Tag Archive for Syria

| August 5, 2012
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As War Looms, Israel Upgrades its Missile Shield

Israel Defense Official: Anticipating an attack by Iran & Syria , Israel is upgrading its US-backed Arrow Missile Shield

By Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu

 

Israel is racing against an attack by Iran and Syria and is upgrading its

An Arrow anti-ballistic defense battery.

An Arrow anti-ballistic defense battery.

US-backed Arrow missile shield in the wake of a possible a chemical weapon attack from Syria, a defense official told Reuters Sunday.

An experiment on the Arrow

An experiment on the Arrow
Israel news photo: IDF spokesman

The new “Block 4” generation of guided interceptor rockets, radars and technologies for synchronizing Arrow with U.S. systems was being installed in deployed Israeli batteries, a process that would take several weeks, the official told the news agency. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| July 30, 2012
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Court Order Lifted: Golan Druze Spied for Syria

Druze resident from the Golan Heights has been charged with aiding Syria by turning over intel on IDF patrols & activities.

By Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu

 

 

A Golan Heights Druze resident has been charged with aiding Syria by turning over information on IDF patrols and giving Syria equipment for wiretapping. A gag order on the arrest was lifted Monday.

Golan Druze resident Juri indicted for spying

Golan Druze resident Juri indicted for spying
Israel news photo: Israel Security Agency

Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) and Golan Heights police arrested Iyad Jamad Assad Juhri of the Druze city of Majdal Shams, located adjacent to the Syrian border. He has admitted to gathering information  for Syrian intelligence and to transferring to Syria equipment that might be used for wiretapping. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: ,
| July 29, 2012
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Chinese destroyer crosses Suez Canal & enters Mediterranean Sea

Warship crosses via Suez into Mediterranean , possibly en route to Syrian coast for naval exercises

By Roi Kais

 

A Chinese destroyer sailed through Egypt’s Suez Canal into the Mediterranean Sea, Egyptian daily Al-Shuruk reported on Sunday.

The destroyer could be on its way to the Syrian coast, the Egyptian newspaper reported, adding that the warship is planning to hold naval maneuvers in the area.

Iranian ship in Suez Canal (archives) – Photo: Reuters

Al Shuruk daily further claimed that the canal authority authorized the Chinese ship’s crossing through the canal following permission from the Egyptian armed forces.

Meanwhile, Egypt’s Al-Wafd website reported that high security measures were taken during the ship’s crossing of the canal. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| July 28, 2012
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Syria’s Assad loosing support from the Golan Heights Druze

Druze families in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights are divided between supporters of the revolt and backers of the regime.

By The Associated Press

 

The raging civil war just across the cease-fire line in Syria is posing an uncomfortable political choice for the Druze people in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights.

Do they maintain their traditional loyalty to the government of Bashar Assad, whose family has vowed to take back the territory? Or should they support the burgeoning Arab revolt against Assad’s harsh rule?

In the shifting sands of the Middle East, the Druze again find themselves a people caught in the middle. Continue Reading »

Category: Israel News | Tags: , ,
| July 24, 2012
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After threat by Assad official, Russia warns Syria: Do not use chemical weapons.

Syrian Foreign Ministry Statement comes as top Iranian general threatens Arab states that attempt to topple Assad regime.

By Reuters and The Associated Press

 

Russia warned Syria on Tuesday not to use chemical weapons, saying Moscow “proceeds from the assumption” that the government will adhere to its international obligations.

In a statement, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Syria had ratified an international protocol in 1968 that bars the use of poison gases as a method of warfare.

A satellite image of al-Safir, Syria's main chemical weapons facility, near Aleppo.

A satellite image of al-Safir, Syria’s main chemical weapons facility, near Aleppo. – Photo by GlobalSecurity.org

Syrian Foreign Ministry spokesman Jihad Makdissi acknowledged on Monday that the country had chemical weapons, saying it would not use them to crush rebels but could use them

Also on Tuesday, an Iranian semi-official news agency quoted the commander of Iran’s powerful Revolutionary Guards as warning “hated Arab” rivals that they could face repercussions for their efforts to topple the Tehran-backed regime of President Bashar Assad in Syria. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| July 19, 2012
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IDF raises its alert level in the North, limits soldiers’ leaves

Military to exercise additional vigilance due to volatile situation in Syria

By Yoav Zitun

 

The IDF has decided to limit soldiers’ leaves over mounting tensions in Syria, as well as raising the alert level across the Northern Command, Ynet learned Thursday.

The northern border – Photo: AFP

The decision following an IDF situation assessment it was decided to cancel the weekend leaves for some soldiers stationed on the northern border.

An IDF Spokesperson’s Unit statement confirmed that an order was given, stressing it was “thinned out” almost immediately.

The move was also prompted by the growing concerns regarding Damascus chemical weapons’ stockpiles. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| July 14, 2012
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Turkish military now tries to downplay speculation over jet downed by Syria

Speculation in Turkey has been mounting since their armed forces released a written statement on Wednesday that appeared to contradict all previous official accounts of the June 22 incident.

By Reuters

 

 

The Turkish military on Friday tried to damp down speculation about the loss of one of its warplanes last month, repeating its assertion the jet was shot down by Syria and by something other than anti-aircraft fire.

Speculation in Turkey has been mounting since the armed forces released a written statement on Wednesday that appeared to contradict previous official accounts of the June 22 incident and suggested the military may be revising its initial stance. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| July 13, 2012
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The US believes Syria is moving part of their chemical stockpile

Officials concerned that Syria is moving  stockpiles of sarin nerve agent, mustard gas & cyanide, shows intent to use weapons; others suggest he’s safeguarding them, ‘The Wall Street Journal’ reports.

 

WASHINGTON- US officials said that Syria has started to move part of its chemical weapons arsenal out of storage facilities, the Wall Street Journal reported on Friday.

Chemical WMDs (illustrative) - Photo: Reuters

Chemical WMDs (illustrative) – Photo: Reuters

The country’s undeclared stockpiles of sarin nerve agent, mustard gas and cyanide have long worried US officials and their allies in the region, the report said.

Western nations have looked for signs amid the rebellion against President Bashar Assad’s government of any change in the location of those weapons, believed to be the world’s largest stockpile.

Continue Reading »
Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| July 9, 2012
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Syria’s Assad says not afraid of meeting same fate as Mubarak, Gadhafi

In rare interview with Western media, Assad says the U.S. ultimately bears responsibility for the deaths of innocent civilians in the Middle Eastern nation.

 

Syrian President Bashar Assad said in an interview broadcast Sunday that he is not afraid of meeting the same fate as the deposed and disgraced leaders of Libya and Egypt, saying he has nothing in common with them.

In one of his rare interviews with Western media since the deadly uprising in Syria erupted last year, Assad brushed off a question about whether he feared for his family, including his wife and three children. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| July 5, 2012
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UN Watch Exclusive Report: Syria Running for the U.N. Human Rights Council, Says U.S.

U.S.-Sponsored Resolution Slams Syrian Candidacy

By Hillel Neuer

GENEVA – In the past decade, the U.N. Human Rights Council elected Col. Muammar Gaddafi’s Libya as chair, hailed Sri Lanka’s “promotion and protection of all human rights” after its army had killed thousands of civilians, and convened an emergency session to lament the death of Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, founder of the Hamas terrorist organization.

Even so, historians will now have to decide whether the U.N.’s flagship human rights body is about to sink to a new low.

According to a U.S.-sponsored and EU-backed draft resolution that was debated today during informal meetings at the council in Geneva, the murderous regime of Bashar al-Assad is a declared candidate for a seat on the 47-nation U.N. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| June 29, 2012
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Hamas operatives head to Jordan for assassinated terrorist’s funeral

Group’s Politburo Chief Khaled Mashaal, other officials attend funeral of Hamas member who was assassinated in Damascus. ‘He survived several attempts on his life,’ say anonymous Hamas source

By Elior Levy

 

 

The mystery surrounding the assassination of Hamas official Kamal Ranaja in Damascus on Wednesday has yet to be resolved, but media outlets released new details Thursday shedding light on the life of the man who replaced Mahmoud al-Mabhouh and was claimed to be a key player in the organization’s military wing.

Ranaja

Ranaja

According to reports, between 12 and 24 hours passed before Ranaja’s body was discovered. Several eyewitnesses have reported that the house was torched by the assassins, but neighbors claim only the kitchen and entrance were set on fire. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| June 28, 2012
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Assassination in Damascus: ‘Mabhouh’s aide’ killed

Islamist group says it is launching investigation to discover who is behind ‘despicable crime.’ Al-Mayadeen: Kamal Ranaja served as aide to top Hamas man killed in Dubai in 2010

Elior Levy

 

 

A senior Hamas operative has been assassinated in his Damascus apartment, the Islamist terror group announced Wednesday evening.

According to a statement by a member of Hamas’ politburo, the organization did not know who was responsible for the death of Kamal Ranaja, known as Nizzar Abu-Mujhad, but was launching an investigation to discover who is behind the “despicable crime.”

There was no word about the manner in which Ranaja met his death. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| June 15, 2012
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‘Olmert bombed Syria reactor despite US push for diplomacy’

In exclusive interview with ‘Post’, former US foreign policy advisor Elliott Abrams defends Netanyahu over critical State Comptroller report, says more important than preparation is the right people making the right decisions.

 

By HERB KEINON

 

Former  prime minister Ehud Olmert decided in September 2007 to bomb the al-Kabir nuclear facility in Syria after then-president George W. Bush told him the US had opted for the diplomatic route and was trying to get the International Atomic Energy Agency to close the site, Elliott Abrams told The Jerusalem Post on Thursday.

Asked about Wednesday’s Israeli State Comptroller’s Report chastising the government for a haphazard decision-making process, Abrams said Bush was provided with impeccable options, policy papers and intelligence.“We Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| June 8, 2012
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Syria atrocities to go on

Op-ed: Condemnations of Assad meaningless as long as China, Russia and Iran think he’s legitimate

 

The Russians have no problem telling the truth: They have no idea of the direction the Syrian crisis is heading to. In ongoing diplomatic contacts among Israel and senior Russian officials, the Russians admit that their policy is determined from one week to the next.

Houla massacre Photo: AP

Houla massacre - Photo: AP

In fact, they’re not alone. The Russian policy, which the Chinese share, is no different in essence than Europe’s and America’s policy towards Syria. In Mideastern terms we can say that both sides are making their decisions from one massacre to the next. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: ,
| June 3, 2012
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Seven killed in clashes between pro- and anti-Assad groups in Lebanon

Clashes in northern Lebanese city of Tripoli raise fears of an escalation of sectarian tensions in Lebanon.

 

Gunbattles between pro- and anti-Syrian groups in northern Lebanon killed at least seven people and wounded 22 on Saturday, security officials said, as activists reported fresh shelling in a region in central Syria where a massacre last week left more than 100 people dead.

The clashes were the latest to hit the Lebanese port of Tripoli. Repeated outbreaks of violence in the city, the country’s second largest, are seen as spillover from the conflict in neighboring Syria and have raised fears of an escalation in sectarian tensions in Lebanon. Continue Reading »

Category: Mid-East News | Tags: , , , ,
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