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Question: Has Bush caused the US to be outflanked? The main Trend we have seen at Maravot News is that Bush's hostile policies worldwide have created new alliances among the EU, China, India, Russia and the Middle East. Also, the Monroe Doctrine is being challenged in South America. |
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News Headlines & Trends6.30.05 Update; 6.29.05 Photo claimed to show Iran President with hostage June 29 Sam Knight, Times Online, reports: A photo has emerged which it is claimed links the President-elect of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, with the taking of 60 American hostages during the US embassy siege in Tehran in 1979.
The possible role of Mr. Ahmadinejad in the embassy takeover, which lasted 444 days and remains a significant sore between America and Iran, came to light in the run-up to the presidential elections on June 17. Mr. Ahmadinejad is known to have been member of the "Office for Strengthening of Unity Between Universities and Theological Seminaries" or the OSU, the main student group behind the takeover, but his precise role in the hostage-taking was unclear. [More>>timesonline.co.uk; See also iranfocus.com story, "AP photo shows Iran's new President as 1979 US hostage-taker" : LONDON, Jun. 29 - Iran Focus has learnt that the photograph of Iran¹s newly-elected president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, holding the arm of a blindfolded American hostage on the premises of the United States embassy in Tehran was taken by an Associated Press photographer in November 1979. Prior to the first round of the presidential elections on June 17, Iran Focus was the first news service to reveal Ahmadinejad¹s role in the seizure of the U.S. embassy in Tehran. The identity of Ahmadinejad in the photograph was revealed to Iran Focus by a source in Tehran, whose identity could not be revealed for fear of persecution; Fox News posted its version of the story June 30, "Ex-hostages say Iran's new president was captor in 1979;" The Washington Post June 30 article, "Iran leader linked to '79 embassy crisis" : Americans held in the 1979 seizure of the U.S. Embassy in Iran said yesterday they clearly recall Iranian President-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad playing a central role in the takeover, interrogating captives and demanding harsher treatment for the hostages. "As soon as I saw his picture in the paper, I knew that was the bastard," said retired Army Col. Charles Scott, 73, a former hostage who lives in Jonesboro, Ga. "He was one of the top two or three leaders," Col. Scott said in a telephone interview. "The new president of Iran is a terrorist." The new president's hard-line political views and his background as a student radical in the Iranian Revolution are well known. See related story by iranfocus.com, "Iran's new President has a past mired in controversy" : ...According to other OSU officials, when the idea of storming the US embassy in Tehran was raised in the OSU central committee by Mirdamadi and Abdi, Ahmadinejad suggested storming the Soviet embassy at the same time. A decade later, most OSU leaders re-grouped around Khatami but Ahmadinejad remained loyal to the ultra-conservatives. ...In the early 1980s, Ahmadinejad worked in the "Internal Security" department of the IRGC and earned notoriety as a ruthless interrogator and torturer. According to the state-run website Baztab, allies of outgoing President Mohammad Khatami have revealed that Ahmadinejad worked for some time as an executioner in the notorious Evin Prison, where thousands of political prisoners were executed in the bloody purges of the 1980s. In 1986, Ahmadinejad became a senior officer in the Special Brigade of the Revolutionary Guards and was stationed in Ramazan Garrison near Kermanshah in western Iran. Ramazan Garrison was the headquarters of the Revolutionary Guards' "extra-territorial operations," a euphemism for terrorist attacks beyond Iran¹s borders. In Kermanshah, Ahmadinejad became involved in the clerical regime¹s terrorist operations abroad and led many ³extra-territorial operations of the IRGC." With the formation of the elite Qods (Jerusalem) Force of the IRGC, Ahmadinejad became one of its senior commanders. He was the mastermind of a series of assassinations in the Middle East and Europe, including the assassination of Iranian Kurdish leader Abdorrahman Qassemlou, who was shot dead by senior officers of the Revolutionary Guards in a Vienna flat in July 1989. Ahmadinejad was a key planner of the attack, according to sources in the Revolutionary Guards...; Iranfocus June 30 update, of reports by press covering the topic, "Iran leader linked to 1979 hostage crisis" ; Aljazeera.net covers the story with its June 30 article, "Abductors deny Iran leader siege role" : Iranian veterans of the 1979 seizure of hostages at the US embassy in Tehran have denied claims that President-elect Mahmoud Ahmadinejad played a role in the siege. Their comments come after several former US hostages who were held for 444 days by student followers of revolutionary leader Ayat Allah Ruhollah Khomeini said they were sure Ahmadinejad was a key player in the abduction. "Mr Ahmadinejad was never one of students following the path of the imam that took the spy den (US embassy). He was never there," said Mohsen Mirdamadi, a former hostage-taker who went on to become a member of parliament. He said a picture circulating on the internet and the printed media portraying a thickly bearded hostage-taker leading out a blindfolded American hostage did not show Ahmadinejad ...Abbas Abdi, who like Mirdamadi is regarded as one of the instigators of the embassy seizure, also denied that Ahmadinejad had anything to do with the operation. "I say again: No Sir, he was not one of them. What I say is very clear. If you ask me if I know somebody and I say 'no' that is all I can say." Hashem Aghajari, another veteran of the siege and leading political dissident, said: "Ahmadinejad was a member of the OCU but as far as I know he was not involved in the US embassy [takeover]." ...The BBC's World Affairs editor John Simpson had added to the speculation when he wrote on the BBC's website earlier this week that he instantly recognized the new president from his role in the siege. "When I read a profile of him in the English-language Tehran Times, I realized where I must have seen him: in the former American embassy in Tehran," Simpson said... Editorial note: To read about the hostage crisis, go to http://www.jimmycarterlibrary.org/documents/hostages.phtml. A list of the hostages taken by Ahmadinejad and his fellow terrorists is at: http://www.jimmycarterlibrary.org/documents/list_of_hostages.phtml. What is the Bush administration's response to this news? Is a US-Iran war looming on the horizon? George W. Bush couched his speech on June 29 in the context of World War III, building from words he quoted from Osama binLaden. Right wing Christian zealots often described as "born again Christians" believe that the Biblical "Last Days" are here now, that Jesus will appear in the clouds of heaven and take up the saved to heaven, leaving the world in a final apocalyptic battle (described in Malachi chapter 4.0, the last book of the Old Testament and the Book of Revelation, chapters 19-21). The Koran which endorses both the Old and New Testaments of the Bible refers to this event as the "Day of Judgment." Because Bush began his invasion of Iraq with reference to the word, "Crusade," a greater conflict than that of invading Iraq is implied. The extent of his "crusade" may soon be unveiled in light of his and Ahmadinejad's speeches. See below, June 30 reports, "Bush says war is worth sacrifice" and Pakistan's newspaper, jang.com.pk, "Bush terms Iraq war as World War III." The language used by Ahmadinejad appears to reflect "Baathist" ideals, a view similar to that expressed by Osama binLaden. Aljazeera.net June 23, "The Iraqi Baath party" describes the history and goals of the "pan-Arab revolution" : " ...The three men, Fayiz Ismail, Wasfi al-Ghanim and Sulayman al-Eisa - returned to Syria and joined political scientist Zaki al-Arsoozi, who was intent on founding al-Baath (renaissance) party. Al-Arsoozi's desire was to restore Arab pride. The men joined the party and pledged to carry the Baathist name back to Baghdad. Upon their return to Baghdad in 1949, they established the Iraqi Baath Party. ...The party promoted its ideology of pan-Arab secular nationalism with socialist leanings. In early 1988, the Baath Party began calling for parallelism between regional (qutri) and national (qawmi) goals. Territorially and politically divided Arab countries were merely regions of a collective entity - The Arab Nation, according to party rationale. The Baath movement in one country was considered merely an aspect of, or a phase leading to, "a unified democratic socialist Arab nation". The crucial test of legitimacy for any Baath government would be whether or not their policies and actions were compatible with the basic aims of the revolution. The Baath party embraced the principles of "unity, freedom, and socialism". Although the party's efforts to create a unified Arab nation faced many problems, it did not abandon its goal of Arab unity. But Arab unity was to become a long-term ideal rather than a short term objective..." The terms, "pan-Arab revolution" and "crusade" are disquieting terms to say the least. That President Bush has had recent inquiries, with regard to the Downing Street Memos, accusing him of lying to the US Congress (an impeachable offense) is interesting in the perspective that Iran may have a president-elect who appears to be denying his participation in the terrorist hostage taking. If inquiries should reveal that both George W. Bush and Ahmadinejad are liars, the world would certainly be in a quandary. Mel Copeland 6.30.05 Update, 6.29.05 Bush says war is worth sacrifice FORT BRAGG, N.C. June 28 President Bush appealed to the American public Tuesday night to remember "the lessons of September 11th" and not lose faith in the Iraq war effort despite unremitting violence, declaring in a prime-time address that "the proper response is not retreat." 6.29.05 India, US sign 10-year defence pact WASHINGTON (PTI) June 29 India and the United States have signed a "new framework for the US-India defence relationship for the next 10 years" which includes "new opportunities for technology transfer, collaboration, co-production and research and development." The agreement, signed in Washington by visiting Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and American Defence Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, defined the goals as strengthening "our countries' security, reinforce our strategic partnership, and build greater understanding between our defence establishments." 6.29.05 Update; 6.28.05 'Woman's marriage dissolves if raped by husband's blood relative' Islamic Court LUCKNOW, India June 26 The All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) on Monday ordered a woman raped by a relative to separate from her husband and marry the rapist. The victim, Imrana, 28, wife of Noor Ilahi, was allegedly raped by her father-in-law, Ali Muhammad in Muzaffarnagar district of Uttar Pradesh. AIMPLB, set up in 1972 to protect the rights of Muslim women in the country, said the marriage would have to come to an end. Member AIMPLB Begum Naseem Iqtedar Ali said, "According to the rulings of the Qur¹aan, Imrana¹s conjugal relationship with her husband stood dissolved since she has been raped by the latter¹s blood relative." Speaking to reporters, she said, "Here a sacred relationship had been violated, the consequences of which have to be borne by Imrana and her husband," she said. The ruling are binding on all Muslims in the country, but it was a ruling by a group of local Muslim clerics that Imrana, should marry her rapist and treat her husband as her son. [jang.com.pk; See expressindia.com story, June 29, 2005, "'Maulana' Mulayam defends Imrana's fatwa" : Despite the hue and cry by several women¹s organizations, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh on Wednesday supported the edict in the Imrana case, saying the decision taken by the Muslim religious leaders must have been well-thought.] 6.29.05 Insults fly on Nixon tapes June 29 Former US president Richard Nixon called then-Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi an "old witch" and Indians a "slippery treacherous people", according to recently released transcripts of Oval Office tapes. The comments were made during a private conversation between Nixon and his national security adviser, Henry Kissinger, on November 5 1971, and Mr Kissinger appeared to support his views. "We really slobbered over the old witch," Nixon told Mr Kissinger of his meeting with Gandhi the previous day. [More>>guardian.co.uk] 6.29.05 Taliban claims downing US helicopter June 29 The US army says a military helicopter which crashed in eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday may have been downed by enemy fire, and the fate of the 17 men on board is still unknown. The Taliban have said they brought down the aircraft. Initial reports indicated the helicopter, which had been on an anti-rebel mission, may have been brought down by hostile fire, the US statement said on Wednesday. The CH-47 Chinook crashed west of Asadabad in Afghanistan's Kunar province bordering Pakistan. Afghan officials said it was hit by a rocket, which the Taliban claimed to have fired. Sources told Aljazeera's Afghanistan correspondent Wali Allah Shahin that the Taliban fired rocket-propelled grenades at the helicopter, causing it to crash. [More>>aljazeera.net] 6.29.05 America foundering Iraq's economic recovery June 28 Khatoun Haidar, Special to The Daily Star, offers a different view of the situation in Iraq: The debate over American policy in Iraq is again taking center stage in international venues, political circles, and the press. There are enough valid arguments for both sides, whether pro or against, to corroborate both positions. However, when one looks at the economic side of the equation, it becomes clear that there is a definite letdown. Irrespective of anyone's position on the war in Iraq, we have to recognize that something went terribly wrong. 6.29.05 US intelligence firm says bomb that killed Lebanese politician Hawi unlikely to have come from Syria June 29 A leading U.S. private intelligence firm said in a recent report the bomb that killed former Lebanese anti-Syrian politician George Hawi this month is unlikely to have emanated from Damascus. Texas-based Statfor, which specializes in intelligence and counterterrorism analysis, believes the blast was "so sophisticated that few in the world could have done it." It adds the "complex nature" of the remote-control technology used in the attack narrows the list of suspects considerably. 6.29.05 Thousands riot in China, attack police, burn cars BEIJING (Reuters) June 29 Thousands of Chinese rioted in a dispute sparked by a lopsided roadside brawl, set fire to cars and wounded six police officers in an outburst likely to worry communist leaders in Beijing desperate to cling on to power. The official Xinhua news agency, in a rare report on a local disturbance, blamed Sunday's riot in Chizhou in dirt-poor eastern Anhui province on a few criminals who led the "unwitting masses" astray. The violence was the latest in a series of protests which the Communist Party, in power since 1949, fears could spin out of control and become a channel for anger over corruption and a growing gap between rich and poor. 6.29.05 China has 100 million internet users 2nd to US BEIJING (Xinhuanet) June 28 Chinese Vice Minister of Information Industry Xie Guohua said here on Tuesday that China now has over 100 million Internet users and that over 30.1 million users have broadband Internet services. At the opening ceremony of the 6th China (Beijing) Mobile Telecommunications International Forum, Xie also said over the past years, China's telephone users increased by 100 million each year, and its on-line population ranks second in the world after the United States. [More>>xinhuanet.com] 6.29.05 Venezuelan President Chavez congratulates Iran's president-elect CARACAS (Xinhuanet) June 28 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has congratulated Iran's Mahmoud Ahmadinejad on his election as new president of the Islamic Republic. Chavez himself broke the news on Monday when he presented awards to journalists, local reports said Tuesday. He described Ahmadinejad as a "man who is committed to his nation and the struggle for sovereignty and self-determination." 6.29.05 Indonesia plans to ban American beef imports JAKARTA (AP) June 29 Indonesia will ban imports of American beef and beef products starting Thursday after the U.S. Department of Agriculture confirmed a second case of mad cow disease there last week, the Agriculture Ministry said on Wednesday. Tri Satya Naipospos, the director of animal health at the ministry, said beef product imports approved before June 30 will still be allowed into Indonesia. She said around 500 metric tons of U.S. beef products are currently en route to Indonesia. [More>>thejakartapost.com] 6.29.05 Turkmenistan could become Ukraine's main natural gas supplier KIEV (RIA Novosti, Taras Burnos) June 29 In September 2005, Ukraine and Turkmenistan might sign a 25-year contract on supplies of Turkmen natural gas to Ukraine, which will turn the Central Asian republic into Ukraine's main gas supplier. 6.29.05 Iran's proven oil reserves put at over 132b barrels TEHRAN (MNA) June 28 Exploratory operations have been performed on only some 30 percent of the oil deposits in the country, thus, more exploratory works should be carried out in this regard, noted vice chairman of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC). NIOC has the required potentials and abilities to explore oil and other hydrocarbonaceous resources in the 1,000,000 square kilometers of the oil deposits in the country, Iranian Students News Agency quoted Mehdi Hosseini as saying. 6.29.05 US military says can defeat nuclear-armed North Korea SEOUL (Reuters), June 29 US and South Korean forces can deter and defeat North Korea even if the reclusive communist state has several nuclear weapons, a senior US military officer said in an interview broadcast on Wednesday...The commander of the US forces in South Korea, General Leon LaPorte, said the US military believed North Korea had one to two nuclear weapons at a minimum, and was also working to advance its missile programme. 6.28.05 From memos, insights into ally's doubts on Iraq War LONDON, June 28 Glenn Frankel, Washington Post Foreign Service, provides more analysis and interviews on the Downing Street Memos: In the spring of 2002, two weeks before British Prime Minister Tony Blair journeyed to Crawford, Tex., to meet with President Bush at his ranch about the escalating confrontation with Iraq, Foreign Secretary Jack Straw sounded a prescient warning. 6.28.05 Israel wants Russian PM to explain probe into Jewish text June 28 Amiram Barkat reports: Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is to meet Tuesday in Moscow with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Fradkov, and will ask him to explain the decision by the Moscow District Prosecutor to investigate claims that a 19th-century abridged code of Jewish law (halakha) contains possible incitement against non-Jews. 6.28.05 Special Orders in House of Representatives on Downing Street Memos WASHINGTON , June 28 Congressman John Conyers, Congresswoman Maxine Waters, and Congresswoman Barbara Lee are scheduled the evening of June 28 to discuss the Downing Street Minutes on the floor of the House. Their letter to other members of the House set the following agenda: "The Democratic hour for these remarks is scheduled for the second hour of the Special Orders, which will commence immediately after votes for the day have ended 6.28.05 Iran bourse recovers as Ahmadinejad soothes fears June 28 The Tehran stock market clawed back some losses after Iran's president-elect moved to reassure traders that his brand of religious conservatism was not at odds with the bourse. On Saturday, the market took fright and shed 1 percent after Tehran's hard line mayor, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, won presidential election, as investors had been banking heavily on a win for business-minded Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani. [More>>dailystar.com.lb] 6.28.05 Russian freed from Guantanamo tells of Quran abuse MOSCOW (Reuters) June 28 A Russian citizen released last year from Guantanamo Bay prison said on Tuesday US guards at the camp regularly threw copies of the Quran into toilets. Earlier this month, the US military described cases of ³mishandling² of a Quran by US personnel at the naval base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, including splashing it with urine and kicking it. 6.28.05 Iraq lawmaker killed as Bush readies speech BAGHDAD (Reuters) June 28 Insurgents assassinated a prominent member of the Iraqi parliament on Tuesday, marking with violence the first anniversary since US occupiers handed sovereignty to Iraqis. US President George W. Bush was due to give a keynote speech on Iraq amid mixed messages from Washington about the prospects for peace. Marines launched a major operation against suspected insurgents in the western Euphrates valley. 6.28.05 India to displace Pakistan as US ally? WASHINGTON (PTI) June 28 Dangling carrots before the US, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee offered a partnership that would be more than favourable for both and allow India to play a major regional role. India should be allowed to access all the technologies and defence equipment it needs, Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee said today, pointing out that the US is yet to develop a partnership in the defence-industrial sector with New Delhi. "India should justifiably be allowed to access all the technologies and defence equipment it needs" given its security problems in the conventional and non-conventional fields, Mukherjee told representatives of commerce, industry and banking at Indo-US Business Council here. [More>>expressindia.com] 6.28.05 Eleven killed, twenty-three wounded in clan war in Philippines ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines (AFP) June 28 Eleven people were confirmed killed in a clan war that erupted in a coastal village in Alicia town, Zamboanga Sibugay province, a military official said Tuesday. Major General Gabriel Habacon of the Army's 1st infantry division said only one male was among the dead victims. "Most of them are women and children," he said. Habacon said soldiers who helped in the evacuation of the victims counted 23 injured. 05.21.05 British lawmaker: Iraq war was for oil LISBON, May 21 Adam Porter reports: Labour politician and former UK environment minister Michael Meacher has slammed Prime Minister Tony Blair and US President George Bush for starting a war, he says, to secure oil interests.
6.17-05 Federal Debt not a concern of the press SAN FRANCISCO, June 17 Update. While the Federal Reserve continues to increase interest rates, the Exponentially rising Federal Debt is not being reported. What is not being reported is the fact that interest rates are tied to the US National Debt. This year the deficit is expected to exceed $420 billion, and interest on the debt which exceeds $8.2 trillion, is about $1 billion per day. Because the annual deficits are financed via the bond market, and because the amount of the bonds being sold exceeds demand, it is necessary to raise interest rates to attract investors in the US bonds financing the US debt. This routine of increasing debt on an exponential scale was experienced under the administration of George H. W. Bush. I predicted increasing interest rates "to sell bonds" in my conversation with Wm. F. Buckley Jr. at that time, in 1993, and I have repeated the prediction with regard to the current Bush administration's excesses and need to sell more bonds to finance the extraordinary deficits. The rate increases will continue in order to sell the overabundant US bonds. In a few words, George Bush's debt is causing your mortgage rates to increase, and they will continue to increase until the US assumes fiscal responsibility. Click here for details on this trend. Mel Copeland
EDITORIALS 03.24.05 Temple Mount controversy
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