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Prepared for the Conference of Presidents of Major American Jewish Organizations by the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs | ||||
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Tuesday, June 8, 2010 | ||
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In-Depth Issues:
U.S. Poll: Pro-Palestinian Activists to Blame for Flotilla Deaths (Rasmussen Reports)
Report: Bin Laden Guarded by Iranian Troops in Iran (MEMRI)
International Donations Not Always Welcome in Gaza - Ulrike Putz (Der Spiegel-Germany)
Israeli PR Machine Won Gaza Flotilla Media Battle - Antony Lerman (Guardian-UK)
Arab Cartoonists on the Gaza Flotilla (Anti-Defamation League)
Flotilla Crisis May Hurt Turkish-Israeli Trade - Ari Rabinovitch and Joseph Nasr (Reuters)
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News Resources - North America, Europe, and Asia:
With a vote on new sanctions against Iran only days away, the Obama administration is making the case to members of the UN Security Council that Iran has revived elements of its program to design nuclear weapons that American intelligence agencies previously concluded had gone dormant. Classified intelligence briefings for foreign leaders "made the point that the Iranians are doing both dual-use research and some things that you can explain only by an interest in nuclear weapons," said a senior administration official. Asked whether the new findings constituted a rejection of the 2007 intelligence estimate, the official said it was not a reversal as much as an "evolution based on new information." (New York Times) See also Iran Uses Stratagems to Avoid Sanctions - Jo Becker Iran has used a succession of stratagems to smuggle weapons in violation of an international embargo - changing not just ships' flags and names but their owners, operators and managers, too - to stay one step ahead of its pursuers. This cat-and-mouse game offers a case study in the difficulties of enforcing sanctions. (New York Times) See also Iran Using Dubai to Smuggle Nuclear Components - Con Coughlin A Dubai trading company has sold Iran a range of high-grade German electronic equipment for use at its Natanz uranium enrichment facility, including computers, controllers, communication cards and cables. The equipment was sold to Iran without the knowledge of its German manufacturer using false end-user certificates for companies in Asia. "The Iranians are still managing to smuggle sophisticated technology through Dubai for its nuclear program by using false certificates and unscrupulous intermediaries," said a senior UN source. (Sunday Telegraph-UK) Turkey is dividing over the government's handling of the Gaza flotilla affair and the role of the Islamist charity that organized the aid convoy. Opposition politicians and some newspaper columnists have expressed concern that the government has been riding public anger at Israel's actions. That, they say, puts at risk Turkey's delicate balance between East and West and allows the charity, the Humanitarian Relief Foundation, or IHH, to have a hand in determining the nation's political agenda. "The [EU] and the U.S. consider Hamas as a terrorist organization. We should be careful," Kemal Kilicdaroglu, head of the main opposition Republican People's Party, told Turkish NTV television Monday, referring to the support the IHH and Turkey's government have shown to Hamas. He also demanded the government release communications with Israel prior to the incident, suggesting it let the flotilla proceed despite knowing that violence was likely. (Wall Street Journal) See also Flotilla Creates Cracks in Turkish Politics (Hurriyet-Turkey) Syria hasn't cooperated with international nuclear inspectors since June 2008 on some sites, Yukiya Amano, the director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency, told the IAEA board of governors Monday in Vienna. Amano called on Damascus to cooperate with the agency "on all matters." (UPI) News Resources - Israel and the Mideast:
Hamas is preventing the goods brought by the flotilla from entering Gaza. In the meantime the goods continue to pile up in the army's warehouses. (Ynet News) The Palestinian Authority is concerned about Turkey's increased support for Hamas, a PA official in Ramallah said on Monday. He said the PA leadership was "unhappy" with Turkey's policy toward Hamas, especially with regard to pressure to lift the blockade on Gaza unconditionally. "Turkey's policy is emboldening Hamas and undermining the Palestinian Authority," he said. PA leader Mahmoud Abbas, who visited Istanbul on Monday, was said to have relayed to Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan his concern over the rapprochement between Turkey and Hamas. (Jerusalem Post) President Obama has updated America's official vision of Israel's future to stress that the Jewish state must ensure equal rights for Israeli Arabs. His new National Security Strategy, released by the White House last month, defines the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in a way that differs from the terminology used by previous American administrations. According to the document, the U.S. seeks two states that will live side by side in peace and security: "a Jewish state of Israel, with true security, acceptance, and rights for all Israelis; and a viable, independent Palestine with contiguous territory that ends the occupation that began in 1967 and realizes the potential of the Palestinian people." Earlier statements by Obama had described Israel as an "independent Jewish state," but made no mention of the rights of its citizens. The new version apparently seeks to address the Palestinian claim that recognizing Israel as a Jewish state would harm the rights of Israeli Arabs. (Ha'aretz) Global Commentary and Think-Tank Analysis (Best of U.S., UK, and Israel):
No one who supports a peace settlement in the Middle East can also favor the removal of all controls on ships traveling to Gaza. The result would be a repeat of what has happened in southern Lebanon since Israel's withdrawal: the massive supply of weapons, including medium-range missiles, to Tehran's client. Hamas used Iranian missiles against Israel during their 2008 conflict, and an open sea border would only multiply the odds that such a war would be repeated. It would hand Hamas, which vehemently opposes an Israeli-Palestinian settlement, the means to interrupt peace talks at any time. (Washington Post) The most elementary honesty requires one to make it clear that the blockade imposed "by Israel" has been undertaken by Israel and Egypt jointly, with the thinly-disguised blessing of all the moderate Arab regimes. The latter are only too happy to see someone else contain the influence of this armed extension, this advanced base and, perhaps one day, this aircraft carrier of Iran in the region. We mustn't tire of reminding others the blockade concerns only arms and the material necessary to manufacture them. It does not prevent the daily arrival, via Israel, of 100-120 trucks laden with foodstuffs, medical supplies, and humanitarian goods of every kind; humanity is not "in danger" in Gaza, and it is a lie to state that people are "dying of hunger" in the streets of Gaza City. (Huffington Post) Next to Iran, NATO member Turkey is now the biggest headache for the West. Turkey has seen the leadership of the region up for grabs - and is going for it. It has drawn Syria into its orbit and has reached a nuclear deal with Iran, its rival for hegemony. What better way to pursue this end than to lead a crusade against the Jewish state? Going after the "Little Satan" is the card that trumps them all, and it embarrasses the "Great Satan" to boot. The real game is about dominance at the expense of America. The U.S. must learn that the real contest is between itself, Turkey and Iran. It is now up against both. Obama thinks that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the source of all trouble. If it were, Iran would not be trying to develop nuclear weapons and Turkey would not be seeking mastery over its ancient domain. Nor were Palestinians on the mind of the previous claimants to hegemony - from Nasser's Egypt to Saddam's Iraq. Terror in Pakistan, Iraq, Turkey and Afghanistan is not designed to uproot Jewish settlements. It is not Israel that motivates Syria's recolonization of Lebanon. Turkey and Iran are not vying for control so as to promote a two-state solution. Palestine has got nothing to do with it. The writer is editor of Die Zeit, a senior fellow at Stanford's Institute for International Studies and Abramowitz fellow of the Hoover Institution. (Financial Times-UK) Once the dust settles down, as it has started to, sensible and level-headed minds in Turkey and Israel will have to sit down and consider how matters could have been brought to such a head. How can such a large country as Turkey be dragged to the brink of war by a nongovernmental organization? This happened because the NGO in question is a "governmental non-governmental-organization." There can be no mistake that the Erdogan government is morally and politically behind the IHH. It will be recalled that the same group tried to force its way through the sealed off Rafah gate between Egypt and Gaza some months ago, only to end up clashing with Egyptian forces and straining ties between Ankara and Cairo. (Hurriyet-Turkey) Observations: Abandoning the Gaza Blockade Would Hand a Victory to Israel's Enemies - Jonah Goldberg (Los Angeles Times)
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