Another U.S. war looms in Persian Gulf

Persian Gulf
Major oil fields

As new Freedom Flotilla heads to Gaza, post-Libya USA, Britain, Israel punish Palestinians, heat up  provocation against Iran

Editing, re-reporting by Carolyn Bennett

Punitive measures continue

DESPITE 99 PERCENT

Israel yesterday in the wake of UNESCO’s vote to admit Palestine, announced continued punishment of a people whose land it occupies. Democracy Now reports in today's headlines that U.S.-allied Israel has announced plans to build 2,000 new settlement homes and to freeze the transfer of tax revenues owed to the Palestinian Authority. “Most of the new settlement homes will be built in occupied East Jerusalem, an area Palestinians claim as the capital of their future state.

“One Israeli official admitted the Israeli actions were agreed to as punishment after the vote at UNESCO.”

On Monday, the UNESCO General Conference admitted Palestine as a Member State. Palestine’s entry brings the number of UNESCO’s Member States to 195.

Gaza-bound ‘Freedom Waves’ 2011 flotilla
Irish ship Saoirse

Agence France Presse is reporting, “Two ships carrying medical aid and activists have set sail from Turkey in a new bid to break Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip.” A statement issued today “by the Freedom Waves group said the mini-flotilla made up of one Irish ship and one Canadian ship had left Fethiye on Turkey’s south coast on Wednesday afternoon and planned to arrive in Gaza on Friday.

“The group said the two boats, the Canadian Tahrir and the Irish Saoirse, were carrying 27 people, including journalists and crew members, along with $30,000 worth of medicines.”

AND THREATS INCREASE AND DEEPEN

Pushed from their land, Plug Pulled 

Also from the Occupied territories, Democracy Now reports, “Hacker Attack Cuts Off Phone and Web Service for Palestinians: Phone and internet service in the West Bank and Gaza has been largely cut off after all Palestinian IP [Internet Protocol]  addresses came under a sustained hacker attack.

“Palestinian officials said the sites were attacked in an ‘organized’ manner, using mirror servers. It is unclear who was behind the attack but some Palestinian officials blamed Israel.”

U.S. Britain, Israel pushing provocation against Iran

2003 U.S. led war
Persian Gulf State
Iraq

U.S. allied against Iran continues— “Israeli leaders are gathering support to attack Iran

“The Israeli newspaper Ha’aretz is reporting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak are trying to muster a majority in the cabinet in favor of military action against Iran.

“Netanyahu and Barak have reportedly persuaded Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman to support such an attack. Early Tuesday, Israel reportedly test fired a ballistic missile.”

IRAN

Guardian today reports U.S., Britain amassing enormous power for another war, “Israel has successfully test-fired a missile capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and striking Iran, fanning a public debate over whether the country’s leaders are agitating for a military attack on Tehran’s atomic facilities.

“While Israeli leaders have long warned that a military strike was an option, the most intensive round of public discourse on the subject was ignited over the weekend by a report in the Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot that said the prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, and the defense minister, Ehud Barak, favored an attack.

“That was followed by a report in the Haaretz on Wednesday that Netanyahu is lobbying cabinet members for an attack, despite the complexity of the operation and the likelihood it would draw a deadly retaliation from Iran. An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Netanyahu did not yet have a majority.

“An Israeli defense official told the Associated Press that the military tested a ‘rocket propulsion system’ in an exercise planned long ago.

“Further information about the test was censored by the military. However, foreign reports said the military test-fired a long-range Jericho missile – capable of carrying a nuclear warhead and striking Iran.”

Also in the Guardian, “Last weekend, the New York Times reported that the U.S. was looking to build up its military presence in the region, with one eye on Iran. According to the paper, the United States is considering sending more naval warships to the area, and is seeking to expand military ties with the six nations in the Gulf Co-operation Council: Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and Oman.

“The Ministry of Defense believes the U.S. may decide to fast-forward plans for targeted missile strikes at some key Iranian facilities. British officials say that if Washington presses ahead, it [Britain] will seek and receive UK military help for any mission — despite some deep reservations within the coalition government.

“In anticipation of a potential attack, British military planners are examining where best to deploy Royal Navy ships and submarines equipped with Tomahawk cruise missiles over the coming months as part of what would be an air- and sea-launched campaign.

“Last year, the UN Security Council imposed a fourth round of sanctions on Iran to try to deter Tehran from pursuing any nuclear ambitions.”

Sources and notes

Democracy Now November 2, 2011, http://www.democracynow.org/2011/11/2/headlines

UNESCO Member States

List of the 194 Member States (and the 8 Associate Members) of UNESCO and the date on which they became members (or Associate Members) of the Organization, as of October 27,   2011

Flag	Country	Date (yyyy/mm/dd)
	Afghanistan	1948-5-4
	Albania	1958-10-16
	Algeria	1962-10-15
	Andorra	1993-10-20
	Angola	1977-3-11
	Antigua and Barbuda	1982-7-15
	Argentina	1948-9-15
	Armenia	1992-6-9
	Australia	1946-11-4
	Austria	1948-8-13
	Azerbaijan	1992-6-3
	Bahamas	1981-4-23
	Bahrain	1972-1-18
	Bangladesh	1972-10-27
	Barbados	1968-10-24
	Belarus	1954-5-12
	Belgium	1946-11-29
	Belize	1982-5-10
	Benin	1960-10-18
	Bhutan	1982-4-13
	Bolivia (Plurinational State of) (1)	1946-11-13
	Bosnia and Herzegovina	1993-6-2
	Botswana	1980-1-16
	Brazil	1946-11-4
	Brunei Darussalam	2005-3-17
	Bulgaria	1956-5-17
	Burkina Faso	1960-11-14
	Burundi	1962-11-16
	Cambodia	1951-7-3
	Cameroon	1960-11-11
	Canada	1946-11-4
	Cape Verde	1978-2-15
	Central African Republic	1960-11-11
	Chad	1960-12-19
	Chile	1953-7-7
	China	1946-11-4
	Colombia	1947-10-31
	Comoros	1977-3-22
	Congo	1960-10-24
	Cook Islands	1989-10-25
	Costa Rica	1950-5-19
	Côte d'Ivoire	1960-10-27
	Croatia	1992-6-1
	Cuba	1947-8-29
	Cyprus	1961-2-6
	Czech Republic	1993-2-22
	Democratic People's Republic of Korea	1974-10-18
	Democratic Republic of the Congo	1960-11-25
	Denmark	1946-11-4
	Djibouti	1989-8-31
	Dominica	1979-1-9
	Dominican Republic	1946-11-4
	Ecuador	1947-1-22
	Egypt	1946-11-4
	El Salvador	1948-4-28
	Equatorial Guinea	1979-11-29
	Eritrea	1993-9-2
	Estonia	1991-10-14
	Ethiopia	1955-7-1
	Fiji	1983-7-14
	Finland	1956-10-10
	France	1946-11-4
	Gabon	1960-11-16
	Gambia	1973-8-1
	Georgia	1992-10-7
	Germany	1951-7-11
	Ghana	1958-4-11
	Greece	1946-11-4
	Grenada	1975-2-17
	Guatemala	1950-1-2
	Guinea	1960-2-2
	Guinea-Bissau	1974-11-1
	Guyana	1967-3-21
	Haiti	1946-11-18
	Honduras	1947-12-16
	Hungary	1948-9-14
	Iceland	1964-6-8
	India	1946-11-4
	Indonesia	1950-5-27
	Iran, Islamic Republic of	1948-9-6
	Iraq	1948-10-21
	Ireland	1961-10-3
	Israel	1949-9-16
	Italy	1948-1-27
	Jamaica	1962-11-7
	Japan	1951-7-2
	Jordan	1950-6-14
	Kazakhstan	1992-5-22
	Kenya	1964-4-7
	Kiribati	1989-10-24
	Kuwait	1960-11-18
	Kyrgyzstan	1992-6-2
	Lao People's Democratic Republic	1951-7-9
	Latvia	1991-10-14
	Lebanon	1946-11-4
	Lesotho	1967-9-29
	Liberia	1947-3-6
	Libya (2)	1953-6-27
	Lithuania	1991-10-7
	Luxembourg	1947-10-27
	Madagascar	1960-11-10
	Malawi	1964-10-27
	Malaysia	1958-6-16
	Maldives	1980-7-18
	Mali	1960-11-7
	Malta	1965-2-10
	Marshall Islands	1995-6-30
	Mauritania	1962-1-10
	Mauritius	1968-10-25
	Mexico	1946-11-4
	Micronesia (Federated States of)	1999-10-19
	Monaco	1949-7-6
	Mongolia	1962-11-1
	Montenegro (3)	2007-3-1
	Morocco	1956-11-7
	Mozambique	1976-10-11
	Myanmar	1949-6-27
	Namibia	1978-11-2
	Nauru	1996-10-17
	Nepal (4)	1953-5-1
	Netherlands	1947-1-1
	New Zealand	1946-11-4
	Nicaragua	1952-2-22
	Niger	1960-11-10
	Nigeria	1960-11-14
	Niue	1993-10-26
	Norway	1946-11-4
	Oman	1972-2-10
	Pakistan	1949-9-14
	Palau	1999-9-20
	Panama	1950-1-10
	Papua New Guinea	1976-10-4
	Paraguay	1955-6-20
	Peru	1946-11-21
	Philippines	1946-11-21
	Poland	1946-11-6
	Portugal (5)	1974-9-11
	Qatar	1972-1-27
	Republic of Korea	1950-6-14
	Republic of Moldova	1992-5-27
	Romania	1956-7-27
	Russian Federation	1954-4-21
	Rwanda	1962-11-7
	Saint Kitts and Nevis	1983-10-26
	Saint Lucia	1980-3-6
	Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	1983-1-14
	Samoa	1981-4-3
	San Marino	1974-11-12
	Sao Tome and Principe	1980-1-22
	Saudi Arabia	1946-11-4
	Senegal	1960-11-10
	Serbia (6)	2000-12-20
	Seychelles	1976-10-18
	Sierra Leone	1962-3-28
	Singapore	2007-10-8
	Slovakia	1993-2-9
	Slovenia	1992-5-27
	Solomon Islands	1993-9-7
	Somalia	1960-11-15
	South Africa (7)	1994-12-12
	South Sudan	2011-10-27
	Spain	1953-1-30
	Sri Lanka	1949-11-14
	Sudan	1956-11-26
	Suriname	1976-7-16
	Swaziland	1978-1-25
	Sweden	1950-1-23
	Switzerland	1949-1-28
	Syrian Arab Republic	1946-11-16
	Tajikistan	1993-4-6
	Thailand	1949-1-1
	The former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia	1993-6-28
	Timor-Leste	2003-6-5
	Togo	1960-11-17
	Tonga	1980-9-29
	Trinidad and Tobago	1962-11-2
	Tunisia	1956-11-8
	Turkey	1946-11-4
	Turkmenistan	1993-8-17
	Tuvalu	1991-10-21
	Uganda	1962-11-9
	Ukraine	1954-5-12
	United Arab Emirates	1972-4-20
	United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (8)	1997-7-1
	United Republic of Tanzania	1962-3-6
	United States of America (9)	2003-10-1
	Uruguay	1947-11-8
	Uzbekistan	1993-10-26
	Vanuatu	1994-2-10
	Venezuela (Bolivarian Republic of)	1946-11-25
	Viet Nam	1951-7-6
	Yemen	1962-4-2
	Zambia	1964-11-9
	Zimbabwe	1980-9-22

Associate Members

Flag	Country	Date (yyyy/mm/dd)
	Aruba	1987-10-20
	British Virgin Islands	1983-11-24
	Cayman Islands	1999-10-30
	Curaçao	2011-10-25
	Faroes	2009-10-12
	Macao, China	1995-10-25
	Sint Maarten	2011-10-25
	Tokelau	2001-10-15

http://www.unesco.org/new/en/member-states/countries/

“UK military steps up plans for Iran attack amid fresh nuclear fears — British officials consider contingency options to back up a possible US action as fears mount over Tehran’s capability” (Nick Hopkins guardian.co.uk), Wednesday November 2, 2011, http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/02/uk-military-iran-attack-nuclear

“Israeli army test-fires missile capable of reaching Iran — Defense official says military tested rocket propulsion system as reports suggest country's leaders in favor of attacking Tehran” (Associated Press in Jerusalem, guardian.co.uk), Wednesday November 2, 2011, http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/nov/02/israeli-army-test-fires-missile

Monday October 31, 2011, UNESCO’s General Conference voted to admit Palestine as a Member State of the Organization

FREEDOM SHIP to GAZA

“Aid ships in new bid to run Gaza blockade: activists,” AFP, November 2, 2011, http://news.yahoo.com/aid-ships-bid-run-gaza-blockade-activists-165321563.html

From Ha’aretz on Israel:

“Netanyahu trying to persuade cabinet to support attack on Iran — Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who previously objected to attacking Iran, was recently persuaded by Netanyahu and Barak to support such a move” (Barak Ravid, Amos Harel, Zvi Zrahiya and Jonathan Lis), November 2, 2011,

http://www.haaretz.com/print-edition/news/netanyahu-trying-to-persuade-cabinet-to-support-attack-on-iran-1.393214

“Israel Navy tracks new Gaza-bound flotilla — Two ships leave Turkey carrying between 20 to 30 pro-Palestinian activists; IDF says plans to intercept vessels, offer them to dock at Ashdod or port in Egypt” (Anshel Pfeffer), November2, 2011, http://www.haaretz.com/news/diplomacy-defense/israel-navy-tracks-new-gaza-bound-flotilla-1.393365

CAPTIONS

Britannica maps

Iraq War flames 2003:

Explosions illuminating the skies of Baghdad during the U.S.-led air bombardment of the city, March 2003.

The Persian Gulf

Photo Irish ship Saoirse

“The Irish ship Saoirse is seen in the Turkish port of Gocek, Mugla, June 2011. Two ships carrying medical aid and activists have set sail from Turkey in a new bid to to break Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip, pro-Palestinian activists said on Wednesday. (AFP)

“The Gaza-bound ‘Freedom Waves’ flotilla set sail from the Turkish port of Fethiye earlier today. The flotilla plans on illegally delivering supplies to Gaza. They hope to reach Gaza by Friday”

http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2011/11/gaza-bound-flotilla-freedom-waves-sets-sail-from-turkish-port/

Terms Wikipedia note

The Internet Protocol (IP) is the principal communications protocol used for relaying datagrams (packets) across an internetwork using the Internet Protocol Suite. Responsible for routing packets across network boundaries, it is the primary protocol that establishes the Internet.

_________________________________

Bennett's books are available in New York State independent bookstores: Lift Bridge Bookshop: www.liftbridgebooks.com [Brockport, NY]; Sundance Books: http://www.sundancebooks.com/main.html [Geneseo, NY]; Mood Makers Books: www.moodmakersbooks.com [City of Rochester, NY]; Dog Ears Bookstore and Literary Arts Center: www.enlightenthedog.org/ [Buffalo, NY]; Burlingham Books – ‘Your Local Chapter’: http://burlinghambooks.com/ [Perry, NY 14530]; The Bookworm: http://www.eabookworm.com/ [East Aurora, NY] • See also: World Pulse: Global Issues through the eyes of Women: http://www.worldpulse.com/ http://www.worldpulse.com/pulsewire

_________________________________