Canadian MP Prof. Irwin Cotler Spearheads Campaign for International Sanctions on Iran
By David Bedein and Arlene Kushner
This past Wednesday, December 30, 2009, Professor Irwin Cotler, a member of the Canadian parliament and former Canadian minister of justice and Canadian Attorney General, conducted a press briefing at the King David Hotel in which he announced that he was spearheading new international sanctions against Iran.
Speaking of the parallels between the current situation and 1939, Prof. Cotler addressed the issue of the Iranian threat from multiple perspectives:
The Iran of Ahmadinejad, says Cotler, is a clear and present danger to Middle East stability, Israel and Jews more broadly, and its own people.
Of great concern is the indifference and inaction of the international community with respect to these dangers, and the impunity with which Ahmadinejad is permitted to proceed.
He proposes an approach to Iran that is broad-based, and demands accountability of Iran with regard to all of the threats it currently represents:
1) Iran is defying the international community with regard to its nuclear development. It is in standing violation of UN prohibitions.
2) Iran has already committed incitement to genocide, as forbidden by the Genocide Convention.
3) Iran is a state sponsor of international terrorism.
4) Iran commits major human rights violations against its own people.
Prof Cotler asserts thatr it is a mistake to focus only on the nuclear threat. This marginalizes the other threats, and allows Iran to proceed as if there is no international concern at these various levels.
Engagement with Iran must deal with all of it. Professor Cotler is working with some 60 international human rights lawyers, who will be releasing a petition very soon that will provide documented evidence of Iranian violations and propose actions to be taken.
Members of this group will be visiting Western capitals -- 15 have been targeted -- in an attempt to energize specific actions against Iran. Recommendations include comprehensive, calibrated and targeted sanctions:
a) Iran is currently in violation of five sets of UN resolutions, which are not being enforced. The start is the enforcement of these resolutions.
b) Gasoline sanctions: measures against those who export refined petroleum products to Iran, or facilitate such export.
c) Curbing of energy investments in Iran. This would include the energy infrastructure -- shipping, etc.
d) Include the Iranian Central Bank -- which is at the heart of Iranian financial dealings -- in financial sanctions. This has not been done yet.
e) International institutions must be monitored with regard to money laundering for Iran.
f) Companies that facilitate domestic repression in Iran must be sanctioned.
g) Sanction companies that do business with the Revolutionary Guard -- the most vicious and radical element in Iran and the one that now has control. The Guard must be put on terrorism lists.
h) Embargoes must be placed against technology and arms transfers to Iran.
i) Landing permission must be denied to the Iranian transportation industry -- planes and ships. Note: The UN is serving as a third party in money laundering for Iran. Iran has been using a UN office -- The Asia Clearing Union -- to avoid US financial sanctions that forbid dealing with Iran.
These sanctions are only the beginning, however.
Additional Cotler recommendations include:
1) The eight precursors to genocide have already been identifiedas existing in Iran.
In such a situation, the Genocide Convention calls for specific actions.
HOWEVER, not one single signatory nation has undertaken these actions.
They are not voluntary -- they constitute a legal obligation. Says Cotler: "International legal responsibility is not a 'policy option.'"
1) The issue must be raised in the Security Council and an inter-state complaint must be brought before the International Court of Justice.
2) Interpol, the international criminal police organization, has a warrant out for the arrest of Ahmad Vahidi, the Iranian Minister of Defense, for his role in the 1994 terrorist bombing of the Jewish Center in Buenos Aires, Argentina. But the world seems to be ignoring this.
3) It is important to provide solidarity with the Iranian opposition forces -- those challenging the government.
We are not at a tipping point yet, but it may come, and they may in time overturn the current regime.
They need international support.
Professor Cotler says there is no absence of remedy -- the problem is absence of action.
"We are witnesses to the crime of indifference", he concluded.
Indeed, perhaps the most newsworthy aspect of Prof. Cotler's press conference was that Iran Ahmad Vahidi, who has been named the Defense Minister of Iran, is wanted for the mass murder attack of the Jewish community center in Argentina which he masterminded in 1994.
Vahidi was the head of Iran's Revolutionary Guards known as the Quds Force when he oversaw that antisemitic terrorist attack.
At the demand of the Argentinian government, Interpol issued a "wanted persons" alert for him in 2007.
Indeed, a quick search on the interpol web site will reveal the fact that, indeed,
Ahmad Vahidi remains on the active list of people whom Interpol still posts a "wanted" poster for Ahmad Vahidi's arrest..
See:
When Vahidi got his position to oversee the entire military apparatus of Iran earlier this year, a spokesperson for the US State Department simply described Vahidi's nomination as "disturbing".
Showing posts with label terror groups. Show all posts
Showing posts with label terror groups. Show all posts
Monday, January 4, 2010
Monday, December 7, 2009
The Philadelphia Bulletin: Israeli Group Sues North Korea over Role in Terror Attack
Jerusalem - An Israeli group has filed suit against North Korea on charges of supporting a major attack against the Jewish state.
Shurat HaDin, an Israeli law center, has filed a suit in a U.S. district court in San Juan, Puerto Rico for the families of the victims of the 1972 attack in Israel. In an attack on Lod Airport, 26 people were killed and 80 others were injured by attackers alleged to have been trained by North Korea. The attack was also attributed to the Japanese Red Army (JRA) and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).
"This will be the first time North Korea is being held to account in a U.S. court for its support of terrorism over many decades," Shurat HaDin said Tuesday.
Most of the victims in the 1972 shooting were Catholic pilgrims from Puerto Rico who had come to visit the Holy Land for the first time. The court complaint alleged that Pyongyang - North Korea's capital - had trained and financed the three attackers, who used automatic weapons, ammunition and grenades. Two of the three attackers were killed and the third was captured and sentenced to prison in Israel.
"North Korea was behind the attack," Shurat HaDin said. "As the trial will show incontrovertibly, in the months leading up to the massacre, the leaders of the JRA and PFLP met each other and with North Korean officials, who provided funding, intelligence, training, and other material support for the terrorists."
The trial was scheduled to begin on Thursday in the U.S. federal district court in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The plaintiffs have argued that North Korea supported JRA's plan to target Israel as part of its campaign to promote communist revolution.
North Korea, removed from the State Department's list of terrorist sponsors in 2008, has been identified as a leading weapons supplier to Iran and Syria. Israel has asserted that Pyongyang helped build the huge underground network for Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Shurat HaDin has filed two other lawsuits against North Korea.
"It is widely known that one of the world's most oppressive regimes, North Korea, is also a consistent supporter of terrorism, including providing weaponry, training bases, and funding for Palestinian terrorist organizations," Shurat HaDin said.
Shurat HaDin, an Israeli law center, has filed a suit in a U.S. district court in San Juan, Puerto Rico for the families of the victims of the 1972 attack in Israel. In an attack on Lod Airport, 26 people were killed and 80 others were injured by attackers alleged to have been trained by North Korea. The attack was also attributed to the Japanese Red Army (JRA) and the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).
"This will be the first time North Korea is being held to account in a U.S. court for its support of terrorism over many decades," Shurat HaDin said Tuesday.
Most of the victims in the 1972 shooting were Catholic pilgrims from Puerto Rico who had come to visit the Holy Land for the first time. The court complaint alleged that Pyongyang - North Korea's capital - had trained and financed the three attackers, who used automatic weapons, ammunition and grenades. Two of the three attackers were killed and the third was captured and sentenced to prison in Israel.
"North Korea was behind the attack," Shurat HaDin said. "As the trial will show incontrovertibly, in the months leading up to the massacre, the leaders of the JRA and PFLP met each other and with North Korean officials, who provided funding, intelligence, training, and other material support for the terrorists."
The trial was scheduled to begin on Thursday in the U.S. federal district court in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The plaintiffs have argued that North Korea supported JRA's plan to target Israel as part of its campaign to promote communist revolution.
North Korea, removed from the State Department's list of terrorist sponsors in 2008, has been identified as a leading weapons supplier to Iran and Syria. Israel has asserted that Pyongyang helped build the huge underground network for Hezbollah in southern Lebanon. Shurat HaDin has filed two other lawsuits against North Korea.
"It is widely known that one of the world's most oppressive regimes, North Korea, is also a consistent supporter of terrorism, including providing weaponry, training bases, and funding for Palestinian terrorist organizations," Shurat HaDin said.
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
The Philadelphia Bulletin: Peres Warns Brazil About Terror Activity
by David Bedein
JERUSALEM - As an integral part of his visit this week to South America, Israeli President Shimon Peres shared intelligence with Brazilian Defense Minister Nelson Jobim regarding Iran and Hezbollah being active in the three-way border between Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.
Israel's President Shimon Peres, right, shakes hands with Brazil's Defense Minister Nelson Jobim in Brasilia on Tuesday. (Eraldo Peres/Associated Press)
Hezbollah terrorist cells working there are engaging, among other things, in money laundering, arms trafficking, drug trafficking and diamond smuggling in order to finance terrorist activity, according to the information conveyed by President Peres.
Israel warned Brazil and other Latin American countries of Hezbollah's intentions to perpetrate terror attacks against Jewish and Israeli targets in South America similar to the large-scale, murderous terror attacks that were committed during the 1990s against the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires and the Jewish community center in that city.
This is the first visit by an Israeli president to Brazil in 40 years.
Upon landing, Mr. Peres received a magnificent reception that included an honor guard, a military parade and a gun salute. Afterwards, Mr. Peres held a long meeting with Defense Minister Jobim, who is considered to be one of the strongest men in the Brazilian government.
Mr. Peres brought three leaders of Israel's defense industry - the director-general of Israel Aerospace Industries, the director-general of Elbit and a representative of Rafael - to the meeting in order to advance defense deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The Brazilian army is currently undergoing a modernization, and Israel's defense industries wish to take part in this process.
Mr. Peres was invited to address the Brazilian parliament, where Israel's president made specific reference to the fact that Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will be visiting Brazil this week. Mr. Peres remarked that he "finds it amazing to come from a nation where it is common to see people branded with concentration camp numbers to address a nation who will hear from another nation's leader that the mass murder of Jews never occurred."
View the original article in the Philadelphia Bulletin
JERUSALEM - As an integral part of his visit this week to South America, Israeli President Shimon Peres shared intelligence with Brazilian Defense Minister Nelson Jobim regarding Iran and Hezbollah being active in the three-way border between Brazil, Argentina and Paraguay.
Israel's President Shimon Peres, right, shakes hands with Brazil's Defense Minister Nelson Jobim in Brasilia on Tuesday. (Eraldo Peres/Associated Press)
Hezbollah terrorist cells working there are engaging, among other things, in money laundering, arms trafficking, drug trafficking and diamond smuggling in order to finance terrorist activity, according to the information conveyed by President Peres.
Israel warned Brazil and other Latin American countries of Hezbollah's intentions to perpetrate terror attacks against Jewish and Israeli targets in South America similar to the large-scale, murderous terror attacks that were committed during the 1990s against the Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires and the Jewish community center in that city.
This is the first visit by an Israeli president to Brazil in 40 years.
Upon landing, Mr. Peres received a magnificent reception that included an honor guard, a military parade and a gun salute. Afterwards, Mr. Peres held a long meeting with Defense Minister Jobim, who is considered to be one of the strongest men in the Brazilian government.
Mr. Peres brought three leaders of Israel's defense industry - the director-general of Israel Aerospace Industries, the director-general of Elbit and a representative of Rafael - to the meeting in order to advance defense deals worth hundreds of millions of dollars. The Brazilian army is currently undergoing a modernization, and Israel's defense industries wish to take part in this process.
Mr. Peres was invited to address the Brazilian parliament, where Israel's president made specific reference to the fact that Iran's president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad will be visiting Brazil this week. Mr. Peres remarked that he "finds it amazing to come from a nation where it is common to see people branded with concentration camp numbers to address a nation who will hear from another nation's leader that the mass murder of Jews never occurred."
View the original article in the Philadelphia Bulletin
Sunday, October 18, 2009
The Philadelphia Bulletin: Underground Sensor tohelp Israel Fight Terrorists
by David Bedein
Jerusalem - The communal nightmare of the kibbutz and moshav agricultural villages near Gaza is that bands of terrorists will dig under their communities and conduct surprise infiltrations from underground.
To cope with that deadly scenario, Israel has developed an underground sensor designed to detect tunnel construction and operation.
Israel’s Spider Technologies Security has produced and delivered sensors designed to detect and track underground activity. Executives said the Israeli military as well as the U.S. government have been testing the system for underground and above-ground use.
“The most recent tests in the U.S. involve tunneling detection,” SpiderTech marketing director Elkana Pressler said. “The demonstrations have shown that the SpiderTech sensor can accurately identify underground activity even with intense surface noise, like car and truck traffic.”
SpiderTech, based in Lod, near Israel’s International Ben Gurion Airport, was also commencing field trials of its sensor network in Europe and South America.
One of the sensor systems, Tarantula, was said to comprise a network of SpiderTech’s proprietary seismic sensors based on novel seismic measurement components along with signal specially designed processing technology that could detect and classify the approach of people above ground as well as underground activity. The network horizontal architecture allows coverage of tens of kilometers over regular PC base control station.
In prototype testing, Tarantula, said to have a false alarm rate of below 10 percent, detected people at a distance of 20 feet and light vehicles at 80 feet.
The ranges of the cylindrical three-dimensional sensor -- each measuring 120 inches high x 80 inches in diameter and with a target positioning accuracy of up to five meters -- were about twice that of existing sensor technology systems.
“Since the system is designed as a multi-layer decision maker, the sensors have a very low rate of false alarms, thus, being extremely difficult to bypass and enhance any existing perimeter security solution,” SpiderTech said on Sept. 29.
SpiderTech has signed a collaboration agreement with Israel’s Rada Electronic Industries for the producing and marketing of Tarantula - an effort that could result in contracts in 2010. Executives said Rada would focus on Western governments and militaries, particularly the United States. The system, which does not require a line of sight with targets, is within an on-going feasibility classified program by the U.S. Homeland Security and defense parties.
“We are currently focused on the high-end government market segment where our solution is urgently needed,” Pressler said. “We also intend to expand our offering and introduce a commercial product line, tailored for mini sites, portable stand alone solutions, home and residential protection.”
View the original article in the Philadelphia Bulletin
Jerusalem - The communal nightmare of the kibbutz and moshav agricultural villages near Gaza is that bands of terrorists will dig under their communities and conduct surprise infiltrations from underground.
To cope with that deadly scenario, Israel has developed an underground sensor designed to detect tunnel construction and operation.
Israel’s Spider Technologies Security has produced and delivered sensors designed to detect and track underground activity. Executives said the Israeli military as well as the U.S. government have been testing the system for underground and above-ground use.
“The most recent tests in the U.S. involve tunneling detection,” SpiderTech marketing director Elkana Pressler said. “The demonstrations have shown that the SpiderTech sensor can accurately identify underground activity even with intense surface noise, like car and truck traffic.”
SpiderTech, based in Lod, near Israel’s International Ben Gurion Airport, was also commencing field trials of its sensor network in Europe and South America.
One of the sensor systems, Tarantula, was said to comprise a network of SpiderTech’s proprietary seismic sensors based on novel seismic measurement components along with signal specially designed processing technology that could detect and classify the approach of people above ground as well as underground activity. The network horizontal architecture allows coverage of tens of kilometers over regular PC base control station.
In prototype testing, Tarantula, said to have a false alarm rate of below 10 percent, detected people at a distance of 20 feet and light vehicles at 80 feet.
The ranges of the cylindrical three-dimensional sensor -- each measuring 120 inches high x 80 inches in diameter and with a target positioning accuracy of up to five meters -- were about twice that of existing sensor technology systems.
“Since the system is designed as a multi-layer decision maker, the sensors have a very low rate of false alarms, thus, being extremely difficult to bypass and enhance any existing perimeter security solution,” SpiderTech said on Sept. 29.
SpiderTech has signed a collaboration agreement with Israel’s Rada Electronic Industries for the producing and marketing of Tarantula - an effort that could result in contracts in 2010. Executives said Rada would focus on Western governments and militaries, particularly the United States. The system, which does not require a line of sight with targets, is within an on-going feasibility classified program by the U.S. Homeland Security and defense parties.
“We are currently focused on the high-end government market segment where our solution is urgently needed,” Pressler said. “We also intend to expand our offering and introduce a commercial product line, tailored for mini sites, portable stand alone solutions, home and residential protection.”
View the original article in the Philadelphia Bulletin
Monday, April 21, 2008
The Philadelphia Bulletin: On the Eve of the Pennsylvania Primary, the Philadelphia Bulletin interviews Obama's Middle East Advisors
On the Eve of the Pennsylvania Primary, the Philadelphia Bulletin interviews Obama's Middle East Advisors
by David Bedein
During the week before the Pennsylvania primary, I met with Sen. Barack Obama's middle east advisers in Washington, Howard Guttman and former Californian Congressman Mel Levine, along with another Obama Middle East aide who spoke on condition of anonymity, in my capacity as the Middle East Correspondent of the Philadelphia Bulletin.
These are the questions The Bulletin posed to Mr. Obama's Middle East advisers and the responses that they provided:
1. How would a President Obama relate to the security threat posed by Saudi Arabia? [Declassified security reports confirm that Saudi Arabia continues to fund groups defined by the U.S. government as terrorist organizations, while Saudi Arabia maintains an active state of war against the state of Israel since 1948.]
None of Mr. Obama's advisers could answer this question.
2. Does Mr. Obama support President Bush's policy of arming the Saudis? [The Bush administration offers major arms sales to Saudi Arabia, despite its pro-terror posture]
Neither Guttman nor Levine could tell The Bulletin whether or not Mr. Obama supports the Bush arms sales to Saudi Arabia. They checked with Mr. Obama and could not get an answer.
3. Would a President Obama support the idea that Palestinian refugees should reside in UNRWA refugee camps, under the premise and promise of the "right of return," instead of being provided with decent living conditions?
While each of Mr. Obama's advisers emphasized that the candidate opposed the Palestinian "right of return," none of them could find out what Mr. Obama's position is concerning continuing American government funding for the UNRWA agency, which fuels the right of return.
4. Would a President Obama continue Mr. Bush's policy to arm the Fatah organization, since the armed forces of the Fatah are defined by American law as an illegal terrorist organization?
The Obama advisor who spoke on condition of anonymity answered that Mr. Obama wants to continue the policy of developing Fatah as a moderate entity.
5. Would a President Obama ask for a change in the proposed constitution of the Palestinian Fatah state, which is based on the Islamic sharia law, and not allow for juridical status for any religion other than Islam?
All three Obama advisers promised to check this out with the senator. None of them could provide an answer.
6. Would a President Obama restrain Israel from counterattacking in Gaza to put an end to the daily missile attacks from Gaza, as the Bush administration has done?
Mr. Obama's advisers responded that "Israel has a right to defend itself."
7. Would a President Obama recognize that Palestinian civilian casualties in Gaza are a direct result of their use of human shields?
Mr. Obama's advisers answered that "Sen. Obama regards the operations of terrorist organizations as intolerable."
8. Would a President Obama allow such a policy to continue where the Palestinian Authority (PA) continues to harbor terrorists suspected of murder and refuses to hand them over for trial, as the Clinton and Bush administrations have done?
Mr. Obama's advisers were more emphatic on this point, stating that Mr. Obama's policy would "oppose all attempts to harbor terrorists by the Palestinian Authority."
9. Would a President Obama condition future U.S. assistance on human rights and civil liberties reform in the PA, since the PA operates with no system of civil liberties or human rights?
In another emphatic statement, each of Mr. Obama's advisers stated that a President Obama would insist on the implementation of a policy that would stand up for human rights and civil liberties in the Palestinian Authority.
10. Would a President Obama ignore the plight of Christians who are persecuted in the PA, or would he champion the cause of the Christians to practice their religion freely in the PA, since the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem has refused to render assistance to Christians who are persecuted by the PA?
Mr. Obama's advisers promised an answer to The Bulletin with an answer to this question but did not do so.
11. What would the policy of a President Obama be to Syria in regard to Syria's continuing to host and support a plethora of terror groups?
All three of Obama's advisers indicated that they would review new directives to the Syrian government in this regard.
12. Would a President Obama support an effort to destroy the Syrian source of lethal narcotics in the Bekka Valley, since Syria continues to orchestrate the export of lethal narcotics to the world?
Mr. Obama's advisers could not answer this question.
13. Would a President Obama support an effort to force Israel to withdraw from Golan, since the Golan Heights was used by Syria between 1949 and 1967 to attack Israeli communities in Galilee?
All three of Mr. Obama's advisers answered that "Obama does not believe in pressuring Israel" on any matter related to Syria.
14. Which Middle East road map would a President Obama endorse: the road map of April 30, 2003, or that of May 25, 2003? [The second road map contains the reservations of Israel, which include detailed Israeli directives to disband terror groups as a precondition to continued negotiations.]
Mr. Obama's three advisers referred this policy question to a top adviser to Mr. Obama. However, they would not give an answer to this question to The Bulletin.
15. Would a President Obama continue the Clinton/Bush policy of ignoring the fact that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) never ratified the Oslo Accord and never canceled the PLO charter? [The Clinton and Bush administrations overlooked the fact that the PLO never ratified the Oslo Accord "declaration of principles," which required the PLO and Fatah to recognize Israel, denounce terror and cancel the PLO/Fatah charter, which calls for Israel's obliteration. It will be recalled that the PLO signed the Oslo Accords on the White House lawn on September 13, 1993, and would not ratify these accords when the PLO executive convened on October 6, 1993, in Tunis and would not cancel the PLO charter when the PNC convened on April 24, 1996.]
Mr. Obama's advisers concurred that a President Obama would insist on a formal PLO ratification of the Oslo Accords and cancellation of the PLO covenant.
16. Would a President Obama issue a directive that any aid to the PA require a cessation of calls to terrorism by the official Arabic language outlets of the PA? [The Clinton and Bush administration consistently ignored the message communicated by the newly constituted PA in the Arabic language, which has communicated a language of war on Israel since the inception of the PA in 1993.]
Mr. Obama's advisers said that Mr. Obama would institute "a policy of no tolerance of incitement."
17. Would a President Obama call for a cancellation of the PA educational curriculum, which inculcates the next generation to continue a war to liberate all of Palestine, which can be seen at www.edume.org?
Mr. Obama's advisers indicated that Mr. Obama would see this as part of a "policy of no tolerance for incitement."
18. Would a President Obama insist on future Israeli withdrawals, since the Gaza withdrawal indicates that Palestinians will use areas under their control to launch missile attacks against Israel?
The Obama adviser who spoke on condition of anonymity answered that the "Gaza and Lebanon precedent should be taken into consideration," considering the fact that Israel is ready for compromise.
by David Bedein
During the week before the Pennsylvania primary, I met with Sen. Barack Obama's middle east advisers in Washington, Howard Guttman and former Californian Congressman Mel Levine, along with another Obama Middle East aide who spoke on condition of anonymity, in my capacity as the Middle East Correspondent of the Philadelphia Bulletin.
These are the questions The Bulletin posed to Mr. Obama's Middle East advisers and the responses that they provided:
1. How would a President Obama relate to the security threat posed by Saudi Arabia? [Declassified security reports confirm that Saudi Arabia continues to fund groups defined by the U.S. government as terrorist organizations, while Saudi Arabia maintains an active state of war against the state of Israel since 1948.]
None of Mr. Obama's advisers could answer this question.
2. Does Mr. Obama support President Bush's policy of arming the Saudis? [The Bush administration offers major arms sales to Saudi Arabia, despite its pro-terror posture]
Neither Guttman nor Levine could tell The Bulletin whether or not Mr. Obama supports the Bush arms sales to Saudi Arabia. They checked with Mr. Obama and could not get an answer.
3. Would a President Obama support the idea that Palestinian refugees should reside in UNRWA refugee camps, under the premise and promise of the "right of return," instead of being provided with decent living conditions?
While each of Mr. Obama's advisers emphasized that the candidate opposed the Palestinian "right of return," none of them could find out what Mr. Obama's position is concerning continuing American government funding for the UNRWA agency, which fuels the right of return.
4. Would a President Obama continue Mr. Bush's policy to arm the Fatah organization, since the armed forces of the Fatah are defined by American law as an illegal terrorist organization?
The Obama advisor who spoke on condition of anonymity answered that Mr. Obama wants to continue the policy of developing Fatah as a moderate entity.
5. Would a President Obama ask for a change in the proposed constitution of the Palestinian Fatah state, which is based on the Islamic sharia law, and not allow for juridical status for any religion other than Islam?
All three Obama advisers promised to check this out with the senator. None of them could provide an answer.
6. Would a President Obama restrain Israel from counterattacking in Gaza to put an end to the daily missile attacks from Gaza, as the Bush administration has done?
Mr. Obama's advisers responded that "Israel has a right to defend itself."
7. Would a President Obama recognize that Palestinian civilian casualties in Gaza are a direct result of their use of human shields?
Mr. Obama's advisers answered that "Sen. Obama regards the operations of terrorist organizations as intolerable."
8. Would a President Obama allow such a policy to continue where the Palestinian Authority (PA) continues to harbor terrorists suspected of murder and refuses to hand them over for trial, as the Clinton and Bush administrations have done?
Mr. Obama's advisers were more emphatic on this point, stating that Mr. Obama's policy would "oppose all attempts to harbor terrorists by the Palestinian Authority."
9. Would a President Obama condition future U.S. assistance on human rights and civil liberties reform in the PA, since the PA operates with no system of civil liberties or human rights?
In another emphatic statement, each of Mr. Obama's advisers stated that a President Obama would insist on the implementation of a policy that would stand up for human rights and civil liberties in the Palestinian Authority.
10. Would a President Obama ignore the plight of Christians who are persecuted in the PA, or would he champion the cause of the Christians to practice their religion freely in the PA, since the U.S. consulate in Jerusalem has refused to render assistance to Christians who are persecuted by the PA?
Mr. Obama's advisers promised an answer to The Bulletin with an answer to this question but did not do so.
11. What would the policy of a President Obama be to Syria in regard to Syria's continuing to host and support a plethora of terror groups?
All three of Obama's advisers indicated that they would review new directives to the Syrian government in this regard.
12. Would a President Obama support an effort to destroy the Syrian source of lethal narcotics in the Bekka Valley, since Syria continues to orchestrate the export of lethal narcotics to the world?
Mr. Obama's advisers could not answer this question.
13. Would a President Obama support an effort to force Israel to withdraw from Golan, since the Golan Heights was used by Syria between 1949 and 1967 to attack Israeli communities in Galilee?
All three of Mr. Obama's advisers answered that "Obama does not believe in pressuring Israel" on any matter related to Syria.
14. Which Middle East road map would a President Obama endorse: the road map of April 30, 2003, or that of May 25, 2003? [The second road map contains the reservations of Israel, which include detailed Israeli directives to disband terror groups as a precondition to continued negotiations.]
Mr. Obama's three advisers referred this policy question to a top adviser to Mr. Obama. However, they would not give an answer to this question to The Bulletin.
15. Would a President Obama continue the Clinton/Bush policy of ignoring the fact that the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) never ratified the Oslo Accord and never canceled the PLO charter? [The Clinton and Bush administrations overlooked the fact that the PLO never ratified the Oslo Accord "declaration of principles," which required the PLO and Fatah to recognize Israel, denounce terror and cancel the PLO/Fatah charter, which calls for Israel's obliteration. It will be recalled that the PLO signed the Oslo Accords on the White House lawn on September 13, 1993, and would not ratify these accords when the PLO executive convened on October 6, 1993, in Tunis and would not cancel the PLO charter when the PNC convened on April 24, 1996.]
Mr. Obama's advisers concurred that a President Obama would insist on a formal PLO ratification of the Oslo Accords and cancellation of the PLO covenant.
16. Would a President Obama issue a directive that any aid to the PA require a cessation of calls to terrorism by the official Arabic language outlets of the PA? [The Clinton and Bush administration consistently ignored the message communicated by the newly constituted PA in the Arabic language, which has communicated a language of war on Israel since the inception of the PA in 1993.]
Mr. Obama's advisers said that Mr. Obama would institute "a policy of no tolerance of incitement."
17. Would a President Obama call for a cancellation of the PA educational curriculum, which inculcates the next generation to continue a war to liberate all of Palestine, which can be seen at www.edume.org?
Mr. Obama's advisers indicated that Mr. Obama would see this as part of a "policy of no tolerance for incitement."
18. Would a President Obama insist on future Israeli withdrawals, since the Gaza withdrawal indicates that Palestinians will use areas under their control to launch missile attacks against Israel?
The Obama adviser who spoke on condition of anonymity answered that the "Gaza and Lebanon precedent should be taken into consideration," considering the fact that Israel is ready for compromise.
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