ISRAEL'S GAZA BLITZKRIEGThe Beginning of the End ?

News of the Day (latest update further down!)

Already 360 Palestinians killed and 1.700 wounded on the fourth day of Israel's attack on Gaza have incited anti-Israeli rallies around the world:

Manifestations in Beirut as well as Amman/Jordan where 25.000 rose in protest.

Egypt now opens its border to Gaza for the rescue of wounded Palestinians.

The Muslim majority of Indonesia's 220 million inhabitants opposes Israel's Gaza attack, says Professor Bahtiar Effendy from Islamic State University, Jakarta.

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UPDATE (January 4, 2009):

Meanwhile, the figure of Palestinians killed has risen to more than 500. Many Palestinian families lost their homes while Israel's army joint their airforce and navy in the merciless bombardment when it passed the border to separate Gaza City from the rest of the Gaza strip. Voices from all over the world, including the UN Security Council, are demanding Israel to stop the bloodshed.

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UPDATE (January 11, 2009):

Latest overall toll of casualties :
January 10 (day 15 of war) - 830 Palestinians killed - 3350 wounded.
January 11 (day 16 of war) - 888 Palestinians killed - 4080 wounded.
13 Israelis killed since war on Gaza began. [All data from Al-Jazeera International]


Israeli bombing of tunnels crossing the Gaza-Egypt border. Those tunnels are being used for smuggling of goods (including cattle !) and weapons:
300-600 tunnels
8-20 m deep
200-1.000 m long

Israel is accused of using white phosphorus in its bombs. Burning phosphorus is known to inflict serious wounds when coming in contact with the human body. A similar devastating effect could be achieved by napalm which the U.S. applied in Vietnam against, both, guerillas and civilists.

Indonesia: 50.000 protest against the war on Gaza.

While U.S. president-elect Barack Obama's presidency is approaching, Israel's president Olmert declares "Israeli military close to fulfilling their goals in Gaza".


As Israel is able to apply nuclear weapons, voices are getting louder that it might plan to use those weapons against Iran, best equipped enemy to the Jewish state. U.S. authorities lately denied a report saying they received a request from Jerusalem for additional weapons.

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UPDATE (January 14-15, 2009):

Latest overall toll of casualties :
January 15 (day 20 of war) - 1078 Palestinians killed - more than 5.000 wounded.

Israel accused of shelling UN headquarters in Gaza City while UN general secretary Ban Ki-Moon is holding talks with the Israeli government. Israeli shell hits marked UN vehicle in Gaza.

Gaza's media building hit by Israeli shelling.
Red Crescent hospital in Gaza City hit by Israel.

Voices of the World: Enough is Enough ! يكفي

Qatar calls for emergency summit on Gaza truce.
Israel questions legality of UN emergency meeting.


Venezuela and Bolivia break diplomatic ties with Israel.
Iran is discussing war on Israel.

Oussama Bin Laden (January 14, 2009) is calling for a Holy War on Israel.
بن لادن يدعو للجهاد لوقف العدوان الإسرائيلي على غزة



NHK World TV, Tokyo, (January 14) is discussing the development that led to the current situation: After Hamas won the Palestinian general elections in 2006, differences with its moderate counterpart Fatah increased, thus, resulting in clashes between both groups in 2007. Since then, Gaza has been controlled by Hamas while the former Westbank territory is being ruled by Fatah. Rockets have been launched on Israel from the Gaza strip, steadily but on a low scale, until Israel decided a "bombing out" of Hamas activists from Gaza. A few rockets have even been launched from Lebanon by a small number of Hamas supporters while Lebanese Hizbollah activists were not involved at all.

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UPDATE (January 19, 2009):

While Israeli troops are being withdrawn from Gaza, only hours before U.S. president Obama's inauguration, here's the provisional statistics of human casualties among the Palestinian population and of material damage made to their infrastructure.
The death toll of Palestinians cannot be finally determined at this moment as the rubbles of Palestinian homes are just going to be fully removed. The total assessment of human and material damage could therefore last some further days. By the way, about 100.000 Palestinians have been displaced by the war.
When it comes to the evaluation of Israeli losses in the 22 days lasting war: 13 Israelis are reported to be killed, including three civilians.

Israeli Atrocities Reported

The following images show the urban areas of Gaza that have been shelled by Israeli troops during the last days. Local witnesses in the Rafah area (Gaza's southern border to Egypt) told Al-Jazeera that most damage to houses, plantations and water irrigation devices has been done by Israeli troops while they withdrew from Gaza territory after fighting had ended.
A desperate father reported to Al-Jazeera that his family was ordered by megaphone to leave their home. When they did so, while carrying a white flag, his children were shot from a distance of about ten metres by an Israeli soldier who let their father alive. Images from destroyed homes show Israeli graffiti reading like: "We are the good guys. Yours are the bad ones."

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Comment: The Beginning of the End ?

Even though the dead and the wounded are on the Palestinian side now, this attack might turn out to be the beginning of the end of the state of Israel. As foreign support, even from the U.S., is steadily dwindling, Israel might find itself isolated sooner or later while Palestinian rage is steadily rising as well. On the military side, well-equipped Islamic nations could get into trouble when it comes to maintain a half-hearted "neutrality" towards Israel while essential parts of their population are more and more fiercely opposing that neutrality and pressing their governments for immediate action. Not to mention Iran that seems to be the most decided and most dangerous enemy of Israel. Thus, a situation could emerge in a near future when sufficient military power against Israel comes together with a decreasing international support for that country which has been seen by its neighbours as the origin of conflict since the very moment it came into being. The day to come, even Israel's nuclear potential might lose its scaring power. [December 30, 2008]

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UPDATE (March 26, 2009):

EPILOGUE

An Israeli airstrike in Sudan is reported by Al-Jazeera. The airstrike targeted a convoy that allegedly transported arms from its Sudanese shipping port, Port Sudan, to the Egyptian frontier with Gaza.
While U.S. Africa Command denied any participation in that military action, Israeli government sources launched a statement that confirmed, Israel would hit their enemies whereever it might be necessary. Up to now, the Sudanese government denied any knowledge of that incident on its territory.


At the same time the use of phosphorous in Israeli grenades during the latest Gaza incursion has become a subject of the public debate on Israeli war crimes in Gaza. Earlier reports by Al-Jazeera already showed evidence that Palestinian civilians and their property had been targeted willfully by Israeli forces during the Gaza offensive (look above).

On March 26, 2009 as well, former U.S. ambassador to Saudi-Arabia, Freeman, confirmed the existence of a strong influence of the pro-Israel lobby in his country under the Bush administration and denied the existance of any pro-Arab lobby. He pointed out that, according to president Obama, such kind of lobbyism should play no further role under the new administration. [Interview by Al-Jazeera]

RUSSIA - Gas Cut Off - Plays of Power

UPDATE for January 7, 2009, further down !

Europe - Gas Shortage Predicted

Natural gas supply to Europe could be endangered as Russia is decided to stop further gas supply to Ukraine by the beginning of January 2009. While Russia delivers a quarter of European gas, 80% flowing through the Ukraine, this should effect gas prices in Europe. A similar situation was observed in 2006 after Ukrainian consumers had been cut off from Russian gas supply for the same reason as now: increasing paying debts. In the aftermath of a global financial crisis that has just been softened by joint global efforts, the Ukrainian situation might be even worse than in 2006.
[Reports from China's Renmin Ribao online, December 20, and Al-Jazeera, December 23]

Russia - Plays of Power

بوتين يقول إن عصر الغاز الرخيص يوشك على الانتهإ

When Putin now declares that the extraction of cheap gas is reaching its end, this should be seen in the frame of a new alliance, just being forged between Russia and several oil and gas producing states. That alliance, comprising Iran and Venezuela as its most essential pillars, would then represent the most powerful counterweight to the traditional economic and military alliance between the U.S. and Western Europe. Already equipped with Russian weapons, both states migth soon find themselves united in their enmity against U.S influence under the supervision of Russia. As both countries are being supported either by influential Islamic groups within their own region (Iran) or by a local Latin American alliance (Venezuela), Putin's coup could therefore lead to a revival of Russia's power and glory, known from the days of the former Soviet Union.

روسيا تتهم جورجيا بارتكاب إبادة جماعية في أوسيتيا الجنوبية

When, at the same time, Russia accuses its neighbour and NATO candidate Georgia of practising genocide in South Ossetia, Putin is adding just another action intended to show the U.S. their limits.

UPDATE January 7, 2009:

Today, it became clear to the German government that the actual delivery stop of Russian gas to the Ukraine would effect the gas delivery to Western Europe as well. Even though German energy supply is buffered by huge amounts of stored gas volumes and other ways of delivery, both, the minister of economy Glos and federal chancellor Merkel are showing their concern about the actual situation that is simultaneously affected by a sudden period of very low temperatures in Germany. The situation of Germany's neighbour Poland is even more desolate.


It should be added that all important commercial energy agencies from Germany had observed the Moscow talks about the creation of an international union of gas supplying countries in December. Even though the recent development was already touchable at that time, those agencies gave no warning. Maybe, some German experts are still relying on "comrade" Gerhard Schröder, former German chancellor, close friend to former KGB agent Vladimir Putin and, now, important contact between German economy and Russia's state owned GAZPROM.



In fact, the first news of a delivery stop to Ukraine by the beginning of 2009 had already been launched at a press conference on December 18, 2008 as was reported by a Chinese source (i.e. network of the Chinese metal-processing industry) on the very next day.

Cuba / Venezuela - New Treaties Signed

Annotation: The following post on U.S. President Bush is as hot as this one !

Caracas / 1:50 CET live transmission by Cubavision

On the occasion of the eighth anniversary of cooperation between Cuba and Venezuela, different treaties on the implementation of further common projects are signed by members of both governments.



The Cuban president Raul Castro receives a distinguished decoration from Hugo Chavez, president of Venezuela. Furthermore Raul is given a rapier reminding Simon Bolivar, the liberator of South America from Spanish colonialism. Raul Castro in exchange gives away a photo, dating back from 1958 and kept by Raul as a reminder of the battles later to be fought in the frame of the Cuban revolution. It is showing Raul wearing the uniform of the Cuban guerilleros and in front of a monument dedicated to Simon Bolivar and that had already been decorated with the emblems of, both, Cuba and Venezuela.



In their individual speeches, the leaders of both countries are referring to General Simon Bolivar and General Sucre who were at the origin of Latin American nationalism.

Most important project for Cuba's economy:
Further crude oil from Venezuela will be provided for a new refinery that has recently been established with the help of Venezuela.
The actual volume of economic cooperation between both countries is comprising 3,6 billion $.

U.S. President Bush - Last Pictures

On his final visit to Iraq, a journalist threw his shoes
at the president, simultaneously naming him a "dog".
(December 14, 2008)



Some days ago, Bush introduced his portrait, painted
in oil, with the words: "Welcome to my hanging." Not
quite like national "progenitor" Abraham.


Finally, George Bush exposed himself as a popstar,
seemingly trying to sing the DOW index further down.

GUANTANAMO - September 11 Tribunal"Celebrities" Pleading Guilty

Five long-term detainees at Guantanamo Bay, among them Khalid Sheikh Muhammad, have pleaded guilty before the September 11 tribunal. None of them is showing any regrets at what had happened in 2001. They insist on being sentenced as soon as possible in order to die as martyrs.

غوانتاناموـ استئناف محاكمة 5 معتقلين بينهم خالد شيخ محمد في قضية هجمات 11 أيلول 2001

What happened on the same day:

Pakistan - Militant islamists torched armoured NATO vehicles.
Pakistan - Arrest by Pakistani forces of 15 alleged Mumbai terrorists.
Afghanistan - The Taliban claim control of 72% of Afghanistan while a study of the International Council on Security and Development (ICOS) confirms an increasing presence of the Taliban in most regions of the country, including Kabul where new military checkpoints have been recently installed.