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| Israel Retaliates Against Hamas in Gaza - Not Quite a Surgical Strike |
[Originally published August 4. 2014]
We'll preface our remarks by noting that we don't take sides with either Hamas or Israel in this conflict. We find the actions of both reprehensible.
Lest I be categorized as a neophyte in this discussion, please note that my reputation is based on my experience as an analyst and operative within the US Intelligence and Military communities in the Counter-Insurgency and the Counter-Terror arenas, including conducting a successful counter-insurgency campaign in Asia. I later accurately analyzed and assessed anti-government political movements in Eastern Europe and Latin America. I spent time in the Middle East, meeting with IDF and Mossad officers, and with US Intelligence officers monitoring events in Israel and contributed to an NIE on Israeli intentions. I have, for the last 20 years, consulted on global threats to US interests, and created an academic course on Counter-Terrorism -- the basis of which is "Understanding the Terrorist and His Motives".
All told, I have more than 40 years of hands-on experience in this field, and have been recognized and rewarded by the SSCI, the DCI, and the CJCS for my expertise and accomplishments.
ISRAEL HAS ADVANTAGES:
1) Technical Intelligence Programs
Israel has one of the most sophisticated Intelligence programs in the world:a) Electronically, it has hacked into the US DoD Intelligence Information System [DODIIS]
b) It created the Stuxnet and Flame viruses which disrupted the Iranian nuclear research program [but, those viruses also managed to escape into the ether, posing a global IT threat].
2) Seismic Sensor Detection System
Israel also has one of the most sophisticated sound and seismic sensor detection systems in the world, which allows it to detect the construction of tunnels, and the pitter-patter of little feet -- and construction equipment, deep underground. These technologies have been around since the Vietnam War and were quite sophisticated then, and we used them quite effectively to monitor the VietCong and other insurgent movements.-- It is unrealistic to think that Israel would ignore that technology in a hostile environment.
3) Mossad
Mossad is Israel's version of the CIA -- one of the most sophisticated HUMINT espionage programs which successfully targeted every ally and potential adversary in the world [to include the US -- Jonathan Pollard, a Mossad trained espionage agent, springs to mind].It strains credulity to understand why Israel fears the impact of the tunnels Hamas has been building. We wonder how Israel could have been unaware of the construction of the tunnels, to include their precise origins in Gaza and their precise entries into Israel's territory. It would also seem obvious that Israel should have been fully aware of every threat against it in Gaza by Hamas, to include the sourcing, delivery, and placement of every rocket launching site.
And, with the Iron Dome detection and protective canopy, are we to believe that these rockets pose more than an ethereal threat? Israel brags that with the Iron Dome, the threat is minimal, and we believe that statement, given the casualty figures. The number of Israeli casualties from these rockets is three civilians; and 63 IDF soldiers have been killed in direct combat; in Gaza, more than 1,650 Palestinians -- mostly civilians -- women and children, have been killed by the Israeli assault.
So, with all that intelligence, why did Israel not simply manage their assault through these tunnels, and use smart bombs for surgical strikes on the storage bins.
Instead, there has been massive aerial and ground artillery bombardment of the entire area, supplemented by missiles and naval bombardment. These assaults have been followed by tanks and armored vehicles rolling through Gaza, supplemented by snipers in a mop-up exercise.
The latest development is that Israel has called up 16,000 reservists to boost its total to 86,000.
Is it possible to squeeze any more troops into Gaza?
TO SUMMARIZE:
Israel has one of the most sophisticated intelligence programs in the world with:1) superb electronic, sound and intrusion detection capabilities
2) the full resources of the NSA [which it successfully hacked long ago] and which NSA openly shares with Israel
3) the full resources of the DOD Intelligence Information System [which it hacked long ago]
4) the US satellite monitoring system
[the detailed elements of which Jonathan Pollard provided to Mossad]
[The US Intelligence system was penetrated by Israel long ago by recruited agents with Dual US-Israeli Citizenship. Ask these folks, and he or she will admit their allegiance is to Israel, not the US in time of war. Pollard repeatedly condemned the US for not supporting Israel - and that was his rationalization for spying for Israel [and the KGB. Pollard was trained and tasked by Mossad, and delivered massive amounts of highly classified data to both Mossad and to the KGB. He was convicted and imprisoned for 30 years. Released on parole with orders to not leave the US, Mossad immediately placed him on a plane and jetted him off to Israel where he was hailed as a hero.]
Pollard: Israeli Hero
Pollard was designated as the most destructive spy in US history by the US Intelligence Community, stealing and selling US HUMINT, SIGINT, IMINT and documents and US satellite manuals and providing them to the KGB for a price; he rationalized that espionage [which caused the deaths of a number of US Intelligence personnel] by sharing these materials with Israel.
After he had been monitored in his espionage activities by Military Intelligence and FBI counter-intelligence agents, his terminated security clearances would be miraculously restored, and the investigations would be called off [reportedly by US Military Intelligence Colonel (later Lt General) Sidney T Weinstein with whom he communicated between 1981 - 1984).
5) Ulitimately, Israel has the Iron Dome to detect and neutralize incoming rockets; a defense they have claimed for years as impenetrable.
Now, with all those resources, how are we to believe that a bunch of Hamas operatives, shooting off rockets toward Israel could not be detected ahead of time, and that Israel was incapable of locating, monitoring, and destroying the tunnels, supply systems, and the rocket launch sites.
Given those advantages, why would it be necessary for Israel to demolish all of Gaza, with the massive loss of life of close to 2,000 non-combatants, including women and children. We wonder also at Israel's bombardment of schools and UN refugee safe-havens. Were it any other country, the US Media would be screaming bloody murder -- and it is, literally, bloody murder.
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| 3,500 Palestinian and Lebanese men, women, and children died in this massacre |
We recall the stated objective of the former Israeli Prime Minister, Ariel Sharon, a general we admired for his extraordinary military accomplishments, to champion the construction of Israeli settlements in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip -- displacing the Palestinians living there.
Palestinians referred to him as The Butcher who routinely created confrontations with Palestinians which would justify his use of extreme force; these included the Qibya Massacre [1953] and the Shatila and Sabre Massacre [1982].
Sharon remained immune from prosecution as his officers who volunteered to testify against him all suffered Breitbart Moments when their cars mysteriously exploded.
Some may recall the Palestinian's Second Intifada [uprising] which resulted from Sharon sending 1,000 of his troops into the most sacred Muslim al-Aqsa Mosque on the Noble Sanctuary [aka: the Dome of the Rock] in Jerusalem; this would be the equivalent of the Italian government sending 1,000 armed Carabinieri into Saint Peter's Cathedral in the Vatican.
[Notably, Israeli troops again stormed the Mosque in mid-July.]
Having riled up the Palestinians with this outrage, Sharon soundly defeated them and won political points with the Israelis for "protecting" them against the crazy, bloodthirsty Palestinians.
We refer again to the Israeli version of Manifest Destiny, in which the Palestinians are displaced to make room for Israeli settlers. Former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, a brilliant general and architect of the Israeli Manifest Destiny program, created confrontations and battles with the Palestinians to justify driving Palestinians from their land so Israelis could settle there. His proclaimed targets were the West Bank and Gaza where he projected the construction of Israeli settlements.
Some may recall the Palestinian's Second Intifada [uprising] which resulted from Sharon sending 1,000 of his troops into the most sacred Muslim al-Aqsa Mosque on the Noble Sanctuary [aka: the Dome of the Rock] in Jerusalem; this would be the equivalent of the Italian government sending 1,000 armed Carabinieri into Saint Peter's Cathedral in the Vatican.
[Notably, Israeli troops again stormed the Mosque in mid-July.]
Having riled up the Palestinians with this outrage, Sharon soundly defeated them and won political points with the Israelis for "protecting" them against the crazy, bloodthirsty Palestinians.
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| Israel has gradually consumed all but a small portion of what originally constituted Palestine |
We refer again to the Israeli version of Manifest Destiny, in which the Palestinians are displaced to make room for Israeli settlers. Former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, a brilliant general and architect of the Israeli Manifest Destiny program, created confrontations and battles with the Palestinians to justify driving Palestinians from their land so Israelis could settle there. His proclaimed targets were the West Bank and Gaza where he projected the construction of Israeli settlements.
But, as Prime Minister, Sharon orchestrated Israel's unilateral disengagement from the Gaza Strip and planned to unilaterally clear of the the West Bank of Israelis.
Oddly, Sharon then met with a sudden Breitbart-Moment and suffered a stroke in 2006, which put him in a permanent vegetative state. Conspiracy theorists say that Shimon Peres orchestrated the "stroke" to eliminate Sharon's consolidation of power with a new political Party, which could have forced the end of Israel's Manifest Destiny.
But, that's all internal politics for Israel, and we should leave them to their own destiny.
Now, we do take issue with Israel meddling in US politics, even when they target folks who we dislike.
If the politician is a corrupt dirtbag, he is OUR dirtbag, and it is not acceptable for brother Netanyahu or AIPAC to decide the fate of our dirtbags -- or, our foreign policy.
As we have noticed, for a Member of Congress, or a US Senator to speak out against the Israeli actions, particularly the Manifest Destiny program, it is the political kiss of death. Even the strongest and most embedded of US politicians cannot withstand the onslaught of AIPAC attacks and the unofficial Israel lobby.
Jim Moran, a popular Congressman [D] in Northern Virginia, once made the mistake of criticizing Israel's role in drawing the US into war with Iraq in 2003. He was immediately pilloried as being anti-Semitic by the News Media, and even by his own Party.
Jim Moran, a popular Congressman [D] in Northern Virginia, once made the mistake of criticizing Israel's role in drawing the US into war with Iraq in 2003. He was immediately pilloried as being anti-Semitic by the News Media, and even by his own Party.
Already vulnerable following a series of behavioral issues, Moran found himself a major target of The Washington Post and local TV News commentaries which threatened to end his political career. Thus, he embarked on a tour of synagogues throughout the area offering his mea culpas and swearing his allegiance to Israel.
Rumor has it that AIPAC gained control of Congress through our AID program, general and military, which has funneled roughly $60 billion into Israel over the last ten years.
Rumor has it that AIPAC gained control of Congress through our AID program, general and military, which has funneled roughly $60 billion into Israel over the last ten years.
And, what becomes of all that cash? Some say that Israel funnels it back to the US, into AIPAC and a broad range of Israeli lobbying groups, the folks who are always ready with a fistful of "facts", snide remarks, ridicule, and innuendo -- and of course, the ubiquitous sobriquets of "anti-Semitism" for non-Jewish critics.
But, all that money doesn't just go to fund attack groups; there's plenty left over to line the pockets of Congresspersons or Senators, particularly come campaign time. So, recognizing that a vote for financial aid to Israel is a guarantee of financial aid (compliments of US Taxpayers) to the politician who "supports" Israel, savvy politicians [particularly poor ones] waddle up to that pork trough and guzzle it down, stopping only periodically to proclaim their loving support for Israel.
But, all that money doesn't just go to fund attack groups; there's plenty left over to line the pockets of Congresspersons or Senators, particularly come campaign time. So, recognizing that a vote for financial aid to Israel is a guarantee of financial aid (compliments of US Taxpayers) to the politician who "supports" Israel, savvy politicians [particularly poor ones] waddle up to that pork trough and guzzle it down, stopping only periodically to proclaim their loving support for Israel.
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| AIPAC: Is Stewart a "Self-Hating Jew"? |
Meanwhile, for American [and Israeli] Jews who speak out against Israeli actions and policies, the designation is "self-hating Jew"!
which of course caught Jon Stewart off-guard when he addressed Gaza recently without congratulating Israel on its destruction of Gaza.
[Stewart is the son of an Ashkenazi Jewish family; his actual name is Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz.
[Stewart is the son of an Ashkenazi Jewish family; his actual name is Jonathan Stuart Leibowitz.
His parody of Israel and its rather specious rationale for razing Gaze in its hapless search for tunnels and evil-doers resulted in such a massive verbal onslaught that he was stunned, particularly when he was warned by the network hierarchy that his program was at risk should he again poke fun at Israel. Pretty heavy stuff -- putting fear into an extremely popular TV host -- of all things, a comedy show.
So, we wish Gazans the best of luck in resisting Israeli bombers, bulldozers, and settlers. Your elected Hamas leadership has been manipulated into creating the scenario by which Israel can justify its assault on Gaza, and that has, unfortunately for you, become a self-destructive cause.
Don't look to the US for sympathy or assistance. You just don't understand how to exploit American political corruption. If you did, you'd be pulling in $60 billion in aid as well and bribing US politicians with it, vs taking a sharp stick in the eye and listening to European platitudes.
