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International News Title: Israel Looking Isolated Over Iran Threat The fear of an Iranian nuclear bomb has been at the centre of Israeli government thinking for more than a decade. Until recently, however, Israel itself was never at the centre of the international effort to halt Iran’s nuclear programme. For all their concerns, Israeli leaders knew that the campaign to curb Iran’s nuclear ambitions through diplomacy and sanctions was best left to others. Its involvement in sabotage and covert operations aside, a supporting role made sense to Israel: Framing the issue of an Iranian nuclear bomb as a standoff between Israel and Iran would have damaged the international consensus. No less important, it would also have drawn unwanted attention to Israel’s own nuclear capabilities. What a difference four months make. On Monday, when Benjamin Netanyahu sits down with Barack Obama in Washington for a potentially fateful discussion on Iran, the Israeli leader faces a new strategic landscape. Since November, an incessant stream of speculation and leaks about an Israeli attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities has pushed Israel out on to the diplomatic playing field – and into a position that is far more advanced than that of its western allies. Never before has an Israeli government been so exposed, and rarely so isolated, on the issue of Iran. “Israel has put itself at the forefront, and the international community has allowed that to happen,” says Emily Landau, a senior fellow at the Tel Aviv-based Institute for National Security Studies. “All of a sudden, this is being framed as a problem between Israel and Iran. But it shouldn’t be. It is an issue for the international community.” Israel is now so far ahead of the pack that it has itself become the target of stern diplomatic pressure. Israel recently has heard warnings not to attack Iran from the US, Germany, France and Britain – countries it normally regards as its closest allies. “Now, it is all about the US having to restrain Israel, rather than having to restrain Iran,” observes Ms Landau. Mr Netanyahu and his cabinet have largely themselves to blame for their predicament. It has been Israeli leaders, not their counterparts in Washington, who have incessantly raised the prospect of an Israeli strike on Iran. Since November last year, hardly a week has gone by without a new alarmist leak or threatening comment. True, the spike in speculation has helped concentrate minds both in Iran and in the west, and probably contributed to the sharpening of sanctions. But those achievements came at a price. Israel’s fears and frustrations towards Iran are compounded by the uncomfortable realisation that the front against Iran is fragmenting: When Israel looks over its shoulder, it sees large open terrain, and then a formation of allies that does too little too late, and that is beset by doubts and hesitancy. When the US and Europe look ahead to Israel, they see a government bent on escalation, ready to plunge the region into war while a diplomatic solution is still possible. The very existence of this gulf creates a problem. The apparent disarray, Israeli officials argue, is hurting the credibility of the military option, and convincing Iran that it faces no immediate threat of attack. Iran, they argue, must be put in a position where it either fears an attack by the US military itself, or an Israeli strike that enjoys the tacit support of Washington. Both scenarios are undermined by the current tensions between Israel and its western allies. There is no obvious solution to the Israeli dilemma. That is because it reflects genuine differences in the way that Israel and its allies view the Iranian threat. A situation that may still be tolerable to the US (for example an Iranian programme that stops just short of assembling a nuclear weapon) may well be deemed unacceptable in Israel. This divide will be at the heart of the talks in Washington. Bridging it, however, may require a leap of faith that neither Israel nor its western partners are yet ready to make.
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#1. To: Brian S (#0)
Good fences make good neighbors. Neighbors constantly coveting the neighbors land, the exact opposite.
Close as I can find to Defeat of the USSA Empire. 140 dead in al-Qaida attack on Yemen army in south, 55 troops taken prisoner. That number continues to rise, but even more important is the determined censorship of same. This is what I googled from Anitwar's Ditz: " initially termed by the military as “al-Qaeda” but now revealed to have been from the Ansar al-Sharia faction" This is what google came back with: "Did you mean: The fighting began yesterday when forces initially... My Edit: 'formed' now Why the fuck would I mean formed? by the military as “al-Qaeda” but now revealed to have been from the Ansar al-Sharia faction" But google accomplished it's mission which is to derail ANY search for how AQ is CIA....8D
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