Report: 6 IAF men dead in Romania chopper crash
By YAAKOV KATZ AND ASSOCIATED PRESS
07/26/2010 22:54
Romanian soldier participating in joint search-and-rescue exercise with IAF ‘Night Birds' squadron also on board fallen Sikorsky CH-53
Six Israeli Air Force servicemen and one Romanian soldier were killed on Monday in a helicopter crash in Romania, in one of Israel's worst military aviation accidents in recent years, according to Romanian sources.
The Sikorsky CH-53 helicopter - called Yasour by the IAF - was participating in the Blue Sky 2010 joint search-and-rescue exercise in central Romania. According to initial findings, the crash appeared to be the result of a malfunction in the tail of the helicopter.
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After 40 years, Yasour still believed to be reliable
The crew consisted of four Israeli pilots, two Israeli airborne mechanics and a Romanian military observer, according to Romanian media reports.
The IDF notified the crew members' families of the incident.
Romanian Defense Ministry spokesman Constantin Spanu said there was no information on whether there were survivors, and that officials were scrambling to reach the accident site near the town of Zarnesti, some 120 kilometers northwest of Bucharest.
Spanu said the helicopter had been flying at low altitude when radio contact with it was lost mid-afternoon Monday.
Romanian officials said the helicopter had encountered a mechanical malfunction last week, but was repaired by IAF technical teams. The helicopters were from a squadron of the IAF known as the "Night Birds."
The exercise began on July 18 and was supposed to end later this week. During Monday's flight, three helicopters were flying in central Romania practicing search-and-rescue techniques.
Romanian Defense Minister Gabriel Oprea immediately established a committee to probe the cause of the accident. Rescue teams were said to be trying to reach the mountainous area, where access is difficult.
IAF commander Maj.-Gen. Ido Nehushtan spoke with his Romanian counterpart Maj.- Gen. Ion-Aurel Stanciu, and the two decided to establish a joint commission of inquiry. The IAF was planning to send an aircraft on Tuesday with medical teams, as well as officers from the IDF Rabbinate to assist in identifying the bodies.
An IAF brigadier-general is heading the Israeli research team, the army said.
Brig.-Gen Nimrod Shefer, deputy commander of the air force, said that all possibilities were being looked into, including a technical malfunction, a human error that may have caused the crash.
"The exercise was planned in advance and is part of an ongoing cooperation with Romania and other countries, and is meant to train our pilots to fly in new and unfamiliar terrain," Shefer said late Monday night.
IDF Chief of General Staff Lt.- Gen. Gabi Ashkenazi informed Defense Minister Ehud Barak of the crash upon Barak's landing in Washington, a statement from Barak's office said, adding that he was being updated constantly.
The Israeli helicopters flew to Romania last week after stopping off to refuel in Greece. The joint Israeli-Romanian exercise was the first in a number of years and since the countries signed a joint defense agreement in 2006.
The five-year agreement was signed by then-defense minister Shaul Mofaz and his Romanian counterpart. According to the deal, IDF forces and aircraft would be allowed to deploy in Romania for joint training exercises.
Since Israel has been locked out of Turkey due to deteriorating ties, the IAF has been on the lookout for new training grounds to drill long-range flights, which are difficult in Israel due to the limited airspace. The Jerusalem Post reported in April that the IAF was planning to send aircraft to Romania by the end of the year. The last time the IAF trained in Romania was in 2007.
AP contributed to this report.
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Second Explosive Attack on Swedish Synagogue in Two Weeks
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Anti-Semites struck for the second time in two weeks Friday and attacked the synagogue in the Swedish city of Malmo, which has suffered a steady exodus of Jews because of anti-Semitism.
A written bomb threat had been taped to the synagogue Friday, when an explosion shattered three window panes but caused no injuries. Security at the synagogue was beefed up following the attack. An explosion also struck the house of worship two weeks ago, without causing injuries.
Despite violent demonstrations in March when an Israel tennis time played in the Davis Cup in Sweden, Jewish community president Fred Kahn said, "We thought we were finished with this sort of thing. It's incredibly sad that this should happen again."
Swedish police arrested 10 rock-throwing attackers in the March violence, which succeeded in forcing the banning of spectators at the tennis match.
Anti-Semitism in Sweden was fueled last year, when a local journalist published claims that Israel soldiers harvested organs of Palestinian Authority terrorists.
The CAMERA (Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America) media watchdog reported last Friday, "The plight of Jews in Malmo, Sweden. Jews are fleeing Malmo in droves as anti-Semitic attacks, perpetrated mostly by Muslim immigrants have increased substantially. Malmo's mayor has failed to stop the attack, stating they are merely a consequence of Israeli policies in the Middle East."
The Swedish English-language newspaper The Local reported that the number of anti-Semitic crimes reported in Sweden rose 57 percent last year.
(IsraelNationalNews.com)
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Saudi King to Visit Middle East this Week
by Elad Benar.
The king of Saudi Arabia, King Abdullah bin Abdul- Aziz will be making a trip to the region at the end of this week.
The king's regional tour will start in Egypt on Wednesday and will include all the countries that surround Israel. The aim of the visit is to heighten the cooperation between the Arab countries.
King Abdullah will be accompanied by Saudi consultants, ministers and journalists. One of the more important stops of his trip will be Syria, where he is expected to visit for the first time since 2002 on Thursday, and meet with President Bashar al-Assad. The two are expected to discuss the bilateral relationship between Saudi Arabia and Syria.
Ties between Syria and Saudi Arabia have been strained since the 2005 assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri (whom Saudi Arabia supported), for which some have blamed Syria.
On Friday, King Abdullah is also slated to visit Lebanon, his first visit to the country since 2002, during which he will meet President Michel Sleiman and members of the national unity government that includes members of Hizbullah. The king's visit to Beirut comes at a time when a political crisis is brewing following last week's announcement by Hizbullah leader Nasrallah that his organization will be indicted by the UN tribunal probing the Hariiri murder. Nasrallah said he would not accept any indictment of Hizbullah members and added that the credibility of the UN tribunal is questionable, since its members are made up of Americans and British and it uses officers with connection to the Mossad.
A Jordanian spokesman announced on Monday that King Abdullah will also visit Jordan as part of the tour, a stop on his visit that was not mentioned in previous reports. The Saudi king is expected to meet with Jordan's King Abdullah II and the two will discuss some of the ongoing issues in the Middle East, including the possible direct negotiations between the Palestinian Authority and Israel.
(IsraelNationalNews.com)
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Hizballah raises Mideast tension to sabotage four Arab rulers' Beirut visit Friday
DEBKAfile Exclusive Report July 26, 2010, 8:03 PM (GMT+02:00)
Hizballah warning at Saudi-backed TV bureau in Baghdad
Lebanese prime minister Saad Hariri Monday, July 26, consigned another 1,500 troops to the country's southern border with Israel to beef up the two brigades posted there. French ambassador Denis Pietton, after an urgent meeting with the Lebanese prime mister said the Lebanese reinforcement would be there to defend French UNIFIL peacemakers who have been under Hizballah attack.
However, debkafile's military sources report that Hariri acted to fend off Hizballah's threats of a military provocation for disrupting Saudi King Abdullah's grand new venture. It will be ushered in by the visit to Beirut Friday, July 30 of a group of four Arab rulers: Saudi King Abdullah, Syrian president Bashar Assad, Emir Khaled bin Khlaif al-Thani of Qatar and Sheikh Hamad bin Issa al Khalifa of Bahrain. This is the most distinguished a group of Arab leaders ever to visit the Lebanese capital.
It will be presented formally as a gesture of support for the Lebanese national unity government in which Hizballah is a member, but its real purpose is to tempt Syrian president Bashar Assad to phase out his support for Hizballah in return for Saudi and Gulf recognition of his dominant role in Beirut.
Nasrallah knows what is at stake and is determined to sabotage the move by igniting the border, holding Israel responsible, and applying all his resources in the region to hitting out at Saudi interests. He was quoted as confiding to his aides in the last few hours that he will never lie down for any Saudi plot to weaken Damascus' ties with his movement, calling Abdullah's bid an American-Israeli conspiracy which must be nipped sharply in the bud.
And indeed, Monday, a suicide car bomber demolished the Saudi-financed Al Arabiya television network's Baghdad offices, killing four people. debkafile's counter-terror sources credit an Iraqi Shiite terrorist group linked to the Lebanese Hizballah, acting out Nasrallah's ultimatum to the Saudi monarch that he can look forward to more mayhem to his interests in the region if he goes through with the landmark visit to Beirut Friday.
Aware of the Hizballah leader's plans and the danger to Israel, defense minister Ehud Barak, now in Washington, issued one of the sternest warnings ever heard from Israel Sunday, July 25: "If Hizballah fires a rocket into Tel Aviv, we will not run after each Hizballah terrorist or launcher… We will see it as legitimate to hit any target that belongs to the Lebanese state, not just Hizballah."
It was in the hope of averting this threatened face-off that Hariri urgently beefed up Lebanese military strength on the border with Israel.
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Barak Warns Israel Will Attack Lebanon If Hizbullah Starts War
by Tzvi Ben Gedalyahu
Israel will consider Lebanese government buildings and bases a target if Hizbullah starts up another war against Israel, Defense Minister Ehud Barak warned Monday.
The Defense Minister revealed that then-U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called Ehud Olmert, when he was Prime Minister in 2006 and asked him not to touch what Barak called the "precious government" of Beirut.
In a wide-ranging interview with the Washington Post, Defense Minister Barak added, "We didn't . I think that they're responsible for what happens, and if it happens that Hizbullah will shoot into Tel Aviv, we will not run after each Hizbullah terrorist or launcher of some rocket in all Lebanon. We'll see the government of Lebanon responsible for what happens, and for what happens within its government, its body politic, and its arsenal of munitions. And we will see it as a legitimate to hit any target that belongs to the Lebanese state, not just to the Hizbullah."
Barak also warned the United States "that the walls between the Lebanese armed forces and Hizbullah-it's quite porous. And whatever you give the Lebanese armed forces might end up in the hands of Hizbullah, be it technology or weapons or whatever. "The Obama administration recently announced it giving the Beirut government $100 million in military aid.
Barak also admitted-perhaps for the first time publicly-that his order in 2000 for a sudden pullout of Israeli forces from enabled Hizbullah to prepare for war against Israel.
"We pulled out and ended up with an area full of rockets and missile." he admitted. "We did it next in Gaza and ended up with an area full of rockets covering Tel Aviv as well as other parts of the south and half of Israel. And within the framework of considering an agreement with the Palestinians that will establish a Palestinian state side by side with Israel ,we should make sure that the three underlying principles of our security are fully assured, namely the West Bank will not become like Gaza and southern Lebanon, another launching pad for rockets against the coastal plain of Israel."
The Defense Minister is currently in Washington, and he said that he will be talking with the U.S. Defense Department and military officials about American arms sales to Arab countries, particularly Saudi Arabia.
"There are considerations in Washington about moving forward with major deals with our neighbors and we want to make sure that we are in an understanding with the administration.
"We understand the American need, under the strategy of the administration, to kind of strengthen the moderate Arab countries facing the same threat from hegemonic Iran. But, at the same time, we have a tradition of understanding with following administrations to keep Israel's superiority in weapons' systems and munitions."
The Defense Minister also will discuss the prospective purchase of the advanced FG-34 fighter jet. Reports last week indicated that the sale was imminent. Barak said, "We will have to make the final decisions in relatively short time," but he pointed out that Israel needs "to be able to participate in production of some parts in our industry as well as making sure that we can continue keeping our real edge."
Turning to Iran, the Defense Minister said that the United States and Israel are closer than ever to sharing the same diagnosis unlike the previous situation whereby the NIE declared three years ago that Iran has suspended its quest for nuclear weapons.
"I think that basically it's still time for sanctions. Probably at a certain point we should realize that sanctions cannot work," he said.
(IsraelNationalNews.com)
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Air Force Hits Gaza Weapons Plant following Attacks
by Maayana Miskin
The Israel Air Force demolished a weapons plant in northern Gaza early on Monday morning. The operation came in response to recent attacks by Gaza terrorists on Israelis in the western Negev.
Planes also took out two smuggling tunnel along the border between Gaza and Egypt. Pilots reported direct hits, and all planes returned safely back to base.
The IDF released its usual statement for such incidents, saying, "The IDF will not tolerate attacks on Israeli citizens or IDF soldiers, and will respond with determination and strength to any entity using terrorism against the state of Israel." The statement also noted that "the IDF sees the Hamas terrorist organization as bearing sole responsibility for what happens in Gaza, and for maintaining quiet in the area."
On Sunday, terrorists fired at least four rockets and mortar shells at communities in the Gaza belt region. One of the weapons used in the attacks was more advanced than the usual rockets; experts who examined the rocket found that it was produced outside Gaza and smuggled in.
On Sunday evening, an IDF reserves force arrested five Palestinian Authority Arabs near the Jewish town of Elon Moreh in Samaria. The five are thought to have been on their way to commit a terrorist attack.
Soldiers arrested an additional terrorist overnight.
(IsraelNationalNews.com)
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Barak on to Washington Again, Demolished Shomron Home First
by Hillel Fendel
Defense Minister Ehud Barak, the most left-wing and most influential minister in the right-wing government, is on his way to Washington for talks with top Obama Administration officials.
Lebanon, Iran - But Nothing on Palestinian Authority
Before his departure, he granted an interview to the Washington Post, two points of which made headlines - yet some hard questions were not asked. Barak said that if Hizbullah attacks Israel, as it did in 2006, "we will not run after each Hezbollah terrorist or launcher… We will see it as legitimate to hit any target that belongs to the Lebanese state, not just to Hizbullah." The Defense Minister also said that sanctions against Iran are not likely to be effective in the long run.
The Post described its interview with Barak as "wide-ranging," but did not provide a precise transcript thereof. The article portrayed him as more peace-seeking than Netanyahu, and even asked him to give grades to Netanyahu's love for peace. Excerpts:
"Barak said Israel must put forward a peace plan … Abbas skeptical of Netanyahu's sincerity… Asked whether Netanyahu shared Barak's belief in the need for an Israeli peace initiative that addresses the core conflict, Barak said Netanyahu had convinced Obama at their July 6 meeting that he ‘is there. But, of course, the proof of the pudding is in the eating. We have to prove it in actions, in the negotiations.'"
Barak's Peace Plan
Minister Barak is quoted as having said that Israel "must put forward a peace plan that delineates the borders of a Palestinian state, ensures a Jewish majority inside Israel, solves the Palestinian refugee problem and offers a ‘reasonable solution' for the future of Jerusalem." Also noted is "Barak's failed attempt to reach an agreement with then-Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat." The article did not specify that Barak actually offered 98% of Judea, Samaria and Gaza at that time, 1% of the Negev, "custodianship" over the Temple Mount, and the entry of some Arab refugees from 1948. The Palestinian Authority rejected all of the above.
Interviewer Janine Zacharia also did not ask Barak what part of the above offer he feels Netanyahu should now "improve upon" in order to entice the Palestinian Authority to agree to make peace with Israel.
It has been suggested that the demolition of a Jewish home in the Shomron (Samaria) on Monday morning was a strategic decision by Barak on two fronts. It may him points with the US officials with whom he plans to meet, including Secretary of State Hilary Clinton, and may sabotage the visit of fellow Cabinet Minister Avigdor Lieberman - a long-time Barak rival - to the Shomron on Monday.
(IsraelNationalNews.com)
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Netanyahu says settlement freeze will end on time
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu suggested on Monday that Israel's self-imposed settlement building freeze will expire as planned in late September.
Netanyahu imposed the 10-month freeze last November under heavy pressure from the US. He hoped it would entice the Palestinians to return to the negotiating table. But Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas continues to reject Israeli requests and US pressure to restart direct peace talks.
The Obama Administration has been pressing Netanyahu to extend the freeze so as to not lose the chance to get through to Abbas. However, in remarks carried by The Jerusalem Post on Monday, Netanyahu said that the timeline of the freeze "has not changed and that's how it will be."
Netanyahu has been under heavy pressure at home to not extend the freeze, considering that the Palestinians have responded to the gesture in anything but a positive manner.
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Arab MK Warns of Third Intifada
JERUSALEM, Israel - Israeli Arab member of Knesset Haneen Zoabi said Israel could be in for a third intifada (armed Palestinian uprising).
In an interview with Britain's The Guardian, Zoabi said Israel's 1.2 million Arabs are "not just an internal issue."
"We are the litmus test of the whole problem. If Israel does not recognize this, conditions will deteriorate toward a third intifada," she said.
Zoabi, a member of the Israeli Arab Balad party, defines herself as Palestinian.
"It took us 40 years for us to admit that we were even Palestinians," Zoabi told The Guardian. "Another 15 years passed before we realized that the peace process started under Oslo had been a disaster," she said.
"The Zionist project was to domesticate its Arab citizens as hewers and drawers of water. But the carrot-and-stick approach failed, and now we see Israel is prepared to throw away its liberal side to control us.
"We were passive once and now we are becoming active about our national identify," Zoabi said.
Several weeks ago, the Knesset voted to strip Zoabi of some of her parliamentary privileges following her participation with pro-Palestinian activists aboard the Turkish-owned Mavi Marmara.
Zoabi said she "didn't break any laws by being on the Mavi Marmara," though the flotilla's organizers, the IHH, has known ties with terror groups, including Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.
The Turkish Muslim charity organization (Insani Yardim Vakfi also known as the Foundation for Human Rights and Humanitarian Relief) was linked to an attempted bombing of LA International Airport 10 years ago. In 1996, the CIA described the IHH as having ties to terrorist groups.
The U.S. State Department is now considering adding the IHH to its list of foreign terror organizations.
For the Gaza flotilla, the IHH recruited about 40 al-Qaeda-linked "activists" to participate in the blockade-busting mission.
Nine insurgents were killed in a confrontation with Israeli Navy commandos who boarded the ship after the captain refused orders to change course.
Video footage of the soldiers boarding the ship showed that the IHH "peace activists" carried out a pre-planned attack. The soldiers used their handguns in self-defense as a last resor
