Category Archives: Political fuss

Springtime Offensive Nuc’s to Iran

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Springtime Offensive Nuc’s to Iran
By Dana G Smith
Keywords: Iran, US, Bush, Nuc’s, War
Words:

In recent developments, The Bush administration seems to be preparing for an assault on Iran. That is according to the latest military data from Russian Military Intelligence. The report was cited on the Russian news and Information agency news sites, one of the most authoritative and professional sources of prompt information in Russia and abroad, that is according to their own website. The RIA Novosti has a correspondent network in the Russian Federation, CIS and over 40 non CIS countries. It reported that:

The latest military intelligence data point to heightened U.S. military preparations for both an air and ground operation against Iran,’ the official said, adding that the Pentagon has probably not yet made a final decision as to when an attack will be launched.
He said the Pentagon is looking for a way to deliver a strike against Iran ‘that would enable the Americans to bring the country to its knees at minimal cost.’
He also said the U.S. Naval presence in the Persian Gulf has for the first time in the past four years reached the level that existed shortly before the invasion of Iraq in March 2003. [en.rian.ru/russia/20070327/62697703.html]

There have been intelligence sources that have chosen to remain anonymous that have told us of intrusions into the Republic of Iran by American forces, under secretive and coded actions. The intrusions usually are of a group of Special Forces that enter into a country for covert and action intelligence purposes, which are a precursor to major military operations.
As the information seems to be coming to the surface from various areas, there is still no substantial proof as to the Bush administrations true intentions on Iran. For some reason, known only to the Bush administration, the War Powers acts, and Congressional approval for war seems to be ignored. The course of war has been an ongoing discussion among those watching the international scene. Many have taken the recent intelligence reports from various sources as to point to a strike within Iran. The strike is seen as one of major ‘nuclear and deep ground penetrating arms’ meant to destroy the capabilities of Iran. Because of anti- Israel and American threats, the Bush administration has consistently taken the viewpoint of Iran being a threat to peace in the region. The Russian viewpoint on the issue has been also seen as seeing such an American move on Iran as threatening. The resulting attack could usher in a major War with both Iran and Russia.
This last week Vice President Dick Cheney made the round to the Arab allies of the United States. According to the Iranian International news network, Press TV, the popular government guided Saudi newspaper Okaz reported that the “Saudi Shura council approved of a nuclear fallout preparation plans.” This occurred only a day after the US vice president visited the Saudi’s. Visits of the Vice President also included a meeting with King Abdullah as well. As a result of the Shura ruling, the Saudi government will start the implementation of:

“National plans to deal with any sudden nuclear and radioactive hazards that may affect the Kingdom following expert warnings of possible attacks on Iran’s Bushehr nuclear reactors”. [presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=49572&sectionid=351020104]

There have been deployments to the region for some time, ever increasing in size and scope according to sources. Many speculate that the Pentagon has the estimated numbers of potential dead in Iran as well, which could number in the millions. In addition, only precautions of a potential high level radiation could prompt such an action by the Saudi’s in regard to nuclear fallout. The question remains open and needs an answer, hopefully before the ‘nuc’ is dropped. That question is of course, “what do the Saudis now know that the American Public is not being made aware of?” Why is the Bush machine so intent on this action? The answer may be in Bush’s own words “I am a War President”. The last question is, will America survive past this mans idea’s to make war with another nation and send even more young men and women to their graves for the agenda of the New World war lords Order. This is the Angel in the Whirlwind and the chaos he brings in is only starting.

+<>+BIO+<>+
Dana G Smith is the author of D-Day For America, a prophecy book of what is coming to America. Published by Xulon Press, ISBN: 1-59781-843-7. Dana is the editor of the W.I.B.R. online Web Sites.
He Hosts WARN Radio, “into the night”, airing Fridays 9 PM Pacific on The America Voice radio network. He also is The Watchman of W.A.R.N. Radio Network, www.warn-usa.com.
His articles appear on his own news sites at www.wingswatchman.org, www.ddayforamerica.com, www.warn-usa.com , and on many sites around the web.
Dana is a Watchman, “let the Watchman declare what he see’s Isaiah 21:6. He is also an investigative and research journalist who lives in the Midwest. You can contact him through his websites or email watchman at wingswatchman.org.

Assyrian Security Force Needed

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Assyrian Security Force Needed in Iraq’s Nineveh Plain

Editors note: Trouble in Paradise, Iraq, I.E. Iraqi Kurdistan has been a troubled area. In this piece, a journalist looks at the KDP using their militias as they please.

The KDP uses an unstable Iraq as an excuse to use direct their militias as they please, seemingly with the nod of approval — or the blind eye — of coalition forces6. As early as 2005, the Washington Post discussed the Kurdish militias7, describing a situation where KDP militias are free to do as they please to consolidate the power of their party, intimidating and arresting at will.

AINA) — On Feb. 20, 2008, Uruknet1 and the Kurdistan Post2 reported that Masroor Barzani, son of the Kurdistan Regional Government President Massoud Barzani, was arrested in Austria for an assassination attempt against Kurdish journalist and outspoken critic of the KRG, Mr. Kamal Sayid Kadir3. Mr. Kadir was arrested and detained for several months in 2005 in the KRG Region for harsh criticism of the Kurdish government and political parties.

On Feb. 17th, 2008, Johnny Khoshaba, an Assyrian Deacon, was arrested by the Kurdistan Democratic Party Peshmerga from his home in Telkeif4, Iraq, and taken to a prison in Sarsink, in the KRG Region. Telkeif lies in the Nineveh Plains, outside of the KRG, yet the KDP militia operates as a security force in the area. Johnny Khoshaba’s crime was criticism of what he sees as corruption in Assyrian religious and political leaders including Finance Minister Sarkis Aghajan, and also the KRG and Kurdish political parties5. Before his release four days later, he was required to sign an agreement to stop all criticism of the KRG and Assyrian religious leaders.
Both Mr. Kadir and Mr. Khoshaba live outside of the KRG, yet the reach of the Peshmerga and KDP seems to extend to wherever there is dissent or criticism of Kurdish authorities.
The KDP uses an unstable Iraq as an excuse to use direct their militias as they please, seemingly with the nod of approval — or the blind eye — of coalition forces6. As early as 2005, the Washington Post discussed the Kurdish militias7, describing a situation where KDP militias are free to do as they please to consolidate the power of their party, intimidating and arresting at will.
While Peshmerga presence likely brings some stability to the area, it comes at a severe price: the long, corrupt arm of the KDP is extended into the indigenous Assyrian territory outside the territory already taken – a territory which the KRG draft constitution seeks to “normalize” and annex to the KRG Region. Should the Nineveh Plains not be annexed to the KRG, expansion of KRG territory would be difficult.
KDP offices and control are, therefore, necessary for this goal of annexation. In 2006, when the Assyrian Democratic Movement received permission from the Iraqi Ministry of Interior to assign 800 new policemen in the Nineveh Plains, to be chosen from the local inhabitants, the KDP-controlled Provincial Council in Nineveh successfully delayed and ultimately blocked the implementation, ensuring their control of the area8. However, without immediate implementation of the Ministry’s order for a local police force, stories like Mr. Khoshaba’s will become more and more common.
As the KRG overreaches their authority and continues, unchecked, the pattern of authoritarianism it is blatantly displaying, it will be difficult to reverse the process and ensure Iraq becomes a democracy for all of its citizens, rather than only for the privileged political elites and those “connected” to the rich and powerful. With increasing reports of economic and political marginalization of non-Kurds, intimidation to join the Kurdish political parties for financial and physical security, and usurpation of independent organizations to control ethnic and religious minorities, the KRG is quickly showing its proficiency at controlling their agenda through brute force and superior financial resources. It is becoming increasingly clear that the KRG is not much different than the previous Iraqi regime9 in terms of their political tactics and structure. Indeed, “The Other Iraq” is looking more and more like “The Previous Iraq, continued”.
source: [www.aina.org/releases/20080301151841.htm]

By Waleeta Canon
Waleeta Canon is the Director of the Washington, D.C. based Assyria Foundation. She has published and presented on Assyrian political and human rights issues since 2003.

Notes:
1 “Barazani’s son arrested in Austria on murder attempt charge.” See here also.
2 http://www.kurdistanpost.info/news/173.html.
3 Kadir, Kamal Sayid; Iraqi Kurdistan’s Downward Spiral
4 AINA 2-22-2008. The KDP Peshmerga often acts under the guise of the Iraqi National Guard — although it is clear they are taking orders from the KDP (see “Kurdish Soldier Kill Assyrian Boy in Drive-By Shooting”, Assyrian International News Agency, July 2007; “Northern Iraqi Human Rights Field Mission”, Iraq Sustainable Democracy Project, April, 2006.
5 See Mr. Khoshaba’s letter to Ankawa.com after his release.
6 “Militias on the Rise in Iraq.”
7 Ibid
8 “Kurds Block Assyrians, Shabaks from Police Force in North Iraq.
9 Rubin, Michael; Is Iraqi Kurdistan a Good Ally?

FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

America Needs A Leader Like This

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America Needs A Leader Like This!

American flag

Prime Minister John Howard – Australia

Muslims who want to live under Islamic Sharia law were told on Wednesday to get out of Australia , as the government targeted radicals in a bid to head off potential terror attacks.
Separately, Howard angered some Australian Muslims on Wednesday by saying he supported spy agencies monitoring the nation’s mosques.

Quote:
‘IMMIGRANTS, NOT AUSTRALIANS, MUST ADAPT. Take It Or Leave It. I am tired of this nation worrying about whether we are offending some individual or their culture. Since the terrorist attacks on Bali , we have experienced a surge in patriotism by the majority of Australians.’

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Truckers Set to Strike Soon

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commerce, money, and truck drivers
$150.00 dollars to fuel a truck, and I am fueling up more often so I don’t run out!
“barely able to survive.. just pennies in my pocket”

Truckers Set to Strike Soon, We have had it?
By Dana G Smith
Keywords: truckers, strike, diesel, gas, prices

How high can it get? During Katrina, gas prices spiked at nearly $5.90 a gallon for regular gas. Now with those prices gone, diesel prices are still running much higher than regular gas. This has truckers steaming mad. As a result a group of independent truckers are declaring a nationwide strike.

The nationwide trucker’s strike is set to begin Jan 3 2008 and run through Jan 8, according to various sources, including the strike website, www. highdiesel.com. A review of the web based network for the strike revealed that the truckers strike in Italy, which made news, revealed that such a strike achieved good results for the Italian drivers. The independent drivers co-opted together and a decision was made to have a strike here in the USA.
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GLOBALISTS TRASH BORDERS

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GLOBALISTS TRASH BORDERS

Bilderberg Pushes American Superstate


By James P. Tucker Jr.

Leaders of Bilderberg have gathered the appropriate flunkies at the Fairmont Le Chateau Montebello, about 50 miles outside Quebec, to accomplish a North American Union without congressional action.

Bilderberg met at the same site in 1983. The Aug. 20-21 session of the unknown Security and Prosperity Partnership (SPP) is struggling to define its goal of a borderless union of the United States, Mexico and Canada as something Americans will welcome, after it has been accomplished.

On the agenda is a report by the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), which is being translated into Spanish and French so all three governments can celebrate it together. The report explains how “hemispheric integration” will be a blessing for all and not a surrender of sovereignty. It is to be presented to the three governments in September.

The trustees of CSIS who are attending this closed meeting include Henry Kissinger, Bilderberg and Trilateral; Zbigniew Brzezinski, Trilateral; and Harold Brown, former defense secretary and Trilateral. Also participating is Richard Armitage, Bilderberg. Other Bilderberg-Trilateralists may be attending but have not been identified.

The “North American Future 2025 Project” report stresses “economic integration” and “labor mobility.” It calls for the “international migration of labor” and “international movement not only of goods and capital, but also of people.” It stresses the “free flow of people across national borders.” It calls for action to “integrate governments.” The three nations are to work on “harmonizing legislation” and regulations.

Bilderberg is fighting back from severe setbacks in its long-range goal of dividing the world into three great regions for the administrative convenience of a world government under the United Nations. The European Union was to have been fully integrated into a single state by 2000, but seven years later, there is strong resistance in France, Germany and Britain.

NAFTA was to quickly expand throughout the Western Hemisphere with an “American Union” emerging. Now, there is great resistance to NAFTA itself among voters and, consequently, congressmen.

President Bush started the country on the road to integration on April 22, 2001, when he signed the Declaration of Quebec City in which he made a “commitment to hemispheric integration.” Participants claim it can be accomplished without legislation and their final agreement would not be a “treaty” requiring Senate ratification.

But when this “agreement” is sprung on the American people, Congress will feel compelled to react to the outrage.

American Free Press – 645 Pennsylvania Avenue SE, Suite 100 Washington, D.C. 20003

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HHS Secretary To Visit Africa

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Headline: HHS Secretary To Visit Africa

Stops Include Communities Benefiting from U.S. Government Funding
in Fight Against HIV/AIDS and Malaria

HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt and a group of senior U.S. government leaders will visit four African nations to observe U.S. government programs that are delivering life-saving health care and sustenance to underserved communities, beginning Friday, Aug. 17. The Secretary will meet with top host-country government officials during the 10-day mission, as well as multiple sites that are providing health care and basic social services in each country.

The countries are South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania, and Rwanda, and the Secretary’s itinerary will include visits to communities that are receiving funding through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), the President’s Malaria Initiative (PMI) and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. In each country, the Secretary and his delegation will spend one day in the capital city, to meet with government and civil-society leaders, including from faith-based organizations, and will then travel to a rural area to spend time with families in smaller communities. Among the sites will be urban hospitals, rural health clinics, home-based-care settings, programs for orphans and academic institutions. These site visits will both reinforce partnerships with host-country organizations, and allow Secretary Leavitt to assess the impact of U.S. government-sponsored programs in Africa. The visit comes on the heels of President Bush’s call to Congress to support his efforts to double the initial funding of the Emergency Plan as it begins to consider reauthorization of that program this fall.

“On behalf of the American people, the President has made unprecedented commitments to fight HIV/AIDS and other major health threats in Africa,” Secretary Leavitt said. “The Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief and the President’s Malaria Initiative has helped bring hope to millions of people in Africa over the last three years. I am excited to visit these important programs to see, first-hand, how these programs are working in communities to improve lives.”

In each of the countries, the Secretary will get an on-the-ground perspective on the health care and social service systems that are delivering treatment, preventing illness and supporting families:

South Africa
* The integration of biomedical research with on-going HIV-prevention, care and treatment programs that are serving the community via interagency collaboration.
Mozambique
* U.S. government programs that are working to bring care to people affected by severe poverty and inadequate infrastructure, as well as future investments of the Millennium Challenge Corporation.

Tanzania
* U.S. government strategies in action to improve the training of current health workers, expand the available health workforce, and engage communities in the delivery of health care, including participating in a campaign to spray houses against malaria-carrying mosquitoes.

Rwanda
* Post-genocide investments to reconstruct the health system and use information technology to improve health care in both urban and rural settings.

Secretary Leavitt’s trip comes just days after HHS’ Food and Drug Administration (FDA) announced the 50th and 51st AIDS drugs authorized by FDA in association with the PEPFAR program. This authorization is part of the President’s five-year, $15 billion effort to fight the HIV/AIDS epidemic in 15 focus countries in Southeast Asia the Caribbean and Africa, including the four nations the Secretary will visit. Through the PEPFAR program, the U.S. government is now supporting treatment for 1.1 million people worldwide, more than a million of them in Africa.

The Secretary will also see the PMI in action as he visits Mozambique and Tanzania and Rwanda, three of 15 focus countries of the PMI — a program launched in 2005. At least 1 million infants and children under age five in sub-Saharan Africa die each year from malaria — one approximately every 30 seconds. The PMI commitment boosts U.S. malaria funding by more than $1.2 billion over five years to reduce deaths due to malaria by 50 percent in 15 African countries. This goal focuses on reaching 85 percent of children under age five and pregnant women — the most vulnerable groups — with four key activities: the indoor spraying of homes with insecticides; the distribution of long-lasting, insecticide-treated mosquito nets; the use of newer, lifesaving anti-malarial drugs; and the provision of treatment to prevent malaria in pregnant women.

The PMI is already saving lives, and has reached more than 6 million Africans. The PMI has distributed more than 1 million mosquito nets to protect pregnant women and children under age five; conducted indoor residual spraying campaigns to shield over 2 million people; and procured over a million treatments of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs) and other anti-malarial drugs to treat the disease.

Traveling with Secretary Leavitt will be Ambassador Mark Dybul, M.D., U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator; the Honorable Kent Hill, Ph.D., Assistant Administrator for Global Health, U.S. Agency for International Development; RADM Tim Ziemer (USN, ret.), U.S. Malaria Coordinator; Julie L. Gerberding, M.D., Director of the HHS Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; Roger Glass, M.D., Ph.D., Director of the Fogarty International Center of the HHS National Institutes of Health; and Carol Thompson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs.

Together, these efforts are a part of America’s larger commitment to health and hope around the world. To learn more about HHS’ Global Health Diplomacy work, visit www.globalhealth.gov; to learn more about the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, visit www.pepfar.gov; and to learn more about the PMI, visit www.fightingmalaria.gov.

FAIR USE NOTICE: This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a ‘fair use’ of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond ‘fair use’, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.

Iran-Backed Terror Group Converts Gaza into Hamastan

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Two Years after Disengagement, Iran-Backed Terror Group Converts Gaza into Hamastan

Just two years ago, Israel evacuated all 9,000 Israelis living in Gaza and four northern West Bank communities in an effort to pave the way for peace and a future Palestinian state. During the disengagement, Israel uprooted entire communities including schools, businesses, places of worship and the only Jewish cemetery there.

The only Israeli still in the Gaza Strip today is Israel Defense Forces (IDF) Cpl. Gilad Shalit, who was kidnapped while patrolling the Israeli side of the Gaza border June 25, 2006. He was forcibly taken by the Iran-backed terrorist groups Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s violent militant wing; the Al-Nasir Salah al-Din Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC); and The Army of Islam. [1]

In return for this painful sacrifice, which Israel carried out Aug. 15, 2005, Gaza has been converted into a launching pad for rockets. Since the withdrawal, more than 1,500 Qassam rockets have been fired into Israel’s southern Negev region. The attacks have killed six civilians and injured hundreds more and hit areas where Gaza evacuees were relocated. [2]

Iran-backed Hamas has been chiefly responsible for the Qassam attacks, but other Palestinian militant groups also have taken credit, such as Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Fatah party’s Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and the Popular Resistance Committees. These groups, along with Hamas, have continued to launch Qassam rockets and mortars at Israel on an almost daily basis since disengagement. During a particularly violent period — May 15 to May 31, 2007 — more than 300 Qassam rockets were launched from Gaza at Israel. [3]

Israelis aren’t the only victims of the Hamas leadership that Palestinians voted into power in Jan. 2006. Just last week, on Aug. 7, 2007, a Qassam rocket aimed at Israel misfired, killing two Palestinian children and injuring seven more. [4]

After Hamas was elected to run the Palestinian Authority government, infighting among the Palestinian people increased. According to the Palestinian Independent Commission for Citizens’ Rights, more than 600 Palestinians have been killed in infighting since Hamas’s rise to power. [5] Hamas, designated a terrorist organization by the European Union, [6] the United States, [7] Israel, [8] Canada [9] and Australia, [10] openly seeks Israel’s destruction.

Overall, Palestinian internal violence has dramatically increased in the past two years. During the first seven months of 2007 alone, 415 Palestinians were killed, including 28 children, and another 2,022 Palestinians were injured – all at the hands of other Palestinians. [11]

By contrast, during all of 2006, 148 Palestinians died at the hands of other Palestinians. That included 12 children and another 871 who were injured. [12]

Israel’s Gaza Evacuees

Gaza’s Jewish residents have faced great economic and psychological hardship since being uprooted from their homes and communities:

Roughly 85 percent of families from Gaza’s former Gush Katif settlement continue to live in temporary housing scattered over 20 different locations around Israel. [13]
As many as 37 percent of evacuees are currently unemployed, according to SELA, the Israeli governmental organization created to handle disengagement.
Family incomes have plummeted 40 percent according to the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry. [14]
Since Hamas took over Gaza by force in mid June 2007, the Iran-backed terrorist group has consolidated its military and Islamic authority over the Palestinian people. Examples of Hamas’s militarily growth include:

Importing sophisticated technological weapons into the Gaza Strip; [15]
Smuggling in more than 20 tons of explosives; [16]
Increasing militant manpower to 13,000; [17]
Sending more than 20 militants to Iran for training and instructing 400 more in Gaza; [18]
Creating a naval guard force. [19]

Examples of Hamas’s Islamic authority include:

Banning “all demonstrations and public gatherings” that do not have special permission and beating up protestors; [20]
Ordering the closure of popular television programs that portrayed the problematic situation in Gaza; [21]
Kidnapping a Christian professor from Palestine University in Gaza City, Ana al-Sayegh, forcing her to convert to Islam and forging a marriage between her and a Muslim man; [22]
Forbidding women to wear bathing suits to swim in a Gaza hotel pool, even on days designated for women only; [23]
Shutting down a coffee shop where men and women sat together, sometimes touching; [24]
Producing a children’s television show in which a Mickey Mouse clone named Farfur came under international criticism for conveying messages about Islamic supremacy as well as hatred of Jews and Israel. The pressure to change or shut down the program led Hamas to produce a show in which Farfur was killed off by an actor posing as an Israeli who appeared to beat him to death. Farfur is regarded as a martyr in the episode. [25] He was replaced by a bee character who says he will “…continue on the path of Farfur, the path of Islam is the solution. The path of heroism, the path of martyrdom, the path of jihad warriors. In the name of Farfur, we shall take revenge on the enemies of Allah, the murderers of the prophets, the murderers of innocent children, until Al-Aksa will be liberated from their filth.”
Concerning the security threat posed by the current situation in the Gaza Strip, former IDF intelligence chief Brig. Gen. Aharon Ze’evi Farkash said, “When we prepared for the disengagement, we mentioned all the scenarios for what might happen in the Strip, including the possibility of a ‘Hamastan’.” [26]

The Gaza Evacuees Two Years Later: Paying the Price for Peace

Two years since Israel carried out its Gaza disengagement plan, the nearly 9,000 Israeli residents who were living in the region continue to suffer from immense psychological, physical and economic distress.

Psychologically:

Gush Katif evacuees, subject to continuing financial and social difficulties, are increasingly seeking mental and emotional support; [27]
The youth of Gush Katif are at greater risk, living in an environment of uncertainty and social and communal instability that has impaired their scholastic education, with some even dropping out of school; [28]
The divorce rate of Gaza evacuees has noticeably increased. [29]

Physically: [30]

Research at the Ashkelon Regional Health Bureau and Ashkelon’s Barzilai Medical Center has shown a notable rise in deaths among the evacuees;
Their findings also show that former residents are suffering from a significant increase in medical maladies including cancerous growths, heart problems, diabetes, high blood pressure and asthma attacks.

Economically:

Evacuees continue to be affected by a very high rate of unemployment, currently 37 percent (about 1,450 people), according to the SELA Disengagement Authority; [31]
The family incomes of former Gaza residents have decreased by 40 percent since the disengagement, according to the Ministry of Commerce, Trade and Industry; [32]
Of the 180 nonagricultural businesses that once flourished in Gaza’s Gush Katif community, evacuees have reopened about 80 of them and most face bankruptcy; [33]
In agriculture, from which 30 percent of Gush Katif families earned a living, [34] 33 out of the 400 farmers have settled on new lands and only a few are back in business; [35]
The once successful and profitable farmers of Gush Katif, who had produced 15 percent of Israel’s agricultural exports and 70 percent of Israel’s organic produce, [36] have lost their overseas markets, buyers and distributors; [37]
Over 500 of the families are in serious financial straits, with many requiring support of welfare agencies and food packages; [38]
Due to the high rate of unemployment, many of the families are forced to use their state compensation funds for daily expenses rather than to build a house, as was intended. [39]

Housing:

85 percent of Gush Katif families, or 1,405 out of a total of 1,667, continue to live in temporary housing sites scattered over 20 different locations around Israel; [40]
The construction of permanent residences has barely begun. Fewer than 1 percent of evacuees having begun construction, resulting in a total of 12 houses. [41]

——————————————————————————–
Footnotes

[1] Ross, Gabe, “Israeli rabbi calls on Gaza Muslims to protect captive Israeli soldier,” The Associated Press , June 25, 2006
[2] Report by the Israel Defense Force Spokesman’s Office, Aug. 8 2007
[3] “Sderot hit by Kassam barrage from Gaza,” Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs Web site, June 1, 2007, http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Terrorism-+Obstacle+to+Peace/Palestinian+terror+since+2000/Sderot+hit+by+Kassam+barrage+from+Gaza+-+May+2007.htm
[4] Issacharoff, Avi and The Associated Press , “Qassam rocket fired at Israel kills two children in Gaza Strip,” Haaretz, Aug. 7, 2007, http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/890791.html
[5] Kfir, Isaac and Adam E. Stahl, “Hamas: A Gun in One Hand, a Qu’ran in the Other,” The Interdisciplinary Center, Herzilya, July 2007, http://www.ict.org.il/apage/14683.php
[6] “Council Decision,” Council of the European Union, Dec. 21, 2005
[7] “Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTOs),” U.S. Department of State Web site, Oct. 11, 2005, accessed Jan. 18, 2007, http://www.state.gov/s/ct/rls/fs/37191.htm
[8] Wilson, Scott, “Hamas Sweeps Palestinian Elections, Complicating Peace Efforts in Mideast,” The Washington Post , Jan. 27, 2006, accessed Jan. 18, 2006,
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/01/26/AR2006012600372.html
[9] Public Security and Emergency Preparedness Canada, National Security, Listed entities, accessed Jan. 18, 2007, http://www.psepc.gc.ca/prg/ns/le/cle-en.asp#hhi18
[10] “Listing of Terrorist Organisations-Hamas’s Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades” Australian Government Attorney-General’s Department Web site, Jan. 17, 2006, accessed Jan. 18, 2007, http://www.nationalsecurity.gov.au/agd/www/nationalsecurity.nsf/AllDocs/CADAB9AC4723C526CA256FCD001BA892?OpenDocument
[11] Kfir, Isaac and Adam E. Stahl, “Hamas: A Gun in One Hand, a Qu’ran in the Other,” The Interdisciplinary Center, Herzilya, July 2007, http://www.ict.org.il/apage/14683.php
[12] “OCHA-oPt Protection of Civilians: Summary of data tables,” United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Aug. 2007, http://www.ochaopt.org/documents/PoC%20Monthly%20tables%20and%20terminology%20notes_July2007.pdf
[13] “22 months without a home,” Gush Katif Committee Special Report, Friends of Gush Katif Web site, May 2007, http://www.katifund.org/upload/mazav%20%20eng2.pdf
[14] Eglash, Ruth and Pollack, Ahinoam, The Jerusalem Post, Aug. 1, 2007, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1185893685584&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
[15] Harel, Amos, “IDF: Hamas is smuggling high-tech arms into Gaza,” Haaretz, July 19, 2007, http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/883953.html
[16] Ibid.
[17] “Israeli radio: Israel contemplating major offensive against Hamas in Gaza Strip,” Ma’an News Agency, July 19, 2007, http://maannews.net/en/index.php?opr=ShowDetails&ID=24119
[18] Ibid.
[19] “The interior ministry announced formation of a new naval guard force,” Izzedeen al-Qassam Brigades Web site, Aug. 9, 2007, http://www.alqassam.ps/english/?action=showdetail&fid=576
[20] “Hamas militiamen beat up Gaza protestors,” The Associated Press via The Wall Street Journal, Aug. 13, 2007, http://online.wsj.com/article/SB118701300326395923.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
[21] Abu Toameh, Khaled, “Hamas bans popular TV talk show,” The Jerusalem Post, Aug. 1, 2007, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?c=JPArticle&cid=1185893691489&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
[22] Abu Tomeh, Khaled, “Hamas forced professor to convert,” The Jerusalem Post, Aug. 5, 2007, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1186066387589&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
[23] Issacharoff, Avi and Amos Harel, “Gaza vs. West Bank /Yet another last chance,” Haaretz, http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/882104.html
[24] Ibid.
[25] Marcus, Itamar and Barbara Crook, “Hamas TV Mickey Mouse beaten to death by Israeli – becomes Martyr in final episode,” Palestinian Media Watch, July 1, 2007, http://pmw.org.il/bulletins_jul2007.htm#b010707
[26] Greenberg, Hanan, “IDF officials warn of Gaza threat,” YnetNews, Aug. 12, 2007, http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3436609,00.html
[27] “22 months without a home,” Gush Katif Committee Special Report, Friends of Gush Katif Web site, May 2007, http://www.katifund.org/upload/mazav%20%20eng2.pdf
[28] Ibid.
[29] Eglash, Ruth and Pollack, Ahinoam, “Two years after Gush Katif, evacuees are still suffering,” The Jerusalem Post, Aug. 1, 2007, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1185893685584&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
[30] “22 months without a home,” Gush Katif Committee Special Report, Friends of Gush Katif Web site, May 2007, http://www.katifund.org/upload/mazav%20%20eng2.pdf
[31] Eglash, Ruth and Pollack, Ahinoam, “Two years after Gush Katif, evacuees are still suffering,” The Jerusalem Post, Aug. 1, 2007, http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1185893685584&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
[32] “22 months without a home,” Gush Katif Committee Special Report, Friends of Gush Katif Web site, May 2007, http://www.katifund.org/upload/mazav%20%20eng2.pdf
[33] Ibid.
[34] Ibid.
[35] Shragai, Nadav, “Two years later, Gush Katif evacuees still need housing,” Haaretz, June 22, 2007, http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/873931.html
[36] Stahl, Julie, “Gaza farmers say government has no plan for them,” Christian News Service , April 11, 2005
[37] Shragai, Nadav, “Two years later, Gush Katif evacuees still need housing,” Haaretz, June 22, 2007, http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/873931.html
[38] Ibid.
[39] Ibid.
[40] “22 months without a home,” Gush Katif Committee Special Report, Friends of Gush Katif Web site, May 2007, http://www.katifund.org/upload/mazav%20%20eng2.pdf
[41] Ibid.

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