Category Archives: Top 10 News Stories

10/28/11

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* Amos Gilad: Iran is a threat that must be dealt with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak are extremely concerned by the Iranian threat.

* Dozens killed in Syria protests; activists urge NATO action Syrian security forces killed at least 30 people on Friday.

* Jordan seen approving move by Hamas from Syria Jordan, under pressure from the Islamist opposition, appears ready to again host Hamas.

* Senior Hamas official: Shalit deal made us stronger Deputy Hamas Politburo Chief, Dr. Mousa Abu Marzouk declared Friday that the Shalit deal has strengthened the movement.

* US flies drones from Ethiopia to fight Somali militants The US military has begun flying drone aircraft from a base in Ethiopia, as part of its fight against Islamist militants in neighbouring Somalia.

* First doubts emerge over eurozone deal Markets sky-rocketed on Thursday (27 October) in reaction to the eurozone deal sealed by EU leaders earlier that morning.

* Eurozone seeks bailout funds from China The head of the eurozone’s bailout fund is beginning attempts to persuade China to invest in a scheme to help rescue member countries facing debt crises.

* US considers unusual attack helicopter deal for Turkey The Obama administration is consulting Congress on an unusual proposal to transfer US Marine Corps attack helicopters to Turkey.

* Libya: Gaddafi son Saif al-Islam in contact with ICC The International Criminal Court (ICC) said intermediaries had been used in indirect talks with Saif al-Islam.

* This Week in History: The 1983 Beirut barracks bombing Early in the morning of October 23, 1983, a Mercedes truck arrived at the Beirut International Airport.

10/27/11

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* Leaders agree eurozone debt deal after late-night talks European leaders have reached a “three-pronged” agreement described as vital to solve the region’s huge debt crisis.

* 9-11 provided major boost for Israeli security and military exports Israel has disclosed that annual defense and security exports topped $7 billion in 2010.

* Mideast envoys make no breakthroughs International mediators have failed to make any breakthroughs in their quest to bring Israeli and Palestinian officials back to the negotiating table.

* Jordan’s king: Israel-Egypt peace treaty in danger The Israel-Egypt peace treaty has never been in greater danger, as the post-Mubarak regime in Cairo may choose to revoke it altogether.

* Israel denies US request for settlement freeze Israel denied a request by the United States on Thursday to temporarily freeze settlement construction in order to promote peace talks with the Palestinians.

* IDF Prepares to Deploy ‘Magic Wand’ The IDF is in the final stages of laying the groundwork to deploy the “Magic Wand” missile defense system in central Israel.

* Israel wary of consequences of Tunisia’s Arab Spring Tunisia celebrated the results of their Arab Spring this week with democratic elections.

* Is Libya going to be a radical Islamist state? During the early years of the Cold War, the U.S. backed Saudi Arabia and other traditionalist regimes to counter the radical, anti-Western nationalist forces.

* Qaddafi’s Son Ready to Surrender to The Hague Former Libyan dictator Muammar Qaddafi’s son and heir apparent, Saif al-Islam, is reportedly ready to surrender to the International Criminal Court at The Hague.

* Handouts pose danger to Mideast economies The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned on Wednesday that the huge increase in handouts that the governments of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) have made to keep a lid on Arab Spring unrest is a danger for all the economies of the region.

10/26/11

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* International envoys seek to restart Mideast talks International mediators will sit down with Palestinian and Israeli officials in Jerusalem on Wednesday in the hope of finding a formula to restart the deadlocked peace talks.

* Euro crisis: EU leaders hope to reach debt plan EU leaders are gathering for an emergency summit in Brussels aimed at tackling the eurozone debt crisis.

* Mecca pilgrimage ripe for sectarian clash The Hajj – The annual pilgrimage in which some three million Muslims converge on the holy city of Mecca in Saudi Arabia – is threatening to become the next flashpoint in the Sunni-Shiite cold war.

* Ahmadinejad on Zionists: They Exist but There Are Only 10,000 Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad says Iran is friendly to Jews.

* Saudi cleric: Kidnap soldier – get $100,000 A week after the release of kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, top Saudi cleric Dr. Awad al-Qarni is offering a $100,000 reward to anyone who kidnaps Israeli soldiers.

* ‘Chemical weapons in Libya under guard’ Chemical weapons have been found in Libya by National Transitional Council forces.

* UN highlights economic cost of organised crime in Italy With Italy increasingly being seen by markets as the next Greece, a major UN report has highlighted how organised crime is harming the Italian economy.

* Palestinian bid for statehood faces rocky road as new UN Security council members announced After 16 rounds voting, going back to last weekend, Azerbaijan was voted in as the fifth non-permanent Security Council member.

* Panetta warns Iran not to meddle in Iraq US Defense Secretary Leon Panetta on Wednesday warned Iran that it should not meddle in Iraq.

* Posters back Egypt’s military ruler for president Hundreds of posters calling on Egypt’s military ruler to run for president have appeared in several districts of Cairo and the Mediterranean city of Alexandria.

10/25/11

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* Turkey earthquake: Death toll rises to 432 The death toll from an earthquake in eastern Turkey has risen to 432 people.

* Obama Wants ‘Silent Freeze’ in Judea, Samaria The Obama administration reportedly wants Israel to implement a “silent freeze” of Jewish homebuilding in eastern Jerusalem.

* Vatican sides with anti-capitalist protesters and attacks global financial system By demanding that the worst excesses of global capitalism be reined in, the Holy See echoed the message of protesters encamped outside St Paul’s Cathedral in London.

* Ahmadinejad says West set to plunder Libya’s oil wealth Western countries supported Muammar Gaddafi when it suited them but bombed the Libyan leader when he no longer served their purpose in order to “plunder” the north African country’s oil wealth.

* Muammar Gaddafi ‘buried in desert grave at dawn’ The bodies of ex-Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, his son Mutassim and a top aide have been buried in secret in the desert.

* Tunisian balloting – A double-edged sword Parliamentary ballots closed Monday in Tunisia – the country’s first free elections and the first significant democratic exercise in this year’s “Arab Spring.”

* Bridge for Jews to Temple Mount May Disappear Jerusalem’s engineer demands that the “Mughrabi” bridge for Jews to the Temple Mount be repaired or closed because of dangers.

* Virtual Combat Simulator to Exhibit at Israel Defense Expo An innovative, fully-immersive combat simulator for individual soldiers is one of the many military training systems to be on display next week.

* Group Warns of Cover-Up in Egypt Christian Deaths A leading international rights group has warned of a cover-up by the Egyptian military.

* Europe: Grimmer by the minute European leaders insist they are making progress on a comprehensive plan to tackle the eurozone’s debt and banking crisis.

10/24/11

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* Clinton to Iran: Don’t misread departure from Iraq US Secretary of State says: “Iran would be badly miscalculating if they did not look at … our presence … in the region.”

* Israel Police on alert in Jerusalem, fearing terror attack Warning comes two days after a 17-year-old resident of the Ramot neighborhood was stabbed by a young Arab man near his home.

* Vatican Calls for Central World Bank to Be Set Up The Vatican called for the establishment of a “global public authority” and a “central world bank”.

* Turkey earthquake: Desperate search for survivors Rescue teams in Turkey are continuing to search for people trapped under rubble after a strong earthquake hit the eastern Van region on Sunday.

* Libya declares liberation with an Islamic tone Libya’s top leader declared the country officially “liberated” Sunday from the four-decade rule of Moammar Gaddafi, pledging to replace his dictatorship with a more democratic but also a more strictly Islamic system.

* Black magic widespread in Middle East Belief in witchcraft, spells, the occult and protective charms runs deep, despite religious and governmental bans against using magic.

* New euro empire plot by Brussels European Union chiefs are drawing up plans for a single Treasury to oversee tax and spending across the 17 eurozone nations.

* US ambassador Robert Ford pulled out of Syria The US has pulled out its ambassador to Syria, Robert Ford, because of concerns for his safety, officials say.

* EU states to speed up austerity, embrace limited treaty change Leaders of the EU’s 27 member states met with little fresh to show in the face of the biggest crisis in the bloc’s history.

* Lieberman: Abbas is hurdle to peace, not settlements Foreign Minister says the current government will not accept any new freeze on building in east Jerusalem or the West Bank.

10/22/11

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* Turkey and Iran ‘collaborating against Kurdish rebels’ Turkey and Iran have vowed to co-operate to defeat separatist Kurdish militants, on the third day of a Turkish offensive on its Iraq border.

* Rebels accused of executing former Libyan leader and son Mutassim Libya’s rebel army has been accused of executing both Colonel Muammar Gaddafi and his son Mutassim in cold blood as the United Nations suggested their deaths amounted to war crimes.

* Iraq rejects US request to maintain bases after troop withdrawal Obama announces the full withdrawal of troops from Iraq but fails to persuade Nouri al-Maliki to allow US to keep bases there.

* Jordan king urges Israel and Palestinians to use Arab Spring as inspiration to revive talks Jordan’s King Abdullah on Saturday urged Israel and the Palestinians to look to the Arab Spring uprisings for inspiration and to restart their stalled peace talks.

* Arab Israelis Call to Kidnap Soldiers Dozens of Arab citizens of Israel held a demonstration Thursday in which they called to kidnap IDF soldiers.

* ‘Iran to move nuclear material underground in near future’ Iran plans to soon start moving nuclear material to an underground site for the pursuit of sensitive atomic activities.

* EU to hold second summit next week European leaders are to have a second summit on the eurozone crisis.

* EU to celebrate Shalit swap despite concerns The EU is set to cheer the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

* Will the U.S. Begin Writing “Israel” on IDs of Jerusalemites? Harvey Schwartz, Chair of the American Israeli Action Coalition, participated this week in the Jerusalem Conference for English speakers.

* New virus threatens Iran’s nuclear program First there was the Stuxnet computer virus that wreaked havoc on Iran’s nuclear program.

10/21/11

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* Barack Obama: All US troops to leave Iraq in 2011 All US troops will be pulled out of Iraq by the end of the year, President Barack Obama has announced.

* Row over Muammar Gaddafi’s body delays burial plans Col Gaddafi’s burial has been delayed by differences among officials about what should be done with the body.

* Turkey and Iran ‘collaborating against Kurdish rebels’ Turkey and Iran have vowed to co-operate to defeat separatist Kurdish militants, on the third day of a Turkish offensive on its Iraq border.

* Qaddafi’s Death Places Focus on Arab Spring’s ‘Hard Road’ Like the flight of Tunisia’s dictator or the trial of Egypt’s, the capture of Col. Muammar el-Qaddafi on Thursday afternoon captivated the Arab world.

* Gadhafi’s Death Energizes Syrian, Yemeni Protests Energized by the killing of Libya’s Moammar Gadhafi, thousands of protesters in Syria and Yemen poured into the streets Friday.

* Cybercommand chief opposes U.N. net control The commander of the U.S. Cyber Command said Thursday that he does not favor giving the United Nations the power to regulate the Internet.

* Saudis said looking to China for strategic ties after U.S. ‘betrayal’ of key ally Mubarak The Saudi distrust of Washington is said to have grown in wake of the U.S. disclosure of an Iranian plot to assassinate Riyad’s ambassador to Washington.

* UN Security Council Shuffle to Favor Israel According to Bloodberg, A shuffle of the 15-member United Nations Security Council could impact Palestinian Authority chairman Mahmoud Abbas’ statehood bid at the world body.

* Will the U.S. Begin Writing “Israel” on IDs of Jerusalemites? Harvey Schwartz, Chair of the American Israeli Action Coalition, participated this week in the Jerusalem Conference for English speakers.

* New virus threatens Iran’s nuclear program First there was the Stuxnet computer virus that wreaked havoc on Iran’s nuclear program. Now comes “Duqu,” which researchers on Tuesday said appears to be quite similar.

10/20/11

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* Muammar Gaddafi killed in Libya Libya’s ex-leader Col Muammar Gaddafi has been killed after an assault on his home town of Sirte.

* Libyans pour into streets to celebrate end of Gadhafi era Libyans poured into the streets to celebrate the news of Muammar Gadhafi’s capture and unconfirmed death Thursday.

* WARNING! GRAPHIC VIDEO Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi killed.

* The Fight Over How to End a War An unusually powerful phalanx of President Obama’s top officials, charged with organizing an orderly exit from Afghanistan, will face an outwardly confident, almost defiant Pakistan.

* ‘Hezbollah delegation visits Moscow, meets lawmakers’ A delegation of Hezbollah officials met with Russian lawmakers in Moscow on Wednesday .

* Viasat broadband ‘super-satellite’ launches The Viasat-1 spacecraft will deliver broadband services to customers in the US and Canada.

* EU officials welcome news of Gaddafi death Top EU officials Herman Van Rompuy and Jose Manuel Barroso have unequivocally welcomed reports that former Libyan leader Colonel Gaddafi is dead.

* Turkey commences massive operation against Kurdish rebels in Iraq About 10,000 elite Turkish soldiers were taking part in a ground offensive against Kurdish rebels in southeastern Turkey.

* Gadhafi’s legacy: An oil-rich country with a traumatized people During nearly 42 years in power in Libya, Muammar Gadhafi was one of the world’s most eccentric dictators.

* Fayyad: Conditions not ripe for renewing talks with Israel The time is not right for meaningful Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said.

10/19/11

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* Freed female Palestinian terrorist to Gaza children: I hope you will become martyrs A would-be Palestinian suicide bomber freed by Israel in the prisoner swap for soldier Gilad Shalit told cheering schoolchildren in the Gaza Strip the day after her release on Wednesday she hoped they would follow her example.

* ‘UNSC may vote on Palestinian statehood in early November’ The Palestinian quest for UN membership is likely to come to a head on or around Nov. 11.

* Turkish troops pursue Kurdish rebels into Iraq Turkish troops backed by fighter jets and helicopter gunships have pursued Kurdish rebels into Iraq.

* Moscow Welcomes Hizbullah A Hizbullah delegation was welcomed by officials in Moscow on Wednesday for the terror group’s first official visit to the Kremlin.

* Chag Sameach! Shmini Atzeret and Simchat Torah Start Tonight The eight day festival that consists of Sukkot and Shmini Atzeret/Simchat Torah comes to an end Thursday night.

* US forces ‘massing on Afghanistan-Pakistan border’ US forces are massing on the Pakistan border in eastern Afghanistan.

* Blair: Middle East Quartet to press Israelis, Palestinians for border proposals International mediators will press Israel and Palestinians to table their ideas on security arrangements.

* Passenger: ‘You’re all going to die’ Somewhere in the heavens above Amarillo, angry shouts rang out from the back of Southwest Airlines Flight 3683.

* Violent anti-austerity protests grip Greek capital Greece’s parliament gave initial approval on Wednesday to a new round of belt-tightening needed to avert default.

* Summit will not be end of eurozone’s troubles, says Barroso European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso has said Sunday’s (23 October) key summit will not necessarily draw the much-wanted line under the eurozone’s sovereign debt crisis.

10/18/11

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* Gilad Shalit freed in Israeli-Palestinian prisoner swap Cheering crowds have greeted Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit as he arrived back in his northern hometown of Mitzpe Hila after five years in captivity in Gaza.

* Libya: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Tripoli US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Libya on an unannounced visit aimed at showing support for the Libyan people and building ties.

* Kenya troops ‘advance into Somalia near Afmadow’ Kenyan troops with aerial support are continuing their advance into Somalia towards a town held by al-Shabab 120km (75 miles) from the border.

* Last U.S. Marine training unit leaves Iraq The United States, failing to obtain agreement for an extension, has proceeded with plans to withdraw its military from Iraq.

* Markets plunge as Germany dampens EU summit expectations Stocks and the euro plunged on Monday (17 October) after German officials dampened expectations for a comprehensive solution to the sovereign debt crisis at an upcoming EU summit.

* Putin lays out case for Kremlin return Prime Minister Vladimir Putin laid out his case for a return to Russia’s top office in a televised interview on Monday, casting himself as the best guarantor of a bright future in a country haunted by upheaval in the recent past.

* US Army to fly ‘kamikaze’ drones A miniature “kamikaze” drone designed to quietly hover in the sky before dive-bombing and slamming into a human target will soon be part of the US Army’s arsenal.

* Fierce rhetoric, strategic disconnect from West among the red flags in newly Islamist Turkey The Turkish Government of Prime Minister Reçep Tayyip Erdogan has demonstrated that it becomes more politically and verbally aggressive.

* Abbas hails prisoner release as victory for Palestinians Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas on Tuesday hailed the release of 477 prisoners as part of the deal to release Gilad Schalit.

* What makes Israel unique If everything goes as planned on Tuesday morning, Gilad Schalit will return home and Israel will once again prove that it is different from the rest of the countries that surround it in the Middle East.