http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/airstrikes/ en-us Sat, 5 Jul 2008 13:55:26 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2041078/posts WorldNetDaily's Jerusalem bureau chief Aaron Klein will be a guest tomorrow on Fox News Channel's weekend program "America's Election Headquarters" to discuss the likelihood of an Israeli military strike against Iran and its relationship to the U.S. presidential elections. Klein will appear in a segment beginning at 1:15 p.m. EST. Earlier this week, Klein conducted an interview with Meir Amit, former director of Israel's Mossad intelligence agency, who stated Israel should use force to stop Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. The comments from Amit, one of the most esteemed figures in the Israeli intelligence establishment, are significant since, until now,... worldnetdaily.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2041078/posts#comment Sat, 5 Jul 2008 13:55:26 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2040640/posts The recent leaks to the U.S. news media (New York Times and ABC News) have created a wrong impression and sent a false message that an Israeli attack on Iran is imminent. Far from the truth. No decision to attack Iran has been made in Israel. Certainly no date has been fixed. Israel will decide, if at all, to disrupt Iran's nuclear program only as a last resort after international diplomacy fails. More importantly, such a decision will be taken only after serious consultation with the American administration. Coordinating its actions with America is the key factor in all Israeli... Newsweak/WP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2040640/posts#comment Fri, 4 Jul 2008 09:17:17 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037951/posts A former head of Mossad has warned that Israel has 12 months in which to destroy Iran's nuclear programme or risk coming under nuclear attack itself. He also hinted that Israel might have to act sooner if Barack Obama wins the US presidential election. Telegraph UK http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037951/posts#comment Sun, 29 Jun 2008 00:14:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037871/posts Commander of Iran's Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) Major General Mohammad Ali Jafari warned Israel against launching any attack on the Islamic republic, an Iranian newspaper reported on Saturday. Israel "is completely within the range of the Islamic republic's missiles" and it cannot confront Iran's missile power, Jafari told Iran's Jam-e Jam newspaper. Xinhuanet.com (PRC) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037871/posts#comment Sat, 28 Jun 2008 19:39:34 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037490/posts The past week's spate of signals that Israel might be preparing a strike against Iranian nuclear targets - an attack which would almost certainly provoke a wave of retaliation engulfing Hizbullah and Lebanon in regional conflict - amounts to nothing more than posturing to prod the West in negotiations with the Islamic Republic, a number of analysts told The Daily Star. Daily Star (Lebanon) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2037490/posts#comment Fri, 27 Jun 2008 22:52:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036479/posts A U.S. military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities could set Tehran's program back years but would raise the risk of retaliation against American troops in the region and of driving Iran to work even harder to make atomic weapons, U.S. experts and officials say. Any U.S. attack -- something the Pentagon insists is not planned but is subject of frequent speculation as Iran defies calls to rein in its nuclear program -- could involve thousands of sorties and missile launches against hundreds of targets. UK.reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036479/posts#comment Thu, 26 Jun 2008 00:39:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036523/posts Former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton believes Israel will stage a raid against Iran's nuclear facilities if Democratic nominee Barack Obama wins the upcoming presidential election in November. Bolton, often labeled a resolute neo-conservative, believes the Israeli attack would take place sometime between the day after Obama's win and his inauguration on January 20 of next year. In an interview with FOX News, Bolton says, "I think if they are to do anything, the most likely period is after our elections and before the inauguration of the next President." Bolton reasons Israel won’t be able to hold... newsmax.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2036523/posts#comment Thu, 26 Jun 2008 02:16:00 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-gop/2035788/posts Bill Kristol and John Bolton, in separate interviews, seem to be leaking a Bush plan to take out Iranian nuclear facilities before he leaves office. If it is done before the election, Obama is sunk. The Patriot Room http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-gop/2035788/posts#comment Tue, 24 Jun 2008 19:19:13 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035282/posts Israel 'will attack Iran' before new US president sworn in, John Bolton predicts By Toby Harnden in Washington Last Updated: 9:18PM BST 23/06/2008 John Bolton, the former American ambassador to the United Nations, has predicted that Israel could attack Iran after the November presidential election but before George W Bush's successor is sworn in. Bolton: 'the argument for military action is sooner rather than later' The Arab world would be "pleased" by Israeli strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities, he said in an interview with The Daily Telegraph. "It [the reaction] will be positive privately. I think there'll be public denunciations... The Telegraph (UK) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2035282/posts#comment Mon, 23 Jun 2008 21:31:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2034502/posts All Predictions are good until December 31st, 2008: propositions, listed in order of probably outcomes: A) Date of an Israeli only strike. B) Date of a US only strike. C) Israel and the United States take no action by the 12-31-2008. D) Strike only after Iranian provocative action (list the action) - n.b. Lailat al Miraj in 2008 is on Tuesday, the 29th of July. E) Date of a combined strike. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2034502/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jun 2008 22:52:47 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034487/posts International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Mohamad ElBaradei, will quit his position in the event of a military strike on Iran, according to a Reuters report Friday. The report quoted him as warning that any military offensive in Iran would turn the Middle East region "into a fireball." JPost http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034487/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jun 2008 21:30:27 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034274/posts TEHRAN (AFP) - Iran on Saturday said it considered an attack by arch-enemy Israel as "impossible" after US media reported military exercises by the Jewish state were a possible practice for a strike against Iran. Such impudence and audacity to have an aggression against our national interest and integrity is an impossible action," the Iranian government spokesman Gholam Hossein Elham told reporters. afp http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034274/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jun 2008 11:45:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034252/posts International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Mohamad ElBaradei, will quit his position in the event of a military strike on Iran, according to a Reuters report Friday. IAEA's Director General Mohamed ElBaradei gives a statement to the press. Photo: AP [file] Slideshow: Pictures of the week The report quoted him as warning that any military offensive in Iran would turn the Middle East region "into a fireball." "I don't believe that what I see in Iran today is a current, grave and urgent danger. If a military strike is carried out against Iran at this time ... it would... Jeursualem Post http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034252/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jun 2008 09:04:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034213/posts DUBAI (Reuters) - The U.N. nuclear watchdog chief said a military strike on Iran would turn the Middle East into a fireball and prompt Tehran to launch a crash course to build nuclear weapons. Russia also warned against military threats on Friday, after The New York Times quoted U.S. officials as saying Israel had carried out a large military exercise, apparently a rehearsal for a potential bombing of Iran's nuclear facilities. "A military strike, in my opinion, would be worse than anything," International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) director general Mohamad ElBaradei told Al Arabiya television in an interview aired on... Yahoo http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034213/posts#comment Sat, 21 Jun 2008 04:49:08 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033512/posts Periodically, Barack Obama tries to bolster his foreign policy and national security credentials by making statements along the lines of "all options are on the table" regarding Iran's nuclear efforts. This implies that one of those options would include military actions to disable its nuclear weapons research programs (such as surgical strikes similar to the successful Israeli attack on the Syrian/North Korean plant last year). This as a strategy actually makes diplomacy more viable since the Iranians would have to contemplate the consequences following the failure of diplomacy. However, Barack Obama explicitly rejected this military option in a discussion with... American Thinker http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033512/posts#comment Thu, 19 Jun 2008 20:36:39 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034048/posts As many as 100 F16 and F15 warplanes were involved in flying long-range missions as part of the operation While Israeli officials remained silent on the matter today, sources in Washington at the Pentagon and other US government agencies confirmed that the exercise was staged two weeks ago over the eastern Mediterranean. The target of the exercise was 900 miles from Israel, roughly the same distance as Iran's nuclear enrichment facility at Natanz. A Pentagon official told the New York Times the exercise was deliberately designed by Israel to send a clear signal about the seriousness of its intentions towards... London Telegraph http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034048/posts#comment Fri, 20 Jun 2008 20:33:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034001/posts MOSCOW (AFP)--Russia's foreign minister Friday said there was no proof Iran is developing nuclear weapons and warned unilateral action against the country risked repeating the mistakes of the invasion of Iraq. "We have been repeatedly asking our American and Israeli colleagues, who insist that Iran...is engaged in making a nuclear bomb, to provide factual information to those assertions. So far we have seen none," Sergei Lavrov said in a speech in Moscow. "The same conclusion has been made by the International Atomic Energy Agency," he said. Responding to a warning earlier this month by Israeli Deputy Prime Minister Shaul Mofaz... AFP http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2034001/posts#comment Fri, 20 Jun 2008 18:54:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033973/posts WASHINGTON -- A large Israeli military exercise this month may have been aimed at showing Jerusalem's abilities to attack Iranian nuclear facilities. In a substantial show of force, Israel sent warplanes and other aircraft on a major exercise in the Eastern Mediterranean early this month, Pentagon officials said Friday. Israel's military refused to confirm or deny that the maneuvers were practice for a strike in Iran. Russia's foreign minister Friday warned against the use of force on Iran, saying there is no proof it is trying to build nuclear weapons with a program that Tehran says is for generating power.... newsmax.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033973/posts#comment Fri, 20 Jun 2008 17:55:09 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033776/posts U.S. officials say Israel carried out a large military exercise this month that appeared to be a rehearsal for a potential bombing attack on Iran's nuclear facilities, The New York Times reported on Friday. Citing unidentified American officials, the newspaper said more than 100 Israeli F-16 and F-15 fighters took part in the maneuvers over the eastern Mediterranean and Greece in the first week of June. It said the exercise appeared to be an effort to focus on long-range strikes and illustrates the seriousness with which Israel views Iran's nuclear program. The newspaper said Israeli officials would not discuss the... Haaretz http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033776/posts#comment Fri, 20 Jun 2008 10:25:03 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033214/posts Excerpt - Afghan officials say military operations have cleared Taliban militants from the villages they had infiltrated outside southern Afghanistan's largest city. Kandahar Governor Asadullah Khalid said on Thursday that Taliban fighters had fled the villages in Arghandab district after overnight battles and air strikes. Khalid reported "hundreds" of Taliban wounded or killed over the last several days, but Nato officials have not confirmed that claim. ~ snip ~ The Press Association (excerpt) http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2033214/posts#comment Thu, 19 Jun 2008 08:16:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032415/posts The Israeli government no longer believes that sanctions can prevent Iran from building nuclear weapons. A broad consensus in favor of a military strike against Tehran's nuclear facilities -- without the Americans, if necessary -- is beginning to take shape. Dani Yatom, a member of the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, was invited to attend a NATO conference in Brussels last year. While reviewing the agenda, Yatom, a retired major general, was surprised to see that the meeting was titled "The Iranian Challenge" and not "The Iranian Threat." When a speaker with a French accent mentioned that a US military strike... Der Spiegel Online http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032415/posts#comment Tue, 17 Jun 2008 19:41:44 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032483/posts (IsraelNN.com) The Israel Air Force struck terrorist groups in Gaza in three separate attacks Tuesday afternoon, killing at least six operatives, including Army of Islam second-in-command Muataz Dughmush. The head of the terrorist group, Mumtaz, is Muataz' half-brother. Two of the strikes were carried out in the central Gaza town of Dir el-Balah, where IAF pilots successfully targeted the gunmen involved in the 2006 kidnapping of IDF Cpl. Gilad Shalit. One of the missiles struck a vehicle carrying the Army of Islam terrorist cell, which included Muataz Dughmush. Five terrorists were killed, including Dughmush, and three others were wounded, one... Arutz 7 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032483/posts#comment Tue, 17 Jun 2008 22:17:43 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032423/posts The Israeli government no longer believes sanctions can stop Iran from building nuclear weapons and a broad consensus in favor of a military strike against Tehran's nuclear facilities - without the U.S., if necessary - is beginning to take shape, according to an article in Spiegel Online. The report cites recent comments by Israeli officials, including comments by deputy prime minister Shaul Mofaz, which were widely dismissed, by the U.S. and others, as electioneering. "In truth, however, there is now a consensus within the Israeli government that an air strike against the Iranian nuclear facilities has become unavoidable," Spiegel Online... DOW JONES NEWSWIRES http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2032423/posts#comment Tue, 17 Jun 2008 20:00:37 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031596/posts The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (WI) has just published the final version of a report by the Task Force on the Future of U.S.-Israel relations. The title is appealing: How to Deepen U.S.-Israel Cooperation on the Iranian Nuclear Challenge. But no less appealing is the list of people endorsing this report: Tony Lake and Susan Rice of the Obama campaign, Vin Weber, James Woolsey of the McCain camp. Dennis Ross, former Mideast peace envoy, and Rob Satloff, of the WI, were the two who made this happen, but the list of endorsers also includes other important people, some... Ha'aertz http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2031596/posts#comment Mon, 16 Jun 2008 00:11:49 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2030714/posts Former White House National Security Adviser Zbigniew Brzezinski said President George W. Bush should privately dissuade Israel from carrying out any military strike against Iran in an attempt to cripple its nuclear program. In an interview on Bloomberg Television's ``Political Capital with Al Hunt,'' Brzezinski said an armed conflict between Israel and Iran would widen to include the U.S. as Iran struck back against American forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. Concerns about the possibility of Israel attacking Iran were raised last week by comments from a senior Israeli official. Transportation Minister Shaul Mofaz, a contender for prime minister, told the... upi via email no link http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2030714/posts#comment Fri, 13 Jun 2008 19:09:51 GMT