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Sheikh Yusuf Qaradawi, who preached in Tahrir Square 10 days ago, loathes Israel, justifies suicide bombings against its civilians. 1. Sheikh Dr. Yusuf Abdallah al-Qaradawi is a central figure affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood. He was expelled from Egypt and found refuge in Qatar, operating from there throughout the Muslim world. 2. Many consider him the supreme religious and ideological authority for the Muslim Brotherhood, although he is not officially its leader. (In the past, he refused to accept the title of the Muslim Brotherhood’s General Guide). He is influential in Egypt and considered one of the most important Sunni...

(Reuters) - The Israeli navy Tuesday seized a French yacht carrying pro-Palestinian activists heading for the blockaded Gaza Strip and forced it to go to Israel's Ashdod port, a military spokeswoman said. "I can confirm that the yacht has been boarded and that everything went smoothly, there were no casualties," the spokeswoman said after marines boarded the "Dignite-Al-Karama" yacht in the eastern Mediterranean. Chief military spokesman Brigadier-General Yoav Mordechai said the passengers were transferred from the yacht to one of the warships sent to intercept it and were en route to Ashdod. The 17-passenger yacht had declared an Egyptian port...

Technical difficulties, dwindling participation and possible sabotage sap momentum of Freedom Flotilla 2; 350 people expected to participate, as opposed to 1,500 originally expected by organizers. Withdrawn insurance deeds, alleged sabotage and Greek bureaucracy have dealt a setback to organizers of Freedom Flotilla 2, who said on Tuesday that departure to the Gaza Strip might be postponed until next week. In addition, a mere 350 people are expected to participate in the flotilla, as opposed to the 1,500 originally expected by the organizers. “There have been many obstacles and complaints. Some boats are not ready and it is not clear...

Egypt has reopened the Rafah border crossing into the Gaza Strip for the first time since 2007 in a move praised by Palestinian leaders and the European Union but strongly opposed by Israel. Egypt on Saturday reopened its Rafah border crossing with Gaza, allowing people to cross freely for the first time in four years, in a move hailed by Hamas but criticised by Israel. Among the first to cross the reopened border post were two ambulances ferrying patients from the hitherto-blockaded Gaza Strip for treatment in Egypt as well as a minibus carrying a dozen visitors, an AFP correspondent...

JERUSALEM – An anti-tank missile fired from the Gaza Strip struck a school bus in southern Israel Thursday, wounding two people, one of them critically, and prompting fierce Israeli retaliation that killed five Palestinians. Israel unleashed airstrikes and tank fire against Hamas targets across the border. It was the heaviest assault on the coastal territory since a broad military offensive two years ago. Besides the dead, more than 30 Palestinians were wounded, said Palestinian health official Adham Abu Salmiya. He said one of the dead was a 50-year-old civilian who was sitting outside his home when he was struck by...

In a press conference held on Monday afternoon in Ankara with his Turkish counterpart, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit responded to criticism by Hizbullah leader Hassan Nasrallah on Sunday, saying that "They have practically declared war on Egypt via several satellite stations. The Egyptian people reject and opposes this declaration." "They want for there to be chaos in Egypt as there is in their country," Gheit said of Hizbullah. "I tell this man [Nasrallah]: No, no! Our armed forces can defend our homeland from people like you. Your interest in creating chaos is not in the best interest of...

Israeli officials are nervously watching events in Egypt's sparsely populated Sinai Peninsula, worried that a power vacuum in Cairo and the withdrawal of police forces will embolden the Bedouin tribes who help smuggle weapons to Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. In a sign of the rising tensions, Bedouin in the northern Sinai on Friday used rocket-propelled grenades to attack the headquarters of Egypt's state security in El Arish, a town close to Egypt's border crossing into Gaza, according to witnesses. Israel's fear is that with Egypt's police having all but disappeared from the peninsula—after police were asked to step...

We must not mistake her: The Nobel peace prize laureate is no “peace activist.” She identifies in absolute terms with Hamas, despite the fact that she knows that it is an anti-Semitic organization that has insisted on continued violence, openly preaches for the annihilation of the Jews and supports global jihad and the Islamic conquest of the entire free world. I am merely worried about the children of Gaza, said Nobel peace prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire in court, and we almost wanted to send her flowers. Worry about the fate of children, as such, is important. But Maguire couldn’t...

SNIPPET: "Palestinian news agencies reported that Egyptian officials sand that local security forces were dispatched to the area to neutralize an old mortar dud when they discovered that a half ton of explosives packed in bags hiding beneath it. (Ynet)"

NOTE: THIS IS THE NEW ISRAEL-RELATED THREAD Note The following news brief is a quote: Report: IDF attacks targets in south, central Gaza Strip Published: 08.17.10, 23:45 / Israel News Palestinians reported that the IDF had fired towards open ground in Khan Younis and attacked the smuggling tunnels in the south of the Gaza Strip. No injuries were reported. Two IDF soldiers were lightly wounded Tuesday morning from shells fired into the western Negev. (Ali Waked)

SNIPPET: "Iranian parliament member Mahmoud Ahmadi Bigesh said Wednesday that Egypt has promised to issue entry permits for him and three of his fellow parliament members, who want to enter the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing."

SNIPPET: "Police are working to figure out the origin of the rocket that was fired from the Gaza Strip Saturday evening and exploded near Kibbutz Nahal Oz, without causing damage or injures. A total of four rockets and two mortar shells were fired at Israel on Saturday, causing no injuries. An initial examination revealed that the rocket fired at Nahal Oz was manufactured using professional means, most likely outside of the borders of the Gaza Strip. The rocket had a diameter of 115 millimeters, and police sappers were working to locate fragments of it to be tested."

Israel inched a step closer recently to deploying a missile defense system along the border with the Gaza Strip after the Iron Dome system successfully intercepted a number of missile barrages in tests. The tests were overseen by the Defense Ministry, the Israel Air Force and the Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd. which developed the Iron Dome, slated to be declared operational in the near future. Israel inched a step closer recently to deploying a missile defense system along the border with the Gaza Strip after the Iron Dome system successfully intercepted a number of missile barrages in tests. The...

first glance, the takeover by the Israeli Navy of the "humanitarian flotilla" heading towards Gaza is just one more of the disputed crises between Israel and its foes. As in all previous incidents, the spiral of accusations will eventually reach bottom. While media attention will highlight the tactical events—seizure of the ships, rules of engagement, who fired first, the legal location of the incident and the other dramatic details—the rapidly expanding debate will soon reach the strategic intent of the "flotilla." After all the governments involved issue their condemnations and warnings in all directions, after the UN conferences and issues...

IDF strikes in Gaza in response to rocket Air Force planes target weapons warehouse, two smuggling tunnels in Strip; no injuries reported Hanan Greenberg Published: 06.25.10, 07:57 / Israel News Israel Air Force aircraft bombed a weapons warehouse in northern Gaza and two smuggling tunnels in the southern Strip on Thursday night. The Israel Defense Forces said the targets were hit and that all planes returned safely to their base. There were no reports of injuries. The attack was a response to the firing of a rocket and mortar shells at western Negev communities on Thursday. The IDF stressed that...

A new video has been released that pieces together the Gaza Flotilla incident that blatantly shows Israel was acting in self-defense, not as the attackers. Parts in the video show members aboard the flotilla uttering statements at the Israeli’s such as “Shut the f*ck up”, “Go back to Auschwitz”, “We’re helping Arabs going against the U.S”, and ” Don’t forget 9/11 guys.” Be sure to watch the full 8- minutes to get the full story. (video inside link)

Turkey’s decision to veto the latest U.N. Security Council resolution on Iran should be of concern for all those, like me, who desire a peaceful resolution of the international crisis over Iran’s nuclear programme. The Turks are apparently upset that the West has not responded positively to the nuclear deal it recently negotiated with Iran, with Brazil’s assistance, whereby Tehran would ship some of its stockpile of enriched uranium to Ankara in return for fuel rods for its so-called research reactor in Tehran. In fact this deal was nothing more than a watered-down version of the agreement Iran negotiated with...

Cadmium. Sounds like a super cool name for a new car, doesn't it? Wow, here the voiceover on the commercial: "Be the first on your block to drive the new Cadmium." Actually, you likely would not want to because of what that name means. According to HealthLine.com, Cadmium can be very toxic, and is dangerous if it is swallowed or inhaled. It is used in a large number of industrial applications. In the United States, over 10 million pounds of cadmium are used industrially every year. While spontaneous recovery from mild cadmium exposure is common, doses as low as 10...

The Israel Air Force has installed a command and control system to help respond to an enemy missile strike. Officials said the Air Force has installed the Magnet system in all bases. They said Magnet, which links to radar and sensors, facilitates the rapid transfer of data to military headquarters. "The new system can send a warning regarding missiles hitting any base through a message on the screen," Maj. Itzik Ben-Simon, an Air Force operations chief, said. "Until now, the alerts were relayed by phone from the control cell in Tel Aviv." Officials said Magnet has included a computerized operations...

Israel's intelligence community has found that the Turkish organizer of the seven-ship flotilla that unsuccessfully sought to reach the Gaza Strip was linked to Al Qaida. The Israeli Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center deemed the Turkish Humanitarian Relief Foundation, known by its Turkish acronym IHH, a leading supporter of Al Qaida in its insurgency campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. The state-supported center, meant to be the open-source arm of the Israeli intelligence community, said numerous foundation members have been arrested by Turkish security services for trying to ship weapons to Afghanistan. "The IHH initiated a number of 'humanitarian aid' convoys...

Dozens of passengers who were aboard the Mavi Marmara Turkish passenger ship are suspected of having connections with global jihad-affiliated terrorist organizations, defense officials said on Tuesday, amid growing concerns that Turkish warships would accompany a future flotilla to the Gaza Strip. According to the defense officials, the IDF has identified about 50 passengers on the ship who could have terrorist connections with global jihad-affiliated groups. RELATED: Editorial: A turning point for Turkey What is the IHH? During its searches of the Mavi Marmara on Tuesday, the military also discovered a cache of bulletproof vests and night-vision goggles, as well...

Recent accounts attacking Israel for action taken toward “humanitarian activists,” as they like to call them, have been all but factual. Israel has been victimized by anti-Semitic activists sent to “break” the barrier for the passage of weapons (likely originating from Iran) to the Gaza strip. With outside help, these terrorist groups, including Hamas and Hezbollah, have been able to launch attacks on innocent Israeli citizens and IDF troops including over 12,000 small rockets. One accurate report said it best: “Under international law, Israel has the right to protect the lives of its civilians from Hamas attacks, and, consequently, has...

The “Gaza Freedom Flotilla” set sail last week for the Hamas-controlled Gaza region, claiming to be carrying humanitarian aid. Israeli Navy ships requested late Sunday night that the activists change course from Gaza to Ashdod, where they would be able to unload their aid material, which would then be transferred over land to Gaza after undergoing security inspections.

Exclusive video and photos from outside the Turkish Embassy in Tel Aviv show a growing crowd of protesters upset over the Turkish government's decision to provoke Israel through its participation in the so-called "aid flotilla" off Israeli coast.

The Israeli navy made its first contact with a flotilla carrying hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists and thousands of tons of supplies for Gaza shortly before midnight on Sunday, surprising the boats in international waters, according to activists on one vessel. Israel has vowed not to let the flotilla reach the shores of Gaza, where the Islamic militant group Hamas holds sway, putting the activists and the Israelis on a high-profile public relations collision course. Named the Freedom Flotilla and led by the pro-Palestinian Free Gaza Movement and a Turkish organization, Insani Yardim Vakfi, the convoy of six cargo and passenger...

The Israel Navy has been training to block a Western-organized flotilla of ships from reaching the Gaza Strip over the next few days.Sources did not rule out the prospect that the flotilla would contain military or dual-use components sought by Hamas. Israel's military has determined that the Hamas regime has intensified weapons smuggling efforts to the Gaza Strip. Military sources said Hamas and its Palestinian allies were employing a range of routes to bring weapons, fuel and cash to the Gaza Strip. The sources said Hamas was being hampered by increasing efforts by Egypt and Israel. "Hamas uses all means...

Israel has warned that its naval forces will prevent a Turkish-led flotilla of eight blockade-running ships carrying 10,000 tons of aid for the besieged Gaza Strip, a confrontation that could deliver the death blow to the crumbling alliance between Israel and Turkey. The breakup of that strategic alliance was triggered by Israel's 22-day invasion of Gaza in December 2008. Turkey's Islamist government led by Prime Minister Tayep Reccep Erdogan bitterly and volubly opposed that incursion in which some 1,300 Palestinians, mostly civilians, were killed. The alliance with Muslim Turkey, a member of NATO and a key military power in the...

SNIPPET: "Israel Air Force jets attacked three tunnels in the Gaza Strip in a joint Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet operation on Thursday night, several hours after a Qassam rocket hit the Ashkelon Coast Regional Council. Two of the targets attacked were in the southern Strip and one was in the northern Strip. According to the IDF, terrorists were using the tunnels to try to infiltrate Israel. The IDF Spokesperson's Office said the tunnels were located about 1 kilometer (0.62 miles) from the border fence and that the targets were hit. There have been no reports of injuries among...

As Hezbollah builds up its rocket arsenal, Israel has asked Washington to help pay for more Iron Dome anti-missile batteries to shield the Jewish state. The Jerusalem Post reports that the Israeli Defense Ministry wants to buy more than a dozen batteries of the system designed to counter short-range missiles fired by the Iranian-backed Lebanese guerrillas and Palestinian Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. The ministry had allocated $250 million for the development of the system, the bottom layer of a planned three-tier missile defense shield, and the purchase of two batteries. Each Iron Dome battery costs around $25 million,...

SNIPPET: “The recent news that Hamas militants broke into a Gaza Strip branch of the Bank of Palestine and stole $400,000 which had been frozen as part of terrorism investigation indicates that no matter what the Palestinian Authority may try, Hamas is willing to use violence to protect its interests. While the fractured government in the Palestinian territories has been making small steps towards stemming the flow of terrorist financing, it remains an uphill battle." Read more at: http://www.investigativeproject.org/1907/fighting-terrorist-financing-in-the-palestinian

Obama amputates our nuclear arms By: Charles Krauthammer ...snippet...Under President Obama’s new policy, however, if the state that has just attacked us with biological or chemical weapons is “in compliance with the Non-Proliferation Treaty,” explained Gates, then “the U.S. pledges not to use or threaten to use nuclear weapons against it.” Imagine the scenario: Hundreds of thousands are lying dead in the streets of Boston after a massive anthrax or nerve gas attack. The president immediately calls in the lawyers to determine whether the attacking state is in compliance with the NPT. If it turns out that the attacker...

"Air Force strikes in Gaza" SNIPPET: "IDF retaliates for deadly Qassam attack: Air Force hits several Gaza targets, including metal foundry, smuggling tunnel; Vice PM Shalom says Israel to offer strong response to rocket attack that killed Thai worker Thursday" SNIPPET: "IDF aircraft struck at least four targets in the Gaza Strip on Friday, a day after a rocket fired from the Palestinian enclave killed a Thai worker in Israel, Hamas security officials and witnesses said." SNIPPET: "Israel also sent a letter of complaint to United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who is due to visit Israel at the weekend,...

Hamas has submitted a request for a Chinese-origin cruise missile deployed by another Iranian proxy, Hizbullah. Israeli military sources asserted that Hamas was seeking to acquire the Chinese-origin C-802 anti-ship missile from Iran. The sources said Hamas has determined that the C-802 would comprise a deterrent against Israel Navy operations along the Gaza coast. "Hamas believes that the Israel Navy would significantly reduce its presence [because of the C-802] and operate farther away from the Gaza coast," a military source said. The sources said Hamas has been briefed by Hizbullah on the C-802. Hizbullah, aided by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard...

The Fatah-supported opposition, with help from Al Qaida-aligned elements, continues to target Hamas security forces. Palestinian sources said Fatah and Al Qaida-aligned elements were collaborating in a campaign to destabilize the Hamas regime in the Gaza Strip. They said Fatah was engaging Islamist fighters to attack both Hamas security forces as well as businessmen close to the Hamas regime. "The attacks have been taking place about every week," a Palestinian source said.

Al Qaida is reportedly targeting Palestinian refugee camps for indoctrination and recruitment. The Jamestown Foundation said Al Qaida and its allies were bolstering efforts to infiltrate Palestinian refugee camps in the Gaza Strip, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria. The foundation, in a report by Murad Batal Al Shishani, said the Al Qaida-aligned Fatah Al Islam was recruiting cells in such Lebanese camps as Bidawi and Burj Al Shamali. "If training and organization become available to these young people they have the potential to become a threat to not only the countries in which they reside, but to the region as a...

A year after Israeli forces devastated the Gaza Strip, relief workers and others say the overcrowded Palestinian territory, throttled by economic blockade, is being steadily infiltrated by militants inspired by al-Qaida who are getting ready to challenge Hamas for control. The operational capabilities of these groups, which follow the puritanical Salafist strain of Sunni Islam, remain rather murky. But the last thing Israel wants is jihadist groups active on its southern border. Hamas is faced with eroding popular support following Israel's 22-day invasion in which some 1,200 Gazans, mostly civilians, perished. These groups are reported to have a combined strength...

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip – Islamic radicals from an al-Qaida-inspired group battled Hamas security in the Gaza Strip Friday in a shootout that killed at least seven people. The fighting began when Hamas forces surrounded a mosque in the southern Gaza town of Rafah where about 100 members of Jund Ansar Allah, or the Soldiers of the Companions of God, were holed up, including some armed with suicide belts and rifles, according to residents of the area. The confrontation was triggered when the leader of the group defied Gaza's Hamas rulers by declaring in a Friday prayer sermon that the...

Israeli warplanes bombed a Hamas security outpost and tunnels by the Gaza border with Egypt on Tuesday, after a rocket fired from the coastal territory struck an Israeli town, Israeli and Hamas sources said. Palestinian medics said a woman in Gaza suffered moderate wounds from one of several air strikes against tunnels Israel says are used to smuggle weapons into the coastal territory. Another raid targeted a Hamas outpost near a border fence with Israel, a Hamas source said. It was the first time Israel has attacked the Islamic militant group since a January 18 ceasefire went into effect after...

Tensions between Egypt and Lebanon’s Hizbollah group have escalated after the Shia movement admitted that one of its members had been smuggling weapons from Egypt to the Gaza Strip. The Egyptian authorities were chasing 10 Lebanese men on Monday, allegedly members of a Hizbollah cell, on the Sinai peninsula, which shares a border with the Gaza Strip, in a crackdown on a group that they claim was planning to attack Egyptian institutions and Israeli tourists.

Note: The following news brief is a quote: http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3692502,00.html Report: IAF struck arms convoy for Hamas in Sudan in January Published: 03.26.09, 07:09 / Israel News Israeli planes struck in January a convoy of trucks in Sudan carrying weapons meant for the Gaza Strip, the CBS television network reported Thursday. According to the report 17 trucks had been bombed and 39 people had been killed in the strike. (Ynet)

Published: 03.23.09, 11:54 / Israel News Egyptian police seized a flock of 560 sheep set to be smuggled into the Gaza Strip through underground tunnels. SNIPPET: "A security official says the flock was discovered on Sunday night, along with the entrances to six tunnels in the Salah el-Din district north of the Rafah border crossing. Police seized five tons of cement and found a half ton cache of TNT hidden in near the border."

Mash’al In Iran: ‘Our Battle Is Your Battle’; ‘Together We Will Liberate Jerusalem’; Iran Will Help Rebuild Gaza; French Leaders ‘Collaborators’ In Zionists’ Gaza Massacres In a speech at the Iranian Majlis, Hamas leader Khaled Mash’al said that Hamas will not stop smuggling weapons, because doing so would be against the armed struggle. He told Iranian MPs: “Our battle is your battle... Your support for the resistance in Palestine is support for yourselves. He called on Europe to adjust its policy vis-à-vis Hamas, and to influence the U.S. to do likewise. He said that Hamas aspires to liberate Jerusalem and...

"$20,000 reward offered for arrests in vandalism of synagogues, schools Jewish organizations seek leads to hate crimes in West Ridge, Lake View" SNIPPET: "Jenna Benn, assistant director of the Anti-Defamation League, said the five incidents may be the result of increased tensions in the Gaza Strip between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas." SNIPPET: "Benn asked that anyone with information about the attacks call the Anti-Defamation League at 312-782-5080. Rottner said the Belmont and Western Area 3 hate crimes unit can take calls at 312-744-8320."

RAMALLAH: After nearly two weeks of showing a united front in the face of Israel’s war in Gaza, some Palestinians are starting to slam Hamas for dragging its feet on a truce as the death toll mounts. With Hamas maintaining a tight grip on the Gaza Strip, most of the critical voices are coming from the rival Palestinian Authority in the West Bank, whose forces the Islamists routed from the coastal enclave in June 2007. Those close to the Fatah party of moderate president Mahmoud Abbas accuse Hamas of trying to extract political gains from the Gaza offensive all the...

(YNET NEWS.com) January 16, 2009 "THE GUARDIANS OF ISRAEL NEITHER SLUMBER NOR SLEEP" SNIPPET: "Israel and the US succeeded in preventing a United Nations announcement condemning the Jewish state for its strike on a UN compound in Gaza Thursday. The condemnation was proposed by Britain among other countries." SNIPPET: "Prime Minister Ehud Olmert apologized for the incident before UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, but stressed that IDF forces were attacked from the building before it was hit."

JANUARY 15, 2009...22:58 "IDF Targets Senior Hamas Leader, Summary of Today’s Events, 15 Jan 2009, 22:10 IST" SNIPPET: "January 15th, 2009 IDF Targets Senior Hamas Leader Said Siam Summary of Today’s Aerial Attacks In a joint IDF and ISA operation in Gaza City early Thursday evening, the IAF targeted a building in which the following senior Hamas operatives were residing – Said Siam, Ia’ad Siam and Salah Abu-Sharah. The forces reported a direct hit."

Note: Photo included. SNIPPET: "Mexico condemns the excessive use of force associated with the Israeli army operation in Gaza, " a statement from the Mexican Foreign Ministry said late Tuesday. It also condemned "the continued launching of mortars into Israeli territory from the Gaza Strip". Latin American countries have largely condemned Israel over its launch of 'Operation Cast Lead' on Gaza on December 27. Immediately after Israeli warplanes attacked the strip, Cuba called the offensive an "act of genocide" and a "criminal military operation, the bloodiest one executed by Israel against the Palestinian people." Three day later, the Bolivian Foreign...

SNIPPET: "A North Texas imam is calling on Muslims to take up arms in defense of Palestinians in Gaza. Sheikh Mohamed El-Moctar El-Shinqiti, director of the Islamic Center of South Plains in Lubbock, Texas, participated in an online chat, "Fatwas on Gaza," at the web site IslamOnline.net. El-Shinqiti encouraged readers to fight - or if they can't, to send money to those who are fighting - in response to six out of the eight questions posed to him in the online chat. When asked what can be done to help the people in Gaza, El-Shinqiti emphasized war over sending food...

"HAMAS MISSILES FOR ISRAELI FOOD" (Added January 12, 2009) VIDEO DESCRIPTION - QUOTE: IsraelMFA January 12, 2009 Israel gives food, medicine and electricity to Gaza citizens and gets rockets in return. Category: News & Politics Tags: Israel Hamas war rockets missile humanitarian aid children shield Gaza

"HAMAS AND THEIR SYSTEMATIC VIOLATION OF INTERNATIONAL LAWS (NOT TO MENTION BASIC HUMAN DECENCY)" "Video follows"