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Iranian commander: We can destroy Israel ‘in under 8 minutes’

May 23, 2016

Iranian commander: We can destroy Israel ‘in under 8 minutes’ If supreme leader gives order, Revolutionary Guards ‘will raze the Zionist regime’ quickly, says senior adviser of elite al-Quds unit

By Times of Israel staff May 22, 2016, 4:14 pm

Source: Iranian commander: We can destroy Israel ‘in under 8 minutes’ | The Times of Israel

A missile launched from the Alborz mountains in Iran on March 9, 2016, reportedly inscribed in Hebrew, ‘Israel must be wiped out.’ (Fars News)

A senior Iranian military commander boasted that the Islamic Republic could “raze the Zionist regime in less than eight minutes.”

Ahmad Karimpour, a senior adviser to the Iranian Revolutionary Guards’ elite unit al-Quds Force, said if Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei gave the order to destroy Israel, the Iranian military had the capacity to do so quickly.

 “If the Supreme Leader’s orders [are] to be executed, with the abilities and the equipment at our disposal, we will raze the Zionist regime in less than eight minutes,” Karimpour said Thursday, according to the semi-official Fars News Agency.

A senior Iranian general on May 9 announced that the country’s armed forces successfully tested a precision-guided, medium-range ballistic missile two weeks earlier that could reach Israel, the state-run Tasnim agency reported.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei meets the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy unit that detained US sailors earlier in January, in a photo released by Iran on January 24, 2016.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei meets the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) Navy unit that detained US sailors earlier in January, in a photo released by Iran on January 24, 2016.

“We test-fired a missile with a range of 2,000 kilometers and a margin of error of eight meters,” Brigadier General Ali Abdollahi was quoted as saying at a Tehran science conference. The eight-meter margin means the “missile enjoys zero error,” he told conference participants.

Iran in March tested ballistic missiles, including two with the words “Israel must be wiped off the earth” emblazoned on them, according to the US and other Western powers.

Under a nuclear deal signed last year between world powers and Iran, ballistic missile tests are not forbidden outright but are “not consistent” with a United Nations Security Council resolution from July 2015, US officials say.

According to the UN decision, “Iran is called upon not to undertake any activity related to ballistic missiles designed to be capable of delivering nuclear weapons, including launches using such ballistic missile technology,” until October 2023.

Khamenei has repeatedly threatened to annihilate the Jewish state, and in September 2015 suggested Israel would not be around in 25 years. In a quote posted to Twitter by Khamenei’s official account on September 9, 2015, Khamenei addressed Israel, saying, “You will not see next 25 years,” and added that the Jewish state will be hounded until it is destroyed.

“After negotiations, in Zionist regime they said they had no more concern about Iran for next 25 years; I’d say: Firstly, you will not see next 25 years; God willing, there will be nothing as Zionist regime by next 25 years. Secondly, until then, struggling, heroic and jihadi morale will leave no moment of serenity for Zionists,” the quote from Iran’s top leader reads in broken English.

In November 2014, Khamenei stated that the “barbaric” Jewish state “has no cure but to be annihilated.” A plan titled “9 key questions about the elimination of Israel” was posted on his Twitter account, using the hashtag #handsoffalaqsa, in reference to the tensions on the Temple Mount. The sometimes grammatically awkward list explained the how and why of Khomeini’s vision for replacing Israel with a Palestinian state.

The first point stated that “the fake Zionist regime has tried to realize its goals by means of infanticide, homicide, violence & iron fist while boasts about it blatantly.” Due to the above, Khomeini argued, “the only means of bringing Israeli crimes to an end is the elimination of this regime.”

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ISIS seeks to destroy Israel, ‘liberate’ Jerusalem with Sinai Peninsula terrorist force

May 23, 2016

Islamic State aims to destroy Israel, ‘liberate’ Jerusalem with Sinai Peninsula terrorist force By Rowan Scarborough –

The Washington Times Sunday, May 22, 2016

Source: ISIS seeks to destroy Israel, ‘liberate’ Jerusalem with Sinai Peninsula terrorist force – Washington Times

With a media blitz, the Islamic State has set its sights on Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula as the next shot at expanding its empire and establishing a base from which to attack neighboring Israel.

The terrorist group’s propaganda units have gone into high gear for recruitment this month to build a force in Sinai large enough to one day conquer Jerusalem — the same way its fighters took over large parts of Syria and Iraq.

Last week, Marine Gen. Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, warned of the Islamic State’s presence in Sinai, where the group may have placed as many as 1,000 terrorists. The general’s concern is a signal that the U.S. faces another war front against the Islamic State in addition to Iraq, Syria and Libya.

More than a dozen Islamic State media arms in Iraq and Syria have produced videos narrated by a who’s who of hardened jihadis, who are surely on a U.S. kill list for daily airstrikes.

Islamic State propaganda promises recruits that they will one day “liberate” Jerusalem and end the state of Israel, according to analysis by the Middle East Media Research Institute, which tracks jihadi communications. The Egyptian army, the force standing in the way, is threatened with beheadings if soldiers continue to fight.

Such a massive propaganda effort for one mission is unusual for the Islamic State, also known as ISIS and ISIL. Analysts says it means leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi views the land as increasingly important to his group’s ultimate goal of bringing down governments in the region and expanding its so-called caliphate, or Islamic state.

“I think ISIS sees the Sinai as a steppingstone for launching greater attacks against Israel, which would boost its claim to primacy in championing the Arab/Muslim cause against Israel, an issue that strongly resonates with many Arab Islamists,” said Jim Phillips, a Middle East analyst at The Heritage Foundation. “The Sinai cells also pose a long-term threat to Egypt, a key state with the largest Arab population. Nature may abhor a vacuum, but terrorists love them.”

Steve Stalinsky, executive director of the Middle East Media Research Institute, said the Islamic State is applying lessons learned in Anbar, Iraq, parts of which it controls, as it tries to persuade Egyptians and people in Hamas-controlled Gaza to join. Hamas is a U.S.-designated terrorist organization.

“One of the videos noted that ISIS in Sinai has learned from the experience of ISIS in Al-Anbar as the two areas are similar in terms of its desert geography,” Mr. Stalinsky said.

“They have been calling Egyptian and Gazans to join them. They believe that ISIS in Sinai will be the gate towards the liberation of Palestine,” he said.For now, the Islamic State lacks the firepower to repeat its success in Anbar, where it captured a number of towns including the disputed Fallujah, after invading Iraq.

“Their strategy now in the Sinai is basically hit-and-run kind of attacks,” Mr. Stalinsky said.

Egyptian forces on the peninsula are hit by those attacks almost daily.

The Islamic State made an enormous statement in Sinai in October when it placed a bomb on Metrojet Flight 9268, sending the Russian airliner crashing onto the desert landscape. The Islamic State claimed it sabotaged the plane, killing 224 people, with explosives hidden in a soda can. If so, the bomb was likely placed on the plane by an Islamic State insider at the Sinai Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh.

“ISIS leadership views the Sinai province as a key extension for the organization outside of its core area of control in Syria and Iraq,” says an analysis by the Middle East Media Research Institute. “Indeed, the Sinai province is considered one of the most powerful and effective among these extensions.”

Mr. Phillips said the Arab Spring uprising centered in Cairo fed the Islamic State the fighters it needed in Sinai as many Islamists were released from prisons.

“Extremist groups flourished in the Sinai, where they recruited disaffected Bedouin tribes, which had long resented what they perceived to be neglect and marginalization at the hands of the Egyptian government,” he said. “The Sinai also offered a conduit to Gaza, where extremists received support from Hamas and other radical Palestinian Islamist groups.”

Counteroffensive

A sampling of some of the more than one dozen Sinai-centered Islamic State videos provided by the Middle East Media Research Institute:

• Two jihadis in Iraq, Abu Qaswara Al-Masri, an Egyptian, and Abu Omar Al-Maqdisi, likely a Palestinian from Gaza, urge Egyptians to join the Islamic State in Sinai.

Al-Masri tells the Egyptian army: “We advise you to repent before we manage to find you. If we find you, there will be no other [fate] but beheading for you. There will be no mercy for you and you are aware of that. You have seen what the soldiers of the caliphate have done with your colleagues and you will see. I advise you to repent. I am a truthful adviser to you.”

• Islamic State fighters Abu Suhaib Al-Ansari and Abu Omar Al-Ansari, in Iraq’s Ninawa province, appear in a recruitment video. Abu Omar Al-Ansari urges Egyptians to attack Egyptian government officials and “spill their blood and communicate with them with guns and explosives and turn them into corpses with bombs.” He specifically called on Gazans to travel to Sinai.

• A video produced in Aleppo province, Syria, attacks the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt as mainstream.

A fighter says, “You are the preachers for polytheism and falsehood, you are the ones who issued the fatwa for people to take part in the polytheist democracy, and you are the ones who issued the fatwa for people to vote for the pagan constitution, which puts sovereignty in the hands of the people instead of Allah.”

He added: “You have deceived your followers that [adhering to] democracy and entering the parliament will lead to [the implementation] of Islamic Shariah. Now, where is the Shariah, O enemies of Allah?”

The Brotherhood’s overriding goal is to spread Shariah, or Islamic law, around the world by undercutting secular governments.

Gen. Dunford, the Joint Chiefs chairman, raised alarm last week about the Islamic State’s growing presence in Sinai and said Egyptian forces had begun a counteroffensive against its units.

“We have seen a connection between the Islamic State in the Sinai and Raqqa,” Gen. Dunford told reporters, according to a dispatch by Voice of America. “We have seen communication between the Islamic State in the Sinai and the Islamic State in Libya and elsewhere, so we are watching that pretty closely.”

Raqqa is the Islamic State’s self-proclaimed capital in central Syria, from which it directs media operations and terrorist attacks.

“The Egyptians are taking the fight to the Islamic State right now,” he said aboard a flight for a NATO meeting in Brussels.

The Egyptian military said this weekend that it conducted a series of raids in Sinai that killed 51 Islamic State fighters, according to the Arab news site Al Bawaba.

“Just being able to have a presence and cause some disruption in between Egypt and Israel gives ISIS some propaganda value, at the very least, said retired Army Lt. Gen. James Dubik, an analyst at the Institute for the Study of War in Washington. “It also causes Egypt to look both East and West and may, therefore, provide some operational flexibility to ISIS planning.”

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 Turkey’s President Erdogan ‘Waiting for Israel’ to Respond on Gaza

May 21, 2016

Pres. Erdogan says Turkey will mend ties with Israel if Jerusalem agrees to allow Ankara to repair water, energy and infrastructure in Gaza.

By: Hana Levi Julian Published: May 21st, 2016

Source: The Jewish Press » » Turkey’s President Erdogan ‘Waiting for Israel’ to Respond on Gaza

Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Photo Credit: Social media

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says he is waiting for Israel to grant permission for Turkey to construct energy and water transfer infrastructure in Gaza, according to a report published Saturday (May 21) in the Hurriyet Daily News, quoting an earlier broadcast.

“I expect that something will happen this month. It’s my wish that we’ll reach a conclusion in a short time,” Erdogan told a news broadcast by A Haber on May 19.

“In regards to [lifting] the embargo, they say, ‘We are open to allowing goods into Gaza through Turkey, but we are not open to those coming from places other than Turkey.’ But the problem is not only this. We have some other demands,” Erdogan said.

The Turkish leader said Ankara has demanded that Israel allow provision of continuous energy to Gaza, “as the enclave has only three to four hours of electricity per day,” Erdogan said.

He added that Turkey’s proposal to provide electricity to Gaza through a naval vessel was rejected by Israel.

“But they proposed something else: We told them that we are ready to construct all the infrastructure [of energy]. They viewed the proposal positively,” Erdogan said.

The second demand, he said, was that Turkey be allowed to provide water to Gaza either by desalinating the sea water or by drilling wells. “There are positive developments with regard to this issue as well,” he said.

Turkey’s third demand from Israel, said Erdogan, was regarding construction projects in Gaza.

“Our third offer is about building schools and hospitals. The construction of a hospital has been completed and necessary equipment is being provided. ‘These must be done,’ we told them. ‘If these would be done, then we’ll immediately appoint ambassadors and improve our relations in the right direction.’”

According to the report, Israeli and Turkish diplomats are expected to meet in the near future to finalize an agreement between the two countries.

But it’s impossible to know what the final outcome will be: Erdogan’s ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party is set to meet at a nationwide Congress on May 22 to choose a new prime minister.

Incumbent Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu, hand-picked by Erdogan, resigned his position earlier this month.

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AP: Soros-Backed Group that Helped Sell Iran Nuclear Deal DIRECTLY FUNDED journalists and media outlets — Gave NPR $700,000 since 2005, $100,000 just last year

May 21, 2016

AP: Soros-Backed Group that Helped Sell Iran Nuclear Deal DIRECTLY FUNDED journalists and media outlets — Gave NPR $700,000 since 2005, $100,000 just last year

ByPamela Geller on May 21, 2016

Source: AP: Soros-Backed Group that Helped Sell Iran Nuclear Deal DIRECTLY FUNDED journalists and media outlets — Gave NPR $700,000 since 2005, $100,000 just last year | Pamela Geller

Read this latest dispatch from Omri Ceren, political analyst and The Israel Project senior adviser, breaking down the blockbuster AP story on how the group that helped sell Iran nuke deal also funded media. It is an extraordinary window into how media is bought and paid for. It’s deeply disturbing, like watching sausage being made.

Here’s the back-story on how and why the media supported the most dangerous ‘deal’ in American history – Obama’s nuclear pact with Iran.

“A group the White House recently identified as a key surrogate in selling the Iran nuclear deal gave National Public Radio $100,000 last year to help it report on the pact and related issues, according to the group’s annual report. It also funded reporters and partnerships with other news outlets.” Aaron Klein notes, not mentioned in the AP article is that the Ploughshares Fund is financed by billionaire George Soros’ Open Society Institute.

For those of you smart enough to never trust big media — here’s the concrete evidence of your “tin foil hat” theories.

AP: In The New York Times Magazine article, Rhodes explained how the administration worked with nongovernmental organizations, proliferation experts and even friendly reporters to build support for the seven-nation accord that curtailed Iran’s nuclear activity and softened international financial penalties on Tehran.

Omri Ceren: In his NYT profile, Ben Rhodes put the Ploughshares Fund at the center of the echo chamber constructed by the White House to sell the Iran deal: “We are going to discourse the [expletive] out of this… We had test drives to know who was going to be able to carry our message effectively, and how to use outside groups like Ploughshares, the Iran Project and whomever else” [a].

The Ploughshares Fund is a donation hub that has distributed millions of dollars in recent years to groups pushing the Iran deal. After Congress failed to defeat the deal, Ploughshares President Joseph Cirincione published a video and letter boasting about how the echo chamber – over 85 groups and 200 people – was created with Ploughshares money: “groups and individuals were decisive in the battle for public opinion and as independent validators… they lacked a common platform – a network to exchange information and coordinate efforts. Ploughshares Fund provided that network… we built a network of over 85 organizations and 200 individuals… We credit this model of philanthropy – facilitating collective action through high-impact grantmaking – with creating the conditions necessary for supporters of the Iran agreement to beat the political odds” [b].

The Associated Press just published a deep dive into Ploughshares’s most recent annual report, which details some of those 85 organizations and 200 individuals. The full article is pasted below. The AP broke down the network funded by Ploughshares into three kinds of groups:

— Journalists and media outlets (this is the part that’s getting the most attention, and includes NRP and at least two unnamed writers who were funded to write at Mother Jones and The Nation):

Ploughshares has funded NPR’s coverage of national security since 2005, the radio station said. Ploughshares reports show at least $700,000 in funding over that time. All grant descriptions since 2010 specifically mention Iran… Previous efforts… Ploughshares has set its sights on other media organizations, too. In a “Cultural Strategy Report” on its website, the group outlined a broader objective of “ensuring regular and accurate coverage of nuclear issues in reputable and strategic media outlets” such as The Guardian, Salon, the Huffington Post or Pro Publica. Previous efforts failed to generate enough coverage, it noted. These included “funding of reporters at The Nation and Mother Jones and a partnership with The Center for Public Integrity to create a national security desk.”

— Think tanks and nuclear-issues associations:

The 33-page document lists the groups that Ploughshares funded last year to advance its nonproliferation agenda. The Arms Control Association got $282,500; the Brookings Institution, $225,000; and the Atlantic Council, $182,500… Princeton University got $70,000 to support former Iranian ambassador and nuclear spokesman Seyed Hossein Mousavian’s “analysis, publications and policymaker engagement on the range of elements involved with the negotiated settlement of Iran’s nuclear program.”

— Lobbies:

Other groups, less directly defined by their independent nuclear expertise, also secured grants. J-Street, the liberal Jewish political action group, received $576,500 to advocate for the deal. More than $281,000 went to the National Iranian American Council.

 

On May 5 the NYT published its profile of Ben Rhodes, in which Rhodes bragged about creating an “echo chamber” with the Ploughshares Fund to sell the Iran deal on the basis of false pretenses [a]. A few hours ago the AP published a deep dive into Ploughshares showing that the group is funding a range of lobbies, policy shops, and journalists and media outlets, all of which are bouncing Iran messaging back and forth between each other [b].

Aspects of the Ploughshares network had already been reported out. In Feb 2012 the WFB reported on Ploughshares funding NPR [c]. In March 2015 the WSJ reported “the Ploughshares coalition includes a former Iranian government spokesman, the liberal Jewish organization J Street and a group of former American diplomats who have held private talks with Iranian government officials… [and] the Arms Control Association” [d]. In July 2015 the WFB printed details of a Ploughshares conference call that brought together White House officials with over 100 participants, in which groups were told to prepare for a “real war” that would involve “blitzing the hell out of the Hill,” pressuring Congressional Democrats, and leaning on Jewish groups [e][f]. In August 2015 Commentary published 1,500 words and a couple dozen links naming names in the network [g].

What hadn’t been widely discussed – until today’s AP story – was that Ploughshares has been directly funding journalists and media outlets in the context of the politicized Iran deal fight. In case you’re running down this angle, here are some documents published by Ploughshares Fund describing the group’s efforts in its own words.

— In 2014 Ploughshares commissioned a “Cultural Strategy Report.” It laid out how the organization could use PR firms, Hollywood studios, video games, and journalists to create a “cultural strategy that could complement existing funding and operational activities.” Here is part of the section describing directly funding journalism [PDF here – h]:

Similar to an academic chair, directly fund one or more national journalism positions at media outlets like The Guardian, Salon, Huffington Post, or Pro Publica, whose exclusive “beat” and focus of investigation and reporting would be nuclear weapons, disarmament, and nonproliferation… We understand that similar efforts supported by Ploughshares Fund in the past did not generate the desired volume of coverage (funding of reporters at The Nation and Mother Jones and a partnership with the Center for Public Integrity to create a national security desk). However we feel this strategy would be more successful by focusing on themes, media outlets and journalists who resonate with the target audiences (youth and faith communities) and by pursing this strategy in concert with other approaches.

— In 2015 Ploughshares published a video and letter from Ploughshares President Joe Cirincione titled “How We Won.” Cirincione boasted that the group leveraged its funding so lobbyists, policy voices, and journalists could “coordinate efforts” to push the Iran deal. The video ends with a scrolling list of groups involved. The letter goes into detail on how Ploughshares leveraged funding to create its network [i]:

These groups and individuals were decisive in the battle for public opinion and as independent validators… they lacked a common platform – a network to exchange information and coordinate efforts. Ploughshares Fund provided that network. Often, networks can make all the difference… We built a network of over 85 organizations and 200 individuals in favor of a negotiated solution to the Iranian crisis… We credit this model of philanthropy – facilitating collective action through high-impact grantmaking – with creating the conditions necessary for supporters of the Iran agreement to beat the political odds.

A lot of work is now being done on how the Iran deal echo chamber worked and funded. Two other articles from the last 48 hours: how Ploughshares also funded faith groups to be part of the pro-deal network [j] and how the network was mobilized this week to attack witnesses who testified in front of the House Oversight Committee on the White House’s sales campaign [k].—

[a] http://www.nytimes.com/2016/05/08/magazine/the-aspiring-novelist-who-became-obamas-foreign-policy-guru.html
[b] http://bigstory.ap.org/article/7044e805a95a4b7da5533b1b9ab75cd2/group-helped-sell-iran-nuke-deal-also-funded-media
[c] http://freebeacon.com/issues/public-radio-pay-to-play/
[d] http://www.wsj.com/articles/obama-ramps-up-lobbying-on-iran-1427674427
[e] http://freebeacon.com/national-security/white-house-officials-plot-ways-to-pressure-lawmakers-into-supporting-iran-deal/
[f] http://freebeacon.com/national-security/white-house-instructs-allies-to-lean-on-jewish-community-to-force-iran-deal/
[g] https://www.commentarymagazine.com/american-society/economy/money-behind-iran-nuclear-deal-ploughshares/
[h] http://www.ploughshares.org/sites/default/files/resources/M+A_Ploughshares_culture%20report.pdf
[i] http://www.ploughshares.org/issues-analysis/article/how-we-won
[j] http://www.algemeiner.com/2016/05/20/ben-rhodes-echo-chamber-on-iran-had-many-supporters
[k] http://nypost.com/2016/05/18/obamas-iran-echo-chamber-just-cant-stop/

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‘Coup against parliament:’ Politicians and analysts slam lifting of Turkish MPs’ immunity

May 21, 2016

‘Coup against parliament:’ Politicians and analysts slam lifting of Turkish MPs’ immunity

Published time: 20 May, 2016 21:53

Source: ‘Coup against parliament:’ Politicians and analysts slam lifting of Turkish MPs’ immunity — RT News

Turkish lawmakers attend a debate at the Turkish parliament in Ankara, Turkey, May 20, 2016. © Umit Bektas / Reuters

Stripping MPs of legal immunity was a power grab by the Erdogan-controlled parliament, RT was told by Turkish politicians and analysts, many of whom believe the move is aimed at stifling the opposition, especially the pro-Kurdish HDP party.

The Turkish parliament’s decision to take away lawmakers’ immunity from prosecution “is a coup staged against the parliament itself,” Alp Altınors, deputy chairman of the opposition pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), told RT, adding that the move violates democratic norms.

“This is a planned expulsion of HDP from the parliament, because HDP is the most active opposition group in the parliament,” he said, accusing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of “planning and organizing” the move in order to transform the parliament into a “tool of the [government].”

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Chairs belonging to MPs of Turkey's main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) are seen empty after the parliamentarians left a debate to protest against the Parliament Speaker Ismail Kahraman, at the Turkish parliament in Ankara, Turkey, May 20, 2016. © Umit Bektas

Turkish parliament approves lifting lawmakers’ legal immunity

This initiative was directed against the opposition, Gunes Engin, an advisor to HDP lawmaker Filiz Kerestecioglu, told RT in an interview, stressing that “a total number of 138 deputies” representing different opposition parties were stripped of their immunity, most of whom are from the HDP.

“It is very sad news for Turkish democracy because what they want now is to push all the MPs from [Turkish] Kurdistan and other opposition MPs, [who] come together for the need of democracy, out of the parliament,” she said in the interview.

She also said the vote gave Erdogan “a victory by [parliamentarians’] own hands,” adding that “the current situation in Turkey… would be a big fail for all the democratic forces.”

In the meantime, Shwan Zulal, a business consultant and political analyst, told RT that this amendment will be used by the government to crack down on the opposition and “arrest or put away any MP.”

“This is a targeted approach [used] by President Erdogan [aimed at] making sure that Kurdish MPs within parliament will be put away on very flimsy charges [like] terrorism or… showing support for the [outlawed Kurdistan Workers Party] PKK,” he said.

He also stressed that Erdogan “wants to have absolute power in Turkey” and needs to be able to push his legislation through the parliament in order to achieve that goal. He does not have it yet, however, as his party does not have the necessary majority, Zulal added, implying that Erdogan is seeking a way to shift the balance of power in the legislature.

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Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan. © Umit Bektas

Erdogan’s ‘autocratic ambitions’ blasted by German Bundestag speaker

Zulal’s ideas were partly echoed by human rights activist Professor Murat Somer from the Koc University in Istanbul, who said in an interview with RT that stripping lawmakers of their immunity would seriously diminish the role of the parliament, as it would drastically limit the ability of legislators to act freely.

“They [lawmakers] will be less able to do politics because they may, in fact, be prosecuted. And they may be tried, … punished, and get sentenced at the end, [so] they will not be able to function as they do so far,” Somer said.

He added that this move “will create a large series of legal questions and complexities” that could eventually “destabilize” or even “paralyze” the parliament, leading to a situation that “will strengthen the government and may lead to the outcome, [in which] the government will make more and more decisions without parliamentary oversight.”

Selahattin Demirtas, leader of the opposition Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP), had already denounced the move as a blow against the people’s will, vowing to challenge it in the Constitutional Court.

At the same time, President Erdogan hailed approval of the bill as “historic” for the country.

Earlier on Friday, the Turkish parliament passed a bill that would amend the constitution to allow MP’s to be stripped of their legal immunity from prosecution. In the third and final vote, 376 out of 550 legislators voted in favor of the bill. The measure paves the way for many opposition, and particularly pro-Kurdish, legislators to be charged for “support of terrorism” due to their views on Turkey’s Kurdish issue.

The development comes while the Turkish military is in the midst of an operation against Kurds fighting for greater autonomy in the country’s southeast. Ankara’s new campaign ended a two-year ceasefire between the ethnic group and the government that had lasted since 1984. The military crackdown, which has been underway since July of 2015, has already claimed the lives of hundreds of Turkish soldiers and police officers, as well as thousands of Kurdish militants and between 500 and 1,000 civilians, according to different estimates provided by opposition parties and NGOs.

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Islamic State Threatens Global War With Israel

May 20, 2016

Islamic State Threatens Global War With Israel

by Breitbart Jerusalem

19 May 2016

Source: Islamic State Threatens Global War With Israel

Sipa via AP Images

The Jerusalem Post reports: Islamic State threatens Israel in an article in its weekly newsletter this week, saying that unlike Hamas, the “war on Israel will not be limited by geographical boundaries or by international norms.”

According to the article in the Al-Naba newsletter identified by the Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor of MEMRI (the Middle East Media Research Institute) and shared with The Jerusalem Post, Israel feels threatened by ISIS because of the “collapse” of neighboring states and the Sunni terrorist group’s advance toward the borders of the Jewish state.

For this reason, Israel has started to fight against Islamic State in Sinai and Syria, it says, adding that the entire world is now an arena for the fight against all the “polytheist combatants, including the Jews,” who are legitimate targets. Israel is using jets to attack Islamic State in Sinai, the article claims.

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 New Hezbollah Chief of Staff Declares Truce with Israel

May 19, 2016

By: JNi.Media

Published: May 19th, 2016

Source: The Jewish Press » » New Hezbollah Chief of Staff Declares Truce with Israel

Cairoport illustration

Mustafa Mughniyeh, who replaced Hezbollah’s slain Chief of Staff Mustafa Badreddine, has reportedly declared that Israel, at least for now, is no longer considered the enemy of the Shiite organization. According to cairoportal.com, citing a source they say is familiar with Hezbollah’s internal affairs, Mughniyeh is planning to carry out a major attack against the Saudis.

The new Hezbollah military chief, whose father was legendary terrorist Imad Mughniyeh—killed in 2008 in a car bomb blast, reportedly said that “while my father and uncle (Badreddine) failed to kill the Emir of Kuwait, I will not fail to kill the king of Wahabia (a reference to the Wahabi faith, Saudi Arabia’s state religion, which is the most viciously anti-Shiite) and cut off the hand of anyone who wishes to turn Syria Wahabi.”

Speaking before a cadre of Hezbollah’s top command, Mughniyeh then declared that Israel is a friend and a strategic ally opposite the Saudi enemy, and therefore, from this day on, there is no more war against Israel.

He also noted that Israel was the only country that liberated the Shiites in south Lebanon from the Palestinian conquest in 1982. The PLO, which had been driven out of Jordan a decade earlier, created an independent state in everything but a name in south Lebanon, and used it as a base from which to harass Israel—leading to the first Lebanon war.

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Bob Graham: 9/11 Support Goes To The Top Of Saudi Government

May 19, 2016

Bob Graham: 9/11 Support Goes To The Top Of Saudi Government

by Breitbart News

19 May 2016

Source: Bob Graham: 9/11 Support Goes To The Top Of Saudi Government

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

From Yahoo News:

Is there a smoking gun in the 28 pages that were redacted from the congressional joint inquiry on intelligence from before and after the 9/11 attacks that links the Saudi Arabian government to the attacks? A co-chair of that inquiry, former Forida Sen. Bob Graham thinks there is one. He also says the link goes all the way to the top of the Saudi government and that the government’s funding of terrorist groups continues to this day.

Graham, who has been advocating for the release of those pages for over a decade, sat down with Yahoo News host Stephanie Sy on “Yahoo News Live” to discuss when that might happen, the Senate’s passage of a bill allowing families of 9/11 victims to sue the Saudi government and what he says are the Saudi government’s continued links to terrorism.

On the 28 pages, he said: “I think [they’re] a smoking gun. I think the linkages are so multiple and strong and reinforcing that it’s hard to come away from reading all this material and not feel that there was a support network and that support network came from Saudi Arabia.”

He said it goes beyond the pages though: “They will also open the path to other materials. There are thousands of pages of documents, which speak to the relationship between Saudi Arabia and the 19 hijackers.” He continued, “Could those 19 people have carried out a plot as complex as 9/11 while maintaining anonymity in some cases for more than a year and a half while they were in the United States without having some support?”

As for the bill, which still has to be passed by the House of Representatives and signed by President Obama, he said, “It not only is going to open up the courts of justice to the families and the victims of 9/11. It also has the potential of exposing a tremendous amount of information relative to Saudi Arabia’s involvement in 9/11.” He called the bill “a very big victory.”

After meeting with Director of National Intelligence James Clapper on Tuesday about the 28 pages, Graham also indicated that the release of those pages could happen soon. He said, “The general has been reviewing these pages closely for a year or more. He told us that before the end of this week, he would probably have his review completed. Then it goes to a panel that’s made up of several agencies [FBI, the Department of State] who will look at the 28 pages for their issues of concern, and then it goes to the president for his determination as to whether to declassify these papers.”

He also told Sy that withholding the documents goes beyond 9/11. He said it could lead to current links between the Saudi government and terrorist groups. He said, “This has been a long time that this information has been withheld from the American people, but there’s also a recognition of the consequences of withholding. Not only the consequences that justice is being denied to the Americans who suffered grievously by 9/11 because they lost a loved one.” He continued, “I think that the Saudis who know what they did and have a pretty good idea that the United States, at least at the highest levels, knows what they did and then nothing’s happened… They’ve interpreted this as being impunity and have continued to fund terrorist organizations and to train the next generation of recruits in their mosques and madrasas.” He said those groups include al-Qaida and ISIS.

Does he consider the withholding of the 28 pages a cover-up? “I have used the term ‘aggressive deception.’”

Read the rest of Alex Bregman’s piece about Bob Graham here.

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French intelligence warned of ISIS attacks before missing Egypt Air Flight MS804

May 19, 2016

French intelligence warned the country was ‘clearly being targeted by ISIS’ and was at risk of ‘a new form of attack’ a week before Paris flight to Egypt.

Patrick Calvar, head of DGSI, warned of ‘new attacks’ on May

10 His warning to French MPs came a week before Flight MS804 went missing

Mr Calvar said ISIS and Al-Qaeda wanted to create a ‘climate of panic’

France will be hosting the Euro 2016 football tournament next month

By Chris Summers For Mailonline

Published: 02:51 EST, 19 May 2016 | Updated: 04:15 EST, 19 May 2016

Source: French intelligence warned of ISIS attacks before missing EgyptAir Flight MS804 | Daily Mail Online

The head of France’s internal intelligence agency had warned the country was being ‘clearly targeted’ by ISIS a week before the Paris to Cairo flight took off.

Egypt Air Flight MS804 has gone missing over the Mediterranean with 66 people on board amid reports of a merchant ship captain having seen a ‘flame in the sky’.

An Egyptian civil aviation authority spokesman has said the plane, with 15 French passengers and one Briton on board – most likely crashed into the sea.

Patrick Calvar (pictured), the head of French internal intelligence, warned last week that ISIS was planning new attacks and France was still their number one target

The cause of the disaster remains unknown but it comes seven months after a bomb blew up a Russian airliner over the Sinai desert, killing all 224 people on board.

ISIS later revealed images of a soda can bomb which they claimed to have used to bring the Metrojet plane down.

It has now emerged that Patrick Calvar, the head of France’s DGSI agency, told a parliamentary committee on national defence in Paris on May 10 that ISIS was planning ‘a new form of attack’.

France’s security forces have remained on high alert since the Paris attacks (pictured) in November, which killed 130 people

The DGSI (General Directorate for Internal Security) is France's equivalent of the MI5 and is responsible for guarding against internal threats

The DGSI (General Directorate for Internal Security) is France’s equivalent of the MI5 and is responsible for guarding against internal threats

France was targeted twice last year – with the Charlie Hebdo attack in January and the Paris attacks in November – and the French security forces are on a state of high alert.

Mr Calvar was quoted in The Local as saying: ‘We risk being confronted with a new form of attack: a terrorist campaign characterised by leaving explosive devices in places where big crowds gather, multiplying this type of action to create a climate of panic.’

He made no mention of attacks on aircraft but said he believed France was ‘the country most threatened’ by ISIS, which is often known as Daesh, and also warned that Al-Qaeda remained a threat and was champing at the bit to ‘restore its image’ as a major player, especially in the Maghreb and the Arabian peninsula.

Mr Calvar said while last November’s attacks in Paris that killed 130 people were conducted by suicide bombers and jihadists armed with Kalashnikovs, a new form of attack was possible.

We know that Daesh is planning new attacks…and that France is clearly targeted
Patrick Calvar

It may be several weeks or even months before it is known what brought down Flight MS804 but Mr Calvar’s comments will increase fears of spectators with less than a month to go before the start of the Euro 2016 football tournament in France.

Mr Calvar said: ‘We know that Daesh is planning new attacks using fighters in the area, taking routes which facilitate access to our territory and that France is clearly targeted.’

He said ISIS had suffered military setbacks in Syria and Iraq and wanted to take revenge on members of the coalition, including France, which were behind the air strikes on ISIS targets.

Mr Calvar said while last November’s attacks in Paris that killed 130 people were conducted by suicide bombers and jihadists armed with Kalashnikovs, a new form of attack was possible.

This is a so-called soda can bomb, published in the ISIS magazine, which they claimed to have used to destroy the Russian airliner in October, killing 224 people

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Texas Governor Refuses Obama’s Request to Lift State Sanctions on Iran; Says Nuclear Deal Undermines US Security

May 18, 2016

Texas Governor Refuses Obama’s Request to Lift State Sanctions on Iran; Says Nuclear Deal Undermines US Security

ByPamela Geller on May 17, 2016

Source: Texas Governor Refuses Obama’s Request to Lift State Sanctions on Iran; Says Nuclear Deal Undermines US Security | Pamela Geller

A rational voice in a world of madness. Obama emboldened, enriched and legitimized the world’s largest state sponsor of terror. He has unleashed a terrible evil on the world.

Not all will go quietly. Thank you, Governor Abbott, for giving voice and action to the voiceless and powerless.

Here is Governor Abbott’s statement:

Governor Greg Abbott today informed the Obama administration that Texas will maintain and strengthen its sanctions against Iran. Governor Abbott responded to a letter from the administration requesting that Texas “review” its economic sanctions against Iran. Governor Abbott reiterated his strong opposition to the Iran deal and informed the administration that he will continue to seek new legislation to strengthen existing economic sanctions against the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.

“Entering into an agreement with a country that consistently calls for ‘death to America’ and repeatedly articulates anti-Semitic policies is short-sighted and ignores geopolitical realities,” Governor Abbott writes in the letter. “As a strong supporter of Israel, I am committed to doing everything in my power to oppose this misguided deal with Iran. Accordingly, not only will we not withdraw our sanctions, but we will strengthen them to ensure Texas taxpayer dollars are not used to aid and abet Iran.”

During his visit to Israel in January 2016, Governor Abbott met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and announced he would seek legislation to:

Prohibit local government entities in the State of Texas from investing in Iran or entities conducting business with Iran
Require all Texas state entities – not just state pensions – to follow Texas’ divestiture policy
Close additional loopholes in Texas’ current divestiture statute.

To read the full letter, click here.

 

More……..

Texas Rejects Obama’s Request to Lift Iran Sanctions, Affirms ‘Strong Support’ for Israel,” By Max Gelber, United with Israel, May 16, 2016:

Texas Governor Gregg Abbott announced he would not lift the state’s sanctions on Iran, rejecting a request to do so by President Obama and affirming ‘strong support’ for Israel.

Abbott told the Obama administration in a letter that Texas will maintain and even strengthen its sanctions against Iran.

Abbott was responding to a letter from the administration sent in April requesting that Texas “review” its economic sanctions against Iran.

The governor reiterated his strong opposition to the Iran deal, which was sealed with the Islamic Republic last summer, and informed the administration that he will continue to seek new legislation to strengthen existing economic sanctions against Iran, which he termed as the “world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.”

“Entering into an agreement with a country that consistently calls for ‘death to America’ and repeatedly articulates anti-Semitic policies is short-sighted and ignores geopolitical realities,” Abbott wrote in the letter.
Obama

US President Barack Obama (Susan Walsh/AP)

“As a strong supporter of Israel, I am committed to doing everything in my power to oppose this misguided deal with Iran. Accordingly, not only will we not withdraw our sanctions, but we will strengthen them to ensure Texas taxpayer dollars are not used to aid and abet Iran,” he stated.

During his visit to Israel in January, Abbott met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and announced he would seek legislation to prohibit local government entities in the State of Texas from investing in Iran or entities conducting business with Iran, a law that requires all Texas state entities, and not just state pensions, to follow Texas’ divestiture policy, and further legislation to close additional loopholes in Texas’ current divestiture statute.

“Given all the flaws that are inherent in the Iran deal, Texas is absolutely committed to maintaining its sanctions against Iran,” the letter reads.

Meeting with the Jewish media in New York over the weekend, Abbot said he is “deeply disturbed” by the nuclear deal and views it as “a potential existential threat to Israel and frankly to nations across the globe.”

“It makes no sense to me why the United States would be an accomplice to arming and aiding economically a nation that to this day seems to be devoted to terrorism,” he said at the meeting, according to the Jerusalem Post.

“Israel has no stronger ally in the United States than the State of Texas,” he added. “Texas is going to take the lead in sending the message to the international community that we stand with Israel.”

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