Israel greets WikiLeaks cables as vindication of its Iran policy

Israel greets WikiLeaks cables as vindication of its Iran policy

By Joshua Mitnick






Printer Friendly Version

Email this article
Share and bookmark this article




The latest "document dump" is a coup for Jewish State, giving proof that her Arab neighbors, even those that are sworn enemies, share concerns


JewishWorldReview.com |

JEL AVIV — (TCSM) Wikileaks' publication of US diplomatic cables could have sparked a fresh controversy between Israel and its most important ally after a year of strained relations.

But instead, Wikileaks' release of the documents on Sunday has proved to be something of a public relations coup for Israel: on-the-record confirmation that its Arab neighbors are just as frightened as the Jewish state by a nuclear Iran. The cables confirmed previous anonymous reports that Israel has quiet partners in the region pushing the US to take bolder steps to stop what they consider an existential threat.

"I don't see any damage. Quite the opposite,'' said Israeli Finance Minister Yuval Steinitz, in an interview with Israel Radio. "Maybe there's an indirect benefit that the truth is coming out, that the entire Middle East, including Arab states, are very fearful from the Iranian nuclear threat, and are calling on the West to be much more aggressive toward Iran.''

CANDID ASSESSMENTS FROM ARAB STATES
Analysts and officials pointed to candid assessments from the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt that Iran posed the biggest strategic threat to regional stability. The assessments even stressed the need for considering conventional attacks on Tehran before its nuclear program becomes operational. Other officials pointed to a US diplomatic report in which Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad is compared to Adolf Hitler.

The revelation of regional support for Israel's hard-line approach to Iran was seen as such a boon that Sever Plocker, a columnist for the daily Yediot Ahronot newspaper, quipped, "If the WikiLeaks site did not exist, Israel would have to invent it.''

"The massive leak of American diplomatic telegrams indicates a single picture, sharp and clear," he added. "The entire world, not just Israel, is panicked over the Iranian nuclear program.''

New details about Israel's Iran strategy and relations with Arab neighbors — such as Mossad chief Meir Dagan's plan for regime change in Iran, and repeated Israeli warnings about Tehran's looming nuclear weapons program — were played down by analysts and officials as unsurprising.

CABLES COULD WEAKEN US — AND THUS ISRAEL
But beyond the momentary public relations dividend, one Israeli veteran of diplomacy said the widespread fear of Iran among America's Arab allies does not bode well for the Obama administration's foreign policy — particularly its efforts to engage Iran diplomatically.

"When Obama decided on negotiating with Iran, he was doing exactly the opposite of what the American allies are thinking,'' says Shlomo Avineri, a political science professor at Hebrew University and a former director general of the Israeli Foreign Ministry. "Obama has made all of his friends nervous, and the Iranians are spitting in his face."

Other observers said the publication of classified US communiques weakens the international standing of Israel's most important ally — a trend that could hamper Arab-Israeli peace mediation efforts and ultimately weaken Israel, which relies heavily on the diplomatic and military weight of the United States.

"The superpower looks weakened,'' says Alon Liel, a former director general of the Israeli Foreign Ministry. "The fact that the US doesn't look good especially in the Middle East … lowers the chances for Israel to become an integral part of the region.'

My Chanukah youtube videos

Sukkot-Hannukah connection JewU 244
Thanksgiving Rabbi Jonathan Ginsburg Jewu 447
Chanukah miracle needed today JewU305
Hannukah The real story JewU 31
Menorah Hanukah lighting rabbi Jonath jewu 452
Jews, Hanukah, and the Christmas dilemma JewU290
Hanukah message don't let the lights go out JewU 312
Our annual Chanukah party part 2 JewU307
Our annual Chanukah party part 1 JewU306
Hannukah songs and blessings sung JewU 69
How to play Chanukah dredyl JewU281

Helen Thomas Go back to lebanon?

Questions to ask by Rabbi ArthurLavinsky

There are many Palestinians who suffer in the Gaza Strip. That is a terrible
shame. But the blame does not rest with Israel. After all, it is not the
Israelis (who GAVE the Gaza to the Palestinians) who voted in a band of murderers
like Hamas to rule them. It is Hamas which states that its very reason
for being is to destroy the Jewish State. Why is there a need for a blockade
against Gaza. There are at least 4000 reasons, each represented by
rockets hat have been fired from Gaza towards population centers in Israel.
Sadly, t is true that the Palestinians in Gaza need pipes to carry water and
to emove sewage. But when pipes have been brought to Gaza, they've been
turned nto rockets and bombs. Indeed, they need cement to build schools,
hospitals, and homes, but when they had cement, they built bunkers next
to hospitals and schools and homes so that they can fire their rockets and
then retreat to safety.

Let us be clear. The so called peace activists are in fact provocateurs.
The so called human rights activists are, for the most part, enemies of
Israel, the United States and democracy
If they were so worried about human suffering, they would be petitioning
Hamas to release Gilad Shalit who was unlawfully kidnapped almost four
years ago
My friends, I have some questions that I want you to answer for me.
If the purpose of this flotilla was to bring much needed aid into the
Gaza Strip, was there any reason for them NOT to dock at the Israeli port of
Ashdod for a lawful inspection?
If the intentions of the passengers aboard this flotilla were truly
peaceful, would they have attacked the Israeli soldiers with chains and
knives and pipes?
If their intentions were pure, would they have shouted repeatedly "eath to
the Jews?
If the inhabitants of Gaza were in such dire need of humanitarian
supplies,would Hamas have turned away the tons of aid carried aboard this
flotilla fter having passed through Israeli security?

Live Broadcast of Kabbalat shabbat service tonight 8 PM Chicago time www.ustream.tv/channel/esynagogue-org

for future updates go to www.rabbireflects.blogspot.com

Holocaust 2010 reminders Chavez attacking Jews

om the beginning of his rule in Venezuela, Hugo Chavez has stridently criticized Israel. In recent months, Chavez has found a more vulnerable target: the Jewish population inside Venezuela.

Last week, an angry mob broke out in Miranda, Venezuela’s second largest state. Reports indicate that the Mayor of Miranda’s capital city incited an angry group of Chavez supporters to paint Nazi swastikas on the home of an anti-Chavez Jewish politician, Governor Henrique Capriles Radonski. “We are showing Capriles that …people are opposed to his continuous attacks against the initiatives and socialist projects of president Chávez,” explained Los Teques Mayor Alirio Mendoza. Governor Radonski is a charismatic Chavez opponent, and has spent time in jail for a minor role in Venezuela’s failed coup of 2004. Further, since he is perhaps the only well-known Jewish politician in the country, it is easy to understand why he has become a prime target for irate Chavistas.