Saturday, 12 July 2014

Did ISIS terrorists, after being treated in Israeli hospitals, false flag the 3 dead teenagers?

Israel Supports Al Qaeda Rebels: Syria Opposition Terrorists Treated in Israeli Hospital

Global Research, February 03, 2014

The Israeli occupation army established a field hospital on the Golan Heights to treat the Syrian injured militants who belong to the terrorist groups in Syria.
These groups have treated over 700 of their injured militants in that hospitals, according to Israeli media outlets.
The Zionist army prevented the media outlets from broadcasting the activities of the field hospital yet allowed the Second Channel to prepare a report about it in order to promote the “humane Israeli step towards the Syrians.”
golan hospital
The report mainly focused on the Israeli intentions behind treating the militants, clarifying that the Israelis aim was to strengthen and deepen their relations with the terrorist groups in Syria in order to keep the calm and stability which now prevails between these groups and Israel at Palestinian-Syrian borders.
The report also included interviews with a number of the militants who stated that “Zionism is not macabre as it has been portrayed by the Syrian regime.”
“The regime used to force us to believe that our enemy is all the surrounding world, yet after the beginning of the revolution, we recognized our real friends and  real enemies.”

The ISIS “Islamic State” Not Hamas Claimed responsibility for murder of three Israeli boys

While Israel has claimed that Hamas was behind the murder of 3 Israeli boys and subsequent rocket attacks, the Times of Israel reported last week:
A new Palestinian jihadist group pledging allegiance to the Islamic State (formerly known as ISIL) [or "ISIS"] has claimed responsibility for the killing of three Israeli teenagers last month in the West Bank, as well as other recent deadly attacks against Israeli soldiers and civilians.
Hamas has denied responsibility for the attacks.
The New York Times also reported on Wednesday:
On Tuesday evening, Israel’s antimissile system, called Iron Dome, intercepted a rocket “over the Tel Aviv area,” the army said, showing the reach of Gazan rocketry. The rocket was believed to be of Iranian design, a Fajr-5, and Islamic Jihad claimed credit. Tel Aviv opened some public shelters, and in a city near Tel Aviv, Rishon LeZion, people were instructed to leave the beach.
Given that countries all over the world – including Israel and Muslim countries – have admitted to carrying out false flag attacks, we should carefully investigate who was responsible before cheering on a new Arab-Israeli war. (And the head of Mossad had predicted such an occurrenceshortly before it happened.)

Palestine has gained a lot of support recently.  For example, Palestine wasaccorded observer nation status by the United Nations.  The movement to boycott and divest from companies doing business with Israel hasgathered tremendous momentum. And the two main factions in Palestinian politics – Hamas and Fatah – have formed a unity government.

As Michael Rivero points out, it makes no sense for Hamas to have committed brutal acts of violence when it is winning through peaceful political means:

HAMAS and FATAH formed a unity government. They need the support of the world right now, and neither HAMAS or FATAH is going to carry out an act that would wreck the very public support they need. It’s like George Washington trying to kick out the British by shooting students in the colonial schools; it is just not going to happen.

And the Jewish Daily Forward notes that – if rogue Hamas members didcarry out the murders – it was not with the permission or knowledge of Hamas leadership:

In the flood of angry words that poured out of Israel and Gaza during a week of spiraling violence, few statements were more blunt, or more telling, than this throwaway line by the chief spokesman of the Israeli military, Brigadier General Moti Almoz, speaking July 8 on Army Radio’s morning show: “We have been instructed by the political echelon to hit Hamas hard.”

That’s unusual language for a military mouthpiece. Typically they spout lines like “We will take all necessary actions” or “The state of Israel will defend its citizens.” You don’t expect to hear: “This is the politicians’ idea. They’re making us do it.”
***
It was clear from the beginning that the kidnappers weren’t acting on orders from Hamas leadership in Gaza or Damascus. Hamas’ Hebron branch — more a crime family than a clandestine organization — had a history of acting without the leaders’ knowledge, sometimes against their interests. Yet Netanyahu repeatedly insisted Hamas was responsible for the crime and would pay for it.
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Netanyahu won't stop the genocide in Gaza, he's enjoying it too much

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday that he would press forward with his country's military offensive In the Gaza Strip, telling reporters that there was 'still more to go' in the conflict that has already claimed more than 100 lives.

He defended the attacks by Israeli forces in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip, saying that they are part of a determined effort to halt rocket fire by Palestinian militants.

His comments come amid growing pressure from a number of international leaders to cease the military campaign - which has seen Israel attack more than 1,000 targets since Tuesday.

Scroll down for video 

Explosion: A ball of fire is seen following an early morning Israeli air strike on Rafah in the southern of Gaza strip this morning. Palestinian militants have now warned international airlines that they plan to fire rockets at Tel Aviv airport in response to the air strikes

A rocket launched from the Gaza Strip steaks across the sky towards Israel. The missile was fired by members of Hamas' military wing

A rocket launched from the Gaza Strip steaks across the sky towards Israel. The missile was fired by members of Hamas' military wing

A young boy examines the remains of his house following an Israeli missile strike on the Gaza Strip

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaking at a press conference on Friday. The Israeli leader said that there was 'still more to go' in the conflict that has already claimed more than 100 lives

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Al-Quds Brigades’ Commandos Ambush IOF Unit East Gaza


Local Editor

Commandos from the military wing of Palestinian resistance movement, Islamic Jihad, ambushed on Friday an Israeli unit in Gaza's east, inflicting losses on the occupation forces.

Al-Quds Brigades announced that clashes between its commandos and an Israeli unit took place in the east of the Gaza strip.

Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of Islamic Jihad resistance movement
The spokesman of al-Quds Brigades, Abu Ahmad, said that the Palestinian commandos ambushed an Israeli unit as it was trying to infiltrate to Gaza.

Abu Ahmad said that the commander of the Palestinian commandos confirmed that casualties were among the occupation forces, noting that shooting took place and explosive devices went off as the IOF tried to infiltrate the besieged strip.

The spokesman noted that the backup unit of the al-Quds Brigades commandos intensified its shelling to Kibbutz Nahal Oz in a bid to prevent the enemy from advancing to the clash area.

For its part, Israel Channel Two confirmed the event, noting that a unit from Golani Brigade was ambushed by a Palestinian resistance unit east of Gaza.

Source: Websites
12-07-2014 - 12:05 Last updated 12-07-2014 - 13:16 

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Prince Bandar back in the Driver’s Seat in Riyadh

Wayne MADSEN | 12.07.2014 | 00:00

Prince Bandar bin Sultan bin Abdulazia bin Saud is the godfather behind the creation of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), now called the «Islamic State» or «Islamic Caliphate». Without Saudi support for the most radical of the Islamist opposition forces battling Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, it is doubtful that ISIL would have ever incubated beyond a fringe group in Syria. 

Although Bandar has been counted out of Saudi politics before, it now appears that hopes for the sacking of the former long-serving Saudi ambassador to the United States and personal friend of the Bush political family, were mere «wishful thinking» on the part of those who have crossed swords in the past with Bandar.

Bandar has returned to an influential position advising King Abdullah after being sacked as Saudi intelligence chief last April. Bandar's new title is «adviser to the King and his special envoy». Bandar never actually left the Saudi inner circle. After being dismissed as intelligence chief in April, he retained his position as secretary general of the Saudi National Security Council, a position similar to that held by Susan Rice as the White House National Security Adviser and director of the National Security Council.

Bandar's restoration to favor within the House of Saud came as King Abdullah appointed the recently-fired deputy defense minister, Prince Khaled bin Bandar bin Abdul Aziz, as the new chief of Saudi intelligence. Prince Khaled now serves in the same Syrian rebel liaison position that Prince Bandar held when the Saudis arranged for millions of dollars in cash and weapons to be transferred to radical Salafists and takfiris fighting Assad in Syria. Although it does appear that Bandar was involved in some sort of internal schism in the House of Saud, it took a mere two days for Khaled from losing his job as deputy defense minister, a job he held for only 45 days, to being named as Saudi intelligence chief. Although they share the same name, Saudi intelligence chief Khaled bin Bandar should not be confused with Saudi businessman Khaled bin Bandar bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, the son of Prince Bandar. 

The important position of deputy defense minister remains unfilled. The vacancy has forced Defense Minister Salman bin Abdul Aziz, the Crown Prince, to handle the daily operations of the Defense Ministry. The Saudi governmental shuffle came about to ensure that key Saudi defense and intelligence officials were on the same page in reasserting control over ISIL as it continues to advance toward Baghdad and approaches the Iraqi-Saudi border where some border skirmishes between ISIL guerrillas and Saudi border troops have already been reported.

Unquestionably, the House of Saud has been a major bank roller of ISIL since the beginning of their roles in Syria's civil war. The Al Nusra Front (Jabhat al-Nusra), which has been mainly funded by Qatar, has pledged its support for ISIL as its forces spread across northern and western Iraq and extend their reach into northeastern Syria. 

The aim of Saudi Arabia has always been to destabilize Iraq and Syria, hoping that the Nouri al-Maliki and Bashar al Assad governments, respectively, will be overthrown and replaced with radical Sunni regimes beholden to the Saudis. Bandar also wants to limit the influence of Qatar, which he believes backs the Muslim Brotherhood, a bitter enemy of the House of Saud. Bandar’s return to power signaled a freeze in a developing détente between Saudi Arabia and Qatar’s emir, Tamim bin Hamad al Thani. 

Bandar was originally forced out as Saudi intelligence chief after President Barack Obama met with King Abdullah in Riyadh on March 28. Bandar's duties as the chief Saudi interlocutor with Syria's rebels was transferred to Saudi Interior Minister Prince Mohammed bin Nayef. Those duties have now been assumed by Prince Khaled. 

Prince Mohammed helped steer Saudi support to the U.S.-backed Free Syrian Army (FSA), which became a second-tier and weaker player in the Syrian civil war. FSA officials, many of whom are exiled former government officials in the Assad government, are more comfortable in Istanbul hotels and restaurants than on the front lines in Syria. However, after the success of ISIL in eastern Syria and Iraq, the Saudis decided to bring back ISIL's main interlocutor, Prince Bandar, to bring the group's leadership under firmer Saudi control.

Bandar has maintained strong ties to Jihadist terrorism. Bandar, on a pre-Sochi Olympics trip to Moscow, offered Russia a lucrative weapons deal if Russia ceased its support for Assad. Bandar also told Putin that if Russia rejected Saudi Arabia's offer, Saudi-backed Islamist terrorists in the Caucasus region would be free to launch terrorist attacks on the Winter Olympics in Sochi. Putin reportedly ordered Bandar out of his office in the Kremlin. There are also reports that Saudi-financed Islamist terrorists from Chechnya and Dagestan have been active in Ukraine fighting against Russian-speaking separatists in eastern Ukraine. In some cases, Islamist terrorists have joined Israeli paramilitary units in Ukraine in support of the Kiev government's military actions against eastern Ukraine. In Syria, there have been reports of Mossad coordination with ISIL units in attacks against Syrian government forces, including in the region north of the Golan Heights.

CIA director John O. Brennan, a Saudophile and former CIA station chief in Riyadh, reportedly played a hand in the restoration of Bandar to a key position in the Saudi government. Some 1000 U.S. troops and advisers have been dispatched to Iraq not to prevent the Maliki government from falling but to assist in the transition to a post-Maliki government that will have strong pro-Saudi and Sunni representation. The U.S. military personnel are also in Iraq to protect U.S. assets in the country, including the massive U.S. embassy complex in Baghdad , as well as U.S. oil industry interests.

There were varying unsubstantiated reports at the time of Bandar's dismissal in April that he had been assassinated or wounded while visiting rebel-held positions in Syria. Other reports stated that Bandar, affectionately known by the Bush family as «Bandar Bush» because of his close ties to the American political dynasty, was poisoned in an internal Saudi feud aimed at eliminating the influence of Bandar, the chief of the influential Sudairi clan within the House of Saud. The clan also includes Prince Turki, also a former Saudi intelligence chief, and Crown Prince Salman, the defense minister and heir apparent to the throne after King Abdullah dies.

An ISIL on the move also gives Israel a powerful argument for why it must remain in charge of the West Bank and establish a tighter military control over Gaza. Bandar's goal is to eliminate the current governments of Syria and Iraq, thus depriving Iran of its only two allies in the region… With a radical Sunni caliphate in charge in Baghdad, ISIL will be poised to cross the Iranian border and start a rebellion among Iran's Arab minority in Khuzestan province, the center of Iran's oil industry. With ISIL gaining control of Iraq's southern oil fields as well as part of the fields bordering Iraqi Kurdistan, the takeover by a Saudi proxy of Iran's oil province would give Saudi Arabia effective control over much of the Middle East's oil reserves. 

In February, Senator John McCain of Arizona said at the Munich Security Conference, «Thank God for the Saudis and Prince Bandar». McCain echoed similar comments he made earlier on CNN. In 2012, McCain covertly crossed into Syria from Turkey and was photographed with radical Islamists, some of whom are now fighting with ISIL in Iraq. McCain has also been steadfast in his support of Ukrainian fascists and neo-Nazis. In Mr. McCain, «Bandar Bush» has truly met a terrorism supporter comrade-in-arms.

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July 11th Ukraine SITREP: important developments for the Resistance

July 11th Ukraine SITREP: important developments for the Resistance

Besides the apparently devastating attack on a Ukie armored column, there are several important development which have recently taken place which I feel must be reported here:


Alexander Khodakovskii
1) With Strelkov's return to Donetsk, order and unity of command in the Resistance forces have apparently been restored and the disagreements between Strelkov and Alexander Khodakovskii (ex-commander of the Donetsk "Alpha" unit) settled.

2) In a joint press conference, Igor Strelkov , Alexander Borodai and Vladimir Antiufeev (respectively in charge of military, political and state security affairs) have announced the formation of a council of military commanders which will be in charge of all the military units in Novorussia.  At the same press conference they also announced a large (voluntary) evacuation of civilians from the suburbs of Donetsk.  Clearly the city is preparing itself for a major attack followed by a siege.


Sergei Kurginian
3) A fierce dispute has taken place between Igor Strelkov and Sergei Kurginianwho accused Strelkov of abandoning Slaviansk and who claimed that the Novorussians were now receiving much more and much better aid from Russia than before.  While Borodai accused Kurginian of spreading Ukie or US propaganda, I personally believe that Kurdinian's role is to reassure the Russian public that enough had been done by the Russian civil society (nobody has ever mentioned any aid from the Russian government). Whatever may be the case, Alexander Borodai settled the dispute when he reported that his consultations in Moscow were "very successful, and I am very much counting on the assistance of the Russian Federation in the nearest possible future. As it is, the Russian people, at present, are already providing colossal assistance to us, both in terms of volunteers and in terms of humanitarian aid. I expect that this assistance will continue to grow".  Clearly, some kind of deal has been struck between the Novorussia leaders and the Kremlin, though of course the details will remain secret and the assistance presented as one of the "Russian people" as opposed to the Russian government (-: though one could, of course, wonder why Borodai needed consultations in Moscow to get assistance from the Russian people :-)  

Vladimir Antiufeev

4) The Ukies have apparently been reinforcing their artillery on the border with Crimea, but the consensus is that while these systems have the range to strike at Crimean towns, the Russian response to that would be as swift and as devastating as to make such a move suicidal for the Ukies. The Russian military has been steadily and rapidly reinforcing its capabilities in Crimea which now include total airspace coverage by the latest version of the S-300 air defense systems and a redeployment of Russian fighter-bombers.  Even the usually soft-spoken Sergei Lavrov has delivered a blunt warning saying that he would not advise anybody to try to attack Crime as Russia would retaliate.

5) The Ukrainian Air Force continues to lose aircraft on a regular basis, today again a Ukie Su-25 was shot down near Lugansk.  


6) In another interesting recent development, Igor Strelkov announced that from now on the soldiers fighting for the Novorussian military would be paid a salary which is more than adequate by Ukrainian norms.  Clearly another sign that "somebody" is now financing the Resistance.

My guess is that Poroshenko will declare that the Grad MLRS who today destroyed much of the 79th Brigade were firing from Russia.  The first reason why I believe that he will say this is that this will allow him and, more importantly, his US bosses to re-ignite the russophobic hysteria.  The second reason is that if these Grads were in Russia, then those Ukie units who are away from the Russian border are in relative safety.  But if these Grads were fired by the Resistance from Novorussia, that would mean that any and all Ukie units in Novorussia could potentially become the target of such strikes.

Whatever may be the case, we have one of two options here: either the Russian finally decided to give the Ukies a little taste of their own medicine, while at the same time making them pay for the numerous attacks on Russian border posts, or the Resistance really did get their hands on enough Grads to carry out such an attack.  In that case it is pretty darn obvious were these Grads came from, even though, of course, nobody will admit anything.

Is the Russian border with the Ukraine porous?  Yes, of course.  But not to the point that convoys of MLRS' could cross it without the knowledge and agreement of the Russian government.  Could Strelkov and his forces have "nationalized" some money from seizing Kolomoiskii's banks?  Yes, of course.  But not enough to pay for a war.  Could Russian volunteers (including Russian oligarchs) have sent money to help the Novorussians?  Yes, of course, but not without the FSB knowing and allowing it.  So what we are witnessing is clearly the following: the Russian *government* is not sending any "official" military assistance to Novorussia, but instead it is the Russian *society* which, with the full knowledge and blessing of the Russian government, is doing it.  Hence the happy smile on Borodai's face when he spoke about this "consultations" in Moscow.

Is the Kremlin taking a big risk with this strategy?  I don't think so.  Since that aid is small enough it offers what the CIA calls "plausible deniability", but since it is continuous enough, it is sufficient to make a crucial difference.  Furthermore, all that the Kremlin is *really* doing is not impeding assistance, this is a passive position which can easily be explained away "we try", "it is hard", "you know our corruption problems" etc.

Finally, I will hazard a guess.  My feeling is that the Atlantic Integrationists in the Kremlin and around it are not happy at all with the aid Russia is providing and that there is a pretty good chance that Putin is using his old contacts with the secret services to get things done.  When I look at the latest actions of Strelkov, Borodai and Antiufeev I do get a strong sense that this recent "consolidation" of power has a very typical "KGB feel" to it.  Not that this is a bad thing in present circumstances.

Strelkov, Borodai, Antiufeev
There is a word in Russian which is hard to translate but which more or less means "near/around the Kremlin circles" (околокремлевские круги).  This basically refers to the "silent" pro-Putin power base which has a great deal of political influence but is not formally part of the government structure.  These circles - who are the bane of the Russian liberals - have access to the Kremlin, and support the President, but are not formally part of the Presidential Administration, Government or any other state entity and thus they cannot be formally controlled by anybody except the FSB, of course.  My sense is that these circles, which are fiercely anti-US and anti-Nazi, have informally organized themselves to create a network of assistance to Novorussia.  One should never under estimate the power and capabilities of these circles.  For example, under the pro-US Eltisin regime, they not only organized a covert assistance to Transdniestria, they even had the means to charter their own military aircraft to fly there with no need for identification to anybody at any point during the trip.  I know that because I myself have been offered to participate in such a flight and I was told that "we will just give you a uniform and nobody will ask any questions".  That was in 1993.  I can just imagine what these guys can do today now that they have access to the Kremlin...

What kind of people can one find in these circles?  Military men, of course, mostly ex-special forces, FSB officers who don't bother denying it, GRU officers who will deny it to their last breath, but also businessmen, journalists and even some "entrepreneurs" who are more or less connected to the Russian mob.  This is an eclectic mix of idealists and folks who know that this the "shadow power" of these circles can also be very useful for their own interests.

In conclusion I will say that while all of the above is definitely good news, this is very very far from over.  The Atlantic Integrationists are still powerful, Putin openly spoke about a "5th column", and they will resist with everything they have.  As for Putin, he is engaged in a difficult and dangerous balancing act where anything that goes wrong will be blamed personally on him.  He understands that and tries hard to appear as removed from the nitty-gritty of the combats in Novorussia as possible.  His opponents also understand that with this war in Novorussia they have a perfect opportunity to weaken him or even discredit him, but this time from an apparently "patriotic" position (as the pro-US position right now is basically a non-starter).  To simplify this to the extreme I would say that this struggle involved "big money vs secret services" and that so far, at least, the latter seemed to have gain control of the situation, which is good for Novorussia.  But that still could very much change depending on the evolution of the situation.

The Saker
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Israeli Offensive on Gaza Continues for Sixth Day, Resistance Defiant


Local Editor

Zionist entity’s brutal assault on Gaza continued for the sixth day on Saturday, with the resistance persistent to go on with launching rockets on the occupied territories.

Meanwhile, the death toll in Gaza surpassed 120 martyrs and 900 injured, according to medical sources in the besieged enclave.

Destruction in Gaza
The leader of the resistance movement, Hamas, in Gaza, Ismael Haniyeh, vowed that the rocket launch on the Zionist entity would continue.

 “Hamas leaders do not fear Israel’s threats,” Haniyeh said in a statement.
“To the occupation, I say stop your war crimes against our people,” he added.

For his part, the Zionist premier, Benjamin Netanyahu, said Friday that in international pressure would not force Tel Aviv to stop its attack.

 “No international pressure will prevent us from operating with full force against a terrorist organization that calls for our destruction,” Netanyahu said.

“We will continue to strongly hit all those who try to attack us, and we will continue to take determined and prudent action to protect our home front.”

He had barely finished speaking at the Defense Ministry in Tel Aviv when sirens wailed to warn of a volley of rockets approaching the city.

Meanwhile, Israeli Foreign Minister said that preparations wre under way for a possible ground attack, with tanks and artillery massed along the border and some 33,000 reservists mobilized out of 40,000 approved by the cabinet.

Avigdor Lieberman said he expected a political decision on a possible ground operation within 48 hours.

"At the moment we are dealing with the first phase... air attacks," he told Channel One television.

"I imagine we shall decide tomorrow (Saturday) or the day after on the next stage," he said on Friday.

However such operation seems to be catastrophic to the occupation forces since it may lead to scores of deaths among them.

Source: Agencies
12-07-2014 - 11:04 Last updated 12-07-2014 - 11:04

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AIPAC got 344 of 435 Congress members to sign a letter designed to sabotage P5+1 nuclear deal with Iran

Author: Julian PecquetPosted July 10, 2014
Congress is putting the Obama administration on notice that it has strict expectations for a nuclear agreement with Iran as the July 20 deadline fast approaches.
Some 344 House members — almost 80% of the lower chamber — signed a letter to President Obama on Thursday, telling him he would be “wise” to listen to what lawmakers have to say if he wants them to lift sanctions on Iran as part of a nuclear deal. Meanwhile, in the Senate, two hard-liners filed legislation to slap sanctions on President Hassan Rouhani and the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, in what’s likely to be one of several Iran bills introduced in the next few weeks.
The burst of activity comes as negotiators appeared ready to ask for an extension because they remain too far apart to quickly reach a deal, Al-Monitor’s Laura Rozen reported Wednesday. A delay is politically risky, however, as keeping Congress at bay will become increasingly difficult as the midterm elections approach and Republicans seek to hit the Obama administration on national security.
“So far they’ve been able to rope-a-dope us on” new sanctions, said Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., the co-sponsor of the human rights bill and a potential 2016 presidential contender. “But I hope there will be [renewed attention to Iran], and I think that will only be heightened if [the US and its international negotiating partners] fail to reach a satisfactory agreement, as I expect they will.”
Republicans have been chomping at the bit to punish Iran since Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., made clear in January that he would indefinitely hold up a bipartisan sanctions bill that the White House argues would doom negotiations and could lead to war. The bill, introduced by Senate Foreign Relations Chairman Robert Menendez, D-N.J., and Mark Kirk, R-Ill. — the co-author with Rubio of the new human rights bill — has 60 co-sponsors.
Since then, House and Senate members have introduced a slew of bills attempting to put Congress in the driver’s seat. Rep. Trent Franks, R-Ariz., for example, has introduced legislation creating expedited procedures for a congressional resolution of approval or disapproval; in the Senate, Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations panel, has a bill that would bar the Obama administration from being able to suspend, waive or otherwise reduce sanctions unless Iran is in full compliance with any final deal.
Thursday’s letter from House members takes a different tack, by making it clear that lawmakers believe they have the final say on repealing a slew of sanctions that Iran would like to see lifted, notably on its oil exports.
“As these hugely consequential national security decisions are made, greater cooperation between Congress and the executive branch is essential, given that any permanent sanctions relief demands congressional approval,” reads the letter, which was spearheaded by House Foreign Affairs Chairman Ed Rocye, R-Calif., and ranking member Eliot Engel, D-N.Y.
The letter goes on to make clear that many of the sanctions are tied not only to Iran abandoning its alleged nuclear weapons program, but also on progress on other issues that have not been part of the nuclear discussions.
“The concept of an exclusively defined ‘nuclear-related’ sanction on Iran does not exist in US law,” the letter says. “Almost all sanctions related to Iran’s nuclear program are also related to Tehran’s advancing ballistic missile program, intensifying support for international terrorism, and other unconventional weapons programs. Similarly, many of these sanctions are aimed at preventing Iranian banks involved in proliferation, terrorism, money laundering and other activities from utilizing the US and global financial systems to advance these destructive policies.
“Iran’s permanent and verifiable termination of all of these activities — not just some — is a prerequisite for permanently lifting most congressionally-mandated sanctions,” the letter goes on. “This often unnoted reality necessitates extensive engagement with Congress before offers of relief are made to Iran, and requires Congressional action if sanctions are to be permanently lifted.”
Activists who support a deal are worried those requirements could scupper any chance at a diplomatic settlement.
“There is an extreme danger that some in Washington want to block the US. from putting sanctions relief on the table necessary to secure a strong nuclear deal,” National Iranian American Council (NIAC) policy director Jamal Abdi said in a statement in response to the Royce-Engel letter. “Blocking a nuclear deal because of inflexibility on sanctions relief would completely undermine the rationale that led many in Congress to support the sanctions in the first place.”
Instead, NIAC and 25 other organizations have written to Royce and Engel urging them to make clear that they’re not against sanctions relief.
Even without congressional backing, the administration may be able to move forward with some limited sanctions relief. According to a recent analysis by congressional expert Kenneth Katzman, President Obama could for example exercise his veto power if Congress decides to renew the Iran Sanctions Act when it expires in 2016.
A number of lawmakers however are already moving to tighten sanctions, not loosen them.
The Kirk-Rubio bill, for example, in addition to calling for visa bans and asset freezes against key members of the Iranian government would extend existing sanctions laws to people who do business with human-rights violators identified in the legislation. Meanwhile, according to Foreign Policy, former Kirk staffer Richard Goldberg and Mark Dubowitz, executive director of the pro-Israel Foundation for Defense of Democracies, have rolled out a proposal that calls for keeping controls in place on how Iran can spend its oil revenue as long as it’s considered a state-sponsor of terrorism.
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Blair, the war criminal, works for Israel

Tony Blair – a ‘Peace Envoy’ or an Israeli Ambassador? (must watch)
Tony Blair is not a Sabbath Goy, he actually works for Israel 24/7.

In this shameless performance on Ynet (11/7/2014), Israel’s most popular media outlet, Blair misses an opportunity to communicate with Israelis and explain to them for the first time the context in which the conflict is taking place. Blair obviously prefers not to upset the Israelis.

Bearing in mind the scale of the crimes Blair committed in Iraq on behalf of Israel and the Jewish Lobby, it is understandable. Israel is probably the only country that is willing to give him a shelter.
Apparently, in the last seven years, Peace Envoy Tony Blair has visited Gaza only once.
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The ISIS “Islamic State” Not Hamas Claimed Responsibility for Murder of Three Israeli Boys

Hamas Had Nothing to Gain – And Everything to Lose – By Starting Violence Now

While Israel has claimed that Hamas was behind the murder of 3 Israeli boys and subsequent rocket attacks, the Times of Israel reported last week:
A new Palestinian jihadist group pledging allegiance to the Islamic State (formerly known as ISIL) [or "ISIS"] has claimed responsibility for the killing of three Israeli teenagers last month in the West Bank, as well as other recent deadly attacks against Israeli soldiers and civilians.
Hamas has denied responsibility for the attacks.
The New York Times also reported on Wednesday:
On Tuesday evening, Israel’s antimissile system, called Iron Dome, intercepted a rocket “over the Tel Aviv area,” the army said, showing the reach of Gazan rocketry. The rocket was believed to be of Iranian design, a Fajr-5, and Islamic Jihad claimed credit. Tel Aviv opened some public shelters, and in a city near Tel Aviv, Rishon LeZion, people were instructed to leave the beach.
Given that countries all over the world – including Israel and Muslim countries – have admitted to carrying out false flag attacks, we should carefully investigate who was responsible before cheering on a new Arab-Israeli war. (And the head of Mossad had predicted such an occurrence shortly before it happened.)
Palestine has gained a lot of support recently.  For example, Palestine was accorded observer nation status by the United Nations.  The movement to boycott and divest from companies doing business with Israel has gathered tremendous momentum. And the two main factions in Palestinian politics – Hamas and Fatah – have formed a unity government.
As Michael Rivero points out, it makes no sense for Hamas to have committed brutal acts of violence when it is winning through peaceful political means:
HAMAS and FATAH formed a unity government. They need the support of the world right now, and neither HAMAS or FATAH is going to carry out an act that would wreck the very public support they need. It’s like George Washington trying to kick out the British by shooting students in the colonial schools; it is just not going to happen.
And the Jewish Daily Forward notes that – if rogue Hamas members did carry out the murders – it was not with the permission or knowledge of Hamas leadership:
In the flood of angry words that poured out of Israel and Gaza during a week of spiraling violence, few statements were more blunt, or more telling, than this throwaway line by the chief spokesman of the Israeli military, Brigadier General Moti Almoz, speaking July 8 on Army Radio’s morning show: “We have been instructed by the political echelon to hit Hamas hard.”
That’s unusual language for a military mouthpiece. Typically they spout lines like “We will take all necessary actions” or “The state of Israel will defend its citizens.” You don’t expect to hear: “This is the politicians’ idea. They’re making us do it.”
It was clear from the beginning that the kidnappers weren’t acting on orders from Hamas leadership in Gaza or Damascus. Hamas’ Hebron branch — more a crime family than a clandestine organization — had a history of acting without the leaders’ knowledge, sometimes against their interests. Yet Netanyahu repeatedly insisted Hamas was responsible for the crime and would pay for it.
River to Sea Uprooted Palestinian   
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