Indo-Israel: News and Discussion

JE Menon · Post by **JE Menon** » 01 Apr 2009 22:58

>>Syria has no nukes, and yet as a state sponsor of terrorism for half a century has never really been succesfully dissuaded from pursuing the systematic use of terrorism as a tool.

Except in the case of PKK, where I think we can say Turkey was successful in persuading Syria, with the help of its massive dam-building activities in Anatolia (Grand Anatolia Project).

Agreement with rest of your post.

vsudhir · Post by **vsudhir** » 03 Apr 2009 17:43

Antony defends missile pact with Israel

In his first reaction to the media on reports that kickback worth about Rs 600 crore was paid to Indian middlemen in the deal inked 3 days before the announcement of general election Antony said: “They are baseless rumors. We have even signed a Pre-Integrity agreement which categorically prevents corruption or payment to middlemen or agents in this deal. The moment any credible evidence surfaces we will scrap the agreement.”

He also rejected the charge that the deal would work against India’s efforts to achieve self-sufficiency in missile projects by killing the development of indigenous surface-to-air Akash or Advanced Air Defense (AAD) Missiles.

Whoa. expect the bakis, chinis, commies etc to work overtime on manufacturing such 'credible evidence'.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 04 Apr 2009 17:46

Haaretz exclusive: The man who bribed Indians for Israeli arms sales

Sanjay M · Post by **Sanjay M** » 05 Apr 2009 13:38

from israelnationalnews.com:

Poll Shows India is Israel’s Best Friend; Russians Like Us Too

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 05 Apr 2009 20:23

Statement by incoming Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman at the ministerial inauguration ceremony

Does anyone think that concessions and constantly saying “I am prepared to concede,” and using the word “peace” will lead to anything? No, that will just invite pressure, and more and more wars. "Si vis pacem, para bellum" - if you want peace, prepare for war; be strong.

Uri_T · Post by **Uri_T** » 05 Apr 2009 23:10

Guardium - Autonomous Security Vehicle

Guardium's perimeter security system addresses the critical period between the initial warning of perimeter intrusion and response. Operating in the perimeter fence area, Guardium deploys its unmanned ground security vehicle (UGV) to continuously patrol, survey, and report on the status of the perimeter area and react immediately to isolate, contain, communicate with, and control intruders until backup support arrives. Each high-speed UGV can be equipped with sensors to navigate varied terrain, cameras that relay field data, voice communication capabilities, and other operational means.

today it was used first time on the Gazza border fence
http://www.iai.co.il/sip_storage/files/0/33810.pdf
http://idf-armor.blogspot.com/

Vipul · Post by **Vipul** » 07 Apr 2009 03:22

Israel to build 5 munition plants in Bihar.

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 07 Apr 2009 07:13

Israel does not take orders from Obama: Israeli minister

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 11 Apr 2009 17:10

darshhan wrote: Look where I am concerned these suras don't tell us anything about jews.They actually show the real character of Muhammad and his intense hatred of jews.

[/b]As far as what I understand from these suras is that verses 2.65 and 7.166 do relate to breaking of sabbath but 5:60 is more than that.Anyway whether I am interpreting the quran right or wrong is not important.The most important question is how the islamists interpret the above suras and judging from their activities we have a fair idea of that.

You are right 5:60 is actually about people mocking islam, if you read the previous verses you get an idea of the context.
I'd say the most important verse here is 7:168. All these verses show that God punished THE ONE'S WHO MOCK/GO AGAINST GOD by turning them into apes or pigs. People take these out of context.

From what I have read the Quran is full of hateful verses like this.It is not limited to demonisation of jews.Along with jews and christians there is a lot of hate directed against non believers.Believe me it is not hard to establish the context.The whole book is a information warfare agenda against non believers.

Most of the "hateful" worses are taken out of context and abused by Islamists to motivate their "students". Its wahhabism that needs to be destroyed.

Finally if you are still struggling to establish the right context you don't have to look far.Just study the life of Muhammad and his campaigns against jews.For example, His massacre of Banu Qurayza clan in cold blood and the rape of Safiya(yes that's rape).

The Banu Qurayza thing has been debunked a while ago (some scholars have spent hours of lectures debunking it). They said the massacred the entire tribe. But how is it that the 2 descendents of the tribe who remained jews wrote a hadith? What actually happened is they killed the officers and let the people go.

By the way can you tell me where it is written in torah that some jews were converted to apes.Please show me the link

[/quote]
Muslims believe that it was taken out of the original torah. But there is evidence to suggest that the jews didn't like the sabbath.

Ananth · Post by **Ananth** » 13 Apr 2009 22:29

http://www.slate.com/id/2215820/pagenum/all/

Why Israel Will Bomb Iran
The rational argument for an attack.
By David Samuels

Israel's version of a nuclear grand bargain that brings peace to the Middle East may be messier and more violent than what the Obama administration imagines can be accomplished through sanctions, blandishments, and the invocation of Barack Obama's magic middle name. But who can really argue with the idea of trading the Iranian nuclear bomb for a Palestinian state? Saudi Arabia would be happy. Egypt would be happy. Bahrain, Kuwait, and the United Arab Emirates would be happy. Jordan would be happy. Iraq would be happy. Two-thirds of the Lebanese would be happy. The Palestinians would go about building their state, and Israel would buy itself another 40 years as the only nuclear-armed country in the Middle East. Iran would not be happy.

But who said peace won't have a price?

tripathi · Post by **tripathi** » 19 Apr 2009 00:50

^ Israel has predicted rightly that obama is bargaining its security with iran on WOT.so it is doing wat it feels good for its survival.it never sit and watch like india untill kargil like incidents happen.and im sure same obama will bargain with pak on kashmir too.just wait n see

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 23 Apr 2009 21:26

Barak bids for US Vulcan Phalanx anti-Qassam missile after Israeli Iron Dome falters

......Although recurring publicity campaigns boost the Iron Dome project, DEBKAfile's military experts have repeatedly maintained that the anti-missile system has not proved capable of intercepting enemy projectiles fired from distances as short as 4.5-5 kilometers, that is, from across the borders of Gaza and Lebanon at Israeli locations hugging those borders. In any case, operational costs would be prohibitive. The Iron Dome interceptors for downing a home-made Palestinian missile costing $500 would run to $50,000 apiece.

sunnyP · Post by **sunnyP** » 24 Apr 2009 01:39

Pak, Afghan Biggest Threat For Israel: Israeli F.M.

With an unstable nuclear-armed Pakistan faced with a potential Taliban takeover and Afghanistan facing a resurgent Taliban and Al-Qaida, the combination formed a contiguous area of radicalism ruled in the spirit of Bin Laden, he said.

http://www.rttnews.com/ArticleView.aspx ... 253&SMap=1

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 24 Apr 2009 18:35

Iran canceled air show when Russia warned Israel planned to destroy all 140 warplanes

DEBKAfile's Iranian and intelligence sources disclose that Moscow warned Tehran Friday April 17 that Israel was planning to destroy all 140 fighter-bombers concentrated at the Mehr-Abad Air Force base for an air show over Tehran on Iran's Army Day the following day. The entire fleet was accordingly removed to remote bases and the display cancelled.

Moscow had informed the Iranians that its spy satellites and intelligence sources had picked up preparations at Israeli Air Force bases to destroy the 140 warplanes, the bulk of the Iranian air force, on the ground the night before the display, leaving its nuclear sites without aerial defense. A similar operation wiped out the entire Egyptian air fleet in the early hours of the 1967 war.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 05 May 2009 20:15

X post

Okay, here's the deal on RISAT provided by IOL:

Its built by Israel, operated by Yindu's but it will also remain in touch with Israeli's. The images of Iranian territory will be given to Isra-eel which will complement their own sats. So understand this is Yindu-Yahudi co-operation is not just industrial but also operational. Of course the main use is to monitor Puki's. India now has RISAT 2, CARTOSAT 2 and 2A. Only two countries in Asia have the similar satellites: Japan IGS-4A and China Jian Bing 5.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 06 May 2009 23:40

Israeli elite unit officers in big Indian anti-terror exercise

DEBKAfile Exclusive Report

May 6, 2009, 1:59 PM (GMT+02:00)

India's biggest ever counter-terror exercise took place this week on the plains of Punjab near the Pakistan border. DEBKAfile's military sources disclose that the three-day maneuver ending May 5 was staged by massed mechanized and parachute units of the elite Kharga Corps trained by Israel military instructors in India and Israel in the arts of operating in areas fought over by Taliban and al Qaeda, possibly even with biological or radiological weapons.

Dubbed "Hindi Shakti" (Indian Power), the drill testing this crack army corps' proactive operational strategy, used tanks, combat vehicles – some developed in Israel for striking terrorist targets in open land, artillery guns and a large number of parachutists. These crack Indian units received specialist instruction from Israeli elite and commando forces in tactics for pursuing combat operations behind enemy lines.

DEBKAfile notes that the Indian counter-terror exercise ended 24 hours before US president Barack Obama headed summit of the Pakistani and Afghani presidents, Ali Zardari and Hamid Karzai, at the White House on their combined strategies against the two terrorist organizations.

New Delhi's anti-terror exercise signaled the three leaders that, aside from the Americans, the only force capable of taking on Taliban and al Qaeda is India's elite army corps.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 10 May 2009 16:53

Maps
http://www.eurotrib.com/comments/2008/1 ... 0/80/89#89
http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/0 ... chipelago/

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 26 May 2009 15:36

Horrific new evidence uncovered of Nazi death squads in the Russian sector during WW2 .

A holy mission to reveal the truth about Nazi death squads

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world ... 90595.html

Father Patrick Desbois has spent the past decade piecing together the horrific story of the Nazis' secret death squads. Jonathan Brown meets a man who's rewriting history

RajeshA · Post by **RajeshA** » 02 Jun 2009 16:25

Who We Are Dealing With by Yehuda Poch: Arutz Sheva

But the logical conclusion is that Israel must find new allies to stand alongside us as America leads the rest of the world in turning against us. One such possible ally is India, which faces a grave threat from the possibility that Pakistan's government will fall apart and leave its nuclear arsenal in the hands of al-Qaeda and the Taliban.

Finding such new alliances is not so difficult. But it will take courage to do so.

A_Gupta · Post by **A_Gupta** » 03 Jun 2009 15:05

Mostly about Israel, but the bold section relates to India.
Item produced in full.

"In the past few years, a reported one million Israeli Jews have packed their bags and left Israel, going off to, in some cases, their nations of origin, like Canada, the United States, Europe, South Africa, Australia, etc. These are, by and large, the secular, modern Jews, who have given up on Israel as the promised land, and have moved their money out of Israeli banks, sent their children to colleges outside of Israel, etc. It won't show up on the official statistics, because these are mostly dual citizens, who will not necessarily bother to renounce their Israeli citizenship, but several recent visiting scholars from Israel have confirmed that this is true. And the exodus has not ended.

So Israel is being left to religious fanatics, Russian emigres, settlers who are bigger fanatics, and a shrinking percentage of secular pilgrim Jews of the early Zionist period and the post-World War II exodus from Europe. It is a different country, and the last election reflected that tilt. The singular event, highlighting the transformation of Israel was the Rabin assassination, an unprecedented and tragic event, that may be looked back on as the signal event of the failure of the Zionist experiment.

As long as the Bibi government remains in power, reflecting the true will of the Israeli people, Israel will further and further isolate itself from the United States and Europe. The nationalism that Col. Lang correctly identified, will be radicalized, but the further isolation, which began in earnest, with the Gaza action of last December, will accelerate. It is much bigger than President Obama or George Mitchell demanding a freeze on settlements, repudiating the Bush letter, etc. It is a global phase shift away from support for Israel, with no qualification or condition attached.

What is going on now with the Obama Administration is a decoupling from the "passionate engagement" (to use George Ball's adoption of George Washington's term) with Israel. It may not result in a two-state solution, since both the Palestinian house and the Israeli house are both deeply divided and intransigent. It will, I suspect, free the United States to pursue a sovereign foreign policy over time, which is a good in itself.

If there is not some dramatic shift in the thinking of the political leadership of Israel, then we are headed for a protracted crisis, that will, I suspect, ultimately lead to either a very ugly war, a Thirty Years War type religious and tribal fiasco; or an eventual one-state solution, in which the Palestinian struggle for equality and justice is then more akin to the anti-apartheid or American civil rights struggle.

In the meantime, the U.S. should get about the business of repairing state-to-state relations with Syria (already advancing pretty much on a fast-track), and hopefully with Iran. The policy on Iran is to avoid the experiences of the Europeans and the Russians, and deal with the top of the heap--Supreme Leader Khamenei and the National Security Council. It's the only way to hold their feet to the fire, and Gates and company have clearly spelled out a six-month plan for forcing that to happen. We are also quietly cracking down on Saudi funding of Salafi and Wahhabi radicals in the region and in the Indian subcontinent, and that is good, for a change.

Harper"

Anujan · Post by **Anujan** » 04 Jun 2009 23:42

Bulk of Obama's 6000-word address to the "Muslim world" concentrated on Israel and Palestine.

Obama Calls for Alliances With Muslims
The full text of the speech

For the first time he used the word "Palestine" instead of "Future Palestine State" used by every American president till BO. From an outside perspective, while supporting Palestinian state, he also had a few words to say about Hamas, in the same breath criticizing west bank settlements and "the daily humiliations — large and small — that come with occupation".

What is Israeli reaction ? Any Israeli rakshaks want to comment ?

sudeepj · Post by **sudeepj** » 05 Jun 2009 00:17

Ananth wrote:http://www.slate.com/id/2215820/pagenum/all/

Why Israel Will Bomb Iran
The rational argument for an attack.
By David Samuels

...

Ananth

the article you quoted is a gem in that it plainly states facts of realpolitik as they exist. The article is a must read, thanks for posting. I am quoting a passage that I found brilliant..

The key fact of the American-Israeli alliance that most commentators seem eager to elide is that Israel is America's leading ally in the Middle East because it is the most powerful country in the Middle East. Critics of the American-Israeli relationship love to conflate American support for Israel before 1967 with America's support since then by citing statistics for tens of billions of dollars in U.S. military credits and aid given to Israel "since 1948," when the Jewish State was founded. In fact, Israel's rise to becoming a regional superpower was accomplished without any significant help from United States. Israel's surreptitious program to build nuclear weapons was accomplished with the aid of the British and the French, who joined with Israel to seize the Suez Canal from Egypt's rabble-rousing President Gamal Abdel Nasser, and who were then forced to give it back by Dwight D. Eisenhower. The Israeli air force pilots who destroyed the Egyptian, Syrian, and Jordanian air forces on the ground flew French-made Mystère jets—not American-made F-4 Phantoms. The U.S. Congress did not appropriate a single penny to help Israel accommodate an overwhelming influx of Holocaust survivors and poor Jewish refugees from Yemen, Iraq, Egypt, and other Arab countries until 1973—25 years after the founding of the state.

By shattering the old balance of power in the Middle East with its spectacular military victory in the Six Day War, Israel announced itself to America as the reigning military power in the region and as a profoundly destabilizing influence that needed to be contained....

Israel earned its role as an American client with a series of daring military victories won by a tiny embattled country with a shoestring budget and its back against the sea: the capture of the Suez Canal from Nasser in 1956, the audacious victory in 1967, and the development of a nuclear bomb. Yet the terms of the bargain that Israel struck would necessarily relegate such accomplishments to the history books. Israel traded its freedom to engage in high-risk, high-payoff exploits like the Suez Canal adventure or the Six Day War for the comfort of a military and diplomatic guarantee from the wealthiest and most powerful nation in the world.

These three passages that describe how American-Israeli engagement came about, bear striking resemblance to the fillip given to India US ties during the NDA, with tests of the hydrogen bomb, big missiles, Parakram and Kargil.

Sadly, the dividend from those risky exploits is now running out and with the current (and the last) pacifist govt. in power, it immediately becomes apparent that the thaw in relations seen in the Bush years will freeze again. The signs are apparent with appointment of anti India people in key positions..

Sadler · Post by **Sadler** » 03 Jul 2009 23:39

ramana wrote:So why do Pakis have special hatred for Jews? I am willing to bet they never came cross one in their lives. And what does the AIPAC and other orgs think about that?

Nice catch. Bernhard Levy alluded to this in his book, "who killed Danny pearl". Its inculcated, through islamic texts, wahhabism, saudi petro$-funded mosques and islamic centers.

arun · Post by **arun** » 06 Jul 2009 14:10

The cut-throat competetion with regard to our MRCA deal.

Israel muscled out by the US in a bid to nobble Sweden's bid and price gouge India:

US pressures IAI to drop bid on fighter jets to India

Jul. 5, 2009
Yaakov Katz , THE JERUSALEM POST

Under pressure from the Pentagon, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has been forced to back out of a joint partnership with a Swedish aerospace company to compete in a multi-billion dollar tender to sell new multi-role fighter jets to the Indian Air Force. ………….......

The Defense Ministry ordered IAI to back out of the deal after the Pentagon expressed concern that American technology, used by Israel, would be integrated into the Gripen offered to the Indians.

"The stated concern was that western technology in Israeli hands would make its way to the Indians," one Israeli official said.

What was strange about the American request was that Boeing and Lockheed Martin - the two largest US defense contractors - are also competing for the Indian deal. For this reason, Israeli officials said it was more likely that the Americans were concerned that if IAI competed for the deal with Saab, it would force the American companies to lower their prices. ………………

Jerusalem Post

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 06 Jul 2009 22:12

Did not see this important note posted here:

Biden: US Won’t Stop Israel From Bombing Iran

His excuse:

“Look, we cannot dictate to another sovereign nation what they can and cannot do,” said Biden.

Israel can decide “…what’s in their interest relative to Iran and anyone else,” added Biden.

Of course. Unless it is an AESA.

NRao · Post by **NRao** » 06 Jul 2009 22:15

A Dolphin-class Israeli sub crossed the Suez into the Red Sea!!!!

p_saggu · Post by **p_saggu** » 06 Jul 2009 22:20

X post from the Jiye Pakistan Thread.

Dalily Crimes: ‘Saudis give nod to Israeli raid on Iran’

LAHORE: The head of Israel’s intelligence service, Mossad, has assured Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Riyadh would turn a blind eye to Israeli jets flying over the kingdom during any future raid on Iran. Meir Dagan, the director of Mossad since 2002, held secret talks with Saudi officials to discuss the possibility early this year

and,

“The Saudis have tacitly agreed to the Israeli air force flying through their airspace on a mission which is supposed to be in the common interests of both Israel and Saudi Arabia,” an Israeli diplomatic source said last week, the paper said. Tel Aviv and Riyadh do not have formal diplomatic relations, but Mossad maintains “working relations” with the Saudis.

ramana · Post by **ramana** » 06 Jul 2009 22:20

Sadler wrote:
ramana wrote:So why do Pakis have special hatred for Jews? I am willing to bet they never came cross one in their lives. And what does the AIPAC and other orgs think about that?
Nice catch. Bernhard Levy alluded to this in his book, "who killed Danny pearl". Its inculcated, through islamic texts, wahhabism, saudi petro$-funded mosques and islamic centers.

Its beyond that and is not patent to a European observer. The hatred is based on the new convert to assert his closeness with the faith (deen or din

). So he has to be more holy than the PUBH! As TSP is an Islamic state it and its citizens have to display this overt hatred to buttress their islamist credentials. What they need is a strong slap from Israel.

p_saggu · Post by **p_saggu** » 06 Jul 2009 22:23

The problem here is Russia. I think they'll warn the Iranians if any attack is to take place. The last time when the Iranians assembled 140 of their fighter aircraft in Tehran for a massive air show, the israelis mobilized their airforce, the russians warned the Iranians, who dispersed all their fighters.

sanjaykumar · Post by **sanjaykumar** » 06 Jul 2009 22:39

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/ar ... 7Hr_d2ByRQ

'US pressure' makes Israel drop India jet venture

RamaY · Post by **RamaY** » 06 Jul 2009 22:43

p_saggu wrote: Dalily Crimes: ‘Saudis give nod to Israeli raid on Iran’
LAHORE: The head of Israel’s intelligence service, Mossad, has assured Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Riyadh would turn a blind eye to Israeli jets flying over the kingdom during any future raid on Iran. Meir Dagan, the director of Mossad since 2002, held secret talks with Saudi officials to discuss the possibility early this year
and,
“The Saudis have tacitly agreed to the Israeli air force flying through their airspace on a mission which is supposed to be in the common interests of both Israel and Saudi Arabia,” an Israeli diplomatic source said last week, the paper said. Tel Aviv and Riyadh do not have formal diplomatic relations, but Mossad maintains “working relations” with the Saudis.

p_saggu wrote:The problem here is Russia. I think they'll warn the Iranians if any attack is to take place. The last time when the Iranians assembled 140 of their fighter aircraft in Tehran for a massive air show, the israelis mobilized their airforce, the russians warned the Iranians, who dispersed all their fighters.

Putting my paki-hat on...

what if KSA allows this ride and takes care of IAF fighters on their return journey? Double dhamaka, aint it?

Chinmayanand · Post by **Chinmayanand** » 07 Jul 2009 14:13

^^^ KSA doesn't have balls to play balls with Iran, how will they play it with Israel ?

shravan · Post by **shravan** » 21 Jul 2009 13:56

Israel says Indian peacekeepers helping Hezbollah: Report

JERUSALEM: Israel has accused the Indian troops part of the UN peacekeepers along its border with Lebanon of doing nothing to prevent the infiltration of Hezbollah supporters into its territory, but on the contrary cooperated with them, a media report said.

In a letter to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and the President of the UN Security Council Ruhakana Rugunda, Israel accused an Indian contingent of United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) of having done nothing to prevent the demonstrators from crossing the border and even cooperating with the group, 'The Jerusalem Post' reported.

"(The demonstrators) stood opposite the UNIFIL force, (which did nothing), and worse than that, according to statements made by the organisers of the demonstration, they even cooperated with them," Israeli Ambassador to the world body Gabriela Shalev wrote in the letter.

Fifteen Lebanese civilians had crossed into Israel last Friday waving Hezbollah flags. The Israeli troops spotted the group, but did not confront them as they returned to south Lebanon minutes later.

This is not the first time when Tel Aviv has accused Indian troops stationed in south Lebanon of having helped Hezbollah.

Indian troops were blamed by Tel Aviv for not only quietly watching the abduction of three Israeli soldiers by Hezbollah in October 2000 but even assisting them after having accepted bribes.

Shalev also lashed out at Hezbollah for its "grievous violations of Resolution 1701," which included both the border breach, as well as an attack by Lebanese villagers against UNIFIL troops on Saturday who were investigating an explosion in a suspected arms depot allegedly belonging to the group.

somnath · Post by **somnath** » 21 Jul 2009 14:49

^^^ I wonder what we are doing in Lebanon with UNIFIL..an absolute waste of time.The force gets nothing but contempt from both sides of the fence, and sits there enforcing or keeping nothing at all...

Gerard · Post by **Gerard** » 22 Jul 2009 07:06

Israel: UNIFIL assisted illegal crossing

In a letter submitted by the ambassador to UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and the president of the United Nations Security Council, Shalev accused a contingent of Indian UNIFIL peacekeepers of having done nothing to prevent the demonstrators from crossing the border and even cooperating with the group.

shravan · Post by **shravan** » 09 Aug 2009 21:12

Tata Advanced Systems, Israel Aerospace Industries launch Nova JV news
06 August 2009

Israel Aerospace Industries Ltd (IAI), an Israel-based developer of military and commercial aerospace technology and Tata Advanced Systems Ltd have formed a joint venture, Nova Integrated Systems Ltd (NIS).

The joint venture will develop, manufacture, and support a range of defence and aerospace products, including missiles, radars, electronic warfare (EW) systems and home land security systems.

The new company will also perform offset work for IAI and other defence and aerospace programs in India.
.
.
Under the terms of the MoU it had been said that the new Company would develop, manufacture and support a wide range of defence and aerospace products, including missiles, UAVs, radars, electronic warfare (EW) systems and home land security (HLS) systems.

shravan · Post by **shravan** » 10 Aug 2009 22:32

Gaza: Israeli planes strike in response to mortars

By MATTI FRIEDMAN (AP) – 11 hours ago

JERUSALEM — Israeli warplanes bombed a smuggling tunnel along the Gaza-Egypt border early Monday in response to Palestinian rocket and mortar fire, in a brief flare-up of violence at a time of relative quiet in the volatile Palestinian territory.

Philip · Post by **Philip** » 17 Sep 2009 14:32

Poor Whitehall babu-head of the South Asia desk! His off the cuff alleged "racist" undiplomatic outburst against Israel has scuppered him.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/p ... 837725.ece

Foreign Office chief accused of saying: Blow Israel off the face of the Earth
Steve Bird

Rowan Laxton: upset by pictures of Israeli bombing in Gaza
A Foreign and Commonwealth Office civil servant told a Jew that the Israelis should be “blown off the face of the Earth” during an altercation at a gymnasium, a court was told yesterday.

Gideon Falter claimed that Rowan Laxton, 48, was also heard to shout “f***ing Israelis, f***ing Jews” while watching a television news report about Israel bombing Gaza as he worked out on an exercise bicycle.

Giving evidence at Westminster Magistrates’ Court, Mr Falter said he arrived at the London Business School gym shortly after 8am in January and overheard the outburst.

“I started to work out,” he said. “I heard someone shout, ‘F***ing Israelis, f***ing Jews’.

“I could hear that it came from above me. I wanted to see who shouted. I couldn’t see anyone who was particularly aggravated. Mr Laxton came downstairs to the lower part of the mezzanine and I spoke to him.”

Mr Falter claimed that Mr Laxton, head of the South Asia desk in the Foreign Office, admitted that it was him who had launched the tirade before allegedly adding: “It’s not racist. If I had my way, the international community would be sent in and if the Israelis got in the way, they would be blown off the face of the f***ing Earth.”

Giving evidence, Mr Laxton denied saying “f***ing Jews” or that Israel should be blown off the Earth. But he said he had been deeply upset about a Sky News report about an innocent farmer killed by Israeli bombs and believed that international intervention was the solution to the fighting.

He said he immediately apologised to Mr Falter.

Speaking in a quiet voice, Mr Laxton, who is charged with racially aggravated harassment, said: “I am embarrassed, to be honest with you. I offended somebody, I embarrassed the Foreign Office, I’ve caused anxiety to a number of friends and family and in particular I regret using foul language and I regret using imprecise language.

“I regret very much the way in which this case came out in the media and the suggestion that I am anti-Semitic or racist in any way. I am not.”

“I fully accept that my comments suggested I felt that everybody in Israel was somehow responsible for that action.”

The court was told that Mr Laxton had settled a “difficult” divorce with his Muslim wife on the same morning as the incident.

Nick Paul, for the prosecution, suggested that Mr Laxton was upset that the divorce settlement had been unfair to him.

“Yes I was upset, but I do believe the trigger was that I was and I remain deeply upset by seeing what had happened to this individual,” Mr Laxton said. “It was such a terrible story and it seemed to me emblematic of the human tragedy in Gaza.”

Several friends of Mr Laxton, including one whose father died in the Holocaust, told the court that the defendant was not racist or anti-Semitic.

His barrister, Julian Knowles, told the court that his client could not be guilty of inciting religious hatred or causing alarm, harassment or distress because he had no reason to believe anyone could hear him.

When interviewed by police after his arrest, Mr Laxton said: “I was horrified by what I saw and I said, ‘I’m sorry I said it’. I said ’f***ing Israelis’.”

Mr Laxton had initially been told by police that he would be cautioned for the offence before Mr Falter tipped off the media and articles appeared in the press. It was then that the Crown Prosecution Service decided to charge him.

Mr Falter admitted to court that he had contacted the media about the altercation.

Mr Laxton, who answers to David Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, has been suspended from his £70,000-a-year job and could be dismissed if found guilty.

The trial continues.

A Sharma · Post by **A Sharma** » 17 Oct 2009 20:53

Guerrilla trade

DIPLOMACY

Israel seeks a game-changing relation with India in exchange for counter-terror tips

By Kallol Bhattacherjee/TEL AVIV

Israel has very few real friends. And they are not known for their love for Palestine. Except India. India, perhaps, is the only non-West Asian country that still swears by the Palestinian cause, yet is wooed by Israel. How the Israelis see their relation with India is entirely different from how Indians see their relationship with Israel. India needs Israel for its technology and expertise on counter-terrorism. But what does Israel seek from India?

Israel seeks a game-changing relation with India. Proof of this offbeat relation is in the guerrilla trade practices Israel has adopted to befriend Arabs and Iranians, with tacit help from India. Israeli companies are coming to India, repackaging their products and shipping them off to the Arab and Iranian markets from Mumbai and Kochi ports. “We have no problem with this practice as it benefits Israeli companies, consumers in the region and the Indian manufacturing sector. India is the springboard Israel wants to use to reach the world, because it makes more economic sense,” says Anat Bernstein-Reich, an international trade specialist. Subterfuge trade collaboration is the latest in India-Israel ties.

With Israel making peace with countries like Egypt and Jordan, and its growing interest in the huge market of Dubai, India’s importance as a partner has grown. “Dubai is a natural market for Israel and we have to do business there through indirect means,” Bernstein-Reich says, referring to the “friendly trade initiatives” aimed at the Arab countries.
An Israeli passenger jet flying to Mumbai or Kolkata spends less fuel than the one flying to Shanghai or Beijing. It is this fuel economics that scores in favour of India over China to be a strategic partner of Israel.

Bilateral defence cooperation has dominated most part of India-Israel diplomatic ties since 1992 (when India established formal diplomatic relations with Israel). Earlier this year, Israel delivered the first Phalcon AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System) attached to an IL-76 aircraft to India. It has to deliver two more AWACS.
Defence cooperation, which has been peaking over the last two decades, has now branched out to intense bilateral anti-terror cooperation. Lt Col Avitai Leibowitz, spokesperson for the Israeli Defence Forces, says Israel is training Indian forces in urban warfare. “Israel is a fully urbanised country and terrorists here indulge in urban warfare. Due to this, we have developed effective counter-terror mechanisms for cities. We have extended this to Indians post 26/11,” Leibowitz told THE WEEK.

Mumbai 26/11 has reinforced the importance of growing cooperation in counter-terror. Post 26/11, defence minister Ehud Barak reportedly expressed dissatisfaction over the way the rescue operation at Nariman House was handled. But Israelis are not willing to repeat Barak’s lines over Mumbai attacks. “We believe our Indian friends are doing their best in controlling terror. We have to stay ahead in the race for knowledge to beat terrorists,” says defence spokesperson Major Gen. Jonathan Davis.

Israel’s interest in India is thus driven by strategic dimension, economic adventurism and common sense geography. Israel is surrounded by hostile states like Syria or ambiguous friends like Egypt and Jordan, whose streets break into protests each time the Palestine-Israel crisis flares up. A bulky friend like India helps Israel, but how much political help is Israel extending to India? “There are moments when India’s partnership with Israel appears unconvincing, given our dramatically different sizes and strategic environments. After all, Israel lacks geographical strength vis-a-vis its rivals in the region and this is its major weakness,” says Qamar Agha, a New Delhi-based strategic commentator.

Leibowitz explains: “Israel did not have a strategic partner in its neighbourhood. Turkey became Israel’s partner over time, but it has secular versus Islamic problems. The only one great power geographically close to Israel is India.”
Indian commentators, however, raise bigger doubts over Israel’s proximity to India over and above the Chinese allure. “We have had some cooperation with the Chinese, but it is the cultural acquaintance to western liberal democratic traditions that smoothens our interaction with New Delhi,” says Ruth Kahanoff, deputy director general for Asia and Pacific affairs at the Israeli ministry of foreign affairs. India, as a functioning democracy modelled on western liberal tradition, finds ready acceptance among average Israelis than the communist China, says an Israeli foreign ministry official. “There is also the civilisational conflicts over Islam’s interpretation that ties Israel and India,” Kahanoff remarks.

Sino-Israeli ties have not been smooth, though it is said Israel played a role in opening US-China ties during the Richard Nixon era.

Post Cold War, Israel-China ties have been subject to US pressure. In a 2006 article in Middle East Quarterly journal, Prof. P.R. Kumaraswamy of Jawaharlal Nehru University said Israel’s upgradation of China’s unmanned surveillance aircraft Harpy irritated the US. In 1999, Ehud Barak had to cancel delivery of AWACS to China under pressure from the Bill Clinton administration. The dispute reached such a level that in 2004 Pentagon threatened to exclude Israel from the joint development of F-35 joint strike fighter programme. In July 2005, Israeli defence minister Shaul Mofaz cancelled a trip to the US after Washington demanded a written apology from Tel Aviv over its defence ties with China.

But post Cold War, post 9/11, and post nuclear deal, India-Israel ties have the blessings of the US. “India’s growing ties with the US obviously help Israel-India ties,” says Professor Asher Susser of Moshe Dayan Centre of Middle Eastern and African Studies. Such is the pull of the US factor that even a different Indian opinion over Iran has not dampened Israel’s pro-India tilt.
US-centrality provides a kind of stability to India-Israel ties that has helped the players to branch out into non-strategic areas. In the bilateral future, it will be non-military cooperation that will call greater shots, says Rachel Adatto, head of the Indo-Israel Parliamentary Friendship Association.

Echoing Adatto, V. Sasikala, CEO of State Bank of India’s Tel Aviv branch, says almost 50 per cent of India-Israel trade will be centred on diamond trading in the near future. “Diamond trade in Israel is heavily influenced by the Palanpuri Jains of Gujarat. Earlier, the west did not have a market for dust diamonds, but now they do, thanks to the Indian traders and craftsmen,” Sasikala says.

Palanpur is 200 kilometres from Banaskantha district in north Gujarat, whose diamond traders are known for their traditional knowledge of diamond cutting and trade. Indian companies like TCS are also providing jobs to the Israeli workforce.
According to Israeli policy makers, current bilateral trade of $4.3 billion is expected to touch $12 billion in less than five years. The signs of the future of India-Israel ties can be seen on shop windows on Tel Aviv’s Allenby Street and Jerusalem’s suburbs, which stock ethnic Indian fabrics and designs. Ramblan Street near Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport is known for colourful Indian ethnic garments.

India-Israel relations are becoming more private sector-driven, and there is growing mutual cultural appreciation. “Israeli businessmen are straight talkers and they end up offending Indian partners, who are slow to start with and are hard bargainers. Basically, Israelis are impatient for quick profit and Indians are thinking of long-term gains. As trade increases, this kind of cultural factors will have to be understood by both sides to conclude deals successfully,” Bernstein-Reich says. “I tell Israeli businessmen that they will certainly be successful in India with a little patience. You cannot do business with Indians the way you do with the west,” she cautions.

The structure of Indo-Israeli ties will thus have three main pillars—commerce, defence, and high-tech industries—though the centrepiece will still remain defence and anti-terror cooperation. Some of India’s most renowned scientific institutes are collaborating with their Israeli counterparts on frontline research. “We are collaborating with the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research, Mumbai, on nuclear physics,” says Professor Ben Zion Shilo of Weizmann Institute.

Indo-Israeli ties have thus grown into an adult of 17, with defence, agriculture cooperation, IT and communications, textiles, tourism, diamonds, and even “guerrilla trade wars” as its personas. Next in line are the collaborations with Bollywood and joint artwork projects and exhibitions, says Israeli artist Shira Richter.
Israeli film director Dani Vachksman has already made Auroville his base. Novels like Open Heart by A.B. Yehoshua have also made India popular in Israel. Richter says Israelis look at India as a strange, powerful and life-transforming experience. Many Israelis like Richter are convinced that India is the friend Israel has been waiting for.

shyamd · Post by **shyamd** » 29 Oct 2009 03:22

Israeli military censors appear to be tightening their grip on the media regarding reports about Israeli defence exports. In recent weeks, stories about Israeli arms sales to Turkey and India were heavily censored, with sentences and entire paragraphs being blacked out.