible release of Palestinian prisoners in exchange for kidnapped soldier Gilad Shalit, agreed upon ceasefire and Abbas’ proposal to move up PA elections; meeting apparently at PM’s official residence. (snip) A Palestinian official told Ynet that the meeting between Olmert and Abbas will focus mainly on strengthening the ceasefire and possibly expanding it to include the West Bank. (snip) A Palestinian source told Ynet that "we are hoping that at the end of the meeting Abbas will be able to officially announce that the Palestinians' salaries will be paid." This will occur if an agreement...

Israeli Cabinet ministers urged Prime Minister Ehud Olmert to consider ending a truce that the Palestinians have failed to honor. Israeli media reported that Olmert’s inner “Security Cabinet” would convene next week to consider the appeal, led by Defense Minister Amir Peretz. Palestinian terrorists have launched as many as 50 rockets into Israel since the truce was forged two weeks ago. Peretz’s hometown is Sderot, the southern Israeli town hardest hit by the rocket fire.

Addressing an enthusiastic audience, the Likud leader opined, "Olmert said long ago that we are 'tired of curbing the attacks.' It's not the nation that's tired - Olmert is [the one who is] tired. There is only one thing worse than a nation that has lost faith in its leaders, and that is leaders who have lost faith in their nation." He then called on the prime minister "to vacate the position for a responsible leadership."

Palestinian terror groups launch Qassam rocket from northern Gaza Thursday evening; rocket lands near school in Sderot. Three rockets fired at Israel Thursday morning, following seven rockets launched Wednesday Shmulik Hadad Published: 12.21.06, 18:55 Palestinian terror groups launched a Qassam rocket from northern Gaza on Thursday afternoon. The rocket landed near a school in Sderot. At the present no injuries or damage have been reported. Three Qassam rockets were fired at Israel Thursday morning, following seven rockets launched Wednesday. Two of the rockets fired Thursday landed in Palestinian territory, and one landed in Israel. The Sderot Municipality reported that the...

Israel must take action to strengthen moderate Palestinian camp Ronny Shaked Published: 12.20.06, 12:15 Even the second attempt to enforce the ceasefire in the Territories will not resolve the internal Palestinian crisis that has crossed every red line in recent days. At most, they will achieve a lull that would last a few days until the next wave of violence. This chronic crisis runs deep; it is much more complex and entrenched. It is a struggle between two completely different disciplines; the nationalist school represented by Mahmoud Abbas, and the Islamic school represented by the ruling Hamas movement. The Palestinian...

Six Palestinian missiles explode on Israeli side of Gaza border Wednesday. No one hurt December 20, 2006, 6:23 PM (GMT+02:00) The last three detonated on the Israeli side of the Sufa crossing into Gaza and south of Ashkelon. PM Ehud Olmert said in Jerusalem that Israel cannot stay passive much longer in the face of these attacks. More than 40 missiles have been fired at Israeli civilian locations since the purported ceasefire declared by Palestinian armed groups last month. On the West Bank, two armed Jihad Islami operatives, a Palestinian group sponsored by Iran, were killed resisting Israeli arrest near...

Army official tells Ynet ‘Israel’s policy toward incessant Qassam rocket fire may be interpreted as weakness; IDF calls for pinpoint attacks against rocket-launching areas, Qassam cells increasing Hanan Greenberg Published: 12.20.06, 20:03 A senior Israel Defense Forces official told Ynet Wednesday that “Israel’s policy toward the incessant Qassam rocket fire may be interpreted as a sign of weakness.” Following the launching of some 40 Qassams since the agreed upon ceasefire went into effect, army officials are increasingly calling for retaliation, including pinpoint attacks on rocket-launching area and Qassam cells. Ynet has learned that the IDF recently decided to remove artillery...

JERUSALEM (AP) - A slip of the tongue by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert about Israel's nuclear policy ballooned into a domestic crisis Tuesday for the Israeli leader, who came under criticism from across the political spectrum. In an interview with a German television station broadcast Monday, Olmert appeared to list Israel among the world's nuclear powers, violating the country's long-standing policy of not officially acknowledging that it has atomic weapons. "Iran openly, explicitly and publicly threatens to wipe Israel off the map," Olmert said. "Can you say that this is the same level, when you are aspiring to have nuclear...

Israel’s military, which has been accused of abuses in its war against Hezbollah this summer, has declassified photographs, video images and prisoner interrogations to buttress its accusation that Hezbollah systematically fired from civilian neighborhoods in southern Lebanon and took cover in those areas to shield itself from attack. Lebanon and international human rights groups have accused Israel of war crimes ... Israel says that it tried to avoid civilians, but that Hezbollah fired from civilian areas, itself a war crime, which made those areas legitimate targets. In a new report, an Israeli research group says Hezbollah stored weapons in mosques,...

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said on Tuesday evening that "we are a little disappointed by the continuation of Kassam rocket fire at the South by the Palestinians." Earlier in the evening, two Kassam rockets landed by a Sderot cemetery. No one was wounded. Speaking at a meeting with European Union envoys at the Finnish Embassy, Olmert added, "I hope very much that the Palestinians will honor their obligations and stop the fire."

Gaza terrorists fire 2 Kassams at Sderot; none wounded Sheera Claire Frenkel, THE JERUSALEM POST Nov. 28, 2006 Hours after IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-Gen. Dan Halutz sought to deflect responsibility for the cease-fire between Israel and the Gaza Strip, terrorists in northern Gaza violated the day-old agreement by firing two Kassam rockets at Sderot. Both of the rockets landed in an open area, and no one was wounded in the attack.

Report: Israel okays PLO troops in Gaza Associated Press, THE JERUSALEM POST Nov. 28, 2006 Israel has agreed in principle to let Jordanian-based Palestine Liberation Organization forces loyal to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas enter the Gaza Strip to help shore up a 2-day-old truce, military officials said Tuesday. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the media, said Israel's decision is part of the truce deal that ended five months of fighting in Gaza. The Jordanian-based Badr forces would be deployed along the Israel-Gaza border to beef up Palestinian troops trying...

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Monday that the release of Israel Defense Forces soldier Gilad Shalit, held since June by Gaza militants, would lead to the release of Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails. "With Gilad Shalit's release and his return safe and sound to his family, the Israeli government will be willing to release many Palestinian prisoners, even those who have been sentenced to lengthy terms," Olmert said. The prime minister, speaking at the grave of Israel's first premier, David Ben-Gurion, in Sde Boker, said that he was extending his hand in peace to the Palestinians, and that he hoped...

JERUSALEM -- Israeli troops withdrew from the Gaza Strip as an unexpected truce took hold Sunday, but two major Palestinian militant groups, saying they had no intention of stopping their attacks, fired volleys of homemade rockets into Israel. The rocket attacks by Hamas and Islamic Jihad tempered hopes for a lasting ceasefire, which was meant to end five months of deadly clashes. The rockets landed in open fields and caused no injuries. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ordered his security chiefs to send their forces to the Gaza border area to prevent further rocket attacks, according to Palestinian security officials. "The...

Israeli troops withdrew from the Gaza Strip as a last-minute cease-fire deal took hold Sunday morning, but two major Palestinian militant groups, saying they had no intention of stopping their attacks, fired volleys of homemade rockets into Israel. The ongoing rocket attacks by Hamas and Islamic Jihad tempered hopes for a lasting truce, which was meant to end five months of deadly clashes. The rockets landed in open fields and caused no injuries. Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas met with his security chiefs Sunday and ordered them to send their forces to the Gaza border area by early afternoon to prevent...

Hamas claimed responsibility for firing rockets into Israel on Sunday morning after a truce aimed at ending five months of violence in Gaza was supposed to have taken effect. Hamas reported on the group's official Web site that they had launched rockets into Israel at 7:30 a.m. and 7:55 a.m., saying they had not stopped their attacks because some Israeli troops remained inside Gaza. Israel said all its troops had pulled out early Sunday.

CAIRO, Egypt - The political leader of Hamas said Saturday that the Islamic militant group is willing to allow negotiations with Israel but warned of a new uprising if talks fail to reach a deal for a Palestinian state within six months. The comment from Khaled Mashaal was the strongest indication that Hamas might give moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas a chance to try negotiating with Israel, but it was also the first time he set a deadline with an explicit threat of new fighting. There was no immediate comment from Israeli officials in Jerusalem, where government offices were closed...

Excerpt - Iran is smuggling weapons through Syria to re-arm Lebanese allies Hizballah, despite renewed efforts by United Nations peacekeepers and the Lebanese army to seal off the mountain borders with Syria in the wake of last summer's war between the Shi'ite militia and Israel, according to reports by Saudi and Israeli intelligence sources that have been confirmed by western diplomats in Beirut. ~ snip ~

ALARM - Ultimatum 6 months to regulate Palestinian crisis with less 3e Intifada CAIRO - the chief of Hamas, Khaled Mechaal, threatened Saturday to launch the third Intifada if the problem of a Palestinian State in the borders of 1967 were not regulated within six month.

I don't know what it will take to awaken Israelis from their slumber. But I know they don't have much more time. For years, Israelis have fooled themselves into thinking they could negotiate peace with all their neighbors – even those whose only real objective is to see all the Jews dead. Israelis have convinced themselves that if they are reasonable, if they go the extra mile, if they just continue to demonstrate random acts of compassion for their enemies, that they will be their enemies no longer. It should be clear to everyone by now that these random acts...

[We told you so?] Israel Foreign Ministry describes terrible situation since retreat from Gaza Strip [Dr. Aaron Lerner - IMRA: While the Israel Foreign Ministry describes in the following document the terrible situation since the retreat from the Gaza Strip this in no way is having an impact on the activities of FM Livni. Instead of coming to grips with the fact that she and her fellow travelers have been advocating destructively dangerous policies reflecting both an incredibly short planning horizon ("let's forget about tomorrow" could be their theme song) and a cavalier attitude about security she is now pressing...

According to sources and contacts – as well as statements made in Lebanon over the past few weeks – all analysis indicates that Hezbollah is on the verge of an all out offensive in Lebanon to crumble the "March 14" Seniora Government and to seize strategic control in the country. Following are few points deserving attention (a more comprehensive analysis will follow later):

An Israeli general in charge of troops along the Lebanese border has resigned after being accused of failing to prevent the capture of two soldiers that triggered a month-long war with Hezbollah guerrillas. Brigadier-General Gal Hirsch is the second Israeli general to quit amid widespread criticism of military failures during the 34-day war that ended with a UN-brokered cease-fire in mid-August. His's resignation was recommended by an internal army inquiry that examined the circumstances that led to the July 12 cross-border raid by Hezbollah, in which two soldiers were captured and three killed. "He has submitted his resignation," a military...

Excerpt - FOUR months after Israel launched its onslaught against Hezbollah, the Lebanese guerrillas are back in south Lebanon stronger than ever and armed with more rockets than they had before the conflict, according to Israeli intelligence. During the month-long war, which began on July 12, Hezbollah fired 200 to 250 rockets a day into Israel, killing 43 civilians and terrorising much of the north of the country. “Since the ceasefire, additional rockets, weapons and military equipment have reached Hezbollah,” said an Israeli intelligence officer. “We assume they now have about 20,000 rockets of all ranges — a bit more...

Hamas chief Khaled Mashaal said Wednesday that a truce with Israel is finished and his group's militants can resume fighting following an Israeli tank attack that killed 18 Palestinians... "The truce (with Israel) ended at the end of 2005," Mashaal said. "The armed struggle is free to resume, and the resistance is dictated by local circumstances." The truce formally ended last year but had remained in effect.

PARIS, Nov 8, 2006 (AFP) - French United Nations troops were "two seconds" away recently from firing at Israeli aircraft diving towards their position in southern Lebanon, Defence Minister Michele Alliot-Marie said in parliament on Wednesday. "Two seconds later there would have been a shot against the aircraft which were directly menacing our forces," Alliot-Marie said. "A catastrophe was avoided thanks to the judiciousness of our troops," she added. The incident occurred on October 31, the defence ministry told AFP, without giving the exact location. French Foreign Minister Philippe Douste-Blazy said that a caution would be given to the Israeli...

Damascus-based Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal threatened on Tuesday that Hamas would kidnap more IDF soldiers if Israel does not free all Palestinian prisoners. In an interview with Hamas radio station Voice of al Aksa, Mashaal added the kidnappers would stick to their demands until Israel "emptied them of their substance." The Hamas leader-in-exile also called for an establishment of a Palestinian Authority unity government on the basis of the prisoners' document but stressed that such a government must not adhere to the demands of the international quartet. Earlier, Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas called on Hamas to transfer captured IDF...

JERUSALEM – Syria and Hezbollah are likely to start a war with the Jewish state within 10 months, according to an assessment presented to the political leadership here by the Israeli Defense Forces. IDF leaders did not release the specific timing of what they said are expected clashes, but they urged Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government in meetings the past few weeks to allow the IDF to prepare for a possible major conflict, according to senior military officials. The officials said the assessments, compiled by the general staff of the IDF, are based on intelligence information and what they said...

Iran is accelerating its uranium enrichment efforts and Israel could have only six months to destroy Tehran’s nuclear capabilities or risk an Iranian nuclear attack, according to influential Israeli columnist Caroline Glick. “Just as Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has dropped nearly all pretenses about his intentions to achieve nuclear weapons, so too he makes it clear daily that he intends to use such weapons to annihilate Israel,” Glick writes in the Jerusalem Post. “With Iran speeding up its program, Israel may have as little as six months to launch a strike on its nuclear facilities before they can start churning...

Prime minister says should Iran acquire atomic bombs it is likely that Islamic Republic would transfer nuclear weapons to Hizbullah; warns international community to take tough stance against N. Korea Ronny Sofer Published: 10.15.06, 14:52 Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said Sunday that Iran poses a strategic threat to Israel, warning that the Islamic Republic would transfer nuclear weapons to its Lebanese proxy Hizbullah. "If the atomic bomb reaches Iranian hands it will reach other hands. International fears – not only Israel's – are that these weapons reach other players like Hizbullah," Olmert said, adding that the international community should take...

LABBOUNEH, Lebanon (AFP) - Lebanon has deployed its army on its southern border with Israel for the first time in almost 40 years, vowing to reassert control in the area by stopping attacks and arms smuggling. At a ceremony to mark the occasion on Monday, army commander Brigadier General Michel Sleiman called on his troops to confront any violations of an August 14 UN-brokered ceasefire that ended Israel's 34-day war against Hezbollah. The deployment "to monitor the southern borders and the maritime and territorial borders is meant to prevent aggressions as well as the smuggling of weapons and other prohibited...

JERUSALEM Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said in comments published Tuesday that Israel would not allow Iran, which it considers its top enemy, to produce nuclear weapons. "Israel can't accept the possibility of Iranians having nuclear weapons and we will act together with the international forces, starting with the Americans, in order to prevent it," Olmert told The Jerusalem Post daily in an interview.

The root of the latest war and the one with the Palestinians is the IDF's withdrawal from south Lebanon and the thinking that caused it. Again last week our hopes were raised, only to be dashed once more. OC Northern Command Major General Udi Adam raised our hopes when he resigned his command. Adam, the first of our incompetent leaders to leave his job after mishandling the war against Hizbullah this summer, made us think that perhaps other incompetents in the IDF and the government would follow his example. Our hopes were also raised later in the week when former...

BEIRUT, Lebanon - Hezbollah's leader called Sunday for a massive rally in Beirut's bombed out southern suburbs to mark the militant group's "victory" over Israel during the monthlong fighting this summer. Sheik Hassan Nasrallah said the rally, to be held Friday evening, would show Hezbollah's "absolute commitment to our right to recover our land and prisoners and defend our nation, its dignity, freedom, sovereignty and real and full independence in the face of (Israeli) occupation." "I call on all of you to participate in this victory rally," he said in a brief, televised speech broadcast on Hezbollah's Al-Manar TV station....

Iran resumes weapons airlift to Hizballah via Beirut Friday as soon as Israel ended its air blockade September 9, 2006, 11:41 AM (GMT+02:00) Iran’s first post-blockade arms flight departed Dubai Friday, Sept. 8, to test the ground at Beirut international airport for Israeli air force or UN reactions. DEBKAfile’s military sources report that the forbidden goods were unloaded and sailed through the airport unhindered. Tehran therefore determined to send two further bulk consignments in the next 48 hours aboard commercial flights from the Persian Gulf. Our sources report the arms crates listed were on the documents as “computer equipment. Handle...

The Arab leader stood on the rubble and declared victory. He'd won, praise Allah, he'd won! The infidels had shocked and awed with their finest weapons. But not only had he survived, his missiles – his glorious missiles – were hitting the Zionist entity right up to the last moment. Could anyone question that he'd won? The leader was Saddam Hussein. The year was 1991. The missiles in those days were SCUDs, not Katyushas. The point, of course, is that once the bar is not so much lowered as dropped into a bomb crater anything becomes a victory. Sheikh Hassan...

Arms flowing from Syria into Lebanon as Hizbullah stocks up for renewed conflict JERUSALEM — The Israeli intelligence community is monitoring Hizbullah's efforts to rearm following its 33-day war with Israel. Military intelligence has detected a flow of Iranian and Syrian weapons sent by Damascus into Lebanon. At present, most of the weapons shipped to Hizbullah have been of Syrian origin, officials said. They cited medium-range 333-mm rockets, fired deep into Israel from central Lebanon. __ Full Text, Subscribers -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Focus on the Intelligence Gap Report: Israeli intel spotted Hizbullah's buildup . . . but not the threat _ Full...

US civil rights activist Reverend Jesse Jackson is set to meet senior Hizbullah officials in Beirut on Monday to demand proof that the two kidnapped IDF soldiers Ehud Goldwasser and Eldad Regev are still alive. Israel Radio reported that information on the soldiers would assist advancing a prisoner swap deal with Israel, adding that the release of a video clip would be his preferred source of information. Jackson harshly criticized US President George Bush for refusing to talk to Syria or Hizbullah.

Excerpt - DAMASCUS (AP)--U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan said Friday Syria has promised to "take all necessary measures" to implement an arms embargo on Hezbollah. Syria will increase its patrols along the Lebanon-Syria border, and establish joint patrols with the Lebanese army "when possible," Annan said after meeting with Syrian President Bashar Assad in Damascus. ~ snip ~

IDF forces operating in Nablus early Thursday morning gunned down Fadi Kafisha, 29, commander of Fatah's Al Aksa Martyrs' Brigades in the northern West Bank city and a "terrorist mastermind" who military officials said was financed and directed by Hizbullah. "He was a motor of terrorism," said commander of the the Shomron Brigade Col. Amir Braum of Kafisha. "He was the chief fugitive in Nablus, an explosives expert and responsible for many attacks, among them the attack at Jerusalem's French Hill in September 2004." For the fighters of the Haruv Battalion, the killing of Kafisha represented a settling of personal...

Israel's and Hezbollah's War of the Rockets has entered a new phase: the War of the Wallets, the race to gain political capital by rebuilding southern Lebanon. Diplomats and military analysts continue to debate The War of the Rockets. The conventional wisdom -- or more accurately, the wisdom of first impressions -- said Israel lost the military war and Hezbollah won by surviving. But the emerging "big picture" suggests the War of the Rockets physically punished and politically damaged Hezbollah, despite its media touts of victory. On the other hand, Israel cannot claim a victory -- at least, not yet....

United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan has told Israel not to worry about Hizbullah terrorists so long as the international interim force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) is present. He made the statement in reply to Israel's claim that Hizbullah terrorists have returned to southern Lebanon despite reports that they are leaving. He issued a 10-day ultimatum to Israel to withdrawal all forces from Lebanon, by which time he said 20,000 troops from the Lebanese Army and UNIFIL will patrol the area south of the Litani River.

by Michael J. Totten Israeli video journalist Itai Anghel went into Hezbollah-controlled Lebanon with the Nahal Brigade and shot 25 minutes of riveting house-to-house combat footage with a night vision lens. The Hezbollah fighters wore Israeli uniforms. Note: To watch the movie, copy and paste the url below into a new window. For some reason it won't work if you click on it. http://switch248-01.castup.net/cunet/gm.asp?ClipMediaID=209947&ak=63628786 Hat tip: Lisa Goldman