United States Has Essentially Endorsed a No State Solution Between Israel and Palestine

Obama and Israel are walking away from two-state solution with Palestinians (+video)

By refusing to support the Palestinian bid at the UN, President Obama has essentially endorsed a No State Solution between Israel and Palestine. Changing course is possible. A good place to start would be threatening to remove US aid to Israel, given its plans for more settlement building.



December 6, 2012

Sandy Tolan, Christian Science Monitor - The Obama administration’s refusal to support the successful Palestinian bid for symbolic “observer state” in the United Nations sends a strong signal that all will be business as usual during its second term. Worse, ever too mindful of the pro-Israel lobby in America, the United States has essentially endorsed a No State Solution between Israel and Palestine.

Official US policy has long been in support of a negotiated settlement that would produce two states, Israel and Palestine, existing side by side in peace. But during the “peace process” of the last 20 years, Israel’s actions have undermined that goal. Since the famous Rabin-Arafat handshake on the White House lawn in 1993, which marked the beginning of the Oslo process, the Israeli settler population in the West Bank has rocketed from 109,000 to more than 350,000. One of the largest settlements, Ariel (almost 20,000) has been absorbed into “greater Israel” by a separation wall that veers deep inside the West Bank; plans are in place to thus incorporate a second settlement, Maale Adumim (39,000).

A ring of Jewish settlements all but surrounds East Jerusalem, crippling the dream of making it the future capital of Palestine. The settlements, checkpoints, roadblocks, “sterile” zones, “closed military areas,” settlers- and VIP-only roads, and Israel’s full military occupation of 60 percent of the West Bank have all combined to carve a would-be Palestine into disjointed cantons, not the “viable and contiguous” land that the US officially seeks for Palestine.

Without a doubt, rockets from Gaza or, in past years, suicide bombers from the West Bank have clearly undermined the Palestinians’ own case. But the Israeli seizure of Palestinian land has continued apace, regardless of the level of violence.



These facts on the ground send clear signals that the Palestinians don’t have a partner for peace. With each new Jewish housing project, with each clearly-stated intent not to dismantle major settlements or allow Palestinian sovereignty in East Jerusalem or the crucial Jordan Valley, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, like Ariel Sharon before him, has essentially shown unambiguous contempt for two sovereign states. Rather, Israeli leaders are turning the Holy Land into a single entity, with land, borders, airspace and underground aquifers controlled by Israel, and with citizenship rights granted only to some.

In the face of this, Mahmoud Abbas, the weak and unpopular leader of the West Bank Palestinians, had nothing to lose by going to the UN for its semi-meaningful statehood declaration. (The title “observer status” speaks to the largely symbolic nature of the recognition, but the prospect of Palestine joining the International Criminal Court has very real implications. Chief among them: Palestinian membership could subject Israel to war crimes investigations, and Israeli officials to arrest and prosecution abroad.)

That the US didn’t support Mr. Abbas in his UN effort actually strengthens him at home. Palestinians have become disillusioned since the soaring rhetoric of Obama’s 2009 Cairo speech gave way to the reality of America’s lopsided support for Israel, and, in the face of intransigence from the Israeli prime minister, its abandonment of Palestinian moves toward self-determination.

The latest case in point: After the Palestinian victory, UN ambassador Susan Rice declared cynically that “[t]oday’s grand pronouncements will soon fade.” And Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, in an understatement, added, “America has Israel’s back.” The day after the UN vote, Israel essentially made a mockery of Clinton’s words, announcing it was unveiling plans to build on “E1,” the last piece of land that connects East Jerusalem to the West Bank. Jewish housing there would be the last nail in the coffin for the two-state solution. American officials seem either clueless or complicit about Israel’s intentions.

US policy in the region continues to operate under the Beltway perception that “domestic political considerations” (chiefly driven by the pro-Israel lobby) must trump the national interest – and the human interest – even in a second Obama term. This despite the fact that within intelligence circles, Israel is increasingly seen as a strategic liability for the US. From Cairo to Tehran to Jakarta to Mindanao Island in the Philippines, Palestinians are seen as essential stewards of Muslim holy sites in the Holy Land, and their oppression and occupation by Israel remains a great rallying cry for militants worldwide.

“[T]he status quo is unsustainable,” former CIA Director David Petraeus told The New York Times in 2010. “If you don’t achieve progress in a just and lasting Mideast peace, the extremists are given a stick to beat us with.”

By refusing to support even modest moves toward Palestinian self-determination through official international channels, the US is now willfully disengaging from its own interests in the region, at an immense and as-yet unknown cost. By failing to forcefully challenge Israel’s settlement expansion and demand an end to a 45-year occupation, or to meaningfully support Palestinian aspirations, the US has essentially, if unofficially, endorsed the end of the two-state solution in favor of a system of one-state dominance by an occupying military power.

Changing course is always possible. An excellent place to start would be to threaten the removal of American aid to Israel given its bellicose actions in the West Bank, in particular its announcement of plans for more settlement building on the landscape of Palestine’s last hope. There’s precedent for that: In 1992, Secretary of State James Baker, with the full backing of President George H. W. Bush, refused to approve loan guarantees for Israel unless it agreed to halt settlement expansion. The threat worked, for a while, until the Oslo era arrived.

Now would be the time to try again. Such a condition could be accompanied by assurances that the US is not abandoning Israel, and a stated understanding of Israelis’ deeply-rooted fears of isolation and vulnerability. But friends shouldn’t let friends drive drunk – especially when you’re both in the same car. Such a frank talk would require both a vision and political will on the Palestinian question that have been absent from US policy for too long.

Sandy Tolan is author of “The Lemon Tree: An Arab, A Jew, and the Heart of the Middle East,” and associate professor at the Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism at the University of Southern California. He blogs at ramallahcafe.com.

Germany's Merkel Cautions Ally Israel on Building New Settlements in the West Bank

Germany's Merkel cautions ally Israel on settlements

December 7, 2012

Reuters - German Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday to avoid "one-sided moves", amid uproar over Israeli plans to build 3,000 settler homes in a highly sensitive area of the West Bank.

She framed her message as friendly advice to an increasingly isolated Prime Minister Netanyahu, whose move has drawn international condemnation, including from European states and Israel's closest ally the United States.

Germany, which is usually supportive of the Jewish state, has said the plan - announced by Israel a day after the U.N. General Assembly's de facto recognition of Palestinian statehood - risks extinguishing hopes for a two-state solution.

At a joint news conference with Netanyahu in Berlin, Merkel was more muted in her criticism than her government has recently been, although she acknowledged they had discussed the housing plan over dinner on Wednesday.

"Of course we spoke about it ... we agreed to disagree," she said.

"Israel decides for itself, it is a sovereign state. All we can do as a partner is give our opinion and our evaluation. The aim is clear ... it is for a two-state solution."

Palestinians say the new settlements on land they seek for their state could bisect the West Bank and cut them off from Jerusalem, their would-be capital.

"We in Germany believe the work on a two-state solution must be continued ... We must keep trying to come to negotiations and one-sided moves should be avoided," Merkel added.

Netanyahu, who had told German newspaper Die Welt he was disappointed that Germany had abstained in the U.N. vote rather than vote with Israel, brushed aside the issue of settlements.

He told Merkel he had no doubt whatsoever of her commitment to the security and well-being of the Jewish state and criticized what he called a misconception in Europe that settlement-building was preventing peace.

DISAGREEMENT

"I don't think we have lost Europe," he said. "There is obviously a difference of view in Europe, on the issue of settlements ... it is not the root cause of our conflict."

Disagreement over settlement building has tested relations behind the scenes between Germany and Israel for several years.

Netanyahu said he remained committed to a two-state solution and was willing to hold negotiations with the Palestinians.

"The most important thing is that peace will not be decided in the U.N. in New York and not in Europe. It can only be advanced in Jerusalem and Ramallah," he said.

Netanyahu, favored to win a January 22 general election with the backing of right-wing voters, has rejected calls by the United States and Europe to reverse course over settlements, which most countries consider illegal.

U.S.-sponsored Israeli-Palestinian talks collapsed in 2010 in a dispute over settlement-building, and Abbas pressed ahead with his unilateral move at the United Nations over U.S. and Israeli objections and calls to return to the negotiating table.

The West Bank and East Jerusalem, captured by Israel in the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, is home to some 500,000 Israelis and 2.5 million Palestinians.

Germany nurtures strong relations with Israel and feels a special responsibility for its security because of the Nazi-perpetrated Holocaust.

Many Israeli ministers joined Netanyahu in Berlin on Thursday for consultations with their German counterparts on a broad range of issues, though to Berlin's chagrin Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman withdrew from the visit.

Strong Earthquake Hits Off Japan Near Area Devastated Last Year by 9.0-magnitude Quake

Strong quake hits off Japan near Fukushima

December 7, 2012 

Reuters - A strong quake centered off northeastern Japan shook buildings as far away as Tokyo on Friday and triggered a one-meter tsunami in an area devastated by last year's Fukushima disaster, but there were no reports of deaths or serious damage.

The quake had a preliminary magnitude of 7.3, the U.S. Geological Survey said, and thousands of coastal residents were ordered to evacuate to higher ground, but the tsunami warning was lifted two hours after the tremor struck.

The March 2011 earthquake and following tsunami killed nearly 20,000 people and triggered the world's worst nuclear crisis in 25 years when the Fukushima-Daiichi nuclear plant was destroyed, leaking radiation into the sea and air.

Workers at the plant were ordered to move to safety after Friday's quake. Tokyo Electric Power Co, the operator of the Fukushima nuclear plant, reported no irregularities at its nuclear plants.

All but two of Japan's 50 nuclear reactors have been idled since the Fukushima disaster as the government reviews safety.

The quake measured a "lower 5" in Miyagi prefecture on Japan's scale of one to seven, meaning there might be some damage to roads and houses that are less quake resistant. The scale measures the amount of shaking and in that sense gives a better idea of possible damage than the magnitude. The quake registered a 4 in Tokyo

The one-meter tsunami hit at Ishinomaki, in Miyagi, at the centre of the devastation from the March 2011 disaster. All Miyagi trains halted operations and Sendai airport, which was flooded by the tsunami last year, closed its runway.

Five people in the prefecture were slightly injured.

"I was in the centre of the city the very moment the earthquake struck. I immediately jumped into the car and started running away towards the mountains. I'm still hiding inside the car," said Ishinomaki resident Chikako Iwai.

"...I have the radio on and they say the cars are still stuck in the traffic. I'm planning to stay here for the next couple of hours."

There are vast areas of Ishinomaki that still have not been cleaned up since last year's tsunami. Many houses lie in ruins, full of rubble. Workers by the shore still sort through thousands of cars that were swamped and destroyed. The cars are piled up and being taken apart for parts and scrap.

A QUAKE EVERY FIVE MINUTES

Narita airport outside Tokyo was back in action after a brief closure for safety checks. There were small tsunamis, measuring in the centimeters, elsewhere near the epicenter.

Last year's quake, which measured 9.0, triggered fuel-rod meltdowns at Fukushima, causing radiation leakage, contamination of food and water and mass evacuations. Much of the area is still deserted.

The government declared in December that the disaster was under control.

"Citizens are now escaping to designated evacuation centers and moving to places on higher ground," office worker Naoki Ara said in Soma, 30 km (18 miles) from the Fukushima-Daiichi plant.

Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda cancelled campaigning in Tokyo ahead of a December 16 election and was on his way back to his office, but there was no immediate plan to hold a special cabinet meeting.

Public spending on quake-proofing buildings is a big election issue.

Japanese were posting photos of their TV screens with tsunami warnings on Facebook, asking each other whether they're safe, confirming their whereabouts.

"It shook for a long time here in Tokyo, are you guys all right?" posted Eriko Hamada, enquiring about the safety of her friends.

Phone lines were overloaded and it was difficult to contact residents of Miyagi.

"Owing to the recent earthquake, phone lines are very busy, please try again later," the operator said.

The yen rose against the dollar and the euro on the news, triggering some safe-haven inflows into the Japanese currency.

Japan is one of the world's most earthquake-prone countries, with a tremor occurring at least every five minutes.

Located in the "Ring of Fire" arc of volcanoes and oceanic trenches partly encircling the Pacific Basin, the country accounts for about 20 percent of the world's earthquakes of magnitude 6.0 or greater.

Tokyo, with a population of 12 million, sits on the junction of four tectonic plates: the Eurasian, North American, Philippine and Pacific. The sudden bending or breaking of any plate can trigger an earthquake.

U.S., French Troops Prepare for Syria Invasion in Response to 'Chemical Weapons' Threat

US, French Troops Prepare For Syria Invasion In Response To “Chemical Weapons” Threat

December 6, 2012

Zero Hedge - The 8 day mini war between Israel and Gaza has come and gone and any attempts at provoking a wider regional conflict, one involving Iran (if indeed this was the intention), have failed. Which means the fallback plan – Syria – is back in play. And sure enough, as both the most recent naval map update, which shows a US aircraft carrier and a big deck amphibious warfare ship, both of which house thousands of troops and numerous offensive aircraft, and an RT news flash, indicating that thousands of troops have amassed near the Syrian shore confirm, the time for a US invasion may be near. The alibi? “Chemical weapons” of mass or non-mass destruction. In other words the Iraq playbook all over again.

From RT:

The USS Eisenhower, an American aircraft carrier that holds eight fighter bomber squadrons and 8,000 men, arrived at the Syrian coast yesterday in the midst of a heavy storm, indicating US preparation for a potential ground intervention.

While the Obama administration has not announced any sort of American-led military intervention in the war-torn country, the US is now ready to launch such action “within days” if Syrian President Bashar al-Assad decides to use chemical weapons against the opposition, the Times reports.

Some have suggested that the Assad regime may use chemical weapons against the opposition fighters in the coming days or weeks.

“We have (US) special operations forces at the right posture, they don’t have to be sent,” an unnamed US official told The Australian, which suggested that US military troops are already near Syria and ready to intervene in the conflict, if necessary.

The alibi used by the “democratic” press to justify what may imminently be a land invasion? Chemical weapons:

The Syrian military is prepared to use chemical weapons against its own people and is awaiting final orders from President Bashar Assad, U.S. officials told NBC News on Wednesday.
The military has loaded the precursor chemicals for sarin, a deadly nerve gas, into aerial bombs that could be dropped onto the Syrian people from dozens of fighter-bombers, the officials said.

As recently as Tuesday, officials had said there was as yet no evidence that the process of mixing the “precursor” chemicals had begun. But Wednesday, they said their worst fears had been confirmed: The nerve agents were locked and loaded inside the bombs.

Sarin is an extraordinarily lethal agent. Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s forces killed 5,000 Kurds with a single sarin attack on Halabja in 1988.

U.S. officials stressed that as of now, the sarin bombs hadn’t been loaded onto planes and that Assad hadn’t issued a final order to use them. But if he does, one of the officials said, “there’s little the outside world can do to stop it.”

Tangentially, remember when Iraq was supposed to have warehouses full of “WMDs”, which story ended up being a fabricated lie. But at least Turkey is ready: after all NATO has already handed over various Patriot missiles to prevent a Syrian retaliation against the ruling Assad regime.
And just to make sure the escalation is complete, the French are coming.

France is preparing its special forces for a mission in war-torn Syria, French weekly magazine Le Point reports.

The mission would only involve a relatively small amount of special forces, and a number of NATO countries — including the UK and the US — would be involved. The mission would be modelled on the Western intervention in Libya, the magazine reports.

The action appears to be in response to fears that the regime is planning on using chemical weapons in the conflict. Earlier this week one US official told reporters that it was believed Bashar al-Assad’s forces had moved two key components of a deadly nerve gas in preparation for an attack (a later report refuted this, however).

Le Point says a large ground operation “is out of the question” and that a smaller action aimed largely at securing chemical weapon stockpiles.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton today vowed a swift response if Assad’s regime used chemical weapons.

So putting it all together, it appears that once again the imminent escalation play is one where an antagonized Syria is forced to strike back, an act which “hopefully” will get Iran involved in the fray, and from there it is smooth sailing for both Israel and the “democratic” forces of the world.

The only wild card: Russia and Chinaa, both of which have made it very clear they have quite strategic interests in the Syria region on numerous prior occasions.

New Documents Show Military is Flying Drones Throughout U.S.

New Documents Show Military Is Flying Drones Throughout US

December 6, 2012

Infowars.com - Thousands of pages of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) documents released under the Freedom Of Information Act highlight that the military is extensively flying surveillance drones in non-restricted skies throughout the country.

The records, released by The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), reveal that three branches of the military are operating drones within civillian airspace. Those branches are the Air Force, the Marine Corps, and DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency).

According to EFF, the documents show that the Air Force is testing all manner of UAVs, from small hand launched drones all the way up to the Predator and Reaper drones, the kind that routinely conduct missile strikes in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Yemen.

EFF notes that the use of drones capable of extensive surveillance in public airspace is concerning, especially since recent reports have revealed that Air Force drone operators have been conducting practice spying missions by tracking civilian cars along highways adjacent to military bases.

In addition, a recently uncovered Air Force document also raised alarms over military use of spy drones in US skies. The document outlines how to circumvent privacy laws, and clears the way for the Pentagon to use drones to monitor the activities of Americans.

EFF notes that the latest FAA documents indicate that the Marine Corps is also flying drones in US skies, but that “it chose to redact so much of the text from its records that we still don’t know much about its programs.”

Perhaps most disturbingly, DARPA, according to the documents, is flying full sized Reaper drones in areas of Nevada, California and Utah that are able to use technology that can capture motion imagery of entire cities. The technology, known as “Gorgon Stare” uses an array of nine to twelve cameras attached to the drone to take concurrent footage from multiple different angles.


Feeds from those drones can be fed into artificial-intelligence software developed by DARPA known as the “Mind’s Eye project”, which can analyze all the data at once, meaning that essentially a machine can keep watch over everything happening in an entire city.

Once again, this is being used INSIDE the US, by the military, in public airspace.

More advanced programs are being built by DARPA that could soon incorporate hundreds of cameras on a drone.

As we previously reported, the FAA has been working extensively with the military and the government in the ongoing mass expansion of the use of drones in US skies.

This summer it was revealed that the FAA has officially established eight blocks of restricted airspace in North Dakota, in order that the Air National Guard can fly unmanned Predator aircraft and have them aim lasers at ground targets. The airspace will be from 500 to 9,999 feet above sea level and commercial aircraft will be prohibited from using it.

Despite widespread objections from local pilots and concerned citizens, officials have indicated that North Dakota could become the nation’s centre for all military drone training activity, owing to its relatively sparsely-populated skies.

The Department of Defense has been less than forthcoming with information on its use of drones over the US.

Indeed, the U.S. Special Operations Command (USSOCOM), part of the DoD, recently denied operating surveillance drones in two different states, issuing statements that have since been proven to be completely false.

Headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida, USSOCOM is the Unified Combatant Command charged with overseeing the various Special Operations Commands of the Army, Air Force, Navy and Marine Corps.

As reported by the open information advocacy group Public Intelligence:

Following our publication of a map of current and proposed Department of Defense drone activities within the U.S., several journalists with local publications around the country wrote articles regarding drone activities that were listed in their area.  David Brooks of the Nashua Telegraph wrote about the listing of New Hampshire’s Mt. Washington as the site of a USSOCOM drone activity involving small unmanned aerial vehicles including the Raven and Wasp.  Corey Pein of the Willamette Week wrote about a planned USSOCOM drone activity in Portland that was listed as utilizing the same types of drones.

Public Intelligence notes that when the reporters contacted USSOCOM for clarification and further details, they were told that the information on the map was inaccurate and that USSOCOM does not operate drone bases in either area.

However, further investigation revealed that activities and exercises using surveillance drones in both areas were indeed carried out under the authority of USSOCOM in 2010 and 2009 respectively.
Furthermore, the use and storage of drones was confirmed by the offices of Senators in both states:

In New Hampshire, a local newspaper has now confirmed with the office of Senator Kelly Ayotte that in 2010, Navy Special Operations Forces utilized areas around Mt. Washington to conduct training operations using Wasp and Raven drones.  David Brooks of the Nashua Telegraph was further able to confirm via Army Lt. Col. James Gregorythat similar exercises were also conducted in 2009 using the same types of drones.
In Oregon, the Willamette Week was able to confirm with the office of Sen. Ron Wydenthat drones are currently stored in Portland for several military units in the area.

“If the military wishes to counter controversy from the increasing integration of drones into domestic airspace, then it may help to not make statements to press that are inaccurate or disproved by publicly available congressional reports.” the group notes, adding that USSOCOM “denied or misrepresented” its involvement in domestic drone activities and actively sought to shut down any exchange of information on the matter.

Returning to the latest FAA documents, released by the EFF, they also  highlight scores of cases of law enforcement and government agencies operating drones in US skies.

The records show that several police departments are most interested in using drones to “surveil people of interest”, and search for drug farms and narcotics transactions. In many cases, the drones are fitted with thermal imaging and light detection technology, which could have significant ramifications for the privacy of everyday Americans.

Indeed, LIDAR (Light Detection And Ranging) technology is already used in high tech police speed guns. EFF notes that it is no great stretch to imagine police departments using the technology in conjunction with drones to monitor traffic and flag up violations. Infowars has already witnessed first hand, the Highway Department using drones to survey traffic.

EFF notes that while the documents do address some concerns over safety in law enforcement use of drones, previously raised in separate FAA documents, “once again, the records do not show that the FAA had any concerns about drone flights’ impact on privacy and civil liberties.”

This is particularly concerning, given that other previously released FAA documents have proven that the roll out of domestic unmanned drones will, for the most part, be focused solely on the mass surveillance of the American people.

The latest documents show that police departments in Maryland, Alabama, Texas, Colorado, and Florida, as well as agencies such as the Washington State Department of Transportation, the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Forest Service, and the California Department of Forestry, as well as several universities are all using drones. While some were forthcoming with information on the drone programs, others withheld some or most information on them, citing security and sensitivity issues.

White House OKs Mandate for Vehicle ‘Black Boxes’

NHTSA gets White House OK to mandate vehicle 'black boxes'

December 6, 2012

Detroit News - The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is expected to finalize a long-awaited proposal to make event data recorders standard on all new vehicles.

In a notice posted Thursday, the White House Office of Management Budget said it has completed a review of the proposal to make so-called vehicle "black boxes" mandatory in all cars and trucks, clearing the way for NHTSA to publish its final regulation.

Nearly all vehicles currently have the devices.

NHTSA's proposed rule, which would raise the percentage of vehicles required to have an EDR from 91.6 percent today to 100 percent of light-duty autos, would have an incremental cost of nearly $24.4 million, assuming the sale of 15.5 million light vehicles per year.

In 2010, Congress considered requiring EDRs in all vehicles by legislation.

The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers — the trade group representing Detroit's Big Three automakers, Toyota Motor Corp, and Volkswagen AG — said the government needs to take into account driver privacy.

"Event data recorders help our engineers understand how cars perform in the real world but looking forward, we need to make sure we preserve privacy. Automakers do not access EDR data without consumer permission, and any government requirements to install EDRs on all vehicles must include steps to protect consumer privacy," said spokeswoman Gloria Bergquist.

In February 2011, NHTSA said in a White House report that it would make a proposal by the end of 2011 making EDRs mandatory.

That proposal was delayed at the White House Office of Management Budget for more than a year without comment.

NHTSA said in August the agency was still working on making EDRs mandatory.

"The agency has made it a priority to work toward a proposed standard that would mandate these devices on all passenger vehicles on the nation's roadways," spokeswoman Lynda Tran said.

"NHTSA remains committed to proposing a standard in the coming months that will help save lives by ensuring both automakers and the agency have the necessary data to make continued improvements in vehicle safety." NHTSA says the "rulemaking to mandate EDRs across the entire light-vehicle fleet could contribute to advancements in vehicle designs, and advanced restraint and other safety countermeasures."

Many automakers already include them in all vehicles, including General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co., Toyota and Mazda Motor Co.

Different automakers collect different data. In 2009, not all Toyota EDRs recorded both pre- and post-crash data. By the end of last year, all Toyota and Lexus vehicles included EDRs that can record both.

In May 2010, the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers endorsed making EDRs mandatory in all vehicles, but expressed concerns that some in Congress wanted more elaborate and expensive ones than are available.

The devices have been in use for about 20 years.

GM began widely installing the predecessor version of today's event data recorders in vehicles in the 1990 model year, and they became standard equipment in light-duty vehicles in the 1995 model year.

NHTSA previously issued a new regulation standardizing data collection for event data recorders.

The rule, issued in August 2006, took effect for the 2013 model year that started Sept. 1, standardizes the information EDRs collect and makes retrieving the data easier. Devices must record 15 data elements, including vehicle deceleration, in specific formats.

The recorders collect data for the seconds of a crash, including whether the driver is wearing a seatbelt, speed and whether the brakes were applied.

Your TV May Be Spying on You

Verizon Follows Google in Turning Phones & TV’s into Wiretaps

December 6, 2012

Infowars.com - In a move that Infowars warned over six years ago would come to fruition, Verizon has followed Google’s lead and officially filed a patent for a set-top box that will actively spy on Americans in their own homes in order to target them with custom advertisements and programming.

The patent application, which was filed in May 2011 but published last week, says that the technology will be capable of detecting “ambient action” including “cuddling, fighting and talking” in people’s living rooms.

Verizon notes that the system utilizes “a depth sensor, an image sensor, an audio sensor, and a thermal sensor” within the box. The hardware can determine what activities you are partaking in in your own home, whether it be “eating, exercising, laughing, reading, sleeping, talking, singing, humming, cleaning, and playing a musical instrument.”

The document states that the sound of raised voices in an argument could trigger ads for marriage counseling or therapy, and suggests that detection of a couple engaging in intimacy could prompt ads for contraceptives.
The box will even listen to your conversations, according to the comms giant’s patent.

“If detection facility detects one or more words spoken by a user (e.g., while talking to another user within the same room or on the telephone), advertising facility may utilize the one or more words spoken by the user to search for and/or select an advertisement associated with the one or more words,” the document states.

While the patent claims that it increases the “effectiveness, personalization, and/or adaptability of targeted advertising,” anyone who holds even a shred of value for their privacy will balk at the technology, which would be more at home in some nightmarish dystopian movie.

The patent also notes that users will have the ability to connect smart phones and tablets to the box, increasing the range and sensitivity of the monitoring device. Americans buying the product would not only be literally inviting big brother to come into their homes, but asking him to walk about inside it with them.

“If detection facility detects that the user is holding a mobile device, advertising facility may be configured to communicate with the mobile device to direct the mobile device to present the selected advertisement. Accordingly, not only may the selected advertisement be specifically targeted to the user, but it may also be delivered right to the user’s hands,” the patent application reads.

The technology Verizon is proposing to use already exists and has been adopted by other companies including Comcast, Microsoft (Kinnect), and Google.

Indeed, Infowars broke the story over SIX YEARS AGO, warning that government and industry were set to use microphones and cameras, fitted as standard within set top boxes since their inception in the late 1990′s, to spy on millions of Americans.

Detractors refused to believe it when we warned that Google was seeking to tap into microphones within laptops and PCs in order to target advertisements at users in their own homes, but now communications companies are openly announcing their intention to do so and rolling out products for that very purpose. Many of them are already in your homes.

We were considered crazy by some when we emphasized that the development would be too much of a good thing for both unscrupulous data mining corporations and the state itself not to take advantage of.
However, revelations concerning the murky relationships that exist between companies like Google, AT&T and Comcast, and government spy agencies including the CIA and the NSA have served as stark exclamation points on our warnings.

Furthermore, civil rights attorneys have warned that recent secretive cybersecurity rulings under Obama, and extensions of the NSA’s remit to spy on Americans, could allow for government and even military oversight to become commonplace within communications companies.

Whistleblowers, such as William Binney, have warned that the NSA has virtually every US citizen under surveillance, with the ability to record all of their communications. The agency is building a monolithic heavily fortified $2 billion facility deep in the Utah desert to process and analyze all of the information.

The technology to carry out such surveillance is already fully operational within your homes, it is now merely being openly revealed by the industry.

Earlier this year, now former CIA director David Petraeus lauded the rise of new “smart” gadgets, decreeing that Americans are effectively bugging their own homes, saving US spy agencies a job when it identifies any “persons of interest”.

Petraeus’ comments came in the same week that one of the biggest microchip companies in the world, ARM, unveiled new processors that are designed to give practically every household appliance an internet connection, in order that they can be remote controlled and operate in tandem with applications. ARM describes the concept as an “internet of things”.

Of course, while such technology is utilized by government and military for mass surveillance purposes, the fact that it is being openly revealed may be seen as a positive development, for it may also be used as a weapon in the peaceful revolution of information. The effectiveness of the technology rests in the hands of those utilizing it and will be determined by what degree we continue to value our inalienable rights.

The Infowar truly is in full swing.

Cell Phones are Used by 96% of the U.S.; One Third are Utilizing Smartphones That Track Your Location Even When Turned Off

Is Your Cell Phone Violating Your Rights?

May 3, 2011

voiceofsandiego.org - To say that cell phones are widely used in the U.S. is a gross understatement.

According to CTIA -- The Wireless Association, an organization representing the interests of the wireless communications industry -- cell phones were used by 96% of the U.S. and territorial population (including Puerto Rico, Guam and the U.S. Virgin Islands) in December 2010.

A recent Nielsen survey reported that almost one third of U.S. cell phone users are utilizing smartphones. While the growing adoption of smartphones is good news for phone manufacturers, the advanced computing capabilities and wireless connectivity of smartphones raise new concerns regarding privacy rights.

Smartphones provide users continuous mobile access to the Internet. As a result, smartphones contain a treasure trove of personal information, including banking information, travel plans and family photos. However, while use of advanced security software is commonplace on our computers, many of us are not safeguarding the personal information stored on and transmitted through our smartphones. While there is security software for smartphones including anti-virus and encryption software, it is not available for all models of cell phones and has not been widely adopted.

A recent study conducted by mobile security company AdaptiveMobile discloses that 2010 saw the highest number of Smartphone malware (short for malicious software) infections, up 33% from 2009. AdaptiveMobile expects to see an exponential increase in such attacks in the next year as the adoption of smartphones becomes more widespread. In a society well aware of computer viruses and identity theft, why are we not protecting our smartphones from such attacks?

It is not only hackers and cyber criminals who may be interested in the information stored on our cell phones.

It was recently revealed to the public that Apple iPhones and Google Android smartphones are regularly tracking our locations and recording this information in a hidden file stored on our phones. Anyone able to access our phones can use the stored locational information to reconstruct our daily travels and routine. Access to such information could be of great interest to the police and the government or even an employer or suspicious spouse.

Police use of such information may be of particular concern in light of the recent accusations that police officers in Michigan are using data extracting devices to secretly obtain information from cell phones during routine traffic stops.

In addition to being stored on our smartphones, this locational information is being transmitted back to Google and Apple. It is currently unclear what these companies are using this information for, although the companies have stated that this information is transmitted anonymously and that the tracking and ability to opt out by disabling location services is disclosed in the privacy policies agreed to by the users. Such policies, however, are often lengthy and confusing and it is common for users to agree to such privacy policies without actually reading them. Furthermore, a recent test conducted by The Wall Street Journal revealed that locational data continued to be collected and stored on Apple's iPhone even when the location services were turned off.

The news of smartphone tracking activity and data collection has raised a number of privacy concerns. These concerns have lead U.S. and foreign lawmakers to request further details from Apple and Google regarding these practices. In addition, representatives from both Apple and Google have been summoned to participate in a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Privacy, Technology and the Law. The hearing is to be held in May and will be focused on mobile device privacy.

While many are concerned over the implications of such locational tracking on privacy rights, others note that tracking a person's location through their cell phone is nothing new. Some smartphone users state that they are not concerned because they have nothing to hide and note that such tracking is required for many of the useful programs on their smartphones to function. Numerous smartphone apps, such as those that can recommend a nearby restaurant, locate the nearest Starbucks or allow a user to map out travel routes, require tracking the location of the smartphone user.

Amongst the continued confusion over what information is being tracked by our cell phones and the debate over whether this tracking is helpful or harmful, what remains clear is that many of us are largely uninformed when it comes to the information that is being stored on our cell phones.

In addition to failing to protect personal information stored on cellphones from access by others, many smartphone users are also unwittingly broadcasting their personal information to the world.
Geotagging is the addition of geographical information to media such as photographs or video. If geotagging is enabled on your smartphone, uploading media to the Internet simultaneously uploads your location. By uploading geotagged images you may be sharing your home address, details of your daily routine or the fact that your house is empty while you are out of town. It is easy to see how this information can be used and misused for everything from targeted marketing to targeted crime.

Most troubling is that many users have no idea that geotagging is occurring on their phone. Many smartphones come with geotagging automatically enabled. As geotags are generally invisible unless specific software is downloaded to enable visualization of the tags, many users are completely unaware that they are sharing more than pictures and videos when they upload media files to the Internet.

Even with the emerging security and privacy concerns, our cell phone usage continues to grow. Cell phones have become an integral part of everyday life and for many of us, not having a cell phone would render us incompetent employees and social pariahs. As cell phone technology continues to evolve, our reliance on these devices continues to grow.

Will our growing cell phone dependence make us even more vulnerable to potential privacy violations or will it drive us to demand more transparency, protection and control when it comes to our cell phones?

U.S. Weighing Military Options If Syria Uses WMD

US weighing military options if Syria uses WMD

December 4, 2012

AP - The White House and its allies are weighing military options to secure Syria's chemical and biological weapons, after U.S. intelligence reports show the Syrian regime may be readying those weapons and may be desperate enough to use them, U.S. officials said Monday.

President Barack Obama, in a speech at the National Defense University on Monday, pointedly warned Syrian President Bashar Assad not to use his arsenal.

"Today I want to make it absolutely clear to Assad and those under his command: The world is watching," Obama said. "The use of chemical weapons is and would be totally unacceptable. And if you make the tragic mistake of using these weapons, there will be consequences and you will be held accountable."

Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, in Prague for meetings with Czech officials, said she wouldn't outline any specifics.

"But suffice it to say, we are certainly planning to take action if that eventuality were to occur," Clinton said.

Options now being considered range from aerial strikes to limited raids by regional forces to secure the stockpiles, according to one current U.S. official, and one former U.S. official, briefed on the matter. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the issue publicly.

The administration remains reluctant to dispatch U.S. forces into Syria, but a U.S. special operations training team is in neighboring Jordan, teaching troops there how to safely secure such sites together with other troops from the region, the officials said.

The warnings to Syria come after U.S. intelligence detected signs the Syrian regime was moving the chemical weapons components around within several of Syria's chemical weapons sites in recent days, according to a senior U.S. defense official and two U.S. officials speaking on Monday. The activities involved movement within the sites, rather than the transfer of components in or out of various sites, two of the officials said.

But they were activities they had not seen before, that bear further scrutiny, one said.

Another senior U.S. official described it as "indications of preparations" for a possible use of the chemical weapons. The U.S. still doesn't know whether the regime is planning to use them, but the official says there is greater concern because there is the sense that the Assad regime is under greater pressure now.

The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about intelligence matters.

U.S. intelligence officials also intercepted one communication within the last six months they believe was between Iran's infamous Quds Force, urging Syrian regime members to use its supplies of toxic Sarin gas against rebels and the civilians supporting them in the besieged city of Homs, a former U.S. official said. That report was not matched by other intelligence agencies, and other intelligence officials have said Iran also does not want the Syrians to use their chemical weapons.

The Assad regime insists it would not use such weapons against Syrians, though it carefully does not admit to having them. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs said the government "would not use chemical weapons — if there are any — against its own people under any circumstances." The regime is party to the 1925 Geneva Protocol banning chemical weapons in war.

The Syrian assurances did not placate the White House.

"We are concerned that in an increasingly beleaguered regime, having found its escalation of violence through conventional means inadequate, might be considering the use of chemical weapons against the Syrian people," said White House press secretary Jay Carney.

"Assad has killed so many of his people, I just wouldn't be surprised if he turned these weapons on them," added Maryland Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger, the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, after intelligence briefings Monday.

An administration official said the trigger for U.S. action of some kind is the use of chemical weapons, or movement with the intent to use them, or the intent to provide them to a terrorist group like Hezbollah. The U.S. is trying to determine whether the recent movement detected in Syria falls into any of those categories, the official said. The administration official was speaking on condition of anonymity because this person was not authorized to speak publicly about the issue.

Israeli officials have repeatedly expressed concerns that Syrian chemical weapons could slip into the hands of Hezbollah or other anti-Israel groups, or even be fired toward Israel in an act of desperation by Syria.

Syria has some 75 sites where weapons are stored, but U.S. officials aren't sure they have tracked down all the locations, and fear some stockpiles may have already been moved. Syria is believed to have several hundred ballistic surface-to-surface missiles capable of carrying chemical warheads, plus several tons of material stored in either large drums, or in artillery shells, which become deadly once fired.

"In Syria, they have everything from mustard agent, Sarin nerve gas, and some variant of the nerve agent VX," according to James Quinlivan, a Rand Corp. analyst who specializes in the elimination of weapons of mass destruction.

A primary argument against sending in U.S. ground troops is that whoever takes possession of the chemical weapons will be responsible for destroying them, as part of the 1997 Chemical Weapons Convention. Destroying Syria's stockpiles could cost hundreds of millions of dollars, and take more than a decade, Quinlivan said.

Syria's arsenal is a particular threat to the American allies, Turkey and Israel, and Obama singled out the threat posed by the unconventional weapons earlier this year as a potential cause for deeper U.S. involvement in Syria's civil war. Up to now, the United States has opposed military intervention or providing arms support to Syria's rebels for fear of further militarizing a conflict that activists say has killed more than 40,000 people since March 2011.

Activity has been detected at Syrian weapons sites before.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said in late September the intelligence suggested the Syrian government had moved some of its chemical weapons in order to protect them. He said the U.S. believed that the main sites remained secure.

Asked Monday if they were still considered secure, Pentagon press secretary George Little declined to comment about any intelligence related to the weapons.

Senior lawmakers were notified last week that U.S. intelligence agencies had detected activity related to Syria's chemical and biological weapons, said a U.S. intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the closed-door meetings. All congressional committees with an interest in Syria, from the intelligence to the armed services committees, are now being kept informed.

"I can't comment on these reports, but I have been very concerned for some time now about Syria's stockpiles of chemical weapons and its stocks of advanced conventional weapons like shoulder-launched anti-aircraft missiles," said House intelligence committee Chairman Mike Rogers, R-Mich.

"We are not doing enough to prepare for the collapse of the Assad regime, and the dangerous vacuum it will create. Use of chemical weapons by the Assad regime would be an extremely serious escalation that would demand decisive action from the rest of the world," he added.

The U.S. and Jordan share the same concern about Syria's chemical and biological weapons — that they could fall into the wrong hands should the regime in Syria collapse and lose control of them.

New Israeli Settlement Juts into the Narrow 'Waist' of the West Bank, and Also Backs onto East Jerusalem, Where Palestinians Want to Establish Their Capital

Some Palestinian officials have raised the possibility of asking the European Union to reconsider its trade agreements with Israel, but Hague said he did not think Europe is ready for economic sanctions against Israel. Israel has rebuffed the international criticism, which put it at odds with some of its strongest foreign allies, including Australia. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman said Tuesday that construction plans would move forward, particularly in east Jerusalem and nearby West Bank settlements. "Israel makes decisions according to its national interests, and not in order to punish, fight or confront," he said. U.N. recognition could enable the Palestinians to gain access to the International Criminal Court and seek war crimes charges against Israel for construction of settlements on occupied lands. Hanan Ashrawi, a senior PLO official, said the Palestinians were encouraged by the recent diplomatic sanctions against Israel, but that the international community must go further. Among other steps, she said the European Union should reconsider its association agreement with Israel that grants the Jewish state considerable trade benefits. She said the EU should also take harsher measures against products from Israeli settlements. [AP, Palestinians: settlement expansion means 1 state]

"Doomsday" hill may be one Israeli settlement too far

December 3, 2012 

Reuters - The hillside called E1 is one of the few places around Jerusalem that Jesus Christ might still recognize: a stony, dusty, barren slope on the way down to the desert and the Dead Sea.

If Israel carries out plans announced this week, it is destined to be the site of another Jewish settlement city, on occupied land that the Palestinians believe must be part of the state for which they have just won de facto U.N. recognition.

Roads that seem to go nowhere run up its rocky slopes and streetlights provide slivers of shade from the often fierce sun. There is an Israeli police station, but no houses or shops.

Known simply by its administrative name, E1 (East One), this exposed stretch of West Bank land is at the centre of a growing diplomatic dispute pitting Israel against both the Palestinians and also many of its Western allies.

Stunned by the vote last week in the General Assembly that accorded Palestine the status of a "non-member state" at the United Nations, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government resurrected an old plan to build on the empty outcrop.

Critics immediately warned that populating E1 with Israelis would cut off East Jerusalem and carve up the West Bank, effectively thwarting any chance of viability for a Palestinian state and thereby extinguishing the Middle East peace process.

"This is not a routine settlement. This is the doomsday settlement," said Daniel Seidemann, the founder of Terrestrial Jerusalem, an Israeli non-governmental organization that monitors urban development in and around the holy city.

"The message Israel should have learned from the U.N. vote is that we are on very thin ice," he added. "By threatening E1 you are standing on thin ice and jumping up and down."

That view is rejected by supporters of the project, who say construction is long overdue and represents natural expansion from the neighboring Maale Adumim settlement - a city of red-roofed apartment blocks that is home to more than 30,000 people.

Over half a million Israelis now live on land taken in the 1967 Middle East war, claiming historical and biblical ties to territory that the Palestinians say belongs to them.

The E1 site covers only some 4.6 square miles (12 square km) but is geographically sensitive because it not only juts into the narrow "waist" of the West Bank, but also backs onto East Jerusalem, where Palestinians want to establish their capital.

CORRIDORS

Building on this area would complicate efforts to draw the contours of a contiguous state for the Palestinians, making it more difficult for surrounding Arab communities to link up.

However, supporters of the project say it is not a deal-breaker for any peace treaty, arguing there would be enough space on either side of the hill to enable a broad corridor that could connect the West Bank cities of Ramallah and Bethlehem, respectively north and south of Jerusalem.

"The media are telling lies about this conflict all the time," said Eli Har Nir, the municipality general director of Maale Adumim.

"You can't even see Jerusalem from here. There is still six kilometers of open land that does not belong to E1 or to Maale Adumim," he said, arguing that this space could be used to build roads for Palestinians.

Israel's closest ally, the United States, sees it differently and successive administrations have cautioned against any building on the largely unpopulated expanse of E1.

The White House swiftly denounced Friday's announcement, which came along with news that the government also plans to build 3,000 additional homes in other, undisclosed West Bank and East Jerusalem settlements.

A number of European Union governments went further, with Britain, France and Sweden summoning their respective Israeli ambassadors to protest at what they saw as an unacceptable reprisal against the Palestinians for the U.N. vote.

The mood in neighboring Maale Adumim was more celebratory of the Israeli move. Locals urged Netanyahu not to buckle under pressure but to push ahead with the long-delayed E1 plans.

"Successive governments have all promised to build here, but what you can see around me are empty hills, rocks and sand, not apartments," said Maale Adumim mayor Benny Kashriel.

"I hope that this government, with this decision, will come through immediately," he told reporters gathered on top of E1.

Israelis have already named the prospective settlement Mevasseret Adumim - Tidings of Adumim. Maale Adumim itself means Red Heights - a reference to the surrounding mountains that glow at sunset.

Preparation for building started long ago and a sealed-off bridge stands ready to link Maale Adumim with its projected sister settlement, while a major road intersection swings up into E1 from the highway that heads down to the nearby Dead Sea.

If you take the exit today, the only people you are likely to find are Bedouin shepherds following their ragged goat herds in search of the occasional tuft of grass.

Israeli authorities drew up plans in 2006 to move the Arab Bedouin to another site. They have yet to act on it, but rights groups say the project is specifically designed to clear the way for E1 development.

Israel's Maariv newspaper said on Monday that the Israeli planning committee for the West Bank would convene on Wednesday to approve plans for public review. Without further delays, the earth-movers could be sent in within a year.

Hillary Clinton Criticizes Iran, Palestine, and Israel, Too

Hillary Clinton Criticizes Iran, Palestine, and Israel, Too

December 1, 2012 

ABC News - Secretary of State Hillary Clinton criticized Iranian and Palestinian leaders, and didn’t spare Israel, either, in her address at the Saban Forum, continuing her trend of increased frankness as her time in the Obama administration winds down.

Clinton gave the 30-minute keynote address , focusing on the Middle East and Israel, but it was during the question and answer period when the secretary was most animated, and blunt. Clinton named Iran as “the hardest of the hard boards because of the dangers its behavior already poses and the geometrically greater danger that a nuclear-armed Iran would pose.”

“It is an issue that has consumed a significant part of my time as secretary of state,” Clinton told the audience of diplomats and lawmakers at the annual U.S.-Israeli forum.

Speaking with clear exasperation, Clinton said the permanent members of the UN Security Council and Germany — commonly known as p5-plus-1 — were preparing a way to communicate with Iran about the country’s nuclear ambitions while letting Tehran know “we’re running out of time.”

“We have from the very beginning made it clear to the Iranians: We are open to a bilateral discussion and we have tried,” Clinton said. “So far there has not yet been any meeting of the minds on that, but we remain open and you know we certainly try quite hard in the p-5-plus-1 context to have a bilateral discussion, and they have not been willing to do so.

“We understand that it may take pushing through that obstacle to really get them fully responsive to whatever the p-5-plus-1 offer might be,” she said.

Clinton described the lack of an international response to Iran’s recent history of extremism as “totally unacceptable.”

“It is an incredibly dangerous aggressive behavior that is going on every single day,” Clinton said. “They are relentless in their desire to exercise influence and to build a very intimidating, even hegemonic presence in the Gulf, and then you get to what they’re doing internally with the oppression of the Iranian people, and then you’ve got the nuclear program.

“It’s a never-ending requirement of extraordinary vigilance,” she said.

Clinton also spoke frankly about the relationship between Israelis and Palestinians.

She condemned the UN resolution passed Friday recognizing Palestine as a non-member observer state, saying that for President Abbas it was “a step in the wrong direction … to say the least.” Without veiling her meaning, Clinton blamed the Palestinian leaders for passing up numerous attempts at peace, starting from her time as first lady, to when she was in the Senate, to the current day.

But she did not let Israel off scot-free.

“We opposed his resolution.  But we also need to see that the Palestinian Authority in the West Bank still offers the most compelling alternative to rockets and permanent resistance.  At a time when religious extremists claim to offer rewards in the hereafter, Israel needs to help those committed to peace to deliver for their people in the here and now,” Clinton said during her speech.

She revisited that theme in the question and answer session, encouraging Israelis to continue the “good faith effort” she recognized in the last 20 years.

“I really believe this with all my heart: I think that even if you cannot reach a complete agreement that resolves all these incredibly hard issues, it is in Israel’s interest to be trying. It gives Israel a moral high ground that I want Israel to occupy. That’s what I want Israel to occupy — the moral high ground,” Clinton said, to loud applause.

Foreign policy leaders from around the globe paid a tribute that felt something like a farewell to the secretary of state at the forum.

In her prepared remarks, Clinton reflected on her own future, and said she looked forward to stepping down and visiting Israel as a private citizen, on a commercial airline, with her future grandchildren.

“It’s no state secret that I hope to become a grandmother someday,” she said to a laughing crowd.

The Saban Center Founder Haim Saban introduced Clinton by showing a video highlighting her many accomplishments since she entered the Obama administration.

Officials from Israeli President Benjamin Netanyahu to Sen. John McCain, and even former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, offered kind words for the outgoing American diplomat.

The video ended with a message from President Obama thanking the audience “for the chance to honor one of America’s greatest public servants.”

The president went on to extol Clinton’s virtues and reflect on their relationship.

“I’m so grateful for your grace, your humor, your friendship and what an incredible message that has sent to Americans and the world about the power of our democracy, about how people can come together and work together on behalf of the country they love,” Obama said.

“Tonight just know how much you mean to all of us and how honored we are and I am to call you a partner and a friend.”

The evening was fraught with jokes and insinuations that the world has yet to see the last of Clinton. As former British Prime Minister Tony Blair said at the end of her tribute video, perhaps “the best is yet to come.”

U.S. Senate Approves Expanded Sanctions on Global Trade with Iran's Energy and Shipping Sectors

Senate approves new sanctions for Iran energy, shipping

December 1, 2012 

Reuters - The U.S. Senate resoundingly approved on Friday expanded sanctions on global trade with Iran's energy and shipping sectors, its latest effort to ratchet up economic pressure on Tehran over its nuclear program.

The new package, which keeps in place exemptions for countries that have made significant cuts to their purchases of Iranian crude oil, would be the third round of sanctions in a year if passed into law.

The existing sanctions have already hurt Iran's economy, but it is uncertain whether the additional measures will stop or slow Iran's nuclear program.

Washington says Tehran is enriching uranium to levels that could be used in nuclear weapons. Iran says the program is for peaceful purposes.

Senators voted 94-0 to make the new sanctions part of an annual defense policy bill.

"We must be clear to the Iranians that toughing it out and waiting it out is not an option, that it will only get worse," Democratic Senator Robert Menendez said.

Menendez, of New Jersey, co-authored the package with Republican Senator Mark Kirk of Illinois and Senator Joseph Lieberman, an Independent from Connecticut.

The measures would also restrict trade with Iran in precious metals, graphite, raw or semi-finished metals, such as aluminum and steel, metallurgical coal and software for integrating industrial processes in Iran's energy and shipping sectors.

Insurance or reinsurance providers would be restricted from trade with Iran in energy, shipping and ship-building sectors.

Further, the new sanctions include measures aimed at stopping the flow of gold from Turkey to Iran.

WHITE HOUSE CONCERNED

The Obama administration has not publicly commented on the proposals, but has privately raised concerns that it does not provide enough "waiver flexibility," said Carl Levin, chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Levin said those concerns may be addressed when the Senate and House of Representatives work out differences to finalize the massive defense bill.

The House has approved its version of the bill, and both bodies will need to approve a final version before it is sent to President Barack Obama to sign into law.

The American Israel Public Affairs Committee, a powerful pro-Israel lobby group, endorsed the measures, which it said would close a loophole in existing laws.

"In an effort to circumvent international sanctions on the Central Bank of Iran, some purchasers of Iranian oil and natural gas have been using gold and other precious metals to pay for petroleum products," AIPAC leaders said in a letter to senators ahead of the vote, urging support for the bill.

Israel says international sanctions against Iran are not working and is threatening to use military force to prevent Iran from becoming a nuclear power. Washington says all options are on the table in dealing with Iran, but sanctions and diplomacy should be given more time.

Some experts expressed doubt on Friday that a fresh round of sanctions will prompt Iran to make concessions on the nuclear issue. Paul Pillar, a former CIA analyst, said sanctions will not work without solid diplomacy to accompany them.

"It is a fallacy to believe there is some breaking point at which the regime in Tehran cries 'uncle' and makes major changes in policy even if it sees itself as getting nothing in return," Pillar said.

Jeff Colgan, a professor at American University in Washington who studies the geopolitics of oil, said the expanded sanctions would represent a "continuation of a cat-and-mouse game."

"The sanctions get placed, Iran tries to find ways around them, and the U.S. tries to close the loopholes. But so far, a dent in the (Iranian) economy has not resulted in a change in the nuclear program," Colgan said.

The United Nations' nuclear chief said on Thursday his agency has made no progress in its year-long push to investigate whether Iran has worked on developing an atomic bomb.

North Korea Rocket Violates U.N. Ban on Long-range Missile

North Korea rocket violates U.N. ban on long-range missile: South Korea

December 1, 2012

Reuters - South Korea warned North Korea not to carry out a rocket launch later this month as announced by Pyongyang on Saturday, saying it was a test of a long-range missile in disguise, a provocation that violated U.N. ban and a challenge to the international community.

"That North Korea is trying yet again to launch a long-range missile is a grave provocation that ignores the international community's concern and warnings and a direct challenge against it," South Korea's Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

North Korea vows to test long-range rocket soon

The launch, set for Dec. 10 to 22, is likely to heighten tension with the U.S. and Seoul. An attempt by North Korea to launch a rocket in April failed.

December 1. 2012

AP - North Korea announced Saturday that it would attempt to launch a long-range rocket in mid-December, a defiant move just eight months after a failed April bid was widely condemned as a violation of a U.N. ban against developing its nuclear and missile programs. The launch, set for Dec. 10 to 22, is likely to heighten already strained tensions with Washington and Seoul as the United States prepares for President Obama's second term as U.S. president and South Korea holds its own presidential election on Dec. 19.

This would be North Korea's second launch attempt under leader Kim Jong Un, who took power following his father Kim Jong Il's death nearly a year ago. The announcement by North Korea's space agency followed speculation overseas about stepped-up activity at North Korea's west coast launch pad captured in satellite imagery.

A spokesman for North Korea's Korean Committee for Space Technology said scientists have "analyzed the mistakes" made in the failed April launch and improved the precision of its Unha rocket and Kwangmyongsong satellite, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.

KCNA said the launch was a request of late leader Kim Jong Il, whose Dec. 17, 2011, death North Koreans are expected to mark with some fanfare. The space agency said the rocket would be mounted with a polar-orbiting Earth observation satellite, and maintained its right to develop a peaceful space program.

Washington considers North Korea's rocket launches to be veiled covers for tests of technology for long-range missiles designed to strike the United States, and such tests are banned by the United Nations.

North Korea has capable short- and medium-range missiles, but long-range launches in 1998, 2006, 2009 and in April of this year ended in failure. North Korea is not known to have succeeded in mounting an atomic bomb on a missile but is believed to have enough weaponized plutonium for at least half a dozen bombs, according to U.S. experts, and in 2010 revealed a uranium enrichment program that could provide a second source of material for nuclear weapons.

Six-nation negotiations on dismantling North Korea's nuclear program in exchange for aid fell apart in early 2009.

In Seoul, South Korean officials have accused North Korea of trying to influence its presidential election with what they consider provocations meant to put pressure on voters and on the United States as the North seeks concessions. Conservative Park Geun-hye, the daughter of late President Park Chung-hee, is facing liberal Moon Jae-in in the South Korean presidential vote. Polls show the candidates in a close race.

Some analysts, however, question whether North Korean scientists have corrected whatever caused the misfire of its last rocket.

"Preparing for a launch less than a year after a failure calls into question whether the North could have analyzed and fixed whatever went wrong," David Wright, a physicist with the Union of Concerned Scientists, wrote on the organization's website this week.

The United States has criticized North Korea's pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles as a threat to Asian and world security. In 2009, North Korea conducted rocket and nuclear tests within months of Obama taking office.

North Korea under its young leader has pledged to bolster its nuclear arsenal unless Washington scraps what the North calls a "hostile" policy. North Korea maintains that it is building bombs to defend itself against what it sees as a U.S. nuclear threat in the region.

This year is the centennial of the birth of national founder Kim Il Sung, the grandfather of Kim Jong Un. According to North Korean propaganda, 2012 is meant to put the North on a path toward a "strong, prosperous and great nation."

"North Korea appears to be under pressure to redeem its April launch failure before the year of the 'strong, prosperous and great nation' ends," said Koh Yu-hwan, a North Korea expert at Dongguk University in Seoul.

He added that a successful rocket launch would raise North Korea's bargaining power with South Korea and the United States "because it means the country is closer to developing missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads."

Before its last two rocket launches, North Korea notified the International Civil Aviation Organization and the International Maritime Organization about its intentions to launch. IMO spokeswoman Natasha Brown said that as of Friday the organization had not been notified by North Korea.

The North's announcement comes two days after South Korea canceled what would have been the launch of its first satellite from its own territory. Scientists in Seoul cited technical difficulties. South Korea's Foreign Ministry said in a statement that the North's planned launch is "a grave provocation and a head-on challenge to the international community."

North Korea's missile and nuclear programs will be a challenge for Obama in his second term and for the incoming South Korean leader. Washington's most recent attempt to negotiate a freeze of the North's nuclear program and a test moratorium in exchange for food aid collapsed with the April launch.

The Korean Peninsula remains in a state of war because the 1950-53 Korean conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. Washington stations nearly 30,000 troops in South Korea as a buttress against any North Korean aggression. Tens of thousands more are in nearby Japan.

U.S. Judge Refuses to Order Anti-Muslim Film Off YouTube

U.S. judge refuses to order anti-Muslim film off YouTube

December 1, 2012

Reuters - An actress who said she was duped into appearing in an anti-Islam film that stoked violent protests against the United States across the Muslim world lost on Friday her second legal bid to force the video off YouTube.

Denying a request by actress Cindy Lee Garcia for a court order requiring the popular online video site to remove the crudely made 13-minute clip, a federal judge found she was unlikely to prevail on her claims of copyright infringement.

U.S. District Judge Michael Fitzgerald of Santa Clara, California, also canceled a December 3 hearing he had previously set for oral arguments over Garcia's request.

Garcia's lawyer, Cris Armenta, told Reuters she planned to appeal the decision.

The lawsuit, filed in September, names YouTube and its parent company Google Inc as defendants, along with the film's producer.

A previous motion by Garcia for a temporary restraining order against YouTube's continued posting of the video was rejected by a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge.

Garcia's case was the first known civil litigation stemming from the video, billed as a film trailer, which depicts the Prophet Mohammad as a fool and a sexual deviant. The clip sparked a torrent of anti-American unrest in Egypt, Libya and dozens of other Muslim countries.

The outbreak of violence coincided with an attack on U.S. diplomatic facilities in Benghazi in September that killed four Americans, including the U.S. ambassador to Libya.

For many Muslims, any depiction of the prophet is considered blasphemous.

Google has refused to remove the film from YouTube, despite pressure from the White House and others to take it down, though the company has blocked the trailer in Egypt, Libya and other Muslim countries.

COPYRIGHT CLAIM

Garcia has accused the purported filmmaker of fraud, libel and unfair business practices.

But her federal lawsuit also asserts a copyright claim to her performance in the video, titled "The Innocence of Muslims," and accuses Google of infringing on that copyright by distributing the video without her approval via YouTube.

But in a three-page ruling, the judge questioned the validity of such a claim. He held that even if she could prove a legitimate copyright interest in her film performance, she effectively relinquished her rights to producers of the film.

Fitzgerald also ruled that Garcia failed to show that she would suffer irreparable harm without an injunction.

Garcia's lawsuit identifies Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, 55, an Egyptian-born Coptic Christian living in the Los Angeles area, as the film's producer. His legal name has since been established to be Mark Basseley Youssef and he served time in federal prison for bank fraud.

According to the lawsuit, Youssef operated under the assumed name of Sam Bacile when he misled Garcia and other performers into appearing in an anti-Muslim film they believed was to be an adventure drama called "Desert Warrior." She claims to have since received death threats.

Despite Friday's ruling against her, "we hope that worldwide the message has been heard that Ms. Garcia was not complicit and did not voluntarily participate in this heinous piece of hate speech," her lawyer said in a statement.

Youssef was sent back to jail for a year on November 7 for probation violations stemming from his role in making the video, including his use of an alias in connection with the film.