Purveyor
Purveyor's JournalFor Israel, U.S. Response On Syria May Be Harbinger On Iran
TEL AVIV (JTA) —
--CLIP
In Jerusalem, Washington’s resolve in Syria is seen as a crucial litmus test for its readiness to confront another looming Mideast showdown over unconventional weapons.
“[Syrian President Bashar] Assad’s regime has become a full Iranian client and Syria has become Iran’s testing ground,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday following a meeting with French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius. “Now the whole world is watching. Iran is watching and it wants to see what would be the reaction on the use of chemical weapons.”
--CLIP
The prospect of a nuclear Iran is viewed with much greater concern in Israel, though Obama has declined to establish any similar red lines even as he has sought to assure Israel that he is not making empty threats about preventing Iran’s acquisition of a nuclear weapon.
American action in Syria might be enough to persuade Netanyahu the Americans are serious about Iran, Zisser said. But Netanyahu’s comments at his weekly Cabinet meeting on Sunday suggested that Israel is prepared to take action on its own.
“The most dangerous regimes in the world must not be allowed to possess the most dangerous weapons in the world,” Netanyahu said. “Our finger must always be on the pulse. Ours is a responsible finger and if necessary, it will also be on the trigger.”
Read more: http://www.jta.org/2013/08/26/news-opinion/israel-middle-east/for-israel-u-s-response-on-syria-is-harbinger-on-iran#ixzz2dCjdV43n
VP Biden Says No Doubt Syrian Regime Responsible For ‘Heinous’ Chemical Weapons Attack
Source: Associated Press
HOUSTON — Vice President Joe Biden says there is no doubt that Syrian President Bashar Assad’s (bah-SHAR’ AH’-sahd) government is responsible for the heinous use of chemical weapons.
Biden’s comments Tuesday make him the highest-ranking U.S. official to say the Syrian regime is the culprit in a large-scale chemical weapons attack on Aug. 21.
Biden says the Syrian government is the only actor in the 2-year civil war that possesses and can deliver chemical weapons. He says Assad has blocked U.N. investigators from the site and has been bombing it for days.
The White House says President Barack Obama hasn’t settled on how to respond to the attack. The Pentagon says U.S. military forces are ready to strike Syria if Obama gives the order.
Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/vp-biden-says-no-doubt-syrian-regime-responsible-for-heinous-chemical-weapons-attack/2013/08/27/913ab56a-0f52-11e3-a2b3-5e107edf9897_story.html
Palestinian Family Whose Jerusalem Home Was Demolished Moves Into A Cave
BY ALON BERNSTEIN, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS AUGUST 27, 2013 1:02
JERUSALEM - For much of the past seven years, Khalid Zir and his family called a makeshift tin shack in the east Jerusalem neighbourhood of Silwan home. But now that Israeli authorities have demolished the hut, Zir has become even more desperate.
With no other housing options, Zir, his wife and five children have gathered their belongings and moved into a cave that used to serve as the family's stable.
"My house was demolished, and I was obliged to live here because I did not have any place to go to," said Zir, a 39-year-old maintenance worker. "I wanted to rent a house but there are no houses here for rent, because there are no licenses for us Arabs to build."
The family's odd plight highlights the tricky issue of home demolitions in east Jerusalem, the Palestinians' hoped-for capital. Israel says the matter is merely one of law and order and that it was the Jerusalem municipality's responsibility to crack down on zoning violations and illegal building. The local Arabs, however, see a more sinister agenda aimed at preventing them from growing while nearby Jewish settlements continue to expand.
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http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/world/Palestinian+family+whose+Jerusalem+home+demolished+moves+into/8839052/story.html
Israelis Jittery Over Syria, Stock Up On Gas Masks
JERUSALEM — More than 1 million Israeli children started their first day of school Tuesday as Israel waited to see whether the United States would attack Syria over chemical weapons, and whether the Jewish state would pay a price for it.
Schools held outdoor welcoming ceremonies despite the gathering signs that the United States and its allies will strike at President Bashar Assad militarily for his alleged gassing of his people to halt a rebellion.
Some Israelis said they were jittery, and there has been a run on gas masks in recent days. The Israeli army said it was making preparations for possible attacks, and the Tel Aviv Stock Exchange dropped amid war fears.
Yet supermarkets, restaurants, theaters and beaches are as lively as ever, and even in the north, which has been hit by missiles in the past, the many inns that cater to tourists saw no drop in travelers.
"This is Israel," said Adi Lipkin, a high school teacher shopping for a hat in a Jerusalem clothing store. "There's a crisis every couple of years, so we don't get worked up until there's really something to worry about."
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http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/08/27/israel-syria-gas-masks-preparations/2707731/
Israel Asks US for Warning Before Attack on Syria
Israel has asked the United States to give it advance notice of any strike it may launch against Syria. The request was presented by outgoing National Security Advisor, Major General (res.) Yaakov Amidror in his meeting Monday evening with his U.S. counterpart, Susan Rice.
The request apparently indicates that Jerusalem sees a U.S. attack on Israel's northeastern neighbor as an imminent likelihood.
Amidror also reportedly discussed unspecified Israeli concerns regarding a U.S. attack in Syria.
The meeting between Amidror and Rice is a direct continuation of a series of meetings between the top echelons of the defense establishments of Israel and the U.S., in advance of a possible U.S. strike on Syria.
The talks between Amidror and Rice centered on "Iran, Egypt, Syria, and a range of other regional security issues," said U.S. National Security Council spokeswoman Caitlin Hayden, according to AFP.
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http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/171327#.Uhz6AztOZJE
With Kids Saying 'Yuck,' Some US Schools Quit Healthy-Lunch Program
By CAROLYN THOMPSON — Associated Press
After just one year, some schools around the country are dropping out of the healthier new federal lunch program, complaining that so many students turned up their noses at meals packed with whole grains, fruits and vegetables that the cafeterias were losing money.
Federal officials say they don't have exact numbers but have seen isolated reports of schools cutting ties with the $11 billion National School Lunch Program, which reimburses schools for meals served and gives them access to lower-priced food.
Districts that rejected the program say the reimbursement was not enough to offset losses from students who began avoiding the lunch line and bringing food from home or, in some cases, going hungry.
"Some of the stuff we had to offer, they wouldn't eat," said Catlin, Ill., Superintendent Gary Lewis, whose district saw a 10 to 12 percent drop in lunch sales, translating to $30,000 lost under the program last year.
"So you sit there and watch the kids, and you know they're hungry at the end of the day, and that led to some behavior and some lack of attentiveness."
Read more here: http://www.adn.com/2013/08/27/3045008/some-school-districts-quit-healthier.html#storylink=cpy
Hagel: 'We're Ready To Go' If Ordered On Syria Chemical Weapons Response
Washington (CNN) -- With a flurry of diplomatic signals and activity, U.S. officials sought Tuesday to lay the groundwork for a possible military strike on Syria in response to last week's suspected chemical weapons attack that Washington blames on President Bashar al-Assad's regime.
Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and Secretary of State John Kerry consulted allies and indicated potential imminent action by a coalition likely to include key NATO partners and regional powers.
Days after the United States moved warships armed with cruise missiles into the region, Hagel told the BBC on Tuesday that forces were ready to carry out a strike if ordered. A senior Defense Department official told CNN that any strike could be completed "within several days."
"We are ready to go, like that," Hagel told the BBC, adding that "the options are there, the United States Department of Defense is ready to carry out those options."
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http://edition.cnn.com/2013/08/27/politics/us-syria/
Obama May Need Republican Help If Picks Summers For Fed
WASHINGTON | Tue Aug 27, 2013 12:53pm EDT
(Reuters) - President Barack Obama will likely have to contend with Democratic defections and bring some Republicans on board to support Lawrence Summers if he chooses the controversial former Treasury secretary as the next chairman of the Federal Reserve.
Summers, one of Obama's chief economic advisers during the financial crisis, and Fed Vice Chair Janet Yellen are considered the leading candidates to replace Ben Bernanke as the United States' top central banker.
Any nominee for Fed chairman is likely to face a contentious bid for approval by the Senate, where Obama's Democrats hold a majority.
Many lawmakers were unhappy with the unprecedented measures the Fed took to prop up the financial system during the 2007-2009 credit crisis, and some think the U.S. central bank overstepped its bounds by buying government debt to drive down borrowing costs. That sentiment could work against either candidate.
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http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/08/27/us-usa-fed-congress-idUSBRE97Q0RH20130827
O’Reilly To Karl Rove: Only The ‘Loons’ Would Oppose Bombing Syria
Who would possibly vote against a military strike on Syria in response to its government’s use of nerve gas against rebels? Only “the loons,” Bill O’Reilly said last night on his show.
Joined by Karl Rove, the Fox host was confident in his belief that despite there not being a strong majority of Americans supporting military intervention in Syria, President Obama would have no trouble getting congressional approval to strike.
“Who’s going to vote against that besides the loons?” the Factor host asked. “What politician wants to be labeled, ‘Well, go ahead and use poison gas, kill the children, and we’re not going to do anything about it’?”
“There are a lot of people who said ‘We don’t care about Saddam Hussein,’ and voted no,” Rove added, speaking specifically about “isolationists” in Congress.
Gabrielle Giffords’ Ex-Intern Targeted By Homophobic Flyers Amid Recall Effort
Daniel Hernandez, who gained public praise for saving then-Rep. Gabrielle Giffords (D-AZ) life during a 2011 mass shooting in Tucson, Arizona is being targeted by both a recall campaign from his own public office and a series of homophobic flyers.
The Huffington Post reported on Monday that while Daniel Hernandez is the focus of a formal effort to oust him from his seat on the Sunnyside Unified School Board, which governs southern Tucson and other parts of Pima County.
But flyers bearing messages like, “Put a real man on the Sunnyside Board [sic]” and “We don’t need a high flying board member” have also surfaced at five of the 23 schools in the district, attacking Hernandez not only for being a gay man, but for his stance on firearms safety. One of the flyers also exhorts residents, “We need someone who will support Sports [sic] and care about our kids.”
The official drive to recall Hernandez was initiated by supporters of Sunnyside board president Louie Gonzales following Hernandez’s vote not to extend the contract of then-superintendent Manuel Isquierdo in June. It must amass 1,300 signatures by Dec. 14 to bring the issue to a public vote. Gonzales’ campaign manager, Marcos Castro, is leading the recall effort but denied any connection to the anonymous flyers to both the Post and Right Wing Watch.
“I don’t have nothing to do with it,” he told the Post.
Hernandez told the Post that he first heard the “real man” taunt during his successful campaign against Bobby Garcia, a supporter of Isquierdo.
MORE...
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/08/27/gabrielle-giffords-ex-intern-targeted-by-homophobic-flyers-amid-recall-effort/
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