The Golan Heights is mountainous territory captured by the Jewish state after Syria used the terrain to attack Israel in 1967 and again in 1973. The Heights looks down on major Israeli and Syrian population centers. It borders Israel, Syria and Lebanon and is claimed by Damascus.

Military officials say returning the Golan Heights to Syria would grant Damascus the ability to mount an effective ground invasion of the Jewish state.

Currently, eight Syrian Baath officials live in the Israeli-occupied sections of the Golan Heights. They can technically become Israeli residents. The Heights has a population of about 35,000 people ? approximately 18,000 Jewish residents and 17,000 Arabs, mostly Druze. The Arab residents retain their Syrian citizenship, but under Israeli law can also sue for Israeli citizenship.

The recommendation for Baath officials to purchase Golan Heights real estate follows reports that Syria is forming its own Hizbullah-like guerrilla organizations to fight Israel in hopes of "liberating" the Golan.

During the recent month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel, U.N. "peacekeeping" forces made a startling contribution: They openly published daily real-time intelligence, of obvious usefulness to Hezbollah, on the location, equipment, and force structure of Israeli troops in Lebanon.

Make Comment View Comments Printable Article Email Article
Font 6pt 7pt 8pt 9pt 10pt 11pt 12pt 13pt 14pt 15pt 16pt 17pt 18pt 19pt 20pt

What Did You Do in the War, UNIFIL?
By Lori Lowenthal Marcus
The Weekly Standard | August 30, 2006

During the recent month-long war between Hezbollah and Israel, U.N. "peacekeeping" forces made a startling contribution: They openly published daily real-time intelligence, of obvious usefulness to Hezbollah, on the location, equipment, and force structure of Israeli troops in Lebanon.

UNIFIL--United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon, a nearly 2,000-man blue-helmet contingent that has been present on the Lebanon-Israel border since 1978--is officially neutral. Yet, throughout the recent war, it posted on its website for all to see precise information about the movements of Israeli Defense Forces soldiers and the nature of their weaponry and materiel, even specifying the placement of IDF safety structures within hours of their construction. New information was sometimes only 30 minutes old when it was posted, and never more than 24 hours old.

Meanwhile, UNIFIL posted not a single item of specific intelligence regarding Hezbollah forces. Statements on the order of Hezbollah "fired rockets in large numbers from various locations" and Hezbollah's rockets "were fired in significantly larger numbers from various locations" are as precise as its coverage of the other side ever got.

This war was fought on cable television and the Internet, and a lot of official information was available in real time. But the specific military intelligence UNIFIL posted could not be had from any non-U.N. source. The Israeli press--always eager to push the envelope--did not publish the details of troop movements and logistics. Neither the European press nor the rest of the world media, though hardly bastions of concern for the safety of Israeli troops, provided the IDF intelligence details that UNIFIL did. A search of Israeli government websites failed to turn up the details published to the world each day by the U.N.

Inquiries made of various Israeli military and government representatives and analysts yielded near unanimous agreement that at least some of UNIFIL's postings, in the words of one retired senior military analyst, "could have exposed Israeli soldiers to grave danger." These analysts, including a current high ranking military official, noted that the same intelligence would not have been provided by the U.N. about Israel's enemies.

Sure enough, a review of every single UNIFIL web posting during the war shows that, while UNIFIL was daily revealing the towns where Israeli soldiers were located, the positions from which they were firing, and when and how they had entered Lebanese territory, it never described Hezbollah movements or locations with any specificity whatsoever.
On October 7, 2000, three IDF soldiers were kidnapped by Hezbollah just yards from a UNIFIL shelter and dragged across the border into Lebanon, where they disappeared. The U.N. was thought to have videotaped the incident or its immediate aftermath. Rather than help Israel rescue its kidnapped soldiers by providing this evidence, however, the U.N. obstructed the Israeli investigation.

For months the Israeli government pleaded with the U.N. to turn over any videotape that might shed light on the location and condition of its missing men. And for nine months the U.N. stonewalled, insisting first that no such tape existed, then that just one tape existed, and eventually conceding that there were two more tapes. During those nine months, clips from the videotapes were shown on Syrian and Lebanese television.

Explaining their eventual about-face, U.N. officials said the decision had been made by the on-site commanders that it was not their responsibility to provide the material to Israel; indeed, that to do so would violate the peacekeeping mandate, which required "full impartiality and objectivity." The U.N. report on the incident was adamant that its force had "to ensure that military and other sensitive information remains in their domain and is not passed to parties to a conflict."

Stymied in its efforts to recover the men while they were still alive, Israel ultimately agreed to an exchange in January 2004: It released 429 Arab prisoners and detainees, among them convicted terrorists, and the bodies of 60 Lebanese decedents and members of Hezbollah, in exchange for the bodies of the three soldiers. Blame for the deaths of those three Israelis can be laid, at least in part, at the feet of the U.N., which went to the wall defending its inviolable pledge never to share military intelligence about one party with another.

UNIFIL has just done what it then vowed it could never do. Once again, it has acted to shield one side in the conflict and to harm the other. Why is this permitted? For that matter, how did the U.N. obtain such detailed and timely military intelligence in the first place, before broadcasting it for Israel's enemies to see?

We spoke about freedom of religion," Ms Merkel told journalists following the 45-minute meeting.

She added "I underlined my opinion that we need a European identity in the form of a constitutional treaty and I think it should be connected to Christianity and God, as Christianity has forged Europe in a decisive way," according to press reports.

The Christian Democrat leader has previously spoken out in favour of reopening the debate on religion in the constitution as the EU considers how to tackle the deadlock after the treaty's rejection by French and Dutch voters last year.

Germany has been assigned by EU member states to come up with some kind of solution to the constitutional crisis during its presidency of the union in the first six months of 2007.

Like Mrs Merkel, some leading figures of the European People's Party - the federalist centre-right pan-European group - have pointed out that a possible re-drafted treaty should include clear links to Europe's Christian heritage.

During earlier negotiations on the content of the new EU charter, Spain, Italy and Poland were among the strongest supporters of a reference to God in the treaty.

But its opponents argued it could prove controversial in view of Turkey's potential membership of the EU as well as due to the strict separation of state and church in some countries, such as France.

Currently, the preamble refers to Europe's religious heritage only in general terms.

"Drawing inspiration from the cultural, religious and humanist inheritance of Europe, the values of which, still present in its heritage, have embedded within the life of society the central role of the human person and his or her inviolable and inalienable rights, and respect for law," it states.

One key topic was the development of the present process of European integration and of the continent's identity, she said.

"I believe a European identity is needed, in the form of a Constitutional Treaty and, from my point of view, it should be connected to Christianity and God, as Christianity has forged Europe in a decisive way," she added, as reported by Vatican Radio.

At present, the draft of the Constitutional Treaty, which made no reference to Europe's Christian roots, is at a standstill after it was rejected in referendums held in France and Holland last year.

Merkel clarified that her meeting with the Bishop of Rome took place in her capacity as chancellor of Germany, and not as leader of the Christian Democratic Union, though it was mentioned that the party has a very good relationship with the Vatican.

At a press conference, he said: "Europe is providing the backbone of the force." He added the force would be able to deploy "in days, not weeks".
Its willingness to commit troops demonstrates that the EU is capable of military deployments independent of the US. It also answers criticism from Washington that Europe is happy to engage in diplomacy but unwilling to put boots on the ground. As well as the 2,000 troops promised by the French president, Jacques Chirac, on Thursday, Italy committed 3,000, Spain up to 1,200, including a mechanised battalion, Belgium 400, Poland 500 and Finland 250.

Britain, Germany, Greece and Denmark offered to contribute to the 2,000 specialist forces. Britain, which was represented at the meeting by the Europe minister, Geoff Hoon, will provide six Jaguar aircraft, two AWACS reconnaissance planes and a frigate or destroyer, and offer the use of its air and naval base on Cyprus.

Two potential flashpoints with Israel immediately arose when Mr Annan made it plain that the UN force, despite Iraeli demands, would not disarm Hizbullah, saying this was a matter for the Lebanese, and would only police the Lebanon border with Syria if asked by the Lebanese government, which he said had made no such request.

The UN security council agreed a ceasefire resolution a fortnight ago for a 15,000-strong detachment of the Lebanese army in the south of the country supported by a 15,000-strong UN force. Mr Annan said that 15,000 remained his goal, even though Mr Chirac had earlier suggested that the figure was "quite excessive".

Outside the EU, Turkey, China, Nepal, New Zealand and other countries are considering offering troops. Israel is opposed to troops pledged by Indonesia, Malaysia and Bangladesh, predominantly Muslim countries with which it has no diplomatic ties. The Israeli government argues their refusal to recognise its existence could mean troops would be biased against it, and would also make liaison impossible on issues such as sharing intelligence.

The Europeans are taking a considerable risk, with the ever-present danger of a strike by Israel or confrontation with Hizbullah, and a renewal of fighting with their forces caught in the middle. The EU's previous biggest operation was taking over from Nato in Bosnia in 2004: there is a 6,500-strong EU force in place.

The US is unable to contribute, partly because it is overextended elsewhere but mainly because of an unwillingness to re-engage in a country in which it lost 241 servicemen in 1983, its biggest single military loss in a day since the Second World War.

France and Italy, the two biggest troop contributors, appear to have resolved who will command the force. The UN troops on the ground will continue to be led by a French commander until the end of February when an Italian will take over.

In what was hailed as a breakthrough, the chain of command has been shortened so the UN troops' leadership will be answerable to an Italian general based in a special "cell" at UN headquarters in New York.

The American Society of Civil Engineers last year graded the nation "D" for its overall infrastructure conditions, estimating that it would take $1.6 trillion over five years to fix the problem.

"It is frustrating," said Casey Dinges, the society's managing director of external affairs. "I thought (Hurricane) Katrina was a hell of a wake-up call, but people are missing the alarm."

British oil company BP announced this month that severe corrosion would close its Alaska pipelines for extensive repairs. Analysts say this may sideline some 200,000 barrels a day of production for several months.

Then an instrument landing system that guides arriving planes onto a runway at Los Angeles International Airport failed for the second time in a week, delaying flights.

Those incidents followed reports that the National Security Agency (NSA), the intelligence world's electronic eavesdropping arm, is consuming so much electricity at its headquarters outside Washington that it is in danger of exceeding its power supply.

"If a terrorist group were able to knock the NSA offline, or disrupt one of the nation's busiest airports, or shut down the most important oil pipeline in the nation, the impact would be perceived as devastating," Beckner said. "And yet we've essentially let these things happen -- or almost happen -- to ourselves."

James Dobson, the president of the action affiliate of Focus on the Family ministries, has issued an urgent call to the millions of radio program listeners to contact California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger before he is asked to sign the bills.

"What all four bills will do, they will reinforce homosexuality, bisexuality and transgenderism in a positive light," Focus State Issues Analyst Mona Passignano told WorldNetDaily.

So what's wrong with a positive light? Maybe nothing. But, she said, "They will keep people from saying anything negative about them."

"You cannot preach the Gospel. If you want to preach about Romans 1, you can't. Someone could say, 'That makes me feel bad,'" she said. "You cannot preach what the Bible says. "If you're a Christian, it's got to be alarming. If you are not a Christian, it's got to be alarming," she said. "Because what comes next?

The government is aware that society is fragmenting into tribes - but if they are talking about creating common values for different faith groups, what are they? Munira Mirza, multiculturalism researcher

The government plans to have more faiths schools but critics say they increase segregation between people of different beliefs. Ms Kelly said Church of England Schools were among the most "diverse" in the country.

And she said Muslim parents should not be denied the same opportunities offered to Christians and Jews in sending their children to faith schools. But she did suggest faith schools could be encouraged to play sports matches against each other, or twin themselves with schools of a different faith.

Communities divided

The launch of the commission, which was originally mooted last July, comes amid growing fears of alienation, especially among young Muslims. The Commission on Integration and Cohesion starts work in September and will tour the UK before reporting next June.

It will look at how towns, cities and communities tackle challenges such as segregation and social or economic divisions between different ethnic groups. The commission is designed to carry on some of the research that followed riots in northern towns in 2001. Following that violence, experts warned the government some communities were leading "parallel lives" with little or no contact with each other.

Hoekstra made the announcement on Fox & Friends. The report, entitled "Recognizing Iran as a Strategic Threat," is intended to provide "clarity" about the nature of a regime that has deceived the world on its nuclear ambitions for a long time, Hoekstra said. Not only is Iran developing nuclear weapons, it is supporting terrorist groups such as Hizballah and Hamas, and it is opposing U.S. efforts in Iraq.

"Leadership starts by defining reality for the people at home," Hoekstra said. He spoke one day after Iran "responded" to the international community's demand that Iran stop enriching uranium. Iran reportedly promised to enter into serious negotiations about its nuclear program, but it made no promises to stop enriching uranium. Hoekstra said "strong verification" methods are an essential part of any final agreement with Iran, since it can't be trusted to live up to its promises.

The Bush administration is "studying" Iran's response to a carrot-and-stick proposal and may have something to say about it on Wednesday.

The U.S. National Weather Service's outlook through October saw persistent drought from eastern Montana to Minnesota and on down through Nebraska, Kansas, Oklahoma and Texas -- the main spring-wheat and winter-wheat growing areas of the United States as well as its main cattle and beef production region.

"Relief for water supplies will likely need to wait until next winter's snow season, at the earliest, since snow melt is the major source for water in the West," the National Weather Service's Drought Outlook said last month.

IRRIGATION

The region under the greatest stress is the Great Plains, an area from North Dakota to Texas dubbed the Great American Desert by early explorers but turned into a garden spot in the last century thanks to a single innovation: irrigation.

But farmers from Nebraska through northern Texas are now growing more water-thirsty crops, like corn, that offer them better cash returns due to changing trends such as the boom in ethanol and biodiesel fuels.

That is only accelerating the depletion of ground water faster than it can be replenished by rain. In some cases, farm land is already being idled to conserve water.

"My sense in looking at these issues for 20 years, we're going to need at least a doubling of water productivity in agriculture if we're going to have an opportunity to meet food demand in a way that is somewhat environmentally sustainable," said Sandra Postel with the Global Water Policy Project, a group in Amherst, Massachusetts that analyzes water policies.

NOT JUST A PROBLEM FOR U.S. FOOD PRODUCTION

Experts say water scarcity will be a growing dilemma for world farmers. Most projections put world population at about 8 billion people by 2025, or another 2 billion mouths to feed.

But those people and their industries will also need more water. A 2002 study by the International Food Policy Research Institute estimated that farmers' use of irrigation water worldwide will rise only 4 percent from 1995 to 2025, partially because the water won't be available.

Meanwhile, non-irrigation water use could rise 62 percent.

"In the face of water scarcity, farmers will find themselves unable to raise crop yields as quickly as in the past, and by 2025 their irrigated cereal production will be 300 million metric tons less than it would have been with adequate water -- a difference nearly as large as the U.S. cereal crop in 2000," the study said.

But U.S. water problems have the greatest implications for world food supplies. The United States for decades has been the planet's "food reserve," the top exporter of wheat, corn and soybeans and the largest single provider of food aid to other nations.

What S&P sees at the $100-a-barrel level isn't pretty: Northwest and Delta airlines could be forced to liquidate; others could be pushed into Chapter 11 bankruptcy-court protection. Discount giant Southwest would likely see its remarkable profit streak halted. Industrywide, carriers would ground aircraft, cut service and lay off workers. Travelers could count on fewer choices, more travel hassles and higher fares.

Though oil prices have fallen since hitting a record $78.40 on July 14, they remain at historically high levels. The price of jet fuel, which has averaged about $2.20 a gallon in the past month, is almost 21/2 times the 90 cents that airlines paid in 2000. If oil goes to $100 a barrel, airlines could expect to pay $3 for a gallon of jet fuel.

In the past, global oil production capacity accommodated demand with plenty to spare. But today, with production running almost flat out, the world consumes 98% of the nearly 85 million barrels of crude produced each day. If rebels blow a hole in a Nigerian pipeline, Iran stops shipping oil to make a political point, or a hurricane knocks out U.S. refineries, the lost production can't be replaced quickly or easily.

A major blow

Any way you look at it, U.S. airlines would be overwhelmed by fuel prices approaching $3 a gallon, the jet fuel price that $100 oil would bring.

According to the ATA, a 33% jump in crude prices, from $75 a barrel to $100, would increase the industry's fuel bill by $32.5 million a day. If $100 oil were to persist for a month, it would cost the airlines an extra $975 million. Over a year, the damage would total $11.7 billion. That's a staggering sum to an industry that collectively lost $42 billion in the five years ended in 2005, and assumes carriers would continue operating current schedules.

A post-mortem examination revealed that Mr Freeman had died from septicaemia after becoming infected with the bacteria that causes pasteurellosis, which is known as rabbit flu. Health Protection Agency spokesman said the bacteria was known to be common among many domestic animals, including cats and dogs, but he was not aware of any other fatal rabbit-to-human transmission.

He said there were only a handful of cases of humans being infected with P. multocida each year, usually from dogs and cats, and deaths were very rare. Mrs Freeman, who farms with her husband Peter, said she was shocked that there was so little information about the disease among the farming community.

She now wants to make people aware that handling dead rabbits can be potentially fatal. "Once it is in the bloodstream, that's it," she said. "If you get it unwittingly, not from an animal bite, the first thing you know about it is when you get a fever and by then you are the walking dead. "Doctors did everything they could but it was too late, it is such a virulent disease.

"Everyone is so appalled that he should die in this way. It's absolutely shocking, he was such a strong, strapping, healthy country man." Mrs Freeman said she believed the bacteria passed into her only son's blood via a blister on his thumb. Doctors initially thought he had chickenpox because he developed a rash on his body.

Solar activity is near the low point in the cycle now. Few sunspots appear and solar flares are rare. But on July 31, a tiny sunspot appeared and then vanished after a few hours. It was a normal event, except that it was magnetically backward.

"We've been waiting for this," said David Hathaway, a solar physicist at the Marshall Space Flight in Huntsville, Alabama. "A backward sunspot is a sign that the next solar cycle is beginning."

The Great Storm: Solar Tempest of 1859 Revealed. Space.com - 27 October 2003

A pair of strong solar storms that hit Earth late last week were squalls compared to the torrent of electrons that rained down in the "perfect space storm" of 1859. And sooner or later, experts warn, the Sun will again conspire again send earthlings a truly destructive bout of space weather.

If it happens anytime soon, we won't know exactly what to expect until it's over, and by then some modern communication systems could be like beachfront houses after a hurricane.
In early September in 1859, telegraph wires suddenly shorted out in the United States and Europe, igniting widespread fires. Colorful aurora, normally visible only in polar regions, were seen as far south as Rome and Hawaii.

The event 144 years ago was three times more powerful than the strongest space storm in modern memory, one that cut power to an entire Canadian province in 1989.
In 1859, the planet's defenses were overwhelmed. Society back then did not notice the storm the way it would today. The telegraph was 15 years old. There were no satellite TV feeds, no automated teller machines relying on orbiting relay stations, and no power grids.

People on the ground are generally safe even in the worst space weather. But technology could be in trouble when the next super storm hits.
"In 1859, the technology was quite low in comparison to today's technology," Tsurutani said. "However the technology that we rely on today is much more vulnerable."

A strong storm does its damage in part by inducing currents on power and communication lines, leading to potential overloads. Obviously, there are a lot more wires on Earth today, "so one might expect much worse problems if it occurred today."

The charged particles can also zap satellites, as has occurred with handful of storms in recent years -- events with far fewer charged particles than in 1859. A space storm also heats the upper level of Earth's atmosphere, causing it to expand. That's no good for satellites that can get caught up in air that didn't used to be there.