JERUSALEM NEWS
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Jerusalem News-843
Jerusalem News-843
28 Shevat 5769, 22 February 2009
Contents:
1. Iraqi Kurds want U.S. help to avoid
war
2. US general foresees years of war in Afghanistan
3. Gilad
Shalit
Injured (by Captors?)
4. EU
Jewish leader: Anti-Semitism spurred by economy , not Gaza war
5. Anti-Semitism makes it to China?
1. Iraqi Kurds want U.S. help to avoid
war
http://www.peyamner.com/details.aspx?l=4&id=110155
Extracts:
PNA -Erbil, Kurdistan ? The closest U.S. allies in Iraq - the Kurds - feel
abandoned by Washington these days and say war with the Arab-dominated central
government is likely without American pressure to resolve disputes that predate
even the era of Saddam Hussein.
Tension between the Arabs and Kurds is multifaceted, but one of the major
flashpoints is the status of Kirkuk, an area that contains 13 percent of Iraq's
proven oil reserves.
The Kurds believe the area should be part of their semiautonomous region in the
north, which the U.S. helped set up in 1991. But that position has caused
serious friction with Baghdad, including a government decision to send in new
mostly Arab troops to the Kirkuk area last month.
Kurdish officials want the Americans to put more pressure on Iraqi Prime
Minister Nouri al-Maliki to resolve the disputes before the U.S. military leaves
Iraq.
If the disputes remain after the U.S. leaves, Kurdistan region Prime Minister
Nechirvan Barzani said "it will be war between both sides."
But President Obama's administration has to balance its support for the Kurds
and al-Maliki, who is also a close ally.
"We love the U.S., and they don't care," Barzani told the Associated Press.
"When we say something about protecting our people's rights, they see it as a
problem, a disturbance to their Iraq policy."
Asked about the Kurds' concerns, U.S. State Department spokesman Robert Wood
said Iraqi citizens have to rely on the country's democratic system to work out
their differences, not the United States.
The Kurds have become more concerned in recent months as they have watched al-Maliki,
a Shiite Arab, consolidate and project his power - moving troops into areas
claimed by the Kurds and pushing constitutional changes to strengthen the
central government.
Al-Maliki has said the 2005 constitution gave too much power to Iraq's provinces
and has called for amending the document - to the alarm of the Kurds who
supported the 2003 U.S.-led invasion that toppled Saddam and who are determined
to protect their regional autonomy.
"We try to stop him (al-Maliki) peacefully, but I think he is a dangerous man,"
said Kamal Kirkuki, deputy speaker of the regional Kurdish parliament. "He is
dangerous for Iraq. He is dangerous for democracy. He is a second Saddam in
Iraq."
Kurdish officials fear pressure from al-Maliki will only increase because his
party did well in Jan. 31 elections, when voters in most of the country chose
ruling provincial councils.
"I believe Maliki wants to have a confrontation with the Kurds," Barzani said.
Kurds fear the confrontation may come over the oil-rich area around Kirkuk,
which the Kurds want to incorporate into their self-governing region.
But Arabs and Turkomen want Kirkuk to remain under central government control.
Provincial elections were indefinitely postponed in the Kirkuk area because of
ethnic tensions.
"If the U.S. brigade was not there (in Kirkuk), the Iraqis feel strong and want
to come from a position of strength to solve the problem of the disputed
territories, which means an unstable Iraq," Barzani said.
The Kurdish-Arab dispute dates back decades to a campaign by Arab-dominated
governments in Baghdad to settle Arabs in the northern oil fields and in
territory near the border with Iran.
Under Saddam, thousands of Kurds were forced out of their homes and provincial
borders redrawn, depriving the Kurds of land they believed was their own.
The major Kurdish parties joined the coalition government in Baghdad after the
fall of Saddam in 2003 and hold several key posts, including the national
presidency.
However, with violence receding in much of the country, issues such as the
Kurdish territorial claims are taking on new prominence.
The Kurds have also clashed with the central government over legislation to
regulate the country's giant oil industry. The Kurdistan regional government (KRG)
wants the freedom to develop its own oil fields, but Baghdad wants a more
centralized system.
The dispute has blocked ratification of the oil law for nearly two years.
The Kurds have pushed for a referendum to decide whether the Kirkuk area should
become part of their self-governing region. The Iraqi constitution set a 2007
deadline for the vote but it has been repeatedly delayed.
Many Kurdish officials believe Baghdad will continue to put off the vote without
increased pressure from Washington.
"The name of the game in Baghdad is delay, delay, delay," said Fuad Hussein, the
chief of staff for Kurdish regional President Massoud Barzani. "We have the
power, the constitutional power, but we need U.S. pressure."
Vice President Joe Biden visited Kirkuk in January just before taking office,
indicating the U.S. is concerned about potential conflict over the city.
But Washington has been a strong supporter of al-Maliki and could be reticent to
pressure the prime minister ahead of national elections later this year,
especially on something as controversial as disputed territory.
The issue is also sensitive for U.S. ally Turkey, which borders the Kurdish
region in Iraq and has been battling its own Kurdish rebels.
The Kurdish prime minister said the U.S. can't afford further delay and needs to
push for resolution before its troops leave Iraq, or risk war between the Arabs
and the Kurds.
"The Obama administration talks about a responsible withdrawal from Iraq," said
Barzani. "It means the existing problems, including the disputed territories,
need to be addressed and resolved before the withdrawal takes place."
By Sebastian Abbot
AP
2. US general foresees years of war in
Afghanistan
http://www.theage.com.au/world/us-general-foresees-years-of-war-in-afghanistan-20090219-8ckj.html
Julian Barnes, Washington
February 20, 2009
Extracts:
A DAY after US President Barack Obama ordered new soldiers and marines to
Afghanistan, the top US commander there said he might need more troops in coming
months to bolster a war effort that could last an additional five years.
General David McKiernan plans to use the 17,000 soldiers and marines being sent
by Mr Obama to try to break an impasse in fighting with the Taliban in the
southern part of the country.
Kyrgyzstan votes to shut US base
In a major blow to the US, the Kyrgyzstan parliament has voted to close the
Manas airbase.
"What this allows us to do is change the dynamics of the security situation,
predominantly in southern Afghanistan, where we are at best stalemated," General
McKiernan said.
The new deployments, raising the overall US troop level to about 55,000, would
fulfil needs until Afghanistan's August 20 presidential election, he said. But
he held open the possibility of additional troop requests. The next requests are
likely to include a training brigade, needed to help double the size of Afghan
security forces to 135,000, and another combat detachment from the army or
marines.
Leading ally Britain has already said it has no plans to send extra troops to
Afghanistan.
British Foreign Secretary David Miliband said on a visit to Kabul that Britain
was already paying a high financial and human cost for its role in the conflict.
He said high casualty rates had "traumatised" Britain and that the US decision
to send reinforcements needed to be matched with economic and political change.
His comments were seen as an attempt to put pressure on Afghan President Hamid
Karzai. Continued...
Mr Miliband said: "The high level of British casualties is something which
brings trauma to Britain, but we know that it is very strongly in our national
interests that ? (Afghanistan) doesn't become an incubator again for
terrorists."
In a bid to persuade other European countries to send troops, Britain has
announced plans for a 3000-strong permanent defence force for NATO in Eastern
Europe.
In an interview with the Financial Times, British Defence Secretary John Hutton
said the force could persuade some reluctant NATO countries to send troops to
Afghanistan, by assuring them that there were enough troops to defend alliance
territory.
General McKiernan said US commanders also remained troubled by extremists in
sanctuaries along the Afghanistan-Pakistan border and expressed concern about
this week's ceasefire between Islamabad and militants in Pakistan's Swat Valley.
"We're going to watch this very carefully and see how that does affect the
insurgency on the Afghan side of the border," he said.
3.
Gilad
Shalit
Injured (by Captors?)
Report: Captured Israeli soldier wounded during Gaza war
http://albawaba.com/en/news/240641
Posted: 21-02-2009 , 15:42 GMT
Abu Abir, the popular resistance committees' spokesman, has affirmed that the
captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit was wounded during the recent Israeli war
on the Gaza Strip. The London-based Al-Hayat newspaper on Saturday quoted Abu
Abir as saying that what was reported earlier in this regard was not media
fabrication. He added that Israel is responsible for Shalit's safety, but would
not divulge the nature of his injury.
The PRC official said that there would be no free information on the condition
of Shalit, adding, "We will not disclose more information out of keenness on
Palestinian interests". According to Abu Abir, only very few people know where
Shalit is being held.
Earlier, a Palestinian source had stated that Shalit was injured in the Israeli
raids on Gaza on 29/12/2009 but did not clarify the extent of his injury. Hamas
sources refused to confirm or deny the news report but held Israeli leaders
fully responsible for any harm done to him during the raids.
4.
EU
Jewish leader: Anti-Semitism spurred by economy, not Gaza war
By The Associated Press Last update - 20:23 18/02/2009
www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/1065223.html
The leader of the European Jewish Congress said Wednesday the main blame for
growing anti-Semitism across the continent was the economic crisis, not the
Gaza war.
Congress President Moshe Kantor said that what he believes to be
anti-Semitism levels unseen since World War II had nothing to do with Middle
East issues.
"All these problems started before Gaza and continued afterwards," he said
in an interview with The Associated Press.
Some 1,300 Palestinians were killed during the three-week Israeli offensive
in Gaza, according to Gaza health officials. Israel launched the attacks to
halt years of rocket fire on southern Israeli communities.
"Economical things trigger humanitarian tragedies," he said. "Jews were made
scapegoats for economic difficulties Germany faced in the 1930s," he said.
"And this is the lesson."
Kantor met with the European Union Justice Commissioner Jacques Barrot and
the EU Parliament President Hans-Gert Pottering on Wednesday to discuss
anti-Semitic attacks and statements across Europe.
A recent survey for the U.S. based Anti-Defamation League conducted in
Austria, France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Spain and Britain found that 31
percent of respondents blame Jews in the financial industry at least a
little for the global financial meltdown.
"Europe is a continent of tolerance, but that tolerance is threatened,"
Kantor said.
Attacks against Jews and synagogues have been reported in France, Britain
and Sweden.
Kantor also referred to a call by a union in Italy for the boycott of
Jewish-owned shops in Rome.
"There is a shortage of historical memory," he said. "The situation in
Europe is dangerous again, not only for Jews, for all Europeans."
5. Anti-Semitism makes it to China?
http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3675560,00.html
Book alleging Jews run the world and control global wealth becomes bestseller in
country
Boaz Arad
BEIJING: Who's to blame for the current global financial crisis? According to a
bestselling book in China, which is leading the sales charts in the country, the
answer is clear: The Jews.
In the eyes of most Chinese, Jewish people are considered "smart," "rich" and
"good at making money." Bookstores in China offer a variety of self-help books
titled, "How to make money like Jews," and "The secret of Jews' global success."
Until recently, the notion that Jews and money were inseparable carried no
anti-Semitic undertone in the country, but a relatively new book called
"Currency Wars" threatens to change all that.
The book's author, Song Hongbing, claims that behind world-changing events like
the battle of Waterloo, Adolf Hitler's rise to power, President Kennedy's
assassination, and the deep recession in Asia during the 1990s stood an
intricate conspiracy aimed at increasing Jews' wealth and influence.
Song, a Chinese computer engineer and history buff who resides in the United
States, writes that almost every defining historical moment has been instigated
by Jewish bankers, and mainly the Rothschild family, which Song says dominates
the global banking system, including the US Federal Reserve System.
Song's book was published in China about a year and-a-half ago, and initially
sold an insignificant number of copies. But in recent months the global crisis
has turned the book into a hit. Estimates put sales of "Currency War" well over
a million, not including hundreds of thousands of illegal copies that can also
be downloaded off the net.
Song's publishers, a subsidiary of a state-owned publishing house, boast the
fact that the book has been read by all leading financial executives in the
country, as well as state leaders.
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